Anderson
Silva will return to the boxing ring for the first time since
2005 when he faces Julio Cesa Chavez Jr. on June 19 in Jalisco,
Mexico.
ESPN was first to report the booking, which will be contested
at 180 pounds, according to promoter Saul Rios. The former UFC
middleweight champion later confirmed the news to
TMZ Sports.
“When I look back at my journey, I see that nothing has been in
vain,” Silva said. “I am extremely happy for the opportunity to
test my boxing skills with Julio Cesar
Chavez Jr.
“I train continuously, always striving for resilience and to
overcome obstacles. Fighting is my everlasting breath.”
“The Spider” is 1-1 in boxing, suffering a first-round TKO loss to
Osmar Luiz Teixeira in his debut in 1998 before defeating Juliar
Cesar De Jesus via second-round TKO in 2005. Both bouts occurred in
Brazil. The 45-year-old was once regarded as one of the top
pound-for-pound fighters in mixed martial arts. He parted ways with
the UFC following a fourth-round stoppage loss to Uriah Hall at
UFC Fight Night 181 this past October. Silva won just one of his
last nine appearances within the Las Vegas-based promotion.
“When the fight was over, he couldn’t even stand up to do his
interview. He had to sit down and do an interview. I made a big
mistake and I shouldn’t have let him fight this fight tonight,” UFC
president Dana White said of Silva after his bout vs. Hall. “He’s a
legend of this sport and he’s a legend of this company, and I did
something I disagreed with. I knew I was right, and tonight proved
I was right, and Anderson
Silva should never fight again.”
Chavez Jr. is 52-5-1 with 34 knockouts over the course of his
boxing career. He is just 2-3 over his last five outings, which
includes a loss to Canelo Alvarez.