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SCRAPP! FIGHT MAGAZINE
February - 2015
23
cus on and it causes time to
speed up quite quickly. For
Silva though, it had been
over two years since his hand
was last raised and the effect
was evident.
His passion and love for
the sport are undeniable,
but it seems like a chapter
closed following UFC 183.
Silva would not say what his
next move will be, but he
mentioned that his family
would like him to stop fight-
ing. How could you blame
them? As much as Silva loves
fighting, he has absolutely
nothing left to prove. Even
though he defeated Diaz,
there were only glimpses of
the Anderson that we are
all used to seeing. The once
cocky fighter was timid. The
thought of him getting into
the ring with any of the top
five middleweights doesn’t
make a lot of sense either.
He has expressed that he
loves fighting, but doesn’t
necessarily want to contend
for the title even if he fights
again. The only fight that
would make much sense
would be the Georges St.
Pierre fight. It would no lon-
ger be a super fight, because
neither have belts, but it is
still something that would
generate an enormous buy
rate. Fans want to see it, and
neither man would have to
worry about the things that
kept them from doing it in
the past.
With all of this in mind, one
thing is very clear. The return
of Anderson Silva provided
closure. The questions of
what he had left were an-
swered, and it’s not a great
outcome. It’s not the worst
outcome, either; he is com-
petitive and would most
likely look better in his next
outing, but he will never be
what he once was. The only
man it makes sense for him
to fight, Georges St. Pierre,
is in a similar position.
These two men had the
pound-for-pound list on
lockdown for years, but
time doesn’t stop for any-
one. Those spots have been
taken by Jon Jones and Jose
Aldo. We also have Ronda
Rousey, Chris Weidman, and
up-and-coming stars such as
Conor McGregor rising. It’s a
different world and for many
change is hard to accept.
Michael Jordan came back
after years of retirement, and
how did that go? Not well,
and even if it did, it wouldn’t
be the same. Michael Jor-
dan was an amazing athlete,
and by far the best basket-
ball player of his time, but
he represented much more.
He was the symbol that rep-
resented a golden era. The
same goes for Georges St.
Pierre and Anderson Silva.
When Anderson was at his
best, he seemed immortal,
and did incredible things in-
side the cage. He accumu-
lated records that may or
may not be broken in the
future, but have yet to be
topped. He will always be
remembered as the great-
est or one of the greatest of
all time, but he represents
much more. He was a mem-
ber of the Chute Boxe fight
team, then the Brazilian Top
Team, and the most promi-
nent member of the famed
Black House gym, which was
founded by his close friend
and manager, Ed Soares. He
fought in Pride and his star
rose in the UFC. The story
lines that he is tied to are
endless, but as with every
story, there must be an end.
We may have read the last
chapter of his storied career,
and if we haven’t, we are
certainly close to the end.