Gegard Mousasi Calls Out Anderson Silva For Potential Showdown
No. 9-ranked former Strikeforce champion Gegard “The Dreamcatcher” Mousasi has made it quite clear who he’d like to fight next: former long-time divisional kingpin Anderson “The Spider” Silva.
Mousasi’s manager, speaking with MMAFighting.com on the topic yesterday (March 9, 2016), noted that “The Dreamcatcher” would be open to squaring off with Silva in the next few months, preferably at June’s UFC 199, or July’s UFC 200:
“All of the Brazilian media has been contacting us today about a potential Mousasi/Silva match-up in Brazil. It is an exciting idea as it will be a stadium show. However, the Curitiba card is right around the corner. Therefore, we need adequate time to put the camp together and prepare. We would gladly fight Anderson. However, a May date is too soon of a return. Had we known immediately after the London card then maybe. But that time has passed us, unfortunately. We will take the fight gladly. However, I think it would make more sense to have them fight either at UFC 199 in LA at the earliest, or alternatively, at UFC 200 in Vegas at the latest. Gegard wants to have the fastest turnaround possible while not compromising the organization and structure of his training camp. So the question should go back directly to Anderson on whether he accepts our challenge at either UFC 199 or UFC 200.”
Mousasi is coming off of a dominant one-sided win over Brazilian slugger Thales Leites at last month’s UFC Fight Night 84.
Silva also competed on that card, dropping a somewhat controversial decision to Michael Bisping in his return from a year-long suspension.
This fight definitely makes sense for both men, as Mousasi would have the chance to add a huge name to his resume, while the 40 year old Silva would have the chance to see if he could still compete with the top 10.
Thoughts?