On Sunday, UFC Middleweight and MMA Pound-for-Pound Champ Anderson Silva gets yet another main event fight, despite his last three being inexplicable head scratchers. In his last three main event fights, SIlva toyed around with his clearly overmatched opponents, namely Patrick Cote, Thales Leites and Damian Maia, refusing to engage them in any serious exchanges. It was clear he could knock out any of the three at any time he wanted, but he instead chose to dance around, doing for talking and running than anyone cared for. This Sunday represents a new beginning for him, his second and last chance, according to UFC President Dana White. Before he gets anymore ideas to again dance around and waste his second chance against challenger Chael Sonnen, I have some cautionary tales for him.
Delonte West - Despite being drafted with high hopes by the then rebuilding Boston Celtics, West was quite a disappointment for Beantown fans and his name slowly began fading into oblivion. The Cleveland Cavaliers, seeking to fit pieces to help Lebron James win a championship, gave West a second chance. Instead of rising to the challenge, West continued to be an inconsistent scorer, missed games due to a battle with clinical depression and got arrested by carrying not just a handgun, but a shotgun on his all terrain vehicle. (Plus, there is a rumor that he was having an affair with James' mom. Okay, so that's not verified. Sorry.) Now, West's appeal for teams have so plummeted that one of the NBA's worst teams, the Minnesota Timberwolves, traded for him, just so they can waive him and save money. If you get waived by the Wolves? Ouch.
Floyd Mayweather - Claiming he was boxing's greatest, "Money," even had the gall to claim he should be mentioned in the same breath as Sugar Ray Robinson and Muhammad Ali. All that bravado seemingly disappeared when he claimed that Manny Pacquiao, the remaining challenger who could conceivably beat him, used steroids, so he would not fight the fiery FIlipino. Mayweather got an easy pass, since he had a convenient excuse to refuse the fight (Pacquiao refused to undergo Olympic style blood testing). Given a second chance to make the fight happen, Mayweather this time claimed there was never any negotiation, and referring to himself in the third person, said that, "Floyd Mayweather is in no hurry." Now, everyone, even those who scrambled to defend his decision to nix the first fight, have called him out on what he truly is. Kevin Iole, who was gracious enough to do an interview with From the 50 Peso Seats, probably said it best. Mayweather? A chicken. The Colonel would love him.
Jeff Hardy - The more enigmatic and charismatic of the two Hardy brothers, Jeff would skyrocket to stardom in the WWE but lose it all when he violated WWE's drug policy. After a stint at rival TNA, Hardy was given a second chance with the WWE. He came back more popular than ever, prompting the WWE to give him title runs with both the WWE and World Heavy Weight Championship. Alas, he would waste it yet again with drugs and he has been released again. While he landed another stint with TNA, Hardy has lost all the exposure he would have surely gotten at WWE and he now faces a court case related to his drug arrest. Unfortunately for him, those two problems cannot be solved with a Swanton Bomb.
Second chances rarely come for athletes, especially the pros. That's why it's best that Anderson Silva check out these three athletes, and give his fight plan for Sunday further thought. If there's something he should take advantage of, it's his second chance on Sunday.
photos courtesy of kissmyasslebron.bigcartel.com, forum.philboxing.com, universalwwe.es
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