Daniel Cormier will get a dance partner in the Octagon on Saturday.
A day after because of a , UFC president Dana White announced Thursday night that Cormier will take on legendary middleweight mixed martial arts fighter Anderson Silva. The two will compete in a three-round light heavyweight fight.
“I’m here to challenge myself,” Silva said about taking the fight on short notice through a translator during the news conference . “I haven’t trained in a few months, but I think I’m in good condition to put on a good fight.”
Dan Henderson and Gegard Mousasi both made bids to fight Cormier, White said.
Silva had gall bladder surgery a couple months back, White said, but he passed all his physical tests to make the fight happen.
“I think it’s an interesting, fun fight,” White said. “Listen, Anderson Silva is undefeated at 205. Not just undefeated, devastatingly undefeated.”
In a video released by Fox Sports, Cormier said it’s a privilege to fight Silva.
“We were supposed to fight a guy people consider the greatest of all time, now we get to fight the other guy that people say might be the greatest of all time,” he said.
Late last night reacted to learning he's fighting
— FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX)
