The Ultimate Fighting Championship has fined middleweight titleholder Anderson Silva$50,000 for refusing to take part in a planned pre-UFC 162 media event.

Silva (33-4 MMA, 16-0 UFC) was scheduled to talk with a few of Los Angeles' largest media outlets on Tuesday but ultimately skipped the session and instead flew home to his native Brazil.

"We had a full media day set up for him in Los Angeles, and he just decided he didn't want to do it, so he's being fined $50,000," UFC President Dana White told USA TODAY Sports and MMAjunkie.com(www.mmajunkie.com).

The media session was scheduled to coincide with this week's ticket on-sale date for "UFC 162: Silva vs. Weidman," in which Silva looks to defend his belt against Chris Weidman (9-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC). The pay-per-view event takes place July 6 at Las Vegas' MGM Grand Garden Arena. The annual Fourth of July weekend fight card is considered one of the promotion's cornerstone events and comes complete with a two-day UFC Fan Expo and a full slate of fan-driven activities.

"He doesn't like talking to the media, but it's part of his contractual obligation," White said. "Everybody wants more money, more money, more money, but nobody wants to sell the fight or go out and talk to the media. Talking to the media is part of your job, whether you like it or not."

Silva was scheduled to appear on local TV and radio stations, as well as a luncheon with more than a dozen Los Angeles-area newspapers and websites.

Silva is not the first high-profile UFC fighter to skip company-scheduled media appearances. In 2011Nick Diaz missed a pair of pre-UFC 137 press conferences designed to promote a planned bout with UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre. In a then-unprecedented move, White pulled Diaz from the headlining contest and replaced him with Carlos Condit.

White said he is not currently inclined to take similar action against Silva, and the bout with Weidman is still scheduled to serve as the UFC 162 main event.

"Nick Diaz didn't show up for the press conference," White said. "This was just a smaller media day, but it's still not acceptable, so we're fining him $50,000."

Silva's manager, Ed Soares, declined to comment on the matter.

Chris Weidman will finally get the title shot against UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva on July 4th weekend at UFC 161 in Las Vegas, Newsday has learned.

UFC chief executive Lorenzo Fertitta on Wednesday told Weidman, a Baldwin native, in the Capitol building that he spoke to Silva and that he agreed to the fight.

"Dream come true," Weidman said. "Ever since I've been fighting, Anderson Silva has been the champion and I've been visualizing beating him. Now I have the opportunity. I have to make the most of it."

Bout agreements have yet to be signed, but getting Silva to agree to the fight was the biggest hurdle. He and his camp have been saying that they want big fights against big names for big money. Silva, 38, has gone out of his way to avoid saying publicly that he would fight Weidman.

On last week's episode of "UFC Tonight," Silva called Weidman "a boy, a kid."

Weidman (9-0, 5-0 UFC) earned the shot by beating Demian Maiaand Mark Munoz last year. While training for a scheduled fight last December against Tim Boetsch, Weidman tore his right labrum and had surgery. Weidman said Wednesday that his doctor told him a day earlier that he is 100 percent healed and cleared to resume training.

Silva has been the middleweight champion since 2006 and holds every UFC record for consecutive wins and title defenses. He last fought Stephan Bonnar in October at light heavyweight to help save the fight card in his native Brazil.

Two top middleweight contenders will meet in December at UFC 155 when Chris Weidman (9-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC) takes on Tim Boetsch (16-4 MMA, 7-3 UFC).

Multiple outlets, including foxsports.com and newsday.com, today reported that verbal agreements are in place. MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) subsequently confirmed it.

The fight will be part of the main card of UFC 155, which takes place Dec. 29 in Las Vegas at a venue to be announced.

The main card, including a heavyweight title fight between champion Junior Dos Santos and former titleholder Cain Velasquez, airs on pay-per-view following prelims on FX and Facebook.

Weidman, who had hoped a recent beatdown of highly ranked Mark Munoz would give him a shot at champion Anderson Silva's middleweight title, instead will look to continue his unbeaten run intact when he meets a fellow contender. Weidman, an NCAA Division I All-American wrestler, is a little more than three years into his pro career. He joined the UFC in early 2011 and posted dive straight wins while knocking off notables Demian Maia and Munoz in his most recent appearances.

He takes on Boetsch, who's 5-1 in his most recent UFC stint (and 8-1 since a UFC 96 loss to Jason Brilz). However, Boetsch, a fellow Division I wrestler, has really hit his stride since a move down from light heavyweight. Since that drop in weight class, he's posted consecutive wins over Kendall Grove, Nick Ring, former title challenger Yushin Okami and ex-Bellator champ Hector Lombard.

Source: mmajunkie.com

UFC president Dana White recently teased a few upcoming big fights in the middleweight division, and now the first of those matchups is on the schedule.

MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) today confirmed with sources close to the two fighters that Vitor Belfort (21-9 MMA, 10-5 UFC) and Alan Belcher (18-6 MMA, 9-4 UFC) have verbally agreed to meet on the main card of this fall's UFC 153 event.

Additionally, Belfort late Tuesday took to his Twitter account to call out Belcher for UFC 153, then said in his native Portugese that the matchup was one UFC president Dana White wanted.

Featuring a featherweight title fight between current champion Jose Aldo and challenger Erik Koch, "UFC 153: Aldo vs. Koch" takes place Oct. 13 at Rio de Janeiro's HSBC Arena.

Belcher was briefly linked to a possible fight with Michael Bisping after the two took turns issuing challenges to each other in the media. However, Bisping was eventually booked to meet Brian Stann, and Belcher was left waiting for another top 185-pounder.

"The Talent" in May notched a TKO win over submission specialist Rousimar Palhares, which built on another first-round stoppage of veteran Jason MacDonald at UFC Fight Night 25. Prior to that, he was forced to take 16 months off as a career-threatening eye injury (detached retina) healed. The injury slowed Belcher's rise up the middleweight ranks, but he is currently 6-1 in his past seven fights in the octagon.

Meanwhile, Belfort was rumored to potentially fight opposing "The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil" coach Wanderlei Silva, and UFC managing director of international development Marshall Zelaznik even admitted that fight was "something we're working toward" even after Silva was defeated by Rich Franklin (who replaced an injured Belfort) at UFC 147.

Belfort, however, earlier in the day Tuesday went on Twitter to ask for a fight with Chris Weidman. Weidman, who recently knocked out Mark Munoz, believes he should get the next shot at middleweight champ Anderson Silva.

Instead, Belfort now will face Belcher in a fight that is expected to have real impact on the 185-pound title picture.

Event results for UFC on FUEL TV 4, which took place Tuesday at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif.

Main Card
-Chris Weidman defeated Mark Munoz by KO (Elbow/Punches, 2nd Round, 1:37)
-James TeHuna defeated Joey Beltran by Unanimous Decision (30-26, 30-27, 30-27)
-Aaron Simpson defeated Kenny Robertson by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
-Francis Carmont defeated Karlos Vemola by Submission (Rear-naked choke, 2nd Round, 1:39)
-T.J. Dillashaw defeated Vaughan Lee by Submission (Rear-naked choke, 1st Round, 2:33)
-Rafael dos Anjos defeated Anthony Njokuani by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

Preliminary Card
-Alex Caceres defeated Damacio Page by Submission (Triangle, Round 3, 1:27)
-Chris Cariaso defeated Josh Ferguson by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
-Andrew Craig defeated Rafael ‘Sapo’ Natal by KO (Head Kick, Round 2, 4:52)
-Marcelo Guimares defeated Dan Stittgen by Split Decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29)
-Raphael Assuncao defeated Issei Tamura by TKO (Ref Stoppage, 2nd Round, 0:25)