UFC News: Anderson Silva eyes comeback in January. Accepts Conor McGregor's challenge for mega-fight
What's the story?
Former UFC middleweight champion and perhaps the greatest striker the UFC has ever signed, Anderson Silva, is looking to make a comeback in the month of January 2019. Silva accepted Conor McGregor's challenge that the latter spelled out in an interview, prior to the Khabib fight.
In case you didn't know...
Anderson Silva previously fought early 2017 and scored a controversial decision win against middleweight, Derek Brunson. Silva will be eligible to fight from the month of November onwards, thanks to a recent deal agreed upon between the USADA and Silva's legal team. In a recent interview with TMZ Sports, Silva showed interest in fighting two top contenders, in Conor McGregor and Nick Diaz.
Here is a snippet of Silva's interview with TMZ Sports
He also stated that it would make perfect sense for Dana White to make this super fight happen since both Conor and Silva are lethal strikers. This is what he had to say about the fight in a recent interview:
"Two big names. Two big legends. And, why not? It's not about money, Conor. It's about martial arts challenge."
The heart of the matter
Early September this year, Conor McGregor told reporters that he would be more than pleased to fight Anderson Silva. In a recent interview on the Ariel Helwani's MMA Show, Conor had the following to say about the possibility of a mega-fight with Silva:
"I would be interested in an Anderson Silva bout. I swear to God. Anderson is a legend in the game. What's the difference between him and Georges? Same damn thing. I'm going to do fights that interest me or have meaning"
Anderson Silva has also told Conor McGregor to not push for a rematch with Khabib and fight him instead. In a recent interview with MMA fighting, Silva had the following to say about a possible fight with "The Notorious One":
“It would be an honor to test myself with Conor McGregor. He’s an unorthodox fighter and has proven he must be respected. Let’s make it happen.”
What's next?
Both former champions, Conor McGregor and Anderson Silva, seem to be interested to take the business forward. Both fighters are showing no hesitation in talking freely about a potential fight against each other in what will go on to be one of the more anticipated fights in UFC history.
Will Anderson Silva fight Conor on his comeback in January, or will we see another classic encounter with Stockton's own, Nick Diaz. Leave your comments below!