UFC 82: Silva Chokes Out Henderson to Keep His Crown
On March 1, 2008, Anderson Silva retained the middleweight championship by submitting Dan Henderson at UFC 82: Pride of a Champion. Their main event at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio, ended with a rear-naked choke at 4:52 of the second round.
Silva finds the championship finish
The victory added another successful defense to Silva’s reign. Henderson had brought his wrestling and PRIDE championship credentials into the matchup, but Silva ended the fight with a submission rather than leaving its outcome to the judges. A bout between accomplished champions finished with eight seconds remaining in round two.
Heath Herring’s heavyweight contest took a different route. He defeated Cheick Kongo by split decision after three rounds. Jon Fitch also went the distance, beating Chris Wilson by unanimous decision in their welterweight matchup.
Leben, Okami and the other winners
Chris Leben stopped Alessio Sakara with punches at 3:16 of the first round. Yushin Okami knocked out Evan Tanner with a knee at 3:00 of round two, while Andrei Arlovski stopped Jake O’Brien with punches at 4:17 of the second.
Josh Koscheck defeated Dustin Hazelett by TKO from a head kick and punches at 1:24 of round two. Diego Sanchez stopped David Bielkheden with punches at 4:43 of the opening round. Luigi Fioravanti beat Luke Cummo unanimously, and Jorge Gurgel earned a unanimous decision over John Halverson.
The ten-fight card produced six finishes and four decisions. Silva supplied its championship conclusion, while the supporting results featured successful nights for several established contenders.
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UFC 82, Anderson Silva, Dan Henderson, Yushin Okami, Columbus, MMA history
