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2010
November
Aloha
State BJJ
Championships: Final Conflict
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(Kaiser H.S. Gym)
10/15-17/10
ETERNAL SUBMISSIONS: 1st Annual BJJ GI/NO-GI tournament
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(Kauai Beach Resort, Kauai)
August
Hawaiian
Open Championships of BJJ
(BJJ & No Gi)
(Kaiser H.S. Gym)
7/24/10
The Quest for Champions 2010 Martial Arts Tournament
(Sport-Pankration, Submission Grappling & Continuous Sparring)
(St. Louis High School Gym)
7/17/10
Maui Jiu-Jitsu Open
(BJJ & No Gi)
(Maui War Memorial, Wailuku, Maui)
6/26/10
Kauai Cage Match 9
(MMA)
(Kilohana, Gaylords Mansion, Kauai)
6/25-26/10
50th State BJJ Championships
(BJJ)
(50th State Fair,
Aloha Stadium)
6/24/10
Quest for Champions
(Kumite/Grappling)
(St. Louis High School Gym)
6/19/10
Just Scrap
(MMA)
(Hilo Civic Center, Hilo)
6/18-19/10
Select Combat
(Triple Threat)
(50th State Fair,
Aloha Stadium)
6/12/10
Destiny: Fury
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
6/11-13/10
MMA Hawaii Expo
(Blaisdell Ballroom)
6/11-12/10
3rd
Annual Pacific Submission Championships
(BJJ & Submission Grappling)
(Blaisdell Exhibition Hall)
6/11/10
Legacy Combat 1
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Ballroom)
6/4/10
X-1:
Nations Collide
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
6/3-6/10
World
Jiu-Jitsu Championships
(BJJ)
(The Pyramid, University of California at Long Beach, Long Beach,
CA)
5/22/10
Destiny
(MMA)
(Waiphau Filcom Center)
5/15/10
Scrappla Fest 2
Relson Gracie KTI Jiu-Jitsu Tournament
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(Island School, Kauai)
X-1 World Events
(MMA)
(Waipahu HS Gym)
Mad Skills
(Kickboxing)
(Waipahu Filcom Center)
Boxing Event
(Boxing)
(Evolution Training Center, Waipio Industrial Court #110)
5/1/10
Galaxy
MMA: Worlds Collide
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
4/23/10
2010 Hawaii State/Regional Junior Olympic Boxing Championships
(Boxing)
(Palolo District Park Gym)
4/17/10
Hawaiian
Championships of BJJ
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(Kaiser
H.S. Gym)
Strikeforce: Shields vs Henderson
(CBS)
4/16/10
808 Battleground
(Waipahu Filcom Center)
4/8-11/10
Pan
Jiu-Jitsu Championships
(BJJ)
(University California Irvine, Irvine, CA)
4/3/10
Man Up & Stand Up
(Kickboxing)
(Waipahu Filcom Center)
Amateur Boxing Smoker
(Boxing)
(Palolo District Park Gym)
3/27/10
DESTINY: No Ka Oi 2: Oahu vs Maui
(MMA)
(Maui War Memorial Gym, Wailuku, Maui)
3/20/10
X-1: Champions 2
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
3/20/10
Hawaiian Championships of BJJ
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(Kaiser H.S. Gym)
3/14/10
Hawaiian Kimono Combat
(BJJ)
(PCHS Gym)
3/10/10
Sera's Kajukenbo Tournament
(Kumite, Katas, Grappling)
(Maui War Memorial Gym, Wailuku, Maui)
3/6/10
Destiny Fast N Furious
(MMA)
(Level 4 RHSC)
2/19/10
808 Battleground
(MMA)
(Filcom, Waipahu)
2/6/10
UpNUp 6: Unstoppable
(MMA)
(Maui War Memorial Gym, Wailuku, Maui)
2/5/10
Man Up & Stand Up
(Kickboxing)
(Waipahu Filcom)
1/30/10
Destiny
(Level 4,
Royal HI Shopping Ctr)
(MMA)
Quest for Champions
(Pankration/Sub Grappling)
(Kalani HS)
1/23/10
Kauai Knockout Championship Total Domination
(MMA & Kickboxing)
(Kauai War Memorial Convention Center, Lihue, Kauai)
1/17/10
X1: Showdown In Waipahu
(Boxing, Kickboxing, MMA)
(Waipahu H.S. Gym)
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May
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5/31/10
Happy Memorial Day! |
UFC
114 LIVE RESULTS AND PLAY-BY-PLAY
Former UFC light heavyweight champions and “Ultimate Fighter”
Season 10 coaches Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and “Suga”
Rashad Evans finally get their grudge on Saturday night at MGM
Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
UFC
114 PLAY-BY-PLAY:
RASHAD
EVANS VS. QUINTON JACKSON
R1
– Rashad rocks Rampage early with an overhand right and
then runs him into for the fence, pressing him against the cage.
Rampage chants flood the arena as the two exchange knees. Rampage
grabs a Thai plum and drives a knee into Rashad’s body.
They go back a clinch and referee Herb Dean separates them. Rashad
drives into Rampage and takes him down, landing in side control.
Rampage quickly gains half guard, but Rashad lands a few hard
punches to the face as Rampage gets back to his feet, the two
clinched on the fence. Rashad keeps constant pressure on Rampage,
whose back is to the fence, but they are separated once again.
Rampage lands a couple punches just before the bell sounds.
MMAWeekly.com
scores round one 10-9 for Rashad.
R2
– Rashad is crouching low, using lots of movement to try
and keep from giving Rampage a target. They quickly clinch and
Rashad again presses Rampage to the fence. They separate and
move back to the middle of the Octagon, Rashad again using some
rather unorthodox movement to keep Rampage off his game before
charging and pressing Rampage to the fence once again. Herb Dean
separates them again. Rashad again moves in, landing a short
right to the body, before pressing Rampage into the cage again.
Rashad goes for the single leg, but Rampage defends. Rashad presses
him against the fence and lands a couple short punches as the
round ends.
MMAWeekly.com
scores the round 10-9 for Rashad.
R3
– Rashad shoots, doesn’t get it, and Rampage lands
a hard right. They move back to the center of the cage, each
looking for an opening. Rampage moves in and drops Rashad with
an uppercut, follows him down and unloads a few punches, but
Rashad survives, as the crowd roars for Rampage. Rashad is on
his back, Rampage working from half guard, trying to find an
opening as the crowd’s chants are thunderous for Rampage.
Rashad somehow manages to get back to his feet and starts dancing
away from Rampage, recovering his faculties. There’s half
a round left in the fight. Rashad shoots and takes Rampage down,
putting him on his back, and starts working from half guard himself.
He unloads right hands on Rampage, who is trying to tie Rashad
up to defend. Rashad presses his weight on Rampage, who is now
trying to control Rashad’s right hand. Rashad moves around
behind Rampage, unloads a few more shots before Rampage regains
his feet. Rashad again takes him down and starts landing punches
to the head. Rampage though regains his feet at the end of the
round and the crowd erupts at the final bell.
MMAWeekly.com
scores the round 10-9 and the fight 30-27 for Rashad
Rashad
Evans def. Quinton Jackson by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28,
30-27), R3
DAN
MILLER VS. MICHAEL BISPING
R1
– Miller is content to stand and trade with Bisping to start.
Lands a good hard right, but then a low kick that briefly halts
the action. Both fighters spend the opening couple minutes trying
to find a good range, mostly trading punches. Two minutes left
in the round and Bisping lands a solid combination that backs
Miller up and follows with a couple more solid shots. Bisping
seems to be finding his range, while Miller is about a half-step
behind on his strikes, though he’s still holding his own.
Miller, bleeding from the nose, lands a good stiff jab, but doesn’t
have time to build on it before the round closes with a straight
right from Bisping.
MMAWeekly.com
scores the round 10-9 for Bisping.
R2
– Good straight right from Bisping to keep the blood flowing
from Miller’s nose. But Miller fires back with successive
leg kicks and a punch to the body. Miller walks into a hard right
punch, backs up, but comes firing back, catching Bisping with
a bit of a low blow, but they continue on. Bisping lands a left
head kick and follows with a left jab that snaps Miller’s
head back. He comes back a brief time later with a straight right
that rocks Miller. Bisping’s striking is getting more brutal
as the fight wears on and he finds his targets. Miller is now
fighting with his mouth gaping open. Bisping keeps the pressure
on, easily outstriking Miller for the remainder of the round.
MMAWeekly.com
scores the round 10-9 for Bisping.
R3
– Miller clocks Bisping with a right hand, but Bisping returns
the favor. Bisping goes high again, landing a head kick and then
follows with a right hook. As the round wears on, it’s Bisping
landing with more frequency and power. But midway through the
round, Miller shoots and scores his first takedown of the fight.
Bisping is quick to counter and return to his feet. Bisping is
using good movement to make Miller miss frequently, and counter
with strong combinations. Miller shoots again, but this time
Bisping defends and counter with a right cross. Bisping landing
in solid combinations as the round closes and the two immediately
hug after a hard fought fight.
MMAWeekly.com
scores the round 10-9 and the fight 30-27 for Bisping.
Mike
Bisping def. Dan Miller by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27,
29-28), R3
MIKE
RUSSOW VS. TODD DUFFEE
R1
– Russow immediately goes for the takedown, but Duffee shucks
him off and starts boxing. Russow moves in and eats a right uppercut
from Duffee, followed by a couple more hard shots. He goes down,
but gets right back up. Duffee just starts working away on him,
landing numerous hard punches. Russow goes for another takedown,
but Duffee defends and goes back to boxing. Russow shoots and
Duffee gives him the el matador treatment then rocks him with
a right hand. Russow is withstanding a lot of punishment, eating
numerous punches. Duffee is swinging hard and landing, but Russow
won’t go down. Duffee rocks Russow with a right uppercut
late in the round, but Russow just takes it and keeps standing.
MMAWeekly.com
scores the round 10-9 for Duffee.
R2
– Duffee goes headhunting again, albeit starting off the
round at a slower pace, but still landing the uppercut and other
hard punches. The uppercut is landing almost at will, but Russow
is somehow just shaking them off. He’s mounting little offense,
but weathering everything Duffee is throwing at him. Duffee looks
a little perplexed, maybe leery of not punching himself out.
Russow misses with an arching right hand and takes a hard shot
to the body, but keeps his Energizer Bunny act going.
MMAWeekly.com
scores the round 10-9 for Duffee.
R3
– (See round two.) Just kidding, although it is much the
same. Duffee is still using his uppercut as his main weapon with
Russow mounting almost zero offense. He did bull rush Duffee
early, but Duffee easily side-stepped him and went right back
to the uppercut attack. Then, out of nowhere, Russow lands a
right cross, putting Duffee down and out, the referee immediately
stepping in.
Mike
Russow def. Todd Duffee by KO (Punch) at 2:35, R3
JASON
BRILZ VS. ANTONIO ROGERIO NOGUEIRA
R1
– They start off trying to find range before Nogueira lands
a driving knee. A few moments later, Nogueira lands a leg kick,
but Brilz snags the leg and takes the Brazilian down. Nog immediately
starts working for submissions, but Brilz passes to half guard.
Nogueira tries to work his way out, Brilz briefly attacking from
behind with punches to the head. Nogueira goes to his back, Brilz
working from half guard/half mount. Nogueira eventually escapes,
wrestling Brilz down from behind and starts punching. Brilz escapes
and they’re back on their feet with a minute and a half
left. Brilz kicks and shoots, but can’t land the takedown.
He scrambles again for a single-leg, but Nogueira fends him off
and they separate, Nogueira landing a snappy right jab.
MMAWeekly.com
scores the round 10-9 for Nogueira.
R2
– Brilz quickly secures a single-leg takedown. He gets caught
in a guillotine, but escapes and starts working from half guard.
Nogueira reverses position and Brilz catches him in a guillotine
of his own. Nog appears to escape, but Brilz reapplies the guillotine
with Nog on his back. Brilz finally has to let it go and starts
working from half guard dropping a forearm and punch down on
Nogueira before going back to a guillotine. Nogueira escapes
and they go to a north-south position on their knees before returning
to their feet with two minutes left in the round. Brilz feints
a takedown and drives a knee to the body and follows with a straight
right. Nogueira uses his reach advantage to pepper Brilz, who
fires back with some wild shots of his own. Nog lands a knee
to the chin, but Brilz fires back rocking Nogueira with a wild
right hand that staggered the Brazilian.
MMAWeekly.com
scores the round 10-9 for Brilz.
R3
– They touch gloves, both fighters drenched in sweat, starting
out with a little more caution than they ended round two. Brilz
scores the single-leg takedown, gets caught in a guillotine,
but is quickly out and working from half guard, dropping shoulder
punches. Nogueira reverses and starts throwing punches from guard,
but Brilz wraps his head up before they return to standing. Brilz
goes for the single-leg again, but eats a couple punches for
his trouble. They return to standing where Nog lands a knee to
the body and another to the head. Brilz again shoots the single-leg,
but Nogueira defends, briefly trying to find a choke before they
return to their feet and start slugging it out again. Brilz scores
the single-leg this time, but they end up in a scramble with
Nogueira landing a crucifix position and dropping a couple hammerfists
to Brilz’s head. But Brilz quickly reverses and passes to
half guard. Nog then sweeps Brilz working from side control and
then scrambling to end the round from half guard.
MMAWeekly.com
scores the round 10-9 and the fight 29-28 for Nogueira.
Antonio
Rogerio Nogueira def. Jason Brilz by Split Decision (29-28, 28-29,
29-28), R3
JOHN
HATHAWAY VS. DIEGO SANCHEZ
R1
– Sanchez goes for the takedown, but Hathaway does a good
job keeping the fight standing. They separate, each fighter trying
to find his striking range. Midway into the round, Sanchez shoots
and eats a well-timed knee from Hathaway, dropping to the mat.
Hathaway follows him down and starts to unload from Sanchez’s
guard, but Sanchez manages to survive and latches his arms and
legs around Hathaway, trying to defend. Hathaway pulls back and
lands forearms and punches that land square in Sanchez’s
face. Sanchez again tries to tie up Hathaway, but the undefeated
Brit continues to drop hammerfists down on Sanchez. He lands
a couple more big punches just before the end of the round.
MMAWeekly.com
scores the round 10-8 for Hathaway.
R2
– Hathaway lands a head kick to open the round and follows
up with a jarring punch. Hathaway is taking the center of the
Octagon, Sanchez’s nose bloodied. Sanchez feints several
punches then shoots and scores a double-leg takedown. Hathaway
is on his knees, back to the fence, and eventually works his
way back to standing. Sanchez is still trying to take him back
to the mat, holding a single-leg. They separate, Hathaway landing
a forearm on the break and then firing in a straight right. Hathaway
jabs a couple times, then feints a jab and drives home another
right hand. Sanchez looks a little perplexed. Hathaway drives
him back into the cage and then backs off to start striking again,
diving in with another hard punch. Sanchez lands a right hook,
but takes a jab and straight right on the chin.
MMAWeekly.com
scores the round 10-9 for Hathaway.
R3
– Hathaway again is looking to keep this one on the feet
and lands a solid punch combination early in the round. Sanchez
fires back with a straight right that lands. Sanchez shoots the
double-leg, but Hathaway defends and fires back, rocking Sanchez
with a punch. Sanchez is throwing bombs now, knowing he’s
got to finish the fight to win, but then he shifts gears and
goes for the takedown again. Hathaway defends it and drives home
a couple knees for Sanchez’s trouble. Hathaway is now bleeding
from the nose as well. They exchange a few flurries of punches.
Hathaway fires off a double-jab and then lands a head kick. Sanchez
walks straight in firing punches, missing most, and eating several
in return. Thirty seconds left and Sanchez lands a couple hard
left hooks before eating a stiff jab. Hathaway lands a couple
more shots before the final bell.
MMAWeekly.com
scores the round 10-9 and the fight 30-26 for Hathaway.
John
Hathaway def. Diego Sanchez by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27,
30-26), R3
DONG
HYUN KIM VS. AMIR SADOLLAH
R1
– Kim gets Sadollah to the mat and starts working from half
guard. Sadollah fights off Kim’s pass attempts, securing
his full guard. Kim eventually gives up passing and starts ground
and pounding Sadollah, landing a heavy forearm across the face.
Kim again starts working for the pass, but Sadollah is doing
a good job fighting it. Sadollah scrambles, Kim takes his back,
but can’t do anything with it before the bell sounds.
MMAWeekly.com
scores the round 10-9 for Kim
R2
– Sadollah lands a couple push kicks before Kim catches
a leg and takes him down, quickly passing to side control. Sadollah
gets out and up where Kim clinches and starts working for another
takedown, which he eventually gets. Sadollah gets right back
up. Kim is still clinching and fires off a knee to Sadollah’s
face before taking him to the mat once again, landing in full
guard. Kim gets to half guard and keeps working to pass with
Sadollah doing everything he can to maintain half guard. Kim
wraps Sadollah’s left arm around his own neck and lands
a couple of punches before letting it go and passing to mount
at the end of the round.
MMAWeekly.com
scores the round 10-9 for Kim
R3
– They briefly test the waters with their striking before
Kim lands another single-leg takedown into full guard. Kim works
until finally moving to mount, but Sadollah quickly regains half
guard. They continue fighting for position with Kim on top for
the next couple of minutes, but eventually regain their feet
with a little over a minute left in the round. Kim goes right
back to the takedown, but Sadollah fends it off. He fires a jumping
knee, but Kim catches it and takes him down. Sadollah gets right
back up and they separate with 30 seconds left. Kim lands a couple
punches before Sadollah fires back a couple of his own and lands
a knee to the chin, staggering Kim.
MMAWeekly.com
scores the round 10-9 for Sadollah; the fight 29-28 for Kim
Dong
Hyun Kim def. Amir Sadollah by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27,
30-27), R3
DANY
LAUZON VS. EFRAIN ESCUDERO
R1
– Not much action out of the gate as each fighter tries
to establish his striking range. Lauzon looks for the takedown,
but eats a knee from Escudero. They clinch on the fence and Escudero
lands several more knees, including a jumping knee, before Lauzon
fires one of his own back. They clinch for a short time after
that then separate. Lauzon is firing punches and kicks, but landing
little. Escudero, however, is hanging back, looking mainly for
the counter strike. Boos rain down on the two as the round closes.
MMAWeekly.com
scores round one 10-9 for Escudero.
R2
– Escudero rocks Lauzon early, driving him into the fence,
unloading with a fury of punches and knees, but can’t finish
him. They move back out to the center of the Octagon. Lauzon
shoots, but Escudero fights it off. Escudero starts to work his
jab and land some leg kicks. Escudero backs Lauzon to the fence
and lands more knees and peppers him with punches. Lauzon tries
to fire back, but looks extremely tired. Escudero moves in with
punches and Lauzon falls to his backside, but gets stood up by
the referee.
MMAWeekly.com
scores the round 10-9 for Escudero.
R3
– Round three starts off slow, but Escudero starts landing
leg kicks before taking a shot to the groin. They quickly restart.
Lauzon looks somewhat rejuvenated, but Escudero is still landing
more frequently and landing the harder shots. He backs Lauzon
to the cage and drives a knee into his thigh before they separate
midway through the round. Escudero throws some hard shots. Lauzon
covers and blocks, but he’s looking tired again, slowing
down. Neither fighter finds his range for the next couple of
minutes. Escudero lands a hard kick straight to the groin with
seconds left in the fight. Referee Josh Rosenthal takes a point
away from Escudero, firing him up. The two come out guns a blazing
for the final moments of the fight, barely stopping as the final
bell sounds.
MMAWeekly.com
scores the round 10-9 for Escudero, but makes it 9-9 for losing
a point. Thus the fight score is 29-27 for Escudero.
Efrain
Escudero def. Dany Lauzon by Unanimous Decision (29-27, 29-27,
29-27), R3
WAYLON
LOWE VS. MELVIN GUILLARD
R1
– After some dancing around, Lowe catches Guillard’s
leg and takes him down, but they’re immediately back to
their feet. Lowe presses Guillard to the fence, but Guillard
lands two jumping knees to Lowe’s face, although Lowe maintains
the clinch. Guillard lands a third knee and Lowe drops to his
knees, hanging on to Guillard’s legs, but eats several punches
before separating. Guillard sprawls out on a Lowe takedown attempt,
driving a knee to his sternum, ending the fight.
Melvin
Guillard def. Waylon Lowe by TKO (Knee) at 3:28, R1
CYRILLE
DIABATE VS. LUIS CANE
R1
– Cane comes out gunning for Diabate’s head with punches,
while Diabate fires away with several strong low kicks. Less
than a minute in and Cane drops Diabate with a punch and follows
him down, but they quickly scramble up to standing, Cane pressing
Diabate against the fence. They separate and Diabate starts lighting
Cane up with punches, dropping him with a left-right combination.
Diabate follows Cane down and lands a couple more shots before
referee Herb Dean stops the fight.
Cyrille
Diabate def. Luis Cane by TKO (Strikes) at 2:13, R1
JOE
BRAMMER VS. AARON RILEY
R1
– Brammer starts slinging right away with a kick-punch combination.
Riley quickly fires back with a knee and some punches of his
own. They continue sporadic trading kicks and punches, searching
for range and an opening. They clinch along the cage and Riley
stings Brammer with a sharp knee to the face and continues pressing
and driving occasional knees to the body before they separate.
They trade a few more kicks and punches before clinching again
briefly. Riley catches Brammer with a kick to the groin and the
action is halted for a moment. Brammer comes back strong, landing
a couple hard shots on Riley. Riley goes head hunting with his
kicks, but can’t land the knockout, but does manage a strong
body kick just before the bell.
MMAWeekly.com
scores the round 10-9 for Riley.
R2
– Brammer avoids a couple kicks from Riley and counters
well with his boxing, landing several combinations. Riley lands
a hard kick to the ribs on Brammer’s right side. They trade
a few more kicks before Brammer lands a knee to Riley’s
midsection. Riley presses him against the fence where they battle
for a time before Riley scores the takedown, landing in Brammer’s
guard. Riley starts a ground and pound attack, focusing heavily
on Brammer’s body before they scramble back to their feet.
Riley lands an inside kick and left hook, follows with two more
low kicks, but misses with the head kick. They clinch to end
the round.
MMAWeekly.com
scores the round 10-9 for Riley.
R3
– Brammer starts off kicking, but Riley pushes him down.
Back on his feet, Brammer eats a head kick from Riley, but takes
him to the mat. Riley escapes and they’re back standing.
Riley moves in with punches, backing Brammer into the fence again,
where he clinches and trips Brammer to the mat. Riley quickly
passes to side control, but Brammer gets up to his feet and they’re
clinched on the fence once again. Riley drives a knee into Brammer’s
face and they separate. Good kick to the body by Brammer, but
Riley counters his superman punch with a shot to the body. They
trade strikes for a bit before Riley clinches and trips Brammer
to the mat again, and starts working half guard, but Brammer
again regains his feet. Riley presses Brammer along the fence,
kneeing the body before they separate. Brammer lands a straight
right, follows with a strong punch combination and a head kick
to close out the round.
MMAWeekly.com
scores the round 10-9 and the fight 30-27 for Riley.
Aaron
Riley def. Joe Brammer by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27),
R3
RYAN
JENSEN VS. JESSE FORBES
R1
– Jensen scores first with a couple solid straight rights,
but Forbes fires back and drops Jensen. Forbes shoots and tackles
Jensen to the mat, takes his back, and works for a rear naked
choke. Jensen escapes and locks on a guillotine choke causing
Forbes to tap out.
Ryan
Jensen def. Jesse Forbes by Submission (Guillotine Choke) at
1:06, R1
UFC
114 RESULTS:
Main
Bouts (On Pay-Per-View):
-Rashad Evans vs. Quinton Jackson
-Mike Bisping def. Dan Miller by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27,
29-28), R3
-Mike Russow def. Todd Duffee by KO (Punch) at 2:35, R3
-Antonio Rogerio Nogueira def. Jason Brilz by Split Decision
(29-28, 28-29, 29-28), R3
-John Hathaway def. Diego Sanchez by Unanimous Decision (30-27,
30-27, 30-26), R3
Preliminary
Bouts (On Spike TV):
-Dong Hyun Kim def. Amir Sadollah by Unanimous Decision (30-27,
30-27, 30-27), R3
-Efrain Escudero def. Dany Lauzon by Unanimous Decision (29-27,
29-27, 29-27), R3
Preliminary
Bouts (Non-Televised):
-Melvin Guillard def. Waylon Lowe by TKO (Knee) at 3:28, R1
-Cyrille Diabate def. Luis Cane by TKO (Strikes) at 2:13, R1
-Aaron Riley def. Joe Brammer by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27,
30-27), R3
-Ryan Jensen def. Jesse Forbes by Submission (Guillotine Choke)
at 1:06, R1
Source: MMA Weekly
|
ESPN
2 PICKS UP MMA LIVE THROUGH AUGUST 2010
Popular web series turned ESPN 2 show, MMA Live has been picked
up through August 2010 according to a press release from the
sports' network on Saturday.
MMA
Live has been the first of its' kind for programming on ESPN
in any form, and the success of the show online translated into
being picked up and aired on ESPN 2 starting a few weeks ago
on an a provisional basis.
The
crew consisting of host Jon Anik, UFC lightweight Kenny Florian,
and a cast of guests such as UFC legend Pat Miletich and light
heavyweight Stephan Bonnar, the crew of MMA Live made a successful
move to ESPN 2 in May and has continued to provide top coverage
of the sport.
ESPN
picked up the series, which provides a weekly show and then specials
like their pre and post show coverage of UFC 113 in Montreal,
and this weekend's UFC 114 festivities in Las Vegas.
The
show will be picked up and aired on ESPN 2 at least through August
2010, and will continue to air on the network on Thursday nights
at 1am EST.
MMA
Live launched on ESPN.com in 2008, and continued growth of the
show along with the sport of mixed martial arts has given the
network incentive to keep the show airing, with a fan base rabid
for additional television coverage for the sport.
The
show will also continue on ESPN.com with additional content,
airing directly after the show on ESPN 2.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
GUILLARD
& DIABATE ROCK THE HOUSE AT UFC 114
Melvin “The Young Assassin” Guillard lived up to his
nickname on the preliminary card at UFC 114 on Saturday night
at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
When
Waylon Lowe clinched and pressed him to the fence, Guillard responded
with two jumping knees that landed. Lowe was persistent in pursuing
the takedown, but he paid dearly for it.
Following
a brief separating, Lowe shot a double-leg, but Guillard sprawled
out and drove a knee into Lowe’s sternum, dropping him hard
to his knees. The referee stepped in immediately and stopped
the bout.
Guillard
celebrated, giving much of the credit to his Jackson’s MMA
teammates and coaches before calling out who he hopes will be
his next challenge.
“How
many of you want to see me fight Jeremy Stephens? That’s
the fight I want,” he called out before leaving the Octagon.
Viva
la France!
Frenchman
Cyrille Diabate nearly saw his UFC dreams go up in smoke when
Brazilian fighter Luis Cane dropped him to the mat less than
a minute into the fight. He battled back, however, and a minute
later unloaded on Cane, dropping him to the mat with a left-right
combination and finishing him off with strikes.
Joe
Brammer and Aaron Riley went toe-to-toe for the better part of
their three-round bout, but it was Riley who maintained control
for the better part of the fight. He used the stand-up clinch
to work on Brammer with knees to the body then, later in the
fight, tripped Brammer to the ground several times. It was a
close fight with several good stand-up exchanges, but Brammer
couldn’t wrest control away long enough, giving up the unanimous
decision to Riley.
Ryan
Jensen and Jesse Forbes wasted no time getting UFC 114 off to
exciting start, despite few fans even having found their seats
yet.
Jensen
came out fast, backing Forbes up with a couple straight rights,
but was soon dropped to his knees from a Forbes right hand. Forbes
charged and drove Jensen to the mat, taking his back and looking
for a rear naked choke. Jensen quickly reversed position and
locked on a fight ending guillotine choke just over a minute
into the opening round.
Preliminary
Bouts (Non-Televised):
-Melvin Guillard def. Waylon Lowe by TKO (Knee) at 3:28, R1
-Cyrille Diabate def. Luis Cane by TKO (Strikes) at 2:13, R1
-Aaron Riley def. Joe Brammer by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27,
30-27), R3
-Ryan Jensen def. Jesse Forbes by Submission (Guillotine Choke)
at 1:06, R1
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Rashad
beats Rampage and faces Shogun
UFC
heat up one more time the sin city of Las Vegas. UFC 114 had
the Brazilians Rogerio Minotouro and Luiz Banha in action, besides
duel between the rivals Rashad Evans and Quinton Jackson. Check
below the highlights of the event.
MINOTOURO
WIN BY POINTS
Jason
Brilz surprised the Brazilian and went forward at the very beginning
of the fight getting a little vantage on the trade of punches,
Minotouro responded firmly and the first round was really tight.
On the second, Brilz dominated completely the combat and almost
submitted Rogério on a tight guillotine, which he managed
to get rid of it, but got tired. On the third and last round,
Brilz was the one tired and suddenly the Brazilian was back in
the game, regained his confidence and was indeed better. A win
for Minotouro on the split decision of the judges under boos.
RASHAD
BEATS RAMPAGE AND WILL CONFRONT SHOGUN
After
more than a year without fighting, Quinton Jackson lacked rhythm.
Rashad dominated the two first rounds with an efficient Wrestling
game and did good takedowns. On the third round, Rampage punched
Evans hard when he tried the double leg takedown. On the ground,
the judge almost interrupted the fight, but Rashad react well
and regain the control of the combat. A win by unanimous decision
of Rashad, over Rampage, who showed lack of rhythm, besides the
usual heavy hand.
BISPING
BEATS MILLER ON A BUSY FIGHT
The
English Michael Bispin, who was coming from a defeat to Wanderlei
Silva, has done a good recover work and did a good combat against
the warrior Dan Miller. Even being worse on the trade of punches,
Miller went forward and tried to do something. Bisping connected
best shots, hurt Dan’s face and got the win on the unanimous
decision of the judges.
On
the first fight of the main card, John Hathaway was better than
Diego Sanchez and dominated the three rounds, giving good shots
and almost getting a knockout in some opportunities he end up
missing. John got his tenth win, being this the most important
win on his career, and yet is unbeaten. Hathayay got it on the
unanimous judges round card decision and got it clear that he
was a hard one on the lightweight division.
On
the third combat on the main card, Todd Duffe was winning with
no difficulty on a quiet fight, but on the third round, the chubby
Mike Russow surprised Todd with a right-handed punch, who fell
uncouncious. Melvin Guillard gave a personal show over Wayne
Lowe on the beginning of the fight and with a knee on the stomach,
Lowe fell unarmed.
Source: Tatame
|
Xande
and Alejarra train hard for third absolute title
A
physical conditioning coach well known in Brazil, Rafael Alejarra
is facing a new challenge. At his new gym in California, for
the first time in his career he is coaching an athlete specifically
for Jiu-Jitsu. The athlete in question is Alexandre Ribeiro,
who will try for an unprecedented third world absolute title
at the coming Jiu-Jitsu World Championship. Check out some of
the photos taken during a session and the an interview with the
coach of some of the fight world’s biggest stars.
Is
this the first time you prepare someone for Jiu-Jitsu?
I’d
never prepared anyone just for Jiu-Jitsu before. My whole life
I worked with MMA. But that’s fine. Xande is someone easy
to work with, an athlete who offers to do the work. He doesn’t
complain and I enjoy working with him. It’s my first time
preparing someone for the Jiu-Jitsu Worlds and I was lucky because
it’s easy dealing with Xande. I’m really happy about
it and I’ll be with him and Saulo at the Worlds. I’ll
be really happy to see him win this third absolute title.
So
you feel he’ll be running on all cylinders for this competition?
He
already is!
How
is preparing someone for Jiu-Jitsu different from preparing them
for MMA?
One
thing I do with the Jiu-Jitsu guys that is different from MMA
is isometrics. We don’t use it much in MMA, but in Jiu-Jitsu
it’s almost all isometrics. It’s one of the style’s
main characteristics. We also work a lot on grip strength.
And
what are these preparations like?
We
also do a lot of agility work with balls and cones. I tend to
address Xande’s own characteristics in training so he can
develop his skills better on the mat.
Besides
Xande, who else are you working with?
I’ve
been heading the physical conditioning work of Junior Cigano,
Rogério Minotouro, Demian Maia, Cris Cyborg, KJ Noons
and some others here at my gym in San Diego, MMA Conditioning
High Performance Training.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Ralek
Gracie strips Sakuraba’s “title”
Known
as the “Gracie Hunter”, for having beaten four members
of Jiu-Jitsu’s royal family, Kazushi Sakuraba might need
a new nickname. In 2007, the Japanese idol lost a rematch with
Royce. At this Saturday’s Dream 14 event in Japan, it was
Ralek Gracie’s turn to avenge his family members.
Ralek
didn’t wilt at Sakuraba’s menacing kimura attempt and
came close to sinking a fully extended armbar. When all was said
and done, Gracie took the win via unanimous decision.
There
was more that went on last night, though. Strikeforce champion
Nick Diaz submitted Hayato Sakurai via armbar. Another of the
evening’s much-anticipated bouts saw Hiroyuki Takaya knock
out Joachim Hansen.
Check
out the results.
Dream
14
Saitama, Japan
May 29, 2010
Nick
Diaz submitted Hayato Sakurai via armbar in R1
Ralek
Gracie defeated Kazushi Sakuraba via unanimous decision
Hiroyuki
Takaya defeated Joachim Hansen via KO in R1
Kid
Yamamoto defeated “Kiko” Lopez via KO in R1
Akiyo
Nishiura defeated Hideo Tokoro via TKO in R1
Kazuyuki
Miyata defeated Takafumi Otsuka via split decision
Kenji
Osawa defeated Yoshiro Maeda via split decision
Ikuhisa
Minowa submitted Imani Lee via rear-naked choke in R1
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Shinya
Aoki vs. Tatsuya Kawajiri Set for DREAM.15
Japan's
best lightweights will finally meet in the ring as Tatsuya Kawajiri
will get his long awaited title shot against Dream lightweight
champion Shinya Aoki at DREAM.15 on July 10.
The
pair share many common opponents but notably, Strikeforce lightweight
champion Gilbert Melendez.
The
hopes of Japan were upon Aoki's shoulders going into Strikeforce:
Nashville in April but he failed to offer a challenge to Melendez
and easily lost a five round decision.
Kawajiri
fared much better however on New Year's Eve 2006 against Melendez,
also losing a decision but only by the narrowest of margins with
many observes giving the fight to "Crusher".
Source: MMA Fighting
|
Rashad
Evans Wins UFC 114 Grudge Match Over Rampage Jackson
By Mike
Chiappetta
Igniting
the spark that led to a wild rivalry with Quinton "Rampage"
Jackson 14 months ago, Evans had some thinking he bit off more
than he could chew. But in a battle of former light heavyweight
champions, Evans outworked Jackson with a perfect brew of power
striking, clinchwork and takedowns to outpoint him on the way
to a unanimous decision win at UFC 114.
Jackson
came into the fight as a favorite both on betting lines and with
the fans, who roared at every image of Jackson and went to a
full howl upon his introduction. But Jackson couldn't really
got his offense started until the third round, and by then Evans
was in firm control. After withstanding a furious Jackson charge
in the third, Evans reasserted his will and closed out the contest
in command.
The
final scores were 30-27, 29-28, 30-27.
"It's
a huge relief," Evans said afterward. "Me and Quinton
put on a good show."
"This
fight is going to haunt me," added a disappointed Jackson.
Evans
surprised onlookers from just after the opening bell, landing
his first strike, a powerful overhand right that sent Jackson
reeling sideways and against the cage. Time and again, Evans
capitalized when Jackson was against the fence, clinching him
and gambling that the work would pay off later due to his conditioning.
Despite
going from 251 pounds to 205 pounds in eight weeks, Jackson never
faded, but his timing was off on his strikes, and he later admitted
it was likely due to being rusty after the 14-month layoff.
He
did make one late charge in the third though, dropping Evans
with an uppercut against the fence. Jackson tried desperately
to finish his disoriented opponent, but Evans recovered and closed
out the round strong with two takedowns and strong groundwork
of his own.
"I'm
very surprised he recovered from that," Jackson said afterward.
"I put all my eggs in that basket and it didn't work. I
guess ring rust is a factor."
Jackson
also asked for a rematch, though the winner was promised a title
shot, meaning Evans will go on to face Mauricio "Shogun"
Rua later this year. In the post-fight press conference, Evans
said he came out of the fight injury-free, meaning the UFC will
likely go to work to put the match together in short order and
he can move past this all-encompassing feud.
"I'm
happy I don't have to answer questions about Rampage anymore,"
a beaming Evans said.
In
the co-main event, British middleweight Michael Bisping rebounded
from his UFC 110 loss by outlasting the tough New Jersey fighter
Dan Miller in a unanimous decision.
Though
Miller came in with a wrestling pedigree, he only attempted two
takedowns over the course of the 15-minute fight, landing one.
The result was a kickboxing-heavy fight that favored Bisping's
speed and accuracy.
Miller
fought a very close first round until Bisping asserted himself
from the early moments of the second. After landing a hard right,
his varied attack had Miller off-balance and bloodied from the
nose and near the eye.
"Dan
Miller is a great guy with some great skills," Bisping said.
"He'll go on to a fantastic MMA career. He's tough. I hit
him with some big right hands and he was still right there."
Undefeated
British welterweight prospect John Hathaway earned the biggest
win of his young career, upsetting Diego Sanchez in a lopsided
decision.
Hathaway
took Sanchez's favorite weapon – the takedown – out
of his arsenal, and the former No. 1 lightweight contender had
a rough time in the standup against the reach advantage of Hathaway.
Hathaway
set the tone of the fight early by knocking Sanchez down with
a knee as Sanchez shot in for a takedown. He nearly finished
it there but the durable Sanchez weathered the storm. Still,
Hathaway's long jab and right hand found their targets repeatedly,
bloodying his opponent's face.
Todd
Duffee came into the event as one of the must-watch young heavyweights
in MMA, and after two-and-a-half rounds of dominance, it seemed
the praise was well-deserved. But on his way to seemingly certain
victory, he was derailed by a stunning reversal of fortune.
Mike
Russow authored one of the most stunning comeback knockouts in
recent memory, rebounding from a two-round deficit with a pair
of back-to-back right hands that knocked out the surging Duffee.
Duffee
seemed to be in cruise control, gliding to a unanimous decision
while avoiding Russow's wrestling and takedown game. Scoring
with jabs and right hands from distance, Duffee easily captured
both of the first two rounds, and was on his way to taking the
third in the same fashion before fates quickly changed.
While
one young prospect prospered, another floundered.
Russow
stepped into an overhand right that landed on the chin. Duffee
was already falling backwards as Russow caught him with a follow-up
right. Duffee crashed to the mat unconscious for the sudden KO.
Amazingly, Russow fought much of the bout with a broken arm after
blocking a Nogueira kick, it was reported by the UFC in explaining
Russow's absence from the post-fight press conference.
In
the most controversial fight of the evening, top 10 light-heavyweight
Antonio Rogerio Nogueira avoided a major upset, with the judges
handing him a disputed split decision win.
Brilz
seemed to control both of the first two rounds with his takedowns
and groundwork while Nogueira captured the third in desperation
mode. The vast majority of what appeared to be a pro-Nogueira
crowd felt Brilz won the fight, but when the decision was read,
Nogueira got the nod.
The
fight was essentially decided by the pivotal first, which judges
Tony Weeks and Marcos Rosales both scored for Nogueira.
The
crowd drowned out Nogueira's post-fight comments booing the seeming
injustice, though Brilz took it in stride.
"First
off, don't boo this guy, he's one heckuva fighter," Brilz
said. "Don't boo him. I left it to the decision of the judges.
It is what it is, but I had a good performance, and that's what
the whole plan was."
On
the first fight of the Spike portion of the broadcast, Efrain
Escudero defeated Dan Lauzon by unanimous decision, getting the
judges' nod by identical scores of 29-27.
Escudero
controlled the entire fight with clinchwork that featured a steady
diet of knees to the body. He also outstruck Lauzon en route
to the win. The odd score came as the result of a point that
was deducted for a third-round low blow.
Dong
Hyun-Kim followed that with an equally dominant performance,
staying unbeaten with a systematic unanimous decision over Amir
Sadollah.
Kim
(13-0-1) took Sadollah down seemingly at will, and while he wasn't
able to finish the fight, he rarely gave up position and scored
with well-timed elbows and strikes from the top. Sadollah was
never really able to get any offense going until the final moments
of the 15-minute fight, when he landed his first power combo
of the night.
Sadollah
fell to 3-2 with the loss.
In
the prelims, Ryan Jensen needed just 1:06 to finish Jesse Forbes
via guillotine submission, Aaron Riley outworked Joe Brammer
to earn a unanimous decision, Cyrille Diabate KO'd Luiz Cane
to win his promotional debut, and Melvin Guillard made it four
of his last five, scoring a first-round knockout of Waylon Lowe.
Source: MMA Fighting
|
50th
State Fair “SELECT COMBAT”
Friday, June 18 & Saturday, June 19
ITINERARY:
Friday,
June 18th
4:00pm Staff Meeting
5:00-6:00pm SC One Tournament Weigh-ins
6:30-7:00pm Rules Meeting for Tournament and Fight
7:00-9:00pm SC One Tournament
7:00-8:00pm SC One Fight Weigh-ins
Saturday,
June 19th
3:00pm Staff Meeting
4:00pm Keiki matches (10) matches
12
& under:
(2 min) Takedowns
(2 min) Positions
13 – 18 yrs old:
(1 min) Kickboxing
(1.5 min) Boxing & Takedowns
(2 min) Jiu Jitsu
5:30pm Adult matches (15) matches
(1 min) Kickboxing
(1.5 min) Boxing & Takedowns
(2 min) Jiu Jitsu
8:00pm End
TICKET
PRICES:
Pre-sale
tickets (up to June 18th) – $20 per adult / $8 keiki
School
Groups of (10) or more – $15 per adult / $6 keiki
Door
- $25 adult / $10 keiki
50th
State Fair “50th State BJJ Championships”
Friday,
June 25 & Saturday, June 26
ITINERARY:
Friday,
June 25th
5:00pm
Weigh-ins begin
5:30-6:00pm 1st seminar / exhibition
6:15-6:45pm Rules Meeting
7:00-7:30pm 2nd seminar / exhibition
8:00pm End of weigh-ins
Saturday,
June 26th
8:00am Staff Meeting
9:00am Keiki matches start
11:00am Women’s matches start
1:00pm Men’s matches start
6:00pm Tournament ends
PRICE:
Pre-registration
(before June 18th)
$60 per adult / $35 per keiki (12 & under)
Regular
Registration (June 18th-June 25th)
$75 per adult / $50 per keiki (12 & under)
Walk-Up
(day of tournament)
$100 per competitor
Door
- $10.00
Source: Egan Inoue
|
Nogueira
points “Cigano” as next champion
Former Pride and UFC heavyweight champion, Rodrigo Minotauro
Nogueira is a little bit further from the top of the division
after his loss to Cain Velasquez, but the athlete believes that
the belt of the heavyweight division has a great potential of
coming to Brazil in the waste of other tough contender: Junior
“Cigano” dos Santos.
“He’s
going through a very good time on his career, a very good phase,
just I had those moments to become a Champion and other I didn’t.
I’m happy for his good moment… He smells the belt,
so we’re training him to get there”, analyzes Minotauro,
in an interview to May’s edition of TATAME Magazine, betting
on his training partner. “His moment is now, it’s everything
going just fine so he can dispute the belt… He was trained
to become the champion of the world and his time will come. If
it’s now, we’ll be glad to be a part of it”.
Source: Tatame
|
UFC
Announces Opening of Canadian Office
Names Former CFL Commissioner Tom Wright Director for Canada
By FCF
Staff
The
Ultimate Fighting Championship has announced today that the MMA
promotion will open an office in Toronto, Ontario, and has hired
former Canadian Football League Commissioner Tom Wright, as the
new Director of Canadian operations. According to a post on the
official UFC site, which accompanied a press conference that
was held in Toronto earlier today, Wright’s role will:
“focus
on improving and strengthening UFC’s relations within local
communities, provincial governments, Canadian businesses and
the national and local media. Wright will build upon the efforts
to regulate the sport of mixed martial arts in Ontario, and as
he stated today, toward implementing a regular UFC events schedule
that would include holding up to three UFC events per year in
Canada.”
The
creation of a Canadian office / division mirrors what the UFC
did previously in the United Kingdom, where Marshall Zelaznik
is the head of operations. In addition to his previous experience
as the CFL Commissioner, Wright has been a President and or CEO
with several sports related companies including Adidas Canada
LTD and Spalding Canada LTD. He has also been the Director of
the Special Olympics Canada Foundation since 2002.
The
UFC has held three previous events in Montreal, Quebec, and the
promotion’s upcoming June 12th card in Vancouver, British
Columbia, was the promotion’s fastest sell out on record.
The promotion’s smaller affiliate, World Extreme Cagefighting,
will make its Canadian debut on June 20th in Edmonton, Alberta.
Source: Full Contact Fighter
|
Wand
exclusive: “Akiyama is really strong”
Coming from a win over Michael Bisping, Wanderlei Silva will
have a great challenge on UFC 116, which will happen on July
3 in Las Vegas, United States: Yoshihiro Akiyama, who suffered
one single loss on MMA for the striker Jerome Le Banner, who
had over 20kg more than him. With 15 wins in 15 fights against
Japanese fighters, Wanderlei knows that Akiyama is tough.
“It’ll be the professor Rafael (Cordeiro) who will
deal with it and guide the sparring to do it the way it must
be done. Akiyama is really tough, a good guy, who was an athlete
for all his life through. He has a good ground game, Akiyama
is really strong”, compliments the former Pride champion
in an interview he gave on TATAME Magazine #170, believing that
the Japanese style, who won all of his fights by knockout or
submission, will match his.
“It’ll
be an interesting fight, it’s a good fight for me because
he goes forward and goes with the flow, he doesn’t run off.
I believe the fight will be busy, a big show”, promises,
adapting to the new division. “I want to keep on fighting
for the next six years, at least until I’m forty. This division
change was good, I had to change my diet and I’m feeling
just fine”, concluded.
Source: Tatame
|
The
Wackiest Moments in MMA History
As if Liddell in the buff wasn't enough, here are eleven more
unforgettable (for better or worse) moments in MMA history.
By Jonathan Snowden
Chuck Liddell's inexplicable naked nautilus left my jaw agape,
but set my mind in action. Has their been anything in the history
of MMA to match that moment for its oddness? Its creepiness?
Its inexplicable ability to draw the eye? In short, are there
eleven moments to match it? Of course not. It's one of a kind.
But it did give me a chance to think of the top eleven wackiest
moments in MMA history.
11.
Randleman KO's Himself Before UFC 24 Main Event
Kevin Randleman was a physical specimen and one of the scariest
men on the planet. Not only was he the Ultimate Fighting Championship
Heavyweight Champion, he was also a complete loose cannon known
for explosive rage in and out of the cage. He won some, lost
some, but always gave a hell of a fight. Only one opponent was
unyielding: some carelessly placed backstage pipes. He slipped,
cracked his head and his heavyweight title fight with Pedro Rizzo
was canceled right in the middle of the Pay-Per-View.
Credit: WCW
10. Abbott "Goes" Wild at UFC 17
"Tank" Abbott made his reputation in the MMA world
with his wild tales of brutal streetfights. He had the prison
record to back up his boisterous claims and often created as
much chaos outside the Octagon as he did in it. Abbott traveled
with a collection of thugs and trouble always followed. At UFC
8, he took things too far. First he went after Jiu Jitsu expert
Alan Goes in the stands because Goes had been telling friends
how he tapped Abbott out in training. Then he took the verbal
battle to Elaine McCarthy, referee Big John's wife and the UFC's
travel agent. Abbott ended up suspended with pay for almost a
year - clearly the winner, being paid to sit at home while McCarthy
chilled out. Tank Abbott was always smarter than he looked.
Credit: Combat Lifestyle
9. JUST BLEED Guy
Before there was Tapout or Affliction to help immediately identify
D-Bag MMA fans and wannabe fighters, it was a little harder to
tell which fans were raving lunatics. Except for the "Just
Bleed" guy. He became a legend among hardcore fans for his
brief appearance during introductions at UFC 15. He was shirtless,
drunk and flexing his muscles. That was great, but we were just
getting started: he also had "UFC" hand painted on
his forehead and "Just Bleed" hand painted on his chest.
He was clearly an amazing man, an American icon and an inspiration
for future fighter Tom Lawlor.
Credit: AP
8. Brock Lesnar Takes on Mir, Mir's Dad, the Crowd and UFC Sponsors
Brock Lesnar was pretty worked up after his UFC 100 win over
arch nemesis Frank Mir. It wasn't enough to have pounded Mir
into what Mike Tyson called "the state of Bolivian."
He also felt compelled to rub it in. He tossed spittle all over
Mir and his dad, pointing and taunting his vanquished foe and
throwing up a double bird salute to the booing crowd. The UFC
has pulled the video from YouTube but Brock's words will live
forever. He claimed he was going home to drink a Coors Lite because
the UFC's largest sponsor, Bud Light "won't pay me nothing."
He then told a horrified audience he was going home to "get
on top of my wife." America, meet the sport of MMA!
Credit: Pride
7. Royce Gracie and Kazushi Sakuraba Go 90 Minutes
Royce Gracie was the sport's most enduring legend. He had never
truly been defeated in his first UFC tenure and after sitting
out for several years, was returning to the ring to compete with
a new generation of MMA stars. First among them was Kazushi Sakuraba,
who had defeated Gracie's brother Royler in an earlier bout.
Because the Gracie family believed Royler had been cheated in
his fight, they requested special rules for Royce's fight with
Sakuraba, that included unlimited 15 minute rounds. The two battled
for six rounds, a total of 90 minutes, before Royce's brother
Rorion (the founder of the UFC) threw in the towel. It was an
amazing performance, especially when you consider how many fighters
get tired after a single five minute round.
Credit: UFC
6. The Buffer 360
Bruce Buffer is an enduring and important part of the UFC show.
For probably the only time in his life, in the Octagon he is
"The Buffer," not just the younger, goofier brother
of boxing and pro wrestling stalwart Michael "Are You Ready
to Rumble" Buffer. Although the production crew always seems
to miss it, Buffer is famous in the arena for the "Buffer
180." He will begin introducing a fighter while looking
across the ring at his opponent, before dramatically turning
around to point at the fighter in question at the last moment.
For UFC 100, Buffer took the "Buffer 180" to a new
level. Who better to receive the first and only Buffer 360 than
UFC champion Brock Lesnar? It was a breathtaking moment, immortalized,
like all things in this wacky modern world, by cell phone camera.
5. Chuck Liddell Knocked Unconscious in Atlanta
This one was more eerie than wacky. At UFC 88, the Octagon traveled
back to the southeast for the first time in years. Like in most
cities, light heavyweight legend Chuck Liddell was by far the
crowd favorite. He had lost his title to Quinton Jackson, but
wowed the MMA world with a rock-em-sock-em robots type fight
with rival Wanderlei Silva at UFC 79. He was expected to make
short work of the former Ultimate Fighter winner Rashad Evans
and earn a rubber match with Jackson. Instead, Liddell was left
quivering and drooling in the cage after an Evans punch ended
his night. What makes this such a memorable moment was the crowd.
The 15,000 people in the Phillips Arena turned on a dime from
typically raucous UFC fans to mourners at the world's creepiest
funeral.
Credit: Chuck Liddell
4. Chuck Liddell's Cry for Help
Chuck Liddell's bizarre naked workout video was hardly his first
foray into controversy. Liddell, known for his partying, attracted
plenty of attention for his incoherent appearance on Good Morning
Texas while promoting the movie 300. Liddell slurred his words
and at one point appeared to fall asleep. He also claimed his
next fight would be with HIV infected boxer Tommy Morrison. The
performance concerned the Nevada Athletic Commission enough for
them to bring the fighter in for a drug test days later. He passed.
Credit: Shonie Carter
3. Shonie Carter Refs a Double KO
A double knockout is inherently exciting. Both men (Shaun Parker
and Tyler Bryan) land on the button, both fall, both are out
like a light. Having it all go down in eight seconds takes it
to the next level. Having the immortal Shonie Carter as the third
man in the cage makes it priceless. Carter is one of MMA's great
characters. He's fought some of the very best and made the fourth
season of The Ultimate Fighter watchable with non-stop hijinks.
He's at his campy best here, making a great moment even better.
Credit: Esther Lin
2. Cyborg Leaps on Cage to Celebrate: While Fight Goes On!
You could forgive Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos for believing
her fight with an overmatched Shayna Baszler was all over. She
had landed more than ten unanswered blows and dropped her opponent.
Referee Steve Mazzagatti moved in like he was stopping the fight
and Cyborg sprinted across the cage and leaped to the top to
celebrate. The problem? Mazzagatti didn't actually stop the fight.
"After I saw her on the mat, I thought I won and then the
referee told me to come back," Cyborg said. The notorious
masochist made Cyborg leap down and pound on Shayna a little
bit more, dropping her again, before he finally called a stop
to the contest.
Credit: Full Contact Fighter
1. Newton Pays For His Own Triangle Choke
Matt Hughes was desperate to avenge his teacher Pat Miletich.
Carlos Newton had choked him out with an old school playground
move and claimed his belt. Hughes wanted to bring the title home
to the Miletich family. His desire almost cost him: he got sloppy
and Newton caught him in a triangle choke, wrapping his legs
around Hughes' head and squeezing like a python. Hughes responded
the only way he could think of, by picking Newton up over his
head. As Newton hung precariously over the mat, Hughes lost consciousness,
slamming Newton to the mat. Newton was knocked out and lost his
grip. A groggy Hughes was declared the winner, in one of the
UFC's most memorable moments.
Source: UGO
|
The
end of Tito Ortiz in UFC?
By Zach
Arnold
So it was revealed that he needs neck surgery for disc issues.
I thought the surgery from NuVasive was supposed to fix a lot
of his problems? It would seem like a real injury as opposed
to the “skull” issues he claimed he had going into
the Forrest Griffin fight (and Forrest went in with a broken
foot). Truthfully, Tito is physically shot and it’s time
for either UFC or a major athletic commission to step in and
end his career — you can’t come back from all those
surgeries and expect to even compete against middle-of-the-road
Light Heavyweights at this point. Meanwhile, Chuck Liddell is
pissed that Tito “didn’t ever want to fight him”,
but Chuck should thank Tito because this season’s TUF has
been a very positive development for keeping Chuck’s career
alive.
Kotaku
has a report on UFC’s online use-code mishaps. At least
you can be Shaq in the UFC game if you want.
Mike
Russow, police officer. A surge in MMA fighters donning the badge?
Nick
Diaz says Hayato Sakurai is better than Takanori Gomi and Shinya
Aoki. I guess he has to try to justify that main event for DREAM’s
show coming up at Saitama Super Arena. In terms of drawing power,
it’s as ridiculous of a main event for a major building
in Japan as I’ve seen for a long time (excluding anything
Sengoku has done).
Showdown
Joe Ferraro described today’s UFC press conference as an
awkward atmosphere. You think? The media bandwagon of picking
Rashad Evans to beat Rampage Jackson continues to grow. Rampage
was all business at the presser. A serious Rampage is a winning
Rampage.
I
noted in an interview that Reed Harris did on Tapout radio that
Reed called the Leonard Garcia/Korean Zombie fight the best fight
he’s ever seen in MMA. Leonard might agree with him and
also thinks he hasn’t reached the prime of his career, yet.
Source: Fight Opinion
|
More
Bouts Confirmed for UFC on Versus 2
By FCF
Staff
Only
hours after the UFC officially confirmed that a light-heavyweight
tilt between Jon Jones (10-1) and Vladimir Matyushenko (24-4)
would headline its upcoming August 1st, UFC on Versus 2 event
in Salt Lake City, the promotion has announced several more bouts
for the card. The event, which will be broadcast live on the
Versus network, will be hosted by Salt Lake City’s EnergySolutions
Arena.
In
addition to a previously confirmed middleweight bout between
Yushin Okami (25-5) and Mark Munoz (8-1), the UFC has confirmed
that a welterweight fight between Jake Ellenberger (22-5) and
John Howard (14-4), as well as, a lightweight clash between Tanakori
Gomi (31-6) and Joe Stevenson (36-11), is scheduled for the main
card.
The
line-up for the event’s preliminary card includes: at welterweight,
Matt Ridddle (4-1) vs. DaMarques Johnson (16-7), at light-heavyweight,
James Irvin (14-6-0 I NC) vs. Igor Pokrajac (21-7), at middleweight,
Rob Kimmons (22-5) vs. Steve Steinbess (4-3), and in another
185lb. tilt, Brian Stann (8-3) vs. Mike Massenzio (11-3).
Source: Full Contact Fighter
|
Pedro
Rizzo
By Guilherme Cruz
One of the greatest names in Brazilian’s MMA history, Pedro
Rizzo came with a win in his hands from American’s stages.
Back to Brazil after beating Gay Goodrigde using his strong point,
which is the low kicks, the heavyweight talked to TATAME and
celebrated the win over the American, talked about the expectations
for the fight he will do against Ken Shamrock, in June, and his
wish to confront Josh Barnett, who will fight in the same event
in Australia. Check below the exclusive interview with Pedro
Rizzo.
What did you think about your win over Gary Goodridge?
It was nice, not because of the win, because I think I didn’t
fight well. I have to improve some things to get to the level
I’m hoping to get. I think I have to improve my speed, my
conditioning… In fact, a lot of conditioning, but I think
I’ll get there with a good sequence of fights. There were
two mistakes, so I have to improve. I thought I could end that
fight sooner, but it was good for the win and for realizing I
have a lot of things to work on.
Do you think that your time off, because of an injury, disturbed
your performance on your last fight?
Yes, since I fought with Jeff (Monson) and, before that fight,
I was a year without a fight. These two years I’ve been
irregular on my fights. I have to improve my conditioning with
two, three or four fights in a roll. That really gets in my way.
I have another fight now, against Ken Shamrock and, with the
help of God, I’ll be back to be the fighter I used to be.
Were you surprised that he did not come back for the third round
after all injuries you caused him?
No. I think he handled a lot the pain in his leg, I kicked his
legs too much and, as I kept on kicking him, I thought the fight
would end even sooner. I think I did not make the right tactic.
In fact, I had one and then I did other thing inside the octagon,
I end up bringing him down. If I had stood from the beginning,
I think the fight would have been shorter. He was not ok, I knew
he could come back or not, but I really wasn’t hoping that
he did come back and, if he had, he would be in real pain.
In July you will fight Shamrock… What are your expectations
for that fight?
It’s fine, man. It’s a good thing to have a scheduled
fight, but that’s not my only focus. I’m taking a week
off and next week I’ll be back to the trainings, so let’s
see. I’ll try to improve everything, because it’s easier
to train after a fight, you are already conditioned. Now I have
to work on the things I didn’t do for this fight. I have
to improve fitness, my air conditioning was good, but it can
be better… I was slow and I also have to work on my support…
I have to work a lot on my timing, reaction speed. I can get
it all once I get my rhythm back and at least it’ll be easier
now that I have fought, so it’s easier than starting out
of nowhere.
What do you think it would be a good strategy to beat him? To
bet on your low kicks?
Can be… As in all fights, I like to start it standing. I
think that I’m better than him on that part of the game.
I’ll go with the flow. He has a good fall technique, but
I think that the best thing to do would be to fight standing
and, if we go to the ground, I have to try to fall on the top
of him and punching him. I didn’t think about it very much,
but I think that what I’m already doing will be enough to
beat him.
You have signed with Impact FC, which is a good three card event,
and Josh Barnett is on it, a guy you beat once, but lost on the
last time you confronted each other… Do you think about
a rematch?
It’d be a good thing. I’ll have my second fight now,
against a tough guy. It would be a good fight, because Josh is
also off for a while. I think it’s time to fight a respected
guy, a guy who has been fighting in a high level for several
years, a tough guy. It would really be a possible next step after
this next fight, for me it would be great to fight him again.
But I think there are a lot of events other than this one. The
guys are fighting and the athletes, thanks God, are having a
hard time (laughs). I intend to fight twice, for sure, this year
and be in a good rhythm and then I’ll see if I can fight
in a high level like I used to, with ranked fights and try to
fight in a big event like UFC or Strikeforce… these are
things that, for me to achieve, first I have to win three or
four fights more, but I think it’s a possibility. It’s
great that we are having all of these events. I heard that, last
weekend, on May 15, when I fought, there were 15 fight events
happening in the United States, so it’s a growing thing.
Are you going to your farm to rest a bit and then come back to
the hard trainings?
Yes,
man. I can’t rest too much because next week Glover Teixeira
and Vitor Miranda will fight… Two days ago I arrived at
the airport, went home quickly and then went to the gym to help
the guys that help me. They will fight against tough guys, so
I’ll just go to the farm in the weekend. Until Friday I’ll
be here training with them and, thanks God, I only have a hurt
hand and next week I’ll fight them, because they have scheduled
fights. On the next Friday maybe I travel for three or four days
so I can come back to the hard trainings on the first week of
June.
Source: Tatame
|
UFC
114 Preview: The Main Card
by Tomas
Rios
Hawaii
Air Times:
UFC 114 Countdown 12:30 - 1:30PM Channel 559
UFC 114: Preliminaries 3:00 - 4:00PM Channel 559
UFC 114: Rampage vs. Evans 4:00 - 7:00PM Channel 701
The
UFC 114 pay-per-view violence-fest Saturday will be a defining
day in the lives of Rashad Evans and Quinton Jackson. Former
UFC light heavyweight champions, this may be the last time the
loser even sniffs a title shot given the army of light heavyweight
prospects coming down the pike. Meanwhile the winner will finally
get the chance to regain the title he so briefly held.
Rampage-Evans
won’t be the only bit of fistic intrigue at the MGM Grand
Arena in Las Vegas, though. Tony Robbins disciple Diego Sanchez
makes his return to the welterweight division, man-mountain Todd
Duffee looks to continue his “Hard Work Tour” and Michael
Bisping just wants everyone to forget the flying forearm Dan
Henderson dropped on his dome.
In
other words, read the preview and make sure you have your Saturday
night clear of any possible distractions. For example, I filed
a false death report on myself to make sure no one bothers me
-- works like a charm every time.
Quinton
Jackson vs. Rashad Evans
After
months of trash-talk that gradually turned into repulsive race
baiting and bizarrely homoerotic threats, Jackson and Evans will
finally settle their super-charged feud. Adding some fuel to
the raging firestorm is the light heavyweight title shot against
Mauricio Rua awaiting the winner of this fight.
Who
gets the marbles, pogs and all other available play pieces depends
largely on what sort of strategy Evans shows up with and what
kind of shape Jackson is in. Fresh off shooting the completely
unnecessary movie adaptation of “The A-Team,” Jackson’s
focus on fighting has been justifiably questioned, especially
since he has a long history of distractions outside the cage
and inconsistent performances. While no one is questioning Evans’
commitment to the sport, he is an undersized light heavyweight
who has repeatedly shown an utter lack of strategy inside the
cage.
One
need only look at Evans’ most recent fights for proof that
he doesn’t seem to fight with a game plan in mind. He gassed
himself out trying to muscle around Thiago Silva and played right
into Lyoto Machida’s game by stepping inside the pocket
with badly telegraphed power punches. Even Evans’ win over
Forrest Griffin saw him lose the first two rounds before lucking
into top control and rightly capitalizing on the opportunity.
In those first two rounds, however, Evans was soundly out-boxed
and relied far too much on landing single power punches.
That
won’t work against Jackson, who is the far more fundamentally
sound boxer and one of the division’s best counterpunchers.
At least he is when he bothers to show up for fights, a fact
driven home by his wildly uneven performance against Keith Jardine
at UFC 96. Still, Jackson has the chin to take Evans’ punches
and he is far more accurate with his own strikes.
The
way Evans can win this fight is by using his movement to stay
outside the pocket and whip leg kicks at Jackson’s lead
leg. For whatever reason Jackson refuses to check leg kicks despite
the fact that he’s been ravaged by them several times before.
Attacking with kicks, though, might require a level of strategic
savvy that has long been missing from Evans’ game.
What
really puts this fight beyond Evans’ reach, however, is
his perplexing insistence on going for takedowns against physically
stronger opponents. Not only does this tax his gas tank, but
it also exposes his weak base, which everyone from Thiago Silva
to Michael Bisping has exposed several times over. Jackson certainly
has the wrestling to stuff Evans’ shot, especially since
Evans tends to shoot in from way outside the pocket instead of
setting up his level change with strikes.
All
in all there really isn’t a clear path to victory for Evans
unless Jackson enters this fight with his mind going in a million
different directions. Given the stakes at hand and the utter
disdain these two have for each other, it’s hard to imagine
either fighter showing up with anything less than an alpha game.
That scenario not only favors Jackson, but practically guarantees
Evans will get laid out.
Michael
Bisping vs. Dan Miller
Coming
off consecutive losses to Demian Maia and Chael Sonnen, Miller
probably has a good feel for what it’s like to be Michael
Bisping -- that is, a quality middleweight stuck in the gray
area between gatekeepers and title contenders. If either man
is going to shed that distinction, it’s going to require
a resolution to the stylistic issues created by their one-dimensional
fighting styles.
Not
an altogether realistic goal for two veteran fighters. That leaves
the question of whether or not Bisping can stuff Miller’s
takedowns and work his punch-and-judy boxing style. That right
there is Bisping’s main problem, as he actually has solid
takedown defense and, more importantly, knows how to clear his
hips after getting taken down and escape back to the feet. Yet
Bisping doesn’t have the KO power to keep opponents from
simply getting right back in his face and restarting the cycle.
This
is where the fight gets complicated. Miller has the wrestling
to get Bisping down but not the grappling or ground-and-pound
to overwhelm him from there. This is key, as Bisping’s ability
to escape to the feet means Miller has to try and get past Bisping’s
guard before he can clear his hips. The limitations of Miller’s
game will become apparent here, though, because Bisping excels
at controlling his opponent’s posture from the guard.
That
is the polar opposite of what Miller wants. His game is at its
best in scrambles where he can advance position and make better
use of his grappling as opposed to relying on his substandard
ground-and-pound inside the guard. It should also be noted that
Bisping showed incredible savvy in his bout with Denis Kang,
managing to survive multiple threatening positions against a
well-respected grappler. The flipside of that is Bisping ultimately
had to rely on Kang self-destructing like Chernobyl in order
to pull off a win.
Miller
has the conditioning and focus to assure that he won’t end
up like Kang. His uncoordinated striking is a serious liability
in this fight, however. While Bisping isn’t going to KO
anyone with a halfway decent chin, he does know how to rack up
points by throwing strikes in volume. If Miller chooses to stand
his ground on the feet, he’ll certainly get outpointed,
but it doesn’t make any sense for him to do so.
Against
Maia, Miller clearly felt that his opponent posed too much of
a threat with submissions to take him down. Against Sonnen, he
was simply outwrestled. Bisping doesn’t pose the same threats,
but his takedown defense and busy punching style should be just
enough to eke out a decision win.
Todd
Duffee vs. Mike Russow
Childhood
fans of He-Man have finally found their MMA avatar in the walking
muscle magazine advertisement known as Todd Duffee, an undefeated
heavyweight whose knack for first-round stoppages already has
the UFC building him into its next homegrown superstar. No such
hype accompanies Mike Russow to the cage, but he’s long
been a quality heavyweight gatekeeper with the caliber of wrestling
to give excessively hyped prospects issues.
Duffee,
a real-life Prince Adam, isn’t a product of careful marketing
machinations, however. He’s genuinely mutant cobra venom
to one-dimensional wrestlers like Russow. No knock on Russow,
but beyond a solid single-leg takedown and some good secondary
techniques, he doesn’t have much to offer Duffee. Even scoring
a takedown will be problematic because he doesn’t set up
his level changes at all and often relies on pressing opponents
against the cage to finish takedowns.
It’s
going to take an explosive first step that Russow doesn’t
have to successfully attack Duffee’s legs. Getting into
tie-ups with Duffee against the cage does the Chicago native
no favors. Those physical battles that Russow is accustomed to
winning actually favor Duffee’s superior athleticism and
underrated Greco-Roman clinch skills. Considering Russow’s
tendency to overcommit to leg attacks, Duffee will have plenty
of time to counter by grabbing the over/under control he favors
and working the grinding, close-quarters game he used to pelt
Assuerio Silva.
This
all assumes Russow will get close enough to affect the pace of
the fight, which ignores his ineffective striking and telegraphed
takedowns. If Duffee gets the timing down on Russow’s attacks,
it’s a matter of time before he catches him in the same
fashion that led to his record-breaking seven-second KO of Tim
Hague.
That
instant addition to the highlight canon has created the misconception
that Duffee is a supreme striker, but he actually uses his striking
more to set up level changes and clinch tie-ups. While Duffee
doesn’t have the wrestling background of Russow, he makes
up the difference with an alchemical combination of quick feet
and brute strength that most heavyweights are unaccustomed to
dealing with. Russow just isn’t the sort of fundamentally
astute wrestler that will give Duffee problems, and he lacks
the finishing skill to maximize any takedowns he does score.
Ignore his high percentage of finishes: Russow’s ground-and-pound
is more a nuisance than anything, and his submission transitions
are equal parts sloppy and rehearsed.
Still,
a solid wrestler with some offensive skills is going to be a
tough match for most -- just not for Duffee, who has Russow beat
in every facet of the game. Expect to see a more realistic representation
of Duffee’s style, as he moves in and out on Russow with
power punches before slamming him down and finishing with a ground-and-pound
siege. Whether or not this fight will be a suitable meal for
Duffee or a mere appetizer is anyone’s guess.
Antonio
Rogerio Nogueira vs. Jason Brilz
After
he starched Luis Arthur Cane at UFC 106, the list of fighters
willing to fight Nogueira had to shrink considerably. When Forrest
Griffin was forced to pull out of this fight less than a month
ago, it was hard to imagine who would be brave and/or crazy enough
to take on “Minotoro” on such short notice. That distinction
belongs to Brilz, who will make a Scott Bakula-level quantum
leap against arguably the most underappreciated fighter of the
past decade.
Finally
in the UFC after several years of bouncing around promotions
in search of quality opponents, Nogueira put the world on notice
when he effortlessly dismantled Cane. However, his 2009 fight
with Vladimir Matyushenko should worry Brilz more. Much like
Matyushenko, Brilz’s wrestling chops may be overstated,
and he has developed into more of a dirty boxer than anything
else. In his fight with Nogueira, Matyushenko tried to close
the pocket and rough up the Brazilian but instead repeatedly
ran into punching combinations and knees to the body.
Nogueira
has proven adept at catching opponents coming in and using his
movement to evade the clinch. That strategy will be especially
effective against Brilz, who fights flat-footed and has been
vulnerable to rangy fighters who can pick at him from afar. Even
if Brilz manages to collapse the pocket, Nogueira’s hand
speed and smooth hooking combinations can carry him there.
Never
mind the possibility of this fight hitting the ground, where
Nogueira remains arguably the best guard player in the division.
Brilz seemed hesitant to take down Eric Schafer, and it seems
unlikely he would try his luck against a next-level grappler
like Nogueira. Again, this assumes Brilz can even get him to
the ground, which depends more on Nogueira’s willingness
to pull guard.
For
whatever reason, Brilz seems to lack urgency and has oftentimes
looked content to ride out decisions inside the clinch. As a
result, he has been ineffective when he cannot get to the clinch,
and Nogueira possesses the reach and boxing to keep the pocket
open. There are not many light heavyweights out there who have
any chance of beating Nogueira in a long-range boxing match.
Nogueira
has proven a stylistic nightmare for anyone dependant on fighting
at a specific range. Brilz fits that bill perfectly and lacks
the secondary skills to give Nogueira a different look and keep
him guessing. The difference in pure technical ability will manifest
itself in particularly violent fashion, as Brilz ends up as the
latest addition to Nogueira’s ever-growing collection of
finishes.
Diego
Sanchez vs. John Hathaway
Sanchez’s
ongoing quest for a UFC title picks up where it started, as he
returns to the welterweight ranks after a lightweight run ended
in a one-sided loss to B.J. Penn. The deluge of dominating wrestlers
populating the welterweight ranks were a constant roadblock for
Sanchez the first time around, and he faces the same challenges
in Hathaway.
A
converted rugby player, Hathaway has developed the sort of rugged
ground-and-pound style that Jon Fitch used to edge Sanchez at
UFC 76. However, Hathaway is not an elite wrestler and does not
have the base to stuff Sanchez’s guard. Because Hathaway
does not hold position well, he can be easily swept, as evidenced
by his bout with Rick Story. There, he squandered multiple dominant
positions.
Sanchez
presents an entirely different challenge, as his slashing elbows
and offensive guard work make him difficult to contain. Beyond
that, Sanchez will be at least as good a wrestler as Hathaway
and actually has more explosion on his leg attacks. The clinch
could prove a virtual stalemate since both fighters rely more
on brute strength than technique to score takedowns from the
Greco-Roman tie-up.
Should
the wrestling reach a standstill, the fight turns significantly
in Sanchez’s favor, as his striking, albeit rehearsed, remains
far more refined than Hathaway’s. Known mostly for his left
high kick and one-two boxing combinations, Sanchez has added
knees and a slick uppercut to his inside game, which gives him
more options than Hathaway on the feet. Save for some straight
punches and the occasional lead knee, Hathaway does not have
much standing offense to offer, and his defense looks wide open
in comparison to Sanchez, who keeps his hands high and tight.
While
Sanchez remains vulnerable to counterpunches because of his predictable
striking, Hathaway lacks the technique and hand speed to parry
his offense. Want a good example of how this fight shapes up?
Check out Sanchez’s fight with Clay Guida, as he was able
to step inside with strikes because he did not have to worry
about getting countered. Sanchez is at his best when he can cut
loose with strikes without regard for takedowns from someone
who can neutralize his grappling.
At
just 22, Hathaway will eventually develop into a top-flight welterweight;
his natural talent for combining Brazilian jiu-jitsu with ground-and-pound
is too great to expect anything less. Still, this does not look
like a particularly winnable fight for him, as Sanchez has the
better offensive skills and a significant grappling advantage
that will make Hathaway’s usual ground-and-pound approach
far more difficult. Like any proper rugby player, Hathaway has
proven tougher than the Texas penal system, but that will only
keep him in the fight long enough to end up on the short end
of a unanimous decision.
Source: Sherdog
|
Gracies
Hope to Land Reality Show on New Oprah Channel
by John
Chandler
Taking the art of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu to new heights is nothing
new for the Gracies. Nearly 17 years after bringing their talents
to the masses through the UFC, MMA’s first family is hoping
to conquer a new outlet that could increase their exposure even
further.
Rener
Gracie and his siblings, children of UFC co-founder Rorion Gracie,
are spearheading efforts to start a reality television show on
the debuting Oprah Winfrey Network, scheduled to start airing
programming in January 2011. The concept of the show will revolve
around “bullyproofing,” the Gracie family’s attempt
to curb the epidemic of bullying involving children and teenagers
around the world, and an issue that Winfrey herself has focused
on heavily in the past.
“We
came up with the idea about a year ago,” Rener Gracie told
Sherdog.com. “We’ve had kids coming to our academy
that have been tormented by bullies. They’ve been afraid
to go to school. Some have even been suicidal. Training them
(in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu) and working with them helped build their
confidence and it has basically inspired us to want to do something
on a much larger scale.”
If
the show comes to fruition, Rener envisions a camp-like atmosphere
at the Gracie Academy in Torrance, Calif., that will have kids
learn self defense through jiu-jitsu all while having their self-esteem
built up through a variety of activities inspired by the "Big
Brother" program.
“The
plan is to reach out to these kids and take them under our wings,”
Gracie said. “We want to teach them how to defend themselves,
but more importantly, we want to build up their confidence and
give them the motivation to want to go to school. Bullying is
one of the top factors behind suicide in young kids. They don’t
need to be the victims anymore. We want to find those who are
on the borderline and bring them back. Let’s show them that
there is hope and that they have a bright future.”
Support
from MMA enthusiasts and interested voters alike has resulted
in nearly 1 million votes for the Gracie’s idea already.
Voting for the contest, which is unlimited, is set to continue
through July 3. Those interested in watching and voting for the
Gracie’s idea can watch Rener’s audition tape at the
OWN’s official website.
“If
you’re watching TV, vote. If you’re eating dinner,
vote. Please lend us your support,” Gracie said. “The
outpouring of support so far has been nothing short of amazing.
If this happens, it’s going to be another shot in the arm
for Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. It was my grandfather Helio’s dream
to empower the weak and my family would love nothing more than
to continue to make that a reality. We’ve achieved the mount
so far with this contest. Now let’s go for the submission.”
To
vote for the Gracies’ “Bullyproof” show, go to
the Oprah
Winfrey Network site.
Source: Sherdog
|
Good
old-fashioned yakuza scandal hits Sumo business
By Zach
Arnold
Remember Enson Inoue’s interview with Jordan Breen last
week (See below) where he said that the next big stars in MMA
would come from yakuza fighters fighting in outlaw promotions?
What he didn’t note is that being associated with the yakuza
in Japan is still a no-no in terms of public image. Ask the people
who worked for PRIDE about how Shukan Gendai’s negative
campaign against them went.
Mainichi
Daily News has a report that two sumo coaches got busted for
selling ring side seats to members of Yamaguchi-gumi, the largest
crime family. Their power base is in Osaka & Nagoya, but
the turf wars over the last several years has caused major fighting
between Yamaguchi-gumi and Inagawa-kai, the big boys in the Kanto
area.
Every
year, there is a Sumo tournament at Aichi Prefectural Gym in
Nagoya (9,000 seat building) and the Mainichi report claims that
members of Kodo-kai, Yamaguchi-gumi’s clan in Nagoya, was
the beneficiary of the ring side tickets being sold to them.
Take
note of this paragraph in the Mainichi report:
Investigators
believe the gang members sought to show themselves on live broadcasts
of the tournament and give their compatriots watching in prison
courage as they serve out their terms.
I
point this out because this is a major reason why the Tokyo Metropolitian
Police, who don’t have the same kind of criminal powers
to go after the bad guys like American authorities do with racketeering
laws, get furious when they see big shots in yakuza gangs mugging
it up at sporting events on TV. It’s a recruiting tool and
a powerful one at that.
It’s
something that has also been commonplace in the Japanese fight
game for a long, long time. It was a critical part to the storyline
about the yakuza scandal that destroyed PRIDE. Seiya Kawamata,
who was the yakuza fixer that took care of gangsters at MMA events,
claimed that he was ordered to take gangsters from front row
seating and put them backstage into VIP rooms. This activity,
according to Kawamata, allegedly occurred during the days when
PRIDE & K-1 were co-promoting with each other.
Remember
when former gangster Hiromichi Momose used to be at ringside
for all the PRIDE events and after every fight the winner would
go to him at ringside and shake his hand? (He was the one in
a black ball cap and black glasses).
The
idea of “yakuza special seating” at fighting events
is nothing new. It’s why when you saw ticket prices for
ring side seats go for 30,000Y and “royal ringside seats”
go for 100,000Y a pop that there was always some snickering about
the VIP seating.
The
more things change, the more they stay the same in the Japanese
fight game.
Enson Inoue:
50/50 chance I’ll fight again in MMA. Right now, yakuza
MMA is very hot.
By Zach
Arnold
In
a pretty remarkable radio interview last Thursday, Jordan Breen
interviewed Enson Inoue. Any time Enson speaks, he is always
bound to say something that catches your attention and makes
you think. If you’re a veteran fan of Mixed Martial Arts,
you know what the history of Enson Inoue’s career is and
you respect what he has accomplished. He’s an old-school
name with old-school ways.
It’s
been a tough couple of years for Enson. After he got arrested
for possession of marijuana, he found himself in big trouble.
In Japan, marijuana is a no-no. While their laws aren’t
as draconian as Singapore (execution), Japan is a place where
the average citizen is likely to get a few years probation and
some jail time.
Able
to avoid a long prison sentence, Enson ended up taking a fight
booking from J-ROCK for Hidehiko Yoshida’s retirement show
on April 25th at Nippon Budokan in Tokyo. He won his fight and
ever since that point, there’s been a curious interest in
Japan as to whether or not he will return full-time to active
MMA competition.
With
that background information in place, here are some notes from
Jordan’s interview with Enson.
What
is Enson up to these days?
“My
whole life is about the people around me which I call family.
To show an example for them to go on with their lives whether
it’s their work lives or raising their families to make
a right example and in the process of that I’m in the process
of making a documentary and writing a book.”
“I’ve
actually started about a year-and-a-half ago so it’s been
in the works for a while but I’m just really picky about
getting what I want, you know, I want to really get a good product
out so it’s been taking a while.”
“It’s
going to be self-written, it’s going to be all written in
my words. The documentary as well will be produced by me, it’s
the same thing… you know to have everyone understand that
Yamato Damashii way that I’ve learned in Japan and the Yamato
Damashii way of taking care of your family, living your life,
holding your values, and keeping your honor.”
How
did the fight against Antz Nansen come about?
“Well,
there’s a lot of reasons for that. One was when I had legal
problems here, of course you know I’m an American so I had
a green card and they actually canceled my green card and almost
deported me out of the country. The only thing that stopped me
from being deported was I had over 9,000 petitions sent in from
fans all over Japan saying they don’t want to leave Japan
so I felt it was a good way to tell the fans ‘thank you.’
I’ve heard a lot of fans saying, Enson Inoue we want to
see you fight in the ring after so many years, but you know I
didn’t feel like that was justified for me to go risk everything
I have and put everything on the line to get in the ring but
you know Japan is my home and I love Japan and I don’t want
to live anywhere else so when the fans gave me enough power to
stay here in Japan I felt it was justified for me to go in the
ring and put everything on the line for them again just so they
could see the Yamato Damashii in the ring.”
What
happened when you got busted for marijuana in your car and got
thrown in jail?
“Well,
I was very careless, I’m being honest, I really liked the
effects of marijuana, not only the high, not only the good feeling
you get, the fact that you sleep, I slept really good, I calmed
down a lot, I relaxed a lot so I really liked it but I ignored
the fact that it was against the law and I got no complaints,
you know, I screwed up, I got arrested and did what they did
to put me inside, you know I deserved it all because I did take
that chance but you know the whole jail experience was overall
a good experience for me. I mean, it made me a better person,
it gave me a better outlook on life and I think it made me twice
the better people that I’ve ever would have been if I didn’t
get put in jail.”
“One,
I started reading the Bible. Two is I’ve realized how much
I need my freedom, how much I cherish my freedom and how [many]
things I would sacrifice to keep my freedom. The third thing
that I’ve learned was how to appreciate a lot of simple
things, you know, there’s a lot of things in life that I
overlooked but when you put inside all of a sudden with no notice
or no warning, then you know the simplest things like feeling
rain on your face, looking outside realizing what the weather
is like, being able to decide where you go, what you’re
going to do today, even if it’s just sitting in traffic
you got the choice to sit in traffic, you got the choice to drive
back home, you know you got the choice to do everything you know,
I appreciate so many things. My life has been 100% more happy
since I’ve been in [prison].” (He’s trying to
say that his life is happier after the prison stay.)
There
were 9,000 fans who signed a petition and had it sent to immigration.
What did you know about it?
“It
wasn’t something that I asked for, that’s what really
got me excited was I never got on my blog or went to you know
MySpace and said, ‘please write into immigration, I want
to stay in Japan, write in and help me out’ — it just
happened and I didn’t realize it was happening until one
day I went in for an interview with the immigration one of the
guys that interviewed me was a fan and he looked at me and said,
‘Enson, hey, check this out’ and he flipped through
like a whole like maybe 3 inches of papers and I was like, ‘whoa,
what is that’ he goes ‘that’s people that want
to see you stay in Japan, they’re writing into immigration,
this is unbelievable, it’s really going to benefit your
investigation’ and I kind of freaked out and I didn’t
know how it started, I don’t know who started it, I don’t
know what they were writing, I couldn’t even see the papers
so I don’t even know what they writing, but the petitions
the guy told me that it’s no [expletive] because these guys
got to write their names, addresses, phone numbers, everything,
so it’s not just where you sign a name.”
How
long was your prison stay and how long did the investigation
go?
“Well,
the prison term that I served was only 28 days, I mean people
laugh at it and say, ‘28 days? What a [expletive],’
you know, I know some people that have been in for six years.
But you know what? Whether you are in one days or two days it’s
just a fact that I lost everything. Whether it’s even if
it’s for one day, you lose everything. I mean, zero, you
got all your appointments, all the things you’re planning
to do, I mean I always thought I was too busy to do stuff but
when I went to prison I realize, ‘whoa, when you want to
make the time you can actually make the time,’ because everything
was canceled, you know so that was only 28 days. The investigation
took about 10 months, almost a year, and that was long. That
was a trying process that was really stressful because I didn’t
know whether I was going to be staying here in Japan or I had
a house, a car, I had an ichizoku, a family a following that
I created in the last 19 years, I didn’t know if I had to
go pick up and start all over somewhere else. It was stressful
that 10 months.”
Was
your fight on Hidehiko Yoshida’s retirement show a one-off
match or are you planning a comeback?
“Yeah,
the fight, I took the fight because one it was a good financial
offer. Two, I wanted to say thank you to my fans and three I
was also to let everyone know that Enson Inoue is back on track,
he’s not a druggie, he’s not a pothead, he’s learned
from his experiences and he’s back, you know, that’s
the basic reasons why I wanted to fight and I was thinking, one
fight that’s it, I’m 43, six years out, I don’t
know if I want to go through this again, but I felt really good,
I felt the most relaxed I’ve ever felt in a fight. I didn’t
do exactly what I wanted to do but basically I felt really relaxed
and I moved really well for an old man so everyone was asking
me if there was any chance of another chance, oh hell yeah there’s
a chance at another fight. I’m not looking for another fight,
I’m not planning to fight again but I’m still in shape,
I only gained 1 kg since the fight, I’m still been running,
I’m training, I’m training out with my fighters, I’m
being more active with the training, more [involved] to the sparring,
so if I get the right offer and I feel like it’s the type
of opponent that I want to fight, I’ll even be back. It’s
not a no, but I’m not telling you that I’m going to
fight for sure again.”
You
said you would fight for the right offer. What is the right offer?
“OK,
the right offer would be a fair offer and how much is a fair
offer? There wouldn’t be a number value on it. For example
if it’s like the people from DREAM the people that I know
just use fighters and take advantage of fighters, they’re
going to have to pay me well-over six figures. On the other hand,
if it’s a place that shows me loyalty, five-figures, you
know it doesn’t really determine the figure itself…
determine whether it’s a good offer or not. The opponent
would have to be someone that would be willing to go and stand
toe-to-toe and try to come and finish me, you know, not try to
survive, not just try to win the fight but try to win convincingly,
try to knock me out, try to hurt me, that’s the type of
people that I want to fight. I don’t want to fight another
fight like I fought with Mark Kerr. I don’t want to fight
another fight I wrestled Mario Sperry in Abu Dhabi, I want to
fight another Antz Nansen, I want to fight another Igor (Vovchanchyn),
I want to fight another Frank Shamrock.”
You
have a very successful network of Purebred gyms. What is your
schedule like?
“The
Purebred Gyms, I think a lot of the reasons for the success of
Purebred Gyms is because when I meet people and I make ties with
people it’s always about true loyalty, you know loyalty
that will never die and these people that are running the gyms,
I got guys in Guam, Saipan, Thailand, that’s running the
gyms are people that understand what true loyalty is and they
are holding the fort and keeping it real and alive, but I used
to leave Japan twice a month, I used to travel over 150,000 miles
a year, going to Guam, Hawaii, going to my other brother gyms
in San Diego, the Undisputed San Diego, the Fisticuffs in Washington,
go to Thailand a lot, Saipan you know I used to travel all over
my gyms and I used to actually visit my gyms once every two,
three months, but right now because of my legal problems up until
May 2012 I cannot leave the country so until then my boys got
to hold it up and hold the fort but as soon as I can travel I’ll
be at every gym that I’m affiliated with at least once every
two or three months.”
“I
really looked at it like, you know, I’m an island boy I’m
from Hawaii. Whether it’s Guam, Saipan, or Hawaii I’m
an island boy all together and I believe island boys, you know
they have a hot blood in them that they like to fight, they have
that fighting spirit. When I went to Guam I almost felt like
I was in Hawaii because the Guam boys are almost like Hawaii
boys and when they asked me to help them with their training
you know I didn’t talk any money, I went to their gym or
they were training in their garage actually and I went there
for free, just worked with them and you know it was the best
thing I ever did in my life because I’ve got a lot of brothers
now in Guam that you know would die for each other.”
How
would you describe the state of Japanese MMA?
“I’d
say when PRIDE was up and arriving it was at 100%. With the problems
with UFC buying PRIDE and the fighters all going to UFC, I think
it actually got knocked off for a while and I think right now
it’s back in the comeback so I don’t think it’s
near 100% yet but I think right now the fighting in Japan is
probably at 40%. It’s making a comeback definitely and it
probably will be back, Japan is on a comeback on the fighting
and it the home of the Samurai spirit and it will be back. It’s
still in the comeback though, I think it’s really hurting
right now yet.”
Japan
seems to have a lot of boom-bust cycles. How can this be fixed
or repaired?
“Well,
right now the most popular of events here is now the gangster
events that they have here, they have over a dozen gangster events
that’s happening all over Japan and this is an event, I
say gangster event because they let the yakuza, they let the
gangsters, they let anyone fight. They actually have guys on
that day calling out people out into the ring who wants to try,
like a Toughman competition but it’s an organized Toughman
competition and a lot of fighters who get into that they really
train but there’s a lot of gangsters that just think they’re
tough on the street, they get in the ring and they get worked
really bad but I think in the next two years the stars that’s
going to help Mixed Martial Arts in Japan is going to be from
there because these guys, I mean if you walk in there thinking
you are going to see a K-1 type of kick or a perfect punch, you’re
going to walk out very disappointed. But if you walk in there
trying to see the deeper part of the MMA fight the fact that
these guys are fighting for peanuts, they’re not coming
out there because they’re going to be put on TV or PPV,
they’re not coming out there because they’re going
to get a six-figure pay day, they’re coming out there to
fight for their pride, their family, their honor. And it’s
a whole different level — I mean, when you walk in there
and you see these guys fight and you guys see looking at each
other across the ring you know these guys aren’t looking
at how much they’re going to get paid after the fight, they’re
not looking at how much attention they’re going to get if
they win, they’re just in there doing it for their honor
to be in a ring, man to man, one man against one man, and see
who’s going to come on top. It’s a really different
feeling in there, and I think we’re going to get the biggest
stars from there because these guys are hot, exciting, go out
for the kill from the beginning bell to the end bell.”
Yakuza
MMA — like The Outsider?
“Yeah,
you know it’s a good thing both ways because not only you
are helping the MMA world but you are helping these gangsters
realize that you can be proper, you can have values and you know
you don’t need to react on your feeling all the time. When
we first started these gangster fights there were riots like
three or four riots at one event, it was like ridiculous because
these guys were still gangsters on the street and that’s
all they had is that mentality so when their guy lost they’re
running in the ring trying to beat up the other guy, they had
no idea what a sport was about, but you know I go to the gangster
events, I have to go to one next week, I have to go one the following
week, I go to one every two weeks to be a guest and I haven’t
seen a riot in the past year about and you know these guys are
learning how to control their behavior, they’re learning
to understand how the world isn’t about the gangster life
and you know if you don’t like something you go get it,
if you don’t like something you go put it away, if you really
like something you just go get it no matter what if you got to
steal it, you know these guys are learning values and you know
understanding a lot of things so I think it’s working really,
really good both ways because gangsters have a lot of good things
to offer to people because you know they’re in the news
for stealing or beating up people or doing stuff but what is
not shown is the honor that they have for each other, the loyalty
they feel for their families, those kinds of things are kind
of put in the back so these guys can start learning values and
start learning to abide by rules that society has man these guys
are going to have a lot to offer for the people.”
What
is in store for your future?
“Well,
I’m definitely going to be more in the fighting scene, train
my fighters, the book and the documentary, I’m back you
know I’m going to be back in the spotlight, I mean if there’s
a fight, there’s a good chance, I say 50/50 I’ll be
back in the ring again but the big thing for me now is I hope
you have understood that you know I’m not just talking out
of my ass or it’s not a thing trying to play a theme about
dying in the ring, it’s something that I really feel and
I believe that if you ever get a chance to come to Japan, you
look me up and we hang out. If you hang out with me and see the
people around me and see the way I hold myself and value the
things that I do and get to talk to me more on a personal basis,
I think you will understand it.”
Source: Fight Opinion
|
RAMPAGE
VS. EVANS: THE BIRTH OF A RIVALRY
by Damon
Martin
The birth of a rivalry can come from many places. Interstate
rivalries are commonplace in college and pro sports, sometimes
it's a curse handed down from a trade that spurned on the Yankees
and Red Sox. Sometimes it's as simple as the right place and
the right time, and that's exactly what brought Quinton "Rampage"
Jackson and Rashad Evans to the boiling point of UFC 114.
The
scene was set March 7, 2009.
Quinton
Jackson defeated Keith Jardine and was in line to face then champion
Rashad Evans for his 205-pound divisional title. The UFC brought
Evans into the cage to face off with Jackson as the next logical
fight, but the heat got turned up when the former Michigan State
wrestler got right in the face of Jackson, after he had defeated
his teammate Jardine just moments prior.
While
some rivalries may be pushed into the spotlight, UFC president
Dana White says nothing could be further from the truth when
it comes to these two.
"Nothing
was manufactured," he said.
The
culmination of the build-up will come on Saturday night, but
it all started over a year ago in Columbus, Ohio, and it's been
burning ever since.
"You've
seen the story a million times," White said. "You bring
the other guy in the Octagon and this is who you're going to
fight next. We did it with Brock (Lesnar) and Shane (Carwin)
and they had a little exchange, theirs is more funny and respectful.
"Well
Rashad got right up in (Jackson’s) face cause he just beat
Keith Jardine and it was all downhill from there. (Rampage) didn’t
like that, and nothing was manufactured about it."
White
says that bringing fighters in to "challenge" their
next opponent a common practice, but there was no coaching ever
given to either one of these guys, and what Jackson and Evans
say about each other is exactly how they feel.
"We
told them to go in there, this is going to be the next fight,
Rogan will interview them both, and they just went nose to nose
and this is where we are," White commented.
The
birth of the rivalry holds roots to last year, but in 2010 it's
finally time to settle the score as Rashad Evans and Quinton
Jackson square off at UFC 114 in Las Vegas.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Rampage
Jackson Breaks Out Serious Side for UFC 114: 'I Trained to Destroy'
By Mike
Chiappetta
LAS VEGAS -- Fourteen months later, there are few signs of the
playfulness and humor that often mark the presence of Quinton
"Rampage" Jackson.
It's
been that long since the former UFC light-heavyweight champion
has been gone from the octagon, and if there was any joy about
making his return, he did well in hiding it, instead illustrating
a stoic, businesslike demeanor during Wednesday's UFC 114 press
conference.
From
the time he took his seat at the MGM Grand's Hollywood Theatre
to the time he exited stage left -- total time elapsed: just
over one hour -- the often-jovial and wisecracking Jackson rarely
flashed a smile. Even the one-liners that he's famous for delivering
were few and far between, leading many to wonder what exactly
is going on behind his eyes this time around.
While
most of the time he spent talking was specifically about the
fight and opponent Rashad Evans, Jackson did peel back at least
one layer into his psyche when he interjected his thoughts into
the discussion. UFC President Dana White had just finished answering
a question regarding the tension between Jackson and Evans on
stage, and whether he thought it might possibly boil over right
then. It was then that Jackson showed a glimpse into his current
frame of mind.
"I'm
done with the all the trash talk now," he said. "I'm
done with it. I do all my talking in the cage. Let the record
be known I didn't start the trash talk. If people come up to
you, what are you going to do? Back down? I've been a fighter
my whole life. I had to fight for everything my whole life. This
is what I do and what I know how to do.
"Yeah
I like to entertain people and make jokes and laugh. I always
do that," Jackson continued. "I like to be that way
and to entertain. But I'm done with talking. I'm done with everything.
I'm just gonna show up on Saturday a whole different man and
do my thing. That's what I do."
Seated
next to his Wolfslair teammate Michael Bisping on the stage,
Jackson was the undisputed star of the show, speaking about his
short split from the UFC, the race issue in the fight, his upcoming
star turn in The A-Team, his Evans feud and more. Evans was effectively
a supporting character on stage and co-main event participants
Bisping and Dan Miller were essentially role players in the drama
unfolding before them.
One
of the few times Jackson betrayed any hint of emotion came when
Evans discussed how he envisioned the fight playing out.
"It
goes different ways every time except for how it ends,"
he said. "For me, it's just the look in his eyes when he
knows he's defeated. That moment when he knows he got his ass
whooped."
Jackson,
separated from Evans by White at the stage podium, let out a
sarcastic smile and shook his head.
"I
been in a lot of street fights, I grew up fighting," Jackson
said. "I done pretty well in street fights not knowing the
guy, not studying the guy, just my rage and the will to survive.
I'm taking this fight back to those days."
His
voice lowered eerily as he continued speaking about his ability
to harness his temper in the fight, closing with a short summation:
"I'm just ready to destroy. I trained to destroy."
Another
time, when he was asked about his motivation. Jackson cracked
a small smile while answering.
"If
I lose a fight, my family makes fun of me real bad," he
said. "When I go back to Memphis, it's bad. I got cousins,
you can't believe it. They'll find every part of the fight to
make fun of me, so it's more motivation to win."
Jackson's
motivation though, doesn't need to go that far. The tension between
he and Evans was real and obvious and has outlived the usual
shelf life.
In
a recent episode of "UFC Primetime," chronicling the
lead-up to the fight, Evans said that he was going to send Jackson
a Snuggie that he could wear after being knocked out. Jackson
revealed that the half-clothing/half-blanket was indeed sent,
though not received.
"The
day it came, it was a real bad day," he said. "I was
training so hard and I was so focused. I hate training, I ain't
going to lie and it ain't no secret. So sometimes I'll be in
a real bad mood. My people know me really well, and they knew
I didn't need to see no Snuggie that day."
For
most of the afternoon, the two were no closer than 10-12 feet
until finally squaring off for a photo opportunity at the conclusion
of the press conference. Jackson, wearing a red t-shirt and jeans,
and Evans, wearing a custom gray suit, walked towards each other,
both with hands in pockets, and went nose-to-nose.
No
words were exchanged but the staredown was atypically icy until
they pulled away, with Evans holding the stare an extra second
as they turned to pose for the crowd.
A
handful of interviews later and they were both done, Evans leaving
first and Jackson following shortly, a serious look still on
his face.
"I
don't think he's having fun right now," Dana White said.
"He's mad about this. He's pissed off. I've been to plenty
of fights with him where he's having fun. This one isn't fun.
To be honest, I think he's got a lot of pressure on him right
now. All the smack talk that's gone on between these two leading
up to this fight, the A-Team movie releases right after this
fight. I think he's in the pressure-cooker right now."
Source: MMA Fighting
|
Antônio
Silva
By Guilherme Cruz
Before last Saturday (15), most of American critics bet in a
win of Andrei Arlovski over Antônio “Bigfoot”
Silva on Strikeforce, but the Brazilian heavyweight proved them
wrong. After the win by unanimous decision on Strikeforce, Bigfoot
talked to TATAME about his win why he left American Top Team
and also analyzed his division on Strikeforce. Check below the
exclusive interview with Strikeforce’s giant.
It all went out the way you expected on the fight against Arlovski?
Yeah, it’s true, it all went out just as I planed, as I
trained hard along with my coaches. I didn’t lose my focus,
which was to do the fight standing and, thanks God, my strategy
worked. I set a strategy for this fight and managed to use it.
Usually we train one thing, then when you get there, everything
changes and goes to a different way inside the octagon.
There was a moment when Arlovski tried to keep you on the grid,
stuck the fight for a while. Did you considered working on your
Jiu-Jitsu or did you really wanted to fight standing?
Man, as I said, my game plan was standing, because I’m doing
that just fine, improving every day, correcting my defects…
two months ago, my exchanging coach, Muhamed Ouali solved his
issue with the immigration and came back here, after Werdum’s
fight and I decided to do my own camp. I spoke to everyone at
American Top Team and I decided to get off there to do my own
camp, I’m feeling fine, at ease. A lot of people said Arlovski
is not the same fighter he used to be… It’s not that
he’s not that same good athlete, it’s me that am changing
my game plan and improving each day, thanks God.
Why did you decided to leave ATT?
Well, American Top Team is one of the best gyms in the United
Stated. I get along with master (Ricardo) Libório, with
(Marcos) Parrumpinha, it’s just that, in order to do my
own camp, to bring my own sparring and my friends to train with
me and do a more specific training, I can’t stay there.
Nowadays you get to ATT’s mat and there are about 40, 50
guys, so it’s very complicated to get an specific training.
There are three people on ATT I appreciate a lot, that are Parrumpinha,
Katel (Kubis), who is a wonderful person as a coach, and master
Libório.
Every place has its problems, its disagreements. Everywhere you
go, all team has. I didn’t have any issue when I left there.
I still go there all Saturdays, watch the trainings of my friends,
then everybody goes out to lunch together. I left there with
everything right, I just wanted to focus more in me. I wanted
to invest more in myself and have a bigger attention from the
coaches, to have a training more focused on my fights and I was
not having that on ATT. I want to fight for four or five years
more. These years will be very important and decisive for me,
I intend to feel like it was a accomplished mission. That’s
why I decided to leave.
I told master Libório that it was not a goodbye, I said
‘see you soon’. I love American Top Team, it’s
just that, at this moment, I need to be alone, change the airs,
so I decided to do my own training and, thank God, it worked.
Everyone could tell I improved, I fought standing and I fought
for three rounds… I would fight another round on that same
rhythm, for sure. I’m very glad with my trainings with (Luiz)
Banha, Jorge Santiago, Ouali and Marcos Aurélio…
But, as said, ATT is one of the bests teams in the world.
We heard that Banha also left ATT…
Man, I can only talk for myself, I don’t know about other
people. Banha indeed left ATT and has joined IMF… It’s
just that I’m not in any team right now, I’m a ‘freelancer’.
I want to keep the doors opened for me anywhere I go, I want
to train with my best man Minotauro in San Diego, with Minotouro
and Anderson, Feijão, but I’m not in any team. From
the moment I have an opponent, I’ll train Jiu-Jitsu, try
to make it a part of my training and try to bring good people
to train with me. I just brought Guto Inocente from Brasília
for this fight, who is a five-time Muay Thai champion, a monster
of 110, 112kg, who has a heavy hand, a boy with only 24 years,
with a fast leg and a fast arm… That is so that Arlovski
kept on moving and I always managed to get off his mileage, because
I had trained with a very good guy, Guto, and I’d like to
congratulate and thank him. You’ll hear from him on MMA.
The good thing is that all of them are good on the trade of punches
and Jorge Santiago also helped me to get lighter so I could keep
moving.
How do you see yourself within the division?
Man, it’s all great, it’s a great division and there
are only good people like Arlovski, Fedor, Werdum, Overeem, who
came back with all his strength. I fought on Saturday, got home
on Sunday and yesterday I trained five rounds with Banha. I had
promised him that, independently if I win or lose, I’d help
him on his preparation for his fight (UFC 114) and yesterday
we did a five rounds preparation on the gym. After his fight
I’ll take two weeks off, which is normal. I’ll way
for the Strikeforce, because now it’s complicated, since
Overeem said he wants to fight against Fedor, and he’s the
current champion, and Fedor has a commitment with Werdum. As
I said to Werdum, I’ll be on his side, I want him to win,
because he is a Brazilian coming on that ring. I told him that
there’s always a favorite for any fight. The favorite is
Fedor, without any doubts, but a fight is a fight. He will train
a lot and I’m sure he will be focused. We don’t know
what will happen in the future. The winner of this fight is the
guy that will fight against Overeem, but I don’t know if
they’ll do another fight before this one or not. I’m
waiting. I want to end this training with Banha and hold on.
Strikeforce is very exciting, is feels very good to be in there.
I’m very happy, thanks God.
Do you want to leave a message?
I’d
like to thank all Brazilians that watch MMA, all my fans, who
believe in my potential, my family, specially my parents, wife
and two daughters. I’d also like to thank my coaches who
supported me for this fight. Quali, Marcos Aurélio and
my training partners, who are Jorge Santiago, Banha, Danillo
Índio and Guto, who was the key for that win.
Source: Tatame
|
Manager
comments on Jeff Monson’s absence
by Carlos
Eduardo Ozório
For the third time, Jeff Monson was expected to face Glover Teixeira
at Bitetti Combat and pulled out. Jeff’s manager Alex Davis
addresses the matter.
“Jeff
sustained injuries in his match in Abu Dhabi and is unable to
face an opponent of Glover’s caliber so soon,” says
the manager, who plays down the organization’s responsibility
in Monson dropping out.
“The
situation with Jeff really is complicated. I’ve tried talking
to him by email, but he doesn’t reply. I have to take action.
He has to face Glover, if just because part of his purse was
deposited ever since the event in Brasilia,” he adds.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Anderson:
“I’m focused on my division”
By Guilherme
Cruz
UFC middleweight champion, Anderson Silva is sovereign on the
division. After defending his belt six times, besides two massacres
on the division above, Anderson is training hard for his belt
defense against Chael Sonne, on UFC 117.
“The trainings are great… I’m training in the
United States and we’ve been working a lot. I hope I manage
to do a good fight and keep my belt, of course”, affirmed
the champion to TATAME, after a short season on Thailand, where
he trained to improve his Muay Thai. “It’ was nice…
It was a short period, but a great one”, said.
Expert on the standing game, Anderson tells he is working on
some trump cards to escape from the efficient ground and pound
game of the American. “I’m training with Mark Muñoz,
he is helping a lot on that part. I’m only hoping to do
a good fight against Sonnen, independently of the result”,
guarantees the athlete who is a black belt on Jiu-Jitsu.
Sovereign within the middleweights, Anderson saw his name being
quoted to definitively change to a heavier division, the light
heavyweight. According to Dana White, if Anderson beats Sonnen
and Vitor Belfort, he would do anything to convince the athlete
to change divisions and leave a vacancy on the dispute of the
middleweight belt.
Training
in the USA, the champion follows closely the trainings of Rogério
Minotouro, who is preparing himself to confront Jason Brilz on
UFC 104, which will happen next Saturday. “I believe Minotouro
is on his best phase ever”, compliments Anderson, confident
that his friend will win. “I believe he will win because
of what I saw on his trainings, he’s really strong and well
prepared”, concluded.
Source: Tatame
|
Talk
Radio: How would Matt Lindland do in an 8-man Strikeforce Middleweight
tournament?
By Zach
Arnold
Let’s
set the stage here for how this discussion came about:
¦Jake
Shields is likely going to sign with the UFC and it means the
Strikeforce Middleweight title would be vacated. One of the hot
booking ideas floated around is having an 8-man Middleweight
tournament.
¦Matt Lindland, who just turned 40 years old, beat Kevin
Casey in a one-sided affair last Friday night at the Rose Garden
in Portland on Showtime. He has said that he wouldn’t mind
a re-match with Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza and feels that
he made one (big) mistake in the fight that cost him, so he would
like to atone for that loss. Lindland would also be the most
experienced fighter in such an 8-man tournament, which would
feature a mixture of younger names for the most part.
With that scenario painted for you, would you book Matt Lindland
for the 8-man tournament? If so, what kind of seeding would you
give him and who would you match him up against? (Lay out a theoretical
SF 8-man Middleweight tournament on paper and tell us what kind
of match-ups you envision happening.)
Robbie
Lawler, who’s fought at 185 for the promotion, has the 195-pound
catch weight fight against Renato Babalu on June 16th in Los
Angeles. Lawler has been disgruntled in the past with the promotion,
so he could conceivably bail to UFC in the future. There’s
Lawler (if he stays), Mousasi (maybe), Babalu, Lindland, Jacare,
Mayhem, Rockhold (maybe), and one more slot open (Villasenor?).
Now,
the discussion from talk radio:
“There’s
a big difference between guys who are done and guys who are title
contenders and Lindland falls in between there. What this win
does is basically allow him to enter into that 8-man Middleweight
tournament that may or may not be set up if Jake Shields does
end up bouncing to the UFC and I think he’s a big-enough
name to be able to enter into something like that and I think
that works perfectly for what Strikeforce wants to do. How far
will he go? Probably not far. I question whether or not how well
he could do against a Luke Rockhold let’s say, but h has
certainly right now put himself into a position with the Casey
win to where he’ll get bigger fights.”
“I
don’t think that Matt Lindland was in a place where he needed
to get a fight like this with Kevin Casey to get into bigger
fights. I mean, yeah, he’s coming off a couple of losses,
the (Vitor) Belfort loss was bad, he really had nothing for Jacare.
However, the man was really a Top 5 Middleweight his entire career.
It wasn’t that long ago when he arguably won a fight in
the WFA against Quinton Jackson. He… I mean, this fight,
even though it was a more competitive that I think a lot of people
thought … It’s still a weird meaningless fight I think
for Matt Lindland. He beat a guy who’s 2-1 and you know
I mean I don’t think that he should be in there with, say…
you know… a Jacare any time soon but if the tournament happens,
I think he has a place in there and honestly, I wuold like to
see him fight a guy like Gegard Mousasi if Mousasi moved down
to Middleweight again.
“I
don’t think [Mousasi would beat him], not after what Mo
did. I think Matt Lindland would steal a fight against Gegard
Mousasi. He takes him down, he sits in his guard, Mousasi…
it’s a carbon copy of the Mo Lawal fight.”
“That’s
why it gets made, though. I mean basically, what Lindland did
with this fight.”
“I
don’t think Mousasi’s moving down to 185, though.”
“They
have enough at 185 for an 8-man tournament with Mousasi but even
if he does go in, what Lindland did with this fight, now you
said it didn’t do a whole lot for him. Yeah, you’re
right, it didn’t. Basically what it did is if they do this
8-man tournament, Lindland comes in as the 8-seed, let’s
say, takes on the #1, whoever they decide the #1, whoever they
decide the #1 is. If it does end up Jacare then Jacare goes through
him and that’s it.”
“They’re
not going to match him up with Jacare. I think, I mean, I think
Matt Lindland wipes the floor with a guy like Joey Villasenor.
Let’s throw some names at me, you’re Richard Chou.”
“I
mean, first name that I threw out was Luke Rockhold.”
“That
would be an interesting fight.”
“Yeah.
I certainly think so and I mean if you look through the rest
of the potential bracket, I mean, how’s he do against Mayhem
(Miller)?”
“I
think he beats Mayhem.”
“See…
at this point in Lindland’s career, I question that. Good
bout, I think it would be interesting, but I think Mayhem…”
“I
think, I think… Lindland I think is just too gritty of a
fighter to get caught by Mayhem. I think on the feet there’s
a liability, I agree with Greg Savage, I don’t think that
Matt Lindland’s chin is very good, I think it’s suspect
when he gets ht hard, he pretty much melts. I think on the feet
with Mayhem he’s in a little bit of trouble, but I think
he gets the takedowns, I think he frustrates Mayhem on the floor,
I don’t think he gets submitted, he might… I just don’t
think it’s likely. I mean I really think that Matt Lindland
has what it takes to beat a guy like Jason Miller probably pretty
easily… I mean not easy, but pretty definitely.”
“Well
then I mean from the sounds of it, with the potential competitors
in this tournament… I mean, you’re picking Lindland
as maybe the 3rd, 4th, worst 5th guy to pick to win.”
“I
think Lindland comes in at a #4 or #5 seed.”
Source: Fight Opinion
|
Benji
Radach Healing Faster Than Expected,
Eyeing Fall Return
By Kelsey
Mowatt
Although
they say adversity builds character, it’s likely that Benji
Radach would trade some of that character for a few years without
getting injured, as the Strikeforce middleweight continues to
sit on the sidelines while recovering from a torn pectoral muscle
and follow-up staph infection. Although once again injuries will
force Radach to go months without competing, the good news is
that according to the 31 year-old-fighter, he will be back sooner
than expected.
“September,
October or November; that’s when I’ll probably be back,”
said Radach, who after having surgery to repair his torn pectoral
muscle in January had a staph infection to battle soon after.
“They were telling me six months before I could do anything
but I’m already back to doing what I was before; I just
have to get some of my strength back. It’s coming back fast
so I’m ahead of schedule. Instead of just getting back to
training in 6 months I’ll be back to fighting in 6 to 7
months. It looks good.”
After
returning from rash of injuries in 2007, which kept Radach out
of the ring for nearly 3 years, the veteran had a successful
5-1 run while competing in the International Fight League. After
the promotion’s demise, Radach (19-5) signed with Elite
XC and then more recently Strikeforce, and despite incurring
a TKO loss to Scott Smith last April, Radach’s career has
been on the upswing.
“It
was actually worse this time,” said Radach while discussing
how he reacted to this latest setback. “I was getting ready
for a fight, I’d been feeling really good, feeling really
good on my feet and my timing was fast, my strength was better.
It was just a really bad time to get injured. I want to be out
there competing, to get on top, and I’m stuck being injured.”
“I
have one more fight with them (Strikeforce),” Radach added,
who stopped Murilo Rua at an Elite XC event in October, 2008,
before signing with Strikeforce. “Then I’ll renegotiate;
that’s my plan. I don’t really have plans to go anywhere
else. Strikeforce has such great competition at 185, but I’m
not against going to the UFC or somewhere else like Japan. I’m
pretty happy where I’m at with Strikeforce though.”
Strikeforce
has been an often discussed topic in the world of mixed-martial-arts
lately, from the highly publicized post-fight brawl at its Nashville
event in April, continued speculation as to whether the promotion’s
middleweight champ and free agent Shields will leave the organization,
to ongoing questions regarding the organization’s relationship
with CBS or Fedor Emelianenko.
“I
think things are looking up,” said Radach when asked for
his thoughts regarding the future of Strikeforce. “I don’t
think the incident at the last event (in April), that happens
in MMA; it was unfortunate that it had to happen to Strikeforce
because they were really getting on their feet and all these
big things were going on. They’re making huge leaps and
bounds and I hope they continue to stay on top. They’ve
been around for a long time and I don’t think they’re
making any huge decisions that are going to end Strikeforce.
I don’t think they’re planning on going anywhere.”
Source: Full Contact Fighter
|
Miesha
Tate Puts Effort Towards Rape Prevention
By Ray
Hui
Before Miesha Tate steps foot inside the Strikeforce cage again
this summer, her martial arts and wrestling background will be
put to use in a DVD to educate women on rape prevention techniques.
Tate
is heading a new instructional co-starring Frank Shamrock which
will be taped Friday in Los Angeles.
"It's
not going to be your basic self-defense DVD," Tate told
MMAFighting.com Wednesday. "We really want to get down to
how these moves are done. it's not just going to be like, 'Oh
wham, bam, here you go this is how you do it.' It's really going
to be in detail, it's going to be intricate, with different angles
for every different situation. We're also going to have stories
of women that have worked through this before and the rape victims
are going to share with us their experiences and I'm going to
help train them as well, one-on-one."
The
project originated through Ariel Penn, a Tate fan with experience
in Gracie jiu-jitsu -- and a former rape victim. After befriending
Tate, Penn approached Tate with the idea of an instructional
and asked if Tate would be the spokesperson. Penn and two other
former victims will share their experiences in the video.
For
the instructional aspect, Tate will demonstrate techniques with
former UFC middleweight champion Shamrock playing the attacker.
Tate recruited Shamrock for his Strikeforce affiliation and her
respect for what Shamrock has accomplished in the sport. Another
reason was that Tate, who fights at 135 pounds, would be able
to display the techniques would be effective against a larger
fighter.
"It's
kind of the whole theory behind jiu-jitsu," Tate said. "It
was really designed for smaller, weaker people to be able to
use leverage rather than strength, redirecting people's motion
and momentum against them and basically that's the whole idea
behind that you don't have to be the bigger, stronger person
to win the battle. You can use technique, leverage and your smarts
and basically beat someone who will basically just come at you
with brute strength."
Tate
took techniques she learned in MMA and incorporated them with
research conducted by talking with friends who have done self-defense
DVDs as well as former rape victims.
The
project will be produced in part through Tate's Take Down Enterprises,
At first "Takedown" Tate started Take Down Enterprises
to protect her trademark, but in the future would like to manage
female fighters and open her own gym. Take Down Enterprises is
Tate's way to stay involved with the sport after her competitive
career is over.
The
release of the DVD is targeted for sometime in the late fall.
As
for her fight career, Tate (9-2) is coming off a March 26 win
on Showtime against Zoila Frausto at Strikeforce Challengers
7. She's still waiting on an opponent, but says her goal remains
the same.
"Obviously
still gunning for that belt, still gunning for that rematch with
[Sarah] Kaufman," Tate said. "That's my long term goal
at this point in MMA is to capture that and whoever [Strikeforce]
deems appropriate to fight along the way to prove that, that's
where I'm going."
Source: MMA Fighting
|
Belcher
Wants Promotional Push from UFC
by Lotfi Sariahmed
Alan
Belcher has won six of his last eight fights in the UFC and holds
victories against former title contender Patrick Cote, 2006 Pride
Fighting Championships welterweight grand prix finalist Denis
Kang, “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 3 runner-up Ed
Herman and reigning Sengoku middleweight champion Jorge Santiago.
The
Jonesboro, Ark., native wants a bigger piece of the UFC middleweight
action and has begun to press those who pull the strings for
a more prominent role in the division. Following his submission
victory over Cote at UFC 113, Belcher openly requested a crack
at UFC middleweight king Anderson Silva.
“[UFC
President] Dana White is more interested in it,” Belcher
told the Sherdog Radio Network’s “Savage Dog Show”
on Friday. “I don’t know what [UFC matchmaker] Joe
Silva’s deal is. Through my career, I’ve pushed for
certain fights, and I don’t know if it’s Joe’s
personality or what, but I think he’s not an Alan Belcher
fan.”
While
a blockbuster bout has eluded Belcher during his 11-fight run
in the UFC, he recognizes the value in staying patient and waiting
his turn.
“They
haven’t brought me in to lose any fights,” Belcher
said. “They haven’t tried to set me up or anything.
[Joe Silva is] cool and everything; it’s just … I don’t
know. It seems like I’m sitting there screaming: ‘The
fans want to see me fight big fights.’ I’ve got a big
following, and I’ve got not just a flashy style; I have
an explosive striking style. The fans want to see it, but he’s
not hearing it, man. It doesn’t matter. As time goes by
and I keep winning fights, they have to give me the big fights.”
The
mother of all matchups -- a date with Silva -- remains out of
reach for now. The embattled Brazilian will fight Chael Sonnen
in the UFC 117 main event in August. Still, options remain for
Belcher, who said he would welcome a shot at Vitor Belfort.
Belcher
wants the 185-pound king.“I’m down,” Belcher said.
“I’d love that fight. Vitor Belfort’s a legend.
I haven’t fought anyone with that kind of name yet. It’d
be an awesome fight for me. It’d definitely tell us who
the next number one contender is.”
Belfort
-- who defeated Rich Franklin in September -- was positioned
to meet Silva at UFC 112 in April, but an injury forced him to
withdraw and opened the door for Demian Maia. Many have since
wondered what the immediate future holds for Belfort once he
returns. Will he get the showdown with Silva he was originally
promised?
“I
think it may be something with Belfort’s contract,”
Belcher said. “Probably said if he beats Rich Franklin,
he gets a title shot or something. It’s probably something
like that, because have you ever heard of someone getting a title
shot after someone else gets a title shot? Chael gets this, [and]
then after he loses, Vitor gets the next one? I never heard of
that before.”
Belfort’s
lone victory since returning to the UFC was at a catchweight,
and his position in the middleweight division leaves Belcher
yearning for more clarity.
“It’s
all a mess, man,” Belcher said. “All the best guys
in our division have all been losing. It’s just weird. The
ranking system in the middleweight division … it’s
all jumbled up. You’ve got Belfort trying to get better.
It just sucks, man. I just wish there was a little bit more of
a clear path to know who I [have] got to beat to get where I
want to go. Even if I’ve got to fight two or three more
fights, I wish there was just an easier way of ranking us and
moving us along that way.”
Most
importantly, Belcher wants to see his career furthered.
“What
do I have to do to get on a poster? What do I have to do to get
on a ‘Primetime’ show or when Spike TV comes to your
school and stuff?” Belcher asked. “I need to put a
lot of work into this, and I feel like I’m on top of the
game and there [are] a lot of fans out there that haven’t
gotten the opportunity to know who I am yet. I just feel like
I should be pushed a little bit more, and I feel like I should
be making more money.”
Even
at 26, Belcher can hear the clock ticking.
“The
part of my career where I’m at right now I just feel like
I’m one of the top guys,” he said. “I just want
to get the reward from it, and I don’t want to miss out
on it. And if it’s going to take more work or more wins
or whatever, that’s cool. I don’t want to be here two
or three fights from now in the same situation.”
Source: Sherdog
|
Arona:
“I hope I can talk to Dana White”
By Guilherme
Cruz
One of the greatest stars of Pride, Ricardo Arona was deprecated
by the organization of UFC and did not head for the American
event. Three years after the end of the Japanese event, Arona
wants to speak with the president Dana White, president of the
biggest MMA event of the world. Focused on the recovery of an
injured knee, the Brazilian hopes to go to Las Vegas this week,
where he will meet the team of Rogério Minotouro, who
will fight Saturday on UFC 114.
“I’m going for other reasons, to give a support to
Minotouro, merchandising… Being there, I hope I can talk
to Dana White, but we don’t have nothing settled or scheduled”,
revealed Ricardo to TATAME, joining the former team mate against
Jason Brilz. “I’m going to meet the guys… I don’t
know if I’ll get there right on time, but I’ll do what
I can to help him”, tells the fighter, who recently came
back to the trainings. “I just came back to train now, on
a calm way because of my knee, but this recovery part is almost
done. I’m training so I can be at my best and can come back
to business”.
NO SURPRISES WITH SHOGUN’S KNOCKOUT
Despite
being out of UFC, Arona keeps tuned on the big fights of the
event, especially when it comes to a title dispute on his division.
After a very tight first fight, Maurício Shogun won the
rematch, knocking Lyoto Machida out on the first round. Arona
guarantees he was not surprised. “Because they are both
champions, you can hope for a tough fight, but exactly because
both are champions the fight has a decisive factor, it can end
after the whole 25 minutes or on a lucky or ability moment, and
that’s what happened”, analyzes.
Source: Tatame
|
LASHLEY
INJURED; KENNEDY VS PRANGLEY ADDED
by Damon
Martin
Fans of Bobby Lashley will have to wait a little longer to see
him compete again as the former WWE superstar has been forced
to withdraw from his upcoming fight in June against Ron Sparks
due to a knee injury. A fight between middleweights Tim Kennedy
and Trevor Prangley will occupy the spot instead at the Los Angeles
show.
Lashley
was set to return for the first time since a TKO win over Wes
Sims in January, but injuries have plagued the Colorado based
fighter, and he will be sidelined once again for an undetermined
amount of time.
Stepping
in on just over two weeks notice to fill the slot vacated by
Lashley and Sparks will be a middleweight showdown between former
Army ranger Tim Kennedy and Trevor Prangley.
A
winner of three fights in a row, Kennedy has now dedicated himself
as a full-time fighter after a very successful start to his career
when he was doubling between his active military duty and MMA.
A dedicated Special Force sniper, Kennedy has been just as sharp
in his fighting lately, winning in impressive fashion with three
consecutive stoppages.
"I
want to keep winning,'' Kennedy said about his fight. "Strikeforce
has a bunch of guys in my weight class who I match up very well
with. I want to fight all of these guys and put on a good show
for Showtime and Strikeforce."
Opposing
Kennedy will be American Kickboxing Academy fighter Trevor Prangley,
who may not get the credit he deserves for being one of the toughest
185lb fighters in the sport.
Prangley
was on a 5-fight win streak when he returned to Strikeforce in
February, but an accidental thumb to his opponent's eye resulted
in a stop to the fight, and having it declared a draw.
Wanting
to leave no doubt this time, Prangley will face a very tough
test in Tim Kennedy, as the two fighters both try to inch closer
to contender's status in the middleweight division.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Discussing
the future of women’s MMA and whether or not UFC or Strikeforce
has the desire or responsibility to help grow it
By Zach
Arnold
This
originally was going to be one of our ‘talk radio’
segments on the site, but there are so many questions and so
many issues raised here when you bring up this subject that I
think we’ll take some time to go over some quotes from a
recent radio discussion on the topic and break down the bigger
points on a case-by-case basis.
To
paint a picture here for those of you who don’t follow women’s
MMA, right now the perception is largely that it’s a division
with two notable names, Gina Carano and Cris Cyborg, and everyone
else is beneath them. Dana White as UFC President had a chance
to bring in Gina Carano either to the UFC or even the WEC (as
Zuffa owns WEC) and he didn’t do it. He’s not a fan
of women’s MMA and I don’t think he will be a fan of
women’s MMA even if he does see women’s MMA draw some
big-money fights. In many respects, I think he views women’s
MMA the same way Vince McMahon views women’s wrestling.
WWE had a chance to build a legitimate women’s division
and instead McMahon promotes his vision of what women’s
wrestling is, which is that most of the girls look like barbie
dolls and are more or less toys for the boys. No matter what
women like Trish Stratus did, Vince has always had this mindset
on what women’s wrestling should be versus what it could
be. I think Dana White respects the fact that women want to fight
in MMA, but he doesn’t particularly care to watch it nor
does he feel the need to promote it or help build it up.
The
last point is a major question to focus on — does UFC have
a responsibility to build up women’s Mixed Martial Arts?
Depending on how you answer that question, let’s re-phrase
it: Is UFC the only vehicle in Mixed Martial Arts that can make
women’s MMA “legitimate” in the eyes of casual
MMA fans around the world?
With
that as your set-up, let’s take a look at some of the passages
from Monday’s Sherdog radio show on this topic.
Should
Zuffa promote women’s MMA? Is Strikeforce in a position
to make women’s MMA bigger than it is?
“Are
you a big fan of female Mixed Martial Arts? I mean we talk about
it with our listeners from time to time, but where do you stand
on you know the girls side of thing in the sport?”
“In
terms of what?”
“Do
you pay attention more to it besides it being your job? I mean,
do you think that these girls should be showcased in the UFC?
I mean, what’s your stance on it? Obviously, Dana White
has been outspoken against it. I mean, do you think that the
UFC needs to adopt a women’s division at some point?”
“At
some point, yes, but at the same time I completely agree with
what Dana’s saying with the stance that he takes that outside
of Gina (Carano), I mean what is there really? And what do you
do…”
“I
think there’s a lot of good girls that fight.”
“Yes,
but are there enough… you can’t really just make a
division for Gina (Carano) and make a division for Tara (LaRosa),
make a division for Roxanne (Modafferi), I mean you need more
than just the one or two big fighters in each of these divisions
because that’s also a problem. Women’s MMA right now
has some names but those names are separated through three or
four divisions.”
“Right,
but I mean, you can make catch-weight bouts. You can, I don’t
think you necessarily need to have a belt but I mean I think
you know there are girls that obviously should be fighting in
the lower 115 pounds like Megumi Fujii and whatnot but I mean
she can go up and fight at 125 and still be successful. You know,
I think that… you can make catch weight fights at 135, 130,
you can make these fights happen. I really honestly think that
there is maybe more of a need in my opinion for there to be a
Zuffa female division than a Zuffa 125-pound men’s division.”
“I
don’t know if I’d go that far. I really wouldn’t,
I mean maybe in Strikeforce because Strikeforce and these lesser
promotions can certainly use the fights, can certainly put on
the big fights but Zuffa’s very much dictated by divisions
and putting on and having those titles as much as they don’t
necessarily matter but look at what the UFC’s business model
is. WEC’s business model, same thing. They work based off
of, all right, all these fights are leading towards to an eventual
title shot for X, Y, Z fighter and every single fight from the
ones in the prelims to the main event have some sort of play
in terms of all right, who’s going to fight who next and
it all leads up to an eventual title shot. They’re not just
going to put in, bring in women whether it’s 125, 145, whatever,
just for the sake of putting on these one-off big fights that
may or may not draw that well because I mean to be completely
honest, it’s not as popular as maybe a lot of the hardcores
think it is right now.”
“Yeah,
that’s a fair statement. I mean, as it goes on, I think
we’re going to see these girls showcased in Strikeforce.
I don’t know if Dana will ever pick up the female division
and put them in the UFC. I thought when Pro Elite was folding
it would have been really smart for the WEC to pick up Gina and
try to make you know fights there. However, it’s something
they passed on. Strikeforce is getting it. How big can the female
division get in Strikeforce? I mean… the fight’s I
think are good but it is a lesser promotion than the UFC at least
brand-wise, at least exposure-wise. I know they have CBS but
can female Mixed Martial Arts get to a higher level being on
Showtime and CBS under the Strikeforce banner?”
“It
could if it were done correctly. And I think that’s the
big question. I think you have divisions right now that are I
mean good enough to where you can move forward and I think Strikeforce
is an organization right now where they’re just fine putting
on Modafferi/LaRosa III with there not necessarily being an end
game to it. Obviously the trilogy’s there and you want to
try to see, all right who’s going to win the third bout,
but unlike Zuffa with the UFC and the WEC where there is the
end game is eventually a title shot, Strikeforce doesn’t
necessarily have to have that. Now that’s also a fault of
Strikeforce that we’ve been talking about for a while, but
when you’re talking about women’s MMA the biggest platform
for women’s MMA right now I think is going to be Strikeforce
just because it’s something that they’ve shown they’re
willing to do before and if you have big enough names willing
to take on each other, well then I think you can get somewhere,
it’s just an issue whether or not these women whether it’s
Gina, whether’s it Cyborg, whether it’s whomeever,
are willing to do these one-off bouts where there isn’t
a title. You have 145, you have 135, but right now even with
Sarah Kaufman, you wonder when exactly is she going to fight
next.”
“Sure,
well that’s half the problem with a good chunk of Strikeforce
fighters. They sign them and then they sit them on the shelf
for 7-8 months. Yeah, we’ll see what happens. I think that
there’s still a lot of growing to do but I think five years
from now we have a real… you know strong division for female
fighters and whether it be Strikeforce or the UFC but I think
you know we have the 25 the 35 you know maybe even 45 I don’t
know how they would work out, it’s so hard to really sit
down and figure out where these girls are going to fit because
a lot of the talent is spaced apart by weight you know pretty
good chunk of weight for some of the best fighters in the world
that are fighting in the female division.”
Some
of the points highlighted in that passage are 100% accurate.
Strikeforce likes to dabble with the women’s MMA bouts,
but they are one-offs and nothing consistent is built with a
women’s division. Hell, their champion Sarah Kaufman can’t
get booked. At the same token, consistency has been a major issue
for Strikeforce since day one. The only MMA promotion right now
with any sort of consistent booking and discipline is UFC and
it’s not even close.
Which
brings us to a bigger question — do these major promotions
have a responsibility to help grow MMA? The NBA has desperately
tried to build up women’s basketball through the WNBA and
the image of the WNBA is atrocious as far as broad-based appeal
is concerned. Female boxing has gone nowhere on a national stage
because promoters don’t seem interested in growing the prospects
long-term. Even in bowling, for goodness sakes, you don’t
see the female bowlers get the air time like the male bowlers
do on ESPN and their different media platforms. (Unless it’s
a woman like Kelly Kulick beating a guy like Chris Barnes.)
Steve
Cofield of Yahoo Sports has been brutal in his assessment of
Tara LaRosa since he loss to Roxanne Modafferi last Friday for
the Moosin PPV in Worcester, MA. Most people recognize what Steve
was doing for what it was, which was stirring the pot, and he
got the reaction he was looking for.
“I
think that there are things that slide in women’s Mixed
Martial Arts that don’t usually happen in a guy’s bout.
Say I think it happened, Tara went for like a headlock throw
and that happens you know way more in female Mixed Martial Arts
and it doesn’t happen in Men’s Mixed Martial Arts but
the bottom line is the girls are built different, the way they
do things are different, the way they transition on the floor,
they’re just afforded other things that guy’s aren’t,
you can get away with things that you can’t on the men’s
side of things. And I don’t think that’s bad. Watching
female Mixed Martial Arts is like watching softball in my opinion,
it’s technically the same game as baseball but transitions,
things are a little bit different than you normally see when
watching the men’s version of things. Either you like it
or you don’t, but I have a hard time with someone saying
‘oh it’s not as good’ because it really it is.
Female fights in my opinion tend to be almost more exciting than
guy’s fights because the girls they seem to take more than
the other guys, they seem to you know engage in a war quicker
than some men, they seem to really put on almost a more I mean
most real good fights in Mixed Martial Arts go the distance and
you get a lot more distance fights with girls which makes it
more dramatic, I mean I really I don’t think that if you’re
a fight fan you can realistically look at a good, high-quality
female Mixed Martial Arts fight and say, ‘oh Kimbo’s
better’ because that’s just foolery.”
“That’s
just dumb. No, that’s dumb.”
“I’m
not going to sit here and say that women’s MMA is without
its flaws. It absolutely does have it.”
“Men’s
MMA is not without its flaws, either.”
“And
you’re absolutely right and I do think there’s something
to be said about a lot of the allure to women’s MMA coming
in the newness of it I guess if that makes sense for a lot of
people. But this idea that you’d rather watch Kimbo fight
25 more times than Modafferi/LaRosa is just dumb.”
“There
was not a moment in the Modafferi/LaRosa fight where I was bored.”
“No,
absolutely not.”
“I
can’t say that about Kimbo and Houston Alexander. That fight
was horrendous.”
“There
was not a moment in that fight where I was entertained.”
“You
know and I was entertained in the Mitrione/Kimbo fight but that’s
really because one fighter was really outclassing the other and
basically doing whatever he wanted.”
What
does Strikeforce do with booking women’s fights? Where’s
the consistency?
“The
problem with (Sarah) Kaufman/Modafferi is Modafferi just lost
in Strikeforce to Marloes Coenen. So you can’t really just
have her even for Strikeforce you can’t have the Coenen
loss on her record in Strikeforce on one of the recent cards
and all of a sudden be fighting for a title at 135 against Kaufman.
I don’t think you should make it a non-title either because
it’s a slight on Modafferi which you really shouldn’t
be doing. I think if you want Kaufman in action like Strikeforce
has been saying, you bring in somebody else and there are other
fighters out there but you don’t take Modafferi who just
recently was in your organization, loss to Marloes Coenen, I
mean it doesn’t really make any sense even for what Strikeforce
is doing.”
“You
talk about these divisions and developing them. You’re not
going to be able to do that almost without just running all female
fight cards, you’re not.”
“Yes.”
“When
we get a female fight on a Strikeforce card, it’s one. It’s
not two, it’s not three, it’s one. And it’s usually
one every other card. I think if they go with a tournament-style
format and really you know hash out who’s the best in two
divisions then that helps but really need a card with more than
one, I mean that’s the thing. I talk about acceptance, these
female fights even though that Strikeforce is doing it still
seems like sideshow-ish attractions because they’re one-off
here and there. ‘Oh, there’s a female fight on this
card, yay!’ It’s like your shooting star.”
“That’s
completely fair. That you’re right, that I’m 100% behind
you with.”
“I
mean, I don’t know what the end game is for female Mixed
Martial Arts but it should be… I don’t want that it
should be say accepted like female boxing because I think female
boxers are still sort of novelty acts…”
“To
me it’s each his own. … But here’s something actually
pretty interesting… Strikeforce is filling up all of its
undercards with all amateur fights, with the exception of one
big undercard bout. You mean to tell me they can’t put the
women’s bouts on there?” I don’t know.”
“Yeah.
I know what you’re saying. I get it. I get it. And I’m
looking at our chat, John from Montreal is saying that this is
a pointless discussion. I don’t really think that people
sit down and look at female Mixed Martial Arts the way they should.
I think it’s something, again, is just a novelty act for
most people because like I said, it’s like a shooting star.
You see one-off female fights that are on Strikeforce cards and
why should anybody care when most of the time it’s ‘oh
I remember seeing her fight six months ago, that’s cool,
let’s watch her again’ but it’s not ‘let’s
develop somebody.’ Like a fighter like Roxanne Modffari
should be developed. She got the Coenen fight that you know she
lost obviously but again I don’t think it was on television.
It’s a fight that should have been on television. It had
you know it didn’t go Roxanne’s way but it had a very
interesting ending, it was exciting, and you know Roxanne’s
a fighter that can take a loss and come back and win in exciting
fashion. I mean, it’s just, it frustrates me that they’re
not getting showcased nearly enough.”
I
will end this article with an anecdote from a promoter (not who
you think) who I know very well who has promoted women before
and has been involved in helping out girls getting booked. He’s
had experience before promoting cards with all men, all women,
and a mixture of both. He told me the best formula is a mixture
of both, followed by all male cards, and all female cards a distant
last. When I asked him why the all female cards were money losers
for him, he pointed out that the fight fans that went to his
all male or mixed cards just didn’t show up to watch the
all-female shows. The promoter noted that the audiences to watch
the all-female shows were entirely different and they were not
fans that went to see his other cards and vice versa. The promoter’s
heart was in the right place as he wanted to help build the girls
up and really believed in it, but just as we’ve seen with
women’s sports in general, they draw an entirely different
audience than the men do — and unfortunately it’s often
a smaller audience as well.
Strikeforce
right now is the only player in MMA that can make women’s
MMA “legitimate” in the eyes of more and more MMA fans.
But in order to do it, they have to be willing to invest some
real estate on their fight cards, at least three or four fights
on the undercard, to make it happen. You have to book often,
book consistently, and do it over a long enough period of time
so that younger people who watch it are conditioned over time
to really enjoy it, enjoy the storylines, get into the grudges,
and also to encourage new talent to come into the business. Without
putting in the resources and just booking women’s fights
as one-off deals, all you are going to end up doing is stagnating
a division in Mixed Martial Arts that could really grow and really
do some big business if properly promoted.
Source: Fight Opinion
|
FOR
RASHAD EVANS, RAMPAGE IS JUST ANOTHER FIGHT
by Jeff
Cain
Former UFC light heavyweight titleholders Quinton “Rampage”
Jackson and “Sugar” Rashad Evans stand in each other’s
way of getting a title shot against champion Mauricio “Shogun”
Rua when they step into the Octagon at UFC 114 on May 29, but
for Evans it’s just another fight.
The
UFC had offered each the match up before and they both turned
it down for their own reasons, mostly timing.
A
bout was scheduled to follow their opposing coaching roles on
“The Ultimate Fighter 10: Heavyweights” headlining
UFC 107 in Jackson’s hometown of Memphis in December of
2009, but Jackson pulled out of the fight to film the movie version
of the 80’s television series “The A-Team.”
The
decision to pull out of the fight left Jackson on the outside
looking in with the Las Vegas-based promotion who sunk a lot
of time and effort, not to mention money, into promoting the
event.
Upon
criticism from UFC president Dana White for pulling out of the
UFC 107 main event, Jackson announced his retirement from the
sport, but later decided to fulfill his contractual obligations
with the UFC and return to combat, but there was a time when
Evans didn’t think the two would ever fight.
“Things
got kind of heated between him and Dana (White), and sometimes
if you offend the bosses too much you may never come back no
matter what you bring to the table,” Evans told MMAWeekly
content partner TapouT Radio. “I was hoping that the situation
didn’t go there, but I was thinking it was starting to go
there. Luckily it didn’t. Luckily he decided that he wanted
to come back and have a piece.”
Jackson
hasn’t competed in over a year, defeating Evans’ teammate
Keith Jardine at UFC 96 in March of 2009, but Evans isn’t
expecting ring rust to be a factor in the fight.
“I‘m
not going to be underestimating him. You know what I‘m saying?
I think I‘m probably going to be fighting the best Quinton,”
Evans commented to the media in a pre-fight conference call.
From
the beginning, Evans has said that Jackson isn’t fast enough
to defeat him, and believes his speed will be a deciding factor
at UFC 114.
“I
plan to go in there and use all of my tools, and hopefully that
day my speed is, I’m on top of things. Like I’m super-fast
that day and I believe I will be,” said the 30-year old
athlete. “I’ve been training really good. I’ve
had some really good training partners. I’ve been bringing
in some great people for this camp.”
Evans
brought in Strikeforce light heavyweight titleholder “King”
Mo Lawal to help him prepare to face Jackson.
“Me
and Mo have been cool since college, but you know one thing he
does - he does a good Rampage. And at the same time he helped
me with my takedown,” said Evans. “He’s got the
best takedowns in the game. He’s got the best wrestling,
so I’ve been working with him.”
The
Greg Jackson trained fighter also stepped up his cardiovascular
training for this fight.
“I
did a lot more because I kind of got tired in my last fight,”
said the Michigan resident. “I wanted to make sure I was
in good shape the whole time because I wanted to make sure I
could go and do my game plan. If I want to take him down 100
times, I can take him down 100 times and not get tired.”
White
has called Jackson vs. Evans the biggest grudge match in UFC
history and the two admittedly dislike each other. They’ve
been jawing back and forth since Jackson's UFC 96 win over Jardine,
throughout “The Ultimate Fighter 10,” and they’ll
be throwing verbal jabs in the other’s direction all the
way up until the rivalry’s conclusion at the MGM Grand Garden
Arena on May 29.
“He
always says ‘Rashad, you talk too much. You talk too much.’
Let’s be honest, we’re both talking a lot. We’re
both talking trash a lot and it’s a little bit fun,”
said Jackson about the pre-fight banter. “We’ve both
got a little big mouth. It’s part of the game, but don’t
talk about me talking trash while you’re talking trash too.”
Emotions
are riding high heading into this one, but Evans says it’s
not going to affect his approach.
“I
do want to go out dangerous and just start throwing punches at
him and just seeing where they land, but at the same time I know
there’s a strategy involved so I’ve got to stick to
the strategy,” said Evans.
And
while the two dislike each other personally, there’s always
going to be a mutual respect for one another as fighters.
“You
always got to respect somebody you fight. When you go in there
and you fight you give it all you got you kind of exchange something
with that person you fight. You kind of leave your spirit on
them a little bit and that’s something you can always respect,”
stated Evans.
“I
don’t like him and I’ll never like him. You know what
I’m saying? I’m sure we’ll probably, if he whoops
me or I whoop him, I’m sure we’ll probably fight again
and we’ll probably pick up right were we left off. But for
the most part after the fight’s over, we’ll probably
be cool for a minute.”
“The
fight is going to take care of itself,” he added. “It’s
just another fight.”
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Coach:
Minotouro with full tank at UFC 104
By Guilherme
Cruz
Physical
trainer of names such as Demian Maia, Cris Cyborg and Junior
dos Santos, Rafael Alejarra is now focused on the preparation
of Rogério Minotouro Nogueira, who will come back to the
cage next Saturday (29) against Jason Brilz, one of the fights
of UFC 114. Following closely the preparation, Alejandro compliments
the development of the athletes. “Rogério is doing
a great job, we’re working on the preparation in San Diego
with Minotauro, Cigano, everybody is helping… He’s
on his best, strong, doing a lot of strength work… His strength
surprised me, he’s doing great on the anaerobic training”,
tells the coach, showing some confidence for the duel. “We’re
very confident… He has been working on his Wrestling, the
trade of punches… The expectations are of a good show and
that he knocks this guy out”, bets Alejarra, who worked
with Minotouro on his debut on UFC, when he knocked Luiz Banha
out. Rogério has plenty conditions to become UFC’s
champion and he’s pretty close to get it”, concluded
Alejarra, who is launching his website: www.mmaconditioning.tv.
Source: Tatame
|
Life
After MMA
By Ben
Fowlkes
You probably wouldn't recognize Christian Wellisch. Even if you
vaguely recognize his name, even if you remember him as the guy
who got knocked out by some UFC rookie named Shane Carwin back
in 2008, chances are you'd walk right by him as he sits behind
the American Kickboxing Academy's booth at this weekend's UFC
Expo and never know you were looking at a former UFC fighter.
That
dream is over now for Wellisch. After an 8-5 career that spanned
a little over seven years, he said goodbye to his fighting life.
"I
do sometimes miss it, but I don't wish I was still fighting,"
says the 34 year-old Wellisch, who now runs his own law practice
outside San Jose, Calif. He knows it means that he'll never see
his face on a UFC fight poster, never get to hoist the championship
belt in front of a throng of cheering fans. And he's perfectly
fine with that.
It's
a sentiment that might seem foreign to fans who tend to see MMA
fighters as people whose identity consists only of what happens
in the cage. Once a fighter gets dropped from the UFC and doesn't
get picked up by another organization, he drops off the public's
radar screen. Once he hangs up his gloves, it's like he stops
existing altogether.
But
he doesn't, of course. He goes on like anybody else. In Wellisch's
case, he doesn't even regard the end of his career as a bad thing.
"I
never got into fighting with a specific goal of only doing that
for the rest of my life. I got into it I guess because I wanted
to see what it was like and I wanted to test myself. I did that,
and I got to fight on the biggest stage in the world, which few
people can do. I don't really have any regrets."
The
turning point for Wellisch came following his split decision
loss to Jake O'Brien at UFC 94. It was an extremely close fight
that easily could have gone Wellisch's way if just one more judge
had scored the final round in his favor. That's not what happened,
and the loss was his second in a row. It proved to be all the
motivation the UFC needed to release him from his contract.
"I
told myself when I got into this sport that I wasn't going to
take any steps backwards," he says. "I'm not going
to go fight in the small shows. I think I made the right decision."
Unlike
some fighters, Wellisch had options. He had earned his law degree
from Pacific University's McGeorge School of Law in 2007, even
while simultaneously pursuing a career in the UFC. He decided
to put it to use, and now he works with many MMA fighters, helping
them structure contracts and sponsorship deals, among other things.
Fighting
for a living was fun, he admits, but this is fun too. It's just
a different kind of fun.
"I
don't get the pleasure of punching someone in the face and getting
paid for it, and there is something to be said for that, but
in the legal world you get to inflict more pain," he chuckles.
Wellisch's
path is a useful reminder that fighters are more than just the
people we see on fight night. Every athlete may start out trying
to reach the top, but the reality is that only a precious few
will get there. Once you find out that it's not going to be you,
sometimes pursuing other interests is the best way to go.
"I
think if he wants to retire, then he should," says longtime
friend Mike Swick, who started his training at AKA at around
the same time Wellisch did. "This sport is so tough, mentally
and physically, that if someone is even considering other options,
it's probably best to go do that."
One
of the frustrating things, Swick adds, is that many fans might
look at a guy like Wellisch and not appreciate the things he
accomplished.
"He
was a good fighter. He fought in the UFC all through law school.
That's no small thing. I don't think people realize how tough
that is."
Wellisch,
too, says it's slightly irksome to encounter fans who think a
five-fight run in the UFC followed by an early retirement is
tantamount to failure.
"There's
still that attitude that I find surprising, and which has no
corollary in any other pro sport, where a fan will think, 'Oh,
I could beat you. You're not that good.' Nobody in their right
mind would say that about any other sport. You don't even have
to look at the stars of those sports; you wouldn't even be able
to hang in a one-on-one game with the worst player in the NBA.
But with fighting there's that lingering attitude where some
people still think that anyone can do it."
The
truth is very few people can do it, and even fewer can do it
at the highest level. Maybe Wellisch couldn't. And maybe that's
okay.
"I
think I saw every aspect of MMA," he says. "I fought
on small shows on a day's notice. I've fought overseas, on different
continents. I traveled everywhere on someone else's dime, which
is always nice. I walked out in front of crowds of thousands.
I fought on pay-per-view. I think I got a full taste and I had
the best seat in the house."
Source: MMA Fighting
|
Bellator
CEO Bjorn Rebney: I want to talk to Scott Coker and make a fight
happen between Eddie Alvarez & Gilbert Melendez, and the
money split should not be “disproportionate”
By Zach
Arnold
During
an interview on Wednesday afternoon on Sherdog radio, Bellator
CEO Bjorn Rebney made it very clear that he wants to talk to
Scott Coker and get an interpromotional Lightweight fight booked
between Bellator FC Lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez and Strikeforce
Lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez. Talk came to a head when
Melendez, on Inside MMA, called out Eddie Alvarez and said he
wanted to see the fight happen.
“Well
you know I mean, as a fan I responded to it immediately,”
exclaimed Mr. Rebney after watching the Inside MMA show. “I
watched the same show that you guys did and Eddie did and we
saw Gilbert call out Eddie Alvarez because he’s got you
know the heart of a champion, he wants to fight the best of the
best, they’re two guys ranked probably in the Top 5 world
at 155 and I think it’s a great fight. I would love to make
this fight happen. I said it immediately, Eddie and I talked
about it probably six minutes after Gilbert made the call out.
It’s a great fight, it would be a heck of a fun fight to
watch and there really shouldn’t be any reason that it can’t
be made. We should be able to make that fight.”
Rebney
believes that both Bellator and Strikeforce would be on equal
footing during negotiations to make the fight happen.
“Yeah,
I mean, here’s the reality — this situation is easier
than most. You got from a Q score perspective in terms of recognition
with our endemic market, Gilbert Melendez and Eddie Alvarez are
very comparable. If you’d ask the normal MMA fan on the
street, do you know Gilbert Melendez, they’d say yes. Do
you know Eddie Alvarez, they’d say yes. And if you asked
them next who’s the bigger superstar, there wouldn’t
be a big dichotomy, they’d go “I don’t know, Gilbert’s
pretty big, I’ve seen him on TV, Eddie’s pretty big,
I’ve seen him on TV, they’ve beaten really good guys,
you know Gilbert coming off the (Shinya) Aoki demolition and
Eddie coming off of his Josh (Neer) win in great fashion, so
you’re not in one of those situations where you got an established
Q score superstar here in the US and some phenom out of Brazil,
you got two guys who are on equal footing, you got two guys who
are equally well-known. It should be a situation where two heads
of two companies can come together and make the fight. There
shouldn’t be a disproportionate grab for economic benefit
on any either side, it should be an equal deal, we should be
able to go into it share revenues, share the opportunity and
put on a great fight for the fans.”
When
asked how likely he thinks a fight between Alvarez and Melendez
could be booked, Mr. Rebney thinks the chances of it getting
booked are very good — as long as the lines of communication
are open.
“Yeah,
you know, I’m not just from a PR perspective interested
in talking about it. I’m actually very interested in making
the fight happen. We’ve been trying to get a hold of Scott
literally since Gilbert made the call-out and we put the press
release out immediately. You know, we haven’t yet been able
to make that connection and I know Scott’s running a business
and he’s crazy busy and I surely respect that. I would love
to talk to him about it. I have not yet had the chance to speak
to him about it, my office has trying to get a hold of him and
he hasn’t yet gotten back to us, but I have seen some comments
he made and he seemed to be receptive to the concept and the
idea of making it work and again I don’t think it’s
a particularly different fight to make and you know my hope is
we can get it done, but obviously I got to get on the phone with
him or sit down and have lunch with him before I got any kind
of a idea if it can be really made to happen.”
In
a UFC-dominated MMA world, co-promotion is rarely done because
UFC has such a huge roster of fighters that they can immediately
book 11-fight cards on big shows. Mr. Rebney was asked on Sherdog
radio if UFC was to blame for a lack of co-promotional deals
in the industry.
“I
mean I don’t know if it’s really a matter of saying
that the UFC is to blame, I mean the UFC has you know a wide
collection of hugely talented fighters that fight underneath
that banner and they’ve been able to keep that confined
and do what they do. You know I just, there’s as we’ve
discussed many times, there’s room for a #2 and a #3 in
the space and you know when there’s an opportunity like
this to make a great fight like this it should be made, there
shouldn’t be a promoter or a network executive that stands
in the way of something like this. I should be able to sit down,
have a burger and a Diet Coke with Scott Coker, spend you know
an hour and a half talking through the dynamics and make the
fight work. It’s a great fight and it should happen, two
guys in their prime, so… you know I don’t know why
it hasn’t happened in the past, but it can be made to happen
and I can’t really for the life of me figure out a reason
why it shouldn’t be made.”
Mr.
Rebney admitted that it wouldn’t make much business sense
(at the moment) for UFC to work with other promoters to book
fights since they have so much top talent on their roster.
“Yeah,
I mean you know you guys are on radio so I mean there’s
an old axiom in radio and it’s at the top of the list of
the radio axioms and that is when you’re #1 you never talk
about #2 or #3. When you’re #2 and you’re #3 you always
bark about #1, so the reality is is that the UFC doesn’t
have a strong motivation or a strong driving force behind needing
to do it. Their numbers are strong, their ratings are great,
their PPV buy rates are significant, they pack arenas everywhere
they go. So it’s not at the top of their list of things
needed to do, but the reality is I happen to believe and there
may be a lot of people who agree with me, maybe they don’t,
but I happen to agree that Eddie Alvarez if not the best is one
of the Top 2 Lightweights in the world today, that’s my
feeling and those who share it can join in. I think Gilbert’s
way up there as well and so I mean the reality is we should be
doing these kind of things. We should give this kind of a show
to fans to ultimately determine who is the best and then maybe
you know BJ (Penn) and Frankie (Edgar) fight again and whoever
wins that fight you know then you can have the good faith argument,
you have can an objective argument and go ‘wow, Eddie beat
Gilbert or Gilbert beat Eddie, that puts them as #2 and the winner
of the BJ fight versus Frankie, that’s going to determine
#1? or maybe it isn’t but that should be put into play.”
When
asked if he would be saying the same things about co-promotional
fights if he was in the same shoes as UFC, Mr. Rebney hedged
his bets.
“It’s
a very interesting dynamic and it’s a great question, I
mean you know the UFC is the 800-pound gorilla in the space and
have become synonymous with amongst general market consumers
the sport in of itself. A lot of people call MMA “ultimate
fighting” so it’s an interesting question. I’d
like to think that I could maintain the position of having my
fan hat more often than I have my CEO hat on and if I were in
a position if I had the #1 guy in the world, which a position
that BJ has held for a long period of time up until his most
recent fight, that I would look at it very seriously and say,
‘hey, you know, if Eddie Alvarez or Gilbert Melendez or
whoever that fighter might be at the time is a really viable
test, let’s see if we can make it work.’ But again,
it’s always difficult to make those calls until you actually
sit in that position, it’s always neat to talk about being
King until you’re King and then you got a different perspective
on things, so my gut’s reaction is that I’d like to
think that I have the same perception that I do now and that
is, it’s a great fight, it should be made, it shouldn’t
be impossible to get made, and if I can just get Scott Coker
on the phone we should able to make it work and I’d hope
I’d have the same perception of it if I were in a different
spot or if our organization were in a different spot some time
in the future.”
Mr.
Rebney believes that his professional sports-style business model
allows Bellator to be able to do co-promotional fights better
than the pro-wrestling style business model used by UFC.
“It’s
a sport business model that cognizant of the fact that our demographic
is young, that there needs to be big music and big lighting and
great feature pieces and you know super slow-mo shots in terms
of what you’re seeing on screen promotionally but ours is
a real sport model, it’s objectivity, it’s fighters
controlling their own destiny, it’s a tournament format
that’s very analogous to what you see in other sports, so
we have shied away to date from some of the more kind of marquee
names that maybe haven’t established that marquee Vis-à-vis
what they’ve done in the cage but more so what they’ve
done with their mouth or Youtube or other places, so it doesn’t
mean that that’s wrong, it doesn’t that I mean begrudge,
I mean watch you know I watched every single of the heavyweights
in The Ultimate Fighter and part-in-parcel it was because of
Kimbo (Slice), but it’s not our model, it’s not what
we do. We’re much more kind of focused on that competition
that would take places purely in the cage and you know shying
away from those elements of it just because we don’t have
the time, the staff, or the ability to do it and it’s just
doesn’t, it doesn’t fit into what we’re about
but so you know I would say we’re more of a sports business
model and less of a kind of a WWE/WWF modeling in terms of ratings
and those kinds of issues.”
Would
Kimbo Slice be invited to participate in Bellator’s upcoming
heavyweight title tournament?
“Not
a very high likelihood, no.”
Source: Fight Opinion
|
UFC
Confirms Jones vs. Matyushenko for August 1st
Okami to Face Munoz in Second Versus Card
By FCF
Staff
The
Ultimate Fighting Championship has confirmed, that as expected,
rising light-heavyweight prospect Jon “Bones” Jones
will face accomplished veteran Vladimir Matyushenko at the promotion’s
upcoming August 1st, UFC on Versus 2 event in Salt Lake City.
The card, which will be hosted by the EnergySolutions Arena,
will also feature a middleweight bout between Yushin Okami and
Mark Munoz.
Jones
(10-1) is coming off a dominant, first round, TKO stoppage over
Brandon Vera at the first UFC on Versus event in March, after
being disqualified for utilizing illegal elbow strikes in his
bout with Matt Hamill last December.
Matyushenko
(24-4) has won back-to-back fights over Igor Pokrajac and Eliot
Marshall since returning to the Octagon for the first time in
6 years. The decorated Belarusian wrestler lost just once in
his time away from the UFC; at an Affliction card last January
he was KO’d by Antonio Rogerio Nogueira.
Okami
(24-5) recently returned to winning form in March, when he stopped
Lucio Linhares in the second round at UFC Fight Night 21. Prior
to that, Okami dropped a Unanimous Decision loss to Chael Sonnen
at UFC 104 in October, handing the Japanese fighter just his
second loss in 10 UFC bouts.
Munoz
(8-1) continues to impress after he was KO’d in his UFC
debut by Matt Hamill last March. Since the loss Munoz has won
3 straight, and most recently at UFC 112 in April, he stopped
Kendall Grove in the second round with strikes.
The
UFC on Versus 2 will be broadcast on the Versus Network. No other
bouts have yet been confirmed.
Source: Full Contact Fighter
|
Fighters
at Work
by Matt
Beardmore
Face
it, your job sucks. Well, at least for many of us it does some
of the time. If given the chance, we’d all change something
about our workplaces. It could be that idiot that spends more
time e-mailing us porn than working on the project that’s
due this afternoon, or it could be our overbearing boss we’d
like to tap out with an anaconda choke. And who wouldn’t
like to see a couple extra zeroes on their paycheck?
But
while many of us broom and paper pushers daydream about a pro
athlete lifestyle and the endless supply of money and fame that
would surely free us from these daily occupational hazards, we
need to snap out of it.
Our
favorite MMA stars face the same workplace frustrations that
we do.
The
daily grind
Waking
up to the not-so-soothing sounds of an ear-piercing alarm clock
then sitting in bumper-to-bumper traffic isn’t the best
way to start the day, but millions of us keep spinning our wheels
in this never ending rat race. Now imagine that same a.m. routine
that leads you to the most unforgiving office.
Former
WEC featherweight champ Mike Thomas Brown loves his job and he’s
enjoying the most productive training sessions of his career,
but he’s not wearing a smile to work every day.
“There
are days when you don’t want to go to work at any job,”
Brown says. “But in my job, when I don’t want to go
to work, I go in and get punched in the face.
“It’s
a lot of wear and tear on the body. Sometimes I wish I could
get a time machine.”
Payday
blues
Time
travel sounds fun. But so does a tree that sprouts 100-dollar
bills. With the uncertainty of today’s economy, working
for the rest of our lives sadly doesn’t seem like the exception.
A delayed retirement isn’t a fun prospect, but neither is
having a career with such a short lifespan.
Couture's
longevity is amazing.“I’m making good money right now,
but I can’t keep fighting for another 10 or 15 years,”
says Brown, 34. “A fighter’s career is very short,
unless you’re a freak of nature like Randy Couture.”
Lightweight
Aaron Riley is under contract with the UFC, but with the sometimes
huge dollar differences between winning and losing, there’s
still a financial uncertainty.
“You
don’t know how to budget or think ahead on certain things,”
Riley says. “That’s tough not to know. When you work
another job, you have a good idea of your earning potential.”
The
irritating co-worker
Whether
you’re living comfortably off a six-figure salary or squeezing
by ‘til your next payday, nobody can tolerate an annoying
co-worker. The office gossip. The loud cell phone talker. The
person that’s perpetually sick and/or late. When you’re
trapped with people for eight hours a day, they’re bound
to get on your nerves.
Fighters
can feel the same animosity toward their workplace peers, but
unlike us, they’re allowed to punch and kick these rude
assholes.
“I
have a humungous chip on my shoulder for people that got into
the sport for the wrong reasons -- the girls, the TV time,”
says lightweight Jorge Gurgel. “The growth of the sport
provides a great lifestyle for some, but the bad part is the
integrity of martial arts has been completely forgotten and watered
down. It’s sad.”
While
“The Ultimate Fighter” reality show has been home to
some of the most immature and embarrassing behavior you can find
on TV, Matt Serra kicked the door off the hinges when the UFC
opened it for him in the fourth season of the program.
“TUF
is an awesome opportunity for anyone to seize,” he says.
“I seized that opportunity to the fullest.”
Yet
as we’ve seen with the show’s alcohol meltdowns and
limousine punches, not everyone that’s appeared on TUF has
been committed to MMA.
“You’re
gonna have knuckleheads anywhere,” Serra says.
Rules,
rules and more rules
It’s
OK to dislike or disagree with a co-worker, but we have to follow
the rules to keep our jobs. As much as some of them would like
free rein to let their fists and feet fly, fighters also face
workplace restrictions.
“I
love the idea of throwing two guys in a room and seeing who comes
out,” Brown says. “That’s how I fell in love with
the sport.”
But
gone are the days of groin punches and throwing a 600-pound sumo
wrestler against a man one-third his size. Middleweight Frank
Shamrock says he wouldn't shy away from such a David-Goliath
matchup.
“I
could do without weigh-ins,” he says. “You’re
there to fight, right? The whole weigh-in thing is weird to me.
To me, cutting weight is a problem.”
Riley
can relate. He makes his living at 155, but just getting to that
number can be a battle.
“Cutting
weight sucks,” he says.
Job
satisfaction
While
we’d all like to change something about our jobs, that doesn’t
mean we don’t gain some level of satisfaction out of a good
day at work.
“I
love the hours. I love the way the job is,” Gurgel says.
“I
really love what I do,” Brown agrees.
But
how would you pay your bills if you weren’t fighting?
“I
really don’t know,” Brown says, “but I guess I’d
probably be punching the clock somewhere and working for the
weekend.”
Aren’t
we all?
Source: Sherdog
|
glory
Source: MMA Fighting
|
glory
Source: MMA Fighting
|
The
Doggy Bag: Kimbo Sliced?
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 future of Kimbo Slice, the boxing
of Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, UFC’s plans on promoting
an event in Brazil and a change for the way mixed martial arts
bouts are scored by judges.
In
regards to Kimbo Slice. My personal prediction, I bet Dream gets
him in Japan for a “Super Hulk” style tournament, and
pits him against Bob Sapp -- for name's sake. That's just my
gut feeling.
-- Anthony
Loretta
Hunt, news editor: Anthony, before you pack Mr. Ferguson’s
bags and ship him off to Japan, I’d like to review some
data with you. Since signing on with the UFC last summer, Kimbo
Slice has been a focal point of all of these:
•
Highest-rated debut episode, Spike TV’s “The Ultimate
Fighter 10” -- 4.1 million viewers (September 2009)
•
Highest-rated debut episode replay, Spike TV’s “The
Ultimate Fighter 10” -- 1.1 million viewers (September 2009)
•
Highest-rated single episode, Spike TV’s “The Ultimate
Fighter 10” -- 5.3 million viewers (October 2009)
•
Most-watched single bout (live or taped), Spike TV’s “The
Ultimate Fighter 10” -- 6.1 million viewers (October 2009)
•
Highest-rated season, Spike TV’s “The Ultimate Fighter
10” -- 2.2 million average viewers (September-December 2009)
•
Most-watched live UFC cable-televised event in 2009, Spike TV’s
“The Ultimate Fighter 10” Finale -- 3.7 million viewers
(December 2009)
•
Most-watched live UFC cable-televised single bout in 2009, Spike
TV’s “The Ultimate Fighter 10” Finale (December
2009) -- 5.2 million viewers
And
we don’t even know how May’s UFC 113, which marked
Slice’s UFC pay-per-view debut, faired yet. Will the promotion
see at least a small spike in its buys due to the bearded Bahamian-born
fighter’s magnetizing aura?
I
just can’t see Zuffa releasing, and subsequently hand-delivering,
such a ratings goldmine to a competing promotion whether it is
foreign or stateside, perceived as a threat or not.
And
even if they did, I’m not sure any of the Japanese promotions
-- Dream, Sengoku, or otherwise -- have either the dough or mojo
to surpass the salary (sponsorships included) and exposure boosts
Slice has enjoyed since joining the No. 1 promotion in the world.
Though
I respect the UFC acknowledging that the weathered and worn-down
36-year-old Slice might not have lived up to the high standards
a fighter must meet to stay afloat in the Octagon, my gut tells
me Slice isn’t going anywhere. I know one UFC broadcast
partner that is probably chomping at the bit to get Slice back
on its network, and for all they’ve down for the promotion,
Zuffa should be delivering Slice to them on a silver platter.
Send
Slice back down to the UFC Fight Night circuit, where he’ll
continue to draw eyeballs, old and new. Lightening rods like
this are few and far-between in this sport and Zuffa has a savvy
track record of capitalizing on them. For a guy with only five
professional bouts in two years, there’s no shame in being
the one who draws the horse to water.
Source: Sherdog
|
Demian
Maia: “I’m crazy to get back”
By Guilherme
Cruz
A little more than one month after losing in the title fight
against middleweight champion Anderson Silva, UFC fighter Demian
Maia is back to the trainings. After a short season in Hawaii,
he is focused and thirsty for a comeback to UFC’s octagon.
“It’s great there. I spent four wonderful days, but
everything has come back to normal. I came back to the light
trainings two weeks ago. On this week I already got a new training
schedule, as if I had a fight coming”, said the black belt
to TATAME, excited about the return. “I’m crazy to
get back”.
Demian
still does not know his new opponent, but analyzes probable candidates.
“The division is mixed, there are five or six top fighters.
Between those guys, they have to see who has a scheduled fight
and who doesn’t, so that they can arrange a fight for me.
This math is complicated, it always takes a while”, explains
Demain, believing his next opponent can be Alan Belcher, Michael
Bisping, Yoshihiro Akyiama or Vitor Belfort. “They didn’t
say a thing, but all of those are great and top athletes. I believe
Vitor will recover from the (shoulder) injury and fight Anderson,
but they are all likely to fight against me”, concluded.
Source: Tatame
|
UFC
WANTS TO MAKE CANADA TUF
by Jeff
Cain
UFC president Dana White has talked about filming “The Ultimate
Fighter” internationally, taking the series to places such
as the Middle East and Australia. At the UFC press conference
on Tuesday announcing offices in Toronto, White included Canada
as a place he’d like to take the popular Spike TV reality
show.
“I
want to shoot a show up here. I want to do a full Canadian Ultimate
Fighter,” White told MMAWeekly.com following the press conference.
“I
want to do a Canadian. I want to do a Middle East. I want to
do Europe. I want to do England. I want to take it everywhere.”
What
White isn’t interested in doing is a Canada vs. USA themed
“Ultimate Fighter” or pay-per-view card like they did
at UFC 58 back in March of 2006.
“I’m
not a big fan of Canada versus the U.S. I don’t hate Canada.
I love Canada. We did that one time. We did a Canada versus USA
card and I hated it,” said White. “I even openly, admittedly
smashed it before we did it. I don’t like it.”
The
goal is to get a UFC pay-per-view in Toronto, but Canada might
have to settle for events in Montreal and a Canadian specific
“The Ultimate Fighter” until Toronto decides to sanction
the fastest growing sport in the world.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Ninja
to fight in Australia too
by Carlos
Eduardo Ozório
Set to fight at Shine Fights, Murilo Ninja saw the event go under
on the day of the fight, when he was already in the United States.
After a period of exhaustive training, he saw his frustration
turn to joy. Ninja was called up for Bitetti Combat 7, to take
place this Friday at Rio de Janeiro’s Fundição
Progresso concert arena. This will be his third appearance for
the promotion.
“I’ve
trained well and it will be a great show. I don’t know much
about my opponent, but I’m ready to put in a great performance.
I was really happy about his opportunity because I’d trained
so much,” said the Curitiba native who will face Arturo
“Tutu” Arcemendes, a fighter as of yet undefeated in
his six-fight career.
Besides
Ninja, his brother and UFC champion Mauricio Shogun should appear
at BC 7. While happy about his opportunity to put his training
to use this Friday, Ninja has another obligation coming up over
in Australia.
“I’ll
fight over there in July, I think on the 13th. I’ll be up
against an American fighter,” he told GRACIEMAG.com.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Talk
Radio: Why don’t we see 10-10 rounds scored by MMA judges?
By Zach
Arnold
From
last night’s Observer radio show. There are some bombs in
here that could get a rise or two out of readers.
“What
happened was… seven/eight years ago there was a judge in
New Jersey who scored a couple of rounds 10-10 and he’s
never been seen again and every judge knows that story because
they’ve all repeated it to me and so therefore they don’t
judge 10-10 rounds very often.
“What
was the fight, the fight in St. Louis with Shaolin Ribeiro and
Lyle Beerbohm, Fancy Pants… that first round like absolutely
nothing happened, for five minutes. They were in a fricking clinch
against the cage and nothing happened and it was like, this was
a 10-10 round and like every single judge gave it to Beerbohm
because, you know… he was initiating the takedown that he
didn’t get for five straight minutes, you know what I mean,
whereas the other guy was defending the takedown that he didn’t
get for five straight minutes WHILE NOTHING HAPPENED. No damage,
no nothing. You know, it’s like… and that’s worth
the same as like you know the next round where you know you lock
a guy in a near submission after near submission, you know what
I mean?
That’s
part of the problems with the judging, but I mean… it’s
not the judges. I mean, I’m not saying like, there are judges
who probably shouldn’t be judging, I mean that is true.
But the big problem with the judging in MMA is not the judges
— it’s the system of judging. And people go ‘oh
if you got the right judges who understood the sport,’ F***!
That’s a bunch, whenever I read that I go, ‘you’re
fricking retarded saying that’ because the way the system
works, unless you have a thing where you give out a lot of 10-10’s
and a lot of 10-8’s, OK, neither of which any judge does,
if you do that the 10-point must system can work. But it doesn’t
work because you’re discouraged, you know, you got to practically
kill a guy to get a 10-8. I mean I’ve seen some one-sided
you know beatdowns and then the judges give it 10-9 and it’s
like, what the hell? And you know again, 10-10 doesn’t exist
for all intents and purposes I mean every now and then a judge
will kind of get gutsy and do one, but it takes, you know what
I mean? The system is very flawed right now and you know, generally
speaking, at least most of the judged fights are not so close
to where the system screws it up but you know every couple of
shows you know like Tim Hague and Chris Tuchscherer, the judges
got it the way it should have been but the wrong guy won because
that was the way the system works where one guy won a round big
and the other two rounds were close but the other guy did win
both of those rounds so he wins the fight even though they got
the hell beat out of him and he lost the fight, he still gets
the decisions and everyone booed but the judges were right even
though they were wrong and the judges would probably tell you
that themselves, that like the wrong guy won but our score said
this guy won and to me whenever you have a situation, and again
you know it’s probably once on every other show, where…
where I’ll have, you know, I’ll judge a fight and go,
‘there’s my point, this guy won by my points,’
and that’s usually the guy who wins, but I’ll tell
you right now the other guy beat the other guy up in the fight,
he won the fight but the scores don’t say that.”
Source: Fight Opinion
|
'The
Ultimate Fighter' recap: Two, two, two fights in one!
By
Maggie Hendricks
There
wasn't a great image to go with this week's recap, so here is
a picture of Chuck Liddell dancing.
According
to my menu on digital cable, Dana White is going to make a shocking
announcement. Maybe he's going to turn the Octagon into a hexagon.
Maybe he's going to give up promoting fights for a life in a
yurt. We'll soon find out on tonight's episode of "The Ultimate
Fighter."
The
first thing we find out is that Kyacey Uscola is more than the
proud recipient of a wild card. He's also a proud papa, as he
gets a call that his son, Charles Champ Uscola, was born. Kris
McCray, his opponent in the wild card match, has no problem congratulating
Uscola, despite the inherent awkwardness in facing a teammate.
Tito Ortiz, their coach, will stay on the bleachers when his
two fighters duke it out.
Wild
card bout: Kyacey Uscola (Team Punishment) vs. Kris McCray (Team
Punishment)
Round
1: After feeling each other out with stand-up, Uscola delivers
a kick to McCray's knee that makes McCray wince. Uscola doesn't
pounce immediately, but waits a second to try to take McCray
down, and McCray gets the advantage when they go to the ground.
They get back to their feet and clinch against the fence. McCray
delivers a low blow and Uscola is given time to recover. In that
time, we can overhear Dana White say, "His knee is hurting
him." If that's true, we can't see it, because McCray continues
to dominate, slamming Uscola down and controlling the bout until
the round ends.
Round
2: McCray starts with another big takedown and moves to side
control. McCray secures a kimura, twists it and Uscola submits.
With
all of the quarterfinalists decided, White, Ortiz and Chuck Liddell
get together to decide matchups. Unshockingly, Ortiz and Liddell
squabble over it. Both Ortiz and Liddell whine that Dana will
show preference to the other one.
The
quarterfinal matchups are:
Nick
Ring vs. Court McGee
Kyle
Noke vs. Kris McCray
Brad
Tavares
vs. Seth Baczynski
Jamie
Yager vs. Josh Bryant
Liddell
asks that if his team wins every one of their fights, can they
send Tito home?
Back
at the house, Forrest Griffin pops in to film an extended commercial
for play UFC: Undisputed 2010 with the cast. The happiness is
short-lived, as we cut to Nick Ring's visit to the doctor. His
knee is severely screwed up (yes, that's a technical term) and
needs another ACL reconstruction. The doctor says that he may
be able to hold on for another fight or two, but that's the best-case
scenario. Ring has a decision to make.
White
shows up at the house to talk it over with Ring, and the fighters
realize something is up. Ring doesn't think he could win a fight
right now, so he is going to pull out of the fight. That means
that a spot is open for another fighter.
Before
White leaves, Hammortree runs after Dana to say, "I want
that fight." Clearly, Hammortree knows what Dana likes,
as he turns right back around to tell the fighters that Hammortree
has Ring's spot. Joe Henle, who lost a close fight last week,
seems annoyed that White made the decision that quickly, but
anyone who has watched the UFC at all should know that nothing
makes White a happier man than a fighter showing that they will
do anything to make it to the UFC.
James
Hammortree (Team Punishment) vs. Court McGree (Team Liddell)
Round
1: Hammortree is successful with kicks until McGee catches a
kick to take Hammortree down. Unfortunately for McGee, Hammortree
doesn't stay down for long. The fighters return to their feet,
with both fighters trying to work a jab. McGee turns a clinch
into a takedown, but again can't keep the bout on the ground.
After they stand up for a few seconds, Hammortree goes for the
takedown. He tries to take McGee's back, but McGee turns, faces
Hammortree and gets a double leg to get control. The round ends
with McGee in control.
Round
2: Hammortree shoots in for a takedown, McGee catches him in
a guillotine, and Hammortree taps out. With that win, McGee is
a semifinalist.
Next
week, we finally get to see what takes Ortiz out of his UFC 115
bout with Chuck Liddell.
Source: Yahoo Sports
|
Xande:
“Pressure? Pressure’s what my opponents will feel”
He’s back. And he wants his third absolute title. More than
that, he wants to be the first three-time absolute black belt
champion of the world.
In
2009 a knee injury kept him out, but now he’s 100%.
Xande
Ribeiro is back. Direct from San Diego, California, the two-time
champion spoke with the GRACIEMAG at the Worlds Blog. During
the conversation Xande spoke of Roger, his prep-work, the pressure
of attempting to win a third title, his 2006 and 2008 titles
and much more.
Check
out the interview:
Demanding
respect from GB
How’s
training going and what will it be like to go back to competing
in the gi after nearly two years away?
Training is going full blast. I was already in shape from doing
MMA and when I decided to compete at the Worlds I put on the
gi again. I’ve been training since the end of April. Truth
is I never stopped training because I incorporate the gi in my
MMA training as well, but now I’m serious about it, getting
my grip-strength and precision in carrying out the techniques
back.
Speaking
of the absolute black belt division and looking back in time,
what was more exciting: winning your first or second title? What
makes each of them unique?
There was a special flavor to each of them. The 2006 one was
the last one in Brazil and my first. In 2007 I lost, so in 2008
I went into that final with a lot of drive. It was also good
because his [Roger’s] cheering section was cursing me and
I ended up winning in the end.
In
the years you won, do you remember the physical, technical, tactical
or motivational factors that helped you overcome your adversaries?
I’ve always been confident in my technique, strategy and
heart. With time I learned to strengthen my head. I’ve always
had a good head on my shoulders because I never get put off by
anything, and with time I learned to add psychology as a weapon
of imposition. Beyond that, I know how to sense what my opponent
is feeling, when he’s tired, when he’s excited. There
was an interesting case in 2008. I was sitting down and concentrating,
even a bit sulky, when a friend came up to me and asked: “Why
are you scowling like that? You trained so hard to be here. You
should be happy that everything you trained to make happen happened.”
So I got up with a smile and went into the final really happy.
Does
competing in the absolute up until the semifinal on Saturday
and having to make weight for your weight division create any
difficulties?
Truth is that it even helps because you lose weight in the absolute.
The adrenaline of fighting in a championship takes weight off
you and you still have four matches, causing you to shed at least
3kg. The biggest challenge is getting past the muscle soreness
the next day.
If
the two of you make it to the final in 2010, you or Roger will
become the first three-time absolute champions in history. Does
that cost you any sleep? How do you deal with the pressure?
I lose no sleep; first because I get tired from training and
want to rest to be able to train the next day. Beyond that, I’m
happy to have the chance to win a third and it will be really
exciting if I or Roger win it, but there are a lot of good guys
in the way. As for the pressure, I don’t feel any anymore.
I’ve proven what I had to prove. Now I’m on a personal
endeavor to see what I’m capable of. Pressure? Pressure’s
what my opponents will feel when I impose my game on them.
Mental
fortitude
Besides
Roger, who out there will give you a hard time in the absolute?
Have you been following the other competitors?
One certainly has to keep up to date. These days there are a
lot of good guys and a lot of guys coming up with titles. I’ve
been living in the United States for 10 years, but I read and
keep up with the championships on youtube, websites and, of course,
in GRACIEMAG.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Jiu-Jitsu
Worlds: 15 years of timeless phrases
It’s
not just submissions, takedowns, guard passes and sweeps that
make up the history of the Jiu-Jitsu Worlds. The mat wizards
who inhabit the pantheon of the stars of the last 14 installments
of the greatest gentle art competition show they are black belts
even when they open their mouths to speak.
Ever
since the first edition in 1996, our stars have filled the web
pages of GRACIEMAG.com with timeless utterances. Words of disgust,
bursts of joy, good cheer, relief and humility spill from their
lips.
The
GRACIEMAG at the Worlds Blog dove into the past 14 years of the
Worlds to rescue the best phrases uttered by the dynamos of the
mats. And, of course, if you remember something once said that
didn’t make it on here, don’t hesitate to post in the
comments section.
A
lot of folks called me crazy for creating the Jiu-Jitsu World
Championship in 1996. They’d say the sport was still just
crawling and need to grow a lot before there could be such a
competition, but I knew the Worlds was going to lead Jiu-Jitsu
to growth – Carlos Gracie Jr, CBJJ / IBJJF president.
Finally!
– Vitor “Shaolin” Ribeiro in 2000, upon beating
Leo Vieira after three losses in three matches
I’m
wearing my underwear and it’s not my fault he’s not
wearing his – Daniel Simões in 2000, commenting on
his controversial loss to Saulo Ribeiro in the super heavyweight
division.
I
got to beat on my chest. I’m the only five-time world champion.
At least until next year – Robson Moura in 2000, upon winning
his fifth gold medal in five world championships.
I’m
stoked! Tonight there’s going to be a party in the favela!
– Fernando Tererê in 2000, after winning the middleweight
division with his victory over Nino Schembri.
To
keep them from saying I’m running away, I decided to go
out on a limb, but I fought with a twisted ankle – Márcio
Pé de Pan in 2001, after dropping out of the absolute
in the semifinal.
I’m
a heck of a salesman! – Vitor Shaolin in 2001, after winning
his second world title and selling his gi to a Japanese spectator
for 200 dollars.
There’s
still one more coming! – Saulo Ribeiro in 2001, after losing
the medium heavyweight final to Margarida, warning that the two
would meet again in the open weight final.
I
scored my two points and hung on, which doesn’t go over
too well in a final – Fredson Paixão in 2001, confessing
that he stalled in the featherweight final.
I
watched his matches so many times that the tape broke –
Fredson Paixão in 2002, with reverence for Ricardo De
La Riva, who he beat in the featherweight final.
Jacaré
squashes his opponents, submits them and walks off wearing the
same expression he bore when he went in, without even sweat on
his face. Look at that – Ryan Gracie in 2002, impressed
by then-brown belt Ronaldo Souza.
He
carries a lot of weight and big old legs! – Saulo Ribeiro
in 2002, explaining what Pé de Pano’s weapons were,
after the absolute final.
I
was 30% in shape, but that’s enough for today’s Jiu-Jitsu
– Márcio Pé de Pano in 2003, after winning
his second absolute title in a row.
Look
at that, now he’s in the mix, too! – Márcio
Pé de Pano in 2003, after seeing Jacaré get his
black belt, on the podium.
I
still want Pé de Pano. He’s the best and I want to
be the best by beating him – Fabrício Werdum in 2003,
after winning the ultraheavyweight division.
I
hit a big old plate of rice, beans and chicken at Tererê’s
house. It was so good and was stuffed when I fought – Ronaldo
Jacaré in 2003, explaining why he started off slow in
his showing at brown belt.
At
least I lost to the champ. Or do you think someone’s going
to beat that monster? – Roberto Traven in 2003, predicting
Jefferson Moura’s opponents in the heavyweight division
wouldn’t stand a chance.
The
poor are used to sleeping under a fan. I got hit with a nasty
air conditioner on the bus from São Paulo to Rio and caught
an awful cold – Fernando Tererê in 2003, on the rough
ride he had before winning his second middleweight title.
Once
it was over, I felt like crying and hugging everyone in the stands,
I was so happy – Felipe Costa in 2003, after winning the
roosterweight title.
I
never had a knack for it, but I train a lot – Felipe Costa,
em 2003.
The
score stands at 1 to 1, but I took an arm in advantage –
Roger Gracie in 2004, after losing to Jacaré in the most
controversial absolute final of Worlds history.
I
regret nothing! – Ronaldo Jacaré in 2004, on not
having tapped to Roger’s armbar.
I’m
not stopping! I’m not stopping! – Jacaré in
2004, after escaping Roger’s armbar.
He
didn’t give me any room, all I could move were my eyes!
– Fernando Tererê in 2004, on his loss to Roger in
the absolute.
He
has no arms or neck; makes it hard to attack him – Marcelo
Uirapuru in 2004, in praise of Marcelinho after losing in the
absolute.
I
wanted to show how the ant can beat the cockroach – Fernando
Tererê in 2004, after entering the ultraheavyweight division
weighing just 80 kg.
Just
because I’ve fought in all the Worlds’ folks call me
old. But I’m 30 – Cássio Werneck in 2004.
If
they don’t watch out, I’ll submit a lot of purple belt
men. I’m strong as hell – Mirella Cortes in 2004.
I
didn’t get on the stand because I didn’t lose. To pick
up the silver medal would be to recognize defeat – Roger
Gracie in 2005, after more controversy with Jacaré.
If
I’d lost, no one on my team would have questioned the result
– Jacaré in 2005, complaining about Roger’s
team whining.
Jacaré
only fired off one shot, but it was a bull’s eye! –
Saulo Ribeiro in 2005, on Jacaré’s strategy against
Roger.
I
wanted to submit Roger and he wanted to submit me. That’s
why the match was so good – Xande Ribeiro in 2006, on the
absolute final.
I
don’t even know what I did. I just used my grandfather’s
and father’s Jiu-Jitsu, which I’ve been practicing
since I was a kid – Kron Gracie in 2006, at 18 years of
age, already drawing attention as a purple belt.
You
see my fight? I got taken on a carousel ride! – Marcinho
Feitosa in 2006, cheerful even after losing to Cobrinha.
It
was worthy of Rocky Balboa. He got beat up the whole time, and
then in the end: pow! – Saulo Ribeiro in 2006, commenting
on Xande’s strategy in the absolute final.
Seems
like there’s a car on top of you – Robert Drysdale
in 2006, regarding the pressure of Roger Gracie
Get
your hands off me! – Luiz Theodoro “Big Mac” in
2007, still disgusted with the close decision favoring Rafael
Lovato Jr in the ultraheavyweight division.
Triangle
defense and standing! – Saulo Ribeiro in 2007, teaching
how he avoided tapping out to Rômulo Barral in the medium
heavyweight division.
That’s
seven! – Robson Moura in 2007, on winning his seventh title.
This
medal takes four years of weight off my back – Roger Gracie
in 2007, relieved for winning the absolute gold medal.
I’m
going to stop being the nice guy! – Xande Ribeiro in 2008,
complaining about a controversial move by Gabriel Vella, who
denied tapping to an armbar.
You
need a ladder to fight him – André Galvão
in 2008, after facing Roger in the absolute.
Pull
guard, Roger! – Renzo Gracie in 2008, foreseeing that playing
the standup game would not end well for his nephew in the absolute
against Xande.
This
win goes to respect in Jiu-Jitsu. The Gracie Barra crowd offended
me! – Xande Ribeiro in 2008, shortly after becoming two-time
absolute champion.
There
isn’t a name for that takedown yet, so we’ll call it
xandeguruma! – Xande Ribeiro in 2008, dubbing the takedown
that yielded him the two-time absolute title.
Japanese
fighters are always tough. They don’t tap! – Samuel
Braga, light featherweight champion in 2008.
I
came here to be champion! – Mário Reis in 2008, complaining
of the refereeing.
I
tapped! – Kron Gracie in 2008, still in disbelief over the
outcome of his black belt debut against Sérgio Moraes.
By
training a lot, I’m getting to Tererê’s level,
but he was a natural – André Galvão in 2008,
in tribute to his eternal master after winning the medium heavyweight
division.
I
moved up in weight to escape Roger and when I look at the bracket,
who do I see? Roger – Eduardo Telles in 2008, laughing as
he saw the pairings in the ultra heavyweight division.
I
never imagined he was that much better than the rest – Guy
Richie in 2009, on his teacher Roger Gracie.
That’s
the so-called invisible Jiu-Jitsu – Saulo Ribeiro in 2009,
referring to Roger’s performance.
Oooh,
there goes the blanket! – Gracie Barra cheering section
in 2009, during Roger Gracie’s matches.
It
even spoils the fun when I don’t get taken down – Roger
Gracie in 2009, joking about his “weak point”.
Next
year I’ll be back for us to put on that show again –
Xande Ribeiro in 2009, saluting Roger for his second absolute
title.
I
felt like crying from training so much – Bruno Malfacine
in 2009, on his prep work at Alliance
We’re
bothering some people! – Guilherme Mendes in 2009, to the
Alliance cheering section.
The snake had two heads! – Rubens Charles Cobrinha in 2009,
responding to provocations from the Mendes brothera in Abu Dhabi
one month earlier.
I
only beat Kyra because I’m big – Lana Stefanac in 2009,
after being crowned champion of the absolute black belt division.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
For
the blog opener, an X-ray of the black belt division
Unafraid
to stir up controversy, the very first GRACIEMAG.com at the Worlds
Blog puts each men’s black belt division under the microscope.
In
an exercise of futurology, I disentangled how the main players
in each category will show up in Long Beach. On June 6, we will
find out where I went wrong and where I went right. As a proviso,
the bets were made based on how each athlete performed in his
respective division at recent competitions.
Calasans
and Cavaca, a couple of the beasts who'll be there in Long Beach
I
split the names from each weight group into three divisions.
In
“The Champion”, I examined how each of 2009’s
winners will show up to try for a double. Being champion doesn’t
mean they are the favorites, but assures an isolated analysis.
In
“The Challengers” I speak of each champion’s main
adversaries, often just as favored to win as the 2009 gold medalist.
In
“The Underdogs” I examine the other tough competitors
who will give the favorites a hard time and who have what it
takes to surprise and take the title.
And
so as not to say I sat on the fence, after the analyses, I predict
the final and champion of each weight group! But chill, they’re
just predictions and not who I’m rooting for. And for those
who might fear the ladies are being forgotten, they’re coming
up soon, once sign-ups have been finalized.
Let
the predictions begin!
Roosterweight
The
Champion: Bruno Malfacine (Alliance) is the man to beat. Ever
since last year, the Carioca has kept up the pace in competition
and come up with amazing results. So far in 2010, he has won
the European, Pan-American and Brazilian championships. He enters
this year’s championship as hands-down favorite.
Malfa
wants to have another party in Long Beach
The
Challengers: Felipe Costa (Brasa) was runner-up at the 2010 Pan
and wants revenge. Besides him, Bernardo Pitel (Nova União)
is also in the mix.
The
Underdogs: The lighter divisions are always suffering kamikaze
attacks from Japanese fighters who don’t tap out and often
surprise.
Prediction
for final: Bruno Malfacine vs Felipe Costa
Champion:
Bruno Malfacine
Light
featherweight
The
champion: Guilherme Mendes (Atos JJ) confesses that he suffers
to make weight in the division, but his opponents suffer even
more, as victims of the hard work and creativity of the Mendes
brothers and the entire Atos team. He’s the hands-down favorite
to win.
Even
under duress, Gui wants his second at light featherweight
The
challengers: Caio Terra (Brasa) is already signed up and, after
taking second at the 2010 Pan, he wants to erase the memory of
controversy by taking the title. Disqualified after an altercation
in the 2009 final, two-time champion Samuel Braga (GB) is another
who wants to clear the bad impression he left. To round out the
list, Carlos “Esquisito” Holanda Vieira wants to show
his Pan title was no fluke and is confident in the effectiveness
of his guard to do so. Ah, sorry, there’s also Pablo Silva
(GB).
Underdogs:
There are five Japanese competitors signed up. Are there any
doubts one of them can cause some damage? Dai Yoshioka (Tokyo
Yellowmans) is a good bet.
Predictions
for final: Guilherme Mendes vs Caio Terra
Champion:
Guilherme Mendes
Featherweight
The
Champion: Rubens Charles Maciel (Alliance), a four-time winner,
wants to set an unprecedented record of five straight titles
in the same black belt division. On the year announced as his
farewell to competition, Cobrinha will have to prove he still
owns the division. There’s no lack of obstacles and the
Brazilian Nationals 2010 is solid proof of that.
The
pyramid will rumble with another meeting between Cobrinha and
Rafael
The
challengers: Rafael Mendes (Atos JJ) shows up at Long Beach as
co-favorite. His credentials as the prodigy in the division include
his brilliant performance at the 2009 ADCC, when he submitted
Leo Vieira and beat Cobrinha. The 4-to-2 score over Cobrinha
at the Brazilian Nationals provides further credentials. In the
gi, in his weight group, he hasn’t lost since the 2009 semifinal
in Long Beach, against his rival from Alliance.
Underdogs:
Two-time world champion Mário Reis (GB) is always a hard
nut to crack and is heading to California to once again give
the favorites more than they can chew. Another who should show
up in fine form for the division is crowd-favorite veteran Wellington
“Megaton” Dias (GH), newbie Renan Borges (BTT) and
Marcelino Freitas (NU).
Prediction
for final: Rafael Mendes vs Rubens Charles Cobrinha
Champion:
Rafael Mendes
Lightweight
The
Champion: Michael Langhi (Alliance) wants to become twice-winner
of the championship and hopes to do so by closing out the division
with his dear friend Lucas Lepri (Alliance). That’s what
the two did at the European Championship and the Pan.
Durinho
wants revenge, Langhi his second
The
Challengers: If Alliance has its duo, Atos JJ does too. In 2009,
Gilbert Burns caught Lepri by surprise, but stopped at Langhi,
taking silver. In the Brazilian Nationals, once again he overcame
Lepri (this time with the finish) and took the title. This year
in Long Beach, Durinho will have the help of Bruno Frazatto.
Besides the duo, we can’t forget about the always-game Augusto
“Tanquinho” Mendes (Soul Fighters)
Underdogs:
The USA’s Jonathan Torres (Lloyd Irvin) is one of the athletes
to keep a keen eye on. Recently he dominated the NY Open, winning
at weight and the absolute. Besides Torres, Phillipe “Furão”
Della Monica (GB) may cause some problems for the favorites.
Prediction
for final: Michael Langhi vs Gilbert Durinho
Champion:
Michael Langhi
Middleweight
The
Champion: Marcelo Garcia (Alliance) is shooting for his fourth
championship win. There’s not much needing to be said about
Marcelinho. He’s one of the legends of the sport, and is
by far the favorite in a stacked division.
Last
year it was decided by odds or evens, but 2010 promises excitement
at middleweight
The
challengers: When was the last time a black belt division at
a Jiu-Jitsu World Championship gathered members of the Gracie
family? The middleweight division will probably bring together
Kron Gracie (GH) and Kayron Gracie (GB). Kayron comes in on a
high after capturing gold at the Pan. The champions from 2007,
Lucas Leite (Check Mat), and 2008, Sergio Moraes (Alliance),
round out the list of main challengers to Marcelinho’s throne.
Underdogs:
William Cooper (Alliance) and Allan “Finfou” Nascimento
(Check Mat) should also do well. Absolute champion of Europe
Guto Campos (Atos JJ) is in the fight. And why not mention Abmar
Barbosa (Drysdale), who had a brilliant Pan.
Prediction
for the final: Marcelo Garcia vs Kayron Gracie
Champion:
Marcelo Garcia
Medium
heavyweight
The
Champion: If Rômulo Barral (GB) fights the way he did in
2009, no one stands a chance. However, the champion has been
plagued by injuries and the shape Rominho will be in going into
the Worlds is an unknown.
Rominho
shooting for his third, but will have his work cut out for him
The
Challengers: Tarsis Humphreys (Alliance) has shown himself to
be consistent in competition. Since the last Worlds, when he
was runner-up to Rominho, he won the European, Pan-American and
Brazilian National championships. Thus the São Paulo native
comes in as the main challenger. Also São Paulo native
Cláudio Calasans (Atos JJ) is in the running, too. Both
have the credentials to surprise.
The
Underdogs: GP teammates Otávio Souza and Victor Estima
are also in the mix. It’s also worth mentioning Eduardo
Telles (Nine Nine), who dropped weight.
Prediction
for final: Rômulo Barral vs Cláudio Calasans
Champion:
Cláudio Calasans
Heavyweight
The
Champion: Bráulio Estima (GB) is in pursuit of his fourth
championship-title win and hopes the frustration of the event
where he was to make his MMA debut being canceled doesn’t
hinder his efforts. Carcará will have two weeks to bring
his grip strength and guard up to par to show his recent losses
in Abu Dhabi didn’t faze him.
Bráulio
could face Xande in the final, like at the ADCC
The
Challengers: With the look and CV of a favorite, Xande Ribeiro
(GH) returns to the Worlds with his mind on winning his third
absolute title and fifth at weight. As is the case with Bráulio,
Saulo’s brother has dedicated himself to MMA lately, but
guarantees he didn’t put off wearing his gi. Another serious
challenger will be the man of the moment from Alliance, Bernardo
Faria, who won the absolute divisions of the Pan-American and
Brazilian Nationals.
The
Underdogs: Rafael Lovato Jr (GH), 2007’s world champion,
wants to prove his title was no fluke. Lighter than the rest,
the American may surprise. Leonard Nogueira (Alliance), Alexandre
Souza (Gracie Floripa) and Alexandre Cecconi (Rillion) also guarantee
excitement in the division.
Prediction
for final: Bráulio Estima vs Xande Ribeiro
Champion:
Xande Ribeiro
Super
heavyweight
The
Champion: Roger Gracie (GB) will show up at Long Beach excited
about the rear-naked choke he used to dispatch Kevin Randleman
at Strikeforce. On the other hand, he’ll have to beat the
ghost haunting him since 2008, when the same dedication to MMA
days from the Worlds left him with weakened grips and unable
to put on much pressure. The six-time weight-group champion is
the definitive man to beat.
Another
final from 2009 could repeat itself: Roger vs Demente
The
Challengers: Ricardo Gonzalez (Nova União), runner-up
in 2009, wants revenge. 2010?s European Champion, Demente wants
to be the one to oust Roger at weight, which has never happened
before. 2008’s winner Antônio Braga Neto (Gordo JJ)
will also be chasing Roger to erase the memory of his poor performance
in 2009.
The
Underdogs: Thiago Gaia (NU), Marcel Fortuna (Ralph Gracie) and
Roberto “Tussa” Alencar (GB) should do well at weight,
too.
Prediction
for final: Roger Gracie vs Ricardo Demente
Champion:
Roger Gracie
Ultraheavyweight
The
Champion: On a new team, Gabriel Vella (Ryan Gracie) wants to
win his third championship title to cap the new direction his
career has taken. The São Paulo native started off well
at the 2010 Pan and has what it takes to continue his march.
Vella
will bring on the pressure in trying for his third
The
Challengers: Rodrigo Cavaca (Check Mat) carries on in pursuit
of his first world title as a black belt. The gold medals he
won at the European Championship and the Brazilian Nationals
and the silver from the Pan are excellent credentials. Another
who wants a first World title on his CV is Luiz Felipe Theodoro
(Tozi). Big Mac has faith in his sharp judo and the awe-inspiring
pressure he applies when playing on top.
The
Underdogs: Antônio Peinado (Alliance) makes it to his second
World Championship as a black belt looking to definitively carve
his name into the list of greats in the division.
Prediction
for the final: Gabriel Vella vs Rodrigo Cavaca
Champion:
Gabriel Vella
Absolute
The
Champion: Roger Gracie again wants to show that he is the best
Jiu-Jitsu fighter of all times. A third open weight title would
be a good argument for putting a string of second-places behind
him. Even if he doesn’t admit it himself, the Gracie also
wants to win his first title over an adversary who is not from
his gym. A final against Xande Ribeiro for a third title must
be in every one of Roger’s dreams.
Who
can stop Roger Gracie?
The
Challengers: Xande Ribeiro is back after his absence in 2009
and wants a third absolute title, too. The 2006 and 2008 finals
proved Saulo’s brother has the tools to beat favored-to-win
Roger. Rômulo Barral is another serious candidate for the
title. Rômulo edged Xande out of the 2007 final and stopped
at Roger in 2009. Who can doubt him?
The
Underdogs: The list is immense and will depend on who the teams
sign up Saturday morning. There can be two per team. For example,
Alliance may go in with Bernardo Faria, Tarsis Humphreys or Antônio
Peinado. GB will have to decide between Bráulio and Rominho.
Ralph Gracie will have Braga Neto and Marcel Fortuna. Aside from
them, there’s also Rodrigo Cavaca, Ricardo Demente, Rafael
Lovato Jr, Gabriel Vella, Alexandre Souza, Cláudio Calasans,
etc, etc, etc… We’ll just have to wait and see.
Prediction
for final: Roger Gracie vs Xande Ribeiro
Champion:
Roger Gracie
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
SENGOKU
13: TITLE FIGHT & WELTERWEIGHT TOURNEY
World Victory Road’s Sengoku Raiden Championships 13 is
set for June 20 at the Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo, and the fight
card is starting to fill out.
The
promotion on Friday announced the addition of two bouts that
are part of its eight-man Sengoku Welterweight Grand Prix. The
opening round of the tournament will feature two quarterfinal
bouts at Sengoku 13 with the other two at Sengoku 14.
Keita
“K-Taro” Nakamura faces Omar de la Cruz in one of the
quarterfinal bouts at Sengoku 13. Takuya Wada faces Jan Sun Lee
in the other quarterfinal bout on the same night.
Sengoku
13 will also feature a featherweight title bout between current
champion Masanori Kanehara and challenger Marlon Sandro.
Sengoku
Featherweight Championship:
-Masanori Kanehara (16-7-5) vs. Marlon Sandro (16-1)
Sengoku
Welterweight Grand Prix:
-Keita "K-Taro" Nakamura (18-4-2) vs. Omar de la Cruz
(6-2)
-Takuya Wada (19-8-10) vs. Jae Sun Lee (5-5)
-Hiroshi
Izumi (1-1) vs. Chang Seob Lee (3-4)
-Maximo "Maxi" Blanco (5-2-1) vs. Rodrigo Damm (9-3)
-Shigeki Osawa (5-1) vs. Katsuya Toida (12-9-3)
-Ikuo Usuda (6-0) vs. Kyung Ho Kang (5-3)
-Sanae Kikuta (28-6-3) vs. Yasubey Enomoto (3-1)
-Ryo Kawamura (11-5-2) vs. Hidetada Irie (7-3-2)
Source: MMA Weekly |
PAUL
BUENTELLO BOUNCES BACK AT SHARK FIGHTS 11
Paul
Buentello bounced back on Saturday night with a unanimous decision
victory over Bryan Humes in the main event of Shark Fights 11.
The fight took place at the Ector County Coliseum in Odessa,
Texas.
Buentello
had been on a two-fight skid coming into the fight, losing back-to-back
efforts to Stefan Struve and Cheick Kongo in the UFC. It was
the Texan’s second tour of duty in the UFC and, at age 36
if he doesn’t come back strong quickly, it could be his
last. Both the Struve and Kongo fights were highly entertaining
and competitive, but on the overflowing UFC roster wins are still
a big part of the equation.
Official
Shark Fights 11 Results:
-Paul
Buentello def. Bryan Humes by Unanimous Decision, R3
-Derek Campos def. Luis Luna by Unanimous Decision, R3
-Clinton Holcomb def. Lance Bartholomew by KO at 1:42, R3
-Tony Castillo def. Chris Golden by Submission (Rear Naked Choke)
at 2:47, R2
-Joseph Sandoval def. Derrick Carter by KO at 1:36, R1
-Armando Herrera def. Chase Watson by Unanimous Decision, R3
-Jason Sampson def. Jeremiah Castillo by TKO at 1:33, R1
-Mark Martinez def. Bryan Valdez by Submission (Guillotine Choke)
at 2:36, R1
Source: MMA Weekly |
Another
hit to this year’s event.
Three-time
world champion Bráulio Estima just announced via Twitter
that he will be unable to dispute the 2010 event.
According
to Estima, an old and recurring injury in his lower back will
put him on ice for a week, the very week the Brazilian was going
to use to get his gi game up to speed.
Braulio
celebrates in 2009
Added
to the injury is Bráulio’s professional commitment
to MMA, as his debut is set for July.
Also
over Twitter, the Zé Radiola student remarked on the bad
news: “I’m really sad, but there’s not much I
can do. I’ll be there to support my teammates and hope to
be in shape for my MMA debut in July.”
Thus
the heavyweight division is left without its champion.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
KRAUSS
CAPTURES TITLE AT CAGE WARRIORS
The Cage Warriors promotion rose from the ashes on Saturday night
in Birmingham, England, with a show that mixed European and British
talent to great effect. They are still in rebuild mode, but the
hallmark of quality fights remains and the future looks promising.
In
the headline bout of the evening, Pascal Krauss secured victory
over John Quinn with a tight rear naked choke, marking the eighth
stoppage of the night, and picking up the Cage Warriors welterweight
title to boot.
The
first round started with both fighters picking up where the previous
fight had left off, exchanging hands without hesitation, Quinn
landed a couple of nice crosses with the exchanges, but it was
Krauss who appeared to be crisper with his strikes and flowing
freely with the combinations. Krauss made the most of the first
trip to the mat, reversing position on his adversary before dropping
a series of short elbows.
Krauss
started to gain confidence in the second stanza and turned on
the pressure, controlling Quinn’s upper body and dragging
the fight to the canvas in search of an Anaconda choke. He wasn’t
successful with the attempt, but managed to sink in a rear naked
choke with 13 seconds to spare in the round.
Greg
Loughran and Kenneth Rosfort took a while during the opening
round to feel each other out and assess their timing. Loughran
was the first to crack the code and seized the center of the
cage, forcing his Norwegian adversary to work hard on his movement
around the outside.
Loughran
started to have success throwing a double jab/cross combination
that landed frequently through the defense of his opponent, but
towards the end of the second round Rosfort had found his own
opening, dropping the Ulsterman with a big overhand right.
Following
the same path into the third, Loughran tried tagging a hook on
the end of his sequence, but Rosfort invariably countered with
the overhand and managed to put Loughran down again.
During
the fourth round, both were landing frequently, but it was Loughran
who ended up bowing out of the bout with a huge split in his
lip that will require surgery to fix. Rosfort becomes the new
Cage Warriors lightweight champion.
Excellent
bout between Peter Irving and Nordin Ashri as the latter made
the 10th Legion champion work very hard to retain his title.
The first round saw Ashri land some good shots standing as he
countered Irving's kicks. On the mat Irving appeared to have
the edge and wasted nothing with his punishing attacks. He threw
elbows and punches intermittently throughout the bout, but usually
landed, including a sharp elbow in the second that opened a cut
on the top of Ashri's head.
Irving
looked to emulate the opening rounds by grounding the fight and
working hard to secure mount. Ashri threatened briefly with a
Kimura, but ended up eating a few more hard punches for his efforts.
Paying props to his adversary’s toughness after the bout,
Irving was all class in victory.
A
frantic battle erupted between Daniel Thomas and Ali McClean
as both looked to trade early, tagging each other in the exchanges,
but it wasn't until they hit the mat that the experience of the
former played a part, staying calm under pressure and looking
for a submission. McClean defended himself well, but left his
head in when attempting to get back to the feet, allowing Thomas
to drive him down into a mounted guillotine that stopped the
bout.
A
left hook from Louis Chapman separated Jay Gilbey from consciousness
in the opening seconds of the bout as he came crashing down to
the canvas. Gilbey never knew what hit him.
Mick
Sinclair came under fire early as opponent Josh Dennis let loose
with a very impressive show of hands, tagging the lightweight
early and frequently. It wasn't long before Sinclair had enough
and scooped Dennis up before hauling him over to the other side
of the cage and dumping him on the mat. With a clear edge in
grappling experience, Sinclair dominated position and swarmed
the young fighter who just covered up, forcing referee Marc Goddard
to halt the bout.
Sarah
Moras overcame a tough striking offense from Helena Martin and
muscled her way to a win via ground and pound in the second round,
dominating the clinch with solid upper body control before grounding
the fight, sheer brutality putting her opponent out under a barrage
of strikes from mount.
James
Bateman and Ronan McKay engaged in a grueling 15 minutes of action
as both scored a round apiece before heading into the third.
Ultimately, Bateman's suffocating control of the top position
earned him a nod from the judges.
Jimmy
Wallhead wasted no time in his middleweight outing, dragging
Shaun Lomas straight down to the ground and into his guard. Working
to pass first to side control, where he applied some stiff hammerfists,
before transitioning to mount. Lomas didn't want to be a static
target and rolled, allowing Wallhead to sink in the hooks and
clamp on a tight rear naked choke.
Tom
Breese and Ramon Silva looked pretty handy early on with their
exchanges, but it was Breese who managed to land a crisp right
hand to drop his opponent before capitalizing fast and trying
to setup an arm triangle. Sensing danger, Silva rolled, but Breese
followed and dropped the hooks in along with a rear naked choke
at the 2:13 mark.
Pro
- Pascal Krauss def. John Quinn by Submission (Rear Naked Choke)
at 4:47, R2
- Kenneth Rosfort def. Greg Loughran by Doctor Stoppage (Cut
Lip) at 3:58, R4
- Mick Sinclair def. Josh Dennis by TKO (Strikes) at 1:44, R1
- Pete Irving def. Nordin Asrih by Unanimous Decision, R3
- Daniel Thomas def. Ali McClean by Submission (Guillotine Choke)
at 3:32, R1
- Jim Wallhead def. Shaun Lomas by Submission (Rear Naked Choke)
at 2:34, R1
- Louis Chapman def. Jay Gilbey by KO at 0:26, R1
- Sarah Moras def. Helena Martin by TKO (Strikes) at 3:40, R2
- James Bateman def. Ronan McKay by Unanimous Decision, R3
Semi
Pro
- Tom Breese def. Ramon Silva by Submission (Rear Naked Choke)
at 2:13, R1
Source: MMA Weekly
|
OVEREEM
MAKING STRIKEFORCE TOP PRIORITY IN 2010
Taking two and a half years away from a promotion while still
holding onto a title belt tends to raise a few questions when
the fighter finally returns. The questions immediately arise
if they plan on being away that long again.
Alistair
Overeem successfully defending his belt on Saturday night, defeating
Brett Rogers by first round TKO, and while he has never denied
a desire to go back to K-1 for more fights this year, he plans
on returning to the Strikeforce cage as well.
Nothing
is set in stone at this point, but Overeem is confident that
things can be worked out to bring him back to the U.S. for another
fight in the near future, as he plans on putting Strikeforce
first in 2010.
"You
definitely won't have to wait that long anymore as I've decided
to focus and put America and Strikeforce as a priority,"
said Overeem. "I'm hoping to fight this year again in Strikeforce,
maybe twice. We're just going to have to sit back and see what
happens in the Fedor fight and sit down with Scott and make the
planning, but my intentions are fighting more."
The
heavyweight division in Strikeforce has grown since Overeem left,
and beyond the obvious name of Fedor Emelianenko, other fighters
have stepped up as well, including Antonio "Bigfoot"
Silva who was successful in his fight on the same night.
Overeem
plans on examining the division and seeing other fighters, and
then he'll understand what threats are out there to his heavyweight
title. One thing is for sure though, anybody that plans on facing
him better be ready for a war.
"I
think I can beat anybody in the shape that I am now. Still I
think they're all good fights. I think that people will want
to see those fights. I want to see those fights. Basically I'm
going to be ready for anybody that the promotion will put in
front of me," he said following his dismantling of Rogers.
Of
course the giant elephant in the middle of the room when talking
about fights with Overeem is his undying desire to face top heavyweight
Fedor Emelianenko. The Dutchman admits that it's frustrating
to not get that fight, and his only wish is to become the best
by beating the best.
"Fedor
is a legend and if you want to become a legend you have to fight
a legend and you have to beat the legend. So I was hoping that
he ask for him to be a legend by his management and want to fight
the champ because he'd need to in Strikeforce. He's not the champion
in Strikeforce," said Overeem.
"So
I was thinking, hoping that he would like to have that fight,
but his management declined. And of course it's sort of a disappointment,
but may be for the better reason, I don't know. It gave me a
good comeback with Brett Rogers and some cage experience that
I didn't have for two and a half years. So it may be for the
better."
At
this point Overeem doesn't care under what terms he has to fight
Fedor to get him in the cage, he doesn't even need the belt to
be on the line. He just wants see if the "Last Emperor"
can hang with the "Demolition Man."
"I
would love to fight him. If it's for a title or not, that doesn't
matter to me," said Overeem.
The
Strikeforce heavyweight champion has stated that he plans on
competing in K-1 as well later this year, at least on their New
Year's Eve show. As far as his Strikeforce commitments, look
for him to keep a watchful eye on the upcoming June 26 fight
between Fedor Emelianenko and Fabricio Werdum.
Source: MMA Weekly |
DOS
SANTOS VS. NELSON AGREED TO FOR UFC 117
Roy Nelson has won back-to-back fights in the UFC, including
winning Season 10 of “The Ultimate Fighter.” Now he
wants to take a step up in competition, facing a heavyweight
contender.
It
appears that Nelson will get his wish.
Junior
dos Santos, one of the leading contenders for a shot at the heavyweight
title, Tweeted on Saturday, “Fight confirmed, Roy Nelson
is my next opponent. I hope to have support from all my fans.”
Independent
sources confirmed to MMAWeekly.com on Saturday that both sides
have agreed to the fight.
The
fight is expected to take place at UFC 117 on Aug. 7 at the Oracle
Arena in Oakland, Calif.
"That
might be a fight that might happen,” Nelson told MMAWeekly.com
earlier this month when asked about a possible fight with dos
Santos.
"If
you think about who's out there fighting for the belt, or getting
ready to fight for the belt it would be Brock (Lesnar) of course
and Shane (Carwin), and then right underneath them it's Dos Santos
and Velasquez. So those are the four guys I'm looking for that
can kind of catapult me right into belt contention."
UFC
middleweight champion Anderson Silva is expected to defend his
title against Chael Sonnen in the UFC 117 main event, despite
Silva recently falling out of favor with UFC president Dana White.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
After
Meeting His Immovable Object, What's Next For Mariusz Pudzianowski?
WORCESTER,
Mass. -- Mariusz Pudzianowski has always had the same philosophy:
whatever is in front of you, pick it up and get it out of the
way. He's never gone around, he's never gone through, he simply
moves obstacles aside.
He's
made a career of picking up things that didn't want to be picked
up, but even the World's Strongest Man is eventually going to
come across his immovable object, and for Pudzianowski, it was
Tim Sylvia.
The
bigger question is, What does it mean for his MMA career?
Pudzianowski
is no fool. He knew from the beginning that he was taking a gamble
by facing a two-time former UFC champion in only his third match,
and after only less than a year of MMA training. He knew it was
a risk, but at 33 years old, he felt it was one worth taking.
Pudzianowski's
goal -- like many others -- is to fight for a major promotion,
but major promotions are rarely on the lookout for 33-year-olds
with only a few months of MMA experience, so despite his popularity
and ridiculous physique, he knew he needed to bring something
else to the table, something like a notable win over a former
UFC champ.
Few
people get to take the Brock Lesnar express lane into the UFC
or into major MMA, but Pudzianowski had his EZ Pass in hand.
It
was not to be for the Polish powerhouse, who only had a few good
moments in a fight that lasted just 1:43 into the second round.
"The
difference was obvious," he said. "I've been training
for seven months, he's been training for 13 years. The difference
was very visible. It's just a stepping stone. I have to learn
new things."
Everything
was set up to make a homefield advantage for the Pudzianowski.
The area surrounding Worcester has a huge Polish population,
and they came out in force to root on a national hero.
They
serenaded him with chants. They waved flags. They greeted his
arrival with a standing ovation and sung the Polish national
anthem. It was like a World Cup soccer match broke out during
the Moosin event at the DCU Center.
But
once the fight started, there was little to cheer. Apart from
a brief Pudzianowski takedown in the early part of the first
round, it was all Sylvia, who chopped Pudzianowski down with
leg kicks, punished him from the clinch and scored with straight
rights.
"His
longer reach was difficult," Pudzianowski said. "Obviously
I wasn't able to exchange punches with him. It was really tough,
almost impossible to put him down."
On
the ground, the experience gap was vast. Sylvia earned a dominant
position into side control simply by pushing his legs aside.
It was guard-passing 101. He moved to north-south and then switched
for side control on the opposite side, so he could throw right
hands instead of lefts. Within seconds, he locked Pudzianowski
in the crucifix, and seconds later, it was over.
Pudzianowski
tapped to the strikes, then walked dejectedly out of the cage
and to the back.
"It
was a great atmosphere," he said later. "I want to
thank the Polish fans. They were absolutely great. I want to
tell them and you guys, you're going to hear about me for sure.
I've never given up at anything, and I won't give up here."
So
what's next for Pudzianowski? First things first, he said he'd
be taking a two-week vacation. Despite the loss, he'll still
be in demand as a fighter based on his name alone. Moosin co-promoter
Eric "Butterbean" Esch (yes, that Butterbean - is there
any other?) told MMA Fighting that the promotion would love to
bring him back for another fight. Pudzianowski fought each of
his first two fights in Poland's KSW promotion, and he can certainly
return there and make some decent paydays. Frankly, it's where
he belongs at this stage of his career. He's not ready for bigtime
talent. Not yet.
The
fact of the matter is that while Pudzianowski did not embarrass
himself against Sylvia, he showed plenty of holes in his game.
He has no super skill to fall back on, no wrestling credentials,
boxing prowess or jiu-jitsu mastery. In the end, he's just a
big, strong guy trying to figure it all out as he goes along.
It's difficult to see a major organization beating down his door
for anything aside from his name value, and with less than a
year of MMA training, that shouldn't come as a surprise.
Pudzianowski
has nothing to be ashamed of. He's chasing his newest passion,
and he simply tried to skip a few steps in the logical progression.
He has the heart, the drive and the desire to get where he wants
to go, but the skills are just too raw and the holes are too
many.
It
just goes to show: Even when you're the World's Strongest Man,
there are some things in life you can't power your way through.
Source: MMA Fighting |
The
Doggy Bag: Kimbo Sliced?
Kimbo
Sliced
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 future of Kimbo Slice, the boxing
of Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, UFC’s plans on promoting
an event in Brazil and a change for the way mixed martial arts
bouts are scored by judges.
In
regards to Kimbo Slice. My personal prediction, I bet Dream gets
him in Japan for a “Super Hulk” style tournament, and
pits him against Bob Sapp -- for name's sake. That's just my
gut feeling.
-- Anthony
Loretta
Hunt, news editor: Anthony, before you pack Mr. Ferguson’s
bags and ship him off to Japan, I’d like to review some
data with you. Since signing on with the UFC last summer, Kimbo
Slice has been a focal point of all of these:
•
Highest-rated debut episode, Spike TV’s “The Ultimate
Fighter 10” -- 4.1 million viewers (September 2009)
•
Highest-rated debut episode replay, Spike TV’s “The
Ultimate Fighter 10” -- 1.1 million viewers (September 2009)
•
Highest-rated single episode, Spike TV’s “The Ultimate
Fighter 10” -- 5.3 million viewers (October 2009)
•
Most-watched single bout (live or taped), Spike TV’s “The
Ultimate Fighter 10” -- 6.1 million viewers (October 2009)
•
Highest-rated season, Spike TV’s “The Ultimate Fighter
10” -- 2.2 million average viewers (September-December 2009)
•
Most-watched live UFC cable-televised event in 2009, Spike TV’s
“The Ultimate Fighter 10” Finale -- 3.7 million viewers
(December 2010)
•
Most-watched live UFC cable-televised single bout in 2009, Spike
TV’s “The Ultimate Fighter 10” Finale (December
2010) -- 5.2 million viewers
And
we don’t even know how May’s UFC 113, which marked
Slice’s UFC pay-per-view debut, faired yet. Will the promotion
see at least a small spike in its buys due to the bearded Bahamian-born
fighter’s magnetizing aura?
I
just can’t see Zuffa releasing, and subsequently hand-delivering,
such a ratings goldmine to a competing promotion whether it is
foreign or stateside, perceived as a threat or not.
And
even if they did, I’m not sure any of the Japanese promotions
-- Dream, Sengoku, or otherwise -- have either the dough or mojo
to surpass the salary (sponsorships included) and exposure boosts
Slice has enjoyed since joining the No. 1 promotion in the world.
Though
I respect the UFC acknowledging that the weathered and worn-down
36-year-old Slice might not have lived up to the high standards
a fighter must meet to stay afloat in the Octagon, my gut tells
me Slice isn’t going anywhere. I know one UFC broadcast
partner that is probably chomping at the bit to get Slice back
on its network, and for all they’ve down for the promotion,
Zuffa should be delivering Slice to them on a silver platter.
Send
Slice back down to the UFC Fight Night circuit, where he’ll
continue to draw eyeballs, old and new. Lightening rods like
this are few and far-between in this sport and Zuffa has a savvy
track record of capitalizing on them. For a guy with only five
professional bouts in two years, there’s no shame in being
the one who draws the horse to water.
Source: Sherdog
|
Greg
Jackson Breaks Down Rampage-Evans
When
Rashad Evans steps into the cage to settle the score against
Quinton “Rampage” Jackson on Saturday in Las Vegas,
he’ll have the usual familiar faces in his corner. One will
be Greg Jackson, who has the task, along with Trevor Wittman,
of guiding the one-time “Ultimate Fighter” winner into
his most personal battle to date.
While
Jackson has been noticeably absent on the last two “UFC
Primetime” specials, he assures everyone that he has been
molding Evans’ game plan for the past few months. He’s
also witnessed the tremendous amount of borderline trash-talking
that has been flung around by both Evans and Jackson in recent
weeks. As for the level of sincerity behind Evans’ harsh
words, you’ll have to ask the former champ himself.
“You
would have to ask Rashad that,” Jackson said when questioned
on last Friday’s “Beatdown” show about Evans’
level of legitimate hatred toward Rampage. “I do know that
[trash-talking] is a tool that has been used by a lot of people
before. You have Muhammad Ali calling Floyd Patterson an “Uncle
Tom” before their fight for example. How fighters conduct
themselves is nothing new. They have the responsibility of selling
fights, but you’d have to ask Rashad how personal that is.
“I
don’t think it’s that serious. I think it’s just
a tool to get in [Rampage’s] head. It has nothing to do
with race. Again, you have a tradition of that kind of stuff
-- people claiming that their opponents aren’t true Mexicans
or stuff like that. It’s been going on for years. Rashad
is so smart. People don’t really understand how smart this
guy is. He knows better than to get emotional or heated about
it. I think he’s going to be all business at fight time.
I’m not worried at all about him getting drawn in and trying
to knock Rampage out in 15 seconds. He’s a real sharp and
careful guy.”
Jackson
uses TV as a tool.
Jackson admits that “UFC Primetime” gives not only
the fans but also coaches and the fighters themselves a unique
look inside a training camp. Careful editing prevents any important
strategies from being leaked, but that doesn’t mean Jackson
and company haven’t been watching regardless.
“You
do it just to see what they are working on,” Jackson said
of watching the show. “Of course, it’s edited so you
can’t get a lot, but you can see the timing and the type
of training that’s going on. You’re trying to use any
kind of resource you can.
“We’re
very careful about it though. The cameramen know when to film
and when not to film. We can say, ‘Listen, this is game
plan stuff’ and they know to walk away. Usually it’s
pretty straightforward -- most of these guys are really good.
They’re looking for more of the drama for the most part.
They aren’t going to give all of your secrets away and then
let you get your butt kicked in the fight. That’s just not
going to happen.”
Evans
and his camp have made no secret about the fact they are preparing
to face the best Rampage they could possibly go up against. Despite
being out of action for over a year now, Jackson and his associates
believe that ring rust may not affect Rampage, who has shown
a high-level of dedication to training as of late.
“You
can’t go in thinking about that. It’s pointless,”
Jackson said of Rampage’s layoff. “If he’s not
the best Rampage ever, that will make our strategy that much
better. If he’s Rampage as usual, then it’ll be business
as usual. As soon as you can go in there and say, ‘Oh, Rampage
had a year off,’ you get yourself in trouble. I think we’re
going to run into the best Rampage we’ve ever seen and I
hope that’s the case, because we have the best Rashad anyone
has ever seen.
“We
want to make sure that we’ve addressed all of the contingencies
that can happen. Rampage is a powerful striker. He’s a pretty
good wrestler. He’s a savvy veteran who knows when to relax
a bit and then come right back. I have a lot of respect for him.
However, I’m pretty confident in Rashad’s kickboxing
ability. Rampage is an excellent boxer, it’s true, but Rashad
is good as well and I’m always going to bet on my guy.”
Source: Sherdog
|
Fighters
at Work
Face
it, your job sucks. Well, at least for many of us it does some
of the time. If given the chance, we’d all change something
about our workplaces. It could be that idiot that spends more
time e-mailing us porn than working on the project that’s
due this afternoon, or it could be our overbearing boss we’d
like to tap out with an anaconda choke. And who wouldn’t
like to see a couple extra zeroes on their paycheck?
But
while many of us broom and paper pushers daydream about a pro
athlete lifestyle and the endless supply of money and fame that
would surely free us from these daily occupational hazards, we
need to snap out of it.
Our
favorite MMA stars face the same workplace frustrations that
we do.
The
daily grind
Waking
up to the not-so-soothing sounds of an ear-piercing alarm clock
then sitting in bumper-to-bumper traffic isn’t the best
way to start the day, but millions of us keep spinning our wheels
in this never ending rat race. Now imagine that same a.m. routine
that leads you to the most unforgiving office.
Former
WEC featherweight champ Mike Thomas Brown loves his job and he’s
enjoying the most productive training sessions of his career,
but he’s not wearing a smile to work every day.
“There
are days when you don’t want to go to work at any job,”
Brown says. “But in my job, when I don’t want to go
to work, I go in and get punched in the face.
“It’s
a lot of wear and tear on the body. Sometimes I wish I could
get a time machine.”
Payday
blues
Time
travel sounds fun. But so does a tree that sprouts 100-dollar
bills. With the uncertainty of today’s economy, working
for the rest of our lives sadly doesn’t seem like the exception.
A delayed retirement isn’t a fun prospect, but neither is
having a career with such a short lifespan.
Couture's
longevity is amazing.
“I’m making good money right now, but I can’t
keep fighting for another 10 or 15 years,” says Brown, 34.
“A fighter’s career is very short, unless you’re
a freak of nature like Randy Couture.”
Lightweight
Aaron Riley is under contract with the UFC, but with the sometimes
huge dollar differences between winning and losing, there’s
still a financial uncertainty.
“You
don’t know how to budget or think ahead on certain things,”
Riley says. “That’s tough not to know. When you work
another job, you have a good idea of your earning potential.”
The
irritating co-worker
Whether
you’re living comfortably off a six-figure salary or squeezing
by ‘til your next payday, nobody can tolerate an annoying
co-worker. The office gossip. The loud cell phone talker. The
person that’s perpetually sick and/or late. When you’re
trapped with people for eight hours a day, they’re bound
to get on your nerves.
Fighters
can feel the same animosity toward their workplace peers, but
unlike us, they’re allowed to punch and kick these rude
assholes.
“I
have a humungous chip on my shoulder for people that got into
the sport for the wrong reasons -- the girls, the TV time,”
says lightweight Jorge Gurgel. “The growth of the sport
provides a great lifestyle for some, but the bad part is the
integrity of martial arts has been completely forgotten and watered
down. It’s sad.”
While
“The Ultimate Fighter” reality show has been home to
some of the most immature and embarrassing behavior you can find
on TV, Matt Serra kicked the door off the hinges when the UFC
opened it for him in the fourth season of the program.
“TUF
is an awesome opportunity for anyone to seize,” he says.
“I seized that opportunity to the fullest.”
Yet
as we’ve seen with the show’s alcohol meltdowns and
limousine punches, not everyone that’s appeared on TUF has
been committed to MMA.
“You’re
gonna have knuckleheads anywhere,” Serra says.
Rules,
rules and more rules
It’s
OK to dislike or disagree with a co-worker, but we have to follow
the rules to keep our jobs. As much as some of them would like
free rein to let their fists and feet fly, fighters also face
workplace restrictions.
“I
love the idea of throwing two guys in a room and seeing who comes
out,” Brown says. “That’s how I fell in love with
the sport.”
But
gone are the days of groin punches and throwing a 600-pound sumo
wrestler against a man one-third his size. Middleweight Frank
Shamrock says he wouldn't shy away from such a David-Goliath
matchup.
“I
could do without weigh-ins,” he says. “You’re
there to fight, right? The whole weigh-in thing is weird to me.
To me, cutting weight is a problem.”
Riley
can relate. He makes his living at 155, but just getting to that
number can be a battle.
“Cutting
weight sucks,” he says.
Job
satisfaction
While
we’d all like to change something about our jobs, that doesn’t
mean we don’t gain some level of satisfaction out of a good
day at work.
“I
love the hours. I love the way the job is,” Gurgel says.
“I
really love what I do,” Brown agrees.
But
how would you pay your bills if you weren’t fighting?
“I
really don’t know,” Brown says, “but I guess I’d
probably be punching the clock somewhere and working for the
weekend.”
Aren’t
we all?
Source: Sherdog
|
WC
FITNESS: WHAT'S BETTER, AEROBIC OR ANAEROBIC?
Strength coaches and fighters are always looking for workouts
that will help them be better in the cage, ring, and on the mat.
One of the main things fighters look for is a way to constantly
improve their cardio. The worst feeling a fighter can feel is
getting tired. Nobody wants to "gas."
There
are several elements as to what could cause a fighter to "gas."
One is adrenaline dump. Another is muscular fatigue. Another
is a lack of strength/power-endurance. But most common is just
plain lack of good old cardiovascular conditioning.
How
a fighter should improve their cardio is a widely debated topic,
depending on whom you talk to. Common sense would indicate that
since fighting has many anaerobic elements to it (the brief periods
of intense action coupled with slower periods of action, and
even rest between rounds), that anaerobic training would make
sense. However, fighting is also largely an aerobic activity,
so maybe aerobic training should be done?
(For
the record, anaerobic training would consist of shorter, more
intense periods of work, followed up by periods of rest –
think interval training or sprinting. Aerobic training would
consist of long, slower activity – think jogging.)
Let's
keep looking at it though. Aerobic training takes a lot longer
to perform, therefore, taking time away from skills training
and dedicated strength work. Aerobic training (depending on what
you end up doing) can also cause overuse injuries due to the
long, repetitive nature of the activity. Jogging for miles on
end on pavement, no matter what anybody says (or how good of
shoes you buy) just isn't a good idea. But aerobic training alone
will not get you in shape for intense fighting, sparring, grappling,
etc. It's just a much more intense activity. And aerobic training
has shown to have little to no effect on anaerobic capabilities.
Anaerobic
training, on the other hand, not only increases anaerobic capabilities,
but aerobic capabilities as well. It's shorter in duration, and
can get you "in shape" over a much wider spectrum of
intensity for your given activities. However, anaerobic training
can also be very hard on the central nervous system, meaning
that you can "burn out" (what's commonly called "overtraining")
much easier. And unless you use intervals that are longer in
duration (and therefore have to be done at easier intensity),
there's just no substitute for the long-term work capacity that
aerobic training can build.
And
then there's plain old anecdotal evidence. If basic aerobic training
– i.e., roadwork – was so ineffective, how come so
many fighters and combat athletes for so long have used it with
great results?
Personally,
I believe it depends on the skills work.
I
could go into a long diatribe about the whole thing, but let's
just cut to the chase here.
You
need to develop an aerobic base before you can build an anaerobic
base. So that insinuates that you need aerobic training (because
although anaerobic training will increase your aerobic capabilities,
it's still not as effective as plain old aerobic training is).
You do the aerobic training to build your work capacity, build
that gas tank.
Now
let's look at skills work: hitting the mitts or bag, drilling,
grappling/sparring, etc. While these all are skills activities,
they all have a very real conditioning element they tax, especially
when done at intense levels. And these are all anaerobic activities.
In fact, they are specific anaerobic activities. (In other words,
they're specific because they are actually what you'll be doing
in a fight as opposed to running sprints or doing intervals on
a cardio machine.)
The
harder you work in your skills training, the more you'll develop
your anaerobic capabilities.
So
you can focus aerobic work in your workouts, and anaerobic work
in your skills training.
However,
this is all predicated on the fact that you do a lot of skills
training, and the skills training you do is very intense. If
MMA is a hobby, and you only train a couple times/week, or if
your training is "easier" (say a Brazilian jiu-jitsu
class where you're spending more time drilling and learning submissions
than you are intense grappling), then the time you're spending
improving your anaerobic capabilities is greatly diminished,
and therefore, has to be picked up in your workouts.
However,
the more skills work (especially if it's intense work) you do,
the more you can focus on aerobic work, as well as other areas
of conditioning (mentioned above).
Train
Hard, Rest Hard, Play Hard.
Matt
"Wiggy" Wiggins has been a Strength & Conditioning
contributor to MMA Weekly.com since 2003. Click Here to see more
about his MMA Workouts and get info on how to improve your MMA
training. Click Here to see more about his cardio workout and
workout plans that don't use stupid gym machines or make you
do any running.
Source: MMA Weekly |
World
Victory Road Announces Welterweight GP Starting at SRC 13
Sengoku
Raiden Championship promoter World Victory Road unveiled "SRC
Welterweight GP Series 2010", an eight-man welterweight
tournament to get underway at SRC 13 with two quarterfinal matches
on June 20th with the remaining two quarterfinal matches at SRC
14 in late August.
As
we have seen with Sengoku's other tournaments, rather than using
fighters that are already established within the promotion, the
tournament will be drawing from second tier promotions in Japan
and abroad, ultimately leading to a welterweight title match
in 2011.
The
second tournament bout at SRC 13 will see the former welterweight
King of Pancrase, Takuya Wada, make his promotional debut against
Jae Sun Lee. Wada has been undefeated since February 2007, only
surrending his Pancrase crown after refusing to grant a rematch
to Kengo Ura. Jae Sun Lee is looking to rebound after a loss
in his first Sengoku bout - a spirited competitive decision to
judoka Makoto Takimoto.
Kengo
Ura is now set to face Kei Yamamiya on June 5th for the now vacant
welterweight Pancrase title. The winner will go on to a welterweight
tournament quarter final bout at SRC 14 where they will face
a yet to be named foreign opponent. Also at SRC 14 Shooto mainstay
Taisuke Okuno will take on Purebred's Kenta Takagi at SRC 14.
The
tournament semifinals will take place at SRC15 to be held towards
the end of October and the final will be held at SRC 16 close
to New Year's Eve.
Earlier
this month, Sengoku also announced an Asian bantamweight tournament
to get underway on July 4th. A welterweight tournament reserve
fight will take place at this event but the particpants are yet
to be named.
Along
with the Asian bantamweight series, this is the second tournament
that World Victory Road has announced this month with the winner
of the welterweight GP going on to face an already established
top welterweight for the first SRC welterweight title in 2011.
Sengoku
Raiden Championship 13 - June 20th at Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo
FW Championship Match: Masanori Kanehara vs. Marlon Sandro
LHW: Hiroshi Izumi vs. Lee Chang Seob
LW: Maximo Blanco vs. Rodrigo Damm
FW: Shigeki Osawa vs. Katsuya Toida
FW: Ikuo Usuda vs. Kang Kyong Ho
WW Tournament Quarter Final: Keita "K-Taro" Nakamura
vs. Omar De La Cruz
WW Tournament Quarter Final: Takuya Wada vs. Lee Jae Sun
WW: Sanae Kikuta vs. Yusabey Enomoto
LHW: Ryo Kawamura vs. Hidetada Irie
Sengoku Raiden Championship 14 - Late August
WW Tournament Quarter Final: Kenta Takagi vs. Taisuke Okuno
Source: MMA Fighting
|
PAC
Sub Returns!
For more info, click here! |
ULTIMATE
FIGHTER FLAVORS UFC 116 LIVE PRELIMS
UFC 116: Lesnar vs. Carwin, slated for July 3 in Las Vegas, features
one of the biggest main events in the promotion’s history.
Heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar and interim titleholder Shane
Carwin will lock horns to unify their belts.
As
has become standard operating procedure for most U.S. based UFC
pay-per-view events, UFC 116 will have a lead-in show on Spike
TV. “UFC 116 Prelims Live” will air at least two preliminary
fights.
MMAWeekly.com
sources indicated that the two bouts to be telecast live on Spike
are a heavyweight showdown pitting Brendan Schaub against Chris
Tuchscherer and a middleweight contest featuring Kendall Grove versus Goran Reljic.
As
is the norm for most of the live prelim fights telecast on Spike
TV, each of the bouts features a former “Ultimate Fighter”
competitor. Schaub made it all the way to the Season 10 finals
before losing to Roy Nelson, while Grove bested Ed Herman in
the Season 3 finale to win the middleweight competition that
season.
The
Spike TV telecasts of live UFC preliminary bouts has averaged
more than 1.4 viewers per telecast since its inception with UFC
103.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Strikeforce
Has a Star It Can Build in Roger Bowling
Strikeforce's
"Challengers" cards are supposed to be the shows that
promote mixed martial arts stars of the future. Whether the Challengers
cards actually accomplish that is open to debate, but the card
Strikeforce put on Friday night in Portland certainly produced
one fighter who looks like a star in the making: Roger Bowling.
Bowling,
a welterweight from Ohio who had previously fought only on small
cards in the Midwest, took a step up in competition and looked
very impressive in defeating Bobby Voelker Friday night. If Strikeforce
is smart, we'll be hearing a lot about Bowling as the promotion
continues to put him in bigger fights against better opponents.
From
the outset against Voelker, Bowling was an animal. He has talked
about working on his wrestling, and it was impressive to see
how quickly he took Voelker down, less than 10 seconds into the
first round. Voelker was the bigger man, but Bowling had no trouble
at all throwing him around.
But
it's on his feet where Bowling is at his best. He can connect
effectively with his punches and his kicks, has a powerful left
hook and likes to use his right leg to kick to the body. He also
moves his head well enough that even when he's standing in front
of his opponent and trading shots, he's not getting tagged nearly
as often as he's connecting himself.
Bowling
was absolutely swarming Voelker for much of the fight, and it
was just impressive that Voelker was able to stay in it. Unfortunately,
Bowling wasn't able to finish it, and the fight ended in an unsatisfying
way, with Voelker accidentally poking Bowling in the eye while
the referee was separating them during a clinch.
That
eye poke led to a long delay, and the referee and ringside doctor
took forever determining what caused Bowling's eye injury and
what to do about it. Eventually they correctly ruled that it
was an accidental eye poke that Bowling couldn't recover from
and that the fight would go to the judges, but during the long
delay the fans got restless and began to boo.
They
booed some more when it was announced that the judges had given
the fight to Bowling by unanimous decision, and that led Bowling
to apologize for the result during his post-fight interview.
The whole thing had a negative vibe: We had just seen an undefeated
prospect win another fight, and he ended up sheepishly telling
the fans he was sorry they weren't happy with the ending.
Bowling
had nothing to apologize for, though. He's now 8-0, and he's
dominated everyone he's ever faced. Bowling isn't ready for the
very top of Strikeforce's welterweight division -- he'll need
at least another year of seasoning before I'd give him any chance
against Nick Diaz -- but he's ready for almost every welterweight
on the Strikeforce roster other than its champion. Whether they
put him on their Challengers cards or on their bigger Saturday
night cards, Strikeforce needs to keep putting Bowling in the
cage and on TV. Bowling may be a star in the making.
Source: MMA Fighting
|
Focused
on Worlds, Nova União hard at work in Dallas
Part
of team Nova União is gathered in the United States, where
they prepare for the Jiu-Jitsu World Championship. During this
first week of their training camp, the team is camped out at
Octagon MMA in Dallas, where Bruno Bastos teaches.
“I’m
all beat up. Marcelino Freitas, Rodrigo Feijão and Daniel
Garcia are all here. We’re also training at Travis Lutter’s
gym, where there’s a really tough crew getting ready for
the Worlds, and also Gustavo Dantas’s gang, which is prime
for the championship,” says Bastos.
Nova
União is restructuring its Jiu-Jitsu department and the
first results are beginning to show through. At this year’s
Brazilian National Championship the team took third place.
“We
did really well during the first weekend of the Brazilian Nationals
and were in second place, but it was hard to keep up as we didn’t
have a lot of black belts. Even so we took third. This Worlds
our goal is to manage at least 10 medals in all the belts. We
still won’t be able to win, but the idea is that next year
we’ll go in with a bigger team. Right now we’re holding
camps for the big events and we’ll continue to organize
ourselves. We’re going to grow,” remarks Rodrigo Feijão,
one of the leaders of this reformulation effort.
Among
those NU’s hopes ride on are the Broadnax twins, with Christian
having won his weight group and the absolute at the Pan as a
juvenile blue belt. This time the duo will debut in the adult
competition. Nor can we forget about Steven Rosenberg, third
place at the last Worlds as a lightweight brown belt, but who
will fight as a black belt this time, and the new stalwart at
black belt Daniel Garcia, and already established members of
the team, Ricardo Demente, Bruno Bastos and Marcelino Freitas.
“Training
is going really good. We started last Sunday and we have a lot
of tough training partners. Bruno will be in fine form and me
too,” warns Marcelino, who will have a rocky road ahead
of him in the featherweight division.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Notes:
Red-hot heat for ‘Rampage,’ Evans
Rashad
Evans and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson are barely a week
away from what is likely to be the biggest non-championship match
in UFC history, in terms of fan interest.
Evans
and Jackson added fuel to the already blazing fire on Tuesday,
when they engaged in the most heated media teleconference in
company history.
People
have already witnessed the two former UFC light heavyweight champions
trash talk each other more than any two fighters since the heyday
of the Tito Ortiz-Ken Shamrock feud.
Last
fall’s Season 10 of “The Ultimate Fighter,” in
which Evans and Jackson were rival coaches, was the highest rated
season in the series’ history. The two were scheduled to
end the season with a match on Dec. 12 in Jackson’s hometown
of Memphis, the time everyone figured interest in the fight would
be at its peak.
But
Jackson got the opportunity to play B.A. Baracus in “The
A-Team” movie, which debuts in theaters next month, and
pulled out. Any thoughts that the time lapse would let hostilities
die down, though, were destroyed Tuesday. It was clear, just
as on the show, that there is something about Evans that gets
under Jackson’s skin. Evans knows it and seemingly enjoys
pushing those buttons.
When
Jackson was asked if he’s ever fought anyone he dislikes
more than Evans, it was a one word answer: “No.”
“I
just don’t like the way he talks to me,” Jackson said.
“He’s just real fake, and real cocky, you know what
I’m saying. For someone who really, he ain’t really
done much in this sport, what I’m saying is I don’t
… “
Jackson
didn’t finish the sentence before Evans broke in, noting
that he was a former light heavyweight champion.
“That
belt, where’s your belt at?” Jackson said.
And
the two were off to the races.
Evans:
“I got the belt from the guy that beat you.”
Jackson:
“Hey, Forrest [Griffin] didn’t beat me, I beat myself.”
Evans:
“You defended the title one time [a match with Dan Henderson],
and that fight was horrible.”
Jackson:
“Your fight with [Lyoto] Machida was horrible. You couldn’t
defend your belt.”
When
Evans said the two were at the same level, both as former champions,
Jackson wouldn’t accept it.
“Nowhere
near the same,” he said.
Apparently,
to get under his skin, Evans sent Jackson two packages in the
mail, the contents of which neither would discuss.
“I’m
a grown-ass man and you’re playing these little boy games,
I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Jackson
said.
The
best indication of public interest in the UFC 114 main event
was the first of three “Countdown” shows building up
the fight on Spike TV, which aired on May 12 and did 1.2 million
viewers. That number broke the series’ record that was set
last July for the Brock Lesnar-Frank Mir fight, which ended up
with approximately 1.6 million buys, by far the biggest pay-per-view
numbers in MMA history.
Evans
got to Jackson by calling him the “Tin Man,” saying
he had no heart, and used Jackson’s 2005 loss to current
light heavyweight champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua as
an example.
“Hey,
I got enough heart, at least I won’t quit,” Evans said.
“At least I won’t quit like you did when you were going
against ‘Shogun’ … You just laid there like a
little sucker in the corner, just holding your ribs, talking
about how my ribs hurt. Nothing was wrong with your ribs …
You’re the Tin Man, go see Oz.”
Jackson
countered by blowing Evans off, acting as if Evans is just a
stepping stone to get a rematch with Rua. The winner of the UFC
114 main event has been promised the next shot at Rua’s
title.
“This
is a tune-up fight,” he said.
UFC
officials first wanted the Jackson-Evans match early last year,
but Evans had asked for time off because his wife was going to
have a baby.
Jackson
did a favor to the company because it had a pay-per-view event
scheduled in March 2009, and with no obvious main event in sight,
Jackson agreed to risk his title shot to fight Keith Jardine,
Evans’ best friend and training partner. Jackson said he
went into the fight banged up from a hard training camp before
his previous fight with Wanderlei Silva.
Jackson
won a decision from Jardine. UFC officials set up the tension
by sending Evans into the cage for a post-fight interview. The
two went nose to nose, with words flying. This heightened interest
for what figured to be then-champion Evans’ first title
defense. But Jackson pulled out of that fight due to a jaw injury,
so instead Evans faced Machida and was knocked out.
There
was a near-altercation between Jackson and Evans during a photo
shoot at the UFC offices last year. Then came TUF, where they
jawed back and forth on a weekly basis.
White
said he recognized the animosity from the moment the two walked
out on the set together.
“You
know there was some back and forth with them after Rampage’s
fight [with Jardine], but I didn’t know it was going to
be what it ended up being on the season of ‘The Ultimate
Fighter,’ ” he said. “I think it just sort of
escalated. The first minute they walked on set, it escalated
from there.”
Heavy
thoughts
The
way Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem walked
through Brett Rogers on Saturday night added a new layer of frustration
for hardcore MMA fans who want to see the issue of who is the
world’s best 265-pounder settled in the cage.
Right
now, the division has its own version of the Super Six, with
Overeem and Fedor Emelianenko from Strikeforce; and Brock Lesnar,
Shane Carwin, Cain Velasquez and Junior Dos Santos in UFC. But
unlike in boxing, the matches to determine who is really the
best aren’t on the verge of happening, due to promotional
barriers.
What
makes all those matches so intriguing is the questions about
every one of them.
Overeem
looks the part, and has destroyed everyone in his path as a heavyweight,
but lost frequently as a light heavyweight and has yet to beat
a championship-level fighter.
Emelianenko
is the best of all-time, but that doesn’t make him the best
today because the sport has changed greatly since 2005, and the
current top heavyweights are a different breed as those Emelianenko
ran through years ago.
Lesnar
is still untested against someone near his size and someone he
can’t physically overpower. His success in starting out
in the sport late and going against far more experienced fighters
is a testament to his freakish athleticism. Plus, no matter what
is said, a year between fights and a near-death experience battling
diverticulitis raises questions about his physical condition.
Carwin
has run through opponents, but no matter what his camp says about
his stamina, he’s never been in the fourth minute of a fight
in his career, and at 35, he’s not a young man in this sport.
Velasquez
and Dos Santos, who are 27 and 25 respectively, also have passed
every test thrown at them. Velasquez is the best conditioned
heavyweight and has great wrestling, but there are questions
regarding his punch defense. Dos Santos, a great stand-up fighter,
has yet to be tested by a powerhouse wrestler.
Still,
the way Overeem so handily beat a solid foe in Rogers makes him
the most intriguing opponent fighting in the same company as
Emelianenko in years.
Emelianenko
has generally been considered No. 1 since 2003, when the best
heavyweights were in PRIDE, and he won that group’s world
title. Since then, he’s never lost.
Overeem,
both before and after the Rogers fight, implied that Emelianenko’s
management doesn’t want the fight but made sure not to pin
the rap on Emelianenko himself.
The
truth is, one of the reasons the fight hasn’t happened yet
is because Strikeforce promoter Scott Coker had always looked
on that matchup as his company’s biggest potential fight.
But he won’t be able to maximize the match’s potential
box-office value until more fans have been exposed to Overeem,
who before this past weekend, had only appeared live on U.S.
television on the low-clearance HDNet in fights from Japan.
But
if Emelianenko beats Fabricio Werdum on June 26, there are no
logical business reasons to delay the fight any longer.
Source: Yahoo Sports
|
JOHN
DODSON WINS IN NEW UWC 8 MAIN EVENT
Ultimate Warrior Challenge lost Saturday night’s main event
when Ryan Diaz, who was planning to challenge UWC bantamweight
champion Mike East, was diagnosed with parotitis, an infection
that blocks the salivary glands causing swelling and pain, UWC
CEO S. Marcello Foran announced on Friday.
That
didn’t stop UWC 8: Judgment Day, a nine-bout fight card
at the Patriot Center in Fairfax, Va., from drawing 3,822 fans,
according to the promotion.
Greg
Jackson-trained John Dodson improved his professional record
to 13-4 with a victory over Jesse Riggleman in the newly minted
main event.
Jason
Frank, formerly the Green Power Ranger, continued to shuck his
TV persona with a 24-second armbar to defeat Carlos Horn. The
victory – in an amateur bout – moved Frank’s record
to 4-0 in mixed martial arts.
Full
Results:
-John
Dodson def. Jesse Riggleman by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27,
30-27), R3
-Timothy Woods def. Mike Seal by Submission (Rear Naked Choke)
at 3:35, R2
-Ururahy Rodrigues def. Diego Brandoa by Unanimous Decision (30-27,
30-27, 30-27), R3
-Ron Stallings def. Joey Kirwan by Submission (Choke) at 0:52,
R2
-Dustin Pague def. Justin Hickey by TKO at 0:54, R1
-Valerie Coolbaugh def. Iman Achhal by Split Decision (28-29,
29-28, 29-28), R3
-Jason Frank def. Carlos Horn by Submission (Armbar) at 0:24,
R1
-Jeremy Carper def. Caleb Macalister by Submission (Armbar) at
3:00, R2
-Scott Heckman def. Matt Brannon by Submission (Anaconda Choke)
at 1:36, R2
Source: MMA Weekly
|
JOHN
CHOLISH SHINES AT UCC 2
JERSEY CITY, N.J. – It was all about the rising stars at
the Urban Conflict Championship 2: “Strikedown” event,
with John Cholish taking top honors with a fourth-round TKO victory
that earned him the promotion’s lightweight championship
belt.
Taking
on Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu brown belt and American Top Team rep Hitalo
Machado, Cholish had his hands full at first as Machado fed him
leather on the feet and forced him to dodge submissions on the
ground. But by Round 3 Cholish had found a home for his kicks
– squarely against Machado’s thigh – and by Round
4 the Team Renzo Gracie exponent was a lumberjack chopping down
the American Top Team tree. Remember the name John Cholish: as
rising stars go, he appears to be the Northeast’s next big
thing.
Nebraskan
flyweight Josh Rave took AMA Fight Club stud Sean Santella the
distance in a spirited, grappling-heavy affair that saw Santella
threaten with armbars, kneebars, and triangles, but more often
than not have to defend Rave’s tenacious control of his
back. Santella fought hard, but there was no question Rave had
earned the unanimous decision when time ran out.
In
other action, TUF veteran Dante Rivera was large and in charge
in his middleweight championship bout against Ryan Contaldi,
controlling the wrestler on the ground and putting him away with
a choke in Round 2. Team Link fighter Alexandre Moreno avoided
Carlos Brooks’ best tools – his kicks and punches –
and put the TS-MMA rep through the submission ringer, catching
him with an arm-in guillotine late in the first. And welterweight
bruiser Mike Medrano gutted out a decision against upstart Sam
Jackson in a back-and-forth bout that was closer than the scorecards
indicated.
Urban
Conflict Championship II: “Strikedown” Results:
-Dante
Rivera def. Ryan Contaldi by Submission (North-South Choke) at
3:20, R2
-John Cholish def. Hitalo Machado by TKO (Punches) at 2:25, R4
-Josh Rave def. Sean Santella by Unanimous Decision
-Alexandre Moreno def. Carlos Brooks by Submission (Arm-In Guillotine)
at 4:48, R1
-Mike Medrano def. Sam Jackson by Unanimous Decision
-Jason McLean def. James Meals by Unanimous Decision
-Willie Johnson def. Mike Dunaj by TKO (Punches) at 2:27, R1
Source: MMA Weekly
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