With UFC committed to limiting its roster to a sustainable level, it now takes but one loss to lose one’s opportunity inside the octagon.
Sources confirmed this week that Antonio McKee, who lost in his debut at Saturday’s UFC 125, has already been released. He joins Brandon Vera, Marcus Davis and Phil Baroni as a victim of the proverbial axe.
The other cuts were more consistent with UFC’s previous release pattern. Vera lost his third in a row this weekend, sealing the deal on a lackluster UFC run that had begun with promise. After dominating in his first four heavyweight fights, one of which included a TKO victory over Frank Mir, Vera ran into the brick walls of Tim Sylvia and Fabricio Werdum. His drop down to light heavyweight failed to turn things around; he went 3-4 and only won once via stoppage.
Marcus Davis lost his second straight and fourth in five fights this weekend, while Phil Baroni’s 0-3 record in his latest stint was so troubling that he, personally, expressed his expectation of getting cut.