An injury to former UFC light heavyweight champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson has led to his removal from UFC 153. UFC President Dana White announced the news via Twitter on Tuesday afternoon.
“Rampage is hurt and out of UFC 153 RIO. SUCKS!!!!!!” White posted.
MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani confirmed the injury is to Jackson’s elbow. White was unsure how long he would be out.
Jackson (32-10) was scheduled to face burgeoning Brazilian contender Glover Teixeira (18-2) in UFC 153’s co-main event. According to Teixeira’s trainer, John Hackleman, UFC officials are presently working to find a replacement opponent to keep Teixeira on the card.
The injury is yet another blow to an already unlucky year for Jackson. The 34-year-old has fought just once in 2012, falling short in a listless and disappointing upset loss to Ryan Bader at UFC 144.
After a public dispute with UFC officials, Jackson was tentatively scheduled to rematch Mauricio “Shogun” Rua for his final fight under the Zuffa banner, however any plans fell by the wayside when Jackson elected to have double knee surgery in March.