It looks like UFC 125 is going to need a new co-main event. Shane Carwin announced on his official website today that he is pulling out of his fight against Roy Nelson due to a back injury.
I am going to pull out of the fight with Roy Nelson. As many of you know I have been having some back pain. I had an MRI yesterday and I have some damage that may really require surgery. If the doctors do not have to perform surgery then I will be out 8-12 weeks. If they do have to perform surgery I do not know how long I will be out of action.
I was really looking forward to fighting again and obviously this is a very disappointing turn of events. My manager said “You can’t fight the best fighters in the world with just heart, it is time to stop limping to the top of the mountain and get healthy so you can climb it on your terms.” I have been up all night thinking about this decision and what I may be missing by making it.
In the end my family and manager are right. I owe myself, I owe my fans the best show I can give them. I need to get healthy. I am going to be speaking with the surgeon this week about the surgery. My thoughts are if the surgery fixes it why add 8-12 weeks of physical therapy, epidurals and traction if surgery may still be needed.
The good news is the doctors said I can work on my cardio (they must have seen my last fight lol) with this injury.
Bummer. The question now is, will Roy Nelson still fight at UFC 125? He was seemingly rushing back from knee surgery as it was. This turn of events certainly gives him a good excuse to rest that knee for a while longer. But if not and Nelson is going to stay on the card, everyone seems to think Frank Mir would be the perfect replacement for Carwin. I can’t argue with that.
Image via Esther Lin for MMA Fighting
Update: Roy Nelson stirring the pot.
Just woke up some one told me about shane not going to past the drug test, or he was scared to fight because of my bad knee, bad hair, bad attitude.
He was just kidding of course.
Shane pullout due to injury, I was joking with the other stuff, because he hurts my feelings when he is mean then nice, then mean about roy nelson
Cro Cop would be interested in fighting Nelson if the UFC calls.
“I know nothing about it, this is the first I heard of it. But it would be an interesting fight for sure,“ he told Fighters Only earlier. “I think Roy’s style matches very well with mine, we could have a good fight. I didn’t hear anything from the UFC yet, but lets see if they call me.”
Update 2: Shane Carwin’s manager Jason Genet confirms Carwin will have back surgery on November 2, but doesn’t know when he’ll return.
According to Carwin’s manager Jason Genet, the 35-year-old has been suffering through the injuries for years, working through them with physical therapy and pain medication. But the injury has gotten progressively worse until a few days ago, one of Carwin’s arms went numb down to the elbow, necessitating a visit to the doctor.
After examination, Carwin (12-1) was told that even without surgery, he would be out a minimum of 8-12 weeks but was advised that an operation would be the recommended long-term remedy. Genet would not disclose the exact procedure Carwin would undergo, only saying it would address both back and neck injuries.
“We’re trying to avoid spending 12 weeks with rehabilitation, traction, pain pills and epidurals, only to end up getting surgery anyway,” Genet said.
His surgery is set for Nov. 2, but a return timetable is yet unknown for the star.
