Gavin Sterritt has withdrawn from his Bellator 140 bout with Brennan Ward, and it has cost him his contract with the promotion.

According to a person close to the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to publicly discusss such matters, Sterritt (6-1 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) reportedly cited many reasons for withdrawing from the bout, chief among them his feeling that Bellator would prevent Quinton Jackson from cornering him against Ward (10-3 MMA, 6-3 BMMA).

Bellator officials confirmed the decision in a statement issued to MMAjunkie.

“Bellator MMA has informed Mr. Sterritt multiple times that Mr. Jackson can corner him at Bellator 140 on July 17, 2015, and that we expect Mr. Jackson to act in a sportsmanlike and professional manner just as we expect from all Bellator MMA athletes and their chosen corners,” a Bellator rep informed MMAjunkie.

Jackson (36-11 MMA, 8-5 UFC) fought three times in the Bellator cage, but has been engaged in a prolonged legal battle with the promotion since jumping ship back to the UFC. Bellator has claimed that Jackson breached his contract when he negotiated and signed with the UFC. Jackson was allowed to fight at UFC 186, but currently remains under an injunction preventing him from fighting for any MMA promotion.

While situations like this have prevented someone from cornering bouts in the past – most notably the UFC’s refusal to allow Randy Couture to corner his son Ryan after years of animosity – Bellator reps insist that this was not the case with Sterritt.

“Bellator has consistently tried in vain to resolve Mr. Sterritt’s alleged issues,” the rep said. “Any outstanding payments due are on the way to him, along with his release letter.”

For more on Bellator 140, check out the MMA Rumors section of the site.