- Anderson Silva holds the record for the longest win streak in the UFC, as he went unbeaten for 16 fights
- The Spider was the Middleweight champion for a total of 2,457 days, a feat which has not been broken since
- The UFC will honour the Brazilian's legendary career by inducting him into the 2023 Hall of Fame
There’s no doubt that Anderson Silva will go down as one of the greatest MMA fighters of all time.
The Spider inspired a new generation of fighters as he went on to dominate the Middleweight division in the UFC.
Source: Getty Images
The Brazilian’s legendary career will now be immortalised, as he is set to be inducted into the UFC’s Hall of Fame, MMA Junkie reported.
The announcement was made during UFC 286 in London, which was headlined by Leon Edwards defending against Kamaru Usman.
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Silva will be part of the Class of 2023 alongside former champions Jose Aldo and Jens Pulver. The UFC made the announcement by releasing a video of Silva’s achievements throughout his career, with tributes from fellow fighters.
Superstars like TJ Dillashaw and Israel Adesanya credited Silva with inspiring their careers.
Silva’s impressive record.
The Spider won an impressive 34 fights during his professional career, but it’s his record in the UFC that really stands out. Silva won 17 fights in the UFC and holds the longest championship reign in UFC title history. Silva was champion for a total of 2,457 days.
He also owns the record for the longest win streak at 16. Kamaru Usman's streak was at 15 when he lost to Leon Edwards in their second bout.
Who did Silva beat?
The Brazilian beat some big names during his historic run as champion. Below is the list of fighters Silva beat, and how he beat them, as noted by UFC Stats.
Opponent | Event | Method of Victory | Round |
Chris Leben | UFC Fight Night 5 | KO | 1 |
Rich Franklin | UFC 64: Unstoppable | KO | 1 |
Travis Lutter | UFC 67: All or Nothing | Submission | 2 |
Nate Marquardt | UFC 73: Stacked | KO | 1 |
Rich Franklin | UFC 77: Hostile Territory | KO | 2 |
Dan Henderson | UFC 82: Pride of a Champion | Submission | 2 |
James Irvin | UFC: Silva vs Irvin | TKO | 1 |
Patrick Cote | UFC 90: Silva vs Cote | TKO | 3 |
Thales Leites | UFC 97: Redemption | Unanimous Decision | 5 |
Forrest Griffin | UFC 101: Declaration | KO | 1 |
Demian Maia | UFC 112: Invincible | Unanimous Decision | 5 |
Chael Sonnen | UFC 117: Silva vs Sonnen | Submission | 5 |
Vitor Belfort | UFC 126: Silva vs Belfort | KO | 1 |
Yushin Okami | UFC 134: Silva vs Okami | TKO | 2 |
Chael Sonnen | UFC 148: Silva vs Sonnen 2 | KO | 2 |
Stephan Bonnar | UFC 153: Silva vs Bonnar | TKO | 1 |
Silva's best finishers
Dana White’s praise for Silva
As noted by CBS Sport, UFC president Dana White was full of praise for the Brazilian.
"Anderson's 16-fight winning streak in the UFC, 10 successful title defences and almost seven years as middleweight champion were one of the most remarkable things we've ever seen in professional sports.
“He was an absolute artist inside the Octagon, and it will be an honour to induct him into the UFC Hall of Fame this summer," he said.
Most title defences in UFC
Anderson Silva has one of the most impressive runs as champion in the UFC.
Silva began his reign as UFC middleweight champion in 2006 when he knocked out Rich Franklin at UFC 64, Sports Brief reported.
He successfully defended his title 10 times before Chris Weidman ended his reign over the division in 2013.
