Ed Soares: 'A Well-Trained Anderson Silva Would Beat Jon Jones'

Anderson Silva may no longer be a UFC champion, but Ed Soares is convinced he would still defeat Jon Jones in a superfight.

Soares, Silva’s longtime manager, recently told James Koh during an appearance on Fox 11’s Cage Talk that Silva is still “the best fighter on the planet.” He believes Silva would have an edge over any fighter in the world, including UFC light heavyweight champ Jon Jones:

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I believe Anderson Silva is the best fighter on the planet, period. I think you could put Anderson Silva against any fighter in any weight class, but I believe he has a bigger danger to any fighter he faces than any fighter has towards him. …I do think Anderson can beat Jon Jones, not taking anything away from Jon Jones. Incredible athlete, but he doesn’t have the experience, and I think that a well-trained Anderson Silva would beat Jon Jones.

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UFC president Dana White hinted at a superfight between Silva and Jones for months. Many felt there was actually a chance of the bout coming to fruition if Silva managed to get past Chris Weidman at UFC 162.

As fate would have it, Weidman spoiled any plans of a potential superfight by shocking the world and knocking out Silva to win the middleweight title.

The immediate rematch is already scheduled to take place on December 28 at UFC 168. In September, Jones told Fighters Only that he was still very much interested in the superfight. He believes a convincing win over Weidman in the rematch would be more than enough for Silva to drum up enough interest for a possible 2014 showdown.

The only question mark is Silva’s personal level of interest in moving up in weight and challenging Jones.

According to MMAFighting.com, Silva flat-out admitted during a media luncheon before his fight with Weidman that he doesn't think he would beat Jones in a fight. While he isn’t afraid to face Jones, Silva doesn’t really see the point in competing against an exceptionally larger and younger fighter.

The light heavyweight division is also home to many of his teammates, who are also vying for a shot at UFC gold. For now, Silva appears to be at peace with finishing his career at 185 pounds.

Soares is obviously speaking hypothetically, but his comments are incredibly bold, even for the manager of perhaps the greatest fighter in MMA history.

Is Soares just bloviating about his client, or does Silva really hold an edge over any fighter in any weight class?