Originally Posted by MMAFrenzy

A long-rumored middleweight bout between Wanderlei Silva and Yoshihiro Akiyama is set to take place at UFC 116 on July 3 in Las Vegas, Fighters Only reports.

Originally scheduled for February’s UFC 110 in Australia, then rumored for June’s UFC 115, Silva requested to fight on his birthday and his wish has apparently been granted, as the 185-pound clash will likely co-headline the pay-per-view event, which is expected to be topped by the return of heavyweight champ Brock Lesnar.

Silva (33-10-1) made his anticipated middleweight debut at UFC 110, earning a unanimous decision over Michael Bisping to snap a two-fight losing streak, which had dropped him to 1-5 over his last 6 fights.

Akiyama (13-1), a veteran of K-1 Hero’s and DREAM in his native Japan, made his UFC debut last July with a split decision over Alan Belcher at UFC 100 for his eleventh-straight win (plus two no contests).