Photo by Srdjan Stevanovic/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC
Gabriel Gonzaga is considering a return to MMA ahead of his Bare Knuckle bout against Antonio Silva,
A heavyweight veteran and the protagonist of one of MMA’s biggest upsets, when he knocked out Mirko ‘Cro Cop’ Filipovic with a head kick in 2007, Gabriel Gonzaga has been away from mixed martial arts since May 2018. The Brazilian decided to take an indefinite break from the sport following a KO loss to Alexander Emelianenko.
In the time since, ‘Napao’ has signed up with Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship for a main event bout against fellow veteran Antonio ‘Bigfoot’ Silva. Their fight is set to go down on October 19. Despite his foray into boxing, however, the 40-year-old recently revealed to Ag Fight that he hasn’t entirely dismissed a return to MMA. The sticking point? The money would have to be just right in order to spark his interest.
“If the price is right, I’d have some fights. But as a career, I could have a fight or two, but I don’t think about growing in MMA. Given my age, I don’t think I have much time to waste in MMA if the price is not worth it.”
With eight KO/TKO wins under his belt in MMA, Gonzaga has an opponent with his own impressive track record of finishes in front of him with Silva. ‘Bigfoot’ has fifteen pro MMA victories via KO/TKO, including his famous 2nd round doctor’s stoppage of Fedor Emelianenko (due to Silva’s ferocious ground-n-pound attack). Despite the numbers, Gabriel believes they will be evenly matched in the ring, predicting a balanced fight between the two of them.
“It’s a good fight, under boxing rules, but with some different details. It’s a bit tamer than MMA, but I don’t think those rules will benefit either of us. They are rules and we are pretty similar at that, so I don’t think there will be an advantage for anybody.”
Gabriel Gonzaga (17-12) left his MMA career on a two-fight skid, with knockout losses to Alexander Emelianenko and Derrick Lewis before entering his hiatus. His last win came in December 2015, when he picked up an unanimous decision victory over Kostantin Erokhin. Now, Napao is expected to take on Antonio Silva at Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship 8’s main event, in Tampa, Florida, on October 19.