Cormier refutes Adesanya as the greatest middleweight in history and compares Anderson Silva to Muhammad Ali

A. Silva (left) and I. Adesanya (right) faced each other in 2019. Photo: Reproduction/Facebook ufcbrasil

On the 12th of February, Israel adesanya seeks the fourth defense of the middleweight title (up to 83,9 kg) when he faces Robert whittaker in the main fight of UFC 271. His recent success as champion made some fans point to the Nigerian as a possible threat to Anderson Silva, owner of ten belt defenses, as the biggest name in the history of the division. For Daniel Cormier, however, the comparison is undue.

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During a recent edition of his program “DC & RC” on North American ESPN, the former two-division UFC champion was asked if a victory over Whittaker would be enough for Adesanya to be considered the greatest middleweight in history. Daniel Cormier was firm in refuting this possibility and compared the legacy of Anderson Silva in MMA to that of Muhammad Ali in boxing.

"No. Face, Anderson Silva existed. I don't understand this recent trend that fans have. I think the term GOAT (greatest of all time) is thrown around too easily in combat sports. The only one who is never surpassed is Muhammad Ali. There were impressive fighters, but people recognize who Muhammad Ali was. Anderson Silva He was to MMA what Muhammad Ali was to boxing. No, Izzy (Israel adesanya) has a lot of work to do to catch up to Anderson,” Cormier said.

Former light heavyweight (up to 93 kg) and heavyweight (up to 120,2 kg) champion, Daniel Cormier had the opportunity to share the octagon with Anderson Silva at UFC 200 and emerged victorious on that occasion. This, however, did not diminish DC's respect for the “greatest middleweight of all time”, in his opinion.

“I looked at the other side of the octagon and knew I was facing Anderson Silva at UFC 200. We faced off at the weigh-ins and I was like, 'Wow, I'm facing Anderson Silva.' When we entered the Octagon, I thought, 'F***ing s***, this is the Anderson Silva.' Appreciation levels for who he was in the sport of MMA continued to rise. Anderson Silva He is the greatest of all time at middleweight. It will take a long time for someone to overtake him.”