Preview: Sengoku 'Seventh Battle'

Antonio Silva vs. Yoshihiro Nakao

With the weeping and gnashing of teeth that accompanies the sparse and often-frustrating heavyweight division, you'd think that a battle between once-beaten heavyweights in a major promotion would be somehow appealing. On the other hand, it's Antonio Silva fighting Yoshihiro Nakao.

With the rapid ascent of Brock Lesnar, and the emergence of young prospects like Cain Velasquez, Junior dos Santos and Dave Herman, Antonio Silva -- the pituitary freak once deemed to be the right blend of monstrosity to take down Fedor Emelianenko -- has been relegated to the periphery in a division where his presence should be eagerly welcomed. Part of the oversight is due to the fact that he's feasted on sub-standard opponents over the last two years, and many fans and pundits have become impatient waiting for "Junior" to put his massive footprint in the upper strata of heavyweight MMA.

Perhaps just as contributory is Silva's history of questionable decision-making, not just in terms of the organizations in which he plies his trade, but also in his messy divorce with the Wolfslair Academy two years ago, and his current decision to fight in Sengoku while still under suspension in California for testing positive for Boldenone after his bout with the recently deceased Justin Eilers last July.

On the other hand, Yoshihiro Nakao is just the opposite. Where Silva's natural talent and physical gifts loom literally large, Nakao is a light heavyweight with an overactive appetite and a solid but unspectacular skill set. Where he has succeeded, however, is in parlaying his now-legendary kissing incident with Heath Herring -- still a viral video sensation -- into a full-blown gimmick, and in a meme-driven world where Tay Zondays and Gary Brolsmas have cachet, Nakao has ensured himself employability for a long time to come.

As for the fight itself, Silva should have little problem giving Nakao a kiss goodnight. His enormous reach and power advantages on the feet will only be magnified by his speed and agility, which shouldn't belong to a human his size. Nakao is a quality wrestler, but Silva's solid defensive wrestling can keep him upright with little trouble, where he'll pile up punches and knees to a mid-round stoppage victory. Here's to hoping that such a mediocre fight doesn't come at the cost of Silva's stateside licensure.