[Centraal] MMA topic #24 Dynamite!!

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LOS ANGELES – Although he was on full display at today's "Affliction: Day of Reckoning" press conference, former UFC champion Tito Ortiz has not been signed to the organization's roster of fighters.

In a Monday release, Affliction Entertainment announced that Ortiz would be part of the star-studded press conference for its Jan. 24 pay-per-view event. The announcement even prompted some reports that, during today's event, Ortiz would announce he had signed a fight contract with the company.

Instead, Ortiz was introduced as a color commentator for the "Day of Reckoning" broadcast.

"All you guys are waiting and saying, 'What is Tito Ortiz going to say next?'" Ortiz said. "This (appearance) is not for a fight for Tito Ortiz. This has nothing to do with me fighting for Affliction.

"(Affliction Vice President) Tom (Atencio) is a friend of mine, and he came to me and said, 'Tito, what would you think about commentating?' I think I may know a little bit about MMA. I think I've been doing it for about 11 years. I'm going to be very colorful. I'm going to be color commentator on Jan. 24, so I'm going to show my expertise and go over all the fights."

He'll join a previously announced broadcast team of Sean Wheelock and Jimmy Smith, who currently work with M-1. The trio will replace the original team of Jay Glazer, Frank Trigg and John McCarthy that was used for Affliction's debut "Banned" event in July.

After the press conference, Ortiz told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) he will not be paid for his broadcasting work.

"Affliction: Day of Reckoning," which features a headline bout between Fedor Emelianenko and Andrei Arlovski, takes place at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif. The preliminary card airs on HDNet, and the main card will be available on pay per view.

Affliction plans to hold four events in 2009, and Ortiz isn't counting out the possibility he'll appear on a future card.

"As far as me fighting for Affliction, at this point I'm going to fulfill my obligations with ... (the) UFC, and that'll be until June 2009," said Ortiz, who later confirmed the company has the right to first refusal until that date. "But until then, I'm going to work on my commentating. Color commentating is something I've always wanted to do."

While Ortiz knows time isn't on his side, the 33-year-old fighter thinks he still has a good four years left in the sport.

"Of course, I'm not getting any younger," he said. "For the next four years, I will be competing. The question still will be where it will be."

Ortiz (15-6-1) is one of the sport's most recognizable stars and one of the very top pay-per-view draws in MMA history. However, he's winless in his past three fights, and he hasn't fought professionally since a loss to Lyoto Machida in May.

That bout fulfilled his fight commitments to the UFC, where he's said he's unlikely to return because of a long-standing feud with former manager and current UFC President Dana White.

Ortiz first mentioned the possibility of signing with Affliction back in August – and even boasted that he was about to sign a record-breaking contract with the company – but the deal never came to fruition. Three months later, Ortiz told MMAjunkie.com he was about to sign a deal with EliteXC, but the company collapsed and ceased promoting shows just a few weeks later.

Regardless of his future home, Ortiz will need to first wait for his back to heal. He underwent back surgery in October and said he expects to be out approximately six months, though similar injuries in other fighters have resulted in layoffs of up to 12 to 18 months.

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Former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) and International Fight League (IFL) veteran, Justin Levens, was found dead Wednesday afternoon in his Laguna Niguel, Calif., condominium, according to several published reports.

The wife of the 28-year-old mixed martial arts veteran, Sarah McLean-Levens, was also killed in the incident. She was just 25 years old.

Both were apparently victims of lethal gun shot wounds. The unfortunate finding is being described as a possible murder/suicide.

Levens last competed inside the Octagon against Jorge Santiago UFC Fight Night 5 in June 2006 (knockout loss). Prior to that he took on Evan Tanner at UFC 59: “Reality Check” back in April 2006, losing to the former middleweight champion in the first round via submission (triangle choke).

He dropped his last fight against Kenny Ento at Palace Fighting Championships (PFC) 4: “Project Complete” in October 2007. It was his fifth consecutive defeat and the eighth in his last 10 fights.

More on this disturbing and unfortunate situation as it unfolds.