Anderson Silva On His Future, Vitor Belfort Turns Down Fight, UFC 183 Bonuses And Gate
- After his comeback victory last night, former UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva refused to commit to his future in the UFC. Despite signing a 15-fight contract with the UFC, he's unsure if he'll fight again.
"This is me. When my son say 'Stop, no more.' I say, 'This is my life, this is me, I'm a fighter. Sorry, I need to go.' When I go into Octagon, this is my life. Now, let's go to the next level," Silva said on UFC's post-fight show on Fox Sports 1.
Despite that, Silva made it clear that he still loves fighting, but is looking to make his family happy.
"I don't know, maybe. I will talk to my family first. I think the new Anderson has come. I'm more comfortable, more in control. My mind is more conditioned for martial arts technique. Everything changes in my life now."
For what it's worth, it's been rumored that the UFC's 15-fight contract is about Silva retaining an employment status in the U.S.
- After UFC Middleweight Champion Chris Weidman was forced out of a UFC 184 bout with Vitor Belfort, the UFC has been scrambling to replace Weidman on the card. According to UFC President Dana White, Belfort begged him for an interim title fight, but then rejected his proposed opponent.
"I'm still talking to Vitor Belfort. I pulled together this fight with Lyoto Machida and Lyoto agreed take it, but Vitor didn't want it. It surprised me. I have another fight I'm offering to Vitor so we'll see what happens," White said.
Belfort apparently floated Mark Munoz's name as an opponent, who has lost his last two fights. Belfort later said in a statement that he wouldn't fight for an interim championship, but the UFC Middleweight Title with at least 8 weeks to prepare against any ranked opponent. The current champion Chris Weidman defended his championship in July, and Belfort hasn't fought since 2013.
#7-ranked Gegard Mousasi has offered to take the fight against Belfort, but the UFC and Belfort have yet to reach a decision.
- UFC 183's live gate was a major success, dragging in $4.5 million dollars. In addition to the Anderson Silva-Nick Diaz main event, the main card was anchored by an excellent performance from Thales Leites. The former Middleweight Title challenger earned $100,000 total for a performance of the night bonus and a fight of the night bonus for his bout against Tim Boetsch. Thiago Alves also took home a $50,000 performance bonus for his comeback victory over Jordan Mein.