An untimely knee injury in training has forced Miesha “Takedown” Tate out of her Strikeforce Women’s Welterweight Championship bout against Marloes “Rumina” Coenen on March 5th in Columbus, Ohio. Tate has been replaced by top contender Liz “Girl-Rilla” Carmouche in the 135-pound title fight.

Strikeforce officials announced the change earlier today, though Tate gave no indication of injury in a series of comments about the fight this week. Nevertheless, Carmouche will now put her unblemished record on the line when she steps in to challenge Coenen on less than two weeks’ notice.

Carmouche (5-0-0) made her Strikeforce debut last August in a 135-pound tournament reserve bout against fellow prospect Colleen Schneider. She outlasted Schneider with effective clinchwork and top control to earn a Unanimous Decision after two 3:00 rounds, but was not a part of the tournament final that was eventually won by Tate. After picking up another victory outside of the promotion, Carmouche returned to Strikeforce in November and stopped tough veteran Jan “Cuddles” Finney with punches in the third round. As a result of Tate’s injury, Carmouche will now take a big step up in competition to challenge Coenen for the title on short notice.

Coenen (18-4-0) has long been regarded as one of the very best female fighters in mixed martial arts, but it was not until November of 2009 that she finally made her first appearance in a Strikeforce cage. Submitting rival Roxanne Modafferi with a first-round armbar, Coenen went on to challenge Strikeforce Women’s Middleweight Champion Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos less than three months later, but was stopped by punches late in the third round. After a lengthy layoff, Coenen debuted at 135 pounds in October and captured the Strikeforce Women’s Welterweight Championship by submitting previously unbeaten champion Sarah Kaufman. The bout with Carmouche will be Coenen’s first title defence.

A source close to Strikeforce has confirmed to MMARising.com that Tate’s injury was first noted earlier this week. Tate made no mention of being injured and continued to publicly comment on the title fight right up until today. It is currently unknown how long the wrestling standout will be sidelined.

Strikeforce Columbus: “Feijao vs Henderson” takes place on March 5th at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio. The event is headlined by a Strikeforce Light Heavyweight matchup between Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante and Dan “Hendo” Henderson. A planned catchweight bout between Jessica “Evil” Eye and Jan Finney was scrapped after the fighters could not agree on a contracted weight.