After filling in on an unprecedented three days’ notice to fight light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier when Jon Jones was forced out off July 9’s UFC 200 with a potential USADA violation, longtime former UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva expressed his disappointment at what he perceived was disrespect from the UFC.
“The Spider” detailed a scene where the promotion had not called him since the card, but instead left him on stand-by as a potential fill-in for either Michael Bisping or Dan Henderson if one of them were to get injured before their title fight at last weekend’s UFC 204 from Manchester. The entire ordeal left him with a sour taste in his mouth, yet UFC President Dana White disagrees with the sentiment.
During an appearance on FS1’s Speak for Yourself yesterday (via MMA Fighting), White said that while some fighters might have a legitimate reason to complain, Silva was far from one of them:
“Let me tell you what, there’s probably some guys that can come out and say they felt like they’ve been mistreated. Anderson Silva is not one of them. Okay? That is a guy who has been far from mistreated. Far from mistreated.”
It’s hardly surprising to hear White refute Silva’s claims, as he’s largely brushed aside all topics concerning fighter pay and treatment despite them being arguably one of the hottest discussions going in MMA. But Silva has most likely been treated better than most as one of the promotion’s top draws during his record-setting title run that ended over three years ago.
Still, it’s a concerning look for a promotion that has long been accused of using fighters during their prime and casting them aside when something new and fresh comes along, as was the case with Conor McGregor and Ronda Rousey rising to new levels of stardom in recent years.
Do you believe “The Spider” has a bone to pick with the UFC, or should he be thankful he wasn’t treated like the many fighters simply struggling to make ends meet even while in the UFC?
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