The game of middleweight musical chairs has ended, at least for the time being. According to MMAJunkie, Cung Le (Pictured) will now collide with Patrick Cote at UFC 148.
Le was originally slated to face Rich Franklin on Fourth of July weekend, but Franklin was promoted Wednesday to headline UFC 147 opposite Wanderlei Silva after Vitor Belfort broke his left hand.
The former Strikeforce star dropped a TKO defeat to Silva in his highly-anticipated Octagon debut in November. Le hasn’t sniffed the win column since beating Scott Smith in June of 2010.
Cote will be riding a four-fight winning streak into his return to the big leagues. He has competed sporadically for the UFC during the course of his 10-year career. This marks his fifth stint with planet’s premier mixed martial arts promotion.
“The Predator” was released in October 2010 after posting consecutive losses to Alan Belcher and Tom Lawlor, respectively.
MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada hosts the July 7th festivities.
Here is the show’s revised lineup:
Preliminary Card:
Yoislandy Izquierdo vs. Rafaello Oliveira
Melvin Guillard vs. Fabricio Camoes
Gleison Tibau vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov
Shane Roller vs. John Alessio
Riki Fukuda vs. Constantinos Philippou
Ivan Menjivar vs. Mike Easton
Main Card:
Demian Maia vs. Dong Hyun Kim
Cung Le vs. Patrick Cote
Tito Ortiz vs. Forrest Griffin
Urijah Faber vs. Renan Barao (UFC Interim Bantamweight Title)
Chael Sonnen vs. Anderson Silva (UFC Middleweight Champion)
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May 31, 2012
