Anderson Silva Supports Changes in UFC Anti-Doping Policy

Anderson Silva believes the end of the partnership between the UFC and USADA could be a good thing.

During an interview on the Flow podcast, “The Spider” said that he believes testing should be more flexible, taking place only during the week of the fight.

“Depending on the sport, yes [there has to be strict control]. If it's an Olympic sport, it has to be there. I think the UFC shouldn't be so strict,” Silva said. “It’s not an Olympic sport. The training that MMA athletes do is completely different from that of any other fighting athlete, because they put themselves at extremes. The guy trains boxing, wrestling, jiu-jitsu, sparring, physical preparation and a lot of other things. There was a season that injured a lot of people. When a guy is undergoing medical monitoring, taking something without it being out of control, he won't get injured. This won't change his performance at all in the fight. I am in favor of drug testing during fight week. If you fall into doping during the week of the fight, then it’s f—ed up, then it’s not possible.”

A former middleweight champion and widely regarded as one of the greatest fighters of all time. Silva failed two anti-doping tests during his UFC career. In 2015, Silva had his UFC 183 victory over Nick Diaz overturned and was suspended for a year due to a failed drug test that he claimed was the result of a contaminated sexual stimulant from Thailand. The second instance occurred in 2017, when he was preparing for a fight against Kelvin Gastelum. Anderson received a reduced one-year sanction from USADA after it was determined the Brazilian ingested a contaminated supplement.

Silva retired from MMA in 2020 after being knocked out by Uriah Hall at UFC Fight Night 181. He has since competed three times in professional boxing, earning victories over Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. and Tito Ortiz while falling to Jake Paul.