Getty Anderson Silva (L) and Tito Ortiz (R) pose during the weigh-in ahead of their fight on September 11 at The Harbor Beach Marriott on September 10, 2021 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Well, that was quick.
During the undercard of the Triller Fight Club PPV on Saturday, September 11, 2021, two ex-UFC champions went to war in the boxing ring. Former UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva took on former UFC light heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz and “The Spider” needed less than a round to take out “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy.”
Ortiz was knocked out cold near the 40-second mark of the open frame, plummeting to the canvas. Watch the knockout below:
The @SpiderAnderson KO hits different from ringside 👀 #SilvaOrtiz
(via @OmarESPN)
Saturday night marked Ortiz’s first-ever boxing bout and it’s unclear where The Huntington Beach Bad Boy goes following this brutal KO. The 46-year-old reacted to his loss on social media after the bout and indicated that he’s not done with boxing. He issued a challenge to social media sensation Logan Paul, tweeting: “@LoganPaul we lost our last fights let’s entertain our fans!! @triller ASAP.”
.@LoganPaul we lost our last fights let’s entertain our fans!! @triller ASAP
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Ortiz Shared a Motivational Post on Instagram After His Loss to The Spider
The Huntington Beach Bad Boy also took to Instagram to react to his loss to the former middleweight king. He wrote:
It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.
Ortiz finished the post by proclaiming: “I will be back!”
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Silva Is 2-0 As a Boxer in 2021, Continues Combat Sports Resurgence
On Halloween in 2020, fight fans watched Silva suffer his third straight loss inside the Octagon, losing to Uriah Hall via TKO. The Spider had won only one fight since losing his 185-pound belt to Chris Weidman in 2013, going 1-7 with one no contest.
After his defeat to Hall, Silva was released by the UFC and around eight months later, fans watched The Spider step inside the boxing ring for the first time since 2005. Silva put on an impressive performance, defeating former boxing champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. by split decision.
Now with his big KO win over Ortiz, Silva has found himself with two wins this year and has set himself up for another big fight. And against who? It’s unclear at the moment but a bout with fellow former UFC champion and opponent Vitor Belfort, who defeated Evander Holyfield in the first round on the same card Saturday night, is an exciting option.
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