A heavyweight fight between Andrei Arlovski (11-5 MMA, 9-4 UFC) and Jake O’Brien (10-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC) will not be aired live as part of the UFC 82’s pay-per-view broadcast.
Given the state of the heavyweight division this is a terrible move and could be the final chapter in Arlovski's UFC career.
Arlovski, the UFC’s former heavyweight champion and arguably its biggest star during his reign as a title-holder, is currently on the last fight of his UFC contract, which expires April 15. Rather than sign an extension, he will finish out his contract and then shop the free agent market. Although they haven’t ruled out a return to the UFC, Arlovski and his management team could likely command big money from other organizations such as EliteXC, M-1 Global and HDNet Fights.
So, is his spot on the preliminary card punishment for Arlovski’s decision not to re-sign with the organization? Only the UFC knows for sure. However, keep in mind that Arlovski hasn’t been in an un-televised fight since UFC 40 — which was five years and nine fights ago.
UFC 82 contains a number of main-card-worthy fighters. In addition to Arlovski, “The Ultimate Fighter 1” stand-out Josh Koscheck will also be stuck on UFC 82’s un-televised preliminary card. Koscheck meets Ohio fighter Dustin Hazelett at the event. (With Arlovski and Koscheck relegated to the preliminary card, a fight between Diego Sanchez and David Bielkheden has been placed on the televised main card.)
This is a clear case that the pay-per-view's should show most or all of the scheduled fights. Not just under the condition that the televised fights finished early. also, if this is going to be Arlovski's last UFC fight (which is a possibility), it's a slap in the face if it's not televised.
Monday, February 4, 2008
UFC Bumps Arlovski - O'Brien to UFC 82 Preliminary Card
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3 comments:
Unbelievable tha Arvloski went from such an elite fighter to not even being televised. Thats gotta sting no matter who you are.
Not to mention that he was the guy who the UFC portrayed as invincible. When the UFC was trying establish itself in 2004 they used Arlovski to be the staple of a typical UFC fighter. Their training regimin, diet, and mindset for fighting. Now he's a nobody in Dana White's eyes.
Again, a perfect example of the UFC using fighters for its own personal gain. Arlovski was once the top heavyweight in the UFC. He has lost a couple of fights and maybe hasn't looked his best but I am starting to believe that some of his efforts may be directly related to the fact that the UFC doesn't give these fighters any incentive to do well. Like Butch once pointed out, he is young and is almost needed in the heavyweight division.
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