Sporting an undefeated record through his first eight
fights, UFC light heavyweight competitor Brandon Vera has now dropped three out
of his last four bouts and seems to be at a crossroads for his future with the
promotion.
Always confident before his fights, Vera quickly became a
fan favorite early in his career with his exciting style and killer instinct
that earned him wins over top opponents like Frank Mir while competing at
heavyweight.
Now after two fights at 205 pounds, Vera is 1-1 with two
fairly lackluster fights and UFC president Dana
White commented on the fighter's performance after his loss to Keith
Jardine on Saturday night in England.
"Brandon Vera, it's like he lost something," White
commented. "That year off, I
don't know what it was. He doesn't
have that killer instinct, he doesn't go after it. This kid used to be so cocky, and you know he wanted to
fight everybody."
In a pre-fight interview with MMAWeekly.com, Vera mentioned
that after his fight with Jardine he would have one fight remaining on his
current contract. But has he lost some of his negotiating power after his last
two performances in a 205-pound weight class that seems to add new talent with
almost every show?
White also mentioned the promotion's wish to get Vera on "The
Ultimate Fighter" early in his career, but now questions where he's headed
after the loss to Jardine.
"We were trying to get him on one of the seasons of The
Ultimate Fighter and he was like, 'Ultimate Fighter, I want to fight Chuck
Liddell. I'll knock him out today,'" White said at the
post-fight press conference.
"And I was like, 'I (expletive) hear that seven days a week,
okay? Go on The Ultimate Fighter
and we'll find out how good you are.'
"He was good, he was walking through heavyweights. Took that year off, all the contract
stuff, hasn't been the same guy since.
I don't know what's wrong with him."
There was a very public dispute during Vera's last contract
negotiation that saw him split from former manager, Mark Dion, while taking a
long layoff between fights before coming back and suffering his first
professional loss, to Tim Sylvia in October of 2007.
As more and more fighters make their way up the ranks of a stacked
light heavyweight division, Vera will need to pull off an impressive win in his
next bout for sure, or he may be lost in a very muddied sea of contenders
looking for a big fight.
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