Anderson Silva breaks down in tears after beating Diaz on emotional return at UFC 183

'This was important for me and important for my whole family,' Silva said. 'I went through a lot of suffering [after the broken leg] and in the beginning, I didn't think I'd be back.'

Silva is renowned for his antics in the Octagon but was uncharacteristically subdued in the opening round as Diaz opted to start the mind games by briefly lying on the canvas and constantly chattering away to his opponent.

He threw an early kick but both men were content to circle the other in the opening stages. Silva landed a one-two as Diaz swung and missed with his right leg. After 90 seconds with barely a shot thrown, Silva launched forward with his hands but missed, allowing Diaz to respond with a leg kick before he too switched up top. The former champion finished the round strongly however, landing with two jabs before launching a knee at a backed-up Diaz.The second session also started slowly but Silva showed no sign of nerves as he flicked out his previously injured leg.  Diaz also focused on landing his kicks but took a swift right-left combination to the face. An attempted takedown was thwarted by the Brazilian and he again caught the judges' eyes in the closing seconds. Although not at his best, Silva was landing on Diaz and the Californian's face began to mark up around his left eye in the third stanza which would late require stages. He continued to goad Silva but the Octagon legend refused to be drawn in, instead focusing on landing leg kicks on Diaz. 

The American did at least start the penultimate round brightly but his successes were few and far between. Silva looked light on his feet as he circled away before landing a right hand.But again there was little to keep the MGM Grand crowd enthused and there were a smattering of discontented voices among the cheers for Silva. When Diaz did come forward, Silva responded, landing a double jab and leg kick to fend off his attacker. Needing a finish in the final five minutes, Diaz engaged briefly but was unable to land cleanly as Silva eased through to the bell. After a parade lap around the Octagon, he leapt out to embrace light-heavyweight champion Jon Jones before the verdict was announced. After crumbling to the canvas in a mixture of joy and relief, he was helped back to his feet by Diaz. 'I'll go back to my family, to my home, talk to my kids, and I don't know [about fighting again],' Silva added. 'When I called my family and my son says, "congratulations but no more fights".'I love my job but I need to talk to my family because it's more important.'Diaz, meanwhile, claimed: 'I felt I was ahead most of the time. I felt I won every round. I was the one coming forward.'