INDIANAPOLIS – Once Chael Sonnen was out, UFC president Dana White and matchmaker Joe Silva wasted little time plugging Vitor Belfort into his slot.
With Sonnen (25-11-1 MMA, 4-4 UFC) recently failing a UFC 117 drug test and spoiling a scheduled rematch with UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva (27-4 MMA, 12-0 UFC), Belfort (19-8 MMA, 8-4 UFC) instead got the call.
But why would a guy who's never even fought at middleweight under the UFC banner get an immediate title shot?
What would the UFC's head honcho say to those skeptics?
"Come on," White today told MMAjunkie.com. "Vitor Belfort has been around forever. He fought at heavyweight. He fought at light heavyweight. He's fought the best all over the world, and the guy's going to fight at 185."
In fact, before Sonnen dominated the champ for 23 minutes until a heart-breaking submission loss in the final round, it was Belfort who was promised the title shot. Nagging injuries first opened the door for Demian Maia at UFC 112 and then Sonnen at UFC 117.
All the while, Silva has continued his record run of title defenses and patiently awaited a meeting with the fellow Brazilian.
And despite Belfort's layoff, White thinks it's a matchup fans still want to see. After all, despite Sonnen's initially lopsided beatdown of the champ, some fans weren't happy White and Co. promised him another shot at the belt. They wanted that initial matchup.
"There were a lot of people calling for the Belfort fight when we made the Chael rematch," said White, who predicts a Jan. 1 (UFC 125) or Me die weekend date for the fight. "But I know Vitor wanted that fight, so it made sense."
After a nearly five-year absence from the organization and the collapse of Affliction Entertainment, Belfort signed with the UFC in 2009. Then, the early-UFC champion extended his win streak to five with a first-round TKO of fellow ex-champ Rich Franklin in a 195-pound catchweight fight at UFC 103.
Sonnen's wrestling-oriented game plan, which was set up with crisp striking and quick footwork, certainly put Silva in trouble like never before. But many fans think Belfort's heavy hands and solid chin will produce a much more entertaining stylistic matchup.
But isn't White a little disappointed that Sonnen, whose boastful proclamations and constant taunting garnered much more attention for the UFC 117 fight than it probably deserved, a little disappointed he can't cash in on the rematch? Isn't he ticked that Sonnen's failed drug test and elevated testosterone levels forced UFC officials into a Plan B?
"Am I disappointed? Yes, absolutely," White said. "But if you guys realized how much bad [expletive] I put up with on a daily basis, you almost start to get numb to it. So you move on, and Chael is going to face the consequences and go before the commission, and we'll work things out."
Source: http://mmajunkie.com/news/20765/dana-wh ... -fight.mma