Belfort to meet Souza in clash of UFC middleweight contenders

Scratch two potential names off the list of possible candidates to challenge Luke Rockhold in the first defense of his Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight title.

Vitor Belfort will fight Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza in the main event of a UFC card in Brazil on May 14, the organization announced Tuesday.

No other details for the event have been confirmed.

Rockhold said immediately after winning the title with a fourth-round knockout of Chris Weidman in December that he wanted to fight Belfort, who handed Rockhold his only loss over his last 15 fights.

Souza lost a split decision to Yoel Romero in a matchup of top contenders on that same December card, but lobbied for a title bout after Romero was flagged for a doping violation after the fight.

The fight between Souza and Belfort leaves fewer options on the table for Rockhold.

One possibility is a rematch with Weidman. Another is that he would be matched up with the winner of a Feb. 27 bout in London between Michael Bisping and former champion Anderson Silva.

Belfort has won four of his last five fights, with the lone loss coming to Weidman in a title bout. Souza had won eight straight before the loss to Romero.

Contact reporter Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com or 702-224-5509. Follow him on Twitter: @adamhilllvrj