Dana White: Brawl injuries forced postponement of Chael Sonnen vs. Wanderlei Silva

Ever since word first leaked about the brawl between Chael Sonnen and Wanderlei Silva on the set of TUF Brazil, some have insinuated that the incident was contrived to bring attention to the show.

But according to UFC president Dana White, not only was it the real thing, but the injuries “The Axe Murderer” sustained in the melee were what forced the bout to be pushed back from May to July.

“There’s a bunch of idiots in the media saying, ‘That thing looks contrived,'” White said at Wednesday’s TUF Nations Finale post-fight media scrum in Quebec City. “It was far from contrived. That thing was a disgusting display of what shouldn’t happen, and if I was there it would have never happened.

“The fact that there were other people, even people holding camera in that f—– place and let that happen is just beyond belief. Then the kid who runs in and sucker-punched Chael from behind, it’s just as bad as it can get.”

White said that while he was angry about the incident when it occurred, he’s got no choice now but to let it go.

“What happened was Wanderlei got hurt in that fight,” White said following Wednesday’s TUF Nations Finale. “He got double legged on the concrete and he hurt his back. He hurt his hand punching Chael in the head and he got injured. He couldn’t fight on time because he got hurt in the fight f——- coaching a show. I’m done being angry now. I was angry when it happened. It’s just disgusting. What are you going to do?”

Ever since word first leaked about the brawl between Chael Sonnen and Wanderlei Silva on the set of TUF Brazil, some have insinuated that the incident was contrived to bring attention to the show.

But according to UFC president Dana White, not only was it the real thing, but the injuries “The Axe Murderer” sustained in the melee were what forced the bout to be pushed back from May to July.

“There’s a bunch of idiots in the media saying, ‘That thing looks contrived,'” White said at Wednesday’s TUF Nations Finale post-fight media scrum in Quebec City. “It was far from contrived. That thing was a disgusting display of what shouldn’t happen, and if I was there it would have never happened.

“The fact that there were other people, even people holding camera in that f—– place and let that happen is just beyond belief. Then the kid who runs in and sucker-punched Chael from behind, it’s just as bad as it can get.”

White said that while he was angry about the incident when it occurred, he’s got no choice now but to let it go.

“What happened was Wanderlei got hurt in that fight,” White said following Wednesday’s TUF Nations Finale. “He got double legged on the concrete and he hurt his back. He hurt his hand punching Chael in the head and he got injured. He couldn’t fight on time because he got hurt in the fight f——- coaching a show. I’m done being angry now. I was angry when it happened. It’s just disgusting. What are you going to do?”