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Latest news from the UFC, including a second opponent for Brit Dan Hardy and talk of Fedor Emelianenko eyeing a bout with Brock Lesnar.

Kenny Florian has revealed he will begin preparations to fight UFC lightweight champion BJ Penn - despite having no clear indication from the organisation if and when he will get a title shot.

Florian dominated Joe Stevenson at UFC 91 recently to move into the accepted number-one challenger slot for Penn's belt, although the situation is complicated somewhat by Penn jumping up to the welterweight division to take on champion Georges St. Pierre in January.

"I don't have all those answers," Florian said. "That's really for B.J. to answer and for the UFC. But in my head, that's who I'm fighting next. That's who I'm going to be preparing for and until someone tells me differently, that's what I have in my mind."

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Representatives of Fedor Emelianenko, considered the best heavyweight in the world and certainly outside of the UFC, say the Russian has shifted his focus from Randy Couture to Brock Lesnar.

Emelianenko and UFC veteran Couture had long spoken about putting on a mega-fight, but Emelianenko has recently said he has grown to consider Couture as a friend and respects him too much to fight him.

Lesnar recently beat Couture to take his UFC heavyweight title after the 45-year-old had taken a year out as he attempted to get free of his UFC contract to persue a match with Emelianenko.

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British welterweight Dan Hardy has been rewarded for his winning start to his Octagon career with a fight against Rory Markham at UFC 95.

Hardy claimed a split decision victory over Japanese Sensation Akihiro Gono on his UFC debut and the organisation have matched the 26-year-old with rising American star Markham, who made his name in the International Fight League.

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Jorge Gurgel has been cut from the UFC roster after his third loss in four fights at UFC 91.

The Brazilian-born 31-year-old, who first joined the UFC in 2005 as a cast member on The Ultimate Fighter 2, was immediately signed by Strikeforce.

Gurgel, a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, had a reputation for wanting to keep his fights standing to help put on more exciting fights.

"I make some bad decisions because I have too much fun," Gurgel said. "I have never used my jiu jitsu in the UFC. All of my fights in the UFC have been slugfests. People always tell me after my fights that they know I can be one of the top contenders in my weight class.

"They ask me why I don't use my jiu jitsu, (but) I have so much fun standing up, and I completely think I'm winning all the time."

Alex Sharratt / Eurosport