SAO PAULO — Anderson Silva will never fight Vitor Belfort again.
“The Spider” is slated to face Chael Sonnen for a third time Saturday in Sao Paulo, Brazil in a 216-pound exhibition boxing match that headlines Spaten Fight Night. The UFC legend revealed Wednesday that he’s currently in talks to compete in an 180-pound pro boxing match later this year in Abu Dhabi, but he won’t be facing another former foe.
During a media scrum on Thursday, the former UFC middleweight champion told MMA Fighting that there’s absolutely no chance he ever faces “The Phenom” a second time.
“The history with Vitor is over,” Silva said. “He had it coming and it’s over. There’s nothing left for him to say. It’s over, it’s over, it’s over. I’m here, live, [saying] Vitor, you had it already, there’s no reason to keep talking, right? Go chase [Acelino Freitas] ‘Popó’. There’s nothing else to be done. What would be more impressive than that kick I landed on Vitor? Only if he entered the ring and I blew air and he went down. There’s nothing else to happen.
“He has to go to bed with the fact that he lost with a kick to the face. And I have to go to bed with the fact that I lost twice to a guy that was the underdog, you know? I lost twice [to Chris Weidman]. I broke my leg, and I have to go to bed with that and not call out this guy. We have to understand we’re not the best in the world and we’re not perfect.”
Weidman dethroned Silva with a stunning knockout at UFC 162 in 2013, and then saw the Brazilian fracture his leg in their rematch at UFC 168. Silva revealed that Spaten Fight Night considered working on Weidman as his opponent for June 15, but ultimately booked the Sonnen match instead.
“It was discussed, a potential fight with Weidman, but he’s under contract with the UFC, and it wasn’t my idea,” Silva said. “People involved considered this. It didn’t happen. It was meant to be Sonnen and that’s it.
“People have a hard time, especially some fighters… Dude, you lost, he was better than you. That’s it. You had the shot to fight and now you’ve lost. Enough already. Vitor, just stop, it’s not looking good.”