Josh Koscheck out of fight with Paul Daley at Bellator 158
It's the rivalry rematch that just can't come together.
Josh Koscheck is injured and out of his fight with Paul Daley at Bellator 158 on July 16 in London, MMA Fighting confirmed with Bellator officials Monday. Daley will now face former Bellator welterweight champion Douglas Lima instead. ESPN was the first to report the news.
Koscheck and Daley were supposed to fight on the same card in January in Koscheck's adopted hometown of Fresno, Calif., to set up a future bout. Koscheck was slated to face Matt Secor in the main event of his Bellator debut, but got injured in training and had to withdraw. Daley took over the main event spot, defeating Andy Uhrich. Afterward, Daley slammed Koscheck in the post-fight interview.
Koscheck (17-10) beat Daley at UFC 113 in 2010 after a very heated lead-up to that fight. Koscheck took Daley down early and often and trash talked Daley while he was on top of him. After the fight, Daley took a swing at Koscheck, prompting the UFC to cut Daley and ban him from the promotion. Koscheck, 38, signed with Bellator last year after losing five straight in the UFC.
Daley (38-13-2), on the other hand, has been on a roll. The Brit has won five in a row, not including a win over Fernando Gonzalez in a kickboxing match at Bellator MMA: Dynamite 1 last September. Daley, 33, has not lost an MMA fight since 2013 and is a top contender for the Bellator welterweight title.
Lima (26-6) held that very belt until falling to Andrey Koreshkov in July 2015. The Brazilian kickboxer won five in a row heading into that bout. Lima, 28, was supposed to face Chidi Njokuani at Bellator 156 on June 17, but now Bellator will seek a new opponent for Njokuani, per officials.
Kimbo Slice was set to rematch James Thompson in the main event of Bellator 158, but Slice, whose real name is Kevin Ferguson, died Monday.