Conor McGregor got tongues wagging earlier this week when he discussed potential future opponents inside the Octagon after his clash with Khabib Nurmagomedov this weekend at UFC 229. One name that stood out from his comments was Brazilian legend and former Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight champion Anderson Silva.
The Irishman spoke with ESPN’s Ariel Helwani from ESPN and after claiming he’d beat Nurmagomedov this weekend by “devastating KO” he talked about his next challenge.
“I would be interested in an Anderson Silva bout. I swear to God. Anderson is a legend in the game. What’s the difference between him and Georges? Same damn thing. I’m going to do fights that interest me or have meaning.”
The comments caught the eye of the 42 year-old Brazilian, who has not fought since UFC 208 last February, where he defeated Derek Brunson by decision to put an end to a streak of four losses and one no-contest. Silva responded to the challenge in Portuguese through Instagram, welcoming a super fight with the Irishman:
“It would be a great honor to test myself by fighting with Conor McGregor. He is an eclectic fighter, and has already proven that he has to be respected. Let’s make this happen!
The UFC wants super fights, I’m sure fans from all 4 corners of the world want to see this fight.
I professionally believe it would be awesome to test my martial skills with a fighter like Conor McGregor a real super fight! Now he is focused on his fight against Khabib Nurmagomedov, after this fight I am ready for this challenge! When and where he wants.”