The year is coming to a close and UFC 92: The Ultimate 2008 is rapidly approaching. The UFC will give their fans a holiday present, as we will see three major bouts each worthy of the main event spot.  We'll see Forrest Griffin make his first title defense against another graduate from the Ultimate Fighter reality show, Rashad Evans.  In addition, Antonio "Minotauro" Nogueira will face Frank Mir in a heavyweight bout for the interim title.  To add to the excitement of this card, fans will be treated to the third chapter in one of the biggest feuds that started back in Pride Fighting Championships.  Old wounds will rip open as "The Axe Murderer" Wanderlei Silva collides with Quinton "Rampage" Jackson in what promises to be the most explosive bout of the evening.  Before we get into the breakdown for the Silva vs Jackson fight, let's turn back the clock and review our history notes.     

Since returning to the UFC, Wanderlei Silva has managed to entertain fans with two impressive fights.  He was involved in a slugfest with former light heavyweight kingpin Chuck Liddell (UFC 79) and owns an impressive knockout over Keith Jardine (UFC 84).  The casual MMA viewer may not be acquainted with Silva's tremendous past, but it is safe to say that he is an icon in the sport of MMA.  Silva made his first MMA appearance on November 1st, 1996 at Brazilian Vale Tudo 6, where he defeated Dilson Filho via KO in the first round.  After appearances in IVC and the UFC, Silva would go on to reach legendary status during his tenure in Pride Fighting Championships.  Arguably the most successful champion in Pride, Silva maintained an undefeated streak from August of 2000 until December 2004 (1 No contest, 1 draw) when he was defeated by Mark Hunt via split decision.  During his undefeated streak, Silva won the coveted Pride Middleweight Championship in November of 2001 at Pride 17, in a bout against "The Gracie Killer" Kazushi Sakuraba.  Silva would make numerous title defenses, until February 2007 in a bout against top contender Dan Henderson, a man he had once beaten at the start of his career in Pride.  To hold a championship for seven years is no easy task, but the former Chute Boxe fighter managed to do so with a statement.  Silva became an instant fan favourite due to his aggressive KO deliveries from the Muay Thai clinch, and his trademark stare downs prior to a fight.        

Before Quinton "Rampage" Jackson was the UFC's light heavyweight champion, he was showcasing his impressive wrestling skills in a little promotion in the land of the rising sun called Pride Fighting Championships.  It was here that this Memphis born wrestler gained notable victories over a number of top fighters such as Kevin Randleman, Chuck Liddell and the victory he is famous for, a knockout over Ricardo Arona via powerbomb!  It wasn't until Jackson reached the UFC that he managed to acquire the gold.  Upon his arrival in the UFC, Jackson managed to avenge a loss against Marvin Eastman (UFC 67).  He then went on to take the UFC light heavyweight title from Chuck Liddell after an impressive knockout (UFC 71).  Jackson was on a role and in his first title defense; he unified the UFC light heavyweight title and Pride middleweight title by defeating Dan Henderson at UFC 75: Champion vs Champion. 

A majority of fighters have respect for each other in and out of the ring; however the Silva / Jackson saga paints a different portrait.  The conflict began following Jackson's win over Kevin Randleman at Pride 25.  Jackson called out Silva, and declared that Silva was only holding onto his belt, "keeping it warm for him." This was obviously taken as a sign of disrespect, as it prompted Silva to enter the ring and shove Jackson while proclaiming that he (Silva) was the true champion of the middleweight division.  In what appeared to be something taken straight out of pro wrestling, officials quickly broke up the confrontation before it escaladed.  After the incident, heated words were exchanged and both individuals have gone on record, stating that the tension between the two is in fact very real (still continues to this

Naturally this rivalry lead to the first installment of the Silva vs Jackson trilogy on November 9th 2003 at Pride Final Conflict, Jackson was riding a seven fight win streak and Silva with twelve straight victories.  In this fight, we saw Silva immediately jump on Jackson with a standing guillotine that forced Jackson to the ground.  Jackson managed to display his superior wrestling skills by controlling Silva while administering a little ground and pound.  However once the referee stood up the fight, the wrestler was taken out of his element, as he was overwhelmed with a barrage of hard knees to the body and the head.  Silva had conquered Jackson in their first bout, but shortly after a rematch would take place.  This added fuel to the fire for Silva's camp and the detestation intensified; as they felt a rematch was not necessary due to Silva's dominate performance in their first encounter.  Nonetheless it was at Pride 28: High Octane, where these two warriors would go head to head.  History seemed to have repeated itself, as Jackson managed to take Silva down a number of times and control him on the ground.  Jackson put forth a better stand up game, as he knocked Silva down with a right, but this was not enough to put the champion away.  Shortly after, Silva verified why he was the superior fighter.  He connected with his looping punches and high knees.  Jackson was knocked out, as he dropped and his body hung stiff on the bottom rope.  Following the performance, commentator Mauro Ranallo put it best as he said, "does anyone possess the kryptonite to stop Pride's middleweight superman!"  Fans saw a virtually unbeatable Wanderlei Silva top his biggest adversary for the second time.

Fast forward now to 2008, it is four years later and one has to think that within this period, each of these fighters have gone through changes and it is possible that we will see a different kind of fight on December 27th. 

Looking at Jackson, he has definitely improved since his days in Pride.  Jackson still possesses his phenomenal wrestling skills and explosive takedowns and this will certainly be to his advantage.  We know that Silva's clinch is top notch, and if Jackson has a chance against it, he'll have to take Silva down hard and punish him on the ground; or he'll have to create the distance and use his reach for a knockout.  Thus Silva will have to respect Jackson's heavy hands considering his knockout over Liddell (which is something Silva was not able to do).  Jackson has made the jump to Wolfslair MMA Academy following his most recent loss and the fallout with Juanito Ibarra.  His current teammates have stated that fans will see a new focused Jackson.  However this year, Jackson has been involved in a number of incidents surrounding his trainers and of course who could forget the police chase.  One has to question if in fact he will be in top mental form.  I believe that although he will put the effort in training, these personal problems will have an effect on him, and it's possible that he may have some jitters upon entering the octagon.  Despite these issues, the biggest mental disadvantage comes from the fact that he will be facing a fighter he genuinely dislikes, who has devastated him twice

before (this has got to get under your skin).  Clearly the mental edge is in Silva's favour. 

For Wanderlei Silva, it will be interesting to see if he will try to KO Jackson with the knees from the clinch, if successful, one can only imagine that this would add insult to injury.  Upon training with Xtreme Couture, Silva has worked expansively on his wrestling and ground game.  I believe this is a positive note since he will have to look for ways to neutralize Jackson's wrestling.  In terms of the stand up, before you get to the clinch, you must cut the distance.  Although Silva also holds knockout power, Jackson possesses better movement and the slicker technical striking.  I believe Silva will have to play it smart and look for Jackson to feed him an opening, so that he can get in close with his wild strikes and eventually clinch with him for a KO. (Just a thought, where does Jackson go if he loses? Maybe a fight with either Shogun Rua or Lyoto Machida?)      

Nonetheless Silva has looked impressive upon returning to the UFC, and if he comes into the octagon in the same state he was in for the Jardine fight, I believe it will be lights out for Jackson.  Silva seems to have a set focus and his eye on the light heavyweight title.  It would only be fitting for this Pride legend, to defeat his biggest foe for the third time and move on to receive a title shot in 2009.  MMA enthusiasts in the United States have quickly adapted Silva as a crowd favourite due to his desire to "make a good show for the fans."  It's been proven that a 32 year old Wanderlei Silva can still continue to deliver exciting fights in what is considered to be the UFC's marquee division.  That being said, I think it's pretty obvious who I predict to win this fight, Sandstorm + shaved head = KO'd opponent.