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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
When Anderson Silva fights Chris Weidman for the second time on Saturday night, he'll be joined by a former longtime coach who hasn't been in his corner for a while. Muay Thai instructor Diogenes Assahida has been a part of this camp for Silva, his first full camp with Silva since Silva's first fight with Chael Sonnen in 2010.
As a long time friend and confidant of Silva's, Assahida believes there is a very simple explanation for Anderson Silva's performance at UFC 162 this summer: lack of motivation.
In an interview with ESPN.com, Assahida said he felt Silva was no longer motivated to hold onto the UFC Title into the Weidman fight, and it cost him. While he's not sure if Silva cares about being the Champion at all, Assahida's certain Silva wants to avenge that loss.
"Since he started training in the beginning, he's always worked hard to be the best - to be the champion," Assahida said. "In my personal opinion, I don't know how much it matters to him to be the champion anymore, but it matters to win this fight."
"I think for a few fights, he's had a little bit of a lack of motivation. He was tired. His mindset and his focus now look good. I've been with him since the beginning of this camp and I am very confident."
Penick's Analysis: That's the interesting factor into this rematch. Is Silva motivated fully to avenge that loss? Is he motivated to be at the top of the UFC's middleweight division? Does he care about any of it at this stage in his fighting career? I think he does, I think he is out to win on Saturday night and to just prove he's better than Weidman. What he does from there remains to be seen, but I think he is truly out to win this fight, and if that's not the case, then it will be Weidman's night once again.
[Anderson Silva art by Cory Gould (c) MMATorch.com]
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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