Anthony Pettis out of UFC title defense with injured knee
New UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis will have to wait a bit longer than he expected to make the first defense of his title. According to a report on Fox Sports Live Sunday night, Pettis has once again injured a knee and will not fight Josh Thomson at UFC on Fox 9 Dec. 14 as previously scheduled.
The new main event for UFC on Fox 9 will be the flyweight title bout between Demetrious Johnson and Joseph Benavidez that was previously scheduled to headline the Ultimate Fighter 18 Finale card. That Nov. 30 card will now be headlined by Nate Diaz vs. Gray Maynard III.
The two lightweights first fought in an exhibition fight during the fifth season of The Ultimate Fighter and once again in 2010. Diaz won the first fight and Maynard won the second by split decision.
There is no official word yet on how long Pettis will be unable to fight. Pettis won the UFC lightweight strap last August with a first round submission of Benson Henderson.
Thomson last fought and won last April with a second round TKO over Diaz. We will keep you posted with updates on these stories as they happen.
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