Anderson Silva before his fight against Uriah Hall.
Anderson Silva before his fight against Uriah Hall. | Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC

The former UFC middleweight champion told McGregor to take his time in recovery. 

Anderson Silva understands what Conor McGregor is going through right now, so he wants to give some advice to the 'Notorious' one as he recovers from the broken leg he suffered several months ago.

McGregor fractured the tibia and fibula of his left leg during his trilogy fight against Dustin Poirier at UFC 264 this past July. The former two-division champion became one of four men — the late Corey Hill, Anderson Silva and Chris Weidman — to suffer an injury of that nature inside of the Octagon. McGregor underwent surgery and has continued to provide promising updates of his recovery process as he expects to make a return to competition by next year.

During a recent interview with Submission Radio, Silva encouraged McGregor in his efforts but told him to take his time in recovery. It took Silva about 13 months to recover from the broken leg he suffered against Weidman and return to competition, so he wants to ensure McGregor does the same.

McGregor has previously said that he was 'being careful' with what he does in recovery and vowed to follow everything the doctor recommends.

"For Conor right now, is take time and and continue to work and continue doing the physiotherapy, continue working [the] upper body and stay mind outside of the fight game," said Silva. "Just keep the focus in your recovery, and don't think about you going to fight tomorrow or in six months. Just recover your body. Stay ready to prepare your mind for when you're back, so you're back strong, you're back better."

Silva also stressed how important the mental recovery process was for McGregor. Career-defining moments like the ones Silva and McGregor endured have often led to questions from fans and pundits about whether they can compete at the same level anymore. Silva said it was tough to be doubted, but he forced himself to focus on his mind and would like to see McGregor do that as well.

"Your mind, you need to stay ready and connect to your heart to make you more powerful, to continue challenging yourself and prove how much you love your job and how much you can continue to do this when you have the same Anderson, the same Weidman, the same Conor. Mentally, it's very important."

The message from Silva was well-received from McGregor, who responded to him on social media.

"I appreciate this message greatly Anderson, thank you," wrote McGregor. "You know, since this freak injury happened to me, I've had very little support from my fellow colleagues. In fact quite the opposite."

Silva may not have been as successful as he would have liked in his return to the UFC, but 'The Spider' has since had a resurgence in the boxing ring. Following his UFC release last year, Silva competed in boxing and earned a split decision win over Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in June. The 46-year-old already has his second assignment as he is scheduled to meet a fellow former UFC champion in Tito Ortiz at Triller Fight Club in September.