Quarterly Rankings
Diego Sanchez has been forced out of his welterweight fight with Matt Hughes (45-8) at UFC 135 due to a broken hand. Josh Koscheck (15-5) has agreed to step in as a late replacement but Hughes still needs to sign off on the new bout.
UFC president Dana White posted on Twitter late yesterday that Sanchez had suffered a broken hand while training that would force him to be pulled from UFC 135. White also said that they were actively searching for a replacement.
Nearly an hour later, Josh Koscheck posted two consecutive tweets.
":) got a fight in 21 days b*****s...." Koscheck posted. "Oh ya 19 days then or something like that!!! Either way it looks like I am in to fight Matt Hughes if he takes it???"
Now all that is needed is for Hughes to sign off on the new opponent.
Koscheck will be fighting for the first time since his decision loss to Georges St-Pierre in a welterweight title fight at UFC 124 in December 2010. Koscheck's right eye was badly damaged over the course of the fight and he just recently resumed training. He was hoping to return at UFC 139 in November, which is scheduled to take place in San Jose, California. The event is only a short distance away from the American Kickboxing Academy where Koscheck trains at.
Hughes was looking to have his hand raise yet again after a disappointing performance against B.J. Penn at UFC 123 this past November. The fight snapped a three fight-win streak. Lately, the 37-year old former UFC champion has been slowing down and taking more time in between fights. Many are speculating that his time as a mixed martial artist may be coming to a close.
UFC 135 is scheduled to be headlined by a light heavyweight title fight between champion Jon Jones and challenger Quinton Jackson.
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