UPCOMING EVENT: Bellator 39, April 2

Bellator 39
Saturday April 2
Mohegan Sun
Uncasville, CT
Airing on MTV 2

MAIN CARD

* Eddie Alvarez (#5 Ranked Lightweight) vs. Pat Curran (for Bellator Lightweight Championship)
* Lyman Good vs. Rick Hawn (welterweight tourney semifinal)
* Patricky "Pitbull" Freire vs. Toby Imada (lightweight tourney semifinal)
* Ben Saunders vs. Matt Lee

PRELIMINARY CARD

* Rene Nazare vs. Matt Veach
* Dan Cramer vs. Greg Rebello
* Ryan Quinn vs. Mike Winters
* David Jansen vs. Scott McAfee
* John McLaughlin vs. Blair Tugman

Source: http://www.mmatorch.com/artman2/publish/Upcoming_Events_42/article_8494.shtml

Roman Zentsov Nobuhiko Takada Yoshihiro Takayama Daiju Takase

Wanderlei Silva Likes Knees on the Ground, Dana White Doesn't

by Michael David SmithOne of the longstanding goals of the UFC is to implement the unified rules of mixed martial arts, as sanctioned by the athletic commissions in North America, everywhere that MMA takes place. That's why the UFC uses the unified rules even in places where there is no sanctioning body, it's why the UFC imposed the unified rules on Strikeforce and it's why the UFC didn't adopt any of the old Pride rules when it purchased Pride.

Implementing one set of rules everywhere is a worthy goal and a positive step toward mainstream acceptance of MMA around the world. But while the UFC is set in its ways of using the unified rules, some folks in MMA think the unified rules should look a little more like the rules used in Pride.

That includes Wanderlei Silva, who fought most of his career using Pride or Brazilian vale tudo rules but has spent the last three years in the UFC. Michael Schiavello asks the "Axe Murderer" on the upcoming HDNet show The Voice vs. Wanderlei Silva which rules from Pride he'd like to see in the UFC, and Silva said he'd love to be able to use knees to the head on the ground inside the Octagon.

 

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/03/24/wanderlei-silva-likes-knees-on-the-ground-dana-white-doesnt/

Mikhail Avetisyan Luiz Azeredo Luciano Azevedo Ba Te er

Bellator Heavyweight Champ Cole Konrad to meet Paul Buentello in April

By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

Bellator Heavyweight Champion Cole Konrad has an opponent for his first non-title appearance for the organization, as ESPN's Josh Gross revealed on Twitter that Konrad will meet Paul Buentello at one of Bellator's April events.

Konrad, the two-time NCAA D-1 wrestling champion from the University of Minnesota and training partner of former UFC Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar, moved his record to 7-0 during Bellator's third season. Defeating Rogent Lloret and Damian Grabowski to get to the season three tournament final, Konrad became the first Bellator Heavyweight Champ with a first round keylock submission over Neil Grove.

Buentello enters the Bellator cage for the first time off a decision win over Kerry Schall in December at the plagued Nemesis Fighting event in the Dominican Republic. That win was a bounce back for Buentello after a KO loss to Tim Sylvia last summer. The former UFC Heavyweight Title challenger will mark the most experienced opponent Konrad has faced with over 40 fights to his credit.

Penick's Analysis: This is a good non-title fight for Konrad to take. He's still really young in his career, but his wrestling ability will allow him to compete with a lot of guys. Buentello may not be a top level fighter in 2011, but he's a very experienced veteran who will present some challenges to Konrad. However, if he's good as he's shown so far, Konrad should be able to pick up that win.

Source: http://www.mmatorch.com/artman2/publish/Bellator/article_8908.shtml

Mirko Cro Cop Filipovic Luiz Buscapé Firmino Spencer Fisher Jon Fitch

This may be taking it too far @jockinjb !

But its still pretty damn hilarious!! Share this on del.icio.us Share this on Facebook Share this on FriendFeed Email this [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TracyLee/~3/6h0c7O5jVMk/this-may-be-taking-it-too-far-jockinjb.html

Oleg Taktarov Akitoshi Tamura Kiyoshi Tamura Evan Tanner

Trash talk is gone for humbled Hardy

Dan Hardy's a savvy guy. Heading into each one his fights, the British bomber usually provides us with some awesome promotional fodder. Not this time. Coming off a rough knockout loss against Carlos Condit and facing a guy he actually respects, Hardy refused to unleash his customary verbal warfare.

"I guess you could say I was humbled. I was more angered than humbled, though. I got annoyed at myself, I was like you wasted an opportunity there, you let a guy take it away from you and you never deserved it.� And that was the talking I got for myself," Hardy said on the Ultimate Fight Night 24 conference call.

Hardy, a 28-year-old Brit who splits his training time between the U.K. and U.S., is slated to faced Anthony Johnson at Ultimate Fight Night 24 (Spike 10 p.m. ET/PT) in Seattle on Saturday.

Hardy (23-8, 4-2 UFC) fell victim to a nasty left hook from Carlos Condit, dropping his second straight fight in just 4:27. The mohawked-Brit was too relaxed heading into that fight at UFC 120.

"I was just little overly confident. That's all it was. I was, you know ? I let the moment get to me and let myself confidence get to me up.� I didn't have any respect for the guy. I just kind of let myself open, not thinking that I'd pay the price," Hardy said. "That was all what it was really. It was a silly mistake and it was regrettable, but, you know, I wouldn't take it back because, you know, it's got me where I'm at right now. And I'm in a much better place now than I was then."

With two straight losses and one of the deepest divisions in all of MMA at 170 pounds, Hardy knows the heat is on.

"I've kind of put myself in a situation and mindset where I'm fighting for my job and, you know, that's the worst place that I could possibly be in for my opponent because they're going to get everything that I've got a little bit more," said Hardy.

Aside from not wanting to look like an out-of-touch blowhard coming off an bad knockout loss, Hardy didn't think Johnson was the right guy to try and rattle with a barrage of prefight trash talk.

"You know, one, myself and Anthony are friendly and we've always gotten along well. So there was no point in fabricating something because, you know, the fans just see through that kind of thing. So it was just, you know, I don't want to waste my energy doing that," Hardy said. "And the second thing is, you know, Anthony never bites to that kind of stuff.� He's a pretty chilled guy.� So, you know, I've just invested the energy into the training camp instead and, you know, I'll just do my talking on Saturday night."

Johnson (8-3, 5-3 UFC) is the perfect opponent for Hardy. He loves to stand and bang. The 26-year-old from Georgia is not a great wrestler and rarely looks for the takedown.

He's also coming off a 16-month layoff where he battled a ton of injuries. Johnson injured his knee three years ago and said he tried to fight through it, but kept doing more damage. He finally had it operated on last April. Johnson admits that he gained a ton of weight during the down time. He's been back in the gym since the summer, but how likely is it Johnson is at his best? This is a must-win fight for Hardy.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Trash-talk-is-gone-for-humbled-Hardy?urn=mma-wp486

Dan Bobish Vagam Bodjukyan Kotetsu Boku Tony Bonello

Buzz builds for guest Octagon Girl at Brazil event

With Ultimate Fight Night 24 in the books, it's time to concentrate on the important things in life - who will be the guest Octagon Girl in Brazil?

Cage Potato stumbled across this interesting candidate. For those who like images of the beaches in Rio de Janeiro and the skimpy bathing suits comes Juliana Salimeni.

She popped in a recent Sherdog photoshoot of the TUF 13 set in Las Vegas. Apparently, she's a pretty popular television personality in Brazil. The UFC may need a teeny-bit more fabric for the Octagon girl uniform shorts. As long as she stays away from the N.Y. Jets and Joy Behar, Ms. Salimeni (NSFW) should be fine. Let's root for her to make it to the August UFC event in Brazil.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Buzz-builds-for-guest-Octagon-Girl-at-Brazil-eve?urn=mma-wp723

Murilo Bustamante Evan Tanner Rich Franklin Anderson Silva

Barboza slips by Njokuani in excellent display of kickboxing at UFC 128

Edson Barboza continued to impress in the UFC with his nasty kicks at UFC 128. The Brazilian took a unanimous decision, 29-28 on all three cards, in the Spike opener in Newark, N.J.

Update: FightMetric had Njokuani outlanding Barboza 72-46. He threw more as well attempting 188 to 151. Njokuani outpaced Barboza in the final two rounds 54-31 in strikes landed.

Barboza (8-0 , 2-0 UFC) opened the fight with a bang when he crushed Njokuani with a pair of right hands. Both landed cleanly on the temple as Njokuani went to the ground just 50 seconds in. He recovered, but didn't look to throw very much again until about a minute left in the round.

Njokuani (13-5, 0-1 UFC) made some nice adjustments in the second and let his offense work as his defense against Barboza's nasty muay thai. The Nigerian-born resident of Las Vegas switched his stances throughout and kept Barboza at bay with an array of leg, body and front kicks.

The final round was tight. Barboza landed some heavy shots while Njokuani threw and landed more. The Brazilian may have won the fight in the final 10 seconds when he landed an unbelievable spinning side kick. His right foot cracked Njokuani on the side of his face. It was amazing to see Njokuani still standing. Barboza must have been confident that he'd won the fight, because he backed away from the stunned Njokuani to celebrate as the clock ran out.

Behind nasty left hand, Cane crushes Marshall

Eliot Marshall was looking for a big return to the UFC, but he met the wrong guy, in Luis Cane, a motivated, nasty striker.

In the opening 30 seconds of the fight, Cane, a southpaw, landed some big straight lefts and hooks. Marshall hit the floor at the 3:45 mark of the first and couldn't get a hold of Cane. He never got back to his feet as Cane refused to stop throwing punches. After several requests to fight back from referee Dan Miragliotta went unanswered by Marshall, Cane was given the TKO finish at the 2:15 mark of the first round.

"I wanted this win so bad," Cane told UFC analyst Joe Rogan. "I came back to my gym, The Armory and we worked for eight months straight. That was the result."

Marshall (10-3, 3-2 UFC) was a late replacement for Karlos Vemola. After he was sent packing following a loss to Vladimir Matyushenko in a slow-paced fight at UFC on Versus 1, Marshall was hoping to make this a permanent return to the UFC.

Entering the fight, Cane (12-3, 4-3 UFC) had his back against the wall. The Brazilian striker had dropped two straight at UFC 106 and UFC 114. The combined time in those losses was just 4:09.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Barboza-slips-by-Njokuani-in-excellent-display-o?urn=mma-wp335

Mixed Martial Arts News Josh Barnett Ricco Rodriguez Tim Sylvia

Big John McCarthy Talks About The Growth Of Canadian MMA And Being A Referee In MMA And Boxing

Big John McCarthy Talks About The Growth Of Canadian MMA And Being A Referee In MMA And Boxing.

Source: http://www.mmatko.com/big-john-mccarthy-talks-about-the-growth-of-canadian-mma-and-being-a-referee-in-mma-and-boxing/

Jon Fitch Kenny Florian Jesse Forbes Xavier Foupa Pokam

Tough talking radio host Cowherd nearly soils himself when confronted by Lesnar

There's tough guys everywhere. Internet Tough Guys otherwise known as Keyboard Warriors. Now there's Twitter Tough Guys. In Las Vegas, my radio station ESPN1100 has Telephone Tough Guys on our text line.

Make no mistake about it, it's the media that sets the example for readers, listeners and viewers. The San Diego Union-Tribune's Don Norcoss put it nicely about many sports talk-radio ( and internet) hosts:

Talk-radio host. You're paid to gab about football, baseball and basketball. You can spew vitriol toward any athlete or general manager but never show your face in a clubhouse.

Throw in mixed martial arts, that's where ESPNRadio's Colin Cowherd comes in. Cowherd does an excellent show and understands that the phony contrarian take works wonders with most listeners. Cowherd's show is based in Bristol, Conn. and he rarely has to face the athletes he critiques. Aaron Rodgers, who was blasted all season long by Cowherd, took hold of the opportunity during a post-Super Bowl interview to bust Cowherd's chops.

Brock Lesnar went one step further when he was paraded around the ESPN campus and appeared on Michelle Beadle's SportsNation show. The 6-foot-4, 275 pound former UFC champ turned back the clock to his wrestling days and scared the daylights out of Cowherd.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Tough-talking-radio-host-Cowherd-nearly-soils-hi?urn=mma-wp792

Josh Barnett Ricco Rodriguez Tim Sylvia Frank Mir

UFC FIGHT NIGHT 24 BONUSES: Jung, Hendricks, McDonald and Figueroa earn $55k each; event sets attendance and gate records for Fight Night series events

By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

Four fighters made themselves an extra $55,000 on Saturday night at UFC Fight Night 24, as the UFC announced that Chan Sung Jung, Johny Hendricks, Michael McDonald and Edwin Figueroa each earned "Fight Night" bonuses for their performances on the card in Seattle.

Jung earned the "Submission of the Night" in his rematch with Leonard Garcia on the night's main card. In what was actually a better quality fight than their much lauded first meeting last year, Jung locked Garcia up in a never-before-seen in the UFC twister submission, a modified neck crank from the back, and forced Garcia to submit with only one second remaining in the second round.

The "Knockout of the Night" went to Johny Hendricks, who stepped in as a late replacement against T.J. Waldburger and finished him in the first round. The win was a bounce back after the first loss of his career, a dropped decision to Rick Story in December.

Bantamweights McDonald and Figueroa took home the "Fight of the Night" award for their fun back and forth fight on the preliminary card. The fight, which aired live on Facebook, ultimately went to McDonald, but both fighters received an ovation from the crowd and Joe Rogan even interviewed Figueroa after, something not often done for the losing fighter outside of a main event.

The event also set a Fight Night record for gate and attendance for the UFC, as they announced a crowd of 14,212 and a gate of $1,182,850 for the debut event in Seattle.

Source: http://www.mmatorch.com/artman2/publish/UFC_2/article_8890.shtml

Chuck Liddell Quinton Jackson Forrest Griffin Rashad Evans

Big smile, cool nickname not enough for ‘Bruce Leroy’; Semerzier cruises at UFN 24

The cute stuff may work on reality television, but Alex "Bruce Leroy" Cacares was badly outclassed by WEC veteran Mackens Semerzier. In what was probably a must-win situation, Semerzier steamrolled Bruce Leroy winning via rear-naked choke in just 3:18 at Ultimate Fight Night 24.

Semerzier (6-3, 1-0 UFC) scored three powerful takedowns. He got the first just 57 seconds into the fight. Cacares got up with 3:30 left in the first and hit the deck again with 3:18 left. The final time he went down with 2:40 left, started the beginning of the end.

Semerzier fell right into the mount position and starting pounding away. Bruce Leroy turned away from the strikes and gave his back. Semerzier flattened him and even when Cacares threatened to slip out the backdoor, the Marine was able to get him back down and finally apply the finishing choke.

Cacares, who came up with the "Bruce Leroy" moniker himself, was a villain of sorts during Season 12 of TUF. He ruffled the feathers of eventual finalist Michael Johnson and several other fights from the show.

Tonight, he walked to the cage with Taimak, the original "Bruce Leroy" from the 1985 movie "The Last Dragon."

Hathaway bests McCray at his own game

Kris McCray is a one-trick pony and tonight in Seattle he got schooled at his strength. John Hathaway outwrestled McCray, taking him down repeatedly throughout the fight. The young Brit got a split decision victory, 28-29, 29-28 and 29-28.

McCray never came close to threatening a finish. Hathaway did in the opening round with a nasty toe hold. The 23-year-old from Brighton, England worked and twisted McCray's foot for 45 seconds. McCray held out and fought on.

"I was real close. I heard a couple pops and creaks," said Hathaway.

With better cardio, Hathaway (15-1, 5-1 UFC) sealed the fight in the third. He simply did more, staying active when he had top control. It wasn't the most spectacular victory, but proved Hathaway, without much of a wrestling background, can grapple on a high level.

After posting a huge win over Diego Sanchez at UFC 114, Hathaway was upset by Mike Pyle back in October at UFC 120. Including the "TUF 11 Finale," McCray has now lost all three fights in his time with the UFC.

Busted up eye causes Madsen to lose his first to Russow

Mike Russow isn't the prettiest fighter, but the guy finds ways to win. The Chicago cop won another fight, this time by ending the unbeaten run of Jon Madsen. On the advice of the doctor, the referee stopped the fight before the beginning of the third round because Madsen's left eye was nearly closed. Russow (14-1, 3-0 UFC) got the victory via TKO.

That makes 2-of-3 fights with the promotion that he's won via KO or TKO. In his previous 11 wins, he scored nine of them by submission.

Russow said he caught Madsen (7-1, 3-1 UFC) with an overhand right in the second and that's what made the eye blow up.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Big-smile-cool-nickname-not-enough-for-Bruce-L?urn=mma-wp644

Marcio Pe de Pano Cruz Luke Cummo Jeff Big Frog Curran Dai Shuanghai

Davis outlasts Nogueira to win UFN 24 main event

Phil Davis kept up the winning ways for Penn State wrestlers on Saturday night in Seattle, as he won his Ultimate Fight Night decision, 30-27, on all three cards over Antonio Rogerio Nogueira. His alma mater won the Division I NCAA wrestling championship last Saturday.

Nogueira took the lead early, as he tagged Davis a few times in the first round. Nogueira's takedown defense was markedly improved from his last bout -- a loss to Ryan Bader -- as he stopped every takedown attempt from Davis in the first round. Davis, a Division I national champion wrestler at Penn State, was clearly frustrated by not being able to use his biggest weapon.

Davis' movement did not slow in the second round, but he still had a hard time getting inside to land any strikes. Nogueira continued to land punches here and there, just enough to keep Davis at bay. Finally, Davis managed a takedown in the final two minutes of the round. Though Nogueira came close to getting back to his feet, Davis kept him on the ground and punished him. He landed several punches to the head and body, then finished the round by throwing knees into Nogueira's side several times.

Nogueira's takedown defense wilted by the third round. Davis used a single leg to take Nogueira to the ground, and smothered him for at least a minute. Halfway through the round, they returned to their feet, with Nogueira stalking Davis around the Octagon. But Davis returned to his bread and butter and took Nogueira down again. He maintained in that position for the rest of the bout. Nogueira tried to kick Davis off, but couldn't do it.

After the fight, Davis was honest about his training camp.

"I was falling apart in this training camp. I had all types of injuries," Davis said. He wasn't surprised that Nogueira stopped his takedowns. "I know he's tough. He's resilient. He learns."

Heading into this bout, this match-up had been hyped up as a reincarnation of Shogun-Bones from UFC 128, since both Davis and the new light heavyweight champ, Jon Jones, are young, up-and-coming stars with wrestling bases. They were both fighting Brazilians who were stars in Pride.

Davis showed that he still has a while to go until he's ready for a title shot, but there's nothing wrong with that. He still is an exciting prospect in the UFC's light heavyweight division. He is now 9-0 in MMA, 5-0 in the UFC. Nogueira, the twin brother of former UFC heavyweight champ Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, is now 19-5. This is his second loss in a row in the Octagon, as he dropped a decision to Ryan Bader at UFC 119.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Davis-outlasts-Nogueira-to-win-UFN-24-main-event?urn=mma-wp681

Kazuyuki Fujita Masakatsu Funaki Zelg Benkei Galesic Mauro Galvao

Eddie Wineland Pre Fight vs Urijan Faber - UFC 128

Eddie Wineland gets ready to take on Urijah Faber at UFC 128.

Source: http://mmalice.com/ufc-128/eddie-wineland-pre-fight-vs-urijan-faber-video_a7dffff8d.html

Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira Brock Lesnar Frank Mir Brock Lesnar

"Georges St. Pierre: Rush to the Top" pay-per-view to air UFC champ's six non-UFC fights in April

By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

Integrated Sports Media, a New Jersey based pay-per-view distributor, announced this week that they will bring a special pay-per-view program on UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St. Pierre this April.

"Georges St. Pierre: Rush to the Top" will be available for $9.95 on cable and satellite carriers, and promises to feature footage from St. Pierre's six non-UFC fights, including a rarely seen debut fight from 2002.

"We?re thrilled and privileged to bring this unique footage of St. Pierre, the No. 1 ranked welterweight in the world and reigning UFC champion in the 170-pound division, to MMA fans in the United States,? ISM president Doug Jacobs said. ?This exciting six-fight package is where it all started for one of the greatest MMA fighters of all-time."

The special will be available on DirecTV and DISH Network on April 1, Avail-TVN on Apr. 11 and iN DEMAND on Apr. 12.

Source: http://www.mmatorch.com/artman2/publish/UFC_2/article_8829.shtml

Kit Cope Wesley Cabbage Correira Patrick The Predator Côté Randy The Natural Couture

Video analysis: Let’s all pump the brakes on Jon Jones

The hype train is rolling down the tracks for Jon Jones after he ransacked Mauricio "Shogun" Rua. Don't dare step in front of it. If you suggest someone can give him a fight, you may get screamed at.

Jones is ultra-impressive, but he has a long way to go before he can be given an "era" or called an all-time great. Even Dana White cautioned fans to slow it down a bit.

"After what I saw tonight, it looks like he's like a mile ahead of everybody," White said, "But who knows, man. You never know in this sport."

White has seen young guys struggle in dealing with all the new responsibilities of being a superstar.

"His life is going to change in so many ways starting right now it's actually scary. When you get to this point, I worry about guys," White said.

"He's going to have to make a lot of choices over the next couple of years ? personally, professionally. He's in for a very wild, weird crazy ride right now. And he seems like a guy who's grounded enough and has the right people around him to handle it and go the right direction, but you never know."

Yahoo!'s lead MMA writer Kevin Iole joined us to discuss "Bones" and what he'll be dealing with in and out of the cage.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Video-analysis-Let-s-all-pump-the-brakes-on-Jon?urn=mma-wp470

Travis Wiuff Wu Haotian Rani Yahya Kenichi Yamamoto

Antonio ?Bigfoot? Silva 2/12/11 Strikeforce Post-Fight Interview

Source: http://mmasportsreport.com/2531/antonio-bigfoot-silva-21211-strikeforce-post-fight-interview

Rob Broughton Mike Brown Junie Browning Paul Buentello

Tickets for The Ultimate Fighter 13 Finale with Pettis vs. Guida go on sale this week (UPDATED)

By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

The UFC has officially announced the Finale event for the 13th season of The Ultimate Fighter, and tickets for the event go on sale this week.

Taking place from The Pearl at the Palms Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, on June 4, the Finale event airs live on Spike TV with a lightweight headliner between Anthony "Showtime" Pettis and Clay "The Carpenter" Guida.

The card will also feature Ultimate Fighter 12 winner Jonathan Brookins in a bout against Jeremy Stephens and the welterweight finals from the upcoming season of the long-running reality show.

"Anthony Pettis and Clay Guida both want to prove that they deserve the next shot at the lightweight title," UFC President Dana White said. "Pettis comes in to the UFC with a lot of hype. He was the last WEC lightweight champion and became a superstar after landing that incredible kick off the cage against Ben Henderson. But this is the toughest fight of his career. Clay Guida is a gritty, in-your-face fighter who has put together a really impressive winning streak. This is a fight I can't wait to see."

The Ultimate Fighter 13 features 14 welterweight being coached by former UFC Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar and divisional challenger Junior Dos Santos.

Tickets for the event range from $150-$375. UFC Fight Club members get the first crack at tickets this Wednesday, March 23, with UFC Newsletter subscribers getting a pre-sale on Thursday and the general public getting their shot at tickets on Friday.

UPDATE: The UFC mistakenly announced that the Barao-Johnson bout was on this card, but the bantamweight bout takes place on May 28 at UFC 130.

Source: http://www.mmatorch.com/artman2/publish/UFC_2/article_8824.shtml

Nick Diaz Tadhg Steamfist Dixon Joe Doerksen Chris Dolman

5 Reasons To Watch M-1 Challenge 24: ?Damkovsky vs. Figueroa?

Today, March 25, 2011, M-1 Global will hold its ?M-1 Challenge 24? event, featuring a main event for the Lightweight Championship and a co-main event for the vacant Middleweight Championship. Also, this will be the first event M-1 Global holds in conjunction with their new television home, the Showtime network. Still, some fans may be [...]

Source: http://www.fighters.com/03/25/5-reasons-to-watch-m-1-challenge-24-%e2%80%9cdamkovsky-vs-figueroa%e2%80%9d

Siyar Bahadurzada Bao Ligao Josh Barnett David Baron

Article: Bellator 38: Richard Hale's Inverted Triangle on Nik Fekete {video}

You can view the page at http://ninjashoes.net/forum/content.php?431-Bellator-38-Richard-Hale-s-Inverted-Triangle-on-Nik-Fekete-video

Source: http://ninjashoes.net/forum/showthread.php?73996-Article-Bellator-38-Richard-Hale-s-Inverted-Triangle-on-Nik-Fekete-video&goto=newpost

David Bielkheden Michael Bisping Dan Bobish Vagam Bodjukyan

Urijah Faber Issues Stern Message to UFC Champ Dominick Cruz

The second after Urijah Faber got the word he?ll be facing Dominick Cruz for his bantamweight title at UFC 132, he immediately issued a stern message to his mortal enemy. The former WEC featherweight champion let Cruz know he?ll be looking for a repeat performance of his 1stRound submission victory from March 2007. Oh yeah, [...]

Source: http://www.5thRound.com/71880/urijah-faber-issues-stern-message-to-ufc-champ-dominick-cruz/

Robert Berry David Bielkheden Michael Bisping Dan Bobish

Video analysis: What happens to Strikeforce fighters and announcers?

We're five days removed from UFC's surprising purchase of rival Strikeforce and there's still a ton of unanswered questions. Yahoo!'s lead MMA writer Kevin Iole joined us to bring clarity to the issues of multiple champions, the future of Showtime's announce team and talk of a fighter's union with the UFC controlling over 90 percent of the market share.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Video-analysis-What-happens-to-Strikeforce-figh?urn=mma-wp216

Rich Franklin Ian Freeman Don Frye Tony Fryklund

‘Korean Zombie’ uses twister submission to beat Garcia at UFN 24

It wasn't the slugfest the first fight produced, but Chan Sung Jung more than made up for the lack of big strikes by beating Leonard Garcia with a unique submission. "The Korean Zombie" showed he can fight smart as well by landing a twister to finish Garcia with just one second left in the second round in the first televised bout at Ultimate Fight Night 24 on Spike.

"I've been watching Eddie Bravo videos on YouTube for a long time," Jung said through a translator. "I kept saying during practice at Korean Top Team that I'm going to do the twister in the UFC some day. Hopefully, I'll get the Submission of the Night."

Jung (11-3, 1-0 UFC) had Garcia's back late in the second when he decided to focus on one leg. He also got a hold of Garcia's head and cranked it back. The twister puts tremendous pressure on the spine. Garcia couldn't hold out, tapped and the fight was stopped by referee Dan Miragliotta at 4:59 of the second.

Garcia (15-7, 2-3 UFC) was headed down the wrong path from the opening seconds. He's built his reputation in the UFC and WEC by going for the broke. His striking is often reckless, but he does damage and scores with judges. He won the first throwdown with the Zombie at WEC 48, in a fight many thought Jung took by decision. Garcia repeated the feat his last time out against Nam Phan.

Garcia chose to go with a more controlled style and looked to counterstrike. He never got Jung's timing down. Garcia was the victim of a takedown in the first and ate some big shots on the ground.

In the second, he landed virtually nothing and went down again when the fighters connected on kicks at the same time. Jung jumped into top control with 1:11 left in the round. Jung softened him up with some big elbows. He threw Garcia's legs to the side and took his back with 33 seconds left.

Before this fight, Jung worked with Urijah Faber's camp, Team Alpha Male. He fought with a nice gameplan, beating Garcia in eveyr phase of the game.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/-Korean-Zombie-uses-twister-submission-to-beat-?urn=mma-wp665

Hermes Franca Rich Franklin Ian Freeman Don Frye

Hours before the biggest fight of his life, Jones subdues a robber

Eat your heart out Bob Reilly. Mixed martial arts is a lot more than a money grab viewed by savage fans; it can be a real life saver. Saturday afternoon in the streets of Paterson, N.J., Jon Jones and his trainers applied their gym techniques when they spotted a robber, chased him down and subdued him.

Thanks to Tracy Lee for the tip, photo link and video below

Jones, who was scheduled to�fight Saturday evening in Newark for the UFC light heavyweight title, was on his way to meditate in front of a waterfall in Northern New Jersey. Jones, along with Greg Jackson and Mike Winkeljohn, spotted the suspect breaking into a car and stealing some objects. According to the account given to Yahoo!'s Kevin Iole by Jackson, the group shouted at the robber and he took off.

Jones, Jackson and Winkeljohn pursued him on foot. The robber eventually fell and Jones, the youngest of the group at 23, caught up to the robber and tripped him to the ground again. Jackson said that Jones "foot swept" the suspect.

With the robber on the ground, Jackson began yelling to his fighter to stay away. Once the trainers caught up to robber, he tried to get up. Jackson said he "double-legged" him and jumped on top applying an arm bar. Winkeljohn went for the other arm to make sure he didn't have a weapon. In the scuffle, the robber was bloodied. The trainers said some blood got on their pants. Shortly afterward, the police arrived to arrest the suspect.

Less than an hour after the incident, Tracy Lee spoke with Jackson.

This is the second time in the last month an MMA-related move was used in a high-profile story to subdue a criminal. Joe Lozito, New York-area laborer, tackled an alleged murderer on a New York subway.

Reilly is the New York assemblyman leading the crusade to keep MMA events out of New York State. The ban by New York is a big reason why the UFC has placed several events just a few miles away across the Hudson River in Newark's Prudential Center. Jones faced Mauricio Rua -- and beat him with a third-round TKO -- in the main event of UFC 128, stepping into the�Octagon roughly� 7 1/2 hours after his run-in with the robber.

Jackson mentioned that Jones eventually reached that Paterson-area waterfall.

"It was an incredibly beautiful waterfall," said Jackson.

Follow Yahoo! Sports on Facebook and be the first to know about the most interesting stories of the day.

Other popular Yahoo! Sports stories:
? UFC 128 KO of the Night: Schaub�stops 'Cro Cop'
? Elin one-ups Tiger with pricey mansion
? Sad news for the voice of NFL Films Steve Sabol

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Hours-before-the-biggest-fight-of-his-life-Jone?urn=mma-wp309

Shane Carwin Brock Lesnar Frank Shamrock Tito Ortiz

Phil Davis is so wonderful that …

Ready to join in on the biggest thing since Chuck Norris jokes? Try the Phil "Mr. Wonderful" Davis #sowonderful sensation.

This started when Davis shared a tweet with his followers that talked about his wonderfulness. It snowballed, and many of his followers -- including Urijah Faber -- got involved. Their takes on his wonder ranged from his abilities as a fighter to his ability to quell even Charlie Sheen.

It's hard to deny that the man deserves his nickname of "Mr. Wonderful." After winning a national wrestling championship for Penn St., Davis easily made the transition to MMA. He is undefeated, with four wins in the UFC. Now, he gets to take the #sowonderful show to the main event of Ultimate Fight Night 24 against Antonio Rogerio Nogueira.

Join and tell us just how wonderful Phil Davis is in the comments below, on Twitter or on Facebook.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Phil-Davis-is-so-wonderful-that-?urn=mma-wp525

Grant Campbell Gesias JZ Calvancante Luiz Cane Dos Caras Jr

The completely confusing UFC lightweight title picture

Joe Silva is the UFC matchmaker, the man who is in charge of deciding fights, title shots and the like. He is also a man whose job I don't want, as it's his job to sort out the ridiculously confusing lightweight title picture.

Ready for the confusion? OK. Start with the fact that the title will already be tested on May 30. Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard have a rematch scheduled that should finally decide who is the better fighter among the two.

It's a title shot that was promised to WEC champ Anthony Pettis. Before Maynard and Edgar fought to a draw in January, Pettis was told that if he won the WEC belt in his last fight for the promotion, he would get a chance to unify the championships. A wrench was thrown into that plan because of the Edgar/Maynard draw, and now Pettis will fight Clay Guida in June for his first UFC bout.

And what of Jim Miller? He won his seventh straight bout on Saturday with a TKO of Kamal Shalorus. Four of those seven wins have been by stoppage. That resume reads like that of a title contender, but Miller has flown under the radar.

To make things even more confusing, consider what will happen if in the future, the UFC absorbs Strikeforce's roster of lightweights. Would Gilbert Melendez -- or whoever holds the belt at that point -- get an immediate title shot?

It's enough to make you dizzy. But if you had Joe Silva's job, how would you map out the UFC lightweight title? Does Pettis, Miller or someone else get a title shot next? Tell us in the comments or on Facebook.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/The-completely-confusing-UFC-lightweight-title-p?urn=mma-wp488

Wesley Cabbage Correira Patrick The Predator Côté Randy The Natural Couture Dan Cramer

Alex Bruce Leroy Caceres vs. Mackens Semerzier Fight Video Prelim UFC Fight Night 24

UFC Fight Night 24: Nogueira vs. Davis prelim Fight videos of Alex “Bruce Leroy” Caceres vs. Mackens Semerzier.


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Source: http://www.mmatko.com/alex-bruce-leroy-caceres-vs-mackens-semerzier-fight-video-prelim-ufc-fight-night-24/

Ricardo Arona Noboru Asahi Marcus Aurelio Mikhail Avetisyan

Bellator 38 Results: Light Heavyweights Deliver, Bellator Sees A Second Inverted Triangle

With another live, weekly event on the MTV2 network over and done with, the upstart Bellator Fighting Championship promotion is now only a couple of events shy of the forty-event mark. It?s been a long time coming for the promotion that prides itself on blistering action in a tournament format. And in typical Bellator fashion, [...]

Source: http://www.fighters.com/03/27/bellator-38-results-light-heavyweights-deliver-bellator-sees-a-second-inverted-triangle

Tito Ortiz Randy Couture Vitor Belfort Randy Couture

Strikeforce Hendo vs Feijao Fight Highlights and Recap - Strikeforce

A full recap of four fights from the Strikeforce: Henderson vs. Feijao event. Check out Jorge Masvidal vs. Billy Evangelista, Tim Kennedy vs. Melvin Manhoef, Marloes Coenen vs. Liz Carmouche, and Rafael Feijao Cavalcante vs. Dan Hendo Henderson. Presented by Mauro Ranallo and Showtime Sports.

Source: http://mmalice.com/strikeforce/strikeforce-hendo-vs-feijao-fight-highlights-and-recap-video_7370600d8.html

Murilo Bustamante Grant Campbell Gesias JZ Calvancante Luiz Cane

Dana White Talks Michael Bisping's Punishment, Chael Sonnen's Future, GSP vs Silva - Dana White

Dana White Talks Michael Bisping's Punishment, Chael Sonnen's Future, GSP vs Silva Video by Dana White

Source: http://mmalice.com/dana-white/dana-white-talks-michael-bispings-punishment-chael-sonnens-future-gsp-vs-silva-video_623a2175e.html

Ryo Piranha Chonan Dan The Sandman Christison Logan The Pink Pounder Clark Steve The Snake Claveau

Video: Richard Hale?s inverted triangle submission at Bellator 38

The Bellator Fighting Championships held the quarterfinals of their first ever light heavyweight tournament at the Harrah’s Tunica Hotel & Casino in Tunica, MS. One of the quarterfinal bouts of Bellator 38 featured an incredible inverted triangle submission by Richard Hale over Nik Fekete which you can check out in the video below. Hale will [...]

Video: Richard Hale’s inverted triangle submission at Bellator 38 is a post from: MMA Interplay UFC News

Source: http://www.mmainterplay.com/mma-video/video-richard-hales-inverted-triangle-submission-at-bellator-38-54002/

Mike Whitehead Jonathan Wiezorek Pete Williams Matt Wiman

MMA LIVE: UFC 128 preview and more on extended edition of ESPN2 program

Check out a brand new extended edition of ESPN2's MMA Live program. This week, the ESPN crew breaks down this weekend's UFC 128 pay-per-view event, featuring the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship bout between Mauricio "Shogun" Rua and Jon Jones. Check it out below:



App Users Click Here For Video: http://sports.espn.go.com/videohub/video/video?id=6228400

Source: http://www.mmatorch.com/artman2/publish/Other_News_4/article_8788.shtml

Mirko Cro Cop Filipovic Luiz Buscapé Firmino Spencer Fisher Jon Fitch

After starting his career with a $500 payday, Faber on the verge of superstardom

As frustrated as New York MMA fans must be this weekend remember it was less than five years ago, when the Empire State was the norm.

Urijah Faber started his career in the dark days when outside of Indian reservations, states like New Jersey and Nevada and those without commissions, the rest of the U.S. was off limits. As he readies for his UFC debut, Faber recalled his first fight in 2003 when he battled for $200 to show and $200 to win. He also got $100 for his cut of the gate.

"I loved it," Faber told Neil Davidson of the Canadian Press. "My rent was $225 a month. I had a tiny little room in an apartment with a couple of my buddies. And it only took me a minute and a half for the fight and I was like 'man, this is awesome.'"

Faber won in 82 seconds and hauled in that "major" payday of $500.

How things have changed for Faber. Through hard work and success in the cage, the California became one of the most popular fighters in the sport while with the WEC. Faber faces Eddie Wineland this weekend at UFC 128 in Newark, N.J.

The jump to the UFC means a ton for Faber, who'll get a lot more exposure and a massive boost to his business endeavors outside of the Octagon. Faber owns Form Athletics which was purchased by K-Swiss in 2010. He's also got a popular website and is working on a self-help book.

To make the next step at the top of the sport, he needs to take out Wineland. That should set up a bantamweight title fight against the new UFC champ Dominick Cruz.� Faber was the longtime champ at 145 pounds and wants the hardware at 135, where he's facing guys closer to his natural size.

"I feel a little bit faster at 135 (bantamweight) and a little bit more powerful at 145 (featherweight), but very little difference really," Faber said. "I was only 2-3 pounds off my competition weight and I think that puts me at par with most of the guys at 135 and an advantage with some of them."

"I never really had that at the 145-pound weight class. I was always giving up weight and was able to do well because I'm an accomplished fighter but as far as having every advantage to win, I think now I have that advantage."

You can watch UFC 128 right here on Yahoo! Sports.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/After-starting-his-career-with-a-500-payday-Fa?urn=mma-wp230

Viacheslav Datsik Marcus Davis Tony DeSouza Edwin Dewees

‘Korean Zombie’ uses twister submission to beat Garcia at UFN 24

It wasn't the slugfest the first fight produced, but Chan Sung Jung more than made up for the lack of big strikes by beating Leonard Garcia with a unique submission. "The Korean Zombie" showed he can fight smart as well by landing a twister to finish Garcia with just one second left in the second round in the first televised bout at Ultimate Fight Night 24 on Spike.

"I've been watching Eddie Bravo videos on YouTube for a long time," Jung said through a translator. "I kept saying during practice at Korean Top Team that I'm going to do the twister in the UFC some day. Hopefully, I'll get the Submission of the Night."

Jung (11-3, 1-0 UFC) had Garcia's back late in the second when he decided to focus on one leg. He also got a hold of Garcia's head and cranked it back. The twister puts tremendous pressure on the spine. Garcia couldn't hold out, tapped and the fight was stopped by referee Dan Miragliotta at 4:59 of the second.

Garcia (15-7, 2-3 UFC) was headed down the wrong path from the opening seconds. He's built his reputation in the UFC and WEC by going for the broke. His striking is often reckless, but he does damage and scores with judges. He won the first throwdown with the Zombie at WEC 48, in a fight many thought Jung took by decision. Garcia repeated the feat his last time out against Nam Phan.

Garcia chose to go with a more controlled style and looked to counterstrike. He never got Jung's timing down. Garcia was the victim of a takedown in the first and ate some big shots on the ground.

In the second, he landed virtually nothing and went down again when the fighters connected on kicks at the same time. Jung jumped into top control with 1:11 left in the round. Jung softened him up with some big elbows. He threw Garcia's legs to the side and took his back with 33 seconds left.

Before this fight, Jung worked with Urijah Faber's camp, Team Alpha Male. He fought with a nice gameplan, beating Garcia in eveyr phase of the game.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/-Korean-Zombie-uses-twister-submission-to-beat-?urn=mma-wp665

Luciano Azevedo Ba Te er Ryan Bader Siyar Bahadurzada

ROUNDTABLE (pt. 1 of 2): Is Rashad Evans being too dramatic in his split from Greg Jackson's camp, or is he justified in his feelings? Hansen, Park, Pelkey and Penick

Is Rashad Evans just in his feelings on Greg Jackson and camp, or is he being too dramatic in the context of being a professional fighter?

RICH HANSEN, MMATORCH COLUMNIST

It's very possible that everything Rashad Evans told Duane Finley (in his scorching interview at�BloodyElbow.com) is 100% true and addurate.� It's possible that he's been completely bent over a barrell in this whole Jon Jones situation.� Regardless, he's still handling the adversity very poorly.� Based on what I've read from my outside perspective (and don't fool yourself, we're ALL on the outside on damn near everything that happens), Rashad got screwed over pretty hard AND he's handling the aftermath like a total drama-queen.� Rashad Evans needs to suck it up, grin and bear it, go to Grudge, and move on with his career.� He should take solace that no one in the division knows Jones' strangths and weaknesses better than himself, and use that knowledge to his own benefit.

CHRIS PARK, MMATORCH UK SPECIALIST

No one really knows exactly what goes on behind closed doors (of the gym) but the facts speak for themself.

An opportunity arose, Jones took it and now he is the champ. If Rashad Evans wants to be champion - then fight. The "Friends Don't Fight" vodoo has gone and that is both good for the sport and will have one Mr. White jumping for joy.

If two friends dont want to fight then I respect that. But this is the fight business, and the rest of the sideshows don't interest me. So either fight, or don't.

MATT PELKEY, MMATORCH COLUMNIST

Obviously I don't know all (or really any) of the details of the situation, but Rashad has come off as a bit of a baby here. Its Greg Jackson's job to train fighters. So basically Rashad is upset because he brought in a better fighter. And this all seems to have blown up since Rashad comically misinterpreted Jon Jones' comments about hating people asking him about Rashad and being willing to fight him if he captured the title. You'd have thought someone around him would've clued Rashad into what Jones meant at this point, but instead, a camp is splintering and teammates are fighting. Wait, isn't this what we wanted all along? Thanks Rashad.

JAMIE PENICK, MMATORCH EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

It's not as black and white as Evans made it out to be when he went off on Jones and Jackson in the interview with Finley this week, and with what Mike Winkeljohn had to say about the subject it sounds as if Evans has been slowly but surely distancing himself from Jackson's for awhile now. The sense of loyalty he felt was betrayed by Jackson and Jones here in this situation doesn't seem to have been there from his side. We don't know the ins and outs of the people involved, as we're not there in Albuquerque, so I'm sure there is some justification in his feelings, but likely not to the state that he presented it as earlier this week. Pretty much the fault lies in a lot of areas, and some things could have been handled differently, but when it comes down to it if he wants to be the champion again, this is a fight he needs to take regardless.

[Rashad Evans art by Cory Gould (c) MMATorch.com]

Source: http://www.mmatorch.com/artman2/publish/roundtables/article_8862.shtml

Chris Dolman Edson Drago Tomasz Drwal Joe Hybrid Duarte

Do Or Die Maximus Hoodie

Boasting one of the boldest brand names in the fight game, Do Or Die adds a modern twist to the classic full-zip hooded sweatshirt with the leather and fleece style “Maximus” hoodie. All-black with silver chrome accents on the zipper and chest logo shield, this heavyweight hooded style is made from thick 2 lb. fleece [...]

Source: http://fighterxfashion.com/do-or-die-maximus-hoodie/

Martinsh Egle Eric Butterbean Esch Efrain Escudero Rashad Evans

Dan Hardy vs. Anthony Johnson 2 Fight Video UFC Fight Night 24

UFC Fight Night 24: Nogueira vs. Davis 2 Fight videos of Dan Hardy vs. Anthony Johnson.


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Source: http://www.mmatko.com/dan-hardy-vs-anthony-johnson-2-fight-video-ufc-fight-night-24/

Mauricio Rua Dave Menne Murilo Bustamante Evan Tanner

UFC 128 "Shogun vs. Jones" early pay-per-view buy estimates come in between 415-470K

By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

Now that Jon Jones has captured the Light Heavyweight Championship, the UFC will have a real chance to see how quickly they can turn him into a pay-per-view star. Dave Meltzer reports in the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that early estimates for last Saturday's UFC 128 event have come in between 415,000 and 470,000 buys, down from Rua's last two headlining fights with Lyoto Machida.

It's not any cause for panic, as it's still a respectable number considering the factors heading in and it's still well above the UFC's basement for pay-per-view buys, but it could be seen as a bit of a disappointment with the hype surrounding Jones in the last several weeks.

However, going up against NCAA basketball and March Madness on CBS and not getting mainstream coverage until after the fight certainly didn't help matters. As well, Rua hadn't been in the cage in 10 months, and his last two fights were bolstered by the fact that Machida came off a big knockout win over Rashad Evans into their first meeting, and the controversial decision that led to their rematch helped drive buys up slightly for that fight, along with having the pay-per-view debut of Kimbo Slice.

Jones, while he was a part of the UFC 126 card that did well in February, still hadn't drawn above a million viewers on free television on Versus, and though he's certainly a star in the making, the rise has been quick and he doesn't have the tenure or name just yet to draw massive numbers. That could change following Saturday's win, and his bout with Rashad Evans should show a massive uptick from these numbers.

All-in-all, the UFC probably expected a downturn in buys for this event going up against March Madness and with next month's massive UFC 129 event being as anticipated as it is. Though last year's UFC 111 event around the same time period did nearly 800,000 buys, that was with the company's second highest drawing star in Georges St. Pierre headlining. Jones hasn't reached that peak just yet, but with continued performances like that against "Shogun" Rua and the exposure he'll begin to receive in other outlets beginning tonight on NBC's "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," he can certainly make his way towards that level.

Link to WrestlingObserver.com report (subscription required)

Source: http://www.mmatorch.com/artman2/publish/UFC_2/article_8864.shtml

Cyril Abidi Daniel Acacio Bernard Ackah Terrance Aflague

Top 5 Best Moments Of Bellator 37

While I?ve only recently begun to invest full-time in the Bellator FC promotion, I?ve heard again and again that their lighter-weight fighters put on great fights. That was confirmed at Bellator 36 and reaffirmed at Bellator 37, which featured great fights at Lightweight and Featherweight, respectively. But now that Bellator 37 is over, it?s once [...]

Source: http://www.fighters.com/03/21/top-5-best-moments-of-bellator-37

Murilo Bustamante Grant Campbell Gesias JZ Calvancante Luiz Cane

White UFC 128 vlog: More N.Y. lobbying

With or without approval from New York, there's little doubt the UFC will prosper and grow. The amount of time and effort put in to convince that state that MMA should be legalized, is beginning to border on ridiculous, but folks from Zuffa made another trip to Albany, the state capital of New York. Strikeforce folks have done their work as well. You almost wonder if it's all worth it.

Dana White's first vlog, in anticipation of UFC 128, starts in Albany. A crew that included UFC lightweight champ Frank Edgar spoke to legislators. Then the promotion held a seminar in the city. Edgar even allowed Nicole Hart, a local news reporter at WTEN to put him in a read-naked choke.

During today's UFC 128 prefight press conference at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, White spoke about the safety of the sport. He also had another New York legislator backing him up. Joel talked about the positives of MMA.

"I grew up watching boxing on TV; I grew up watching WWF, then turned to WWE," said New York City Council Majority Leader Joel Rivera during today's press conference (quotes via MMAjunkie). "It motivated me to get into the gym; it motivated me to want to join martial arts. This is the impact that MMA and UFC has on our next generation of leadership, and that's why I think it's important that we bring it here to our great city and to Madison Square Garden where these fighters deserve the opportunity to fight.

Rivera, much like state assemblyman Dean Murray did during a presser an MSG in January, is calling for the N.Y. lunacy to come to an end.

"It's about time that government takes off the shackles, government opens up the doors, rolls out the red carpet, and allows the UFC into New York City," said Rivera.

The vlog also features some cools moments with Diego Sanchez and Joe Rogan/Joe Silva in the Octagon plus White and owner Lorenzo Fertitta giving the fighter props in the bowels of the Yum! Center.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/White-UFC-128-vlog-More-N-Y-lobbying?urn=mma-wp210

Yoshiaki Yatsu Hirotaka Yokoi Hidehiko Yoshida Yoshiyuki Yoshida

"Why's he grabbing his shoulder like that? Is there a bug?"

Source: http://www.watchkalibrun.com/2011/1/10/1927489/whys-he-grabbing-his-shoulder-like-that-is-there-a-bug

Marcelo Brito Rob Broughton Mike Brown Junie Browning

UFC Fight Night 24 Live Blog: Amir Sadollah vs. DaMarques Johnson

Filed under: UFC

SEATTLE, Wash. -- This is the UFC Fight Night 24 live blog for Amir Sadollah vs. DaMarques Johnson, a welterweight bout on tonight's UFC on Spike TV event at the Key Arena.

TUF 7 winner Sadollah (4-2) was 2-1 last year with wins over Brad Blackburn and Peter Sobotta. TUF 9 welterweight runner-up Johnson (12-8) defeated Mike Guymon at Fight for the Troops 2 earlier this year.

The live blog is below.

Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/03/26/ufc-fight-night-24-live-blog-amir-sadollah-vs-damarques-johnso/

Norifumi Kid Yamamoto Ryushi Yanagisawa Yoshiaki Yatsu Hirotaka Yokoi

The completely confusing UFC lightweight title picture

Joe Silva is the UFC matchmaker, the man who is in charge of deciding fights, title shots and the like. He is also a man whose job I don't want, as it's his job to sort out the ridiculously confusing lightweight title picture.

Ready for the confusion? OK. Start with the fact that the title will already be tested on May 30. Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard have a rematch scheduled that should finally decide who is the better fighter among the two.

It's a title shot that was promised to WEC champ Anthony Pettis. Before Maynard and Edgar fought to a draw in January, Pettis was told that if he won the WEC belt in his last fight for the promotion, he would get a chance to unify the championships. A wrench was thrown into that plan because of the Edgar/Maynard draw, and now Pettis will fight Clay Guida in June for his first UFC bout.

And what of Jim Miller? He won his seventh straight bout on Saturday with a TKO of Kamal Shalorus. Four of those seven wins have been by stoppage. That resume reads like that of a title contender, but Miller has flown under the radar.

To make things even more confusing, consider what will happen if in the future, the UFC absorbs Strikeforce's roster of lightweights. Would Gilbert Melendez -- or whoever holds the belt at that point -- get an immediate title shot?

It's enough to make you dizzy. But if you had Joe Silva's job, how would you map out the UFC lightweight title? Does Pettis, Miller or someone else get a title shot next? Tell us in the comments or on Facebook.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/The-completely-confusing-UFC-lightweight-title-p?urn=mma-wp488

Alberto Crane Marcio Pe de Pano Cruz Luke Cummo Jeff Big Frog Curran

The Premiere Edition of Loser Leaves Town: UFC 125 Edition

Source: http://www.watchkalibrun.com/2011/1/1/1907723/the-premiere-edition-of-loser-leaves-town-ufc-125-edition

Jesse Forbes Xavier Foupa Pokam Hermes Franca Rich Franklin

UFC 131, June 11

UFC 131
Saturday June 11
Rogers Arena
Vancouver, BC, Canada, eh
Airing on PPV

MAIN CARD

* Brock Lesnar (#2 Ranked Heavyweight) vs. Junior dos Santos (#5 Ranked Heavyweight)
* Shane Carwin (#6 Ranked Heavyweight) vs. Jon Olav Einemo
* Demian Maia (#4 Ranked Middleweight) vs. Mark Munoz
* Dave Herman vs. Rob Broughton
* Dustin Poirier vs. Rani Yahya
* Michihiro Omigawa (#4 Ranked Featherweight) vs. Darren Elkins
* Donald Cerrone vs. Mac Danzig
* Yves Edwards vs. Sam Stout
* Court McGee v. Jesse Bongfeldt
* Krzysztof Soszynski vs. Anthony Perosh

Source: http://www.mmatorch.com/artman2/publish/Upcoming_Events_42/article_8111.shtml

Glover Teixeira Tank Abbott Hiroyuki Abe Cyril Abidi

M-1 Challenge 24 Results: Magomed Sultanakhmedov, Jose Figueroa Capture Titles, Sarnavskiy Impresses

Source: http://www.bloodyelbow.com/2011/3/26/2073264/m-1-challenge-24-results-magomed-sultanakhmedov-jose-figueroa-capture

Ryushi Yanagisawa Yoshiaki Yatsu Hirotaka Yokoi Hidehiko Yoshida

Inside�MMA�03.25.2011�HDTV�XviD�BluntzRip

*Inside�MMA�03.25.2011�HDTV�XviD�BluntzRip*

Image: http://lulzimg.com/i14/153eb0.jpg...

Source: http://www.mmaforum.com/multimedia-videos/89414-inside-mma-03-25-2011-hdtv-xvid-bluntzrip.html

Daiju Takase Oleg Taktarov Akitoshi Tamura Kiyoshi Tamura

"Why's he grabbing his shoulder like that? Is there a bug?"

Source: http://www.watchkalibrun.com/2011/1/10/1927489/whys-he-grabbing-his-shoulder-like-that-is-there-a-bug

Luciano Azevedo Ba Te er Ryan Bader Siyar Bahadurzada

Jon Jones talks about his youth, Shogun and oddsmakers

At just 23 years, Jon Jones has the chance to become the UFC's youngest title-holder, and in Mauricio "Shogun" Rua, he faces a fighter who has experienced both the ultimate highs and lows of MMA. Jones spoke with Cagewriter about the role his youth plays in Saturday night's UFC 128 bout.

"I'm 23, and I have a strong will and a strong heart. A lot of these older guys have been in many battles. I've never taken any damage. I'm so fresh in this game right now. I haven't taken any cuts or any broken bones, I haven't taken any discouragement. I'm not the champion. I want it. He has it. I think that's a big difference."

Rua is hardly over the hill at 29 years, but he has already had a full career. He started training in jiu-jitsu and Muay Thai as a child. At 23, he won the Pride Grand Prix, then battled knee injuries and had a rough start in the UFC before winning the light heavyweight title.

Jones has had a similar ascent. He starred in wrestling and play football, and started fighting in MMA just three years ago. Now, he is the young hotshot fighting for the belt.

"Shogun knows how I feel. Shogun was that 23-year-old. The old men couldn't handle him at the time. I watched his career. When he was younger, he reacted best, he was faster, he trained harder, he was more passionate. But now, he has it all. I'm sure that he has trouble being motivated, especially coming off a knee injury. My youth is a major advantage, even when it comes to him studying my fights. Me being young in my career, it's not like he can find those tendencies or bad things I do. Even my fights are new."

Though he is young, it's hard to tell when speaking to him. Jones carries himself like a man twice his age. He is taking his success in stride.

"I think a lot of 23-year-olds would be so confused that their heads would be spinning to be so young and have a family, a career, pressure, people looking up to you, people saying horrible, mean things to you on the computer. It's all so much. My being is so relaxed and so laid-back, that I don't let it get to me. I do endorsement deals, I'm so grateful, but the money doesn't impress me. Fame doesn't impress me. When people say hurtful things to me, obviously it sucks, but it doesn't change my day. That helps me not overthink anything or underthink anything. It helps me just live in the moment and go with life."

He plans to take that relaxed attitude into the Octagon on Saturday.

"It's the same way I approach my fights. I'm going to fight a very dangerous person who could potentially hurt me really badly. It doesn't even bother me. I'm just at peace with it. I just train and do my thing."

Jones played down his role as the favorite among oddsmakers.

"The oddsmakers are smart in this situation. They're really good with money. To make me the favorite is a smart strategy. They actually think I'm going to lose. When it comes to the hardcore MMA fans, they know that I have no right to be considered the favorite," Jones said.

"Shogun is the Pride champion, champion of the UFC, champion of champions, and I'm ready to prove that I'm the champion of champions. He's so much more proven. It doesn't bother me. I'm just real with what's going on."

Check back with Cagewriter tomorrow for more from Jones. He talks about who the best athlete in his family is, his daughters and the origin of his scars.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Jon-Jones-talks-about-his-youth-Shogun-and-odds?urn=mma-wp168

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