Cantwell faced fellow UFC newcomer Razak Al-Hassan at UFC: Fight for the Troops an earned a technical submission victory by dislocating Al-Hassan's elbow in an armbar, causing referee Mario Yamasaki to stop the fight.
[5] Cantwell's celebration of the victory and post-fight comments sparked some criticism when he said, "I've been waiting so long to do that, you have no idea".
In their previous fight Cantwell had defeated Stann to become the last reigning WEC Light Heavyweight Champion.
Cantwell was expected to face Vladimir Matyushenko on January 2, 2010 at UFC 108,[8] but pulled out of the bout for undisclosed reasons.
[15] However less than 48 hours before the event, Cantwell was forced off the card after suffering a knee injury during a pre-fight workout.
[16] Cantwell faced Cyrille Diabaté on March 3, 2011 at UFC Live: Sanchez vs. Kampmann[17] and lost the fight via unanimous decision.