Matt Mitrione on UFC 113: "I'm still preparing for Kimbo."

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Matt Mitrione expected to have the biggest fight of his career against Kimbo Slice on May 8 at UFC 113 in Montreal, but with the abrupt removal of that match up from the official fight card, the fights likelihood has been cast into doubt.

Though no public reason has been given for the change, there has been rampant speculation that move was made in order to facilitate an enticing scrap between Slice and newly-signed former middleweight boxing champion James Toney. Toney's camp has been very vocal in their insistence on a match up with Slice, and every indication has been given that the UFC is seriously considering the fight.

Mitrione admits to being in the dark himself, and says that he hasn't heard anything official as of yet. Though he has been reassured that he will still be fighting at UFC 113. 

"I have no clue what's going on; the last 15 hours have been pretty crazy," Mitrione told LasVegasSun.com. "To be truly honest, I haven't heard a thing from the UFC, and it's frustrating me. It's my understanding that it took awhile to get his (Toney's) paperwork signed, but I'm sure it's signed. Then again, that doesn't mean (expletive). When I was in the NFL I signed a contract, they signed a contract, and they can cut you whenever they want. I know that from first-hand experience."

Mitrione made an effort to get to the bottom of things with UFC matchmaker Joe Silva as soon as he heard about Toney's signing and the apparent cancelation of his own bout with Slice.

"Where there's smoke, there's usually fire," said Mitrione. "I texted Joe Silva (Thursday) night and asked what was happening, if there was any danger of this being cancelled. His response was basically that nothing was official and that I should keep preparing - that I'm still fighting in Montreal."

To prepare for a potential fight with Slice, Mitrione has planned an eight-week training camp, and he hopes he finds out soon what's going on so he can tailor his training accordingly.

"Fighting Kimbo is a phenomenal fight for me, and I think it's a bad fight for Kimbo," Mitrione stated. "I'm still preparing for Kimbo, and I firmly feel I would knock him out. Once I turn his chin and put him to sleep, that would be a great amount of exposure and a great stepping stone for my career. If it doesn't happen, it's not up to me to get pissed about it. It's not like I'm five days out of the fight, I still have a full camp ahead of me. But I would like to know so I can sit back and re-evaluate how I'm preparing."

For Mitrione, a high-profile fight with Slice would be a golden opportunity to get some positive exposure and move his UFC career forward. He says fans got an unfair impression of him from the editing on season 10 of "The Ultimate Fighter."

"They show what happened, but it was a very slanted view," Mitrione said of his time on TUF. "Like that part about me hearing voices - they took the setup of a joke and then didn't use the punch line. They want you to give exciting answers. So they sit you down and ask you, 'Why do you fight?' And you say, 'Dude, I've been fighting for six months. I fight because it's new and exciting.' Then they give you this look like, 'C'mon. Really?' So you say, 'OK. I fight because I hear voices and it's the only time I can be peaceful in my mind.' That's totally nuts and insane. But they take out the part where you laugh after and you say, 'Man, I'm sorry. I totally made that up.'"

Mitrione is 1-0 in his career, earning a victory in his Octagon debut with a knockout over Marcus Jones at The Ultimate Finale 10. Slice has a record of 4-1, and is also 1-0 in the UFC, earning a unanimous decision victory over Houston Alexander the same night Mitrione made his debut.