Round 6: Anderson Silva still wants to fight Roy Jones Jr.

ANDERSON Silva has achieved everything he can in MMA but there’s one dream that keeps the 41-year old legend going.

Anderson Silva says he still wants to fight Roy Jones Jr.

ANDERSON Silva says he still wants to fight Roy Jones Jr before he retires.

One of the greatest fighters in MMA history, the former middleweight champion told Round 6 he still dreams of taking on the legendary American.

“There’s a lot of fights that I still want to do,” Silva said from Brazil.

“There’s a lot of guys out there but one thing that I know Dana White doesn’t like me talking about and I’ll kind of get in trouble if I talk about it, is to do a boxing match against Roy Jones Jr.”

Jones celebrated his 47th birthday in January and his last fight was a second round TKO of Vyron Phillips, who had earned a chance against the former multi-division champion after winning a Facebook vote.

Phillips had a 5-2 MMA record but the bout with Jones Jr was his boxing debut.

Silva says he is undeterred by Jones’s recent downswing, simply saying, “It’s a dream. You can’t help dreams.”

The 41-year old has expressed a desire to face Jones since 2008 but has always been under contract with the UFC.

SILVA READY TO RETURN

STILL on Silva, he’ll make his return to the Octagon next weekend against flashy American Uriah Hall.

Silva’s record says he’s lost three of his last four and the sole win has been downgraded to a No Contest, but the man himself has a different view of his February defeat to British star Michael Bisping.

“I didn’t lose to Michael Bisping,” Silva said.

“I can’t control what the judges do, I can only control what I do in there but what the judges do, you’d have to ask them.”

Tell us what you really think Anderson.

Silva’s fight with Hall will be his first fight in Brazil in almost four years and his first three round fight in seven years.

While he admitted he’s not the same fighter he was in his younger days, Silva was still confident he can match it with the best of the division.

“Nothing is impossible and nothing is forever.”

“I think its all a matter of loving what you do and knowing that you might not be what you were before but you might even be better.”

BATTLE: How would Khan do against McGregor?

OFF: VanZant drops off UFC 200

SPEAKING TO “THE SPIDER”

SO what was it like to speak with perhaps the greatest fighter this young sport has ever known?

Silva was a bit curt with his answers (the interview was conducted via translator) and was clearly a little weary of media duties — he’d been talking to a fair few Tim and Suzies and their terrible morning radio shows.

One exchange went like this.

“Anderson, why do you think you can be a champion again?”

“Why do you think you can be a good reporter?”

“I guess because I’ve done it before.”

“So have I.”

Damn.

Kimbo Slice made a short foray into the ring.

THE NOT-SO-SWEET SCIENCE

SILVA’S quest to fight Jones Jr continues a long and weird history between MMA fighters and boxers.

Mixed martial arts is a sport with a hundred fathers but one of the most high-profile precursors was a “mixed rules” match between Muhammad Ali and Japanese catch wrestling legend Antonio Inoki in 1976.

In what proved to be a bit of a farce, Inoki spent all but 14 seconds of the first round on his back, kicking at Ali’s legs with Ali not throwing a punch until the 7th round. The fifteen round fight was scored a draw.

Art Jimmerson, a veteran slugger from St Louis, competed in the first UFC event in 1993. Jimmerson famously wore one glove during the only MMA bout of his career, where he was unfortunate enough to draw the soon to be legendary Royce Gracie.

Jimmerson submitted within three minutes after being taken down and tapped before Gracie had the chance to apply any submissions.

Two-time fighter of the year James Toney made a belated UFC debut in 2010 at UFC 118. At 42 years old Toney was well past his best and was submitted by UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture inside the first round.

Kimbo Slice embarked on a short lived boxing career after he washed out of the UFC, going 7-0 against fighters of dubious reputation. He even fought in Australia once, when he knocked out Shane Tilyard on the undercard of Daniel Geale’s victory over Anthony Mundine in 2013.

Former WBO champion Ray Mercer made a brief foray into MMA in 2009. Facing former UFC heavyweight champ Tim Sylvia, Mercer caused a huge stir when he won by KO in just nine seconds.

Amir Khan also made some noise this week about how he’d far against Conor McGregor.

Originally published as Round 6: Anderson Silva still wants to fight Roy Jones Jr.