Matt Serra Pulls Out Of Fight With Hughes

Current UFC Welterweight champion Matt "The Terra" Serra pulled out of fight with former two time champion Matt Hughes due to a herniated disk in his back. The injury will postpone a fight that got alot of hype from the Ultimate Fighter Reality series, that Hughes and Serra both coached.

Serra is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu blackbelt under Renzo Gracie and took the UFC title as a serious underdog going into his fight with Georges St. Pierre.

To get the title shot, Serra won the Ultimate Fighter 4, and his ability to capitalize on it has made him a cult icon, a figure of speech and a reference point for any fighter going in as a serious underdog.

Matt Hughes will still fight on the card, though who he will fight is unclear. Jon Fitch has announced that he will not be fighting Hughes, as he will be in Vietnam. The possibility of Hughes fighting Thiago Alves has been brought up, but Alves fought only a few weeks ago at UFC 78, which will make it very difficult for him to get cleared by the gaming commission to fight. Still, it is possible.

The other possibility that has been brought up is that of a third match between St. Pierre and Hughes. It would be a final match, and many were hoping that, like the first two, the final match would in some way involve an undisputed title, not just the possibility of an interim crown.

The UFC 79 card thus far seems to be pretty good, with lightheavyweight main card bouts including the long anticipated fight between Chuck "The Iceman" Liddell and Wanderlei "The Axe Murderer" Silva along with the anticipated debut of phenomenon Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou, when he will fight undefeated Lyoto Machida.

As far as the card right now, a title bout would make it a very interesting card. The possibility of a heavyweight title fight is unlikely this late in the game, but it is a possibility, given how long it has been since champion Randy Couture and contender Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira have fought. Still, that bout looks like it's pending for the spring.

Even without Serra, the card will maintain some dignity with the 205 pound matchups and the possibility of Hughes fighting anyway.

Hopefully Serra will recover quickly so that we can see the fight in the spring.