Anderson Silva has stepped in to face Daniel Cormier at UFC 200, but is it enough to save what could've been one of the greatest nights for the UFC? Brian Campbell and Arash Markazi disagree and explain their positions.

CAMPBELL: SILVA SAVES THE DAY

For a landmark combat sports pay-per-view to be a great success, the buzz and financial support from the mainstream audience is essential in order to elevate it to the next level.

Saturday's UFC 200 card perfectly fits the description of a cornerstone event, with its eye-catching No. 200 serving as a litmus test for just how far both the UFC and the sport of mixed martial arts have evolved.

Yet despite being gratuitously stacked from top to bottom with strong fights, it's impossible to minimize just how much of a hit the card took after Jon Jones was pulled on Wednesday night from the main event for a possible doping violation.

Three months after the UFC's virtual ATM machine, Conor McGregor, was also removed the card, Jones' grudge match with light heavyweight champion Cormier became UFC 200's sexy anchor.

Yes, the addition one month ago of Brock Lesnar in his return from a five-year retirement sweetened the pot. But losing Cormier-Jones II automatically meant the loss of big dollars and record-setting pay-per-view buys -- and you need the support of casual fans to accomplish that.

That's where Anderson Silva comes in. It's nearly impossible to find an opponent on 48 hours' notice to provide the same kind of intriguing buzz as Cormier-Jones II, but somehow the improbable addition of "The Spider" has done just that.

It's very possible that Cormier-Silva won't prove to be as competitive in the cage on Saturday as the video game-style pairing sounds in the heads of most casual fans. Silva is 41, hasn't registered an official UFC win since 2012, and is two months removed from gallbladder removal.

But the matchup is plenty creative and certainly a godsend to the UFC considering the situation.

The fight offers the adored Silva, no worse than No. 2 on most experts' list of the greatest MMA fighters in history, one last opportunity to shine on the very highest of levels, providing him the chance at an ultimate victory lap.

And most importantly, above all else, it's fun. The curiosity factor alone of what Silva will look like under these circumstances and how his improvisational skill set will adapt to Cormier's constant pressure is worth the price of admission alone.

Don't agree? Consider the most logical alternative, Gegard Mousasi, who is a fine fighter in his own right and already had a fight scheduled for the UFC 200 undercard. He was the UFC's safe and default pick to replace Jones, but there's nothing about Cormier-Mousasi that moves mainstream fans.

On a card like UFC 200, there's no room for offerings that would serve only hard-core fans. The addition of Lesnar to the card illustrates exactly the type of event this is: a borderline carnival, designed to bring in as much money as possible and extend the outreach of the brand even further.

It has often been said that the NFL's Super Bowl is designed for casual fans, with the conference championship games serving as the NFL's true pinnacle for its most seasoned fan base.

In many ways, UFC 200 is no different. This is MMA's Super Bowl. And in this setting, under these crisis circumstances with the surprise loss of Jones, the addition of Anderson Silva is the ultimate Band-Aid.

MARKAZI: SILVA NICE, BUT JUST NOT ENOUGH

The ever-changing UFC 200 card got one final twist and turn on Thursday night, about 48 hours before it starts on Saturday. Anderson Silva was announced as a replacement for Jones and will face Cormier.

Meanwhile the women's bantamweight title fight between Miesha Tate and Amanda Nunes will be the new main event, technically the fifth main event of this star-crossed card and the third in as many days.

Excuse me if I refuse to allow Silva's star power and resume in the sport to blind me from the reality of what Silva has become. Don't get me wrong. It makes sense for Silva to be on the UFC 200 card. He is arguably the greatest mixed martial artist ever. He holds the longest title streak in UFC history and had an unprecedented 16 consecutive wins and 10 title defenses at the height of his career.

But that doesn't negate the fact that Silva is winless in his last four fights, with three losses and a no contest since he tested positive for drostanolone and androstene after his fight with Nick Diaz.

Silva hasn't won a fight since beating Stephan Bonnar in 2012, and "The Spider" wasn't even training for an upcoming fight when he called UFC president Dana White after the Jones news to ask about fighting Cormier.

As great as it is to see a UFC legend back in the Octagon at a signature event like UFC 200, the fact is that Silva is 41 years old and had gallbladder surgery in May. He was probably planning to watch UFC 200 on television less than 24 hours before signing a contract and weighing in to fight on the card. While Jones and Cormier are bitter rivals who were going to fight to unify the UFC light heavyweight title on Saturday, Anderson and Cormier's fight will be a nontitle, three-round bout.

Silva said Thursday he wasn't ready to go five rounds, and who could blame him? It's hard to imagine any fan who was planning to not buy the UFC 200 pay-per-view suddenly jumping on board to see a past-his-prime Silva get into the Octagon to face Cormier on 48 hours' notice.

Perhaps hard-core fight fans who were already planning to buy the pay-per-view, regardless of the Jones news, are excited about Silva's surprise return, but his addition is far from a bandage that will be able to save a card that has been beaten and bruised since Conor McGregor's fight with Nate Diaz was scrapped after McGregor and White engaged in a public dispute over McGregor's contractual obligations.

A rematch between Jones and Cormier became the new main event until Jones was ruled out on Wednesday, making Brock Lesnar's comeback fight against Mark Hunt the new main event for 24 hours before White changed course and made Tate's title fight with Nunes the main event of the company's signature pay-per-view.

It's a long fall from the much-hyped McGregor-Diaz rematch that was supposed to headline UFC 200. As great as Silva is, not even his last-minute addition to the card will stop many fans from saving their money for UFC 202.

Source:
courtesy of ESPN

by Brian Campbell & Arash Markazi

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