Dana White Announces Josh Koscheck vs. Johny Hendricks for UFC on FOX 3

UFC head honcho's Dana White and Lorenzo Fertitta are making an effort to connect with the fans with the most invasive and direct way possible via the Internet: Twitter.

Recently, White took to his stylish iPhone to release a gem of good news in the welterweight division despite all the disarray that both Carlos Condit and Nick Diaz have created as of late.

"(Josh) Koscheck vs. Johnny Hendricks is on for FOX!!!," proclaimed an overly-excited White.

The UFC's next endeavor on the FOX network takes place on May 5 at the IZOD Center in East Rutherford, New Jersey, where lightweight notables Nate Diaz and Jim Miller will meet in the main event in a five-round non-title bout which will likely serve as a No. 1 contender battle.

The colorful and controversial Josh Koscheck recently returned to the Octagon just a little over a week ago where he defeated fellow collegiate wrestler Mike Pierce in a lackluster performance, edging the "Battle Troll" by split decision.

The victory helped build upon an emphatic performance last September, where Koscheck took home "Knockout of the Night" for his first-round finish of UFC Hall of Famer Matt Hughes, which eased the pain of a five-round drubbing from rival Georges St-Pierre in December of 2010.

Hendricks is in the height of his career. After defeating the aforementioned Pierce last August, the Oklahoma native had the daunting task of taking on perennial contender Jon Fitch, who, at the time, was widely considered the consensus No. 2 fighter in the 170-pound division.

Though the underdog, Hendricks silenced critics by stopping Fitch in just 12 seconds, courtesy of the powerful left hook which sent the AKA product crumbling to the canvas, victimized by the heavy hands of "Big Rigg," who recorded the decisive knockout.

The winner between Hendricks and Koscheck will be on the shortlist of contenders for the welterweight strap, which currently houses two champions in Carlos Condit (the interim titleholder) and Georges St-Pierre.

Koscheck splits from AKA, Dana White open to Kos vs. Fitch

Dana White has said it for years, the fight game isn't a place for team camaraderie in the long run, The fight game will eventually will split up even the best of friends.
The heat between former teammates Jon Jones and Rashad Evans has been palpable for over a year and now we could see two guys, who appeared to be even closer, fighting in the future.
Josh Koscheck is done with American Kickboxing Academy in San Jose, Ca. That could mean the roadblocks are gone for a Koscheck match against Jon Fitch.

As teammates they said they'd never fight each other unless it was for a title. That always drove their boss nuts. Now that Koscheck is on his own, would they pass up a chance for a title shot if it meant they had to fight?

Koscheck gave a cryptic answer when conversing with White during the UFC 143 postfight press conference.

"That's what I whispered to him," White told the media. "I said, 'Now I'm doing the Jon Fitch fight.' He said, 'Good luck with that.'"

Koscheck gave no details as to why he split from the camp. He first indicated things were on shaky ground during the week when he said he was fighting for "Team Me" not "Team AKA."
He confirmed things during the postfight.

"I'll be training out of Fresno for now. I'm no longer affiliated with some of the people at the gym that I've been training at. I'm going to do my own thing," said Koscheck.

What happened at AKA? Koscheck wouldn't even mention the gym by name.
Koscheck barely squeaked by Mike Pierce and admitted his motivation to fight was less than stellar. Between the drama of leaving his longtime team and Pierce not being a huge name, the veteran UFC star produced a lackluster performance.

"Josh looked flat tonight. I expected Josh to have the faster hands. He didn't really let his hands go tonight," White said. "He looked flat."

Maybe a Fitch fight, with the winner getting a title shot, is exactly the energy Koscheck needs. For now White said he's not planning on Fitch-Koscheck, but he's open to it.
"No. I'm just [expletive] with him. If the fight made sense ... because there was a time when those two were [at the top of the rankings] ... but if the fight made sense, yeah, I'd try to make it. I wouldn't do it just to do it," said White.

Fitch needs to get back in there as soon as possible. Knocking on the door for a second title shot for the last three years, Fitch's chances got crushed when he was knocked out in just 12 seconds at UFC 141 against Johny Hendricks. In many USA MMA 170-pound rankings, he dropped all the way down to No. 7.

UFC 143: Georges St-Pierre Injured: Nick Diaz & Carlos Condit for Interim Title

According to Dana White's Twitter, Georges St-Pierre has once again gone down with an injury, and he will be out for 10 months.

According to the tweet, GSP blew out his ACL, and Carlos Condit will now face Nick Diaz for the interim UFC welterweight title.

This just continues the jumble in the welterweight division recently, as there have been numerous switches as of late.

First it was to be GSP-Diaz. Then it was GSP-Condit.

Then that fight was scrapped due to a St-Pierre injury, and Condit decided to wait for a title shot, which he ended up losing his chance at.

Then GSP-Diaz was scheduled once again, which is now off due to a St-Pierre injury once more.

The Condit-Diaz winner will, in all likelihood, face off against St-Pierre when he is due back from injury.

Originally on this card, St-Pierre was going to fight Diaz for the welterweight title, and Condit was going to fight Josh Koscheck for a likely No. 1 contender position.

It is unclear if Koscheck will remain on the card.

Carlos Condit vs. Nick Diaz will go down at UFC 143 in Las Vegas on February 4th.

This is truly just to bad.

More updates on this as it develops.