My Sportsman: Anderson Silva

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By Jon Wertheim

Anderson Silva brings great athleticism to his legitimate fighting skills. Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images Sportsman of the Year Tom Verducci: Q&A with Derek Jeter DP Show: Derek Jeter interview SI VAULT: Derek Jeter in SI Jeter named '09 Sportsman of the Year History of SI Sportsman (1954-2008) React: Is Jeter the right choice? More Sportsman of the Year coverage 2009 Essays 2009 Sportsman Essays S.L. Price: Roger Federer won career Slam and passed Sampras Michael Bamberger: Kurt Fearnley devotes self to good works Seth Davis: Tyler Hansbrough was a four-year sensation Richard Deitsch: Myron Rolle passed up NFL to be Rhodes scholar Selena Roberts: Eunice Kennedy Shriver founded Special Olympics Tim Layden: Usain Bolt improved on the impossible Bryan Armen Graham: Klitschkos reign with uncommon dignity Ian Thomsen: Chip Kelly remains same coach he's always been Peter King: Drew Brees' community impact is without parallel Pablo S. Torre: Ayanbadejo shows courage with stance Grant Wahl: U.S. men's soccer team embraced fair play Chris Ballard: Kobe Bryant's desire willed Lakers to title Alan Shipnuck: Phil Mickelson showed grace in darkest hours Michael Farber: Sidney Crosby validated expectations with Cup Aimee Crawford: Working mothers enjoyed banner year Lee Jenkins: Michigan State hoops lifted Detroit's spirit Ben Reiter: Cash didn't change Yankees' ace CC Sabathia Albert Chen: Andy Roddick won fans' hearts despite loss Chris Mannix: Manny Pacquiao's popularity knows no bounds Lars Anderson: Jimmie Johnson is NASCAR's best-ever closer Mark Beech: Rachel Alexandra, Zenyatta were perfect Austin Murphy: Tim Tebow does as much on field as off it Gary Van Sickle: Y.E. Yang's win inspired entire continent George Dorhmann: Myles Brand was true agent of change Damon Hack: Tom Watson inspired even in defeat Phil Taylor: Tony Dungy helps others off the field Alexander Wolff: The Spanish Male athlete dominated Jack McCallum: Diana Taurasi is a truly magnetic star Jon Wertheim: Anderson Silva helped legitimize MMA

Sports Illustrated will announce its choice for Sportsman of the Year on Nov. 30. Here's one of the nominations for that honor by an SI writer.

You love mixed martial arts. No, you hate mixed martial arts. It's the hottest, rawest, awesomest sport going, a video game come to life, the main cause of boxing's death spiral. No, it's legalized assault and battery, an affront to civilization, the Church of the Lowest Common Denominator. As mixed martial arts -- and the UFC in particular -- continue to grow, it also continues to polarize. And both sides are, of course, entitled to their opinion.

But maybe we can at least find common ground here and agree that, in 2009 A.D., mixed martial arts (MMA) is now firmly part of the sports firmament, not some fad, like the XFL or American Gladiators that will be mocked on a future episode of South Park. State after state continues to sanction MMA fighting. All the usual metrics -- sponsorships, television footprint, attendance -- indicate still more growth to come. As all the karate dojos bearing signs "We offer MMA training" suggest, it's even gaining acceptance as a participation sport.

Two dudes fighting in a steel cage will always be a tough sell in some precincts. But if you want to point to what's right and legitimate about MMA, you could start by entering Anderson Silva into evidence. One look at Silva, and it's clear he's an athlete as well-proportioned and well-conditioned as any NFL defensive back or NBA two-guard. He's agile. He's quick. He has the flexibility of a gymnast.

Plus, he can fight. Man, can he fight. Not brawl. But fight, using his skills and techniques and strategy to submit all manner of opponent. Though he comes from Brazil, the land of jiu-jitsu, Silva might be at his best standing up, delivering punches as accurate as they are powerful. His kickboxing skills are exceptional. Silva has black belt in jiu-jitsu, and his ground skills are such that he's recently beaten Dan Henderson, a former U.S. Olympic wrestler.

In 2009, Silva defeated two opponents. In other words, business as usual. He hasn't been beaten in nearly six years and he holds a 10-0 record in the UFC. As a middleweight, Silva, 34, has done what all the great ones do and simply exhausted the competition. As such, he fights as light heavyweight as well.

With his halting English and squeaky voice -- "You keep expecting him to talk about his brothers Tito and Jermaine," UFC president Dana White once quipped -- Silva creates a marketing challenge for an organization trying to mint stars. He's not the guy to star on a cable reality show or write a provocative book. He's not tweeting or promoting himself on YouTube. He'll leave to preening and WWE-theatrics to others, say, Brock Lesnar, the reigning heavyweight champion.

Instead, Anderson simply wins. And helps legitimize an entire sport in the process.

Agree with this selection? Give us your pick for Sportsman here.