MMA News and Tidbits

[jmt225]

ITGG, WEC 51 will surely get its own thread once the month of September comes, for sure.

Anyways, holy shit... check out the line-up for UFC 21:

Main Card
UFC Heavyweight Championship: Brock Lesnar (champion) vs. Cain Velasquez
Matt Hamill vs. Tito Ortiz
Gabriel Gonzaga vs. Brendan Schaub
Martin Kampmann vs. Jake Shields
Diego Sanchez vs. Paulo Thiago

Spike TV Preliminary Card
Patrick Cote vs. Tom Lawlor
Ryan Jensen vs. Court McGee

Is that a fucking STACKED card or what? This will, without a single doubt in my mind, end up being the biggest payday in UFC history, if this card stays in tact.

First of all, you have Brock Lesnar, who's a guaranteed 1 million buys for the show alone. Then you add Tito fucking Ortiz, the UFC's biggest draw before Lesnar came along? Man! And on top of that they're giving us Martin Kampmann vs. Jake Shields in Shields debut, and Diego Sanchez vs. Paulo Thiago? Jesus Christ was a card this is... I cannot wait!

If you don't order this show, then I don't know what to say for you, man. You're going to miss out on one of the best, most historic nights in MMA history. I know I sure as shit won't be missing out on it.

 

[Goliath Uterus]

That is quite the card. I'm a huge Gonzaga fan, and Lesnar is awesome to watch. Tito Ortiz is always entertaining before, during, and after the shows. Same could be said for Sanchez.

Quick question, when is this? If you can't respond without making it spam, would you mind shooting me a PM?

 

[JohnnyDrama]

i was surprised when i heard tito ortiz vs matt hamill, im sure this will be a hell of a fight. jake sheilds debut....nuff said. and brock vs cain in the main event, damn on paper this might match ufc 116, hell even beat it.

 

[ITurnGirlsGay]

That is quite the card. I'm a huge Gonzaga fan, and Lesnar is awesome to watch. Tito Ortiz is always entertaining before, during, and after the shows. Same could be said for Sanchez.

Quick question, when is this? If you can't respond without making it spam, would you mind shooting me a PM?

The card is October 23, from the Honda Center (Arrowhead Pond) in Anaheim, CA. I will be attending this event as it is WAY too awesome to pass up.

Additionally, JMT, Todd Duffee will be making his return to the octagon against Jon Madsen at this event as well. That fight was announced today, too. As well as Paul Taylor vs. Sam Stout. This card keeps getting more and more awesome by the minute.

 

[jmt225]

Joey Villasenor vs. Drew McFedries and Paul Daley are also on the card.

I really, really would like to see Alexander vs. Sokoudjou. That should be one hell of a slugfest, assuming Alexander shows up to actually fight instead of circle around the ring for 15 minutes. Somebody's definitely getting KTFO in that one. I'm rooting for Alexander though; I've always had a soft spot for him, lol.

Also, I remember Guy mentioning how he would like to see Jardine vs. Alexander 2, so you have to think that if they both win on this show, then the promotion will book them against each other on their next show. I would definitely love to see that as well. Let's just hope these shows make their way to Youtube or something like that.

 

[Turd Ferguson]

Quick selfish post here, but over the past couple of days, UFC 118 has gotten so much better that it's not even funny. For once, injury replacements really turn out for the better, and I'm excited even about the prelims for this card now. I cannot wait to be in attendance for this.

First off, there was sad news for Jorge Rivera where he was forced off the card with an elbow injury. He's a Boston native, and back when he destroyed Nate Quarry on the first UFC Live on Versus card, he said that he wanted to fight on the Boston card. He was booked in what was supposed to be a major slugfest with Alessio Sakara. Instead, Gerald Harris, who had that awesome devastating slam KO on the UFC 116 prelims, will step in his place.

Second, I was upset when Phil Baroni was forced off the card with an injury, because I find him the height of unintentional comedy in MMA... he's basically the Brooklyn Brawler of MMA, and with him wearing the rhinestone robe with the Yankees logo, he would have gotten heavily booed. So, this left John Salter without an opponent. I was just hoping that whoever it was that the fighter wouldn't be an unknown... because I want a reason to make sure I'm there for the prelims.

They got Dan Miller to step in.

This is the perfect fight for Dan Miller, who has three very tough decision losses in a row to Chael Sonnen, Demian Maia, and Michael Bisping. There is no shame in losing to those three, but he is in a must-win situation, and this fight should be a gimme for him. He was at one point, a top 10 middleweight. I'm going to be rooting hard for him, because I'm a huge fan of the Miller brothers, and he seems like a nice classy guy who has had major problems with his kids being sick (including one of them dying) over the last couple of years.

The UFC 118 card as it stands:

Main Card:
Lightweight Championship: Frankie Edgar (c) vs. BJ Penn

Randy Couture vs. James Toney
Nate Marquardt vs. Rousimar Palhares (I think I might be most looking forward to this one... Rousimar Palhares is fucking SCARY)
Kenny Florian vs. Gray Maynard
Nate Diaz vs. Marcus Davis

Spike Prelims:
Gerald Harris vs. Alessio Sakara
Joe Lauzon vs. Terry Etim

Preliminary Card:
Dan Miller vs. John Salter
Andre Winner vs. Nik Lentz
Nick Ospiczak vs. Greg Soto
Mike Pierce vs. Amilcar Alves

 

[LitasRevenge79]

Not to sound dumb, but this being MMA and all, does anyone hear anything about Mayhem Miller anymore? I remember him on Bully Beatdown and I know he had have done something worthwhile since that, he had GREAT fighters on that show like Jake Shields...

 

[jmt225]

Not to sound dumb, but this being MMA and all, does anyone hear anything about Mayhem Miller anymore? I remember him on Bully Beatdown and I know he had have done something worthwhile since that, he had GREAT fighters on that show like Jake Shields...

Well, he got suspended because of the Strikeforce brawl.

[YOUTUBE]mcL_y2p_FhE[/YOUTUBE]

However, he's back now and in negotiations for his next fight with Strikeforce. Everybody's expecting him to fight Nick Diaz, who he's had a war of words with over the past few days (and since that brawl above). Those two legitimately dislike each other. Hopefully Strikeforce puts that fight together sooner rather than later; it's not like there's anyone else for those two to fight, anyway. Plus, with as much hype as it's getting over the internet, there's no doubt it would draw huge compared to Strikeforce's usual numbers.

Anyways, check out the trash talk from Mayhem here:

[YOUTUBE]X6KGsHnrUTU[/YOUTUBE]

[YOUTUBE]D6Ih6XSnmeI[/YOUTUBE]

And here's Nick Diaz's response:

[YOUTUBE]72rdlZW9Xtg[/YOUTUBE]

 

[INDYjon22]

Like father, like son.

Ryan Couture, son of UFC hall of famer Randy Couture, will make his promotional and professional debut against Lucas Stark at Strikeforce Challengers 10 on Aug. 13 at the Dodge Theatre in Phoenix. The event will air live on Showtime.

Strikeforce officials on Thursday finalized a contract with the younger Couture, who trains out of Xtreme Couture Mixed Martial Arts in Las Vegas.

Couture owns a 4-1-1 record as an amateur and last appeared in March, when he fought Sean Bollinger to a draw at a Tuff-N-Uff show in Las Vegas. Bollinger choked Couture unconscious with a triangle choke as the horn sounded ending round two, but Couture -- deemed by the referee to have lost consciousness after the round was over -- was allowed to continue. The fight ended in a deadlock.

Couture, a lightweight, follows in some enormous footsteps. His father remains one of only two men -- B.J. Penn is the other -- to hold UFC titles in multiple weight classes.

I am very intrigued to see how Ryan Couture does in his professional MMA debut. It will be interesting to see how much he has learned from his father in his short career and if he can live up to the reputation that will follow him. I wish him the best and can't wait to see what he brings to the cage.

 

[ITurnGirlsGay]

UFC heavyweight Ben Rothwell (31-7 MMA, 1-1 UFC) sat at UFC 115's post-fight podium and made no excuses.

He had won a unanimous decision over Gilbert Yvel on the June 12 event's pay-per-view card but said it was "not a victory" for the fight's lack of finish. He chose not to disclose that he had torn his ACL on the first takedown of the three-round contest.

Rothwell on Tuesday underwent surgery to repair both his ACL and a torn meniscus and hopes to be back in action by February or March of 2011.

http://mmajunkie.com/news/20100/ben-rothwell-undergoes-acl-surgery-estimates-nine-month-recovery.mma

This massively sucks for Ben Rothwell. I'm actually shocked, as a man who's had a blown ACL, that he was able to continue like that in the fight. i wish him a speedy recovery. This is a testament to how strong these warriors of the octagon actually are.

 

[Turd Ferguson]

Alan Belcher's out of next month's Fight Night card due to a detached retina injury. Very disappointing news, as that fight against Demian Maia would have been a lot of fun and a key matchup in determining where Belcher stands in the grand scheme of things, as well as serving as a way for Maia to build his way to another title shot.

My question is... what in god's name would be a suitable main event for this card? A lot of the top talent in the division are already locked into other fights or hurt.

Yushin Okami and Mark Munoz are fighting tonight. The question is, would either want to fight again in a month?

We have Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen... chances are these two guys will be inactive regardless of who wins/loses for a few months.

UFC 118: Nate Marquardt is fighting Rousimar Palhares. Gerald Harris is fighting Alessio Sakara. Dan Miller is fighting John Salter. Would these guys want to make a turnaround in a month's time?

Yoshihiro Akiyama's fighting Michael Bisping at the main event of UFC 120.

Patrick Cote is fighting Tom Lawlor at UFC 121.

Injured: Vitor Belfort, Wanderlei Silva (he wouldn't fight Maia anyway), Jorge Rivera

So, who is really left here? Kendall Grove and Chris Leben are available. The issue here is whether they'd want to fight with a two month turnaround... especially Leben. I would assume that Kendall Grove would step in to fight Maia here on this Fight Night card.

 

[Via Armbar]

Damn I was looking forward to this fight. The MW division is pretty booked up at the moment. The only real option I see is taking maybe Marquardt out of his fight with Palhares and pitting him against Maia. Even that sucks though, because I really want to see Nate and Palhares go at it. I would want to see almost anybody fight here besides Grove, who is almost on Koscheck's level of dislike for me. That would be the most logical choice though; he is somewhat of a name and is coming off a win. I think it would slightly unlikely but I can see Grove's muay thai being a problem for Maia. They both have great bjj but Maia definitely has an edge on the ground unless Grove can really work his legs.

I don't want to see it, but it would see as if it's really the only option they have unless they want to pull a fighter out of an upcoming fight.

 

[jmt225]

I too was looking forward to this fight, but shit happens.

Anyways, there's nothing more I would like to see than Damien Maia avenge his loss to Nate Marquardt, but unfortunately Marquardt already has a fight set-up, so that's not possible.

My 2nd choice though is Kendall Grove. First of all, I think it would be a great fight, but secondly... I really like both fighters so I wouldn't be down if one lost against the other. That said, I think there's a chance Spike is still bitter towards Grove and I'm not sure if whether or not they'd be down to let him headline a card on their show. However, if they were... then I feel that's the best possible choice right now.

Chris Leben would be interesting, but the kid needs some well deserved rest. I could also see Yushin Okami taking the fight after tonight's performance, but at the end of the day... I think I would most prefer Grove vs. Maia. Let's just hope they don't throw some random chump in there with him.

 

[Turd Ferguson]

I was really bummed out yesterday when the UFC took the Marquardt/Palhares fight off the UFC 118 card, and shifted it to the UFN card. I was really looking forward to seeing that fight in person. I've become such a fan of Palhares' lately, especially watching some of the fights he had before coming to the UFC. The dude is flat out scary, and I think he has a serious future at 185.

I was hoping for at least a decent fight as a replacement for it, and well, that's exactly what I got as Demian Maia will be taking on Mario Miranda now on the main card of UFC 118. Miranda is a budding prospect in the Middleweight Division. He's only had two fights so far in the UFC. He lost to fellow prospect Gerald Harris, but had a win over former Middleweight contender David Loiseau at UFC 115.

I haven't seen Miranda fight, but he has serious credentials as a major threat for Maia. Maia struggles with strikers (as seen in the Marquardt and Silva fights), and half of Miranda's wins have been via knockout. I'm sure Maia will win, but it should be a good fight regardless.

 

[jmt225]

I'm actually disappointed by this. I was looking forward to watching Damien Maia for free next month.

But meh... consider yourself lucky, Guy. Maia vs. Mario Miranda should be loads better than Marquardt vs. Palhares. First of all, Maia vs. Mario means more. Either Maia shoots himself back-up the Middleweight Ladder, or Mario becomes a serious contender in the division (whereas I don't think Palhares stands a chance against Marquardt). Secondly, Mario has a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, so he won't be afraid to go to the ground with Maia. We really could end up seeing a wonderful showcase on the ground in this fight between these two, which should be just as exciting seeing in person as a slugfest would be, no doubt about it.

 

[joejoe]

The latest rumor going around is that Forrest Griffin will make his return to the UFC at UFC 123 in November against...Rich "Ace" Franklin. This would be AWESOME if it did happen and I will be pumped to watch this fight. Two of my favorites going at it is always fun.

Also rumored for 123 is Machida vs. Rampage and Vitor Belfort vs. Silva/Sonnen for the Middleweight title.

If these three fights were on the same card this would be HUGE! Come on UFC make this triple main event card happen!

Plus it's in St. Louis so I would for sure try to make it down there for it.

 

[jmt225]

I would very much like to see Forrest Griffin vs. Rich Franklin. It would be a very fun, stand-up brawl, most likely lasting all three 3 Rounds, with Franklin coming out on top.

It's really a good fight for both guys. If Franklin wins, then he's next in line for a shot at the Light Heavyweight Championship, and if he loses... then he's back to the status he's at right now... still getting big fights, but not in the title picture. And it's the exact same case for Griffin: Wins and is in the title picture, loses and is still a main event caliber fighter.

So, yeah... love the fight. Should be a great, entertaining fight, and one that doesn't cause any harm to either fighter. Very much will look forward to it if it goes down as rumored.

 

[joejoe]

Reports are that Anderson Silva may be out until March with a cracked rib. If this is the case then I think there is no question Dana White Has to book Sonnen vs. Beltfort for sometime in November or December. Then winner gets a shot at the Spider.

I would love to see this fight plus I'm looking forward to more of Sonnens trash talking.

 

[joejoe]

New update. UFC 123 is now supposed to take place in Chicago and will have a double main event of Rampage vs. Machida and Forrest vs. Jon Jones. Great for me because I can go to this event...bad for my favorite fighter Forrest as he will get KOd.

 

[jmt225]

Reports are that Anderson Silva may be out until March with a cracked rib. If this is the case then I think there is no question Dana White Has to book Sonnen vs. Beltfort for sometime in November or December. Then winner gets a shot at the Spider.

I would love to see this fight plus I'm looking forward to more of Sonnens trash talking.

Nah, I think the best route to go is to match-up Belfort vs. Okami; that's the fight I want to see most.

In the meantime, feed Sonnen the winner of Sexyama and Bisping. Even though I want Sexyama to beat Bisping's ass, I expect Bisping to skip his way to yet another boring win in that one, which I actually wouldn't mind if that means he would have to then fight Sonnen, since there's not much more I would love to see right now than Sonnen smash Bisping's fucking face in, after Bisping's bullshit tweet the other night.

"But jmt, who then gets a title shot once Anderson Silva returns?"

Simple, the person who puts on the better performance. If Belfort can barely beat Okami, or if Okami can barely beat Belfort, yet Sonnen smashes Bisping (like he will if they do fight), then Sonnen should get his rematch against Silva, and Okami and Belfort fight another top contender, and if they win that they then get the winner of Anderson vs. Chael 2.

 

[Turd Ferguson]

News roundup:

1.) A detached retina may prevent Alan Belcher from ever fighting again.

Very sad, as Belcher was finally starting to show some of the potential he has with his win over Patrick Cote. He was on the brink of actually being what he said he was, which is a top-level Middleweight deserving of a title shot... which he would have been with a win over Demian Maia which was supposed to happen next month at the UFN show. Now, he's certainly on the outside looking in, and he might not ever be able to fight again. He's also still stuck with that terrible Johnny Cash tattoo too.

2.) Diego Sanchez is training with Greg Jackson again.

Thank god. Diego looked like he was really regressing with the John Hathaway fight. He should have stayed with Jackson in the first place. Perhaps Greg Jackson would have had the right gameplan for BJ where Diego might have been on the wrong end of a 50-40 scorecard if that fight wasn't stopped due to the beating he was getting. Nobody leaves Greg Jackson's camp, and I always thought Diego was stupid for doing so. I think Paulo Thiago will still beat him when they fight at UFC 121, but at least Diego is righting the problem and now the match isn't as one sided as it was on first appearance.

 

[jmt225]

Two things:

1. It's being reported that if Michael Bisping loses to Yoshihiro Akiyama, then he fights Patrick Cote. However, if Bisping beats Sexyama, he fights Chael Sonnen.

Hmm... I'm torn on this. On one hand, I want Sexyama to destroy Bisping, but with Akiyama's fighting style, it's perfect for Bisping, who can skip his way to victory like he almost did against Wanderlei Silva and Dan Henderson, and how he did do against Chris Leben.

Then again, I know for a fact that Bisping would absolutely get the tar beaten out of him against Chael Sonnen, who Bisping talked a ton of trash about on Twitter. Plus, the build-up for the fight would be tremendously hilarious.

So, at the end of the day... at least now I have a reason not to be pissed if Bisping beats Akiyama, because I know now what's waiting for him if he does.

2. Eddie Alvarez vs. Roger Huerta is set for October 21 on Bellator.

Nothing to say there other than that's going to be a great fight, and I for one cannot wait for it.

 

[Buffalo Dave]

Ben Saunders was cut from the UFC today. Since losing 3 out of his last 4 fights it is no big surprise. His last 2 losses were from unanimous decisions against Hallman and Fitch. Lossing unanimously doesn't bode well for you to keep your job, at least if you lose a split it shows you had a chance in there. But good thing for him the UFC is leaving the door open for him to come back. Saunders just needs to work on his ground game and he will be significantly better.


Roy Nelson is about to undergo knee surgery. He told MMA Live that he is getting the surgery to get the knee cleaned up and repaired. Nelson said that he will probably be out untill October. He also stated that he wants to fight Big Nog after the Mir rematch because after you beat Nog you get a tilte shot, referring to how Frank Mir and Cain Velasquez both did. I always find Nelson funny, but he is dreaming a little if he thinks he's gonna get a title shot if gets a fight with Big Nog and pulls off a win. I think he will have to put together another winning streak before he is fighting to be number one contender again. Don't get me wrong a win against Nog is in the right direction, but he will still have to win a few more too. Plus JDS the guy that just beat him is the current guy to get the next title shot.

Just seen that Ryan Couture, son of Randy Couture made his pro debut today in the lightweight division at Strikeforce Challenger Series and won against Lucas Stark by a triangle choke 1:15 in the 1st round.

 

[Fizzy]

Shane Carwin has been named by a U.S. attorney as one of 22 professional athletes who obtained steroids through an Alabama pharmacy, the Mobile Press Register reported Friday on AI.com.

A federal judge sentenced J. Michael Bennett, the supervising pharmacist at Applied Pharmacy Services, to four years in prison for his participation in a nationwide conspiracy to sell anabolic steroids made in Mobile, Ala. He had been convicted on steroid charges on Feb. 8, 2009, along with the owners of the pharmacy and the owner of a clinic. Bennett’s co-defendants have not yet been sentenced.

Applied Pharmacy Services shipped 762,388 dosages of steroids to 17 doctors and clinics from April 4, 2004, until Aug. 30, 2006, according to court records reported by AI.com.

In court Friday, Assistant U.S. Attorney Donna Dobbins named several athletes, including Carwin, who had obtained steroids with Bennett’s help.

The 35-year-old Carwin began his MMA career with a win in October 2005. He debuted in the UFC in May 2008 and fought for the heavyweight title last month against Brock Lesnar -- Carwin’s only loss.

His manager, Jason Genet, told MMAFighting.com that Carwin plans to make a statement at a later date.

I don't know what to think of this. Pretty serious shit if it is true, and it will be very interesting to see how this plays out. Obviously if this is true it will be very bad for Carwin. I don't want to really comment on it until we find out what really happened, and get Carwin's statement on the matter. I just thought it'd be an interesting story to post on here.

 

[Buffalo Dave]

I don't know what to think of this. Pretty serious shit if it is true, and it will be very interesting to see how this plays out. Obviously if this is true it will be very bad for Carwin. I don't want to really comment on it until we find out what really happened, and get Carwin's statement on the matter. I just thought it'd be an interesting story to post on here.

Definitely interesting. Like you said we have to wait to hear more especailly from Carwin himself. If it is true yes its bad for Shane's image, but its not like it was during the time of his UFC career, I don't feel like it will jeopardize his UFC career at all since fighters like Maraquardt, Bonnar, Sherk, all have tested positive for steroids and are still there. Then you have fighters who have tested positive at other promotions and are fighting in the UFC now like Baroni, Hallman, and Belfort. Now we just wait and see what happens as this story develops.