Luke Rockhold vs. Ronaldo Souza 2 scratched, 'Jacare' rep asks for title shot

A middleweight headliner between ex-champ Luke Rockhold (15-3 MMA, 5-2 UFC) and Ronaldo Souza (23-4 MMA, 6-1 UFC) is off this month’s UFC Fight Night 101 with Rockhold reportedly injured.

The news was first reported by MMA Fighting, and MMAjunkie subsequently confirmed it with Souza’s manager, Gilberto Faria, as well as UFC officials.

UFC Fight Night 101 takes place Nov. 26 at Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The event’s main card airs on FS1 following early prelims on UFC Fight Pass, though the bout order hasn’t been finalized.

Faria said the UFC has not found a replacement for the bout yet, but added that “Jacare” is only interested in a fight with champ Michael Bisping (30-7 MMA, 20-7 UFC).

“That’s the only fight that makes sense,” the manager told MMAjunkie, though he was skeptical that the fight would be made.

After all, Bisping recently called out Nick Diaz (26-9 MMA, 7-6 UFC) for a middleweight showdown.

The cancelation marks the latest setback for Souza, who was first in line for a title shot when ex-champ Chris Weidman was forced to withdraw from a rematch with Rockhold in May at UFC 199. A knee injury and impending surgery forced the Brazilian to decline the fight, opening the door for Bisping, who went on to knock out Rockhold and claim the title.

Bisping subsequently infuriated top middleweights by lining up a rematch against Dan Henderson at this past month’s UFC 204. In a closely contested fight, he defended the belt by unanimous decision.

Rockhold, ranked No. 2 in the USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA middleweight rankings, pushed hard for an immediate rematch with No. 1 Bisping and then criticized the UFC over a contract renewal offer. He then accepted the fight with No. 5 Souza, which was to serve as a rematch five years after they met under the now-defunct Strikeforce. Rockhold claimed the Strikeforce middleweight title via unanimous decision.

Today’s shakeup is the second change to UFC Fight Night 101 after middleweight Dominique Steele (14-8 MMA, 1-3 UFC) was scratched from a fight with Kyle Noke (22-9-1 MMA, 6-5 UFC), who was subsequently booked opposite Omari Akhmedov (15-4 MMA, 3-3 UFC).

For more on UFC Fight Night 101, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.