At UFC 153, Anderson Silva reinforced a belief most fans already held: that he’s the best fighter in MMA, simple as that. With his first-round TKO of Stephan Bonnar, the middleweight champion (fighting tonight at light heavyweight) put another entry in the mountain of exhibits proving his dominance beyond a reasonable doubt.
With Bonnar in the rear-view mirror, the question now turns to Silva’s next opponent. Fans and pundits have expressed a desire for Silva to face light heavyweight champion, Jon Jones. However, both men have been cool to the idea, and Silva seemed to permanently bury the idea after UFC 153, when he told broadcaster Joe Rogan that he would not fight again at 205 pounds.
That puts his options back in the middleweight division. But it doesn’t mean all hope of a super-fight is lost. Georges St-Pierre could move up to challenge Silva at 185 pounds. St-Pierre still has some work to do at welterweight—including returning to the cage after a long layoff, where Carlos Condit awaits him—but he could move up. I’m sure the UFC could find some ways to incentivize such a move.
As for the full-time middleweights, Chris Weidman, Michael Bisping, Tim Boetsch and Alan Belcher might all be possibilities. All are good fighters, but none seem to pose any immediate threat to Silva.
That leaves us with St-Pierre. Both Silva and GSP have said they want big fights. What’s a bigger fight than this one? If St-Pierre can defeat Condit and maybe someone else like a Nick Diaz, here’s hoping he starts packing on the pounds.
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