UFC 139: Who Will Be Fighting for Their Job?

In every UFC event, there will be winners and losers, and UFC 139 is no different. Just like after those other events, there will be those who are cut from the organization after all is said and done.

It is never fun to hear that someone has lost their job, but it comes with the territory.  Employers only keep people who help the company grow.  Considering the UFC is supposed to be the place for the best MMA fighters in the world, that means they need to win.

Often.

Unfortunately some won't be able to do that and within weeks of Saturday's card will be notified of their dismissal.  Here are some of the people who may be fighting for their jobs.

Wanderlei Silva

Silva has had a great career.  That career should arguably been up a few fights ago, but he is only one loss from a win against Michael Bisping.  Then again his record is 2-6 in his last eight.

Four of the losses have been KOs and he hasn't knocked anyone out since 2008.  Silva is definitely starting to age and the fact that he is being pitted against part-time fighter Cung Le, who is only a year away from turning 40, is telling.

Dana White and the UFC obviously want to keep Silva in competitive matchups, but if this is the level that Silva is now competitive at, it might be time to hang them up.

Silva is one day going to be in the Hall of Fame but his best days were in PRIDE.  Sadly, casual UFC fans won't ever get to know the amazing fighter that hardcore MMA fans came to know and love.  

If Silva does lose his fight with Le, expect White to try and keep him with the company but out of the cage.

And if Silva does lose to Le, hopefully it will be the last time fans see him in one.

Martin Kampmann

In this writer's opinion, Kampmann shouldn't have lost his two fights.  Both were controversial, and in both he acquitted himself well.

Still he is 0-2 in his last two outings in the UFC.  He isn't in too much danger since his first loss was a split decision that was very close, though many thought Kampmann beat Shields.  His second loss was against Diego Sanchez in yet another controversial decision, but one that won Fight of the Night.

As long as Kampmann doesn't lose badly in the first round, he should be fine.

Then again it will be his third loss in a row.  The UFC does give its fighters some slack, but at the same time it is a business. If a fighter loses too many fights in a row, then the UFC might have no choice but to send them to the unemployment line.

That would be disappointing as the young Dane has shown that he could very well be a top fighter in the welterweight division and knows how to make fun fights.

Don't count on not seeing Kampmann again if he loses, but don't be surprised if he disappears.

Ryan Bader

It's tough to believe that an Ultimate Fighter winner is already on this list, especially because at one point he was undefeated not just in his UFC career, but since he had started fighting professionally.

Things change though and now he is riding a two-match losing streak thanks to guillotine chokes.  The first was to Jon Jones, which is forgivable since Jones is now the champion and has been able to easily dispatch every fighter he has been put in with.

The second loss was to Tito Ortiz.  At one point in time that would be just as excusable as losing to Jones.  However, Ortiz is most likely past his prime, and his win against Bader was his first in his last seven fights.

Now Bader is set to face Jason Brilz, who is also on a two-fight losing streak.  The only difference is that one of Brilz' losses was a split decision and Fight of the Night.  Bader's losses in contrast were definitive and won him no bonus money.

This fight is also not on the pay-per-view portion of the card.  That also speaks volumes of Bader's placement within the company.

Jason Brilz

Brilz may be in a slightly better spot than Bader, but not by much.  He may have had a close fight two bouts ago, with one of the Nogueira brothers no less, but in his last fight he was knocked out by grizzled veteran Vladimir Matyushenko in the first round.  

Considering that Matyushenko's second run with the UFC has had mixed success, that doesn't bode well for Brilz.  If he wants to keep his job with the UFC, he might just have to go through Bader to do it.

The fight is still on Spike TV as a prelim so it might not mean that he is on the chopping block, but it also might mean that the UFC is giving one fighter a last shot on television to get their act together.

Hopefully it will spur both men on to put on a great fight and whip the crowd into a frenzy.

And if they both do that, they may also both get to keep their jobs. 

Tom Lawlor

"Filthy" Tom Lawlor is quite the character as far as UFC fighters go.  His weigh-in antics and entrances have made him a cult favorite, but now that he is toning it down a little he might be in trouble.

At one point Lawlor had lost two fights in a row after having only won his first two in the Octagon.  Perhaps it was due to the fact that the last win had been the Submission of the Night.  Perhaps it was due to his fun skits outside of it.

Whatever the case, the UFC kept him on.

He even won his last fight.

Now he is being pitted against undefeated UFC newcomer Chris Weidman, who is 2-0 in the promotion.  If he loses to Weidman, he will have dropped three of his last four fights.

And if that happens, the UFC may drop him.

Nick Pace

Nick Pace is 1-2 in the UFC and WEC.  He is now facing Miguel Torres at UFC 139.

It may be possible that the UFC brass sees something special in Pace but considering that Torres is coming off a loss after winning two straight, it is most likely a rebound fight for the former bantamweight champion.

Pace could still pull off the upset but his only win in the Octagon is against Will Campuzano, who is no longer with the UFC, but it isn't looking promising.

The experience between Pace and Torres is vastly different, and it is a safe bet that it is so Torres can notch a win and get back up onto the main card.

With that said, there are no easy fights in the UFC.  This may be the closest fans get to seeing one on Saturday night.

Unless Pace decides to pull the upset.

Matt Brown

Brown's nickname is "The Immortal," and since he at one point had dropped three fights in a row with the company and was given one last fight that he went on to win, his career just might be.

Brown may have won his last fight but his career was on a downward spiral before it happened, and one more loss might send him over the edge in terms of employment with the UFC.

It wouldn't just come down to his win-loss record either.  His opponent is Seth Baczynski, who so far has only fought Clay Harvison, submitting him to get his only win in the UFC.  Other than a loss to Brad Tavares, he doesn't have any other experience in the octagon.

If he can beat Brown though, it could mean he has a future with the company.

On the flip side if Brown is beaten by him, it means that he probably doesn't.

Shamar Bailey

Bailey certainly isn't being treated with kid gloves.  His third opponent in the UFC is Danny Castillo.  Though Castillo is only 1-1 in the UFC if his WEC fights are included, then he is actually 6-4 with the company.

Bailey didn't do himself any favors coming into the UFC's Ultimate Fighter while riding a two-match losing streak, but he was somehow able to beat fellow contestant Ryan McGillivray by decision to get another chance in the Octagon.

For some reason his second fight came against former top lightweight Evan Dunham, who is still a contender.  He lost the fight by decision and now he is facing a grizzled veteran in Castillo.

If Bailey can win, it will elevate his career in the UFC.

If he loses, it might mean he gets shown the door.