A heavyweight bout between Fabricio Werdum and Ben Rothwell, which was scheduled to co-headline UFC 203 next month, has been scrapped.
Ben Rothwell is out of his pivotal UFC 203 matchup against former heavyweight champion Fabricio Werdum due to an injury, MMAjunkie.com reported Thursday. UFC officials have not confirmed the news at this time.
Rothwell suffered a knee injury — possibly a torn meniscus, as well as an ACL injury — per the report.
The UFC is currently seeking a replacement to fight Werdum on short notice.
Rothwell (36-10) lost a decision to ex-titleholder Junior dos Santos this past April. The loss snapped an impressive four-fight winning streak, which included a pair of submission victories over Josh Barnett and Matt Mitrione, and an upset knockout over future title challenger Alistair Overeem.
Werdum (20-6-1) lost the heavyweight championship to Stipe Miocic via first-round knockout at UFC 198 this past May. Prior to that, he won UFC gold with a shocking submission over Cain Velasquez last year.
Rothwell vs. Werdum was set to co-headline UFC 203.
UFC 203 takes place live from Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland on Sept. 10. In the main event, champ Miocic defends his belt for the first time against the aforementioned Overeem.