Former EliteXC champion Antonio “Big Foot’’ Silva will face the brother of current Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion, Valentijin Overeem on the under card of Henderson vs. Sobral, Saturday December 4th in St. Louis.
Schedule to be on the card as well will be Paul “Semtex’’ Daley as he meets power puncher Scott “Hands Of Steel’ Smith, “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler will take on 2000 Olympic silver medalist Matt “The Law” Lindland (22-7) and Herschel Walker will attempt to win his second professional mma bout against a opponent yet to be determined.
The 6-foot-4, 31-year-old Silva (14-2), of Coconut Creek, Fla., by way of Brazil, is one of the most talked-about and feared fighters in MMA. His freakish size is matched with brute strength, startling speed, incredible agility and quickness and brutal ground and pound skills. Factor in that he is also surprisingly nimble-footed and effectively combines Shotokan Karate and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and you seemingly have all of the ingredients of a future superstar.
Silva has won seven of his last eight starts, including a decisive, lopsided decision over former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei “The Pitbull” Arlovski in his most recent outing last May 15.
Silva’s lone loss since December 2006 came when he was narrowly outpointed by fellow Brazilian, and Fedor conqueror Fabricio Werdum, on Nov.7, 2009. After an early onslaught that included decking Werdum and having him in serious trouble, Werdum rallied to eke out a decision by the scores of 29-28 three times.
“I want to fight and I’ll fight whoever they put in front of me,’’ Silva said. “My goal is to be the best and fight for a world title.’’
Overeem (28-23), of Amsterdam, The Netherlands, is a fierce, dangerous striker who has won his last two fights in a combined time of 47 seconds. The 6-foot-3, 34-year-old Dutch Destroyer scored a 40-second KO (knee) over Catalin Zmarandescu last May 21. In his outing before last, the previous April 17, a head kick finished off Tengiz Tedoradze seven seconds after the opening bell.
Overeem has several notable victories, including a 0:56, first-round submission over all-time great Randy “The Natural” Couture and a 2:19, first-round submission over Sobral. Overeem has only gone the distance twice is a 53-fight career.
A member of Team Golden Glory like his brother, Overeem is a four-time winner in PRIDE Fighting Championship competition. He’ll be making his debut for STRIKEFORCE after signing with the San Jose, Calif.-based promotion in June.
