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(All events on Oahu, unless noted)
2006
Grappler's Quest Hawaii
(Submission Grappling)
(TBA)
2005
11/19/05
ROTR 9
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
11/14/05
3rd American National BJJ Championships
(Torrance Unified School District, Torrance, CA )
11/12/05
Full Contact
Showdown
Super
Brawl Qualifer
(MMA)
(Kahuna Bar & Grill, Kaneohe Marine Corps Base)
Aloha
State Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Championship
(BJJ/Grappling)
(Saint Louis School Gym)
11/5/05
ROTR: Proving Grounds
(MMA)
(Hilo Civic Center)
10/29-30/05
Brazilian Team Titles
(Equipes)
(Brazil)
10/28/05
Icon Sport 43
(formally Superbrawl)
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
10/15/05
Gracie Nationals
(BJJ/Grappling)
(Columbus, Ohio)
10/11/05
Tuesday Night Fights
(Kickboxing)
(Central Pacific Athletics, Hilo)
10/7/05
UFC 55: Fury
(PPV)
ROTR: Proving Grounds
(MMA)
(Lahaina Civic Center, Maui)
Fight Night At The “O”
(MMA)
(O-Lounge, Ala Moana Shopping Center)
9/24/05
NAGA 2005 Hawaiian State
Championships
(Submission Grappling & BJJ)
(CANCELLED,
POSSIBLY TO BE HELD IN FEBRUARY)
2005
American National Jiu-Jitsu Championship
(BJJ)
(Torrance, CA)
9/17/05
Rumble
On The Rock 8
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
So You Think You Tough
(MMA)
(Kona Gym, Kona)
|
|
September 2005 News
Part 1
Wednesday
night and Sunday classes (w/ a kids' class) now offered!
 
For the special Onzuka.com
price, click on one of these banners above! |
Quote
of the Day
"When you have only two pennies left in the world, buy a
loaf of bread with one,
and a lily with the other."
Chinese Proverb
|
WORLD
CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING TONIGHT
Saturday,
Sept. 10 at 9:45pm ET/6:45pm PT
The lighter weight classes dominate the night when ERIK MORALES
VS. ZAHIR RAHEEM and MANNY PACQUIAO VS. HECTOR VELAZQUEZ is presented
live from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, exclusively on HBO.
Source:
HBO
|
Fight
Night At The “O”
A
new amateur MMA event is starting up and will take place at the
O-Lounge, the night club connected to Ala Moana Shopping Center.
The inaugural event is tentatively scheduled for Friday, October
7, 2005. The promoter is hoping to run monthly events, depending
on the availability of fighters.
The
promoter is currently looking for fighters that have minimal
experience and are looking for a smaller event to gain experience
and their start in MMA against an evenly matched opponent. More
information will be out shortly.
Source:
Mike Miller
|
ST-PIERRE
VS. SHERK POSSIBILITY
Sources in Vegas and Iowa are saying that the matchup of Georges
St-Pierre vs. Sean Sherk may possibly take place on the UFC 55
card on October 7th.
Source:
Fight Sport
|
Pitbull
and Pega-Leve fight at UFC
Spike TV, the cable channel which airs The Ultimate Fighter has
been joining Ultimate Fighting Championship producers to organize
a MMA event. According to a note posted by our friends from MMAWeekly.com,
the first show of this new partnership would take place on October
3. The event does not have a name yet, but card has been released.
Two Brazilians rooted in US are confirmed: Thiago Pitbull and
Fabiano Pega-Leve, both from American Top Team.
COMPLETE
CARD (subject to change):
-
Evan Tanner vs. David Loiseau;
-
Stephan Bonnar vs. James Irvin;
-
Josh Koscheck vs. Drew Fickett;
-
Chris Leben vs. Edwin Dewees;
-
Thiago Pitbull vs. Spencer Fisher;
-
Brandon Vera vs. Fabiano Pega-Leve;
-
Brock Larson vs. John Fitch;
-
Pierre Guillet vs. TBA
Source:
Tatame
|
PISHNA'S
POUND 4 POUND: SEPTEMBER 2005
by Ken Pishna
Aah,
the mythical MMA Pound 4 Pound title. It’s long been the
topic of heated debate; especially since weight classes were
added. Does the title mean anything really? No, there is no pound
for pound weight class… well, expect for the one that BJ
Penn seems to be attempting to forge for himself. In reality,
this mythical ranking is just that, as well as a self-indulgent
bit of fodder for those of us that consider ourselves the MMA
hardcores.
With
that said, let the indulgence begin… here are my self-important
top Pound 4 Pound fighters in the world:
1) Fedor Emelianenko (22-1-0-1)
Fedor has been at the top of my Pound 4 Pound ranking for some
time now and quite deservedly so. It’s difficult to argue
against a 22-1-0-1 record; especially when that one loss was
nearly five years ago. Pride is often accused of feeding tomato
cans to build a fighter’s record, but that can’t be
farther from the truth with Fedor. Amongst his victories are
Ricardo Arona, Kevin Randleman, Gary Goodridge, Semmy Schilt,
Heath Herring, Mark Coleman, Antonio Nogueira (twice), and most
recently Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic. If that isn’t
a who’s who list, then there isn’t one.
It
has often been said that styles make fights, but in today’s
MMA, the best of the best adapt their game to counter the style
of their opponent and Fedor is the master. He stymied Nogueira’s
submissions with a brutal ground and pound attack in their first
meeting and when Nog went to work on his striking game, Fedor
outboxed him. Amazingly against Cro Cop, Fedor morphed once again.
This time providing the ultimate defense against the uber-striker
and then outstriking him later in the fight. The question now
is: man or machine? The answer is obviously machine.
2) Matt Hughes (36-4)
With a career that has been nothing short of legendary since
he entered the UFC, Matt Hughes has steadily earned his climb
as one of the top Pound 4 Pound fighters in the world. In his
40 bouts, he has only lost to Dennis Hallman (twice), Jose Pele
Landi-Jons, and BJ Penn. But I think what really solidifies his
ranking to me is the heart that he has shown, time and again.
His slam-knockout of Carlos Newton as he was being choked unconscious,
his arm bar of rising star Georges St. Pierre, and most amazingly
his comeback after being knocked silly in his last bout with
Frank Trigg; the latter of which I rank as one of the greatest
comebacks in MMA history, if not sports history.
His
strengths and weaknesses as a coach on The Ultimate Fighter can
be argued to world’s end for all I care, but I doubt anyone
can mount much of a worthy denial of his place in the P4P rankings
3) Chuck Liddell (17-3)
Yeah, the Iceman lost 2 out of 3 fights in 2003, but those two
opponents were Randy Couture and Quinton “Rampage”
Jackson, arguably at their most recent peaks in performance.
Consider this, in his last eight bouts - including those against
Couture and Jackson - Liddell is 6-2 with all six wins by knockout.
That is pretty impressive for anyone, but especially considering
the opposition that he has faced. Those wins included Babalu
Sobral, Alistair Overeem, Tito Ortiz, Vernon “Tiger”
White, and avenging losses to both Couture and most recently,
Jeremy Horn.
Liddell’s
last two victories were particularly impressive. Against Couture,
he showed how he could adapt his game to overcome the strengths
that Couture displayed in their first fight. In his revenge on
Horn, Liddell displayed a level of maturity we’ve not seen
in him before as he never rushed the pace of the fight and avoided
any opportunity for Horn to work his game plan.
4) Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira (25-3-1)
Nogueira just can’t seem to get over the Fedor hurdle, but
that is about his only stumbling block in recent years. Prior
to his run-ins with the current Pride Heavyweight Champion (Nog
was the first), the only blemish on Nog’s record was a split
decision loss to Dan Henderson in 2000, which he avenged by submission
in 2002. In fact, both of his losses to Fedor were also by decision.
Nogueira has never been finished in a fight.
Outside
of his troubles with Fedor, he has racked up victories over Sergei
Kharitonov, Heath Herring (twice), Cro Cop, Bob Sapp, Semmy Schilt,
and more. Nogueira is one of the slickest submission fighters
in the heavyweight division and has honed his striking game to
a fine edge as well. Outside of Fedor, it’s hard to argue
that he stands at the top of the heavyweights.
5) Mauricio “Shogun” Rua (9-2-1)
After his performance in this year’s Pride Grand Prix, how
can Shogun not be in the top five? Since his loss to Babalu in
the IFC Light Heavyweight tournament two years ago, he has rattled
off eight consecutive victories with seven of them by knockout.
Prior
to the Grand Prix, Shogun was maybe working in the direction
of the P4P list, but knocking off Quinton Jackson, Antonio Rogerio
Nogueira, Alistair Overeem, and Ricardo Arona inside of four
months propelled him into the rankings without denial.
KNOCKING
ON THE DOOR:
Rich Franklin, Yves Edwards, Takanori Gomi, and Wanderlei Silva.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Contusions
spoil Nova União Team
Two contusions bothered Nova União's plans during the
upcoming Shooto show, which takes place on September 23. Róbson
Moura would fight for the Bantamweight title against Japanese
Mamoru, but due to a knee injure he will be out of it. "Robinho
got his knee hurt and he doesn't know if he is going to do a
surgery. The big problem is second place will fight for the title
against Mamoru and Robinho will have to wait for a year to fight
for it again," Dedé Pederneiras (Nova União)
lamented.
Other
Nova União fighter out of the competition is Featherweight
Marcos Louro. Due to the champion contusion, Loro will have to
wait his recovery. Meanwhile, Nova União fighter gets
on Japanese Akitoshi Hokazono on September 23. "Loro should
be fighting for this belt a while ago. Now he still needs to
wait for his opponent to fight him," explains Dedé,
who travels to Japan with him.
Source:
Tatame
|
ENSON SPEAKS: PART 2
Part 2 of the 2-part interview
by Hody Jae Huh
Interviewer:
What is the meaning of Yamato Damashii to you?
Enson:
A lot of people come up to me and say that they don't understand
how I don't tap when I hear my arm popping and everything but...
that's a whole other episode to me. You might think... any person
or fighter that watches a fight might think that this guys has
him in an armlock and he feels that his tendon is going break,
or his arm is going to break. Any normal person... there will
be two options that come into their head.
Your
whole life is about options. You're driving a car and a person
jumps in front of you. You either hit the car or turn and hit
the wall. You know what I mean? There's always an option. When
you're getting your arm broke or when a fighter is in any critical
type of situation in a fight, there's also options. The only
reason why I move the way I do is because of the way I think.
It's not because of what I chose in my options. The way I think
will control the outcome of what my options will be.
For
example, a normal fighter or any person on the street who had
never fought before gets in an armlock. Two options will pop
into their head because they live their life as a normal person.
Fighters train hard, fighters experience fear... the point of
falling down because they cannot train, the point of sparring
when they think they might die. But a lot of fighters don't take
it in the right way, don't take it and absorb. They become a
regular person. So when they're in the fight and they're getting
their arm locked and it's starting to pop, they'll think like
a normal person. What a normal person's options probably will
be, your arm is going to break or you're going to tap. There's
two ways, there's only two things.
But
for me, I've been raised the Yamato Damashii way, where you give
everything you've got until the very end. The only time you know
you couldn't do it is because you ran out of money; you couldn't
do it because you're out of any more options. Basically, when
I'm getting in an armbar and my arm is folded backwards - that's
another story. But if I can't even hear my arm pop two options
will come to my mind -- your arms going to break or get the fuck
out of it. That's it.
Everyone
says Enson equals Yamato Damashii. Enson's so tough, so brave,
a warrior. You know what I mean? I become a warrior not because
of what I do in every situation as it comes, I become a warrior
because of the way I live my life. The reason why those two options
are different is because when I live my life, whether it's fighting
or it's my arm breaking or working whenever I'm in the gym, or
working on business somewhere else with another group - I'm giving
all I got until the very end. I'll try to negotiate a business
deal until I cannot do anymore. Until I absolutely cannot do
anymore, and then I'll quit. I don't think I'll quit, actually
I'll just let the situation die. I will not ever quit in a situation.
So the same thing, you know?
It
pops into my head, get out or get your arm broke. I don't want
my arm broke so I'm going to get out. As I'm getting out, I'm
never going to know when my arm breaks. I don't ever want to
wonder what would have happened if I didn't tap. If I could have
gotten out, or if my opponent would have given up and moved to
another hold. God only knows when my arm breaks. It's like when
you go to sleep when you get choked. Only God knows when you
go to sleep from a choke. Who am I to decide and play God and
decide when my arm is going to break or I go unconscious? All
these people come and pay millions of dollars to watch the fights.
I get paid 6 figures to fight. I'm there to entertain, give 110%,
and leave everything in the ring. That's all I do.
You're
going to pay that much money to see me fight. A promoter is going
to pay that much money, they're going to kiss my ass, they're
going to bring two cornermen, put us up in hotels, give us food
money, put us on TV, and put us in magazines. All these people.
People are going to come watch us and cry at some of our fights.
There are a lot of people who cry when I walk to the ring. I
mean, it’s that big of a thing. So you're going
to play God and decide when to tap? There's a referee, ring doctors,
and your cornermen. Trust them and concentrate on just putting
it on the line.
I've
never seen a fighter, except Renzo Gracie, where his arm broke
and then realized he was beat. 99.9% of the fighters will give
up before their arm breaks. 99% of the fighters will give up
before they go to sleep. Why? Because they're anticipating the
outcome, they're anticipating the fear. They're assuming that
their arm is going to break and instead of doing that, why don't
you assume that you're going to get out? The thinking is really
different. It all depends on what your mind is focusing on. I'm
focusing on finishing an opponent. If he hits me hard enough
to wobble me, I'm focusing enough I hit him right back with the
same kind of punch.
This
guy gets me in an armlock and I can hear the ligaments pop, on
hearing that I'm thinking -- That mother fucker! Before he breaks
it, I'm going to hit him right back with a punch, just as bad.
You know what I mean? It depends on what you're focusing on.
If I'm focusing on the penalties of failure when my arm is going
to break... I'm going to sleep and I don't know when I'm going
to wake up - I'm going to tap because I'm going to be scared.
But that's not what my fear is going to do. My fear is going
to make me stronger. My fear is going to make me want to get
out before he breaks my arm. My fear is going to give me adrenaline
to punch, even if I am so tired.
I
was brought up on a situation when I was a kid where this philosopher
came and talked to me. I always went to sports psychology for
racquetball. This guy told me this situation, which is an exact
situation where your arm is going to break - if you're going
to focus on the penalties of failure or the benefits to success.
Benefits of success meaning, getting my arm out and stomping
on his face or something. Penalties of failure, not tapping and
having my arm broke. Which one you're going to focus on, is what
you chose.
Say
if I were to tell you, a 2 X 4 about a width, a foot long...
say 20 yards long, a plank. And what I do with the plank is I
put it on the mat, this soft mat right here. The same kind of
mat you can find probably in most MMA and BJJ schools. And put
$1,000.00 on one end and tell you, you walk from one end to the
other without touching the mat, a foot long, that's pretty long,
you can keep the $1,000.00. What would you do? You're going to
go "shit", and get the $1,000.00 and walk back and
you're done. Now what if I were to do this, the same $1,000.00,
the same plank but I stretch it across to the other side of that
building and say if you don't fall off, you can have the $1,000.00.
What are you going to do? Your probably going to wobble or say
fuck it, you know what I mean? It's the same plank, the same
money, the same atmosphere, the same everything except what I'm
doing with the situation is... When you have the plank lying
on the mat, the only thing in your mind is if you fall off the
plank you're not going to get the $1,000.00, you're not going
to lose nothing; you're not going to lose your life. Your mind
starts focusing right there on when you get to the other side,
what I am going to do with that $1,000.00. But when I put you
in the different scenario and I control your fear, I control
how you’re going to think. All of the sudden,
BAM, instead of the rewards of success, what your focus is going
to be on is... "Shit, seven stories up, shit, if I fall
- I die". Right there, you're not even thinking of the $1,000.00.
You're not even thinking of one way of how you're going to spend
the $1,000.00 because you're so worried about falling.
I
believe every fighter has that, whether it begins at the beginning
of the fight or when he's getting arm locked. I believe every
fighter has that in them where they have fear, and at that point,
where you're going to become a Yamato Damashii fighter or you're
not, is what you do with the fear and how you look at it. And
what you focus your mind on. If you focus on the fear you’re
going to tap. No one is going to fight with all they have. But
I've been living my life by giving 100% until the very end and
focusing on what you're going to gain from it. And if you don't,
then that's something you learn.
People
think that I'm a crazy guy or a bad ass warrior. I threw down
with Igor because I don't fear anything. When I threw down with
Igor I feared it. I threw down with Igor because I knew that
was a situation that I'd never be able to be in again. That fear
of his... one punch can knock the shit out of me. You know what
I mean? Like that Brazilian guy he fought that he fell forward
and his eyes rolled back after one punch. So one punch can do
that to me. Can you imagine that fear, being in that range? I
know that I'm hitting Igor so if I can hit him, he can hit me.
And we're throwing down, one blow after another. Like walking
into a danger zone - walking into a fire and trying to save some
people in the fire and think straight. Yeah, so it's a misunderstanding
that Yamato Damashii is not a machoism, not about being tough,
it's not about no fear, no pain. It's about what you do with
that fear and pain. How you live your whole life that will affect
how you react in these situations.
Interviewer:
For people who don't seem to understand. How does that transition
into training? Cause sometimes you have to tap.
Enson:
OK, yeah. Training is a whole different thing. Training is not
a life or death situation. Training, your there to learn your
there to get better. I'll tap in training. I think tapping is
good in training. If there is any situation that is even near
an armbar or is bad enough, I'll tap. I won't risk injury in
training.
Like
I said, getting into the ring, fighting, it helps put your self
into a life and death situation -- without really being in a
life or death situation. But training isn't like that. Training
is a different thing. You know I always emphasis to my students,
all this discipline that I'm setting in you, all this thing I'm
talking about, you pushing yourself is not only about fighting
it's about your whole lifestyle. I don't want them to learn and
go out and train hard and be a pussy in their work. Don't wanna
go to work and they call in sick. You know what I mean? I'm trying
to emphasis that. Training is a part of life, I believe. Tapping
in training is very different than tapping in the ring.
It's
like having a negotiation with your mother or your father and
giving in on the negotiation, even if you think you're right,
because it's your family and you don't want to get into a fight
with your family. Same thing, you don't want to cause this funny
aggression against this fellow member/fellow teammate. You don't
wanna break your arm - same thing. Same thing that you don't
wanna have a family argument. But if you're in a misunderstanding
with another Yakuza group or you're in a misunderstanding with
a promotion - that's a whole different thing. It's like fighting
in a fight. Training is like having an argument with your family.
But having an argument in a business negotiation is a different
thing. That's like fighting, I think.
Interviewer:
There's something I'd like to clarify since you're very open
about your life and answering many questions on the Internet.
It's regarding Kid Yamamoto and his run in with the Yakauza.
From what I understand, Kid's father was an Olympic wrestler
and Kid was heading that direction, but had some kind of run
in with the Yakuza that prevented that. What is the full story
on that?
Enson:
What happened with that is... well... Kid, he's a kid and he
plays around and he has fun. He was shooting a BB gun and hit
a Yakuza in the eye. They didn't even know that they hit the
guy. They were playing around shooting his friends and I guess
it hit the guy, I don't know. That's what he tells me. I don't
know if he was aiming and shooting people and one of them was
Yakuza. What happened was, the guy took his plate number down
and he was in Yamanashi College, he was one of the top wrestlers
there.
The
guy followed him to where he lives and those guys actually went
in and tried to get him out of the room. He had to jump out of
three stories. I don't know if he had to climb down or if there
was a roof to jump down on to. Apparently from the balcony he
got out from three stories and ran to a restaurant. He called
me from the restaurant, telling me that there are Yakuza out
there and they want to get him. So if I get there, it's going
to be 3-4 hours since it's far away. I said, what you need to
do is go somewhere where there's a lot of people and wait there.
They're not going to touch you where there are a lot of people.
I
made some phone calls and those guys backed away because of some
people that I know. What happened was, Kid, because of the incident,
got kicked out of college. Then he got banned for one year from
the wrestling association - so he couldn't enter any wrestling.
The Olympics were the following year, so he would be out one
year. He had a whole year to get ready for the Olympics.
One
year out of wrestling, so all I did was mention to Kid, hey Kid,
come to my gym. Why don't you come train submissions? I said,
it's still the same movement in wrestling, you can still wrestle,
and you can use your wrestling for something else. He said, oh
OK. He came down and I worked on him for like a week and I told
him, hey you got a future in this. If you want to push it, come
move all your stuff here and don't worry about money, I'll take
care of everything. I got an apartment for him.
So...
he did that, he came down. What happened was, one year later
he fell in love with fighting and that's all he wanted to do.
So now what happens is, dad comes to me and tells me - make Kid
quit and make Kid wrestle. I said, you know what? As far as Olympic
level wrestling, if your heart's not in it, no one can tell you
to do it. If his heart's not in it, he's not going to train like
he should. So... I'm not going to make him do it, unless he wants
to.
Ok...
so his dad calls Kid and tells him that if he fights, he'll never
support him ever again. Dads are like that huh? So I told Kid,
do what you need to do but don't worry about money -- because
that's when I had a lot of money from PRIDE. I said, I'll support
you. Kid moved in with me for one whole year. He turned his dad
down and everything. I got him the contract and everything. Now
the dad is coming around and wants to take Kid over. He wants
the contract, he wants to manage Kid. That's the big problem
I have right now with Kid. I know you’ve probably
seen it on the Internet that I have a big problem with Kid. I'm
sure there's a question on everyone's mind, because I haven't
been in the corner for Kid for the last three fights. It's because
there's a problem. There's a possibility I might totally separate
myself from him, or I might start being in his corner again.
I'm not sure right now.
Interviewer:
What about your current legal problems?
Enson:
There's a lot of things going on in my life. I have a court case
coming. I opened up a racquetball company E-force Japan, that's
Egan's company. I did the Japan side. I hired this guy Sakai
to do it after I figured it was very sturdy and I didn't need
to be here anymore, I wanted to go home to Hawaii. Then before
I go home, I thought, get in the ring once, just to get that
experience to see what that control is like with the fear and
the anxiety of getting in the ring.
One
thing led to another and fighting got big. I made that guy President
and made him take over the whole company, and I put all the gyms
under that company, which meant my fight money goes through that.
T-shirt sales, everything goes through that.
Interviewer:
I just want to clarify, that when you said he's the president,
which means he's technically the owner here in Japan? (The reason
why I asked this, is because foreigners are not allowed to legally
own businesses here in Japan. More often than not, they will
have a Japanese national listed as the owner or President of
their company.)
Enson:
Owner is different, President is... I guess he has all the stocks
in the company, but I'm the owner and everybody knows that -
but the paperwork, he's the owner. I made him the owner but every
big decision would have to go through me. To make a long story
short. After I retired, I looked into the business. I fought
Mark Kerr, made money, and put a small percentage back into the
company, every time I fought.
I
retire and I go back into the books, start looking into the books.
How's the money doing? There was suppose to be a lot of money
on the side and were suppose to split it, me and him. We go there
and look into it. You know how much money we had in the fucking
company? $30,000.00. I said, whoa! Where's the money? He said,
ok but we got $120,000.00 of stock - t-shirts. I said, I know,
I don't care, that comes out to $200,000.00, I said, where's
the money? He starts crying. "I'm sorry, I fucked up? I'm
a bad businessman, I'm sorry. I don't know where the money went."
I'm
thinking whoa! No way. So that was a problem. So what I did with
him, he always lied to me, consecutive times. I always wanted
to work with him because I considered him like a brother. So...
I didn't want to get rid of him or smash him or anything, so
I kept working with him. But he kept lying to me. So finally
I got mad. I went in there and he had to give me his car, he
had a place he had bought and he had to get out of there and
I moved into there, and I collected some cash from him. As I
was doing that, he planned to sue me - a civil suit for extortion.
And he started recording conversations and stated getting things,
way ahead of time, I didn't even know some of this stuff. Then
he got a lawyer to have him seal all the paperwork, to make sure
he was the sole owner, make sure only his name is on the company,
contract, everything.
A
long story short, he did a very good job. I lost the civil case.
I can't believe it. So what's happening now is that he's creating
a criminal on extortion, which is a sentence of anywhere from
1-5 years in jail. Right now, there's an investigation going
on.
Interviewer:
Do you know when that will be completed?
Enson:
At the end of the year. They'll go to the courts and the court
system will either throw it out or let it become a court case.
If it becomes a court case, that's not too good.
Interviewer:
The fact that you're technically American, does that play a factor?
Enson:
I don't know, because right now I have a green card. I don't
know if I get convicted and I have to go in, if that will affect
my green card. I don't think it will. Basically this is home.
I'll go to jail for three years if I can come back and stay in
Japan.
My
basic theory is, I'm not wrong in this. I've done nothing wrong.
The money I took was rightfully my money. In fact, this guy still
owes me money. I'm not really afraid of the outcome. I'll try
my best to win the case. If I lose and I do have to go to jail,
I believe it's destiny. I believe everything is destiny. I believe
everything happens for a reason.
Interviewer:
So... regardless of the outcome, your gyms are still safe?
Enson:
Yeah. I'm safe as far as that goes. The criminal case is bad.
If I lose the criminal case, the worst case scenario is five
years. That's very long. I told you, I believe there's destiny.
I'm not wrong, I believe there's a chance that I might win this
case. Even if I don't win it and I do go to jail it's not for
that. What God is doing for me is that he's putting me in jail
for a reason. I can see two reasons that God would be protecting
me from. One, is a car accident. Maybe I was supposed to die
next year in a car accident but because I'm in jail, I cannot
drive, I cannot get into the car accident - he might save my
life. Two, another thing is, like I said, I'm surrounded by the
Underworld. I've got a lot of friends. Maybe I am getting a little
too deep. I do feel like it sometimes. I feel like I'm part of
the family, with all different families. Maybe if I got to prison
for 1-3 years it'll make it... it will cut all the ties... maybe
it won't cut but make it further.
I
believe that if I do lose a case that I'm right in and I do go
to jail. I believe that there is a reason for it. I'll go in
there with a positive attitude thinking "shit, he's protecting
me from a car accident - cool".
Interviewer:
Is it true that you don't drink?
Enson:
Yeah. I don't drink or smoke at all. Egan doesn't either. We
didn't drink or smoke because of racquetball. The thing you have
to understand is I started in high school when I was 16. Basically
you don't drink alcohol when you're young. And I had another
alternative because I wanted to become the best racquetball player
in the world.
We
woke up early, 6 A.M. to train, I had no time for a hang over.
Egan was like that. Egan was actually the one who made me like
that, because he was like that. I looked up to him as a mentor
and an older brother.
Drinking
isn't bad at all. It's just... like I said, we started at age
16 playing racquetball. We never drank because of that - racquetball.
I never wanted to drink or have a cigarette. My run that I did
every Tuesdays and Thursdays, I'd drop one minute on, I'd get
slower. You know what I mean? I was afraid of that. I was afraid
of partying and coming back to my training the next week and
trying to gain seconds every time I ran the route but I'm dropping
minutes, I'm worried about that. I'm worried about never ever
getting it back. That's why I didn't drink in the beginning.
I
came to Japan, started fighting, and it was ok to drink then,
but I never liked it. I never liked the taste. If I ever did
drink it would be like a shot of tequila or kamikaze. It tastes
like cough syrup. I mean beer tasted different - beer is beer.
Wine is alcohol. But shots are like cough syrup, Nyquil to me
actually. So we never drank. When it came to fight parties, we
sometimes had some Kompaiis (Japanese version of cheers or a
toast) and do some shots.
When
I drink one shot, I get red, all swollen, and my throat feels
like it’s getting half the size. I feel like
I’m breathing through a snorkel. My whole body
is beat red and when I push on it, it’s like
I got sunburn. It turns all white and then the red comes back.
I believe that I’m probably allergic. Basically
I don’t drink or smoke
Interviewer:
How about your folks? Do they smoke or drink?
Enson:
My dad doesn't smoke or drink either. My mom smokes and drinks.
So it's not a parent thing. I'm pretty happy that I don't smoke
or drink because when I see my friends get drunk, they get real
stupid. I'm sure it's probably fun at the time.
Interviewer:
Does that bother you?
Enson:
No, not at all. I have no problem with that. I understand that
they're drunk that they're having fun. It's cool. I understand
too that you do a lot of things that you probably wouldn't do
- it kinda distorts your personality. If you're a gentlemen to
girls you might be a dick to them. When I see those kinds of
things, I'm kinda happy that I don't drink.
But
of course, it does look fun sometimes when they're drinking.
I do have fun watching that too. I do have fun playing along
and playing jokes on the guy who's drunk, you know what I mean?
I have a lot of fun without being drunk. I just don't like the
taste. Then again, I feel I have like an allergic reaction to
it. Basically, I don't need it. I don't crave it.
Interviewer:
What do you do to relax? Have fun? To get away from all the stress
here.
Enson:
Game centers (video arcades), listen to music, and cruise.
Interviewer:
What kind of music do you listen to?
Enson:
Reggae, hip hop, Hawaiian contemporary.
Interviewer:
Game centers? Any games? What kind of games?
Enson:
Mental games - video poker, like Las Vegas. No money but it's
still something to do. Kills time.
Interviewer:
Do you have any Playstations hooked up in your house?
Enson:
I have everything – Playstation2, X-Box, and
Game Cube. I have a Game Cube downstairs in my room, I have it
everywhere. I love games. Honestly, I now kill my time with girls.
I love girls. I love chicks. I always ask myself this... ask
yourself this too. What would the world be like, if all the chicks
in the world disappeared and there were only guys? How much would
you actually try to be rich? How much would you actually want
to drive a nice car? How bad would you actually want to be in
shape, without ever having to want to enter in a fight? Why would
I want to be ripped? Why am I trying to stay in shape now? Why
is it for? Is it for... is it actually for me? Yeah, it is for
me, for self esteem. Why do I need self esteem?
Do
I give a fuck if I'm fat and have a belly sticking out when I'm
talking to a guy about job negotiations? No, I don't give a fuck.
Do I give a fuck about having a stomach when girls are saying,
do you have abs, do you have a six pack? Oh hell yeah I do! Do
I give a fuck about my body when I'm taking off my clothes with
a nice chick and she's gonna get more turned on by my body? Or
do I give a fuck if I'm going out with the boys to the Matsuri
they have tonight, if I'm fat? I don't give a fuck. You know
what I mean? I wonder, shit man, I wonder what would change in
my life if all the chicks disappeared? I think my life would
change a lot. I think to myself right there - shit, man, I love
chicks! Basically I love chicks. I don't know how this conversation
went from Yamato Damashii to chicks, but I guess Yamato Damashii
has a lot to do with chicks. Another thing I'm doing is pro wrestling
on August 14th - Riki Pro, and another one on September 11th.
Interviewer:
Where's the location of both of these places?
Enson:
Riki Pro, that one is going to be in Tokyo, Korakuen Hall. I'm
not sure where the September one will be. That's September 11th
man, terrorist day. I have no idea who I'm going to wrestle or
what the story is but they already asked me to open on the 14th.
It's good, it keeps me in shape. I'm going to run because of
that. I don't want to look too fat in the ring. The reason why
I don't want to look too fat in the ring, is not only for the
chicks, or the fans that look at me as a fighter, it's because
of PRIDE – the association. If I'm coming out
real fat, they're going to look at me like - there's no way,
he's not real serious.
Source:
IronLife.com
|
Quote
of the Day
"Laughter is an instant vacation."
Milton Berle, 1908-2002, American Comedian known as "Uncle
Miltie"
|
Boxing
Showdown at High Noon
Waimanalo 2005 Sunset On The Beach
Waimanalo Beach Park, Waimanalo
September 11, 2005
4:30PM – 5:30PM
Youngsters
showcase their skills in Boxing, Jump Rope Competition, Mitts
Competition, and a Mixed Martial Arts display.
East-Oahu
Waimanalo Boxing Club presents USA Amateurs from around the island
to showcase their talents in an official USA Amateur Boxing sanctioned
competition.
Source: Kuks
|
HERO's
Yamamoto and Sudo Emerge from Tournament
By Roxanne Modafferi
TOKYO, September 7 -- Inside the Ariake Coliseum, 9,950 people
took shelter from the wind and the rain of the typhoon to witness
the HEROS of K-1 battle it out for the right to continue on to
HERO'S Dynamite!, to be held on December 31st. Little did the
audience know the real typhoon was swirling inside, as some of
the most technical fighters in the world faced each other in
K-1's new MMA promotion.
The
spotlight was on the promotion's Middleweight tournament (70
kg/154.3 lb limit), brimming over with recognizable Japanese
names such as Caol Uno, Genki Sudo, and Norifumi "Kid"
Yamamoto, as well as Brazilian Royler Gracie added to the mix.
By night's end, six bouts yielded finalists Sudo and "Kid"
Yamamoto, who will battle it out on New Year's Eve. Five super
fights, including a "reserve match" between Koutetsu
Boku and Hermes Franca, rounded out the action.
In
Sudo's road to a final's slot, the Japanese showman armbarred
opponent Miyata in the second round of his first bout, then submitted
Hiroyuki Takaya with a triangle choke later that evening. For
Yamamoto, a feverish first round with Gracie led to an equally
active second, where Gracie threw a front jab and Kid stepped
into it, knocking the Brazilian out cold with a hard right hand
38 seconds in.
However,
the fight of the night went to Caol Uno and Hideo Tokoro. These
lithe fighters were so technical their fight could be used in
an instructional video, yet Uno controlled enough of the action
to garner a unanimous decision. Uno would later fall to "Kid"
Yamamoto in the semi-finals, sustaining a cut near his left eye
that would result in a referee's stoppage in the second round.
FULL
RESULTS:
Hero's:
2005 Middleweight Tournament Semifinal
Held September 7, 2005
Ariake Coliseum, Tokyo, Japan
Atsushi
Yamamoto def. Katsuya Toida - Unanimous decision
Koutetsu Boku def. Hermes Franca - Majority decision
Yoshihiro Nakao def. Fia Falamoe - Armbar 2:35 R1
Tournament
Quarter-Finals:
Genki Sudo def. Kazuyuki Miyata - Armbar 4:45 R2
Hiroyuki Takaya def. Remigijus Morkevicius - TKO (Ref stoppage
from strikes) 4:16 R2
Norifumi Yamamoto def. Royler Gracie - KO (Punch) 0:38 R2
Caol Uno def. Hideo Tokoro - Unanimous decision
Akira
Kikuchi def. Kiuma Kunioku - Decision
Sam Greco def. Shungo Oyama - KO (Knee) 2:37 R1
Tournament
Semi-Finals:
Genki Sudo def. Hiroyuki Takaya - Triangle choke 3:47 R2
Norifumi Yamamoto def. Caol Uno - TKO (Ref stoppage from cut)
4:04 R2
Source:
FCF
|
Gracie
Back in Action
By Takimoto
A
week before the HERO's Lightweight GP finals (9/7 Tokyo, Ariake
Colosseum), I visited Royler Gracier's academy (GRACIE HUMAITA)
to see and hear what the multi-time Jiu-Jitsu/ADCC champion was
doing in preparation for his challenge in the quarter-finals
against the ferocious Norifumi 'KID' Yamamoto. On this occasion,
I took a different perspective. I didn't ask too much to Royler,
since I decided to focus on how training took place and observer
how intelligent and experienced fighters act in determined situations.
Royler, although winning several BJJ and ADCC tounrments, has
never been in a MMA tournament in his career. Now this he is
set to do just that after defeating pro-boxer Koji Yoshida in
the first round of the HERO's event.
'I did everything in that fight, where I could reach him I did.
If I didn't submit him, it was because he has skill.'
Before we ask questions about KID Yamamoto, people wanted to
hear Royler's perspective on Alexandre 'Pequeno' Franca Nogueira's
loss to Hideo Tokoro and how a final would be between two Brazilians
in HERO's.
'Man, I think people have doubts about the KO that Pequeno suffered.
I think the interruption was premature, but they have their methods
to judge what is or isn't, and then... About a final involving
Pequeno and me, well... I can tell you that I never thought about
it. How can I think about this since I didn't beat my first opponent,
this is foolishness! Of course I'd like to fight Pequeno in the
finals, but I had to beat my first opponent and now I have to
face another, I just couldn't think about this - ever!'
Royler's preparation was different this time. We mentioned before
that Royler never has been involved in part of an MMA tournament
before. However, this savvy submission grappler knows how to
work through the brackets.
'This is a job that I've had for a long time. I feel well and
I think I can make a very good fight because this is what the
audience expects. This fight against Kid Yamamoto is long-awaited
since it was announced. I'm ready to fight richly and bring a
good fight for the fans.'
You could have two fights in one night. How do you manage your
preparation for it?
'Well, I told you before. First, KID... I'm not used to thinking
about a probable opponent since I didn't beat the first one yet
(KID). When I fought Jiu-Jitsu, I just thought about the opponent
who was in front of me and not a probable one. My strategy is
to beat KID in one aspect each time. If I beat him, I'll think
about the next fight.
Royler already faced tough guys in MMA such as his 'ValeTudo
debut' in a closed-doors fight versus Eugenio Tadeu, PRIDE 8
versus Kazushi Sakuraba, and the K-1 ROMANEX show versus UFC
veteran Genki Sudo. However, fans and insiders see KID as your
toughest challenge ever. What would you like to tell us?
'He's tough and I know it. However, if he has his tools, I have
the same. I know his main weapons and he knows mine as well.
I can't take his punches on my face and believe that I can absorb
all of them. KID knows that he can't hesitate with his arms,
neck, or any other points because I'll submit him. I'm a fighter
focused on making him tap out and he wants to put me on the mat
from strikes. The inverse can happen as well, it's the nature
of the sport.'
So, what can Brazilian fans expect from you?
'I'm
prepared and I will do my best. All of my efforts will overwhelm
KID and I will go onto the next round of this event. Fans from
overseas can pick KID as the favorite, but as I mentioned before,
everyone has a chance to beat each other and I'll try to impose
my ways on KID.'
Source:
Maxfighting
|
Bushido
Europe Today!
Bushido Europe
October 9th, 2005
Ahoy Europe, Rotterdam, Holland
Below
is the the line-up for the Bushido Europe card on October 9th.
The card is being promoted in association with DSE/PRIDE:
MMA
matchups:
Alexander Emilianenko vs. Rene Rooze
Mark Coleman vs. Gilbert Yvel
Kevin Randelman vs. Igor Vovchanchin
Valentijn Overeem vs. Anthony Hardonk
Gegard Mousasi vs. Stefan Klever
Ronny Rivano vs. Chico Martinez
Muay
Thai matchups:
Rodney Faverus vs. Gokan Saki
Jerrel Venetiaan vs. Ashwin Balrak
Imro Main vs. Wiliam Diender
Tyrone Spong vs. Vincent Vielvoye
Possible
fighters on the card:
Ernesto Hoost
Source:
Fight Sport
|
ENSON SPEAKS: PART 1
Part one of the 2-part interview
by Hody Jae Huh
Interviewer:
First, thanks for doing the interview. I know that you're a busy
guy. Is there anything new that you would like to share?
Enson:
I've been waiting for a fight. I've got offers from PRIDE, SHOOTO,
and a semi-round about offer from the UFC right now. For me,
in my regular days when I first started, I was fighting because
I enjoyed it and wanted to see how good I was. I already knew
how good I was, I don't enjoy it anymore. Now it's for the money.
If I were to come back, which I don't need to... I got 3 more
offers for new gyms that sponsors want to open up, but I can't
spread myself so thin. We already got one in Saitama, Tokyo,
Kyoto, and now a new one in Osaka. Got one in Guam and Saipan.
So... spreading myself thin now.
What's
happening now is, before when I was fighting 90% of my time was
training and 10% of my time was moving around and working, but
now it's become the opposite. 90% is my work and 10% is training.
I'm getting a little bit fatter but I'm not training as much
- I'm doing more weight lifting and running only. It becomes
a whole different thing now, when people ask me to fight. If
they ask me to fight, it has to be worth my time, where I'm going
to stop everything I do, ignore my gyms for 3 whole months and
train like I used to do, 90% and 10% just moving around. The
money has to be there, that's the only problem.
Interviewer:
I read that it has to be a good 6 figures. Referring to the amount
it would take to get you back into the ring.
Enson:
Yeah, it has to be 6 figures, definitely. I got one in February
from Pride for mid-5 figures, but I turned it down. The UFC is
apparently going 50/50; 50 to show and 50 to win. I don't like
to have pressure on myself to win; I might fall into trying to
win and playing a boring game. I'm not worried about getting
knocked out; I'm worried about losing a fight. I've never had
a contract win/lose. I've always negotiated my own contracts
on a one time payment. When I fought for PRIDE against Nogueria,
it was a one time payment. If the UFC comes up with $100,000.00,
I'll fight Tito, Randy, Ricco... anybody.
Interviewer:
Have they mentioned any names to you?
Enson:
Just Randy. I don't think they are giving me a chance. That's
why I'm thinking too, if they don't put out 6 figures - I ain't
gonna fight because they're not doing it for me, and they're
not doing any good for me fighting in the States, fighting someone
who has been at the top of his game. Of course he lost to Chuck
(Liddel), but one loss isn't going to change the whole career
of a person. I still think Randy is at the top of his game. So...
they're not doing it for me, they're doing it for them and Randy.
I'm like an instrument they want to use to fine tune Randy's
reputation back.
What
I think what they want to do is build Randy again. They want
to build someone with Randy, someone that they think 90% he would
beat. Me, being someone who hasn't been active and having lost
to the top fighters in my last 4 fights. I think is a good possibility
that I will probably lose the fight, is what they are thinking.
But,
they think I got something that is sellable. They can get any
Tom, Dick, or Harry out to fight Randy and he can beat them up.
But they don't have the credentials that I have - my only credentials
are -- that I beat Randy Couture. That's good enough credentials
to probably sell the fight. They probably don't want to say it
to me, but I'm a smart guy, I know what's going on. I'm a very
good "tomato can" for Randy. I beat him before, but
that was way back in my prime in '98. That's what I believe it
is. So... if they want me to sacrifice myself, which is what
they think I'm going to do, but I'm going out to beat him. They
got to pay the price. I'm doing them a favor by fighting for
them. I look at it that way. It's not like I'm an upcoming fighter
that wants to get into the UFC by all means. It isn't like that.
If that was the case, $50,000.00 is a damn good price for me.
I
don't enjoy it anymore, there's too much stress involved. Referring
to fighting, I don't enjoy the fact that I'll be walking into
the ring accepting that I might die there today. My whole life
isn't involved around the fighting anymore. When it was, it was
alright for that.
In
your life you have stepping stones. One is like elementary school,
another is high school, and another is like college or going
through some relationship with some girls or something. Another
one is marriage. I think fighting in my life - to become the
ultimate man, where I can die as a man. I already cleared the
fighting stage. There's nothing more that I can learn about myself
as a man that I already did with fighting. I think the Igor and
Frank Shamrock fights actually taught me a lot of myself.
Interviewer:
What part of that did it teach you?
Enson:
Adjusting to the fear. I always thought that in the ring, the
reason why I never win is because I fall off the meaning of why
I am fighting. Which is... to every other fan and fighter it
is falling off, but to me it isn't falling off. The reason why
I fight, the reason why I always have the energy and the excitement
to get in the ring is because as a fighter, I'm lucky. I can
put myself in a life and death situation and test my heart, my
ability to think and adjust and move on thinking straight, every
time I get in the ring.
That's
why throwing blow-for-blow with Igor was so intriguing to me.
That it was such a scary situation, that I wanted to be able
to think, be able to throw punches, be able to know when to take
him down, be able to know when to do something, in the flurry
of the punches. He took me down, so I wasn't able to take him
down but I feel that fighters are lucky. We're lucky because
we got the opportunity to test it all the time.
Some
other salary man (business man or white collar worker) won't
be able to test his... what kind of... how he would be able to
adjust under fear, under pressure like we do in the ring - until
it's too late. The only time a salary man will get under that
kind of pressure or fear is when it's too late.
When
I get into the ring, the reason why I even started fighting wasn't
because I wanted to be the best fighter in the world or to make
money. It's because when I was a racquetball player, and when
I went into the world racquetball tour, I had so many butterflies
that I had a hard time adjusting myself. I always thought these
aren't my feet. Why can't I move like I move in practice, every
single day I practice? Slowly as I entered tournaments I could
control that nervousness and fear. The fear was always there
when I got into the court but I could control it.
I
was friends with Rickson Gracie, at the time I was training Jiu-Jitsu
as a hobby. When I saw his fight in Japan, when I was here, when
I was a racquetball player, I had some major butterflies. More
butterflies than I would be if I were in a racquetball court
playing a racquetball world tournament. I had more butterflies
watching my friend fight in the ring. So then right there, it
clicked in my head. Shit... I wonder how it would feel for me
to be in the ring?
The
reason why I believe that I didn't win a lot of fights that I
should have won, or could have won, is because my whole thing
is when you are fighting to win; you move out or fall out of
the fire. You get away from the fire, put out the fire the way
you can. When I was fighting, I had a magnet pulling me to the
fire. I see Nogueria and I wanna see what his ground is like.
I see Igor and I wanna see the end of his punches, even I'm going
to get hit, even if I do get knocked out. I fought 19 times and
lost 8. But in my heart I didn't lose a fight. In my fight career,
I'm 11-8. But in my fight to become a stronger man inside --
I'm undefeated. There was never a time in the fight when I lost
control of my fear. There was never a time in the fight when
I got scared and wanted to get out of the ring and give up. Basically
my fighting is done - I think. In the ring, I've learned all
I can. As a man, to get back into the ring would be a step back
for me. So what I'm doing now is just for extra cash.
What
I'm doing with the pro wrestling now is; 1) Getting side cash.
2) Just being active in any type of event which helps T-shirt
sales. 3) Keep my name sold. I'm in some magazines because of
pro wrestling. I'll be on TV because of pro wrestling. It keeps
my fame alive and it keeps me from becoming a blimp. So that's
what I am doing right now.
The
other big thing that I'm doing right now. I haven't been getting
any good offers to fight, so by the end of this year, if I don't
get any really good offers I'm thinking of putting the gloves
in the closet and start more on the promotion/management side.
Cause I got links with K-1, PRIDE, DEEP, Pancrase, SHOOTO, Shinichi.
Pretty much every pro wrestling association.
I've
been getting a lot of people telling me - why don't you promote?
As far as an event, of course if I got a sponsor but more to
promote fighters. I'm the one who developed Kid (Norifumi Yamamoto).
I started Kid, I taught him, and I also got him the contract
with K-1. I also, for his first 3 fights, I picked and chose
his opponents and made rules for him. Kid was the only guy that
had rules made for him. IE... alternating rounds of MMA and K-1
rules. I think for a fighter to become a star in the beginning
is just that, match making and picking the fights. Now it's up
to him. I'm thinking of moving more into that area - promoting
fighters.
Interviewer:
You're looking at promoting, just your own fighters?
Enson:
Oh no, fighters - fighters who want to be in Japan. Fighters
in Japan who want to be in the UFC, SuperBrawl, or Guam fight.
I got a lot of connections there. I know Dana White personally.
I'm sure I can bring a fighter to Dana White and bring him a
video, and he would actually look at it and try to get him in
the UFC. Basically I speak Japanese and English. I'm very respected
in the promotion side, as far as any big promotion. UFC, I think
Im respected enough in most fighting I've been getting people
telling me that all over.
I
also got Sangtiennoi in Thailand. From next year we're going
to start a Purebred Thailand. We're going to build a new gym
and house just for foreigners - air conditioning, mosquito nets,
showers, and etc. I could probably find 3-4 guys right now that
could probably win the K-1 MAX next week in Thailand. Sangtiennoi
has all the connections, I can't bring them all myself but Sangtiennoi
can. We can also get Japanese fighters fighting in Thailand,
in events, because he also promotes events in Thailand. Basically
that's what I wanna move to. I want to use everything that I
have now, all my respect, to promote fighters and get them good
contracts.
Phil
Baroni is fighting, he fights under Coleman. I'm the one that
actually brought him to Japan. I'm actually the one that told
him that he should fight in PRIDE, or Japan, for that matter.
Coleman helped him out, Coleman has an "in" with PRIDE
because he's one of the PRIDE fighters now - that's a good thing.
But I don't think Phil is getting the fight money I can get him
and/or the VIP service that I could probably get. He (Baroni)
came to train with me, he's a good friend. He wants me to come
to PRIDE (to see him fight), but... I don't know if I can make
it, I have to go to Tokyo tonight.
I
want to move into management. Maybe this interview can help,
if people see this interview and can see that I'm starting to
do that now. Any fighters that want to get into the Japan circuit,
male or female; I have a lot of connections -- the more famous
the name, the easier. Basically I will be managing them. If they
want me to be in their corner, I'll be in their corner. They
probably need me to be there for translation. I'm also looking
for any PRIDE fighters. I'm good friends with a lot of PRIDE
fighters... all of them in fact. Last time we partied with Ninja,
I see Vanderlai a lot in Tokyo, Coleman and Randleman, Phil Baroni,
they're all good friends. Basically every fighter in the whole
circuit, I know. I believe at lot of them (fighters) get fucked
by the promotions, because they don't understand how it's run.
Interviewer:
Tell us about the incident with Guy Mezger back in PRIDE 13.
Enson:
PRIDE tried to play a game with Guy Mezger after he beat my brother.
I was already , but not if PRIDE is going to make him call me
out. And the way he was going to do it was really bad. I didn't
know about it. A lot of people on the Internet want to know this
story. Guy comes over to me to shake my hand. I go to shake his
hand after he beats Egan - "good fight." I went to
go check on Egan in the ring. Guy comes over to me and says "hey,
remember it's not personal." Beating my brother, why would
that be personal? It's part of fighting - I'm a professional.
I
look at him and say "What are you talking about? Good fight
man." Then Guy says "No, no, no, no, not the fight."
This
is in the ring, if you look at the video you can probably see
us talking:
Guy:
"No, I gotta call you out."
Enson:
"What? What do you mean you have to call me out?"
Guy:
"I gotta challenge you; I agreed to challenge you if I beat
Egan..."
Enson:
"You know I retired, right?"
Guy:
"I know, but it not my style, but shit... I have to do it."
Then
I grabbed his hand and I starting forcing him into the corner.
I pinned him in the corner:
Enson:
"You know what? If you don't want to do it, don't fucking
do it! What the fuck? Don't do anything you don't want to do...
dont do it."
Guy:
"It's in my contract"
Enson:
"That's fucked up. OK, do what you have to do."
He
toned it down though. He was supposed to call me out in a bad
way. He thought I knew about it. PRIDE told him that I knew about
it. They were going to play that game. Eventually he (Guy) comes
into our locker room. Once again he says "You know what
guys, I respect you guys. I like you guys as fighters. I would
never do anything, this is not my style, but this is an agreement
I made with PRIDE." Then he gave me a name of who he talked
to (the name of the PRIDE rep that told Guy to call him out).
Then I said "Cool. I got nothing with you. Thanks man, good
fight." Boom, finished, everything is gone. Guy is a class
act and I respected him as a great fighter, but now I also respect
him as a person.
Then
I started calling the PRIDE guys in. They don't... they stated
playing games again, like they probably do with all the fighters.
They said "He's busy, he's busy". I said "yeah
I know he's busy, but what you guys have to understand is, that
this problem is more important right now than anything."
Then they made me wait for a half hour. In short, I was able
to talk to the people that he needed to talk to directly, and
force them to admit what they did. As a peace offering, they
gave me monetary compensation as an apology, which is common
practice here in Japan.
If
you come with me, I'll make time to meet you. I'll make time
to answer your calls. I'll make time to answer questions for
fans but once you fuck me, I'll fuck you right back. You're not
going to fuck me and get away with it. That's the thing, that's
the problem - promotions are about fucking fighters. The better
you can fuck a fighter, the cheaper you can get him, the more
you can make. Maybe fucking is too strong of a word, so maybe
take advanatge is a more appropriate word. That's what it's all
about. For me, which is good, I think when people come with me
as management - they'll never get fucked or taken advantage of.
Cause the associations wouldn't want to fuck with me.
Interviewer:
What about the stories about you and the yakuza?
Enson:
You hear a lot of stories. But every story there's a reason behind
it. I just gotta be smarter about how I do it. I hear a lot of
rumors like... "Is Enson yakuza?" To tell you the truth,
I'm not yakuza. I'm free to talk about whatever I want. I'm not
yakuza. Actually the definition of yakuza, what is yakuza? Nobody
knows. Yakuza is Borokudan, which is an assault group which beats
up people and causes trouble. I don't cause trouble; I don't
beat up people unless they deserve it. Are tattoos meaning yakuza?
If it is, I got tattoos all over my body.
Interviewer:
What is the meaning of your tattoos?
Enson:
Every tattoo on my body, there's a movement in my life, or a
meaning in my life, that I want to remember for the rest of my
life, and put it on my body. You know the ones on the palms of
my hands, because I was going to go to war. (Enson lost a friend
in one of the Twin Towers on 9/11 and was planning to enlist
in the military but was unable to, due to his tattoos and age.
In a previous audio interview that he did with the now "retired"
PrideCast, he stated that a few moments before he dies, you will
see both of his fists clenched. This is due to the fact that
Pride and Family are written on his palms. The reason he is closing
his fists is, as a symbolic gesture, he would hug his Family
and protect his Pride.)
Then
ones on my neck, because I've been running into the past 1 to
1 and a half years -- I've been going into a lot of situations
where I thought people were family or really helped them out
in the beginning, I feel that I'm losing a lot of loyalty. I
think some of these people are too (concerned about) money, and
get blind with the money. They see fame or they become a superstar
or forget about the people who actually set their base.
I
believe that any person, any fighter, they have a base. You know
how you build a house? You have to settle the ground, level the
ground, and pack it in. Make sure it doesn't shift anymore than
it will. You set a base. Once you get a good base, it's just
a matter of how high you can build the building. If you don't
set a good base, it doesn't matter how tall or how high the building
is, it's gonna fall. I believe that the more famous you get...
the more you have to concentrate on how the base is strong.
I
felt that some of the people in the past year and a half have
forgotten the base. The buildings are getting taller and taller
and instead of making sure that the base is strong, they seem
to be forgetting their base and losing their base. In other words,
if you're talking about a fighter, talking about someone who's
been helped out... You know someone who's become a big super
star. Someone who helped him when he had no money, helped him
when he had no where to train, no where to go. The reason why
I put these tattoos on in my life... there were 3 or 4 people
in my life that were doing that. I felt, right where you put
it, is right where you would cut someone's neck.
I
felt that these two words, for my group, for my family, for me
- If I ever want to break any of these 2, you're going to have
to cut my neck, right there, where it is. One of them is called
Toitsu (Unity). To stand as a unit. Any type of group, you need
to stay strong. Unity equals, for example, are like the fingers
on my hand. When they are separated, they are weak, one finger
can be broken. But once they're clinched into a fist, they're
a union and they stay in unity - I believe a fist is a lot more
dangerous than an open palm.
The
other tattoo is called Chugi (Loyalty). I believe a family, group,
or even a gym affiliation, like Purebred, if you can keep those
two things your group will never be beaten.
They're
right on the neck so if I were to ever break those; I would just
cut right across it. The words right there are like my love to
my unity and if I were to ever break that it's like cutting my
neck right there. I would do it if I ever hurt someone like that
- love or unity with my family. Basically, all my tattoos are
like that.
Interviewer:
What about the stories about your business dealings with the
yakuza?
Enson:
Is Yakuza meaning that you do business and have friendship with
Yakuza? Yeah, I do. So I don't know - am I Yakuza? Also, another
thing about Yakuza, you have to be a Japanese citizen. I'm not
a Japanese citizen. I'm a fighter, I'm a MMA fighter. So... I'm
not a Yakuza. I do have a lot of friends that are Yakuza, but
I do not really associate with ones that deal with drugs, ones
that fuck people over, or ones that work with child pornography.
I do not deal with any of those guys. But I do deal with a lot
of Yakuzas.
When
people see this interview, what they have to understand, which
you probably already know is -- basically anything from 40% or
up for size of a business, you're in with Yakuza because you
have to, in Japan. In America I don't know if you really need
to be in with them unless you're dealing directly with like a
casino or a gambling operation.
In
Japan it's different. 1) As a fighter, it attracts the machoism
the egotistic people, which is a lot of gangsters and mafia.
Another point which is appealing to them, for them to get stuck
on me, is the Yamatodamashi thing - about not tapping in a fight
and not being afraid of anything. That's how they see it.
Interviewer:
You brought up your gyms. Do you have any yakuzas training there?
Enson:
Yeah, my gyms are probably the only gyms in Japan with Yakuza
training. Most gyms, including weight training gyms and swimming
pools, do not allow members with tattoos to join. In rare cases
that they make an exception, you would have to cover up your
visable tattoo(s). For example, you have a tattoo that says "mom"
in a big heart on your lower bicep, that is visable, even with
a short sleeve T-shirt. You would either be denied entry to most
gyms in Japan or they would ask you to wear a long sleeve shirt
or a bandage/sports tape to cover your tattoo. Basically a rule
created to avoid possible problems with Yakuza's joing a local
gym.
Interviewer:
As far as you've noticed, there's never been a problem with a
student and Yakuza training?
Enson:
No, not at all.
Interviewer:
If it's a problem, it's more of a personality conflict rather
than a Yakuza versus student conflict?
Enson:
Yeah. Here's the thing. There's a reason why people don't want
Yakuzas in the gym, which is understandable. If you're sparring
and you accidentally pop a guy's arm and it's a Yakuza, you might
have a problem with the guy - you know what I mean? But if it's
a regular Joe Blow, then its like "Fuck, I don't wanna spar
with that guy anymore, he's dangerous." But with Yakuza
they have pride and they'll be all like pissed off, and Yakuza
is all about getting reimbursement about money.
The
reason that they can come to my gym is, I guess it's because
of the way I fought and the way I live my life. I guess I get
a lot of respect from the underworld. So these guys will come
into my gym, being honored to come into my gym. And if they have
any problems with anything, they know that they have to go through
me. So if they have a problem with a student, they know it's
about me. So they don't go to the student and bother the student,
they have to do it to me, which they they'll never do.
It's
a good thing I think. Kid and Masato have all the girls. When
I go to the arenas and I hear Kid's name I hear all girls. I
hear my name and I hear "Yamato Damashii", you know
what I mean? It's a little different. When I'm at the fights
I'm like... aw man, I wish I had chicks like Kid, I think to
myself. But in the long run when I do business, or when we have
problems, I simply contact some people and the problem is resolved
peacefully.
When
I encounter those kinds of things, I realize "Hey man, what
would chicks do for me there, man?" I believe that in the
long run, the connections that I have being a Yamato Damashii
fighter, rather than a Kakkoii fighter (cute/cool/popular) are
way bigger.
In
short term, man... Masato and Kid have to be in heaven right
now. Long term - no. Chicks aren't going to do shit for you in
the future. They'll just entertain you while you are in the top
and as soon as your done and not in the top anymore... You know
where they're going to be? To the next new Kakkoii face. The
connections that I'm getting in the underworld are pretty much
forever.
But
just to answer all the questions about being a Yakuza and the
Yakuza thing. For me, I don't think being a Yakuza, or being
considered in that status, or actually become a Yakuza, isn't
anything, because I think I'm past that point. If I wanted to
go into the Yamaguchi gumi or any family, they'd probably accept
me with open arms.
The
reason why I think I'm above them (Yakuza) is because I have
a family called the Yamato Damashii Ichizoku. Ichizoku, which
means family. You have the Yamaguchi gumi. Gumi means group,
a group of people. You have the Kobayashi kai, kai also means
group. The reason why I call my group, Yamato Damashii Ichizoku
is because we're a family; we'll do whatever we need to do, to
help each other out.
The
reason why I say I'm above them, is because within my Yamato
Damashii Family, we do have people from Inagawa kai, people who
are willing to risk their life for us, they are down as family.
I have people from Yamaguchi gumi, I have people from the Sumiyoshi,
from the Dragon - Chinese mafia. I have people from the Israelian
group, people from the Iranian mafia. Pretty much, I have the
top people in a lot of the groups - under my Yamato Damashii
Ichizoku.
So
when people are asking me, "Are you Yakuza?" The reason
I refer to them and answer "No", is because I'm not
a Yakuza where I bully people, try to take advantage of the weak,
deal drugs, or make fast cash - doing anything I can. But, if
you want to talk about family, about having a group of people
that will do anything for you. A group of people, who are willing
to stand by you through a war, go on the front line with you
and die with you. I do have a family, bigger than that, stronger
than any family there is.
I
do feel like I'm above them because if I have a problem with
the Yamaguchi gumi, I have people from the Yamaguchi gumi that
can help us out. If I have a problem with Sumiyoshi, they can
help us out. If I have a student that gets into a fight with
a Chinese guy who's in the Chinese mafia, I can settle that with
one phone call. But it's not vice versa. If they have a problem
with us, they have to come to me. I have to be satisfied with
the outcome of what they want to do for us. If they have a problem
with me, they have to come settle it with me.
Source:
IronLife.com
|
Quote
of the Day
"Mystery creates wonder and wonder is the basis of man's
desire to understand."
Neil Armstrong, American Astronaut and Test Pilot
|
Icon
Sport 43 Rumors
Friday,
October 28, 2005
Blaisdell Arena
Word on the street is that along with the HUGE Niko Vitale vs
Jason "Mayhem" Miller main event, the promoters are
in the process of signing Ed Newalu/Mark Oshiro II. For those
at the last Icon Sport (Formally Super Brawl) event, this was
a war that rivaled any fight in any MMA promotion in the world.
Some
other matches that are trying to be signed are KJ Noons who had
the brilliant knockout victory over Bryson Kamaka and Nick Ring
who both are Pride audition winners. 808 Fight Factory's Harris
"the Hitman" Sarmiento is being talked about for Noons
and none other than Ron "the Machine Gun" Jhun is being
suggested for Ring. Sarmiento has recently come back from an
incredible showing at the K-1 tryouts and should test Noons wicked
stand up game.
|
Elvis
Sinosic, Ready for UFC 55
Q:How long have you been fighting?
A:
I've been competing in MMA since 1997, which makes it 8 years
now. Boy, that is a long time isn't it.
Q:If
you could tell people to watch one fight of yours, which one
would it be?
A:
That's tough, there's a few out there I like. Of course my debut
in the UFC as everything went to plan and I won by submission
against a great opponant in Jeremy Horn. I liked my fight with
Frank Shamrock because it was backwards and forwards and even
though I lost, it was a tough fight. Also my recent fight with
Traven is worth seeing because it shows how I've diversified
my game using sprawl and brawl to win by KO. I also like my recent
fight with Matsui as it was really exciting with submission attempts
and knockdowns only to go to decision. I guess my answer is watch
them all and decide for yourself!
Q:How
long has it been since you have been in the UFC?
A:
I believe I last fought in the UFC in 2002 against Babalu, that
was 3 years ago. Interestingly enough we're both back in the
UFC now. I think we may even be fighting on the same card in
our return.
Q:Now
that it is official and UFC 55 is in view, can you confirm that
you are fighting Alessio Sakara?
A:
I was too be fighting Alessio Sakara. But due to a recent injury
Ian Freeman has had to withdraw from his match and I have been
moved up to face Forrest Griffen.
Q:What
do you know about your opponent at UFC 55? Is there something
you feel that gives you the advantage in this fight?
A:
Forrest is a very tough guy. He's got solid standup and a strong
ground game. I think that this will be a real barn burner as
I think both of us can go hard in any area so it will be off
the dial.
Q:What
can we expect from "The King" at UFC 55? Will this
end by knockout or tapout?
A:
For me it doesn't matter. I can win a fight either way and I'm
happy to do either. Trust me, I plan to end the match one way
or the other and I'm sure Forrest has the same thing on his mind!
Q:Do
you prefer to end your fights by knockout or submission?
A:
It doesn't matter. All I know is that I'd rather win decisively,
I don't feel as strongly about winning by decision.
Q:Do
you have any fighters that you might call your favorites or do
you have any you particularly like to watch?
A:
I love all MMA. As a fighter I respect all the guys who get out
there and put it on the line. I like watching fights period.
Q:Everyone
knows you are a great fighter. Can you tell our readers something
about you that they might not know?
A:
Hmmmm... always an interesting question. Ok, I'm a volunteer
wildlife carer. I rescue native animals and recuperate them so
they can again be released into the wild. It's kind of my way
of giving back to nature.
Q:Do
you see more fights for in the UFC should you win at UFC 55 or
was this a one time deal?
A:
Absolutely. I have the standard UFC 3 fight contract. I know
if I put in a great performance that they'll want me back. I
mean, who wouldn't?
Q:Last
question, Elvis and thank you for your time. Do you have any
thing you would tell new MMA fighters that might help them out?
A:
Train hard and believe in yourself. Then go back and train even
harder. Training has to be harder than the fight. As they say
"The more you sweat, the less you bleed".
Thank
you for the opportunity to have my say. I'd also like to thank
my training partner Anthony Perosh and all my students at SPMA
(www.sinosicperosh.com.au) for their support. Thanks to my sponsors
Musashi (www.musashi.com.au), Fairtex www.fairtexbkk.com), Atama
(www.atama-kimonos.com), OxyShot www.sportsoxyshot.com.au) and
Interactive Health and Fitness. Without whom I wouldn't be where
I am today.
Source: Maxfighting |
Ultimate
Fighter Journal: Week Two
By Jeremy Wall
The second week of The Ultimate Fighter from last week, was better
than the debut episode. There was less of Dana White. The problem
with Dana isn't the amount of TV time he gets, which I think
is fine, but how he is presented on TV in contrast to the fighters.
There wasn't any problems in this episode with Dana putting himself
over at the fighters' expense.
After
recapping the first week's episode, the replacement heavyweight
for the injured Kerry Schall was introduced. It turned out to
be 6'8" Dan Christison, who has a 7-3 record and trains
with Jackson's Submission Fighting with Diego Sanchez in New
Mexico. Christison mentioned to Rashad Evans that he's walking
around at about 277 pounds, so he has 12 pounds to drop before
he competes at some point on the show. Beyond just walking in
the house and introducing himself to a couple of people, Christison
was barely shown on the episode.
Meanwhile,
Jorge Gurgel revealed that he suffered a knee injury a few weeks
before the show started taping. He was hurt while practicing
on the show, and had to be taken to a doctor to have fluid drained
from his knee. Gurgel made it clear that he wasn't going to go
home because of an injury. Gurgel is a talented fighter and has
starpower, but with his injured knee and the fact that he's undersized
for the welterweight division, it may end up being difficult
for him to survive once he has to step into the octagon.
After
the first commercial break Hughes and Franklin picked their teams.
Franklin selected Keith Jardine first, whereas Matt picked Joe
Stevenson. From there, Franklin choose Jorge Gurgel, Seth Petruzelli,
Marcus Davis, Rashad Evans, Anthony Torres, Melvin Guillard,
and Brad Imes. Matt picked Mike Whitehead, Josh Burkman, Dan
Christison, Sam Morgan, Tom Murphy, Rob MacDonald, Luke Cummo.
Imes and Cummo were the last two selected, with Cummo going at
the very end.
Cummo
is being positioned on the show as a serious babyface underdog,
a point which was hammered home when he helped Team Hughes win
the challenge. The challenge, which was both designed and introduced
by Randy Couture as Couture made a surprise guest appearance
on the show, was a little goofier than I had anticipated. It
was essentially capture-the-flag, but with a giant dummy that
each team would have to drag to their own end while crawling.
Luke ended up holding down two guys, enabling Team Hughes to
win the competition and the rights to select who would fight
first.
They
picked Josh Burkman against Melvin Guillard. It was made to look
like this was a mistake, as if Melvin was too strong a fighter
and that Burkman would get banged up taking him on this early
in the competition.
It
was a close fight, but Melvin faded as it wore on. Melvin won
the first round, nearly submitting Burkman about a minute in
with a guillotine choke. Burkman scored a slam around the halfway
mark, but Melvin, who kept backing off and letting Burkman to
his feet, had Burkman in another guillotine when the round ended.
Second
round, Burkman ended up on top early and controlled the top position
throughout the round. Round two was much slower than the first
round, and it was obvious Melvin was burning out as Burkman won
the round.
Third
round, Melvin came out striking, looking for the knockout because
he was behind on the cards. He nailed Burkman with a kick to
the face at point but didn't follow up on it. Melvin wasn't able
to score much on his feet otherwise, and he also wasn't able
to avoid the takedown and ended up on the mat again. Burkman
won the final round, along with the decision and Melvin was sent
packing.
It
was revealed by Rich Franklin after the fight that Melvin had
suffered a broken hand in the second round when he accidentally
punched Burkman's elbow. However, Melvin didn't let his corner
know, so he ended up continuing with the same gameplan, which
was inevitably hampered by his injury.
Source: Maxfighting |
Sean
Sherk Talks about the UFC and More
Back in July maXfighting talked to Sean Sherk and cleared the
air that he was, indeed, still training and looking to get back
into MMA; he was simply waiting for a worthwhile fight deal.
Now Sherk will be back in action in just a few weeks, and he
has also signed on with top MMA talent agent Monte Cox. MaXfighting
once again spoke with one of the most accomplished fighters in
the sport to discuss his recent flurry of announcements and more.
Despite
a record of 28-1, wins over top fighters (Jutaro Nakao, Benji
Radach, Gerald Strebendt, Karo Parisyan), a 3-1 record in the
UFC and a victory in his lone Pride Bushido appearance, for some
reason the top promotions had not come calling since early 2004.
For a fighter whose only loss was a five round decision to UFC
Champion Matt Hughes, it is understandable that Sherk became
frustrated with the sport he loved. “It was definitely frustrating.
That was why I pretty much decided to step away from fighting
for a while 9 months ago. I was sick of being overlooked; I had
paid my dues and didn’t want to keep fighting in the small
shows.”
In
taking time off, Sherk tried sticking with a regular full time
job, but the MMA bug soon pulled him back in. “I was installing
hardwood floors,” he said. Sean continued, “I worked
with my father-in-law. It was anywhere from 40-60 hours a week.
I realized I’m not a 9-5 guy.”
Not
wanting to continue being on the outside looking in, Sherk signed
on with MMA mega-agent Monte Cox, whose stable of fighters includes
Hughes, Rich Franklin, Tim Sylvia, Jeremy Horn and a slew of
others. “That was definitely the main reason I called him.
He knows pretty much every promoter in the world,” he said.
As
previously reported, Sherk will be fighting on an upcoming fight
card called Pride and Glory, which will professional boxing (including
Sherk taking on Joel Blanton) as well as professional MMA. The
feature bout will showcase world-class boxer and title contender
Ebo Elder, and Sean thinks this could be the start of a mutually
beneficial relationship between MMA and boxing. “Boxing
is really big right now, so to be on a card with all of these
big name fighters is great. And the guy putting on the event
is known for putting on good shows, from what I hear,” Sherk
said.
In
recent weeks, top fighters including Ivan Salaverry, Chris Lytle,
Matt Lindland and Frank Trigg have been released by the UFC for
various reasons. Clearly the UFC has tremendous leverage in being
able to let go such world-class fighters.
As
someone who has been unfairly left out of the mix for quite some
time, Sherk agreed that having more top-level promotions (including
cards like Pride and Glory, combining top-level boxers and mixed
martial artists) would benefit fighters and perhaps the sport
in the long term. “I think the best thing would be for more
promotions to move up. It would give guys more options. Right
now in the US the UFC is THE [primary] option. I’ve said
in the past, it would be great to start some type of fighters
union. I think a lot of times fighters get taken advantage of,
but it’s the fighters that make the show,” he said.
Sean
did point out that the UFC has done well to increase the prominence
of MMA. “The UFC is paving the way for fighters to make
a living doing this, you know? Look at Chuck Liddell; he’s
throwing out the first pitch at Major League Baseball games,”
Sherk said.
The
UFC has made great strides, but the sport is not quite on the
level in the US that it is in Japan. While in the Land of the
Rising Sun fighting on Pride’s second Bushido card, Sherk
noted, “Fans are crazy over there. You have to be there
and see it to really understand. Fighters are like superheroes
there. People chase you down the street…I had one guy come
up to me and give me gifts,” he said.
Some
fans are under the impression that Sherk is a straightforward
ground-and-pound wrestler, and to set the record straight once
again, he discussed his fighting background. “I started
submission wrestling in ’94, and Thai boxing in ’94.
I started out doing those a couple of times a week. I started
cross training and taking it really seriously in 1998, training
those techniques about 5 or 6 times a week,” Sean said.
For
those who still think Sherk is a one-dimensional fighter, he
said, “Yeah, people stereotype. But I look at those fans
as one-dimensional. I think my stats of how I finish fights speak
for themselves.”
The
past six weeks Sean has been teaching combat grappling at the
Minnesota Martial Arts Academy, and discussed the transition
from fighter to teacher. “A lot of guys look to me for advice
and training techniques. I get to show them what I’ve learned
over the years,” he said.
Sherk
has also enjoyed seeing fighters he is working with succeed in
MMA. “Watching fighters you train be successful is definitely
satisfying.” He continued, “Brock Larson, I rolled
with him for hundreds of hours on the mat, and it’s great
to see him doing well.”
Asked
if Larson, whose now 12-0, is ready for a shot in one of the
big promotions right now, Sherk replied without hesitation, “He
is ready. He [beat] Stephan Potvin [in the IFC], and he went
25 minutes in that fight. He just won that 8-man tournament up
in Wisconsin (Extreme Challenge 63). He’s ready, he’s
been on a tear.
The
transition from fighter to trainer is not the only change Sean
has had to make. Now a father, he’s learning to balance
family life with a fighting career. “It really forces you
to focus more. My life revolves around my kid now; training is
secondary. I actually tried bringing him to the gym for the first
time while I trained, but that didn’t work.”
Sean
is not yet familiar with Blanton, and will attempt to scout him
and put together a strategy. “I don’t know anything
about him except what I’ve heard from Monte. That’s
what I’m going to do the next couple of weeks, is try and
get some tape of him. I don’t like going in to a fight blind,”
Sherk said.
Nevertheless,
Sherk plans on being ready for the fight September 16th. “To
train for a fight I usually take about 10 weeks. I took this
fight on about 4 weeks notice. I’m working out about 3-4
times a day, trying to play catch up. But cardio and technique
definitely won’t be a problem,” he said.
Source:
Maxfighting |
Quote
of the Day
"Think of giving not as a duty but as a privilege."
John D. Rockefeller Jr., 1874-1960, American Philanthropist |
Night
of the Hawaiian Punch Results
Neal Blaisdell
Arena
September 6, 2005
Fights start at 7:30 PM
This
was a very well matched event with a mix of good trades, some
knock downs (and near knockouts), and some showmanship. The plans
are to have this event once a month on Tuesdays and the event
started on time and ran till after 10 pm so the fans got their
money's worth with good quality boxing action. Keep tuned to
Onzuka.com for future events.
Main Event 10 Rounds
WBO World
Champion
Ratanachai Sor Vorapin (Bangkok, Thailand)
vs.
Pedro Melco Jr (Asia Pacific No 6 Ranked from Zamboanga, Philippines)
Vorapin by unanimous decision
Co-Main Event
6 Rounds
Kosol Sor Vorapin (Bangkok, Thailand)
vs.
Dustin Kim (Mililani, Hawaii)
Vorapin by unanimous decision (60-54),(57-55),(57-55)
Phom Sor Vorapin (Bangkok, Thailand)
vs.
Michael Balasi (Honolulu, Hawaii)
Balasi by referee stop at 1:11 in round 3 (3 knockdowns in round
2 and Vorapin just made it up after an eight count and then the
referee stopped the fight)
Travis
Tandal (Kaimuki, Hawaii)
vs.
Aaron Carvalho (Hilo, Hawaii)
Tandal by unanimous decision (40-36),(39-37),(40-36)
Kaleo
Kwan (Waimanalo, Hawaii)
vs.
Edwin Navarro (Honolulu, Hawaii)
Kwan by TKO at 1:46 in round 2.
|
Gong
Grapple #3 On Sale Sept 8th in Japan
GONG grapple #003 will be on store on 8th in Japan !
We
spent full energy making the brand new GONG grapple magazine.
We are featuring the history of BJJ.
We
have a special interview with Grand Master Helio Gracie. The
GONG grapple crew went to meet with the 91 years old master at
his home.
Also,
we pay attention to the young Gracies such as Ryron, Rener, Gregor,
Neiman, and Kayron Gracie.
The
another location of Jiu-Jitsu's origin took place in the suburbs
in Rio de Janiero. Ggrapple recognized Oswald Fadd’s life
work and superb JJ there.
We
will produce another report to show our work and give thanks
to the people who work hard in Grappling world.
You
can see Yasuichi Ono, the first Japanese who defeated a Gracie,
an interview with Oswaldo Alves, What is Eduardo Telles’
turtle guard positions, a Fabio Gurgel interview, and techniques
of his and his pupil Marcello Gracia, a Leka Vieira interview,
Ggrapple’s travels to the Manaus JJ world, the new power
interview with stars such as Alan Nascimento, Vinicius Magalhaes,
and Tarsis Hunpher, THE interview with Carlos Gracie Jr and Reila
Gracie who talk about another Great master Carlos Gracie and
some articles and tech report for Japanese Grapple fashion and
etc.
We
hope that you enjoy our newest magazine!
Source:
GONG grapple editors room |
Middleweight
Maneuvering: Fighting for Franklin
So
as I am sitting here listening to ‘My Chemical Romance’
and wishing I was anywhere but work, I suddenly find myself looking
at an old article here and old interview there on the extensive
maXfighting site. I come across an interview I did with Rich
Franklin and it starts to dawn on me that the title challenging
contenders list in the UFC divisions are shrinking. In that interview
he mentions some key players that were in line for a shot at
the title... but things have really shaken out for the 185 lbs
division. Let's look at the list of would be contenders and see
where we are;
Ivan
Salaverry – GONE (Defeated by Marquardt in a snoozer)
Matt
Lindland – GONE (In-fighting between Lindland and the UFC
brass)
Evan
Tanner – Just beaten by Franklin at UFC 53
Those
three men right there are sort of like the Middleweight Division’s
Ortiz, Liddell, and Belfort of last year’s light heavyweight
division. Salaverry is gone, Lindland is gone, and Tanner is
fighting David Loiseau at UFC 55. Rich Franklin is left holding
the belt with his hands up in the air like “What the #$@”.
He wouldn’t say that because of his faith but I think he
might be thinking something like that.
Salaverry,
not likely the rightful heir to the number one contendership
in the UFC. I believe that the UFC wanted Salaverry vs Franklin
for marketing purposes. Lindland was next in many people's opinion
but he has been labeled a 'boring fighter' and is not what the
UFC is looking to feature now that TV has openned up the UFC's
exposure level. However, thanks to a loss to Marquardt, Ivan
(and a cursed 'boring' one)... Ivan has gone the way of Frank
Trigg - a cancelled contract. At this point, maybe Lindland could
have been in... but he and the 'boss' just can't seem to get
along, so he too received his pink slip. So who’s next?
I’m guessing the winner of Tanner vs. Loiseau.
David
Loiseau is probably one of the most underappreciated fighters
in the UFC of all time. He has lots of skill sets, brings excitement
and unpredictability to the ring, and is becoming a great all
around fighter. David is progressing more and more and improves
in each of his UFC appearances. The crowd is responding to him
in a positive way and they love his “old school” karate
moves just as much as I do. What does that mean, really? Well,
if he beats Tanner he gets a shot at the title, a well deserved
one if you ask me. But would Tanner get another shot, should
he win? Maybe. If not, that brings into question the structure
(or lack thereof) for holding legit "contender fights"
to determine who gets "the shot"... If Loiseau wins
and gets the shot, shouldn't Tanner get it if he wins??? Would
that happen??? Tanner is not a feature anymore after losing to
the champ already... and in a bad way. So it is not likely that
he would get a push if he defeats the Canadian. So really, this
fight is for Loiseau.
Moreover,
I have a feeling Tanner is closer to the door than another title
shot, especially if he loses like last time... he would be canned
faster than fresh tuna. The way it is going, if you don’t
pose a threat to the champions or you are not a particularly
exciting fighter then you are out of there. I think Tanner needs
to win his fight with Loiseau and then face someone like Terrell
again or better yet, Nate Quarry. I doubt the UFC would risk
Quarry’s image so early but it would be a good fight. Tanner
is in a bad position right now and his future with the UFC really
depends on the outcome of this next match.
Look
at the rest of the possible contenders; Joe Riggs, Travis Lutter,
Trevor Prangley, Mike Swick, Diego Sanchez, Chris Leben, Nate
Marquardt, etc.... All of them would love a shot at Franklin’s
title but it is ultimately up to how much money the fight can
draw. Anything would be good because Rich Franklin is the real
deal and will fight anyone they put in front of him. But there
is a real danger that the Middleweight title scene will experience
the credibility issue that the Heavyweight division underwent
when Arlovski was set to face Eilers.
The
bottom line is that Franklin needs to fight soon or he will get
dusty up against the fast moving scene that the TUF is brewing
for the UFC. Hopefully he will fight in November, if UFC 56 comes
together like the rumors suggest. The UFC needs another strong
Middleweight to separate himself from the pack, to keep the things
fresh with the title scene and keep Franklin in the spot light
and help maintain the image that the UFC title is for real.
Source:
Maxfighting
|
Quote
of the Day
"Decide promptly, but never give any reasons.
Your decisions may be right, but your reasons are sure to be
wrong."
Lord Mansfield, 1867-1915, British Artist and Author
|
Fighters'
Club TV Episode 33 Debuts Tonight!
This episode will run on
September 6th, 13th, 20th, and 27th at our new time:
9:30pm, Tuesday nights
on Channel 52 (Olelo-Oahu).
Maui will receive a copy of the
show in the next week so check your local listing on Akaku.
Episode
33 features:
Highlights
from "Lockdown in Paradise"
-Paco Woods vs Adam Ah Sue
-Trenell Savant Young vs Kendall Groves (+ intvw w/ Savant)
-Jumar Dumaoal vs Eha Souza
-Isaac Kuikahi vs Jeremy Payet
-Ronald "The Machine Gun" Jhun vs Jay Heiron (+intvw
w/ Jay)
-Fabiano Iha vs (+intvw w/ Fabiano)
-Intvw w/ Lockdown Promoter Braddah Camanse
-and let's not forget some cool footage of the "Ainokea"
Ring girls
Technique
of the Week:
-Mike Tanaka of Kalakaua Boxing Club teaches the uppercut
Catching
up w/ Egan Inoue
-How's he doing? Where's he been? What are his plans for the
future?
All those questions answered in this great intvw. Plus, a sneak
peak
at his women's self-defense class
And,
Hawaii's favorite FCTV hosts "hamming it up", Mike
"Icon" Onzuka,
and Mark "T.O.G.--the other guy" Kurano
Questions,
Comments, Suggestions? Email us at:
fightersclubtv808@hotmail.com
We're
also looking around for some talented young lady who may want
to
take a shot at co-hosting a segment so please keep an eye out
for
us--resumes (w/ pics please--nothing fancy) to: chris@onzuka.com (yes,
he also got dat job mon)
|
K-1
Trials in Las Vegas
(Mark Jackson is in the center in red)
The K-1 Vegas tryouts brought together over 200 applicants and
started narrowing the field down to the best unknown 22 middleweights
(155lbs and under) and the 11 best heavyweights. Fighters that
fared well in the trials are said to possibly appear in K-1 or
Hero's.
Hawaii
boys; Harris Sarmiento, Kaleo Kwan and Mark Jackson travelled to Las Vegas
to test their skills. Sarmiento & Kwan had great showings
and Jackson at 185lbs battled it out in the heavyweight division.
Source: Mark Jackson
|
Villaver
International Productions Presents
"Night of the Hawaiian Punch!"
Pro Boxing is Back in Hawaii!
Tonight
Neal Blaisdell
Arena
September 6, 2005
Fights start at 7:30 PM
Tickets are available at all ticketmaster locations, Blaisdell
box office
Charge by phone at 1-877-750-4400 or www.ticketmaster.com
Guests scheduled to attend include former WBA World Jr. Lightweight
Champion Ven Villaflor & former WBA World Jr. Featherweight
Champion "the Hawaiian Punch" Jesus Salud.
Main Event 10 Rounds
WBO World
Champion
Ratanachai Sor Vorapin (Bangkok, Thailand)
vs.
Pedro Melco Jr (Asia Pacific No 6 Ranked from Zamboanga, Philippines
Co-Main Event
6 Rounds
Kosol Sor Vorapin (Bangkok, Thailand)
vs.
Dustin
Kim (Mililani, Hawaii)
Phom Sor Vorapin (Bangkok, Thailand)
vs.
Michael
Balasi (Honolulu, Hawaii)
Travis
Tandal (Kaimuki, Hawaii)
vs.
Aaron Carvalho
(Hilo, Hawaii)
Kaleo
Kwan (Waimanalo, Hawaii)
vs.
Edwin Navarro
(Honolulu, Hawaii)
|
PRIDE
Lightweight Tournament - The Best of the LWs
TOKYO, Japan – The lightweight bouts have been announced
for PRIDE FIGHTING’S BUSHIDO “The Tournament.”
Headlining matches include a battle of Japan as Takanori Gomi
faces Tatsuya Kawajiri … Naoyuki Kotani will go head to
head with Luis Azeredo of Brazil …another former SHOOTO
Champ Hayato “Mach” Sakurai is set to face “Little
Evil” Jens Pulver … and top UFC veteran Yves Edwards
of the USA will battle yet anotherformer SHOOTO title holder,
Joachim Hansen of Norway.
PRIDE
FC: BUSHIDO THE TOURNAMENT
Fight Card
Welterweight
Tournament Bouts
BLOCK A: Phil Baroni (USA) vs. Ikuhisa “The Punk” Minowa
(Japan)
BLOCK B: Masanori Suda (Japan) vs. Murilo Bustamante (Brazil)
BLOCK C: Ryo Chonan (Japan) vs. Dan Henderson (USA)
BLOCK D: Akihiro Gono (Japan) vs. Daniel Acacio (Brazil)
The
winner of BLOCK A will face the winner of BLOCK B.
The winner of BLOCK C will face the winner of BLOCK D.
The winners of A/B and C/D will face off in a December 2005 match.
Welterweight
Tournament Reserve Bout
Ryuta Sakurai (Japan) vs. Paulo Filho (Brazil)
Lightweight
Tournament Bouts
BLOCK A: Takanori Gomi (Japan) vs. Tatsuya Kawajiri (Japan)
BLOCK B: Naoyuki Kotani (Japan) vs. Luis Azeredo (Brazil)
BLOCK C: Hayato “Mach” Sakurai (Japan) vs. Jens Pulver
(USA)
BLOCK D: Yves Edwards (USA) vs. Joachim Hansen (Norway)
The
winner of BLOCK A will face the winner of BLOCK B.
The winner of BLOCK C will face the winner of BLOCK D.
The winners of A/B and C/D will face off in a December 2005 match.
Lightweight
Tournament Reserve Bout
Dokonjonosuke Mishima (Japan) vs. Charles “Krazy Horse”
Bennett (USA)
(Fight
Card Subject to Change)
BUSHIDO
THE TOURNAMENT will take place from the Ariake Coliseum in Japan
and is scheduled to debut on North American pay per view via
DIRECTV, DISH NETWORK, UrbanXtra, TVN1, VU!, and Viewer’s
Choice Canada.
North
American Pay Per View Schedule:
PPV Premiere Date: Sunday, September 25th, 2005
Premiere Time: 9:00 pm EST, 6:00 pm PST
BUSHIDO
THE TOURNAMENT will be available at a reduced rate of $24.95.
For
additional replay times, please contact your pay per view provider
or pridefc.com.
Source: Maxfighting
|
Quote
of the Day
"In the end, it's not the years in your life that count.
It's the life in your years."
Abraham Lincoln, 1809-1865, 16th President of the United States
|
WHO'S
NEXT FOR FEDOR?
by Scott Petersen
After the incredible showdown between Fedor and Cro Cop, who
battled for the Pride Heavyweight Championship, DSE President
Sakakibara said that he hoped that Cro Cop would challenge Fedor
again. The abilities between the two are “paper thin”,
“they are very close”. Sakakibara felt that Cro Cop
was superior in the 1st round but that Fedor had a better game
plan. He felt that during those two years that Cro cop was chasing
Fedor, that Fedor took advantage of that time and studied Cro
Cop from “head to toe”. He continued saying that Cro
Cop needs to study Fedor and gather additional skills, and have
a secret technique to fight Fedor with.
So
will Cro Cop be Fedor’s next opponent. Not likely. Pres.
Sakakibara said that Fedor is eager to fight again, but when
depends on his knuckles. But that it could be as soon as the
New Year's Eve show. Two names mentioned by Sakakibara where
Rodrigo Nogueira and Mark Hunt. He also said, “As for Fedor
the heavyweight champion, he defeated the best challenger and
I salute him for that.”
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
MMA
week in review: Shogun, Lindland, and more
By Sean McClure
So the week that was had been full of controversy and drama.
Pride : Final Conflict came and went, releases from the UFC a
plenty, and matches were made for UFC 55.
Jeremy
Horn is sticking around according to his manager. The UFC light
heavyweight will apparently be around for some time thanks to
a very nice UFC contract. I would love to see a rematch between
Couture and Horn.
Frank
Trigg is a UFC ghost. He was the number three contender who lost
to the number 2 contender and he was out of there the next day.
Trigg will be back……or in Pride. Either way it will
be cool to see him in the ring again.
Matt
Lindland WAS the number one contender for Rich Franklin’s
UFC middleweight championship, a match that was supposed to happen
late this fall. Thanks to a shirt that advertised an online betting
website he is gone and so are his hopes of becoming a title holder
in the UFC in the near future. Matt had amassed nine wins in
the UFC to get to the number one contender status and juts like
that……….they mean nothing. I guess now we’ll
have to await the winner if the Loiseau vs. Tanner match at UFC
55. Speaking of UFC 55………
Here
is the rumored lineup for the event :
-
Paul Buentello vs Andrei Arlovski
-
Evan Tanner vs David Loiseau (announced)
-
Forrest Griffin vs Ian Freeman
-
Elvis Sinosic vs Forrest Griffin (announced)
-
Babalu vs Chael Sonnen
-
Stephen Bonnar vs TBA
-
Marcio "Pe de Pano" Cruz vs Keigo Kunihara
This
is going to be a card to remember. Tanner on the rebound versus
a very willing opponent in David Loiseau should prove to be a
great fight. Griffin versus Freeman should be a real test as
to how far Forrest has come since Season one of the Ultimate
Fighter. Babalu is back and I am guessing he is going to try
and prove that he should be in the top tiers if the light heavyweight
division by winning impressively once again. Bonnar versus a
yet to be announced opponent, that should be another promising
fight. I feel that Stephan could be around longer than Griffin
if he stays focused. UFC 55 is being held on October 7th, 2005
at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Connecticut.
Pride
: Final Conflict is over but the debris from that collision is
still floating around the internet. Mirko Filipovic was manhandling
Fedor Emilianenko and let it slip away. “Cro Cop” admitted
later that he let his desire for a flashy knockout get the better
of him and that is what allowed Fedor to get back in the game.
Also on that card, Tank Abott got choked out by Hidehiko Yoshida.
This was no surprise here really. The real surprise came when
Wanderlei Silva lost a decision to Ricardo Arona. Arona later
lost to Mauricio “Shogun” Rua who, in one fell swoop,
just jumped to the top levels of the light heavyweight division
polls everywhere. His bandwagon is filling up already on the
internet forums so get on while you can.
What
else happened…? Oh yeah, the WWE has started ending matches
by knockouts and referee stoppages. Come on. It’s frigging
pro wrestling. The last thing people want to see is fake UFC
matches. WWE, wake up!
Chuck
Liddell has been outspoken and a little frustrated with FOX Sports
showing the match where he lost to Quintin Jackson in the Pride
organization. He wants Jackson bad and he wants Wanderlei even
worse. I say Pride should let them fight. That would truly be
the fight of the century and I would love to see buy rates on
that Pay Per View.
The
Ultimate Fighter premieres and in just two shows we have seen
three of the original cast leave the house. Eli because of anxiety,
Kerry because of injuries, Kenny because he couldn’t make
weight, and Melvin because he lost to Josh. The real breakout
stars are Jorge, Rashad, and Luke if you ask me. They are the
most prominently featured fighters and seem to be the most outspoken.
Finally,
MMA regulations are in the hands of the California government.
California is currently attempting to pass these regulations
despite the Pride organizations attempts to change them to their
liking. California turned down Pride’s request to include
special “options” that would allow for their brand
of fighting. The current regulations do not suit themselves to
the Pride round formats or for gi’s and wrestling shoes.
That
is pretty much it, really. Last week was full of news and this
week promises to be a full one. I’ll keep you up to date
and you keep reading.
Source:
Maxfighting
|
Márcio
Pé-de-Pano debuts at UFC 55
Jiu-Jitsu World champion Márcio Pé-de-Pano will
finally do his Vale-Tudo debut in great style. It will be at
Ultimate Fighting Championship 55. Besides the fact he hasn't
signed the contract deal, Pé-de-Pano's name is already
confirmed at UFC's official web site. According to them, he will
fight Japanese Keigo Kunihara. "The only missing thing is
signing the contract. So I will be able to debut in Vale-Tudo.
I don't want to happen the same as before, when I talked too
much before and made public statements and then I did not fighting,"
said Pé-de-Pano, who has been training hard Boxing, Wrestling
and Jiu-Jitsu. Gracie Barra Combat Team expects to do a great
presentation and fly higher. "I haven't watched any fight
of Kunihara, but I hope to do a good fight and then fight for
a belt. I will step inside the ring as I enter on the mat. With
victory in my head," stated Pé-de-Pano.
Source:
Tatame
|
SYLVIA
SETS RECORD STRAIGHT WITH COMMENTS
by MMAWeekly Radio / transcribed by Jeff Cain
Fresh off his impressive knockout win over Tra Telligman at UFC
54, Tim Sylvia recently spoke with MMAWeekly about his win, as
well as rematches with both Frank Mir and Andrei Arlovski. It
was just four days after the event, and here's what big Tim had
to say.
MMAWeekly:
Tim congratulations. Great win for you. What are you most happy
about?
Tim
Sylvia: I'm just happy that I won with a knockout, and I looked
good doing it so.
MMAWeekly:
Was it a tough fight?
Sylvia:
Well it's never a tough fight when it's going to be a stand up
fight for me. You know? That's how I look at it. I'm a good stand
up fighter, and if the guy's going to stand toe to toe with me,
he's going to be in trouble.
MMAWeekly:
The kick was amazing. That's what everyones been talking about.
You and I were talking right after the fight, and I made the
comment that you did the smart thing working the kicks lower,
and then you moved up to the body, and then of course the high
kick. How come we haven't seen a high kick from you before?
Sylvia:
Um, I've always just been so concerned about being taken down
and stuff, and I don't know. It's weird how it happened, but
I just knew I was in phenomenal shape, and my take down defense
has gotten so good. There's guys that can't take me down, Travis
Wuiff, and Whitehead has a hard time doing it now and stuff.
And I was like if these world class college wrestlers can't take
me down, Tra Telligman's not going to take me down.
MMAWeekly:
Tim you're 21-2. Your only two loses are to Arlovski and Mir
in your career. Are people selling you short right now?
Sylvia:
You know, people have been selling me short, and that's just
the way it goes in this industry. You're as good as your last
fight, so now I'm going to be a superstar I'm sure because I
just knocked someone out. That's just the way this sport is for
some reason.
MMAWeekly:
How quick do you think you're going be back in that hunt? Do
you think it's going to be three more fights, two more fights,
you know before you get back in there for that title shot?
Sylvia:
I'm thinking at least probably one more fight. I have one more
fight on my contract, so the UFC's probably going to have me
do one more fight, and then resign me as long as I win that next
fight I'm guessing. But as you know the heavyweight division
is really thin, so if he's lucky, and I shouldn't say lucky.
I actually think he's got a pretty good shot at beating Buentello.
But you know he beats him, and who is next? You know?
MMAWeekly:
You mention Arlovski vs Buentello, how do you see that fight?
Does Paul Buentello have a shot to win this fight?
Sylvia:
He's definitely got a shot. I mean he's a banger. You know? He
hits hard. He knocked out my boy Justin [Eilers], so he's definitely
got a shot. And he's got good hands, but it depends on how smart
Arlovski's going to fight. I'm sure Arlovski's going to fight
him like he fought me, and be in and out. You know, try to hit
real quick, and get the hell out of there. Utilize his kicks.
If he stands toe to toe and tries to bang, you know Buentello
could hit him with that uppercut that he uses so well.
MMAWeekly:
Tim obviously you want another shot at Arlovski. That's something
you've made very clear.
Sylvia:
Absolutely.
MMAWeekly:
Talk about how you feel this fight, when ever it does happen,
will be different from the first fight.
Sylvia:
How is it going to be different? I'm going to knock his ass out.
That's how it's going to be different.
MMAWeekly:
Talk about that first fight because I know it's so disappointing
for you.
Sylvia:
Yeah it was disappointing. I just prepared for a big stand up
fight, and he surprised me. You know? And that happens unfortunately.
I learned a little something something in that fight.
MMAWeekly:
And a second time around you just feel you're a different fighter,
or what?
Sylvia:
I definitely feel like a different fighter. Working with Billy
Rush, everyone has told me I moved really well. I'm moving a
lot better now. I'm on my toes. I'm lighter. I'm in better shape,
and I'm going to be moving like Arlovski moves, so it's going
to be looking like two 185 pounders moving in there, and someone's
going to get caught.
MMAWeekly:
Obviously your stand up is amazing. We've seen it before. We
saw it against Arlovski for that quick second before you hit
the ground. The one thing I'm worried about when you fight Arlovski
is your ground game. What are you working on right now that you
can tell us that is going to keep the fight, whether it does
go to the ground, in the positions where you want it to be, you
on top, in his guard, banging away on him. What are you doing
to make sure that he doesn't get around your ankles or your knees.
Sylvia:
Billy had me doing a bunch of agility stuff as well on the ground.
You know, hopping back up real quick, moving hips, and stuff
like that. The main thing is to get into a scramble with him.
Don't, you know, if you get on the ground immediately cause a
scramble, and get the hell back up. I think that's the main thing.
You can't be flat. You've got to make sure your hips are moving
as fast as possible...As soon as you slow down and the smaller
man's is quicker than you, he's going to lock down and start
working submissions, or go after strikes on the ground.
MMAWeekly:
You look at what some of the guys have been doing. You know like
Randy Couture training with Trigg and Rampage. You actually went
out to Utah to kind of mix it up. Does mixing it up help you?
Sylvia:
I think it does help you. I think all fighters need to do that.
You get comfortable in certain situations, and you don't train
as hard because you get used to your sparring partners. You know
what they're going to do. You know how they train, so you could
be lazy in certain situations and stuff like that, so I think
changing it up is a huge help in this sport...That's what I needed.
I really needed to change it up.
MMAWeekly:
So are3 you going to train from now on in Utah, or Iowa? Which
are you going to do?
Sylvia:
I'll decide that when the time comes. I like the altitude in
Utah. I like the environment. It's a great gym up there. You
know Jeremy Horn's amazing, but I'll tell you one thing. I'll
never train without Billy Rush again, so it all depends on where
Billy is, and if he feels like coming to Iowa, or I have to go
to Cincinnati, or I got to go to Utah. You know? I've got some
good workout partners in Iowa, and I'd like to keep those guys
and stuff. It all has to do with my training partners as well.
You know?
MMAWeekly:
You talk a lot about Billy Rush. You say you'll never train without
him. What are the things he did for you that made you say hey
I'm never going to train without this guy?
Sylvia:
He was just dead on my diet...My agility. I mean I watched the
fight. I was on my toes. I was fast. I kept my hands up. I was
moving in and out, and I just felt extremely light on my fight,
and I did not get tired. You know I swung that head kick at the
end of five minutes, and it was like, it was just like a sparring
session. I just felt so good in that fight.
MMAWeekly:
Who do you think your next opponent will be?
Sylvia:
I don't know. I have no idea who my next opponent's going to
be. I don't really care. I just want to fight again. I'd like
to fight as soon as possible...You know maybe Frank Mir will
want to fight me. He didn't want to fight Arlovski. He wasn't
healthy enough, but maybe in a couple of months he'll be able
to fight, and it would be a good fight. I really want that fight
real bad.
MMAWeekly:
So if they offered that fight in say December, you want Mir?
Sylvia:
Absolutely.
MMAWeekly:
Alright. I'd like to see that. It would be a good battle. Well
Tim it's been good. It's always good talking to you.
Sylvia:
There's one thing I'd like to say. I'd like to wish Tra the best
of luck with getting healthy. I heard he's fine, but I want to
apologize for maybe over celebrating a little too much. I didn't
realize how bad he was hurt. That's not me. I'm just glad that
he was able to fight, and hopefully he'll return again, and fight
again.
MMAWeekly:
Very cool Tim. Thank you very much. I appreciate it.
Sylvia:
No problem guys.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Dana
White: The Donald Trump of MMA
By Cindy Ortiz
With the second season of The Ultimate Fighter off to a great
start, a friend thought it was a good time to start predicting
how long it would be before one of the fighters kicked Dana's
arse for running his mouth and making them look like idiots.
I
think just about any conversation with Dana White's name in it
has the potential to be a funny one, so what the heck; I indulged
her! Let the "betcha's" begin!
An
hour later, we had put everything we own on the line! The problem
was we both thought we would reign supreme in the end! In her
opinion, Dana White has been wearing false teeth since season
one because she believes Bobby Southworth knocked his pearly
whites down his throat when he got tired of Dana's "pep-talk!"
I'm
pretty confident Dana's dentist hasn't earned more than a couple
of hundred bucks from him in the past year for cleanings and
x-rays because everything in his life except his grill is blingin'.
That was just one of the debates we shared; there were many more.
Basically,
she's a "Dana Hater" and I tend to be a "Dana
Appreciater." He's done a lot for the sport but he's also
unpredictable and some of the comments that come out of his mouth
make "Shock Jock" Howard Stern seem like Barry Manilow.
My friend feel's that Dana is in a position of authority and
he should be more mindful of his actions and try to be a better
role model.
My
take? Dana is a role model for exactly two people; his sons.
He created his opportunity of authority and can act however he
wants to. TUF is not a prime time cable show, so kids won't be
watching Dana unless parents let their TV do the babysitting.
Dana's F-Bombs get bleeped late at night, but walk by any television
set with MTV on at just about any time of the day and it sounds
like morse code with a few "oh baby's" coming out of
the speaker. Now, if Lil Jon or the Ying-Yang Twins are in-da-house,
well, that's an entirely different story. Anyway, Dana makes
no apologies for who he is, and he shouldn't. What you see is
what you get. Ain't no shame in his game and a few F-Bombs never
hurt anybody. Dana's brutally honest, but not to a fault and
I told her, "folks just need to quit sippin' on the Haterade,
accept DW as the true P-I-M-P he is and learn how to "playah-appreciate!"
The
only other reality show I can actually watch for an entire season,
besides The Ultimate Fighter is The Apprentice. I did watch about
four episodes of VH-1's Kept because Frank Trigg was one of the
competitors, and on occasion I may catch Real World, but I don't
find reality shows that interesting. Anyway, The Donald is da-bomb,
and the similarities between he and Dana are fascinating. I made
this list about five months ago and it stirred one of my great
debates with a fighter by the name of Kyacey Uscola. If you don't
know who he is yet, you should check him out because you will
be hearing his name again. The kids a real crowd pleaser. It's
hard to win a debate with Kyacey, but even he couldn't deny these
guys could be brothers from another mother. Let's take a peek,
shall we?
1)
Donald and Dana have two notable assistants on their reality
shows.
Trump has George and Carolyn; Dana has Matt and Rich (Chuck and
Randy for TUF 1).
2)
Trump conducts business in offices and in the board room; Dana's
business revolves around the octagon and locker rooms.
3)
Trump fires someone every week; Dana eliminates someone each
week (sometimes more).
4)
Trump rides in a helicopter and limo; Dana rides in an Escalade
with "spinnas!"
5)
Trump has the bad comb over hair style; Dana said "f**k
it," and just shaved his head when his hair started looking
too thin! Now, which one made the right choice?
6)
Trump is a billionaire; Dana could be one day! DW's a "baller
in the making!"
7)
Trump put his name on the water bottles in his show; Dana put
the UFC logo on his.
8)
Trump puts his competitors up in a suite; Dana chose a mansion.
9)
Trump starts out with 16 competitors and hires one; Dana starts
out with 16/18 and will definitely hire at least two.
10)
Trump is at the top of his game in real estate; Dana is at the
top of his game in MMA.
11)
Both leaders offer six-figure contracts to the winners.
12)
Both platforms employ the team challenge concept as well as the
"dog eat dog" format where only the strong survive.
13)
Both leaders are competitive, successful, work very hard and
have huge egos.
14)
Both leaders embrace their roles and choose to be the face of
their organizations.
15)
Trump and Dana both are "self made" men; each with
supporters as well as enemies.
All
in all, I think Donald and Dana have alot in common. Dana is
not as seasoned as Trump, but then again, Dana has only been
on the scene for a few years. Both men are icons and are making
great things happen in their chosen fields. Whether it's a propeller
or a set of rims that's spinning, it's the men inside the modes
of transportation that are making history! That, my friends,
is what really matters.
Where
would the city of New York be (architecturally) without Donald
Trump? Alot better off than the UFC and MMA would be without
Dana White! Think about it... I did!
Source:
MMA Fighting
|
Huge
Update on Rampage vs. Chuck
By Jeremy Wall
In our previous article on maXfighting on the possibilities of
whom Chuck Liddell will defend the Light-Heavyweight title against
next, we mentioned that it would be difficult for UFC to bring
in Quinton "Rampage" Jackson because at some point
he would have to fight Randy Couture. However, Jackson and Couture
are managed by the same company, Triumph Entertainment, and although
I'm sure guys like Jackson and Couture are willing to fight anyone,
Triumph did not want to match up fighters whom they manage.
However,
Triumph management states this to be absolutely not true. They
are willing to match up anyone in their stable of fighters, including
Jackson and Couture. They were also willing to match up Couture
and Ken Shamrock, whom they also manage, earlier this year but
were unable to come to terms with Zuffa. So from the viewpoint
of Triumph, Rampage vs. Couture is entirely plausible.
Regarding
Rampage-Liddell, despite the fact that Liddell is wanting a rematch
against Rampage and that it has been rumored that Rampage will
be coming into the UFC soon because his Pride contract is up,
that is also not true. Jackson's contract with Pride is not up
until early next year, meaning that Liddell's next title defense
cannot possibly be against Rampage since Liddell is going to
want to fight again within the next few months.
That
leaves little option for Zuffa, as they are most likely going
to have to book Couture-Liddell III since Couture has established
himself as the number one contender to Chuck's title with his
dominant win over Mike Van Arsdale. If not Couture vs. Liddell
and with Rampage being under contract to Pride until next year,
and it being unlikely that Tito Ortiz will return to the fold
anytime soon, then UFC is left with little option for Chuck's
next title defense. This would definitely seem to cement the
idea of another title shot for Couture.
Source:
Maxfighting
|
Quote
of the Day
"Be courteous to all, but intimate with few,
and let those few be well tried before you give them your confidence."
George Washington, 1732-1799, 1st President of the United States
|
Icon
Sport 43
(Formerly Super
Brawl)
Niko Vitale vs. Jason "Mayhem" Miller
Jason Miller has beaten the rest, now only one man from Hawaii is left, Niko Vitale.
Mayhem is the only fighter to have beaten Hawaii's most beloved
fighters, Egan Inoue and Ron Jhun, and unbelievably has become
even more loved by the Hawaii fight fans. Now Hawaii has just
one more fighter that is on a level to compete against the man
they call "Mayhem."
Niko Vitale is one of the most physically gifted athletes that
has ever competed in MMA. Vitale has trained with both men that
Miller has beaten, the question is, can they pass on their experience
onto Vitale, and can he learn from their mistakes. Both men have
competed in the premier MMA event in the US, the UFC and have
tasted defeat in the big show.
To better his odds, Vitale will make the trek up to see the Wizard.
There is no yellow brick road this this Wizard, so a plane ride
to Washington will have to do. Matt Hume is known as the Wizard
of MMA. To say he has done it all is an understatement. Hume
was a fighter in the early days on MMA in Pancrase and Battlecade:
Extreme Fighting, he is a promoter, he started a MMA commission,
is one of the judges for Pride Fighting Championships, has commentated
and written articles on MMA and now is most known as one of the
top MMA trainers. For the first time in his career, Niko Vitale
will attend a professional training camp for a fight.
On October 28, these two men will meet, the winner will possibly
be in line to fight the new Icon Sports Middleweight Champion,
Ruthless Robbie Lawler. With all the factors, you cannot be assured
of who will be the winner, but you can be assured that it will
be a war that you do not want to miss.
Source:
Icon Sport
|
Lightweight
bouts announced for
Bushido Tournament
The
lightweight bouts have been announced for PRIDE FIGHTING'S BUSHIDO
"The Tournament." Headlining matches include a battle
of Japan as Takanori Gomi faces Tatsuya Kawajiri … Naoyuki
Kotani will go head to head with Luis Azeredo of Brazil …
Hayato "Mach" Sakurai is set to face "Little Evil"
Jens Pulver … and Yves Edwards of the USA will battle Joachim
Hansen of Norway.
Welterweight
Tournament Bouts
BLOCK A: Phil Baroni (USA) vs. Ikuhisa "The Punk" Minowa
(Japan)
BLOCK B: Masanori Suda (Japan) vs. Murilo Bustamante (Brazil)
BLOCK C: Ryo Chonan (Japan) vs. Dan Henderson (USA)
BLOCK D: Akihiro Gono (Japan) vs. Daniel Acacio (Brazil)
The
winner of BLOCK A will face the winner of BLOCK B.
The winner of BLOCK C will face the winner of BLOCK D.
The winners of A/B and C/D will face off in a December 2005 match.
Welterweight
Tournament Reserve Bout
Ryuta Sakurai (Japan) vs. Paulo Filho (Brazil)
Lightweight
Tournament Bouts
BLOCK A: Takanori Gomi (Japan) vs. Tatsuya Kawajiri (Japan)
BLOCK B: Naoyuki Kotani (Japan) vs. Luis Azeredo (Brazil)
BLOCK C: Hayato "Mach" Sakurai (Japan) vs. Jens Pulver
(USA)
BLOCK D: Yves Edwards (USA) vs. Joachim Hansen (Norway)
The
winner of BLOCK A will face the winner of BLOCK B.
The winner of BLOCK C will face the winner of BLOCK D.
The winners of A/B and C/D will face off in a December 2005 match.
Lightweight
Tournament Reserve Bout
Dokonjonosuke Mishima (Japan) vs. Charles "Krazy Horse"
Bennett (USA)
(Fight
Card Subject to Change)
BUSHIDO
THE TOURNAMENT will take place from the Ariake Coliseum in Japan
and is scheduled to debut on North American pay per view via
DIRECTV, DISH NETWORK, UrbanXtra, TVN1, VU!, and Viewer's Choice
Canada.
North
American Pay Per View Schedule:
PPV Premiere Date: Sunday, September 25th, 2005
Premiere Time: 9:00 pm EST, 6:00 pm PST
BUSHIDO
THE TOURNAMENT will be available at a reduced rate of $24.95.
For
additional replay times, please contact your pay per view provider
or pridefc.com.
-
Dream Stage Entertainment, September 1, 2005
Source: MMA Fighting
|
Rodrigo
Minotauro
By Eduardo Ferreira
Studying opponents
Gathered
together in his house with Brazilian Top Team crew, Rodrigo Minotauro
was paying full attention of the heavyweight title bout. Team
TATAME was in the house and cheered with Minotauro to Brazilians
on the ring. After watching the bout between Mirko Cro Cop and
Emelianenko Fedor, Minotauro spoke about the bout. Check the
full contend bellow:
What
did you think about the match between Mirko Cro Cop and Emelianenko
Fedor?
It
was a great bout! Fedor proved he is brave heart. he got recovered
after Cro Cop broke his nose and then applied several knees on
him. Cro Cop did a great first round but then he ssemed to be
a little tired. But even he had some energy left, he still wouldn't
win. Fedor imposes a strong fight rhythm all the time.
You've
faced both of them. Have you seen any different move? What do
you think about it?
Cro
Cop has a better guard and defended himself on the ground. But
I haven't seen a great improve on him. Fedor kepps doing his
game. he exchanges well on the feet and puts you down and beats
you from the top. He always imposes a strong rhythm.
And
what did you think about Ricardo Arona vs. Wanderlei Silva?
We've
always though Arona to beat Wanderlei because he trains for it.
But both of fighters respect themselves a lot. We celebrate his
victory a lot because everybody though Wanderlei was unbeatable.
Tell
me your impressions of the final, between Arona and Shogun.
Shogun
showed up with lots of stamina because he's done a five minutes
fighting against Overeem. Arona did a 15 minutes fighting with
Wanderlei, who is the champion of the category and he is very
strong. Arona had to fight too hard to win. It's like a fighter
working 22 hours and other working 8 hours. It was like the final
when Fedor fought Ogawa and defeated him in a minute and I didi
a 15 minutes of fighting with Kharitonov. It's the same when
Quinton Jackson fought Chuck Liddell and Wanderlei fought Yoshida
at the semifinals of Pride GP middleweight.
You
had just operated your elbow. How are you feeling?
I
got my two elbows operated a month ago. But I hope to be on the
mat next week. To be honest, it was a simple surgery and I felt
the hospital driving my car. But during this period I didn't
stand still. I ran and did a lot of physiotherapy.
When
are we gonna see you in action again?
I'm
waiting for a Pride invitation. I believe I might fight this
year.
Source: Tatame
|
Who
Is the World’s No. 1 205-Pounder?
by Jake Rossen (jakerossen@gmail.com)
Amidst
the rubble generated by last weekend’s PRIDE Grand Prix
Finals, only one ranked and accredited middleweight/light heavyweight
was able to escape without a scratch. Mauricio “Shogun”
Rua overcame the odds and fulfilled his duties as the Dark Horse
of the tournament, leaving teammate and former immovable object
Wanderlei Silva (Pictures) somewhere North of the winner’s
podium.
Rua’s
feat acted as a mortar shell for the 205 rankings, obliterating
conventional thinking on who rules the roost in the light heavyweight
division.
Is
it Rua? Does Silva still reside at No. 1 for his non-tourney
accomplishments? Or does UFC champion Chuck Liddell (Pictures)
take the top spot for his recent list of KO victims?
Giving
you an answer is not quite the same as giving you the answer
— a pretty persuasive argument can be made for all three.
But I think one of these athletes edges out the others. And yes,
you’ll be made to suffer through lots of exposition before
arriving at the answer. Wouldn’t have it any other way.
THE
CASE FOR CHUCK LIDDELL
Easily
the top-ranked 205-fighter in North America, the UFC’s Chuck
Liddell (Pictures) is flirting with mainstream popularity on
the wave of several high-profile victories. After an auspicious
run against mediocre talent in the late 1990s, Liddell scored
two career-making knockouts in 2001 against Guy Mezger and Kevin
Randleman (Pictures).
With
his rogue’s gallery stretching into the upper tier, he struggled
in his next three fights, earning decisions over Murilo Bustamante
(Pictures), Amar Suloev (Pictures), and Vitor Belfort (Pictures).
Starting
with his knockout of Renato Sobral (Pictures) in late 2002, Liddell
has thrown out any concerns over being a plodding point fighter.
Win or lose, all of his fights since have finished under the
final tick of the clock. He scored the big knockouts over Alistair
Overeem (Pictures) and Vernon White (Pictures), rocked perennial
poster boy Tito Ortiz (Pictures), and made history by becoming
the first man to ever put Randy Couture (Pictures) to sleep.
In
contrast, he looked decidedly vulnerable in TKO losses to Couture
and Quinton Jackson (Pictures), resembling little more than a
flopping fish on his back in both fights.
Since
late 2002, Liddell has finished four fighters who most would
consider viable top 10 light heavyweights: Couture, Overeem,
Ortiz, and Sobral. He finished two capable but unranked fighters
in White and Horn. He’s won and successfully defended a
UFC title in that period of time, as well as pioneered finishing
knockouts against Sobral, Horn, and Couture.
And
if that weren’t enough, he’s got a steak named after
him.
THE
CASE FOR WANDERLEI SILVA
Silva’s
arrival as a formidable light heavyweight could arguably be timed
around 2000’s PRIDE 10, when he savagely knocked out Guy
Mezger.
He
would go on to a numerically impressive career in PRIDE, sporting
a 20-2-1-1 record against opponents that were often unworthy
of his time. Disregarding the Matsuis and Carl Malenkos, Silva’s
record boasts wins over Dan Henderson (Pictures), Kazushi Sakuraba
(Pictures) (a mind-numbing three times), Quinton Jackson (Pictures),
and Yuki Kondo (Pictures).
Despite
the breadth of Silva’s PRIDE career, it’s worth noting
that only three of his 24 opponents could arguably be called
top-ranked light heavies: Jackson, Sakuraba, and Henderson. And
while they sport impressive records, it needs to be noted that
both Sakuraba and Henderson would have to eat several Chuck Liddell
(Pictures)-sponsored steaks to barely edge the 200-lb. mark.
That’s
in sharp contrast to legitimate light heavies like Jackson, who
cut between 10-20 pounds as a matter of course. Come fight night,
Silva’s opponents could often be a disappointing 30 lbs.
lighter than expected for this weight category.
Silva
himself has opted for a similar weight disadvantage, battling
both Mirko Filipovic (Pictures) and Mark Hunt (Pictures) in a
draw and an irrelevant loss, respectively.
His
record sports three significant losses: two to superior ground
tacticians in Ricardo Arona (Pictures) and Tito Ortiz (Pictures),
and one blowout of a defeat to Vitor Belfort (Pictures).
THE
CASE FOR MAURICIO RUA
“Shogun”
was the proverbial bat out of Hell this year, appearing on no
one’s radar to garner a spot in PRIDE’s lauded middleweight
(205 lbs.) tournament. Prior to his entry, Rua fought mid-tier
opponents and dropped a bout to ranked light heavyweight Renato
Sobral (Pictures).
But
his road to the Grand Prix title is potentially the greatest
gauntlet ever successfully run in any weight division in a four-month
span: he knocked out Quinton Jackson (Pictures), out-grappled
Rogerio Nogueira in a decision, stopped Alistair Overeem (Pictures),
and pummeled Ricardo Arona (Pictures). All four men have been
incredibly dominant in their respective careers, and all four
can safely find themselves in anyone’s top 10.
THE
VERDICT
It
took Liddell several years to string together victories against
opponents as formidable as Couture, Overeem, and Sobral …
three years, to be exact. Silva took nearly five years to do
the same, with two of those elite athletes posing no threat to
the scale.
Rua,
in contrast, took four ranked opponents out in a spastic burst
of activity in the summer of ‘05.
Losses?
Liddell looked positively lost against both Couture and Jackson,
taking massive punishment on the ground. Silva lost the takedown
battle against Arona and Ortiz but wasn’t beat up in either
defeat. Rua dropped a submission loss to Sobral, the only black
mark in his entire career.
In
caliber of opponents, method of victory, and — most impressively
— the condensed nature of his accomplishments, Mauricio
Rua (Pictures) seems like the current king of the mountain. Somehow,
the 23-year-old has fit years’ worth of credentials into
a single tournament.
Liddell
gets plenty of points for his consistent willingness to take
every fight offered and his first-run knockouts over the defensive-minded
Couture and Horn. But he also dropped two big fights to two big
names in a bad way. Silva fought legitimate light heavyweight
threats only sporadically, and three of the four — Ortiz,
Belfort, and Arona — got the better of him. Line up the
Kaneharas and Iwasakis of the world against Liddell or Rua and
it’s likely they’d get put through the grinder just
the same. Quantity doesn’t equal quality, which is the point
Silva’s detractors have been saying for years.
Of
course, the best answer for the inevitable grousing is to match
Liddell up with Rua for a be-all, end-all showdown.
Winner
gets a steak dinner.
IN
BRIEF, SPECIAL BELATED PRIDE EDITION: Fedor Emelianenko (Pictures)
out-striking Mirko Filipovic (Pictures) is just the latest in
a series of career highs for the Russian, who may now have to
resort to handicap two-on-one matches in order to feel threatened.
DSE should hope that Josh Barnett (Pictures) can edge past Mirko
in a proposed October rematch, since their Pedro Rizzo (Pictures)
experiment didn‘t go as expected. … Just when you think
another nail has been put into the career coffin of Tank Abbott,
he pops back up again. His bout with Hidehiko Yoshida (Pictures)
was notable only for the brief sight of the Olympian out-striking
Abbott to the point where Tank had to go for the takedown. While
a submission loss to a Judo player is acceptable, getting mugged
on the feet would be a reputation destroyer. People who sincerely
believe DSE would need to orchestrate a fix in order to get over
on the somnambulant Abbott should seek immediate psychological
help. … Igor Vovchanchyn (Pictures) proved once again that
dropping down in weight does not automatically make you a threat.
The Ukrainian puzzled fans when he repeatedly chose to engage
Kazuhiro Nakamura (Pictures) on the ground instead of working
on the feet. It was just as puzzling — and frustrating —
as watching Silva do his best impression of Pedro Rizzo (Pictures)
against Arona.
The
opinions expressed in this piece do not necessarily reflect the
views of Sherdog.com.
Source: Sherdog
|
Frank
Trigg Says - The have to bring me back
By Jeremy Wall
Jeremy Wall: Recently you were talking about how UFC let you
out of your contract. Is that correct?
Frank
Trigg: Yup.
JW:
What are the details behind UFC releasing you?
FT:
They just wanted to go in a different direction.
JW:
You were on the final fight of a three-fight deal, right?
FT:
No. I was on the second fight of a three-fight contract.
JW:
So they released you in the middle of your contract?
FT:
Right.
JW:
That's the thing about those contracts is that they have out
clauses in pretty much all of those contracts.
FT:
That's true. There's pretty much nothing we can do about it.
They set themselves up so they have complete control.
JW:
What's the point of having a three fight contract if they can
release you at any point? It's really just a one fight contract.
A twenty fight contract really is just a one fight contract.
FT:
That's what happened to Ivan Salaverry as well. That's the way
it works.
JW:
What went wrong in your fight against Georges St-Pierre?
FT:
It just wasn't my night.
JW:
What was your gameplan that you were planning to execute in that
fight?
FT:
Get on him on his feet, and that's what I did at the beginning.
And then take him down and work that to my favour.
JW:
Was there any problems training for the fight? Or was training
really good for you?
FT:
Training was really good. Really well. We mixed it up a little
bit and it was a good training session.
JW:
St-Pierre is a hyper fighter. Were you expecting him to come
out at that velocity out of the gate like that?
FT:
I actually came out harder than he did. I threw the first three
punches. I connected first. I backed him into the cage first.
The aggressiveness was in my favour, and in the first fifteen
to twenty seconds I actually came out quicker than he did.
JW:
So do you think you were overaggressive then at the beginning
of the fight? Was that a mistake on your part?
FT:
Just the way the fight went, you know. Just the way things go.
JW:
Do you see yourself coming back to the UFC at some point in the
long-term future?
FT:
I don't have much of a choice. I have to come back at some point.
There's not too many guys out there. What are they gonna do?
It will be a situation either that Matt keeps on winning, beats
Karo, beats St-Pierre and then who are they gonna give him? Diego
Sanchez? Kenny Florian? Who are they gonna give him? Or you have
a situation where St-Pierre wins, and you have George fighting
and beating up those same guys. What are you gonna do? At some
point they have to bring me back in. The thing with the UFC contract
is that all it basically does for the UFC is allow them to bring
you back at another time. With a contract, they have to use you
within a certain amount of time or else they forfeit, you know
what I'm saying? By releasing me, they don't have to use me.
But when they bring back in, they can bring me back in at a lower
rate than what you are getting paid. Because of the fact you
don't have a contract with them presently, you got ten and ten
and now they are only going to offer you five and five. Take
it or leave it. They make the assumption that you want to come
back and that you have no choice but to come back in.
JW:
Because they are the only game in town.
FT:
Right. But they are not so much the only game in town anymore.
JW:
There's a lot of independent choices and small promotions.
FT:
WEC, Rumble on the Rock, and they're small promotions, some of
the guys, they pay the same amount of money UFC is paying. So
they are not small organizations to those fighters. They're not
Tito Ortiz money or Randy Couture money. But they are paying
money most of us can fight at. So what's the difference? They're
not small promotions to us because it's the same payday I got
in the UFC.
JW:
If UFC offers you less money to come back, will you take it?
FT:
It depends on what the fight is and what they're doing. I basically
agree to anything my management team says I can take. If they
say this money is good, even though it is less than I was getting
paid before but it's good for the opponent I have, then that's
what we'll take. If not, then we'll say no. It's always been
like that. I don't mind saying no.
JW:
Are you interested at all in going over to Bushido?
FT:
Oh yeah. Absolutely. I love Japan. I've always wanted to fight
over there. After I fought for them the one time at Pride 8 they
never wanted me back again. When they did want me back again,
I just signed my contract with UFC. When I was out of my contract
after the Charuto fight, I signed another contract with the UFC
and Pride called like two weeks later wanting me to come over.
But I had just signed my contract with the UFC. They always seem
to call just after I signed a contract with someone else.
JW:
Yeah because they're signing a lot more smaller guys now.
FT:
So hopefully I have something lined up for November or December.
I'd like to fight against in November and then fight in late
December, on the New Year's Eve show. Mixed martial arts is more
like boxing than we want to give ourselves credit for. Golden
Boy Productions takes care of Oscar De La Hoya because it is
his production. Most boxers don't have a promotion like UFC or
Pride sign these multi-fight deals. Most fighters only fight
one time on Friday Night Fights, and they fight one time on Showtime,
and one time on HBO. It's rare where guys like Tyson only fight
on Showtime. Most of us are free agents after every fight. One
time contracts and that's it.
JW:
Is there anything else you want to add?
FT:
No, I just wanna thank Rock Star energy drink for coming on board
and helping me out and getting ready for this. The R-1 training
center for helping me out. Joey Odessa helping me get my training
camps together.
Source:
Maxfighting
|
Quote
of the Day
"Never be afraid to try something new. Remember, amateurs
built the Ark.
Professionals built the Titanic."
Anonymous
|
TANK
ABBOTT ON DISCOVERY TIMES
As the sport of MMA continues to grow, the fighters involved
are becoming more and more a part of the American TV landscape.
Already fighters have been featured on channels such as A&E,
Spike TV, and now Tank Abbott will be featured on the debut episode
of the Discovery Time Channel’s new show Only In America.
The
episode, entitled “Fight Club” premiers this Friday,
September 2nd at 10pm Eastern/7pm Pacific and will replay numerous
times throughout the upcoming week. Promos for the show explain
the episode as journalist Charlie LeDuff’s “exploration
of a real American fight club.” The new series is set to
focus on events that are truly American in nature, including
the fight club scene, gay rodeos, and minor league professional
football.
Abbott
most recently lost his fourth of five total fights he’s
had since his comeback to MMA in 2003. This time Tank was the
victim of a Hidehiko Yoshida gi choke in Abbott’s debut
fight for Pride. Since his return he’s been submitted in
three of five fights but continues to bring in crowds and PPV
buys because of his legendary knockout power, which was on full
display in his only win earlier this year when he KO’d Cabbage
Correira at Rumble on the Rock 7.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Melendez,
Sato comment on their Shooto Fight
After a 20-stich surgery, Rumina Sato spoke to the media about
his fight against Melendez. "I was moving well, and I think
I outclassed him on every move. I was in good condition. I wanted
to go all the way to the third round. His facial expression changed
when I landed that left hook. I should have rushed there."
Rumina
expressed his regret but, "It was not a head butt (that
sliced him), it was a clear knee shot so I admit I lost that
fight. I know putting my head down on the clinch is my bad habit.
I need to improve on that."
Rumina
was so close to the title shot but this veteran has got a strong
heart. "I've experienced many discomfitures in the past
so I am not going to dwell on this. This was a short fight but
I felt good with my low-kicks, you know, I think I grew up a
bit mentally from this fight. I want Melendez to win the title
against Pequeno so all I have to do is to win."
After
arriving from Japan and a subsequent trip to Thailand, Melendez
commented on the fight:
"I was disappointed with the referee immediately stopping
the fight after my knee strike. I know he was stunned and I was
moving forward to finish him. The referee stopped me this time,
next time no one will save him" -Gilbert Melendez
Source: Gracie Fighter
|
VANDERLEI
VS. ARONA REMATCH POSSIBLE FOR OCTOBER
By Tape Lord
Hello my friends, my postal connectins in the DSE/PRIDE irganization
are telling me that a Vanderlei Silva vs. Ricardo Arona rematch
will most likely take place on the PRIDE card in October.
If
it doesn't take place in October, then the next possible date
would be on the December 31st card. The matchup will be for Silva's
light heavyweight belt.
Source: Fight Sport
|
FORREST
GRIFFIN SPEAKS
Men's Fitness magazine recently interviewed Forrest Griffin.
Here's what Griffin had to say:
Interviewer:
You're a witty guy. Why fight?
Forrest:
You know, I've always had a small penis, and I want to compensate
for it. (laughs) Actually, the defense and tactics instructor
at the police academy showed me a UFC video. I said, "This
stuff's cool." So I started training for it, got beat up,
and I decided I wanted to keep doing it.
Interviewer:
You always look like you're having a great time-even when you're
in an all-out brawl. Is it really fun for you?
Forrest:
Yeah, that's why I do this. A fight's just not that big a deal.
It's not like being in battle; it's not having cancer. It's not
dealing with crazy people at four in the morning like when I
was a police officer.
Interviewer:
Do you ever get frightened in there?
Forrest:
Here's my strategy: I think about the worst that can happen in
a fight. Am I gonna die? Well, death happens in our sport, but
it's a rarity. And death is a journey-my bags are packed. I'm
ready for that when it comes. I could also be embarrassed in
front of lots of people, but that's happened to me before-I never
should have done that Internet porn. (laughs)
Interviewer:
So does anything rattle you?
Forrest:
I have a lot of performance anxiety. I want people to like me.
I want to do well. I want people to feel like they got their
money's worth and were entertained.
Interviewer:
You've seen the field for this season's Ultimate Fighter. What
do you think?
Forrest:
I look at those guys and I know I'm not working that hard. A
lot of them are better than me. Keith Jardine is a helluva boxer,
and I'm sure he'll end up fighting in the UFC as a light-heavyweight.
Interviewer:
There's a softer side to you than most realize. Rumor has it
you like Cary Grant movies and reading novels.
Forrest:
Yeah, I was raised by my mother, and she brought me up to be
sensitive. That's the way I fight-friendly. I don't take any
cheap shots, and if you beat me, I'll be the first guy to congratulate
you.
Interviewer:
Final question: Once and for all, do women weaken your fighting?
Forrest:
I don't know what that's about, man. I fuck every night before
a weigh-in. That's my secret cutting strategy.
Source: Fight Sport
|
PRIDE
Modifications Denied by Cali Commission;
Regs Back on Track for November Approval
By Loretta Hunt
The
pendulum swung back yesterday in downtown Los Angeles, as the
California State Athletic Commission voted not to adopt three
PRIDE-requested modifications they had previously decided to
add to the Golden state's yet-to-approved mixed martial arts
regulations at an August 2nd meeting.
With
a vote of 4-1, proposed Section 512 allowing for a 10-5-5 minute
round format was denied; while Section 513, which would allow
for optional fighter equipment such as wrestling shoes and gis,
fell with a vote of 3-2. Of the five members to vote at the proceedings
(two of which were new to the Commission and were absent from
past informational meetings relevant to the proposals), none
would make a motion to either support or reject proposed Section
523, which would have allowed for the use of a PRIDE-designed
ring in MMA events conducted in California. With no motion introduced,
this third proposal was also shot down.
The
Commission's August 2nd ruling to allow for these three alternative
additions had essentially "pulled back" already (Commission)
passed regulations from the Office of Administrative Law (OAL),
its final step in getting final approval within the state government.
Now that the modifications have been dropped, MMA regulations
will begin their trek again through the lawmaking process, leaving
the Commission unaltered on route back to the Department of Consumer
Affairs (DCA).
"Director
Zettel has already signed the regulations, so there's no reason
to suspect there will be any delay," DCA Deputy Director
told FCF following the proceedings. "Once the regulations
are signed-off by the State Secretary, who also approved them
on their last trip through, Hall says she has no indication of
foreseeable problems once they reach the OAL for review. With
this new timeline, the regulations could achieve final approval
with the State in an estimated 30 to 45 days. Following a requisite
30-day wait period, the first sanctioned MMA event in California
could take place as early as November.
As
with August 2nd's meeting, over two hours of sometimes heated,
yet informative testimony lead up to the vote, with testimony
coming mostly from Zuffa LLC, promoters of the UFC, and PRIDE
owners Dream Stage Entertainment.
In
attendance for PRIDE, U.S. representative Turi Altavilla was
joined by attorney Robert Philobosian. Due to its industrious
PRIDE Grand Prix finals held this past weekend in Toyko, Japan,
Altavilla and counsel were the only two identified attendees
for the Japanese-based promotion.
For
the UFC, owner Lorenzo Fertitta and COO Kirk Hendrick attended,
along with matchmaker Joe Silva, head referee John McCarthy and
political lobbyist Tim Lynch.
COO
Hendrick was the first to approach the podium, where his opening
comments again stressed "unification" as his organization's
major thrust and tried to create a parallel between PRIDE's requested
modifications and the earliest days of the sport in America.
"Some of these eleventh hour proposals were exactly the
same things that were being done back when Ultimate Fighting
Championship started twelve years ago," Hendricks told the
Commission. "It started out as what was called a no-holds-barred
sport. It wasn't even a sport. It was indeed a spectacle."
Addressing
the three modifications individually, Hendrick then provided
a video presentation collaging various clips from past fights
that contained participants falling out of a ring, as well as
wrestling shoe and gi choke utilization in fights. These clips
included Justin Eilers falling out of the ring during his bout
with Mikhail Bogdanov at MFC 1, Bas Rutten's extraction in a
past Pancrase fight, Kerry Schall's fall at a Superbrawl event,
SHOOTO and IVC footage, Royce Gracie's utilization of a gi choke
at UFC 2, as well as the use of wrestling shoes for sustained
kicking at an additional event.
Throughout
this presentation, PRIDE representative Turi Altavilla would
chime in from the audience "That is not our ring,"
or "That is not our event." (Although not announced
at the time, the UFC later clarified with FCF that they did not
utilize PRIDE events to illustrate their points due to copyright
issues.)
At
this time, PRIDE attorney Philobosian reminded the Commission
that the modifications under consideration contained verbiage
for a PRIDE ring, which included a 5-rope system and a substantial
lip surrounding, and that the footage provided did not reflect
this apparatus.
"It
is undeniable that people fall out of rings when they're used
for mixed martial arts events," Hendrick repeatedly noted
during his allotted time, however, when asked to provide specific
statistics regarding injuries from the use of the ring, as well
as with the use of the gi and wrestling shoes, he could not provide
any.
Hendrick
did note of two instances in which a PRIDE competitor had been
ejected from its ring—a 2001 bout between Diajiro Matsui
and Ebenezer Braga and last Saturday's Final Conflict event,
where Fedor Emelianenko fell out of the ring during his fight
with Mirko Filopovic. When questioned later, PRIDE's Altavilla
described Emelianenko's ejection as an example of PRIDE's successful
safety measures, pointing out that the fighter was unharmed because
he fell on the ring lip, and not the floor, and that additional
referees were in place where they should be to assist him.
With
regards to the proposed acceptance of gis and wrestling shoes,
Altavilla utilized much of his allotted time to emphasize their
safety, as well as their acceptance in the sport. In addition
to providing the Commission with a packet that contained pictures
of the gi, wrestling shoes, and the PRIDE ring, Altavilla also
presented two of these three items in person, which Commissioners
inspected themselves. Altavilla reminded officials that the gi
knot would be taped down during competition. Altavilla also produced
a picture of John McCarthy refereeing a gi-clad Royce Gracie
and popular sumo fighter Akebono in a ring at 2004's New Year's
Eve K-1 event in Japan.
Discussing
the proposed 10-5-5 minute round format, it was Hendrick who
stated the 10-point must system (a part of the regulations regardless
of modification) could not be applied to which Chairman Mears
publicly disagreed.
"I
think that perhaps that the level of concentration might be quite
difficult for a judge to sustain it for ten minutes. Other than
that, the concept of the 10-point must system I'm sure can be
applied [to 10-5-5]," said CSAC Executive Officer Armando
Garcia when asked by Mears to disprove Hendrick's statement.
"Mr.
Garcia, say you had a 10-point must system and we'll say you
and I are fighting in that 10 minute round, and the judges give
me that round with a 10-9 score," UFC referee McCarthy then
illustrated. "Then you go on to win the next two [rounds]
as 10-9's. Who won the fight? I beat you for ten minutes. You
beat me for ten minutes. Who won the fight?"
Unable
to provide McCarthy with an answer, Garcia again stated that
a high level of judging expertise would be required for such
an instance, and that he believed California's current candidates
would need additional training to achieve this. (Later, Garcia
would recommend the Commission not adopt the 10-minute round
in closing statements.)
Hendrick's
call for the uniformity of the sport also stimulated much Commission
dialogue during the meeting, especially from Commissioner Keller,
who had ironically been sworn onto the Board only that morning.
"Why
are you arguing so passionately for the necessity for California's
regulations to be uniform with other states? If we're out of
uniformity in these three areas, what's the impact of the sport
in the United States?" asked Commissioner Keller.
"I
think the sport doesn't evolve," Hendrick answered. "This
is obviously a big state for MMA. If you don't license it and
regulate it in a uniform manner, you harm this sport. It doesn't
evolve the way it should."
"If
you play soccer in Uruguay or Europe or Oklahoma City, you're
going play the same sport," added Hendrick. "That let's
the fans and the athletes no what to expect. If the fans know
what they're getting, then they get a fair show when they buy
a ticket. If the athlete's know what they're getting, they don't
have to be thinking in their minds ‘Can I do this' or ‘Can
I do that' during the middle of a fight. That shouldn't happen.
That's not a sport."
"In
our culture, there are different versions of sports we see everyday,"
Altavilla remarked later during his address. "In major league
baseball, we have little differences between the National League
and the American League. We see differences in college football
and the NFL, pro basketball and collegiate basketball."
"If
this state goes forward to modify MMA in the ways that are being
proposed, aren't the other states likely to fall into line and
create uniformity with California's rules?" Chairman Mears
then asked Hendrick.
"I
think you would be on the outside looking in," he answered.
"If you pass rules that are not uniform, you would get a
lot of promoters trying to do things that would have you constantly
policing them."
Due
to Commissioner Friersen's persistence (often pitting him at
odds with Chairman Mears), timing became a hot topic as well,
to the point where Chairman Mears created a timetable on the
spot, as he had done at the August 2nd meeting, to ensure these
modified regulations could make it through the system by the
December 9th fiscal deadline. Crunching the numbers, CSAC counsel
Anita Scurry accessed the modified rules could move through the
system by the last week in November if all reviewing agencies
involved utilized their mandated time periods and did not turn
the regulations back at any point for clarification or scrutiny.
It was at this time that DCA representative Nancy Hall approached
the podium.
"The
regulations that came to Director Zettel's desk were regulations
that had been going through the process and that she'd been familiar
with," Hall spoke of the non-modified version. "She
cautioned against the time frame at the last meeting, not specific
to any points of policy, but to the time frame. We have these
modifications that are before you today and the Director has
not seen or does not know them. These three points have not been
reviewed intensely by our office."
In
addition, Hall pointed out that one step of the approval process
had been omitted by Scurry, and that undeterminable amount time
must be added to Mear's time frame to allow for a review by the
DCA Agency Secretary before it could pass onto the OAL, further
jeopardizing its chance of passing through by the December 9th
fiscal deadline.
Throughout
the meeting, Chairman Mear's obvious preference towards adopting
the modifications was apparent and he reminded his colleagues
that the reason these alterations were being addressed today
was because he believed PRIDE had not been given sufficient opportunity
to present these requests at previous meetings. In conclusion,
he left his fellow Commissioners with this statement before they
moved onto the voting.
"Not
damning Mr. Hendrick or his organization, but their objections,
I believe, to these proposed modifications are proprietary,"
he stated. "Their objection to this is that there is a distinct
and separate form of fighting style provided by PRIDE that is
different than theirs and provide the consumer and customer with
a different experience. The proposed modifications will allow
PRIDE and other promoters a slightly different style of fighting
that is not the UFC's style of fighting and to that extent, will
create an alternative. That, I believe is the crux of the dispute
and why we are having all this debate."
Mears
was the sole Commission member to vote in support of Sections
512 and 513. In his role of Chairman, he was prohibited from
beginning a motion for Section 523.
"As
far as what happened today, it was unfortunate from our perspective,"
PRIDE's Altavilla commented on the Commission's majority decision
to drop the modifications. "It wasn't what we expected,
but we are very persistent and we will be bringing our event
to California next year." Altavilla clarified that this
will happen once their proposed amendments have been approved.
Source: FCF
|
Quote
of the Day
"You have to learn how to turn the tables on the ego. The
only way to forgive what is within is to forgive what seems to
be without."
From Gary Renard's book The Disappearance of the Universe
|
Ivan
Salaverry says - I Want a Rematch
JW: What's your thought process right now after your loss to
Nathan Marquardt? Are you pretty disappointed with the result?
IS:
I'm pretty disappointed. I can't beat myself up but at the same
time I didn't go in there with the same aggression that I normally
do. I'm upset with myself for respecting him too much. He's a
great guy and a great fighter but I went in there with a little
bit too much respect for him.
JW:
Did nervousness of being in such a big fight play into it as
well?
IS:
Yeah. Everything came about and there were a few variables. I
can make a million excuses but the truth is I didn't go out there
and perform. There was a lot of variables that could've played
into it. Going into a big fight, and the drama with Tito and
UFC. But there's neither here nor there. I went out there to
be technical and it hurt my style.
JW:
Do you think the decision was fair?
IS:
The decision is a decision. I mean, I wish it could have been
a draw. But that's how they do it with the ten point system.
I can't judge the fairness of it. For me, I would love to have
a rematch. I would like to show truly what I am all about.
JW:
Has UFC talked to you about coming back at some point or is your
UFC career basically on hold right now?
IS:
I talked to Dana this weekend, and I basically requested a rematch,
especially the issue that has come up regarding the steroids
use and Nate. You still have to go through the process of going
through the commission, and I requested it of Dana. I'm waiting
for the process of the commission to come through, and then I'm
going to try and get a rematch with Nate.
JW:
What are your thoughts on the steroids controversy of Marquardt?
IS:
Honestly, I don't care if he smokes crack. I really don't. We're
told not to use steroids. I train clean. Because of it, steroids
do help, recovery and strength and they help. Did it take a big
play in the match? I don't know. All I know is that if he used
it, and I didn't, there has gotta be a punishment... not a punishment,
but...
JW:
Retribution?
IS:
No, no. If you do something wrong, you have to pay for it. He
did something wrong. It's a situation. He did something wrong.
He has to pay for it. I don't care if he uses. I would love him
to have all the time to go through a suspension, and then we
could meet again. He's a nice guy. A great guy. He maybe made
a dumb choice or took supplements that had that stuff. I don't
know. I don't care. All I know is the test came back positive,
and if it did, then something there was illegal. Because of it
I believe I have the right to request a rematch. It was a very,
very close fight. I think I deserve to get a rematch, because
he did wrong. I'm not requesting him to be put in prison. I want
a rematch. I don't give a damn. I don't care if he smokes crack
on the side. I really don't.
JW:
If you're not back in UFC, what do you plan to do next?
IS:
Oh, brother, I got a few choices. I can go and train over there
with K-1 a little bit. I'm getting married soon. I plan on opening
up a gym. A few companies out there that want me to fight for
them. At the level of the UFC, not in this country. Maybe other
countries.
JW:
Any interest from Bushido in using you?
IS:
I wish brother! Tell them to call me. I would love to get the
phone call. I would K-1 as well to call to get me in the program.
Whatever is out there I'm going to be open to.
JW:
How do you think a fight with Rich Franklin would have gone if
you had ended up fighting him later this year?
IS:
It would have been fantastic. I would have faced him after the
fight againt Nate. But that's my priority. I have to worry about
facing Nate. Get my rematch, win against Nate, and think about
Rich, Tanner, Loiseau, and everyone else that is fantastic at
that weight.
JW:
What was the controversy regarding Tito Ortiz sponsoring you
on that broadcast?
IS:
The situation was that Tito came over and trained. He was the
only one that stepped up and he came to my house and trained
me. He called a few people and got me great sponsorships, including
himself. We did 1-800 Stem Cell Research and American Mortgage.
It was great. Then we turned in the sponsorship list to UFC,
and two were not allowed, Tito and the Stem Cell. The stem call
sponsor was because of controversy, although to me it was a non-controversial
issue because it comes from umbilical stem cell and not embryonic
stem cell research, which is controversial because of cloning
and things of that nature. I can't argue with Dana, and he's
being told by the network that it's too controversial. I dunno.
I think the sport itself is too controversial. But I can't argue.
Then it came to Punishment Athletics, and Dana told me in short
that they are not out to promote anything with Tito Ortiz. They
compensated me, and they did, in full. And that was that. Afterwards
there was a situation... it wasn't so much that they told me
they didn't want him to corner me. But they wanted to know if
I needed to have Tito in my corner. I didn't need to have Tito
in my corner but I wanted Tito in my corner. And they made it
very clear they wanted nothing to do with Tito. I had to go back
and tell Tito he wasn't going to be able to corner.
JW:
How did Tito react to that?
IS:
Tito was angry. It's said that they have personalized it to this
extent. These guys were great together. He was the golden body
and they were doing great with him. And look at the circumstances
now. It's weird to me because my relationship with Tito has progressed
and their relatioship with Tito has regressed. I believe Tito
has a lot to offer the UFC. I would love to have the charisma
and the drive that he has. And that you cannot deny.
JW:
Is there anything else you want to add?
IS:
No, I'm all good brother [laughs]. I want to thank my sponsors,
American Mortgage, Sprawl shorts. My fans out there, who have
been understanding and who will see me fight again. And please,
tell UFC to give me the rematch [laughs].
Source: Maxfighting
|
Couture
v. Liddell III ???
Coming
off his impressive win over Mike Van Arsdale, Randy Couture has
cemented himself as the number one contender for Chuck Liddell's
Light-Heavyweight championship. This sets the stage for the former
Champ to engage in a second epic triology, as he did with Pedro
Rizzo, as a Heavyweight
Rumors
of Quinton "Rampage" Jackson facing Liddell have been
circulating, to the point where Joe Rogan asked Liddell about
a rematch against Rampage in the UFC in Liddell's post-fight
interview after successfully defending his title against Jeremy
Horn.
Liddell
is more than willing to face Jackson again, because he wants
revenge on every fighter who has defeated him. However, at this
point it looks unlikely that Liddell-Jackson II will happen in
the near future.
Jackson
is still under contract to Pride, and it is unclear when his
contract and the no-compete clause on that contract expire. Should
Jackson become available, UFC is definitely interested in using
him.
However,
another problem that Zuffa has to get around if they choose to
sign Jackson is that both Jackson and Randy Couture are under
contract to the same management team, Triumph Entertainment.
Triumph has made it clear that they will not allow anyone in
their stable of fighters to face each other, and that rule of
course applies to both Quinton Jackson and Randy Couture.
The
problem here is that a fight between Couture and Rampage will
likely happen at some point if UFC were to fight Quinton. It's
just a matter of time, because it would be an interesting fight,
both are top fighters, and they do not have a lot of depth at
the top of the 205-pound division.
Another
factor is that Rampage will likely command a high level salary
from the UFC because of what he brings to the table in his potential
starpower, his ability in the ring and his style of fighting.
Zuffa feels that for the amount of money that they would pay
Rampage, his management team should be willing to allow him to
fight anyone Zuffa puts in front of him.
So
although the marriage of Rampage and UFC is something that most
everyone would like to see done, there are still a lot of kinks
that need to be ironed. Which, of course, also means that all
roads lead to Randy Couture vs. Chuck Liddell III.
Even
though Rampage vs. Liddell would be an exciting match and a good
headliner, the big money fight at the moment remains the third
fight between Couture and Liddell. Couture has made it clear
in interviews with maXfighting and elsewhere that he wants a
rematch with Chuck over the title.
Couture's
win over Mike Van Arsdale was his last fight on a three-fight
deal, and he will almost definitely be signing another contract
if they haven't gotten that out of the way already.
UFC
doesn't have many other contenders for the Light-Heavyweight
championship. Renato Sobral is coming off his win over Travis
Wiuff, but still needs a couple more big fights before he is
ready to be rematched against Liddell. Plus Sobral's knockout
loss to Liddell at UFC 40 doesn't exactly set waves of anticipation
for a Liddell rematch.
Horn
will remain at 205 pounds, but is of course just coming off his
loss to Liddell. Van Arsdale is coming off his loss to Couture.
UFC does not want to move Forrest Griffin and Stephan Bonnar
up the card too soon, as they are working on protecting all of
their fighters from The Ultimate Fighter. James Irvin only has
one win at 205-pounds, over Terry Martin.
All
of this leaves Zuffa with little other option that to book Liddell
vs. Couture III. It should be an exciting fight, and the finish
will be anyone's guess. With the way the schedule is set for
UFC until the end of the year, it would seem likely that this
fight could happen on the first or second card of the new year.
Source: Maxfighting
|
POSTAL
CONNECTIONS: HUNT VS. KHARITONOV
Wrestling
Viewers DO Like Real Fighting
Tuesday, August 30, 2005
Wrestling
fans are a nightmare prospect for TV marketing executives.
Sure,
millions of them tune into Raw and Smackdown each week but, as
a general rule, mat lovers never stick around to watch anything
else. The ratings surge when wrestling starts and take a huge
dip after the final bell.
No
amount of cross-promotion by the networks could retain the wrestling
audience for other programming and even WWE-owned ventures such
as the XFL and World Bodybuilding Federation were complete flops.
WWE
fans love a good fight
Wrestling
fans are a nightmare prospect for TV marketing executives.
Sure,
millions of them tune into Raw and Smackdown each week but, as
a general rule, mat lovers never stick around to watch anything
else. The ratings surge when wrestling starts and take a huge
dip after the final bell.
No
amount of cross-promotion by the networks could retain the wrestling
audience for other programming and even WWE-owned ventures such
as the XFL and World Bodybuilding Federation were complete flops.
It
was widely accepted there was no way to convert wrestling's popularity
into ratings for other forms of entertainment, until Spike TV
stumbled across the magic formula last year.
It
turns out, wrestling viewers also like real fighting.
Ultimate
Fighter -- a reality show in which wannabe fighters duke it out
for a UFC contract -- did an unprecedented job of stopping mat
fans from changing the channel after Raw. The show pulled in
huge ratings and garnered critical acclaim, making it one of
the biggest success stories in Spike TV's history.
As
is often the case with a good idea, the spin-offs began immediately.
Spike TV loaded its fall schedule with UFC fights, and the second
season of Ultimate Fighter kicked off last week.
Fox
SportsNet was the first band wagon jumper, adding Pride Fighting
Championship, a Japanese mixed martial arts group, to its rotation.
Yet
another alternative product for wrestling fans makes its debut
on pay-per-view tonight and it's likely to catch the attention
of more mainstream sports enthusiasts, too.
Hockey
Enforcers is a two hour sports entertainment event based (very
loosely) on our national pastime. The show's producers scoured
the hockey scene for the toughest players willing to take part
in a series of one-minute scraps to determine the most physical
man in the game.
No
pucks. No sticks. Just fights.
The
show is being heavily marketed towards grappling fans, including
a ton of advertising on the Fan 960's Live Audio Wrestling show.
For
fight promoters, it's a best of both worlds scenario. Fighting
tends to attract higher profile advertisers than pro-wrestling
but they can still tap into grappling's fan base, which is already
conditioned to buy pay-per-views on a regular basis.
Which
is why, as the idea catches on with TV industry big wigs, wrestling
fans are likely to have more non-wrestling options than ever.
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- -
WALLS
ON HIATUS: Chris Jericho confirmed this week what everyone has
know for the past few months -- he is done with WWE, at least
for now.
In
a statement on his website, Jericho announced he had been written
out of the storylines on Raw to allow him to focus on his music
career and pursue acting opportunities.
Jericho
made it clear he would not wrestle for any other group and will
return to WWE if and when the time is right.
-
- -
IN
DEBT: NVE pharmaceuticals, the makers of the Stacker 2 nutritional
supplement and a major WWE sponsor, filed for bankruptcy protection
earlier this month. The group owed WWE more than $2 million US
at the time of the filing, likely including monies for TV ad
time, event sponsorship and the appearance of several WWE stars
in commercials for Stacker 2.
NVE
fell into debt after being served more than 100 wrongful death
and injury lawsuits over the Stacker 2 supplement.
-
- -
HUGE
NIGHT: SummerSlam is traditionally the second biggest pay-per-view
of the wrestling year and the 2005 edition was another solid
show.
Match
of the night honours went to Eddie Guerrero vs. Rey Mysterio
for a phenomenal ladder match and Chris Jericho vs. John Cena
for a fun world title tilt that really got the crowd going.
Hulk
Hogan and Shawn Michaels delivered as well as could be expected
in the main event slot, with Hogan getting the win after his
usual routine.
Next
up for WWE is Unforgiven, headlined by a John Cena title defence
against Kurt Angle, on Sep. 18.
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- -
SEIZE
THE DAY: Starting this fall, Canadian viewers could catch Smackdown
a day before their U.S. counterparts.
UPN
-- the American network which broadcasts Smackdown -- will move
the highly rated 2-hour wrestling block to a Friday time slot
next month, in an attempt to repackage their Thursday lineup
as the new must-see comedy night.
Here
in Canada, The Score is still scheduling Smackdown for a Thursday
night airing, which means the show will be available a day before
.
Although
the show is pre-taped on Tuesday each week, the announcers call
the action as if it is live on the U.S. air date, which may cause
some continuity problems with an earlier Canadian broadcast.
Source: Maxfighting
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Villaver
International Productions Presents
"Night of the Hawaiian Punch!"
Pro Boxing is Back in Hawaii!
Neal Blaisdell
Arena
September 6, 2005
Fights start at 7:30 PM
Tickets are available at all ticketmaster locations, Blaisdell
box office
Charge by phone at 1-877-750-4400 or www.ticketmaster.com
Guests scheduled to attend include former WBA World Jr. Lightweight
Champion Ven Villaflor & former WBA World Jr. Featherweight
Champion "the Hawaiian Punch" Jesus Salud.
Main Event 10 Rounds
WBO World
Champion
Ratanachai Sor Vorapin (Bangkok, Thailand)
vs.
Pedro Melco Jr (Asia Pacific No 6 Ranked from Zamboanga, Philippines
Co-Main Event
6 Rounds
Kosol Sor Vorapin (Bangkok, Thailand)
vs.
Dustin
Kim (Mililani, Hawaii)
Phom Sor Vorapin (Bangkok, Thailand)
vs.
Michael
Balasi (Honolulu, Hawaii)
Travis
Tandal (Kaimuki, Hawaii)
vs.
Aaron Carvalho
(Hilo, Hawaii)
Kaleo
Kwan (Waimanalo, Hawaii)
vs.
Edwin Navarro
(Honolulu, Hawaii)
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