Over the fall of 2012 and leading up to his fight at UFC 156, there was a lot talk about Rashad Evans moving down to Middleweight to face Anderson Silva for the title. In fact, UFC president Dana White held off announcing Silva’s next challenger until after Rashad’s fight against Antonio Rogerio Nogueira. Of course, all that talk died when Evans lost a lackluster decision.
Saturday night at UFC 161 in Winnipeg, Canada, Rashad finally got back into the win column with a split decision victory over Dan Henderson. With the win at Light Heavyweight, it seems he’s abandoning any thoughts of the 185 lb. division. Evans said at the post-fight press conference:
The thing is, 205 is my home. If an opportunity comes at me at 185 and it’s a good opportunity … but for the most part, I feel good at 205 and it’s hard for me to leave the 205 weight class. I’d love to get a shot at Jon Jones again. I’d love to get back to where I was and where I can be as far as going out there and being spectacular every single fight. But it’s pretty tough. You have a lot of guys here who are very talented – it’s a different landscape. I’ve got to make some adjustments to my game if I’m going to be dominant.
For now, his rematch with Jon Jones is at least a couple fights away and much of the upper end of the division is already tied up. BE’s own Tim Burke suggested Glover Teixeira for Evans’ next opponent. While the fight doesn’t hold a lot of upside for Rashad, it does make a lot sense considering the rankings and availability.
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