Anderson Silva hasn’t appeared to be on the best of terms with Dana White since leaving the promotion last year, but nonetheless, the UFC president is still heaping praise on the legendary fighter after his recent accomplishments in the boxing world.
“Anderson Silva, we honestly need to start talking again about this guy as the GOAT,” White told reporters last night after the latest Contender Series show. “Not Tito because he knocked Tito out in 40 f*cking seconds, but you know what, he did to Tito exactly what should be done to Tito. Knocking Tito out in 40 seconds is what should have happened in that fight. Anderson Silva beat Chavez Jr. at 46 years old.
“He now left this sport, which he was considered one of the greatest of all time, possibly even the greatest of all time, goes out, beats Chavez Jr. in a boxing match, and knocks Tito out in 40 seconds. And you know what I think of Tito personally, and Tito can’t box. Tito’s a horrible boxer. That’s why I said I would box him. Do you ever see me saying I’ll fight any other f*cking guy in the UFC? No, and I never will. I never would, and 10 years ago I wouldn’t, but I would Tito all day long.
“The other thing is when Tito fought here, Tito had a good chin. Tito took big shots from a lot of guys who hit hard. Anderson Silva knocked him out in 40 seconds. Anderson Silva might actually be the GOAT of combat sports. It’ll be interesting to see what he does next.”
Meanwhile, White also predicted that while Jake Paul might have been up for the challenge of boxing Ben Askren and Tyron Woodley, he’ll steer clear of a proven striking expert like Silva, even if he is well past his prime at 46-years-old.
“I f*cking guarantee you this, you ain’t gonna see Jake Paul calling Anderson Silva out. That I f*ckin’ promise you. He’s his size, and he’s actually good. He’s old, which is what Jake Paul looks for, he likes to fight old guys. But he likes to fight old guys that are too small and that are absolutely, positively washed up.”
