Diego Sanchez (23-4 MMA, 12-4 UFC) has been forced to withdraw from a planned UFC 135 co-headlining matchup with Matt Hughes (45-8 MMA, 18-6 UFC).
UFC president Dana White today announced the move via Twitter.
"Diego Sanchez broke his hand," White wrote. "Looking for a replacement for Hughes."
UFC 135 takes place Sept. 24 at Denver's Pepsi Center. A title fight between light-heavyweight champion Jon Jones and Quinton "Rampage" Jackson headlines the pay-per-view main card.
A timeframe for Sanchez's return to action wasn't announced.
Earlier this year, Sanchez picked up his second straight win with a close but highly competitive unanimous-decision victory over Martin Kampmann at March's UFC on Versus 3 event. "The Ultimate Fighter 1" middleweight winner and recent lightweight competitor returned to his more natural welterweight division in 2010 and suffered an uninspired decision loss to John Hathaway. However, he's since rebounded with wins over Paulo Thiago and Kampmann that both earned "Fight of the Night" awards.
Meanwhile, Hughes hasn't fought since November 2010, when he suffered a quick, 21-second knockout to B.J. Penn. Hughes, who long had been considered the best welterweight in MMA history, briefly contemplated retirement in 2008 following back-to-back losses to Georges St-Pierre and Alves. However, while fighting only occasionally, the UFC Hall of Famer had put together a three-fight win streak with wins victories Matt Serra, Renzo Gracie and Ricardo Almeida before the recent Penn loss.
Source: Broken hand forces Diego Sanchez out of UFC 135