Rothwell Blasts Belfort, Silva For Not Owning Up To Actions
Surging heavyweight contender “Big” Ben Rothwell was suspended by the UFC in 2013 for having elevated testosterone levels. So what makes Rothwell different than others who have broke the rules such as controversial Brazilian legend Vitor “The Phenom” Belfort?
Belfort was supposed to appear on today’s (October 26, 2015) edition of the MMA Hour, but was scrapped when he said that he wouldn’t answer any questions about his UFC 152 scandal. A report dropped last month indicating that Belfort may have failed yet another drug test in 2012 ahead of his UFC 152 bout with Jon Jones, but fought on anyway.
“Big” Ben seemed to have been quite annoyed that “The Phenom” avoided talking about the situation. Rothwell claims that he has always faced his problems, and wishes Belfort would do the same:
“The difference is I want to address it, because I face my problems,” Rothwell said Monday on The MMA Hour. “That’s it. I face my problems. I take them on. I take responsibility. And man, Vitor was awesome when I met him in July, how nice he was to me and all this stuff. It just really sucks to hear that. Come on, man. Be the warrior. Be the man and face this. It happened. There’s nothing you can do about it. This is your responsibility. You went through this. This is yours. F–king own it. Just deal with it.”
Rothwell continued on, bringing up yet another famed, but troubled Brazilian legend in Anderson “The Spider” Silva. Silva is widely regarded as one of the greatest fighters to ever live which is why many were shocked when he tested positive for multiple performance enhancing drugs (PEDs) surrounding his UFC 183 bout with Nick Diaz.
Even more shocking was his case put forth in front of the Nevada Athletic Commission, and Rothwell says that Silva ruined his legacy because of this, blasting “The Spider” in the process:
“The running and stuff, I don’t know, it doesn’t look good,” Rothwell said of Belfort. “Didn’t he watch who could’ve been looked at as the GOAT, in Silva? I’m going to say it, Anderson Silva destroyed his legacy. Not because he got busted, but after the fact, him continually denying (everything), showing just what a coward he is. No respect from me whatsoever. To contstantly be like, really dude? You were tested multiple times. You had these substances in your body. Like, who are you trying to lie to? You got busted. You’re a cheat. You f–ked up. Royally. Why are you going to sit here and continue to say you didn’t do it? It’s a disgrace. And you’re not a man. You’re not a man. I don’t care. You can throw some good punches and kicks, but inside as a person, you are gone. You’re nothing.”
Like many, Rothwell looked up Silva, and actually admits that the news changed him as a fighter:
“That’s how I feel,” he said. “Part of the reason, I’m telling you, when he got busted, dude, it’s part of what has made me, me. Something changed in me when that happened, just to have somebody we’ve looked up to for so long just f–king fail us so bad.”
As for Belfort, “The Phenom” will meet Dan Henderson next month in Brazil, and “Big” Ben hopes that the Brazilian is now clean, can own up to his actions and move on:
“And I don’t want to see Vitor take this (route),” Rothwell continued. “Kind of running from it. He didn’t deny anything. But avoiding this is almost just as bad. It’s like, don’t do that, man. Just deal with this. It’s no big deal. You got a fight against Henderson. You can make everybody forget. You’re getting there, you’re testing now, you’re clean, go in there and beat Henderson. Great, man, we’ll move on from this. But like you said, it just kind of makes matters worse when people don’t want to handle their business the right way.”
Do you agree with Rothwell’s statements?
