Takanori Gomi (30-5) will not be facing Brett Copper (9-4) at "Affliction: Trilogy" on August 1.
MMA Weekly reported early Thursday morning that the 165-pound catchweight bout was close to being finalized, but Affliction Entertainment VP, Tom Atencio, told FanHouse on Thursday that after brief consideration, the fight is not happening.
Atencio said that Gomi, who usually fights at 155 pounds, does not want to fight at a higher weight class. Meanwhile, Cooper, who usually fights at 170 pounds, was willing to meet Gomi at 165 pounds. And who can blame him? A win over Gomi would be the biggest win of his young career. Atencio added that the fight was never even close to being finalized.
Atencio said that he is still looking to book one more high-profile fight for the upcoming pay-per-view portion of the card. He did not rule out the possibility of Gomi competing on the card against another opponent.
Last month, Gomi rebounded from a two-fight losing streak to defeat Takashi Nakakura via knockout at the Shooto 20th anniversary show (video of the finish above). Once considered to be the best lightweight fighter in the world, Gomi last fought in the United States at PRIDE 33 in 2007 against Nick Diaz. Gomi lost that fight via gogoplata, but the result was later changed to a "no contest" after Diaz failed a post-fight drug test.
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