The Fight Network has some interesting quotes coming from Kalib Starnes after his pathetic performance at UFC 83 against Nate “The Rock” Quarry. Starnes claims that he asked for a release even though reports circulating around the ‘Net are saying that Dana White had released him from his contract. Although it’s purely an interpretation of the comments, Starnes is no longer under contract with the UFC:

“Joe Silva told me that it usually takes a couple of days for their legal department to complete the paperwork and that he would send me all of the paperwork to indicate that my contract has been dissolved,” Starnes said. “Later on in the afternoon, after I had spoken to Joe Silva, a story was released by some reporter from Yahoo! in which Dana White said that he had released me from my contract. I received no documentation on that, and it came after I asked to be released.”

Starnes also claims that because of injuries he sustained during the fight against Quarry, he was unable to fight effectively for the rest of the bout. He claimed that the $10,000 he received for the bout wouldn't be enough for him to fight Quarry effectively and letting himself get crushed due to his injury.

According to the article, Starnes suffered a broken foot during the bout. My analysis yesterday turned toward some type of injury or the rumored comments on the Sherdog forums regarding a spat about compensation over injuries he sustained on the Ultimate Fighter reality show. In any case, a problem was present, and it looks to be an injury during the bout.

His reasoning to run from Quarry still gnaws at my mind. I suppose taking more injuries because you cannot lead with your foot or be effective in a kicking game to the legs against Quarry would hinder your performance, but the backpedaling around the cage didn’t indicate a hurt foot. It comes down to a money problem in the end. Starnes felt that all the money he’d made for the fight would be gone had he continued to fight the way he had early on in the bout. He may have very well been right.

What would we do? Losing face in a fight by using such tactics can tarnish your career and opportunities, but what about supporting a family? It’s a tough situation, and I believe fans need to stop and think about this for a second. Should we throw Starnes under the bus for this performance? My gut says “Yes”, but the logical thinking in this situation strays toward feeling some sympathy in the fact that $10,000 to pay for another huge cut or broken nose to Starnes could cause his family some hardship in the months to come.

Then again, the UFC probably would have picked up the bill for injuries. What about the time off he’d have to take away from his gym? The consequences come into play heavily in this situation, but I will say this, Starnes hurt his career a bit with this performance. He should have mounted some sort of attempt to win the fight quickly instead of working the jab. It was obvious his power was gone from his footwork being affected, but being labeled as fighting tough with an injury is much better than being released.

Dave Meltzer wrote a piece over at the Wrestling Observer talking about St. Pierre's move to Middleweight to take on Anderson Silva. In the article, Meltzer pushes the point that the “super fight” shouldn't happen because the UFC's top stars shouldn't fight in an uneven matchup when you refer to physical attributes. Specifically, he mentions that PRIDE tried to do the same thing with Sakuraba, and it didn't work out. He also states that St. Pierre and Silva have a large size difference, but didn't specifically talk about length, height, or build. I must say, I'm rather put off by the suggestion that this shouldn't happen, and I don't agree at all for a number of reasons.

What's at risk here? Anderson Silva has a crushing advantage over nearly any current Middleweight, and Georges St. Pierre will demolish any contender in the division. Do you really believe that Jon Fitch has a shot after St. Pierre dominated Matt Hughes, Josh Koscheck, and Matt Serra, all fighters who are specifically known for their ground games. Fitch had trouble against Chris Wilson in the standup game, and St. Pierre will have a massive advantage in both areas of the fight.

Silva hasn't got any challengers at the moment. Okami is likely to be next in line, and while I believe that it's a much tougher fight than people are giving it credit, I still would pick Silva easily to win. That begs the question as to when will Silva vs. St. Pierre happen. St. Pierre will likely have one defense against Fitch first, then the plans may become a reality.

But what is the risk? Silva is bigger than St. Pierre? That's why it's called a super fight. No belts on the line, just two of the best MMA skillsets at a catch weight against one another. Size will always be a factor in any matchup of that proportion. It's a weak defense considering fights like this have happened in the past with size differences.

The numbers for this type of event should be huge in a Canadian city. For a St. Pierre vs. Serra event, the attendance was over 21,000. Imagine if the seats were opened up, and St. Pierre vs. Anderson Silva was the headliner. The revenues could very well beat Liddell vs. Ortiz with sufficient main card fights. It's hard to say that this fight shouldn't happen for any other reason.

I wil however argue that this fight should wait another year. There isn't any competition for St. Pierre or Anderson Silva at the moment, and there could definitely be so more opportunities to build these fighters toward casual fans. The matchup could be unbelievable in a year.

In the aftermath of UFC 83, many questions were being asked by much of the MMA community. Most people would believe that those questions revolved around what Georges St. Pierre will do next, or where does Rich Franklin go from here? There were fans adamantly asking when St. Pierre would take on Anderson Silva in a “super fight”, and others wondering when the UFC would hit Canada once again. I also asked these questions, but I also asked myself “What the hell was Kalib Starnes doing?”.

That may have been answered today by a huge Sherdog forum thread, props to BloodyElbow's Michael Rome for the find. Yeah, yeah.. I know, why would I trust a Sherdog forum thread? It's easy. Either Kalib Starnes went into the cage with a debilitating injury that caused him to fight like he did, or there was something else going on. We saw him take on Alan Belcher with some actual tenacity, yet he runs from Nate Quarry?

The thread mentions that Starnes was on the last fight of his UFC contract, and he was not compensated by the UFC for the injuries he sustained during his fight with Kendall Grove on The Ultimate Fighter. Amazingly, the UFC declined to pay for his injuries even though the injury occurred “on the show”. Starnes protested the UFC's actions by running from Quarry and making the fight completely worthless for the fans and the UFC. According to one post, a press conference will be held at his gym on Wednesday to announce this series of events and reasoning behind the way he fought.

While I may not completely believe this reason for such a terrible performance, it's hard to discount it. The fight was not a fight. It was Nate Quarry winning, and Kalib Starnes trying to look like he was fighting, taking some damage, then running around the cage to avoid damage. The big problem here is that Kalib Starnes is not a bad fighter. He's got range, decent striking, good ground skills, and he usually hangs tough in the face of adversity. He doesn't fold up like a chair.

Something went wrong here. Whether this “no compensation” story holds up or Kalib had some type of nagging injury, there is no way a veteran like Kalib Starnes was just that terribly matched up against Nate Quarry. If this whole story about money ends up being true, what a ridiculous way to stick it to the UFC. Not only did you screw the fans over in Canada from seeing a great fight, but what about those fans that actually believed you could beat Quarry or get yourself back into a position to continue in the UFC? Obviously, that wasn't a priority and that's probably why it was mentioned on The Savage Dog Show that Starnes would retire. Leaving the sport of mixed martial arts with the most disgraceful performance I've seen in a long, long time is no way to depart from something you have loved for so long.

UPDATE: Dana White cuts Kalib Starnes from the UFC for his performance...

UFC 83 is looking great for people looking to make a quick buck on Saturday night, so I've broken down some of the better odds for any of you looking for some solid chances at winning some big money. I was rather lucky during the UFN 13 event, and was able to make a substantial amount from the upsets that occurred. Specifically, having three upset picks with Diaz in a parlay paid off huge, and if Boestch had won, it would have been an epic victory over the sportsbook. Nonetheless, I'm hoping my luck can continue here. Here's some of the odds that I found rather intriguing for potential bets. Odds are courtesy of BestFightOdds.com:

Starnes is a small action bet here. I wouldn't bet the farm on Starnes winning as Quarry has some huge power that he can unleash, but Kalib is a gamer when it comes to being one tough fighter to take on. He gets less credit than he deserves for his loss on The Ultimate Fighter, but he has a venerable record against top competition, and he always seems to have a win to still win a fight no matter how its going.

McCarthy is my sleeper pick, and I may end up betting some decent money on him for the pure fact that I'm biased as hell when it comes to Bisping. Realistically however, Bisping will have a standup advantage, but McCarthy has never stated he wanted to stand with Bisping. He'll look for the takedown, and surprisingly enough, McCarthy definitely has some nice transitional jiu-jitsu on the ground. If he can get Bisping down, it could be a major upset and a big win for the betting crowd.

I've never been high on Kuniyoshi Hironaka, and Jonathan Goulet may come into the fight with a Canadian crowd roaring behind him. Hironaka isn't overly impressive in finishing in the standup or on the ground, but he has the ability to do so. Goulet is definitely susceptible, but sometimes, he can be outright overpowering. It could payoff here.

Herman might be a good bet here, but Demian Maia is downright ridiculous on the ground. He took on a bigger Ryan Jensen and was able to easily pass guard and dominate him. Herman will be a tougher test, but I think Maia can easily win this one if he's as good as he was against Jensen. At -170, it's not a bad bet for some easy money, but Herman could definitely be a great pick here if he can keep it standing. I still firmly believe Maia will win this one though. He has fantastic takedowns for a jiu-jitsu fighter.

If you have the balls to bet it once again, lay down some small money on Serra. I don't think he has much of a chance to be honest, but he's done it before.

Potential parlays: Velasquez, Maia, Stout, Hironaka/MacDonald
Ballsiest parlay: Goulet, McCarthy, Starnes

Velasquez is a rising star in the MMA world, and the hype surrounding him looks to be very real. He didn't look too impressive in his first two battles, but his opponents were very green in comparison to his skillset. I think Maia is a lock pick, but Herman could surprise us. Stout SHOULD be able to hold Clementi off. His training at Xtreme Couture should definitely help him with his sprawl and train against takedown fighters. Hironaka or MacDonald could be final picks for a four fight parlay. Again, I'm not too high on Hironaka, but he is a solid fighter. All the fighters featured in that parlay have smaller odds in favor of them winning, so the potential to make some good coin is there.

The upset parlay is exactly that, filled with upsets. My UFN parlay featured Alves, Diaz, Johnson, and Irvin. and it paid off huge. Hopefully, I can have the same success, but I'm not as confident in this event's "you're nuts" parlay as I was with my UFN parlay. Are you ballsy to take it? Lend me your suggestions in the comments.

The UFC makes its debut in Canada with an already sold out event in Montreal at the Bell Centre on Saturday night. The featured bout matches up Matt “The Terror” Serra against Georges “Rush” St. Pierre in a highly anticipated rematch  of their UFC 69 battle that saw Matt Serra upset St. Pierre. Rich Franklin will make his return to the Octagon after his second loss to UFC Middleweight champion Anderson Silva. He'll take on a venerable Travis Lutter who will test Franklin's submission defense. Other bouts scheduled include Canadian Kalib Starnes vs. Nate “The Rock” Quarry, Mac Danzig vs. Mark Bocek, Michael Bisping vs. Charles McCarthy, and Jason MacDonald vs. Joe “El Dirte” Doerkson, along with a slew of undercard bouts that are sure to entertain us. Let's take a look at the card.

Main Event: Georges “Rush” St. Pierre vs. Matt “The Terror” Serra
UFC Welterweight title bout

Oddly enough, Georges St. Pierre comes into this bout as a huge favorite while Serra once again remains the heavy underdog. St. Pierre's destruction of Matt Hughes at UFC 79 on short notice was stunning in the capacity of being unbelievably dominating. The fact that he can outwrestle any fighter in the weight class is a testament to his training regiment and work ethic. Wrestlers with plenty of credentials to back up their “smack” continue to fall to St. Pierre's superior skills. Pierre also has dynamic striking that is unparalleled in the division, but he has shown weakness in the standup at times, namely against his opponent, Matt Serra.

Serra's abilities are underrated by many fans of the sport. He has very good jiu-jitsu skills on the ground, and his strength can become a huge factor as the fight progresses. He's very tough to defeat by a finish, and he's never been submitted in MMA competition. I firmly believe it'll be a good test for St. Pierre if it becomes a chess match on the ground. The x-factor is Serra's heavy hands. He has some decent striking skills for a smaller welterweight, and with power behind them, we've seen what they can do against St. Pierre.

Bottom line: St. Pierre should win this fight within the first three rounds. He has great power, athleticism, dynamic striking, range, reach, and is coming off a stunning performance against Matt Hughes. Serra definitely has a shot on his feet, but I don't believe he can submit St. Pierre on the floor. Serra has great submission defense, so I'd stray away from St. Pierre defeating him there, but I do believe he can work some wrestling skills to open up the striking.

Leland's Prediction: Georges St. Pierre via TKO, Round 3

Rich “Ace” Franklin vs. Travis Lutter

Rich Franklin is looking to get back on the track back to another title shot. How many title shots can one have after being destroyed the previous two tries? We don't know, but Franklin is still a formidable opponent for anyone trying to make a run at Anderson Silva. He has good power, decent striking, big blow ground and pound, and he's not half bad on the ground either. He's a well-rounded fighter, but he isn't great in any one thing.

Lutter, on the other hand, is a great jiu-jitsu fighter on the ground, but he lacks the powerful hands that Franklin possesses. The biggest problem for Lutter is getting through Franklin's submission defense, a defense that has helped Franklin remain unbeaten by a submission throughout his 25 fight career.

Franklin should take this one. He has fantastic submission defense, and has the hands to defeat Lutter on his feet or on the ground. Franklin has taken on great grapplers in the past, and has always came through with his crushing ground and pound.

Leland's Prediction: Rich Franklin via TKO, Round 2

Michael Bisping vs. Charles “Chainsaw” McCarthy

Sam Caplan had an interesting quote from Jon Fitch that talked about rising Heavyweight star, Cain Velasquez. If you haven't heard of Velasquez, you probably will be hearing about him very soon as Jon Fitch hints that he is coming to the UFC:

And then the biggest one is Cain Velasquez. I like to call him “Sugar Cain.” He’s a heavyweight and he’s the biggest and baddest heavyweight you guys have ever seen. He’s going to turn the heavyweight world upside down in another year or two. Nobody is going to be talking about Kimbo. Nobody is going to be talking about Fedor or Randy. Everybody is going to be talking about Cain.

Sam Caplan: Has Cain fought pro yet?

Jon Fitch: Yeah, he’s fought a couple of fights for Bodog. The problem is that we can’t find fights for him because won’t just take fights against him. I think what’s going to happen is that he’s going to fight at UFC 83. I think he’s got a fight and they’ve got him on that card. So he’ll be making his debut, I think, at UFC 83. I’m not 100 percent sure on that but he’s been training for that and I think that’s going to happen. He’s tough. He was an All-American at Arizona State. He’s just a tremendous athlete.

According to some sources, Greg Savage at Sherdog has said that it will be announced that he has signed on for a UFC 83 fight. It should be all but confirmed by today or tomorrow.

I heard rumblings about Cain Velasquez when WCO was being put together and then eventually was cancelled. The buzz around Velasquez is incredible, and his skills are apparently unbelievable. He's training currently out of American Kickboxing Academy and has a solid background in wrestling, capturing All-American honors by winning fifth in the NCAA championships while at Arizona State. He's got a well-rounded game for a heavyweight from what I've heard, but I'd be very interested in see.

Bringing in new talent is something the UFC's Heavyweight division has needed for quite some time. I talked about this being a crossroads for how the UFC looks at the division. They can either sink more money into guys like Arlovski, or pitch them to the curb and look for new talent. It looks like Arlovski is still leaving the promotion, but now the UFC has some solid talent for the future that they can build upon. Look for more heavyweights to make their move to the UFC soon.

As for the Fedor/Randy comparison, I'm really hesitant to jump on the Velasquez bandwagon with that talk surrounding him. Is he really potentially going to be better than Fedor? I'm not convinced. Fedor's transitional MMA game is on another planet, and until I see a Heavyweight with that kind of transition speed, I'll still consider Fedor the best Heavyweight in the world.