Sonne (German for Sun) may refer to a number of things:

• "Sonne" (song), a song by German band Rammstein
• "Sonne" (Farin Urlaub song)
• RV Sonne, a German research vessel
• Sonne (navigation), a WWII-era radio navigation system also known as Consol

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Chael Sonnen
Chael Sonnen at UFC 115 in Vancouver, Canada, on June 11, 2010.
Born	Chael Patrick Sonnen (1977-04-03) April 3, 1977 (age 35) West Linn, Oregon, United States
Other names	The Foreman American Gangster[1] The People's Champ[2]
Nationality	American
Height	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight	185.5 lb (84 kg; 13 st 4 lb)
Division	Middleweight (185 lb) Light Heavyweight (205 lb)
Reach	74 in (188 cm)
Stance	Southpaw
Fighting out of	Portland, Oregon, United States
Team	Team Quest
Wrestling	NCAA Division I Wrestling Olympic Alternate Greco-Roman wrestling
Years active	1997, 2002–present (MMA)[3][4]
Mixed martial arts record
Total	39
Wins	27
By knockout	7
By submission	4
By decision	16
Losses	11
By knockout	2
By submission	8
By decision	1
Draws	1
Amateur career
Total	2
Wins	2
By knockout	2
Other information
Occupation	Mixed martial artist, promoter and entrepreneur
University	University of Oregon
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog
last updated on: October 11, 2011

Chael Patrick Sonnen^[5] (pronounced /ˈtʃeɪl ˈsʌnən/; born April 3, 1977) is an American mixed martial artist who competes as a middleweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He was an NCAA Division I All-American wrestler at the University of Oregon, a silver medalist at the 2000 Greco-Roman World University Championships,^[6] as well as a two-time Dave Schultz Memorial International Greco-Roman winner.

As of October 2011^[update], Sonnen is ranked as the No. 2 middleweight in the world by Sherdog.^[7]

Early life[link]

Sonnen was born Chael Patrick Sonnen on April 3, 1977 in West Linn, Oregon.

Mixed martial arts career[link]

Sonnen started his MMA career at the age of 19 in 1997 by defeating Ben Hailey in Vancouver, Washington. His second fight was against future ICON Sport Middleweight Champion and Strikeforce Middleweight contender Jason "Mayhem" Miller. Sonnen went 6–0 in his first six fights, until his loss to Trevor Prangley, which he later avenged in 2006 at UFC Ultimate Fight Night 4. He also fought The Ultimate Fighter winner and former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Forrest Griffin.

UFC[link]

Sonnen made his UFC debut against former IFC and Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion Renato Sobral at UFC 55, where Sonnen fought for his first time at Light Heavyweight. He lost via triangle choke in the second round. Afterwards, he avenged his first ever MMA defeat by defeating Trevor Prangley at UFC Ultimate Fight Night 4 by unanimous decision. Then, for a third time, he fought Jeremy Horn at UFC 60 and lost via armbar. Having gone 1–2 in the Octagon, Sonnen was released from the UFC.

Bodog Fight[link]

After leaving the UFC, Sonnen was signed by Bodog Fight. He earned his first victory in Bodog Fight by defeating Tim Credeur via TKO. After that he fought Alexey Oleinik to a unanimous decision victory, and defeated Tim McKenzie via brabo choke within the first 15 seconds of the opening round. After quickly dismantling McKenzie, Sonnen fought UFC and Pride veteran Amar Suloev and won via TKO. After Bodog, Sonnen defeated future Ultimate Fighter member Kyacey Uscola at SuperFight 20: Homecoming.

World Extreme Cagefighting[link]

In December 2007, Sonnen fought Paulo Filho for the WEC middleweight championship. Sonnen lost via submission at 4:55 of the second round. There was controversy stemming from the fight stoppage, however. Sonnen did not tap out but yelled out, and the referee took that as a verbal submission and stopped the fight. In his post-fight interview Sonnen said that he told the referee not to stop the fight, and continually said "No" when the referee asked if he wanted to submit.^[8]

A rematch between the two was scheduled for March 26, 2008, but was cancelled due to Paulo Filho checking himself into a rehabilitation clinic for an unknown substance abuse problem.^[9] Sonnen instead faced undefeated WEC middleweight contender Bryan Baker and dominated him for three rounds, winning a unanimous decision.^[10] Sonnen and Filho eventually met again on November 5, 2008, where Sonnen soundly defeated Filho by unanimous decision. Prior to the fight, Filho did not make weight, weighing in at close to seven pounds over 185, thus making the bout a non-title match and taking away the chance for Sonnen to rematch for the WEC title. After Filho lost, he announced he would ship Sonnen the championship belt.^[11]

Return to UFC[link]

Following the dissolution of the WEC's middleweight division Sonnen was moved back over to the UFC, in his first fight in the promotion since UFC 60, he lost via triangle choke to Demian Maia at UFC 95.

Sonnen defeated Dan Miller at UFC 98 on May 23 via unanimous decision. Sonnen showed his willingness and toughness as a fighter and came in as a late replacement for Yushin Okami when Okami sustained a torn ligament in training.^[12] Sonnen took the fight on 22 days notice and lost 36 pounds to compete.^[13] Incidentally in his next fight, Sonnen out-wrestled Okami at UFC 104 to a unanimous decision victory.^[14] The weeks proceeding the fight, Okami trained with Chael Sonnen and his camp for a number of weeks. Chael Sonnen commented on Okami's size, strength and skill set as well as his relationship with Okami as something close to a brother.

Sonnen was expected to face Nate Marquardt on February 21, 2010 at UFC 110, but the fight was moved up and the two fought at UFC 109 on February 6, with Sonnen winning via unanimous decision after out-wrestling the heavily favored Marquardt for three rounds. Marquardt caught Sonnen in two very deep guillotine chokes in the first and third rounds; however, Sonnen managed to get free. With the victory, Sonnen solidified his position as the next fighter in line to challenge Anderson Silva for the UFC Middleweight Championship.

Middleweight Championship Fight[link]

Sonnen fought Anderson Silva for the UFC Middleweight Championship on August 7, 2010 at UFC 117.^[15] Sonnen trash talked during the build up to the fight, which caused some controversy, as he stated that he was going to retire Silva.^[16][17][18] Sonnen won each of the first four rounds on all of the judges' scorecards, with the score heading into the fifth round being 40–34, 40–35, and 40–36.^[19][20] However in the final round Sonnen found himself caught in a triangle/armbar combination by the champion. Sonnen tapped and lost the fight by triangle at 3:10 in the fifth round. Sonnen later stated in an interview it was the choke, not the armbar, that had caused him to submit.

CSAC Suspensions and Appeals[link]

Drug tests conducted at the time of his match with Anderson Silva showed that Sonnen had an elevated testosterone/epitestosterone (or T/E) ratio which fell outside the allowable range. Specifically, Sonnen’s urinalysis showed that his T/E ratio was 16.9:1. By comparison, an average man has a T/E ratio of 1:1, and testing bodies such as CSAC may allow for a variance as high as 4:1 for athletes—meaning Sonnen's T/E ratio was nearly 17 times that of a normal man and more than four times higher than the allowed maximum for an athlete.^[21] Sonnen was fined $2,500 and suspended for one year (until September 2, 2011) by CSAC.^[22] Sonnen's scheduled rematch with Silva was cancelled in light of the suspension.^[23][24]

Initial Appeal[link]

Sonnen filed an appeal from CSAC's decision,^[25] and that hearing was held on December 2, 2010. The principal grounds of Sonnen's appeal were that: (i) he had a medical justification for taking testosterone; and (ii) he believed that he had already taken the necessary steps to disclose the condition and treatment to CSAC. Specifically, Sonnen testified that in 2008 he had been diagnosed with hypogonadism and was undergoing Testosterone replacement therapy (or TRT) in the form of synthetic testosterone which he self-injected twice weekly.^[26] Sonnen was joined at the hearing by his family physician, Dr. Mark Czarnecki, who confirmed that he had diagnosed Sonnen with hypogonadism and had prescribed the twice weekly testosterone injections in 2008.

In his further sworn testimony, Sonnen claimed to have been previously approved for TRT by the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC), and to have spoken directly to NSAC's Executive Director, Keith Kizer, who allegedly informed Sonnen that he was approved for TRT and should not again disclose the treatment on the pre-bout medical disclosure statements required by NSAC.^[27] Sonnen testified that he believed Keith Kizer's alleged advice about omitting his TRT on Nevada disclosure forms applied equally to the forms of other state Athletic Commissions.^[27] Additionally, Sonnen testified that he had previously disclosed his condition to CSAC, specifically citing his UFC 104 bout against Yushin Okami, which took place in Los Angeles on October 24, 2009.^[28] Based on the above sworn testimony, CSAC voted to re-characterize Sonnen's transgression as a failure to properly disclose a medical treatment, and correspondingly reduced his suspension from 12 to six months, ending March 2, 2011.

Keith Kizer has since publicly responded to Sonnen's testimony, stating that NSAC had never approved Sonnen for TRT, that Sonnen had never applied for the approval process, and that he "[had] never talked to Chael Sonnen in [his] life."^[23][29][30] At a subsequent meeting between the UFC, Sonnen, and NSAC, Kizer confronted Sonnen about the false testimony he had given at the December 2, 2010 CSAC hearing. According to Kizer, Sonnen initially deflected Kizer's questions, but when pressed further, admitted that no such conversation had occurred, explaining that "My manager and you talked about therapeutic exemptions, and therefore, I just used the wrong word. I should have said 'my' instead of 'I.' As in 'my manager' instead of 'I'" which Kizer said was a "strange story" and a "ridiculous explanation"^[31] Incidentally, Kizer has acknowledged speaking with Sonnen's manager, Matt Lindland, about TRT, but stated that the conversation concerned only the procedure itself, not the application of any particular fighter.^[32]

CSAC Executive Director, George Dodd has also contradicted Sonnen's testimony, stating that CSAC has no documentation evidencing that Sonnen was approved for TRT, either for October 24, 2009 fight with Okami, or at all.^[33]

As of January 2012^[update], there is no documented approval by CSAC, NSAC or any other state Athletic Commission to corroborate Sonnen's testimony that he has ever been approved for TRT.

Subsequent Suspension by CSAC[link]

Sonnen's abbreviated CSAC suspension expired on March 2, 2011. However, in the third week of April 2011, after working out the details with Kizer, the CSAC announced they had reversed their decision to lower his sentence, placing him on indefinite administrative suspension, due to his conviction for money laundering (see below), and his possibly false testimony during the hearing of December 2, 2010.^[32] Sonnen appeared before the Commission on May 18, 2011 to request that the suspension be lifted. After hearing testimony from Keith Kizer via streaming video, as well as Sonnen and his supporters, CSAC voted 4–1 to uphold Sonnen's indefinite suspension. Two days later, CSAC clarified that the applicable regulations only allowed for Sonnen to be suspended until his existing license expired (i.e., June 29, 2011).^[34] CSAC has stated that should Sonnen apply for a new license after June 29, 2011, he would have to re-appear before CSAC and it remained within the Commission's discretion to deny Sonnen's application.^[35]

Return to UFC[link]

After the expiration of his suspension related to his elevated testosterone/epitestosterone ratio, Sonnen returned to the UFC, defeating Brian Stann in the second round via arm triangle choke on October 8, 2011 at UFC 136.

With Silva expected to be sidelined until mid 2012 recovering from various injuries, Sonnen was expected to face Mark Muñoz on January 28, 2012 at UFC on Fox 2.^[36] However, Muñoz was forced out of the bout with an injury and replaced by Michael Bisping.^[37] He won the fight via unanimous decision.^[38]

A rematch with Anderson Silva was expected to take place on June 23, 2012 at UFC 147.^[39] However, on April 20, according to a published report from Sherdog.com, the bout is now expected to take place on July 7, 2012 at UFC 148, while the expected co-feature of the Brazilian event, a rematch between Vitor Belfort and Wanderlei Silva would headline that event. The changes are due to a scheduling conflict with the UN Conference, Rio+20, which will be occurring during the same time frame as the UFC event.^[40]

Money laundering conviction[link]

Sonnen pled guilty to charges of money laundering in connection with mortgage fraud on January 3, 2011. The maximum sentence is 20 years in prison and a $500,000 fine,^[41] but as a result of his plea and agreeing to cooperate with the investigation into a ring of mortgage fraud (cooperating as a witness against others involved^[42]), Sonnen is expected to receive two years probation, a $10,000 fine, and the revocation of his realtor license.^[43] Sonnen, a licensed realtor in the State of Oregon, admitted that a financial transaction he conducted was designed to conceal or disguise the ownership and control of the proceeds of wire fraud.^[44]

As the agent for a home sale, Sonnen told the title company to pay a plumbing company owned by Sonnen's mother^[45] for repairs, even though he knew that they would not be carried out.^[46] After the mortgage company agreed to the loan, the plumbing company was paid $69,000, and then the plumbing company, at Sonnen's direction, paid the home buyer $65,000.^[47]

Sonnen was fined $10,000 and sentenced to two years of probation.^[48]

Championships and accomplishments[link]

Amateur wrestling[link]

• National Collegiate Athletic Association
  • NCAA Division I All-American out of University of Oregon (1998)^[49][50]
  • NCAA Division I 190 lb – 8th place out of University of Oregon (1998)^[51]
  • Pac-10 Conference 190 lb – 5th place out of University of Oregon (1997)^[52]
• Oregon Wrestling Classic
  • Oregon Wrestling Classic 190 1b – 5th place (1997)^[52]
• University National Greco-Roman Championships
  • University National Greco-Roman Championships 190 1b – 3rd place out of University of Oregon (1997)^[52]
• World University Championships
  • World University Championships Greco-Roman Seniors 85 kg – second place (2000)^[53]
• Dave Schultz Memorial International
  • Dave Schultz Memorial International Greco-Roman Seniors 85 kg – winner (2000)^[54]
  • Dave Schultz Memorial International Greco-Roman Seniors 97 kg – winner (2001)^[55][56]
  • Dave Schultz Memorial International Greco-Roman Seniors 84 kg – third place (2002)^[57]

Mixed martial arts[link]

• Ultimate Fighting Championship
  • Fight of the Night (Two times)
• Gladiator Challenge
  • Gladiator Challenge Light Heavyweight Championship (One time)^[50]
• Hitman Fighting Productions
  • Hitman Light Heavyweight Championship (One time)^[50]
• Danger Zone
  • Danger Zone Light Heavyweight Championship (One time)^[50]
  • Danger Zone Light Heavyweight Tournament Winner
• Rumble at the River
  • Rumble at the River Tournament Winner^[50]
• World MMA Awards
  • Fight of the Year (2010) – Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen
• Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards
  • Best on Interviews (2010)^[58]

Mixed martial arts record[link]

See also[link]

• List of male mixed martial artists
• List of sportspeople sanctioned for doping offences

References[link]

External links[link]

• Professional MMA record for Chael Sonnen from Sherdog
• Chael Sonnen profile at the National Wrestling Hall of Fame
• Official UFC Profile
• Mixing Martial Arts Profile

Joe Rogan
Joe Rogan performs at a comedy club after UFC 70
Birth name	Joseph James Rogan[1]
Born	(1967-08-11) August 11, 1967 (age 44) Newark, New Jersey, U.S.
Medium	Stand-up, Presenter, Announcer, Podcaster
Nationality	American
Years active	1988—present
Genres	Satire/political satire, blue comedy, observational comedy
Subject(s)	Recreational drug use, self-deprecation, race relations, marriage, everyday life, parenting, current events, politics, religion
Influences	Richard Pryor, Bill Hicks, Sam Kinison
Spouse	Jessica Rogan (2009–present) 2 children, 1 step daughter
Notable works and roles	Joe Garrelli in NewsRadio Co-Host of The Man Show Host of Fear Factor Commentator for the UFC Author of the Book Space Monkey Host of The Joe Rogan Experience

Joseph James "Joe" Rogan (born August 11, 1967) is an American martial artist, stand-up comedian, actor, writer and color commentator. He is best known for playing Joe Garrelli on the NBC sitcom NewsRadio, commentating for the Ultimate Fighting Championship, hosting the NBC reality show Fear Factor and The Joe Rogan Experience podcast.

Early life[link]

Rogan was born in Newark, New Jersey.^[2] His paternal grandfather was Irish and the remainder of his ancestry is Italian.^[3]

Career[link]

Martial arts[link]

In 1981, at age fourteen, he became a practitioner of Kenpo Karate before transitioning to Taekwondo.^[4] He eventually gained a 2nd dan black belt.^[5] A four-time state champion in Massachusetts, in 1987 he was the USA Taekwondo U.S. Open Champion.^[6] In 1996, he began training in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Jean Jacques Machado, eventually earning his brown belt.^[7] In addition, he holds a brown belt in 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu under Eddie Bravo.^[8][9]

He also practiced and competed in kickboxing.^[10]

Acting[link]

In 1994, he co-starred on the Fox comedy Hardball as Frank Valente, the young, ego-centric star player on a fictional professional baseball team.^[11] From 1995 to 1999, he co-starred on the comedy NewsRadio. He portrayed Joe Garrelli, the electrician at WNYX, a news radio station in New York City.^[12] In 2002, he appeared on the episode "A Beautiful Mind" of Just Shoot Me as Chris, Maya Gallo's boyfriend.^[13] In 2011, Rogan played his first major character in a movie in the Kevin James movie Zookeeper.^[14] He is slated to play himself in an upcoming action-comedy starring Kevin James called Here Comes the Boom, set to be released in the summer of 2012.^[15]

Color commentary[link]

Rogan began working for the UFC in 1997, making his debut interviewing fighters at UFC 12: Judgement Day in Dothan, Alabama, before eventually becoming a color commentator for the promotion.^[16] He won the Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards in two occasions as Best Television Announcer. He was also named "MMA Personality of the Year" in the 2011 World MMA Awards.^[17]

Stand-up comedy[link]

Rogan has toured as a stand-up comedian and recorded several albums and specials, including Shiny Happy Jihad and Joe Rogan: Talking Monkeys in Space.

In 2007 Rogan confronted comedian Carlos Mencia on stage, accusing him of joke thievery.^[18] A video of the incident, created with Brian Redban, included evidence and supporting comments from other comedians, including George Lopez, Reverend Bob Levy, Bobby Lee and Ari Shaffir.^[19]

Hosting[link]

Rogan worked on the TV series Fear Factor, as a host of the United States version of the show. He hosted from June 11, 2001 through September 12, 2006. Rogan returned as the host of Fear Factor in the rebooted edition of the show, which aired December 12, 2011 on NBC.

In 2003, Rogan and Doug Stanhope replaced Jimmy Kimmel and Adam Carolla as co-hosts of The Man Show.^[20] They continued through the end of the show's run in 2004.

In December 2009, Rogan began hosting a regular podcast with concurrent live Ustream availability.^[21] Co-hosted by his friend and the show's producer Brian Redban, the podcast features an array of guests from the pursuits of comedy, acting and Mixed Martial Arts.^{[citation needed]} Now known as The Joe Rogan Experience, the show is regularly found in the Apple iTunes top 10 most downloaded comedy, and was named one of iTunes "Best of 2010" audio podcasts in its first year.

Personal life[link]

In 2008, Rogan and his wife to be, Jessica, had a baby girl.^[22] The couple married in 2009. In 2010, Rogan announced the birth of a second baby. Rogan also has a step daughter with his wife Jessica.^[23][24]

Although raised Roman Catholic,^[25] Rogan stated in September 2010, during a guest appearance on the Alex Jones radio show, that he does not follow any organized religions because he feels it is all the work of man. Rogan also said that he is not completely opposed to the concept of a "higher power" such as a God; however, he views the concept of God as part of nature that exists in everything.

Rogan has argued for the possibility of the moon landings being a hoax.^[26][27]

One of the recurring themes in his stand-up comedy and life is the use and support of cannabis, psilocybin mushrooms, and DMT. Rogan supports the medical and recreational use of cannabis.^[28] He has also starred in the marijuana documentary The Union: The Business Behind Getting High.^[29] Rogan was featured in the 2010 History Channel documentary, Marijuana: A Chronic History, as an advocate of legalized medical use of marijuana. He is also the presenter of the 2010 documentary, DMT: The Spirit Molecule, released in October 2010.

Comedy recordings[link]

• I'm Gonna Be Dead Someday (CD) (August 22, 2000)
• Live from the Belly of the Beast (DVD) (May 4–5, 2001)
• Joe Rogan: Live (DVD) (September 1, 2006)
• Shiny Happy Jihad (CD) (April 10, 2007)
• Talking Monkeys in Space (CD & DVD) (2010) Comedy Central Records

Awards and recognition[link]

• World MMA Awards
  • 2011 Personality of the Year
• Wrestling Observer Newsletter
  • 2010 Best Television Announcer
  • 2011 Best Television Announcer ^[30]
• Teen Choice Award,
  • Choice TV Reality/Variety Host for Fear Factor (2003, Nominated)

See also[link]

• List of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioners

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Joe Rogan on Twitter
• Joe Rogan on Youtube
• Fear Factor
• Interview from August 2008
• Joe Rogan at the Internet Movie Database
• Joe Rogan on his UFC career

Anderson Silva
The Spider
Born	Anderson da Silva[1] (1975-04-14) April 14, 1975 (age 37) São Paulo, Brazil[2]
Other names	The Spider[3]
Residence	Curitiba, Brazil
Nationality	Brazilian
Height	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)[4]
Weight	184 lb (83 kg; 13 st 2 lb)
Division	Welterweight (pre-2003) Middleweight Light Heavyweight
Reach	77.6 in (197 cm)
Stance	Southpaw
Fighting out of	Torrance, California, United States
Team	Chute Boxe Academy Muay Thai Dream Team Black House Team Nogueira
Trainer	Boxing: Josuel Distak and Luiz Dorea Jiu-Jitsu: Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Sylvio Behring and Ramon Lemos Wrestling: Mark Munoz
Rank	Black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Black belt in Judo Black belt in Taekwondo Yellow rope in Capoeira
Years active	1997 – present
Professional boxing record
Total	2
Wins	1
By knockout	1
Losses	1
By knockout	1
Mixed martial arts record
Total	35
Wins	31
By knockout	18
By submission	6
By decision	7
Losses	4
By submission	2
By decision	1
By disqualification	1
Other information
Children	5
Website	http://www.spideranderson.com/
Boxing record from Boxrec
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog
last updated on: September 14, 2011 (2011-09-14)

Anderson da Silva^[1] (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈɐ̃deʁsõ ˈsiwvɐ]; born April 14, 1975) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist. He is the current UFC Middleweight Champion^[5] and the promotion's longest reigning champion.^[6] With 14 consecutive wins and 9 title defenses, Silva holds the longest winning streak and title defense streak in UFC history.^[7]

Silva is ranked as the number one Middleweight in the world by multiple publications,^[8][9][10] and is the consensus No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world according to ESPN, Sherdog, Yahoo! Sports, MMAFighting.com and other publications.^[11][12][13] UFC president Dana White has proclaimed Silva as "the greatest mixed martial artist ever."^{[14][undue weight? – discuss]} Silva is also the last Cage Rage Middleweight Champion and a former Shooto Middleweight Champion. Besides the UFC and Cage Rage, Silva has fought for a number of other MMA promotions including the Pride Fighting Championships, Shooto and Rumble on the Rock.

Biography[link]

Although known primarily for his mastery of Muay Thai striking, Silva is also a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu blackbelt, a rank he earned in 2006 from Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira who follows Gracie Lineage through Carlson Gracie, like Murilo Bustamante and the Brazilian Top Team. He began martial arts training at the age of 14, training Tae kwon do and earning a black belt by the age of 18.^[15] He is also a black belt in Judo^[15] and a yellow rope in Capoeira.^[16]

Once a member of the Chute Boxe Academy, Silva left to form the Muay Thai Dream Team. In late November 2006, he joined new team Black House with Lyoto Machida, Vitor Belfort, Assuerio Silva, and the Nogueira brothers. ^[17][18][19]

Mixed martial arts career[link]

Early career[link]

Silva initially fought in his native Brazil in the welterweight category. According to Sherdog.com, Silva made his professional debut in 1997 with a pair of wins.^[3] Silva recorded his first loss in 2000 to Luiz Azeredo by decision. After that fight, he went on a nine-fight winning streak, winning six of those fights by either submission or TKO.^[3] After winning his first match in Japan he was put up against Shooto champion Hayato Sakurai on August 26, 2001. Silva beat Sakurai by unanimous decision after three rounds and became the new Shooto Middleweight Champion (at 167 lb) and the first man to defeat Sakurai who was undefeated in his first 20 fights.^[3]

Pride Fighting Championships[link]

In 2002, Silva began fighting in Pride. In his first fight with the promotion, he stopped Alex Stiebling with a cut resulting from a high kick. In his next match, he won via decision against the "Diet Butcher" Alexander Otsuka. At Pride 25, Silva faced former UFC welterweight champion Carlos Newton. Newton tried to shoot in on Silva, but was hit with a flying knee. Newton collapsed and Silva finished the fight with strikes, winning by technical knockout.^[3]

At Pride 26, Silva faced Daiju Takase. Considering his record at the time – with only four wins to seven losses – Takase was a big underdog. Surprisingly, after dominating most of the fight with takedowns, top position, and effective ground and pound, Takase submitted Silva with a triangle choke late in the first round.^[20] After his loss to Takase, Silva fought in other promotions around the world. On June 27, 2004, Silva fought Jeremy Horn and earned a decision victory.

Cage Rage[link]

Three months later, Silva made his debut in the Cage Rage promotion in England. At Cage Rage 8 Silva fought and defeated noted striker Lee Murray by decision.^[3] That year, Silva returned to Pride on December 31 to face Ryo Chonan. Silva was in control with a take down and body triangle in the first round. Chonan was able to counter Silva's knees from the clinch, with knees, and takedowns. Chonan was perceived by some to be winning up until the finish, as during the third round, Bas Rutten, who was commentating alongside Mauro Ranallo, stated that he believed Anderson must obtain a knockout or strong finish or he would lose the fight. Despite being the underdog, Chonan ended the fight in the third round with a flying scissor heel hook, forcing Silva to submit.^[3] After the loss to Chonan, Silva continued fighting in the Cage Rage promotion, as well as other promotions around the world. Silva defended his Cage Rage title against Curtis Stout.

Although he was slated to fight Matt Lindland at Cage Rage 16, Lindland's decision to fight Mike Van Arsdale at Raze Fight Night put an end to the highly-anticipated match up. Instead, Silva defended his championship against Tony Fryklund, winning the fight with a reverse elbow, knocking out Fryklund early in the first round.^[21]

Silva vs. Okami[link]

Silva competed in Hawaii's Rumble on the Rock promotion, where he fought Yushin Okami in the first round of the 175 lb tournament. Although he was labeled as the favorite to win the tournament, Silva lost his fight when he kicked Okami in the face from the guard position. Okami's knees were on the ground at the time, making the attack an illegal strike to the head of a downed opponent. Silva later said that the rule had not been properly explained to him before the bout. "When I fought Okami the rules really weren't explained to me properly in the event I was fighting in," said Silva. "You could kick a downed opponent to the groin or to the head when your back's on the ground. So the rules weren’t explained to me properly."^[22] While Okami was given the opportunity to recover and continue fighting, Okami opted for the disqualification win. Silva responded by saying he "felt it was a cheap, cowardly way of winning," and that "people that were there saw that he was in the condition to come back and keep fighting, and he didn't."^[23]

Ultimate Fighting Championship[link]

Although speculation ran rampant about where Silva would sign next, the UFC announced in late April 2006 that they had signed him to a multi-fight contract. It was not long before the UFC started promoting Silva, releasing an interview segment almost immediately after announcing his arrival.^[24]

Silva made his debut at Ultimate Fight Night 5 on June 28, 2006. His opponent was The Ultimate Fighter 1 contestant Chris Leben who had gone undefeated in the UFC with five consecutive victories. Leben, confident of victory, had predicted he would KO Silva in a pre-fight interview. A relatively unknown fighter in the United States, Silva made an emphatic debut when he knocked out Leben with a flurry of pinpoint strikes, followed by a final knee strike at 49 seconds into the first round. Silva's striking accuracy was 100%.

Middleweight champion[link]

In response to the victory, the UFC tallied a poll on their main page, asking viewers to select Silva's next opponent. The majority of voters selected the UFC Middleweight Champion Rich Franklin. Silva fought Franklin at UFC 64 on October 14, 2006, and defeated him by TKO (strikes) at 2:59 in the first round. Silva hit Franklin with knees to the body from the Muay Thai-clinch, then badly broke Franklin's nose with a knee to the face.^[25] Unable to strike back, Franklin dodged the last of Silva's strikes before falling to the ground, where referee "Big" John McCarthy ended the fight. Silva was crowned the new UFC Middleweight Champion, becoming the second man to defeat Franklin, after Black House-teammate Lyoto Machida.

Title defenses and light heavyweight bouts[link]

UFC 67

On February 3, 2007 at UFC 67, Silva was scheduled to fight The Ultimate Fighter 4 winner Travis Lutter in what would be his first title defense since defeating Rich Franklin in October 2006. However, Lutter failed to make the 185 pounds (84 kg) weight limit and the match was changed to a non-title bout.^[26] Many felt that Lutter's best chance to win was to take the fight to the ground, with Lutter being an accomplished Jiu-Jitsu blackbelt. Silva won via submission with combination of a triangle choke and elbow strikes in the second round.

UFC 73

In his next fight at UFC 73 on July 7, 2007, Silva successfully defended his title against Nate Marquardt, winning by TKO at 4:50 in the first round.

UFC 77

Three months later, on October 20, 2007 at UFC 77, Silva fought a title defense rematch against Rich Franklin, in Franklin's hometown of Cincinnati, Ohio at the U.S. Bank Arena.^[27] Silva defended his belt by defeating Franklin via TKO in the 2nd round.

UFC 82

On March 1, 2008 at UFC 82 Silva fought Pride Middleweight champion Dan Henderson, in a title unification bout (UFC and Pride titles on the line). Again, many thought that Henderson had the edge on the ground, having competed in the 1992 and 1996 Summer Olympics in Greco-Roman wrestling. Silva defended his title by defeating Henderson via rear naked choke in the 2nd round.

UFC Fight Night 14

At UFC Fight Night: Silva vs. Irvin on July 19, 2008, Silva made his debut at Light Heavyweight (205 lb (93 kg)) in a bout against James Irvin. Silva won via KO due to strikes in 1:01 of the first round after catching Irvin's attempted leg kick with his left arm and delivering a straight right that dropped Irvin to the mat, Silva then finished a prone Irvin with a blitz of punches to the head.^{[28][29][30][31]}

UFC 90

Silva's next fight was on October 25, 2008 at UFC 90 in Rosemont, Illinois, Silva defended his Middleweight title against Patrick Côté. In the third round, Côté landed awkwardly on his right leg while throwing a kick and fell to the mat grasping his right knee in pain. Referee Herb Dean declared the fight over when Côté could not continue, ruling the bout a TKO victory for Silva. Côté, however, became the first of Silva's UFC opponents to make it past the 2nd round.

After his fight with Côté, Silva was criticized for seemingly avoiding contact during the bout.^[32][33] Dana White criticized Silva, saying: "I didn't understand Silva's tactics... It wasn't the Anderson Silva I've been watching the last two years."^[34] Silva said in the post-fight news conference:^[35]

"There are many people saying I was disrespecting Cote, but this is absolutely not true. My game plan since the beginning was fight five rounds, inducing him to commit mistakes and capitalize on that during the first three rounds and look for the knockout during the fourth and fifth rounds. It was working, and the biggest proof of that is that I almost didn’t waste any blows. I connected with a couple of good punches and knees, but unfortunately he got hurt and the fight was over. This is not my fault."

UFC 97

On April 18, 2009 at UFC 97 in Montreal, Canada, Anderson Silva defeated Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu blackbelt Thales Leites by Unanimous Decision, and recorded his UFC record 9th consecutive win in the octagon. Thales Leites is credited with being the first man in UFC history to take Silva through 5 rounds to a judges' decision. The crowd repeatedly booed his lackluster performance, bored expression, and frustrated attempts to goad his opponent into fighting, and in the 4th and 5th rounds took to dancing, lowering his guard and slapping his opponent without retaliation. Following the fight, Dana White has stated that he was "embarrassed" by Silva's performance, but still said that he believes him to be "the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world".^[36]

UFC 101

At UFC 101 which took place on August 8, 2009 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Silva again fought at 205 pounds against former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Forrest Griffin. Griffin was knocked down three times in the first round. The bout earned Silva Beatdown of the Year honors from Sherdog. The bout shared those honors with the second bout between Brock Lesnar and Frank Mir.^[37] Both fighters were awarded $60,000 as Fight of the Night bonuses and Silva received $60,000 in bonus money for Knockout of the Night.

After defeating Griffin, a Yahoo! Sports reporter allegedly claimed that Silva's manager, Ed Soares, had confirmed that Silva would abandon his Middleweight belt to fight at Light Heavyweight.^[38] However, Soares and a UFC spokesperson confirmed that a conversation agreeing Silva would permanently move up to Light Heavyweight never took place. Silva did not relinquish his title to fight exclusively at Light Heavyweight. Soares stated his attorney plans to speak to Yahoo! Sports about the matter.^[39]

UFC 112

Silva was expected to defend the UFC Middleweight Championship against Vitor Belfort on January 2, 2010 at UFC 108. However, Ed Soares announced that the bout would not take place as Silva would not be fully recovered from surgery.^[40] Silva was then set to face Belfort on February 6, 2010 at UFC 109.^[41] The fight, however, was dependent on Silva's healing, which he described as "not going as planned."^[42] The fight was canceled because of Silva's slow recovery.^[43] Silva was once again scheduled to face Belfort on April 10, 2010 at UFC 112.^[44] The fight was later canceled again due to an injury to Belfort.^[45] Demian Maia was selected to fill the spot and take on Silva for the belt.

In the first two rounds fighting Maia, Silva appeared to mock his opponent while employing quick, precise striking. In the third round, however, Silva's tempo seemed to change. He looked to Maia to be the aggressor while he largely circled and taunted his opponent. In the fifth round, Silva's lack of action prompted referee Dan Miragliotta to warn Silva for his conduct. The crowd began to side with Maia, who was the only fighter attempting to engage.^[46] After 5 rounds, Silva was declared the winner via unanimous decision.

Silva was widely criticized for his performance. Dana White said it was the most embarrassed he had ever been since becoming UFC president.^[47] Midway through the fourth round, White walked away from the fight and gave the championship belt to Silva's manager, Ed Soares. White was so annoyed that he declined to personally place the belt around Silva's waist, claiming it was the first time he had done so after a title match.^[48] It was also claimed that Silva verbally taunted Maia saying "Come on, hit me in the face playboy."^[49]

In the immediate post-fight interview, Silva apologized and said that he wasn't himself and that he would need to go back and reevaluate the humility that got him to where he is. In the post-fight interview, Silva made multiple references about how Demian insulted him before the bout.

UFC 117

On August 7, 2010, Silva faced Chael Sonnen for the UFC Middleweight Title at UFC 117. In the first round, Sonnen stunned Silva with a punch before taking him down and dominating from the top position, landing multiple blows. The following three rounds played out in a similar fashion, going to the ground early with Sonnen dominating from inside Silva's guard. In the fifth round, Silva slipped after being tagged by Sonnen's left hook and the challenger took advantage by once again establishing a top position and delivering strikes to Silva. With about two minutes left in the round, Silva was able to lock up a triangle armbar on Sonnen, forcing Sonnen to submit at 3:10 of Round 5.

Silva was hit more in the fight than in his entire career. According to CompuStrike, in his first 11 UFC fights, Silva was hit 208 times. Sonnen hit him a total of 289 times.^[50] After the bout it was revealed that Sonnen would have won a judges' decision. All three judges had Sonnen marked as the winner of all four rounds, judges Nelson Hamilton and Dan Stell had Sonnen taking Round 1 10–8, as well as Hamilton awarding the challenger another 10–8 total in Round 3.^[51]

Silva allegedly went into the fight with injured ribs and his doctor advised him not to fight. During the first round, Sonnen cracked his rib and Silva was out until 2011 because of the injury.^[52] Following the fight the California State Athletic Commission confirmed that Chael Sonnen tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs (PED's).^[53][54] Doping tests revealed Sonnen had an elevated testosterone to epitestosterone ratio which fell outside of the normal range prior to his fight with Silva (a result that is consistent with testosterone replacement therapy).^[55] The California State Athletic Commission confirmed, however, that his actual testosterone levels were normal.^[56] Dana White announced that Sonnen would get a rematch when Silva returns. This was revoked after the issue with PEDs came to light, but Dana White had a change of heart, after Sonnen came back and won two straight, and scheduled the rematch.

UFC 126

Silva faced Vitor Belfort on February 5, 2011 at UFC 126.^[57] Belfort was expected to face Yushin Okami on November 13, 2010 at UFC 122, but was replaced by Nate Marquardt.^[58] After a "feeling out" period of about two and a half minutes in the first round, Silva and Belfort started to trade strikes. Silva landed a brutal front kick to Belfort's jaw and followed up with punches to the grounded challenger. Referee Mario Yamasaki stopped the fight at 3:25 minutes into the first round.^[59] With the win Silva handed Belfort his first KO loss in 28 career fights & extended his record streak of title defenses to eight.

UFC 134

Silva then faced Yushin Okami on August 27, 2011 at UFC 134. He defeated the Japanese middleweight by TKO at 2:04 of round 2, displaying skilled head movement and accurate striking, somewhat comparable to his win over Forrest Griffin. His record then went to 31–4, avenging his DQ loss to Okami back in 2006.

Rematch with Sonnen

A rematch with Chael Sonnen was expected to take place on June 23, 2012 at UFC 147.^[60] However, on April 20, according to a published report from Sherdog.com, the bout is now expected to take place on July 7, 2012 at UFC 148, while the expected co-feature of the Brazilian event, a rematch between Vitor Belfort and Wanderlei Silva would headline that event. The changes are due to a scheduling conflict with the UN Conference, Rio+20, which will be occurring during the same time frame as the UFC event.^[61]

Personal life[link]

In an interview with MMA Weekly, Anderson Silva's manager stated: "Anderson would love to fight Roy Jones Jr. in a boxing match up under boxing rules to prove that MMA fighters are technical, too."^[62] UFC president, Dana White, later expressed that he would use his veto power to stop such a match from taking place because he does not need his fighters getting themselves injured while fighting outside of the octagon.^[63] Silva, however, has commented: "After my contract with the UFC is finished, I will set up the fight with Jones Jr. The fight has already been permitted by Jones himself." In April 2009, Jones himself confirmed he is still interested in fighting Silva: "I'm going to try and make it happen. He's saying he wants to fight me, so, OK, I'm ready. Let's brawl." Roy Jones Jr. was in attendance at UFC 101.

In an interview with Brazilian TV station SporTV in September 2008, Silva stated that he was interested in retiring within the next year. However, Anderson's manager, Ed Soares and co-manager Nicholas Gansen, responded to the talk of retirement by saying that Anderson was contractually obligated to fight six more fights (his sixth was against Vitor Belfort) and would do so before retiring. Soares further stated that Silva desires to retire when he is 35 which he turned on April 14, 2010.^[64] According to Anderson Silva's manager, Ed Soares, he is not retiring after his contract is over in 2010 and what he supposedly wants is to stay in the 185 division.

Silva has three sons and two daughters with his wife, Dayane.^[65][66] Silva appeared in Never Surrender in 2009.^[67]

Fighting style[link]

Silva is a well rounded fighter whose striking ability is considered to be one of the best in MMA.^[68][69] Silva's striking accuracy, knockout power, technically vicious Muay Thai and ability to counterstrike makes him a danger to his opponents.^[70][71][72] Silva's striking uses three major strengths: technical precision, the jab and transitions and movement.^[73] Silva switches from southpaw to orthodox with little drop-off in effectiveness.^[74] Although it has been claimed that his ground game is not as good as his stand-up,^[75] Silva has submitted notable grapplers, including Olympic wrestler Dan Henderson, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu blackbelt Travis Lutter and Olympic alternate Chael Sonnen.

Silva holds several statistical records in the UFC including: Most all-time knockdowns in UFC history (15), No. 1 in significant strike accuracy (68.5%), Longest all-time UFC win streak (14), Best all-time UFC win percentage (1.000), Most title fight victories (10), Most UFC title defenses (9) and Longest reign by days (2,082).^[76]

Sponsors[link]

Anderson Silva is marketed by 9INE, a sports marketing company co-owned by former Brazilian footballer Ronaldo.^[77][78] Since August 2011, Anderson has been sponsored by Sport Club Corinthians Paulista, his favorite football club.^[79] He is also sponsored by fast food chain Burger King and sportswear and equipment supplier Nike.^[80]

Championships and accomplishments[link]

Mixed martial arts[link]

• Shooto
  • Shooto Middleweight Championship (One time)
• Cage Rage Championships
  • Cage Rage Middleweight Championship (One time, final)
  • Three successful title defenses
• Ultimate Fighting Championship
  • UFC Middleweight Championship (One time, current)
  • Unified UFC Middleweight and Pride FC Welterweight Championship
  • Fight of the Night (Three times)
  • Knockout of the Night (Three times)
  • Submission of the Night (Two times)
  • Most consecutive title defenses (Nine)
  • Most successful title defenses (Nine)
  • Most consecutive wins in the UFC (Fourteen)
  • Longest UFC title reign
  • Cover Athlete for UFC Undisputed 3
• ESPY Award
  • Best Fighter nomination (2009)^[81][82]
• Sherdog
  • Sherdog Beatdown of the Year for 2009 win over Forrest Griffin^[37]
• MMA Live
  • MMA Live Fight of the Year for 2010 win over Chael Sonnen^[83]
• World MMA Awards
  • World MMA Awards Fight of the Year for 2010 win over Chael Sonnen^[84]
  • World MMA Awards Knockout of the Year for 2011 win over Vitor Belfort^[85]

Mixed martial arts record[link]