Buentello to UFC?

[Impact!]

Paul Buentello has secured his release from Strikeforce and is negotiating a return to the Octagon, the former UFC heavyweight title contender told Sherdog.com.

Strikeforce President Scott Coker confirmed the news in an e-mail sent via company representative Mike Afromowitz.

“We offered Paul a six-figure contract to fight Fedor, but he turned it down,” Coker said. “His decision is understandable considering Fedor's level of skill but, at the same time, Paul didn't really fit into our plans. He's been a solid journeyman fighter and we wish him the best of luck in his future endeavors.”

Buentello said the UFC would honor his Affliction contract -- which has one fight left -- and that they are negotiating an extension as well.

At 27-10 overall, the "Head Hunter" has run up a 12-2 record over the past six years with his only defeats coming in title matches against Andrei Arlovski and Alistair Overeem. The 35-year-old Texan was 3-1 in his first stint in the UFC.

“I've never been one to get involved in the politics of the sport,” Buentello wrote to Sherdog.com in an e-mail. “I have made as little as $1 to fight the UFC champion and been paid as much as six figures to fight an up-and-coming fighter. I'm not insulted at being regarded as a journeyman fighter either since I started my career as one. Training in my garage with no training partners, I started off with a handful of losses. I always wondered what I could do given the chance to train full time, and through a lot of sacrifices and sponsors that took a shot on me, I'm happy with the result. I've lost two times in six years with those loses coming to champions. Am I a gatekeeper or a journeyman? Well, if I'm a gatekeeper, any organization I compete in is going to have a thin heavyweight division. I've never claimed to be the best in the sport. But to say I turned down Fedor because of his skill level is a slap in the face.”

:lol: Buentello V Fedor

[The Show Off]

Buentello Out of Strikeforce, Likely to UFC
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Buentello Out of Strikeforce, Likely to UFC
Thursday, September 10, 2009
by Greg Savage (greg@sherdog.com)

19624
Paul Buentello has secured his release from Strikeforce and is negotiating a return to the Octagon, the former UFC heavyweight title contender told Sherdog.com.

Strikeforce President Scott Coker confirmed the news in an e-mail sent via company representative Mike Afromowitz.

“We offered Paul a six-figure contract to fight Fedor, but he turned it down,” Coker said. “His decision is understandable considering Fedor's level of skill but, at the same time, Paul didn't really fit into our plans. He's been a solid journeyman fighter and we wish him the best of luck in his future endeavors.”

Buentello said the UFC would honor his Affliction contract -- which has one fight left -- and that they are negotiating an extension as well.

At 27-10 overall, the "Head Hunter" has run up a 12-2 record over the past six years with his only defeats coming in title matches against Andrei Arlovski and Alistair Overeem. The 35-year-old Texan was 3-1 in his first stint in the UFC.

“I've never been one to get involved in the politics of the sport,” Buentello wrote to Sherdog.com in an e-mail. “I have made as little as $1 to fight the UFC champion and been paid as much as six figures to fight an up-and-coming fighter. I'm not insulted at being regarded as a journeyman fighter either since I started my career as one. Training in my garage with no training partners, I started off with a handful of losses. I always wondered what I could do given the chance to train full time, and through a lot of sacrifices and sponsors that took a shot on me, I'm happy with the result. I've lost two times in six years with those loses coming to champions. Am I a gatekeeper or a journeyman? Well, if I'm a gatekeeper, any organization I compete in is going to have a thin heavyweight division. I've never claimed to be the best in the sport. But to say I turned down Fedor because of his skill level is a slap in the face.”

Is it just me or is that a terrible thing to admit?

Strikeforce is admitting that they wanted Fedor to fight a journeyman. Fedor is supposed to (and is according to me) be the best Heavyweight fighter in the world, and you wanted to put him up against someone yourefer to as a journeyman?

What a joke.

[Impact!]

http://www.tpww.net/forums/showthread.php?t=94237 (Buentello to UFC) :p

[Impact!]

but yeah rofl at Strikeforce

[The Show Off]

http://www.tpww.net/forums/showthread.php?t=94237 (Buentello to UFC) :p

That thread was literally posted while I was making this thread... But alas I was beaten to it, but this thread got more responses because I invoke the name of Fedor.

[Impact!]

*More responses due to me pointing out that you were to slow :p

[Funky Fly]

Merged the topics.

[Impact!]

Champion :y:

[Impact!]

Also, with Krispy only here every once in a while, I would like to nominate Impact! as MMA Forum mod :shifty:

[Funky Fly]

You can be MMA Forum Mascot if you like.

[Impact!]

Go team

[Jura]

What's a journeyman and a gatekeeper lol?

[Danny Electric]

A journeyman is someone who goes from organisation to organisation, or if it was a football club it would be someone who goes from club to club, doesn't stay at the same place for a long time.

[Impact!]

And gatekeeper is basically the guy you have to be able to beat to be *considered* a contender...like if you can't beat *name* your never gonna be a top guy.

[Super V]

Doesn't that make Fedor a journeyman? I DO get what your sayin about Strikeforce though, that they wanted to give him an easy win. I guess this is where the blurry line of sports and entertainment is though. Seems like they wanna "protect their big draw" so to speak.

[Reavant]

no fedor isnt a journeyman. He moves around because the places he fights get shut down. When he finds a place he stays there. Buenetello has fought in like 20 organizations.

[HeartBreakMan2k]

Yeah, a journeyman is one of those guys who's talented enough to be a professional, but never going to get the big win that is going to make an organization to keep them around for a long period of time. Though they'll always find work somewhere.

The definition of a gatekeeper is Rich Franklin when he was in the middleweight division. He was the best middleweight in the world not named Anderson Silva. Thus, he was the gatekeeper to Anderson's throne.

[The Show Off]

Yeah, a journeyman is one of those guys who's talented enough to be a professional, but never going to get the big win that is going to make an organization to keep them around for a long period of time. Though they'll always find work somewhere.

The definition of a gatekeeper is Rich Franklin when he was in the middleweight division. He was the best middleweight in the world not named Anderson Silva. Thus, he was the gatekeeper to Anderson's throne.

I always thought a gatekeeper was a guy like Clay Guida or Keith Jardine... The type of guy who'll never get a title shot but if you beat him you get into the discussion of being a title contender.

Rich Franklin is more along the lines of a guy who lacks definition (in Middleweight). The type of guy whose record dictates he get a title shot but can't because he's already gotten destroyed by the champion.

But I guess it's only slight diffrences in definition.

[Reavant]

both cases would be gatekeepers basically franklin was a gatekeeper to the title and guida and jardine are gatekeepers to the top fighters of the division.... liddel was a gate keeper to tito when tito had the title and was ducking him while liddel was beating the vitors and babalus of the division