Middleweight fighter Jason MacDonald got his walking papers (well, walking email) from the UFC this past weekend. It's obviously not something that he is relishing, but, ever the optimist, he is looking for opportunities in misfortune.

"The good news is I can go out there and win a few fights and hopefully be back in the UFC before the end of 2009," said MacDonald in his blog at sportsnet.ca on Monday.

"It also opens up some other opportunities for me. It's an opportunity for me to fight in the MFC and win that middleweight belt. I also wouldn't mind fighting in Strikeforce. They're looking for someone to fight Scott Smith. And I can beat Scott Smith

Correct me if im wrong, but did'nt Dana just say when asked last week that Macdonald's spot was safe for now in the UFC? Tough break for Macdonald but im glad hes already got plans for what he'd like to accomplish outside of the octagon. I personally think Scott Smith would decapitate him but more power to him.

read the who article on mmaweekly insider blog

I'm pretty sure Dana would be 100 percent against the idea of Chuck getting into the octagon one last time, but if it were to happen I think I have a good idea of who he would be matched against.

The unfortunate reality of combat sports or really any sport in general is that athletes will get old no matter how immortal they seem. Chuck is a perfect example of this as only 2 short years ago he seemed unbeatable and noone could ever imagine how his next 5 fights would play out. We as fans forget that at the end of the day these gladiators that put everything they have on the line for this sport are indeed human and even worse mortal.

If Chuck was going to ever fight again Dana and Joe Silva would have to be very maticiulous in their matchmaking selection to ensure the Icemans health and safety. Personally I think pitting Chuck against the loser of Nog/Randy makes alot of sense in alot of different ways. Number one Randy aswell as Nog have never been known much for their devistating striking or overwhelming power. Yes Nog was a very technical boxer in regards to mma but never quite had the power where you thought he could kill somebody in the cage like some of his heavyweight peers. Randy who is a wrestler also has good hands but not scary power. I doubt either of them would viciously KO Chuck which would be everyones biggest fear

Putting Chuck against Randy or Nog not only gives him a winnable fight IMO, it also gives him one last main event against a fellow future first ballot hall of famer. Randy and Nog are going to go down in history as two of the best HW's to ever step in the octagon, it would only be fitting for Chuck to end his career with a competitive fight win or lose to someone of their stature.

In the end none of our heroes can go on forever and aging and physical decline are an inconvientent truth we will all have to deal with. Chuck aswell as Nog and Randy are all winding down their careers. No matter who their matched up against in their last stands in battle no matter what happens in the cage, they will always be winners to those of us who they have excited, captivated, and given us a reason to idolize for years. Thanks for the memories guys.

There are two words that throw cold water on the whole notion of Kongo even being close to a title shot at this point in his career. Heath Herring! Since his much hyped and anticipated arrival to the UFC Herring has mostly been dissapointing. He's 1-3 in the UFC against guys not named Cheick Kongo(2-3 overall). His only other win was against an inexperienced Brad Imes and it was by decision. Heath is a tough dude don't get me wrong but he had no answer for Jake O'Briens wrestling and got totally steamrolled by Lesnar be it theres no shame in the latter. Heath is really not much more than a gatekeeper at this point in his career unless he can put together a string of big wins. The recent loss to Herring certainly speaks volumes about the reality of Kongo's still suspect takedown defense.

While I could bring up Carmello Marreros domination of Kongo the truth is that does not concern me as much as his next fight out does: Assueiro Silva. Marrero is your typical wrestler converted into MMA fighter, but the key word here is wrestler as he had a solid wrestling base before entering mma which makes that loss forgivable. Assuerio Silva is a ju-jitsu guy with most of his wins coming via submission. Silva never had that strong wrestling base yet he still was able to ragdoll Kongo enroute to a decision I believed he should have won. Judging the fight on the standard striking,grappling,and octagon control Silva definitley controlled the grappling and octagon control which imo should have gotten him the win. If Kongo could'nt stuff an Assueiro Silva or Heath Herring takedown what makes you think he can stuff Lesnar or even Mir?

Yes Kongo has been looking good on his 3 fight win streak but lets face it the opposition has been WEAK(well weak by UFC title contention standards). Hardnok is def the most dangerous out of the 3 wins and I'd say hes at the bottom of the top 20 in the world and that might be generous. Shane Carwin jus took out Gonzaga who was ranked around 8th in the world and nobody is claiming he should be next in line. The bottom line is this: Yes Kongo has been improving and looking like he can shape up to be a contender one day. If he keeps working hard and doing the right things hes no doubt on his way. Just like I started the post with two words that sum up the situation it seems appropriate it should end with the two most important words ONE DAY.