• UFC 132

Bowles' hand not broken, expects next title shot

Brian Bowles has only lost to Dominick Cruz, and that defeat was injury-enforced © Getty Images

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Brian Bowles is completely fit to provide the next challenge to Dominick Cruz's UFC bantamweight title, and his management team do not even think Demetrious Johnson should be a considered as the next contender.

Champion Cruz beat Urijah Faber to defend his belt at UFC 132, and his next opponent has been confirmed to be either Bowles or Johnson.

The major doubt surrounding Bowles' involvement was a suspected broken hand damaged in his win over Takeya Mizugaki, but the former WEC champion has allayed fears over a potential six-month layoff.

"Good news. Hand isn't broke. Hell yes!" Bowles tweeted on Tuesday evening.

It was another hand injury, picked up in the first round of his March 2010 loss to Cruz, that cost Bowles his title. The 31-year-old was getting beaten at the time, but manager Andrew F Beach insists the American is still technically undefeated in career, barring his injury-enforced retirement.

"It's not broken," confirmed Beach to MMA Fighting. "There is some injury as anyone could tell from the swelling that followed, but the big thing was it's not broken, so whatever it is shouldn't keep him out for long.

"My position is, I don't even understand really why there is a question [about the next title match]. When you go back and look at what's happened in the UFC and WEC, whenever the champ lost, he got a rematch within a fight or two, as long as he's winning.

"Look back at Bowles' record up until he faced Cruz. That fight ended with a broken hand. History has kind of rewritten itself that Cruz finished it. But the only thing that happened is he won the first two rounds against someone with a broken hand. I'm not saying he wouldn't have won, but Brian could've knocked him out or submitted him somewhere in the last three rounds.

"Since then, [Bowles] has finished Damacio Page in a Submission of the Night, and then he comes comes back and beats a tough Mizugaki. It's almost a little disrespectful to even question why Mighty Mouse [Johnson] is there. People are so used to seeing Brian finish and he wasn't able to do it, but it was still a solid win. He deserves it."

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