Dustin Hazelett released from the UFC
Credit: MMANews.com
Following his third straight stoppage defeat, jiu-jitsu specialist Dustin Hazelett (12-7) has officially been cut from the UFC.
Hazelett recently went to war with Mark Bocek at UFC 124, but within two-and-a-half minutes, Bocek beat Hazelett at his own game, submitting his lanky challenger with a tight triangle choke.
Prior to the Bocek bout, Hazelett was stopped by Rick Story (TKO) at UFC 117, and prior to that, Paul Daley turned him into a human punching bag at UFC 108 en route to a destructive first round knockout.
Where Hazelett goes from here is unknown, but Bellator Fighting Championships and Strikeforce look to be viable options.
Former WEC CHamp Cut Already
Two-time UFC veteran Jamie Varner (16-5-2 MMA, 4-3-1 WEC) will have to wait to make his triumphant return to the octagon.
Following a recent four-fight winless streak, the former WEC champion was released by Zuffa officials.
News of the roster move was first reported by PunchDrunkGamer.com, and MMAjunkie.com subsequently confirmed Varner's release with his management.
"I am ready for 2011," Varner told PunchDrunkGamer.com. "There will be some changes in my game.
"It has been a nice ride with the WEC, but it's time for a change. Perhaps UFC will be in my future down the road. ... We shall see."
Varner made his UFC debut in August 2006. The Arizona native suffered a submission loss to Hermes Franca at UFC 62 before bouncing back with an octagon win over Jason Gilliam at UFC 68 in March 2007.
From there, Varner took his talents to the WEC, where he went on a four-fight win streak and claimed the WEC's lightweight title with a February 2008 win over "Razor" Rob McCullough.
Varner went on to successfully defend the title twice, including a controversial January 2009 victory over rival Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone. Ahead on the cards in the fifth and final round of the WEC 38, Varner was tagged with an illegal knee on the ground and was declared unfit to continue. The stoppage resulted in a technical split-decision victory for Varner, though he was widely vilified by MMA fans following the bout.
The win was Varner's final victory in the WEC cage.
Varner saw his lightweight title wrapped around Ben Henderson's waist following a third-round submission loss this past January, and he returned in June in a split draw with Kamal Shalorus. Varner was then defeated by Cerrone via unanimous decision in a September rematch before being submitted by Shane Roller at December's WEC 53, the final event in the promotion's history.
Yet Another Fighter Released at 155
After 15 fights, four fight-night bonuses, a spot on the organization's reality series, former welterweight title contention, and a handful of high-profile international fights, Marcus Davis (17-8 MMA, 9-6 UFC) received his UFC walking papers following a UFC 125 loss to Jeremy Stephens.
Davis' manager, Joe Cavallaro, today confirmed the release with MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com).
The 37-year-old will continue fighting in MMA professionally, and he'll do so at 155 pounds with the hopes of getting back to the UFC.
Davis, fighting for the first time since a drop from welterweight to lightweight, met fellow striker Stephens on the ION Television preliminary card of the Jan. 1 UFC 125 card. Davis wobbled his opponent in the first round and was positioned for a close decision victory, but Stephens connected on a perfectly placed right hook that set up his KO win in the third round.
Davis, a former pro boxer (16-1-1) who went 13-1 from 2006 to 2009 in MMA, now has lost four of his past five fights. The other losses, though, came to notables Nate Diaz, Dan Hardy and Ben Saunders.
"He felt real strong at 155 (pounds)," Cavallaro said. "He made a mistake. The guy's been fighting forever, and he has no plans of retiring. Between all the 'Fight of the Night,' 'Knockout of the Night,' and 'Submission of the Night' bonuses, he's showed that he's a very exciting fighter to watch. Now, it's just a matter of figuring out the next move. We're talking to a few people right now."
Cavallaro said the comfortable weight cut and otherwise solid performance convinced Davis he should keep fighting.
"If he'd taken a sustained beating and didn't look good or didn't look sharp, maybe we'd be having a different conversation," he said.
But he did none of those things. His weight cut was perfect. He felt healthy. Like he said, he thought he was winning that fight, and he just got caught. Jeremy Stephens is a very tough kid, and that's what his bread and butter is. He can stop you at any time. But hats off to Jeremy. He stayed in the fight until the last second."
Davis first joined the UFC in 2005 as a cast member on "The Ultimate Fighter 2," but as a fairly one-dimension striker, he lost an opening-round matchup to eventual show winner Joe Stevenson. He then dropped a TKO (due to cuts) to Melvin Guillard at the show's live finale and was released for the first time.
Davis, though, dedicated himself to the sport and specifically jiu-jitsu improvement. He won 13 of his next 14 fights, including seven via submission, which included a return to the UFC in 2006. Over the past few years, he's been a fixture on the UFC's international cards. Eight of his past 11 UFC fights came in overseas markets.
In the meantime, he and Cavallaro are preparing to field offers.
"I'm open talking to anybody who's interested," Cavallaro said.
The Mac Says: I bet he will sign with MFC here in edmonton....quite a few released guys end up here
Finally "The Truth" is gone
Light heavyweight Brandon Vera (11-6 MMA, 7-6 UFC) and lightweight Antonio McKee (25-4-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC) are the latest fighters looking for work following losses inside the octagon.
The fighters' reps today confirmed with MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) that both have been released by the UFC. FiveOuncesofPain.com first reported the releases.
Vera and McKee both plan to soldier on following UFC 125 losses.
"Sometimes the highest-paying opportunities are not the best opportunities," Vera manager Matt Stansell told MMAjunkie.com today.
Vera suffered his third consecutive loss this past Saturday at UFC 125 in a bout with Brazilian slugger Thiago Silva. Although he came out markedly ahead in standup exchanges, Silva took the fight to the mat and dominated there.
In an unusual display of aggression brought by Vera's in-fight trash-talking, Silva opened his clenched fists and slapped Vera repeatedly in the head while holding top position. One of those shots badly broke Vera's nose.
Going into the fight, Vera acknowledged it would be his last chance to keep his job. But he also said he'd matured as a fighter and no longer was the cocky fighter that underestimated opponents and paid for it.
"My team got on me," he said. "My coaches got on me. People smacked me around and told me to get it together. I think I got it together. I'm ready to show that."
Vera's prior fight had brought heartache as well as a headache. He took on red-hot Jon Jones at UFC on Versus 1 this past March and suffered a fractured orbital bone that prompted a TKO loss. The injury put him on the sidelines for much of the year.
Stansell said Vera already has interest from several promotions, though he declined to name them.
Meanwhile, McKee earned his UFC contract this past September after an 11-year career in MMA that saw him rise from regional standout to folk hero among hardcore fans of the sport. He had racked up 11 consecutive wins outside the UFC and took to Internet forums in a campaign for the big show. As is turns out, the industry-leading promotion was listening, and he inked a four-fight deal and a first booking against Jacob Volkmann at UFC 125.
In a long and sometimes-dull affair, the two grappled their way to a split decision with Volkmann ruled the winner on two judges' cards.
It looks like its back to the minors for McKee at the moment.
"Time for me to get my hustle on now, homie," McKee said in a text message. "No looking back. (I'm going to) destroy anything and everything in my way."
