Anderson Silva vs. Israel Adesanya Fight Reportedly Announced for UFC 234

Anderson Silva will reportedly face Israel Adesanya at UFC 234 in Melbourne, Australia on Feb. 10, according to Brett Okamoto of ESPN.com.

Silva, 43, last fought in February 2017, defeating Derek Brunson by unanimous decision at UFC 208. It was Silva's first win in his previous five fights, as he lost four matches before Brunson and had a decision over Nick Diaz overturned after testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs.

The former middleweight champion is 34-8 in his career.

Silva might be the household name, but Adesanya will likely be the favorite, coming into the fight 15-0, which includes a TKO of Brunson at UFC 230 earlier this month.

Adesanya, 29, hinted at a big matchup on the horizon during an appearance on Submission Radio this week, saying that he outlined his plan for upcoming fights with Dana White and that the UFC president was on board (h/t Harry Davies of Bloody Elbow):

"Yeah, he's on board with my plan now and he likes it. I sold him the idea. You guys wait 'til everything comes to fruition. If the other guy says yes – I should say when he says yes – I don't know, but I feel like when he says yes, it's gonna be historic, it's gonna be something that you guys are gonna buzz over it. And then later on, what I have planned after that, that's gonna be sick as well. So yeah, in due time everything will unfold."

He also noted in that interview that he isn't necessarily interested in or focused on being the backup fighter for Robert Whittaker and Kelvin Gastelum's middleweight fight at UFC 234.

"I have a different plan," he said. "My plan. It just feels like being a backup would ... not jeopardize it. Yeah, just, I'd rather not. I have a different plan, let's just put it that way."

His current plan will certainly attract plenty of attention, with a fight between a UFC legend in Silva and one of the promotion's up-and-coming fighters and potential stars. The past meets the present. Who doesn't want to see that?