Former UFC star Anderson Silva recently made a surprising revelation when speaking about his preparation for the boxing match with Jake Paul on October 29 at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Ariz. In an interview with MMA Weekly, the former UFC middleweight champion said he had been knocked out twice by training partners in his last sparring session for the fight.
He said:
“I’m training hard for win — I’m training with the good boxers, high-level, and five guys come to help me,” Silva said. “And the last sparring with [my sparring partner], he is knocked me out two times, and when I finish my training, I talked to my coach and even said, ‘Coach, let me tell you something, why the guys knock me out two times?’ And the coach said, ‘You need to prepare for war, and you prepare for war.’”
Jake Paul had a similar issue ahead of his Ben Askren fightback in early 2021 after claiming he was already suffering from CTE. “The Problem Child” was ultimately cleared to compete
In Arizona, fighters over the age of 36 are required to receive approval from the commission in order to be licensed, submitting a stress test performed by a doctor, a clearance letter and a electrocardiogram (ECG) to demonstrate cardiovascular health. In general, fighters are also required to submit to concussion baseline testing. On the physical exam form all fighters are required to submit, fighters are asked the date of their most recent knockout, the longest duration of unconsciousness, and whether they’ve been knocked out in any other sport “or in any other way.”
Arizona boxing commission calls emergency meeting
The commission called for an emergency meeting on Thurs. night (Oct. 27) just two days before Silva is expected to lace up the gloves against celebrity boxing sensation Jake Paul in Glendale, according to MMA Fighting, for “the review of additional documentation submitted by (Silva) to determine his eligibility to compete in an upcoming bout on October 29, 2022.”
A copy of Thursday’s agenda can be seen below:
