Demian Maia has agreed to take Vitor Belfort’s spot and face Anderson Silva for the middleweight title at UFC 112 in Abu Dhabi on April 10. Belfort was forced to withdraw to undergo shoulder surgery this past week. The procedure will have a fourth-month recovery period for Belfort.
Also on the UFC 112 card, B.J. Penn will put his lightweight belt on the line against Frankie Edgar. And in the welterweight division, former champion Matt Hughes will square off in the octagon against Renzo Gracie.
The UFC is going to Australia for the first time this weekend for UFC 110: Nogueira vs. Velasquez. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira will be looking for another win after earning a unanimous decision victory over Randy Couture at UFC 102. Cain Velasquez will put his unbeaten 7-0 record on the line, as he looks for the biggest win of his young career. Most books have the fight as a pick 'em (minus-115 either way).
Also in Sydney for UFC 110, Michael Bisping (+120) and Wanderlei Silva (-150) will collide in an intriguing middleweight clash. Silva is dropping down to middleweight after losing five of his last six fights. In fairness to Silva, all of his losses came against top-tier competition.
The much-anticipated rematch between Lyoto “The Dragon” Machida and Mauricio “Shogun” Hua for the light heavyweight title is scheduled for UFC 113 in Montreal on May 8.
UPDATE: Due to an illness (reportedly a stomach flu, hat tip to Yahoo! Sports Cagewriter Steve Cofield), Ben Rothwell's fight against Mirko Cro Crop has been cancelled. Instead of Rothwell, Cro Crop will face veteran Aussie fighter Anthony Perosh.
Brian Edwards can be reached at briane@vegasinsider.com.
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