Anderson Silva Talks UFC Return, Upcoming Fight With Nick Diaz

Following the Nick Diaz conference call earlier this week, UFC held an additional call with Diaz’s next opponent, Anderson “The Spider” Silva.

The former UFC Middleweight Champion spoke with members of the MMA media about his Octagon return, which is scheduled for January 31, 2015. Below are highlights from the call.

On fighting Nick Diaz: “I believe it’s going to be one of the best standup battles in the history of the UFC.”

On whether he’ll finish out his UFC contract: “Only time will tell. I’m really focused on this fight right now, and it has nothing to do with the other fights on my contract.”

On Chris Weidman: “Chris Weidman is showing that he’s a great champion. He’s very talented. The guy is for real, but there’s no doubt that it’s a stacked weight class now with (Ronaldo) “Jacare” (Souza), Luke Rockhold, Vitor Belfort. … The category is only getting better.”

On wanting to get back to fighting: “I’m just dying to return to the octagon and do the thing that I most love in my life, and that’s happening right now.”

On a possible title shot: “I have another seven fights on my contract. Obviously, right now it’s not my priority. It’s out of the question to fight for the title. But along those seven fights, if I have the credentials to fight for the title, I’ll be more than glad to do it.”

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