UFC 153

UFC 153: Silva vs. Bonnar
UFC 153: Silva vs. Bonnar
	The poster for UFC 153: Silva vs. Bonnar
Information
Promotion	Ultimate Fighting Championship
Date	October 13, 2012
Venue	HSBC Arena
City	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Attendance	16,844
Total gate	$2.5–$2.6 million
Buyrate	410,000
Event chronology

UFC 153: Silva vs. Bonnar was a mixed martial arts pay-per-view event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on October 13, 2012, at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Background

Vitor Belfort was expected to face Alan Belcher at the event. However, Belfort was pulled from the bout to face Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones on September 22, 2012 at UFC 152.^[3] Belcher also was forced to drop out of the card due to a spinal fracture.^[4]

After having their first fight end in a no contest due to an eye poke in the first round, a rematch between Phil Davis and Wagner Prado was briefly linked to UFC on FX: Browne vs. Bigfoot and then scheduled for this event.^[5]

Quinton Jackson was scheduled to face Glover Teixeira at the event. However, Jackson pulled out of the bout citing an injury,^[6] and was replaced by Fabio Maldonado.^[7] Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Rashad Evans was offered the fight with Teixeira but turned it down due to the short notice.^[8]

Geronimo dos Santos was scheduled to fight Gabriel Gonzaga at this event. However, dos Santos pulled out of the bout after a blood test showed that he had antibodies for Hepatitis B.^[9]^[10]^[11] With no time to find a suitable replacement, Gonzaga was pulled from the card.

Erik Koch was expected to face UFC Featherweight Champion José Aldo in a title fight at this event, but on August 31, 2012, Koch was forced to pull out due to injury. Former UFC Lightweight Champion Frankie Edgar had agreed to step in for Koch and fight Aldo for the Featherweight title.^[12] However, on September 11, Aldo was also forced to pull out of the event with a foot injury after being involved in a motorcycle accident.^[13]

On September 12, 2012, UFC officials announced that UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva and former The Ultimate Fighter star Stephan Bonnar would fight in the main event.^[14] Silva was a massive favorite going into the bout,^[15] which was a three-round fight. Although all main event fights have been five-round affairs since UFC 138, UFC 153 was the exception due to the short notice.^[16]

On November 4, 2012, UFC announced Bonnar had tested positive for drostanolone, and Dave Herman for marijuana. Both fighters were suspended.^[17]

Results

Main Card
Weight class				Method	Round	Time	Notes
Light Heavyweight	Anderson Silva	def.	Stephan Bonnar	TKO (knee to the body and punches)	1	4:40
Heavyweight	Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira	def.	Dave Herman	Submission (armbar)	2	4:31
Light Heavyweight	Glover Teixeira	def.	Fabio Maldonado	TKO (doctor stoppage)	2	5:00
Welterweight	Jon Fitch	def.	Erick Silva	Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 29–28, 29–28)	3	5:00
Light Heavyweight	Phil Davis	def.	Wagner Prado	Submission (anaconda choke)	2	4:29
Welterweight	Demian Maia	def.	Rick Story	Submission (neck crank)	1	2:30
Preliminary Card (FX)
Featherweight	Rony Jason	def.	Sam Sicilia	TKO (punches)	2	4:16
Lightweight	Gleison Tibau	def.	Francisco Trinaldo	Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–28)	3	5:00
Featherweight	Diego Brandao	def.	Joey Gambino	Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 30–27, 30–27)	3	5:00
Welterweight	Sérgio Moraes	def.	Renée Forte	Submission (rear-naked choke)	3	3:10
Preliminary Card (Facebook)
Middleweight	Chris Camozzi	def.	Luiz Cané	Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–28)	3	5:00
Lightweight	Cristiano Marcello	def.	Reza Madadi	Decision (split) (28–29, 29–28, 30–27)	3	5:00