In case you’ve been living under a rock the past couple of days, Wanderlei Silva got into an altercation with Chael Sonnen at the Olympia Expo in Las Vegas, NV on Saturday. MMASucka.com has been covering the situation since Saturday when the news first broke, as well when Silva released his own, professional video. If you’ve seen the latter, then it’s quite clear that “The Axe Murderer” not only instigated the incident, but also had planned on provoking it. This all begs the question, just what is going on in the mind of Wanderlei Silva?
One of the first things I started wondering after watching Wandy’s video is, “Is this the result of too many concussions? Is Silva suffering from Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy?” This is a condition that is caused by repeated, untreated traumatic brain injuries that can cause erratic, and sometimes dangerous behavior. MMASucka.com reached out to Dr. Jonathan Gelber of Fight Medicine to see if Silva’s actions could be attributed to this condition, and if it could be properly diagnosed. Dr. Gelber had the following to say.
Repeated concussions can lead to CTE and agression. Diagnosis however is only with an autopsy. Researchers are looking into markers or MRI findings that can help identify brain injury.
So, while we can not be 100% sure that the undoubtedly numerous concussions that Silva has suffered during his career have influenced his erratic and overly aggressive public behaviour as of late, it’s certainly possible. I can not imagine that any of “The Axe Murderer’s” handlers would have come up with the idea to orchestrate an ambush of the nature recorded in Wand’s own video in concert with the repetitive threats that seem to be becoming more and more muddled with each successive release. I’m really starting to worry about the Pride FC legend, and am wondering if maybe – just maybe – the time has come for him to be benched by the UFC in the same way that Chuck Liddell was. I don’t want to see him concussed to a point where he becomes a danger to himself or others. After all, I can recall the first time concussions became part of the public conversation around athletics. That was after WWE star Chris Benoit killed his family, and then himself.
What do you think, MMA fans? Let us know in the comments section. I’d also like to thank Dr. Jonathan Gelber of Fight Medicine. Follow Dr. Gelber on Twitter at @FightMedicine.
