Wanderlei Silva made his return to action earlier tonight (Sat., Sept. 27, 2025) in Sao Paulo, Brazil in an exhibition bout against former Brazilian boxing champion, Acelino “Popo” Freitas
. The bout was wild for as long as it lasted due to the fact that “The Axe Murderer” was warned repeatedly for illegal blows including intentional headbutts and not abiding to the referee’s commands to break when called.Take a look at one of his transgressions below:
After the referee put a halt to the bout and disqualified the former PRIDE FC and Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) legend in the fourth round, things really got ugly as both teams stormed the ring and things escalated into a wild brawl rather quickly, with punches being thrown from every direction.
One of Freitas’ team members tagged Silva in the back of the head which visibly rocked him. A few seconds later, “The Axe Murderer” was laid out cold after he ate a devastating punch from another unidentified person, leaving him on the canvas looking up at the lights. The brawl continued on between the two camps while Silva was laid out in the middle of the ring before his unconscious body was dragged to a corner for his safety.
It was a truly ugly scene from the jump, and now we await to get an update on “The Axe Murderer’s” health following a wild ending to his return to action after a seven-year break.
Take another look of the devastating knockout below:
To checkout the latest boxing-related news and notes click here.
