SILVA: Paulo Cesar Silva, better known as “Giant Silva,” played basketball as a youth in Brazil and was good enough to represent the Brazilian National Team at the 1992 Olympics. The 7-foot-2, 400-pound specimen was offered a contract by World Wrestling Federation (now WWE) in 1998. He also wrestled in Mexico and for New Japan Pro Wrestling as a member of “Club 7.” Silva came to know Japanese wrestling kingpin Antonio Inoki and stayed in touch with the key player, eventually “fighting” Inoki on his ’01 Inoki Bom Ba Ye New Year’s Eve show. He currently lives in New Jersey and trains in with Ricardo Gracie.

Silva made his MMA debut in Pride’s 2003 Shockwave show against top heavyweight Heath Herring. Heath was able to stay out of reach for the majority of the bout, but Silva exhibited excellent stamina and the heart to stay in the fight. In the third round Herring caught the giant in a rear-choke. Silva returned to face Henry Miller at the Total Elimination show and submitted “Sentoryu” with a Kimura armlock four minutes into the first round. At Critical Countdown, he battled Japanese favorite Naoya Ogawa. Ogawa got the early takedown and the Japanese fighter beat the huge Brazilian with strikes from the mount.

In July, Silva faced Greco-Roman and Japanese professional wrestler Takashi Sugiura at Pride Bushido 4. Sugiura quickly vanquished Silva with strikes and the two were rumored to have a rematch on this very card.

MU BAE: Choi Mu Bae is a Greco-Roman wrestler who leads Team Tackle/KPW Korea and has his own Dojang in Seoul Korea. The team consists of Spirit MC veterans Eun Soo Lee and Min Soo Kim as well as Jae Young Kim, Michael Kwok Sa Jin, Young Am Noh and Jung Ho Lee. He has trained in jiu-jitsu, boxing and kickboxing in Korea with South African kickboxing champion Kobus Huisamen (7-0 in kickboxing, 1-4 in MMA, Pancrase KOP LHW No. 1 contender). Choi also worked with Ikuhisa Minowa on a recent visit to Korea. He likes to train seven days a week and felt it was very important that he get real fighting experience in order to properly guide his team.

In his debut, Choi suplexed Yusuke Imamura at the Pride Bushido 2 show and avoided a kneebar before tapping his opponent out with a rear-choke. At Pride Bushido 3 Mu Bae defeated longtime Pride and RINGS veteran Yoshihisa Yamamoto by unanimous decision. He defeated Murad Ammaev with strikes at the Gladiator Fighting Championships in Korea and at Pride 28 on Halloween, Choi battled Australian Extreme Jiu-Jitsu striker Soa Palalei. ‘The Hulk’ and Mu Bae battled for two and half rounds before the Korean wrestler was able to turn the tables and choke out the previously undefeated Aussie.

MY PICK: Mu Bae. It appears even the Japanese wrestlers have figured out how to deal with Silva’s strengths. He has been around a while too and this is a tough sport to get into at an advanced age. Choi is a young up-and-coming fighter who continues to improve and could really make some noise in 2005. I feel it will be Choi by TKO in the first round.