Canadian fighter Kalib Starnes, vilified by mixed martial arts fans for his inactivity in a bout against Nate Quarry at UFC 83 on the weekend, has asked to be released from his UFC contract.
But the 33-year-old middleweight from Surrey, B.C., declined to discuss what happened in the lopsided fight Saturday night in Montreal or why he wanted out of the UFC, saying he would comment further once his UFC exit paperwork was complete.
"Until that happens, I don't feel comfortable talking any more about it," Starnes told The Canadian Press on Monday from his training base in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
"Personally, I couldn't be happier to be released from my UFC contract," added.
It's a far cry from his bio on the official UFC website (www.ufc.com) which quotes him saying: "It's an honour and pleasure to fight in the UFC."
Starnes denied the UFC had initiated the move, saying he had asked for the divorce papers in a call to UFC matchmaker Joe Silva on Monday morning.
Said UFC president Dana White: "I don't care if Starnes says we cut him, or he asked to be let go - at the end of the day if you're a professional fighter, and you are fighting in the UFC in front of your hometown crowd, you have to show up to fight,"
The Canadian fighter backpeddled like a hockey defenceman en route to losing a unanimous decision, with one judge scoring it a remarkable 30-24 for his opponent. Quarry mocked him late in the bout, miming Starnes' running and holding his hands high in front of his face, which he later said was an invitation for Starnes to hit him.
MMA Internet forums were filled with abuse for Starnes.
"I hope Starnes never fights MMA again. . . . What a gutless display, I was embarrassed watching it," said one post on fightopinion.com
"Starnes should be blacklisted from ever fighting MMA again," wrote another.
"I would have paid an extra $10 for them to not air the Kalib Starnes fight.," a third wrote.
"Starnes stinks," summed up another online critic.
White was dismissive of Starnes at the post-fight news conference in Montreal.
"It takes two guys to fight and Nate's the only one that showed up to fight tonight for that fight," White said.
The soldout Bell Centre crowd chanted "Boring, Boring," and cheered Quarry mimicking Starnes' running. And as they waited for the decision, they cheered Quarry when the American was shown on the big screens and booed Starnes when he came on.
Said Quarry: "I knew the Canadian fans especially, they were going to go for a warrior's heart more than who was just born there. So that's what I brought."
Asked about Quarry's posturing, Starnes said the American came to see him after the fight.
"He came and apologized to me afterwards. I understand what it's like when you become emotional and excited in the ring. I think he was upset that I wasn't standing there exchanging with him more, because he wanted to knock me out. He was disappointed, I think, that he wasn't able to put me away."
Starnes says he did not leave the cage unscathed, pointing to a possible broken bone in his right foot.
"I'm having difficulty getting a hold of the medical claims representative from the UFC to be able to go get my foot X-rayed," he said.
He also cited severe bruising on his left thigh, a black eye, sprained jaw and "some lumps all over my head."
Starnes was operating on the kind of contract often given to alumni of "The Ultimate Fighter" reality TV show. He says the deal guaranteed him three fights a year with the UFC holding an option at the end of each year whether it wanted to continue.
The Canadian fighter (10-4-1 including 2-3 in the UFC) has endured a slew of injuries in recent years including a fractured fibula, broken nose, rib injury, jawbone infection and torn shoulder muscle.
He needed 20 stitches to close a gaping cut on his forehead after a TKO loss lost to Alan (The Talent) Belcher in October at UFC 77. Before that he won a hard-nosed decision over Chris Leben, lost to Yushin Okami and defeated Danny Abbadi in the UFC.
Starnes has fought hurt before. On Season 3 of "The Ultimate Fighter," he competed with a broken leg. He thought he had a deep bone bruise but later found out it was a fractured fibula.
The six-foot-three Starnes is no ordinary fighter. The 185-pounder lists his heroes as Noam Chomsky and Bertrand Russell and talks happily of seeing Japan's cultural heritage in Kyoto during a trip to the Far East.