Dana White Says Anderson Silva Will Fight Georges St-Pierre And Jon Jones
According the UFC president Dana White, middleweight king Anderson Silva is on the brink of inking a 10-fight contract extension.
Furthermore, the soon-to-be 38-year-old will have blockbuster bouts against reigning welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre and light heavyweight champ Jon Jones before calling it quits.
“You will have both those fights before Anderson Silva retires,” White promised Friday on ESPN Chicago’s The Waddle & Silvy Show. “Anderson Silva is on the verge of signing a new big deal with us, and he wants big fights. That’s what he wants.”
If Uncle Dana says it, then it has to be true, right? Here’s to hoping this time…
“The great thing about it is, Anderson Silva is the greatest fighter ever in mixed martial arts,” White added. “He’s 185 pounds, and he lands right in the middle of Georges St-Pierre and Jon Jones, so he can fight both of those guys.”
Most believed the promotion would arrange GSP vs. Silva after St-Pierre successfully unified the 170-pound crown against interim champ Carlos Condit at UFC 154. “The Spider” even made the trek all the way to Canada to watch the November scrap in person. Furthermore, the UFC had a camera fixated on Silva throughout the match and aired his live reactions in the corner of the television screen during the fight.
Instead, St-Pierre requested and was granted a tango with Nick Diaz. The two will meet in the most anticipated welterweight affair in MMA history at UFC 158.
“Georges St-Pierre wanted to fight Nick Diaz,” White stated. “He’s been off for a little over a year; he had that knee surgery. Let’s see how this Diaz fight goes. That fight isn’t dead. That fight is going to happen. Let’s say Diaz beats Georges St-Pierre, Diaz has said straight up he wants to fight Anderson Silva. We’ll see what happens.”
As far as Jones goes, he and Silva had previously professed they weren’t interested in fighting each other. However, both have softened their stance over the past year.
Jones will defend his throne against Chael Sonnen at UFC 159. Silva, meanwhile, is planning on marinating until this spring.
Silva vs. Jones would mark the biggest fight the UFC has ever arranged. Both are also sponsored by Nike, so the ad campaigns should be interesting.
Austin Arrieta | Elite.
