RIO DE JANEIRO >> Anderson Silva stopped Stephan Bonnar with a knee to the body with 20 seconds left in the first round Saturday night, winning his 17th consecutive fight in front of his home fans at UFC 153.

Silva (31-4) showed off his usual dominance while stopping Bonnar (17-8) for the first time in the veteran’s career. Silva stalked Bonnar before hurting him with a knee and finishing him with punches.

Silva is the UFC’s longtime middleweight champion, but he moved up to light heavyweight for the third time in his career. The Spider did it on just a few weeks’ notice, agreeing to take on Bonnar after several fighters dropped off the UFC 153 card because of injuries.

Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira also defeated Dave Herman by armbar submission late in the second round.