UFC Middleweight Champ Anderson Silva Back to 205? “Never Say Never”

UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva will next put his title on the line when he faces Yushin Okami at UFC 134 in August in his home country of Brazil.

Prior to that fight ever being made, UFC president Dana White told the crowd following UFC 128 that Silva had told him specifically that he wanted to fight at middleweight and not go back to 205 pounds, as he had done twice before when the promotion offered him fights in the heavier class.

Silva’s focus is indeed on defending his middleweight title, but if the right opportunity came up at light heavyweight, there’s a very famous phrase that goes something like “never say never.”

“If there’s opportunities that happen to be the right opportunities at the right time, then we’ll take them. But right now he’s focused on the middleweight title,” Silva’s manager Ed Soares told MMAWeekly Radio.

White had mentioned that Silva always felt he was a middleweight, and never really expressed a great interest in fighting at 205 pounds. While it’s true that Silva has spent the majority of his time at 185 pounds, the biggest fights in the sport are what the Brazilian is focused on.

In the future, that may even mean a return to light heavyweight.

“I don’t know if he’s always felt that,” Soares commented about Silva’s mindset always being at 185 pounds. “He’s focused on defending his middleweight title, that’s his weight class, that’s where he feels comfortable at.”

Like anything else in this sport, there’s no telling what the future holds or what fights could come up for Silva as he continues his reign of terror a top the middleweight division, and is locked in a battle with Georges St-Pierre for the designation of MMA’s pound-for-pound best.

And that phrase that everyone’s heard before? Well, it’s true, at least according to Silva’s manager.

“You can never say never, that’s for sure,” Soares stated.

Silva’s main focus, at least for the next six months, is getting ready to avenge the last loss on his professional record, as he faces Yushin Okami in the main event of the upcoming UFC 134 event in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. If he’s able to settle that score, then Silva will think about what’s next or what weight class he may entertain.

UFC President Dana White Announces Belfort vs. Akiyama at UFC 133 in Philadelphia

Speculation swirling around Vitor Belfort recently had put him in the Octagon with everyone from Wanderlei Silva to Michael Bisping to a rematch with UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva.  The speculation came to an end on Thursday when UFC president Dana White revealed to ESPN.com’s UK branch that Belfort would instead face Yoshihiro Akiyama.

Belfort told MMAWeekly.com recently that UFC brass was trying to put him in a fight at UFC 134 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Aug. 27. He will instead face Akiyama at UFC 133 on Aug. 6 in Philadelphia.

“Verbal agreements are in for a battle between two of the most exciting fighters in the middleweight division,” UFC president Dana White told ESPN. “Coming off three straight ‘Fight of the Night’ performances, Yoshihiro Akiyama will take on former UFC light-heavyweight champion Vitor Belfort in Philadelphia.”

Belfort (19-9) enters the fight coming off of a first-round knockout loss to Anderson Silva at UFC 126 in early February. Prior to that he had won five fights in a row.

Akiyama (13-3) is coming off back-to-back losses for the first time in his career and fighting for his UFC survival. He last fought Michael Bisping at UFC 120 last October. He had been scheduled to fight Nate Marquardt at UFC 128 in New Jersey in March, but those plans were derailed by the tragic earthquake and tsunami that ravaged his homeland a week prior to the fight.