CINCINNATI – Following a delay in his visa being issued, Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight titleholder Anderson Silva left later than usual from Brazil and arrived in town late Thursday morning.
Most of the other UFC 77 fighters were already in town by Monday or Tuesday.
Government offices in Brazil were closed this past Friday and Monday, which caused the delay. Silva received his visa on Wednesday and left Brazil at about 11 p.m. local time. He arrived in Cincinnati around 10 a.m. EDT.
Despite being a little frustrated with the delay, he indicated that he still feels “very relaxed, very comfortable.”
Following his arrival, Silva immediately got down to business and had a productive training session with his Black House teammates and good friend Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira.
On Thursday evening, his weight was already down to about 190 pounds and he should only need to cut four to five pounds before weigh-ins on Friday, which is standard procedure for the Brazilian.
Even with his late arrival, Silva is prepared for whatever comes before him on Saturday night said manager Ed Soares.
“Anderson is prepared to take the fight anywhere it goes … he’ll see where Rich is going to make the first mistake, and as soon as he makes the mistake, he’s going to capitalize on it.”
That’s not to say that he is overconfident. He did knock Franklin out in their first meeting a year ago, but Silva has shown much respect for the former champion leading up to this fight.
"I'm confident going into this fight, but I'm always confident going into every fight,” he stated. “I never underestimate any opponent, especially Rich Franklin. Everybody knows that when Rich Franklin goes in there, he goes in there to bang, and that he's been training really hard."
Soares stated that Silva is happy to give Franklin the opportunity that Franklin gave him a year ago and feels that it is sure to be one of the fight’s of the night.