UFC lightweight fighter Roger "El Matador" Huerta will leave the UFC after one more fight to pursue his acting career, according to an interview with Sherdog.com.

"The UFC is my home and it is my family and eventually I'll come back," Huerta told Sherdog.com. "Pursuing the modeling and acting thing, that's kind of where I'm at right now. The fighting will always be there. I'll always have that in me. The truth is I've been fighting my whole life for everything, and this to me, is something else."

Huerta, 25, caught the acting bug while playing a character called "Miguel Caballero Rojo" on the upcoming video game-based live action motion picture "Tekken".

"I saw that you have to dedicate as much as you do to training for a fight as you do for an acting role and I'm intrigued by that," Huerta said. "I'm 25 years old. I see Chuck Liddell and Randy Couture and they didn't really hit their primes till their thirties. I'm only going to be young so long and I know that movies and agencies and what not want the young look."

Huerta has already signed a three-movie development deal with Lionsgate Films.

Huerta (20-2-1) won his UFC debut at UFC 63 in September 2006 and continued to win five more fights before losing to Kenny Florian last August at UFC 87.

According to the article, Huerta recently turned down a new five-fight contract with the UFC and will fulfill his one remaining fight left by December.

Rashad Evans is guessing that his first UFC light heavyweight title defense will be against Quinton "Rampage" Jackson.

Evans was asked about his next fight on a radio appearance Wednesday on the Big O and Dukes show on 106.7 WJFK in Washington, DC.

"I don't have any preference and they really haven't spoken to me about who I'm going to face next, but I'm guessing it'll probably be Rampage," Evans said.

Evans said he welcomes a fight against Jackson as one another's knockout power will create an exciting match up.

"I match up pretty well with Rampage," Evans said. "Rampage gonna do a lot of movement and I move a whole lot, but Rampage is a very, very powerful striker, so it'll only take one of his shots to change the whole outcome of the fight, and I'm the same way."

Jackson has said that he'd like to fight for the title but would prefer to first avenge his loss to Forrest Griffin.

UFC veteran Phil "The New York Bad Ass" Baroni has signed a contract with Xtreme MMA in Quebec, Canada to headline their upcoming card XMMA 7 on February 27 in Montreal, Quebec.

According to reports on CagePlay.com, Baroni's XMMA debut will come against welterweight prospect Guillaume De Lorenzi.

Baroni, a native of Long Island, New York, made the drop to welterweight earlier this year and has since gone 3-0 with victories over Scott Jansen, Ron Verdadero and Olaf Alfonso.

De Lorenzi possesses an unblemished mixed martial arts record of 5-0. De Lorenzi, a heavy handed striker, holds stoppage victories over Nordine Taleb, Iraj Hadin, Keith Perrigon, Jay Jenkins and Jason Motard.

Since the collapse of TKO Championship Fighting in October, XMMA has filled the void in the Canadian market by signing notable names including Baroni, Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos, David Loiseau, among others.

XMMA 7 will also feature a light heavyweight bout between The Ultimate Fighter alumni Ryan Jimmo and Mike Nickels.

Since appearing on TUF, Jimmo has secured victories over Chris Fontaine, Jesse Forbes and Rick Roufus.

Despite an arrest in the early morning hours on New Year's Day, lightweight Josh Neer will still be competing on February 7 at UFC Fight Night 17 against The Ultimate Fighter season six winner Mac Danzig at the USF Sun Dome in Tampa, Florida.

"Josh will be fighting Mac Danzig February 7 in the co-main event in Tampa as scheduled," Mickey Dubberly, Chief Executive Officer of KO Dynasty Sports Management who represents Neer, informed. "Josh has been training very hard for this fight, and is looking forward to putting on a great fight for the UFC and fans. Josh would like to once again thank his family, fans, friends, training partners, UFC, and everyone that has supported him through his career."

"The Dentist" was arrested after a traffic incident where he allegedly fled the scene leading police on a high-speed chase that reached speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour. He was charged with a second-offense operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated and eluding while more than 25 miles-per-hour in excess of the speeding limit. He was released later that day after posting $7,000 bail, his bond was set at $2,000 for the operating while intoxicated charge and $5,000 for the charge of eluding.

Sporting a professional MMA record of 24-7-1, Neer last saw action at UFC Fight Night 15 in Omaha, Nebraska, where he lost a split decision to Ultimate Fighter season five winner Nate Diaz. Neer and Diaz were awarded the UFC Fight Night 15 "Fight of the Night" award, which included a $30,000 bonus to each fighter.

Middleweight fighter Dean "The Boogeyman" Lister requested and received his release from his UFC contract following a loss to Yushin "Thunder" Okami at UFC 92: The Ultimate 2008 in December 27. He will seek a deal with a new employer in 2009. The news was confirmed on Sunday by Lister's management team at Haymaker's Empire.

According to the management team, Lister requested the release and the UFC granted his leaving the promotion. The former Abu Dhabi Combat Club (ADCC) Absolute Division Champion and King of the Cage (KOTC) Middleweight Champion is already in talks with several promotions, including DREAM and Affliction, for a new deal.

During his time with the UFC, Lister amassed an impressive 4-2 record with wins over fighters like Jeremy Horn and Alessio Sakara, with his only losses coming against Nate Marquardt and Okami in his last bout. However, he has not been a fan favorite due to his reliance on his grappling. He's won nine times by submission but never won by KO or TKO since debuting in September 2000. Eight of of Lister's 19 career fights have gone the distance.

With his release from the UFC, Lister is not looking to sit out for very long. He wants to return soon with a new promotion.

The grappling guru is also looking for a shot at a fighter such as Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza or possibly the new Sengoku Middleweight Champion Jorge Santiago to get back in against top competition and prove his meddle as one of the top submission artists in mixed martial arts.

Chuck "The Iceman" Liddell may have lost three of his last four fights but his mind is still on the UFC light heavyweight championship belt.

"I'll fight anybody they put in front of me as long as it gets me back closer to the title." Liddell said in a report on the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. "I have to try to be the best at what am I doing. I want Rashad Evans, he's got the title and I'll take it."

The two logical opponents for Evans would be an immediate rematch with Forrest Griffin or a fight against former champ Quinton "Rampage" Jackson.

Liddell could have arguably been the number one contender for the belt had Jackson not defeated Wanderlei Silva at UFC 92. Silva was Liddell's biggest win since Tito Ortiz at UFC 66 on December 30, 2006.

Liddell (21-6) could return at the earliest March 7 at UFC 96 in Columbus, Ohio. UFC President Dana White said at the UFC 92 post-fight press conference that Liddell was a possibility for the event but could not name a match-up for Liddell.

According to the Sun-Sentinel, Liddell has trained occasionally with the American Top Team in Coconut Creek, Florida after losing to Evans at UFC 88 last September.

Carlos "Natural Born Killer" Condit sees only one man on the horizon. And the man is Brock Larson.

Condit defeated the Minnesota Mixed Martial Arts Academy standout in convincing fashion at World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) 29, another blip on his submission radar. Larson didn't see an armbar coming off a scramble, and it was game over.

But as the top dog of a thin division, the WEC Welterweight Champion has to shrug his shoulders. He doesn't have many choices, and the ones he has are not camera ready to face him.

"It's not ideal, because I have everything to lose, and he has everything to gain," Condit told. "The pool of contenders is a bit shallow. There's not a whole lot of guys for me to fight."

Condit has been inactive since August 2008, when he triumphed over the tough Hiromitsu Miura in his first title defense to go past the third round. Rumored returns in December and January have not materialized, so he's used the time off for a change of scenery.

In November, Condit traded one desert for another, moving from Albuquerque, New Mexico to Tempe, Arizona. He had spent his entire fighting life in New Mexico, and had reached a plateau in his development. He was burnt out.

"To the point where I wasn't motivated to train," Condit explained. "I felt like I'd pretty much done everything there was to do. The only thing that really got me motivated out there was running in the mountains and spending time outside. Other than that, well, I've already done all the clubs. I've already sparred with everybody there is to spar with. I needed something new to do."

Training at the city's other big gym, Jackson's MMA, was not really on the table. Condit's trainer, Tom Vaughn, had made a name for himself after earning a black belt with Greg Jackson, opening Fit NHB, the place Condit would call home. Though Condit would stop in to Jackson's from time to time, he couldn't see himself there, or in Albuquerque, for the rest of his career.

Through the WEC, Condit befriended Jamie Varner, the WEC Lightweight Champion, and the two talked about training together. Condit had friends in Tempe, where Varner's gym, Arizona Combat Sports, was located, and he knew of the gym's pedigree. They had a room of Division I wrestlers who liked all out wars in the gym. Like a lot of jiu-jitsu experts, Condit felt wrestling was his weak point. It didn't take long for him to see the benefit of moving.

"Over there, they've got a bunch of really talented wrestlers; wrestlers who like to fight, who are becoming or are very good mixed martial artists," he said.

In that way, the layoff has treated Condit well. He's had the chance to plug holes in his game. The wrestling's a work in progress.

"It's not come as far as it needs to, but it's been improving for sure," he said.

For the most part, wrestling was the unanswered question of Condit's fight with Larson. Most saw Larson's mat expertise as the key to beating Condit's jiu-jitsu. But he made a mistake early, and in the absence of sweat, Condit capitalized.

Should they fight again, Condit sees as much danger as he saw before.

"He's a very tough guy, and just because I beat him before doesn't mean anything," he said. "I'm going to have to be on my toes. I'm very motivated to fight him, and I'm looking forward to a very tough training camp."

Condit would also jump at a rematch with his old foe Jake Shields, who defeated him in a Rumble on the Rock tournament in 2006.

"I'd definitely like to rematch Jake," he said. "I would welcome that fight for sure."

That said; nothing is set in stone for his return. Right now he's helping Varner prepare for his upcoming fight with Donald Cerrone -- a former training partner -- at WEC 38.

"It is a bit awkward," he comments. "I wouldn't want to let the cat out of the bag and give Jamie all the secrets or anything, but on the other hand, I want Jamie to be ready for this fight. So it's a bit of a fine line to walk."

He expects to return to the WEC in March, where a fight with Larson seems inevitable if the promotion is not able to import a recognizable candidate.

"I'd like to fight more often, but I'm still going to be really sharp when I come back," Condit said.