Former Pride Middleweight champion and 2003 Pride Middleweight Grand Prix winner, Wanderlei Silva remembered in a Interview to Combate.com some of the great moments of his career. Now retired, “The Axe Muderer” praised his confrontation with Chuck Liddell, feels happy with the outcome of his final bout and said that his second fight with Mirko Cro Cop was the toughest of his life.
“My greatest fight was against Liddell. I lost via decision but it was one of the fights that I most enjoyed to be part of. He was tough, had heavy hands, I was able to handle him and knock him down in the second round, we gave an amazing show. My other pick is the one against Brian Stann, a very tough guy and I had one of my best performances. It was a ‘gran finale’. My second bout with Cro Cop was the hardest. I had a serious injury in my eye during the fight and he knocked me out in the second round. I think it was the closest I’ve been to death.”
Wanderlei selected Rampage Jackson as his greatest rival and praised his former enemy’s demonstration of support after releasing a retirement video statement.
“I do think it was Rampage. He was the guy that I argued with the most. I was angry because of him, I shoved him and together we put on with that demonstration of greatness.”
Wanderlei still wanted three specific fights.
“I wanted to have faced Dan Henderson one more time, a rematch with Vitor Belfort and get done that one with Chael Sonnen. But 49 (fights) is a good number.”
Wanderlei also says that he doesn’t care about the UFC Hall of Fame and feels happy because of the affection shared with his fans.
“I don’t feel the need of being in that Hall of Fame. The fans do the Hall of Fame. From this organization (UFC), I want nothing more. If they put me there, I don’t accept. My Hall of Fame are my fans. I’m stronger than I never was, I have never had so much support.”
Wanderlei Silva leaves MMA with 35 wins, 12 losses, one draw and one No Contest after 49 fights in 18 years of career. His last appearance was in his KO win against Stann at UFC on Fuel TV: Silva vs. Stann, on March of 2013.