Lyoto Machida will step in on less than a month's notice to face Rashad Evans in the main event at UFC 133. He will replace Phil Davis, who was forced out of the fight with a knee injury. Matt Roth broke the news just a few minutes ago over at HeadKickLegend, and the UFC is expected to confirm shortly.

This will be a rematch of their UFC 98 bout, and Rashad will be looking to even the score after he was knocked out by Machida late in the second round at that event. Machida was one of the few top light-heavyweights without a booking, which made it a pretty easy decision for the UFC. Machida said he was expecting to face Ryan Bader next, but with Bader losing to Tito Ortiz at UFC 132, that obviously went out the window.

The winner of this bout will likely be in a position to face the winner of the UFC 135 light heavyweight title bout between Jon Jones and Quinton Jackson.

Note: This post initially lead with 'It's official.' The line was changed in light of the fact that the UFC has not made an official announcement as of yet.





Update by Brent Brookhouse: This fight is not a done deal by any means. While Matt Roth's sources are solid, there are many people who are being told that the fight is not signed. Mike Chiappetta did offer some interesting insight into what is going on behind the scenes:

I just asked Dana White if Lyoto accepted the fight. His answer: "No, and Tito turned it down." There is no replacement yet. #UFC133 Mike Chiappetta MMA

MikeChiappetta

I'm sure right now it's a matter of Machida and his people wanting to make a very nice payday out of taking a late notice fight.

We will continue to bring you updates on the situation as details emerge.