LAS VEGAS -- An injury to his left knee might end up forcing Rashad Evans out of more than just a title fight at UFC 128 in March -- it might end up forcing him out of the 205-pound division entirely.

Evans found out Saturday he would not be physically able to compete against light heavyweight champion Mauricio Rua on the UFC 128 card, due to a sprained ligament. The title shot will now go to Evans' teammate and close friend, Jon Jones, who defeated Ryan Bader at UFC 126 via submission.

Evans is confident that the 23-year-old Jones will claim the 205-pound title in March over Rua and that's where the predicament comes into play. The two have sworn they won't fight one another and Evans said it might be best to explore other options sooner rather than later.

Jon Jones will be gunning for the light heavyweight title sooner than even he expected. Ric Fogel for ESPN.com

"There is no doubt in my mind that [Jon Jones] is going to win," Evans told ESPN.com. "He is going to destroy Rua in the first round.

"[After that], I'm still not going to fight Jon. I will always find something to challenge myself. I will go up to heavyweight or down to middleweight. But I will not fight Jon."

The former light heavyweight champion expressed confidence he could be competitive in both weight classes. He won the second season of the "Ultimate Fighter" reality series as a heavyweight, but has never competed at middleweight.

Evans (15-1-1) hasn't fought since earning a unanimous decision win over rival Quinton Jackson at UFC 114 in May. He was named the No. 1 contender following the win and would have fought for the title last year had Rua (19-4) not suffered a knee injury of his own.