Two previously main event fighters are no longer on UFC roster. Canadian Patrick Cote and Brazilian Gabriel Gonzaga were cut from the UFC after UFC 121 because of their lack of success inside the octagon lately.
Patrick Cote had recently lost a fairly one-sided decision to Tom Lawlor at UFC 121 and Gabriel Gonzaga also lost a one-sided decision to up-and-coming HW prospect/runner-up in the Ultimate Fighter Season 10 Brendan Schaub. If you watched MMA about 3 years ago, and somebody had told you this was going to happen, you probably would have either thought they were trippin' balls on LSD or kicked them square in the nuts. Patrick Cote fought MW champ Anderson Silva a little over two years ago at UFC 90 and lost because of a knee injury in the 3rd round. Some would argue he hasn't been the same since. He was then submitted by Alan Belcher at UFC 113. Gabriel Gonzaga's story is quite similar. This is the guy who fucking head kick KO'd Mirko Cro Cop. Thats right, he HEAD KICKED Cro Cop, the master of all head kicks. You've probably seen it, Mirko's head snaps back and he lands on his ankle the wrong way, as millions of MMA fans and Pride fanboys all over the world watch in complete shock/disappointment. Gonzaga went on to fight Randy Couture for the HW championship back in '07 at UFC 74 and lost by TKO in the 3rd, although many believed he could pull off the win.
Its very weird to see two fighters who used be serious contenders completely fall down the ladder and ultimately (sort of a pun I guess...Ultimately...Ultimate Fighting Championship...Fuck it) get cut by the UFC. Gonzaga has even said he considered retiring from MMA. As we know, the MMA universe will live on and hopefully these two vets will continue to fight and eventually work their way back into the UFC.
By Shawn LeLievre
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