Chris Leben has declined to rematch Mike Swick at UFC Fight Night 11 on September 19, according to a recent MySpace rant from "Quick."
The former contestants on the first season of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) were penciled in to face off in either a middleweight or welterweight showdown — it didn't matter according to Swick — in the main event of the Spike television special.
It appears Swick accepted the fight, but Leben did not. Reasons behind the Leben decision are not clear at this time.
Here's a snip from Swick:
"After almost a week of waiting for an answer [Leben] declined the fight at any weight class. This absolutely baffled me. We figured he was pondering what weight he wanted to fight me at and he was really pondering taking the fight at all. Is this the same guy who says he will fight anyone, anywhere, anytime? The same guy that promised me a rematch on the second episode of the first season of the Ultimate Fighter? Why would he pass up a main event fight considering he is coming off 2 losses? Who gets opportunities like that then passes them up? I don't mean to rant on but I am so upset at the situation. He has a win over me from a long time ago and holds it over my head any chance he gets. I think it's absolutely cowardly to not give me a chance to avenge my loss. It's not like I am asking for an instant rematch, it's been over 3 years. If he's better than me then why not take the fight and show the world in a main event on Spike TV?"
With Leben seemingly no longer in the picture, four-fight UFC veteran Jonathan Goulet capitalized on the situation to call out Swick and return to the Octagon for the first time since a submission loss to Josh Koscheck in August 2006.
The Canadian, who trains with former welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre, has been busy ever since in smaller promotions such as TKO to work his way back in the Octagon, compiling a decent (3-1) record since his departure.
Goulet apparently left a message in an MMAWeekly.com forum thread, saying that Swick is "scared" to fight him.
Here's the snip:
"Wanted to fight Mike Swick to replace Leben at 170 for the UFC Fight Night in September, but he refused. Is he scared to go to sleep against me? I will beat his ass ..."
Not one to back down, Swick has verbally accepted the challenge from Goulet to fill-in for Leben. While it's not yet official, he seems like it's just up to the UFC execs to book the match up.
Here's another snip from Swick:
"... Jonathan Goulet started trash talking me on the internet saying I chickened out of a fight with him as my next opponent. This caught me completely off guard since I never even knew he was in the equation. Or the UFC for that matter. Apparently he had been trying to get the fight from the UFC. I guess I can't blame him, he is a very talented fighter who really wants to revamp his UFC career and a solid fight with me on Spike could do that, but what shocked me most was his blatant lie that I chickened out. Since the other opponents we were trying to get an agreement with fell through, why not fight Goulet? I mean he is a good fighter and at least has some juevos. So Jonathan Goulet, let's see if you can back up all that tough talk. Contract is in the mail, just sign the dotted line and let's give these fans what they...well, get for free on Spike TV!"
With the Swick-Leben bout now apparently scrapped, it's unclear if a Swick-Goulet 170-pound fight would headline the show from the The Palms Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Of course, the lightweight clash between Spencer Fisher and Din Thomas was already supposed to be a co-feature. It wouldn't surprise me if it ends the night, considering the latest developments.
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