UFC 187 was live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas this past Saturday night (May 23, 2015) with a stacked card, and produced a night of exciting and memorable action. The big night of fights is now in our rear-view, so let’s take a look at which of the evening’s competitors we may no longer see inside the Octagon… ON THE CHOPPING BLOCK Josh Burkman Burkman was released by the UFC after going 5-5 in his first sting with the promotion and was brought back when they had trouble finding a welterweight willing to fight Hector Lombard. Burkman made his return and went the distance with Lombard, losing the bout on the judges’ scorecards. A positive post-fight drug test for Lombard turned the result of that bout into a No Contest, and Burkman got booked for another scrap. He took on “Stun Gun” Dong Hyun Kim on the FOX Sports 1 preliminary card of this past Saturday night’s UFC 187, where he was submitted via arm triangle choke in the third and final round of action. I think Burkman displayed poor fight IQ in the bout and does not really deserve another Octagon opportunity. He had Kim hurt in rounds two and three, but rather than capitalizing, he allowed the striking exchanges to turn into a grappling affair. Burkman very much disappointed with his performance and after unofficially going 0-2 in his second stint with the UFC, I think there is a fair chance they let him go once again. Josh Sampo After submitting Ryan Benoit with a second round rear naked choke in his ‘Fight of the Night’ bonus-winning promotional debut, Sampo has gone on to lose his next three bouts and is now likely facing contract termination. He first dropped a unanimous decision to Zach Makovsky, then was submitted by Patrick Holohan via first round rear naked choke during the UFC’s latest trip to Ireland. He had an opportunity to snap a two-fight skid and bounce back into the win column on the UFC Fight Pass preliminary card of this past Saturday night’s UFC 187 when he took on Justin Scoggins, who has coming off a two-fight skid of his own. It was a competitive three round match-up, but ultimately it was Scoggins who picked up the unanimous decision on the judges’ scorecards and returned to the win column, while handing Sampo his third straight Octagon defeat. I would not be surprised to see Sampo get another chance, considering how razor-thin the UFC’s flyweight division is and the fact that he would be one of the best flyweights outside of the UFC, if released. That said, I think there’s at least a 60% chance he will be receiving his pink slip from the promotion.
