On The Rise:

Thales Leites - With an impressive 14-1 record, 9 fight ending submissions, and victories over high caliber middleweights such as Nate Marquardt, Jose "Pele" Landi-Jons, Drew McFedries and Pete Sell, Thales Leites is a dangerous, up-and-coming Brazilian fighter with slick ground skills. Of his 14 wins, he's only had to go to a decision twice, so if he's able to put together a strong performance in his next UFC fight, and add another high profile victory to his record, Leites should enter the discussion of fighters that are worthy of getting a shot at Silva. So far Leites' major strength has been in his submission work, but whether any of the middleweight grappling specialists would actually have much of an advantage in going to the ground against The Spider is up for debate. Though prevailing sentiments may indicate that the champ's strength lies in his striking arsenal, he too holds a BJJ black belt, from the Nogueira Brothers, proving that he's truly one of the most well rounded fighters in the game.

Demian Maia - Maia is still young in the MMA game, but he's already put together an impressive list of accomplishments. Another Brazilian submission wizard and BJJ black belt, he owns an undefeated 8-0 record in MMA and claims an Abu Dhabi championship to his name. While he still needs to build up his name, Maia's already notched submission victories over Ed Herman and Jason McDonald, and was the first UFC fighter to earn three straight Submission Of The Night honors...coming in his first 3 UFC fights no less. He's threatening anywhere on the ground and has been particularly adept with chokes. The bout with McDonald, who had also snagged two straight Sub Of The Night awards going into the match, turned into a ground fighting clinic that was one of the most entertaining grappling displays I've ever seen in the Octagon. Maia still needs to prove that he can succeed when stepping up to the highest levels of competition, but he's clearly a fighter to keep your eye on.

Rousimar Palhares - Yet another Brazilian submission machine, Rousimar Palhares trains at Brazilian Top Team, where he earned his BJJ black belt under former UFC middleweight champ, Murilo Bustamante. He's a former Fury Fighting Championships middleweight champion, a title he earned by winning a 16-man tournament which included opening round submission victories coming over Fabio "Negao" and Chute Boxe's Daniel Acacio, both in the same night. With just 10 professional MMA bouts to his name, Palhares has already shown the ability to pull off a variety of fight ending submissions, including two armbars, two heel hooks, a rear naked choke and an ankle lock, all on the way to an 8-2 record. Though he suffered a slight setback in his most recent fight at UFC 88, with a decision loss to Dan Henderson, "Toquinho's" (translation - "Tree Stump") current UFC record stands at 1-1, with that victory coming in impressive fashion over veteran Ivan Salaverry. With imposing wrestling abilities, plus aggressive and threatening Jiu Jitsu, Palhares is another UFC middleweight prospect who appears to have a very promising future in the sport.