After the strange set of events that began with Jon Jones failing a USADA test and being pulled from UFC 200, Daniel Cormier has issued a statement to MMAFighting about his new opponent and former longtime middleweight king, Anderson Silva.
“I am honored to share the Octagon with the one of the greatest fighters of all time. This is a very tough fight for me, and I have to fight smart and to do my best in order to win this fight. Thank you Anderson for stepping up, and thanks to Dana White and the UFC for making this happen. Now let’s go do this.”
The brief statement indicates the intent of putting all other matters aside and focusing on the task at hand, no small feat considering the fact that Silva is still very dangerous despite his recent losses, as we saw in his fight against Michael Bisping where he almost finished Bisping in the third round. It’s a full speed ahead approach, and the only sensible one to take in a situation like this. It’s a major shift from seeing Cormier end up as distraught as he was in the recent Embedded episode.
What makes this an even stranger affair is the fact that the UFC denied the initial reports that Anderson Silva was indeed the man to replace Jon Jones, as well as Anderson’s admission that he hasn’t been as diligent with his training during his off-time. It should also be noted that Silva is currently 41-years-old and had his last win overturned to a no contest due to failing a drug test after his decision win against Nick Diaz.
UFC 200 will now have women’s bantamweight champion Miesha Tate in the headlining spot against challenger Amanda Nunes, and former K-1 GP champion and KFC’s best spokesman Mark Hunt taking on former UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar in the co-main event. The event takes place this Saturday night live from the T-Mobile Arena.
Mightiest Daddy 
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