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UFC 173: Weidman-Belfort official for Memorial Day weekend in Las Vegas

Published Feb. 1, 2014 10:24 p.m. ET

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UFC president Dana White said Thursday that Memorial Day weekend was the likely date for Chris Weidman’s middleweight title defense against Vitor Belfort. That became official Saturday night.

Weidman will meet Belfort on May 24 at UFC 173 in Las Vegas, the UFC announced. The story was first reported by ESPN.com.

That also means the anticipated fight between Chael Sonnen and Wanderlei Silva will be the co-main event of that card. Typically, the UFC’s Fourth Of July weekend event is the one of the biggest of the year, but that could be overshadowed by this one.

Weidman (11-0) is coming off two straight wins over the greatest UFC champion of all time, Anderson Silva. On Dec. 28 at UFC 168, Silva broke his leg when Weidman checked one of his kicks and the fight ended in a second-round TKO.

Belfort (24-10) is arguably in the midst of the best stretch of his career. He’s won three in a row, all by brutal knockout finishes. Something to watch for will be whether or not he is able to get an exemption for testosterone use, which he has for each of his last three fights, all of them in Brazil.

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