Thiago Silva is once again a UFC Fighter after assault charges against him from an incident earlier this year were dropped by police.
Silva was arrested in February relating to an incident in which he was alleged to have pointed a gun at his estranged wife Thaysa Silva and her boyfriend Pablo Popovitch outside Popovitch’s BJJ gym in Floriday and threatened to kill her.
Silva then drove hom and barricaded himself in his apartment, but was later arrested by a SWAT team. Initially facing charges including attempted murder, the charges were eventually lowered to aggravated assault and Silva was denied bail.
In addition to his legal issues, soon after Silva was arrested Dana White stated that he would, “never fight in the UFC again.”
However, Silva’s wife is believed to have left the country and has become “uncooperative” since the incident and so on Thursday all charges against Silva were dropped.
Not only that, but White has also revealed that Silva has now been welcomed back to the UFC.
“When this thing went down, I said he’d never fight in the UFC again,” White said in a statement. “When I watched it unfold on TV and heard of the charges, it didn’t look good for Thiago Silva,” White said. “But he was acquitted of all charges. How do you not let the guy fight again?”
“He went through the legal process and came out of it untainted. He deserves to be able to make a living again. He’s back under contract.”
It’s a potentially risky move by White, particularly since it’s coming in the same week as after another former UFC Fighter ‘War Machine’ finds himself now facing an attempted murder charge relating to an incident with his ex-girfriend.
Silva has always been a somewhat troubled character, with his wife having previously filed for a temporary restraining order against him after he allegedly put a gun in her mouth and threatened her, while in the UFC he was handed two suspensions in the space of two years due to failed drugs tests.
Prior to his arrest Silva had been on a two-fight winning streak in the UFC, knocking out Rafael ‘Feijao’ and earning a decision win over Matt Hamill.
