Huerta’s Suitors

It’s not often a fighter coming off consecutive losses is in high demand, but records don’t always tell the entire story. Roger Huerta lost to former number-one contender Kenny Florian via decision; he split scorecards with imminent No. 1 contender Gray Maynard. He remains better-looking than most of us. No reason to hang his head. Now Huerta is available to take bids for his services.

While his UFC contract has expired, the promotion has the right to match any monetary offer for up to one year, which is good for Huerta: it means he can leverage competitor interest against the UFC. And that interest may be considerable: Strikeforce, Bellator, and others would perceive Huerta as a key for the burgeoning Latino market.

The problem with remaining in the Octagon is that Huerta has hit the wall: he could not beat Florian or Maynard, which gives champion B.J. Penn odds on deconstructing both his game plan and his face. (It may not matter: his style, like Forrest Griffin’s, is to lose the tough fights but win fans with lockjaw determination.) Strikeforce is on solid footing, but the whims of CBS dictate that company’s long-term viability as a major player; Bellator hasn’t yet spent beyond their means, and they’re not likely to start with Huerta.

As with fellow free agent Dan Henderson, Huerta’s best bet remains the UFC. He just can’t act like it.