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 3
|
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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More than
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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!
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Want to Contact
Us? Shoot us an email by Clicking Here!
Follow O2 Martial Arts news via Twitter at:
http://www.twitter.com/O2MAA
UFC
Live on Versus 6 (10/1 Washington D.C.)
Tomorrow
By Zach
Arnold
Hawaii
Air Times:
UFC Live 6 3:00 - 6:00PM Versus 210
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
Source: Fight Opinion
|
Wanderlei
Silva Won’t Live on Past Accomplishments, He Wants to Prove
it All Again
Being
called a legend in MMA is not something that’s thrown around
lightly.
Former
Pride champion Wanderlei Silva is definitely a legend in every
sense of the word, but following his last loss to Chris Leben
in July, many questioned if it was the end of the road for the
Brazilian.
UFC
President Dana White even stated after the loss that he thought
maybe Silva had seen his last days inside the cage.
Well
now a reinvigorated Wanderlei Silva is coming back at UFC 139
to face Cung Le in the co-main event on the card. Speaking to
MMAWeekly.com on Tuesday, Silva admitted that all of his past
accolades are great, but now with his back against the wall he
needs to prove himself once again.
“My
history’s a good history, I had the title, was the best
in the world, but that’s the past,” Silva said. “I
need to prove it all again. Especially after my last fight.”
Silva
also goes in depth with what he’ll do to train for a fighter
of the likes of Cung Le and the expectations he has to go out
and win in this fight.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
ADCC
2011: weight group final results from England
Carlos
Eduardo Ozório
The
All the ADCC finals have reached a conclusion in England. The
winners are Rafa Mendes, Marcelo Garcia, André Galvão,
Dean Lister , Vinny Pezão, Kyra Gracie e Gabi Garcia.
Under
66kg
Semifinals
Rafael Mendes passed Robson Moura’s guard. Rubens Cobrinha
beat Jeff Glover.
Bronze
Jeff Glover submitted Robson Moura via guillotine.
Final
Rafael Mendes versus Rubens Cobrinha was an evenly-matched affair.
Locked in 50/50 guard, Cobrinha took a penalty that earned Mendes
the win, in a repeat of the result from the 2009 final.
Under
77kg
Semifinals
Marcelo Garcia defeated Kron Gracie by a takedown. Leo Vieira
took Cláudio Calasans’s back.
Bronze
Kron Gracie submitted Claudio Calasans via guillotine.
Final
The 77kg decider featured two idols who have lit up competitions
for years, with their first-rate Jiu-Jitsu, and it was Marcelo
Garcia who would win the battle between superstars, sinking a
triangle on Vieira for the finish, bringing the Alliance black
belt’s ADCC tally to four.
Under
88 kg
Rousimar Toquinho submitted Rafael Lovato via heelhook. André
Galvão beat Pablo Popovitch by one sweep.
Bronze
Pablo Popovitch defeated Rafael Lovato for the bronze.
Final
The final between André Galvão and Rousimar Toquinho
was a heated affair. There were complaints from both competitors,
a back mount for Galvão, a takedown for Toquinho…
In the end, André came out best on points, finally winning
the title he pursued in three previous installments of the event.
Under
99kg
Semifinals
João Assis defeated Xande Ribeiro after taking back mount.
Dean Lister defeated Rodolfo Vieira via heelhook.
Bronze
Xande Ribeiro defeated Antônio Peinado on points.
Final
ADCC veteran Dean Lister submitted João Assis by heelhook
again to take the title. Leg and foot attacks were Lister’s
main weapons during the competition.
Over
99kg
Semifinals
Fabrício Werdum defeated Roberto Cyborg on points. Vinícius
Pezão took Gerardi Rinaldi’s back.
Bronze
Roberto Cyborg submitted Gerardi Rinaldo for third place.
Final
An exciting match. Werdum escaped an omoplata and sunk a snug
armbar on Magalhães. It was not enough, however, and Vinicius
won on points, snapping Werdum’s two-title winning streak
in the ADCC.
Female
Under 60kg
Semifinals
Kyra Gracie beat Takayo Hashi by a sweep (3 points). Michelle
Nicolini defeated 2009 champ Luanna Alzuguir via judges’
decision.
Bronze
Luanna Alzuguir submitted Takayo Hashi via armlock.
Final
Michelle Nicolini presented danger with a tight armbar but Kyra
Gracie finished in grand style with an omoplata. The black belt
brings here ADCC-title tally to three. The final in England was
a repeat of the 2011 World Championship, however, this time Kyra
came up spades.
Over
60kg
Semifinals
Gabi Garcia sunk an americana on Penny Thomas. Hannette Staack
submitted Ida Hansson via footlock.
Bronze
Ida Hansson overcame Penny Thomas.
Final
Gabi Garcia defeated Hannette Staack by 2 to 0. Gabi has won
everything since 2010: the Worlds, Pan, World Pro, and now the
ADCC, which she was missing.
ADCC
2011: André Galvão wins weight and absolute, Sperry
outpoints Renzo
Carlos
Eduardo Ozório
After
the new ADCC champions of the weight divisions were established
this Sunday, it was time for the absolute and the moment everyone
had been waiting for: the superfight between Zé Mario
Sperry and Renzo Gracie.
The
veterans match was no walk in the park, going to two overtimes,
during which Zé landed a takedown. Nearly out of the match
area, Gracie confirmed the point to the judges table: 2-0. Renzo
had to hurry to turn the score around but suffered another three
points from a guard pass for his efforts. The score stood, and
Zé Mario is the champion.
“Renzo
is smaller than me, so I thought I’d pass his guard during
regulation time. But I enjoyed the training; I’m going to
keep up this pace in the academy,” said Zé Mario.
Renzo
too promises to keep up his training, now at 44 years of age:
“The mat was so slippery that it was like being in a pool.
This match was a warm-up for my MMA debut, soon!”
Next
came the absolute final, and, in getting there, André
Galvão and Pablo Popovitch had their work cut out for
them. Following the opening stage, the quarterfinals were made
up of Victor Estima vs. Pablo Popovitch, Gunnar Nelson vs. Xande
Ribeiro, Sérgio Moraes vs. André Galvão,
and Murilo Santana vs. Vinicius “Pezão” Magalhães.
Galvão
was in firm contention to be champion both at weight and open
weight, eliminating Sergio Moraes on points, while Pablo Popovitch
outpointed Victor Estima, Xande made it past Gunnar Nelson, and
Murilo Santana defeated by decision Vinny Magalhães, another
who could have become two-divisional champ.
The
semifinals were tough. Pablo Popovitch won a decision over Xande
Ribeiro and Galvão beat Murilo on penalty points. Both
finalists came from the under-88kg division – proof of how
it is truly one of the most stacked divisions.
“We
had seven matches but I still have fuel iin my tank!” said
Galvão. Pablo approached Galvão, and the two slapped
hands. The two avoided speaking to each other before the final
battle, though. Earlier they had faced off at weight, and Galvão
won by one takedown.
Prior
to the decider, Xande Ribeiro beat Murilo Santana by 2 to 0,
earning the absolute bronze medal. All that was left was the
gold-medal deciding match. In it, Galvão was quick on
the attack, swiftly catching Pablo Popovitch’s foot and
cementing his place as the big name of ADCC 2011.
“I
took a chance going for the footlock while points weren’t
yet being counted, and it worked. I just stuck it in my head
that I was going to win,” he said.
So
now there’s a plumb matchup for him in the works for ADCC
2013: Bráulio Estima in the supermatch.
ADCC
2011 champions:
Men
66kg:
Rafael Mendes
77kg: Marcelinho Garcia
88kg: André Galvão
99kg: Dean Lister
+99kg: Vinny Pezão
Absoluto: André Galvão
Women
-60kg:
Kyra Gracie
+60kg: Gabi Garcia
Supermatch
Bráulio
Estima defeated Ronaldo Jacaré
Supermatch
Zá
Mário defeated Renzo Gracie
ADCC
2011: Aftermath of supermatch
Marcelo Dunlop
While
Braúlio Estima, sporting a red jacket, concedes his last
interview, seated on grey mat number 2 in the middle of the main
arena, a shirtless Ronaldo Souza approaches Gilberto Faria, “Sorry,
Gilberto.”
Jacaré’s
friend and manager responds with a friendly embrace. “After
that fight at Strikeforce, it was a great performance. Worthy
of a bonus from the Sheikh,” said Gil. It was indeed a riveting
supermatch, the one that brought Saturday at ADCC 2011 to a close.
It
was a slim score but Bráulio’s countless attack attempts
made it all worthwhile and lit up the spectators, from mere mortals
to the likes of Rickson Gracie and Rubens Cobrinha. “I dug
some of Bráulio’s attacks, there were some things
in there that can transition well to a calf-crunch,” Cobrinha
would say, in a conversation between black belts.
When
the showdown began, the feeling that overtook Bráulio
was one of pleasure. “When I saw him before me, I couldn’t
believe the moment had finally come. I was simply overjoyed.”
It was the fifth time the two face each other, and Carcará
was dreaming of his first win against him. And it would come,
30 warish minutes later.
Standing,
Carcará would take the initiative with takedown attempts,
to which Jacaré didn’t attempt to answer. On the
ground, Bráulio attacked with a straight footlock with
a sweep already in his sights – a classic submission grappling
maneuver but with the details of a guard-playing whiz, one of
the best in Jiu-Jitsu at present.
Jaca
played on the defense, awaiting his moment to pounce, which came
after the 20-minute regulation time, during the 10-minute overtime.
Jaca launched an attack, pinning the 2009 absolute champion to
the ground. “But was training that with Roger,” said
Carcará later, “I didn’t even get nervous. The
mat was really slippery; I knew I could get up before he stabilized
and scored points.”
With
no point advantage, Jacaré forged ahead. He knew he’d
had his chance. Now it was Bráulio’s turn, and he
didn’t waste it. In 50-50 guard, he attacked Jaca’s
foot, nearly swept, Jacaré turned over and Bráulio
stuck in his hooks, which counts for three points in the ADCC.
“I’d
already put him on his butt twice. When I caught his hip I though,
‘He’s not getting out of this one!’” said
Carcará. Jacaré skillfully untangled himself, despite
painfully injured ribs from his Strikeforce fight on the 10th.
But it was to no avail, the judges gave the new superchampion
his three points.
Once
the bout had ended, Jacaré raised Bráulio’s
hand and recognized his defeat: “I was impossible to get
out of that title fight at Strikeforce 100%, so I fought with
what I had,” said Jacaré. So he packed his things
in his backpack, remembered how he had quickly removed the hooks,
and told the reporter: “But how quickly they awarded those
points, huh?”
A
rematch maybe? “I’d fight him again no problem. I don’t
think he can pass my guard,” said Carcará in closing.
Source:
Gracie Magazine
|
Welterweight
Semis, Mann-Foster Slated for Bellator 53 in Oklahoma
by Mike
Whitman
Bellator
Fighting Championships has undergone a change of plans for its
Oct. 8 offering, as Bellator 53 will no longer take place at
the Tachi Palace Hotel and Casino. Instead, the event will emanate
from the Buffalo Run Casino in Miami, Okla.
Sherdog.com
confirmed the switch on Tuesday with a source close to the event,
who also confirmed that the welterweight tournament semifinals
will highlight the main card broadcast on MTV2 and Epix. The
source also revealed that a featherweight feature fight between
former 145-pound tournament competitors Kenny Foster against
Ronnie Mann (Pictured) will go down at the event.
Bellator’s
ongoing welterweight tournament field has been narrowed to four
competitors, as Ben Saunders, Luis Santos, Douglas Lima and Chris
Lozano defeated Chris Cisneros, Dan Hornbuckle, Steve Carl and
Brent Weedman in their respective quarterfinal matchups at Bellator
49 on Sept. 10. To decide the tournament finals, Saunders will
now lock horns with Santos while Lima faces Lozano.
Bellator
53 marks the Chicago-based promotion’s inaugural trip to
the Buffalo Run Casino and its seventh event hosted in Oklahoma.
Previously, Bellator has promoted shows in Concho, Newkirk and
Norman.
Source:
Sherdog
|
Alistair
Overeem says he's no longer part of Team Golden Glory
by Anton
Gurevich
In
a somewhat shocking announcement, former Strikeforce Heavyweight
Champion Alistair Overeem revealed he's no longer part of Team
Golden Glory. According to The Reem, who refused "to air
dirty laundy", there are good and bad times in every relationship,
but it's a breach of trust that leads to a no turning back situation:
"I
would like to make a statement regarding the recent news of the
separation from my long-time management Golden Glory. As with
any relationship, there are good times and bad times - you have
your common ground and your differences. As with any relationship,
you have trust. When differences lead to a breach of trust, there's
no turning back and no way to continue a positive, working relationship.
I don't air my dirty laundry. I would appreciate the respect
regarding my privacy to not disclose any further details on this
matter. Again, I would like to thank team Golden Glory for all
the years we worked together and wish them success for the future."
- Alistair Overeem on Twitter
Overeem
currently prepares for his Ultimate Fighting Championship debut
in a UFC 141 headliner vs. Brock Lesnar, which will take place
at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, on probably
the most prestigious date this year - December 30th.
Source:
Low Kick
|
Bas
Boon prepared to take legal action following Alistair Overeem's
departure from Golden Glory
by Joey
Santosus
"(Alistair
Overeem's) deal with the UFC was done by me. This was a brilliant
deal out of a very difficult situation. Four Golden Glory guys
were sacked by Zuffa, and I made a statement, and I negotiated
a very, very good contract in good faith with the UFC. ... I
wasn't really surprised, actually, after the last three months
because he already had a lot of different ideas on how he would
divide certain percentages which were normal in the past, and
apparently, are not now. I think the judge will decide on this
issue that we have, and when that is decided, we will see who
was right and who was not." - For more from Bas Boon, visit
MMAJunkie.com
Following
yesterday's announcement that former Strikeforce, K-1, and Dream
champ Alistair Overeem had decided to sever ties with his long
time team, Golden Glory, the gym's co-founder and trainer, Bas
Boon, followed up with a revelation of his own: He's planning
to sue the Dutchman
Though
Overeem declined to disclose any particulars surrounding his
decision to depart from the camp, citing only a "breach
of trust," Golden Glory's business methods recently came
under fire when ZUFFA co-owner and UFC President Dana White alleged
the team had insisted on utilizing a backwards payment structure
that required they, not their fighters, received payment from
the promotion. In the time since, the two parties (ZUFFA and
Golden Glory) appear to have mended fences, which became evident
when the UFC announced that they had signed "The Reem"
to an exclusive contract. Where Overeem will go from here is
unclear, however he is currently set to make his octagon debut
in December, when he'll square off with former UFC Champion Brock
Lesnar in Las Vegas.
Keep
it locked on LowKick.com for more information as it becomes available
Source:
Fight Opinion/Low Kick
|
ProElite
Moves Next Show to Moline, Ill.; Tim Sylvia-Pedro Rizzo to Headline
By Matt
Erickson
Venue
issues have forced ProElite into a change for its November show.
Sources
close to the promotion have confirmed to MMA Fighting that ProElite,
in its second incarnation after folding up shop in late 2008,
will move a planned Nov. 5 event from Atlantic City, N.J., to
the iWireless Center in Moline, Ill. An official announcement
from the promotion is expected by week's end.
The
main event is expected to be a heavyweight bout between former
UFC champion Tim Sylvia and three-time UFC heavyweight title
challenger Pedro Rizzo. Additionally, fellow former UFC heavyweight
champ Andrei Arlovski will fight Travis Fulton, regarded as the
busiest fighter in MMA history with more than 300 career fights.
The
event was originally targeted for Nov. 12 at the Resorts Hotel
and Casino in Atlantic City, but was moved to Nov. 5. Logistical
trouble with Resorts caused the promotion to look elsewhere,
and sources said when additional venues in Atlantic City didn't
work out, the decision was made to move to the Quad Cities area
in western Illinois. In addition to Moline, ProElite officials
considered the Target Center in Minneapolis as a host venue for
the show.
The
event now will take place Nov. 5 at the iWireless Center in Moline,
which has hosted MMA events in the past – including Adrenaline
MMA, the promotion started by MMA promoter and manager Monte
Cox several years ago. Cox has been informally consulting with
Pro Elite. Both the original Nov. 12 date and the new date of
Nov. 5 are up against UFC events.
In
addition to the main and co-main events on Nov. 5, sources told
MMA Fighting that Reagan Penn, brother of former UFC champion
BJ Penn, will fight on the card, as will highly regarded women's
125-pounder Tara LaRosa. ProElite reformed earlier this year
and hosted a show in Honolulu last month that included Arlovski,
Reagan Penn and Kendall Grove.
Sylvia
and Arlovski on the same card sets up the possibility for a future
meeting between the two, which would be their fourth fight. Arlovski
won their first bout, taking the UFC interim heavyweight title
at UFC 51. Sylvia then took the belt from Arlovski with a first-round
TKO at UFC 59 and defended it at UFC 61 three months later.
Though
a published report says Sylvia and Arlovski will meet on the
Nov. 5 show, ProElite's head of fight operations T. Jay Thompson
confirmed to MMA Fighting that Slyvia-Arlovski will not take
place on that day. Additional sources told MMA Fighting it will
be Rizzo meeting Sylvia – and that Sylvia-Arlovski IV is
not in the promotion's current plans, but could be targeted down
the road. It's a fight Arlovski, 1-2 against Sylvia, has wanted
for some time.
Sylvia
(29-7) has rebounded after a rough stretch that saw him lose
four of five fights. He lost his heavyweight title to Randy Couture
at UFC 68. He then beat Brandon Vera, but followed that with
a loss to Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira that ended his run in the
UFC. He moved on to Affliction's short-lived MMA promotion and
suffered a quick submission to Fedor Emelianenko. Then came a
9-second knockout loss to pro boxer Ray Mercer that will likely
be the biggest stain on his record. Since then, though, he has
won five of six over the last two years, with all his wins by
stoppage – and all at super heavyweight.
Rizzo
(19-9) has not fought since a July 2010 win over Ken Shamrock
for Impact FC in Sydney. Rizzo has fought some of the sport's
heavyweight legends, including Mark Coleman, Dan Severn, Josh
Barnett and Arlovski. In 2001, he twice lost to Couture challenging
for the UFC heavyweight title. Since leaving the UFC in 2003,
Rizzo's appearances have been more sporadic – with just
nine fights in nearly eight years.
Arlovski
(16-9) snapped out of a four-fight skid with a win over Ray Lopez
at ProElite's show last month. Prior to that, Arlovski lost to
Emelianeko, Brett Rogers, Antonio Silva and Sergei Kharitonov,
the latter three for Strikeforce.
Fulton
is an Iowa-based fighter with a career record of 247-48-10, according
to most databases, though it is believed that 10 of those losses
came in kickboxing competitions and not in MMA. Fulton fought
13 times in 2010, but has only fought twice in 2011 – going
2-0. The majority of Fulton's losses have come against future
UFC fighters like Ben Rothwell, Forrest Griffin, Travis Wiuff,
Rich Franklin and Evan Tanner.
Source:
MMA Fighting
|
Jon
Jones Opens as Huge Favorite Over Rashad Evans At the Sportsbook
by Damon
Martin
While
the date has not been set just yet for the light heavyweight
showdown between Jon Jones and Rashad Evans, the odds have just
been released for the next title fight in the UFC at 205lbs.
Nick
Kalikas of BetonFighting.com released the odds to MMAWeekly.com
on Wednesday.
According
to Kalikas, Jones opens as a heavy favorite at -475 while Rashad
Evans comes back as the betting underdog at +325.
“Rashad
Evans is without a doubt one of the top light heavyweights in
the world. He has all the tools to make this an interesting fight
for Jones. Regardless of how much respect I have for Rashad,
I still had to open Jones the heavy favorite,” Kalikas said.
“No
hiding the public hype around Jones. I think most feel Jones
will clean out the light heavyweight division comparable to what
Anderson Silva & GSP have done the last few years. Based
on what we’ve seen recently, I can’t really argue.
We could actually see the line climb even higher.”
Evans
has been waiting for his shot at the light heavyweight title
for some time now, but he’ll finally get his chance as soon
as Jones is healthy again and the UFC can schedule the fight.
Jones
and Evans were of course former friends and training partners
out of Greg Jackson’s camp in New Mexico before Evans left
and now formed a new team in Florida.
Jones
is fresh off of his submission victory over former UFC light
heavyweight champion Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson last
weekend at UFC 135.
Whether
the odds are close together or far apart, there’s no denying
that when Jones and Evans meet it will be an emotionally fueled
contest setting a score between former friends, now bitter enemies.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Strikeforce:
Cris Cyborg returns in December
It
has been a long wait, but Cris Cyborg fans no longer need complain.
The reigning Strikeforce featherweight champ will be back in
the cage on December 17, when she puts her belt up for grabs
against Japan’s Hiroto Yamanaka.
Undefeated
since May of 2005, when on her MMA debut she suffered the only
loss of her professional career, Cris will have an opponent with
a worthy record on her hands. Yamanaka has had 13 professional
fights so far, of which 12 she has won. Her lone loss came back
in April of 2008. She has rattled off eight back-to-back wins
since.
This
will be the Japanese fighter’s Strikeforce debut.
Source:
Gracie Magazine
|
Commentary:
Why black UFC fighters struggle to earn respect from fans &
media
By Zach
Arnold
From
Jordan Breen on his Tuesday radio show:
“I
think part of it obviously is, there’s no getting around
the fact that all of these guys make their own fates to some
extent. Quinton Jackson does absurd things sometimes like motorboating
and not being as dedicated as he could be in the gym. Rashad
Evans has prickly comments at times and dances and does things
that draw people’s ire. Even Melvin Guillard has a long
and checkered history of questionable behavior. Anderson Silva
conducts himself weirdly sometimes. There is individual incidents
that are unique to the persons that make it important.
“But
I do think in a lot of cases, yeah, there’s… you know…
it’s not everybody, it’s not like every white male
reacts viscerally to, ‘oh, a high-level black athlete.’
But many do, many do, you know? I think maybe sometimes it gets
harped on too much but there’s a reason that, you know,
people like (King Mo) are called ‘cocky’ and ‘arrogant.’
Part of it is because they are but the way the context in which
it’s constantly framed is often times a very implicitly
racist one. It’s widespread. It’s not everybody, but
it exists.
“So,
yeah, it is an unfortunate place to be in at times and the other
thing that needs to be said for it also is a lot of it is intra-squad
warfare there. A lot of it is to take a page out of Quinton Jackson’s
book, black-on-black violence, you know? You have these guys
going out there calling one another Uncle Toms and all this kind
of other stuff. That’s pretty volatile and difficult stuff
to be just throwing out there and that’s from black fighter
to black fighter in a lot of cases. So, it’s wrong to also
see it as a case of, oh, it’s like white media and white
fans hating Black fighters or treating them differently and coding
their language.
“It
goes the same way, you know, being a black athlete is also made
difficult by the way black athletes trend to treat other black
athletes in some cases especially and I would even go so far
as to say uniquely to some extent in the Mixed Martial Arts sphere
where more so than some other sports, you know, the issue of
being an Uncle Tom and these kinds of silly issues come up more
prominently, you know. You don’t see it as much in a lot
of other sports, it comes up very, very much in prizefighting
especially…
“I
don’t think there’s any getting around that Jon Jones
is irrationally hated and dwelling on all things, part of it
is how poorly he’s portrayed himself. In many respects,
part of it is kind of the hokey nature of it all. Part of it
is how manufactured he seemed recently with the British interview
with Luke Thomas and other foolish things like this. He’s
made some poor choices and I’m sure for some it’s residual
racist foolish and for some, you know, they just might not like
the cut of his jib and think he’s arrogant, plain and simple,
and not desire him as a person. There’s lots of reasons
you could potentially dislike Jon Jones. However, I think it’s
weird to dislike Jon Jones and simply see him not as a great
fighter. But I think it’s a begrudging bit of bitching and
the reason I say that is… people’s reaction to Jon
Jones and if you ask someone today, even a Jon Jones hater, who’s
the best Light Heavyweight in the world? They’re still going
to say Jon Jones, you know? There’s not that level of denial.
I think part of why the Jon Jones hate is so ridiculous and so
venomous is that these people at the same time that they critique
Jones have to tacitly admit that he’s great. Because the
way in which the argument’s positioned is, ‘oh, well,
Jon Jones can’t beat Anderson Silva.’ ‘Oh, Jon
Jones, he’s going to lose!” It’s not, ‘oh,
Jon Jones, he can’t beat top Light Heavyweights’ or
‘oh, Jon Jones, he’s not the favorite against Rashad
(Evans).’ Even people who hate Jon Jones have to talk about
the Rashad Evans fight as if they’re saying, ‘oh, well,
I mean, Evans has a shot.” Like if you hate a guy and that’s
the best you can do, ‘oh, he’s got a shot,’ you’re
clearly acknowledging the dominance of that party. So, I think
even in the Jones hate, I think it’s still reflected how
good of a fighter he really is.”
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
Luiz
Cane drops to middleweight following loss at UFC Rio
By Guilherme
Cruz
Luiz
“Banha” Cane will bring some news on his return to
UFC cage. The Brazilian fighter, who suffered a TKO loss at UFC
Rio, will drop to the middleweight division. Who told the break
news to TATAME was his manager, Alex Davis, who is not in a hurry.
“Banha
will drop to the middle weight. It is something that, in my point
of view, will take some time for him to get used to this new
division, so I don’t wanna rush anything to make sure he’s
comfortable fighting in this new weight class”, tells, guaranteeing
that the change isn’t related to the defeat in Rio de Janeiro.
“What
happened is a part of the fight. I don’t believe this weight
drop has anything to do with it, but it’s a wish he has
for a long time, and maybe it’ll bring a positive result.
It’s something that usually happens in the industry, keep
dropping the weight more and more. He wanna do it and I support
him, so let’s do it the best way we can. With no rush”,
explains.
Still
according to the manager, Cane’s debut on the new class,
20 pounds below he was used to fight at Ultimate, will only happen
in 2012, because his team want to do some tests to make sure
he’s ok on his new division.
“We
have to see him fighting on this new division”, tells. “I
haven’t thought about the dates, we need to get him tested
before. He needs to lose weight, get hydrated and train to see
how he’s gonna behave. I want to do this before he drops
to the middleweight”.
The
change of classes might bring other changes to the striker, who
holds a professional record of 12 wins and one loss.
“He’s
behaving like a middleweight. He no longer can eat a lot of meat
believing he’ll make it at the weight-in. it’s a sacrifice
he’ll have to make. He’ll need to change many things
on his life. When we get to the United States we’ll set
a date and see how he behaves”, explain.
Source:
Tatame
|
UFC
Live Cruz vs. Johnson Predictions
By Michael
David Smith
Will
Dominick Cruz continue his reign of dominance over the bantamweight
division, or will Demetrious Johnson become the new UFC 135-pound
champion? Will Stefan Struve capitalize on his enormous reach
advantage, or will Pat Barry get inside and test Struve's chin?
Can Charlie Brenneman knock off Anthony Johnson and improve to
3-0 in 2011? We'll attempt to answer those questions as we predict
the winners on Saturday night's fight card.
What:
UFC Live: Cruz vs. Johnson
Where:
Verizon Center, Washington, D.C.
When:
Saturday, the Facebook preliminary card starts at 6 PM ET and
the Versus televised card begins at 9.
Predictions
on the four Versus fights below.
Dominick
Cruz vs. Demetrious Johnson
Johnson, nicknamed "Mighty Mouse," is small even for
the 135-pound weight class, and he's going to have a very, very
difficult time against the tall and lanky Cruz, who is as good
as anyone in the sport at using his reach advantage to prevent
his opponents from getting near him. Johnson would love to get
inside and take Cruz down repeatedly, as he did in winning decisions
over Kid Yamamoto and Miguel Torres to get this title fight,
but that's a very tall order against Cruz.
For
Cruz, the path to victory looks a lot like what he's been doing
throughout his title reign: He needs to use his awkward movement
and high-volume striking to keep Johnson on the outside and keep
him frustrated. Although Johnson's quickness may be something
Cruz hasn't seen before, Johnson looks like an opponent Cruz
should be able to handle standing up for 25 minutes.
And
so I like Cruz to do what he usually does: Win by unanimous decision.
Pick: Cruz
Pat
Barry vs. Stefan Struve
The enormous height difference between Struve (the UFC's tallest
fighter) and Barry (the UFC's shortest heavyweight) makes this
fight interesting visually, but what makes it especially interesting
is that neither one of these guys fights the way you'd expect
someone his height to fight: Struve often fails to take advantage
of his reach and instead lets his opponents get inside and test
his chin, while Barry doesn't let his short, stocky legs prevent
him from throwing plenty of kicks.
Barry
probably has an advantage if the fight stays standing, but I
think this fight will eventually go to the ground, and Struve
will have an enormous advantage on the canvas -- even if he has
to get knocked down to get there. Look for Barry to leave himself
exposed on the ground and Struve to capitalize and win by submission.
Pick: Struve
Anthony
Johnson vs. Charlie Brenneman
Johnson returned after more than a year away and put a one-sided
beating on Dan Hardy in March, and he'll look to do it again
when he takes on Brenneman, who's coming off a big win over Rick
Story. I think the savvy Brenneman is going to give Johnson a
lot more trouble on the ground than most people expect, and win
a decision.
Pick: Brenneman
Matt
Wiman vs. Mac Danzig
Some unfinished business between these two is finally about to
get resolved: At UFC 115 in June of 2010, Wiman won when referee
Yves Lavigne wrongly thought Danzig had passed out while in a
guillotine choke. (In reality, Danzig was alert and defending
himself.) The UFC tried to book them in an immediate rematch,
but injuries got in the way. Now they're finally ready to meet
again, and I like Wiman to win legitimately this time, taking
a decision.
Pick: Wiman
Source:
MMA Fighting
|
UFC
135 ‘Prelims Live’ Nets 1.6 Million Viewers on Spike
TV
by Mike
Whitman
Spike
TV’s UFC 135 “Prelims Live” broadcast netted an
average of 1.6 million viewers on Saturday night, network officials
announced Tuesday.
The
hour-long live special featured two bouts and immediately preceded
the promotion’s pay-per-view telecast. The first televised
prelim saw Tim Boetsch continue his winning ways at middleweight,
as “The Barbarian” outpointed previously undefeated
Nick Ring on all three judges’ scorecards. In the second
Spike bout, Tony Ferguson did not allow his scrap with Aaron
Riley to go the distance, as “El Cucuy” stopped the
veteran via first-round technical knockout.
The
broadcast earned a 1.1 household rating, as well as ratings of
1.4 and 1.7 in the Male 18-49 and M18-34 demographics, respectively.
The show peaked during its second quarter-hour, attracting over
1.73 million viewers. The telecast was also the highest-rated
program in its time slot in each of the aforementioned male demographics.
Headlined
by a light heavyweight title confrontation between Jon Jones
and Quinton Jackson, UFC 135 marked the promotion’s first
trip to Denver since 1995. Emanating from the Pepsi Center, the
event showcased Jones’ dominant first title defense, as
“Bones” cruised to a fourth-round submission victory
over “Rampage.”
Source
Sherdog
|
Five
things I think I know are true after UFC 135
By Zach
Arnold
1.
Jon Jones is everything that the Japanese thought Satoshi Ishii
could have been.
In
or Out of the Cage, UFC champion Jon Jones proves hard to figure
Both
are enigmatic, strange personalities with a lot of raw talent.
One ended up delivering and the other one let his compulsive
personality essentially wreck his career back home.
Remember
when PRIDE died and K-1 was looking for an ‘ace’ after
Masato had retired? It wasn’t Kid Yamamoto, since he and
Kazuyoshi Ishii had a political falling out. It was going to
be Satoshi Ishii, through the Inoki political line, that was
going to be the golden ticket. He had everything in the palm
of his lands. Instead, his mercurial nature doomed him with the
public who turned on him and practically waved bye-bye to him
as he fled for America.
In
the States, Jon Jones won’t have to worry about being anyone’s
savior. Fans largely care about what he does in the cage and
if they get angry at him for his antics outside of the cage,
then so be it. He can withstand it and make money from it. That’s
the difference between Japan and everywhere else.
There
are still believers in Ishii who think that he can somehow become
a force in MMA, but it won’t be through the Japanese route.
2.
Jon Jones is so dominant, oddsmakers will make him a bigger favorite
for each future fight than they do for Georges St. Pierre.
For
most GSP fights, he’s about -350 to -400 (3.5-4 to 1 favorite)
for each title match. No different for his upcoming fight against
Carlos Condit.
Jon
Jones, for his fight against Rampage Jackson, closed out as a
-515 favorite (5 to 1). Against Rashad, I would expect at least
-375 as the line, if not higher. The fact that we are starting
to see boxing-type lines amongst top Jackson fighters in UFC
fights is remarkable.
3.
Kazushi Sakuraba’s career relevancy is on par with Japanese
MMA on a big stage – dead on arrival.
Ever
since business fell apart after New Year’s Eve for K-1,
I’ve noticed the mass media in Japan basically turn their
backs on covering DREAM events on a large scale. Conversely,
I’ve had several writers tell me that DREAM hasn’t
opened up press opps. to talk to fighters until the week before
shows. What you end up with are largely one-themed articles on
the DREAM shows and a deader-than-dead vibe about their existence.
Sakuraba
lost to Yan Cabral on Saturday. Yes, Yan Cabral. I had picked
Cabral to win but merely because my default position now in any
Sakuraba fight is that he’s going to lose. This image from
Saturday’s fight is horribly sad. Sakuraba is expected to
fight on New Year’s Eve (if there is a show).
The
scary part about all of this is that he’s still the biggest
draw available in Japan right now. Which is not saying a lot.
4.
The more that Japanese fighters lose on upcoming UFC cards, the
tighter the squeeze the promotion has for their February show
in Japan.
In
the limited Japanese media circles that covered UFC 135, the
press labeled Takanori Gomi vs. Nate Diaz as the top fight on
the card. Naturally, Gomi lost and in relatively predictable
fashion. Takeya Mizugaki won his fight against Cole Escovedo,
but Mizugaki is unknown amongst the Japanese fans at this point.
The
options for UFC to have any sort of drawing cards for the show
are dwindling. If Wanderlei loses to Cung Le, that would be a
killer. If Akiyama fights before the Japan show and loses, that
would be virulently damaging. There’s been a floated belief
that UFC will sign up Satoshi Ishii and book him for the Japan
show but that is fool’s gold, a Pyrrhic signing at best.
He moves the needle for media attention but he doesn’t sell
tickets and he gets booed vociferously out of buildings. Plus,
Ishii doesn’t come across as someone who liked being in
Japan full-time on a personal or professional level.
By
the way, the headline of Mark Hunt winning at UFC 135 drew the
most hardcore fan reaction in Japan. Hunt’s one of the few
gaijin fighters the UFC has that can plausibly pull in some hardcores.
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
Call
Him Cocky or Confident, Dominick Cruz Knows He’ll Win Before
Ever Stepping in the Cage
by Damon
Martin
The
sports hangover.
No,
it’s not a new sequel to the popular “Hangover”
series starring Bradley Cooper and Zach Galifianakis. It’s
a common theme in many popular sports, most notably in the NFL,
where teams that compete in the Super Bowl fail to live up to
the same expectations after reaching the pinnacle of the sport.
The
2001 St. Louis Rams after falling short in the Super Bowl ended
up going 7-9 the next year. The same thing happened to the 2000
New York Giants. The 1998 Atlanta Falcons went an abysmal 5-11
the year after they reached the Super Bowl.
It’s
a common theme in sports, but could it happen in MMA?
For
UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz, he has no intention
of that happening to him. Cruz next defends his title this weekend
at UFC on Versus 6 in Washington D.C. against Demetrious Johnson,
but that’s hot on the heels of him beating the biggest rival
of his young career, Urijah Faber.
Cruz
and Faber went back and forth for months, sometimes getting personal,
other times just taking pot shots at each other’s fighting
styles, but when the incumbent champion was able to defeat his
nemesis it was like removing a 135-pound monkey off his back.
But
as he heads into his next title defense is Cruz possibly going
to suffer the same curse that’s haunted so many NFL and
other pro sports teams?
“I
have seen that and I know what you’re talking about, but
I’ve never understood that in my opinion,” Cruz told
MMAWeekly Radio about the so called sports hangover. “To
me, we’re all fighters already, that’s our job, we
fight. You fight who you’re up against next and if you are
a real fighter, in my opinion, you’re willing to fight whoever.
I don’t really care. To be honest it’s just another
fight. I’m going out there to win something new and showcase
my skills and be exciting for the fans.”
It’s
that kind of mentality that has separated Cruz from many top
fighters over his career. From his rise to the top of the bantamweight
division to the three consecutive title defenses he’s made
since that time, Cruz doesn’t believe in slowing down just
because he has a shiny gold belt around his waist now.
The
same hunger that drove Cruz to win the title still exists inside
of him today, and it’s that fire that he believes will lead
him to many more defenses of his UFC bantamweight belt.
“I
can’t really explain what separates me from other fighters,
maybe that’s something I’m trying to figure out for
myself. I think I’ve actually surprised myself a lot in
my career with the things that I’ve done. The bottom line
is how I grew up and the way I came up, I never complained about
the way I was raised in humble beginnings,” Cruz said.
“When
I explain my background and where I come from, there’s never
a complaint. If I can do it, anybody can do it. Because just
where I started from, I was never the super athletic guy, I was
never the guy all the coaches wanted. I just had to work harder
to keep up with everybody else. So to me it all just stems from
hard work.”
In
the past, Cruz has been called cocky by some for his seeming
over confidence as he heads into fights, but rest assured the
UFC’s top 135-pound fighter isn’t patting himself on
the back or saying he’s better than anybody else.
There
is a confidence in Dominick Cruz, because he believes that’s
what makes him better than the other guy standing across the
cage from him. It’s a belief in himself. It’s a belief
in his coaches and his training and that he’s done everything
possible to prepare for the fight ahead.
“I
know when I get to fight time, I don’t have a doubt in my
mind that I’m going in there to collect the ‘W’.
Because I put the time and dedication into training to be confident
enough when I co out there to fight that I don’t have to
second guess myself,” Cruz stated.
“I
know what I’m capable of, and I know what I need to do.
I guess it’s fair to say that I’m just very confident
at that time.”
Cruz
also sets very lofty goals for himself when it comes to fighting.
He looks up to a fighter like UFC middleweight champion Anderson
Silva, who has been able to not only win the title, but defend
it more times than anybody in UFC history.
He’s
dominated a weight class like no fighter in history has been
able to do, and Silva just continues to get better and better.
That’s
what Cruz sees for himself. To even be held in the same breath
as someone like Anderson Silva is an honor according to the UFC
bantamweight champion and he hopes to one day hold those same
kinds of accolades.
“I’m
in the prime time of my life to really take advantage of the
situation I’m in to accomplish the goals I’ve set for
myself. So it’s very important for me to continue to sacrifice
and stay focused while my body is still working and capable of
doing the things that I want so that I can go ahead and break
all those records and set all those goals and beat all those
goals I set for myself,” said Cruz.
“I
have the rest of my life when I’m broken down and can’t
move anymore and stuck with arthritis to do all those other things
that I sacrificed during this time. It’s worth it to me.
I love what I do.”
Cruz
hasn’t skipped a beat in training and he hasn’t slowed
down since his last fight. He’s been working every day and
every moment for the next step in the legacy he hopes to build.
The man charged with trying to stop that run is Demetrious Johnson,
but for as much as Cruz respects his opponent, when he steps
in the cage with him on Oct. 1, he’s going to feel like
he’s already won.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Rampage:
I Don’t See Anybody Beating Jones
Quinton
“Rampage” Jackson made no excuses following his loss
to Jon Jones on Saturday night, giving the UFC’s 205-pound
champion his due after an unsuccessful title bid at UFC 135.
“[I’m
not going to be] a sore loser,” said Jackson at the post-fight
press conference. “I thought I’d be really mad [if
I lost], especially after [Jones] did what he said he was going
to do and finished me. I gained a lot of respect for Jones. I
thought he was hype, but he’s good. He fought me and did
some great stuff. I don’t see anybody beating Jones.”
Jackson
tried in vain to close the distance throughout his clash with
Jones at the Pepsi Center in Denver, but could not accomplish
his objective. Jones continually peppered the former light heavyweight
champion with a variety of laser-like techniques, preventing
Jackson from sitting in the pocket and looking for a knockout
shot.
“I
was very confident [going into the bout],” said Jackson.
“A couple of times, I got a little desperate. I was a little
disappointed because I wasn’t sticking to my game plan and
was kind of frustrating myself. His reach and presence were really
hard to deal with. I had guys in training who were taller than
Jones, but I guess it’s different between sparring and a
real fight.”
Jones
became more aggressive in the fourth frame, driving Jackson against
the cage with a double-leg takedown. Rather than fall to his
back, however, Jackson turned his body to the side in an effort
to stand and avoid the ground and pound Jones had used effectively
earlier in the contest. The champion went for the finish, digging
in one hook in and cinching a rear-naked choke that would force
Jackson to submit for the first time in his UFC career.
Though
Jones admitted after the fight that he felt Jackson’s fatigue
before the finish, Rampage asserted that his in-cage demeanor
was partially by design, an effort to escape the dangerous position
and avoid further damage to his already lacerated eyebrow.
“I
was actually playing possum a little bit, because I was hoping
he would fade a little,” said Jackson. “I turned so
he wouldn’t elbow this cut anymore.”
Though
Jackson stated multiple times that he felt no contender at light
heavyweight could dethrone the champion, Rampage did reveal who
he thought had the best chance to solve the riddle that many
view as the toughest puzzle in all of MMA.
“I
think Rashad [Evans] is the only one who has a chance to beat
him,” said Jackson. “[Evans] trained with him and so
he knows, but I don’t see anybody beating [Jones], straight
up. I take my hat off to him.”
Following
his defeat, Jackson requested to compete opposite fellow former
champion Mauricio Rua at the UFC’s upcoming return to Japan
in 2012. Though “Shogun” already has a fight booked
against Dan Henderson at UFC 139 in November, Jackson is still
pining to avenge his defeat to the Brazilian in the first round
of Pride Fighting Championships’ 2005 middleweight grand
prix.
“It
would be very special [to rematch Rua in Japan]. I have a lot
of respect for Shogun,” said Jackson. “I didn’t
know he was fighting Henderson, but it would be a dream come
true.”
Source: Sherdog
|
‘Bones’
Learns Lessons in Dominant UFC Title Defense
The
24-year-old from Endicott, N.Y., did what he wanted on Saturday
night, dominating Quinton Jackson en route to a fourth-round
submission finish in the main event of UFC 135.
Although
the young champion showcased his superiority in impressive fashion
at the Pepsi Center in Denver, he readily admitted his perceived
mistakes following the bout and complimented the former champion’s
punching power.
“[The
fight taught] me a lot about my skill set and things I need to
work on,” Jones said at the post-fight press conference.
“Sometimes, instead of defending technically, I kind of
ran like a little girl and turned my back. So, I need to work
on my slipping and evading. But [Jackson] hits so hard, I just
got out of the way like a smart man would.”
Jackson
never found the power shot he was looking for in their UFC light
heavyweight title bout, as Jones stayed on the outside, pumping
straight punches and kicks into Jackson’s face, torso and
legs, limiting Jackson’s mobility and preventing him from
closing the distance.
“We
worked a style we thought would beat ‘Rampage,’ and
it worked, using my reach and my length,” Jones said. “Basically,
the strategy was to fight long and make each shot count. I tried
to use low kicks to set up high kicks and [throw] straight [techniques].
Rampage has knocked out some of the best, but it’s normally
when he’s throwing hooks. I figured if I shot straight,
we would be more successful. He does best when he’s rolling
off hooks.”
Jones
began the fight in bizarre fashion, crawling toward his opponent
like a spider. Though it appeared a strange way to kick off the
contest, Jones asserted that there was a reason behind his unorthodox
approach.
“I
figured he would be at his most powerful at the beginning of
the fight, and I figured he couldn’t generate a lot of power
aiming at such a low target,” said Jones. “I was trying
to shoot a low, misdirection single-leg. It didn’t work
too well, but it was worth a shot.”
After
keeping Jackson at bay for over three rounds with his striking,
Jones went for the kill in round four, taking his foe to the
floor and sinking a fight-ending rear-naked choke.
“I
think that, in each round, things were slowing down for both
of us with the fatigue. I just felt that after the takedown,
his explosiveness didn’t seem very strong,” said Jones.
“I knew it was going to be hard for him to fight out of
that. I just felt the moment was coming where anything devastating
would be a major blow to his effort to come back, and I just
took [the opportunity to finish the fight].”
Though
the pre-fight hype carried with it much trash talk from both
sides, Jones told the media following the bout that the pair
buried the proverbial hatchet in a post-fight conversation in
the cage.
“I
told Quinton that I admire him and respect him,” said Jones.
“I tried to play it off like we were two lions -- and we
were -- but the truth is that I look up to him. I’ve been
watching him a long time. I basically told him that I loved him
and it was an honor to fight him. It was just 100 percent respect.
I’m sure we’ll be cool from now on.”
Up
next for the champion is a long-anticipated clash with former
training partner Rashad Evans. Though Jones stated that he did
not want to talk about his onetime friend following his successful
outing against Jackson, Jones did offer a brief statement regarding
his next opponent.
“I
know what happened [most of the time] in sparring. He talks about
one day [at Jackson’s MMA] where he held me down in practice,
and he lives that day every day,” said Jones. “I will
say this about Rashad: He does not have my number.”
Source: Sherdog
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Diaz
destroys Gomi in UFC 135 PPV opener
Nate
Diaz has always been considered a step behind his brother Nick.
But tonight, he did his big bro one better by tearing through
Japanese star Takanori Gomi in just over four minutes. Diaz pummeled
Gomi on the feet to set up an armbar stoppage at 4:27 of the
first round in Denver, Co.
Gomi
was arguably the best 155-pound fighter in the world from 1998-2005
as rolled up a 24-2 record. He got a wake up call against Nick
in 2007 at PRIDE 33. The older Diaz won that fight, but he also
took some damage. Nate had no such problems. He was never threatened
in four-plus minutes by the dangerous power puncher.
The
5-foot-7 Gomi simply couldn't solve the length riddle presented
by the 6-foot Diaz. The taller fighter used his reach brilliantly.
According to Compustrike, he made good on 52 percent of his punches
and outlanded Gomi 44-8.
Diaz
(14-7, 9-5 UFC) flicked the jab early as a range finder. It made
Gomi incredibly tentative. When Diaz finally threw with bad intentions
it was a blowout.
Gomi
(33-8, 1-3 UFC) ate a right hook with 3:30 left in the round,
Diaz began to taunt him and dropped his hands. Diaz started to
land 1-2's whenever he wanted. A stunned Gomi tried to shoot
and found himself under Diaz, who pounded away. Gomi got back
to his feet, but he was close to finished as he put his back
on the cage.
Diaz
let his hands go and battered Gomi. Gomi actually recovered for
a split second by pushing Diaz to the ground, but made the silly
move of going into the Brazilian jiu-jitsu expert's guard. Diaz's
legs are a mile long. Gomi got twisted up and caught in a triangle.
Diaz eventually transitioned it to an arm bar forcing Gomi to
tap.
Diaz
is back where he belongs at 155 pounds. He made the strange move
up to welterweight where he went 2-2, with losses against Dong
Hyun Kim and Rory MacDonald. If he stays focused, he can certainly
get right back into the mix for a run at the lightweight title.
Keep in mind, he lost a narrow decision to Gray Maynard just
20 months ago. Maynard fought to a draw at UFC 125 against champion
Frank Edgar. The rematch goes down in two weeks at UFC 136 in
Houston.
Source: Yahoo Sports
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Dream
turning into Japanese MMA nightmare
Japanese
favorites Shinya Aoki and Tatsuya “Crusher” Kawajiri
scored big wins, but Saturday night’s fight card only served
to show just how far MMA has fallen in a former hotbed.
Dream
17 at the Saitama Super Arena, the building in which so many
of the greatest MMA fights of the past decade have taken place,
drew only a small crowd in what at times felt like nostalgia
night.
With
no network television deal, a must for any level of mainstream
interest, it has become almost impossible for Japanese promoters
to make new stars. So Dream brought out the established stars,
mostly fighters either past their prime or those who haven’t
been lured away to America and the UFC.
Dream
lightweight champion Aoki (29-5, 1 no contest), the biggest of
the country’s remaining stars, was able to finish former
World Extreme Cagefighting lightweight champion “Razor”
Rob McCullough in the main event of a show that aired in the
U.S. on HDNet. It was Aoki’s sixth win in a row since he
was unable to mount any offense in losing a five-round decision
to Strikeforce champion Gilbert Melendez on CBS in the U.S. 17
months ago.
In
an obvious striker vs. grappler matchup, Aoki kept McCullough
(19-8) on the ground for almost the entire first round before
finishing him at the 4:57 mark with a neck crank facelock combination.
“I’ve
been away from my family for two months in Singapore,” Aoki
said. “I haven’t seen my wife and child for two months.
I’m really sad and lonely. It’s not just me, but everyone
is doing their best in Japan in this dark time. I think we’re
going to make it.”
Aoki
talked about a prospective New Year’s Eve show, a Japanese
television tradition for a decade. But at this time, there is
no television deal in place, nor is there an announcement for
the next Dream show.
Kawajiri
(29-7-2), who was also hammered by Melendez this past April when
he came to the U.S. to challenge for the Strikeforce belt, moved
down to the Japanese featherweight division, which is 65 kilograms
(143 pounds).
Kawajiri
had almost no body fat as a lightweight, so he had to sacrifice
musculature to cut down. He didn’t appear to have the same
power that he did as a lightweight, but he was able to finish
popular Norwegian fighter Joachim “Hellboy” Hansen
with an arm triangle at 2:30 of the third round in a back-and-forth
fight.
Hansen
(22-11-1), who has been fighting in Japan since 2002 and was
part of the sport’s heyday, scored a first-round knockdown,
but most of the fight was spent with him on his back after being
taken down.
With
finances down, the level of pageantry wasn’t nearly at the
level that people would expect at a major Japanese show, but
they did bring in a rock band to play Kawajiri’s entrance
song.
Still,
that couldn’t counter the crowd sentiment in seeing two
legends of the early days, Kazushi Sakuraba and Caol Uno, in
a sport that is unforgiving to athletes past their prime. Sakuraba’s
wins over four members of the Gracie family in 1999 and 2000,
including a 90-minute epic with Royce Gracie, was the building
block of the sport’s heyday. His biggest fights, most notably
his second fight with Wanderlei Silva, sold out the 53,000-seat
Tokyo Dome. His fight with heavyweight Mirko Cro Cop in 2002
at an outdoor soccer stadium in Tokyo drew 71,000 fans, still
the all-time attendance record for the sport.
His
opponent, Yan Cabral (10-0), a Brazilian who had finished all
nine of his previous foes by submission, mostly competing in
Europe, was brought in because he didn’t have much of a
reputation as a striker. Cabral idolized Sakuraba when he started
in the sport in 2007. Sakuraba, now 42, competed at 167 pounds
after spending the bulk of his career as an undersized light
heavyweight. Sakuraba (26-16-1) did get some punches in during
Round 1 but he was mostly dominated, getting hurt both standing
and on the ground.
It
wasn’t just the age that was the problem, as Sakuraba took
horrible beatings once he became a top drawing card. In an unregulated
industry where the fighting spirit is revered, referees would
give him every chance to win fights and he would never quit from
a beating.
Sakuraba
should have retired years ago, but he is brought out because
his name still draws fans. This week he said he wanted to fight
three more years, citing former opponent Royler Gracie, who just
retired earlier this month at the age of 45. Sakuraba also said
he was addicted to fighting and didn’t know when to quit.
Cabral,
in a measure of respect, wore a Sakuraba T-shirt after the fight.
Caol
Uno (26-15-5), who had two UFC lightweight title matches with
Jens Pulver and B.J. Penn a decade ago, was knocked out in the
first round by “Lion” Takeshi Inoue (21-5). Uno was
never a mainstream star like Sakuraba, but he became a big name
among hardcore Japanese fans as the country’s top lightweight
fighter in 1999 and 2000 with his two wins over the previous
king, pioneer submission ace Rumina Sato. Uno lost a close decision
to Pulver, and he lost once and drew once with Penn right after
the UFC introduced the lightweight division. And he was considered
slightly past his peak then.
He
was hurt early by Inoue and knocked down. Later in the first
round, a right high kick turned his lights out instantly at the
4:18 mark. Inoue, like Cabral, noted he grew up idolizing the
opponent he just defeated.
“Twelve
years ago, I was a really big Shooto fan,” said Inoue. “I
watched the Rumina Sato vs. Caol Uno fight. After 12 years, when
I was able to beat both Rumina Sato and Caol Uno, I want to thank
my family and friends who supported me.”
The
other popular Japanese favorite on the show, Hideo Tokoro (30-24-1),
lost a split decision to former WEC fighter and former Chuck
Liddell roommate Antonio Banuelos (19-7) in a bantamweight match
that was a part of a tournament that began on the show.
Because
of his aggressive style, constantly going for submissions on
his back, Tokoro had the reputation for years as being one of
the world’s most entertaining fighters. But his fight with
Banuelos was not the exciting ground battle that people expected.
It was mostly standing, and the first round was so bad that the
referee at one point stopped it and warned both fighters about
the lack of action. There was a flurry in the third round when
Tokoro went for a Kimura and a kneebar while Baneulos landed
punches, but that was really the only display of the old Tokoro.
In
other first-round tournament matches, Brazil’s Rodolfo Marques
(14-1) won a decision over Russian Yusup Saadalaev (8-1-1); Masakazu
Imanari (24-9-2) put on a submission clinic before finishing
Abel Cullum (18-6) with an armbar at 0:46 of the third round;
and tournament favorite Bibiano Fernandes (9-3) choked out Takafumi
Otsuka (12-9-1) in just 41 seconds.
No
dates have been announced for the tournament semifinals and finals.
Source: Yahoo Sports
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UFC
135 Results: Jon Jones Proves the Hype Is For Real, Finishes
Rampage in Round 4
Some
said he was the future while others said he was more hype that
reality.
What
Jon ‘Bones’ Jones proved at UFC 135 is that he is indeed
the best light heavyweight in the sport, and could very well
be the next great fighter alongside names like Silva and St-Pierre.
Coming
into the main event fight, Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson
had said he was in the best shape of his life, and had gone through
best training camp of his life. Unfortunately, it still didn’t
stop Jones from attacking the former Pride fighter at will.
At
the opening of the bout, Jones came out almost in a spider like
position, confusing everyone both in the arena and in the commentary
booth. After the fight was finished, Jones said that was actually
a calculated attack, but when it didn’t work right away
he went back to a traditional stance.
“I
was trying to shoot a really fast low single,” Jones explained
about his opening move.
From
that moment on, Jon Jones dominated and decimated Rampage with
everything he came with throughout the fight. The New York native
kept Jackson on the outside with kicks and quick movement to
keep his opponent on the defensive.
It
was a surgical attack for the first three rounds from Jones,
who came in and attacked Rampage when he felt the timing was
there, and connected with almost everything he threw. At one
point during a clinch against the cage, Jones threw one of his
patented spinning back elbows, and cracked Jackson flush on the
jaw.
To
Jackson’s credit, he continued to step forward, but outside
of throwing a few haymakers he simply had no answer to Jones’
attacks.
Jones
used his striking to set up everything he did throughout the
bout, and while his style may seem unorthodox, everything was
calculated from the word go.
“The
game plan was to prove that we could strike with Quinton Jackson.
He kind of insulted me saying I had no punching power, and he
insulted my striking,” Jones stated. “Me and Mike Winkeljohn
we got together and we really cleaned up my striking to prove
a point and I think we did that.”
Heading
into the championship rounds, Jones got a clear message from
his coaches after the 15-minute mark that Jackson had just about
enough and that he need to put him away.
“My
coaches told me going into the 4th round I was starting to break
him a little bit, and I wanted to finish the fight, that was
the round to do it,” said Jones.
Jones
did exactly that.
Another
dominant round started out for the UFC’s top light heavyweight
before he took Jackson to the mat, and once he was on top, it
was just a matter of time before Jones put him away. Jones took
Jackson’s back and immediately sunk his forearm under the
chin, and pulled up on the hold.
Jackson’s
exasperated face told the story as the choke was tightened, and
he had to tap out, giving Jon Jones the victory.
Following
the fight, Jackson made no excuses about his performance or take
anything away from Jon Jones. As a matter of fact, count Quinton
‘Rampage’ Jackson a believer in Jon Jones.
“I’ve
been in the best shape of my life, I expected to come out here
and close the distance and over throw Jon Jones, but he’s
great. I thought it was hype, the kid is good. I’ve got
to take my hat off to him,” Jackson stated after the fight.
“This
is the best I’ve ever been, Jon Jones he’s here to
stay.”
As
Jon Jones celebrated the win, his next opponent Rashad Evans
made his way into the Octagon to answer questions from UFC commentator
Joe Rogan. Evans gave Jones credit for his performance, but he’s
now looking forward to his chance to face him next.
“It’s a good opportunity, I’m glad the UFC put
it together, and I can’t wait to get the chance to fight,”
Evans commented.
Once
Jones came face to face with his former friend and teammate,
there was obvious tension in the air. A chill washed over the
Pepsi Center in Denver, as Jones looked over at Evans with obvious
contempt knowing they will meet in the near future.
“I’m
sure he’s got a lot to say, he’s going to be doing
a lot of talking,” Jones said about Evans. “I’m
not going to say anything, I promise you guys leading up to this
fight, I’m not going to say much.
“He’s
ruined my special night twice now.”
At
the post fight press conference, Jones said he didn’t want
to talk about Rashad Evans anymore tonight. It sounds like he’ll
celebrate his win and worry about Evans once the bout agreement
shows up to make their fight official.
Saturday
night and the UFC light heavyweight title definitely belong to
Jon Jones.
Source: MMA Weekly
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UFC
135 Post Fight Bonuses Get $75,000 Each
Following
another action packed night at UFC 135, several fighters took
home a $75,000 bonus check for their performances.
The
Fight of the Night honors went to UFC light heavyweight champion
Jon Jones and his opponent, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson,
for their main event bout. Jones finished Jackson with a rear
naked choke in the fourth round to cap off his first title defense.
The
Knockout of the Night bonus of $75,000 went to former Ultimate
Fighter competitor Josh Koscheck, who ended UFC Hall of Famer
Matt Hughes’ night with a vicious knockout on the ground
at the end of round one to stop the fight.
Koscheck
took the fight on short notice, but didn’t waste any time
putting Hughes away in what may be the final bout of his storied
career.
The
Submission of the Night honors and a $75,000 bonus check went
to Nate Diaz for his armbar victory over former Pride legend
Takanori Gomi. Diaz put Gomi away in the first round in his return
to the UFC’s lightweight division.
UFC 135
Live Gate and Attendance Numbers
The
gate and attendance numbers for UFC 135 came back following the
event at the Pepsi Center in Denver as released by UFC president
Dana White.
The
total gate for UFC 135 was $2 million dollars, which tops the
most recent UFC pay-per-view event in the United States, which
was UFC 133 that pulled $1.5 million dollars.
The
attendance in the Pepsi Center in Denver totaled out at 16,344.
UFC
135 was the first time the promotion has visited Denver in several
years, but the city is credited with being the birthplace of
the organization after the first event was held there at McNichol’s
Arena in November 1993
Source: MMA Weekly
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UFC
135 Results: Nate Diaz Submits Gomi, Says He Wants a Top Four
Opponent Next
If
there’s a third Diaz brother somewhere out there, chances
are Takanori Gomi wants no part of him.
While
his fight with Nick Diaz was overturned to a no contest, Gomi
didn’t fair much better against the younger Diaz brother
as Nate submitted the Japanese legend by armbar in the first
round of their fight at UFC 135.
Dropping
back down to 155lbs after an experiment at welterweight, Nate
Diaz looked better than ever with his performance on Saturday
night.
Diaz
tossed his jab out and tagged Gomi, and then followed up with
a quick one-two combo over and over again and the former Pride
champion simply had no answer for it.
Gomi
found himself against the cage taking punishment from Diaz, so
he eventually tried to take the fight to the ground, but that
only served to backfire as well.
A
strong jiu-jitsu practitioner, Diaz immediately started searching
for submission and locked up a tight triangle choke. As tight
as it was, Gomi didn’t give up and tried to roll out, but
instead gave up a perfectly timed armbar from Diaz.
It
was only applied for a moment before Gomi was forced to tap or
he would say goodbye to a healthy elbow.
Diaz
gets back on track after a couple of losses at welterweight,
and paid ultimate respect to his opponent after it was done.
“I’m
happy to get the win. He’s dangerous, Takanori Gomi’s
a Pride champion for years he’s one of my favorite fighters,
forever, still is,” Diaz said about his opponent.
The
win gets Diaz back on track in the lightweight division with
one of his strongest victories to date. Unfortunately, Gomi’s
time in the UFC hasn’t gone well for the former Pride legend.
Now 1-3 in the Octagon, it’s unclear if Gomi will get another
shot in the UFC or not.
As
far as what Diaz is gunning for?
“I
want one of the top four guys,” Diaz said after the win.
Source: MMA Weekly
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UFC
135 Results: Travis Browne Dominates Rob Broughton in Decision
Win
Travis
Browne won a unanimous decision at UFC 135: Jones vs. Rampage,
besting Rob Broughton in their main card affair.
The
judges scored the bout 30-27 across the board for Browne, and
he remains undefeated in his mixed martial arts career.
Browne
attempted an overhand right early on, but it missed its mark,
and a short while later, the two ended up in a clinch against
the cage. After separating, Browne utilized legkicks to score
points, and was generally the one coming forward as the aggressor.
Broughton didn’t move very much at all in the first round
and Browne looked light on his feet as he landed a nice left
hand that sent his opponent back a bit. The round ended with
the fight on the ground and Browne in top position, as well as
ahead on points.
The
second round of three started with Browne still controlling the
striking game and landing legkicks. At two minutes in, Browne
came forward with a flurry and hit some knees in the clinch.
Broughton provided little offense towards the end of the round
and Brown scored a single-leg takedown into full mount. Broughton
could do nothing but defend until the end of the round as Browne
worked from top position.
Browne
was still light on his feet in the third round and scored another
single-leg takedown just after the first minute of the final
frame. From there, Brown worked from half guard to advance in
position. Broughton gave up his back and ultimately gave up full
mount, as well. After scrambling to put Browne in his guard,
Broughton worked in a kimura attempt, but it was too little too
late as the fight ended with Browne collecting the win on points.
Despite
dominating the bout, Browne says he wasn’t happy with the
way it ended up.
“I’m
actually disappointed I didn’t finish him off,” Browne
told Joe Rogan in his post fight interview. “He’s a
really tough guy. For some reason I just couldn’t take him
out.”
With
the win in Denver, Browne improves his record to 12-0-1, while
Broughton drops to 15-6-1 (1-1 UFC) in his professional campaign.
Source: MMA Weekly
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UFC
135 Results: Mark Hunt Wins Over an Exhausted Ben Rothwell
At
one time, Mark Hunt was given a chance at the UFC because his
contract carried over from the Pride purchase Zuffa made a few
years ago.
Now
the former K-1 fighter has won his last two fights in a row,
the latest a unanimous decision win over Ben Rothwell at UFC
135.
It
definitely wasn’t pretty as both Hunt and Rothwell were
exhausted by the time the third round started, but the New Zealander
had enough gas tank to out work the former IFL champion.
Rothwell
looked strong early in the first round, taking the fight to the
ground and looking to strike and put Hunt in an uncomfortable
position.
To
his credit, Hunt defended well on his back and came back strong
in the 2nd round absolutely punishing Rothwell on the feet before
snatching a takedown of his own. Once it was on the mat, Hunt
dropped forearms and punches and busted up Rothwell, leaving
him bleeding on the mat.
Rothwell
was barely able to make it to his own corner after the 10 minute
mark of the fight, and in the third round he wasn’t much
better off. Lucky for Rothwell, Mark Hunt was equally exhausted
by the final few minutes of the bout.
After
the fight, a very tired Mark Hunt was a man of few words as he
was catching his breath, but he still paid credit to his opponent
for a good fight.
“He
was tough,” Hunt said about Rothwell.
The
biggest difference in Hunt’s game was his ground game, which
has always been his Achilles heel. Hunt gave credit to American
Top Team coach Ricardo Liborio as well as England’s Wolfslair
team for helping improve his overall fight game.
Hunt
now has two wins in a row, while after a very long layoff for
Rothwell, he struggled mightily in his return to action.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
ADCC
2011: Aftermath of supermatch
While
Braúlio Estima, sporting a red jacket, concedes his last
interview, seated on grey mat number 2 in the middle of the main
arena, a shirtless Ronaldo Souza approaches Gilberto Faria, “Sorry,
Gilberto.”
Jacaré’s
friend and manager responds with a friendly embrace. “After
that fight at Strikeforce, it was a great performance. Worthy
of a bonus from the Sheikh,” said Gil. It was indeed a riveting
supermatch, the one that brought Saturday at ADCC 2011 to a close.
It
was a slim score but Bráulio’s countless attack attempts
made it all worthwhile and lit up the spectators, from mere mortals
to the likes of Rickson Gracie and Rubens Cobrinha. “I dug
some of Bráulio’s attacks, there were some things
in there that can transition well to a calf-crunch,” Cobrinha
would say, in a conversation between black belts.
When
the showdown began, the feeling that overtook Bráulio
was one of pleasure. “When I saw him before me, I couldn’t
believe the moment had finally come. I was simply overjoyed.”
It was the fifth time the two face each other, and Carcará
was dreaming of his first win against him. And it would come,
30 warish minutes later.
Standing,
Carcará would take the initiative with takedown attempts,
to which Jacaré didn’t attempt to answer. On the
ground, Bráulio attacked with a straight footlock with
a sweep already in his sights – a classic submission grappling
maneuver but with the details of a guard-playing whiz, one of
the best in Jiu-Jitsu at present.
Jaca
played on the defense, awaiting his moment to pounce, which came
after the 20-minute regulation time, during the 10-minute overtime.
Jaca launched an attack, pinning the 2009 absolute champion to
the ground. “But was training that with Roger,” said
Carcará later, “I didn’t even get nervous. The
mat was really slippery; I knew I could get up before he stabilized
and scored points.”
With
no point advantage, Jacaré forged ahead. He knew he’d
had his chance. Now it was Bráulio’s turn, and he
didn’t waste it. In 50-50 guard, he attacked Jaca’s
foot, nearly swept, Jacaré turned over and Bráulio
stuck in his hooks, which counts for three points in the ADCC.
“I’d
already put him on his butt twice. When I caught his hip I though,
‘He’s not getting out of this one!’” said
Carcará. Jacaré skillfully untangled himself, despite
painfully injured ribs from his Strikeforce fight on the 10th.
But it was to no avail, the judges gave the new superchampion
his three points.
Once
the bout had ended, Jacaré raised Bráulio’s
hand and recognized his defeat: “I was impossible to get
out of that title fight at Strikeforce 100%, so I fought with
what I had,” said Jacaré. So he packed his things
in his backpack, remembered how he had quickly removed the hooks,
and told the reporter: “But how quickly they awarded those
points, huh?”
A
rematch maybe? “I’d fight him again no problem. I don’t
think he can pass my guard,” said Carcará in closing.
"
Source: Gracie
Magazine
|
UFC
135: Did Koscheck end Hughes’ career with first-round TKO?
It's
been a rough 18 months for the UFC's building blocks. Chuck Liddell
and Randy Couture are now retired after suffering bad knockouts
in their final fights. Now Matt Hughes may have to join them
after falling badly against Josh Koscheck as the victim of a
first-round knockout at UFC 135 in Denver.
Just
Liddell like did in his final fight against Rich Franklin, Hughes
was more than holding his own against the younger Koscheck. But
when older fighters get popped with a good shot, they can't take
it like they used to.
Hughes
landed some good shots and targeted Koscheck's right eye with
some good jabs, but everything turned when he absorbed some nasty
right hands in the final minute of the round. Hughes hit the
floor in the final seconds. Koscheck jumped on top and poured
it on. He landed two big hammer fists with five seconds left
and Hughes went limp.
UFC
135: Did Koscheck end Hughes’ career with first-round TKO?Hughes
wouldn't commit to retiring, but appeared both emotional and
really frustrated during his postfight conversation with UFC
analyst Joe Rogan.
"I'm
not retiring," Hughes said. "I'm going to tell the
UFC to put me up on shelf and we'll see what happens after that."
This
makes it two straight first-round KO or TKO losses for Hughes,
the UFC Hall of Famer and two-time former champ. He lost to B.J.
Penn in just 21 seconds at UFC 123.
Koscheck
(16-5, 14-5 UFC) is one of the bigger villains in the sport,
so Hughes got a huge ovation from the fans at the Pepsi Center.
If this was his last fight, he got a great sendoff in his record
26th appearance in the Octagon.
"I
loved the crowd support when I came out," said Hughes.
Koscheck
talked a lot of trash before the fight claiming that Hughes had
been ducking him for years, but he was nothing but respectful
after the victory.
"Thanks
to Matt Hughes for taking this fight late in his career. He's
a legend. I'm really happy that I had the opportunity to fight
a legend like Matt Hughes," said Koscheck.
Hughes
was the UFC welterweight champ on two separate occasions from
2001-06, piling up a 12-1 record during that period.
This
was a must win for Koscheck, since he had everything to lose.
Koscheck dropped a title shot against Georges St-Pierre, the
current UFC 170-pound champion back in April. He had the orbital
bone around his right eye broken. Koscheck went on the shelf
for three months and had to limit all physical activity. He was
targeting Nov. 19 for his return when he got the call less than
three weeks ago to fill in for Diego Sanchez against Hughes on
this card.
"It
was actually nice being on shelf. I got to focus on other areas.
I'm growing as a person and as a fighter," said Koscheck.
Source: Yahoo Sports
|
The
Turning Point: Boetsch vs. Ring
Having
recently made the move from 205 to 185 pounds, Tim Boetsch placed
a new emphasis on cardio and diet.
In
Boetsch’s mind, his newfound training regimen, coupled with
his aggressive style in the cage, was the perfect recipe to give
Nick Ring his first loss in the UFC. It had already proved successful
in earning him a unanimous decision over Kendall Grove at UFC
130.
For
one round of their UFC 135 scrap, Ring was able to avoid any
significant damage from his opponent. Boetsch stalked the “Ultimate
Fighter 11” alum as he circled the Octagon with little to
show for it. Unable to find his range with punches, the 30-year-old
was also stuffed on both of his takedown attempts in the opening
frame. While it wasn’t a dominant five minutes for Ring,
the Canadian appeared to be at least a half-step ahead of his
opponent in taking the round on two judges’ scorecards.
In
the second round, Boetsch’s approach began to pay dividends.
As the two combatants split from a tie-up, he was able to connect
with a solid right hand that dropped Ring to a knee. Suddenly,
the unbeaten middleweight didn’t seem nearly as elusive
as he had in the early going. For the remainder of the round,
Boetsch was able to keep the fight in close, finishing with a
flurry of punches followed by a kimura attempt as time expired.
Instead
of simply headhunting like he did in the initial stanza, Boetsch
experienced more success when he varied his attack.
“As
soon as I started listening to my corner and throwing combos
and closing distance, I was able to start hitting him,”
Boetsch said in a postfight interview. “And he didn’t
like that. I was able to land some really heavy shots.”
As
he sat on his stool before the final period, Boetsch’s corner
implored him to finish the fight. While the Maine native wasn’t
able to deliver on that count, he did have enough energy to seal
the victory. Ring was visibly exhausted in the third round, and
Boetsch capitalized quickly. He connected with a couple hard
left hooks in the early going and later tripped Ring down to
the canvas, where he landed a few punches from inside his opponent’s
guard.
As
the action stalled, referee Mario Yamasaki called for a stand-up
with about a minute and a half remaining. That set up the move
that would punctuate Boetsch’s second victory at middleweight.
As the two fighters clinched, Boetsch connected with a knee and
then saw an opening.
“He
relaxed a little bit in the clinch there. I think he was trying
to catch a breath, and I was able to get my hips underneath him
and get that nice throw,” Boetsch said.
That
nice throw -- known as the “harai-goshi” -- looked
like something straight out of a judo instructional video and
sent Ring crashing to the canvas. The beautiful execution drew
a roar of approval from the crowd at Denver’s Pepsi Center,
and it also spelled the end of any comeback hopes for Ring. Boetsch
moved to the crucifix position for a moment before finishing
the bout standing and throwing punches down on Ring.
Though
he also appeared to fatigue in the fight’s later stages,
superior stamina and a more patient approach ultimately won the
day for the former wrestler from Lock Haven University. Seeing
his opponent wear down only gave Boetsch more incentive to take
control.
“I
certainly could tell towards the end of the second round, and
certainly the third, that he was feeling the pressure a little
bit, getting a little tired, so it just helped my confidence
in later rounds,” he said.
While
two wins in a weight class does not a contender make, Boetsch
looks as though he has found a home at 185 pounds.
“I’m
loving middleweight so far,” he said.
Source: Sherdog
|
The
first words to echo from Nottingham
After
Bráulio Estima won the supermatch against Ronaldo Jacaré
at the ADCC this Saturday, Sunday in Nottingham began with the
semifinals and finals of the weight divisions and, as the results
began pouring in, the first statements from the victors and the
defeated were made. @graciemag_br and @graciemag were tuned in
to it all while doing coverage on Twitter:
Rafael
Mendes made it to his second-straight title, again ending with
a final against Rubens Cobrinha. “It’s the happiest
day of my life! Won’t you do me the pleasure of one day
putting me on the cover of GRACIE? I want to frame it for my
kid!” joked the black belt who this year also captured the
World Championship.
André
Galvão had been chasing the title for the previous installments
of the event. This time around, the final against Toquinho was
literally a heated affair. “I think Toquinho is doing too
much MMA. He hit me on the back of the head a number of times
and I saw stars,” said Galvão. “I already knew
my Jiu-Jitsu is better than his,” he added, finally able
to celebrate winning gold at the ADCC.
Kyra
Gracie was riding a string of defeats in competition, even to
Michelle Nicolini, her opponent in the final in England. “I
was born competing and I’ll die competing!” she said.
After
winning everything there is to win in 2011 – the Worlds,
Pan, World Pro – Rodolfo Vieira was stopped by Dean Lister,
the winner of the under 99kg division. Rodolfo’s only two
losses came without the gi, the other time to Rafael Lovato.
“You can’t be the best at everything (Gi and No-Gi).
I’ll be back in 2013,” he warned.
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Caio
Terra takes double gold at American Nationals, talks ADCC snub
“You
can’t be the greatest no gi tournament if you don’t
have all the greatest no gi people there…” Caio Terra
on the ADCC
As
has been the case at numerous tournaments over the last couple
of years, it was Caio Terra of Gracie Fighter who took double
gold honors on the day at the American Nationals, winning both
his light featherweight and the absolute Gi Jiu-Jitsu divisions.
The
bigger buzz about Caio, though, was not his double gold win,
it was the question as to why he was at the American Nationals
in the first place. With the ADCC going on over the same weekend
in England, lots of fans and competitors alike expected the usual
big names to be absent from this IBJJF tournament. However, when
Caio showed up in the gymnasium, the crowd came alive asking,
“Why is he here? Why isn’t he in England competing
right now?”
Caio
has won the last three consecutive No-Gi Worlds and a number
of other tournaments and open class titles as well. Additionally,
according to a couple of the public polls taken on the ADCC FB
site, he was voted in as a fan favorite to compete in the 66
kilos group at the event. However, no invitation ever came to
him, and Caio was left a little confused, if not completely disappointed
and disillusioned by the outcome.
“To
be honest, I lost a lot of respect for the ADCC,” Caio says
solemnly, “Not because I wasn’t invited, but because
they changed the weight classes rules but still invited the same
people as before. Fifty percent of them didn’t have a chance
to win. Why didn’t they pick people who had a chance? And
I mean this for all weight classes, not just mine.”
He
goes on to say, “You can’t be the greatest No-Gi tournament
if you don’t have all the greatest No-Gi people there.”
While Caio says in no way is he saying that he would have gone
to England and won the tournament, he does say, “If you
don’t think I had a chance, you must be crazy.”
Caio
says he did not ask to be invited to the ADCC but then again,
he didn’t think he had to ask. His record and involvement
in Jiu-Jitsu speaks for itself. “I’ve done so much
for Jiu-Jitsu,” he says.
His
friend and Gracie Fighter teammate Samir Chantre, who also was
not invited to the prestigious ADCC event, concurs, “It’s
ridiculous,” he says, “It’s not just unfair that
Caio wasn’t invited, it’s absolutely ridiculous.”
So,
Caio finished off the day at the American Nationals doing what
he does best: winning tournaments. He fought two matches in his
division, winning both on points. His final was against Milton
Bastos of Paragon. Caio fought through his matches slowly and
methodically, a drastic difference from his usual fighting style.
Plagued with injuries the last few months, Caio still forged
ahead and registered for the open class, regardless of his current
state of health.
In
the absolute, Caio had a bye in the first match and in his second,
he submitted his opponent, Gustavo Carpio, with an armbar in
less than 30 seconds. In the semis, he was supposed to face his
teammate Osvaldo “Queixinho” Augusto, but Queixinho
let Caio pass so he could go on to the finals.
“Queixinho
teaches with me at my gym in San Jose,” Caio says, “He
felt like I should go on because small guys usually don’t
have the courage to compete at open class. We’ve been training
with bigger guys and want to show that a smaller guy can win
with the proper technique.”
Caio
feels that since he has been competing in absolutes at many of
the tournaments around the U.S., more small Jiu-Jitsu players
have been following suit and jumping into the competition, which
makes him very happy to see.
Caio
faced Vitor Henrique in the absolute final. As Vitor had already
rolled through a number of competitors with apparent ease and
grace, he had an altogether different battle on his hands with
Caio. As the two started the match, Caio began his slow and methodical
pace with Vitor. He swept him and the two rolled to the yellow
line. They went back to the middle of the mats and Vitor didn’t
want to give Caio his grips. It was clear that Caio was annoyed
as he began to shake his head at the situation.
When
they began fighting again, Vitor went for a footlock. In return,
Caio went for Vitor’s foot and was able to tap him out quickly,
within about a minute and a half of the match. As Marcelo Ribeiro,
IBJJF referee and Caio’s instructor through his blue and
purple belts, stood by watching the match, he said, “Caio
is just at a whole different level.”
Caio
wants to thank everyone who came to the American Nationals to
support him, his teammates and friends, especially Queixinho
who let him pass, and his main sponsor, Dom Fight Gear, saying,
“It’s been one more great tournament.”
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Jones’
title defense likely first of many
DENVER
– Jon Jones didn’t run down a mugger before the fight.
And he probably wouldn’t have much to offer in the way of
solving the country’s unemployment problem.
But
after watching him systematically take Quinton “Rampage”
Jackson apart in their light heavyweight title bout before submitting
him in the fourth round of the main event of UFC 135 Saturday,
it looks like that’s about the only task Jones isn’t
up to.
The
24-year-old phenom outclassed an in-shape, focused and determined
Jackson, making him look, as he does to most opponents, like
a second-tier fighter as he made the first title defense of what
is shaping up to be a long title run.
A
scene fight fans should get used to: Jon Jones' hand being raised
after a successful UFC title defense.
Jones
submitted Jackson with a rear-naked choke at 1:14 of the fourth
round, even further tightening his grip on the top spot in one
of the UFC’s deepest divisions.
“I
thought he was all hype, but that’s wrong,” Jackson
said. “He’s a tough, talented dude.”
Every
fight, it seems, Jones finds a new way to inflict damage upon
his opponent. On Saturday, he used his kicks like a jab, keeping
his opponent at bay and allowing him to avoid Jackson’s
heavy hands.
He
went to one of his stalwart moves, the spinning elbow, to open
a cut over Jackson’s right eye in the third round. And when
Jackson turned his head away from Jones to avoid getting elbowed
in the face again when the fighters were grappling near the cage
in the fourth, Jones quickly took advantage and went for the
fight-ending choke.
He
slithered into position like a python and wrapped his long arms
around Jackson’s neck, forcing the former champion to tap.
“That’s
the first time I lost when I was in my best shape,” Jackson
said in tribute.
Jones
was ebullient in March after he stopped Mauricio “Shogun”
Rua to win the belt, but he had a very different reaction at
the post-fight news conference Saturday. He was subdued and quiet
and gave short answers, preferring to laugh at Jackson’s
many quips.
He’d
been through a lot in the last six months, including accusations
of planting a spy in Jackson’s camp. The trash talk with
Jackson clearly took a toll on his psyche and he didn’t
have it in him to put on a show at the news conference.
Fortunately,
he put on quite a show in the cage, much to the delight of the
crowd of 16,344 at the Pepsi Center. Before the fight, he said
he would submit Jackson and then he backed up his words with
deeds.
“It
was great,” Jones said of pulling off the submission he’d
predicted. “It was really fun. You’ve got to believe
you can do things before you actually do them. I just had to
believe. I try to be a testament to people, athletes and kids
– that you have to set your mind on a goal and that’s
the only way you’ll achieve them.”
There
aren’t many fighters in the world who can set their mind
on a goal and pull them off the way that Jones can do. He’ll
fight his one-time friend and mentor, former champion “Sugar”
Rashad Evans, sometime next year.
Jackson
suggested that Evans is the only man with the ability to possibly
defeat Jones, though he didn’t sound too convinced.
“I
don’t see anybody who can beat Jones, honestly,” Jackson
said. “Rashad says he has his number. That’s what he
says, but I don’t know.”
Evans
and Jones had a nasty falling out earlier this year when the
former was supposed to fight Rua for the title at UFC 128 before
injuring a knee and withdrawing. The UFC offered the fight to
Jones, who said he got Evans’ blessing before taking the
fight.
Evans,
though, wasn’t thrilled and a feud began. When Jackson noted
that Evans had said he has Jones’ number, it lit a spark
in Jones.
“I
will say this about Rashad,” Jones said in a clipped voice.
“He does not have my number. He’s not even close to
having my number. Me and Rashad sparred a few times and every
time we sparred, I know what could have happened. He talks about
one day at practice where he held me down. He lives that day
in his head every day. So, we’ll see.”
Based
on the way Jones is going, just holding him down in practice
should be enough to get Evans some kind of award. Nobody has
been able to come close to doing anything against Jones, so Evans
has accomplished a major feat in doing that.
Mixed
martial arts is the type of spot where it is very difficult to
stay on top for long, because there are so many ways to lose
and one small mistake frequently winds up costing a fighter a
defeat.
Jones,
though, is giving every indication that he’s going to be
around for a while.
“The
great thing for Jon Jones about taking this fight right now is
how seriously Rampage took this fight,” UFC president Dana
White said. “He’s been up here in Denver for a long
time and you saw him tonight when he got into the Octagon. He
was in great shape. His face was lean. He had abs and he came
to win this fight. [Jones] beat the best Rampage. Rampage only
cut six pounds for this fight. He cut six pounds the day of the
weigh-in, which is incredible. That goes to show you how seriously
he took this fight.
“Let
me tell you what: Jon Jones is the man.”
That
he is. Middleweight champion Anderson Silva has held his belt
for five years. If anyone is going to match or top that mark
and become a dynasty in the UFC, it very well may be Jon “Bones”
Jones.
Source: Yahoo Sports
|
Who’s
next after Velasquez-Dos Santos?
LOS
ANGELES – When the UFC aired its first live basic cable
television card in 2005, it delivered one of the most memorable
battles in mixed martial arts history. Forrest Griffin’s
win over Stephan Bonnar to win “The Ultimate Fighter 1”
title in a back-and-forth struggle helped break the company through
to the masses and lifted it to a higher-profile than anyone dared
dream.
That’s
one way to make a first impression.
On
the other hand, there was the MMA’s prime-time network debut
in 2008. Kimbo Slice fought a wretched bout against professional
tomato can James Thompson, dragging into the third round before
Thompson’s ear exploded in a grotesque manner, live on CBS.
While the event generated a big rating and quite a buzz, it also
hastened promotional company Elite XC’s demise a few short
months and tens of millions of dollars later.
Which
leads us to the next big step in MMA’s television evolution.
The UFC held a press conference Tuesday at Hollywood’s W
Hotel to push ticket sales for the Cain Velasquez-Junior Dos
Santos heavyweight title fight at Anaheim’s Honda Center
on Nov. 12, which is the first live UFC network broadcast on
Fox, kicking off a seven-year deal which calls for four live
events per year.
Will
champion Velasquez, who has the potential to become the Latino
superstar the UFC has always wanted but never quite found, and
Dos Santos, the hardest puncher in the heavyweight division,
put on a show that makes new fans want to tune in for more? Or
will they put in, if not a Kimbo-Thompson clunker, something
that doesn’t push the company to the next level?
“You
can’t guarantee another Griffin-Bonnar,” said UFC president
Dana White. “All you can do is put together the most exciting
fight possible. With Cain and Junior, whether the fight goes
30 minutes or 30 seconds, you’ve got two guys who are known
for delivering exciting fights.”
The
plain-spoken combatants, thus far, claim there’s nothing
out of the ordinary about their upcoming tussle.
“It’s
a big fight, but I’m not going to treat it any differently
than any other fight,” said Velasquez (9-0). “Junior
is an impressive fighter, but I’m just going to go out and
do it like I always do.”
“It’s
an honor to be on the first Fox card, I’m glad to get the
opportunity,” said Dos Santos (13-1). “But I don’t
think that adds any more pressure to the fight.”
Early
signs indicate Fox is going to position the UFC for success on
the network: With two months left before Velasquez-Dos Santos,
Fox has already begun airing promo spots for the fight during
NFL and MLB broadcasts, and Fox Sports president Eric Shanks
reported Tuesday that the ad inventory for the Nov. 12 event
has already sold out.
“I’ll
tell you what, we can do all the promotion in the world, we can
put them in the right position, and all that,” said White.
“You can put all the bells and whistles on it. But every
time out, when the cage door is shut, it’s up to the fighters
to deliver. We’ve been doing this for 10 years now and we
have a track record because these guys deliver.”
Velasquez
and Dos Santos are clearly Nos. 1 and 2 at 265 pounds right now,
but the heavyweight division constantly evolves, and there is
no lack of potential challengers lying in wait. Who is waiting
in line for a crack at the UFC gold and a potential future spot
on network television? Here’s a look at the top contenders:
Brock
Lesnar
Credentials: Former UFC champion
Record: 5-2
Streak: Lost past 1
Next fight: vs. Alistair Overeem, Dec. 30
The
Edge Element Questions remain as to whether Lesnar will ever
be able to fully recover from his issues with diverticulitis.
Since first falling ill two years ago, he’s had to postpone
fights twice and he lost the title to Velasquez in one-side fashion
last October. Still, Lesnar remains one of MMA’s elite drawing
cards, and White confirmed Tuesday that the winner of the Lesnar-Overeem
bout will get the next heavyweight title shot, barring any sort
of injury or similar holdups.
Alistair
Overeem
Weight class: Former Dream and Strikeforce champion
Record: 35-11 (1 no contest)
Streak: Won past 7
Next fight: vs. Lesnar, Dec. 30
The
Edge Element Many a fighter has run up a big win streak overseas
only to find the going just a bit tougher when they got to North
America. The jury is still out on Overeem, who didn’t exactly
set the world ablaze in his June win over Fabricio Werdum. The
Lesnar fight will be his sink-or-swim UFC moment: Overeem is
a world-class kickboxer, and Lesnar’s standup defense is
his most glaring weakness. If Overeem can’t get past Lesnar,
how can he compete against Velasquez or Dos Santos?
Josh
Barnett
Credentials: Former UFC champion
Record: 31-5
Streak: Won past 8
Next fight: vs. Daniel Cormier, date TBD
The
Edge Element Barnett will meet Cormier in the finals of the interminable
Strikeforce Grand Prix tournament, the winner of which will end
up on the short list of fighters in line for a UFC title shot.
Barnett comes with baggage: He’s flunked enough steroid
tests (three) to be banned from most international sporting competitions,
and his corny pro-wrestling schtick during interviews comes off
more like cable-access material than network prime time. But
there’s no denying Barnett’s world-class wrestling
and submission game, which has kept him in the picture nearly
a decade after stunning the MMA world with his UFC title victory
over Randy Couture.
Daniel
Cormier
Credentials: Former Olympic wrestler
Record: 9-0
Streak: Won past 9
Next fight: vs. Barnett, date TBD
The
Edge Element On paper, it might seem a bit too soon to include
Cormier on the list. But he’s passed every test thrown his
way, none bigger than his upset win over Antonio Silva in the
Strikeforce semis. Unfortunately, he also broke his hand knocking
Silva out, so the bout, like said hand, is currently on ice.
Shane
Carwin
Credentials: Former interim UFC champion
Record: 12-2
Streak: Lost past 2
Next fight: None scheduled
The
Edge ElementAt the moment, this might seem a longshot. But let’s
not write off “The Monster” just yet. Carwin was within
moments of finishing Lesnar and taking the UFC belt in the summer
of 2010. And while he decisively lost his bout against Dos Santos
in June, Carwin took the bout against a red-hot opponent on short
notice after Dos Santos’ bout with Lesnar was dropped. Carwin
may be on the outside looking in at the moment, but a couple
solid victories will put him right back in the mix.
Source: Yahoo Sports |
UFC
135 Results: Assuncao, Mizugaki and Te Huna Win on Facebook Prelims
Junior
Assuncao earned his return to the UFC on Saturday night, while
Takeya Mizugaki and James Te Huna looked impressive with knockouts
for the Facebook prelims.
Junior
Assuncao has been working tirelessly for the last four years
to earn his way back to the UFC, and at UFC 135 he proved he
belonged back in the big show.
While
the early going was very slow from both Assuncao and his opponent
Eddie Yagin, the Brazilian got the best of the first ten minutes
with good takedowns and smart striking on the feet.
Finally
in the third round, Assuncao opened up his attack and after fending
off a guillotine attempt from Yagin, he simply broke his opponent
for the final few minutes. Once he was on top, Assuncao absolutely
unloaded on Yagin, blasting him in the face with punches. Yagin
showed good toughness to stay in there and not get put away,
but Assuncao was clearly the dominant fighter.
It
was a slow start for Assuncao, but he insists it wasn’t
the returning to UFC jitters, he just had a very specific plan
to employ and he was able to do that.
“I
wasn’t nervous at all. I’m pretty much climatized to
the UFC scenario, it wasn’t a big thing at all. I tried
to get into his mind last night at the weigh-ins, since I knew
he was a newcomer, I figured he would come a little nervous and
I would gas him out faster, that was part of my strategy,”
Assuncao commented.
“He’s
15-4 with several knockouts, I knew of his knockout power and
I’m a jiu-jitsu guy at the end of the day, I wasn’t
going to get hit in the face.”
Always
known for exciting fights, Takeya Mizugaki decided to finish
Cole Escovedo and leave the ‘Fight of the Night’ trophy
up for grabs.
The
first round between Mizugaki and Escovedo was very exciting however
as both fighters were able to gain the upper hand at different
moments. Mizugaki was more aggressive and landed the more accurate
strikes, but Escovedo fired back and caught the Japanese fighter
with a nasty inside elbow when they were clinched against the
cage.
In
the second session, Mizugaki took over with highly effective
striking, picking and choosing his shots to punish Escovedo.
The former WEC champion tried to get the Thai clinch, but Mizugaki
countered with huge shots coming over the top.
“I
knew Cole was very good fighting off of the back so my plan was
to hurt him a little bit with the low kicks and land the punches,”
Mizugaki said about his strategy.
“I
know he’s good at pulling guard so I was very cautious about
that. I was very cautious about guard.”
Mizugaki
continued the assault and eventually Escovedor wilted under the
pressure, dropping to the mat forcing the referee to swoop in
for the stoppage. The win may land Mizugaki a slot in his home
country on the upcoming UFC Japan show in Feb 2012.
James
Te Huna made short work of Ricardo Romero to kick off the UFC
135 prelims, ending the fight in less than a minute by knockout.
It
was obvious for the opening bell that Romero wanted nothing to
do with Te Huna on the feet, but the only problem was he couldn’t
get the fight to the ground. Te Huna tagged Romero early and
stunned him before the AMA Fight Club member shot in again, desperate
to get the fight to the mat.
Romero’s
plan backfired when he got stuck under Te Huna’s sprawl
and the Australian unloaded a few huge punches, as his opponent
went limp. Te Huna wins by knockout, and Romero may have seen
his last days in the Octagon after two devastating knockout losses
in a row.
“I
wasn’t nervous at all. I’m pretty much climatized to
the UFC scenario, it wasn’t a big thing at all. I tried
to get into his mind last night at the weigh-ins, since I knew
he was a newcomer, I figured he would come a little nervous and
I would gas him out faster, that was part of my strategy.”
“He’s
15-4 with several knockouts, I knew of his knockout power and
I’m a jiu-jitsu guy at the end of the day, I wasn’t
going to get hit in the face.”
Source: MMA Weekly |
UFC
135 Results: Tim Boetsch and Tony Ferguson Collect Wins on Spike
TV Prelims
Spike
TV broadcasted the top two prelims on the UFC 135 card in Denver,
and Tim Boetsch and Tony Ferguson were the victors.
While
Boetsch fought an impressive three round affair, Ferguson forced
a stoppage in one round of action.
Tony
Ferguson vs. Aaron Riley
Ferguson
and Riley started out intense and tried to land power shots early
in the fight. Both fighters traded off blows with Ferguson landing
punches and Riley landing several kicks. The TUF 13 winner landed
an uppercut that shook Riley and Ferguson pushed forward to try
and finish. Riley recovered a bit, but Ferguson remained the
aggressor and bloodied up his foe’s mouth. The round ended
with Riley’s mouth full of blood.
During
the break between rounds, Riley advised his corner that his jaw
was broken and the referee stopped the bout, giving Ferguson
the win by technical knockout.
Though
he won by TKO, Ferguson wishes he could have done a little bit
more work for the Denver crowd.
“I
wish I could given the crowd a better show,” Ferguson said
during his post fight interview with Joe Rogan. “I wish
it went a little bit further.”
Nick
Ring vs. Tim Boetsch
Both
these middleweights started out slow early on. Boetsch came forward
and controlled the fight prior to attempting a front kick that
was caught by Ring. Boetsch fell back and Ring pursued, then
held a front headlock for nearly a minute before returning to
the feet. Neither fighter landed a clean shot at this point,
and Ring spent most of the time backpedaling towards the final
minute of the round. Boetsch landed a good uppercut in the final
20 seconds, and the opening frame ended with him edging Ring.
The
second round had Boetsch as the aggressor, again, and Ring continued
to move back. Boetsch landed a clean right hand that dropped
his opponent, but the former TUF 11 cast member went right back
to his feet and in the clinch. Later, Boetsch pulled a guillotine
choke, but couldn’t finish, and Ring started to work from
guard. They returned to the feet and Boetsch landed some punches
while there. Boetsch then executed a pretty trip takedown and
went for a kimura, but the round ended just as he sunk it in.
The
aggressor role continued to be played by Boetsch in the third
round. He looked to finish with a power shot, but couldn’t
find it early. Halfway through the final round, Boetsch executed
another trip takedown and ended up in Ring’s guard. Referee
Mario Yamasaki stood the fighters up for inaction, but it didn’t
stay there long because Boetsch did a beautiful hip toss and
worked from top position for the remainder of the fight.
The
judges scored the bout 29-28, 29-28, and 30-27 for Boetsch, as
he tripped and tossed Ring on his way to a win.
Boetsch
is now 2-0 since dropping down to 185-pounds and shared his affection
for his new weight class during his post fight interview with
Joe Rogan in saying, “I’m loving middleweight so far.”
Source: MMA Weekly |
ADCC
2011: André Galvão wins weight and absolute, Sperry
outpoints Renzo
After
the new ADCC champions of the weight divisions were established
this Sunday, it was time for the absolute and the moment everyone
had been waiting for: the superfight between Zé Mario
Sperry and Renzo Gracie.
The
veterans match was no walk in the park, going to two overtimes,
during which Zé landed a takedown. Nearly out of the match
area, Gracie confirmed the point to the judges table: 2-0. Renzo
had to hurry to turn the score around but suffered another three
points from a guard pass for his efforts. The score stood, and
Zé Mario is the champion.
“Renzo
is smaller than me, so I thought I’d pass his guard during
regulation time. But I enjoyed the training; I’m going to
keep up this pace in the academy,” said Zé Mario.
Renzo
too promises to keep up his training, now at 44 years of age:
“The mat was so slippery that it was like being in a pool.
This match was a warm-up for my MMA debut, soon!”
Galvão
is the grand champion of ADCC 2011. Photo: Dan Rod.
Next
came the absolute final, and, in getting there, André
Galvão and Pablo Popovitch had their work cut out for
them. Following the opening stage, the quarterfinals were made
up of Victor Estima vs. Pablo Popovitch, Gunnar Nelson vs. Xande
Ribeiro, Sérgio Moraes vs. André Galvão,
and Murilo Santana vs. Vinicius “Pezão” Magalhães.
Galvão
was in firm contention to be champion both at weight and open
weight, eliminating Sergio Moraes on points, while Pablo Popovitch
outpointed Victor Estima, Xande made it past Gunnar Nelson, and
Murilo Santana defeated by decision Vinny Magalhães, another
who could have become two-divisional champ.
The
semifinals were tough. Pablo Popovitch won a decision over Xande
Ribeiro and Galvão beat Murilo on penalty points. Both
finalists came from the under-88kg division – proof of how
it is truly one of the most stacked divisions.
“We
had seven matches but I still have fuel iin my tank!” said
Galvão. Pablo approached Galvão, and the two slapped
hands. The two avoided speaking to each other before the final
battle, though. Earlier they had faced off at weight, and Galvão
won by one takedown.
Prior
to the decider, Xande Ribeiro beat Murilo Santana by 2 to 0,
earning the absolute bronze medal. All that was left was the
gold-medal deciding match. In it, Galvão was quick on
the attack, swiftly catching Pablo Popovitch’s foot and
cementing his place as the big name of ADCC 2011.
“I
took a chance going for the footlock while points weren’t
yet being counted, and it worked. I just stuck it in my head
that I was going to win,” he said.
So
now there’s a plumb matchup for him in the works for ADCC
2013: Bráulio Estima in the supermatch.
Check
out further details at the GRACIEMAG at the ADCC Blog.
ADCC
2011 champions:
Men
66kg:
Rafael Mendes
77kg: Marcelinho Garcia
88kg: André Galvão
99kg: Dean Lister
+99kg: Vinny Pezão
Absoluto: André Galvão
Women
-60kg:
Kyra Gracie
+60kg: Gabi Garcia
Supermatch
Bráulio
Estima defeated Ronaldo Jacaré
Supermatch
Zá
Mário defeated Renzo Gracie
Source: Gracie Magazine
|
Andre
Galvao wins weight and absolute at ADCC 2011
Andre
Galvao is the highlight of ADCC 2011, having conquered the golden
medal on weight and open class disputes, after defeating Rousimar
Palhares and Pablo Popovitch, respectively, on the finals.
First
round
Among
the champions of the weight divisions, only Vinny Pezao, champion
of the heaviest division of the tournament after overcoming Fabricio
Werdum, and Andre Galvao, who defeated Rousimar Palhares, will
make it a try on the open class dispute. On the quarterfinals,
Vinny meets Murilo Santana, who submitted Marko Hellen, and Galvao
duels with Sergio Moraes, who submitted the tough Braga Neto.
Completing the vacancies of the quarterfinals of the absolute
dispute of ADCC 2011, Xande Ribeiro fights Gunnar Nelson and
Victor Estima, local sweetheart, battles with Pablo Popovitch.
Quarterfinals
Pablo
Popovitch and Victor Estima, athletes who didn’t get good
results on their weight divisions and confronted each other on
the quarterfinals of the open class dispute, and Popovitch frustrated
the local fans in Nottingham, where Victor lives, regarding him
moving forwards on the competition. Pablo will fight Xande Ribeiro
on the semifinals, after the two-time world champion of Jiu-Jitsu
eliminate Gunnar Nelson of the tournament. On the other side
of the key, Murilo Santana surprised as be beat down Vinny Pezao,
champion on the -99kg division, on the decision of the judges.
He’ll fight Andre Galvao, who defeated Sergio Moraes by
points, after having him on his back.
Semifinals
After
a very tough bout, Andre Galvao overcame Murilo Santana by points,
after Murilo being punished twice, and remains alive on the fight
for his second title in Nottingham. His opponent on the finale
will be Pablo Popovitch, who defeated Xande Ribeiro on the decision
of the judges, after a bout with no points scored after an even
bout. The duel will be a rematch of the semifinals of the -88kg,
won by Galvao.
Final
On
a perfect fight, Andre Galvao submitted Pablo Popovitch on his
feet to become weight and absolute champion of ADCC 2011. In
2013, he’ll fight Braulio Estima on the super fight, a rematch
after the loss in ADCC 2009, when he was submitted. Another motivation
for him will be revenging his friend Ronaldo Jacare, who was
defeated by Braulio this year on the other super fight of the
event.
“I’ve
learned a lot from Rafael Mendes’ attacks on my feet and
also with my students, and when Pablo pulled me to the guard
I saw his foot right next to me, and I saw he was also attacking
my feet, so I took my chance”, analyzes Galvao.
After
seeing Pablo going through a tough bout with Xande, Galvao decided
to speed things up on the finale. “He was tired, I knew
it, so I gave my best on the beginning of the fight to submit
him on the 10 firsts minutes, and I did it”, celebrates.
“In
2013 I’ll be back to fight Braulio”, he added.
Bronze
medal dispute: Xande Ribeiro defeated Murilo Santana by 2x0
Source: Tatame
|
Mario
Sperry defeats Renzo on points at ADCC super fight
To
the old fans of the sport, or the young people who had never
had the chance to see the stars in action, ADCC scheduled a super
fight between the legends Renzo Gracie and Ze Mario Sperry, with
a reward of $50 thousand to the winner.
Minutes
before Andre Galvao and Pablo Popovitch duel on the open class
finale, the athletes stepped on the mats in Nottingham, this
Sunday, and the fans went crazy.
Much
taller and stronger, Ze Mario also had much more white hairs
on his head facing a smiley Renzo. The veterans, both with 44
years, showed much energy on the super fight.
Sperry
was offensive during the entire fight, trying to dictate its
rhythm. When the bout went to the floor, he tried to reach for
the half guard, using his weight to gain positions, but Gracie
escaped from them quickly and stood up.
Mario
caught Renzo on his back, but Gracie is used to train with UFC
champions like Georges St. Pierre and Frankie Edgar, and again
he escaped.
The
score, tied on 0x0, forced the extra time. Renzo tried to take
the fight to the ground, but Sperry counterattacked and opened
2 points on his advantage. Ze Mario broke into his guard and
scored 5x0, winning the super fight.
“Renzo
surprised me. I studied his game and he changed some things,
so I had to change my strategy during the fight. I played it
carefully, I didn’t want to risk much”, tells Sperry,
after the fight. “Renzo’s name talks for itself, he’s
a great athlete and a great guy. It’s normal people root
for him, but I’m here to and I like overcoming my own obstacles”.
Upset
about the slippery mat, Renzo commented on the duel. “The
mat was really slippery, it seems like if we were fighting in
a pool, and when there’s a big weight gap, it gets complicated.
When I tried to move, I slipped and lost it”, tells Gracie.
“He was sweat like a pig, but it was fun (laughs)”.
Excited,
Renzo announced he hopes to fight MMA again soon. “It was
just a warm-up”, guarantees. “I could do this the whole
night”.
Source: Tatame
|
ADCC
knows its champions after amazing bouts
With
great botus, beautiful submissions and a pinch of rivalry. With
this recipe for success, ADCC crowned its champions in Nottingham,
England. Check below who shone in each weight division, from
the lightest to the heaviest.
MALE:
-
66kg: Rafael beats up Charles once again in ADCC
Semifinals
Rafael
Mendes VS. Robson Moura
Rubens
“Cobrinha” Charles VS. Jeff Glover
Youngest
champion in all ADCC history, Rafael Mendes started attacking
Robson Moura’s feet, and his opponent then tried to counterattack.
Rafael tried to go for his neck, but Moura was alert to defend
it and, moments later, attack his knee again. Wanting to score
a point, Rafael broke into Robson’s guard and guaranteed
himself on the finale, on the journey to his second title in
ADCC. For a rematch of 2009 finals, Rubens Charles overcame Jeff
Glover by points.
Finals:
Rafael Mendes VS. Rubens “Cobrinha” Charles
Rafael
and Rubens met again after the 2009 finals, and again it was
tight. Curiously, both athlete hesitated to take the fight to
the floor at first, but, when it finally went to the ground,
the athletes switched shifts of feet and knee attacks. At the
end of the regular time, Rafael Mendes got the win and is now
two-time ADCC champion, thanks to a punishment given to Rubens.
“It’s
one of the happiest moments of my life. It’s my second ADCC
and my second gold medal”, celebrates Mendes, criticizing
Cobrinha. “I felt he wasn’t doing the fair play, using
his head against mine, but I trained my mind for these kinds
of situations”.
Glad
about the gold, Mendes highlights the hard trainings with his
brother, Guilherme Mendes, and names like Claudio Calasans, Bruno
Frazzato and Kyra Gracie, among others. “I’m more experienced
and it makes much difference. The trainings in Brazil were good…
When you compete many times, you keep evolving. When you compete
once a year, you lose the right timing and lack motivation”.
Bronze
medal: Jeff Glover submitted Robson Moura with a guillotine choke
-
77kg: Marcelo finishes Leo and earns his fourth title in ADCC
Semifinals
Marcelo
Garcia VS. Kron Gracie
Leo
Vieira VS. Cláudio Calasans
One
of the bouts the fans were craving to see on the semifinals.
Marcelo Garcia rematched Kron Gracie after an outstanding battle
in ADCC 2009. Winner of the previous edition of the event, Marcelo
managed to break into Gracie’s guard right on the beginning,
but Kron defended it. Later Kron fit a tight guillotine choke
on Marcelo’s neck, but Garcia escaped from it and got the
win by points. On the other bout of the semifinals, Claudio Calasans
almost got Leo Vieira on his back, but he escaped, broke into
Calasans guard and had him on his back. When he was going for
the submission, the time was over. With the points scored on
the lasts seconds, Leo guarantees himself on the finals against
Marcelo.
Finals:
Marcelo Garcia VS. Leo Vieira
Fast
and efficient, Marcelo Garcia usually submits all his opponents,
finishing a perfect campaign with a triangle choke over Leo Garcia,
after escaping from a tight guillotine choke. “I didn’t
even consider tapping out… I do it at the gym, but not here.
I’ll go to sleep if I have to”, guarantees Marcelo,
four-time ADCC champion. “I try to do my best”, said
the humble guy.
Bronze
medal dispute: Kron Gracie submitted Claudio Calasans on the
second extra time, with a guillotine choke.
-
88kg: Galvao defend his feet and defeats Palhares by 8x3
Semifinals
Rousimar
“Toquinho” Palhares VS. Rafael Lovato
Andre
Galvao VS. Pablo Popovitch
Alert
to the dangerous attacks of Rousimar Palhares when he’s
on his feet, the American Rafael Lovato pulled him into his guard
on the beginning of the fight, making it harder for the Brazilian.
Minutes later, Toquinho found a loop and attacked him his feet,
submitting for the third time in ADCC and getting a vacancy on
the finals. His opponent there will be Andre Galvao, who beat
up Pablo Popovitch on a very tactic bout.
Finals:
Rousimar “Toquinho” Palhares VS. Andre Galvao
Rousimar
Palhares debuted in ADCC in great style, but was then stopped
by the technical Jiu-Jitsu of Andre Galvao. Toquinho was really
explosive at first, almost catching Galvao’s feet twice,
but the BJJ black belt was alert and escaped from it quickly.
From then on, Andre started dominating the bout and trying to
fit a rear naked choke. At the end, Andre got the win by 8x3.
“He’s
a lot dangerous, but I knew my Jiu-Jitsu would overcome his,
once he’s fighting MMA on daily basis and it’s hard
to keep your game on a high level like this”, said the champion,
commenting on Rousimar’s foot-lock attempts. “He caught
me a few times, but it wasn’t a surprise to me. I was expecting
that”. As for Toquinho’s ‘slaps’, Andre jokes.
“I guess he’s fighting to much MMA, he made me dizzy
a few times (laughs)”.
Bronze
medal dispute: Pablo Popovitch defeated Rafael Lovato, who fought
with an injured feet, mark of the loss to Rousimar
-
99kg: Dean Lister submits Joao Assis and earns the golden medal
Semifinals
Xande
Ribeiro VS. Joao Assis
Dean
Lister VS. Rodolfo Vieira
Xande
Ribeiro and Joao Assis confronted each other in the past in no
gi competitions (Joao got the win via submission), and they rematched
in ADCC semifinals. After a few minutes of a tight fight, Xande
attacked with an armbar, but Joao escaped seconds before the
beginning of the extra time. Rodolfo Vieira started aggressive,
but Dean Lister counterattacked well and tied things up, almost
grabbing his back. Seconds later, Dean submitted Rodolfo on his
knee.
Finals:
Joao Assis VS. Dean Lister
On
a fantastic bout, Dean Lister submitted Joao Assis while they
stood up and guarantee the only not Brazilian title. “I
went to MMA, but ADCC feels like home”, celebrates Dean,
guaranteeing he’ll be back in ADCC in 2013. “I’m
not retiring (from Grappling tournaments)”.
Bronze
medal dispute: Xande Ribeiro defeated Antonio Peinado on the
decision of the judges
+
99kg: Pezao escapes from Werdum and conquests title
Semifinals
Fabricio
Werdum VS. Roberto Cyborg
Vinicius
Pezao VS. Gerardi Rinaldi
Two-time
champion of ADCC, Fabricio Werdum stayed for a long time on the
beginning of his bout with Roberto Cyborg trying to catch his
opponent and vice-versa with both athletes on their feet. When
the fight finally went to the floor, Werdum tried to work on
the half guard. With the end of the regular time, Werdum remains
alive on the dispute and will try to win his third title. One
of the big sensations of ADCC 2009, Vinny Pezao had to go to
the extra time to defeat the wrestler Gerardi Rinaldi. Vinny
got him on his back, but Rinaldi didn’t leave him any space
to fit a submission. At the end, Pezao moves forwards on a win
by points.
Finals:
Fabricio Werdum VS. Vinny Pezao
On
a fantastic bout, Vinny Pezao earned the title of ADCC and prevented
Werdum to win for the third time the championship. When it was
really on, Vinny fit an omoplata and forced Fabricio to defend
himself. Werdum counterattacked with an armbar, making it hard
on Pezao, who only escaped from it over a minute later. By points,
Vinny got the big win of the day.
Bronze
medal dispute: Roberto Cyborg submitted Gerardi Rinaldi on the
feet
FEMALE:
-
60kg: Kyra submits Nicolini and earn her third title
Kyra
Gracie pulled for the guard, where she stayed for a few minutes
before going for the omoplata, but the Japanese Takayo Hashi
did a good job defending herself. Kyra tried the triangle and
went for the omoplata again, but the Japanese again defender
herself, conceding Kyra three points for the sweep. Via points,
Gracie moves forward. Michelle Nicoline pulled for the guard
and attacked her opponent while they were standing up, but Luanna
Alzuguir defended it successfully. Michelle attempted to fit
a triangle and hold it tight for longer over two minutes. Then
Michelle decided to let it go and go for the omoplata, but Luanna
escaped again. Alzuguir attacked Michelle’s feet, who counterattacked
on her knee, turning it over and grabbing her back, scoring some
points, but the draw came again later when Nicolini was punished.
On the decision of the judges, Michelle won.
Finals:
Kyra Gracie X Michelle Nicolini
Nicolini
showed since the beginning that her game plan was to work on
the guard, but Kyra wasn’t willing to play that game, even
after having being defeated on World finals this year on that
same way. Quick on the trigger, Michelle fit an ambar twice,
forcing Kyra to sweat to escape from the positions. On a spectacular
turnover, Kyra submitted with an omoplata and earns another title
in ADCC. “It was really tight, she’s a great athlete
and deserved to fight the finale. We fought at World and I got
my revenge now”, celebrates Gracie, who now has three titles
on the event. “I want to be a model for the new girls on
the sport. That’s what I’ve always done and that’s
what I’ll die doing”.
Bronze
medal dispute: Luanna Alzuguir submitted Takayo Hashi on the
knee
+
60kg: Gabi beats up Hannette in a 30-minute bout
Debutant
in ADCC, Gabi Garcia was one of the favorites coming in the tournament
for her recent results in Jiu-Jitsu, and she made the bets worth
it. Quickly, the heavyweight fighter of Alliance attacked with
a guillotine choke, but the triumph came with a key-lock, after
breaking her opponent’s guard. Current ADCC champion, Hannette
Staack ran through Ida Hansson. After getting the mount and almost
grabbing her back, the BJJ black belt went for her knee and submitted
her on the feet.
Finals:
Gabi Garcia VS. Hannette Staack
Taking
the advantage on the size, Gabi smashed Hannette for over 20
minutes on the half guard. Hannette tried to fit a leg-lock in
some opportunities, but Gabi didn’t leave her any space
to apply it. At the end of the extra time, after 30 minutes of
fight, Gabi earns the title and there were tears. “This
title is really important to me… I’ve just lost an
adopted brother, last Saturday, and independently of the win
it was a personal achievement”, says Gabi, touched. “Hannette
is a great idol of the sport”.
Bronze
medal dispute: Ida Hansson defeats Penny Thomas
Source: Tatame |
Braulio
says he “proved talking doesn’t win competitions”
with win over Jacare at ADCC 2011
Braulio
Estima was poked by Ronaldo Jacare before ADCC, being forced
to remind he had never defeated the BJJ black belt on mats’
bouts, but he didn’t get intimidated by that. Fighting at
his ‘backyard’, on the English city of Nottingham,
Braulio took care of business and won by points. “It proved
talking doesn’t win competitions”, shoot Braulio, who
talked to TATAME about his performance in ADCC, also commenting
on his game plan for fighting Ronaldo and a lot more.
How
was it like for you?
It
was wonderful. It was a battle, it was what I hoped for. I trained
for it. He trained hard too, but I could tell he tired up, so
I tried to move forwards since the beginning, and even before
scoring a point I tried to take him down twice. He defended himself
at all times, respected me a lot, which was something I hoped
he would do, that he wouldn’t attack me so he wouldn’t
get much tired, he wouldn’t try to go for it, because when
I got the chance to fight him out, I felt on top of him, on his
back, every time. I attacked him with sweeps and he did a good
job defending himself. If you watch the fight, you’ll see
I swept him many times and he didn’t bring me any danger
of sweeps and breaking into my guard. The only time he tried
to do so, I felt on top of him.
How
do you evaluate your performance?
I’m
really glad about my performance, I’d like to thank all
my sponsors, Keiko, Mazaru, my coaches, my training partner,
Pablo, my brother Victor, Roger, Lagarto… Everybody who
helped me on my trainings, my students…. I’m really
happy with my performance. I brought much strength, which was
what I had planned for, I trained Wrestling. Now I’ll celebrate,
enjoy my family. I did four fights intensively after my surgery,
and I’m really glad to know that, after everything that
happened to me in my surgery, my accident, which was pretty serious,
and people said I would never fight in any modality again, I
came back and fought top guys, I fought 30 minutes with a tough
guy and got the win. It makes my day a little brighter and I’m
happy about it.
There
was much talking before this fight… Did you want to put
an end to that?
Man,
I try not to think about what’s gone, I always try to think
about what’s coming. Even when I fight people I’ve
never fought before, when I fight them, it’s another thing.
The past is the past, I don’t hold any sorrow. I was only
upset about the things he said, because it’s disrespectful
and I don’t like it. But that’s it. It proved talking
doesn’t win competitions. I was prepared, I know I did a
good fight and I won’t start saying bad things about him.
How
was meeting him after all this rivalry?
After
we talked for a while and it was really a joke, but these things
get you, but not the fact I lost, because even if I had lost
I’d accept my loss. If he had won, it’d have been because
he deserved it. If I won, I deserved it, I brought a good game
plan, and it doesn’t matter how many times he beat me up.
If I had lost ten times and put on a show like I did, moving
forward, that’s what matters. That’s what matters in
the end.
Are
you satisfied?
Satisfied…
Now I’ll grab a beer and relax (laughs).
What
comes next?
I
want to take a week off and stay with my family, my kids, because
I didn’t have the chance to play with them and my wife.
I’ll enjoy my gym a little, my students, the win. Then I’ll
get back to the trainings, I got proposals to fight MMA later
this year. Let’s see what happens… I always what fits
my season well. Let’s see what happens from now on. I just
wanna have some fun right now. It was a tough jog, recovering
from the scratch after my surgery. Now I’m really proud
for all of this.
Source: Tatame
|
Pepsi
Center, Denver, CO
Source: MMA Weekly
|
UFC
135 ‘Jones vs. Rampage’ Live Results and Play-by-Play
Pepsi Center,
Denver, CO
September 24, 2011
James
Te Huna vs. Ricardo Romero
Round
1
Romero shoots for a long single-leg and gets shucked easily.
Te Huna zaps the New Jerseyite with a hard right hand and Romero
goes to a knee. Romero survives, stands back up and goes back
to shooting from way out. As Romero grabs at Te Huna’s ankles,
the New Zealander slugs him with a right uppercut, then another.
Romero is out cold on his face and referee Tim Mills jumps in
for the save after just 47 seconds.
Takeya
Mizugaki vs. Cole Escovedo
Round
1
Mizugaki pushes forward early, slugging at his man with hooking
combos. Escovedo returns fire with a high kick and lands a few
knees as the bantamweights briefly tie up. Mizugaki socks the
“Apache Kid” with a solid left hand and tries to trip
him down with a waistlock, but they wind up vying for position
on the fence. Underhooks for Mizugaki while Escovedo grabs at
the Thai plum. Finally, it’s Mizugaki who gets his way and
trips Escovedo down, but the Californian is right back up. With
his back to the fence, Escovedo jumps guard and tries to slap
a triangle on the standing Mizugaki. He can’t get there,
however, before Mizugaki shakes him loose and drives him into
the canvas. They’re quickly back on the feet, where Mizugaki
connects with a hard left and Escovedo answers with a pair of
sharp knees. They trade uppercuts, dirty boxing, until a series
of level elbows stagger Mizugaki and they split. Mizugaki comes
on strong in the final 20 seconds, blasting away with combinations
to the head and body.
Tristen
Critchfield scores the round 10-9 Mizugaki
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Mizugaki
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Mizugaki
Round
2
Mizugaki catches a kick and trips Escovedo down, but allows him
right back up. A particularly high inside thigh kick from Mizugaki
prompts referee Adam Martinez to caution him. Left hook-right
hook combination from Mizugaki backs up Escovedo, who responds
with a high kick that catches Mizugaki on the head, but mostly
with the foot. Mizugaki continues throwing his two-piece combos
and a right uppercut-left hook has Escovedo staggering slightly.
Another well-timed countershot sends Escovedo stumbling halfway
across the cage and onto his rear, but again Mizugaki lets him
up. Mizugaki lands a pair of punches, causing Escovedo to clinch,
but the American can’t mount any offense as Mizugaki is
busy slugging him with another six or eight crisp punches. Mizugaki
is just ripping Escovedo apart with punches now, mixing in a
few knees to the body for good measure. A left hook finally sends
Escovedo crashing to the ground. Mizugaki dives in to seal the
deal with one more punch, but referee Martinez is already moving
into action, the stop coming officially at 4:30 of round two.
Junior
Assuncao vs. Eddie Yagin
Round
1
Both men look very tentative off the bat, the much larger Assuncao
taking the center of the cage while Yagin moves cautiously outside.
The crowd begins booing after only 40 seconds of inactivity.
Assuncao tries a few front kicks then lunges forward with a punch,
but gets hit on a counter by Yagin. The Brazilian stays cautious
until he eats a punch from Yagin, misses a kick and shoots. Easy
takedown for Assuncao finds him stacking Yagin up against the
cage. Yagin throws up a triangle, but Assuncao slips it and tries
to move to side control. Yagin does well to keep his position;
Assuncao lands a few solid punches from guard before Yagin shoves
him off and stands. Yagin pushes forward, looking for a big right
hand. The pace on the feet remains tepid. Assuncao ducks a punch
and lands another double-leg with 30 seconds left, though it’s
Yagin who immediately begins throwing elbows from the bottom.
Yagin throws a few more before the horn and the Denver audience
jeers again.
Tristen
Critchfield scores the round 10-9 Assuncao
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Assuncao
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Assuncao
Round
2
Assuncao starts leg- and front-kicking to begin the second, and
nearly runs into a knee. Yagin keeps lunging forward with right
hands, but Assuncao sidesteps them and shoots in after about
80 seconds. Assuncao can’t get Yagin down and instead tries
to jump on his back. Yagin won’t have it and turns around,
his back to the cage, before shoving Assuncao away. The featherweights
go back to feinting and slapping with leg kicks and the crowd
voices its displeasure. Assuncao is throwing long, single left
hands to keep the shorter Yagin at bay. He shoots a single-leg
and Yagin grabs a guillotine as he’s falling to his back.
The choke looks deep, but Assuncao wags his finger theatrically
to indicate his lack of concern. Assuncao peels the hands of
Yagin away and they go back to the feet, where the round ends
without much more action.
Tristen
Critchfield scores the round 10-9 Assuncao
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Assuncao
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Assuncao
Round
3
Assuncao slaps with a few low kicks and shoots in. He’s
stuffed by Yagin, who takes top position briefly before being
shoved off. Yagin tries for another guillotine when Assuncao
shoots a high double. Yagin jumps guard and wrenches the choke,
but Assuncao waits it out, leaning forward and popping his head
loose. Assuncao sits in Yagin’s guard at the base of the
fence with three minutes left in the bout. Yagin’s right
arm is pinned by Assuncao’s leg and Assuncao socks away
with left hands to Yagin’s unprotected face. Yagin gets
his arm loose but still can’t protect against the punches
and elbows of Assuncao. The shots aren’t particularly hard,
but they’re accumulating and Yagin is offering nothing in
return. Referee Josh Rosenthal implores Yagin to fight as he
eats more left hands to the head, elbows to the body. Assuncao
lets loose with 20 seconds remaining and Yagin can’t escape
before the final horn.
Tristen
Critchfield scores the round 10-9 Assuncao (30-27 Assuncao)
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Assuncao (30-27 Assuncao)
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Assuncao (30-27 Assuncao)
Official
result: One scorecard reads 30-27 and the remaining pair say
30-26, all three in favor of the winner by unanimous decision,
Junior Assuncao. Judges’ names are not announced.
Nick
Ring vs. Tim Boetsch
Round
1
The righty Boetsch throws a few front kicks to keep circling
southpaw Ring at a distance. Ring is sidestepping Boetsch’s
punches, trying to counter and step off. He catches a kick from
Boetsch and Boetsch drives forward, looking for a takedown. Ring
sprawls on it and ties up the head and shoulders, then drives
a few well-placed knees into Boetsch’s shoulder. Ring stands
and lets Boetsch loose before resuming his circling. The Canadian
slips a big right hand from Boetsch and tries to catch another
front kick, but this time Boetsch lands a solid left. Boetsch
is chasing Ring all around the Octagon, unable to find his range
with punches, so he goes low for a takedown. It doesn’t
come and Ring sticks Boetsch with a few stiff jabs, firing off
a blocked head kick just as the round ends.
Tristen
Critchfield scores the round 10-9 Ring
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Ring
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Ring
Round
2
Boetsch continues pressing forward, headhunting. A solid right
hand gets through, but Ring answers with a series of stiff jabs.
Boetsch grazes with an overhand right, lands more solidly with
a right uppercut and ties up. They split and another right from
Boetsch drops Ring to a knee. Ring pops back up and clinches
Boetsch into the cage, delivering a knee to the body before he’s
tripped to the mat. Ring is able to stand back up easily and
immediately finds himself in a headlock. Boetsch jumps guard
and threatens with the guillotine, but Ring has a good angle
on top and waits it out. Boetsch tries to scramble to his feet
and winds up in north-south position, where Ring goes for a guillotine
of his own. There’s nothing on this one and Boetsch stands,
then mugs Ring with a flurry of punches in close quarters. Boetsch
closes out the round in full mount, hunting for a kimura, after
bringing Ring down with an inside trip.
Tristen
Critchfield scores the round 10-9 Boetsch
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Boetsch
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Boetsch
Round
3
Boetsch is landing the more effective strikes in the opening
minute of the final round, zapping Ring with a couple of hard
left hooks. The “Barbarian” bullies Ring into the cage
and the middleweights jockey for position momentarily until referee
Mario Yamasaki splits them up. Boetsch pushes forward on Ring,
who lands a jab and a knee to the body before being tripped down.
Boetsch sits in Ring’s closed guard, smothering and throwing
a few tired punches. Referee Yamasaki wants them back up with
90 seconds remaining. Both men look exhausted now and Boetsch
sends a knee to Ring’s body before sending him hurtling
to the ground with a harai goshi. Boetsch has the crucifix momentarily,
Ring escapes to north-south, but Boetsch winds up back on top.
Boetsch has side-control, then opts to stand up and finish the
fight punching downward at Ring.
Tristen
Critchfield scores the round 10-9 Boetsch (29-28 Boetsch)
Freddie DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Boetsch (29-28 Boetsch)
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Boetsch (29-28 Boetsch)
Official
result: It’s a unanimous decision with all three scorecards
-- 30-27 and 29-28, twice -- in favor of Tim Boetsch.
Tony
Ferguson vs. Aaron Riley
Round
1
Ferguson misses with rangy punches and catches a left high kick
from the smaller man. Right uppercuts from Ferguson begin to
find their marks as Riley kicks high again, but this time his
leg is caught and Ferguson sends him cartwheeling. A left uppercut-right
hook combo stuns Riley, then another hard uppercut. Riley regains
his wits and keeps on his feet, but Ferguson is walking him down
now. Ferguson takes a kick to the groin and socks Riley with
an uppercut, a straight. Ferguson grabs the collar with his left
hand and uses his right to thud Riley up against the fence. Riley’s
bleeding from the nose, breathing with his mouth open as the
first round enters its last minute. Ferguson lands a hard kick
to the midsection, misses with a swiping follow-up right and
takes a punch from Riley.
When
the round ends, Riley immediately informs his corner that his
jaw is broken and the fight is waved off. Tony Ferguson is the
winner by TKO after five minutes.
Nate
Diaz vs. Takanori Gomi
Round
1 The southpaws bend at the knees and search the distance with
pawing right hands. A straight left from Diaz sends Gomi spinning
to the ground, the “Fireball Kid” carried down from
the momentum of his own shot. Gomi hops back up and recovers,
landing a swiping right as Diaz walks him into the cage. Gomi
drills Diaz’s ribs and Diaz socks him with a right-handed
scorcher. The rangier Diaz is using the distance well, piling
on his family’s trademark slapping shots while Gomi swings
for the fences and misses. Taunting Gomi with his hands by his
sides, Diaz picks his punches and drops Gomi again at the base
of the cage. After a couple more shots, Gomi goes down on a delayed
effect and Diaz leaps on his back. Gomi gets out the backdoor
and escapes trouble on the floor, only to find himself eating
more punches on the feet. Gomi tosses Diaz down, and Diaz instantly
attacks off his back with an armbar. Gomi pulls the limb free
and Diaz transitions straight into a triangle choke. It looks
tight for a moment, but Diaz lets it go and slaps the armbar
back on Gomi’s left arm. There’s nowhere for Gomi to
go this time; he taps out at 4:27 of the opening round.
Travis
Browne vs. Rob Broughton
Round
1
The big men touch gloves and Browne throws first, missing with
a big right hand. Browne misses again with the right and ties
up when he gets inside, shoveling Broughton into the fence with
an underhook. They split and Browne just misses as he pulls Broughton’s
head down for a knee. Browne throws chopping leg kicks inside
and out, then snaps off a front kick to keep the shorter Broughton
outside. Not much action in the middle of the stanza as Broughton
tries to walk Browne down and find a punch. Broughton gets underhooks
on the circling Browne, holds him on the fence for a moment and
then backs out without inflicting any punishment. Browne pushes
Broughton backward with some big swings, clips him with a punch
and tries to leap in with a flying knee. The knee misses and
the pair tie up, Browne absorbing a compact right from Broughton
in the clinch. Browne puts Broughton on his back with an effortless
single-leg and gets to mount immediately, where he begins dropping
elbows. Broughton puts him back in half-guard before the horn.
Freddie
DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Browne
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Browne
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 Browne
Round
2
Both men pump left jabs to start the second frame, but it’s
a swiping left from Browne that connects. Broughton lobs a slow
inside leg kick which Browne times well with a counterpunch.
Browne throws a hard right hand to the body and a leg kick outside.
The next high kick attempt from Browne is caught, but Broughton
can’t or doesn’t want to bring him down. Browne continues
circling away from Broughton and the crowd boos. Just as they
do, Browne charges forward, winging punches, clinching up and
landing a group of solid knees to the head and body of the Englishman.
Broughton reverses Browne into the fence and Browne shoves him
off. Now it’s Browne who shoves Broughton into the fence,
but doesn’t get much done in the 30 seconds before he releases.
With just under a minute left, Browne gets another easy takedown
and again moves to full mount. A few punches have Broughton turning
over, leaning for a possible armlock. Browne gets in a few more
hard punches before the round ends.
Freddie
DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Browne
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Browne
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 Browne
Round
3
Broughton moves forward on the tired Browne and lands an overhand
right, followed by a clinch. Browne breaks out and spins Broughton
down with a single-leg; this time, he doesn’t take full
mount, but half-guard on Broughton’s right side. Browne
isn’t throwing from the top, instead possibly looking to
set up an arm-triangle choke. Broughton defends and Browne gives
it up, nearly advances to mount. Broughton turns over and Browne
takes his back in the riding-time position, then takes full mount.
The heavyweights look as though they’re grappling in molasses
as the fight enters the final minute. Broughton stuffs Browne
back to his guard and tries for a last-ditch kimura. It doesn’t
work and Browne finishes the fight on top, securing what should
be a unanimous decision.
Freddie
DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Browne (30-27 Browne)
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Browne (30-27 Browne)
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 Browne (30-27 Browne)
Official
result: All three scorecards read 30-27 in favor of the winner
by unanimous decision, Travis Browne.
Ben
Rothwell vs. Mark Hunt
Round
1
Rothwell’s first shot is evaded by Hunt, who looks to thrust
his right hand to the chin of the larger man. Rothwell answers
with a jab of his own, ducks down and has another takedown try
slipped. The third time’s the charm for Rothwell, who ducks
under a punch and floors Hunt to the base of the cage. Rothwell
gets to full mount and Hunt gets an underhook to stuff him back.
Hunt’s on his right side, back against the cage; he avoids
major damage from Rothwell and pops back to his feet. Hunt shoves
Rothwell away on the next shot, and the next one. The “Super
Samoan” is looking to catch the American coming in with
an uppercut. Hunt tries the punch again on the next shot from
Rothwell, lands an elbow instead and shoves Rothwell to the ground.
Hunt holds side-control briefly before standing. He socks Rothwell
with an uppercut in the clinch and Rothwell’s bloodied around
the eye. Rothwell drags Hunt down to the base of the fence with
30 ticks to go. Rothwell gets off a handful of punches and elbows
to the face of the defending hunt before the horn.
Freddie
DeFreitas scores the round 10-10
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Hunt
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 Hunt
Round
2
Hunt lands his first hard leg kick of the bout, while both men
looking to decapitate the other. Clinching on the fence, Hunt
gets a surprise takedown and works from Rothwell’s half-butterfly
guard. Rothwell looks to isolate the left arm of Hunt, who’s
socking him in the face with heavy right hands. Rothwell lets
go of the arm and focuses on negating the space between himself
and the big kickboxer. Hunt stands and drops a left on Rothwell
as he shucks the legs and moves to side-control. Hunt puts his
left knee on Rothwell’s stomach and punches away, causing
Rothwell to burst out and go to his knees. Rothwell tries to
roll forward and gets stuck; Hunt gets mount and goes for an
armbar, but can’t extend it fully before the round expires.
Freddie
DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Hunt
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Hunt
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-8 Hunt
Round
3
Rothwell is completely spent as the final period starts and Hunt
has him in trouble immediately with a flurry of punches. Rothwell
clinches up and Hunt gets the takedown, but doesn’t do much
from top position before referee Adam Martinez issues a stand-up
command. Rothwell shoots a tired shot, gets stuffed, eats an
uppercut. Rothwell shoots again and basically runs his head into
the ground as Hunt sidesteps him. Hunt lands a right and turns
to walk away, though Rothwell doesn’t fall. Rothwell shoots,
absorbs another uppercut, then gets taken down by Hunt. Two minutes
to go and Hunt has Rothwell in trouble with side-control against
the cage. Despite Hunt’s advantageous position, referee
Martinez orders them to stand. Hunt lands a few more punches
and Rothwell leans his back on the fence, hands on his knees.
Hunt just misses the leaning American with a head kick. Somehow,
the exhausted Rothwell gets Hunt to north-south position and
nearly locks in a choke, then almost takes full mount before
the end of the bout.
Freddie
DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Hunt (30-28 Hunt)
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Hunt (30-27 Hunt)
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 Hunt (30-26 Hunt)
Official
result: The judges have it 29-28, 29-27 and 30-27, all for the
winner by unanimous decision, Mark Hunt.
Matt
Hughes vs. Josh Koscheck
Round
1
There’s no touch of gloves from the welterweights, who go
right to cautiously striking. Hughes looks to stick Koscheck
with a left jab in Koscheck’s previously injured eye. Koscheck
begins finding his range, searching for uppercuts in close. They
exchange uppercuts, Hughes seeming to land the better. Koscheck
rushes in for a takedown which Hughes avoids, drilling Koscheck
with a knee on the exit. A right uppercut from Koscheck puts
Hughes on wobbly legs, but the ex-champ ducks under a follow-up
punch. Koscheck puts a few more punches on Hughes, who stumbles
backward and falls to his rear. Koscheck chases him down, dropping
heavy right hands from above. Hughes turns to his left side and
Koscheck turns out his lights with three or four more right hands.
Referee Mario Yamasaki steps in to wave off the bout a split-second
prior to the horn with Hughes slumped forward, unconscious. The
official time of the stop is 4:59 of the first round.
UFC
Light Heavyweight Championship
Jon Jones vs. Quinton Jackson
Round
1
Referee Josh Rosenthal is the third man in the cage for tonight’s
205-pound title bout. Jackson stares down the champion during
final instructions; Jones looks down at the ground. Jones advances
in a crouching position at the horn, one hand on the mat, meeting
Jackson in the center. He grabs at a leg and stands, clinching
Jackson into the fence. After a knee inside, Rampage tells referee
Rosenthal that he was caught low, but the action continues. Jones
grabs a loose headlock, lets it go and smacks Jackson with an
elbow in the clinch. Jackson complains again of a low knee, but
again the ref takes no action. They break off with two minutes
gone in the opening frame. Jones goes to the southpaw stance
and flicks out front and high kicks, then chops to the inside
of Jackson’s left thigh. They tie up and Jones tosses Jackson
away, nearly hurling him to the ground. Jackson blocks a right
high kick, gets backed up by a kick to the knee from “Bones.”
The champ keeps kicking at Rampage’s knees and snapping
off front kicks. He muscles Jackson into the cage post and shrugs
him a shoulder, exiting with a spinning elbow. Jackson ducks
under a wheel kick and an elbow, giving chase with winging punches
as the first frame ends.
Freddie
DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Jones
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Jones
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 Jones
Round
2
Outside leg kicks are the offense of choice from Jones early
in the second, until the pair tie up along the outside. Jackson
pushes loose but gets caught in a headlock. It doesn’t last
long and the pair are back to trading, Jones sticking Jackson
with a left straight that has Rampage nodding. Midway through
the round, Jones goes back to kicking the outside of Jackson’s
legs. Jackson can’t seem to get inside on the larger champ,
who follows a turning kick with a side-kick to the midsection.
Jones lands a left, a left, a right and the men clinch. Right
at the horn, Jones pulls guard and tries to latch on a triangle
choke.
Freddie
DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Jones
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Jones
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 Jones
Round
3
Jones catches a kick from Rampage and tries to bring the former
champ down, but Jackson isn’t having it. Jackson throws
a few kicks to the inside of Jones’ right leg, still can’t
find success with his punches. Jones kicks the outside of Rampage’s
left leg, then grabs the same limb and takes him down. Jones
hops into full mount only 90 seconds into the round and begins
trying to drop elbows on Rampage’s forehead. Jackson posts
and escapes to his feet, where he swipes at his nose and offers
another unknown complaint to ref Rosenthal. Jones seems to hurt
the left knee of Rampage with a kick, but gets caught turning
around with Rampage throwing bombs. Jones turns and sprints away,
then comes back forward with more leg kicks. Flying knee attempt
from Jones misses; the light heavyweights stand weaving in front
of one another and Jones pops Rampage with a fast left. Jones
shoots at the last second, lifts Rampage into the air and then
goes through his legs after the horn, dropping the challenger
onto his face.
Freddie
DeFreitas scores the round 10-9 Jones
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Jones
Mike Whitman scores the round 10-9 Jones
Round
4
They clinch up in the middle of the cage and Jones drives Rampage
down at the base of the fence. Jackson goes to turn and Jones
immediately jumps on his back, sinking in his left hook to flatten
Jackson out. It’s only a matter of seconds before Jones
snakes his arm under Jackson’s chin and rolls him out. Jones
clasps the rear-naked choke palm-to-palm and Jackson is forced
to tap out at 1:14 of the fourth round.
Source:
Sherdog
|
Heat
19
Zepp Nagoya, Nagoya, Aichi,
September 25, 2011
Henry
Miller vs. Myles
Tynanes
Gotoku Onda vs. Scott
Junk
Henrique Shigemoto vs. Derek Thornton
Yuji Hisamatsu vs. Eun Soo Kim
Kazuma Sone vs. Jo Jae
Sap Kiyoshi vs. Thiago Shiokawa
Yoshiki Suto vs. Lowen
Tynanes
Source:
Sports Live Stream
|
Aoki,
Kawajiri Earn Taps at Dream 17;
Cabral Chokes Sakuraba
by Tony
Loiseleur
SAITAMA,
Japan -- Dream lightweight champion Shinya Aoki racked up another
submission finish in the main event of Dream 17 on Saturday at
the Saitama Super Arena, this time over former WEC lightweight
champion “Razor” Rob McCullough.
Having
spent the previous two months training at Singapore's Evolve
MMA, there appeared to be little appreciable difference in the
“Tobikan Judan's” already cutthroat grappling style.
Aoki had McCullough on the canvas shortly after the opening bell,
and he punished the American with punches and open palm strikes
to the face, bruising McCullough's nose an ugly ruby color.
“My
nose is OK. I looked in the mirror, and it looks a lot worse
than it feels. From so many kickboxing matches, it bruises easy
and turns colors,” quipped McCullough.
However,
a bloody nose was the least of his troubles, as Aoki's overwhelming
top pressure eventually saw him take Razor's back to threaten
with a face crank from behind. As McCullough moved to pry off
the choke, he inadvertently pulled Aoki's arms down onto his
neck.
“It
was like one of those things where you begin to feel it and then
next thing you know you're waking up. It was instinctual, so
when I went back to my corner [I realized] there was only three
seconds left,” said a resigned McCullough, who tapped at
4:57 of the first round.
For
the 28-year-old Aoki, now 29-5 in his MMA tenure, it was his
sixth straight win since his deflating April 2010 defeat to Strikeforce
champion Gilbert Melendez. Interestingly, Aoki's last three wins,
including victories over Lyle Beerbohm and Rich Clementi, have
all come by way of neck crank.
“I
was able to explode what I'd stored up in me over the last two
months,” said Aoki. “I have nothing to say, however.
I think everything that happened was within the realm of expectation.”
Aoki's
usual brusque, curt style of answering questions was on display
with the press, as well, as he admonished the media for not “understanding”
his positional grappling skills and not asking “appropriate”
questions. Not surprisingly, he did not equivocate about his
current MMA goal.
“I
want to focus on strengthening Asia because there are a lot of
good Asian fighters out there. Places like Malaysia, Singapore,
not just South Korea, all have great fighters and could one day
exceed Japan,” Aoki explained.
“Right
now, the top teams are like [American Kickboxing Academy] and
Greg Jackson's, but I'd like to make the top team in Asia. That's
what I'm aiming at.”
Former
Aoki victim Tatsuya Kawajiri, a perennial standout lightweight,
dropped to featherweight and took a thoroughly impressive third-round
submission win over former Dream lightweight champion Joachim
Hansen.
The
bout was a rematch of their initial 2006 Shooto meeting in which
the Norwegian was disqualified in just eight seconds for an errant
kick to Kawajiri's groin.
Though
both men hit each other with big punches and kicks to the body
on the feet, Hansen surprised Kawajiri on the canvas, defending
against the kimura with reversals into the rear waist lock, as
he secured back control the close out the round.
From
there, however, Kawajiri's mashing-style of top control took
over. As Hansen later admitted, it was Kawajiri's punishing style
that wore him down and opened him up for the finish, as Kawajiri
locked up an arm-triangle choke in the third frame, tapping out
the tough Norseman at the 2:30 mark.
“In
training, I went to [Nippon Top Team] and I sparred with [Masakazu]
Imanari, who is similar to Joachim on the ground, so maybe that's
why I was able to win with the arm-triangle,” Kawajiri revealed
after the win.
“I
asked Aoki how to finish with one, and they both taught me how.”
The
33-year-old Kawajiri improves to 29-7-2 in his career, now with
a new direction at 145 pounds. Meanwhile, the loss snaps "Hellboy's"
three-fight winning streak.
“I
don't think I'm really at my best at featherweight yet, so I
want to keep fighting here to just get used to it," added
Kawajiri. "I think it's going to be really fun if I knock
the other featherweights out one by one, won't it?”
At
middleweight, Nova Uniao black belt Yan Cabral improved his perfect
record to 10-0 with his submission win over faded MMA legend
Kazushi Sakuraba.
The
fan favorite grappler puzzled onlookers with his opening round
tactics, as he indulged his younger opponent on the feet, almost
paying for it after eating a stiff Cabral left hook that had
him wobbled.
The
fight would not stay up for long, however, as Cabral took the
fight down in the second period, locking on the arm triangle
as “the IQ Wrestler” tried to pull him back into full
guard. Though Sakuraba tried to pry off his opponent's arms,
his hand soon thudded on the canvas, prompting referee Moritaka
Oshiro to dive for the save, moments before Sakuraba passed out
at the 2:42 mark.
It
was the fourth straight loss for the 42-year-old Sakuraba and
the third stoppage loss in a row in his illustrious career.
Former
Shooto world champion “Lion" Takeshi Inoue put away
popular Japanese veteran Caol Uno in the first round of their
featherweight bout -- and with a major exclamation point.
Inoue
had Uno in trouble early in the round with three rapid-fire right
hands from the collar tie that sent Uno down, but he could not
finish with following punches. That came a few moments later,
however, as “Lion” feinted and shuffle-stepped his
way into hiding a vicious high kick and a straight right that
connected squarely on Uno's chin.
Seeing
a dazed Uno fall straight backward, his head bouncing on the
canvas, Inoue restrained himself from following up with academic
punches, as referee Yuji Shimada dove for the save at the 4:18
mark.
The
win was the third straight stoppage for Inoue, while Uno is 1-5-1
in his last seven bouts.
UFC
veteran Gerald Harris took a decision win over Kazuhiro Nakamura
in their middleweight contest, using stifling pressure in the
clinch to sway two of the three judges in his favor. The powerful
American was dogged in his takedown attempts, giving Nakamura
no space to breathe or maneuver.
So
neutralized was the Yoshida Dojo product that he uncharacteristically
and blatantly grabbed the ropes in the final moments of the bout
to prevent himself from being slammed by “Hurricane.”
Harris nonetheless got the slam, and Nakamura also earned himself
uncharacteristic boos from his hometown crowd shortly after.
For
his dominant control, judges Matt Hume and Gen Isono naturally
saw the bout for Harris, with only judge, Hikaru Adachi, curiously
siding with Nakamura.
Former
Sengoku Raiden Championship lightweight titlist Satoru Kitaoka
had a successful Dream debut, taking a split decision over UFC
veteran Willamy Freire.
Outside
of a round-two guillotine attempt, the former SRC champion was
not able to threaten “Chiquerim” with many submissions.
However, his constant takedown pressure and Freire's third-round
yellow card for passivity swayed judges Akira Shoji and Gen Isono
in his favor. Only judge Matt Hume sided with the Brazilian.
In
the Dream 17 opening bout, Ikuhisa Minowa slayed yet another
giant in Mongolia's Baru Harn, putting the hefty albeit unskilled
heavyweight down on the canvas to finish him with a scarf hold
armlock at 4:29 of the first period.
Source:
Sherdog
|
Bellator
51 Results: Alexis Vila KO’s Joe Warren In Brutal Fashion
For the first time in his Bellator career, Joe Warren not only
lost a fight but was finished as former Cuban Olympian Alexis
Vila put an exclamation mark on the evening with a 64-second
knockout victory over the self-proclaimed “Baddest Man on
the Planet” in the main event at Bellator 51 LIVE from the
Canton Civic Center on MTV2.
“Just spectacular performances by our 135ers,” said
Bellator Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney. “These four semi-finalists
are some of the best in the world. Vila and Dantas’ knockouts
are two of the greatest knockouts I’ve seen all year. This
division is stacked and I cannot wait for October 22nd in Arizona.
These semi’s will be magic.”
Vila had his raised high inside the Canton Civic Center after
putting Warren to sleep with a fierce left hook after he rocked
the featherweight champion with a powerful right hand on the
previous exchange.
The win sent a statement to the remaining competitors vying for
Bellator Bantamweight Champion Zack Makovsky’s title, that
Vila isn’t just some Olympic wrestler – he’s a
135-pound knockout artist.
“There’s nobody that can stop me from becoming the
next Bellator Bantamweight World Champion,” Vila said. “I
feel like the belt is already mine. I just have to beat up a
few guys before I get to take it home.”
Those guys he’s referring too are Marcos Galvao, Eduardo
Dantas and tournament veteran Ed West, who all walked away with
wins at Bellator 51 in Canton.
West outlasted Luis Nogueira who only tried to tie him up in
a clinch for most the fight. Once West kept his distance and
fought his fight from the outside he was able to pick apart Nogueira
with dazzling kicks and a superior jab-cross combination.
Fighting not only to advance to the semis but also looking for
a chance at redemption against Warren were Galvao and former
WEC veteran Chase Beebe.
The first round of this fight was extremely back and forth with
both fighters escaping multiple submissions and getting their
fair share of punches in, but as the fight progressed Galvao
gained the edge on the ground and was able box his way to a victory
in the third and final round. Cardio seemed to be a big factor
in this fight and Galvao walked away with the win by split decision.
Wilson Reis was eliminated from the tournament once again in
his first attempt at 135 pounds, but big things were expected
from his opponent, Eduardo Dantas, when he showed up with world
champion Jose Aldo and Marlon Sandro in his corner.
Dantas earned a knockout as exciting as Vila’s when he capitalized
on a kick caught by Reis in the opening round. Reis wouldn’t
let go of the leg at first and looked to set up a takedown, but
when Dantas took his leg back and Reis began to retreat to get
outside his striking distance, Dantas sprinted toward him and
laid him out flat with a knockout by flying knee.
Bellator 52 takes will take place at the L’Auberge Du Lac
Casino in Lake Charles, LA, on Saturday, October 1. This event
is scheduled to kick off the second Bellator Heavyweight World
Championship Tournament which includes heavyweights Mike Hayes,
Neil Grove, Blagoi Ivanov, Thiago Santos, Abe Wagner, Eric Prindle,
Mark Holata and Ron Sparks.
Source: MMA Weekly
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Destiny:
Past Present Future
Aloha Tower Waterfront, Honolulu, Hawaii
October 21st, 2011
-Lightweight Championship-
Max 'Lil Evil' Holloway (Gods Army) vs Kaleo 'Lights Out' Kwan
(O2 MAA)
-Featherweight Championship-
Dustin Kimura (Gracie Technics) vs TBA (mainland opponent)
-155lbs Pro Match
Kyle Rideau (Faito Tamashii Combat Club, California) vs Herman
Santiago (ICG)
-Female Championship-
Kailin Curran (Animal House/O2 MAA) vs Yarnisha Lyons (Fort Hood
Texas Fight Team)
-Amateur Featherweight Championship-
Toby Misech (BOSS MMA) vs Zack Rapal (Fighters Union)
-135lbs Pro Match
Ian Delacuesta (Fitness Ranes Fight Team) vs Richard 'Hit 2 Hard'
Barnard
-Amateur Lightweight Championship-
Lowen Tynanes (Team Tynanes) vs Deven Taylor (UCS)
-145lbs
Pro Match
Jay Bolos (O2 MMA) vs Jesse Thorton (Fort Hood Texas Fight Team)-
-Amateur Bantamweight Championship-
Kelii Palencia (HMC) vs Zach Close (Sunset Beach BJJ)-
-Amateur Heavyweight Championship-
Kevin Herzog (Team Mixed Plate) vs Olo Faamau
-Amateur Welterweight Championship-
Justin Konia (HMC/O2 MAA) vs Lynden Patritio (Fighters Union)
-Amateur 125lbs Championship
-Michael Nakagawa (Team Alpha Male/Gracie Technics) vs Skyler
Close (Sunset Beach Jiu-Jitsu)
-Amateur Middleweight Championship-
Charles Hazlewood (Combat 50) vs Jon Ferrell
-Amateur Light Heavyweight Championship-
Kevin Agui (Animal House) vs Alex Pulotu Steverson (Team Xtreme)
-185lbs
Jacob Smith (UKA) vs Neale Johnson (SOMMA)
-145lbs
Ryne Yoshimura (HMC) vs Jason Recamara (808 Alliance)
-135lbs
Randy Rivera (HMC) vs Isamu Lopez (Hilo)
-145lbs
Colin Mackenzie (Gods Army) vs TBA
-170lbs
Lawrence Mathias (Animal House) vs Steve Farmer (UCS)
-135lbs
Jared Iha (No Remorse) vs Drake Fujimoto (Relson Gracie Academy)
-160lbs
Sage Yoshida (HMC) vs Micah Ige (Team Xtreme)
-170lbs
Sebastion Mariconda (HMC) vs TBA
-155lbs
Jaymes Shultes (SOMMA) vs Daniel Ige (Sunset Beach BJJ)
-145lbs
Landon Yoshimura (HMC) vs TBA-
-170lbs (Kickboxing grudge match)
Rob Joseph (Gods Army) vs Micah Abreu (UKA)
-145lbs (Pankration)
Clem Holloway (Gods Army) vs Kevin Stevens (Combat 50)
-145lbs (Pankration)
Rowel Tano vs TBA
-145lbs (Pankration)
Frankie Tano vs TBA
-125lbs (Pankration)
Joey Schipper (UCS) vs TBA
-135lbs (Pankration)
Keanu Rowland-Manners vs TBA
FIGHT CARD SUBJECT TO CHANGE
Source:
Event Promoter
|
UP
N UP- Stand Alone
Waikiki
Shell, Honolulu, Hawaii
October 15, 2011
Main
Event
170 lbs Championship
Zane Kamaka vs Bubba Ka'ahanui
155
lbs Championship
Johnavan Vistante vs Nate Quinola
205
lbs Championship
Tasi Edwards vs Ilima Maiava
HW
Championship
Paea Paongo vs Doug Hiu
145
lbs Championship
Elijah Manners vs Tyler Kahihikolo
205
lbs
Vince Alama vs Shawn Desantos
145
lbs
Ikaika Tampos vs Dillon Fillekes
HW
Henri Berger vs Chris Barnard
170
lbs
Miller Ualesi vs L. John Borges
170
lbs
Chad Puha vs Lavelle Brown
HW
Dylan Rush vs Palmer Fuga
SHW
Grudge Match
Bryson Pang vs Alvin Kanehailua
125
lbs
Wesley Mossman vs Joey Balai
155
lbs
Arnold Ramos vs Aaron Terry
155
lbs
Shandon Augustus vs Joseph Enaena
205
lbs
Jacob Smith vs John Rosa
125
lbs
Alika Kumukoa vs Jared Gonda
125
lbs
Chante Stafford vs Butch Anderson
185
lbs
Tillis Sionesini vs TBA
170
lbs
Cody Andrade vs TBA
FIGHT CARD SUBJECT TO CHANGE
|
Chonan,
Kikuno Among Additions to October Deep Cage Doubleheader
by Chris
Nelson
Long-running
Japanese indy promotion Deep will once more abandon its ring
on Oct. 29 to stage “Cage Impact 2011 in Tokyo,” a
day-night doubleheader at Differ Ariake arena.
The
event, Deep’s first cage show to hit Tokyo since December
2009’s inaugural “Cage Impact,” was formally announced
Wednesday by promotion officials.
While
Deep has not shown its cage in the Japanese capital for nearly
two years, the structure has been utilized for various smaller
shows in cities such as Osaka, Nagoya and Hamamatsu. During Wednesday’s
press conference, Deep head Shigeru Saeki declared that he would
eventually like to hold a title bout in the cage.
In
total, 17 bouts were revealed on Wednesday: nine for the matinee
“1st Round” card, set to begin at 2:00 p.m. local time,
and eight for the evening “2nd Round” show, which starts
at 6 p.m.
Topping
the early bill is former Deep lightweight champion Katsunori
Kikuno, who will try to rebound from his August title loss to
Mizuto Hirota when he meets Korean slugger Kwang Hee Lee. Other
matchups confirmed for the afternoon card will see Japanese veterans
Yoshiro Maeda and “Iron” Hiroshi Nakamura square off
at bantamweight, and submission specialists Daisuke Nakamura
and Chang Hyun “Armbar” Kim tangle at lightweight.
Another
of the company’s ex-lightweight champs, Takanori Gomi teammate
Nobuhiro Obiya, heads the nighttime bill. Following an unsuccessful
October title bid, Obiya will drop to featherweight to take on
South Korea’s Won Sik Park, who moves down the scale on
the heels of a December loss to Maximo Blanco.
Also
on the evening card: UFC and Pride vet Ryo Chonan locks horns
with kickboxer Naoki Samukawa at welterweight; 2008 Sengoku lightweight
grand prix finalist Kazunori Yokota goes up against Shooto mainstay
Katsuya Toida; former Deep welterweight ace Yuya Shirai faces
Abe Ani Combat Club product Yoshitomo Watanabe; and reigning
205-pound champ Yoshiyuki Nakanishi meets AACC’s Yusuke
Masuda in a non-title affair.
Additional
participants announced included Bernard Ackah, Hirohide Fujinuma
and Hiroki Sato, all of whom will face opponents to-be-determined.
Source:
Sherdog
|
A
summary of Bas Rutten’s excellent interview with Rampage
Jackson
By Zach
Arnold
Now
this is the ‘old’ Rampage I used to hear during his
PRIDE days when he would do interviews. Of course, I was producing
a radio show during that time period when he had his rather…
unique… story to tell about finding faith and cleaning up
his act. Of course, trouble would soon follow after he signed
with the UFC.
When
Quinton Jackson respects you as a person, he gives a damn good
interview. If he thinks you’re a clown or someone he can
bully, he gets preoccupied with mocking you rather than focusing
on answering what you ask. Extremely temperamental but when he’s
on, he’s on.
“People,
they hear me say stuff but they don’t feel what I say. Everybody
needs money to make the world go around, you know what I’m
saying?”
BAS
RUTTEN: “What has changed the most for you since PRIDE?”
RAMPAGE
JACKSON: “I got less Asian groupies…(laughter)
“I
think my privacy changed a lot, I have less privacy. Like, in
MMA you never know who knows you and I go to a restaurant or
a place, you never know who be paying attention and then later
at the end of your conversation with your friend they’ll
ask you a question about Dana White or UFC or something. That’s
like the most shocking thing, but you know what? The police…
before, honestly, growing up in the neighborhood I grew up in…
I really didn’t have much for the police. Now the police
are nice to me and stuff and it’s different and that’s
really important, you know, like to get pulled over the police
and instead of being nervous and stuff like that. Honestly, people
don’t understand, I’ve been threatened to been beaten
by the police before, the police have threatened to beat my ass
before so I never had a good encounter with them. So, now the
police pull me over and they notice, like I don’t tell them
but (if) they recognize then I’m like, they really nice
and so they’re cool. If I deserve a ticket, they still give
me a ticket. They treat me like a regular person most of the
time but it’s cool not to be afraid and worried about (it)…”
There
are three video clips and they are all extremely worthy of watching.
In fact, the time will breeze right by as you’re watching
them. The emotional and charisma here is off the charts.
After
Rampage got done talking about how nice the police treat him
right, he was asked about why we haven’t seen him do the
‘Rampage slam’ in the UFC. His answer, in short, is
that opponents have wised up on how to defend it (including Wanderlei
Silva). He has some interesting comments about Wanderlei the
person and his behavior.
Bas
then asked him a question that made Rampage very wistful for
the old days of PRIDE…
BAS
RUTTEN: “The peak of PRIDE or the peak right now with the
UFC, if you have to choose an event where to fight what would
you do?”
RAMPAGE
JACKSON: “Man, I tell you, honestly, I miss those PRIDE
rules. I miss the fans where you could hear your corner men,
you know, that’s important, we forget how important it is.
If I had to choose, I would pick PRIDE. The energy that the Japanese
fans bring when that song comes on. That’s why I came out
to the PRIDE song my last fight because the energy that it brought
me but the fans are different so the energy wasn’t 100%
there. The Japanese fans I have to honestly say they bring a
different energy to the fight and I really like that energy that
they bring. I’m not saying it’s better or worse, but
in my opinion I would rather fight in front of the Japanese.”
BAS
RUTTEN: “I’ll tell you what it is. You fight more relaxed
in front of them and the reason is that they don’t care
if you win or lose as long as you fight.”
RAMPAGE
JACKSON: “Exactly! That’s what it is.”
BAS
RUTTEN: “They changed me as a fighter.”
Rampage
put over Jon Jones as the future of MMA and didn’t say anything
bad about him. He also had kind words to say about Mauricio Shogun
and why they haven’t had a rematch sooner…
“I’ll
tell you, like, the main reason why I turned down this fight
with Shogun recently is because, you know what I’m saying,
I was overweight, I wasn’t training for my fight. It happens,
you know what I’m saying, it’s one of my hang-ups,
one of my flaws. When I fought Shogun the first time, I came
in with a really bad ankle injury where I couldn’t run and
get my cardio because I really didn’t have a sparring partner,
I had to hire sparring partners back then and I hired this clown
who would when I come to punch him he would throw low ankle kicks
and dislocated my ankle. And I’m paying the guy, I’m
paying the guy to hurt me. I fired him and never used him again.
So, I’m trying to hang with these top strikers, you know,
because back then I didn’t have people… it always haunted
me that I couldn’t, you know, fight at 100% or close to
100% Shogun and I went out there with a stupid game plan, 10
minute rounds, knew I didn’t have cardio and I was going
to take it slow and, you know, fight my fight and he just jumped
on me. So, I said in my mind like I know I’ll get a rematch
with him one day and I want to be close to 100% and I want to
fight the fight that I originally planned on fighting the first
time when I was training for him. So, that’s why I couldn’t
take the fight with Shogun.
“I
got all the respect for Shogun. He’s a nice guy, you know,
he never says anything disrespectful about me. He’s a great
fighter and I could tell in his last fight (against Forrest Griffin)
he was rusty, it was a good chance that I probably could have
done great against him but I wouldn’t have even made the
weight. So, I want to fight Shogun when it’s time.”
The
end of part one features Rampage talking about his ‘Larry
David moment’ when Mark Wahlberg & a friend showed up
in Beverly Hills in a Bentley and keep harassing Rampage as to
what he was doing in that neighborhood.
In
part two, Rampage explained why he thinks 50 Cent should portray
him if a movie was made. Bas asked him whether or not he cries
at movies. Rampage admitted that he tears up when watching American
Idol. Which led to this moment…
“The
last time I was in Japan for this A-Team tour, I got interviewed
by this guy and he said he was a fan from PRIDE and he gave me
an interview that brought me in tears. I had to stop the interview
because, and this was right before the Machida fight, and…
he’s like, basically, told me like, ‘hey, in Japan,
you used to fight different, we used to call you the Samurai,
you had Samurai spirit, but now in UFC you don’t seem like
you have that spirit any more,’ and it brought back so many
memories and I used to call myself kokujin samurai desu, Black
Samurai, and I remember that! I remember I used to act like a
samurai. I had video ups with a samurai wig.
“I
was thinking, whoa, what type of fighter am I now? Because when
I came into the UFC, I started making more money… and more
pressure, yeah.”
He
then proceeded to talk about what his acting career will be like
when he winds down his career as a fighter.
Rampage
elaborated on his childhood heroes (B.A., Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage).
Bas asked him three things to name on his Bucket List. His first
and immediate response was threesome, but he made sure to elaborate
that he wanted two women at the same time and not a second guy
involved.
Bas
asked Rampage how he wanted everyone to remember him after his
time on Earth is finished.
“I
want to be remembered as the, you know, Quinton the Entertainer,
the one who, you know what I’m saying, and brought (it)
when the fight came out and I want to be remembered as the guy
who, you know, the entertainer, the guy who brought the fight
to the fight, the guy who was no-nonsense in the cage, in the
ring, whatever, just came to fight, all about putting on a great
show no matter what, you know what I’m saying… I just
want to be remembered like the fun guy, you know what I’m
saying.
“I’m
just saying this today, we was talking about it while we were
doing some sprints, while we was warming up, we was talking about
some funerals and stuff and I was talking about at my funeral,
I want people to have a party. I want to do like a video clip
and some time before I die, I don’t know when… I want
to have a video clip and I want to make the whole funeral laugh,
you know what I’m saying, I want them, you know, like…
have a good time and like remember all the fun I had and I brought
to the world and try to make people laugh all the time. That’s
what I want to be remembered, I’m not a real serious guy
all the time, I’m only serious when it’s time to be
serious. Other than that, I just like to have fun.”
I
would strongly recommend you watching all three interview clips.
They’re too good to fully transcribe, so watch them. I thought
Bas did a really solid job. Thumbs up.
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
TUF
14 Season Premier TV Ratings On Par with Recent Seasons
Even the expected antics of coaches Michael Bisping and Jason
“Mayhem” Miller couldn’t put The Ultimate Fighter
back into Kimbo Slice numbers.
The
season 14 series premier, chock full of fights to earn a birth
into the fighter house, did manage a respectable draw of 1.5
million viewers, however, according to Spike TV officials. In
fact, that number is right on with the season 13 premier, and
slightly lower than the 1.7 million viewers that season 12’s
premier drew.
UFC
president Dana White and both coaches were impressed by the roster
of fighters for this season’s cast, and were excited for
the fights that have yet to hit the TV screen, but it remains
to be seen if that will be enough to bump the show’s numbers
back up when the trend the past couple of seasons has been a
leveling effect.
Season
14 mark’s the end of the line for the show on Spike TV,
the network of its birth, but the series will return in 2012
on Fox’s FX network. The show in all likelihood can expect
a resurgence on FX due to an overhaul in the format.
TUF
will go to what White calls a “jive live” format in
2012. Footage filmed throughout a week will be quickly edited
for a Friday night episode that will then host a live fight,
which should inject some life into the series. The series is
currently filmed months ahead of time over a six-week period,
edited, and in the can before the first episode ever premiers.
Source:
MMA Weekly
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Spider’s
upcoming fight… on a telenovela
In the spotlight both in and out of the octagon, Anderson Silva
has become a fixture on Brazilian television. The UFC middleweight
champion has been on all the most popular talk shows in Brazil,
like “Jô Soares”, “Domingão do Faustão”,
“Fantástico”, “Altas Horas”, “Legendários”
and others, and now he’s set to take on an acting role for
domestic television colossus Rede Globo network.
Over
Twitter today “The Spider” announced he’s been
invited by Agnaldo Silva, the author of ongoing prime time telenovela
“Fina Estampa, to play himself in a scene with a fictitious
fighter named Wallace, played by Dudu Azevedo.
Could
he be set to do combat on Brazilian prime time TV?
Source:
Gracie Magazine
|
Dana
White: There’s a reason BJ Penn isn’t as big of a star
as he should be
By Zach
Arnold
Whenever
Dana decides to let his inner fanboy come out in interviews,
he’s a fascinating person to watch in terms of studying
psychology. After he admitted in this interview that he bet on
Victor Ortiz to beat Floyd Mayweather, perhaps Lorenzo Fertitta
needs to call a shrink.
With
that out of the way, some interesting items were touched upon.
Dana White said that he views the trajectory of Jon Jones’
career the same way he viewed the trajectory of UFC once they
became the #1 MMA promotion in the world.
Dana
tried to reassure everyone that Matt Hughes is 100% committed
to MMA heading into Saturday night’s fight against Josh
Koscheck. (Both Hughes & Rampage are +400 under dogs heading
into their respective bouts.)
In
an odd statement, Dana said that he’s ‘at a good place’
right now with Nick Diaz and thinks he can do business with him.
You have to watch the video interview to get the tone in which
he said the remark. Ariel brought up rumors of Nick Diaz not
wanting to do taping for a Countdown TV show but Dana shot them
down…
Which
naturally brought up BJ Penn’s comments online in which
he claimed that UFC producers were telling him what to say. Dana,
of course, was none too happy to deal with those remarks.
“What
our job is we have to get inside of these fighter’s lives
and this is the kind of stuff like… you know, a guy like
BJ (Penn), with all of the things that’s happened in the
past and what a big star he could have been… You know, if
you look at a guy like Floyd Mayweather, say what you want about
Floyd Mayweather… Dude, he does 24/7. Those cameras live
inside his house, it’s called 24 7. It means that they’re
with him 24/7, they’re in his car, they’re in his house,
those guys are in the gym when they go to train. They see everything,
you know, and Floyd Mayweather gets on there and lets them get
into his life and see his personality and where he is and what
he does.
“And
we got guys going, ‘oh, they told me what to say and I didn’t
want to say that I’ll beat Nick Diaz!’ It’s just
one of the things hopefully with this next generation that’s
coming up through, these guys get that and get what it takes
to get people interested in you and to sell a fight and when
somebody asks you a question if you think you’re going to
win on Saturday. If you don’t think you’re going to
win, then say no, I think I’m going to get my ass beat.”
At
this point in the interview, Dana went into total ‘boxing
fan’ mode and ranted for several minutes about referee Joe
Cortez & Larry Merchant. Dana’s description of Victor
Ortiz ‘billy goat headbutting’ Floyd is great entertainment.
He admitted that he bet on Victor Ortiz because he had ‘a
puncher’s chance.’ Wonder if he’ll use that with
the media to hype why Carlos Condit can beat GSP.
Dana
says that Joe Rogan is a professional when it comes to post-fight
interviews, something that Larry Merchant in his eyes is not.
This led to Dana lobbying and pleading for HBO to insert Max
Kellerman into Merchant’s role.
“Hey,
Larry, if you were 70 years younger, you’re not kicking
Floyd’s ass, OK? You babbling, senile moron.”
The
most intriguing insider baseball segment of the interview is
when Ariel asked Dana whether or not it’s true that Spike
can’t air Bellator on TV in 2012 unless UFC buys the rights
(picks up the option) to their video library to stop it from
airing on Spike in 2012. Dana says that UFC has no intentions
on buying the library rights, so Spike is stuck with UFC programming
in 2012 as their only contractual choice.
Ariel
then pressed Dana on Spike airing Bellator fights on their web
site.
“If
you really look at what I call the spirit of the deal… it’s
the wrong thing to do.”
“In my opinion, it’s Spike not being honorable.”
“I’ve been nothing but honorable with them.”
“That is not the spirit of the deal and they’re being
100% not honorable.”
He closed out the interview by defending his booking of Wanderlei
Silva vs. Cung Le on November 19th at San Jose Arena on PPV.
In response to determining whether or not fighters under contract
to UFC can be pushed into retirement:
“Whether
you like it or not, I am the guy who makes those decisions.”
As
for the Light Heavyweight picture… winner of Bones Jones/Rampage
faces Rashad Evans. Winner of that fight faces the winner of
Shogun/Dan Henderson.
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
Bantamweight
prospect John Lineker in talks with the UFC and Bellator
By Guilherme
Cruz
Coming
of a 13-win streak, all fights done on the last two years, leading
him to a title conquest on the bantamweight division of Jungle
Fight, Brazilian prospect John Lineker probably won’t fight
much longer in Brazilian events.
TATAME
learned that the fighter, who won 19 out of 24 bouts, with three
submissions and eight knockouts, is negotiating with UFC and
Bellator.
In
three years of career, Lineker already is one of the greatest
prospects on his division in Brazil. From February 2010 until
now, John stepped up on the ring 13 times and got 13 wins, beating
names like Iliarde Santos and Renato Velame.
All
his five loses happened in 2009, year he fought nine times.
Source:
Tatame
|
Jeff
Monson asks Pat Miletich, “How can you not consider America
a terror organization?”
By Zach
Arnold
A
Twitter conversation between Jeff Monson and Pat Miletich, in
their own words:
JEFF
MONSON: The US claims to be land of freedom and democracy yet
is set to veto Palestinian bid in UN to become sovereign country
to appease Israel.
PAT
MILETICH: Palestinians elected a terrorist org (Hamas) to run
it’s affairs and you’re siding with them over Israel?
Pathetic.
JEFF
MONSON: It’s the Palestinian Authority going to UN to seek
recognition as a state, Pat, not the Hamas. Same process Israel
used in 1948.
PAT
MILETICH: PA, PLO, Hamas. All under the same umbrella and dedicated
2 the destruction of Israel. You have sided with the terrorists,
bud.
JEFF
MONSON: Recent poll showed overwhelming majority of Israeli’s
want peace with Palestinians. As always it is government perpetrating
violence.
PAT
MILETICH: Everyone wants peace, Jeff. How do terrorists orgs
make money, Jeff? Answer is simple. By continued terrorist acts.
JEFF
MONSON: How can you not consider the US a terror organization?
Guatemala, Nicaragua, Panama, Indonesia, Vietnam, Iran, Iraq,
Afghanistan, etc. We’ve started civil wars, overthrown elected
leaders, trained and funded terrorists, and presently occupy
2 countries and all in the name of money. Just cause we have
tanks & not resorting to road side bombs doesn’t mean
it’s not terrorism.
PAT
MILETICH: No country is perfect, but ours is the best there is
2 offer. Your anti-American mentality is what our enemies like.
Join ‘em.
So
have the Jews, bud. You support people who hack heads off with
steak knives and I support the home team. Stand where you are.
How’s
your gas prices compared to the rest of the world? Most civil
wars were gonna happen anyways, but good guys needed guns.
JEFF
MONSON: Supporting the right for the Palestinians to be recognize
is in no way supporting terrorist organizations. If you wanna
learn about terror organizations read “The people’s
history of the United States” by Howard Zinn. Our government
is responsible for more oppresion, global poverty, and deaths
than any other ‘terror’ organization could ever hope
to accomplish.
PAT
MILETICH: So, you’re blaming the world’s poverty on
the U.S.A? You’re a joke, dude.
JEFF
MONSON: To summarize, I don’t support terror organizations.
You obviously support the biggest one in history with naive patriotism.
PAT
MILETICH: Listen, asshole. If you don’t like your country,
take a hike. Simple, bud.
You
rattle on about USA being evil yet you enjoy the fight money
and sponsorship our capitalism provides. Walking contradiction.
JEFF
MONSON: Don’t you read any more? US corporations and banks,
the IMF, and the World Bank run economies, impoverish countries,
and dictate government policy. Maybe when Uncle Sam is done fucking
the Palestinians at the UN he can come over to your place so
you can suck his dick.
PAT
MILETICH: You’re dead to me.
(Josh
Barnett just popped big for his catch phrase.)
JEFF
MONSON: I’m a wage slave like everyone else, just trying
to do my part to change the system.
PAT
MILETICH: Change the system? Why, so upstart fighters make the
same wage as a pay per view vet like you? You’re a clown!
JEFF
MONSON: That’s an expected response for someone that doesn’t
have facts 2 what they say. Let’s catch up after you take
a history class.
PAT
MILETICH: I can’t figure out if you support socialism, communism,
or anarchy. Honestly, I don’t think you know.
JEFF
MONSON: This is what happens when you get into a debate between
someone who reads and has a master’s degree in psychology
& political science and… the other is a very good MMA
trainer.
**
Afterwards,
a troll on Twitter says to Pat, “Pat’s so short, Jeff
can actually kick him to the head.” To which Pat responds,
“You kidding? If Monson was an inch taller, he’d be
round.”
And,
now, Pat’s thoughts on Jeff…
Yeah,
the truth? The truth comes from spray painting the capital w/
anarcy logo’s. Monson = fruitcake = TRUTH.
Listen,
JM is pleading the cause of the terrorist org’s and our
enemies. In the countries he supports he’d be hanged.
War
sucks, but not fighting back sucks even worse. Ask the French.
Hey, there’s a good place for Jeff.
Twitter,
truly a source of entertainment.
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
Einemo
Returns to UFC, Teammate Bahadurzada Could Follow
by Mike
Whitman
The
UFC and Golden Glory have apparently found common ground.
Heavyweight
submission specialist John Olav Einemo (pictured) Wednesday announced
that he will return to the Octagon, though no debut date was
mentioned. The news comes on the heels of an announcement from
Einemo's Golden Glory teammate, Siyar Bahadurzada, who tweeted
on Tuesday that he had been offered a contract with the UFC.
While
UFC president Dana White confirmed the Einemo signing at today's
UFC 135 press conference in Denver, Bahadurzada's status is still
in flux. According to the Shooto 183-pound world champion, he
is still deciding whether to sign the deal.
“I
[have been] offered a UFC contract, but nothing is signed yet,”
Bahadurzada tweeted. “My team and I will discuss it and
let you know when it's signed! Thanks for [your] patience!”
Three
members of Golden Glory were recently released by Zuffa following
a conflict over fighter payout procedures, as Marloes Coenen,
Alistair Overeem and Einemo all received their walking papers.
Following his release from Strikeforce on July 29, Overeem was
signed to a UFC contract on Sept. 6 as a member of Golden Glory.
However, “The Demolition Man” yesterday released a
statement announcing that he had parted ways with his longtime
team.
Though
Einemo is known for his potent ground attack, he elected not
to display those skills in his lone UFC appearance on June 11,
instead engaging with Dave Herman in a back-and-forth slugfest
en route to a knockout defeat. Prior to that “Fight of the
Night”-winning performance, the 2003 ADCC gold medalist
had lost only to Fabricio Werdum in seven pro outings, falling
to “Vai Cavalo” at Pride 31 in 2006.
Recognized
as one of the most aggressive fighters in all of MMA, Bahadurzada
has won six-straight fights. The 27-year-old Afghanistan native
recently captured the Ultimate Glory welterweight tournament
crown, knocking out Derrick Noble, John Alessio and Tommy Depret
in the process. The Sengoku veteran holds half of his 20 career
wins by KO and has never been knocked out in his nine years as
a pro.
Source
Sherdog
|
Big
John McCarthy’s book & interview: real context &
true history
By Zach
Arnold
I
am a big fan of MMA history, especially since I covered so much
of it while the boom period was happening in Japan and when UFC
started in the States. Whenever I get review copies of MMA books
in the mail, generally I end up very pleased with what I read
(like I was with Jake Shannon’s book on Catch Wrestling).
When Let’s Get It On arrived in the mail, there was no doubt
that the book would deliver. Naturally, it was everything I expected
(and more). Given the high turnover rate of MMA fans online over
the last five years, it is a real pleasure to read a book from
someone who was a pioneer of the sport and can smarten up newer
fans on what the true history is about the evolution of the UFC.
You
should buy the book, especially if you have a Kindle and can
get the book for $8.
One
pleasant surprise on the book front is that BJM did an extensive
40-minute interview with Eddie Goldman that I would strongly
suggest you check out. If you have not read the book yet, then
the interview will probably give you some good reasons as to
why you might be interested. And if you did get the book, the
interview goes into great detail on some pressing issues in the
sport right now.
The
history of the UFC and how BJM got involved is something that
newer MMA fans will be quite intrigued by, especially the background
on the study of martial arts at the LAPD & the Rodney King
riots (along with training with Rorion Gracie).
Rules,
regulations, and training
A
few minutes into the interview, Eddie asked BJM about the current
structure of governance in MMA and how it’s the wild west
in so many different countries in regards to rules, drug testing,
and quality of officiating.
“There’s
no perfect answer for anything. Everything is about, when it
comes to officials — be it MMA or boxing, getting people
that are knowledgeable, that understand what they’re looking
at, and are accepting of the fact that if, you know, they can
do something that isn’t right and need to be corrected on
it and are man enough to step up and say, you know what, I could
have done that better. And to take criticism or just take any
person’s advice and not personalize it and make sure that
you always look at if there’s a way that I can do something
better then let me look at that way and let me do it the next
time so that I’m better at what I do because everybody throughout,
you know, any type of officiating there’s always room for
improvement and we all need to improve no matter who it is.
“The
sport is continuing to evolve and the officials need to evolve
with it and if you don’t evolve then you’re going to
get left behind and you’re going to end up making mistakes
and those mistakes can cost a fighter the fight, it can cost
a fighter, you know, the threat of injury that they can’t
come back and fight again and those are the things that you’ve
got to always try to avoid.
“So,
you know… what we’re trying to do now is we’re
trying to come together as a group with a lot of the top officials
and we’re putting in exactly why officials should be doing
things. The mechanics of being an official most people don’t
understand, what we call the mechanics of refereeing — where
you should be, why you should be there and the understanding
of what the fighters are doing are going to help set you up for
those positions and if you don’t understand them then you’re
not going to be set up.
“And
there are shows that you can see officials that know what they’re
doing and absolutely put themselves in the right position at
the right time and things will actually flow for them and you’ll
see it. And then you’ll see another official at the very
same event who doesn’t understand those things and is going
through the motions but doesn’t understand why they should
be moving somewhere and it takes them more time to react and
those are all seconds that can cause a fighter the ability to
never be able to come back and fight again because you don’t
know which blow is going to be the one that hurts them to the
point that they can’t recover.
“So,
our whole purpose is the safety of the fighters and through that
purpose we should always all be working to improve and don’t
be thin-skinned if someone has an idea or a way of doing something
better than the way you’re doing it, then let’s all
learn it and let’s do it that way.”
One
example brought up during the interview is when a fighter has
a submission on an opponent and the opponent verbally submits
or taps out in order to get the fighter to give up the hold without
the referee calling for the stoppage. (Rousimar Palhares, line
one.)
Concussions,
health & safety
As
we learn more about the human brain and medical science evolves,
the issue of concussions continues to gain prominence in regards
to officials who have a thankless job in stopping fighters from
obliterating the brain cells of their opponent.
“The
one thing that’s really changed that, you know, no one knew
before, nobody, you know, doctors didn’t know and it’s
the one things that’s really come out with MMA is…
in boxing, when a guy got hit and he was knocked out and he was
knocked out going down and hit the ground and then, you know,
the ground woke him up. Well, he was given time to actually get
himself back up and, you know, get to a standing position and
the referee may let him go, may not. In MMA the one thing we’ve
realized is fighters can throw a punch, knock someone completely
out with the punch, and then come back with another punch along
the way and actually knock them back into consciousness. And,
you know, I think if you would have asked doctors beforehand,
hey, if I have someone who’s unconscious from a blow and
you hit them with another blow, is that going to bring them back?
They would have said absolutely not, it’s just going to
increase the severity of that concussion and of what had occurred
previously.
“But
we know now, you know, I’ve had plenty of fights (and) every
referee has fights where you have someone that they get hit with
a punch and you’re coming in because they’re knocked
out, guy ends up hitting them with another shot, and brings back
them back into consciousness. It happened with Dan Henderson
against Fedor, you know, people can sit there and say what they
want. I was right there. Fedor went out with the uppercut that
hit him from underneath and he got hit with two shots to the
head, didn’t do anything, he got hit with a hammer fist
to the side of his face and it brought him back into consciousness
and he rolled. And Herb (Dean) was absolutely right in stopping
the fight when he did because he saw a fighter when he was out.
And it doesn’t matter if he gets knocked back into consciousness.
It’s a matter of when a fighter goes unconscious, they cannot
physically defend themselves and we’re going to stop the
fight. When a fighter can’t intelligently defend himself,
the fight’s over.
“We’re
always learning. Fighters are always going to be going after…
in MMA, when you have someone get hit and they go down, we don’t
walk away from them, we go after them because we can end the
fight, we can get our win and that’s what fighters are going
to do. It’s up to the referee to be in position to properly
stop the fight and sometimes that just isn’t going to happen.
It doesn’t matter if the guy does everything right, the
way someone falls a certain way or a position, he can be close
and the guy’s going to get the extra punch in but you always
work at putting yourself into the right positions so you can
try to get in there before they get that secondary blow.”
BJM
stood up for various athletic commissions and said that AC directors
are doing the best job they can given the limited resources at
their disposal and that states look at the AC’s more or
less as cash cows. When the ACs don’t bring in the cash,
then you end up with political & financial pressure.
Promoters
vs. promotions and the issue of matchmaking
Mirroring
the thoughts of Dana White, BJM said that one set of rules for
MMA should be used throughout the world. He believes that instead
of promoters having their own titles that there should be an
independent sanction body to control belts and make title fights.
“The
whole thing with promoters and, you know, the belts and everything
and you’re going to have, you know, the Art of War champion,
the UFC champion, the Bellator champion, all that… you know
that’s something, truthfully, no promoter should be in charge
of belts. It should be, you know, sanctioning bodies is what
legally can have control of belts because when you have a promoter
that has control over their belt you really don’t have the
ability to put sometimes the best fighters together, you don’t
have that. And so, you know, you could have the UFC who has the
best fighters but… they’re going to put and Dana goes
a good job and Lorenzo does a great job, they put the fights
that people want to see together for the most part. But there’s
always going to be that person outside of it and they can’t
fight in the UFC because of contractual obligations to somebody
else or something like that… when really you want to see
the best fighters go in together and all of that still needs
to be cleaned up and cleared up and this is a sport, this is
not a single promotion.
“If
it was just the UFC, well, then, the UFC is doing everything
right. They’re doing a great job of promoting the sport,
they’re doing a great job taking care of their fighters,
they’re doing a great job of protecting the fighters. You
know, when the UFC goes to Brazil, the fighters are being taken
care medically, they’re being taken care of everything,
there’s no problems. But if you take that same fighter and
take them out of the UFC and take them to Brazil, they might
not be having any medicals, they might not be having any type
of person that is overseeing, you know, the person that they’re
competing against and the record comparisons and the match-ups
and all that and that’s what athletic commissions are for.
To make sure that, you know what, the fans are going to see a
competitive fight, it’s not going to be a train wreck and
that the fighters are comparative in their skill levels so that
its not as dangerous for those two fights going against each
other as it is for one very skilled person going against a person
that lacks the actual technical skill to be in that ring with
that person he’s going against.”
He
is skeptical that MMA will see a sanctioning body any time soon
given the political clout of Zuffa in the sport and also amongst
a growing number of politicians. So, how could change be forced
upon UFC if they got too big for their britches?
“It
would be great if those fighters could compete against fighters
that are in the UFC but right now with the structure the way
the sport is, it’s not going to happen because the structure
of the sport is based upon promotions. We have promoters in boxing
and we have promotions in MMA and those promotions are controlling
the sport as far as who’s going to be able to fight who
and they have their own belts, they all have their own belts
and that’s going to end up having to come down to federal
regulation as far as, you know, the ability to control the belt
and who controls belts is really going to be the call of, you
know, the federal government somewhere along the way when it
comes to MMA because that’s the only way that things are
going to change as far as putting those fighters together because
the UFC…
“There’s
no way that any promotion’s going to come in… Bellator
could get all the money in the world and they’re not going
to overtake the UFC, they just don’t have the structure
to overtake them and the structure comes from not only what they’ve
done but, you know, the people that believe in them and believe
in the UFC comparatively. The UFC has marketed itself, has done
an incredible job of to where they are the Kleenex, they are
the Xerox of MMA. When people say MMA, they think of UFC.”
I
cherry picked some topics from BJM’s interview with Eddie,
so I would recommend that you check out the full interview in
its entirety because it’s a great listen. You will enjoy
it. As for the money question at the end of the interview, you
will want to hear BJM’s reasoning as to why he wrote this
book now and why the timing made sense. The answer is as detailed
and historically caring as you might expect it to be.
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
Krzysztof
Soszynski Meets Igor Pokrajac at UFC 140 in Toronto
A light heavyweight bout has been added to UFC 141 in Toronto
with Canadian Krzysztof Soszynski battling Igor Pokrajac.
UFC
officials announced the new bout on Thursday.
A
winner of two fights in a row, a now healthy Krzysztof Soszynski
returns to action to fight in his home country of Canada.
While
he now trains primarily out of the Reign Training Center in California,
Soszynski spent much of his career working in and around Canada,
and will look to bring some home country pride with him when
he fights in Toronto.
Facing
Soszynski will be Croatian fighter Igor Pokrajac.
Pokrajac
most recently put away Todd Brown at UFC on Versus 3 back in
March, and will try to pick up his 3rd UFC victory when he fights
in December.
The
bout between Soszynski and Pokrajac is the latest addition to
the UFC 140 card that goes down in Toronto on Dec 10.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
UFC
135 (9/24 Denver)
By Zach
Arnold
Hawaii
Air Times:
UFC 135 2:00-5:00PM Channel 701
Preliminaries 2:00-3:00PM Spike 559
UFC 135 Countdown 9/23 6:00AM Spike 559
UFC 135 Countdown 9/23 2:30PM Spike 559
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)
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
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
|
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.
USA-BOXING HAWAII, KAWANO B.C., & PALOLO B.C.
PRESENTS AMATEUR BOXING MATCH EVENT
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2011 AT 6:30 P.M.
AT THE PALOLO DISTRICT GYM,
Tentative Bouts as of Sept. 21, Subject to Change
RED CORNER WEIGHTS BLUE CORNER
CLUB Age 3 ROUNDS AGE CLUB
1). Kristopher Alcos 14 95 12 Logan Yoon
Kauai PAL B.C. 3/20/97 1 min. 11/24/98 TNT B.C.
2). Kelii Alcos 12 70 11 Maika Samson-Giron
Kauai PAL B.C. 10/05/98 1 minute 1/12/00 Pearlside B.C.
3). Franci Davilla Adult 145 26 Monica Franco
Kauai PAL B.C. 2/1/86 2 min. 12/11/84 Palolo B.C.
4). Isaac Worth Adult 195 18 Filipe Taulanga
Kauai PAL B.C. 7/22/88 2 min. 11/2/92 Palolo B.C.
5). Colt Dante 14 105 14 Jaron Guillermo
TNT B.C. 07/25/97 1 min. 9/2/97 Boxfit808 B.C.
6). Adam Morrison Adult 160 Adult Cody
Fighters Unlimited B.C. 1 ½ min. Palolo B.C.
7). Cole Dante 14 115 13 Nathan Rodrigues
TNT B.C. 7/25/97 1 min. 7/27/98 Palolo B.C.
---------------10 MINUTES INTERMISSION---------------
8). Blake Adult 135 17 Lawrence Acoba
Palolo B.C. 1 ½ min. 06/16/94 Kawano B.C.
9). Michael Ortiz 11 65 11 Tristen Cambra
TNT B.C. 3/23/00 1 min. 12/09/99 Pearlside B.C.
10). John Sarentino Adult 163 Adult Shawn Gusman
Fighters Unlimited B.C. 1 ½ min. Palolo B.C.
11). Gabriel Kuheana 9 75 9 Joricksen Galiza
Pearlside B.C. 04/30/02 1 min. 11/28/01 Boxfit808 B.C.
12). Greg Garcia 145 17 Aren Dela Cruz
Fighters Unlimited B.C. 11/15/88 1 ½ min. 4/27/94 Unattached
-----------MAIN EVENT-------4 ROUNDS 2 MINUTES----------
13). Paea Pongo 33 201+ 29 Ponesawan Wheeler
Palolo B.C. 11/19/77 2 min. 6/22/82 Kawano B.C.
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.
|
Dan
Henderson vs. Shogun Rua Winner Gets Next Shot at the Title After
Rashad Evans
by Damon
Martin
When Dan Henderson returns at UFC 139 to face Mauricio ‘Shogun’
Rua, a shot at the UFC light heavyweight title will be on the
line.
UFC
President Dana White confirmed that the bout between Henderson
and Rua will be a No. 1 contender’s match when speaking
to MMAWeekly.com on Wednesday.
According
to White, Rashad Evans is still next in line to get the winner
of this weekend’s fight between champion Jon Jones and challenger
Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson, but either Hendo or Rua
will get the next crack at the belt.
“It
would be tough not to give the winner of that the next shot,”
said White.
Henderson
comes back to the UFC after relinquishing the Strikeforce light
heavyweight title, which he won earlier this year by defeating
Rafael ‘Feijao’ Cavalcante.
Meanwhile,
Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua will attempt to get back to the
pinnacle of the division just two fights removed for losing the
belt to Jones back in March.
The
Brazilian stormed back in his home country of Brazil where he
defeated former light heavyweight champion Forrest Griffin at
UFC 134.
Rua
will face Henderson with a shot at the title on the line, and
a possible chance at redemption against Jon Jones, who he lost
the belt to at UFC 128.
Currently,
the fight between Henderson and Rua has been verbally agreed
to, but bout agreements still haven’t been issued for the
Nov 19 fight.
While
there are still details to be figured out before the fight is
official, White also confirmed that the bout between Rua and
Henderson would be a five-round non-title main event for the
UFC 139 card.
MMAWeekly.com
will have more details on the UFC 139 card when it becomes available.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
UFC
135 Preview: The Main Card
by Jason
Probst
If
a champion is not a real champion until he defends his belt,
Jon Jones will have to pass a stiff test at UFC 135 to prove
he is the goods. In his first fight since dethroning Mauricio
“Shogun” Rua and winning the light heavyweight title,
Jones tackles Quinton “Rampage” Jackson in the main
event on Saturday at the Pepsi Center in Denver.
The
match is something of a referendum on the two men. For Jones,
it represents a great opportunity to prove he is more than just
a physical phenom with some impressive performances, perhaps
by dealing with a degree of adversity he has yet to face. For
Jackson, it is a chance to put virtually every tough break of
his career behind him and return to the 205-pound throne, all
while defeating the game’s hottest young fighter.
The
rest of the main card includes a welterweight bout between Josh
Koscheck and hall of famer Matt Hughes, two heavyweight battles
and Nate Diaz’s lightweight showdown against Takanori Gomi.
Here
is a closer look with the UFC 135 main card, with previews and
picks.
UFC
Light Heavyweight Championship
Jon Jones (13-1, 7-1 UFC) vs. Quinton “Rampage” Jackson
(32-8, 7-2 UFC)
The
Matchup: In his first defense, Jones faces a fighter who can
truly hurt him with a single punch. The problem will be how Jackson
negotiates the obvious problem at hand, namely Jones’ reach,
far more diverse striking arsenal and the champion’s ability
to hit takedowns in seemingly endless variation and type.
One
big shot from Jackson, however, can neutralize all the hype that
Jones has generated, and it is an important issue, because “Bones”
has yet to really be tested in that department. In fact, he has
barely spent a moment in a bad position in his UFC career, physically
dominating foes while doing what he wants when he wants.
Jones
has plenty of physical assets that make him a problem, but the
biggest obstacle for opponents is his length. He employs it perfectly,
whether standing, where he flicks out kicks and punches from
seemingly across the cage, or on the ground, where the sheer
distance encompassed by his limbs and torso skews everything
the other guy wants to do. It provides openings for Jones to
bang foes while he is too far away to attack.
Jackson’s
approach to the mental game in this fight has already faltered,
with accusations about “spies” in his camp working
for Jones -- claims the champion has politely but firmly dismissed.
Jackson’s outstanding wrestling is largely used to defend
shots so he can headhunt, and Rampage still has not fixed his
iffy defense against leg kicks, nor used takedown attempts to
add another variable to his offense, which would open up strikes.
In a way, he has become more one-dimensional than during his
Pride Fighting Championships days. Poor game planning cost him
against Rashad Evans, who simply used better tactics to get the
decision at UFC 114.
At
the end of the day, Jackson has the one-shot power and durability
to beat Jones, provided all the dominoes line up correctly. That
is assuming Jones does not have a host of options on which to
feast, ranging from hassling Rampage with kicks and sticking
takedowns to outboxing him on the feet.
What
it boils down to is this: Jones is able to do things nobody else
can. He will frustrate and pick apart Rampage while Jackson heaves
the occasional counter, eating punches three-to-one and eventually
getting weary of fighting through a thicket of counters. Jones
is also going to be able to take down Rampage easier than many
think; his ability to execute Greco-Roman and lower-leg shots
is unreal, and Rampage will be victimized by the latter, since
it is doubtful Jones wants to tie up, especially early.
The
Pick: Ultimately, Jackson comes apart slowly but surely, with
Jones dominating every phase of the game, even as he takes a
couple of shots. He will punish the durable Jackson, finishing
with a submission from the top in the fourth round.
Welterweights
Matt Hughes (45-8, 18-6 UFC) vs. Josh Koscheck (15-5, 13-5 UFC)
The
Matchup: Koscheck looks to return from his humbling decision
defeat to Georges St. Pierre at UFC 124, where the champion dominated
over five one-sided rounds. Equipped with top-notch wrestling
and takedowns, Koscheck remains one of the game’s elite
welterweights. Former champion Hughes gets a tough break here;
originally slated to face the now-injured Diego Sanchez, he draws
a much more difficult style matchup in Koscheck.
Hughes
does not figure to be able to take down Koscheck easily, if at
all, but his standup in recent bouts has shown more commitment
compared to the days of his title reign, when he mostly grounded-and-pounded
opponents. However, the talent pool has expanded considerably
since Hughes’ reign, and middling performances in recent
outings for him are indicative of a once-great fighter well past
his best days. Hughes’ best shot is getting into a clinch
and hoping to create a scramble or takedown opening and work
from there. Koscheck’s ability to land numbing strikes on
the feet is often overlooked due to his wrestling credentials,
but, style-wise, this bout could look a lot like his one-round
blowout of Frank Trigg.
Koscheck’s
right hand and sprawl will come into the fray early. Hughes will
definitely be a sentimental favorite here for fans, but it is
hard to see a way in which he could win. He does not have the
standup to trouble his opponent too much, and Koscheck is going
to be too athletic to take down and keep down.
The
Pick: It is Koscheck’s fight to lose, and he will take a
round to gauge the distance before turning up the pressure and
putting Hughes on his back in the second, following up with a
heavy ground-and-pound to win by knockout.
Heavyweights
Travis Browne (11-0-1, 2-0-1 UFC) vs. Rob Broughton (15-5-1,
1-0 UFC)
The
Matchup: This is a “one-sipper” fight -- a match where
it takes one sip of coffee and the time to swallow it while watching
film of a fighter to make a prediction. Broughton has poor wrestling,
and he is not particularly sharp on the feet. In short, he is
a limited plugger, so one can see what the excitement is about,
at least for Browne’s manager.
For
his part, the 6-foot-7, 250-pound Browne may not be Jerome LeBanner
on the feet, but he is coming along nicely enough. You cannot
teach that kind of size, and “Hapa” drilled Stefan
Struve with a massive shot in his last outing that resulted in
the kind of epic, larger-than-life knockout that only heavyweights
can supply. Browne is also fairly tough, surviving a lengthy
clinch-and-smash bout against reliable veteran Cheick Kongo.
In the UFC’s heavyweight division, Browne finds himself
in a good position as an unbeaten fighter. He can develop and
get experience without trying to leap too many rungs up the ladder.
The
Pick: This is an easy fight for Brown, as he will unload on Broughton
at will, and the only way he gets taken down is if the Brit sneaks
a taser into the cage. This should be equal parts brutal and
bloody; Brown by first-round knockout.
Lightweights
Nate Diaz (13-7, 8-5 UFC) vs. Takanori Gomi (32-7, 1 NC, 1-2
UFC)
The
Matchup: Diaz’s standup style is a masterpiece of range
and relentless frustration for opponents. He is consistently
just a little too far away to get hit cleanly and tosses punches
out with varying intensity to lull his opponent before he drops
a solid combination. The development of his standup mirrors that
of his brother, former Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick
Diaz, and, in recent bouts, it has become an increasingly effective
part of his game. His chin and conditioning are also top-notch.
Diaz
is great at recovering when hurt, and nobody wants to follow
him to the ground should they land a big one. Gomi’s better
days are probably behind him; at his peak, he was a relentless
slugger on the feet with a go-for-broke style and wicked ground-and-pound.
He tended to fight with a bullying style but often could not
adapt when skilled, unflappable opponents refused to break under
the brunt of his initial assault. That is exactly the kind of
fighter Diaz is and precisely why he gives more physically gifted
opponents fits.
Diaz
plays as much a mental game on opponents as he does extracting
a physical toll. He likes to show them early on that he is the
boss, and Gomi’s willingness to come forward and trade is
a real wild card here. It is doubtful he can stand around and
look to outpoint the bigger and technically sharper Diaz on the
feet.
On
the mat, if it goes there, Diaz’s defensive jiu-jitsu is
comparable to any lightweight currently in the UFC. He simply
stifles people. Diaz’s biggest challenge is that his lack
of wrestling and takedown defense, coupled with being somewhere
between 155 and 170 pounds in natural size, leaves him in a tough
spot in terms of campaigning in either division. In this fight,
he should be able to force Gomi into costly exchanges on the
feet, all while wearing him down, whether it is in clinches,
striking, on the ground or just yelling obscenities during the
match.
The
Pick: Diaz gets further inside Gomi’s head as the bout transpires,
ultimately submitting him in the third round after dropping him
with strikes.
Heavyweights
Ben Rothwell (31-7, 1-1 UFC) vs. Mark Hunt (6-7, 1-1 UFC)
The
Matchup: Some heavyweight red meat is thrown to the fans in this
one, as two reliable sluggers collide. Anybody who watched the
International Fight League is familiar with Rothwell, who has
good hands for a big man, spotty standup defense and likes to
get into brawls. Hunt, one of the best combinations of striking
and chin that MMA has ever known, was a legend in the salad days
of Pride Fighting Championships and K-1. His transition to MMA
has yielded mixed results, as his ground game is eminently suspect,
but chin for chin and strike for strike, there have been few
in the history of MMA that would ever want to test themselves
against the fearsome New Zealander.
There
are no matchmaking accidents in the UFC, and this is a solid
candidate for “Fight of the Night” based on the styles
of both men. Hunt loves to gauge the range, lure opponents into
thinking they can hit him and then unload massive bombs that
can end matters instantly. Rothwell could probably win this one
by playing it smart and hitting a clinch-takedown combination,
but he knows precisely why this match has been made, and playing
it safe has never been his style. Rothwell will want to test
himself against Hunt’s big punches.
The
Pick: Hunt wins by second-round knockout in an epic brawl that
sees both men hurt at times. Ultimately, Hunt’s power seals
the deal.
Source:
Sherdog
|
Jim
Rome & Larry Merchant talk about Floyd Mayweather’s
combustibility
By Zach
Arnold
On
Monday afternoon, Larry Merchant did a nine-minute interview
on the Mason & Ireland radio program that broadcasts on ESPN
710 AM Los Angeles. It was every bit the interview that you would
expect given the fallout from Saturday night’s fight between
Floyd Mayweather & Victor Ortiz.
(Click
on the link and you’ll see quotes from the interview.)
On
most ESPN platforms yesterday, the consensus is that Ortiz got
what he asked for even if it was ‘cheap’ by Floyd to
finish the fight in the manner that he did. Jim Rome, yesterday,
didn’t mince words about the way the fight played out.
“Right
when you think that the sport of boxing has no more i’s
left to dot, we get Saturday’s Mayweather/Ortiz debacle
in Las Vegas. I mean, you can’t just make this stuff up
and there’s plenty of blame to go around here, starting
with Ortiz. Number one, that head butt was even dirtier than
Mayweather cold-cocking him while he was attempting to hug it
out with May. That smacked of a guy who knew that he was totally
outclassed, got frustrated, and just snapped. And while Mayweather
did not exactly class the joint up by icing a guy that he knew
wasn’t paying attention, that’s also on Ortiz. It’s
the first thing that you learn as a fighter and the last thing
a referee tells you before the fight — protect yourself
at all times — and Ortiz didn’t. Mayweather had been
there before, Ortiz hadn’t and it showed. You want to apologize?
Fine, touch gloves, resume fighting. But what was he doing hugging
and kissing on Floyd? Weird, bizarre, and it got him knocked
him out.
“Ortiz
claims that it wasn’t a far fight and his camp wants a rematch.
Classy and clean? No. But it was definitely fair. You don’t
smash a guy’s face in with a head butt and then complain
when you get hit with a dirty shot. You start down that path
and you better be ready for anything and you weren’t. And
you can forget about a rematch. Nobody outside your camp wants
it. Mayweather was dominating that fight and he would have finished
it sooner than later. A rematch is only in order if somebody
gets jobbed and nobody was.
“Well,
other than the fans, as usual.
“Mayweather,
meanwhile, not only wasn’t apo9logizing for how he won,
he actually thought it was good for business. As long as you’re
looking at him and talking about him, he’s happy.
‘Hey
man, I’m good. Controversy is okay. Nothing wrong with some
controversy to get people talking. It’s all god.’
“Yeah,
it’s all good… for you. Now go ask the million-plus
who dropped crazy jack for that PPV if they think it’s all
good because I’m guessing a good chunk of them don’t.
They wanted to see a clean, natural ending to that fight, not
you clocking a guy while he was still apologizing and not prepared
to defend himself. Again, it may have been legal, but it wasn’t
clean and fight fans got jammed yet again and they’re bent
and I can see why. I mean, when was the last time you threw for
a PPV card and actually felt like you got your money’s worth?
“As
far as the fight that would be worth your money, Mayweather insists
that he doesn’t need Pacquiao.
‘All
Pacquiao is doing is fighting my leftovers. How can Pacquiao
offer me anything? I do the offering. He has to get his business
in order. When he fights, he gives up 30% of his check, I get
100%.’
“Wait,
what? You’re not fighting, why? Because he has to chip cats
off and you don’t? Look, I have no idea what that means
or how that relates to anything but I know this — either
you’re just ducking him or you won’t fight him because
you think that he roids. But his promoter, Bob Arum, says that
Pacquiao is now willing to submit to Olympic-style random blood
& urine drug testing so that should address your concerns.
“And,
by the way, you do need him. If you care as much about your legacy
as you say you do and you do want to be considered one of the
greatest of all time, then you need him. Maybe not in your eyes
but most of the rest of the world will consider your career incomplete
if you don’t fight Pacquiao. Skip this guy and there will
always be a ‘yeah, but’ to your career. Get used to
those questions because you’ll hear them almost every single
day for the rest of your life.”
The
bright side for Floyd’s PR team in Las Vegas? He may get
some jail time soon for his pending legal battles, but it’s
not like he went on Steve Cofield’s home radio station (ESPN
1100 in Las Vegas) to channel the spirit of Mike Tyson by talking
about ‘wombshifters’ or anything of the sort.
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
Abel
Cullum Heavy Ahead of DREAM.17; Aoki, McCullough on Weight
By Daniel
Herbertson
With
one exception, all fighters were on weight for DREAM's first
event full-scale event of 2011, including DREAM lightweight champion
Shinya Aoki and former WEC ace Rob McCullough, who square off
in the main event and Tatsuya Kawajiri, who is set to make his
featherweight debut.
Former
King of the Cage champion Abel Cullum, who arrived in Tokyo only
last night due to Typhoon Roke, was the sole fighter to miss
weight, coming in 4 lbs heavy for his anticipated Bantamweight
World GP match up with two-time Deep champion Masakazu Imanari.
Although
Cullum will have a chance to make the 61 kg/ 134.5 lbs limit,
he already appeared badly drawn out at the weigh-ins and was
shaking uncontrollably on the scales. Given his condition it
seems unlikely that he will be able to make the cut and the bout
will likely be changed to a catchweight.
The
full weigh-in results ahead of DREAM.17, which takes place on
Sept. 24 at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, are after
the break.
DREAM.17
Weigh-in Results – Sept. 24 at the Saiatama Super Arena
in Saitama, Japan.
Shinya Aoki 69.8 kg/153.9 lbs vs. Rob McCullough 69.8 kg/153.9
lbs
Tatsuya Kawajiri 64.9 kg/143.1 lbs vs. Joachim Hansen 65 kg/143.3
lbs
Caol Uno 64.9 kg/143.1 lbs vs. Takeshi Inoue 65 kg/143.3 lbs
Kazushi Sakuraba 75.8 kg/167.1 lbs vs. Yan Cabral 76 kg/167.6
lbs
Satoru Kitaoka 70 kg/154.3 lbs vs. Willamy Freire 69.4 kg/153
lbs
Kazuhiro Nakamura 83.8 kg/184.7 lbs vs. Gerald Harris 84 kg/185.2
lbs
Ikuhisa Minowa 87 kg/191.8 lbs vs. Baru Harn 115 kg/253.5 lbs
Dream
Bantamweight World Grand Prix Quarterfinals
Hideo Tokoro 61 kg/134.5 lbsvs. Antonio Banuelos 61 kg/134.5
lbs
Bibiano Fernandes 60.8 kg/134 lbs vs. Takafumi Otsuka 60.8 kg/134
lbs
Masakazu Imanari 60.8 kg/134 lbs vs. Abel Cullum 62.8 kg/138.4
lbs (Over)
Yusup Saadulaev 60.8 kg/134 lbs vs. Rodolfo Marques 61 kg/134.5
lbs
Source:
MMA Fighting
|
Eduard
Folayang Poised to Become the Next Great Talent from the Philippines
by Damon
Martin
Over
the last several years, the Philippines has become a hot bed
for MMA fans and a growing base of fighter talent.
Possibly
one of the brightest prospects to come out of the area is One
FC fighter Eduard Folayang, who recently won in his main event
bout for the fledgling promotion in Singapore.
A
former school teacher turned fighter, Folayang has quickly made
a name for himself as a knockout artist and tough competitor,
while quickly building his Filipino fan base.
In
the debut One FC event, Folayang defeated late replacement A
Sol Kwon by unanimous decision despite suffering a badly broken
nose early in the fight. According to Folayang, he didn’t
even realize his nose was sideways until after the fight ended.
“I
expected him to have accurate striking so it didn’t surprise
me. I was surprised that he became passive as the fight went
on and didn’t attack that much. I didn’t realize my
nose was broken until the fight was over, it affected my breathing
but not that much,” Folayang said.
The
fight was a rousing success for One FC on a local and national
scale with several thousand packed into the stadium in Singapore,
as well as broadcasts that reached all over Asia as well as internet
broadcast in the United States.
Folayang
admits he was impressed by the first show that One FC put on,
and is looking forward to the next time he gets to fight for
them.
“I
was surprised by the size of the audience at the event, it was
big. I have never fought in front of 7,000 people before and
it made me feel more excited. A lot of people here in the Philippines
watched that fight. Some did not watch it live but they watch
it on the internet and are eager to see it again when it is shown
on TV here,” Folayang commented.
The
next One FC event is currently scheduled to take place in December,
although an exact date and location haven’t been announced
yet. Folayang hopes to be a part of that show as well, but also
has some commitments back home in the Philippines that he has
to tend to first.
“I
really want to fight again this December for the One FC but I
have made an earlier commitment in Wushu. It is important for
me to represent my country in this event because it’s one
way of giving back to my nation,” Folayang stated.
If
he’s not able to fight in December, there’s little
worry for fans who want to see what Folayang is made of because
his manager is currently negotiating a very long term deal that
would see the young star make a home in One FC for many fights
to come.
“Everyone
in Baguio (Philippines) watched the fight and are asking when
I will be on the One FC again. I’m expecting to fight again
soon and my manager is negotiating a contract for 10 fights in
the One FC,” Folayang revealed.
One
possible match-up for Folayang in his return to One FC could
be a fight with Muay Thai star Ole Laursen, who he was originally
scheduled to face on the card before a knee injury befell the
fighter.
Whoever
his next opponent is, Folayang is excited to see his star continue
to rise as one of the best home grown fighters not only from
the Philippines, but one of the top competitors in the world.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
UFC
139: Wand takes Belfort’s place
UFC president Dana White tweeted some breaking news regarding
the UFC 139 card that’s of particular interest to Brazilian
fans:
An
injury has forced Vitor Belfort to pull out of his scheduled
bout with Cung Le, and Wanderlei Silva will be taking his place.
The
news means Wanderlei will have a chance to redeem himself since
the brutal knockout he suffered at the hands of Chris Leben last
July at UFC 132.
Now
the matchup marks Cung Le’s UFC debut after amassing eight
fights’ worth of professional MMA experience (7w, 1l), all
under the Strikeforce banner.
Check
out the provisional UFC 139 card:
Cung
Le vs. Wanderlei Silva
Dan Henderson vs. Mauricio Shogun
Brian Bowles vs. Urijah Faber
Martin Kampmann vs. Rick Story
Ryan Bader vs. Jason Brilz
Rafael dos Anjos vs. Gleison Tibau
Stephan Bonnar vs. Kyle Kingsbury
Tom Lawlor vs. Chris Weidman
Source:
Gracie Magazine
|
Tasty
gambling odds/lines for upcoming big UFC fights
By Zach
Arnold
Our
friend Nick Kalikas continues to work hard at setting some good
lines for upcoming UFC fights. In the video embedded here, check
out the line he put on the Rick Story/Martin Kampmann fight (Story
-140, Kampmann +110) & the Brian Bowles/Urijah Faber fight
(Faber at -200). There’s lots of intriguing lines on upcoming
fights, including some biggies that we’ll take a look at
here right now.
For
informational & entertainment purposes only.
UFC
135 in Denver
A
couple of lines worthy of noting…
Jon
Jones (-500, 5 to 1 favorite) vs. Quinton Jackson (+400, 4 to
1 underdog)
This
line has remained solidly consistent throughout, meaning money
is coming in on both sides. Rampage is motivated to fight, which
is always a big question mark for him. Plus, the issue of wear
and tear on his body with all the miles he’s put it through.
However, the biggest question in this fight — is Rampage
right in stating that Jones hates getting tagged and will go
into ‘GSP mode’ should that happen?
I’m
not a big ‘bet for value’ guy in fighting. You pick
the guy who’s going to win in your estimation. This isn’t
poker and pricing for ‘pot odds.’ With that said, -500
is way too high of a line for me to consider.
Josh
Koscheck (-500, 5 to 1 favorite) vs. Matt Hughes (+400, 4 to
1 underdog
That’s
not a typo. The line has jumped up dramatically in favor of Koscheck
since it was first set. Hughes is on the last fight of his UFC
contract, he says his wife wants him to retire, and not many
people are giving him much of a shot at beating someone who is
looked at as younger, faster, and better at what he does.
Again,
too high of a line for me to consider here in favoring Mr. Koscheck.
Nate
Diaz (-280, 14 to 5 favorite) vs. Takanori Gomi (+200, 2 to 1
underdog)
Nate
got suplexed to death by Rory MacDonald at UFC 129 in Toronto
but he’s not facing that kind of opponent here. It’s
possible Gomi could tag him but it’s more likely that we’ll
see Nate do the same thing to Gomi as Marcus Aurelio did several
years ago.
October
fights (and the rest of the Fall campaign)
Dominick
Cruz (-400, 4 to 1 favorite) vs. Demetrious Johnson (+325, 3
to 1 underdog)
It’s
a five round fight and Johnson is coming off the leg injury he
suffered in his last fight. -400 is too pricy even if it’s
probably the right #.
Frankie
Edgar (-150, 3 to 2 favorite) vs. Gray Maynard (+130, nearly
7 to 5 underdog)
The
line sounds right and, yet, I’m compelled to think that
Maynard should be considered here simply because of the damage
he did early on to Frankie in R1 of their last fight. It took
a mad comeback just to even things up after a five round battle.
Chael
Sonnen (-260, 13 to 5 favorite) vs. Brian stann (+200, 2 to 1
underdog)
The
line has stayed the same since it was first made. I thought more
money would come in on Stann given the long layoff Sonnen has
had (even if he’ll be back to using TRT, right?).
Jose
Aldo (-280, 14 to 5 favorite) vs. Kenny Florian (+220, 11 to
5 underdog)
Aldo
being nearly a 3-to-1 favorite sounds about right. Don’t
tell Luke Thomas that, who absolutely loves Florian in this spot
and thinks Kenny is a big step up for Aldo in competition. That’s
probably accurate but look at Kenny’s history in title fights.
He’s simply not the same fighter in title bouts as he is
in non-title fights.
Melvin
Guillard (-300, 3 to 1 favorite) vs. Joe Lauzon (+240, 12 to
5 underdog)
Melvin’s
win over Evan Dunham has done his wonders in terms of gaining
respect amongst the fans and bettors. He’s certainly more
athletic than Joe and has great coaching, but 3 to 1 sounds rather
large here.
Anthony
Pettis (-260, 13 to 5 favorite) vs. Jeremy Stephens (+220, 11
to 5 underdog)
Even
though styles make fights, I’m surprised that bettors have
not had their confidence shaken in Mr. Pettis. He had a lousy
showing against Clay Guida last June (you’ll remember that
show as the one where Dana White was too busy fighting Bloodstain
Lane on Twitter to watch the fights unfolding in front of him).
The
one thing Stephens has going for him is that he’s fought
some very tough, respectable competition in the UFC and as we’re
seeing with guys being introduced into the Zuffa family from
other promotions, there is no substitute for having a long track
record against fighting real competition.
Eddie
Alvarez (-260, 13 to 5 favorite) vs. Mike Chandler (+200, 2 to
1 underdog)
If
you’re like Joe Rogan and you believe a viable argument
can be made that Eddie is the #1 Lightweight in the world, then
you’ll jump on this line like there’s no tomorrow.
Mike is certainly progressing as a fighter rather quickly but
facing someone like Eddie with all of his experience and toughness
is a big task at hand. I’m surprised the line isn’t
higher in favor of Eddie here.
UFC
137 in Las Vegas
Georges
St. Pierre (-400, 4 to 1 favorite) vs. Carlos Condit (+350, 7
to 2 underdog)
In
other words, the same standard line we always see with St. Pierre
for his title fights. If you’re looking for a ray of sunshine
as to why Condit stands a chance, read what Jordan Breen said
here.
BJ
Penn (-130, 13 to 10 favorite) vs. Nick Diaz (EVEN)
I
am perplexed and befuddled by this line. BJ is only a -130 favorite?
Are people sleeping on this line or are there so many hardcore
Nick Diaz fans out there willing to put money on ‘their
guy’ (ala Fedor) that you end up with crazy lines like this?
I would not be shocked to see Penn up as a -200 favorite by fight
time. If not, then that means there’s a lot of fish out
there ready to get reeled in and you should love, love, love
that -130 line on a lot of levels.
Someone
please explain to me what Nick Diaz does better than BJ Penn
and just exactly the course in which he wins this fight. By decision?
How? Penn on top position is a win for BJ since US judges are
hesistant to award points to guys on their back (rightly or wrongly).
Striking-wise, Penn would love to drill Diaz with a few power
shots. In terms of experience and quality of opponents faced,
Penn blows Diaz out the water.
Matt
Mitrione (-130, 13 to 10 favorite) vs. Cheick Kongo (EVEN)
This,
right here, is a wild line. Do you put Mitrione in the same category
as Pat Barry in terms of offensive striking? I get it, Kongo
showed horrible defense against Barry in their Pittsburgh fight.
Plus, Mitrione has won a string of fights recently in highlight
fashion. However, he’s facing a guy that can easily knock
him out fast and do so in very devastating fashion. I’m
shocked that Kongo is not the favorite here and by a substantial
margin, say, by a 3 to 2 margin.
Mark
Munoz (-220, 11 to 5 favorite) vs. Chris Leben (+180, 9 to 5
underdog)
It
sounds about right?
Cain
Velasquez (-140, 7 to 5 favorite) vs. Junior dos Santos (+120,
6 to 5 underdog)
Wow,
there’s a lot of people not buying into Velasquez as the
man, yet. I think a lot of the concern here is about whether
or not he has full healed from the rotator cuff surgery. I can
definitely see some value here for Cain if you’re a big
believer in him as being the dominant ‘ace’ of the
UFC HW division for some time to come.
Mauricio
Shogun (-160, 8 to 5 favorite) vs. Dan Henderson (+130, 13 to
10 underdog)
A
dream fight for both hardcore and casual fans. A lot of people
are already excited to pick Henderson to win here and feel that
the money will come in on Shogun because of the ‘Forrest
Griffin effect’ as our buddy Luca Fury likes to say.
Alistair
Overeem (-140, 7 to 5 favorite) vs. Brock Lesnar (+120, 6 to
5 underdog)
That’s
a much tighter line than I expected. I thought the initial line
would be heavier in favor of Overeem.
Michael
Bisping (-200, 2 to 1 favorite) vs. Mayhem Miller (+160, 8 to
5 underdog)
Like
the Overeem line, I’m surprised that Bisping isn’t
a higher favorite here.
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
Vitor
Belfort talks injury, Wanderlei vs. Le and Sonnen: “I’d
pound (Sonnen) out”
By Guilherme
Cruz
Vitor
Belfort is injured and out of UFC 139, but he’s already
thinking on his return to the cage. Before a rehabilitation session
to heal up his injuries, the Phenom spoke to TATAME about his
recovery, Wanderlei Silva vs. Cung Le and his desired to fight
Chael Sonnnen in December. “I’d pound him out”,
he guaranteed.
How
did you get this injury?
I
had an injury that almost took me out of my last fight (against
Akiyama), and now I restarted training and I felt it again. I
went to my doctors in Brazil and my elbows were a little sore,
but it’s an old injury, in other part of my body, that worried
me. He gave me four weeks with no contact to recover, so I’d
be away from training on the next four weeks, then I’d restart
training.
I
did that in my fight against Sakuraba and it was never good.
Thanks God I’m in a good moment, I don’t need to fight
at 20% or 50%. I can’t take that risk, mainly in this special
stage of my career. I have to be 100% there. One thing is get
injured during the camp, but I’d start my camp with an injury.
The doctors decide that, and I’ll be ready to fight in December.
How
you saw that fight against Cung Le? Was that a fight you were
interested in?
I
never chose opponents, and I think it would be a good fight to
stay busy. The right thing is to fight in December, when I’ll
be 100%. The UFC and my fans want to see me 100%, nobody wants
to see me at 50%.
Wanderlei
Silva will replace you against Le. How do you see that fight?
It’s
great for Wanderlei... He’s coming from a loss and will
fight a guy that like to strike. It’s a good moment for
Wanderlei, he has great chances. He’s an excellent athlete,
and it shows Brazil is doing great in the UFC. A Brazilian is
out, another Brazilian is in. I think it’s a great fight
for Wanderlei to come back. He won two of his last eight fights,
right? So, I think it can put him back, give him a motivation
to stay fighting.
Do
you already think about a possible opponent for your next fight,
in December? You tweeted that you’re interested in fighting
Chael Sonnen…
I
hope I can fight him. Let’s get this trashtalker… I
think it’s the perfect timing, he’s a good opponent
and it’s a fight that everybody wants to see. Even if Anderson
(Silva) wants that fight, I believe he (Anderson) would give
me this fight as a gift. I really want to fight him. If he wants
to fight Anderson, I’d be a great test for him.
He
has a great Wrestling game. How’s your takedown defense
of ground game from the bottom?
I’d
pound him out… Let’s hope he wins this fight and the
UFC puts him against me. That’s the fight everybody wants
to see.
Source:
Tatame
|
Browne
Broadens Training Horizons
by Yael
Grauer
As
Travis Browne prepares to square off against Rob Broughton at
UFC 135 on Saturday at the Pepsi Center in Denver, trainer Greg
Jackson describes the Hawaiian heavyweight with two words: subtle
intensity.
“He
reminds me of a lot of Hawaiians that I know in that he’s
very laid back, but there’s an intensity to him still,”
Jackson tells Sherdog.com. “He’s friendly and he can
joke around and you can tease him and he’ll tease you right
back and so he’s just a good guy, but there is that fighter
in him, that intensity in him, that pride and that wanting to
win. But it’s very subtle, where’s he’s not going
in people’s faces or screaming or anything like that. There’s
an intensity to him, but it’s a very subtle intensity.”
Browne
(11-0-1) began training at Jackson’s Mixed Martial Arts
in Albuquerque, N.M., for this fight. He embraces the opportunity
to train at a high altitude, considering it wise preparation
for a bout in the Mile High City.
“Jackson’s
MMA is considered the best camp in MMA, and I never want to be
stuck behind the curve,” Browne says. “I don’t
want to be stuck in the dark in my career. This sport is ever
evolving, and if you’re not ahead of the curve, that means
you’re behind it. There’s no going with the curve.
You need to be ahead, or you’re going to be stuck in the
past.”
Browne,
who leveled 6-foot-11 Dutchman Stefan Struve with one punch at
UFC 130 in May, plans to continue training at the Alliance Training
Center -- he describes it as an excellent camp -- and will have
his coach from the gym, Eric Del Fierro, cornering him along
with Jackson.
“I’m
kind of getting the best of both worlds when it comes to the
training camps and the coaches out of those two phenomenal camps”
he says.
However,
Browne believes Jackson brings a whole new element to the sport.
“He
teaches technical aspects to the game where people don’t
even know that you can be technical at them,” he says, “so
it’s really a blessing to be working with him and to have
this kind of fight at this point in my career.”
The
6-foot-7 Browne marvels at the way Jackson equates his mentality
and that of the fighters coming out of his gym with the Chihuahuan
Desert bioregion.
“Training
with Jackson, there’s a whole mental edge there that you
can’t get past,” he says. “If you’re out
here in the high desert in Albuquerque, you look around, not
in the city because there’s nicer stuff in the city, but
if you go out to where it’s nature, there’s no beautiful
things in this desert. You know, there’s no big trees and
beautiful flowers and this and that. It’s desert. It’s
sand, it’s rocks, it’s hot as hell, there’s little
shrubs, tiny shrubs, but everything is tough, and, so, that’s
his mentality with his fighters.
“You
survive a camp here, that’s you,” Browne adds. “You’re
not pretty, you’re not good looking, but you’re tough
as hell and you’re going to be hard to kill, hard to stop.
And that’s that mental edge that he gives all of his fighters
here at Jackson’s -- is that you will not lose this fight.
You can push through anything that anybody else can push through.
If they can do it, you can do it; you can do it even better than
them.”
To
hone that mental edge, Jackson takes a group of fighters out
to the sand dunes once a week -- in the middle of the day when
the temperature is hottest -- to run sprints.
“It
isn’t really a cardio thing; it’s more of the mental
aspect, because you’re nonstop moving for all these sprints
and it just sucks,” Browne says. “It’s one of
those things where it’s just, oh, man, you just want it
to be over and you don’t want to continue but you just keep
pushing forward and mentally it’s making you stronger every
time you do those. It’s more of a mental thing than anything.”
Broughton
is 15-5-1.
During
their last sprint, participants run up the hill while carrying
someone on their backs. Jackson mentioned one instance in which
Browne actually ran an extra round to help out a team member
in the last session.
“There
was one last guy -- he wasn’t really a fighter -- running
up there,” Jackson says, “and Travis came all the way
back up to make sure that he finished his sprint.”
For
Browne, it was all done in the spirit of teamwork.
“We’re
all done and everyone’s sitting in the shade drinking their
water, and I looked up and he’s still doing his sprint,”
he says. “I like to be the first guy there and the last
guy to leave, so if he’s not done yet, then I’m going
to do an extra one for him and just show him that we’re
a team and I’m there behind him.”
Jackson
describes Browne as a perfectionist.
“He’s
always getting on himself,” he says. “He wants to do
better. Every sparring session he wants to improve. He has that
intensity, for sure.”
In
true fashion, Browne remains interested in either a rematch with
Cheick Kongo -- a man against whom he fought to a draw at UFC
120 -- or someone who has beaten the chiseled French kickboxer.
“I
want to get that blemish off my record,” Browne says. “I
know it never really comes off, but I want to show people that
I belong there with fighters like Kongo and the Top 10 in the
UFC [heavyweight] division.”
Before
any other potential matchups take place, Browne will collide
with Broughton, a Wolfslair Academy representative who will enter
the cage on a five-fight winning streak. The mental and physical
skills he continues to hone will certainly be tested. Browne
does not sell his opponent short.
“From
watching his tape, I think he’s highly underrated, because
he’s a tough guy. He can take punishment, he keeps moving
forward and he gives punishment if you let him,” Browne
says. “He’s like a guy that goes a speed of 80 the
entire fight. He doesn’t slow down, but he doesn’t
speed up, so he waits for guys to go 100 and then drop to 60
and he’s just grinding you out the whole entire time and
that’s what makes him a tough dude and a tough fight. It’s
not going to be a pretty fight. I don’t expect to look the
greatest, but I expect to come out on top on this one, definitely.”
Jackson
echoes those sentiments about Broughton, a former Cage Rage champion
who submitted Vinicius Kappke de Queiroz in his promotional debut
at UFC 120.
“He’s
really tough,” Jackson says. “He’s such a tough
guy. He sets a good pace, he never stops moving, he can really
take a great punch and he’s real tricky, but I think his
biggest asset is he’s a really good grinder. He can really
take your soul away from you, so to speak. He can absorb punishment,
he can give punishment back and just tire you out and take over
in the fight.”
Jackson
pointed out that Broughton has no glaring weaknesses, so Browne
will have to work for the little advantages in the fight. Jackson’s
description for the game plan for this matchup remains, as always,
a well-kept secret, but he says Browne has been working on “plugging
holes” and improving in what he calls structural aspects
of the sport.
Perhaps
due to limited depth in the division, Browne has only fought
Europeans, but he believes the training available in the United
States to be vastly superior.
“I
think we’re the ones that are showing the rest of the world
how to fight MMA,” he says. “We’re the innovators
of it; we’re the ones that are taking it to the next level.
There are so many people, even the Brazilians; they come up here
to train for the wrestling, the striking, all that kind of good
stuff. I think everything you need for MMA is in the U.S., and
that’s where it’s going to be the strongest.”
“He
reminds me of a lot of Hawaiians that I know in that he’s
very laid back, but there’s an intensity to him still.”--
Greg Jackson, on Travis Browne
Away
from training, Browne spends the rest of his time with his 3-
and 4-year old sons, Keawe and Kaleo.
“The
way I live my life is I’m a father first,” he says.
“If I’m not with my kids, I’m usually in the gym,
and if I’m not in the gym, I’m usually with my kids.
That’s how I love to live my life -- to be there for my
boys. They definitely have priority over everything else in this
world. We do all the daddy kind of stuff, going to the park or
the beach or riding bikes and skateboards, building Lego stuff
and doing all that kind of good stuff. That’s what I like
to spend my time doing when I’m not fighting is taking care
of those little boys.”
Browne
expects to someday return to his native Hawaii -- he thinks it
would be a great place for his boys -- but not anytime soon.
“It’s
definitely somewhere that I would like to retire; I can lay on
the beach and drink a beer or do whatever I want to do for the
rest of my life, but, right now, I have a window of opportunity
and I plan on taking full advantage of that,” he says. “It’s
time to take care of business.”
Source
Sherdog
|
Bas
Boon (Golden Glory) statement on relations with the #UFC &
Alistair Overeem
By Zach
Arnold
The
UFC is not wrong!
I
want to make the following statement to clear up any speculation.
The
UFC did nothing wrong and neither did Golden Glory management
when signing up Alistair Overeem with the UFC. It is public knowledge
how the UFC does business. The fighters sign their own contracts
and agreements. If journalists have any questions regarding Alistair
Overeem’s statement about G.G please contact the UFC for
any further questions. ALL correspondence between the UFC and
Golden Glory was also shared/CC’d to Alistair Overeem, who
finally made a decision to sign the agreements.
These
are difficult times in the fighting industry. We are still waiting
for payment of FEG, as Alistair said in the press, and the future
of FEG is still unclear. There is a Dutch law called bibop in
the Netherlands which makes promoting events there extremely
difficult. There will be a lot of rumors like in the recent past
when 4 G.G fighters were released from the UFC and Strikeforce
and that was the so called end of G.G relationship with the UFC.
Not
long after this rumor, Golden Glory made a mega-deal with Alistair
Overeem signing with the UFC. John Olaf Einemo is now back with
the UFC and Siyar Bahadurzada just got offered a UFC contract.
There
is also some really good news coming soon about the situation
in Japan and I really want to let everybody know the details
— but I have signed multiple NDAs (non disclosure argreements)
and I have to wait before publicly elaborating further.
With
Sporting Greetings,
Bas Boon
P.S
Try to become not a man of success but try to become a man a
value. – Albert Einstein
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
Fences
Mended, Nick Diaz Could Still Earn a Shot at GSP With a Win at
UFC 137
by Damon
Martin
While
there are still many roads to cross before UFC 137 comes to pass,
it appears some of the fences have been mended between the UFC
and welterweight Nick Diaz.
The
two sides were at an impasse just a couple of weeks ago when
Diaz no-showed a press conference just a day after missing another
press junket, and so UFC President Dana White yanked him from
the main event fight against Georges St-Pierre, and replaced
him with Carlos Condit.
Just
a few days after that, White decided to give Diaz another shot,
this time in the co-main event on the card against B.J. Penn.
White finally had the chance to catch up with Diaz and have a
long conversation with the enigmatic fighter, and now knows how
he has to work with him, and that’s something they can definitely
do.
“I
talked to Nick two days ago on the phone for an hour. Here’s
the thing with Nick Diaz, in which I’m not used to but I’m
going to get used to it, he’s just a different guy. I’m
going to have to handle him and deal with him differently than
I do every other guy in the UFC. I’m cool with that,”
White told MMAWeekly.com.
“Just
have to handle him differently. I don’t have to call Matt
Hughes every three days, I don’t have to call Rampage every
three days, I don’t have to talk to these guys, but I do
with Nick. That’s cool, I can do that.”
Looking
back at the decision he had to make for the good of UFC 137,
White admits that pulling Diaz wasn’t an easy decision,
but something had to be done.
“It’s
unfortunate what I had to do in that situation, but I had to
do it,” White stated. “10 years, 1,600 fights, no one
has ever not shown up for a press conference. It would be one
thing if there was something wrong, like with the Jake Shields
situation.”
Shields,
who is Diaz’s long time teammate, lost his father Jack just
weeks prior to his scheduled fight at UFC Fight Night 25, but
opted to remain in his scheduled fight against Jake Ellenberger.
It
is a completely different situation with Diaz, who just missed
the press conference and showed little regard for his actions
other than a YouTube video he put out later that same day.
White
believes however he can work with Diaz, and hasn’t given
up on giving the former Strikeforce welterweight champion another
shot at UFC gold if things work out that way.
“I
can figure this thing out where I can work with Nick Diaz, and
we can make this happen,” White stated.
“We’ll
see, I’d like to do that fight if they both win, I’d
like to do that fight. We’ll see what happens.”
Diaz
will get his chance to potentially earn that shot at St-Pierre
when he faces former UFC welterweight champion B.J. Penn in October.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
808
Battlegrounds presents: Unstoppable
Today
The Waterfront, Aloha Tower, Honolulu, Hawaii
September 23,2011
|
Amateur
Boxing Show Saturday, Sept. 24
Tomorrow
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 ** Tomorrow
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
|
UFC
135 (9/24 Denver)
By Zach
Arnold
Hawaii
Air Times:
UFC 135 2:00-5:00PM Channel 701
Preliminaries 2:00-3:00PM Spike 559
UFC 135 Countdown 9/23 6:00AM Spike 559
UFC 135 Countdown 9/23 2:30PM Spike 559
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)
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
UFC
135 Preview: The Prelims
by Jason
Probst
Fresh
off his impressive run in winning Season 13 of “The Ultimate
Fighter,” Tony Ferguson leads the lineup for the UFC 135
“Jones vs. Rampage” prelims against hard-nosed veteran
Aaron Riley on Saturday at the Pepsi Center in Denver. The bout
will be televised on Spike TV and supported by a middleweight
clash between Nick Ring and Tim Boetsch.
Three
other matches round out the undercard and will be streamed on
the UFC’s Facebook page. Here is at the UFC 135 undercard,
with previews and picks.
Lightweights
Tony Ferguson (11-2, 1-0 UFC) vs. Aaron Riley (30-12-1, 3-3 UFC)
The
Matchup: Ferguson was impressive in winning “The Ultimate
Fighter,” as he steamrolled the competition and fellow finalist
Ramsey Nijem -- at welterweight, no less. His blend of athleticism,
takedown mojo and sharp standup make him one of the more intriguing
reality show winners in recent years because he looks a heck
of a lot more like a finished product than some of the others
the show has produced.
To
hardcore fans, Riley is one of the game’s most respected
longtime veterans, having engaged in some of the sport’s
memorable brawls. Whether it was showing his great chin in dropping
a brutal decision loss to Robbie Lawler at UFC 37 or his classic
scraps across various organizations, Riley can always be counted
on to show up and fight, regardless of the size of the opponent
or circumstances. He is also likely a bit past his prime but
still has some bite, as evidenced by his payback decision domination
win over Shane Nelson at UFC 101. Riley is an all-in slugger
with the kind of experience you cannot teach and mileage you
only get after a lot of blood, sweat and various things on your
body are broken several times over.
This
is a nice piece of matchmaking by the UFC. Ferguson’s ability
to unload solid, compact counters from a tight boxing crouch
in the pocket will be key to countering Riley, who likes to plant
his feet in the pocket and go shot-for-shot against foes. The
ace card for Ferguson is his outstanding wrestling. On “The
Ultimate Fighter,” he implemented his will on opponents,
and there was not much they could do to stop him, as he consistently
beat them in transitions, particularly when striking.
Look
for Ferguson to test it out on the feet a bit, but, being a smart
fighter, he will be restrained enough not to let it turn into
a macho brawl, which is the only kind of fight Riley is likely
to win.
The
Pick: At some point, Ferguson will either land a massive sweeping
punch or hit a takedown, and that is when he starts to roll,
following up with a barrage on Riley that is equal parts accurate
and relentless; Ferguson by first-round knockout.
Middleweights
Tim Boetsch (13-4, 4-3) vs. Nick Ring (12-0, 2-0 UFC)
The
Matchup: Boetsch’s drop to middleweight in a decision win
over Kendall Grove gave his career a needed jumpstart. Meanwhile,
Ring looks to nab this third win in the UFC and bump his unbeaten
ledger to an impressive 13-0 overall.
Boetsch’s
wrestling pedigree is impressive but did not seem to translate
well at 205 pounds, perhaps because his losses there were to
larger and better-pedigreed college wrestlers. At middleweight,
his debut against Grove was a well-executed piece of strategy.
He was able to use his takedowns and steady ground-and-pound
while avoiding Grove’s submission attempts, and he held
on down the stretch as the effects of the first-time weight cut
clearly sank in. Boetsch’s cut should be easier now that
he has one under his belt. That could mean bad news for fellow
middleweights because he can bang on the feet, as well as take
them down.
Ring
remains something of a question mark after a recurring knee injury
scrapped a potentially impressive run on Season 11 of “The
Ultimate Fighter.” A sketchy decision win over Riki Fukuda
may have had something to do with ring rust in his UFC debut.
Ring’s standup is stout and he shows a solid understanding
of grappling, particularly jiu-jitsu and submissions. He is likely
to get hit hard in this match against Boetsch, who comes in with
the confidence of believing he is the better wrestler with heavier
hands.
Ring
has to make this a precise, technical fight. The more it degenerates
into a wild brawl, especially with clinching and dirty boxing,
the more it favors Boetsch, who seems to have a knack for landing
big in those kinds of fights. Ring has to use leg kicks, as well,
which Boetsch can be a little slow to block, while changing angles,
circling and making “The Barbarian” expend energy in
costly assault.
The
Pick: Boetsch will eventually force the fight to the mat and
get aggressive with his hands, all while avoiding a couple of
threatening submission attempts. His size and power from the
top should be enough to squeak by with a close decision win.
Bantamweights
Cole Escovedo (17-7, 0-1 UFC) vs. Takeya Mizugaki (14-6-2, 1-1
UFC)
The
Matchup: With the relative lack of depth in the bantamweight
division’s lower tiers, there is room aplenty to grow as
the UFC fleshes out the ranks and adds talent. In Escovedo-Mizugaki,
we have an interesting contrast of styles to settle the matter.
Escovedo’s
best standing weapon is quick kicks to the legs -- if allowed
to unleash them without repercussions, he will deal them out
all night long. He is more of a volume-style striker, willing
to pile up points if the fight is extended on the feet. On the
ground, he possesses a jiu-jitsu-based game in which he is comfortable
on his back -- and sometimes too comfortable. It can backfire
against a capable top-control specialist with solid wrestling
and good ground-and-pound.
Mizugaki
does not do anything pretty, but he is one of those athletes
that gets results despite how ugly it may look. His standup is
raw and nowhere near any muay Thai textbook’s step-by-step
technique breakdowns; he fails readily and will wade in for tie-ups
without protecting his face. Yet, he is exceptionally tough,
resilient and, at times, has a zombie-like factor that allows
him to simply keep coming. Opponents that cannot plant him on
his back are usually in for a long night, as Mizugaki simply
pushes the pace and wears them down.
This
one has the looks of a long fight, especially if Escovedo is
willing to cede the takedown to look for a submission. However,
he might be better served by sprawling-and-brawling early to
soften up the Japanese brawler. Certainly, Mizugaki will offer
openings aplenty to strike, as he pushes forward to force confrontations.
He cannot fight any other way.
Escovedo
should be able to score enough points standing in the early portions
of rounds to sway the judges his way. It is what happens if and
when he ends up on his back that determines Mizugaki’s fate.
The
Pick: Escovedo has solid defensive jiu-jitsu and showed it in
dropping a decision to the ultra-talented Renan Barao. He should
be able to scratch out a close decision while taking some punishment
on the mat in a fast-paced and moderately entertaining fight.
Light
Heavyweights
Ricardo Romero (11-2, 1-1 UFC) vs. James Te Huna (12-5, 1-1 UFC)
The
Matchup: A battle between a pair of 205-pounders in need of a
win unfolds here, and if the loser gets blown out, he is probably
going to get his walking papers. With that said, both men have
shown guts. Romero beat Seth Petruzelli despite a broken jaw
and a torn pectoral muscle; Te Huna dispatched Igor Pokrajac
after sustaining a broken arm.
Romero’s
better takedowns and limited standup are a stark contrast to
Te Huna, whose willingness and some capability to bang contrast
with his own deficiencies on the mat, particularly defending
submissions. He remains a little green there, and it showed badly
in his last fight, where Alexander Gustafsson looked like a Brazilian
jiu-jitsu instructor giving a “code red” to a mouthy
white belt.
The
Pick: Good pitching usually beats good hitting, and, in MMA,
you always take good grappling over striking, most other things
being equal. Romero is definitely the better athlete, as well.
He will have to keep his chin tucked and cover up properly when
closing the distance, picking a good angle and the right moment
to do so. From there, he should be able to improve position,
pound as necessary and ultimately get the tap in the first round.
Featherweights
Junior Assuncao (12-4, 1-2 UFC) vs. Eddie Yagin (15-4-1, 0-0 UFC)
The
Matchup: Assuncao has developed fair standup, and will toss a
left hand down the pipe with respectable quickness, but Yagin
may have the edge on the feet due to more overall aggression
and combinations. Combined with his superior takedowns, this
represents a considerable tactical advantage in terms of dictating
where the fight goes.
Top
control and standing aggression will prove the difference in
this one, with Yagin forcing some exchanges and probably eating
a few quick counters from Assuncao while he works to close the
distance. Taking down a good jiu-jitsu man is something to be
done cautiously and is and best executed after some hard fighting
-- and sweating -- is done on the feet.
The
Pick: Expect Yagin to get rocked a couple times before eventually
bringing it to the mat and wearing out Assuncao, repeating the
trick over the final two rounds to take a unanimous decision.
Source:
Sherdog
|
Former
TUF Fighter and Coach, Michael Bisping Brings Unique Perspective
to TUF 14
by Lee
Whitehead
All
the classic TV shows have a hero and a villain, two forces that
are in direct opposition struggling for power. Mixed martial
arts is no different, and the 14th installment of The Ultimate
Fighter promises the same, with American coach Jason “Mayhem”
Miller and British counterpart Michael “The Count”
Bisping vying for supremacy.
Bisping
has been in the TUF situation before, once as a competitor and
another as a coach, and on both occasions he has been happy to
assume to role of the bad guy, but it does grate on him sometimes.
“There
was a lot of backlash from the last time I was a coach on the
show, but I can’t personally see the big deal,” explains
the Briton.
“I
regret doing the water incident with DaMarques Johnson, even
though he had been on at me constantly, but I wear my heart on
my sleeve and for better or worse, I don’t play up for the
cameras. I just be myself.”
The
key thing is, for all the negativity that may have surrounded
him on the show, Bisping’s team managed to get three out
of four fighters into the finals, and those are stats you can’t
dispute.
“Obviously
you play some mindgames and get one up on your opponent, because
it is a competition, but I have matured and grown up since last
time and I hope that people will see that I care about these
guys on my team and I gave it my heart and soul.”
Having
gone through the mill with the roles of fighter and coach, Bisping
is well aware of the grueling schedule and nature around the
six-week filming process, he feels that this has given him an
empathy with what the latest contestants had to go through, as
it isn’t easy.
“There
were a few things I wanted to consider this time around, despite
having secured the best training times straight away. I took
into consideration the schedule and tried to make sure my guys
didn’t over-train as that is worse than being unprepared.”
And
how did he go about this?
“We
had some chill time, sessions off here and there, rather than
just a day, sometimes we took an entire weekend, sat around,
watched fights together and took it easy,” he recounted.
“I
needed the break as much as they did. What you have to remember
is that this is a lot of work. It’s a real grind with four
to five hours of filming a day, training, cutting weight, coaching
the fight, dealing with the fallout, and then doing interviews.
It’s not as simple as it looks onscreen.”
Of
course, with emotions getting frayed with the training, interviews
and so on, he still had to deal with an antagonist in the shape
of Miller.
“When
we started filming I thought he was okay, but now I don’t
care for him too much. You have to remember that our fight is
a long way off, so although you play mind games, you have to
put your own situation to one side and focus on the guys, put
my issues to one side.”
With
the UFC pushing lighter weight categories following the integration
of the WEC, it may seem strange to have a couple of big middleweights
leading the task of training these guys.
Featherweights
and bantamweights are the classes and Bisping is fine with that,
although initially he had his reservations.
“At
first it was a little bit of a problem. I was disappointed in
the categories because I like to be hands-on and get on the mat
and it wasn’t as much of an option this time round because
the guys could end up getting injured. So it was good to move
into more of a true coach kind of role and look at the bigger
picture.”
Having
had a different vantage point this time around, the Briton feels
that it has benefited the team more. He knows that there will
be some fights won and some fights lost, but overall they bonded
well, with no notions of unrest or divisions within the camp.
Typically,
fighters form a strong bond with their own fight camps and become
a sort of brotherhood. Bisping has this with the Wolfslair and
the bond runs very deep indeed. Taking what are effectively strangers
into your team and building trust is always a hard process, but
if the process works and you are all honest, the bond can be
quite solid and stand the test of adversity.
Bisping
developed a sense of brotherhood with the process and hopes that
the viewer understands that the wins and losses affected him
as if they were his own.
“The
guys on my team were lunatics. We had some great times, great
drama, and worked very hard, but above all, they were super-talented
and had an amazing skill level to start with. I was very impress
with them from the offset and just had to concentrate on managing
the process. These guys are all true fighters, and win or lose,
we were all in it deep together.”
With
the show debuting on Wednesday night in the U.S. on Spike TV
and Thursday night in the U.K. on the FX channel, the middleweight
contender doesn’t have long to wait in order to see how
the show will be perceived. He knows that he will have fans and
detractors in spite of what he gave of himself on the show, but
insists that fans have to view this in the same way he did, that
it isn’t about Miller or himself, it is about the fighters
that are going to become the next batch of contenders in the
UFC.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Jed
Meshew on Dana White’s most philosophical question ever
asked on The Ultimate Fighter
By Zach
Arnold
By Jed Meshew
“Do
you want to be a fighter?!”
Six
years ago, Dana White posited that question to sixteen upcoming
mixed martial artists in the middle of a gym in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Several weeks later, Forrest Griffin and Stephan Bonnar would
put on what is widely viewed as the most influential fight in
the history of MMA. On that night, all sixteen contestants from
the first season of The Ultimate Fighter would fight. Of them,
eight are still fighting in the UFC, five went on to challenge
for a title, and one eventually became a champion. It was a blend
of highly touted prospects and established veterans each vying
for a golden opportunity into the UFC and though other seasons
have produced great fighters and even a few champions, none rival
the depth of talent present in the first season of the show.
Instead,
each of the subsequent seasons have become increasingly formulaic,
the rosters shallower, and while the ratings have only taken
a marginal hit the show is no longer creating stars as it did
in the first few seasons. Instead, the truly talented fighters
who once would find their way into the TUF house are now receiving
direct contracts into the UFC and the show’s cast has been
relegated to mediocre fighters and over the top personalities
rather than true top shelf prospects.
However,
season 14 of The Ultimate Fighter looks to break this trend with
a roster as deep as the original season. Opening up the new divisions
in the UFC has, quite frankly, legitimized those weights to potential
fighters. Instead of being put in the awkward position of fighting
dramatically above one’s natural weight or toiling in relative
obscurity for significantly lower pay, smaller fighters now have
the option of fighting at their appropriate level (save for flyweights
who will still have to wait another year or so until the UFC
can clear up the logistics). By creating belts in these weight
classes, the UFC has opened up a hitherto untapped cache of talent
and the sudden influx of fighters clawing for a spot into the
UFC at this new developing weight range has resulted in an entire
season of quality fighters. Unlike the last several seasons,
where there is perhaps one great fighter amid the ranks if any,
this season boasts a cast where the question of who wins is legitimately
difficult to answer. Make no mistake — this cast has at
the minimum several future top-10 fighters and probably at least
one champion as well.
Who
to watch for
The
high quality of fighters accrued for this season of The Ultimate
Fighter is highlighted by the UFC seemingly recruiting out of
the top camps in the sport right now. TJ Dillashaw and Bryan
Caraway are both Team Alpha Male fighters; Marcus Brimage and
Micah Miller both train in Coconut Creek Fl. with American Top
Team, and John Dodson and Diego Brandao are products of the Jackson
Mixed Martial Arts system. Mixed in with these men are a host
of other up and comers training with UFC veterans and in elite
gyms around the world. The cast boast six fighters who honed
their skills in the Bellator Fighting Championship, as well as
several EliteXC and Sengoku veterans, the Cage Warriors featherweight
champion, the Ring of Combat featherweight champion, the King
of the Cage flyweight champion, and a myriad of fighters decorated
in wrestling, jiu-jitsiu and kickboxing. Top to bottom this class
is the deepest since the first season and quite possibly the
most talented group ever assembled.
Headlining
this group is Urijah Faber protégé TJ Dillashaw.
Training at Team Alpha Male with Faber and Joseph Benavidez,
Dillashaw was a reasonably accomplished amateur wrestler and
has adapted an mma style which matches what one would expect
of an Alpha Male product. He puts on a high pressure offense
and has an intuitive sense of ground and pound. He is hyper aggressive
and though he may occasionally make positional lapses in his
zeal for damage, his quickness and instinctive grappling game
have kept him safe from any real trouble. Dillashaw is one of
the rawest talents on the show, but his wrestling abilities and
natural athleticism should carry him far and I fully expect him
to develop into a perennial top 10 fighter given time.
John
Dodson is another fighter of particular interest. A product of
Greg Jackson, “The Magician” is already a a top ten
fighter… in the flyweight division. He, along with Jimmie
Rivera, are awaiting the impending flyweight division but in
the mean time have decided to try their hand at the UFC bantamweights
until an adequate home is created for their talents. Dodson has
spectacular physical gifts and has proven his ability to take
a punishment and continue fighting seemingly unfazed. He is a
talented grappler with very capable standup and should be a force
for quite some time once the flyweight division is established
and could even make waves in the developing bantamweight division.
Probably
the most recognizable fighter in the house will be Cole Miller’s
younger brother Micah, who is well positioned to make a deep
run towards the finals. Micah’s style is very similar to
his brother’s which has resulted in a four year career in
the UFC, so I see no reason why Micah wouldn’t have similar
success. Expect to be seeing him in the UFC for many years to
come. These three fighters are just a small sampling of talent
that the TUF 14 cast contains.
Back
to the basics
Though
the talent level harkens back to the original season, it will
be tough to capture that magic both in viewership and in relevance.
Reality television is over-saturating by nature and The Ultimate
Fighter is no different. What originally was a novel and unique
idea was quickly packaged by Spike executives and presented for
viewing consumption with decreasing quality in exchange for quantity
and ratings.
The
first season was a magical blend of talent and turmoil, combining
the volatile nature of men who fight in cages professionally
with real emotional arcs. In the first season everything seemed
real (though its possible it was completely different). These
weren’t people trying to get famous for reality TV, these
were fighters trying to make a life for themselves and the audience
responded. Chris Leben breaking down and crying on national tv
is what made him a star and part of the reason he is still beloved
today and also partly why many people still intensely dislike
Josh Koscheck. The genuineness of the first season has been lost
in the subsequent years (probably around the time Gabe Ruediger
missed his weight cut) and has been replaced by trite character
archetypes. Each season, the viewer can be relatively certain
they will see doors smashed, angry guys yelling at each other,
drunken debauchery, and some mixture of tears and urine. Its
the norm now.
In
many respects, The Ultimate Fighter can be viewed as a microcosm
of the UFC and MMA in general. MMA has long struggled with balancing
the sport versus the spectacle; trying to increase revenue through
viewership while still maintaining the integrity of an athletic
endeavor. Its why Bob Sapp and Kimbo Slice are huge stars despite
only a modicum of talent and why Pride pitted the greatest HW
of all time against Zuluzhino. And though under the Zuffa banner
the UFC has, for the most part, foregone these “freakshow”
type of fights this is still the same company which put James
Toney in a cage with Randy Couture, so the degradation of a reality
show based around fighters being forced to live together for
six weeks with no form of entertainment other than alcohol should
come as no surprise to anyone.
What
has kept the show afloat the past few seasons has really been
both the power of the UFC brand and the stars the company has
attached to the show. The last four seasons have been coached
by Brock Lesnar, Georges St. Pierre, Chuck Liddell, and Quinton
Jackson quite possibly the four biggest names in the company.
Throw the presence of Kimbo Slice in season ten and its clear
to see that the UFC is using its biggest stars to attract eyeballs
to the show.
Will
personalities sell this time around?
Season
14 is no exception to this rule as Mayhem Miller, fresh off his
MTV Bully Beatdown fame, will be coaching opposite Michael Bisping.
While this is likely the gimmick which will attract the most
viewers, its quite possibly the least interesting angle of the
whole show. Even though Bisping and Mayhem are both highly capable
fighters and their interactions will probably be rife with “TV
gold” due to Mayhem’s antics their forced rivalry just
pales in comparison to the genuinely interesting story-lines
revolving around this cast, most notably that there are several
sets of teammates on this season who could potentially be matched
up with each other. Not only that but there are two brothers
who could feasibly be forced to fight. In the current UFC climate
where fighters refusing to fight teammates puts the kibosh on
several tremendously entertaining fights (*cough* AKA *cough*)
the possibility of brothers going toe to toe simply for a chance
at a contract rather than huge sums of money is both refreshing
and intriguing.
The
Ultimate Fighter 14 is an important season for the UFC, marking
a potential turning point for the franchise and it will be interesting
to see how it plays out. Increasing the talent level on the show
bolsters both its credibility as a source of talent as well as
presents the potential for increased viewership which could prove
important considering the ensuing move from Spike to FX and the
possible changes which could occur as a result of the new production
team. When the UFC signed their network deal with Fox they made
sure to retain control of the production of their product; however,
White admitted that he sees “this Fox deal as a fresh start
for us, so I want to change everything…. everything is going
to have a different feel to it.”
This
change can already be felt with the impending doom of the “Gladiator
Man/Face the Pain” entrance which the UFC has used since
2002. The Gladiator man entrance has been consistently derided
by the majority of the MMA media as an encapsulation of all the
deplorable stereotypes associated with MMA and the UFC’s
willingness to dump is indicative of their continuing efforts
to to push their company brand further into the mainstream. When
The Ultimate Fighter makes its move to FX it will become a show
in the Fox family of programs; a representative of both Fox and
the potentially reinvented UFC. If Dana White is serious about
refreshing the UFC in look and style then the most obvious place
to start would be the company’s flagship series; which begs
the question, if the demographic to which the Gladiator man intro
appeals is the same group that enjoys watching urination and
destruction of property on TUF and if they are moving away from
that demographic, do the production values of the show change
the with it?
The
answer is most probably yes. The UFC name brand alone is now
enough to draw in the eyes of the coveted male 18-35 demographic,
and while the show is reality TV and with thus be allowed some
leeway, I expect to see the baser forms of debauchery curtailed
under the Fox banner. The fighters themselves have begun to do
a decent job of policing themselves from perpetrating sophomoric
acts in recent seasons and the UFC seemingly moving from the
“meathead” population (which they already have a hammerlock
on) to try an bring in new viewers will only result in less ridiculousness.
Also, the fact that FX is intending to broadcast live fights
creates an interesting wrinkle in the system which will impede
the production team from forcing story arcs as reality TV is
wont to do.
Instead
of having an entire seasons worth of material to edit into a
finished product the TUF production team will be working on a
weekly basis so they will have less material with which to craft
story-lines and will be forced to present what is available.
The combination of FX having a say in the content and the transition
to weekly live fights will invariably end up with a tamer show,
focused on the prospects themselves rather than the drama in
the house. Any drop in the ratings which would be caused by the
lack of drama should be offset by the fact that FX is available
in more homes than Spike is and thus is going to naturally draw
in more viewers. Also, the live aspects of the fights is a major
upsell for the network and the UFC. Live television has s certain
magic the taped broadcasts cannot replicate and thus live fights
are more likely to draw in viewership than a prerecorded show.
Will
the Friday night time slot sink the show?
The
biggest potential hiccup for The Ultimate Fighter and FX is the
unfortunate time slot which it will occupy. Friday night is a
relative dead zone of programming so it will be interesting to
see how the show can handle that. The fact that it is a dead
zone means there won’t be much competition at the time slot
for the male demographic and with football taking up Thursdays,
Saturdays, and Sundays there is a window there for TUF to produce
results. When FX ran their Toughman Series in the same time slot
it consistently placed top in the males 18-35 demographic and
that was sans the same marketability as the UFC brand name. Also,
ESPN has been posting solid ratings with their Friday Night Fights
series so the opportunity is certainly there for the first season
of TUF on FX to do well. And if the show can succeed on FX supported
primarily by the talent of the fighters, it gives the UFC more
incentive to continue recruiting top tier prospects for the show
rather than filling it with mid levelers. Attaching the UFC name
brand to live fights, as well as moving the show onto a bigger
network with the Fox marketing machine behind it, could very
well bring more eyeballs to the TV. I don’t know and I won’t
know for certain until the season premieres. But what I do know
is that the UFC has a unique opportunity to start anew here and
rebrand their franchise.
The
show has become stale and outside of a few athletes being injected
into a still thin Heavyweight division has not produced a truly
talented prospect in years. With the change in both network and
time-slot and possibly casts with improving talent levels, the
UFC has the chance to revitalize their flagship franchise and
re-establish The Ultimate Fighter as its premiere feeder program.
For the past few years TUF has lost sight of the goal of developing
prospects into contenders and champions in lieu of promoting
headlining fights but now is a perfect time to return The Ultimate
Fighter to its roots and introduce the world to the next generation
of UFC stars. Whether or not they do is up to them, but just
the potential for true high caliber fighters on weekly TV has
me eager to find out.
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
Rampage
Jackson Says Jon Jones Disrespected His Coach at Open Workouts
By Ben
Fowlkes
DENVER
-- At Thursday afternoon's UFC 135 open workouts Quinton "Rampage"
Jackson continued to blast UFC light heavyweight champion Jon
Jones for what he interpreted as disrespect, but this time he
had a new accusation to level at his opponent.
"He
badmouthed my coach today, here at the open workout," Jackson
told reporters. "That's not right. The kid has no respect
for nobody. He needs to be humbled."
The
coach in question was British boxing coach Mark Kinney, a stout
veteran of the fight game who told MMA Fighting that Jones was
"just trying to wind me up."
"He
said something to me and then I said something back to him,"
said Kinney, who declined to reveal exactly what was said, but
painted Jones as the instigator. "I'm not going to lose
sleep over it," he added.
In
Jackson's mind, it was just the latest example of disrespectful
behavior from Jones, who had long since disappeared from the
MusclePharm gym by the time Jackson made the accusation to reporters.
"It's
very disrespectful what he did to my coach," Jackson said.
"You don't come up to your opponent's coach and talk crap.
For the honor and respect of this sport, you don't do that. Jon
Jones says I fight for money, and this and that and he fights
for fun and honor and stuff like that. But he's not showing the
[signs] of a fighter who fights for honor. Yes, I fight for money,
because this is the career I chose. But at the same time I have
a lot of honor and respect for this sport and other fighters."
But
Kinney, the man who was supposedly disrespected, brushed off
the incident as a fairly tame run-in. Maybe Jones was feeling
just a little too confident in the days leading up to the fight,
he suggested, but the champ could be in for a surprise.
After
Saturday night, Kinney said, no one will be asking about what
Jones said to him or whether he really had a spy in Jackson's
camp. "They're going to be asking about his concussion.
They're going to be asking whether he'll be in hospital for two
weeks or four."
Both
Kinney and Jackson continued to insist that Jones had someone
on the inside of the challenger's training camp feeding him information,
but neither would say who it was. Jackson said he eventually
found out the identity of the so-called spy, and his manager
took action against him.
"Let's
just say he's hurting financially right now," Jackson said.
"But we did find the spy, and as I suspected he wasn't a
fighter."
And
while most people are counting Jackson out against the taller,
lankier Jones, Kinney hinted that the team has a plan for getting
inside the champion's longer reach and doing damage in close.
Of course, he wasn't eager to divulge that information with the
fight still two days away.
"But
he'll get inside," Kinney said. "Trust me."
Source: MMA Fighting
|
Rampage
Jackson Respects Jon Jones, but Doesn’t Think He’s
Fought Anyone Tough Yet
by Damon
Martin
It’s
hard to deny the talent that UFC light heavyweight champion Jon
Jones possesses.
Through
eight fights so far in the Octagon, Jones has managed to put
away five of his eight opponents, and his only loss was a disqualification
in a fight in was dominating against Matt Hamill.
To
win the UFC light heavyweight title, Jones decimated former Pride
Grand Prix champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, finishing
him with strikes in the third round of their fight back in March.
Since
that time, Jones is secure atop the light heavyweight divisional
rankings. He has also begun to gain steam as one of the top pound-for-pound
fighters in the sport. But has the praise been heaped upon Jones’
head a little too early for a fighter just making his first title
defense this weekend at UFC 135?
His
next opponent Quinton “Rampage” Jackson certainly thinks
so. While Jackson admits Jones is a supremely talented fighter,
he doesn’t believe he’s done enough to earn some of
the accolades that are being showered down on him.
“You’ve
got to show Jon respect, he earned his respect, but I think the
problem is MMA has a lot of brand new fans. That’s a good
thing and it can also be a bad thing in terms of what you’re
talking about,” Rampage told MMAWeekly Radio.
“They
don’t see Shogun was rusty, he was just coming off an injury.
A lot of new fans probably don’t understand that when a
fighter takes a year off, coming off of injuries, Jon Jones is
a very dangerous opponent for him to come back to.”
Jackson
thinks that Rua should have come back to a different kind of
fight than to face Jones right off the bat, but as champion his
job was to defend the belt and Jones was at the top of the list.
“He
probably need to come back and fight somebody that’s, no
disrespect to any fighter, but like a Keith Jardine or somebody
like that. Honestly, in that weight class, you want to come back
and fight somebody like that. You don’t want to come back
fighting somebody like Jon Jones, who’s very unorthodox
and unpredictable,” Jackson commented.
The
biggest problem Rampage sees with Jones receiving so much praise
is the lack of talent he’s faced in the light heavyweight
division.
“The
kid hasn’t fought anybody that’s really tough,”
said Jackson. “He’s fought Vladimir Matyushenko, which
is tough, but that wasn’t the same Vladimir Matyushenko
that just fought his last fight.”
Heading
into their fight this weekend, Jackson is confident that Jones
won’t be receiving much more of that praise after he loses
his light heavyweight title.
But
if Jones beats Rampage, the former Pride fighter will gladly
give him all the credit he would deserve.
“Me
looking at him as a fighter, I don’t think he’s earned
that title and stuff yet,” said Jackson. “If he beats
me on the 24th, then he’s on his way. He can claim all that,
but the guy hasn’t defended his belt yet. I think they should
wait a little bit before they jump on his jock too much.”
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
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Source:
Gracie Magazine
|
UFC
on Fox: The importance & need of growing the right demographic
for future expansion
By Zach
Arnold
The
reaction on social media circles, amongst MMA fans mind you,
was about 95%/5% in terms of fans responding to what Floyd Mayweather
did on Saturday night as opposed to what Jake Ellenberger did
in beating Jake Shields. In fact, I’m probably being generous
in that 95/5 ratio. Floyd Mayweather managed to suck all the
non-football conversational oxygen in the room. Mayweather’s
performance proved that boxing can still attract mainstream sports
attention and do so in a much larger & more significant manner
than anything UFC is able to accomplish.
A
major key in why a big boxing fight can still command attention
is due in part to the nature of the audience it attracts versus
the nature of UFC’s audience. UFC’s audience, at least
many casual fans, are more entertainment/pro-wrestling fans than
they are sports fans. When you combine that with the fact that
there is still a lacking of traditional sports media covering
MMA and what you get is a niche within a niche. Mayweather’s
fight with Victor Ortiz proved an ability to attract casual sports
fans. The hype for the PPV was built upon large media platforms
with significant scope & leverage. UFC has not been a benefactor
of such support… until now.
There
are many reasons the November 12th Anaheim fight between Cain
Velasquez & Junior dos Santos is a critical starting point
for UFC. Besides the fact that it’s a major fight on network
television, it’s being promoted on a platform that has experience
in promoting sports. Spike TV, for all the deeds they did for
Zuffa, is not in the same league. Fox Sports is supporting UFC
in a manner which CBS was not willing to back Pro Elite &
Gary Shaw. When Pro Elite & Strikeforce events aired on CBS
Saturday nights, it was CBS Entertainment and not CBS Sports
backing those MMA events. The amount & quality of the promotion
that CBS Entertainment gave to MMA was rather… underwhelming.
Fox
Sports has lots of platforms to promote UFC under. They have
college football on the regional sports networks (RSNs), on FX,
and on the network television side. They have a web site with
a healthy amount of eyeballs viewing content. The newspaper &
digital media support Fox can lend to UFC is something that the
company has not seen up until this point.
I
mention all of these points because I was struck by just how
awesome of a character Floyd Mayweather is in terms of drawing
fan interest, both good & bad. He can pull in the average
football or baseball fan and convince them every 16 months to
shell out the cash on PPV to watch him. He makes a ton of money.
It may not be ‘good’ for the sport of boxing in terms
of overall health, but the vehicle that is boxing can still significantly
outdraw MMA any day for a major prize fight.
The
growth of UFC on Fox over the next seven years is going to be
critical for the lifeblood of this industry. In additional to
keep the current fan base that they already have, Zuffa needs
to exponentially grow their amount of support amongst mainstream
sports fans. Despite 2011 being a largely transitional year for
UFC, it feels like the company has currently hit a glass ceiling
(thanks in part due to the inordinate amount of PPVs, something
Dana White for years railed against when it came to boxing promoters).
In order for the ceiling to get shattered, the demographics and
core audience for UFC needs to change significantly.
What
makes the November 12th fight with Velasquez & dos Santos
so intriguing is that, on paper, it looks like a healthy risk
to take. It’s two lighter Heavyweights, both with power,
for a title belt in front of the same crowd in which Velasquez
beat Brock Lesnar last year. It was the Anaheim audience that
brought into the “Brown pride” marketing. Despite the
Honda Center being scaled down reportedly due to attendance concerns,
I would expect a large & vociferous crowd for the show. The
question is what kind of fans will show up for the event —
will it be a new demographic that’s curious to watch a UFC
show for the first time because it’s on Fox or will it be
the conventional audience that UFC draws for the big fights?
UFC
knows there’s a lot at stake for the November 12th fight
and, yet, they need to somehow manage expectations so that the
bar isn’t set too high for what is deemed ’success’
versus ‘failure.’ One of the more unique aspects of
Velasquez’s push last year against Brock Lesnar is that
Cain, according to Dave Meltzer, was able to bring new Latino
fans into the fold. However, the demographic Cain attracted was
primarily English-speaking Hispanic households. Conversely, some
fans that normally bought Brock’s big fights didn’t
buy the one with Velasquez. Did the “Brown pride” and
“first Mexican Heavyweight champion” marketing turn
off some MMA fans that otherwise would have watched the title
fight?
With
UFC big shows on Fox, we’re going to see many of these questions
amplified on a significant level. Both Velasquez & JDS need
to be on Fox because they have largely been placed behind a PPV
firewall and need all the over-the-air television exposure they
can get. They are still not major stars and there are big question
marks for both fighters heading into the November 12th fight.
Can either guy carry a promotion and become a breakout star?
How will being on Fox platforms change the way UFC develops new
talent and new stars? Can the company manage to attract the imagination
of the sports fan at-large in the United States to become more
than just a niche sport?
After
watching the Floyd Mayweather circus on Saturday night, I’m
extremely fascinated to see if UFC & Fox can develop an MMA
star that will command the… star power… that we still
see on occasion for a big boxing match.
**
Here’s
an ESPN Sports Science profile on Jon “Bones” Jones,
who fights Rampage Jackson on Saturday in Denver. I thought their
‘hype session’ on Spike with Rogan was goofy and not
exactly the kind of thing that will motivate people to be interested
in the fight. What does interest me is a motivated Rampage, however.
Is everyone still sure that Jones is worthy of being a 5-to-1
favorite heading into the fight?
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
UFC
135: Junior Assuncao wants a quick win in his UFC return
By Guilherme
Cruz
Junior
Assuncao left UFC in 2008, with two losses in three fights done
on the octagon, and he didn`t rest until he got another chance
on the most famous cage in the world. ˜It was an investment
I did on the last four years. I believed in my dream, and now
with more experiences and better prepared I`m back˜, tells
the athlete, who`ll return to UFC this Saturday, on the 135th
edition of the event, against the debutant Eddie Yagin.
On
an exclusive interview with TATAME, Junior analyzed his opponent`s
game and highlighted his evolution while waiting to return to
UFC. ˜I used to have a full time job, I didn`t have a focused
coach. Now I`m 30 years old, more mature, I know what I want…
Present Junior wants to become a champion, past Junior only wanted
to be in UFC˜, warns, telling us his opinion towards the
title fight between Jon Jones and Rampage Jackson, which happens
on the same night.
What
are the expectations for your return to UFC?
It`s
cool…It was an investment I did on the last four years.
I believed in my dream, and now with more experiences and better
prepared I`m back, and the expectations are the best possible.
What
changed on your preparation to made you drop to the featherweight
division?
I
didn`t have to do much, I adjusted my diet and I keep doing what
I was doing for a few months. My last bout was in March and I`m
training for this one for five months now. I`m cool with it.
What
do you know about Eddie Yagin, your opponent on Saturday?
He`s
a tough guy, of course he deserves to be respected for being
fighting in that level, but he`s a debutant in UFC. I once was
a debutant and I know how the pressure feels like, what will
go through his mind. I respect, like I respect all my opponents,
but at the end of the day I gotta do what I do in my practices
and in my last fights.
He
got 10 of his 15 wins by KO or submission. What game plan will
you bring?
Jiu-Jitsu
is my strongest point, of course, I`m a BJJ black belt and I
trust my Jiu-Jitsu. I`m a good wrestler too and I can trust myself
in those areas. I believe in my game. My style is different from
the other guys. I`ll get there and try to impose my game plan
over his and hopefully I`ll get the win on the first round.
How
do you evaluate your evolution since you left UFC, in 2007?
Everything
has changed. I used to have a full time job, I didn`t have a
focused coach. Now I`m 30 years old, more mature, I know what
I want. I don`t only want to fight in UFC. To me, it`s an event
like any other. I make more money and I`m more exposed, but it
doesn`t make much difference. Present Junior wants to become
a champion, past Junior only wanted to be in UFC.
You
and your brother Raphael are currently fighting in UFC, and another
member of Assuncao family, Freddy, has been doing a great job.
Do you dream of having three Assuncao fighters in UFC?
I`d
be a great deal for our promotion… My brother Raphael is
already in UFC and Freddy started a little later than us, but
he`s building up towards a great career. He has fought six times,
knocked out a guy last week, he owns a different style…
We started at Capoeira and we have a different style. We believe
in this stuly and when you believe there`re no barriers. The
plan is for him to do three more fights and join UFC cast.
What
is your guess for the main event of UFC 135, a title fight between
Jon Jones and Rampage Jackson?
Jon
Jones has a different style, and Rampage has a traditional style,
but this unorthodox style has been winning many fights nowadays.
All champions are not conventional, are much more unpredictable.
Jones is unpredictable, huge… I`ll be more favorable to
Jones, but each fight is different. If you hit where you must
to, it can change the night, but I`m guessing Jon Jones wins
this one.
Source:
Tatame
|
Pros
Pick: Jones vs. Rampage
by Mike
Sloan
The
Pepsi Center in Denver will be the place to be on Saturday, as
UFC 135 descends upon the Mile High City with one of the more
intriguing main events of 2011. There, in a crossroads fight,
reigning light heavyweight king Jon Jones will defend his crown
against former champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson.
Will
the man they call “Bones” continue his meteoric rise,
or will experience pave Rampage’s way to another high-profile
victory?
Sherdog.com
recently touched base with a number of professional trainers
and fighters to gauge their opinions on the UFC 135 “Jones
vs. Rampage” main event:
Jake
Ellenberger: I’m going to have to go with Jones. I think
it’s going to be a really great fight. They are both extremely
experienced and they’re both champions, but I’m going
to give the edge to Jones because he’s young, I think a
little bit hungrier and he’s bringing a few more tools to
the table. I’m gonna have to go with Jones.
Mike
Constantino: I think Jones will win this fight with ground-and-pound.
I see Bones mixing up the striking and controlling the distance
from the outside with long kicks, mixed with punches. He then
gets the takedown after closing the distance, employs his ground-and-pound
with elbows and repeats the process for as long as it takes to
get the TKO.
Aaron
Riley: Well, I’m going to go with Jon, of course. I mean,
he’s my teammate. I’ve seen all the preparation, and
he’s already a very unorthodox fighter; and just in seeing
the improvements he’s been making in camp, I think he’s
just going to build on top of the amazing skills he already has.
Daniel
Cormier: I’m picking Jones to beat Rampage by TKO in the
second round. I just think Jones is too athletic and physically
gifted for Rampage at this point in his career. He’s predominantly
a boxer right now, but Jon does it all. Jon wrestles, he does
jiu jitsu, he does striking. He’s just too much for Rampage
at this point in his career.
Nam
Phan: I think in this case I gotta root for the less cocky guy.
I’m gonna go with Rampage on this one.
Kyle
Kingsbury: Jones by TKO.
Erik
Paulson: This fight is Rampage working hard to stay on top. He
is gonna work to match up with the champ’s youth, length
and overall unorthodox style. Quinton is a stud with super strong
hips, good boxing and great tenacity. Jones has a title to defend
and is undoubtedly the king of surprises. He has a spry will
and surprising game. Quinton has to only win this fight based
on his conditioning and proper game plan implementation. It’s
gonna be fun to watch the youth fighting the accomplished.
Jose
Aldo: The fight won’t last five rounds. Rampage has excellent
boxing and is aggressive. Jones is strong and comes into the
Octagon at an excellent moment in his career. There will be a
knockout, but I’m not betting on anyone.
Travis
Lutter: I think Jones will win this one. Rampage is always dangerous,
but I think Jones is going to be hard to beat. We may finally
see Rampage fight off his back.
Jason
Lambert: Rampage by TKO.
Gustavo
Pugliese: It’s going to be an explosive bout while it lasts.
Both men have the ability to finish their opponents; however,
this is another good fight for Jones to showcase his multi-dimensional
form of attack. This kid can fight going backwards really well.
Rampage is going to find himself in a trap when putting pressure
and moving forward trying to close the gap. I believe Rampage
is going to walk into all kinds of strikes. Jones needs to be
careful with Rampage’s one-and-done punch. I see an early
third-round TKO for Jones. He will drop Rampage with strikes
and finish him up on the ground.
Willamy
“Chiquerim” Freire: Jones by KO.
Travis
Wiuff: Great fight, but I think Jones wins by referee stoppage
in the third round. Rampage has his moments in this fight and
pushes Jones like no one has yet.
Eric
Pele: How can you bet against Bones? The kid is on fire. I’m
an underdog kinda guy, so I’ll take Rampage, but he needs
to be on point like never before; there is absolutely no room
for error against this beast in Jones. Even with all that said,
he still might not have enough for the win. Will this be Rampage’s
swan song? We shall see. Whatever happens, I hope it delivers
a long and brutal fight, not just a blowout on either side but
a back-and-fourth battle. Damn, I love this s---.
Yves
Edwards: I think Jones is too skilled in too many areas. That
being said, Rampage may have a puncher’s chance, though
we have never seen Jones in any kind of trouble -- ever. Jones
should win this one pretty handily.
Javier
Vazquez: I love Quinton. I will be cheering for him because I’m
a fan, but he has a huge task ahead of him. So far, Jones appears
to be unbeatable. I’m not completely sold on him just yet.
For one reason or another, he has not been pushed yet. If Quinton
can touch Jones’ chin and he can survive, come back and
win, I will be sold on Jones. I think Jones will be too much
technically and will TKO Jackson in the second or third round.
Jackson, in my opinion, is a tough and solid Top 10 light heavyweight,
but I don’t think he will be champion anytime soon. We will
see if Jones is the future or not in this one.
“Razor”
Rob McCullough: It’s gonna be dynamite.
Matt
Pena: This could be Jones’ toughest matchup yet if Rampage
decides to exchange with Jon and not let him dictate action and
get off first. It wouldn’t surprise me one bit to see Rampage
upset Jones, but when I’m playing the numbers, I have to
say Jones by ground-and-pound. Jones’ range and bag of tricks
from the striking perspective will freeze up Rampage, allowing
Jones to transition into a takedown and finish Rampage on the
ground.
Greg
Nelson: Well, I think it is a change of the old to the new --
the old out and the new in. Jones will out-slick and outstrike
Rampage. Jones’ conditioning and continual barrage of straight
forward and unorthodox strikes will be a bit too much for Rampage.
Jones will also control the takedown game and end up on top and
drop the smart bombs. Jones just may stop Rampage.
Fabio
Maldonado: Jones on points.
Sam
Hoger: Rampage is spending a million dollars, from what I have
gathered, on this training camp. He says he needs money, but
he is really going to need money after Jones tools him and his
boxercise style of fighting. He will not be tough enough to win
this. I mean, we saw what Forrest did to him and I beat Forrest
in at least one round.
Jorge
Lopez: I think Jones will win via stoppage in the second -- Thai
clinch and knees to the face.
Mac
Danzig: Rampage by figure-four leg lock at 4:37 in the fourth
round.
Hector
Ramirez: My prediction is Rampage via TKO win over Jones.
Mike
Ciesnolevicz: It’s only a matter of time until Jones loses
a fight in the UFC. Can Rampage beat Jones? I think he can if
he gets inside and lands some hooks and uppercuts. Chances are
that Jones will use his reach to lure Rampage into a standup
fight, and, when the time is right, Jones will take him down
and make Rampage work from his guard, which has to be his weakest
skill. I see Jones winning this fight with elbows, similar to
the Brandon Vera fight. The good news is that it sets up the
fight everyone wants to see with Rashad Evans.
Andre
Pederneiras: Jones by KO.
Pat
Healy: I’m going with Jones. I think Quinton seems to be
kind of checked out of fighting. He’s so concerned with
making money and being a movie star, and I think Jones is going
to take it to him. I think Jones will stop him in the second
round with ground-and-pound.
Elvis
Sinosic: This is a fight I’m intrigued to see. I think Rampage
has the skills to take it to Jones, but I also think Jones has
the skills to be one of the all-time best. Since I’m on
my honeymoon, I’ll keep it brief for once. Rampage needs
to take it to Jones. He needs to get in close, use his boxing
to punish Jones, pick him up, slam him down and then show us
some of that old-fashioned ground-and-pound Rampage was once
so well known for. Jones needs to mix it up. The fighters that
do the best against Rampage are the ones that use a great mix
of punches, kicks, knees, elbows and more. Jones has the skill
set to do this. If he puts Rampage on his back, he’ll have
a great advantage. If Rampage puts Jones on his back, we’ll
all be watching closely to see what happens, as it’s a rare
occurrence. Rampage has the skills and experience to win this
fight. If his heart is in it, he is one of the most dangerous
fighters on the planet. If his game plan is spot on, he’ll
be hard to stop. In the end, though, I’m picking Jones,
as I think he has the wider skill set and the drive and determination
to continue being champion. I think Jones wants to keep this
more than Rampage wants to take it away from him.
Jason
Dent: I can’t pick against Jones. He is so gifted athletically
and is very technical, as well. I believe his knees, kicks and
elbows will just be too much for Rampage. Don’t get me wrong,
I’m a huge Rampage fan, and if you asked me who I want to
win, it’s different then who I think is actually going to
win.
Roan
Carneiro: Jones will control the fight and win all the five rounds,
getting a decision from the judges.
Tom
Vaughn: I don’t see Rampage being able to keep up with the
pace of this fight. Jones wins by TKO in round two.
Matt
Hamilton: Jones is so damn explosive and unorthodox. He takes
this one via TKO at about the same time he does all his fights
-- whenever he decides to turn it on. That said, Rampage has
that puncher’s chance, and I do love me some Rampage.
Ron
Foster: Man, this is a super tough fight for Rampage. I’m
not totally counting him out because he always has that one-punch
KO power. The problem for Rampage is that he mostly won’t
be able to get inside the long reach of Jones. Jones will remain
on the outside early in the fight and blast Rampage with punches
and kicks. If Rampage does manage to get inside, he will eat
some big knees and elbows in the clinch before being taken down
and pounded on. I’m a huge Jackson fan, but it’s just
very hard to see him being able to figure out the riddle that
Jones has become. Should be a great fight, but Jones will remain
the champ, stopping Rampage in second or third round.
Keith
Berry: Jones is, to me, like Anderson Silva at 205 pounds. I
don’t see anyone touching him at 205. Rampage’s style
will get dismantled, and Jones will remain the champ. I say TKO
in round two.
Marlon
Sandro: Rampage wins by KO in the first round. If he doesn’t,
Jones wins on points.
Kultar
Gill: Can’t wait to see this fight. The verbal warfare will
be won by Rampage, but the fight will be controlled and finished
in the third by Jones.
Soa
Palelei: My prediction is Jones. Jones is an amazing athlete,
and he’s got the longest wingspan in the light heavyweight
division. Not only is he unpredictable, but he’s swift,
fast and ridiculously dominant. Jones has the potential to be
one of the greatest fighters of all-time. Rampage is an astonishing
fighter and he is known for having a chin of steel, but Jones’
wrestling skills are outstanding and among the best in the game.
He tends to take people down at will with excellent wrestling
capabilities. Jones will keep Rampage at bay with his reach advantage
and then land something ridiculous with a punch, knee, elbow
or kick, or Jones may take Rampage to the ground and beat him.
Spinning back elbows, spinning back kicks -- you’ll see
it all from Jones. Rampage has been in there with some of the
best ever. He has brutal strength. In terms of skill set, Jackson
is an upper-echelon wrestler that you do not want on top of you
pounding away. Furthermore, he’s a very good boxer with
extreme power in his hands. If Rampage hits you with a hook,
it’s probably sleepy time. He’s very experienced against
top-flight competition, but I don’t think he can outwrestle
Jones, nor can he keep up with Jones’ wingspan.
Joe
Duarte: This is a bad style match for Rampage because Jones can
use his reach and takedowns to mix it up. I want Rampage to win,
but I think Jones is smart enough to take him down and beat on
him. I’m calling Jones by TKO in round two.
Andre
Amado: Jones will knock out Rampage. Jackson doesn’t move
well and doesn’t defend himself against kicks. Jones will
seek out the knockout, and he’ll get it late in the second
round.
Tom
Gavrilos: Rampage is in big trouble. He can’t get close
enough to work his boxing, and if he does take Jones down, he
will just pop right back up. Too much reach, too much athleticism.
Expect a plethora of kicks from Jones, as well; bad matchup for
Rampage all the way around.
Ray
Elbe: Jones is going to be everyone’s choice, but I’ll
never pick against Rampage. Rampage wins by hot mustard breath
sometime in the second round.
Benji
Radach: I’m gonna go with Quinton by TKO or KO. He has a
hell of an opponent and knows it. I believe we will see the best
of both.
Thiago
Tavares: Jones wins by submission. He will use his powerful wrestling
to take down Rampage, and he won’t risk himself on his feet.
Gegard
Mousasi: Jones wins. He has more ways to win the fight. He has
better kicks, knees, he’s a stronger boxer and striker and
he has more skills. He has more ways to win.
Ben
Rothwell: I like both guys, for sure, and I’m sure you hear
this a lot when getting picks. Jones is on fire and Quinton is
doing his whole Spygate thing, and he’s saying this and
that, like Jones can’t smash a grape. I think by saying
all that it’ll just give Quinton bad karma and it’ll
probably be his demise. I know Quinton can get away with saying
a lot of stuff, but I don’t know. Something doesn’t
sound right with what’s in Quinton’s head, I guess.
I think Jones is far more of a threat to him than he’s leading
on.
Roli
Delgado: Rampage doesn’t really move well and only boxes,
so I’m going to pick Jones by referee stoppage at the beginning
of round two.
Pros
Picking Jones: 35
Pros Picking Rampage: 7
No Pick: 4
Source
Sherdog
|
Measuring
the importance of ground & pound in the current MMA landscape
By Zach
Arnold
As
a 5-to-1 favorite in Saturday’s UFC 135 title fight, Jon
“Bones” Jones is one high-profile champion utilizing
ground ‘n pound skills in a manner conducive to offense,
which goes against the grain of fighters like Jon Fitch &
Georges St. Pierre. For this article, we take a look at the introduction
of GNP in the earlier days of MMA and how/why it is currently
utilized the way it is in the sport.
By
Julien Solomita
MMA
has changed and promoters of the sport persist that they can
make the industry into one of the world’s most popular sports.
Ground and pound is something that gave fighter’s considerable
attention when it was especially common in the early days of
MMA and, as the sport advances, usage of GNP must also evolve
for the good of the sport in order to maintain its relevancy.
It isn’t that ground and pound usage doesn’t exist
anymore in the sport but rather the strategy behind using it
has been tweaked. There is interesting psychology behind this
transformation that can shed light on the reason for change.
In
no way has ground and pound left mixed martial arts, as there
are still a number of fighters who apply it to their game fluently.
Many great fighters in the UFC are continuing to utilize this
tool to beat down opponents. Chad Mendes has the great ability
to slip punches into quick takedowns, then follow it with a strong
ground attack. UFC bantamweight Scott Jorgensen showed a great
example of effective ground and pound when he overpowered the
active guard of Ken Stone by landing a quick storm of punches.
UFC veteran Alan Belcher, coming off a long layoff was able to
win his bout over Jason McDonald with the help of ground and
pound. Most famously, Jon Jones is known for crushing fighters
who end up on their back. From the famous broken nose of Brandon
Vera, to the 10 consecutive elbows in a matter of four seconds
against Matyushenko, to the ground elbow onslaught poured onto
Shogun Rua all have proved the light heavyweight champion to
be a dangerous fighter. When watching these fighters exercise
this tactic so effectively, it still appears that ground and
pound is as strong as it ever was, yet there are still some fighters
who are able to win without it.
The
beatings handed to downed opponents in the early days of mixed
martial arts had a similar feel to today’s GNP’ers.
UFC Hall of Famers Mark Coleman and Randy Couture were great
practitioners of delivering such beatings. Once having put their
opponent on the mat, they had one goal that was made clear to
anyone watching them work. The goal: finish the fight. The barrage
of wild alternating hooks and the constant striking onslaught
even gassed the old ground and pound kings. The traditional offensive
ground game that put ground and pound on the map isn’t put
to use by some of today’s fighters, and although ground
and pound still works for many, those that don’t prioritize
it are losing popularity.
Stronger
and more athletic than ever, today’s fighters continue to
shape themselves into well rounded, and complete mixed martial
artists. Exciting strikers continue to create knockout legacies
and the level of jiu-jitsu continues to progress, creating a
stronger ground game. The ground and pound was at one point the
most feared quality in a fighter and brought wrestlers such as
Tito Ortiz, Matt Hughes, and Mark Coleman to the top of the sport.
These knockout artists worked at taking their opponents down
so they were able to neutralize them in the most primitive way
possible, beating them into submission. These fighters gained
their immense popularity with the success of this tool that they
utilized so well.
One
of the most accomplished fighters of all time, who is battling
to retain his status as a premier athlete, is the UFC welterweight
champion. Georges St. Pierre has an uncanny ability to develop
and execute a game plan to beat any fighter he faces, but just
like any other champion, St. Pierre takes a lot of criticism.
GSP
has beaten eight of his last nine opponents yet only finished
two of those fights. His killer instinct isn’t the problem
but rather his obsession with winning. St. Pierre wants to win
more than anything, but sometimes this means he isn’t all
that interested in engaging in canvas warfare. This hunger to
win has brought GSP to amazing heights but is now starting to
hinder his killer instinct. St. Pierre is a strong wrestler and
a takedown specialist. He has the ability to put fighters on
their back, find submissions, and win decision victories from
that position. However, wouldn’t he be more dominating if
he mastered striking on the ground and was willing to display
any sort of risk-taking to finish opponents like Dan Hardy? Georges
will, from time to time, hit his grounded opponents but often
it is when he is being told to “keep working” by the
ref or if he can’t find submissions or to steal a round
and win the decision. The larger point is that St. Pierre doesn’t
use his devastating offensive tools to his full potential and
it has resulted in not demonstrating the ability he has to smash
his opponents in a much more violent fashion than he should be
doing.
This
is where ground and pound is now used differently than it ever
has been in the sport.
It
is now used as an emergency tactic for some guys and therefore
isn’t being prioritized as an offensive weapon. I believe
that ground and pound is something that fighters will either
include in their strategy or eventually become irrelevant. Veterans
such as Matt Hughes, and Tito Ortiz are struggling to stay alive
in the sport today and much of it due to their transparent style.
These guys are great at wrestling, and have been for years, but
they are losing the third dimension in their game. Both guys
have won a number of fights in their career by ground and pounding
their way to victory, but they are losing their hunger and now
are trying to simply get by, and survive fights, which is a detrimental
approach. In addition to this, age induces a taming of that hunger
that a fighter possesses when they are young. When Tito was emerging,
he had explosive rage when he fought, and this naturally evoked
his ground and pound, yet in the light heavyweight’s recent
loss to Rashad Evans, it was “Suga” who proved that
he is still thriving as a fighter. Evans was animalistic in ground
and pounding Ortiz into the cage, and was strong with his stand
up and takedowns too. Doesn’t an athletic fighter like Evans
with such devastating ground and pound exhibit the need for such
a method in today’s mixed martial arts?
The
obsession with winning in sports is a positive thing. It forces
athletes to work hard, and compete at their best to become victorious.
It can also push fighters past their limits to become the best,
but in MMA it can have the opposite effect. Some guys want to
get a win on their record so badly that they will use the tactic
of smothering opponents without actually doing damage, or attempting
to finish them. Using wrestling as a controlling factor in a
fight rather than a set up for ground punishment has become prevalent
with today’s wrestlers.
Jon
Fitch and Anthony Johnson are two of today’s wrestlers who
have been criticized for not finishing fights. Johnson, who is
an enormous welterweight and cuts from above 200 pounds down
to 170 is able to use his size advantage to weigh on top of fighters,
and tire them out. When he faced Dan Hardy, there wasn’t
a moment where Johnson looked eager to finish the fight. He was
fully in position to finish with ground and pound, as he was
on top of “The Outlaw” for the majority of the fight…
but didn’t pull the trigger. Jon Fitch is similar to St.
Pierre in that he doesn’t bother with ground and pound unless
he has exhausted all other options. He is comfortable striking
on the feet, but when on the ground he doesn’t show a need
for ground and pound, and is happy with an abundance of decision
wins rather than a few impressive knockout wins.
Jon
Jones, Carlos Condit, Cain Velasquez and Rashad Evans are some
of today’s fighters who recognize the importance of ground
and pound and it is no coincidence that they are all fighting
for world titles. With the way Carlos Condit has skyrocketed
through the welterweight division, his finishing style should
serve as an example. The way he finished the young and extremely
talented Rory MacDonald with a third round of ground and pound
is a perfect example of why he is so popular and now receiving
his title shot. Even if Condit loses his UFC 137 bout, who can
honestly predict this to be another boring title defense by GSP?
Ground
and pound has always been an exiting way to end a fight, but
it has been redefined in such a way that fighters who don’t
use it simply don’t have a chance at being as great as those
who do.
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
Measuring
the importance of ground & pound in the current MMA landscape
By Zach
Arnold
As
a 5-to-1 favorite in Saturday’s UFC 135 title fight, Jon
“Bones” Jones is one high-profile champion utilizing
ground ‘n pound skills in a manner conducive to offense,
which goes against the grain of fighters like Jon Fitch &
Georges St. Pierre. For this article, we take a look at the introduction
of GNP in the earlier days of MMA and how/why it is currently
utilized the way it is in the sport.
By
Julien Solomita
MMA
has changed and promoters of the sport persist that they can
make the industry into one of the world’s most popular sports.
Ground and pound is something that gave fighter’s considerable
attention when it was especially common in the early days of
MMA and, as the sport advances, usage of GNP must also evolve
for the good of the sport in order to maintain its relevancy.
It isn’t that ground and pound usage doesn’t exist
anymore in the sport but rather the strategy behind using it
has been tweaked. There is interesting psychology behind this
transformation that can shed light on the reason for change.
In
no way has ground and pound left mixed martial arts, as there
are still a number of fighters who apply it to their game fluently.
Many great fighters in the UFC are continuing to utilize this
tool to beat down opponents. Chad Mendes has the great ability
to slip punches into quick takedowns, then follow it with a strong
ground attack. UFC bantamweight Scott Jorgensen showed a great
example of effective ground and pound when he overpowered the
active guard of Ken Stone by landing a quick storm of punches.
UFC veteran Alan Belcher, coming off a long layoff was able to
win his bout over Jason McDonald with the help of ground and
pound. Most famously, Jon Jones is known for crushing fighters
who end up on their back. From the famous broken nose of Brandon
Vera, to the 10 consecutive elbows in a matter of four seconds
against Matyushenko, to the ground elbow onslaught poured onto
Shogun Rua all have proved the light heavyweight champion to
be a dangerous fighter. When watching these fighters exercise
this tactic so effectively, it still appears that ground and
pound is as strong as it ever was, yet there are still some fighters
who are able to win without it.
The
beatings handed to downed opponents in the early days of mixed
martial arts had a similar feel to today’s GNP’ers.
UFC Hall of Famers Mark Coleman and Randy Couture were great
practitioners of delivering such beatings. Once having put their
opponent on the mat, they had one goal that was made clear to
anyone watching them work. The goal: finish the fight. The barrage
of wild alternating hooks and the constant striking onslaught
even gassed the old ground and pound kings. The traditional offensive
ground game that put ground and pound on the map isn’t put
to use by some of today’s fighters, and although ground
and pound still works for many, those that don’t prioritize
it are losing popularity.
Stronger
and more athletic than ever, today’s fighters continue to
shape themselves into well rounded, and complete mixed martial
artists. Exciting strikers continue to create knockout legacies
and the level of jiu-jitsu continues to progress, creating a
stronger ground game. The ground and pound was at one point the
most feared quality in a fighter and brought wrestlers such as
Tito Ortiz, Matt Hughes, and Mark Coleman to the top of the sport.
These knockout artists worked at taking their opponents down
so they were able to neutralize them in the most primitive way
possible, beating them into submission. These fighters gained
their immense popularity with the success of this tool that they
utilized so well.
One
of the most accomplished fighters of all time, who is battling
to retain his status as a premier athlete, is the UFC welterweight
champion. Georges St. Pierre has an uncanny ability to develop
and execute a game plan to beat any fighter he faces, but just
like any other champion, St. Pierre takes a lot of criticism.
GSP
has beaten eight of his last nine opponents yet only finished
two of those fights. His killer instinct isn’t the problem
but rather his obsession with winning. St. Pierre wants to win
more than anything, but sometimes this means he isn’t all
that interested in engaging in canvas warfare. This hunger to
win has brought GSP to amazing heights but is now starting to
hinder his killer instinct. St. Pierre is a strong wrestler and
a takedown specialist. He has the ability to put fighters on
their back, find submissions, and win decision victories from
that position. However, wouldn’t he be more dominating if
he mastered striking on the ground and was willing to display
any sort of risk-taking to finish opponents like Dan Hardy? Georges
will, from time to time, hit his grounded opponents but often
it is when he is being told to “keep working” by the
ref or if he can’t find submissions or to steal a round
and win the decision. The larger point is that St. Pierre doesn’t
use his devastating offensive tools to his full potential and
it has resulted in not demonstrating the ability he has to smash
his opponents in a much more violent fashion than he should be
doing.
This
is where ground and pound is now used differently than it ever
has been in the sport.
It
is now used as an emergency tactic for some guys and therefore
isn’t being prioritized as an offensive weapon. I believe
that ground and pound is something that fighters will either
include in their strategy or eventually become irrelevant. Veterans
such as Matt Hughes, and Tito Ortiz are struggling to stay alive
in the sport today and much of it due to their transparent style.
These guys are great at wrestling, and have been for years, but
they are losing the third dimension in their game. Both guys
have won a number of fights in their career by ground and pounding
their way to victory, but they are losing their hunger and now
are trying to simply get by, and survive fights, which is a detrimental
approach. In addition to this, age induces a taming of that hunger
that a fighter possesses when they are young. When Tito was emerging,
he had explosive rage when he fought, and this naturally evoked
his ground and pound, yet in the light heavyweight’s recent
loss to Rashad Evans, it was “Suga” who proved that
he is still thriving as a fighter. Evans was animalistic in ground
and pounding Ortiz into the cage, and was strong with his stand
up and takedowns too. Doesn’t an athletic fighter like Evans
with such devastating ground and pound exhibit the need for such
a method in today’s mixed martial arts?
The
obsession with winning in sports is a positive thing. It forces
athletes to work hard, and compete at their best to become victorious.
It can also push fighters past their limits to become the best,
but in MMA it can have the opposite effect. Some guys want to
get a win on their record so badly that they will use the tactic
of smothering opponents without actually doing damage, or attempting
to finish them. Using wrestling as a controlling factor in a
fight rather than a set up for ground punishment has become prevalent
with today’s wrestlers.
Jon
Fitch and Anthony Johnson are two of today’s wrestlers who
have been criticized for not finishing fights. Johnson, who is
an enormous welterweight and cuts from above 200 pounds down
to 170 is able to use his size advantage to weigh on top of fighters,
and tire them out. When he faced Dan Hardy, there wasn’t
a moment where Johnson looked eager to finish the fight. He was
fully in position to finish with ground and pound, as he was
on top of “The Outlaw” for the majority of the fight…
but didn’t pull the trigger. Jon Fitch is similar to St.
Pierre in that he doesn’t bother with ground and pound unless
he has exhausted all other options. He is comfortable striking
on the feet, but when on the ground he doesn’t show a need
for ground and pound, and is happy with an abundance of decision
wins rather than a few impressive knockout wins.
Jon
Jones, Carlos Condit, Cain Velasquez and Rashad Evans are some
of today’s fighters who recognize the importance of ground
and pound and it is no coincidence that they are all fighting
for world titles. With the way Carlos Condit has skyrocketed
through the welterweight division, his finishing style should
serve as an example. The way he finished the young and extremely
talented Rory MacDonald with a third round of ground and pound
is a perfect example of why he is so popular and now receiving
his title shot. Even if Condit loses his UFC 137 bout, who can
honestly predict this to be another boring title defense by GSP?
Ground
and pound has always been an exiting way to end a fight, but
it has been redefined in such a way that fighters who don’t
use it simply don’t have a chance at being as great as those
who do.
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
808
Battlegrounds presents: Unstoppable
Tomorrow!
The Waterfront, Aloha Tower, Honolulu, Hawaii
September 23,2011
|
No
Words Exchanged Between Ellenberger, Shields on Shields' Father's
Death
NEW ORLEANS – Jake Ellenberger's quick and dominant win
over Jake Shields on Saturday will forever be linked to a story
that transcends the world of fighting and sports.
When
Shields' father and manager, Jack Shields, died suddenly last
month, there were quickly questions of whether he would be able
to recover emotionally for the main event with Ellenberger at
UFC Fight Night 25 – or if he even might pull out of the
fight altogether. Shields was that close with his dad.
Ellenberger
said leading up to the fight he could not help but understand
Shields' grief, and respected his decision to go through with
the fight. After Ellenberger's 53-second TKO win, he said he
didn't exchange any words with Shields, post-fight, about the
loss of his father.
"I
don't feel it's my place to be (offering condolences after the
fight)," Ellenberger told MMA Fighting. "I know he's
going through a really tough time, but I don't think it's my
place to talk about it. I feel for him – I really do. Like
I said when I heard about this, family is the most important
thing in the world outside of fighting, outside of anything."
Shields
had not been stopped in a fight since 2000, his third pro fight,
and only in April, in a decision loss to Georges St-Pierre for
the welterweight title, had his more than six-year-long winning
streak snapped. He has now lost two straight for the first time
in his career, which included the Strikeforce middleweight title
before he vacated it last year to sign with the UFC.
Ellenberger's
win gave him five straight in the welterweight division, and
the ease with which he dispatched Shields likely thrust his name
right into title contention with another win. St-Pierre defends
next against Carlos Condit in October. Nick Diaz fights BJ Penn
on the same night with the winner likely to be next in line after
Condit. But Ellenberger's quick win, taking virtually no damage,
may mean he's back to work quickly, hoping to build on his streak
and cement himself as next in line for a shot sometime in 2012.
Saturday,
though, he said anyone who wants to downgrade his win by saying
Shields might not have been ready for the fight in the wake of
his father's death should reconsider.
"It
doesn't matter, to be honest," Ellenberger said. "He
took the fight. He stayed in there, which I respect about him.
He showed he's a professional and a warrior. He had the opportunity
to pull out. I'm not taking anything away from him. A fight is
a fight."
Before
Jack Shields passed, there was just a hint of bad blood starting
to rise between the two Jakes when Shields said he hadn't really
heard of Ellenberger. But after Saturday night, that likely all
got swept under the carpet.
But
Ellenberger said he knew he had to put his sympathy for Shields
aside when the cage door closed.
"That's
the hard part," Ellenberger said. "I know he's going
through such a tough time. No matter what you do and say, it's
really hard to push that aside and compete. But I do feel for
him. Outside of fighting, I feel for him. I respect him. But
when you get in there, it's our job to fight, and that's what
we do."
Source:
MMA Fighting |
For
Jake Ellenberger, a Challenge Made Is a Promise Kept in Knockout
Fashion
It was a fight he lobbied for incessantly.
Jake
Ellenberger wanted a chance to face Jake Shields, a chance to
face one of the welterweight division's best. The intensity of
his interest in the fight though, came as something of a surprise
when he began to stalk Shields on Twitter. Ellenberger called
him a "joke," told him his days were numbered, said
he was about as "exciting as watching a bowl of mash potatoes
get cold." And when the fight was finally made, and Shields
said he didn't really know who Ellenberger was, he made one last
statement.
"Jake
Shields, you don't know who I am, and you're not gonna [sic]
know who I am after the fight either," Ellenberger tweeted
on July 12. "You're cornermen will tell you."
With
that, he called his shot, basically promising a knockout.
It
was a bold call. An entire decade -- and 29 fights -- had passed
since a referee had pulled an opponent off Shields. And he wasn't
fighting cupcakes during that time. He'd stood across the cage
from names like Georges St-Pierre, Dan Henderson, Carlos Condit,
Yushin Okami and Paul Daley, and none of them had been able to
put him down for good.
On
top of that, Ellenberger came in as the underdog, with Shields
nearly a 2-to-1 favorite.
No
one knocks out Shields, and Jake Ellenberger was going to do
it?
If
it sounded like empty hype, you couldn't blame Ellenberger for
firing out some verbal warheads. After six years in the fight
game and an excellent record (he's now 25-5), he might have been
wondering what exactly he needed to do to gain any traction.
Nothing he'd done in the UFC up to that point had made him a
household name, and few were clamoring to see him fight the division's
best.
Finally,
he got his chance, and made it a quick night of work. Living
up to his promise, he knocked out Shields in just 53 seconds.
After shrugging off a pair of Shields' takedown tries, Ellenberger
landed a crushing knee to the head that knocked his opponent
down, then finished him on the ground with a series of hard left
hands that forced the referee to step in.
With
that, the 26-year-old Ellenberger announced himself as a true
contender.
It
was hard not to feel some sympathy for Shields. Just two weeks
ago, he lost his father, 67-year-old Jack. Jake Shields said
he never seriously contemplated withdrawing from the fight, but
you have to wonder if his concentration level was where it needed
to be.
That's
not Ellenberger's concern, of course. The cage is no place for
feelings. Histories must be left behind and future plans must
be set aside, if only momentarily. The only thing that can matter
is the next second.
While
Shields rode the emotional roller coaster to New Orleans, Ellenberger
had to be feeling at least a hint of pressure. While he came
in on a four-fight win streak, this fight was his first UFC main
event, and his first chance to really impress the people who
matter. Wins against Mike Pyle and John Howard are fine. They
look good on a record, and they move you up the rankings incrementally.
But a win over Shields?
This
is a guy who has beaten Henderson and Jason "Mayhem"
Miller and Carlos Condit, and the list goes on. He's won titles
in two different weight classes, and his awkward striking style
aside, he simply wins and wins. Beating Shields means something.
It's more than a victory; it's a message. Jake Ellenberger has
arrived.
You
know how hard it is to call out a fighter ranked above you, get
that fight and crush him? That's the trifecta Ellenberger just
pulled off. There were plenty of fighters he could have wanted,
but he had his eye on one target all along, for very specific
reasons. As Ellenberger tells it, he was supposed to fight Shields
once a couple years ago, but Shields ended up withdrawing from
the fight. As Ellenberger tells it, he was too dangerous and
not well known enough for Shields to take the risk.
This
is what you do when you get your long-awaited opportunity. Ellenberger
fought like a man with everything to gain in the future while
motivated by everything he's missed out on in the past.
Source:
MMA Fighting |
Court
McGee Prefers a Stoppage, but is Just Fine Getting Third UFC
Victory
Regardless of how he got it done, Court McGee was glad to get
back in the fight after 11 months on the shelf.
McGee
returned after an 11-month layoff with knee and hand injuries.
But after submission wins in his first two UFC fights, including
the Season 11 Finale of "The Ultimate Fighter" to take
that crown, McGee needed three rounds Saturday to get past Dongi
Yang in the co-main event of UFC Fight Night 25.
Thought
another stoppage win would've been fine with him, McGee said
there were positives he can take out of going the distance.
There's
no substitute for mat time," McGee told MMA Fighting on
Saturday after his win. "I'm grateful that I had a hard
three-round fight, but it's nice to have that feeling and feel
somebody tap or submit – to finish somebody. ... When I
get in there and finish somebody – that's an awesome, awesome
feeling. I'm still grateful I went three rounds and I got the
decision. I'll take it for what it is, and I'm grateful for what
it is. Do I think I can do better and improve? Yeah, but it is
what it is."
McGee
(14-1, 3-0 UFC) won by unanimous decision, getting scores of
30-27, 29-28 and 30-28 from the three cageside judges in New
Orleans. But the third round saw McGee get tagged by Yang, and
he had to persevere.
"Luckily,
I was born with heart," McGee said. "I feel you're
either born with it or not. Thank goodness tonight I was. I may
not be the prettiest fighter, but I'm tough. That played a role
in it tonight."
McGee
said the fight with Yang showed him some areas he plans to work
on immediately. But as far as the infamous cage rust, McGee said
he experienced none.
"I'll
go back and improve and stay focused, just like I am," McGee
said. "I didn't feel like I had any ring rust or anything.
... The only thing I think I could have done was commit to a
shot and take him down a little bit earlier, work some ground.
But I don't look at the destination, I look at the journey. This
is part of the journey – learning and improving. I don't
think practice makes perfect – progress rather than perfection.
I feel like I'm progressing. I'm happy. I'm content with my win,
but I can always improve."
Source:
MMA Fighting |
Fox
Executive: Creating Stars Key to Sustainability
The UFC announced a monumental seven-year deal with Fox on Aug.
18, and the discussion from matchups to production possibilities
has been alive ever since.
Fox
Sports Co-President Eric Shanks joined Jack Encarnacao on the
Sherdog Radio Network’s “Rewind” show to discuss
who will handle matchmaking, the promotional push Fox will give
the UFC and more.
Shanks
on whether they’ll demonstrate techniques to educate viewers:
“If you watch our NFL on Fox pregame show, if you watch
our games, our philosophy is that first and foremost sports is
entertainment. We’re not a huge X’s and O’s network.
We like to think we’re more about storytelling and we’re
more about letting you enjoy the game. I think if you want hardcore
X’s and O’s, you’re going to watch the NFL Network
or ‘NFL Live’ on ESPN to get that fix. We also like
to think that you coat the information pill with a little bit
of sugar and a little bit of entertainment.
“The
approach of UFC on the Fox network is going to be the same. If
you come on the air and you do full-page graphics and animations
on what is a triangle, I think you’re going to hear the
TV click off all around the country. Through the course of the
broadcast you educate people, but I think the main thing is,
OK, number one, on November 12, why should I care about this
sport? Why is it here? Why is it so popular? And then, who’s
going to win the fight? Why should I care about these two fighters?
And then I think that Joe Rogan and [Mike] Goldberg, as the fight
goes along, that’s when you start to get a little bit more
of that information and technique, is in the course of the fight
itself and the analysis of the fight.”
On
whether he’ll have a say in matchmaking (a topic he laughed
and joked about): “They’re the experts in matchmaking.
I don’t think you can argue with their ability, Dana and
Lorenzo’s ability, to do matchmaking. Look, I’m a fan.
I’m a fan that happens to be in business with them on the
non-pay-per-view side. I just happen to be a fan that can actually
have the debate with them. Whether they actually care what I
think or will actually give [credence] to a guy who’s coming
in and now all of a sudden thinks he’s a matchmaker, we’ll
see.
“We
were at dinner the other night and Dana was like, ‘You know,
some guys, they get to know us and then within a week, they think
they’re a matchmaker.’ I said, ‘Well, Dana, it
probably will only take me a day or two for me to think I’m
a matchmaker.’”
On
whether a show could be made about matchmaking: “We’ve
been talking about, is there even a show around that [that could
air] on Fuel? Can you put together a show that has Dana, Lorenzo,
other experts and maybe even fighters and actually kind of debate
the pros and cons of certain matches that you might actually
put together? I actually think it would be a really fun show.”
On
how the Nov. 12 show will influence future Fox shows: “There’s
going to be a little bit of a learning curve. The guys at UFC
… they get it. They get the TV side, and it shows with the
strategy that they’ve taken both in the U.S. and internationally.
We’re going to evaluate how well we all think that a one-hour
show starting at nine o’clock does on November 12. We’ve
jointly agreed to say, ‘All right, can it do better in a
different time slot at different lengths? Did it work for us?’
We’re going to make changes if necessary to bring the absolute
best product to the fans on television.”
On
how UFC pay-per-views will interact with the Fox shows: “If
pay-per-view does well, we think that UFC on Fox and on FX and
Fuel will do well and vice versa. … If the UFC on Fox pulls
a huge number and creates new fans, it means more pay-per-view.
And if you have more hardcore fans for pay-per-view, that just
means they’re going to have a huge appetite for what is
on FX and what’s on Fuel and what’s on the broadcast
network. I don’t think anybody can argue that there is a
circle that’s been created that will feed from one thing
to the other.”
On
how to keep a good product going: “I think that sustainability
is really all about creating stars. These guys, through ‘The
Ultimate Fighter’ and the new format of ‘The Ultimate
Fighter’ -- which I am so excited that they even thought
of the idea of the new format for ‘The Ultimate Fighter’
-- but creating stars that people care about and not just one
star at a time but multiple stars that people actually care about,
that’s what sustains the interest in the sport first and
foremost. Then the fact that you put on really consistent, really
upscale matches and performances and fights from all those stars.”
On
the push Fox will give the UFC: “The very day that we announced
this deal, we had a preseason NFL football game and we ran two
10-second promos for the UFC on Fox coming this fall in those
games that night. We were prepared to put our money where our
mouth is. In the highest-rated telecast of the night in the country,
we started promoting a deal that we just announced that day.
We have unbelievable entertainment assets, whether it’s
the launch of probably what will be the number one show in America
in ‘X-Factor,’ obviously ‘American Idol,’
all of our sports properties. This will get the full treatment
from Fox for a launch. We’re excited about some of the ideas
that have been percolating here internally about taking the Fox
attitude and marrying it with the UFC in a marketing fashion.”
Source:
Sherdog
|
One
Man’s View: A Needed Threat at 170
Just
four months ago, the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s welterweight
division was suffering from a case of top contender blues.
Jake
Ellenberger’s knockout against Jake Shields at UFC Fight
Night 25 on Saturday puts him and the promotion in great position.
We have already explored the New School-Old School cleave in
the division, and Ellenberger’s performance opens up fresh
possibilities while dynamiting away some of those promotional
cul-de-sacs.
The
UFC can now sit back, assess the winner of the Oct. 29 Nick Diaz-B.J.
Penn clash and decide whether or not that victor should get the
next title shot before Ellenberger. Consider how dreadful the
welterweight list of challengers seemed in April, when champion
Georges St. Pierre put together a one-sided yet anticlimactic
decision over Shields. Essentially, the UFC will be two-deep
in marketable challengers after Carlos Condit battles GSP at
UFC 137; it is not quite the ultra-deep lightweight ranks, but
it has improved considerably.
After
his five-round snoozer over Shields, St. Pierre, in registering
his fourth consecutive decision win, had faced a crop of top
challengers in Jon Fitch, Josh Koscheck, B.J. Penn and the just-defeated
Shields. Rankings wise, it would have been hard to make a case
for anyone else at that time belonging in the Top 4. The problem
was St. Pierre had gone 6-0 in fights against those fighters,
and the marketing prospects for rematches against them was somewhere
between negligible and none.
It
is entirely understandable to allow one’s self to be drawn
into prefight hype and the slickly produced UFC “Countdown”
shows, even when the patina of an overhyped challenger sell is
glaringly obvious. We afford ourselves the suspension of disbelief
that the challenger will, indeed, give the fight of his life,
even though hardcore fans can debunk the hype GSP’s foes
receive. I cannot tell you how many times I have watched a Countdown
show and heard this thin ice that passes as incontrovertible
truth, often uttered by the ever-complimentary champion himself:
“He’s the best wrestler I’ve ever faced”
or “the toughest guy I have ever fought,” while thinking,
“He must have a half-dozen ‘Zuffa Employee of the Month’
plaques on his wall for saying that with a straight face.”
St.
Pierre has new challengers at 170.
Then
the fight happens, the disconnect between hype and reality is
made eminently clear and GSP dominates another contender who
does not come remotely close to fulfilling the threats he allegedly
represented. Secretariat blowing away the rest of the field at
the Belmont Stakes was a fantastic event, precisely because it
happened once, not every four months.
St.
Pierre is that good, but at the end of the day, he needs a challenger
willing to go out on his shield if he is going to get maximum
credit for the second-best title run in UFC history. A consistently
filled silent agreement between an outmatched contender willing
to cede trying to win and a champion content to dominate and
win by decision is a lousy long-term prescription for everyone
involved, and I am of the firm belief that St. Pierre is not
moving to middleweight anytime soon.
With
the emergence of Condit and Ellenberger, GSP has some fresh challenges
ahead, and, more importantly, compared to the Old School group,
they may have the kind of fighting style most likely to give
him a stiff test. Condit and Ellenberger look to destroy opponents,
and the guess here is that if the champion is unseated, it will
be by an aggressive challenger who knows better than to come
in thinking he can win on points. I am not sure GSP will ever
lose by decision at welterweight, at least not while he is in
his prime. We will watch these Countdown specials actually believing
they will go in there and try to take his head off.
The
New School-Old School dynamic was also why Jon Fitch was recently
matched with Johny Hendricks at UFC 141. Among the Old School
cadre, Fitch presents the greatest combination of a guy who is
tough to beat yet tough to market for a title fight as long as
GSP rules the roost. Hendricks has the best combination of wrestling
and punching power needed to cancel out Fitch’s grinding
attack. Plus, even if Hendricks is bested by the far more experienced
the American Kickboxing Academy ace, he, despite being 6-1 in
the UFC, is not a big enough name to help Fitch make the case
for a title shot, particularly if the bout unfolds as virtually
anyone would reasonably expect: clinch, takedown attempt, sprawl,
shower, rinse, repeat.
It
is no accident that Fitch is being given Hendricks, and Ellenberger’s
knockout of Shields was a promotional jackpot on two fronts;
the Old School member has to be moved out of the way with the
highest amount of risk for the veteran fighter and the lowest
reward possible should he win. It is the only move, at this point,
that makes promotional sense for the UFC. I cannot even imagine
trying to put together a Countdown show of GSP against anyone
in the Old School at this point, unless Penn beats Diaz inside
the distance.
I
picked Ellenberger over Shields for a couple reasons. He punches
exceptionally well for a wrestler, which is not always a natural
transition. Many wrestlers tend to go through the motions and
do not commit fully on their shots, instead reverting to something
between a pantomime of standup and the real thing. However, Ellenberger
throws hands like a guy perfectly comfortable going blow-for-blow.
He
is also tactically smart and picks his spots to explode with
the confidence of a man who can finish a fight at any time. Openings
in MMA can be fleeting, even invisible to the casual eye, but
a fighter with a deep grasp of the transitions between the various
phases of the game -- standup, clinching, ground work and submissions
-- can seize upon them to brutal effect. Ellenberger did so in
drilling Shields with a knee as the former Strikeforce champion
tried to tie up with him. That may be exactly what he will need
to defeat St. Pierre, but, fortunately for us, the ultra-aggressive
Condit gets the first shot.
I
would make Condit a 2-to-1 underdog against the likes of Fitch
or Koscheck; their wrestling and takedowns make them wired to
shut down and decision the explosive former WEC champion. However,
Condit, who has recorded an incredible 26 of his 27 victories
inside the distance, is a lot more likely to beat certain people
because of his all-in approach.
As
an added subplot, Condit only seems to get tougher when sucked
into a dogfight. Whether it is rallying from the extensive trouble
Hiromitsu Miura gave him or the thrilling third-round surge he
put together to take out Rory MacDonald in a dramatic come-from-behind
victory, Condit just fights harder the more one beats him up.
Over five rounds against GSP, that is the recipe for a different
kind of welterweight title defense altogether.
Fittingly,
the only person Condit has beaten without a knockout or submission
is Ellenberger, who lost a disputed decision to him in an outstanding
scrap in 2009. If “The Natural Born Killer” cannot
turn the trick against the champion and barring an epic struggle
and victor in the Penn-Diaz bout, Ellenberger has earned the
next crack at the title.
Source:
Sherdog
|
|
UFC
Fight Night 25: Shields vs. Ellenberger Attendance and Gate Receipts
UFC
Fight Night 25: Shields vs. Ellenberger took place at the Ernest
N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans on Saturday night.
With
a reputation as one of the most underrated fighters on the roster,
Midwesterner Jake Ellenberger pulled off the main event upset,
sending Jake Shields reeling from a knee to the body followed
by another to the head.
It
was an exciting finish for the 7,112 fans in attendance. Those
fans, according to UFC officials, accounted for a live gate of
$685,000.
Fans
in attendance were also treated to regional favorite Alan Belcher’s
impressive first-round drubbing of Jason MacDonald. It was Belcher’s
first bout in nearly a year-and-a-half after suffering a career
threatening eye injury.
Source:
MMA Weekly |
|
Ellenberger
finishes Shields for biggest career win
Jake
Ellenberger had been talking all week that he was going to knock
out Jake Shields. On paper, that didn’t seem likely, since
Shields was a top five welterweight and hadn’t been stopped
in a fight since 2000.
But
Ellenberger (26-5) emphatically moved himself into serious title
contention by stopping the former Elite XC, Strikeforce and Shooto
champion in just 53 second in the main event of the final UFC
Fight Night show on Spike, “Battle on the Bayou,” from
New Orleans.
“I’m
surprised at how quick it went, but I’ve been training very
hard for the fight the past few weeks,” Ellenberger said
moments after referee Kevin Mulhall stopped the fight. “It’s
hard to believe. My coaches are always there for me and they
tell me all the time that the sky is the limit. I’m going
to continue to work hard.”
Most
had considered Ellenberger somewhere between No. 10-15 in the
world at 170 pounds, but even with the impressive win, due to
the names in front of him, his ranking isn’t likely to skyrocket
with the victory. It was his fifth in a row and ninth in his
past 10 fights.
“I
feel unbelievable,” Ellenberger said. “Jake Shields
is a world champion. I can’t explain how I feel right now.
I feels great.”
Shields
(26-6-1) came into the fight ranked No. 3 in the MMA Weekly.com
welterweight rankings behind St. Pierre and Jon Fitch. He was
the subject of a human interest story in the buildup of the fight
due to the death of his father and business manager, Jack Shields,
on Aug. 30 at the age of 67.
Shields
spoke often about how his father was so strongly behind his wrestling
career from childhood. And after some early misgivings, his father
ended up being the biggest supporter of his MMA career, which
has taken him all over the world.
Although
he said going forward with the bout was an easy decision, Shields
came into the fight not looking as powerful as usual. On paper,
the fight looked to come down to Ellenberger’s takedown
defense, because he had the stronger striking game, while Shields
had noted before the fight he had found holes in Ellenberger’s
jiu-jitsu game. Ellenberger had been training with former NCAA
champion Mark Munoz on the wrestling end, to keep the fight standing.
Ellenberger
was the thicker and more muscular of the two fighters. He overpowered
and threw Shields down almost immediately after the first lockup,
but Shields was right back up. Shields then moved in for a takedown
while Ellenberger powered away. But Ellenberger tied Shields
up and landed a hard left knee to the body, followed by a devastating
right knee to the chin that put Shields down hard. Ellenberger
unloaded with about seven rapid punches on the ground before
Mulhall jumped in.
Shields
continued to battle for a takedown, but did so on Mulhall, who
he instinctively thought was Ellenberger, after Ellenberger had
already started celebrating.
“I’m
just frustrated,” said Shields after the fight. “I
got hit with a good shot. I wish I could have fought a little
more. I don’t want to take anything from Jake Ellenberger
but I thought I had a little bit of fight left.”
The
win puts Ellenberger into a logjam at welterweight. Most of the
fighters ahead of him are booked in fights over the next few
months, like Fitch, Nick Diaz, Carlos Condit, Josh Koscheck,
B.J. Penn and Thiago Alves, while Diego Sanchez is out of action
with a hand injury. But the win on a national TV broadcast elevates
Ellenberger into that company, and in a position where he’ll
likely be matched with the top-level fighters and be talked of
as a potential title challenger.
The
explosive ending followed two lackluster fights featuring former
winners of “The Ultimate Fighter” reality show, who
split close fights that went the distance.
Jonathan
Brookins (13-4), who won season 12 as a lightweight, moved down
to featherweight, and dropped a decision to Erik Koch (13-1).
Koch, the roommate of former WEC champion Anthony Pettis, had
also worked hard on keeping the fight standing.
Judges
scored the fight 30-27, 29-28 and 30-27 for Koch. Yahoo! Sports
had it also 30-27, but the fight was closer than those scores
would indicate because all three rounds could have gone either
way.
Brookins
largely controlled the positioning, usually pinning Koch against
the fence when he wasn’t able to take him down. Brookins
had three takedowns, but only one was significant where Koch
didn’t immediately get back up. Koch was the better striker
when he had the distance, and did more damage in all three rounds.
But Brookins smothered him and rarely gave him the opportunity,
and mostly controlled where the fight was fought.
“This
is my life,” said Koch. “I train four times a day.
I get up at 9 a.m. and sometimes don’t get done until midnight.
This fight was for me, a pat on the back to get rid of some demons.”
A
similar close fight saw season 11 winner Court McGee (13-1) take
a 30-27, 29-28 and 30-28 decision over Dongi Yang (10-2). This
fight was even closer than its predecessor, with Yahoo! Sports
having it 29-28 McGee.
The
fight was mostly standing and lacked much in the way of action
in a close first two rounds, both of which could have been judged
either way.
In
the third round, Yang landed the best punch of the fight, a left
that put McGee down, and followed with a running knee and then
a takedown. But the key to the round ended up being conditioning,
as Yang got tired shortly after hurting McGee for the first time.
McGee on the other hand, was never breathing hard. McGee had
been unable to get Yang off his feet up to that point, but threw
him twice late in the round. He had Yang down and was throwing
elbows before putting on a guillotine just as time expired.
“I
felt good, not satisfied,” said McGee. “I hurt him
late in the first round. I definitely could have pushed and committed
more when I hurt him. I found myself waiting to counter what
he was doing. He was definitely prepared and very tough.”
Alan
Belcher (16-5), out 17 months after two major eye operations
to repair a torn retina that he believed at one point had ended
his career, came back and finished Jason MacDonald (26-15) in
3:48 of the first round.
MacDonald
tried a throw but ended up pulling Belcher to the ground, which
was where MacDonald wanted the fight. But the move ended up being
his undoing. Belcher kept the top position, hurting MacDonald
with a flurry early, and then landing another series of hard
punches and elbows before MacDonald verbally submitted.
“I
couldn’t have dream it to be any better,” said Belcher,
who had a large cheering contingent on hand since he’s from
nearby Biloxi, Miss. “I’ve been out for so long, so
it’s great to fight here in New Orleans, so close to home.
It feels good to be back. It took a lot of mental training. If
your mind isn’t ready to come back, your body isn’t.
I started four or five months ago and started to get into the
groove. I told myself it was all or nothing. He pulled me down.
Being on top on the ground is probably one of my best places.”
Source:
Yahoo Sports |
Mailbag:
Condit earned his title shot
Carlos
Condit may have been the second choice to fight Georges St. Pierre
for the welterweight title at UFC 137 on Oct. 29, but anyone
who insists he hasn’t earned the shot hasn’t been paying
attention.
The
former World Extreme Cagefighting champion has been on a tear
since losing a heartbreaking split decision to Martin Kampmann
in his UFC debut on April 1, 2009.
Since
then, Condit has decisioned Jake Ellenberger, stopped Rory MacDonald,
knocked out Dan Hardy and pummeled Dong Hyun Kim. He’s gotten
better each time out and showed not only a more varied game,
but also a killer instinct.
He
got the spot when Nick Diaz was yanked from the main event after
missing several news conferences, leading some to question the
legitimacy of Condit’s shot. But I’d suggest that beating
Ellenberger, MacDonald, Hardy and Kim is more impressive than
consecutive wins over Hayato “Mach” Sakurai, K.J. Noons,
Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos and Paul Daley, which Diaz
has done as the last four bouts of a 10-fight win streak.
“I’ve
had some ups and downs in my career,” said Condit, who is
about a 3-1 underdog. “To finally be at this point where
I could possibly be the welterweight champion, it’s huge.
I earned it. No matter what happened with Diaz and that whole
thing, I think that I’m legitimately the No. 1 contender,
and I’ve earned this shot.”
Because
trainer Greg Jackson has worked with both men, he has said he
will sit out the battle. Condit, who is 27-5, said he sensed
years ago that he may someday have to fight St. Pierre. As a
result, while the two both trained at Jackson’s MMA in Albquerque,
N.M., they didn’t fraternize much.
St.
Pierre spends most of his time training with Firas Zihabi in
Montreal anyway, but Condit was careful to keep the lines between
them separate. He’s hired Mike Winkeljohn and Chris Luttrell
as his coaches.
“Since
I’ve been at Jackson’s, he hasn’t been there a
whole lot, and when he has, we’ve kind of stayed to our
respective sides of the gym,” Condit said. “I think
that we saw this on the horizon. I definitely did.”
Condit
cried when he heard the news that he’d be fighting for the
UFC welterweight title. He had difficulty understanding Diaz’
decision to skip two news conferences that ultimately led to
Diaz being yanked from the bout with St. Pierre, but he wasn’t
complaining.
“At
this level, there is more to it than just the fight,” Condit
said. “There are a lot of responsibilities that come with
it, and if you can’t fulfill them, then you shouldn’t
be fighting for the title.”
MMA
musings
•
It appears that Frank Trigg, the former welterweight contender
whose bout at UFC 52 with Matt Hughes is one of the greatest
in UFC history, has reached the end of the line. He lost a split
decision in England on Saturday to “Judo” Jimmy Wallhead
on a BAMMA card. But Trigg is a natural for a spot on the UFC
on Fox broadcasts and, hopefully, Fox and UFC brass will give
him consideration.
•
Josh Barnett deserves to be the favorite in the Strikeforce World
Grand Prix Heavyweight Tournament finale when he meets Daniel
Cormier, but Cormier is going to be very difficult for him to
beat. Cormier has improved tremendously in the last year, to
which his knockout of Antonio Silva in the semifinals attests.
•
The winner of the Strikeforce Grand Prix deserves to be given
the heavyweight title that was vacated when Zuffa released Alistair
Overeem and later re-signed him to a UFC contract. Barnett and
Cormier have beaten the best guys in the division and the winner
should, without question, be recognized as the champion.
•
Jake Shields is showing an amazing amount of toughness, mental
strength and courage by fighting Jake Ellenberger on Saturday
at UFC Fight Night Live in New Orleans only three weeks after
his father, Jack, died. Jack Shields managed his son and the
pair had an exceptionally close relationship.
•
The UFC’s middleweight division will be improved on Saturday
with Alan Belcher’s return from a detached retina.
Readers
always write
Was
Diaz framed?
Hey
Kevin, I’m very upset with Nick Diaz bailing out of the
recent UFC 137 press conference with welterweight champion Georges
St. Pierre in Toronto. For whatever real reason, only Nick knows,
but then just days later, Diaz failed to show in Vegas, as well.
Perhaps he wasn’t invited for embarrassing UFC president
Dana White, and things were set up to look like Diaz was scheduled
to appear (I’m very jaded), the way this is panning out.
I’ll be quite surprised if he shows up at Mandalay Bay Events
Center on Oct. 29 to face B.J. Penn. What’s going on and
do you think it would be in Nick’s best interest to address
his fans and the MMA world by clearing the air by making another
video?
Chris
White
Kingston, Ont.
Chris,
there is no question that Nick should have done what he said
he would do, which is to attend the news conferences in Toronto
and Las Vegas. Those news conferences only serve to make the
fighters more money, because they promote the bouts and increase
pay-per-view sales. That said, I guarantee you the UFC did not
set anything up. That’s completely ridiculous. It caused
them a great deal of difficulty and expense, and if they wanted
to have Carlos Condit as the next challenger, they simply would
have done that. No one is saying Nick has to become the most
talkative fighter on the planet, but he needs to at least do
what all of his peers do. Doing these things is part of the job
at the highest level. At this point, it’s pretty clear what
his position is, so nothing is going to change. If he wants to
make a video, that’s up to him, but I don’t think there
is a need for it, by any means.
UFC
protecting GSP
Seriously,
about Nick Diaz being pulled from the fight against Georges St.
Pierre at UFC 137, it’s only common sense that Dana White
won’t let his golden boy get beat before they can show him
off to the new Fox audience going into 2012. They need St. Pierre
to be the champion for a little while. If Diaz was the champ
going into 2012, that would only justify people’s prejudices
about MMA about being a bunch of barbaric savages. The real St.
Pierre-Diaz fight will be the biggest of all time!
James
Manteca, Calif.
James,
I’m just not following your logic. The only reason Nick
Diaz isn’t fighting Georges St. Pierre is because of Nick
Diaz. Period, end of story. And your point that the UFC needs
St. Pierre to be its champion is ludicrous. If the UFC needed
anyone to be champion, it would have been Brock Lesnar. Lesnar
is clearly the UFC’s biggest draw and so if the UFC wanted
to manipulate things to an extent that they could essentially
have who they wanted as champion, they never would have matched
him with Cain Velasquez. Diaz is a legitimate world-class fighter
and the UFC would have no problem with him as its champion, if
he were good enough to beat St. Pierre.
Did
dos Santos try to make a statement?
In
watching the Junior dos Santos-Shane Carwin fight at UFC 131,
dos Santos took down Carwin twice late in the third round. Do
you think he did this to make a statement to heavyweight champion
Cain Velasquez, who was sitting at ringside? Also, I have heard
no comments about the guillotine that Carwin secured during the
second takedown that appeared very tight and, which, in my opinion,
could have ended the fight in a submission win for Carwin had
there been more time on the clock.
Matt
Duerwachter
Phoenix, Ariz.
I
don’t remember the fight play-by-play specifically now,
as it was in June, but I feel confident that dos Santos wasn’t
doing anything to impress Velasquez and was simply trying to
win the fight. He had dominated the bout to that point and continuing
to stand and fight that way with Carwin presented the greatest
risk. Carwin is a tremendous puncher and all it took was one
punch to end it. So, putting Carwin on his back eliminated his
strength, which, in the final seconds of a bout, is a smart thing
to do. Dos Santos himself said he was never in difficulty from
the guillotine, so I’ll take him at his word. I really look
forward to seeing him challenge Velasquez for the heavyweight
title on Nov. 12.
Quoteworthy
“If
Mo whatever the [expletive] his name is, or any of those guys,
think I planned all this [expletive] this week, they’re
out of their minds. Yes, we signed [Alistair] Overeem and made
the Brock [Lesnar] fight. Do you think I expected Nick Diaz to
pull this [expletive]? We have all kinds of stuff going and I
didn’t need this in my life. It is what it is and I never
had a thought in my mind of [expletive] with Strikeforce. But
I promote the UFC 24/7.” – UFC president Dana White,
reacting to complaints that light heavyweight Mo Lawal made regarding
the lack of attention last week’s Strikeforce card received.
Source:
Yahoo Sports |
|
UFC
FN 25 Post Fight: Alan Belcher ‘It Feels Good to Be Back’
It
was a storybook night for Alan Belcher who returned at UFC Fight
Night 25 after more than a year away from the sport following
an eye injury that nearly ended his career.
Belcher
suffered a detached retina while in training last year and following
two surgeries, he wasn’t sure if he’d even be able
to fight again, much less compete on this card.
Not
only did he compete, but Belcher put away veteran Canadian fighter
Jason MacDonald with strikes in the first round of their bout
in New Orleans.
When
it was all over, Belcher says he couldn’t have imagined
a better ending to the night.
“I
couldn’t have dreamed it to be any better. (I’ve) been
out for so long. Fighting here in New Orleans, close to home,
just an amazing feeling. I was trying to hold back the tears
in there,” Belcher said in an interview with UFC.com following
the fight.
“It
feels good to be back.”
Heading
into the bout, it was no secret that MacDonald’s best chance
of winning was to get the fight to the ground. He managed to
do that by pulling guard on Belcher, but it backfired almost
immediately as the Mississippi native absolutely unloaded on
MacDonald.
“I
hit him with some hard ones so I just started pouring it on stronger,
and there at the end I hit him with a pretty hard elbow and his
eyes closed for a second and he falls over to his side, and I
started reigning down punches and elbows,” Belcher stated.
The
end of the fight came when Belcher continued the assault, and
MacDonald clearly had enough and verbally submitted.
“He
was trying to say ‘okay I give up’ and his back was
turned to the ref, so I wanted to make sure the ref heard it
so I could get my win, but also to protect him at the same time
so I started telling the ref that he was tapping out,” Belcher
explained about the finish.
The
win now puts Belcher back on track where he was just over a year
ago. In a prime spot in the middleweight division, where there
is definitely a need for top flight contenders who haven’t
already been left in the wake of champion Anderson Silva’s
destruction.
Coming
back was important to Belcher, but coming back and being a contender
was the only way he wanted to do it.
“I
don’t want to continue doing unless I put everything into
it,” said Belcher. “To continue the goal I was after
before. I pretty much just told myself it was all or nothing.
“I
gave it all.”
Source:
MMA Weekly |
|
UFC
FN 25 Post Fight: Jake Ellenberger Believes the Sky’s The
Limit Now
There’s
no denying that throughout his career, Jake Ellenberger has had
some big fights and big wins, but none rank higher than his first
round stoppage of former Strikeforce middleweight champion Jake
Shields on Saturday night.
Ellenberger
blasted Shields with a knee and then followed up with a flurry
of punches on the ground to get the knockout win.
Following
the fight, Ellenberger admitted seeing Shields with title belts
around his waist made him want what he had, so he went in the
cage and took it.
“One
of my biggest wins. I can’t take anything away from what
Jake Shields has done, he’s a world champion, multiple time
world champion. That’s just what I want,” Ellenberger
told UFC.com.
In
the fight itself, Ellenberger saw an opening when he got stuck
in the clinch with Shields, and it reminded him of something
his coach and close friend Mark Munoz told him when they were
training together at the Reign Training Center in California.
“It
happened really fast, I got in the clinch and I hit him with
some knees. Like Mark Munoz and I have been working on, just
strike in every position,” Ellenberger said.
“I
knew he was hurt so I just went for the finish.”
Before
Saturday night went down, Ellenberger says his biggest support
came from his team and his coaches who instilled in him the ability
to believe he could win the fight. Now the hard work as paid
off, and he’s well on his way to the top of the welterweight
division.
“We’ve
just been training so hard these last 8 weeks, it’s not
fun at all, but it’s all for this night,” Ellenberger
stated.
“My
coaches are there for me all the time, they believe in me. It’s
hard to believe. The sky’s the limit, that’s what they
tell me everyday.”
With
the win, Ellenberger rockets towards the top of the welterweight
division where champion Georges St-Pierre has virtually cleaned
out all of the top challengers minus just a few.
On
Saturday night, Jake Ellenberger just gave GSP and the rest of
the welterweight division notice that he’s arrived.
Source:
MMA Weekly |
Rafael
Natal signs a new 4-fight deal with the UFC
Rafael
Sapo Natal got the most important win of his career at UFC 133,
when he defeated Paul Bradley by decision, to stay in the UFC.
After a loss and a draw in his previous fights inside the octagon,
the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt got his first win under the
Zuffa banner and told TATAME that he has recently signed a new
deal with the promotion, a four-fight deal, but he hasn’t
defined his next fight yet.
Source:
Tatame
|
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
|
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
|
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