Anderson Silva's next fight is believed to be in jeopardy after opponent Nick Diaz was arrested for DUI charges.
Anderson Silva's next fight against the elder Diaz brother is scheduled for January 31st at UFC 183. It will be the first time both men will be stepping in the cage after more than a year due to respective lay-offs. "The Spider" was rehabilitating from a broken leg injury from UFC 168 in December 2013, while Diaz took a hiatus from fighting after UFC 158 in March of the same year.
In a report by MMA Fighting, the former number one welterweight contender was arrested late last week on charges of suspicion of DUI, destruction of evidence, obstructing a police officer, and driving with a suspended license.
"According to Maynard, Diaz did not resist arrest, however during the process of his arrest, he was given an option of either submitting to a breath or blood sample to test his sobriety," reporter Shaun Al-Shatti wrote in his report.
"Diaz elected to submit a breath sample, but requested to use the restroom first. Officers allowed him to do so, however according Maynard, Diaz used the opportunity to attempt to induce himself to vomit several times, in the process ignoring repeated commands from officers to stop."
In a separate report by Dave Doyle of the same website, Anderson Silva's next fight against Nick Diaz is believed to be in jeopardy after the said incident. Doyle reveals that this was Diaz's second arrest for the year, and the fighter has yet to face the said charges in court.
"My gut feeling is, so long as Diaz doesn't actually end up locked up or engaged in a lengthy trial during the time that would have been otherwise spent training for Silva, the fight will go on," Doyle wrote. "There's simply too much interest and too much money on the line. All we can do now is see how this plays out."
The UFC had already released an official statement regarding the incident, through their official website.
"We are aware of the situation and are in the process of gathering the facts. We understand that there is a legal process that will now take place and that Nick Diaz will have the opportunity to address the situation in the near future."
