Once — and perhaps still — regarded as the greatest mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter of all time, Anderson Silva, has not won a fight inside the Octagon since Oct. 2012, going 0-3 with one “No Contest.”
It’s been a precipitous fall from grace for the former Middleweight champion, who endured a catastrophic leg break during his rematch with Chris Weidman, which he followed up with a unanimous decision over Nick Diaz that was later overturned after he tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs).
Silva — who most recently dropped a close decision to Michael Bisping at UFC Fight Night 84 just last month — is now set battle Uriah Hall at UFC 198 on May 14, 2016. It’s a great match up of dynamic strikers; however, it’s not the caliber of opponent — at least from a “name” perspective — that fans are used to seeing the legendary Brazilian compete against. In addition, the bout is third from the top on the pay-per-view (PPV) line up, marking the first time ever in his prestigious UFC career that Silva has not been featured in a main- or co-main event.
It seems like he wants to change that once he puts his fight against Hall in the rear-view mirror. And he has his sights set on a certain trash-talking, money-making Irishman named Conor McGregor who he technically outweighs by at least 40 pounds.
“[McGregor] is a challenge I would like to do,” Silva recently told Combate (via FOXSports.com). “I’ve never asked to fight anybody, but I would like to test my martial arts skills against [Conor] McGregor. … I think McGregor is a great striker, but he didn’t do very well in his last fight because he played into Nate Diaz’s game and that’s really hard.”
It’s unclear if the potential showdown is even possible — Silva is so much bigger than McGregor. In addition, one would imagine that McGregor — who will likely rematch Nate Diaz at UFC 200 at a 155-pound catchweight — would eventually defend his Featherweight title at least once before even sniffing a scrap with Silva.
The good news is Silva has Plan A and Plan B to keep him busy in the interim, two rematches against former opponents that are not considered wins on is professional record: Diaz (Nick) and Bisping.
“I would like that [McGregor] and a rematch with Nick Diaz and Michael Bisping,” he said. “These are the fighters I would like to fight. McGregor, Diaz and Bisping because that fight did not end nicely.”