Breaking MMA News

UFC 146 Fight Card: Mark Hunt Out of UFC 146 With Injury


[ Source: Bryan Tucker] 2012-05-17T22:04:20Z


Mark Hunt will not return to the Octagon at UFC 146. The Aussie will be replaced on the UFC 146 fight card by Lavar Johnson, who will face Steven Struve less than two weeks after his last performance at UFC on FOX 3. Find out why Hunt had to drop out and Johnson's thoughts on why he took the fight below.

Mark Hunt has been forced to pull out of his UFC 146 fight against Stefan Struve due to a knee injury, MMA Fighting has learned from sources close to the fight. As a result, Struve will now face Lavar Johnson on less than two week's notice.

Johnson last fought just 12 days ago at UFC on FOX 3. He knocked out Pat Barry in the first round of their main card fight.

Hunt, a winner in his last three fights, has enjoyed a career renaissance in the UFC, so much so that there was a strong online movement to get him to replace Alistair Overeem against Junior dos Santos in the UFC 146 main event. As fate would have it, neither Overeem or Hunt will end up fighting on the card after all.

Both Struve and Johnson enter the fighting riding two-fight winnings streaks.

UFC 146, headlined by dos Santos vs. Frank Mir, airs live on pay-per-view on May 26.

UPDATE: UFC has confirmed the news.

Lavar Johnson Talks Stefan Struve: 'You Just Have to Put Him to Sleep'


[ Source: Ben Fowlkes] 2012-05-17T21:38:52Z


Like a lot of fighters, Lavar Johnson usually likes to take a little time to celebrate a win. Nothing major. Just good, decadent food, maybe some adult beverages, and a few days away from the gym to relax and unwind. But after his TKO win over Pat Barry at the UFC on FOX 3 earlier this month, he didn’t celebrate in the typical way. When the UFC called him on Wednesday to ask how he felt about stepping in for an injured Mark Hunt and facing Stefan Struve at UFC 146 next Saturday night, that decision suddenly seemed like a great one.

"Usually I’ll go barbeque, drink some beer and celebrate, but I didn’t even do that this time," Johnson told MMA Fighting. "I’m at a high level right now and I knew I needed to stay on my game. That’s what I’m doing. I’m jumping right back in there and I’m ready to go."

With Hunt sidelined by a knee injury, Johnson now gets a chance to rack up two UFC victories in one month. All he has to do is beat a 6’11" Dutch heavyweight on a week and a half’s notice. It’s the kind of offer that few could have blamed him for turning down, but Johnson described it as an easy decision.

"This is what I get paid to do," he said. "This is what we all do. We train to fight. If I didn’t think I could beat Stefan Struve or anybody else then I wouldn’t be fighting in the UFC, period. I would find a different profession. I’ve got confidence in myself and I think I match up with him good."

At the same time, even Johnson admitted to a little initial concern at the thought of fighting an opponent who’s nearly seven feet tall. There’s almost no time to find a sparring partner who can mimic his height and reach, and even if there were time there still aren’t too many seven-footers hanging out in most fight gyms.

But Johnson said he’s "not really worried" about Struve’s reach (84 inches -- Johnson has it memorized already) or his height, because, as he explained, "I don’t think he really uses his reach, his height. He doesn’t utilize all that. I think I’m faster than him and I hit harder than him, and I’m going to get to him first."

If he does, his bank account will thank him. Johnson has matching Knockout of the Night bonuses from his only two UFC fights so far, and though he’s saving most of the money, he did permit himself the purchase of a new car -- a Chevy Silverado Z71, he said, "four-door, lifted, the whole nine."

At the same time, stepping in on such short notice against an experienced fighter like Struve is far from easy money. While Johnson said he’s injury-free after the Barry fight, he’s watched enough of Struve’s fights to know he has a tough night of work ahead of him.

"You just have to put him to sleep," Johnson said. "That’s the only way to beat him. He’s not going to quit, so I have to hit him on the chin and hit him a bunch of times and put him out."

The MMA (After) Hour: 'Gutted' Mark Hunt Discusses Pulling Out of UFC 146


[ Source: Ariel Helwani] 2012-05-17T21:27:45Z


On this breaking news edition of The MMA (After) Hour we spoke to Mark Hunt, who explained why he was forced to pull out of UFC 146. Hunt talked about the injury, having to pull out of a fight due to an injury for the first time in his career and when he expects to return.

Listen to the interview below or download the audio here.