Rashad Evans has yet to be officially informed that his UFC 107 main-event matchup with Quinton "Rampage" Jackson has been scrapped, according to his manager, Jervis Cole. FanHouse contacted Cole on Saturday to find out whether the ex-UFC light-heavyweight champion had been informed of any change in scheduling. As of yesterday afternoon, he had not.
"Haven't heard anything yet," Cole wrote in a text message to FanHouse. "As far as we know the fight is still on. Until the UFC tells us something different, Rashad Evans starts training in mid-October."
UFC President Dana White had been out of the country on business, so perhaps that explains why Evans had not yet been told of any change in plans.
The other possibility is that reports of the postponement are premature. Several reports have stated that Jackson pulled out of the Dec. 12 main event after getting the role of B.A. Baracus in a film remake of "The A-Team."
Most evidence does point to Jackson being unavailable for the fight date. The film is being shot in Vancouver, and the hometown paper The Vancouver Sun reported on Saturday that Jackson was in town, and was preparing for filming.
The paper also reported that Jackson will be shooting the movie for the next six weeks. That would mean that if the film wrapped on schedule (and many big-budget films require re-shoots), his commitment would end in mid-to-late October. Such a scenario would leave Jackson about seven weeks left for a training camp for a bout that could likely determine the next No. 1 contender in the UFC's 205-pound division. Most fighters favor an eight-week camp.
UFC 107 is to take place in Jackson's hometown of Memphis, Tenn. Lightweight champion BJ Penn recently announced on his website that his next title defense against Diego Sanchez would come there, and could serve as a main event if Evans-Jackson is postponed.
Jackson-Evans is the centerpiece feud of the upcoming season of The Ultimate Fighter, which begins airing on Sept. 16 and runs through Dec. 2.
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