Paulo César da Silva (July 21, 1963), is a Brazilian former basketball player, mixed martial artist and professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Giant Silva. A super-heavyweight wrestler capable of significant aerial maneuvers as well as power moves, he was both a face and a heel in several professional wrestling promotions.
Career[]
Very much like El Gigante/Giant Gonzales in the early years, Silva was originally a professional basketball player, playing for the Brazilian Team in the Olympic Games.
World Wrestling Federation (1998–1999)[]
After turning pro in 1998, Silva signed with World Wrestling Federation (WWF). After debuting he was given the name Giant Silva and was a member of the Oddities stable. For most of his WWF tenure, Silva was a cornerman for the Oddities and his matches on TV were tag matches, teaming up with Golga and/or Kurrgan. His only highlight was at SummerSlam 1998 when he, Golga, and Kurrgan defeated Kaientai in a Three on Four Handicap match. Silva would eventually be released along with the rest of the Oddities in early 1999.
New Japan Pro Wrestling and HUSTLE (2001–2008)[]
In 2001, Silva joined New Japan Pro Wrestling. He originally debuted on August 12, 2001 as a member of Masahiro Chono's stable Team 2000 where he was paired up with another Giant Giant Singh as the tag team: Club 7. Silva made his in-ring debut for New Japan when he took part in the G1 World Climax tournament where he finished in 4th place with 4 points. He and Singh made their debut as a tag team at Indicate of Next on October 8, 2001 where they defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi, Kenzo Suzuki, Yutaka Yoshie, & Wataru Inoue in a 4 on 2 handicap match.
In the fall of 2001, Silva teamed with Chono in the 2001 G1 tag league with the team finishing in 7th place with 6 points. In 2002, Silva took part in several tournaments. In February he was part of the a tournament for the vacated IWGP Heavyweight Championship but lost in the first round to eventual winner Tadao Yasuda. Two days later on February 3, Silva, Singh, and Chono won the Teisen Hall Cup 6 Man Tag Team Tournament. In March, Club 7 then entered a tournament for the vacated IWGP Tag Team Championship. In the first round, they defeated fellow Team 2000 members: Scott Norton and Super J, but lost to Yuji Nagata and Manabu Nakanishi in the semi-finals.
In the spring of 2002, Club 7 broke up and began feuding shortly afterwards. The two were scheduled to face each other at Toukon Memorial Day on May 2, 2002 but an injury to Singh prevented the match from taking place. The two finally fought at Cross Road on August 29, 2002 with Silva defeating Singh.
From 2004-2008, Silva wrestled for HUSTLE where he took part in a variety of matches and formed teams with Scott Norton, Toshiaki Kawada, and Mark Coleman.
PRIDE Fighting Championship (2003–2006)[]
Silva competed in PRIDE Fighting Championships, a defunct mixed martial arts organization based in Japan. Silva, at one time, trained with members of the Gracie family, most notably Ricardo Gracie and Ralek Gracie. On December 31, 2006 Giant Silva defeated former Yokozona Akebono Tarō by Kimura Armlock in the first round at K-1 Dynamite 2006 for his second win of his career giving him a professional record of 2 wins and 6 losses overall spanning both PRIDE FC and K-1.
Independent Circuit (2008–2010)[]
Silva wrestled on the Independent circuit, making his return at the National Wrestling Superstars show in Carteret, New Jersey on August 25, 2007.
In wrestling[]
- Finishing moves
- Giant Press (Second rope or a top rope diving splash)
- Giant Slam (Gorilla press slam)
- Chokeslam
- Powerbomb
- Signature moves
- Backbreaker
- Bearhug
- Big boot
- Cactus clothesline
- Clawhold, sometimes transitioned into an STO
- Diving crossbody
- Elbow drop
- Forearm club
- Gorilla press drop
- Plancha
- Running splash
- Scoop powerslam
- Spear
- Thunder fire powerbomb
- Vertical suplex, sometimes from the top rope
- Managers
- Nicknames
- "Paulao"
- "The Largest Man in the World"
- "The South American Soldier"
Championships and accomplishments[]
- Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre
- Torneo de Trios (2001) – with La Fiera
- New Japan Pro Wrestling
- Teisen Hall Six-Man Tournament (2002) – with Masahiro Chono and Giant Singh
