Manager: Former UFC title challenger 'Bigfoot' Silva gets 'second breath' – and $200K payday – in Russia

Longtime MMA manager and frequent MMAjunkie contributor Alex Davis said he has no complaints over how Antonio Silva, the man better known as “Bigfoot,” was treated by a Russian promoter. His only complaint was with the official result.

But even that complaint is mitigated by a “second breath” offered by Titov Boxing Promotion. Silva gets to continue his career.

“I think we found a new reality for ‘Bigfoot,'” Davis told MMAjunkie Radio.

They’ve also found a lucrative alternative to other promotions. While Silva (19-11) lost a decision to Ivan Shtyrkov (8-0) this past November in a bout filled with referee errors that favored the Russian, Davis said the onetime UFC title challenger still banked “a little bit less than half” of a rumored $500,000 payday for the fight.

“They were extremely well-treated,” Davis said. “Everything was perfect. We had no complaints whatsoever (except) for the judging of the fight.”

Silva signed with the Russian promoter after parting ways with the UFC in October in the wake of a knockout loss to Roy Nelson at UFC Fight Night 95, his third straight KO defeat in a 1-6 skid for the industry leader after a failed bid for the title against now-former champ Cain Velasquez.

Davis said he initially was concerned whether Titov Boxing Promotions would act in good faith, given a previous incident involving Silva’s teammate. According to a report from BloodyElbow.com, onetime UFC title challenger Jeff Monson was tricked into a professional bout despite agreeing only to an exhibition match; he was quickly submitted with an armbar and suffered an elbow injury. But as it turned out, Davis said, the fears were unfounded.

“A lot of people in the media started shooting at me, saying I was a lousy manager because I was sending him out there in the jungle in Russia and they’d done that to Jeff, and we were worried,” Davis said. “But it just so happens that none of that was true.”

Of course, when it came to what happened inside the ring, the officiating was, at best, troubled. The bout might have been waved off in the second frame after Shtyrkov sent Silva through the ropes with a hard punch, or in the third frame, when Silva dropped Shtyrkov with a hard uppercut, only to have the referee stop the action to find his knocked-out mouthpiece. Those were just a few examples of bad calls on display.

“The only thing they didn’t do was give (Shtyrkov) oxygen,” Davis said of the mouthpiece incident. “They gave him five minutes to recuperate, which is wrong on their end. But there’s no athletic commission, all the refs are Russian, so if you fight in Russia, you’ve got to finish the fight.”

Davis said Silva will continue to compete for Titov Boxing Promotion and targeted a potential bout with ex-Bellator champ Vitaly Minakov. Despite any potential disadvantages in the bout’s regulation, the manager said it gives Silva the chance to ply his trade. Even considering his steep slide over the past two years, “Bigfoot” still has a lot of name value overseas.

“Everybody in Russia remembers him against Fedor (Emelianenko),” Davis said. “He’s got a big following in Russia that we didn’t realize. Even at this fight, when they gave the decision to the Russian, the crowd booed. He’s a hero there, so he gets a second breath in his career.

“He’s going to fight again. There’s some very tough Russians; there’s that Minakov, who’s 3-0 and is a really, really good fighter. ‘Bigfoot,’ winning or losing, I think he has accomplished the right to fight anybody in the world. Losing or winning, he always goes out there, and there’s no doubt in his heart when he steps into the ring. He’ll fight a few more times in Russia, and he’ll make some good money. They’re paying better than in other markets, so you’ll see him fight again, for sure.”

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