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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)
|
|
August
2013 News Part 3
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Dana
White Confirms Vitor Belfort vs. Dan Henderson for Nov. 9 in
Brazil
by Ryan
McKinnell
UFC
president Dana White, at Wednesday night’s UFC Fight Night
27 post-fight press conference from inside the Bankers Life Fieldhouse
in Indianapolis, officially announced the next fight for two
of the company’s most popular fighters.
On
Nov. 9 at the Goiania Arena in Goiania, Goiás, Brazil,
UFC light heavyweights Dan Henderson and Vitor Belfort will meet
in the main event of UFC Fight Night 32.
“Vitor
Belfort and Dan Henderson, they’re fighting Saturday, Nov.
9, in Brazil,” said White. “And that fight will be
on Fox Sports 1, too.”
The
two first collided at Pride 32 in October 2006 in Las Vegas.
That night, Hendo took home a unanimous decision victory over
the brawling Brazilian in the now-defunct Japanese promotion.
At
the time, that loss to Henderson was Belfort’s fifth in
seven fights, and it left many wondering if the once great champion
had anything left in the tank.
Fast-forward
half a decade and after numerous victories for both legends,
it’s Henderson battling the losing streak and Belfort riding
the wave of MMA momentum.
Henderson
is coming off back-to-back losses to Lyoto Machida and Rashad
Evans, while Belfort is coming off of stunning Knockout of the
Night performances against Luke Rockhold and Michael Bisping.
Both of Belfort’s finishes came via highlight reel, head-kick
knockout.
Despite
the differing records, this fight makes far too much sense to
pass up. Both are arguably on the tail ends of their careers,
Belfort is 36 and Henderson is 43. There are hardly any more
experienced fighters on the roster than these two UFC stalwarts;
Belfort made his promotional debut at UFC 12 in 1997, and Henderson
a year later at UFC 17 in 1998.
You
would be hard pressed to find two fighters with a longer history
and championship lineage than these two.
Despite
his last two wins coming at middleweight, if Belfort can get
past Henderson in their rematch in his home country of Brazil,
then title talks will surely resume for the Rio de Janeiro native.
He already believes himself to be the top contender in the promotion’s
middleweight division.
If
Hendo can manage a “W” over the man he defeated once
before, then perhaps the aging legend can extend his already
historic career another year or two.
One
thing remains clear, there is plenty on the line when these two
meet in November. Now that the news is official, fans can salivate
at the potential of these two legends meeting in the Octagon
for the first time.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Smartest
Guy at the Bar: UFC 164 Edition
By RJ Clifford
The
BMO Harris Bradley Center -- yes, that’s the venue’s
actual name -- in Milwaukee once again hosts a UFC event on Saturday.
UFC
lightweight champion Benson Henderson will try to defend his
belt against Wisconsin native Anthony Pettis after Frank Mir
and Josh Barnett try to rip each other’s limbs off. The
final WEC champion has the arduous task of improving upon his
2010 performance against Henderson, when Pettis defied gravity
and debuted the “Showtime Kick.” Pettis may have to
jump off Herb Dean and Bruce Buffer into a 360-degree kick to
one-up what he did last time around against “Bendo.”
How
We Got Here
T.J. Grant earned a shot at lightweight gold by blitzing Gray
Maynard at UFC 160, but injury postponed the Canadian’s
hopes at a championship. Pettis was originally slated to face
Jose Aldo for the featherweight title at UFC 163, but Pettis
too went down to injury. Luckily for Pettis, title shots are
popping up all over the place like a game of Whac-A-Mole, and
he is holding the mallet.
Former
UFC heavyweight champions Mir and Barnett take over co-main event
duties, with both fighters hold storied careers spanning over
a decade. Chad Mendes puts his three-fight winning streak on
the line against former Henderson victim Clay Guida in a featherweight
matchup, representing just how good and exciting the 145-pound
division has become.
Three
Years in the Making
Ever since Pettis’ foot connected with Henderson’s
face at WEC 53, fans have wondered when lightning would strike
again. The WEC’s final bout summed up all that was good
about the promotion: high-level fighters with chips on their
shoulders from fighting in a “lesser” organization
putting it all on the line and delivering electrifying fights.
The jury was still out on whether or not the WEC lightweights
could hang with the cream of the crop in the UFC, but fans already
knew how exciting the likes of Henderson, Pettis, Donald Cerrone
and Jamie Varner could be. Pettis dropped his first UFC bout,
while Henderson has yet to lose inside the Octagon.
.
At
last, their paths converge again on Saturday night, and it’s
about time. It will be nearly impossible to replicate their first
fight, including the Showtime Kick, but that doesn’t mean
fans won’t wear out the edge of their seats waiting for
the next beer-spilling, jaw-dropping moment.
A
Decade in the Making
Few heavyweights boast such long-tenured success as Barnett and
Mir. Both fighters spent the better part of the last decade in
the top 10, and both have held UFC gold. “Warmaster”
Barnett wore the heavyweight crown shortly after Mir made his
UFC debut in 2001. A matchup between the young, submission-savvy
heavyweights had fight fans drooling. Both fighters possessed
a combination of submission skill, strength and an all-around
game that positioned the fight as a can’t-miss, top-notch
affair. But, after defeating Randy Couture for the title at UFC
36, Barnett tested positive for a banned substance and was released
by the promotion. Since then, the fight existed only as a “what
if?” -- a question which will finally be answered on Saturday.
Say
What?
Henderson and Pettis’ first fight laid the groundwork for
a potential rivalry for the ages. Both fighters were exciting
prospects in their early 20s, still improving with each fight.
The question wasn’t so much about whether a rematch would
happen, but exactly how many times we would see the pair square
off. So often in this sport, the fans’ perspective was far
more dynamic than the fighters’. Neither guy brings up the
other all that often, despite constantly being asked. The past
three years could have been spent throwing gasoline on the flames
of this rivalry. Instead, the champion has thrown sand on the
fire with quotes like this one from a recent UFC media conference
call: “It’s not my place to put a name on it and call
it what it is. That’s for you guys to do. That’s your
job. That’s the media’s job, the fans’ job to
call it what it is. My job is to beat people up. That’s
it.”
Useless
Fact
You want a card filled with competitive matchups? UFC 164 is
just your bag, baby. By straight Vegas odds, the pay-per-view
portion of the card is nearly all pick ‘em fights, with
the exception of Chad Mendes’ status as a 4-to-1 favorite
over Clay Guida. In fact, no other fighter is more than a 2-to-1
underdog on the entire card -- a rare feat in combat sports.
Compare that to UFC 163, where only three fighters -- Thales
Leites, Sergio Moraes and Francimar Bodao -- were less than 2-to-1
favorites. Every other matchup consisted of a native Brazilian
as a huge favorite over a foreigner, or a Brazil-versus-Brazil
fight. Good luck wagering against your friends. Can’t we
just bet that all the fighters will have a good time?
Awards
Watch
Based on pure nostalgia alone, Pettis and Henderson will likely
walk away with “Fight of the Night” bonuses. It’ll
be well earned if their second fight is anywhere near as good
as their first. If not, Dustin Poirier and Erik Koch should bring
the fireworks, too. ... Because the matchmaking of UFC 164 is
so good, “Knockout” and “Submission of the Night”
awards are tough to predict. Barnett and Mir are both capable
of ripping a rhino’s horn off, but neither has been submitted
in their careers. Mendes, with the help of new coach Duane Ludwig,
is on a three-fight KO streak, but Guida has never been stopped
with strikes. I’m going undercard-heavy this time around:
Soa Palelei versus Nikita Krylov produces the night’s big
knockout, and Kyung Ho Kang pulls off an impressive submission
against Chico Camus. It’s always nice to see the undercard
guys cashing bonus checks.
Source:
Sherdog
|
Miserable
FS1 ratings could help UFC transition away from so many PPVs
By Zach
Arnold
You
knew it was going to be a tough start for the Fox Sports empire
with the launch of FS1. After all, CBS Sports has their own cable
channel and the channel formerly known as OLN/Versus (now NBC
Sports) is owned by Comcast. There is competition for ESPN, but
Fox was supposed to be the competition. You wanted an alternative?
You got it. The general sports media has been groaning about
ESPN’s transgressions, and rightfully so, but in the process
got caught up in believing that the masses would rush to an alternative
sports channel.
Not
so fast.
As
opinions on Fox Sports 1 harden, we can see that the early reviews
signal FS1 being much closer to NBC & CBS cable channels
than to ESPN. ESPN mocked FS1 (correctly so) but wanted to see
FS1 do solid enough numbers that NBC & CBS would get buried
down the depth chart. NBCSN, being owned by Comcast, is theoretically
a threat to ESPN. The reality appears to be that NBCSN has scored
big with EPL programming and will cash in with some NASCAR content.
Since Comcast owns NBCSN, the issue of carriage fees is not as
crucial as it would be to, say, CBS Sports and FS1. They are
in the carriage fee game. They gave up a lot of money by not
getting new deals cut with cable/satellite providers for FS1.
Simply
put, you’re not going to get a bump up from 23 cents a viewer
to 80 cents a viewer if the following happens:
0.0
ratings for some programming is absurd. Regis Philbin’s
new show, opposite Around the Horn on ESPN, is drawing 29,000
viewers. That is not a typo. When you have programming drawing
less than 50,000 viewers, you are in trouble. Misery loves company
and FS1 has plenty of it right now. And that misery is giving
UFC a hell of a lot more leverage at the bargaining table for
future projects.
Dana
White has preached about wanting weekly fight cards. If the trend
is your friend, Dana White’s wish for weekly UFC shows could
happen sooner rather than later. That’s a link to an article
I wrote last week about how UFC is in great position to capitalize
on FS1’s weakened position. FS1 needs UFC so badly. Without
UFC on Fuel/FS2, a significant portion of FS2 programming draws
less than 1,000 viewers.
FS1
has to be prepared to shell out more cash to UFC in order to
get weekly cards. It’s not a matter of if but when it happens.
It will be a positive development for MMA fans. It will be a
step in the right direction for FS1, which desperately needs
UFC programming in volume in order to get a carryover effect
to bump up ratings for other shows. Without that UFC effect,
FS1 is gasping for air. Sure, NASCAR gave them a nice little
bump (half million viewers) & college football games will
somewhat help. However, UFC right now appears to have the hardest
of the hardcore viewerships that FS1 needs for survival.
It’s
almost a fait accompli that we’re going to get weekly fight
cards. I suspect they’ll draw more than 150k viewers like
the Golden Boy fight from New York drew last Monday. The next
step up will be for the suits at Fox Sports 1 to pony up enough
cash to convince UFC to eliminate some of their scheduled PPVs
in exchange for bigger, marquee fight cards on FS1. It’s
a situation that both parties need to consider and embrace. If
UFC can trim down the amount of PPVs to 10 (or less) and FS1
can get some UFC shows with bigger names, it would prove to be
successful for both parties. It would prove to be the right move
to give the fans what they want.
The
UFC is in a terrific position here. Their casino money gave them
an advantage over the competition to get the ball rolling in
the MMA space for financing. Only yakuza cash could compete (somewhat)
on that front and now it’s largely out of the fight space
in Japan. Japan doesn’t even have a national MMA player
now. Along with the casino money, UFC has the big advantage of
cable being a powerhouse in the States. In Japan, being ‘cable
strong’ would get you laughed out of a television executive’s
ivory tower office. In America, being cable strong with a partner
like Fox not only gets you a big multi-year deal, it gets you
in a position to significantly leverage a hardcore fan base and
convince suits at FS1 that they need your product to help support
their network when the chips are down. In Japan, the Bushido
series PRIDE produced drew a few million viewers on tape delay
a week or so later on broadcast television. PRIDE’s hardcore
fan base was mocked and looked down upon as a bunch of otakus.
Imagine how much more cash UFC could command if their lowest-rated
telecasts drew 5 million viewers a show.
Jack
Encarnacao recently did an interview with Sports Business Journal’s
John Ourand about how UFC is viewed by network television executives.
He basically stated that UFC is in the same category of EPL in
terms of being a niche but a strong niche that can deliver a
precise demographic. EPL soaked NBC out of a lot of cash and
the UFC is in prime position to do the same with Fox.
Source: Fight Opinion
|
Translating
UFC’s big ratings for FS1; what’s with UFC’s reported
DMCA copyright claims for child porn?
By Zach
Arnold
I
had a chance to sit down last week (before the UFC show on FS1)
and do an interview with the Hot Cage Daily about what the expectations
are for those in traditional media circles about the benchmarks
for success/failure of UFC on the brand new sports channel. Given
that the conventional wisdom is that UFC draws most of their
casual fans from the pro-wrestling industry, would FS1 be able
to capitalize and generate interest amongst traditional sports
fans for UFC programming?
So
far, so good for FS1 & UFC.
A
1.4 rating translates into 1.8 million viewers. Say this about
UFC — it’s a “strong cable property” as opposed
to a “strong network property” in television circles,
but UFC viewers will walk over burning embers if a fight card
has appeal and it’s not on PPV.
The
UFC effect carried over onto other FS1 programming on Saturday
night:
When
UFC wasn’t on FS1 on Sunday, look out:
It
was a combination of two factors — first, no UFC carry over.
Second, the programming on Fox Sports 1 sucks royally. The two
goofy Canadians from TSN that were so heavily touted as can’t-miss-stars
are hideous. The panel of ex-jocks and No Charissa-ma Thompson
flopped as you would expect. And the Monday programming proved
to be even worse than I thought it would be. Crowd Goes Wild
with Regis Philbin is a hot mess.
While
NBC Sports Network didn’t have the buzz of FS1 heading into
the weekend, their rollout of the EPL was brilliantly executed.
It had some real character and substance. All the reviews have
been positive. In ESPN circles, they would much rather see FS1
succeed than the NBC/Comcast behemoth. It doesn’t mean that
ESPN’ers aren’t mocking FS1 — and the mockery
is well-deserved. However, the Mouse can’t be thrilled that
Comcastic NBCSN is stepping their game up in the right way while
FS1 is basically UFC dragging mediocre programming along for
the ratings ride. No wonder Fox Sports suits want UFC to run
so many shows, no matter how watered down the fight cards are.
The
Boston crowd was great. The show turned out to be great, despite
the hideous judging on display by the officials appointed from
the Massachusetts athletic commission. Mario Yamasaki still doesn’t
understand or comprehend all of the Unified rules. However, a
couple of non-show related issues are surfacing publicly.
First,
there’s this bizarre made-up controversy by Dana White about
how Chael Sonnen is ranked by the media in lists:
What
makes the criticism so strange is that the lists are meaningless
and yet the UFC is now using these rankings on television graphics.
Imagine if Vince McMahon had used rankings from Pro Wrestling
Illustrated on Wrestlemania broadcasts and had figurehead Jack
Tunney lecture everyone after a card that Ricky Steamboat deserved
to be ranked higher than Randy Savage in PWI magazine. Then again,
boxing promoters used to take credence in Ring magazine rankings
over alphabet soup sanctioning body rankings. The difference,
of course, is that the sanctioning bodies control purse bids
for title fights whereas the UFC is completely self-contained
and is producing their own rankings system — which makes
no sense in the first place.
The
reality is that these kinds of gripes from Dana is Silly Season
material. What isn’t Silly Season PR-wise is when your company
gets entangled in this kind of story on the abuse of copyright
claims.
How
would you like to have your company associated with filing DMCA
claims in which the claims state that you have copyrights to
child pornography?
I’ve
contacted the companies IP Arrow is currently issuing takedowns
for (along with IP Arrow itself — whose site is now mysteriously
down) and will update if I receive any replies. While I appreciate
the fact that these companies are seeking to protect their copyrighted
material, I think they should be concerned that the agent representing
them is now linking their names with very questionable porn.
They should also be concerned that these sworn statements are
also claiming they “own” copyrighted content belonging
to others, but I would imagine things like “incest porn”
and “15 year old vaginas” appearing on takedown requests
in their names will be more troubling to them than the serialized
false statements IP Arrow is issuing.
This
kind of overreaching by the UFC on eliminating piracy, a battle
that simply cannot be defeated, will backfire in a big way. It’s
also illegal to file DMCA claims on material that you don’t
have copyrights to, although enforcement of such provisions in
the law is like trying to find someone who will prosecute a television
network or promoter for violating The Ali Act (it just doesn’t
happen). Unless, of course, your name is Righthaven.
These
kinds of stories involving the UFC will attract more media attention
in the future, especially given their platform with Fox Sports.
There’s no need for UFC to be picking these kinds of fights
where the outcome is largely a fait accompli. Zuffa is on the
losing end of this battle and they’re simply throwing away
cash into a cyber money pit and the end result is that their
names are attached to copyright claims for child pornography.
Exit
questions: What happens if it is UFC that ends up carrying FS1
and saving the channel’s bacon as opposed to FS1 giving
UFC mainstream credibility? Will it mean more Fox cash to UFC
in the future or will it mean an artificial glass ceiling for
future growth if UFC has to continue carrying dead weight of
awful Fox Sports 1 programming? Will FS1 become for Fox Sports
what MSNBC is to NBC News?
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
Dana
White, Ben Henderson answer detractors of lightweight champ's
style
By Dave
Doyle
The
rap on Benson Henderson's UFC lightweight title reign, such as
it is, has been focused on the manner in which he's won his fights.
"If
a guy walks into the cage and slips on a banana peel and I get
a win, I'll take the win," Henderson said on Thursday.
All
three of his title defenses since defeating Frankie Edgar for
the belt in Feb. 2012 have come via decision. Two of them --
a rematch with Edgar and a bout against Gilbert Melendez -- were
split decisions in which many felt his opponent should have gotten
the nod.
But
Henderson's boss, UFC president Dana White, see things a little
different. True, Henderson's had a propensity to go to the judges.
But as Henderson gets ready for his UFC 164 rematch with Anthony
Pettis, White points out that Henderson has torn his way through
what's long been considered the sport's deepest division.
"He's
undefeated in the UFC," White said at Thursday's UFC 164
press conference in Milwaukee. "If you look back, when we
talked about the 155 pound division, how talented it is and how
stacked it is, and he doesn't have a loss in the UFC at 155."
Indeed,
Henderson is 7-0 in the UFC and 12-1 in Zuffa counting his WEC
victories. He's only surpassed by UFC featherweight champion
Jose Aldo (13-0) for best crossover Zuffa record.
With
a win over Pettis on Saturday, Henderson would have four successful
UFC lightweight title defenses, which would surpass B.J. Penn's
record. He always would avenge his only Zuffa loss.
"He'll
break the record for most title defenses, you know," White
said. "He's got wins over Frankie Edgar twice, Cerrone twice,
he beat [Jim] Miller, Gilbert Melendez, he's beat everybody."
For
his part, Henderson says that he's always looking for an exciting
fight, but getting his hand raised is priority No. 1.
"What
it all boils down to is getting your hand raised. Whether you
do it impressively, emphatically, whether you do it by split
decision or whatever the case may be," he said.
I'm
always after beating the guy up," Henderson continued. "I
always want to beat the guy up. I don't care about judges or
decisions or this or that. I just want to go out there and beat
the guy up."
Source:
MMA Fighting
|
Abel
Trujillo Didn’t Get the Win at UFC Fight Night 27, but He’s
Going to Be Paid Like He Did
by Ryan
McKinnell
For
all the talk surrounding the outstanding card that was UFC Fight
Night 27 in Indianapolis on Wednesday night, some of the loudest
dialogue surrounded a preliminary fight between Abel Trujillo
of South Florida’s Blackzilian’s camp, and former Strikeforce
slugger Roger Bowling.
Bowling
and Trujillo kicked off the night’s action in a back-and-forth
scrap that highlighted the toughness and grit of both fighters.
As the second round came to a close, however, controversy enveloped
the Bankers Life Fieldhouse and much debate across social media
outlets ensued.
Round
one saw the fighters exchange with reckless abandon, trading
power shots on a whim, both men visibly stunned over the duration
of the first five minutes.
The
second was more of the same, and as the frame came to a close,
at 4:57 to be exact, Trujillo had Bowling in a prone position,
fully grounded on his backside, turtling up, as he unleashed
a bevy of straightforward knees.
To
most watching at home, the knees seemed to illegally strike Bowling
in the face, which would be “strikes to the head of a downed
opponent.” Such strikes are illegal in mixed martial arts
in America.
That’s
why when the referee stepped in to halt the action, very little
protest occurred. The strikes were deemed illegal, the fight
was halted due to Bowling’s inability to continue, and the
bout was ruled a no-contest.
However,
the one man that disagreed with the decision is also the man
who writes the paychecks, UFC president Dana White. White took
to Twitter almost instantaneously to voice his displeasure over
the decision to rule the bout a no-contest.
“Both
those knees were legal!!! Trujillo should have won,” White
wrote on Twitter.
It
didn’t take long for Trujillo to respond, tweeting, “(in
reply to White) thanks boss!!!
Trujillo
went on to demean his opponent and claim he was looking for a
way out.
“Eventhough
I got a NO CONTEST I know in my heart I broke Roger & he
found a way out!!! Feels like a Victory a lil bit you feel me!!!”
Many
pundits were shocked at the announcement, especially since the
knee, the second one to be exact, appeared to have hit Bowling
in the face.
However,
at the post-fight press conference, White reiterated that the
knee was, in fact, legal.
“It
literally was not illegal,” he said
And
according to White, not only was the knee not illegal, because
of that belief, Trujillo would also be receiving his win money.
“It
was not an illegal knee. That kid won his fight. I’m going
to pay him his win,” he proclaimed.
“The
second knee hit him in the shoulder.”
It
was a bad night for Bowling, but a bittersweet night for Trujillo,
who didn’t get a W, but got the green.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Viacom’s
Bellator problem; triumph or turmoil for UFC on Fox Sports 1?
By Zach
Arnold
“I
know a lot of fans are hating on this fight (with Tito) but when
the fight actually happens, they’re going to feel like the
dumbest people because I know for a fact that Tito’s going
to bring it. I know he is. … Listen, it don’t bother
me. I just block them (on Twitter) and I laugh. These guys are
idiots. They’re sheep. You know what I’m saying? They’re
sheep. What I mean by sheep is they don’t think for themselves.
THey’re sheep. They’re MMA sheep.” — Rampage
Jackson in interview with FighthubTV.com
It’s
been a rough go of things for Bellator lately. They need a successful
PPV showing on November 2nd. Running a show like this during
the college football season is challenging. At least they’ll
have Eddie Alvarez vs. Michael Chandler as the semi-main event
fight. However, Bellator is ending women’s MMA and releasing
their female fighters from existing contracts. And, on top of
everything, Bellator’s allegedly onerous fighter contracts
just got one more contractual clause called the “champion
replacement clause” and the formula is as confusing as hell
to comprehend. This is one of those moments where Rob Maysey
of MMAFA would love to see the Ali Act applied to MMA.
As
if that isn’t enough, Fight Master ratings are collapsing
faster than a Florida sinkhole and Spike TV’s only prescription
for saving the show’s ratings is to move the final airings
to Thursday nights at 11 PM in hopes of getting a strong lead-in
from TNA pro-wrestling. Before this news broke, I wrote a column
about the marriage between TNA & Bellator getting stronger
because Spike/Viacom thinks that the wrestling tie-in is the
only way to save their investment in Bellator. It’s a great
twist of irony — Bellator’s failures are worse than
TNA’s failures, therefore TNA’s failures will continue
to be financially rewarded (Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff must
be delighted) because Viacom sees TNA as Bellator’s lifeline.
I don’t know how we got to this point but we have. Read
the linked article for more about the absurdity of the entire
situation on behalf of all parties involved.
Will
UFC’s slate of August fight cards prove to be feast or famine?
Want
to know one great reason why UFC is considered valuable in the
world of Fox Sports?
I
guess the Hooters pageants with Kenny Florian & Chael Sonnen
as hosts aren’t exactly attracting a lot of eyeballs?
UFC’s
event this weekend in Boston with Chael Sonnen (3-to-2 favorite
over Mauricio Shogun) will apparently have 11,000 fans in the
building. The only question is how many tickets will be sold
versus comped. On paper, sounds like a relatively decent gate.
However, comments made by Dana White recently about his frustrations
of putting on a UFC show in Boston given the Massachusetts commission
wanting Social Security Numbers for foreign fighters and the
whole licensing issue with Sonnen cane across as … curious.
The Culinary Union and other political groups asked for the commission
to not license Sonnen but the commission did anyways and wouldn’t
let the groups speak publicly at a hearing.
While
the letter CU sent to the commission was well-written in citing
case law, the reality is that Sonnen was going to get licensed
no matter how many letter-writing campaigns there were. So, given
the solid Boston gate, why would UFC care so much about a letter-writing
campaign? Because the tactics of the Union are working to a degree
— maybe not so much in terms of a direct impact but most
certainly in terms of getting under the skin of the Fertitta
Empire. They hate anyone that puts up a fight or challenges them,
no matter how big or small you are.
Don’t
believe me? Tim Marchman at Deadspin posted the MMA media article
of articles this week regarding 8 things you shouldn’t do
to piss off the UFC if you’re a writer.
Here's
a look inside the sausage factory for anyone curious about why
fights get covered the way they do: http://t.co/Vu9Adyvcnm
—
Tim Marchman (@timmarchman) August 12, 2013
Don’t
talk about UFC financials or fighter pay. Don’t break news
without two sources. Don’t report anything from fight agents/managers.
Don’t speak on behalf of a fighter. Don’t mention Dana
White’s mother. Don’t write anything negative about
Zuffa unless you use the word ‘opinion.’ You can’t
be “too negative.” And, finally, every writer is being
watched like a hawk. No wonder nobody ever writes about a Fertitta
corporate board member being a member of the Nevada State Athletic
Commission’s steroids & drug testing panel.
What’s
definitely legitimate to write articles on is the upcoming challenges
that Fox Sports will have in launching the FS1 & FS2 channels.
Dana
says that he’s not worried about Fox Sports getting a deal
with the major satellite/cable providers done in time for Saturday’s
launch. He may find out that not everybody is going to have a
chance to watch the Boston fight. Fox Sports needs the UFC right
now, which is why the spin from Los Angeles about UFC’s
ratings has been so rosy.
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
On
day of Ryan Couture's UFC bout, Spike and Xtreme Couture plan
special message
by Ben
Fowlkes
This
Saturday's episodes of "Ink Master" on Spike TV will
reportedly contain a brief message that might be of interest
to MMA fans, and maybe even the UFC.
"Tonight's
broadcast of 'Ink Master' brought to you by Xtreme Couture MMA
on behalf of its fighter Ryan Couture," the message will
read, Spike TV executives told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com).
That
is, the same Ryan Couture (6-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC) who is slated to
make his second octagon appearance, against Al Iaquinta (5-2-1
MMA, 0-1 UFC) on the Facebook-streamed preliminary card of UFC
164 that same day.
Also
the same Ryan Couture who is the son of former UFC champion and
Hall of Famer Randy Couture, who has been effectively banned
from his son's corner by UFC president Dana White over the elder
Couture's decision to sign a multi-year deal with the UFC's former
partners and current rivals at Spike TV.
Spike
TV confirmed to MMAjunkie.com that it will run this message on
"Ink Master" episodes "multiple times throughout
the night in primetime." The block of the tattoo-oriented
reality TV show is set to run from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. on Saturday,
roughly the same time as UFC 164, which airs on FOX Sports 1
at 8 p.m. ET and on pay-per-view beginning at 10 p.m. ET.
According
to Sam Spira, who represents both Randy and Ryan Couture, the
message is a show of support for the younger Couture, and one
driven by the UFC's decision to prevent him from including the
logo of his father's gym, Xtreme Couture, on his shorts or sponsor
banner.
"They
won't let him put a logo on his shorts that acknowledges where
he trains, like every other fighter," said Spira, who stressed
that the message was in support of, but not authored by, Ryan
Couture.
"This
is about Randy and Xtreme Couture MMA," Spira said. "Ryan
has nothing to do with this."
At
the same time, it seems possible that the UFC, which declined
to comment on the matter when contacted by MMAjunkie.com, might
fail to see the distinction.
Ryan
is the only Couture the UFC employs at the moment, and one who
currently is winless in his one UFC appearance. The 31-year-old
fighter previously fought for the Strikeforce organization, but
he was brought into the UFC fold after Zuffa purchased the promotion
and then later absorbed much of its roster.
According
to White, he made it clear to Couture that he wanted him in the
UFC, but after his father left his role as a commentator with
FOX and the UFC in favor of signing a deal with Spike TV, White
said he told the fighter, "I want you here if you want to
be here, but I need you to understand this: Me and your dad are
not good. Me and your dad are never going to be good – ever,
ever again as long as I walk this f–-ing planet."
The
UFC president said he also told the younger Couture that his
father would never be able to corner him at a UFC event as he
had done in his previous bouts – a move Randy Couture later
deemed "over the line."
"[White]
has sons," Couture told MMAjunkie.com in June. "How
would he like it if I was in a position to affect his son's lives
and careers that way? On one hand, he wants to tell my son he'll
treat him like any other fighter, and give him an out if he wants
out, but then he turns right around and tells him, 'You won't
be able to have your dad corner you.' I've been part of his camp
and part of his career since the beginning. He's not treating
him like any other fighter. I don't see Greg Jackson being eliminated
from Georges St-Pierre's or Jon Jones' corners. He's in the same
show I'm in. I think there's a bit of a double-standard going
on there."
That
sentiment is shared by Spira, who pointed out that trainer Jackson
– also a coach opposite Couture on Spike TV's "Fight
Master" – is still featured in UFC broadcasts and present
at UFC events. Even World Series of Fighting President Ray Sefo,
who cornered Martin Kampmann in Wednesday night's UFC Fight Night
27 headliner, is not banned from UFC events or broadcasts, Spira
said.
"To
sit there and watch that, and yet at the same time not even be
able to put a tiny little logo on [Couture]'s shorts and banner
when he's fighting on the Facebook card?" Spira said. "It
seems to me they (UFC officials) are the ones who made a decision
about what the relationship they want to have with Ryan is."
According
to Spira, that's why he and Xtreme Couture decided to use Spike
TV's "Ink Master" as a place to express their support
for their fighter on the day of his second UFC bout.
Asked
if he was concerned about the UFC's reaction to such a move,
Spira said, "I think we're reacting to their reaction. We're
doing this because they've refused to allow him to acknowledge
where he trains. We happen to have another venue that is maybe
not accessible to other fighters, so we're going to celebrate
that and acknowledge that in another venue. Had they allowed
us to, we wouldn't need to."
Source:
MMA Junkie
|
A
Cutman’s View of Vaseline and the Aftermath of “Grease
Gate”
by Michael
Dreisbach on in Cutman Advice
Often,
cutmen are asked why they apply Vaseline before the fighters
enter the cage. Some people have gone as far as to sarcastically
call cutmen as “grease” men. There is, however, a reason
for its application and why only cutmen are allowed to apply
it to the numerous faces that enter the cage. This article will
shed light on the application of Vaseline and its value to fighters.
Many
people in the mixed martial arts and cutmen business remember
“Grease Gate” and the changes that came thereafter.
“Grease Gate” happened during the Georges St. Pierre
versus BJ Penn 2 fight at UFC 94. During the course of the fight,
GSP’s cornerman, Phil Nurse, applied Vaseline to Georges’
face. He then touched GSP’s shoulders and back before wiping
his hands, thus accidentally transferring Vaseline to GSP’s
back, which, according to his oppnent BJ Penn, made him more
slippery. BJ filed a complaint with the Nevada State Athletic
Commission (NSAC). The victory was subsequently upheld, but as
a result of the controversy, new rules were formed by the NSAC
and UFC cutmen including Jacob “Stitch” Duran. The
rule changes state that only neutral cutmen may apply vaseline
to a fighter.
Which
brings up a great question, what is the proper application? According
to the Association of Boxing Commissions rules report, “Vaseline
may be applied solely to the facial area…” That leaves
the entire face open for interpretation and application of Vaseline.
So, why do we not see it applied to the chin and forehead? For
starters, there would be an advantage for getting out of submission
holds. Also, a fighter may wipe his limbs with it to gain a slippery
advantage. The use of Vaseline is to prevent lacerations and
ecchymosis, especially those that would hinder vision, especially
in the areas of the brow, nose, and cheekbones. These structures
hold superficial arteries and veins, that if damaged could lead
to bleeding that limits the fighter’s visionpage1image15104
From
the previous illustration, you can see the abundance of vascularity
in the face, especially around the ocular and nasal region, as
well as the diminished amount around the chin. The question arises,
what about the forehead? Many cutmen will note, “The one
in the middle of the forehead” (See Stitch’s interviews
with FightMedicine.net here) also known as the Supratrochlear
Artery and the mess it can make. Why do we not apply Vaseline
to the forehead to prevent a laceration there and another mess
like the one during the Cain Velasquez versus Antonio “Bigfoot”
Silva? Again, we have to weigh the advantage of laceration prevention
versus advantage in submission grappling. Per capita, the ocular
region has more vascularity than the forehead, so just like in
real estate, location is important.
Another
important question is why do cutmen take time to put Vaseline
on cuts during the brief one minute rest period between rounds?
The main reason is we cannot put an actual bandage on the wound,
since it would come off during the fight. In attempt to keep
the wound from becoming larger, we pack the wound with Vaseline
mixed with Adrenaline Chloride 1:1000, a vasoconstrictor medication.
This helps reduce bleeding by causing the blood vessels to tighten
up (vasoconstriction). The Vaseline also reduces friction and
tearing at the edges of the cut, preventing it from getting worse.
It is also put on hematomas to protect them from becoming bleeding
lacerations, since the hematomas are like balls of built-up blood.
An
ounce of prevention is greater than a pound of rehabilitation.
That is why we use Vaseline before a fight, but if the fighter
starts to form a hematoma or sustains a laceration we can use
it to keep them in competition. Hopefully, this gives the aspiring
cut person an understanding of anatomy and protocol with regards
to the application of Vaseline.
For
News and Information on Health/Diet/Injuries/Nutrition all in
the world of MMA visit FightMedicine.net
Source:
Fight Medicine
|
UFC
164 Notebook: Perfect Match
By Brian
Knapp
Thoughts
of championship gold never stray far from the mind of Frank Mir.
The
34-year-old Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt will meet fellow former
Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight titleholder Josh Barnett
in the UFC 164 co-main event on Saturday at the BMO Harris Bradley
Center in Milwaukee. While Mir has suffered consecutive defeats
for the first time in his career, he remains steadfast in his
desire to reach the mountaintop one more time.
“I’m
trying to put on great fights, but an outcome of my drive is
to work back towards the title,” Mir said in a pre-fight
media call for UFC 164. “I don’t see a situation where
it’s no longer in my grasp. Being only 34 years of age,
I don’t see it as a secret. I don’t want to be just
another fighter on the card.”
Mir,
who has thrown out his anchor at Jackson’s Mixed Martial
Arts in Albuquerque, N.M., last appeared at UFC on Fox 7 in April,
when he lost a unanimous decision to the unbeaten Daniel Cormier
at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. A two-time Olympic wrestler,
Cormier trapped Mir in a suffocating clinch, landing 102 of his
139 attempted strikes, according to FightMetric figures.
“I
have more confidence in the training I have,” Mir said.
“Just because you do it in training doesn’t mean you
can do it when the lights are on. Cormier isn’t much of
a finisher, but it allowed me to stay in there long enough to
realize my gas tank was pretty good. I had confidence in the
third round, but I wish I had it going into the fight.”
MMA
enthusiasts have for years fawned over a hypothetical matchup
between Mir and Barnett, two of the premier submission grapplers
of all-time. “The Warmaster” became UFC champion in
March 2002, four months after Mir entered the promotion, but
their paths never crossed in the cage. A positive test for anabolic
steroids resulted in Barnett being stripped of his title and
exiting the UFC. He has not competed inside the Octagon in the
more than 11 years that have passed since.
“Obviously,
we’re all fighting to eventually become champion again,”
Mir said. “Josh was champ when I got into the UFC, so we
look at each other a bit differently. I look at it as bragging
rights to have a victory over someone like Josh, with where he
was when I came in and with what he’s accomplished in his
career.
“I
think if we would have fought back then, I’d have to give
the fight to Josh,” he added. “I wasn’t as mentally
strong back then. [My mental strength] has developed over the
years. It’s something you work on. Maybe if the first couple
of submission attempts would have failed for me, I’d have
been in a lot of trouble if we fought in 2002.”
Therein
lies Mir’s challenge. In 38 professional bouts, Barnett
has never been submitted by traditional punches, and he has been
knocked out only once. Mir faced similar doubts prior to his
two clashes with Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. He stopped the beloved
Brazilian with punches at UFC 92 and submitted him with a kimura
in their rematch at UFC 140.
“I
think I’ve stopped people before that had never tapped,
that had never been stopped via submission,” he said. “You
have to have knowledge of what people are capable of, but at
the same time, you can’t let it nullify your offense. You
can’t let respect cause apprehension and make you hesitate.
Maybe I’ll put four, five, six attempts chained together.
Obviously, I don’t see Josh falling victim to the first
submission attempt I jump on, but that doesn’t mean I won’t
attempt it anyways.”
Shedding
Labels
After
three consecutive first-round knockouts, Team Alpha Male’s
Chad Mendes has effectively shed the “boring wrestler”
label.
Mendes
will lock horns with Clay Guida in a 145-pound showcase at UFC
164, with an eye towards a rematch with reigning featherweight
champion Jose Aldo. In his last three appearances, the 28-year-old
Hanford, Calif., native has leveled Cody McKenzie, Yaotzin Meza
and Darren Elkins, all in less than two minutes.
Guida
poses a myriad of challenges. A staple in the UFC since he arrived
in the promotion in 2006, the former lightweight has never been
stopped by strikes in his 43-fight career.
“Guida
is a guy that’s been in the UFC for a long time and has
a huge following,” Mendes said in his pre-fight interview
with UFC.com. “He is well-known for the crazy pace he sets
in his fights. He relies a lot on his wrestling and foot movement
to win fights. I believe with my speed, power and wrestling background
I should be able to nullify his dancing around and finish this
fight. A win over a guy like Guida will put me right back in
line for a title shot.”
This
& That
The
BMO Harris Bradley Center, which opened in 1988, is home to the
NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks, the American Hockey League’s
Milwaukee Admirals and the Marquette University men’s basketball
team ... Benson Henderson trains under the MMA Lab’s John
Crouch, who in 2005 was awarded his Brazilian jiu-jitsu black
belt by UFC hall of famer Royce Gracie ... Ben Rothwell was a
perfect 9-0 inside the International Fight League, including
wins over “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 8 semifinalist
Krzysztof Soszynski (twice), former UFC heavyweight champion
Ricco Rodriguez and “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 10
winner Roy Nelson ... Dustin Poirier and Erik Koch have combined
for 16 first-round finishes in in 31 professional appearances
between them ... American Top Team’s Gleison Tibau ranks
second on the UFC’s all-time list for takedowns landed with
69, trailing only longtime welterweight champion Georges St.
Pierre (84) ... Soa Palelei operates out of Perth, Australia,
nearly 11,000 miles from the BMO Harris Bradley Center ... A
quarterfinalist on Season 14 of “The Ultimate Fighter,”
flyweight Louis Gaudinot graduated from Seton Hall University
with a degree in Criminal Justice ... Korean Top Team welterweight
Hyun Gyu Lim has finished his last six opponents, five of them
inside one round ... When Roufusport’s Chico Camus was born
on Jan. 26, 1985, the top five movies at the box office were
“Beverly Hills Cop,” “The Falcon and the Snowman,”
“A Passage to India,” “Micki and Maude” and
“Tomboy” ... Serra-Longo Fight Team export Al Iaquinta
is a protégé of former UFC welterweight champion
Matt Serra and a teammate of current UFC middleweight champion
Chris Weidman ... Jared Hamman played college football at the
University of Redlands, a Div. III school in Redlands, Calif.
Source
Sherdog
|
Several
MMA agents looking to modify or lighten their industry footprint
By Zach
Arnold
Ken
Pavia and Malki Kawa, two of MMA’s biggest names in the
agent/manager space, are indeed colorful characters. They also
make waves when they drop comments on business issues in the
industry.
Case
in point: Malki recent commented on why MMA fighters should not
unionize:
“A
lot of people seem to think we need a union,” Kawa said.
“What I don’t think they realize is that with unionization,
like in football, the managers and the athletes are both regulated
by these unions, and everything ends up becoming slotted. So
you fall into a slot, and that’s what you get paid. Unless
you’re at the very top of the game, that’s just what
you’re getting paid, and you really don’t have an opportunity
to make more money. There’s a minimum standard set, and
because of that, the manager’s rate may go down to as little
as 2 percent or 3 percent, because there’s no more negotiations.
I would much rather there be negotiations so I can try and get
more than the minimum standard for my client.
“Maybe
a guy doesn’t sell pay-per-views the way Georges St-Pierre
does, but he still sells tickets. You make an argument for that
guy. You can say, ‘Hey, he deserves it. You make money off
this guy.’”
And
he believes the economics of MMA still provide plenty of opportunity.
“If
Jon Jones was saying what Tim Kennedy was saying or Benson Henderson
was saying what John Cholish was saying, I would tell you there’s
a huge problem in the UFC because those are guys who are selling
tickets and who people want to watch,” Kawa said. “I’m
not trying to bash Kennedy or Cholish or Fitch. I’ve met
them, and they’re great guys. But let’s not throw out
all the hate and the blame on the UFC and call Dana a jerk and
Lorenzo Fertitta greedy. At the end of the day, Viacom has more
money and more reach than a lot of people, and you still have
fighters making $2,000.”
Naturally,
Kawa’s comments drew a lot of heat online from both people
inside and outside the industry. Offline, some of the comments
were harsh as well.
One
of the notions that has been floated around is the value of an
Ali Act in MMA. The UFC has tried to fight this wherever possible.
Yes, the prospects of having an Ali Act should scare a fight
promoter… but the obvious has to be stated:
Rob
& I went back and forth on the true value of the Ali Act
(mostly on the civil litigation side). I agree that having an
Ali Act would not be a fruitless endeavor for MMA, but it’s
not a cure-all panacea.
As
for Kawa’s arguments against unionization, wouldn’t
a rising tide lift all boats when it came to negotiated rights
and salaries? Conversely, Kawa seems interested in having leverage
only for the fighters he represents and getting as big of a %
there rather than seeing the floor for fighter salaries get elevated.
I don’t know if that’s short-term logic or if it’s
grounded in long-term realities for the business. Not every agent
in MMA is going to stay on top long-term…
Interesting
that Malki also raised the issue of a Fighters Association perhaps
regulating agents (similar to what the NFLPA does).
One
thing is for certain: reputable names in the world of MMA agents
are looking to either lighten their footprint or get out of the
business entirely. I won’t mention specific names but I
can assure you that a couple of agents (who are not uncles, cousins,
or family flunkies of fighters) who have made a good career representing
successful MMA fighters are looking to invest their time and
money elsewhere. The universal complaint about where things stand
right now has to do with sponsorship money. The combination of
UFC’s sponsor tax/bribe and companies not seeing enough
value in putting money into sponsoring non-main eventers has
caused a collapse for sponsor revenue. Fighters who are not upper-echelon
simply aren’t attractive now to potential sponsors in 2013.
It’s why potential sponsors are considering unconventional
deals (like sponsoring Bloodstain Lane).
Without
sponsorship money, it’s harder for fighters to get quality
agent/manager representation because the money that once existed
a few years ago doesn’t exist now.
The
agents in question that I’m referring to would rather put
their resources into investing in businesses that are combat
sports-themed or into ventures outside of MMA altogether. The
bottom is falling out relatively quickly here and the end result
is that the Malki Kawas and Ken Pavias of the world will benefit
from consolidation. It may or may not mean that their clients
will benefit but consolidation means that agents such as Malki
will fight hard against any sort of Fighters Association —
and UFC loves seeing this play out publicly. As long as agents
and runners keep telling fighters they don’t need any sort
of Fighters Association protecting their rights, promoters can
maintain their current power structure.
Another
trend that’s changing in MMA – knees
There
has been discussion about the elimination of a rule that prevents
a fighter from giving a knee to a grounded opponent who utilizes
a last-second three-point stance in order to cause a referee
to issue a warning or disqualify the striker. At the Association
of Boxing Commissions meeting a couple of weeks ago in San Antonio,
the following line of thought was agreed upon by the major state
athletic commissions: allow referees to interpret the rule in
the rules meeting before shows.
So,
in a state like California, a referee like Herb Dean, John McCarthy,
Mike Beltran, or Jason Herzog will be able to tell fighters that
the last second attempt of a grounding technique, like a three-point
stance in order to avoid a strike, will not save you from getting
blitzed and it will not result in your opponent losing a point
on scorecards. The general reaction in the business to this new
interpretation of the rule has been relatively positive. It will
be interesting to see how long it takes a state like Nevada to
implement a new interpretation of the rule for UFC events.
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
UFC
Announces Jan. 4 Event for Singapore, Plans Several 2014 Dates
in Asia
by JamesGoyder
The
UFC announced on Thursday that it would be heading to Singapore
on Jan. 4, 2014, as part of its long-awaited Asian expansion.
The venue has previously been confirmed as being Marina Bay Sands,
which has a capacity of 5,000.
No
fights have been confirmed at present.
Mark
Fischer, the UFC’s Managing Director of Asia, says that
Jan. 4 will be the first of many dates where fans in Asia will
get a glimpse of the Octagon next year.
“This
marks a bold step for UFC’s expansion in Asia and is the
first of a series of events in Asia planned for 2014. After kicking
off the year in Singapore, our fans can expect several other
UFC events around the region on the docket next year, including
two more fights at the Venetian’s Cotai Arena in Macau.”
Singapore
is ONE FC’s backyard and Asia’s biggest MMA promotion
has put on four shows at the 12,000-capacity Singapore Indoor
Stadium with another booked for Oct. 18, but Fischer believes
fight fans in the former British colony will welcome the UFC.
“We
know many fans in Singapore and Southeast Asia have been waiting
to experience the excitement of a live UFC event and this will
certainly be a great springboard for our continued development
in this part of the world.”
The
UFC also plans to return to Tokyo where it has held one event
per year for the two years. Dana White also confirmed this week
that Manila was also on the agenda for 2014, as well as China
with a Mandarin language version of TUF scheduled to start filming
in November.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Source: Romolo Barros
|
Source: Tommy Lam
|
UFC
164 ‘Henderson vs. Pettis 2’ Preview
By Tristen
Critchfield
If
you watched the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s debut on
Fox Sports 1 on Aug. 17, then you are probably well aware of
how Benson Henderson views the only loss of his Zuffa tenure.
Thanks to a UFC 164 promo that seemed to air during every commercial
break that night, we now know that “Smooth” sees his
hard-fought December 2010 defeat to Anthony Pettis inside World
Extreme Cagefighting, not as the pinnacle of competition but
as a “stain on his soul.”
It
only makes sense then that Henderson would get a chance to remove
such a lasting mark by beating Pettis in his hometown of Milwaukee.
As for Pettis, even if he cannot duplicate the “Showtime”
kick that made him both a YouTube sensation and the final WEC
champion three years ago, he will be more than happy to pry another
belt from Henderson’s clutches by any means he can. Being
referred to as a soul stain tends to have that kind of effect
on a man.
Here
is a closer look at the UFC 164 lineup on Saturday, with analysis
and picks:
UFC
Lightweight Championship
Benson
Henderson (19-2, 7-0 UFC) vs. Anthony Pettis (16-2, 3-1 UFC)
The
Matchup: Henderson has mastered the high-wire act in lightweight
title bouts, with narrow victories over Frankie Edgar (twice)
and Gilbert Melendez marking his reign. At least two of those
triumphs -- Melendez and the second meeting with Edgar -- could
have easily gone the other way, but Henderson’s penchant
for winning the close ones is more than just good fortune. While
the MMA Lab representative has always been known for his wrestling,
work rate and athleticism, his improved striking, especially
his ability to use kicks to the legs and body, has fueled his
ascent in the UFC.
Pettis,
the last person to defeat “Smooth,” might be better
equipped than any of the recent challengers to make Henderson
taste his first defeat since the WEC’s swan song in December
2010. That fight is most remembered for Pettis’ highlight-reel
kick off the cage in the fifth round -- and for good reason.
Henderson has been able to get the better of foes such of Edgar
and Melendez thanks to his activity and pace, and neither of
the two was able to author any one moment to give the cageside
judges pause. Pettis’ “Showtime” kick put a tidy
ribbon on a well-earned victory, but many had the contest tied
up at two rounds apiece heading into the final stanza, meaning
the Duke Roufus understudy did well to leave a lasting imprint
on the fight.
Still,
Pettis did far more in that fight than create a SportsCenter
highlight. While Henderson controlled the center of the cage
against Edgar, Pettis was the aggressor at WEC 53, often stalking
the Arizonan until he was trapped against the cage. From there,
Pettis is adept at setting up his more powerful strikes, including
the aforementioned kick. Pettis will not overwhelm anyone in
terms of sheer volume, but his ability to remain relaxed while
setting the table for flashier techniques makes him dangerous.
Henderson
racks up a significant amount of points on the feet with his
kicks, and even when opponents have been able to catch them,
it usually occurs after impact. However, Pettis proved he could
counter Henderson’s kicks consistently with punching combinations
to the head. Unless the champion starts to do a better job of
using combinations of his own to set up his kicks, Pettis could
very well have similar success in the rematch.
Henderson’s
true talent, however, lies in his ability to set a withering
pace in tie-ups and on the canvas. His athleticism and upper
body strength are serious assets, while being nearly impossible
to submit allows him to work relentlessly to advance position,
even against an active guard player such as Pettis. Even though
the champion might be able to secure a few dominant positions
in scrambles, Pettis is just as capable of reverse and transitioning,
as he did in taking Henderson’s back in their first fight.
Aside from his loss to Clay Guida, Pettis has shown decent defensive
wrestling, and any poorly timed shots from Henderson could be
countered by a knee from the Milwaukee native.
The
Pick: Pettis’ kickboxing arsenal allows him to control distance
better than most against Henderson. Backed by competent wrestling
and a savvy ground game, that means lightning could strike twice
for the final WEC lightweight ruler. Pettis wins a decision by
landing the harder, cleaner shots on the feet while not allowing
Henderson to control the fight on the ground for extended periods
of time.
Heavyweights
Frank Mir (16-7, 14-7 UFC) vs. Josh Barnett (32-6, 4-1 UFC)
The
Matchup: After more than 11 years away, Barnett makes his anticipated
return to the Octagon in a bout that has ranked highly on many
a fan’s wish list for quite some time. Barnett and Mir are
probably the two most skilled grapplers in the heavyweight division,
which could make for an interesting chess match when the fight
hits the floor, especially considering that both men are active
from their backs.
While
Mir has plied his trade in the Octagon for all but two of his
23 professional fights, Barnett has been all over the place during
the past decade, from Pride Fighting Championships, Dream and
Sengoku to Affliction and Strikeforce. Give Mir a slight edge
in terms of recent big-fight experience, however, as many of
Barnett’s victories have come against lower-level heavyweights
in recent years. A change in camps could not prevent Mir from
losing his second fight in a row for the first time his career
at UFC on Fox 7. Unable to control distance against Daniel Cormier,
the Jackson’s Mixed Martial Arts-trained Mir found himself
overwhelmed in the clinch for the majority of three rounds before
losing a unanimous verdict. Outside of a few solid kicks to the
body, Mir had few opportunities to land any meaningful offense.
Like
Mir, Barnett was unable to contend with Cormier’s wrestling,
losing a five-round decision to the American Kickboxing Academy
product in the Strikeforce heavyweight grand prix final in May
2012. Barnett returned to his winning ways by submitting Nandor
Guelmino in January, though the bout that offers little insight
into how he will fare against Mir.
Mir
has proven susceptible to heavy leather, but that will not be
his primary concern here. Barnett’s striking and athleticism
are underrated for a man with his frame, but it is used primarily
to force clinches. “The Warmaster” has not been knocked
out since 2001, and confidence in his chin allows him to press
forward in hopes of dragging the fight into his world.
Mir
struggled mightily with his back against the fence against Cormier,
and unless he can turn and execute a trip takedown, he will find
himself forced to defend Barnett’s suffocating top game.
It could be worse, because Mir often looks far more uncomfortable
when paired with a heavy-handed striker like Junior dos Santos.
Meanwhile, crafty guard work is one of the Las Vegas resident’s
strong suits. As good as Mir is at recognizing small openings
for submissions, it seems unlikely the cerebral Barnett will
make any serious mistakes on the mat.
The
Pick: Barnett grinds down Mir through clinches and top control
to win a decision.
Featherweights
Chad Mendes (14-1, 5-1 UFC) vs. Clay Guida (30-13, 10-7 UFC)
The
Matchup: During his rise to No. 1 contender at 145 pounds, Mendes
was often relegated to the prelims in part because the two-time
NCAA All-American wrestler won his share of relatively uneventful
decisions. However, since suffering a first-round knockout loss
to reigning champion Jose Aldo at UFC 142, Mendes has reinvented
himself as a finisher, winning three straight fights via first-round
knockout. The most recent of those, a 68-second stoppage of the
underrated Darren Elkins at UFC on Fox 7, was the most impressive
of all, and Mendes’ striking proficiency only figures to
improve under the guidance of Team Alpha Male boss Duane Ludwig.
The
first step of Guida’s own personal renovation process proved
to be successful, as “The Carpenter” relied on his
takedowns and suffocating top control to win his featherweight
debut against the world-ranked Hatsu Hioki in January. Undersized
at 155 pounds, the change in divisions should often allow Guida
to showcase his best Octagon assets: a bottomless gas tank and
relentless wrestling and pressure. Against larger lightweights
such as Gray Maynard, Guida was forced to rely solely on awkward
movement and sporadic striking to frustrate his opponent and
win on points. While that approach pleased virtually no one,
it nearly worked, as the Chicagoan dropped a closely contested
split decision to Maynard at UFC on FX 4.
Unfortunately
for Guida, Mendes will pose some of the same problems Maynard
did. A powerful featherweight with a large frame, “Money”
has yet to be taken down in UFC or WEC competition. What that
likely means is there will be plenty of herky-jerky motion from
Guida here, as he will need to wear down Mendes with his unique
rhythm while landing enough quick punching combinations to rack
up points on the judges’ scorecards.
The
problem is twofold. Guida is not an especially accurate striker,
and he does not possess enough power to give Mendes pause. As
mentioned earlier, the WEC veteran’s striking continues
to develop, and he can do far more damage with a well-placed
left hook or overhand to Guida than any of his opponent’s
rapid-fire combinations can do to him. Additionally, Mendes’
kicks have improved, and he can use them to gradually slow Guida’s
perpetual motion. Better standup also means a better setup for
takedowns, and Mendes’ average of 4.72 per 15 minutes --
at a 57-percent success rate -- speaks for itself. Guida will
be hard to keep down but could find himself on his back repeatedly.
The
Pick: Considering Guida’s uncanny ability to recover from
heavy fire, another knockout seems unlikely. However, a steady
diet of power punches and takedowns carries Mendes to a decision.
Heavyweights
Brandon Vera (12-6, 8-6 UFC) vs. Ben Rothwell (32-9, 2-3 UFC)
The
Matchup: Four stoppages in his first four UFC appearances made
Vera a heavyweight to watch early in his career, but after back-to-back
losses to Tim Sylvia and Fabricio Werdum, “The Truth”
left the weight class to embark on an inconsistent run at 205
pounds. With talk of two-division dominance a distant memory,
Vera makes his first heavyweight appearance since falling to
Werdum at UFC 85 in 2008.
Vera’s
valiant effort against the heavily favored Mauricio Rua at UFC
on Fox 4 has largely been viewed as a positive, but his inability
to mount much resistance when planted on his back will be of
great concern against Rothwell. While nobody will confuse Rothwell’s
striking with that of even a diminished “Shogun,” the
31-year-old Wisconsin native is a willing participant when it
comes to trading punches. Against an undersized heavyweight such
as Vera, Rothwell needs to use exchanges as a means to close
distance. The International Fight League veteran will do his
best work by getting a hold of Vera, battering him against the
fence and then transitioning to takedowns. Rothwell’s improved
conditioning, which has been evident in both his physique and
performance, should aide him in applying consistent pressure.
Vera’s
cardio could prove to be an issue, as electing to forego the
cut to light heavyweight is not necessarily a good sign. The
Alliance MMA product has produced some spectacular results at
heavyweight in the past, but it is difficult to know what to
expect from him now after a career filled with numerous ups and
downs.
When
fighting at distance, Rothwell is no match for Vera’s precise
muay Thai. The 35-year-old Californian can put on a kicking exhibition
when given the opportunity, and his ability to land various strikes
in combination is far more advanced than many heavyweights. Couple
that with the fact that Rothwell is not known for impenetrable
striking defense, and it seems entirely possible that Vera could
recapture some of his early-career magic.
The
Pick: As beautiful as some of Vera’s muay Thai combinations
can be, nothing short of an early highlight-reel knockout will
be able to keep Rothwell at bay for too long. Once the bearded
big man is able to establish himself as the bully, Vera will
gradually wilt. Rothwell wins by decision or late TKO.
Featherweights
Erik
Koch (13-2, 2-1 UFC) vs. Dustin Poirier (13-3, 5-2 UFC)
The
Matchup: Not all that long ago, both Koch and Poirier appeared
to be on the verge of challenging for the 145-pound title, but
recent losses have slowed their ascent in the featherweight division.
Despite those setbacks, both fighters are young and still hold
plenty of promise.
Before
a rash of injuries sidelined him for more than a year, Koch was
booked to face reigning 145-pound king Jose Aldo at multiple
events. Perhaps it was for the best that the Roufusport member
did not get that opportunity, as he was soundly beaten by top
contender Ricardo Lamas at UFC on Fox 6 in January. Prior to
that defeat, the 5-foot-10 Koch had begun to establish himself
as a fighter with dynamic knockout power and an active submission
game. Against Lamas, however, a costly error in judgment resulted
in Koch being overpowered and battered with a series of brutal
elbows on the canvas. Before the finish, Koch was often neutralized
in tie-ups by Lamas and struggled to put together any combinations
of significance during exchanges.
Considering
the recent tear Cub Swanson has been on, Poirier acquitted himself
nicely by going the distance with the Jackson’s Mixed Martial
Arts product at UFC on Fuel TV 7. While Swanson’s speed
and athleticism proved to be the difference, Poirier was game
throughout, attacking with combinations and making his foe work
to defend takedown attempts.
Poirier
will have a three-inch reach advantage against his fellow southpaw,
but his success depends largely on his ability to force Koch
to fight away from his strengths. That means using his punches
and kicks to close distance, at which point he can take down
Koch and force his opponent to defend ground-and-pound and submissions
from his back. On the feet, Koch does a good job mixing up his
kicks, and he might find success landing to the body, as Swanson
did repeatedly against Poirier in February.
Koch
actually displayed solid takedown defense for the majority of
his bout with Lamas, but Poirier should remain persistent in
attempting to wear down “New Breed.” Poirier has been
rocked by both Swanson and Chan Sung Jung in past bouts, and
he faces a similar risk in prolonged exchanges with Koch. On
the floor, Poirier will have to proceed with caution inside Koch’s
active guard; getting too reckless will leave him vulnerable
to submissions during scrambles and transitions.
The
Pick: This matchup promises back-and-forth action wherever the
fight may go. Poirier would seem to have a few more options overall,
but his aggression could leave him vulnerable. Koch finds a submission
in round two.
The
Prelims
Lightweights
Jamie
Varner (21-7-1, 3-2 UFC) vs. Gleison Tibau (27-9, 12-7 UFC):
A Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt with a thickly muscled frame,
Tibau thrives on overpowering opponents. The Brazilian has won
five of his last seven bouts and ranks second all-time in the
promotion in takedowns landed with 69. Varner will struggle to
take down his opponent, but the Arizona Combat Sports product
should have the better standup. Avoiding prolonged battles in
the clinch will be the key for the former WEC champion. Varner
wins by decision.
Flyweights
Louis
Gaudinot (6-2, 1-1 UFC) vs. Tim Elliott (9-3-1, 1-1 UFC): In
his first UFC bout at flyweight, Gaudinot survived an onslaught
from Brazilian wrecking machine John Lineker, choking out the
former Jungle Fight champion with a guillotine in the second
round. After more than a year-long layoff, “The Ultimate
Fighter 14” alum returns to the Octagon to square off with
Elliott, who captured his first UFC victory over Jared Papazian
in December. Elliott’s most impressive showing, however,
was going the distance against former No. 1 contender John Dodson
in his UFC debut. Gaudinot wins a competitive fight, either by
submission or decision.
Welterweights
Hyun
Gyu Lim (11-3-1, 1-0 UFC) vs. Pascal Krauss (11-1, 2-1 UFC):
Krauss has a multi-faceted striking attack and solid takedown
defense, both of which were on display in a decision victory
over Mike Stumpf in January. He will face a stern test in Lim,
who owns a seven-inch reach advantage and debuted in the UFC
by knocking out the previously unbeaten Marcelo Guimares with
a knee at UFC on Fuel TV 8. At some point, Lim makes Krauss pay
for attempting to navigate distance, winning by KO or TKO.
Bantamweights
Chico
Camus (12-4, 1-1 UFC) vs. Kyung Ho Kang (11-6, 0-0 UFC): Kang
appeared to control much of his Octagon debut against Alex Caceres
with takedowns and moderate ground-and-pound, but it was “Bruce
Leroy” who emerged with a split decision triumph after a
third-round surge. However, the result was later changed to a
no-contest after Caceres failed a drug test. Meanwhile, a lack
of strategy was Camus’ downfall in losing via submission
to Dustin Kimura at UFC 156; despite having an edge on the feet,
the Roufusport product chose to work repeatedly in his foe’s
guard. Give the edge to the fighter on his home turf. Camus captures
a decision.
Heavyweights
Soa
Palelei (18-3, 0-1 UFC) vs. Nikita Krylov (15-1, 0-0 UFC): Palelei
returns to the Octagon for the first time since a third-round
TKO loss to Eddie Sanchez at UFC 79. Since then, “The Hulk”
has won 10 of 11 bouts, with only a loss to Daniel Cormier sullying
his record during that time. Krylov, meanwhile, is just 21 years
old and has finished all 15 of his wins by knockout or submission.
In terms of upside, Krylov seems like the best bet, but he will
have to avoid the massive power of a larger adversary in order
to prove himself. Palelei wins by KO or TKO in round one or two.
Lightweights
Al
Iaquinta (5-2-1, 0-1 UFC) vs. Ryan Couture (6-2, 0-1 UFC): Randy
Couture’s son does a good job of maximizing his talent,
but he was given a tough matchup for his initial Octagon foray,
as Ross Pearson stopped the Strikeforce veteran on second-round
punches at UFC on Fuel TV 9. Iaquinta is not on Pearson’s
level, but he was widely regarded as the top talent on “The
Ultimate Fighter 15” cast before falling to Michael Chiesa
at the series finale in 2012. A balanced approach by Couture
nets him a decision victory.
Middleweights
Jared
Hamman (13-5, 2-4 UFC) vs. Magnus Cedenblad (10-4, 0-1 UFC):
It has been a rough stretch for Hamman, who has suffered back-to-back
knockout losses at the hands of Costa Philippou and Michael Kuiper.
Cedenblad, who was submitted by Francis Carmont in his first
promotional appearance, would probably prefer to avoid trading
shots with the heavy-handed Hamman. Hamman wins by TKO in round
one.
Source:
Sherdog
|
UFC
Fight Night 27 Results: Carlos Condit Leaves No Doubts in Victory
Over Martin Kampmann
by Ryan
McKinnell
Carlos
Condit and Martin Kampmann first met over four years ago in April
2009 at a UFC Fight Night. That evening, Kampmann took a hotly
contested split-decision victory over the debuting Condit in
what was one of the year’s most exciting scraps.
Almost
as soon as their first match concluded, demands of a rematch
rang throughout the MMA universe.
It
took longer than most anticipated, but on Wednesday inside the
Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, MMA fans finally witnessed
Condit vs. Kampmann 2 in the night’s main event of UFC Fight
Night 27.
The
opening frame saw Kampmann immediately earn a successful bodylock,
trip takedown. This approach may have come as a surprise for
some, as Kampmann is predominantly a striking-based fighter,
but this game plan is also what eked out the win for the Dane
in their first showdown, so it seemed only logical he would try
and employ that strategy once again.
Over
the course of that first round, Kampmann earned a total of three
successful takedowns, and handily won the frame with his wrestling
and effective ground and pound.
Round
two saw a shift in momentum of sorts, as Condit came out with
a sprawl-heavy approach in mind. Anytime “The Hitman”
looked for the takedown, Condit was ready to defend. The Team
Jackson product began popping his jab in this round and finding
his range, while growing visibly confident in the way the fight
was heading.
However,
Kampmann, who has made a career of displaying otherworldly toughness
and grit, was not about to let Condit shift the fight that easily,
and he battled back with brawling combo punching and some pressure
of his own.
The
action was about as back-and-forth as you can get in what was
one of the truly more entertaining rounds of 2013.
By
the third round, momentum was leaning heavily towards Condit.
“The Natural Born Killer” began unleashing his full
repertoire of Greg Jackson and Mike Winkeljohn honed striking.
Nothing
was off limits for Condit, as he ripped off spinning back kicks
and elbows, wheel kicks, and everything else under the sun.
Kampmann
briefly landed a textbook high-crotch lift takedown in the opening
minute of the third, but Condit was back up on his feet in no
time, and quickly returned to peppering the Xtreme Couture product
with punches, knees, and kicks.
Midway
through the third, Condit rushed in with a stellar multi-punch
combination that left Kampmann with a gash on his face. After
that, the vision of what many predicted Condit vs. Kampmann 2
to be came to fruition.
By
the end of the third round Kampmann was so bloody it wouldn’t
have been a shock if they hired a cleaning crew to come in and
power wash the Octagon mat before the start of the next round.
The
fourth round was also the fight’s final round, as just 54
seconds into the frame, Condit unleashed a vicious flurry of
combination punches that sent Kampmann reeling with his back
against the cage, covering up.
Smelling
blood, both literally and figuratively, Condit rushed in and
snatched up his opponent with his signature Thai clinch and began
to unload a series of Muay Thai knees that sent Kampmann crumpling
to the mat in a heap and had referee Herb Dean running in to
halt the action.
Post-fight,
an elated, and still eerily focused Carlos Condit took to the
microphone to sing the praises of his well-tested foe.
“Martin
is a really well rounded fighter. He can take the fight wherever
he wants,” said Condit when asked about his adjustments
after the first round, a round in which Kampmann won.
“So
we saw that he was going to come out and try and take me down
— you know make it a grappling match — we tried to
avoid that, and I was able to pick him apart with the strikes.”
The
humble 29-year-old former UFC interim welterweight champion deflected
any praise coming his way and gave all credit to his supporting
cast from Albuquerque.
“I
come from a great camp. I couldn’t do this without my training
partners and my coaches. All of the respect — all this —
this victory is a team effort,” he stated.
After
suffering back-to-back losses to welterweight powerhouses Georges
St-Pierre and Johny Hendricks, Condit now finds himself on the
winning end of things once again. With plenty of intriguing matches
to be had in the stacked welterweight division, Condit welcomes
all comers with a smile… as long as the fights are interesting,
of course.
“There
are a lot of intriguing matches in the division,” he said.
“Of course I’d like to get that title shot back; possibly
Johny Hendricks or Georges St-Pierre, whichever one wins. There
are a couple other fights out there that are very interesting
also, so we’ll see what happens.”
He’s
not wrong. There are plenty of intriguing matches to be made
in the welterweight division for “The Natural Born Killer.”
However, we can’t be the only ones thinking that a trilogy
with Kampmann may be on the menu, especially considering how
great their first two fights have been.
But
promise us one thing, UFC, if you do make this a trilogy, don’t
make us wait another four years to see these two fighters battle
it out in your Octagon.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Bellator
Season 9 Featherweight Tournament Semifinals Slated for Oct.
11 in Kansas
By Mike
Whitman
Bellator
MMA’s Season 9 featherweight tournament semifinals now have
a home, as promotion officials announced Thursday that the round
of four will take place in October at Bellator 103.
The
Oct. 11 event goes down at Kansas Star Casino in Wichita, Kan.,
and will also see David Rickels return to action. The former
lightweight title challenger will try to rebound from his knockout
loss to Michael Chandler when he meets J.J. Ambrose.
The
Season 9 featherweight tourney kicks off Sept. 13 in Temecula,
Calif., and will see Patricio Freire, Shahbulat Shamhalaev, Desmond
Green and Joe Taimanglo face Diego Nunes, Akop Stepanyan, Fabricio
de Assis Costa da Silva and Andrew Fisher, respectively.
Prior
to the evening’s Spike TV-broadcast main card, the Bellator
103 preliminary card streams live on Spike.com and will feature
Ricky Musgrave taking on Cody Carrillo at featherweight, while
Jesse Thorton and Jeimeson Saudino do battle at 135 pounds.
Rickels,
24, saw a four-fight winning streak snapped by Chandler one month
ago at Bellator 97. Prior to his 44-second defeat, “The
Caveman” captured the Season 8 lightweight tournament title,
besting Lloyd Woodard, Jason Fischer and Saad Awad to earn his
crack at Chandler’s belt. Ambrose, meanwhile, has lost just
one in his last 11 fights, falling via submission to Brent Weedman
in the Season 6 tournament. Following that setback, “Superman”
posted back-to-back wins before fighting Ibrahim Ahmed to a no-contest
this past February.
Source:
Sherdog
|
Will
Hollywood step in to crash UFC’s party with Ronda Rousey?
By Zach
Arnold
2013
may be the year of Ronda Rousey in the UFC. However, it’s
also been the year of UFC trying to dumb down her rhetoric in
order to generate mass appeal. It’s grating. It’s irritating.
It’s beneath her. It’s beneath us.
When
marketing tells you to get involved in empty sloganeering, school
grade mudslinging, and constant lying, it’s hard to justify
and rationalize the remarks you make. It’s like constantly
running on a treadmill. You can only tell so many lies before
you get exposed and people just tune you out. Call it Hulk Hogan
syndrome, if you will.
Ronda
Rousey is the best female fighter the UFC has. She’s the
best female fighter in the world. So, why does UFC constantly
feel the need to put her into positions where she’s having
to play the role of Gina Carano in the press most of the time?
Because it’s the only playbook that UFC is interested in
using, much like Gary Shaw did when he promoted Gina on CBS &
Showtime.
It’s
a strategy that undersells Ronda Rousey’s value as a fighter.
It’s also the laziest marketing strategy. Rather than spend
energy promoting Rousey’s credibility as a fighter, UFC
spends most of their energy pushing her sex appeal and catfighting
with other girls. I’m not suggesting that it’s debasing
her marketing potential — but it is debasing to Rousey on
a personal level.
Case
in point: touting sexuality. When the UFC sent Rousey out on
a media blitz regarding her fight with Liz Carmouche, Rousey
spent time on HBO Sports talking about being a sex symbol and
had an infamous exchange with Jim Rome on Showtime about pre-fight
sex. Here was that exchange:
JIM
ROME: “Some boxers abstain from sex for up to six weeks
before the fight. What is your philosophy on this?”
RONDA
ROUSEY: “Um, on the guys or the girls?”
JIM
ROME: “Both.”
RONDA
ROUSEY: “Um, I mean for girls it raises your testosterone
so I try to have as much sex as possible before a fight, actually.
Not like with everybody, I don’t like put out Craigslist
ads or anything but, you know, if I’ve got a steady I’m
going to be like, ‘yo, fight time’s coming up.’
”
JIM
ROME: “That’s great. That works for you.”
It
was creepy to watch… and it opened up Pandora’s Box.
Now that Rome had asked the question and Rousey played along
by answering it, she opened the door wide open for everyone to
start prying into her sexual endeavors. Why should anything be
off limits? The justification for a complete invasion of privacy
was established. And not just an invasion of privacy, but an
invasion by complete strangers and fans. The fans and press simply
pick up their cues from the UFC.
Which
is why when a fan asked Rousey the same question that Rome and
other sleazy male interviewers asked in the past, Rousey got
uncomfortable.
Rousey
drew quite a reaction on social media for rebuffing the fan’s
question. She had every right to react the way she did. Her problem?
It was a moment of candor and honesty and given the act that
UFC has been wanting her to push, it’s a headache. The problem
with Rousey pushing back against the fan and not pushing back
against media types who ask her the same drivel is that it’s
a double standard that basically sends the following message:
go with the program, don’t ruffle any feathers, do what
Uncle Dana says or else you’ll get labeled as a “bitch
in a beauty salon.”
And
with that, the circus in promoting the upcoming season of The
Ultimate Fighter on Fox Sports 1 continues. Miesha Tate and Karyn
Bryant are gossiping about whether or not Ronda Rousey can keep
a boyfriend. Rousey is cracking Cupcake jokes and ripping into
Bryan Caraway, Tate’s man. Then she’s flipping the
finger to Tate at “World Tour” pressers. Why are these
antics necessary to promote the show? Because the franchise (Ultimate
Fighter) is on life support. Because Rousey had little trouble
with Tate the first time they fought and distractions are needed
to sell a rematch where Rousey is a 10-to-1 favorite. I’m
sure it will be Michelle Beadle-approved material. With Ronda
Rousey and the UFC, life is reality TV.
At
some point, however, when you start engaging in non-stop bullshitting
you reach a crossroads. You either get fatigued and stop the
campaign or you become delusional and buy into your own rhetoric.
In the case of Ronda Rousey, the fantasy land of Hollywood is
ready to give her a reprieve:
The
pay is better. The insurance coverage is better. The perks are
better. It won’t be long before we see Rousey and UFC work
out an arrangement similar to WWE and Rock.
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
Dana
White, Ben Henderson answer detractors of lightweight champ's
style
By Dave
Doyle
The
rap on Benson Henderson's UFC lightweight title reign, such as
it is, has been focused on the manner in which he's won his fights.
"If
a guy walks into the cage and slips on a banana peel and I get
a win, I'll take the win," Henderson said on Thursday.
All
three of his title defenses since defeating Frankie Edgar for
the belt in Feb. 2012 have come via decision. Two of them --
a rematch with Edgar and a bout against Gilbert Melendez -- were
split decisions in which many felt his opponent should have gotten
the nod.
But
Henderson's boss, UFC president Dana White, see things a little
different. True, Henderson's had a propensity to go to the judges.
But as Henderson gets ready for his UFC 164 rematch with Anthony
Pettis, White points out that Henderson has torn his way through
what's long been considered the sport's deepest division.
"He's
undefeated in the UFC," White said at Thursday's UFC 164
press conference in Milwaukee. "If you look back, when we
talked about the 155 pound division, how talented it is and how
stacked it is, and he doesn't have a loss in the UFC at 155."
Indeed,
Henderson is 7-0 in the UFC and 12-1 in Zuffa counting his WEC
victories. He's only surpassed by UFC featherweight champion
Jose Aldo (13-0) for best crossover Zuffa record.
With
a win over Pettis on Saturday, Henderson would have four successful
UFC lightweight title defenses, which would surpass B.J. Penn's
record. He always would avenge his only Zuffa loss.
"He'll
break the record for most title defenses, you know," White
said. "He's got wins over Frankie Edgar twice, Cerrone twice,
he beat [Jim] Miller, Gilbert Melendez, he's beat everybody."
For
his part, Henderson says that he's always looking for an exciting
fight, but getting his hand raised is priority No. 1.
"What
it all boils down to is getting your hand raised. Whether you
do it impressively, emphatically, whether you do it by split
decision or whatever the case may be," he said.
I'm
always after beating the guy up," Henderson continued. "I
always want to beat the guy up. I don't care about judges or
decisions or this or that. I just want to go out there and beat
the guy up."
Source:
MMA Fighting
|
Josh
Barnett Ready to Make the First Defense of the UFC Title He Won
a Decade Ago
by James
Goyder
Josh
Barnett will be returning to the UFC after an 11-year absence
to take on fellow former heavyweight champion Frank Mir in Milwaukee
on Saturday night.
With
nine wins in his last ten fights, Barnett is clearly still a
force to be reckoned with in the heavyweight division. More than
that, he believes he is still the champion because he hasn’t
lost a fight in the Octagon since winning the title at UFC 36.
“When
I walk in the ring, in my mind, I’m making my first title
defense. That’s the way I see it,” he said on a recent
episode of MMA’s Great Debate.
Barnett’s
last UFC outing was in March 2002 when he stopped Randy Couture
in the second round to win a belt that he would subsequently
be stripped of after testing positive for a banned substance.
Barnett
went on to fight for Pride, where he faced the likes of Mirko
“Cro Cop” Filipovic, Mark Hunt and Antonio Rodrigo
Nogueira. The 35-year-old compared Mir’s career fighting
in the UFC unfavorably with his own, while he competed in Japan.
“We’ve
always been in different places, even when he was fighting for
titles. No one ever took my belt from me, so I don’t know
what belt they were swinging around, but that wasn’t the
UFC heavyweight title as far as I was concerned and I was off
at Pride fighting the top dudes in the world at the time.”
There
is no doubt that when Mir first won the belt by submitting Tim
Sylvia at UFC 48, most of the top heavyweights in the world were
competing elsewhere. Zuffa’s buyout of Pride changed all
that and Barnett is looking forward to testing himself against
the division’s elite.
“I’ve
come back to the UFC and the UFC is now the premier place to
be for MMA,” Barnett said.
He
feels that Mir is past his prime, but says he will not be taking
this fight lightly.
“At
this point Frank’s best days have already occurred, but
you can’t underestimate people because you set yourself
up for a downfall and I don’t think of Frank as being a
bad fighter. A fighter might lose ten in a row, but they got
a history of winning 30 before it and any moment there could
be the one fight where they manage to pull it together and come
back to their championship best and it only takes one fight.”
At
this stage, Mir would be entitled to point out that he is almost
two years younger than Barnett, but the “War Master”
feels that, stylistically, this is a very good match-up for him.
“I
think he’s very good (on the ground). He doesn’t have
a very ‘jiu-jitsuesque’ style of grappling, but he’s
a big dude, explosive and I believe he wrestled high school.
So when it comes to grappling, there’s not a whole lot that
he hasn’t seen before, but when it comes to application
and putting things together, I don’t think he’s going
to be able to find training partners that grapple the way I do.
If it does go to the ground, I can shut down his offense and
make him pay for being underneath.”
The
official UFC rankings have Frank Mir at No. 6, while Barnett
sits at No. 10. After fighting for Sengoku, Dream, Affliction
and Strikeforce in recent years, Barnett is happy to finally
be getting the recognition that comes from competing for the
leading MMA promotion on the planet.
“For
quite some time after Pride folded, anyone who was in the UFC
got ranked higher than me and a lot of Frank’s relevancy
was based on being in the UFC. I want to see how much potential
there really is there by fighting him and, honestly, I don’t
really care too much about rankings, but you see it and you think
‘this idiot thinks that?’ It gives you that much more
motivation when you are getting your workout done.”
Like
many fighters, Barnett has done double-duty in Hollywood. He
was recently enlisted as a fight coordinator on the soon to be
released Keanu Reeves movie “Man of Tai Chi.”
For
the time being, however, he is fully focused on UFC 164 and while
Barnett did make some disparaging remarks about Mir’s cardio,
he added that he has no intention of trying to grind out a decision
victory.
“I’m
a finisher and I don’t want to be in there 15 minutes; I’d
rather be in there five or less.”
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
How
will UFC and Bellator handle potential Biogenesis scandal fallout?
By Zach
Arnold
Here’s
a story that provides no ‘fun’ or ‘jockularity’
for David Hill of Fox Sports or Kevin Kay of Spike TV.
The
Feds are coming after everyone involved in the Biogenesis drug
scandal. And it is expected that as many big-name clients that
the Feds can get their hands on will be called to testify or
provide evidence against Tony Bosch, the accused ringleader.
Last
week, disgruntled Biogenesis employee Porter Fischer claimed
that there were names from both boxing & Mixed Martial Arts
on the Biogenesis clients list. There has been lots of skepticism
about any impact there would be if a big-name MMA fighter/fighters
was implicated in the scandal. After all, Shane Carwin didn’t
draw much heat for his drug scandal. We addressed those issues
last week.
However,
there’s a difference between the mail order drug scandal
that Carwin was named in and the Biogenesis scandal. The Feds
see the Biogenesis scandal as this decade’s BALCO scandal.
And one man in particular who made the lives of Barry Bonds &
Lance Armstrong a living hell is getting into the fray: Jeff
Novitzky. If I’m UFC or Bellator, I’m nervous about
Novitzky potentially going after fighters. He’s relentless.
He’s gotten in trouble for unreasonable searches for evidence
against people he has targeted. Deadspin labeled Novitzky as
a man who “continues his myopic, monomaniacal quest to bring
down the users.”
Now
that Novitzky and the Feds are investigating Biogenesis, it will
be easy for UFC and Viacom to run away from further commenting
on the story. They will hide behind the “we won’t comment
during an ongoing investigation” smoke screen. Allen Barra
wrote an article last week for The Atlantic asking why other
sports leagues are not asking to see the Biogenesis client records.
Barra also chided Dana White for his response regarding the potential
of a currently active UFC active being named on the client list.
While Barra’s article made a factual error or two, his general
point was correct — why are leagues like the UFC seemingly
not-very curious about who might be named on the Biogenesis client
list? The answer: it goes back to Zuffa’s experience with
Shane Carwin. There was no fallout when Carwin was named during
the mail order anti-aging clinic drug scandal. So, therefore,
why worry about the Biogenesis situation? Furthermore, Chael
Sonnen continues to remain a big PPV draw for the company despite
his shameless testosterone drug usage.
If
the fighter/fighters in question named in the Biogenesis scandal
are retired or no-namers, then nobody is going to care. If the
participant(s) are currently active, some reason to care. If
the participant(s) happen to be active and title contenders?
Different ball of wax. Two factors about Biogenesis that could
make it potentially hairy for UFC or Bellator: 1) the media is
paying attention because the scandal involves high-profile names
like Alex Rodriguez and 2) Jeff Novitzky is involved and he doesn’t
go after small names, he only cares about snagging big fish.
The
intrigue now is if the fighter(s) in question happen to be in
the title picture. If that’s the case, how will UFC or Bellator
handle the situation? Will they ‘freeze’ a fighter’s
contract and try to use a lame punishment to deflect media attention?
Will they cut a fighter? The options on the table for handling
a potential bombshell are limited.
One
counterproductive scenario would involve the promotions backing
the fighter(s) and not levying significant punishment. For the
sake of argument, I won’t mention any fighter names but…
let’s say a fighter who happens to be in title contention
is named on the Biogenesis client list. And let’s say that
the fighter in question is booked for a big fight on an upcoming
PPV. Then what? Do you pull the fighter off of PPV and ice them
on the sidelines or do you move ahead, given the cost of promoting
a PPV show, and basically dismiss any sort of punishment by hiding
behind the lame excuse that “the Government” drug tests
fighters?
Here’s
the risk for UFC or for Viacom if the fighter(s) on the Biogenesis
list happen to be active, a big-name, and/or a title contender…
if you don’t drop the hammer on the fighter(s) in question,
then you risk facing the wrath of Jeff Novitzky. Novitzky’s
track record indicates that he can get very fixated on a target
and will spare no lengths in going for blood. He’ll spend
all the time and money in the world to go after anyone he thinks
is a drug cheat. I suspect that Viacom would be more willing
to drop the hammer on a fighter named on the Biogenesis client
list than the UFC would be.
However…
The
last person in the world the UFC wants to piss off is Jeff Novitzky.
Ask Bud Selig all about Novitzky’s tenacity. If Novitzky
views the UFC as being drug enablers, he will start digging dirt
on everyone involved. He is the type of person vindictive enough
to go after Dr. Jeff Davidson (Zuffa) and/or Dr. Tim Trainor,
Keith Kizer’s self-professed top sports doctor in America,
in regards to the enabling of testosterone usage by fighters.
The UFC really doesn’t want to deal with a headache like
Novitzky. It would be in their best business interests to cut
the fighter(s) in question if they happen to be high-profile
and take the short-term money hit rather than deal with the Feds
investigating their business & medical practices.
Dana
White loves to use the phrase “the Government” when
it comes to defending drug testing in Mixed Martial Arts. It’s
the kind of focus-tested political linguistic marketing that
you would expect Frank Luntz or George Lakoff to advise a Congressman
to use. Keith Kizer is not “the Government.” He’s
a hack from the Nevada AG’s office who gives two or three
days public notice on steroid & drug panel commission meetings.
Jeff Novitzky? Now, he is “the Government.” He’s
a guy that acts as if he has nothing to lose and doesn’t
care about politics. He has Uncle Sam’s resources and isn’t
shy about using them.
The
two major players in MMA better hope that none of their currently
active title contenders are caught up in the Biogenesis scandal.
If the worse case scenario happens, UFC and Viacom better have
an emergency strategy in place to deal with the potential fallout.
Let’s just say that Jeff Novitzky may treat MMA names on
the Biogenesis list a bit differently than, say, a pro-wrestler
caught on a steroids list. That’s the price you pay for
wanting MMA to be a ‘mainstream sport.’
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
USA
TODAY: 11 years later, UFC 164's Josh Barnett resumes title mission
by Steven
Marrocco
(This
story appears in today's edition of USA TODAY.)
Josh
Barnett isn't shy about his standing in the UFC's heavyweight
division.
Despite
an 11-year absence from the promotion, aided by a rocky relationship
with its executives, the 35-year-old thinks he's picking up right
where he left off when he beat Randy Couture in 2002 and won
the title.
The
way he sees it, other fighters who held the belt were merely
carrying interim titles.
"It's
about reconquering lands I let go," Barnett told USA TODAY
Sports and MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com).
When
he meets Frank Mir (16-7 MMA, 14-7 UFC) in the co-main event
of Saturday's UFC 164 event at Milwaukee's Bradley Center (pay-per-view,
10 p.m. ET), Barnett (32-6 MMA, 4-1 UFC) says he's defending
his title for the first time in more than a decade.
"It's
another guy signing on the dotted line, giving me the opportunity
to go out there and wreck his face," Barnett said. "I'm
going back to the UFC. The back story behind the relationship
between myself and the UFC, it all makes for a pretty monumental
story."
The
story is one you probably won't read about often in MMA, especially
when you consider Barnett's history with the promotion.
Barnett
was at the peak of his career when, after his fight with Couture,
he tested positive for a trio of steroids and was stripped of
the title by the UFC. After a nasty breakup, he followed an opportunity
overseas to Japan, where he became a champion in Pancrase and
a star in Pride Fighting Championships.
When
UFC parent company Zuffa acquired Pride in 2007, it might have
provided an opportunity to reconcile with his former employer.
But Barnett cut his own path through a series of UFC competitors
and racked up win after win before landing in Strikeforce.
When
Zuffa also acquired Strikeforce in 2011, Barnett finally made
amends and eventually signed a contract with the UFC.
With
no clear No. 2 contender in the heavyweight division, he is poised
to regain his standing with a victory against Mir, who fought
on the preliminary card when Barnett beat Couture in 2002.
Mir,
34, became one of the UFC's best heavyweights, winning the title
in 2004 before a motorcycle crash forced him to relinquish it.
Although he has failed to regain the title and lost a recent
bout to Strikeforce standout Daniel Cormier, Mir's submission
game has left several opponents with injured limbs.
Barnett,
who has won no fewer than 19 fights by submission, thinks he
can beat Mir where he's best.
"Even
if it was a grappling match, I would not intend for it to go
15 minutes," Barnett said. "If it goes for 15 minutes,
I didn't do my job.
"He's
been ranked above me. I would argue that I've had a lot more
accomplishments. It does gnaw at you. People asked for the matchup
based on the expectation of what a fight between us would entail.
I just want to get out there and put my hands on him and see
how it goes."
Source:
USA Today
|
Condit
Eyeing Hendricks, GSP Rematches After Stopping Kampmann at UFC
Fight Night 27
By Mike
Whitman
Carlos
Condit would not mind finding himself in another rematch.
Following
his fourth-round knockout of Martin Kampmann in the UFC Fight
Night 27 headliner, the former UFC interim welterweight champion
indicated his interest in trying to even the score with either
of the men who handed him his most recent defeats.
“I’d
like to rematch both [Georges St. Pierre and Johny Hendricks],
but I’m kind of leaning toward Johny because our fight was
so close,” Condit (Pictured, file photo) said at the post-fight
press conference. “But then, I came real close to a finish
in my fight with Georges, so it’s tough [to say which rematch
I want more].”
Condit
first faced Kampmann in 2009, dropping a split decision to “The
Hitman” at UFC Fight Night 18. However, “The Natural
Born Killer” exacted his revenge on Wednesday night at Bankers
Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, as Condit outworked the dangerous
Dane after weathering an early slew of takedowns.
In
the second, third and fourth rounds, Condit shook off the majority
of Kampmann’s takedown tries, a fact that he attributes
to his renewed focus on wrestling ahead of the fight.
“Martin
is a very well-rounded fighter. I knew that [my takedown defense]
was something I’d have to work on quite a bit,” said
Condit. “I worked with Izzy Martinez, Ricky Lundell and
Jake Herbert, who was a 2012 Olympian, and I was able to defend
some takedowns I most likely would not have been able to had
I not worked with those guys.”
As
he prevented Kampmann from taking the fight to the floor, Condit
turned up the heat standing, gradually increasing his work rate
to batter and bloody his opponent in round three. Kampmann wilted
under Condit’s blistering pace, and eventually the New Mexican
found his foe’s chin in round four, catching Kampmann with
a sharp combination that signaled the fight’s conclusion.
“Range
is very important, and once I found my range, I was able to start
landing. Kampmann is a kickboxer, and that’s a comfortable
range for me,” said Condit. “The last two guys I fought
were wrestlers, and they able to close that distance. And Martin
was actually able to close distance as well, so it’s always
a work in progress.
“I
trained harder, and I was more focused [for this fight]. I didn’t
let the thought of my last fights consume me, but I used the
mistakes in those fights as teaching tools. I was really motivated
to improve in those aspects of the game which I was lacking.”
Source
Sherdog
|
The
bright side of Tito/Quinton: At least Roy Jones won’t destroy
Rampage
By Zach
Arnold
Jeremy
Botter: Bellator makes great decision with Rampage Jackson vs.
Tito Ortiz on PPV
Tito
Ortiz vs. Rampage Jackson. Bellator PPV. November 2nd. Long Beach,
California at LB Arena. Not a lot of time to promote the event
and get the ground game going for promotion, even with Viacom’s
resources.
The
good news is that we won’t see RJJ destroy Rampage in a
boxing fight. Additionally, the fight should draw a pretty decent
gate in California. Right location to draw a crowd that will
be interested and sympathetic to both fighters.
I
am not sure what the price point would be. I’m thinking
$30 is about right. Over/under -> 75,000 PPV buys. I’ll
say barely over that benchmark. Anything over 85,000 PPV buys
would be gravy.
There
was quite a bit of mockery of the Tito/Rampage fight announcement.
It was interesting to watch the rather mild response of the Bellator
crowd in Albuquerque to Tito Ortiz’s ring entrance with
the US flag. Naturally, Viacom & Spike love established names
instead of building stars.
Who
will be next? Ken Shamrock?
At
the Albuquerque event on Wendesday night, Michael Chandler and
Ben Askren toyed with their respective opponents and retained
their belts. Chandler is going nowhere given his new contract
with Bellator. Will Chandler get an opportunity to fight Eddie
Alvarez again?
The
inimitable Rich Hansen brings up the obvious. Eddie Alvarez doesn’t
have the cash to keep fighting Viacom in court. His one route
of trying to break out of his Bellator contract without spending
significant cash would be to file a motion with the California
State Athletic Commission to try to get an arbitration hearing
with Andy Foster. Bellator is now a California-based promoter,
so this would seem to be (on paper) a viable option for challenge.
The problem is that the Executive Officer wants business in California
and Bellator is a key player for live events in the state. The
Long Beach show means $ for Sacramento. I don’t see how
the commission would have the heart to side with Alvarez over
Bellator.
A
settlement that would make sense for all parties involved would
be to reach some sort of cold peace, give Alvarez an immediate
match with Chandler and book that fight as the semi-main event
of the November 2nd PPV in Long Beach. This is something that
would actually make sense for Andy Foster to try to push to both
Bellator and Alvarez. It would be in everyone’s best business
interests to do so.
Unlike
Michael Chandler, Ben Askren now is technically a free agent.
However, the reported & alleged nature of the Bellator boxing-style
contracts with options upon options will make it more difficult
to break away from the promotion. As for Matt’s question
about whether or not UFC would want to sign Askren, my feeling
is they would do it — simply to screw with Viacom and take
away the best fighter they have. Askren’s fight style will
not appeal to the UFC fan base but if signing him away from Bellator
causes significant damage, Dana will make it happen.
Exit
question: Other than some glorified camera time & press mentions,
what exactly did Roy Jones get out of the fawning from both Viacom
and the UFC?
Exit
question II: How much pressure will there be on Andy Foster to
allow Rampage to use testosterone? DCA lawyer Michael Santiago
recently said no new testosterone hall passes. With money on
the line, who will blink?
Source:
Fight Opinion
|
UFC
Fight Night 27: Condit vs. Kampmann 2 Results:
Main
Bouts (on Fox Sports 1):
- Carlos Condit def. Martin Kampmann by TKO (Knees) at 0:54,
R4
-Rafael dos Anjos def. Donald Cerrone by Unanimous Decision (29-28,
29-28, 29-28), R3
-Kelvin Gastulem def. Brian Melancon by Submission (Rear Naked
Choke) at 2:26, R1
-Court McGee def. Robert Whittaker by Split Decision (27-30,
30-27, 29-28), R3
-Takeya Mizugaki def. Erik Perez by Split Decision (28-29, 29-28,
29-28), R3
-Brad Tavares def. Bubba McDaniel by Unanimous Decision (29-28,
29-28, 29-28), R3
Preliminary
Bouts (on Fox Sports 2):
-Dylan Andrews def. Papy Abedi by TKO (Strikes) at 1:32, R3
-Brandon Thatch def. Justin Edwards by TKO (Strikes) at 1:23,
R1
-Darren Elkins def. Hatsu Hioki by Unanimous Decision (29-28,
29-28, 29-28), R3
-Jason High def. James Head by Submission (Guillotine Choke)
at 1:41, R1
Preliminary
Bouts (on Facebook):
-Zak Cummings def. Ben Alloway by Submission (D’Arce Choke)
at 4:19, R1
-Roger Bowling vs. Abel Trujillo deemed No Contest (Illegal Knees)
at 4:57, R2
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
|