Anderson Silva’s coach praises him as ‘a heavyweight that moves like a lightweight’ ahead of Chael Sonnen fight

Anderson Silva meets Chael Sonnen in a boxing match on June 15 in Sao Paulo, Brazil, and his longtime boxing coach Luiz Dorea guarantees Silva will be at peak performance.

The 216-pound exhibition bout is scheduled for five two-minute rounds, and Dorea told MMA Fighting he respects Sonnen’s striking skills, but won’t be surprised to see Silva stop the American.

“He’s a MMA athlete so he’s a complete athlete,” Dorea said. “He’s experienced. Even though his background isn’t boxing, he can throw punches and defend himself, has good timing and distance and experience, so we can’t underestimate him. Sonnen deserves respect for everything he’s done in the sport, and Anderson is very professional in how he’s approaching this match, because he wants to deliver a big show for the fans.”

“We know this is a contact sport because anything can happen in there,” Dorea added in regards to the bout being an exhibition. “Anderson always respects all of his opponents. He’s a boxer now. He was doing boxing for MMA, with kicks and takedowns, but we’ve been working on pure boxing for the past four or five years so he’s a complete professional now. He’s a heavyweight that moves like a lightweight, basically. That’s rare, brother.”

Silva, who defeated Sonnen twice in UFC, moved to Salvador, Bahia, in Brazil, to do a full three-month camp at Dorea’s gym. The experienced coach believes Spaten Fight Night is the biggest boxing event to ever take place in Brazil.

Dorea said Silva joked he plans on competing for 10 more years since boxing isn’t as damaging to the body as mixed martial arts, and that the former UFC middleweight champion doesn’t look like a 49-year-old in the gym.

“His condition is above normal,” Dorea said. “His age doesn’t reflect the reality. He’s 49 but looks 10, 15 years younger. The way he moves, his notion of time and distance and how fast he learns, his reflexes. You’ll see that on June 15.

“I always say the knockout is the consequence of good hands that connect, and Anderson is ready to connect and go for the knockout. I believe Sonnen is taking care of himself, because Anderson is coming in his best shape and motivated to fight in Brazil.”