Anderson Silva gets the A-Ok from the boxing commission.
With his massive boxing match with Jake Paul just a day away, Anderson Silva now gets the go-ahead from the commission. This bout between the former UFC champion and the YouTuber has been panned for weeks. The date was set, both men were in shape and the hype was growing. However, with all things seemingly going as planned, there was a wrench thrown into the mix earlier this week. The eligibility of Silva was brought into question following some comments made by him and drew the attention of the Arizona Boxing Commission.
Silva was speaking with the media prior to his upcoming fight when he said that he had been knocked out twice during his training camp. He later came out to explain that his statement was false and that he misspoke.
“After seeing the reports and concern for me, I’d like to clarify two important things,” Silva wrote in the statement via MMA Fighting. “One, I was NEVER knocked out in sparring. I misspoke in that interview as I sometimes do when interviewing in English and exaggerated the normal back-and-forth action that occurs in sparring. Second, this sparring session I referenced was in early September. The interview with MMA Weekly was done on Sept. 13 and, for some reason, just released this week. So, it wasn’t recent.”
The Arizona Boxing Commission met on Thursday to discuss Silva and his health
Due to the information given, the commission met on Thursday night to discuss and go over additional medical documentation that Silva submitted to them. After a review of an MRI that was described as “pristine” Silva was given permission to continue with the fight. Commissioner Ara J. Feinstein, who is a trauma surgeon and a ringside doctor released a statement on his findings.
“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,” Feinstein said via MMA Fighting. “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.”
Paul vs. Silva will go down on Saturday, Oct. 29 live from the Gila River Arena in Glendale, AZ
