Dana White has targeted May for a potential Georges St-Pierre vs. Anderson Silva fight in an interview on ESPN Thursday morning.
White had said in previous interviews talking about GSP vs. Silva that St-Pierre would first have to beat Carlos Condit in a welterweight title unification match in Montreal in the main event of Saturday's UFC 154 show. White also has said previously that if Condit won the title, they would not be looking at doing a Condit vs. Silva superfight, but would then look to have Condit defend against other welterweight contenders.
"It'll probably be the biggest fight in UFC history," he said. "It'll definitely be the biggest gate."
When it was noted that Silva had told Brazilian publication Tatame earlier this week that he was not looking at fighting again until the end of 2013, White chalked it up to Silva being an artist and perhaps a negotiations ploy.
"He said he wouldn't fight Chael Sonnen again either, but he did," White said. "He always comes out and says this stuff. I don't know why he does it or why he says the things he says. I guarantee you, he will be there Saturday. If Georges St-Pierre wins, those two will fight and it's probably going to be in May."
White also pointed out that Jones had said he didn't want to face Sonnen and now the two are in Las Vegas as coaching rivals preparing for a championship match in April.
Once again, White talked about three potential locations, a soccer stadium in Brazil, Rogers Centre in Toronto or Cowboys Stadium in Dallas. The St-Pierre vs. Jake Shields fight on April 30, 2011, at Rogers Centre in Toronto blew away all existing UFC records by drawing 55,724 fans and $12,075,000, the biggest gate for a non-Olympic Canadian sports event in history.
Cowboys Stadium has a football capacity of 80,000, and has been talked about the most regarding a potential location for the show since UFC has never held an event there. White has been interested in running there for years, but noted it would have to be a gigantic attraction.
"You know, every time we do a card, I'd like to say we'll sell it out with the right fight," White said. "And I really believe we can with the right fight. You don't see us go to Dallas, Texas Stadium with any of our regular cards. It'll take Georges St-Pierre vs. Anderson or Silva vs. Jon Jones. It will take that type of fight to fill Dallas, Texas."
The interview also saw White respond when questioned about the reports everywhere (that nobody will confirm on the record) regarding Strikeforce folding after its January show. It was brought up directly, as if the story was fact, and White didn't contradict it, or say that it was still up in the air, or the reporting of the story was premature. It was also reported that Ronda Rousey had signed with UFC, which he responded to.
"Well, for of all, the thing about Ronda Rousey, when you see her, she's this pretty girl, she's talented, but she's a fighter," he said. "But when you talk to this girl, it's like talking to any of our nastiest fighters. She's an absolute competitor. She's a bronze medalist in judo from the Olympics. She made the transition into MMA and she's just got that 'it' factor. She's incredibly talented. She's undefeated and people are interested in her."
Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2012/11/15/3 ... rson-silva