Where does this leave Rich Franklin? There were rumors of him moving to 205 and fighting Dan Henderson. Are those rumors still flying around? Does Silva take the Middleweight title with him or does Franklin fight for an interm? What's going to happen? :think
From what I understand, this is a one fight thing and Silva will defend his title later this year. I assume they're giving him a break for stepping up on short notice to counter the affliction card.
It's a trial run, nothing more (for the immediate future, at least). He's gonna go there eventually, so this is a chance to see how he'd handle it in the short term. If Irvin batters him around, the experiment will be shelved for the forseeable future.
He's fighting at 205 to #1 Step up for Dana. I'm sure he's gonna get a nice bonus for doing so. #2 Get his feet wet at 205... if he wins.. watch them set up Anderson Silva vs Chuck Liddell for the new years card. Theres really no clear cut contender at 185 anyway.
Silva is obviously someone who likes challenges and the competion is much better at 205. Silva's 33, so if he wants to make a run at the 205 title now is the time to do it. It's crazy how many great fights there could be at Light Heavy with the Spider in the mix.
According to Ed Soares if Silva disptaches Irvin without taking much damage, he will be fighting Okami at UFC 88 for the MW title defense.
