Velasquez-Browne bout reportedly in the works for UFC 200
UFC 200 appears close to having its first confirmed bout.
A heavyweight bout between Travis Browne and former champion Cain Velasquez is being discussed for the historic event, which is scheduled for July 9 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
MMAFighting.com reported Wednesday the bout is in the works.
Velasquez lost the belt to Fabricio Werdum as a result of a third-round submission in June. He was expected to get a rematch in February, but was forced to pull out of the bout due to a back injury.
Werdum will instead defend his belt against Stipe Miocic at UFC 198 in May.
Should the bout between Velasquez and Browne become official, it will be only the second non-title fight for Velasquez since he first won the belt in October 2010.
Browne, the boyfriend of former women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey, has rotated wins and losses over his last five bouts.
He is coming off a controversial third-round knockout of Matt Mitrione in January when he committed several accidental fouls that appeared to damage Mitrione’s eye before eventually putting him away.
While the bout would be the first official matchup on the fight card, UFC president Dana White has said he expects featherweight champion Conor McGregor to defend his belt at the event.
No opponent has been named.
Contact reporter Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com or 702-224-5509. Follow him on Twitter: @adamhilllvrj