Cain Velasquez gets new opponent
Former heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez will face Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva at UFC 146, promotion president Dana White said Sunday on Twitter.
"Don't believe any of the (stuff) you read on the internet," White said. "Cain is fighting Bigfoot Silva May 26 in Las Vegas."
Velasquez was originally slated to face former UFC heavyweight titleholder Frank Mir on the card.
But Mir was later tabbed to face current champion Junior dos Santos in the main event after White removed top contender Alistair Overeem from the card for failing a random prefight drug test.
Silva had been scheduled to meet Roy Nelson on the card. UFC has not yet revealed its plan for Nelson.
The fight with Silva will be Velasquez's first since losing his title on Nov. 12. He was knocked out in the first round by dos Santos.
Silva is also coming off a first-round KO loss. Daniel Cormier stopped him on Sept. 10 in a Strikeforce Heavyweight Tournament semifinal bout.
- MMA columnist for ESPN.com
- Analyst for "MMA Live"
- Covered MMA/Boxing for The Star-Ledger
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