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Well that was quick. I spend a night away from the computer for a change, come back and Demian Maia is fighting Anderson Silva for the middleweight title at UFC 112.

“It’s always tough when a top fighter like Vitor Belfort has to pull out of a big title fight, but we have found a high quality replacement,” said UFC President Dana White.

“Top contender Chael Sonnen was not available due to injuries sustained in his fight with Nate Marquardt, so top six middleweight Demian Maia will step in to fight for the title. Maia is an Abu Dhabi grappling champion, a five-time Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu world champion, and he is 12-1 in MMA and coming off a win over Dan Miller at UFC 109. Anderson Silva vs Demian Maia will be a matchup between MMA’s best striker and MMA’s best grappler.”

Outside of Chael Sonnen, I definitely think Demian Maia is best alternative to challenge Silva for the title. His striking is obviously nowhere near Anderson’s level, but if Maia can get him to the ground all bets are off. To be honest, I think his chances are much better than Vitor’s was.

The only issue is Maia was medically suspended until August for a cut on his eyelid. There’s no athletic commission in Abu Dhabi, but I don’t think the UFC would put someone in the cage overseas if a US athletic commission wouldn’t allow it. They’ve officially announced it, so I’m presuming they’re confident a doctor can clear him in time for the fight. At least I hope that’s the plan.

Image via Sherdog

Update: Demian Maia is excited…

“I knew about it last night. I still can’t believe it. My manager called me and they asked if I wanted to fight for the belt. I said ‘of course, you don’t even have to ask it’…I’ll have time to prepare an strategy. I’m coming from a heavy training and I’m in a fight rhythm. I’ll let my body rest this week and I’ll start the training next week…I still don’t know where I’ll train, but I’ll go train Boxing with (Luis Carlos) Dorea for sure. My physical preparation wlll be with (Rafael) Alejarra…If I say to you that I’m gonna exchange with him I’ll be lying. It’s the same thing if I say he’ll go to the ground with me. But I’ll go to this fight ready for everything. It’s a title fight and the title always was my dream. I imagined having this title shot a year ago, but I had two more fights and God, for one reason,  gave it to me now.”

Update 2: Ed Soares is actually pleased with the match-up for a change.

“I think it’s a very interesting matchup. I think it’s MMA’s best striker against MMA’s best grappler. I think it kind of brings back the old-school UFC of standup fighter vs. grappler…I think Demian is a professional. He’s a great person. He’s a very humble guy, and he’s a very talented guy. This is the classic, old-school MMA fight where it’s the world’s best grappler against the world’s best striker. It’s got that old-school feel…I think it’s a shame that Chael wasn’t able to take the fight because I know with all that crap he was talking about Anderson this and Anderson that it would be interesting for him to put all those things he had to say into the octagon. But then again, you’ve got Demian Maia here who is a guy who submitted Chael stepping up here and taking the fight on less-than-two-months’ notice…Demian obviously has improved his stand-up game quite a bit. I’m not going to say he’s an A-plus striker now, but you definitely can see that his striking game has improved. It might not be in his best interest to stand with Anderson, but I think he can stand with Anderson a lot better than he was able to six months ago. He seemed like he knew how to move around the octagon much better, and he looked like he felt a lot more comfortable using his hands. He wasn’t just desperate to take his opponent down. I think that’s going to be important. I think that’s going to present some challenges.”

Well, we can cross Chael Sonnen’s name off the list of potential challengers to face Anderson Silva at UFC 112. UFC matchmaker Joe Silva has informed Kevin Iole that Sonnen will not be offered the Silva fight.

The middleweight title fight between Anderson Silva and Vitor Belfort that has been postponed multiple times already is no longer happening at UFC 112. There’s been an injury, but this time it’s not Anderson, it’s Vitor. News of the injury first surfaced on Tatame earlier this afternoon.

One of the most expected fights of 2010 will not happen anymore. The title fight between Anderson Silva and Vitor Belfort, set to UFC 112 main event, will possibly be cancelled, as TATAME.com learned from close sources that the challenger is injured and won’t be able to recover in time.

Jayme Sandall, Karate trained of the challenger, revealed to TATAME.com that Belfort had a shoulder injury, but he doesn’t know how bad it is. “He was training but not using the arm for a long time because of the injury, he said he’d stop for a while. He said he’d have it scanned to know how bad it is, but I don’t talk with him for 15 days and I don’t know about the results”, said.

Kevin Iole has since confirmed with Dana White that Vitor has in fact sustained a shoulder injury and won’t make it to Abu Dhabi for the title. It’s unknown if the UFC will seek a replacement, such as Chael Sonnen, or if they’ll just postpone the fight once again. A report is expected on Yahoo! Sports shortly with further details. I’ll update then.

Image via the UFC

Update: Iole’s report is up. All it adds at the moment is Anderson Silva will stay on the card, but they aren’t sure if he’ll defend his title or not. I assume they’re first choice is replacing Belfort with Chael Sonnen but it’s unknown at the moment if he’d be ready and willing for the quick turnaround, plus his facial lacerations will likely be a major obstacle.

Update 2: Dana White has confirmed that Anderson Silva will defend his middleweight title at UFC 112, but didn’t say who his opponent will be. Chael Sonnen has been handed a medical suspension that prohibits him from training with contact until March 9 and fighting until March 24. Basically, it’s possible but it wouldn’t give him much time to prepare for the biggest fight of his career, although he apparently indicated after UFC 109 he would continue training in case Belfort was injured. Vitor is expected to undergo surgery for his shoulder.

Chael Sonnen is going to get the next middleweight title shot. The question is, against who? Anderson Silva or Vitor Belfort? We won’t know until April 10, but I can tell you Sonnen is rooting for Anderson Silva. Not because he wants to test himself against someone who’s widely considered one of the best fighters in the world though, Sonnen just thinks he’s a much easier opponent to beat. Seriously…

The UFC announced UFC 112 yesterday at a press conference held in Abu Dhabi. We didn’t really learn anything new other than the event will be held outdoors at the Concert Arena in Ferrari World (artist’s rendition) on Yas Island. Both Anderson Silva and BJ Penn will put their title up for grabs against Vitor Belfort and Frankie Edgar, respectively, and Renzo Gracie will make his UFC debut against Matt Hughes. The event will be held on April 10. Check out more pics from the press conference on the UFC’s official Facebook page (login required).

There is only one champion, so I believe this fight must happen. It’s a professional issue, and I believe they can fight. Deep down, everyone wants to know who is strongest. Friendship is friendship, but they’re not amateurs. The eventual winner isn’t my concern. What matters to me is how they win, and their strategy. This would be a mental battle.

—Lyoto Machida’s father, Yoshizo Machida, telling PVT Mag, via BE, a fight between his son and Anderson Silva must happen

I think Yoshizo Machida just became Dana White’s new favorite person. While we’ve yet to see a major fight between two teammates, Dana has been adamant that team unity shouldn’t and won’t get in the way of making big fights in the UFC. In this particular instance, Lyoto Machida and Anderson Silva have publicly stated they will never fight each other, however it doesn’t seem out of the realm of possibility that Yoshizo could convince his son otherwise. As for Anderson, well, he doesn’t seem particularly interested in fighting anyone in the weight classes he competes in these days, but his next opponent, Vitor Belfort, has spent a little time training with Lyoto’s camp recently, so maybe that would be enough to convince him to accept the fight if it the timing’s ever right.

Of course, if Shogun Rua defeats Machida in their rematch at UFC 113, this all becomes a moot point. It’s a very real possibility that Machida’s father seems to realize. He admits Shogun was able to find and exploit Lyoto’s weaknesses in their first meeting.

A vital part of Lyoto’s game, since his power comes from the legs, and Shogun killed his leg. At any rate, the experience was good for us, since we’d never dealt with adversity. Karate also has its weaknesses, but no one had seen them up until now. Shogun exploited them, and deserves congratulations. That’s exactly what I told him after the fight when he was crying, pissed that he didn’t win. Lyoto did his weight training and is a very strong fighter. A different fighter would’ve gone down in the third round.

Had Shogun fought as he normally does, with his arms, Lyoto would’ve knocked him out in the first or second round. We did not expect him to kick that much and neglected the karate defense, which is different from the muay thai defense. Before the kick, you move up and stop the attack. We already planned a different strategy for next time, studying everything.

There’s no question Lyoto will be better prepared to deal with Shogun’s leg kicks in the rematch, but the question is, will Shogun and his team come up with a new strategy to throw Machida off his game once again? I don’t know, but I can’t wait to find out.

Image via Sherdog

UFC 111 is shaping up to be a monster card. If Rashad Evans and Rampage Jackson meet in Montreal at UFC 113 that card will be huge too. Typically, that would mean the card sandwiched in between would be more on the average side, but if the following pans out, UFC 112 in Abu Dhabi will be stacked as well.

First up, BJ Penn confirmed in a video on BJPenn.com (ever heard of it?) he’s tentatively scheduled to fight on the Abu Dhabi card. He didn’t specify an opponent, but word is Gray Maynard is the likely candidate if he beats Nate Diaz at UFC Fight Night 20 on Monday, otherwise Frankie Edgar could get the nod. Penn also added that he hasn’t signed anything yet, so at this point it’s still up in the air.

The lightweight title may not be the only title up for grabs on April 10. According to Tatame, Anderson Silva is expected to defend his middleweight title against Vitor Belfort.

The fight between Anderson Silva and Vitor Belfort is in works to take place at UFC 112, on April 10, at Abu Dhabi. Carlos Santos, leader of Emirates Team, revealed to TATAME.com that both fighters called him to train at his training center in Abu Dhabi in the days before the fight.

Silva’s manager, Ed Soares, however told MMA Junkie earlier this week “we’ll probably see him in April or May,” so the scheduling may not be as set as the report makes it sound.

Also, Roy Nelson has expressed fighting at UFC 112 since the man who awarded him his BJJ black belt, Renzo Gracie, is expected to make his UFC debut against Matt Hughes on the card.

As usual, a lot of news and notes came out of today’s UFC 107 pre-fight press conference. As seen in the video above courtesy of Fanhouse, Dana White sat down with the media to talk about everything from Brock Lesnar to Dan Henderson. Here’s a quick rundown.

— Brock Lesnar is doing a lot better than he was before, but according to Dana at least, he may still need a major surgery. They should know within the next 45 days, and until then, they won’t be making any decisions about titles.

“We won’t know for probably another month and a half,” White said about the final prognosis on Lesnar’s return. “He had that minor surgery, he’s going to change his diet, change some things and see what happens.

“It could be forever. We won’t know for the next couple of months. Obviously I’m hoping that’s not the case, as I’m sure all of you are. We’ll see what happens.”

“We’ve still got to wait here a little bit and see what’s going to happen to him. Maybe he can come back, maybe he can’t. We’ve got to see what happens to him first. I’m going to wait and see if he has to have this major surgery before I make any big decisions,” said White.

For the record, his trainer made it sound like Brock just needs a little R&R for now before he gets back in the gym. Another report stated the UFC is targeting his return for a July event in Boston.

— Anderson Silva vs. Vitor Belfort is expected in April

— Dana says Dan Henderson is done in the UFC. He will retire in Strikeforce. Time will tell if that one sticks.

— Houston Alexander will be cut if he hasn’t been cut already. Dana doesn’t want to talk to him.

— The controversial apparel company, Hoelzer Reich, has been banned. Dana says there were legal issues involved.

— The UFC has released TUF 10’s Justin Wren.

— Dana still intends to base jump off the Mandalay Bay. Been training with “one of the best base jumpers in the United States.”

More in the video above.

With Anderson Silva out of commission until possibly April, it looks like the UFC has decided to put together a number one contender’s match between Vitor Belfort and Nate Marquardt.

Vitor Belfort has been told that Anderson Silva will not be recovered from his elbow surgery in time for a February and has been offered a contenders elimination bout with Nate Marquardt, a source close to the Brazilian tells Fighters Only.

Belfort – and fans – have been expecting a fight with Anderson next and Belfort has been making training camp preparations as such, but now it looks like his next opponent will be Greg Jackson’s fighter Marquardt.

The UFC wanted Vitor Belfort in the title fight for multiple reasons — he’s exciting, has name value, and most importantly, he hasn’t lost to Anderson Silva — so I’m sure they aren’t too crazy about risking Silva-Belfort by putting Vitor in a title eliminator. However, Belfort-Marquardt is a fairly big fight, and right now the UFC needs fights they can sell.

If nothing else, Team Anderson should finally be happy. They’ve been whining about a number one contender’s match for six months now.

Image via Sherdog

Update: Heavy.com says this fight isn’t happening.

Contrary to reports from other sources, Heavy.com learned from sources close to the UFC on Tuesday afternoon that a contender’s bout between Vitor Belfort and Nate Marquardt is “not happening”.

Ariel Helwani is hearing Marquardt-Sonnen is still on for UFC 109.

Anderson Silva’s elbow is going to heal one day, but it won’t be today, tomorrow, or even in time for UFC 109.