When the UFC announced that Anderson Silva and Nick Diaz will be fighting each other in February, mixed martial arts fans salivated at the thought of two of the most enigmatic fighters in UFC history facing off in the octagon.
Gone are the hopes for potential "superfights" where Silva faces off against a champion from another division. "The Spider" no longer reigns supreme at middleweight after suffering back-to-back losses to current 185-pound champ Chris Weidman. So no chance of making Silva vs. light heavyweight champion Jon Jones. And with former welterweight champ Georges St. Pierre on hiatus, no chance of making that fight either.
So here we are with a "superfight" where both fighters are coming off back-to-back losses. Diaz, who's competed at 170 pounds his entire career, is moving up a division to face Silva and the size difference alone could be enough to determine the fight's outcome. But the reason we jumped at the thought of these two superstars fighting, is that we don't know what's going to happen.
Will Silva be hesitant after suffering a broken leg in his last fight that sidelined him for over a year? Will Diaz engage in his trademark trash talk before, during and after the fight? Will two of the best MMA boxers ever stand toe-to-toe in the middle of the octagon and put on one of the best striking matches of all-time?
We don't know, and that's the exciting part. Nor do we know what's next for both men after this fight. Dana White said earlier this month that a win for Diaz "would be a pretty big statement." Sure, moving up a division and beating Silva would probably be the biggest win of Diaz's career. But enough to vault him into title contention ahead of the slew of middleweight contenders already waiting in line?
Diaz has always been one of the most marketable fighters, so it's easy to see why the UFC would want to give him a title shot against Weidman or whoever is the champion at the time. But an immediate title shot would diminish the significance of the already-ridiculous UFC rankings and without a doubt draw the ire of the contenders waiting in the wings like Luke Rockhold and Jacare Souza.
And what's next for Silva, win or lose? His manager Ed Soares recently said he's willing to work his way back to the title, but does anyone really want to see a 40-year-old Silva face Weidman a third time? Silva was thoroughly outclassed in both fights with Weidman, so what's there to say a third fight would be any different? And what if Weidman loses? If Silva would be overmatched in a third fight with Weidman, how would he fare against the guy who beats Weidman?
Who knows, maybe St. Pierre will be back in 2015. Maybe Jones will lose his belt to Daniel Cormier or any of the other light heavyweight contenders. Maybe fans would get to see a real "superfight." But what I do know, is neither Silva nor Diaz should be in the middleweight championship conversation anytime soon.
What do you think? Should Silva vs. Diaz have title implications? Let us know @SportsWN.
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