UFC on Fox Predictions: Who Is Fighting for His Job?

As always, a UFC event means there will be winners and losers. As much as the UFC would love to have every fighter under contract, there are so many slots in the company, and if a fighter loses too many times or just enough to warrant a release, it just might happen.

This is of course a depressing part of the fight business but it is one that exists.  As sad as it is for the UFC to forcibly hand out pink slips it is necessary for there to be space for new emerging talent.

With that said here is a list of fighters who might be one loss away from the unemployment line.

Clay Harvison

Harvison's opponent Damarques Johnson is also coming off a loss, but unlike Harvison has a few wins in the UFC to Harvison's one.  Johnson also has a submission and a knockout of the night award.

Having honors like that attached to a fighter's name makes them a little more indispensable to the UFC who likes to keep exciting competitors in their ranks.

Harvison, on the other hand, has no awards and a sole win by split decision. He also has no big-name wins in or out of the Octagon. If he drops to 1-2 in the UFC, especially if it's a decisive loss, he will probably be shown the door.

Darren Uyenoyama

Darren Uyenoyama might be in even more danger than Harvison of getting cut despite having never fought for the UFC before.

This is because unlike Harvison who is a former Ultimate Fighter contestant, UFC fans have no idea who Uyenoyama is.  Considering he also hasn't fought any top names this makes him even more easy to cut.

This changes as he faces his first veteran on Saturday.

He is in a fight with a tough veteran with "Kid" Yamamoto, which might cut him some slack if he loses, but considering the UFC brass chose him to face the Japanese MMA star to begin with he might just be a soft touch to get Yamamoto back on the winning track.

If that is the case, then Uyenoyama might just see the Octagon just long enough to get his 15 minutes of fame.

That is, if the fight goes the distance.

Kid Yamamoto

Norifumi Yamamoto may have only lost one fight in the Octagon so far, but he is 1-3 in his last four fights. He desperately needs to show some of the firepower and skill he did in his early career if he wants to continue to be employed by the UFC.

While that might put him on the chopping block, he still might have a chance to get one more fight. That is because the UFC is going back to Japan next year and will need all the Asian stars it can muster.

Cutting Yamamoto right before that event would be a mistake.

It is highly unlikely that he will lose to Darren Uyenoyama, but if he is defeated and in a crushing manner, the UFC may be forced to remoe Kid Yamamoto from the company.

Mackens Semerzier

When Semerzier faces Robert Peralta Saturday, it just may be for his future job security. While Peralta is undefeated in the UFC at 1-0 and having won his last eight overall, Semerzier is one win removed from a three-fight losing streak.

The last loss in that streak was a debatable defeat at the hands of Cub Swanson that earned fight of the night, but three losses in a row is still just that.

If he loses to Peralta, he will be 1-4 in his last five. No matter how entertaining a fighter is, the UFC will rarely keep them with that kind of record. A contradictory example is Wanderlei Silva, but Semerzier is no Silva, and if the UFC is eyeing new talent he may find himself out on the street.

It might make the fight a little more exciting, but it also might be because Semerzier is a little more desperate than Peralta.

Alex Caceres

"Bruce Leeroy" made a splash on The Ultimate Fighter during Season 12, but he hasn't fared so well in the Octagon.

In fact he has dropped his last two. Considering the fact that he has fought all of two fights in the UFC, a loss on Saturday means that he will have lost every fight under the promotion's banner.

One of them was even to Semerzier, who was mentioned in the last slide. When both the victor and the loser are possibly fighting for their jobs, things are looking bad for the loser.

Caceres isn't even getting an easy fight in WEC and DREAM veteran Cole Escovedo. Considering Escovedo was once the WEC featherweight champion the UFC either really believes in Caceres, thinks Escovedo is shot, or have given up on "Bruce Leeroy."

Whatever the case may be, Caceres does need to channel his inner Bruce Lee, or he may find himself collecting unemployment.

Cole Escovedo

The fact that Escovedo who is a real veteran of several major promotions is in a fight with Caceres tells something about his status in the UFC.

Escovedo has lost his last two fights in the Octagon, against only once-defeated Renan Barao and then to perennial gatekeeper Takeya Mizugaki. It is most likely the loss to Mizugaki that has Escovedo's UFC career in jeopardy.

Escovedo is probably in less danger than Caceres, though, as he has fought a number of impressive fighters, and though he hasn't always beaten them, he has probably gained more experience from each loss than Caceres has overall.

Escovedo is probably safe from being cut just so long as he wins his fight with Caceres.

Considering the men who have beaten him, that shouldn't be too hard.

Aaron Rosa

Aaron Rosa only has one loss in the UFC to Joey Beltran. However, he was beaten by knockout, and since he didn't win a fight of the night award, it doesn't look good for the former Strikeforce light heavyweight.

He has lucked out a bit as he is facing a UFC newcomer in Matt Lucas, which might benefit him.

Rosa has never beaten the top heavyweights or light heavyweights, but he might be able to keep his job if his opponent has a case of the first-time Octagon jitters. It has happened to great fighters before, so it stands to reason that a relative unknown like Lucas could be subject to them as well.

Of course if Lucas turns around and beats Rosa like Beltran, then he might just be a heavyweight to look out for.

As for Rosa?

The only thing he'll be looking for is a job.