Adesanya-Silva still 3 rounds despite elevation to UFC 234 main event

The UFC 234 fight between Israel Adesanya and Anderson Silva will remain a three-round bout despite being elevated to the main event, according to TSN's Aaron Bonsteter.

The middleweight tilt won't be for an interim title because Silva didn't make championship weight.

UFC 234 was scheduled to be headlined by middleweight champion Robert Whittaker and challenger Kelvin Gastelum, but the former pulled out hours before the fight due to a hernia in his abdomen.

The middleweight belt hasn't been defended since Michael Bisping took on Georges St-Pierre in Nov. 2017. St-Pierre won the title but surrendered it without ever defending it.

Whittaker has only fought once since becoming champion, but that bout was changed to a non-title fight when his opponent, Yoel Romero, missed weight at UFC 225 last June.