After the defeat to Schembri, Sakuraba expressed desire to gain weight and move up to the heavyweight division, hoping to fight either Bob Sapp or PRIDE Heavyweight Champion Fedor Emelianenko. However, nothing of this was realized, and instead Sakuraba faced Wanderlei Silva for the third time at Pride Total Elimination. The bout reminisced their first encounter, as Sakuraba flashed again a comical entrance and traded strikes with Silva in his own field of specialty. The Japanese utilized a strategy of faking takedowns and attacking with uppercuts, followed by a real takedown attempt which Silva blocked with knees to the head. Sakuraba escaped and kept trading hits, but despite his best efforts to match his opponent's striking acumen, Wanderlei knocked him out with a jab-cross combination. After the fight, there was talk of Kazushi planning to retire, but nothing came from it.