A much-anticipated UFC Middleweight Championship rematch between Anderson “The Spider” Silva and Chael Sonnen will now take place at UFC 148 on July 7th in Las Vegas. UFC President Dana White confirmed the date change today during a press conference with both fighters in Brazil.

Silva and Sonnen were initially slated to face off at UFC 147 on June 23rd in Rio de Janeiro, but that card will now be moved to a new location in Brazil. The middleweight title fight is expected to headline the UFC 148 card, which also features a trilogy bout between Dominick Cruz and Urijah Faber.

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The UFC 146 all-heavyweight main card underwent a pair of major changes this past weekend. UFC President Dana White has confirmed that former heavyweight champion Frank Mir will step in to challenge current titleholder Junior “Cigano” dos Santos on the May 26th card in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The late change came about after dos Santos’s original opponent, former Strikeforce champ Alistair Overeem, tested positive for severely elevated testosterone levels on March 27th during a random pre-fight drug screening. Cain Velasquez, who was to face Mir, now battles Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva.

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The Ultimate Fighting Championship travelled to Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia tonight for UFC 145: “Jones vs Evans.” The event was headlined by a long-awaited UFC Light Heavyweight Championship bout between Jon “Bones” Jones and former training partner “Suga” Rashad Evans.

Also on the card, rising welterweight star Rory “Ares” MacDonald battled “Beautiful” Che Mills, while Brendan “The Hybrid” Schaub looked to get back into heavyweight title contention when he faced former IFL standout “Big” Ben Rothwell. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for UFC 145.

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Top Brazilian prospect Claudia Gadelha kept her unblemished record intact tonight in her first fight outside of her home country. Despite late event and opponent changes, Gadelha earned a Split Decision victory over Valérie “Trouble” Létourneau at Wreck MMA: “Road To Glory” in Gatineau, Québec.

Gadelha controlled the bout with takedowns in all three rounds, but her offence became limited as the fight progressed. She rocked Létourneau on the feet in round one and did enough from top position to take the second round on two judges’ scorecards for a close and competitive decision win.

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Rising star Jessica “Evil” Eye won for the fourth straight time tonight in front of friends and family at Bellator Fighting Championships 66 in Cleveland, Ohio. Eye took a well-earned Unanimous Decision victory over short-notice opponent Anita “El Tigre” Rodriguez in a 131-pound catchweight bout.

In the Bellator 66 televised main event, former lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez avenged one of three career defeats with a first-round destruction of DREAM champ Shinya “Tobikan Judan” Aoki. The big win got Alvarez back on track after his Bellator title loss to Michael Chandler in November.

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Undefeated Toshido Martial Arts fighter Sarah “Cheesecake” Moras scored the biggest victory of her young MMA career on Thursday night at Conquest of the Cage 11 in Airway Heights, Washington. Moras stopped hometown favourite Julianna “The Venezuelan Vixen” Peña after the second round.

Despite close to two years away from competition, Moras showed no ill effects from the lengthy layoff and she was able to control much of the bout on the ground. Peña refused to tap out to a deep armbar, but sustained significant damage from the hold and the cageside doctor stopped the fight.

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Popular prospect Jordan Nicole Gaza will compete for the final time as an amateur on the May 25th Tuff-N-Uff card in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Texas native, better known as “Ninja Princess,” faces Werdum Combat Team’s Kaiyana Rain in a featured 115-pound matchup announced this week.

Also targeted for the May card is a Tuff-N-Uff 115-pound women’s title bout between Stephanie “The Shark” Gonzalez and Jillian “Justice” Lybarger. Gonzalez was awarded the belt earlier this month when then-champion Lybarger was unable to make weight. The score will be settled in May.

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The opening bout on the all-female Invicta Fighting Championships 1 card has undergone a late change. The April 28th event, which takes place at Memorial Hall in Kansas City, Kansas, will now begin with a 105-pound matchup between Meghan “The Babe” Wright and Iowa’s Cassie Rodish.

Wright’s original opponent, Jessica Philippus, withdrew from the bout earlier today. Philippus, who gave birth to daughter Kamilla in late January, felt that she would be unable to make the contracted weight limit. Invicta President Shannon Knapp discussed the situation with MMARising.com this evening.

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