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“I think that, in his division, the only fight that I personally would love to see again is him and Israel Adesanya.”
UFC president Dana White would like to see Anderson Silva retire after UFC Fight Night 181, claiming that Uriah Hall will be ‘The Spider’s’ “last fight” in the UFC. But Silva has one more fight left on his contract and, according to longtime strength and conditioning coach Rogerio Camoes, the former UFC middleweight champion still has ‘plenty of wood to burn’ at this late stage in his career.
“I’m not aware of the negotiations,” Camoes told MMA Fighting’s Guilherme Cruz in a recent interview. “But, to me, speaking as Anderson’s coach, Anderson still has plenty of wood to burn, brother. Believe it. From what he’s doing in terms of performance in training, he still has wood to burn.”
Camoes believes Silva is entitled to at least ‘one more superfight’ and claims a rematch with current middleweight champ Israel Adesanya would be the perfect matchup to end his career on.
“At least one more – do this one and one more superfight,” Camoes said. “Imagine that, man? Imagine an Anderson superfight in Rio de Janeiro when everything is back to normal, no pandemic, and him fighting someone with a big name or a legend from the past.”
“I think I’ve seen Anderson fight everybody. I think that, in his division, the only fight that I personally would love to see again is him and Israel Adesanya. That fight was fabulous. Three spectacular rounds. Israel had to fight hard. It was one of the most technical fights I’ve ever seen in MMA history. Two talents, they put on a show of martial arts and respect. A second fight would be something spectacular.”
With Adesanya the current middleweight champ, and Silva no longer ranked in the top-fifteen, I think it’s safe to say the rematch will never materialize. With that said Silva was surprisingly competitive against Adesanya, even at 44-years-old, when both men fought to a decision at UFC 234. Silva ultimately lost the bout via unanimous decision but put up a much better fight than most fans anticipated.
Silva then went on to fight Jared Cannonier at UFC 237 but suffered a leg injury after being dropped with a leg kick in the first round. The UFC veteran was sidelined for the rest of the year.
UFC Fight Night 181, which is expected to feature Hall vs. Silva as the main event, is expected to take place on Oct. 31 at a to be determined location.