Would Dana White Really Cut Anderson Silva If He Acts Up Again?

Talk about a burning question.

If you witnessed what happened in the Anderson Silva-Demian Maia fight for the Middleweight belt at UFC 112 this past April, then chances are that you know what the implications are for Anderson "The Spider" Silva coming into his fight on August 7th with Chael Sonnen.

He has to beat Chael Sonnen and remain UFC Middleweight Champion, but he has to do in Sonnen by way of a knockout or a submission, and it'll more than likely have to come early in the fight.

If you didn't see UFC 112 or you don't know what's going on, let ESPN's Jim Rome and UFC President Dana White help you out:

If the video doesn't show above, then you can still see the video .

It seems like Dana's making the right move by cutting Silva if his UFC 117 bout with Sonnen is an encore of his past two title defenses, right?

Well, yeah, he actually is.

Silva's the Middleweight champion. He's supposed to defend the title. In his past few defenses, he's been making a bit of a mockery of the sport by not engaging and taking as many chances as he did in his pre-Cote fights.

I make no bones about my opinion of Anderson Silva. I can't say that Dana stripping him of the belt in such a manner for not fighting to keep the belt around his waste is something that sparks my outrage.

I do see where Dana would be justified in axing Silva in the event that Dana would give Silva the axe.

But would he really do it UFC 117 is an encore of UFC 112 or UFC 97?

It's easy to look at the Jim Rome interview and say that he is or isn't serious. I've said before that I thought he seriously is going to do it.

To be honest, though, I'm not all that certain that Dana would really cut Anderson Silva.

Would he strip him of the title?

I definitely think he would, but cutting the man that he's supported firmly since his debut with the UFC?

Maybe he wouldn't do it after all.

I see a few reasons why Dana might have a change in tune even if this performance winds up being the fourth in a chain of lackluster defenses

Because Silva is gold no matter where he fights or who he fights for.

Sure, in recent fights, he didn't fight like the guy who serial-killer-choked Dan Henderson or the guy who is 2-0 against Rich Franklin.

He's still pound-for-pound king of MMA after a title defense that should have knocked him off his perch — and out of all discussions involving "the best" in any weight class, pound-for-pound or overall — tells me something.

Despite showing some movements akin to Roy Jones Jr. against Patrick Cote and Forrest Griffin, despite not taking a chance and going into Thales Leites' guard, and despite taunting Demian Maia in the latter part of their five-rounder, Anderson Silva is still the UFC's most valuable fighter at middleweight, if not in the entire company.

I know some of y'all are wondering, "Well, what the hell does that mean?"

What that means is if Dana cuts Silva for retaining by another lackluster decision after UFC 117, then yes, he's doing something good and freeing up the division for guys who will actually be willing to fight for and defend the title.

What that also means is that's the will to let the best fighter in the world go after a bad performance might give him extra motivation to up the ante on his next performance — title bout or not — in another promotion.

UFC can have their Chael Sonnens, Alan Belchers, and Vitor Belforts for as long as they want. They may have the Middleweight title scene reflect that of the Light Heavyweight title scene in the UFC now, they may also never find a champion that can bring what Anderson Silva has brought.

The raw aggression, the pinpoint accuracy in the striking game, and the ability to finish the fight anywhere at anytime, all while being exciting — few middleweights in the division right now can do that like Anderson Silva.

An Alternative solution to finding that blend: Have Jon Jones move to Middleweight, but Rashad Evans hasn't gotten the belt back yet, and a move to Heavyweight for Jones isn't out of the question.

If Dana White still wants to release Anderson Silva despite this, then he may, but he's going to have to realize that after PRIDE folded, it was the UFC stage on which he was made into the big deal he is right now.

He's arguably one of, if not the most valuable talents in the UFC, besides Brock Lesnar, Shogun and GSP.

If his talents made him worth more money in the UFC than he'd been previously in his career, who's to say he wouldn't be worth more money anywhere else?

Dana can cut Silva if he wants.

If Silva gets the win over Sonnen in Oakland, it eventually won't matter.

Sooner or later, a win over Sonnen is going to go down as a win over Sonnen.

A "Phenom" in Silva's wake if he gets past Sonnen

So the issue with Silva is that he hasn't finished his past three opponents in the cage. Now we're talking about Dana White cutting Anderson Silva if Silva pulls off an encore of UFC 112 when he faces Chael Sonnen at UFC 117.

Remember, the man who wins at UFC 117 has Vitor Belfort ahead of him.

So rather than cut Silva for acting like a jackass again, Dana has to realize that Vitor Belfort is the next in line for Silva.

I'm almost certain that most of you might know where I'm going with this.

Basically, if Dana wouldn't hold on to Silva because of what he's worth as a fighter, I think he'd make good on his word to let Belfort face the winner of the fight.

A former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion who moved to Middleweight at Affliction: Banned a few years back, Belfort is known for the lightning-fast knockouts that he's recorded.

Aside from his win over Rich Franklin at UFC 103 as well as Couture, Belfort has also fought Tank Abbott, Dan Henderson and Wanderlei Silva, among others in his career.

Vitor has been on the sidelines looking in since the victory over Franklin and he has been hungry for a shot at the 185-pound belt.

Even if the way Silva wins is not the way Dana wants, the stipulation was that the winner would face Vitor.

I say as long as Silva is the champ, Silva is the man, and as Richard Morgan Fliehr once said, "To be the man, you've got to beat the man! "

Vitor may have a shot to beat the man if Silva gets past Sonnen.

Giving the people what they want

Contrary to popular belief, the general consensus surrounding Anderson Silva is at a split perspective.

In other words, not everyone is an Anderson Silva hater.

Despite the recent showings of Silva, I'd say about half of the MMA Nation worldwide still view Silva as an exciting fighter in the Octagon.

Naturally, the other half of the MMA Nation worldwide don't feel as such.

Half of that "anti-Silva" percentage legitimately were never too big on Anderson Silva for reasons of their own, which I respect.

The other half of that "anti-Silva" percentage were those who felt let down by what happened at UFC 112.

Either way, half of the people who watch MMA love watching Silva in action while the other half love the possibility of Silva being defeated in the Octagon.

Why not give the UFC fans what they paid their tickets to see?

Some fans want to see Silva prevail while others want to see Silva get wrecked.

One of those two groups of fans might go home a wee bit disappointed.

Whether they paid to see Silva beat someone's ass or to see someone beat Silva's ass, they paid to see Silva.

Why deprive them of that ability, Dana?

Hell, you slipped out your number on Twitter, and we know you weren't mad about it.

We also know that no one is as big of an Anderson Silva as you.

So why would you give the fans anything less than what they want to see?

Still think Dana White would (and will) cut Silva if he pulls a 112 again?

Try to convince me that it must happen, then, Bleacherholics.

You know I value your takes on the matters which I address.

For whatever it's worth, though, I would hope that Dana might have a change of heart after UFC 117 is over.

At least if Sonnen beats Silva, it won't be the last time I see the sport's best technical striker inside the Octagon doing what he does best.