After comments from middleweight champion Anderson Silva, and his manager Ed Soares, which said that he did not need elbow surgery, UFC President Dana White confirmed today that Silva will, infact, need to undergo surgery.

Silva will need bone spurs taken out of his elbow, White said at the UFC 103 pre-fight conference.  While the surgery is not a major procedure, it still requires a certain period of recovery time.

When Silva is ready to fight again, he can fight at 185-pounds or 205-pounds, said White.  However, he wants Silva to completely clean out the middleweight division before vacating the title position.

"He's probably two fights away from literally emptying out the middleweight division," White said.  "But that's great.  I think in my opinion, that's what makes fighters great."

White said that Silva must "annihilate everybody.  You don't leave a guy standing in the division."

Silva's next fight in the middleweight division will most probably be against the winner of Dan Henderson vs. Nate Marquardt.

Rumors have swirled around that Silva will be moving up to the heavyweight division to fight, among others, Frank Mir.  Mir had heard the rumors and had verbally accepted to fight Silva, acknowledging how great of a champion the Brazilian is.  But White had some choice words to share about the rumors.

"Oh, hell no," White said.  "[Silva]'ll never fight heavyweight here.  That's insane."