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The match between UFC 234, former middleweight champion Anderson Silva, and Israel Adesanya was a headache.
On one side, the benefits of the fight for Adesanya were obvious: he has to fight a legend and a personal idol whose name – current or approximate – can certainly do a lot to help pull his own. All this in the year following his arrival at the UFC, not less.
On the Silva side, however, the risk / reward ratio seemed less favorable. What is the point of winning a young enemy who poses a credible threat in the region where he also excels?
According to an ESPN.com interview with Silva, there is a lot to gain.
"(UFC President Dana White) came to LA to talk to me," said Silva. "I told him," Why am I going to fight? "And Dana replied," You know, you win this fight, you go to the title belt. "I said," OK, now you talk about good deals for me. "
But this is not the only factor behind the 43-year-old's decision to suspend his two-year-old dismissal from 29-year-old Adesanya, who is still undefeated.
Adesanya (15-0 MMA, 4-0 UFC) said Silva (34-8 MMA, 17-4 UFC) had refused the match. Adesanya did not really know what had caused Silva's turnaround, but he hoped it was because the longtime champion is "always the guy who has always wanted to challenge himself."
It seems that "The Last Stylebender" may have played a role.
"It's a big challenge for me," Silva said. "All my life, since I started martial arts, I have come up with the best challenge. Israel is a young man and the future of sport. Everyone is talking about Israel. I think it's the best fight in the sport. "
It remains to be seen whether a match for the middleweight title will really be on the starting line. The timing is right, as Melbourne's Rod Laver Arena will also host a title match between champion Robert Whittaker and Kelvin Gastelum in the same fight that night.
Silva participates in the meeting after a unanimous victory over Derek Brunson at UFC 208, the only official victory of his last six bouts. Over the almost two years of Silva's absence, one was devoted to the suspension accepted by the American Anti-Doping Agency after a doping control failure that was eventually attributed to contaminated supplements.
Adesanya, in turn, has beaten four times since her debut at the UFC in April. He also takes part in the fight after a win over Brunson and also plans to campaign for a title in case he wins.
For more information on UFC 234, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.
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