Two Legends of MMA Could Finally Be Set to Meet in the Octagon at UFC 230…
So this is why Nate Diaz vs Dustin Poirier is a co-main event. Suddenly we’ve been catapulted back to 2010. Georges St. Pierre and Anderson Silva have been offered what would be a bonafide super fight. The ball rests firmly in ‘Rush’s’ court. If agreed they’ll fight in the main event of UFC 230, in New York’s Madison Square Garden on November 3.
Both of these men returned to the UFC in recent years after long hiatuses away from the sport. However, their returns have gone very differently. Silva has won one of his last six fights and has been banned for PED use. In contrast, St. Pierre became a double champion after taking the middleweight title from Michael Bisping.
Don’t think this fight won’t sell. While it definitely won’t be the high-level contest we all wanted a few years back, it will still be an elite contest. Put it this way: if Chuck Liddell v Tito Ortiz can get people excited after all these years, then so should St. Pierre v Silva.
Glory Days
These men are without a doubt two of the greatest mixed martial artists to ever step into an octagon. They’ve got totally different styles. ‘The Spider’ is fluid and dynamic in his movement, famous for keeping his hands low and rolling with punches. Silva in his prime was an absolute joy to watch. His highlight reel seems endless.
St. Pierre has a much more durable style. His Kyokushin karate background, combined with very effective ju-jitsu helped him become the most successful welterweight in the history of the division… just like Anderson Silva is the most successful middleweight of all time. Herald Sun Sports’ Alex Oates reported:
“Spoke to @GeorgesStPierre. He confirmed he had been offered a fight with @NateDiaz209 but declined it, saying he had “nothing to gain from that fight”. GSP is also weighing up a super fight with @SpiderAnderson, but he has a bigger fight in mind. All will be revealed soon. @ufc”
Never Fought
For some bizarre reason, these two men never met in their prime. There’s no point pretending either of them are right now. Silva is 43. While he got the decision in his most recent fight against Derek Brunson, 19 out of 23 media outlets scored the fight in favor of The One. Before this, Silva had lost 5 straight. He’s not in his prime.
That’s why, when St. Pierre announced his return back in 2017, he said that he had no interest in fighting Silva. He explained why:
“It could happen; it depends on the condition (because) fights are about timing,” St-Pierre said. “Sometimes the guys stock are higher, and sometimes it’s lower. You want the guy that the stock is the highest. It fluctuates. I don’t think his stock right now is very high. He’s a legend for the stuff he has done in the past, but he’s not the same as he was back in the day.”
Big Questions
The fact is though, that both of these men are in a difficult position. They still have pay-per-view power because of their names. A fight against each other could be their last chance of a massive payday. St. Pierre has more to gain. He could still get fights against the likes of Conor McGregor or Khabib Nurmagamedov in the future.
Silva would fancy his chances against the former middleweight champion who has suffered from ulcerative colitis over the last year. It’s very possible that they would fight at a catchweight.
Would you watch it?
