Wanderlei Silva opens up on UFC Hall of Fame announcement: “They were so close to making me cry”

The legendary Wanderlei Silva couldn’t be happier to be a future member of the UFC Hall of Fame.

‘The Axe Murderer’ was in attendance at UFC 298 in California over the weekend. During Saturday night’s broadcast, they announced their latest inductee into the Hall of Fame, that being Wanderlei Silva. A video package played in the venue and on pay-per-view, showing the greatest fights of the Brazilian’s historic career.

For Wanderlei Silva, the announcement came as quite a shock. After the announcement, the Brazilian headed backstage for a media scrum. For a man that was so terrifying in his prime, the 47-year-old was very jovial. Given his career accolades across not only the UFC and PRIDE, the induction should come as no surprise.

Still, Wanderlei Silva was shocked, mainly due to his previous beef with Dana White. Following his 2014 release from the UFC, the former title contender blasted the company, as well as the Nevada State Athletic Commission. Later, Silva accused the two of fixing fights, resulting in a lifetime ban.

At the UFC 298 media scrum, Wanderlei Silva joked that the ban must’ve been lifted and he missed it. Jokes aside, it was an emotional night for ‘The Axe Murderer’. While he did have issues with White and the promotion in the past, it seems that the two have buried the hatchet.

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Wanderlei Silva opens up on UFC Hall of Fame announcement

“This means a lot because every fighter in the world wants to be in the hall of fame,” Wanderlei Silva told backstage reporters at UFC 298 on Saturday night. “This is a great sport and I’m so glad to be part of it right now. I didn’t know nothing [about the induction]. They were so close to making me cry. I never thought this was gonna happen. I’m so happy UFC gave me this honor.” (h/t MMA Mania)

While Wanderlei Silva is being inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame, he’s not entirely done as a fighter. The Brazilian last competed in 2018, suffering a knockout loss to longtime rival Rampage Jackson. While Silva later retired after his second defeat to the former champion, it appears that he could be returning.

The aforementioned Rampage Jackson recently signed a deal to box Shannon Briggs in June. After that, the former UFC champion wants to fight his former rival, Wanderlei Silva one final time. He made the challenge last week, for a fifth bout between the two. Despite the Brazilian’s previous comments about retirement, he’s since shown interest in returning to fight Jackson later this year.

What do you make of these comments from Wanderlei Silva? Were you surprised to see his UFC Hall of Fame induction on Saturday night?