Silva (33-7-1) is the most dominant middleweight champion in UFC history, winning 16 straight bouts during one stretch, including 10 straight title defenses.
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Despite Jones’ headline stealing move, Cormier and Silva still promises to deliver an interesting fight.
And Silva’s bravery has been rewarded with a slot on the historic UFC 200 card, as confirmed by company officials prior to the main event of UFC Fight Night 90. A liver kick that appeared to sting Cormier late in the third round was Silva’s only glimmer of hope the entire fight.
Depending on the final verdict on Jones’ drug violation, Cormier will eventually face Jones in a highly anticipated rematch.
When Jon Jones was pulled from his UFC 200 headliner against Daniel Cormier yesterday, there were more than a few fighters willing to step up and face the last-second challenge.
It would seem all MMA fans who wanted to see a fight featuring two of the sport’s stars on arguably the UFC’s biggest pay-per-view, should thank Anderson Silva as well.
At this point, it’s hard to know if the line up for Saturday’s UFC 200 will ever be locked in, but, let’s go with what we know at this time.
As such, a women’s bantamweight title fight between champion Miesha Tate and Brazil’s Amanda Nunes took the top billing. The panel with CM Punk and hosted by UFC broadcaster John Gooden also aired on UFC Fight Pass. The three-day notice is unheard of in the fight world, which is the same thing people said when Nate Diaz agreed to take on Conor McGregor on just 11 days’ notice. Although Silva claims to be in solid shape, he wasn’t ready to accept a five-round fight, the required length to fight for a championship belt. Mousasi is already scheduled to fight on the card, and White said the promotion has other plans for Henderson.
After all the complications the UFC have had with putting together a “mind blowing” card, Dana White has remained dedicated to delivering on his promises.
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In the co-main event, former heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar squareed off with knockout artist Mark Hunt.
