Anderson Silva has insisted that "age is just a number" as he prepares to take on Jake Paul, who is an astonishing 22 years younger than him.
UFC legend Silva, 47, will serve as the opponent for YouTube star Paul's sixth professional fight as the pair meet over eight rounds on October 29. Paul will give up a size advantage for the first time in his short-lived boxing career and both men will weigh 187lb for the fight, two pounds above the weight that Silva created his UFC legacy at.
Fans were quick to criticise Paul, 25, for fighting someone who is over two decades older than him. He was told to face a professional boxer in his next fight and did try to achieve that feat when he was booked against Hasim Rahman Jr last month, but their fight was cancelled over a weight dispute. Silva, meanwhile, has declared age is irrelevant and the key to feeling young is looking after your body.
"I think that age is just a number when you take care of your body," he told Fight Hype. "When you're training hard, training correct and have smart training. Especially in the combat world, you need to take care of your body and train with the correct people.
"You have to make a good strategy for your conditioning training and I have everything. I'm so lucky because I have good people to take care of this part. I have the discipline to do my best inside of my sport.
What are your thoughts on the age gap between Anderson Silva and Jake Paul? Let us know in the comments section below!
Silva parted ways with the UFC in 2020 and has since wowed fans in his transition to boxing, outpointing former world champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr in his first ring venture for over 15 years. 'The Spider' has also knocked out fellow UFC legend Tito Ortiz and challenged Bruno Machado in an unscored exhibition bout. Paul admitted that Silva is his toughest opponent to date despite their age gap.
"I think he's the definitely the most skilled boxer I'm going up against yet and he just beat a former world champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr, schooled him for eight rounds," Paul told ESPN. "If I was to fight him, people would be like, 'oh finally he's fighting a former world champion pro boxer', but guess what? Anderson beat the s*** out of the dude.
"He has so much experience, he's been on the big stage so many times, so it's not going to affect [him]. What's great about this fight is whoever has the most skill will win."
