Wanderlei Silva is giving it another go in politics.
A former PRIDE middleweight champion and veteran of the UFC and Bellator, “The Axe Murderer” announced Thursday that he’s officially running for a seat in the Brazilian congress as a federal deputy.
Silva, who hasn’t competed in MMA since 2018 and holds a professional record of 35-14-1 with one no contest, came up short in the 2018 elections for federal deputy after gathering only 13,753 votes at the time. Then affiliated to the Social Democratic Party (PSD) party, Silva now joins the Progressive Party (PP), which sides with Brazil’s far-right president Jair Bolsonaro.
Silva defined himself as “family man proud of his wife and two beautiful children” and “a patriot who always [fights] for freedom.”
” This decision was made because many people are unhappy with our country and a lot people believe that nothing works in this place,” Silva posted to his social media. To change the situation, I am running for federal deputy in Parana. Our state has never had an athlete with a name representing us and I want to be that person.
” I want to go to Brasilia to bring dignity and to the sport, and to work to make it a powerful tool for inclusion. Sports can make a difference in the lives of youth. I am proof that it can. Apart from sports, I will fight for strong public safety that respects its employees
Silva said that he was going to his fourth fight with Quinton Jackson in 2018, and that this could be his final. However, he never announced his retirement from the sport. Months after losing by second-round knockout, the veteran revealed he had several concussion-like symptoms, including “mood swings, getting angry very fast, forgetting some things, having difficulty sleeping.”
MMA Fighting learned that Silva was approached by Fight Music Show officials earlier this year about possibly competing on an event in Curitiba on Sept. 25, but couldn’t come to terms. “The Axe Murderer” hasn’t won a fight in nearly a decade, since his 2013 knockout over Brian Stann in Japan. Silva left the UFC to join Bellator where he was defeated by Chael Sonnen, “Rampage”, Jackson.
