Conor McGregor Responds to Anderson Silva’s 80-Kilogram Catchweight Offer: ‘I Accept’

I accept. https://t.co/HYqF132EvZ

— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) May 28, 2020

Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app.

Sometimes these things happen in MMA.

On Thursday night, Anderson Silva (34-10, 1 NC) posted on Instagram expressing his respect for fellow former champ Conor McGregor (22-4). Additionally, Silva called for a fight against McGregor, at a specified 176.37-pound -- 80 kg -- catchweight. Although “The Spider” traditionally competes at middleweight or occasionally light heavyweight, he did begin his career as a welterweight.

View this post on Instagram

SUPER FIGHT 176.37LBS Tenho uma imensa admiração pelo grande atleta Conor e acredito que um super fight seria algo histórico para o esporte, nem um de nós precisa provar mais nada a ninguém; acredito que os fãs do ufc e do esporte gostariam de ver este grande espetáculo marcial, testar minhas habilidades marciais com ele seria fantástico!! I have immense admiration for the great athlete that Conor is and I believe that a super fight would go down in the history of the sport, neither of us need to prove anything to anyone; I believe that fans of the UFC and of this sport would like to watch this great martial arts spectacle, it would be fantastic to test my martial arts skills against him!!

A post shared by Anderson "The Spider" Silva (@spiderandersonsilva) on May 27, 2020 at 6:36pm PDT

Silva’s Instagram post wrote:

SUPER FIGHT 176.37LBS
I have immense admiration for the great athlete that Conor is and I believe that a super fight would go down in the history of the sport, neither of us need to prove anything to anyone; I believe that fans of the UFC and of this sport would like to watch this great martial arts spectacle, it would be fantastic to test my martial arts skills against him!!

The legendary Silva has gone through a rough patch since losing his belt to Chris Weidman in 2013. Weidman knocking him out and snapping a UFC-record 16-fight win streak set Silva on a tailspin where he has dropped six of his last eight matches. His lone win came in that stretch via contentious decision over Derek Brunson at UFC 208, while he also sports a no-contest against Nick Diaz after both men tested positive for banned substances.

On Friday morning, McGregor responded simply: “I accept.” His reply was targeted at an article from his publication TheMacLife that addressed Silva’s callout. McGregor has been briefly linked to a myriad of bouts the last few months, including a potential fight with Jorge Masvidal, a rubber match with Nate Diaz and even a welterweight title shot against Kamaru Usman. UFC President Dana White debunked the latter on Thursday night.

McGregor returned from over a 15-month layoff by knocking out Donald Cerrone in 40 seconds at UFC 246 in January. The victory was his 20th by stoppage, and his second career win at the 170-pound weight class. The Irishman has never competed above 170 pounds, and spent the majority of his career as a featherweight. Throughout his 12-fight UFC tenure, "Notorious" became the first fighter in promotional history to simultaneously hold two belts, although he vacated both before defending either one.