The UFC Middleweight Championship bout between Anderson Silva and Chael Sonnen at UFC 148 on July 7 in Las Vegas is easily the most anticipated MMA bout of the summer. The intensity building up to the rematch between the "Spider" and his rival is powerful enough that despite significant changes to the undercard and the departure of such notable names as Urijah Faber, Rich Franklin and Dominick Cruz, UFC 148 is no less an attraction for MMA fans than it was when the Silva vs. Sonnen fight was moved from UFC 147.
That having been said, however, while the undercard will no longer feature a second UFC title bout as it was originally scheduled to, the UFC 148 fight card still features a full night of excitement for MMA fans. The stakes may not be particularly high, but the atmosphere in the arena and the nature of the combatants should compensate.
One of the greatest strengths of the UFC has been its ability to build up fighters as names even before they become major players in the title pictures in their respective weight classes. Part of that comes from the pipeline established by The Ultimate Fighter, which may no longer produce championship-caliber fighters like former light heavyweight champ Forrest Griffin (who'll face Tito Ortiz in Las Vegas on July 7), but can still build the name of a more middling talent like Cody McKenzie, who will make his featherweight debut next Saturday against former No. 1 contender Chad "Money" Mendes.
Even without Faber and Cruz, the UFC 148 fight card still includes a pair of former UFC Champions (Griffin and Ortiz), a pair of former No. 1 contenders (Mendes and middleweight Patrick Cote) and former Strikeforce middleweight champion Cung Le, who will welcome Cote back to the UFC as "The Predator" steps in for Le's original opponent, Rich Franklin. It may not be the supercard that was originally planned, but it's certainly more than worthy of building up to the hotly anticipated Sonnen vs. Silva fight.
Some of the UFC's fight cards this summer - most notably last weekend's UFC 147 and the July 21 UFC 149 fight card in Calgary - have been devastated by injuries. The UFC 148 fight card had its own share of changes, but survived. Having the most anticipated matchup of the summer helped, no doubt, but this is by no means a one-fight card.
