Shane Carwin Accepts UFC 131 Slot, Proposed Roy Nelson Fight Off

Shane Carwin is on the mend, planning for his Octagon return. It appears that return will come at UFC 131 on June 11 in Vancouver, at least, according to Carwin.

Shane Carwin at the Grudge Training Center

Sitting on the sidelines due to back surgery, Carwin thought he would return at UFC 130 in May to rekindle a fight with Roy Nelson. The two were originally planning to fight at UFC 125 until Carwin’s back problems arose.

“So, last week, we got the call from Joe Silva asking if we would consider fighting Nelson at UFC 130. We accepted the match-up and UFC matchmaker Joe Silva said that it was 90-percent a go,” Carwin wrote on his website on Tuesday morning.

The UFC shifted gears overnight, however, and informed Carwin that the bout with Nelson was off the table. They still wanted to facilitate Carwin’s requested return fight in either May or June.

Nelson is expected to fight former UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir at UFC 130 on May 28 in Las Vegas.

“The next day we were informed that they went a different direction for Nelson and that they want me to fight someone at UFC 131 in Vancouver.  I have once again rapidly accepted the date,” he continued.

UFC 131 in Vancouver, as yet unannounced, is expected for June 11 at the Rogers Arena (formerly the General Motors Palace), according to a report by MMAJunkie.com.

“As of this blog no opponent has been mentioned,” said Carwin.

“I am training hard and working on fixing the issues I ran into during the (Brock) Lesnar fight.  I will be ready and I hope that I am indeed fighting in June in B.C.”

Ken Pishna is the managing editor of MMAWeekly.com.
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