Former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) 185-pound champion Anderson Silva will make his return to boxing against ex-WBC middleweight titleholder Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. on Sat., June 19, 2021, at Jalisco Stadium in Guadalajara, Mexico.
“I fight [boxing] many, many years ago,” Silva previously told MMA Fighting. “I fought amateur, I fought professional — not this same level in boxing. I made it successful in another sport, Muay Thai and MMA. Now everything I do inside the MMA world, I think I complete my mission.”
Silva, who turned 46 just a few weeks back, parted ways with UFC after losing three straight, including his Oct. 2020 headliner against middleweight striker Uriah Hall. As for Chavez Jr., 35, he’s coming off a technical knockout win over Jeyson Minda last November, which improved his boxing record to 59-5 with 34 knockouts.
“I’m not fighting for trying to prove something for nobody,” Silva continued. “I fight because I have a passion, because I love [it]. I feel the opportunity and the talent God gave me is for helping inspiring people … Right now, I need to do something for myself because right now it’s something, I’m having fun. Of course, it’s a fight. It’s a real fight and I accept the challenge.”
Win or lose, Silva is expected to continue his boxing career following next month’s pay-per-view (PPV) event in Mexico, which also features boxing legend Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. battling Hector Camacho Jr. under exhibition rules.