Former UFC heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia KOs opponent in Slap Fighting debut with Dana White’s rival
Former UFC heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia has crossed over to the world of slap fighting and it appears he is a natural.
Sylvia headlined the latest Slap Fight Championship event after signing a multi-fight deal with a rival to Dana White’s widely condemned Power Slap league.
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‘The Maine-iac’ shared footage from his debut on social media that showed him dropping his opponent on two separate occasions.
One slap appeared to be more than his opponet, 'Bouncer’, could take as he fell to the floor from the strike and seemed to be out - but he somehow managed to get back to his feet and continue fighting.
After a few rounds of exchanging slaps, 47-year-old Sylvia scored another knockdown before the fight was waved off and he was crowned heavyweight champion.
Sylvia celebrated the KO and Slap Fighting Championship title win that represents a massive fall from grace for an MMA legend who was once regarded as the best heavyweight fighter on the planet.
At his peak, the American beat fighters such as Andre Arlovski, Jeff Monson, Ben Rothwell, and Brandon Vera – he won the UFC heavyweight belt twice during his 42-fight MMA career.
Sylvia also shared the cage with legends Frank Mir, Fedor Emelianenko, Minotauro Nogueira, Randy Couture, and boxer Ray Mercer before walking away from fighting in 2013.
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The 6ft 8in KO artist tried to make a comeback in 2015 but was not medically cleared by Mohegan Athletic Unit and as a result, his fight with Juliano Coutinho was scrapped.
Sylvia weighed 371lbs at the time and his long-time manager Monte Cox claimed that a pre-fight MRI scan showed worrying signs of blunt force trauma.
“Basically what they’re saying is there’s damage from blunt force trauma,” Cox said in an eight years ago.
“He’s got damage there. Does it affect his everyday life? Not so far. Not that he can tell — but it’s certainly something to pay attention to.”
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“I think it’s the end. He had gotten to a point where his body, through all the wars, just wasn’t able to get in the kind of shape he used to.
"Obviously, you could see that in his weight. He just can’t get into competitive form. I think [retirement] is good. With this MRI, why go on, when you’re only getting paid a fraction of what you’re worth?”
Unfortunately, Sylvia took several clean shots during his Slap Fighting Championship debut and is likely to take more when he competes in the controversial sport again.
A first defence of his newly acquired title is expected to take place later this year against a yet-to-be-named opponent, but he has distanced himself from facing UFC legend Mark Coleman.