It looks like fight fans will have to wait a while longer to see newly crowned light-heavyweight champion Mauricio 'Shogun' Rua defend his title against Rashad Evans. Dana White confirmed the news yesterday that Rua has, indeed, undergone his third knee surgery in as many years.
Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua Undergoes Third Knee Surgery, Title Fight With Rashad Evans Put On Hold
“He had the surgery in L.A. He’s gonna do all his therapy in Vegas. So he’s gonna be in Vegas for the next five weeks. He needed (surgery) after the fight. He got hurt in the fight.”
It is still unclear whether or not this was a routine scope, or something more serious like another ACL tear. There have been varying reports about the severity of the injury, and while some are claiming the injury occurred during his title fight with Machida, others are saying this is an older injury. It seems unlikely he would have stepped into the Octagon injured against Machida, knowing another loss to ‘the Dragon’ would all but eliminate another shot at the champ, but who knows.
This isn’t the first time Rua has struggled with his knees, having faced Forrest Griffen with a ruptured ACL at UFC 76. After having surgery to repair that injury, he was forced to withdraw from his scheduled fight with Chuck Liddell at UFC 85, again, having knee surgery.
Rua was slated to take on Rashad Evans later this year, with Evans walking away from his recent scrap with Rampage Jackson injury free. I don’t expect to see this fight happen for awhile, but we’ll know more as the story develops.
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