The UFC is the largest professional fighting promotion that has ever existed. It features some of the most impressive and successful athletes in the entire world. Two of these top fighters, Anderson Silva and Nick Diaz, recently clashed at UFC 183. Surprisingly, news has surfaced that both fighters failed their drug tests prior to the fight. Other sources suggest that, even though the event was something of a "fiasco," it still yielded some impressive results from a business standpoint.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship hosted its first fight in November of 1993 in Denver, Colorado. The company is based out of the United States, but it holds events across the globe.
The 39-year-old Anderson "The Spider" Silva reigns from Sao Paulo, Brazil. For a long time he was consider untouchable.
Silva holds the longest title defense streak in UFC history, which ended in 2013, with 16 consecutive wins and 10 title defenses.
His opponent, the 31-year-old Nick Diaz, fights out of Stockton, California. Even though he doesn't have near the record of Silva, he does carry a similar reputation for effectiveness.
In the end, Anderson took home the victory with more significant blows and a unanimous judge's decision. However, according to Yahoo Sports, both fighters failed their drug test:
"In a stunning development, both fighters who competed in the main event of UFC 183, Anderson Silva and Nick Diaz, failed their drug tests. Silva, the legendary ex-UFC middleweight champion who is widely regarded as the greatest mixed martial arts fighter in history, tested positive for two anabolic steroids, drostanolone and androstane. For the third time in his career, Diaz had elevated levels of marijuana metabolites in his system."
This makes fans question the validity of the competition in general. Should the win be tossed out? Should they have a rematch? In the past, Dana White looked the other way and allowed Jon Jones to keep his title regardless of his drug use.
It seems that the UFC President doesn't seem to care if his athletes dope up. Plus, according to MMA Fighting, the business faired well, and the event drew in tons of viewers and a historical amount of revenue:
"UFC 183 in many ways will go down as a fiasco. Both main eventers failed their drug tests, two fighters missed weight, and a third collapsed the day of the show while warming up...But from a business standpoint, it was the company's fourth straight major success in one of the company's best months in history...UFC 183 ended up being the 12th-largest gate in company history at $4.5 million. It also did strong television ratings for shoulder programming The fight delivered 1,992,000 viewers..."
What are your opinions on the situation? Has UFC lost its accountability? Can we trust Dana White? Let us know your opinions in the comment section below.
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