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Dana White confirms 'dream' title shot for Vitor Belfort

Vitor Belfort will fight Anderson Silva at UFC 125 © Getty Images

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Dana White has confirmed Vitor Belfort will provide the next challenge to Anderson Silva's UFC middleweight title, and Belfort described the bout as a 'dream come true'.

In a complex twist of events, Belfort was pulled from his UFC 122 headline bout with Yushin Okami on Wednesday, with Nate Marquardt replacing the Brazilian. Instead, Belfort will delay his return to the Octagon in order to face champion Silva, who needed a new opponent after Chael Sonnen was handed a one-year suspension for a failed drugs test.

Sonnen plans to appeal the ban, but White could not await the outcome, so he confirmed the change of plans via his Twitter account, saying: "Vitor is not injured. He is going to fight Anderson for the title and the winner of Marquart and Okami are next."

Belfort has only fought once since his return to the UFC, but it was a significant victory over Rich Franklin, who suffered an emphatic first round knockout. The Phenom's history in the UFC is vast with past victories over the likes of Randy Couture and Wanderlei Silva to his name, and he insists he will be ready for his title shot, which will headline UFC 125 on New Year's Day.

"It's all set. The fight was scheduled for January 1st here in Las Vegas, the UFC's New Year's event," Belfort told Esportes.r7.com. "For sure it will be the New Year's with the most Brazilians in Las Vegas. Everyone's invited.

"There's plenty of time till the fight still. Of course the strategy will be revamped, but it couldn't be better. I'm going to fight in Las Vegas, where I live; I won't need to travel anywhere. And better still, it will be a fight for the belt, a dream come true.

"[Silva] will be the toughest one yet, as will the opponent after him. The next opponent is always the toughest. I train all the time, as much as possible. When the time comes we'll know what will happen, but I'll show up prepared."

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