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Anderson Silva hasn't fought in over a year. 2019 saw him lose to the fastest-rising contender in the UFC Middleweight division in Israel Adesanya and a few months later in Brazil, he would suffer a defeat to Jared Cannonier - a top-ranked contender.
Anderson Silva has been out of action since then, but he's always a big name and he's been looking out for the biggest fight.
Speaking to Combate (H/T Sherdog), the former UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva revealed that he isn't interested in facing the new guard as a stepping stone anymore. He wants the biggest fights. Since the Conor McGregor Welterweight fight fell through, Anderson Silva is now eyeing another former Champion in Anthony "Showtime" Pettis:
“UFC owes me a super fight by contract. Conor (McGregor) called me out right after my fight with (Israel) Adesanya. Our team talked to his team and we agreed upon a bout at (170lbs), but something happened and UFC decided to not make it. Then Anthony Pettis proposed that super fight, and I liked it because he was already a champion who has impressive knockouts. Of course, it would be a great super fight,” Silva said
Does Anderson Silva vs Anthony Pettis make sense?
Anthony Pettis found a home at Welterweight for a couple of fights before returning to Lightweight. He's coming off a decision win against Donald 'Cowboy' Cerrone but has never made the jump to Middleweight. Some might argue that Pettis would be quite small for a Middleweight, but there's always the question of the big incentive for taking such fights.
When it comes to facing Anderson Silva, we have to remember that he's won just one fight in over seven years - and even that win has an asterisk next to it, as many fans felt that Derek Brunson did enough to defeat him.
Either way, it's hard to blame Anderson Silva for wanting to take the biggest fights possible at this stage of his career - where he's likely closer to retirement than ever.
