Will Vitor Belfort Ever Wear UFC Gold Again?

In 1997, a 19-year-old Vitor Belfort became the youngest fighter to win a UFC fight. Belfort would go on to win the UFC 12 heavyweight tournament that same night he had his first UFC win.

Belfort has since fought for the UFC heavyweight, light heavyweight and middleweight championships. At UFC 49, Belfort won the the light heavyweight title from Randy Couture but lost the title back to him just seven months later.

In his most recent pursuit of UFC gold, Belfort lost to middleweight champ Anderson Silva by one of the most memorable knockouts in MMA history.

A couple of months after the UFC 126 bout with Silva, Belfort’s career was brought into question as he contracted Hepatitis A. Shortly after the diagnosis, Belfort claimed he was healed and ready to continue to prepare for his next fight against Yoshihiro Akiyama Saturday at UFC 133.

Despite going 1-2 in the UFC, Akiyama has won fight of the night bonuses for each of his UFC fights. Akiyama will be a tough test for Belfort because he not only likes to stand and trade, he is one of the toughest guys to put out.

A win over Akiyama will put Belfort in the right direction. But Belfort will still be a few wins away from a title bout.

If Belfort wins, I would like to see him matched up against fighters like Chris Leben, Brian Stann or Chael Sonnen. A win over any of these fighters could put Belfort back in the mix.

A title shot would also depend on what direction the UFC wants to go.

If Belfort had a better outing against Silva, they may be more prone to give him a title shot sooner than later. But since Silva beat him with seemingly little effort, Belfort could be waiting a while for a shot.

Belfort is a guy who has never been too far away from a title shot when he’s fought in the UFC. And if history has taught us anything, it’s that anything can happen. Injuries can occur and a guy that you might not have thought would step in and fight does.

Belfort may have a chance to fight for a title again, but he’ll first have to get past Akiyama at UFC 133.