Report: Luke Rockhold Injured, Out of Jan. 12 Strikeforce Title Defense vs. Lorenz Larkin

According to a report from the MMA Corner, middleweight champion Luke Rockhold has suffered a wrist injury and will not defend his belt against Lorenz Larkin in Oklahoma City. Promotion officials have not yet confirmed that Rockhold is off the card. Rockhold was originally scheduled to fight Larkin on Nov. 3, but a hand injury forced him off that card, as well. Eventually the entire event would be canceled.

Earlier this month, a lightweight title bout between Gilbert Melendez and Pat Healy was removed from the Jan. 12 card due to lingering shoulder issues for “El Nino.” As of now, only one championship bout -- a 170-pound clash between Nate Marquardt and Tarec Saffiedine -- remains for what is expected to be Strikeforce’s final event.

The 27-year-old Rockhold has spent most of his career under the Strikeforce banner, posting a 9-0 mark in the promotion’s hexagonal cage and capturing the 185-pound belt with a five-round verdict over Ronaldo Souza in 2011. The American Kickboxing Academy product has successfully defended his crown twice this year, scoring a first-round stoppage of Keith Jardine in January before earning a hard-fought unanimous decision against Tim Kennedy in July.