It looks like Anderson Silva might be able to resume his MMA career after all. The 45-year old legend is being pursued by Japanese fight promotion, the RIZIN Fighting Federation. This may be the only organization that is open to doing business with the former UFC middleweight champion. Founder Nobuyuki Sakakibara had nothing but good things to say about the free-agent when he sat down with MyMMANews.com.
“I have great memories with Anderson Silva during the PRIDE days and in my personal opinion, I think his career took off in Japan,” Sakakibara said. “I have heard that Japan has a special part in his heart as well. I do feel that I would like to help him fulfill his wishes out of respect for what he has accomplished and what he has done for our sport. I haven’t talked to him yet but I would be interested to see if we can come up with something that makes sense for him to start his final chapter in Japan.”
With Sakakibara extension that glimmer of hope for Silva to resume his career, this will give a new generation of fans an opportunity to see a master at work. Silva was a journeyman fighter who started in his native Brazil, before fighting in Pride, continuing in Cage Rage before getting the call to fight in the UFC. It was there that he became a household name and imposed his will on the middleweight division, winning the title and even posted some wins at light-heavyweight during his reign.
If Silva can make more room on his calendar, he may even be able to fit in a possible fight with boxing legend, Roy Jones Jr., who has been connected with Silva for a bout for years. Nothing ever came to fruition. Jones Jr. will face fellow boxing icon, Mike Tyson tomorrow night in an exhibition match on Pay-Per-View for eight rounds at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California.
Roy Jones Jr. says if everything goes well on Saturday night, he's almost positive that he'll finally face Anderson Silva in a boxing match #TysonJones
— Damon Martin (@DamonMartin) November 27, 2020
If the fight goes well for Jones Jr., he may continue his comeback tour and oblige Silva with a fight. While Silva was employed by the UFC, president Dana White forbade him to fight Jones Jr. during his time as middleweight champion. It looks like there’s a much greater chance for the two-storied fighters to knuckle up in the ring. Even fellow Brazilian and UFC legend Vitor Belfort has called out “The Spider” as he looks for retribution from a 2011 bout the two had where Silva knocked him out with a front kick at UFC 126.
With Silva’s schedule starting to gain ground again, it’s best to stay tuned for more as it develops.
