Leben vs. Stann Booked For UFC 125 In January

UFC middleweight fighter Chris Leben
Middleweights Chris Leben and Brian Stann are set to meet at UFC 125 as a main card contest for the New Year’s Day event.

MMAjunkie.com reported the news earlier today after learning of the match up from sources close to the event.

Stann recently dropped down to middleweight after a run in the light heavyweight division, a weight class he felt he was simply undersized in. His last fight at light heavyweight was a disappointing unanimous decision loss to Phil Davis in a bout he was dominated in. He debuted at the 185-pound mark with a submission victory over Mike Massenzio at “UFC on Versus 2”.

Leben, meanwhile, has revitalized his career in his last few outings. After inconsistency between 2006 and 2009, Leben scored an impressive knockout victory over Aaron Simpson at “The Ultimate Fighter 11 Finale”, proving he could still be competitive. Leben built off the knockout victory when he took a fight against Yoshihiro Akiyama at UFC 116, filling in for an injured Wanderlei Silva less than two weeks prior to the fight. Leben fought very competitively throughout the close bout, but kept the outcome out of the hands judges with a third round submission victory.

UFC 125 is scheduled for January 1 of 2011 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. A middleweight title fight between Anderson Silva and Vitor Belfort is set as the main event for the card, while a light heavyweight tilt between strikers Thiago Silva and Brandon Vera is also expected to make the card.