Wanderlei Silva running for a seat in the Brazilian congress
Wanderlei Silva, former UFC fighter, and former PRIDE Middleweight Champion and the 2003 PRIDE Middleweight Grand Prix Tournament Champion, is running for a seat in the Brazilian Congress.
“I made this decision because a lot of people complain about our country, a lot of people say nothing works here,” Silva announced on Instagram. “In order to change this scenario, I’m running as a candidate for federal deputy in the state of Parana. Our state has never had an athlete with a name representing us and I want to be that person.
“I want to get to Brasilia and bring dignity to our sport and work so it becomes a strong instrument for social inclusion. I’m proof of what sports can do for the youth and I know we can change the lives of many. Besides sports, I’ll fight for strong and efficient public safety that values its professionals.”
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Silva ran for federal deputy in 2018 and received 13,753 votes when he was affiliated to the Social Democratic Party (PSD) party. Now, the famed retired mixed martial artist is aligned with the Progressive Party (PP), which sides with Brazil’s president Jair Bolsonaro.
Wanderlei Silva last competed in MMA in 2018 when he suffered a loss against his foe from PRIDE FC, Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson, at Bellator 206.
