Demian Maia (12-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) will now fight in August.
Multiple sources close to the event informed MMAjunkie.com that the grappling ace will face middleweight prospect Mario Miranda (10-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) at UFC 118 in Boston.
Both fighters have tentatively agreed to the main-card contest, and bout agreements are expected to be finalized shortly, sources said.
Maia initially was slated to headline UFC Fight Night 22 in September, but opponent Alan Belcher was forced off the card due to a detached retina, and a UFC 118 fight between Nate Marquardt and Rousimar Palhares took its spot.
UFC 118 takes place Aug. 28 at the TD Garden in Boston and features a lightweight title rematch between current champion Frankie Edgar and recently deposed champ B.J. Penn.
Maia is no doubt fighting to remove the bad taste in his mouth left by his most recent performance. The submission specialist stepped up for an injured Vitor Belfort and met middleweight kingpin Anderson Silva at UFC 112 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. In a bout panned by most observers and UFC president Dana White, Silva alternately outclassed and taunted Maia in the first two rounds and spent the final three mostly avoiding a fight. In the end, Silva won a unanimous decision but felt the wrath of White, who apologized to fans for the lackluster affair and later said he would cut the champion if he delivered another poor performance.
Maia, a 2007 Abu Dhabi submission wrestling champion, made his UFC debut at UFC 77 and racked up five consecutive submission victories before Marquardt put the brakes on his rise with a first-round knockout at UFC 102 this past August. Maia rebounded with a unanimous decision over Dan Miller at UFC 109 before getting the short-notice title opportunity.
You could say Miranda is a good place for Maia's payback to start. The Rio De Janeiro native helped Silva train for his upcoming fight against Chael Sonnen this Saturday at UFC 117.
Now based in Seattle, Miranda impressed in his most recent outing when he spoiled the return of Canadian veteran David Loiseau at UFC 115. The win reversed a disappointing octagon debut when Gerald Harris handed him his first professional loss at UFC Fight Night 21 in March.
Half of Miranda's 12 professional victories come by way of TKO.
Source: http://mmajunkie.com/news/20150/demian- ... august.mma