March meeting between Mike Kyle-Gegard Mousasi removed from Strikeforce card

Embattled MMA promotion Strikeforce suffered another cruel blow this week when it was revealed a light heavyweight co-headliner featuring former champ Gegard Mousasi mixing it up with heavy-handed Mike Kyle had been scrapped from a March 3 Strikeforce event.

Kyle was apparently injured while training for the fight and unable to compete. The timing of his withdrawal apparently resulted in the organization determining a suitable replacement could not be found before the show.

News of the change was first reported by MMAJunkie.

The situation is particularly difficult given Strikeforce’s difficulty in crowning a new divisional champion after Dan Henderson forfeited the title after departing to the UFC last year. Mousasi-Kyle was likely to determine a top contender for the belt.

The vacancy created by the bout’s removal has been filled by Scott Smith vs. Lumumba Sayers. Strikeforce: Tate vs. Rousey is headlined by bantamweight title-holder Miesha Tate‘s defense against unbeaten grappler Ronda Rousey, also featuring Josh Thomson vs. KJ Noons, Paul Daley vs. Kazuo Misaki, and Ronaldo Souza vs. Derek Brunson.

PHOTO CREDIT – STRIKEFORCE

PHOTO CREDIT – STRIKEFORCE