Thiago Silva (born November 12, 1982) is a Brazilian kickboxer and mixed martial artist who competes in the Light Heavyweight division of Eagle FC. A professional competitor since 2005, he has competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), the World Series of Fighting (WSOF), Absolute Championship Berkut (ACB), Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki (KSW) and Pancrase.
Background
Silva is from São Paulo, Brazil and had a difficult upbringing. He grew up in a very poor area and witnessed murders at a young age. To help support himself, he got his first job when he was only nine years old cleaning automobile parts. Silva was athletic, playing soccer and basketball, and attended school, but ran away from home at age 13 due to his allegedly abusive father, never to see his mother or younger brother again. He then lived on his own in the favelas or slums of São Paulo, moving into his friends' homes who would allow him to stay. While working during the day, he would attend school at night, and would eventually graduate high school. The Brazilian favelas are notorious for being drug trafficking hot spots, and many of the neighborhoods are ruled by drug lords, some of whom would seek out Silva to help them and their children train. At age 18, Silva began to train in mixed martial arts and due to his poverty often had to choose between eating and training although his coach let him train for free in exchange for cleaning the facility.
Mixed martial arts career
Early career
Prior to signing with the Ultimate Fighting Championship, Silva fought almost solely in his native country of Brazil. During his first nine professional bouts, he attained a perfect 9–0 record, winning seven of these bouts by KO or TKO and one by submission. Silva also won the Fury FC 2 Grand Prix in 2006 and fought in a Pancrase bout against Tatsuya Mizuno before receiving a UFC contract.
Signing with the Ultimate Fighting Championship
Silva made his UFC debut against former WEC Heavyweight Champion James Irvin at UFC 71. During the first round, Irvin injured his knee after a takedown from Silva and was unable to continue the fight. Silva was awarded the win by TKO. Silva's next fight was against UFC newcomer Tomasz Drwal at UFC 75. Silva won the fight by TKO due to strikes in the second round.
Following his first two wins, Silva made his televised debut as part of the main card of UFC 78 against Houston Alexander. During the bout, he quickly exposed Alexander's ground game, which had been untested in Alexander's first two knockout victories. After reversing position and securing the mount, Silva rained down punches until his opponent was knocked out in the opening round.
Silva was next slated to face Rashad Evans at UFC 84, but Evans was forced to pull out after being asked to fill in for a fight against Chuck Liddell at UFC 88. Instead, Silva squared off against UFC newcomer Antonio Mendes. After being dropped and momentarily stunned by a head kick from Mendes, Silva survived the flurry of strikes from Mendes and managed to take him down, securing the mounted position. From the dominant position, Silva attacked with punches and elbows until Mendes tapped out due to strikes in the opening round.
Originally scheduled to face fellow undefeated Brazilian Lyoto Machida at UFC 89, Silva was forced to withdraw from the fight due to an injured back suffered while training. The fight was later rescheduled and took place at UFC 94. Machida won via one-punch knockout at the end of the opening round, ending Silva's thirteen fight undefeated streak.
Silva was slated to fight former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Forrest Griffin, but Dana White instead chose to match Griffin against long time UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva. He instead fought Keith Jardine at UFC 102. Early in the fight Silva countered an uppercut by Jardine with a short left hook that dropped Jardine, Silva then followed up with four punches on the ground rendering Jardine unconscious, stopping the fight at 1:35 of the first round.
He next fought Keith Jardine's friend and training partner Rashad Evans in the main event at UFC 108, and lost in a unanimous decision. Evans was able to keep octagon control through aggressive wrestling and takedowns throughout the majority of the fight, though Silva connected with two hooks that dropped Evans and momentarily dazed him in the final round. The judges scored the bout 29–28 for Evans, resulting in Silva's second professional loss.
Silva was scheduled to face Tim Boetsch at UFC 117, but was forced off the card with a back injury and replaced by UFC newcomer Todd Brown.