Machida Declines Evans For UFC 133; Wife Says It'd Be ‘Silliness’

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Lyoto Machida will not fight Rashad Evans for a second time -- at least, not at UFC 133.

Machida’s spouse, Fabyola Machida, informed Sherdog.com on Wednesday that her husband will not take the place of the injured Phil Davis at the Aug. 6 event. However, the former UFC light heavyweight champion’s wife explained, it was not a one-sided decision to turn down the short-notice fight.

“The UFC called him [Tuesday] to offer him the fight,” Mrs. Machida said, “but after a conference, Lyoto, his managers and the UFC representatives decided it wouldn’t be a good decision for him to fight. It would even show a lack of professionalism on Lyoto’s part to take the fight, having such a short period to train.”

After retiring Randy Couture with a stunning front-kick knockout at UFC 129, Machida rejoined the ranks of UFC’s top 205-pounders. According to his wife, a title shot wasn’t guaranteed if he were to beat Evans. Even knowing this, Machida considered accepting the offer from Zuffa, but used the reason to deny it.

“What he told me is that thinking ‘with the heart of a fighter,’ he would take the fight,” Mrs. Machida revealed. “But his professionalism made him turn down the fight. No one is playing anymore [in professional MMA], everyone is very focused and serious, so it would be silliness to accept. To take the chance to not fight as well as he could if he was prepared, would be giving a chance to unluckiness. ‘Be prepared’ is one of his principles.”