Chris Weidman became the first man to stop Anderson Silva inside the Octagon, and the Brazilian plans to avenge the loss the same way.
Silva’s run as the middleweight champion lasted 2,458 days and ended at UFC 162, and he told Ariel Helwani during Monday’s edition of The MMA Hour that he will regain the title with a knockout.
“I (will) give back the knockout,” Silva told Helwani when asked how he believes he will defeat Weidman on Dec. 28. “I’m working hard now. Chris is the new champion and is a great fighter, but I’m training hard. The new Anderson is coming.”
The Brazilian plans to end the fight with a knockout, but he doesn’t expect Weidman to stand in front of him at UFC 168.
“I (will) train more jiu-jitsu because Weidman come to fight me and (won’t) stand up together in this fight,” he said. “Go for the ground, go for the ground. I train more jiu-jitsu, and ninjitsu.”
Silva admitted that his life has changed a lot since losing the title, and most of the people, including fans, has treated him differently since. But he doesn’t seem to care.
“It’s normal,” he said. “It’s the game. But my family is normal. This is more important for me. My sons, my wife, my brothers and dad. Other people, whatever.”
He doesn’t feel he needs a devastating win to prove he’s the best middleweight in the planet, though.
“Come on, bro, definitely no,” Silva said. “I’m working hard for a long time. My big goal is train the kids, new athletes coming. I’m normal guy. Sometimes I have good day, sometimes I don’t have good day. People will have the new chance to see the real Anderson. It’s normal.”
After his first loss in the UFC, Silva said Steven Seagal shouldn’t get all the credit for his devastating front kick knockout over Vitor Belfort, and he explains why.
“I have a good relationship with master Seagal,” he said. “He is a great man, great master, but I worked hard the front kick for a long time. I started martial arts and my first master showed me the movement. I’ve trained Capoeira, Taekwondo, but one day master Steven Seagal came to the academy, watched the training, watched my front kick and said ‘you move (to) the left’ and that’s it. (He doesn’t) showed the kick and bla, bla, bla. He’s not my coach, he’s my friend.”