Anderson Silva: 5 Reasons It's Time for Him to Move to Light Heavyweight

Anderson Silva entered the sport of mixed martial arts in June of 1997 as he quickly began to establish himself as an elite force across the globe.

After dominating the organization Pride, Silva made the transition to the highest stage of mixed martial arts also known as the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Silva has quickly changed from an "elite force" to arguably the greatest fighter to have ever stepped foot inside the Octagon.

However, with his excellence comes criticism.

Over the past several years it's been debated whether or not Silva should make the transition to a different weight class. So, the following slides display five reasons why Anderson Silva should move to the light heavyweight division.

Let's take a look.

He's Never Lost

Since entering the UFC in June of 2006, Anderson Silva hasn't lost a single fight.

In fact, on his run to the top of the middleweight division, Silva has defeated some of the world's greatest fighters in Rich Franklin, Dan Henderson, Forrest Griffin and Chael Sonnen.

If Silva can defeat Sonnen when they square off at some point during 2012, he'll have beaten nearly every competitor in the 185-pound weight division.

The real question remains: What does Silva have left to prove?

His Striking Is Good Enough

Over the years, not only has Silva established himself as arguably the greatest of all time, but one of the best strikers as well.

Over the course of his career, Silva has knocked out an electrifying 18 opponents in just 31 career victories.

And it's not your average opponents that Silva's knockout.

Silva's knocked out some of the world's greatest fighters in Rich Franklin (twice), Forrest Griffin and Yushin Okami.

Lack of Competition

We know Silva's has gone undefeated in the UFC and we know he's been impressive doing so.

Who is really left for Silva?

Granted, he will take on Chael Sonnen at some point over the course of 2012, and if Silva were to win he'd have little to no competition remaining in the 185-pound weight class.

However, if he were to make the transition to the light heavyweight division, Silva would have plenty of new competitors to square off with.

He's Done It Before

He's done it before?

In August of 2009, Silva agreed to square off with highly dangerous light heavyweight Forrest Griffin at UFC 101 in Philadelphia.

Silva knocked out Griffin just minutes into the very first round in what some believe to be the most impressive performance of his career.

If Silva can defeat a top-10 light heavyweight, the sky's the limit if he were to bump up a weight class.

Jon Jones

Let's be honest with one another: The real reason we'd like to see Silva make the move to the 205-pound weight class is for the opportunity to see him meet Jon "Bones" Jones.

Many fans across the globe believe Jones to be the only "true" competitor to Silva's reign.

While the chances of this fight happening anytime soon are slim to none, if Silva would make the move the likelihood would greatly increase.

Silva vs. Jones?