UFC fans are still getting over the disappointment that there will be no Jon Jones v Daniel Cormier rematch at UFC 200 after Jones tested positive in an out-of-competition drugs test, but there’s some consolation for fight fans.
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Former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones faces sanctioning following the confirmation of drug test results indicating that he violated the UFC Anti-Doping Policy.
“For the B sample to not be the same, especially when there’s two different agents I think, it would be like hitting the lottery for that to come up negative”, UFC president Dana White said in the wake of the news.
“Is there anything I can do?”
TMZ Sports broke the news that Anderson Silva has agreed to fill Jones’ spot and will fight Cormier in a non-title three-round light heavyweight bout in Las Vegas on Saturday.
“Anderson is giving Daniel the opportunity to fight, to make money and to perform on UFC 200”, White explained.
Jones confirmed the positive test in a Thursday press conference, but neither he nor the USADA has revealed for which banned substance he tested positive.
Michael Bisping expressed his willingness to take Jones’ place in the UFC 200.
Although that was less than two months ago, Silva said his desire to help the UFC in a time of need prompted him to ask for the fight.
The 28-year-old is being investigated by the US Anti-Doping Authority (USADA), temporarily leaving Cormier without an opponent and a gaping hole on the card for one of UFC’s biggest nights of the year.
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Anderson “Spider” Silva was going to be in Las Vegas for UFC 200 anyway to “go to the mall, get some ice cream and hang out” with his kids. It presented an interesting stylistic matchup between a dynamic striker in Silva and an Olympic wrestler in Cormier, a classic striker versus grappler match up. Lesnar vs Hunt will co-headline while Cormier vs. Silva will feature in the middle of the card. We do know Anderson can be put on his back and held there by wrestlers, but who the heck wants to watch that?
