Sunday, December 28, 2008

UFC 92 Upsets,Upsets,Upsets


I think most my friends who read this blog seen the show last night. So no worry of spoilers.
UFC92 did not disappoint even tho I was wrong on every one of my picks last night.

Rampage vs Silva

Opting to fight without the customary touch of gloves, these fierce rivals engaged almost immediately, with Jackson stalking and Silva looking to counter. A minute in, the crowd started chanting for Silva, followed shortly after by a chant for Rampage, and both men circled, neither wanting to make a fight-ending mistake. That mistake would come with under two minutes left though, as Silva came in wide with a left hook and ate one in return, sending the Brazilian down to the canvas. A follow-up from Jackson was mere window dressing as referee Yves Lavigne intervened at the 3:21 mark.

Nog vs Mir

I was not a Mir fan really before last night But I am now.
Mir was busy with his kicks to start the fight, and he tossed in a jarring right uppercut for good measure, eventually taking the fight to the mat. After some ground strikes, Mir even chose to let the fight go back to the feet, so confident was he in his striking. Once standing, Mir continued to score effectively, eventually dropping Nogueira with a straight left with under two minutes left. Again, Mir followed up briefly before stepping back and standing the fight up again. By the closing moments of the round, Mir was loose and looking like he was having fun as he put Nogueira down just as the round ended.
Needing to get back in the fight, Nogueira came out aggressively in the second, only to continue getting tagged by Mir. And less than two minutes into the round, lowered the boom with two left hooks to the jaw that put the Brazilian legend on the mat again. A follow up barrage was a mere formality, as referee Herb Dean rescued Nogueira from further punishment at 1:54 of round two.

Now it’s on to the biggest rematch of 2009, a unification battle between Mir and the man he submitted in February of 2008, current UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar.

Evans vs Griffin


Both fighters got their ranges in the opening minute, with Evans opening up minute number two with a haymaker that likely would have ended the fight had it landed. But it didn’t, and the two combatants continued to circle each other at close range, adding tension to each exchange, as both fighters had their moments of success. Griffin and especially had success with low kicks, and though Evans was the faster puncher of the two, he appeared to be having difficulty getting inside on his taller opponent.

Griffin continued to stalk in round two, briefly jarring Evans and pinning him against the fence. The flurry got the crowd chanting “For-rest, For-rest”, but it also re-focused Evans, who now made a concerted effort to close the distance on Griffin. Each step closer caused Evans to pay a price though, whether with kicks low or punches high. But when Evans
did score, with a crisp 1-2 or a thudding body kick, it drew a roar. It was Griffin ending the round with the hardest shot, a right to the head at the bell.

In round three, Evans finally found his opening as he grabbed one of Griffin’s kicks and sent the champion to the canvas with a flurry of punches. Evans tried to finish matters on the ground, but Griffin weathered the storm and quickly recovered. Evans remained in control on the ground though, periodically erupting with hard strikes to the head. Griffin appeared to take the shots well until one ferocious barrage that began with a right hand stunned Griffin and put him out, with referee Steve Mazzagatti halting the contest at 2:46 of round three.

Friday, December 26, 2008

Justin Eilers Killed


This is very sad news.

When officers arrived on the scene they found that an adult male, later confirmed by Cox as Eilers, had been shot and killed. James Robert Malec, 48, was taken into custody and charged with second-degree murder.

Details surrounding the incident have not yet been revealed by police, but sources close to Eilers indicate that Malec is the boyfriend of Eilers' mother. He and Eilers reportedly got into some sort of argument and Malec allegedly produced a gun and shot Eilers.

Emergency workers attempted to revive Eilers, but were unsuccessful, according to KTRV.

The incident is still under investigation by the Canyon County Sheriff's Office
Cox said Eilers had gathered with relatives for the holidays, but tensions escalated with an ex-girlfriend, also in attendance. Eilers was asked to leave the residence, but was said to have refused and began throwing dishes and other objects in protest. The home’s owner was then said to have pulled a gun on Eilers and shot him in the chest after a brief verbal confrontation.

Eilers’ ex-girlfriend, mother, and young son were said to have been in the room at the time of the shooting.

This is terrible news and my condolences to the Eilers family. Eilers was a credible professional MMA fighter who competed for a title at the highest level of the sport.
He had not fought in the UFC since 2006 after losses to Vera and Arlovski. He last fought in EliteXC this past july.

Thursday, December 25, 2008

MMA Live Episode 33

Thursday, December 18, 2008

Former UFC/IFL/WEC Middleweight Justin Levens and Wife Found Dead


Gossip blog TMZ.com is reporting that UFC, WEC, and IFL middleweight veteran Justin Levens was found dead along with his wife in their home in Laguna Niguel, CA as a result of gunshot wounds. Police are investigating the death as a possible murder/suicide:

TMZ has learned former UFC fighter Justin Levens and his wife were found dead from gunshot wounds in a home in Laguna Niguel, Calif. earlier today.

Sherdog's Loretta Hunt spoke with the Orange County Sheriff's Department:

“Preliminarily, until they finish the investigation, it is being looked at as a murder-suicide,” said Lt. V. Wilson.

Wilson said deputies and investigators were dispatched to the residence Wednesday after being informed of the deaths. Wilson would not identify who had found the bodies and/or contacted authorities, though a CBS 2 online report said the mother of the deceased female had discovered the bodies and called police, who arrived around 2:30 p.m. PST.

An investigation into the deaths was opened on Wednesday, which Wilson described as “ongoing.”

Levens was 9-8 in his MMA career, fighting such notable names as Jorge Santiago and Evan Tanner in the UFC, Vladimir Matyushenko in the IFL, and Scott Smith in the WEC.

Levens formerly trained under UFC legend Marco Ruas but was recently based out of Erik Paulson's CSW camp.

Monday, December 15, 2008

Pat Miletich destroys Thomas Denny




It took a couple days for the video to hit the 'nets, but here's the second round of Pat Miletich's win over Thomas "Wildman" Denny at Adrenaline MMA 2 last Thursday. Though it was Pat's first knockout victory in over seven years, you'd think it's how he earns his living. Watch as Miletich knocks Denny's marbles out with a slicing right hook at the 0:55 mark, then closes the coffin with another one. The way Denny's head bounced off the mat couldn't have helped either.

Bobby Lashley Wins MMA Debut




Former WWE star and American Top Team student Bobby Lashley made his pro MMA debut at Mixed Fighting Alliance's "There Will Be Blood" event in Miami on Saturday night, needing just 41 seconds to open up a cut on opponent Joshua Franklin's forehead large enough for the fight to be stopped. It was an anti-climactic ending for the audience, but when the gash is shown at the video's 1:52 mark, you'll probably agree that it was the right thing to do. Maybe next time Lashley will be able to give fans a better sense of what he's capable of.

Headlining the MFA event was a fight between former UFC stars Jeff Monson and Ricco Rodriguez, with Monson pulling out a unanimous decision win. The Snowman is reportedly considering a move back to the UFC — and may face Cheick Kongo in his return match — but will first head to Japan for a fight in Sengoku. Rodriguez's loss to Monson snapped a five-fight winning streak; he has fought nine times in 2008, making this year the most active of his career.

Sunday, December 14, 2008

Junie Browning vs Dave Kaplan - UFC TUF 8 Finale Video




I hate to say it but I really was impressed with Junie.

“The Ultimate Fighter 8″ Finale LIVE Results and Bonuses


The UFC has officially wrapped their eighth season of their popular reality TV show,”The Ultimate Fighter.” The finale took place tonight at the Pearl inside of the Palms Hotel and Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada. Ryan Bader defeated Vinicius Magalhaes in the light heavyweight finals, and Efrain Escudero was victorious in the lightweight final over Phillipe Nover. Bader and Nover each earned themselves a six-figure contract with the UFC. The UFC also rewarded four fighters with $25,000 bonuses for their special performances.

Preliminary Bouts:

Rolando Delgado Defeated John Polakowski via Submission (Guillotine Choke) at 2:18 in the 1stRound
Shane Nelson Defeated George Roop via Split Decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Tom Lawlor Defeated Kyle Kingsbury via Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Eliot Marshall Defeated Jules Bruchez via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at 1:27 in the 1stRound
Krzysztof Soszynski Defeated Shane Primm via Submission (Kimura) at 3:27 in the 2ndRound

Main Bouts:

Junie Browning Defeated Dave Kaplan via Submission (Armbar) at 1:32 in the 2ndRound
Wilson Gouveia Defeated Jason MacDonald via TKO (Punches) at 2:18 in the 1stRound
Anthony Johnson Defeated Kevin Burns via TKO (Kick) :28 in the 3rdRound
Ryan Bader Defeated Vinicius Magalhaes via TKO (Punches) at 2:18 in the 1stRound
Efrain Escudero Defeated Phillipe Nover via Unanimous Decision (29-28, All Three Judges)

Fight Bonuses:

Fight of the Night:
Junie Browning and Dave Kaplan ($25,000/each)

Knockout of the Night:
Anthony Johnson ($25,000)

Submission of the Night:
Krzysztof Soszynski ($25,000)

Friday, December 12, 2008

WOW Ouch! Hill out for up to 18 Months


UFC lightweight Corey Hill underwent surgery for a broken leg Thursday morning at Cape Fear Valley Medical Center in Fayetteville, North Carolina. The injury was sustained in the second round of his bout against Dale Hartt on Wednesday’s UFC Fight for The Troops card at the Crown Coliseum.

Expected to be out of action anywhere from a year to 18 months, Hill is currently resting in the hospital with his family. The former Ultimate Fighter standout is handling the injury well and is in good spirits a day after suffering the clean break to his right leg while throwing a kick which was blocked by Hartt.

I feel for this kid being out for so long at this point in his career. It seems the UFC has pulled the video of this fight from they're website. The picture says it all tho folks.

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Henderson/Franklin Winner Will Coach “TUF 9”


After much debate, UFC president Dana White stated at yesterday’s UFC Fight Night 16 weigh-ins that the winner of the light heavyweight matchup between Dan Henderson and Rich Franklin will coach opposite Michael Bisping on next season’s “The Ultimate Fighter.” Both fighters have gone on record stating that they were not too interested in being a coach on the show.

Franklin, who just made a successful return to the light heavyweight division, felt that since he already coached on the show’s second season, he wasn’t keen on the prospect of doing it again.

He also stated that it was the UFC that convinced him to move back up to light heavyweight, as there were more opportunities there for him to extend his career. Neither he nor the UFC wanted him to serve as a gatekeeper to Anderson Silva’s title.

Henderson will be making his second appearance in the 205-pound division for the UFC. He lost to Quinton “Rampage” Jackson at UFC 75 in a light heavyweight title unification bout.

Henderson and Franklin will square off at UFC 93 at the O2 Arena in Dublin, Ireland on January 17th.

Big night for AKA


Over the past few weeks, the American Kickboxing Academy and the UFC have been in the headlines quite a bit. The beef between the two companies got so bad that UFC president Dana White states that he refuses to work with any fighters that are from the San Jose based camp. Thankfully for the UFC and their fans, two AKA fighters were allowed to co-headline last night’s “UFC Fight Night 16: Fight for the Troops” event, as Josh Koscheck and Mike Swick unleashed two devastating knockouts.

Before the fight, Swick predicted that he would be able to finish Jonathan Goulet before the final bell. He just didn’t say that he was going to do it just after the opening bell. It took Swick all of 33 seconds to knockout the crafty French-Canadian, bringing all of the military fans at Fort Bragg to their feet.

“I’m healthy now,” said the 29-year-old Swick. “I had an (elbow) injury. My right arm wasn’t where it should have been. I’ve got my right arm back. I’m in great shape. I feel really confident right now.”

With the impressive knockout, Swick now brings his overall record to 13-2, and is an impressive 8-1 inside the Octagon.

Then there was Josh Koscheck WOW he has never looked so good. Koscheck showed the MMA world that he is no longer just a wrestler turned MMA fighter. Throughout the 1stRound, he landed one punch after another, eventually knocking Yoshiyuki Yoshida out cold at 2:15 of the opening round.

“I knew he was looking for the overhand right a lot so I kind of focused on throwing straight punches,” Koscheck stated after the fight.

The UFC has settled their issues with two of AKA fighters, Jon Fitch and Swick, however the latest reports indicate that Koscheck has yet to sign the lifetime exclusivity agreement for the UFC’s upcoming “Undisputed” video game.

The UFC is requiring that all of their fighters, including the organization’s biggest stars, sign the agreement. To date, almost all fighters have been compliant.

If Koscheck remains defiant, Wednesday likely marked his last Octagon appearance. If that ends up being the case, then that is certainly the way you want to go out.

Saturday, December 6, 2008

Affliction's Day of Reckoning Promo

K-1 World GP Ends in Disqualification




Despite getting off to a great start, last night's K-1 World GP Finals ended in bizarre fashion, with Badr Hari getting disqualified for illegally taking Remy Bonjasky down and then attacking him while he was under the referee's care, finally stomping on his head before being shoved off by the ref. At first Hari looked like he'd just receive a yellow card, but with Bonjasky complaining of double-vision, the bout was stopped and Bonjasky declared the winner via disqualification.

Upon further review, the illegal blows don't look so bad. But that's easy for me to say since I didn't take them. Bonjasky's the guy who fought his way into the finals and was taking it to Hari for much of the first round, so you have to give him the benefit of the doubt as a tough bastard who would've continued if he could.

You hate to see it end that way, especially considering what a great show it was up until that point. If you're wondering how Kimbo Slice did in his commentating duties, you can check out the reply on HDNet tonight.

Friday, December 5, 2008

Fedor and The UFC - The Truth exclusive



The Truth Revealed On UFC and Fedor in an exclusive interview with M-1 Global's President and Fedor's Manager Vadim Finkelstein
.... Fedor would fight Brock Lesnar tomorrow

Dave Kaplan Talks Junie Browning and Gives Mir vs. Noguiera Prediction



In my opinon both Kaplan and Browning's skills are over rated.

Thursday, December 4, 2008

Junie Browning Exclusive interview with Cagepotato


Thanks to Cagepotato

People have been kicked off The Ultimate Fighter for less than what we saw Junie Browning do this season, but through it all he managed to stay on the show and endure to the semifinals. After his loss to Efrain Escudero last night, Browning talks with Cage Potato about the person he was and the fighter he’s become, and he promises that we’ll all know the difference when we see him on next Saturday night’s Spike TV finale.

CagePotato.com: So after everything that happened, how surprised were you that Dana White didn’t kick you off the show?

Real surprised, actually. Especially after what Dana said the first time and what happened. But I’m sure everyone wanted to see me get my ass kicked, so that was a good reason to keep me on.

Were you knowingly sabotaging yourself and trying to get kicked off?

It was more the fact that I didn’t really care. I wasn’t ready to fight. I knew I was out of shape. I wasn’t prepared to fight so I just didn’t really care about the consequences. I would have rather just gone home rather than embarrass myself on TV. That’s not necessarily the way I look at it now, but that’s the way I was thinking then. It’s not a good way to look at it, but that’s how it felt.

You say you weren’t ready to fight, but in the beginning you seemed to be doing pretty well. Why do you think you weren’t ready?

The beginning of the fight, that wasn’t pretty well for me. That was horrible. I knew it at the time, while I was fighting, that it was horrible. I felt like every day I was on the show I was getting worse. I just wasn’t fighting the same. I wasn’t fighting explosive like I normally do.

If it was just that you were out of shape, why didn’t you spend more time beforehand working on your cardio so you would be ready?


Because you have to have people to help you. I don’t care what anyone says, you can’t really push yourself to do your own cardio. People who say that just don’t know anything about fighting. You can only push yourself so hard, cardio-wise, doing it by yourself. You need someone pushing you.

And you’re saying you didn’t get any help with that from Frank Mir or the other coaches?

Yeah. I mean, Shane Nelson was pretty much the only one helping me. Everyone else was just lazy as shit.

Now that you’ve seen what Mir said about you, what are your feelings towards him?

I don’t hold nothing against him. I could tell he was pretty disappointed I lost. But I don’t think he should have too much of an opinion since he wasn’t there helping out to begin with. He was sitting down in the corner, saying he was just going to watch because I wasn’t listening to him. Of course I can’t listen to you when I’ve never worked with you. You have to have some kind of familiar voice. He was never there in practice helping me with anything.

So now that you’ve got a spot fighting on the finale, what are you doing differently to get ready for it?

I’m killing myself. I came out here to Vegas to live and train at Xtreme Couture and when I come out to fight on the finale, I’m not even going to look the same. I’m going to look different, I’m going to fight different, and people are going to see. They’re going to see the improvement. They’re going to see why I should have been in the finals.

How has it been for you training at Xtreme Couture?

It’s been awesome. It’s like the complete opposite. Like when I used to have a hard time finding good training partners, here there are so many good guys, especially at my weight. I’m daily just trying to survive. Everyone is so good here, and they’re all trying to help me. They realize I’m not the same as I was on the show. They’re all cool with me and they all want to help me. I got hooked up with Shawn Tompkins and I’ve been staying with him. I just go back and forth to the gym every day and that’s about it.

From the show it seems like everyone wants to help you, except you don’t want to help yourself. Like you sabotage yourself at every opportunity, even when people keep giving you chances. Is that accurate?

Yeah, on the show, but it’s not like that now. People try to help me now and I take full advantage of it. People don’t take all the other stuff into consideration when they look at the show. You got cameras in your face, you’re stuck in a house with a bunch of penises. There are no girls, no nothing. I’m sure getting laid a few times would have helped me a lot on the show.

There are other factors that come into play. I’m not saying the show is completely wrong, but I’m also not like that all the time. If I was, wouldn’t I be in jail by now? I think people who take that show too seriously are people who aren’t too intelligent.

When Dana White showed up to talk to you he was suddenly so sympathetic and understanding, way more than he’s ever been with anyone else on that show. Why do you think that was?

I think he saw potential in me. I think he knows the show can ruin some people. I think he saw that the show was getting to me more than some other people and he didn’t want to ruin my career just because of the show. When I’m back home with my friends and family I don’t act like that. When I’m around people who care about me I’m not like that. But being around all these different egos stuck in one house, it can cause some friction.

So what are we going to see from you when you fight Dave Kaplan on the finale?

I think people are going to see that I was the best one there. I’ve said from the beginning that I wasn’t the most experienced or polished. I was the least experienced of anybody there. But I think I have the most room for growth of anybody there. I don’t think a lot of those other guys have the potential to get a whole lot better. Every time I fight I get better. People are going to see that in this fight. I’m going to do stuff in this fight that people have never seen. I’m going to be technically and physically better than I’ve ever been, and it’s going to be obvious.

Why do you think they matched you up with Kaplan?

Probably just because of the little bit of drama on the show. And because, you know, he can’t be knocked out. I’m not going in there to prove anything to him, just to show everyone else that I was the best one there.

Now that the show is over, how do you regard the experience looking back on it?

It was a learning experience. It really opened my eyes to see where I could take this. I’d never been exposed to anything like this before. But now pretty much everyone in the MMA community knows who I am now, and I got to make the most of that. I learned just how I need to train. And also that I can’t blow up on people for everything, I can’t take stuff so personally. Especially in this sport, where you’re criticized all the time. I have to roll with the punches. I’ve come this far, I can’t lose it now.

Card For The Ultimate Fighter 8 Finale Officially Set


With the semi finals completed during last night's special 2 hour broadcast of TUF 8 the finals are now set and the complete card has been officially released:

Main event (Televised):

155 lbs.: Phillipe Nover vs. Efrain Escudero to determine TUF 8 lightweight winner

Main card (Televised):

205 lbs.: Ryan Bader vs. Vinicius Magalhães to determine TUF 8 light heavyweight winner
185 lbs.: Wilson Gouveia (21-10) vs. Jason MacDonald (11-5)
170 lbs.: Kevin Burns (7-1) vs. Anthony Johnson (5-2)
155 lbs.: Junie Browning vs. Dave Kaplan

Under card (May not be broadcast):

205 lbs.: Krzysztof Soszynski vs. Shane Primm
205 lbs.: Eliot Marshall vs. Jules Bruchez
205 lbs.: Kyle Kingsbury vs. Tom Lawlor
155 lbs.: Shane Nelson vs. George Roop
155 lbs.: Rolando Delgado vs. John Polakowski

Chuck Liddell on Couture, Rashad and retirement

WEC : Angel Miguel Torres vs Manny Tapia



Quality is not great but if you missed it here it is

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

American Fighter offers new round 5 action figures



Thought you might want to see some of the other round 5 action figures. You can order in time for Christmas at americanfighter.com

Ken Shamrock vs. Tim Sylvia? WTF


This is not a joke.



“I was supposed to fight Ken Shamrock December 20, but it’s been postponed to February now,” said Sylvia. “He’s a free agent. I was supposed to fight him in a small show called XP3 Promotions. I believe in Texas, but it’s postponed to February now.”

Cox echoed Sylvia’s position that a bout with the 44-year-old Shamrock was in the works.

However, Melissa Ingram, director of media relations for Ken Shamrock Entertainment Inc., was hesitant to describe the fight as being in “preliminary negotiations.”

Shamrock’s manager Ron Donohoo told Sherdog.com on Monday that the bout was not under consideration.

“Our organization was approached some time ago about the prospect of Ken fighting Sylvia, but it was rejected,” Donohoo wrote in an email.

Donohoo did not disclose the reason the fight was declined. XP3 Promotions, which has a Feb. 7 event scheduled at the Reliant Arena in Houston according to its Web site, was not immediately available for comment.

Despite the opposing sides, Sylvia expects to see much action in the coming months, including a fight with Shamrock.

“I love to fight and a fight’s a fight,” said Sylvia. “He’s a Hall of Famer. He’s a legend. To progress your career you always have to fight somebody like that.

“I don’t know if he’s a stepping stone or anything, but he’s been on some of the same cards I’ve been on and he’s been highlighted over me, so I want to let people that I am better than this guy and there’s no reason he should have been highlighted over me.”

Omg

Let me be unequivocally clear: any athletic commission that approves this fight should be hung by their heels with piano wire in the nearest town square and spat upon by citizens strolling by. Then fired. Then banned from ever holding a position on any athletic commission ever again in their life. Then spat on again.

I know there's a defense to be made for cashing in on star power after a fighter is long past their peak and I do not equate this to Couture vs. Liddell IV (that fight and this one are surely universes apart), but there is an obvious tipping point where age and star power can get fighters seriously, seriously hurt. Unbelievable

Monday, December 1, 2008

Rumor of the Day: Kimbo vs. Badr Hari @ K-1?


According to Japanese tabloid Tokyo Sports, Kimbo Slice has joined up with K-1, and will appear at this Saturday's K-1 show in Yokohama to introduce himself to fans; his debut match for the kickboxing organization will be in March, against K-1 heavyweight champion Badr "The Golden Boy" Hari.

Look, I've never been a Kimbo-hater — the dude has unquestionably strong hands and may still develop into an impressive fighter — but if he could get knocked out by an off-balance jab from Seth Petruzelli, he may literally die in the ring against Hari, who is arguably the most devastating striker in the world right now. If I were Icey Mike, I'd be tempted by the surely-substantial payday, but the kind of loss that Kimbo could take against Hari might permanently relegate him to human-punching-bag status in the fight world. It's choosing the short money over the long money, basically, and it's a bad, bad idea. (Not to say that I wouldn't watch the carnage if this freak-match actually came together, but still...)