The fight will push through.
The Arizona Boxing Commission decided to hold a “special meeting” and “executive session” about sanctioning Anderson Silva for his upcoming bout with Jake Paul, stemming from his recent statements. Silva, who has english as his second language, previously said that a sparring partner “knocked me out two times” during training camp.
Silva eventually walked it back, and saying he “misspoke” and “exaggerated the normal back-and-forth action” from a sparring session from back in September, but the commission took it seriously and the bout was put in jeopardy days before the contest.
During the special meeting, Silva was said to have provided a “pristine” MRI, along with a letter and written statement from the fighter and his trainer. The Arizona Boxing Commission then deemed that they’re “completely comfortable” allowing Silva to compete.
“Given all the work we’ve done on concussion protocol and emphasis we’ve been placing on fighter safety, it just left me really concerned,” Commissioner Ara J. Feinstein, a trauma surgeon and ringside doctor said. “However, once I had further information, the letter from Silva, the written statement from his trainer, and more importantly, the results of the medical examinations and the approval of the physician reading the report, I became much more comfortable, and I have no objections to Mr. Silva participating in the event this Saturday.”
Silva stated that the intention of his statements were originally just to elevate his training partners. Paul also got in a similar situation with the Georgia Athletic Commission before his fight with Ben Askren, when he claimed that he had “early signs of CTE,” after just training for a couple of years.
Interestingly enough, since all this controversy started about Silva’s health, betting lines have shifted with Paul now a bigger favorite. Since those statements were made, the money poured in on Paul with the average odds going from -149 to -219 in a couple of days. Silva, who was a -160 favorite early in September, now sits as a +193 underdog.