Anderson Silva Already Planning To Return At UFC 200
Despite a largely stacked card overall, tomorrow night’s (Sat., May 14, 2016) UFC 198 from the Arena da Baixada in Curitiba, Brazil, took a huge hit when longtime former middleweight champion Anderson Silva was unfortunately removed from his main card bout against Uriah Hall due to an enlarged gall bladder that required surgery.
“The Spider” soon had successful surgery, and now he’s already eying a return at July 9’s historical UFC 200 event from the all-new T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Silva’s trainer Rogerio Camoes described the all-time great’s plan moving forward in an interview with Sherdog:
“Thank God everything went fine and Anderson is already planning his return. He told me, ‘Master, pack everything up. We’re going to UFC 200.’ The most important thing is that he kept his mind strong and didn’t lose his motivation. On the contrary, he’s really motivated to take part at that historical UFC 200 event.”
The legendary champion has endured some tough injuries since losing the belt to Chris Weidman in 2013, but it appears that the gall bladder issue is one that he’ll be able to bounce back from in a small amount of time.
That’s good news for “The Spider” and his fans, as there’s undoubtedly a bad taste still left in their mouths after his controversial decision loss to Michael Bisping in London this February, where Silva battered and brutalized “The Count” in rounds three and five while showing precious little offense in the other three frames.
A re-booking of his match-up with fellow flashy striker Hall would add even more fireworks to a UFC 200 card that already features three title fights in Daniel Cormier vs. Jon Jones, Jose Aldo vs. Frankie Edgar, and Miesha Tate vs. Amanda Nunes. In truth, any fight featuring Silva and his still-lethal striking arsenal at 41 years of age would certainly be another huge upgrade to a card that is already one of the most stacked in UFC history on paper.
And Silva is an icon of MMA, one that would be the perfect crowning jewel on a midsummer masterpiece the UFC has crafted despite all the backlash from the booking of and subsequent removal of the original Nate Diaz vs. Conor McGregor main event. Who would you like to see “The Spider” face off with at UFC 200?
