Adesanya is a better striker than Anderson Silva ever was

[jeff corwin3000]

As good as Izzy is, it’s crazy to think back to the level of fear Anderson’s striking put in his opponents. Oddly enough, Andersons 5th defense was against Thales Leites, and people were kinda shitting on Silva for not engaging more like they are on Izzy right now after his 5th defense. Anderson of course followed that up with his matrix of Forrest, and everyone was back on his bandwagon until the following fight back at MW against Maia. I love both guys, but Anderson’s striking was just something that I’m not sure can ever be topped, regardless of differing styles.

 

[AmbassadorFright]

How can people deny it? Because Anderson at 44, with a broken leg and post USADA made it reasonably competitive against a prime Izzy. Also it doesn't take much to leg kick and feint when you're 6'4 and have a length and reach advantage against everyone in the division

 

[Enclave]

How can people deny this?

His Kickboxing career alone and he also beat Anderson Silva

Silva beat a WC boxer... in boxing. Let's see Adesanya do that. Silva is a superior technical striker.

 

[Enclave]

How can people deny it? Because Anderson at 44, with a broken leg and post USADA made it reasonably competitive against a prime Izzy. Also it doesn't take much to leg kick and feint when you're 6'4 and have a length and reach advantage against everyone in the division

Still short guys on quora who claim that it's an edge being shorter lol (your balance will be better)

 

[JKS]

LOL, no. Anderson was the better mma striker no doubt.

 

[DestinedAussie]

Not just punches, Silva is the only fighter I can think of who KO'd guys with his fists, knees, elbows and feet. A true 8-point striker and finisher.

Yeah incredibly well rounded and during his championship run all he was looking to do was finish. He had zero interest in winning a fight on points at that time in his career. His not so great (but still competitive) tail of his career makes people forget just how great his championship run was. I don't think we will ever see anyone as dominant again.

 

[Enclave]

Yeah incredibly well rounded and during his championship run all he was looking to do was finish. He had zero interest in winning a fight on points at that time in his career. His not so great (but still competitive) tail of his career makes people forget just how great his championship run was. I don't think we will ever see anyone as dominant again.

He didn't do so well against wrestlers though

 

[DestinedAussie]

He didn't do so well against wrestlers though

He did pretty well in his prime against everyone and a variety of fighters. I don't think he didn't do as well against wrestlers during his prime.

 

[Paladin]

/

Anderson did things nobody did at the time. Even tho he had his fair share of flops, dude was creative and nimble, deadly counter striking, beatiful thai clinch and very good ground game. Izzy is your average top 10-5ish glory kickboxer, which is a great level still, very crisp striking, range managment but nothing spectacular tbh, a great long limbed point fighter by the book. He's effective af, just not "must see tv"as some like to pretend. Leg kick merchant.

Are we talking “flashy”, “effective” , “exciting”, or what exactly? It’s not really clear how we measure “better”

How are we defining “better”?

 

[CowJoMonkey927]

Bros bros...
Anderson has 11 finishes by strikes in the ufc.
Izzy has 4.
And one of them is a guy with no wiki and the another Brunson who was also beat by a 45 year old Andy.

Mma is about seeing which art works best, a decision always leaves a muddy technicality of time or judging perception. You cant assume that Izzy's striking would knock everybody out, hes not doing it. He promises finishes so you know he understands the value of showing the height of your art, rather than giving everyone a taste and leaving stones unturned. Anderson would get upset when opponents wouldnt fight, Izzy dances and brushes dirt off his shoulders. Love his personality and will always tune into his fights for the chance he brings it. But all im saying is the talk on Izzys striking in the ufc (in comparison to Andersons) is all theory. You dont know for sure Izzys jabs affected Vettori , Anderson proved his jab by KTFO of Okami with it.

 

[yekmurat]

When was the last time Izzy impressed someone?
Except a few fights Anderson did that his entire prime

 

[NoSmilez]

It might be true but the gap between Anderson and his competition was so much wider. Anderson took chances and tried different things.

 

[mkt]

Yeah incredibly well rounded and during his championship run all he was looking to do was finish. He had zero interest in winning a fight on points at that time in his career. His not so great (but still competitive) tail of his career makes people forget just how great his championship run was. I don't think we will ever see anyone as dominant again.

That sadly happens to every great fighter who fights past their prime. BJ is probably the best example. Some people here only remember his last 5 to 10 fights. On the other hand, they'll also critique GSP for retiring too early and not coming back at age 40 (and mutliple ACL surgeries) to fight Usman or Khabib. You can't win on Sherdog.

 

[DestinedAussie]

That sadly happens to every great fighter who fights past their prime. BJ is probably the best example. Some people here only remember his last 5 to 10 fights. On the other hand, they'll also critique GSP for retiring too early and not coming back at age 40 (and mutliple ACL surgeries) to fight Usman or Khabib. You can't win on Sherdog.

Personally I am all for fighters continuing to fight if they enjoy the competition I don't think it hurts their legacy and should be viewed that way. Just need to be given winnable fights. There is never a good time to retire as far as fans go. MMA kind of sucks in that unlike other sports where you can continue to compete by coming off the bench etc, there is nowhere to hide on the octagon.

 

[Adamant]

Anderson Silva was a different kind of striker. A sniper.

 

[613]

If you take away everything that make Anderson special, you would have Izzy. Anderson had more power, way more accurate, better head movement, way better timing, a more divers attack, better counters, far more fluid etc...

Izzy has a slightly better use of angles and MAYBE better distance control. Thats it

 

[mkt]

If you take away everything that make Anderson special, you would have Izzy. Anderson had more power, way more accurate, better head movement, a more divers attack, better counters, far more fluid etc...

Izzy has a slightly better use of angles and MAYBE better distance control. Thats it

Yep. And he's more conservative and plays it safe in a division where there are no Weidmans or Sonnens to really test his TDD and ground game.

 

[mkt]

He did pretty well in his prime againstI t everyone and a variety of fighters. I don't think he didn't do as well against wrestlers during his prime.

I think prime Weidman and probably Chael beat Izzy. Jan showed the gameplan. There just aren't any guys with the wrestling chops to do it. There are some good submission artists, but their wrestling is only mediocre.

 

[wwedanawhite]

Izzy is fantastic, but I’ve never seen better overall standup in mma then I did with prime Anderson. He just had every element needed to be work class, speed, power, durability, creativity, fundamentals, straight boxing, kicks, knees and elbows and he just knew how to put it all together too.

 

[Xoleth]

In Kickboxing, despite what some believe, Israel didn't fought many quality opponents and when he fought them he lost to them (Pereira, Wilnis, Marcus)

When it comes to MMA, I'd like to think Prime Silva:
- beats Jan at LHW in striking;
- finishes Tavares, Gas, Cannonier.

1. Both of them have lost rounds, one to Chael, the other to many others (Gas, Vettori, Whit, Cannonier, Yoel)
2. Silva didn't care that much about his record and tried some crazy stuff (hence his record pre UFC), while Israel is very focused on not losing, on his record.
3. During his reign, Silva made it look so easy. Effortless! Except Chael 1. He didn't take a risk vs Maia, but he wasn't in danger at all. The others... well, he finished them easily. Except Leites... from what I've heard, he didn't want to finish him. While Israel lost many rounds, like it or not.

I cannot compare their careers, because Silva fought until in his 40s and Israel still has fights left, but judging their striking, Silva wins. He was more fluid, he had more weapons, he didn't lose in striking vs guys like Jan, he had many finishes, he made it seem so easy vs guys like Vitor and Rich. When he lost to Weidman, he was already old. His clinch game is much better.