Contrary to reports that MMA legend Wanderlei Silva is set to retire, UFC President Dana White said that the 36-year old fighter is scheduled to return to the cage and that his next fight is already in the works.
After his main event loss to Rich Franklin in UFC 147, many people thought that Silva was on his way to retirement. It was a rematch of the two fighters after UFC 99 with Franklin scoring a controversial win.
UFC President Dana White has not provided details of any possible opponent or schedule for his next fight but confirmed that Silva is indeed returning to the UFC. The two had long been in talks about Silva’s next bout inside the Octagon.
Wanderlei Silva started his professional career in 1996. The fighter nicknamed “The Axe Murderer” made his UFC debut during UFC Brazil: Ultimate Brazil against Vitor Belfort. That match was considered as one of the worst defeats in Silva’s career ending in only 44 seconds. He bounced back with a knockout win against Tony Petarra at UFC 20 on May 7, 1999.
After momentarily leaving UFC for Pride FC, Silva made a comeback to the league against another UFC legend in Chuck “The Iceman” Liddell. Silva would lose via unanimous decision. A year later, he bounced back with another knockout win against Keith Jardine in just 36 seconds via referee stoppage.
Silva has a professional fighting record of 34-12-1 and is 4-7 in the UFC. He has lost four out of his last six matches, four of those losses via knockout. He now runs a fight team in Las Vegas and has been a permanent fixture in the UFC since returning in 2007.
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Melvin Magadia is a writer and blogger for a promo items company selling customized sweatbands. He writes helpful guides about a wide range of topics, but concentrates mostly on business, technology and travel-related posts.
