Anderson Silva: ‘I Think MMA For Me Is Done’
Anderson Silva doesn’t plan on retiring any time soon. However, we will not see him compete in MMA again.
Silva ended his MMA career last October, losing to Uriah Hall in a fourth-round TKO. Shortly after, Silva asked the UFC to release him so that he could pursue other combat sports. The organization honored his request, which left many speculating that we would see him in the cage again for another promotion.
However, Silva instead decided to pursue boxing with an upcoming fight scheduled against Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. later this year. The move surprised the MMA world, with many questioning what would be next for the aging great. In a recent interview with ESPN, Silva confirmed that he will not be returning to MMA but will pursue other forms of combat sports. (H/T ESPN.com)
“I think MMA for me is done,” Silva shared. “Because it’s hard to train MMA. It’s hard to stay training in a good level because you hurt yourself a lot. Now I just try to enjoy. I don’t need to prove nothing for anybody. I just try to enjoy every single moment I fight in different sports. And that’s it.”
Silva has previously mentioned a boxing match against Roy Jones Jr. but doesn’t seem to be limiting himself to just one sport.
“Maybe my next challenge is jiu-jitsu — gi or no gi,” Silva said. “Just enjoy the moment. The whole martial arts.”
Silva (34-11, 1 NC) leaves the sport with one of the most decorated careers of any MMA fighter. He held the UFC middleweight title for nearly seven years, from 2006 to 2013. He also has UFC records for longest title reign (2,457 days), longest winning streak (16), most middleweight title bouts (13), most middleweight title defenses (11), most middleweight finishes (11), most title bout finishes (9), most middleweight KOs (8), and highest significant strike percentage (61.01%).
Do you think Anderson Silva will continue to find success in other combat sports?
