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Dana White said recently he's pulling for Chris Leben when the suspended middleweight returns. Now that return has a date.
Leben (22-8 MMA, 12-7 UFC), whose suspension will be lifted in November, will face Karlos Vemola (9-3 MMA, 2-3 UFC) at the UFC's year-end show, UFC 155. UFC officials on Wednesday announced the fight booking.
UFC 155 takes place Dec. 29 in Las Vegas, though an exact venue – either the MGM Grand Garden Arena or Mandalay Bay Events Center – has not yet been 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.
Leben was given a yearlong suspension by the company in November 2011 after testing positive for prescription painkillers oxycodone and oxymorphone after his UFC 138 main-event loss to Mark Munoz in Birmingham, England. It was Leben's second suspension for a failed drug test.
In June, White couldn't nail down a precise timetable for the "TUF 1" vet's return to the octagon, but expressed happiness that the fighter again appeared to be turning things around outside the cage.
"He's a warrior, he always brings it and I'm happy he's got his stuff together again," White said. "I want to see that kid do well."
Before his loss to Munoz and subsequent yearlong suspension, Leben was on a 4-1 run, including wins over Wanderlei Silva, Yoshihiro Akiyama and Aaron Simpson.
Vemola is coming off a loss to Francis Carmont at UFC on FUEL TV 4 in July. The Czech fighter tapped to a second-round rear-naked choke for his first loss at middleweight, dropping him to 1-1 in the division. He debuted in the weight class with a rear-naked choke win over Mike Massenzio at UFC on FOX 3 in May.
The latest UFC 155 card now includes:
Champ Junior Dos Santos vs. Cain Velasquez - for heavyweight title*
Tim Boetsch vs. Chris Weidman
Forrest Griffin vs. Chael Sonnen*
Joe Lauzon vs. Gray Maynard
Phil De Fries vs. Matt Mitrione
Chris Leben vs. Karlos Vemola
* - Not officially announced
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