Sherdog’s Top 10: Five-Round Fights

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8. Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen
UFC 117
Aug. 7, 2010 | Oakland, Calif.
Silva was the invincible, unchallenged, undisputed champion of the UFC’s middleweight division. No opponent, no matter what his credentials or the threat he seemed to pose to Silva on paper, had succeeded in translating his potential into a competitive fight with “The Spider.” By August 2010, Silva had ruled 185 pounds with iron fists, shins, knees and every other tool known to combat sports athletes for nearly four years and showed no signs of letting up anytime soon.

Enter Sonnen, then known mostly as a talented wrestler with a penchant for walking himself into inopportune submissions in fights he was winning. The Oregonian crafted a new persona for himself as a motor-mouthed avenging angel, ready to free the division from the clutches of an aloof champion who did not seem to care about connecting with the fans in any meaningful way. Just give me a shot, Sonnen said, and I will show you what a fearless opponent can do to a man who relies on his foes’ fear to beat them.

From the opening bell, Sonnen made it clear that he would not wait around for Silva to turn him into mincemeat. He charged directly at the champion, forcing him to the fence, blasting double-leg takedowns and dropping shots from top position without any sign of fatigue or letting up. The former wrestler hit “The Spider” more than every other opponent in the UFC combined, racking up a dominant lead on the scorecards after four rounds. Barring some improbable comeback, the fight was Sonnen’s to lose.

That is exactly what happened. Sonnen came out in the fifth round and shot a lazy double but recovered to crack Silva with a powerful left hand that dropped the champion. The Oregonian followed him to the floor and resumed his relentless ground assault, and victory was within sight. With a little more than two minutes left in the fight, however, Sonnen got lazy with his posture and let Silva control his wrist, and the champion locked up a triangle and reached across to secure the armbar. Sonnen tapped, just a ghost of a gesture, and the fight was over. Silva’s streak remained intact, and the longtime champion transcended mere dominance to a higher plane of skill and will.

Superstardom for Silva, a vicious knockout loss, a broken leg and failed PED tests remained in the future, as did Sonnen’s own failed tests and two future title shots. On that night in August 2010, Silva became one of the greatest of all-time.

Number 7 » Hendricks vs. Lawler