By Peter Dacres
In the first of The Ultimate Fighting Championships Independence weekend double-header, the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas will play host to UFC 175.
In the main the UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman defend his belt for the second time against former UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto ‘The Dragon’ Machida.
‘The Dragon’ who will finally receive his chance of taking the belt away from Weidman after being denied the opportunity to claim middleweight gold when the American was forced to withdraw from their previously scheduled bout at UFC 173 so he could have double knee surgery.
Machida who enters the bout undefeated since dropping to Middleweight, has been granted a title shot after a ferocious first-round knockout of friend and training partner Mark Munoz at UFC Fight Night 30 and more recently scoring a unanimous decision victory over Dutchman Gegard Mousasi at UFC Fight Night 36 this past February.
Opposite Machida on the night, fuelled with confidence, will be the former two-time All American Division 1 wrestling champion who has presented extremely effective striking through his development as a mixed martial artist, and has never tasted defeat during his 11 fights MMA career. Team Serra-Longo fighter Weidman, will be keen to rubber stamp his status as the No.1 middleweight in the world with a dominant victory against his Brazilian opponent.
Both of these world-class athletes are extremely technical in their own right, two of the best in the world at their own particular discipline and each with a massive point to prove to themselves and the public.
Main card
Chris Weidman (c) vs. Lyoto Machida
Ronda Rousey (c) vs. Alexis Davis
Stefan Struve vs. Matt Mitrione
Uriah Hall vs. Thiago Santos
Marcus Brimage vs. Russell Doane
Preliminary card
Urijah Faber vs. Alex Caceres
Kenny Robertson vs. Ildemar Alcantara
George Roop vs. Rob Font
Preliminary card (UFC Fight Pass)
Luke Zachrich vs. Guilherme Vasconcelos
Kevin Casey vs. Bubba Bush
