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(All events on Oahu, unless noted)
2013
November
Aloha
State Championship
(BJJ
& Sub Grappling)
(tba)
10/19/13
NAGA
Hawaiian Grappling Championship
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(tba)
10/5-6/13
Senior
Master World Championships
(BJJ)
(The Pyramid, Cal State Unversity at Long Beach, Long Beach,
CA)
9/28/13
Maui
Open Championship
(Lahaina Civic Center)
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
9/14/13
Mad Skillz
(Kickboxing)
(Waipahu Filcom)
9/7/13
The Quest for Champions 2013 Tournament
(Pearl City High School Gym)
(Featuring Sport Pankration, Submission Grappling, Continuous
Sparring)
8/24-25/13
Amateur Boxing
(Boxing)
(Palolo District Park Gym)
8/24/13
DESTINY:Proving Grounds II
(MMA)
(Aloha Tower Pier 10)
Battle At The Bay
(BJJ)
(Hilo Armory, Hilo)
8/23/13
Man Up Stand Up
(Kickboxing)
(Waipahu Filcom)
August
Maui
Open Championship
(BJJ
& Sub Grappling)
(tba)
7/27/13
State
of Hawaii Championship
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(Pearl Cityh H.S. Gym)
7/13/13
Amateur Boxing
(Boxing)
(Momilani Community Center)
6/22/13
Amateur Boxing
(Boxing)
(Kalakaua District Park Gym)
6/8/13
King of the Cage
(MMA)
(Maui)
5/30/13 - 6/2/13
World
BJJ Championships
(BJJ)
(The Pyramid, University of California at Long Beach)
5/25-26/13
NAGA:
Pacific Grappling Championships
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(Radford H.S. Gym)
5/19/13
Amateur Boxing Event this (Boxing)
(Palolo District Park Gym)
5/4/13
Mad Skillz
(Triple Threat)
(Waipahu Filcom)
4/27/13
Star Elite Cagefighting: The Foundation
(Kickboxing)
(Aloha Tower Waterfront)
4/13/13
Hawaiian
Open Championship
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(Kaiser H.S. Gym)
Denny Prokopos
Eddie Bravo Black Belt Seminar
9AM-11AM
$50
@ O2 Martial Arts Academy
3/23/13
Man Up Stand Up
(Kickboxing)
(Waipahu Filcom)
3/20-24/13
Pan
Jiu-Jitsu Championships
(BJJ)
(Irvine, CA)
3/20/13
David Kama Seminar
Rickson Gracie Black Belt
8-10PM
$50
@ O2 Martial Arts Academy
2/23/13
Got Skills
(MMA, Kickboxing, Triple Threat)
(Waipahu Filcom)
2/16/13
Mayhem At The Mansion
Kauai Cage Match 14
(MMA)
(Kilohana Carriage House, Lihue, Kauai)
Boxing Event
(Boxing)
(Palolo Gym District Park Gym)
Uncle Frank Ordonez’s Birthday Tournament
(Palama Settlement Gym)
(Grappling, Sport-Pankration and Continuous sparring)
2/3/13
Diego Moraes Semainr
(BJJ)
(O2MAA)
2/2/13
World
Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship: Hawaii Trials
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(McKinley H.S. Gym)
2/1/13
IBJJF Referee Clinic
(O2MAA)
1/19/13
Destiny
Na Koa 2
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
Just Scrap
(MMA)
(Hilo Civic Center, Hilo)
1/12/13
Reuben "Cobrinha" Charles Seminar
4-7PM
(Ku Lokahi Wrestling Club)
|
|
September
2013 News Part 1
|
O2 Martial Arts Academy
provides 7 days a week training! Relson Gracie Jiu-Jitsu classes
taught by Black Belts Kaleo Hosaka and Chris & Mike Onzuka
We are also offering Kali-Escrima (stick fighting) on Monday
nights with Ian Beltran & Erwin Legaspi.
Kickboxing Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday with PJ Dean &
Chris Slavens!
Wrestling program (Folk Style) taught by Cedric Yogi on Wednesdays
and Thursdays.
Kids Classes are also
available!
Click
here for info!
Take classes from
the Onzuka brothers in a family-like environment! |
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to Advertise on Onzuka.com?
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information!
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More than
1 million hits and counting!
|
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 Kaleo Hosaka 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 competitor 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.
Our wrestling program is headed by Cedric Yogi who was previously
the head coach of the Pearl City High School Wrestling Team.
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!
Mix and match your classes so you can try all the martial arts
classes offered at O2!
If you want to learn martial arts by masters of their trade in
a friendly and family environment, O2 Martial Arts Academy is
the place for you!
|
Want to Contact
Us? Shoot us an email by Clicking Here!
Follow O2 Martial Arts news via Twitter at:
http://www.twitter.com/O2MAA
Source: Romolo Barros
|
Mayweather
to earn record $41.5 million for fight
Boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. will earn a record guaranteed purse
of $41.5 million for his Sept. 14 fight against Saul "Canelo"
Alvarez, according to a report Wednesday by ESPN.com that cited
disclosures by Mayweather adviser Leonard Ellerbe and Golden
Boy Productions promoter Richard Schaefer.
Cited
as the world's highest-paid athlete in several surveys, according
to ESPN.com, Mayweather will fight Alvarez in a junior middleweight
unification bout at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
"Floyd
is the biggest star in the sport and the best in the sport, and
when you're the biggest star and you are the best, you get paid
the most money," Ellerbe told ESPN.com. "So this comes
along with the territory."
Mayweather's
purse will be $9 million more than the previous record of $32
million, which he earned for his May 2012 fight with Miguel Cotto,
as well as this May's bout with Roberto Guerrero.
For
both May's fight and the upcoming bout, Mayweather will have
earned a guaranteed $73.5 million.
"It's
a wonderful thing," Ellerbe said. "Floyd has put boxing
on his back and crossed over. He took a niche sport and went
out there and marketed a persona ('Money' Mayweather) in the
mainstream world and became the highest-paid athlete in sports."
Mayweather
is 44-0 with 26 knockouts. Alvarez, from Mexico, is 42-0-1 with
30 KO's.
"This
record purse shows you three things," Schaefer said. "No.
1, it shows you how big Floyd Mayweather is, which we all knew.
But it shows you that he is not just breaking records, he breaking
them, by far. And third, it just shows you big this fight with
Canelo is. It's insane."
Alvarez,
according to reports, is expected to earn about $10 million for
the fight.
Source:
Yahoo Sports
|
One
FC Adds Three Singapore vs. Malaysia Bouts to October’s
“Total Domination” Fight Card
Press
Release
ONE
Fighting Championship has added another three fights to its ONE
FC: Total Domination fight card set to take place on Oct. 18
in Singapore. All three bouts will feature top Singaporean mixed
martial artists facing off against Malaysian rivals.
Sherilyn
Lim will face Ann Osman, who will become the first Malaysian
female mixed martial artist to compete in ONE FC. Two other bouts
will also feature Singapore vs. Malaysia contests. Manhunt Singapore
2011 winner Juan Wen Jie will make his eagerly anticipated debut
against Malaysia’s Alex Lim, and in the bantamweight division,
Stephen Langdown from Singapore will battle Mark Marcellinus
from Malaysia.
The
CEO of ONE FC, Victor Cui, stated, “ONE FC, Asia’s
largest mixed martial arts organization with 90-percent of the
market share in Asia, returns to Singapore with a blockbuster
show on Oct. 18. In each city we go to, MMA fans are eager to
rally behind their local heroes and support their nation’s
warriors. This time, Singaporean MMA fans will have plenty to
cheer about as the age-old rivalry between Singapore and Malaysia
is reignited as Singapore’s own Sherilyn Lim, Juan Wen Jie
and Stephen Langdown face-off against stiff Malaysian competition
in the ONE FC cage. I know that the roar of the Singapore crowd
cheering on their hometown warriors will be deafening and I can’t
wait to hear the Indoor Stadium erupt with those cheers once
again.”
Ann
Osman fights out of Borneo Tribal Squad in Kota Kinabalu. She
will be the first female mixed martial artist to represent Malaysia
in Asia’s largest mixed martial arts organization. Coached
by ONE FC featherweight standout AJ “Pyro” Lias Mansor,
Osman brings a relentless will to win and will be looking to
emerge with her hands raised.
Sherilyn
Lim will be representing Singapore’s oldest mixed martial
arts gym, Fight G. She has been part of Fight G since 2007, when
she joined their Muay Thai program and has been training under
the tutelage of Singaporean MMA pioneer Darren De Silva. Sherilyn
has quickly established herself as the best female mixed martial
artist in Singapore and fight fans have been eagerly expecting
her debut on the largest stage in Asian MMA. She will be looking
to do the Republic proud on Asia’s largest stage when she
competes in front of the Singapore fans on Oct. 18.
Juan
Wen Jie will be fighting out of Impact MMA in Singapore. He is
a former Singapore Manhunt 2011 winner who went on to represent
the country in the year’s international Manhunt competition.
Since then, he has made the transition to mixed martial arts
and remains undefeated two fights into his professional career.
He will be looking to keep the fight standing and showcase his
Muay Thai and Sanshou skills. He was initially scheduled for
a bout in the third ONE FC event, but had to put those plans
on hold after suffering an injury. Now fully recovered, he looks
to get his ONE FC career back on track with a victory over Alex
Lim.
Alex
Lim is a Malaysian veteran fighting out of Training Grounds Martial
Arts & Fitness. He possesses a dogged determination that
has served him well in his mixed martial arts career thus far.
He will hope his strength in the clinch and his willingness to
get into a brawl will propel him to a victory. Malaysians have
won every ONE FC bout against Singaporeans thus far and Lim will
be looking to keep that streak going.
Stephen
Langdown will be making his professional mixed martial arts debut
against Mark Marcellinus. A well-known face in social media circles,
he has thousands of followers on social media sites Instagram
and Twitter. The young Singaporean has been training hard and
has been eagerly awaiting his opportunity to prove himself on
the biggest stage in MMA. He will finally get the chance to showcase
his skills at ONE FC: Total Domination against a Borneo native.
Mark
Marcellinus hails from Kota Kinabalu in Malaysia. He was an orphan
growing up and turned to karate and boxing while getting bullied
in school. He is a qualified fitness trainer and one of the best
mixed martial arts talents to hail from the state of Sabah in
East Malaysia. He will be looking to silence the Singapore crowd
with a finish of hometown favorite Stephen Langdown.
Fans
in Asia can catch all the action live on STAR Sports. Also, fans
from around the world can witness the action online via live
streaming at www.onefc.livesport.tv. The first two undercard
fights are available for viewing free-of-charge and the main
card fights will be available for purchase at just US$9.99.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
UFC
165
Saturday, September 21, 2013
Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada
TV: Fox Sports 2/Fox Sports 1/PPV
Heavyweights:
Nandor Guelmino vs. Daniel Omielanczuk
Bantamweights: Roland Delorme vs. Alex Caceres
Welterweights: Michel Prazeres vs. Mark Bocek
Lightweights: John Makdessi vs. Renee Forte
Bantamweights: Mitch Gagnon vs. Dustin Kimura
Welterweights: Chris Clements vs. Stephen Thompson
Bantamweights: Ivan Menjivar vs. Norifumi Kid Yamamoto
Lightweights: Mike Ricci vs. Myles Jury
Lightweights: Pat Healy vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov
Middleweights: Costa Philippou vs. Francis Carmont
Heavyweights: Brendan Schaub vs. Matt Mitrione
Bantamweights: Renan Barao vs. Eddie Wineland
UFC Light Heavyweight title match: Jon Jones vs. Alexander Gustafsson
Source: Fight Opinion
|
After
avoiding McDaniel's Seagal kick, Tavares wants Philippou-Carmont
winner
by Steven
Marrocco
UFC
middleweight Brad Tavares isn't exactly thrilled about his fight
with Robert McDaniel at UFC Fight Night 27, but he'll never complain
about a win, even if it's his fourth straight decision.
"I
wasn't so much disappointed as frustrated with how that last
round went," Tavares told MMAjunkie.com Radio (www.mmajunkie.com/radio).
That
was when "The Ultimate Fighter 11" vet Tavares (11-1
MMA, 6-1 UFC) began to find his range in the striking department
and batter "TUF 17" vet "Bubba" McDaniel
(21-7 MMA, 1-1 UFC), who attempted to win the fight on the mat
in their main card fight, which aired on FOX Sports 1 and took
place at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
"In
the beginning, I thought [McDaniel] would come out and use his
range and do some crazy Steven Seagal kick," Tavares said.
"He threw it a few times, and I didn't want to rush in and
get caught. But after a few times, I saw it in his face, and
in his body – he didn't want to engage, and credit to him,
he moved really well laterally."
The
judges were unanimous in awarding Tavares two rounds for across
the board 29-28 scores. But the fighter isn't dwelling on the
fact that he had to employ commission officials. He's already
on to another to another topic – fighting the winner of
an upcoming bout between Constantinos Philippou (12-2 MMA, 5-1
UFC) and Francis Carmont (21-7 MMA, 5-0 UFC). The middleweights
fight Sept. 21 in Toronto at UFC 165, and Tavares said he'll
be waiting.
"I
was thinking maybe since they're fighting soon, the winner of
Philippou and Carmont. In my opinion, I don't think Carmont deserves
that fight with Philippou. I thought he lost his last two fights
and got gifted by the judges. [The Tom Lawlor] fight was a little
closer. To me, the (Lorenz) Larkin fight was obvious. Larkin
obviously won that fight. But I know a lot of people believe
Lawlor won that fight, as well."
Indeed,
Carmont, who trains in Montreal with welterweight champ Georges
St-Pierre, is often the subject of second-guessing among fans
and observers who believe judges have been a little too charitable
with him on scorecards. Tavares is clearly one of them.
But
the 25-year-old Hawaii native also said that before he received
McDaniel as an opponent, he called out Philippou on Twitter and
got a positive response. It was at least more positive than the
one he got from UFC brass when he took to social media to request
a bout with former PRIDE champ Wanderlei Silva.
"I
really wanted to fight Wanderlei (Silva), and that didn't go
through, and they made it clear it wasn't (going to happen) due
to the fact that I'm not a big enough name to fight Wanderlei,"
said Tavares. "They didn't say it in those exact words,
but that's pretty much the feeling that I got.
"I
think the fact that he's getting up in his career and he wants
to stay up at 205, he's done cutting weight. He's one of those
guys that he doesn't have to be fighting for a title or title
contention, and it will sell. I think they need him to fight
these big superfights."
Another
requested fight with former DREAM and Strikeforce champ Gegard
Mousasi also fell through, so Tavares is looking for the next
best option. He said he'll be more than happy to fight in December,
perhaps at UFC 168, which takes place in his adopted hometown
of Las Vegas.
"I
don't want to wait very long," he said. "Last time
around, I had to bug (UFC matchmaker) Joe (Silva) to get me a
fight. And I'm sure everybody does, just because there's so many
fighters. They absorbed Strikeforce; there's women's (divisions);
there's [flyweights]. There's a lot of fights, a lot of fighters,
and maybe not enough fights."
Source:
MMA Junkie
|
After
‘emotional nightmare’ at UFC 164, manager Malki Kawa
details future of Henderson, Mir, Condit, Guida
By Shaun Al-Shatti
Managers
in mixed martial arts learn early on how to the navigate the
emotional roller coaster of fight night. But for Malki Kawa,
whose client list includes Benson Henderson, Frank Mir and Clay
Guida, UFC 164 was a different story altogether.
"It
was the worst night, I think professionally, I've had in my entire
career, Kawa said on Monday's edition of The MMA Hour with Ariel
Helwani.
"It's
not like I've ever had three guys on a card lose before. I don't
think that's the issue for me. What's the issue for me is that,
you tell me a guy who's never been knocked out professionally
in his career is going to get knocked out; a guy who we all know
is pretty much unsubmittable, if that really exists out there,
and gets submitted in a championship fight; and then Frank's
fight with the whole early stoppage and all that. It was just
one of those things that was an emotional nightmare."
Henderson's
abrupt championship loss, the exclamation mark on Kawa's back-to-back-to-back
losses, left more than a few observers stunned. Henderson owns
a long history of escaping near-catastrophic submissions, however
this time the former lightweight titleholder played with fire
and got burned, verbally submitting to an Anthony Pettis armbar
late in round one.
Henderson
maintained his composure to the cameras in the immediate aftermath,
however offstage was a different story.
"I
think he handled it as best as anybody could," Kawa said.
"He definitely had his moment backstage. I sat there and
I watched it. I think that was probably one of the things also
that really got me, because I've never really felt so helpless
before as a manager.
"But
I also, at the same time, watched a guy kind of say, ‘Okay,
this happened. It's time to go move on from this, and I'm going
to come back on a vengeance.' And he did this once before."
The
performance marked just Henderson's second loss in the past seven
years, yet both setbacks came to the same man, Pettis. It's the
reason that, despite Henderson's previous undefeated 7-0 run
inside the Octagon, UFC President Dana White afterward voiced
reluctance about ever staging a third fight between the two lightweights.
Henderson
is currently awaiting MRI and x-ray results for his damaged right
arm, although Kawa is already planning Henderson's next move.
"My
conversation with the UFC is going to be, whoever is in line,
Ben would like to fight them," Kawa said. "Dana came
out already and said that he doesn't see another (Pettis vs.
Henderson) rematch (happening). Well if he goes out and knocks
out or submits three or four of those supposed No. 1 contenders,
then I think he can't be denied.
"He
tied the record for the most defenses with B.J. Penn, so it puts
him up there as one of the all-time greats in that division.
You can't take that away from him."
Mir
‘definitely' wants to keep fighting
Whether
it was his kneebar on Brock Lesnar or his kimura on "Big
Nog," Frank Mir has endured more than a few beatings throughout
his career and bounced back to score a surprise finish. So it's
easy to understand Mir's frustration towards referee Rob Hinds,
whose controversial stoppage marred UFC 164's co-main event.
"It
was too early. It was definitely too early," Kawa said of
the stoppage. "Talking to Frank, Frank was completely aware
and conscious of what was going on. He wasn't rocked.
"If
Barnett comes and throws at least one punch and the referee stops
it without Frank doing anything, then I can say, ‘Okay,
look. He threw a punch and nothing happened.' But he didn't throw
a punch. He just got down there and [Hinds] immediately went
to stop the fight. And that same referee actually came into the
locker room and gave Frank and the team a speech about how he's
not squeamish and he'll let the fight go so that these guys will
get an opportunity to fight ... and he went exactly against everything
he said."
The
loss sent Mir into the first three-fight tailspin of his 12-year
career. Yet Kawa believes the 34-year-old heavyweight, who three
fights ago challenged for the UFC title, "definitely"
plans to continue fighting.
"He
has a couple more fights in him," Kawa said. "If you
look at his career, he doesn't have 40 fights. He's a guy, for
as long as he's been in this game, that doesn't have that many
fights compared to everyone else. So we'll look for a fight for
him and see if we can get him back in the cage as soon as possible."
Guida's
next step
The
featherweight campaign of Clay Guida fell to a shaky 1-1 start
following the 31-year-old's third-round TKO loss to Chad Mendes
at UFC 164.
Guida's
drop down in weight, which was initially intended to revive his
fading 155-pound contendership after a widely-panned bout against
Gray Maynard, has thus far delivered rocky results, especially
considering the polarizing nature of Guida's lone split decision
win against Hatsu Hioki.
Kawa
admits, he isn't yet sure of Guida's next step or whether the
featherweight experiment will become a permanent move.
"I
don't know. That's something that the team is going to discuss
this week. We'll figure it out," Kawa said.
"I
think he's a force in the 145-pound weight class, and for as
long as he wants to fight, I think he deserves another shot.
It goes to show you how good Chad Mendes is. He knocked out a
guy who's never been knocked out in forty-something fights. Think
about that for a second."
Condit
in the title hunt
Lost
in UFC 164's post-fight misery is the fact that one of Kawa's
other clients, welterweight bruiser Carlos Condit, put on a sterling
performance earlier in the week. Condit avenged a loss and snapped
a two-fight losing streak, violently knocking out Martin Kampmann
in the main event of UFC Fight Night 27.
"I
think Carlos is definitely going to fight somebody who is a No.
1 contender somewhere," Kawa said following Condit's victory.
"He has to. I don't know anyone else that realistically
is that guy, especially after that win over Martin Kampmann."
Condit
is currently the No. 2 ranked welterweight on the UFC's official
rankings. The only two men ahead of him, champion Georges St-Pierre
and No. 1 ranked Johny Hendricks, are scheduled to collide November
16 at UFC 167.
Condit
has a past history with both men, however Kawa believes the road
to either rematch exists, regardless of the outcome this upcoming
winter.
"If
Johny Hendricks wins the belt, I think definitely Carlos can
make a statement to get in there and fight Johny Hendricks,"
Kawa said. "I don't think anybody doubts that if that fight
would've went five rounds, Carlos would've probably ended up
finishing Johny. And it was a really good fight as well.
"But
if Georges beat Johny, I would think that Carlos needs one more
big win over somebody," he continued. "Here's the bottom
line. I don't think that if Rory MacDonald beats Robbie Lawler,
he's gets the next shot. And let's say he doesn't want to fight
Georges and that whole scenario starts happening, then what?
Then I think you get that rematch to happen between Carlos and
Rory for the No. 1 spot. And if Carlos beats him, and beats him
impressively, then I think we can argue a fight for the rematch."
Source:
MMA Fighting
|
UFC
164 Prelims TV Ratings Lowest for PPV Prelims Since the Move
to Fox
The
UFC 164: Henderson vs. Pettis 2 preliminary bout telecast on
Fox Sports 1 attracted an audience of 809,000 viewers. That is
the lowest TV ratings number that a UFC prelims broadcast in
support of a pay-per-view event has drawn since moving to the
Fox family of networks.
The
previous low point was the first UFC Prelims broadcast on FX
in support of UFC 142 in January of 2012. Like the UFC 142 Prelims
on FX, the UFC 164 Prelims on Fox Sports 1 was the first event
broadcast in support of a pay-per-view event.
A
significant difference, however, is that Fox Sports 1 is a new
network that launched just two weeks prior to UFC 164. FX was
already a long established network.
The
two-hour UFC 164 Prelims broadcast featured four fights, and
was headlined by a lightweight bout between Gleison Tibau and
Jamie Varner.
The
UFC had already promoted two live Fight Night events on FS1 prior
to the UFC 164 prelims. UFC Fight Night 26, featuring Mauricio
“Shogun” Rua vs. Chael Sonnen in the main event, drew
1.78 million viewers to the network. UFC Fight Night 27, featuring
a Carlos Condit vs. Martin Kampmann rematch, attracted 824,000
viewers.
The
UFC returns to FS1 on Wednesday night with UFC Fight Night 28
from Brazil. The main event features light heavyweights Glover
Teixeira and Ryan Bader squaring off.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Karelin
joins campaign to save olympic wrestling
Ivan Trindade
The
Russian wrestling legend Alexander Karelin has joined the campaign
to keep wrestling as an olympic sport in the 2020 games.
The
three-time olympic champion wrote a letter published this Tuesday
at FILA’s website.
Considered
by many as the best of all times, Karelin gives his reasons why
wrestling needs to stay in the olympics.
On
February 12th, the International Olympic Committee voted by secret
ballot to recommend that wrestling be dropped from the Olympics
in 2020.
The
IOC executive board met on May 29th in St. Petersburg, Russia,
and selected Wrestling, Baseball/Softball, and Squash as the
list of sports to be considered for inclusion in the 2020 Olympics.
The
IOC general assembly will meet this September in Buenos Aires,
Argentina, to vote to select the sport(s) for the final spot(s)
in the 2020 Olympics.
Read
the letter:
A
Rhetorical Question : Why wrestling?
Wrestling
is a great sculptor of body and soul. It helps to develop fragile
and clumsy children and teenagers into a strong, goal-oriented
young man or woman with confidence in themselves.
Wrestling
is a way of finding a purpose in life and it gives you respect
and the acknowledgement of others. In a Poet’s words, “Wrestling
is always overcoming yourself, who you were yesterday and determining
who you will be tomorrow”.
Wrestling
is an everlasting engine that determines the development of each
of us. Who knows how sweet is a taste of hard work? And when
we win we will do anything to repeat and live through these moments
again. Wrestlers never stop on their accomplishments. If a maximum
is reached in sport, wrestlers will continue to look and find
a use for new energy, talent and ideas in all life’s variety.
Wrestling
teaches us to be friendly, to be honest and demanding of yourself,
and thousands of my colleagues can undersign these words and
values.
Russian
literary classic Vissarion Belinsky says, “Wrestling is
a condition of life.” The sport of wrestling personalizes
these words not just for athletes, but also for the huge army
of our fans around the world.
Source:
Gracie Magazine
|
Kid
Yamamoto Out, Wilson Reis Now Faces Ivan Menjivar at UFC 165
Wilson
Reis’ UFC debut was scheduled for Wednesday’s UFC Fight
Night 28 in Brazil, but will now take place at UFC 165 in Canada
instead.
Reis
was expected to face Hugo Viana at UFC Fight Night 28, but an
injury forced Viana out of the fight just days prior to the event
and Reis was removed from the card altogether.
On
Tuesday, Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto pulled out of his
scheduled UFC 165 bout with Ivan Menjivar and UFC officials announced
Reis as Yamamoto’s replacement on the Sept. 21 event.
Reis
(16-4) is riding a four-fight winning streak and hopes to continue
his winning ways under the UFC banner.
Menjivar
(25-10) is coming off a submission loss to Urijah Faber at UFC
157 on Feb. 23 and hopes to rebound by spoiling Reis’ UFC
debut.
UFC
165 takes place on Sept. 21 at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto
and his headlined by a light heavyweight title bout between champion
Jon Jones and challenger Alexander Gustafsson. The co-main event
features the interim bantamweight title fight between champion
Renan Barao and top contender Eddie Wineland.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
‘Living
the dream,’ Glover Teixeira confident he can defeat Jon
Jones
By Guilherme
Cruz
Glover
Teixeira is getting closer to a shot at the UFC title, and that’s
something for a long time he believed might never happen.
Born
in Sobralia, Brazil, Teixeira wanted to be 100-meter sprinter
or a rodeo rider, but he gave up those ideas to move to the United
States for better opportunities. At 19 years old, he needed 48
days to travel illegally from Sobralia to the U.S. Three years
later, a single video tape of Royce Gracie’s fights changed
his future.
While
doing landscaping to make a living in Connecticut, Teixeira started
training. As chance would have it, he would soon cross paths
with Chuck Liddell, who was the UFC champion at that time. After
racking up a 7-2 record in MMA with six finishes, the Brazilian
was offered a contract with the UFC. He was living illegally
in the U.S. at the time, so he wasn’t able to sign the deal.
Teixeira decided to return to Brazil and re-enter the U.S. legally,
but it was too late.
Forced
to live in Brazil, Teixeira moved to Rio de Janeiro and started
training with Pedro Rizzo and Marco Ruas. He won 10 bouts in
Brazil, finishing nine of his opponents, before finally being
granted a visa to return to the U.S. The UFC waited for him,
and signed the 17-2 Brazilian to a contract.
"I’m
really happy for what’s happening in my career," Teixeira
told MMAFighting.com. "After everything I went through,
now it’s only joy for me. I was talking to some friends
at the gym the other day and Caio Magalhaes said, ‘that’s
why you are so calm when you fight.' After everything I went
through, I’m living the dream, win or lose."
Teixeira
was 30 years old when he finally debuted in the UFC.
"I
thought about a lot of things, but everybody has tough moments,"
he said. "I always believed that sooner or later I’d
be in the UFC to show what I can do."
Texeira
hasn't skipped a beat, either. He's gone 4-0 in the UFC, with
victories over Fabio Maldonado (TKO) and former UFC light heavyweight
champion Quinton "Rampage" Jackson (decision). He's
garnered enough buzz that it's been hinted that a victory over
Ryan Bader on Sept. 4 in Belo Horizonte at UFC Fight Night 28
could earn him a shot at the title.
But
for a man who was forced to wait three years to sign in the UFC,
Teixeira's in no particular hurry.
"My
dream is to fight for the belt, it would be awesome," he
said. "But I’m focused now on this fight. I want to
defeat Bader and then we’ll think about the title."
Teixiera
has a big hurdle in front of him with Bader, but he believes
he has what it takes to win the gold. He's not alone. Anderson
Silva, Lyoto Machida and Marco Ruas all see him as the man to
stop current light heavyweight champion, Jon Jones, should that
match-up happen.
"I
truly believe in my weapons, I believe I can beat [Jones],"
he said. "I thank my friends for trusting in me, people
that saw what I can do while training. I can’t say too much,
I have to go there and win. We will see when the time comes.
I’m getting closer to where I want to be and I don’t
feel any pressure because of that. I love to fight, I love to
be there. On my first fights in the UFC I felt a little nervous,
but I don’t feel that anymore. I’m used to that already.
"Jon
Jones is a good fighter," he added. "He’s a great
wrestler and striker, but his best weapon is his intelligence.
He fights the fight his way, and that makes him victorious."
Bader,
the man in his way, is coming off a 50-second submission victory
over Vladimir Matyushenko.
"It’s
going to be a great fight," said Teixeira. "Ryan Bader
is a great and strong fighter, but I will be well prepared to
beat him in every aspect of the fight. I’m ready for a war.
You can’t predict how a fight will go. I’m not a guy
that competed in jiu-jitsu, boxing or wrestling, that you say,
‘oh, he’s phenomenal on the ground or standing.' I’m
an MMA fighter, and I will fight wherever I see I can win. Ryan
Bader is good in all areas, especially in wrestling and striking,
so he has his weapons."
Even
with the escalating stakes, Teixeira says he won’t dial
things back and play it safe.
"I
will fight like I always do, keeping pressure on the opponent
and trying to finish the fight all the time," he said. "They
promised [the title shot], but they can change their minds, so
I’m not worried about that now."
Teixeira
has never fought in his home state of Minas Gerais, and headlining
a UFC card there means most of his friends and relatives will
be inside the arena to support him.
"I’m
ready, and it feels great to fight in front of my family and
friends," he said. "I always dreamed about fighting
in the main event of the UFC no matter where, and fighting in
Minas Gerais is the best feeling in the world. Not everybody’s
coming because Sobralia is really far from Belo Horizonte, but
my family and a few friends will be there. It’s the first
time they will watch me fight live. I believe they will be more
nervous than me, but I don’t feel any pressure because of
that."
Source:
MMA Fighting
|
Setting
Your Mixed Martial Arts Mental Goals, Maximizing Your MMA Mind
BY WILL
LENZNER
Previously
we discussed the first step in improving MMA performance with
mental preparation here. This article examines the second key
to becoming an elite purposeful performer: goal setting. Stay
tuned to learn about the third of three keys: embracing the now.
Goal
setting is a common practice amongst the world’s greatest
athletes, and it’s a crucial factor in your quest to become
an elite purposeful performer. Treat it as your road map to guide
your efforts and actions. During those mornings when your body
aches and your motivation drops, your goals will help redirect
your focus. Following an exhausting day of training, goals will
remind you of your commitment.
Fear
of failure, laziness and lack of awareness are just some of the
reasons many athletes resist goal setting. This article reveals
a simple and straightforward approach to setting goals and holding
yourself accountable. To gain a competitive edge in your field,
make goal setting a daily routine.
Road
map
The first step is to determine where you’re going. Not where
you want to go, but where you are going. In crafting a purposeful
and elite state of mind you must direct your intentions with
ownership, for only you control your destiny.
Begin
by targeting an attainable destination point for this year. Examples
could be as varied as a winning percentage, competing for a title,
or making a varsity roster. With your sights on that destination
work backwards in your mind to identify significant events along
the way (a.k.a. mile markers). Your mile markers stand as measurable
objectives for you to self-evaluate your progress. Write these
in a calendar and refer to them weekly.
D.A.T.G.O.
model
Once you’ve targeted your destination and identified your
mile markers, you’re ready to create a culture of challenging
and motivating goals and habits. These can involve competitions,
personal challenges, and daily tasks.
Begin
by creating a D.A.T.G.O. model, which stands for Day Action Task
Goal Outcome, to track, measure and evaluate your progress on
specific performance-related areas. If you want to strengthen
your single-leg takedowns and devote focused time practicing
them, or you want to execute more multi-strike combos and guard
escapes during a fight, incorporate them into your D.A.T.G.O.
model. I’ve plugged these example goals into the model below.
The
focus for each day is written in the Action row, and simply reflects
the chosen emphasis in your training. The Task row identifies
a technique-specific aspect for your target goal, and the target
goal is written in the Goal row. The actual outcome of your goal
is written in the Outcome row. Each daily focus reads from top
to bottom.
FightMedicine
Chart
The
example goals above reflect three ways you can maximize their
value using different approaches. On Monday, tracking performance
with single leg takedowns is easy because it’s post training
and you’ll be free to measure and evaluate. Whereas Tuesday’s
focus on strike combos during a mock fight, and Wednesday’s
goal of guard escapes during all competitive scenarios, are clearly
more difficult to measure. Because it’s difficult to track
progress during these competitive scenarios I suggest you rely
on a friend, or use something to write on between rounds or training
segments.
Put
it all together
As best you can, mesh your calendar of events with your D.A.T.G.O.
model, be creative. The purpose is to align the two so that they
complement one another and prepare you to perform your best throughout.
In the end you’ll have a robust, structured and vision-centered
platform to support your development as an elite purposeful performer.
Goal
setting is a purposeful practice habit you should perform every
single day. Purposeful practice habits support your ability to
flow and perform free in the competitive arena. They help trigger
your body’s muscle memory and facilitate your path into
a competitive zone where performing feels effortless.
Source:
Fight Medicine
|
TOMMY
MORRISON'S FIRST AND LAST MMA FIGHT
"They've
been telling me I've been dying for 11 years," he said.
"I feel fine. The day they told me I was clinically dead
I didn't feel any different sitting in that chair than I do standing
up here right now. Something's wrong. It just doesn't add up."-Tommy
Morrison from a 2007 interview with Sherdog.com
On
a Thursday afternoon in June 2007 former boxing heavyweight champion
Tommy Morrison sat at table for his pre-fight press conference.
The conference room at Arizona's Cliff Casino was generic and
the table only allowed for three chairs. From Morrison's vantage
point there were five rows of chairs for media with about eight
chairs per a row. Less than five media member's assembled to
ask Morrison about his mixed martial arts debut and more importantly
about his health.
----
In
1990 Morrison starred opposite Sylvester Stallone in the movie
Rocky V. Three years later he won the WBO heavyweight title by
defeating Hall of Famer George Foreman by decision. When he was
27 years old Morrison was discovered to be HIV positive prior
to a scheduled February 1996 bout with Arthur Weathers.
11
years after his HIV diagnosis and subsequent retirement from
boxing, Morrison, his legal adviser Peter McKinn and is current
girlfriend promoted his MMA foray as a means to begin his athletic
comeback.
Morrison's
only trip inside a MMA cage was cage fighting's preeminent freak-show
achievement. In a former outlaw sport known for questionable
promoter decisions the Worldwide Fighting Championship sold their
moral compass for a single Saturday night. No rules and no shame
laid together at an Arizona casino for one night
WFC
Rumble in the Red Rocks was held in the parking lot of Arizona's
Cliff Casino. Morrison fought his only MMA fight at maybe the
fifth or sixth largest casino in the Phoenix metro area. The
fight time temperature was well above 100 degrees and the makeshift
outdoor arena sat less about 2,500 people if at full capacity.
Most
of the crowd consisted of comped Casino VIP players and friends
and family of the undercard MMA fighters. Prior to Morrison stepping
into the cage UFC Hall of Famer Dan Severn picked up a win along
with current UFC fighters Ryan Bader and Yaotzin Meza. The 12
fight card was held on the tribal land of the Yavapai-Apache
Nation and the Arizona state Athletic Commission had no say in
any of the night's logistics. Referees, judges, ringside doctors
(if any) were all appointed by the promoter.
No
heart, blood, or eyes exams were required of the fighters at
the promoter's digression. In perhaps one of the most human and
revealing moments in the history of MMA radio, Morrison's opponent
John Stover was told hours before weigh-ins that his fight would
not fall under the jurisdiction of the ASAC. Stunned silence
as Stover was told the news.
----
If
you only remember Morrison from the silver screen as the up and
coming boxer Tommy Gunn or as a mid 1990s boxing contender seeing
him a decade later was a jolt of mortality. Once known for his
bodybuilder physique and movie star good looks the 38 year old
version of Morrison, a MMA rookie, weighed around 200 pounds
and the miles on his facial features were more pronounced after
years of drinking.
A
sheet rock worker from South Dakota Stover did not show up for
the pre-fight conference. Rumored floated through the days leading
up to the Saturday night main event that either Stover or Morrison
could possibly no-show their fight. Stover walked to the cage
first to little fanfare and he waited for his opponent. He then
waited some more. Morrison's walkout music played all the way
through with no opponent for Stover in sight.
Nearly
10 minutes passed before Morrison's song played again and he
walked to the cage doors. The crowd in attendance was now hot,
short on patience and out for blood.
From
the 2007 live event report
Rules
prohibited any kind of ground fighting, and as the card at the
Cliff Castle Casino was about to commence it was announced that
knees, elbows, or kicks of any kind would be disallowed during
the Morrison-Stover fight, which was scheduled for three three-minute
rounds.
"Yeah
they switched up the rules," said the 35-year-old Stover.
"At first it was strikes only knees, elbows, and kicks.
They switched them up about a half hour before the show. We tried
to barter around it, but Tommy, he doesn't want to do MMA. He
needs to get paid. He needs his money. He needs to get his name
back out there and this is basically all he's doing."
The
online history for super heavyweight John Stover was scarce prior
to his fight with Morrison and six years later still is hard
to come by. He may be a 3-1 pro fighter who retired in 2007 after
competing on shows in Colorado, Iowa and one unofficial modified
rules bout versus Morrison.
Inside
the cage Morrison dressed in Everlast shorts and boxing shoes
jabbed at Stover until he broke his nose. At six foot two 340
pounds Stover clinched with Morrison twice and slammed him against
the cage each time. Body shots from the boxer who once lost to
Lennox Lewis, ended Stover's night after the referee saved the
hunched over super heavyweight two minutes after the bell for
round one sounded.
Surrounded
by body guards, his legal adviser, and entourage Morrison got
in his car and was driven away from his first MMA fight.From
the cage to the car without media questioning him was how Morrison
celebrated the thrill of MMA victory.
For
two minutes Tommy Morrison was a quasi-MMA fighter. MMA was a
low tone blip on Morrison's timeline; one part footnote and one
part asterisk.
----
On Sunday September 1, 2013 in an Omaha, Nebraska, hospital Tommy
Morrison was pronounced dead. He was 44.
From
Morrison's official Facebook via the boxer's girlfriend of five
years
"Trisha
for Tommy:
Tommy
fought right to his last breath. I held his powerful left hook
hand till the end- he was not alone. I never left his side. He
so loved his fans and reading and listening to your emails and
messages. In his last few minutes, I whispered into his ear how
much his friends and family loved him. He deserves to be inducted
into the Boxing Hall of Fame- would you help me help him get
there? Send your email's of support and love to tommythedukemorrison1@yahoo.com
so I can share them with his sons that love him so much.
-Trisha
for Tommy always"
Source
UltMMA
|
Finalist
Joe Riggs Out Due to Injury, Fight Master Final Nixed from Saturday’s
Bellator 98
The
Fight Master: Bellator MMA final between Joe Riggs and Mike Bronzoulis
slated for Saturday’s Bellator 98 has been postponed.
Bellator
officials on Tuesday confirmed an initial report about the postponement
by Sports Illustrated.
Riggs
recently told SI.com that he suffered an orbital bone fracture
and detached retina during training about three weeks ago that
forced him into surgery.
He
has already been cleared to begin training again. The bout will
be rescheduled as soon as Riggs is cleared to fight, hopefully
before the conclusion of Season 9, which begins on Saturday and
ends on Nov. 22.
“I
can be ready (to fight) in October or (on) Nov. 2, if they need
me,” Riggs told SI.com.
Bellator’s
first pay-per-view offering, Rampage vs. Tito, is slated for
Nov. 2 in Long Beach, Calif., and already features Quinton “Rampage”
Jackson vs. Tito Ortiz, as well as three title bouts.
The
three-hour Bellator 98 main card will now feature the middleweight
title fight between champion Alexander Shlemenko and Brett Cooper,
a co-main event featuring Joe Warren vs. Nick Kirk, and four
middleweight tournament quarterfinal bouts.
Bellator
98 also serves as the kickoff to Season 9. Following the special
Saturday night premier, the season will then move to a Friday
night time slot for the remainder of the season, save for the
Nov. 2 pay-per-view offering.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Source: Tommy Lam
|
UFC
Fight Night 28 Results: Joseph Benavidez Crushes Jussier Formiga,
Back in Title Contention
by Andrew
Potter
Joseph
Benavidez (19-3) proved why he deserves another crack at the
UFC flyweight title with a dominant first-round TKO victory over
Brazilian Jussier Formiga (15-3) on the main card at UFC Fight
Night 28 in Belo Horizonte, Brazil on Wednesday.
Benavidez
opened the fight pushing the pace, slipping in to land his shots,
before backing out. Formiga had success at times on the counter.
With
two minutes left in the round, Benavidez caught Formiga with
a left hand coming in and then wobbled him with a right hand.
Sensing a finish, Benavidez dropped the Brazilian with a knee
to the body before finishing over the top with a right hand and
after a flurry of ground and pound that left the referee with
no choice but to stop the fight.
“I
was excited to fight here in Brazil. It was another day in the
office and I had fun doing it,” Benavidez said. “The
fight went how it went and I feel great about it.
“I
felt great,” he continued. “I wanted to show you Brazilian
fans some Joe Jitsu, but I landed a great shot and a good knee
to the body to hurt him and I had to finish him off. I’m
not the kind of type to bark for a title shot, but I think I
proved I can beat and finish the top guys in the division, so
whatever the UFC wants to do I’ll be ready.”
The
victory was Benavidez’s third of the year since his title
loss to current flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson late last
year, which is his only loss to date in the UFC.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
UFC
164's Soa Palelei apologizes to fans, details his fight-night
rib injury
by Steven
Marrocco
It
didn't take Soa Palelei long to realize the severity of an injury
he thought he could fight through.
Prior
to his preliminary-card bout with heavyweight newcomer Nikita
Krylov (15-3 MMA, 0-1 UFC) at this past Saturday's UFC 164 event,
Palelei (19-3 MMA, 1-1 UFC) said his doctor diagnosed a rib injury
and recommended he take a cortisone shot or prescription painkiller
to get through the fight. But he didn't get a full diagnosis,
and taking a drug probably would have gotten him in trouble with
the athletic commission overseeing the bout, anyway. So he held
off.
Over
the summer, Palelei, whose sole UFC bout came all the way back
in 2007 and ended via TKO loss, was devastated when the promotion
pulled him from a fight at UFC 161 with up-and-comer Stipe Miocic.
He couldn't bear giving up a second chance.
"I
worked so hard for the last three years to get to my position
now," Palelei told MMAjunkie.com Radio (www.mmajunkie.com/radio).
"We had got all the fans, and we'd made all our trips with
the cornermen, and paid for their fights. It was one of those
fights where I'll get in there and try to get it done as quick
as I can."
And
it was a decision he came to regret. As he powered into a takedown
early in the first round of the fight, Krylov's knee slammed
into his ribs. From then on, his chief opponent was excruciating
pain.
"There
was pain every time I set up a position on the ground,"
Palelei said. "Usually if I'm on top, I can finish it from
there, but I had no power on my punches. It was just one of those
fights that you think, 'God,' and just push through it."
He
had help on that front from his cornerman, who was picked up
by cageside mics telling him to ignore his ribs and keep driving
for a finish. But getting a finish seemed nearly impossible to
Palelei.
"It
was hard to throw a left hook, and my left hook is my best power
punch," he said. "Every time I threw a punch, it felt
like my rib was digging through my heart. It was so painful.
When he was throwing punches, it's not that I [didn't want] to
punch back. It was just the pain."
Luckily,
Palelei also had some help from his opponent, who seemed at times
to be in even worse shape. By the third round, Krylov was running
on fumes and easily taken to the mat, where he gave up mount.
Early in the fight's final frame, the Russian succumbed to Palelei's
weakened punches.
"I
think if [Krylov] did end up on top of me, there's no way I would
have got him off because I would have had to push and turn,"
Palelei said. "I'm happy to get the win, but I'm not happy
with my performance.
Neither
was the UFC brass, or, for that matter, the bulk of MMA fans
who saw it streaming on Facebook. After the pay-per-view card,
which took place at Milwaukee's Bradley Center, UFC President
Dana White called Palelei's fight "embarrassing" and
sloppy." Like most who watched the heavyweights, he thought
the pair was dreadfully out of shape.
While
that wasn't the case for Palelei, the 36-year-old fighter isn't
upset at being raked over the proverbial coals.
"Any
criticism is something you can take on board, whether it's positive
or negative, and learn from it," he said. "But it was
one of those fights. I don't blame Dana White for giving me that
kind of criticism."
Palelei
immediately went to the hospital following the event and was
diagnosed with a fractured rib. He spent one sleepless night
in Milwaukee before returning to the hospital the day after the
event.
"They
gave me some good painkillers, and I'll just rest it now and
get better and make sure that the next time I fight, I'm 150
percent," he said.
While
he understands the UFC might not be anxious to get him back in
the cage as soon as possible, Palelei is open to whatever timetable
the promotion has to offer, provided he has time to heal up.
He said he needs six to eight weeks to recover from his rib injury,
but he welcomes the idea of fighting in December at an event
planned to take place in his native Australia.
"I
just want to keep fighting and improving," Palelei said.
"I want to apologize to all the fans out there. It's a thing
that you can't control. It looked sloppy, but no excuses. Next
time, I'll come in better and stronger."
Source:
MMA Junkie
|
TJ
Grant the right choice to face Anthony Pettis
By Chuck
Mindenhall
In
the year of the superfight, 2013, we haven’t had any. There
was a lofty notion at one point, right around the Super Bowl
weekend card in Vegas, that we would. The pivot piece of most
scenarios involved Anderson Silva. When he lost to Chris Weidman
at UFC 162, an entire ship full of superfights tragically capsized
at once.
These
things -- with all the fine print and "only ifs" --
are near impossible to put together.
Yet,
a superfight could have materialized in the form of featherweight
champion Jose Aldo and newly minted lightweight champion Anthony
Pettis, and that it's not bums some people out.
This
very fight was booked once, for August 3 in Brazil, but it had
minimal context even before Pettis hurt his knee and had to pull
out. At that time, Pettis was sworn as the No. 1 contender in
the lightweight division, but due to circumstances and forks
in the road just couldn’t get his shot. So he asked for
a chance to sojourn at 145 pounds to take on Aldo instead, and
White was smart enough to grant it. At that time he was a non-champion
challenging an existing one.
It
was a super fight, but not a superfight. More accurate, it was
a super cure-all. Pettis gets his title shot, and Aldo gets a
viable challenge, and spectators get the closest thing to Chinese
wire fu since Sister Street Fighter came out in 1974.
That’s
a lot different than Pettis’s circumstances as they stand
in early September. Now that he’s the champion at 155 pounds,
he’s not challenging anybody. He’s the one being challenged.
And the next guy in line to do that is TJ Grant -- the guy who
knocked out Gray Maynard (seemingly) three times in a one round
to earn it. In a meritocracy, Grant -- who was supposed to fight
Henderson in Milwaukee at UFC 164 before getting a concussion
while training jiu-jitsu -- shouldn’t have to gangway for
anybody.
If
not for concerns over Grant’s feelings, then certainly for
our own secret handshake-like code of authenticity. Pettis has
yet to defend his belt. We’ve heard the cliché that
a champion isn’t really a champion until after his first
title defense. Right now there’s a proven No. 1 contender
who would have been next for Henderson had he won, and he is
there for Pettis. Dana White always says that superfights are
for when both parties have cleaned out their respective divisions.
Pettis hasn’t even grabbed the broom handle yet.
And
that’s why, in these vaguely realistic ways, it doesn’t
do the UFC much good to roll out a clash of gold between Aldo
and Pettis under these updated circumstances. If it was Aldo/Pettis
was a fight that was going to do a million pay-per-view buys
-- as we speculated a confrontation between Jon Jones and Anderson
Silva might -- then maybe.
But
that’s not the case. And therefore, not yet.
When
Aldo and Pettis do fight -- and it seems like White is looking
to put that fight together should Pettis take care of Grant,
and Aldo take care of whoever he ends up facing (again, those
incalculable "only ifs" come into play) -- it will
almost certainly be at 155 pounds. Aldo, who has flirted with
the idea of moving up anyway, would be the one challenging Pettis.
It helps that Aldo wants to fight Pettis. And that Pettis wants
to fight Aldo.
Should
that fight comes together in mid-2014, it’ll be big -- at
least bigger than it would be right now. The default matchmaking
is a good one in this case. Grant is up for a title shot. Pettis
has a new belt to defend. And Aldo isn’t going anywhere.
There’s
nothing not to like about this arrangement.
Source:
MMA Fighting
|
Rashad
Evans vs. Chael Sonnen Official for UFC 167 Co-Main Event
by Ken
Pishna
The
oft-speculated bout between Rashad Evans and Chael Sonnen is
now official.
The
fight will assume the UFC 167 co-main event slot in support of
the headlining bout between UFC welterweight champion Georges
St-Pierre and challenger Johnny Hendricks.
Chael
Sonnen revealed the news on Wednesday’s UFC Fight Night
28 pre-fight show on Fox Sports 1.
“The
most well dressed man, future Hall of Famer, former world champion
Rashad Evans; he will be fighting on Nov. 16 against the man
with the biggest arms, the greatest charms and does all the harm.
You simply know him as Chael P,” Sonnen rhymed.
Sonnen
had been targeting a fight with Wanderlei Silva for UFC 167,
but when that fight didn’t materialize, he shifted his focus
to Evans, whom he considers a friend and works with at the broadcasting
table at FS1.
Sonnen
started a little banter with Evans on Twitter with the two eventually
agreeing that they wanted to fight each other, especially if
it were in the UFC 167 co-main event. UFC 167 serves as the promotion’s
20th Anniversary fight card, so it has some special significance
beyond being a St-Pierre headlined event.
That
Twitter banter, however, may have been a little added promotion
for the fight, since Evans revealed a little different tale when
recounting on Fox Sports 1 how the fight came together.
“We
were sitting at the desk and Chael got a text from Dana wanting
to put the fight together,” explained Evans. “At first,
we were against the idea, but we talked about it and we came
to the decision, the both of us, it was the best thing for us
and the best thing for the fans. So we decided to do it.”
The
fight makes sense, especially considering that UFC 167 did not
have a marquee co-main event match-up booked yet. Evans is coming
off of a victory over Dan Henderson after back-to-back losses
to Rogerio Nogueira and Jon Jones. Sonnen is in much the same
boat, recently defeating Shogun Rua after losing to Jones and
Anderson Silva.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
UFC
Rankings: Pettis makes P4P top 10, Aldo takes 3rd place from
Silva
Ivan Trindade
The
UFC has updated its fighter’s rankings for all its weight
divisions as well as the pound for pound overall ranking.
The
two major changes came in the P4P listing.
For
the first time, Anthony Pettis made the top ten, after snatching
Ben Henderson’s lightweight belt with a first round armbar
win at UFC 164.
He
is now in 8th place.
Also
as a result of last saturday’s fight, Bendo has dropped
four spots and is now in 10th place on the overall ranking.
The
second major change was in the top three positions.
After
losing his middleweight belt to Chris Weidman at UFC 162, Anderson
Silva also lost the third spot on the P4P ranking for fellow
countryman Jose Aldo, who comes from a win over the Korean Zombie
at UFC 163.
Also
in the overal ranking, Renan Barão (7th) and Demetrius
Johnson (6th) have climbed one position each.
In
the division rankings, the most notable change was the switch
between Lyoto Machida and Glover Teixeira in the light-heavyweight.
Teixeira
is now contender no. 2 and Lyoto dropped to no. 3.
All
the rankings are composed by votes of select fight journalists
from all over the world.
For
the full rankings, go to www.ufc.com/rankings
Source:
Gracie Magazine
|
Bad
hips force Sean Sherk into that good night
By Chuck
Mindenhall
Now
that the muzzle can come off, and Sean Sherk is retiring from
the sport he’s been a part of since very close to its inception,
he can explain some things. Things like why he turned into a
boxer circa UFC 84 after being a grinding pestle for all those
years before.
And,
maybe more important, what took so long for the former UFC lightweight
champion, who last fought at UFC 119 three years ago, to hang
up the gloves?
"Well,
it’s a hard decision to make," he told MMA Fighting
after announcing his retirement in a statement through his Training
Mask brand. "I’ve been a part of this industry almost
since the beginning, and I wrestled competitively since I was
seven years old. So we’re talking 25 years of competition,
probably longer than that - walking away from something you love
isn’t easy to do.
"I
just think it was time for the door to be closed, time for me
to move on with some different things. I know the injuries aren’t
going away, they’re not going anywhere and they’re
not getting any better. It was just time for some closure."
The
culprit behind everything are Sherk’s hips. While training
for his UFC 84 fight with B.J. Penn, he says he injured his hips
and was never right again. That fight, on the heals of being
stripped of his lightweight belt for testing positive for steroids
after defeating Hermes Franca at UFC 73, saw Sherk undergo a
shift in fight night philosophy.
Suddenly,
the cardio juggernaut went from a relentless dictator of wills
to becoming a vague boxer who was all too happy to stand and
trade. The question that he was asked a million times since has
been, "why did you stop shooting?"
"Now
that I’m retiring I can tell the truth," he says. "I
know it’s always been one of the top questions. Obviously
I couldn’t say anything because otherwise opponents would
pinpoint that stuff, but I had MRIs done [ahead of the Penn fight]
and found out that both of my hips were torn and that I was going
to need surgery. The doctor basically told me at that point in
time, ‘if you have surgery on this you’ll never be
100 percent again - you’ll lose your mobility, you’ll
lose your quick twitch and some of the explosion, and you’ll
lose some of the agility.’
"And
to me it just wasn’t worth it, so I said, you know what,
I’ll just deal with the pain. I said, I’ll just deal
with this as long as I can. And that’s what I did. Gradually
over the years my hips got worse and worse and worse. About two
weeks ago I was told I needed hip replacement surgery. So that
was the deciding factor right there. I went from needing surgery
to fix torn labrums to needing total replacement."
At
the height of his career, Sherk -- who fought earlier as a welterweight
-- was one of the most nihilistic, game-plan smashing wrestlers
the game had known to that point. Standing a squat 5-foot-6 and
with a reach of only 67 inches, he went by the nickname "the
Muscle Shark," which was apt for a guy who could have been
the original prototype for Urijah Faber’s Team Alpha Male
team in Sacramento.
Through
his first 15 professional fights he worked as a machinist full-time
in Minnesota, and he brought to the cage with him that same sense
of cold industrial production. He continued to work part time
while facing some of the biggest names of his era -- names such
as Matt Hughes, Nick Diaz, Benji Radach and Georges St-Pierre.
Like
St-Pierre, he wasn’t a glorified collegiate wrestler, but
he had the wrestling moorings from his high school days. He also
had the dogged persistence of one, which he honed over the years
through various wrestling competitions. In MMA, he was always
willing to eat punches to drag the fight into his domain, which
he did more often than not.
Sherk
captured the vacant 155-pound belt against Kenny Florian at UFC
64 by taking him down punishing him for five rounds. The bout
was as memorable for the blood as it was for his dominance. Florian
cut Sherk open with a couple of sharp elbows from guard, but
Sherk continued to plant his head into Florian’s chest and
work his ground and pound. It was 25 minutes of vicious pace,
and at the end of it Sherk found himself wearing the lightweight
belt.
It
was the crowning achievement of his career.
"Winning
the UFC title, that right there changed my life," he says.
"I was working a part-time job all the way up until I fought
Kenny Florian for the lightweight title. I was still working
-- I had to, there just wasn’t enough money in the industry
to sustain having a house, having two kids, having the amount
of bills that I have. I had to work between fights to pay my
bills, and I trained my butt off to make sure I won those fights,
because there’s obviously a big difference in pay when it
comes to winning and losing.
"When
I won that fight and won that world title, that just changed
everything for me. That was the most definitive moment of my
career by far."
The
fallout was a fight later when Sherk defended that belt against
Franca. After his victory, it was revealed that he had tested
positive for the steroid Nandrolone, and the California State
Athletic Commission suspended him for a year. Though he was able
to get the suspension reduced to six months through an appeal,
the UFC stripped him of the title.
Sherk
lost his return fight against Penn via TKO. Yet, even with his
hips deteriorating, he still appeared in the Octagon three more
times. The silver lining of the injury was it gave him a chance
to showcase his boxing skills in the twilight of his career,
which paid off in more ways than one.
Not
only did he go 2-1 in his final three fights in the UFC, he took
home fight of the night bonuses twice -- in his victories over
Tyson Griffin at UFC 90 in Chicago, and over Evan Dunham at UFC
119 in a razor-close decision. In between he dropped a unanimous
decision to eventual champion Frankie Edgar.
"Those
‘fight of the nights’ are a big deal," he says.
"I started boxing when I was a kid, and I’ve been doing
this steadily since 1993. So, I had a lot of years of boxing
under my belt, and it was good to show that because there was
a long period of time where everybody called me ‘one-dimensional.’
I wasn’t one-dimensional -- I showed one dimension but I
wasn’t technically one-dimensional. And it was gratifying.
It’s nice to go out there and have 15,000 people standing
up watching you fight. That’s really exciting."
Sherk
retires with a professional record of 36-4-1. He says he accomplished
just about everything he set out to do in MMA. Just about, that
is, as there are a few things he came up short on.
"My
game plan was to compete until I was 40, and my last competitive
fight was when I was 37, so I didn’t accomplish that goal,"
he says. "The other thing was I wanted to win that world
title one more time. I wanted to be one of the few guys in history
who was able to win the world title twice, and I was not able
to accomplish that goal either. But I can look back on my career
and be happy with what I accomplished."
In
retirement, Sherk says he’ll continue to work at the Minnesota
Martial Arts Academy with his longtime coach and training partner
Greg Nelson, who has been with him from start to finish over
the last two decades. Other than that? He says he’ll stay
as busy as he did when that cage door latched.
"I
actually started flipping houses this year," he says. "So
that’s kind of my new endeavor."
Source:
MMA Fighting
|
UFC
Fight Night 28's Yuri Villefort inspired by father's 200-fight
career
by Christian
Stein and Dann Stupp
Most
fans know Yuri Villefort has a brother, Danillo, who also fights
professionally. But you may not know about their father's history
in combat sports.
Villefort
(6-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC), who fights fellow welterweight Sean Spencer
(9-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC) today at UFC Fight Night 28, is just eight
bouts into his MMA career. His father, though, notched literally
hundreds during a storied career.
Long
before the term mixed martial arts was coined, and decades before
organizations like the UFC brought fighting to the mainstream,
Brazil was a breeding ground for generations of fighting trailblazers.
Villefort
took his cue from his father, a legendary jiu-jitsu practitioner.
He saw the pictures and heard the stories, and he wanted to walk
in his footsteps.
"Our
father, Francisco, was a [vale tudo] fighter back in the day,"
Villefort told MMAjunkie.com. "He had more than 200 fights
in Brazil. That was a very long time ago, in the '60s, when Carlson
Gracie was active. He was fighting even before the rivalry with
luta livre existed. He would normally face (fighters from) other
martial arts like capoeira or karate."
Villefort
began his earliest training in judo, detoured into soccer, but
then ultimately settled on jiu-jitsu and MMA. But the 22-year-old
is likely fighting for his UFC life today at Mineirinho Arena
in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil. As the night's only
Facebook-streamed prelim, he can't afford another loss; he's
already bottomed out in an untelevised bout on a cable-TV card.
The
placement is likely the result of recent results: After a split-decision
loss to Quinn Mulhern in Strikeforce, he moved to the UFC and
suffered a unanimous-decision defeat to Nah-Shon Burrell at UFC
157.
Was
he surprised he got another chance at a first win with Zuffa?
"A
loss is a loss," he said. "In my UFC loss, I though
I was more aggressive and came closer to finishing the fight.
But I don't dwell on the past. We're moving forward and I have
a new opponent ahead of me.
"I
always put on a show, win or lose. And that's what matters to
[the UFC]. I don't just fight to win. The UFC wants to see action,
and that's what I always bring. When I step in the octagon, I
bring action not only to the owners of the UFC, but primarily
to the fans who pay to see us fight. That's my focus."
The
Mulhern loss came after a 23-month layoff that followed knee
surgery. He experienced a slight ACL tear before the fight, but
he didn't want his layoff to extend any longer. So he fought
anyway, suffered a loss, and then dropped the decision to Burrell
in his octagon debut nine months later.
This
time, though, Villefort said he's healthy and prepared like never
before. Working with veterans such as Luiz "Buscape"
Firmino, Cosmo Alexandre, Andrews Nakahara, Jorge Santiago, Gesias
Cavalcante and Eddie Alvarez, he believes his easiest day of
training is tougher than anything a UFC opponent such as Spencer
can offer him.
"I
am training like never before," he said. "This is the
most important fight of my life. I see a few flaws in his takedowns
and ground game. I think his best attribute is boxing, but I'm
not afraid of that. I train with the best fighters in the world.
I'm sure he can't pressure me as hard as my fellow Blackzilians."
Source:
MMA Junkie
|
Welterweight
Title Fight Headlines World Series of Fighting 6 on Oct. 26
World
Series of Fighting travels to Florida for the first time, as
Coral Gables’ BankUnited Center plays host to “World
Series of Fighting 6: Burkman vs. Carl” on Oct. 26.
In
the night’s NBCSN-televised main event, resurgent veteran
Josh “The People’s Warrior” Burkman (26-9) meets
Steve Carl (20-3) with the inaugural World Series of Fighting
welterweight title on the line.
In
the evening’s co-feature, Carson “Little Juggernaut”
Beebe (14-2) and Marlon Moraes (11-4-1) clash in a bantamweight
matchup that could lead to a future title shot for the winner.
And
in a featured lightweight matchup, undefeated prospect Justin
Gaethje (9-0) faces Dan “The Upgrade” Lauzon (17-4).
The
nationally televised event, which airs live on NBCSN, marks the
promotion’s debut in the Sunshine State.
The
live, two-hour NBCSN telecast of the World Series of Fighting
6 main card begins at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT. A full lineup of preliminary
bouts will also stream live on World Series of Fighting’s
official website, WSOF.com.
“We’ve
been looking forward to making our debut in Florida for some
time now, and I’m proud to say we will be in Coral Gables
on Oct. 26,” World Series of Fighting President Ray Sefo
said. “Our headliner will see us award either Josh Burkman
or Steve Carl the first championship belt in our promotion’s
history, and I think that matchup will be something special.
The whole lineup we’re planning will be fantastic, and I
look forward to making more announcements very soon.”
Burkman
is a 10-time UFC veteran who first entered the spotlight in 2005
as a cast member on “The Ultimate Fighter 2.” Injuries
briefly slowed the Utah native’s career, but since 2009
Burkman is 8-1 in nine appearances, a run that includes three
wins while competing for World Series of Fighting. Most recently,
Burkman registered the biggest win of his career to date by earning
a technical submission win over Jon Fitch in just 41 seconds.
Meanwhile,
Carl is a military veteran whose fighting career was born in
the Modern Army Combatives Program. An Iowa native, the 28-year-old
began his professional career in 2005 and has already registered
20 career victories, including an incredible 15 wins by submission.
Carl has already competed twice under the World Series of Fighting
banner, registering a pair of first-round submission wins over
Tyson Steele and Ramico Blackmon, and he brings a six-fight win
streak to the contest.
Illinois-native
Beebe, the brother of former WEC bantamweight champion Chase
Beebe, has built an impressive 9-1 mark in his past 10 appearances.
Most recently, the wrestling specialist earned a hard-fought
decision win over Joe Murphy at June’s World Series of Fighting
3 event.
He
now meets three-time World Series of Fighting veteran Moraes,
who has used his time in the organization to catapult up the
world rankings, working from relative obscurity to top-10 status
in rapid fashion. A 25-year-old Brazilian with devastating striking
and impressive grappling skills, Moraes has already downed Miguel
Torres, Tyson Nam and Brandon Hempleman in previous World Series
of Fighting appearances.
The
24-year-old Gaethje is a member of Colorado’s Grudge Training
Center and has looked absolutely spectacular in a pair of World
Series of Fighting wins over veterans Brian Cobb and Gesias “JZ”
Cavalcante. Competing professionally since August 2011, Gaethje
has fought to a decision just once, earning seven knockouts and
one submission in nine appearances.
Meanwhile,
Lauzon made his World Series of Fighting debut in June and dominated
50-fight veteran John Gunderson en route to a unanimous-decision
win. The 25-year-old Lauzon, brother of UFC lightweight standout
Joe Lauzon, currently boasts a five-fight win streak.
“We
are thrilled to bring World Series of Fighting to Coral Gables,”
said Global Spectrum’s Lorenzo Muniz, General Manager at
the BankUnited Center. “Our venue is the perfect setting
for mixed martial arts, and we are excited to showcase these
world-class fighters here at the BankUnited Center.”
Additional
bouts will be announced shortly.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Tomorrow
Source: Tommy Lam
|
UFC
Fight Night 28: Teixeira vs. Bader Quick Results
Main
Card (on Fox Sports 1):
-Glover Teixeira def. Ryan Bader by TKO at 2:55, R1
-Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza def. Yushin Okami by TKO at
2:47, R1
-Joseph Benavidez def. Jussier “Formiga” da Silva by
TKO at 3:07, R1
-Piotr Hallmann def. Francisco Trinaldo by submission (Kimura)
at 3:50, R2
-Rafael “Sapo” Natal def. Tor Troeng by unanimous decision
(30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
-Ali Bagautinov def. Marcos Vinicius by TKO at 3:28, R3
Preliminary
Card (on Fox Sports 1):
-Edmilson Souza def. Felipe Arantes by split decision (29-28,
28-29, 29-28)
-Lucas Martins def. Ramiro “Junior” Hernandez by Submission
(Rear Naked Choke) at 1:10, R1
-Elias Silverio def. Joao Zeferino by unanimous decision (29-28,
30-27, 30-27)
-Ivan Jorge def. Keith Wisniewski by decision (29-28, 30-27,
29-28)
Preliminary
Card (on Facebook):
-Sean Spencer def. Yuri Villefort by split decision (30-27, 28-29,
29-28)
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
UFC
Fight Night 28 Bonuses: Teixeira, Hallmann, Natal, Troeng Take
$50K Awards
By Mike
Whitman
Four
men walked away from UFC Fight Night 28 with post-fight bonus
money, as Glover Teixeira, Piotr Hallmann, Rafael Natal and Tor
Troeng each earned an extra $50,000 for their efforts Wednesday
night at Felipe Drummond Stadium in Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
Teixeira
picked up “Knockout of the Night” for his first-round
stoppage of Ryan Bader in the evening’s Fox Sports 1-broadcast
main event, while Hallmann nabbed “Submission of the Night”
after forcing Francisco Trinaldo to tap out in their lightweight
affair. Meanwhile, middleweights Natal and Troeng (Pictured)
shared “Fight of the Night” honors following 15 hard-fought
minutes of action.
Though
Bader appeared to be the aggressor in the main event’s early
going, it was Teixeira who would have the last laugh, recovering
from a glancing blow to land a sharp two-punch combination that
put Bader flat on his back. The Brazilian pounced with punches,
forcing referee Herb Dean to halt the bout at 2:55.
Hallmann,
meanwhile, barely survived a shaky first round against Trinaldo,
as “Massaranduba” hurt the Pole with body kicks several
times in the opening period. Round two would belong to Hallmann,
however, as he climbed atop his fatigued foe and applied a fight-ending
kimura.
Just
prior, Natal picked up his third straight victory by outpointing
Troeng, sweeping the Swede multiple times during a back-and-forth
first round before flattening him in the second stanza with a
dynamite right cross. Somehow, “The Hammer” managed
to recover from the blow and make the fight competitive, though
the bout’s final decision never appeared to be in jeopardy.
Source: Sherdog
|
With
UFC Fight Night 28 win, Glover Teixeira gets Jones-Gustafsson
winner
by Matt
Erickson and John Morgan
Glover
Teixeira said he wasn't happy with his Wednesday performance
and that he'd go back to work quickly to shore up holes in his
game in case he got a title shot.
Well,
now he knows: That title shot will come. Teixeira (22-2 MMA,
5-0 UFC), thanks to his first-roudn TKO of Ryan Bader (15-4 MMA,
8-4 UFC) on Wednesday at UFC Fight Night 28, officially became
next in line for the UFC's light heavyweight title.
UFC
Director of International Development Marshall Zelaznik confirmed
the news at Wednesday's post-event news conference, citing a
conversation with UFC President Dana White, who did not attend
the event at Mineirinho Arena in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais,
Brazil.
Teixeira
survived a barrage from Bader that knocked him down in the first
round of the FOX Sports 1-televised main event, then got back
to his feet and sneaked a pair of punches through that put Bader
on the canvas. From there, the Brazilian fan favorite pounded
the "TUF 8" winner out for his 20th straight victory
to stay unbeaten in the UFC.
With
the win, Teixeira will fight the winner of the next light heavyweight
title fight between champion Jon Jones (18-1 MMA, 12-1 UFC) and
Alexander Gustafsson (14-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC), who meet later this
month in the main event of UFC 165 in Toronto.
"To
tell you the truth, I wasn't happy with this fight," Teixeira
said immediately after the fight. "I was disappointed he
was able to knock me down. … But I'm telling you, this belt
is going to be mine. It doesn't matter if it's Jon Jones or Gustafsson.
It's mine."
A
potential fight with Teixeira is one Jones already has talked
about, should he get past Gustafsson. "He's a guy on my
radar, and that's a fight that I want," Jones said during
a press tour earlier this year.
A
timetable for a Teixeira title fight against the Jones-Gustafsson
winner obviously can't be determined until the UFC 165 main event
is over, but it's likely to not be until early 2014 at the soonest.
Source:
MMA Junkie
|
UFC
Fight Night 28 in Tweets: Pros react to Glover Teixeira vs. Ryan
Bader, Jacare Souza, Joseph Benavidez, more
By Shaun Al-Shatti
UFC
Fight Night 28 may not have been the deepest card on paper, but
when it came to the top of the heap, the stars all passed their
tests with flying colors.
The
heavy-handed trio of Glover Teixeira, Jacare Souza and Joseph
Benavidez joined forces to steamroll its way through back-to-back-to-back
first-round finishes, capping off the action from Belo Horizonte,
Brazil with a flurry of bruised jaws and swollen fists. For Souza
and Benavidez, the performance inched each man closer to his
ultimate goal -- a UFC title shot.
Yet
for Teixeira, the powerful 33-year-old who stormed back from
early trouble to flatten Ryan Bader and ignite a hometown crowd,
the victory proved to be the final step in his long journey to
the top. Next stop: the winner of Jon Jones vs. Alexander Gustafsson.
And not surprisingly, the champ had something to say.
Source:
MMA Fighting
|
UFC
Fight Night 28 Results: Glover Teixeira Stamps Case for Title
Shot with Knockout of Ryan Bader
by Andrew
Potter
Glover
Teixeira continued his tear through the UFC light heavyweight
division with a dominant first-round TKO victory over Ryan Bader
in the main event at UFC Fight Night 28 in Belo Horizonte, Brazil,
on Wednesday night.
Bader
immediately went in looking for the takedown, but Teixeira took
control in the clinch. Back on the feet, Bader was able to rock
Teixeira, landing shots with the Brazilian backed against the
cage, but a right hand followed by a left hook dropped Bader
and Teixeira finished off the fight with ground and pound.
“He
was able to give me a punch to make me fall back down, but I
knew exactly what was happening,” Teixeira said. “I
was able to use that as an opportunity for me.
“I
knew as he knocked me down that he was going to come with his
guard open and going to try and submit me, but that was the opportunity
I used, and that’s why I gave him the strong one in between
his arms. That’s when I was able to end the fight.”
After
his 20th straight win overall and fifth straight in the UFC,
Teixeira admitted that he was disappointed in the performance,
but guaranteed he will one day win the UFC belt.
“To
tell you the truth, I wasn’t happy with this fight. It disappointed
me that he was able to knock me down and I’m going to train
more so I can get there,” he stated.
“This
belt is going to be mine. I think one of my problems was that
I just had too much self-confidence; it was a good wake up call.”
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Rivals
unite to honor fallen officer; Sergio Penha black-belt dies saving
life
Erin Herle
On
August 9, the Las Vegas Jiu-Jitsu community came together for
a seminar that gathered proceeds for a fallen officer and fellow
BJJ member. Officer David Vanbuskirk earned his black belt under
Sergio Penha and worked as a search and rescue officer in the
Las Vegas area when he died from a fall directly after pulling
a hiker to safety. His death urged members of the Jiu-Jitsu family
to come together in what turned out to be a humbling event.
Read how the event unfolded through the words of Frank Curreri
as he was in attendance of the historic event:
Anyone
who owns a red-and-black belt, as Sergio Penha does, cannot help
but be from “The Old School.” Part of that code, being
a so-called “Man’s Man,” means masking weakness.
It means that a guy like Penha, veteran of Grandmaster Osvaldo
Alves’ ferocious dog-eat-dog style training sessions, would
rather spend an afternoon getting teeth pulled in a dentist’s
office, without anesthesia, than be caught crying.
Of
course, even the most powerful and emotionally disciplined leader
has an achilles heel. Especially when one of his longtime students,
a black belt no less, meets a sudden death way before anyone
imagined. Such a tragedy recently befell David Vanbuskirk, a
police officer who died July 22 rescuing a stranded hiker in
the mountains 35 miles from the Las Vegas strip.
Vanbuskirk
successfully saved the hiker’s life – as he had saved
hundreds of others throughout his career – but lost his
own when his harness (connected to a helicopter) somehow came
loose. A fun-loving guy who could light up any room with his
near-perfect smile, Vanbuskirk was just 36 years old.
“For
two weeks I cried like a baby,” Penha said. “I had
him from white belt to black belt. I saw David for eight or nine
years, four to five days a week, and have nothing bad to say
about him. He really was like an angel. He was also a tough guy,
so I used to put him a lot to train with Stephan (Bonnar) or
Anthony (Njokuani) before their fights. Of course, David got
beat up sometimes because he was training with professional fighters,
but he never said ‘no.’ You have to respect someone
who has balls like that.”
A magical power of our art is how it transforms strangers into
friends, and friends into blood. One day you’re training
with a guy, a year later he feels like “family.” It’s
a popular refrain and cliché in BJJ circles. Think about
it: How many times have you heard a BJJ player say, “My
students are like family to me” or“My teammates are
like family to me”?
Now
let’s change gears and entertain another mental exercise:
How often do you hear someone say “they are like family
to me” about the instructors or students at the BJJ academy
five miles down the road? The academy that is competing with
your academy for the same students, the same dollars, for the
same gold medals and bragging rights and prestige at local tournaments?
Maybe
never, right?
Which
is what made a recent Friday night seminar in Las Vegas so historic.
Eighty BJJ players gathered at Xtreme Couture’s gym for
a seminar that raised $10,000 for Vanbuskirk’s widow. Considering
the price tag for admittance – a mere $50 – the 3-hour
experience should go down as one of the greatest BJJ seminar
bargains ever. I would have eagerly parted with $50 bucks to
attend a seminar run only by Sergio Penha, famed for his epic
match with Rickson Gracie and for leaping over brown belt entirely
and going straight from purple to black belt. What certified
the seminar as awesomely ridiculous is that it, in addition to
Penha, it featured technical instruction from five other top-shelf
black belts from across the BJJ-rich Las Vegas Valley.
The
rest of the formidable list of volunteer instructors: six-time
world champion Robert Drysdale; world-class black belt Simpson
Go; Amilcar “Mica” Cipili, a Royler Gracie affiliate
whose teams have fared very well in local tournaments; Neal Melanson,
the Jiu-Jitsu coach at Xtreme Couture who is a black belt in
Judo and Hayastan under Karo Parisyan (and awarded Randy Couture
a black belt in the same art); and Robert Follis, a BJJ black
belt and one of the brightest (if unsung and often overlooked)
coaching minds in MMA who has worked extensively with Randy Couture,
Dan Henderson, Chael Sonnen and Matt Linland, among others.
Even
the most seasoned BJJ player could learn a few things in a room
packed with that much knowledge and experience, which may explain
why at least 17 total BJJ black belts attended the seminar. The
tragedy of Officer Vanbuskirk’s death and the watershed
event that ensued provided a proper perspective for what it really
means to be “family” in BJJ. A reminder that should
echo across continents to any BJJ schools and instructors who
may have gotten too wrapped up in the “us/them” mentality.
“We’ve
come together; we are brothers,” Sergio Penha said while
addressing everyone in attendance. “Drysdale, Mica …you
know, we fight each other all the time when my students compete
against your students. That’s the way it has to be, but
we also have to respect each other. I respect Drysdale, Mica,
Chad (Lyman) and everyone who shares the love of BJJ. I love
this sport.”
Penha
then dropped a little “Old School” history lesson,
alluding even to his legendary match with Rickson Gracie, a match
Penha was winning handily on points before Rickson dramatically
summoned a choke in the last 30 seconds or so to steal victory.
If he could go back in time, the ultra-aggressive Penha said
he would still choose not to fight conservatively in the later
stages of his match with Rickson, whom he later referred to as
“a brother.”
“When I started doing this sport we didn’t have many
rules,” Penha said. “I came from a time where, if a
guy closed his guard, you lifted him and smashed him to the ground
… You could go for the neck crank, you could go for the
heel hook, you could do whatever you want, but there had to be
respect. And that’s the way I respect every single one of
you. If you step on the mat and you’re training every single
day, I have respect for you because you are showing balls (holds
both hands out wide and gestures).”
Randy
Couture volunteered to participate in the seminar but was in
Bulgaria filming the Expendables 3 movie and could not get the
green light for a getaway, according to Chad Lyman, one of three
Las Vegas police officers who dreamed up the seminar as a way
to honor their fallen peer.
“We’re
trying as a Jiu-Jitsu community to remember one of our own who
fell serving other people. We came together in unity, doing something
that we loved and that (Officer Vanbuskirk) loved,” said
Lyman, who following the seminar received his BJJ black belt
from Michael Chapman.
Given
the amazing success of the August seminar – which was organized,
planned and executed in just eight days – Lyman said officers
are already discussing the possibility of making this an annual
event to honor law enforcement who perish in the line of duty.
Source:
Gracie Magazine
|
Mark
Hunt vs. Antonio Silva targeted for UFC's December return to
Australia
A
heavyweight matchup between Mark Hunt (9-7 MMA, 4-2 UFC) and
Antonio Silva (18-5 MMA, 2-2 UFC) is expected to headline the
UFC's December return to Australia.
Brazilian
outlet Combate first reported the news, and MMAjunkie.com has
since confirmed that verbal agreements are in place for the contest,
and contracts are expected to be finalized shortly.
Further,
while there have been conflicting reports as to the date and
location of the event, MMAjunkie.com has learned it will take
place Dec. 7 at Brisbane Entertainment Centre in Queensland,
Australia.
Due
to the time change, the event will air on the U.S. on Friday
night, Dec. 7. Broadcast plans for the event have yet to be announced.
"Bigfoot"
Silva returns to the action for the first time since a failed
beat for the UFC's heavyweight title. The UFC 160 bout saw Silva
suffer a first-round TKO loss to champ Cain Velasquez. Still,
the 33-year-old Brazilian still sits at No. 6 in the latest USA
TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie.com MMA heavyweight rankings.
He
now meets No. 9 Hunt, a 39-year-old New Zealander with devastating
power. A longtime kickboxer, Hunt's MMA record hovered was below
.500 when he joined the UFC, but he rattled off wins over Stean
Struve, Cheick Kongo, Ben Rothwell and Chris Tuchscherer in fan-friendly
style to secure his spot on the UFC roster. The four-fight win
streak came to an end at the hands of Junior dos Santos who scored
a third-round knockout over Hunt in UFC 160's "Fight of
the Night."
Source:
MMA Junkie
|
Lyoto
Machida: Jon Jones can’t stop Glover Teixeira
By Guilherme
Cruz
Glover Teixeira is the next Brazilian hope.
The
6-foot-2, 205-pound Brazilian brawler meets Ryan Bader on Wednesday
in Minas Gerais, Brazil, and a big win at UFC Fight Night 28
could earn him a shot at the UFC belt.
Jon
Jones, the current champion, puts his title on the line against
Alexander Gustafsson at UFC 165 on Sept. 21, but none of them
can match Teixeira’s talent, according to former UFC champion
and training partner Lyoto Machida.
"I
believe Glover is the next champion," Machida told MMAFighting.com.
"I don’t see anyone in the light heavyweight division
to stop Glover Teixeira. Not even Jon Jones."
Teixeira
made his UFC debut on May 2012, and has defeated four opponents
in one year. He has finished 15 of his 21 wins in the first round,
and Machida guarantees he’s ready to fight five rounds.
"We
train together for a long time," he said. "To do well
against him, you really, really need to know what you’re
doing. He’s too strong for this division. He’s a heavyweight,
and he’s durable. He will hurt you for five rounds."
Source:
MMA Fighting
|
Anthony
Pettis Out 7-8 Weeks with Knee Sprain, Will Face T.J. Grant Upon
Return
By Mike
Whitman
Anthony
Pettis fans can breathe a sigh of relief.
The
UFC lightweight champion only suffered a knee sprain during his
title-winning performance against Benson Henderson in the UFC
164 main event this past Saturday. Though it was initially uncertain
how much damage had been done to the left knee of “Showtime,”
UFC officials announced Tuesday night that the 155-pound pacesetter
will not require surgery.
Pettis
will need to sit out seven to eight weeks in order to recover
from the Grade 2 sprain. When the Roufusport product does return
to action, he will defend his lightweight crown against T.J.
Grant. Pettis called out UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo
immediately after beating Henderson at the BMO Harris Bradley
Center in Milwaukee, but it appears that booking will have to
wait.
The
former World Extreme Cagefighting champion had been slated to
face Aldo for the featherweight title in the main event of UFC
163 but was forced to withdraw from that matchup due to a right
knee injury. Aldo instead defended his title against Chan Sung
Jung and earned a fourth-round technical knockout win over “The
Korean Zombie last month.”
Meanwhile,
Henderson was scheduled to defend the lightweight strap at UFC
164 against Grant before the Canadian pulled out of the fight
with an injury, opening the door for Pettis to rematch Henderson.
While their first fight was a grueling, five-round affair, Pettis
needed less than one frame to dispatch “Smooth” in
their rematch, catching Henderson in an armbar from guard and
forcing him to verbally submit 4:31 into round one.
Source
Sherdog
|
Manchester's
UFC Fight Night 30 to remain on FOX Sports 2
Although
much of the UFC's live programming will now air on FOX Sports
1, October's UFC Fight Night 30 event will remain on FOX Sports
2.
MMAjunkie.com
confirmed the broadcast plans with sources close to the event.
UFC
Fight Night 30 takes place Oct. 26 at Manchester Arena in England.
Facebook is expected to stream a few prelims before the bulk
of the card moves to FOX Sports 2 at 3 p.m. ET (noon PT). FOX
Sports 1, meanwhile, is scheduled to air an unspecified college
football game at 4 p.m. ET that day.
UFC
President Dana White recently confirmed that most UFC live programming,
including preliminary-card specials, would be moving to FOX Sports
1. That was good news for the many cable subscribers who get
FOX Sports 1 (formerly the SPEED channel) in high-definition
but still get FOX Sports 2 (which replaced FUEL TV) in standard-def.
However,
for the UFC Fight Night 30 event on Oct. 26, which includes a
middleweight headliner between Michael Bisping (24-5 MMA, 14-5
UFC) and Mark Munoz (13-3 MMA, 8-3 UFC), the card will remain
on FOX Sports 2.
The
latest UFC Fight Night 30 card includes:
Michael Bisping vs. Mark Munoz
Melvin Guillard vs. Ross Pearson
Phil Harris vs. John Lineker
Jimy Hettes vs. Mike Wilkinson
Anthony Njokuani vs. Paul Taylor
Ryan Jimmo vs. Jimi Manuwa
Alessio Sakara vs. Tom Watson
Luke Barnatt vs. Andrew Craig
Michael Kuiper vs. Brad Scott
Jessica Andrade vs. Rosi Sexton
Norman Parke vs. Jon Tuck
Source: MMA Junkie
|
UFC
Fight Night 28 Results: Jacare Souza KO’s Yushin Okami,
Staking Claim at Title Shot
by James
Goyder
In
a fight with serious repercussions for the middleweight title
picture, former Strikeforce middleweight champion Ronaldo “Jacare”
Souza faced former UFC title challenger Yushin Okami at UFC Fight
Night 28 on Wednesday night in Brazil
It
was Okami’s first time fighting in Brazil since his 2011
defeat at the hands of Anderson Silva.
Jacare
is renowned for his ground game and has some of the best Brazilian
Jiu-jitsu credentials in the entire MMA world, but it was his
striking that made the difference, as he snapped the Japanese
fighter’s three-fight winning streak courtesy of a couple
of perfectly timed right hands.
The
first right hand came early in the round and stunned Okami, who
was trapped up against the cage as Jacare looked to finish the
fight with a frenzy of punches followed by a hard knee. The Japanese
veteran, however, dug deep and survived the onslaught.
It
proved to be no more than a temporary reprieve as another right
hand from Jacare connected clean with Okami’s chin and this
time there was no escape. The Brazilian swarmed all over him,
raining down punches, forcing the referee to step in and call
a halt to the contest.
It
was a dominant performance from Jacare, who made a serious statement
about his striking and has to be in the pole position for a shot
at the middleweight title, although the question is whether he
is prepared to sit on the shelf until after December’s UFC
168 rematch between Chris Weidman and Anderson Silva.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Source: Romolo Barros
|
Source: Tommy Lam
|
Despite
Posturing Over Chael Sonnen Bout, Dana White Says Wand Can’t
Even Train Until January
by Ryan
McKinnell
The
war of words between UFC light heavyweights Chael Sonnen and
Wanderlei Silva has been in full swing since Sonnen’s victory
over Mauricio “Shogun” Rua at the inaugural UFC on
FOX Sports 1 event in Boston earlier this month.
Moments
after defeating Shogun – a former training partner of Silva’s
– Sonnen took to the post-fight microphone and had a few
words for “The Axe Murderer.”
“Wanderlei
Silva, 6-feet tall, 205 pounds; boy, until I met you, I didn’t
know they could stack crap that high,” he yelled into the
microphone.
“Wanderlei
Silva, three months, you and the bad guy.”
Sonnen
then strolled out of the cage and the MMA world was set a blaze
with another fiery promo from the “Gangster from West Linn.”
Silva,
who apparently wanted the fight as well, was game for the showdown
and made it very clear that he wanted the fight.
UFC
president Dana White contacted Silva about booking the potential
showdown, but according to White, Silva wanted a piece of the
PPV cut or he would not fight.
White
responded by saying that would not happen, and added that this
would likely be the end of the line for the Brazilian fan-favorite,
saying, “I guess he’s gonna retire.”
Whoa.
Talk about going from one extreme to another.
It
now seems as if White has changed his tune on the retirement
talk.
At
the UFC Fight Night 27: Condit vs. Kampmann 2 post-fight scrum,
White said that Silva is still not cleared to fight until January,
and simply put, even if White wanted to book Silva in a fight
with Sonnen, he couldn’t.
“I
know publicly it looked like whatever with Wanderlei,” said
White. “I like Wanderlei very much and I respect him as
a fighter and as a person. Me and Wanderlei will figure this
thing out.
“I’m
not mad at him. There’s no animosity. But he’s not
gonna be healthy until January. He can’t even start training
until January.”
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
With
Wanderlei Silva Currently Out of the Picure, Could Chael Sonnen
vs. Phil Davis Be On Tap?
by Ryan
McKinnell
After
his victory over Mauricio “Shogun” Rua at the UFC on
FOX Sports 1 debut in Boston earlier this month, UFC light heavyweight
Chael Sonnen called out Shogun’s former training partner
Wanderlei Silva in a fiery promo.
Sonnen’s
quotes rang throughout the blogosphere and MMA fans began to
salivate at the prospect of the brash American battling “The
Axe Murderer” from Brazil.
Talk
of the potential showdown was subsequently nixed when UFC president
Dana White explained that he contacted Silva, and the Brazilian
apparently demanded a portion of the PPV cut or he would not
fight.
This
lead White to proclaim, “I guess he’s gonna retire.”
Recently
White explained that necessarily was not the entire story, and
that Silva is injured and would not be cleared to fight until
January, at the earliest.
With
White and Silva working out their particulars, that still leaves
Sonnen – who is coming off the most impressive win of his
career – without a fight.
At
the UFC Fight Night 27 post-fight press conference, White spoke
about Sonnen’s current situation and gave reporters an update
on when we could expect to see “The Gangster from West Linn”
back in the Octagon.
“He
wants to fight on that 20th Anniversary card (UFC 167),”
said White. “He wants to co-main that fight.”
That
fight would be Georges St-Pierre vs. Johny Hendricks, which headlines
the card.
Fellow
205-pounder and former NCAA National Wrestling Champion Phil
Davis took to Twitter after the Silva debacle and expressed his
desire to fight Sonnen… for the people of Brazil?
“Enough
is enough… I want to fight @sonnench for the whole country
of Brazil! Name a time, name a date and bring your face!”
he tweeted.
When
questioned about the possibility of a Davis vs. Sonnen showdown,
White was intrigued.
“Interesting,”
he said. “That fight could happen.”
Sonnen
is currently one of the bigger draws in all of the UFC, so it’s
no surprise that fighters are clamoring for a shot to silence
the “Bad Guy.”
However,
with Davis, the noise is warranted. Not only is he a top-ten
talent, which Sonnen surely deserves, Davis is also coming off
the most important win of his career, a victory over the Brazilian
striking enigma Lyoto Machida at UFC 163 earlier this month.
Rest
assured, with his propensity for a microphone, whomever Sonnen
battles inside the cage next, you’ll be sure to hear about
it, loud and clear.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Chad
Mendes says he's prepared for both the old Clay Guida and the
'point fighter'
By Dave
Doyle
For
years, Clay Guida was a fan favorite who put on thrilling battles,
win or lose.
In
his recent fights, though. Guida's game has changed. While he's
still winning and losing his fair share of fights, he's become
a far more conservative competitor.
His
opponent at UFC 164 on Saturday, Chad Mendes, says that he's
going to be ready for either Guida to enter the Octagon.
"You
just don't know what Clay is going to show up," the featherweight
contender said at Thursday's UFC 164 press conference in Milwaukee.
"Is it going to be the Clay that's in your face and never
letting you breathe, or is it the point fighter we've seen lately?
You definitely don't know. We've trained for both and that movement
is something we have our eyes on, and we're planning for it."
Mendes,
of course, has had Guida on his mind awhile, since the two were
originally scheduled to meet at UFC on FOX 7 in April before
Guida had to pull out with an injury.
"It's
always hard to train for a guy like that you know," Mendes
said. "We've had to do it at Team Alpha Male with [Dominick]
Cruz for [Urijah] Faber. We've had to do it the last two camps,
because i was supposed to fight Clay that last fight also. I've
basically gone through almost two camps for Clay, but yeah, it's
tough."
If
Guida's response when asked about Mendes' comments are any indication,
we should expect the new version of Guida in the Octagon on Saturday.
"I
don't just stalk forward like a zombie and come swinging for
the fences," Guida said. "There's meaning and there's
purpose behind my footwork now."
Source:
MMA Fighting
|
Bellator
on War Machine rape quips: He really doesn’t mean to offend
you
By Zach
Arnold
War
Machine wrote on Twitter that he was going to rape his girlfriend.
Read Matt Roth’s item here about what exactly was said.
Subsequently,
Bjorn Rebney went into damage control mode while Machine said
his remarks were “taken out of context” and called
critics “sensitive ass bitches.”
Jamie
Penick says that War Machine’s rape tweets bring a small
time response from Bellator to a big league problem:
If
Bellator and Viacom want to be seen as on par with the UFC, and
if they legitimately have aspirations to take on that top mantle
themselves, then the handling of this is simply not good enough.
It hurts their image for continuing to employ him with nothing
more than a simple statement being made hoping he’ll learn
his lesson. There’s no consequences here for him.
Bellator
is a big league promotion now, and wants to be seen as such,
so they deserve the same type of scrutiny the UFC receives when
something like this happens. This reaction from Rebney and simple
acceptance of the situation just isn’t good enough. The
disdain towards his spot on the roster and the fact that they
promote him more heavily than some others is going to be felt
through the fanbase, and that’s a continued negativity they
just don’t need.
The
good news is that War Machine has some new updates for you:
Don’t
worry, War Machine is still accepting sponsors for his upcoming
fight in September. Cashing in with Bloodstain Lane or War Machine,
who’s better to invest your sponsorship money with?
In
an interview on Tuesday afternoon with Jordan Breen of Sherdog,
Bjorn Rebney was asked about War Machine’s rape comments
and why Bellator is keeping him around when other fighters have
gotten axed for transgressions.
“Yeah,
you know, I mean, look… the vast, vast majority, the overwhelming
majority of guys, um, are cognizant of the voice that they have
and use a good amount of restraint. I mean, you know, you look
at, you know, fighters that we’ve got under contract, guys
like Pat Curran and Eduardo Dantas and Michael Chandler and a
series of guys that, you know, they’ve always got something
positive to say and they’ve got an opinion on things and
they voice it but they do show a lot of restraint.
“And
then you know, look, you’ve got guys like Jon that just
are absolute wildcards and, you know, when God was putting those
chips in everybody’s heads that stopped them from saying
exactly what they were thinking, he never got one and he just
says whatever he thinks and often times disregards who it will
offend or how it will impact people and just goes. And that’s,
you know, that’s a tough part of it and it’s been a
balancing act on my part talking to Jon and explaining, man,
there’s certain things you just can’t say and here’s
why it offends people and, you know, look…
“The
reality with Jon, and that’s the reason that we’ve
kept him and I’ve kept working with him is I don’t
think his intent is to offend people. I honestly don’t think
that he’s intending to offend people and there’s no
doubt that he does. But I think that he has a very different
perception of things than, you know, almost 100% of the rest
of us. You know, it’s just, he just doesn’t, I mean
if… and I know it’s hard for people who have a certain
degree of animosity towards Jon to understand or hear this and
I get it, I get it completely. Some of the things that he’s
said, has said in the past just make my skin crawl. But if you
met Jon and you spent time with him, what you’ll get out
of most people that have spent time with him is that he’s
not a bad guy, he’s not an animosity-driven hating type
of personality. He just, he just digests information and spits
it out differently than anyone I’ve ever met and sometimes
it offends the heck out of people and, you know, we’re trying
to keep him in the organization and trying to put a cap on some
of that but, you know, we’ll see where it goes. I wouldn’t
want to make like a future prohibitive statement about Jon Koppenhaver
but, um, you know, he understood what he did wrong and that when
those comments about rape he was apologetic about it. Um…
and hopefully a guy like that can learn from something like that.”
Later
in the interview, Rebney said this about War Machine and Rampage
Jackson:
“I
always view the cup as half-full and I will tell you this, Quinton
“Rampage” Jackson has been amazing for this brand and,
as he said, he and I are still in the honeymoon phase and we’re
still open-mouth kissing.”
We’ll
see how long that lasts. Bjorn also said that Michael Chandler
is the best Lightweight in MMA and says he has no idea what will
happen in regards to Ben Askren staying with Bellator or signing
a contract with the UFC.
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
My
Elbow Hurts – Elbow Injury Advice From a Physical Therapist
for MMA Athletes
by Eric
Mundt, MSPT on in Injuries
One
of the more common issues I see with MMA fighters and grappling
is elbow injury pain. Specifically, pain in one or more of the
tendons of the muscles that bend the elbow. Every time a jab
is snapped out and pulled back…it hurts. When a takedown
is attempted…it hurts. Trying to maintain wrist control…it
hurts. As we get into the why’s and how’s of this type
of elbow pain I am going to make some generalizations and give
you suggestions that should help reduce pain and improve activity
tolerance, but an article is no substitute for an examination
by competent medical professional.
MMA
is a relatively new sport so most participants have a base in
either striking or grappling then add other disciplines to round
out their skill set. When you have an athlete used to jiu-jitsu
drills who suddenly add hundreds of left jabs into his weekly
schedule, the stress on the elbow flexors is significantly increased;
the same can be said for a boxer or muy thai fighter who adds
grappling. The added stress on the forearm, elbow and gripping
muscles can contribute elbow pain. Athletes also start working
with strength and conditioning coaches. Adding cleans, high pulls,
pull-ups, etc all increases stress on the elbows. They are great
and necessary exercises but can play a role in elbow pain. It’s
all about stress and how your body tolerates it. Additional stress
on the shoulder can contribute to your elbow injury pain as well.
In order to keep this article to a manageable size, I will focus
on the elbow flexors themselves.
Let’s
start with symptom management after an elbow injury. For this
type of pain, ice usually helps. The most effective, in my opinion,
is an ice massage. Take some foam cups or paper cups and fill
them up with water. Put them in the freezer until they are solid.
Peel the lip off of the cup and rub the ice where you are sore
covering a baseball size area. Make sure to keep the ice moving
all the time in order to prevent frost bite. When the area is
numb to the touch, you are done. This usually take about 7 minutes.
There is a product called a Cryocup that can be reused if you
are environmentally conscious. You can also use an ice bag for
15-20min but I don’t think ice bags are as effective. Whatever
you choose needs to be done 3-5x/day. In the past I have tried
products containing arnica gel for various injuries that I have
had. I have found that the thicker the tissue around the injury,
the less effective it is. In the case of pain in the elbow flexors,
products that contain arnica may actually help with symptom management.
The tendons this area are not real deep so topical pain relievers
can help. There are also topical creams that you can get from
your physician that can contain a variety of anti-inflammatory
medications like ibuprofen or voltaren. Success with these also
seems to vary depending on the depth of the affected tissue.
Using ice and/or topical gels usually will not fix the problem.
They merely help you tolerate the symptoms.
In
order to increase the stress tolerance of the elbow flexors,
isometrics are a great place to start. They are simple and can
be done anywhere. You are going to bend the elbow of the sore
arm as far as you can comfortably, like you are doing a bicep
curl. You are then going to place the opposite hand on the wrist
of your sore arm and try to push the arm down. Hold this for
6 seconds. You will do one rep at about 30% effort, 1×50%,
1×70% and 3×100% for a total of 6 reps. If you feel
pain or weakness at any effort level, you drop back to the previous
effort level and finish all remaining reps at that level. If
you make a mistake in your effort, err on the side of too little
effort. Don’t get too aggressive with these. I have had
a number of people who thought that if they did all the reps
at 100% it would get better faster. It doesn’t work that
way with an elbow injury.
This
exercise will be done in three different positions:
1)
Palm facing you
2)
Palm facing inward
3)
Palm facing away from you
So
now you have a total of three exercises for an elbow injury that
only take 36 seconds each that can get you on your way to pain
free elbows! Initially you’ll only do these once a day to
see how you tolerate them. If they go ok for the first couple
days you can do them multiple times (2-4) per day. Before and
after practice are great times to fit them in. As these exercises
become pain free you can be more aggressive with your strength
and conditioning program to gain strength and endurance.
If
the ice, topical cream and isometrics don’t help you will
need to get your elbow injury examined and treated by a medical
professional. Some of the treatment approaches that I have had
success using for this type of injury are myofascial release,
active release, trigger point needling, and muscle activation
techniques. Some clinics will also use modalities like ultrasound,
electrical stimulation, and iontophoresis. Acupuncture would
be another option. Please see my FightMedicine.net article on
Things To Look For When Choosing a Physical Therapy Clinic to
help make a choice.
For
News and Information on MMA Health/Diet/Injuries/Nutrition visit
FightMedicine.net
Source:
Fight Medicine
|
Women's
MMA Report: UFC books Kaufman vs. Eye, Sexton vs. Andrade for
October
by Robert
Sargent
Former
Strikeforce women's bantamweight champion Sarah Kaufman didn't
get to compete as planned Wednesday night at UFC Fight Night
27, but the Canadian standout's long-awaited octagon debut will
still take place before the end of 2013. Kaufman is now set to
face rising star Jessica "Evil" Eye at UFC 166 on Oct.
19 in Houston.
Kaufman
(16-2 MMA, 0-0 UFC) was originally scheduled to compete in a
compelling fight at UFC Fight Night 27, but her bout was scrapped
earlier this month when opponent Sara McMann withdrew from the
event. UFC officials were unable to secure a replacement opponent
in time, and Kaufman was dropped from the card. Although disappointed,
Kaufman did not have to wait long to receive a new fight.
This
past week, it was announced that Kaufman will battle fellow UFC
newcomer Eye (10-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) at UFC 166, which is shaping
up to be one of the promotion's most stacked cards of the year.
Eye brings a stellar seven-fight winning streak into her UFC
debut, and the former Bellator fan favorite is one of the fastest
rising female stars in the sport today.
While
she has spent much of her career competing as a flyweight, the
cut to 125 pounds has become more and more difficult for Eye
as she gets stronger and continues to put on more muscle mass.
In her most recent fight in June, Eye defeated Carina "Barbie"
Damm in a 130-pound catchweight bout, and she believes she will
be even stronger at bantamweight.
The
bout with Eye will be a pivotal one for Kaufman. Her bid to reclaim
the Strikeforce women's bantamweight title ended in a 54-second
defeat to current UFC champion "Rowdy" Ronda Rousey
one year ago. In her April Invicta FC debut, Kaufman narrowly
edged Leslie "The Peacemaker" Smith via a razor-thin
split decision. A loss to Eye would be a significant setback
for Kaufman, who has her sights set on a rematch with Rousey
for the UFC title.
UFC
166 takes place at Houston's Toyota Center. Officials have not
announced whether the Kaufman vs. Eye bout will air live on pay-per-view
or as a part of the FOX Sports 1-televised preliminary card.
Sexton
to face Andrade at UFC Fight Night 30 in Manchester
One
week after Kaufman and Eye do battle in Texas, Manchester, England's
Rosi "The Surgeon" Sexton (13-3 MMA, 0-1 UFC) competes
in front of hometown fans when she takes on Jessica "Bate
Estaca" Andrade (9-3 MMA, 0-1 UFC) at "UFC Fight Night
30: Bisping vs. Munoz." The event takes place in Manchester.
Sexton announced the fight on Tuesday.
Sexton
and Andrade both look to pick up their first UFC victories after
suffering setbacks in their respective promotional debuts earlier
this summer.
At
UFC 161 in June, Sexton moved up to bantamweight to challenge
jiu-jitsu ace Alexis "Ally-Gator" Davis in a bout that
served as both fighters' UFC debuts. Despite being seen as an
underdog by many, Sexton put on a strong showing in the fight
but ultimately dropped a narrow decision on the scorecards. Prior
to the loss, Sexton had won eight of nine fights against many
of the sport's top flyweights.
Andrade
began her pro career shortly before her 20th birthday in September
2011 and picked up wins in eight of her first 10 fights. In April
she traveled to Russia and upset Milana Dudieva at ProFC 47.
Andrade's submission victory caught the eye of UFC matchmaker
Sean Shelby, who signed the Brazilian and matched her up against
Liz "Girl-Rilla" Carmouche at UFC on FOX 8. Andrade
kept Carmouche trapped in her signature guillotine choke for
most of Round 1 of their FOX-televised fight, but succumbed to
Carmouche's ground and pound in the second round.
Earlier
this month, Sheila "The German Tank" Gaff became the
first female fighter to be cut by the UFC following back-to-back
losses. Sexton and Andrade look to earn a crucial victory in
order to ensure they don't join Gaff on the cut list with consecutive
defeats.
Deep
Jewels debuts Saturday in Tokyo
Japan's
newest women's MMA promotion, Deep Jewels, stages its first event
on Saturday at Shinjuku Face in Tokyo. The inaugural card features
many of the top stars from the former Jewels promotion, which
merged with Deep to become "Deep Jewels" earlier this
year.
Recent
Jewels title challenger Emi "Kamikaze Angel" Fujino
(12-6) enters the Deep Jewels 1 main event as a significant favorite.
She's booked to face South Korean striker Hyo Kyung Song (0-2),
who remains in search of her first MMA win after suffering losses
to long-time pound-for-pound star Yuka "Vale Tudo Queen"
Tsuji and teen standout Mizuki Inoue. With a win on Saturday,
Fujino will stay on track for a future shot at the Deep Jewels
lightweight (114-pound) title, which is expected to be up for
grabs in 2014.
Former
Jewels poster girl Mika "Future Princess" Nagano (13-8)
is also scheduled to compete at the event. She meets Akiko "Betiko"
Naito (6-12) in a bout that will serve as Naito's retirement
fight. Nagano has won five of her past six fights and remains
one of the most popular female fighters in Japan today. Like
Fujino, Nagano will also move a step closer to Deep Jewels title
contention with a victory. Naito retires from MMA following a
10-year career dating back to her pro debut in 2003.
In
a featherweight (106-pound) title eliminator, Sadae "Manhoef"
Numata (4-1-1) takes on Norway's Celine Haga (5-11), who has
won four straight fights. The victor moves on to challenge Deep
Jewels women's featherweight champion Seo Hee Ham at a later
date.
Numata
has quietly put together a three-fight winning streak during
the past two years, but she hasn't competed in MMA since she
submitted teen prospect Shino VanHoose in November. Three of
her four victories have ended inside the distance. Haga opened
her pro career with just one victory in her first 12 fights –
a massive upset win over Nagano in May 2010 – but she's
currently riding a four-fight winning streak that has positioned
her for an improbable title run. This year, Haga has scored consecutive
wins over former Jewels champion Naho "Sugi Rock" Sugiyama
and 39-fight veteran Masako Yoshida.
Deep
Jewels 1 includes six additional MMA fights and two kickboxing
bouts. In a featured grappling match, Invicta FC contender and
two-time Shoot Boxing Girls S-Cup winner Inoue faces highly touted
jiu-jitsu prodigy Rikako Yuasa.
The
full Deep Jewels 1 fight card:
Emi
"Kamikaze Angel" Fujino (12-6) vs. Hyo Kyung Song (0-2)
Kozue "Azuma" Nagashima vs. Ji Yun Kim*
Mika "Future Princess" Nagano (13-8) vs. Akiko "Betiko"
Naito (6-12)
Sadae "Manhoef" Numata (4-1-1) vs. Celine Haga (5-11)**
Rena Matsuda vs. Rumina "K" Kurihara*
Yuko "Amiba" Oya (5-3) vs. Yasuko "Pink Spider"
Mogi (3-8)
Mizuki Inoue vs. Rikako Yuasa***
Yasuko "Ikuko" Tamada (14-8-3) vs. Yukiko Seki (11-22)
Satomi Takano (2-1) vs. Masako Yoshida (16-18-5)
"Happy" Fukuko Hamada (7-8-1) vs. Miyoko Kusaka (3-6-1)
Takumi Umehara (1-1) vs. Megumi Sugimoto (0-0)
Sachiko Fujimori (0-0) vs. Sumire Takahashi (0-0)
*
– Kickboxing match
** – Featherweight title eliminator
*** – Grappling match
Xtreme
Kombat, Storm MMA book women's tourneys for Aug. 31
Mexico's
Xtreme Kombat promotion holds its latest event on Saturday in
Cuautitlan Izcalli, where the promotion's inaugural women's flyweight
champion will be crowned. Xtreme Kombat 20 features a four-woman
flyweight title tournament that includes some of Mexico's most
talented female MMA fighters.
Unbeaten
prospect Anely "Neka" Jimenez (7-0) enters the tournament
as the odds-on favorite to win the title. Jimenez has yet to
taste defeat in her MMA career and has knocked out or submitted
six of her seven opponents to date. In her most recent fight
in November, Jimenez made a successful Xtreme Kombat debut by
outpointing Wendy "El Princesa" Arellano.
Joining
Jimenez in the tournament is knockout artist Alexa Grasso (2-0),
who has finished both of her pro opponents inside the first round.
Grasso most recently stopped Lupita Hernandez in May. Rounding
out the four-woman tournament field, Karina Rodriguez (1-0) returns
to Xtreme Kombat for the first time since June 2012, and Sandra
Chimeyo (0-0) makes her pro debut.
Semifinal-round
matchups haven't been announced. In order to claim the title,
the tourney winner must defeat two opponents in one night.
Also
on Saturday, Australian promotion Storm MMA returns with "Storm
Damage 3" in Canberra. The card includes a one-night, eight-woman
title tournament to crown the promotion's inaugural women's featherweight
champion.
In
the first of four quarterfinal bouts, Ginny Connors (0-0) makes
her pro MMA debut against Belinda "The Bellringer"
Sedgwick (0-2), who remains in search of her first win. The victor
will move on to face the winner of the second quarterfinal, which
pits unbeaten submission specialist Kate "Jiu-Jitseira"
Da Silva (3-0) against Arlene "Angerfist" Blencowe
(1-2).
On
the other side of the tournament bracket, Faith Van Duin (1-0)
takes on Michelle "Powerhouse" Peruzzi (1-1), and Maryanne
Mullahy (1-0) awaits a replacement foe after her original opponent
withdrew from the card. The winners of those quarterfinals meet
in the semifinal round to determine which fighter will advance
on to the final, where one woman will be left standing as Storm
MMA's first female featherweight titleholder.
Nakai
vs. LaRosa announced for Pancrase 252
Bantamweight
Queen of Pancrase Rin Nakai (14-0-1) takes a huge step up in
competition for her next fight, at "Pancrase 252: 20th Anniversary"
on Sept. 29 in Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan. Nakai is scheduled
to face former BodogFight champ Tara LaRosa (21-3) in a non-title
bout. The fight was officially announced this past week.
Nakai
became the first Queen of Pancrase champion in December when
she defeated Danielle "The Honey Badger" West in a
controversial rematch. The fight came under fire from fans and
media when Pancrase officials imposed restrictions upon West
that deemed her ineligible to win the fight due to her failure
to make weight. On May 19, Nakai handed KOTC champion Brenda
"Boom Boom" Gonzales her first defeat in a non-title
bout at Pancrase 247.
LaRosa
has battled a who's who of the sport throughout her storied career.
The 11-year veteran has faced and defeated many of MMA's top
female bantamweights, but a recent move down to 125 pounds yielded
mixed success. LaRosa's three-fight winning streak was snapped
in her most recent bout when Vanessa Porto defeated her at Invicta
FC 3. She can be seen on "The Ultimate Fighter 18,"
which premieres Sept. 4, and then travels overseas to compete
in Japan for the first time since November 2005.
Quick
results
Justine
Kish (2-0) def. Christine Stanley (1-1) via submission (armbar)
at the 4:29 mark of Round 2 at "Resurrection Fighting Alliance
9: Munhoz vs. Curran" on Aug. 16 in Los Angeles. While best
known for her striking, Kish showed again that she is comfortable
on the ground as she picked up her second submission win. She
defeated Munah Holland in December 2010.
Daizy
Singh (3-0) def. Ritika Singh (1-3) via unanimous decision at
Super Fight League 23 on Aug. 17 in Mumbai. Daizy remains undefeated
inside the SFL cage following a pair of submission victories
earlier this year. She is one of the promotion's newest female
prospects.
Gloria
Castillo (1-1) def. Luly "La Vampiresa" Silva (0-1)
via submission (kneebar) in Round 1 at Desafio Kaeshi MMA 3 on
Aug. 17 in Concordia, Entre Rios, Argentina. Castillo stepped
into the fight on short notice in place of Laura Balin, who defeated
Castillo in March 2012. With the first-round submission, Castillo
notched her first professional victory.
Michele
Angelo (1-0) def. Paula Mutante (1-1) via unanimous decision
at "AraraFight Competition 7: Fighting Against Crack"
on Aug. 17 in Sao Paulo. Angelo made a successful pro debut in
the fight while Mutante suffered her first loss under the AFC
banner.
Thais
Peruchi (1-0) def. Beatriz Desiro (0-1) via submission (armbar)
at the 2:45 mark of Round 2 at Big Bang MMArilia on Aug. 17 in
Marilia, Sao Paulo, Brazil. Both fighters were making their pro
debuts in the fight, and Peruchi had a strong showing in victory.
Sabrina
Garcia (1-0) def. Jade "Quiet Riot" De Haas (0-1) via
TKO (punches) at the 2:07 mark of Round 1 at Xtreme Knockout
19 on Aug. 17 in Dallas. Garcia remains unbeaten in her MMA career.
She amassed a perfect 3-0 record in amateur competition.
Tyra
Parker (3-3) def. Michele "Diablita" Gutierrez (3-4)
via submission (armbar) at the 1:29 mark of Round 2 at "Dakota
FC 16: Fall Brawl 2013" on Aug. 23 in Fargo, N.D. Parker
put on her best performance to date in the one-sided fight and
dominated the bout from the outset. After trapping Gutierrez
in a calf slicer, Parker spent much of Round 1 landing hard right
hands to the side of Gutierrez's face. In Round 2, Parker pulled
half-guard and locked on the armbar for a slick tap-out victory.
All three of her wins have come via submission.
Juliana
"Julie" Werner Aguiar (7-3) def. Deise Lee Rocha (4-3)
via unanimous decision at Arena Force on Aug. 24 in Jaragua do
Sul, Santa Catarina, Brazil. Aguiar has won five straight fights,
including back-to-back victories this year. The talented striker
was recently accepted to the Brazilian national kickboxing team
and plans to take a break from MMA competition.
Mariana
Morais (1-0) def. Margarete Soares (0-3) via submission (guillotine
choke) in Round 1 at "Pocos Fight MMA 2: Teles vs. Hentz"
on Aug. 24 in Pocos de Caldas, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Morais earned
her first win as a professional with the quick submission victory.
Claudia
Rey (2-0) def. Greicy Tonet (0-3) via TKO (doctor's stoppage)
at the 2:21 mark of Round 3 at Sparta MMA 8 on Aug. 24 in Balneario
Camboriu, Santa Catarina, Brazil. Rey has finished both of her
opponents this year. She made a successful debut for Sparta MMA
in June.
Raquel
"Rocky" Pa'aluhi (3-4) def. Priscilla "The Gorilla"
White (0-2) via TKO (punches) at the 3:03 mark of Round 1 at
"Destiny MMA: Proving Grounds 2" on Aug. 24 in Honolulu.
Pa'aluhi put a halt to a three-fight losing skid with the commanding
victory. She took down White in the opening round and flurried
with punches from mount until the referee had seen enough and
intervened to stop the fight.
Upcoming
fights
Helen
"Hellraiser" Harper (1-0) faces Liezel Lumindas (0-0)
at "Ultimate Beatdown 12: Get Real" on Aug. 31 in Johor
Bahru, Malaysia. Harper opened her pro MMA career with a third-round
submission victory over Zhen Wei in May. Lumindas makes her pro
debut on the card.
Izabela
Badurek (2-1) faces Martyna Czech (0-0) at "Only 1: Martial
Arts Gala 3" on Aug. 31 in Ustron, Poland. Badurek has bounced
back from a loss in her pro debut with a pair of impressive first-round
submission victories this year. She looks to make it three in
a row when she faces Czech, who competes for the first time as
a pro.
Agnieszka
Niedzwiedz (3-0) faces Iren Racz (0-0) at Immortals Fight Promotions
1 on Aug. 31 in Aberdeen, Scotland. Poland's Niedzwiedz is currently
one of Europe's best female prospects. The 18-year-old has finished
all three of her opponents to date via a form of knockout. Racz
makes her pro debut on the card in search of a big upset victory.
Chayani
Mendes (0-1) faces Cinthya Mocoto (0-0) at Nitrix Champion Fight
16 on Aug. 31 in Americana, Sao Paulo, Brazil. Mendes competes
for the first time since she dropped a close split decision to
Kinberly Novaes one year ago. Mocoto makes her professional debut.
Heather
Bassett (0-0) faces Breea Gilbert (0-0) at "King of the
Cage: Maximum Speed" on Aug. 31 in Keshena, Wis. Both fighters
make their pro debuts on the card following successful stints
as amateurs. Bassett is coming off of a victory at RFA 8 in June.
Gilbert picked up a third-round submission win in March.
Kathina
"Kill Switch" Catron (3-3) faces Susy Watson (0-0)
at Xtreme Fighting League's "Xtreme Fight Night 14: The
Uprising" on Sept. 6 in Catoosa, Okla. Catron is coming
off of back-to-back fights in July, including a last-minute bout
against Livia von Plettenberg at Invicta FC 6. After defeating
Summer Artherton one week earlier, Catron took the fight with
von Plettenberg on 24 hours' notice, but she dropped a decision
on the scorecards. Catron looks to get back on track against
Canada's Watson, who turns pro following a successful amateur
run.
Stephanie
"Snowflake" Eggink (3-1) faces Angela Magana (11-5)
at "XFC 25: Boiling Point" on Sept. 6 in Albuquerque,
N.M. This bout will be contested for the inaugural XFC women's
strawweight title. Eggink and Magana were originally set to face
off for the belt in April, but Magana withdrew from the card
due to injuries sustained in a car accident. It was not the first
time that Magana dropped out of a fight due to a car crash. She
has fought just once in the past two years due to a variety of
injuries. Eggink is 2-0 under the XFC banner and most recently
defeated Brianna VanBuren at XFC 23.
On
the same XFC 25 card, Stephanie "The Scrapper" Skinner
(2-4) faces "South Valley's Own" Angelica Chavez (4-2)
in an atomweight bout. Skinner enters hostile territory to face
Chavez, who is one of the most popular female fighters in the
Albuquerque region. Skinner has knocked out two of her past three
opponents while Chavez looks to put an end to a two-fight losing
streak when she competes in front of her hometown supporters.
Eeva
Siiskonen (2-0) faces Julia Stoliarenko (0-0-1) at Carelia Fight
9 on Sept. 7 in Imatra, Finland. Siiskonen made her professional
debut and scored a first-round TKO victory at Carelia Fight 8
this past September. She most recently earned her second pro
win in December. Stoliarenko fought to a draw in her lone pro
bout to date.
Paloma
Fabrykant (3-0) faces Denise Boifer (0-0) at Heroes MMA 2 on
Sept. 7 in Argentina. Fabrykant has knocked out or submitted
all three of her opponents thus far and is arguably Argentina's
most popular and well-known female MMA fighter. She looks to
extend her winning streak to four when she faces Boifer, who
competes as a pro for the first time.
Jessica
"Black" Doerner (4-2) faces LeAnn "Lights Out"
Amundson (0-0) at "Golden Cage MMA: Magic City Mayhem 3"
on Sept. 7 in Minot, N.D. Doerner has become a staple of the
MMA scene in her home state during the past two years. The North
Dakota native most recently stopped Margaret Bloom in July. She
has yet to see Round 2 as a professional. Montana's Amundson
seeks an upset victory in her pro debut.
Colleen
"Bisquit" Schneider (4-4) faces Christina Marks (4-6)
at "Submission Championship MMA 3: Fight to the End"
on Sept. 7 in Ontario, Calif. Schneider has won three straight
fights for Super Fight League and most recently captured the
SFL women's flyweight title in March. All four of her victories
have come inside the distance. Schneider will appear on "The
Ultimate Fighter 18," which premieres next week. Marks has
won two of her past three fights, and neither bout made it out
of the first minute.
Source:
MMA Junkie
|
Pros
Pick: Henderson vs. Pettis 2
By Mike
Sloan
One
formidable obstacle stands between Benson Henderson and his becoming
the first man to ever successfully defend the Ultimate Fighting
Championship lightweight crown four times.
Henderson
will put his 155-pound title on the line against Anthony Pettis,
the last man to defeat him, in the UFC 164 main event on Saturday
at the BMO Harris Bradley Center in Milwaukee. Pettis outpointed
Henderson under the World Extreme Cagefighting banner in December
2010, springing off the cage for his unforgettable “Showtime”
kick and sealing a unanimous decision in the decisive fifth round.
Sherdog.com
touched base with a number of professional fighters and trainers
to gauge their opinions on the UFC 164 headliner:
Brock
Jardine: This fight has “Fight of the Night” written
all over it, even if it’s only half as good as their first
meeting. With that being said, I see Benson winning the fight.
Pettis will have to get a KO to win, in my opinion, and no one
has done that to Henderson yet. I see Benson winning a unanimous
decision, 48-47, but I’m sure the judges will throw out
some crazy scores and say it’s a split decision, still for
Henderson.
Daniel
Downes: I was there when Anthony beat Henderson for the WEC title,
and I’ll be there again when he wins the UFC one, too. Henderson
has the power advantage, but he lacks Anthony’s explosiveness
and could really use a haircut. It’ll start slow, but Pettis
will pull away in the later rounds and take the unanimous decision
win.
Jordan
Mein: Pettis wins by decision. He will land better strikes and
come up on top in the scrambles. Hell, he might take his back
again and get a finish.
Tarec
Saffiedine: I see Pettis winning by 360-degree flying spinning
back kick jumping off the cage.
Cameron
Diffley: Pettis-Henderson is a very exciting matchup. Recently,
Henderson has been fighting outside, which I believe is Pettis’
strength in this matchup. I think Henderson will look to corner
Pettis and put him on the ground, while Pettis will be looking
to strike from the outside and use his strong triangle and ability
to win scrambles and get to his feet. I am going with Pettis
by decision, as I think his timing will make the difference in
this fight.
Tom
DeBlass: Henderson takes it by repeated takedowns. He’s
much improved since their last fight.
Luke
Barnatt: Pettis forces the title to change hands, even though
I’m a huge Henderson fan. I just can’t see him stopping
Anthony’s streak.
J.J.
Ambrose: Pettis wins via kick he made up on the fly. I can’t
wait to see this fight.
T.J.
Waldburger: I see another great fight, most likely going the
distance, with Benson’s hand being raised in the end. I
would love to see a KO or sub, though.
Saad
Awad: I’m going with Henderson in this one. He’s in
his prime right now. I don’t see anyone beating him for
a while.
Ricardo
Liborio: Henderson takes this one by decision.
Mike
Ciesnolevicz: In my opinion, Benson is just the better fighter.
He should win nine out of 10 times. He’s bigger, stronger,
more well-rounded and he has the Kryptonite to Pettis’ style,
which is wrestling. Both guys improved a lot recently, but I
believe Benson made greater gains. Pettis has to land a home
run to win. Benson wins by unanimous decision, 50-45.
Robert
Drysdale: Benson wins.
Nam
Phan: Pettis wins by “Showtime” Kick.
Mark
Bocek: Henderson wins by decision.
Travis
Lutter: I have Benson in this one. Anthony is crazy good, but
I think Benson has improved from the last time they fought.
John
Gunderson: I believe Henderson is athletic enough and has the
style to win a decision against Pettis, but Pettis is the most
dynamic and exciting lightweight out there in today’s MMA
circuit, so I'm hoping for Pettis.
Vinny
Magalhaes: This is a tough one to pick. I think Pettis is the
more creative of the two and he can definitely come up with some
new tricks to end a fight, but I think he’ll also face a
different Henderson than the one he faced in the WEC. I believe
that Henderson has matured a lot as a fighter since and he’ll
most likely win a decision.
Eric
Prindle: Henderson wins.
Javier
Vazquez: The first one between them was a classic -- tied two
rounds apiece going into the fifth round and Pettis pulls off
that incredible kick. I can’t wait for this fight. I see
this fight being another back-and-forth war similar to the first.
The thing that I think will make the biggest difference is the
fact that Henderson has had many more fights since their last
meeting. I think that Henderson’s recent fight experience
will help him win a very close and competitive 49-48 decision.
John
Howard: Pettis wins.
Travis
Wiuff: I’m taking Henderson by close decision.
Jason
Dent: I always pick a winner, but I’m torn on this one,
honestly. I like Pettis’ style more, but with the injuries
and the distractions he had cutting weight to fight Jose Aldo,
I’m afraid it may affect his performance. Henderson has
been getting better with each fight and has gone five hard rounds
a couple times now already. If there is a finish in this fight,
it will be for Pettis, and if it goes the distance, it will be
in favor of Henderson.
Gabe
Ruediger: I think Ben takes this. Anthony is as dynamic a fighter
as there is, but I believe Ben has him figured out.
Joe
Duarte: Henderson is the only human who can digest corn properly.
I’m going with the winner because the winner is going to
win the fight.
Benji
Radach: I had the pleasure of scrapping with Benson; the kid
is tough. I don’t doubt he will find the way to win.
Caros
Fodor: I’m a big fan of Henderson, but I’m going with
Pettis. Their first fight was good, but I think Pettis has developed
more sense then. To put a guy like Cerrone down with a body shot
is a big thing. Cerrone is a really tough dude and to make him
quit with a body shot is very impressive. Pettis is a finisher
and looks to have really improved his game in the last three
years, so I’m going with him by KO or TKO.
Igor
Araujo: Benson is going once again for a five-round battle; this
will be the key to his victory. He will know when he should step
in and out, and his cardio is just amazing. Benson has improved
more than Pettis since their first fight. I see this dude in
the top three pound-for-pound now, because he got the belt in
the hardest weight class in the world. I have Henderson winning
by decision.
Mitch
Clarke: I’m picking Henderson by unanimous decision. I think
he’s improved more than Pettis since their last fight and
is hungry for vengeance. It should be an excellent fight.
Ray
Elbe: No replay of the “Showtime” kick, as Henderson
continues his reign as lightweight champion, bringing the belt
back to Arizona.
Jason
High: I’m going with Henderson. I think he’s motivated
and found his stride as the UFC champ. Also, he won’t be
surprised by any of Pettis’ tricky weapons. Benson wins
by decision.
Simeon
Thoresen: Henderson wins via TKO in round three.
Keith
Berry: I like Anthony’s style. I’d like to see him
win, mostly likely by decision.
Steven
Siler: I think Henderson gets revenge on Pettis in Pettis’
hometown, like Pettis did to him.
Gilbert
Smith: I have to go with Ben via no “Showtime” kick.
I think Ben is on a roll and has been in bigger fights and always
find a way to win.
Mike
Wilkinson: Pettis has looked a beast in his last three fights,
and Henderson, in my opinion, lost his second fight to Frankie
Edgar, but like they say, you have to beat up a champ to take
the belt. In this rematch, I think Pettis is going for the finish
while Henderson will try and squeeze a decision. Henderson is
still a warrior, and it’s going to take a lot to stop him.
My pick is Pettis via decision.
Brian
Melancon: I think Henderson has improved over where he was and
feel like he will be ready for the flashy moves of Pettis. I
think he will do enough to win a decision. I don’t see either
fighter getting finished.
Zach
Makovsky: Even though I think this fight could go either way,
I’m leaning towards the champ. I see Pettis landing some
serious strikes, but Benson is too resilient and mentally strong
and will come out on top in an incredible fight.
Josh
Samman: Henderson, for all of his undeniable talent and hard
work, is not a fighter who excites me. We envision champions
being unstoppable forces in their division, wreaking havoc on
challengers with emphatic victories. Instead, with Henderson
we are forced to watch a champion who gets by on the skin of
his teeth, often winning with questionable decisions. I think
Frankie beat him, I think Gilbert [Melendez] beat him and I’m
hoping that Pettis decisively beats him. Pettis wins via unanimous
decision.
Isaac
Vallie-Flagg: I think that both Henderson and Pettis have progressed
as fighters and athletes since they last met. I ultimately think
Henderson is more well-rounded and will take Pettis down and
grind on him from the top to win a decision.
Colton
Smith: This fight is a very intriguing one. I have the champ
retaining his title by pressure, superior wrestling and control.
I’m calling it now: submission by guillotine in round two.
Pros
Picking Henderson: 26
Pros Picking Pettis: 12
No Pick: 3
Source
Sherdog
|
“Why
yell about testosterone when fighters are using better, undetectable
drugs?”
By Zach
Arnold
That’s
not my question. Rather, it’s a question being asked by
handicapper of MMAOddsBreaker.com. And his timing for asking
this question couldn’t be any better because of this following
development:
It
does appear that we’re going to close out the year with
Vitor Belfort vs. Dan Henderson in the double testosterone death
match in Brazil and Chael Sonnen vs. Wanderlei Silva, perhaps
for the NYE weekend show in Las Vegas.
Naturally,
the online fan reaction has been quite explosive. My issue with
testosterone usage in MMA has nothing to do with the win/loss
aspect of the debate but rather the health & safety aspect.
If you use testosterone, you naturally are going to have more
punching power. You’re also extending your career so that
you can both deliver more head trauma and receive head trauma
yourself. In combat sports, retirement is not always a bad thing.
Too many guys have too many reason$ not to quit when they should
and, before you know it, the damage has been done. Someone is
going to get seriously hurt in the future and then a news entity
like Outside the Lines will start digging deeper into the testosterone
enabling in MMA and it will rightfully be a big embarrassment.
Here’s
a rush transcript of what Luca had to say on the matter. The
wording isn’t a 100% match, but you can listen to the audio
clip for full nuance & accuracy.
“If
you follow me on Twitter, you know that this is a topic that
really gets on my nerve, how when a guy uses testosterone wins
a fight everyone flocks to their computers to voice their opinion
on how BS testosterone (usage) is, how it’s absurd that
these guys are allowed to use it, it’s this magical potion
that decides fights, it’s a difference maker, it makes guys
go from zeroes to heroes and blah, blah blah. However, when a
guy loses a fight on testosterone, nobody mentions it at all.
They don’t sit there and go there, ‘hey, you know,
maybe this is actually evidence to support that testosterone
really isn’t that big of a deal.’ No, they just brush
it aside and then the next guy uses testosterone wins a fight,
they’re back to getting out their pitchforks and going on
and throwing a riot. It’s just ridiculous.
“The
thing is, testosterone (usage) really isn’t that big of
an issue. For starters, if you look at the guys who use testosterone
in MMA, combine their records all together, they actually have
a losing record! They’ve lost more than they’ve won.
Not only that, they’re the same fighters they’ve always
been! There’s nothing different about their games.
Vitor
Belfort
“Take
Vitor Belfort right now. He’s one of the guys who gets the
most criticism for using testosterone. Do you know how many fights
Vitor Belfort has won since using testosterone? By the sounds
of it, you know the way people act about it or talk about testosterone
(usage) and Vitor Belfort, you’d think he’s on like
a 30-and-0 streak and before testosterone usage maybe he lost
20 fights in a row, like there’s this huge flip. Guess what?
Vitor Belfort has won two fights since using testosterone. Not
only that, he was the favorite on both of those match-ups and
was in his home country. And not only that, he fought against
two guys who have always been known for having suspect chins.
Granted, Luke Rockhold not necessarily known for a suspect chin
but he had been knocked down before. His only loss was by TKO.
We hadn’t seen his chin tested all that much but when it
had been tested it didn’t show to be all that great. The
other guy (Vitor) fought was Michael Bisping, a guy who’s
been notoriously chinny. So, Vitor Belfort getting a first and
second round knockout over them, what is so surprising about
that? If Vitor Belfort wins fights, it’s always been the
same thing with him — he either gets a knockout in the first
or second round or he gasses, mentally gives up, and gets stopped
or loses a decision later on. It’s always been his M.O.
to get early knockouts, so why is him knocking out two guys who
he was favored over in his home country with suspect chins, why
is that such a big shocker? It really doesn’t make sense
to me.
“And
not only that, some people are like, ‘Oh, testosterone (usage),
it’s turned Vitor Belfort’s career around!’ Guess
what? Vitor Belfort was 7-and-2 in his last nine fights before
using testosterone with his only losses being to Anderson Silva
and Jon Jones, two of the best fighters on the planet. Since
testosterone usage, like I said, he’s only 2-and-0. So,
he’s 9-and-2 in his last 11 fights but only two of those
wins were while he was using testosterone. He was already on
a great run. It did not change his career, it did not turn it
around. It really hasn’t made that big of a difference.
Dan
Henderson
“Take
another guy, Dan Henderson. He starting using testosterone, he
knocked out some lower-level fighters and everybody was up in
arms, ‘oh, Dan Henderson, this is crazy, look at all these
knock outs he’s getting.’ Dan Henderson has always
had big power in his right hand, even back when he was in PRIDE.
Yes, he had a lot of decisions and is known for having a lot
of questionable decisions go his way, but he’s still always
had that big power. Well, now look at him — he’s lost
two fights in a row, has looked horrible in them, and even in
some of his wins before that namely like the Mauricio Shogun
win he looked horrible in that fight as well.
“And
do you know why he looked horrible in his last few fights? Well,
against Rashad Evans he fought a guy who is a better wrestler
and a better striker. Bad stylistic match-up for him. Against
Lyoto Machida, he fought a guy who is a better striker with good-enough
takedown defense to keep the fight on the feet. And against Shogun
he looked good early but couldn’t put him away because Shogun
is extremely hard to finish and as usual Dan Henderson gassed
after about two rounds and looked awful after that. That’s
always been Dan Henderson’s M.O., much like Vitor Belfort.
He’s been a guy who’s going to be stronger in the first
couple of rounds, might knock you out, might be able to control
you, but after that he’s going to gas out and look awful.
Testosterone (usage) didn’t change that and when he fought
guys who are bad stylistic match-ups for him that he couldn’t
get a quick knockout over, he didn’t do well. Testosterone
didn’t make him suddenly have excellent cardio, it didn’t
make him suddenly become a more tactical striker. No, he’s
the same fighter. But now people don’t talk about him being
on testosterone and being this huge advantage because he’s
losing fight.
Frank
Mir
“Take
another guy for example, Frank Mir. He started testosterone (usage)
before his last fight, everybody was all up in arms, ‘oh,
this is so ridiculous, Frank Mir’s not even an old guy.’
Well then we went out against Daniel Cormier, did absolutely
nothing, was not able to land any kind of offense whatsoever,
got completely neutralized, lost a clear-cut decision. Nobody
mentioned testosterone ever again regarding Frank Mir. But if
he had won that fight by, say, getting a submission, you know
everybody would have been up in arms even though Frank Mir’s
always been a good submission threat. But still, that was a fight
that was a bad stylistic match-up. Testosterone (usage) didn’t
affect Frank Mir there. He still lost because, again, it was
a bad stylistic. Testosterone (usage) is not this great equalizer.
It’s not going to be something that makes fighters this
whole different level or anything like that.
Chael
Sonnen
“Let’s
name off one more guy here, Chael Sonnen. Everybody obviously
knows his well-documented exploits with testosterone. Obviously,
he did go on a nice run since starting testosterone (usage) but,
again, if you go back and look at those fights, those were again
good stylistic match-ups for him, guys who he is a superior wrestler
that he could be able to take down and weren’t much of a
threat from the bottom. They were only three rounds. He was able
to ride out decisions here. When he fought a guy like Anderson
Silva, five round fight, Anderson was able to capitalize on his
weaknesses and in a two round fight Anderson was able to do as
well. When he fought Jon Jones, again, a bad stylistic match-up
for him and he lost. When Chael Sonnen fought good stylistic
match-ups for him, he won the fights. When he fought bad stylistic
match-ups, even on testosterone, he lost the fights. It did not
make a difference.
“This
is what I keep saying — testosterone usage is not this great
equalizer. Does it help? Yes, of course it’s going to help
some. It is still a performance-enhancer. But you know what’s
also a performance-enhancer? Protein powder, having a good diet,
even sleep is a performance-enhancer. Caffeine is another one.
There are lots of performance-enhancers that you can use legally
but they don’t suddenly make guys go from a low-level gatekeeper
in the UFC to champions. Of course, they’re going to help
some but the extent of which is very minimal.
Conclusion
“So,
testosterone usage, like I said, you looks at the guys that have
used it (and) when they fight bad stylistic match-ups for them,
they still lose. When they fight good stylistic match-ups, they
still win. It’s not changing the outcomes of fights. And
like I said, they have overall more losses than wins in the UFC
and pretty soon there’s going to come a time where Vitor
Belfort fights a guy who’s going to be able to out-wrestle
him and he’s going to out-cardio him, Vitor Belfort’s
going to lose the fight and people will see Vitor Belfort still
has the same weaknesses as before and, again, MMA will always
resort to the same reason of why guys win or lose fights, it’s
all about the style match-ups. Of course, there are some other
variables as well and there’s some luck involved, but mainly
it’s all about the style match-ups. Testosterone is not
the great difference maker.
“And
on top of that, to really put a bow on this, testosterone usage
like I said it’s technically a performance-enhancer, it
does help a little bit. But the thing is the majority of UFC
fighters, at least a lot of them, are already using illegal steroids
anyways. This is a well-known fact amongst people who are in
the know and you wonder why Dana White and the Fertittas don’t
want anything to do with VADA testing, the more advanced (drug)
testing than the simple urine tests that they have right now
or the fact that some fighters have been connected to the Biogenesis,
the steroid, clinic that Dana White and the Fertittas again are
just brushing under the table, want nothing to do with it. It’s
because they know a lot of their fighters are using (drugs) and
some of the stuff they’re using is a lot better than testosterone
is and like I said, the tests are very easy to beat. So, Vitor
Belfort can use testosterone all he wants, some of these other
fighters can use it all they want as well, but there are fighters
using better stuff and getting away with it perfectly clean.
Again, the tests are not hard to beat. So, if you still think
after hearing all of this, you think that testosterone (usage)
is still this great different maker and it is deciding fights
and it is this huge issue, I’d really like to know your
reasons why.
“Again,
I’m not saying that it doesn’t help whatsoever. I still
admit it is somewhat of a performance-enhancer. You have guys
like Vitor Belfort shouldn’t be allowed to use it but it’s
not really making that big difference, it is not decided fights,
it is not as big of an issue as some people make it out to be.
I think probably a year from now, maybe two years at the most,
I think people are barely going to remember what testosterone
(usage) was. I think the issue will be gone once Vitor Belfort
and some of last-straggling guys who are leading the testosterone-using
army end up getting losses on their records, I think we can put
it behind us. As of right now, it’s still an incredibly
frustrating issue to hear people talk about how big of a difference-maker
it is when it really just, simply put, is not.”
Source:
Fight Opinion
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UFC
Fight Night 27 TV Ratings Fall Off from Fox Sports 1 Launch’s
Early Success
The
UFC’s TV ratings on the new Fox Sports 1 were strong out
of the gate, but, as expected, the Wednesday-night time slot
for UFC Fight Night 27 and being on a new network was a challenge.
UFC
Fight Night 27: Condit vs. Kampmann pulled in an average audience
of 824,000 viewers, which is significantly less that the 1.78
million that watched UFC Fight Night 26 during the Aug. 17 network
launch.
It
may sound counterintuitive, but that is exactly why Fox wanted
the UFC to anchor its Wednesday night programming on Fox Sports
1.
“They
put us on Wednesday nights because they were looking for something
strong that they thought could deliver on a Wednesday night,”
remarked UFC president Dana White following Wednesday night’s
event in Indianapolis.
“It’s
a challenge selling tickets. It’s the live gate is the one
thing that’s gonna be the challenge.”
UFC
Fight Night 27’s return of 824,000 viewers fell well below
the top shows on the night. Shows like Duck Dynasty, Modern Dads,
Family Guy, and others are drawing well into the millions of
viewers, but Fox Sports 1 is a new network that is still working
to establish itself.
The
strength of the UFC’s following is what Fox is banking on
for it’s Wednesday night block on FS1, and is something
that will probably take some time to establish a true measuring
stick of its success or failure.
Source:
MMA Weekly
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