It looks very likely that UFC 193 in Melbourne will feature a rematch of arguably one of the greatest heavyweight fights in UFC history.
According to a report Tuesday in the US by Ariel Helwani of MMA Fighting.com, Antonio Silva vs Mark Hunt 2 is targeted for the promotion’s debut Melbourne offering, which takes place on November 15. A venue for the pay-per-view event has not been announced yet.
Silva vs Hunt 1 took place back in December 2013 in Brisbane and was ruled a majority draw after five bloody rounds of toe-to-toe action (Photo Gallery). Following the fight, however, Silva failed a post-fight drug test which showed elevated testosterone levels.
Hunt (10-10-1) went on to knockout Roy Nelson in Japan before receiving a late notice call-up to face Fabricio Werdum for the interim title at UFC 180. There, the Sydney based Kiwi was stopped by TKO in the second round. Most recently, Hunt, 41, was convincingly beaten by Stipe Miocic at UFC Fight Night 65 in Adelaide.
After back to back losses at the hands of Andrei Arlovski and Frank Mir, 35 year-old Silva (19-7-1) rebounded earlier this month by stopping Hunt’s training partner Soa Palelei at UFC 190.
Although no matchups have been officially announced by the promotion at this stage, it was also reported earlier this month that a welterweight title fight between defending champion Robbie Lawler and former interim champ Carlos Condit is also set for the event.
