Anderson Silva is throwing his name in the hat for a potential fight with Conor McGregor.
“The Notorious” went on social media earlier this week to debate who’s the greatest MMA fighter of all-time, having “The Spider” sitting at No. 1. It didn’t take long for the Brazilian to once again issue a respectful challenge towards the Irish superstar.
“I have a huge admiration for the great athlete that Conor is and I believe this superfight would be something historic for the sport, neither of us has anything else to prove,” Silva wrote in Portuguese. “I believe UFC and (MMA) fans would like to watch this great martial spectacle, testing my martial skills against him would be fantastic.”
Silva suggested the contest to go down in a 176.37-pound (80kg) catchweight.
This is not the first time Silva has voiced his interest in facing McGregor. The former UFC middleweight champion first told the media about the idea in 2016, and said on his Instagram two years later to say “it would be an honor” to face the former UFC featherweight and lightweight titleholder.
“The UFC wants superfights, I’m sure fans from all over the world want to see this fight,” Silva wrote just days before McGregor fought Khabib Nurmagomedov for the 155-pound belt at UFC 229 in 2018.
“Professionally, I believe it would be incredible to test my martial arts abilities with a fighter like Conor McGregor in a true superfight. He’s focused on fighting Khabib Nurmagomedov now, after this fight I’m ready for this challenge. When and where he wants.”
Silva again mentioned McGregor as a possible opponent in Feb. 2019, moments after losing to Israel Adesanya. “The Spider” underwent knee surgery earlier this month to fix an injury he sustained against Jared Cannonier in May 2019. McGregor, on the other hand, is coming off a first-round knockout victory over Donald Cerrone.
Update: McGregor reacted to the "callout" Thursday morning on social media, saying "I accept."
I accept. https://t.co/HYqF132EvZ
— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) May 28, 2020