Uriah Hall has some work to do yet, before he throws hands with UFC middleweight champ, Israel Adesanya. But following his win over the legend Anderson Silva at UFC Vegas 12, Hall referred to the fact he accomplished something ‘The Last Stylebender’ didn’t.

Hall says Adesanya “danced” with Silva

The former TUF competitor faced Silva in the headliner of Saturday’s card, in what was billed as the former champ’s final UFC bout. Early on, the fight didn’t feature much in terms of exchanges.

But, late in round three Hall dropped Silva with a punishing punch and landed more shots before the horn went. Then in round four, as Silva charged in, Hall put the legend down with a nicely timed counter and the fight was stopped soon after.

Since Adesanya was in attendance at the Apex Facility, Hall was asked to comment on the champ’s presence afterward. While doing so, the powerful striker said this (quotes via MMA Junkie).

“I know he danced with Anderson, and I was the guy that finished it,” Hall said. “I know there’s an age difference. …

He’s the champ. He had to do what he had to do to get to where he is. There’s respect. I knew he was out here.

My guess, he was trying to see holes in me or give Anderson the rematch. I thought I looked sloppy out there.”

Now, if you’re a big fan you likely know that Adesanya faced Silva in February, 2019, and worked his way to a decision win over the star. It’s worth noting that Adesanya outstruck Silva by a 65 – 34 margin in that fight, while on Saturday, Hall bested Silva by 61-57.

So, while Hall did put away Silva, Adesanya boosters might note he did take more shots from the former champ.

That aside, you have to wonder if Hall brought this up, as a way to kick off a title shot narrative. Hall has now won three straight, but since he’s currently ranked #10, he’ll likely need to score a couple more, pivotal wins before he’s offered a title shot.

Hall reflects on emotional win

After his win on Saturday, Hall was visibly, very emotional and he talked with Silva for some time. While talking about what he was feeling, the 36-year-old said this.

“I felt bad,” Hall said. “Leading up to the fight, there’s a lot of emotions and we all know Anderson is a ‘G’ and what he’s done for the sport.

So for me to beat him up and potentially kill him is weird. Right after the event, all the emotions just came out.

Even today, I woke up like, ‘I’m fighting him? (Expletive).’ So I said I’m sorry.”

It will be interesting to see who the UFC offers Hall next. One would think that a scrap with a top ten ranked middleweight, however, will be offered. 

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