Injury to champion Gilbert Melendez effectively cancels Strikeforce card

Strikeforce champion Gilbert Melendez

Zuffa has canceled their upcoming Strikeforce show due to an injury to lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez. The champ was set to defend his belt against Pat Healy on the card, which would have taken place Sept. 29 at the Power Balance Pavilion in Sacramento, Calif.

Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker explained in a press release that the card was canceled when Showtime decided not to televise the card without a proper main event. This is the second Zuffa card canceled this month. The company previously dropped UFC 151 when the Jon Jones-Dan Henderson fight fell apart.

Melendez has dominated the Strikeforce lightweight division since winning the interim version of the title with a knockout of Rodrigo Damm in 2009. He has now won seven-straight fights. During the stretch he has bested former Dream champion Shinya Aoki, Tatsuya Kawajiri, Jorge Masvidal and former Strikeforce champion Josh Thomson.

Healy was coming into the fight off a controversial victory over former SRC champion Mizuto Hirota. Despite the close decision, Healy was seen as the only viable challenger in the division.