UFC 176, scheduled for Aug. 2 at Staples Center in Los Angeles has been cancelled, promotion officials announced on Tuesday. UFC officials also confirmed the cancellation with SportsWorldNews.com.
The decision comes one week after featherweight champion Jose Aldo withdrew from his title defense against top contender Chad Mendes due to a neck injury. Aldo-Mendes II, which was slated the headline the event, has been postponed.
UFC has not yet determined a date for that bout. But early indications are that promotion officials are targeting a date in October for the rematch.
"I think [Aldo-Mendes] will be in October, but we're not going to know probably for about two weeks what the status of Jose is," UFC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta told Yahoo! Sports. "Basically, doctors told him no contact and no training for three weeks, and we're one week into that. We'll regroup in a couple of weeks and we'll have some news at that point."
Lorenzo Fertitta: Interim title bout a possibility if Jose Aldo can't be medically cleared by October https://t.co/rYw95HCmbK
— Shaun Al-Shatti (@shaunalshatti) July 9, 2014
This isn't the first time an injury has forced Aldo to pull out of a title bout. He was forced to withdraw from UFC 153 when a car hit the motorcycle he was riding. Aldo injured his foot in the incident.
He would eventually put his title on the line against former lightweight champion Frankie Edgar at UFC 156 in February 2013. Aldo defeated Edgar by unanimous decision.
When Aldo and Mendes do meet, it will be their second appearance together inside the Octagon. In their first title showdown, Aldo made quick work of Mendes - registering a first-round knockout at UFC 142 in January 2012.
Aldo, who is the No. 2-ranked pound-for-pound mixed martial artist by SportsWordlNews.com, has a professional record of 24-1. He hasn't lost a fight since November 2005.
Mendes [16-1] has won in a row since his setback to Aldo.
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