UFC legend Anderson Silva has insisted he doesn’t feel “human” and will show off his “super powers” against Jake Paul in their fight.
47-year-old Silva looks to prove age is nothing but a number when he faces the brash YouTuber-turned-boxer Paul this Saturday in an eight-round clash at 187lb. ‘The Spider’ transitioned to boxing after parting ways with the UFC two years ago and has since impressed fans with his skills in the ring.
Silva is known for being one of the greatest MMA fighters ever, often embarrassing opponents with his unorthodox striking that made him look like a superhero at some points. The Brazilian feels he is different to most fighters and vows to leave fans speechless in his fight with Paul, stating: “It’s crazy but I don’t think I’m human. I think I’m a superhero. That’s what I put in my mind, that I have super powers and I will go and use my super powers against Jake. I feel inside of me that fighting is my heart, that I continue doing. I love it.”
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Fans were convinced Silva would be made to look a fool against former world champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr in their fight last June, given ‘The Spider’ hadn’t fought in the ring for over 15 years. Silva defied the odds to win a split decision over Chavez Jr and has gone on to knockout fellow UFC legend Tito Ortiz in his next fight. Silva said he didn’t think twice about fighting Chavez Jr despite the Mexican going into his 60th professional fight.
“When I finished my last fight in the UFC, I came home and went on vacation to visit my parents in Brazil,” Silva added. “I think after two months when I was in Brazil, my phone called ‘hey, I have a boxing fight for you’ then I said ‘boxing? Woah, tell me about it’. They asked if I’d be ready for Chavez Jr in Mexico and I didn’t even think about it I just put it in my mind like ‘yeah I’m ready.’
“When the news came about everybody came to me and said ‘why are you going to do that, you’re crazy the boxing guys will destroy you.’ It’s not true, they were just trying to put me in a bubble and count me out," Silva added. I’m in control of my life, nobody can control my dreams. Everybody is talking about how Jake is young and dangerous, but I’ve been doing this for my entire life. It doesn’t matter about age, that’s not an excuse."