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UFC 197 Confirmed for Rio in March; Could Anderson Silva Make the Card?

Anderson Silva Will Not Fight at UFC 212, but is He Done Fighting?

The Ultimate Fighting Championship plans to hold four events in Brazil in 2016 and announced one of them during the UFC Fight Night 77 post-fight press conference on Saturday.

The UFC 197 pay-per-view event will take place at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro on March 5.

“It’s confirmed,” said UFC Brazil General Manager and Senior Vice President Giovani Decker.

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Decker said they hope to do as well, if not better than, the last event in Rio de Janeiro, UFC 190. That event was headlined by women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey and Brazilian Bethe Correia and had 14,723 fans in attendance, but also reportedly topped 900,000 pay-per-view buys.

With those expectations, the event will have to feature a marquee match-up. Former middleweight champion Anderson Silva’s suspension stemming from failed drug tests surrounding UFC 183 ends on Jan. 31, so the timing could work for him to return at the event in Rio.

No bouts for the fight card were announced, however, and Decker said that there’s no return date set for Silva at this time.

“There’s nothing set. I think it’s a wish of Anderson’s to fight in Brazil,” he said. “I think every fighter has that wish.”

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