Anderson Silva Pulls Back on Declining Rematch, Wants Time to Ponder Future
Chris Weidman pulled off one of the bigges t upsets in UFC history on Saturday night when he knocked out Anderson Silva at UFC 162 in Las Vegas.
Silva was on a 16-fight winning streak in the Octagon. He held the middleweight championship longer than any fighter in company history. He has more title fight victories on his record than Weidman has fights.
If there was ever a UFC champion that deserved an immediate rematch, it would be Anderson Silva.
UFC president Dana White stated well before the fight that if Silva were to lose, he would be guaranteed an immediate rematch. He didn’t change his tune, even after Silva got knocked out cold early in the second round.
Weidman agreed with White. After calling Silva the “Bruce Lee of mixed martial arts,” he extended the offer of an immediate rematch.
“I just have to say all respect to Anderson Silva,” said Weidman. “I’ll give him an immediate rematch if he wants to do it.”
The offer is most certainly on the table, but Silva isn’t so sure he’s ready to accept.
“No. Chris is the champion now. I finish my work,” Silva commented in the Octagon after regaining his faculties. “I no more fight for the belt. I fight for the belt for a long time. I’m tired.”
That almost sounded like Silva was considering walking away, but he’s not retiring. He recently signed a new 10-fight contract, and just needs some time to consider what he wants for the next step in his illustrious career.
White, however, was emphatic in his belief that in his heart Silva “wanted a rematch more than anything in the world,” but respected Silva’s intent to take a step back and mull things over.
“I want to take some time off and maybe three to four months, think about what I want to do. Really, right now, I can't think about (a rematch),” Silva explained. “I just want to take some time off, go home, and think about everything and be alone.
“There's a lot of pressure in defending this title. I defended it for a long time, so I need some time to myself.”
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