Vitor Belfort

UFC 103 Notes: Belfort Moves to Forefront of Middleweight Title Picture

A win over Rich Franklin was expected to make Vitor Belfort an instant contender for Anderson Silva’s UFC middleweight title. But according to UFC President Dana White, Belfort may have positioned himself as the leading candidate for Silva’s next title defense, even before Dan Henderson and Nate Marquardt.

“You know, I think he might be ready now,” White said at last night’s UFC 103 post-fight press conference.

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Story Earns $130,000 in UFC 103 Bonuses

Welterweight prospect Ricky Story earned $130,000 in bonus money for his performance against Brian Foster on the preliminary portion of last night’s UFC 103 “Franklin vs. Belfort” event in Dallas, Texas.

Story and Foster earned “Fight of the Night” honors for their two-round war, which saw Story submit Foster with an arm-triangle choke just over a minute into the second round of the fight. “Submission of the Night” honors were subsequently handed out to Story as well.

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Belfort Beats Franklin in Return at UFC 103

Vitor Belfort’s return to the UFC was a successful one as the former UFC light heavyweight champion decked former UFC middleweight king Rich Franklin with a series of punches that resulted in a first-round TKO win for the heavy-handed Brazilian in the main event of UFC 103 on Saturday night in Dallas, Texas.

Up until the ending sequence, the bout didn’t feature much action. Belfort (19-8) and Franklin (25-5) exchanged leg kicks and short jabs, but neither put together any offense of note that landed. Things completely changed however after Belfort clipped Franklin with an overhand left during an exchange.

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UFC 103: “Franklin vs. Belfort” Live Results

We will be going live at 6:00 PM ET with live results of UFC 103: “Franklin vs. Belfort”, which will take place at a sold out American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. The event’s televised main card will be broadcast live on pay-per-view starting at 10:00 PM ET. An additional hour of preliminary bouts will also be shown on Spike TV starting at 9:00 PM ET prior to that.

Former UFC light heavyweight champion Vitor Belfort headlines the event, returning to the UFC in a 195 lb catchweight bout against former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin. A heavyweight contenders clash between formidable strikers Mirko Cro Cop and Junior Dos Santos serves as the co-main event.

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Vitor Belfort’s UFC 103 Video Blog

Here is the first installment of former UFC light heavyweight champion Vitor Belfort’s video blog as he prepares for his upcoming bout with former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin at UFC 103 in Dallas, Texas.

Part two and three are after the jump:

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UFC 103: “Franklin vs. Belfort” Video Preview

In this extended video preview courtesy of the UFC, Saturday’s 195 lb catchweight mega-fight between former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin and former UFC light heavyweight champion Vitor Belfort is profiled along with an anticipated heavyweight matchup between Mirko Cro Cop and Junior Dos Santos.

Dana White Conference Call Video

The following is a video of Dana White’s press conference from yesterday where it was announced that the UFC had re-signed Tito Ortiz, secured a deal with ESPN for the U.K. and brought back Vitor Belfort.

Vitor Belfort Returns to UFC, Headlines UFC 103 in Bout With Franklin

Former UFC light heavyweight champion Vitor “The Phenom” Belfort has signed with the UFC and will fight former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin at UFC 103 on September 19 at the American Airlines Arena in Dallas, Texas.

Before the fall of Affliction, Belfort was scheduled to face Jorge Santiago and when Josh Barnett was pulled from the main event, Belfort’s name was tossed around as a possible opponent for Fedor Emelianenko.

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Quick Hits: Belfort Reportedly Added to Bitetti Combat Card, Monson Pleads Guilty & More

— Former UFC light heavyweight champion Vitor Belfort has reportedly been added to a star-studded card being put on by Bitetti Combat on September 12 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Belfort is said to be facing Europe Top Team’s Moise Rimbon, despite repeated rumors that he is all but set to be joining the UFC following last week’s demise of Affliction Entertainment. [JB Online via Bloody Elbow]

— One-time UFC heavyweight title challenger Jeff Monson pleaded guilty to malicious mischief in Washington court today after being caught spray-painting an anarchist symbol on the Washington state Capitol in an ESPN the Magazine photo earlier this year. Monson faces a potential 90-day jail sentence, a $21,894 fine, and the loss of his passport, which will now prevent from traveling overseas to fight in the near future. [Cagewriter]

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Countdown to Trilogy: Belfort vs. Santiago

Here is a preview of Vitor Belfort vs. Jorge Santiago released by Affliction Entertainment as part of their “Countdown to Trilogy” series. Affliction: Trilogy is scheduled for August 1 at the Honda Center in Anahiem, California.