Get this one: An injury has compromised a major upcoming UFC title fight. Luckily, this time there were plenty of other deserving challengers waiting in the wings.
UFC president Dana White tweeted minutes ago that Anthony Pettis injured his knee and is out of the headlining UFC 163 bout against featherweight champ Jose Aldo.
Filling in for him will be Chan-Sung Jung, better known by his nickname, “The Korean Zombie.”
Pettis hurt his knee, Korean Zombie will now face Jose Aldo for the title on the Aug card in Rio Brazil.
— Dana White (@danawhite) June 14, 2013
Pettis, the last reigning WEC lightweight champ, was announced to fight “Scarface” in February, after he texted White indicating that he’d prefer dropping down a weight class instead of waiting for a shot at 155 pounds (via MMA Junkie).
“Showtime” had his UFC debut spoiled by Clay Guida in June of 2011 but has since rattled off three straight wins against Jeremy Stephens, Joe Lauzon and Donald Cerrone.
Coincidentally, Jung recently told BJPenn.com that Pettis “cut in line” and should have to earn a shot at the featherweight title like everyone else.
The Korean Zombie is a big fan favorite, riding a ton of momentum after earning four “Fight Night” bonuses in three bouts between March 2011 and May 2012.
Jung earned “Submission of the Night” honors for submitting Leonard Garcia with a twister at UFC Fight Night 24, the first fighter in UFC history to execute the spine/neck crank hold.
He then earned the “Knockout of the Night” award for knocking out former title challenger Mark Hominick in just seven seconds at UFC 140, before earning both “Fight of the Night” and “Submission of the Night” bonuses against Dustin Poirier at UFC on FUEL 3.
After 16 minutes of high-paced action, Jung tapped “The Diamond” with a D’arce choke early in the fourth round.
Jung had been on the shelf for a while following shoulder surgery but was set to return against fellow contender Ricardo Lamas at UFC 162 next month.
The UFC has not immediately announced if Lamas will still have an opponent for the July 6 pay-per-view event.
Will The Korean Zombie be able to pull off a major upset, or will Aldo add another highlight-reel finish to his impressive resume?
John Heinis is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also the MMA Editor for eDraft.com and contributes MMA videos to The Young Turks Sports Show.
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