FiveOuncesOfPain.com has learned that lightweight competitor Marcus Aurelio is the latest fighter to depart the UFC.

The American Top Team member was released from his contract with the promotion soon after his unanimous decision loss Hermes Franca last month at UFC 90.

The Franca bout marked Aurelio’s second consecutive loss on the heels of his unanimous decision defeat to Tyson Griffin this past July at UFC 86.

Aurelio signed with the UFC in 2007 after having earned a reputation as one of the top lightweight fighters in the world while competing for PRIDE Bushido in Japan. During his PRIDE tenure, Aurelio recorded the most notable victory of his career at PRIDE Bushido 10 when he submitted Takanori Gomi at 4:34 of round 1 courtesy of a arm triangle choke.

While he entered the UFC amidst high expectations, Aurelio failed to gain traction after losing his Octagon debut at UFC 74 when he dropped a split decision to Clay Guida. He rebounded with consecutive victories against Luke Caudillo at UFC 78 and against Ryan Roberts at UFC Fight Night 13 but his career record in the UFC fell to 2-3 after the losses to Griffin and Franca.

Aurelio joins a list of high-profile fighters such as Fabricio Werdum, Paulo Filho, and Jason Lambert that have been released from their contracts with Zuffa.

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