what if paulo filho hadn't gone crazy?
it's up in the air as to whether he would have beaten sonnen... but if he had won, he would have gone to the UFC instead of jobbing around in japan against melvin manhoef. at the time of the second sonnen fight, he was ranked as high as #2 in the world by some publications, (even if that heavily included hype). he makes a UFC debut against marquardt or bisping and wins, and may have to fight maia or okami before getting a title shot.
i don't see him beating anderson, but having him in the UFC would have added another huge name into the top five mix and maybe even stopped sonnen's rise through the ranks.
__________________ Survival is Triumph Enough
-Harry Crews |