MMA News: Will Tim Sylvia beat Brandon Vera at UFC 77?

Tim Sylvia will fight Brandon Vera at "UFC 77: Hostile Territory" on Oct. 20. (AP Images)

Standing 6 feet 8 inches tall and weighing 265 pounds, former UFC champion Tim Sylvia (23-3-0) will present a huge obstacle for the undefeated Brandon Vera (8-0-0) when the two heavyweights clash at "UFC 77: Hostile Territory" on Oct. 20.

At 6 feet 2 inches and 225 pounds, Vera might be considerably smaller than his opponent, but he's also the favorite to win, despite a nearly year-long absence from the octagon.

"Everybody's like 'Oh the layoff's going to be a problem,'"' Vera told The Canadian Press. "I honestly hope and don't think it will be. I went to Thailand, travelled and trained with a lot of different people. Just kept bettering myself, kept improving my game."

Although Sylvia admits he's facing a skilled opponent on Saturday, he thinks his size and experience will overwhem his smaller adversary.

"I think he's young, inexperienced and he hasn't fought somebody of my calibre yet," he explained. "I don't know, I don't think he's going to be prepared to deal with my size and ability."

To prepare himself, Sylva has changed his training, and hired a new boxing coach.

"Some of my last few fights haven't been that exciting so I just hired a new boxing coach," he said. "I'm doing a few different things and I think the old Tim's back, the guy that went out there and knocked people out the first and second round. So I'm going to go out there and give it my best and try and knock Brandon out."

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