It turns out Anderson Silva is in fact released from the UFC.
MMA Fighting reported Thursday that Silva — who recently suffered a fourth-round TKO defeat to Uriah Hall in what was expected to be his last fight with the promotion — was no longer a UFC fighter.
UFC president Dana White would later inform TMZ that wasn’t the case as Silva was still contracted to the promotion with one fight remaining on his deal but was essentially retired.
However, White corrected himself soon after stating Silva is in fact released from his contract and is free to pursue his career elsewhere — though he hoped that wouldn’t be the case.
12:50 PM PT — Dana White tells TMZ Sports he was mistaken earlier — confirming Anderson Silva HAS been released from his UFC contract and is free to pursue his fighting career elsewhere.
That said, Dana does not think Anderson should continue — pointing out he’s lost 8 of his last 9 fights.
White tells us Silva is a lock for the UFC Hall of Fame and he wishes Anderson the best moving forward.
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Silva’s UFC Chapter Ends
With that, Silva is no longer part of the UFC — at least as a fighter.
“The Spider” leaves the promotion as one of the greatest fighters to ever step foot inside the Octagon where he reigned as the longtime middleweight champion from 2006 to 2012 and held wins over the likes of Dan Henderson, Vitor Belfort, Demian Maia, Rich Franklin and Forest Griffin to name a few.
His overall UFC record was 17-7 (1 NC) though that record was heavily affected by his last few years in the promotion with just one win in his last nine outings.
Whether the Brazilian continues to compete elsewhere remains to be seen.
