Conor McGregor, Georges St-Pierre Fights Targeted By UFC 234's Anderson Silva

Former UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva only wants to have meaningful fights as his contract comes to an end. Silva will return to action for the first time in two years when he takes on Israel Adesanya in a highly-anticipated contest at UFC 234 which takes place Feb. 10 in Melbourne, Australia.

"The Spider" will turn 44 a couple of months after the fight, and plans on retiring once his UFC deal runs out, which as it stands, has just three fights remaining.

“I have three more and then it’s done,” Silva said during a recent media day at his new Spider Kick gym in Los Angeles, as quoted on MMA Fighting. “It’s over.”

Silva acknowledges he has limited time left in the sport, which is why he is focused on the big names after Adesanya. The name that still entices him is Conor McGregor, while a super fight with Georges St-Pierre that has eluded the MMA world is also an option for the Brazilian.

“At this point in my career, I believe that the good challenge is the superfight,” Silva explained. “I talk to [UFC president] Dana [White] about Georges St-Pierre, about McGregor, about McGregor especially because McGregor is a challenge, this fight. I just talk to Dana a lot about the fight that’s very interesting, fight to this guy. Because he’s an amazing fighter and a legends in this sports and let’s go see. That’s a good game, superfights, and it’s very interesting for my fans.”

“... I believe 180 [weight limit] is good for me and McGregor. So I just wait because I don’t control this. This is the question for Dana but maybe that this is amazing fight for the fans,” he said.

However, given how a fight with St-Pierre has never come to fruition all these years, Silva is not holding his breath for it, as he took a dig at the former two-weight champion.

"I believe Georges St-Pierre does not take the real challenge, personal,” Silva added. “He just tries to do something easy for yourself, but this is Georges St-Pierre. He’s so smart. That’s the game, that’s the business. He’s a business man.”

Of course, Silva will have to get past Adesanya first, with the latter viewing himself as an even better version of a Silva clone. The undefeated New Zealand native will be a heavy betting favorite going into the fight, with many predicting him to be the first fighter to finish Silva in the UFC since Chris Weidman did it back in 2013.

While Silva respects his opponent's skills, he does not agree that Adesanya is the new version of himself.

“Israel is a great fighter,” Silva explained. “I think he’s super talented, he’s young, he has a brilliant future ahead in this sport. I believe he might be a version of him and he’ll become a better version of himself."

“I believe Israel is not my new version. But I think this fight is very interesting, because I believe this is the first time I have the opponent (with) the same style. That’s a good test for my martial arts skills,” he added.