Vitor Belfort will return to action in early 2022 with a showdown scheduled against multi-division boxing champion Chad Dawson at Triad Combat 2, which is promoted by Triller Fight Club.
Triller officials confirmed the news to MMA Fighting on Wednesday. The bout between Belfort and Dawson will take place at a 200-pound cruiserweight limit with the card expected to take place in February, although an exact date is still to be determined.
Belfort will look for his second win in the ring after he made quick work of former heavyweight boxing champion Evander Holyfield in an exhibition bout under the Triller Fight Club banner back in September.
Belfort was originally scheduled to face Oscar De La Hoya on the card but “The Golden Boy” contracted COVID-19 and he was unable to compete with Holyfield stepping in to replace him. The fight lasted less than two minutes into the opening round after Belfort blitzed Holyfield with punches to lead to the TKO stoppage.
Now Belfort will compete under the hybrid rules set at Triad Combat, which allows for more clinching and dirty boxing inside a triangular ring.
As for Dawson, he will fight for the first time in more than two years after his last bout took place in October 2019. During the prime of his career, Dawson was considered one of the top boxers in the sport after he earned wins over legendary names such as Bernard Hopkins as well as Antonio Tarver.
He eventually suffered back-to-back losses to Andre Ward and Adonis Stevenson, which led to decreased activity over the years with only seven bouts since 2014.
Dawson will clash with Belfort at the upcoming Triad Combat 2 card in early 2022 while joining a card that also features former UFC heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos against Kubrat Pulev.
