It has been reported by TMZ and Ariel Helwani of MMAFighting.com that Daniel Cormier will be taking on former UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva this Saturday at UFC 200.
This will be a three-round non-title fight in the UFC’s light heavyweight division.
ANDERSON SILVA STEPS IN ON SHORT NOTICE TO FIGHT DANIEL CORMIER at UFC 200
After opponent Jon Jones was pulled from the main event of UFC 200 due to failing a pre-fight drug test, Cormier was left without an opponent on what could be the biggest UFC pay-per-view of all time.
Many opponents expressed considerable interest in stepping in and fighting Cormier. Amongst those putting their names into the hat were Gegard Mousasi and perennial light heavyweight contender Alexander Gustafsson.
Gustafsson, who lost a razor close decision to the Cormier at UJFC 192 back in October of 2015, put out a tweet expressing his willingness to take the fight.
With the right terms, I am ready to jump on a plane, my bags are packed. @danawhite @lorenzofertitta @dc_mma @ufc
— Alexander Gustafsson (@AlexTheMauler) July 7, 2016
No word on why the UFC and Gustafsson were unable to come to terms on a possible deal.
Late Thursday night, Dana White put out this video on his Twitter account with himself and Anderson Silva.
“He’s back” said Dana White to which Silva stated “I back”.
Although Silva is coming off of a controversial split decision loss to UFC Middleweight Champion Michael Bisping, Silva still posses a unique challenge to champion Cormier.
If Silva were to pull off the upset and defeat Cormier, it would just add another incredible chapter to the wild ride that UFC 200 has been.
So far.
