Injuries to middleweight champion Anderson Silva and welterweight title-holder Georges St-Pierre could alter the UFC’s plans for early-2010, as both fighters may be sidelined longer than expected.

Silva’s recovery from recent elbow surgery could delay his title defense against Vitor Belfort rumored for UFC 108 in January, while St-Pierre may be unable to return until March.

UFC light heavyweight champ Lyoto Machida will soon undergo surgery that will postpone his immediate rematch with Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, according to Yahoo! Sports: “UFC officials have confirmed that Lyoto Machida will need surgery on one of his hands, thus delaying the planned middleweight championship rematch with Mauricio “Shogun” Rua”.

Kurt Pellegrino has withdrawn from his lightweight matchup with Frankie Edgar scheduled for The Ultimate Fighter 10 Finale on December 5.

According to Fanhouse, Matt Veach, who had been set to fight Mark Bocek on the event’s preliminary card, is the leading candidate to replace Pellegrino, who is suffering from three herniated discs in his back and will be sidelined at least three weeks, with

A knee injury has forced Thiago Alves to withdraw from his rematch with fellow welterweight contender Jon Fitch at UFC 107 on December 12, according to Fanhouse. Reports indicate Alves should be able to return early next year and the rematch is likely to be postponed to UFC 108 in January or UFC 109 in February.

A long-rumored fight between Kimbo Slice and Houston Alexander may be in the works for The Ultimate Fighter 10 Finale on December 5 in Las Vegas, with MMAjunkie reporting Thursday that Alexander will soon apply to fight in Nevada and could square off with the Slice at the Spike TV-televised event.

TUF 8 runner-up Phillipe Nover will return to action against fellow lightweight Rob Emerson at UFC 109 on February 6 in Las Vegas. Nover, fighting for the first time since suffering a seizure in September, has dropped two-straight, while Emerson’s UFC record has been evened at 2-2 with back-to-back losses.

Team Rashad aimed to remain undefeated on episode seven of The Ultimate Fighter 10, as Matt Mitrione and Scott Junk squared off in the latest opening round matchup. Next week on TUF 10, Mike Wessel and Marcus Jones meet in the final first round bout and the quarterfinal matchups are determined.

Welterweights Josh Koscheck and Anthony Johnson have agreed to square off in the co-main event of UFC 106 on November 21 in Las Vegas, according to Sherdog.

Koscheck revealed on Twitter Tuesday that he’d be co-headlining the pay-per-view event, and while initial speculation focused on Matt Hughes, the knockout artist Johnson was ultimately tapped for the short-notice addition to the event.

Welterweight Josh Koscheck has announced via Twitter that he’ll be co-headlining UFC 106 on November 21 in Las Vegas.

An opponent has not yet been announced for the bout, a late-addition to bolster the card currently headlined by Tito Ortiz vs. Forrest Griffin after losing Brock Lesnar vs. Shane Carwin, its original main event, on Monday. One potential opponent, Matt Hughes, has reportedly turned down the short-notice matchup, with Anthony Johnson now the speculated front-runner.

UFC 104 winners Lyoto Machida and Patrick Barry were among eight fighters from Saturday’s event in Los Angeles who were issued medical suspensions by the California State Athletic Commission on Tuesday.

Machida, the UFC’s light heavyweight champ who won a controversial decision over Mauricio “Shogun” Rua in the UFC 104 headliner, was suspended for 60 days for a lip laceration, potentially delaying an immediate rematch with Rua that was reportedly being planned for UFC 108 on January 2.

UFC light heavyweight champ Lyoto Machida and challenger Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, who headlined Saturday’s UFC 104 event in Los Angeles, topped the pay-per-view event’s disclosed $922,000 fighter payroll, according to figures released Tuesday by the California State Athletic Commission.

Machida earned an event-high $200,000 for his controversial main event win over Rua, while “Shogun” received $155,000 for his efforts. Other top earners included Joe Stevenson ($94,000), Cain Velasquez ($70,000), and Chael Sonnen ($54,000).

Brock Lesnar’s training partner at Minnesota Martial Arts Academy and fellow UFC heavyweight Chris Tuchscherer talked to the Las Vegas Sun about Lesnar’s illness and his decision to withdraw from his November title defense against Shane Carwin, which has since been rescheduled for UFC 108 on January 2:

He actually practiced (Sunday) and thought he might be feeling alright. He said, ‘Wow, I think I’m doing OK today,’ (Monday) he got here and it was the same old stuff — fatiguing right away, not being all there.”

UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar has been forced to withdraw from his scheduled title defense against Shane Carwin at UFC 106 on November 21 in Las Vegas due to an illness that has prevented him from training for nearly a month, UFC President Dana White confirmed to Yahoo! Sports on Monday.

According to a post by Carwin on Twitter, the fight has been rescheduled for UFC 108 on January 2 in Las Vegas, leaving Tito Ortiz vs. Forrest Griffin to headline UFC 106.

Lightweight prospect Ronnys Torres is slated to make his UFC debut against Melvuin Guillard at UFC 109 on February 6 in Las Vegas, according to Tatame. Torres has won eight-straight with just one fight going the distance, while Guillard had won three in-a-row before he was submitted by Nate Diaz in September.