UFC President Dana White announced Friday that Anderson Silva will face Derek Brunson at UFC 208.
He revealed the bout via Twitter:
Anderson "The Spider" Silva vs Derek Brunson #UFC208 in Brooklyn. pic.twitter.com/wvCVA9utTi
— Dana White (@danawhite) January 13, 2017
UFC 208 will take place Feb. 11 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, and is scheduled to be headlined by a featherweight title fight between Holly Holm and Germaine de Randamie.
The 41-year-old Silva is an MMA legend with a career record of 33-8. He is a former UFC middleweight champion who won 17 consecutive fights from 2006 until 2013.
The Spider's results have faltered since then. He is 0-4 with one no-contest in his past five outings, including a unanimous-decision loss to Daniel Cormier at UFC 200 in July.
Brunson is a 33-year-old native of North Carolina who boasts a professional record of 16-4.
While he lost his most recent bout to Robert Whittaker at UFC Fight Night 101 in November, he was on a five-fight winning streak prior to that.
Although Silva and Brunson appear to be heading in different directions in regard to success, Simon Head of The Brit Pack thinks it might be an exciting contest:
Interesting matchup, this. Silva’s surgical striking against Brunson’s blitzing style. Somehow I doubt we’ll need the judges. #UFC208 https://t.co/Pim4cVM6uP
— Simon Head?? (@simonhead) January 13, 2017
Silva is undoubtedly an all-time great, but as his losses continue to mount, it becomes more likely that the end of his career is near.
His clash with Brunson could be one of his final fights, and that possibility alone could aid in driving pay-per-view buys for the UFC.
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