Gegard Mousasi Would Fight Anderson Silva at UFC 206

UFC 206 took a blow earlier this week when Georges St-Pierre confirmed he would not be fighting on the Dec. 10 fight card.

St-Pierre was rumored to be gearing up for a fight against Brazilian legend Anderson Silva, but following a messy contract dispute, the fight fell through. With neither fighter now booked to fight and the card looking a little sparse for stars, fans are worried  that yet another UFC fight card in Canada could end up becoming a non-event.

All might not be lost, though. Speaking today in London, England, the number-five-ranked UFC middleweight Gegard Mousasi confirmed he would happily take St-Pierre’s place to fight Silva.

“One-hundred percent, if they give me Anderson Silva, yeah (I’d fight at UFC 206),” Mousasi said. “Nate Diaz, Georges St-Pierre, any of those guys. If they let me know, if they give me enough time. I’ll fight anybody, anytime, but I need time to prepare for the fight.”

That said, Mousasi isn’t sure Silva shares his feelings.

“He [Anderson] will not take the fight because he’s not a contender, he’s not going for the belt,” Mousasi said. “He’s just looking for the big fights. He will probably look for a big fight with, say, Georges St-Pierre or someone like that. He has nothing to gain against me. He’s making a move now so he’s not going to fight. It doesn’t make sense for him to fight me—why would he fight me? That’s just business.”

While he respects Silva, Mousasi does hold a bit of a grudge. At UFC 200, Silva leap-frogged Mousasi to face Daniel Cormier on short notice after Jon Jones was pulled from the event. In Mousasi’s eyes, this switch-up cost him  his chance to grab the UFC middleweight title.

“Anderson Silva took my fight when I was supposed to fight DC,” Mousasi said. “Just because he was more popular than me, that’s why he got the fight. Not because he was ready. I was ready, and I was ready to go five rounds. He took a three-round fight, so you tell me. It’s a popularity contest.

“When he stole my fight, of course it hurt. I could’ve fought for the belt. I could’ve been champion. He took away something from me, but it’s not him, you know? I can’t blame him. If you get asked to fight DC and get paid a lot, then that’s the UFC. That’s their business—what I can I say?”