Anderson Silva has put on plenty of spectacular performances over the course of his glittering career, and few were as memorable as his 205-pound clash with Forrest Griffin.
Then-UFC middleweight champion Silva moved up to light heavyweight to face Griffin in the co-main event of UFC 101, where the dominant 185-pound king was seeking a fresh challenge against the former UFC light heavyweight champ.
Winner of Season 1 of “The Ultimate Fighter,” Griffin had just lost his UFC light heavyweight title to Rashad Evans, but found himself in another big fight.
Everyone knew Silva was good, but the zone he was in when he toyed with Griffin for three minutes before knocking him out made it one of the most flawless showings of his career.
Silva went on to defend his middleweight title another five times, and added another light heavyweight finish against Griffin’s old TUF adversary Stephan Bonnar, before losing his title to Chris Weidman in one of the biggest upsets in UFC history. Silva has since gone 1-6 and will be competing in the final fight of his career on Oct. 31.
Silva (34-10 MMA, 17-6 UFC) returns Saturday when he takes on Uriah Hall (15-9 MMA, 8-7 UFC) in the main event of UFC on ESPN+ 39, which takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
Before he faces Hall, relive Silva’s finish of Griffin via the video above.