Anderson Silva doesn't want to fight until end of 2013

It appears as though we won’t be seeing a call out at UFC 154, regardless of whether or not Georges St-Pierre is victorious over Carlos Condit.

The major talk surrounding UFC 154 has been that a win by GSP could set up a potential super fight between the welterweight champion and middleweight kingpin Anderson Silva, but in a recent interview with GloboEsporte.com, Silva said that he is “on vacation from fighting” and that he will only return at the “end of next year.”

Silva went on to explain that although he will be in Canada for UFC 154, he won’t call out St-Pierre after the bout, because it’s not his character.

One has to wonder if this will indefinitely put what would be the most anticipated bout in MMA history on hold. UFC president Dana White has promised fans that he’ll make the bout happen if GSP can take out Condit, but Silva is probably at a point in his career where he won’t be forced into doing what the UFC wants him to. Already a surefire Hall of Famer, the 37-year-old is clearly going to do things on his own terms at the end of his UFC career. And, quite frankly, the UFC owes him that.

But does Silva need a win over a fellow top pound-for-pound fighter such as St-Pierre (or even Jon Jones) to secure his place as the greatest ever? Probably not at this point. But one thing is for sure: the stars of GSP and Jones will only rise, while Silva is nearing the end of his career. Despite the fact that he has looked better than ever in his last two bouts, that question will always linger. Unless he steps into the cage and answers it for us of course.

White has said in the past that he will get fighters to do what the fans want with money, but one also has to wonder if that is a motivating factor for “The Spider.” Chances are he’s made more money in his MMA career than he can spend, and getting to spend time with his family may be more of a motivating factor at this time.

It’ll also be difficult to put two divisions on hold in order to wait at least a year to make this fight happen, especially with young contenders at both weight classes ready and waiting in the wing.