Weighing the Options of Hector Lombard

It's an unfortunate truth, but a truth all the same: Hector Lombard's UFC career has been a flop. Barring a few brilliant moments, his time on the sport's biggest stage has been a downright disappointment.

First, he lost a slow split decision to Tim Boetsch in his UFC debut, letting a massive, 24-fight unbeaten streak slip away in the process. Next, he returned to form with a blistering knockout of Rousimar Palhares, only to come up short yet again, giving up a forgettable decision to Japanese veteran Yushin Okami.

From there, Lombard looked to reinvent himself in the welterweight division, where his deficits in the height and reach departments would not be so stark. And though his welterweight thumpings of Nate Marquardt and Jake Shields—the aforementioned brilliant moments— gave the impression that a welterweight drop was just what the doctor ordered, Lombard's career then took another ugly turn.

Shortly after a decision defeat of Joshua Burkman, he tested positive for the banned substance desoxymethyltestosterone, and was handed a one-year suspension for his wrongdoings. And when he finally returned to action last Saturday, he was handed the first TKO loss of his long and illustrious career, giving up an early lead to wither under a torrent of Neil Magny punches. Yes, despite the tidal wave of hype that carried Hector Lombard into the UFC, his run in the organization has been a bust.

And yet, despite his many disappointing performances in the Octagon, Lombard remains one of the most exciting fighters in the organization. Better still, on those rare nights that he's actually on, there is little denying that he is one of the most fearsome fighters ever to step onto the canvas. This means that, even in spite of his loss to Magny—which registered as a fairly substantial upset—he has plenty in the way of options. Let's take a look at them.

Generally, UFC matchmaker Joe Silva's strategy is to match losing fighters with other losing fighters. Thankfully, the welterweight division is stacked enough that Lombard has plenty of options, even when limited to fighters riding losses.

Imagine, for example, a clash between Lombard and Johny Hendricks; one a former Bellator champion and decorated judoka, the other a former UFC champ and decorated collegiate wrestler, and both owners of the kind of octagon-shaking power capable of ending any night in a blink.

Of course, Lombard's options don't end there. He might also, for example, be matched up with Kelvin Gastelum, another recent Neil Magny victim. Not only would the fight make sense for both men from a rankings standpoint, but their aggressive styles combine beautifully on paper. Their potential pairing seems nearly incapable of reaching the final bell.

Lombard's possible next steps become even more numerous if Joe Silva were to deviate from his winners with winners, losers with losers matchmaking strategy—something he's done plenty of times in the past. This possibility, after all, would open the door to a matchup between Lombard and Dong Hyun Kim, a pair of world-class judokas who were briefly scheduled to meet in 2014, but unfortunately never got the chance. In this case, Lombard could also find himself in there with the winner of Rick Story and Tarec Saffiedine, who are expected to fight on May 29.

Yes, despite his shocking loss to Magny in Australia last Saturday, Lombard still has plenty of choices ahead as a UFC welterweight. And the beautiful thing about a fighter with Lombard's physical traits—one who can pack on muscle as simply as you or I might put on a jacket—is that his options extend beyond the welterweight division. No, a middleweight return is certainly not out of the question for the former Bellator ace.

As a UFC middleweight, after all, Lombard has plenty of exciting options at his fingertips. Imagine, for one, his mixing it up with the winner of Lyoto Machida and Dan Henderson's April 16 rematch. Either man would provide an intriguing welcome back to middleweight for Lombard.

A middleweight Lombard might also find himself on the canvas with Anderson Silva, should the Brazilian defeat Uriah Hall at UFC 198 this May. Of course, neither Lombard nor Silva is a shadow of the fighter they were five or six years ago, but as two of the most dominant middleweights of the last decade, their prospective clash will always be an interesting one.

Yes, even in spite of his recent troubles, there are still plenty of ways to ensure that Lombard's remaining days in the UFC—however long those days last—are exciting ones. This, however, brings us to a final point worth noting.

Lombard's long-awaited arrival in the UFC came with a substantial price tag attached. So, even though he remains one of the most exciting fighters in the organization's welterweight division, it's not outside the realm of possibility that the UFC decides he is no longer worth his wage. Former Strikeforce champ Jake Shields, to remind, suffered a similar fate when he was sent packing by the UFC in 2014.

For an action fighter like Lombard, however, the options are no less sparse outside the UFC. Imagine, for example, a welterweight clash between Lombard and Andrey Koreshkov or Benson Henderson in the Bellator cage. Next, imagine a pairing of Lombard and Wanderlei Silva in Bellator's middleweight division, or Lombard vs. David Branch for the WSOF middleweight strap. Indeed, whether the judoka's long and illustrious career ends in the UFC, or in a smaller organization, it's clear that his days of action-packed fights are far from over—even if his long-awaited Octagon run has not unfurled quite the way we hoped