MMA News Thread

[Shogun Locc]

Cacareco after new opportunities in MMA

With a great sequence of five first round submission victories, being the last two without 30 seconds of fight, Alexandre Cacareco is now after an event to fight, after IFL bankrupt. “I didn’t show up anything yet. It’s bad, because here in Brazil when you don’t fight you stay without money… I spoke with Zé Mario (Sperry) and I’m waiting a new opportunity to fight again, and I hope it’ll get better soon”, said the athlete.

 

[Shogun Locc]

Aleksander Emelianenko to fight at M-1 Challenge 9

On November, 21 M-1 Challenge 9 will be held at Sports Hall "Ice Palace". Red Devil will take on Team Korea and Russia's Legion will look to gain victory over Team Holland. In one of two scheduled superfights Aleksander Emelianenko (13-3) will face off with Korean prospect Sang Soo Lee (9-4) who's coming of impressive stoppage victory over Roman Zentsov at M-1 Challenge 7.

 

[Shogun Locc]

Akihiro Gono updated his blog

Akihiro Gono talked about his preparation in his blog.

"I'm preparing for my trip now. I owned iPod Nano 1G. I used it once in a while when I ran and drove. I have 15 hours flight next week, and so I bought iPod 120G. I can put 120 times more. Amazing! I tried to listen with my ipod speakers; however, it doesn't fit. I have to buy new speakers, too. Another extra expense... I hope I have good luck to earn money next week.."

"My costume is ready too..."(He bought a wig and body suit)

 

[Shogun Locc]

Strikeforce nears deal for launch of live fights on NBC

Strikeforce is in advanced discussions with NBC to bring live fights to the Peacock Network.

The popular West Coast promotion struck a paid programming deal with NBC earlier this year, featuring 30-minute, weekly shows with fights from past Strikeforce events. Extending that agreement to live, primetime shows would be a major boast for Strikeforce as it looks to generate additional exposure for its brand and expand nationally.

"It's been signed off on at many levels (at NBC) already, and I think we're at the final stages," Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). "By the first quarter of '09, we'll probably have some fights going on. We would need that time frame any way to book the right fights and do it properly."

Serious talks between Strikeforce and the network have been ongoing for the past couple of months, and Coker says the dialogue is continuing. Approval at the senior most programming levels at NBC is the only hurdle left to clear to bring live MMA to a second U.S. broadcast network.

NBC programming brass was closely watching the ratings produced by EliteXC's debut on CBS in May. And, despite a significant ratings slide for the second network EliteXC show in July, the 4.5 million viewers who tuned in to "Saturday Night Fights" on Oct. 4 on CBS suggests that MMA can draw a considerable and sustained network television audience.

Ratings for the taped "Strikeforce on NBC," which, depending on market clearance, airs late Friday night/early Saturday morning have been decent. The broadcasts typically net a few hundred thousand viewers. One of the highest rated shows in the series drew 949,000 viewers on May 9.

The goal of the series always has been more about whetting NBC's appetite for live fights, as opposed to drawing huge ratings.

Middleweight Cung Le would be the obvious headliner for the first Strikeforce live show on NBC, but the marketable fighter is currently filming Pandorum, a science-fiction thriller, starring Dennis Quaid.

Le isn't expected to be ready to get back in the cage until the second quarter of 2009.

 

[Shogun Locc]

NCAA champ Phil Davis wins pro MMA debut

Four-time All-American and 2008 NCAA Division I national wreslting champion Phil Davis (1-0) won his professional MMA debut this past weekend.

Davis, a Penn State alumnus who had amassed a 3-0 amateur MMA record this year, defeated Brett Chism (8-3) via unanimous decision at No Boundry's "The Awakening," an event that took place this past Saturday at the JunglePlex in Plymouth, Mass.

Davis, who finished his collegiate career just this year, was a late replacement for "The Ultimate Fighter 8" cast member Karn Gregorian (illness) in the main-event fight.

The 26-year-old fighter, who trains with LionHeart MMA in State College, Pa., was tested on his feet and on the ground, and he nearly forced a TKO stoppage late in the second round.

He ultimately settled for the decision victory.

"It's nice to get this first professional win under my belt," Davis said in a statement sent to MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). "My training's been paying off. I'm happy with my pace of my transition from college wrestling into MMA.

"I just want to keep improving and become the best fighter I can be."

As we previously reported, Davis finished his collegiate career with a stellar 116-20 record, which included a 26-1 record in his senior year when he won a 2008 NCAA national championship.

 

[Shogun Locc]

"Strikeforce: Destruction" to air live Nov. 21 on HDNet

"Strikeforce: Destruction," which takes place Nov. 21 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif., will air live on HDNet.

Strikeforce executive Mike Afromowitz recently told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) that the event will air on the all-high-definition cable station as part of a multi-event deal Strikeforce signed with HDNet earlier this year.

In addition to Strikeforce world light heavyweight champion Bobby Southworth (9-5) vs. Renato "Babalu" Sobral (30-7), Josh Thomson (16-2) will make a title defense at the upcoming event.

As MMAjunkie.com previously reported, Chris Horodecki (on loan from Affliction) and Caol Uno (DREAM) are under consideration for the lightweight championship bout with Thomson.

The Nov. 21 event, which will be Strikeforce's fourth show in a two-month span, also features a welterweight bout between UFC veteran Joe Riggs (28-11) and top Strikeforce prospect Luke Stewart (6-1).

In addition to HDNet, Strikeforce is one of only two organizations to strike a deal with a major U.S. network. Past Strikeforce fights air each week on NBC in late-night weekend slots, though as MMAjunkie.com's Steve Sievert reported earlier today, live events could be on the Peacock Network as early as the first quarter of 2009

 

[Shogun Locc]

C.B. Dollaway likely to face Mike Massenzio at UFC 92

"The Ultimate Fighter 7" runner-up C.B. Dollaway (7-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) will likely face Mike Massenzio (11-2 MMA, 1-0 UFC) at UFC 92, an event that takes place Dec. 27 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

A source close to Dollaway today told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) that the bout with Massenzio has been offered and will likely be signed this week.

Sam Caplan of fiveouncesofpain.com first reported the fight earlier today while citing a source close to Massenzio.

MMAjunkie.com first reported last month that Dollaway would like return at UFC 92, though he was expected to fight veteran Jorge Rivera. (The reason for Rivera's possible departure from the card wasn't immediately known.)

Dollaway, who suffered his first professional loss to show winner Amir Sadollah at "The Ultimate Fighter 7" live finale in June, returned to competition less than a month later to defeat Jesse Taylor at UFC Fight Night 14. It was Dollaway's first official pro win in the UFC, and it also earned him a $25,000 Submission of the Night bonus for the tap-out (via Peruvian necktie).

The "TUF7" runner-up, a former All-American wrestler at Arizona State University (and "TUF" blogger for MMAjunkie.com), will likely now meet Massenzio, a one-time IFL fighter and Ring of Combat veteran. He made his UFC debut at UFC Fight Night 15 in September and defeated Drew McFedries via first-round submission.

It was Massenzio's 10th win his past 11 fights.

 

[Shogun Locc]

Leites vs. McFedries at UFC 90; Maynard vs. Clementi headed to main card

With Goran Reljic (8-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) forced out of UFC 90 with a back injury, his original opponent, Thales Leites (13-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC), is now expected to fight UFC veteran Drew McFedries (7-4 MMA, 3-3 UFC).

A source close to McFedries alerted MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) of the likely substitution today.

With the change, a fight between lightweight contenders Rich Clementi (32-12-1 MMA, 5-3 UFC) and Gray Maynard (5-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC) is now expected to be promoted from UFC 90's un-televised preliminary card to the pay per view broadcast's televised main card.

UFC 90, which features a main event of UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva vs. Patrick Cote, takes place Oct. 25 at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill., near Chicago.

Reljic first signed a UFC 90 bout agreement to meet Leites in August. However, the Croatian fighter has since suffered a back injury and is seeking treatment. In his place will likely step McFedries, a hard-hitting Miletich fighter who debuted in November 2006.

Since that time, McFedries has followed a knockout win with a loss three times over his six UFC fights. He most recently suffered a first-round submission loss to Mike Massenzio at UFC Fight Night 15.

Leites, meanwhile, will go for his fifth straight victory in the UFC since suffering a unanimous-decision loss to Martin Kampmann in his 2006 octagon debut. The Brazilian most recently scored a split-decision victory over Nate Marquardt at UFC 85, though the win was aided by Marquardt's two costly point deductions.

 

[Shogun Locc]

Heavyweight Antonio Hardonk vs. newcomer Mark Burch at UFC 92

UFC heavyweight Antonio Hardonk (7-4 MMA, 3-2 UFC) will go for his third consecutive UFC victory when he meets UFC newcomer Mark Burch (9-2 MMA, 0-0 UFC) at UFC 92, an event that takes place Dec. 27 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

Sources close to Hardonk told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) of the bout earlier today.

The fight is expected to air on the un-aired preliminary card of the pay-per-view event.

Hardonk, a former kickboxer, made his octagon debut at UFC 65 and defeated Sherman Pendergarst via first-round TKO. The 32-year-old Dutchman then suffered back-to-back losses to Justin McCully and Frank Mir before recently scoring TKO victories over Colin Robinson (in just 17 seconds) and Eddie Sanchez.

He'll now meet Burch, a BodogFIGHT veteran who's undefeated in his past four fights. The Indiana native has fought twice this year -- both times in the Hoosier state -- with first-round TKOs over Chris Hanni (0-1) and Alex Rozman (0-6). Prior to those victories, he posted wins over the likes of Yoshiki Takahashi (28-24-3) and stand-out Xtreme Couture grappler Jay White.

Six of Burch's nine fights have come via knockout.

 

[Shogun Locc]

UFC 89: THE NEW CHRIS LEBEN, STILL THE UNDERDOG

Chris "The Crippler" Leben travels to England to take on British fan-favorite Michael "The Count" Bisping at UFC 89 on Oct. 18 from the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham in a career defining fight that will leave the winner in title contention for the Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight crown.



"It's pretty cool. It's me and my coach. We're going over there. We're going into enemy territory. We're going to be the bad guy the whole time. It makes it intense. You know? It helps me focus," Leben told MMAWeekly.com. "I've said it before. The only thing cooler than making 20,000 people scream at once is making them all shut up. That's going to be a nice feeling when I knock Bisping out and that whole arena is dead, stone quiet."



Bisping and Leben were originally slated to headline UFC 85 in London on June 7. Due to a legal situation regarding a parole violation stemming from a past DUI charge, Leben ended up serving 11 days of a 35-day jail sentence, which forced the Ultimate Fighter season one contestant out of the bout.



"I was absolutely, totally disappointed. I was really looking forward to fighting Bisping the first time. I thought the two of us really needed to fight. When it didn't happen it was a huge let down," said the middleweight fighter. "I was super bummed. I didn't know if the fight was ever going to happen. Luckily the UFC offered me the fight again. This time it's definitely going to happen. It just makes me that much more stoked."



The match-up has enormous implications for each fighter. For Leben, it's another win on his way back to contender status. For Bisping, who recently made the move to the middleweight division after dropping down from the 205-pound weight class, it will solidify him as a force in the deep weight class.



"I don't want to say it's the biggest fight of my career because they're all big, but absolutely it's huge," said Leben. "It's major. Winning this fight is going to open a lot of doors for one of the two of us. And I want that to be me."



Leben knows Bisping will be the heavy crowd favorite at UFC 89, and he's concerned about the crowd's reaction playing into the judge's scoring if the fight goes to a decision. Citing Bisping's controversial win over Matt Hamill at UFC 75 on Sept. 8, 2007 from the O2 Arena in London, Leben has no intentions of letting this end up in the judges' hands.



"The judges are watching the fight, but they're hearing the crowd. If the crowd screams every time one guy does something, and the other guy almost knocks the guy out and the crowd doesn't do anything, obviously that's going to have a psychological effect on any judge," said the 28-year-old fighter.



"I know that. Even worse, I know that he knows that," continued Leben. "I need to go in there to win this thing. I need to take it from him. I can't just go in there and let him stay alive because we know how it works. If we let it go to the judges, that's my fault.



"I know that in the back of his mind, he can go, okay, all I have to do is stay away from his power, dance around, look good and I'll get the decision," he added. "I know what's going on in the back of his mind, so in the back of my mind I'm going to have to cut him off. I'm going to have to force him to fight with me. I'm going to have to go out and be the better fighter."



Most fighters won't reveal their game plans, but Leben maintains it doesn't matter. "I'll go ahead and tell him what my game plan is because it's not going to make a difference," stated Leben. "I'm going to go out there, I'm going to pressure him. I'm going to beat him up on his feet. I'm going to move forward. I'm going to cut off the ring. If he gives me a takedown, I'm going to take it. If he gives me a submission, I'm going to submit him. Pressure, pressure, pressure, that's my game plan.



"A lot of people say that, 'His cardio is good. His cardio is great.' Well, from what I've seen of him, his cardio is good when somebody doesn't push him. When they let him dance around and pop a jab here, pop a jab there. We really haven't seen somebody take the fight to him, and take the fight to him from the beginning of the fight to the end of the fight. That's what I'm planning to do."



In short, fans are in for a new Chris Leben.



"The fighter you see on Oct. 18 is going to be somebody that nobody has ever seen before. When I step into that Octagon, people are going to be this is not the Chris Leben that I know. This isn't the fighter that I remember watching," said the American. "It's going to be completely different; bigger, meaner, stronger, faster, a quicker Chris Leben that's going to go out there."

 

[Shogun Locc]

Stephan Bonnar and Jon Jones expected to make Octagon returns against each other at UFC 94

UFC light heavyweights Stephan Bonnar and Jon Jones have verbally committed to fighting each other at UFC 94 on January 31 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.

A source close to Jones’ Team Bomb Squad revealed the news to FiveOuncesOfPain.com earlier today. While only verbal commitments have been secured so far, the source stated that finalized bout agreements could be signed within the coming days.

For Bonnar, who was the light heavyweight runner-up during the inaugural season of The Ultimate Fighter, it would mark his first fight since Oct. 20, 2007, when he recorded a second round TKO over Eric Schafer at UFC 77.

Bonnar is 11-4 overall during his MMA career and is 5-3 in eight career bouts contested under the UFC banner with notable wins over Sam Hoger, Keith Jardine, and James Irvin.

Jones is a member of the aforementioned Team Bomb Squad, one of the leading MMA training camps on the East Coast. He is a unique story in that he has trained in MMA for less than a year but is already competing in the UFC.

After making his pro debut this past April, Jones reeled off five consecutive wins including a second round TKO over one-time EliteXC fighter Moyses Gabin during Battle Cage Xtreme 5 this past July.

The win over Gabin garnered the attention of UFC Vice President of Talent Relations Joe Silva, who signed Jones to fight UFC newcomer Andre Gusmao on short notice at UFC 87 this past August. Coming into the bout a huge underdog, Jones surprised the formerly undefeated Renzo Gracie student with an array of dynamic strikes that earned him a unanimous decision victory.

UFC 94, scheduled to be available on pay-per-view, is expected to be headlined by UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre defending his crown against current UFC lightweight champion B.J. Penn.

 

[Shogun Locc]

The CRUSHER Project #1! Kawajiri Wants NYE Fight Next

Tatsuya Kawajiri held his first event in his new project to make MMA more popular in Japan and improve its image. The theme for the first event was women. He explained some fundamental rules, talked a little about his own training, taught the visitors some basic grappling and stand-up techniques and let them do some mitt training with him and his brought team.

Later, it was question time where Kawajiri said that he wants to fight on NYE next. Of course he would like to fight the champion, Joachim Hansen. However, when Uno was brought up he also got serious. He said that his and Uno’s way of thinking about MMA is different and that he does not want to lose against such a person.

 

[Shogun Locc]

Sanchez Out; Koscheck to Face Alves

Diego Sanchez has been forced to withdraw from a highly anticipated welterweight showdown with Thiago Alves at UFC 90.

Sanchez representative Jeff Clark told Sherdog.com that the injury was sustained in a training session last week, and what was originally thought to be a ruptured spleen turned out to be damage to his ribs, possibly to an intercostal muscle or cartilage.

The Oct. 25 card scheduled for the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill., will not suffer greatly, however. Fellow welterweight standout Josh Koscheck has agreed to step in for his injured fellow alum from the inaugural season of “The Ultimate Fighter.” While the bout agreement is yet to be signed, parties close to Koscheck and Alves have confirmed to Sherdog.com that the fight has been agreed to.

Sanchez (19-2-0), who dropped two consecutive fights in 2007, had resurrected his title hopes with a pair of victories this year and would have surely been considered a top contender had he been able to derail the streak Alves has been riding.

The popular Alves (15-3-0) has ascended to the top of the welterweight contender’s ranks with consecutive victories over former champion Matt Hughes and Karo Parisyan. He is in the midst of a six-fight winning streak with his last loss coming at the hands of Koscheck’s teammate Jon Fitch in June 2006.

Koscheck (11-2-0), a collegiate wrestling champion, will look to extend his two-fight winning streak and regain the momentum he took into his August 2007 bout with now-UFC champion Georges St. Pierre. Koscheck, viewed by many as an eventual contender will have a chance to leapfrog Sanchez in his quest for a title shot as well as redemption against the last man to beat him.

 

[Shogun Locc]

UFC ANNOUNCES NEW JAPANESE TV DEAL

The Ultimate Fighting Championship on Monday announced that it has reached an agreement to return to television in Japan. The promotion has signed a new two-year deal with WOWOW.

WOWOW will telecast all UFC pay-per-view events starting with UFC 89: Bisping vs. Leben taking place live from the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham, England. The UFC 89 live card will begin at 8 p.m. GMT in England and will telecast on WOWOW following a short delay at 12 Midnight JST.

“The Japanese market has always been important to the UFC, and we want to bring MMA and all of its biggest stars back to Japan,” said Dana White, UFC President. “We are thrilled to be back with WOWOW.”

“WOWOW is extremely pleased to announce that UFC is back on WOWOW, starting with the UFC 89 event in Birmingham, UK,” said Mr. Kazuyuki Omura, Chief Producer, WOWOW. “The UFC will telecast in High Definition on WOWOW’s popular 'Timely-on-Air' format, a limited delay broadcast adjusting the airtime to a time that will be convenient for the sports fans in Japan. After airing over 50 UFC shows from 2001 to 2007, we are excited to once again provide our subscribers with the most prominent mixed martial arts program in the world.”

 

[Shogun Locc]

Versus Chief Cites WEC in Demo Gains

MMA as a whole packs quite a punch when it comes to the desired demographics. The sport is known for reeling in the 18 to 34 and 18 to 49 males that are highly desired by advertisers. Such is the case with the WEC and its relationship with Versus. Jamie Davis President of Versus cites WEC as key in big demographic gains for the channel:

He says the network’s National Hockey League franchise and mixed martial arts circuit World Extreme Cagefighting have triggered plenty of audience growth, including a bevy of younger male viewers.

“Versus has been on a roll. Over the past two years, the median age has decreased from 47 to 43,” said Davis. “Year to date, we’re in the top five of all cable network in growth with males 18 to 34 [ahead 59%] and 18 to 49 [up 48%].”

 

[Shogun Locc]

EliteXC And Demos

Setting aside the PR nightmare that is EliteXc at this point, Dave Meltzer raised some interesting statistics in his recent items at Yahoo and in his Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Meltzer’s stuff on Yahoo is always intelligent and a good read, the one saving grace for Yahoo’s coverage of MMA.

Meltzer noted several trends coming out of the EliteXC show:

-EliteXC actually did some of its best numbers with men 50-54

-Continued Strength in southern Markets: Birmingham , Knoxville , Greenville/Spartanburg , Charlotte, Memphis , Louisville , and Nashville.

-Carano pulling in strong numbers for females

All three of these elements represent a growing of the pie beyond what is the traditional MMA audience. While EliteXC surely hopes to attract some of the same demographics (young males) as the UFC, their network exposure has helped to bring in other groups who are outside of the MMA norm. Affliction seemed to be trying to hit some of these same demos with their NASCAR sponsorship, which has widespread appeal but that also skews a bit older and has a strong southern presence. Whether it be with EliteXC or not, CBS’ continued coverage of MMA is key if there is to be continued growth and exposure of the sport to these non-traditional groups.

 

[Shogun Locc]

M-1 Exclusive! Gegard Mousasi: "Fedor inspired me"

We caught up with the DREAM middleweight Grand Prix winner & champion. In this exclusive interview Gerard tells about his emotions before & after the GP Finals, starring in a movie alongside Fedor and how it feels like training with the best heavyweight in the world. Further he reveals future plans, bureaucratic origin of his name, hints at moving up the class and much more.

Michael Mazur: Hi, Gegard. First of all, congratulations once again with your astonishing victory that September evening.

Gegard Mousasi: Thank you.

Michael: Were you nervous the day before the Finals? How did you tune yourself up for 2 fights?

Gegard: No, I was confident maybe a little bit nervous because I really needed to perform well twice in the most important fights of my career so far I didn’t really need to tune myself. The most important thing for me was to be concentrated and fight smart. Also I wasn’t thinking about the second fight - I took it fight by fight.

Michael: What was your first feeling when you realized you captured two belts?

Gegard: Actually, I didn’t feel a lot. I don’t know why… it took some time before I realized that I had done well and that bigger things were coming.

Michael: Russians compare you to Fedor. You are similar to him in being reserved and not smiling too much. Were you happy at all?

Gegard: Yes, I was but not as happy as I was expecting myself to be. I remember when couple years ago I won the Cage Warriors title I was so happy that I couldn’t sleep the whole night. I was standing in front of the mirror and I had the belt underneath the clothes and then I was walking through the streets of Nottingham.

Michael: Where do you keep the belts?

Gegard: Both belts are at home.

Michael: Are you satisfied with the way how you won those two bouts? Did you expect these fights to end that quickly?

Gegard: Every win that doesn’t go to judges’ score card is good for me. I was especially happy with the victory over Melvin because I had challenged him and I wanted to prove something to the Dutch fans but I prepared myself for the long war of attrition and didn’t expect the fights would end so quickly.

Michael: You said it was difficult for you because you became friends with Jacare and Zelg. Are you still friends now?

Gegard: Yes, they are really nice guys and great sportsmen. I would really love to train with them and now when me and my team have decided to move up a division I don’t need to worry of thinking that I probably have to fight them one day.

Michael: Did you celebrate your victory the same night or afterwards?

Gegard: No, nothing special. Actually I was really tired that day. On arrival in Holland I was greeted by my friends and family. Then we gathered at house for some meal and we talked about the tournament. I am really a boring guy in terms of celebrating (laughs).

Michael: Do you know your next opponent? When is your next fight?

Gegard: No, It will be the New Year’s show in Japan or the Affliction show in January but I don’t know the definitive name of my opponent yet.

Michael: Did you talk to Akiyama personally?

Gegard: No, at the press-conference I said that people would love to see me fight Akiyama but he said that he wasn’t interested and that he wanted to fight Yoshida so there is no reason for me to stay in this weight division anymore. It’s time to let my body grow and get bigger.

Michael: You made the perfect record going 6-0 in 2008. Would you agree to take part in one of the M-1 Challenge events in November as the Superfight participant or will you take a break until NY Eve?

Gegard: I have a lot of things that I want to do so I will have to skip the m-1 challenge fight. I plan to have a good rest and prepare for a fight on NY Eve or Affliction 2.

Michael: What is a movie you are going to star in alongside Fedor? What is this movie about? What’s your role in it?

Gegard: I am going to Thailand for it. I don’t now a lot about the movie yet but they said I could have a small part in the movie maybe a sidekick of Fedor (laughs). I really don’t know much about it as of yet.

Michael: How much of your time will this movie take? Won’t it disturb your training process?

Gegard: I am going there for 10 days. I will train with Fedor and also work on my standup game.

Michael: Please, tell something about the trainings with Fedor. What did you learn from him?

Gegard: I trained with him in Holland. What I noticed is that he moves with amazing speed. He seems to be an agile middleweight with destructive punching power of a heavyweight. Moreover his takedowns are phenomenally effective. He uses his hips very well while moving. I learned a lot from our joint training. To tell you the truth, he’s the one who inspired me to move up the class. Just like him, I intend to achieve high speed of moving and explosiveness. I believe, that’s what so many heavyweights have been missing.

Michael: What is the origin of your surname? It doesn’t sound as Armenian.

Gegard: It should have been Geghard instead of Gegard. It’s a church name in Armenia and my last name had been changed when we came to Holland. It was something that happened accidently while it should have been Mofsesiyan.

Michael: How had you got signed by Red Devil?

Gegard: My manager works with Vadim (Finkelstein). They know each other for a long time now.

Michael: How many brothers and sisters do you have beside Gevik?

Gegard: I have one elder sister.

Michael: Had you won any titles or prizes in the Martial Arts before you came to MMA?

Gegard: I did in amateur boxing but nothing special.

Michael: So, you still plan to fight at light heavyweight eventually. Against whom at light heavy would you like to fight?

Gegard: I don’t know, it’s a tough division so I am going to jump to heavyweight as soon as possible (laughs).

 

[Shogun Locc]

JZ Cavalcante: Rated Exclusive Interview

videolink: http://www.mmarated.com/videos/v/20081013/jz_cavalcante__rated_exclusive_interview-6108.html

 

[Shogun Locc]

Affliction Making All The Right Moves?

The mixed martial arts world breathed a collective sigh of relief last week when Affliction Enteratinment Vice President Tom Atencio announced the company’s second pay-per-view offering come January would not be a hybrid boxing-MMA card after all. We were further heartened when Atencio confirmed to Ariel Helwani on Friday that the main event of the upcoming show would pit Andrei Arlovksi against WAMMA heavyweight champion Fedor Emelianenko. Good moves all around.

But even as Affliction seems to gather a bit of momentum heading into the New Year, numerous important questions still loom over the health of the fledgling promotion. Here are a few of the biggest unknowns.

Do they still plan to torture us with a mixed MMA/Boxing card at some point?

Atencio says yes. In fact he says a combination-platter show will “absolutely” happen sometime soon, though we really hope that he is wrong about that. When a rematch between Miguel Cotto and Antonio Margarito was rumored as a possible main event for the January show our initial reaction was,"Wait, who?"

Putting MMA and boxing together on the same card is one of the more insipid “innovations” since the Yamma Pit. Though we have no hard data to back this up, our hunch is that people who only watch MMA aren’t too interested in boxing and people who only watch the “sweet science” still think of our sport as “human cockfighting.” People who like both are going to get the Affliction PPV anyway, so why try to cross over with a decision that’s going to make everybody else unhappy?

Boxing and MMA are like Ken Shamrock and Tito Ortiz. They shouldn’t even be in the same room together.

Will Affliction continue to partner with EliteXC?

They should, since this is a corporate partnership that could actually benefit both promotions. General Motors and Chrysler announced late last week they are considering a merger as a way for both automakers to ride out the burgeoning world economic crisis. The two struggling MMA companies should be taking notes and do something similar.

Affliction has the fighters, EliteXC has the major TV deal. Attencio’s organization furnished EliteXC with the best fight of its most recent CBS show and got great exposure during the broadcast, including a boat-load of advertising on the network in return. Unfortunately, this joint venture probably makes too much sense to ever really work. There are too many egos in play and too much money in the balance. Those are two factors that continually keep people from making the right decisions.

Does WAMMA plan to crown other champions?

Or is the supposedly independent sanctioning body just a front so Fedor Emelianenko has a belt to wear to the ring? Honestly, we actually like the idea of WAMMA as MMA’s answer to Ring Magazine’s widely recognized boxing rankings, but it looks fishy when only one guy has a belt.

The real problem is that WAMMA insists it wants only to pit the very best against the very best in order to “crown undisputed champions based on our objective rankings.” That can never happen as long as the UFC and Dana White won’t let their fighters be considered for the title.

WAMMA recently squelched rumors that a potential Matt Lindland vs. Vitor Belfort bout would be to name a middleweight champion. Apparently that match-up wasn’t high-profile enough for their belt. It was the wrong move since – with most of the other notable 185-pounders under contract elsewhere – Lindland and Belfort (or better yet, Gegard Mousasi) would be about as good a fight as the smaller companies could hope for.

Will Fedor’s hand be a problem moving forward?

We hope not, but the Russian dynamo has already struggled with hand injuries in the past. He’s said hand trouble hindered his performance as far back as his win over Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic in August of 2005. The hand injury threatened to become chronic when it jeopardized his rematch with Mark Coleman in October, 2006, but Fedor managed to make that fight happen and won in convincing fashion.

The hand has a metal plate in it now, but it was reported he would need more time off to let it heal again after smashing it on Tim Sylvia’s face approximately 5,000 times en route to his lightning-fast submission victory over the former UFC champion at Affliction’s debut show.

Nobody else can stop Emelianenko, so maybe it makes sense that his own body is perhaps his biggest enemy.

Will Affliction continue to literally spread the wealth?

Doubtful. At least not the way it did in advance of its first PPV. Affliction paid over $1 million just for Sylvia and Lindland to put in tepid performances, then dished out $500,000 more for Arlovski’s win over Roy Nelson at the EliteXC show. We’re all for fighters getting paid as much as possible – and we know Affliction is rolling in it – but we’d be surprised if the company can keep paying its fighters this much and stay afloat.

Look for the salaries to start easing their way back to Earth, if Affliction manages to crank out a few more shows.

Where is Josh Barnett?

Japan? Seattle? Somewhere not answering his phone, apparently. Affliction said they “couldn’t get a hold” of the Barnett while trying to book him to fight Arlovski on CBS. There were also reports “The Baby-Faced Assassin” would fight on one of World Victory Road’s Sengoku cards but that hasn’t happened yet, either.

With Arlovski now on the January card fighting Emelianenko, it leaves Barnett in the lurch. Suffice it to say, we hope to see him back in a ring or cage sooner rather than later.

For that matter, is Tim Sylvia even still alive?

Unknown. We’d hoped after his crushing loss to Emelianenko, the giant would just take a few weeks off to eat Oreos in a dark room and think about what he did before coming back better than ever. Unfortunately, Sylvia’s barely been seen in public since. Maybe he finally got the message MMA fans don’t care much for him and he decided to take an extended break. Frankly, that idea makes us sad.

 

[Shogun Locc]

DETAILING THE KIMBO-PETRUZELLI INVESTIGATION

Last week, the Florida State Boxing Commission opened a preliminary investigation into allegations of fight fixing in the main event of EliteXC’s “Heat” between Seth Petruzelli and Kimbo Slice.

According to Alexis Antonacci, press secretary for Florida’s Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR), the investigation will release its findings in a week to a week and a half.

Representatives from the DBPR will first interview the promoters of EliteXC; presumably Jeremy Lappen, Head of Fight Operations; Jared Shaw, Vice President; and Chuck Champion, CEO.

Antonacci said Petruzelli and Kimbo, along with other fighters on the card, may or may not be interviewed.

“We’ll start from the promoters,” she said. “Possibly the fighters. We’ll just have to see what the initial fact finding mission turns up, and then we’ll move from there.”

Should any wrongdoing be found, the DBPR would file an administrative complaint against EliteXC.

The promotion would have two options in dealing with the complaint. If they chose to dispute the findings, they could request a hearing with an administrative law judge, a third party that oversees administrative cases for the state. If they chose not to dispute the findings, they could request an informal hearing with a “hearing officer” within the DBPR. The Commission would then decide a suitable punishment, which would likely include the suspension of EliteXC’s promoter’s license in Florida and/or fines.

Antonacci’s initial comments on the investigation were skeptical.

“We still don’t have any reason to believe that there was any wrongdoing that occurred,” she said. “But given the interest in the matter, we thought it would be best to just go ahead and open up an investigation and we’ll probably follow that up with a review.”