Former middleweight champion Anderson Silva explained what went wrong during his devastating knockout loss against Chris Weidman on July 7 at UFC 162, which was his first knockout loss in his Ultimate Fighting Championship career.
Silva, who won 16-straight fights in UFC before losing to Weidman, said that he can't explain why he was knocked out because a fighter does not remember anything when knocked out.
"Getting knocked out is the worst. There are always going to be questions - people want to know what happened, but when you're knocked out you don't remember anything. You black out and that's it," said Silva in an interview with Brazilian show "Agora e Tarde," ESPN reported.
But when asked to comment on the criticisms thrown against him for allegedly being disrespectful, Silva reiterated that his showboating antic was not the reason why he suffered his first defeat in UFC competition, claiming a technical error cost him the match and his title.
"It, the awkward movement, was a technical error to keep my legs parallel. I should have taken a step back instead. Several factors led to the knockout. The tension in the air before the fight, you just want to burst, it was a series of mistakes," Silva insisted.
Silva admitted that he was taunting Weidman through his showboating and trash-talking antics, but he said he was just daring his challenger to engage in a more fan-friendly showdown instead of relying on their wrestling skills.
"I was saying, 'Come on, let's fight standing up, look at the crowd applauding.' Because standing up is much cooler than fighting on the floor," Silva said.
The Brazilian mixed martial arts icon also pointed out that retirement is not yet on his horizon, saying that he intends to finish the remaining 10 fights in his contract with UFC.
Silva, who successfully defended his 185-pound title 10 times before it was snapped away, will have a chance to redeem himself when he steps inside the Octagon against Weidman anew on Dec. 28 at UFC 168 in Las Vegas.
On the other hand, Weidman, who jumped to the fifth spot in the middleweight rankings after his breakthrough win, will put his six-match winning streak on the line.
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