What's Next For Anderson Silva?

With Anderson Silva’s sweeping and not-so-surprising win over Dan Henderson at UFC 82, any remaining shred of drama among the 185 pounders has been extinguished. Both Henderson and Rich Franklin, thought to be Silva’s biggest potential challengers, have each proven insufficient. Meanwhile, Silva’s cleared out the majority of the lesser contenders meaning that…well…there’s no one left for him to beat.

If Dana White wishes for Silva to stay at his natural weight, his potential opponents are few and far between. Paulo Filho is the obvious choice, but since he trains with Silva at Black House, both men have stated that they are not willing to fight. Matt Lindland could be a tough test, but his contract dispute with the UFC is far too storied to be resolved in time for Silva’s next fight. The only viable middleweight option has to be Yushin Okami, who holds a DQ win over Silva. Yes, Okami has been impressive as of late, but he also has a loss to Rich Franklin. We all know what Anderson Silva did to Franklin. Using sound logic and basic mathematical principles, it seems obvious what would happen to Okami.

It’s possible that Silva could be bumped up to light heavyweight, but in that case, White would have to offer The Spider a near-immediate title shot. Does the UFC really want either of its champions having a loss on their record? Sure, it would probably be one of the biggest draws of all time, but the result would be a disconfirmed champion.

Same goes for the idea that Silva should cut to 170 and take on Georges St. Pierre. This provide a HUGE draw – probably bigger than if Silva took on Rampage – but can the UFC marketing team rebound from one of these guys losing? Probably not.

If I’m Dana White, I do my best to bring in some MW talent and book Okami in the meantime. I’d even consider signing Ryo Chonan (the guy who infamously heel hooked Anderson Silva) to a one fight title shot contract.

If I’m Anderson Silva, I do the only think that makes sense – retire.