UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones received a massive compliment yesterday when pound-for-pound kingpin Anderson Silva said he didn’t think he could beat Jones one-on-one (via MMA Fighting).
While “Bones” made it clear he appreciated the kind words, he doesn’t believe Silva’s comments really mean a whole lot at the end of the day.
Honored to hear the statements Silva made regarding a super fight me earlier today.. Doesn’t change much, still working hard
— Jon Bones Jones (@JonnyBones) July 2, 2013
Despite fans and analysts alike hoping for a superfight between Silva and 170-pound titleholder Georges St-Pierre since mid-2009, GSP has always been, at best, lukewarm on the idea.
GSP was the first fighter to say Chris Weidman, a friend and occasional training partner, would finish Silva at UFC 162 this Saturday (via Sportsnet).
Therefore, the French-Canadian believes there is no reason to be talking about a match up between him and Silva anymore.
As expected, “The Spider” sees the situation differently, stating that St-Pierre had a chance to fight him, but never seized the opportunity (via MMA Mania).
With all that in mind, talk of a fantasy fight between Jones and Silva began to heat up after Bones decimated Silva’s old rival, Chael Sonnen, at UFC 159 in April.
The win marked nine in a row for the 25-year-old New York native, also tying the UFC light heavyweight record with five successful title defenses in a row.
Of course, the talk of a Silva vs. Jones showdown would die a quick death if either fighter isn’t able to take care of business in their upcoming title defenses.
Silva has to take out Weidman this weekend, which would give him a 17-0 record inside the Octagon, including 11-straight middleweight title defenses.
Meanwhile, Jones meets hot prospect Alexander Gustafsson in the headlining bout of UFC 165 this September.
Has Silva officially ruled himself out of any superfights inside the cage or is there a realistic possibility he still steps up to the plate and fights Jones next year before calling it a career?
John Heinis is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also the MMA Editor for eDraft.com and contributes MMA videos to The Young Turks Sports Show.
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