Anderson Silva maintains that “dream” boxing match with Roy Jones Jr. still interests him: “That’s my goal”

UFC legend Anderson Silva still has his eyes set on a boxing match with Roy Jones Jr.

‘The Spider’ departed the UFC in 2020 after losing to Uriah Hall. Following his release, Silva decided to focus on a new career path. Instead of fighting in the octagon, the Brazilian would head to the boxing ring.

The new endeavor has suited the former UFC middleweight champion well. Since departing the MMA promotion, Silva has gone 2-0 in boxing, picking up wins over Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. and Tito Ortiz. The 47-year-old will now look to face Jake Paul on Showtime pay-per-view this Saturday.

If Anderson Silva is victorious, that opens a whole new realm of possibilities. A possible clash with Fedor Emelianenko in Japan could be appealing for the former champion. Maybe even a boxing match with Georges St-Pierre, as the Canadian was added to the broadcast of Paul/Silva earlier this week.

What would also be possible is a boxing match with Roy Jones Jr. For years, Silva has shown an interest in facing ‘Captain Hook’. However, due to his being under a UFC contract, the fight could never happen. All these years later, Silva would love to face Jones Jr.

Image: Royjonesjr.com

“Absolutely [I’d love to face Roy Jones Jr.], that’s my dream, man,” stated Silva during a face-to-face interview with Jake Paul and Ariel Helwani. “It’s not my final goal, but that’s my goal because that’s my dream, to fight with Mr. Roy Jones. I follow Mr. Roy Jones for my entire life. I just, oh my god, he helped with me doing something in my sport.”

He continued, “I remember, just everytime I would take the CD and put it in my video game [system] and watch whole fights of Roy Jones Jr and Muhammad Ali. A few videos of Bruce Lee, and I just thought, these guys inspire me a lot. It’s a dream to fight with Roy Jones.”

In the event that Anderson Silva fights Roy Jones Jr., it would likely take place in an exhibition setting. The boxer retired from professional contests in 2018 but subsequently had an exhibition fight with Mike Tyson in 2020.

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