‘Sad’ Anderson Silva slams UFC for lack of respect toward him, other Brazilian fighters

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) needs to begin sending out some “thank you” letters as soon as possible and start showing its Brazilian fighters respect, or shit’s going to hit the ceiling.

And fast.

After interim featherweight champion Jose Aldo threatened to retire from mixed martial arts (MMA) if he wasn’t granted his release from the promotion, ex-middleweight champion Anderson Silva is speaking out against the lack of respect and appreciation he and his fellow countrymen have received from the world’s leading fight organization.

And it all begins with the fact that “Spider” wasn’t thanked for stepping up on short notice to face Daniel Cormier at UFC 200 after Jon Jones was forced out due to a failed drug test.

“I haven’t even received a ‘thank you’ from Dana (White), or Lorenzo (Fertitta) after the last fight,” Silva told UOL via MMA Junkie. “Of course, I was the one who wanted to fight, who took the bout, but I know my worth, my importance.”

Silva went on to lose to “DC” via unanimous decision (video replay here) and was paid $600,000 for stepping up to the plate.

But it’s not only his employer’s respect that Silva hasn’t received, as the former pound-for-pound great says other people haven’t given him his due props for bringing the sport of MMA to where it is today.

“I was very disappointed with the lack of respect that the UFC has been treating the Brazilian athletes with. I’m an athlete who took the sport to another level. I don’t get, or have got, people’s due respect. This has made me very upset, sad, and disappointed with the UFC.”

That said, Anderson revealed that he was asked to be on standby for UFC 204 — which is set to go down this Saturday (Oct. 8, 2016) in Manchester, England — just in case event headliner Dan Henderson or Michael Bisping happened to pull out of the championship fight.

“I didn’t talk to them or anyone else,” he said of the UFC higher-ups. “They even offered me to be on standby in case something happened to (Michael) Bisping or (Dan) Henderson (before Saturday’s UFC 204 in England). But the most absurd thing is how it got to me. They didn’t even talk to me – my representatives passed it along.”

Despite not feeling the love from Dana White and Co., Silva says nothing will diminish his past accomplishments from the organization.

“I will say it again: I’m very disappointed with the way they’ve been treating me, I’m very saddened by all of this,” he said. “I wasn’t the one who said I was the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, Dana White said it. Maybe he said it to promote his event, or because he really felt that way. We’ll never know the truth,” he added.

The question remains: Is all of this stemming from lack of appreciation and respect? Or the fact that a certain superstar is getting more love than anybody else on the roster?

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) needs to begin sending out some “thank you” letters as soon as possible and start showing its Brazilian fighters respect, or shit’s going to hit the ceiling.

And fast.

After interim featherweight champion Jose Aldo threatened to retire from mixed martial arts (MMA) if he wasn’t granted his release from the promotion, ex-middleweight champion Anderson Silva is speaking out against the lack of respect and appreciation he and his fellow countrymen have received from the world’s leading fight organization.

And it all begins with the fact that “Spider” wasn’t thanked for stepping up on short notice to face Daniel Cormier at UFC 200 after Jon Jones was forced out due to a failed drug test.

“I haven’t even received a ‘thank you’ from Dana (White), or Lorenzo (Fertitta) after the last fight,” Silva told UOL via MMA Junkie. “Of course, I was the one who wanted to fight, who took the bout, but I know my worth, my importance.”

Silva went on to lose to “DC” via unanimous decision (video replay here) and was paid $600,000 for stepping up to the plate.

But it’s not only his employer’s respect that Silva hasn’t received, as the former pound-for-pound great says other people haven’t given him his due props for bringing the sport of MMA to where it is today.

“I was very disappointed with the lack of respect that the UFC has been treating the Brazilian athletes with. I’m an athlete who took the sport to another level. I don’t get, or have got, people’s due respect. This has made me very upset, sad, and disappointed with the UFC.”

That said, Anderson revealed that he was asked to be on standby for UFC 204 — which is set to go down this Saturday (Oct. 8, 2016) in Manchester, England — just in case event headliner Dan Henderson or Michael Bisping happened to pull out of the championship fight.

“I didn’t talk to them or anyone else,” he said of the UFC higher-ups. “They even offered me to be on standby in case something happened to (Michael) Bisping or (Dan) Henderson (before Saturday’s UFC 204 in England). But the most absurd thing is how it got to me. They didn’t even talk to me – my representatives passed it along.”

Despite not feeling the love from Dana White and Co., Silva says nothing will diminish his past accomplishments from the organization.

“I will say it again: I’m very disappointed with the way they’ve been treating me, I’m very saddened by all of this,” he said. “I wasn’t the one who said I was the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, Dana White said it. Maybe he said it to promote his event, or because he really felt that way. We’ll never know the truth,” he added.

The question remains: Is all of this stemming from lack of appreciation and respect? Or the fact that a certain superstar is getting more love than anybody else on the roster?