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(All events on Oahu, unless noted)
2010
February
BJJ Tournament
(tba)
1/30/10
Quest for Champions
(Pankration/Sub Grappling)
(Kalani HS)
2009
12/17/09
Scrap MMA Event
(MMA)
(Pipeline Cafe)
12/5/09
Aloha
State Championship
of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(Kaiser H.S. Gym)
12/4/09
Man Up & Stand Up
(Kickboxing)
(Waipahu Filcom)
11/21/09
X-1 LIGHTS OUT
(MMA)
(Kekuaokalani Gym, Kona)
UFC
106
(Mandalay Bay Events Center, Las Vegas)
11/14/09
UFC
105
(United Kingdom)
11/8/09
X-1 Scuffle at Schofield
(MMA)
(Tropics, Schofield Barracks)
11/7/09
Mad Skills
(Kickboxing/Triple Threat)
(Waiphu Filcom)
11/6/09
Up & Up
(MMA)
(Kapolei High School)
11/1/09
Boxing
(Palolo District Park Gym)
10/31/09
H.A.P.A.
Hawaii Amateur Pankration Association
Hit-And-Submit
#4
(Pankration)
(Filcom Center, Waipahu)
10/30/09
Niko's MMA Event
(MMA)
(Veterans Hall, Keehi Lagoon)
10/24/09
X-1:
Scuffle on Schofield 2: Homebound Heroes
Press conference, autograph signing & picture taking
(Tropics Rec Center, Schofield Air Force Base, Wahiawa)
UFC
104
(Staples Center, Los Angeles)
10/18/09
NAGA
Hawaii
(BJJ/Sub Grappling)
(Pearl City H.S. Gym)
10/17/09
Just Scrap
(MMA)
(Hilo Civic Auditorium, Hilo)
10/10/09
Man Up & Stand Up
(Kickboxing)
(Waipahu Filcom)
10/3/09
Destiny Unfinished Business
(MMA)
(Waipahu Filcom)
9/19/09
UFC
103
(American Airlines Center, Dallas)
9/16/09
UFC
Fight Night 19
(Cox Convention Center, Oklahoma City)
9/12/09
Hawaiian
Open Championship
of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(Kaiser H.S. Gym)
Up & Up
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
8/29/09
MAUI OPEN 2009
Submission Grappling Challenge
(Sub Grappling)
(Maui War Memorial Gym)
Island Assult
(Boxing)
(Blaisdell Arena)
UF1C
102
(Rose Garden, Portland)
8/22/09
Destiny: Maui vs. Oahu
(MMA)
(War Memorial Gym, Maui)
8/15/09
Mad Skills
(Kickboxing & Triple Threat)
(Filcom Center, Waipahu)
8/9/09
WEC
(Las Vegas, NV)
8/8/09
UFC
101: Declaration
(BJ Penn vs. Kenny Florian)
(Wachovia Center, Philadelphia)
8/1/09
Affliction: Trilogy
Fedor vs. Barnett
(Honda Cetner, Anaheim, CA)
7/25/09
X-1
Scuffle On Schofield
(MMA)
(Tropics Recreation Center, Schofield Barracks)
Amateur Boxing at Palolo
(Boxing)
(Palolo Gym)
Gracie Tournament
(Kalaheo H.S. Gym)
**Cancelled**
7/23/09
JUST SCRAP
(MMA)
(Pipeline Cafe)
7/20/09
Dream 10: Welterweight GP Final
(Japan)
7/11/09
UFC
100: Lesnar vs. Mir
(Mandalay Bay Events Center, Las Vegas, NV)
7/10/09
Man up and Stand up
(Kickboxing)
(Waipahu Filcom Center)
6/27-28/09
OTM's 2009
Pac Sub
(Gi & No-Gi competition)
(Blaisdell Exhibition Hall)
6/20/09
The
Ultimate Fighter 9:
Team US vs Team UK Finale
6/13/09
Destiny
(MMA)
(Waipahu Filcom)
UFC
99: Comeback
Silva vs. Franklin
(Cologne, Germany)
6/7/09
WEC: Brown vs. Faber 2
(Versus)
6/6/09
Quest for Champions 2009 Tournament
(Sport Pankration, Sub Grappling)
(Kalani HS Gym)
Strikeforce: Lawler vs. Shields
(St. Louis, MO)
6/4/09 - 6/7/09
World
JJ Championships
(BJJ)
(California State University Long Beach, Long Beach, CA)
5/30/09
Event of the Champions
(Triple Threat, Kickboxing, Grappling)
(Elite Auto Group Center)
5/26/09
Dream 9
5/23/09
UFC
98: Evans vs. Machida
(PPV)
5/16/09
KTI's Scrappa Lifestylez
Scrapplers Fest
(BJJ/Submission Grappling)
(Kauai)
5/9/09 - 5/10/09 &
5/16/09 - 5/17/09
Brazilian Nationals JJ Championships
(BJJ)
(Carson, CA)
5/9/09
X-1 Kona
(MMA)
(Kekuaokalani Gym, Kona)
15th Grapplers Quest Las Vegas
(BJJ/Sub Grappling)
(Las Vegas, NV)
5/2/09
Destiny
(MMA)
(Waipahu Filcom)
Uprising MMA
(MMA)
(Maui)
May 2009
Abu Dhabi World Submission Wrestling Championships
(Sub Grappling)
(Tentative)
4/25/09
MMA Madness Water Park Extravaganza
(MMA)
(Hawaiian Waters Adventure Park, Kapolei)
4/18/08
Kingdom
MMA
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
NY
International JJ Championships
(BJJ)
(Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)
4/11/09
Hawaiian
Championship of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(Kaiser High)
X-1: Temple of Boom
(Boxing & MMA)
(Palolo Hongwangi)
4/10/09
HFC: Stand Your Ground XII
(MMA, Kickboxing)
(Dole Cannery Ballroom)
4/4/09 - 4/5/09
NAGA
World Championship
(BJJ/Sub Grappling)
(NJ, Tentative)
3/28/09
Garden Island Cage Match
(MMA)
(Hanapepe Stadium, Hanapepe, Kauai)
3/27/09
- 3/29/09
Pan
Am JJ Championships
(BJJ)
(Carson, CA)
3/27/09
Tiger Muay Thai Competition
(Muay Thai)
(Tiger Muay Thai Gym, Sand Island Road)
3/21/09 - 3/22/09
$30k Grapplers Quest/Fight Expo/Make a Wish Weekend
(BJJ/Sub Grappling)
(Del Mar, CA)
NAGA US Nationals
(BJJ/Sub Grappling)
(Georgia)
3/14/09
Hawaii Amateur Pankration Association: "Hit and Submit"
(Pankration & Muay Thai)
(O-Lounge Night Club, Honolulu)
NAGA Vegas
(BJJ/Sub Grappling)
3/7/09
UFC 96
(PPV)
(Columbus, OH)
Grapplers Quest Beast of the East
(BJJ/Sub Grappling)
(Wildwood, New Jersey)
2/27/09
X-1 World Events
NEW BEGINNING"
(MMA)
(Maui War Memorial Gym, Wailuku, Maui)
2/21/09
Destiny
(MMA)
(Filcom Center, Waipahu)
UFC
95
(PPV)
(London, England)
2/15/09
X1 World Events
Temple of Boom: Fight Night III
(MMA)
(Palolo Hongwanji)
2/8/09
IWFF
Submission Wrestling Tournament
(No-Gi)
(IWFF Academy, Wailuku, Maui)
2/7/09
4th Annual Clint Shelton Memorial
(Boxing)
(Palolo Gym)
Manup and Standup
(Kickboxing)
(Kapolei Rec Center, Kapolei)
UFC Fight Night
(PPV)
(Tampa, FL)
1/31/09
UFC 93 BJ vs GSP
(PPV)
(MGM Grand, Las Vegas, NV)
1/30/09
MMA Event
(MMA)
(Schofield Barracks)
1/24/09
Eddie Bravo Seminar
(BJJ)
1/17/09
UFC
93
(PPV)
(Dublin, Ireland)
1/10/09
MAT ATTACK Jiu-Jitsu & Submission Grappling Tournament
(Sub Wrestling)
(Lihikai School, Kahului, Maui)
1/3/08
Uprising - Maui
(MMA)
(Paukukalo Hawaiian Homes Gym)
Hazardous Warfare - Maui
(MMA)
(Lahaina Civic Center)
|
|
December
2009 News Part 1
|
Casca Grossa Jiu-Jitsu
is now the O2 Martial Arts Academy with 7 days a week training!
We are also offering Kali-Escrima (stick fighting) on Monday
nights with Ian Beltran and Kickboxing Tuesday, Wednesday and
Thursday with Kaleo Kwan, PJ Dean, & Chris Slavens!
Kids Classes are also
available!
Click
here for info!
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On Teleivision
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at 8:00PM
Olelo Channel 52 on Oahu
Also on Akaku on Maui
Check
out the FCTV website! |
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
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three of us will be the moderators with of course FCTV808 being
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Your Complete Martial Arts School!
Click here for pricing and more
information!
O2 Martial Arts features Relson Gracie Jiu-Jitsu taught by Relson
Gracie Black Belts Chris and Mike Onzuka and Shane Agena as well
as a number of brown and purple belts.
We also offer a Boxing and Kickboxing classes with a staff that
is unmatched. Boxing, Kickboxing, and MMA champions Kaleo Kwan
and PJ Dean as well as master boxing instructor Chris Slavens
provide incredibly detailed instruction of the sweet science.
To top it off, Ian Beltran heads our Kali-Escrima classes (Filipino
Stickfighting) who was trained under the legendary Snookie Sanchez.
Just a beginner with no background? Perfect! We teach you from
the ground up!
Experienced martial artist that wants to fine tune your skill?
Our school is for you!
If you want to learn martial arts by masters of their trade in
a friendly and family environment, O2 Martial Arts Academy is
the place for you!
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Quote
of the Day
“There
is more to life than increasing its speed.”
Mohandas K. Gandhi
|
HAMILL,
EDGAR TOP TUF 10 FINALE FIGHTER SALARIES
MMAWeekly.com has obtained the fighter salary information from
the Nevada State Athletic Commission for the Ultimate Fighter
10 Finale featuring the Roy Nelson and Brendan Schaub in the
season’s final fight and the Octagon debut of Kevin “Kimbo
Slice” Ferguson, which took place on Saturday, Dec. 5, at
The Pearl at The Palms in Las Vegas.
The
following figures are based on the fighter salary information
that promoters are required by law to submit to the state athletic
commissions, including the winners' bonuses.
Although
mixed martial arts fighters do not have collective bargaining
or a union, the fighters' salaries are still public record, just
as with every other major sport in the United States. Any undisclosed
bonuses that a promoter also pays its fighters, but does not
disclose to the athletic commissions (specifically, pay-per-view
bonuses, fight of the night bonuses, etc.), are not included
in the figures below.
In
the listings below, "Main Event Fighters" are defined
as fighters who compete in the main event of a show. "Main
Card Fighters" are defined as fighters whose fights appear
on the main card, but not in the main event. "Preliminary
Card Fighters" are defined as fighters whose matches take
place before the main card goes on the air, regardless of whether
or not those matches end up airing on the TV or Internet broadcast.
MAIN
EVENT FIGHTERS
-Roy
Nelson: $16,000 (includes $8,000 win bonus) def. Brendan Schaub:
$8,000
-Matt
Hamill: $46,000 (includes $23,000 win bonus) def. Jon Jones:
$20,000
MAIN
CARD FIGHTERS
-Kevin
“Kimbo Slice” Ferguson: $25,000 (no win bonus) def.
Houston Alexander: $13,000
-Frankie
Edgar: $46,000 (includes $23,000 win bonus) def. Matt Veach:
$5,000
-Matt
Mitrione: $16,000 (includes $8,000 win bonus) def. Marcus Jones:
$8,000
PRELIMINARY
CARD FIGHTERS
-James
McSweeney: $16,000 (includes $8,000 win bonus) def. Darrill Schoonover:
$8,000
-Jonathan
Madsen: $16,000 (includes $8,000 win bonus) def. Justin Wren:
$8,000
-Brian
Stann: $30,000 (includes $15,000 win bonus) def. Rodney Wallace:
$6,000
-John
Howard: $14,000 (includes $7,000 win bonus) def. Dennis Hallman:
$15,000
-Mark
Bocek: $30,000 (includes $15,000 win bonus) def. Joe Brammer:
$5,000
ULTIMATE
FIGHTER 10 FINALE DISCLOSED FIGHTER PAYROLL: $351,000
ULTIMATE
FIGHTER 10 AWARDS & BONUSES
(Each fighter was awarded $25,000 per award, which is in addition
to his disclosed salary.)
Fight
of the Night:
-Frankie Edgar vs. Matt Veach
Knockout
of the Night:
-Roy Nelson
Submission
of the Night:
-Mark Bocek
Source: MMA Weekly
|
NSAC'S
KIZER CLARIFIES JON JONES DISQUALIFICATION
Jon “Bones” Jones was disqualified following three
illegal elbow strikes to the face of Matt Hamill at “The
Ultimate Fighter 10 Finale” on Saturday night. The fight
was stopped due to a deep laceration to the bridge of Hamill’s
nose.
There
was confusion among spectators and the broadcast team after referee
Steve Mazzagatti stopped the fight, wondering whether or not
Jones, who dominated Hamill to that point, was the winner.
Nevada
State Athletic Commission Executive Director Keith Kizer fielded
questions from the media during the post-fight press conference.
He explained why the bout was ruled a disqualification and not
a no contest, and confirmed there will be no disciplinary action
taken against Jones.
“At
the end of the day, you had the illegal elbows that cut him up
and had to be stopped. The only call you can make in that situation
is disqualification,” Kizer told the media. “It was
the referee stopping the fight due to the damage to Matt Hamill,
to his face.
“It
was completely the referee’s call.”
During
the bout Hamill dislocated his shoulder, raising the question
of whether he couldn’t continue due to the shoulder injury
or the cut, but Kizer explained the shoulder injury had no bearing
on the decision to stop the fight.
“There
was also damage with the shoulder that didn’t come into
play with the stoppage,” commented Kizer. “I talked
to the doctor. The doctor said there was a deep, jagged cut on
the bridge of the nose, and obviously a lot of blood there. Steve
stopped the fight initially to take the point away.
“Once
Mr. Jones got off of Mr. Hamill, (Mazzagatti) took the point
away. When he went back to check on Mr. Hamill, he saw that he
wasn’t in condition to continue due to facial wounds. Then
he used the instant replay to verify whether the intentional
fouls contributed to those wounds and they did,” explained
the Executive Director. “This is actually the first time
instant replay has been utilized in Nevada.”
Addressing
the misconception that it could have been ruled a no contest,
Kizer stated, “The only time you have a no contest is if
it’s an accidental foul. If the referee called it accidental
it would be a no contest if it happens before the end of the
second round. If it happens in the third round then you go to
the scorecards. Intentional foul, if the fighter can’t continue
due to the intentional foul, in whole or in part, in any round
it would be a disqualification.”
Jones
looked very impressive in his disqualification loss, and Kizer
said there would be no action taken against the 22-year-old fighter.
“I
don’t think there was any ill-will or anything like that.
They were definitely illegal. They definitely were intentional
fouls, but it wasn’t thrown with any type of malice, so
definitely no discipline or anything like that against him.”
Source: MMA Weekly
|
FREE
AGENT NO MORE, HENDO SIGNS TO STRIKEFORCE
Former two-title Pride champion Dan Henderson has signed a four-fight
deal with Strikeforce, Henderson’s business partner and
friend Aaron Crecy told MMAWeekly.com on Monday after AOL Fanhouse
reported the deal. Yahoo! Sports first reported the negotiations
between Henderson and Strikeforce in October.
Henderson,
39, could contend for a Strikeforce title in April on card to
be broadcast by CBS, said another source with knowledge of negotiations.
It is unknown whether his first fight would be in the 185 or
205-pound division.
Jack
Shields, the manager/father of current middleweight champion
Jake Shields, was open to a bout with Henderson, but hadn't spoken
to Strikeforce as of Monday morning. He said Shields was still
deciding whether to fight at welterweight or middleweight, and
added Shields' contract with the promotion ends in mid-June of
2010.
Henderson
became a free agent in August and was unable to come to terms
with the UFC on a new contract. UFC president Dana White repeatedly
claimed Henderson was asking for too much money during re-negotiations,
a claim which Henderson and Crecy steadfastly denied.
"UFC’s
got a business to run and I’m not doing charity work with
this,” Henderson told MMAWeekly in October. “I don’t
believe that I’m asking for too much money, and I know for
a fact that I’m taking less money than other fighters.”
Crecy
said the UFC reached out to Henderson last week but no deal was
made.
Henderson
last appeared in July, knocking out fellow “Ultimate Fighter”
season nine coach Michael Bisping at UFC 100. He went 3-2 in
a 22-month stint inside the Octagon.
Strikeforce
Director of Communications Mike Afromowitz confirmed that Henderson
had signed over the weekend but did not disclose details on the
deal.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Trainer
analyzes Little Nog vs. Brandon Vera
According
to rumors of American websites, the next opponent of Rogério
“Minotouro” on UFC may be Brandon Vera. Coming from
an amazing victory over Luis “Banha” on UFC 106, when
he debuted with a knock out on the first round, Minotouro may
have a though opponent ahead, who’s coming from a controversy
defeat to Randy Couture, on the edition before. In interview
to TATAME, Luis Dórea, his Boxe’s trainer, analyzed
the combat.
“Vera
is a great athlete, a great person. We’re always training
on his gym, we were always welcome on his team, he has a lot
of quality, he’s good on the ground, left, but Rogério
has a lot of quality, they’re both great athletes, but I
see a good fight to Minotouro”, say, standing out Brazilian’s
experience.
“He
already fought with great athletes and he’s use to the hard
times, he knows that he will only face rough guys on UFC. He
doesn’t stop, he’s training hard. His tachnical evolution
on Boxe is amazing. On the ground he’s an expert“,
complements, putting Minotouro on the top of the rankings: “nowadays,
Rogério is between the best of the world”, finished.
Fans
wants Minotouro x Rampage
On
the last week, we asked on our website who TATAME’s web
audience would like to see as the next opponent of Minotouro
on UFC, and Brandon Vera was before the last voted. If fans could
match UFC fights, the most part (19%) would put Rogério
face to face to the ex champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson.
Check below the complete result:
Quinton
Jackson - 19%
Tito
Ortiz - 17%
Forrest
Griffin - 16%
Chuck
Liddell - 15%
Rashad
Evans - 11%
Thiago
Silva - 9%
Brandon
Vera - 8%
Rich
Franklin - 5%
Source: Tatame
|
Terry
Etim
Don’t
you know Terry Etim? Write this name, because you’ll hear
a lot about this 24 years old English who’s highlighting
on UFC. Anderson Silva’s fan, the lightweight was near to
be cut out UFC, but won his last four fights, got two submission
prizes of the night. In exclusive interview to TATAME, the English
talked about his beginning on fights, his growing on MMA and
the dream to become the first English to get an UFC belt. But
no hurry. “With sweat and dedication, I hope to get there
someday”, said, imagining how it would be a fight against
BJ Penn. Check below the chat with the though guy.
How
did you start on MMA?
I
started after watching some tapes of the first UFC events, on
Royce’s time. When I turned the TV off I ran to a Muay Thai
class, on Colin Heron’s team, with who I train until now.
Who’s
your biggest idol on MMA?
I
like Anderson Silva a lot, I think that he can takes every opponents
to his game.
Is
there any opponent that you would like to face?
I
don’t think about it, I never liked to choose opponents
and I always fought with whoever UFC put for me. I only think
about keep winning on UFC.
You
had a rocking start of career, but lost two in a row on UFC.
Did you felt the change to UFC?
In
these defeats I faced athletes much more experienced than me.
Besides, I didn’t have a good ground game, and even this
way, I fought until the end, losing on decision. Now, I feel
I’m more complete as a fighter and now that results would
be different.
How
did it come the opportunity to go to RFT?
I
went to Brazil with my training partner, o Mark Scanlon, and
I went to train on RFT. The way I was received there impressed
me, everyone treated me well.
Do
you want to come to train on RFT in Brazil?
Yes,
I like very much of everyone in Brazil’s RFT, they’re
more than team’s partners but true friends that always support
me and I support them. The only problem is the fights and trains
schedule, and I don’t have time to travel.
What
do you know about Brazil?
I
like Brazil very much. I know Corcovado, Sugar Loaf, Ipanema,
Copacabana beaches... I think Rio de Janeiro very beautiful.
How
does it work the partnership between Team Kaobon and RFT?
Kaobon
is a traditional team on Muay Thai, but we haven’t a ground
teacher with the quality that we needed. So we decided to hire
Marcelo Brigadeiro, RFT’s Black belt of MMA, to be responsible
to our MMA trains. Brigadeiro came and we made this alliance
between Kaobon and RFT and now we represent both. This partnership
is working, we had 58 victories in 62 fights of MMA.
Talk
a little about RFT. With which Brazilians do you train with?
I
train everyday with my teacher, Marcelo Brigadeiro, but he always
try to bring some fighters from RFT Brazil to fight and to train
with him here in England, then I train with them too. This year
Julian Jabá, Franklin Jensen, Felipe Borges and Besouro
came.
What
changes did MMA brought to your game and how did it change your
career?
MMA
changed my career a lot. That’s because I was always good
on exchanging and because of that my ground wasn’t the focus.
I used to feel like a striker that could handle on the ground.
When Brigadeiro came here He called me and Said that He wanted
to make me a real ground fighter, He even joked that I would
become a “grappler” that can handle standing up. He
has a technical and aggressive game, always trying to submit,
and I, training with him everyday, started to copy his game.
Then it were four victories on UFC in four fights and two submission
prizes of the night. Now I feel complete and very comfortable
and confident when the fight goes to the ground.
What
are the plans for this extra money of the submissions of the
night?
I’m
saving this money... I’m young and we don’t know what
will happen tomorrow.
You
used to avoid to take the fights to the ground, but now your
victories come from there…
When
the fight went to the ground before, I got nervous and kept thinking
that I have to survive until be standing up again. Now, when
the fight goes to the ground, I think that my opponent is in
a bad situation and I can submit anyone. MMA is making me a better
fighter each day.
You
were almost being cut from UFC, and now you’re one of the
big revelations of category. How do you see it?
It
happened because of my evolution as an athlete and the hard work
of my trainers Colin Heron and Marcelo Brigadeiro, who could
shape me the right way. Besides, I have excellent train partners
and an amazing structure on RFT/Kaobon.
UFC
never had an English champion. Do you dream about that?
Sure,
but I’m not hurry. With sweat and dedication, I hope to
get there someday
Your
category is being dominated by BJ Penn for a while. What do you
think about him?
BJ
is an amazing fighter. He’s complete and have an objective
game, he’s dangerous and definitely deserves to be where
he is.
UFC
already talked to you about a possible chance for the title?
I
try not to evolve much on this subject, I have a manager that
takes care of my career and Colin and Brigadeiro that prepare
me to any opponent. I only worry to train and do what my trainers
tell me to do. My chance to fight for the belt will come someday
and I’ll be ready when that happens.
How
do you think it would be a fight against him?
It
would be a though fight, for sure. An intelligent strategy had
to be made and followed because you can’t blink against
him. The only thing for sure is that I would explore my biggest
size and tried to make some surprise.
Do
you know when you’ll be back to the octagon and Who Will
be your opponent?
I
still don’t know who will I face yet, but I’m on the
expectation to fight on the beginning of next year. I’m
UFC’s employee and when they chose me I’ll fight, I’ll
give my best.
Source: Tatame
|
Yahya
ready for fighting Benavidez at WEC
Rani
Yahya is coming from three victories in a row on WEC, all by
submission on the first round. The next fight of the Brazilian
in the event is scheduled to December 19, and the though guy
will face the rough Californian Joseph Benavidez, who has a card
of ten victories, six by submission, and only one defeat. Rani
believes that the fact of American having a good ground may be
good to him, because the fight can be developed on the ground.
“I
hope this fight be interesting in technically, he’s diversified.
I have to stay on, because he’s dangerous. By his submission
historical I think that he may want to put me down, where I feel
more comfortable”, said the black belt, who’s prepared
to knock out or to submit.
“I’m
developing in all martial arts and I’ve been training a
lot of Boxe and Muay Thai, because you can’t avoid the exchanging.
I’ve been also doing some training over his style, Benavidez
is an eccentric, likes to punch. I’ll do my best and do
what I need to win. If the fight goes to the ground, I’ll
try to submit, if stands up, I’ll try the knock out”,
said Rani, waiting for the chance for the WEC’s belt: “it’s
possible that, if I win Benavidez, I fight for the belt, but
it will depend on the promoters, because it isn’t just to
win, you have to entertain the audience”, finished.
Source: Tatame
|
‘Shaolin’
Ribeiro eyes Strikeforce debut
Vitor
“Shaolin” Ribeiro fought in United States for the last
time in 2006, but He Will be back to North American stages in
the beginning of 2010, and the preparation already started. “I
must fight now on the beginning of 2010, because they will make
about 20 events for year, so it will always have events. I’m
getting in shape, if the guy calls me, I’ll be ready, told
the lightweight, talking to TATAME.
Living
in New York, he will be back to Brazil in the middle of the month
to tight the trainings on Nova União. “There are
some people who train here with me, and I’ll be training
15 days here and 15 days later. Then, when they call me, I’ll
finish with trains here. Family is already in Brazil, I stayed
here alone, taking care of everything. It will start to get colder
here in January, then the family go to spend some time there”,
tells, running away from New York’s cold. “Don’t
even say, man… Even with kimono it gets too cold. Just after
the first train that things start to get better (laugh)”.
Without
knowing who’s gonna be his opponent, Shaolin jokes. “I’m
like a blind man in a shooting… I’m looking their employees
list, seeing who’s coming from victory and defeat. There’s
Thompson and Melendez, but they have the title, so I won’t
face them for now. I’m seeing people around them”,
explains, excited to fight on USA. “I’ll train very
focused on Brazil to come back well”.
Source: Tatame
|
Guida,
Florian on collision course
Kenny
Florian and Clay Guida have the same long-term destination point:
the UFC lightweight championship that has eluded Florian and
that Guida has never had a chance to win.
Both
also came to similar conclusions after each lost high-profile
summer fights and changed their approaches and styles.
Both
promise to show up with new and improved versions of themselves
when their paths intersect on Saturday night at UFC 107, the
company’s debut at the FedEx Forum in Memphis.
Both
need a win to continue down the path toward a title shot. The
155-lb. division features a crowded field with men like Gray
Maynard, Frankie Edgar, Tyson Griffin and Jim Miller all gunning
for the winner of B.J. Penn’s championship defense against
Diego Sanchez, which headlines Saturday night’s event.
The
reality is with so many men in line, Florian and Guida are both
likely more than one win away from getting that match. But one
more loss, even the type of competitive losses that have been
Guida’s trademark, is going to be devastating to either
man’s title aspirations.
Florian
(11-4), 33, has been there twice and come up short. He lost a
five-round decision to Sean Sherk in 2006. He slowly worked his
way back to a shot, where he lost via fourth-round choke to Penn
at UFC 101 on Aug. 8 in Philadelphia.
Guida
(25-10), 28, more notable for being in some of the greatest fights
in UFC history than his won-loss record, is thrilled with his
unique popularity stemming from his memorable battles. But despite
a 5-4 UFC record, he insists that his combination of legendary
durability and conditioning would be the most difficult style
match up for Penn.
Guida’s
split-decision loss to Sanchez on June 20 is a strong candidate
for match of the year, and propelled Sanchez to Saturday night’s
shot at Penn.
“My
[UFC] record is only 5-4, but people who have seen me fights
tell me I could be 8-1 or 9-0,” said Guida.
While
that may be overstating it, Guida has only been stopped once,
by Roger Huerta on Dec. 8, 2007, in a match he was winning until
the fight turned around when Huerta nailed him with a hard knee,
and quickly followed with a rear naked choke. That was the only
time since he burst onto the national scene by winning the Strikeforce
lightweight title in a match with Josh Thomson that the apparent
granite in Guida’s chin showed any signs of crumbling.
Sanchez
unleashed an early arsenal of punches against Guida, with speed
and accuracy the likes of which have rarely been seen in the
Octagon. Just surviving the initial onslaught made Guida a winner
in the eyes of the fans, let alone surviving three rounds and
coming close in the end on the scorecards.
“I
don’t think anybody really lost in a match like that,”
Guida said.
His
other two losses, to Griffin and Din Thomas, were both close
enough decisions that could have gone either way.
Guida
lobbied both UFC president Dana White and matchmaker Joe Silva
to take on Florian, the former No. 1 contender.
But
while Guida was looking at reinventing himself for the fight,
Florian, frustrated with his performance against Penn, had similar
thoughts.
Florian
has done a good deal of his training for Penn at the Tri-Star
Gym in Montreal, under Georges St. Pierre’s main trainer
Firas Zahabi, who will be in his corner Saturday. After the fight,
Florian finalized his split with long-time trainer Mark DellaGrotte.
In
particular, Florian has been working with the Montreal Wrestling
Club, with the type of world-class wrestlers that took St. Pierre
in a few years from a guy who had never wrestled in his life,
to someone who is talked of as the best MMA-style wrestler in
the game.
Florian
said to expect major improvements in his wrestling game. Florian,
known for his jiu-jitsu and Muay Thai, was able to get the better
of Joe Stevenson and Huerta, both with a lifetime of experience
in wrestling, when it came to the wrestling aspect of those two
wins. Huerta’s wrestling was ineffective against Florian,
while Florian completely ran through Stevenson in the match that
earned him his second title shot.
The
key to the fight could come down to conditioning. A lot of wrestlers
will keep shooting for takedowns, but tire themselves out with
the energy expended in the process. Guida says he is not going
to get tired nor frustrated, even if things aren’t going
his way at first. Like featherweight standout Urijah Faber, Guida
is great in creating and winning scrambles, which have led to
him being in many of the sports’ most exciting fights of
the past four years. Starting out in Strikeforce, Guida’s
win over Thomson, and subsequent title loss to Gilbert Melendez,
were two of the best matches of 2006. Moving to UFC, his losses
to Griffin, Sanchez and Huerta were three of the most exciting
fights in the history of the organization. Many have labeled
the Sanchez and Huerta fights as two of the best of all-time,
and no less an authority than longtime official John McCarthy
has called Griffin vs. Guida as the most exciting fight he ever
officiated.
Guida
left his usual training headquarters in the Chicago suburb of
Schaumburg, Ill., for Albuquerque, N.M. and the vaunted Greg
Jackson camp two months ago.
He’s
lived in an RV on an Indian reservation outside of town, and
flew in some of his coaches and former training partners. He
also worked with a whole new set of partners, particularly praising
Jon Jones, another newcomer to the Jackson camp who he trained
with extensively since they were fighting a week apart.
The
result is a unique situation, since Jackson and Zahabi’s
camps are considered affiliates, and the two head men, who will
be in opposite corners on Saturday night, are well known for
both being St. Pierre’s corner men and strategists.
Florian
hasn’t been too hung up over this aspect of this fight.
“They
can tell you what you need to do, but the fighters are the ones
who are going to determine the outcome. It’s up to Clay
and I to execute. It comes down to us on Dec. 12. It’s up
to me to execute. He’s a tough opponent. Those are the only
guys I want to fight.”
But
Florian’s recent experience has convinced him Zahabi is
the best in the business.
“He’s
two or three years ahead of everyone else when it comes to strategy,”
said Florian, who has also trained under longtime boxing coach
Peter Welch and his brother Keith, his jiu-jitsu coach.
While
Florian’s last fight, with Penn, was a loss, in another
sense he is coming off one of the most hard-fought victories
of his career. One of the sports’ best ambassadors, Florian
has for years lobbied to get the sport regulated in his home
state of Massachusetts.
On
Nov. 30, Governor Deval Patrick signed into law the bill putting
the sport under the auspices of the state Department of Public
Safety. Win or lose Saturday, it is most likely that Florian
will be fighting on the UFC’s debut show in Boston this
summer, date to be determined.
Florian
grew up in nearby Westwood, Mass., and it will be an emotional
experience for him to fight at either the TD Banknorth Garden,
or Fenway Park, where he grew up attending various sporting events.
“I
have to concentrate on Dec. 12 and Clay Guida,” he said.
“But it’s hard to not look past it and get excited
about fighting in Boston.”
Source: Yahoo Sports
|
Quote
of the Day
“Once
you say you're going to settle for second, that's what happens
to you in life.”
John F. Kennedy
|
TAKING
THE HARD ROAD PAYS OFF FOR ROY NELSON
“Ultimate
Fighter” season ten winner Roy Nelson had a plan when he
signed up for the UFC’s flagship reality show: win the competition
without taking any damage, then dazzle everyone when the contract
was at stake.
On
Saturday, he did just that.
Nelson,
33, had the last laugh on those who said he was sandbagged on
the show, including UFC president Dana White. But that wasn’t
the point.
“After
talking to Forrest (Griffin) and Rashad (Evans), they always
said this is the hardest road to actually becoming the champion,
so I wanted to challenge myself,” said Nelson following
a crushing knockout victory over finalist Brendan Schaub. “That’s
the reason why I jumped into the house.
“It
was more of a marketing decision... now everyone knows who Roy
Nelson is.”
Schaub,
a 26-year-old former NFL football player with a 4-0 record, stung
Nelson with a solid jab and a few straight rights.
Nelson,
a veteran with 21 fights and five years in the pros, knew that
he’d be in range once the newcomer lined up for his power
shot.
“I
knew if he steps in when he throws his two, I’m going to
be able to hit him with my two,” said Nelson. “Just
two forces meet: one’s going to land, and the other one’s
not.”
Asked
how he felt following his victory, Nelson simply said, “like
‘The Ultimate Fighter.’”
Source: MMA Weekly
|
FROM
BACKYARD TO SPOTLIGHT, KIMBO EVOLVING
Plucked
out of backyard brawls on YouTube and thrown into mixed martial
arts main events on CBS, it’s no surprise that the weight
of expectation clouds reasonable expectations for Kevin “Kimbo
Slice” Ferguson.
Couple
his initial foray into MMA on CBS with his success as a ratings
bonanza on the recent season of The Ultimate Fighter and Kimbo
is really in a no-win situation. He’ll never be able to
live up to the expectations of an attention deficit society.
Kimbo
made his Octagon debut at The Ultimate Fighter finale on Saturday
night, the first step in his journey towards credibility. It’s
a journey that he knows is going to be a long road to travel,
but he seems to put it in a reasonable perspective, even if others
don’t.
“The
goal was to come in and fight, to get the best training I could
get to be prepared for a stand-up or a ground game. Whether the
fight goes to the ground or stand-up, I’m gonna come in
and fight and be smart about it. You gotta be smart about it
at this level of the game,” Kimbo said following the fight.
His
own expectations included visions of a knockout, but it wasn’t
to be on Saturday night. Not pressing the knockout was just one
of the many steps in Kimbo’s slow evolution as a mixed martial
artist.
Another
incremental progression was his approach to the ground game.
He was presented with a couple submission opportunities, and
he made an attempt at them, but was smart in his approach.
He
started on a guillotine choke at one point, but quickly let it
go.
“I
knew I didn’t have it successfully, so I didn’t want
to exert a whole lot of energy on a hold I knew it wasn’t
guaranteed,” he recounted.
Kimbo
was presented with another opportunity, but again chose the more
conservative route.
“When
I took his back I was going for a chokehold. I was going for
the rear naked or ten-fingers. When I realized I didn’t
have it... I just went ahead and looked for something else.”
No
one will be calling for him to step into a title shot anytime
soon, but Kimbo did show progress at The Ultimate Fighter finale.
He
doesn’t yet know what’s next, leaving that to his representatives
and the UFC brass, but he hopes that Saturday night was the first
step towards proving his skeptics wrong, that he can go from
the backyard to the spotlight... knowing he earned it.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
JONES
INITIALLY UPSET, BUT TAKES DQ LOSS IN STRIDE
His
record is no longer unblemished, but Jon "Bones" Jones
isn't crying foul, and he's not upset at the decision to disqualify
him for illegal elbows that helped bring about the end of his
fight against Matt Hamill. Like pretty much everything Jones
does in the cage, he was flawless in his attitude about the loss
following the event.
"I'm
not worried about that," Jones said about the decision to
disqualify him. "Hopefully, my manager can take care of
all that stuff. Definitely took a lot of pride in being undefeated,
and so proud of being a martial artist, strive so hard to be
the best that I can be. Everything happens for a reason."
An
undefeated record is definitely something to work for, but Jones
admitted that it also provided a fair amount of pressure and
now that has been lifted. Still, he was a little confused at
referee Steve Mazzagatti's decision to not stop the fight earlier.
"I
think at 14, 15 unanswered punches, it should be stopped,"
Jones commented. "I said it so many interviews that I respect
Hamill a lot for the inspiration that he is, and it was awkward
to just keep hitting him like that. I was like let's stop this,
but what are you going to do?
"I
hit him so many times, and I just wasn't understanding why it
wasn't getting stopped. Is he waiting for me to gas or something?
I was like what is this? I looked at him twice, I was like
'why am I still hitting this guy?’"
Regardless,
the fight was allowed to continue and it was Jones' "12-to-6"
elbow strikes that caused the referee to originally step in and
pause the fight to deduct a point from the Jackson's team fighter.
When Hamill was obviously hurt, Mazzagatti called for the fight
to be stopped.
Following
the stoppage, Nevada State Athletic Commission Executive Director
Keith Kizer stepped in and looked at the footage and helped make
the official call for the fight.
"This
was actually the first time instant replay was used in Nevada,
looked at it, obviously a lot of damage was done by legal blows,
but there was also damage done by the illegal elbows, and obviously
as you know if there's any contributory effect of the illegal
blows, disqualification's the call," Kizer said.
Kizer
also clarified the cries for a no contest after he explained
the only time a no contest would be the ruling is if the blows
that brought about the end of the fight were accidental. Because
the elbows were intentional, Jones was disqualified.
Keeping
a positive attitude following the bout, at first Jones was taken
back by the call, but he's looking forward to another shot in
the Octagon and is happy with life in general and that's what
matters most to him.
"I
thought I won. When they said I lost I was like 'no this can't
be happening,' but I lost."
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Silvas’
advice to José Aldoruz
In
2009, Brazil got used to see its athletes as number one on their
categories. On the middleweights, Anderson Silva kept giving
a show, while Lyoto Machida shine of the category above and the
little Jussier “Formiga” da Silva, flyweight from Natal,
hindered on Japanese stages. On top of featherweights, Aldo hears
complements from Silvas, considered the best on their categories.
“This
guy is a talent, a young kid that’s conquering his space.
He has a great team behind him and he has everything to stay
as a champion for many years and bring more joy to his team and
to Brazil. He’s very dedicated and he’s having the
results of his work”, said Anderson, advices from the number
one of the world since October 2006.
“My
tip is to keep focused, don’t forget the origins and to
listen to people who wants good things to you”, said, knowing
that Aldo is well advised. “Now will appear a lot of people
by your side while you’re successful, but Dedé (Pederneiras)
is a great leader, Nova União is getting even more strong
and they never let down. I wish him all the happiness of the
world… Now is to enjoy the title, because there will be
fights again soon”.
The
other Silva, with 123 pounds, celebrates the friend’s successful.
“I was very happy. He’s a humble kid, he deserved.
He’s a good guy, likes to train”, said the tough motoboy,
betting on the team’s part in a long time on the top. “A
lot of combats will appear, but it will be hard to take the belt
away from him. He’s very complete. I like very much his
style, he always tries to be the best. Before the fight, I sent
him a message supporting him, that would be two against one (laugh)”,
finished.
Source: Tatame
|
Olympic
champion trains at ATT to MMA
Golden
medal on Beijing Olympics, in 2008, Henry Cejudo is training
at American Top Team for two months and he’s excited to
debut on MMA. “My debut will be amazing, I think it’s
gonna be in Japan, in the first half of next year“, the
fighter tells, talking to TATAME.
Expert
in Wrestling, the American knows the needs to train other modalities
to MMA. “I still have a lot to learn before considering
to fight“, recognizes, talking about the trains at ATT.
“I chose ATT beacuse is one of the best camps of the world.
I’m liking very much the Muay Thai trainings and the physical
preparation of Stéfane”, explains the athlete who
already shone in Brazil.
“I’ve
been in Brazil twice and I won the Pan American in Rio de Janeiro”,
he says, revealing what he liked most on the country. “Women
in Brazil are gorgeous and hot, I loved the country and I hope
to be back“, finished. In front of the physical preparation
of Henry, Stéfane Dias complemented the athlete’s
preparation.
“He’s
very explosive and fast. Just for you know, he can jump ten times
in a 3,2 foot bench in a few seconds, and that’s excellent...
To work with Olympic athletes is very good because of their dedication
and prepare, and Henry has the advantage to be only 22, learning
fast the MMA and liking it“, finished.
Source: Tatame
|
Ximu
looking for sixth-straight win
Bitetti
Combat takes place this coming Saturday, December 12, in Barueri,
São Paulo, and among the cream of the Brazilian crop to
see action, Gustavo Ximu will make his debut for the organization.
In the cage facing Ricco Washington, the Brazilian hopes to keep
up his winning streak.
“I’m
really well prepared. I’ve been training hard for some time
now. I sharpened up my muay thai, boxing, ground game and studied
my adversary. I hope have another good fight to make it six wins
in a row,” he says, adding what he knows about the fighter
he will face in Barueri.
“Ricco
Washington is a really tough fighter who generally weights 93kg
and will drop down to fight me at 84. From what I have seen,
he’s explosive, likes to pin you against the fencing and
bang. He’s hard to take down and is well rounded. So it
has all the makings of a great fight, a great spectacle to watch,”
he predicts.
Ximu
was close to fighting at the last event in Rio. Now with a chance
to fight in Barueri he is satisfied.
“It
is an excellent card and it is good to know Bitetti Combat is
reaching the whole of Brazil, with more installments scheduled.
I feel Brazilian fans are happy about the event. In the United
States it’s the UFC and in Brazil it’s Bitetti Combat,”
he says in finishing.
Check
out the updated card:
Paulo
Filho vs Tatsuhiko Nishizaka
Murilo “Ninja” vs Jason Jones (Holland)
Fábio Maldonado vs Travis Wiuff (USA)
Gustavo Ximu vs Ricco Washington (USA)
Glover Teixeira vs Jeff Monson (USA)
Cassiano Tytschyo vs Tyler Stinson (USA)
Alessandro “Alemão” Steffen vs Francimar “Bodão”
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Exclusive:
TUF champion earns black belt
Roy
Nelson made his octagon debut a successful one last Saturday,
in Las Vegas. At the event marking the final of the tenth season
of the The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) reality show, the former IFL
champion overcame Brendan Schaub. Although the win came via knockout,
Nelson was fully prepared to define the fight on the ground,
as he is a Renzo Gracie black belt.
The
promotion ceremony took place some months before the challenge,
in New York, and GRACIEMAG.com was there to mark the occasion.
Another
beast to debut in the UFC was Kimbo Slice, who overcame Houston
Alexander by unanimous decision. Furthermore, the captains of
the next season of tough have been defined: Tito Ortiz and Chuck
Liddell.
Both
are former champions of the organization and faced each other
on two occasions, both of which Liddell won by knockout. As it
is customary for the captains of each team to face off, Tito
will have a chance at revenge.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Quote
of the Day
“He
who knows only his own side of the case knows little of that.”
John Stuart Mill
|
Fighters'
Club TV Tonight!
Channel
52
8:00 PM!
If
you are not on the Onzuka.com Hawaii Ground forum, you are missing
the latest news from upcoming events, get to rub elbows with
numerous promoters and fighters, and get to voice your opinion
on any subject you can dream up. Hit the links above to sign
up for a free account and start posting away!
|
Man
Up & Stand Up Results!
MAN-UP
& STAND UP WOULD LIKE TO THANK EVERYONE WHO HAS SUPPORTED
THIS EVENT FOR THE PAST YEARS AND YEARS TO COME. FRIDAY NIGHT
WAS A NIGHT FILLED WITH GREAT EXPECTATIONS FOR THE NEW YEAR.
IF YOU MISSED OUT ON THIS FIGHT THAN TOO BAD FOR YOU. ALMOST
EVERY FIGHTER LOOKED LIKE THEY HAD TRAINED HARD FOR THIS MAN-UP
& STAND-UP FINALE. AND THERE WERE THOSE THAT PROBABLY THOUGHT
THEY TRAINED HARD. NONETHELESS EVERY FIGHTER FOUGHT HARD AND
PUT ON A GREAT SHOW. THERE WERE FEMALES THAT GOT THE PLACE ROARING
WITH EXCITEMENT. THE FIRST FEMALE BOUT WITH KAILYN CURREN VS
JAZMINE CHUN WAS NOTHING BUT NON-STOP ACTION. CHUN WAS THE NEWCOMER
AND KAILYN WAS THE VET WHO WAS FINALLY MATCHED UP WITH SOMEONE
HER WEIGHT. CURREN CAME OUT WITH PRECISE FIRING TO THE BODY
AND HEAD OF CHUN BUT CHUN WASN’T ABOUT TO BE CURREN’S
PUNCHING BAG. SHE KEPT FIRING UNTIL SHE RAN OUT OF BULLETS IN
THE SECOND RUN WHEN REFEREE TIMMY VENDETTA STOPPED THE BOUT.
THE CROWD WAS ON ITS FEET ALL THE WAY TO THE END OF THE BOUT.
MUCH PROPS TO THESE TWO FEMALES FOR PUTTING ON A GREAT SHOW.
THE
SEMI MAIN EVENT FEATURED TWO FEMALES DOING MAJOR DAMAGE TO EACH
OTHER. NATACIA MANUMA VS CHANTELLE BERENGUE HAD NOTHING BUT
CHEE – HOO ACTION GOING ON. THESE TWO SUGA’S (SOONGA’S)
HAD LITTLE RESPECT FOR EACH OTHER TRADING SMIRKS EVERYTIME ONE
OF THEM LANDED A GOOD SHOT. NATACIA ‘S FISTS OF THUNDER
MET VICIOUSLY WITH CHANTELLE’S FACE EVERYTIME SHE WASN’T
DUCKING. CHANTELLE RETURNED THE FAVOR BUT ADDED SOME FEROCIOUS
LEG KICKS THAT OCCASIONALLY FLEW NATACIA’S LEG OUTWARD.
BOTH OF THEM EXCHANGED PUNCHES THAT SNAPPED EACH OTHERS HEADS
BACK BUT IT WAS PROBABLY THE LEG KICKS THAT SEALED THE DEAL FOR
CHANTELLE.
THERE
WERE TWO MAJOR UPSETS THAT TOOK PLACE IN THE RED DAVIES VS FERDINAND
RAMIREZ AND JAN QUIMOYOG VS ALVIN BERTO MATCHES. JAN WHO WAS
THE FAVORITE PUT ON AN OUTSTANDING DISPLAY OF HEART TRYING TO
GET IN CLOSE TO UNLEASH HIS CRAZY FLURRIES THAT HES KNOWN FOR.
BUT ALVIN USED HIS HEIGHT AND REACH ADVANTAGE TO STAY AWAY AND
PICK HIS SHOTS FROM THE OUTSIDE TO WIN A DECISION OVER A FRUSTRATED
JAN QUIMOYOG. ALSO, FERDINAND RAMIREZ WHO WAS THE UNDERDOG MADE
A STATEMENT THAT NIGHT LETTING EVERYONE KNOW THAT INNER CIRCLE
GRAPPLING IS NO JOKE IN STAND UP. SOURCES SAID THAT RED HADNT
BEEN TO THE GYM AS MUCH AS HE SHOULDVE. OR WAS IT BECAUSE FERDINAND
WANTED IT MORE. WHATEVER THE REASON, FERDINAND SURPRISED EVERYONE
WHEN HE STOPPED RED IN THE THIRD ROUND AND BECOMING THE NEW SUPER
MIDDLEWEIGHT MAN-UP & STAND-UP CHAMPION.
THE
MATCH THAT LEFT BOTH FIGHTER’S LEGS, BODIES AND FACES RED
WAS THE JAMEN TABUYA VS ALIKA KUMUKOA MATCH. THESE TWO BANTAMWEIGHTS
BATTLED WITH EVERYTHING THEY HAD. THEY THREW AND ATE PUNCHES,
KICKS, AND KNEES THAT MADE THE CROWD WONDER HOW THESE TWO GUYS
COULD STILL BE STANDING. THE PUNCHES AND KICKS DIDN’T STOP,
AND THE KNEES, OMG THE KNEES THESE GUYS WERE THROWING WERE HARD
ENOUGH TO GIVE THE SPECTATORS ABNESIA. BOTH THESE GUYS WERE
GIVING EACH OTHER CRACKS, THEY COULDVE BEEN MISTAKEN FOR CRACK
ADDICTS (NAH). IT WAS BACK AND FORTH, BLOW FOR BLOW AS SOON
AS THE BELL RANG TO START EACH ROUND. WARRIORS WAS THE ONLY
WORDS THAT COULD DESCRIBE THESE TWO GUYS. IN THE END, JAMEN
TABUYA CLAIMED THE RANK OF WARLORD.
CONGRATULATIONS
TO ALL OF THE FIGHTERS THAT WON WHICH IS ALL OF THE FIGHTERS
THAT PARTICIPATED IN THIS EVENT THAT NIGHT. MAYBE YOU DIDN’T
WIN THE W THAT NIGHT BUT YOU WON EVERYONE’S RESPECT THAT
WAS THERE FOR YOU ALL FOUGHT HARD AND LEFT THE RING WITH NO EXCUSES.
YOU’RE ALL A GREAT ASPECT OF THE SPORT, THE EVENT, AND
YOUR BLOODLINE. HOPE TO SEE YOU ALL NEXT YEAR AND THE YEARS
TO COME. HAVE A MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR FROM MAN-UP
& STAND-UP. DAS RIGHT
CLIFTON
SILVA
50
JONAH CARTER
DREW
A DECISION
RICKY
PLUNKETT
145
ISAAN
PLUNKETT
BY DECISION
CHASE
BROWN
165
KODY CARTER
CARTER
BY TKO
MIKE
ELI
185
JESSIE LINDSEY
LINDSEY
BY DECISION
BRONSON
CALPITO
155
ROYAL
KAUA (O2 Martial Arts Academy)
DREW
A DECISION
SPIKE
KAHALEWAI
70
JOEY QUITOG
DREW
A DECISION
JUSTIN
BURGESS
160
JUSTIN
DULAY (O2 Martial Arts Academy)
DULAY
BY DECISION
TAZ
KAHALEWAI
60
KAENA DESANTOS
DREW
A DECISION
ALFRED
SANTIAGO
150
KOA LYU
(O2 Martial Arts Academy)
SANTIAGO
BY DECISION
KAILIN
CURRAN
115
JAZMINE CHUN
CURRAN
BY TKO
CHEVY
DECASTRO
120
JESSICA TAVARES
DECASTRO
BY TKO
ISRAEL
ALVAREZ
119
KALAE MCSHANE
MCSHANE
BY DECISION
COLIN
MACKENZIE
145
NICK CORREA
CORREA
BY DECISION
SHAWN
BURROUGHS
140
JORDAN ANDUHA
ANDUHA
BY DECISION
VINCE
LONGBOY
146
JORDAN CALLAHAN
CALLAHAN
BY DECISION
ALVIN
BERTO
129
JAN QUIMAYOG
BERTO
BY DECISION
KEO
DOANE
145
JASON RECAMAR
DOANE
BY DECISION
TAZZY
150
VANNA MENDIOLA
TAZZY
BY DECISION
COBY
SMITH
170
SOTA NAKANO
SMITH
BY DECISION
ALIKA
KUMUKOA
124
JAMIN TABUYA
TABUYA
BY DECISION
RED
DAVIS
152
FERDINAND RAMIREZ
RAMIREZBY
TKO
CHANTELLE
BRENGUE
180
NATACIA MANUMA
BERENGUE BY DECISION
PETE
SEFO
300 +
JOE MOLINA
MOLINA BY TKO
Source: Derrick Bright
|
ROY
NELSON SNAGS $25,000 TUF 10 KO BONUS
A six-figure contract with the most prominent fighting organization
in the world wasn’t enough for the latest Ultimate Fighter.
Roy Nelson captured Knockout of the Night honors too.
Though
most bets for Nelson to win an award – aside from the Ultimate
Fighter designation – would have been on Submission of the
Night, the former International Fight League heavyweight champion
surprised many by knocking out former NFL player Brendan Schaub
at Saturday night’s Ultimate Fighter season 10 finale.
Nelson
took home a bonus check for $25,000 to accompany the trophy for
winning the reality show.
Mark
Bocek submitted Joe Brammer with a rear naked choke in the event’s
opening bout to score the Submission of the Night award and bonus.
The fight occurred on the preliminary card, but was shown on
the Spike TV telecast when time opened up due to several fast
finishes.
In
a back-and-forth lightweight battle, Frankie Edgar defeated Matt
Veach, also with a rear naked choke. Designated the Fight of
the Night, each earned a $25,000 bonus check for their efforts.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
'Rampage'
Jackson says he's coming back to the UFC
In
a blog posted on his Web site, Quinton "Rampage" Jackson
said that he is coming back fight. He wants to shut up UFC president
Dana White and Jackson's nemesis on "The Ultimate Fighter,"
Rashad Evans.
Now,
I wanted to let my fans know that I'm going to come back to the
UFC & finish my contract. Not because the haters are talking
[expletive] about me being scared of Rashad or [Darrill Schoonover]
or anybody else. I'm coming back for my fans & to shut Rashad's
mouth up & shut Dana's mouth up. Then after that I'm going
back to doing movies & I might do a boxing match once a year
just to stay in shape. Hate on dis!
I
have to wonder what made Jackson make such a 180 on his plans.
Just a few months ago, Rampage was saying that he was done with
the UFC because he felt they weren't loyal to him. Then, he was
ripping the UFC because of the Machida/Rua decision and the way
Rampage felt he was portrayed on "The Ultimate Fighter."
Now he's happily fulfilling his contract?
Jackson
had retired from the UFC to become a movie star, and he is currently
filming a remake of "The A-Team." He left the UFC as
his stint on TUF started to air on Spike, meaning that all of
his trash talk with Evans that was supposed to build up to their
bout was hollow. If he is back to fight Evans, it won't likely
be until this spring at the earliest. Evans is scheduled to fight
Thiago Silva on Jan. 2.
Source: Yahoo Sports
|
Liddell,
Ortiz to coach TUF 11
As
the tenth season of “The Ultimate Fighter” came to
a close on Saturday night, the next pair of coaches for the reality
show were set. Two former light heavyweight champions will square
off when “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” Tito Ortiz
and Chuck “The Iceman” Liddell take on the task of
teaching the newest crop of UFC hopefuls on season 11.
Ortiz
and Liddell have each taken a turn at the coaching wheel before.
Ortiz coached opposite Ken Shamrock in season 3, while Liddell
was one of the original coaches in the inaugural season of the
show.
At
the end of the season, Liddell and Ortiz will face off in a third
bout between the two legendary fighters. Liddell won the two
previous contests, both times by TKO.
Ortiz
made his return to the UFC in November, dropping a split decision
loss to Forrest Griffin. Liddell has been out of action since
April when he lost by TKO to Mauricio “Shogun” Rua.
It was long believed that Liddell could face retirement, but
his fire has never faded and he will instead come back to face
his arch-rival for a third time.
Middleweight
and light heavyweights will be the weight classes facing off
in the eleventh season of the show, the same weight classes Ortiz
coached during season 3.
Filming
for The Ultimate Fighter season 11 is expected to begin in January
with the series debut in April on Spike TV.
Source: Yahoo Sports
|
LIDDELL
RETURNS OPPOSITE TITO AS TUF 11 COACHES
As the tenth season of “The Ultimate Fighter" came
to a close on Saturday night, the next pair of coaches for the
reality show were set. Two former light heavyweight champions
will square off when "The Huntington Beach Bad Boy"
Tito Ortiz and Chuck "The Iceman" Liddell take on the
task of teaching the newest crop of UFC hopefuls on season 11.
Ortiz
and Liddell have each taken a turn at the coaching wheel before.
Ortiz coached opposite Ken Shamrock in season 3, while Liddell
was one of the original coaches in the inaugural season of the
show.
At
the end of the season, Liddell and Ortiz will face off in a third
bout between the two legendary fighters. Liddell won the two
previous contests, both times by TKO.
Ortiz
made his return to the UFC in November, dropping a split decision
loss to Forrest Griffin. Liddell has been out of action since
April when he lost by TKO to Mauricio "Shogun" Rua.
It was long believed that Liddell could face retirement, but
his fire has never faded and he will instead come back to face
his arch-rival for a third time.
Middleweight
and light heavyweights will be the weight classes facing off
in the eleventh season of the show, the same weight classes Ortiz
coached during season 3.
Filming
for The Ultimate Fighter season 11 is expected to begin in January
with the series debut in April on Spike TV.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
TUF
10 REPORTEDLY DRAWS 1,400 FOR $504,350 GATE
“The Ultimate Fighter: Heavyweights” season finale
garnered an unofficial attendance of 1,400 for gate revenue of
$504,350, according to UFC officials. The event took place on
Saturday night at The Pearl at The Palms in Las Vegas.
The
main event featured the final bout of the reality series’
tenth season. The season’s favorite, Roy Nelson captured
the title of The Ultimate Fighter by knocking out Brendan Schaub
with a crushing right hand that left the Coloradan flat on his
back.
Much
of the finale was overshadowed by the Octagon debut of YouTube
sensation-turned-mixed martial artist Kevin “Kimbo Slice”
Ferguson. His bout with Houston Alexander won’t every be
mistaken as a textbook display by either, but Kimbo showed minor
improvements in his game en route to winning a unanimous decision.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Ninja
confirms fight at Dream and talks Bitetti Combat
While
some fighters focus on a single event or nation to build their
careers in MMA – if just for contractual reasons –,
Murilo Ninja has the opportunity to fight in three big events,
in distinct nations. His next bout will be at the December-12
Bitetti Combat show, against striker Jason Jones, and was already
confirmed to appear at Shine in March of 2010, in the United
States. In a chat with GRACIEMAG.com, Ninja confirmed he will
also be fighting February in Japan, at Dream. Here is what he
had to say:
I
fight February in Japan” Murilo Ninja
How
are preparations going for Bitetti Combat?
I
trained a lot and I’m on a diet for the fight. I’m
going for the win.
What
do you expect from your opponent, Jason Jones?
He
is an aggressive fighter, who goes on the attack, has good muay
thai. He’s not easy to take down either, has good wrestling
and knows judo. In my opinion, he probably hasn’t trained
much Jiu-Jitsu.
At
the last installment of the event you got the knockout in mere
seconds. Do you expect another quick win?
I’m
going to try and finish the fight as quickly as possible again.
If it will be like the last one, all the better, for sure. But
I’m prepared for any situation and will go for the win the
whole time.
You
have other fights lined up…
I
fight in São Paulo now and then at Dream, February in
Japan. In
March I head for the United States to fight Niko Vitale at Shine.
So
the Dream fight is confirmed? Who will it be against?
I
fight in Japan in February. I don’t know who I will be facing
yet, but it should be the same event where Fedor will fight.
You
are perhaps the only fighter with fights scheduled in Brazil,
Japan and the USA, the main centers of the sport. What is the
difference fighting in Brazil?
Every
time I fight in Brazil I win in the first round. It’s a
great feeling to fight here, where it all began.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Who
are the best in world MMA?
You
can push them, you can punch them, but they won’t leave
the top. With the exception of a chubby Russian who looks bored
and a Canadian with a French name, Americans and Brazilians fight
are neck and neck in leading the worldwide MMA rankings.
The
proof is in the rankings published at the end of November on
the websites of USA Today newspaper and SB Nation, which scoured
the lists published on 20 American MMA websites, to come up with
a thorough MMA ranking.
GRACIEMAG.com
compiled the top ten in each weight group. What sticks out right
off the bat is the presence of Anderson Silva in two different
categories, and Will Ribeiro in the top-ten bantamweight list,
despite the motorcycle accident he suffered, which he is overcoming
valiantly. There’s also the fact that WEC champion Jose
Aldo is under his victim Mike Brown – proof that the ranking
needs to be updated, and quick!
Other
than that, does the list look fair to you, reader? If not, who
should be there? Leave your comment below and participate.
Heavyweight
1 Fedor Emelianenko M-1 Global/Strikeforce
2 Brock Lesnar UFC
3 Rodrigo Minotauro UFC
4 Frank Mir UFC
5 Junior Cigano UFC
6 Josh Barnett WVR
7 Cain Velasquez UFC
8 Brett Rogers Strikeforce
9 Shane Carwin UFC
10 Fabricio Werdum Strikeforce
Light
heavyweight
1 Lyoto Machida UFC
2 Mauricio Shogun UFC
3 Rashad Evans UFC
4 Quinton Jackson UFC
5 Forrest Griffin UFC
6 Gegard Mousasi Strikeforce
7 Thiago Silva UFC
8 Anderson Silva UFC
9 Rogerio Minotouro UFC
10 Luiz Arthur Banha UFC
Middleweight
1 Anderson Silva UFC
2 Nate Marquardt UFC
3 Dan Henderson Free Agent
4 Demian Maia UFC
5 Vitor Belfort UFC
6 Chael Sonnen UFC
7 Jake Shields Strikeforce
8 Jorge Santiago WVR
9 Yushin Okami UFC
10 Yoshihiro Akiyama UFC
Welterweight
1 Georges Saint-Pierre UFC
2 Jon Fitch UFC
3 Thiago Pitbull UFC
4 Josh Koscheck UFC
5 Mike Swick UFC
6 Matt Hughes UFC
7 Paulo Thiago UFC
8 Carlos Condit UFC
9 Jake Shields Strikeforce
10 Paul Daley UFC
Lightweight
1 BJ Penn
UFC
2 Shinya Aoki Dream
3 Eddie Alvarez Bellator/Dream
4 Kenny Florian UFC
5 Frank Edgar UFC
6 Gray Maynard UFC
7 Diego Sanchez UFC
8 Sean Sherk UFC
9 Tatsuya Kawajiri Dream
10 Joachim Hansen Dream
Featherweight
1 Mike Brown WEC
2 Urijah Faber WEC
3 Jose Aldo WEC
4 Bibiano Fernandes Dream
5 Hatsu Hioki WVR
6 Leonard Garcia WEC
7 Rafael Assuncao WEC
8 Marlon Sandro WVR
9 Michihiro Omigawa WVR
10 Mackens Semerzier WEC
Bantamweight
1 Brian Bowles WEC
2 Miguel Torres WEC
3 Dominick Cruz WEC
4 Masakatsu Ueda Shooto
5 Takeya Mizugaki WEC
6 Joseph Benavidez WEC
7 Rani Yahya WEC
8 Akitoshi Tamura WEC
9 Damacio Page WEC
10 Will Ribeiro WEC
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
“Neither
Helio nor Renzo tapped. I wouldn’t tap”
In
the absolute division final of the 2009 Jiu-Jitsu World Championship,
Kyra Gracie faced an adversary nearly twice her size, Lana Stefanac.
The match ended with her caught in her opponent’s kimura,
but the Gracie black belt doesn’t hesitate to affirm that
she would not give up: “Helio didn’t tap to Kimura,
uncle Renzo didn’t tap to Sakuraba, I wouldn’t tap
either.”
On
Brazilian television show Sensei Sportv this Friday, Kyra shows
how her MMA preparations have been going training standup with
Claudio Coelho, and takedowns with Leo Leite. “I’ve
already received offers to test myself in MMA, but I can’t
yet reveal in which event it will be,” says the three-time
Jiu-Jitsu world champion. But fighting in the gi is still the
primary focus in Kyra’s career. “I want to be to women’s
Jiu-Jitsu what Rickson is to mens Jiu-Jitsu,” she says in
finishing.
Also
on the broadcast, Brazilian actor Marcelo Novaes, a brown belt,
talks Jiu-Jitsu and Acadepol (Rio de Janeiro police academy)
shows how officers are trained in the art to stop fights. “Street
fighting is a crime, and street toughs will be treated as criminals,”
guarantees Acadepol’s black belt Miguel Murad.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Quote
of the Day
“The
secret of success is constancy of purpose.”
Benjamin Disraeli
|
Kimbo
earns his keep in the UFC
LAS
VEGAS – I swear hell must have just frozen over.
Kimbo
Slice is in the UFC. More shockingly, perhaps, is that he actually
won in the UFC.
Seriously.
The
one-time street brawler, who was mocked incessantly for more
than a year by Ultimate Fighting Championship president Dana
White, won a unanimous decision over Houston Alexander on Saturday
at The Palms.
The
elite fighters in the heavyweight division, men like champion
Brock Lesnar and contenders Shane Carwin, Cain Velasquez, Antonio
Rodrigo Nogueira and Frank Mir, among many others, have nothing
to worry about.
Truth
is, without denigrating Slice, there are more fighters in the
UFC’s heavyweight (and light heavyweight) division that
he can’t beat than there are that he can.
If
he never wins another fight, though, it won’t matter.
Slice
has made his point.
He
was classy as White mocked him – “What,” White
asked at a UFC 90 news conference in 2008, “has Kimbo Slice
done other than get 10 million hits on YouTube to be in the UFC?”
– and responded only by trying to become a better fighter.
White
had snidely said that the only way Slice would ever find his
way into the UFC was by going onto, and winning, “The Ultimate
Fighter.”
Slice
took him up on that offer and agreed to appear on the show, turning
down an opportunity to box and another to fight K-1 kickboxing
in Japan. And while he lost his first bout on the reality show
to eventual champion Roy Nelson, who knocked out Brendan Schaub
on Saturday, he hardly was out of place and by far was not the
worst fighter in the house.
White
wasn’t about to apologize for tweaking Slice so often, but
he gave Slice his props.
“I
don’t know what Houston Alexander’s corner was doing,
but that was the worst game plan they could have ever come up
with,” White, who was not at Saturday night’s postfight
press conference, said in a phone interview. “I am not sure
if Kalib Starnes was training him or what, but that wasn’t
the Houston Alexander I had seen fight before.
“I
don’t think I have to apologize to Kimbo. I helped him.
I said what I did and he did the thing athletes do: He went out
there and he worked and he made himself better. He deserves credit.
He took me up on the offer I made, did what he had to do and
went out and beat a legitimate UFC fighter.”
True
to the way he’s been ever since he started in mixed martial
arts, Slice went to the American Top Team in Coconut Grove, Fla.,
after filming ended in July in a bid to improve his game.
Slice
(4-1) was clearly better than he had been when he left Elite
XC after getting knocked out just 14 seconds into an Oct. 4,
2008, fight with light heavyweight Seth Petruzelli.
He
was satisfied with the victory, though he wasn’t gloating.
Asked if he felt he proved a point to the legion of skeptics
who doubted he could make the transition, Slice nodded his head.
“I
hope I did,” Slice said. “The goal was to come in and
fight and to get the best training I could possibly get to be
prepared for the standup or a ground game. Like I said, whether
the fight goes to the ground or stands up, I wanted to come in
and fight, but be smart about it.”
The
fight on Saturday was ugly and what had seemed to be a slam-dunk
slugfest degenerated into a boo-fest as fans in The Pearl became
angry at the lack of action.
Alexander
(9-5, 1 no-contest) spent the first round circling in the cage,
rarely threatening a punch. He landed a few kicks as Slice simply
held the center of the cage. Clearly, though, Alexander was wary
of Slice’s power and was not eager to engage.
This
is a guy who knocked out light heavyweight contender Keith Jardine,
after all, but Alexander was exceptionally cautious of Slice.
Slice, though, didn’t show his inexperience and didn’t
take an unnecessary risk by rushing at Alexander.
“If
I would have run in there foolishly, I would have gotten knocked
out,” Slice said. “It wasn’t difficult to stay
patient, but I was going, ‘Come on, man.’ A few times,
I just called him out. I called him by his name and I said some
things in the ring, like, ‘Let’s do this.’ I reverted
back to the streets a little bit, verbally. He didn’t engage.
He stuck to his plan, so I said to myself, ‘I’m not
going to be foolish and run up on him.’ I wanted to be a
smart fighter as well.”
He
was a smart fighter on Saturday, but he was a better draw. Not
counting Saturday, the season was by far the highest rated in
the history of “The Ultimate Fighter.” The show averaged
3.4 million viewers per episode compared to an average of 2 million
over the first nine seasons.
Ratings
will come out on Tuesday for Saturday’s finale, and they
should be equally large.
Whether
Slice can maintain as that type of attraction is debatable because
sooner or later it will come down to performance, and Slice has
a long way to go before he can compete with the majority of the
men in the UFC.
But
this night wasn’t about the future. It was about a man who
believed in himself despite massive ridicule from all corners,
about ignoring the thousands of skeptics and chasing a dream.
Kimbo
Slice may never become a superstar but he’s in the UFC,
and that’s better than 99.9 percent of the men in the world.
“It’s
hard,” Slice said of making the transition to MMA. “It’s
not an easy thing. I first was a street fighter. Being a street
fighter, there was no training in my style of fighting. I just
went in there based on my instincts, watching the guy’s
movement and countering him.
“But
at this level of the game, as a professional fighter in the UFC,
you have to be almost genius-like smart because you have all
these dimensions to battle. You have to know when to counter
and when to not hit and when to engage and when to try to wait
it out.
“There’s
a lot you have to go through. (I hope) this shows my maturity
as a mixed martial artist.”
He
has a lot of maturing left as an MMA fighter, but on this night,
Kimbo Slice finally left the streets behind.
He’s
in the UFC and the spot wasn’t given to him.
He
earned it.
Source: Yahoo Sports
|
Jones’
DQ loss won’t stop his ascent
LAS
VEGAS – The UFC’s string of controversial finishes
in featured matches continued Saturday night in the Jon Jones
vs. Matt Hamill fight at “The Ultimate Fighter 10 Finale.”
Jones,
a light heavyweight considered one of mixed martial arts’
brightest prospects, was well on his way to victory in the first
round. Hamill was on the ground with a shoulder that was feared
dislocated and took blow after blow after being mounted by Jones.
Hamill was motionless on the ground and clearly unable to continue.
The
end result? Jones is no longer undefeated after losing via a
disqualification at The Pearl at the Palms. The call, made by
referee Steve Mazzagatti, was the first time Nevada’s recently
implemented rule in which a referee can watch a television replay
of a finish affected the finish of a UFC fight.
Mazzagatti,
while watching the replay, saw Jones throwing elbows to the face
straight down in a 12-to-6 [in reference to the hands on a clock]
direction, which is illegal under unified MMA rules. The referee
was originally going to take a penalty point on Jones, but when
Hamill wasn’t getting up, Mazzagatti called the fight a
disqualification at the 4:14 mark.
“Steve
took a look at the instant replay,” said Nevada State Athletic
Commission executive director Keith Kizer. “It was the first
time the instant replay was used in Nevada. There was a lot of
damage done by legal blows, but if there’s any contributory
effect from an illegal blow, it’s a disqualification.”
Jones
had already done a backflip in the octagon in celebration of
what he presumed was the biggest win of his career. He said he
had no clue he didn’t win until ring announcer Bruce Buffer
made the call, although many in the crowd sensed something unusual.
“I
was kind of confused,” said Jones (9-1). “I thought
a point was being taken away. I wasn’t really positive what
was going on.
“I
thought I won,” he continued. “When they said I lost,
I thought, ‘No, it can’t be happening,’ but I
lost. But everything happens for a reason and you have to stay
strong and bounce back stronger. When I was undefeated I was
so nervous. Now I have a loss on my record.”
Kizer
said the ruling would have been a no contest if the illegal elbows
were believed to be accidental.
“I
don’t think there was any ill will,” said Kizer. “They
were definitely not thrown with malice and there will be no discipline.”
While
the result didn’t go his way, the night was still a major
step forward in Jones’ career. Jones, 22, had only been
fighting for four months when he was signed by the UFC during
the summer of 2008. Hamill (9-2) was the test to see if he could
hang with the top-level fighters.
Hamill,
one of the company’s most popular fighters for overcoming
the handicap of being deaf, had only been truly handled once
in his career, a loss against Rich Franklin.
Jones
answered questions about his potential with flying colors. In
his first fight since beginning training at the Greg Jackson
camp in Albuquerque, N.M., two months ago, he lived up to his
pre-match prediction that he had a surprise for Hamill when it
came to his wrestling ability.
Hamill,
a three-time Division III national wrestling champion, was slammed
hard to the canvas by Jones, a former junior college national
champion at Iowa Central. From that point on, Jones unleashed
a barrage of punches and elbows from the full mount. Hamill was
able to protect his face and block most of them, but enough were
getting through that Jones twice looked at Mazzagatti thinking
he would stop it.
“Yeah,
I’m not positive what the rules are,” said Jones, who
said that when the fight wasn’t being stopped, he instinctively
tried to come up with a new offensive weapon to get it stopped.
“That may be what I did, but 14 or 15 unanswered punches
and it should be stopped. It was awkward to keep hitting him,
but what can you do?”
The
strange night also featured Roy Nelson becoming the Season 10
Ultimate Fighter reality show winner, the first heavyweight winner
of the show since his coach on the show, Rashad Evans, won a
similar tournament in 2005.
Nelson
knocked out Brendan Schaub with a Fedor Emelianenko-style highlight-reel
knockout in 3:45 of the first round.
Nelson
was a ringer in the season that set record-setting ratings largely
because of Kimbo Slice. The show was built around Slice, who
garnered Internet fame based on YouTube videos of his street
fights in South Florida, as well as several fighters who had
mostly limited NFL experience, along with some high level wrestlers.
Schaub,
a former University of Colorado football player who played some
arena football and was briefly on the Buffalo Bills’ practice
squad, was the most advanced of the former footballers when it
came to fighting.
Nelson
(15-4), the former heavyweight champion of the International
Fight League, looked exactly like one wouldn’t expect a
professional fighter to look. At 6-foot, 263 pounds, much of
his weight was excess baggage around the middle. Nelson played
up that unique look, coming out to his fight to the “Weird”
Al Yankovic song “Fat.”
Schaub
(5-1) was winning in the most exciting fight on the show, using
his superior reach to land more punches in slugfests. Schaub
seemed to have improved greatly since the show finished taping
over the summer, particularly in his takedown defense. He stopped
all but one of Nelson’s takedowns, and he was able to get
up from Nelson’s big belly smother.
As
Schaub appeared to be getting the better of the stand-up, Nelson
blasted him right out of consciousness with an overhand right
to the temple.
“I
landed three right hands that tipped his chin and the last one
put him to the floor,” said Nelson.
He
said that Schaub’s early standing edge was more his lulling
his less-experienced foe into a false sense of security before
unloading on him.
“I
was just trying to gauge his range,” said Nelson. “He
has some God-awful range. I knew when I was getting him with
my jab. The only way he was going to hurt me was with his right
hand.”
Source: Yahoo Sports
|
Jonathan
Torres ready for WLPJJ
Champion
of the lightweights on the Brown belt of the 2008 European, the
Puerto Rican Jonathan Torres stood on submitting the giant Janne-Pekka,
of 231 pounds on the absolute final. “I got started In Brazilian
Jiu-Jitsu because my father insisted that I would do some sort
of sport to stay in shape, so I saw a program in a karate school
called Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and I decided to try it out and I
ended up falling in love with it”, the athlete tells, talking
to TATAME.
Promoted
to the black belt this year, Jonathan will come to Brazil on
the next days, to fight on the World League Pro Jiu-Jitsu, that
happens on December 5 and 6 in São Paulo. “I expect
the WLPJJ to be on the toughest tournaments I will do just because
there’s a lot of hidden talent in Brazil and such good names
as Lucas Lepri and Michael Langhi in my division, and Bruno Frazzato”,
said, excited to surprise again on the absolute “If it’s
God willing. If I am healthy enough I will fight both my weight
class”, guarantees, remembering the exciting victory on
the European.
“Winning
the European was an amazing feeling, especially tapping Janne-Pekka
in the finals, him being so big made it even such a better feeling
because that showed to me the really meaning of Jiu-Jitsu, a
smaller guy defeating the larger man with technique”, the
fighter celebrates, and he won, after the European, tournaments
in Asia and United States. Known for a very strong grip, the
black belt keep his secret. “My grip is very strong and
there’s some secrets behind it that I can’t reveal
(laugh)”, jokes.
Source: Tatame
|
Drysdale
talks Mir’s training to UFC 107
Absolute
champion of ADCC in 2007, Robert Drysdale is the responsible
by the ground trains of the ex champion of UFC, Frank Mir. One
week before the fight of the heavyweight against Cheick Kongo,
the black belt talked to TATAME about the preparation of the
though guy, who comes from defeat to the giant Brock Lesnar.
“Kongo
is though standing up and the ground is not his stronger spot,
everybody knows that. Frank takes advantage on the ground and
that’s no secret”, said, betting on a strategy of exchanging
of the French. “Cheick will try to fight standing up and
Frank will be prepared to whatever it is. His hand is sharp and
he will exchange well standing up with Kongo, with no troubles.
Who thinks that Frank will be desperate, trying to drop, is wrong”,
guarantees.
When
the fight goes to the ground, Drysdale bets in a quick end, with
victory to Mir. “On the ground, I don’t see Kongo surviving.
Frank is very heavy, with about 286 pounds. We he fell over,
Kongo won’t even move”, bets Robert. At the same night,
the Hawaiian
BJ Penn Will
put the lighweight’s belt for game against Diego Sanchez,
and will have the Brazilians Rousimar Palhares, Lúcio
Linhares, Wilson Gouveia and Ricardo Funch.
Source: Tatame
|
KIMBO
SHOWS IMPROVEMENTS IN DECISION WIN
In a fight most thought wouldn't make it out of the first round,
Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson actually earned his first
decision victory, as he outworked Houston Alexander in a catchweight
bout that didn't quite live up to the slugfest the fight was
billed to be.
In
the early going at The Ultimate Fighter season 10 finale, Alexander
worked a somewhat bizarre game plan as he brought back visions
of Shamrock vs. Severn 2 by circling Kimbo for the better part
of the first round. He mixed in a few leg kicks, but basically
ran around the Octagon.
On
the other side, Kimbo also refused to engage as he plodded around
the center of the cage, waiting for the moment his opponent would
finally step forward.
Finally,
in the second round, the fighters engaged. Kimbo showed a much
improved ground game, as he slammed Alexander to the ground,
got the mount, and actually worked for a rear naked choke. Alexander
persevered, but was obviously losing wind as the round moved
on.
The
final five minutes saw two exhausted fighters try to finish,
but neither had the power left to put the other away. A leg kick
from Alexander put Kimbo down, but he quickly recovered and eventually
took the fight back to the ground where he gained the upper hand
once again as the bout came to a close.
"I
want to thank ATT for everything," Kimbo said of his improved
ground game and training camp. "I'm still working on it,
it's not easy."
While
the fight was billed as a slugfest, a decision was probably the
furthest thing from anyone's mind. In the end, Kimbo Slice gets
his first win in the UFC.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
HAMILL
WINS AS JONES IS DQ'ED FOR ILLEGAL STRIKES
A dominant performance from a fighter that could be the future
of the 205-pound division was marred by an illegal strike that
brought about the end of the fight at Saturday night’s Ultimate
Fighter season 10 finale, as Jon "Bones" Jones was
disqualified giving his opponent, Matt Hamill, the win after
he couldn't continue.
Dynamic
performances have become Jones' signature in all of his fights
and the bout with Hamill proved no different. With both fighters
tossing out strikes, Jones set up a perfect throw midway through
the first round that sent Hamill crashing to the mat.
Quickly
moving to mount, Jones unleashed an unbelievable barrage of punches
and elbows that Hamill did his best to defend, although a few
definitely slipped through. Jones slowed down a little to catch
his breath, but then started to light Hamill up again.
The
end came as Jones threw two consecutive elbow strikes that came
from the forbidden "12 o’clock to 6 o’clock"
position, raising up and then dropping straight down, bludgeoning
Hamill in the head and nose. Referee Steve Mazzagatti rushed
in to stop the action and immediately pulled Jones up and deducted
a point.
Unfortunately,
in the scramble on the ground, Hamill separated his shoulder
and ended up with a giant gash on his nose from one of the elbow
strikes and was unable to continue.
The
12 o’clock to 6 o’clock elbow is the only illegal elbow
strike from the position Jones was in, but it is illegal. Due
to Hamill being unable to continue after the time the fight was
stopped to deduct a point for the illegality of the elbow, by
Nevada’s rules, Jones was disqualified.
"It
happened so fast, I could only defend with one arm," a heavy-hearted
Hamill said after the fight. "Jon Jones did a really good
job, so we'll come back."
Definitely
not the way he wanted to win the fight, Hamill will surely heel
up and ready himself for another shot at Jones in the future.
For his part, Jones had a positive attitude despite the loss,
the first of his professional career.
"I've
heard so many times that when you lose, you come back a better,
stronger person," Jones told UFC commentator Joe Rogan.
"Regardless of the outcome, God is still really good to
me, life is so great, and I'm just so grateful for being healthy
and everything else. Everything happens for a reason."
He
may not have won, but Jones just gave notice to everyone in the
light heavyweight division that he's the real deal, while Hamill
will get healthy and take another shot at the rising star.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
NELSON
KO'S SCHAUB TO BECOME ULTIMATE FIGHTER
One brutal right hand and Roy “Big Country” Nelson
is the new Ultimate Fighter.
Brendan
Schaub started out good at Saturday night’s Ultimate Fighter
season 10 finale, quickly establishing his jab and fending off
most of Nelson’s takedowns. And when he was taken down,
Schaub survived and returned the fight to the feet.
Standing
is where most pundits felt Schaub would be able to realize an
advantage, and for the better part of the fight that was accurate.
Schaub kept peppering Nelson with his jab, but Nelson snuck in
the occasional hard right hand.
At
3:45 of the first round, Nelson landed the one big right hand
that Schaub couldn’t answer... because he was left flat
on his back on the mat.
Nelson
has been criticized his entire career for his pudgy physique.
He poked fun at that in his post-fight comments, telling interviewer
Joe Rogan, “I’m feeling pretty good. A little tired.
I want to go get Burger King now.”
He
didn’t joke around when he was asked what was next for him.
Living up to his pedigree as the only International Fight League
heavyweight champion, a title he defended twice, Nelson said
he’s ready to step in with any heavyweight on the UFC roster.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Quote
of the Day
“You
may delay, but time will not.“
Benjamin Franklin
|
ULTIMATE
FIGHTER 10 RESULTS, PLAY-BY-PLAY & PICS
The Ultimate Fighter: Heavyweights has seen the biggest ratings
boom in the history of the series. Saturday night in Las Vegas,
Roy Nelson and Brendan Schaub settle the score to determine the
next Ultimate Fighter, although much of the attention has turned
to Internet sensation Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson.
Matt
Hamill and Jon Jones will meet in the night’s co-main event.
MMAWeekly.com
is in Las Vegas to bring you live results and play-by-play. Please
refresh your browser frequently for the latest results and round-by-round
coverage.
The
main card of the finale airs on Spike TV on Saturday night at
9 p.m. PT/ET.
PLAY-BY-PLAY:
-Roy
Nelson vs. Brendan Schaub
R1
- Schaub working to establish his jab early and Nleson goes for
a takedown. Schaub lands a combination and is flurrying on Nelson
against the cage. Nelson clinches and secures the takedown. Nelson
works for an Americana but gives it up. Schaub gets back to his
feet where he lands a right hand. Schaub with another right hand
and Nelson fires back. Nelson with a right hand but eats one
of his own. Nelson clinches following a right hand but Schaub
separates. Nelson knocks Schaub out cold. He dropped him with
a right hand and finished with one more while Schaub was on his
back.
-Roy
Nelson def. Brendan Schaub by KO at 3:45, R1
-Jon
Jones vs. Matt Hamill
R1
- Feeling each othe rout a bit. Hamill switching stances. Hamill
with a jab. Jones wiht a leg kick. Jones lands a right hand followed
by a kick to the body. Hamill misses with a spinning back fist.
Hamill goes for a single leg takedown but Jones' defense has
none of it. Jones with a leg kick, misses with one to the head
but lands one to the body. Jones gets a takedown, a throw and
mounts Hamill where he lands huge elbows and punches. Jones trying
to finish. Hamill is cut over his right eye. Jones looking at
the referee to stop the fight. Jones landing short elbows. The
referee stands them up for an illegal elbow that was delivered
straight up and down. The fight is stopped because Hamill was
unable to continue. Jon Jones loses due to disqualification from
the illegal elbow.
-Matt
Hamill def. Jon Jones by disqualification (illegal elbows)
-Kevin
“Kimbo Slice” Ferguson vs. Houston Alexander
R1
- No touching gloves. Kimbo takes the center of the Octagon as
Alexander circles on the outside. Over a minute and no punches
thrown yet. Alexander throwing leg kic kicks and circling. Two
more inside leg kicks by Alexander. They exchange and Alexander
clinches and delivers two knees. Kimbo fires but misses. Kimbo
with a hook. Alexander clinches and throws a knee. With a minute
left in the round, Alexander with two more leg kicks. Kimbo pressing.
The round ends with Alexander circling and Kimbo stalking. MMAWeekly.com
scores the round 10-9 for Alexander.
R2
- More circling by Alexander, circling to his right. Kimbo loads
up on a right hand that misses. Kimbo lands a good jab. Kimbo
gets a takedown and mounts but Alexander back to his feet. Alexander
slips and Kimbo rushes in and lands shots. Alexander recovers
but is slammed by Kimbo. Alexander goes for a single leg. Alexander
pulls Kimbo down but Kimbo lands in mount. Alexander gives up
his back. Kimbo goes for a rear naked choke. He gives it up and
mounts Alexander again. Alexander escapes out the backdoor. Alexander
looks gassed. The round ends with the fighters tied up and going
to the ground. MMAWeekly.com scores the round 10-9 for Kimbo.
R3
- Slow start to round three. Alexander comes in swinging. Both
guys land. Jab by Kimbo. Alexander looks extremely tired. Kimbo
motions for him to come on. Kimbo with a right hand and Alexander
responds with a combination. Kimbo misses with two punches. Alexander
knocks him down with a leg kick. Kimbo gets Alexander down. Two
minutes remain and Kimbo in Alexander's half guard. Referee stands
them up with 70 seconds left. Alexander with a leg kick. Both
guys are fatigued. Alexander working kicks to Kimbo's front leg.
Alexander with a big elbow and right hand send Kimbo back peddling.
The round ends. MMAWeekly.com scores the round 10-9 for Alexander.
-Kevin
“Kimbo Slice” Ferguson def. Houston Alexander by unanimous
decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
-Frankie
Edgar vs. Matt Veach
R1
- Referee Herb Dean starts the action. A touch of gloves and
Edgar fires a high kick that was blocked. Veach attempts a takedown
but Edgar fends it off. Veach goes for a single leg takedown
but again Edgar fends it off. Veach picks him up and slams him
but Edgar gets back up immediately only to be elevated and slammed
to the canvas. Edgar gets ack up and gets slammed again. Veach
is relentles. Edgar to his feet and they separate. Edgar with
a kick to the body. Veach with a left hook. Edgar tries for a
takedown but Veach is having none of it. Edgar lands a body shot.
The round ends with Veach attempting a single leg takedown. MMAWeekly
scores the round 10-9 for Veach.
R2
- They stand and exchange for the first 30 seconds. Edgar thought
about a takedown but Veach powers out before going for one of
his own. They separate and are back to stiking. Edgar caught
Veach with a right hand that had him wobbling. Edgar swoops in
and lands punch after punch before taking Veach's back and sinking
in a rear naked choke. Veach is forced to tap.
-Frankie
Edgar def. Matt Veach by submission (rear naked choke) at 2:22,
R2
-Marcus
Jones vs. Matt Mitrione
R1
- No touch of the glovesand they clinch quickly where Jones takes
Mitrione to the ground. Jones unble to do anything and Mitrione
worked his way back to his feet. Jones wastes no time before
clinching and pressing Mitrione against the cage. Jones applies
a guillotine and pulls Mitrione to the canvas. Mitrione gets
out of it and stands over Jones before the referee stood it up.
Mitrione with a straight right hand and Jones takes him down,
but only briefly before Mitrione geot back up. Mitrione landing
shots but Jones gets another takedown in the final seconds of
the round. MMAWeekly scores the round 10-9 for Jones.
R2
- Jones moves in trying to clinch but Mitrione caught him with
a right hand that dropped Jones and finishes him with two more
shots on the ground.
-Matt
Mitrione def. Marcus Jones by KO at :10, R2
-James
McSweeney vs. Darrill Schoonover
R1
- McSweeney starts with a couple of strikes as Schoonover feels
out the fight. McSweeny lands a flying knee that conncets with
Schoonover's face. McSweeney gets a standing guillotine but Schoonover
get out of it. McSweeney lands a few punches that get close to
the back of the head and is warned by the ref. Schoonover rains
down with a huge punch on McSweeney as Schoonover moves into
side control but McSweeney rolls him over and moves into side
control himself and then takes full mount. He gets in a few ground
and pound punches and then takes Schoonover's back. McSweeney
then stands and delivers an axe kick to Schoonover's midsection.
Both fighters make their way to their feet and exchange punches
to end the round.
R2
- Schoonover attempts a punch gets off balance and falls to the
ground. McSweeney does not want to let Schoonover up contrary
to the advice yelled from his corner to do just that. McSweeney
falls on Schoonover in full mount and delivers some ground and
pound to Schoonover's cranium. McSweeney attempts to move to
Schoonover's back maintaining a dominant position as Schoonover
look to be gassed unable to maintain any sort of leg lock. Schoonover
squirms out and get position on McSweeney for only a few seconds
as McSweeney again gets control of the situation. McSweeney takes
Schoonover's back delivering punches and a late elbow to end
the round.
R3
- The final round starts with a nice leg kick by McSweeney. McSweeney
takes Schoonover down hard with a leg sweep and then takes side
control. The Brit delivers a barrage of body punches on Schoonover.
Josh stands them up and Schoonover delivers a huge right. McSweeney
with a superman punch pushing Schoonover into the cage. Both
fighters getting a little sloppy. Suddenly McSweeney leaps with
a perfectly executed flying knee on Schoonover followed with
a leg kick and then a massive right that rocks Schoonover to
the ground with the Referee ending the fight.
-James
McSweeney def Darrill Schoonover by TKO at 3:20, R3
-Justin
Wren vs. Jon Madsen
R1
- Both fighters exchange punches early. Madsen strikes Wren opening
a cut on Wren. Wren hits Madsen with a good right rocking him
slightly as he then recovers. Madsen swings for the fences in
attempt to take Wren out early but cannot connect. Both fighters
feeling each other out as Wren points to his chin attempting
to get Madsen to engage. Wren trying to set something up as time
ticks to one minute remaining in the round. A great knee by Wren,
followed up by a body shot from Madsen. Both fighters exchanging
punches and body shots. Both men exchanges knees to the body
to end the round.
R2
- The season 10 team mates continue to feel each other out with
nothing really happening early on in the round. Madsen lands
a right on Wren's temple but does not phase Wren. Again a great
counter with a right from Madsen on Wren's face with no real
damage. Both fighters continue to attempt strikes with not much
in the way of takedown attempts as the fighters stay on their
feet. Wren still pushing the pace of the fight with Madsen countering.
Justin Wren takes a huge last minute bar room brawl swing but
misses to end a very uneventful round.
R3
- Wren comes out early with swings and Madsen counters. Wren
swings wildly to push the pace of the fight. Wren constantly
moves forward on Madsen but Madsen counters each time. Wren continues
to try and make something happen. Wren glances at the clock and
takes more and more swings against Madsen but failing to connect
with anything of consequence. Wren lands an elbow as he senses
the importance of getting the win. Wren calls out Madsen with
hand motions and a takedown attempt by Wren comes with 10 seconds
left landing a couple of shots in what has been for all practical
purposes a three round boxing match.
-Jon
Madsen def Justin Wren vis Split Decision (30-27,28-29,29-28)
-Brian
Stann vs. Rodney Wallace
R1
- Stann starts off with a leg kick but Wallace catches it and
takes Stann to the mat. Wallace in side control but Stann bucks
out of it and they stand again. Stann gets Wallace against the
cage in the clinch but Wallace escapes. Stann goes in with a
couple punches but Wallace rushes in and takes Stann to the ground.
Wallace gets a high single on Stann pulls the legs out from under
Stann and takes him to the ground. They then break up and stand
again. Stann gives a brutal leg kick. Stann attempts another
leg kick but Wallace grabs it and picks up Stann thowing him
backward over his own head for a massive takedown but is unable
to do much as they both make their way to their feet. Stann is
again taken down by Wallace as the round ends.
R2
- The second round starts with Wallace going again for the takedown
which is defended by Stann. Wallace has a single leg, then completes
it by taking out the other leg to take Stann down. Wallace ends
up on his back as Stann searches for a submission of any kind.
Wallace controlling Stann, Stann get a bit of ground and pound
as he moves to side position which ends up back in full guard.
Quick hammer fists by Stann. Stann gets off Wallace but is not
letting him up as he crashed down with a few punches. Stann rains
down a big left on Wallace. Wallace rolls to get Stann's leg
but Stann rolls and rolls to avoid the submission to end the
round.
R3
- Stann starts with a big leg kick on Wallace which is again
caught by Wallace. Wallace takes Stann to the ground. Wallace
has Stann's back. Both fighters get to their feet as Stann pushes
up against Wallace against the cage. Wallace get's one of Stann's
legs but loses it as Stann sprawls out of it. Stann slams Wallace
with a huge leg kick as Wallace takes Stann against the cage
with 90 seconds remaining in the bout. Wallace attempts take
down after takedown as Stann defends them. The fight ends as
both fighters exchanging takedown attemps and last minute flurry
of punches to end what is sure to be a very close bout.
-Brian
Stann def Rodney Wallace via Unanimous Decision (30–27,29-28,29-28)
-Dennis
Hallman vs. John Howard
R1
- Early kick by Hallman but Howard shoots in takes Hallman up
against the cage then down to the ground. Hallman on top of Howard
working for a better position. Howard returns with elbows from
the bottom. Howard attempting to get to the cage to stand, but
they get stood up. Howard gives a good inside leg kick followed
by a body punch, shoots in and they both go to the ground. Hallman
gets on top and obtains full guard position. Hallman maintains
position but is unable to capitalize on it with Howard's defense.
R2
- They touch gloves and Hallman gets a good kick on Howard. Hallman
get's a deep guillotine on Howard as Howard shot in for a takedown.
They crumble to the mat and Hallman takes side mount position
on Howard, getting excellent leg kicks on Howard. Hallman takes
Howard's back get's one hook in with his other arm under Howard's
chin. Howard doing a great job defensively as Hallman attempts
to get the submission. Both fighters wrestle with Hallman dominating
the round til the end.
R3
- Howard starts off quickly with a couple body bunches on Hallman.
The fight quickly goes to the ground then just as quickly is
back up. Howard then takes it to the ground again. Howard is
on top but is not enough to do much damage to Hallman. They start
to get up but quickly fall back to the ground as Howard lands
punches on Hallman. Hallman now on the bottom with double underhooks.
Howard then gets the full mount on Hallman. Howard rides Hallman
giving several body shots as Hallman struggles to get out of
the mount. Hallman reverses the mount and is now on top. They
get stood up by the referee, Howard rushes in and they exchange
punches, Howard brings out a huge left and knocks Hallman to
the ground following in Hallman is knocked down with only 5 seconds
before rounds end as the referee end the fight.
-John
Howard def Dennis Hallman by TKO at 4:55, R3
-Mark
Bocek vs. Joe Brammer
R1
- Brammer lands a big kick early, attempted superman punch by
Bocek. Brammer takes Bocek up against the cage in the clinch
but it broken up quickly. Bocek takes the first shot and goes
in wrestling Brammer to the ground taking his back getting a
hook in. Bocek maintains a dominate position on Brammer. Bocek
working to put a submission on Brammer. They go to their feet
with Bocek still on Brammer's back. Bocek tightens the noose
on Brammer getting a standing rear naked choke forcing Brammer
to tap.
-Mark
Bocek def Joe Brammer by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at 3:36,
R1
QUICK
RESULTS:
Main
Bouts:
-Roy Nelson def. Brendan Schaub by KO at 3:45, R1
-Matt Hamill def. Jon Jones by disqualification (illegal elbows)
-Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson def. Houston Alexander
by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
-Frankie Edgar def. Matt Veach by submission (rear naked choke)
at 2:22, R2
-Matt Mitrione def. Marcus Jones by KO at :10, R2
Preliminary
Bouts:
-James McSweeney def Darrill Schoonover by TKO at 3:20, R3
-Jon Madsen def Justin Wren vis Split Decision (30-27,28-29,29-28)
-Brian Stann def Rodney Wallace via Unanimous Decision (30–27,29-28,29-28)
-John Howard def Dennis Hallman by TKO at 4:55, R3
-Mark Bocek def Joe Brammer by Submission (Rear Naked Choke)
at 3:36, R1
Source: MMA Weekly
|
YVEL
STEPS INTO DOS SANTOS FIGHT AT UFC 108
With Gabriel Gonzaga dropping out due to a staph infection, Junior
Dos Santos is now expected to face UFC newcomer Gilbert Yvel
at UFC 108. The news was confirmed to MMAWeekly.com by sources
close to the fight.
UFC
108 is slated for Jan. 2 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las
Vegas and is headlined by former light heavyweight champion Rashad
Evans and Thiago Silva.
Yvel,
33, was thought to be Octagon bound after Affliction Entertainment
closed its doors in August, but sat in limbo until the Nevada
State Athletic Commission issued him a provisional one-fight
license in October.
Yvel’s
controversial past has weighed on his current career. The Dutch
striker turned MMA fighter drew outrage for several well-publicized
incidents of misconduct including striking a referee and intentionally
fouling his opponent.
The
incidents prompted the Nevada State Athletic Commission to deny
him a fight license in February 2007, nixing a fight with Sergei
Kharitonov in Las Vegas at Pride 33.
After
almost 50 overseas fights, Yvel made his U.S. debut in January
after a special meeting with the California State Athletic Commission,
where he assured regulators that his misdeeds would not be repeated.
Yvel
said the NSAC’s October ruling gave his career new life.
“It’s
a relief,” he said. “I’m happy that they gave
me a chance and I got treated like all the fighters.”
Source: MMA Weekly
|
NOONS
PLANS JAN. 30 RETURN, BUT HE'S READY NOW
The announcement was made on Wednesday that former EliteXC lightweight
champion K.J. Noons is making his long-awaited return to MMA
as the Hawaiian born fighter signed a multi-fight deal with Strikeforce
that is set to begin almost immediately.
Speaking
exclusively with MMAWeekly.com on Thursday, Noons says his first
fight is likely to take place in late January, but he could be
ready sooner if the promotion makes the call. While he's been
out of MMA for over a year, his other training has helped him
prepare for the comeback.
"I
was training MMA, but the boxing made me sharper," Noons
said. "I'm planning on Jan. 30, but if anything falls out,
I'm down for Dec. 19. I signed, I'm ready to fight."
Noons
believes that his boxing background and work in that sport have
helped shape him into a better MMA fighter, and he's ready to
start proving it immediately.
"I
feel like I'm better, I feel like I’m way better than where
I was at when I left MMA," Noons commented. "I got
sharper, faster, better. It's not like I just stopped; I was
still fighting. I think a lot of people forget the fight starts
standing up."
With
his last boxing match taking place at 154 pounds, Noons says
his immediate future is at 155 pounds with Strikeforce. He walks
around at about 185 pounds, though, so he's more than comfortable
taking fights in different weight classes… including a possible
rematch with Nick Diaz.
"Whatever
the promotion wants, whatever the people want to see. If the
title is in my future, I'm down. 170 is not out of the question
for me either," said Noons. "Whatever Strikeforce wants
to help build the promotion and help me build my career, I'm
down."
One
thing is for sure, Noons isn't trying to get an easy fight or
a tune-up as he makes his way back to MMA. The way he sees it,
he's still got a championship to defend.
"I
don’t think they have any warm-up fights... whether it's
a champion vs. champion, whether it's (Takanori) Gomi, (Nick)
Diaz, I don't know who else they have, whoever," Noons stated.
"The way I look at it is I don't think there is a warm-up
fight for me cause when I go in, whether I'm fighting for the
title or not, I'm still the champ. I'm still defending my title.
I haven't lost yet."
Look
for Noons to make his return to fighting in late January as he
returns to the lightweight division in his Strikeforce debut.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
EDGAR
& MITRIONE OFF TO A QUICK START AT TUF 10
Frankie Edgar – with recent wins over Hermes Franca and
Sean Sherk under his belt – took a big risk fighting Matt
Veach at The Ultimate Fighter season 10 finale on Saturday night.
Despite coming in with a 10-0 record, Veach doesn't yet have
the name recognition of the opponents that Edgar has been beating.
Veach
showed that danger early on as he scooped Edgar up and slammed
him down, a la Matt Hughes, several times in the opening round.
Edgar
kept his composure, however, and continually returned the fight
to the feet where he looked much more sound than Veach. He used
good head movement and a variety of striking to start edging
ahead.
Midway
through round two, Edgar landed a right hook that sent his opponent
down. He immediately followed Veach to the mat and started a
ground and pound attack. Veach gave up his back to get away from
the strikes, but Edgar capitalized, securing a rear naked choke
for the submission.
“I
seen he was hurt and I just wanted to go in for the kill,”
Edgar later commented. “I kind of had a slow start. He’s
a strong dude; he was game. Made my adjustments. Second round,
felt a lot better, and was able to finish him.”
Edgar
has just one slip on his record, a decision loss to Gray Maynard.
Improving his overall record to 11-1 on Saturday night, his three
straight victories should keep his name in the title picture.
NFL
veterans Marcus Jones and Matt Mitrione, who had a blow-up on
the final episode of the regular season of The Ultimate Fighter,
finally got the chance to settle their differences in the Octagon.
Jones
did well in the opening round, taking Mitrione down several times,
but was unable to do much damage. Mitrione consistently escaped
the ground and brought the fight back to the feet.
They
came out swinging to open round two. It would be Mitrione that
landed the first and deadly strike. Jones is uncomfortable on
his feet, and it showed on Saturday night. He moved in, swinging
away, but ate a Mitrione right hand for his efforts. The punch
sent the former Tampa Bay Buccaneer crashing face first to the
mat, giving Mitrione the win at 10 seconds of the second round.
“Marcus
is much stronger than I give him credit for. I’m surprised
how hard he punches to be honest,” said Mitrione after the
fight, seeming to let go of the conflict between them on the
show. “I’m glad I caught him. It was a lot of fun to
fight him. Marcus is a good dude.”
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Mario
Reis inspired by Roger Gracie
Mario
Reis is the grand featherweight champion from the South American
Jiu-Jitsu Championship on the 21st and 22nd of last month, in
Santa Catarina. The Gracie Barra black belt told of how he has
found inspiration in absolute world champion Roger Gracie.
Reis
sought to incorporate the most talked about submission of the
year into his arsenal, the choke from the mount, as he reveals
to GRACIEMAG.com.
“I
was inspired by Roger Gracie for this South American Jiu-Jitsu
Championship, because while in training I would sink the choke
from the mount, in some championships I would end up losing the
position. I noticed some details that Roger uses to get the finish
in his fights, as I got a chance to be near him at Gracie Barra
Irvine, this last World Championship. I could see well while
he rolled how he sinks it, how he puts his hand in deep, details
of elbow positioning… the finer details. I think this was
a fundamental part of the move working for me in my game. His
Jiu-Jitsu is basic and really well done,” said Mario Reis,
who used the choke from the mount to finish CheckMat’s Leon
Amancio.
“I
found the South American to be of a really good level, not just
the black belts but the other belts, too. A student of mine had
five matches to become blue belt champion, the whites fought
a lot as well. All I needed was this title for my career, and
I’m stoked for it and for the level of the championship,”
said Mário Reis, a sure name on the rosters of the European
Championship in January and the World Pro Jiu-Jitsu League, this
coming weekend in São Paulo, with cash prizes and Michael
Langhi, Tarsis Humphreys, Sérgio Morais, Luiz Felipe Big
Mac, Bruno Malfacine among others in the mix.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
In
Singapore, Brodinho comments on sub at Art of War
Leandro
“Brodinho” Issa (5w, 2l) now lives in Singapore, where
he teaches at Evolve/Gordo JJ Academy. The Jiu-Jitsu teacher
wrote to GRACIEMAG.com from China, where he was at the November-28
Art of War 15 event.
“I
fought a Korean named Choi Yeong Gwang, I started the fight with
a quick takedown, but he escaped to his feet. I went for it again
with a single-leg, took him down, mounted him and went for a
triangle from the mount. I finished the fight in 1:27 min of
the first round,” said the featherweight black belt.
Leandro
thanked his corner and the special participation of his teammate
Rafael dos Anjos, of the UFC.
“I’m
training muay thai with Sitydtong Team and Rafael dos Anjos came
to Singapore and helped me a lot. And of course I had the help
of Roberto Gordo for my Jiu-Jitsu and as my cornerman,”
he concluded.
The
evening’s main event was between undefeated local star Hai
Ling Ao (now 6w and no losses) and Japan’s Ryuki Ueyama.
Art
of War 15 –Ueyama vs Hai Ling Ao
National
Olympic Stadium, Beijing, China
November
28, 2009
Xian
Ji submitted Zhang Zhou Hong via guillotine at 2:18 min of R1
Guo
Bin Xue submitted Zhou Wen Jiang via armbar at 1:55min of R1
Jing
Liang Li submitted Yun Tao Gong via guillotine at 5:29min of
R1
Seung
Chul Yoon defeated Yao Qiang via TKO at 2:37min of R1
She
Ri Gu Leng Bao defeated Khomsan Hanchana via TKO at 2min51s do
1R
Leandro
Issa da Silva submitted Yeong Gwang Choi via triangle at 1:27
min of R1
Jun
Lei Li defeated Dang Legacygym by unanimous judges’ decision
Hoon
Kim submitted Lubomir Guedjev via triangle at 8:58min of R1
Vaughn
Anderson defeated Ivan Ivanov via TKO at 3:39min of R1
Hao
Tian Wu submitted Arthit Hanchana via kimura at 7:25min of R1
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Cyborg
fights at Brazil in December
With
only one fight on this year, Evangelista “Cyborg” will
be back to rings pushed by the local fans. Chute Boxe’s
athlete, Santos will do the main fight of Samurai Fight Combat,
that happens on December 12 in Curitiba. Besides the though guy,
who will face Daniel Zarate, the show will have Marlon Mathias,
ex EliteXC’s athlete, and Vanessa Porto.
Victor
Leite, spokesman of the event, said what the audience can expect
of Samurai Fight. "Since Meca we didn’t see so much
movement for a MMA event here in Curitiba. A lot of people are
coming to me asking about the tickets sail and also about the
final card, and what we have to say is that we’ll have a
fancy night to national MMA. We brought Cyborg and Marlon that
are international athletes to the event and will make our card
to shine more”, analyzed Victor.
Source: Tatame
|
Quote
of the Day
“To
me, the greatest pleasure of writing is not what it's about,
but the inner music that words make.”
Truman Capote
|
Congratulations
to O2's Kickboxers!
Ola Lum
and Isaac Hoops traveled all the way to Vegas to fight in a kickboxing
match at Master Toddy's gym. Unfortuneately, Ola got stopped
by TKO (knee) in the first round. Isaac's opponent backed out
at the last minute, but stepped up huge by fighting a guy that
weighed 200 lbs. Isaac only weighs 150 lbs. Isaac slayed Goliath
and won by a TKO ref stop in the first round even though he gave
up 50 lbs. Kaleo Kwan and Chris Onzuka went up to Vegas (yup,
they had to get their arms twisted) to corner the guys.
At
Man up and Stand Up at the Waipahu Filcom, we had three fighters
compete. Royal Kaua impressed everyone, including the promotor
in his debut fight, but was short one kick in round 3 (he needed
to throw 5 kicks per round) and ended up with a draw. Koa Lyu
lost the first two rounds to an aggressive opponent, but his
persistence paid off and he hurt his opponent with some body
shots in the third round, but could not put him away so Koa lost
2 rounds to 1. Justin Dulay definitely brought his "A"
game tonight and perfomed at the highest level that we have seen
him and won a decision victory. PJ Dean, Chris Slavens, and Mike
Onzuka held the fort down for our fighters at this local event.
Congratulations
to all the O2 kickboxers! You represented yourselves and the
school extremely well and we are all proud of you!
|
Aloha
State Championships of BJJ Today!
12/5/09
Kaiser High School Gym
Deadline: Friday, November 27th to get a free tournament shirt
Weigh ins
are on the day of the event:
Time : weigh in kids 8:30-9:30 am adults 9:30-11:30 am
Tournamtent
starts : kids 10am adults 12 noon
Aloha
State BJJ Championships
Kaiser High School Gymnasium
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Superfights
Aaron
Moeller (Moeller Jiu-Jitsu) vs. Carlos Kiko
|
UNDERCARD
FIGHTS CONFIRMED FOR TUF 10 FINALE
Tonight
at 7:00 PM
Oceanic Digital Channel 559
The final episode of "The Ultimate Fighter: Heavyweights"
has produced several match-ups slated for the show's season finale
on Dec. 5 in Las Vegas.
Brendan
Schaub faces Roy Nelson in the final at the event, which takes
place at the Pearl Theater in the Palms Casino Resort and airs
live on Spike at 9 p.m. EST/PST.
Announced
on Wednesday's telecast was a grudge match between Marcus Jones
and Matt Mitrione, who narrowly avoided an extracurricular clash
when Jones blamed the fellow NFL veteran for ending castmate
Scott Junk's career. Junk received an inadvertent eye poke in
his episode seven fight with Mitrione and was diagnosed with
a career-ending injury. Junk later recovered.
Also
confirmed by the UFC is a match-up between Justin Wren and John
Madsen.
Wren
(6-1) made it to the quarterfinals by defeating Wes Sims in the
show's preliminary round, but fell short to finalist Roy Nelson
in the quarterfinals. Madsen (1-0), meanwhile, defeated Abe Wagner
in his first fight and fell short against finalist Brendan Schaub.
Additionally,
semifinalist James McSweeney and quarterfinalist Darrill Schoonover
will meet on the event's undercard.
McSweeney
(3-4) decsisioned Wes Shivers in his preliminary bout and submitted
Matt Mitrione in the quarterfinals before falling short to Nelson.
Schoonover (10-0) submitted Zak Jensen in the preliminaries,
but was knocked out by Marcus Jones in the quarterfinals.
"The
Ultimate Fighter" finale show is headlined by a light heavyweight
bout between Jon Jones and Matt Hamill.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
KJ
NOONS LATEST TO SIGN WITH STRIKEFORCE
Lightweight KJ Noons has signed a multi-fight contract with Strikeforce
and is expected to make his debut as soon as January.
News
of the boxer/MMA fighter’s signing was first reported by
Sherdog.com and subsequently confirmed to MMAWeekly.com by multiple
sources close to negotiations.
Noons,
26, made his professional debut in MMA in 2002, but later immersed
himself in the sweet science, splitting his time between the
two disciplines. His MMA record stands at 7-2, while his boxing
ledger reads 11-2.
Noons’
last cage appearance was in June 2008, when he defended his EliteXC
title against Yves Edwards by knockout. He was later stripped
of the belt when the promotion charged him with dodging a rematch
with Nick Diaz, whom he defeated in November 2007 by doctor’s
stoppage.
Two
months later EliteXC folded, and Noons embarked on another run
in boxing, racking up four wins with one loss. In February, he
declined an offer to fight Strikeforce lightweight champion Josh
Thomson at April’s “Shamrock vs. Gracie” show.
A
Jan. 30 Strikeforce event at the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise,
Fla., is currently in the planning stages. Noons’ nemesis,
Diaz, is likely for the card.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
STRIKEFORCE
INKS DEAL TO AIR LIVE IN CANADA
Super Channel, described as Canada's only national pay television
network, on Wednesday announced an exclusive agreement to offer
Showtime Sports telecasts of Strikeforce mixed martial arts (MMA)
events live to viewers across Canada, beginning with the promotion’s
Dec. 19 event.
Strikeforce:
Evolution features a lightweight title unification bout between
current champion Josh Thomson and interim titleholder Gilbert
Melendez, as well as a middleweight bout featuring the return
of former champion Cung Le against Scott "Hands of Steel"
Smith at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif.
The
live HD telecast of Strikeforce: Evolution on Super Channel will
begin at 10 p.m. ET and will include as many as five bouts.
"Canadian
fans have consistently shown a deep appreciation for MMA, so
to have the opportunity to bring live Strikeforce action to this
market on a regular basis on an outstanding, high definition
platform like Super Channel is very exciting," said Strikeforce
Founder and CEO Scott Coker.
Also
in action on Dec. 19 will be Matt Lindland, who will take on
Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza at middleweight; light heavyweight
Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal is expected to face Mike Whitehead;
and middleweight knockout artist "Ruthless" Robbie
Lawlerw will likely face fellow UFC veteran Trevor Prangley.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
UFC:
Minotauro and Wand on same card
The
Ultimate Fighting Championship has officially confirmed the main
events for UFC 110, marking the promotion’s debut in Australia,
on February 22nd. As was widely publicized, Rodrigo Minotauro
is to face Cain Velasquez and Wanderlei Silva will have Michael
Bisping across the octagon from him.
While
Minotauro hopes a win will set him up for a shot at the heavyweight
belt – Dana White has already confirmed the winner of the
bout will have that right –, Wand tries to solidify his
position in the organization once and for all, as he has suffered
two setbacks in a row. Other fights to feature on the card for
Sydney are Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic vs Ben Rothwell
and Ryan Bader vs Keith Jardine.
It
is worth remembering that Cain, as GRACIEMAG.com published a
few weeks back, is not just a dangerous striker but a No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu
world champion, having won the absolute blue belt division. Mino,
beware!
Rematch
Another
intriguing matchup brewing is in fact a rematch penned in for
the February UFC 109 event, to be held in Las Vegas. Coming off
a win over Jacob Volkmann, Paulo Thiago is set to face Josh Koscheck
for the second time, having knocked out the top-ranked welterweight
in his Octagon debut, at UFC 95.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Paulo
Thiago happy to face Koscheck again
After
his win over Jacob Volkmann, Paulo Thiago spoke with GRACIEMAG.com
about his next challenge in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
The police officer on Brazil’s elite BOPE squad will face
Josh Koscheck once again at the February-6 UFC 109 event in Las
Vegas. The last time the two faced off, on Paulo’s debut
for the organization, the Brazilian won by knockout. Some said
it was luck, the rematch could prove otherwise. Check out the
interview.
Paulo Thiago in his last UFC win, in a photo by Josh Hedges
Paulo
Thiago in his last UFC win, in a photo by Josh Hedges
If
the guy is good, that’s the guy I want to beat
Will
you really face Josh Koscheck again?
That’s
right. A lot of people said the first time was luck. I can tell
you I’m going to train a lot to beat him again.
Are
you bothered people think the first time you won by landing a
lucky punch?
People
said it was luck, but it was a sequence I practiced a lot for
the fight. It didn’t just happen, it was well rehearsed.
I think it’s awesome I get to face him again. They put him
in my way again and I can only thank them for it. I will again
face a highly regarded fighter and to me it will be a pleasure.
But
you don’t feel you should move up the line and the organization
come up with a different opponent?
I
do what they say. I can just be grateful to the UFC and face
who they tell me to. I don’t pick my opponents.
If
you beat Koscheck again you may be in line for a title challenge,
am I right?
I
try not to think about the title, just one fight at a time. But,
for sure, he could get me closer to the head of the line, waiting
my turn. He and Jon Fitch are the two who are closest now and,
beating him, I’ll be well placed, too.
You
come from a Jiu-Jitsu background, but have won with striking
and encountered the greatest danger in the UFC on the ground.
Will you work more on your Jiu-Jitsu?
The
guy I faced (Jacob Volkmann) is not unversed on the ground, he
was a three-time wrestling champion in the United States. He’s
no joke, he’s really good. I really did try and get up from
the bottom any way I could and could have worked a bit more from
the guard. I ended up wasting a lot of gas unnecessarily. But
I’m going to work on my ground game, as I will with my striking.
I want to be the best fighter and will continue training everything,
more and more. That’s the way it goes.
Would
you like to say anything to your fans on GRACIEMAG.com?
You
can be sure I’m going to dedicate myself a lot to my training.
I never go in with the thought of folding or chickening out because
I’m facing a top fighter. That doesn’t happen with
me. If the guy is good, then he’s the one I want to beat.
You can rest assured, I’m going in full steam.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Rogério
Nogueira
Before
debuting with a victory in the UFC, Rogério "Minotouro"
answered the fans of TATAME and responded to the questions about
his training, the dream of debuting in the UFC, his idols, childhood
and much more. Check out the chat below that the TATAME subscribers
had with him.
For
being Minotauro's brother, do you think that that generates an
extra responsibility in the world of MMA?
Of
course it does, that's inevitable, but people have to understand
that we are different people. I do my job, I have my style, he
has his and I'm looking for my space.
What's
the difference between Rodrigo Minotauro as a brother and as
a training partner?
As
a brother he's like a big dad, and as a training partner he's
very rigorous.
What
did you feel when you saw your brother going and returning to
the hospital because of the accident as a child?
It
sucked, it was very sad, a very delicate moment where nobody
knew what was going to happen. It was a year of much anticipation,
everyone's lives were on hold on account of that accident.
During
your training when you're at your limit, what do you think about
as motivation in order to break your own barriers?
You
have to think about victory, think about what's the objective
in your head to be able to go until the end.
What
is the biggest difficulty for a fighter in Brasil? What must
be done in order to change the current picture?
You've
gotta make the sport more professional. We have to be professionals,
the fighters have to take it serious. That is the big difference
between Brasil and elsewhere, where they are very professional.
Before
the fight, do you have some ritual or something special that
you always do to go into the fight more confident?
I
don't have anything specific, I just say a prayer with the guys
there and I ask God to protect me and then I go fight.
In
short answers, what do these mean to you:
Rodrigo
Minotauro?
An
idol.
Family?
Bedrock.
MMA?
Future.
Brasil?
Pride.
Fans?
A
driving motivation.
How
was it to represent Brasil in the 2007 Pan American games, and
even taking a medal?
It
was an honor because you dedicate yourself to an objective and
to be able to reach a goal, like an olympic medal, is an honor
for me, to train with my whole team from Brasil. It's very gratifying
to be able to reach a goal like that.
Besides
the necessity of having excellent physical conditioning and being
well prepared in all aspects of the sport like Boxing, Jiu-Jitsu,
Muay Thai, Wrestling, Judo, among others, How relevant is the
psychological and spiritual factor in the life of a fighter?
It's
very important, there's people that don't take it very serious,
but I find it very important to be close with your family, with
everything, with yourself too to be able to have a good outcome.
How
did it feel to perform professionally on Brazilian soil for the
first time? Minotauro must have been a little envious, in the
good sense of course.
It
was really good, I felt really calm in a fight where I was at
home, despite the responsibility of representing the guys, it's
very good, it leaves me wanting more.
With
the end of PRIDE many athletes that fought there tried to go
to the UFC, once they couldn't get a contract they were just
stopped and didn't fight, hoping that an opportunity fell from
the sky, but differently, you went back to fighting, building
a solid and internationally renown career, so much that now you
are contracted by the UFC. How and when did you make that decision?
We
received a good proposal, that's the plan, the objective of my
career. I was able to build a good record outside of Brasil and
be ranked among the top 5, which meant that I could get a good
contract. It's an honor to be fighting in the UFC, but it was
the fruit of well-planned hard work.
As
a visitor to southern Brasil, what did you think of the quality
of southern women?
Good,
the South has lots of beautiful women.
As
children, did you and Rodrigo used to fight a lot with one another?
If you did, what were the results?
Yes,
we used to fight a lot. My brother had the upper hand, because
he was always bigger (laughs).
You
and Shogun had one of the biggest fights in the history of Pride,
in which he took the decision. What do you think you should have
done extra to have won that fight?
It's
tough to say man. Shogun is a great fighter, a great champion
and he was in the best stage of his career til today. He has
his merits, at the end of the fight I tried to take his back...
If I had finished the fight there at his back, I would have been
able to change the story of the fight.
How
is your training with your brother? Despite your training being
a little 'confidential' who usually wins on ground, Wrestling,
boxing and MMA?
It
depends man, there's days where one trains better than the other,
it varies. Sometimes one is more tired and the other has more
gas, it depends a lot.
You
have great fights and an important history in MMA. Is there any
frustration for not having won the belt of the biggest MMA events
like Pride and UFC?
I
wouldn't say that it has become a frustration, but I think about
it a lot. It's a dream that I have.
Who
do you consider the number one of the heavyweights? Why?
Rodrigo,
because of the history he's had during many years, he fought
with the best, he won, putting on the most beautiful fights.
What
do current fighters have to evolve in training, to be able to
beat 'Matrix style' champions, like Anderson and Lyoto Machida?
It's
complicated, you have to train a lot, study a lot. They are the
guys that everybody has to study. In order to be the champion
you have to train and study a lot.
Is
there a fight where you 'choked', that you would like to do over?
I
would like to have the fight with Shogun again.
What
advice do you give to your students that are starting now and
intend to follow fighting as a career?
First
they should look for a good team, a good professor, to always
be going to the training sessions and to train a lot, that's
the formula.
What
do you think of women's MMA? Do you think that the fight between
Gina Carano and Cris Cyborg will some way help get the events
to invest more in women's MMA?
It's
different, people aren't accustomed to seeing fights between
women, but that fight had a lot of impact, I think that it will
help, yes.
Is
there any fighter that you would never fight due to friendship,
like the Spider says that he will not fight Machida?
My
brother, Anderson, Feijão (Rafael Cavalcante) and the
guys there.
In
your opinion what are the best names to beat Anderson, Lyoto
and Fedor?
That's
a difficult question man. I can say, with regards to Fedor, I
think that Rodrigo could beat him.
As
a great fighter, talking about your Jiu-Jitsu, remembering the
begining of your career, What are the main difficulties you faced,
in relation to technique? Like have you felt some shortcoming
in your Jiu-Jitsu? What was it? If you have, Were you able to
get passed that shortcoming? Or do you still feel that you need
to refine it more?
There
are lots of techniques that could be better, still there are
many difficulties, in Jiu-Jitsu and in other aspects, I'm always
correcting myself, improving my weak points to be always evolving.
With
your move to the US, how are you seeing the evolution of MMA
there?
The
guys are professionals, everything there turns into a big affair,
the sport is very professional there, they got it and said 'now
that will be a big sport', they are doing a lot of work, as well
as the teams, not just inside the ring like elsewhere, they all
evolved, the ring is bigger, everything is tougher and more professional.
What
do you think of the northeastern fighters (in Brasil)?
There's
a really good group, in Bahia, in Fortaleza there's some really
badass guys as well, in Natal there's Tibau, theres Marco Aurélio,
(Hermes) França, Pitbull, a lot of good people come from
the northeast.
Now
that you signed with the UFC to fight in the light-heavyweight
division, which, according to the specialists, is the deepest
one in MMA, your intention is evidently to fight for the title,
and as so, who would be, today, your biggest opponents, and in
your opinion will the title alternate between Brazilians for
many years?
Now
there are lots of good guys in that division, including Brazilians,
that are showing their strength, like Thiago Silva, Lyoto, myself,
there are a lot of strong guys in the division, the Americans
as well, like Jardine, Evans, the category is very strong. I
hope that the Brazilians dominate the division. God willing,
it will happen.
Is
the lesser utilization of striking in your last fight compared
to some previous ones a response to the critics that you would
be using your Jiu-Jitsu in less proportion?
It
could be, as much as it is that I finished my fight in Brasil.
If the fight goes to the ground and I feel the need to, I will
use my Jiu-Jitsu, just like I used it in my last fight. Every
fight is analyzed in some way, in some I prefer to stay standing
and others to work on the ground.
Rogério,
if you could imagine, what would be the fight of your life and
who would it be?
I've
never thought about it, but it's a good question. I'll have to
think about it.
Source: Tatame
|
Jones
makes no bones about career path
When
asked how they wound up in mixed martial arts, most young fighters
usually have a similar answer: They saw the sport on television,
then immediately went to the local gym and started to train.
But
one of the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s hottest young
prospects, a light heavyweight with the lyrical name of Jonny
“Bones” Jones, was someone who may not have discovered
the sport, if not for fate.
The
Endicott, N.Y., native was a state high school champion wrestler
and, after placing fourth in the high school nationals in 2005,
had a number of Division I scholarship offers. He planned on
going to Iowa State but did not have the grades to compete, so
he ended up at Iowa Central Community College, where he was the
2006 junior college national champion at 197 pounds.
All
set to transfer to Iowa State and join wrestling legend Cael
Sanderson, Jones had to change his priorities with his girlfriend’s
unexpected pregnancy.
“I
had a full scholarship to Iowa State and I gave up,” Jones
said. “We decided to put my goals aside to try and make
some money. MMA looked like a way to make money.”
At
Iowa Central, Jones roomed with another wrestler, Joe Soto, who
was “obsessed with” MMA. Soto went pro and is currently
the featherweight champion of the Bellator promotion.
“In
New York, I had never even heard of the UFC,” Jones said.
“I had no idea what it was.”
Soto
had already started fighting in California when Jones was hit
with his change-in-life plans. Less than three years later, Jones
(9-0) finds himself headlining a UFC card, as he prepares to
meet Matt Hamill in the co-main event of Saturday night’s
Ultimate Fighter Finale card at the Palms in Las Vegas.
Jones
vs. Hamill (8-2) headlines a show that could be the highest-rated
live television show of the year for UFC, since it includes the
first live televised UFC fight of ratings sensation Kimbo Slice
as well as the finals of this season’s “The Ultimate
Fighter” reality show.
Hamill
is one of the company’s more popular fighters because he
was first seen on the highly rated third season of “The
Ultimate Fighter.” He overcame the handicap of being deaf
to have compiled a solid resume first in wrestling, where he
won three Division III national championships from 1997 to 1999,
as well as a gold medal in freestyle in the 2001 Deaf Olympics.
“Matt
Hamill is a great guy,” Jones said. “He’s an inspiration
for anyone with a disability. Outside the octagon, I admire him
so much. Inside the octagon, he’s taking money from my children’s
college fund.”
Hamill,
33, who is coming off knee surgery from an injury picked up while
training for his previous fight, is a former Olympic team hopeful
with far more experience in both wrestling and MMA. But Jones
believes Hamill is in for a big surprise.
“The
Jon Jones of 2006 as a wrestler would destroy me today in wrestling,”
he said. “You have to keep up on your wrestling at the top
level or you lose it. He’s got better credentials than me,
but he’s been out of competition wrestling longer than I
have. He’s not the wrestler that he was during his competitive
days either.
“I
think I will have the edge in wrestling, striking and jujitsu.
I think my wrestling and jujitsu will be much better than he’s
expecting.”
Jones
started his career in 2008 by fighting on local shows in upstate
New York. But Jones demonstrated his commitment to reaching his
potential by moving from his local team to one of the sport’s
elite camps, Greg Jackson’s gym in Albuquerque, N.M.
“I
was a big fish in a little pond,” he said about his initial
MMA training. “In every aspect of the game, [Jackson’s
camp has] people who are better than me. I get my butt kicked
in training every day.”
As
coincidence would have it, Jones’ three prior UFC fights
were all on shows that featured Jackson’s marquee fighter,
UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre, and the two hit
it off. St. Pierre was the connection in Jones getting out of
training in his area gym and training with him with St. Pierre’s
Montreal contacts, and then onto the Jackson team that includes
well-known light heavyweights Rashad Evans and Keith Jardine.
When
Jones got to Albuquerque several weeks back, he thought he arrived
in shape, but the altitude the first few days was tough to handle.
He expects that to pay dividends, noting that in the fight which
made him a star at UFC 94, a decision win over Stephan Bonnar,
he was gassed after the second round.
“We’ll
find out in this fight what the altitude training means,”
Jones said.
Saturday’s
fight will be the next step in what has been a whirlwind UFC
experience. Jones’ break came after Tomasz Drwal had pulled
out of UFC 87, and Jones was offered a fight with Andre Gusmao,
an undefeated jujitsu specialist who was a star in the International
Fight League with Renzo Gracie’s New York Pit Bulls.
Jones
figured he was brought in to lose, but he managed to use his
wrestling to score what at the time was a major upset decision.
Jones
was still largely an unknown since the match didn’t air
on pay-per-view. It was the Bonnar fight on Jan. 31 in Las Vegas,
on the undercard of St. Pierre vs. B.J. Penn, where people started
taking notice.
Jones
dominated the fight with his wrestling, to the point that Bonnar
could never get on track until Jones got tired in Round 3. In
the first 10 minutes, Jones stunned Bonnar with a series of spectacular
moves, almost making it appear to look like a pro wrestling match,
including using a German suplex, a backward elbow and an overhead
belly-to-belly suplex.
“I
watched a lot of fights on video,” Jones said. “I saw
all those moves used in fights and I thought I could use them.”
Source: Yahoo Sports
|
Bader
vs Jardine at UFC 110
A
light heavyweight bout has been added to the UFC’s first
trip to the land down under. “The Ultimate Fighter”
Season 8 winner Ryan “Darth” Bader looks to keep his
undefeated record in tact as he faces “The Dean of Mean”
Keith Jardine.
The
bout was confirmed to MMAWeekly.com on Tuesday by multiple sources
close to the fight, who indicated bout agreements have been issued
for the upcoming fight.
Bader
(10-0) has looked strong in both of his fights since winning
The Ultimate Fighter competition, most recently in a unanimous
decision victory over Eric “Red” Schafer. The former
All-American from Arizona State showed some dangerous stand-up
to compliment his impressive wrestling background to batter Schafer
for the better part of the fight to get the win.
Now
taking a step forward in competition, Bader sets his sights on
Jardine (15-6-1), who has been a perennially tough fighter, always
in or hovering around the Top 10 of the 205-pound division.
With
wins over fighters like Chuck Liddell and Forrest Griffin, it’s
no secret that Jardine is regarded as one of the toughest fighters
in the UFC. Unfortunately he’s fallen on tougher times lately
dropping his last two fights, a decision to Quinton “Rampage”
Jackson and a TKO loss to Thiago Silva in his last bout.
This
fight has huge implications for both fighters. Jardine could
be seen as fighting for his career after back-to-back losses,
while Bader looks to get a win over a top-notch opponent in the
light heavyweight division and vault to the next level.
While
no official word has been made from the UFC about the bout, it’s
believed it will be shown on the pay-per-view broadcast. Stay
tuned for more information on UFC 110 as it becomes available.
Antonio
Rodrigo Nogueira and Cain Velasquez are expected to headline
UFC 110, along with a middleweight contest pitting Wanderlei
Silva against Michael Bisping.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Mailbag:
White’s Mass. appeal
Kevin Iole
LAS
VEGAS – In U.S. politics, there are red states and blue
states. Ultimate Fighting Championship president Dana White sees
them as green states, yellow states, white states and gray states,
however.
And
when a little more green was added to his map on Monday, he was
as thrilled as he has been at any point in the nearly nine years
he’s owned the UFC.
On
Monday, Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick signed a bill that will
regulate mixed martial arts in the state. That turned it from
a yellow state to a green one on White’s map and guaranteed
a summer card at the TD Garden in Boston.
Green
states, in White’s world, are the ones where the state sanctions
MMA. When he and partners Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta bought the
UFC in January 2001, only New Jersey sanctioned and regulated
MMA.
After
the addition of Massachusetts on Monday, there are 42 states
where MMA is regulated in the U.S. There is legislation pending
(yellow states) in New York, Connecticut, Wisconsin, West Virginia
and Alabama. There is nothing happening at the moment in Vermont
(white state) and there is no athletic commission in either Wyoming
or Alaska (gray states).
“This
is a huge day for the sport,” White said. “I remember
what that mapped looked like when we started and how so many
people thought we’d never get here.”
White
had spoken of putting a card at Boston’s Fenway Park, but
said for the first show, he decided it will be sometime in the
summer at the TD Garden. He said Fenway is the only place he’d
consider on the mainland for an outdoor show.
White
graduated from high school in New England and lived and worked
in Boston. He was desperate to get the sport sanctioned in his
old stomping grounds.
“Of
all the states we got done, this is my favorite,” he said.
“Obviously, Las Vegas, getting Nevada done was huge, but
to be going to Boston, I’m giddy. I love the city and I’ve
been waiting a long time for this day.”
Much
of the credit for the UFC’s success in turning the country
almost entirely green goes to Marc Ratner, the UFC’s vice
president of regulatory affairs, who has done a magnificent job
of working with the various legislatures and politicians.
With
that, let’s get to the mailbag where there are a wide range
of topics, including the subject of sanctioning of MMA in Canada.
UFC
in T.O.
With as much success as the UFC has had in Montreal, I’m
hoping that there is an event coming to Toronto on the horizon.
I know that this city would sell out the Air Canada Centre in
no time. Hell, if Georges St. Pierre headlines, the UFC might
be able to have a show at the Rogers Centre and it could seat
60,000-plus! So tell me, is there an ETA to MMA in T.O.?
Chris
Toronto
Unfortunately,
no. MMA is still not legal in Ontario, though the UFC is lobbying
hard to have that change and legislation is pending there. For
the record, MMA is sanctioned in all Canadian provinces but Ontario
and Saskatchewan. In order for it to become legal in Ontario,
a federal criminal code must be changed and Ratner said he will
be in Ottawa sometime before the end of the year to work on that.
Once that’s done, Ratner said the athletic commission in
Ontario would then have to adopt regulations to sanction the
sport. I asked White how he thought the UFC would fare at the
gate in Toronto and I can assure you he more than shares your
enthusiasm about its potential. “If we held a show in Ontario,
it would be the biggest fight ever and it would set a record
(for gate and attendance) that wouldn’t be broken for a
long, long time.”
Odd
TV choice
Why did Dana show me a free fight on Spike TV on the night of
UFC 106, then when I made the purchase he showed me the same
fight again on the pay-per-view broadcast? I will not make that
mistake again. I am also tired of hearing “Don’t let
the fight go to the judges.” How about getting some decent
judges?
Barry
Nicholson
Cincinnati, Ohio
It
was related to timing, Barry. They showed every fight from the
card but one on the pay-per-view broadcast. They had holes because
some fights ended early, but didn’t have the time to show
a full 15-minute fight. They filled with bouts that had aired
on Spike, so some folks saw them twice. The only fight that didn’t
get aired was the bout between Caol Uno and Fabricio Camoes.
As for the judging, the quality needs to improve, but no promoter
has control of that. That’s under the purview of the state
athletic commissions. As much as I hate some of the controversial
calls, I will note that MMA is a young sport and that the quality
of the judging will improve as time passes and judges are developed.
Rampage
acting out
If Quinton “Rampage” Jackson wants to make a change
in his life and become an actor instead of a fighter, I say go
for it! Regardless of his fame as a fighter, the man is entitled
to run his own life. I enjoyed watching his fights as much as
the next guy, but I’m not the one who wears the marks at
the end of the day. He will fit the bill as B.A Baraucus (in
The A-Team movie) pretty well too, in my book. So rock and roll
to your own tune, Rampage!! I for one look forward to his theatrical
debut.
Clint
I
have no problem with Rampage wanting to act or do anything else
with his life. He’s free to do that. But he walked out on
a commitment. When he agreed to coach on the show, part of that
commitment was to fight Rashad Evans at UFC 107. That’s
my only issue with what he’s done. By the way, for those
wondering, White said Tuesday that Jackson would not be at Saturday’s
card.
Why
Baroni?
Why did the UFC bring back Phil “One-Round” Baroni?
I don’t get it. Also, I think a title fight between GSP
and Dan Hardy is a joke. GSP for FTW (For The Win) all the way.
What are your thoughts about this fight? I’d rather see
GSP vs. Chris Lytle because at least it would be exciting. Also,
has GSP forgotten that the fans would prefer it if he would finish
a fight before the end of the fifth round?
Tony
Webb
Austin, Texas
I
have no explanation for why the UFC brought Baroni back and haven’t
heard one that made sense from anyone with the promotion. There
are many better fighters who deserve that opportunity. I, too,
favor St. Pierre heavily over Hardy and would honestly rather
see Koscheck get a title shot ahead of Hardy. As much as I like
Lytle as an exciting fighter, he wouldn’t stand a chance,
in my opinion, of beating St. Pierre and hasn’t earned a
championship bout. And while two of his last three fights have
gone to decision, look at the quality of the opposition. Wins
over Jon Fitch, B.J. Penn and Thiago Alves are great on anyone’s
resume.
Booing
Tito
I am wondering why the fans were booing Tito Oritz at UFC 106
when he brought up his injuries. Was it not Forrest Griffin who
started with injury excuses before Tito said anything? I think
fans need to open their eyes, don’t you?
Chris
Fernandez
California
They
booed because after weeks of talking how healthy he was, his
first comments after the fight were complaints about injuries.
I think many thought he was being hypocritical and not giving
Griffin enough credit. But you guys pay your money to see the
fights and you have the right to boo or cheer whoever you want.
Tito’s
problem
I think the biggest problem that Tito has is that when he has
a training camp, it is Camp Tito. He needs to change it up and
train with some new people (i.e., Jackson’s, Xtreme Couture,
etc.) so he can sharpen his skills. Rich Franklin is a great
example of someone who stuck to the same training for years,
but to keep up with everyone else he needed to go to train with
Matt Hume.
Nick
W.
Normal, Ill.
There
may be something to your point. Tito did train boxing with Freddie
Roach, though I wasn’t particularly impressed with his standup.
Whiter
Lashley?
I’m just wondering what is going on with Bobby Lashley?
I see he is doing TNA [pre wrestling] again. Is he having a hard
time getting fights? I believe he is an up-and-coming star with
a lot of tools to really be a force in the sport. Do you see
him getting into the UFC at all? Wouldn’t be cool to see
him against Kimbo Slice?
Jay
Langler
Traverse City, Mich.
I
like Lashley as a quality, developing prospect, but he still
has a way to go. White said the UFC has not spoken to him at
this stage. Lashley has had conversations with Strikeforce and
if I had to guess, I’d bet he winds up there next.
Source: Yahoo Sports
|
Quote
of the Day
“He
who wishes to secure the good of others, has already secured
his own.”
Confucius
|
Good
Luck to O2's Ola & Isaac!
O2 Martial
Arts Academy's Ola Lum and Isaac Hoops have been invited to Master
Toddy's Muay Thai Kickboxing event in Vegas and compete tonight.
Kaleo Kwan and Chris Onzuka are there to corner them.
Good luck warriors!
|
Man
Up & Stand Up Tonight!
December
4, 2009
Waipahu Filcom
Doors Open at 6:00 PM
Tickets are available at O2 Martial Arts (building between Best
Buy and Cutter Ford Aiea on the 2nd Floor) during class hours
only!
HOPEFULLY
THIS IS THE FINAL FIGHT CARD. TRIED TO CUT IT DOWN TO 25 BOUTS.
2009 HAS BEEN FILLED WITH SOME AMATEUR FIGHTERS THAT OWN SOME
CRAZY SKILLS. AND FOR THOSE FIGHTERS, DEC 4TH WILL BE THE NIGHT
OF APPRECIATION, RECOGNITION AND FOR SOME THERE WILL BE DISAPPOINTMENT.
SOME FIGHTERS WILL WALK OUT WITH BELTS, SOME WILL WALK OUT WITH
A LITTLE MORE RESPECT FOR THEIR OPPONENTS AND SOME WILL WALK
OUT WITH EXCUSES. SCRATCH THAT BECAUSE REAL FIGHTERS LEAVE THEIR
EXCUSES IN THE RING AND JUST TRAIN HARDER.
BE
SURE NOT TO MISS THE TEENAGE TITLE BOUTS. KALAI MCSHANE WILL
FACE WAIANAE’S THEODORE BROWN OF GOD’S ARMY. KALAI
MAY SHOW A LITTLE RUST GOING INTO THIS FIGHT AFTER COMING OFF
OF A SURGERY BUT DON’T COUNT HIM OUT. THIS KID HAS SOME
KILLER PUNCH COMBINATIONS. THEODORE IS ANOTHER FORCE NOT TO BE
UNDERESTIMATED. THEODORE IS WELL ROUNDED WITH HIS HANDS AND LEGS.
THIS MATCH LOOKS LIKE ITS GOING TO BE A BOXER VERSUS KICKBOXER
BOUT SO IT WOULD BE BEST THAT THE BOXER DOES NOT MISS HIS KICK
COUNT. ALSO THE HUMBLE HARD KICKING SOTA NAKANO WILL BANG WITH
THE CONFIDENT SPEEDSTER JACOB SMITH. PLEASE DO NOT BLINK WHEN
THIS MATCH IS STARTED BECAUSE THESE TWO TEENAGERS WILL PUT ON
A CLINIC OF SPIN KICKS, ARIAL KICKS AND EVERYTHING YOU WOULD
EXPECT FROM ADULTS BUT NOT TEENAGERS. IF YOU THOUGHT TEENAGERS
COULDN’T BRING IT LIKE ADULTS THAN YOU HAVENT SEEN THESE
4 YOUNGSTERS IN ACTION.
NICK
CORREA HAS SOME PERSONAL ISSUES THAT HES BEEN WANTING TO SETTLE
WITH THE ARROGANT COLIN MACKENZIE ON THIS NIGHT. COLIN WELCOMED
THE OFFER WITH OPEN ARMS. BUT AS ALWAYS, COLIN BRINGS HIS WALK
AS MUCH AS HIS TALK. NICK HAS BEEN OFF OF THE CIRCUIT FOR A WHILE
SINCE HIS TEENAGE YEARS. HE IS GOING AFTER SOMEONE WHO HAS WON
AGAINST FORMER KICKBOXING TITLE HOLDERS THAT TRANSITIONED TO
MMA. COLINS FIRST LOVE IS STAND UP AND HIS SECOND LOVE IS TO
TAKE NICK TO MEET MAT LIKE HOW HE DID HIS LAST COUPLE OPPONENTS.
THE
TITLE BOUTS WILL DEFINITELY BE A CROWD PLEASER. THEY HAVE ALL
BEEN TRAINING HARD FOR THIS NIGHT IN HOPES OF WALKING OUT OF
THE RING WITH SOME BLING BLING AROUND THEIR WAIST. THERE WILL
BE FOUR FEMALE BOUTS, BOUTS WITH TWO 300 POUNDERS FACING EACH
OTHER, AND KIDS THAT ARE ONLY 7 YRS OLD SWINGING. NOT TO MENTION
PAST TITLE HOLDERS LIKE LIGHTNING FAST TONY PERERRA AND RUTHLESS
SHAISON LAUPOLA TAKING ON EACH OTHER. THIS MATCH WILL BRING SOME
THUNDER AND LIGHTNING BUT IN THIS MATCH THERE WILL BE NO RAIN
(SO SORRY). MAN-UP & STAND-UP WOULD LIKE TO THANK ALL OF
THE FOLLOWERS AND HOPE THAT YOU WILL FOLLOW US INTO THE NEW YEAR.
SEE YOU ON FRIDAY NIGHT.
PETE
SEFO SUPER HEAVYWEIGHT OTTO HOOPII
NATACIA
MANUMA FEMALE HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE CHANTELLE OF ISLAND THUNDER
TAZZY
WETLING FEMALE MIDDLEWEIGHT TITLE VANNA OF TEAM SUBMIT
EMIL
LAQUISTA AMATEUR WELTERWEIGHT TITLE JORDAN CALLAHAN
SOTA
NAKANO TEENAGE SUPER MIDDLEWEIGHT TITLE JACOBY SMITH
KALAI
MCSHANE TEENAGE SUPER FEATHERWEIGHT TITLE THEODORE BROWN
ALIKA
KUMUKOA SEMI PRO BANTAMWEIGHT TITLE JAMEN TABAYA
RED
DAVIS SEMI PRO MIDDLEWEIGHT TITLE FERDINAND RAMIREZ
NICK
CORREA GRUDGE MATCH TITLE COLIN MACKENZIE
SHAWN
BURROUGHS LIGHTWEIGHT ROOKIE OF THE YEAR JORDAN ANDUHA
KEO
DOANE WELTERWEIGHT ROOKIE OF THE YEAR JASON “J ROC”
ROCEMAR
JAN
QUIMOYOG TITLE DEFENSE ALVIN BERTO
TONY
PERRERA 155 SHAISON LAUPOLA
JUSTIN
KAHALEWAI 130 KEOKI NEGRON
JESSICA
TAVARES 120 CHEVY DECASTRO
MIKE
ELI 185 JESSIE LINDLEY
KAILIN
CURRAN 115 JAZMINE CHUN
ROYAL
KAUA (O2 Martial Arts Academy) 155 LORDY AUGUSTINE
JUSTIN
DULAY (O2 Martial Arts Academy) 160 JUSTIN BURGESS
KOA
LYU (O2 Martial Arts Academy) 150 BLAKE VELLANEDA
CODY
165 JOE KAULULAAU
TAZ
KAHALEWAI 60 KAENA DESANTOS
MIKE
UEMOTO 135 RICHARD BERNARD
SPIKE
KAHALEWAI 70 JOEY QUITOG
JONAH
CARTER 50 CLIFTON SILVA
Source: Derrick Bright
|
ROY
NELSON IS READY TO REALIZE HIS DREAM
It was no shocker that "Big Country" Roy Nelson made
his way to “The Ultimate Fighter" finale being one
of the odds on favorites to win the show stepping into the house
on day one. But he had to battle through tough opponents, perceptions
about his body, and UFC president Dana White not exactly being
his biggest cheerleader.
Through
it all, Nelson racked up three wins and now faces Brendan Schaub
in The Ultimate Fighter season 10 finale on Saturday night. While
Nelson definitely had the credentials to be in the UFC regardless
of the reality show, he says he's happy with the choices he made.
"I
was thinking it was a good business opportunity," Nelson
told MMAWeekly.com about why he did the show. "Going The
Ultimate Fighter route is equivalent to fighting about five times
on pay-per-view on a regular UFC, so it's just like advertising
and marketing. People see your face three times then they actually
know it. It's one of those things where I just wanted to make
sure millions of people would know exactly who I am."
Millions
of people tuned in to watch, including some of the highest ratings
ever when he faced Kimbo Slice in his first fight on the show.
Along the way though, White made no bones that Nelson wasn't
his favorite fighter in the house, but Nelson thinks he turned
things around a little bit with his last performance.
"My
third fight with (James) McSweeney, it's the same crucifix position
that I got on Kimbo and Dana actually gives me my props afterwards,"
Nelson commented. "It's just the fact, this time I did the
same thing I wanted, and this time McSweeney's face is covered
in blood."
To
get to the final goal of winning the competition, he has to go
through former Team Rashad teammate Brendan Schaub, who was a
friend and great training partner during their time in the house.
"In
the house I helped Brendan out quite a bit," said Nelson.
"Brendan's a tough guy. He has great hands. He's definitely
an athlete, definitely the younger of the bucks. He doesn't get
rattled."
That
mental toughness is one of his biggest attributes according to
Nelson, who says despite Schaub's pro record only sitting at
four fights, he shows maturity beyond his years.
"He
was kind of like Fedor where he might get in bad positions, but
if you give him that little hole he's going to capitalize on
it, and make you pay," he stated. "He did it with Jon
Madsen, he even did it with Marcus Jones, and he even did it
with Demico. So you see Brendan, he'll take a bad position to
scramble out and capitalize on your mistakes."
While
Nelson has nothing but respect for Schaub, it's his former teammate
that stands in his way of the goal he started so many months
ago: to win The Ultimate Fighter and earn his way into the UFC.
"My
goals, hopefully I achieve them, and while I was in the house
I did exactly what I wanted, hurry up and get three wins and
then hopefully this Saturday I'll get my fourth and will become
The Ultimate Fighter," said Nelson.
Roy
Nelson takes on Brendan Schaub for The Ultimate Fighter season
10 championship this Saturday night in Las Vegas.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
BRENDAN
SCHAUB: HE'S NEVER FACED A GUY LIKE ME
He may not have been a household name going into the tenth season
of “The Ultimate Fighter," but if he wins on Saturday
night, Brendan Schaub will join an elite group of athletes that
have claimed the title for the landmark reality show.
Slipping
under the radar early, Schaub impressed just about everybody
with his submission over Demico Rogers, followed by a knockout
over Jon Madsen, before wrapping things up with a TKO over Marcus
Jones. Since the show ended, Schaub has been in Colorado working
with his team, and come Saturday night, he'll be the most prepared
he's ever been for any fight.
"I've
been ready for this fight for about eight weeks now. My coaches
joke around that I had the longest training camp in history,"
he told MMAWeekly Radio. "I got off the show the first week
of July and I took maybe three, four days off and started training.
I've just been working my butt off getting ready for this fight."
In
the house and in training, Schaub and his opponent, Roy Nelson,
were both a part of Team Rashad. While the Colorado based fighter
admits he liked Nelson personally, they both knew this day could
be coming.
"We
were buddies in the house for sure, I called him ‘Uncle
Roy’ and we were pretty close, but when it came time to
train we kind of avoided each other," Schaub commented.
“We never rolled with each other. We never really sparred
with each other because we knew it was a pretty good shot we'd
end up fighting each other in the finale."
What
they couldn't avoid was the fights they had to win to reach the
finals, and Schaub faced possibly the rockiest road of any fighter.
He battled three of the toughest competitors in the house. He
believes that will help push him towards winning once again when
he faces Nelson.
"I
don't think anyone can argue, I definitely had the tougher road
to the finale. If not by far the toughest road, and not only
did I have the toughest road, but I ended up finishing all my
guys," Schaub said. "I can't say Roy had an easy road.
He definitely had a tough road as well, but at the same time
I just don't think it compares to mine. It wasn't like he was
going out, smashing these guys, and doing all of these impressive
performances.
"He
lay and prayed on Kimbo, same thing with James (McSweeney), and
then with Justin Wren, I think you could argue he actually lost
that fight. Like I said, he didn't have an easy road, but he
didn't finish it the way I did."
Perseverance
and tenacity could be two major keys to Schaub's chances of winning
against Nelson, who has more experience, but according to his
opponent he still hasn't faced a fighter that will bring the
tools to the table that he will on Saturday night.
"I
think that's my big advantage, Roy's never fought a guy like
me," Schaub told MMAWeekly.com. "That's a big thing
to make cause he's fought guys like (Andrei) Arlovski, (Jeff)
Monson, and those other guys, but at the same time he's never
faced a guy of my caliber. If it goes to the ground, I'm fine
down there; I can finish the fight down there. Obviously, I have
a huge advantage if we keep it on the feet, so I just go in there
and I react."
After
10-plus weeks watching the show, six-weeks filming the show,
and now a five-month training camp, Schaub is just ready to put
the show behind him and get ready to win The Ultimate Fighter
trophy and be crowned the show’s latest champion.
"I
can't wait. It's been five months and I suck at keeping secrets
and I'm just ready to go out there and put on a show."
Brendan
Schaub faces Roy Nelson this Saturday night in The Ultimate Fighter
finale in Las Vegas.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
MMA
legalized in 42 American states
Today was a victory for fans and the UFC directorate in Boston,
Massachusetts.
Governor Deval Patrick, after two years of legal wrangling, signed
into law the legalization of mixed martial arts in the American
state.
Vice-President of government issues at the UFC Marc Ratner stated
to the Boston Herald newspaper that he was very happy with the
decision, and is already thinking of an August or July 2010 date
for an event in Boston, one of the noblest cities in the countries.
According to the paper, MMA is now legal in 42 American states.
Further news related to the sport in the USA has to do with banned
substances.
In a bulletin released by the California Athletic Commission,
fighters who test positive for tetrahidrocanabinol, the main
active chemical in marijuana, will be punished. Punishment already
existed in part, but now even athletes who use the substance
medicinally will be suspended.
According to the California State Athletic Commission, taking
into account article 303, it maintains the right to punish any
fighter caught for drug use.
Today
was a victory for fans and the UFC directorate in Boston, Massachusetts.
Governor
Deval Patrick, after two years of legal wrangling, signed into
law the legalization of mixed martial arts in the American state.
Vice-President
of government issues at the UFC Marc Ratner stated to the Boston
Herald newspaper that he was very pleased with the decision,
and is already thinking of an August or July 2010 date for an
event in Boston, one of the noblest cities in the country. According
to the paper, MMA is now legal in 42 American states.
Further
news related to the sport in the USA has to do with banned substances.
In
a bulletin released by the California State Athletic Commission,
fighters who test positive for tetrahidrocanabinol, the main
active chemical in marijuana, will be punished. Punishment already
existed in part, but now even athletes who use the substance
medicinally will be suspended.
According
to the California State Athletic Commission, taking into account
article 303, it maintains the right to punish any fighter caught
for drug use.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Royler
Gracie invites you to Rio
If you don’t yet have plans for January, Master Royler Gracie
invites you to get immersed in the Jiu-Jitsu lifestyle in Rio,
at Gracie Humaita Jiu-Jitsu camp.
The camp will be held from the 9th to the 17th of January, 2010.
Provided below is the complete program designed by Royler.
Package includes:
• 2 – 3 Classes per day (at least one private class
every day exclusive for Jiu-Jitsu Camp participants)
• 2 Boxing Classes per week at Nobre Arte School (exclusive
for Jiu-Jitsu Camp participants) – only techniques, no sparring
• 2 Ginástica Natural Classes (exclusive for Jiu-Jitsu
Camp participants)
• Housing in 4-Star Hotel for 9 days.
• 2 meals per day included.
• Transportation to all activities and in/out of airport.
• Sightseeing at Corcovado (Christ Statue), Pão de
Açucar (Sugar Loaf), Barra Beach, shoppings malls and
Maracanã Stadium with a bilingual guide.
• Boat trip to Cagaras Island
• Pedra Bonita Trekking
• Samba School Visit
• Night Clubs
• Visit to secluded beaches
royler
If
you don’t yet have plans for January, Master Royler Gracie
invites you to get immersed in the Jiu-Jitsu lifestyle in Rio,
at Gracie Humaita Jiu-Jitsu camp.
The
camp will be held from the 9th to the 17th of January, 2010.
Provided below is the complete program designed by Royler. His
official webiste is www.roylergracie.com, and his twitter is
@RoylerGracie.
Package
includes:
•
2 – 3 Classes per day (at least one private class every
day exclusive for Jiu-Jitsu Camp participants)
•
2 Boxing Classes per week at Nobre Arte School (exclusive for
Jiu-Jitsu Camp participants) – only techniques, no sparring
•
2 Ginástica Natural Classes (exclusive for Jiu-Jitsu Camp
participants)
•
Housing in 4-Star Hotel for 9 days.
•
2 meals per day included.
•
Transportation to all activities and in/out of airport.
•
Sightseeing at Corcovado (Christ Statue), Pão de Açucar
(Sugar Loaf), Barra Beach, shoppings malls and Maracanã
Stadium with a bilingual guide.
•
Boat trip to Cagaras Island
•
Pedra Bonita Trekking
•
Samba School Visit
•
Night Clubs
•
Visit to secluded beaches
Further
info: www.jiujitsucamp.com and e-mail: contact@jiujitsucamp.com.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Saulo:
“Diego is the evolution of the sport”
Tem
days before the next fight for the UFC lightweight title, Saulo
Ribeiro talked with TATAME.com about Diego Sanchez’s preparation
to fight BJ Penn. “That’s his dream for a long time
and he’s ready”, Ribeiro guarantees, betting in a new
era in UFC at 2010. “He’ll face a guy that everyone
respects, a guy who defended Jiu-Jitsu for a long time, but Diego
is the evolution of this sport, and now he found himself. He
found a martial art that he respects, and became even more dangerous.
You will see a determinate Diego and ready to make history”,
Saulo said.
Saulo Ribeiro
In
the end of January 2010, Saulo Ribeiro will dress the kimono
and get in the mat. Talking to TATAME.com, the six times BJJ
world champion revealed that he will be on the European of Jiu-Jitsu,
that will happen in Portugal. “I’m preparing the European
team, and I must fight too, appear on Europe”, Saulo revealed,
back to the mats. “I’m not back, I never left (laughs).
I’m always there, but, definitely, I won’t compete
with professionals, I’ll go as master, where I have fun.
Adult is work, master is fun”, jokes. On the chat below,
the leader of Universidade do Jiu-Jitsu talked about the growth
of the team in the US, the expectation to the fight between his
brown belt, Diego Sanchez, and the UFC champion BJ Penn, the
return of Xande Ribeiro and a lot more.
How
are things on United States?
This
gym is a success; we’re passing by a process of reformulation
on our grade, University curriculum… More than 20 renowned
black belts visited us, we’re closing the year as national
champions here in United States. Besides, we’re on the final
trainings of Diego Sanchez’s preparation... There are a
lot of projects. Our brother gym, two steps from here, is The
Arena, where we train MMA. We have great talents on MMA there
and, next year we’re going to present a few for you. Universidade
do Jiu-Jitsu is not represented on Jiu-Jitsu, it’s Ribeiro
Jiu-Jitsu, and on MMA it’s Arena.
What’s
the balance that you make since you came to USA?
If
you join Alexandre (RIbeiro) and I, we’re here for almost
ten years, but we had a process of adaptation in Ohio, where
we had the idea to make a team here, our projects in California.
We have an association with more than 18 gyms around the world.
Now I work with two companies, the Universidade do Jiu-Jitsu
and Ribeiro Jiu-Jitsu, that has more than ten years.
And
what’s the expectation to 2010, to make some noise on the
Worlds, European?
The
European will be the first appear that we’ll make outside
USA. Our aim is to dominate United States and we were good this
year. We won the national here, which has since the white belt,
the feminine… Alexandre has two knockouts on Sengoku, Diego
Sanchez will fight for UFC title, is a brown belt of the gym.
We expect to come to next year with the belt, Alexandre making
a good appear on Sengoku… I’m preparing the team to
the European, and I must fight too, to appear in Europe.
Do
you mean that we’ll have Saulo Ribeiro back at the European?
Not
back, I never left (laugh). I’m always there, but, definitely,
I won’t compete with professionals, I’ll go as master,
where I have fun. Adult is work, master is fun.
Is
there any chance to be back to ADCC in 2011, after the retirement
this year?
No,
no (laugh). Saulo now have other kind of fight, on the backstage,
trying to expand the Universidade do Jiu-Jitsu around the world,
to show the association, to take care of Alexandre’s career,
Diego’s, our projects and to develop a good work, to expect
to see what’s gonna be our next flights.
What’s
the expectation to the next fight of Diego against BJ Penn?
Yesterday
was thanksgiving here, at the office (laughs). That’s his
dream for a long time and he’s ready. He will face a guy
that everyone respects, a guy who defended Jiu-Jitsu for a long
time, but Diego is the evolution of this sport, and now he found
himself. He found a martial art that he respects, and became
even more dangerous. You will see a determinate Diego and ready
to make history.
And
what about Alexandre? Will he be back to Sengoku on the end of
the year’s event?
I
don’t think so, because his injury was a little serious,
he’s still doing physiotherapy. We don’t expect to
push the train, he became a father now. It will change him as
a fighter, make him more aggressive, because now there’s
one more mouth depending on him. He’s gonna be different
in 2010, a father Alexandre. His events in 2010 will be marking
to him and to the audience that admire a good Jiu-Jitsu and challenges
on MMA.
What
are you thinking about Jiu-Jitsu’s representatives on MMA?
I’m
very critical about that, because I have the philosophy that,
for example, on ADCC we show that the biggest champion are from
Jiu-Jitsu, but, suddenly, people trust more on striker, there’s
no more kimono training to MMA. We’re not seeing submissions
anymore, they’re looking for striker’s game and ground
and pound, they’re losing the chance to submit. I think
that the fact that the biggest exponents of Jiu-Jitsu changed
to MMA and adopted the train without kimono made them not to
lose the “class”. Jiu-Jitsu give us self confidence
and it’s getting a little deficient on our biggest exponents.
Who
would you point as the biggest representatives of the BJJ nowadays
on MMA?
I
don’t think there is a great representative, everything
is individualized, because everyone is doing everything. You
see a lot of Americans or Europeans representing Jiu-Jitsu more
than Brazilians. We see our talents, but we’re seeing a
few Jiu-Jitsu on MMA. Jiu-Jitsu Will always be represented, when
the fight goes to the ground, we’re seeing Jiu-Jitsu. The
ones on top got to have top Jiu-Jitsu or they won’t have
their spots.
What
news do you have to tell?
We
were invited by UFC to be a part of a new Playstation game. On
the game you’ll may make a tour on the gym and learn with
the teachers, and UFC indicated our gym as one of the used ones
by Playstation. They’ll come here and our gym will be on
videogame next year.
Will
you be on the game to?
No,
just the gym. I’ll be the gym’s coach and, Diego, our
fighter.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Fowler:
“I need to fight the best”
Getting
the black belt in only three years, Mike Fowler showed that he
is good with the thing, with or without kimono. On Jiu-Jitsu,
he already won the national title (USA) five times, besides Asian
Open. On Submission, his participations at ADCC gave him victories
over the legends Saulo Ribeiro and Renzo Gracie. On the way to
Brazil, where he will fight the World League Pro Jiu-Jitsu, Fowler
talked to TATAME.com about his expectations.
“(I
wanna) do my best. My goal is to win the World Championship and
to do what I need to fight the best. Whether to win, to lose
or to draw, I have to fight the best, and the best are in Brazil”,
said Fowler, without any idea of who might be his opponents.
“I haven’t actually heard… This was very last
minute to enter, but I’m excited to fight with anyone in
Brazil”, tells, with his eyes on the weight and absolute
title. “I’d love to fight both as long as I have no
injures, I’ve been getting a lot lately, coming with getting
older”, jokes.
Fighting
at Brazil, Mike want to make a dream come true. “It’s
my dream to get on the medal stand in Brazil, it would be a big
honor. And I’d love to keep up with winning”, Mike
said, who recently won a lot of titles on USA and Asia, but left
ADCC 2009 without medals.
“Marcelo
Azevedo caught me in a foot lock. No excuses, he caught me, but
my training has been hard recently with a lot of injures. I’ve
fractured a rib before ADCC as well as breaking a toe. So my
training was very hard to do with both”, explains Fowler,
who recently won Tokyo Open. “I’m almost 100%. I still
have a little rib problem but I feel very good”.
On
ADCC 2007, the victory over Saulo putted him on the BJJ map,
but Fowler got sad with the announcement of the retirement of
two times ADCC champion. “I think Saulo is a legend and
if he chose to keep fighting it would be awesome. His retirement
is sad in a sense that we won’t see him compete, but it’s
cool as well because he had an amazing career”, complements
Fowler, with bigger plans to 2010. “World Champion! Always
my goal”, says, planning better things on his game. “I
also want to focus on bettering my open guard. I’d like
the half guard but I would like to make more aspects of my game
unstoppable”, finished Mike.
Source: Tatame
|
Kimbo
remains a man of intrigue
LAS
VEGAS – The quality of the fights was as poor during Season
10 of the reality series, “The Ultimate Fighter,” as
they have ever been since the show’s inception in 2005.
A
show which produced world champions like Forrest Griffin, Rashad
Evans and Matt Serra has been an unmitigated disaster if the
assessment is made on the quality of the fights. QVC offered
more compelling programming than some of the fights during the
current season, which features heavyweights.
It
seemed that it was a weekly occurrence where one, or both, of
the fighters would lose his conditioning after a few minutes.
They’d then spend the remainder of the bout gasping for
breath in the center of the ring, looking like they were in need
of an oxygen tank, and quick.
It’s
hard to understand why professional athletes, with the biggest
opportunity of their lives within their grasp, can’t come
prepared to fight two fast-paced rounds. The fights were weak
on a weekly basis and there isn’t one that anyone other
than friends and family would willingly watch again.
Despite
the bust in the cage, though, the current season stands as the
highest-rated in the history of the series on Spike TV.
The
reason for that is fairly obvious.
Kimbo
Slice, the man Ultimate Fighting Championship president Dana
White mocked mercilessly for more than year, brought the viewers
out in massive numbers.
They
didn’t seem to care that he was coming off a 14-second,
first-round knockout loss to a light heavyweight. They didn’t
seem to care that he landed precious few punches when he was
stopped by Roy Nelson in the second round of a one-sided fight
in Week 3.
Without
Slice, televisions would have been changing from Spike after
the second week and wouldn’t have been switched back. The
one-time street fighter attracted nearly 7 million viewers to
Spike to watch his match with Nelson.
Slice
was so critical to the season’s success that White and the
show’s producers worked to death the angle of his possible
return to competition after his loss. Despite the slew of hints,
Slice never did fight again and won’t until Saturday, when
he meets power-punching Houston Alexander in The Pearl at the
Palms Hotel & Casino as part of “The Ultimate Fighter
Finale” card.
Yet,
ratings were consistently large and were around or even above
3 million viewers on a weekly basis.
Slice,
whose real name is Kevin Ferguson, showed himself to be a charismatic,
captivating personality. He made you laugh. He made you think.
More
than anything, he made you want to watch.
“I
just did my thing and I don’t get caught up in all the stuff
going on,” said Slice, who said he weighed 220 on Tuesday
and appeared noticeably trimmer as he drops to the 215-pound
contracted weight limit for Saturday’s fight with Alexander.
“I just went on there and I was me and I did what I do.”
Slice
has spent the last several months since taping ended training
at the vaunted American Top Team camp in Coconut Grove, Fla.
After
Elite XC folded, Slice had an opportunity to turn pro as a boxer
but opted against it. He still wants to see if he can make it
as a mixed martial arts fighter and has committed himself fully
to it.
For
all the celebrity he brought with him to the show, Slice was
an honest worker each week and has remained that way since taping
ended. White said Slice impressed everyone with his sincere desire
to take advantage of his opportunity and try to get better.
He
was hardly a diva.
Evans,
who along with Quinton “Rampage” Jackson served as
a coach, didn’t like the idea of having Slice around at
first, White said.
“Before
the taping, Rashad wanted him out of there and wasn’t happy
about it,” White said. “But his opinion changed after
the Roy Nelson fight. And you know what? I think American opinion
on the guy changed, too. He heard me talk all this [expletive]
about him and he came in and he worked hard and he wanted to
get better. He was kind of like the underdog and people were
pulling for him.
“I’ve
said this so many times, that guys go on this show and they don’t
understand it, but they’re far better fighters when they
come off. I’m expecting that with Kimbo, too.” Slice
would make no predictions and wouldn’t go so far to say
he’s a better fighter.
He
has been learning, he said, but whether he can apply what he
has been taught is the only thing that matters Saturday.
“You
could learn the slickest moves and the best submissions and the
escapes and all that, Slice said. “But when they turn them
lights on and lock that door and you get into that position,
can you do it? That’s really what it comes down to and we’ll
have to see.”
Despite
his drawing power – it’s not a stretch to think that
Saturday’s finale could be the top-rated in series history
– it’s hard to imagine White keeping Slice around past
Saturday should Slice not look good.
Slice,
though, is a star and he’ll sell tickets and put people
in the seats. And being on the largest stage now, his celebrity
is going to go to another level.
As
he is with most things in his life, he’s hardly worried.
He is very much a now person and isn’t the type to let his
mind wander into the future.
His
stint on the show simply cemented his celebrity and will put
further demands on his time. He shrugs, though. He’ll do
what he can to promote the sport and his friends and when he
needs time to himself, he’ll get lost.
“I
look at myself as a little billboard, or a walking advertisement,
in a sense,” Slice said. “If everyone around me can
benefit and be blessed like I have been, that’s cool. …
The privacy shit, I can handle on my own. When I need my privacy,
I know how to get in my car with my tinted windows and do thing
and get missing if I need to get missing.
“If
I have to step out and take a picture with a kid or his mom,
that’s cool, I can do that. If I need some time, I will
let them know with no disrespect intended that the timing is
just bad. Listen, I’m a street fighter. I come from the
streets. I know how to handle the streets and I know how to handle
myself in the streets. If I can handle that, I can handle this.
I’m ready to do what I got to do.”
He’s
ready, and several million Americans are going to be ready to
see how he does it.
Source: Yahoo Sports
|
Quote
of the Day
“Speak
properly, and in as few words as you can, but always plainly;
for the end of speech is not ostentation, but to be understood.”
William Penn
|
JOSE
ALDO: A FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHING
For the first time in his WEC career, Jose Aldo had no idea what
to do.
He
had just steamrolled Mike Brown to win the promotion’s featherweight
title at WEC 44, the culmination of a seven-year journey from
the streets of Manaus, Brazil, to Rio de Janeiro to the lights
of Las Vegas.
Usually,
he did his own version of “The Happy Dance” after stopping
an opponent: a spring-step around the cage, palms upward and
arms outstretched. This time, it was all a little overwhelming.
He
did, however, find time to kiss WEC general manager Reed Harris
on the forehead.
Aldo,
23, shared an emotional phone conversation with his family back
in Brazil, who had watched the fight live thanks to a new TV
deal between the promotion and sports channel Globosat.
“They
all cried when they saw that I won,” he told reporters in
a media breakfast the day of UFC 106.
After
living at his gym in Rio in the early days of his career, he
and his wife now have an apartment in the city. The $26,000 he
banked for the fight would go towards his family, Aldo said,
though he wasn’t distracted by the financial stakes of the
night.
“I
leave everything outside the cage,” he said. “I leave
all my problems, all my family, all my emotions. At that point
in time, I’m just focused on the fight and put on the best
performance I can do.”
The
young champion felt he would win that night, but that was no
different than any other fight.
“Every
night I walk into the cage, I feel like it’s my night,”
he said.
And
so far, no one’s said different. The victory was Aldo’s
sixth straight TKO victory and his highest profile opponent to
date. Brown was expected to have the wrestling advantage, but
couldn’t take the Brazilian down and found himself trapped
on his stomach eating punches until the fight was halted early
in the second.
As
quickly as the fight came to an end, Aldo felt he could have
been more aggressive against Brown and finished it earlier.
Aldo
said he’s enjoyed the attention he’s gotten from the
performance and wants to learn English so his American fans get
to know him better. He plans to travel stateside for training
at Black House in Los Angeles, which shares a working relationship
with his home gym, Nova Uniao.
Meanwhile,
he’s auctioning off items from the fight to benefit young
martial artists living in Rio’s poverty-stricken favelas.
Back
home, he says he’s not overlooked for more famous fighters
like Pedro Rizzo and Anderson Silva as much.
Aldo
doesn’t yet have a challenger to his belt, but if former
champion Urijah Faber gets past Raphael Assuncao at WEC 46, a
showdown might be inevitable.
For
the time being, though, Aldo will let his accomplishment sink
in. And eat, a lot.
“Life
is good,” he said. “I’ve worked really hard to
get here.”
Source: MMA Weekly
|
KIMBO'S
COMMENTS ON TONIGHT'S TUF FINISH
The much-anticipated two-hour finale of Season 10 of The Ultimate
Fighter airs Wednesday night at 9 p.m. ET on Spike and the world
will learn which two fighters will compete for the six-figure
UFC contract at The Pearl at The Palms Casino Resort this Saturday
night. Of equal importance, millions will tune in to learn the
fate of Internet legend and knockout artist Kimbo Slice.
The
subject of much debate since joining The Ultimate Fighter in
September, Slice has attracted audiences far and wide, all eager
to learn more about the bearded 35-year-old. Most are asking
the same question of tonight’s broadcast: will Slice get
another opportunity to fight on the show?
With
the sports world buzzing about the Miami resident’s future
inside the Octagon, Slice spoke Tuesday and offered brief insight
about his time on the show, as well as what lies ahead.
“If
I had to do the show again, I would,” Slice said. “I
learned a lot about myself and got to work with some great fighters.
Now it’s time for the next step in my career. Everyone will
see what that is (Wednesday night) on Spike.”
When
asked to elaborate, the man who owns wins over UFC veteran Tank
Abbott and former Pride fighter James Thompson, was a little
more revealing.
“It’s
gonna be good,” Slice said with a grin. “Watch the
show (Wednesday night). You’ll see what’s next for
me. All I can say is that somebody’s getting knocked out.
“Everybody
knows what my stronghold is,” Slice continued, clenching
his fist. “People will be able to see me and judge for themselves.”
Source: MMA Weekly
|
ROY
NELSON VS BRENDAN SCHAUB IN TUF FINALS
Roy Nelson proved his position as a favorite on “The Ultimate
Fighter: Heavyweights,” making his way to Saturday’s
final bout with a strong performance on Wednesday night’s
final episode of the regular season. Competing against him for
a UFC contract and the designation of the next Ultimate Fighter
is Brendan Schaub, who was also successful on Wednesday night.
Nelson
used the same strategy on semi-finalist James McSweeney as he
did to defeat Kimbo Slice, only to a much more brutal effect
this time. McSweeney was doing well in the stand-up game... until
he ate a heavy right hand that rocked him.
Nelson
then took McSweeney down, pinned his arms from side control,
and finished him with a steady stream of strikes, leaving his
face a bloody mess.
Schaub
took the last step to the final by defeating fellow National
Football League (NFL) veteran Marcus Jones. He caught Jones early
with a punch then found himself having to scrap his way up off
the mat from underneath Jones. Once the fight was back on the
feet, Schaub dropped Jones with a right cross, followed him down,
and finished with a flurry of punches on the mat for the TKO
stoppage.
McSweeney
defeated Matt Mitrione in the quarterfinals earlier on Wednesday
night to get the shot at Nelson. He finished Mitrione with a
guillotine choke in the opening round.
Jones
fought his way into the semi-final by dominating Darrill Schoonover,
scoring a TKO stoppage via a brutal ground and pound assault.
In
a post-fight interview on air, Jones openly contemplated hanging
up his gloves, but it was later announced that he would fight
Matt Mitrione at Saturday’s finale at The Palms Casino Resort
in Las Vegas.
-Roy
Nelson (13-4) vs. Brendan Schaub (4-0)
-Jon Jones (9-0) vs. Matt Hamill (6-2)
-Frankie Edgar (10-1) vs. Matt Veach (11-0)
-Kimbo Slice (3-1) vs. Houston Alexander (9-4)
-Brian Stann (7-2) vs. Rodney Wallace (9-0)
-Dennis Hallman (41-12-2) vs. John Howard (12-4)
-Mark Bocek (7-2) vs. Joe Brammer (7-0-1)
-Marcus Jones (4-1) vs. Matt Mitrione (0-0)
-James McSweeney (3-4) vs. Darrill Schoonover (10-0)
-Justin Wren (6-1) vs. Jon Madsen (2-0)
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Before
facing Assuncão, Faber already thinking of Aldo
Even though he is set to face Raphael Assuncao in the WEC, Urijah
Faber can’t get another Brazilian off his mind: Jose Aldo
Junior.
“Raphael is one of the top fighters in the world in my division.
I’m focused on him now, but a title dispute next would be
good,” Faber told MMAJunkie.
“Aldo is much faster than 99% of the people he has faced.
He has an incredible standup game and is a Jiu-Jitsu black belt.
I would say we have similar speed and his has a slight advantage
in striking, but my wrestling is much better than his. It would
be a great fight and it’s no secret that I want the belt.
That’s why I’m in the game, to be the best,” he
adds.
If Faber wants Jose Aldo so badly, the current champion is indifferent.
Having knocked out Mike Brown, who beat Urijah on two occasions,
Junior would rather wait for the WEC’s decision.
“I’ve never picked my opponents. I’m an employee
of the WEC and I’ll fight anyone they put in front of me.
To me they are all great,” he remarked to GRACIEMAG.com.
Aldo was honored in the Shooto Brazil ring this Saturday.
Even
though he is set to face Raphael Assuncão in the WEC,
Urijah Faber can’t get another Brazilian off his mind: Jose
Aldo Junior.
“Raphael
is one of the top fighters in the world in my division. I’m
focused on him now, but a title dispute next would be good,”
Faber told MMAJunkie.
“Aldo
is much faster than 99% of the people he has faced. He has an
incredible standup game and is a Jiu-Jitsu black belt. I would
say we have similar speed and his has a slight advantage in striking,
but my wrestling is much better than his. It would be a great
fight and it’s no secret that I want the belt. That’s
why I’m in the game, to be the best,” he adds.
If
Faber wants Jose Aldo so badly, the current champion is indifferent.
Having knocked out Mike Brown, who beat Urijah on two occasions,
Junior would rather wait for the WEC’s decision.
“I’ve
never picked my opponents. I’m an employee of the WEC and
I’ll fight anyone they put in front of me. To me they are
all great,” he remarked to GRACIEMAG.com.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Paulão
to face Japanese opponent in São Paulo
The
Bitetti Combat Organization announced some changes to the card
for the next event this Monday. Unfortunately, Pedro Rizzo will
be unable to make it for the December 12 show in Barueri, Sao
Paulo, due to injury. Nevertheless, the card is bolstered by
another big name entering the scene, as Paulão Filho is
tipped to be there.
“Paulao is in. He couldn’t fight in Japan recently
and he’s been calling me every day, wanting to fight at
Bitetti Combat. He is really determined and has been training
hard to erase any poor impression he may have made. His opponent
will be from Japan, we will confirm who he is later,” said
Amaury Bitetti, further explaining Rizzo’s exit, “Pedro
has tendinitis of the elbow and won’t be able to make it.
Therefore he will fight at the following event, in Brasilia.
His opponent will still be Valentin Overeem.”
Beyond that, Bitetti took the opportunity to announce the other
matchups on the card.
“It seems some foreign site said Jeff Monson won’t
fight. Monson is confirmed. We were set back at the last event
because of some rumors on the internet. All I ask is that we
be contacted before anything is announced. Nothing can be confirmed
without official confirmation from the event, even if it has
been copied from foreign websites. It will be a great show and
we’ll make history again,” said Amaury in finishing.
Check out the updated card:
Paulo Filho vs to be announced
Murilo “Ninja” vs Jason Jones (Holland)
Fábio Maldonado vs Travis Wiuff (USA)
Gustavo Ximu vs Ricco Washington (USA)
Glover Teixeira vs Jeff Monson (USA)
Eduardo Pamplona vs Tommy Speer (USA)
Alessandro “Alemao” Steffen vs Francimar “Bodao”
Female fight
The
Bitetti Combat Organization announced some changes to the card
for the next event this Monday. Unfortunately, Pedro Rizzo will
be unable to make it for the December 12 show in Barueri, São
Paulo, due to injury. Nevertheless, the card is bolstered by
another big name entering the scene, as Paulão Filho is
tipped to be there.
“Paulão
is in. He couldn’t fight in Japan recently and he’s
been calling me every day, wanting to fight at Bitetti Combat.
He is really determined and has been training hard to erase any
poor impression he may have made. His opponent will be from Japan,
we will confirm who he is later,” said Amaury Bitetti, further
explaining Rizzo’s exit, “Pedro has tendinitis of the
elbow and won’t be able to make it. Therefore he will fight
at the following event, in Brasilia. His opponent will still
be Valentin Overeem.”
Beyond
that, Bitetti took the opportunity to announce the other matchups
on the card.
“It
seems some foreign site said Jeff Monson won’t fight. Monson
is confirmed. We were set back at the last event because of some
rumors on the internet. All I ask is that we be contacted before
anything is announced. Nothing can be confirmed without official
confirmation from the event, even if it has been copied from
foreign websites. It will be a great show and we’ll make
history again,” said Amaury in finishing.
Check
out the updated card:
Paulo
Filho vs to be announced
Murilo
“Ninja” vs Jason Jones (Holland)
Fábio
Maldonado vs Travis Wiuff (USA)
Gustavo
Ximu vs Ricco Washington (USA)
Glover
Teixeira vs Jeff Monson (USA)
Eduardo
Pamplona vs Tommy Speer (USA)
Alessandro
“Alemão” Steffen vs Francimar “Bodão”
Female
fight
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Teixeira
ready to Overeem at K-1 finals
Ewerton
Teixeira is ready to the K-1 World GP finals, scheduled to December
5 at Japan. Living in Japan since the debut on the biggest striking
event of the world, the Brazilian talked to TATAME.com before
the finals of the tournament, excited to face Alistair Overeem
on the first fight.
“I
thought that he developed on the technical part since the fight
with Remy, what makes him dangerous“, Ewerton told, confident
about the title. “He’s a strong athlete, but I feel
prepared and my goal is K-1 title“, guarantees. Training
hard in Japan, the karate fighter talked about his preparation.
“It
was very good. I prioritized the physical training. Now, is to
wait the day of the fight“, said, training with great names.
“My coaches are Jayson Vemoa (Muay Thay), Mauricio da Silva
(Kick Boxing) and Faii Falamoe (Boxe). At training I had the
opportunity to train with many high level athletes as Doug Viney,
Takumi Sato, Ian Soukup, Alexander Pichkounov, Ray Sefo and Glaube
Feitosa”.
Considered
a beginner at K-1, where he fights for a little more than one
year, Ewerton will have to pass by names as Badr Hari and Semmy
Schilt to take the title, but he’s confident. “I’m
still trying to learn each time more. I debuted on the event
with two months of training of Kick Boxing and, since then, I’m
competing, that helps me to see my fails to fix them“, tells,
analyzing the other fights on the tournament.
“On
the fight between Badr Hari and Ruslan Karaev, I think it’s
hard to make a preview, besides Badr take advantage. I think
that one of the finalists will be Semmy Schilt”, the Brazilian
bets. Besides MMA’s growing, Ewerton doesn’t think
about that. “I haven’t thought about that yet. If I
would fight, I’d choose the heavyweight category”,
tells, knowing that he need different training. “I have
no idea of how it would be. First I’d have to learn something
on the ground”, finished.
Source: Tatame
|
Wagnney:
“Never fight when you’re hurt”
The
last months had a lot of changes to Wagnney Fabiano. Training
to his fights on the base in Canada, the former IFL champion
suffered his first loss at WEC, being submitted by the newcomer
Mackens Semerzier. To complete, the belt conquered by his friend,
José Aldo, made him to decide to change the weight, because
he wouldn’t accept to fight with his team partner.
On
January 10, Wagnney make his first fight at WEC bantamweight
division, and the opponent will be Frank Gomez, who has eight
victories in nine MMA fights. “Everything is fine, the expectation
is the best possible. I think that the hardest to me will be
the weight, but the rest is fine“, the black belt said,
who will study more the game of the opponent. “I don’t
know him very well, but, to be there, he must have his merits.
It’s gonna be a tough fight, for sure“.
Learning
with the defeat, ending an win streak that lasted three years,
the Brazilian wants to be 100%. “The secret is to come well,
without injuries and the right weight, because the rest I know
that I’ll do well on the fight. The learning is never to
fight when you’re hurt. The money don’t matter, never
fight when you’re hurt. That’s something I’ve
learned, and it was hard (laugh)“, jokes.
Before
the fight between José Aldo and Mike Brown, the black
belt previewed that Aldo would pass thru the American, and he
was right. “I don’t have to say more, I’ve said
so many times (laugh). It wasn’t surprised at all, I train
with him and I know his potential. I know that he will keep the
belt for a while, but he have to keep his mind up, because now
he’s on top, but tomorrow you can go down, as me and (Vitor)
Shaolin were, but we knew how to invest our money on the right
place and now we have the results of that moment“, advises.
Source: Tatame
|
NICKELS
SET FOR TUF SHOWDOWN IN RING OF FIRE
After disappointing showings on The Ultimate Fighter 3 and at
UFC 73, Colorado jiu-jitsu ace “Big” Mike Nickels has
found himself on the comeback trail.
Wins
in his last three fights, including an impressive Fight of the
Night win over fellow UFC veteran David Heath in the MFC in October
has Nickels possibly on the verge of returning to his former
promotion.
Currently
standing in the way of Nickels’ achieving such a task is
Ultimate Fighter 8 alumnus Vinny “Pezao” Magalhaes,
as the two are scheduled to meet on the Dec. 4 edition of Colorado’s
popular Ring of Fire.
“I
feel good,” stated Nickels heading into Friday’s fight.
“I’ve been training a lot and working on a lot of different
things, and coming off the David Heath fight I feel like I’ve
got good momentum and want to keep it going.”
With
two wins this year, and three victories in a row overall after
having left the UFC, Nickels is having the kind of year he wanted
to in order to accomplish his main goal.
“In
2009 I wanted to make a push back to the UFC, so I started training
really hard and finally towards the end of the year we finally
started having things come along,” Nickels told MMAWeekly.com.
“Originally
the UFC told me to get a couple wins and they’d have me
back after the Stephan Bonner fight. It took me a little while
to get the fights to come through, but I got a couple wins, and
hopefully if things go my way against Vinnie, it will (create)
that opportunity.”
While
he’s confident going into the fight, Nickels knows Magalhaes
is someone he cannot underestimate.
“On
the ground he’s definitely a top-shelf jiu-jitsu guy,”
stated Nickels. “Some of the only fights I remember from
(Ultimate Fighter) Season 8 was with him being slick on the ground,
with omo plata arm bars from the top and stuff.
“I
have faith in my jiu-jitsu and my training, and if anything I
can keep myself out of danger. As far as the stand-up, it’s
anybody’s fight.”
Nickels
further explained, “I know a lot of people say that Vinnie
doesn’t like to get hit, or he doesn’t have the best
stand-up, but people were saying that about me for years.
“The
last thing I would do is expect him to just try to take me to
the ground. I know David Heath thought I was going to take him
down, and I was pretty comfortable standing and trading with
him, so I expect an all level fight from Vinnie.”
Should
Nickels capitalize on the opportunity Magalhaes presents, he
feels that 2010 could be the year he makes his push back to the
big leagues.
“Looking
to the New Year, I think I’m in as good of a position as
I’ve ever been,” said Nickels. “I’m training,
constantly getting better; improving my speed, timing, submissions,
wrestling, and as far as I’m concerned, I’m the best
fighter I’ve ever been so far.
“I’m
looking forward to the next year. There’s such a huge pool
of talent out there and every fight brings another challenge,
and I’m up for that. I want to see where I fit into at this
level.”
Four
wins in a row could make it hard for the UFC to deny that Nickels
has worked his way back to the promotion, and that’s exactly
what he’s determined to do.
“I
want to thank Colorado Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Muay Thai of Colorado,
Oscar Martinez, all my sponsors, the guys in my gym and my family
for being supportive and helping me get in the cage and looking
out for me,” closed out Nickels.
“I’m
preparing for the worst and expecting the best. I’ll be
in there with my gloves on, fighting my heart out, and may the
best man win.”
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Quote
of the Day
“The
world is but a canvas to the imagination.”
Henry David Thoreau
|
Quest
for Champions Postponed!
Aloha Everyone,
We would like inform all of you that our "Quest for Champions
2009" event has been postponed. Our new date for the event
will be on Saturday, January 30th. Again, it will be at Kalani
High School Gym. We apologize for this inconvenience. Please
stay tuned for more info.
Mahalo,
Kempo Unlimited HI
Gracie KTeam/Uptown |
COLEMAN
VS. COUTURE SIGNED FOR UFC 109
Randy Couture and Mark Coleman are spawned from the same superior
wrestling pedigree. Both began their mixed martial arts careers
with the Ultimate Fighting Championship, each winning tournament
titles in their respective debuts.
Couture,
46, and Coleman, 44, both appear destined to finish their MMA
careers with the UFC as well.
So
it’s somewhat surprising that they have never had to face
each other in the Octagon... until now.
Confirming
earlier reports from MMAWeekly.com, Coleman’s long-time
friend and vice president of MMA Authentics, Michael DiSabato,
on Saturday emailed MMAWeekly.com saying that Coleman had signed
his bout agreement to face Couture at UFC 109 on Feb. 6 in Las
Vegas.
“Better
now than never!” Coleman said via DiSabato’s email.
Coleman
(16-9) is coming off a knee injury that forced him to withdraw
from a scheduled fight with Tito Ortiz at UFC 106. The "Hammer
House" original made his last Octagon appearance in July,
defeating Stephan Bonnar by unanimous decision at UFC 100. He
made his MMA debut in July of 1996, capturing the UFC 10 tournament
title by winning three fights in one night.
Couture
(17-10) recently won a close decision victory over light heavyweight
Brandon Vera at UFC 105 in Manchester, England. It was his first
bout at 205 pounds since February 2006, when he lost a bid to
regain the title against Chuck Liddell at UFC 57. He made his
MMA debut in May of 1997, capturing the UFC 13 heavyweight tournament
title with two victories on the same night.
The
two will meet in a light heavyweight bout as part of the main
event of UFC 109 on Super Bowl weekend. Top 10 middleweights
Nate Marquardt and Chael Sonnen will also fight that night to
determine the next challenger to UFC middleweight champion Anderson
Silva, who is currently recovering from arthroscopic surgery
to clean out his elbow.
Couture's
camp was not immediately available to confirm his signing at
the time of publication, but recent sources indicated that Couture
had at least verbally agreed to the bout.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
DON'T
KNOW ANTHONY NJOKUANI? YOU SHOULD
Until he walks to his dressing room, Anthony Njokuani is a guy
getting better all the time. He’s made peace with his family.
He’s getting respect as a mixed martial artist. He smiles
a lot.
Then,
backstage, he thinks about his childhood. “The Assassin”
emerges.
Njokuani,
29, is an up-and-comer in the WEC lightweight division. Guided
by his idol, Anderson Silva, the six-foot native Nigerian stumbled
in his debut against contender Ben Henderson, but racked up two
straight victories in subsequent appearances this year.
The
promotion is excited about his future, but it’s his past
that’s driving him ahead.
Njokuani
says he fought almost every day as a middle-schooler in Dallas.
His well-meaning parents, who’d moved the family from civil
war-torn Nigeria to the Longhorn State in the early eighties,
dressed him for school in shirts and slacks, his sister in nightgowns.
They were suburban sore thumbs.
After
taking years of abuse, Anthony started fighting back. If you
looked at him wrong, you’d be up against a locker, or defending
blows on the blacktop.
The
constant teasing left him angry: at his parents for putting him
in that position, at his peers for being cruel. He rolled on
a well-worn path, hanging out with other angry kids who preyed
on the weak, a sure ticket to jail.
Or
maybe he would have turned it around, like his three sisters,
who are on the way to becoming a doctor, lawyer, and teacher,
just like mom and dad wanted.
He
tried football and basketball in school, but he was undersized
and got hurt easily. But he was athletic; he tried in-line skating,
then found break dancing, where his agility was evident. As fate
would have it, his dance class was in a kickboxing school.
He
took kickboxing classes to improve his dancing, not to become
a fighter. There, he met a Muay Thai trainer from California
who had other ideas: stop pop-locking and start skull-knocking.
A
year later, Njokuani got into his first fight not on school grounds
or the street. He found the perfect outlet for his athleticism,
and one that would heal past wounds on the way.
He
would probably be another statistic if the sport hadn't found
him.
“I
would have been (expletive),” said the buoyant Njokuani
at a gathering of MMA reporters in Las Vegas.
Njokuani’s
father passed before he picked up steam as a professional fighter.
Anthony went back to Nigeria for the first time with his mom
and sisters for the burial service, and says the experience encouraged
him to have a better relationship with his remaining family.
Like
all fighters, he’s chasing a title shot, but he’s not
rushing it. He admits his wrestling and jiu-jitsu are not where
they need to be to face guys like Henderson or Donald Cerrone.
He’s still got a ways to go before he blends Anderson Silva’s
striking excellence with a dangerous ground game.
“I’d
really like to slowly and gradually get there,” he said.
“I don’t want to rush into it. Those two are really
good, especially on the ground. I want to get to their level
in jiu-jitsu before I want to challenge them.”
Dave
Sholler, the WEC’s Manager of Public Relations, thinks he’ll
get to Henderson eventually.
“We
have a good, young core of fighters who we think can one day
be champions,” he said. “You looks at guys like Dave
Jansen, Anthony Njokuani, Kamal Shalorus... that’s certainly
a fight Anthony would like, and it’s certainly a fight that
we would like to see down the future, so I would never say never
with that.”
His
next opponent, International Fight League (IFL) and Affliction
veteran Chris Horodecki, was once one of the sport’s youngest
and brightest newcomers before losing luster in a bad knockout
victory to veteran Ryan Schultz in late 2007. He’s rebounded
with two subsequent wins, though, and will look to establish
himself in the lighter weight promotion.
It’s
a “next level” opponent for the lanky fighter.
“I
know exactly what he’s all about,” said Njokuani. “I
know he’s a great striker. He has limited jiu-jitsu, but
I think I can capitalize on that.”
Njokuani
lacks no confidence going into the fight.
“I’m
not taking anything away from his trainers, but I think I’ll
have this fight in the bag,” he said.
He
has his tormentors to thank for his success.
“I
still keep all of it to help me in the gym,” he said. "From
what they put me through, it’s made me into a stronger person,
so I’m happy that that happened,” he said.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
PICKETT
PULLS DOUBLE-DUTY WITH 135 & WEC DEBUT
One
of the U.K’s best-kept secrets, British slugger Brad Pickett,
has become another name added to the Zuffa roster, recently signing
on with World Extreme Cagefighting.
A
Cage Rage veteran, Pickett over the years has carved his name
as one of the leading featherweight prospects not just in England,
but in the world.
When
the call came for Brad to join the ranks of one of the world’s
leading promotions, which highlights the lighter weight classes,
it was an experience that Pickett met with thrill and a level-headed
attitude.
“It’s
still kind of weird. I got excited by it, but I kept it on a
level where I didn’t get crazy by it,” said “One
Punch” in regards to his call to the big leagues, while
speaking with MMAWeekly.com.
“Until
I’m actually there, the week before the fight, I’m
not going to do any hard training, just cutting weight.
“As
soon as I make the weight as well, then I’ll know ‘hey,
I’m fighting in the WEC.’”
Facing
bantamweight Kyle Dietz in his debut at WEC 45 in Las Vegas will
be a challenge in of itself, let alone the fact that this will
mark the former featherweight’s first dissention to 135
pounds.
“I
was never really the biggest featherweight, but I was never the
smallest,” said Pickett.
“It
will be the first time for me, fighting guys that I can man –
I never thought my stamina was a problem. I never fought a guy
in featherweight that I thought, ‘[Expletive], I’m
not strong enough.’
What
Pickett lacked in size in the past was always buoyed by his power,
which is something he feels now more than ever, will be his biggest
asset.
“I
believe I hit hard for that weight class (featherweight), so
I think my power will show through a lot more, even now at (bantamweight).”
Source: MMA Weekly
|
CSAC
TAKES STANCE ON MEDICAL MARIJUANA
There has been a lot of controversy over the use of “Medical
Marijuana” and how it affects drug testing for mixed martial
artists in California.
The
California State Athletic Commission recently issued a statement
declaring its stance on Medical Marijuana as it relates to drug
testing for athletes it licenses.
The
Commission made it clear that legal use via Proposition 215,
also known as the Compassionate Use Act of 1996, in California
does not negate disciplinary action due to a positive drug test
result in relation to events overseen by the CSAC.
“The
California State Athletic Commission's position is that Marijuana
is a banned substance pursuant to Rule 303 and that any positive
drug test may result in discipline,” read the statement.
The
Commission stated that a Supreme Court ruling in the case of
Ross v. RagingWire Telecomm “found that an employer may
discipline an employee for off-duty medical marijuana use.”
In
the case of athletes licensed to compete, an athletic commission
isn’t an employer per se. The CSAC, however, argued its
case, saying, “Because the Compassionate Use Act only provides
a defense to criminal charges, any argument that the Act would
allow an athlete to use the drug without consequences to his
or her license must fail. If the Court were to take up a similar
challenge to discipline of a licensee, it would likely find that
the Commission has a legitimate interest in whether or not an
athlete uses the drug because marijuana could slow a fighter's
reflexes and endanger his or her health and safety in the ring
or the cage.”
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Shooto
Brazil 14 results
November 28, 2009
Bennett College, Rio de Janeiro
- Dudu Dantas (Nova Uniao) defeated Carlos Roberto (JT Caverna)
by TKO in R2
- Claudia Gadelha (Nova Uniao) defeated Aline Neri (Beto Padilha)
by unanimous decision
- Henrique Mello (Nova Uniao) submitted Wellington Berginho (Beto
Padilha/Pejor) with a triangle in R1
- Hacran Dias (Nova Uniao) submitted Sidney Abedi with a rear-naked
choke in R1
- Felipe Olivieri (Boxe Thai/Nova Uniao) defeated Alan Chatuba
(Relma) by TKo in R1
- Paulo Guerreiro (Fighter Sport) defeated Maurício Faccao
(Gracie Barra BH) by unanimous decision
- Dinarte (Kimura/Nova Uniao) defeated Julio Beba (Malhado) by
unanimous decision
- Zeilton Nenzao (Pejor/Delfim) submittd Albino (Minotauro Team)
via guillotine in R2
- Rene Forte (Nocaute) defeated Julio Cesar Merenda (TFT) by
unanimous decision
Shooto
Brazil 14
November
28, 2009
Bennett
College, Rio de Janeiro
-
Dudu Dantas (Nova Uniao) defeated Carlos Roberto (JT Caverna)
by TKO in R2
-
Claudia Gadelha (Nova Uniao) defeated Aline Neri (Beto Padilha)
by unanimous decision
-
Henrique Mello (Nova Uniao) submitted Wellington Berginho (Beto
Padilha/Pejor) with a triangle in R1
-
Hacran Dias (Nova Uniao) submitted Sidney Abedi with a rear-naked
choke in R1
-
Felipe Olivieri (Boxe Thai/Nova Uniao) defeated Alan Chatuba
(Relma) by TKo in R1
-
Paulo Guerreiro (Fighter Sport) defeated Maurício Faccao
(Gracie Barra BH) by unanimous decision
-
Dinarte (Kimura/Nova Uniao) defeated Julio Beba (Malhado) by
unanimous decision
-
Zeilton Nenzao (Pejor/Delfim) submittd Albino (Minotauro Team)
via guillotine in R2
-
Rene Forte (Nocaute) defeated Julio Cesar Merenda (TFT) by unanimous
decision
Source: Gracie Magazine |
7
Ways to Fix What's Broken with Judging
Years before the UFC and mixed martial arts learned to walk erect
in polite society, judges were considered useless. A no-time-limit
atmosphere guaranteed one fighter in every bout would end his
evening as a bloody carcass against the fence, neatly folded
and cooperatively dazed for easy transport to the emergency room.
Huge talent disparities meant that most fights ended this way
in five minutes or less. The UFC needed crime scene clean-up,
not a scoring table.
This
was Rorion Gracie’s preference, but even something as ugly
and primitive as sadism needs to accommodate capitalism. Television
schedules eventually insisted on a clock, which Ken Shamrock
was prone to exhausting: In two of his three “Superfights”
in 1995, he and his opponent settled for draws. No muscular,
hematoma-heavy competition needed something as antiquated as
a scorekeeper.
In
an effort to catch up to Shamrock, though, other fighters were
getting better, and it became more and more difficult to apply
a finish. In December 1995, figuring that their all-star tournament
would be unmanageable without clear winners in the early rounds,
the promotion finally installed judges at ringside. Because the
UFC insisted on being tacky, the men wouldn’t turn in tabulated
cards: they would hold up Octagon-shaped signs on which they
had written their winner. (These cards, if they ever surfaced,
would be instant collector’s items, and could look forward
to a long and climate-controlled life in an acid-free plastic
bag.)
Dan
Severn became the first athlete in the UFC to win a decision,
pinning down David “Tank” Abbott in the quarterfinals
of that tournament; Forrest Griffin is the most recent, having
convinced judges that he bested Tito Ortiz on Nov. 21. In between,
there has been slowly escalating concern that judges have been
skipping optometrist appointments. Lax professionalism may have
cost Mauricio Rua the title against Lyoto Machida in October;
Randy Couture’s grand-old-man celebrity may have impressed
more than Brandon Vera crumpling him with body shots in Manchester.
The
problem with begging for reform -- which has become a regular
bell for critics and fans to ring -- is that it ignores the significant
aversion humans have to admitting error. If an athletic commission
institutes changes in what is clearly a flawed system, the subtext
is that they didn’t know what they were doing in the first
place. Good luck with that.
People
who seek positions of influence tend to want to control situations,
not follow instructions by layman’s committee. What we’re
left with are decisions by judges of suspect credentials and
observation who could potentially be altering the course of careers
-- all while commissions shrug and point to the subjective nature
of the role.
This
space will take the expected tact of suggesting ways to fix a
fractured system. But in attempting to address some obvious glitches
in the way fights are calculated, we’ll be taking a more
rational approach. Any one of these patches could be easily applied
without sacrificing administrative egos or deleting entire passages.
As
my intellectual property, I would ask for only a small percentage
of the gate in return. Five ways to invite reform without inviting
contempt:
1.
Five judges, not three.
In
addition to creating a market for lousy T-shirts and an inexplicable
fetish for dragons, MMA’s growth has also seen a sharp rise
in the number of people who are interested in participating on
an administrative level. People want to be referees and judges,
despite a poor compensation base, little gratitude and -- in
the event of a blown call -- 20 ounces of flying concession beer
with your name on it.
The
current system, which calls for three pairs of eyes, means that
only two individuals need to botch a scorecard to see a fighter
to tears. Having five judges reduces the likelihood of one or
two hiccupping brain having an adverse effect on the action.
This is the method used in amateur Olympic boxing, though those
officials are charged with pressing buttons in response to what
they perceive as effective hits. We can do without the game-show
theatrics, but the hive mentality is a sound one.
2.
Surveillance.
There
is anecdotal information to suggest that some judges of prizefighting
are more occupied with what’s inside their nose than what’s
inside the ring. Having the commission install a stationary camera
trained on their table for the duration of the event would severely
reduce the potential for any of them to become preoccupied with
ring girl rear. In the event of a truly egregious decision, members
could review videotape to make certain their attention was fixed
in place.
3.
Random testing.
This
is the great perception error of judging: As employed by the
commission, they may appear exempt from the kind of performance
auditing applied to fighters. But if the end game is to arrive
at a just decision in a prizefight, judges need to be treated
like the combatants: prone to human error and in need of observation.
The commission should be, at a moment’s notice, able and
willing to call in any judge and administer a written or oral
test on the rules and regulations of their duties, including
the scoring of a little-seen fight on videotape. If they possess
a cratered or incomplete understanding of the job, they need
remedial work -- or re-assignment to watching someone pee in
a cup.
4. Enlist a media ombudsman ringside.
When
the job is done correctly, the role of the media is as watchdog:
to keep the focus of their investigations honest by the virtue
of their presence, and to chastise them when they’re behaving
without integrity.
At
each event, a media member should be pulled from duty at press
row and placed at the judges’ table. In addition to observing
their behavior, the reporter can experience the fight from their
perspective, crucial when discussion comes up over “what
the judges saw” or what blows/attacks had a significantly
different impact than what was seen on television.
5.
Determine the limits of control.
Most
judging error can be boiled down to whether or not an official
values control over damage. This can be blamed in part on the
gauzy, vague wording of the Unified Rules. (“Judges shall
use a sliding scale and recognize the length of time the fighters
are either standing or on the ground, as follows: If the mixed
martial artists spent a majority of a round on the canvas, then
effective grappling is weighed first; and [then] effective striking
is weighed.”)
But
this is in almost immediate contrast to the passage preceding
it, which states, “Judges shall evaluate mixed martial arts
techniques, such as effective striking, effective grappling,
control of the fighting area, effective aggressiveness and defense.
… Evaluations shall be made in the order in which the techniques
appear above, giving the most weight in scoring to effective
striking, effective grappling, control of the fighting area and
effective aggressiveness and defense.”
If
an athlete spends four minutes of a round in a fighter’s
guard landing irritating, slapping strikes but receives a significant
beating on the feet for the remaining minute, the judges have
probable cause to award the controlling -- but non-damaging --
fighter the round. This is ridiculous. In maintaining position
on the ground, you’re effectively stifling your opponent’s
attack. But without delivering a substantial one of your own,
all you’ve done is turn a fight into a citizen’s arrest.
Subduing an athlete is not beating them. Why should the fighter
who dominated and battered you be penalized for accomplishing
more in that minute than you could in four?
6.
The Phantom 10-10
For
reasons unknown, judges in mixed martial arts are fixated on
one method of scoring: the 10-9 round, the winner getting 10
and the loser nine. In actuality, rules suggest that a clearly
one-sided round can be 10-8 or even 10-7. (Their absence isn’t
a bad thing: “dominance” is so wildly subjective that
increased examples of 10-8 or 10-7 would congest and confuse
the system even more than it is now.)
The
10-10 round, however, allowed by the Unified Rules, would offer
a solution to those close rounds where neither fighter exhibits
clear effectiveness or bouts of striking were nullified by extended
control. Following the rules, Lyoto Machida and Mauricio Rua’s
first round was 10-10: neither fighter stood out.
7.
The Statisticians
Prizefighting
often has more going on than a single pair of eyes can see. Stat
houses like FightMetric -- which supplies the UFC with the data
on their broadcast -- and CompuStrike view bouts and tally power
strikes and takedowns. This is hard, factual stuff that should
be used in the evaluation of a fight, not a post-mortem prosecution
of the judges. At least one judge should be using these numbers
as his reference point, bringing objective data into the equation.
Judges
have a difficult job, compounded by the layered nature of the
sport. No system will ever completely eliminate the potential
for botched decisions or human error. But there’s no argument
to be made against increasing scrutiny in how officials perform
their duties. Judges need judges.
Source: Sherdog
|
The
Doggy Bag: 205-pound Sequel
Everyone answers to somebody, so we, the staff at Sherdog.com,
have decided to defer to our readers.
“The
Doggy Bag” gives you the opportunity to speak about what’s
on your mind from time to time.
Our
reporters, columnists, radio hosts, and editors will chime in
with our answers and thoughts, so keep the emails coming.
This
week, readers weigh-in on the Lyoto Machida-Mauricio “Shogun”
Rua rematch and fight rewinds on the UFC 106 pay-per-view.
I
am a Cuban fan of martial arts. I am a big fan of Lyoto Machida,
and I am a big fan of Mauricio Rua, too. I want to say that I
saw the fight without audio, and I think Machida won the fight.
Unanimous? Well, I think it could have been. Shogun had an amazing
fight. He was able to track and catch the champion, but he did
not put Machida in danger at any moment. Shogun landed a lot
of low kicks and body kicks but never looked for a win. Machida
threw and landed the better punches and kicks and was always
trying to win the fight. As I saw the fight, he was unable to
finish Shogun because he was out of gas sometimes. He must improve
his cardio game.
In
the next fight, I believe Machida will win in a better way; he
will probably finish Shogun the next time, and if he can check
the leg kicks from the great Shogun, the job will be much easier.
Machida is the champion; he earned his belt. All the media and
all the fans must show respect for the champion. He deserves
it, as does Shogun; he’s back.
-- Alex
Brian
Knapp, associate editor: No matter who we believe won, the fight
was important on a number of levels. It showed not only that
Machida was vulnerable, but that Rua had returned to pre-UFC
form. I scored the bout three rounds to two for Shogun, who I
believed won the first, fourth and fifth rounds. He did far more
damage to Machida, who, as you noted, absorbed countless kicks
to the legs and body. Nevertheless, it was a competitive main
event, with or without sound.
Shogun
was wise to fight as he did. He abandoned his old reckless self,
a trait that would have proven fatal against a counterstriker
of Machida’s skill level. For you to say that he did not
try to finish the fight misses the point entirely. Shogun executed
a gameplan about as well as a fighter can be expected to execute
one. Machida’s inability to finish did not result from failed
cardio; it resulted from the relentless pounding he took from
the neck down. A man’s body can only take so much punishment.
Machida
remains ranked atop the light heavyweight division on most credible
lists and has become a mainstay in pound-for-pound rankings,
as well. How much more respect does the guy deserve? The rematch
promises to be every bit as compelling. Will Shogun stick to
the plan that served him so well in their first encounter, even
though it did not win over the judges? Will Machida have an answer
for the leg and body attacks to which he seemed so vulnerable?
Those are questions to ponder, as we draw closer to May and the
sequel.
Source: Sherdog
|
Station
Casinos Bankruptcy Saga Continues
Steven
Church of Bloomberg reports on the latest developments regarding
the Station Casinos bankruptcy process, which has been unfolding
over the last several months.
Station
Casinos Inc. doesn’t need an examiner to investigate how
the company is handling its bankruptcy, the judge overseeing
the case said, rejecting part of the takeover strategy pursued
by Boyd Gaming Corp.
U.S.
Bankruptcy Judge Gregg Zive said at a hearing in Reno, Nevada,
that Boyd and other advocates of an examiner appeared to really
want a trustee to take control of the company’s bankruptcy
case, especially with regard to any potential sale. Zive delayed
until Dec. 11 a decision on a related request to end the exclusive
right of Station managers to propose a plan to reorganize the
Las Vegas-based gambling company.
Payout
Perspective:
Station
Casinos, owned and founded by the Fertitta family, has been working
with creditors since February to restructure nearly $6.5 billion
in debt. But in July the corporation filed for bankruptcy.
Now,
the Fertittas are fighting to retain exclusive control over the
company, and prevent third parties – like Boyd Gaming or
other creditors – from establishing competing reorganization
bids. We’ll know in the coming weeks whether they’re
successful.
There
have been rumours in recent months that if things continue to
go south at Station, Frank Fertitta Jr. could follow in Lorenzo’s
footsteps and join Zuffa in some capacity.
Source: MMA Payout
|
Quote
of the Day
“Everything
comes to him who hustles while he waits.“
Thomas Edison
|
Fighters'
Club TV Tonight!
Channel
52
8:00 PM!
If
you are not on the Onzuka.com Hawaii Ground forum, you are missing
the latest news from upcoming events, get to rub elbows with
numerous promoters and fighters, and get to voice your opinion
on any subject you can dream up. Hit the links above to sign
up for a free account and start posting away!
|
Man
Up & Stand Up
December
4, 2009
Waipahu Filcom
Tickets are available at O2 Martial Arts (building between Best
Buy and Cutter Ford Aiea on the 2nd Floor) during class hours
only!
WEIGH IN
BLAZIN
STEAK (KUNIA SHOPPING CENTER)
THURSDAY
AT 6:00 PLEASE BRING YOUR ID.
UNDER
18 MUST BRING THEIR BIRTH CERTIFICATE AND ACCOMPANIED BY A PARENT.
HOPEFULLY
THIS IS THE FINAL FIGHT CARD. TRIED TO CUT IT DOWN TO 25 BOUTS.
2009 HAS BEEN FILLED WITH SOME AMATEUR FIGHTERS THAT OWN SOME
CRAZY SKILLS. AND FOR THOSE FIGHTERS, DEC 4TH WILL BE THE NIGHT
OF APPRECIATION, RECOGNITION AND FOR SOME THERE WILL BE DISAPPOINTMENT.
SOME FIGHTERS WILL WALK OUT WITH BELTS, SOME WILL WALK OUT WITH
A LITTLE MORE RESPECT FOR THEIR OPPONENTS AND SOME WILL WALK
OUT WITH EXCUSES. SCRATCH THAT BECAUSE REAL FIGHTERS LEAVE THEIR
EXCUSES IN THE RING AND JUST TRAIN HARDER.
BE
SURE NOT TO MISS THE TEENAGE TITLE BOUTS. KALAI MCSHANE WILL
FACE WAIANAE’S THEODORE BROWN OF GOD’S ARMY. KALAI
MAY SHOW A LITTLE RUST GOING INTO THIS FIGHT AFTER COMING OFF
OF A SURGERY BUT DON’T COUNT HIM OUT. THIS KID HAS SOME
KILLER PUNCH COMBINATIONS. THEODORE IS ANOTHER FORCE NOT TO BE
UNDERESTIMATED. THEODORE IS WELL ROUNDED WITH HIS HANDS AND LEGS.
THIS MATCH LOOKS LIKE ITS GOING TO BE A BOXER VERSUS KICKBOXER
BOUT SO IT WOULD BE BEST THAT THE BOXER DOES NOT MISS HIS KICK
COUNT. ALSO THE HUMBLE HARD KICKING SOTA NAKANO WILL BANG WITH
THE CONFIDENT SPEEDSTER JACOB SMITH. PLEASE DO NOT BLINK WHEN
THIS MATCH IS STARTED BECAUSE THESE TWO TEENAGERS WILL PUT ON
A CLINIC OF SPIN KICKS, ARIAL KICKS AND EVERYTHING YOU WOULD
EXPECT FROM ADULTS BUT NOT TEENAGERS. IF YOU THOUGHT TEENAGERS
COULDN’T BRING IT LIKE ADULTS THAN YOU HAVENT SEEN THESE
4 YOUNGSTERS IN ACTION.
NICK
CORREA HAS SOME PERSONAL ISSUES THAT HES BEEN WANTING TO SETTLE
WITH THE ARROGANT COLIN MACKENZIE ON THIS NIGHT. COLIN WELCOMED
THE OFFER WITH OPEN ARMS. BUT AS ALWAYS, COLIN BRINGS HIS WALK
AS MUCH AS HIS TALK. NICK HAS BEEN OFF OF THE CIRCUIT FOR A WHILE
SINCE HIS TEENAGE YEARS. HE IS GOING AFTER SOMEONE WHO HAS WON
AGAINST FORMER KICKBOXING TITLE HOLDERS THAT TRANSITIONED TO
MMA. COLINS FIRST LOVE IS STAND UP AND HIS SECOND LOVE IS TO
TAKE NICK TO MEET MAT LIKE HOW HE DID HIS LAST COUPLE OPPONENTS.
THE
TITLE BOUTS WILL DEFINITELY BE A CROWD PLEASER. THEY HAVE ALL
BEEN TRAINING HARD FOR THIS NIGHT IN HOPES OF WALKING OUT OF
THE RING WITH SOME BLING BLING AROUND THEIR WAIST. THERE WILL
BE FOUR FEMALE BOUTS, BOUTS WITH TWO 300 POUNDERS FACING EACH
OTHER, AND KIDS THAT ARE ONLY 7 YRS OLD SWINGING. NOT TO MENTION
PAST TITLE HOLDERS LIKE LIGHTNING FAST TONY PERERRA AND RUTHLESS
SHAISON LAUPOLA TAKING ON EACH OTHER. THIS MATCH WILL BRING SOME
THUNDER AND LIGHTNING BUT IN THIS MATCH THERE WILL BE NO RAIN
(SO SORRY). MAN-UP & STAND-UP WOULD LIKE TO THANK ALL OF
THE FOLLOWERS AND HOPE THAT YOU WILL FOLLOW US INTO THE NEW YEAR.
SEE YOU ON FRIDAY NIGHT.
PETE
SEFO SUPER HEAVYWEIGHT OTTO HOOPII
NATACIA
MANUMA FEMALE HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE CHANTELLE OF ISLAND THUNDER
TAZZY
WETLING FEMALE MIDDLEWEIGHT TITLE VANNA OF TEAM SUBMIT
EMIL
LAQUISTA AMATEUR WELTERWEIGHT TITLE JORDAN CALLAHAN
SOTA
NAKANO TEENAGE SUPER MIDDLEWEIGHT TITLE JACOBY SMITH
KALAI
MCSHANE TEENAGE SUPER FEATHERWEIGHT TITLE THEODORE BROWN
ALIKA
KUMUKOA SEMI PRO BANTAMWEIGHT TITLE JAMEN TABAYA
RED
DAVIS SEMI PRO MIDDLEWEIGHT TITLE FERDINAND RAMIREZ
NICK
CORREA GRUDGE MATCH TITLE COLIN MACKENZIE
SHAWN
BURROUGHS LIGHTWEIGHT ROOKIE OF THE YEAR JORDAN ANDUHA
KEO
DOANE WELTERWEIGHT ROOKIE OF THE YEAR JASON “J ROC”
ROCEMAR
JAN
QUIMOYOG TITLE DEFENSE ALVIN BERTO
TONY
PERRERA 155 SHAISON LAUPOLA
JUSTIN
KAHALEWAI 130 KEOKI NEGRON
JESSICA
TAVARES 120 CHEVY DECASTRO
MIKE
ELI 185 JESSIE LINDLEY
RICKY
PLUNKETT 145 BRYSON
LUM (O2 Martial Arts Academy)
KAILIN
CURRAN 115 JAZMINE CHUN
ROYAL
KAUA (O2 Martial Arts Academy) 155 LORDY AUGUSTINE
JUSTIN
DULAY (O2 Martial Arts Academy) 160 JUSTIN BURGESS
KOA
LYU (O2 Martial Arts Academy) 150 BLAKE VELLANEDA
CODY
165 JOE KAULULAAU
TAZ
KAHALEWAI 60 KAENA DESANTOS
MIKE
UEMOTO 135 RICHARD BERNARD
SPIKE
KAHALEWAI 70 JOEY QUITOG
JONAH
CARTER 50 CLIFTON SILVA
Source: Derrick Bright
|
TREVOR
PRANGLEY CAPTURES SHARK FIGHT TITLE
UFC and Strikeforce veteran Trevor Prangley added to his list
of accomplishments on Saturday night, capturing the Shark Fight
light heavyweight championship. He wasted no time, submitting
Marcus Sursa near the end of round one with a rear naked choke.
The
bout will likely be Prangley’s last at 205 pounds for the
time being. He told MMAWeekly.com prior to the fight that he
intends to return to middleweight and Strikeforce.
"I
should be in Strikeforce at the latest in February next year
or so I've been told," Prangley commented. "I'm excited
to go back to 85. I've been fighting at 205 the last few fights.
It's tough to get fights at 85, but that's the weight I'm at
and when we get to bigger shows like Strikeforce the guys aren't
going to have an opportunity to duck it like they have on the
outside."
Shark
Fight 7 Official Fight Results:
-Trevor
Prangley def. Marcus Sursa by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at
4:40, R1
-Liam McCarty def. Tony Castillo by Submission (Triangle Choke)
at 2:03, R2
-Kyle Bracey def. Steven Ray by Submission (North-South Choke)
at 2:02, R2
-Brandi Hainey def. Yadira Anzaldua by Submission (Guillotine
Choke) at 1:03, R2
-Jared Lopez def. Tyler Dodson by KO at 0:46, R1
-Josh Luna def. Chase Watson by TKO (Strikes) at 1:27, R1
-Eric Rodriguez def. Joshua Milward by Submission (Rear Naked
Choke) at 1:07, R1
-Luis Luna def. Severo Padilla by KO at 0:58, R1
Source: MMA Weekly
|
FORREST
GRIFFIN DOESN'T ENVY MMA JUDGES
Forrest Griffin rebounded from back-to-back losses by defeating
Tito Ortiz in the UFC 106 main event by split decision, spoiling
“The Huntington Beach Bad Boy’s” Octagon return.
“I
thought I won,” Griffin told MMAWeekly.com content partner
TapouT Radio.
The
win avenged a previous split decision loss to Ortiz at UFC 59
in April of 2006, but Griffin admits judging mixed martial arts
is not easy.
“Judging
is hard. I’ll give them a pass,” said “The Ultimate
Fighter” season 1 winner. “I think fighting is easier
than judging or refereeing.”
Following
the fight, Ortiz revealed he had a laundry list of injuries heading
into the bout. Asked if he thought Ortiz’s post-fight comments
took away from his win, Griffin said, “I don’t even
care. Not to sound bad or anything, but I’m numb to most
of it.
“I
thought it was kind of funny because I was banged up too and
I wasn’t real happy with my performance. I actually went
over and tried to like bail him out a little bit and he wouldn’t
even take it,” added the 30-year-old fighter. “I was
like, ‘oh well, you do get banged up when you’re training.’
I was like trying to help him out a little bit there.”
Griffin
wants to get back in the gym as soon as possible after he heals
up from Saturday night’s fight with Ortiz.
“I
would like to start training as soon as possible said the former
UFC light heavyweight titleholder. “Until my (expletive)
foot heals and my face goes back together.”
Griffin
was medically suspended by the Nevada State Athletic Commission
following the bout. He is suspended until Dec. 22 at the minimum
and must have his right foot x-rayed and cleared by a doctor
or his suspension runs until May 21, 2010.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
MATT
BROWN WANTS FIGHT WITH RENZO GRACIE
Coming off of yet another exciting performance, defeating Ultimate
Fighter winner James Wilks, Ultimate Fighter alumnus Matt "The
Immortal" Brown is looking to take a little down time for
the holidays and then would like to return to fight a legend
in his next fight.
The
Ohio native and recent transplant to Seattle, Wash., is heading
home to spend time with the family first, and then head back
to camp for his next fight.
"Ideally
the perfect situation for me is I can relax through the holidays
and go back and spend time with my family," Brown told MMAWeekly
Radio about his upcoming plans.
"When
my dad passed away it was right when I started training camp
and I left training camp for the funeral and came right back
the day after, so I'd like to go and spend the holidays with
them and be able to spend some quality time there. So ideally
I'd be back in training camp around New Year's."
With
fighting always on his mind, Brown was quick to make the call
to UFC matchmaker Joe Silva regarding his next fight and if it
gets made it could be a monster.
"I
actually called Joe Silva today asking for a fight, if I get
the fight that I'm asking for it might be before that,"
Brown commented. "I called and I asked him for Renzo (Gracie)
because he's coming and he needs a warm-up fight, so I was like
I feel like I'd be a good warm-up fight."
Gracie's
entrance to the UFC has been talked about for weeks, and with
rumors circling that he could face anyone from Matt Hughes to
a stable of tough welterweights, Brown believes that he's the
guy for the match-up. He makes it very clear though that he's
not calling Gracie out, he's simply putting himself in place
to fight a legend.
"I've
met Renzo a few times and I think he's one of the greatest guys
in the world. I've trained at his gym a bunch of times. I've
got absolutely nothing but respect for the guy. I think he's
one of the greatest ever, but that's why I want to fight him,"
said Brown.
"He's
a legend and he needs a warm-up fight. I'd love to fight a Matt
Hughes (too), but he's not going to fight someone like me right
now."
Brown
commented that with a stacked welterweight division, any fight
he will get would be tough, but he believes Gracie is the perfect
fight for him right now.
"I
only want it out of respect for Renzo," Brown stated.
Only
time will tell if he will get his dream match-up, but Gracie
is expected to make his debut with the UFC soon and an opponent
can't go unnamed forever.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
UFC:
Wand, Anderson, Belfort, Bisping – bombastic quadrangle?
At first, Parana native Wanderlei Silva was set to prove softening
up a good Japanese judoka.
But the most exciting fight on the card for UFC 110, in Australia,
changed – and Wand will no longer be put to the test against
always-game Yoshihiro Akiyama (13w, 1l), who hasn’t lost
since 2005, as readers have had enough of hearing about.
Yesterday, Wand confirmed on his Youtube.com video blog that
he will be facing Cyprus-born Englishman Michael Bisping, who
has stated publically that the Brazilian was afraid of him. Provocations
from Bisping aside, the fight is an excellent one for UFC fans
eager for Dana White to put on a GP along the lines of the late
Pride Fighting Championship.
Even better than a GP, though, would be for Dana to come right
out and announce that what we are seeing is an explosive quadrangle:
Wand faces Bisping, champion Anderson Silva faces Vitor Belfort,
which the UFC directorate has announced is a done deal for UFC
109, on February 6.
There you have it, the two winners face off for the belt –
on the same night that the losers square off, or just get even.
Who wins? We, the spectators, for sure.
So long as Mr. White doesn’t buy the idea, the idea is to
have a good time with Wand, who guarantees that’s what he
wants for his fans:
“My English isn’t all that great, but all my American
friends and fans who found out I would be facing Bisping come
up to me and say, ‘Kick his ass!’ I’m not too
sure what that means, but I’m going to kick his ass, for
my fans,” said Silva in amusement.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Big
Mac comments on South American Championship performance
After snatching gold in both his weight group and the absolute
division at the Miami Open, Luiz Felipe “Big Mac” Theodoro
went on to win again, this time in Santa Catarina, Brazil, at
the South American Jiu-Jitsu Championship. The black belt tapped
three opponents to guarantee gold in the ultra heavyweight division.
“In the final I faced a local athlete (Roberto Piazza),
who was really strong. But your heart goes into the final, right?
It was really cool and I managed to apply two takedowns and pass
guard. I just didn’t agree with the result in the absolute,
but I can’t go questioning it, because we should never leave
it in the hands of the judges. But it was worth it, I was satisfied
with the ultra heavyweight title,” says the fighter.
“It was my first time at a South American Championship and
found it to be really well organized. It’s another important
event from the CBJJ,” he adds.
Back full steam in the competition scene, Big is looking ahead
to more international titles in 2010.
“I’m going in to one in Sao Paulo, at the WLPJJ. I
was out of some events because I’d hurt my knee. But next
year I’m going for all the main championships overseas,
the European, the Pan and the Worlds. I want to conquer the world
title at black belt, which is an old dream I haven’t yet
fulfilled,” said the Godoi Jiu-Jitsu representative in closing.
After
snatching gold in both his weight group and the absolute division
at the Miami Open, Luiz Felipe “Big Mac” Theodoro went
on to win again, this time in Santa Catarina, Brazil, at the
South American Jiu-Jitsu Championship. The black belt tapped
three opponents to guarantee gold in the ultra heavyweight division.
“In
the final I faced a local athlete (Roberto Piazza), who was really
strong. But your heart goes into the final, right? It was really
cool and I managed to apply two takedowns and pass guard. I just
didn’t agree with the result in the absolute, but I can’t
go questioning it, because we should never leave it in the hands
of the judges. But it was worth it, I was satisfied with the
ultra heavyweight title.
“It
was my first time at a South American Championship and found
it to be really well organized. It’s another important event
from the CBJJ,” says the fighter.
Back
full steam in the competition scene, Big is looking ahead to
more international titles in 2010.
“I’m
going in to one in Sao Paulo, at the WLPJJ. I was out of some
events because I’d hurt my knee. But next year I’m
going for all the main championships overseas, the European,
the Pan and the Worlds. I want to conquer the world title at
black belt, which is an old dream I haven’t yet fulfilled,”
said the Godoi Jiu-Jitsu representative in closing.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Nogueira
vs. Velazquez likely for February
Ask
and ye shall receive: Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira will be back,
and he’s ready for the challenge of Cain Velasquez.
“In
February I’ll be ready to fight when they ask me to fight.
In February I think I’ll be in shape. I’d love to fight
in Australia. If they put me on the card, I would love to fight
there,” Nogueira told MMAWeekly.com, addressing his return
from a fourth staph infection in the past year.
The
former PRIDE heavyweight and UFC interim heavyweight champion
was initially slated to face the undefeated Velasquez on Jan.
2 at UFC 108, but the infection derailed those plans.
Despite
several reports that UFC 109 on Feb. 6 was under consideration,
MMAWeekly.com has confirmed an MMAJunkie.com report that UFC
109 is not likely. Sources close to the bout informed MMAWeekly.com
that UFC 110 in Sydney, Australia, is expected to host the bout.
It
looks like Nogueira gets his wish.
The
addition of Nogueira vs. Velasquez would give the UFC a strong
twin bill headlining its down under debut. Wanderlei Silva on
Wednesday confirmed plans to “kick the Michael Bisping ass”
in Sydney.
After
losing the interim UFC heavyweight title to Frank Mir at UFC
92, Nogueira (32-5-1) returned with an impressive victory over
UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture at UFC 102 in August. The win
immediately put his name back in the hat of contenders to the
belt currently held by Brock Lesnar.
Velasquez
(7-0) is coming off a dominating TKO stoppage of Ben Rothwell
at UFC 104. Three years into the sport, Velasquez has made a
quick rise to the top of the heavyweight division with five of
his victories taking place in the Octagon and only one having
gone to a decision.
Despite
the re-scheduling of the bout, coupled with the shelving of UFC
heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar and number one contender Shane
Carwin, Velasquez has taken the uncertainty of his next bout
in stride.
“I
just think it’s part of the sport when people get hurt,”
he told MMAWeekly.com at UFC 106. “It just so happens that
a lot of people got hurt in this weight class.”
Lesnar’s
condition is such that it is unclear when he will be able to
return to action, though his camp insists he will return. That
has led the UFC to consider crowning an interim UFC heavyweight
champion, but it is unclear whether Nogueira, who has held that
distinction before, and Velasquez will fight for an interim title.
Regardless,
Velasquez doesn’t discount his opponent.
“Nogueira,
you can never count him out,” he said. “You hurt him,
whatever – he’ll still submit you and beat you. He’s
just a super tough guy.”
UFC
110 has yet to be formally announced by the promotion, but is
expected to take place on Feb. 21 at the 21,000-seat Acer Arena
in Sydney, Australia.
Source: Yahoo Sports
|
Mailbag:
UFC 106 fallout
Tito
Ortiz has long been one of the biggest stars in mixed martial
arts. There are many people who continue to love him and support
him despite his many struggles, while others are finally getting
tired of his act.
In
this week’s edition of the mixed martial arts mailbag, I
answer plenty of questions about all aspects of the fight between
Ortiz and Forrest Griffin at UFC 106, as well as many other topics.
Tito,
Forrest on TUF 11?
What do you think of choosing Forrest Griffin and Tito Ortiz
as the coaches for Season 11 of “The Ultimate Fighter”?
Both were excellent coaches previously, so I think it would be
a great idea to have them coach against each other. I think the
fights would be excellent and there certainly wouldn’t be
a cardio issue. If they were chosen, the show would feature two
of the most popular fighters in UFC history. What are your thoughts?
Ryan
Wells
Magna, Utah
I
think they’d be good choices, Ryan. There aren’t a
lot of obvious other choices and there is a natural storyline
between them.
Ortiz
was not robbed
I don’t have a clue why fans spend so much time complaining
about scoring. Do you think Ortiz was really robbed? I say no
way. A score of 30-27 on any judge’s scorecard is ridiculous,
but I think Forrest clearly won. I have been watching MMA passionately
since 1997 and for one think they give too much emphasis to a
takedown. Yeah, takedowns are great if that’s all that is
happening but in my humble opinion, Forrest still dictated the
action. Other than the elbows that Ortiz managed from the guard
to cut Griffin, Griffin controlled where the rest of the fight
happened. That transition to standing was sweet and so was that
Kimura attempt. I think a good jiu-jitsu performance off of your
back is better then a lame wrestling performance while on top,
especially if you aren’t damaging or putting the defensive
position in trouble.
Shane
Sumter, S.C.
I
tend to agree with you, Shane. I had it 29-28 Griffin, though
I think the 30-27 score in favor of Griffin is defensible. I
gave Griffin Rounds 1 and 3 and Ortiz Round 2. But you could
make an argument for Griffin in each round and, indeed, at least
one judge saw Griffin as the winner in each of the three rounds.
The only round that all three judges agreed upon was the third,
when Ortiz got tired and did nothing. The 10-point must system
isn’t great for mixed martial arts, but I haven’t heard
anyone offer a better solution. I believe the scoring criteria
needs to be clarified and I feel judges need to be willing to
score rounds 10-8 or even 10-7. In boxing, it’s almost automatic
that a round with a knockdown is a 10-8, though that’s not
the case in MMA. But if the judges began to use the points more
– giving a guy an extra point for several good submission
attempts, say – then it would differentiate between rounds
where one is very close and another where one man is clearly
the winner.
Love
affair with Tito?
I’m puzzled by the love affair the MMA media seems to have
with Tito Ortiz. I certainly haven’t been watching MMA as
closely as you have over the years, but I can’t remember
the last time Tito Ortiz was impressive in a fight. It was a
long time ago, that’s for sure. (I’m not counting the
Ken Shamrock debacles.) I’m especially tired of hearing
how fit he is all the time. Against Chuck Liddell the last time,
he gassed and got knocked out. Against Griffin this weekend,
he gassed after telling everyone it felt so great to be in such
great shape at last after his back surgery. His fights seem to
fit that pattern. Impressive in the first round, less impressive
in the second round, just standing there in the third round.
The last element of the pattern is to then whine in the post-fight
interview about an injury before giving props to his opponent.
So I guess my question is this: When was the last time Tito really
kicked someone’s butt? That’s what we look for from
guys in this weight class, and Tito doesn’t look like he’s
changed at all from a few years ago.
Jim
Sheahan
Red Hook, N.Y.
There’s
one more question along a similar line before I answer. Check
this one out:
Am
I the only one getting tired of Ortiz’s excuses? Don’t
get me wrong, I am not questioning the severity of his injuries,
but it seems that the pattern has been that before every fight
he talks about how he is in the best shape of his life, how he
is finally healthy for the first time in forever, how his cardio
is the best it has been and how he’s ready to fight. Then,
he gasses in the fight and as soon as the fight is over, he starts
ranting about how he was injured for the fight and wasn’t
able to give 100 percent. At this point, I no longer consider
him a main-event elite fighter. He just can’t stay healthy
enough to be effective. Maybe for his next fight he should focus
more on staying healthy, and then he wouldn’t have to make
excuses.
Marko
Bakersfield, Calif.
I’ll
start by saying that I like Tito personally. He’s one of
the most cooperative fighters with the media and he always has
something to say, which probably has something to do with why
you feel the media like him, Jim. But I agree with both of you
that these excuses are getting old. I asked that question –
the first one – at the post-fight news conference and Tito
said he had to sell the fight. Now, I give Forrest and Tito plenty
of credit for actually fighting with serious injuries. However,
as much as I admire Tito’s desire to fight, he needs to
reexamine the way he goes about this. If he can’t perform
near his optimum, then he should withdraw until he can. I don’t
believe he’s developed his game much in recent years, either.
He’s good enough that he can almost pull out a submission
over Lyoto Machida, but his standup hasn’t gotten better
at all. His last win over an in-his-prime contender was probably
Vitor Belfort at UFC 51 on Feb. 5, 2005. Yeah, he won a split
decision over Griffin in his next fight, but Griffin was still
a young and unproven fighter at that time. To my way of thinking,
Tito is still a big-time entertainer but he’s a half-notch
or so from being an elite fighter.
Was
Forrest dogging or saving Tito?
Steve Cofield wrote in his Cagewriter blog that “fighters
rip each other in cage,” referring to Griffin and Ortiz.
I saw it differently. What I was hearing was respect for each
other. When Forrest said all fighters get hurt training, he was
defending Ortiz from the crowd. How do you see it?
Mike
S.
Eldersburg, Md.
I
agree with you, Mike. Steve and I discussed that topic as we
were leaving the arena. I think he misinterpreted what Forrest
said. To paraphrase, Griffin said when you train to fight, you
get hurt training. He said this as the crowd was booing Ortiz
for listing his training camp injuries. I agree with your point
and believe Forrest was urging the crowd not to boo Ortiz.
Are
fighters tested for blood diseases?
Watching UFC 106 and seeing several fighters get bloodied up,
which occurs at every event, got me thinking about the possible
spread of blood diseases. Do fighters get tested for things like
HIV before they are allowed to fight? I know it seems far-fetched
that an elite fighter could carry a disease and fight, but I
was wondering about this.
Jared
Curtis
Adelaide, Australia
They
are tested pre-fight for such diseases, Jared. In the U.S., the
testing is a requirement of and administered by the relevant
state athletic commission. But when the UFC travels to other
countries, it depends upon whether MMA is regulated there. In
the U.K., it is not, so the UFC does the testing on its own,
using the rules that are in place with the Nevada State Athletic
Commission.
Johnson’s
illegal knee
After watching the Josh Koscheck-Anthony Johnson fight at UFC
106 Saturday, I’d like to know your opinion of the illegal
knee Johnson delivered in the first round. In the replay, you
could easily see the knee hit Koscheck’s arm and not his
head or eye. There was a possible graze on Josh’s eye, but
even Rogan didn’t believe it because Josh was holding the
opposite eye he supposedly got hit.
Brian
San Jose, Calif.
I’m
not sure about his eye, Brian, because I’ve watched the
replay many times and talked to those involved and I’m still
not certain of what happened vis-a-vis the poke. However, Koscheck
was on his knees and Johnson delivered a knee that connected
with the head. Koscheck partially blocked it, but it was still
illegal and the point deduction was warranted. The question would
be whether Koscheck deserved the five minutes to recover, but
I say he did. It was difficult for the referee to determine and
the fighter was saying he couldn’t open his eye. Safety
rules must prevail. Plus, even if there wasn’t a poke, the
knee hit him in the head (albeit even if the forearm absorbed
some of the blow) and Koscheck was woozy from an illegal shot.
So I had no problem with the way the officials handled it.
Source: Yahoo Sports
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