Weidman injury pushes Belfort fight to February

Published on Tuesday, 9/23/14, at 6:08 a.m. Eastern.

Due to a broken hand suffered by Chris Weidman in training, his third title defense against Vitor Belfort has been taken off of the UFC 181 card and pushed back to February of 2015.

This news broke late Monday afternoon. Instead of Weidman-Belfort, the rematch between middleweight champ Johny Hendricks and No. 1 contender Robbie Lawler will serve as the UFC 181 main event on Dec. 6 at Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas. BetOnline has Hendricks installed as a -240 favorite, while Lawler is a +205 underdog (risk $100 to win $205).

In the co-main event, Anthony ‘Showtime’ Pettis will defend his 155-pound strap for the first time against Gilbert ‘El Nino’ Melendez. 5Dimes has Pettis as a -190 ‘chalk,’ while Melendez is available at +165 on the comeback.

Stefan Struve is set to return to the Octagon vs. Alistair Overeem in Phoenix at UFC on Fox 13.

In other UFC news, Alistair Overeem will meet Stefan Struve at UFC on Fox 13 in Phoenix on Dec. 13. Overeem has been knocked out in three of his last four fights, including a Sept. 5 loss to Ben Rothwell. ‘The ‘Reem’ has posted a disappointing 2-3 record in the Octagon since joining the promotion in 2011. His victories have come over former champs Brock Lesnar and Frank Mir.

Struve hasn’t fought since March of 2013 when he lost by third-round KO to Mark Hunter in a thriller. Struve, a 26-year-old with a 9-4 UFC record, missed more than a year due to concerns over a heart condition. The seven-foot Dutch kickboxer was scheduled to return on July 5 against Matt Mitrione at UFC 175, but Struve fainted while warming up in the locker room and the fight was cancelled.