Anderson Silva: 'I can't say that I don't miss' being UFC champion

Anderson Silva's 16-fight win streak in the UFC came to an end against Chris Weidman when he provoked the New York-based fighter two years ago. He was animated in the ring, taunting his opponent and urging him to press forward, in an attempt to make Weidman look silly. The complete reverse occurred, however, when Weidman caught the chin of Silva and put him to sleep for the first time in his UFC career.

The Spider then returned for a rematch against the All-American, losing once again, but this time gruesomely. After delivering an inside leg kick, Silva's left leg retreated back awkwardly, causing him to fall on it and have it snap in half.

"I don’t remember much about fights," Silva told Catherine Wagley of Citizens of Humanity. "But this match, when I suffered the injury, I remember certain things perfectly."

Silva believed he was much better prepared for the second clash with Weidman, but the losses, and injury, were signified religiously.

"I lost the first time due to lack of focus," he said. "The second fight, I was completely ready for. "God gave me a signal there: 'Dude, you gotta stop. You have to stop. I gave you a sign; you didn’t understand.'"

In his subsequent match, the Brazilian Muay Thai artist defeated Nick Diaz via unanimous decision. After the fight, the former champion tested positive for steroid use, in an attempt to rehabilitate his leg injury quicker, and was handed a suspension from the Nevada State Athletic Commission.

The 10-time middleweight title defender was vocal about his nostalgic feelings of the times he was a dominating UFC champion.

"This thing, being a champion, I can’t say that I don’t miss it sometimes … but when I started fighting, you just went there, fought, won if you won," he said.

Now, as the most dominant middleweight in the UFC continues his suspension, which he plans on appealing in August, he believes he will return with the wisdom that he is a human, and not as invincible as he once felt inside the Octagon. The Spider is unsure if he can ever return to his former level.

"What defines you is your attitude as a friend, as a brother, as a father, as a son, as a citizen. This, yes, defines me as a person," Silva said. "I still don’t know if I’m ready and if I can do what I did with such excellence before."

-H/t MMAFighting.com.