Monday, August 4th marked the end of Tito Ortiz's run in the UFC; the former light heavyweight champion parted ways with the organization due to a long standing feud with president Dana White. He wasted no time in finding a new home. Ortiz almost immediately signed on with Affliction and he will be a participant in their next event which is scheduled for October 11th at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Affliction's last fight card, Banned, which took place July 19th was a success but it is yet to be determined if the newly formed league can provide long term competition to the UFC. Certainly signing a name fighter as big as Ortiz will help their chances, but Tito has a few things to prove before Affliction can bank on him as a money generating fixture. The contract is rumored to be a huge one and based on the Huntington Beach Bad Boy's recent results it is a gamble to say the least.
Ortiz does not have a win in his last three fights, and many have felt his decline is related to his ongoing relationship with porn star Jenna Jameson. He scored a draw with Rashard Evans back at UFC 73 and he was dominated by Chuck Liddell at UFC 66 and Lyoto Machida at UFC 84. He certainly still has the skills left to compete and Affliction is no doubt banking on this new deal being the incentive he needs to return to form.
Ortiz is scheduled to fight Renato "Babalu" Sobral on the Affliction "Day of Reckoning" card. Sobral has a career 30-7 MMA record and is a member of the Gracie Barra Combat Team. He, like Ortiz, had stumbled a little bit, losing two fights in a row, but he rebounded to win his last three bouts, including a decision over Mike Whitehead at Affliction: Banned.
The fight card for "Day of Reckoning" is still not complete, but the following fights are set:
Josh Barnett vs. Andrei Arlovski
Renato Sobral vs. Tito Ortiz
Roy Nelson vs. Jay White
Matt Lindland vs. Vitor Belfort
Vladimir Matyushenko vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
Tim Slyvia, Alexsander Emelianenko, and Pedro Rizzo are all scheduled to fight as well but their opponents are yet to be determined.
