Jean Silva has no doubt that he is the ideal opponent for Alexander Volkanovski 's next UFC title defense. The Brazilian, who defeated Arnold Allen at UFC 324, is in the title race alongside names like Lerone Murphy and Movsar Evloev . Even so, the athlete believes that his fighting style and the appeal of the matchup could allow him to jump the queue to face the Australian champion, as well as prevent Volkanovski from surpassing José Aldo 's historic numbers in the featherweight division (up to 65,7kg).
In an exclusive interview with SUPER LUTAS, Jean stated that a potential fight against him would carry much more weight than confrontations against other contenders for the belt. In the Brazilian's view, public interest and the impact of the fight would put his name ahead of direct rivals in the race for a title opportunity.
"Brother, I'm going to tell you three things. Think about it, Evloev versus Volkanovski. Think about it, Lerone Murphy versus Volkanovski. Now, think about it, Jean Silva versus Volkanovski. Who do you think is worth more? Tell me... There, I think the fight itself answers that. And if he doesn't want to, I'll even go to his house, don't worry," said Jean Silva.
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Finally, Jean highlighted that he sees the potential fight as a mission to maintain José Aldo 's legacy at the top of the division's history. According to him, if Volkanovski achieves another great victory, the Australian could surpass the feats of the former Brazilian champion. Therefore, the athlete believes that a victory for him would be important to preserve Aldo as the greatest featherweight of all time.
“This will happen. And after ten years, we will continue Aldo's legacy here in Brazil. Aldo being the greatest of all time, because if he beats someone now, he surpasses Aldo. And if Brazil is with me on this, we won't let it happen,” Lord concluded.
Alexander Volkanovski could surpass José Aldo in featherweight history.
With eight wins in UFC featherweight title fights, José Aldo was for years considered, almost indisputably, the greatest fighter in the history of the division. However, that scenario may soon change.
At UFC 325, Alexander Volkanovski defeated Diego Lopes and tied the Brazilian's historic record for title wins in the division.
Now, if he wins his next fight, the Australian could surpass Aldo and become, on his own, the greatest featherweight in UFC history in terms of number of wins in title fights.
Check out Jean Silva's interview on SUPER LUTAS.
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