NJACB Counsel Nick Lembo: “Ref Kevin Mulhall was within the rules”

There is no doubt that UFC 159: Jones Vs Sonnen was one of the stranger UFC cards we have witnessed in a long time. Most notably, the event had two fights end in technical decision which was a first in UFC history. Many fans were outraged when the referee Kevin Mulhall stopped the bout between Ovince St. Preux and Gian Villante almost instantaneously after Villante was the victim of an accidental eye poke. New Jersey State Athletic Control Board counsel Nick Lembo spoke about the decision, and noted Mulhall was within the rules but he probably should have allotted more time for Villante to recover.

Lembo told MMAJunkie:

“Technically, [Mulhall] was within the rules. When a fighter is repetitive that he cannot see, the referee is within his rights to stop the fight. But I would prefer that when a fighter is subject to an eye poke and the referee properly notices the foul – and assuming that they call it an accidental foul – if the fighter says that he can’t see, initially, that you call time. We have ringside physicians there, and if a medical evaluation is necessary, I would prefer that it be performed by the doctor and a decision be made at that point.”

“For a point of reference on the same show, I would look to how Herb Dean handled Bisping and Belcher in a similar situation with an eye poke. Ruled it accidental. Called time. Noted the foul. Put the fighters in neutral corners and then called in the ringside physician to evaluate the eye – then let the physician advise the referee whether or not to continue the fight or let the fighter have some more time because the fighter is not guaranteed five minutes, but the physician has up to five minutes for an accidental eye poke.”

The post NJACB Counsel Nick Lembo: “Ref Kevin Mulhall was within the rules” appeared first on Fighters.com.

Source: http://www.fighters.com/04/29/njacb-counsel-nick-lembo-ref-kevin-mulhall-was-within-the-rules?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=njacb-counsel-nick-lembo-ref-kevin-mulhall-was-within-the-rules

Rickson Gracie Rodrigo Gracie Roger Gracie Rolles Gracie

UFC on FOX 5's FX-televised prelims add Easton-Assuncao and Siver-Phan

Two fights have joined FX's super-sized preliminary-card broadcast for next week's UFC on FOX 5 event at Seattle's KeyArena.

FX now airs six fights, not the usual four, prior to the Dec. 8's main-card broadcast on FOX.

The bouts include bantamweights Mike Easton vs. Raphael Assuncao and featherweights Dennis Siver vs. Nam Phan.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mmajunkie/~3/UJlBbc_8dLk/ufc-on-fox-5s-fx-televised-prelims-add-easton-assuncao-and-siver-phan.mma

Dave Gomez Keith Hackney Matt Hamill Volk Han

Dana White: "It's not looking good" for Leonard Garcia after UFC 159 loss

By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

Leonard Garcia's fifth straight loss in the UFC on Saturday night may be his last in the organization, as it was a thorough defeat at the hands of Cody McKenzie. He's seemed untouchable in the UFC to this point, but that may have finally changed.

After a loss to Max Holloway in December at UFC 155, Garcia seemed like he had finally reached the end of his rope with the UFC after four straight losses. However, UFC President Dana White wasn't going to let that happen at that point.

"Sean Shelby, one of our matchmakers, came to me during the fight sometime and, I guess Leonard Garcia was in a situation to be cut if he lost tonight, and [Shelby] came to me and said, ‘Dana, I don’t wanna cut this guy,'" White said in December after the event. "I said there's no way in hell we're cutting Leonard Garcia!"

It was an odd hard line to take, and continued a string of Garcia being rewarded with further fights for his brawling style that ultimately wasn't that effective in the cage. It had swayed some judges in the past, but dating back to his WEC Title fight with Mike Brown in 2009, there was a reasonable argument that he'd legitimately lost 11 fights in a row.

His only wins in that stretch all came by split decision, and along with a split draw all had reasonable arguments for a Garcia loss as well. So when he became the rare fighter to stay on the roster with four straight losses, especially in a time where so many fighters were getting cut or would be in short order, it led to some uproar.

Now he may have finally reached the end after the McKenzie loss. It wasn't just that he lost that works against him, because that hasn't been as big a deal in the past, it was how badly he was defeated. He was out grappled, out struck, and out worked by McKenzie for the entirety of the fight, and even though he still stole one round for one judge, it was as clear a defeat as he's suffered by decision. And after the fight, even White had to come around to reality.

"I don't want to say it, but it's not looking good," he said of Garcia's UFC future after the event (via MMAJunkie.com). He got beat. He even got beat standing up. Cody McKenzie beat him tonight, every way you can beat a guy."

Penick's Analysis: It's not Garcia's fault that his ineffectual brawling has been enabled and rewarded for the last four years, but he was taking up space on a roster that is supposed to feature the best fighters in the world, and that's not a label that applies to him in 2013. Given how many cuts have been made and how many fighters haven't gotten the opportunity to stay on after one loss, let alone four straight, keeping him around into this fight didn't make sense, and he was thoroughly defeated again. He's not the fighter he had been when he earned his shot against Mike Brown, and unfortunately for him it's time for him to be off the biggest stage.

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Source: http://www.mmatorch.com/artman2/publish/UFC_2/article_16644.shtml

Rickson Gracie Rodrigo Gracie Roger Gracie Rolles Gracie

Dana White On MMA In New York: “I just don’t care anymore”

UFC President Dana White has been saying year after year that “This is the year we get New York done,” but this year sounded different when he said it. Now that the likelihood of a UFC event going to New York id next to nothing, fans have been starting to ask if the UFC will eventually say ‘Why bother?’ As reported on yesterday on Fighters.com, UFC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta said that they are willing to be as patient as it takes to get into the state of New York. From the sound of it, White is running out of patience for the whole process, and is already considering walking away from the whole thing.

White told ESPN his outlook on the process:

“It’s not even that I’m pessimistic. I just don’t care anymore. I’m just over it”

“The Las Vegas culinary union [is to blame.] What’s funny is that they’re sending all these letters to people in New York, the politicians and everything else, why aren’t they sending those same letters out in Las Vegas? … because they would get laughed out of the city.”

Photo Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

The post Dana White On MMA In New York: “I just don’t care anymore” appeared first on Fighters.com.

Source: http://www.fighters.com/04/25/ufc-president-dana-white-on-new-york?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=ufc-president-dana-white-on-new-york

Allan Goes Takanori The Fireball Kid Gomi Akihiro Gono Gabriel Gonzaga

Dana White: Jon Jones’ UFC Title Run Better Than Tito Oritz’s

After thrashing Chael Sonnen this past Saturday at UFC 159, reigning light heavyweight king Jon Jones tied Tito Ortiz (pictured) for the most successful 205-pound title defenses in Octagon history.

While Jones is still one win away from solidifying his spot as the promotion’s most decorated champion in the division, UFC president Dana White believes Jones has already surpassed the UFC Hall of Famer given the time and level of competition in which Jones did it against.

“The way you got to look at it is, Tito’s entire career as long as he was here, Jon Jones broke that record in like two years,” White stated after UFC 159. “That year-and-a-half run [Jones] went on of just annihilating all the top guys – he did it in two years.

“First of all, he’s the youngest champion ever. He does this thing in two years – breaks the record of a guy who spent how long in the UFC? Tito was here before I was here, and that was 13 years. He did it in two years, pretty amazing.”

Jones captured the title at 23 (and 243 days) by disposing of Mauricio “Shogun” Rua. He proceeded to steamroll four previous UFC title holders in Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, Lyoto Machida, Rashad Evans and Vitor Belfort.

Ortiz, meanwhile, won his belt by beating Wanderlei Silva. His defenses came against Yuki Kondo, Evan Tanner, Elvis Sinosic, Vladimir Matyushenko and Ken Shamrock. Only Tanner and Shamrock were ever UFC champions.

Nonetheless, Ortiz is one of MMA’s true pioneers. That’s a fact that has not been lost on Jones. The 25-year-old admits to admiring Ortiz for paving the way for fighters like him.

White isn’t surprised that “Bones” is an Ortiz fan. “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” (that’s how I will remember him, because everybody knows The Rock is the only one who is allowed to go by “The People’s Champ”) was the face of the Ultimate Fighting Championship before the UFC became THE UFC.

“The thing is, a lot of guys that were coming up and a lot of kids liked Tito. Just I didn’t,” White said. “A lot of people liked Tito. A lot of people had fun watching Tito. Tito was a part of big fights, exciting fights.

“I can understand why a lot of these guys growing up were Tito fans.”

After seeing Jones join his exclusive one-man club, Ortiz pondered ending his retirement in order to keep “Bones” from supplanting him.

“Well I may have to come out of retirement to beat @JonnyBones I can’t let I’m beat my record,” the 38-year-old Ortiz tweeted.

Oh, Tito. That’s cute.

Source: http://www.5thRound.com/145632/dana-white-jon-jones-ufc-title-run-better-than-tito-oritzs/

Pat Barry Vitor Belfort Robert Berry David Bielkheden

Big Country and Bisping Get Wins in Jersey - UFC 159 Main Card Results

NEWARK, April 27 – A bizarre ending spoiled a quality performance by middleweight contender Michael Bisping in the UFC 159 co-main event at the Prudential Center Saturday night, but he’ll take the win, as he scored a three round technical decision over Alan Belcher in a bout halted prematurely due to an accidental foul.

The unanimous decision read 30-27 twice and 29-28 for Bisping, who ups his record to 25-5; Belcher falls to 17-7.

Kicks were the order of the day in the opening round, with Belcher throwing and landing more as Bisping stalked, unable to corner his foe long enough to get his offense in gear. With 1:50 left, Belcher reversed gears and landed a hard right that momentarily jarred the Brit, but Bisping shook off the effects of the blow and got back to chasing his opponent, but to no avail.

Bisping began to get closer in round two, as he started throwing punch combinations mixed in with his kicks while Belcher took his foot off the gas, perhaps too comfortable with the way things were going. As the round hit its closing stages, Belcher began to show a sense of urgency, but Bisping’s speed and accuracy were telling the tale, and “The Count” continued to push the pace throughout the third round as Belcher simply was not working effectively enough to discourage Bisping or get himself back into the fight.

Late in the round, Belcher took an inadvertent poke in the right eye (the same eye he had detached retina surgery on) and hit the canvas in pain. After a look by the Octagonside physician, the bout was stopped and sent to the scorecards, where Bisping was ruled the winner.

See Bisping -post-fight interview

NELSON vs. KONGO

Heavyweight contender Roy “Big Country” Nelson continued to impress, winning his third consecutive bout by knockout as he finished off Cheick Kongo in just over two minutes. In the process, he made his case for a future heavyweight title shot.

“I want that gold,” said Nelson. “UFC 160 (Cain Velasquez vs. Antonio Silva), whoever wins that, I want.”

After a fight opening clinch that turned into a stalemate that required a restart from referee Kevin Mulhall, Nelson went on the attack, and with a single right hand put Kongo on the seat of his pants. Kongo attempted to rise, but another right put the Frenchman out, bringing a stop to the fight at the 2:03 mark.

Nelson improves to 20-7 with the win; Kongo falls to 28-8-2.

Hear what Nelson had to say after the win

DAVIS vs. MAGALHAES

After a long pre-fight war of words, light heavyweight contender Phil Davis put on a striking clinic against rival Vinny Magalhaes, winning a three round unanimous decision in the process.

Scores were 30-27 twice and 29-28 for Davis, now 11-1 with 1 NC; Magalhaes falls to 11-6 with 1 NC.

Showing his best display of standup yet, Davis dominated the first round, only going through a brief spell of danger when Magalhaes got him to the ground and looked to lock up his arm for a submission midway through the fame. But once Davis got back to his feet, he tagged Magalhaes repeatedly with 1-2s and hooks.

After continuing with the same strategy to start round two, Davis mixed things up with a quick takedown before getting back to his feet and resuming his striking attack. In the final minute, a bloodied Magalhaes shot for a desperation takedown but came up short, leaving him with a look of discouragement on his face as he went back to his corner at round’s end.

There was no change to the pattern of the previous two rounds in the final one, as Magalhaes had no answers for Davis’ striking and Davis saw no reason to change what was working so well for him as he coasted to victory.

Watch Davis' Octagon interview

HEALY vs. MILLER

Pat Healy’s long-awaited return to the Octagon after nearly seven years lived up to all his expectations, as he wore down and submitted longtime contender Jim Miller in the final round of an exciting lightweight scrap.

I’m here to stay,” said the Strikeforce veteran, who competed in the Octagon for the first time since a 2006 loss to Anthony Torres.

Miller’s standup attacks were on target as the bout commenced, with leg kicks knocking Healy off balance, punches to the face immediately causing bruises, and knees getting the Oregon veteran’s attention. Miller (22-5) opted for a takedown soon after, and despite two armbar attempts from Healy, the Whippany product was able to nullify Healy’s offense on the mat while implementing his own. With a little less than two minutes left, the two stood, with Healy now going on the attack in an attempt to even the score. A takedown by “Bam Bam” ensued, with Healy doing good work thanks to ground strikes and a subsequent slam. It was Miller with the last word in a wild round though, as he reversed position and fired off a series of hard punches that had Healy bloodied and in trouble at the bell.

Battered, but not done yet, Healy (32-15) went after Miller to start round two, tying up with him against the fence. Following some back and forth action, Healy got Miller to the mat and went to work on him. Miller looked for submissions from his back, but Healy wasn’t playing along, swarming his foe and eventually getting a rear naked choke. Miller escaped after a few seconds, reversing position and taking control as the two rose. Miller, looking for a guillotine choke, brought it right back to the mat, but as the round ended, both were standing and trading.

With the fight on the line, Miller and Healy both sought out what they felt they were doing best so far, Miller trying to strike and Healy looking for the takedown. Miller got off some hard shots at his opponent, yet it was Healy taking the fight to the mat and putting his hard hat back on as he used his punishing attack to keep the now bloodied Miller on the defensive. Moments later, Healy struck with a rear naked choke, putting Miller to sleep and forcing referee Herb Dean to halt the fight at 4:02 of the final round.

“I feel so good," said Healy. "You can’t break me down out there. I know I look a little beat up and my eye is swollen but I feel incredible. I’ve been working so hard for this return to the UFC. It’s been seven years since I’ve been here and I’ve gone through so much since I’ve been gone. The only thing that kept me going is my love for fighting."

Healy post-fight interview (and Bruce Buffer gaffe)

Source: http://www.ufc.com/news/UFC-159-Main-Card-Results

Tony Fryklund Kazuyuki Fujita Masakatsu Funaki Zelg Benkei Galesić

Mike Goldberg Shows Us How Much Work Goes Into His UFC Commentator Job

Video of Mike Goldberg Showing Us How Much Work Goes Into His UFC Commentator Job.

Source: http://www.mmatko.com/mike-goldberg-shows-us-how-much-work-goes-into-his-ufc-commentator-job/

Josh Barnett David Baron Phil Baroni Don Barr

Fallon Fox cleared of wrongdoing in obtaining license, clearing the way for a future fight

Fallon Fox, the postoperative trans fighter who is looking to continue her MMA career, has been cleared of any wrongdoing in getting a fighter's license in Florida.

The question asked by the Florida commission was whether Fox, who fought in Florida in March, had obtained a license fraudulently. She was given her license in Florida after saying she had a license in California. She was given a receipt for her application in California, and thought that was a license. Now, Florida has cleared her, opening the door for her to apply for another license there.

And it appears she will need one. Allanna Jones has agreed to a match-up with Fox for May 24 bout with Championship Fighting Alliance.

Other popular content on Yahoo! Sports:
• New Falcon Brian Banks full of inspiration
• Former Auburn players allege NCAA misdeeds under former coach
• Watch: Winners and losers at the NHL trade deadline

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/fallon-fox-cleared-wrongdoing-obtaining-license-clearing-way-182721169--mma.html

Royce Gracie Royler Gracie Ryan Gracie Peter Graham

kinda quiet without killem

what are we going do while he's away?

Source: http://ninjashoes.net/forum/showthread.php?80612-kinda-quiet-without-killem&goto=newpost

Phil Cardella Roan Jucao Carneiro Shane The Engineer Carwin Jason Hollywood Chambers

Jan. 11 tapped for 2012 World MMA Awards ceremony in Las Vegas, tickets on sale

The winners of the 2012 World MMA Awards will be unveiled at a Jan. 11 ceremony in Las Vegas. 

The awards ceremony, which is the fifth one that Fighters Only has organized, takes place at The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel and Casino. 

The awards feature 21 fan-voted categories, and Strikeforce/UFC women's bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey is nominated in a record four, including the prestigious Charles "Mask" Lewis Fighter of the Year.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mmajunkie/~3/GnYR9DeJvGo/jan-11-tapped-for-2012-world-mma-awards-ceremony-in-las-vegas-tickets-on-sale.mma

Viacheslav Datsik Marcus Davis Tony DeSouza Edwin Dewees

UFC 159 Fantasy Preview - Part II

This weekend at UFC 159, light heavyweight champion Jon Jones has a chance to tie Tito Ortiz for the most consecutive title defenses in promotional history at 205 pounds, but he has to get by former middleweight contender Chael Sonnen to do it.

Sonnen will compete for a title in his second straight bout while he seeks to unseat Jones from the top spot in the division.

In addition to the main event, there are several very intriguing bouts on the main card, including a heavyweight bout with fireworks written all over it when Roy Nelson takes on Cheick Kongo and submission ace Vinny Magalhaes battles former NCAA champion Phil Davis.

Today we will take a look at some of the key matchups on the main card for the UFC Pick ‘Em game surrounding UFC 159: Jones vs. Sonnen.

1)    Jon Jones has earned his spot as the No. 2 pound-for-pound fighter on the planet and he's a bad man. Outside of a couple of punches landed by former titleholder Lyoto Machida and an armbar attempt from Vitor Belfort, Jones has looked virtually unstoppable during his entire reign as champion. Looking specifically at the matchup with Sonnen there's one statistic that will probably come to the forefront in the opening moments of the fight—Jon Jones has never been taken down in the UFC. None. Zero. Zilch. His opponent is a wrestler who takes down almost everybody at will. Can Sonnen take Jones down? Well the smart money is not likely given Jones' long reach and a wrestling background of his own. Add to that Jones' uncanny ability to finish from anywhere and the safe bet lands on the champion putting Sonnen away sometime in the first three rounds.

2)    Roy Nelson is a headhunter and he's deadly with his aim. The former Ultimate Fighter winner lands a remarkable 85.1 percent of his strikes to the head and he's got the knockouts to prove he's connecting with power on those shots as well. Nelson has knocked out Brendan Schaub, Stefan Struve, Mirko Cro Cop, Dave Herman and Matt Mitrione since coming to the UFC and he could add Kongo to that list this weekend. Kongo's best chance to control Nelson comes from the clinch, where he's landed more strikes than any fighter in UFC history. Still, Kongo has been on the wrong end of a few knockouts in his career, including a defeat to Mark Hunt - who has a frame and power similar to Nelson. It's obviously a different fight, but if Nelson connects early it could be goodnight for the Frenchman.

3)    The smart money at UFC 159 probably lands on light heavyweight Phil Davis when he meets former Ultimate Fighter finalist Vinny Magalhaes on Saturday night. An NCAA champion in wrestling, Davis has put every single opponent he's faced in the UFC on their back at some point, and he may have some of the most explosive takedowns in the business. In this fight however he may become the anti-wrestler because when facing a jiu-jitsu artist like Magalhaes, the ground could be a bad place to land. Magalhaes is a multi-time submission grappling champion and will look for the finish any time an opponent allows him to grab a hold of a limb. Now, Davis has only allowed one serious submission attempt during his UFC career, but if there's a fighter that will test it again, Magalhaes is the man for the job. Magalhaes also earns 175 points as an underdog, so it may be worth keeping an eye on him for Saturday night.

4)    One does not simply beat Jim Miller in the UFC. The New Jersey native has lost three times since coming to the UFC. Those losses have come to Benson Henderson (current champion), Gray Maynard (current top contender) and Nate Diaz (fought for the title in 2012). What does that tell you? Miller feasts on fighters trying to earn their name off of him. He's beaten every single contender that's stepped in his way outside of those three fights and he'll look to do the same when Strikeforce transfer Pat Healy steps into the cage on Saturday night. Miller is the definition of blue collar in the Octagon—relentless with takedowns (put nine out of 12 opponents on their backs when he's attempted to take them down), he's a submission machine (second most submission attempts in UFC history) and his striking comes in bunches and he never slows down. Healy is a tough customer and his one loss at lightweight comes by submission to Josh Thomson in a fight he was controlling through two rounds. Look for this one to go to a decision, but with Miller coming out on top.

Source: http://www.ufc.com/news/UFC-159-Fantasy-Preview-Part-II

Dave Gomez Keith Hackney Matt Hamill Volk Han

Anderson Silva is asking Dana White for 'the' fight, but which one?

http://www.mmaweekly.com/did-anderso...lowing-ufc-159



To the mixed martial arts fans across the globe that have been watching, waiting and wondering about the possibility some combination of a Georges St-Pierre/Anderson Silva/Jon Jones superfight, the picture has become a bit clearer.

Well, sort of… if you read between the not so blurry lines.

At the UFC 159 post-fight press conference at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J., on Saturday night, a battered and bruised Chael Sonnen sounded off on a potential superfight between his recent conqueror, Jon Jones, and his former nemesis, Anderson Silva.

“If you’re gonna go fight a guy, go fight a guy. It drives me crazy, man. People are out talking about Anderson and Jon – these guys, right now, should be begging (Dana White) to fight each other,” proclaimed a heated Sonnen.

“But it’s not gonna go that way. You got these two guys, and they’re great, but they’re a couple of chickens. They should be calling each other out.

“They should be grabbing the mic and saying, ‘Hey, I want to fight that guy! I don’t want the debate. I want this figured out. Dana, give me a date. I want this figured out. Give me the fight.’

“But it won’t happen that way. Dana’s gonna have to call these guys, and they’re gonna have to dangle a carrot. And then they’re gonna want to negotiate. We’re in the fight business, if you don’t want to fight, then don’t raise your hand.”

And that’s when UFC president Dana White dropped a bomb.

“It actually did happen tonight. Anderson called and he wants the fight tonight.”

Wait, what?

“It did happen. Anderson called and he wants the fight, and I’m not going to tell you which one it is, but I’m going to get to work on it as soon as possible.”

In typical Dana White fashion, he left out whom “The Spider” asked for, but any astute MMA fan could deduce that it may be more than just common coincidence that Silva was calling his boss on a night when the consensus rival “GOAT” was fighting in the main event.

Earlier this week, UFC welterweight kingpin Georges St-Pierre all but nixed any possibility of a superfight – at least in the near term – leaving the door wide open for discussion of a Jones vs. Silva super showdown.

Jones and Silva are often referenced as the two greatest fighters ever. Silva has built an enduring legacy with his matrix-esque fighting style and undefeated reign as the UFC middleweight champion. Jones, meanwhile, is the UFC’s youngest champion in company history. He has a terrifying blend of new-breed skills that has left a litany of past champions laying in his wake.

It’s easy to make a substantial argument for either fighter as the mythical pound-for-pound greatest.

But should Anderson Silva defeat Chris Weidman at UFC 162 in July, it’s also easy to see a superfight between Silva and Jones coming together rather quickly. And there is little question that Silva vs. Jones would be the biggest fight in mixed martial arts’ 20-year history.

Source: http://ninjashoes.net/forum/showthread.php?80660-Anderson-Silva-is-asking-Dana-White-for-the-fight-but-which-one&goto=newpost

Kotetsu Boku Tony Bonello Stephan Bonnar Lorenzo Borgomeo

Bellator's 'Vote for the Fight' series continues with Daley, Saunders, Lima, War Machine

Bellator's interactive feature allowing fans to pick the first fight on the promotion's Spike TV debut continues with the second episode in an ongoing web series.

The promotion recently announced "Vote for the Fight" during the MTV2 broadcast of Bellator 79.

Bellator events currently air Fridays on MTV2 through the remainder of Season 7, but will move to Spike TV starting in January 2013.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mmajunkie/~3/_EWno4XR2UQ/bellators-vote-for-the-fight-series-continues-with-daley-saunders-lima-war-machine.mma

Peter Graham Forrest Griffin Tyson Griffin Karn Grigorian

King Mo Lawal “Pro wrestling (training) harder than MMA”

Source: http://mmasportsreport.com/2899/king-mo-lawal-pro-wrestling-training-harder-than-mma

Roan Jucao Carneiro Shane The Engineer Carwin Jason Hollywood Chambers Ryo Piranha Chonan

BAMMA UK comes to Newcastle (UK) on March 9th

The UK’s premier Mixed Martial Arts promotion, BAMMA, is proud to announce BAMMA 12, which takes place at Newcastle’s Metro Radio Arena in response to popular demand on Saturday 9th March 2013. Tickets will go on sale on Friday 1st February.

The event will feature in a two hour live broadcast on 5* in the UK with highlights to follow on Channel 5; and will be televised on AXS-TV in the US, The Fight Network in Canada, Red Media in Russia, TV Esporte Interativo in Brazil, Setanta in Africa and TDN in Latin America.

The event will also be the first BAMMA show conducted under the umbrella of independent UK medical body, Safe MMA. Membership requires all competitors to be Safe MMA registered, to have undergone standardized GP medicals and blood tests, and to be medically cleared to fight. On-the-night post-fight medical results will be submitted to a confidential, medical database held by Safe MMA at the Centre of Health and Human Performance at 76 Harley Street, London. For more information about Safe MMA go to http://www.safemma.co.uk

BAMMA’s director, David Green, said:

“Newcastle is a renowned hotspot for British fighting talent and in many ways a spiritual home to BAMMA: An array of BAMMA fighters have hailed from the region and Newcastle is home to our equipment partner Lonsdale and also to one of our official ring girls, Georgia Graham. There’s a strong MMA fan base up there and Newcastle is an energetic city that loves to party; it’s where the Fans have been calling for us to go for a while, so it is definitely the natural place for BAMMA 12 and the atmosphere is going to be immense.”

BAMMA’s Managing Director, Ashley Bothwell said:

“BAMMA is proud to be working with Safe MMA. It’s major step forward for MMA in this country and has brought the different promotions together for the first time to ensure that the safety of fighters comes first and to work for the greater good of the sport. Our continued programming with terrestrial Channel 5 also reflects the rising popularity of MMA in the UK and it’s exciting to be working in two partnerships that are helping shape the growth of the sport here. The North East is a hot bed for UK MMA and BAMMA in Newcastle has been a long time coming. We look forward to the opportunity to broadcast some of that talent to our global fan base and showcase some of the best that the region has to offer”.

Source: http://www.mmainterplay.com/bamma-2/bamma-uk-comes-to-newcastle-uk-on-march-9th-67665/

Cyril Abidi Daniel Acacio Bernard Ackah

MLS 2013 Outright Winner

Source: http://www.mmaforum.com/sports-vbookie/128514-mls-2013-outright-winner.html

Luiz Buscapé Firmino Spencer Fisher Jon Fitch Kenny Florian

Josh Thomson, Matt Brown and Myles Jury headline UFC on Fox 7′s Three Stars

UFC on Fox 7 had knockouts, more knockouts, and even a proposal. But whose performance stood above the rest? With so many great performances, it was hard to pick just three.

No. 1 star -- Josh Thomson: After years in Strikeforce, Thomson was eager to prove that he belonged in the elite of the UFC's stacked lightweight division. He did that by TKOing Nate Diaz, which is the first time Diaz was knocked out in his career.

[Related: Winners and losers from UFC on Fox 7]

No. 2 star -- Matt Brown: If Dante Alighieri was alive and an MMA fan, he would add a 10th circle of hell -- facing Matt Brown. He was aggressive and relentless in his win over Jordan Mein. Even after body shots appeared to weaken him, Brown came back to win with a TKO in the second round. Brown is now hoping for a title shot. After five overwhelming wins, who can say he shouldn't get one?

No. 3 star -- Myles Jury: In his third UFC bout, Jury pasted Ramsey Nijem in the second round. He's yet to lose, and of his 12 wins, only one has gone to the judges. At just 24 years old, it's likely we're going to hear more from Jury. His next fight should be a considerable step up in competition in the UFC's lightweight division.

Who were your Three Stars? Speak up in the comments, on Facebook or on Twitter.

Related UFC video on Yahoo! Sports

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• Big contracts and big losses for Los Angeles baseball
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Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/josh-thomson-matt-brown-myles-jury-headline-ufc-134801496--mma.html

Jason Hollywood Chambers Ryo Piranha Chonan Dan The Sandman Christison Logan The Pink Pounder Clark

UFC 159: Sunday Afternoon Thoughts

-We saw one of the strangest cards in recent memory last night at UFC 159. The fights were solid but there were so many extenuating circumstances that made for an extremely strange card. Jon Jones is the champ and remains the top fighter at 205, but a toe injury sustained during the fight could keep [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mmaconvert/~3/6ZJ43NB0JeY/

José Aldo John Alessio Houston Alexander Ricardo Almeida

Paulo Thiago gets new fight at UFC on FX 8 after original opponent goes down in training

This might of been posted yesterday.

http://fiveouncesofpain.com/2013/04/...n-in-training/


UFC_on_FX_8UFC welterweight Paulo Thiago started his career out as an intimidating force, racking up a 13-1 mark in his first fourteen fights including success against Mike Swick, Jacob Volkmann, and Josh Koscheck. However, the well-rounded Brazilian has taken a major slide as of late, falling short in four of his last five scraps. Though Thiago was poised to get things back on track next month at UFC on FX 8 with a winnable bout against Lance Benoist (6-2), it looks like he will now receive a stiffer challenge than originally expected.

According to SporTV, Benoist has withdrawn from the May 18 match-up due to injury and newcomer Michel Richard dos Prazeres will serve as his replacement. UFC officials have yet to confirm the change.

Dos Prazeres holds an overall record of 16-0 with eight submissions under his belt. Interestingly enough, Thiago has never been tapped out, making for an interesting dynamic in their upcoming effort.

Thiago-Dos Prazeres is set to unfold on the Fuel TV preliminary portion of the Brazil-bound card. UFC on FX 8 is headlined by a bout between middleweights Vitor Belfort-Luke Rockhold and also features action including Evan Dunham-Rafael Dos Anjos and Ronaldo Souza-Costa Philippou.

Source: http://ninjashoes.net/forum/showthread.php?80611-Paulo-Thiago-gets-new-fight-at-UFC-on-FX-8-after-original-opponent-goes-down-in-training&goto=newpost

Kyle Bradley Jai Bradney Ebenezer Fontes Braga Chris Brennan

Joe Rogan Discusses His New SyFy Show (VIDEO)

UFC commentator Joe Rogan has a new show on the SyFy network called “Joe Rogan Questions Everything“, and he recently spoke about the upcoming show set to debut in the summer. According to press releases about the show, “Rogan will knock on any door necessary to find the truth and look into unknown worlds and untapped territories to search for answers to life’s most startling theories,” but in a nutshell it sounds like Rogan and his comedian friends will be getting stoned and hanging out with people looking for bigfoot and UFOs. Rogan recently spoke about the new show, and what fans can expect when they tune in.

Courtesy of GamerHub:

Photo  Center. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

The post Joe Rogan Discusses His New SyFy Show (VIDEO) appeared first on Fighters.com.

Source: http://www.fighters.com/04/24/joe-rogan-discusses-his-new-syfy-showvideo?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=joe-rogan-discusses-his-new-syfy-showvideo

Siyar Bahadurzada Bao Ligao Josh Barnett David Baron

UFC 159: Jones Vs Sonnen Live Gate and Attendance

UFC 159: Jones Vs Sonnen took place today in Newark, New Jersey at the Prudential Center, and fans around the world watched it live on FOX. 15227 fans attended the event for a gate of 2.4 million dollar gate.

The post UFC 159: Jones Vs Sonnen Live Gate and Attendance appeared first on Fighters.com.

Source: http://www.fighters.com/04/28/ufc-159-jones-vs-sonnen-live-gate-and-attendance?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=ufc-159-jones-vs-sonnen-live-gate-and-attendance

Jason Guida Melvin Guillard Cody Guinn Jorge Gurgel

Conor McGregor, Matt Mitrione and Uriah Hall: See where they fall on Cagewriter’s hot or not list

Check out who was burning up and who was chilling out in this week's hot or not list.

Hot -- "The Ultimate Fighter:" It's been a long road for the reality show that helped launch the UFC into the company it is today. Until this season, there hadn't been many memorable moments or fighters in year, but an updated show changed that.

Not -- Matt Mitrione: You think he'd be on the hot list after his fast knockout win last weekend, but his mouth has pushed him to the not list. Mitrione went on the MMA Hour on Monday and ripped trans fighter Fallon Fox as a "sociopath" and "freak," which led to Mitrione's suspension.

Hot -- Conor McGregor: After winning over Marcus Brimage at UFC on Fuel 9 last weekend with a Knockout of the Night win, McGregor didn't have to pick up another welfare check. Though his lobbying for a fight at UFC 159 didn't work because of injuries to both Joe Proctor and Al Iaquinta, he still made quite the jump into MMA's zeitgeist this week.

Hot -- UFC code of conduct: The UFC said that they were introducing their code of conduct in January, but Mitrione's actions tested it. You can check the complete code here, and find out what UFC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta hopes to accomplish with it.

Still taking temperature -- Uriah Hall: Saturday's TUF finale is filled with fighters who have a great opportunity. At the top of the list is Hall, who has the most hype behind him of any TUF contestant in years. Can he handle it? We'll find out Saturday night.

Stick with Cagewriter on Facebook and Twitter for all the latest in MMA.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/conor-mcgregor-matt-mitrione-uriah-hall-see-where-230559002--mma.html

Murilo Bustamante Grant Campbell Gesias JZ Calvancante Luiz Cane

Sara McMann vs Sheila Gaff Fight Video UFC 159 Prelims Women

UFC 159 fight videos of Sheila Gaff vs Sara McMann from the FX preliminary bout. The MMA event took place on April 27, 2013 at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.

Source: http://www.mmatko.com/sara-mcmann-vs-sheila-gaff-fight-video-ufc-159-prelims-women/

Royler Gracie Ryan Gracie Peter Graham Forrest Griffin

nuclear power plant shootout

http://www.pennenergy.com/articles/p...er-plant-.html

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced Monday morning that its Region II staff has exited continuous monitoring status following the declaration of an Unusual Event due to a security incident at the Watts Bar nuclear power plant.

On April 21 just after 2 a.m. staff at the Watts Bar nuclear power plant notified the NRC of an event where gunshots were fired involving a TVA nuclear security officer. The officer was not injured and TVA reports the incident did pose a threat to the public.

According to the filing, the gunfight took place on the Tennessee River side of the plant property and several hundred yards from the site’s protected area, which houses the reactor and power production facilities.

Watts Bar has since exited from its Unusual Event status as plant staff confirmed that there were no lapses in security measures and the facility can continue to operate safely. TVA said the site remains under a heightened state of security as local law enforcement agencies assist with the ongoing investigation and search for the assailant.

Source: http://ninjashoes.net/forum/showthread.php?80624-nuclear-power-plant-shootout&goto=newpost

Tony Bonello Stephan Bonnar Lorenzo Borgomeo Kyle Bradley

Alexander Gustafsson posts a picture of his fight-ruining cut (Picture)

Alexander Gustafsson's fight with Gegard Mousasi was called off because of a cut on Gustafsson's face. He posted a picture of that cut on his website.

He sustained the cut during wrestling practice last week. Gustaffson said he lost his balance and hit his eyebrow. The cut received three stitches. He was ready to fight until the doctors told him he couldn't compete.

The problem with the cut is not so much its size or depth, but its location. If it was reopened in a fight, it's unlikely the fight would go on because the blood would impair Gustafsson's vision to a point that it would make the fight unfair. A cut like that would open with ease, too.

So now the UFC turns to Ilir Latifi, Gustafsson's training partner, to fight Gegard Mousasi in a main event.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/alexander-gustafsson-posts-picture-fight-ruining-cut-picture-154332307--mma.html

Gilbert Aldana José Aldo John Alessio Houston Alexander

Science, Jon Jones and Josh Rosenthal: See where they fall on Cagewriter’s Hot or Not List

It was a bizarre and sad week in the world, and the sad events are still going. My heart goes out to people dealing with the tragic events in Boston and West, Texas, and those who are cleaning up from the massive storm that hit Chicagoland.

In trying times, sports can give us something to talk about that doesn't involve bombs and explosions and death tolls. If you don't want a diversion, no one will blame you, but if you do, the hot or not list from the week in MMA.

Hot -- Science: UFC president Dana White has been battling with Meniere's Disease, a disorder of the inner-ear that has wreaked havoc on his health. A surgery that was supposed to help didn't, but White tried a new therapy that he says has made a huge difference. White went to Germany and received platement-rich plasma therapy, after New York Yankees star Alex Rodriguez told him to, of course.

Not -- Fans who take swings at fighters: OK, it was just one fan, but it was one fan too many. Taking a swing at Chael Sonnen or anyone else is the kind of thing that could raise security levels hinder the access fans have to their favorite fighters.

Hot -- Jon Jones: Though he made a bad move when he accused, then withdrew his accusations, Sonnen of taking steroids, Jones is still having a good week. His Nike line is on sale, making him the first UFC fighter with his own shoe.

Not -- Josh Rosenthal: The well-respected MMA referee had a bad week that probably could have been worse. After he was busted for conspiracy charges because he owned a warehouse full of marijuana plants, Rosenthal plead guilty and faces 37 months in jail.

Still taking temperature -- Benson Henderson: The UFC lightweight champ will defend his belt against Gilbert Melendez on Saturday night at UFC on Fox 7. We will find out if he's still the hottest in his division.

Stick with Cagewriter on Twitter for more on Saturday night's fights.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/science-jon-jones-josh-rosenthal-see-where-fall-183336613--mma.html

Royler Gracie Ryan Gracie Peter Graham Forrest Griffin

Official UFC 159 Weigh In Results

UFC 159, which is headlined by the UFC light heavyweight championship bout between Jon Jones and Chael Sonnen, and the middleweight bout between Michael Bisping and Alan Belcher, airs live on Pay-Per-View from the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey at 10pm ET / 7pm PT. Four prelim bouts will air live on FX at 8pm ET / 5pm PT, and fans who “like” the UFC on Facebook can also see three additional prelim bouts at 6:35pm ET / 3:35pm PT.

MAIN EVENT – UFC LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
Chael Sonnen (205) VS Jon Jones (205)

PPV MAIN CARD
Alan Belcher (185) VS Michael Bisping (186)
Cheick Kongo (237) VS Roy Nelson (258)
Vinny Magalhaes (205.5) VS Phil Davis (205)
Pat Healy (155.5) VS Jim Miller (155)

FX PRELIMS
Yancy Medeiros (155.5) VS Rustam Khabilov (156)
Ovince St. Preux (206) VS Gian Villante (206)
Sheila Gaff (133) VS Sara McMann (134)
Johnny Bedford (136) VS Bryan Caraway (136)

ONLINE FIGHTS
Cody McKenzie (145) VS Leonard Garcia (145)
James Head (170.25) VS Nick Catone (173*)
Kurt Holobaugh (145) VS Steven Siler (145.25)

* Catone missed weight and will forfeit 20% of his purse. The fight will proceed as scheduled.

Source: http://www.ufc.com/news/Official-UFC-159-Weigh-In-Results

Peter Graham Forrest Griffin Tyson Griffin Karn Grigorian

WWE Monday Night Raw TV report (airdate July 23, 2012)

The Big News: Raw celebrated its 1000^th episode with a star studded collection of returning wrestlers and a memorable CM Punk heel turn.
Show Analysis:
They premiered a new WWE logo video to start, reading “then,” “now,” and “forever.” The show then featured video of Raw moments throughout the years. There was plenty of good stuff in there, but also a heavy emphasis on the ridiculous and on celebrity guest hosts. They have a new set on the stage too. It looks good and is basically the same as before.
Vince McMahon came out next and thanked the fans for 1,000 episodes of Raw. The crowd chanted “thank you Vince” back. Vince then did the old “Welcome to Monday Night Raw” line that he used at the start of all the early episodes of the program. It was an appropriate start as I always liked that intro. He introduced DX.
Shawn Michaels and Triple H came out, doing the more recent version of DX with the glow sticks and merchandise. Michaels said it felt like they were missing something. HHH pointed out there used to be more of them. That got a big crowd reaction. HHH and Michaels pointed to the entrance way and X-Pac, Road Dogg and Billy Gunn came out in a jeep like the Norfolk WCW invasion. They all looked good.
Road Dogg did the old New Age Outlaws intro but wouldn’t say ass. HHH then did the old Are you Ready routine. HHH made a crack about being the only one left with a full head of hair, which broke up X-Pac. HHH said he’d see everyone for Raw 2,000. Billy Gunn and Shawn Michaels disagreed about who would get to get their spot in next. HHH said they didn’t want Shawn to lose his smile and pose in Playgirl. Michaels responded that he needed the money. Gunn and Michaels were about to do it again when Damien Sandow interrupted.
Sandow belittled DX. Michaels said he would go to a church and beg for forgiveness. Sandow said he knew DX could kick his ass, but that would make him a martyr for everyone who appreciated a sophisticated mind. DX huddled to decide what to do. Michaels then gave Sandow sweet chin music and HHH gave him the pedigree. Gunn said if you’re not down with that, they have two words for you. This was a very fun segment. It was funny and you could tell everyone was having a blast.
Sheamus, Sin Cara and Rey Mysterio beat Alberto Del Rio, Dolph Ziggler and Chris Jericho. Jim Ross came out commentate for this match but then unfortunately left. The heels worked over Cara, who tagged Sheamus. Sheamus avoided attempts at the Walls and code breaker but Jericho avoided the Brogue kick. Ziggler then took a cheap shot on Jericho and Sheamus hit the Brogue kick on Jericho for the pin. Clearly, Chris Jericho vs. Dolph Ziggler is the next program and hopefully it helps take Ziggler to a higher level.
After the match, the announcers spoke with Charlie Sheen via Skype. He appeared a few times during the show, putting over the things that happened. Backstage, A.J. told Layla she doesn’t know why people call her mentally unstable when the whole place is nuts. She opened a door to Jim Duggan, Roddy Piper and R. Truth jumping rope with Truth’s imaginary friend, and Mae Young with a guy in a hand suit claiming to be Young’s grown up son. Michael Cole did the exaggerated fake laugh for the lame comedy.
Brodus Clay beat Jack Swagger immediately with a splash. Dude Love cornered Clay and danced with him after the match. They cut to backstage, where Trish Stratus was trying to talk HHH into yoga. HHH was bending over with Stratus behind him when DX came in. This appeared to be playing off a similar gag HHH and Stratus did years back, but they seemed reluctant to be overt with the gag.
The 9PM hour featured the A.J.-Daniel Bryan wedding. Slick was the reverend for the ceremony but didn’t get much of a reaction. The crowd chanted what at him and then no at Bryan and A.J. They both said yes, but A.J. said she wasn’t saying yes to Bryan but to someone else who made a proposal to her earlier in the night. Vince McMahon’s music hit but Vince said it wasn’t that kind of proposal. Vince said he made A.J. a business proposal and she is the new permanent GM of Raw. A.J. skipped around and left. This wasn’t the best of payoffs.
After a commercial break, Bryan was flipping out in the ring. CM Punk came out to make fun of Bryan and say that he’s still the best in the world. Bryan said not only is he better than Punk, but he is the greatest WWE superstar of all time. That brought out Rock. Rock said Bryan doesn’t get to say who the greatest of all time is because the people do. Bryan started to interrupt Rock. Rock stopped him and pointed out he won his first WWE title in St. Louis.
Rock said he wasn’t there to talk about Frodo (Bryan) but the title. Rock announced that he will challenge the WWE champion for the title at the Royal Rumble. This got a shockingly non-existent reaction and I don’t really have any explanation why. It’s smart that they announced this on a heavily viewed show to get people thinking about ordering the Rumble next year. Punk vowed to be champion at that point and beat Rock at the Rumble.
Bryan flipped out again and said this was supposed to be the greatest night of his life. He said he will be champion at Rumble and the face of WWE. Rock made fun of Bryan’s height some more, calling him an Oompa Loompa and Hobbit. Rock said he got Bryan a wedding gift and gave Bryan the rock bottom.
On the one hand, you could argue this segment elevated Bryan by having him interact with Rock and thus presenting him as someone important. On the other, you could argue Bryan was presented as a joke and mocked for his height. I guess I’m somewhere in between. I think they could build on this in a way to make Bryan more important but it also could end up more of a negative than a positive.
Bret Hart came out to introduce the Intercontinental title match. He mentioned that one of his greatest moments was winning the IC title from the great Mr. Perfect Curt Hennig. Miz then beat Christian to win the IC title. Miz avoided the kill switch but Christian hit a sunset flip off the second rope for two. Miz went after Christian’s leg. Christian went for the kill switch but Miz avoided it again. Miz went for the skull crushing finale but Christian avoided that and tried the kill switch a third title. Miz avoided it yet again and Christian landed gingerly on his leg. Miz then hit the skull crushing finale for the pin. Miz sold winning the title big, which was a nice touch.
The 10PM hour break featured the HHH-Brock Lesnar angle. HHH came to the ring. He said he wants to fight Lesnar at SummerSlam and wants his answer. Paul Heyman came out. HHH said he wanted to speak to the horse’s head, not the horse’s ass. Heyman said Lesnar’s answer is no. HHH threatened to go find Lesnar. Heyman said that would mean a third lawsuit against WWE. HHH suggested Lesnar is a coward. Heyman mocked HHH for name calling and asked if he teaches his kids to do that.
HHH knocked the microphone from Heyman’s hand and told Heyman not to talk about his kids. Heyman said he shouldn’t talk about them because the sins of the father will be visited upon the children. That brought out Stephanie McMahon. They openly acknowledged her as HHH’s wife and the mother of his children. Stephanie told Heyman not to speak about her kids. Stephanie said the lawsuits aren’t about Lesnar but Heyman’s business failings in WCW, ECW and WWE. Stephanie said compared to Vince, Heyman is in the rearview mirror. Where does that leave Stephanie? Stephanie added that at least Vince had the guts to wrestle HHH, which isn’t true of Lesnar.
Stephanie went further, saying that Heyman’s children are ashamed of him because their father is a professional parasite. She slapped Heyman. Heyman got mad and said Lesnar-HHH is on. Heyman realized he had been baited and said Stephanie always gets what she wants, just like Vince taught her and she teaches her children. Stephanie attacked Heyman. Brock Lesnar finally came out and fought HHH. HHH knocked Lesnar from the ring. I didn’t care for this angle. To me, HHH and Lesnar fighting is a perfectly effective direction and instead they’re building it through Stephanie vs. Heyman and lawsuits. Lesnar-HHH at SummerSlam just doesn’t seem like a big deal at all. Heyman was really great, though.
Lita beat Heath Slater. Howard Finkel introduced Slater. Slater challenged anyone to a no-DQ, no-COR match. Lita came out but said she brought protection. The APA joined her. Slater went to leave but all the legends Slater has fought brought him back to the ring. Lita hit a twist of fate on Slater. Bradshaw gave him a nasty clothesline from hell. Lita then gave him the moonsault for the win. Ron Simmons said damn. This was fun. Slater is perfect for this sort of foil role. There’s something annoying about him that makes it fun to see him get beat up and it isn’t like he has upper card potential.
Sean Mooney of all people interviewed Daniel Bryan backstage. Bryan was angry about the night’s events and complained. He was particularly angry at Charlie Sheen for making fun of him via Skype and said if Sheen were there he would put Sheen in the yes lock. Later, Sheen said he’d be happy to confront Bryan any time in Los Angeles. They teased an appearance by Sheen at SummerSlam, but it didn’t seem like they had a deal for that. I guess we’ll see.
John Cena, Zack Ryder and Gene Okerlund were talking backstage. Ryder thought Okerlund was behind GTV. Rock showed up and Okerlund left. Rock wished Cena good luck. Cena said he wanted another shot at Rock at the Rumble. Rock said he looks forward to that.
Kane came to the ring. He was interrupted by Jinder Mahal, Hunico, Camacho, Curt Hawkins, Tyler Reks and Drew McIntyre. Memo to WWE prelim guys: don’t band together to rise up against main event talent. I’ve seen this one before and it always ends so poorly for you. Mahal said they haven’t been given chances and now they are taking one. They surrounded the ring to attack Kane when Undertaker’s music hit. Undertaker and Kane laid out the other six. They did a double throat slash and double tombstone on Hawkins and Hunico. There was a weird delay for a while, they finally rolled Hawkins and Hunico out of the ring, and they posed together.
In an interesting bit, they asked people on Twitter whether they’d rather see Rock-Cena, Rock-Punk or Rock-Big Show at Rumble. Rock-Punk won handily. I don’t take a Twitter survey to mean much of anything, but I would have expected Rock-Cena to win big and it lost decisively 55-35 (with 10 percent for Show). Rock-Punk interests me more too but Rock-Cena is probably a bigger PPV draw. They’ll probably do one at Mania and the other at the Rumble anyway. Maybe Rock-Punk at Rumble and Rock-Cena plus Punk-Austin at Mania.
John Cena beat CM Punk via DQ. There was a long mat wrestling sequence early. Punk set up for the GTS but Cena shoved Punk into the referee. Cena hit the FU and covered, but there was no referee. Big Show came out and speared Cena. Show then set up for the KO punch with Punk sitting in the corner watching. This was subtle at first, as you could see Punk was conscious and aware of what was going on but wasn’t doing anything. But he was just sort of watching without any facial expression selling what was going on. He let Show hit the KO punch on Cena and Show then left.
At this point, Punk got up and was left with the decision of what to do. He seemed conflicted and seemed to be going back and forth in his head about whether to take advantage of the situation. Punk revived the referee while still seeming torn. Finally, Punk made the decision to go for the pin. He covered Cena, but Cena kicked out. Punk then went for the GTS but Cena reversed into the STF. Show came out and attacked Cena for the DQ.
Show continued beating up Cena after the bell as Punk just watched. Punk finally decided to turn his back and leave. At that point, Rock ran out for the save. Rock went after Show and hit a spine buster. He went for the people’s elbow but Punk ran back in and cut off Rock with a clothesline. Punk looked at his hands intently and then gave Rock the GTS to close the show.
This was a phenomenal heel turn. I’m not sure yet whether this story is a money direction, but Punk was so awesome doing this. Even more so, the writers really deserve credit here. This was just a wonderfully told story, with a man confronted with a tricky moral decision and showing his true character by making the easy wrong move rather than the more difficult right move. He wasn’t a cartoonish villain just being bad for the sake of bad either; he recognized that he was doing the wrong thing but retaining the title meant too much to him to resist. That story is enhanced by the fact Punk has often sermonized over the years in a self-righteous manner, only to have done the wrong thing when the chips were down. It’s one of the better heel turns WWE has ever done, and Punk is better as a heel than a face anyway.
Final Thoughts:
As expected, this was a fun show. It’s hard to bring back all the stars they did and not have it be entertaining. I thought the show was good but kind of underwhelming going into the final segment, but the CM Punk heel turn was a memorable and very well executed finale that elevated the rest of the show.
And that will do it for these reports. It’s really amazing to me how many doors opened up on the writing front since Dave asked me to write more for the Observer website so many years ago. Thanks first and foremost to Dave for the opportunity and more so just for putting out such a phenomenal product that I’ve been reading well over half my life now. My primary motivation for starting to write about wrestling was a simple desire to be associated in some way with Dave.
Thanks also to Bryan for bringing me on board and being so supportive over the years. If it hadn’t been for that support, I would have stopped a long time ago. He’s one of the most genuinely good people I’ve ever known.
Special thanks to Houston Mitchell, who was more supportive than anyone and so important in opening doors for me.
Thanks very much to everyone for reading over the last decade or so and to everyone who has written over the years to say positive things. I appreciate the support.
And finally, thanks to WWE for producing a show that has presented so many great moments over the years. It’s no secret that I have a lot of problems with the current direction of WWE. The years I’ve been writing about the show have coincided with what in my opinion has been a downturn in the quality of the show. But nobody would care about that downturn if it weren’t for the years of goodwill WWE had built with its core audience. Long term fans that have stuck around to this point badly want to like the product and there’s another large group of people that monitor the product on the outside, hoping to hear things have gotten better and it’s worth diving back in. Hopefully sooner rather than later WWE can reengage those fans with an exciting and improved product.

Source: http://www.ifight365.com/2012/11/wwe-monday-night-raw-tv-report-airdate-july-23-2012/

Steve The Snake Claveau Rich No Love Clementi Mark The Hammer Coleman Wes Soldier Combs

Science, Jon Jones and Josh Rosenthal: See where they fall on Cagewriter’s Hot or Not List

It was a bizarre and sad week in the world, and the sad events are still going. My heart goes out to people dealing with the tragic events in Boston and West, Texas, and those who are cleaning up from the massive storm that hit Chicagoland.

In trying times, sports can give us something to talk about that doesn't involve bombs and explosions and death tolls. If you don't want a diversion, no one will blame you, but if you do, the hot or not list from the week in MMA.

Hot -- Science: UFC president Dana White has been battling with Meniere's Disease, a disorder of the inner-ear that has wreaked havoc on his health. A surgery that was supposed to help didn't, but White tried a new therapy that he says has made a huge difference. White went to Germany and received platement-rich plasma therapy, after New York Yankees star Alex Rodriguez told him to, of course.

Not -- Fans who take swings at fighters: OK, it was just one fan, but it was one fan too many. Taking a swing at Chael Sonnen or anyone else is the kind of thing that could raise security levels hinder the access fans have to their favorite fighters.

Hot -- Jon Jones: Though he made a bad move when he accused, then withdrew his accusations, Sonnen of taking steroids, Jones is still having a good week. His Nike line is on sale, making him the first UFC fighter with his own shoe.

Not -- Josh Rosenthal: The well-respected MMA referee had a bad week that probably could have been worse. After he was busted for conspiracy charges because he owned a warehouse full of marijuana plants, Rosenthal plead guilty and faces 37 months in jail.

Still taking temperature -- Benson Henderson: The UFC lightweight champ will defend his belt against Gilbert Melendez on Saturday night at UFC on Fox 7. We will find out if he's still the hottest in his division.

Stick with Cagewriter on Twitter for more on Saturday night's fights.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/science-jon-jones-josh-rosenthal-see-where-fall-183336613--mma.html

David Heath Delson Heleno Dan Henderson Josh Hendricks

Jon Jones' legacy and P4P status

Long time lurker here, and I think this is the first time I've ever bothered to start a thread. I'm bored, recovering from surgery, and this topic has been bothering me for some time.

Jon Jones' rise has certainly been meteoric, and the UFC currently ranks him #2 pound for pound. However, I've always felt that status was undeserved. Allow me to explain why.


Let's go over Jones' UFC career

André Gusmão, Stephan Bonnar, Jake O'Brien, Matt Hamill - All entry level fights. Not much to discuss here.

Brandon Vera - Used to shine in the old, shallow heavyweight division of the UFC. People always touted his potential, but he never came close to being elite in the light-heavyweight division.

Vladimir Matyushenko - A fairly legit guy, but long past his prime and I believe he was the oldest active member of the roster when Jones fought him? Also much smaller than Jones.

Ryan Bader - Good athlete, but always had plenty of holes in his game and has never looked elite. Jones also still had significant physical advantages over him.

Maurício Rua - I love me some Shogun, but we all know he is horribly inconsistent, and his best days have been behind him for quite some time. He had no cardio and never even got started in the Jones fight. Also much smaller than Jones.

Quinton Jackson - Used to be fairly legit, but hasn't been the same the last few years and obviously lost a lot of his interest and motivation. I also don't think his training has been great in a very long time.

Lyoto Machida - Crafty guy and had his moments, but let's be honest, he's a natural middleweight. Gave up a huge size and reach disadvantage to Jones. All that speed is pretty nullified when he has to cover twice as much distance as Jones.

Rashad Evans - Another natural middleweight who gave up significant physical disadvantages. Also already seemed to be on the down slope of his career at that point.

Vitor Belfort - Yet another middleweight. Came in as a late replacement, injured, and might have even got the win if he'd committed more to that armbar. Not bad for a guy who really shouldn't have even been fighting Jones.

Chael Sonnen - And finally, another middleweight who is even coming off a loss. Sonnen is at a severe physical disadvantage, and Jones is a nightmare stylistic match-up for him.


To sum it all up, while Jon Jones certainly had an impressive run, I feel that was more due to his opponents and match-ups than anything else. I still don't think he's ever truly been tested. I don't understand how you can give him such a high ranking when compared to other champs who have been much more tested.

Every single Jones fight has been a mismatch before it even gets started. He has a freakish reach advantage over everyone he faces, comes from a naturally athletically gifted family, and has pretty much faced exclusively middleweights, or guys who are on the down slope of their careers, or both for his entire title run.

Compare that to guys like GSP or Aldo. They have been thoroughly tested against guys just as big if not bigger, just as athletic if not more so, and guys just as much in their primes. Not a single person in the light-heavyweight division convinces me of being a threat to Jones. The only real close guy size-wise would be Gustaffson, but I've never been sold on him. He's always seemed lanky and awkward to me. Not nearly the natural athlete Jones is. A guy like Davis has the athleticism, but has large holes in his game, particularly in the striking.

So, really, who else is there to test a guy who was so tailor made for that division? Natural freak athlete with crazy reach, youth, decent skills and the ideal frame. The only other guy who was on the horizon was Dan Henderson. Notice a pattern? Another guy who spent a great deal of his career at middleweight, is pretty one-dimensional and 42 years old. Glover Teixeira? Not sold on that, either.

I'm rambling here, but I really just don't see how you can rate a guy who has never truly been tested and happens to be the only guy truly tailor made for the shallowest division in the UFC so highly. Even the heavyweight division has more depth with guys like Velasquez, Dos Santos, Cormier, Overeem and Werdum likely able to beat each other on any given night.

So, thoughts? Comments? Agree/disagree?

Source: http://www.mmaforum.com/ufc/128210-jon-jones-legacy-p4p-status.html

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Pat Healy Finally Gets His Second Chance

If you look around the internet in the lead-up to Pat Healy’s UFC 159 bout against Jim Miller, you’ll find more than a couple erroneous references to this Saturday’s fight being Healy’s first in the UFC. He’s okay with that.

“I’ve seen a lot of that, and that’s kinda all right with me,” laughed Healy. “I’d really like to forget that last one, and if it could just go away and we just pretend this is my debut, I’m definitely cool with that.”

In the interest of accuracy, Healy did grace the Octagon one time previously, getting submitted at 2:37 of the first round by Anthony Torres on a UFC Fight Night show in Las Vegas on August 17, 2006. At the time, the Oregon native was simply a hard-nosed journeyman, taking on fights against whoever, whenever. He won more than he lost, but not by a lot. So when the man who already held wins over Carlos Condit, Paul Daley, and Dan Hardy got the call to the UFC to face Torres, he looked at it as business as usual, with the only difference being the letters in the left hand corner of the check.

“The biggest thing I remember is thinking it would be just another fight,” Healy recalled. “And when I got there the day of the fight and stepped into that UFC Octagon when nobody’s in the arena, and was just warming up, that’s when the pressure hit me. Whoa, I’m in the UFC, this is the big show. And I really wasn’t prepared for that.”

It showed. Following his win over Healy, Torres would only fight twice more, losing both, with one coming in the UFC to Jess Liaudin. But Healy stuck around, winning 14 of 18 fights over the next six years, half of them coming in the Strikeforce organization. So when he got his second call from the UFC for the Miller fight, he wasn’t just someone fighting for the sake of the fight and the paycheck; he was a legitimate lightweight contender.
 
“That fight (with Torres) was a big turning point in my life where I was like ‘man, I really need to dedicate myself a lot more to fighting. At that time I thought I was all the way in, but I really wasn’t doing what I needed to do and living the lifestyle I needed to live. When you’re at this level, you need to live and breathe fighting, and everything else needs to come second. At that point in my life I wasn’t doing it, and now I certainly am, and I’ve been doing it for a long time. I’m working with all the right people and the people who saw that fight might not even be able to recognize me from it.”

That’s an accurate assessment. In moving from journeyman to contender status, Healy has earned the respect of fans and his peers for being one of the toughest outs in the business, a grinder who will make you fight him for all three rounds. That doesn’t mean it’s been all sunshine and roses for the 29-year-old. With 15 losses on his record, he doesn’t have the glossy slate of a young gun on the rise, which makes him have to work that much harder to get any sort of recognition. Then there’s the whole title shot thing…

After winning five straight in Strikeforce, turning back Lyle Beerbohm, Eric Wisely, Maximo Blanco, Caros Fodor, and Mizuto Hirota, Healy was finally going to get his shot at Gilbert Melendez’ lightweight crown in September of last year.

The fight and the entire card were canceled.

Then Melendez vs. Healy was rescheduled for the organization’s final event in January of this year. Again, it didn’t happen due to a Melendez injury. Those four months basically told the tale of Pat Healy’s career.

“Initially I was really bummed with the way it played out,” he said. “But now, I just kinda look back at it and laugh and say, how fitting for my career. (Laughs) That’s a great metaphor for my career. It’s kinda funny, and hopefully with this fresh start with the UFC, things like that won’t happen. But I certainly hope, knock on wood, that Jim Miller doesn’t get injured.”

With both men already in New Jersey for this week’s fight and raring to go, the odds of that happening are miniscule, and at this point, you hope that Healy’s return to the UFC goes off without a hitch simply because he’s earned his way back and deserves some good fortune. But after everything, he can at least look at things with a philosophical slant.

“If you let things get to you in this sport, you won’t have any hair left because you pulled it all out,” he said. “You’ve got to roll with the punches. It’s part of the game and things never seem to work out like they should, but they always work out in some sort of direction, so I just stay positive. I am doing what I love and I feel very blessed to be doing that, so it’s easy to keep a smile on your face when you keep that mindset.”

And when he heard that he would be sharing the Octagon with hard-charging Jersey boy Miller, that made him smile even wider.

“If you watched Jim’s last fight with Joe Lauzon, that was just an awesome, knock down, drag out, great MMA fight,” said Healy of Miller’s December win. “And he always brings it. That’s something I do too, and I think we’re gonna have a great style matchup that the fans are gonna love, and it’s gonna make for a really exciting fight.”

Comments like that show the difference between real fighters and the rest of us. If you’re excited to be locked in a cage for 15 minutes with Jim Miller after seeing his stellar last performance, you’re a real fighter. When you point this out to Healy, he explains why he feels that way.

“We work so hard in training and I put so much time into training that if you come out there and things don’t happen where you’re in an exciting fight, then you look back and analyze what you did wrong in training,” he said. “Everybody wants to see an exciting fight, so that’s what you want to put on. I want to fight guys who are gonna fight me, and not run away, and Jim Miller’s the perfect opponent for that.”

‘Perfect’ probably wouldn’t be the word to describe Pat Healy’s mixed martial arts career to this point, but who likes perfect anyway? Anything worth having encompasses struggle, heartbreak, and hard work, and Healy is intimate with all three. But on Saturday, there’s a light at the end of the tunnel, and it’s not an oncoming train.

“I feel like I’m coming in on a clean slate,” said Healy. “I definitely feel like I have momentum on my side and I’m gonna carry everything I did in Strikeforce in there with me to keep that momentum. It’s a fresh start with the best company in the world, so it’s really exciting.”




 

Source: http://www.ufc.com/news/Pat-Healy-Finally-Gets-His-Second-Chance

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