Anderson Silva turned 45 this week, but the oldest fighter in the UFC roster actually came close to retiring from the sport as middleweight champion in 2012.
“The Spider” was coming off a light heavyweight win over Stephan Bonnar in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and decided to hang up his gloves. Before the UFC even approached him with the idea of defending his 185-pound championship against Chris Weidman, Silva says he made up his mind about not competing again.
The veteran fighter said during an interview with the UFC that Dana White and Lorenzo Fertitta invited him for a meeting in Las Vegas in late-2012.