Hit the Mat 03.09.09: Hitting the Unemployment Line?

Posted by Matt McEwen on 03.09.2009

Tough times are hitting the world, and tough times might be ahead for some big(ish) named fighters.

I haven't actually had a paying job in nearly 3 years now, so this recent economic downturn hasn't exactly effected me at all, but I have a feeling some fairly big names in the sport won't be able to say that at some point in 2009. Only in this case, it may not be a lack of money that is sending them to the unemployment line, but rather a lack of results and the next generation of fighters moving in.

So, with that in mind, it's time for some baseless speculation about people's lively hoods.

Joe Stevenson

Joe "Daddy" might be one of the more likeable personalities in the UFC right now, but his recent results have been much harder to warm up to. He went on a nice run upon his arrival at 155, but after the bloodletting at the hands of BJ Penn in his title shot, the bright spots have been few and far between. He rebounded with an OK showing against Gleison Tibeau (though he spent nearly 1/2 a round caught in a near omaplata), but was then decimated by Kenny Florian in under a round and, most recently, was on the wrong end of a boring decision against Diego Sanchez.

It was the Sanchez loss that might explain Stevenson's dilemma the most right now. To say he fought safely would be an understatement, and he seemed more concerned with not getting finished or put in too much trouble rather than winning. In the end though, a loss is a loss is a loss, and he's now 1-3 in his last 4 fights. If he wasn't a former TUF winner, it's possible Stevenson would already be out of a job, but that distinction may have bought him one more chance, which will be against....

Mac Danzig

One of the more recent TUF winners, Danzig's baptism into real competition in the UFC was successful in an exciting (if more competitive than some expected) contest with Canadian Mark Bocek, but he's now on a two fight losing streak, both of which came against fighters someone who hopes to contend for a title should be beating. Clay Guida and Josh Neer are both very good fighters who pose problems for almost anyone, but the higher end of the lightweight division will usually find ways around those problems. Danzig, however, was noticeably outclassed in these two encounters. Guida out wrestled him and ground out a decision, but Neer showed no fear of his stand up and dominated the ground game on his way to a submission win.

Not good.

Now, he gets one final chance to sure up a future in the Octagon. Having struggled hard to make it to the UFC in the first place, you would have to imagine that Danzig is desperate to stay there. The fight with Stevenson is going to be an interesting one, as both fighters are well rounded, but as results have shown, "well rounded" just isn't enough anymore. You need to be at least really good in at least two aspects of your game to hang with the big dogs in the sport now, so who decides to step up and expand their skills in their coming training camp should be able to avoid being the first TUF champion to get a pink slip.

Kendall Grove

I'm writing this Saturday afternoon, so there is actually a chance that Stevenson and Danzig will be fighting to avoid being the second TUF champion to get his walking papers.

Dana White served notice to Grove that a bad showing Saturday night in Columbus would be his last in the Octagon, and given his up and down career post-TUF, it's certainly not surprising. He's 3-2 not counting his TUF win, and is coming off an OK win over the late Evan Tanner, but his brutal losses to Patrick Cote and Jorge Rivera have many wondering if Grove is even a mid-level middleweight talent. He's apparently been training with BJ Penn in Hawaii, but it certainly seems that Grove has been able to put in weak performances while training with great camps before.

Jason Day - also on the cutting block, but not exactly in the name recognition class of the others on this list - is a skilled enough opponent to send Grove to the unemployment line, but I would bet that by the time you're reading this, Grove will already be off this list (either marvel at my prediction ability or laugh at my idiocy here).

Brandon Vera

Another fighter fighting Saturday night, the fact that the one time "future superstar" who used to talk of being the first double champion in UFC history has been, like Grove, relegated to the prelims on one of the smaller PPV's of the year tells you a lot of where Vera stands right now.

After being pounded down to light heavyweight by a man who got fired after his next fight, Vera has gone 1-1 in two less than exciting decisions at 205. Vera needs to not only look good Saturday night, he needs to win with a little style and remind people why they were so high on him prior to his year long layoff. Mike Patt looks to be put in front of Vera to provide that opportunity, so we'll see if Vera can convert the extra point and get his career back on track.

Wanderlei Silva

Yes, he's one of the biggest names in the history of the sport, but if he loses his upcoming catchweight bout to Rich Franklin, it's hard to imagine that he will be around much longer.

The drop from light heavyweight was necessitated by 3 brutal knock outs inside of 3 years, and a 1-4 record in his last 5 fights means a lost to Franklin might not just be the end of Wanderlei in the UFC, but in his career as a whole. The Octagon (and possibly the Nevada State Athletic Commission's drug testing policy. I'm not saying, I'm just saying) has been less than nice to former PRIDE stars, and Silva could - and possibly SHOULD - be the next one out the door.

If the cut to 185 was an easy one for Silva to make, he wouldn't be taking a fight at 195 before doing the full drop. That tells me the cut to 185 is a difficult one, and even if it wasn't, what chance do you give an aging, slowing Silva against the likes of Dan Henderson, Nate Marquardt, Dan Henderson and Damian Maia?

Matt Serra

Calling Serra a "one hit wonder" is an insult to a 10 year veteran who is one of the best grapplers in the sport and had some tough fights against big names, but it is a term that is going to stick with Serra....unless he pulls out a win against nemesis Matt Hughes. If he loses that fight (and probably even if he wins), his relevance to the current stack of 170lbers will be zero, and the UFC will likely send him packing. Not much else to really be said here, except that he could possibly be a factor with a drop back to 155 if he can still physically do it.

Sean Sherk

While he's the #2 or #3 lightweight in the UFC, you have to imagine that the Zuffa brain trust is looking for a reason to get rid of a fighter who is nearly universally hated, grinds out less than thrilling decisions in most of his fights, and is likely to be anyone not named Penn. Having been dominated in his title fight with Penn last May, there is little call for a rematch, but he will continue to cause headaches for matchmakers as, like I said, he can beat just about anyone else in the division. That really creates a problem in building challengers. A loss in his upcoming fight to Frankie Edgar (unlikely) or an expiring contract could spell the end for the former steroid user.

That's seven names from the UFC, but they're not the only ones out there who may be looking at the end of their stays in various promotions, or the sport itself. Big names like Matt Lindland, Frank Shamrock, Jens Pulver, Randy Couture, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueria and Matt Hughes are likely coming to the end of careers that have spanned to stages of MMA history, and today's phenoms often have a tenancy to be tomorrow's journeymen (anyone seen Terry Martin lately? and how's Houston Alexander doing?), not to mention and aging group of mid-level fighters, and 2009/2010 just might have a lot of new faces in the cage, and a lot of new faces looking for a new line of work.