MMA News and Tidbits

[joejoe]

Betonus is reporting that Roy Nelson is back in the UFC and will be taking on Mir at UFC 130. Roy Nelson tweeted about this saying "Internet says I'm back in the UFC. I need a fax like MJ to say I'm back"

Really hoping this is true. I love me some Big Country.

 

[Via Armbar]

Mir vs Nelson targeted for UFC 130 in May

A lot of people have wanted this fight for a while now after seeing Nelson and Mir go at it in a grappling match. It's really interesting no matter how you look at it. Both are great on the ground but both also love to stand, Mir more recently. My first thought is Mir winning this, but the more I think about it the less sense it makes. Nelson beat Mir in a grappling match (I know that means almost diddly in an mma bout but still) and I think Nelson is the more powerful striker. Nelson, surprisingly, might also have the better gas tank. For some intangible reason though I still think Mir takes this.

 

[Via Armbar]

Fresh off a dominating win over Brandon Vera at UFC 125, light heavyweight Thiago Silva next will fight former champion Quinton "Rampage" Jackson in a UFC 130 bout expected to have a major impact on the title picture.

Sources close to the event today told MMAjunkie.com verbal agreements are in place for the fight.

SHIT. That's bound to be a good fight. Neither guy will want to grapple (even though it would be a smart move for Thiago to do so) and both love to throw. One of those good ol fashioned barn burners here. I expect Rampage to take this either by decision or middle fight tko. He has more powerful and better technique then Silva. Thiago definitely has power but his footwork is plodding and his striking is honestly overrated a bit. Fun fight either way. Though, this does seem like a step down for Rampage after Machida as I was expecting to seem him against the Jones/Bader fight.

 

[jmt225]

That fight definitely makes a lot of sense, being that they're both coming off wins after losing a close fight to Rashad Evans. Don't be surprised if the winner of this gets the winner of Shogun/Rashad.

I personally see Rampage dominating. I don't think Thiago has the ability to take Rampage down at will like he could Vera, nor do I think Thiago is anywhere near as good as Rampage on the feet. Rampage better show up to fight three rounds, though. He cannot let-up on Thiago, because as we saw in Thiago's fight against Rashad, he can turn the page at any given minute. But two fights in now since he shot the A-Team, I think Rampage will show up in the best shape he's been in since he was Light Heavyweight Champion. Definitely looking forward to it.

And as far as Mir vs. Nelson... see a one sided affair for the advantage of Mir here, unless Nelson is able to land a decent shot. All it takes is one good hit to the face, and Mir gets completely thrown off his game. However, landed that shot is easier said than done.

 

[INDYjon22]

The Rampage/Silva fight should be fairly interesting. I give Rampage the advantage in most situations between these two except for on the ground. If Thiago can get the fight on the ground then I do believe he has the capabilities of winning the fight. Silva's striking is good but I feel like Page's is better and Silva does not want to get into a striking contest with Jackson. Silva should work the leg kicks that have proven to cause damage to Page and then work the fight to the ground. That is his best way of winning. I also would not be at all surprised to see the winner of this fight either get a title shot or fight the winner of either Bader/Jones or Franklin/Griffin. Should be fun to watch.

As for Mir vs. Nelson, I give Mir the early advantage, though I do think the fight is close. Both have good grappling and solid stand up. It should be a very fun fight to watch. I hope Nelson wins, but I think Mir most likely will.

 

[Buffalo Dave]

I really like the announced match up between Rampage and Silva. Definitely gonna be a nice slugfest. I think Rampage will be able to take this as long as he sticks to what he has been doing training wise, his last fight with Machida he looked in great shape and fighting was much better than the Evans fight. He better not get caught up in trash talk with Toney to derail him from training.

Well, add some more wrestling based fighters to UFC 129. Phil Davis vs. Matt Hamill has been announced for the event. Davis is fastly rising in the Light Heavyweight division. Definitely gonna cause problems for Hamill. This fight will probably be like the Jon Jones fight for Hamill minus the brutal elbows, Davis should dominate him and win either by an UD or sub him late in the fight.

 

[Window Licker 101]

Not sure if anyone has noticed but the Korean Zombie has pulled out of his fight with Rani Yahya at Fight For The Troops 2. Mike Brown, who dropped a decision to Diego Nunes at UFC 125, will step in to replace him.

In other news just as expected: Word has spread today via MMAweekly.com that WEC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis will not wait for a fight against the winner of Frankie Edgar/Gray Maynard III. The explosive Duke Roufus-product will instead take a different fight while the top of the lightweight division gets sorted out.

Mike Roberts, representative of Pettis, released the news today.

"Anthony was obviously disappointed in not getting the title shot, but he also understands why Dana made that decision. After consulting with Anthony and Duke Roufus, we collectively decided that it would be in Anthony's best interest to take a fight in the meantime."

This could turn into a great opportunity for Pettis, or a terrible decision.

 

[INDYjon22]

After their first match ended in an outcome so controversial that it was dubbed Sherdog.com’s “Robbery of the Year” for 2010, Leonard Garcia and Nam Phan will get to do it again.

Sherdog.com has confirmed with a source close to the fight that the featherweights have agreed to meet for a second time at UFC Fight Night 24, an event expected to take place on March 26 at the Key Arena in Seattle. The matchup was first reported by MMAWeekly.com.

In their first encounter on Dec. 4 at “The Ultimate Fighter 12” finale in Las Vegas, Garcia and Phan engaged in a three-round brawl from which Garcia emerged the winner via split decision. The judges’ scorecards were the subject of much criticism from fans, pundits and even UFC President Dana White, who awarded Phan his win bonus in spite of the loss. The decision triggered a flood of e-mails from unhappy fans to the Nevada State Athletic Commission, NSAC Executive Director Keith Kizer told the Sherdog Radio Network’s “Savage Dog Show” last month.

Garcia, no stranger to controversy, has gone the distance in his last six outings, leading to three wins, two losses and one draw. Last April, the 31-year-old Texan was on the right side of another much-debated verdict in his split decision win over Chan Sung Jung at WEC 48. The Greg Jackson-trained fighter was a staple in the WEC featherweight division since his breakout in 2008, when he notched notable stoppages against the likes of Jens Pulver and Hiroyuki Takaya.

Sources tell Sherdog.com that Garcia had been tapped to meet the winner of the Diego Nunes-Mike Thomas Brown contest at UFC 125, but that UFC brass gave him another opponent after learning that the winner, Nunes, would be sidelined for up to six months.

A well-traveled nine-year veteran of the sport, Phan gained a new fan base after appearing on the 12th season of “The Ultimate Fighter” reality show, where he reached the semifinals before being eliminated by eventual runner-up Michael Johnson. The 27-year-old holds black belts in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and karate, and has also dabbled in professional boxing, but has not won back-to-back professional MMA bouts since 2007.

Brilliant move by the UFC. It has pretty much decided across the board that Nam Phan was royally screwed in the first fight. It only makes sense but to let these two go at it once more and it doesn't hurt that these guys went balls to the wall in the first fight and gave us a tremendous fight. This rematch should be incredibly fun to watch and I for one can not wait to see it go down. WAR Nam!!!

 

[Window Licker 101]

War Nam indeed! I'm still shellshocked to this day that Leonard Garcia somehow pulled off the victory! Anyway:

Following recent back surgery, Shane Carwin (12-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC) expects to make his return to the cage in June at UFC 131.

MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) first reported the news on Monday, and Carwin confirmed the tentative booking on his official website, www.shane-carwin.com.

In the update, Carwin also confirmed he had been approached about fighting "The Ultimate Fighter 10" winner Roy Nelson before he ultimately was scheduled for a meeting with Frank Mir at UFC 130.

Officials hope to finalize plans for UFC 131 this week. The show is tentatively planned for June 11 at Rogers Arena in Vancouver. As MMAjunkie.com reported on Monday, Carwin is expected to play a prominent role in the pay-per-view event.

"So last week we got the call from (UFC matchmaker) Joe Silva asking if we would consider fighting Nelson at UFC 130," Carwin wrote. "We accepted the matchup and ... Silva said that it was 90 percent a go. The next day we were informed that they went a different direction for Nelson and that they want me to fight someone at UFC 131 in Vancouver. I have once again rapidly accepted the date.

"As of this blog, no opponent has been mentioned. Other than the MMAjunkie.com story, I have not heard anymore about my June 11 return."

Carwin hasn't fought since UFC 116 in July 2010, when he suffered a second-round submission loss to then-champ Brock Lesnar. Carwin dominated the first round of the fight but admittedly slowed in the second, which gave Lesnar the opening he needed for the comeback win.

Prior to the loss, Carwin had posted a perfect 12-0 record with 12 first-round stoppages. The UFC victories came over Christian Wellisch, Neil Wain, Gabriel Gonzaga and Mir.

Carwin had been slated for a UFC 125 meeting with Nelson earlier this month. However, back pain ultimately forced him off the card and into the operating room.

I have heard rumours of potential opponents including JDS, Brock and Kongo. Prefer to see Carwin/JDS slug it out but my only problem with that match up is that JDS may lose his title shot if he gets KO'd by Carwin.

 

[INDYjon22]

Former UFC light heavyweight contender Keith Jardine (Pictured) will return to competition on March 4, as he takes on Maximum Fighting Championship veteran Aron Lofton in a to-be-named event at the Route 66 Casino outside Albuquerque, N.M.

The event -- which will also feature the MMA debut of decorated boxer Holly Holm, as she squares off with Christina Domke -- will be co-promoted by Casino 66 and Fresquez Productions and will go down from the Legends Theater inside the casino. Jardine on Saturday spoke exclusively with Sherdog about his bout and the event.

“It’s a pretty big deal. If you don’t know Holly, she’s pound-for-pound the best boxer in the world and one of the greatest all-time. We’re still in the beginning stages [of planning the event], but I’m hoping to stream at least the two main events online. I’m trying to work that out so everyone can watch,” Jardine told Sherdog. “I don’t know much about [my opponent] yet, but I’ve heard he’s a pretty tough guy. He’s really athletic, and it should be a good fight.”

Jardine, who trains at Jackson’s Mixed Martial Arts in Albuquerque, says he is motivated to once again perform in front of a hometown crowd.

“After that Dominican nightmare, coming back and having some freedom to do what I want [is great],” said Jardine. “I just wanted to fight at home and fight in front of all the people who haven’t been able to travel and watch me fight before. That’s really exciting for me.”

The “nightmare” to which Jardine refers was the Nemesis Fighting “MMA Global Invasion” fiasco. “The Dean of Mean,” along with all the other fighters on the card, made their respective ways to the Dominican Republic in December, only to find that they would be performing under distressing conditions. Reports from the event tallied the crowd at less than 100, and fighters were forced to share gloves because there were not enough to go around. Worst of all, the checks distributed to the fighters after the show bounced.

Jardine has taken charge in an attempt to make the situation right for the fighters. The light heavyweight has set up a Web site called PayTheFighters.com through which supporters and fans may purchase merchandise. All proceeds will go to the Nemesis combatants. Currently, Jardine, who has spoken to the Secret Service about the matter, is trying to gain rights to video of the event from the promoters.

“The only thing of value is the video production. All the fights are world-class, incredible fights, and you've got these big names fighting their hearts out in front of nobody in the audience. People have to see this tape,” said Jardine. “The main thing is that it really hurt the mid-level fighters who live from fight to fight and who could have taken other fights but banked on this one. And now they don’t have any money from this fight.”

The 35-year-old is adamant the fighters should receive compensation for their efforts.

“Currently, Nemesis has [the video], and I think they want to show it. There’s no way they can show it without paying the fighters, and I know that’s what they want to do. They just sent a proposal to our lawyer, and we haven’t waded through the proposal yet,” Jardine said. “I’m hopeful, but I doubt it says what we want it to say. If it’s anything other than the fighters getting paid their due first, then I don’t think it’s going to work.”

Jardine was once considered one of the best light heavyweights in the world. With victories over Forrest Griffin and Chuck Liddell, he was knocking on the door for a title shot. However, four straight losses in the Octagon saw him released from the promotion in June. After dropping a fifth straight fight to fellow UFC veteran Trevor Prangley at Shark Fights 13 in September, Jardine bounced back with his bittersweet victory over Francisco France in the Dominican Republic. Now, the unorthodox light heavyweight has his sights set on a return to the big show.

“My goal is to get back to the top of the UFC. Right now, I’m trying to pick up some wins and get back as soon as I can,” said Jardine. “I felt like, at the Dominican fight, I hit rock bottom. I went from fighting in front of 15,000 people in a main event [for the UFC] to a main event in front of less than 100 people. But now I’m on my way back. I’m going to make it to the top, and it’s going to be a great story when I do.”

Well, Jardine is coming off of a win against Francisco France just a short time ago. I am glad to see him fighting again so soon and just a few days before my birthday. Hopefully he can pick up another win and begin some sort of winning streak that will get him back to the UFC, maybe even by the end of the year. I also hope that he actually gets paid for his efforts this time around.

In other news.

Veteran welterweight Dennis Hallman (Pictured) has signed a new four-fight deal with the UFC.

“Superman” will meet Anthony Waldburger at UFC Fight Night 24 on March 26 at the Key Arena in Seattle. The event -- which figures to be headlined by a bout between former UFC light heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira -- was recently made official by the promotion, along with a featherweight rematch between Leonard Garcia and “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 12 semi-finalist Nam Phan.

MMAJunkie.com on Saturday was first to report Hallman’s new contract, and Sherdog confirmed the report shortly thereafter.

Hallman has won six of his last seven bouts, including a 2-1 stint in his current run with the UFC. The 35-year-old rejoined the promotion in 2009, losing by knockout to the hard-punching John Howard at “The Ultimate Fighter 10” Finale. Hallman found success in his next two contests, however, as he earned a unanimous decision against American Top Team’s Ben Saunders at UFC 117 and followed that performance with a technical knockout of Karo Parisyan at UFC 123.

Hallman owns 33 of his 43 career victories by submission, including two lightning-quick wins over UFC hall of famer Matt Hughes. The Washingtonian began his career in 1997 and has competed against some of the sport’s best-known names, including Frank Trigg, Jens Pulver and Caol Uno. The welterweight recently discovered he suffered from Coeliac Disease, which caused his body to react negatively to wheat gluten and depleted his energy in both training and fighting.

Hallman has been quiet impressive since his return to the UFC and I think this is a good resigning. He won't be a title contender but he could make for a great gatekeeper. He is on a two fight win streak with some impressive wins over Ben Saunders and Karo Parisyan, not bad fighters by any means. I would love to see him fight Matt Hughes one more time, he has submitted Hughes twice in his career and in an incredible time of only 37 seconds of total time. It would be interesting to see if he could take Hughes out again or not. I was skeptical when I heard the UFC had resigned him before his fight with John Howard but he has proven me wrong and been a good pick up so far.

 

[INDYjon22]

Middleweights Jason Miller and Tim Kennedy will reportedly lock horns for the third time on March 5.

The bout is close to being finalized for the as-yet-unannounced Strikeforce card at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio, according to a report from MMAJunkie.com.

The fight serves as a rubber match, with the pair having split its first two meetings. In just his fifth professional fight, Kennedy took a unanimous decision against Miller at a 2003 Extreme Challenge event in Utah. Nearly five years later, in December 2007, “Mayhem” took his revenge with a unanimous verdict in Texas under the HDNet Fights banner.

Since their last meeting, Miller has become a crossover superstar thanks to his MTV program “Bully Beatdown,” and has gone 4-2 inside the ring and cage. In 2008, Miller was defeated in Japan by current Strikeforce middleweight champion Ronaldo Souza; their 2009 rematch was ruled a no-contest.

Following a five-round loss to Jake Shields in Strikeforce, Mayhem rebounded with a pair of first-round wins against MMA legend Kazushi Sakuraba in Dream and short-notice opponent Tim Stout in Stikeforce. Miller’s upcoming bout marks his first in the U.S. since being suspended by the Tennessee Athletic Commission for his involvement in an April 2010 post-fight brawl with Shields and his teammates.

Kennedy, 31, reeled off four straight wins following his loss to Miller, including victories over veterans Trevor Prangley and Nick Thompson. His streak was halted in August, when he lost a narrow decision in a five-round title match with Souza. The loss was just the third of the U.S. Army Ranger’s career, his first coming via doctor stoppage in his 2001 debut against fellow Strikeforce fighter Scott Smith.

While not yet confirmed by the promotion, Strikeforce “Columbus” is also expected to feature a light heavyweight title bout between champion Rafael Cavalcante and top contender Dan Henderson.

Should be a hell of a fight. Not as excited for this fight as I would be for Mayhem/Diaz but I think this one should have a lot of potential and should be a good watch. The winner will most likely get a shot at the Middleweight title, after Lawler and Jacare fight. Unless of course Mayhem gets the Diaz fight, which is the only thing I could see him putting of a title fight for, if he gets past Kennedy of course. Strikeforce has setup some awesome fights for the first quarter of the year so far and I love it.

 

[jmt225]

The rumor for the longest time had been Mayhem vs. Melvin Manhoef, and that's a fight I would have LOVED to seen. It would have been such an interesting match-up. Does Mayhem trust his striking enough to bang with Manhoef? And if not... could Mayhem work the fight to the ground? That definitely would have been an awesome fucking fight, and it was one I was really hoping would go down.

So, I'm disappointed to hear Mayhem's fighting Kennedy instead. Kennedy's a good fighter, and a worthy opponent, but man... it just doesn't have that spark that Mayhem/Manhoef would have had.

Regardless, Mayhem/Kennedy should still be a grappling war, that's for sure. I see Mayhem tapping Kennedy out sometime late in the fight, and finally getting that big win that shows he's indeed one of the best Middleweight fighters in the World.

 

[INDYjon22]

Former Cage Rage welterweight king Paul Daley (Pictured) will likely receive the opportunity to strap another belt around his waist in the not-too-distant future.

The hard-hitting Brit is being penciled in for a shot at the winner of the bout between Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz and Evangelista Santos, scheduled for Jan. 29 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif.

Speaking with Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker on Thursday, Sherdog.com confirmed there was a strong possibility that Daley would receive the next shot at the title. MMAWeekly.com was first to report the likelihood of Daley challenging for the belt.

Before stepping up to face either Diaz or “Cyborg,” however, Daley must navigate his next fight, which is likely to come as an event headliner for the British Association of Mixed Martial Arts promotion. Currently, no information has been made available regarding Daley’s opponent.

Daley was last seen in the Strikeforce cage in December, providing a rude welcome to the welterweight ranks for Scott Smith. “Semtex” landed a devastating counter left hook that knocked Smith out cold in the first round of their Dec. 4 encounter in St. Louis.

Strikeforce signed the hard-punching welterweight after Daley was released by the UFC in May. Though the Brit had earned back-to-back knockouts in his first two fights with the promotion, he was cut following his loss to Josh Koscheck in a bout to decide the No. 1 contender for Georges St. Pierre's welterweight title. After being outwrestled and outpointed by Koscheck for three rounds, Daley took a swing at Koscheck’s head after the fight had ended, prompting UFC President Dana White to assert that Daley would never again fight for the organization.

Not surprising news at all. There aren't a lot of top Welterweights to challenge Diaz and Daley is a fairly big name. He is currently on a 3 fight win streak, his most recent being in Strikeforce against Scott Smith. However, I would put off a fight with Diaz if he wins. The Diaz/Miller fight needs to go down finally and a fight with Daley is just another excuse to postpone it again. If the Diaz/Miller fight does finally go down then I think a Daley/Woodley fight would make a lot of sense seing as Woodley is one of SF's biggest prospects and has been on a roll. Woodley would also benefit from a step up in competition. This is of course if Diaz can defeat Santos, which if he does not then SF should go ahead and give Daley the title shot as is being rumored.

 

[INDYjon22]

Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz is not scared of Jason “Mayhem” Miller, homie.

Diaz does, however, want to be compensated handsomely if he's to square off with “Mayhem” at the middleweight limit.

“I’d be happy to move up. I don't like that people say that I didn't accept the fight with Miller, because I never said anything about that. I said, if I’m going to go off track and screw with my capabilities to fight at 170 pounds, I’d like to get paid in full,” said Diaz during Thursday's Strikeforce conference call. “I’d like to have a reason for doing that. I’d like to get paid something extra -- double, triple, something crazy. I’d [even move down in weight], honestly. Offer me a big money fight at 155 pounds and I'll make it happen.”

According to Diaz, if Miller truly wants to fight him, “Mayhem” should make the same sacrifices that he makes in cutting weight.

“They were talking about making me move weight. [Miller] should get in shape and f---ing make weight like I do. It's hard enough for me to make 170 pounds. He acts like he wouldn't be able to do it. That motherf---er doesn't want to fight me. He doesn't want to work hard like me. That's the problem,” said Diaz. “So he can [either] work his ass off and make 170 or 175 pounds, or somebody can pay me a couple of f---ing million dollars, and I'll move up to 185 pounds and fight him.”

As Diaz elaborated on the subject, his tone became harsher, finally pointing out his frustration with the discrepancy between his pay and that of other world champions.

“[Manny] Pacquaio is making $40 million, [Georges St. Pierre] is making a couple million dollars, and I’m over here driving a Honda because my s--t is breaking down? F--k all you motherf---ers.”

Though many fans were disappointed that the proposed Diaz-Miller contest did not come to fruition, the champion now has another difficult task on his hands: defeat Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos. Diaz will defend his title against Santos on Jan. 29 in the main event of Strikeforce “Diaz vs. Cyborg” at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif.

“He's a good fighter. I expect him to train hard for this fight. He looks good at [170 pounds]. I always told people he was too small for 185. I think that this is probably a better weight for him.”

Though “Cyborg” has fought only once at 170 pounds -- a bout that ended in a brutal knockout of Marius Zaromskis in December -- Diaz believes that the Chute Boxe representative is a worthy challenger for his title.

“I think [Cyborg] is probably the best fight right now. I’ve seen his weaknesses and strengths. He's not the most technical fighter, and he's not biggest fighter,” said Diaz.

If Diaz can get by Santos, his next opponent will probably be another hard-hitter in Paul Daley. When asked about that potential matchup, however, Diaz was lukewarm. According to the Cesar Gracie product, he has another bout in mind, however implausible it may be.

“I haven't really thought about Paul Daley, to be honest,” said Diaz. “I want to fight Georges St. Pierre. I think my training partner [Jake Shields] is going to take him out. Straight up. People think this guy's better than me, and it's bulls--t.”

And literally minutes after my previous post some comments by Nick Diaz were posted on Sherdog. For the record, I would fucking love to see Diaz vs. GSP. I don't necessarily believe Diaz would win but I do think it would be a good fight. I also think Dias has a point about moving up to fight Mayhem. It doesn't make sense for him to take a fight with a bigger guy without getting some more money for his efforts. Either Strikeforce needs to settle on a catch weight with a slight increase in money for both fighters or pay one of them more to make the cut or move up, which most likely be Diaz moving up because Mayhem doesn't want to cut to 170 nor do I believe he can at this stage in his career. But this fight needs to go down.

 

[jmt225]

Nick Diaz is 100% right. People keep saying Diaz/Mayhem is the fight everyone wants to see... well if that's the case, then the fighters should get paid for it, ESPECIALLY Diaz since he would be the one taking the risk by going up in weight and fighting a guy who hasn't had a big win in over 3 years.

And while I want to see the fight, a part of me is happy it's not going down just yet. I want Nick to beat Cyborg (who I really hope he's not overlooking, because that is a dangerous opponent for Nick's style) and Daley, and for Mayhem to win the MW Title if/when he beats Kennedy and gets a shot at Jacare. That way, if Diaz and Mayhem fights, it'll be a super fight between two champions, where hopefully both guys get the pay they deserve.

 

[INDYjon22]

Strikeforce welterweight contender Paul Daley (Pictured) will test his mettle outside the promotion for a single, homecoming fight with the U.K.-based British Association of Mixed Martial Arts. There, he will likely face Deep welterweight champion Yuya Shirai in the BAMMA 5 main event on Feb. 25 at the Manchester Evening News Arena in Manchester, England.

Daley’s name is now displayed on the BAMMA Web site, but there has been no official mention of Shirai. Speaking with sources close to Strikeforce, Sherdog.com confirmed the promotion has given Daley permission to participate in the event, though an opponent was not specified. Fighter’s Only on Thursday was first to report the potential Daley-Shirai matchup.

A hard-hitting Englishman, Daley is known for carrying dynamite in both hands and knocking his opponents stiff. A former Cage Rage welterweight champion in his homeland, he has won seven of his last eight bouts, with his lone loss coming to Josh Koscheck in Daley’s final fight with the UFC. After joining the organization in 2009, Daley annihilated accurate striker Martin Kampmann and submission wizard Dustin Hazelett before taking on Koscheck at UFC 113 for the right to become top contender for Georges St. Pierre’s championship.

After Koscheck used his wrestling to neutralize Daley’s power punching for three rounds, the frustrated Brit took a swing at the polarizing American Kickboxing Academy representative after the bell. The sucker punch prompted UFC President Dana White to cut “Semtex” from the promotion and announce that Daley would never again return. Daley knocked out Scott Smith in his promotional debut for Strikeforce on Dec. 4 in St. Louis. The Team Rough House product owns 19 of his 26 career victories by knockout.

Shirai is on a similarly impressive run, notching eight wins in nine tries over the last two years. The 30-year-old’s only defeat in that span came to American Jason High in the first round of Dream’s 2009 welterweight grand prix. High caught the Japanese fighter in a fight-ending rear-naked choke just 59 seconds into the first frame. Shirai, a Team M.A.D. representative, won the Deep welterweight title at Deep 45 in January, earning a unanimous decision over Seichi Ikemoto. After besting Che Mills at under the Astra banner in April, Shirai successfully defended his crown against Shigetoshi Iwase at Deep 50 in October.

Very interesting move by Daley. This could severally hurt his current push for a Welterweight title shot. A lose could take him out of a title shot, though Strikeforce has a weak upper echelon of WW fighters so that definitely helps Daleys case in the event of a loss. I do find it a little silly of Strikeforce to let Daley fight for another promotion while under contract to them, though they do let Overeem do the same sort of thing.

 

[Final Form Snyper.]

The UFC’s focus on Saturday night was raising funds for the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund and the Canadian Hero Fund. Promotion officials still rewarded of the fighters that put on outstanding performances in front of a hangar full of U.S. military personnel at Fort Hood in Texas.

UFC president Dana White announced that the UFC Fight For The Troops 2 post-fight awards on Saturday night netted each of the winners a $30,000 bonus.

Veteran Yves Edwards and Ultimate Fighter Season 12 alum Cody McKenzie walked away with the Fight of the Night honors for their performance on the preliminary portion of the card, streamed live on Facebook.com/UFC.

McKenzie and Edwards went back and forth over the course of the their fight, McKenzie looking like he might add another submission to his previously undefeated record filled with guillotine chokes. Edwards, however, turned the tables and choked McKenzie unconscious for the win, and the Submission of the Night bonus all packed into one.

If you’re keeping tabs, that’s an additional $60,000 for Edwards, on top of his fight purse.

There was some stiff competition for Knockout of the Night. The final three bouts were all finished by way of technical knockout.

It was main-eventer Melvin Guillard that took home the honors and the bonus check. Once he settled into a rhythm, Guillard started picking Evan Dunham apart. He blasted Dunham with a knee to the head, leaving him sprawled on the canvas.

It is good to see McKenzie not walk away empty handed. I couldn't have been happier with him, yes he was sloppy at times but he is a good entertainer with good charisma. He is a character.

Yves Edwards was the real winner tonight, he gets Submission of the Night, Fight of the Night and a win to walk away with.

Melvin deserves Knock Out Of The Night, he put on a beat down over an impressive Evan Dunham.

 

[INDYjon22]

British slugger Paul Daley is currently situated near the very top of the Strikeforce welterweight ladder. His brutal December knockout of Scott Smith made him the unofficial No. 1 contender at 170 pounds and put him in line for a crack at the winner of Saturday’s Nick Diaz-Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos title match.

However, according to Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker, that could change next month, even without “Semtex” setting foot inside the Strikeforce cage.

On Feb. 26, Daley is slated to meet Deep welterweight ace Yuya Shirai in Manchester, England, under the banner of the U.K.-based British Association of Mixed Martial Arts. The outcome of the bout, which is for the vacant BAMMA welterweight belt, will decide Daley’s position in the Strikeforce title hunt.

“If he loses, the deck’s gonna get reshuffled, and if he wins, then he’ll be the first in line to get the title shot,” Coker said during Monday’s media conference call to promote Strikeforce “Diaz vs. Cyborg.”

Daley inked a multi-fight deal with Strikeforce in September. His win against Smith came in the 27-year-old Englishman’s first official outing for the promotion; Daley previously defeated Duane Ludwig at a 2007 event co-promoted by Strikeforce and EliteXC.

A devastating striker and one of the top exports of Nottingham-based Team Rough House, Daley holds a career mark of 26-9-2, with 19 of those victories by way of knockout. He has notched notable wins over the likes of Martin Kampmann, Jorge Masvidal, Dustin Hazelett and John Alessio. His wins against Kampmann and Hazelett came during his brief run in the UFC, which ended last May when he threw a sucker punch at Josh Koscheck following a decision loss to the wrestler at UFC 113.

I really wish I knew all of this Daley/Diaz/Strikeforce stuff was going to happen because I would have just created a thread for it instead of lumping it all in together in here, but oh well. This is definitely the right move by Coker and Strikeforce. I don't have a problem with Daley fighting for another promotion, but that shouldn't keep his title shot from being on the line. I am glad that SF is willing to take his title shot away should he lose because, quiet frankly, it isn't fair to the rest of the division. A man coming off of a loss has no business being in a title fight, no matter how big a fighter they are or how weak a division.

 

[jmt225]

So last night Tim Sylvia fought for some no-name promotion against some random no-name fighter called Abe Wagner. Here's the fight:

[YOUTUBE]avv0i31yjWE[/YOUTUBE]

As you can see from the video, Timmy looked like absolute shit. He weighed in at 300 pounds, and Jesus Christ, man... the dude either needs to take the fight game seriously, or fucking retire already. That was just an embarrassment to watch. It's like he didn't train a single day for that fight. Pathetic....

 

[INDYjon22]

Actually JMT, Abe Wagner isn't that big of a no name. Think back to The Ultimate Fighter: Heavyweights because he was on the show that season. Clearly he didn't do very well on the show, but he looked fairly good in this fight. Not that Sylvia is all that great anymore, but Wagner took the fucking fight to Timmy and looked pretty solid. Definitely the biggest win in Wagners career so far.

 

[Buffalo Dave]

A long-rumored title fight between Strikeforce light-heavyweight champion Rafael "Feijao" Cavalcante (10-2 MMA, 3-1 SF) and notable Dan Henderson (26-8 MMA, 1-1 SF) is set for March's "Strikeforce: Columbus" event.

MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) first reported the bout in early December, and the organization made it official on Saturday.

The March 5 event takes place at Nationwide Arena in Columbus as part of Strikeforce's Ohio debut.

The night's main card airs on Showtime.

Other expected (but not announced) bouts for the card include women's welterweight champion Marloes Coenen (18-4 MMA, 2-1 SF) vs. Meisha Tate (11-2 MMA, 4-1 SF) and lightweights Billy Evangelista (11-0 MMA, 7-0 SF) vs. Jorge Masvidal (20-6 MMA, 2-0 SF).

Strikeforce Columbus is shaping up to be a nice card. Miller/Kennedy is another main card fight that wasn't in the quote. Strikeforce is putting some good cards out already this year, hopefully they stay up with this and don't fall back into finalized main cards two weeks before the main event. This is a very winnable fight for Hendo. We shall hopefully see Hendo do what King Mo was supposed to do against Feijao, in using his wrestling skills to get the win. Hendo needs to be on the lookout for Feijao's vicious Muay Thai knees and not get caught in an exchange with him, and he'll be able to get the win.

 

[INDYjon22]

Strikeforce Columbus is shaping up to be a nice card. Miller/Kennedy is another main card fight that was in the quote. Strikeforce is putting some good cards out already this year, hopefully they stay up with this and don't fall back into finalized main cards two weeks before the main event. This is a very winnable fight for Hendo. We shall hopefully see Hendo do what King Mo was supposed to do against Feijao, in using his wrestling skills to get the win. Hendo needs to be on the lookout for Feijao's vicious Muay Thai knees and not get caught in an exchange with him, and he'll be able to get the win.

I love it. Feijao finally lived up to all of his potential in his fight with King Mo and now it will be interesting to see how he does as a defending champion. It won't be easy because we all know how great Hendo is. I do firmly believe that Hendo is the favorite and will win but as we saw in the Mo fight, Feijao likes to overcome the odds. Should be a good fight.

 

[Buffalo Dave]

Well the proposed third fight between Mayhem Miller and Tim Kennedy is now off. With no reason given for the call off of the fight. Someone from Strikeforce said the fight was never signed in the first place. Kennedy already has a replacement announced which is Luke Rockhold, who is decent but has never really been tested yet, well now he gets his chance against Kennedy. Could this mean that SF is making progress for a Miller/Diaz fight? We can only hope!

 

[jmt225]

I remember hearing in someone's interview or reading something earlier this weekend that Mayhem sustained some sort of injury. Either way, while I hope Mayhem is okay if he did get injured, I'm glad the fight's off. I had no interest in Mayhem/Kennedy 3. I would much rather see Mayhem against Melvin Manhoef or Jacare.

As far as this might leading to Diaz/Mayhem... no way for now, man. Cesar Gracie will not let that fight happen, unless Mayhem is willing to cut weight. Even then they might not do it, since Diaz has his sights on Daley and Fernando Vargas. If Daley loses that BAMMA bout, I really think Diaz will end up boxing Vargas for Showtime. That's what everything, right now, seems to be pointing to.

 

[Buffalo Dave]

Although it is almost 2 weeks old, I didn't see it posted but Jens Pulver actually won a fight!! That's right you are reading correctly. He defeated Mike Lindquist in just 49 seconds with a RNC. Granted Lindquist's overall record before the fight was a impressive *jokes* 6-19. Either way good to see him get a win snapping his 6 fight losing streak.


Joe Stevenson will meet Danny Castillo at UFC Versus 3 March 3rd on the preliminary card. This is probably the last straw for Joe Daddy, if he loses this fight thats the dreaded 3 in a row and and would be 5 out of his last 7. It's a winnable fight for Stevenson if he doesn't try and go toe to toe with Castillo or he could get knocked out like the Danzig fight. Castillo is looking to emerge as a fighter, every time he fights a top guy he comes out on the losing end, having lost to Cerrone, Roller, and Pettis in the WEC.