Ben Rothwell
UFC heavyweight ‘Big’ Ben Rothwell (32-8) has reportedly suffered an ankle injury forcing him off the upcoming UFC on FOX 4 card versus undefeated fighter Travis Browne (13-0-1).
MMAFighting.com passed on news of Rothwell’s injury on Wednesday afternoon, noting that former Strikeforce fighter Devin Cole (20-9-1) had been offered the opportunity to step in on short notice versus Browne. No news yet on whether Cole’s camp has accepted the fight or not at time of writing.
UFC on Fox: Shogun vs. Vera is expected to take place on August 4, 2012 at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California.
Browne is so far undefeated in his pro-career, going 4-1 in the Octagon since debuting in June 2010 at the TUF 11 Finale. The Hawaiian born fighter most recently earned a “Submission of the Night” victory at UFC 145 last April, after welcoming another former Strikeforce fighter to the UFC. Browne used an arm-triangle choke to tap-out Chad Griggs at the Atlanta, Georgia event.
Cole has yet to make his Octagon debut, having gone 2-1 with Strikeforce with back-to-back victories in his two previous matches. The Oregon fighter won decisions in both those fights, defeating Gabriel Salinas-Jones at the Melendez vs. Masvidal event last December, and versus Shawn Jordan at a Strikeforce Challengers event one year ago.