In the world of sports you are only as good as your last fight, match or game, and working for a company like the UFC when you lose a few fights you could be out of a job. The part about that it does not matter if you have been with the company for two fights or twenty, because when you lose about three fights in a row your name starts to be brought up for pink slips. That is the spot that Chris Leben and Frank Mir find themselves in after many years in the UFC. They are lined up for new fights, and with a loss they could be looking for new employment.
Chris Leben is one of the only fighters from the first season of TUF to still be active in the Octagon, and while he has never been a champion, he is a fixture in the middleweight division. From introducing Anderson SIlva to the UFC, chin checking nearly half the 185 pound roster, and proving who is a legit fighter and who is faking it, Chris Leben has done it all in the Octagon. Unfortunately, no one wants to ever hang it up thinking that glory is still out there somewhere in the cage. At just 1-4 in his last five bouts, Leben may not have the choice to hang it up, because with a loss in his upcoming bout against Uriah Hall the choice may be made for him.
For Frank Mir, it may be even harder to hangup the four ounce gloves. This is a fighter who just three fights ago was fighting for the heavyweight belt of the world, just a few years ago was the interim champion, and had a devastating injury from which doctors told him he would never walk again let alone fight. He has defied the odds in every case imaginable, but father time is the destroyers of everything in time. His chin has always been his major weakness considering it has lead to seven out of his eight losses. He will have no easy task, but he can prove himself agains the likes of Alistair Overeem in his next bout. Overeem himself is on the chopping block after two straight knockout losses which is a far way from the best int he world he was supposed to be when he entered the promotion. Like Rocky said, "The world ain’t all sunshine and rainbows," and that especially true when you are not winning in the Octagon.