Anderson Silva still a go for UFC 112, for now...

Dana White told MMA Fighting that the UFC has no plans to pull Anderson Silva off of UFC 112.

I guess that means it is time for some wild speculation on who Silva could fight in Abu Dhabi this April.

Chael Sonnen - status: unlikely
Sonnen may be next in line for a middleweight title shot but the dude got beat up at UFC 109.

Chael is medically suspended until March 6th giving leaving him a four week window (probably less when you consider  international logistics, e.g. flying out to adjust to time difference) to prepare for UFC 112. As the fight is overseas Chael could duck the medical suspension and start training early (a short sighted solution for the UFC as it opens them to charges of international malfeasance). Even if Sonnen did maneuver around the commission, would he really want to go through a training camp bruised and battered to fight the top pound-for-pound fighter in the world?

Then again, Sonnen might be crazy, so who knows what he will decide...

Nate Marquardt - status: possible but meh
It is amazing how quickly fans have cooled on the prospects of Nate fighting Anderson for a second time. I guess that's what happens when you are beaten decisively in a number one contender bout.

A reader did point out that the UFC could look to the past and employ the same strategy they used with Georges St. Pierre, B.J. Penn and Matt Hughes. For those that don't remember St. Pierre defeated Penn (in a controversial decision) to earn a title shot. When Georges went down with an injury the UFC tapped Penn to step in to fight Hughes.

Could we see the same thing happen with Marquardt? Yes and no. The Penn replacement had the benefit of a close and controversial decision where as Marquardt was soundly beaten in his number one contender bout. But if Zuffa is in a large enough bind they can spin the fight as "Marquardt really messed up Sonnen so he gets a shot at redemption."

Of course Ed Soares would have to approve...

Demian Maia - status: split eyelid
The UFC did give themselves a bit of insurance by placing Maia on UFC 109. Unfortunately Demian's eyelid is split in twine...

Dark Horses: Yushin Okami and Yoshihiro Akiyama - status: available but are they marketable?
UFC 112 is an international card so Okami and Akiyama fit the international bill but would they satisfy Silva's camp, the pay-per view audience or the Abu Dhabi audience?

Note: How ironic would it be if Okami got the shot after being ignored by the UFC until he lost to Sonnen?

Are there any other middleweights who could step in? There are some fairly crazy ideas that either Wanderlei Silva or Michael Bisping could move back to UFC 112, but that appears to be a pipe dream. So, let's move on to the Light Heavyweights!

Thiago Silva - status: hernias
Thiago just lost to Rashad Evans at UFC 108 and his name has been thrown around as a possible opponent but Thiago told Tatame that he has "four hernias" and expects to be back in July not April. With the rumors that Thiago was hurt going into the cursed card that was UFC 108 --and rumors that the UFC sweetened the pot to keep Silva in the fight-- would he really go into another fight if not at 100% ?

Randy Couture - status: he's fighting Rich Franklin...

Rich Franklin - status: I swear to god if I have to explain this...

Matt Hamill - status: how's his shoulder?
Hamill was suppose to resume training this month as he was still recovering from his grade 2 separated shoulder (thanks to a Jon Jones slam). Matt could be ready to go in time but that is no guarantee that he will be (a) healthy or (b) a big enough name.

Luis Cane - status: available
The last time we saw Cane he was on the receiving end of a Rogerio Nogueira KO at UFC 106. While Luis' stock took a hit he is still right on the edge of the top-ten and the UFC could spin this as another legitimate light heavyweight test for Silva.

James Irvin - status: didn't that already happen?
Okay, so this isn't really about James Irvin per se, rather, it is in reference to the Spike card that UFC ran to counter Affliction's first pay-per view. In that case the UFC tapped a fairly unknown light heavyweight to fight Anderson Silva. Could the UFC dip back into the well and pick a Jason Brilz?