UPDATED: UFC star Chuck Liddell is injured and will not be able to participate in UFC 85 on June 7 in London. The news was first reported by MMARated.com and has since been confirmed on UFC's official web site. Liddell's inability to fight is a major blow to UFC. There's no other fighter they could put in the main event against Rashad Evans and still justify selling the fairly weak UFC 85 card. The UFC 85 main event has already been changed once, as Liddell was previously slated to fight Mauricio "Shogun" Rua before Rua pulled out with an injury. From UFC.com:
"Unfortunately, Chuck Liddell tore his right hamstring during training last week, and being the warrior that he is, he still wanted to fight, which is the reason why everyone in the world loves him," said Dana White, UFC President. "But I wouldn't let anyone fight with his leg looking that way. Let him heal and come back and fight when he is 100 percent."White vows that he will add more fights to the UFC 85 card and that the show will go on in London.
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Choi Hong-man (L), a mixed martial arts fighter, arrives at an army training camp for recruits in Wonju, about 80 km (50 miles) east of Seoul, April 21, 2008. Former traditional Korean wrestling champion Choi, now a K1 fighter in Japan, entered the training camp for his mandatory military service, local media reported. REUTERS/Lee Sang-hak/Yonhap (SOUTH KOREA). NO SALES. NO ARCHIVES. SOUTH KOREA OUT. NO COMMERCIAL OR EDITORIAL SALES IN SOUTH KOREA.
Reuters
Choi Hong-man, a mixed martial arts fighter, waves to the media upon arrival at an army training camp for recruits in Wonju, about 80 km (50 miles) east of Seoul, April 21, 2008. Former traditional Korean wrestling champion Choi, now a K1 fighter in Japan, entered the training camp for his mandatory military service, local media reported. REUTERS/Lee Sang-hak/Yonhap (SOUTH KOREA). NO SALES. NO ARCHIVES. SOUTH KOREA OUT. NO COMMERCIAL OR EDITORIAL SALES IN SOUTH KOREA.
Reuters
Georges St-Pierre, from Montreal, celebrates after defeating Matt Serra, from Long Island, NY, during their Ultimate Fight Championships Welterweight title fight in Montreal, Saturday April 19, 2008. St-Pierre won the match with a second round TKO. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Ryan Remiorz)
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Georges St-Pierre, from Montreal, celebrates after defeating Matt Serra, from Long Island, NY, during their Ultimate Fight Championships Welterweight title fight in Montreal, Saturday April 19, 2008. St-Pierre won the match with a second round TKO. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Ryan Remiorz)
AP
** EDS NOTE GRAPHIC CONTENT ** Mark Bocek, of Canada, takes a right from Mac Danzig, from Cleveland, during their lightweight Ultimate Fight Championships middleweight fight in Montreal, Saturday April 19, 2008. Danzig won the fight on a third round tap-out. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Ryan Remiorz)
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Ultimate fighter Matt Serra gestures at the weigh-in on Friday, April 18, 2008, in Montreal. Serra will fight Georges St. Pierre on Saturday at UFC 83. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Peter McCabe)
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Ultimate fighters Mac Danzig, left, and Mark Bocek pose during a weigh-in, Friday, April 18, 2008, in Montreal, for their Saturday UFC 83 ultimate fighting bout. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Peter McCabe)
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Ultimate fighter Mark Bocek poses during his weigh-in Friday, April 18, 2008, in Montreal. Bocek will face Mac Danzig on Saturday at UFC 83. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Peter McCabe)
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Ultimate fighters Matt Serra, left, and Georges St. Pierre attend a pre-fight news conference in Montreal, Thursday, April 17, 2008. St. Pierre takes on champion Serra for the welterweight title in the main event of UFC 83 on Saturday, in Montreal. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Peter McCabe)
AP
Ultimate Fighting champion and cast member Randy Couture arrives for the premiere of the Sony Pictures Classics film "Redbelt," at the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood, California on April 7, 2008. The film, written and directed by David Mamet, opens in the US on May 9. AFP PHOTO / ROBYN BECK (Photo credit should read ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images)
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