MMA News Blog

Tank Abbott Says He Could KO Brock Lesnar in 10 Seconds

2011-05-06T18:58:00.000-07:00

Odds of Ortiz Getting his Head Softened

2010-10-25T13:44:00.000-07:00

During the third season of the hit show The Ultimate Fighter, Matt Hamill, a world-class, medal-winning collegiate and Olympian wrestler, won the hearts and minds of the fighting world when, despite his disability (deaf), he proved to be a beast in the octagon. Although Matt had to drop out of the season due to injuries, he returned for the Spike TV finale and defeated Jesse Forbes by KO.

Since then, Matt has been one of the more likeable fighters in the UFC. Although his fights are few and far between, Hamill gives his all when he’s in the ring, and with one of the more vicious ground games ever seen in the sport in terms of straight wrestling, this ox-strong 34-year-old is more than a threat.

After losing in a controversial decision to his friend and fellow TUF 3 costar Michael Bisping on The Count’s home turf, Hamill all but faded away from headlining fights. He’s coming back for UFC 121, however, against the always big-mouthed and maybe-past-his-prime Tito “Yes, I Can… Beat Shamrock” Ortiz.

Ortiz knows Hamill well. He was Matt’s coach on TUF 3 and trained him for a while after. However, Tito made some pretty unsavory comments about Hamill, suggesting that, because Matt’s deaf, he has a “soft head.”

Matt’s trainer and Hamill himself have both stated that there’s no bad blood over the comment, and Tito has since apologized, but what does something like that do to the odds of the fight?

Realistically, the odds of the fight are still looking about like a 3:1 bet at roulette online, with Hamill edging out Tito -170 to +140. However, the motivation factor cannot be downplayed.

Other than being a very technical boxer and having a spectacular ground game, eerily similar to a younger Ortiz, Matt also has freakish power. He is to MMA what Tim Lincecum is to MLB – a guy whose arm packs an unexplainable wallop.

One of the biggest criticisms Hamill faced after losing that controversial decision to Bisping was that he never seemed to want to “fight” Michael. Matt seemed more intent to try to “out-technical” his opponent instead of getting down and dirty and using his advantages.

But since Ortiz has lit a fire under Matt by insulting the deaf community, smart money is on Matt coming out like the beast we all know he can be.

Prediction: by the time Hamill is done with Tito’s head, Ortiz will wish he’d had stayed back in the locker room to play baccarat online instead of stepping into the octagon with a determined and skillful Hamill.

If fighters live by any rule, it should be this: never wake a sleeping giant. Past his prime and facing an opponent capable of some freakish mystery strength, Tito might be in ZZ land before round two is over.

UFC 122 Trailer

2010-10-18T07:23:00.000-07:00

Freddie Roach: "There's Not One Fighter in MMA That Can Stand with James Toney"

2010-03-11T11:43:00.000-08:00

Courtesy of "Inside MMA" which will air tomorrow night at 9:30pm EST

Legendary boxing trainer Freddie Roach had an interesting quote on the show about Toney's foray into MMA.

“I think they’re using James as a way to say MMA fighters are better than boxers,” he said. “If he fights a quality ground guy, once he goes to the ground he’s gonna get killed. But if a guy chooses to stand up with James, James is gonna destroy him. That’s why they call him ‘Lights Out.’ I really don’t think there’s one fighter in MMA that could stand with James.”

I have to agree with Mr. Roach here. The level of boxing technique is absolutely abysmal in MMA and times it by ten when it comes to the heavyweight division. After BJ Penn, the drop-off in good clean boxing is pretty horrendous and James Toney will wipe the floor with anyone who wants to stand with him.

Heath Herring: "Dana White's Got Six Ferraris. Hell, I Just Want One."

2010-02-14T19:57:00.000-08:00

Heath Herring addressed the UFC brass and pay scale in an interview with Fight Night Radio via MMA Fighting

They've got their guys they want to push, guys they want to market. Randy Couture, Brock Lesnar and Frank Mir are the guys they want to push and market. The problem is if you're one of the guys who's not one of their favorites, they want to keep you out of the competition

I'm trying to make money for myself, feed my family, and these guys are trying to do everything they can to make it impossible for me.... With the way the UFC's pay scale is and as much as it costs me to get ready for a fight, at the end of the day I made like 40 grand.

These guys are literally making money off our blood, sweat and tears. We don't get any health insurance. If you get hurt training for a fight, you're screwed. It's really kind of crazy.

Dana White's got six Ferraris. Hell, I just want one.

Dana White on Possible Pride Revival: "Anything is Possible"

2010-01-24T11:50:00.000-08:00

UFC President Dana White was asked if a Pride revival was ever possible by The Scrapyard. He responded by saying the "Best of Pride" series on Spike TV pulled a solid rating and discussed further the possibility of a Pride resurrection.

“You never know, anything is possible,” said White when asked if he’d consider hosting an event or two in a ring under the Pride brand.
“For its time slot on Friday night, the first episode pulled a good rating so we’re excited about that. We’re hoping that series will continue to do well.”
“I don’t want to say the Pride name is dead. It’s still a strong powerful brand. But the reality is that us running Pride in Japan, that completely fell apart.”

Oh what a glorious day it would be in MMA, unless the rules were changed and it was completely Americanized of course. Get Yuji Shimada in("give up"), get Bas and Quadros to do the announcing and make it happen. Wishful thinking I know.

Jackie Chan Not A Fan of MMA

2010-01-20T10:43:00.000-08:00

International movie star Jackie Chan weighed-in on what he thinks of mixed martial arts via Sherdog.

“I don’t like to see Ultimate Fighting,” Chan said. “As a martial artist, I find it too violent putting them in a cage. At the end, it’s not fighting anymore. That’s not the martial arts. Martial arts is about respect. When somebody is knocked down, stop. I really respect Sugar Ray Leonard. Come on, [when a guy is down] stop. Don’t fight. That’s not the spirit. When you’re down, I’ll grab you up. Are you okay? Should we continue? That’s the martial arts spirit. That’s what I want.”

Not everybody will like or respect mixed martial arts and that's fine, but there's something disheartening when a fellow "martial artist" calls it too violent and in the process trashes the intelligence of ground fighting. It's feels as ignorant as when somebody doesn't use Overnight Prints coupons or CVS coupons just because they don't like paper. I'm a fan of Jackie Chan, but it would serve him well to do a little more research on our beloved sport.

Top 5 "Extra"-Ordinary Moments in MMA

2010-01-16T12:32:00.000-08:00

5. Don Frye Gets Into A Fight with Bodyguard Sonny Westbrook
For any fan of MMA that has been following the sport since the beginning, Don Frye is a legend. Perhaps the two words "tough guy" were invented for Don Frye. Here's a guy that will fight anybody, anytime, anywhere and he is notorious for telling crazy stories that happened to him outside the cage/ring. Below he got into a fight in a hotel lobby with bodyguard Sonny Westbrook, here's the back story courtesy of anabolicminds.com

First off Westbrook is a bodyguard employed by Dog the Bounty Hunter. He was with Leland Chapman (Dog's son) at an MMA event that Chapman was scheduled to compete in. The event ended up getting cancelled by the California State Athletic Commission after the cage they were going to use that night wasn't able to be assembled correctly.

Anyway the promoters promised the fighters 20% of their purses if the event was to be cancelled. Well during a meeting between the promoters and the fighters, the fighters found out that they wouldn't be receiving any money at all. An argument ensued and its unknown exactly how Frye and Westbrook started fighting but Frye obviously ended up losing. Reports of Frye being drunk also vary.

I've also heard that they ended up fighting again later that night and Frye was knocked out completely and taken to the hospital but others have claimed that it wasn't true since Frye was at the arena signing autographs at a wrestling convention later that night.

4.Mauricio Shogun Rua vs. Mark Coleman Aftermath
Shogun and Coleman squared off at Pride 31 what transpired was one of the craziest aftermaths to a fight ever. Shogun breaks his arm trying to defend a take down and after the ref stops it Coleman continues to punch him. The entire Chute Box and Hammer House gangs jump into the ring thats not to say they jumped into wedding rings or even tungsten wedding bands, it wasn't that crazy and it continued backstage after Mark Coleman tried to apologize and Wanderlei accuses him of stomping his face during the in-ring brawl.

3. Mark Coleman Goes a Little Crazy After Losing to Fedor Emelianenko
Coleman loses via arm bar the first time to Fedor Emelianenko at Pride: Total Elimination 2004 and afterwards cameras catch him losing it. Call it "Roid Rage" if you prefer or maybe it was just a passionate fighter really upset with the mistakes he made in the ring. Coleman calms down and hi and Fedor shake hands and probably had about 45 shots of vodka between them later that night.

2. Wanderlei Silva: "My Belt"
Wanderlei Silva vs. Quinton Jackson is the greatest rivalry we have ever had in our sport next to Sakuraba vs. The Gracies. Like Ali vs. Frazier these 2 bring out the absolute worst and the absolute best in one another. It all started at Pride 25 when Rampage called out Wanderlei after knocking out Kevin Randleman.

1. Charles "Krazy Horse" Bennett Goes to Sleep During Backstage Fight with Cristiano Marcello
Charles "Krazy Horse" Bennett had a little beef with the Chute Box camp and it culminated in this. Bennett would later claim that he knocked out Wanderlei Silva backstage, which Silva vehemently denies. It started when Bennett and the Chute Box camp were sharing a locker room at Pride Shockwave 2005 and Bennett started insulting everybody. Marcello was a corner man and had just finished with the fight. What ensued was a brawl that ended like an MMA fight and how sweet it was.

I am sure I missed many "extra" moments, if you have any, post links in the comments.

Lyoto Machida's Father Says He Must Fight Anderson Silva

2010-01-12T12:04:00.000-08:00

I wrote an article a few days back entitled 10 Things MMA Could Live Without in 2010 and one of my gripes was friends or teammates not fighting each other. Shizio Machida, Lyoto's Father, did an interview with PVT Mag in which he agrees that Anderson Silva and Lyoto Machida need to go at it at some point.

There is only one champion, so I believe this fight must happen. It's a professional issue, and I believe they can fight. Deep down, everyone wants to know who is strongest. Friendship is friendship, but they're not amateurs. The eventual winner isn't my concern. What matters to me is how they win, and their strategy. This would be a mental battle...I really like Anderson. He didn't train Karate, but knew it instinctively. Standing switches, stances, how to use his waist, moving with purpose as he advances and backs away, dancing without getting hit. The future of MMA isn't who can take more punishment, but the one who leaves with a clean face. Many fights are pure slugfests, but people don't see things ten years into the future.

I think Shizio sums it pretty well when he says its a professional issue and they're not amateurs. Of course it's ultimately not up to him, but the 2 fighters themselves and even if Shizio convinces Lyoto, Anderson still must agree. So it's still far fetched in my opinion, but we can dream.
(Pic Props Sherdog)

Gray Maynard UFN 20 Post Fight- "It Turned Into a Scrap"

2010-01-12T06:27:00.000-08:00

Gray Maynard won a split decision over Nate Diaz last night at UFN 20 in a rather uneventful main event. In the video below via Sherdog Maynard talks about how his game plan went out the door when Diaz starting taunting him in the center of the octagon.

Elite MMA Gear Discount

2010-01-11T14:23:00.000-08:00

For those of you that train MMA, I'd like to introduce EliteMMA.com. They're a MMA equipment supplier which carries great fight gear brands including Fairtex, Throwdown, Sprawl, Top Contender and, Lucky.They list their inventory on-line so you know what's in stock and orders before 3:00 ship the same day.

They've provided an exclusive coupon for 15% off their thai pads valid until Jan 24. The code is scrapthai15. They've got a pair of leather Top Conender thai pads for $59.99 before the coupon, which is pretty good. Check EliteMMA.com out and leave a comment about what you think.

Man in Mask at WEC 46 an Iraq War Vet

2010-01-11T08:18:00.000-08:00

WEC General Manager Reed Harris cleared thigs up on the UG about who the guy in the mask was last night at WEC 46.

"Guys-
He's a soldier I met when we did the show in San Antonio at the Brooks Military Hospital.

He was burned in Iraq when an IED blew up his vehicle. I flew him out to Sac. as he was Ben Hendersons biggest fan. Trying to do something nice.

Thanks
Reed"

(Pic Props BloodyElbow)

10 Things MMA Could Live Without in 2010

2010-01-09T12:04:00.000-08:00

10. Horrible MMA Movies- Seriously, either find a competent director or give it up already. The sad thing is that there are very compelling stories behind so many fighters that would make for great cinema. Think about the life story of Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, run over by a truck when he was 9, and fell into a coma for 25 days. During this time he lost a rib and part of his liver and had to be hospitalized for eleven months. Only to go on to be an mma world champion and maybe the toughest SOB in the world. Now find me a director like Martin Scorsese or the Cohen Brothers and make that movie.

9. Teammates Not Fighting Each Other- We all understand the team concept in MMA and how it helps fighters, but when 2 world class fighters in the same division won't fight each other because of friendship, it's more than a little frustrating to fans. We may never see Anderson Silva vs. Lyoto Machida or even to a lesser degree, the AKA guys fight each other. Now with Jon "Bones" Jones moving to Team Jackson we miss out on some possible great match-ups at 205lbs as well. When it comes down to it this sport is about competition and fighters always talk about how they want to fight the best, but that goes out the door if they are teammates and it depraves fans of bouts they've wanted to see for a long time.

8. Bad Commentary- I have yet to find a play by play man or color commentator that blows me away. Pat Miletich and Randy Couture we need more of as they seem to get it better than most at doing things that great color guys do, like seeing things before they happen. Hopefully there is a diamond in the rough out there somewhere for 2010, otherwise we shall suffer another year of bad to mediocre commentary.

7. Extra Medium Skull Shirts- We as the MMA community need to stop the madness for god's sake. First of all why is there this insatiable need to have a skull on every MMA shirt and have them all be "athletic fit" which basically means if you weigh more than 100lbs you shouldn't be wearing it. We need to buck this horrible trend and when I buy an extra large t-shirt, I want it to actually be extra large, not extra medium. And the material they use for these shirts is thinner than Kate Moss, make a real t-shirt!

6. Uneducated Judges- Where do some of these horrible judges come from? Who the hell knows, but its not from any place that knows how to score a fight. There should be an extensive program that these judges have to go through to learn every aspect of an MMA fight. Also, contrary to popular belief, they don't have the best seat in the house and they are not allowed a monitor, which is crazy in this day and age with HD cameras and 20 different angles coming out of a fight. This is something that Mr. Jordan Breen of the Sherdog Radio Network has talked about in the past and I couldn't agree more, get these guys a monitor for when their view is not optimal.

5. M-1 Global- Seriously, would anyone cry if M-1 Global went bankrupt? This company's insistence on co-promotion may be the strongest reason that Fedor Emelianenko is not fighting in the UFC. Now I have no problem with Fedor fighting in Strikeforce, but this M-1 Global entourage is a little ridiculous, after Fedor wins they swarm the ring with zero respect for the downed opponent and we have to listen to people like Jerry Millen gloat for days and days. Not to mention the fight cards they do actually put on by themselves are usually a joke.

4. Counter Programing- It's estimated (via google search) that 50% of cable subscribers have a DVR, now that leaves the other 50% out in the cold when this counter programing goes on. Having to pick and choose my MMA to watch would be a terrifying decision because I want to watch all the MMA I can. I understand the logic behind it, but for the millions of people that aren't fortunate enough to have a DVR, it just plain sucks.

3. Early Stoppages- Kampmann vs. Daley and Velasquez vs. Rothwell are just 2 examples of early stoppages. Now whether you think the outcome of either of those 2 fights wouldn't have changed anyways is not the point. These guys put their heart and soul into every single fight and they want to go out on their shield giving everything they have and to have that taken away by the ref has to be heart breaking to say the least. I'm all for fighter safety, but I'm more for letting these guys fight their way through tough positions and not having a bad call ruin their night.

2. 3 Round Main Events- Personally, I'm for every fight being 5 rounds, but that just doesn't seem like it will ever become reality. Let me ask you this if Ortiz vs Griffin or Franklin vs Silva or Sanchez vs Guida were 5 rounders would there be any questions as to who the real winner is? Not that there should be, but let's be honest it's very possible that Griffin, Franklin and Sanchez finish those fights if they were 5 round affairs. At least make main events 5 rounders because it's usually 2 world class athletes going at it and 3 rounds just isn't enough sometimes to determine who the better fighter is.

1. The Ultimate Fighter- I'm sorry, but there comes a time when everything runs its course and that time should be now for this reality show. I've never liked the layout of the show and stopped watching after season 1 and after being forced to watch the absolutely atrocious fights from this last season I don't know. Maybe they need some kind of new format or something, but I think it's time to bury TUF for good.

MMA Still Not Legal in West Virginia Because of Uneducated Chairman

2010-01-08T14:50:00.000-08:00

West Virginia has yet to legalize our beloved sport, it also happens to be the state I was born in. Steve Allred is the chairman of the state athletic commission and doesn't consider MMA a sport at all. Below you will find a quote from this politician that is all too familiar to MMA fans.

From Jake Rossen's Sherdog Blog

According to the State Journal, lawmakers could potentially introduce a bill regulating the sport on Jan. 13 -- but it would come over the simpering of athletic commission chairman Steve Allred.

"Cutting off someone's oxygen supply until they pass out...It's no way a sport," he told the paper. “It is assault and battery."

After doing some research on Mr. Allred it is very obvious that he is the typical old "boxing guy". In fact he was a very good amateur boxer, but had a short-lived unsuccessful professional career and was KO'd by Ramzi Hassan in his last bout in June of 1985.

Rossen brings up a good point in that West Virginia allows Toughman which is a dangerous freak show to say the least. To call MMA "assault and battery" is on the Bob Arum level of stupidity about our beloved sport. This guy is one of those politicians and boxing enthusiast who I can almost guarantee has never actually sat down and watched the skill and intricacies of an MMA fight.

It's just another example of someone who is uneducated about mixed martial arts refusing to embrace it because of old boxing ties. Finally Rossen sums it up by pointing out that in Judo you get choked out and oh by the way Judo is in the Olympics.

Do us all a favor Mr. Allred go watch some fights and you'll see amazing things like the bowling ball size heart of Antonio Rodrigo Noguiera, the incredible skill and grace of Anderson Silva, the ridiculous domination that GSP, Fedor and BJ Penn exhibit. After you see some of these things then talk to us about how MMA isn't a sport.

Fabricio Werdum: "I Will Defeat Fedor"

2010-01-08T08:43:00.000-08:00

From Bloody Elbow via Tatame

"People say I can’t, but I’m training, I’m dedicated and I will defeat Fedor."

While I think Fabricio Werdum has a very slim chance at defeating Fedor Emelianenko there is an aspect to his game that seems to be overlooked, his defensive guard game. His defense from his back is, in my opinion, the best in the heavyweight division. He made BJJ black belt Gabriel Gonzaga look downright silly from top position in their UFC 80 bout, go back and watch it.

Of course this is all for nothing if he gets blasted on the feet so hard that he will need a nurse that got her RN to BSN online from that overhand right or sniping left hook which is highly likely. I don't think we can completely count Werdum out of this contest, although most already have because of the obvious match-up style that Fedor seems to crush.

Brock Lesnar Could Be Out for All of 2010

2010-01-07T10:00:00.000-08:00

From Brock Lesnar's Official Facebook Page

NEW UPDATE!! Brock has had more problems (we can't say what they are) and he could be out all of this year if things don't get better. Brock wants to thank all of his fans for their support and for the nice messages so thanks guys.

Although I'm not exactly a Lesnar fan, its a shame that this guy is sitting around very sick instead of honing his MMA skills. Love him or hate him I still want to see him fight and hope he returns soon.

Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao Not Happening

2010-01-07T09:01:00.000-08:00

From Kevin Iole over at Yahoo Sports

Floyd Mayweather Jr. would not agree to a compromise on his insistence for Olympic-style drug testing and, as a result, the planned March 13 bout with Manny Pacquiao is officially off, promoter Bob Arum told Yahoo! Sports on Wednesday.

Mediator Daniel Weinstein, a retired federal judge, was unable to bring the sides to an agreement for the historic bout after two days of negotiations over the drug-testing dispute

“Manny’s reaction is that he’s very disappointed because he wanted to give the fans this fight,” Pacquiao adviser Mike Koncz, his de facto manager, said by telephone from the Philippines, where he is with Pacquiao. “He is upset his reputation has been tarnished and he wants his fans to know that at some point, you have to stand on principle. He’s walking away from $35 million, $40 million, maybe $50 million on principle.”

As an MMA fan you have to snicker a little bit at how boxing could screw up what would potentially be the biggest and richest bout maybe ever. As an all-around combat sports fan I think its a damn shame that we won't be treated to this fight at least not in the foreseeable future.

Dana White and the Zuffa brass will no doubt go off on this as well they should. As our beloved sport continues to grow, boxing fails to deliver yet again.

Dana White in Talks With M-1 Global: "There's a Million Different Ways to Cut Deals"

2010-01-04T09:06:00.000-08:00

From Sherdog

Sherdog: You mentioned talking to M-1 recently, more recent than anyone thought. What's going on there?

Dana White - "Listen, I think there's a million different ways to cut deals. Believe me, I want Fedor more than the people that are yapping that they want him in the UFC. And I like Mousasi too. So I would love to have them both in the UFC. And there's a lot of different ways to cut a deal".

... "There's only one way to find out how Fedor would do in the UFC. Get his ass over here and let's get him in there and get him fighting. I could do the same thing with Mousasi. I like Mousasi, I don't know how he'd do over here. There's a lot of really good guys here. It's not like fighting in other promotions. They are not deep enough. There are not enough good fighters over there for them to challenge. There is here, that's what makes it fun and interesting".

Strikeforce and M-1 Global Announce Record Worldwide Numbers for CBS 'Fedor vs. Rogers'

2009-11-30T09:52:00.000-08:00

AMSTERDAM, HOLLAND (November 24, 2009) - M-1 Global and Strikeforce announced today that the international audience reports from broadcasters all over the world revealed an unprecedented number of viewers for the November 7th "Fedor vs. Rogers" MMA event from Chicago, Illinois.

"We are extremely happy with the preliminary broadcast reports," said M-1 Global CEO Joost Raimond. "The demographics of these numbers were very promising as our network broadcasting partners in the U.S., Russia, and Korea reach an enormous audience alone. Coupled with a dozen other countries and our successful internet stream in Japan and other territories, all early accounts and indications tell us that "Fedor vs. Rogers" delivered worldwide more than any other MMA show in the history of the sport," concluded Raimond.

Scott Coker, founder and owner of Strikeforce and experienced MMA promoter responded "We are thrilled with the tremendous viewership figures that the Fedor vs Rogers event generated overseas. The results clearly demonstrate the appreciation that fans worldwide have for a number of M-1 Global and Strikeforce mixed martial arts superstars including the number one fighter on the planet - Fedor Emelianenko - and his opponent Brett Rogers."

In total, over 25 million MMA fans all around the world were treated to a vintage performance from the world’s greatest MMA fighter, Fedor Emelianenko. The main event of Fedor vs Rogers reached an impressive 5.46 million viewers in the United States on the CBS Network. The fight was also broadcast in Fedor’s native Russia by "Channel 1," Russia's largest television network, and reached 16 million viewers in Fedor’s home country. In addition, "Fedor vs. Rogers" was broadcast to millions of viewers in Korea on SBS, one of the 3 major national South Korean networks, as well as television networks in China, Latin America, United Kingdom, New Zealand, Ukraine, Finland, Africa, Turkey, Israel, Indonesia, Bulgaria, Romania, and Malta. Live internet streams of the "Fedor vs. Rogers" bout generated ground-breaking viewer numbers in Japan and all over the world and these numbers continue to grow through Video on Demand.

'"CBS was proud to be the U.S. broadcaster in a fight seen by millions domestically and by millions more around the world," commented CBS Senior Executive Vice President Kelly Kahl. "Strikeforce and M-1 Global put together a great card, showcasing some of the best fighters in the world. Our ad sales for the fight were strong, especially for advertisers that target young men -- a group with a growing appetite for MMA."

Full Card confirmed for UFC 105, Manchester

2009-09-30T13:23:00.000-07:00

UFC 105 will be aired for free in the United States on SpikeTV. Earlier today, Spike.com confirmed the completed card.

Main Card
Randy Couture vs. Brandon Vera
Michael Bisping vs. Denis Kang
Mike Swick vs. Dan Hardy
James Wilks vs. Matt Brown
Ross Pearson vs. Aaron Riley

Prelims
Terry Etim vs. Shannon Gugerty
Paul Taylor vs. John Hathaway
Nick Osipczak vs. Matthew Riddle
Alexander Gustafsson vs. Jared Hamman
Andre Winner vs. Roli Delgado

UFC 105 will be held at the M.E.N Arena in Manchester, England. If you are on the other side of the pond visit Ticketmaster.co.uk for tickets.

Tuff-N-Uff Amateur MMA Fights, Paintball Highlights At Mesquite Fundraiser

2009-09-30T10:03:00.001-07:00

Mesquite, Nevada - Every day, United States military personnel face a new battle as they return home from combat zones.

Addressing the desperate need to relieve the financial and emotional burdens caused by the physical and mental scars of war, Mixed Martial Arts legend Randy "The Natural" Couture created the Xtreme Couture G.I. Foundation. With a mission focused on raising money and awareness, the foundation's goal is to help these brave men and women fulfill any of their unmet needs as they return back to civilian life.

"Having spent time in a uniform, it became a personal goal of mine to find a way to give back to the brave men and women of our Armed Forces for the sacrifices they make defending our freedoms. The Xtreme Couture G.I. Foundation was born out of that desire." Couture explained.

Tapping into his network of current and former MMA fighters, Couture is hosting a weekend fundraiser October 16-18 in Mesquite, Nevada. Xtreme Combat Weekend will include three days of scenario paintball, amateur MMA fights and "Xtreme" parties.

Participants & donors have the opportunity to play paintball against and alongside nationally recognized fighters including Randy Couture, Ryan Couture, Gray Maynard, Jay Hieron, and John Alessio.

The paintball games will be played exclusively at A Pirates Paradise's new field located 5 miles northeast of Mesquite. Owner Tim Andrus has spent the last two months preparing the 40-acre site for this event.

"The property borders and actually extends over the Virgin River. The thick scrub provides so much cover, we've had to plow roads and paths through the field, " Andrus said. "We're really excited to be the host site for Xtreme Combat Weekend. It's a great cause; Randy is an awesome guy, and we're doing something to help the troops."

A highlight of the weekend will come Saturday evening when up-and-coming fighters take center stage at the CasaBlanca Events center for amatuer MMA fights presented by Tuff-N-Uff. A separate ticketed event; seats will range from $20 for general admission to only $50 for ringside. Like all the weekend's events, proceeds support the Xtreme Couture G.I. Foundation.

Post fight, the public can meet up-and-coming fighters and some of their favorite MMA stars at an after fight night club in the CasaBlanca Hotel. A $15 cover charge applies, and this party is limited to persons age 21 and over.

"This weekend really wouldn't be possible without our sponsors," Andrus added. "Special Ops Paintball, Spyder Paintball, Kee Action Sports, Planet Eclipse and Blackjack Paintball have all thrown their support behind us on this event."

Registration and event schedules are available online at the event's website, XtremeCombatWeekend.com.

"We hope everyone will come join us for a great weekend including paintball and amateur fights all in the name of our troops," Couture said.

For more information on the Xtreme Couture G.I. Foundation please contact:

Valerie Haney
Xtreme Couture G.I. Foundation
4055 West Sunset
Las Vegas, NV 89118
xtremecouturegifoundation.org
(702) 616-1022

Lunch Break News Update

2009-09-29T10:00:00.000-07:00

We all have busy schedules, so this new segment is meant to take the top news from the previous couple of days and condense it into one, easy to read segment that you can enjoy over your lunch break... or anytime you feel like it.

1. Strikeforce Kennedy vs Cummings results:

*Daniel Cromier vs Gary Frazier - Cormier wins via TKO (punches) R2 M3:39
*Travis Calanoc vs. Thomas Longacre - Longacre wins via Uni Dec
*Zach Light vs. Tyron Woodley - Woodley wins via Sub (armbar) R2 M3:38
*Ray Sefo vs. Kevin Jordan - Sefo wins via Sub (verbal stoppage) R2 M0:24
*Tim Kennedy vs. Zak Cummings - Kennedy wins via Choke (north-south) R2 M2:43

Mike Swick vs Dan Hardy for UFC 105
We reported this yesterday, as Mike Swick confirmed the fight without actually confirming it via his Twitter account. November 14th in Manchester, England Swick will get to take on British bad boy, Dan Hardy.

Anderson Silva and Vitor Belfort to fight at UFC 108
Both Brazilians have verbally agreed to fight January 2, in Las Vegas, NV. This will be Belfort's second fight since joining the UFC. He recently beat Rich "Ace" Franklin via TKO at a catch weight of 195#. The men will compete at 185# where Silva will defend his middle weight belt.

Chuck Liddell Does the Tango
For the second week in a row Liddell competed on Dancing with the Stars last night. His Tango was better than last week's Foxtrot & Salsa, but still needs work. Now five weeks into his intense dance training the former lightheavy weight champion is finally shedding his infamous round belly.

Sam Stout to possibly face Joe Lauzon in Jan.
Lauzon has been out since this spring healing his knee. He underwent major surgery to repair the knee after his UFN headlining fight against Jeremy Stephens in February. Ahead of schedule on his recovery Lauzon thinks he can start camp soon and would be ready for a fight against Stout at UFC 108, January 2.

TUF alumni George Sotiropoulos and Jason Dent at UFC 106
Taking place on the preliminary portion of the card, Dent (19-9) will look to break Sotiropoulos' undefeated Octagon record.

To close, a treat for you: KIMBO SLICE on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon

Swick confirms his fight with Dan Hardy...in a round-about way

2009-09-28T11:59:00.000-07:00

Just hours after the rumors started Mike Swick took to his Twitter account to address the newest claims of his next fight. Without confirming not denying, Swick slyly let us all in on who his next opponent would be- Dan Hardy.

Thought to be another bout vying for title contention, the two will meet in seven weeks to see who gets Georges St-Pierre next. At seven weeks out, the pair will likely be on the UFC 105 card in Manchester, England. Good for UK fans because they will be able to support Hardy and give him the "hometown" advantage; also good for American fans because UFC 105 will be aired on SpikeTV for free.

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Jason "Mayhem" Miller Freaks out on EA Game Developers

2009-09-25T15:09:00.000-07:00

So, it's Friday and we're all ready to get home or have just gotten home- either way, you need a laugh.

Jason "Mayhem" Miller (yes, the same guy who soccer-kick Jacare in their last fight) is one of the growing list of fighters that will be portrayed on EA Sports' EA-MMA game; release date TBD. As part of the process Miller was brought in to get a preview of the game and his character.
When scrolling through the fighter skill screens Mayhem notices that his skills are... well, less than magnificent shall we say. He then continues to question the makers and act similar to a small child being told he can no longer have a bottle.

Watch, laugh, get scared, laugh some more, thank me.

Happy Friday!

Source: CagePotato.com

Strikeforce announces Fedor vs. Rogers to be Held at Chicago's Sears Centre

2009-09-24T11:47:00.001-07:00

Written by Samantha L. Johnson

When Strikeforce initially announced their November 7th show would we headlined by Fedor Emelianenko vs Brett Rogers they left a key element out of the press release-where the event would be held. After several locations were discussed and reviewed the organization has finally decided on Chicaco's Sears Centre.

The event, a co-promotion between Strikeforce and M-1 Global- will be Russian, Fedor Emelianenko's fourth time fighting in front of American fans in his almost decade long career. Emelianenko (30-1) will take on Rogers (10-0) in a heavyweight match to determine the new Strikeforce heavyweight champion. Emelianenko, a Pride veteran, has faced and defeated some of MMA's greatest heavyweights. Renowned by many as the top pound-for-pound fighter in the world, Emelianenko is the man with a target on his back and the man Roger's needs to beat if he is to become the best heavyweight in the world...or at least in Strikeforce.

Rogers last fought in June of this year TKO'ing Andrei Arlovski in just twenty-two seconds of the first round. Though he is undefeated, many argue he has yet to face someone of Emelianenko's caliber. A win over the Russian would catapult Rogers to the top of the heavyweight food chain.

Tickets for this Strikeforce event go one sale Monday, September 28 with a pre-sale* beginning tomorrow and rumor has it there may be car donation being made.

This fight, along with three others, will be aired live on CBS November 7, starting at 9EST, delayed on PST.

*A special pre-sale ticket purchase opportunity will take place for "STRIKEFORCE Insider" e-newsletter subscribers www.strikeforce.com/signup.asp beginning at 10:00 AM, CT tomorrow/Friday, Sept. 25, and ending at 10 PM, CT on Sunday, Sept. 27. STRIKEFORCE Insiders will receive a special e-newsletter tonight with the pre-sale code.

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Cris Cyborg Santos- "A Hurricane of Aggression" Video

2009-08-08T10:45:00.000-07:00

Dana White Ready to Make Fedor vs Lesnar A Reality

2009-07-12T11:10:00.000-07:00

The UFC Prez mentioned at the UFC 100 post-fight presser that Fedor vs. Brock will eventually happen.

“This whole Fedor thing has been going on and on and on. I keep saying this and that about him and he keeps waiting. Eventually, Fedor’s going to be here. I want Fedor. I want him to come to the UFC and everything else. [Lesnar] just became the heavyweight champion. We’ll end up getting that deal done. And then we’ll do Brock vs. Fedor, and it’ll be a huge fight.”

I'll believe it when I see it, but any hope that his fight will ever happen is good. I still think Fedor would beat Brock at his point, Fedor wouldn't get stuck like Mir did, his hip movement is way too good for that to happen.

UFC 100 Predictions: Georges St. Pierre vs Thiago Alves

2009-07-10T14:44:00.000-07:00

Thiago Alves- What We Know
Alves is an excellent muay thai striker with great defensive wrestling. Matt Hughes was able to get him down only once and he defended very well and Josh Koscheck wasn't able to get him down at all. He also possesses some brutal digging leg kicks that can suck the life out of a fighter. Has nice head movement and is very aggressive. Can take punishment, also has a nasty leg kick-straight punch combination. Can go a full hard 3 rounds(5 rounds we don't know) and totally dominated a high caliber fighter like Josh Koscheck in those three rounds. Is huge for welterweight and sometimes has trouble making weight. Has won 7 fights in a row.

Georges St. Pierre- What We Know
An absolute freak of nature, the consensus best wrestler in MMA even though he has no amateur wrestling background. Faster than most lightweights, the way he passes a fighter's guard is unbelievable. Using simple first-day techniques with such force and speed that even high-level jiu-jitsu players can't stop it. No one has been able to stop GSP from taking them down and its hard to imagine Thiago Alves will be the first. GSP uses tremendous footwork and angles in his striking along with that incredible quickness. He is way past any of the problems in his mental game from previous years. Can go a full hard 5 rounds. Is on the level of Fedor Emelianenko and Anderson Silva.

The Verdict
I like GSP to take Alves down and beat him up from there, eventually stopping him somewhere around the 3rd round. Yoda(Greg Jackson) will lay out a perfect game plan and GSP will not stray from it, I just don't think Thiago is on the level of a GSP yet.

List of Bars Showing UFC 100

2009-07-10T13:43:00.000-07:00

List of Bars and Restaurants authorized to show UFC 100.

Faber's Contract Issues - The WEC Better Step Up

2009-07-06T14:56:00.000-07:00

WEC is picking up steam and popularity - or maybe just the latter - in more than just hardcore MMA betting circles but as we all know, more money equals more problems.

WEC pulled in a whopping 13,000+ fans at the recent event in Sacramento, which is nothing to sneeze at. Gate revenues reeled in nearly a million dollars.

But an issue that is rearing its head is the battle that a lot of MMA fighters seem to be complaining about: money.

WEC superstar Urijah Faber has only one fight left on his contract and he's been grumbling about the dollars and sense. On one hand, he has lost two of his last three fights so it may not be the best time to renegotiate but at the same time, Faber is truly one of the faces of WEC and without him, the league would take a big blow.

Let's face it: the WEC is not what the UFC is, although they are supposedly the same company. WEC is lighter weight classes and not nearly as popular as its big brother right now. But for the WEC to continue to grow and eventually earn a bigger share of the spotlight, it will have to hop on the back of guys like Faber.

Faber isn't the only star complaining about the dollars and cents in the WEC. Bantamweight Miguel Torres has also made a point of it to dig into the feeble paydays he's been receiving from the WEC. Torres (-300) is the favorite in the MMA betting lines against Brian Bowles (+220) in the WEC 42 event Aug, 9th.

Pride and Elite XC may not be around, but there are still lots of options for a guy like Faber. He's still a top 15 pound-for-pound MMA fighter in the world, even if it is a lighter weight class that less people pay attention to, but he still has options in Japan, with Strikeforce or potentially Affliction.

Obviously, those would be the Plan B's in his books as a feasible superstar payday form the WEC would be Plan A.

With one fight left on his contract, let's hope that Faber can first and foremost get back on track with a win and then hopefully the two sides can settle their salary issues.

Wanderlei Silva Should Retire

2009-07-06T14:46:00.000-07:00

Ontario, Canada still hasn't opened its doors to UFC, or any MMA fighting of the sort, so it was a nice treat that Wanderlei Silva came to visit Toronto to party on Friday and host a seminar (along with an autograph session) on Saturday.

One thing is for sure: you don't need to see the Axe Murderer up close and personal to know that he needs to retire.

For starters, Silva is a popular figure when sports gambling on MMA and you have to figure that of the many fighters out there who are scared or weary of retiring, he'll be one of the guys that has plenty of options. He can do publicity, he can do seminars and show up at random gyms and he can probably still be a face of UFC after he hangs it up.

But inside the ring, it's blatantly clear that he's in the "I just don't wanna quite yet" phase. Silva has been a great MMA fighter but he is clearly past his prime. He's like Brett Favre or Mark Coleman - he just needs to know where the end is.

Speaking of Coleman, here's a fact for you: Coleman fought in UFC 10 and will fight at UFC 100. And he's probably the only athlete in all of sports to be inducted in the Hall of Fame yet still in the sport. But I digress.

Silva just turned 33-years-old but let's face it, he's an old 33. Sometimes you look at his face and wonder if he is in fact older than Coleman. But if that's not a tell-tale sign enough, then how about his recent performances in the ring.

Sure, he lost a decision to Rich Franklin and looked like he had some dog in him, considering the catch weight and all, but overall that makes losses in five of his last six UFC betting events. And of those five losses, four were by knockout.

Clearly, there's no shame in losing to Dan Henderson, Chuck Liddell (back then anyways), Quinton Jackson and Rich Franklin, but any way you cut it, the losses are piling up.

I know he's still a draw, I know he' still capable of beating the Keith Jardine's of the world, but the axe has dulled for the Murderer. And in sports, too many athletes quite when it's one step too late and Silva is getting to that point. He should have one more fight, get one more win under his belt and then move on.

Something tells me that's not how this script will end.

UFC 100 Betting Odds

2009-07-06T13:37:00.000-07:00

UFC 100 - Fight Odds

Below are the current fight odds (as of 11:10 AM PT) for Saturday's UFC 100 event in Mandalay Bay Events Center, Las Vegas, NV, courtesy of our partners at BETUS

Heavyweight Title Match

Brock Lesnar (-240) vs. Frank Mir (+190)

Welterweight Title Match

Georges St Pierre (-300) vs. Thiago Alves (+220)

Light Heavyweight Match

Dan Henderson (-225) vs. Michael Bisping (+175)

Other Matches on Fight Card

Jon Fitch (-450) vs. Paulo Thiago (+325)

Yoshihiro Akiyama (-300) vs. Alan Belcher (+220)

Mark Coleman (+250) vs. Stephan Bonnar (-350)

Mac Danzig (+160) vs. Jim Miller (-200)

Jon Jones (-450) vs. Jake O'Brien (+325)

My predictions and analysis later this week.

Fighters to Forever be Banned from the UFC if They Take Part in the EA MMA Video Game

2009-06-30T17:52:00.000-07:00

This disheartening bit of news first came from Golden Boy at the UG

I hear that all mma managers were informed that if any of their clients not currently under contract with the UFC..... sign to be a part of the EA game.......the will forever be banned for fighting in the UFC.

Sounds like a simple rumor right? Albeit from a pretty reputable source, but then later in the forum post, MMA Uber agent Ken Pavia of MMAAgents.com says this.

It's true. And they told me want the word out.

In any case, if 100% true, this just plain blows. So let me get this straight, if I am an up and coming fighter fighting for an MMA organization not named UFC. I have to turn down money that I could feed my family with, just for the very slim chance that one day the UFC may sign me to a contract.

Listen this could all be smoke and mirrors or it could be misinterpreted, but we can still discuss. What happens to current UFC fighters that still own their image rights like Randy Couture and Lyoto Machida? This is just mind blowing to me if true.

UFC and Sony Partnering Up

2009-06-23T13:50:00.001-07:00

From my inbox,

To give you a quick snippet of what I’m talking about, the UFC just became one of PlayStation’s newest content partners for PlayStation’s video delivery service. This means MMA aficionados can catch the latest fights right on their PS3 or PSP consoles.

I have emailed back and I am awaiting more details, stay tuned.

The Ultimate Fighter 9 Finale Weigh-Ins Video

2009-06-19T19:55:00.000-07:00

Mirko Crocop Denies Signing with DREAM

2009-06-14T19:24:00.000-07:00

From this Croatian news site, translated by someone on the Sherdog forums.

ZAGREB - The same Saturday night in which Mirko Filipović in only three minutes TKOed Britain Mostapha Al Turk, President of American Organization UFC Dana White without any argument accused the Croatian master of the ultimat fighting for the fraud and hypocrisy.

Ten days ago Dana White and Cro Cop have a phone made arrangements for the duel on the UFC 99 tournament in Cologne Lanxess Arena, leaving open the possibility that cooperation prolongs for the two further tournaments. However, the head of the UFC on Saturday felt fooled because he thought that the Croatian gladiator signed a new contract with the Japanese Dream.

Before we accuse Crocop for hypocrisy, let us see what lays below Dana White's empty phrase of honor. UFC leader is angry because Mirko, just as Fedor Emilianenko, the best MMA fighter in the world, did not agree to perform only twice in the next 12 months.

However, it is not true that Cro Cop signed with Dream. We have learned that Mirko Crocop still did not sign neither with Dream nor with UFC, and that he is ready to discuss any offer. Moreover, Mirko expected after the victory in Cologne immediate talks with Dana White about the new contract and is surprised by the accusations of UFC's president.

"I don’t know why White listened to the roumors instead of talking to me. I hoped that we will talk about a continuing of our collaboration, because the only obstacle was the long period between two fights that has been offered to me. I don’t want to sit at home so long and waiting that someone calls me for a figh. However, I am grateful to Dana White for an opportunity to fight in Cologne and despite his harsh words, I don’t see the reason that we don’t prolong the contract – explained Mirko after returning from Germany.

White gave Crocop the opportunity to fight in Cologne to use his charisma of the most popular European fighter and suggested two more bouts, under the condition that he doesn’t fight for other promotions. Because Dream offered him also three-fights contract, but in the next 6 months, why shouldn’t Mirko take some time to consider what is better to him?

Well who knows what is going on now. Here's hoping they can rectify the situation. I've been reading some of your comments and have some thoughts. To begin with I'm all for DREAM becoming the next Pride and signing big name fighters, but lets be honest, its not going to happen anytime soon. Fedor/Crocop 2 is something I would watch, but its not as intriguing as Mirko taking a run at the UFC title. Secondly, is there a side of me that is rolling and laughing all over the floor that Dana White(possibly) got completely punk'd? Yes, it is a little satisfying. The problem is it is not more satisfying than a career revival UFC heavyweight title run by Crocop.

Mirko Crocop Signs Three Fight Deal with DREAM, Dana White is Pissed

2009-06-13T20:09:00.000-07:00

Yahoo Sports Breaks the News

Not long after stopping Mostapha Al-Turk in the first round of UFC 99 on Saturday at Lanxess Arena in his first fight in the UFC since back-to-back losses in 2007, Filipovic informed UFC president Dana White that he had signed a three-fight contract with the Japan-based DREAM.

Isn’t that a dirty [expletive] thing to do?” White asked rhetorically after being queried about Filipovic’s deal with DREAM. “He [expletived] me. The first time in the history of the company I do one over the phone. He promised me a three-fight deal and he [expletived] me.”

“He didn’t keep his word,” White said, who said he’d had a two-hour talk with Filipovic on the day Filipovic texted and asked to be able to return. “He talked about honor and all this other [expletive] and he [expletived] me.

He didn't just screw Dana White, he screwed his fans(me) who wanted to see him go after the UFC title one more time. This just sucks!

I'm sure that lots of wagers will get made at the leading online betting sites, but until he returns to form, I don't see lots of wagers going Crocop's way.

UFC 99 Weigh-Ins Video

2009-06-12T14:37:00.001-07:00

UFC 99 Conference Call with Crocop and Dana White(Audio)

2009-06-09T17:37:00.000-07:00

Click here for the full audio of the conference call from Promma.info

Notable quote from Crocop

I just think I wasn’t the old Mirko “Cro Cop” that I used to be. I don’t know the reason. I spent so many times thinking about it. I don’t know, maybe I was just empty right after I won the PRIDE Grand Prix, I don’t know. To tell the truth, I don’t know, I don’t know. Maybe I wasn’t adapted for the fight in the cage. Maybe I wasn’t hungry enough, I don’t know. I just couldn’t smell the blood like I did in my previous fights. What switched me on again, I don’t know.

UFC 99 Betting Odds and Thoughts

2009-06-09T12:28:00.000-07:00

UFC 99: The Comeback kicks off this Saturday at Lanxess Arena in Germany. Let's take a look at the betting lines and my picks.

Rich Franklin -155 vs Wanderlei Silva +115

Cain Velasquez -200 vs Cheick Kongo +160

Marcus Davis -225 vs Dan Hardy +175

Spencer Fisher -225 vs Caol Uno +175

Mike Swick -225 vs Ben Saunders +175

Terry Etim -250 vs Justin Buchholz +225

Paul Taylor -500 vs Peter Sobatta +300

Mirko Crocop -450 vs Mustapha Al-Turk +275

Paul Kelly -550 vs Ronald Delgado +325

Denis Stojnic -110 vs Stefan Struve -130

Dennis Siver -200 vs Dale Hartt +150

(John Hathaway vs Rick Story has no line yet)

I think there is some real good value betting on Kongo. Cain Velasquez is amazing and one of the most hyped MMA prospects in a long time, but he is still raw. Kongo has a ton of experience and some serious skills to boot. Personally, I think Cain pulls out the victory, but it wouldn't surprise me if the underdog makes you some cash in this bout.

I think Ben Saunders is also a good underdog bet. He is a huge welterweight, undefeated and was ridiculous in his last fight. He may just have the skills to beat Mike "Quick" Swick.

Some other underdogs with a chance- Dan Hardy, Wanderlei Silva and Justin Buchholz. I am not familiar enough with Peter Sobatta or Ronald Delgado to know if its worth taking the risk.

Place your bets over at Betus!

WEC 41 Faber vs Brown 2 Quick Results

2009-06-07T22:46:00.000-07:00

Mike Thomas Brown defeats Urijah “The California Kid” Faber via unanimous decision to remain WEC featherweight champion

Jose Aldo defeats Cub Swanson via technical knockout (strikes) in round one

Donald Cerrone defeats James Krause via submission (rear naked choke) in round one

Josh Grispi defeats Jens Pulver via submission (guillotine choke) in round one

Manny “The Pitbull” Gamburyan defeats John Franchi via unanimous decision

Rafael Rebello defeats Kyle Dietz via submission (rear-naked choke) in round one

Anthony “Showtime” Pettis defeats Mike “The Beast” Campbell via submission (triangle choke) in round one

Antonio Banuelos defeats Scott Jorgensen via split decision

Frank Gomez defeats Noah Thomas via submission (arm triangle choke) in round two

Seth “2 Quick” Dikun defeats Rolando Perez via submission (triangle choke) in round one

New Dana White Audio Interview

2009-04-04T16:22:00.000-07:00

Excellent new interview up at The Carmichael and Dave radio show with Dana White talking about all that's been going on the past week. Click the above picture for full audio interview.

Dana White to Apologize for Homophobic Remarks on Vlog

2009-04-02T17:47:00.000-07:00

UFC Prez Dana White went off on Sherdog's Loretta Hunt in his UFN 18 video blog below, calling her numerous names for a story she reported earlier in the week about fighter managers not being allowed backstage. But, it was using the word "faggot" that has White apologizing, as GLAAD(Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) has demanded an apology and apparently will get it.

From GLAAD's Blog.

UFC’s Dana White Will Make it Right

April 2, 2009 by Ted

I just spoke with UFC President Dana White. White expressed remorse for a video blog posted April 1 in which he uttered misogynistic and anti-gay slurs (see here) and said he “never intended to hurt the gay community.”

He will issue a new video on the UFC’s YouTube page shortly in which he will apologize for the incident.

glaadBLOG will post White’s new video blog as soon as it’s released.

I will post the apology video as soon as it becomes available.

Dana White UFN 18 Video Blog

2009-04-01T14:15:00.000-07:00

FieLDS K-1 World GP 2009 Yokohama Airs Tonight on HDNet

2009-03-27T11:30:00.000-07:00

The first event of the highly anticipated K-1 World Grand Prix 2009 kicks off at 4am eastern time tonight on HDNet. The main event features last year's winner Remy Bonjasky taking on the red hot Alistair Overeem. Overeem, an MMA fighter normally, knocked out K-1 resident bad boy Badr Hari to the suprise of the K-1 world last year.

Bonjasky won the grand prix last year after Hari was disqualified for illegal blows. There has been a war of words lately between Bonjasky and Overeem. Bonjasky has the weight of the K-1 world on his shoulders as he is dealt with the task of defending his sport against an MMA fighter.

The Full Card

Main Card:
Takashi Tachikawa vs. Yutaka Sakama
Hiraku Hori vs. Takumi Sato
Mitsugu Noda vs. Yang Rae Yoo
Semmy Schilt vs. Hesdy Gerges
Jerome LeBanner vs. Ewerton Teixeira
Junichi Sawayashiki vs. Glaube Feitosa
Peter Aerts vs. Errol Zimmerman

Heavyweight Tournament Semifinal:
Melvin Manhoef vs. Keijiro Maeda
Tyrone Spong vs. Gokhan Saki

Heavyweight Tournament Final:
Winner of Manhoef vs. Maeda vs. winner of Spong vs. Saki

Main Event:
Remy Bonjasky vs. Alistair Overeem

Video: Anderson Silva Training for UFC 97

2009-03-26T11:34:00.000-07:00

Din Thomas Tells Rihanna That He'll Kick Chris Brown's Ass

2009-03-22T08:00:00.000-07:00

After knocking out Gabe Lemley at last night's "March Badness" hybrid boxing/MMA card with a devastating knee, former UFC contender Din Thomas offered up his services to domestic violence victim Rihanna.

”About that whole Chris Brown-Rihanna situation … it’s not cool to put your hands on a lady. So Rihanna if you need someone to help you, I’ll kick his ass!”

Pop star Chris Brown versus professionally trained mixed martial artist Din Thomas, it's a no-brainer.

(Props MMA Mania)

UFC 96 Weigh-Ins Video

2009-03-07T16:36:00.000-08:00

Gina Carano New Maxim Pictures

2009-02-17T09:47:00.000-08:00

UFC 94 Weigh-Ins Video

2009-01-30T09:59:00.000-08:00

Affliction MMA is Done: Strong Rumor (Update: Atencio Denies)

2009-01-29T21:53:00.000-08:00

Update from Bloodyelbow:

Tom Atencio denies all rumors of Affliction closing its doors. He denies even appearing on the Tom Leykis show or talking with the UFC.

"Things are moving forward...as long as people are talking about me I must be doing something right."

It appears that Affliction Clothing Company probably won't be promoting fights anymore. Rumblings around the MMA world are that they are just losing too much money. MMALogic and Michael Rome from Bloodyelbow first heard the possibility.

Affliction MMA is Done.

Tom Atencio will be making an announcement soon.

Everyone is making money here (Trump, Golden Boy, the fighters, etc...) at the expense of Affliction losing millions.

With Affliction footing virtually the entire bill and after PPV distributor: Showtime and Promoter Golden Boy taking their cut - Affliction is left with less than $13 per PPV buy to cover expenses.

Michael Rome update.

Update from Michael Rome: I have been digging at this story for the last 3 or 4 hours since I first heard it. I believe it to be true. I learned in the last hour from someone high up at the UFC that Lorenzo Fertitta was contacted today by Affliction looking for a "beneficial" way out. Realistically, they want back in the Octagon.

The problem for Affliction is they have very little to offer Zuffa. The contracts for their fighters are non transferrable, and the video library has little value. An insider at Zuffa told me, "the only way Zuffa will settle is with some sort of equity stake in Affliction (clothing)...at the end of the day Affliction does not have a fighter that the UFC needs, just 2-3 that would be nice to have."

This is not exactly a shocker to anyone, of course the big question is where will Fedor go? I summon the MMA gods to make it happen, Fedor in the UFC.

UFC 93 Weigh-Ins Video

2009-01-16T11:00:00.000-08:00

Alistair Overeem in Talks with UFC, Wants Fedor, Lesnar, Bonjasky and Mir

2009-01-02T14:06:00.000-08:00

Alistair Overeem is challenging everyone these days and you got to admit he seems to be a much better fighter now then in his Pride days. In an interview with DreamFighters.com he talks about who he wants to fight(everyone) and the possibilty of fighting for the UFC.

DreamFighters.com: What is next for you? UFC, Lesnar, Fedor, what?

Alistair Overeem: Well I chellenged Bonjaksy on k-1 rules and yes Fedor and lesnar or on my list, Mir as well!

Overeem said he is planning on attending UFC 93.

DreamFighters.com: Who would you like to fight next?

Alistair Overeem: I am going on a holiday as I really trained hard whole 2008, beginning of february I will start training again, my management is in negotiations now, I might visit the UFC in Ireland on January 17th.

Overeem also discussed his future fighting plans.

DreamFighters.com: Have you had any talks with Dana White or the UFC - Any interest fighting for the UFC or Affliction?

Alistair Overeem: My management has been in contact with Affliction as well as the UFC, I am a fighter and i concentrate on fighting, I am very happy with Golden Glory!

The big question with Overeem in his Pride days was his suspect chin, but he seems to be a whole new animal now. He always had good striking, but his ground game has vastly improved over the years. His decision to move to heavyweight really changed his whole career around. Dominating and knocking out one of the best kickboxers on the planet(Badr Hari) at his own game is extremely impressive. Overeem seems to be on the right path to reaching the elite level of fighters.

UFC 92 Post-Fight Video Interviews

2008-12-27T22:52:00.000-08:00

All the post-fight interviews can be found on the front page at UFC.com, when more interviews become available I will post them here.

UFC 92 Predictions: The Big Three

2008-12-26T15:17:00.000-08:00

UFC 92 kicks off this Saturday and on paper is the most stacked card of the year, although it will be hard to top the amazing UFC 84. Here are my predictions for the 3 main fights.

Forrest Griffin vs Rashad Evans for the Light Heavyweight Title
People who have followed my sites for awhile, surely know that I have never been a Forrest Griffin believer, but its getting hard not to trust this guy in a fight. He has a huge heart, he's tough as nails and is really big for his weight class, that being said I have to pick against him again. Maybe I'll keep being wrong when it comes to Forrest and maybe one day I'll get over the horrible judge's decision at the TUF 1 finale against Bonnar. Rashad is a hungry fighter, with the skill set to match. He has incredible hand speed and excellent wrestling, he will be quicker to the punch and can certainly take Forrest down. Forrest is hard to finish, but I think Evans can pull it off. Rashad Evans is crowned the new 205 pound champ by third round TKO.

Frank Mir vs Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
If this fight ends in any way other than a decision, I will be shocked. I think the big question, when it comes to Nog is how long can he keep fighting like he always does. By that, I mean taking tremendous punishment, at some point fighting like that will take its toll. That being said, its a good thing Nog isn't human. I think Nog will grind out a very nice decision win in an entertaining fight, in which he controls the stand-up.
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira by Unanimous Decision.

Wanderlei Silva vs Quinton Jackson 3
The REAL main event in my opinion. If you're Quinton Jackson you have the wrestling, the punching power and brute strength to win this fight, but do you have the mental toughness? Do you have the ability to block out the only 2 times you've been knocked out in your career? Have you mentally recovered from all the stuff that's happen to you lately? All questions that will be answered in this fight. Wanderlei has the upper hand in my opinion and he will use Jackson's tentativeness against him. For Wanderlei its about constantly keeping up the pressure on Rampage, which he certainly has the aggression and cardio to do.
Wanderlei Silva by another brutal KO

UFC 92 Weigh-Ins Video

2008-12-26T14:30:00.000-08:00

Quote of the Day: Wanderlei Silva: "Dana, Put my Name on the Check for KO of the Night"

2008-12-23T19:30:00.000-08:00

UFC.com has video of the UFC 92 press conference, you can check it out by clicking HERE. Wanderlei Silva gave the quote of the press conference.

"Dana, you can put my name on the check for knockout of the night"

Some strong words from the Axe Murderer in what is surely to be another classic brawl. Rampage didn't trash talk at all, he seemed really calm and collected. Mir/Nog and Griffin/Evans also talk about their fights at the above link.

(Props to Tracy Lee of Combat Lifestyle for the Pic)

The Ultimate Fighter 8 Finale Post-Fight Video Interviews

2008-12-14T13:38:00.000-08:00

Mirko Crocop vs Hong Man Choi Rumored for NYE K-1 FIELDS Dynamite!!

2008-12-11T14:08:00.000-08:00

Its not official yet, Fighters Only Magazine has the scoop.

Mirko ‘CroCop' Filopovic is being lined up for a fight with Korean giant Hong Man Choi, it has been rumoured.

Reports on several Korean websites indicate the pair are being offered a fight with each other for K-1 Fields Dynamite on New Year's Eve.

But the reports are unconfirmed and there has been no official statement from either fighter's camp, nor the K-1 organisation.

Filopovic last fought in October, when a long-awaited clash with Dutch heavyweight Alistair Overeem ended in controversy.

With so many great bouts rumored and comfirmed for this event, it was a foregone conclusion that there had to be one freak show bout thrown in. The rumors are that it will be fought under K-1 kickboxing rules. Choi just got his ass handed to him by Ray Sefo at the K-1 World GP Finals. Can Crocop's left high kick reach Choi's enormous cranium?

Dana White Says Lyoto Machida is Anderson Silva's Successor

2008-12-04T12:32:00.000-08:00

From Sensei SporTV via Tatame comes an interview with the UFC Prez in which he gives light heavyweight contender Lyoto Machida the ultimate compliment.

He isn’t surprised with the possible retirement of Silva after all “Anderson Silva is rich! I’d also retire if I was him”, said Dana in jest. Though he doesn’t actually believe Anderson will retire any time soon . If it does happen, the president believes Lyoto Machida will become the 'The Spiders“ successor.

"Machida has everything to be the next best pound for pound fighter in MMA" said White.

This is something I've been saying for awhile now, no matter what people think of Machida's fighting style, he knows how to fight to win. I believe he could beat anybody at 205lbs, its just a matter of getting the fights he deserves.

Kimbo Slice to K-1, Possibly to Fight Badr Hari in Kickboxing Bout

2008-11-30T21:43:00.000-08:00

This comes from Japanese MMA Blog Omasuki Fight, which was translated over at Bloody Elbow.

Japanese tabloid Tokyo Sports reported that Kimbo Slice will be making appearance at Dec 6 K-1 show in Yokohama Japan to say hi to Japanese fans, K-1 Event Producer Tanigawa confirmed. His K-1 debut match will be in March, vs. current K-1 heavyweight champ, Badr Hari.

K-1 is basically kickboxing without elbow and muay thai clinch. Good for Kimbo not have to worry about ground game.

OK let me get this straight, Kimbo will be signed by K-1 to fight in March and be subsequently destroyed by one of the greatest kickboxers walking the planet. If this is true, maybe Kimbo hasn't done any research on Hari, because he stands ZERO chance of beating Hari in a kickboxing bout. Of course we would even get to see this massacre on HDNET now, more power to him, but if I were his manager I would try to put him in a match where he would at least stand a chance. Bob Sapp, anyone?

Jorge Gurgel Released from UFC, Signs Immediately with Strikeforce

2008-11-26T23:04:00.000-08:00

This breaking news is being reported by PlopCulture.

Being Jorge's manager we are privy to this info before anyone else and wanted to break it on the Plop for you fight fans...Within minutes of getting released from the UFC today, Jorge signed on with Strikeforce and will be coming to CALI to fight for the next stage in his career. Today he had a very successful surgery on a recurring bone spur issue with his elbow and should be ready to begin training in a few weeks.

Good for Jorge, I hope he gets a fresh start in Strikeforce and performs at a high level. Say what you will about his game planning, but he always comes to fight and is usually in a war because he is damn near impossible to finish.

(Thanks to PlopCulture for the Tip!)

Fedor Emelianenko Wants Brock Lesnar

2008-11-20T05:59:00.000-08:00

MMAJunkie has released an official statement from M-1 Global's Vice President Jerry Millen.

M-1 would like to congratulate Brock Lesnar on his UFC heavyweight title victory as well as acknowledge Randy Couture's return to active competition after a layoff that lasted over a year.

Couture and WAMMA heavyweight champion Fedor Emelianenko had publicly acknowledged a desire to fight each other multiple times over the course of the past year. While M-1 and Fedor remain interested in a match against Couture, we would also like to publicly state for the record that we would welcome a superfight between Fedor and Lesnar that would be held as a co-promoted event between the UFC, M-1, and Affliction Entertainment.

We've invited the media to speak with us today to not only make it clear we would welcome a Fedor vs. Lesnar matchup but to act in a preemptive fashion to address the possibility that UFC officials will try and position Lesnar as the No. 1 heavyweight in the world, much like they have tried to use a marketing ploy to brand Anderson Silfva as the number one pound-for-pound fighter in the world.

In the past, UFC president Dana White and Zuffa, LLC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta have tried to claim that Fedor was "overrated" and that his "record was irrelevant." They make these claims in spite of the fact that Fedor holds career victories over UFC champions past and present. While we have tremendous respect for the contributions Mr. Fertitta and Dana have made to this sport, we do not believe they are sincere in their statements.

It is the position of M-1 that the UFC has adopted an anti-Fedor policy because multiple attempts to sign him have not been fruitful. For a company that has tried to market itself as the number one promotion in the world, they are unable to accept the fact that the number one fighter in the world does not reside on its roster of contracted fighters.

We believe that the UFC has determined that it's much more inexpensive for them to use their marketing resources to use smoke and mirrors to brand a fighter as the pound-for-pound best as opposed to actually paying the pound-for-pound best what he is truly worth on the open market.

While Brock Lesnar is an accomplished athlete and a talented fighter, we do not consider him to be the number one heavyweight in the world. Until someone beats him, we strongly believe that Fedor should continue to be recognized as the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world. In a match between Fedor and Lesnar, we do not feel that at this stage Lesnar would be able to make it out of the first round.

For those who feel our statements in regards to Fedor are self-serving, we'd like to refer you to a video interview on the website RawVegas.tv in which at his UFC 91 after-party Couture himself acknowledges that "Fedor would probably tear Brock up at this point."

Jerry Millen, M-1 Vice President

I really hope this prompts a response from the UFC and Dana White(probably won't), very interested in what they would have to say after reading all the bashing that's in this statement.

Fedor Emelianenko Loses...In Sambo!

2008-11-16T12:52:00.000-08:00

Fight Linker Reports

It wasn't a good weekend for MMA fanboys. Wrestling fanboys yes, MMA fanboys no. Not only did Brock Lesnar knock out Randy Couture, but Fedor has lost as well this weekend. No, it wasn't in an MMA match, but still. Fedor was competing at the World Sambo Championships and lost to some Bulgarian dude in an apparently decisive fashion. He still clinched the bronze medal. This is all original reporting care of our bud Matthew Polly, so expect more info soon.

This may not be as shocking as hearing Fedor lost an MMA bout, but its certainly suprising. Considering how dominant Fedor has been in Combat Sambo over the years. I have got to see video of this, please if anyone finds the video of this, post it in the comments.

UFC 91 Post-Fight Video Interviews and Analysis

2008-11-15T22:09:00.000-08:00

UFC 91 Weigh-Ins Video

2008-11-14T13:03:00.000-08:00

UFC 91 Predictions: Natural Selection

2008-11-13T16:18:00.000-08:00

Lets take a look at the rest of the card before we get to the big fight of the night.

Non-Televised Bouts

Ryan Thomas vs. Matt Brown
I gotta go with Thomas in this fight, he is an up and comer with alot of talent. I think he can control this fight with his wrestling and overall ground game. Brown has a significant advantage standing, but I don't think he can avoid this fight going to the floor.- Thomas by decision.

Alvin Robinson vs. Mark Bocek
Love this fight, it has the potential to be the fight of the night, but I see Robinson as having better overall skills. He should be able to control the stand-up and avoid Bocek's take downs and submission attempts.- Robinson by TKO.

Jorge Gurgel vs. Aaron Riley
We all hear in every Gurgel fight how fantastic his Jiu-Jitsu is, but we rarely ever get to see it. Gurgel is the type of fighter that wants to put on a good show and actually winning the fight takes a back seat. This should be a brawl as both fighters have great chins and like to press the action, but if Gurgel decides to stand with Riley(I think he will) he will be in trouble as Riley has some heavy hands. I just can't pick Gurgel because he's showed many times that he will fight away from his own strengths.- Riley by Decision

Jeremy Stephens vs. Rafael dos Anjos
If Anjos can't get this fight to the mat, he's gettin knocked out. Stephens is a phenomenal striker and I think he gets the stoppage after avoiding some early take down attempts.- Stephens by KO

Televised Card

Dustin Hazelett vs. Tamdan McCrory
Another fight that should be extremely entertaining. Hazelett has the type of potential that could make him a champion one day, but McCrory has that same potential. I think this fight is a toss-up, but ultimately I like Hazelett to pull off another entertaining submission.- Hazelett by Submission

Gabriel Gonzaga vs. Josh Hendricks
Hendricks makes his UFC debut and Gonzaga is coming off a win against Justin McCully. I don't know much about Hendricks, but I do know that if he has the cardio to take Gonzaga into the third round he has a chance. Gonzaga has shown suspect cardio in his losses against Couture and Werdum. That being said, I'm still picking Gonzaga to finish this fight early.- Gonzaga by TKO

Demian Maia vs. Nathan Quarry
Maia's Jiu-Jitsu is on another level compared to most fighters in the world, on the other hand his stand-up is sub-par to say the least. Quarry ran a track meet in his last fight with Kalib Starnes, so his cardio should be tremendous! Anyways, I think Quarry stays out of the sub and uses the Dan Henderson vs. Rousimar Palhares strategy.- Quarry by Decision

Kenny Florian vs. Joe Stevenson
Ken-Flo is one of those fighters that gets better every time we see him. The only real advantage I can see for Stevenson in this fight is maybe he's a little better wrestler than Florian. Other than that I see Florian dominating this fight from start to finish with superior striking and even better Jiu-Jitsu than the recently anointed black belt, Stevenson. edit.- Florian by TKO

Randy Couture vs. Brock Lesnar
I hear many, many people talking about how great an athlete Brock Lesnar is. I'm sorry, but I disagree strongly with anyone that anoints Lesnar as a "great athlete". He has done nothing to earn a title like that. If you watched "UFC 91 Countdown" you no doubt saw the story about Lesnar's quest to play for the Minnesota Vikings. In the piece his trainers say that he had better numbers in the 40 and bench(not a suprise) than Houston Texans' number one overall choice Mario Williams. His trainers also go on to say that he has the talent to play in the NFL, even though the Vikings cut him. Forgive me for being highly skeptical of that whole situation and I don't know the whole story, but if he truly had the talent to play in the NFL that's where he would be(its not like the NFL is picky about who they let in.) and to insinuate that he is as good an athlete as Mario Williams is, is absolutely ridiculous.

He moves fast for a big man and he's a great wrestler and that gives him a chance in this fight, but I just have a problem with calling the guy a great athlete. When you think of a great athlete in terms of an MMA fighter, among other things, you have to think of overall skill set, heart, chin and endurance. Three things that we have no idea of when it comes to Brock Lesnar. You know who is a great athlete? Randy Couture.

Couture has been the underdog many times and he has risen to the occasion to prove all the critics wrong in the past. I think he pulls it off again here against an inexperienced fighter. Couture will pull out all the old MMA tricks to consistently frustrate the big man. I think dirty boxing will be a huge factor in this fight for Couture in the stand-up. Of course in the highly likely scenario that Couture does end up on his back, I suspect he has a few suprises for Brock either scrambling or submission attempts. I'm picking Couture to end this fight late in the third round after Lesnar realizes that he is outgunned in skill set and fighting intelligence.- Couture by TKO Late in the Third Round.

Official Poster for UFC 94: St. Pierre vs. Penn 2

2008-11-13T10:04:00.000-08:00

UFC 94: JANUARY 31, 2009
venue: Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada

Welterweight Bout:
Georges St. Pierre (#1 Welterweight in the World)* vs. B.J. Penn (#1 Lightweight in the World)*

-Lyoto Machida (#4 Light Heavyweight in the World)* vs. Thiago Silva (#10 Light Heavyweight in the World)*
-Karo Parisyan (#10 Welterweight in the World)* vs. Dong Hyun Kim
-Jake O'Brien vs. Christian Wellisch
-Manny Gamburyan vs. Thiago Tavares
-Stephan Bonnar vs. Jon Jones
-Dan Cramer vs. Matt Arroyo

I honestly can't wait for this. Click the picture for up to date fight card and rumors from MMA Weekly.

10 Shooto Fights You Need to Watch, with Videos

2008-11-10T18:48:00.000-08:00

Shooto is considered to be the oldest MMA organization on the planet. Started in 1985, there are so many great fights, that its impossible to boil it down to 10, but these are some of the best I've ever seen.

Takanori Gomi vs Joachim Hansen- Shooto- 8/10/03 in Yokohama Cultural Gymnasium

Caol Uno vs Tatsuya Kawajiri- Shooto- 3/22/04 in Korakuen Hall

Caol Uno vs. Tatsuya Kawajiri
Uploaded by mma-tv

Kenji Osawa vs Takeya Mizugaki- Shooto 2006- 11/10 in Korakuen Hall

Lion Takeshi vs Hiroyuki Abe- Shooto Back to Our Roots 1

Norifumi 'Kid' Yamamoto vs Tetsuo Katsuta- Shooto- Treasure Hunt 10- 2002

Antonio Carvalho vs Rumina Sato- Shooto: The Victory of the Truth 2006

Tatsuya Kawajiri vs Takumi Nakayama- Shooto- Shooter's Dream 2 2003

Caol Uno vs Rumina Sato 1- Shooto- 10th Anniversary 1999
2 Parts

Jake Shields vs Akira Kikuchi- Shooto- 8/10/03 in Yokohama Cultural Gymnasium

Akira Kikuchi vs. Jake Shields
Uploaded by mma-tv

Shinya Aoki vs Akira Kikuchi 2- Shooto: Back to Our Roots 1 2007

shinya aoki vs akira kikuchi 2
Uploaded by hamoom

Gina Carano and Tonya Evinger Wasted and Getting Close(Pics)

2008-11-10T13:29:00.000-08:00

(Props Cage Potato and MMA Fight Girls)

I don't know the story behind these pics, but remember Evinger is the fighter that announced at the pre-fight presser that she wanted to make out with Gina before fighting her.

Deadspin Shows Even More Stupidity About Lloyd Irvin

2008-11-10T12:48:00.000-08:00

I recently wrote a fanpost on Bloody Elbow about this whole Deadspin.com vs. Lloyd Irvin situation. For those who don't know the whole situation, click here for the entire story from Bloody Elbow. Lloyd Irvin released a chilling 911 call made by his wife and asked the editors of Deadspin.com to delete the blog post in which they basically accuse him of making up the whole home invasion story to get more business for his academy. Here's the post I made over at Bloody Elbow.

On the front page of Deadspin is a new response to the ongoing Lloyd Irvin and Bloody Elbow vs. Rick Chandler saga. This time from DAULERIO. In typical Deadspin fashion, he decides to pick out some of the worst emails they received from Bloody Elbow readers and then he had this to say.

For the record, Rick will not be fired, he's not guilty of libel, and he will not be hung or shot or killed (by me, at least). But it should be noted (again) that our initial report on this was skeptical based on the facts that were available and then was quickly rectified. Also, in case there is still any skepticism about what Lloyd Irvin and his family went through last night, you can listen to the horrifying 911 call right here.

We wish Mr. Irvin and his family the best in getting through this traumatic time and also in his future business endeavors. The post has not been removed, but has been updated with these links. Hopefully, that makes Mr. Irvin happy and prevents Rick from being pummeled to death by angry Bloody Elbow readers on his way to the grocery store. As you were.

Is it really that hard to delete a blog post? The answer is of course no, I'm a blogger and I do it all the time. These Deadspin writers are just too arrogant and they think everything they say is golden. Get real. Lloyd Irvin probably saved his family's life and he has every right in the world to ask for a stupid blog post to be deleted. Rick Chandler and all the writers at Deadspin are inconsiderate pricks and they know it. So just stay out of our wonderful MMA community and stick to making fun of Terrell Owens!

I say again, what the hell is the big deal about deleting a blog post?

Chris Leben Tests Positive for Steroids, Suspended Nine Months

2008-11-03T16:50:00.000-08:00

"The Crippler" has tested positive for the banned substance and anabolic agent stanozolol. Leben will be suspended nine months from fighting and have to forfeit one-third of his UFC 89 purse according to UFC.com.

“I’ve really done everything I can to turn my life around, and this is a huge setback for me, but it is something I will have to deal with. During my time off from fighting, I want to speak to kids about the dangers of using performance enhancing agents and let them know it just doesn’t get you ahead in life. Of course this is a hard hit for me monetarily, but more so this is embarrassing for me and for all of my fans. I apologize to the UFC and everyone who supported me in my fight in England. I hope to work through this and get back to fighting soon.”

Obviously some terrible news for everyone involved, but hey if you cheat you should pay the price. Anytime this happens, especially in the premier MMA organization on the planet, its a black mark on the sport.

Denis Kang Signs Four Fight Deal with the UFC

2008-11-03T16:33:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite fighters has finally made the jump to the UFC.

From American Top Team's website.

American Top Team fighter Denis Kang just signed a 4 fight deal with the UFC!

Denis made a big name for himself in Japan and Korea fighting in the PRIDE and SpiritMC organizations, where he developed a huge following.

Denis will now be able to showcase his skills to a whole new audience who hasn;t had the chance to see this exciting fighter in action. Denis has always expressed a desire to fight in the UFC and we are pleased we were able to help him get this deal done. Denis will bring a lot of excitement to the 185# division! Congrats Denis!

Some fantstic news, good for Denis and the UFC!

Anderson Silva to Possibly Fight on November 15th at UFC 91

2008-10-28T15:49:00.000-07:00

After the debacle that was Anderson Silva vs. Patrick Cote at UFC 90, it seems that "The Spider" is willing to redeem himself quickly. UFC President Dana White told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that Anderson is ready to go as soon as possible.

"He's flipping out. He wants to fight again, like, on Nov. 15. He's (upset) about his performance and he wants to fight again immediately."

Silva had this to say about his performance.

"I didn't come here to play. I didn't come here to put on a show," Silva said through a translator afterward. "I came here to do my job and I didn't become a champion and defend the title as many times as I have by not doing my job."

I can definitely see Dana White and the UFC brass making this happen. Probably a long shot, but there are some fighters out there that would take this fight on 3 weeks notice. I mean its a win-win for Silva's opponent win or lose.

The best case scenario is if Silva were willing to fight at 205 again. That would open up alot more options, including a super fight with Chuck Liddell.

At middleweight, I think the best possible scenario would be a rematch with Nate Marquardt. In any case, if Dana were to pull this off, UFC 91: Lesnar vs. Couture would probably shatter UFC Pay-Per-View records.

UFC 90 Post-Fight Video Interviews

2008-10-26T08:46:00.000-07:00

Anderson Silva and Patrick Cote

Thiago Alves and Josh Koscheck

Sean Sherk

UFC 90 Weigh-Ins Video

2008-10-25T08:36:00.000-07:00

EliteXC and Pro Elite Close Down Shop

2008-10-21T08:02:00.000-07:00

SI.com and Sherdog's Josh Gross Gets the Scoop

Less than two years following the formation of ProElite, Inc., the group notified employees and fighters Monday it was shutting its doors effective immediately, multiple sources confirmed to SI.com.
ProElite was an entertainment and media company founded in partnership with Showtime Networks and spearheaded by the mixed martial arts promotional brand EliteXC.
Representatives for ProElite, EliteXC and Showtime did not return calls for comment.
Through its partnership with Showtime and later CBS, which in 2008 agreed to broadcast four live EliteXC events in primetime, EliteXC gained a tremendous amount of visibility. The company, however, hemorrhaged tens of millions of dollars during its 22 months in operation.
In September, Showtime, which owned a 20 percent stake in ProElite, entered into preliminary negotiations to purchase a controlling interest in the company. When those negotiations failed, said a source inside ProElite who asked not to be identified, funding dried up and the company was forced out of business.

>

What becomes of Kimbo Slice, Jake Shields and Gina Carano?

UFC 89 Post Fight Video Interviews

2008-10-19T09:36:00.000-07:00

Keith Jardine and Chris Lytle

Marcus Davis and Dan Hardy

Chris Leben and Michael Bisping
Head Over to UFC.com for Leben and Bisping Interviews.

UFC 89 Weigh-Ins Video

2008-10-17T15:44:00.000-07:00

Rachelle Leah Playboy Cover Picture

2008-10-16T06:31:00.000-07:00

It hits the shelves tomorrow!

Fedor Emelianenko vs. Andrei Arlovski is Official

2008-10-11T09:50:00.000-07:00

Props to MMA Rated for breaking the story.

MMARated.com has learned that WAMMA heavyweight champion Fedor Emelianenko will face Andrei Arlovski at the upcoming Affliction show tentatively scheduled for January 24th in Anaheim, Calif.

Affliction Entertainment VP Tom Atencio confirmed the news with us earlier today.

Atencio also said that the promotion will officially announce the date, location and main fights on the card sometime next week and that it will be an MMA-only card but still co-promoted with Golden Boy Promotions.

"We sat down with them and couldn't come up with a main event boxing match that everyone wanted," Atenco said.

Some great news for sure. With the way Arlovski has been fighting lately, this will surely be one of the toughest tests for Emelianenko to date. Arlovski may be the only heavyweight in the world that can match Fedor's speed. It should be a great fight and a dream match for fans that have followed both fighter's careers.

Bas Rutten Says Kimbo KO Was Not a Lucky Punch(Video)

2008-10-10T11:21:00.000-07:00

Frank Shamrock Offered to Fight Kimbo Slice(Video)

2008-10-05T10:02:00.000-07:00

And says he would've kicked his ass!

Kimbo Slice, Seth Petruzelli Post Fight Video Interviews- EliteXC Heat

2008-10-05T08:01:00.000-07:00

Seth Petruzelli

Kimbo Slice

If Videos Don't work Click Here to Watch

(Picture Props to Combat Lifestyle)

Fedor Talks About His New Book(Video)

2008-09-28T15:35:00.000-07:00

Andrei Arlovski vs Roy Nelson Set for EliteXC on CBS 3 on October 4th

2008-09-24T17:15:00.000-07:00

Sherdog's Loretta Hunt has the Scoop

At least two fighters will not sit on the sidelines following the postponement of Affliction’s Oct. 11 “Day of Reckoning” event in Las Vegas.

Former UFC champion Andrei Arlovski (13-5) and IFL kingpin Roy Nelson (13-2) have been offered a heavyweight bout at EliteXC “Heat” Oct. 4 at the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise, Fla. The event will be aired live on CBS.

Arlovski’s management team would not comment Wednesday on the proposed bout, while Nelson’s attorney, Rod Donohoo, also refrained from remarks. However, Sherdog.com has learned from separate sources that both fighters have agreed in principle to the match and that contracts have been issued for review.

There are also rumors that Josh Barnett turned down this opportunity to fight Arlovski on CBS because he would've had to take a pay cut.

This certainly strengthens the card for the more knowledgeable fan. I've never been a Roy Nelson fan, it just seems that every time I see an interview with the guy he comes off as a cocky prick. Arlovski is on a different level than Roy is, Arlovski should dominate him.

DREAM 6 Live Blog Results Play-by-Play at 3am EST

2008-09-22T20:21:00.000-07:00

I'm staying up all night and I will post the televised results as they happen with full play-by-play, my first time trying it.

Here is the card.

Middleweight tournament final:

Melvin Manhoef or Gegard Mousasi vs. Zelg Galesic or Ronaldo Souza

Middleweight tournament semifinals:

Melvin Manhoef (22-4-1) vs. Gegard Mousasi (22-2-1)
Zelg Galesic (9-3) vs. Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza (9-1)

Middleweight tournament reserve bout:

Dong Sik Yoon (4-5) vs. Andrews Nakahara (0-1)

Non-tournament bouts:

265 lbs.: Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic (23-6-2) vs. Alistair “Demolition Man” Overeem (28-11)
265 lbs.: Sergei Kharitonov (15-3-0) vs. Jimmy “The Titan” Ambriz (13-9-1)
185 lbs.: Ikuhisa “Minowaman” Minowa (40-28-8) vs. Masakatsu Funaki (38-13-1)
185 lbs.: Yoshihiro Akiyama (11-1) vs. Masanori Tonooka (1-1)
170 lbs.: Hayato “Mach” Sakurai (32-8-2) vs. Kuniyoshi Hironaka (12-5)
160 lbs.: Shinya “Tobikan Judan” Aoki (17-3) vs. Todd “Maniac” Moore (9-2)
160 lbs.: Keita “K-taro” Nakamura (14-3-2) vs. Adriano Martins (9-3)
145 lbs.: Hideo Tokoro (21-13-1) vs. Atsushi Yamamoto (11-5-1)

Play-by-Play begins below at 3am EST.

Let the show begin! The show starts with a nice little description of all the middleweight tourney semi-finalists. Kenny Rice and Bas Rutten are talking about tonight's festivities, and they go to Ron Kruck with a little preview of Crocop vs. Overeem. First fight coming up and its gonna be the tourney reserve match of Andrews Nakahara vs. Dong Sik Yoon. We'll have to wait for the action as they announce the judges and officials ringside, now Saitama Super Arena goes dark and they start the opening, looks awesome, but HDNet is not letting us in on the fun, all they're showing is a wide shot of the arena and screen. Some pyrotechnics and now fighter introductions, this will take awhile I'm sure, I'll be back when the match starts.

Middleweight Tournament Reserve Match- Andrews Nakahara vs. Dong Sik Yoon
Round 1- Yoon is sporting a full Gi and here we go. Nakahara misses with a low kick, then stuffs a Yoon takedown attempt. Some clinching in the corner and the fight ends up on the mat with Nakahara on top in Yoon's guard, but Nakahara quickly stands up and out. Low kicks are finding their mark for Nakahara and he also lands a nice knee to the body before being put on his back by Yoon. Yoon moves to side guard and now he moves to full mount and now is going for a Gi choke. Nakahara defends well, but is still mounted. Yoon is throwing some weak punches from the mount. Nakahara finally escapes the back door, both fighters back to their feet. Nakahara's low kicks are starting to take a bit of a toll, he also throws some Andy Hug like Axe kicks. Yoon goes for a takedown, but is stuffed and the round ends with Nakahara in north/south position and landing a knee.
MMA Post Scores the first round for Nakahara 10-9.

Round 2- Fighters come out swinging and Nakahara knocks down Yoon with a couple of well-placed left hooks, Nakahara pounces on Yoon with a flurry of unanswered punches to Yoon's face, Yoon has pretty much stopped defending himself and the ref saves him at 30 seconds into the round. Very good fight by Nakahara, he defended the dangerous submission game of Yoon well and pretty much dominated the stand-up.
Winner-Andrews Nakahara(TKO Punches)

Middleweight Tournament Semi-Final Match- Melvin Manhoef vs. Gegard Mousasi
This is gonna be a hell of a scrap, unless Mousasai gets a quick sub. Bas Rutten really likes Melvin Manhoef, not suprisingly.
Round 1- Fighters come out and Mousasi throws, but misses a low kick and not suprisingly Mousasi shoots in for a takedown. Manhoef initially sprawls, but is still taken down, he gets back to his feet, but Mousasi clinches and now gets a perfect takedown. Manhoef scrambles, Mousasi gets his back, lands some punches to the side of Mahoef's head and is now going for the rear-naked choke. Manhoef gets the sweep, but falls right into a triangle choke! Manhoef picks Mousasi up Rampage style, but man he is still caught in the choke deep while standing-up, Manhoef goes against Bas Rutten's advice and slams him on the mat, now the choke is even tighter. Mousasi pulls the head down hard now and Manhoef is forced to tap just a minute and a half into the fight.. Mousasi just totally dominated Manhoef on the ground, wow that choke was brutal!
Winner- Gegard Mousasi(Submission: Triangle Choke)

Middleweight Tournament Sem-Final Match- Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza vs. Zelg Galesic
Round 1- Jacare quickly slips a front kick from Zelg and moves in with a nice takedown. Jacare works from the guard, but is immediately looking to pass. Zelg trys to get up, but Jacare keeps him down and easily advance to side mount. Jacare lands some nice punches to the head from side control and now he looks for an arm. Jacare gets knee on belly position and from there goes straight to full mount, awesome grappling display! Zelg goes for a sweep, but Jacare gets a quick armbar and Zelg is forced to tap, also a minute and a half into the fight.
Winner- Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza(Submission: Armbar)

The non-tournament bouts begin.

Keita Nakamura vs. Adriano Martins
Round 1- Martins comes out and lands a nice inside low kick. Some sloppy exchanges now. Martins now scores a knockdown with a right hand. Nakamura recovers though. Another right hand stuns Nakamura a little. Nakamura secure a single leg takedown.
Not much going on, on the ground here, but all the pitter-patter punching has led to a cut on the left eye of Nakamura, a replay shows a well-placed elbow from the bottom by Martins led to the cut. The ref stops the fighters and wants to check the cut. It's not a bad cut. The fighters come back and start on the feet. Nakamura is starting to land some good punches now. Martins is taking some shots as the bell sounds.
MMA Post scores Round 1 Nakamura 10-9.

Round 2- Nakamura comes out and lands some nice punches. Martins' chin is way too high. Nakamura now landing numorous unanswered stiff jabs. Alot of clinching going on between the exchanges and thats how the fight ends. Fight started out pretty good, but ended up pretty uneventful.
Should be a unaminous decision victory for Nakamura.
Wow, one judge scored the bout for Martins.
Winner- Keita Nakamura(Split Decision)

Sergei Kharitonov vs. Jimmy Ambriz
Man I can't wait to see Sergei back in action. Bas and Kenny are talking about Ambriz and hey the camera catches Fedor sitting ringside. Sergei is walking out and Kenny talks about Sergei fought Fedor 2 years ago on September tenth? No idea, that has to be a mistake.
Round 1- Sergei lands a nice left and bam! a hard left hook from Sergei knocks down Ambriz, but Ambriz pops back up, gets a body lock and is going for a takedown against the ropes. Sergei is holding the ropes and gets a yellow card for it. The action resumes, the fighters circle each other a little and Sergei is pretty much landing at will, nothing too hard yet, but it looks like this guy is gonna get KO'd pretty soon. Ambriz has zero striking ability and he looks like he's gassing already. Hard right straight to the head lands for Sergei, now a nice straight body shot. Huge overhand right from Sergei staggers Ambriz a little. Sergei is starting to tee off, landing everything he throws. Ambriz is dazed now as Sergei lands a big uppercut. Now some hard knees to the chin of Ambriz, and this is gonna be over soon. Ambriz drops to his knees and Sergei(standing over top) lands two hard body punches and a hard head punch and Ambriz taps. Thats as easy as it gets for Kharitonov.
Winner- Sergei Kharitonov(Submission: Strikes)

Fedor is getting alot of camera time. Kenny(speaking of Kharitonov)-"Bas, ya think Fedor's impressed?", Bas-"NO"!

Now an interview with Zelg, he picks Mousasi to win the tournament.

Featherweights up next.

Hideo Tokoro vs. Atsushi Yamamoto
Round 1- Both fighters come out and some nice boxing from both fighters. Now a beautiful left hook-right straight combo drops Tokoro to the ground. Yamamoto smells blood and jumps on Tokoro, but Tokoro recovers fast and now has Yamamoto in rubber guard. A stall in the action now as both fighters lobby for position. Tokoro goes for an armbar, but Yamamoto escapes and the fighters are back on their feet now. Yamamoto dancing around and getting cocky as he lands a jab. Yamamoto is dropping his hands, taunting Tokoro and he lands another nice jab. Inside low kick finds its mark for Yamamoto. Yamamoto lands a decent flying knee. Tokoro comes back with a nice body kick followed by a one-two. The two fighters clinch and Tokoro goes for a Flying armbar, but ends up pulling guard. Some scrambling and Yamamoto pops back to his feet and the two look to exchange punches again. Tokoro lands some hard punches with a left-right combo to the the chin. Yamamoto is landing his jab at will. Tokoro trys a flip kick, but ends up pulling guard.
MMA Post scores the first round Yamamoto 10-9.

Round 2- Another jab from Yamamoto, this one snaps Tokoro's head back. Tokoro's nose is bloodied up good. Tokoro again trys a flip kick, but again gets guard and goes for an armbar but Yamamoto defends. The ref stops the action to take a look at Tokoro, who now has a mouse under his eye. The action resumes and Yamamoto gets a single-leg to secure his first takedown of the fight. Not much doing on the ground and Yamamoto simply stands up. The fighters are back to the ground with Yamamoto in Tokoro's guard. With 2 minutes left, Tokoro reverses and gets an arm. He has it locked, but can't break the grip of Yamamoto to fully secure the hold. Yamamoto defends all the way to the end of the fight. Really good scrap, but Yamamoto should win it easily and he does.
Winner- Yamamoto(Unanimous Decision)

Ikuhisa Minowa vs. Masakatsu Funaki
Round 1- Funaki attempts a spinning back kick, but is taken down in the process. Funaki gets a leg and rolls over. Funaki has a heel hook, Minowa is trying for the same move. Funaki gets an inverted heel hook and it is brutal looking as he twists Minowa's foot almost completely around and Minowa is forced to tap just 53 seconds in, Ouch! Bas rutten points out the huge mistake Minowa made wearing shoes against someone like Funaki.
Winner- Funaki(Submission: Inverted Heel Hook)

A break in the action as HDNet shows a nice piece on Eddie Alvarez.

Hey, Fedor is now walking to the ring! Possibly to announce a New Year's match-up? Fedor says he wants to practice the Gold Medalist Judo winner Ishii. Bas and Kenny talk about how they would want to see Fedor fight the winner of Overeem/Crocop, but why would Fedor even mention Ishii? It seems like that fight is probably in the works for New Year's.

Hayato Sakurai vs. Kuniyoshi Hironaka
Round 1- Front kick and spinning back fist attempt misses for Sakurai. Hironaka lands some nice low kicks. The fighters clinch and Hironaka secures a takedown. Hironaka lobbying for position, postures up, but falls back into half guard. The fighters scramble back to their feet. Hard low kick scores for Sakurai. Some uneventful punching exchanges. Sakurai lands a nice left straight and follows up with another nice low kick. A front kick to the chin lands for Sakurai and another good low kick scores. Another really hard low kick for Sakurai. Sakurai is controlling the stand-up and lands another hard low kick. The low kicks are starting to really hurt Hironaka. The fighters clinch now and after a stall the ref re-starts the action. Sakurai loses balance and falls to the canvas. He gets the guard now, Hironaka throwing punches, but nothing significant. Hironaka stands-up and stomps his opponent on the chin(ahh back to the good old Pride days), but Hironaka just gets a warning for it. Sakurai lands a good liver punch and another one, Bas is loving it. Some good front kicks to the gut for Sakurai land and the round ends.
MMA Post scores round 1 for Sakurai 10-9.

Round 2- Hironaka shoots in and secures a double-leg takedown. The fighters are in the corner and the ref moves them to the centers. Sakurai scrambles up as Hironaka goes for a Gulliontine, but Sakurai easily escapes. The fighters on their feet again and Sakurai lands another low kick. Some good straight punches land for Sakurai and some good counters by Hironaka now. Sakurai landing some good combos now to the head of Hironaka and lands 2 good knees. Huge left hook from Sakurai lands flush and drops Hironaka to the ground! Sakurai pounces and is looking for the finish, but there's not enough time left and the bell sounds as he lands some nice ground punches. Sakurai all the way.
Winner- Sakurai(Unanimous Decision)

Yoshihiro Akiyama vs. Masanori Tonooka
Round 1- Akiyama in the full Gi, nothing doing as the fighters feel each other out for the first minute. Akiyama lands a short left hook, Tonooka swings wildly. Akiyama gets a body lock and takes the fight to the floor, passes right away into side mount. Nothing happening in side mount, Akiyama goes for an armbar, but switches posiitions and now has his opponent in full mount. Goes for another armbar, but to the suprise of the Bas and Kenny and myself he escapes back to his feet. Akiyama quickly takes it back down with a nice trip. Now he has the armbar and the overmatched Tonooka is forced to tap with 3:33 left in the first round.
Winner- Akiyama(Submission: Armbar)

Shinya Aoki vs. Todd Moore
Round 1- Some strikes from both fighters don't land. They clinch and Aoki jumps on Moore's back and goes for a rear-naked-choke, they fall to the canvas and Aoki has his hips locked up and pulls off a neck crank that forces the tap from Moore. I have never seen something like that before, I've seen positions like that, the fighter always twists out of it. Aoki prevented the hips from twisting.
Winner- Aoki(Submission: Neck Crank)

Crocop vs. Overeem coming up. Kenny Rice says its possible the winner fights Fedor on New Year's Eve. Fedor gets in the ring and gives flowers to both fighters.

Mirko Crocop vs Alistair Overeem
Round 1- Good staredown and here we go. Overeem looks huge. Both fighters circle, crocop lands a inside low kick. They clinch and Overeem throws Crocop to the canvas, wow. Working in Crocop's guard, and Crocop is cut above his left eye. Overeem landing some good strikes from the top. Ref stops to check the cut, its small and restarts it on the ground. The fighters come back to the feet and Crocop lands a hard liver kick and follows up with a high kick that misses and Overeem makes him pay for it and puts him on his back with a trip takedown. Overeem is doing damage to Crocop from top position with body and head punches. Huge hammer fist lands for Overeem. A little stall and the ref stands them up, Overeem lands a hard knee to the body, Crocop complaining it was low, but ref says fight on. They clinch and Overeem is connecting with knees to the body. Knee to the groin does land this time and there is a momentary stoppage. The action resumes and they clinch again and another knee to the groin from Overeem. Crocop doesn't look like he wants to continue, he's laying flat on the ground. He was certainly getting beat up badly before the groin shots, but yep they just called it a no contest. Well this sucks, especially with Kenny Rice now spurting out every minute that Fedor will fight the winner.

I'll say this, Crocop didn't look very good even before the groin shots, but who knows, one high kick later in the fight and just like that he's Crocop again.

Alistair gets the mic and apologizes for the groin shots and says he's number 1 in DREAM and he'll fight anybody.

The final fight of the night coming up.

Middleweight Grand Prix Final- Gegard Mousasi vs. Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza
Round 1- Both fighters tentative early, Mousasi looks like he really doesn't want this fight to go to the ground(with good reason). A jab scores for Mousasi. Jacare goes for a takedown, but misses the legs momentarily, recovers and picks Mousasi up and slams him down to the canvas. Mousasi trying to work his way back to his feet, but ends up securing half-guard. Jacare stands over Mousasi and rains down some punches, but Mousasi lands a devastating upkick that knocks Jacare out cold! Wow!! The replay shows he was out cold before he ever hit the floor.
Winner- Mousasi(KO Upkick)

Gegard Mousasi is the DREAM Middleweight Grand Prix Champion, Congratulations to Mousasi.

Good event, I wish the Crocop/Alistair fight wouldv'e had a real ending, but I can't complain because the event as a whole was exciting.

Thanks to those who stayed up late with me!!

Michael Bisping and Dan Henderson to be Coaches for "The Ultimate Fighter 9"

2008-09-19T17:59:00.001-07:00

The Sun is reporting that the most likely coaches for the next season of "The Ultimate Fighter: Team USA vs. Team UK", will be middleweight contenders Michael Bisping and Dan Henderson. Bisping, the UFC's popular British star, will have to beat Chris Leben at UFC 89 first.

The UFC have not yet offered Bisping the coach's role on TUF 9 because he is scheduled to fight Chris Leben at UFC 89 at the Birmingham National Indoor Arena on October 18.

But SunSport understands Dana White will immediately hand the British star a contract to appear on the show if he overcomes Leben next month.

It is believed Dan Henderson will coach the US team, with the TUF 9 finale featuring him in a clash for the No1 middleweight contender's spot against Bisping, which could take place in December next year.

If this comes to fruition then whoever wins the finale fight would probably get a shot at Middleweight champ Anderson Silva, but of course alot can happen and this is a long ways away.

Nate and Nick Diaz Launch into Tirade at UFC Fight Night 15 Post Presser

2008-09-19T11:49:00.000-07:00

The Diaz boys are at it again.

From Sports Illustrated

“In what was a baffling and undoubtedly rare moment for the media, Nate Diaz was short of salacious quotes about his latest win and opponent Josh Neer. Diaz’s time was limited in dropping four-letter bombs. Why? Because Nate had noly taken his seat in front of reporters at the post-fight press conference when his older brother Nick launched into a tirade that disrupted the interview and left the UFC staff with the unenviable task of keeping the Diaz clan from causing a scene. Good luck with that one. Nate abandoned the press conference as his brother shouted profanities at no one in particular, and together they took their rant into the hallway. Yes, the notorious potty-mouthed pair struck again. Maybe this was Nick’s way paying his family back for their feud with the Noons’ at EliteXC on Showtime in June. All about reciprocities in the Diaz household.”

Hopefully a video will surface soon and I'll post it.

(Props MMANews.com)

Affliction and Golden Boy Partnering Up and Frankly, I Don't Give a Damn!

2008-09-13T14:11:00.000-07:00

MMA Weekly has the worthless scoop.

Affliction Entertainment Vice President Tom Atencio on Saturday confirmed that his company has entered into an agreement with Golden Boy Promotions, the boxing promotion led by Oscar De La Hoya. The two will co-promote a hybrid evening of boxing and mixed martial arts to be held at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif. on Jan. 17.

“It’s very good news,” Atencio told MMAWeekly.com. “It’s good for the company, and it’s good for the sport.”

Already confirmed for the fight card is Fedor Emelianenko, who was forced off Affliction’s second card originally scheduled for Oct. 11 due to a chip fracture in his right hand. An opponent for the Russian has not yet been named.

Well, and people still wonder why Dana White and the UFC continue to dominate the market, maybe its because other promotions continue to show unbelievable stupidity. Yep, you know what this means, we will be waiting through boxing matches to see Fedor fight.

I just don't understand who in their right mind would think this is a good idea, this means Affliction head honcho Tom Atencio leap frogs Monte Cox to become MMA's premiere douchebag. Congratulations to Tom for jumping the rankings in record time. I guess the simple fact that the majority of boxing fans hate MMA and vice versa never entered the tiny brains of anyone involved in this soon to be colossal failure. Please UFC, pry Fedor away from this god awful train wreck.

UFC Ruling Pay-Per-View in 2008

2008-09-12T19:44:00.000-07:00

The UFC is beating the WWE and HBO in PPV numbers for 2008 so far. Adam Swift goes over the numbers on "Inside MMA" in the video below.

UFC 89 and UFC 90 are solid cards, but they probably won't do much more than the average of 420,000 buys. On the other hand, UFC 91, with the huge match-up of Randy Couture vs. Brock Lesnar, plus Quinton Jackson vs. Wanderlei Silva 3 and Kenny Florian vs. Joe Stevenson may break UFC PPV records.

Wanderlei Silva vs Quinton Jackson 3 Likely for UFC 91

2008-09-11T17:06:00.000-07:00

The long awaited third match in the Rampage vs Wandy saga looks like its finally gonna happen. MMACanada.net has the scoop.

Sources have told us at MMACanada.net that Rampage Jackson will fight Wanderlei Silva at UFC 91 which is headlined by Randy Couture vs Brock Lesnar for the UFC Heavyweight Championship on November 15th in Las Vegas. This will mark the third fight between Jackson and Silva since last meeting twice in the PRIDE organization. Both fighters have changed their training around since leaving PRIDE and this will be one fight that has "FIGHT OF THE YEAR" written all over it

UFC 91 is looking like a huge card that may shatter pay-per-view records. The big question in this match-up is can Jackson finally defend the clinch of the Brazilian.

Fedor Emelianenko Will Fight on New January Affliction 2 Card. Tito Ortiz A Possible Opponent?

2008-09-10T18:48:00.000-07:00

My speculation of Russian heavyweight king Fedor Emelianenko possibly fighting on the rescheduled Affliction 2 "Day of Reckoning" has been confirmed by Affliction COO Michael Cohen. Cohen talked to NBC Sports about the development.

Affliction COO Michael Cohen told NBCSports.com that the company is expecting to run the show in January, and that they would also make a major announcement in the next two weeks that would “change the dynamics of mixed martials arts. Not just nationally, but globally.”

The October event was initially expected to feature a main event with current WAMMA champ Fedor Emelianenko against Arlovski, but the former broke his hand in defeating Tim Sylvia and would not have been ready in time for October, necessitating an opponent switch.

Cohen said that Emelianenko will fight on the new January card, but an opponent has not yet been decided.

“It is to be determined,” he said. “We are considering changing the combatants. We have not finalized that at this time. That is as a result of the issues to be revealed at the announcement.”

Some are speculating that a Fedor vs. Tito Ortiz fight could be the big announcement, but I would lean towards just the Tito signing or possibly a merger with another promotion.

Affliction 2 "Day of Reckoning" for October 11th Canceled, Rescheduled for January 2009

2008-09-10T16:21:00.000-07:00

(Photo Props MMA Mania)

Affliction's second MMA event "Day of Reckoning" has been canceled for October 11th, but apparently has been rescheduled for sometime in January 2009.

MMA Rated broke the story earlier

MMARated.com has learned that the second Affliction show scheduled for October 11th at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, has been cancelled.

The show was set to feature a main event heavyweight eliminator between Josh Barnett and Andrei Arlovski.

As of this morning, the event was taken off the Thomas & Mack Center's schedule.

Additionally, Loretta Hunt confirmed the rescheduling on Sherdog.

The Oct. 11 Affliction event scheduled for the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas has been postponed, Nevada State Athletic Commission Executive Director Keith Kizer confirmed Wednesday to Sherdog.com.

Affliction contacted Kizer on Wednesday morning to inform him that the event would be moved to a January date at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif.

Advertising for the Oct. 11 pay-per-view event had already begun, including in New York, where scheduled headliners Andrei Arlovski (Pictures) and Josh Barnett (Pictures) were featured on a billboard in Times Square.

Arlovski’s management said they had not been contacted by Affliction with the cancellation as of this morning, and were “shocked” and “extremely disappointed” by the news.

Some disappointing news for sure, but does this extra time clear Fedor Emelianenko to fight on the card again?

UPDATED: Evan Tanner Dead at Age 37

2008-09-08T17:45:00.000-07:00

From The Imperial Valley Press

UPDATE:CAGE POTATO CONFIRMS DEATH FROM HIS MANAGER
Hayner said that Tanner had gone into the desert on a motorcycle expedition and had run out of gas. Tanner was attempting to walk out of the desert, Hayner said, but apparently didn’t realize how far away from civilization he was and died of exposure in the triple-digit heat. Tanner’s empty campsite was spotted Sunday, and an aerial search located his body earlier this afternoon.

“Here was a famous UFC fighter who didn’t have enough food to eat at times. I’d call him just to make sure he had food in his fridge, but he never let it get him down. Starting over was kind of a theme in his life. He hardly ever lived in the same place more than six months,” Hayner said. “He moved out to Vegas and then found it too shallow for him, so he moved out to Oceanside and had a great place, he was learning to surf, and he was really enjoying his day-to-day life.”

A body was discovered in the Palo Verde mountain area on Monday, said Lt. George Moreno from Imperial County Sheriff's Department.

The Palo Verde mountain area is 60 miles northeast of Brawley.

Authorities have not confirmed if the body is that of missing mixed martial arts fighter, Evan Tanner, who had fought in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Tanner, 37, has been missing since last weekend.

Tanner's friends from Oceanside, where Tanner resides, had been texting him without reply since Wednesday before they reported him missing on Friday.

On Sunday, a campsite was discovered in the Clapp Springs area of the Palo Verde mountains. Tanner's motorcycle was found at the campsite. A body was found today when a sheriffs deputy was flying around the general location of the campsite.

The Imperial County deputy coroner is being flown in to retrieve and identify body.

This is what Tanner had to say on his last blog entry.

I plan on going so deep into the desert, that any failure of my equipment, could cost me my life. I’ve been doing a great deal of research and study. I want to know all I can about where I’m going, and I want to make sure I have the best equipment. One more week. I think one more week, and I’ll be ready to go.”

We can only hope it isn't true, but if it is, it is terrible news in the MMA community.

10 Things Learned From UFC 88

2008-09-08T15:23:00.000-07:00

10. Kurt Pellegrino is never in a boring fight, you gotta love "Batman" he gives it his all every time out. Anytime he fights, no matter the opponent, its worth tuning in.

9. I thought the judges called the Dong Hyun Kim vs Matt Brown the right way. It was close, but I thought Kim won rounds 1 and 3.

8. Rousimar Palhares' jiu-jitsu is surely world class, you could sense the danger for Henderson every time it went to the ground, it reminded me of Nogueira's early Pride fights, except Nogueira always found a way to lock in the submission. Palhares still has to learn the "Mixed" in Mixed Martial Arts. Some are complaining that he actually won the fight, are you kidding me, how can you win a fight if all you're doing is going for takedown after takedown with most being stuffed by Hendo?

7. Dan Henderson had a game plan and stuck to it completely. A classic example of a great wrestler using his skills in reverse.

6. Nate Marquardt suprised me alot. I was really high on Kampmann winning this fight to the point that I put some money on him. I would love to see Marquardt get a rematch with Anderson Silva, but I would still pick against him.

5. Matt Hamill was disappointing. I really thought he would make this a great fight with Franklin, but he had a bad game plan and he gassed.

4. Rich Franklin looked as good as ever and he immediately becomes a top 5 light heavyweight in my opinion. If Anderson stays at Middleweight now, he has a real chance to make some noise in the division. Somewhere Bas Rutten was watching this fight and screaming at the television in joy after that brutal Liver kick by "Ace".

3. Rashad Evans will fight Forrest Griffin in December for the title, its been all but confirmed by Dana White and company and he will win the title against Forrest. Before this fight I re watched Evans' last 2 fights against Bisping and Ortiz and you could tell he had some heavy hands, but it was the speed that was too much for the Iceman.

2. Chuck Liddell needs a new approach to fighting. His hands low, chin too high approach is catching up to him. I just don't understand why he went into this fight thinking it was a boxing match or something. I mean the guy has lethal legs and he didn't even try any kind of kick. A new camp and a new mindset and Chuck will be just fine.

1. Lyoto Machida will be your light heavyweight champion in 2009. If he gets a shot at Rashad or Forrest he will win decisively.

UFC 88 Post Fight Video Interviews

2008-09-07T10:16:00.000-07:00

Chuck Liddell and Rashad Evans

Rich Franklin and Matt Hamill

Dan Henderson and Nate Marquardt

UFC 88 Weigh-Ins Video

2008-09-05T21:59:00.000-07:00

Its Official: Randy Couture is Back in the UFC and will Fight Brock Lesnar at UFC 91

2008-09-02T14:19:00.000-07:00

Thomas Gerbasi of UFC.com breaks the news, which happened at the UFC 91 teleconference. If any audio or video comes available I will post it.

From Thomas Gerbasi
If we’ve learned one thing in combat sports, it’s to never say never. This old adage was solidified once again today, as UFC President Dana White announced the November 15th return to the Octagon of heavyweight champion Randy Couture to face Brock Lesnar in the main event of UFC 91 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

The announcement comes after nearly a year of contentious relations between the organization and Couture, who walked away from the UFC in October of 2007 with two fights remaining on his contract. But in August, the heavyweight champion and the organization worked on a renegotiation of his contract that will enable ‘The Natural’ to finish his Hall of Fame career with the UFC.

In addition BloodyElbow has many details of the announcement.
- Dana White: Brock vs. Couture will be "the biggest fight in UFC history".

- Dana White on competitors and co-promotion: ": These guys are dying on the vine. You’re not under contract if the company’s not in business anymore.

- Dana White: "I would be horrified if Affliction's still in business in January."

- Couture: would rather fight Fedor, but fight with Brock "a step in the right direction"

- Couture says UFC and he have "cleared the air"; "comfortable with way things stand right now"

- Couture says he'll weigh approximately 225lbs for this fight.

- Dana White says he doesn't know if Couture is the richest fighter in the UFC.

- Dana White: Nogueira is probably thrilled Couture is back.

- Dana White: research was done and proves Brock vs. Couture will be biggest fight in UFC history.

- Couture: re-signing with the UFC to get Fedor is "path of least resistance"

- Dana White: the heavyweight division "is looking pretty damn good now"

- Couture: MMA is the combative sport for this generation

- Couture: how can you overlook a guy [Brock Lesnar] that size?

- Dana White: over the next year we are going to see some really great heavyweight fights.

- Randy and Dana: feels good to have this problem resolved; "to see a little sunshine for a change is pretty nice"

- Dana White: "I like fighting with Tito"

- Dana White suggests Fedor might have to be not under contract for the UFC to sign a fight with him. He didn't say it was required, but he alluded to it.

- Dana White: Affliction is losing "shitloads" of money.

- Couture: biggest part of my decision was communicating with Lorenzo and Dana that I was feeling. Second was frustration with legal system. Tired of throwing money with lawyers with no end in sight. Best place for me to fight is a cage, not a court room.

- Dana White: "I'm like a giddy little girl right now"

- Dana White: "It drives me insane when Fedor is called the best p4p fighter in the world." If Fedor is the best, he has to come to the UFC eventually.

- Dana White: people don't know this, but there was bad blood between Brock and Herring. Herring was insulted he had to fight him.

- Brock Lesnar: "not a lot of people get this opportunity".

- Brock Lesnar: "who gives a shit about Fedor Emelianenko?" I'm sick and tired of sitting on the phone listening about Fedor. "Who fucking gives a shit?"

- Dana White: "UFC Countdown" for this fight could be two or three part series.

- Dana White: this is where all the best heavyweights are. Randy Couture is relevant; Fedor is not.

- Couture: I can't spend any time worrying about losing to Lesnar and losing luster on a fight with Fedor.

- Dana White: rivals can have whichever fighters we cut.

- Dana White: Werdum is still in the mix.

- Dana White: expecting 1million to 1.5 million PPV buys for this fight. It's a new deal: 3-fight deal.

- Dana White: I would not sign a one-fight deal with Fedor.

- Dana White: all court action is dead.

- Dana White: Randy Couture is the guy everyone wants to fight. Fedor is completely irrelevant.

- Couture: Mark Cuban wants what's best for me. He just wanted to facilitate what I wanted. Now the best path is to make the fight with Fedor happen in the UFC.

Some amazing news for MMA fans, hopefully they are serious about making the Fedor fight happen. Does this willingness to work with Couture and possibly Fedor come from Lorenzo Fertitta now working full-time with UFC or did Dana White finally come to his senses?

Randy Couture vs Brock Lesnar Close to Being Reality

2008-08-30T13:17:00.000-07:00

BloodyElbow has exclusive details on what now is becoming more than just speculation. Michael Rome of BE has the scoop.

First, I can say with 100% certainty that there are current negotiations for Randy Couture to return in November to main event, and that the current proposed opponent is Brock Lesnar. They can't get Fedor, too many issues to work out on short notice, and he has a US-only non compete with Affliction.

This will be a new contract, not a return to the old one. It will likely pay him more and give him more benefits, but it will lock him into the UFC for the long term. In exchange for signing it Zuffa would drop all breach of contract charges.

Its not just Rome either, Dave Meltzer has started confirming things on f4wonline.com

A source close to Randy Couture has confirmed today that Couture is in negotiations with UFC for a new three-fight deal which would end the nearly nine month legal battle between the two sides.

If the deal is closed, and the source said they are hoping to conclude negotiations and announce the match sometime within the next week, Couture would face Brock Lesnar on 11/15, most likely in Portland, Oregon.

Couture was said to be hoping that if everything went well, the next two fights could involve Fedor, Nogueira, and/or Chuck Liddell. However, all previous hangups involving Emelianenko and UFC remain.

In addition Ariel Helwani at MMARated is reporting that an announcement by the UFC may be made on Tuesday and the UFC is considering a Fedor fight after the Lesnar match-up.

Believe it or not, the UFC is also considering a proposal from M-1 Global to co-promote a Randy Couture vs. Fedor Emelianenko bout following the Lesnar fight in November. The third proposed fight would be a bout against either current interim heavyweight champion Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira or Chuck Liddell - depending on where both fighters are in their respective careers. However, given the nature of the fight game and the fighters involved, it's hard to predict what will happen that far in advance.