UFN 24 picks, Vegas-style: Hardy an underdog against Johnson

Dan Hardy and Anthony Johnson meet up tonight on the comeback trail. Hardy is trying to get a win after a knockout loss at the hands of Carlos Condit, while Johnson returns from injuries after 16 months off. Hardy is staring at three straight losses, yet he's an underdog. Hardy at plus-125 is on our best best plays on the card.

Yahoo!'s lead MMA writer Kevin Iole joins us to break down Ultimate Fight Night 24 (Spike 10 p.m. ET/PT) and gives his Vegas odds winners.

Even though this is only his ninth fight since turning pro in 2008, Phil Davis is a huge 3-to-1 favorite over veteran Antonio Rogerio Nogueira. There's value on "Lil' Nog" at plus-220, but only if can stay off the mat against Davis, a former Penn State wrestler.

Leonard Garcia is a favorite over "The Korean Zombie" Chan Sung Jung. Garcia has decision wins over Zombie and Nam Phan, but many observers thought he lost both. Amir Sadollah (4-2, 4-2 UFC) is a massive favorite at minus-300, that in spite of the fact that he's had trouble finishing fights. DaMarques Johnson (12-8, 3-2 UFC) has broken mentally a few times in the past, but he's a pretty dangerous fighter on the ground and brimming with confidence right now.

Michael McDonald and John Hathaway, two of Zuffa's better prospects, are on the Facebook undercard. McDonald, 20, is a big favorite over Edwin Figueroa while Hathaway, 23, who has a limited wrestling experience, faces a good grappler in Kris McCray. This is the second fight at welterweight for the plus-250 McCray.

Keep an eye on Mike Russow against Jon Madsen. The "The Ultimate Fighter 10" alum Madsen has quietly gone 4-0 in the UFC but relies heavily on his takedown game. Russow is a stocky dude with good power in hands. He offers nice value at plus-240. Another TUF alum with a question mark could be Alex "Bruce Leroy" Cacares. He faces an experienced veteran with a lot of motivation in Mackens Semerzier. Semerzier's back is against the wall with three straight losses.

Official plays in bold below.

UFN 24 betting odds (Courtesy Lagasse's Stadium Las Vegas):

Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (+220) vs . Phil Davis (-300) - Light heavyweight

Dan Hardy (+120) vs. Anthony Johnson (-150) - Welterweight

DeMarques Johnson (+220) vs. Amir Sadollah (-300) - Welterweight

Chan Sung Jung (-105) vs. Leonard Garcia (-125) - Featherweight

Alex Caceres (+170) vs. Mackens Semerzier (-200) - Featherweight

Mike Russow (+240) vs. Jon Madsen (-320) - Heavyweight

Kris McCray (+250) vs. John Hathaway (-330) - Welterweight

Edwin Figueroa (+220) vs. Michael McDonald (-300) - Bantamweight

Sean McCorkle (+135) vs. Christian Morecraft (-165) - Heavyweight

Mario Miranda (+180) vs. Aaron Simpson (-220) - Middleweight

T.J. Waldburger (+300) vs. Johny Hendricks (-400) - Welteweight

Waylon Lowe (+180) vs. Nik Lentz (-220) - Lightweight

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/UFN-24-picks-Vegas-style-Hardy-an-underdog-aga?urn=mma-wp564

Dennis Hallman Tito Ortiz Dan Hardy Carlos Condit

Jim Miller finishes Kamal Shalorus for seventh straight win at UFC 128

He's about as unimposing as they come in the world of mixed martial arts, but anyone who's watched Jim Miller these last few years knows it's a mistake to underestimate the kid from Northern New Jersey.

Kamal Shalorus was one tough cookie, but he eventually fell victim to Miller's composed attack at UFC 128 Saturday night. In the third round, the Iranian was stunned by a left uppercut and then floored by a left knee to the side of the head. Miller jumped on top and unloaded 15-plus punches, forcing a TKO stoppage at the 2:15 mark in Newark, N.J.

The 27-year-old Miller has now ripped off seven straight wins and is clearly in line for a title shot. One problem, that line is pretty long with Gray Maynard and Anthony Pettis in front of him.

Shalorus (7-1-2, 0-1 UFC) was game the entire way. After an excellent amateur wrestling career, he's made a nice transition to MMA and the standup game. He throws his kicks and punches with massive power, but he was dealing with a different animal in a veteran like Miller.

Miller (20-2, 9-1 UFC) never got crazy with his attack. While Shalorus fired vicious shots, Miller picked his spots and landed plenty of counterpunches with both hands. He was very effective in the opening round with the counter right hook. By the end of the round, there was significant bruising below Shalorus' left eye.

Miller was dynamite in the second. With 3:20 left, he scored a single-leg takedown and transitioned in a split second to take Shalorus' back. Miller worked for a choke until the end of the round. The best he could do was squeeze the heck out of the Iranian's chin and jaw on several occasions. That was a lot of work without producing a finish, yet Miller got up between rounds and looked like he was ready to go three more rounds. He even refused to sit on the stool between rounds.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Jim-Miller-finishes-Kamal-Shalorus-for-seventh-s?urn=mma-wp365

Carlos Condit Michael Bisping John Hathaway Mike Pyle

Eddie Bravo 'Blown Away' by Chan Sung Jung's Twister Submission

With the possible exception of Chan Sung Jung himself, perhaps no one was more excited to see "The Korean Zombie" use the twister to submit Leonard Garcia at UFC Fight Night 24 than Eddie Bravo - the grappler who's credited with bringing the move to prominence in MMA and jiu-jitsu competitions.

"I was blown away," Bravo told MMA Fighting. "It was surreal."

Bravo has been teaching the twister - along with other mainstays of his style, such as the rubber guard - out of his 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu school in southern California for years. But Jung's use of the move marked the first time a UFC fight was ever finished with the twister. Considering where Bravo first learned it, he said, the fact that it took this long to be used in MMA's largest organization might be the most surprising part of the story.

Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/03/29/eddie-bravo-blown-away-by-chan-sung-jungs-twister-submission/

Dennis Hallman Tito Ortiz Dan Hardy Carlos Condit

UFC 132 shaping up: Faber plans to beat ‘not that cool’ Cruz

Urijah Faber is a great fighter, but let's face it his trash talk stinks.� "The California Kid" is trying really hard when it comes to Dominick Cruz but he's too nice to tear into the UFC bantamweight champ.

"People are always asking 'why don't you like him?' there's a bunch of little things, but the bottomline is, I just don't he's that cool," Faber said (1:20 mark).

Faber said Cruz shouldn't be upset by that.

"I'm just being honest dude. That's the way it is," Faber said. "Get the chip off your shoulder. Who cares what I think? You're a UFC world champion, You're a young guy, you're good looking. You got the title for another four months before I swipe it from you, and life is good."

Wait a second. What happened to the trash talk? You're good looking? Come on Urijah.

That's Faber in a nutshell. He's too nice to really smash Cruz, but make no mistake, Faber really dislikes the dude. The banter leading up to the fight should intensify during the early summer.

Faber versus Cruz is the headliner at UFC 132 on July 2nd in Las Vegas. It's lining up as a pretty deep card.

From MMAWeekly's rumor page:

Dominick Cruz vs. Urjiah Faber
B.J. Penn vs. Jon Fitch
George Sotiropoulos vs. Evan Dunham
Melvin Guillard vs. Shane Roller
Dennis Siver vs. Matt Wiman
Ryan Bader vs. Tito Ortiz

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/UFC-132-shaping-up-Faber-plans-to-beat-not-tha?urn=mma-wp756

Matt Hamill MMA Fighting Brock Lesnar Cain Velasquez

Chael Sonnen's Court Sentencing Postponed, Further Delaying UFC Return

Filed under: UFC, FanHouse Exclusive, News

Chael Sonnen's MMA comeback will have to wait a little while longer.

Sonnen's sentencing hearing stemming from a federal money laundering guilty plea has been postponed, a U.S. Attorney's Office spokesperson confirmed to MMA Fighting.

The hearing, originally scheduled for Monday, has been pushed to April 8 at 11:30 am Pacific time.

Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/03/28/chael-sonnens-sentencing-pushed-back-further-delaying-ufc-retu/

Brock Lesnar Cain Velasquez Dana White Cheick Kongo

Brock Lesnar pranks Colin Cowherd backstage at ESPN's 'SportsNation' (Video)

Source: http://www.mmamania.com/2011/3/30/2081534/brock-lesnar-pranks-colin-cowherd-backstage-at-espns-sportsnation

Travis Browne Randy Couture Jake Shields Martin Kampmann

Chris Lytle accepts Dan Hardy's challenge and is ready to 'get out there and bang'

Source: http://www.mmamania.com/2011/3/30/2081318/chris-lytle-accepts-dan-hardys-challenge

Brock Lesnar Cain Velasquez Dana White Cheick Kongo

Jon Jones Believes He Is Ready for Shogun Rua at UFC 128 - UFC 128

Jon Jones may be much younger than light heavyweight champion Shogun Rua, but he believes he is ready for the challenger.

Source: http://mmalice.com/ufc-128/jon-jones-believes-he-is-ready-for-shogun-rua-at-ufc-128-video_d5cdf3477.html

Dana White Cheick Kongo Dennis Hallman Tito Ortiz

Three Reasons to Watch Nik Lentz vs. Waylon Lowe

Filed under: UFC

The UFC made nine fights available to fans live on Saturday night, with five streaming on Facebook and four on Spike TV. And if nine UFC fights wasn't enough for you (and really, is any amount of MMA ever enough?) now there's a 10th fight available live and free at UFC.tv.

The preliminary bout between Nik Lentz and Waylon Lowe, which wasn't part of either the Facebook or Spike broadcast, is available in full online, and it's worth watching for a number of reasons: Lentz won again and won the way he wanted to win, Lowe got a stern talking-to afterward from one of the UFC's major decision-makers, and a mistake at the end of the first round showed once again that too many state athletic commissions lack competent employees.

Allow me to go into a little more detail.

Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/03/29/three-reasons-to-watch-nik-lentz-vs-waylon-lowe/

Jake Shields Martin Kampmann Matt Hamill MMA Fighting

Hale Wins by Inverted Triangle, Bellator Light Heavyweights Advance

by Michael David Smith

In 2009, Toby Imada put Bellator Fighting Championships on the map by defeating Jorge Masvidal with an incredible inverted triangle choke submission, a highlight that became a viral video and was widely regarded as the best submission of the year in mixed martial arts.

Now lightning has struck twice for Bellator.

On Saturday night's Bellator card, Richard Hale used the same move -- the inverted triangle -- to choke Nik Fekete into unconsciousness. It was a sensational highlight, and exactly the kind of thing Bellator needs to attract attention on its new television home, MTV2.

 

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/03/26/hale-wins-by-inverted-triangle-bellator-light-heavyweights-adva/

Martin Kampmann Matt Hamill MMA Fighting Brock Lesnar

The Ultimate Fighter 13 Lesnar and Dos Santos: Best Quotes from Media Call

Season 13 of The Ultimate Fighter will premier on Spike TV on Wednesday, March 30th at 9 pm. On Monday the coaches for this season of TUF, Brock Lesnar and Junior dos Santos took part in a media call to discuss, among other things, the upcoming season of The Ultimate Fighter.

The season finale of The Ultimate Fighter will take place on June 4th and will air on Spike TV.

Lesnar and Dos Santos will meet at UFC 131 on June 11th in Vancouver, British Columbia. The winner of that fight will move on to challenge Cain Velasquez for the UFC heavyweight title.

Bleacher Report brings you the best quotes from the media call.

Begin Slideshow

Source: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/648477-the-ultimate-fighter-13-lesnar-and-dos-santos-best-quotes-from-media-call

John Hathaway Mike Pyle Travis Browne Randy Couture

Jones to appear on the ‘Tonight Show’ on Thursday night

Jon Jones' latest stop on the victory tour is a trip out to Los Angeles and Jay Leno's "Tonight Show." He will appear on the famous late night show on Thursday evening at 11:35 ET/PT to talk about winning the UFC light heavyweight belt. The split in his training camp with former friend and training partner Rashad Evans will likely be discussed.

Jones is far from the first fighter to make it onto Leno's stage. Tito Ortiz, Quinton "Rampage" Jackson and Chuck Liddell have all appeared on the Leno show. But even putting Jones in that company is impressive. All three men have multiple title defenses, movie roles and magazine covers. Now, Jones will join them down that road of stardom that transcends MMA.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Jones-to-appear-on-the-8216-Tonight-Show-8217?urn=mma-wp517

Michael Bisping John Hathaway Mike Pyle Travis Browne

MMA News 3/28: Lesnar, Hardy, St-Pierre, Shields, Sonnen and More

Some big names dominated Monday's MMA news:

Dan Hardy looks to fight Chris Lytle.

Jackson MMA's Mike Winkeljohn talks about the split with Rashad Evans.

Georges St-Pierre and Jake Shields talk about training for UFC 129.

Jake Shields brings in help to train for Georges St-Pierre.

Is Royce Gracie getting close to fighting on the UFC in Rio card?

Chael Sonnen's court date pushed back.

Brock Lesnar appears on "Late NIght with Jimmy Fallon."

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Source: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/648190-mma-news-328-lesnar-hardy-st-pierre-shields-sonnen-and-more

Cheick Kongo Dennis Hallman Tito Ortiz Dan Hardy

HDNet Offers an Honest Assessment of Bobby Lashley

Filed under: MMA Media Watch, HDNet

The worst thing a TV announcer can do is lie to the audience. That's true in any sport, but mixed martial arts has a particularly egregious history of announcers hyping up fighters at the expense of the truth: When a promoter wants to make one fighter or another into its next star, there are far too many announcers willing to overstate the fighter's abilities and mislead the viewers into thinking they're watching a better fighter than they are.

So it was refreshing on Friday night to hear the HDNet announcing team of Michael Schiavello and Frank Trigg tell the audience the truth about Bobby Lashley, who was fighting in the main event of a Titan Fighting card: Although the easy thing to do would have been to hype up Lashley as Titan Fighting's biggest star, Schiavello and Trigg instead offered a frank assessment of Lashley and told the audience the truth about who he is: A big, muscular former wrestler whose physique looks impressive but whose MMA skills are limited and whose cardiovascular conditioning is atrocious.

Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/03/28/hdnet-offers-an-honest-assessment-of-bobby-lashley/

Dana White Cheick Kongo Dennis Hallman Tito Ortiz

The Korean Zombie Bandwagon Reloads, And Other Fair-Weather Tales

Filed under: UFC

If you think the stock market trades on emotion and snap judgments, what about the world of MMA, where this morning's prodigy is tomorrow morning's garbage? It would be comical to see the seismic opinion shifts that take place before and after events if it wasn't so sad. Complaints are plentiful about how quick the UFC and other organizations are to cut fighters who lose two or three in a row, yet is there any greater sense of loyalty shown from other quarters of the MMA world?

Here's the thing about being a pro fighter: it's hard. Your body gets beat down, your confidence betrays you at times. The media and fans openly question you, your commitment, you endurance, and your all-around game. Matchmakers stick you in the cage with opponents that are good at the things you're not so good at.

Where is a fighter's safe harbor? Look, we're not supposed to like everything shoved down our throats. There are performances that deserve to be booed, and fighters who are difficult to appreciate. There are style clashes that lead to stalemates. But the wild, overreactive swings from one fight to the next make me feel that a dramamine prescription wouldn't be a bad idea.

Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/03/27/the-korean-zombie-bandwagon-reloads-and-other-fair-weather-tale/

Brock Lesnar Cain Velasquez Dana White Cheick Kongo

Michael Bisping Discusses Controversy, Wants Sonnen Next, Blasts Marquardt

Filed under: UFC, FanHouse Exclusive

Imagine the world-class trash talk that would be generated if Michael Bisping and Chael Sonnen got together. Are you smiling at the possibility? Well, it could very well happen. It's the fight that Sonnen wants, and now, it's apparently the bout that Bisping wants as well.

In a Monday appearance on The MMA Hour, Bisping voiced a hope that he will next be matched up with the former No. 1 contender.

"I want to fight Chael Sonnen because No. 1, he's an amazing fighter," Bisping said. "When he fought last, he looked fantastic, and I want to challenge myself. He's the No. 2 ranked middleweight in the world. Obviously I can't fight No. 1 because he's got a title shot, so I want to fight the No. 2 guy."

Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/03/28/michael-bisping-discusses-controversy-wants-sonnen-next-blasts/

Mike Pyle Travis Browne Randy Couture Jake Shields

Anthony Johnson: 'I Just Needed to Win' Against Dan Hardy

Filed under: UFC

Remember when Anthony Johnson said there was "absolutely no chance" he and Dan Hardy would go to the ground in their fight at UFC Fight Night 24? Yeah, well. About that.

Johnson spent most of the three rounds either taking Hardy down or grinding away at him from the top position, turning what had seemed like a slugfest on paper into a grappling match in the cage. It might not have been the most popular decision he could have made, but it resulted in a unanimous decision win for "Rumble," so you can't argue with the results.

"I knew I could bang with him," Johnson said at Saturday night's post-fight press conference. "That was no problem. I knew I could do that, but I knew his weakness was his wrestling, and I know that's one of my strengths. I just took it to my advantage and used it."

Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/03/27/anthony-johnson-i-just-needed-to-win-against-dan-hardy/

Michael Bisping John Hathaway Mike Pyle Travis Browne

Overnight MMA hijinx: Lesnar chokes Fallon, Guida funnels beer

Brock Lesnar got a pop on Jimmy Fallon's show last night to promote Season 13 of The Ultimate Fighter. Fallon closed by having Brock "show him a move." The former UFC champ demonstrated a version of the rear-naked.

Next time a TV host or reporter asks to be manhandled someone needs to lock on that twister "The Korean Zombie" used on Saturday during his win over Leonard Garcia.

In other overnight news, UFC fighters drink beer and sometimes lots of it. Apparently, Clay Guida funneling some brew at Lake Havasu during an unnamed time recently is news, so TMZ posted this photo. Since the site is also following the awesome "Teen Mom" brawl from last week, we'll oblige.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Overnight-MMA-hijinx-Lesnar-chokes-Fallon-Guid?urn=mma-wp752

Carlos Condit Michael Bisping John Hathaway Mike Pyle

Vinny Magalhaes Wins, M-1 Global Makes Its Showtime Debut

by Michael David SmithA former Ultimate Fighter contestant made short work of an overmatched opponent, and two M-1 champions were crowned, as M-1 had its first live event on Showtime Friday night.

The card was an important one for M-1, marking the first time the promotion got on premium cable without needing to put Fedor Emelianenko on the card and co-promote with Strikeforce, and for the most part the fights delivered: This wasn't the kind of high-quality MMA fans get with major UFC and Strikeforce shows, but the bouts were generally entertaining.

Vinny Magalhaes, known for making it to the final of Season 8 of The Ultimate Fighter, was by far the best-known fighter on the card. Magalhaes completely outclassed Jake Doerr, taking Doerr's back on the ground easily, sinking in a body triangle and landing punches until the referee stopped the fight, handing Magalhaes a first-round TKO victory.

 

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/03/25/vinny-magalhaes-wins-m-1-global-makes-its-showtime-debut/

Dana White Cheick Kongo Dennis Hallman Tito Ortiz

UFC 132: Dominick Cruz vs. Urijah Faber 2

by Michael David SmithA bantamweight title fight between champion Dominick Cruz and top contender Urijah Faber will take place at UFC 132, July 2 in Las Vegas.

The UFC announced Saturday that Cruz vs. Faber is set for the fight card, which as the traditional Fourth of July weekend event is usually one of the biggest of the year for the UFC. The fight will likely be the main event, with a Jon Fitch-B.J. Penn rematch serving as the co-main event.

 

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/03/26/ufc-132-dominick-cruz-vs-urijah-faber-2/

Jake Shields Martin Kampmann Matt Hamill MMA Fighting

Dana White video blog UFC 127 Weigh-ins - UFC 127

Dana White video blog leading up to UFC 127 on Saturday, LIVE at 10PM/7PM ET/PT on Pay-Per-View and www.UFC.tv. For more ways to watch go to www.UFC.com

Source: http://mmalice.com/ufc-127/dana-white-video-blog-ufc-127-weigh-ins-video_f7293d030.html

Jake Shields Martin Kampmann Matt Hamill MMA Fighting

UFC 129: GSP Will Not Look Past Jake Shields

Georges St. Pierre (21-2) will defend his UFC Welterweight Title at UFC 129 at the Rogers Centre, in front of an estimated 55,000 fans and media. "Rush" has successfully defended the title five times and hasn't lost since he was upset by Matt Serra back in April of 2007 at UFC 69.  St. Pierre will face former Strikeforce champion Jake Shields (26-4-1).

There has been much hype for a fight between St. Pierre and UFC Middleweight champion Anderson "The Spider" Silva, however, as St. Pierre said at a UFC press conference in Toronto, he hasn't given much thought, if any, to the perennial super-fight.

"It would be foolish to look past Jake Shields, he poses the biggest threat to my title, he's a very well-rounded fighter and the UFC brought him in and I am glad they did because he is the number one guy for the welterweight title and as a champion, I’m a proud champion, I want to fight the best guy and I’m going to fight Jake Shields and I’m happy to do so," said St. Pierre.

Shields was also at the press conference and said that though the talks of St. Pierre vs. Silva continue, he thinks it would be a big mistake to be overlooked and that he plans on spoiling the super-fight altogether. 

That talk is warranted, Shields is on a tear through the MMA world and is one of the more recognizable names in the sport.  He is on a 15-fight winning streak and hasn't lost since 2004.  Shields credits year-round training for his success.

"I think most of the top fighters nowadays don’t take time off so I may train a little lighter for a month here or there but I’ve been pretty much training non-stop since (fighting Martin) Kampmann. My weight was so heavy so I wanted to get my weight down so I got that down, I’ve just been training, yeah, trying to pick up new skills and constantly trying to get better cause GSP is probably my toughest fight ever so I’m trying to do everything I can to be ready.”

St. Pierre also trains year-round and spoke about how it is not only a sport, but a livelihood as well.

“I’m training all the time, I’m not training because I have a fight coming up, I’m training because it’s my lifestyle and after (the Koscheck fight), I took a Sunday off and I was training a little bit.  I’m not gonna say I was training just as hard as I’m training when I’m getting ready for a fight, you know, with the same intensity, but I always train, trying to get better, my mentality is when I go in bed at night, I know I’m a better martial artist as when I wake up in the morning and that’s what I do every day.”

St. Pierre has not always been known as a knockout artist, four of his five title defenses have gone to decision but to his credit, it hasn't been for a lack of trying.

St. Pierre broke Josh Koscheck's orbital bone, nearly snapped Dan Hardy's arm in half, Thiago Alves was utterly schooled on the ground and BJ Penn was beaten so bad, there was a corner stoppage after the end of the fourth round.

St. Pierre said that it would be nice to get a knockout or a submission and that is what he will be looking for, however, he admits in this business, things don't always go according to plan.

We will have to see what happens and what questions will be answered inside the Rogers Centre on April 30.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Source: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/647498-ufc-129-gsp-will-not-look-past-jake-shields

Michael Bisping John Hathaway Mike Pyle Travis Browne

Former Olympic Gold Medalist Ishii Out of Strikeforce Debut Due to Visa Issues

Filed under: Strikeforce, News

Visa issues have knocked former Olympic judo gold medalist Satoshi Ishii out of his Strikeforce debut on April 1.

Unbeaten light-heavyweight Lorenz Larkin (8-0) will replace him in a bout against Scott Lighty, Strikeforce confirmed in a press release.

According to the promotion, Ishii was unable to secure a visa at least partly due to the natural disasters that have struck his home country of Japan over the last few weeks.

Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/03/28/former-olympic-gold-medalist-ishii-out-of-strikeforce-debut-due/

Travis Browne Randy Couture Jake Shields Martin Kampmann

UFC News: Urijah Faber vs. Dominick Cruz II Is Now Booked

It's official. Dominick Cruz (17-1) will get another shot at Urijah Faber (25-4)—but this time, he will be the defending champion instead.

Four years ago these two duked it out for the WEC featherweight title at WEC 26 in a fight that gave Cruz his only career loss to date. Faber submitted Cruz by guillotine choke in the first round at that fight.

The two fighters have since had a heated rivalry, going back and forth at one another in interviews.

"In the beginning it had nothing to do with him at all," says Cruz in an interview with MMAJunkie.com. "In the very beginning, it had to do with the fact that I wasn't even on the event poster and I was fighting him for a world title. That really got under my skin."

But now it's more then just the event poster that has gotten to Cruz.

"So, my way of getting on the poster was to sign where I signed [over Faber's picture], and it ended up pissing him off. Since then, he's been the one calling me out. He's done a million YouTube videos, went on like a media frenzy, and just done a bunch of YouTube videos running his mouth. After that, that's when everything started up. That's when I started talking because I'm not just going to let him keep running his mouth about me for no reason," Cruz says.

Faber has said a lot about Cruz. From Cruz's point of view, fans might believe much of Faber's words hold true.

"I feel like people just take what Faber says and go in stride with it and assume what he says is true—because he tries to play this perfect identity," Cruz says. "And, to be honest, I haven't been able to have quite the spotlight throughout my career that he's had—just from the timeline and the things he's done and when I did it."

"That being said, people are going to take the word of the person they know more than the person that is kind of coming out of nowhere, and I kind of came out of nowhere. So, that automatically makes me the bad guy. And if that's the guy he wants to make me out to be, go for it. But sooner or later people are going to know the truth about me, and they're going to know I'm here to fight. They're going to know I'm here to win. They're going to know I'm a good guy and a good champion," Cruz says.

The two have a while before their fight at UFC 132 on July 2nd in Las Vegas. The card is also rumored to feature a rematch between B.J. Penn and Jon Fitch and the return of Tito Ortiz against Ryan Bader.

The rivalry has boiled up to this moment—and Cruz seems excited and more then ready to face Faber again, this time hopefully standing with his arm raised at the end.

"Losing that fight a long time ago was a surreal moment—kind of like winning the UFC belt was a surreal moment," Cruz says. "So, I'm just going to kind of take it day by day as I prepare for the fight. I couldn't be more excited. I feel like every fighter wants the opportunity to fight someone they've lost to in the past, and this is like the best-case scenario for me. I've had a lot of time to make improvements to my game, and I'm excited about the fight."

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Source: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/646580-ufc-news-urijah-faber-vs-dominick-cruz-ii-is-now-booked

MMA Fighting Brock Lesnar Cain Velasquez Dana White

Jung, Hendricks, McDonald and Figueroa Pocket $55,000 Bonuses

Filed under: UFC

SEATTLE -- The UFC handed out bonuses of $55,000 each to Chan Sung Jung, Johny Hendricks, and the duo of Michael McDonald and Edwin Figueroa for their performances at UFC Fight Night 24.

Bantamweights McDonald and Figueroa pocketed the Fight of the Night bonus after a spirited three-round affair that saw everything from wild striking exchanges to several near submissions on the mat. McDonald won the bout via unanimous decision, but Figueroa's resilience -- particularly after taking the fight on short notice -- made a major impression on the fans at the Key Arena.

Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/03/27/jung-hendricks-mcdonald-and-figueroa-pocket-55-000-bonuses/

Brock Lesnar Cain Velasquez Dana White Cheick Kongo

UFC Fight Night 24 Results: What's Next for the Winners

The UFC opened up the floodgates for UFC Fight Night 24 on Saturday.

Five full under card fights were presented on Facebook, leading up to the four main event bouts scheduled on Spike TV.

For nearly five hours of consecutive action, Seattle played host to strong victories for Ultimate Fighter winner Amir Sabollah and Korean standout Chan Sung Jung, a slew of hard fought preliminary matches, Dan Hardy’s fall from grace and yet another loss for another Pride era icon.

Furthermore, what is becoming more and more evident within the current state of MMA is the continued dominance of wrestling based fighters over their striking and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu counterparts that lack experience wearing the doublets.

This phenomenon started gaining traction last year after some pivotal fights ended in the favor of the guy with the more convincing wrestling ability.

Frankie Edgar dethroned reigning lightweight champion BJ Penn with speed, footwork and wrestling—being the first opponent to take Penn down in six years at lightweight.

Chael Sonnen was two minutes away from producing the greatest upset in the sport’s history by controlling Anderson Silva from top position thanks to his wrestling.

Gray Maynard not only took Kenny Florian down at will during their No. 1 Contender bout last summer, but as a result took away his opponent’s chance at a third title shot.

Let’s not forget welterweight kingpin Georges St-Pierre’s utter schooling of Dan Hardy, who spent a blink of an eye’s worth of time standing on his two feet during their title headliner back in April.

Diego Sanchez’s wrestling inspired victory over Paulo Thiago and anytime Jon Fitch’s hand is raised in the octagon can also be attributed to a wrestling-based approach to the fight game—the list goes on and on.

As a result, wrestling has arguably become the most important asset or base for any fighter hoping to compete at a high level in the UFC.

As more and more people started to take notice, this observation—or frustration if you weren’t a collegiate wrestler currently employed by the UFC—began to fuse with growing concern over how take-downs were being rewarded by judges and dangerous fallout affecting the legitimacy of MMA judging as a whole.  

Like many events before it, the wrestling conundrum played a vital part in the outcome of UFN 24’s co and main event, underlining how crucial it is for a fighter deficient in wrestling to at least have a reliable take-down defense.

Obviously, easier to type or say than do.

All Hardy fans had to relive that familiar nightmare from his fight with GSP, while Anthony Johnson reminded everyone that the bane of Hardy’s existence as a contender in the UFC continues to be his lack of take-down defense.

On the other hand, despite garnering the same result as Hardy, Antonio Nogueira prevented Phil Davis from completing the majority of his take-down attempts.

In the end, after Davis successfully adjusted to his single-leg take-downs in the second and third round, it was just another night when elite wrestling trumped all other disciplines and proved to be the key ingredient in the winning formula.

For those on the main card who found themselves in the winner’s circle, let’s take a quick peek at where these victories will lead moving forward.

 

Chan Jung Sung, 24, (11-3) – one fight win-streak

The Korean Zombie moniker will have to rest in peace after getting dissolved by a smarter, better prepared Sung, who now appreciates the less violent paths to victory.

After Nam Pham was forced to drop out of his immediate rematch with Leonard Garcia, he was quickly replaced by Sung in a bid by UFC executives to recreate the slug-fest that was their first encounter. Nothing entertains the casual fans more than a mindless game of striking roulette.

To their disappointment though, Sung was able to showcase his willingness to evolve as a mixed martial artist, avoiding all encounters in the pocket with Garcia and getting the fight to the ground where he applied a unique “twist” rear naked choke for the win.

What’s next for Sung: Let’s give him a young featherweight prospect in Erik Koch, who is coming off an impressive knockout win over Raphael Assuncao at UFC 128.

 

Amir Sadollah, 30, (5-2) – two fight win-streak

Sadollah has made the most of his young budding MMA career, winning the Ultimate Fighter Season 7 with no prior professional record and quickly becoming one of the more technically sound welterweights on the roster.

After losing the first round to fellow TUF alumni DaMarques Johnson, Sadollah changed the momentum in the second round once he got the fight to the ground and started raining down some serious ground and pound.

The fight was stopped after Johnson verbal tapped to strikes, a testament to Sadollah’s brutal work from a dominant top position. While only having seven professional fights—all in the octagon—Sadollah shows great improvement after each outing in the UFC.

What’s next for Sadollah: A step up in competition; let’s give him the winner of Nate Diaz and Rory MacDonald.

 

Anthony Johnson, 27, (9-3) – one fight win-streak

After a long layoff of eating an array of junk food and playing video games, Johnson was back to business as usual, cutting a fictional amount of weight and imposing his athletic ability on his opponents—think again ring rust, Rumble is not hearing it.

Like many in the MMA community, Johnson had Dan Hardy convinced he wanted to partake in a stand-up war, taking the risk for the reward of a glamorous knockout win over a seasoned striker. The proclamation was believable to an extent since Johnson has crumpled fighters like Kevin Burns, Luigi Fioravanti and Yoshiyuki Yoshida for wins.

Since neither of those opponents are on the same striking level as Hardy, Johnson’s intellectual side prevailed and he decided to manipulate Hardy’s weakness and use his wrestling to hand the Brit his third consecutive loss.

What’s next for Johnson: Light-heavyweight? No, let’s give him Mike Pyle.

 

Phil Davis, 26, (9-0) – nine fight win-streak

Let’s establish a mindful consensus on where Phil Davis ranks amongst his fellow light-heavyweight brethren: he is not on the same level as Jon Jones at this point in his career.This reality should have outweighed the hype going into the Nogueira fight. Consequentially, that fight from Saturday night only strengthens that aforementioned sentiment.

To even begin breaking down his chances against the champ, Davis’ stand up has far too many holes to avoid an onslaught from an equally tested wrestler in Jones.

With that said, Davis’ unanimous decision over a seasoned veteran like Nogueira is an accomplishment and a step in the right direction, opening a path that leads to more highly touted competition. Once Davis is primed enough after facing more Nogueira quality opponents at 205 lbs, then people should talk about a title contest with Jones.

After this most recent performance, a future shot at the title down the road does not seem unreasonable, considering how scary Davis’ potential will be after sharpening his skills and testing his resolve in a few more fights. He did a great job altering his game plan after several failed double leg attempts, switching to single-leg take-down which got Lil Nog on his back.

Defeating Nogueira, impressively or not, is no doubt a feather in Davis’ cap.

What’s next for Davis: Not Jones; let’s give him the winner of Tito Ortiz and Ryan Bader.

_______________________________________________________

Be sure to check out Sprawl N Brawl Radio every Wednesday at 7 p.m. CT.

Also, go to the iTunes store to download any of our previous shows for free

Check out Vince Carey's UFN 24: What's Next for the Losers

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Source: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/647007-ufc-fight-night-24-results-whats-next-for-the-winners

Dana White Cheick Kongo Dennis Hallman Tito Ortiz

Phil Davis UFC Fight Night 24 video blog (Episode six)

Source: http://www.mmamania.com/2011/3/27/2075437/phil-davis-ufc-fight-night-24-video-blog-episode-six

Dana White Cheick Kongo Dennis Hallman Tito Ortiz

UFC Fight Night 24: What's Next for the Losers?

How secure is your favorite fighter's job?

If you're a Rogerio Nogueira or Dan Hardy fan, the outlook isn't very good, as they both extended their losing streaks at UFC Fight Night 24 this weekend.

Also going down were fan favorites such as Leonard Garcia and DaMarques Johnson, as well as the infamous Alex 'Bruce Leeroy' Caceres. 

The obvious question: What's next for the losers, a trip back to the regional circuit? Or will they get to stick around for one last chance inside the Octagon?

Begin Slideshow

Source: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/646413-ufc-fight-night-24-whats-next-for-the-losers

John Hathaway Mike Pyle Travis Browne Randy Couture

Shogun Rua Says Jon Jones Deserves to be the Favorite at UFC 128 - UFC 128

UFC light heavyweight champion Shogun Rua says that his younger counterpart, Jon Jones, deserves to be the favorite over him at UFC 128.

Source: http://mmalice.com/ufc-128/shogun-rua-says-jon-jones-deserves-to-be-the-favorite-at-ufc-128-video_653ee6895.html

Matt Hamill MMA Fighting Brock Lesnar Cain Velasquez

UFC Fight Night 24 results: Amir Sadollah forces DaMarques Johnson to tap to strikes

Source: http://www.mmamania.com/2011/3/26/2074476/ufc-fight-night-24-results-amir-sadollah-forces-damarques-johnson-to

Matt Hamill MMA Fighting Brock Lesnar Cain Velasquez

MFC 29 Press Conference - MFC 29

The Fight Network reports from the MFC 29 press conference at Caesars Windsor in Windsor, Ontario ahead of the Canadian promotion's debut in the province on April 8.

Source: http://mmalice.com/mfc-29/mfc-29-press-conference-video_5396f15c3.html

Travis Browne Randy Couture Jake Shields Martin Kampmann

Barnett needs to take care of business before Ratner and UFC let him fight in June

One of the major unresolved issues from the UFC purchase of Strikeforce is the status of Josh Barnett in the heavyweight Grand Prix. The rumor flying around UFC 128 was that Shane Carwin would be inserted into the tourney and Barnett would be removed.

Barnett presents a headache to both Strikeforce and its new parent company Zuffa because he's still not officially licensed to fight in the U.S. Barnett refuses to cooperate with California, the state that originally handed down the suspension because of a positive test back in July of 2009. He served a year penalty, but still hasn't shown his face before the California commission. The hearing has been delayed four times and Barnett no-showed a hearing on Feb. 22.

Yahoo!'s lead MMA writer Kevin Iole joined ESPN1100 in Las Vegas to tell us how the UFC is likely to handle Barnett's licensing situation. Iole suggested that Barnett is going to run into trouble with Marc Ratner and UFC brass if he doesn't go through the proper to steps to get re-licensed.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Barnett-needs-to-take-care-of-business-before-Ra?urn=mma-wp533

Brock Lesnar Cain Velasquez Dana White Cheick Kongo

UFC 131: Shane Carwin Will Make a Comeback Due To Jon Olav Einemo Call Out

Shane Carwin (12-1) is due to make his return to the octagon at UFC 131, meeting Jiu-Jitsu black belt Jon Olav Einemo (6-1) on the fight card set for June 11 in Vancouver.

Dana White revealed this on a radio call yesterday with the Seattle Times, where he also was adamant that Einemo, who hasn’t fought in nearly five years, asked to fight the knockout machine.

Perhaps the Norwegian saw Brock Lesnar’s submission via arm triangle as an easy path to victory, with half of his wins coming from arm locks.

Understandably so, with Carwin looking as effective as a deserted turtle when put on his back against a man with a similar wrestling pedigree in Brock Lesnar.

Nevertheless, the fight should make for an explosive encounter, with the two competitors being well renowned for not leaving their fights in the hands of the judges.

All 12 of Carwin’s wins haven’t made it out of the first round, a stat which is shared with Einemo with regards to his six wins. Should the fight go out of the first round, we could be looking at two very tired men, with both fighters’ singular losses being based on their opponents taking them further than the opening round.

In this bout, we will see Carwin swing for the fences, as we usually do, while Einemo looks for the take down.

Ring rust shouldn’t be a viable excuse for a poor performance out of Carwin, due to his ADCC 2003 champ opponent having spent a far more significant time away from competition.

Einemo’s only loss came to Fabricio Werdum in 2006, when the Strikeforce contender won a unanimous decision. Carwin’s came last year when he was submitted by then UFC champion, Brock Lesnar, in Round 2.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Source: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/644028-ufc-131-carwin-will-make-comback-due-to-einemo-call-out

Michael Bisping John Hathaway Mike Pyle

UFC buys Strikeforce presser audio: The fates of Barnett, Daley and female fighting still up in the air

Lorenzo Fertitta, Dana White and Scott Coker addressed the media today for 40 minutes about the UFC's shocking purchase of Strikeforce that was announced over the weekend. They answered tons of questions and yet many remained unanswered . You can't blame the three-some, the future for Strikeforce under the UFC umbrella is still very much in the works.

Dana White was asked about fighters who been jettisoned from the promotion and aren't particularly big fans of his, like Paul Daley and Josh Barnett.The UFC president was diplomatic in his response.

"There's a lot of people on that side of the fence that aren't big fans of mine. We can still do business, Scott Coker is the guy who's going to be running the day-to-day and doing everything. They're never going to have to deal with me," White said. "It's not� a big deal. Any of the other guys they can deal with Lorenzo. If you don't like me that doesn't mean we can't do business."

Fertitta chimed in:

"At the end of the day it's important for everybody to stay professional," Fertitta said. "These guys are professional athletes. They have signed contracts. We're going to live up to our obligations and honor out obligations. I think it's important for them to honor and live up to their obligations as well."

He said the same thing during an MMAFighting.com interview released on Saturday about his contentious relationship with Strikeforce's television partner Showtime.

White isn't a big fan of female fighting. His thoughts on female fighting has not changed.

"They're the same as they were before," White chuckled. "That's Scott's deal, not mine."

Other key points covered included:

*According to Fertitta, Strikeforce's Showtime deal runs until 2014. Some media reports said the deal was finished as soon as early 2012.

*Strikeforce cards will fall under the unified rules. Currently, elbows to a grounded opponent are banned. That should change in time for Apr. 9 Strikeforce card in San Diego.

*Coker, the current Strikeforce CEO, does NOT have an equity stake now in the UFC

*The UFC will give its input on the Showtime broadcasts, but the network has final say on all production decisions. That includes the announcing teams currently calling the fights for the pay network.

*There is a possibility that the UFC might recommend that the conclusion of Strikeforce's heavyweight Grand Prix is a pay-per-view event.

We've also posted parts two, three and four.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/UFC-buys-Strikeforce-presser-audio-The-fates-of?urn=mma-wp158

Brock Lesnar Cain Velasquez Dana White Cheick Kongo

Aoki is back in the states while Irvin scurries off to Europe

Strikeforce is putting together a fascinating card in San Diego. The April 9th event was originally was supposed to feature part two of the heavyweight Grand Prix's first round. Because of licensing issues with Josh Barnett, those fights were moved to Dallas in June.

Scott Coker has thrown together an excellent card in its place. Nick Diaz will defend his 170 title against Paul Daley and Gilbert Melendez puts his 155 title on the line versus Tatsuya Kawajiri. The latest addition to the card is former top five lightweight Shinya Aoki. MMA-Japan.com had the original news. 

The infamous Japanese submission artist will battle Lyle Beerbohm. It's an interesting booking with Beerbohm (16-1) having just suffered his first career loss at the hands of Pat Healy. That said, Aoki (26-5) is also coming off a devastating loss at the hands of Yuichiro Nagashima. That was the bizarre fight fought under varying rules at Dynamite!! 2010. The first round featured K-1 rules. Aoki drop kicked and flopped his way through those three minutes. In round two, the MMA portion of the fight, Aoki got drilled in the opening seconds by a knee and went night night (4:05 mark).

Aoki hits the ground in Southern California in less than four weeks, while James Irvin has to leave the state and country for that matter to get a fight. Irvin, who has multiple positive tests for banned substances, is expected to fight in Poland on Mar. 19.

If he goes through with the fight against Mamed Khalidov, it could effectively end his fighting career in the U.S. Irvin was dumped from this week's Shark Fights 14 card in Texas when it was revealed he tested positive again for a banned substance back in December after a win in Calfornia over Jorge Oliveira. He is suspended through this December. Irvin's checkered history with positive tests and injuries is unrivaled in MMA.  

Tip via Cage Potato

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Aoki-is-back-in-the-states-while-Irvin-scurries-?urn=mma-330892

Randy Couture Jake Shields Martin Kampmann Matt Hamill

Exclusive pictures from Jon Jones’ belt-winning victory

Jon Jones is the new UFC light heavyweight champion, the youngest in UFC history. He did it by dismantling a legend who had also been a young champion. Check out pictures from his historic win by Tracy Lee.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Exclusive-pictures-from-Jon-Jones-belt-winning-?urn=mma-wp461

Cheick Kongo Dennis Hallman Tito Ortiz Dan Hardy

UFC 128 Results: Give Jim Miller a Title Shot Now!

The UFC lightweight division just got a lot more interesting with Jim Miller’s exciting knockout over Kamal Shalorus at UFC 128. With the win, Miller improved his UFC record to 9-1 and proved that he is deserving of a shot at Frankie Edgar’s 155 pound crown.

Miller brought an 11-1 record to the UFC when he debuted at UFC 89 when he faced French fighter, David Baron. Baron was a Pride veteran who holds two victories over former welterweight No. 1 contender, Dan Hardy. The tightly contested battle was eventually ended when Miller submitted Barron with a rear naked choke in the first round.

After another victory at UFC Fight Night 16: Fight for the Troops over Matt Wiman, matchmakers decided that Miller was ready for undefeated lightweight Gray Maynard.

The two young up-and-comers at the time, Miller and Maynard, entered the cage with a combined 19-1-1 record in their careers. The fight was the opening bout of the UFC 96: Jackson vs. Jardine event in May 2009.

Miller was in just his third UFC fight and hadn’t faced an elite level talent like Maynard in the company yet. Whether it was nerves or just Maynard being the superior fighter, Miller lost a clear unanimous decision in a fight he simply did not seem ready to take.

Gray Maynard is generally known as being the type of fighter who brings his opponent to the ground and uses ground-and-pound to keep superior position and try to finish the fight. But in this fight, Miller was the one looking to bring the fight to the ground after Maynard had established in the first round that he was the superior striker.

Fighters are often never the same following a discouraging loss like the one Miller took that night. However, the New Jersey native would not be held down.

Miller bounced right back, winning a unanimous decision over The Ultimate Fighter 6 winner, Mac Danzig. The one-sided beatdown was arguably the best performance of Miller’s career as a disgustingly bloodied Danzig had no answer for anything Miller tried to do.

Though Mac Danzig wasn’t considered a top contender, the victory was an important one for Miller to get back in the “win” column and prove that the loss to Maynard did not mentally affect him.

Since the loss to Maynard, Jim Miller had won six straight fights, bringing his record to 19-2 for his fight against the undefeated Kamal Shalorus at UFC 128.

In a fight that many believe should have been awarded with the “Fight of the Night” bonus, Miller and Shalorus stood and exchanged punches for two rounds. Miller used superior technique and timing to pick apart his Iranian opponent before landing a punishing uppercut followed by a knee that dropped him to the ground.

With the victory, Miller moved to 9-1 in the UFC and made his desire for a title shot very obvious in a post-fight interview with Joe Rogan.

“That’s seven in a row. Seven in a row in arguably the toughest division in the UFC, “ exclaimed Miller. “I’m ready. I’m ready for it.”

The No. 1 contendership is expected to be on the line at The Ultimate Fighter 13 Finale when Clay Guida will face the last WEC Lightweight Champion, Anthony “Showtime” Pettis.

Pettis was originally scheduled to face the winner of Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard, but his title shot was postponed when Edgar and Maynard fought to a draw at UFC 125.

But regardless of who wins that fight, a case could very easily be made that Jim Miller deserves the title shot over either man. A seven-fight win streak in the UFC is something that cannot be taken lightly, especially when he is fighting other very talented fighters.

UFC President, Dana White, agrees and recently bragged about Miller to FanHouse’s Ariel Helwani.

“I love that kid man, he’s a pit bull,” White said. “He’s always in great shape and he keeps improving and getting better. The kid is in a nasty division so we’ll see what happens.”

Though White stopped short at saying Miller was next in line for a title shot, the numbers point to that as being a fairly realistic possibility.

Miller’s detractors will say that he doesn’t deserve the title shot based on the fact that his only two losses have come at the hands of the two men who will be fighting for the title on May 28. But that type of thinking has been wrong, time and time again.

Imagine if Georges St-Pierre never got a rematch with Matt Hughes. Imagine if Brock Lesnar never got a rematch with Frank Mir. Imagine if BJ Penn never got a rematch with Jens Pulver.

Fighters evolve, and Jim Miller has proven his evolution as a fighter with the success he has had both on the ground and standing up since his losses to Maynard and Edgar.

The UFC can keep putting off his title shot if they want to, but there may not be another person in the world at 155 pounds, aside from Edgar or Maynard, who can beat Jim Miller. 

UFC 128: Shogun Rua vs. Jon Jones: Results, News and More

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Source: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/643602-ufc-128-results-give-jim-miller-a-title-shot-now

Dan Hardy Carlos Condit Michael Bisping John Hathaway

Kurt Pellegrino's secret? The Shake Weight, of course

Kurt Pellegrino switched to unconventional methods when training for his UFC 128 bout with Gleison Tibau. He's using everyone's favorite informercial workout tool: the Shake Weight. This video is not safe for work if your employer has a problem with you watching videos that appear to be just wrong.

It's the outfit that really makes it work.

We'll see next Saturday if Pellegrino's training has paid off. His bout with Tibau as well as Ricardo Almeida vs. Mike Pyle will air on Facebook before the Spike prelims and the pay-per-view. 

Speaking of Facebook, you can follow Cagewriter there. Do it!

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Kurt-Pellegrino-s-secret-The-Shake-Weight-of-c?urn=mma-331227

Brock Lesnar Cain Velasquez Dana White Cheick Kongo

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

John Hathaway Mike Pyle Travis Browne Randy Couture

Friends no more: Evans accepts immediate title shot against Jones

UFC president Dana White has long believed friendships can't get in the way of fighting goals.

Rashad Evans must agree. Just a few minutes after Jon Jones crushed Mauricio "Shogun" Rua to take the UFC light heavyweight title, Evans climbed into the Octagon and accepted the next shot at the young star.

The big issue? Generally, fighters from the same training camp, don't want to fight each other. Evans and Jones both work with trainer Greg Jackson in Albuquerque, NM.

When Evans was mentioned by UFC analyst Joe Rogan and then showed in the Octagon on the big screens around The Prudential Center in Newark, N.J., the crowd booed loudly.

That show of anger paled in comparison to the look on Jones' face. The introduction of Evans in the cage seemed to rain on Jones' parade a bit. He got just a few seconds to celebrate the culmination of years of hard work and then had to deal with the emotion of facing a training partner sometime later this year.

"We are teammates. I've sparred with him and he's sparred with me," Jones said as his voiced cracked. "This my dream and this is everything I believe in. And I know God wouldn't lead me this far, to leave me, so I gotta do exactly what I have to do."

Evans, nattily attired in a suit, walked to the microphone with a smirk on his face.

"I guess you should never say never," joked Evans.

Before UFC 128, with the possibility of Jones winning the title, Evans and his younger training partner agreed they wouldn't fight. That all changed in the last 10 days when Jones said he was tired of answering questions about Evans and suggested his training partner wasn't in his corner.

"[...] Rashad is not in my mind, he's not in my being, he has absolutely zero to do with my heart and who I am right now," Jones said during the UFC 128 prefight press conference. "[...] I have a lot of people outside of Rashad who I can draw energy and power from and they'll all be with me."

That opened the door for a fight in the future. Evans responded by saying Jones was being childish.

"That does sound a little bit cold-blooded. Jon's a young guy and when you're a young guy sometimes you talk a little too fast for your brain to keep up. I don't think it's acceptable at all. I don't think it's something I'd say.�It sounds like he wants to fight, huh? Those sound like fighting words," Evans told Larry Pepe of Pro MMA Radio. ".[...] Sometimes when you open your mouth you show what you're afraid of more than anything. I don't know why he has such an adverse response like that to me. I've never challenged him or made him feel like he should do that sort of thing. It sounds to me ? if I was out of the situation ? that he was feeling insecure about me. You can't just expect to not talk about a situation where you stepped in for a friend and training partner in a title fight who was injured. You can't take it personal… That sounds like a baby."

Tonight, Evans confirmed the belt trumps the friendship.

"We train together and you got that strap, so I gotta go after it," Evans said as the crowd booed.

Evans was originally scheduled to fight Rua at UFC 128, but suffered a knee injury just before Jones' fight at UFC 126 in early February. The UFC, faced with no one elite to challenged Rua six weeks later, turned to the raw Jones. It sounds like Evans believes Jones cut in front of him. When Jones first joined the Jackson's camp, Evans was told a head-to-head fight would never be an issue. Things have changed.

Now the question is, who leaves the camp?

Jones only began training with Jackson in 2010. Evans is one of the camp's original high-level members dating back to 2005. In that Pepe interview before the fight, it sounded like Evans had already made up his mind and will be working with Grudge Training Center in Denver if he had to face Jones.

It sets up an intriguing matchup from a mental and physical standpoint.

Evans has to know the champ's game as well as anyone in the division. At 32 years old, he may also be better equipped to handle the emotional side of the fight. That said, Jones, 23, didn't look one bit nervous last night in the biggest fight of his life. Evans also has the gift of gab. He's got a real knack for getting under the skin of his opponents.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Friends-no-more-Evans-accepts-immediate-title-s?urn=mma-wp390

Travis Browne Randy Couture Jake Shields Martin Kampmann

Marloes Coenen Post-Fight vs Liz Carmouche - Strikeforce

With nothing but respect for Liz Carmouche, the challenger who took her through four tough rounds, Strikeforce women's champion Marloes Coenen talks about defending her belt in a post-fight interview with Heidi Androl and Showtime Sports.

Source: http://mmalice.com/strikeforce/marloes-coenen-post-fight-vs-liz-carmouche-video_86877253a.html

Martin Kampmann Matt Hamill MMA Fighting Brock Lesnar

GSP interview: The 170 champ says he’s not afraid of Silva

Georges St. Pierre is less than seven weeks away from another huge fight where he will defend his UFC welterweight title. He'll battle Jake Shields in front of 55,000 at Toronto's Rogers Centre, yet all people can ask about is the possible superfight down the road against UFC middleweight champ Anderson Silva. GSP appeared on Versus during UFC on Versus 3 and said it's not a definite that he's taking the fight.

The reaction from many? St. Pierre is "afraid" to take on Silva.

We hunted down St. Pierre while he's training in London to answer the claims that he fears a Silva fight.

"I'm not afraid of nobody in the world," St. Pierre said. "I'm a martial artist. If it happens [with] the right timing and everything, I fight whoever they want. I can fight everyone in the world. I don't mind."

Thanks to Mission Skincare for helping Cagewriter track down GSP. St. Pierre,�along with David Wright, Steve Nash, Serena Williams, Amanda Beard, Alonzo Mourning and Sergio Garcia, is part of the Mission Athlete Care team. Mission is offering a Yahoo readers 30 percent off their MISSION orders. Just use the code GSP4VIP30. All the profits from online sales go to the "M Foundation" in its efforts to support young athletes.

St. Pierre was strong in his denial that he's shying away from a Silva fight.

"That's not what I said. It's a complete re-orientation of my career. People are saying crazy stuff: 'Oh, he just has to gain 30 pounds and take the fight and fight him in three months.' I can't get 30 pounds in three months. It would take a lot more than that, if I want to go up in weight class," said St. Pierre.

There's a lot that goes into the decision to jump from 170 to 185 pounds.

"Plus, Silva fights at light heavyweight as well. So he walks around at … he's probably 40 pounds heavier than I am," St. Pierre said. "So if I fight this fight, it might be at a catch weight. If it happens."

GSP's career is rolling. He's got some big-time endorsement deals. What happens if he leaves the welterweight division and becomes an ordinary fighter at 185?

"I've had a lot of success at 170. If I move to 185, I need to talk to my sponsors, my trainers. It's a complete change of life," St. Pierre said. "Do I want to take the risk, maybe yes. It's gonna be a great challenge. Maybe, no. But I have to talk with my trainers."

Sorry for the audio quality. GSP's phone connection in London wasn't great.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/GSP-interview-The-170-champ-says-he-s-not-afrai?urn=mma-wp41

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