It was revealed Monday evening that Chris Weidman (11-0) will need minor surgery on his knee. He was schedule to face Lyoto Machida (21-4) at UFC 173 on May 24 but now their anticipated bout will be delayed until the UFC’s massive ‘July 4th Fight Weekend’ and will happen at UFC 175 on July 5th.
This isn’t the first time this title fight has been dealt a shift in plans as Weidman was originally set to face Vitor Belfort at the May event but ‘The Phenom’ had to withdraw due to Las Vegas banning the therapeutic use of TRT for athletes looking to compete. Belfort said that this did not give him enough time to get off the therapy and Machida was called upon in his place.
It is said a new headline for UFC 173 will be announced this week.
Alan’s Angle: This probably works out best for the UFC and, probably, Lyoto Machida. The July 4th weekend is a big deal and will be arguably one of the biggest weekends of fights ever on the UFC calendar as they are hosting back-to-back events in Las Vegas, UFC 175 and TUF 19 finale. The addition of a massive title fight to that weekend will be nothing but positive.
As for Machida, it gives him an extra six weeks to prepare for Weidman. The Brazilian was in action just last month in a five round fight with Gegard Mousasi so the delay could give him a slight break to recharge his battery and put together a full fight camp.
