Welterweight contender Demian Maia will be facing Jorge Masvidal in a few months at UFC 211. Maia is extreme happy that the returning Georges St. Pierre is competing at middleweight instead of welterweight.
“I’m glad they didn’t set up his fight in my weight category,” Maia said to MMA Junkie.
The Brazilian did previously compete at middleweight and also challenged then UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva for the gold. A win over the top ranked Masvidal could put Maia in line for a title shot, one he's been seeking.
“I really wanted to fight for the title, and that’s the fight I wanted to take for sure,” he said. “It was something that was on my shoulders – I was always waiting and nobody was giving me a clear perspective on what is happening. So when they finally said, ‘You need to take this fight,’ we finally solved this situation, and it was also relieving for me.”
UFC 211 takes place on Saturday, May 13 from the American Airlines Arena in Dallas, Texas with Stipe Miocic and Junior Dos Santos headlining. Fightful will be providing live coverage of the event, with a post-show podcast to follow.
