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(All events on Oahu, unless noted)
2008
6/5-8/08
World Jiu-Jitsu Championsihps
(BJJ)
(Long Beach, CA)
3/28-30/08
Pan Jiu-Jitsu Championship
(BJJ)
(Carson, CA)
2/08
OTM Grappling Tournament?
1/26/08
NAGA Hawaii
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(Location TBA)
Tentative
2007
11/23/07
Kickin It / Hawaii's Most Wanted
(Kickboxing, Various)
(Filcom Center, Waipahu)
Hawaii Fighting Championships 4
(Kickboxing & MMA)
(Dole Cannery Ballroom)
11/18/07
The Quest for Champions 2007 II
(Sport-Pankration, Submission-Grappling, Continuous Sparring)
(St. Louis High School Gym)
11/17/07
Kickin It / Hawaii's Most Wanted
(Kickboxing, Various)
(Filcom Center, Waipahu)
11/11/07
Aloha
State Championship of BJJ
(BJJ/Sub Grappling)
(Klum Gym UH Manoa)
10/27/07
Freedom Fighting
"Battle on the Base"
(MMA)
(Kahunas Ballroom, MCBH, Kaneohe)
10/26/07
Kickin It / Hawaii's Most Wanted
(Kickboxing, Various)
(Filcom Center, Waipahu)
X-1 Presents
Fight Club Meets The Night Club
(MMA)
(O Lounge Night Club, Honolulu)
10/19/07
Hawaii Fight League
(MMA)
(Dole Cannery)
10/6/07
Gracie Proving Ground
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
9/28/07
Hawaii's Most Wanted
(Kickboxing, Various)
(Filcom Center, Waipahu)
9/15/07
Elite XC
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
September
Gracie Fighting Championships
(MMA)
9/8/07
UFC
75
(02 Arena in London, England)
(PPV)
Hawaii Fighting Championships 4
(Kickboxing & MMA)
(Dole Cannery Ballroom)
8/31/07
Fighters Journey
Pro-Am MMA Event
(MMA)
(tba)
X-1 Presents
Fight Club Meets The Night Club
(MMA)
(O Lounge, Honolulu)
8/25/07
UFC
74: Respect
(Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada )
(PPV)
8/23-25/07
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World Championshihps
(BJJ)
(The Pyramid, Long Beach, CA)
8/12/07
Punishment
In Paradise 17
(MMA & Kickboxing)
(Hawaiian Waters, Kapolei)
***Postponed***
8/10/07
Hawaii's Most Wanted
(Filcom Center, Waipahu)
8/4/07
X-1
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
Island Warriors Fighting Championship
(MMA)
(Maui War Memorial Gym, Wailuku, Maui)
7/28/07
Maui
Jiu-Jitsu Tournament
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(Maui War Memorial Gymnasium, Wailuku, Maui)
7/21/07
Garden Island Cage Match 6: Caged Fury
(Kickboxing, MMA)
(Hanapepe Stadium, Kauai)
Palolo Boxing Club & Kawano Boxing Club
presents amateur boxing
(Boxing)
(Palolo Gym)
7/14/07
Patriot Fighting Championships
(MMA & Kickboxing)
(Kaneohe Marine Corps Base)
***Postponed***
7/13/07
Hawaii Fighting Championships: Stand Your Ground 3
(Kickboxing & MMA)
(Dole Cannery Ballroom)
7/8/07
Dan Henderson Seminar
(MMA)
(O2
Martial Arts Academy, Aiea)
7/7/07
UFC
73: Stacked
(PPV)
7/1/07
Mike Swain Seminar
(Judo)
(O2
Martial Arts Academy, Aiea)
6/30/07
Icon Sport: Fearless
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
***Postponed
to 9/15***
6/29/07
MMA Contendors: Conflict - The Beginning
(MMA)
(Farrington H.S. Gym)
X-1 Presents
Fight Club Meets The Night Club
(MMA)
(O Lounge Night Club, Honolulu)
6/23/06
Ultimate Fight Night
(BJ Penn vs Jens Pulver)
(Spike TV)
6/23/07
Hawaiian
Open of BJJ
(BJJ/Sub Grappling)
(Klum Gym UH Manoa)
6/22/07
Got
Skills
(Kickboxing/MMA)
(Waipahu Filcom)
6/16/07
UFC 72: Victory
(PPV)
6/12/07
UFC
Fight Night
(MMA)
(Spike Oceanic 559)
6/3/07
The Quest for Champions 2007
(Sport-Pankration, Submission-Grappling, Continuous Sparring
and Sport-Jujitsu)
(Saint Louis High School Gym)
5/27/07
Benefit Concert for the 2007 Hawaii Junior Olympic Boxing Team
(Ewa Ranch, Ewa Beach)
5/26/07
UFC
71 Liddell vs Rampage
(MMA)
(PPV Oceanic 701)
Memorial Day Mayhem
(Kickboxing)
(Kalaheo High School Gym)
5/19/07
Kickin it
(Kickboxing)
(Waipahu Filcom Center)
5/12/07
Punishment In Paradise: Untouchables
(Kickboxing)
(Hawaiian Waters, Kapolei)
USA-Boxing Hawaii Fundraising Event
(Boxing)
(Palolo Gym)
5/5/07
ROTR Qualifer: Beat Down 3
(MMA)
(Hilo Civic Center, Hilo)
4/28/07
Pride
Fighting Championships:
(PPV)
(Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas, NV)
Maui MMA Event
(MMA)
(Maui)
K-1 World GP
(Kickboxing)
(Honolulu)
4/27/07
XMA
(MMA, Kickboxing)
**Cancelled**
4/24/07
Professional Boxing
(Boxing)
(Waipahu Filcom Center)
4/20/07
Kickin It 2007 Part 3
(Kickboxing)
(Filcom Center, Waipahu)
4/7/07
Got Skills
(Kickboxing)
(Waipahu Filcom Center)
Papakolea Jiu-Jitsu Club Tournament
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(King Intermediate, Kaneohe)
4/6/07
Hawaii Fighting Championships: Stand Your Ground 3
(MMA)
(Dole Cannery Ballroom)
4/5/07
Ultimate
Fight Night
(Spike TV)
3/31/07
Icon Sport
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
3/25/07
Kickboxing Benefit Event for Mrs. Faagai
(Kickboxing)
(Waianae H.S. Gym)
3/24/07
Garden Island Cage Match
5
(MMA)
(Kauai)
The 2007
Hawaii State/Regional Junior Olympic Championships (Boxing)
(Palolo District Park)
UFC:
Tito Ortiz vs. Dana White boxing match
(Nevada)
*Cancelled*
3/17/07
X-1
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
Island Warriors
(MMA)
(Maui War Memorial)
3/13/07
Ultimate
Fight Night
(Spike TV)
3/10/07
Hawaiian Championship of BJJ
(BJJ/Sub Grappling)
(Klum Gym UH Manoa)
3/3/07
UFC 68
(PPV)
(Columbus, Ohio)
Kickin It
(Kickboxing)
(Waipahu Filcom)
2/24/07
Pride Fighting Championships:
(PPV)
(Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas, NV)
2/17/06
Got
Skills
(Kickboxing/MMA)
(Waipahu Filcom)
2/16-17/07
USA-Boxing Hawaii State & Regional Championships
(Boxing)
(Palolo District Park Gym)
2/16/07
Punishment
In Paradise 15
(MMA & Kickboxing)
(Hawaiian Waters)
2/9/07
Icon Sports
(MMA & Kickboxing)
(Blaisdell Arena)
2/3/07
UFC
67
(Lutter vs Silva)
(PPV)
2/2/06
Got
Skills & Kickin' It
(Kickboxing/MMA)
(Waipahu Filcom)
1/23/07
Ultimate
Fight Night
(Spike TV)
1/20/07
IFL
(MMA)
1/14/07
NAGA Hawaii
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(St. Louis H.S. Gym)
1/13/07
USA Boxing Amateur Boxing
(Boxing)
(Palolo Gym)
1/12/07
K-1 Dynamite
(MMA)
(PPV, 5:00 PM Ch: 701)
|
|
October 2007 News
Part 2
|
Casca Grossa Jiu-Jitsu
is now the O2 Martial Arts Academy with 6 days a week training!
We are also offering Escrima (stick fighting) on Monday nights
and Kickboxing Tuesday and Thursday!
Click
here for info!
Take classes from the Onzuka brothers in a family-like environment! |
 
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price, click on one of these banners above! |
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The Toughest Show On
Teleivision
Tuesdays at 7:00PM
***NEW TIME***
Olelo Channel 52 on Oahu
Akaku on Maui
Check
out the FCTV website! |
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an email.
Onzuka.com
Hawaii Underground Forum is Online!
Chris, Mark,
and I wanted to start an official Onzuka.com forum for a while
now. We were searching for the best forum to go with and hit
a gold mine! We have known Kirik, who heads the largest and most
popular forum on the net, The Underground for years.
He
offered us our own forum within the matrix know as MMA.tv. The
three of us will be the moderators with of course FCTV808 being
the lead since he is on there all day anyway!
We
encourage everyone from Hawaii and our many readers around world
to contribute to the Hawaii Underground.
If you do not have a login, it's simple and fast to get one.
Click here to set up an account.
Don't worry about using Pidgin English in the posting. After
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To
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|
Quote
of the Day
"To
be a champ, you have to believe in yourself when nobody else
will."
Sugar Ray Robinson, 1921-1989, American Boxer
|
Full
Force On Maui!
Tonight!
Maui War Memorial
Gym
Listen to Kawika Veeka on 98.3 FM for the latest info on this
fight card loaded with local Maui fighters!
|
UFC
77: Hostile Territory Today!
UFC 77 odds
The latest odds according to Bodog Life:
Anderson
Silva: -190
Rich Franklin: +155
Brandon
Vera: -165
Tim Sylvia: +135
Stephan
Bonnar: -325
Eric Schafer: +250
Jorge
Gurgel: -165
Alvin Robinson: +135
Alan
Belcher: -115
Kalib Starnes: -115
Yushin
Okami: -205
Jason MacDonald: +165
Josh
Burkman: -360
Forrest Petz: +280
Jason
Black: -450
Matt Grice: +300
Source: Fight Opinion
UFC 77:
Hostile Territory Preview
By Robert Rousseau
After UFC 65: Bad Intentions, Tim Sylvia, amidst a chorus of
boos after defeating Jeff “The Snowman” Monson, said,
“looks as though Brandon Vera is in my way. So Brandon,
I hope you bring it. I'm gonna knock your ass out."
Just
one UFC earlier, Rich “Ace” Franklin was attempting
to explain what happened after getting absolutely demolished
by Anderson “The Spider” Silva. Here’s the part
that made sense: “I was not expecting him (Silva) to be
that strong in the clinch. I expected it to be my sweet spot
(the clinch) and it gave me a lot of trouble."
Enough
talk, though. UFC 77: Hostile Territory coming to us from the
U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati, Ohio, will bring us the rematch
between Silva and Franklin as well as the long talked about fight
between Vera and Sylvia and much more. Thus, the age- old question:
How will the fights go down?
Rich
“Ace” Franklin vs. Anderson “The Spider”
Silva
What
Rich Franklin brings to the table (22-2, 11 (T)KO’s and
nine submissions): Franklin is one of the best fighters in this
weight class. He possesses outstanding cardio, freakish strength,
better than average technical striking skills with very good
power, and strong takedown/ takedown defense.
He
even has very strong and underrated submission skills.
In
terms of toughness, he’s solid. However, Franklin does not
have that natural ‘can’t be knocked out’ kind
of chin. In other words, if he gets hit solid by the likes Anderson
Silva, it could be all she wrote.
Then
again, isn’t that the case for everybody?
What
Anderson Silva brings to the table (19-4, 11 (T)KO’s and
three submissions): Silva is the greatest technical Muay Thai
style striker in this division, period. In fact, an argument
can be made that he’s the best technical striker in the
game today in any division.
Even
more specifically, the UFC Middleweight Champion demonstrates
outstanding power on his feet and a long reach. He uses his legs
and knees as well as anyone. Beyond that, he’s never been
knocked out and has very good jiu-jitsu/ submission skills (including
an outstanding guard). From a wrestling perspective, his takedowns
aren’t anything to write home about; but he does have better
than average takedown defense.
Prediction:
Okay, Silva has more ways to win this one; he just has more tools.
If the fight stays on the feet for any length of time, Franklin
may be in trouble here. Though he’s got the power to do
damage, he simply doesn’t possess the same level of technical
striking skills. In other words, he’s unlikely to get that
one big shot off before eating too many of them himself.
On
the ground, people are underestimating Franklin’s jiu-jitsu/
submission defense. He will not be easy pickings for Silva at
all. That said, Silva does have a shot, albeit a mild one, to
end this fight via submission. Franklin, on the other hand, probably
has even less of shot at a submission (though it is possible).
So
what’s Franklin’s best chance? Ground and pound. He
needs to get Silva on his back and move to side control. Then
pound away. If he’s able to accomplish this, he could definitely
leave with the belt.
Still,
Silva has the better jiu-jitsu (though only mildly) and striking
skills. Franklin only has the better wrestling skills. Though
Franklin has a better chance than people are giving him credit
for here, the realistic guess says. . .
Silva
via KO in round three.
Brandon “The Truth” Vera vs. Tim Sylvia
What
Brandon Vera brings to the table (8-0, six (T)KO’s, one
submission): Vera is an undefeated mixed martial artist with
enough confidence for two fighters. Perhaps that confidence is
founded because he’s torn up UFC opponents like Fabiano
Scherner (TKO), Justin Eilers (KO), Assuerio Silva (guillotine
choke), and Frank Mir (TKO) rather easily.
Vera
is highly athletic. Further, he’s an excellent stand up
fighter that possesses very sharp low kicks and the ability to
put together ferocious punching combinations when need be. Fortunately
for Vera, he also has outstanding jiu-jitsu/ submission skills.
That
said, he is only 225 pounds and has never been past the second
round in an MMA bout.
What
Tim Sylvia brings to the table (23-3, 16 (T)KO’s and two
submissions): Size. Sylvia is listed at 6-foot-8, 260 pounds.
Further, he often has to drop weight in order to make the UFC
heavyweight maximum of 265. However, Sylvia is not all about
size. Actually, he’s a very technically sound and tough
fighter. In fact, Sylvia puts the ‘T’ in tough when
you think about it. After all, how many people do you know that
have eaten one of Frank Mir’s armbars, had his arm broken
because of it, and complained when the fight was stopped?
More
specifically, the former champ has very sound technical striking
skills and hits like a truck. In addition, he's got underrated
takedown skills—remember how easily he took Frank Mir down
before getting armbarred?—and better than solid takedown
defense. He’s also gone the distance several times and comes
to fight in shape.
His
submission skills aren’t necessarily strong. After all,
he only has two submission victories to his credit. That said,
his submission defense has improved dramatically over the years
as he showed against Jeff “The Snowman” Monson, a top
tier jiu-jitsu guy, when they fought. Further, he almost caught
Monson in a couple of viable attempts himself.
Sylvia’s
main weakness is his athleticism. The man from Maine is not very
explosive, nor quick. In addition, as Randy “The Natural”
Couture aptly pointed out before their match up, Sylvia has recently
seemed to be fighting not to lose rather than to win. Will he
be a different man now that he’s lost the belt?
Prediction:
On one hand, Vera’s athleticism will probably give Sylvia
problems on his feet. However, Sylvia’s size and reach will
probably give Vera problems there as well. In terms of ground
fighting, well, unless Sylvia wants the fight to go there it
probably won’t. After all, Vera does not have Couture’s
takedowns and most other fighters have found it quite hard getting
the former UFC Heavyweight Champion to the ground.
Thus,
expect this fight to mostly stay on the feet. Vera will be aggressive;
that’s simply his style. However, that aggressiveness could
serve to hurt or help his chances. After all, Arlovski came out
aggressive against Sylvia in their second fight and paid for
it big time.
In
the end, this one is tough to call. If Sylvia comes out tentative,
Vera will either win a decision or knock him out. But I don’t
think that will be the case. Expect Sylvia to stay on his feet
with this one, land a few power shots, and eventually capitalize
with a hard one borne of Vera’s over aggressiveness and
frustration over his opponent’s reach in the later rounds
(where Vera has yet to venture).
Sylvia
by TKO in round three.
The
Best of the Rest
Kalib
Starnes (8-1-1) vs. Alan Belcher (10-3): This is a very evenly
matched fight. In the past when Starnes had been pushed into
a longer, tough fight he’s lost (Grove on TUF and Okami).
However, against Leben he came through recently, indicating that
he’s grown somewhat in that regard. Belcher is a tough hombre,
but Starnes may have too much on the ground.
Starnes
by decision.
Eric
Schafer (7-2-2) vs. Stephan Bonnar (10-4): A lot of people are
calling for the upset here, thinking that Schafer will take Bonnar
down and submit him. Here’s the thing, Schafer will have
a harder time taking Bonnar down than people think—he does
not have Rashad Evans’ takedown skills—and besides,
Bonnar is pretty good on the ground. In the end, expect this
one to go the distance.
Bonnar
via decision.
Yushin
Okami (20-4) vs. Jason MacDonald (19-8): This could be an excellent
fight. If Okami stays cautious like he did against Rich Franklin,
he could lose a decision. But don’t figure on that. In the
end, Okami is very hard to submit and may just be too strong
once the fight gets to the ground. Expect him to dictate the
positioning there.
Okami
via TKO in round three due to strikes on the ground.
Alvin
Robinson (8-2) vs. Jorge Gurgel (11-2): Robinson is excellent
and aggressive. However, he’s lost in his only Octagon experience.
Gurgel is tough and is fighting in front of a crowd that will
be heavy on his side but sometimes seems to be too concerned
with being tough—which he is—and not enough about being
smart in the Octagon.
I
went back and forth with this one several times.
Gurgel
via decision.
Josh
Burkman (8-4) vs. Forrest Petz (13-4): Petz is good, but Burkman
should be able to get him to the ground and take the fight to
him there.
Burkman
wins via submission in round two.
Matt
Grice (8-1) vs. Jason Black (21-3-1): Black has a big time experience
advantage here, but Grice is the better wrestler. Can Black win
this one from his back?
I
don’t think so. Here’s the upset special.
Grice
via decision.
Demian
Maia (5-0) vs. Ryan Jensen (11-2): Two very good submission fighters.
One has more MMA experience. But I’ve got a feeling about
Maia.
Maia
via submission in round three.
Source: MMA Fighting
|
FRANKLIN
CHANGES UP FOR REMATCH WITH SILVA
by Jeff Cain
Former Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight champion Rich
Franklin has adjusted his focus and preparation for his rematch
with current champ, Anderson Silva. He hopes to avenge the loss
and regain the belt Saturday night at UFC 77 before his hometown
fans in Cincinnati.
He
made a few changes leading up to the fight though. Instead of
training at home as he normally does, Franklin took his training
camp on the road for the final three weeks of preparation into
the seclusion of Wyoming.
"For
this fight, I took the entire camp out of Cincinnati,” he
said. “Since the fight was in Cincinnati, it was very distracting
being in my hometown. So we left, came out to the mountains (and)
trained some altitude.
"I
brought Matt Hume out with me, which is something that's an addition,
as well as the coaches that I've been working with. And we've
made some changes."
He
continued, " It's been most refreshing … because I'm
not in the middle of the city with all the distractions. There's
a lot of local media and things that were taking up my time.
Being out here in Wyoming, it's a small town, and I tell you
what, there's not anything to do out here but train."
Franklin
new what he was up against as far as the distractions that come
into play fighting close to home when he faced Jason MacDonald
in nearby Columbus, Ohio earlier this year in March.
“The
thing is, the amount of PR work that I had to do for (UFC 68)
was a lot compared to stuff that I would do when I was fighting
in Vegas. The difference is that when I was in Columbus, I was
still an hour and a half away from that city,” explained
the former champion. “Here, everything is in my backyard,
so even if I don't pick up the phone and stuff like that, I still
have media outlets showing up to workouts, and fans coming in
and stopping by, and things like that. All of that stuff becomes
a distraction, so it's just easier to get out of town and shut
it all down than it is to be there.
"My
concern was that kind of stuff would have a much larger impact
because it would be at such a higher volume. It was easier to
get out of town and make sure that I stayed focused.”
He
also did a little more homework for this fight than he did the
first time around with Silva.
"I
think in the initial fight, at the time, I believed I put the
time in that I should have into studying him. And I didn't,”
he commented on the increased amount of time studying video of
his opponent. “We've done a lot better job this time breaking
down film and everything."
Despite
a change in scenery and the addition of Hume to the mix, Franklin
doesn’t plan on a drastic change of direction when fight
time comes.
"As
far as this fight goes, I'm going to walk out there and start
throwing punches like I always do. Of course I have a game plan,
but ultimately I'm going to take the path of least resistance.
If that means keeping it (standing), fine. If we end up on the
ground then that's fine as well."
Whether
or not the adjustments to his training camp and preparation will
pay off, everyone will find out on Saturday night when the Octagon
door is closed inside U.S. Bank Arena.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Fedor
vs Couture: Possible?
CFC representative says it is
A
lot went on last week and in a way it's sad for MMA lovers. The
news that Fedor had signed with M-1 was accompanied by Randy
Couture's leaving thethe UFC. The official allegation of the
American veteran was that there could only be one reason for
fighting, if he were to fight the one considered the best in
the world, referring to the Russian. However, today a representative
for Cage Fighting Championship Crawford Grimsley declared to
the site businesswire.com that he would do everything possible
to make the dream fight happen.
“The
CFC will put up a $3,000,000 purse to bring the Couture vs Emelianenko
fight to Pay-Per-View. $1,000,000 will be guaranteed to each
fighter while the winner takes home an additional cool million,
making this the largest single purse for any one MMA fight. We
are willing to sit down with any and all parties necessary to
make this fight happen including the UFC, Randy Couture, the
Gersh Agency, Fedor Emelianenko, his manager Vadim Finkelstein
and M-1,” said the former boxer.
Besides
the mountain of money to convince the fighters, the event has
as a triumph the fact that they do not want to demand of the
fighters exclusivity or any type of imposition, as the UFC demanded
of Fedor, causing a disagreement between the two parties.
“I
don’t know who set up the current MMA system of sanctioning
bodies locking fighters into exclusive long term contracts. I
do know who is out to change this system though, we are, the
CFC. We are not going to try to reinvent the wheel, but we would
like to add a little of the business model that professional
boxing has adopted for decades. Can you imagine if professional
boxing would not allow champion to fight champion. How many great
boxing matches would we have missed?” said Crawford in finishing.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Jake
Shields Update
By Brian Knapp
Jack
Shields, father and manger to EliteXC welterweight Jake Shields,
revealed Wednesday that neither he nor his son has had contact
with the UFC this year. The younger Shields, who has one fight
remaining on his current contract, will collide with veteran
Mike Pyle at the next EliteXC event Saturday, Nov. 10 at the
America Bank Center in Corpus Christi, Texas.
A
jump to the UFC remains a possibility but is far from a forgone
conclusion, according to Shields’ father.
“Jake
wants to fight the best guys out there, and right now, six of
the top 10 guys at his weight are in the UFC,” Jack Shields
said. “We like Elite. They’re treating us good, and
they’re making us a very fair offer to re-sign. We haven’t
even contacted the UFC this year.”
The
elder Shields did confirm, however, that his son has had discussions
with the UFC in the past. “The UFC contacted Jake a couple
of times last year,” he said. “The first time he had
a fight coming in two weeks. The second time he was already under
contract with somebody else.”
Shields
(19-4-1) has not lost a fight in nearly three years, as he has
quietly climbed up the welterweight ladder. The Cesar Gracie
protégé has reeled off eight consecutive wins,
a string that includes victories over current UFC middleweight
contender Yushin Okami, former UFC middleweight champion Dave
Menne and current WEC welterweight champion Carlos Condit. He
stopped Renato
Verissimo on
a first-round TKO at EliteXC “Uprising” in September.
Source: The Fight Network
|
Marc
Ecko supporting M-1?
If you have not yet signed up for the brand new MMA HQ Fighter
Rankings site, go sign up. First-day turn out was great and I
want to see as many readers as possible sign up. I think Dr.
J is building an excellent project here.
Just
asking… Monte Cox was pretty quick in publicly stating that
he would not work with the IFL any longer. Rarely does an agent
with his business smarts shut the door on someone in the fight
industry so quickly and so publicly. Where does Monte stand in
relation to M-1? Is he going to be a part of M-1? Fedor will
be at a press conference this Monday. Take a look at who Steve
Sievert names - Marc Ecko, as in the Marc Ecko who spent $750,000
USD on Barry Bonds’ 756 HR baseball and did an online vote
to determine whether or not he should put an asterisk on the
baseball and send it to Cooperstown.
A
second opinion about UFC’s financial situation:
It
looks to me like the Fertitas and Dana White “cashed out”
and purposely switched to a very risky capital structure. Can’t
say I blame them; they get to keep all the upside potential of
the company while passing off the downside to their lender. This
sort of thing often proceeds a bankruptcy. It signals to me that
Zuffa’s owners may not be all that confident in the long-term
profitability of the company.
Source: Fight Opinion
|
Quote
of the Day
"They've
finally come up with the perfect office computer.
If it makes a mistake, it blames another computer."
Milton Berle, 1908-2002, American Comedian
|
Hawaii
Fight League
Tonight!
Friday,
October 19, 2007
Dole Cannery Ballroom
Doors Open at 6:00 PM
|
Full
Force On Maui!
Tomorrow!
Maui War Memorial
Gym
Listen to Kawika Veeka on 98.3 FM for the latest info on this
fight card loaded with local Maui fighters!
|
CAGE
RAGE UPDATE
ProElite Announces Drug Testing for Cage Rage
By FCF Staff
ProElite
has announced that the organization will begin testing for drugs
in athletes that compete at Cage Rage events. According to an
Elite XC news release sent out, the upcoming “Elite XC Presents
Cage Rage 24”, December 1st event, will be the first Cage
Rage event in which some of the promotion’s fighters will
be tested for drugs.
“Anybody
that knows me knows that my No. 1 priority is the health and
safety of the athletes,’’ Elite XC Live Events President
Gary Shaw was quoted in the release as saying. “I wholeheartedly
agree and support Cage Rage’s decision. This ensures that
the highest safety standards will be in place each and every
time a fighter competes in an EliteXC, Cage Rage fight card in
Britain.’’
The
statement furthered that any fighter that appears on the British
promotion will be subject to random testing which includes checking
for anabolic steroids, stimulants, marijuana and cocaine. All
title fight participants will be tested.
Shaw
also announced that MRI scans and ophthalmologic inspections
will be introduced in 2008.
ProElite,
the parent company of Elite XC, acquired Britain’s Cage
Rage promotion earlier this year. Cage Rage 24, which will take
place December 1st in London, England, will be headlined by a
middleweight fight between Murilo Rua and Xavier Foupa-Pokam.
Some of the other bouts scheduled for the card include; Evangelista
Santos vs. Paul Cahoon, Drew Fickett vs. Mark Weir, Brad Pickett
vs. Ronnie Mann and Mark Epstein vs. Mark Watson.
Source: FCF
|
RIGGS
OUT OF STRIKEFORCE TOURNEY
Joe Riggs will not be one of the four contestants to compete
in California’s first regulated four-man tournament scheduled
for Nov. 16’s Strikeforce “Four Man Enter, One Man
Survives” event at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif.
Yahoo!
Sports had reported that Riggs and Falaniko Vitale were the first
two fighters selected to potentially pull double duty for one
night in the cage. Riggs declined the slot, however, and will
seek a single fight on the card instead.
Riggs
(27-9) and Vitale (24-7) both turned in dominating first-round
victories at Strikeforce’s “Strikeforce at the Mansion”
event on Sept. 29 at the Playboy Mansion in Beverly Hills, Calif.
Riggs stifled fellow heavy hitter Eugene Jackson (15-8-1) with
a barrage of merciless punches on that mat.
“It’s
a timing thing,” said Riggs’ manager Scott Lewis. “He
just fought two weeks ago and he doesn’t want to step into
the cage two times in one night. We’re speaking with Scott
Coker [Strikeforce’s promoter] to see if we can get him
a single fight that night. He loves working with Strikeforce
and is looking to get on that card.”
Riggs
recently left the representation of Ken Pavia, with MMA Agents.
Source: The Fight Network
|
Kang
vs. Akiyama booked
HERO’s 10/28 Seoul, South Korea card line-up:
Yoshihiro Akiyama vs. Denis Kang, Yoon Dong Sik vs. Fabio Silva,
Kin Tai Ei vs. Zelg Galesic, Yoshihisa Yamamoto vs. Lee Tae Hyun,
Minowaman vs. Kim Min-Soo, Carlos Newton vs. Shungo Oyama, Bernard
Ackah vs. Poai Suganuma, and Marcelo Garcia vs. Kim Dae Won.
Source: Fight Opinion
|
Team
Link ready for Paulao
The Brazilian will represent his new team in coming fight
Team
Link welcomes Paulao Filho with open arms. The one guaranteeing
it is Marco Alvan, black belt founder of the team also includes
the beast of the UFC Gabriel Napao. Paulao has not yet moved
definitively, however, he will soon travel to Ludlow, Massachussetts
(team’s home base) and begin training for his next fight
on December 12. Despite his not having official confirmation
from the owners of the WEC, it is very likely his opponent for
middleweight belt will be the American Frank Trigg (15 w and
6 l). Leader of Paulao’s new team, the black belt Marco
Alvan spoke exclusively to GRACIEMAG.com about the deal with
Paulao and Napao’s recovery for his next fight.
“This
deal happened by chance. Paulao came hear to teach some seminars
and classes, after a little while we became friends and he became
interested in the structure we’ve put together, from the
city to the level of our team, which has a really good new crop
coming up. That was when we decided to put together a formal
partnership, with him training here and representing us. He will
certainly make us stronger. He should be here to watch the next
UFC, and he is already preparing for his next fight. We have
excellent trainers here and we will help him to do well,”
said the leader of Team Link.
Alvan
also spoke about Napao’s recovery, after having been defeated
by Randy Couture in the fight for the heavyweight belt in August.
“Napao is coming along well. We put together a really strong
training routine for him and in January or February he will be
back in the rings for another big fight, as his head is up and
he is very confident. God willing he will be the heavyweight
champion of the UFC. His fight with Couture was spectacular,
despite the accidental head butt that broke his nose, Gabriel
was a warrior and held out even with the injury. He was praised
a lot and is certainly of the most prized fighters in the organization,"
the trainer guaranteed.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Bodog
Fight to Sponsor SportFight
For Immediate Release
Forward this News
Fight Fans
This will be our best show to date. Help us fill the arena and
show Bodog that the NW can support a big show, and they will
continue to support Sportfight by providing big names to come
to the Rose Garden. Help us by forwarding this on to all your
friends who are sports fans let everyone know. Thank you for
your support see you all next Saturday night Oct 27th
Matt Lindland
Sportfight President
October 18 , 2007
Mixed
martial arts powerhouse Bodog Fight is teaming up with an organization
founded by two of the biggest names in the sport.
Bodog
Fight will sponsor the next event by Oregon-based SportFight,
an up-and-coming MMA promotion founded by Team Quest marvels
Randy "The Natural" Couture and Matt "The Law"
Lindland.
Bodog
Fight Presents: SportFight 20, The Homecoming will take place
October 27 at the Rose Garden in Portland, Oregon. The co-main
events will feature Bodog Fight's Chael Sonnen (20-8-1) and Kyacey
"Ice Cold" Uscola (13-9) in a middleweight bout, and
a welterweight battle between Chris "The Professor"
Wilson (13-3) and Derrick Noble (22-9-1).
"We
are delighted to be working with SportFight," said Bodog
Fight's billionaire creator Calvin Ayre. "Joining forces
will allow us to bring some of the world's best mixed martial
arts fighters to fans in the Portland area."
"As
a Bodog fighter myself, I know first hand how Calvin Ayre and
the Bodog Fight team operate," said Lindland, President
of SportFight, LLC. "They are a first-class organization
and all of us at SportFight are thrilled they are on board for
what promises to be a fantastic homecoming for us in Portland."
The
stacked card also boasts a slew of local fighters from Oregon
and Washington State, including heavyweights Josh Bennett (2-0)
and George Slater (2-0), Andy Eiccholz (6-2) and Travis Bell
(4-2).
Joining
Sonnen and Uscola in middleweight action will be "Judo"
Jon Krohn (4-10) and Cory Devela (5-1) along with Tyson Griffin
(9-1) and Josh Burnham (3-3).
Wilson
and Noble are joined by welterweights Mike Dolce (4-3), Michael
Pierce (4-0), and newcomer Nathan Coy (0-0), whose opponent is
TBA.
Lightweights
include Enoch "The Animal" Wilson (12-4-1) and Gerald
"The Finishing Machine" Strebendt (8-6), with Dave
Jansen (4-0) squaring off against Dennis Parks (4-0).
Featherweight
action features Ian Loveland (14-7) taking on Andy Lukesh (7-1),
and Will Shutt (5-3) facing off against Eddie Dahlen (3-0).
About
Bodog Fight
Since
its inception in 2006, Bodog Fight has become one of the heavy-hitters
in the world of mixed martial arts. Created by billionaire entertainment
mogul and longtime MMA enthusiast, Calvin Ayre, Bodog Television's
Bodog Fight series offers viewers a unique combination of action
and allure from exotic locations throughout the world. Bodog
Fight can be viewed in 100 million homes across North America
and around the world on bodoglife.net. Some of Bodog Television's
other programs include: a poker lifestyle and reality show, Calvin
Ayre Wild Card Poker , and an international million-dollar band
search competition, Bodog Battle. For more information, contact
Media Relations at 1-866-892-3371, or fightpr@bodoglife.net.
BODOG is a registered trademark.
About
SportFight
Founded
in 2003 by Matt Lindland and Randy Couture, SportFight is the
foremost mixed martial arts promotion in the northwestern United
States. Together with its subsidiary brands, "Proving Grounds"
and "Clash at the Casino," SportFight has produced
more than 30 live MMA events in Oregon, Nevada and Colorado,
providing a showcase for the sport's most exciting athletes.
An extensive DVD library of SportFight event footage is available
at all major retail locations. For more information, visit sportfight.tv.
For media inquiries, please contact cmoss@sportfight.tv
Source: Matt Lindland
|
Quote
of the Day
“Birthdays
are nature's way of telling us to eat more cake.“
Source: Unknown
|
Anthony
Torres Exclusive
To all
my friends, fans, and the Hawaii MMA community,
I
am writing this statement to openly apologize to all of you whom
I may have let down, due to my recent actions. This past year,
I have sustained a string of injuries to include two broken hands
and an elbow injury, which have forced me to withdraw from two
scheduled UFC bouts. A few months ago, I made the great mistake
of taking something I was told would help with the speedy recovery
of my injuries. The opportunity to fight in UFC 75 in London,
England was something I could not turn down. I have just gotten
married and five days before departing to London, England our
first child was born. At that time, the desperately needed financial
gain overweighed the risk of possibly being tested. I realize
now it was a very poor decision and one that I truly regret.
I accept full responsibility for all my actions and it is a mistake
that I will never make again. I am only human and I too make
mistakes, but I can only hope that you all will learn from my
mine. I will bounce back from all of this and I look forward
to returning to the ring. Thank you to my team (MMA Development),
family, friends, fans, and sponsors who have been supportive
through all of this.
Aloha,
Anthony
Torres
|
STRIKEFORCE
“FOUR MEN ENTER, ONE MAN SURVIVES”
IN SAN JOSE NOV 16TH
October
17, 2007; San Jose, CA….Mixed martial arts star Falaniko “Niko”
Vitale
(24-7) and has been the first combatant selected to throw down
in a four-man, single-elimination middleweight (185 lb. limit)
tournament that will headline Strikeforce’s highly-anticipated
return to San Jose, California’s HP Pavilion on Friday,
November 16th. The winner of the first-ever sanctioned mixed
martial arts tournament in the state of California, which will
be completed over the course of the 10-bout fight card, will
potentially be awarded the opportunity to challenge Strikeforce
World Middleweight Champion, Frank Shamrock.
Tickets
for the Strikeforce event, which will be presented by BodogFIGHT,
are on sale at Ticketmaster (408-998-TIXS) and Ticketmaster online
(www.ticketmaster.com) as well as at the HP Pavilion box office
(408-287-7070). Ticket prices range from $30 to $300.
“We’re
very grateful that the athletic commission has given us the opportunity
to produce a tournament format fight for our fans,” said
Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker. “This will be the first step
in our efforts to produce more tournaments which, historically,
have been a great way to challenge world class athletes and to
determine who the best competitor is on any given day.”
The
33-year-old Vitale, a native of Honolulu, Hawaii, is coming a
sensational first round victory over Ron “Killing”
Fields, a matchup which unfolded during Strikeforce’s history
making event at the world-famous Playboy Mansion in Beverly Hills
on Saturday, September 29th. From top position on the canvas,
Vitale rained down on Fields with a series of blows before a
stoppage was ordered at the 3:02 mark of the bout’s opening
round.
Before
entering the ranks of Strikeforce, Vitale made a number of notable
conquests that have earned him prominent status in the world’s
fastest growing sport. On June 6, 2003, he stopped superstar
Matt Lindland in the first stanza of their meeting and, on February
7th of the following year, he earned a unanimous decision over
former UFC middleweight champion, Dave Menne.
HP
Pavilion doors will open for Strikeforce “Four Men Enter,
One Man Survives” at 5:30 PM PST on Friday, November 16th.
The first preliminary bout will begin at 6 PM and the first tournament
bout will commence at 7:30 PM.
About
Strikeforce
Strikeforce
is a world-class mixed martial arts cage fight promotion which,
on Friday, March 10, 2006, made history with its “Shamrock
vs. Gracie” event, the first sanctioned mixed martial arts
fight card in California state history. The star-studded extravaganza,
which pitted legendary champion Frank Shamrock against Brazilian
Jiu-Jitsu black belt Cesar Gracie at San Jose’s HP Pavilion,
played host to a sold-out, record crowd of 18,265. Since 1995,
Strikeforce has been the exclusive provider of martial arts programming
for ESPN and, after 12 years of success as a leading, world championship
kickboxing promotion, the company unveiled its mixed martial
arts series with “Shamrock vs. Gracie.” Since then,
it has produced the first SHOWTIME PPV mixed martial arts event
in history with its world championship “Shamrock vs. Baroni”
card on June 22nd of this year followed by the first-ever mixed
martial arts event at the world-famous Playboy Mansion on September
29th.
Source: Mike Afromowitz
|
CSAC
CLARIFIES BRAWL FOR IT ALL FIGHT CARD
The California State Athletic Commission on Tuesday issued an
updated fight card for the Brawl For It All event scheduled to
take place on Oct. 20 at The Cow Palace in San Francisco.
Not
an ordinary occurrence, the event’s fight card was released
“due to an extensive number of complaints that the Commission
has been receiving,” according to CSAC representative Bill
Douglas.
He
indicated that, “the original card is still being advertised
with athletes that will in no way be appearing at the event.”
Fighters
that were originally advertised, but will not appear, according
to Douglas, include Jeff Monson, Nick Diaz, Mia St. John, Javier
Vazquez, and Leland Chapman.
Douglas
also stated, “Refunds can be requested if the ticket was
purchased with the intent to see a particular star who is no
longer appearing. Formal announcements will also be made verbally
at the site of the weigh-in and prior to the beginning of the
event itself.”
As
of late Tuesday evening, the Brawl For It All web site still
had Jeff Monson listed on it’s home page as fighting Vince
Lucero; but Nick Diaz, Mia St. John, Javier Vazquez and Leland
Chapman, had been removed.
According
to the CSAC, the Brawl For It All fight card, as of Tuesday,
is as follows:
–Vince
Lucero vs. Cain Velasquez
–Alex Serdyukov vs. Mark Moreno (Bulls Pen, Hawaii)
–Ruben Villarreal vs. Brad Imes
–Jake Hattan vs. Charles Bennett
–Matt Major vs. Marcus Gaines
–Kyle Rideau vs. Khomkrit Niimi
–Bo Cantrell vs. Bryan Pardoe
–Gabe Rivas vs. Gabe Ruediger
–Van
Oscar Penvaroff (Hawaii) vs. Eric Jacob
–Shawn Klarcyk vs. Ed Lavelle
–Aaron
Carvalo (Hawaii)
vs. Andrew Martinez
–Chris David vs. Michael Pedro
Source: MMA Weekly |
TIM
SYLVIA PLANS A KNOCKOUT RETURN
Randy Couture’s recent resignation from the Ultimate Fighting
Championship was a shock to many and the legacy he left behind
may never be seen again in this lifetime.
Following
the surprise announcement last week, the largest mixed martial
arts organization in the U.S. was left without a heavyweight
titleholder. The landscape of the UFC heavyweight division changed
once again.
Enter
two fighters who could potentially be the heir to the throne.
Former
champion Tim Sylvia returns to action this weekend at UFC 77
in Cincinnati. Standing across from him in the Octagon will be
Brandon Vera, who puts his perfect 8-0 record on the line. The
fight will be Vera’s first in nearly a year.
"I'm
ready for a tough fight,” stated Sylvia recently. “I
really think it's going to be a tough one, and hopefully it doesn't
go three rounds. I don't like going to decisions, so if he brings
it and I bring it, someone will get knocked out."
After
he lost his title belt to Randy Couture at UFC 68, Sylvia had
back surgery to remove three bulged discs that were pinching
his sciatic nerve. The surgery was a major success.
"Obviously
I'm feeling great because if I wasn't, I wouldn't be taking this
fight because Brandon's a tough guy. The surgery went awesome,”
expressed the Miletich fighter. “As soon as I came out of
the anesthesia I jumped out of bed. The nurse told me to settle
down. The pain was all gone."
Vera
made his Octagon debut with a TKO victory over Fabiano Scherner
at Ultimate Fight Night 2. After compiling impressive wins over
Justin Eilers, Assuerio Silva, and former UFC champion Frank
Mir, Vera seemed destined for a title shot.
Unfortunately
a fight with Sylvia, the heavyweight champion at the time, never
materialized.
Nearly
a year later, Vera finally makes his return and fans will have
the opportunity to see what could very well be a title contender
elimination match. The question now is if the layoff will have
an adverse effect on the undefeated heavyweight.
"I
think Brandon is a smart enough fighter where I don't think it's
going to affect him,” commented Sylvia. “He's young.
He's in the gym a lot. And his wife trains, so he's always around
the gym … I don't know that it's going to affect him that
bad. Somebody at an older age maybe, but I think he's going to
be fine with it."
Dethroned
by Couture in his last outing, Sylvia looks to rebound against
a very formidable opponent this weekend. A loss could derail
his chances at a return to UFC gold and would signify the first
back-to-back losses of his career. He has a lot of respect for
Vera’s abilities, but doesn’t seem overly worried.
"I
don't know that I have a big concern. I mean, there's a lot of
concerns with him. He's young. He's light. He's fast and his
stand up is good. He's got really good stand up and he's got
a good ground, too."
Couture’s
departure left a huge void in the UFC’s heavyweight division.
For Sylvia, this is a prime opportunity to return to title contention,
but for now, he appears more focused on the fight at hand.
“I'm
excited for this fight. It's going to be a real exciting fight,
two guys that like to stand and bang. Someone's going to sleep."
Source: MMA Weekly |
WHERE
IS ANDERSON SILVA?
CINCINNATI – Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight
champion Anderson Silva has yet to arrive for this Saturday’s
event at the U.S. Bank Arena. He is scheduled to defend his belt
against challenger Rich Franklin, whom he relieved of the title
one year ago at UFC 64.
According
to sources close to the Silva, he had planned to be in town by
now along with the other UFC 77 fighters, but there were delays
in the issuance of his work visa.
Apparently,
due to a recent holiday, government offices in Brazil were closed
this past Friday and Monday thus delaying his visa being issued.
He evidently did receive the visa on Wednesday and hopes to arrive
in Cincinnati on Thursday.
Most
UFC fighters typically arrive four to five days prior to an event
to fulfill the necessary media and production requirements, as
well as getting acclimated to their surroundings and finish any
last minute weight cutting.
With
Silva arriving just two days prior to his fight, as long as there
are no further delays, questions are sure to abound as to whether
or not it will affect his performance come Saturday night.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
NINJA
COMMENTS ON CAGE RAGE RETURN (UPDATE)
Coming off a loss to Robbie Lawler for the EliteXC and ICON Sport
middleweight titles, Murilo "Ninja" Rua will face off
against Xavier Foupa-Pokam, a French fighter, at Cage Rage 24
on Dec. 1 in London, England.
Foupa-Pokam’s
last competed in September, when he knocked out Pierre Guillet
at Cage Rage 23.
“I
do know that I need to get back and show that I can do more than
I did in my last fight,” Ninja told MMAWeekly. “That
wasn’t me. People who know me know that stamina is the last
thing I need to be worried about and (against Lawler) I got tired
for some reason.
"I’ll
be in the best shape of my life (against Foupa-Pokam). I am training
with our new strength and conditioning coach every day at 7 a.m.
I am at Chute Boxe Camp working on my endurance and power with
him, and after that I do the rest of the things I always did."
Ninja
knows that he needs his conditioning to be up to par against
Foupa-Pokam because he expects nothing less than a high-paced,
exciting fight.
“I
know that Xavier Foupa-Pokam likes to stand up and punch. It
will be an electric fight for sure, the crowd will see a real
war because I am going to war for this fight.”
The
Cage Rage promotion was acquired by ProElite Inc. (the parent
company of EliteXC) in early September. The Dec. 1 event will
be the first under the new ownership agreement.
CAGE
RAGE 24 FIGHT CARD:
Murilo "Ninja" Rua vs. Xavier Foupa-Pokam
Evangelista "Cyborg" Santos vs. Paul Cahoon
Drew Fickett vs. Mark Weir
Marios Zaromskis vs. Ross Pointin
Tom Watson vs. Mark Epstein
Dave Legeno vs. George Castro
Neil Grove vs. Robert Berry
Ivan Serati vs. Lee Hasdell
Abdul Mohamed vs. Robbie Oliver
Robert Paczkow vs. James Mc Sweeney
Ronnie Mann vs. Brad Pickett
Source: MMA Weekly |
ALAN
BELCHER VERSION 2.0
Mississippi native Alan Belcher returns to the Ultimate Fighting
Championship at the U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati on Saturday
to face tough Canadian fighter Kalib Starnes.
UFC
77 “Hostile Territory” – as it has been dubbed
– will be headlined by former middleweight champion Rich
Franklin and the man who took his belt, Anderson Silva.
The
same night that Franklin will be looking to regain his lost gold,
Belcher will be looking to make his own run at the title by entrenching
himself into the landscape of the middleweight division with
a win over Starnes.
Belcher
is coming into this fight off of an impressive victory over highly
touted wrestler Sean Salmon. He looked impressive in the contest,
ending the fight by guillotine choke a mere 53 seconds into round
one.
Before
achieving a quick victory over Salmon at UFC 71, though, Belcher
was tasked with facing “The Ultimate Fighter” winner
Kendall Grove, perhaps the most arduous test of his UFC career
to date. Belcher came up short against Grove, but soon after
the loss was asked to step in on short notice to fight Salmon
at 205 pounds.
For
Belcher the answer was an easy “yes.” He wanted a chance
to redeem his loss.
He
said recently on MMAWeekly Radio, “The quicker you get that
win after a loss, it doesn’t erase it, but it sure makes
it feel a hell of a lot better. I was definitely happy to get
back in there.”
Now
that Belcher has some positive momentum built up, his next career
objective is to make it two in a row inside the Octagon.
“The
Sean Salmon fight was kind of just a glimpse of the attitude
that I’m going to take into this fight.”
Because
of the current structure of the UFC’s middleweight division,
if he does pull off a win Saturday, Belcher could be looking
at a possible shot at the title within the next year, depending
on his next couple performances.
How
does he feel about a possible match-up with either Rich Franklin
or Anderson Silva for the title? “The confidence that I
have right now … I don’t want to stick my foot in my
mouth or anything man, but I feel like a world champion right
now.”
That
confidence spurs from many reasons. Belcher explained, “It’s
just a combination of things. I’m growing up, I’m getting
older, getting more experienced … I’m getting past
the demons that are holding me back. My family, my friends …
everything is just perfect in my life right now. My faith in
God is growing and I’m just so happy right now.”
For
Belcher, the road to Cincinnati will be a bit different than
it would typically be. He will be traveling in from the north
not from the south, as he typically hails from Biloxi, Miss.
He
changed up camps for this fight by flying up to Wisconsin and
training with Thomas Denny. Of the training, he said, “I
sacrificed my comfortable house and my business, my family and
all of the good eating places and the kind of lazy, half-ass
training style that I had, to come up here for six weeks and
just kill myself and get ready.”
Belcher
believes that the temporary change in scenery, the hard work
that he put in during training and the sacrifices that he made
while in Wisconsin will lead him to supremacy.
“This
is the best camp I’ve ever had for sure. I couldn’t
ask for anything better … I’m in perfect shape, no
injuries. To be 100% prepared and to be ready for the fight,
now I know what it means to not accept losing, because I won’t.”
He
continued, “I get better every time and this camp I totally
took it to a different level. This is the first time that I feel
like my game’s there, it was just about getting totally
prepared in the camp, man, that’s what I spent all my time
for is just crushing somebody and pushing the pace for three
five-minute rounds. It feels great.”
He
is hopeful that with a victory on Saturday would keep him on
the path that began so many years ago.
“This
last year has been unreal. It’s kind of like something that
I’ve been working for. I fought my first MMA fight when
I was 15 years old in Paragould, Ark., against an adult with
head butts and downward elbows and the whole nine yards. Being
in the UFC is like a dream come true. Even if I’ve had a
couple of losses, it’s still been a great experience.”
Belcher
plans to continue that dream against Starnes, “Just expect
me to stop the fight. I can’t promise when it’s going
to be, but it’s going to get stopped at one point or another.
I’m going to try to stop it in the first round, hopefully
[with] a knockout.”
Source: MMA Weekly |
Quote
of the Day
“When
I'm inspired, I get excited because I can't wait to see what
I'll come up with next.”
Dolly Parton, American Country Singer/Songwriter/Actress
|
Hawaii
Fight League This Friday!
Friday,
October 19, 2007
Dole Cannery Ballroom
Doors Open at 6:00 PM
|
XTREME
COUTURE TRAINER TALKS COUTURE'S EXIT
The
shocking news of Randy Couture’s exit from the Ultimate
Fighting Championship hit like a tidal wave on Thursday. MMAWeekly
caught up with Ron Frazier, one of the head trainers at Xtreme
Couture, after the news hit to get his comments on Randy’s
monumental decision.
“I
wasn’t really surprised that much in the news,” Frazier
stated. “With the option of not being able to fight Fedor,
with the movie career going so well, and with the opportunity
to spend much more time with his wife and his family, it wasn’t
surprising. At the end of the day, good for Randy.”
Couture
stated emphatically in his letter to the UFC that losing the
fight with current top heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko was a major
reason for his exodous. Frazier also stated that without that
fight, Couture has little left to prove.
“You
always want a fighter to go out on top and when he fought Chuck
Liddell [the third time], we all knew a couple months ahead of
time that he was going to retire after that bout, win or lose,”
said Frazier.
“Unfortunately
he lost, but we wanted him to go out on top. What better way?
He came back. He shocked the world. He beat two guys no one thought
he could beat. There’s no great challenges left, except
for fighting Fedor. So why not ride off into the sunset?”
The
opportunity to fight Fedor really did seem like the last major
hurdle for Couture to leap and with the recent announcement of
his alleged deal with M-1 in Russia, it seems for now like that
possible match-up is dead.
“Knowing
him personally and working with him for almost three years now,
I knew he thrived on challenges and so if he couldn’t fight
Fedor, it wouldn’t surprise me if he called it a day,”
Frazier said about Couture’s desire to fight Emelianenko.
While
the MMA community continues to dwell on the loss of Couture in
the UFC, Frazier points out how tough it has become for the legendary
fighter to even take time for a full training camp to prepare
for a bout.
“He
really has to clear out his calendar to fight now,” said
Frazier. “When we want to make an eight-week training session,
all the appearances, all the stuff he does for all the Xtreme
Coutures all over the country, kind of has to come to a stand
still. He doesn’t have to do that anymore.”
Couture
mentioned his new career in the movie industry, but his team
at Xtreme Couture has become one of the premiere camps in the
world and Frazier is assured that he will continue his role there.
“He’ll
still be very active in the fighters we have going there,”
said Frazier about Couture’s involvement at the gym.
The
biggest question on everyone’s mind is regardless of the
UFC is will we ever see Randy Couture fight in MMA again?
“You
learn with professional athletes to never say never,” Frazier
said about a possible Randy Couture comeback.
Source: Tatame
|
Werdum:
The new big daddy of MMA
The
black belt Jiu-Jitsu fighter, Fabrício Verdum, will be
the next daddy of MMA. The athlete from Chute Boxe is waiting
for the coming of his daughter Julia, that will be born on the
next two weeks. World champion of Jiu-Jitsu and champion of ADCC,
Werdum also waits for the date and the name of his opponent in
his second bout in the octagon of UFC. “I talked with my
manager and he said that on November or December I will be fighting.
I think that November is very near, so probably the fight will
be on December”, said Werdum to TATAME, in an exclusive
interview you find HERE.
Fabrício
Werdum
By Bernardo Seabra
“I talked with my manager and he said that on november or
december I will be fighting”
The
new daddy of MMA
The
black belt Jiu-Jitsu fighter, Fabrício Verdum, will be
the next daddy of MMA. The athlete from Chute Boxe is waiting
for the coming of his daughter Julia, that will be born on the
next two weeks. World champion of Jiu Jitsu and champion of ADCC,
Werdum also waits for the date and the name of his opponent in
his second bout inm the octagon of UFC. “I talked with my
manager and he said that on november or december I will be fighting.
I think that november is very near, so probably the fight will
be on december”, said Werdum to TATAME, in an exclusive
interview you find below.
When
will your daughter be born?
My wife Karine is already with 8 months. Her birth is expected
to be in the next two weeks. I´m very anxious because it´s
my first daughter. We already arranged all her room, I´m
kind of silly with all this thing.
Do
you already know the date of your next bout?
I talked with my maneger and he said that on november or december
I will be fighting. I think that november is very near, so probably
the fight will be on december.
Do
you know who will be your opponent?
I thought it would be Tim Sylvia, but it won´t be. Now
I heard some rumors that it can be Frank Mir, but the way I´m
training hard to be prepared for any opponent. Some years ago
Vale-Tudo required many technique, but nowadays it´s 70%
physical, so I´m training hard.
How
are the training sessions in Chute Boxe?
I have never trained so much in my life. Some days ago I made
10 rounds of 5 minutes with 100%. We run from 9am until midday,
with sun over our head. I´m sure that in the next fight
I´ll give a show.
Your
striking game has improved?
It only passed two months and I already feel an incredible difference.
I´m having the possibility of viewing the striking game
the same way I view the grappling game. The knee is entering
more easily, the kicks also. But my agressivity that was poor
has increased a lot after I started training here. The people
from the team are very friendly. Sometimes I want to stop the
training but they motivate me and I continue training hard. This
is very cool.
What
do you think of Shogun being defeated in his last fight?
I expected something different. In fact, he wasn´t in his
best physical condition. He wasn´t training regularly and
two weeks before he was training with me and he had a problem
in his knee. It seemed it wasn´t Shogun in the ring he
was not with that agressivity that we are used to see. Although
he had these problems he did a good fight. Shogun is also a good
grappler. I´m sure that the fatigue was the reason for
his submission. He never stays in that position here in the academy.
Source: Tatame
|
Delson
Heleno focus at IFL GP
Selected
to fight at the IFL GP, that is schedule for November 11, Delson
heleno Pé-de-Chumbo wants to end this year in a nice way
at north-american soil. After been champion with Renzo Gracie’s
Pitbulls, Pé-de-Chumbo want the title at the 77kg category.
“I was focus at Mckee (only defeat of Delson at this year),
but he is not going to fight. I am going to fight against a new
guy that I don’t know very well, but I am concentrated to
win this belt. I am training hard, a lot of BJJ with (Roberto)
Gordo and Luta-Livre with (Claiton) Mangueira”, said Pé-de-Chumbo,
that celebrated a lot his victory with Pitbulls against Silverbacks
at IFL 2007 season.
“Everybody
get very happy, it was amazing and everybody got a ring as champion.
Renzo was very emotional and we went dinner to celebrate”,
said the Teresópolis black belt about Pitbulls conquer,
at September 20. Another Brazilian that is selected for the GP,
but at 93kg category, is André Gusmão that made
the final score for Pitbulls at New York . “He is training
at New York and one week before the GP and going to meet them
there to train till the fight”, said Pé-de-Chumbo.
Source: Tatame
|
Antoine
Jaoude talk about IFL GP
Close
to make his first fight at Heavyweight IFL GP, that will be hold
at November 3, Antoine Jaoude talk with TATAME about his expectations
to this event. “They changed my opponent twice, but I have
a unique strategy so the opponent doesn’t matter”.
The wrestler from Ruas Vale-Tudo talk about his train sessions.
I
am making my trains at Upper gym from André Pederneiras,
with Ruas Vale-Tudo guys. They have nice sparrings there that
are helping me a lot, like Paulão, Pirraça…
I am training Boxing a lot with Figueiredo and making my physical
with Pimentel. I might go to only in the week of the fight, but
I don’t know yet. Beto Leitão and marco Ruas will
be at my corner”, said Jaoude, that confirmed that he is
totally recovered from his shoulder injury at pan-American games
bronze medal dispute.
Source: Tatame
|
Quote
of the Day
“Life
is the only game in which the object of the game is to learn
the rules.”
Ashleigh Brilliant, English-born Author and Cartoonist
|
Fighters'
Club TV Tonight!
Channel 52
Tuesdays at 7:00 PM
Make sure to tell your friends and family!
Yes, we're
back! After a bit of a break due to Mark concentrating on his
fight at Elite XC where he was victorious, FCTV comes back with
another great show!
We
take a look at a new event, in a new venue, by a new promoter...Fighters
Journey!
Mark
interviews one of the top fighters in the world at 160 lbs, Cesar
Gracie student, Nick Diaz. This interview was conducted just
before his now epic battle with Hawaii's own Mike Aina in Elite
XC.
Mike
gets a chance to chat with another Cesar Gracie student and one
of the best at 170 lbs, Jake Shields.
We
have a very special guest for our technique of the week segment
that you do not want to miss!|
We also officially make our television announcement of the Onzuka.com
Hawaii Underground on Fighters' Club TV!
As
always, your warm and inviting hosts, Mark Kurano and Mike Onzuka
tastefully batter back and forth for your entertainment and enjoyment.
|
A
NEW START FOR JAPANESE MMA?
A press release was sent out this past week to select members
of the Japanese media by a company named World Victory Road Inc.
(WVR).
The
release announced a press conference scheduled for this week.
According to the release the press conference will be relative
to mixed martial arts and will take place in Tokyo, Japan.
The
following guests will be in attendance at the press conference:
–Kinoshita Naoya (CEO, Kinoshita Koumuten Inc.)
–Takao Yasuda (CEO, Don Quijote Inc.)
–Tomiaki Fukuda (Chairman, Japan Wrestling Federation)
–Vice President of FILA
No
further information has been revealed.
Even
though Pride Fighting Championships Worldwide closed their office
in Tokyo, blurring the future of Japanese MMA, it has been widely
rumored that there is movement regarding the formation of a new
MMA organization in Japan.
Representatives
from Don Quijote and FILA, who will be at the press conference,
had worked closely with Pride in the past.
Shigeru
Saeki, a DEEP representative who also worked in public relations
for Pride, made comments on television this week that he will
likely spend New Year’s Eve in Saitama, Japan. Saitama is
where Pride held its New Year’s Eve shows, which were typically
its biggest of the year. Saeki’s comments may be an indication
of a new organization with a year-end event.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
STEPHAN
BONNAR CLIMBING UP THE LADDER
Stephan Bonnar returns to the Octagon on Saturday night against
Eric “Red” Schafer at the U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati.
In
Bonnar's last fight, at Ultimate Fighting Championship 73 in
July, he made short work of Mike Nickels by submitting him with
a rear naked choke early in the first round.
He
is of course remembered for his legendary battle with Forrest
Griffin on the finale of the first season of “The Ultimate
Fighter.” It's been two-and-a-half years since that epic
fight that many have said put mixed martial arts on the map.
“It
seems like yesterday,” Bonnar reflected. “Watching
the show brings back memories. It is hard to believe though.
I just turned thirty. I got old.”
After
his close fight with Griffin, “The American Psycho”
went on a three-fight win streak defeating Sam Hoger, James Irvin
and Keith Jardine. It seemed like he was climbing up the ladder
in the light heavyweight division until he hit a roadblock named
Rashad Evans.
Evans
tactically took him down at will and earned the victory. After
that fight, Bonnar would once again meet his rival Forrest Griffin
in a rematch at UFC 62. Unfortunately for him, Griffin would
outpoint him and once again earn the nod.
Perhaps
even more devastating than the loss to Griffin was the fact that
Bonnar had tested positive for an anabolic agent that saw him
suspended for nine months. Bonnar came back firing in his return
fight against Nickels. He's ready to keep the momentum going
and he's even joined Griffin at Xtreme Couture to enhance his
training.
“It's
some good sparring,” Bonnar said of his new training facility.
“It definitely gets you ready for a fight. It’s definitely
good work.”
Not
only does he train with Griffin, but also an assortment of other
great partners that have all come to the new Mecca of training
in Las Vegas. One of those partners is none other than “The
Natural” Randy Couture.
“That
guy just always wows me. He first did it when he fought Vitor
Belfort. I didn't think he'd win that fight. Then he beat Liddell
and beat Ortiz. Then he beats Sylvia. Then he beat Gonzaga. It's
just all these crazy moments.”
Bonnar
has been ready to go since his fight with Nickels and he can't
wait to get in the Octagon this weekend.
“I've
been ready to fight for a while. It’s all great to get back
in there and get a win, get out of there healthy. I was actually
hoping I could get on the very next show. It's good to get back
in there. I feel like it's been a long camp.”
Schafer
last saw action in a losing effort to Michael Bisping back in
December. He put up a very tough fight before succumbing to some
devastating strikes. Bonnar has watched the tapes though and
is ready for whatever Schafer brings.
A
win for Bonnar on Saturday night will be one step higher up the
ladder of the light heavyweight division, which in the last few
months has been thrown for a loop. He isn't taking Schafer lightly,
though, and knows that he'll need a solid game plan to come out
with the win.
“It's
pretty obvious. I'll try to keep it on my feet. Hit him with
shots. His best chance of winning is on the ground. I expect
a stoppage in the second round.”
Source: MMA Weekly
|
JOSH
BARNETT TALKS PAULSON, CAREER, & MORE
Josh
Barnett, ranked as the No.3 heavyweight mixed martial artist
in the world by MMAWeekly.com, had a very busy year in 2006.
Fighting seven times in that span, he amassed a 5-2 record against
some of the top competition in the world.
Unfortunately,
in 2007, he has yet to fight once.
Why?
“Red
tape,” says Barnett.
He
fought all of his bouts in 2006 for Pride Fighting Championships.
But when Pride FC was purchased by Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta
– who also happen to be the majority owners of the Ultimate
Fighting Championship – in March, Barnett’s fighting
career was basically put on ice.
To
say his relationship with the UFC is tenuous would not be a stretch.
While
many former Pride fighters have found their way to the UFC, Barnett
is one of the two top free agents that have not, along with Fedor
Emelianenko.
He
has been talking with many promoters and is optimistic that he
will be fighting again soon, but Barnett would not tip his hand
as to whether a fight with Fedor is on the immediate horizon.
Despite being friends with Emelianenko, he does want that fight
to take place.
“It
would be a hell of a fight. … I want to fight him is so
we can get it over with, so we can train (together).”
In
the meantime, Barnett has kept busy with many other projects.
He is part of numerous television productions including a documentary
about the Pancrase organization that is set to air on Imagination
TV and appearances on the acclaimed “The Human Weapon”
series and a mixed martial arts segment on The History Channel.
At
only 29 years of age, it’s likely that Barnett himself will
be around for a while as well.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Quote
of the Day
“An
expert is someone who knows some of the worst mistakes that can
be made in his subject and how to avoid them.”
Werner Karl Heisenberg, 1901-1976, German Physicist and Nobel
Prïze Wïnner
|
PAULSON
WINS AT CUBAN'S HDNET FIGHTS DEBUT
DALLAS – Erik Paulson made his return to mixed martial arts
on Saturday night at the American Airlines Center following a
seven-year layoff. He found success in the main event in the
debut of Mark Cuban’s new HDNet Fights promotion.
After
feeling the sting of a few stiff jabs from Jeff Ford, Paulson
quickly shot in on him and took the fight into his comfort zone,
the ground.
“The
shot I took on him (to get him down) was because I didn’t
want to stand with him anymore. He hit me with one shot and my
eyes got all cloudy,” said Paulson after the fight.
Once
he took the fight to the ground, he wasted no time snagging Ford’s
arm and locking on an armbar for the submission.
“I
was happy to know that there was grappling in that fight,”
commented Paulson. “If it was a kickboxing match, I wouldn’t
have won.
“It’s
been seven years and it’s very emotional to come back.”
Paulson
highlighted the headline bout, but the fight of the night had
to go to Freddie Epsiricueta and Jason House.
House
started strong, outstriking Epsiricueta in the first round, looking
like he was going to run away with the fight. But citing Frank
Shamrock’s mantra of “cardio, cardio, cardio,”
it was Epsiricueta who appeared to grow stronger as House faded
and ended up peppering him with punches and kicks throughout
the third en route to unanimous decision.
UFC
veteran Drew Fickett weathered one of the toughest fighters he’s
ever faced in relative newcomer Anthony Lapsley. He made it tough
on Fickett, but Lapsley, as many fighters have, eventually succumbed
to a Fickett rear naked choke late in the first round.
Pete
Spratt, another UFC veteran, avenged his last loss and ended
a three-fight skid with a crushing knockout of TJ Waldburger.
Just under a minute-and-a-half into the bout, Spratt dropped
Waldburger with a straight right that put him out on his back,
followed him down and landed three more rights before the referee
could step in.
“I
wanted to prove to the world that even though I’m 36 years
of age, I still have some good fights left in me.”
No
doubt about it, the standout of the earlier bouts was two-time
All-American collegiate wrestler CB Dollaway. He wasted know
time dropping Hans Marrero with a knee to the temple before following
him down and finishing him off with punches in just 1:07 of round
one.
It
was a good night for the 41-year-old Paulson and several other
fighters, but in reality, a fairly average night of MMA overall
for HDNet Fights’ first go around.
To
be fair to the fledgling promotion, Cuban did state on Friday
that this first show was a “Beta test” and he wasn’t
expecting to put on a show rivaling the more established promotions
in the sport.
“This
is where we are going to learn,” he said. “I’m
not looking to fill the American Airlines Center (on Saturday
night). I want to get 3,000 people there to fill the lower bowl.”
He
may not have been looking for it, but he make out better than
expected. According to an HDNet Fights representative, initial
estimates appeared to put attendance in the 6,000-7,000 range.
The
crowd seemed rather subdued however.
Known
for reviving the “party atmosphere” surrounding his
National Basketball Association team, the Dallas Mavericks, Cuban
and the rest of HDNet Fights still have some work to do before
that same atmosphere permeates his MMA events.
One
area where the promotion definitely scored high marks was with
the fighters. Talking with several of them, they all had good
things to say about the way they were treated by HDNet Fights
and the promotions attention to detail.
HDNet
Fights president Guy Mezger revealed that the promotion would
return, with a bigger budget, to the American Airlines Center
in December for round two.
Saturday
night’s fights will premier on Cuban’s HDNet television
network on Friday, Oct. 19.
HDNet
Fights
American Airlines Center
Dallas, Texas
October 13, 2007
Erik
Paulson def. Jeff Ford by Submission (Armbar) at 1:44, R1
Freddie Espiricueta def. Jason House by Unanimous Decision, R3
Drew Fickett def. Anthony Lapsley by Submission (Rear Naked Choke)
at 3:55, R1
Justin Eilers def. Matt Thompson by Unanimous Decision, R3
Pete Spratt def. TJ Waldburger by KO (Punch) at 1:29, R1
Chris Bowles def. David Roberts by Submission (Rear Naked Choke)
at 3:06, R1
CB Dollaway def. Hans Marrero by TKO (Strikes) at 1:07, R1
Justin Howard def. Jay McCown by Unanimous Decision, R3
Liam McCarty def. David Morris by Submission (Strikes) at 2:35,
R1
Joel Traves def. Cory Salter by Submission (Verbal) at 4:59,
R1
Source: MMA Weekly
|
JOSH
BURKMAN READY TO FIGHT HIS FIGHT
He’s earned the moniker of “The People’s Warrior.”
On Oct. 20, Josh Burkman returns to the Octagon at Ultimate Fighting
Championship 77 in Cincinnati to fight Forrest Petz.
“I'm
just excited to get back in there and see how much I've grown
as a fighter. Forrest is a tough kid and likes to scrap, but
I'm gonna overwhelm him. I think I grew a lot from my fight with
Karo and I'm just excited to fight again,” stated Burkman
on his website.
Currently
training at Absolute MMA in Utah, he is focused on his upcoming
match and looks to rebound from a loss. “For me, once I
have a fight, I’m focused on that fight. It’s kind
of nice to be home and around my friends and family; I kind of
feed off them.”
Burkman
faced his toughest opponent to date in Armenian Judoka Karo Parisyan
at UFC 71. The former Ultimate Fighter contestant would go on
to lose a decision and suffer the fourth loss of his career.
Has
the pressure of returning with a victory gotten to the Utah native?
“I
feel fine. I know the mistakes I made against Karo,” commented
Burkman. “Against Karo, I wasn’t thinking about winning
the fight, I wasn’t thinking about losing the fight; all
I was thinking about was knocking Karo out. I think I learned
a lot off that. I’m not feeling any pressure about this
fight and I’m excited to fight again.”
Forrest
Petz is coming off of a unanimous decision victory over Luigi
Fioravanti at Ultimate Fight Night 10. The former Cage Warriors
Welterweight Champion is currently training at the Strong Style
Gym in his hometown of Cleveland.
“My
coach has watched a lot of film on (Petz) and he kind of tells
me what he thinks I should do. For me, I’m just going to
worry about what I’m going to do. Try to put my game on
them and not worry about what they’re going to do. As we
know, I’m not much of a counter fighter,” laughed Burkman.
“Right now I’m just focused on the fight at hand. Forrest
Petz is going to be there whether it’s on the main card
or not.”
Ever
confident, “The People’s Warrior” has the opportunity
at UFC 77 to place his name back into the long list of welterweight
contenders.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
JASON
MACDONALD READY TO PUSH THE PACE
Here’s a question…
What
two things do Ed Herman, Chris Leben and Rory Singer have in
common?
Think
about it for a second…
If
you said that they were each on the hit Spike TV show, The Ultimate
Fighter, you’d be right. But, there is something else…
have you guessed it yet?
The
second thing these three men have in common is that they each
have Ultimate Fighting Championship losses on their record thanks
to ‘The Athlete’ Jason MacDonald.
MacDonald
is a talented Canadian fighter who burst onto the UFC scene in
his Octagon debut by finishing Ed Herman, a Team Quest fighter
from Oregon, with a triangle choke in the first round.
So
often much is made about fighters’ nerves getting the best
of them when they hit the “big show” for the first
time, but MacDonald broke the mold by making his first UFC entrance
look second-natured.
After
his victory against Herman, he then beat Herman’s Team Quest
teammate Chris Leben in Las Vegas last December by modified guillotine
choke, before failing to answer the bell for the third round
in his next fight against former UFC champ Rich Franklin in Columbus,
Ohio, this past March.
MacDonald’s
most recent outing pitted him against HardCore Gym-trained fighter
Rory Singer. He overwhelmed the Georgia native and finished Singer
off with strikes at the 3:18 mark of round two. The win kept
him on track for a possible UFC title shot against either Rich
Franklin or current middleweight champion Anderson Silva, depending
on which man walks away with the title on Oct. 20.
The
same night that the aforementioned middleweight title is up for
grabs, MacDonald steps into the Octagon as well. Not for a belt
just yet, but instead to compete against powerful Japanese fighter
Yushin Okami. It is a fight that has obvious title implications
for the victor.
Both
Okami and MacDonald are tall, strong middleweights, but opponents
of Okami have reiterated afterwards that his power in the cage
seems to throw each of them off of their original game plans.
MacDonald
knows that one of his opponent’s foremost strengths lies
in his power and he trained accordingly, filling a good portion
of his time during training camp competing with big, powerful
guys.
“I
don’t see (size) being a huge issue in this fight because
I think a lot of people consider me to be a pretty big middleweight
as well,” he told MMAWeekly. “I started training camp
around 209-212 pounds, so I don’t think it’s going
to be a huge factor in the fight. But you don’t want to
leave any rock unturned, so I went down there to train with some
big guys just to make sure that I was prepared come Oct. 20 to
deal with some big, strong guys.”
If
MacDonald does manage a victory against Okami, it seems that
from a fan’s point of view, he would be either next in line
or pretty darn close to the front of the line for a shot at the
title. He seems to agree with that contention.
“The
way the middleweight division stands right now, there just aren’t
a lot of contenders. I definitely consider myself one of the
contenders. I do have a loss to Rich Franklin back in March and
I learned a lot from that loss. I came back with a win over [Rory]
Singer. I’m looking to get in there and get another big
win over Okami and put myself back in a position where I maybe
get a shot at the title sometime this year.”
Anyone
who has watched Okami fight knows that he likes to keep a pretty
slow pace during his fights… sometimes to his favor, and
sometimes to his demise. But many people wonder if the tempo
of his fights directly relates to the quality of his cardio.
When
asked about it, MacDonald said, “You hit the nail on the
head there.
“I
feel like if I can push the pace really fast on Okami, I have
a feeling that I can break him down in those first two rounds
and not ever have to worry about him coming alive in that third
round.”
Not
necessarily a bad game plan seeing how the fight went when Okami
stepped into the cage with Mike Swick.
“You
watch the Swick fight … he had Mike Swick outweighed by
20-some pounds. Mike said that he got into the ring at about
183 or 182 pounds, and Okami was definitely well over 200 and
even in that fight you see that fatigue was a big factor. You
see in that fight Okami had him mounted and just looked too tired
to finish him off.”
Jason
realizes that his last performance in Ohio left his fans wanting
more and this time he’s ready to provide a different outcome.
“I
was very disappointed in my performance against Rich and I’m
definitely looking to come back to Ohio and break the curse and
put on a great show for the fans of Ohio,” Jason said.
So
how does ‘The Athlete’ feel this fight will go down
in the end?
“I’m
not sure that he can fight at the pace that I’m going to
push in these first two rounds … at least I’m hoping
that he’s not going to be able to fight at that pace. If
he is, then we’ve got a fight on our hands, but if he can’t
then I see me just wearing him out and taking him to the deep
end and then making him make a mistake … and then I’ll
be ready to capitalize on it,” Jason said.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Quote
of the Day
"You've
got to love what you're doing. If you love it, you can overcome
any handicap or the soreness or all the aches and pains, and
continue to play for a long, long time."
Gordie Howe, Hall of Fame Canadian Hockey Player
|
Ze
Mario: “I called up Couture and went to train”
The black belt speaks about the latest phase in his career
The
1998 absolute Jiu-Jitsu world champion has his bags packed and
is ready to leave Brazil for the United States. Former BTT leader,
Ze Mario Sperry will set up residence in the country where he
was recently training with UFC heavyweight champion, Randy Couture.
“I
was traveling around the United States when I stopped through
Las Vegas, I wanted some high-level training to keep my fitness
up. As I’ve known Randy for over 10 years, I called him
up and went to his academy to train. He's a really well-mannered
guy and received me very well. I trained over there for five
days and I tried to help him and his team, since there was only
one month before his fight against Gonzaga. Randy is really strong
and well prepared, he is a super tough guy. I took the opportunity
to train some wrestling with him as well.”
The
reason for the move is his having been hired by the IFL, where
the former ADCC champion will be captain to one of the teams
that is still being defined along with the state chosen to be
his new home.
“I
already have a contract signed with the IFL, although neither
my team name nor fighters have been decided. I'm analyzing the
opportunities and the market to decide where I'm going to live,
as soon as I'm stable I'll have the calm to choose the fighters
and focus more on the IFL. It could be that next year a fight
might turn up for me in the organization, in a coach challenge
match or something like that."
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Reflections
of a Legend: Couture's Top 10
by Mike Sloan
If Randy Couture
never fights in the UFC again, I'm fairly certain that the fight
world would forgive him.
Couture
is without question one of the greatest fighters to ever step
foot into a cage or a ring, a man revered for his unfathomable
victories when everything was stacked against him.
He
has toppled -- handily, I might add -- a who's who of mixed martial
artists, and he's done it repeatedly on the greatest stages in
the sport. He's claimed and reclaimed world titles multiple times
at both heavyweight and light heavyweight, and his accomplishments
will never be questioned.
In
the wake of Thursday's shocking news that Couture notified the
UFC he no longer had an interest in holding their belt and also
stepped down from commentating and ambassador roles in the company,
let's take a look back at what I consider to be the 10 greatest
fights of his career in the UFC, all of which helped create the
legend that is Randy Couture.
10)
Couture vs. Vitor BelfortIII, UFC 49
When Randy Couture climbed into the Octagon on the smoldering
night of Aug. 21, 2004, "The Natural" was again trying
to reclaim his lost title. In his previous outing, Couture had
lost his light heavyweight belt to Belfort after a glancing punch
and the threading of Belfort's glove lacerated his eye.
In
the rubber match and main event of UFC 49, a large number of
MMA "experts" figured that Couture had finally reached
his peak and was about to become a steppingstone. Wow, were these
experts just a little off target.
Couture
dominated his younger, quicker and more athletic opponent and
wound up pummeling Belfort so badly, so savagely that "The
Phenom" had to be rescued by his corner after the third
round. A battered, bloody and beleaguered Belfort had never before
been so brutally punished.
The
loss was so devastating that the Brazilian never regained the
nightmarish fighting prowess that had made him such a dangerous
fighter. In the end, Couture recaptured his 205-pound title and
in essence ended Belfort's career as a legitimate threat.
9)
Couture vs. Chuck Liddell II, UFC 52
This fight was a devastating loss on Couture's résumé
and the first time he was knocked out. Of all the murderous strikers
that he locked horns with, nobody had come close to snatching
away his consciousness. For the first time in his career, Couture
was a heavy favorite, not an underdog. After handling Liddell
easily in their first encounter, most assumed he'd replicate
that feat.
Unfortunately
for Couture, that didn't occur. He was stopped in the first round,
giving Liddell the light heavyweight title. The fight is memorable
because it showed that after a remarkable string of inhuman accomplishments
inside the Octagon, Couture was, after all, a human being.
The
loss also allowed Couture the luxury of becoming "too old"
and "too worn out" as a fighter. As everybody knows,
this defeat let Couture prove us "experts" wrong again
and again in the years to come. The bout was supposed to end
Couture's reign as the king, but that never came close to reality.
8)
Couture vs. Gabriel Gonzaga, UFC 74
This was the last time the world saw the living legend inside
the Octagon. As always Couture was picked by many to lose to
the cliché. You know: younger, stronger, more powerful,
quicker, blah, blah, blah.
Gonzaga
was the sexy pick for media and fans everywhere solely because
he had nearly decapitated the vaunted Mirko "Cro Cop"
Filipovic with a crippling head kick. He was also known primarily
as a Couture-type fighter in that nobody expected this sort of
striking ability, especially against one of the greatest pure
strikers in MMA.
Couture
willingly accepted the challenge and whipped Gonzaga from start
to finish. He badly hurt the larger heavyweight, scored numerous
takedowns and bombarded him with the trademark Couture ground-and-pound
en route to a third-round stoppage.
At
44, Couture held onto his heavyweight title and walked out as
arguably the greatest fighter to ever step foot into the Octagon.
What makes this fight so special is that Gonzaga will probably
become a heavyweight champion. On this night, however, he was
owned by a man almost old enough to qualify for a senior discount.
7)
Couture vs. Vitor Belfort I, UFC 15
Couture had only fought twice professionally and was basically
a pure wrestler. Sure he could land some strikes on the ground,
and he seemed like a competent contender, but Vitor Belfort was
regarded as the future. He was a young kid without a ceiling,
and he had destroyed every man thrown in front of him. Tank Abbott,
Scott Ferrozzo, Jon Hess and Tra Telligman were all obliterated,
with the longest fight lasting a mere 77 seconds. Belfort seemed
absolutely invincible.
As
it turned out, the monumental underdog thwarted everything Belfort
threw his way and systematically dismantled the Brazilian in
just over eight minutes.
Couture
smothered him. He battered him. He slammed him and rained down
vicious elbows. It looked like a man versus a boy. Never before
had a fighter so deadly as Belfort been handled so easily, and
the win marked the first time in his career that Couture had
proved the so-called pundits wrong. In reality, this was the
dawn of Couture's legacy.
6)
Couture vs. Pedro Rizzo II, UFC 34
After their torrid first encounter in which some insiders felt
Rizzo deserved the victory, Couture slightly retooled his game
plan and punished "The Rock" for just over two full
rounds.
Rizzo
couldn't land his legendary leg kicks for fear of being slammed
onto his back. He also couldn't reel off his lethal punches,
either, because Couture's defense and angles were giving the
Brazilian knockout artist fits. Rizzo had never been beaten so
soundly and so emphatically, and many wondered why their initial
meeting was as close as it was.
Couture
had figured out Rizzo and worn him down in his greatest masterpiece
to date. He scored takedowns almost at will and delivered vicious
elbows and punches from within Rizzo's guard, from side-control
and from full-mount. Early in the third round, Rizzo was an exhausted
and bludgeoned shell of the dangerous title challenger that had
entered the cage.
In
victory Couture erased any doubt as to who the best heavyweight
in the sport was, at least in the UFC. Additionally, considering
how poor Zuffa's previous card had been, he capped off an event
that desperately needed his performance.
5)
Couture vs. Kevin Randleman, UFC 28
"The Monster" was supposed to be a fighter just like
Couture -- except twice as explosive and twice as powerful. Couture
seemed slow in comparison to Randleman, and though "The
Natural" had earlier pummeled Belfort, he had also lost
to opponents like Valentijn Overeem, Enson Inoue and Mikhail
Illoukhine. Plus, those fights weren't even in the UFC, and many
believed that Couture had already seen his best days.
Randleman
was the prototypical killing machine, a disciple of Mark "The
Hammer" Coleman, who was expected to be even better than
his mentor. Of course Couture prevailed and left the taste of
shoe soles in many a mouth.
Couture
out-muscled and out-wrestled Randleman and when he needed to,
he administered a Hammer-esque beating that The Monster, himself
a former UFC champion, had little answer for. It seemed as though
every time Randleman tried something, Couture had the perfect
response. He scored takedowns, blocked strikes and smothered
his muscular opponent from start to finish.
Along
with his triumph over Belfort, Couture had squashed another young
opponent expected to be a future star.
4)
Couture vs. Tito Ortiz, UFC 44
Ortiz was the defending light heavyweight champion. Even though
Couture was fresh off a win over dangerous Chuck Liddell, most
predicted that the younger Ortiz, arguably the pound-for-pound
king at the time, would outlast Couture and retain his title.
Couture
had his own "interim" title, a belt that irked Ortiz.
Tito promised to "punish" Couture and belittled him
in his classic trash-talking pre-fight propaganda.
At
first the fight was a chess match between two evenly matched
men, and the bout appeared to be just a matter of who wanted
the win more and whose stamina would prevail. Ortiz fought as
hard as he ever had, but he was reduced to an ashamed and beaten
former champion by night's end.
Couture
figured out the game plan on how to topple the brash Ortiz and
won going away, nabbing a unanimous decision. Near the end of
the fifth round, a desperate Ortiz tried in vain to secure a
leg lock, but the soon-to-be-champion Couture taunted him by
tapping on his butt, making fun of the failed submission.
The
win marked the first time in UFC history that a fighter had captured
a world title in two separate weight classes. Couture, once thought
to be a shot and old fighter, used his dominance of Ortiz to
prove just the opposite.
Ortiz
scored a few sizable wins down the road, though this was arguably
the last time he entered the bout as one of the elite fighters
of his generation. In a sense Couture ended that reign as well.
3)
Couture vs. Chuck Liddell I, UFC 43
Couture had lost two consecutive fights, both by stoppage. Most
experts thought he was done (see the trend here?), and since
Liddell was on such a roll at the time with 10 straight wins
over solid foes, Couture was a walking corpse in the eyes of
many. Liddell was eventually going to land one of his lethal
strikes on Couture's chin and send the washed-up fighter into
exile.
Yeah,
we'd heard that all before.
Couture,
not known as much of a striker, boxed beautifully and kept Liddell
guessing all fight long. "The Iceman" could do nothing
against the shorter Couture and ate strike after strike after
strike. Eventually Couture started scoring takedowns, and Liddell
was unable to get back up. Opening up a relentless ground-and-pound
attack, Couture stopped the seemingly unbeatable Liddell midway
through the third round.
Couture
won the "interim" light heavyweight title with the
triumph, to date the biggest of his career. At the time it was
a monumental upset and, shockingly, it wasn't the last time that
Couture would enter the cage as a prohibitive underdog.
He
set the blueprint for how to dominate Liddell, which a few fighters
have followed, even after Liddell became one of the two most
dominant 205-pounders in UFC history.
2)
Couture vs. Pedro Rizzo 1, UFC 31
Without question, this is one of the five greatest fights of
all time, at least in the UFC. For five rounds the two heavyweights
unloaded literally every attack in their arsenal. Neither budged.
They wanted this fight as badly as any two contenders before
them, but it was Couture who squeaked past Rizzo for the heavyweight
title.
The
fight was all but over in the first when Couture delivered one
of the most brutal ground-and-pound attacks during a five-minute
stretch. Yet Rizzo somehow survived to return a beating on Couture
in the second. Both rounds could have easily been scored 10-8,
and after three it was a wonder how either man was still breathing.
There were two rounds left, mind you. Rizzo battered Couture's
legs so badly that they were black and blue for a month and "The
Natural" had a difficult time walking.
The
fight brought out the best in both men, and many have debated
that possibly Rizzo should have won. The UFC treated MMA fans
with a rematch three events later, in which Couture simply overwhelmed
Rizzo via stoppage. But on this night, May 4, 2001, fans witnessed
one of the greatest, most memorable wars of all time.
It
was easily the most exciting fight of Couture's career and the
first time he had to dig deep after nearly being stopped in the
second. It was magnificence personified on both fighters' ends,
but Couture had his hand raised. That fight was also the last
time Rizzo was at the top of his game, and many believe Couture
is the reason why.
1)
Couture vs. Tim Sylvia, UFC 68
Sure, Sylvia is not the greatest heavyweight of all time. He
is not Fedor. He is not Cro Cop, Nogueira, Barnett or a prime
Coleman. He was, however, the defending champion who had scored
some huge wins over some big names.
Sylvia
is a massive fighter with some of the most powerful strikes in
the sport and with Couture returning after a year's retirement
most considered him far beyond his prime. On the heels of a pedestrian
win over journeyman Mike Van Arsdale and two brutal knockout
losses to Liddell, Couture looked old and slow.
The
Miletich-trained fighter was also almost impossible to take down.
Since Couture would stand no chance of getting inside the lurching
Sylvia's reach, he was a massive underdog. Yours truly proclaimed
that Couture stood "zero chance" of beating Sylvia.
Well,
10 seconds into the fight, when Sylvia was crumbling to the canvas
thanks to a Couture right hand, everybody knew he was doomed.
That right hand was a microcosm of what was to come, which was
an embarrassing beating over five rounds in which Sylvia was
reduced to an amateur. Couture had never looked this vicious,
this relentless. He stood toe to toe, took his foe down and even
had Sylvia caught in a few submissions.
In
the end, Couture proved why he is the perfect underdog. He displayed
one of the greatest performances in heavyweight history, never
looking like a man pushing his mid-40s as he outclassed the "younger,
stronger, more powerful" opponent for the umpteenth time.
With
the victory Couture became heavyweight champion again and solidified
his status as the fighter who has scored the most remarkable
and unthinkable victories this sport has ever seen.
Source: Sherdog
|
MMA
Bash Brothers?
by Mike Fridley
Joining the
likes of "The Ultimate Fighter" and various other planned
mixed martial arts-themed projects, ProElite announced plans
Thursday to develop "multi-program MMA content for network
TV" with the cooperation of Mark Burnett, who produces popular
shows such as ESPN's "The Contender" and CBS's "Survivor."
The
untitled initial reality series will focus on former professional
athletes Jose Canseco and Herschel Walker, who will lead undisclosed
sports stars to train mixed martial arts. The "team"
of former greats will do battle with EliteXC talent, with the
show's finale touting a "famous celebrity athlete match
up."
Canseco,
43, along with his twin brother, Ozzie, migrated from Havana,
Cuba, as an infant to Miami, Fla., in the mid 1960s. The physically
gifted slugger was drafted by Major League Baseball's Oakland
Athletics in 1982. Four years later, in his first full season
in the big leagues, Canseco hit 33 homeruns with 117 runs batted
in en route to being named American League Rookie of the Year.
A
two-time World Series winner, Canseco had his best season in
1988, when he became the first player to hit 40 homeruns and
steal 40 bases in the same year.
Canseco
made headlines in his 2002 book "Juiced: Wild Times, Rampant
'Roids, Smash Hits & How Baseball Got Big," in which
he admitted to steroid use and claimed that up to 85 percent
of MLB players took steroids. The publication, though discredited
at first, is now widely considered to be the figurehead for MLB's
large-scale investigation into the drug's impact on the sport.
Reality
television is a venture already experienced by Canseco. He was
featured on season five of VH1's series "The Surreal Life."
Walker,
45, was a football star in the 1980s for the United States and
National Football Leagues. A standout for the Georgia Bulldogs
and the winner of the 1982 Heisman Trophy, which is awarded annually
to the most outstanding collegiate football player, Walker later
starred at tailback for five professional teams. His most productive
years were spent with the NFL's Dallas Cowboys, where he shared
time with -- and eventually replaced -- eventual Hall of Famer
Tony Dorsett.
Exactly
18 years ago today, on Oct. 12, 1989, Walker was involved in
the largest trade in NFL history with the Minnesota Vikings,
in which 18 players and draft picks were dealt.
Pundits
and fans alike point to the lopsided trade as the launching point
to the Cowboys' dynasty in the 90s, as they used Walker-acquired
draft picks to select future Canton-bound players Emmitt Smith
and Darren Woodson, as well as contributors Russell Maryland,
Alvin Harper and Jesse Solomon.
After
several disappointing seasons with the Vikings, Giants and Eagles,
Walker returned to Dallas in 1996, where he shined on special
teams and served as a backup to Smith. Although he never officially
announced his retirement, Walker never played another down in
the league after being released by the Cowboys early in 1998.
A
lifelong martial artist who is well known for his physique and
workout routines, Walker has been announced as co-creating EliteXC's
project with Prem Akkaraju, who will also serve as co-executive
producer.
Source: Sherdog
|
A
new Japanese MMA organization is coming next week
By Zach Arnold
Update:
This story has been picked up in Japanese by NHB News.
A
press release was sent out to members of the Japanese media today
(not on a public scale, but specifically addressed to members
of the Japanese press) for a new company called World Victory
Road Inc. in Japan. The press release states that there will
be a press conference on the 2nd floor of Tokyo’s Prince
Hotel on the 15th (this Monday at 3 PM JST). The press release
states that representatives from Don Quijote (one of PRIDE’s
former sponsors and current sponsor of Kazuhiro Nakamura) and
FILA are expected to be in attendance. The most interesting name
listed as a guest for the press conference is Chairman Fukuda
of the Japanese wrestling association. He was a figurehead that
PRIDE tried to recruit before that organizaton hit troubled times.
Also on the guest list is Mr. Kinoshita of the Kinoshita Group,
a construction company.
Interestingly
enough, the cell phone number at the bottom of the private press
release belongs to an employee of J-ROCK, the management group
of Hidehiko Yoshida.
One
media source claims that a top figurehead for the new organization
is former UFC-Japan promoter, Akira Sakata.
In
a separate J-ROCK news item, the California State Athletic Commission
announced this morning that Kazuhiro Nakamura’s appeal of
his failed drug test (for marijuana) will happen on October 31st
in Los Angeles.
Source: Fight Opinion
|
Demian
will use ground game in his debut in UFC
The champion
of ADCC, Demian Maia will make his debut in the UFC´s octagon
on the 77th edition of the american event, that will happen in
Cincinato, Ohio. Demian that would fight against Marvin Eastman,
will now face Ryan Jensen. “I´ve seen some of his
fights and he´s very good. He won 9 in 11 bouts, and the
victories were in less than two minutes. Of the two bouts he
lost, one was for Thales (Leites) in UFC 74. Thales chose the
right strategy, used his Jiu-Jitsu technique and I´m going
to do the same” said Demian that already fighted two times
in the octagon.
“I
had two bouts in the octagon, but in UFC the octagon is 10x10
meters and its bigger. I´m training the ground game with
Paulão Rezende that was the professor of Marcelinho Garcia
and Reinaldo Ribeiro. He´s living in São Paulo ,
it´s training me. The striking part, I´m training
Boxing with professor Lopes, because Distak is in Rio . In the
physical preparation I´m doing with Tiago Amaral”,
said Demian.
Source: Tatame
|
Quote
of the Day
"You
know when you have found your prince because you not
only have a smile on your face but in your heart as well."
Source Unknown
|
Boxing
Smoker October 13
Tonight!
Evolution
Training Center
Fights start at 5:00 PM
Wanted to let you know the next Boxing smoker will be on Sat.
Oct. 13 Starting at 5 p.m., at the Evolution Training Center,
94-547 Ukee St., Suite 209, Waipahu, HI., 96797 in Waipio.
Host is Five-O Boxing Club.
Boxers from Oahu, Maui, Big Island, and Kauai are expected to
compete.
20 - 25 bouts are scheduled.
Tickets are $10 pre-sale and $15 at the door.
For pre-sale tickets For pre-sale tickets contact Danny Kaheaku
at 808-590-9084.
Thank You for Your Support!!
Source: Bruce Kawano
|
Report:
Fedor Emelianenko to M-1
by Sherdog.com Staff
Fedor Emelianenko has committed to the Russian-based promotion
M-1, according to a report published by The Fight Network.
Speculation
has abounded regarding Emelianenko (26-1-1), the man most pundits
see as the top mixed martial artist in the world, since the implosion
of his former home, PRIDE. The UFC and K-1 had been grabbing
most of the headlines in the Emelianenko sweepstakes.
Citing
an anonymous source, the Fight Network report claims that M-1,
an organization formerly run by Emelianenko's manager, Vadim
Finkelstein, has been purchased by a company with ties to the
American entertainment industry, and its first order of business
was inking Emelianenko to a deal.
Sherdog.com
has learned the new organization will run under the M-1 Global
moniker and plans to promote shows in Russia, Japan and the United
States with the first event possibly coming to fruition as soon
as New Year's Eve.
A
news conference has been tentatively scheduled for Oct. 23 in
New York City to announce the signing as well as to introduce
the new promotion to the media.
Source: Sherdog
|
Big
news day for Pro Elite: Kimbo gets his bread and celebrity MMA
TV
By Jeff Comstock
Back
to the title story:
ProElite.com
has confirmed that legendary street fighter Kimbo Slice has signed
a long term deal with Elite XC. This announcement follows the
news that Nick Diaz has signed a 2 year extension with the company.
Sam
Caplan’s Five Ounces Of Pain blog reveals that Kimbo’s
Elite XC debut for the promotion, will take place on a November
10th card in Corpus Christi, Texas. Nick Diaz is expected to
fight on that card as well, along with a rumored bout between
Jake Shields vs. Mike Pyle.
If
that’s not enough Pro Elite news, there are finally some
details on exactly what Pro Elite’s reality TV series will
be.
Forbes.com
published a Business Wire press release about the Mark Burnett
produced, celebrity MMA, reality television show with Pro Elite.
The
currently untitled initial series centers on former football
and baseball stars, Herschel Walker and Jose Canseco, respectively,
who together with a group of other former pros, train as a team
to cross over into the sport of mixed martial arts. These athletes
will fight with select EliteXC fighters in each episode with
the series finale featuring a famous celebrity athlete match
up. Additionally, episode highlights and interactive features
for the shows produced will reside on ProElite.com. The show
is co-created by Herschel Walker and Prem Akkaraju, who will
also serve as a co-executive producer.
Source: Fight Opinion
|
TITO
ORTIZ NOT RETURNING UNTIL 2008
by Damon Martin
“The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” Tito Ortiz is not expected
to return to action until sometime in 2008 according to a statement
released by the former Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight
champion on Thursday.
It
was expected that Ortiz would fight in October or November in
a rematch with Rashad Evans, whom he fought to a draw in July.
With
the recent announcement that Evans would now be facing Michael
Bisping as the main event of UFC 78 in New Jersey, everyone started
to wonder where exactly that put Ortiz.
“Right
now I am totally focused on training,” he stated. “I
have always had a reputation for being the best prepared fighter
in any match I've ever entered and I intend to maintain that
reputation.”
Ortiz
has been dealing with multiple injuries; including a back ailment
that has plagued him since around the time of his loss to current
UFC heavyweight champion Randy Couture in 2003.
Contract
negotiations with the UFC have also been ongoing as Ortiz has
only one fight left on his current deal, but the California native
indicated he is positive a new deal will get done.
Recently
Ortiz disclosed that he no longer deals with UFC president Dana
White, whom he has a long-standing feud with and now speaks directly
with owner Lorenzo Fertitta.
“I'm
currently working very closely with the UFC to plan my next fight,
which you can be sure will not disappoint my fans,” said
Ortiz. “It looks like I will fight again in early 2008 and
when I do, I will be 100% prepared to crush my opponent.”
No
word on whom that opponent might be.
Ortiz
also stated that he is planning a return trip to Iraq later this
year to visit U.S. troops, something he has done numerous times
in the past as a part of the United Service Organizations' efforts
to support the soldiers.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Wand’s
team all set to go
The
mission is under way. With the arrival of trainers Ulisses Pereira
(boxing) and Andre Galvao (Jiu-Jitsu), to join forces with Rafael
Alejarra (physical preparations) in Las Vegas, Wanderlei Silva's
team has gained some faces, happy ones at that. The first training
session kicked off this afternoon (Brasilia time), in Las Vegas.
Straight from the game's capitol, Andre Galvao commented on his
impression of his new "boss." “It’s all great,
Wand is really down to earth and received me really well. I’m
already here shooting the breeze with Alejarra,” said the
Brasa black belt, chosen by Wand himself, as GRACIEMAG.com brings
you first hand.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Chuck
Liddell vs Wanderlei Silva - Finally?!?
After Chuck Liddell lost to Keith Jardine at UFC 76 last month,
it looked like MMA fans might never get to see the once dreamed
about matchup between Liddell and Wanderlei Silva.
Had
Liddell defeated Jardine, the UFC was set to promote their much-awaited
bout between the two fighters on the UFC 79 fight card set for
December 29th in Las Vegas. UFC 79 was already slated to be a
star-studded event with the welterweight title fight between
current UFC champion Matt Serra and former UFC champion Matt
Hughes, as well a lightweight title fight between challenger
BJ Penn and either Sean Sherk or most likely Joe Stevenson; but
adding a Liddell vs Silva fight to that card would easly be the
icing on the cake.
After
UFC 79, Dana White went so far as to say that the Liddell vs
Silva fight was “just not meant to happen,” leading
many to believe that the fight was being called off. Most of
the MMA community still called for the fight to happen and, in
fact, still having the fight in December made more sense than
just abandoning it altogether. Was Dana being serious or just
his usual, over-dramatic self? It appears the latter might be
the case.
Percy
Crawford from FightHype.com recently interviewed Liddell’s
long-time trainer John Hackleman who stated that they were currently
preparing to fight Wanderlei Silva in December.
PC:
I know you guys were eyeballing a fight with Shogun, but his
knee surgery will prevent that fight from happening. Will you
still like to get the Wanderlei fight?
JH:
Looks like the Wanderlei fight is going to happen.
PC:
Ok, is it still going to be in December?
JH:
December, yeah!
So,
it appears that Dana White and Joe Silva have come to the same
conclusion the rest of the MMA world has and decided to continue
on with the fight. If the fight still doesn’t happen this
December, I won’t be the least bit surprised, but at least
someone close to the situation is hinting that it will take place.
Source: MMA HQ
|
Quote
of the Day
"Remember,
today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday."
Dale Carnegie, 1888-1955, American Author and Achievement Expert
|
MMA
Pipeline: A ‘Ruthless' Return
by James Meinhardt
Fresh
off his impressive TKO over Murilo "Ninja" Rua, EliteXC
and ICON
Sport middleweight
champion Robbie Lawler will return to ICON on Dec. 15 to defend
his belt against Waianae, Hawaii's Kala Kolohe Hose.
The
two fighters were scheduled to square off in June, but the event
was postponed -- first due to a shoulder injury Lawler suffered
in training and then due to ProElite's pending acquisition of
ICON Sport.
Lawler
and Hose both saw action most recently at EliteXC's Sept. 15
event in Hawaii. Lawler beat Rua to win the EliteXC middleweight
title, and Hose kept up his streak of first-round knockouts,
needing only 20 seconds to stop Jeff Cox.
Dubbed
"Fearless," the December ICON event will also include
a 145-pound state title fight between champ Bronson Pieper and undefeated challenger Sadhu Bott and a light heavyweight
matchup between Po'ai
Suganuma
and Richard
Desforge,
a training partner of Kala Kolohe Hose.
Justin
Buchholz
turns down ShoXC, signs with UFC
After
his notable first-round stoppage of Ikaika Choy-Fu at EliteXC on Sept. 15, Justin Buchholz
was offered a multi-fight contract with ProElite. He was expected
to fulfill the first of those fights on the Oct. 26 ShoXC card
in Santa Ynez, Calif., but the ICON Sport state lightweight champ
has apparently passed on the offer.
Source: Sherdog
|
COUTURE
QUITS UFC
MMA Icon Walks Away From Promotion In Stunning Move
By Brian Knapp
At
the height of its power and popularity, the Ultimate Fighting
Championship today lost the man many recognize as the face of
mixed martial arts. UFC heavyweight champion Randy Couture announced
his resignation from the Las Vegas-based promotion, leaving two
contracted fights, his job as an on-air analyst and his heavyweight
crown on the table.
In
South Africa shooting scenes for his lead role in the upcoming
feature film “The Scorpion King – Rise of the Akkadian,”
Couture made the announcement official in a letter to UFC president
Dana White. The UFC’s inability to land PRIDE heavyweight
champion Fedor Emelianenko played a prominent role in the decision
to walk away, according to Couture.
“I
appreciate this opportunity the sport of MMA and the UFC has
given me,” the UFC Hall-of-Famer said. “However, I’m
tired of swimming upstream at this stage with the management
of the UFC. It only makes sense at this point in my career to
fight Fedor Emelianenko, and since he’s now signed with
another organization, I feel like it’s time to resign and
focus on my other endeavors.”
His
abrupt departure deals a significant blow to the world’s
most visible MMA organization. Couture was not only a beloved
competitor – White once called him “the greatest fighter
in UFC history” – but also a revered spokesman for
a company that had long struggled to gain mainstream acceptance.
“Randy’s
contract was on a fight-by-fight basis, and that’s the way
he said he was always going to take it – fight by fight,”
said Matt Walker, Couture’s agent at The Gersh Agency. “His
acting career is accelerating at an astronomical rate, and without
the support he felt some of his peers were receiving in the fight
business, this was the logical choice.”
A
three-time All-American wrestler at Oklahoma State University,
Couture won four national championships in Greco-Roman wrestling
and made four attempts at qualifying for the Olympics. He made
his MMA debut at UFC 13 on May 13, 1997, where, at age 33, he
won a heavyweight tournament, defeating Tony Halme and Steven
Graham on the same night. Just seven months later, he toppled
famed kickboxer Maurice Smith in Yokohama, Japan to win the UFC
heavyweight crown for the first time.
Over
the course of the next decade, Couture emerged as one of the
most decorated mixed martial artists in history. The UFC’s
only six-time champion, he captured the heavyweight belt three
times, the light heavyweight title twice and an interim light
heavyweight title, as well. Couture remains the only man to win
UFC championships in two weight classes.
His
run through the promotion included a memorable trilogy with light
heavyweight rival Chuck Liddell, the only opponent to beat Couture
twice. Following his third bout with Liddell in February 2006,
Couture announced his first retirement.
As
2007 dawned, his desire to compete returned, and a four-fight
contract with the UFC – which included the opportunity to
fight Tim Sylvia for the heavyweight strap at UFC 68 in March
– was presented to Couture. He accepted, and the wheels
for an historic comeback were set in motion.
Couture
floored Sylvia with an overhand right seconds into the bout and
punished the 6-foot-8 giant over five rounds. Playing to chants
of “Randy!” he regained the heavyweight title for an
unprecedented third time in front of 19,049 fans at the Nationwide
Arena in Columbus, Ohio. Five months later, at the age of 44,
he defeated rising contender Gabriel Gonzaga at UFC 74, stopping
the young Brazilian by third-round TKO despite suffering a broken
left arm. It would be his final appearance in the Octagon.
Couture
(16-8) leaves behind an unrivaled legacy in the sport. Fifteen
of his 24 career bouts were title fights, and he bested six former
UFC champions – Liddell, Vitor Belfort, Tito Ortiz and Sylvia
among them. Always willing to meet a challenge, Couture consistently
tested himself against the world’s premier fighters. The
19 men he fought (he squared off with Pedro Rizzo twice and Liddell
and Belfort three times each) hold 357 victories between them.
Source: Fight Network
|
Dana
White Comments On Couture's Retirement
President Dana White sat down with UFC.com editor Thomas Gerbasi
to discuss Randy Couture’s retirement.
Thomas
Gerbasi – Were you surprised when the fax came into your
office with Randy Couture’s resignation?
Dana White – No, I wasn’t surprised. I met with Randy
several weeks ago and he said that the only thing he had left
to prove in his career and the only challenge left out there
for him was Fedor (Emelianenko) because everybody thinks that
Fedor is the best. And Fedor has that mystique where people think
he’s number one, which I don’t agree with. I think
that Fedor is completely overrated – he’s fought Mark
Coleman and Matt Lindland in the last year, with Mark Hunt being
his only legitimate opponent - and I actually think that Randy
Couture would have smashed Fedor.
TG
– So this wasn’t a surprise, but were you at least
surprised at the way he went about it, via fax?
DW – He is shooting a movie right now in South Africa, but
yes, I am very surprised by the way he did it. I consider Randy
Couture a friend and still do. He hooked up with some Hollywood
agent that I bitch slapped about a month ago, and these Hollywood
agents are parasites, so unfortunately this guy is probably in
Randy’s ear right now. But, that’s the world Randy
wants to be in; Randy wants to be in the movie world now, that’s
what he’s working for and that’s his guy right now.
TG
– What were the contents of the fax from Randy?
DW – It was just a letter saying that he resigned from his
positions at the UFC. He was a color commentator and he was going
to do some legislative work with us, helping Marc Ratner and
going and talking to other States that we were trying to get
sanctioned in.
TG
– Some are saying that the timing is funny on this announcement
given Fedor’s recent signing to another organization the
day before…
DW – Yeah, but Randy is still under contract with the UFC.
Apparently Randy’s upset about something, and the timing
of this thing is a typical Hollywood agent move while Randy’s
out of town. But he told me he wanted to retire anyway if he
didn’t fight Fedor, and he can’t fight Fedor in another
organization because he’s under contract to me. I’m
very confident though that once Randy gets back in town, if we
see each other we’ll work this thing out. Not saying that
Randy wouldn’t stay retired, because that’s what he
wants to do - he wants to act, he wants to be on TV shows, that’s
his goal - but I’m sure Randy Couture and I are gonna be
friends for a long time.
TG
– What kind of efforts were made by the UFC to get Fedor
in the organization?
DW – The thing that I’ve been trying to do for years
is get the two best organizations in the world together. And
the only two organizations that matter are PRIDE and the UFC.
All these other ones are minor leagues, full of guys trying to
fight their way up. What I wanted to do for years is get the
best in every weight class together and let’s find out who
is the number one fighter in the world. That has been my goal
for the last five years and we wanted to make that happen. And
I was extremely confident that Randy Couture would win against
Fedor, and I still am. But we weren’t able to get that fight,
we weren’t able to get Fedor, and I had to deal with these
crazy reps he had – everything they said made no sense and
the whole deal was crazy. It seemed like it was all about their
managers and not about Fedor. So the deal didn’t happen
and Couture let me and Lorenzo (Fertitta) know that without that,
there was nothing really to accomplish anymore. In mixed martial
arts he had accomplished everything, and I didn’t disagree
with him. I said I completely agree, and I think Randy is looking
right now at moving on and accomplishing his goals in acting.
TG
– There have been reports that Couture’s fight contract
with the UFC will expire in nine months; is there truth to those
reports?
DW – Absolutely not.
TG
– Were you hurt by some of the comments Couture has made
regarding a perceived lack of respect from the organization?
DW – Of course we’re hurt by that. Randy Couture is
a guy who I’ve said publicly a million times and I’ll
say publicly right now who I feel is one of the guys who helped
us get here. If you want to call me a liar, people think a lot
of bad stuff about me anyway, but to call Lorenzo Fertitta a
liar, the reason the sport exists right now is because of him
and his brother (Frank). They’ve done nothing but good things
for this sport, and I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t
for him and his brother. You ask anybody in Las Vegas about the
reputation of the Fertitta family; they aren’t liars, they
are great people. So for him to say that about Lorenzo, it’s
not like Randy Couture. It’s not like him.
TG
– Had he brought some of his concerns to your attention
before, or was today the first time you had heard them?
DW – We had a breakfast a few weeks ago and he told me that
he was upset about things and he felt like other fighters were
getting paid more than he was and that he didn’t have the
best contract in the UFC. And I assured him that he had the second
best contract in the UFC with Chuck Liddell having the best.
TG
– He negotiated this contract, correct?
DW – He did. It was the contract that he negotiated and
that he was very happy with once we were done negotiating it.
TG
– Until he perceived that someone else was making more money.
DW – Right. He thought that other guys were making more
money than him, and we assured him that he had the second best
contract in the UFC.
TG
– How does Randy’s departure hurt the UFC heavyweight
division?
DW – I don’t think it affects the division at all because
after what we’ve seen over the last couple of years, anybody
can win or lose on any given night. It’s what makes this
sport so exciting. And now it’s like this big shocking news
that Randy Couture retired. He’s 44 years old, he’s
not 24. Is everybody really that shocked that Randy retired?
Randy Couture has had an amazing career, he’s an incredible
athlete, he’s pulled off more upsets, and has been the underdog
so many times, what’s really left out there for him? I think
he would have put a stone cold beating on Fedor, and he would
have walked away with the same thing that he’s walking away
with now. He’s walking out on top, and walking out on top
is a smart thing to do. And it’s perfect for his acting
career.
TG
– Randy, to a lot of people, is the face of the UFC. How
does this affect the organization?
DW – People were saying to me four months ago that Chuck
Liddell was the face of the UFC. Randy Couture and Chuck Liddell
are two of many faces of the UFC. The UFC has the greatest fighters
in the world, and Randy Couture and Chuck Liddell might be two
of the best known fighters in the UFC, but everybody pulls their
weight in this company and everybody works hard for it. Randy
Couture, Chuck Liddell, Matt Hughes, Rich Franklin, Joe Rogan,
these are guys who were with us early on who I credit for helping
us get to where we are today. Is Randy Couture the face of the
UFC? No, he’s one of many faces of the UFC, but he is one
of the guys who helped us get here. I love him, I respect him,
I still consider him my friend and just like any friendship,
we don’t see eye to eye all the time, but if you’re
true friends, you work it out, and I consider Randy Couture a
true friend, and I honestly believe that when he comes home from
filming, and when his scumbag Hollywood agent isn’t around,
we’ll talk and we’ll square away our friendship. And
as far as his retirement and him wanting to retire, I have nothing
but respect for him and I don’t disagree with his decision.
Source: Gracie Figher/UFC.com
|
Boxing
Smoker October 13
Tomorrow
Evolution
Training Center
Fights start at 5:00 PM
Wanted to let you know the next Boxing smoker will be on Sat.
Oct. 13 Starting at 5 p.m., at the Evolution Training Center,
94-547 Ukee St., Suite 209, Waipahu, HI., 96797 in Waipio.
Host is Five-O Boxing Club.
Boxers from Oahu, Maui, Big Island, and Kauai are expected to
compete.
20 - 25 bouts are scheduled.
Tickets are $10 pre-sale and $15 at the door.
For pre-sale tickets For pre-sale tickets contact Danny Kaheaku
at 808-590-9084.
Thank You for Your Support!!
Source: Bruce Kawano
|
Brawler's
Future Not in PFC
by Josh Gross
Kevin
Ferguson, who fought under the name Kimbo Slice in street fights
that were taped and sold on the Internet, will not meet David
"Tank" Abbott, himself a reputed "street fighter,"
in the Palace Fighting Championship, Sherdog.com was told Wednesday
evening.
Earlier
in the day through Christian Printup, the Tachai Palace Hotel
& Casino Entertainment Director, PFC offered a deal to the
fighters' management teams that he said would have paid out a
six-figure purse to the winner.
Slice's
management declined the deal because their fighter had committed
elsewhere, Printup said. He would not comment as to with whom
Slice had signed.
Other
suitors were believed to include the Showtime-televised EliteXC
as well as Canada's Hardcore Championship Fighting.
When
contacted about Slice's status, EliteXC vice president Jared
Shaw declined to comment on the record. HCF president Keith Crawford
did not reply right away to a request for an update on Slice.
"We
gave it our best and trust me when I say we will keep pushing,
keep the big guys on their toes and we will eventually settle
into the role of 'best small-to medium' sized show in the U.S.,"
Printup said of the PFC, which returns Oct. 18 at the Tachi Palace
Hotel & Casino in Lemoore, Calif. "I have no doubts."
Source: Sherdog
|
Tony
de Souza vs Jucao likely
Peruvian vc Brazilian likely to happen at the event
With
the next UFC events nearing, the rumor-mill is becoming more
and more active, and one of the rumors coming out of it is very
near becoming real. It is almost good as done that the Brazilian
Roan "Jucao" Carneiro (11w and 6l) will face the Peruvian
Tony de Souza (10w and 3l) the American event's 79th event.
The
Brazilian Top Team representative is coming off a loss to the
American John Fitch at UFC Fight Night 10, whereas Tony has not
fought since December of 2006, when he was defeated by Thiago
Alves at UFC 66, by referee stoppage. The Peruvian was recently
an assistant coach on BJ Penn’s team in the Ultimate Fighter reality
show.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Lombard
Denied Entry Into U.S.
by Denis Martins
Cuba's
Hector Lombard as set to make his Ultimate Fighting Championship
debut Nov. 17 in Newark, New Jersey. There's just one problem:
he can't gain entry into the United States, the fighter told
Sherdog.com.
"I'm
not going to get my visa," said Lombard, who was set to
fight welterweight Karo Parisyan. "I only have a Cuban passport,
so I've been told it's impossible for me to migrate.
"I
went to the American embassy twice and they said no to me both
times."
Lombard,
11-2-1 (1 NC), represented Cuba as a judoka in the 2000 Sydney
Olympic games. While he sports an impressive record, Lombard's
two losses came when he stepped up in competition, falling short
on points in 183-pound bouts to Akihiro Gono and Gegard Mousasi.
The
Cuban judoka, who makes his home in Australia, is facing the
same visa problems that plagued Renato "Babalu" Sobral's
former wrestling coach, Alejo Morales, also a Cuban national.
Even though Morales established residency in Brazil, he was never
able to travel to the U.S. with "Babalu."
An
official announcement regarding Lombard's replacement is expected
to be made soon.
Source: Sherdog
|
Quote
of the Day
“Things
may come to those who wait but only the things left by those
who hustle.”
Abraham Lincoln, 1809-1865, 16th President of the United States
|
GUIDA
& HUERTA TALKING FIGHT OF THE YEAR
The Ultimate Fighting Championship on Tuesday officially announced
“The Ultimate Fighter: Team Hughes vs. Team Serra Finale”
on Dec. 8 at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas.
The
main event is a lightweight bout between rising talents Roger
Huerta and Clay Guida. Also featured is the welterweight tournament
final between two competitors from the reality series.
“I
can’t even describe in words how awesome this is,”
Guida said about headlining the show. “It’s something
that I didn’t think would be happening this soon in my career.”
“I
think it’s a fight that needs to happen,” he continued.
“This has fight of the year written all over it.”
Huerta
concurred, “It’s a great fight. It’ll be good
for both of us. I’m not going to hold anything back and
neither is Clay. This definitely could be … fight of the
year.”
Having
just settled down in a new house in St. Paul, Minn., Huerta also
hopes this fight will silence his doubters.
“It’ll
answer a lot of questions about me for people about me not fighting
a name opponent. Clay I a great opponent, a great fighter with
a lot of energy and determination.”
Huerta
and Guida will fight in the main event at the Palms on Dec. 8
on Spike TV.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
PFC
ATTEMPTS TO MAINTAIN KIMBO VS. TANK
David Abbott and Kevin Ferguson (a.k.a. Tank Abbott and Kimbo
Slice) were set to collide at the Cage Fury Fighting Championships
in Atlantic City on Oct. 12. The event, however, was cancelled
on a week's notice. Christian Printup, president of the Palace
Fighting Championship, has been vocal about making the fight
happen in his organization.
According
to CFFC president Felix Martinez, “I could not overcome
the loss of a major investor for this show who decided to pull
out at the last moment. With the loss of this investor, I cannot
proceed with another world-class event.”
The
fight between Tank and Kimbo came about when the two had some
harsh words for each other following Kimbo’s mixed martial
arts debut where he disposed of former boxing heavyweight champion
Ray Mercer in a CFFC exhibition bout back in June of this year.
“We
know things happen and shows fall apart, but I am serious when
I say that if both sides want this fight to take place all they
have to do is call me and we’ll work to make it happen,”
stated Printup in a press release. “With our next show only
6 days after their scheduled bout, I think it’s a no-brainer.
The fight should take place and it should take place in the PFC.”
Printup
confirmed to MMAWeekly that he has sent offers to both fighters
and expects to here back at some point on Wednesday.
The
PFC holds their events at the Taichi Hotel and Casino in Lemoore,
Calif., the former home of World Extreme Cagefighting before
it was purchased by Zuffa, LLC, the parent company of the Ultimate
Fighting Championship. Printup and his staff played a role in
the development of the WEC prior to the buyout and have applied
that experience to developing the new promotion.
This
fight definitely has high name value, as Tank remains well known
from his early days fighting for the UFC and Kimbo for his underground
brawls broadcast on the Internet. It presents an opportunity
for Printup to possibly accelerate his planned expansion of the
PFC brand.
“We
are in the final stages of negotiations on a television deal
and this fight could be tape delayed,” he said, “and
of course a DVD will be produced as well.”
Printup
also confirmed that a pay-per-view Internet broadcast and other
options are also being explored, but currently “there is
nothing definite.”
Source: MMA Weekly
|
MMAWEEKLY
WORLD MMA RANKINGS UPDATED
he latest MMAWeekly World MMA Rankings were released on Wednesday,
October 10. This system ranks the top ten MMA fighters from all
across the world in each of the six largest weight classes, as
voted on by MMAWeekly.
We
take into consideration a fighter's performance in addition to
his win-loss record, head-to-head and common opponents, difficulty
of opponents, and numerous other factors in what is the most
comprehensive rankings system in the sport.
As
always, fighters who are currently serving drug-related suspensions
are not eligible for top ten consideration.
Here
are the current MMAWeekly World MMA Rankings, which are up-to-date
as of October 10.
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
HEAVYWEIGHT
DIVISION (over 205 pounds)
#1
Heavyweight Fighter in the World: Fedor Emelianenko
2.
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
3.
Josh Barnett
4.
Randy Couture
5.
Gabriel Gonzaga
6.
Tim Sylvia
7.
Andrei Arlovski
8.
Mirko Cro Cop
9.
Fabricio Werdum
10.
Aleksander Emelianenko
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
LIGHT
HEAVYWEIGHT DIVISION (205-pound limit)
#1
Light Heavyweight Fighter in the World: Quinton Jackson
2.
Mauricio "Shogun" Rua
3.
Dan Henderson
4.
Chuck Liddell
5.
Wanderlei Silva
6.
Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou
7.
Keith Jardine
8.
Forrest Griffin
9.
Ricardo Arona
10.
Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
MIDDLEWEIGHT
DIVISION (185-pound limit)
#1
Middleweight Fighter in the World: Anderson Silva
2.
Paulo Filho
3.
Matt Lindland
4.
Rich Franklin
5.
Denis Kang
6.
Robbie Lawler
7.
Nathan Marquardt
8.
Kazuo Misaki
9.
Frank Trigg
10.
Yushin Okami
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
WELTERWEIGHT
DIVISION (170-pound limit)
#1
Welterweight Fighter in the World: Matt Serra
2.
Georges St. Pierre
3.
Matt Hughes
4.
Jon Fitch
5.
Josh Koscheck
6.
Karo Parisyan
7.
Diego Sanchez
8.
Jake Shields
9.
Carlos Condit
10.
Marcus Davis
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
LIGHTWEIGHT
DIVISION (160-pound limit)
#1
Lightweight Fighter in the World: Takanori Gomi
2.
Hayato Sakurai
3.
Gilbert Melendez
4.
Tatsuya Kawajiri
5.
Shinya Aoki
6.
Gesias "JZ" Calvancante
7.
Vitor "Shaolin" Ribeiro
8.
Joachim Hansen
9.
Joe Stevenson
10.
Mitsuhiro Ishida
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
FEATHERWEIGHT
DIVISION (145 pounds and under)
#1
Featherweight Fighter in the World: Akitoshi Tamura
2.
"Lion" Takeshi Inoue
3.
Antonio Carvalho
4.
Urijah Faber
5.
Masakazu Imanari
6.
Hatsu Hioki
7.
Jeff Curran
8.
Yoshiro Maeda
9.
Tenkei Fujimiya
10.
Rafael Assuncao
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Boxing
Smoker October 13
Evolution
Training Center
Fights start at 5:00 PM
Wanted to let you know the next Boxing smoker will be on Sat.
Oct. 13 Starting at 5 p.m., at the Evolution Training Center,
94-547 Ukee St., Suite 209, Waipahu, HI., 96797 in Waipio.
Host is Five-O Boxing Club.
Boxers from Oahu, Maui, Big Island, and Kauai are expected to
compete.
20 - 25 bouts are scheduled.
Tickets are $10 pre-sale and $15 at the door.
For pre-sale tickets For pre-sale tickets contact Danny Kaheaku
at 808-590-9084.
Thank You for Your Support!!
Source: Bruce Kawano
|
Hawaii
Fight League
Friday,
October 19, 2007
Dole Cannery Ballroom
Doors Open at 6:00 PM
|
Full
Force is Back on October 20th!
Maui War Memorial
Gym
Listen to Kawika Veeka on 98.3 FM for the latest info on this
fight card loaded with local Maui fighters!
|
HFC
Returns on Friday, November 23!
Dole Cannery
Ballrooms
Doors open at 5:30 pm and show starts at 6:00 pm
|
FIRST
NORTH AMERICAN MIXED MARTIAL ARTS EXPO!
Guys! I
am super excited because the entertainment company that I do
sponsorship marketing for just got hired to find sponsors for
the FIRST NORTH AMERICAN MIXED MARTIAL ARTS EXPO! I am pretty
excited because most of the events that we do are red carpet
events and celebrity parties. I can't believe we are actually
doing an MMA event - I am so excited! I feel so blessed. I never
thought I'd be networking with the UG... so this is great!
This
is actually my very first thread I've ever posted in the UG too
– TTT to that! HA!
Anyway,
the North American Mixed Martial Arts Expo will be held on December
1st and 2nd at the Anaheim Convention Center and has been specifically
designed to benefit the following groups in the MMA industry:
Amateur
Fighters
Professional Fighters
Fighter Managers & Agents
Event Promoters
Models & Ring Girls
Consumers & Fans
Apparel & Gear Companies
Training Centers & Martial Arts Schools
Fight Leagues & Venues
Cage Manufacturers
We
are currently looking for Sponsors, Exhibitors, Fighters, Schools,
and Models to attend the event.
SPONSORSHIPS
There
are three types of sponsorship packages:
Gold - $25,000
• Event Sponsor Mention on All Radio & Television Advertising
• Event Sponsor Position on All Printed Media
• Event Sponsor Position on Event Program and PowerPoint
• Free 20 x 10 Booth Space
• 2 Free Kiosks
• 4 5 x 20 Banner Positions at Event
• 4 10 x 10 Banner Positions at Event
• 10 4 x 5 Banner Positions at Event
Silver
- $10,000
• Primary Sponsor Position on All Printed Media
• Primary Sponsor Position on Event Program and PowerPoint
• 50% Discount Off Of Booth Costs
• 5 4 x 5 Banner Positions at Event
Bronze
- $5,000
• Secondary Sponsor Position on All Printed Media
• Secondary Sponsor Position on Event Program and PowerPoint
• 25% Discount Off Of Booth Costs
• 3 4 x 5 Banner Positions at Event
Our
radio Ads will drop on two weeks! The sooner you sponsor the
better. :)
EXHIBITORS
20ft
X 10ft Space is $3,200 10ft X 10ft Space is $2,500
This
is going to be BIG! We have 225,000 square feet of the Anaheim
Convention Center.
Apparel
Exposition – runway show of all apparel exhibitors
Some
exhibitors whom already confirmed are TapOut, Warrior Wear, Eyience
Extreme Science, Throwdown, TapOut Magazine, Cryogel, Fizogen
Extreme Couture, and many more...
FIGHTERS
Most
fighters want to know how to get agents, sponsors, and exposure.
Well this is the place to be.
It's
$125 to join the Fighter Registry. This includes:
• Your picture, bio, and stats will be on the registry wall
at the Expo
• NAMMAE will provide 100 full glossy take away flyers FREE*
• Agents will be walking around the show and can pick up
your flyer
• Full slide in the NAMMAE Fighter PowerPoint presentation
• Your own page on the NAMMAE website for a full year.
Also,
a random drawing will be held and 25 fighters will be picked
to be showcased in front of the entire consumer show on Saturday
afternoon. This means exposure to 10,000 people including new
sponsors and agents.
SCHOOLS
Exposure
is key and new students are everything. 250 table spaces available
for Mixed Martial Arts Schools.
$500
per table space
• 4x8 table with a 2x5 school banner display in front (which
will be given to you for FREE)
• Listing in Expo program
• Slide in Expo PowerPoint presentation showcasing schools
• Listing in the NAMMAE website school directory for a full
year
Stages
and mats will be available for school demonstrations.
(20%
is due at booking. Balance is due by November 1st.)
MODELS
$50
Model Registry
• Listing in Expo program
• Contestant in Miss NAMMAE 2007 Pageant
• Slide in Expo PowerPoint presentation showcasing Models
• Your own page on the NAMMAE website for a full year.
All
fighters from each apparel company like Warrior Wear and TapOut
are said to attend. Also, there will be a VIP section for all
celebrities and celebrity fighters too.
If
you're interested in any of the following, please email me at
missrara@ballisticinc.com
If
you want more information you can visit http://www.nammae.com
Kirik,
MMA.tv & Staff, if you'd like to attend, I was told I could
give you guys a discount. I would love for you guys to be there.
:)
PLEASE
SPREAD THE WORD! Mixed Martial Arts is the fasting growing sport
in history! We deserve our own Trade Show and we deserve our
own Consumer Expo!
Source: Miss Rara |
Fighters'
Club TV New Episode!
Channel 52
Tuesdays at 7:00 PM
Make sure to tell your friends and family!
Yes, we're
back! After a bit of a break due to Mark concentrating on his
fight at Elite XC where he was victorious, FCTV comes back with
another great show!
We
take a look at a new event, in a new venue, by a new promoter...Fighters
Journey!
Mark
interviews one of the top fighters in the world at 160 lbs, Cesar
Gracie student, Nick Diaz. This interview was conducted just
before his now epic battle with Hawaii's own Mike Aina in Elite
XC.
Mike
gets a chance to chat with another Cesar Gracie student and one
of the best at 170 lbs, Jake Shields.
We
have a very special guest for our technique of the week segment
that you do not want to miss!
As
always, your warm and inviting hosts, Mark Kurano and Mike Onzuka
tastefully batter back and forth for your entertainment and enjoyment.
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