MMA News & Rumors

A knee injury has forced welterweight Thiago Alves to pull out of his scheduled bout against Jon Fitch at UFC 107. FanHouse learned of the news Friday morning. (Fanhouse)

“I just think right now in Strikeforce, they have more names at middleweight, so I decided to stick there,” Shields told MMAWeekly.com. “I’m certainly willing to go 170, but they don’t have any big names to offer me. (MMA Weekly)

"I am a big fan of Ricky Hatton," said Couture. "He is a fantastic fighter. I could get him up to speed on the ground wrestling part of it, while he could take advantage of his boxing talent. (Manchester Evening News)

"I think it's a great style for me. It's a great matchup. I eat Jiu Jitsu guys for breakfast a lot of times. He's tough and he's got really good Jiu Jitsu and good standup. He's a well-rounded fighter, but I have fought 2 and 3-time Jiu Jitsu world champion guys man. And I'm a grappler myself so I really have some surprises for him. I have a tremendous respect for Dustin as an opponent...I should be able to overpower him, beat on him a little bit and catch him in submissions myself. Dustin is not going to do anything that I've never seen before. He's not going to throw anything my way that I've never seen. He's good off of his back and a good Jiu Jitsu guy, but that's all he is," (FightHype)

"I'm preparing for the best Karo that we've seen. In his last fight against Kim, his biggest thing had always been his conditioning was weak, but his grappling was always good and he is really strong. But his conditioning and endurance had always been his weak point and in his fight with Kim, he didn't look like he had got as tired as he normally does, so I think he's taking it more seriously now...I would imagine that he would try to throw me at some point and take me to the ground and not be afraid or tentative or anything else. That's kind of what I'm looking forward to because he is a really good grappler who has never been submitted before and I like a challenge. I'm really excited about this fight. I think it's going to be a really good fight," (FightHype)

MMAWeekly.com sources on Thursday confirmed that Faber would return at WEC 46 on Jan. 10 to face fellow featherweight contender Raphael Assuncao. They have verbally agreed to fight when the promotion returns to Faber’s backyard of Sacramento, Calif., at the ARCO Arena. (MMA Weekly)

This is great news and another TheGARV.com exclusive. Sources close to the fight advise me that Mike Massenzio, who has been healing up some injuries, will be taking on Tim Creduer at UFN 20 on January 11. Mike almost choked out CB Dollaway in his last fight at UFC 92 last December. Mike was injured going into that fight, and now he’s had a year to heal up. When he’s 100 percent, the UFC 185 pound division better watch out! (The Garv)

I think I was misunderstood in a quote about fighting for the belt.... My whole purpose to coming back to the UFC is to win the belt! (Twitter)

"It's pretty clear that we won't see her until second quarter of next year, and probably late second quarter," Coker said. "Probably towards the summertime. That's when we're expecting her back." (Fanhouse)

He says the problems crippled him in his athletic career and personal life for almost six years, but that after two weeks of taking new medication, he felt revitalized. Finally clear-headed, he decided to leave his longtime surroundings in Iowa and move to Nampa, Idaho, where he is currently building a training center to be called Driven Training Facility. (He also owns a Driven clothing line). (Fanhouse)

Determined to provide excitement for the fans no matter what, Wanderlei Silva is the man Kelly is modelling himself on. “He’s never going to be out of a job is he?” Kelly says of the Brazilian legend. “He is always exciting no matter what, and that’s what I want to do. As long as the fans are happy, I am happy. Every time I go out there I am looking for the Fight of the Night bonus.” (Fighters Only)

UFC lightweight Kurt Pellegrino (14-4 MMA, 6-3 UFC) is the latest victim, and an injured knee has forced "Batman" out of his scheduled contest with Frankie Edgar (10-1 MMA, 5-1 UFC) at The Ultimate Fighter 10 Finale. (MMA Junkie)

Stepping in for Pellegrino is the H.I.T. Squad's Matt Veach, who was scheduled to take on jiu-jitsu specialist Mark Bocek on the main card of the event. Bout agreements have yet to be signed, though both fighters have agreed to the fight. (MMA Weekly)

"I am thrilled and honored to sign with the WEC," Mendes said. "The WEC has the best featherweights in the world, and I am excited to have the opportunity to compete with these fighters. I intend to make my mark in the division and I believe the fans will enjoy my style of fighting." (MMA Junkie)

MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) has learned from sources close to the event that Palaszewski has signed on to face Roufusport slugger Anthony Pettis (7-0 MMA, 1-0 WEC) at the event. (MMA Junkie)