Mauricio “Shogun” Rua has ruptured the Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) in his left knee and it will require surgery to repair, meaning his 205-pound clash with Chuck Liddell at UFC 85 on June 7 at the O2 Arena in London, England, is scratched, according to UFC.com.
Here’s the snip:
“Scheduled to make his return to the Octagon this June against Chuck Liddell at UFC 85 in London, light heavyweight star Mauricio “Shogun” Rua has instead been forced to withdraw from the bout due to a ruptured ACL in his left knee, the same injury he had surgery on to repair last October after his UFC 76 fight with Forrest Griffin. Surgery on the injured knee will be scheduled shortly, and there is no word on when Rua will be cleared to return to the Octagon.”
Rua was looking forward to redeeming himself inside the Octagon after a poor performance against Griffin in his debut. Prior to the loss he was considered to be the man to beat in the 205-pound category.
He’ll now have to wait a little while longer to prove that the statement is indeed true.
Liddell is still slated to compete on the card. In fact, the announcement indicated that a new opponent would be revealed “shortly.” It more than likely has to be a notable fighter because “The Iceman” will be featured in the main event.
It’s hard to determine who the UFC would tab as a worthy replacement, considering that most of the top light heavyweights are seemingly booked.
That list includes Rampage Jackson, Forrest Griffin, Rashad Evans, Thiago Silva, Lyoto Machida, Tito Ortiz, Keith Jardine, Wanderlei Silva, Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou and Houston Alexander.
Who’s left?
(Thanks to MMAmania.com contributor “Mr. NC-17,” as well as readers “roy,” “VNDK8,” “Brandon” and “Kyle” for the assist.)
237 Comments »
This is the biggest PILE OF BULLSH*T!!!! I HAVE EVER SEEN! How on earth did this moron injure his knee!?!?! My god!
This really sucks, I wonder who they’ll get to fight Chuck now. Rashad Evans?
he probably injured it playing basketball. i mean, im not a professional or anything, but thats as good a guess as any.
Dan Henderson ?
That would be a great fight, but i think that we are going to see Iceman vs Wilson Goveia.
Rashad would be a good fight…. not sure hes ready though
That sucks!!! I was really wanting to see that fight!!
Jardine, Houston Alexander, Thiago Silva, Rashad…
That sux it wouldnt have been a great fight, but maybe someone to fill the shoes of Rua would be Thiago Silva..Thoughts(both fighters like to bang and thiago has excellent ground game)
thiago silva
sorry i wrote wrong, it wouldve been a great fight
horrible news, an acl injury is not a easy thing to come back from espcialy two in a row.he probally injured it rehabbing from the first surgery.after you go through one of those let alone two your never quit the same.
Liddell needs to fight Jardine again, hopefully he won’t be afraid of him this time.
Danni Abaddi
Jardine is fighting Wand so he’s out, Machida is fighting Tito or I think he’d step in. I really don’t see anyone on the roster that I think they’d put in there except Thiago or Rashad.
thiago silva.
This is phucking ridiculous. Why is everyone injuring themselves and withdrawing from fights all of a sudden? Ex: Alan Belcher, Stephan Bonnar, Jon Fitch’s original opponent for 82, whoever Boetsch replaced at 81, Matt Serra for 79 and now Shogun? Why can’t the crappy fighters withdraw from fights ever. I’m probably forgetting about a bunch of others, but in the last three or four months EVERYONE that makes UFC worth watching is somehow getting INJURED. WTF?
is Cro Cop just being loaned out to the DREAM organisation or is he out of contract with the UFC now, would love to see him drop to 205 to fight chuck. awesome
actually maybe if Matt Hammil can get by on 4/2..have Chuck knock the deaf out of him
Next one to injure himself will be Ortiz…. He wants nothing to do with Machida
Stephan Bonnar would be a great fight
[quote comment=”344513″]is Cro Cop just being loaned out to the DREAM organisation or is he out of contract with the UFC now, would love to see him drop to 205 to fight chuck. awesome[/quote]
He’s gone. UFC doesn’t “loan” out there fighters.
This is phucking ridiculous. Why is everyone injuring themselves and withdrawing from fights all of a sudden? Ex: Alan Belcher, Stephan Bonnar, Jon Fitch’s original opponent for 82, whoever Boetsch replaced at 81, Matt Serra for 79 and now Shogun? Why can’t the crappy fighters withdraw from fights ever. I’m probably forgetting about a bunch of others, but in the last three or four months EVERYONE that makes UFC worth watching is somehow getting INJURED. WTF?
[quote comment=”344476″]This really sucks, I wonder who they’ll get to fight Chuck now. Rashad Evans?[/quote]
I thought Rashad was fighting Thiago Silva at UFC 84???
I thought it was strange that they only announced Chuck Liddell during UFC 82. This doesn’t shock me that much. Sucks though.
[quote comment=”344519″]Next one to injure himself will be Ortiz…. He wants nothing to do with Machida[/quote]
I think that he wants so bad to be out of the UFC and away from Dana he will fight…. Hope he comes prepared…..long night getting beat at his own game if not….Still think Forrest won that fight…..
[quote comment=”344524″][quote comment=”344476″]This really sucks, I wonder who they’ll get to fight Chuck now. Rashad Evans?[/quote]
I thought Rashad was fighting Thiago Silva at UFC 84???[/quote]
Damn I forgot about that, is it official yet? It’s not on the card on ufc.com.
tito, machida, rashad, thiago, and wandi are all booked to fight at UFC 84 so it looks like its goin to have to be someone like Bonner or Gouveia. i think they should try to find a guy from another organization. i don’t know who but any suggestions?
It will likely be Bonnar, which is not really a challenge for Chuck.
Remember the UFC is trying to position Chuck for a title shot. If he fights a lower quality opponent, then it will appear that the title shot is illegitimate.
wow, that blows.
That’s probably why during UFC 82, they called the event “UFC 85 Chuck Liddell”, there was no mention of Shogun.
GUYS, THERE IS ONLY ONE ELITE 205 LB FIGHTER NOT SCHEDULED TO FIGHT, AND HIS NAME, IS DAN HENDERSON!!!!!!
I totally agree with Mwm, Evans would be an excellent match up. Hes undefeated outside of the bullshit with Ortiz. Evans, Lambert or Gouviea. This weight division is really looking weak at this point. Everyone has left or gone down a weight class. If Vera dropped to 205 that might be a bad ass fight. HA! put tito’s dumbass back in there. I can never get enough of watching chuck kick his ass
Dan Henderson is the only top ranked that is not scheduled to fight….
[quote comment=”344510″]This is phucking ridiculous. Why is everyone injuring themselves and withdrawing from fights all of a sudden? Ex: Alan Belcher, Stephan Bonnar, Jon Fitch’s original opponent for 82, whoever Boetsch replaced at 81, Matt Serra for 79 and now Shogun? Why can’t the crappy fighters withdraw from fights ever. I’m probably forgetting about a bunch of others, but in the last three or four months EVERYONE that makes UFC worth watching is somehow getting INJURED. WTF?[/quote]
Injuries are just going to happen in MMA. But this fight needed to happen. Shogun is turning out to be a good size disappointment. But hey, we’ve got plenty of time since the LHW championship is being tied up for so long anyway. So, Dana might as well have brought this upon himself. Interim title anyone? Just kidding.
How about Anderson Silva in a catchweight
[quote comment=”344510″]This is phucking ridiculous. Why is everyone injuring themselves and withdrawing from fights all of a sudden? Ex: Alan Belcher, Stephan Bonnar, Jon Fitch’s original opponent for 82, whoever Boetsch replaced at 81, Matt Serra for 79 and now Shogun? Why can’t the crappy fighters withdraw from fights ever. I’m probably forgetting about a bunch of others, but in the last three or four months EVERYONE that makes UFC worth watching is somehow getting INJURED. WTF?[/quote]
These injuries are pretty serious man, have ever tore an acl? I don’t think anyone would fight with a serious injury against a caliber fighter. Lidell should fight Houston Alexander
Houston Alexander Houston Alexander Houston Alexander.
[quote comment=”344554″]How about Anderson Silva in a catchweight[/quote]
eeeeeee…. Poor Chuck
how about the other nogueira brother?
[quote comment=”344481″]Dan Henderson ?
That would be a great fight, but i think that we are going to see Iceman vs Wilson Goveia.[/quote]
Dan Henderson vs Chuck would be great, he was the first person that came to my mind. Hopefully he would consider it…
cheers for putting me straight on cro cop. tim boetsch seems to like stepping in at short notice to kick the crap out of people, with wandy, jardine, gouveia, reljic, ortiz, machida, evans and thiago silva all fighting at UFC 84, doesnt leave many other names to fight at UFC 85. matt hamill? houston alexander? or what about Rich Franklin moving up???
Can’t be Bonnar since he said last month he would be out 6 months with the tear in his knee. I’d put my money on Hendo or possibly Jason Lambert.
Hamill and Alexander are both fighting at UFN next month
I think it may very well be Wilson Gouveia
Everybody else is tied up already:
Tito vs Machida- although my gut tells me that the UFC might consider scrapping that one in favor of Machida/Chuck. They could drag out Tito’s contract a bit more and keep him away from EliteXC
Jardine vs Wandy
Jackson vs Griffin
Thiago vs Rashad
Houston vs James Irvin
Sokoudjou vs Nakamura
Hendo will stay 185
Sucks anyway
I’d love to see Vera come down in weight. He’s a soft heavyweight so I think he could definitely cut down to 205 if he worked at it. He even said he wanted to fight Chuck back when Chuck had the belt. Come on Vera, let’s see it!
[quote comment=”344554″]How about Anderson Silva in a catchweight[/quote]
I don’t see Anderson Silva having a non-title fight in any other weight class. Besides, if he beat Chuck it would be very bad for the UFC. Chuck is probably the biggest draw in the UFC and they wouldn’t want to see him lose, especially to someone who fights in a lower weight class. I think that Wilson Gouveia would be the best replacement, he needs to get some more exposure. Dan Henderson is another option. I think he is more needed in the MW division, but he would make it the most marketable fight possible.
This is phucking ridiculous. Why is everyone injuring themselves and withdrawing from fights all of a sudden? Ex: Alan Belcher, Stephan Bonnar, Jon Fitch’s original opponent for 82, whoever Boetsch replaced at 81, Matt Serra for 79 and now Shogun? Why can’t the crappy fighters withdraw from fights ever. I’m probably forgetting about a bunch of others, but in the last three or four months EVERYONE that makes UFC worth watching is somehow getting INJURED. WTF?
[quote comment=”344554″]How about Anderson Silva in a catchweight[/quote]
Chuck has enough trouble making 205. How is he going to drop an extra 10 pounds to 195?
I say send Anderson Silva up to kick Chucks ass.
Think I’ve said that on almost every thread for motnhs now. lol
the UFC knew this since a while back which is why in the UFC website youll only find Chuck in the logo for the sale of the tickets, at first I tought it was strange seeing how he was fighting shogun why didnt they just put a picture of both but, now it makes sense. Machida, Tito, Wandy, Jardine, Forrest, Rampage, Evans, Thiago all are scheduled to fight already Lambert is out of the picture dont know why any would mention him he got his head knocked off by Guiovea, MYb itll be him, or Rashad or Thiago im sure the UFC would mess up there fight in order to give Chuck a markee opponent oh myb the return of VITOR!!! but I dont think Chuck beating Vitor would give him a legit shot at the title who else Henderson cannot afford another loss I had thought about it before Dan just lost both his belts consecutively to very tough opponents but still lost them , Dan would need to get back into the winning column. It wouldnt be crazy if Tim Boetch beats Hamill they would throw him at Chuck. who the hell is gonna fight him NAkamura and Soko are busy as well and all the other fighters in the LHW division are not that good.
Im going with Gouveia
Vera weighs in (fight weight) @ 220 lbs. - 225 lbs. He is the lightest HW since Randy’s departure. I think he can cut the weight and this would be the best available fight.
[quote comment=”344468″]This is the biggest PILE OF BULLSH*T!!!! I HAVE EVER SEEN! How on earth did this moron injure his knee!?!?! My god![/quote]
Maybe training, you “moron”.
Looks like Dan Henderson might be fighting at 205 again soon…
Crap, forgot about Wilson Gouveia vs. Goran Reljic at UFC 84. Guess it’ll have to be Sausage Tits Lambert….or Wayne Weems…
This is disapointing to hear, as a hardcore fan i was looking forward to that fight. This could not come at a worse time especially when all the highly ranked light heavies are tied up even forrest and rampage. I dont want to see gouveia(snooze fest). It is going to be exciting to see who they pick. Maybe Hendo otherwise someone is going to have to jump or drop weight.
P.s. Hendo vs Silva 2(lets see how times silva gets to hit dan in the back of the head this time)
i would love the see Liddell/Vera. they are both exciting fighters and would put on a great show!
This would be a great time for the UFC to sign Arona and have him fight chuck. No bigger name for chuck to fight who is not already scheduled to fight someone else (or litle nog).
i think a good idea would be Liddell/Machida. Tito said he doesn’t want to fight Machida so give Tito a shot at Wandi and let Machida get Liddell like he wants.
I think Shogun mis timed a steroid cycle. No knee injury. He’s just been juicing so he doesn’t gas again like he did with Forest. I don’t really think that, but wanted to throw it out there anyway.
Vera fights Werdum soon
[quote comment=”344544″]wow, that blows.
That’s probably why during UFC 82, they called the event “UFC 85 Chuck Liddell”, there was no mention of Shogun.
GUYS, THERE IS ONLY ONE ELITE 205 LB FIGHTER NOT SCHEDULED TO FIGHT, AND HIS NAME, IS DAN HENDERSON!!!!!![/quote]
I hope dan jumps at this oppurtunity and requests this fight, Dan needs to get a big win and beating chuck would do that I wanna see dan win the LHW belt and then drop back down to MW to fight anderson again.
chuck and vera,nice
Vera is booked to fight Werdum on the same fight night, so Vera isn’t fighting him. I think Wilson Gouveia will step up and fight Iceman. Since Wilson has been impressive in his all ufc fights. It doesn’t really matter who Chuck is fighting. Whoever it is, he is getting his ass whoped!!
James S -
It would not be a steroid cycle in that case. More something along the lines of blood doping or other process to add oxygen to the blood. Think Tour de France as opposed to WWE.
[quote comment=”344593″][quote comment=”344554″]How about Anderson Silva in a catchweight[/quote]
Chuck has enough trouble making 205. How is he going to drop an extra 10 pounds to 195?[/quote]
Watch your tongue boy
LOL offer the fight to “Handy”. How can he say Fedor is the only challenge left for him when he is 1-2 vs chuck. I’m sure it’d be a big draw.
There is only one option - VITOR BELFORT.
He has already mentioned he was in talks with the UFC to return April, and that he is sick of Cage Rage (even though he is the champ). This fight would be one for the fans, and a massive draw card. If Vitor wins, he is back in the game, if he loses he heads straight out again.
Thanks Mania, now I am a contributor
about time.
[quote comment=”344646″]James S -
It would not be a steroid cycle in that case. More something along the lines of blood doping or other process to add oxygen to the blood. Think Tour de France as opposed to WWE.[/quote]
In either case, I honestly don’t care. I just couldn’t believe I had read through a whole list of quotes about someone from Chute Box without the mention of anabolic enhancement usage.
There is only one option - VITOR BELFORT.
Or what about Anderson Silva in a once of showcase match. No titles, just one for the fans.
[quote comment=”344663″]Or what about Anderson Silva in a once of showcase match. No titles, just one for the fans.[/quote]
Silva takes that fight with ease.
i would love the see Liddell/Vera. they are both exciting fighters and would put on a great show!
Vera sux he got embarassed in the worst fight ive ever seen with Tim S
If Bonnar is unavailable, then look to Rashad.
Doug marshall could be interesting or even Paulo Filho from wec if theres enough time between march 26th and then, but hendo got to be the man in the running considering they need to sell 25000 seats. Vera would be good but something crazy what i would like to see is rich franklin, dont laugh! that guys got some muscle and i think they match up pretty well, ufc will have to look at bringing a midle weight up or a heavy weight down considering and were else has rich franklin gotta go
that sucks but, Thiago Silva, would make up for it.
[quote comment=”344487″]Jardine, Houston Alexander, Thiago Silva, Rashad…[/quote]
Yeah,I was thinking Thiago Silva….
Damn you Shogun! Phuck me! What were you thinking man? You think you would take it easy! He would have put up a much better fight than that of Griffin. I’m not saying he would win, I would like him to, but, that is my point, it would have been a halacious fight! How did he manage to reinjure?
I like the Liddell-Machida, Tito-Wanderlei idea. Those would be two very good fights. Joe Silva needs to do a little mix-and-match here.
Thiago Silva, PLEASE!!! That guy needs to get some attention.
people, you are failing to realize that 10 LHW’s are tied up in other bouts within 2 months of UFC 85 so none of those guys will be able to fight Chuck and other LHW’s are hurt. Also, guys like Vera and Franklin have fights coming up soon too. The UFC either needs to pull something outta their ass or scrap Liddell on this card and save him for the winner of any off those 205 bouts at UFC 84.
[quote comment=”344503″]Danni Abaddi[/quote]
Damn, now that’s funny
Guys it is Thiago Silva vs. Rashad Evans, so cross them both off your list please.
I would love to see Brandon Vera drop the Fabricio fight and drop down to 205 and fight Liddell.
Wilson Gouevia is a tough dude, he knocked out Jason Lambert with a mean hook, and it would be a very tough fight, a lot more than people think.
Thats all I can see right now.
He should call up Brian McNamee to get him hooked up with some HGH. The guys can’t cut it without the juice. Shogun is Cro Cop part 2.
[quote comment=”344618″]This is disapointing to hear, as a hardcore fan i was looking forward to that fight. This could not come at a worse time especially when all the highly ranked light heavies are tied up even forrest and rampage. I dont want to see gouveia(snooze fest). It is going to be exciting to see who they pick. Maybe Hendo otherwise someone is going to have to jump or drop weight.
P.s. Hendo vs Silva 2(lets see how times silva gets to hit dan in the back of the head this time)[/quote]
stop crying, silva is the better fighter.
[quote comment=”344544″]wow, that blows.
That’s probably why during UFC 82, they called the event “UFC 85 Chuck Liddell”, there was no mention of Shogun.
GUYS, THERE IS ONLY ONE ELITE 205 LB FIGHTER NOT SCHEDULED TO FIGHT, AND HIS NAME, IS DAN HENDERSON!!!!!![/quote]
Yeah Henderson seems to be the only logical possibility, especially since he didnt take much of a beating against Silva, and he hasnt suffered any serious injuries. It would be great if Hendo steps up and saves this event because I have always wanted to see Chuck vs. Hendo!
I feel bed for Shogun, luckily he is still very young and is a determined fighter, I know he will be back, just sucks I am going to have to wait longer to see it.
Wilson Gouevia also told Chuck to watchout before he fought Carmello. So that could be an interesting contest.
[quote comment=”344727″]Guys it is Thiago Silva vs. Rashad Evans, so cross them both off your list please.
I would love to see Brandon Vera drop the Fabricio fight and drop down to 205 and fight Liddell.
Wilson Gouevia is a tough dude, he knocked out Jason Lambert with a mean hook, and it would be a very tough fight, a lot more than people think.
Thats all I can see right now.[/quote]
I am pretty sure that Gouevia is already booked.
Maybe he should fight Babalu again… He wouldn’t mind trying to avenge 2 losses but Chuck would just walk right thru him for a 3rd time.
[quote comment=”344624″]This would be a great time for the UFC to sign Arona and have him fight chuck. No bigger name for chuck to fight who is not already scheduled to fight someone else (or litle nog).[/quote]
Linx: Rogerio Nog would make for a great opponent and the UFC could market it easily. Rogerio is the twin brother of the UFC Heavyweight champion that stopped Big Tim…..Nuff Said!
Arona wouldnt be a bad idea either, but if I had my choice, I would go with Nogueira.
[quote comment=”344730″]He should call up Brian McNamee to get him hooked up with some HGH. The guys can’t cut it without the juice. Shogun is Cro Cop part 2.[/quote]
does shogun have the body of a juicer,you should not make those kind of statements with out some facts behind them.
Booked for UFN 13 on April 2nd
Matt Hamill, Tim Boetcsh, Houston Alexander, James Irvin
Booked for UFC 84 on May 24th
Tito Ortiz, Lyoto Machida, Keith Jardine, Wanderlei Silva, Rashad Evans, Thiago Silva, Wilson Gouveia, Goran Reljic
Hendo won’t come back up to 205
Franklin fights a UFC 83
Vera fights at UFC 85
None of these guys should be mentioned in a fight with Liddell so be creative and come up with a fighter not on this list and maybe you can be taken seriously.
[quote comment=”344761″][quote comment=”344624″]This would be a great time for the UFC to sign Arona and have him fight chuck. No bigger name for chuck to fight who is not already scheduled to fight someone else (or litle nog).[/quote]
Linx: Rogerio Nog would make for a great opponent and the UFC could market it easily. Rogerio is the twin brother of the UFC Heavyweight champion that stopped Big Tim…..Nuff Said!
Arona wouldnt be a bad idea either, but if I had my choice, I would go with Nogueira.[/quote]
the only problem with lil’ nog is that I am 99% sure he is signed with another organization. But I really want to see Arona back in action, he is a tough dude that no one is signing… I just don’t understand why.