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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
UFC 133 has lost another top matchup, as Tatame.com reported on Saturday that Antonio Rogerio Nogueira has suffered a shoulder injury in training and is out of his bout against Rich Franklin on the card.
The UFC is seeking out a replacement opponent to meet Franklin on the card, but thus far have not found one on short notice. The fight was reportedly offered to Fabio Maldonado, but he turned it down because of lack of preparation time.
It's the fifth fight on this card that has been affected by injury, and comes just shortly after the main event was changed due to an injury to Phil Davis.
If Franklin stays on the card, he'll attempt to rebound from a February loss to Forrest Griffin at UFC 126.
UFC 133 is headlined by a light heavyweight rematch between Rashad Evans and Tito Ortiz, and takes place from the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Penn. on August 6.
Penick's Analysis: That's an unfortunate loss to the card, and with even less preparation time now for a replacement it's going to be tough to keep Franklin on the card. He's a former champion and while he just lost his last fight, he's always competitive and is a very dangerous opponent for a lot of fighters in the division. It'd be great to see him stay on the card, but it may not be workable this close to the fight if they don't have anyone available for it.
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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