Anthony Smith believes Israel Adesanya is the "best middleweight of all time" over Anderson Silva
Anthony Smith made a bold claim when he suggested that Anderson Silva was not the best middleweight of all time. The 52-fight veteran, who has fought during both Silva and Israel Adesanya's primes, believes the current champ is the better fighter.
While admitting that the Brazilian is the greatest to ever compete at 185 lb purely based on his accolades, Smith considers Adesanya to be the more skilled fighter.
During his recent appearance on Michael Bisping's Believe You Me podcast, Smith shared his thoughts on who is the greatest middleweight of all time:
"He's [Israel Adesanya] is nowhere close, he's not over Anderson at all... [but] If you were to say who's the best middleweight of all time, [it's] probably Izzy... Like, if you're looking at skills and abilities. Yeah, I think Izzy is the better fighter."
Bisping was shocked by Smith's claims and quickly jumped to the Brazilian's defense, shining a light on his accomplishments in the sport.
Anthony Smith agreed that in terms of achievements and records, the former middleweight champion was still the greatest 185 lb fighter to ever grace the division:
"Well, the G.O.A.T by far is Anderson Silva. Just title defenses, fights won, you know."
Check out the full episode of the Believe You Me podcast below:
Is Anderson Silva still the middleweight G.O.A.T.?
Anderson Silva remains the most decorated middleweight in UFC history, having defended the title 10 times during his championship reign. So, why is he not collectively considered the greatest of all time?
Although his era was littered with legends of the sport, 'The Spider' was arguably the most dominant and most entertaining fighter in the MMA world during his prime.
He walked through almost everyone the UFC put in front of him and was unbeaten in the promotion between 2006 and 2012, winning an incredible 16 fights during that time.
#OnThisDay in 2009 - Anderson Silva made a STATEMENT in his LHW debut 🕷
[ via @UFConThisDay ] https://t.co/PMF3FLmLK5
However, his back-to-back losses to Chris Weidman signaled a major change in his career. The once-feared Silva would then struggle to find his feet in the octagon, losing seven times during his final nine bouts.
While his final years in MMA were tough, Silva is still considered by the majority of fight fans to be the greatest middleweight ever. Despite his losses, some even claim he's the best to ever compete in mixed martial arts.