People get fired from their jobs for many different reasons each year. If I was to tell you that a fighter could lose to Anderson Silva and Rich Franklin in consecutive fights, and get cut because of it, you would think I was lying. In what I feel is a surprising turn of events for this TUF 4 winner, he is cut from the UFC. Travis Lutter no longer can call the octagon his home.

In a recent blog post, Lutter confirmed the news.

Lutter’s record does not really tell his story. He is 1-2 since the UTF 4 finale and his only recent win came against Patrick Cote in that fight at the finale. Since then he has fought 2 of the best fighters at 185 in the world. In both of these fights he at one point seemed to have the upper hand.

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Being the what the rest of the world would call a dumb American, I assumed that Montreal was much farther away from the United States than what Google maps just showed me. The predominently French Canadian city, on the eastern side of Canada, is less than 50 miles away from the upstate New York and Vermont borders. So while the Montreal crowd will obviously be predominantly Canadian, I wouldn’t be surprised to find a few outspoken Serra supporters mixed in the crowd and ready to support their fighter…and fight against the hometown crowd. It’s New York versus Montreal at UFC 83.

Canada is known for beer, cold weather, and hockey - and the fights that come with the sport. And for the first time, the UFC will be bringing the fighting to Canada in another sport which is quickly gaining mainstream attention by the Canadian press these days. It’s a move that many hardcore fans have been talking about ever since Georges St. Pierre made Matt Hughes verbally tap out during UFC 79. It’s also a move that will make the UFC a lot of money through the nearly-instant gate sellout along with the potential Pay-Per-View numbers which may rival some of the UFC’s other big PPV events if both Canadians and U.S. fans decide to watch the event live on television. And after Matt Serra decided to call out St. Pierre as “Frenchy” last May, you just might see the most eclectic UFC crowd on television ever.

But there’s more than hometown crowds, beer, and PPV numbers when it comes down to fighting. Let’s take a look at the televised matchups, including two of the five middleweight bouts, for UFC 83. (Note to UFC: Just hold a middleweight tournament and left the winner fight Anderson Silva.)

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Got a few extra bucks to spend this weekend? Bodog and BetUS are both showing odds for UFC 83 that just might make you want to drop a few bucks on Matt Serra, Travis Lutter, or even Mark Bocek.

After watching Matt Serra dismantle Georges St. Pierre during UFC 69 last April along with St. Pierre’s domination of Matt Hughes, this fight could easily go either way. Bodog is showing lines of -500 for St. Pierre and +300 for Serra while BetUS has Serra up at +350. You could make $350 for every $100 if Serra pulls off another “upset.” It’s only an upset if Serra wins because it’s one of those fights where many are thinking St. Pierre will come away with the victory, but there’s some uncertainty. Remember the last time this happened? It was Anderson Silva and Dan Henderson and although a great fight ensued, the upset just wasn’t there. Things may change this time around if Serra doesn’t let the Montreal crowd get to him.

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There’s gotten to be alot more anticipation and anxiety over the matchups that we use to just see as glorified ass-whuppings, advancing the UFC’s top stars to the top. If nothing else, 2007 changed the way that we view the stepping stone matchup forever. We learned the hard way that sometimes stepping stones step back.

It’s not easy to say, simply, that this fight is going to go one way or the other. People will say that Franklin has a clear edge. He’s a multiple time UFC champion and a serious warrior in terms of his ability to stand and trade. There’s no dispute that Franklin is the favorite in this fight, but there’s something about this fight that makes it more than just a promising, starching knockout and the physical dominance that we have seen from Franklin in many of his highlight worthy performances.

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I’m a big fan of undercard fights, because unlike the main event, the fighters always have something to prove, and they always want the airtime. On the next few UFC cards, there are a few matchups that you won’t hear the UFC talk about, but they’re definitely important. Here are some of my favorite upcoming matches and some of the most interesting matchups that no one will really be talking about, both on this UFC 82 card and in the near future:

Andrei Arlovski vs. Jake O’Brien

I’ll be honest, I’m really excited to see Jake O’Brien get punched in the face. It’d be an understatement to say that I don’t like his attitude, but it’s not going to far to say that I’d rather watch a Josh Koscheck marathon than watch O’Brien’s vicious laynpray. Andrei Arlovski has a very underrated ground game, which he’s pulled out of his world class sambo background, and he’s great a controlling distance. In all likelihood, this fight will end in O’Brien getting pounded or submitted, and O’Brien really has no outs in this fight, but Arlovski is going to be hungry and angry, given that he acknowledges that his last fight was a poor performance. Andrei has something to prove, and I certainly hope he brings it.

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