Upcoming
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(All events on Oahu, unless noted)
2011
12/9/11
Man Up & Stand Up
(Kickboxing)
Waipahu Filcom Center, Waipahu)
11/18/11
Island Heat 3: Tha Comeback
(MMA)
(Waipahu Filcom,Waipahu)
11/11/11
Man Up & Stand Up
(Kickboxing)
Waipahu Filcom Center, Waipahu)
10/22/11
NAGA Hawaii
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
10/21/11
Destiny MMA
(MMA)
(The Waterfront, Aloha Tower Market Place)
10/15/11
Up N Up
(MMA)
(Kodak Room, Waikiki Shell)
10/7/11
Man Up & Stand Up
(Kickboxing)
Waipahu Filcom Center, Waipahu)
9/24/11
Aloha
State of BJJ
(BJJ/Sub Grappling)
(Kaiser HS)
Amateur Boxing
(Boxing)
( Palolo District Park Gym)
9/23/11
808 Battleground Presents: Unstoppable
(MMA)
(The Waterfront, Aloha Tower Market Place)
9/3/11
Australian Fighting Championship 2
(MMA)
Melbourne Aquatic & Sports Complex, Melbourne, Australia)
9/2/11
Man Up & Stand Up
(Kickboxing)
Waipahu Filcom Center, Waipahu)
8/27/11
Pro
Elite MMA
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
Toughman Hawaii
(Boxing, Kickboxing)
(Hilo Civic)
Add to events calendar
8/20/11
POSTPONED
Maui Jiu-Jitsu Open Tournament
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(Neal Blaisdell Center
Lahaina Civic Center, Lahaina, Maui)
8/13/11
Destiny
(MMA)
(Waterfront at Aloha Tower)
8/12/11
Up N Up: Waipahu Brawl
(MMA)
(Waipahu Filcom)
8/6/11
Just Scrap
(MMA)
(Hilo Civic Center, Hilo)
7/22/11
808 Battleground & X-1 World Events
Domination
(MMA)
(Waterfront at Aloha Tower)
Vendetta
(Kickboxing)
Waipahu Filcom Center, Waipahu)
7/16/11
2011 Sera's Kajukenbo Open Tournament
(Continuous Sparring, MMA (Controlled), and Submission Grappling)
(War Memorial Gym, Wailuku, Maui)
7/8/11
Chozun 2
(Kickboxing)
(The Waterfront at Aloha Tower Marketplace, Honolulu)
Rener Gracie Seminar
O2 Martial Arts Academy
$65
7-9PM
7/1/11
Mad Skills
(Kickboxing)
(Waipahu Filcom Center, Waipahu)
6/25/11
Kauai Cage Fights
(MMA)
(Kilohana Estates)
6/17-19/11
Big Boys & MMA Hawaii Expo
Neal Blaisdell Center, Honolulu)
6/18-19/11
Hawaii
Triple Crown
“State Championships”
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(Neal Blaisdell Center, Honolulu)
6/18/11
Destiny: Fury II
(MMA)
(Neal Blaisdell Center, Honolulu)
6/17/11
UpNUp: On The Rise
(MMA)
(Neal Blaisdell Center, Honolulu)
6/10/11
Genesis “76 South Showdown Kickboxing”
(Kickboxing)
(Campbell H.S. Gym, Ewa Beach)
6/2-5/11
World
Jiu-Jitsu Championship
(BJJ)
(California)
5/28/11
HUAWA Grappling Tournament 2011
Grappling Series II
(Submission grappling)
(Mililani H.S. Gym, Mililani)
Cancelled
Battleground 808
(MMA)
(The Waterfront, Aloha Tower)
Man Up & Stand Up
(Kickboxing)
(Waipahu Filcom Center, Waipahu)
5/21/11
Scraplafest 3
(BJJ & Submission Grappling)
(Island School, Puhi, Kauai, behind Kauai Commuity College)
5/20/11
Kauai Knockout Championship II: Mortal Combat
(MMA)
(Kauai War Memorial Convention Hall, Lihue)
5/14/11
Boxing Smoker
(Boxing)
(Palolo District Gym)
5/6/11
Just Scrap
(MMA)
(Hilo Civic Center, Hilo)
4/28/11
Destiny: Fury II
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
4/23/11
Man Up & Stand Up
(Kickboxing)
Waipahu Filcom Center, Waipahu)
Gladiators for God
(Amateur Muay Thai)
(Wet&Wild Water Park)
4/16/11
Hawaiian
Championship of BJJ
(BJJ
& Sub Grappling)
(Kaiser H.S. Gym)
4/15/11
Destiny
& 808 Battleground presents "Supremacy"
(MMA)
(Aloha Tower Waterfront)
4/9/11
Fight Girls Hawaii
(MMA)
(Waipahu Filcom Center)
4/2/11
Toughman Hawaii
(Kickboxing)
(Hilo Civic Ctr)
3/24-27/11
Pan
American Jiu-Jitsu Championships
(BJJ)
University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA)
3/26/11
Mad Skills
(Kickboxing, Triple Threat)
(Waipahu Filcom Center, Waipahu)
HUAWA Grappling Tourney
(Sub Grappling)
(Mililani HS Gym)
3/12/11
X-1:
Dylan Clay vs Niko Vitale
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
3/11/11
Chozun 1: "the Reckoning"
(Kickboxing)
(The Waterfront at Aloha Tower Marketplace, Honolulu)
3/5/11
Just Scrap
(MMA)
(Hilo Civic Auditorium, Hilo)
2/25/11
808
Battleground Presents
War of Warriors
(MMA)
(The Waterfront At Aloha Tower, Honolulu)
2/20/11
Pan
Kids Jiu-Jitsu Championships
(BJJ)
(California State University, Carson, CA )
2/19/11
Man Up & Stand Up
(Kickboxing)
Waipahu Filcom Center, Waipahu)
2/5/11
Garden Island Cage Match 10: Mayhem at the Mansion 2
(MMA, Kickboxing)
(Kilohana Carriage House, Lihue, Kauai)
Amateur Boxing
(Boxing)
(Palolo District Park Gym)
2/4/11
Amateur Boxing
(Boxing)
(Palolo District Park Gym)
1/29/11
Man Up & Stand Up
(Kickboxing)
Waipahu Filcom Center, Waipahu)
Battle At The Barn
(MMA)
(Molokai H.S. Gym, Molokai)
1/8/11
Hawaii Toughman
(Kickboxing)
(Hilo Civic Center, Hilo)
|
|
September
2011 News Part 2
|
Casca Grossa Jiu-Jitsu
is now the O2 Martial Arts Academy with 7 days a week training!
We are also offering Kali-Escrima (stick fighting) on Monday
nights with Ian Beltran & Erwin Legaspi.
Kickboxing Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday with Kaleo Kwan, PJ
Dean, & Chris Slavens!
Kids Classes are also
available!
Click
here for info!
Take classes from
the Onzuka brothers in a family-like environment! |
Onzuka.com
Hawaii Underground Forum is Online!
Chris, Mark,
and I wanted to start an official Onzuka.com forum for a while
now. We were searching for the best forum to go with and hit
a gold mine! We have known Kirik, who heads the largest and most
popular forum on the net, The Underground for years.
He
offered us our own forum within the matrix know as MMA.tv. The
three of us will be the moderators with of course FCTV808 being
the lead since he is on there all day anyway!
We
encourage everyone from Hawaii and our many readers around world
to contribute to the Hawaii Underground.
If you
do not have a login, it's simple and fast to get one.
Click here to set up an account.
Don't worry about using Pidgin English in the posting. After
all it is the Hawaii Underground and what is a Hawaii Underground
without some Aloha and some Pidgin?
To
go directly to the Onzuka.com Hawaii Underground Forum
click here!
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to Advertise on Onzuka.com?
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Short term and long term advertising available.
More than
1 million hits and counting!
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O2
Martial Arts Academy
Your Complete Martial Arts School!
Click here for pricing and more
information!
O2 Martial Arts features Relson Gracie Jiu-Jitsu taught by Relson
Gracie Black Belts Chris and Mike Onzuka and Shane Agena as well
as a number of brown and purple belts.
We also offer Boxing and Kickboxing classes with a staff that
is unmatched. Boxing, Kickboxing, and MMA champions Kaleo Kwan
and PJ Dean as well as master boxing instructor Chris Slavens
provide incredibly detailed instruction of the sweet science.
To top it off, Ian Beltran & Erwin Legaspi heads our Kali-Escrima
classes (Filipino Knife & Stickfighting) who were directly
trained under the legendary Snookie Sanchez.
Just a beginner with no background? Perfect! We teach you from
the ground up!
Experienced martial artist that wants to fine tune your skill?
Our school is for you!
If you want to learn martial arts by masters of their trade in
a friendly and family environment, O2 Martial Arts Academy is
the place for you!
|
Want to Contact
Us? Shoot us an email by Clicking Here!
Follow O2 Martial Arts news via Twitter at:
http://www.twitter.com/O2MAA
It’s
official: Fedor vs. Monson on November 20
The
M1 organization made official the matchup between Fedor Emelianenko
and Jeff Monson.
The
showdown is set to take place on November 20 at the Olympic Stadium
in Moscow, Russia.
Having
decided to delay the event by eight days, the promoters will
dodge a stiff battle for audience with the UFC, which has its
maiden FOX broadcast scheduled for the initially-planned date
of the 12th, at which time will be trying to encroach on MMA’s
audience with the marquee Manny Pacuiao-Juan Manuel Marquez bout.
Source:
Gracie Magazine
|
Royler
on his farewell: “I honored what I’ve done my whole
life”
Amazonas
is one of the states to have produced the most top-flight fighters
in Brazil – beasts like José Aldo, Ronaldo Jacaré,
Wallid Ismail, Xande and Saulo Ribeiro and so many others. The
tradition of the land is Jiu-Jitsu, and there was no lack of
it on a gala evening of fighting that included Royler Gracie’s
farewell MMA fight.
The
Gracie was unable to outdo Masakatsu Ueda in the main event.
He lost by split decision, with the Japanese fighter controlling
the action. Royler had a good moment in the first round, landing
a takedown. But Ueda managed to work his way out and then control
the tempo with solid kicks. He deserved to win by unanimous decision
but a win is a win.
“I’m
so happy to have fought a phenomenon,” said Ueda on Brazilian
television channel Combate.
Royler
(5w, 5l, 1d) bids farewell to the rings having fought one of
the best fighters in Japan at present. At 45 years of age, the
Gracie fought for three rounds against the 33-year-old Ueda (14w,
1l, 2d).
“I
want to apologize to the public, but just being here, at my age,
is a lot harder than being in front of a TV. My endurance wasn’t
what it once was but I honored what I’ve done my whole life,”
he said.
“My
opponent is a dangerous one; I know him well. Regardless of the
outcome, I ended things just right,” said Royler in closing,
adding that he would like to see more support for Brazilian athletes.
In
the other fights on the card, Antonio Braga Neto wasn’t
in the main event but his win over Maiquel Falcão was
definitely the best fight of the night. Braga was practically
knocked out in the first round, literally driving on automatic,
having taken an endless stream of strikes from his opponent’s
heavy hands. The second round saw the black belt go for the takedown
and use the Jiu-Jitsu savvy that has won him world championships,
passing guard and finishing with a tight armbar.
“I’m
not just Brazilian, I’m a ‘caboclo’ (term for
indigenous people) from Amazonas!” He shouted, to a delirious
crowd.
Ronys
Torres took just 47 seconds in knocking out Drew Fickett, notching
his eighth back-to-back win; Daniel Acácio put away Sergio
Junior by knockout in 2:50 minutes. Marcos “Capitão”
Alexandre used his Jiu-Jitsu to earn a unanimous decision over
also black belt Daniel “Roupinol” Aguiar. The low point
of the evening was Paulão Filho’s draw with Japanese
Olympic judoka Satoshi Ishii. Even Paulo didn’t buy the
draw:
“I
must confess that I feel I didn’t win. But I’m ready
to fight him again to settle this matter,” admitted Paulão,
who was applauded for his sincerity.
In
the all international bout, Jordan Smith overcame former UFC
fighter Karo Parisyan. Also noteworthy was George Clay’s
submission win over Anthony Birchack.
Check
out the complete results:
Amazon
Forest Combat
Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Masakatsu
Ueda defeated Royler Gracie via unanimous decision;
Paulão Filho and Satoshi Ishii fought to a draw;
Ronys Torres defeated Drew Fickett via TKO at 0.47 min of R1;
Antonio Braga Neto submitted Maiquel Falcão via armbar
at 4:26 min of R2;
Jordan Smith defeated Karo Parisyan via split decision;
Daniel Acácio defeated Sérgio Junior via KO at
2:50 min of R1;
George Clay submitted Anthony Birchack via rear-naked choke at
1:29 min of R1;
Marcos Alexandre Capitão defeated Daniel Roupinol via
unanimous decision;
Dileno Lopes submitted Adson Jander via guillotine at 1:15 min
of R1;
Rivaldo Junior defeated André Leocádio via split
decision
Source:
Gracie Magazine
|
|
UFC
Fight Night 25 Results: Court McGee Gets Decision Nod Over Dongi
Yang in New Orleans
Court
McGee scored a unanimous decision win over Dongi Yang at UFC
Fight Night 25: Shields vs. Ellenberger.
McGee
constantly moved forward and set the pace of the fight, which
allowed the judges to give him the nod, despite eating a heavy
left hand in the final round.
Yang
displayed some heavy strikes near the beginning, especially with
the inside low kicks. Both fighters bounced in and out of each
other’s range for a majority of the first round, landing
medium power shots in the process. McGee landed a left hook in
the final minute that wobbled Yang, but it didn’t open up
much of an opportunity for the finish. The round ended with McGee
pushing forward on offense and getting the edge.
The
second round started with McGee attempting to land a counter-hook
with ever combination Yang threw. McGee kept with the counter
punches and even tried to get a clinch going, but Yang made sure
the process wasn’t successful. After bouncing in and out
of each other’s pockets again, McGee tried to secure a takedown,
but Yang’s superior defense prevented the fight from going
to the floor. With about 15 seconds to go, McGee landed a couple
of punches, but there were very few power shots landed by either
fighter during the second frame.
McGee
seemed to be the aggressor out of the two in the early stages
of the third round, but Yang landed a major blow that sent the
TUF alum reeling. Yang followed to finish on the ground, but
McGee recovered and brought the fight back to the feet. Yang,
now with a bloody nose, looked noticeably slower and McGee kept
coming forward. Near the final minute, McGee finally got a takedown
and worked into a mount, but Yang escaped and they returned to
a standing fight. McGee scored another takedown in the final
20 seconds and nearly sunk a guillotine choke from mount, but
Yang persevered and the round ended, leaving the call in the
hands of the judges.
The
judges saw the bout in McGee’s favor with scores of 30-27,
29-28, 30-28.
McGee
keeps his UFC record perfect and collects his 14th career win
in New Orleans, while Yang drops to 1-2 in the UFC with a 10-2
overall record.
Source:
MMA Weekly |
|
UFC
Fight Night 25 Results: Jake Ellenberger KO’s Jake Shields
in the First Round
It’s
a fight that Jake Ellenberger has been asking about for almost
a year.
On
Saturday night in New Orleans he got his wish and it paid off
as Ellenberger finished former UFC title contender Jake Shields
with strikes in the first round of their main event fight at
UFC Fight Night 25.
Ever
since Shields signed with the UFC, Ellenberger has been calling
for a fight with him. Why? Simply because he thought he could
beat him.
“I
just never really believed it. Jake Shields is the best middleweight
in the world, the best welterweight in the world, like I never
believed it,” Ellenberger told MMAWeekly Radio prior to
the fight. “He has beat some very tough opponents, but it’s
nothing personal against him, he’s probably a great guy.
I’m sure we could be friends afterwards, but I was just
never sold on him.”
Ellenberger
showed no fear facing the former Strikeforce middleweight champion,
especially after he shrugged off a takedown attempt and was able
to overpower Shields in the clinch in the opening moments of
the fight.
Once
Shields did engage and get close enough for Ellenberger to get
a hold of him, it was the end of the fight.
Ellenberger
got the back of Shields’ head and threw two knees. The first
went to the body, but the second connected flush to Shields’
face, sending him crashing to the canvas.
Pouncing
on Shields, Ellenberger blasted away with a barrage of machine
gun like punches that knocked his opponent senseless, and the
referee had seen enough and swooped in for the save.
Being
aggressive was Ellenberger’s whole strategy and it paid
off on Saturday night.
“Just
keeping the pressure, that’s the whole strategy coming in
here,” Ellenberger commented after the win. “Keeping
the pressure on him. Came out with the ‘W’, it feels
great.”
With
the win, Ellenberger now moves to 5-1 in the UFC, and the win
over Shields gives him his most high profile victory to date
and surely moves him into the top five of the welterweight division.
“I
feel unbelievable,” Ellenberger stated. “Jake Shields
is a world champion, I can’t explain how I feel right now,
I feel great.”
As
for Shields, who took the fight just three weeks after his father
Jack passed away, just sounded flustered after being stopped
for the first time since his third professional fight back in
2000.
“Just
frustrated,” Shields said when asked about his emotions
following the fight. “I got hit with a good hit, I went
down, I was still trying to fight. I wish we would have got to
fight a little more, but it is what it is. It’s ref’s
decision, I did want to keep fighting. I thought I had a little
fight left, but the ref thought it was time to stop it. Nothing
I can do.”
While
Shields has nothing to be ashamed of after even deciding to stay
in the fight following such a tragedy in his personal life, he
does have to rebound now from two straight losses. Meanwhile
the welterweight division in the UFC has a new contender and
his name is Jake Ellenberger.
Source:
MMA Weekly |
|
UFC
Fight Night 25 Fighter Bonuses Net $55,000 for Postfight Award
Winners
As
is customary, UFC president Dana White handed out post-fight
awards and bonuses at UFC Fight Night 25: Shields vs. Ellenberger
on Saturday night. The fighters snagged an extra $55,000 for
their award winning efforts at the Ernest N. Morial Convention
Center in New Orleans.
It
was a bittersweet burst of excitement in the night’s finisher.
Jake Ellenberger fended off early takedown attempts from Jake
Shields then unleashed the Kraken in the form of a knee to the
body followed by another to the face that sent Shields crashing
face to the mat. Ellenberger finished him off with a few more
punches, earning Knockout of the Night honors.
It
was an exciting finish after back-to-back decisions, but Shields’
recent loss of his father surely put a bit of a damper on the
excitement that usually accompanies such an exciting knockout.
The
other two awards went to fighters on the preliminary portion
of the fight card that was show on Facebook.
TJ
Waldburger displayed an amazing array of submission transitions
that ultimately led to a triangle choke finish of Mike Stumpf.
The finish was impressive enough to earn Waldburger the Submission
of the Night.
Lance
Benoist – who? Yeah, that guy – was impressive in his
Octagon debut, displaying a solid striking game in conjunction
with a technical, but very active ground game. It was no easy
victory to get the win over Matt Riddle, however. The two battled
back and forth from bell to bell, but it was Benoist that got
the nod from the judges in the end. Both fighters walked away
with an extra $55,000 for their efforts though, scoring Benoist
and Riddle the UFC Fight Night 25 Fight of the Night.
Source:
MMA Weekly |
Charles
Oliveira declines a fight in October, gives his body a rest
Even
after a No Contest and a defeat in UFC, the young Charles do
Bronxs remains being prestige by the organization. With his contract
renewed, the athlete who fought five times in a year wants to
take it slowly, to give his body some rest.
The
BJJ brown belt got an invitation to fight in October, which he
declined because he wants to spend some time with his family
and rest his body to heal small injuries. On the interview you
check below, the lightweight explains how he changed his game
plan five days before fighting Cerrone, revealed he plans to
gain muscles and power, discard going down to a lighter division
and guaranteed he’ll be back soon.
What
was the game plan coming into that last fight against Cerrone?
Cerrone
is on the top 10 and I want to fight the bests. Whoever they
tell me to fight against I’ll do it, I’ll accept it.
My only mistake was to bring a bad game plan. Twenty days before
the fight I had a game plan to move forwards and block Cerrone’s
game using my legs, but on the last five days I was in UFC’s
hotel I changed it and we decided to back off and use knees on
the counterattack and it was the wrong game plan. He connected
better coups and he got to punch me and finished the fight.
You
have been defeated twice in UFC now. How are you dealing with
it?
I
have the same spirit, but when it happens it’s really hard
on us, you get upset, it’s another loss on your record,
but thanks’ God, the Fertitta brothers and Dana White really
like me. I’m a young guy, it’s like the commentator
said: I’m still a child, I’m 21 years old, I’m
not in a hurry. My goal is the belt, but until then I’ll
have to fight many lions who cross my way and make a step at
a time.
What
your new contract with the event is like?
Thanks’
God many good things are coming to me after this loss. I had
a four-fight contract, I got a loss and one No Contest, and the
guys renewed my contract for another 4 bouts, so it means I’m
doing a good job in there. Whoever they tell me to fight, I’ll
go and do it, I never picked opponents and my goal is to train
more and more to get better. My next opponent will fight a hunger
Charles, and that’s my goal: to fight the bests in my division.
Talking
to Ericson (Charles’ coach), he revealed they’ve offered
you a fight in October and you declined it. Did you feel overloaded
since you’ve fought 5 times this year?
Thanks’
God we get more mature, right man? UFC is a great show, it’s
the biggest event in the world and I fought many times in a row…
It’s not that I don’t want to keep fighting all the
time, I like it, but I rather rest a while. I’m coming from
a No Contest and I’ve spent a month training in Texas like
crazy, and before I trained for three months in Brazil, and I
trained a lot. I fought Nik Lentz, I was doing great, it was
pretty intense and I got injured, small injuries, my body was
aching and when I got home I thought about resting and three
days later UFC called me to schedule another fight and I fought
Cerrone. I trained ten more days in Brazil and then returned
to the United States and lost. My nose is hurt, my leg ain’t
good, his knee in my stomach hurt my rib, so when I got off the
plan I told Ericson: ‘I know Dana likes me and they’ll
give me another fight soon, so independently of who he offers
me, I don’t want it, I want to rest a while, enjoy my girlfriend’s
company, my family, my brothers and people who like me’
and he agreed.
Did
they tell you who it’d be?
I
don’t know who it’d be, nobody knows, if I said yes,
they’d tell me who I’d be fighting against. I didn’t
wanna know, I rather take this time off, take some days off…
I’m going to Avare, where I have my horse, and I can relax
along with my girlfriend and my family and give my body some
rest because it still hurts, I want to be 100% next time.
Many
believe you’re too skinny to your division and you should
drop to a lither weight class. Do you think about that?
There’s
no way I could do it, man, I’m too tall. Everybody tells
me to drop, but I can’t, for me tao fight on the lightweight
division is already hard on me. When I fought Cerrone I suffered
to lose weight. I won’t tell you it’ll never happen,
but the healthy way is to gain weight and remain on the lightweights.
I have a new partnership with a supplements company and we’re
doing something about me gaining muscles and power. It’s
better to do that, even because on the featherweight there’s
Jose Aldo and Felipe Sertanejo, there’re many limits and
I won’t be 100%.
Do
you intend to return to the octagon this year?
I’d
love to fight in the end of the year. If I can’t fight this
year, I’ll fight next year and I’ll rest some more.
But if they offer me a fight in November, December, maybe I’ll
fight, I’m in, but my goal is to rest and help the guys
who helped me. I’ll relax, take it easy.
Source:
Tatame
|
|
UFC
Fight Night 25 Results: Alan Belcher Overwhelms Jason MacDonald
in Main Card Opener
Alan
Belcher was successful in his return to the Octagon and finished
Jason MacDonald in the first round of their main card fight at
UFC Fight Night: Shields vs. Ellengerger.
Belcher
swarmed his opponent and forced MacDonald to make a verbal submission
due to strikes at 3:48 of the opening frame.
Belcher
and MacDonald came out aggressive and ended up in a clinch against
the fence early. MacDonald pulled guard, but while there, Belcher
worked to get in some hard shots and scored some points. Belcher
worked around to side control and other positions, but always
stayed on top, while pounding away.
And
overwhelmed MacDonald ate a number of elbows and punches while
on his back. With Belcher landing several strikes from top position
at will, the fight was called shortly after the midway point
of the opening round.
“Man
it feels awesome, I’m so emotional right now,” Belcher
said after the win. “I want to pursue that belt, and I’m
back, baby!”
After
being out 16 months and undergoing two surgeries, Belcher collects
the 17th win of his career and third consecutive. MacDonald collects
the 14th loss of his career and has gone 1-2 since returning
the organization at UFC 113.
Source:
MMA Weekly |
|
UFC
Fight Night 25 Results: Erik Koch Keeps Title Hopes Alive With
Win Over Jonathan Brookins
It
wasn’t the exciting finish that Erik Koch was looking for,
but the featherweight contender still came away with a unanimous
decision win over former ‘Ultimate Fighter’ winner
Jonathan Brookins on Saturday night.
Coming
into the fight, Koch was ranked #6 in the 145lb division by MMAWeekly.com,
but he had a tough test from former TUF champion Jonathan Brookins,
who believed he had the perfect formula to stimy the striker’s
prolific attacks.
Brookins
had his moments throughout the fight, but while he managed to
get Koch stuck in the clinch several times he just couldn’t
get the Milwaukee based fighter to the ground and keep him there.
On
the feet, Koch showed off his Duke Roufus trained hands and feet,
popping Brookins with a stiff jab and even landing a solid head
kick during one part of the bout.
Brookins
continuously tried to pull the fight to the ground, but Koch’s
superior takedown defense kept him from ever spending any significant
time on the canvas.
When
the fight stayed standing, Koch was clearly the superior striker,
but he just couldn’t get enough time or space to unload
one of his signature knockout blows.
Ultimately,
the judges sided with Koch’s offense over Brookins’
attempts to get the fight to the ground and he got the nod by
unanimous decision.
The
win moves Koch even further up the featherweight ladder where
he hopes to one day fight for the UFC 145lb title.
Source:
MMA Weekly |
Minotouro
wants to knock Ortiz out at UFC 140
Rogerio
Minotouro Nogueira needs a win to remain in the UFC. After back
to back losses against Ryan Bader and Phil Davis, the Brazilian
is set to return to the octagon against former champion Tito
Ortiz, on December 10, at UFC 140, and he’s ready to “stand
and bang”.
“If
I can avoid the ground game and try to knock him out, I will
try… I’ll go after him and try the knockout, but if
the fight goes to the ground I’ll be ready,” he told
TATAME, predicting Ortiz’s strategy for the bout. “I
think he’ll try to take me down to work on the ground and
pound, but I’ll be ready for all this, defending the takedowns
or doing a good guard on the ground”.
To
make things even more exciting, Rogerio will fight in the same
night of his twin brother Rodrigo Minotauro, who’ll try
to avenge his 2008 TKO loss to Frank Mir, when he lost his interim
heavyweight title.
“That’s
a good fight… Rodrigo wanted that fight, and it will be
a good fight for him. Frank Mir is tough, but Rodrigo is more
complete and will be even better at that night”.
Source:
Tatame
|
Barral
and the attention to details
“In
this month’s TRAINING FOR WARRIORS column, Martin Rooney
teaches: ‘When you take care of the details, the big things
resolve themselves.’ Martin is referring to the minor flaws
in athletes’ physical conditioning work. ‘If you don’t
fix it soon, these flaws will grow with time, keeping you from
reaching your goals,’ he concludes.
“There
are other characters exalting the importance of details this
issue. In TRAINING PROGRAM, for example, Kyra Gracie reveals
the technical minutiae that make a huge difference when facing
bigger and heavier opponents. In FACE TO FACE, Gabi Garcia assays
the virtues that earned her the post of most victorious female
Jiu-Jitsu competitor of 2011: ‘I save my energies, keep
my focus and concentration. Those are minor details that make
a champion,’ asserts Gabi.
“And
they truly are, as you can confirm for yourself in the part two
of “he 15 best of the best in the history of the Jiu-Jitsu
World Championship”. Pay attention to the details, and study
to find out how Rômulo Barral’s ‘blender’
guard works.
In
GINÁSTICA NATURAL, learn how details turned the tides
in Vitor Belfort’s favor at the Carlson student’s last
UFC fight.
“In
the DOSSIER that made this issue’s cover, notice how we
didn’t address any grandiose and intricate moves. We could
have talked about flying armbars, for example. However, we opted
for a precious particular: the grip. Starting on page 50 you’ll
find an article committed to proving that sinking a grip doesn’t
merely mean ‘grabbing cloth.’ It’s one of the
pillars of Jiu-Jitsu, one that can mean evolution in one’s
style of fighting.”
Source:
Gracie Magazine
|
Cobrinha:
“I had the training of my dreams for the ADCC”
There
aren’t many athletes qualified for or invited to the ADCC
who have a CV quite like Rubens Charles Maciel’s.
Cobrinha,
a five-time Jiu-Jitsu world champion who in 2007 captured featherweight
gold without so much as an advantage point scored against him,
will put it all out there at ADCC 2011, as he told GRACIEMAG.com
in an exclusive interview: “The event itself has lost a
bit of importance to me. Of course I still like the championship
a lot and will put in an effort to become champion. I always
liked the ADCC, but what I liked most was preparing for the ADCC”
On
Joel Tudor's back in 2009
Taking
the post of runner-up in the under-66kg division in 2009 after
an historic, 40-minute final with Rafael Mendes, Cobrinha decided
to innovate in preparing for the 2011 event: “This year
I did things a bit differently. I started training in Los Angeles
with Michel Maia and Pedro Lott and then headed for New York,
where I trained with Marcelo [Garcia], Lucas Lepri, Antônio
Peinado, Piui, Gabi Garcia and the other Alliance students there.”
If
the stay in Manhattan already featured such a stellar cast to
train with, what’s to say about Cobrinha’s subsequent
training tour? He tells it himself: “To wrap up I came to
Abu Dhabi at the invitation of Sheikh Tahnoon Bin Zayed [founder
of the ADCC]. Here I had the welcome surprise of a dream training
camp, with Renzo and Rickson Gracie, as well as the Sheikh himself.”
With
Marcelinho in NY
The
training and time spent with such a select group furbished Cobrinha
with extra weapons with which to take on the other aces of the
under-66kg division when competition time comes in Nottingham:
“Having gone through all these preparations, I’m more
than ready to face my opponents. And I even added a few more
secrets to my game.”
Being
the champion he is, Cobrinha is always in it to win it, however,
as he reveals candidly, “After all this training, what will
endure in my memory forever is the knowledge I acquired from
these legends of the sport. To me that’s worth even more
than an ADCC title.”
Source:
Gracie Magazine
|
MMA
Life: Julie Kedzie Isn’t Just a Fighter at Team Jackson-Winkeljohn
While
Julie Kedzie is known for her career as one of the most resurgent
fighters in the women’s 135-pound weight class, she’s
also heavily involved in a side of MMA few people get to see.
As
the personal assistant to Greg Jackson, Kedzie helps coordinate
one of the sport’s premier teams. While it can be overwhelming
at times, it can also be quite rewarding.
Kedzie
recently spoke to MMAWeekly.com about what it’s like to
be a part of Jackson-Winkeljohn MMA and how what started as just
helping out in time away from training became an integral part
of both her career and private life.
MMAWeekly:
Over the last several years the Jackson-Winkeljohn team has grown
exponentially. How would you say things have changed since you
joined the team and began working for Greg Jackson?
Julie
Kedzie: I would say that the workload is just incredibly different
now. The amount of interviews that he gets, the amount of things
he has to get completed throughout the day is huge. Just keeping
it organized at this point is insane.
Since
four years ago, his workload has quadrupled. The amount of fighters
that come in here and what itineraries have to be kept track
of is pretty incredible. He usually gets into the gym around
7-7:30 in the morning and I try to get here around 8, and we’re
here until 7:30-8 at night just dealing with paperwork, schedules,
and itineraries.
MMAWeekly:
You basically moved across the country from Indiana to New Mexico
to join the team and have become very integrated with Jackson
and the team. What has that been like?
Julie
Kedzie: I think that was probably the only way I could have stayed
here. It’s hard to live in Albuquerque, it’s a very,
very poor city and finding a job here is very difficult. Just
living here is hard, so if I hadn’t been so integrated in
their lives, I would have struggled here.
I’ve
seen a lot of fighters pick up and move here and not actually
make it and decide to go back where they came from. I just have
to really immerse myself, and the only way I can do that is be
here every day at the gym. Because I love fighting more than
anything else in the whole world, I’m at the gym all day
long and I’m able to communicate with the fighters and Greg
and just do what I love.
I’m
not going to lie, there are some days where I don’t want
to watch any more fighting, but to be around the thing you’re
passionate about and to be around people like the Jacksons, it’s
important for the happiness of the job. I’m not going to
become a millionaire doing this, but I’m going to be doing
what I love every day and that’s very rewarding to me.
MMAWeekly:
What’s it like trying to balance your business dealings
with Jackson’s and your own MMA career.
Julie
Kedzie: What’s nice about it is, my career as a fighter,
I learn by being inspired and through watching other people.
As his assistant, I basically get to watch all the lessons he
teaches throughout the day and I can kind of file things away
in my head for later in what I’m trying to do. I’m
at the gym all day long, which is fortunate because there’s
always something going on and I get a lot of exposure to new
techniques and new ideas every single day. It’s exhausting,
but it’s also amazing.
MMAWeekly:
What’s probably the biggest lesson you’ve learned from
your time working with Greg?
Julie
Kedzie: If you can ignore with the outside pressures and expectations
around you and just come in here and train and love to fight
and love to be around each other and help each other out, you’re
really going to survive in this world.
This
industry is super-tough. I had no idea how tough it was until
I saw some of the most high-profile fighters out there and see
the pressures they are under and see what they have to go through
on a daily basis. The gym is a safe place. The gym is where people
go and they can feel where they’re not being judged. They’re
just with their family; they’re just doing their craft.
I’ve
learned that is the most important part of having a team, that
making the gym about fighting and family and not make it about
those exterior distractions that you don’t really need.
MMAWeekly:
What’s something that the fans don’t get a chance to
see that you think they should know about?
Julie
Kedzie: They have no idea the amount of work (Jackson) puts in.
He works so incredibly hard. I’ve never seen a man so into
work. I’ve seen lawyers at work and this and that, and come
from an atmosphere of academics and stuff like that, and to see
someone work that hard on their craft all day long is just amazing.
I
know people can be dismissive of him sometimes or people think
he’s just a coach because he sits in the background and
doesn’t want all the attention for himself, or they kind
of think that coaches show up, yell a couple things and then
leave, but (in truth) they interact with fighters all day long
and give everything to their fighters.
When
a fighter does well, the whole team does well; when a fighter
loses, the whole team loses; and we take it personally because
we’re a family here. I think for the coaches it’s more
intensified because they really care about what happens to their
fighters. Not only inside a fight, but also what happens outside,
like if someone’s injured.
There’s
a lot more than meets the eye. There’s a lot more then what
happens in the three or five rounds you see on TV. I just the
hope there’s a level of awareness and respect for their
passion for this sport.
MMAWeekly:
In closing, is this where you feel you are meant to be, or does
the road still have further go for you that you’re aware
of?
Julie
Kedzie: I really do think my life is supposed to be here. I do
have kind of a restless spirit and every summer I get interested
in what’s going on elsewhere, but right now I’m very
happy and settled. The people here and the gym are amazing. Even
if I wasn’t training, I think I would want to be around
the environment that I’m in and the people here; learning
from them not only about fighting but how to interact and be
a good person.
A
lot of times we see fighters in an entertainment sense, but when
you see them in the gym and their interactions you see the best
of them and what you can be. It gives you a lot of hope and makes
you think this is a good world. Even when the shit’s going
down everywhere else, you get to see people interact with each
other in a real genuine way here, even if it’s by punching
each other in the face.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
UFC
‘Shields vs. Ellenberger’ Results and Play-by-Play
Jorge
Lopez vs. Justin Edwards
Round
1
Lopez connects with a left hand off the bat and appears to catch
a kick to the cup, but the action continues. The Wand Fight Team
youngster stifles a takedown and Edwards turns it into a guillotine
choke. Lopez flips over the top, loosening the choke and eventually
scrambling free from north-south position. Edwards shoots a single
against the cage, gets stuffed and eats a hard knee to the gut.
A double-leg attempt from Edwards succeeds, but Lopez pops right
back up. Another takedown succeeds and again Lopez stands. A
third double-leg brings Lopez down and this time Edwards lands
a sharp knee to the ribs before Lopez can stand. Back on the
feet, Lopez looks to establish a stiff left jab and catches Edwards
with a nice right hook. Edwards shoots with 90 seconds to go
and takes a knee to the face. Now it’s Lopez pressing the
action against the fence with underhooks. He gets off an uppercut
before Edwards drives forward for a takedown; the try misses,
but Edwards pushes Lopez into the cage until the round ends.
TJ
De Santis scores the round 10-9 Edwards
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Edwards
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Edwards
Round
2
Edwards is finding his strikes early in round two, connecting
with a hard right hand and just missing on a turning kick. Another
takedown comes for Edwards, who moves directly to side control
with Lopez’s right side flush to the fence. Edwards gives
up the position to try for a guillotine, but he’s too high
up and Lopez slips loose. Rather than stay in guard, Lopez opts
to stand and go back to his jabbing. Lopez catches Edwards coming
in with a punch and takes underhooks, pushing Edwards into the
fence, but Edwards quickly reverses and hits another double-leg.
Lopez turns to stand and Edwards leaps onto his kneeling opponent’s
back. Edwards has both hooks in, punching away to soften Lopez
up with 90 seconds left in the round. After Edwards lands half
a dozen punches to the side of the head, Lopez explodes and frees
himself from the position, standing to push Edwards into the
cage. The work along the perimeter until referee Kevin Mulhall
splits them up with 30 ticks on the clock. Edwards puts a solid
kick on Lopez’s gut, causing Lopez to clinch, where Edwards
lands a knee before the horn.
TJ
De Santis scores the round 10-9 Edwards
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Edwards
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Edwards
Round
3
Lopez tries to attack with knees when the fighters clinch early
in the final frame, then grabs underhooks, goes low and slams
Edwards to the canvas. Edwards is instantly on the hunt, framing
up a kimura on Lopez’s left arm, but Lopez breaks up the
attempt by taking full mount. Edwards gives up his back and Lopez
flattens him out with both hooks in. Lopez punches away, landing
five or six solid shots before Edwards turns over. Lopez is in
side-control on Edwards’ left side with three minutes remaining
in the fight. Lopez moves to north-south position and lands a
few short elbows to Edwards’ head. Edwards tries to control
the head and arm from the bottom, then scrambles to his feet.
Lopez instantly digs for a single-leg; Edwards defends for a
moment, but winds up on his back with Lopez in his closed guard.
Down the final minute, Edwards is keeping it tight on the ground,
neutralizing Lopez’s ground-and-pound. An armbar try from
Edwards turns into an omoplata, then a triangle choke just as
time runs out.
TJ
De Santis scores the round 10-9 Lopez (29-28 Edwards)
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Lopez (29-28 Edwards)
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Lopez (29-28 Edwards)
Official
result: All three judges score the bout 29-28 in favor of Justin
Edwards, the winner by unanimous decision. Judges’ names
are not announced.
Robert
Peralta vs. Mike Lullo
Round
1
Peralta goes straight to throwing outside thigh kicks on the
left leg of Lullo, the same weapon Edson Barboza used to chop
Lullo down in his last bout. The wrestler Lullo shoots, gets
stuffed and eats a few knees to the gut before being put on his
back. Peralta stands and goes back to leg-kicking while stepping
out of the way of Lullo’s long, single punches. Lullo’s
left thigh is showing damage halfway through the opening round;
he appears to catch a kick in the groin, but waves off referee
Myron Gaudet. Lullo moves forward, throwing inside thigh kicks
of his own, but he gets backed up by a hard combo. Peralta cracks
Lullo with a stiff right hand and pours on another nasty pair
of leg kicks. A side-kick to the body sends Lullo to the floor,
but he stands to finish the round on his feet.
TJ
De Santis scores the round 10-9 Peralta
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Peralta
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Peralta
Round
2
Lullo emerges for the second round sporting a bulging hematoma
on the left side of his head. He throws single right hands at
Peralta, who backs up and continues to feed Lullo a steady diet
of kicks to the thigh. Lullo dives for a takedown, can’t
get it and instead shoves Peralta into the fence. Peralta lands
a hard knee up the middle and the featherweights spin a few times,
jockeying for position. Peralta finally shucks Lullo off, exiting
with a knee and one-two combo. Lullo tries a few more leg kicks
before driving forward and again being stuffed.
TJ
De Santis scores the round 10-9 Peralta
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Peralta
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Peralta
Round
3
Lullo tries to push forward to begin the third and Peralta backs
him off with a flurry of punches. Lullo gets inside and puts
Peralta on the fence, but again Peralta displays great takedown
defense and stays upright. A few knees up the middle from Peralta
score; Lullo tries to answer with some of his own to Peralta’s
thighs. They split and Peralta throws a trio of hooks, finishing
with a blocked head kick. Lullo shoots again and gets turned
around into the cage with two minutes remaining. Thirty seconds
later, Lullo finally drags Peralta down with a high double-leg,
but Peralta stands right back up. Lullo hops onto his man’s
back as he stands. Peralta peels Lullo’s wrists off and
prevents any further advance, and they go back to throwing. Lullo
hits another takedown and holds Peralta on the base of the fence
for the final 20 seconds.
TJ
De Santis scores the round 10-9 Lullo (29-28 Peralta)
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Peralta (30-27 Peralta)
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Lullo (29-28 Peralta)
Official
result: Two judges have it 30-27 while one scores it 29-28, all
for the winner by unanimous decision, Robert Peralta.
T.J.
Waldburger vs. Mike Stumpf
Round
1
The first leg kick from Waldburger knocks Stumpf off balance
and Waldburger wastes no time in leaping onto his opponent’s
back. Stumpf is kneeling, trying to defend against Waldburger’s
hooks and doing a good job of surviving in a very bad position.
Waldburger loses the position briefly as Stumpf tries to stand
against the fence, but soon flattens Stumpf out. Both hooks are
in now for Waldburger, who works for a rear-naked choke and then
transitions to an armbar. Stumpf slips out of the armbar and
takes Waldburger’s back standing, but soon finds himself
back on the ground with Waldburger on top looking for an arm-triangle.
Stumpf escapes, runs across the cage and tries to catch Waldburger
with a flying knee. It doesn’t work and Stumpf winds up
on his back with Waldburger in side control. Waldburger tries
another armbar, can’t finish it and transitions to a triangle
choke. This one is tight and Stumpf is forced to tap out at 3:52
of the first round.
Seth
Baczynski vs. Clay Harvison
Round
1
Harvison is first to land with some inside thigh kicks, but it’s
Baczynski pushing forward with hard combinations while his man
circles the outside. Baczynski puts a one-two on “Heavy
Metal” and initiates the Thai clinch, where he lands a few
knees before disengaging. Baczynski scores with a leaping knee
and plunks the seemingly dazed Harvison with a pair of punches.
Harvison looks to be on the retreat while Baczynski is coming
forward, clinching, scoring with knees and elbows. Harvison lands
a tired knee in the clinch and Baczynski answers with a stinging
right hook. Baczynski measures his distance, looking for a homerun
shot and instead opts to tie up and try for a takedown. It doesn’t
come, but Baczynski lands a few elbows before the horn.
TJ
De Santis scores the round 10-9 Baczynski
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Baczynski
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Baczynski
Round
2
Baczynski connects with a few hard leg kicks before he crumbles
Harvison with a big right uppercut. Harvison throws his guard
up, trying to tangle his opponent up and control the damage,
but Baczynski is all over him with nasty elbows and punches.
Harvison gives up his back and takes some more punishment before
Baczynski sinks in a deep rear-naked choke and coaxes the tap.
The end comes officially 72 seconds into the second round.
Ken
Stone vs. Donny Walker
Round
1
No touch of gloves as the bantamweights get underway; Stone lands
first with some inside thigh kicks. Walker wades inside to tie
up, but it’s Stone who grabs underhooks and shoves “Eagle
Eye” into the fence. They trade knees inside before Stone
trips Walker to the floor and takes half-guard. Stone elbows
to the head and body, pushes Walker into the fence and clings
to his back as Walker stands. Stone brings Walker back down and
sinks in a deep rear-naked choke. Walker looks as though he’ll
tap but then resists. The choke is deep and Walker can’t
escape. Instead, he turns onto his belly and Stone puts him to
sleep. Referee Myron Gaudet pries Stone off at the 2:40 mark.
Matt
Riddle vs. Lance Benoist
Round
1
Benoist stings Riddle with a hard, straight left hand before
tying up. Riddle slides out and dodges a hook-kick and then clinches
Benoist against the cage. Referee Dan Miragliotta pauses the
action after Benoist drills a knee into Riddle’s cup. Riddle
takes a minute to recover and the welterweights get back to work.
Riddle times a kick from Benoist and spins him to the ground,
where Benoist throws his left leg up for rubber guard. Riddle
drops a few elbows that break up the posture as he shoves Benoist
into the fence with two minutes to go. Benoist postures up and
uses a kimura to sweep into full mount. Riddle pushes him back
to half-guard and Benoist goes looking for a guillotine in between
softening shots. The choke doesn’t come, so Benoist sits
up and drops vicious punches and elbows to the horn.
TJ
De Santis scores the round 10-9 Benoist
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Benoist
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Benoist
Round
2
In the first minute, Benoist dips in with punches and backs out
of the range of the larger Riddle, who looks to clinch up and
knee. Benoist defends a takedown, but Riddle gets there eventually
with a double-leg. Riddle pops out of a headlock and muscles
Benoist into the fence. Benoist stands, though, and tries to
beat Riddle at his own game with knees to the sides. Benoist
hits a takedown and throws elbows from half-guard. Benoist is
gushing blood from his clearly broken nose, dripping all over
Riddle as he tries to advance his position. Riddle throws up
a triangle, can’t get it and instead goes to rubber, then
closed guard. Benoist stands and Riddle drills him with an upkick,
causing him to go back to closed guard. Riddle twists for an
armbar on Benoist’s left limb. Benoist defends and tries
to keep punching, but he’s slowing and eating elbows from
the bottom in the final 30 seconds. Benoist throws four or five
heavy bombs just before the horn.
TJ
De Santis scores the round 10-9 Benoist
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Benoist
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Benoist
Round
3
Benoist
socks Riddle with a left hand, but gets in range for Riddle to
clinch up. They trade heavy fire and then circle one another
before engaging again. This time, Riddle brings Benoist down
with ease and drops knees to the body from side control on Benoist’s
left. Benoist tries to cage-walk, can’t get close enough,
so settles for putting Riddle back in his full guard. Riddle
shoves him a bit closer to the fence and drops a few elbows,
but the pace and accuracy have slowed considerably with three
minutes left in the fight. Benoist throws up rubber guard, forcing
Riddle to back out and come back into full, closed guard. Benoist’s
nose is gushing after a particularly hard elbow from Riddle,
who is back in side-control and kneeing Benoist’s ribs.
Driving forward, Benoist nearly gets to his feet, but instead
puts Riddle back in his guard. Riddle has Benoist’s left
arm hooked behind his back, but Benoist is using his right side
effectively to tie up. Riddle lands a few hard left hands in
the last 30 seconds.
TJ
De Santis scores the round 10-9 Riddle (29-28 Benoist)
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Riddle (29-28 Benoist)
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Riddle (29-28 Benoist)
Official
result: All three judges score it 29-28 in favor of Lance Benoist,
who survives a tough final round to win his UFC debut. Judges’
names are not announced.
Evan
Dunham vs. Shamar Bailey
Round
1
Dunham sneaks a quick one-two through on Bailey and keeps working
the two punch combos in the opening minute. The wrestler Bailey
is putting his head down as he throws and looks tentative on
the feet, but he backs Dunham off with a left hook. Dunham sticks
a left jab on his fellow southpaw and takes a grazing left in
return. Dunham fires off a right hook-left straight combo and
shucks a takedown attempt. Bailey is now coming forward with
wild combos which Dunham is having no trouble dodging while repeatedly
stinging Bailey with lefts. A pair of slapping head kicks connect
for Dunham, then another straight combination. Bailey gets a
single-leg and dumps Dunham to the canvas with only seconds left.
Dunham scrambles back up and throws Bailey down just after the
horn, to which Bailey takes offense.
TJ
De Santis scores the round 10-9 Dunham
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Dunham
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Dunham
Round
2
The lightweights angrily slap hands to begin the second round
and Dunham fires off tight punches while Bailey throws inside
leg kicks. Bailey slips and Dunham leaps onto his back, but it
only lasts a few seconds before Bailey stands back up and slips
him off. Dunham dips inside for a takedown, doesn’t get
it and lets Bailey loose after a moment of clinching. Dunham’s
combinations are still finding success, repeatedly landing his
left straight, and his front kicks are now coming into play.
A sneaky right hook-left straight from Dunham rattles Bailey’s
head. Bailey gives chase and lands a right hook that doesn’t
seem to faze. A takedown try from Bailey is easily stuffed with
two minutes to go in the middle stanza. Dunham is just piling
on the punches; he’s firing off head kicks, too, but these
are blocked. Bailey has another shot stuffed, gets zapped with
a one-two and a head kick, and begins pawing at his own eye.
Dunham lands his left hand at will as time expires.
TJ
De Santis scores the round 10-9 Dunham
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Dunham
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Dunham
Round
3
Bailey comes forward with urgency, but the result is the same:
Dunham rocking his head back with one-twos and trying to finish
off with head kicks. Dunham is leading with a right uppercut
and coming across with a left hook now, just battering the already
swollen face of Bailey. Three- and four-punch combinations coming
from Dunham now, finishing off with head kicks. Referee Kevin
Mulhall is looming, perhaps considering intervening to save Bailey
from further punishment. Mulhall does step in, but it’s
to replace Bailey’s mouthpiece. They resume with 40 seconds
left and Dunham continues to snap off punches and kicks. Bailey
runs straight into a guillotine choke, but he rides it out to
the final horn.
TJ
De Santis scores the round 10-9 Dunham (30-27 Dunham)
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Dunham (30-27 Dunham)
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Dunham (30-27 Dunham)
Official
result: No surprises from the judges, who see the bout 30-27
across the board for the winner by unanimous decision, Evan Dunham.
Cody
McKenzie vs. Vagner Rocha
Round
1
McKenzie throws punches early but appears to motion to the ground,
as if to ask Rocha if that’s where he wants the fight. McKenzie
gets underhooks as they tie up on the fence and reaches for his
trademark guillotine choke. Rocha circles out and connects with
a low kick on McKenzie’s cup, but McKenzie doesn’t
want more than 10 seconds to recover before he tells ref Yves
Lavigne he’s ready to go. McKenzie is putting some straight
right hands on Rocha now. Rocha comes inside and McKenzie grabs
at another guillotine as he pulls guard. Rocha pops his head
out and stacks McKenzie up at the base of the fence, but McKenzie
uses butterfly guard to shift and keep Rocha off balance. Rocha
looks for a guillotine from the top, gives it up and tries for
a farside kimura instead. He changes to an armbar, but this doesn’t
work either and McKenzie scrambles to his feet. Rocha rolls forward
and hops onto McKenzie’s back, locking up an awkwardly angled
rear-naked choke that McKenzie slips loose and sweeps out of.
McKenzie lands a hard right straight at the 30 second mark and
Rocha turns his back. Another gets through and Rocha does it
again, only to be chased down and socked again before the horn.
TJ
De Santis scores the round 10-9 Rocha
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Rocha
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Rocha
Round
2
Rocha dips inside for a takedown and spins down McKenzie, who
grabs a loose headlock. McKenzie gives up the guillotine quickly
and tries to tie Rocha up in half-guard. Rocha goes for a kimura,
gives it up and dives for a brabo choke. It looks deep, but just
as in the first round, McKenzie waits it out and Rocha relents.
Rocha maintains top position, working from half-guard with three
minutes to go. McKenzie tries a guillotine from the bottom to
no avail, as Rocha rolls out and straight into an armbar attempt.
McKenzie gives up his back for a second before twisting and finding
himself fully mounted. Rocha rains down punches until McKenzie
turns over again. Rocha’s hips are anchored, staying glued
atop McKenzie as the Alaskan flips over again. This time, the
rear-naked choke from Rocha is on tight and McKenzie has no choice
but to tap out. The end comes officially at 3:49 of round two.
Alan
Belcher vs. Jason MacDonald
Round
1
MacDonald quickly goes waist-high for a takedown attempt, but
Belcher stands him back up and puts him on the fence. MacDonald
won’t give up on his single-leg, though, and keeps pressuring
Belcher as he reverses to take the dominant position in the clinch.
In an attempt to toss Belcher down, MacDonald winds up on his
back with Belcher in his guard. Belcher puts a few right hands
on “The Athlete” while MacDonald tries to pull the
head down and throw up a triangle. Belcher busts out and unloads
with heavy punches and elbows that stun MacDonald, who looks
for a kimura on Belcher’s left arm. Belcher moves to side-control
and out of danger of the submission. A few more hard punches
from the standing Belcher have MacDonald turning to his side,
bleeding and in serious trouble. MacDonald doesn’t go out,
but referee Dan Miragliotta steps in to save him from any further
punishment at 3:48 of round one. The result is announced as a
“verbal tapout due to strikes.”
Erik
Koch vs. Jonathan Brookins
Round
1
Brookins wants the fight on the floor early and gets inside with
a high double-leg try. Koch widens his base with his back to
the fence and defends, throwing a knee over the top. Brookins
answers with an elbow up top and keeps working for the takedown.
A few more elbows come from Brookins before the featherweights
separate and Koch socks him with a right straight. The taller
Brookins misses with an uppercut from a mile out. Koch slaps
with an outside thigh kick, follows up with a right straight.
Brookins goes for another single-leg and again Koch defends,
landing hammerfists while he does. Brookins finally tosses Koch
down right at, or perhaps just after, the horn.
TJ
De Santis scores the round 10-9 Brookins
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-10
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Brookins
Round
2
Koch gets busy with outside leg kicks, looking a fair bit looser
as the second round begins. Brookins catches a kick and rushes
Koch into the fence, but only for a second. Koch slaps Brookins
with a right high kick and sticks a few right jabs in the Floridian’s
face. A left straight jacks the jaw of Brookins, who immediately
tries to close the distance and single-leg Koch down again. Koch
uses a whizzer to avoid a takedown and then get on top, but Brookins
is right back up and pressing Koch into the fence again. Koch
is punching and elbowing to the head and body of Brookins, who
just keeps trying for the single-leg. Now, Koch reverses and
lands a few knees before disengaging and chopping with an outside
leg kick. Koch wades in with punches and Brookins goes low, trying
for a double this time and again being stifled by Koch. The takedown
finally comes for Brookins, but he can’t do much with the
position and Koch stands before the end of the round.
TJ
De Santis scores the round 10-9 Koch
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Koch
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Brookins
Round
3
Koch is keeping his distance at the start of round three, using
quick right jabs and leg kicks on the taller man while slipping
single-leg attempts when they come. Brookins gets inside with
one about two minutes into the frame and leans on Koch against
the fence. Referee Myron Gaudet warns Brookins about holding
the fence just as the pair splits. Koch comes swinging with leg
kicks and Brookins answers with a tired swipe of his own. They
clinch on the outside again, Brookins just bending at the waist
for the final minute of the fight while Koch throws sporadic
punches to the body and head.
TJ
De Santis scores the round 10-9 Koch (29-28 Koch)
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Koch (30-28 Koch)
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Koch (29-28 Brookins)
Official
result: With two scorecards of 30-27 and one 29-28, it’s
a unanimous decision for 22-year-old Erik Koch.
Dongi
Yang vs. Court McGee
Round
1
McGee takes the outside of the Octagon while southpaw Yang stands
in the center, trying to punch to the head and body of the “TUF”
winner. Not much action through the first two minutes of the
opening round. McGee gets the better of an exchange with a right
hand over the top and the middleweights trade inside thigh kicks.
McGee lurches forward to tie up but Yang backs away and appears
to catch a finger in the eye, for which referee Yves Lavigne
warns McGee. Both men are still holding their hands back with
90 seconds to go. Yang catches a kick, misses with a right hook
counter and lands a kick to the body. The Korean slips as he
circles the outside but McGee doesn’t pounce. McGee lands
a few right hands just before the uneventful first round ends.
TJ
De Santis scores the round 10-9 McGee
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Yang
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Yang
Round
2
The action resumes where it left off: McGee moving forward, lobbing
inside leg kicks, while Yang tries to catch said kicks and counterpunch.
After a minute of this, McGee ties up and tries to press Yang
into the fence, but Yang is quick to escape. Yang catches McGee
coming in with a one-two. McGee slaps a high kick off Yang’s
forearm. Yang rips a single left hook, but that’s all. With
two minutes to go, McGee goes for a single-leg takedown; Yang
keeps his balance, steps away and breathes heavy. They clinch
and Yang misses with a knee, scores with a clubbing left hook.
Nice combination from Yang after they split; McGee answers with
a deflected head kick. McGee slaps a few inside thigh kicks and
has a double-leg stuffed at the horn.
TJ
De Santis scores the round 10-9 McGee
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 McGee
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 McGee
Round
3
McGee wades inside but doesn’t do anything once he’s
there. When he steps back out, he eats a pair of hard jabs from
Yang, who feints a single-leg. McGee steps away from it and runs
himself into the fence. Now it’s back to throwing single
shots from both men. A hard left hook from Yang lands flush and
McGee stumbles backward. Yang gives chase with a flying knee
that misses and drags McGee to the floor. Yang tries to hop on
McGee’s back and McGee slips out the back door. Yang is
bloodied when they stand back up, but he stumbles McGee with
a right hand shortly thereafter. McGee gets underhooks and tries
to trip Yang down, but the damaged “Ox” stays up and
keeps throwing. Double-leg attempt from McGee is stuffed by Yang,
who tries to reverse the throw. McGee keeps working for the takedown
and gets it. He’s only in mount for a moment before Yang
escapes. McGee strings together a few punches, goes for another
single-leg and gets it easily this time. McGee drops elbows from
the top and throws on what looks to be a deep guillotine just
before the horn. Yang survives to see the judges’ scorecards.
TJ
De Santis scores the round 10-9 McGee (30-27 McGee)
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 McGee (29-28 McGee)
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 McGee (29-28 McGee)
Official
result: The judges have it 30-28, 30-27 and 29-28, all in favor
of the winner by unanimous decision, Court McGee.
Jake
Shields vs. Jake Ellenberger
Round
1
Referee Kevin Mulhall is the third man for tonight’s welterweight
main event, with judges Richard Bertrand, Douglas Crosby and
Sal D’Amato scoring at cageside in the event of a decision.
Shields starts out flicking quick jabs while Ellenberger looks
for a murderous uppercut. Shields tries to clinch up and Ellenberger
tosses him right to the ground. The next takedown attempt from
the Cesar Gracie student is stuffed as well. They tie up again
and a big knee from Ellenberger sends Shields sprawling forward.
Ellenberger pounces and unloads with six or eight brutal punches
while Shields tries to drive forward. Mulhall leaps in for the
save and Shields keeps shooting on the referee, unaware of what
happened. The vicious TKO comes just 53 seconds into the first
round.
Source:
Sherdog
|
Mayweather
KOs Ortiz in controversial finish
By Bob Velin, USA TODAY
LAS VEGAS – In one of the most stunning finishes in years,
Floyd Mayweather knocked WBC welterweight champion Victor Ortiz
out near the end of the fourth round with a left, then a right
hand while Ortiz appeared to be apologizing after an intentional
head butt.
Ortiz went down in a heap, and tried but was unable to get to
his feet before the referee reached the 10-count. The raucous
crowd of 14,687 at the Grand Garden Arena in the MGM Grand booed
vociferously when Mayweather was declared winner by knockout.
Replays
showed that Ortiz appeared to be looking at referee Joe Cortez
when he was hit.
Mayweather remained unbeaten at 42-0 (26 KOs), while Ortiz fell
to 29-3-2, 22 KOs.
"After
it happened we were back to fighting, and then I threw the left
hook right, hand right after the break. You just have to protect
yourselves at all times in the ring. He did something dirty,
his corner said I was dirty, then I won the fight," said
Mayweather, who was fighting for the first time in 16 months.
Ortiz,
who came in a 4-1 underdog, said he was doing as he was told
by Cortez.
"I
took the break by the ref and I obeyed exactly as I was told,
then boom! he blindsided me," said Ortiz. "I'm not
a dirty fighter and I apologized for the head butt. You can look
at this two ways. I came to entertain the fans, and I think they
were entertained.
"There
was a miscommunication by the ref, and neither he nor I or anyone
is perfect. This is a learning experience."
HBO
ring announcer Larry Merchant, 80, was angry with what he perceived
as a sucker punch by Mayweather saying, "If I was 50 years
younger I would've kicked your ass."
Said
Cortez: "Time was in, the fighter needed to keep his guard
up. Mayweather did nothing illegal."
Mayweather
came in weighing 150 pounds. While Ortiz had rehydrated to 164,
17 pounds over his weight during the weigh-in. But Mayweather
did not appear to lose any of his quickness during the layoff.
He won all three rounds on two of the judges' scorecards, and
two of three on the other.
Mayweather
was fighting for the first time since he defeated Sugar Shane
Mosley in May 2010. Ortiz was coming off his best performance,
a 12-round unanimous decision against Andre Berto in April to
win his first tile.
His
uncle and longtime trainer, Roger Mayweather, said earlier this
week that long layoffs can definitely play a role in a fight,
but Mayweather, 34, never really got out of shape, and had no
trouble making weight, weighing in Friday at 146½ pounds.
Morales
wins fourth title: Mexican legend Erik Morales became the first
fighter from his country to win world titles in four different
weight classes when he stopped fellow countryman Pablo Cesar
Cano on a 10th round TKO in a bloody fight that left both fighters'
faces a mess.
Morales
won the vacant WBC super lightweight title.
Cano
was filling in for Argentine slugger Lucas Matthysse, who bowed
out last week with a virus. The loss was Cano's first; he's now
22-1-1 with 17 KOs.
Cano's
corner stopped the fight after the 10th when Cano, 21, was bleeding
profusely from a cut under his left eye and also from the nose.
Morales was also bleeding from a cut over his left eye. His white
shorts were red with blood by the end of the fight.
He's
a young fighter and he throws really hard punches," said
Morales, who turned 35 this month. "I could tell the blood
was making him nervous and when he started bleeding profusely
he got scared and it affected him. I was ready to fight."
Morales
(52-7, 36 KOs) threw 561 punches, connecting on 214 (38%), while
Cano threw 652 punches and connected on 201 (31%).
The
power punches were nearly even, with Morales landing 114 and
Cano 119.
"I'm
really happy about the fourth world title but it was more difficult
than I though it would be," said Morales. "Once I got
my pace, I dominated him because of my experience."
Cano
had little time to prepare for the fight, but jumped at the offer
when it was extended by Golde Boy Promotions' CEO Richard Schaefer.
"I'm
a little upset thar I didn't win, but I went in there on a week's
notice and did what I had to do," said Cano. "I fought
a legendary fighter,and now the world knows who Pablo Cano is.
"The
cut definitely affected me. I think I would've finished 12 rounds
had I not been cut."
Alvarez
defends title: Saul "Canelo" Alvarez kept his 154-pound
title belt Saturday night, stopping Alfonso Gomez at 2:36 of
the sixth round.
Alvarez
(38-0-1, 28 KOs) started and finished strong in his bout on the
undercard of Floyd Mayweather's victory over Victor Ortiz. The
wildly popular Mexican fighter met Gomez at Staples Center in
a two-city pay-per-view card.
Alvarez
knocked down Gomez (23-5-2), from nearby Anaheim, with a compact
left hook late in the first round. Gomez, who fought on the reality
television series The Contender, rallied in the next few rounds
and hung in with the hard-punching Alvarez.
But
Alvarez dominated the fifth round, and he finished Gomez with
a nasty uppercut and several big shots. Gomez thought referee
Wayne Hedgpeth stopped the fight too soon, with Alvarez raining
blows on Gomez's defense.
Vargas
wins: In the first televised bout, young Jessie Vargas (16-1,
9 KOs) scored an unpopular split decision against veteran Josesito
Lopez (29-3, 17 KOs), eliciting boos from the crowd when the
decision was announced.
In
the eighth round, referee Tony Weeks took a point from Vargas
for a low blow. Vargas had been warned earlier, and actually
had landed several borderline shots throughout the fight.
Source: USA Today
|
New
MMA Film ‘Warrior’ Opens with $5.6 Million in the Box
Office Plus Exclusive Images from the Film
by Damon Martin
The
new mixed martial arts movie ‘Warrior’ opened to very
solid ratings by critics nationwide while pulling in 5.6 million
dollars for it’s opening weekend.
According
to Entertainment Weekly, the Lionsgate produced film came in
3rd overall at the weekend box office behind Steven Soderbergh’s
health crisis movie ‘Contagion’ and ‘The Help’,
which has been in theaters for several weeks.
While
the $5.6 million is far less than the $25 million budget that
was spent to make ‘Warrior’, it’s the underlying
scores that boast potential for the new MMA film.
CinemaScore
had ‘Warrior’ rated with an ‘A’ and is expected
to gain more steam over the next few weeks.
‘Warrior’
had an audience that consisted of 66% men with 70% of those men
at 25 years of age or older. For an MMA film with their base
audience running between 18 to 34 years of age, those numbers
may seem a little old, but the movie was marketed more as a dramatic
film that a sports franchise.
The
New York Times, the Hollywood Reporter and Empire all rated the
movie a 90 out of 100 according to Metacritic.com.
‘Warrior’
focuses around a pair of estranged brothers who both enter a
two-night MMA tournament with millions of dollars on the line.
The back story is where the film gained much of its recognition
with strong acting performances by stars Tom Hardy, Joel Edgerton
and Academy Award nominee Nick Nolte.
‘Warrior’
is in theaters now and for more information check out Warriorfilm.com
for show times.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Island
Heat 3: Tha Comeback
Waipahu Filcom,Waipahu, Hawaii
November 18, 2011
|
808
Battlegrounds presents: Unstoppable
The Waterfront, Aloha Tower, Honolulu, Hawaii
September 23,2011
|
MMA
veteran Whitehead strikes plea bargain in sex-assault case
By Sergio
Non, USA TODAY
Heavyweight
fighter Mike Whitehead will face probation after reaching a plea
deal with prosecutors accusing him of trying to have sex with
a woman who was asleep in his home.
Whitehead
appeared in Las Vegas' Clark County District Court this week
to officially plead guilty to a charge of attempted sexual assault,
the Las Vegas Sun reports. Whitehead entered an Alford plea,
under which a defendant maintains innocence, but concedes that
prosecutors probably can get a conviction.
He
will be officially sentenced in January. Under his plea bargain,
prosecutors will recommend probation for Whitehead, who would
be required to register as a sex offender.
The
Sun details the accusations against Whitehead:
The
alleged incident happened April 10, 2010, when a woman filed
a police report that the MMA fighter had assaulted her.
The
woman told police she and a friend had gone to Whitehead's home
for a barbecue, then after drinking, decided not to drive home,
according to a police report.
The
report said Whitehead told the women they could sleep in his
bed.
One
of the women said she awoke to find her pants down and Whitehead
having sex with her in the bed. Although she repeatedly demanded
that he stop, he didn't for about three minutes, according to
the police report.
After
the alleged incident, Whitehead sat in a chair in the bedroom,
police said. The second woman, who had been next to the woman
on the bed, said she witnessed the alleged assault, according
to the police report. The second woman alleged that Whitehead
had also groped her during the incident, the report said.
A
three-time All-American wrestler in college before entering mixed
martial arts, Whitehead's 26-7 professional record includes fights
for Strikeforce, the Ultimate Fighting Championship, World Extreme
Cagefighting and Affliction Entertainment. He has not fought
since December.
Source:
USA Today
|
Mayhem
Miller Hates Michael Bisping, but Says TUF 14 Best Season Ever
by Damon
Martin
Everyone
knows that Jason “Mayhem” Miller is all about personality.
He had no problem using that to his advantage during the 14th
season of “The Ultimate Fighter” to get under the skin
of co-coach Michael Bisping.
Miller
has never been above a few antics prior to or even during a fight,
and that even helped him land a spot as host on MTV’s “Bully
Beatdown.”
Now
he gets to take all of that, crank it up a few more notches,
and unleash it on Bisping.
“I
definitely got under his skin, as you’ll see as the season
plays out,” Miller stated on Wednesday. “Aside from
the excellent fights and the very talented group of guys who
came into the show, me and Mike, just our personality clash definitely
and put a damn good show on.”
Going
into the show, Miller had seen and heard an awful lot about Bisping,
and even ran into him a few times during different MMA events.
The always colorful fighter says he entered “The Ultimate
Fighter” with an open mind about the Brit, but that quickly
changed once he got the chance to know Bisping.
“Initially,
I gave Mike the benefit of the doubt, but he fully proved himself
to be a prick by week two,” Miller stated.
“I’ll
say this about Michael, he is a complex character, an individual
you could write many tomes of knowledge on. Actually as the season
wore on, yes I hated his guts, and then I didn’t mind him
so much, and now I’m back to hating his guts.”
On
Wednesday, both Miller and Bisping participated in a media conference
call where the two middleweights answered questions, but about
half of the time the two fighters went back and forth at each
other with some verbal sparring over the phone.
While
neither wanted to spoil anything that happens on the show, Miller
guarantees that once “The Ultimate Fighter” season
14 hits Spike TV next Wednesday, fans will be more than satisfied.
“This
is going to be huge for ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ franchise.
This is the best season that they’ve ever done,” Miller
said.
And
after Bisping took the time to call Miller an idiot and even
threw in a barb about the former Strikeforce fighter’s recent
run-in with law enforcement, it was Mayhem’s turn to respond.
“I
think you’re way worse an idiot than I am, and I’m
going smash your face and choke you,” Miller said.
If
nothing else, TUF 14 certainly should be interesting when Miller
and Bisping hit the screen.
Miller
and Bisping are slated to fight in the main event of the TUF
14 Finale on Dec. 3 in Las Vegas.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Sakuraba
returns against undefeated Jiu-Jitsu black belt
Jiu-Jitsu
black belt Yan Cabral (9 wins) will have to decipher an enigma
that’s a tough nut to crack for any fighter: how do you
beat an opponent not just by no means common but a legend of
the sport.
Yan
says he’s ready for his encounter with Kazushi Sakuraba
(26w, 15l), 42, at the September 24 Dream 17 show in Sakuraba’s
homeland.
“I’m
so happy to have this opportunity. It’s always been my dream
to fight in Japan, and it couldn’t be under any better circumstances,
facing a living legend of the sport right off the bat. It’s
what my career has been needing, an opportunity to show the world
what I can do,” said the Brazilian black belt living in
Europe, about to make his debut in a major event, at Dream.
Cabral
took to watching the latest performances of his veteran opponent,
who has lost five of his last seven bouts, and is unafraid of
getting booed.
“He’s
very experienced and surely dangerous but I’ve been training
a lot and will show up 200% ready to put on a great fight. My
dream was always to fight in Japan precisely because they love
their heroes. The Japanese seem to me to be very respectful,
love martial arts and respect athletes, whoever they may be.
So I don’t feel there will be all that much pressure,”
he explains.
On
his training, Yan recounts how he did his standup training and
Thailand and worked on his Jiu-Jitsu in Barcelona, where he lives.
“I
started training at Tiger Gym in Thailand. I went there on vacation
but ended up getting invited to fight, so I made the most of
it. I carried on with training in Barcelona with my team and
even went on to train a month in Rio de Janeiro doing some final
adjustments to my game with Dedé Pederneiras of Nova União.
I’m fortunate to have so many marvelous people on my side,
and I’ll be fighting for them too. A special thanks goes
out to my friend David Aranda, who trained with me the whole
time,” he said in closing.
Dream
17
Saitama Super Arena, Japan
September 24, 2011
Kazushi
Sakuraba vs Yan Cabral
Kazuhiro Nakamura vs Gerald Harris
Tatsuya Kawajiri vs Joachim Hansen
Shinya Aoki vs Rob McCullough
Satoru Kitaoka vs Willamy “Chiquerim” Freire
Takeshi Inoue vs Caol Uno
Bantamweight
GP
Hideo Tokoro vs. Antonio Banuelos
Bibiano Fernandes vs. Takafumi Otsuka
Masakazu Imanari vs. Abel Cullum
Rodolfo Marques vs. Yusup Saadulaev
Source:
Gracie Magazine
|
'Mayhem'
Miller: Arrest for Assaulting Sister 'Now All Over With'
By Ben
Fowlkes
UFC
middleweight Jason "Mayhem" Miller said on Monday's
episode of The MMA Hour that his arrest for allegedly assaulting
his sister in August is now "all over with," but added
that "[i]t wasn't alleged; there was an actual altercation."
Miller
was arrested by the Chatham County Sheriff in North Carolina
on August 7 for simple assault and false imprisonment after an
incident during which he was said to have put his sister in a
headlock and refused to let her leave a house party that both
siblings were attending.
"I'll
just say this: my sister was not in any state to drive, and I
stopped her from driving," Miller told Ariel Helwani. "However,
she was in a state to file a police report, which is now all
over with. It's all finished. It was unfounded...a Miller family
experience that got out of hand."
When
pressed on whether it was truly necessary for the professional
fighter to put his sister into a headlock to prevent her from
driving, Miller insisted that it was.
"Look,
my sister is a big girl," he said. "She's like 200
pounds and strong, muscle girl. I had to hold her, like, for
real hold her. There's no wrist-controlling your big sister,
you know what I'm saying? You've got to like, hold on to her."
Miller
was arrested the day after the incident at the party, after his
sister notified the Chatham County Sheriff's office. Originally,
there was concern that the 30-year-old Miller, who will appear
as a coach opposite British middleweight Michael Bisping on the
upcoming season of the UFC reality show The Ultimate Fighter,
might have his fighting career put on hold due to legal issues.
But
there was nothing to the complaint, Miller said, and he expects
no further legal action on the matter, though he is "glad
I did that" in order to stop his sister from driving that
night, he added.
"If
I had to do it all over again, I would do exactly the same thing,"
Miller said.
What
surprised him the most, Miller said, was how big the story became
after TMZ initially reported his arrest.
"It's
funny, because I'm in the stage of my career where people care
about some petty redneck drama that I got into. It's really surreal.
I had TMZ beating down my door and trying to call me about that.
I was like, are you serious? I didn't even think that was a big
deal."
Now
that the matter has been settled, he can get back to focusing
on the upcoming fight against his coaching counterpart on the
TUF 14 Finale.
"All
I'm thinking about is fighting Michael Bisping on December 3,"
he said. "...That's all I can think about."
Source:
MMA Fighting
|
Minotauro
and Minotouro ready for Mir and Ortiz at UFC 140
By Guilherme
Cruz
Rodrigo
and Rogerio Nogueira has been called up to get into action on
the same night for the first time in UFC. The athletes, who has
fought five times on the same event (with seven wins and three
loses), faces Frank Mir and Tito Ortiz, respectively, at UFC
140, on December 10th, and their coach, Luiz Carlos Dorea, is
excited about it.
“With
Rodrigo and Rogerio fighting together it’s twice as exciting…
It’ll be one of the best cards of the year”, claims
the Boxing coach, confident of Rodrigo’s win after he has
knocked out Brendan Schaub in UFC Rio.
“It’s
a completely different story now, he’s 100%”, guarantees,
reminding about the previous loss of the heavyweight fighter
to Frank Mir in UFC 92, when he was knocked out. “He got
healed from the injuries, he’s a completely new athlete
now… This rematch has been wanted by all Brazilians. It’ll
be a great fight, everything we were hoping for”
Tito
Ortiz vs. Rogerio Nogueira has been schedule for last year, but
an injury prevented the American fighter to actually attend to
their meeting. Recently, the Brazilian athlete had to cancel
another bout, this time against Rich Franklin due to an injury,
but the coach guarantees he’ll be ready to go.
“Tito
is a great athlete and it’ll be a very good fight. Rogerio
was doing great for his bout with Rich Franklin, but unfortunately
got injured… The fans are really longing to see this fight”,
concludes Dorea.
Source:
Tatame
|
Sherdog
Official Mixed Martial Arts Rankings
The
MMA world isn't surprised that Daniel Cormier and Luke Rockhold
joined its elite. However, the fact the two American Kickboxing
Academy standouts did it so soon is another story.
Sept.
10, both up-and-coming talents from San Jose, Calif.'s proudest
fight gym turned their potential into prosper, grabbing big wins
at the Strikeforce heavyweight grand prix semifinals in Cincinnati.
Cormier,
less than two years into his MMA career, blew away Antonio Silva
in the first round of their heavyweight contest. A reserve in
the Strikeforce GP, some thought Cormier could pull the upset
with his Olympic-calibre wrestling. Instead, it was the hands
of "D.C." that spelled disaster for the mammoth Brazilian
in just under four minutes.
Rockhold,
meanwhile, took the full 25 minutes to earn the Strikeforce middleweight
championship from Ronaldo Souza, but that made it all the better.
In his first fight in 19 months due to a spate of injuries, Rockhold
came on strong in the final 15 minutes to add yet another piece
of hardware to the AKA trophy case.
And,
the week past wasn't only notable for the action that happened,
but the action to come. A plethora of new fights are bound for
the Octagon in the final months of 2011, but no news has greater
impact to this list than Nick Diaz exiting his UFC 137 title
shot against Georges St. Pierre to face B.J. Penn, with Carlos
Condit fighting in his stead -- a debacle involving four top-10
welterweights.
Heavyweight
1.
Cain Velasquez (9-0)
Coming off a nearly 13-month hiatus due to surgery on a torn
rotator cuff, Velasquez will look to extend his violent unbeaten
streak defend his UFC title for the first time against fellow
smasher Junior dos Santos. On Nov. 12, the pair will become the
first UFC bout to be broadcast on Fox when they throw down in
Anaheim, Calif.
2.
Junior dos Santos (13-1)
Dos Santos took a chance, and it paid off. Instead of sitting
on the shelf while UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez recuperated
from shoulder surgery, No. 1 contender “Cigano” took
a June 11 bout with Shane Carwin, a replacement for original
opponent Brock Lesnar. The Brazilian boxed his way to a unanimous
decision win, taking Carwin the distance for the first time in
his career and keeping his trajectory for his Nov. 12 showdown
with Velasquez.
3.
Alistair Overeem (35-11, 1 NC)
Overeem appeared to be on the outs with Zuffa after turning down
a Sept. 10 booking with Antonio Silva in Strikeforce and being
stripped of his heavyweight title. However, just as quickly,
the Dutch “Demolition Man” was back in: on Sept. 6,
the UFC revealed that it had signed Overeem for a Dec. 30 matchup
with former champion Brock Lesnar in Las Vegas.
4.
Fabricio Werdum (14-5-1)
On June 18, 51 weeks after submitting Fedor Emelianenko in a
shocking upset, Werdum found himself in an entirely different
type of fight. Despite showing flashes of strong standup, the
Brazilian spent much of his Strikeforce heavyweight grand prix
quarterfinal attempting to pull guard and lure Alistair Overeem
into his realm. The Dutchman stayed upright for almost the entire
bout and did enough to walk away with a unanimous decision, evening
the pair’s series at 1-1.
5.
Brock Lesnar (5-2)
He has had nearly 12 inches of his colon removed on account of
his latest diverticulitis battle, but Lesnar is about ready to
return to action. On Dec. 30, the hulking Minnesotan will face
fellow physical specimen and former Strikeforce heavyweight champion
Alistair Overeem in Las Vegas.
6.
Shane Carwin (12-2)
Carwin did not tire as he did in his title fight with Brock Lesnar,
but the massive Coloradoan had little answer for Junior dos Santos’
strong striking in a three-round decision loss on June 11. After
beginning his career with 12 consecutive stoppage wins, Carwin
has now lost two in a row and will need to rebound in his next
trip to the Octagon to stay among the company’s top big
men.
7.
Frank Mir (15-5)
Mir will attempt to follow up on a dominant May decision over
Roy Nelson against an old foe. Having already punched out Antonio
Rodrigo Nogueira in December 2008, Mir will have the chance to
prove it was no fluke when he meets the Pride legend for a second
time on Dec. 10.
8.
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (33-6-1, 1 NC)
Having been punched out in two of his last three starts -- the
first stoppage losses of his storied career -- Nogueira was in
need of a statement win. That’s exactly what he got on Aug.
27, when, before a riotous hometown crowd in Rio de Janeiro,
“Big Nog” defied bookmakers and served hot prospect
Brendan Schaub a first-round knockout. The 35-year-old will have
revenge on his mind for his next bout: On Dec. 10, Nogueira will
try to avenge his first knockout loss when he rematches Frank
Mir.
9.
Josh Barnett (31-5)
The sport’s preeminent catch-wrestling stylist added another
major name to his resume on Sept. 10, handing fellow Pride veteran
Sergei Kharitonov a first-round submission loss and advancing
to the final of Strikeforce’s world heavyweight grand prix.
Awaiting the “Warmaster” in the to-be-scheduled last
round is unbeaten upstart and freestyle wrestling convert Daniel
Cormier.
10.
Daniel Cormier (9-0)
The two-time wrestling Olympian secured the biggest win of his
short fighting career on Sept. 10, as he knocked out massive
Brazilian Antonio Silva in the semifinals of Strikeforce’s
world heavyweight grand prix. Less than two years into his MMA
career, Cormier will now have the chance to tangle with all-time
heavyweight great Josh Barnett in the tournament final, though
the American Kickboxing Academy product’s broken hand may
delay that bout.
Other
contenders: Fedor Emelianenko, Cole Konrad, Roy Nelson, Brendan
Schaub, Antonio Silva.
With
his Sept. 10 loss to Daniel Cormier, previously eighth-ranked
Antonio Silva falls to the contenders list.
Light
Heavyweight
1.
Jon Jones (13-1)
It has been a bumpy ride since 23-year-old Jones became the UFC’s
new 205-pound champion by blasting Mauricio Rua in March. First,
he was to fight former teammate Rashad Evans. Then, he was sidelined
with a nagging injured hand that required surgery. Now, “Bones”
is back, forgoing the operation in order to defend his belt for
the first time against Quinton Jackson at UFC 135 on Sept. 24.
2.
Mauricio “Shogun” Rua (20-5)
Rua turned in a vintage performance at UFC 134, disposing of
former upsetter Forrest Griffin with the type of vicious assault
that defined his Pride Fighting Championship tenure. With knockout
victories over Griffin and Lyoto Machida on his ledger, Rua has
only one UFC defeat left unavenged: his March title loss to current
UFC light heavyweight titleholder Jon Jones.
3.
Rashad Evans (16-1-1)
In his first action in 15 months, Evans was sterling, bashing
Tito Ortiz and stopping him with a crushing knee to the body
in the second frame at UFC 133. However, Evans did damage to
his right hand and will have to hope it heals in time for him
to challenge the winner of the Jon Jones-Quinton Jackson bout
later this year.
4.
Quinton “Rampage” Jackson (32-8)
In his 40th professional fight, “Rampage” put on a
show, shutting down every shot from fellow wrestler Matt Hamill
and pounding “The Hammer” in the standup on his way
to a May 28 unanimous nod. The win set up a Sept. 24 collision
between Jackson and the man who currently holds the belt that
was once his, Jon Jones, at UFC 135.
5.
Lyoto Machida (17-2)
Machida has not been much of a topic for discussion for UFC matchmaking
since he wanted big money to face Rashad Evans in the UFC 133
main event. Machida's manager, Ed Soares, has floated the name
of unbeaten former NCAA wrestling champion Phil Davis as a potential
opponent, but no steps have been taken in that direction.
6.
Phil Davis (9-0)
Davis was forced out of the UFC 133 main event against Rashad
Evans due to a knee injury. He does not yet have a timetable
for his return, but a bout with Lyoto Machida has been bandied
about in the media and would certainly offer Davis another high-profile
opponent.
7.
Forrest Griffin (18-7)
After losing his UFC light heavyweight title in 2008 and being
embarrassed by Anderson Silva in 2009, Griffin strung together
back-to-back victories over Tito Ortiz and Rich Franklin. That
streak came to an abrupt halt on Aug. 27, however, when the man
Griffin shockingly submitted in 2007, Mauricio “Shogun”
Rua, took revenge in the form of a first-round knockout at UFC
134.
8.
Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (19-5)
Nogueira was forced from an August bout with Rich Franklin due
to a shoulder injury, but it didn’t take long for the UFC
to schedule him another date. The Brazilian is now set to return
on Dec. 10 against ex-champion Tito Ortiz at UFC 140, the same
card on which his twin brother will rematch Frank Mir.
9.
Dan Henderson (28-8)
Now a free agent, the Strikeforce light heavyweight champion
is almost a lock to have his next tilt inside the Octagon. The
question for Henderson is simply against whom. No doubt the Team
Quest founder would like a redo with Anderson Silva, though the
UFC’s middleweight ace will be out of action until 2012
with a shoulder injury.
10.
Rafael Cavalcante (11-3)
Six months after dropping his Strikeforce light heavyweight title
to Dan Henderson, “Feijao” returned to his violent
ways on Sept. 10. After a strangely tepid opening round, Cavalcante
exploded on Yoel Romero Palacio, punching out the Olympic Greco-Roman
silver medalist in their Strikeforce showdown.
Other
contenders: Rich Franklin, Alexander Gustafsson, Muhammed “King
Mo” Lawal, Vladimir Matyushenko, Gegard Mousasi.
Middleweight
1.
Anderson Silva (31-4)
In front of over 16,000 fans in Rio de Janeiro, Anderson Silva
avenged his January 2006 disqualification loss to Yushin Okami
in brutal fashion. Now, the drum is beating again for Silva to
meet Georges St. Pierre, though the UFC's goal in the short term
is more likely a rematch with Chael Sonnen.
2.
Chael Sonnen (25-11-1)
After a dizzying rollercoaster ride in wake of his UFC title
challenge against Anderson Silva last August and the testosterone
replacement therapy issues that followed, Sonnen is ready to
fight again. The middleweight firebrand will take on emerging
contender Brian Stann at UFC 136 in Houston on Oct. 8.
3.
Yushin Okami (26-6)
Yushin Okami finally got his chance to vie for the UFC middleweight
champion, but it didn't go as he'd hoped. "Thunder"
was beaten down by Anderson Silva and summarily sent to the back
of the line in the UFC's 185-pound division.
4.
Nate Marquardt (31-10-2)
In wake of the TRT debacle that resulted in his exit from the
UFC, Marquardt has been mostly silent. However, the perennial
middleweight standout has signed with U.K. promotion British
Association of Mixed Martial Arts, though no date has been offered
for a potential debut.
5.
Mark Munoz (11-2)
It was expected after his victory over former UFC title challenger
Demian Maia that Munoz might land in a bout with Brian Stann.
"All-American" drew Chael Sonnen instead, so Munoz
will now become a trivia answer, as he and Chris Leben square
off on Nov. 5 at UFC 138 in Birmingham, England, in the promotion's
first non-title five-round main event.
6.
Demian Maia (14-3)
Maia lost a competitive decision to Mark Munoz in June. Come
Oct. 8 at UFC 136, he will meet a countryman in a similar situation,
as he collides with former Sengoku champion Jorge Santiago, who
is coming off of a tough knockout loss to Brian Stann.
7.
Brian Stann (11-3)
After a dominant performance against Jorge Santiago in May, Stann
earned himself a bout of real significance in the UFC middleweight
division. He will take on notorious former title challenger Chael
Sonnen on Oct. 8 at UFC 136.
8.
Michael Bisping (21-3)
Bisping silenced antagonist Jorge Rivera in February with a second-round
knockout, but the Englishman will attempt to close an even louder
mouth later this year. The winner of "The Ultimate Fighter"
Season 3 is currently in Las Vegas serving as a coach for Season
14 of the reality series, the finale of which will see Bisping
square off against middleweight wildman and rival coach Jason
"Mayhem" Miller.
9.
Vitor Belfort (20-9)
In his first bout since being victimized by Anderson Silva in
February, Belfort blew through Yoshihiro Akiyama with absolute
ease in the first round, forcing his way firmly into the middle
of the UFC's 185-pound division.
10.
Luke Rockhold (8-1)
Rockhold enters the rankings on the back of his Strikeforce middleweight
title win, a razor-thin Sept. 10 decision in which the American
Kickboxing Academy fighter handed the Brazilian gator his first
stateside defeat.
Other
contenders: Tim Kennedy, Hector Lombard, Rousimar Palhares, Jorge
Santiago, Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza.
With
his Sept. 10 loss to Luke Rockhold, previously fifth-ranked Ronaldo
Souza falls to the contenders list.
Welterweight
1.
Georges St. Pierre (22-2)
The UFC’s welterweight king has a new challenger to his
throne. After Nick Diaz failed to appear at a pair of September
press conferences, UFC moved Carlos Condit to the top contender
spot. GSP and Condit will now face off in the main event of UFC
137 on Oct. 29.
2.
Jon Fitch (23-3-1, 1 NC)
Following shoulder surgery, Fitch is ready to return to the Octagon.
The perennial welterweight second banana was vocal in his desire
to compete in his adopted backyard of San Jose, Calif., but will
instead tangle with two-time NCAA wrestling champion Johny Hendricks
in Las Vegas on Dec. 30.
3.
Jake Shields (26-5-1)
Shields could not top Georges St. Pierre in April, but he is
staying active against serious welterweights. In a battle of
like-named welterweights, Shields will meet heavy-hitting Nebraskan
wrestler Jake Ellenberger on Sept. 17.
4.
Josh Koscheck (15-5)
After having his orbital bone smashed in his unsuccessful UFC
title bid in December against Georges St. Pierre, Koscheck is
ready to return to the Octagon. Like his teammate, Jon Fitch,
Koscheck was interested in a bout in San Jose, Calif., but has
instead opted to take a short-notice assignment against Matt
Hughes, filling in for Diego Sanchez in the co-main event of
Sept. 24’s UFC 135.
5.
Nick Diaz (25-7, 1 NC)
The welterweight class’ preeminent bad boy was ushered out
of his much-anticipated UFC title shot against Georges St. Pierre
after skipping a pair of promotional press conferences in September.
The Stockton, Calif., representative will still make his Octagon
return at UFC 137, however, against former dual-division champ
B.J. Penn.
6.
Carlos Condit (27-5)
Condit had been moving ever-closer to a UFC title shot with brutal
finishes of Dan Hardy and Dong Hyun Kim. Then, suddenly, he was
there. When Nick Diaz was yanked from his Oct. 29 championship
tilt with Georges St. Pierre, Condit was called upon to meet
the dominant Canadian champion, an honor which moved the “Natural
Born Killer” to tears, according to UFC boss Dana White.
7.
Charlie Brenneman (14-2)
One of the UFC welterweight division's new standouts, "The
Spaniard" took a tough fight on short notice with Rick Story
and came out on top in June. Next on tap for Brenneman is another
tall task, as he meets the physically potent Anthony Johnson
at UFC Live on Oct. 1.
8.
Rick Story (13-4)
Story might have lost a decision to Charlie Brenneman in June,
but the gritty Oregonian is not taking any softballs. "The
Horror" Story will step back into the Octagon at UFC 139
on Nov. 19 against skilled Dane Martin Kampmann.
9.
B.J. Penn (16-7-2)
Healed from a shoulder injury, “The Prodigy” was all
set for a clash with Carlos Condit at UFC 137 on Oct. 29 in Las
Vegas. When Condit was promoted to main-event status against
Georges St. Pierre, Penn was paired with GSP’s former dance
partner, Nick Diaz.
10.
Johny Hendricks (11-1)
On Aug. 6, Hendricks showed off improved boxing and clinch work
to earn a hard-fought split decision win over an equally tough
Mike Pierce. The two-time NCAA wrestling champion will have a
chance to move even higher up in the 170-pound rankings on Dec.
30 when he meets perennial contender Jon Fitch.
Other
contenders: Thiago Alves, Ben Askren, Rory MacDonald, Diego Sanchez,
Tyron Woodley.
Lightweight
1.
Frankie Edgar (13-1-1)
Injuries delayed the potential third encounter between Edgar
and Gray Maynard in May. With both men healed, the lightweight
trilogy is scheduled for consummation at UFC 136 on Oct. 8 in
Houston, with all the 155-pound marbles up for grabs.
2.
Gilbert Melendez (19-2)
In April, Melendez was in rare and brutal form, mangling the
ever-tough Tatsuya Kawajiri. “El Nino” will have another
difficult nut to crack come Dec. 17, when he defends his Strikeforce
lightweight crown against skilled puncher Jorge Masvidal.
3.
Gray Maynard (10-0-1, 1 NC)
Maynard nearly had the UFC lightweight title in his grasp on
New Year's Day against Frankie Edgar. After injuries postponed
a slated third bout between the two men in May, Maynard will
get another chance to make amends and win the lightweight crown
at UFC 136 on Oct. 8.
4.
Shinya Aoki (28-5, 1 NC)
Shinya Aoki first must deal with Rob McCullough at Dream 17 on
Sept. 24. However, the prized bout for the Dream lightweight
champion now might come in Bellator, as the company is trying
to organize a rematch between Aoki and Bellator champ Eddie Alvarez
in early 2012.
5.
Eddie Alvarez (22-2)
Alvarez started his career rousing partisan crowds in New Jersey.
He will get to do it once again at Bellator 54 on Oct. 15, when
he defends his Bellator lightweight title for the second time
against Season 4 tournament winner and former University of Missouri
wrestler Michael Chandler. Alvarez could also have the chance
to avenge his lone loss of the past three years, as Bellator
is reportedly in talks to bring Dream champ Shinya Aoki stateside
for a 2012 showdown.
6.
Benson Henderson (14-2)
People expected Jim Miller to use Henderson as a springboard
to a UFC title shot. Instead, “Smooth” was dominant
from bell-to-bell, smashing Miller from top position to take
a unanimous victory and up his status in the rich 155-pound division.
With his next bout, Henderson could legitimately lay claim to
a title shot if he can overcome Clay Guida on Nov. 12.
7.
Jim Miller (20-3)
Miller was on the doorstep of a UFC lightweight title shot but
stumbled again. The New Jersey native simply could not keep up
with the potent ground attack of Benson Henderson and lost a
unanimous decision that will set him back in the lightweight
title picture.
8.
Clay Guida (29-11)
Vintage Guida was on display June 4 at “The Ultimate Fighter
13” finale, where “The Carpenter” used his frantic
pace and suffocating ground game to top former WEC lightweight
champion Anthony Pettis. The 29-year-old Chicagoan will try to
win his fifth straight on Nov. 12 when he meets another ex-WEC
titlist, Ben Henderson, in Anaheim, Calif.
9.
Anthony Pettis (13-2)
UFC 136 on Oct. 8 in Houston is being lauded for its deep card,
and a major part of that is Pettis' return to action. The last-ever
WEC lightweight champion is tentatively scheduled to meet power-punching
contemporary Jeremy Stephens on the event's undercard.
10.
Melvin Guillard (29-8-2, 1 NC)
Guillard is finally fulfilling his physical talents, moving closer
to a UFC lightweight title shot. The next hurdle for the Greg
Jackson-led fighter is Northeastern favorite Joe Lauzon at the
beefed-up UFC 136 event on Oct. 8 in Houston.
Other
contenders: Rafael dos Anjos, Tatsuya Kawajiri, Jorge Masvidal,
Dennis Siver, Gleison Tibau.
Featherweight
1.
Jose Aldo (19-1)
Aldo is slowly starting to gain a greater measure of parity with
his heavier weight contemporaries. However, if the gifted Brazilian
is to continue that emergence, he will need to knock off former
UFC lightweight title challenger Kenny Florian in his next title
defense at UFC 136 on Oct. 8.
2.
Hatsu Hioki (24-4-2)
Perhaps Japan's most outstanding MMA fighter, Hioki is finally
set for his Octagon debut. After racking up titles in TKO, Shooto
and Sengoku, Hioki will make his first Octagon appearance in
Las Vegas at UFC 137, meeting George Roop on the Oct. 29 bill.
3.
Chad Mendes (11-0)
Mendes was clinical in taking out Brazilian grappling standout
Rani Yahya with his powerful wrestling. Better still, the potentially
broken hand he faced turned out not to be fractured at all, boding
better for his chances to meet the winner of the Jose Aldo-Kenny
Florian fight in October.
4.
Kenny Florian (14-5)
Kenny Florian had two chances to capture the UFC lightweight
title but could not seize the moment. On Oct. 8, he will have
a third chance, this time at 145 pounds, as he squares off with
UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo at UFC 136.
5.
Pat Curran (16-4)
He started slowly, but Curran finished brutally in his Aug. 20
showdown with former Sengoku and Pancrase champion Marlon Sandro
in the final of Bellator's Summer Series tournament. With his
head kick knockout of Sandro, Curran earns the right to challenge
the winner of the eventual Joe Warren-Patricio Freire featherweight
title fight in the coming months.
6.
Marlon Sandro (19-3)
Sandro looked good early against Pat Curran, but in the second
round, the Brazilian was wasted by a brutal head kick. It stopped
the gritty Sandro for the first time in his MMA career and took
away his chance to vie for Bellator's featherweight title.
7.
Diego Nunes (16-2)
After exceeding expectations against Kenny Florian in June, Nunes
was scheduled to take on another former UFC lightweight in Manny
Gamburyan at UFC 135 on Sept. 24. However, Gamburyan’s recurring
shoulder issues forced him out of the fight, leaving Nunes without
an opponent. Nunes eventually withdrew from the bout himself,
citing physical and personal problems, but plans to be back in
December and has expressed his desire to face Gamburyan at that
time.
8.
Joe Warren (7-1)
The Bellator featherweight champion will return to action on
Sept. 24 but not at 145 pounds. Instead, the former Greco-Roman
wrestling world champion will drop down to the bantamweight division
to compete in Bellator's Season 5 tournament. In the quarterfinals,
he will meet fellow former FILA world champion Alexis Vila.
9.
Tyson Griffin (15-5)
In June, Griffin cut to 145 pounds and found success by defeating
Manny Gamburyan. On Oct. 29, he will return the favor, as he
welcomes Bart Palaszewski to the featherweight division at UFC
137.
10.
Manny Gamburyan (11-6)
Coming off a loss to Tyson Griffin in June, Gamburyan was slated
to get back to action at UFC 135 in September before his ongoing
shoulder issues forced him to pull out of a slated bout with
talented Brazilian Diego Nunes. Gamburyan stated in late-August
that he expects to return to the Octagon by year’s end.
Other
contenders: Darren Elkins, Patricio Freire, Mark Hominick, Erik
Koch, Dustin Poirier.
Bantamweight
1.
Dominick Cruz (18-1)
The bantamweight championship is coming to cable, as Cruz will
make the next defense of his 135-pound championship on Oct. 1,
live on Versus. When UFC Live 6 emanates from Washington, D.C.,
"The Dominator" will be in an all-action bout with
fast-rising challenger Demetrious Johnson in a potential thriller.
2.
Joseph Benavidez (15-2)
He might not get another shot at 135-pound gold any time soon,
but Benavidez continues to bulk up his bantamweight resume. At
UFC Live 5 on Aug. 14, the Team Alpha Male product turned in
a solid unanimous decision performance against the heavy-hitting
Eddie Wineland.
3.
Urijah Faber (25-5)
Faber could not take the UFC bantamweight title from Dominick
Cruz in July. However, "The California Kid" is never
far from prominent competition: Faber will return to the Octagon
on Nov. 19 at UFC 139 in San Jose, Calif., taking on former WEC
champion Brian Bowles.
4.
Brian Bowles (10-1)
Bowles' path back to the top of the 135-pound division just got
tougher. The former WEC champion will return to action in pursuit
of his third straight win since falling to Dominick Cruz, taking
on another former WEC champion, Urijah Faber, at UFC 139 on Nov.
19.
5.
Scott Jorgensen (12-4)
After clobbering Ken Stone in June, "Young Guns" returns
to action at UFC 137 on Oct. 29. In opposition, he takes on longtime
veteran Jeff Curran in his return to the UFC.
6.
Demetrious Johnson (9-1)
Following a hard-fought unanimous verdict over former WEC champion
Miguel Torres in May, "Mighty Mouse" became the next
challenger to the UFC bantamweight crown. The speedy Matt Hume
pupil will try to be the man to foil surging champion Dominick
Cruz on Oct. 1, live on the Versus network.
7.
Miguel Torres (39-4)
He was defeated for only the fourth time in his 11-year career,
but Torres’ loss to Demetrious Johnson on May 28 came by
the narrowest of margins. The former WEC bantamweight champion’s
dynamic ground work against powerful wrestler Johnson went unappreciated
by the judges, as Torres came up on the wrong end of a much-debated
unanimous decision.
8.
Brad Pickett (20-5)
One of Britain's best, Pickett continues to hover just outside
the circle of UFC bantamweight title contenders. That could change
on Nov. 5, as he heads to more familiar surroundings in Birmingham,
England, to battle tough Brazilian Renan "Barao" in
an appealing pairing of developing contenders.
9.
Masakatsu Ueda (13-1-2)
The former Shooto world champion showed further development in
his MMA game when he met Shooto icon Rumina Sato on July 18.
The gifted wrestler used crushing kicks to the body to stop Sato
in the first round, demonstrating vastly improved striking in
the ring. Ueda is next set for action on Sept. 14 in Manaus,
Brazil, where he will face the retiring Royler Gracie.
10.
Takeya Mizugaki (14-6-2)
Now 3-4 under Zuffa employ, the former WEC bantamweight title
challenger has his back against the wall in an intensifying 135-pound
division. Mizugaki will try to keep pace in rapid waters on Sept.
24, when he meets slick grappler Cole Escovedo at UFC 135.
Other
contenders: Renan “Barao”, Hideo Tokoro, Zach Makovsky,
Michael McDonald, Eddie Wineland.
Flyweight
1.
Ian McCall (11-2)
McCall was spectacular on Aug. 5, wresting the Tachi Palace Fights
title from Darrell Montague . In his first defense on Dec. 2,
he'll stake his throne against lanky puncher and fellow WEC veteran
Will Campuzano.
2.
Yasuhiro Urushitani (19-4-6)
On July 18, Urushitani laid waste to former tormentor Yuki Shojo,
as the Shooto world champion scored a brutal head kick knockout.
The next move for Urushitani, however, remains unclear in the
continuously changing flyweight landscape.
3.
Jussier da Silva (12-1)
A bulked-up "Formiga" put on a back control clinic
against perennial flyweight star Mamoru Yamaguchi at Tachi Palace
Fights 10 on Aug. 5. The dominant unanimous decision victory
gets Da Silva back on track and one step closer to another crack
at the only man to ever defeat him -- TPF champion Ian McCall.
4.
Mamoru Yamaguchi (26-6-3)
The 34-year-old flyweight star suffered a hit on Aug. 5, as he
lost a sound unanimous decision to Brazilian standout Jussier
da Silva. Fortunately for Yamaguchi, his fan-friendly nature
and action-packed style will continue to secure him fights on
both sides of the Pacific.
5.
Darrell Montague (9-2)
Montague started fast in his first Tachi Palace Fights flyweight
title defense, but he could not stand up to the pressure of challenger
Ian McCall. Montague was forced to tap in the second frame, but
the talented and dynamic 23-year-old still figures to play a
formative role in the flyweight division going forward.
6.
Shinichi "B.J." Kojima (11-4-5)
He did not look great by any stretch, but former Shooto world
champion Kojima returned from a two-year hiatus on Aug. 6 to
take a majority decision over Masaaki Sugawara. However, it remains
to be seen if the 32-year-old Kojima can regain the form that
led him to the Shooto world title.
7.
Yuki Shojo (11-6-2)
Shojo got his chance at the Shooto world title, but he could
not replicate his 2008 victory over Yasuhiro Urushitani. This
time around, the Shooto world champion knocked Shojo flat with
a crushing head kick, sending him to the figurative back of the
line in Shooto's 123-pound division.
8.
Kiyotaka Shimizu (9-3-2)
It may not have been pretty, but flyweight King of Pancrase Shimizu
once again got the job done against rival Mitsuhisa Sunabe on
June 5. Facing Sunabe for the fourth time, Shimizu’s relentless
takedown attack and mashing top game saw him retain his title
with a majority decision, moving him ahead in the series at 2-1-1.
9.
Alexis Vila (9-0)
The 1996 Olympic bronze medalist is one of the flyweight division's
toughest competitors, but 135 pounds is the current focus for
Vila. The undefeated Cuban exponent will step into the Bellator
bantamweight tournament on Sept. 24, taking on Bellator featherweight
champion and former Greco-Roman wrestling world champion Joe
Warren in the opening round.
10.
John Dodson (11-5)
Dodson is one of the slickest, most physically gifted fighters
in MMA. However, like divisional compatriot Alexis Vila, he is
focusing on 135-pound challenges, as Dodson signed on to compete
as a bantamweight on the 14th season of "The Ultimate Fighter."
Other
contenders: Louis Gaudinot, Fumihiro Kitahara, Alexandre Pantoja,
Mitsuhisa Sunabe, Ryosuke Tanuma.
Source
Sherdog
|
Despite
losing Strikeforce title, Ronaldo Jacare will fight at ADCC 2011
By Guilherme
Cruz
Former
Strikeforce middleweight champion, Ronaldo Jacare will be in
Nottingham, England, on September 24 and 25 to compete at ADCC’s
super fight, against Abu Dhabi champion Braulio Estima.
The
BJJ ace lost his Strikeforce middleweight title last weekend
after a 25 minute war against Luke Rockhold, but guaranteed the
fans he’ll still fight at ADCC. “Let’s move on,
let’s keep our head up. Now it’s submission time, get
ready for me Braulio”, Jacare said on his Twitter.
Roger
Gracie, who was also in ADCC’s list, was knocked out in
Strikeforce by King Mo Lawal, and we can’t yet say for sure
whether he’s fighting on the submission tournament or not.
Bigfoot Silva, who was also knocked out by Daniel Cormier, guaranteed
TATAME he won’t fight due to an injury on his shoulder,
which will require a surgery.
Source:
Tatame
|
UFC
Fight Night 25 Preview: The Main Card
by Jason
Probst
The
welterweight division gets some clarity on Saturday, as the two
Jakes -- Jake Shields and Jake Ellenberger -- square off in the
UFC Fight Night 25 main event at the Ernest N. Morial Convention
Center in New Orleans.
The
matchup asks compelling questions, especially in the context
of Shields’ decision loss to welterweight champion Georges
St. Pierre in April. Can the former Strikeforce titleholder recapture
the magic that made him a favorite among hardcore fans? Or is
Ellenberger part of a new breed poised to replace Shields and
elite welterweight contemporaries like Jon Fitch and Josh Koscheck?
Shields
has never gone away easily, even when it appeared the heavy-handed
Dan Henderson was about to hand him his head in the first round
of their bout in April 2010. Durable and eminently composed,
he turned the tables and dominated the rest of the five-round
fight.
In
other featured matchups at UFC Fight Night 25, Alan Belcher returns
to take on Canadian veteran Jason MacDonald; “The Ultimate
Fighter” Season 11 winner Court McGee locks horns with Dongi
Yang; and Erik Koch meets “The Ultimate Fighter” Season
12 winner Jonathan Brookins. Here is a closer look at UFC Fight
Night 25, with previews and picks.
Welterweights
Jake Shields (26-5-1, 1-1 UFC) vs. Jake Ellenberger (24-5, 4-1
UFC)
The
Matchup: There are close fights, and then there are bouts like
this one, which could be decided by a single takedown attempt
or meaningful strike to decide a razor-thin round.
Shields
came up flat in his UFC 129 decision loss to Georges St. Pierre.
He was unable to get untracked and use his vaunted ground game,
as GSP simply turned it into a sparring session, loathe to let
Shields close the gap. Ellenberger, meanwhile, has clawed his
way up the ranks with some fairly impressive performances. After
losing a close decision to former WEC champion Carlos Condit
-- in a fight many felt Ellenberger won -- he has strung together
four strong outings, showing a blend of standup competency, intense
wrestling and cardio that has him on the cusp of breaking into
the division’s Top 5. With his reputation for durability
and outstanding grappling, Shields represents the last hill Ellenberger
will have to scale to prove he belongs here.
In
the standup, Ellenberger has a clear edge. He hits hard and has
good technical delivery on his shots, along with the confidence
to unload knowing he can turn the fight with one solid blow.
His ride-out-the-storm approach was evident in his decision over
Carlos Eduardo Rocha, who unleashed a dizzying slew of impressive
submission attempts in the opening round of their bout, only
to have Ellenberger escape each one in one of the more thrilling
grappling sequences one will ever see. Shields’ submissions
and excellent wrestling pose some challenges here, as he is exceptionally
tough to control on the mat. Shields’ standup is still pretty
much a caveat to forcing a ground fight, but his ability to time
takedown attempts while opponents try to knock off his head is
uncanny.
It
is a definite cat-and-mouse game, and cardio will play a big
role. That is an area where Ellenberger is exceptionally solid,
while Shields has been inconsistent in the past.
This
is two fights for Ellenberger: the early part, where he should
take a sprawl-and-brawl approach and use his better standup,
and the second half, where he should look to hit takedowns and
outwork Shields to secure rounds. Ellenberger showed a penchant
for timing takedowns in the closing seconds of rounds against
Rocha, which helped put a tough decision win on his resume. Doing
it too early only gives Shields more chances to sweep or uncork
submission attempts.
The
Pick: This is a difficult match to call, but Ellenberger’s
heavier hands, pace and conditioning ultimately allow him to
pull out a close decision win, especially if he can force Shields
to trade early and deny him takedowns.
Middleweights
Dongi Yang (10-1, 1-1 UFC) vs. Court McGee (13-1, 2-0 UFC)
The
Matchup: McGee is one of the more promising winners to come off
“The Ultimate Fighter” in recent seasons, with a blend
of intensity and consistency that suggest a long career at the
top level is a real possibility. His grinding attack relies on
conditioning and creating the kind of fight that best serves
his style: a match with tons of clinching, wrestling and beating
on people from every available angle and opening.
Yang,
meanwhile, is looking to up his 1-1 UFC record with the most
significant win of his career. The aggressive Korean slugger
dropped a split decision to Chris Camozzi in his big-show debut
and then rebounded to stop Rob Kimmons in his next outing. On
paper, this is a tailor-made match created to present McGee with
some interesting questions and an element of danger, as Yang
can bang and has shown the willingness to do so. An encouraging
trait about McGee is that he does not let his ego get in the
way of what kind of fight he wages. He will just stick to his
game plan and work toward getting his opponent on the ground;
that is when the fun begins, at least for him.
McGee
has a promising upside, and it will be interesting to see how
he looks after his gritty stoppage of veteran Ryan Jensen, who
is a stout measuring stick for middleweight talents. He will
pick his spots and his eventual shots, getting Yang to the ground
and forcing him to exert energy, even if it is not necessarily
effective ground-and-pound. McGee can also take shot and has
good recuperative powers, so that could make for some exciting
moments on the feet. Moreover, he is adept at tossing a solid
right hand and closing the gap with it, using that to force a
tie-up and takedown.
The
Pick: McGee will look like a world-beater in this one, wearing
down Yang and scoring increasingly big shots on his way to a
third-round knockout.
Featherweights
Erik Koch (12-1, 1-0 UFC) vs. Jonathan Brookins (12-3, 1-0 UFC)
The
Matchup: An interesting battle with various subplots here, as
the red-hot Koch looks to extend his three-fight winning streak
with a victory over Brookins. Koch’s training with former
world kickboxing champion Duke Roufus and time spent with Roufusport
stablemate Anthony Pettis have delivered obvious results, as
his standup improves with every bout. Equal parts dynamic and
aggressive, he comes to finish, which makes for exciting and
often highlight reel-worthy results.
Brookins
is the superior wrestler and has decent takedowns, especially
from the clinch. He gave a credible effort in a brutal three-round
technical knockout loss to Jose Aldo in November 2008 and showed
his tactical smarts in winding his way through Season 12 of “The
Ultimate Fighter.” He is a workmanlike fighter, with the
expectable discipline to use wrestling as his base; Brookins
avoids being reckless outside it or too constrained within it
to keep him from using other weapons. It is Koch’s job to
make this fight memorable and Brookins’ to turn it into
a nuts-and-bolts takedown affair with little to feed the highlight
reels.
Defensive
wrestling and getting up if taken down will be keys for Koch.
The first round and opening minutes will be pivotal for both
men as they feel out one another, Koch looking to get the range
for an explosive strike and Brookins hoping to close the gap
and wrench it down to the floor. Koch could plausibly be held
down and outworked here given the style matchup, but he also
has an “it” factor that cannot be denied. He makes
things happen, whether it is in the striking department or through
submission attempts that materialize from nowhere.
The
Pick: Koch went the distance in his sole defeat, a decision to
the world-ranked and undefeated Chad Mendes, and Brookins is
not that caliber of wrestler. Koch should be able to land enough
on the feet in fast-paced exchanges to take a close decision
win.
Middleweights
Alan Belcher (16-6, 7-4 UFC) vs. Jason MacDonald (25-14, 7-5
UFC)
The
Matchup: One of the more gifted middleweights on the UFC roster,
Belcher returns for the first time since he submitted former
title contender Patrick Cote in May 2010. MacDonald, a seasoned
veteran with a stout submission game, is often used as a litmus
test for rising talents to see what they have, as he can surprise
them when he is in his groove.
Belcher’s
standup is a significant edge in this bout, along with his overall
strength; he has the frame of a 205-pounder stuffed into a middleweight’s
body. With thumping kicks and an overlooked jiu-jitsu game, he
is a lot of fun to watch when he is on. He mixes in kicks with
punches exceptionally well and fights to finish. MacDonald is
crafty from his back. However, given this style matchup and his
limited standup, that is probably where he needs to end up, as
he has few other options to win.
Belcher
should be smart and build up points standing while wearing down
MacDonald, especially with his sapping body kicks. He is also
potent from the clinch and should remain patient there in order
to deny MacDonald takedowns from that position, all while using
short blows in close to further sap the Canadian’s strength.
If it goes to the ground, Belcher is not likely to get submitted
there, as he is simply too technical and strong.
The
Pick: Belcher will pick his spots and score heavily on the feet,
dropping bombs as MacDonald gives a game but overmatched effort
in a second-round knockout loss.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Bellator
50: What to Watch For
by Brian
Knapp
Though
he stands just 5-foot-9, Bellator Fighting Championships middleweight
titleholder Hector Lombard casts an imposing shadow over the
promotion’s 185-pound division.
A
string of 24 consecutive fights without a loss -- and a mean
streak to go with it -- tends to have a profound impact on the
competition. Yet, Lombard, a perfect 7-0 with four first-round
knockouts in Bellator, is the target for which eight prospective
challengers will gun when they enter the promotion’s Season
5 middleweight tournament at Bellator 50 on Saturday at the Seminole
Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Fla. The crop of hopefuls
includes two men, Alexander Shlemenko and Jared Hess, who have
already tried and failed to unseat Lombard, a 33-year-old judoka
who has not tasted defeat in almost five years.
Replete
with interesting storylines, tournament drama and compelling
talent, here is what to watch for at Bellator 50:
Storm
Warning
Shlemenko,
the only man ever to go five full rounds with Lombard, undoubtedly
wants another crack at the champion. Known for high-risk, high-reward
striking, the 27-year-old Russian won Bellator’s Season
2 middleweight tournament with wins over Hess, Matt Major and
WEC veteran Bryan Baker. His 40 career victories are more than
twice as many as any other competitor in the eight-man field,
so, in terms of experience, he has a significant advantage over
his peers. Shlemenko has not missed a beat since dropping a unanimous
decision to Lombard in October, as he has rattled off three straight
victories, two of them first-round finishes. However, he faces
a considerable standup threat in quarterfinal foe Zelg Galesic,
a high-level tae kwon do black belt. The 32-year-old Croat, a
former Cage Rage champion, was a semifinalist in the 2008 Dream
middleweight grand prix. Each of Galesic’s last 13 bouts
has ended inside the first round, as he has compiled a 9-4 mark
during that stretch.
Courage
Personified
Baker
is no stranger to adversity.
Baker
and Hess have a common acquaintance: adversity. Baker battled
chronic leukemia into remission and reached the Season 2 middleweight
tournament final despite his sickness, ultimately succumbing
to strikes from Shlemenko. A winner in nine of his last 10 outings,
the 25-year-old Baker has since scored back-to-back wins over
UFC veterans Jeremy Horn and Joe Riggs. Hess has endured his
own hardship. He suffered a gruesome knee injury against Shlemenko
in the Season 2 semifinals, forcing a premature exit from the
match and resulting in reconstructive knee surgery. Hess returned
after an 11-month layoff in April and submitted Chris Ball with
a first-round triangle choke at Bellator 42. Courage has long
been one of his hallmarks, as evidenced by his bloody Bellator
9 encounter with Lombard. Despite being mangled by a series of
elbows, Hess was willing to go forward. However, a cageside doctor
intervened 1:41 into the fourth round, saving him from further
damage.
Dark
Horse at Middleweight
Because
of their history, Shlemenko, Baker and Hess figure to steal a
majority of the pre-tournament headlines for Bellator’s
Season 5 middleweight draw. However, Vitor Vianna may be the
fighter to watch. A two-time Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion
and second-degree black belt in the discipline, the 31-year-old
serves as the head BJJ instructor at the Wand Fight Team camp
in Las Vegas. Far from a one-trick pony, Vianna has already shown
a penchant for the finish, with four wins by submission and four
others by knockout or technical knockout. His only defeat under
MMA rules came to UFC light heavyweight mainstay Thiago Silva
in November 2006, when he broke his arm while blocking a kick
at a Fury Fighting Championship event in Brazil. Vianna has sharpened
his standup skills alongside the great Wanderlei Silva and has
made himself into a slick tactician on the feet, having largely
abandoned the wild haymakers that defined his early days in MMA.
Consider him the dark horse of the tournament. Vianna will face
Sam Alvey in the quarterfinals. The 25-year-old Wisconsin native
has won four fights in a row, including his May upset of Frenchman
Karl Amoussou at Bellator 45.
Ultimate
Feel-Good Story
Radley
Martinez made national headlines when the NCAA All-American wrestler
and professional mixed martial arts prospect was featured on
ESPN’s “Outside the Lines.” During the segment,
he shared his moving story about his role as the primary caregiver
for his father, Richard, who was seriously injured in a car accident
when his son was 12 years old. Richard suffers from traumatic
brain damage and requires near around-the-clock care. Martinez
wrestled collegiately at Clarion University, where he teamed
with reigning UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar. The Utah-based
lightweight has compiled an impressive 9-2 record since entering
MMA in January 2008. In his debut with Bellator, he will collide
with Brian van Hoven, a 37-year-old journeyman whose seven career
victories have come at the expense of opponents with a cumulative
51-46 record.
Source:
Sherdog
|
#UFC
Live on Versus 6 (10/1 Washington D.C.) & UFC 136 (10/8 Houston)
cards
By Zach
Arnold
Location:
10/1 Washington, D.C. at the Verizon Center
TV: Versus (9 PM EST/6 PM PST)
Dark
matches
Bantamweights:
Walel Watson vs. Joseph Sandoval
Welterweights: Josh Neer vs. Keith Wisniewski
Lightweights: Shane Roller vs. TJ Grant
Bantamweights: Mike Easton vs. Jeff Hougland
Lightweights: Michael Johnson vs. Paul Sass
Lightweights: Yves Edwards vs. Rafaello Oliveira
Main card
Lightweights:
Matt Wiman vs. Mac Danzig
Welterweights: Anthony Johnson vs. Charlie Brenneman
Heavyweights: Pat Barry vs. Stefan Struve
UFC Bantamweight title match: Dominick Cruz vs. Demetrious Johnson
Location: 10/8 in Houston, Texas at the Toyota Center
TV: PPV (9 PM EST/6 PM PST)
Dark
matches
Middleweights:
Steve Cantwell vs. Mike Massenzio
Middleweights: Aaron Simpson vs. Eric Schafer
Featherweights: Tiequan Zhang vs. Darren Elkins
Heavyweights: Joey Beltran vs. Stipe Miocic
Lightweights: Anthony Pettis vs. Jeremy Stephens
Middleweights: Demian Maia vs. Jorge Santiago
Main card
Lightweights:
Melvin Guillard vs. Joe Lauzon
Heavyweights: Mike Russow vs. Dave Herman
Middleweights: Chael Sonnen vs. Brian Stann
UFC Featherweight title match: Jose Aldo vs. Kenny Florian
UFC Lightweight title match: Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard
Source: Fight Opinion
|
Bellator
Season 5 Debut Pulls 386,000 Viewers on MTV2
Bellator
season 5's latest offering on MTV 2 pulled in a total of 386,000
viewers for the initial and re-broadcast of the show airing from
Atlantic City, NJ.
Industry
sources revealed the ratings on Tuesday.
According
to the ratings, Bellator’s debut on Saturday night at 9pm
ET pulled in 235,000 viewers, which is an 18% increase from last
season’s average.
Bellator
continues their season 5 tournaments with this weekend’s
show in Hollywood, Fla with the middleweights getting into action.
Bellator
Fighting Championships currently airs on Saturday night’s
on MTV2. This weekend’s broadcast will actually air earlier
than normal with a start time of 7pm ET to coincide with the
UFC Fight Night card airing on Spike TV starting at 9pm ET.
Source:
MMA Fighting
|
Jake
Shields Knows His Dad Would Have Wanted Him to Go Out There and
Shine
by Damon
Martin
Jake
Shields will be fighting on Saturday night with a heavy heart,
but also with a definite purpose.
Just
a few weeks ago the former Strikeforce middleweight champion
lost his father Jack, who passed away at the age of 67. Shields’
father was more than just family to him. He was his manager and
his best friend, so it was understandable that his father’s
passing rocked him to the core.
But
just a few days later, Shields declared that he would be remaining
in his scheduled bout against Jake Ellenberger at UFC Fight Night
25 coming up this weekend in New Orleans.
The
grieving process is long and difficult, but it didn’t take
Shields very much time to realize that his dad would have wanted
nothing more than to see his son go out and win.
“It’s
a little overwhelming, a little weird, but I just felt that with
this fight I need to push through it, move forward. That’s
what he would have wanted,” Shields said when speaking to
MMAWeekly Radio.
“It’s
going to be a little weird because he was always in my corner,
but it’s one of those things you have to stay strong and
work through it.”
Naturally
when Shields first learned about his father’s death, the
immediate reaction was to focus on his family and not even concern
himself with something like fighting. After the initial shock
settled, Shields then realized that facing Jake Ellenberger was
simply the right thing to do.
“Of
course it crossed my mind the first few minutes, I was in shock,
it kind of came out of nowhere. I mean my dad had a few health
problems, but he was still pretty much really healthy so I was
in shock for a few minutes, but within in a couple of minutes
I made up m mind that I was going to fight. There was no way
I could pull out,” said Shields.
At
that moment, Shields opted to honor his father’s memory
by staying in the fight, and going out and being the best he
could be when he steps into the Octagon on Saturday night in
New Orleans.
“I had such a good father in my life for the 32 years that
I had him. I look at the positives instead of the negatives,
and he was my biggest fan,” Shields stated. “I know
he’d want me to go out there and shine and that’s what
I’m planning on going out there and doing.”
The
obstacle standing in front of Shields this weekend is fellow
welterweight Jake Ellenberger, who has literally been calling
for a fight with the San Francisco based fighter since he first
signed with the UFC.
Shield’s
isn’t exactly sure why he’s been on Ellenberger’s
radar for so long, but he looks at this as a case of be careful
what you wish for.
“Honestly,
I have no idea. I’m not really sure what his deal is,”
Shields said about Ellenberger. “For some reason this guy
doesn’t like me, so I don’t like him and I’m going
to make him pay, make him regret asking to fight me.”
The
way Shields makes him regret asking for the fight is to go out
and perform like he knows he’s capable of performing. It’s
something Shields didn’t do when he faced UFC welterweight
champion Georges St-Pierre in his last fight, but it’s a
lesson learned and class is in session when he faces Ellenberger
on Saturday night.
“I
went there and I held back to much in that fight. First off,
GSP’s a phenomenal fighter so he’s a hard guy to get
off on, but really I don’t think I went out there and let
it all loose. I feel like I’m a completely different fighter
for this fight. This is the best training camp I’ve ever
had, and I want to go out there and make a statement and work
my way back to the top,” Shields commented.
“He’s
a tough guy, I’d be stupid to look past him, but I don’t
think he’s a GSP. I think I’m going to go out there
and as long as I don’t do something stupid, I’m going
to go out there and finish him.”
Shields
will face Ellenberger this Saturday night in the main event of
UFC Fight Night 25.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
ADCC
2011 timetable released
Ivan Trindade
The
organization has just released the timetable for ADCC 2011, coming
up on the 24th and 25th of September in Nottingham, England.
On
Friday, September 23, the rules meeting and initial weigh-ins
will be held.
On
Saturday the competitors will take to the mats at midday in England;
the same goes for Sunday.
The
athletes will have to weigh in again before the first match of
each day.
Source:
Gracie Magazine
|
Michael
Bisping Says Anderson Silva Hasn’t Cleared Out the Division
Because He Hasn’t Faced Him Yet
by Damon Martin
With
the season 14 debut of the ‘Ultimate Fighter’ just
a week away, returning coach Michael ‘The Count’ Bisping
may be focused on his upcoming fight with Jason ‘Mayhem’
Miller, but he still hasn’t forgotten about his ultimate
goal…
The
UFC middleweight title.
As
a winner of three fights in a row and four out of his last 5,
Bisping believes that he’s at least one spoke in the wheel
remaining that UFC champion Anderson Silva hasn’t vanquished
yet.
“I
do get frustrated when I hear people say that Anderson Silva‘s
wiped out the middleweight division. He hasn’t wiped out
the middleweight division, he hasn’t fought me yet. I feel
I match up very well with him,” Bisping told MMAWeekly.com
on Wednesday.
“I’m
not disrespecting Anderson. Anderson rightly so is regarded as
the pound for pound best in the world, and I’m a big fan
of him. But I feel like I’d give him a good fight and I
feel I match up a lot better with him than a lot of the other
fighters he’s faced.”
The
brash Brit has never been one to back down from a challenge,
and Bisping is ready and willing to challenge Silva if presented
with the opportunity.
Whether
Bisping will get that chance based on his next fight remains
a mystery.
To
get the fight with Miller and to coach on the ‘Ultimate
Fighter’, Bisping has had to put his career on hold for
several months, but he still didn’t hesitate to accept the
job.
See,
the former ‘Ultimate Fighter’ winner will face his
fellow coach Jason Miller in the finale show in December, and
while he’s looking forward to punching the former host of
MTV’s Bully Beatdown, he’s not sure it’s the fight
that will push him over the top into title contention.
“The
reality is there is a downside, the downside is it means almost
10 months out of the game, which I like to stay active. It means
taking a fight against Jason Miller, which with respect probably
doesn’t get me a title shot by beating him,” Bisping
stated.
“Maybe
beating Miller is the guy. I mean I’ve got a decent streak,
I’ve only been beaten once at middleweight, I’ve been
around the UFC for a long time, I’ve beaten tough guys consistently
for a long time. I feel like I’m going to get a title shot
real, real soon.”
Never
say never is the attitude that Bisping has heading into his showdown
with Miller because anything is possible.
If
he’s able to go out and dispatch of the always tough Miller
in impressive fashion, maybe the UFC takes notice and gives him
a shot at the seemingly unbeatable Anderson Silva. If not, Bisping
is happy to keep plugging away until he can’t be ignored
any longer.
“Hopefully,
I beat Miller, I do a good job, I do it in style, who knows maybe
that will get me the title shot,” Bisping stated. “If
not, definitely I think one more fight and I should get that
shot pretty soon.”
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Amateur
Boxing Show Saturday, Sept. 24
Hi Everyone,
Our next Amateur Boxing Show will be on Saturday, Sept. 24 at
the Palolo District Park Gym at 6:30 p.m. Boxers from Oahu and
Kauai will compete in a Match event. Competition is Sanctioned
by USA-Boxing and Amateur Boxing of Hawaii and hosted by the
Palolo Boxing Club and Kawano Boxing Club. Admission is $12 at
the door.
Thank You for Your Support!!
Bruce Kawano
Amateur Boxing of Hawaii President.
Commissioner for Hawaii State Boxing Commission.
USA-Boxing Coaches/International Task Force Member.
Ringside Board of Advisors.
A.I.B.A. Athlete and Youth Commission.
Head Coach- Kawano Boxing Club.
USA National Boxing Team Coach.
|
THE
ALOHA STATE CHAMPIONSHIP ** FINAL CONFLICT **
IS NOW OPEN FOR EARLY REGISTRATION!!
Visit
www.hawaiitriplecrown.com to register today!
Kaiser
High School Gym
September 24, 201
Thank
you again for the many years of support! Hope to see you all
soon!
Aloha,
Hawaii Triple Crown
|
Amazon
Forest Combat Live Play-by-Play
Amadeu
Teixeira Gymnasium, Manaus, Brazil
September 15, 2011
Rivaldo
Junior vs. Andre Leocadio
Round
1
It's Leocadio with the first offense. He launches a three-piece
combo and goes immediately for the takedown. Rivaldo Junior gets
up but Leocadio takes him down again. Both fighters get up and
Leocadio holds Junior against the fence. He reverses the position,
lifts Leocadio by the legs and carries him to the middle of the
cage, where he slams his foe to the canvas, Matt Hughes style.
Leocadio is quick to get back up and fighters are circling each
other again. Leocadio connects with a big right, then with a
left cross-straight right combo. Rivaldo Junior lands a heavy
leg kick and tries to get a takedown as the time expires. Very
close round. Sherdog.com sees the opening frame 10-9 for Andre
Leocadio.
Round
2
They start the second period and there is some reluctance to
engage by both fighters. Rivaldo Junior lands a body kick that
is answered by a left hook from Leocadio. He connects with another
left hook. Leocadio is now starting to find his range. Hard leg
kick by Junior lands, but he eats a big overhand right from Leocadio.
Referee Muzio de Angelis asks for more action from both fighters.
Leocadio lands another two-piece combo and Junior goes for the
takedown immediately. They spend some time at the fence until
de Angelis stops the fight to quickly check the tape of Junior's
gloves. The fight is restarted and Junior lands a lone straight
left. Leocadio answers with a flurry that makes Rivaldo Junior
retreat before the horn. Another close round, but Sherdog.com
again gives it to the clean-punching Andre Leocadio, 10-9.
Round
3
Leocadio starts the round with a leg kick. Junior stalks him
around the cage, but gets hit with another leg kick. Leocadio
with another left straight to the jaw. There's more movement
than striking, though, and the crowd starts to get impatient.
Junior feints a leg kick and Leocadio dives for his legs. Junior
reverses the takedown and ends up on top, but Leocadio manages
to scramble back up to hi sfeet. Leg kick by Junior this time,
and it hurts Leocadio. He charges his opponent and hits a couple
of hard punches. Leocadio's lead leg is clearly bothering him
after the Junior low kick, but his opponent lets him off the
hook. Leocadio is stalling, waiting for the end of the fight
after taking damage from the leg kick. He finally hears the bell.
Sherdog.com sees the round 10-9 Rivaldo Junior, but has it 29-28
overall for Andre Leocadio.
Official
result: Rivaldo Junior is announced the winner by split decision.
No scores or judges are announced.
Dileno
Lopes vs. Adson "Jacare" Jander
Round
1
Lopes starts the fight going straight to the late replacement
Jander with heavy punches. Jacare answers with a flurry, but
gets countered with a big right. Lopes quickly locks up Jander's
body and gets the takedown. Jander scrambles to get up but Lopes
snags his neck in a guillotine choke as he is standing. Lopes
adjusts his grip, drops to his guard and Jander is forced to
tap out. The quick win for Dileno Lopes comes just 75 seconds
into the first round.
Daniel
Aguiar vs. Alexandre "Capitao" Almeida
Round
1
Aguiar circles around "Capitao," who charges forward
and gets a fast takedown. Aguiar immediately swings for a kneebar
and Capitao is in trouble. He gets his leg out but Aguiar goes
for another kneebar. He streches Capitao's leg out at the knee,
but Almeida slips out again. They keep scrambling at a frenetic
pace and Aguiar grabs Capitao's other leg. Capitao stands up
and lands four punches in Aguiar's face. The Colorado-based Brazilian
is relentless with his leg attacks and goes for a heel hook this
time. Capitao breaks free once more and is finally on top, with
Aguiar trapped against the fence. Now it's Capitao that goes
for Aguiar's leg, but he has nothing. Aguiar tries to break free
but gives up his back. Capitao sinks in the rear-naked choke
but it's a race against time as the seconds count down. The horn
saves Aguiar in a great first round that Sherdog.com scores 10-9
for Daniel Aguiar.
Round
2
Aguiar starts the second round by immediately going for the takedown.
He is stuffed, so he falls on his back and immediately goes for
another leg attack, which Almeida avoids. Referee Mario Yamasaki
stops the fight and takes a point from Capitao for holding onto
the gloves of Aguiar while defending. The fight is restarted
and this time, Capitao takes Aguiar down. He falls into the mount
position but Aguiar rolls, escapes and tries to get a leg again.
Capitao frees his leg once more and Yamasaki stands both fighters.
Aguiar drops to his back and goes for another leg attack. This
time, he gives up his back to coax Capitao to the ground and
both fighters roll around the cage. Capitao ends up in side mount,
but Aguiar keeps aiming for his leg. Yamasaki stands up the fight
again yet again, but Capitao gets another takedown. Aguiar does
more of the same, fishing for Almeida's leg until the horn. Sherdog.com
sees the round for Almeida, the aggressor, but with the point
deduction, it's a 9-9 frame.
Round
3
The last period starts where the previous ended: Capitao gets
a takedown and -- guess what? -- Aguiar goes for a kneebar. Almeida
starts to setup an arm-triangle choke but Aguiar slips out. Capitao
connects with a few hammerfists in side mount, but Aguiar manages
to grab the leg again. Aguiar seems tired after his myriad leglock
attempts, and Capitao has time to land a few punches. Aguiar
has nothing other than feeble leg attacks now. Yamasaki inexplicably
stands up the fight with Capitao in side mount. Almeida gets
another takedown, and as they hit the mat, Aguiar goes for another
heel hook attempt. Capitao defends the submission until the time
expires. Sherdog.com sees the final round 10-9 for Alexandre
Almeida, but with the second-round point deduction, has a 28-28
draw scorecard.
Official
result: Alexandre "Capitao" Almeida takes a unanimous
decision. No scores or judges are announced.
George
Clay vs. Anthony Birchak
Round
1
Birchak comes straight at Clay, but the Brazilian answers with
a flurry of punches. Clay gets the takedown and falls right on
the back of the American. He tries to sink the rear-naked choke
but Birchak manages to get up and get his own takedown. Clay
scrambles to his feet, and refusing to play bottom, gets another
takedown. The 20-year vale tudo veteran lands a few hard punches
and Birchak gives up his back. Clay makes no mistakes, getting
his hooks and sinking in the rear-naked choke. It's deep and
Birchak is forced to tap at the 1:29 mark in the first period.
Sergio
Junior vs. Daniel Acacio
Round
1
Sergio Junior misses his opening punches and Acacio gets the
single-leg takedown. Junior scrambles back up and they are back
in the center of the cage after a brief period along the fence.
Junior misses a flying knee and Acacio goes for his legs again,
lifting him in the air and getting a big takedown. Junior lands
an upkick while Acacio is grounded and referee Mario Yamasaki
immediately takes a point away from him. The bout is restarted
and Acacio gets another takedown. Acacio stands, spins and goes
for a kneebar attempt. Junior lands a kick to Acacio's face again
on the ground, and again, Yamasaki takes another point away from
him. Acacio now has a two-point lead on the scorecards just over
two minutes into the fight. However, the points don't matter:
the Pride veteran lands a huge right hook and follows Junior
to the ground, where he bombs the Renovacao fighter until he
is unconscious. The big knockout win for Acacio comes at 2:50
of the first round.
Karo
Parisyan vs. Jordan Smith
Round
1
Smith looks far bigger than Parisyan as they size one another
up. Smith lands a right hook, and then grazes Parisyan with a
head kick. Leg kick by Smith is answered with a straight left
by Parysian. He goes for a takedown but ends up on his back,
with Smith mounted on him. Smith punishes Parisyan with punches
and "The Heat" gives up his back. Smith can't control
him, and gives up the position, letting Parisyan regain his feet.
Parisyan misses with an overhand right on the feet. He connects
with a right hook behind the ear. Smith tries a front kick and
Parisyan closes the distance. Smith circles, but then charges
with a flurry of punches, allowing Parisyan to get the trip takedown.
Smith stands up as the round ends. Sherdog.com sees the opening
round 10-9 for Jordan Smith.
Round
2
Karo goes for a double-leg takedown to start the second frame
and he gets it. He tries to hold Smith on the ground but fails,
as the TUF alum gets back to his feet. Parisyan goes for another
takedown but gets stuffed. The Armenian wants no business with
Smith in the striking department. Refee Muzio de Angelis stops
the fight to look at Smith's gloves, and after a quick check,
the fight is restarted. Parisyan again wants to close the distance
to get a takedown, but he is stuck on the outside. Leg kick by
Parisyan, but he eats a straight left in return. The action slows,
and now there's a problem with Parisyan's glove. It is resolved,
but when the bout is restarted, the bell ends a very slow round
round. Sherdog.com sees the frame 10-10, even.
Round
3
Smith charges with a leg kick-straight right combo that lands.
He lands a hard left hook and then a head kick grazes Parisyan.
The Armenian manages to block a leg kick attempt and shortens
the distance. The UFC vet holds Smith against the fence, but
the American manages to reverse the position and falls back in
the mount position. Parisyan rolls and Smith has his back. He
punches Parisyan a few times, but Parisyan bucks him off and
they scramble back to their feet. As they stand back up, Smith
lands a huge right followed by a knee to the head that put Parisyan
on his bicycle. Referee Muzio de Angelis inexplicably stops the
fight to look at Parysian's glove again, despite Smith's attack.
The fight is restarted and Smith starts to pick the still-wobbly
Parisyan apart with his boxing. He lands hard shot after hard
shot right until the round ends. It's a clear round for the American,
10-9, and Sherdog.com sees the fight for him overall 30-28.
Official
result: Jordan Smith is announced as the winner by split decision.
No judges or scores are announced.
Maiquel
Falcao vs. Antonio Braga Neto
Round
1
The BJJ world champion Braga Neto immediately shoots on Falcao.
The UFC veteran shows good takedown defense at first, but ends
up on his back. Braga Neto is trying to advance his position
as Falcao tries to setup a triangle choke. Braga Neto passes
guard and is in side mount. Falcao sweeps and ends up top. He
punishes Braga Neto with punches and both fighters stand back
up. Braga Neto is wobbly and Falcao smells blood. He presses
ahead, connecting square on Braga Neto's facewith heavy punches.
Braga Neto goes for another takedown, but doesn't get it. Falcao
is connecting at will now and Braga Neto is having a hard time
standing. However, the grappler launches a heavy punch just before
the bell that stuns Falcao, leaving him wobbly at the end of
the round. It's a fantastic first round that Sherdog.com sees
10-9 for Maiquel Falcao.
Round
2
Falcao seems to be pacing himself at the start of the second
round. Braga Neto realizes this and attacks, quickly getting
another takedown. He is in Falcao's half guard but, surprisingly,
gets swept again. Falcao gets to top control, but in almost no
time flat, referee Mario Yamasaki stands the fighters up. They
restart in the center of the cage and Braga Neto gets another
takedown. The BJJ ace starts to brutalize Falcao with elbows
to the forehead, showing good ground-and-pound. It appears Falcao
might have punched himself out in the first round. Braga Neto
passes the guard again and seems to be aiming for a kimura. He
gets it extended, and Falcao has no other option but to tap.
Great comeback win by Antonio Braga Neto, who earns the W at
4:26 of the second round.
Drew
Fickett vs. Ronys Torres
Round
1
A leg kick from Torres starts the lightweight contest. A left
hook lands for the Brazilian. Suddenly, Torres tears into Fickett
with a huge right that drops the Arizona native. Torres pounces
on the American and simply demolishes him with hammerfists until
the American taps due to strikes just 47 seconds into the contest.
Incredible-if-brief win for the Brazilian.
Paulo
Filho vs. Satoshi Ishii
Round
1
The fighters study one another for a full minute before engaging
in any action. When they do, it's Ishii who closes the distance
and presses Filho against the fence. Filho lands a good right
to the body and Ishii almost loses his balance. A leg kick lands
for Ishii and Filho counters with two of his own. The Olympic
gold medalist closes the distance again and they go to the fence.
Filho has a cut over the left eye. Ishii continues to outmuscle
the Brazilian against the fence, despite not being able to take
him down. They finally break free, and referee Mario Yamasaki
stops the fight to get Filho's cut looked at by the doctor. Filho
is quickly cleared to continue and the fight is resumed. Ishii
blocks a leg kick by the Brazilian and finally gets the takedown.
He passes the guard but Filho quickly reestablishes as the round
ends. Sherdog.com sees the round 10-9 for the smothering Ishii.
Round
2
Ishii stalks Filho around the cage. He connects with a few punches
while Filho simply leans against fence. Ishii remains the aggressor
but Filho is not backing down, as he responds with a right hook.
Ishii answers with a flurry of punches and Filho is back against
the fence once more. Good elbow by Ishii inside, as the judoka
is showing very good clinch work. Despite Ishii's activity, referee
Mario Yamasaki stops the fight for no reason once more, breaking
the fighters apart. It's useless, as on the restart, Ishii pushes
Filho against the fence again. Yamasaki interjects himself again,
splitting the pair up. Ishii connects with a good one-two combo,
but Filho answers with a right that buckles the Japanese. Filho
shoots for Ishii's legs as the time expires. 10-9 Ishii, again,
on the Sherdog.com scorecard.
Round
3
Filho is showing a sense of urgency as the final period begins.
Ishii connects lon a straight left. He takes Filho to the fence
again but Filho breaks free. However, the Brazilian seems gassed
at this point. Ishii grinds Filho into the cage for another minute
before Yamasaki separates them. Another straight left lands for
Ishii, and they are back at the fence. Ishii lands a couple of
short hooks from the clinch, and Filho's eye is now bleeding
profusely. Yamasaki breaks the fighters once more, and on the
restart, Ishii tries to push Filho to the fence again, but Yamasaki
stops the fight for the sixth time, this time to get Filho's
cut looked at again. Filho is cleared to continue, and whiffs
on a big uppercut on the restart. Ishii connects with a one-two
combo. Filho tries to go all out in the last seconds but there
is not enough time. Sherdog.com sees the final frame 10-9 for
Satoshi Ishii, and the fight for the Olympic gold medalist 30-27.
Official
result: The bout is incomprehensibly announced a draw. No judges
or scores are announced. The crowd loudly boos the inexplicable
verdict.
Royler
Gracie vs. Masakatsu Ueda
Round
1
Ueda starts the acton with a leg kick. Gracie quickly tries to
shoot for a takedown but doesn't get even close. He finally manages
to close the distance and pushes Ueda against the fence. The
Japanese is doing a good job defending the takedown, but Gracie
is fully committed to it. He finally gets Ueda down and is now
on top. He advances do half guard and tries to free his leg to
get mount position. Ueda rolls and sweeps Gracie. He is now standing
up with Gracie laying on the mat in Ali-Inoki position. Ueda
dives into Gracie's guard and lands two punches. As Ueda stands
back up, Gracie quickly manages to get back on his feet. The
Brazilian shoots for a takedown but doesn't have any success.
Ueda lands a kick to the body as the round ends. 10-9 Ueda on
the Sherdog.com scorecard.
Round
2
Another body kick lands for Ueda and Gracie shoots for another
takedown. Nice one-two combo lands for Ueda. Gracie tries and
fails with another takedown. Gracie looks lost absoluetly standing
up. Another body kick by the former Shooto world champion. Gracie
shoots for a takedown but Ueda ends up on top. Gracie is basically
trying to cling onto Ueda. Ueda stands back up and dives into
Gracie's guard again. He connects with a hard punch and start
to throw hammerfists at the Brazilian. The round ends with Ueda
punishing Gracie. It's all Ueda, 10-9 on the Sherdog.com scorecard.
Round
3
Ueda connects with a right hook and Gracie covers up. The Japanese
is pressing the action while Gracie is just looking for an opportunity
to shoot. Hard leg kick by Ueda. Both fighters slow down the
pace and the crowd gets uneasy. It seems Gracie is having problems
with his lead leg, courtesy of Ueda's kicks. He tries to close
the distance but gets stuffed. He shoots for another takedown
but Ueda reverses and ends up on top. However, he decides to
let Gracie back up. Ueda lands good jab. Gracie starts to stalk
Ueda, but the horn sounds as he gets a takedown. Close round,
but Sherdog.com has it for Ueda 10-9, and awards him the fight
30-27 overall.
Official
result: It's closer than it should be, but Masakatsu Ueda takes
a split decision in Royler Gracie's retirement bout. No judges
or scores are announced.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Sadly,
Nick Diaz Still Learning Nothing From His Own Mistakes
By Ben
Fowlkes
Nick Diaz says he didn't know there was a press conference to
promote his fight with Georges St. Pierre last week. Apparently
nobody bothered to tell him, which seems weird to me. Seems like
someone at the UFC might have mentioned it. And yet, he says,
they didn't. How about that?
According
to his interview with MMA Junkie, apparently the UFC just asked
him to come to Las Vegas without fully explaining why, and Diaz,
who naturally assumed that whatever his new employer wanted from
him couldn't have been that important, didn't show up and didn't
bother to tell anyone.
Completely
reasonable, right? Only if you're Nick Diaz, who has proven time
and time again that he is firmly committed to learning absolutely
nothing from his many costly mistakes, yet remains convinced
that whatever goes wrong is probably someone else's fault.
This
time, it's the UFC's fault. And sure, it's also GSP's. To hear
Diaz tell it, the champ should have adamantly demanded that Diaz
not be pulled from their title bout at UFC 137 even after he
skipped two (2!) press conferences in one week, both of which
St. Pierre took time out of his training schedule to attend.
The fact that St. Pierre didn't do this, that he sat there at
the press conference alone, looking absolutely stunned that someone
could be this inconsiderate and short-sighted, proves that he
is, in Diaz's words, "a little b--ch" who doesn't actually
want this fight.
Did
you get that? The guy who showed up to perform his pre-fight
media responsibilities, the one who did what the UFC asked him
to do in order to make the fight happen, is the one who doesn't
want to fight.
It
takes some serious psychological gymnastics to arrive at such
a conclusion, but that's Diaz for you. He's been doing it for
years, so why should he stop now?
Here's
what Diaz told John Morgan about the infamous no-show that cost
him a title shot and, by all indications, a ton of money:
"I
didn't even know there was a press conference. I thought it was
some PR thing. People were trying to tell me, 'You're going to
do this skit' and that I was going to be a part of some PR skit
where I had this part where I was walking through a hall, kind
of like that scene Jake Shields did. I was like, 'What the [expletive]?
Are you kidding?' So I'm thinking, 'Somebody better come over
here and tell me what I'm doing and get me ready to go do it
so I don't look like an [expletive].' That's how I feel when
you're coming to get me ready for something I'm not ready for."
So
Diaz did what anybody would do when they feel like they need
more information about one of the responsibilities pertaining
to their job: he turned his phone off. He didn't answer calls,
didn't ask for help, refused even to speak with his own manager,
Cesar Gracie, who then slid Diaz right under the bus by relating
the embarrassing details of it all to the UFC and the media.
For
Gracie, it was a curious time to get fed up with the exact same
antics he has enabled for years. In the past, when Diaz no-showed
interviews and conference calls and drug tests and photo shoots
-- all of which he has done repeatedly, resulting in incalculable
financial losses over the course of his career -- it was always
Gracie who made excuses for him.
Nick's
too busy. Nick doesn't do stuff like this. Nick doesn't have
time.
And
so, as he lost out on one career opportunity after another, Diaz
was never forced to confront what role his own behavior was playing
in causing the very problems he complained about. It's sad, really,
and more than a little troubling. Is it any wonder that now,
as a 28-year-old professional fighter who just threw away the
biggest, most lucrative fight of his life due to his own inability
to do something as simple as get on a plane, he can't accept
responsibility for his own mistakes?
Diaz
blames the UFC for not adequately communicating to him the importance
of the press conference (or even that there was one). As if,
when your employer buys you a plane ticket, they must also sit
you down and carefully explain that they would like you to board
that plane at the appointed time.
Diaz
blames GSP for letting the UFC replace him with Carlos Condit.
As if it's the champion's responsibility to make sure the challenger
is allowed to blow off media events without suffering any consequences.
Amazingly,
Diaz even blames the UFC for offering him a consolation fight
on the same card with B.J. Penn, who he says he "was previously
friends with," complaining that the UFC is "trying
to make these fights out of people that aren't even trying to
fight." As if the UFC should not only not punish him for
wasting all that time and money, but should also work around
his personal feelings about potential opponents when re-booking
him at the last minute.
This
is the thinking of a man who blames everyone else for his problems.
This is a selfish view, a childish view. This is probably also
the view of a man who needs help that he isn't getting, either
because he can't bring himself to ask for it or because the people
who might be in a position to ask for him are only concerned
with getting him to the next fight and the next paycheck. It's
a view that profits a man only the temporary comfort that comes
with shifting the blame, all while costing him greatly in terms
of money, career opportunities, and the respect of his peers.
If
the people who are supposed to care about Diaz don't do something
to confront these problems and help him deal with them, that's
a cost he may end up paying for the rest of his life.
Source:
MMA Fighting
|
Mike
Stumpf Replaces an Injured Daniel Roberts at UFC Fight Night
This Weekend
An
injury has forced Daniel ‘Ninja’ Roberts off this weekend’s
UFC Fight Night card, so UFC newcomer Mike Stumpf will step in
to face T.J. Waldburger instead.
The new fight was announced by the UFC on Monday.
According to sources inside Roberts’ camp, the fighter suffered
an injury in training just in the last day or so and was forced
to pull out of the fight. The nature and severity of the injury
are unknown at this time.
Taking Roberts’ place will be Team Curran fighter Mike Stumpf
who makes his UFC debut with an 11-2 record overall.
Stumpf has fought in several promotions over the years, but primarily
in the Midwest based XFO shows.
The bout between Stumpf and Waldburger will remain on the preliminary
portion of the show taking place in New Orleans this weekend.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
The
Axe Murderer’s Apprentice
by Tristen
Critchfield
The
biggest news of Jorge Lopez’s career to date came via text
from a legend.
About
a week after a vicious barrage of leg kicks and body shots from
Lopez convinced David Marshall to stay on his stool before the
third round of their bout at Tachi Palace Fights 10, the 22-year-old
welterweight’s phone buzzed with a message from Wanderlei
Silva. The news: the Ultimate Fighting Championship was offering
a spot to Lopez at UFC Fight Night 25 in New Orleans. The resounding
response: hell, yes.
When
the contract to fight “The Ultimate Fighter” Season
13 alum Justin Edwards this Saturday at a show headlined by a
Jake Shields-Jake Ellenberger main event became official, it
made Lopez the first member of Wanderlei’s fledgling Las
Vegas-based team to sign with the sport’s most recognizable
promotion. The Brazilian great took to Twitter to spread the
word of Lopez’s impending arrival in the UFC, proclaiming
the fighter known as “Lil’ Monster” to be “my
future champion.”
While
it is undeniably heady stuff to carry the burden of expectations
for an entire gym, especially one owned by such an iconic figure,
Lopez is not exactly overwhelmed at the thought. Real pressure
is supporting a 2-month-old baby boy and the mother of his child
on the biggest mixed martial arts stage in the world. Falter
in that arena and a four-fight deal can easily transform to one
in just minutes.
“The
pressure doesn’t necessarily come because I’m representing
Wanderlei Silva’s gym,” Lopez tells Sherdog.com. “The
pressure comes from not letting my son down and not letting my
family down.”
It
is fitting that he references family, because the Lopez clan
always makes sure to take care of its own. The man “The
Axe Murderer” has dubbed a future champion would not be
where he is today without them. Lopez was born in Mexico City,
but his parents, Daniel and Guadalupe, packed up and left for
the United States 18 months later in pursuit of a better life.
With little recollection of his birthplace, the Tachi Palace
Fights veteran claims the U.S. as his home.
Silva
touts Lopez as a future champion.
“I don’t blame them [for leaving],” Lopez says.
“I see the s--- going on back there and am in no hurry to
ever go back.”
Lopez
had athletic inclinations early, taking to football at age 7
and continuing on that path through college. It was his mom,
however, that laid the foundation for his fighting career by
convincing her son to try out for the wrestling team in junior
high school.
“He
used to say, ‘No way. I’ll never do that. That’s
for girls,’” recalls Grissel Martinez, his older sister.
“He ended up wrestling and took state twice. He’s so
grateful to my mom now.”
That
began something of a domino effect, as Lopez was referred to
a jiu-jitsu dojo by one of his high school wrestling teammates
and immediately fell in love with the ground game. Much of his
early exposure to mixed martial arts came from watching the likes
of Wanderlei compete in Pride Fighting Championships during the
organization’s heyday.
It
was Lopez’s father who allowed his son to take his dreams
a step further. Now the owner of a used car lot in Utah, Daniel
was once a competitive body builder who always encouraged his
son to raise the bar in any of his athletic ventures. “It
wasn’t always sanctioned, but he used to love fighting also,”
Lopez explains. “He’s always pushed me to be an athlete.
He’s always believed in my ability and pushed me to be the
best that I could be.”
When
an opportunity arose for Lopez to train with the acclaimed Chute
Boxe team in Brazil, Daniel urged his son to take it. If he was
going to pursue fighting, then he would do it at 100 percent.
It was there, at age 14, that Lopez trained three to four times
a day and met many of the guys he had only previously seen on
videos: stars like Wanderlei, Anderson Silva, Mauricio Rua and
Murilo Rua. Though he is now Wanderlei’s top pupil, Lopez
admits that he initially formed a stronger bond with the current
UFC middleweight champion during his stay in Brazil.
“At
that time, me and Wanderlei weren’t really close just because
he was the best fighter in the world. That’s when he was
in his prime and fighting in Pride. He had no time to really
hang out and teach me anything,” Lopez says. “Anderson
Silva was probably one of the first people I talked to the most,
and we hung out the most. Me and my dad, we’d go to dinner
with Anderson and we’d talk. He was such a laid-back dude.
At that time, Anderson still hadn’t got his name out there
to where it is now. I think that’s why I hung out a little
bit more with him and he looked after me a little bit more.”
After
what could only be described as six months of life-changing epiphany,
Lopez returned home and continued to devote the majority of his
energy to football and wrestling, all while still dabbling in
MMA. A year or so into his football career at Snow College, a
junior college program in Ephraim, Utah, he decided to devote
his full attention to fighting. The decision came as a surprise
to his sister, who owned a business and was helping pay his way
through school.
“I
wasn’t disappointed, but I was, like, ‘OK, are you
sure that’s what you want to do?’” Martinez says.
“Just like my dad, I supported him and we went with it.”
That
support continued to be there as Lopez’s resolve was tested
while training with former Chute Boxe coach Roberto Piccinini
in Los Angeles. With little money to his name, Lopez lived in
the gym with his instructor, subsisting on a diet of frozen dinners
while training and cleaning the facility on a daily basis.
“When
he was living in California, he kind of manned up,” Martinez
says. “He didn’t really ask for much. He was just,
like, ‘No, I’m fine, I’m fine,’ so that just
proved a lot to me. People that struggle tend to have a little
more love for the sport.”
It
was Lopez’s last stop before moving to Sin City, where he
trained at Xtreme Couture Mixed Martial Arts before finding a
home with the Wand Fight Team. He looks back on that period of
hardship as critical to his growth.
“I
almost wish I could go back and live that year again. It was
just at the beginning of the recession and everybody was doing
bad. My parents weren’t doing too good; nobody really had
money,” he says. “It makes you appreciate what you
have now. I don’t look back on it and feel bad for myself.
I look back and appreciate it.”
Lopez’s
relationship with his sister is as close one can be between siblings.
Martinez has served as equal parts advisor, best friend and caretaker
at different points in their lives. When Lopez’s bank account
was running low while he was in Los Angeles, Martinez made sure
he had at least enough money to eat.
“She’s
kind of a mentor in life,” he says. “She’s always
bailed me out whenever I needed help. I actually thank her for
a lot of my success.”
“The
pressure doesn’t necessarily come because I’m representing
Wanderlei Silva’s gym. The pressure comes from not letting
my son down and not letting my family down.”
-- Jorge Lopez, on motivations
Their careers paths will converge on the third Saturday of September.
While Lopez makes his debut in the Octagon, Martinez will be
taking part in a fitness competition in Las Vegas. Daniel Will
be with his son that night, while Guadalupe will accompany Martinez.
Of course, the siblings will keep tabs on each other, as well.
They always have, even when Martinez was giving birth to her
son two years ago.
“He
called me right after his fight, and I was still in the delivery
room,” she says. “We had been calling each other throughout
the day because I was being taken to the hospital. Right after
he won, I think an hour later, is when I had my son.”
Lopez
took a unanimous decision over Jaime Fletcher at Worlds Collide
4 in Nevada on that August night in 2009, but he is well aware
that the days when his pure strength and speed overwhelmed opponents
is over. In the UFC, some welterweights cut from 200 pounds,
while Lopez has admitted to considering a drop to lightweight.
However, a strong base that comes from squatting more than 500
pounds as early as high school might keep him anchored at 170
pounds.
“I’ve
thought about [moving to 155], but my legs are way too big,”
Lopez says. “As far as a strength advantage, that’s
one thing that I believe I’m gonna have over every welterweight
in the UFC, except for [Georges St. Pierre] is lower body strength.
My legs are by far stronger than a lot of guys in the welterweight
division.”
The
former Utah high school state wrestling champion is riding an
impressive nine-fight winning streak that includes four technical
knockouts. If there is a criticism, it is that his countering
style often leaves observers wanting more from a fighter with
so many athletic gifts. His strategy came into question against
Waachiim Spiritwolf at Tachi Palace Fights 9 “The Contenders,”
where Lopez seemed to lack aggression in taking a unanimous decision.
Wanderlei’s student says he had a specific plan for that
fight.
“You’ve
seen that happen so many times, that when a guy is winning the
fight, [he] becomes overly aggressive and gets knocked out,”
he says. “All the hard work that I’ve put in and all
the sacrifices that I’ve had to go though in my life weren’t
worth losing to Spiritwolf at Tachi Palace because of a simple
mistake of being overly aggressive.”
Such
a statement implies that Lopez has held back, that the best is
yet to come. Against Marshall, he demonstrated more of the type
of potential that has tantalized so many thus far in his career.
To stick around the UFC, the evolution must continue.
“There’s
still so much room to improve,” Lopez says. “You see
it every day -- every UFC, you see something new.”
Eventually,
Lopez hopes to become part of that “something new”
-- the fighter that has people talking around the water cooler,
on message boards and in bars. As he continues on that path,
he will have help along the way. Family always makes handling
pressure just a little bit easier.
Source:
Sherdog
|
Jake
Ellenberger: Carlos Rocha was a more dangerous UFC opponent than
Jake Shields is
By Zach
Arnold
“It’s been a good, hard 8-10 weeks, I haven’t
had any injuries which has been, it’s been a blessing but…
I’m ready for training to be over. We had a tough day today,
a real good hard push. I mean, I’m excited to fight, you
know. Jake Shields’ is just another guy, another guy in
the way for me to get to a world title, so I’m excited.”
— FightHubTV.com interview
INTERVIEWER: “And I feel that a lot of people have you under
the radar, really underestimating you.”
JAKE ELLENBERGER: “That’s probably true, it really
doesn’t matter to me. Jake Shields, like I said, he’s
beat some high-level guys, I don’t think it’s a huge
step up in competition at all. I mean, honestly, I think Carlos
Rocha, the guy I beat back in February, I think he was more dangerous
than Jake Shields. You know, Jake Shields, he presents some different
problems for me but I’m prepared, I’m ready, I’ve
done everything I can to prepare for this fight. I’m going
to make him as uncomfortable as possible, so he’s got a
lot more to worry about than I do.”
INTERVIEWER: “Going back to tactics for this fight right
here, GSP some say that he didn’t pressure him as much as
many like to see him. Martin Kampmann pressured Jake a lot and
a lot of people felt Jake, conditioning-wise, they called that
into question. Do you plan on pressuring Jake more than those
two last opponents he’s had?”
JAKE ELLENBERGER: “I can assure that, from bell to bell…
I’m sure as his night follows day I’m going to pressure
him from bell to bell. GSP didn’t pressure him at all, Martin
Kampmann did (but) I think it was a little too late when he started
to pressure him. It’s going to be pressure from bell to
bell. I’m going to make him tired. The thing about Kampmann
is I think if he could have kept position and could have controlled
his wrestling and the gates of where the fight went he could
have pulled out the victory there but, you know, wrestling’s
going to make you tired and I’ve been there, I’ve been
there a million times so… you know, that’s… I’m
going to fight him like I do everyone else, there’s going
to be pressure the whole fight.”
INTERVIEWER: “A lot of people are really worried to get
on the ground with Jake knowing his BJJ credentials but I feel
like knowing the guys that train over here at Reign and the amount
of talent that comes in here, people like Werdum helping the
team over here that you might be in a position where you’ve
seen a lot of the things that Jake could throw at you and you’re
fully prepared.”
JAKE ELLENBERGER: “Yeah, you know, listen, a fight is a
fight and you can’t respect the guy you’re fighting.
You can’t be afraid, you can’t be timid, you can’t
fight timid. Hesitation will get you caught, it’s get you
beat. I have, you know, I am aware at what he’s good at,
I’m aware of his strengths but it’s not going to effect
the way that I fight him. I train with plenty of high-level guys.
Honestly, I don’t respect, when I fight him, I’m not
going to respect anything. I’m going to come after him and
find a way to win. But… I’m not going to fight timid
at all. His ground game, you know, sure, he’s got a good
ground game but… that doesn’t matter, you know. He’s
going to hit and he’s going to get hit a lot.”
Here’s an interview from last Friday that Jake Shields did
on Comcast Sportsnet Bay Area w/ Dave Benz. It was tough for
him to do this, but he’s a trooper and came through in the
end. Of course, when you’re an independent contractor and
yet considered “the exclusive property of the UFC”
as Lorenzo Fertitta likes to say about his fighters, you have
to be a company man. Ask Kurt Pellegrino about that.
As for whether or not Ellenberger could get a Welterweight title
shot if he beats Shields, the answer is… perhaps, yes, because
Jon Fitch sure as hell doesn’t look like he’s ever
getting a title shot again.
Jake Shields (-170) vs. Jake Ellenberger (+150)
Card line-up for UFC 9/17 New Orleans event
Will be interesting to see if Spike runs a bunch of Bellator
ads during the UFC telecast and if there’s any tension between
the parties at the event.
Source: Fight Opinion
|
Nick
Diaz: 'I didn't know there was a press conference'
By Sergio
Non, USA TODAY
Nick
Diaz says he would have gone to last week's press conference
in Las Vegas if he realized his title shot in the Ultimate Fighting
Championship was at stake.
"If I'd have known the fight was going to be off, I would
have (expletive) gone to the press conference, or I would have
told somebody, 'Hey, if I don't make it to this stupid (expletive),
I'm not fighting.' " Diaz told MMAjunkie.com. "I think
that people would have gotten me there. I think people would
have come and gave two (expletive) and gotten me to that press
conference."
UFC pulled Diaz from the main event of its Oct. 29 show in Las
Vegas, where he would have fought welterweight champion Georges
St. Pierre. Officials cited Diaz's failure to attend a press
conference to promote the bout.
The importance of last week's event apparently was lost on the
former challenger.
"I didn't know it was supposed to be a press conference
until the same day I was supposed to be making it to the press
conference," Diaz said. "I just don't like the way
people are treating it and acting like I backed out of a fight.
Why would I do that?"
Diaz is now slated to fight former champion BJ Penn in the co-main
event of the Oct. 29 show.
Carlos Condit, who originally was supposed to fight Penn, gets
the shot at St. Pierre. Diaz dismisses St. Pierre-Condit as akin
to "wrestling matches" between "two people that
aren't even trying to fight."
BJ Penn isn't thrilled with the build-up to his new fight either.
TV producers might try to paint Diaz as the fight's villain or
create animosity that isn't there, Penn said.
"I just don't want it to be built up off BS," Penn
told Shoot Media in a video interview. "I'm not sitting
there every day saying 'I'm going to beat Nick Diaz, I'm going
to do this, I'm going to do that.' "
Source: USA Today
|
King
Mo calls Strikeforce “terminally ill”; Dana White responds
With a paying crowd of 2,000 people in Ohio for the latest Strikeforce
event, it was well below what the fighters themselves had expected
for a card of such quality. As he exited the event after defeating
Roger Gracie, Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal belittled the
organization that pays his salary. Before the fight, King Mo
said that Strikeforce seemed like a “terminally ill patient
with cancer,” whom everyone was “waiting to see die.”
Following his win, things just got worse, in Mo’s words:
“It actually seems like an AIDS patient, with the doctors
getting ready to pull the plug,” he told MMA Junkie.
Today, Dana White retorted, in an article published by Kevin
Lole of Yahoo, resounding on several websites, like Bloody Elbow.
The UFC president made it clear that he did not announce fights
like former Strikeforce champion Overeem’s showdown with
Brock Lesnar so as not to clear the stands at the September 10
Strikeforce event.
“If this Mo or anyone else thinks I planned this, they’re
completely insane. We signed Overeem and put together a fight
with Brock, yes, but could I have imagined Nick Diaz would do
what he did too? There are a lot of things happening at the same
time, and I didn’t need another one. Things are the way
they are; the idea of messing with Strikeforce never crossed
my mind, I just promote the UFC 24 hours a day, seven days a
week,” said White.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
The
Truth About Fighters and Sponsors
By Ben
Fowlkes
To
the fan, it's just logos. It's background scenery, hardly worth
noticing.
It's
a shirt some fighter wears to the cage and then struggles to
pull back on to his sweaty torso in time for the post-fight interview.
It's a banner his cornermen unfurl behind him during the pre-fight
introductions. It's a website on the seat of his shorts.
You
see it, even if you never think about it. But because you see
it, because you're watching, fighters are getting paid. They
might make anywhere from a couple grand that's barely worth mentioning
after their manager takes a 20 percent cut, to hundreds of thousands
of dollars on an endorsement deal that will change their lives
forever.
For
many fighters, sponsor money means everything. It's the difference
between prospering and just getting by. It's something they talk
about among themselves, but rarely in public. It's the hidden
undercurrent of the MMA economy.
As
fighter agent Lex McMahon explained, "Younger guys who are
just starting out in their careers and are in their first contract
with the UFC, they're probably making quite a bit more in sponsors
than they are from fighting."
We
understand why they do it, but I also can't, in good conscience,
pay that.
-- Nick Palmisciano on Zuffa's discretionary sponsor taxAll this,
just to reach you, the fan, who hardly gives any of it a second
thought. Is it worth it? That depends on who you ask. Do fighters
depend on it for their financial well-being? Absolutely. And
as you learn when you take a closer look, it's a complex economy
buzzing with frenzied activity behind the scenes of every MMA
event you watch.
The
Cost
If
you're a company looking to sponsor a UFC fighter, the hit to
your pocketbook varies depending on everything from the fame
and popularity of the fighter you're doing business with to the
location of your logo. Walk-out T-shirts can be among the most
expensive items, sometimes edging into the six-figure range,
while a small decal on the thigh of his shorts might only run
you a couple thousand dollars.
"Where
you want the placement depends on how much you want to pay,"
said Training Mask CEO Casey Danford, who added that he usually
prefers to put his logo on the rear of the shorts when sponsoring
a wrestler, and on the crotch when sponsoring a striker.
"Sometimes
guys come to us because their sponsors got kicked out of the
UFC or because they took a fight last minute and don't have any
other sponsors," Danford said. "That does happen. On
the last-minute deals, it's not like we're giving them top dollar,
because they're coming to us at the last minute. We work with
the fighters and they work with us, because they know that two
weeks before a fight, most of our budget is already used up."
The
UFC requires fighters to get prior approval for every sponsor
they intend to represent on their shorts and banners -- hence
the threat of being "kicked out" -- but just to get
the right to be seen on a UFC broadcast most companies pay a
fee to the UFC -- the discretionary sponsor "tax" that
was also recently instituted in Strikeforce after Zuffa bought
the promotion.
While
few sponsors or agents wanted to discuss actual figures on the
record, most put the cost of the tax at about $50,000 per year
for the majority of apparel and supplement companies in the UFC,
though the fee has been known to vary according to the sponsor
and the situation, sources said.
That
sponsorship fee alone recently chased military-themed clothier
Ranger Up out of the fight night sponsorship business. Despite
his company's long-standing relationship with Strikeforce fighter
and Army Green Beret Tim Kennedy, Ranger Up's Nick Palmisciano
said he couldn't justify the cost of putting a logo on Kennedy's
shorts for his recent Strikeforce bout with Robbie Lawler.
"A
lot of people were fired up about this, but we're not in any
way angry at Zuffa at all," Palmisciano said. "We understand
why they do it, but I also can't, in good conscience, pay that."
The
companies who can afford to pay [the sponsorship tax], usually
you have less risk with them, because you know they're a better
capitalized company.
-- Dean AlbrechtSince Palmisciano's company sponsors relatively
few fighters, he explained, the potential benefit just didn't
justify the cost. Six months might go by without a single one
of his guys fighting, but he'd still be required to pay the tax
for that period.
"When
you think about what that tax costs us per fighter as opposed
to what it costs another brand like Dethrone, who's sponsoring
two, three, four fighters every event, for us there's almost
no return on in-fight sponsorship," Palmisciano said.
The
effect of the tax is and will continue to be most noticeable
on Strikeforce cards, according to many fighter agents and industry
sponsors. While it might be worth it for some companies to pay
the fee in order to reach the larger UFC audience, the smaller
viewerships for Strikeforce on Showtime aren't necessarily valuable
enough to justify the expense for many others, meaning Strikeforce
fighters take a big hit in sponsor pay.
At
the same time, according to fighter agent Dean Albrecht, there
are benefits to Zuffa's sponsor tax, even if it shrinks the pool
of available sponsors.
"Not
all up-and-coming companies can afford to pay [the tax],"
Albrecht said. "But the companies who can afford to pay
it, usually you have less risk with them, because you know they're
a better capitalized company. So believe it or not, the UFC in
effect is protecting the fighters by putting a monetary entry
fee to the sponsorship game. Before, when anybody could sponsor
a guy, you'd have companies not paying and that hurts everybody."
In
fact, in the days before the tax, non-payment was more of an
issue, according to both sponsors and managers. Most of the deals
are constructed so that sponsors pay after the fights rather
than before, and some were offering more money to fighters than
they actually had, betting that they'd sell enough merchandise
in the weeks following the fight to come up with the fighter's
fee.
Ken
Clement, co-owner of MMA equipment manufacturer Hayabusa, said
the tax has largely chased those companies out of the sponsorship
game. Before, Clement said "we actually had managers come
to us and say, 'Hey, do you know what happened to this company?
They owe us money.'"
Part
of the problem, he added, is that some companies have unrealistic
expectations to go with their pricey sponsorship goals.
"Some
of these companies think they're going to come in here and get
these huge, immediate results, and that's their plan for how
they're eventually going to pay these guys," said Clement.
"A lot of them are agreeing to deals that they're never
going to be able to afford to pay. The UFC putting that tax into
place is like, if you can't afford to pay that tax, you're probably
not going to be able to pay your fighters."
The
Benefit
One
thing every MMA sponsor seems to agree on is that getting your
logo seen on a UFC broadcast does not, by any means, guarantee
sales or success. Exactly what it does accomplish is a matter
of some debate, with results proving difficult to measure.
"It's
trackable, but it's very hard to be objective," Hayabysa's
Clement said. "It's the simple question of how many fans
watching the UFC saw your logo and recognized it, and of those,
who cares? ...It can be looked at quantitatively, but there's
a lot of guesswork involved."
As
Ranger Up's Palmisciano put it, if you're looking for a simple
equation where you spend a certain amount on a fight night sponsorship
and make more than that in sales immediately afterward, you're
in the wrong game.
"I
think one of the reasons you see so many of these companies failing
is because they come into this business thinking, I'm just going
to sponsor as many fighters as I can and people will see my stuff
and start buying my shirts. It's just not true," Palmisciano
said. "I'll tell you honestly, the uptick [in sales] from
any fighter wearing our shirt in the cage does not ever make
up for how much we pay that fighter. Ever."
But
according to fighter agent Dean Albrecht, it all depends on what
a company's specific goals are. The way he sees it, there are
three distinct levels: advertising, sponsorship, and endorsement.
"The
lowest level is advertising," said Albrecht. "For example,
I've got a guy who's going to be on the main card for UFC 135.
I can sell you a patch on his shorts on the butt, the thighs,
or the crotch, or I can sell you his hat or his shirt. Now, there's
probably going to be around 800,000 pay-per-view buys, they estimate
about an average of ten people [watching every buy], so there's
around eight million people. But we can't tell you whether your
ad's going to last thirty seconds or fifteen minutes."
Advertising
is exactly what Training Mask is after, according to Danford.
Instead of getting into long-term contracts with tiered pay structures,
he prefers to sign one-fight deals for flat fees, all designed
to get his company's logo in front of potential customers. And
because that's what he's after, that's also a big part of deciding
which fighters he chooses to sponsor.
"You've
got to think, we're buying advertising space," Danford said.
"So do I want to see a guy end the fight in 20 seconds?
Absolutely not. It happens, but that's not what we'd like to
see. Whether I'm paying $3,000 or $15,000, I don't want to see
the guy get knocked out in 30 seconds. I want to see the fight
go 15 minutes."
Because
Danford's product is also aimed at serious athletes with the
promise of improving their conditioning, he also tries to choose
fighters whose cardio works as an advertisement for the product.
Of
course, he added, "you don't know if you're winning or losing
when you pick these guys." When UFC heavyweight Roy Nelson
turned in a sloppy performance against Frank Mir, for example,
it wasn't a great help to have Training Mask written across his
shorts. But when Chris Lytle went three hard rounds with Dan
Hardy before submitting him in his memorable farewell fight,
it was an unexpected boost.
"I
don't question the exposure," Danford said. "We're
building a brand. Any time you're building a brand, you've got
to have it in front of people. It's like Tiger Woods and Nike.
Nike's not in your face the whole time, but as the ball slowly
drops into the hole, there's that Nike swoosh and you know Nike
was there for that moment. With Chris Lytle, there's his last
fight and we were there. We didn't know going in that it was
going to be his last fight, but we were there."
But
other companies, such as Hayabusa, don't see the benefit in simply
using a fighter as advertising alone. What it's after is more
in the category of sponsorship, supporting a few key fighters
over a longer period of time. The idea, according to co-owner
Clement, is that those fighters will also become ambassadors
for the products in the gym, where they'll be reaching the audience
Hayabusa is really after.
"They're
the sneezers," Clement said. "They're influencing all
the guys around them who want to reach that elite level. The
other guys in the academy are looking at him and thinking, how
can I get to that level?"
That's
why, according to Clement, a Hayabusa fighter like Yoshihiro
Akiyama, who has now lost three straight in the UFC, is in no
danger of losing his deal with them simply because he's fallen
on hard times. An advertiser might jump from one fighter to another,
but Clement explained, "We've been supporting [Akiyama]
for a long time, and there's a relationship there. It's not like
we're going to drop him because he loses."
We
want to kind of build that value where, when they show past highlights
of a fighter, he's wearing Dethrone for every fight.
-- Nick SwinmurnSponsorship deals typically cost a company more
than simple advertisement and require more of a commitment, but
for fighters and their agents, the big money is in endorsement,
which sits at the top of Albrecht's hierarchy of sponsor arrangements
"There's
a premium for that, it's exclusive, and you're expecting that
guy to be a spokesperson for you," said Albrecht. "He'll
do appearances, and you can expect him to only wear your stuff.
If he's with you, he's wearing your stuff when he's out and about,
he's wearing it into the cage, he's wearing it when he's at after-parties.
That's endorsement."
That's
what clothing maker Dethrone Royalty is after, and also why it
works with a select few fighters and keeps them draped in Dethrone
shirts no matter where they are. According to founder Nick Swinmurn,
Dethrone also makes a conscious effort to find its fighters before
they're stars.
"We
have big names now, but we started with them back when they were
on their first televised cards, not big names at all," said
Swinmurn, who started Dethrone after founding online shoe retailer
Zappos. "Our strategy from the beginning was, we don't want
to be that brand where we're on the guy who's wearing a different
shirt for every fight. We wanted to kind of build that value
where, when they show past highlights of a fighter, he's wearing
Dethrone for every fight."
Of
course, there's another benefit to locking a young fighter into
a long-term endorsement deal early in his career, Albrecht pointed
out, especially if you have reason to believe that he's going
to become a star in a hurry.
"Some
companies are really smart with who they pick, and they lock
them up while they're coming up," said Albrecht. "They
say, we're going to get this kid for $4,000 a month, and for
the first six or seven months it's going to seem like a deal.
It's going to look like you're overspending for him. Then all
of a sudden, he's two fights away from a title shot and you've
got a one-year option on your deal. You exercise that option,
and you might have a champion for the same price as an up-and-comer,
or maybe just a little bit more."
The
Pitch
When
you talk to fighter agents about the pursuit of willing sponsors,
you hear a lot about establishing cooperative relationships and
ensuring value for both sides. When you talk to the sponsors
themselves, you sometimes get a different story.
"A
lot of the managers try to coax you into doing stuff that you
don't want to do," said Training Mask CEO Danford. "They'll
tell you, 'For this much we'll give you plugs on Twitter and
one on Facebook.' That's stuff they should be doing anyway."
Some,
said Dethrone's Swinmurn, are simply hard to pin down on a price.
"If
I call up a manager and say, 'I'm interested in this guy, how
much is it?' their job is to be able to say, 'It's this.' But
I've known some managers, and there's a couple who are notorious
for it, where you just can't get a straight answer out of them,"
Swinmurn said. "You ask how much and they say, 'Make us
an offer.'"
Others
will simply oversell their sponsorship space, creating too much
clutter and drowning out any single sponsor's message. That's
particularly troubling for a sponsor like Hayabusa, which is
in the rare position of actually having its product used during
the fight. That is, if anyone can tell through the sea of other
logos.
"You
get some management companies where it's the NASCAR effect. He's
got so many logos on there, you don't know what he's wearing
anymore," said Ken Clement. "It could be Hayabusa shorts,
but you have no idea."
In
order to convince wary sponsors that they're getting good value
for their money, managers and agents have to get creative. That's
why Albrecht said he gives each sponsor a monthly spreadsheet
detailing the exposure they got from each fighter, across every
conceivable medium.
"I
get every MMA magazine out there," Albrecht said. "We
watch all the shows. I have people that work for me who will
sit there with a stopwatch and time how long your logo is on
TV. They'll also go through every magazine this month and clip
out anywhere where your logo appeared. Then we'll go through
the top six MMA websites and see how many times your logo appears
in photos."
As
Albrecht explained, the benefit of sponsorship isn't limited
solely to fight night. Whenever a website uses a photo of a fighter
that includes a sponsor logo on his shorts or T-shirt, there's
value in that.
"For
example, I represent Rory MacDonald and I'll look at how many
websites showed his picture wearing his sponsor logos, then look
at how much it would cost me to put an ad on that website,"
said Albrecht, who estimated that roughly half of MacDonald's
annual income is derived from sponsorship deals.
MacDonald's
name was mentioned by just about every sponsor I talked to as
an example of an ideal fighter to support. He's young, rising
quickly through the ranks (though not yet commanding top dollar),
and his personality outside of the cage doesn't make him a potential
liability.
The
real value of having a fighter on that FOX main card is going
to be getting those sponsors that want to be on FOX anyway, but
aren't MMA sponsors.
-- Lex McMahon
Others have certain built-in barriers that agents have to work
around.
For
example, a fighter who has struggled publicly with legal or personal
problems might not be someone every company wants to put its
name on. Some, Albrecht said, are simply too irresponsible or
mercurial to be the kind of guy a company can depend on to show
up at a major event, smiling like he actually wants to be there.
"Some
guys can do it. They show up and you wish you'd hired them to
be president of your company," Albrecht said. "Other
guys, that's just not who they are."
Other
fighters, Albrecht added, simply won't do certain things.
"Miguel
Torres, for instance, will not wear a [sponsor] hat," said
Albrecht, who added that the former WEC 135-pound champ and proud
mullet owner once turned down $10,000 to wear a sponsor's baseball
cap for the brief walk to the cage.
But
not everything is based on personality. Some is based purely
on exposure, which is why agents are so grateful that the UFC
has continued to find new ways of making sure each fight gets
seen.
A
few years ago it was only the main card of a pay-per-view, plus
a couple quick undercard fights (time permitting) that made it
onto TV. Now, with undercard bouts aired on Spike TV and prelims
streamed live on Facebook, there's no such thing as a dark match
on a UFC card.
"Certain
companies are embracing [the Facebook fights] more than others,"
said agent Lex McMahon, who added that it's still unclear what
the Facebook exposure is worth.
"A
fight that was previously dark is now getting seen by potentially
millions of people. It may take time for the industry to sort
out and assign that a value, but it will happen," McMahon
said. "It just hasn't really happened yet."
As
with any new medium, some companies value it more than others,
and some say they actually prefer to sponsor fighters on the
Facebook fights. For one thing, McMahon pointed out, prelim fighters
usually demand a significantly lower price tag than those in
the main event. But it's not just about bargain-shopping, he
said.
"Maybe
I'm a company that has a call to action in my ad that takes someone
to a website. Someone at a fight or watching at a sports bar
won't be able to jump on a computer, but if you're watching it
on a computer, you're a lot more likely to do it."
The
end result is not only more fights for fans, but more money for
fighters. The UFC's deal with FOX has the potential to do the
same thing on an even greater level when it brings UFC fights
to network TV, but in the end it may not jack up prices on existing
sponsors the way many are expecting.
"MMA
sponsors, they've already assigned value" to UFC events,
McMahon said. "There's some horse trading that goes on,
but they have an idea of value that's been already established."
Instead,
bringing fights to FOX could expand the pool of potential sponsors,
giving agents more opportunities to sign new deals.
"The
real value of having a fighter on that FOX main card is going
to be getting those sponsors that want to be on FOX anyway, but
aren't MMA sponsors," said McMahon. "Trust me, any
manager worth his salt is already looking at the companies that
sponsor heavily on FOX and are already looking at pitches for
their guys, should they end up on a FOX card. I guarantee you
we have."
The
Bottom Line
When
fans look at the official reported payouts for any given event,
they aren't seeing a true accounting of what each fighter made.
The UFC's "locker room bonuses" aside, sponsor pay
accounts for such a large portion of fighters' income that most
make at least as much from their sponsors as they do from the
promotion that employs them.
As
middleweight Tim Kennedy found out once Zuffa purchased Strikeforce
and the tax left him suddenly without any sponsors, that's a
financial strategy that is not without risk.
"It's
a pretty gigantic problem," he said before his fight with
Robbie Lawler in June. "Half of my income was pretty much
just [sponsors]. It'd be like, whatever your salary is at AOL,
they said, 'We're just going to pay you half of that now.'"
The
tax may have shrunken the pool of sponsors, but the increasing
popularity of MMA and the UFC has led to higher payouts from
those that are still in the game, said Albrecht.
"I've
said for a couple years that it's going to get tougher, but the
numbers are going to get bigger. It's going to get more crowded
in the agency business, but the pay-off is going to get bigger."
As
McMahon explained, that's the only way some fighters scrape by
in their first few fights with the UFC, which requires full-time
work to be successful, but doesn't always pay full-time wages
to prelim performers.
"Even
though guys just starting out aren't making a ton of money in
that first contract, they can still make a decent living through
sponsors, and it's by virtue of being in the UFC and having that
exposure," said McMahon. "That's worth a lot more to
sponsors than being on a regional card that gets shown on HDNet.
You're in the best promotion in the world, and there's some value
that goes with that."
In
the end, the value comes from the fans, who probably put the
least thought into the whole situation. They're the ones who
are the potential customers that every sponsor hopes to reach.
As long as they're watching, sponsors are paying. And as long
as sponsors are paying, fighters (and agents) are smiling.
Source:
MMA Fighting
|
Jake
Ellenberger Doesn’t Buy the Hype; Ready to Topple Jake Shields
by Damon
Martin
On
the day that Jake Shields signed his contract to become a fighter
in the UFC, Jake Ellenberger was already picking up the phone
to try and be the first to face him.
Having
already fought in the UFC a few times himself, Ellenberger looked
at Shields as a challenge, especially coming off his win over
Dan Henderson, but also looked at him as someone that he knew
he could beat.
See,
Jake Ellenberger never believed Jake Shields was as good as some
people thought he was, and he had the idea to stop the hype train
before it went any further.
“I
just never really believed it. Jake Shields is the best middleweight
in the world, the best welterweight in the world, like I never
believed it,” Ellenberger told MMAWeekly Radio. “He
has beat some very tough opponents, but it’s nothing personal
against him, he’s probably a great guy. I’m sure we
could be friends afterwards, but I was just never sold on him.”
Looking
at his past fights, Ellenberger gives Shields credit for the
wins, but believes that it was just as much about the right time
and right place as it was for how he won those matches.
“He
is really good at what he does; he’s a control guy. He’s
not real dangerous. He’s definitely a top-level grappler,
but when I saw him fight Dan Henderson, Jason ‘Mayhem’
Miller, there’s a lot of holes in his game. He does what
he needs to win,” said Ellenberger.
“He
catches Dan (Henderson) on a bad fight, Dan being injured and
stuff, I’m just intrigued by the match-up. It’s definitely
motivated me to push myself just to get there.”
Top-level
grappler could almost be an insult to Shields, who is a Brazilian
Jiu-Jitsu black belt and has dominated several opponents the
moment the fight hits the mat. Ellenberger knows how good Shields
is when he gets the fight to the ground, but first he has to
get it there.
If
Shields is fortunate enough to get the fight to the ground, Ellenberger
says he’s just as confident there as he is anywhere and
it’s his opponent that should be the one worrying.
“I’ve
never been one to worry about what my opponents are going to
do. I’m worried about how I’m going to execute. For
me being able to control where this fight goes is going to be
a big factor on this fight, and I have complete confidence that
I’m going to be able to do that,” Ellenberger stated.
Looking
at the rankings, Shields is still rated as a top five welterweight
and has a spot near the top that Ellenberger covets.
It’s
for that reason and that reason alone that Ellenberger wanted
this fight. He wants to get closer to the title, and the best
way to do that is to challenge and then defeat a fighter the
caliber of Jake Shields.
“This
is a very selfish sport and I want to be at the top,” said
Ellenberger. “To be honest, at the time he was where I wanted
to be. That’s just a guy I want to take out, and I get to
prove it this weekend.”
With
his life now moved to California where he works alongside fighters
at the Reign Training Center, Ellenberger is confident that this
is the best he’s ever been. He’s confident that he’s
going to get his title shot, and he’s definitely confident
that he’s going to beat Jake Shields.
“I
really believe it’s my time,” Ellenberger stated.
He’ll
get the chance to prove that in the main event of UFC Fight Night
25 this weekend in New Orleans.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Cassiano
wobbles Pé de Chumbo and snags guillotine
Outside
the arena, UFC warriors like Rogério Minotouro and Fabio
Maldonado. In it, gladiators still looking to carve out a place
for themselves in Brazil and abroad. From the looks of what went
down last Friday night at Coliseu Extreme Fight, some of them
are on the cusp of doing so.
That’s
the case of hometown boy Thiago Jambo, who won an evenly-matched
affair with Daniel “Hiena”, and Cassiano Tytschyo,
22, who managed to outdo the seasoned Delson Pé de Chumbo
in their welterweight bout.
Tytschyo
landed a hook that dropped Pé groggy on the ground. He
then pulled one from Rousimar Palhares’s book and started
celebrating before an end had been called to the fight. Back
at it, Pé lunged for a double-leg takedown that left his
neck prime pickings for the snug guillotine that ended the fight.
In
the under-84kg GP semifinals, Rodrigão caught André
Lobato with an arm-and-neck choke. Then, Xande Macaco overcame
Jonas Bueno by technical knockout, earning him the promotional
belt, as Rodrigão had to pull out of the GP final due
to an injured rib.
In
the lightweight title fight, Paulo Bananada defeated João
Prudêncio for the title and win bonus. The information
was provided by Breno Airan, from the website of local newspaper
“Tribuna Independente.”
Source:
Gracie Magazine
|
Kurt
Angle explains why imitating Fedor is impossible
By Zach
Arnold
“Fedor,
he always has this smile on his face, you don’t know if
he’s mad or happy. I can tell you this — when I was
casting for [the movie], they tried at least 48, 49 different
fighters and actors. They couldn’t get the right look and
if they did the person was full of tattoos, so thank God I was
at the right place at the right time. I was near the end of the
line where they were going to just settle for somebody. I came
in, I blew them away with my sparring, my technique, my striking,
and my takedowns, thank God. Then they… I knew where they
were going when they said we want you to be a Russian fighter
named Koba that shows no emotion. I’m like, Fedor. So they
asked me some questions. They said, how much you weigh? I said
230. They said, can you lose 30 pounds? I said yeah, sure. They
said, can you not tan for a couple of months because obviously
Fedor is pale. And they also asked me if I had any tattoos and
I thought, well, Fedor doesn’t have tattoos. “No, I
don’t,” and I lied, I have one on my back. So, thank
God, in the movie they covered it up.
“But
what I did is I studied tapes of Fedor and he’s… you’d
think it would be easy because he really doesn’t show any
emotion but I couldn’t figure him out. Like, he’s getting
ready to fight, he has a little cracked smile like… you
know, it just stays like that. And, I’m like, they want
me to be this guy, I’ll try to be him but me because I can’t
figure this guy out, he’s too complex.
“But,
yeah, they based it off of Fedor and, at the time, he was undefeated
besides the fight where he got the cut so he was a lot more popular
at that point, this was two years ago, two and a half years ago
when we filmed it. So, yeah, I lost the weight, quit tanning,
I learned the techniques. The great thing about being a pro-wrestler,
thank God, is that I could learn the choreography 30 times faster
than other fighters, I learned the choreography like that and
they were worried about that because I had to be on the road
4-5 days a week wrestling and I was only there limitedly so I
promised them that I would learn the technique very quickly and
I did. So, they were very impressed by that.
“I’m
just happy to be a part of this movie. I knew it would be a huge
success but I didn’t know it was going to be this big.”
As
to his reaction on getting some of his speaking scenes cut:
“I
understand now, Fedor doesn’t interviews and… they
had me learn Russian and I learned it for three months and I
did it very well, thank God, but I think they went back and said,
you know what, Fedor doesn’t talk, let’s pull that
out. I was a little sad, you know, it’s like, oh man…
His
personal thoughts on the upcoming Brock Lesnar/Alistair Overeem
fight at the end of 2011:
“I
have a lot of respect for Brock. I think that in any fight he’s
in he has a chance. You don’t realize how strong and how
athletic Brock Lesnar is until you get in that ring with him.
I’ve sparred with him in real wrestling. I’m not going
to tell you who won, I’ll say I was very happy with the
outcome. But I’m a much more experienced wrestler. Brock
Lesnar is the best athlete over 250 (pounds) that I’ve ever
seen in my life. He benches over 600 pounds, I’ve seen him
squat over 1,000 pounds. This guy is an animal, so you can’t
say that he has no chance. He always has a chance and, you know
what, he can take a punch. Of course, he’s gotten knocked
down and he’s got knocked out, but he can take a punch.
The guy’s an animal, so he has a shot every time he goes
out there and I wish him the best.”
Here’s
a bonus clip of BJ Penn talking about finding a ‘perfect’
fight in MMA (he says he hasn’t had it, yet) or the perfect
fighter (he says all the top fighters are flawed). Very interesting
interview.
As
for whether or not Nick Diaz has really, truly agreed to fight
BJ Penn… depends what media outlet you read, but the general
consensus is that, as of this moment, nothing has been signed.
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
Undefeated
prospect Rodrigo Ratinho signs with Bellator
By Marcelo
Barone
The
Brazilian squad in Bellator keeps enlarging. Rodrigo “Ratinho”
Lima is the newest member of the American event. He signed a
two-year contract with three bouts last week. The athlete of
Tata Fight Team (TF) will debut in January, but he still doesn’t
know who he’ll fight.
On
a firsthand chat with TATAME, the so far undefeated Rodrigo,
who won nine times, commented on his agreement with Bellator,
event on which he’ll do his first international bout.
“I
was really glad. I’m coming from a 9-win streak and I’ll
do my best to be in there, remain alive on the event and bring
much happiness for those who cheer for me”, said the tough
guy, who trains Jiu-Jitsu along with Janderson “Pochete”,
Boxing with Cesario Bezerra, and Muay Thai at TFT.
Out
of the nine wins conquered by Ratinho, only two were decided
by the judges, and the others were finished by knockouts or submissions,
just like what happened on his last time on the rings, against
Jeferson Hall, in WOCS. The featherweight hopes to do it again,
now abroad, in 2012.
“I
guess everyone in the event are good fighters, but I’ll
get there without knowing who I’m fighting against. I’ll
be cool against anyone. I’m coming to stay. Everyone is
good, but if I’m also there it means I’m good too.
In my weight division everyone is strong. I know tough guys like
Eduardo Dantas, (Carlos Alberto) Betao, among others. I’ll
be prepared”, said, complementing.
“I’m
20 years old and the fans can hope to see an aggressive fighter.
I’ll get there to knockout or submit, as I’ve always
done when I fought in Brazil. People will like me because I’m
coming to stay and I’ll play it hard. I’m a BJJ brown
belt, and I got much to learn from coach ‘Pochete’,
but I’ll focus my prep on Boxing and Wrestling. On the United
States there are great wrestlers and I’ll get there prepared
to fight anywhere. I’m coming to finish them”.
Source:
Tatame
|
Strikeforce
HWGP Semifinals Draws 274K Viewers on Showtime
by Mike
Whitman
Strikeforce
ratings dropped sharply on Saturday night, as the promotion’s
Showtime-televised heavyweight grand prix semifinals drew an
average of 274,000 viewers.
Sherdog.com
obtained the figure Tuesday from an industry source who also
confirmed that the program, which aired from 10:35 p.m. to 12:55
a.m. ET, earned demographic ratings of 1.04 and 1.17 in the coveted
Male 18-49 and M18-35 categories, respectively.
News
of the ratings stumble comes on the heels of a strong Strikeforce
showing in July, which saw the promotion earn 571,000 viewers
for its Showtime broadcast of “Fedor vs. Henderson.”
Comparatively, Strikeforce’s most recent offering is down
52 percent in average viewership. The 274,000 average viewers
mark the second-smallest television audience in the promotion’s
history on Showtime. Only Strikeforce’s “Los Angeles”
in June 2010 ranked lower with 164,000 viewers.
Featuring
both heavyweight grand prix semifinals, the event emanated from
U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati. In the first featured semifinal
contest, Daniel Cormier outstruck Antonio Silva, dissecting his
larger opponent en route to a first-round knockout. Josh Barnett
also earned a finals berth in impressive fashion on Saturday,
as “The Warmaster” took down Sergei Kharitonov and
locked up an arm-triangle choke to seal the deal in the first
frame. The heavyweight grand prix final is expected to go down
sometime in early 2012.
Source
Sherdog
|
Daniel
Cormier on the Shelf After Confirming Broken Hand
by Damon
Martin
Saturday
night in Cincinnati ended up being a great victory for Daniel
Cormier, but it also cost him because now the former Olympian
is on the shelf with a broken hand.
Cormier
confirmed the news via his Twitter account on Monday.
“Just
got done seeing doctor, hand is broken,” Cormier wrote.
“Will be on the shelf for a while. Still looking forward
to finishing tourney.”
Cormier
defeated Antonio ‘Bigfoot’ Silva via TKO, but when
talking to MMAWeekly.com on Saturday night he stated he thought
the hand got hurt on the very first punch in the fight.
“I
hurt my right hand with the very first right hand I hit him with,”
said Cormier. “Like I hit him as hard as I could, and you
know people were making fun of me during the Jeff Monson fight
for not following through and that’s why. That’s how
you break your hand.”
Currently,
the finals for the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix have not
been scheduled yet, but previously Strikeforce official Scott
Coker had stated they were targeting early 2012 for the fight.
Cormier
will likely be out of training for several weeks while the hand
heals up, but time will only tell how long and if he’ll
be able to compete when the finals happen next year.
If
the hand is recovered in time, Cormier will face former UFC heavyweight
champion Josh Barnett in the finals of the Grand Prix.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Bellator
49 Results: Welterweights Whittled Down to Four Semifinalists
ATLANTIC
CITY, N.J. – Returning to the boardwalk to open Bellator’s
highly anticipated fifth season, the promotion hosted an explosive
night of fights as the Season 5 Welterweight Tournament kicked
off inside a packed house at Caesars. The first leg of the eight-man
tournament aired live on MTV2 and in HD on EPIX as Chris Lozano,
Ben Saunders, Luis Santos, and Douglas Lima all punched their
tickets to the Welterweight Semifinals. The next round will feature
Lima vs. Lozano and Saunders vs. Santos.
In
the night’s main event, Lozano and Weedman went right at
each other from the start, but it was Weedman who knocked down
Lozano during the first exchange. Weedman earned a knockdown
and a slam in the first round, but Lozano owned the next 10 minutes
with heavy-handed combinations and a solid ground game. Lozano
took over the fight and never looked back, winning by unanimous
decision, 29-28, on all three judges’ scorecards.
“That
was a war,” said Lozano after defeating Weedman. “I
was ready for a war, and Brent brought it, so I have to thank
him for the toughest fight of my life.”
Ben
“Killa-B” Saunders made quite a statement in his Bellator
debut against Matt Lee, but his TKO win at Bellator 49 sent a
bigger statement to opposing welterweights as it moved him one
step closer to a tournament championship and a world title shot.
Saunders
dominated his battle with Chris Cisneros, advancing on his feet
as well as the ground. He gained full mount on his opponent early
in their fight and never stopped moving forward, nearly ending
the match in the first round with a triangle choke. However,
once he applied a Muay Thai clinch to Cisneros in the third and
final round, it took just 29 seconds and three-to-four hard knees
to the head and body to force an end to their fight by TKO.
“I
didn’t get to watch the other fights because I was too busy
getting in the zone,” Saunders said. “But I’m
looking forward to getting through the next round and on to the
finals so I can bring back one of my best weapons,” Saunders
said while he waived his elbow at the crowd.
Fan
favorite Dan “The Handler” Hornbuckle entered his third
Bellator Welterweight Tournament and while he may have made it
to the finals opposite Ben Askren his first time around, the
last two seasons he hasn’t made it out of the quarterfinals.
This time it was Luis Santos standing in his way and while Hornbuckle
may be a great striker and an excellent submission specialist,
Santos had his number. He out-struck Hornbuckle on his feet while
setting up plenty of kicks with an offensive barrage. Santos
also took “The Handler” to the mat more than once to
earn a unanimous decision and his 50th career victory. Santos
looks to pose big problems for the remaining welterweights in
this eight-man tournament.
Douglas
Lima was victorious in his Bellator debut as he defeated Steve
Carl by unanimous decision in the quarterfinals. Carl was in
it until the very end, attempting a triangle in the first round
and finishing the third on top, but Lima dictated the pace of
the fight. He out-struck Carl and took him down often spending
the majority of each round on top and in dominant position.
“The
final four in this Tournament are hugely talented fighters and
any one of the four could win this whole thing,” said Bellator
Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney. “The Lozano-Weedman fight
was really spectacular and Saunders looked great as well. I can’t
wait to see these guys back in the cage on Oct. 8.”
Bellator
also announced a highly anticipated fight between long time UFC
veteran Kurt Pellegrino and Patricky Pitbull, which will take
at Bellator 59 back at Caesars on November 26th.
Bellator
Fighting Championships will also return to New Jersey on Oct.
15 for Bellator 54 as Bellator Lightweight Champion Eddie Alvarez
takes on the Season 4 Lightweight Tournament winner Michael Chandler
inside of Atlantic City’s Boardwalk Hall.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Review:
'Warrior'
“This is a truly stellar fight movie, and perhaps destined
to go down as one of the greats.”
By William Bibbiani
You want to hear a good idea for a fight movie? Here’s one:
a tortured loner returns home from the war and reunites with
his estranged alcoholic father to enter a fighting tournament
and prove his own self-worth. Want another good one? A decent
family man with an estranged alcoholic father enters a fighting
tournament to win the money he needs to keep his home. Do you
want to hear a great idea for a fight movie? Both of those guys
have the same father.
In
a somewhat large nutshell, that’s Warrior. Two familiar
but dramatically successful storylines jammed together without
irony. With genuinely powerful performances from Tom Hardy and
Joel Edgerton, this clever idea for a fight movie earns its place
as one of the better films in an already great year for movie
lovers. What it lacks in subtlety – because in all fairness,
there’s none whatsoever – it makes up for with sincerity
and dramatic chutzpah.
Tom
Hardy continues his string of “Where The Hell Did This Guy
Come From?” standout performances as a pit bull of a man
who shows up on his father’s doorstep out of the blue to
confront the hopeless alcoholic who ruined his and his mother’s
lives. Joel Edgerton follows a memorable but all-too-brief turn
in Animal Kingdom with a sympathetic portrayal of a science teacher
forced to moonlight as an amateur MMA fighter to make ends meet.
Nick Nolte plays Edgerton’s and Hardy’s father as a
man who, surprisingly, is getting his life together. But it’s
too little, far too late for both of his damaged boys, whose
own strained relationship reaches a breaking point when they
both enter the same fighting tournament.
There
are villains in Warrior, but they are side characters: obstacles
to be overcome before the inevitable confrontation between two
genuine heroes. Both Hardy and Edgerton are stars in their own
life-affirming stories, but the outcome of the film cannot favor
both of them. There is a winner, there is a loser, and the journey
there is fraught with emotional and physical peril that would
lay waste to lesser characters.
It’s
that very bigness that almost topples Warrior under its own weight.
There are no knowing winks at the audience, and although the
characters each have their own melodramatic crescendos they are
all played thoroughly straight. It’s almost surprising to
see how effective this kind of movie can be the filmmakers take
it utterly seriously, although there are times when its nuts
and bolts filmmaking approach approaches cliché. Luckily,
director Gavin O’Connor always pulls back just in time to
prevent the film from accidentally turning comical. And the no-nonsense
fight choreography is shot with a refreshing lack of post-production
trickery. Every punch feels real, and indeed can be felt by the
audience. “Oohs” and “Ouches” and “Dear
Gods” could be heard throughout the theater at almost every
impact, much of the time coming from me.
Warrior
isn’t “about” much, thematically. It’s about
a small cadre of men with supercharged motivations all seeking
the same goals: the grand prize and, of course, redemption. The
movie oversells the point, but all the characters are Captain
Ahabs and also White Whales, obsessed with toppling each other
and incapable of stopping themselves no matter what the cost.
And somehow it works incredibly well. Both competing storylines
end just the way they should, for better and worse, and the audience
feels at the end like we just took a journey that meant something,
if only to the people involved. Fortunately, they’re captivating
enough that it’s sufficient. This is a truly stellar fight
movie, and perhaps destined to go down as one of the greats.
Source:
Sherdog/Crave Online
|
Without
Overeem, Lesnar, Nogueira & other top names, who can draw
big for UFC Japan?
By Zach
Arnold
I
wanted to get to this radio discussion about UFC’s return
to Japan. On the majority of MMA radio programs I’ve listened
to in the last couple of days, I would say that the majority
of them spent five minutes or less talking about UFC’s booking
of Saitama Super Arena. UFC, purposely or inadvertently, ended
up pushing that story to the backburner by announcing Brock Lesnar
vs. Alistair Overeem for December 30th. What’s interesting
about that fight is not only the timing but also the location.
Will that fight happen in Abu Dhabi? I’m sure Brock would
love that travel plan! More importantly, it basically ices out
two guys who UFC could have used for the 2/26 Saitama event.
On
Wednesday, all hell broke loose with Nick Diaz going AWOL. If
UFC wants to keep Diaz around, he would be an interesting fit
for the Saitama show because he is known by the DREAM fans. The
promotion also announced Frank Mir vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
for their next Toronto show coming up in December. That eliminates
Nogueira from fighting on the Japanese card, something that he
said he had wanted to do. However, he also wanted to fight Mir
again.
With
Lesnar, Mir, Nogueira, and Overeem not available for Saitama,
it puts UFC in a difficult position in regards to who they can
book from their roster to pop a big house at SSA. Here is Jordan
Breen’s take on how the show may play out:
“I
don’t think it’s going to be any kind of major success.
We had Zach Arnold from Fight Opinion on Press Row a few weeks
back and we discussed this idea… it’s an interesting
move but the way Zach Arnold and I painted it was largely a vanity
show. This is about the neuroses of Dana White, Lorenzo Fertitta,
and everyone else really wanting to stick it to this idea that
they couldn’t make it in Japan, that it’s sort of this
alien world that they’re just not welcome in. They want
to colonize it in a way that they’d colonized everything
with the UFC. So, we’ll see if they can fill up Saitama
Super Arena. I wouldn’t be shocked if they actually changed
venues to some extent. Obviously they have to be in the Kanto
region around Tokyo & Yokohama to really cash in on the volume
of people and the MMA heartland there. However, filling up 20,000
seats is tough and unless they want to flip to the Saitama Super
Arena community hall which is like a couple of thousands people
which would be an ignominious and sad show for them, I don’t
know how well it’s going to go.
“And
the other thing I mentioned is Japan, like any other place, has
hardcore MMA fans. I mean, they’re going to be able to sell
some tickets but the question is what kind of larger impact is
it going to have? Because I would say, in a way, this could be
like the anti-UFC Rio in as much as even if it sold well and
even if it did a decent gate, I don’t know how much the
impact is as, again, for reasons that Zach Arnold and I really
poured over in that Press Row segment. There’s a lot of
things with the UFC product that doesn’t lend itself well
to Japan. Obviously, they want this to be a Trojan horse type
effort but I just don’t know how well it’s going to
go. I mean, you even look at the most basic set-ups. They do
this press conference in Shinjuku to announce this and Zuffa’s
Asian foremost guy is still Mark Fischer. Japanese people don’t
see this as a Japanese company. A Japanese figurehead for this
role might even be a good way to do that and that’s something
they haven’t even been able to do. So, I’m skeptical
about the actual success of the card on the whole.
“But,
as far as actual card quality, I imagine it will look similar
to the Australian & European cards, very similar to the Australian
card. Obviously, there will be more Japanese guys. I don’t
know if you’ll get a Japanese guy in every fight similar
to the dynamic you had at UFC Rio, but I do think you’ll
get a bit more of that. I do think you’ll end up in a place
where, you know, you might even get at UFC Rio where there are
some late replacements or they’re trying to sign new talent.
You might even get some underwhelming Japanese guys in there
to try to just bump up the card. On top of that, consider that
you look at local cards in Japan or some of Sengoku’s more
richly attended cards, a lot of cards in Japan are driven by
individual fighters who might be able to sell 500, 600, 700,
maybe a couple of thousand tickets themselves and you’d
think it would be stars but it’s often not. There’s
often popular local guys who, through their gym, through their
community efforts, [sell tickets.]”
Mike
Tyson at the Tokyo Dome vs. UFC at Saitama Super Arena
At
that point in the discussion, it led to Jordan bringing up the
ridiculous 10 AM start time for the show. I’ve called it
an insulting gesture towards the Japanese fans and I wholeheartedly
stand by that comment. Jordan noted that the Mike Tyson/Buster
Douglas fight from the Tokyo Dome started at 9 AM Japanese time
so that it could air in the States on a Saturday night. His assertion
is accurate. However, the comparison of Mike Tyson’s fight
at the Tokyo Dome compared to UFC’s run at Saitama Super
Arena is like comparing apples to oranges.
For
starters, Mike Tyson was the biggest fight attraction to come
to Japan since Muhammad Ali fought Antonio Inoki in 1976 at Nippon
Budokan. Tyson was the scariest man on the planet and Nintendo
had him in their Punchout game. Nobody on UFC’s roster is
remotely close to having the star power of Mike Tyson and nobody
in MMA currently is on Tyson’s 1990 popularity level.
For
all the talk about what a success the Tyson fight with Buster
Douglas was, keep in mind that the Tokyo Dome was about half-filled
for the bout. This, despite the fact that the fight industry
was blistering hot at the time for business and the Tokyo Dome
was still a relatively new building to promote big events in.
Starting in ‘89, New Japan and All Japan had some heavy
shows there. Hulk Hogan vs. Gen’ichiro Tenryu in December
of 1991 at the Tokyo Dome drew a huge crowd (even if Megane Super
had comped a bunch through tickets given in eyeglass packages).
Hogan was nowhere near Tyson’s level of popularity in Japan
and yet outdrew him at the Dome.
Furthermore,
the strength of the Japanese media in 1990-1991 versus today
is like night and day. The magazine industry was booming along
with the newspapers and Tyson’s fight aired live on Japanese
TV. UFC heads into a market in 2012 where the fight magazine
industry is holding on by a thread while the newspaper industry
is still doing well but has cooled off in covering MMA on a significant
level after PRIDE’s demise and the contraction of K-1.
Matchmaking
options
Which
leads us to the question of what UFC will do in terms of booking
for the Saitama event. If UFC treats this event like they have
for UK & Australia events, they’re going to be in for
a rude awakening on a large scale. This is the kind of show where
they need multiple fights on the level of Kazushi Sakuraba vs.
BJ Penn in order to grab the attention of the public.
Jordan
hinted on his radio show that if the UFC Japan show isn’t
going to draw well in the first place, then it’s better
favor fight quality over booking former PRIDE legends in the
top spots.
“As
for Hatsu Hioki, him challenging for the (UFC Featherweight)
title is not beyond the scope of comparison. Obviously, the Mark
Hominick example is a good one. And Chad Mendes, even though
he’s kind of, you know, Johnny-on-the-spot waiting for his
title shot, UFC didn’t come away particularly impressed
with what he did against Rani Yahya. If Hatsu Hioki was really
able to blow away George Roop, I wouldn’t be shocked to
see them go forward with a headliner similar to that.
“It
it ends up being something like Jose Aldo/Hioki, it would be
a good thing for like a Fox card or even the FX kind of range
because basically what you’re doing is you’re taking
a developing star, a guy who has real chops to be a legitimate
MMA superstar based on his appeal, his charisma, his incredible
fighting style and despite the fact that he doesn’t really
draw quite yet. Aldo is still having to be anchored to larger
champions and people that draw eyeballs anyway. It’s going
to be a process and that’s process isn’t going to be
over by February, so I think that might be a nice note to hit
and obviously Hatsu Hioki/Jose Aldo, if they were able to build
to it, I think would represent the most interesting and significant
Featherweight fight that you’d probably have in MMA so far.
Very, very exciting thing to look forward to and if you’re
a Japanese MMA fan or someone who would make the trip for that
card, you should be crossing your fingers and hoping for it because,
otherwise, whatever main event you end up with might be Nogueira/Cro
Cop, something nostalgic but not something of the highest relevance
of necessarily the highest excitement. Whereas something like
Hioki/Aldo could actually maybe provide that.”
Scarily,
Mirko is the biggest drawing card they have left (outside of
Josh Barnett) for the Saitama show the way things stand pending
the matchmaking on other UFC cards. DREAM & K-1 often booked
guys like Katsuyori Shibata to fill up the cards against the
Satoshi Ishiis of the world to try to generate some buzz. Jordan’s
not too optimistic on this as a good matchmaking idea.
“I
don’t think people realize like how big the divide is at
times between just like, like a dude like (Katsuyori) Shibata
who can come in and throw some [haymakers] and even get offense
going sometimes in fights, against dudes that can actually fight.
Like, for instance, if I asked you like who was going to win,
James Head or Katsuyori Shibata, you’d probably say James
Head and you’d be right, by the way. And then, think about
like how James Head got beat within an inch of his life by Nick
Ring, a guy that is kind of seen like a pacifist cuddly grappler
at 185 pounds. Nick Ring like beat this dude within an inch of
his life and humiliated him in the Octagon. Like what would happen
to a guy like Shibata against someone who could actually fight
in the UFC? It would be open season in the most of brutal ways
if he didn’t go unconscious within 30 seconds.
“And
I do expect to see some Japan-on-Japan fights because I think
they will be mindful of not wanting to architect a card where
just every Japanese dude gets wiped out. So, I do think there
will be… I don’t think it will be like top-to-bottom
just like wipeouts or anything like that, but I do think you’ll
see a decent amount of Japan-on-Japan and guys getting slightly
favorable match-ups. I think they will be mindful of what would
happen if just Japanese dudes went like 0-10 on the card or something
like that.”
Our
friend Dan Herbertson was floating names like Eiji Mitsuoka out
today for the UFC Japan show. That would be disastrous on a business
level if they filled up fights with guys like him because that’s
Pancrase-level business right there waiting to happen. I made
an appearance on Mauro Ranallo’s radio show on Tuesday afternoon
to quickly give my thoughts on how things may play out for this
event.
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
Anderson
Silva Likely Won't Fight Again Until Early Next Year
By Ariel
Helwani
Anderson Silva's injured shoulder will most likely keep him out
until early 2012, Silva's manager Ed Soares informed MMA Fighting
on Saturday night.
Silva
injured his shoulder in training for his UFC 134 fight against
Yushin Okami last month, which he won via second-round TKO. There
was some fear within his camp that he would have to undergo surgery,
but Soares said Silva will simply need rehab to heal it.
"A
month before the fight I injured my shoulder while training with
Junior dos Santos and I was feeling a lot of pain in Rio. I've
had to take some medicine and warn the athletic commission about
it," said Silva recently to Tatame. "I've talked to
my doctors. I had an MRI and then I started feeling pains in
my shoulder but the doctors let me go and said it was not that
serious. It's a small injury, but I guess it's on the cuff and
bothers me. I'll rest for a while and get healed."
Soares
said he was hoping Silva would be ready to defend his middleweight
title again in the first quarter of 2012.
No
opponent has been set for Silva's return, but we may get some
answers next month when Chael Sonnen meets Brian Stann at UFC
136 in Houston.
Source:
MMA Fighting
|
Strikeforce
Results: Pat Healy Subs Maximo Blanco in Main Card Opener
by Erik
Fontanez
Pat
“Bam Bam” Healy won the opening fight of the Strikeforce
card in Cincinnati with a second round stoppage over Maximo Blanco.
Healy
sunk in the rear naked choke late the second stanza and improved
his MMA record to 26-16, overall.
Blanco
began the first round aggressively, and took Healy down to the
mat where he landed a few elbows. After getting back to the feet,
Blanco continued the aggressive approach and landed a mix of
kicks and punches on his opponent. The fight went back to the
ground where Healy tried to go for an toe hold, but Blanco repeatedly
kicked his downed opponent in the face, which put a halt to the
action by the referee. After doctors checked Healy, Blanco had
a point deducted and the fight resumed. Blanco continued pressing
Healy, but the fight went to the ground and Healy landed shots
from behind until the end of the round.
Round
two had both fighters trading shots early. A stiff jab by Healy
dropped Blanco and the fight went to the mat, again. Healy tried
to sink a choke, but Blanco escaped and they stood, once again.
Another couple takedowns by Healy led to a choke on his opponent.
A short while later, Blacno was forced to tap and the fight was
called late in the second frame.
The
stoppage came at 4:24 of the round.
Healy
gets the 14th submission win of his career, and does so at the
same time as spoiling Blanco’s Strikeforce debut.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Belfort
ready to square off with another knockout master
The fastest hands in the UFC against the swiftest kicks in MMA.
That’s how one could sell Vitor Belfort’s next fight,
if a mathup with Strikeforce star Cung Le does in fact come to
pass. According to the Brazilian himself in a post on his website
today, the fight with the Northern California-based Le will go
down at the November 19 UFC 139 show in San Jose, California.
The
bout would mark UFC debut appearance of the exciting Le, who
has been in Jean-Claude Van Damme movies and is ever more famous
in the USA.
And
the matchup makes sense. After putting away Akiyama, Vitor Belfort
said he wanted another shot at Anderson Silva’s title, but
it still seemed a bit early for that. Besides, there are already
those with their place ahead of him in line, like Dan Henderson
and Chael Sonnen. At the pre-UFC Rio events a movement got underway
to pit Belfort against Sonnen, who hasn’t fought since being
suspended after facing champion Silva in 2010.
UFC
139
San Jose, California
Saturday, November 19, 2011
Vitor
Belfort vs Cung Le
Urijah Faber vs Brian Bowles
Tom Lawlor vs Chris Weidman
Gleison Tibau vs Rafael Dos Anjos
Ryan Bader vs Jason Brilz
Stephan Bonnar vs Kyle Kingsbury
Martin Kampmann vs Rick Story
Source:
Gracie Magazine
|
Nick
Diaz: “Looks like someone doesn’t want me to win!”;
UFC gives him BJ Penn fight
By Zach
Arnold
“Another
Youtube video… driving back, um, from… whoa, whoa,
whoa, whoa… let me trying to get back to Stockton here…
“(To
another driver) YOUR MOTHER!
“Trying
to get back to Stockton here, I was in San Francisco at the last
minute trying to get on a airplane this morning to go to a press
conference for the UFC… wanted me to fight for the title
against Georges St. Pierre and now they’re telling me that
they’re going to give the fight to Carlos Condit… which
I think is ridiculous and Georges thinks its a great idea because
Carlos Condit poses an even greater threat, so… I guess
that just leaves me out… fighting one second I’m, um…
I’m about to come into some money doing a little bit of
boxing, you know… probably lose some teeth but I’m
ready to get paid, you know… so I’ll fight whoever
and whatever and anything, you know, I’d definitely rather
fight GSP of course, but… I was ready to do some boxing
and they didn’t like that so they got me OUT of that and
they got me into a fight with GSP for, you know, same money or
more money or whatever but now it looks like they get to save
money and I don’t get paid and locked in a new contract,
all these dealmakers making deals, you know… all I know
is I’m ready to fight, so… you know, I’m sorry
I didn’t make it to the beauty pageant but, you know, I’ve
never not showed up to a fight and, um… I’ve never
backed out of a fight in my life, that’s not what I do,
so I just wanted to throw all of that out there and… I don’t
know… you know, I’m ready to fight and I think that,
uh… this is pretty much done here… so, peace out.”
Carlos
Condit will now face Georges St. Pierre on October 29th in Las
Vegas. The news of Diaz getting yanked out of the fight with
St. Pierre was all over the Bay Area news headlines on TV Tuesday
night.
On
Wednesday night, Dana White said that he was going to give fans
the fight ‘they wanted’ and booked BJ Penn vs. Nick
Diaz as the semi-main event for UFC 137.
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
MMA's
All-Time Heavyweights
They
are the giants of full-contact fighting, the men who populate
the heavyweight division. No other weight class provides a wider
spectrum in terms of size, skill and personality. It has given
rise to some of the sport’s most revered figures and some
of its most hated characters. Together, they defined a generation
with toughness, technique and a flair for the dramatic. They
made us laugh, and they made us cry.
In
conjunction with the 2011 Strikeforce heavyweight grand prix,
which continues with the semifinals on Saturday in Cincinnati
(Showtime 10 ET/PT), Sherdog.com has compiled its list of the
10 greatest heavyweight mixed martial artists of all-time. Members
of the Sherdog editorial team -- Managing Editor Mike Fridley,
Features Editor Brian Knapp, Administrative Editor Jordan Breen,
News Editor Mike Whitman and Associate Editor Chris Nelson --
cast their votes for the Top 10 in a non-scientific poll sure
to stir debate. Fighters received 10 points for a first-place
vote, nine points for a second-place vote and so on. For each
of the next five days, Sherdog will reveal two fighters who made
the cut, beginning with No. 10 and No. 9, until the picture is
complete.
Without
question, this list will look far different in a few short years,
as the sport remains in a constant state of evolution, but, for
now, these are the men who have earned their heavyweight stripes.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
#1
- Fedor Emelianenko
Record: 31-4, 1 NC
Age: 34
Height: 6-foot
Weight: 223
Style: Sambo
Birthplace: Rubizhne, Ukraine
Poll Points: 50
Career
Notes: For the better part of a decade, he was untouchable, a
larger-than-life figure whose stoicism and humility masked a
ruthless competitor within. From Dec. 22, 2000 until June 26,
2010, Emelianenko was unbeaten in 28 appearances -- 27 victories
and a no contest. The most dominant and successful fighter in
the history of Pride Fighting Championships, he arrived in the
Japanese promotion in 2002 and passed every test set before him,
including wins over Brazilian great Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
(twice), UFC hall of famer Mark Coleman (twice), former UFC heavyweight
champion Kevin Randleman, four-time K-1 World Grand Prix winner
Semmy Schilt and 2006 Pride open weight grand prix winner Mirko
“Cro Cop” Filipovic. Emelianenko won the Pride heavyweight
title in March 2003, later unified it and remained champion until
the company sold out to the Ultimate Fighting Championship four
years later. Post-Pride, he defeated 2000 Olympic silver medalist
Matt Lindland, the 7-foot-2 Hong Man Choi and former UFC heavyweight
titleholders Tim Sylvia and Andrei Arlovski, finishing all four
of them in 3:14 or less. A three-time sambo world champion, Emelianenko
has delivered 24 of his 31 professional victories by knockout,
technical knockout or submission, 21 of them inside one round.
In more than 11 years of active MMA competition, he has never
lost a decision.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
#2
- Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
Record: 33-6-1, 1 NC
Age: 35
Height: 6-foot-3
Weight: 243
Style: Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Birthplace: Vitoria da Conquista, Bahia, Brazil
Poll Points: 45
Career
Notes: A picture of toughness, durability and perseverance, Nogueira
carved his career out of blood, bruises and an undying will.
The beloved 6-foot-3, 243-pound Brazilian -- who carries the
rank of black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and judo -- has delivered
more than half (20) of his 33 professional victories by submission.
Nogueira has defeated a veritable who’s who in combat sports
royalty: former UFC champions Mark Coleman, Ricco Rodriguez,
Tim Sylvia, Randy Couture and Josh Barnett, onetime two-division
Pride Fighting Championships titleholder Dan Henderson, 2006
Pride open weight grand prix winner Mirko “Cro Cop”
Filipovic, four-time K-1 World Grand Prix winner Semmy Schilt
and two-time Abu Dhabi Combat Club Submission Wrestling World
Championships gold medalist Fabricio Werdum. He captured the
Pride heavyweight title in November 2001, held it for more than
a year and later reached the semifinals of the 2006 Pride open
weight grand prix. In 41 professional appearances, Nogueira has
never lost back-to-back fights.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
#3
- Randy Couture
Record:
19-11
Age: 48
Height: 6-foot-1
Weight: 220
Style: Wrestling
Birthplace: Everett, Wash.
Poll Points: 39
Career
Notes: He was a real-life American hero. Couture entered mixed
martial arts at the advanced age of 33 in 1997 and proceeded
to put together a career of unprecedented achievement. A three-time
heavyweight champion and two-time light heavyweight titleholder,
he was the first man to capture UFC gold in two different weight
classes. An accomplished amateur wrestler, Couture was a two-time
NCAA finalist at Oklahoma State University and a three-time alternate
for the United States Olympic Team. He still holds the all-time
record for most appearances in UFC title bouts (15) and became
the oldest fighter ever to win a UFC championship when, at the
age of 43 years, 255 days, he lifted the heavyweight crown from
Tim Sylvia at UFC 68. Couture also helped establish two of the
most successful MMA training facilities -- Team Quest in Oregon
and Xtreme Couture Mixed Martial Arts in Las Vegas -- and parlayed
his MMA stardom into roles in mainstream movies and television
shows. He was inducted into the UFC hall of fame in 2006 but
did not retire from active competition until nearly five years
later.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
#4
- Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic
Record:
27-9-2, 1 NC
Age: 36
Height: 6-foot-2
Weight: 227
Style: Kickboxing
Birthplace: Vinkovci, Croatia
Poll Points: 30
Career
Notes: No weapon unleashed upon MMA has inspired more fear than
Filipovic’s left high kick, which felled former Pride Fighting
Championships middleweight titleholder Wanderlei Silva, 2000
Pride open weight grand prix finalist Igor Vovchanchyn, the 6-foot-6
Aleksander Emelianenko and moonlighting professional wrestlers
Dos Caras Jr. and Yuji Nagata. In his 39-fight career, Filipovic
has defeated three former UFC champions -- Josh Barnett (three
times), Mark Coleman and Kevin Randleman -- and an Olympic gold
medalist in Hidehiko Yoshida. He compiled a stellar 16-4-2 mark
inside Pride and won the Japanese promotion’s prestigious
2006 open weight grand prix; the loaded tournament field included
Barnett, Silva, Yoshida, Alistair Overeem, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
and Fabricio Werdum. Filipovic sports a staggering 20 first-round
finishes on his ledger. His August 2005 encounter with Fedor
Emelianenko, which resulted in a unanimous decision defeat, remains
one of the most-talked-about fights in MMA history.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
#6
- Frank Mir
Record:
15-5
Age: 32
Height: 6-foot-3
Weight: 260
Style: Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Birthplace: Las Vegas
Poll Points: 27
Career
Notes: No heavyweight has won more UFC bouts than Mir’s
13, which tie him for seventh on the all-time list; his 18 Octagon
appearances are also a record for heavyweights. A Brazilian jiu-jitsu
black belt, Mir won the UFC heavyweight championship at just
25 years of age in 2004, when he defeated Tim Sylvia by technical
submission at UFC 48 and snapped his foe’s forearm with
an armbar in the process. Nearly two months to the day later,
he was involved in a serious motorcycle accident that resulted
in a broken femur and almost ended his career in the cage. The
Las Vegan’s comeback was marred by forgettable, sometimes
painful, performances and lack of proper conditioning. However,
Mir returned to elite-level form in 2008, when he beat Brock
Lesnar and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira in one 10-month span and
was named Sherdog.com “Comeback Fighter of the Year.”
One of the sport’s most-potent offensive fighters, he has
10 first-round finishes to his credit, including 46-, 50-, 65-,
72- and 77-second stoppages. In addition to Lesnar, Nogueira
and Sylvia, Mir owns other noteworthy victories over former International
Fight League heavyweight champion Roy Nelson, 2006 Pride Fighting
Championships grand prix winner Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic
and David “Tank” Abbott.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
#8
- Mark Coleman
Record:
16-10
Age: 46
Height: 6-foot-1
Weight: 245
Style: Wrestling
Birthplace: Fremont, Ohio
Poll Points: 11
Career
Notes: Credited with introducing ground-and-pound to MMA, Coleman
won an NCAA national championship in wrestling at Ohio State
University and finished seventh at the 1992 Summer Olympics in
Barcelona, Spain. “The Godfather of Ground-and-Pound”
made a seamless transition to mixed martial arts, as he won his
first six fights in the UFC, all of them finishes. The tournament
winner at UFC 10 and UFC 11, he became the first heavyweight
champion in the promotion’s history in February 1997, when
he submitted Dan Severn with a first-round neck crank at UFC
12. Three years later, Coleman won the 2000 Pride Fighting Championships
open weight grand prix, snapping Igor Vovchanchyn’s 37-fight
unbeaten streak in the final. He was inducted into the UFC hall
of fame in March 2008.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
#9
- Cain Velasquez
Record:
9-0
Age: 29
Height: 6-foot-1
Weight: 244
Style: Wrestling
Birthplace: Salinas, Calif.
Poll Points: 10
Career
Notes: Arguably the crown jewel of the famed American Kickboxing
Academy, Velasquez captured the UFC heavyweight championship
in a one-sided technical knockout over Brock Lesnar at UFC 121
in October. A decorated amateur wrestler, he won a junior college
national championship as a freshman at Iowa Central Community
College and then moved on to Arizona State University, where
he became a two-time All-American and two-time Pac-10 Conference
champion. Known for supreme conditioning, pure technique and
savage ground-and-pound, Velasquez has finished eight of his
first nine foes, six of them inside one round. The 29-year-old
Salinas, Calif., native was named Sherdog.com’s “Fighter
of the Year” for 2010.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
#10
- Fabricio Werdum
Record:
14-5-1
Age: 34
Height: 6-foot-4
Weight: 246
Style: Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Birthplace: Porto Alegre, Brazil
Poll Points: 9
Career
Notes: A two-time Abu Dhabi Combat Club Submission Wrestling
World Championships gold medalist and two-time Brazilian jiu-jitsu
world champion, Werdum owns a 2-2 record in the UFC, 4-2 in Pride
Fighting Championships and 3-1 in Strikeforce. The 34-year-old
holds the rank of black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, judo and
muay Thai; he reached the quarterfinals of both the 2006 Pride
open weight grand prix and the 2011 Strikeforce heavyweight grand
prix. Werdum posted his signature victory in June 2010, when
he became the first man in nearly a decade to defeat Fedor Emelianenko,
as he lured the Russian legend into his guard and submitted him
with a first-round triangle armbar. The 6-foot-4, 246-pound Brazilian
has recorded other notable victories over onetime UFC heavyweight
title contender Gabriel Gonzaga (twice), former Strikeforce heavyweight
champion Alistair Overeem, former EliteXC heavyweight titleholder
Antonio Silva and 2003 ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championships
gold medalist John Olav Einemo.
Others
Receiving Votes: Andrei Arlovski (3), Ricco Rodriguez (3), Igor
Vovchanchyn (3), Brock Lesnar (2), Pedro Rizzo (2).
Source
Sherdog
|
Julien
Solomita: Will we see a Second Act from Fedor?
By Zach
Arnold
By Julien Solomita
“That
which does not kill me makes me stronger” – Nietzsche
People
that have been the best, at whatever it may be that they do in
life, have gained knowledge that others would die for. These
champions know what it takes to earn a title, and to rein supreme
in competition. They have seen the necessary sacrifices it takes
to make them so successful, and the powers of hard work and determination
at its finest.
What
a lot of people forget when a champion loses or a king is dethroned
is that this person is capable of once again becoming a champion.
Fedor
Emelianenko has had one of the most decorated, and accomplished
careers in the history of mixed martial arts. Throughout his
professional fighting career, he has blasted his way through
many opponents, even when he was outmatched. Fedor became the
Pride Heavyweight champion at PRIDE 25 where he defeated the
thought-to-be-invincible Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. Nogueira had
been dominating the division with his dangerous ground skills,
and his powerful hands. Fedor came in and won the stand up game,
while surviving Big Nog’s guard as well, earning him the
unanimous decision that would crown him champion. He never gave
up that title.
Fedor’s
2004 submission victory over UFC veteran Mark Coleman displayed
the true versatility to his game that many people didn’t
know existed. Brutally knocking out Andrei Arlovski was one of
the most influential victories for Fedor’s career, as Arlovski
was the former reigning UFC heavyweight champ, and Fedor planted
him to the ground with an overhand right while he was backed
up against the ropes.
Recently,
Fedor Emelianenko’s career has sustained a rough patch.
He is still fighting and is the same person, just with three
more losses on his record, but in reality this means very little.
As Dan Hardy recently stated, “records are for DJs.”
His
submission loss to Fabricio Werdum was the result of a careless
and expedited approach when after knocking the Brazilian down;
Fedor curiously pounced and was captured in a deep triangle choke.
In
his next fight, Emelianenko was (again) significantly outmatched
in the size department when he fought Antonio “Big Foot”
Silva. Any good fighter can get caught in disadvantageous positions,
and will know how to escape them. But for Fedor, escaping the
mount of the freakishly colossal Silva was just too much to overcome,
and the doctor stoppage occurred when the heavy ground and pound
swelled up the Russian’s eye, earning him his second straight
loss.
Any
sports fan knows the detrimental effects that a losing streak
can trigger in an athlete’s demeanor. It can take a competitor
out of his element, both mentally and physically. It can also
impede an athlete’s competitive mindset as removing this
vice that the losing streak holds subconsciously becomes the
athlete’s new endeavor. The fight world witnessed Fedor
Emelianenko become afflicted by this in his July 30th fight with
Dan Henderson, in what was his last contracted Strikeforce bout.
Fedor never shows even a hint of emotion, (refer to: the horrifyingly
blank Russian stare down) and it wasn’t until the fight
was under way that Fedor’s irritability manifested. Fedor
thought he had dropped Henderson, but quickly realized it was
a loss of balance and coordination that actually sent Henderson
down into a semi-pulled guard. When Fedor pounced on top of the
American, he was not as careful as he needed to be as he was
promptly reversed, then put asleep by Henderson’s right
hand.
This
third straight loss was very frustrating for Fedor and all of
his supporters.
Many
people, including Strikeforce’s blatantly inappropriate
“Fan Poll” that night, for whatever reason assumed
that the 35-year-old warrior would retire following his fight
against Dan Henderson. A fighter who has won as much and lost
as rarely as Fedor Emelianenko definitely has what it takes to
move forward and reach even higher than ever before in his career.
Upon
hearing the news of a Monson vs. Fedor M-1 fight set for November,
I wasn’t quite sure how to react. I was unimpressed with
Monson’s last performance and assumed Fedor deserved better.
However, on second thought, I realized that Monson is one of
very few fighters that has had a decorated and accomplished career
and is still a relatively big name in the sport.
While
Monson may not be currently considered a top 10 Heavyweight,
he was previously on an 8-fight win streak, submitting five out
of eight opponents. The streak was snapped when he lost a decision
to Daniel Cormier at Strikeforce’s heavyweight grand prix.
Monson’s versatility and strength on the ground is second
to none, and his pair of gold medals from Abu Dhabi’s ADCC
grappling championship can vouch for it. He has some of the most
experience with submission grappling of any active mixed martial
arts fighter, and is an extremely taxing opponent to finish.
Daniel Cormier’s heavy hands battered and punished Monson
for three full rounds, at the end of which Monson was still standing.
An efficient training camp that focuses on Monson’s stand
up will be crucial for him to successfully stand and trade with
Fedor. With a win over “The Last Emperor”, Jeff Monson
would see a possible spot in the top ten rankings. Sure, Monson
absorbed the onslaught by Cormier, but he must prepare for an
even more overwhelming, and viciously relentless offense from
the Russian. If Jeff Monson will be able to trade successfully
enough to get Fedor to the ground or in his guard, he will have
found his best prospect for victory. Fedor’s relentless
striking attack, and his stealth jiu-jitsu match up enticingly
with Monson’s ground skills and toughness. There are few
heavyweights in the world that are permitted by contract and
willing to take a fight with Fedor at this point. I believe Fedor
is still dangerous as he is learning how to pinpoint and fix
the mistakes responsible for his recent defeats. Fully grasping
what led to his minor collapse could tremendously improve Fedor’s
game.
One
last point that will be critical in the outcome of this bout
is the homecoming for Fedor. This fight takes place in Russia.
He will have the clear home field advantage. He has been roughed
up in his last three fights, all of which took place in the United
States. Could Fedor be hungrier than ever to snap this losing
streak and do so in front of his Russian faithful? This could
be either an amplified edition of Fedor fighting for his country,
or a hindering added pressure.
Should
Fedor defeat Monson; there are a number of things to consider.
First of all, where does he go next? If he puts Monson away with
ease in an impressive finishing victory, maybe he will have rediscovered
the innate passion that he seemed to have lacked in his last
few fights. There is much speculation as to what Fedor is fighting
for now. Has his motivation become for the paycheck rather than
the passion that originally got him so far in the sport? If Fedor
truly still loves fighting, and can still lay it all on the line,
he will be more successful than if he has lost sight of his true
love for the sport.
A
win in this fight for Mr. Emelianenko will open up only a small
amount of prospective worthwhile heavyweight fights. These potential
fights will skyrocket should Fedor make the drop to light heavyweight.
“The Last Emperor” has fought his whole career at Heavyweight
and he has used his superior speed and technique to beat bigger
opponents. He would be facing a new side of competition should
he drop to 205. This may be new territory for the Russian veteran,
but a drop in weight class during a struggling point in a fighter’s
career can often unearth new opportunities. Kenny Florian dropped
from lightweight, and after just one featherweight victory, a
title shot presented itself. Whether or not Florian actually
deserves the shot, the point is that people want to see the athletes
challenging themselves with a new set of opponents at a different
weight. A new exciting “Kenflo” ready to make a run
at 145, grabbed the UFC’s attention after what they believed
was an impressive win over Diego Nunes at UFC 131. Florian was
rewarded.
Beating
Jeff Monson could very well put Fedor in a similar situation
as the UFC could become excited at the prospect of new weight
class for the Russian legend.
There
are endless 205-pound possibilities for Fedor in both Strikeforce
and the UFC. A fight with Roger Gracie or King Mo after their
fight in Cincinnati on September 10th could be an intriguing
opportunity for Fedor, should he re-sign with Strikeforce. Winning
his next fight decisively could get Fedor back under the Zuffa
umbrella and could lead to multiple big name fights.
What
will be interesting to see in such a situation where Fedor makes
the cut is how will he have changed as a fighter? He may find
a new ability to use his grappling as a bigger factor in fights,
as he wouldn’t have to worry about a 265-pound behemoth
smothering him. The size differential has always been a burden
to Fedor who has handled it incredibly for the vast majority
of his career. This would no longer be an obstacle for Fedor.
Joe
Rogan, during his Tapout Radio interview discusses Fedor not
having a chance to be the best at heavyweight because of his
size, and hits it on the head,
“If
there was a 225 pound weight class you know he might have been
one of the greatest of all time. But as a heavyweight? I think
there’s always going to be guys that are like just going
to be able to beat him.”
By
fighting guys his own size, Fedor could evade some of the positions
that he has been unable to escape from at heavyweight, and reveal
an improved flow to his ground attack. Handling the strikes of
the largest competitors in MMA is what Fedor has been used to
for many years fighting at heavyweight. Although the light heavyweights
will be quicker than his previous opponents, the overwhelming
strength and power are lesser in the hands of a 205-pound fighter
compared to the monsters at heavyweight. With a drop in division,
Fedor has the capacity to be lighter, quicker, and for the first
time, bigger than his opponents.
The
comeback of a losing fighter is something everyone, both fans
and skeptics, get excited over. The upcoming bout between Jeff
Monson and Fedor Emelianenko strikes me as something that will
end up being what a lot of people don’t expect: a great
fight. Should Fedor stand and trade with Monson, there will most
likely be someone going down and after losing three straight.
I
believe that Fedor is, still, in fact Fedor. He has always been
relatively undersized for his weight class but his exceptional
hand have proven to possess devastating power, and will once
again be tested. The outcome of his next bout could possibly
spark the manageable weight cut that has been put aside for years.
Will Fedor Emelianenko resurge as the great fighter he has proven
to be and catch a second wind in his career?
After
all, it is the second act that people really love.
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
One
Man’s View: Fast-Track Pitfalls
Matchmaking in mixed martial arts is an often-overlooked science,
but it plays a key role in developing a fighter. How a fighter’s
management negotiates the bouts offered to him by a promotion
is indicative of the intended path toward higher things. Nobody
takes a fight they think they will lose.
With
the influx of high-level athletes, especially elite grapplers,
into MMA, the fast-track approach has considerable appeal. It
comes into play when one skips the requisite long-term building
processes of getting, say, 10-15 fights before competing in a
major promotion like the UFC or Strikeforce; the fighter’s
pedigree in college wrestling or competitive grappling is assumed
to be good enough to carry him along, with the hope that the
rest of his game will materialize. The downside of that expedited
climb is that when questions do present themselves, they are
often tough ones the prospect has not had the time and experience
needed to become qualified to answer them.
At
Strikeforce “Barnett vs. Kharitonov” on Saturday in
Cincinnati, Yoel Romero Palacio and Roger Gracie, both immensely
talented grapplers with 4-0 records, lost in spectacular fashion.
Gracie’s leaky standup defense was brutally exploited by
Muhammed Lawal’s single right hand. Romero’s undoing
was merely the flip side of an exam that took much longer but
was flunked nonetheless.
In
the first round of his bout with Rafael Cavalcante, Palacio moved,
juked, circled and did a pretty good imitation of a professional
fighter, but he did not throw a single significant strike. Such
histrionics often demonstrate the difference between a nervous
neophyte to the striking phase of the overall MMA game and seasoned
pros like Cavalcante, who do not needlessly exert themselves.
Moments
after eliciting a rightful warning from referee Dan Miragliotta
to pick up the action and quit stalling late in the first round,
Palacio shot for a takedown he could not finish. It was a confirmation
of what Palacio’s worst fears probably were -- and the beginning
of the end for the 2000 Olympic silver medalist.
In
the second round, Palacio finally opened up, unleashing a berserker-like
attack and tossing off a barrage of shots in some exciting sequences,
with “Feijao” covering up and staying calm; interestingly,
though, Palacio had a couple chances to secure position and plant
Feijao to the mat, but he opted to swing for the fences instead.
Feijao rode out the onslaught and then scored a nice takedown
off a knee attempt from the clinch, further signaling the shift
in momentum.
While
Romero was unraveling tactically, Cavalcante was only getting
stronger in the same kind of fight he made in his masterful knockout
win over Lawal. The psychological effect of demonstrating resilience,
particularly against an opponent with limited experience, in
a long, tough fight can be highly effective in wearing him down.
A
first loss in MMA is inevitable and a learning experience in
itself. Ironically, Lawal himself was subject to the limits of
his experience in his first defeat against Cavalcante and has
emerged a better fighter for it. Still, when one is on the fast
track and competing on the big stage, expectations are accordingly
higher. Setbacks resonate that much more.
Age
can also play a role in deciding how quickly to move a fighter.
Gracie turns 30 this month, while Romero is 34. In both cases,
their performances served as sobering reminders of how small
chinks in still-developing prospect’s armor can be exploited.
On
a longer developmental track, a prospect is exposed to fresh
variables and problems in an environment where the exam is challenging
enough to prompt growth while not completely overwhelming him.
Ideally, the problem is confronted, solved and the fighter moves
ahead to his next bout, with the lessons and wisdom accrued from
solving strategic and tactical riddles. This accumulation of
knowledge is paralleled with the development of his all-around
skillset, which preferably will carry him through the next level
of competition.
Such
luxuries and targeted opportunities for professional development
are something no 25-8 fighter has ever known and is precisely
why a canny vet like Pat Healy, who dismantled Maximo Blanco
on the undercard, represents that exact kind of test.
As
MMA continues to explode and grow its ever-expanding talent pool,
the numbers trend younger and younger. Today’s UFC rookies
have startlingly better pedigrees than their relative equivalents
five or so years ago. To be an NCAA All-American is increasingly
the norm rather than a stellar exception, and MMA’s increasing
timeline of exposure to prospective fighters means that more
and more of them focus on the sport at a younger age. Rory MacDonald,
who began training in MMA at 14, had no equivalent 10 years ago,
unless one counts the primitive stylings of Brazil’s vale
tudo competitors, very few of whom had the technical level of
today’s fighters.
Imagine
how ruthlessly competitive the sport will be in five years, when
a huge cadre of the game’s best college wrestlers have been
eying a career in MMA and working on their striking and jiu-jitsu
expressly to facilitate their eventual professional move once
their amateur wrestling days are over. Perhaps that is an even
better argument for advanced-age fighters to try the fast track,
but it certainly is not going to get any easier to negotiate
it in the coming months and years.
Source:
Sherdog
|
Jordan
Breen on why Carlos Condit vs. GSP is a better fight than Nick
Diaz vs. GSP
By Zach
Arnold
Commentary
from Jordan Breen:
“I
like the Condit fight more. I think if someone’s going to
hurt and ruin Georges St. Pierre, it’s one-shot business.
You hit him in the face, he’s crushed, he’s on weak
legs, you follow up, you put him away. You follow that Matt Serra
blueprint. Death by a million cuts is what Nick Diaz employs
and that’s not how Georges St. Pierre loses. Nick Diaz beats
a guy, beats a guy, beats a guy, and then finally its just one
body shot too much, there’s a straw that breaks the camel’s
back, and that dude goes down and he’s toast. Georges St.
Pierre is someone that if he even gets to the second level of
Red Alert, if he takes a flush punch to the face, you’re
probably looking at a knee tap or a power-double or something
to get that dude on the mat.
“So,
in terms of actual style, I don’t think that Nick Diaz was
ever a guy to really be seriously threatening to Georges St.
Pierre. I mean, he’s a still great Welterweight and still
deserves a crack, but I didn’t think he had it. Now, Carlos
Condit, he still has poor takedown defense and it’s probably
going to be the thing that does him in in this fight. He’s
going to be taken down, he’s going to get beat up, he’s
probably going to have his guard passed. He can try to reclaim
it but there’s going to be a lot of top-position hustle
going on. That said, Carlos Condit is long and has some reach
like Nick Diaz but he’s a more well-rounded striker, he
kicks more, he knees more, he elbows more, and now he’s
even become a puncher. Carlos Condit used to kind of punch like
a wet noodle, he used to kind of fight in a way (like) Diego
Nunes where he circles around and kicks a lot and does that kind
of thing. More aggressive, but he didn’t have punches in
his game. Ever since he really starched Dan Hardy with these
nasty, nasty punches we’ve started to see a more serious
puncher come out in Carlos Condit. Then, turns around to the
Dong Hyun-Kim fight, rips his face off with a flying knee. Dong
Hyun-Kim is a guy who might have cardio issues but historically
has been able to take a pretty darn good lick and he just wiped
him out with that flying knee.
“Carlos
Condit actually has that one-strike power that can rattle a guy’s
brain and get the snowball rolling down the hill. I don’t
know that Nick Diaz could have done that. So, based on the most
likely way for someone to actually beat Georges St. Pierre and
overcome the physical and technical abilities that he has, I
think they have to land that one hard crushing shot standing
and I think now you actually have the chance to see that with
Carlos Condit where we probably didn’t have that chance
with Nick Diaz.
“As
pointed out repeatedly and ad nauseam at this point, just not
as interesting for most people. But the PPV buys, though? I think
more than anything the PPV buys for UFC 137 will reflect how
many people are simply interested in Georges St. Pierre for Georges
St. Pierre because in Condit you definitely have a hardcore fan’s
pleasure. The only people that are going to share the thought
that I just shared are people who watch a lot of Mixed Martial
Arts and who care on that level. Just most people who want to
go and see a scrap and know the guys involved probably prefer
Nick Diaz and will be bummed that he’s not in the fight
and perhaps justifiably so.
“Condit
actually tries to sweep and get up off his back, he strikes from
his back. Diaz just lays there and goes for submissions and always
seems amazed when he ends up losing a decision as a result of
it. So, that’s one angle. And the other is Condit &
Diaz might be similarly competent strikers but Condit strikes
with a lot more tools and a lot more power and, as I said, I
don’t think Georges St. Pierre’s ever going to be the
guy who goes down from a million cuts. You got to slice the throat
pretty quick. If you just hurt him a little bit, a teensy bit,
you’re just going to get taken down and assaulted. What’s
the point? You need the homerun… because one strike is what
you need to get the ball rolling, it can’t just be 11 million
punch combinations. You think Nick Diaz is going to get the chance
to land (on GSP) the kind of shots he put on Paul Daley? Not
a chance in hell.”
The
larger point about why Nick Diaz deserved punishment for no-showing
his press duties
In
response to a caller who says that Roy Jones Jr. skipped out
on press conferences and it didn’t hurt fan interest in
his big fights and how there’s a double standard being applied
to Nick Diaz here…
“Do
you really think that Fox officials look at this and think, ‘oh,
this is great, we can sell this.’ They’re horrified.
This isn’t about selling a fight. It’s not about a
press conference at all. It’s about professional decorum
and doing the things necessary to help a product and help yourself
and help your brand and all these things. I mean, if Nick Diaz
didn’t get show up to any press conferences and showed up
to fight, would it make a difference? Maybe not, I mean I’m
sure he’d probably lose a five-round decision anyways if
he did show up to fight. But that’s not the point.
“First
of all, the fact that he’s done it serially… I mean,
it’s not like he missed one press conference. He missed
repeated flights, no one could find him, he ran out of his home
when his trainer… Georges St. Pierre is trained by Greg
Jackson and so forth. Nick Diaz has a second father in Cesar
Gracie and he ran out of his home and ran away. He’s in
no position to be even training to fight on this level, not a
chance.
“On
top that, it’s about everything else. It’s not about
a fight. It’s about sponsors looking at the UFC and going,
‘you can’t even make your fighters show up, you’re
a joke, how can we pay you money?’ It’s about Fox looking
and going, ‘wait, you guys have press conferences and you
just let your fighters not show up? Really? Like, you think that’s
acceptable?’ So, it’s not about him missing one press
conference. If it was, I mean, it’s happened before. Nick
Diaz has missed ton of press conferences and people go ‘oh.’
This is different. It’s a concentrated chain of self-destructive
behavior that went on for a week, culminating in this.
“Put
it this way — if you don’t think this was a big deal
why do you think Cesar Gracie reacted the way he did? If Nick
Diaz normally killed someone Cesar Gracie would typically be
the first guy to go, ‘yeah, he was in Nick’s face,
Nick didn’t do anything wrong.’ Cesar Gracie’s
that guy. What do you think it says that a guy who essentially
has another son in Nick Diaz goes, ‘he’s a 28 year
old man, he needs to take responsibility for himself.’ You
don’t think that suggests a different situation?”
Why
fans have celebrated Nick Diaz’s act for so long & what
his fans do next
“I
think if you do want a look at the fact that Nck Diaz does have
something askew inside his psyche, again, look at the comparison
to his brother Nate. They’re highly similar people brought
up in a highly similar environment and unlike most brother they
don’t try to diverge and have different interests. Nick
and Nate… these guys train together, eat together, do a
lot of things together, share largely the same circle of friends,
these brothers don’t get away from one another all that
often, whether professionally or personally and, yet, when you
really look at it and meet them they’re different people.
And the thing that comes across strongly is I would describe
Nate more aggro and in-your-face, Nick is normally more stand-offish
unless provoked and he said as much quietly in the past and even
sometimes outwardly in the media, I mean he has problems with
social anxiety and doesn’t like, as I said, fitting in and
playing the game and all these things.
“And
I think the nature of the UFC is a lot different. It’s one
thing for him to show up at a Strikeforce press conference after
he fights and have a couple of hardcore fight journalists there
field questions at him… I mean, when you’re dealing
with, your second father, the man’s who’s trained you
for over a decade, Cesar Gracie, shows up to your home and you
run out the back door, this is not garden variety ‘Nick
Diaz being Nick Diaz.’ This isn’t the equivalent of
Manny Ramirez taking a day off in a 162 game baseball season
and going to have a drink at a local bar and watch his team on
TV much to the chagrin of the Red Sox. No, it’s not that
dynamic.
“I
think people have talked too much about Nick Diaz’s issues
in the wrong light… It’s sad. This is a guy who is
a talented fighter, not the greatest Welterweight in the world
but a talented, exciting, and in many cases popular fighter who
many people like watching fight who simply has massive psychological
issues that often either result in him making a fool out of himself
or reflect poorly on him when he does things like this.
“So,
as far as the Nick Diaz situation goes, I do think Dana White
may have overreacted in a ridiculous way but even if I like the
Condit/GSP fight more forthright and directly, I really think
that… I think that people really do need to take a good,
hard look and the psycho and social elements of Nick Diaz right
now. And consider the fact that in sports there’s a lot
of things that go on. At the end of the day, these are still
people. That’s the thing that often gets forgotten. For
most people who are Nick Diaz fans, they look from a long, long
distance away and think, ‘oh, yeah, Nick Diaz, he’s
a great fighter, whatever.’ But Nick Diaz is also a dude,
he’s just a guy, he’s a guy in his late 20’s who
makes some horrible decisions who in addition to being a great
fighter is also a really, really flawed person in a lot of ways
and it shouldn’t be surprising. MMA attracts a certain kind
of person in many cases who’s often given to not being the
most well-adjusted person. I mean, MMA is a sport that, yeah,
your average dude can love and compete in. But at the same time
this sport attracts a different breed for a great many reasons
and sometimes it plays out negatively in a very, very obvious
fashion. But we shouldn’t be surprised. We court these kinds
of personalities and in the case of Nick Diaz maybe celebrate
them to excess. It’s kind of scary the amount of joy in
which we derive in other people’s neuroses or psychopathy
or just mental anxiety and anguish.”
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
Strikeforce
Results: Luke Rockhold Earns Middleweight Title, Decisions ‘Jacare’
Souza
by Erik
Fontanez
Luke
Rockhold earned the Strikeforce middleweight title and won a
unanimous decision over Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza at Strikeforce
on Saturday night.
The
young 185-pounder stayed aggressive throughout the majority of
the matchup and had one judge scoring the bout in his favor for
every round.
An
aggressive pace was the them of this fight’s early moments.
Souza pressed Rockhold with strikes and took the fight to the
ground. The middleweight champ controlled his opponent on the
ground and landed some punches as Rockhold attempted to stand.
“Jacare” secured another takedown and stayed in control
of the action to the ground. After returning to the feet, Rockhold
turned up the speed and landed an impressive kick, then continued
to press the champ until the end of the opening round.
Rockhold
utilized a lot of kicks in the second round. They were affective
until Souza landed a punch that dropped the challenger, which
led the way to more strikes being landed as Rockhold retreated.
Midway through the round, the two began to clinch against the
cage where they would lobby for position. After separating, Souza
landed a few more strikes and the round ended with Rockhold throwing
a head kick for good measure.
The
third round had both fighters trading strikes, conservatively.
At about 1:15 in, Rockhold hit the champ with a low blow and
the the fight was halted. After Souza recovered, Souza took a
single leg and tripped Rockhold down to the mat where he worked
for position and strikes. The two returned to a standing fight
and Rockhold landed more combinations than he did earlier in
the bout. The challenger continued to land more shots and edged
the champ in the third frame.
Round
four showed both fighters staying heavy with offense on the feet.
“Jacare” was able to get a shot through and Rockhold’s
nose began to bleed. A clinch had the fight go the ground, briefly,
but they return to a standing fight where they mixed in strikes,
but fatigue definitely started to set in on both sides. The round
ended with the two in a clinch against the fence.
The
final round had Rockhold staying aggressive and punching first.
“Jacare” worked in some kicks and even attempted a
flying front kick, but it didn’t find its mark. After getting
in a clinch, Souza executed a pretty trip takedown and controlled
his opponent on the ground. It didn’t stay there long, though,
and Rockhold returned to the feet. The challenger impressed towards
the end of the fight, staying aggressive and pressing the champ
until the final bell rang.
The
judges scored it unanimously for Rockhold with scores of 50-45,
48-47 and 48-47.
“I
got rocked a couple times,” Rockhold said after winning
the Strikeforce middleweight strap. “[But] I train at one
of the best academies in the world, the best guys. I have the
best people in my corner.”
Rockhold
wins the first title of his young career and improves his record
to 8-1. Souza, in defeat, loses his first Strikeforce fight and
third of his career.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Strikeforce
‘Barnett vs. Kharitonov’ Prelims: Kyle, ‘Feijao’
Victorious
by Brian
Knapp
American
Kickboxing Academy representative Mike Kyle cruised to a unanimous
decision over previously unbeaten Brazilian prospect Marcos Rogerio
de Lima in a preliminary light heavyweight matchup at Strikeforce
“Barnett vs. Kharitonov” on Saturday at the U.S. Bank
Arena in Cincinnati.
Kyle
(19-8-1, 1 NC, 3-3-1 SF) swept the scorecards by 29-28, 29-28
and 30-27 counts, as he won for the fifth time in six outings.
De
Lima (8-1, 1-1 SF) spent much of the 15-minute bout moving backwards,
as Kyle attacked with straight punches and jabs. He also landed
a few timely takedowns and kept the Marco Barbosa protégé
off balance and unsure of himself. Kyle, the reigning King of
the Cage light heavyweight champion, opened a nasty lateral gash
on De Lima’s left eyelid with punches and elbows from inside
guard and remains a factor in Strikeforce’s 205-pound division.
‘Feijao’
Bounces Back, Finishes Polacio
Former
light heavyweight champion Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante
wiped out 2000 Olympic Silver medalist Yoel Romero Polacio in
the second round of their preliminary 205-pound tilt. In his
first appearance since surrendering his title to Dan Henderson
in March, Cavalcante (11-3, 4-2 SF) closed the curtain 4:51 into
round two.
A
tepid round one in which Polacio (4-1, 0-1 SF) was warned for
inactivity gave way to an action-packed second. The Cuban wrestler
swarmed Cavalcante early in the period, but the experienced Brazilian
defended well, sheltered himself from the blows and waited for
an opportunity. He missed with a head kick but followed with
a spinning-back fist that had Polacio on wobbly legs. Punches
and elbows came next, as Polacio worked to get back to his feet.
Once there, he was met with a knee and a left hook and went crashing
back to the canvas. A brutal standing-to-ground punch from Cavalcante
polished off the prospect.
Mein
Routs ‘Cyborg’ with Elbows
Canadian
welterweight prospect Jordan Mein made a spectacular first impression
in his Strikeforce debut, as he walked through some stout low
kicks from Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos, outboxed the
Brazilian and finished the former title contender with a series
of savage standing elbows 3:18 into the third round.
Santos
(18-15, 1-3 SF) was the aggressor from the outset, as he unleashed
his famed low kicks to great effect. However, his output dropped
drastically as the fight extended, and Mein (23-7, 1-0 SF) took
over with accurate punches, beautiful combinations and crisp
counters. The Canadian came out gunning in round three and landed
a crippling body shot that seemed to break the Brazilian’s
will.
He
followed up with punches, backed him into the fence and let loose
with the elbows. Blood was spilled, and the referee intervened.
Davis
Stops Nunes in Second
Raging
Wolf champion Alexis Davis stopped AMA Fight Club representative
Amanda Nunes on second-round punches in a preliminary women’s
welterweight matchup. The end came with a mere seven seconds
remaining in round two.
Davis
(11-4, 2-0 SF) grinded down Nunes from the clinch and, while
she ate her share of punches, tired the Brazilian in close quarters.
Nunes scored with a takedown in the second period, but Davis
transitioned immediately to the top, battered her with ground-and-pound
and moved to mount. Nunes (6-2, 1-1 SF) surrendered her back
in response and, without means to defend herself, absorbed a
series of unanswered punches from behind, resulting in the stoppage.
With that, her six-fight winning streak was over.
Steele
Hands Mierzwiak First Defeat
Takedowns,
top control and ground-and-pound carried Dominique Steele to
his fourth consecutive victory in his promotional debut, as he
outpointed the previously unbeaten Chris Mierzwiak by unanimous
decision in a preliminary middleweight bout. Scores were 29-28,
29-27 and 29-27.
Steele
(4-1, 1-0 SF) weathered a rough start that included a first-round
knockdown and leaned on his superior conditioning as the fight
deepened. Mierzwiak (3-1, 0-1 SF) slowed visibly in round two
and appeared completely spent in the third. He had trouble staying
on his feet, went down on the end of a straight right hand and,
outside of a handful of submission attempts, mustered little
offense of note over the final 10 minutes.
Source:
Sherdog
|
UFC’s
return to Japan: They are who we thought they were, but we’re
not letting them off the hook
By Zach
Arnold
If
you have not yesterday’s item about UFC’s return to
Japan that I posted on the web site, read it first before you
continue reading.
Today,
UFC Asian marketing director Mark Fischer held a presser in a
Japanese theatre to announced what Gong Kakutougi had spilled
the beans on. UFC will return to Japan on Sunday, February 26th.
The show will air live on US PPV on the 25th. So, what’s
the kicker? The Japanese show will start live at 10 AM JST.
Notes
from Dan Herbertson & Tony Loiseleur:
Interesting
tidbit from the UFC Japan presser: the plan is to make a Japan
show an annual event on top of other Asia-based shows. According
to Mark Fischer, the plan is to configure the SSA for 20,000
seats. The show is slated to start at 10 AM on Sunday, allowing
it to line up in the usual time slot in North America. KID, Fukuda,
Gomi, Okami, Akiyama, Omigawa, Hioki, Mizugaki are all possibilities
for UFC Japan but are not yet officially on the card. Fischer
said it would basically be a Japanese version of UFC Rio. Lots
of local fighters and local media events.
Where
do we begin with these developments?
First,
the comparison of UFC using the same marketing model that they
did in Rio and expecting it to work in Japan is asinine. As Lorenzo
Fertitta told Ariel Helwani a couple of weeks ago, UFC was able
to prime the Brazilian market by having an over-the-air television
deal in place.
“In
addition to that, we’ve really only been on free-to-air
TV here for about two years. Before that, we were on a subscription
channel that didn’t have that many subscribers but now we’re
kind of reaching the masses. The fight on Saturday night between
Anderson (Silva) and Yushin (Okami), we’re expecting between
20-to-30 million people to watch it on free TV so it’s a
big event.”
Put
the pieces of the puzzle together here. UFC had a great TV deal
in Brazil, ran a show in Rio featuring Brazilian fighters at
the top of their game (Shogun, Anderson), and they drew big business.
UFC has no network TV deal in Japan, is running a show at PRIDE’s
old house, and is not booking Japanese talent that anyone can
consider championship-level right now. Got it.
Tweet
of the Days in response to this news and my reaction to it from
Kyle Canella and Ken Foss:
@FightOpinion
Also a pretty big admission that the UFC can’t make money
from a Japanese tv deal.
If
you’re holding an event in Japan and your catering to anything
but the Japanese audience, you’ve already failed.
Think
about how insulting it is to the Japanese fans to tell them that
this show is going to start at 10 AM in the morning. The kind
of people willing to show up for an event like that for that
time frame are really hardcore fans. UFC does not have a substantial
hardcore MMA fan base to work with in Japan and the hardcore
MMA fans remaining in Japan have a very mixed opinion about UFC
as a product.
Let
me frame it to you this way — imagine if DREAM held a press
conference in Los Angeles and announced that they were going
to book the Staples Center, have no network/cable television
deal to speak of, and that the card will start at 3 AM in the
morning so that the Japanese fans could watch it live on network
TV back home at 8 PM. American fans would either laugh their
asses off or be horribly & rightfully insulted at the fact
that the promoters are treating them as an afterthought.
Have
promoters ran Noon or 12:30 starts at Korakuen Hall for Sunday
shows? Yes, occasionally, in the past when business as doing
better. However, Korakuen Hall is not SSA.
(A
possible fix to this issue would be for UFC to push back the
PPV start an hour, maybe two hours in the States and give the
Japanese fans a break with a true afternoon start for a main
card. It would be a productive move on their part.)
Michael
Ford brought up the analogy of NFL football games airing on TV
at 10 AM. The problem with the analogy is that NFL games on the
West Coast live (49ers, Cardinals, Seahawks, etc.) start at 1
PM. Apples and oranges for a comparison.
UFC
cannot, with a straight face, look at the Japanese fans in the
eye and tell them that the Saitama Super Arena show is all about
them when you’re starting the damn event at 10 AM in the
morning so Americans can watch it on PPV live. Even Vince McMahon
had the foresight to run a RAW taping at SSA a few years ago
on delay. It reminds me of a story Dave Meltzer once told on
one of his radio shows about Vince where he pissed off the Japanese
in the early 90s by showing up late to a press conference for
a co-promotional WWE/All Japan show at the Tokyo Dome. McMahon
showing up late turned off a lot of people in Japan.
Which
reminds me of today’s UFC presser in which a VTR (video
tape recording) of Dana White was played to the media. So, why
wasn’t he at the Japanese press conference? Because he’s
getting ready to do press in Las Vegas for the upcoming Georges
St. Pierre/Nick Diaz fight in late October. In our opinion, Dana
White sent the message to the Japanese fans that he wouldn’t
even show up in Japan to do the presser for his own vanity show.
As
for UFC proclaiming that they will return annually to Japan?
OK, good luck on that one. Hope you can do a better job keeping
that promise unlike the “Super Bowl” promise you made
to the Japanese fans after you bought out the PRIDE assets from
Nobuyuki Sakakibara. Maybe you can tell the public why Jamie
Pollack got the hell out of Japan in rapid fashion after you
sent him over there to try to run an office in Japan. I’m
sure running live shows at 10 AM in the morning with no network
television support is really going to win over some important
people.
My
takeaway from today’s presser in Japan: I knew it was a
vanity show all along and, yet, I was not surprised by the online
reaction criticizing me for stating the obvious. So, what am
I surprised about? I’m surprised at just how nakedly transparent
UFC is in regards to not even making standard concessions to
the beleaguered Japanese MMA audience in regards to the production
of this vanity show. We’re going to get the standard cookie-cutter
UFC production with a 10 AM start time.
If
UFC is truly living in a bubble and thinks that what they are
planning for this Japanese show will work like it does everywhere
else, then they are even more clueless than I thought they were.
But you know what? I don’t believe that. Their front office
reads this site and has read this site since it first started.
They are not dumb. What they are, however, is egregiously arrogant
and flippant. As I stated before, UFC has money to burn on a
Japanese joy ride and what Dana wants, Dana gets. This is going
to be his grand ‘ol party to say screw you to the ghost
of PRIDE in PRIDE’s old home arena. This is his message
to the Japanese MMA fans that what promoters served them was
inherently wrong and that he’s going to show the fans ‘the
right way’ to produce an MMA show.
I’m
not here to cheerlead for the current MMA landscape in Japan.
I’ve made my thoughts very clear about what’s wrong
in Japan and what needs to change. However, I’ll be damned
if I’m going to sit here and watch a bunch of MMA media
outlets shake the proverbial poms poms and tell you that what
UFC is doing in Japan is 100% right. It’s not. Not only
is this a vanity show, it’s a pretty lazy attempt at one
as well — both from a business standpoint and an intellectual
one as well. You’re not going to build a foothold in the
Japanese marketplace without a major broadcast over-the-air network
in Japan pushing the product. UFC is not a Japanese company and
they do not allow outsiders to control their matchmaking, two
aspects which are mandatory in getting a network television deal
with an outlet like Fuji TV. And that’s if a major Japanese
TV network is even interested, which they are not right now because
of what a dirty cesspool the fight game has truly become in the
country.
Unless
circumstances change over the months to come, I don’t know
how one can classify the current behavior of the UFC’s return
to Japan as a serious long-term business proposition. Before
today’s press conference, I was on the fence about the show.
I know it’s a vanity show but at least I was willing to
give UFC the benefit of the doubt in figuring out how to even
do a couple of little things right. Instead, that’s all
been thrown out the window with a Vince McMahon-style approach
to nuance. However, even Vince was smarter about what not to
do in Japan when he made his attempt last decade to get a foothold
in the marketplace.
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
Josh
Barnett Lobbies Strikeforce to Put Heavyweight Title Up for Grabs
in GP
By Ben
Fowlkes
CINCINNATI
-- The post-fight press conference had almost wrapped up, but
Josh Barnett couldn't resist. When the topic of conversation
turned to what Strikeforce was planning to do about its vacant
heavyweight title, Barnett just had to put Scott Coker on the
spot.
"Why
don't we sweeten the pot?" Barnett asked. "Why don't
we put that title on the line between me and [Daniel] Cormier?"
As
he went on to explain, "Strikeforce needs a real champ.
It needs a real champ like me or Cormier. Besides us, who is
it?"
Coker, who seemed visibly uncomfortable with the question, gave
a meandering answer in the form of a history lesson that eventually
boiled down to one main point: "Let's just take it one step
at a time, Josh."
In
other words, Strikeforce isn't committing to anything just yet.
Not until it absolutely has to.
And
yet, it seems only logical to use the heavyweight Grand Prix
to crown a champion now that Alistair Overeem has fled to the
UFC and the title is vacant. As Barnett pointed out while slipping
into his pro wrestling schtick at the presser, either he or Cormier
could be legitimately dubbed the Strikeforce title-holder after
winning this tournament.
"Either
one of us is a grand champion," said Barnett. "Either
one of us is the kind of guy who can take that belt, hold our
hands up with it, and people look at us and say, hey, those guys
are champs. That's the people we want representing our company.
That's the kind of guy I want to look up to and say hey, you
want to see a fighter? You want to see a real bad-ass in the
world? There he is, right there. See that gold around his waist?
That's not a joke. That's reality. The people he had to step
over to get that, he earned it."
As
Barnett said later, this was a speech he meant to give in the
cage for all to see, but forgot it in the post-fight confusion.
"But
I really believe that, once it gets to the finals, there really
are no two better fighters to represent Strikeforce as a heavyweight
champion," he said. "This is not where we intended
to be at this point with the tournament, but the fact of the
matter is, this is where we are. We have no champ. It's vacant.
We can't walk around like that. We can't hold our heads as high
if we don't have a heavyweight champion."
The
fact that Strikeforce officials won't go ahead and put the title
on the line makes you wonder, what are they saving it for? Or
perhaps, is it a decision that's out of their hands, now that
Zuffa owns the organization and seems to be picking it apart
one piece at a time?
"I
don't even want to go there," Barnett said. "I could
speculate. I've been in this longer than almost anybody you can
find at any of these events. But I just don't want to do it."
At
the moment, he said, his more immediate goal is not just beating
Cormier in the finals, but getting at least one takedown to prove
that he's capable of putting a former Olympic wrestler on his
back.
"I've
got to get that takedown on DC," he said during the press
conference, adding that he knew if he managed to do it, "Mo
[Lawal] will never let him live it down, ever."
From
the other side of the podium Cormier just grinned and leaned
forward into his microphone.
"Not
happening," he said.
Source:
MMA Fighting
|
Strikeforce
Results: “King Mo” Lawal Hands Roger Gracie His First
Loss
by Jeff
Cain
It
had been over a year since Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal
had competed when he stepped into the Srikeforce cage on Saturday
in Cincinnati to take on undefeated submission specialist Roger
Gracie.
Gracie
was looking to keep his undefeated record intact and Lawal hoped
to bounce back from injury and suffering the first loss of his
career, losing the Strikeforce light heavyweight title to Rafael
“Feijao” Cavalcante in August of 2010.
The
fight started slow. Both were tentative. Lawal came out with
his hands low. Gracie pumped his long jab, but that’s about
all that happened through the first three minutes of the bout.
Lawal
kept his right hand loaded, waiting for the opportunity to unleash
it, and that opportunity came in the final minute of the first
round. Lawal landed an overhand right that put Gracie on his
back. Lawal rushed in and finished with another punch that left
Gracie unconscious on the canvas.
“The
fight felt good,” Lawal said following the win. “I
underestimated him because I had my hands down and he was catching
me with a few shots. He caught me with a good knee, but man,
I’m a fighter man. It was a fight.”
After
the initial right hand that put Gracie down, Lawal wasn’t
sure how hurt Gracie actually was.
“I
was worried. I wasn’t sure if he was out or not, so I decided
to come hit him with some street punches, some club punches or
something,” said Lawal.
When
asked what is next, Lawal took the opportunity to request a rematch
with Cavalcante.
“I
wouldn’t mind fighting Feijao again,” he said. “I
really want Feijao again. That’s what’s up.”
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Barnett-Cormier
the Last Act in Long Drama
by Jason
Probst
Tournaments
have a drama all their own, particularly with so many moving
parts, and while the Strikeforce heavyweight grand prix at times
seemed to falling off at the wheels, the finale looks pretty
intriguing when one considers the promotional potholes it has
hit.
At
the beginning of the eight-man tournament, Fedor Emelianenko,
Alistair Overeem and Fabricio Werdum were present, only to exit
for assorted reasons. Emelianenko was upset by Antonio Silva;
and Werdum put up a dreadful performance in losing to Overeem,
who promptly withdrew afterward, abandoning the tournament altogether.
The
Josh Barnett-Daniel Cormier final is as solid a fight as we could
have asked for given the twists and turns the grand prix has
endured. It is an excellent stylistic matchup that presents challenges
for both men. While Cormier’s sharp striking and Olympic-caliber
wrestling have catapulted him to the verge of stardom, Barnett
is a tough veteran who is not going to fold when hit hard. Cormier
also gives Barnett the prospect of a long riddle he will have
to solve, as opposed to the former UFC champion’s two previous
opponents in the tournament -- Brett Rogers and Sergei Kharitonov,
both of whom were taken down, mounted and softened up prior to
being submitted. Barnett’s top game is integral to his success
as a fighter, but against a phenomenal grappler like Cormier,
it is going to be difficult to get there.
However,
Barnett has the advantage of years of hard fighting and taxing
battles, something Cormier has yet to experience. That is the
recipe for a great final. Given the blows this competition has
taken promotionally and otherwise, it is the kind of bout any
fan would really want to see. That is something I was not sure
I would be able to say considering all the assorted drama that
has surrounded this thing.
Source:
Sherdog
|
Minotouro
gets Tito and Nogueira brothers fight on same night
Brazilian light heavyweight Antonio Rogério Nogueira,
aka Minotouro, has a showdown with former champion Tito Ortiz
scheduled for the December 10 UFC 140 show in Toronto, Canada.
With
this battle of veterans the UFC managed to fit the two toughest
twins on the same card, as Rodrigo Minotauro will be having a
rematch with Frank Mir in the heavyweight division.
Rogério,
who stayed out of UFC 133 due to a shoulder injury, knows his
next outing will be a high-stakes affair, seeing as he is coming
off back-to-back losses, to divisional standouts Ryan Bader (UFC
119) and Phil Davis (the March UFC Fight Night).
Nor
is the matchup one to take lightly for Tito Ortiz, who went five
years without a win before surprising fans with a clinical guillotine
over Ryan Bader in June. The Californian then accepted a last-minute
offer to substitute an injured Phil Davis against the dreaded
Rashad Evans at UFC 133 and lost.
Source:
Gracie Magazine
|
UFC
FN 25 (9/17 New Orleans) &
UFC 135 (9/24 Denver) odds
By Zach
Arnold
Location:
9/17 New Orleans Convention Center in New Orleans, Louisiana
TV: Spike TV (9 PM EST live & 9 PM PST on delay)
Dark
matches
Lightweights:
Mike Lullo vs. Robert Peralta
Welterweights: Seth Baczynski vs. Clay Harvison
Welterweights: Justin Edwards vs. Jorge Lopez
Welterweights: Daniel Roberts vs. TJ Waldburger
Bantamweights: Ken Stone vs. Donny Walker
Welterweights: Matt Riddle vs. Lance Benoist
Lightweights: Evan Dunham vs. Shamar Bailey
Lightweights: Cody McKenzie vs. Vagner Rocha
Main card
Middleweights:
Alan Belcher vs. Jason MacDonald
Featherweights: Jonathan Brookins vs. Erik Koch
Middleweights: Court McGee vs. Dongi Yang
Welterweights (eliminator): Jake Shields vs. Jake Ellenberger
Location: 9/24 Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado
TV: PPV (9 PM EST/6 PM PST)
Dark
matches
Featherweights:
Eddie Yagin vs. Junior Assuncao
Bantamweights: Takeya Mizugaki vs. Cole Escovedo
Light Heavyweights: James Te Huna vs. Ricardo Romero
Middleweights: Nick Ring vs. Tim Boetsch
Lightweights: Tony Ferguson vs. Aaron Riley
Main card
Heavyweights:
Ben Rothwell vs. Mark Hunt
Lightweights: Nate Diaz vs. Takanori Gomi
Heavyweights: Travis Browne vs. Rob Broughton
Welterweights: Matt Hughes vs. Josh Koscheck
UFC Light Heavyweight title match: Jon “Bones” Jones
vs. Rampage Jackson
Fight odds (via our friend Nick Kalikas)
For
informational purposes only.
Jake
Shields (-170) is a 8.5-to-5 favorite over Jake Ellenberger (+150).
Jon
Jones (-500) is a 5-to-1 favorite over Rampage Jackson (+400).
Nate Diaz (-260) is a 13-to-5 favorite over Takanori Gomi (+220).
Travis Browne (-350) is a 7-to-2 favorite over Rob Broughton
(+290).
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
Bezerra
Again Steals Show on Bellator 49 Undercard
by Sam
Genovese
ATLANTIC
CITY, N.J. -- Another Bellator undercard stolen by Alexandre
Bezerra.
For
the third time in three months, the 23-year-old Brazilian put
on a standout performance on one of the company's bills, this
time stopping Scott Heckman in the second round of their 147-pound
contest at Bellator 49 at Caesars Atlantic City.
In
the opening round, the former East Stroudsburg University wrestler
took the Brazilian to the mat on occasion, but couldn't hold
him there and was soundly outstruck on the feet by the Sao Paulo
native's boxing.
“He
couldn't take me down. The strategy was exactly what happened
in the fight,” Bezerra told Sherdog.com following the bout.
“He would get tired trying to take me down, and when he
got tired, I would go for it and take him down. That was the
gameplan. I wasn't going to let him go.”
In
the second, Bezerra did exactly that. He dispensed with striking,
slamming Heckman to the ground, taking his back and tearing into
him with heavy punches until referee Gasper Oliver was forced
to rescue the Bangor, Penn., fighter 98 seconds into the round.
Bezerra,
who resides in Elkins Park, N.J., moves to 11-1 with the win,
with his last three victories coming inside the Bellator cage.
The
other undercard gem of the night was Palmerton, Penn.,’s
Joel Roberts, who overcame early adversity to choke Brylan Van
Artsdalen out cold in round two.
Roberts
was smacked with heavy punches inside in the first round, his
head snapping back continuously. However, as the round wound
down, a big left hand led to Roberts grabbing a guillotine that
forewarned of the submission skills that would take Van Artsdalen
out.
In
the second, Van Artsdalen dove into Roberts’ open guard
with punches, only to eat a vicious upkick. Much like Ivan Salaverry
on Joe Riggs, Roberts quickly locked up a tight triangle that
put Van Artsdalen to sleep
at 1:47 of the second round, earning his fourth straight win.
“I
caught him with an upkick underneath the jaw. I was just waiting
for one of his arms to come through on one of his punches and
I got it,” Roberts said after the win. “Once I got
it locked up I knew it was a matter of keeping it sunk and keeping
it tight. I knew I had plenty of time.”
New
Jersey-based Lithuanian Giedrius Karavackas earned an impressive
come-from-behind win of his own, knocking out Norfolk, Va.,’s
LeVon Maynard in the third round.
The
Lithuanian judoka was dropped by a heavy right hook in the first
round and was slow to work his way back into the fight, as his
kicking offense didn't show effect and he couldn't hold Maynard
down.
In
the third, Maynard shot in for a double-leg while Karavackas
kicked, shooting straight into a flush knee that dropped him
on his face. Karavackas swarmed, boxing his foe’s ears until
referee Donnie Carolei stopped the bout at 1:32 of the final
frame.
At
150 pounds, Kurt Pellegrino student Lester Caslow outlasted BJJ
black belt James Jones, in part due to injury. Just 15 seconds
into the second frame, a Caslow right caused Jones to step back
awkwardly, tweaking his right knee. Caslow pounced with punches
to force Gasper Oliver to stop the bout just 15 seconds into
the round.
In
the evening's heavyweight opener, Azunna Anyanwu ended his fight
with J.A. Dudley with fireworks, as Philadelphia's “Zulu”
moved to 4-0 with a series of hooks and straights that finished
the fight at 4:16 of the second round.
Source
Sherdog
|
Josh
Barnett: “Professional wrestling is the reason for the fight
industry in Brazil.”
By Zach
Arnold
During
the Summer, I received a few different MMA books to check out
and one of them is Jake Shannon’s new book, Say Uncle! It’s
as great as you would imagine it to be. Big text, clean layout,
good interview snippets & profiles of characters such as
Karl Gotch & Billy Robinson… it’s a breeze to read
and appeals to a wide swath of fight fans. I cannot say enough
good things about Jake’s book and I would strongly encourage
you to check it out.
I
was reminded of Jake’s book while listening to an interview
Josh Barnett did with Mauro Ranallo last Thursday for Mauro’s
distinguished & popular MMA radio show.
There
was the usual promo cutting for Josh’s upcoming fight against
Sergei Kharitonov:
“I
know you just jumped out of this plane, Sergei, you’re floating
your way down to what you think is going to be the epitome of
an MMA career, sitting on the top with a crown of head. As you
float through that sky and you look at all these wonderful things
and you see all the stuff that you’re going to conquer,
I’m going to come over right alongside you & cut all
the strings on your parachute and watch you plummet to the ground.
Just wait. There’s no room for two at the top.”
However,
the most interesting part of the interview had to do with how
Josh got into catch wrestling and why he chose it over other
fighting disciplines/backgrounds.
JOSH
BARNETT: “Well, when I first started in learning about Mixed
Martial Arts and getting involved, you know, at first I thought
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu was judo, basically. I didn’t really
know the difference and I had a little bit of judo experience
but not a lot. But at my roots I’m a wrestler and so finding
something that really worked with that and I never felt that
wrestling should be discarded at all. I always felt it was necessary
to be capable from all angles but not to ever discard my wrestling.
That was one of the strongest things that you can have in the
ring and watching professional wrestling and being a huge fan
of American & Canadian & Japanese professional wrestling
for so long and seeing the techniques out there and knowing the
lineage about it. Catch wrestling has a very deep lineage and
the gym that I started working with came from people that had
wrestling & catch wrestling backgrounds so it just made sense
and it was so much more aggressive & violent than jiu-jitsu
and I’ll be honest — at the time jiu-jitsu was very
arrogant especially towards anyone that did not have a jiu-jitsu
background or to an extent at the time just because you were
not Brazilian. Times have changed a lot with a large influx of
jiu-jitsu instructors and whatnot coming from Brazil or just
being homegrown here in the United States, but back in 1995…
1994, you know, you tell somebody, ‘well, I wrestle, I do
submissions’ or whatever.
‘What’s
your belt? Who’s your sensei?”
And
I’m like, uh… you know, so-and-so. “Well, I don’t
have a belt.”
“Well,
whatever,” like they discard you, like whatever you’re
doing is all wrong.”
MAURO
RANALLO: “Is there similarities then to Luta Livre &
catch wrestling in many ways? Luta Livre is submission without
the gi and what are the differences between the two?”
JOSH
BARNETT: “Yes. Well, you know, the thing is Luta Livre was
more inspired by catch wrestling and professional wrestling…
whereas Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is actually more so inspired by the
judokas that transplanted there, one of them being Mitsuyo Maeda
who himself did catch wrestling and was a professional wrestler.
So, in either way, professional wrestling is the reason for the
fight industry within Brazil. These guys would do their tours
of the world, going out there and making it happen and from that…
they developed into full-fledged fighting systems.”
**
As
for Josh’s goals of wrestling & fighting again in Japan,
he said that his avenue with Mr. Inoki is largely finished as
long as he’s under contract to Zuffa/Forza. He didn’t
exactly label Strikeforce as a dying cancer patient, however.
Perhaps he will see a booking in his near future in February
for UFC’s Japanese show.
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
Strikeforce
Results: Cormier Knocks Out “Big Foot” Silva to Advance
to Tournament Finals
by Jeff
Cain
Daniel
Cormier became the first finalist of the Strikeforce World Grand
Prix Heavyweight Tournament by knocking out Antonio Silva in
the first round on Saturday at the U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati.
Cormier
didn’t hesitate when presented with the opportunity to replace
Alistair Overeem in the semi-finals of the Strikeforce Heavyweight
Tournament and for good reason. The two-time Olympic wrestler
showed off his hand speed and striking ability, putting Silva
down twice with strikes.
Silva
pressed forward early, but Cormier landed an overhand right on
the chin of Silva that put him down. Silva was able to get back
to his feet, but may not have fully recovered.
Cormier
sensed his opponent was hurt and ended it at the 3:56 mark of
the first round with a three punch combination that ended with
a right uppercut that caused Silva’s body to go limp and
crash to the canvas. Cormier finished with two hammer fists before
the referee called a stop to the fight, advancing to the finals
of the tournament.
“I
fought one of the top five heavyweights in the world and knocked
him out. Give me some respect now,” said Cormier following
the fight.
“I
hit him with the jab, left hook, uppercut. Listen, he’s
not Cain Velasquez and that’s who I train with everyday,”
he added.
Cormier
may have injured his right hand with the win.
“On
the first right hand that I hit him with I kind of jacked up
my right hand. I’m hoping it’s not too bad, but if
it is, oh well. I still got the knockout,” said Cormier.
The
potential injury didn’t change his outlook on the rest of
the tournament, however.
“I’m
going to the finals and winning it. I’m taking the title,”
he said.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Strikeforce
Barnett vs. Kharitonov: Quick Results
Main Bouts (On Showtime):
-Josh Barnett def. Sergei Kharitonov by Submission (Arm Triangle)
at 4:28, R1
-Daniel Cormier def. Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva by KO
(Punches) at 3:56, R1
-Luke Rockhold def. Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza by Unanimous
Decision (50-45, 48-47, 48-47), R5
-Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal def. Roger Gracie by KO (Punch)
at 4:33, R1
-Pat Healy def. Maximo Blanco by Submission (Rear Naked Choke)
at 4:24, R2
Preliminary Bouts (On HDNet):
-Mike Kyle def. Marcos Rogerio de Lima by Unanimous Decision
(29-28, 29-28, 30-27), R3
-Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante def. Yoel Romero by KO
(Knee) at 4:51, R2
-Jordan Mein def. Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos by TKO
(Strikes) at 3:18, R3
-Alexis Davis def. Amanda Nunes by TKO (Strikes) at 4:53, R2
-Dominique Steele def. Chris Mierzwiak by Unanimous Decision
(29-28, 29-27, 29-27), R3
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Strikeforce
Live Results and Play-by-Play
Chris Mierzwiak vs. Dominique Steele
Round
1
Steele comes forward with a pair of left hands and an uppercut,
immediately causing Mierzwiak to clinch up. Mierzwiak winds up
on the bottom, but keeps scrambling and catches Steele in a loose
triangle. Steele pops loose and they stand, only to clinch again.
Steele gets underhooks and tosses Mierzwiak down, but they don’t
stay there for long. Left hook connects for Steele, then a jumping
knee appears to daze Mierzwiak, who shoots for a takedown. Steele
denies it and Mierzwiak instead cracks him with a knee in the
clinch. Mierzwiak takes the driver’s seat now, hopping onto
the kneeling Steele’s back. Mierzwiak cinches up a body-triangle
and rolls to his back as he works for the rear-naked choke. Steele
does well to defend by peeling the wrists and punching over his
shoulder, and eventually reverses the position with just under
a minute left. They stand back up and Steele puts more left hands
on Mierzwiak, then just misses with another jump knee. The middleweights
end a very tight first round in the clinch.
Mike
Fridley scores the round 10-9 Mierzwiak
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Steele
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 Mierzwiak
Round
2
Mierzwiak jumps guard and immediately begins angling for a triangle
choke. Steele shucks it off and Mierzwiak drives forward on a
leg, then goes back to closed guard. Mierzwiak tries an armbar,
but again Steele slips out and moves to north-south position.
A knee to the body makes Mierzwiak roll back to guard. Steele
keeps punching, gets caught in a loose triangle but immediately
slams his way out. Steele works from half-guard on Mierzwiak’s
left and punches cause Mierzwiak to roll and give up his back.
They stand and Steele connects with a jumping knee. Steele has
Mierzwiak pinned on the fence and connects with a half-dozen
hard right hands. Mierzwiak looks exhausted; he just dodges a
jumping knee, but crumbles after a hard right hook. Steele gives
chase and gets the crucifix position against the cage with a
minute left. A few short right hands hit the unprotected face
of Mierzwiak before the escapes the crucifix, but Steele finishes
the round on top.
Mike
Fridley scores the round 10-9 Steele
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Steele
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-8 Steele
Round
3
Mierzwiak clinches Steele into the fence early with no result.
When they break, Steele times a low kick and puts Mierzwiak on
his back in the middle of the cage with a right straight. Mierzwiak
gets back to his feet and the tired fighters clinch on the cage
as the pace slows significantly from the first 10 minutes. Steele
hits an easy double-leg and throws a few punches from closed
guard before Mierzwiak throws up a triangle. Steele slips out
but leaves Mierzwiak enough space to scramble and take his back.
Mierzwiak has a body-triangle and works in slow-motion for a
choke. Steele twists into Mierzwiak’s guard with 20 ticks
left and finishes on top.
Mike
Fridley scores the round 10-9 Steele (29-28 Steele)
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Steele (30-27 Steele)
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 Steele (29-27 Steele)
Official
result: Judge Randy Crawford scores it 29-28, while judges Sal
D’Amato and Chris Lee have it 29-27 for the winner by unanimous
decision, Dominique Steele.
Amanda
Nunes vs. Alexis Davis
Round
1
Nunes comes out slugging with right hands and the pair are in
a firefight immediately. Davis tries to tie up and slow the pace,
but Nunes just keeps trying to push her away and throw bombs
over the top. Davis throws a knee up the middle and Nunes answers
in kind. Davis lands a few solid punches before Nunes digs for
a single-leg and spins her down at the base of the fence with
three minutes left on the clock. Davis clings to a leg and works
back to her feet. The women trade jabs, knees as they move in
and out of range in the center. Nunes clubs Davis with a looping
right and they clinch up again.
Chris
Nelson scores the round 10-9 Nunes
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-10
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Nunes
Round
2
Davis gives no room for Nunes to trade at the start of round
two, moving into the clinch against the fence and trying to hop
onto the Brazilian’s back. She can’t get there and
Nunes stands up while Davis looks for an ankle pick. Davis puts
the clinch on and lands an elbow over the top before Nunes reverses.
Davis connects with a dozen solid knees to the thigh and body
while they work around the perimeter. Nunes is being stifled
and not offering much in return. Referee Greg Franklin splits
them up with just over a minute to go and Nunes lands a hard
right before Davis clinches again. They work off the cage and
Nunes hits a hip-toss in the middle, but Davis gets on top immediately.
She dodges an upkick from Nunes and works around the side, then
hops into full mount. Nunes gives up her back and Davis sinks
both hooks in, flattening her out. She tries briefly for a rear-naked
choke, but instead decides to throw rapid-fire punches to either
side of Nunes’ head. Ref Franklin steps in for the TKO stoppage
at 4:53 of round two.
Evangelista
“Cyborg” Santos vs. Jordan Mein
Round
1
The welterweight trade chopping leg kicks early with Cyborg landing
harder on the outside. Mein sneaks a nice left hand through as
they feel one another out. Santos is thudding away with low kicks,
but not throwing much up top, while Mein takes the opposite route,
looking to string together straight combinations. Mein is making
Santos come forward and looking to land a counter left. A nasty
low kick takes the right leg out from under Mein, but he pops
right back up. Mein looks to be stepping a bit more gingerly
in the final moment, switching between orthodox and southpaw
style as Cyborg batters his legs. Santos lands a hard right hand
to the body and ducks under a left from Mein.
Chris
Nelson scores the round 10-9 Santos
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 Santos
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Santos
Round
2
Cyborg goes straight back to his low kicks, working both the
inside and outside of Mein’s left stem now. A particularly
hard one lands on Mein’s right knee and the Canadian checks
the next one. Mein gets a sweeping left hand through and lands
a leg kick of his own, then just misses with a head kick. Santos
pops his man with a right straight and spins around on a whiffed
leg kick. When he turns, Santos is forced to cover up and absorb
a six-punch combo from Mein with the body shots landing hardest.
Cyborg misses on a vicious hook-kick but plunks Mein with a follow-up
right hand. More leg kicks landing for the Brazilian; he tries
to go high before the bell but is blocked.
Chris
Nelson scores the round 10-9 Mein
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 Mein
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Mein
Round
3
Santos tries throwing punches to being round three, but he’s
being countered well by the taller Mein. A high kick slaps Mein’s
cheek. Mein unleashes his best combination of the fight, four
consecutive punches connecting with Santos’s jaw. Uppercuts
landing for Mein as he tries to finish the fight. Santos is bloodied,
covering up after taking a punch to the body. Santos is trapped
against the fence and Mein lands half a dozen level elbows which
have Santos falling to the canvas. It’s a brutal TKO finish
from Mein at 3:18 of round three.
Yoel
Romero Palacio vs. Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante
Round
1
Romero hops around the outside while Feijao assumes the center
of the cage. After 40 seconds without a strike thrown, the crowd
gets booing. Romero leaps forward with a front kick, misses and
nearly falls down. Feijao just misses with a big head kick and
lands a slapping inside thigh kick that has Romero shaking his
head. Three minutes in and there’s still not a whole lot
going on. Romero continues jumping around while Feijao tries
another head kick. Referee Dan Miragliotta halts the action with
30 seconds left and issues Romero a warning for inactivity. Romero
tries a takedown at the 10-second mark, only to be stuffed and
forced to slip underneath Feijao.
Chris
Nelson scores the round 10-9 Cavalcante
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 Cavalcante
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Cavalcante
Round
2
Feijao lands a kick to the body and Romero shrugs it off. The
wrestler tries to answer with one of his own, but instead catches
Cavalcante right on the cup. Feijao takes 30 seconds to recover
and gets back to work, whereupon he easily steps out of the way
of a Romero shot. Feijao slips on a high kick and Romero tries
to seize the opportunity, but only gets one punch off. Romero
tries a takedown now, but can’t get it going. He traps Feijao
against the cage and goes wild with punches, landing several
but having many more blocked. Romero dumps Feijao down with a
double-leg, but the Brazilian uses the fence to hop back up.
Another takedown try is blocked and Feijao plows Romero down
instead. Feijao lets his man right back up and Romero comes forward
with a combination before clinching up on the fence. Romero lands
a pair of hooks and steps out of the way of a Feijao uppercut.
He matadors a punch from Cavalcante and gives him a thumbs-up.
With 30 seconds left, Feijao misses a head kick but connects
with a follow-up backfist. Romero falls to the floor and Feijao
tries to finish. Romero gets space, hops to his feet, but eats
an uppercut and a hook. Romero flops to the ground, dazed, and
Feijao lands a single punch from above before referee Dan Miragliotta
steps in for the save.
Marcos
Rogerio de Lima vs. Mike Kyle
Round
1
It’s Kyle throwing first, pumping a left jab through the
guard of de Lima and whipping leg kicks. The Brazilian answers
with a nasty outside thigh kick of his own. Kyle connects with
a pair of punches to the gut; “Pezao” responds with
a two-piece combination followed by a leg kick. Kyle is using
his range well, sticking his jab in de Lima’s face and sidestepping
the counterpunches. A right straight from Kyle has de Lima backing
up into the fence, but Kyle doesn’t give chase. Nice hooks
up top from Kyle, followed by a pair to the body. De Lima has
appeared dazed after a few combinations, but may just be trying
to lure Kyle in. The Brazilian wobbles to his corner at the end
of the first frame.
Chris
Nelson scores the round 10-9 Kyle
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 Kyle
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Kyle
Round
2
De Lima lands a flurry of low kicks, trying to chop Kyle’s
base out, but Kyle stays up and continues to pump his jab. A
solid counter left connects for de Lima, one of his better punches
in the fight so far. Both men are keeping their distance, looking
tentative in the middle part of the round. Kyle is getting his
jab through at will, while Pezao lands sporadic outside thigh
kicks. With a minute left, Kyle rushes in and gets underhooks,
tripping de Lima to the base of the cage. De Lima stands, giving
up his back in the process. He twists around only to be plowed
down again by Kyle, who backs out and finishes the round punching
at de Lima’s feet.
Chris
Nelson scores the round 10-9 Kyle
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 De Lima
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 De Lima
Round
3
Kyle swipes with a nice left hook, but de Lima answers with a
step-off counter moments later. More inside leg kicks come from
the Brazilian; Kyle keeps trying to jab, but he’s coming
up short now. Kyle checks a kick and hops out of the way of a
body shot before leaping in to plow de Lima down. Kyle works
from de Lima’s half-guard with 90 seconds left. The American
Kickboxing Academy fighter throws left hands to the body and
head, mashing de Lima with his forearm. Kyle closes it out with
right hands to the ribs and leaps to his feet at the horn with
his arms raised.
Chris
Nelson scores the round 10-9 Kyle (30-27 Kyle)
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 Kyle (29-28 Kyle)
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Kyle (29-28 Kyle)
Official
result: Judges Chris Lee and Bruce Snell score it 29-28, while
judge Otto Torriero sees it 30-27, all in favor of the winner
by unanimous decision, Mike Kyle.
Pat
Healy vs. Maximo Blanco
Round
1
Blanco ducks right inside and Healy tries to mug with uppercuts,
but they quickly split. Healy falls to his back off a low leg
kick and Blanco goes down into Healy’s close half-guard.
The Venezuelan tries to pass on Healy’s left and instead
gets pushed back to full-guard, then pushed out entirely as Healy
scrambles up. Healy comes inside and eats an uppercut and a right
hook. He tries to pump his left jab, can’t find the range
and Blanco ducks under a left hook. Now it’s Blanco lands
a high kick right under Healy’s chin and gives chase to
the floor with knees and a flurry of punches. Healy survives
and closes up guard with his left side flush to the cage. The
veteran swings his hips around, trying to secure Blanco’s
left arm for an armbar. Blanco twists out of it and Healy dives
for a lock on Blanco’s left leg. Blanco uses his right foot
to kick Healy in the face several times before referee Gary Copeland
can intervene. Healy is bleeding and dazed, but he’s approved
to continue by the ringside physician. Referee Copeland deducts
a point and action resumes with 90 seconds left. Blanco misses
with some wild kicks, but gets inside with a kick to the body
and explosion of furious strikes. It’s Healy who gets the
takedown, though, and Blanco kneels with Healy in control on
his right side. Healy punches away to the side of the covering
Blanco’s head for the final 30 seconds.
Chris
Nelson scores the round 9-9
Mike Whitman scores the round 9-9
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 9-9
Round
2
Healy, now fully patched up and Vaselined, looks to establish
his jab early in the second, moving forward on Blanco. Blanco
answers with a left jab and fluid right uppercut as he moves
around the perimeter of the cage. A smiling Blanco dips out of
the way of several jabs, but falls to his rear, stunned from
a left hand. Healy gives chase and slams Blanco on the floor,
leaping onto his back. Healy has a rear-naked choke partially
sunk, but Blanco stays calm and twists his head out. Healy just
misses a knee on the way up, has a leg swept out from under him
and takes a few Blanco uppercuts. Healy dives on a single-leg,
gets a waistlock and pins Blanco to the fence. Keeping busy with
left hands, Healy eventually lets Blanco up before ragdolling
him right back down. Healy has another rear-naked choke and this
one looks much deeper than the last. Blanco resists momentarily,
but he’s stuck this time and is forced to tap out at the
4:27 mark.
Muhammed
"King Mo" Lawal vs. Roger Gracie
Round
1
Hands low, Lawal pushes range-finding punches from the center
of the cage. Lawal has his right hand cocked with his left by
his hip, trying to lure the rangy Gracie inside to strike. Gracie
tries with a few jabs, dodged and caught by Mo. Light boos rain
down from the crowd just before the halfway point and referee
Jerry Poe urges them to get busy. They do just that, Gracie landing
a knee and forcing Mo backward with kicks. The pace slows again
until Poe instructs them to get to work and Lawal throws a combo.
Inside the final minute, it’s still anyone’s round.
Gracie lands a jab and Lawal answers with a murderous right hand
that bounces off the side of Gracie’s head. Gracie collapses
and Lawal lands another right on the ground to seal the deal.
Gracie is knocked stiff, Lawal misses with a third punch and
referee Poe jumps in to call it at 4:33 of the first round.
Strikeforce
Middleweight Championship
Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza vs. Luke Rockhold
Round
1
Dan Miragliotta is the third man in the cage for this 185-pound
title bout. The southpaw Rockhold starts with leg kicks to the
lead left leg of Jacare. The Brazilian shoots and is stuffed,
but sends Rockhold backpedaling with an overhand right. Souza
chases him down and tries to slam the American. Rockhold sits
at the base of his fence with Souza trying to yank the legs out
from under him. It’s a stalemate for a minute until Rockhold
puts his back to the fence and Souza lands a series of hard right
hands. Another takedown attempt from Souza nearly sees him take
Rockhold’s back. Instead, they wind up in the mirror of
the position they were just in, this time with Souza landing
lefts. Rockhold stands and Jacare fires a few knees outside in
the clinch. They split with 90 seconds remaining in the opening
frame. Rockhold grazes Souza’s jaw with a front kick then
eats a right hand. A pair of high kicks are blocked by Souza,
who retaliates with a crisp left hook and chases Rockhold down
with another winging combo. Rockhold lands a couple leg kicks,
has a switch kick blocked and drills a hard, partially blocked
kick to the champ’s body. Souza tries for a takedown, but
can’t hold Rockhold to the floor at the horn.
Chris
Nelson scores the round 10-9 Souza
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 Souza
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Souza
Round
2
Rockhold just misses a spinning back-kick and then slaps outside
with one to the thigh. More and more kicks from the AKA fighter,
who pushes in with a sharp three-piece combination. A right hook
from Jacare has Rockhold in trouble, nearly hitting the ground.
Rockhold stumbles backward and Jacare chases him down, but can’t
find the same success with follow-up punches. Jacare clinches
momentarily and exits with a solid standing elbow. Souza blocks
another pair of hard left high kicks, inching away from the more
active Rockhold. With just over two minutes left, Jacare decides
to stop backing up and dips under a punch from Rockhold to tie
up. Rockhold reverses the champ into a cagepost and drills half
a dozen knees to Souza’s left thigh. Jacare reverses the
position and pops Rockhold with a right before escaping the Thai
clinch. Rockhold presses forward again with a combo and has his
head knocked back with another right hand from Souza. Rockhold
doesn’t go down this time and continues moving forward,
alternating kicks and punches in the final half-minute. Souza
is backing up, staying out of harm’s way and stepping off
with a counter right hand to the horn.
Chris
Nelson scores the round 10-9 Souza
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 Souza
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Souza
Round
3
Again it’s the challenger Rockhold moving forward to being
the third period. The AKA fighter pumps his jab and Jacare tries
to back him up with a trio of high kicks. Rockhold answers with
a blocked head kick of his own, throws a combo and finishes with
a kick that catches Souza in the groin. Souza complains to referee
Miragliotta that this is the second low blow from Rockhold and
sits in his corner to recover. Action resumes with about 3:40
remaining. Souza lifts up Rockhold’s left leg and Rockhold
slugs him in the face a few times. Jacare stops the punches by
sweeping the other leg and pinning Rockhold on the fence. Rockhold
stands and Jacare looks for a standing kimura. The challenger
extracts his limb and keeps pressing in, backing Souza up with
a push kick and lobbing more low. Souza is stepping out of the
way of all Rockhold’s left hands, trying to counter on the
right, but he’s not finding his space. Rockhold stands up
straight to taunt and Souza drops his hands, too. Rockhold tries
to sneak a punch in, but Jacare has the same thought.
Chris
Nelson scores the round 10-9 Rockhold
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 Rockhold
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Rockhold
Round
4
The challenger lands a solid left hook and Jacare answers with
a kick across the thighs. Rockhold drops his hands low and shakes
them, baiting the titlist who answers with a kick to the midsection.
A pair of nice right hands get through for Jacare and Rockhold
circles out. Rockhold is dripping blood from his nose at the
two-minute mark and Jacare clinches him into the cage. They battle
with over-unders, Rockhold standing outside and looking for a
trip. Jacare snuffs it out and charges with punches, exiting
with a hard elbow-right hand combo. Rockhold sprawls against
the cage on a Jacare single-leg and turns the champ over. They
stand, exchanging knees in the clinch and now Souza is the man
moving forward. Souza pops Rockhold with a few stiff rights,
catches a turning kick and drags him down. Rockhold gets back
up and clinches on the fence, drilling a few knees on the outside
before the horn.
Chris
Nelson scores the round 10-9 Souza
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 Rockhold
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Souza
Round
5
Rockhold lands a slapping kick to Jacare’s chest. His right
jab is snapping back Souza’s head while the champ tries
to keep the taller challenger at range with a push kick. Jacare
lands a solid kick to the body while Rockhold goes to the legs,
escapes a takedown try and punches to Souza’s body. Jacare
gets underhooks on the fence and tries to trip Rockhold down,
but Rockhold pops right back up. Another takedown from Jacare;
he can’t get Rockhold flat, but he keeps the American down
longer this time. Left-right hook combo from Rockhold cracks
the champ and he hunts Jacare down with three or four more. Jacare
looks to have recovered when he eats another right and answers
with one of his own. Now, Rockhold lands a body kick and Jacare
gives him a right hand back. Right hand to the body from the
challenger as it goes into the final 30 seconds. A pair of left
hook connect for Rockhold and Jacare goes to his counter-right
again. Jacare charges just before the horn, winging punches and
connecting with a few right hands. They end in the clinch and
both men walk away with their arms raised in what should be a
very close decision.
Chris
Nelson scores the round 10-9 Rockhold (48-47 Souza)
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 Rockhold (48-47 Rockhold)
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Rockhold (48-47 Souza)
Official
result: It’s a unanimous decision with judges Sal D’Amato
and Chris Lee scoring the bout 48-47, while judge Bruce Snell
has it 50-45, all in favor of the new Strikeforce middleweight
champion, Luke Rockhold.
Strikeforce
Heavyweight Grand Prix Semifinal
Daniel Cormier vs. Antonio Silva
Round
1
Cormier tries an outside low kick and Silva rushes him with a
few right hands. The former Olympian has his back to the fence
momentarily but circles out. Cormier cracks Silva with a walloping
overhand right and dives into the Brazilian’s guard. Silva
appears to have recovered as Cormier stands up and motions him
back up quickly. Cormier backs away from a pair of long punches
and pops Silva with a left, then another. Silva is dazed when
another right comes over the top, forcing him to dive for a takedown.
Again, Cormier opts to stand and let the big man back up. Cormier
pops a left jab through, catches a kick and sweeps Silva to the
floor. He stands over “Bigfoot,” who kicks at Cormier’s
knee. Eventually, Cormier backs away and Silva stands with about
90 seconds left. Bigfoot slugs at him, not landing much as Cormier
circles out. Cormier catches a kick, spins Silva around and pops
him with a right. Cormier ducks inside with a left hook and uncorks
a huge right uppercut that sends Silva crashing to the floor.
Silva looks finished already, but Cormier makes sure of it, closing
out the fight with a pair of hammerfists. Referee Greg Franklin
steps in; the official time of the stunning knockout is 3:56
of round one.
Strikeforce
Heavyweight Grand Prix Semifinal
Josh Barnett vs. Sergei Kharitonov
Round
1
Referee Dan Miragliotta is in charge of the evening’s main
event. Barnett dances around the outside, eating a pair of right
jabs from Kharitonov early. They tie up and trade uppercuts in
the clinch briefly before disengaging. Barnett gets a little
space, grabs one of Kharitonov’s legs and trips him down,
the catch-wrestling specialist hopping directly into full mount.
Kharitonov tries to buck and roll, but Barnett has his hips anchored,
sitting up to throw punches and leaning forward to mash with
his forearm. Barnett throws right hands to the head and body
then leans his forearm on the Russian’s throat and taps
with little hammerfists. Still half a round to go as Kharitonov
tries to buck more and Barnett again stays in place. Barnett
hooks his heels into Kharitonov’s legs and solidifies his
mount. The next flurry of punches has Kharitonov turning over
and Barnett sinks both hooks in with 90 seconds remaining. Kharitonov
turtles and Barnett throws right hands under the armpit. Barnett
flattens his man out and punches away, causing Kharitonov to
turn. As he does, Barnett instantly locks on a tight arm-triangle
choke and hops off to Kharitonov’s left side. It’s
only seconds before Kharitonov is tapping. The end comes officially
at 4:28 of the first round, sending Barnett through to meet Daniel
Cormier in the finals of the Strikeforce heavyweight world grand
prix.
Source:
Sherdog
|
Lorenzo
Fertitta on UFC fighter salaries: “All these keyboard warriors
have no idea what they’re talking about”
By Zach Arnold
DAVE FARRA: “Take us back to the beginning, you and Dana
White. How did that relationship start?”
LORENZO FERTITTA: “You know, I met Dana when we both started
as 9th graders at Bishop Gorman High School here in Las Vegas,
so me and Dana White go way back to the time when we were like
14, 15 years old, knew each other through high school. After
high school, we kind of parted, went our own ways. I went off
to college, he went off and did what he did in Boston and we
hadn’t seen each other in about 6 or 7 years until we met
up again at a common friend’s wedding and it was just like
a nice reunion. Hey, what are you doing, where you’ve been.
He informed me that he had been training some boxers and at the
time I was on the Nevada State Athletic Commission, so we obviously
had some common interests and he said, ‘you know, you should
come train with me, I’ve been training some executives,
I just don’t deal with boxers,’ and I said, you know
what, that’s a good idea, I haven’t been anything since
I got out of high school so it’s time to get back in shape
and I met up with him at the gym and I think I’ve talked
to him every day since then.”
DAVE FARRA: “You and Dana are clearly very close friends
but now that you’re a decade into this business relationship,
has there ever been any moments where Dana White has said something
that hasn’t been politically correct that’s made you
go, oh man, don’t say that?”
LORENZO FERTITTA: “You know, that’s the beauty of what
Dana is. He has no filter and I think that the fans really appreciate
that because we live in a day and age where, you know, you talk
to a commissioner of a sports league whether it be NFL or NBA
or whatever and they get asked the hard questions and a lot of
times you feel like you’re getting a politically correct
answer. You know, Dana is all about being, saying exactly what’s
on his mind, being truthful. I mean, when’s the last time
you saw a fight promoter sit at the podium in the press conference
after the fight and say, you know what, that fight tonight sucked,
I’m sorry, you didn’t get your money’s worth,
we’ll make it up to you next time? You know, if it was Don
Kong or Bob Arum, they’d be feeding you something that you
know just isn’t right. They’d be expounding upon the
fact of what a great fight it was and this and that. Dana doesn’t
do that. He calls it like it is and that’s what I think
makes him so successful.”
DAVE FARRA: “Could the UFC be where it is today without
Dana White?”
LORENZO FERTITTA: “Certainly not with the persona that it
has. Dana has become the face of the UFC. he is a great promoter.
He’s obviously a great interview. I think at the end of
the day, the product is the product. I mean, people like to see
two guys fight using Mixed Martial Arts rules. So, do I think
the sport would be here? Of course it’d be here without
me, without Dana. I think the fact that we put our heads together,
we put our money up to build this sport, you know, he promoted
it. I think those combinations obviously accelerated the growth
and here we are today.”
DAVE FARRA: “Do you agree with Dana that MMA one day will
be the biggest sport in the whole world?”
LORENZO FERTITTA: “I do, I really do and I know that sounds
crazy, you know, people talk about how you’ll never be bigger
than the NFL. I mean, I would say we’re getting… if
you take the whole world and wrap that around, I’d say we’re
actually getting close with our worldwide reach. We do have a
special thing in that this is truly the only sport that you take
to any corner of the Earth, any country, any language, you show
them, you put two guys in the Octagon and let them use any martial
art to compete, everybody gets it. Everybody watches it. It appeals
to everybody. Whereas sports that have more structured rules,
it’s hard to understand, whether it’s cricket of the
NFL or baseball, it just doesn’t translate if you don’t
grow up in that culture.”
DAVE FARRA: “Sports fans compare UFC athletes to NFL stars
or NBA stars and a lot of keyboard warriors say that UFC fighters
are just underpaid considering how much that Zuffa makes. How
do you respond to those critics?”
LORENZO FERTITTA: “You know, the reality is they don’t
know. They don’t know what the reality is. I mean, the fact
of the matter is that when we bought this company, yes, guys
were getting paid very, very little. But as our company has continued
to grow and revenues have grown, guys are now making a lot more
money, too. I can tell you that there is a number of guys that
make well into the millions every single years, there’s
guys that make into the $10 million (range) every year, in that
category. That doesn’t include sponsors or anything like
that, so all these keyboard warriors have no idea what they’re
talking about. If you take a look at our average undercard payroll
relative to say a boxing PPV undercard, we’re paying out
upwards of eight times more money for our undercard versus the
PPV boxing undercard. So, it’s a complete misnomer and the
people say, well, why don’t you guys publish what the guys
make? Guys don’t want people to know what they make. Do
you want everybody to know what you make? Put your salary in
the paper?”
DAVE FARRA: “$19,000.”
LORENZO FERTITTA: “I mean, that’s just the reality,
there’s confidentialities built into the contracts and,
you know, that’s the way we run our business. Sure, are
there fighters that want to get paid more? Of course, there’s
always people that are unhappy, but at the end of the day if
you go out there and you perform and you become a fan favorite,
somebody that can drive ticket sales and PPV, you’re going
to get paid.”
(Discussion about culinary union starts. We’ll clip that
out for now. We covered the standard boilerplate answer on this
issue from Lorenzo in this past ‘interview’ with Joe
Rogan.)
DAVE FARRA: “You mentioned your love for boxing, how that
is what brought you and Dana White back together after many years.
Would Lorenzo Fertitta & Dana White & the Zuffa family
ever consider getting into the boxing world to help fix that
broken model?”
LORENZO FERTITTA: “You know, I don’t think so. I mean,
certainly, you never say never, but it’s not what we do.
Boxing is a different animal. It’s very fragmented and I
just don’t know if it can ever really be put together or
ever be fixed and one of the things that is concerning to me
is, for instance, I have two teenage boys and they’ve got
their friends over at the house and I talk to kids and everything
else. There’s a great deal of these kids that have never
even seen a boxing match. They don’t even know what boxing
is. You know, I took my son to give him boxing lessons, had him
start boxing lessons, and it kind of hit me because he was having
kind of a hard time getting the rhythm of what was going on.
It hit me, he’s never watched it. So, we have a whole generation
that is missing that sport, that doesn’t even understand
what boxing really is. Yeah, they might see that their dad’s
watching a Mayweather PPV once a year or something like that
but it’s not like they’re into the sport, not like
they’re into the UFC where they can sit there and rattle
off, you know, 20 guys names in the UFC and they know what submission
are and fighting styles and all these other things. So, I think
boxing, you know, needs to do something to promote their sport
to the younger base.”
Source: Fight Opinion
|
Daniel
Cormier Scores Big Knockout, but Victory Comes With Price
By Ben
Fowlkes
CINCINNATI
-- Daniel Cormier may have entered the Strikeforce World Heavyweight
Grand Prix as an alternate, but after a dominant performance
in a knockout victory over Antonio Silva, no one can question
whether he deserves a place in the finals.
However,
after Cormier showed up at the post-fight press conference early
Sunday morning with the right hand he used to dispatch "Bigfoot"
Silva wrapped up in a tight wad of bandages, some may question
when he'll be fit enough to fight again, and whether it will
be soon enough for the powers that be.
"I
kind of hurt my hand on the very first right hand," Cormier
said. "When he went down, he got up and I was like, man,
how am I going to get through the next fifteen minutes of this
with my hand hurting like it was. I just kept throwing it."
It
didn't take long before Cormier connected again, putting Silva
down with a short right uppercut near the end of the round and
then finishing him off with dueling hammer fists. With the win,
the former U.S. Olympic wrestling team captain secured a spot
opposite Josh Barnett in the Grand Prix finals, though whether
he'll truly get that chance could be contingent upon his injury
and availability, said Strikeforce's Scott Coker.
"If Daniel wasn't available for an extended period of time
we would consider another fight [for the Grand Prix final],"
Coker said, explaining that the goal was to complete the tournament
some time in the first quarter of 2012.
That
would make for a bittersweet ending to Cormier's improbable run
in the tournament. After being named as an alternate in the tournament,
he defeated Jeff Monson via decision in June, then got the call
to join the Grand Prix after heavyweight champ Alistair Overeem
was pulled from the tournament and dropped from Strikeforce.
He
came into the fight with Silva as a slight underdog, but the
undefeated Cormier demolished the much bigger Brazilian thanks
to his powerful right hand. If the right hand is broken -- and,
judging from Cormier's post-fight remarks, it may very well be
-- it could be months before he's able to fight again.
If
that's the case, it could put Strikeforce and its parent company,
Zuffa, in a tough spot. Both want to wrap up the Grand Prix before
it stretches on too long, but after Saturday night it's clear
that Cormier vs. Barnett will be the only legitimate final.
For Cormier, however, an injury withdrawal at this stage is a
worst-case scenario that he hasn't even begun to consider too
heavily. Getting a win over Silva, who defeated Fedor Emelianenko
in the quarterfinal of the tournament, is a huge accomplishment
at this stage of his MMA career, and he admitted that it hadn't
"completely sunk in yet."
Still,
on a night when all three of his AKA teammates on the card recorded
victories, Cormier had the confidence and the backing of his
coach and manager Bob Cook to carry with him into the cage. And
that, he said, made all the difference.
"Bob
Cook is my guy. Right before my fight he came up to me and said,
'Look man, he has nothing for you. You're a winner. That's what
you do, and I have all the faith in the world that you're going
to win tonight.' That statement was enough. I was in the back
kind of putting some pressure on myself, with all the [AKA] guys
winning. But then I was like, you know what, I've won before.
I just need to do what I know and what I've trained to do and
the result will take care of itself."
Now
he just has to hope that his injuries aren't too serious and
that Strikeforce isn't too impatient for a Grand Prix final.
Either one could mean disappointment for Cormier, and neither
is within his control at this point.
Source:
MMA Fighting
|
BAMMA
7 Results & Review: Jim Wallhead Tops Trigg; Paul Daley Wins
by Ken
Pishna
The British Association of Mixed Martial Arts, better known as
BAMMA, returned on Saturday with BAMMA 7 at the NIA Arena in
Birmingham, England.
UFC veteran Frank Trigg was supposed to have fought BAMMA middleweight
champion Tom “Kong” Watson in the main event, but ended
up going bell-to-bell with Jim Wallhead instead. Watson had to
drop out of the fight a few weeks back due to injury.
It was an amazing fight from the opening bell. Wallhead got on
early, getting Trigg to the mat in the opening round. He unleashed
a strong does of ground and pound that opened a cut under Trigg’s
right eye.
Trigg came back strong in round two, however, landing numerous
kicks to Wallhead’s lead leg, and generally being the aggressor,
bulling Wallhead to the fence.
Round three was about as close as they come, but Wallhead wobbled
Trigg early in the stanza with a couple clean right hands and
followed with a solid double-leg takedown. Trigg got his jab
going for the latter half of the round, but couldn’t find
a way to land anything that overcame Wallhead’s early round
success.
In the end, Wallhead, who normally fights at 170 pounds, walked
out of the cage with a split decision victory on Trigg’s
turf at 185, likely stealing his shot at the BAMMA middleweight
belt in the process.
“Biggest (win) of my career mate,” Wallhead said after
the fight. And though he normally fights at welterweight, he
made no bones about what he wants next.
“I’d like to fight Tom. I respect Tom. He’s a
great champion. I just beat the No. 1 contender. I’d stay
at middleweight to fight Tom.”
Of course, former UFC middleweight contender Nate Marquardt is
expected to make his welterweight debut at BAMMA 8 in December,
so….
“To fight someone like Marquardt, I’d give it a go,
of course,” added Wallhead about dropping back down to 170
pounds.
By all rights, it looked as if Paul Daley was going to put Jordan
Radev away in the early moments of the opening round of their
fight… several times. Radev’s half-life, however, was
nothing short of stunning.
Daley unleashed flurry after flurry of punches in combination
with knees, both from the clinch and flying, as well as an arsenal
of kicks; but somehow, he couldn’t find the means to put
Radev away.
Daley came into the fight five pounds over the limit and Radev
was none-too-happy, but reluctantly agreed to the fight anyway.
So perhaps it’s no surprise that his pride wouldn’t
allow Daley the satisfaction of putting him away.
Radev had the best of his rounds in the third when he finally
put Daley on his back and unleashed his ground and pound attack.
It was too little, too late, however, as Daley walked out of
the cage with a unanimous decision victory.
In a battle for the first BAMMA British middleweight title, Carl
Noon looked as if he was going to make it a short night, putting
Jack Marshman on his back and nearly pounding him into a stoppage
in the opening round.
Marshman, however, bloodied and bruised from all the punishment,
turned the tables in round two, tired himself, but outgunning
a visibly gassed Noon to the bell. Just as Noon couldn’t
finish in the first, Marshman couldn’t put an end to it
in the second.
Round three was all Marshman, however. He stormed Noon from the
bell. When Noon somewhat shot a takedown, but more or less fell
to the mat, Marshman took full advantage, moving to mount and
finishing Noon in an onslaught of ground and pound, claiming
the inaugural British middleweight championship.
BAMMA lightweight champion Rob Sinclair, facing a last minute
replacement in Diego Vital, kept the gold around his waist with
a dominant performance.
He used the first couple of rounds to clinch up with Vital and
land body punches to wear him down, as well as chopping at his
lead leg with kicks to slow the Brazilian’s takedown attempts.
Then, in round three, he unleashed the finisher, a single right
uppercut that put Vital down on all fours, stumbling for purchase.
There was none to be found, however, the referee declaring Sinclair
the winner by knockout.
“I started slowing down in the third round,” Sinclair
explained after the fight, saying that he had kind of rushed
things in the opening two rounds. But it was some advice from
a sibling that brought about the finish.
“My brother said the right uppercut is there. For once I
listened to my younger brother and it paid off.”
Andre Winner, making his first start since losing to Anthony
Njokuani at UFC 132 in July, stopped the majority of Jason Ball’s
takedowns, keeping the fight in his realm. Winner out-struck
Ball the entire fight on the feet, winning a unanimous decision.
“What I wanted to do with this fight was just relax and
work my game,” said Winner after the bout.
BAMMA 7 FULL RESULTS:
Main Card
Jim Wallhead def. Frank Trigg by Split Decision (29-28, 28-29,
30-27), R3
Paul Daley def. Jordan Radev by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28,
29-28), R3
Jack Marshman def. Carl Noon by TKO (Strikes) at 2:09, R3
Andre Winner def. Jason Ball by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27,
30-27), R3
Preliminary Card:
Rob Sinclair def. Diego Vital by KO (Punch) at 3:00, R3
Dale Hardiman def. Scott Jansen by Submission (Rear Naked Choke)
at 1:16, R2
Chris Fishgold def. Jeremy Petley by Submission (Rear Naked Choke)
at 4:33, R1
Undercard:
Pindi Madahar def. Danny Compton by TKO at 1:06, R2
Eugene Fadiora def. Robert Devanne by Submission (Rear Naked
Choke) at 4:35, R1
Tom Breese def. Lee Taylor by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at
2:26, R1
Dean Amasinger def. Shah Hussain by Unanimous Decision, R3
Fraser Opie def. Robert Krecicki by TKO at 3:19, R1
Erik Perez def. James Brum by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at
3:31, R1
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Matches
to Make After Strikeforce ‘Barnett vs. Kharitonov’
by Brian
Knapp
For
19 months, Luke Rockhold was a forgotten man in the Strikeforce
middleweight division, a wildly talented but relatively unproven
prospect whose ascent had been slowed by injury. It goes without
saying that he has returned with a vengeance, well-equipped to
fulfill his considerable promise.
Rockhold
varied his strikes beautifully, tagged Ronaldo “Jacare”
Souza with repeated straight left hands, stayed off his back
against the Brazilian jiu-jitsu savant and captured the Strikeforce
middleweight crown in a five-round unanimous decision at Strikeforce
“Barnett vs. Kharitonov” on Saturday at the U.S. Bank
Arena in Cincinnati. Judge Bruce Snell gave Rockhold all five
rounds, while two others, Sal D’Amato and Chris Lee, scored
it 48-47.
Talent
was never in question with Rockhold, who has clearly benefitted
from daily training at the American Kickboxing Academy in San
Jose, Calif. As champion, much more will be expected of him,
starting with consistency and the ability to stay healthy.
A
closer look at the six matches we want to see made after Strikeforce
“Barnett vs. Kharitonov”:
Luke
Rockhold vs. Tim Kennedy: The two middleweight standouts were
originally slated to meet in March with far less at stake, but
an injury to Rockhold nixed the bout. Following his defeat to
Jacare in August 2010, Kennedy has kept his foot in the title
contender door with back-to-back wins over Melvin Manhoef and
Robbie Lawler. The American war hero brings with him excellent
all-around skills and the kind of toughness that cannot be measured.
Rockhold’s star is undoubtedly on the rise after his upset
over Souza, a victory made all the more surprising by the 19-month
layoff that preceded it. Provided he can remain injury-free,
he could soon emerge as the next key player at 185 pounds. Kennedy
would provide a stout challenge for his first title defense,
and a showdown between the two could reveal a great deal about
just how far Rockhold, not yet 10 fights into his career, can
go in the sport.
Sergei
Kharitonov vs. Antonio Silva: These two powerful but flawed heavyweights
fell well short of their intended marks in the Strikeforce grand
prix semifinals, as Kharitonov submitted to Josh Barnett and
Silva succumbed to punches from Daniel Cormier. A matchup between
them seems a nice consolation prize, both for the fans and the
fighters.
Muhammed
“King Mo” Lawal vs. Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante:
As his post-fight comments indicated in wake of his knockout
of Roger Gracie, Lawal has not forgotten his first encounter
with Feijao.
A
little more than a year ago, the Brazilian ended King Mo’s
brief light heavyweight title reign, burying the fatigued wrestler
with a barrage of punches and elbows. Lawal has openly requested
the rematch. Few can argue against it.
Pat
Healy vs. K.J. Noons: People continue to sleep on Healy, and
he continues to surprise. The well-traveled and often-overlooked
Team Quest veteran submitted former lightweight King of Pancrase
Maximo Blanco in what can only be described as a rude stateside
welcome for the Venezuelan prospect. No one can question Healy’s
heart or drive, especially after he rebounded from an unfortunate
first-round encounter with several illegal kicks to the face
while on the ground with Blanco.
Consecutive
victories over Lyle Beerbohm, Eric Wisely and Blanco have earned
him the right to seek out a higher-caliber opponent. Noons took
a beating from American Top Team’s Jorge Masvidal in June,
but his combination of crisp boxing and solid takedown defense
would stand as a significant obstacle for Healy.
Jordan
Mein vs. Bobby Voelker: Mein was stellar in his promotional debut,
as he walked through Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos’
leg kicks, chopped down the Brazilian with superb boxing and
finished him with a series of savage standing elbows against
the cage. Already a 30-fight veteran, the 21-year-old Canadian
has won six straight fights and 10 of his last 11. He could move
quickly in the welterweight division. Voelker already brought
down one prospect, as he won the last two bouts of his trilogy
with Roger Bowling in decisive fashion. An excellent striker
with a wealth of experience and plenty of momentum of his own,
Voelker might, as Cyborg did, oblige Mein with an extended standup
battle. Durability is not an issue, as he has been knocked out
only once in the last five years.
Mike
Kyle vs. Ovince St. Preux: Kyle kept his name in play inside
the light heavyweight division with a one-sided unanimous decision
over the previously unbeaten Marcos Rogerio de Lima. He has won
five of his last six fights and, more importantly, has not lost
at 205 pounds in nearly four years. Kyle remains vulnerable on
the ground, but he packs quite a punch and poses a legitimate
threat to virtually anyone willing to stand and exchange with
him; ask Cavalcante and Silva. A star in the making, St. Preux
has rattled off eight consecutive victories and put himself in
position to pursue a considerable step up in competition. At
the moment, no one at 205 pounds fits that bill better than Kyle.
Source:
Sherdog
|
Minotauro
gets his rematch at December UFC 140
After catching Brendan Schaub off guard at UFC Rio, the man on
the cover of the upcoming Brazilian issue of GRACIEMAG, Rodrigo
“Minotauro” Nogueira, already has a return date confirmed
by the event’s promoters. The heavyweight will face old
acquaintance in Frank Mir, another Jiu-Jitsu black belt, at the
December 10 UFC 140 show at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto
– another likely packed house for the Canadian metropolis,
which holds the record crowd and gate in the entire history of
the UFC (55,000 spectators and 11 million dollars gate).
Rodrigo and Frank Mir faced off for the first time at UFC 98,
in 2008, after the two spent a season as coaches in the reality
show “The Ultimate Fighter”. On the occasion, Mino
told GRACIEMAG he felt he was superior to Mir both standing and
on the ground. In the end, though, Minotauro lasted by two round.
It was the first knockout ever suffered by the Brazilian idol.
Check out the card for UFC 140 as it stands so far:
Frank Mir vs Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira
Rory MacDonald vs Brian Ebersole
Rich Attonito vs Claude Patrick
John Cholish vs Mitch Clarke
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Brett
Rogers’ wife on their marriage: “We just enjoy being
around each other”
By Zach
Arnold
RON KRUCK: “In 2009, Brett Rogers knocked out Andrei Arlovski
in only 22 seconds, improving his record to 10-0 and starting
his meteoric rise in the sport. However, it was also the beginning
from his fall from grace.”
RON KRUCK: “You exploded on the scene. Suddenly, you’re
10-0. Did you feel invincible at that point?”
BRETT ROGERS: “To tell you the truth, I did. I did. I felt
that I couldn’t be touched.”
MURAD MOHAMMAD (ATTORNEY): “A true rags-to-riches story.
A tire changer at Sam’s Club makes it to the top of the
fighting world.”
RON KRUCK: “Rogers took a giant step up in competition,
facing Fedor Emelianenko, Alistair Overeem, and Josh Barnett
in three of his next four bouts. He lost all three fights.”
BRETT ROGERS: “It took me a fight or two to kind of, you
know, lay back and realize, OK, I think I’m moving a little
too fast.”
GREG NELSON: “He comes into the local shows, he was king
of killing a lot of people, knocking them out left and right.
He went from that all the way to the cream of the crop.”
BRETT ROGERS: “A loss breaks you up. I kind of just starting
looking at what was the problems, what was the holes in my game…”
RON KRUCK: “Rogers’ losses were just the beginning
of his problems. On June 29th, he was arrested and charged with
3rd degree assault on his wife and two other felonies. His contract
with Strikeforce was terminated.”
MURAD MOHAMMAD (ATTORNEY): “He’s facing a 3rd degree
assault charge. He’s facing a terroristic threats charge,
as well as a harassment and stalking charge. These allegations
are serious allegations and we take them very seriously but we’re
looking forward to addressing them in court.”
BRETT ROGERS: “I was told not to go into details.”
TIUANA ROGERS: “We’d just rather move forward and be
positive.”
BRETT ROGERS: “The situation that occurred, it happened
and it was more of a misunderstanding when I look at it. The
papers can write whatever but we still going through the legal
process.”
RON KRUCK: “Has there ever been a violence between you two?”
BRETT ROGERS: “Never. Our records are clean.”
RON KRUCK: “After six years of marriage and three children
together, Brett & Tiuana are committed to working together
through their problems.”
BRETT ROGERS: “I’m confident that things are going
to dropped, squared away and then we can move forward like we
said. We’re a married couple, we have our ups and down just
like everyone else.”
TIUANA ROGERS: “He’s a family man and a lot of people
don’t see that with MMA fighters. They’re so quick
to judge.”
MURAD MOHAMMAD (ATTORNEY): “The State is going to have some
significant proof issues. The alleged victim is Brett’s
wife and this is a family that’s been together for a long
time, they love each other, and Miss Rogers at this point appears
not willing to testify against Brett.”
RON KRUCK: “Although a jury trial is set for September 13th,
Rogers is concentrating on his MMA comeback.”
BRETT ROGERS: “I signed with Titan Fighting Championships
and the bout is going to be on September 24th against Eddie Sanchez,
former UFC veteran. It would be a mistake if he stands and trades
with me but at the same time I’m hoping that he do because
that’s what the fans like to see.”
RON KRUCK: “Looking to put their legal issues behind them,
the Rogers are focusing on the future.”
BRETT ROGERS: “I want to get back in there and fight and
move forward from all the BS that’s been going on in my
life.”
T
IUANA ROGERS: “We just enjoy being around each other and
we just going to continue loving each other, loving our family,
and just focus on moving forward and being positive.”
BRETT ROGERS: “You know, it’s just a lesson learned.
Life is a roller coaster and it’s definitely a lesson learned.”
Perhaps a more inspiring comeback is the one that Rulon Gardner
is embarking on.
KENNY RICE: “Now, as I had spitted out at the beginning
of this, Rulon, you’re coming back. Are you teasing us?
I mean, Aleskandr Karelin, that victory to win the gold in 2000
in Sydney, one of the biggest upsets in wrestling history in
the Olympics. 12 years later, you’re going to be in London.
Do you think you can be in London?”
RULON GARDNER: “Well, I think it ultimately comes down to
my body. I just turned 40 two weeks ago, my body talking to me
and if it’s physically in a position to where I can compete,
yeah, I’m going to come back. Because I think so much of
it, getting on The Biggest Loser and gaining the weight, I think
it’s kind of like America nowadays — you know, taking
accountability. I gained a bunch of weight, I lost control, and
getting my health back, getting my life back, the best way I
can do it is to go back to something that gave me the foundation
for my life and that was wrestling. For me, you know, I’ve
been back to Colorado Springs, I just got done with a two week
training camp out there. I’m 40 years old… and I’m
a bad dude. Honestly, it’s crazy walking back in there and
just seeing all the same guys, you know, Dremiel Byers, he’s
actually going to the Worlds and seeing him every day walking
in there, it’s like, you got to bring your A-game, you know,
you can’t just sit on the sidelines and talk about how good
you used to be, you got to prove it again.”
(Discussion of Joe Warren attempting a run at the Olympics.)
RULON GARDNER: “I saw him this Summer and, you know, give100%
courage. I think Couture, I think Lindland, you know, it’s
the mind of the fighter, it’s the mind of an athlete who
has the opportunity just to show that grit and I think that’s
the one thing about combat sports is, you know what, just because
you’re down and out, it doesn’t matter what your age
is, you can still compete and that’s what mastery of one’s
self comes in.”
KENNY RICE: “October, then, will be the official return
to action for Rulon?”
RULON GARDNER: “I hope so. As long as my body holds out
and, you know, in the process I got back off The Biggest Loser,
my shoulder’s a little bit beat up and I’ve been strength
training every day on the show, they teach you to lean down and
get rid of your muscle mass. Since the show, I’ve been bulking
up. I put up 350 the other day on bench and slowly but surely
coming back. The squat quite isn’t where it was, I squatted
500 before…”
KENNY RICE: “Don’t we all do that?”
RULON GARDNER: “There’s certain areas that aren’t
quite there but I was out of the sport for seven years.”
KENNY RICE: “This will be one of the great comebacks. You
already pulled off one of the great upsets. This, seriously,
to go 12 years apart in wrestling… this will be one of the
great comebacks. Good luck, I hope you do it.”
RULON GARDNER: “Thank you.”
BAS RUTTEN: “We’ll be rooting for you. Rutten…
for you.”
Source: Fight Opinion
|
Former
WEC Champion Scores 21 Second KO at Twilight Fight Night
by Joseph
Zigler
WOODLAKE,
Calif. -- Doug Marshall rebounded from his recent loss to Giva
Santana, and he did it in impressive fashion.
Marshall
and Richard Blake met in the main event of Twilight Fight Night
“Numero Uno,” and the former WEC ace countered a punch
from his opponent with a single right that put him down and out
just 21 seconds into the contest. Blake lay stretched out on
the mat as Marshall climbed the cage and the hometown crowd cheered
the local favorite.
Former
K-1 kickboxing talent Carter Williams needed only 13 seconds
to dispatch journeyman Ruben Villareal. Williams stormed out
and landed a low kick that caused “Warpath” to stumble
backward swearing. Williams then attacked with punches, dropping
his prey, who turtled up and showed no signs of defending himself.
Local
favorite Cain Carizosa remained undefeated against a game but
outmatched challenger Daniel Romero. Carizosa mixed solid striking
with dynamic ground work en route to a unanimous decision victory
following three rounds.
Carizosa
escaped a tight looking armbar in the first, and then began pulling
away. Romero found himself on his back throughout the match,
throwing up armbar attempts that never again came close. By the
third frame, Carizosa looked dominant pounding away from side
control. Romero hung on, but could mount no effective offense.
In the end, the judges scored it 30-27 (twice) and 29-28.
Sergio
Quinones outlasted Anthony Vidal to clinch a unanimous decision.
Vidal threatened early with a tight triangle that he turned into
an armbar, but after round one it was all Quinones’ superior
takedowns. Vidal was a threat on the feet, but he had no answer
to the stifling top game of Quinones. All three judges warded
the fight to Quinones with matching 29-28 scores.
Joey
Cabezas defeated Steve Ramirez via submission from an armbar
in a sloppy but entertaining affair. Ramirez was game and threw
bombs throughout, but ran out of energy in the third. Cabezas
was taken down again and again, but kept finding ways to escape
and roll out of dangerous positions. The finish came at
1:12 of round three.
Art
Becerra and Chris Brady went toe to toe for three rounds. Becerrea
walked away with the decision win with 29-28 scores across the
board.
Mike
Christensen began the night’s action submitting Brandon
Anderson with an Americana at just 1:19 of the opening period.
Source
Sherdog
|
About
UFC running a show at Saitama Super Arena…
By Zach
Arnold
Antonio
Rodrigo Nogueira let the cat out of the bag last week in at UFC
Rio when he said that he was preparing to fight for UFC’s
return to Japan in February. Today, Gong Kakutougi says that
UFC Asia marketing director Mark Fischer will have a presser
to make the announcement. A VTR (video) of Dana White making
the announcement will be played.
This
news comes on the same day that a Swedish media outlet is claiming
that Alistair Overeem went to Las Vegas and signed an exclusive
UFC contract that will have him focus 100% on MMA and no more
kickboxing.
(Mr.
Overeem denies the accuracy of the report.)
Back
to the UFC/Japan story. According to GK, the list of Japanese
names for the UFC Japan show: Yoshihiro Akiyama, Yushin Okami,
Michihiro Omigawa, Takanori Gomi, Hatsu Hioki, Riki Fukuda, Takeya
Mizugaki, and Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto.
MMA
Weekly claims that the show will happen on February 26th at…
Saitama Super Arena. Gee, who could have ever seen that coming?
Take
note of this one item from the MMA Weekly report:
Sources
have indicated that Fischer is in contact with several Japanese
promoters who have put on shows there before to help smooth the
way for a UFC produced card.
While
it’s unclear at this time whether or not Zuffa will actually
work with a promoter to put on the show or not, Fischer has been
in contact with at least a few as this process begins to bear
fruit.
Well,
look at who would fit that criteria. Guys like Akira Sakata (who
promoted the last UFC Japan show at Tokyo Bay NK Hall in the
late 90s) or the Sengoku crew which fabulously bombed every time
out at SSA.
Unless
UFC works out a deal with Total Sports Asia (the promotional
company that worked with WWE in 2003), you’re talking about
UFC having to deal with someone like Real Entertainment (which
is involved in DREAM). Veterans like Miro Mijatovic might be
a wild card, but I think it’s extremely doubtful you would
see someone like him involved.
In
other words, none of this appears to be what I call heavy-hitting
on the surface.
Now,
more than ever, is the time for you to listen to the interview
I did with Jordan Breen a few months ago about this subject.
Jordan appropriately labeled UFC running a show in Japan as a
‘vanity show’ and I agreed wholeheartedly with him.
There are many reasons as to why it can be called as such, but
you can listen to the interview for further details on that.
As
for the roster GK says will be used for the Saitama Super Arena
show… frankly, it looks no better than what DREAM has been
able to come up with and is horribly lackluster. Akiyama is probably
the best attraction of the group, with Kid slightly behind him.
However, they are not major names any longer in the Japanese
landscape. Okami is a no-namer there, Omigawa got crushed by
Chad Mendes, Hioki fought Marlon Sandro in front of a couple
of thousand fans last NYE weekend, Fukuda & Mizugaki are
totally unknown in Japan, and Gomi was never a draw when he headlined
Bushido events in the country.
I
am not foolish. I remember what happened when WWE had the backing
of Fuji TV and Total Sports Asia when they had their initial
events at Yokohama Arena. There was widespread panic from the
natives in Japan that WWE would soon take over the wrestling
business. Despite backing from the biggest TV network there,
WWE ended up fizzling. Their business has fizzled so much in
Japan that their delayed PPV broadcasts draw very small numbers
(this according to Dave Meltzer). UFC does not have a major promotional
arm backing them in Japan and WOWOW is such a minor TV player
in the grand scheme of things in the country. Unless someone
like Nippon TV is willing to back the show in a big way, it’s
really hard to see how this show in Japan will be a major success.
Can
it be a moderate success? Perhaps 12,000-13,000 fans, which by
today’s Japanese landscape would be a success for a one-off
show. WWE claimed 19,000 for a RAW taping several years ago there,
albeit with lower ticket prices. This is a perspective from just
looking at UFC trying to run a show straight up with their cookie-cutter
formula and not booking the show in a manner the Japanese are
normally accustomed to. The only other potential factor in their
favor right now is how strong the yen is compared to the dollar
at the moment, so Zuffa may be able to wring out more cash than
they normally would. With that said, I wouldn’t go to war
at all in Japan with the roster that is being floated for this
proposed Japanese event. Guys like Nogueira aren’t going
to move the needle all that much any more over there. It would
be fool’s gold to try to emulate what Zuffa did with UFC
Rio and see if it works in Japan. The answer? It won’t.
UFC
does not have a strong television deal in Japan, so to say that
they’re going into a damaged market ‘cold’ would
be an understatement. They also go into a place infamous for
its foreigner tax on fighters (ask PRIDE fighters about that
one). There’s going to be a lot of enemies on the ground
looking to sabotage this show one way or another and these enemies
aren’t cupcakes, either. A lot of dangerous, seedy hanger-ons
will try to glom onto the event if they can’t sabotage it.
If Zuffa didn’t learn that already from the brief Jamie
Pollack era when they took over PRIDE, perhaps they need a refresher
course while they’re at it.
A
reminder for Zuffa — you know who used to pay for most of
those infamous 100,000Y VIP seats at the PRIDE shows? I’ll
give you a hint — first letter starts with y and last letter
is a. Fill in the blank characters. This isn’t America where
a bunch of marks or whales are going to pony up $1,200 for a
front row ticket. The kind of people who will pony up that kind
of cash in Japan aren’t necessarily going to be the kind
of people you want seen at your show, especially by the police.
Our
friend Dan Herbertson, last February, wrote about UFC’s
interest in running in Japan. Take note of what he said about
Akiyama, Gomi, and Kid Yamamoto. Apply what you know about their
current status today and compare it to what he said seven months
ago.
The
one drawing card Zuffa has to use (on the non-Japanese side)
is Georges St. Pierre. If he’s willing to fight four months
after his bout with Nick Diaz, it would help bolster the show
more than anything they will accomplish with their weak native
roster. Rampage? That’s a dicier proposition. Alistair and
Barnett? They’re nice compliments, but they aren’t
‘aces’ in terms of draws there. Perhaps if you paired
them against each other, you would do some business. That would
be a hell of an indictment and admission, though, on a vanity
show to run a top of a card with that fight.
Bottom
line — as I stated months ago, UFC desperately wanted to
run a show at Saitama Super Arena in Japan and not all of those
reasons had to do with business. This show, more than any other
show Zuffa runs, is personal for the people involved. Whether
it makes some money or loses some money, UFC wants to be able
to run a show in the marketplace that used to house their main
competitor on the world stage. If they get SSA, they’ll
be delighted. If they settle for Yokohama Arena, I don’t
think they’ll shed a tear either (since that’s where
the first major UFC Japan show took place).
As
for whether or not UFC’s return to Japan will appeal to
hardcore Japanese MMA fans, I think the answer is going to be
a very mixed one for Zuffa. A lot of the hardcore PRIDE fans
are gone, finished, vanished. Much like when WWE put WCW out
of business, those WCW fans didn’t transfer over to support
to WWE. They simply stayed put on the sidelines or went away
for good. UFC better realize that the kind of fan they will attract
for thie show is more or less going to be a casual fan mixed
in with a few hardcores but not the same mixture of fans that
attended the major MMA events for all those years during the
Japanese boom period.
The
one thing I know for certain is that for the next six months,
I’m going to have a lot of heartburn from UFC fans trying
to explain to me why their roster of Japanese fighters are going
to draw big in the country and how UFC’s standard formula
is an automatic draw in Japan. Zuffa running a show in Japan
is going to be more or less a joyride for Dana & company
to try to stick it as much as possible to the ghost of PRIDE’s
past. All about ego and less about business, more pleasure and
personal than professional. Whether it draws as well as WWE did
at Yokohama Arena on March 1st, 2003 or tanks like WWE did at
Yokohama Arena in 1994 when they worked with Tenryu, it won’t
matter to UFC in the big picture.
Let
the spin begin.
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
Kurt
Pellegrino Ends Retirement to Fight at Bellator 59
ATLANTIC
CITY, N.J. – In one of the biggest moments of the night
at Bellator 49, former UFC fighter and Point Pleasant, N.J.,
native Kurt Pellegrino returned to Atlantic City – the birthplace
of his mixed martial arts career – and made the news known
that he will be joining Bellator to fight Patricky “Pitbull”
Freire in the main event at Bellator 59 on Nov. 26 in Caesar’s
Atlantic City. The fight will be seen live on MTV2 and in commercial-free
HD on EPIX.
“I
had a choice to fight at Boardwalk Hall or fight in the Ballroom
at Caesars and I chose Caesars,” Pellegrino said. “I
want Patricky to feel suffocated. I want to suffocate him before
I ever take his back and choke him out. I’m going to put
a thousand of my family and friends in this Ballroom and I want
him to feel the pressure. This is going to be the biggest fight
of his life.”
The
32-year-old Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt holds a 16-6 professional
record and has beaten some notable names, including Josh Neer,
Thiago Tavares, Mac Danzig, Fabricio Camoes and Junior Assuncao.
The exciting veteran has been away from the cage for six months
and took time off to be with his wife and two young children.
Now the perpetual contender realizes how important fighting was
in his life as well.
“It
was like Rocky II when Adrian awoke from the coma and told Rocky
to ‘win’,” Pellegrino said. “I was retired,
sitting home watching videos with my son, but I was also training
at that time and was in great shape when my wife walked up to
me and said ‘If you want to do it again, go for it’.
Before that, I felt bad for being away training and missing my
daughter’s first words, changing diapers, etc. I was so
happy that I was able to be there for my son’s big moments
– but the fact that my family supports me returning to fight
means everything to me.”
After
two straight losses on one badly injured knee, Pellegrino says
he’s 100-percent healthy and ready to put on a great show
for his hometown fans.
“I
retired from fighting and didn’t think I was going to do
this anymore. I feel like this is the right show for me to do
everything I want to do and to go where I want to go. I get to
finish the vision quest my way and this is why I chose Bellator.
My family comes before anything and Bellator understands that.
I wanted to wait until I was able to fight in Atlantic City and
Bellator is giving me that opportunity – so I couldn’t
be happier.”
The
always dangerous “Pitbull” has won five of his last
six fights with four finishes, but Pellegrino feels this is his
house and his time.
“If
he can come into my state, the birthplace of me fighting, the
place Arturo Gatti made famous – this is me resurrecting
Arturo Gatti,” an excited Pellegrino said. “I’m
going to rock Atlantic City just like Arturo did.”
The
night will also feature the return of Polish prodigy Marcin Held,
who enters the Bellator cage looking for victory against former
UFC lightweight Phillipe “The Filipino Assassin” Nover.
Only 19, Held already holds an impressive 11-2 record with victories
over opponents nearly twice his age. With a brown belt in Brazilian
Jiu-Jitsu and a continued desire to push the pace in any fight
he enters, Held will provide a unique challenge to Nover.
A
New York native and former finalist on The Ultimate Fighter,
Nover will make his promotional debut at Bellator 59. Fighting
out of Brooklyn, “The Filipino Assassin” will be looking
to impress Bellator brass and the Atlantic City faithful with
a dominating win.
“I’ve
been a Kurt Pellegrino fan for many years,” said Bellator
Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney. “Kurt is a world class
lightweight, and his fight against Patricky Pitbull should be
spectacular on Nov. 26 from Caesars Atlantic City.”
Source:
MMA Weekly
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