Former UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva recently underwent surgery and is currently resting comfortably as he recovers from the procedure. The surgery, which was to remove his gallbladder, forced Silva out of the upcoming UFC 198 in which he was supposed to fight Uriah Hall. Since the fight has been cancelled, online MMA betting odds for the fight have been removed. According to his doctors, Silva should be able to leave the hospital on Friday.
Leading up to his fight against Hall, Silva felt fine. But on Monday and Tuesday he started experiencing some abdominal pain, which forced him to go to the hospital. During his first trip to the hospital, the doctors could not detect anything out of the ordinary, after going back home and still being in pain, his physician recommended that he sees a specialist who eventually noticed he had an inflamed gallbladder.
The doctor recommended that Silva undergo surgery to relieve the pain, which he decided to do. Silva’s return to the octagon won’t be determined until after the doctors give him clearance to resume training. Having to pull out of UFC 198 was very disappointing for Silva, who had been hoping to get back to his winning ways in front of his fans in Brazil, where the Pay-Per-View event is being held.
Silva, who has been trying to mount a comeback since he lost his belt to Chris Weidman, has been unable to do so due to a series of setbacks. In his rematch with Weidman, Silva broke his leg when Weidman checked Anderson’s low kick, which forced him to miss an extended amount of time while he recovered from the gruesome injury. After a year off to heal his leg, Silva defeated Nick Diaz, but the decision was overturned because he tested positive for steroids after the fight. After the Diaz fight, Silva was suspended for a year, then attempted another comeback against Michael Bisping.
In the fight against Bisping, Silva showed flashes of his old self and at the end of the second round, he looked as if he had won the fight via knockout and started celebrating, but the referee never stopped the fight and both men had to continue. Silva eventually lost via unanimous decision, giving him his fourth consecutive loss. With the latest setback, it will take 4-6 weeks before Silva can be cleared to fight again, and at 41, it is hard to imagine him ever getting the middleweight belt back.
Despite his disappointment with the news, Silva’s coach said he was fortunate that he quickly picked up on the symptoms because it could have been worse. If Silva’s gallbladder had burst, the situation would have been more serious. Even with the setback, Silva will eventually return to the octagon, but at some point he has to consider the fact that he has done very well for himself financially, he has been at the top of his profession, and is considered to be one of the greatest fighters in the world.
With all he has achieved, it is time for Silva to seriously start considering retirement because he really doesn’t have anything to prove in the sport.