Jake Ellenberger vs. Carlos Eduardo Rocha On Tap For UFC 126

Jake Ellenberger

Jake Ellenberger found out recently he won’t be fighting Jon Fitch at UFC 126, but he will still get to fight on the Super Bowl weekend card. Brazilian Carlos Eduardo Rocha has been tapped for the Feb. 5 bout.

The fight was confirmed to MMAWeekly.com by sources close to the negotiations on Tuesday. MMAJunkie.com initially reported the fight.

Ellenberger (22-5) has unfortunately experienced the rug being pulled out from under him before in the UFC. He was scheduled to face Ben Saunders at UFC 111 in March. An injury forced Thiago Alves out of his scheduled fight against Jon Fitch on the same card, so Saunders was slotted in to face Fight, leaving Ellenberger without a fight.

This situation is obviously nowhere near as sudden. Ellenberger will have plenty of time to switch his strategy and preparation from Fitch to Rocha.

Looking to keep his unblemished record intact come February will be Brazilian import Carlos Eduardo Rocha (9-0), making his second appearance inside the Octagon. Rocha made his debut at UFC 122 in Germany, submitting former “Ultimate Fighter” finalist Kris McCray in the first round.

The fight between Ellenberger and Rocha is expected to make the main card of the UFC 126 show slated for Super Bowl weekend. The event will be headlined by middleweight champion Anderson Silva defending his belt against Vitor Belfort.