UFC contender Kenny Florian told ESPN.com on Monday that he is taking himself out of the lightweight mix for now and moving down to featherweight.

Florian, who serves as an analyst on ESPN's 'MMA Live' has a professional record of 14-5-0. In his most recent bout, he suffered a unanimous decision loss to Gray Maynard in August 2010 at UFC 118.

After that loss, there was talk of featherweight champion Jose Aldo possibly moving to lightweight. UFC representatives then contacted Florian's manager Malki Kawa to gauge interest in facing Aldo.

Shortly thereafter, Aldo decided to remain at 145 pounds. But the idea of Florian fighting Aldo continued to intrigue Kawa, who approached his fighter with the idea of moving down.