Alan Belcher undergoes emergency eye surgery; his match against Demian Maia has been called off
by Jeff Jones on August 02, 2010

Alan Belcher has suffered a detached retina and has withdrawn from his upcoming fight against Demian Maia. The injury required surgery and will sideline the middleweight for 6 weeks without contact, first reported by mmaweekly.com.

Currently sporting a two fight win streak, Belcher (16-6, 7-4 UFC) was scheduled to challenge Demian Maia at UFC Fight Night 22 in September. Belcher underwent emergency surgery on August 1st, after losing his vision while on a trip in Brazil. After returning home, the Mississippi native had the eye checked out and it revealed that surgery was necessary.

Belcher posted an apology on his twitter account stating, " Sorry to my trainers. Sorry to the UFC & Demian Maia. Sorry to my fans as well. As long as I get released from the doctor, I will try to make UFN 22 to see my fans and watch the fights."

The UFC will attempt to find a replacement on short notice to fight Maia on September 15.

 |  (15) Comments GO HARD: okami could prolly make it .... GO HARD: maybe leben will do it.. Crimsonred: Dammit GH, you got here first. Maia's nuts are mine!! In all seriousness though, Okami immediately popped to mind. Maybe shields if you wanted to shake things up a bit, force him to stand. Both Leben and Akiyama are coming off fights, it might be too soon for them, is Wanderlei healed up, or is he still getting surgery? Actually, scratch Wandy, they train together. This is gonna be interesting, we may see an up-and-comer get fed. Crimsonred: Dammit GH, you got here first. Maia's nuts are mine!! In all seriousness though, Okami immediately popped to mind. Maybe shields if you wanted to shake things up a bit, force him to stand. Both Leben and Akiyama are coming off fights, it might be too soon for them, is Wanderlei healed up, or is he still getting surgery? Actually, scratch Wandy, they train together. Grove maybe? This is gonna be interesting, we may see an up-and-comer get fed. IwishIwasMMA: I like Okami and Leben.. but I feel Leben would lose because of bad match up. Elvis Freshley: I say Leben. He's got the power, he's shown the takedown defense, and the performance he gave on that crazy two week run merits him getting an opportunity against Maia. Maia would obviously win if it got to the ground, but would he be capable of doing that against Leben? Based on his performance against Miller and Silva, I think that Leben actually has a fair shot of keeping the fight standing. Leben also is willing to step up and I think Maia would provide a good exclamation point on a so far stellar 2010 campaign by Leben. Hell, if Leben can get by Maia it provides an even bigger set up towards the Leben/Wandy fight. I also think that Leben provides a similar threat list towards Maia as Belcher does and would rank them around the same -two guys just dancing right outside top ten-, so yeah, I think it's a great fight. Leben always brings it... Give him the Crippler. Wandering_Minstrel: Maia is currently coming off a loss, correct? They should find another Middleweight who is also coming off a loss. Ares: Ah, that sucks, I was really looking forward to see Belcher tested like this. Leben would be an interesting challenge for Maia. GO HARD: marquardt vs palhares is basically the same fight as belcher vs maia... maia will still need an opponent for the near future though. Legend of Lee Murray: Leben, Leben, Leben...if he takes this fight and beats Maia...he will have a hell of a year!
HOW WILL THE THIAGO ALVES VS. MARTIN KAMPMANN FIGHT END AT UFC ON FX 2?
Alves def. Kampmann via TKO/KO
Alves def. Kampmann via submission
Alves def. Kampmann via decision
Kampmann def. Alves via TKO/KO
Kampmann def. Alves via submission
Kampmann def. Alves via decision
TAKE ANOTHER POLL!