My favorite anthem " timing and circumstances " was a big factor for Chris. I'm not trying to slight Chris, either.
Chris happen to be the one standing across cage when Anderson was ready to get ticket punched and didnt help matters by showboating in a fight where Anderson wasn't looking terrible before letting his hands down and acting the way he was. At the time , Chris understood his game plan, was good at it and led to a few title defenses which was understanding distance and keeping opponents at end of his punches. It became his bread and butter which, ironically, led to his undoing as UFC digested SFORCE and the plethora of talented middles which became the main part of their purchase. Chris also caught a freak break ( no pun) in re match with Silva , was an enormous favorite agsinst Vitor and his best win( imo) was Machida. This is a close debate . It's not like Bisping where when SFORCE middles came over, the pecking order buried Mike , imo, as a 185er. Chris , at the time, belonged with those names. I'll give Chris credit for the mere fact that he refused to fight nobody but the best after dropping title. The problem is - he made the decision and he paid the price . Longevity counts cause it goes hand in hand with fight IQ. He was unable to adapt / sustain after his title reign. He lost to Jacare ....a smaller and older version of Souza.
On paper - you look at the fact that Chris ended Anderson's reign( which I tried to explain ) and had 3 defenses and the less popular Souza ( who shouldve earned a shot A LONG time ago but didnt) has much less to show .... and youd think easy decision. I don't look at that way. Souzas record in other top promotions and in UFC is nothing to sneeze at. Chris became a name ( of course- after dethroning Anderson Silva) and all those talented Sforce middles were just getting their footing AT THE START of their UFC tenures.
Unlike Bisping, Chris was a legit champ but also had timing on his side the way everything went down. I can only answer this one way . Forget about their fight against each other for obvious reasons.
I'd still bet money on "prime" Souza over "prime" Chris in a tight and close fight ( much like their fight). Timing and circumstances as well as Chris getting that name/draw power and Jacare was one of the first to come over and his winning streak was ignored.
Dont get me wrong, Chris was a beast when it counted and owns a spot on the all time middles but so does Souza. I have no horse in this race but that's how I break it down as I've watched both entire careers.
