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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
Longtime UFC veteran Joe Stevenson has been released from the organization following a four fight losing streak, according to a report from MMAFighting.com.
Stevenson entered the UFC in 2005 as part of the second season of The Ultimate Fighter. Already a six-year veteran of the sport at that point with a 23-6 record, Stevenson ultimately defeated Luke Cummo in the season's tournament finals to capture the title of "The Ultimate Fighter." A loss to Josh Neer in his second UFC fight led to him dropping to the lightweight division, where he rattled off four straight wins to earn a shot at the then-vacant UFC Lightweight Championship.
However, a loss to B.J. Penn at UFC 80 for the title began a downward stretch for Stevenson. He went 3-2 over his next fight fights before losing three straight in 2010 and 2011 that prompted a drop to the featherweight division. A loss to Javier Vasquez in his featherweight debut at UFC on Versus 4 in June then led to his release. Stevenson went just 3-7 over his last ten fights in the UFC, with his overall UFC record sitting at an even 8-8 in 16 appearances.
Penick's Analysis: The only surprising thing about this news is how long it took to get out. The drop to featherweight was a last chance effort and a "must-win" fight for Stevenson, and seeing as he failed to win the release was expected. The crazy thing about his poor showing down the stretch is the fact that he's still only 29-years-old. He's been in the sport since 1999, and he's had a lot of success, but as of late he simply hasn't been able to compete at the highest levels as he once was. Hopefully he can turn things around elsewhere and on smaller shows, but I don't know that we'll ever see him in the UFC again.
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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