Brazilian challenger Anderson (The Spider) Silva stopped champion Rich Franklin at 3:59 of the first round to claim the UFC middleweight title in dominant fashion Saturday night at UFC 64: Unstoppable.

Silva (16-4) handed Franklin only his second losses in 24 mixed martial arts fights by softening him up with a series of devastating knees to the body while in a Muay Thai clinch. When the champion brought his hands down to protect his body, Silva went high and rocked Franklin with knees to the head before referee (Big) John McCarthy stepped it to stop the punishment.

``I'm here to stay,'' Silva said via an interpreter after the fight.

Franklin (22-2) was making his third title defence at 185 pounds after taking the belt away from Evan Tanner at UFC 53: Heavy Hitters in June 2005.

``I'm sorry I didn't put on the greatest show,'' said Franklin.

``I wasn't expecting him to be that strong in the clinch.''

The loss came in Franklin's first action since March when he broke his hand in a lopsided five-round decision over Canadian David Loiseau.

In the other title fight of the night, Sean (Muscle Shark) Sherk won the vacant lightweight (155-pound) championship in a dominant, bloody five-round decision over Kenny Florian.

``It was just a bloody, bloody war,'' Sherk said in the ring after the fight.

``I've been working my entire life for this moment so there wasn't nothing that was going to stop me out here. I don't care how much I was bleeding.''

Florian cut Sherk's temple open with an elbow in the second round but Sherk's wrestling skills allowed him to control the fight via ground and pound. Sherk's cut bled profusely for the rest of the contest but Sherk controlled the action and, in the final round, bounced Florian off the canvas like a rubber ball.

Sherk, whose only losses are to Canadian Georges St. Pierre and champion Matt Hughes at 170 pounds, raised his record to 30-2-1. Florian, the first graduate of ``The Ultimate Fighter'' reality TV show to fight for a title, fell to 7-3.

Canadian middleweight Kalib Starnes lost on the undercard by TKO at 1:40 of the third round to accomplished Japanese fighter Yushin Okami. Starnes, a 31-year-old from Langley, B.C., fell to 9-2-1.

In other undercard action, UFC newcomer Carmelo Marrero used his superior wrestling skills to negate the striking power of French heavyweight Cheick Kongo for an upset win via split decision.

Lightweight Spencer Fisher stopped Dan Lauzon, whose older brother Joe spoiled Jens Pulver' return to the UFC last month, at 4:38 of the first round by TKO. Welterweight Jon Fitch pounded out a unanimous decision over Japan's Kuniyoshi Hironaka.

Light-heavyweight Mike Nickels was forced to withdraw from his bout against Keith Jardine because of a back injury.