Thiago Silva back with the UFC, aiming for January appearance
In a perhaps surprising change in stance, UFC officials are giving Thiago Silva (16-3 MMA, 7-3 UFC) another chance.
Reps from Silva’s Blackzilians camp today announced Silva has returned to the UFC roster, and MMAjunkie subsequently confirmed the move with UFC President Dana White.
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6:09 PM - 5 Sep 2014
The move stands in stark contrast to White’s July statement that Silva would “never fight in the UFC again.â€
The move comes one day after it was revealed that all charges stemming from an alleged February domestic violence incident were dropped after prosecutors found Silva’s wife Thaysa, the alleged victim, Silva’s wife “uncooperative, and investigators determined that she has likely moved out of the country†according to a report from TMZ Sports.
Silva had sat in jail since a Feb. 6 incident at the Pablo Popovitch Mixed Martial Arts Academy in Oakland Park, Fla., where Thaysa trained. Police said the ex-UFC fighter drove up to the school and threatened his wife and Popovich with a gun before fleeing to his home, which led to a four-hour standoff with a S.W.A.T. team. He eventually came out of his home and was Tasered before being taken into custody.
After initially being charged with two counts of felony attempted murder, prosecutors downgraded to two counts of aggravated assault with a firearm.
Silva last fought this past October at UFC Fight Night 29, where he outpointed Matt Hamill. It was his second straight win since a submission victory over Stanislav Nedkov was overturned when he tested positive for marijuana, his second drug-related offense after previously submitting a false urine sample in the wake of a 2011 win over Brandon Vera.
