(Wait, now I’m fighting who?) 

Maybe it’s because we’ve been burned many, many times before, but we’re not exactly sold on Dana White’s recent claims that the upcoming TUF 15 Finale headlining match between Martin Kampmann and Jake Ellenberger will be for the next title shot. You see, “number one contender” is a term that is so loosely used and abused by the Zuffa brass these days that it might as well be Rampage Jackson.

But be that as it may, a press release sent out by the UFC this morning, quoting the almighty DW nonetheless, has stated that the victor of Kampmann/Ellenberger will indeed get the winner of Condit/GSP, whenever the hell that happens:

The welterweight division is stacked and Jake Ellenberger and Martin Kampmann are going to fight for the chance to earn a title shot. They will headline the season finale of TUF Live on FX to crown the next Ultimate Fighter. There’s a lot at stake for the guys competing on this card at the Palms.

You see how they did that? “For the chance to earn a title shot,” is about as brilliant a non-commitment as we’ve ever seen. Dan Henderson would be impressed by such a classic Dana White misdirection, and would undoubtedly have a better response than the one you are about to read. But if you feel tricked, hoodwinked, or even bamboozled by such a statement, then you’re not alone. We’re not going to take it anymore, and are calling shenanigans on this right now before things get out of hand. Here’s why.

Photo courtesy of fighthousemanagement.com

Yesterday, the UFC announced that top bantamweights Renan Barao and Ivan Menjivar are now scheduled to meet at UFC 148. Barao, who was initially scheduled to meet Jeff Hougland at the event, confirmed the switch on his Twitter account by saying “Menjivar is my new opponent at UFC 148. I know him.” Brevity is the soul of wit, people.

Don’t be surprised if the winner of this fight meets the winner of UFC 148′s (expected) main event clash between Urijah Faber and champion Dominick Cruz. Both fighters are 3-0 in the octagon, with Menjivar coming off of a wild, back and forth fight against John Albert at UFC on FUEL, which saw “The Pride of El Salvador” take home a first round rear-naked choke victory and Submission of the Night honors. Meanwhile, Barao has gone twenty nine straight fights without a loss. His most recent fight was a dominant performance against Scott Jorgensen at UFC 143, which saw him take home a unanimous decision victory.

As for Barao’s initial opponent? Jeff Hougland will step in for an injured Mike Easton to fight Yves Jabouin at UFC on FUEL 3.

Vera can’t stand to even look at that “Juice Monkey“. (Pic: MMAFighting.com)

The report we filed two days ago on the Brandon Vera-Thiago Silva grudge match is already woefully out of date. According to “The Truth”, he was so eager to ‘welcome’ Silva back to the Octagon that he jumped the gun and accepted the rematch before discussing the bout with his coaches or doctors. A consultation with his physician revealed that he wouldn’t be recovered from an injury in time for the May 15^th fight.

The bad blood stems back to their UFC 125 bout. Silva showed incredible disrespect toward Vera, bitch slapping him repeatedly before playing him like a pair of bloody bongos. The humiliating loss earned Vera his walking papers, at least until he was un-fired when Silva’s post-fight urine sample tested positive for steroids.

Silva eventually copped to ‘roiding and was himself slapped with a hefty fine and one-year suspension. The rematch with Vera, scheduled to go down on the UFC on FX 3 card, would have been his first fight back from that suspension. Following a successful nose transplant, Vera rebounded with a unanimous decision win over Eliott Marshall at UFC 137, but he’ll now spend a little more time on the sidelines. Zuffa is currently looking for an alternate dance partner for the Brazilian.

(Dude. Don’t even get me started about mustard water. / Props: hypeordie)

After knocking out Christian Morecraft at UFC on FX 1 last month, Pat Barry has booked his next fight. The heavyweight kickboxer will face Lavar Johnson on the main card of UFC on FOX 3, May 5th in New Jersey, which will officially be headlined by a five-round lightweight contest between Nate Diaz and Jim Miller.

Lavar Johnson scored the Knockout of the Night during last weekend’s UFC on FOX 2 card, by smashing Joey Beltran in the first round of their preliminary card meeting. The win snapped a two-fight losing streak that Johnson had carried over from his stint in Strikeforce. His upcoming scrap with Barry seems like a way for the UFC to guarantee some much-needed excitement for their next FOX broadcast. As for Barry, it’s an opportunity to bump his UFC record over .500 and secure back-to-back victories for the first time in his UFC career.

In other May booking news…