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Feb 7, 2006
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Just warming up: MMAmania.com interview exclusive with Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker

When the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) exploded into the mainstream, one-by-one a collection of start-up companies with plans for conquering the world of mixed martial arts began promoting shows across the United States.

And one-by-one they closed their doors.

From the WFA to the IFL and most recently Elite XC, brands hoping to survive as an alternative or successor to the Zuffa monopoly have crumbled under failed business plans and fan disinterest.

All except one.

Perhaps that’s because Strikeforce, the San Jose-based mixed martial arts company founded and currently directed by CEO Scott Coker, is neither a start-up nor a fly-by-night operation.

Strikeforce is, however, a legitimate mixed martial arts promotion with a sound business plan, marketable fighters and of above all else, respect from its peers and fans alike.

Coker began promoting martial arts in 1985 and labeled his first kickboxing show on ESPN 2 “Strikeforce.” After branching out and promoting K-1 on ESPN 2 for the better part of seven years, Coker made the transition to MMA after the sport received legalization from the state legislature in December of 2005.

Three months later, Coker set a North American attendance record for MMA with 18,265 fans coming to see Strikeforce: “Shamrock vs. Gracie.”

We were fortunate enough to get a hold of the Strikeforce CEO and pick his brain on everything from his highly publicized acquisition of Elite XC, landing a spot on Showtime, why he wants to be more like PRIDE FC, and just when we may actually see Tito Ortiz and Gina Carano make their long-anticipated debuts inside the Strikeforce cage.

Take a look.

Brian Oswald (MMAmania.com): A lot of people may not realize Strikeforce has been around for more than 20 years. Can you give us a brief history lesson and also tell us how your role with Strikeforce has evolved over the years.

Scott Coker: Well I have always been the owner/co-owner of Strikeforce since the start. My background in promoting martial arts started in 1985 when we were doing PK Karate, which was on ESPN. It was above the waist kickboxing and we had a lot the best fighters competing on our show.

Then in 1993 we got our own ESPN series on ESPN 2 (when it first launched) and we called that Strikeforce. That was when Strikeforce was “born” and it was born as a kickboxing show. So throughout the 90’s we were doing kickboxing on ESPN 2. In 2000, I started working for K-1 and we put K-1 on ESPN 2 for about seven years.

Then when mixed martial arts became legal in California I made the jump to MMA. We did our first show March 10, 2006, with Frank Shamrock fighting Caesar Gracie. That is when Strikeforce MMA was born. For that fight card, I believe Dave Meltzer was quoted as saying we still have the record for the biggest paid attendance for an MMA show in the United States.

It was a big night …we had over 18,265 paid so I felt like we hit a grand slam homerun coming out of the gate. It put us in a great position for sure — got a lot of eyeballs on us, and gave us the ability to talk to some of the bigger name fighters. So, I feel like we’ve had a good run from the very beginning.

Brian Oswald (MMAmania.com): What was your overall impression of your most recent fight card? Did it accomplish what you wanted from a business perspective, and on that note, what were you trying to accomplish with the first event since acquiring Elite XC’s assets?

Scott Coker: Well to start, injuries always happen in this sport. I was really hoping to have Josh Thomson vs. Gilbert Melendez on that show, but Josh broke his leg. MMA is a tough sport though and it didn’t work out this time around. Besides that fight not happening, I am very pleased with the overall product put forth.

I know there was some controversy over the woman’s fight. But at the end of the day, Cyborg won and we are looking forward to promoting her fights in the future. We look forward to making the Cyborg-Carano fight happen and are working hard on that.

In terms of the rating, I talked with Showtime and they seem to be very pleased with how things turned out. The key now is sustainability. Our goal is to take what we have and scale it upward while maintaining that continuity.

We are not going to be that company that goes out and hires 100 people and grows haphazardly or be so top heavy that just can’t make money. We are going to grow the business organically and as needed. So far I am very happy with the business model that has been carried out. Hopefully our over 20 years of experience will kick-in during the times when we need it.

Brian Oswald (MMAmania.com): Frank Shamrock looked completely ineffective against Nick Diaz. I know he had a broken rib going into that fight so you have to factor that in. That being said, has the fighting aspect of MMA passed Frank by, like it seems to be passing Chuck Liddell by?

Scott Coker: I will tell you what … both those guys are just legends of the sport. Chuck I can’t answer for, I know he lost this past weekend. But both guys were in against very tough opponents. Both Frank and Chuck are not afraid to fight the toughest guys out there. And when you fight the best, there is always a chance it can go the other way. You just never know with this sport.

Your right, his performance was not that great, but I know he is a better fighter then that. When you see him in the cage again it will be a healthy Frank Shamrock and you’ll see a much different performance. The guy was literally hurt and when Nick hit him with that body shot it rocked those ribs and that was it. He was in excruciating pain, but you know what, no excuses.

Nick Diaz is an amazing fighter though and I don’t think people were giving him enough credit.

Frank called me three weeks before the fight and said he broke his rib. I said to him that we should cancel the fight and he didn’t want to do it. So it is what it is. Like I said, the next time Frank fights, you will see a healthy fighter, and a much different performance.

Brian Oswald (MMAmania.com): Speaking of Liddell, Dana White seems to be putting his foot down by retiring Liddell. I didn’t know that the President could actually retire a fighter, but I guess he is free to cut him from the UFC roster. If Dana White were to cut Chuck Liddell, how soon would you be on the phone with him?

Scott Coker: At the end of the day, if a fighter wants to keep fighting he will find a place to fight. With a legend fighter like Liddell, there has to be a time where he says “this is it.” Whether that time was against Shogun or is it his next fight, it’s really up to Chuck.

I have no idea what his contract status with the UFC is though. I don’t know anything about what kind of deal they have so I can’t really comment too much. Chuck has had a great career there — they built him up from scratch and made him a star. So maybe it would be best if he rode off into the sunset with the UFC. That being said, if a free agent expresses interest, I would be open to talking and having that conversation.

Brian Oswald (MMAmania.com): Back to Shamrock; did his loss to Nick Diaz kill a rematch with both Cung Le and Tito Ortiz?

You know and I know … right now the media is all down on Frank Shamrock. But if Frank gets another fight and knocks out so-and-so then it all turns around and he is the hottest guy back in the mix. It’s just the nature of the beast. I think there is still a very good chance of Frank fighting Cung Le.

I will be having a conversation with Frank next week about his future — what he wants to do, who he might want to be matched up with, etc. I think both fights that you mention are still promotable and just need to be built back up in the appropriate manner. Frank’s next fight will determine a lot.

Brian Oswald (MMAmania.com): When can we expect Cung Le back, also who do you expect his first opponent to be? Would Jake Shields-Robbie Lawler winner would be a worthy foe?

Scott Coker:Cung Le is an action movie star right now. I couldn’t be happier for him and we have been friends for a long time. So it’s been great to see him achieve success both inside and outside of the ring/cage. We are going to sit down in the next weeks and I am going to put that question to him. Cung Le will be fighting before the end of the year.

The two guys you mentioned are definitely an option. If Jake wins I have to talk to him about that fight because he may want to go back to 170 pounds. If Robbie wins, well that’s a no-brainer — former Elite XC champion fighting the current Strikeforce champion.

Brian Oswald (MMAmania.com): Why has Cung Le been allowed to hold the middleweight title hostage for more than a year without being forced to defend it?

Scott Coker: The answer to that question is that from November to April we were in limbo over whether or not we would acquire the assets to Elite XC. So we didn’t put on a fight card during that time period. Strikeforce: “Destruction” was on November 21 and our next event didn’t happen until this most recent event.

So it’s not Cung’s fault he wasn’t fighting. All the fighters were on hiatus for several months and so Cung started making movies. Now that things are back on track we have to be willing to work with his schedule. The deal with Elite XC was happening one minute and the next it wasn’t. Now we are ready to move forward.

Trust me when I say, Cung Le is hungry to get back in the cage and it will happen when everything comes together, including the right opponent. Cung was actually bummed out that Frank lost; that is the first he wanted to come back to. We will see how it plays out.

Brian Oswald (MMAmania.com): In regard to Diaz, he fought his fight with Shamrock at a “limbo” weight of 179. Where do you see Diaz settling in at, and if it is at 170, who is he going to fight? We know it won’t be his friend, Jake Shields, and other than that, Strikeforce doesn’t currently house any premium welterweights

Scott Coker:Well, I think we have some great fights ahead for Nick Diaz. If you look at our roster, just in the near future, I could see Diaz fighting Phil Baroni and a Joe Riggs rematch. I could also see Diaz fighting Jason “Mayhem” Miller. I see him fighting Robbie Lawler, possibly at a catchweight.

Also, Nick “The Goat” Thompson.

I would also like to see Hayato Sakurai fight Nick Diaz once he is done fighting in the DREAM welterweight tournament. I think that our 170-pound class has more competition than people think. So I think were going to be just fine in terms of opponents for Nick Diaz. What about Diaz versus Cung Le depending on how everything plays out? Some of these fights should happen and my job is to make the fights that people want to see happen.

Brian Oswald (MMAmania.com): Will Tito Ortiz’s first fight with Strikeforce happen in 2009, 2010, or never? Am I correct in assuming that money is the only thing holding up the process at this point?

Scott Coker: 2009. He is just trying to get to the point where he is 100 percent healthy before he steps back into the cage. When that point comes, we will be doing everything on our part to set up the right fight for him to come back to.

Brian Oswald (MMAmania.com): What are your plans for another former UFC champion, that being Kevin Randleman? It seems like a good move, at least on paper, to help bolster your light heavyweight division.

Scott Coker: Kevin is a dynamic. We have been friends for a while and I love the guy. He has great energy; there have been some mishaps in the past but he has got his body back to 100 percent healthy. I think he could be a force at 205 pounds. And if he is not we will find out really quickly against guys like Renato Sobral, Bobby Southworth, Tito Ortiz, and some of the other guys we either have or are talking to right now.

Brian Oswald (MMAmania.com): I couldn’t help but notice Andrei Arlovski in attendance at “Shamrock vs. Diaz.” How great would a fight between him and Alistair Overeem be for the Strikeforce heavyweight title (depending on how things play out with Affliction)?

Scott Coker: I would love to see that. If he becomes a free agent I will be having a conversation with him.

Brian Oswald (MMAmania.com): It is no surprise that your roster is filled with former UFC fighters and champions. Do you think this reality could leave some people to perceive that Strikeforce is a “purgatory” for fighters who can’t compete on the highest level?

Scott Coker: I have to disagree with that assertion. Our heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem has never fought in the UFC. Jake Shields, a future welterweight champion, has never fought in the UFC.

Cung Le, our middleweight champion, has never fought in the UFC. Josh Thompson competed in the UFC but they dropped their lightweight division so he came over to us. Josh never got to fight the best of the UFC.

Guys like Sobral and Lawler, they fought in the UFC once upon a time, but they have improved by leaps and bounds since then. They are both considered top five guys in their respective divisions. Also, look at a guy like Fabricio Werdum who we just signed. Because he lost his last fight in the Octagon and got cut, does that mean he is not a top heavyweight contender? No.

So, I disagree with the notion that Strikeforce doesn’t have top level fighters. And, we are just getting warmed up. Like I said, we will be adding great fighters to our roster.

Brian Oswald (MMAmania.com): You have to be excited about the fact that Elite XC basically gift wrapped female MMA to you in the form of Carano vs. Cyborg and even happier that Dana White didn’t feel the need to take the fight. Good things come to those who wait … so how long do we have to wait for Carano-Cyborg?

Scott Coker: Yeah, this has the potential to be built as one of the hottest match ups in MMA. We are really looking forward to promoting it and I feel very fortunate with how it played out. It was teed up very nicely for us. The deal has been put in place. Now it’s just a matter of the lawyers crossing the T’s and dotting the I’s. So it will happen at the appropriate time, on a soon to be fight card.

Brian Oswald (MMAmania.com): I just read that Bob Sapp and Bobby Lashley have an upcoming fight. Sapp is on the Strikeforce roster and I heard there might be some negotiations between Strikeforce and Lashley so why isn’t this fight happening with your organization?

Scott Coker: Well, I just recently confirmed that the fight is in fact happening myself. It is a one-fight deal and the organization that is putting it on is shelling out a lot of money. All I can comment on is that I want to see that fight, I will tune in if it makes it on TV. It could almost work as a WWE main event.

Brian Oswald (MMAmania.com): It’s been confirmed that American Kickboxing Academy (AKA) manager and trainer Bob Cook has taken over the role of matchmaker for Strikeforce, replacing Javier Mendez who is also associated with AKA. UFC matchmaker Joe Silva gets a lot of notoriety for his match making ability so tell us about Bob Cook and how he is going to elevate the level of matching over at Strikeforce?

Scott Coker: The way it works at Strikeforce is that we have a committee. Bob Cook will be an integral part of that committee. We throw all our ideas around the room and at the end of the day Showtime has final approval. Strikeforce and Showtime collaborate to come up with the most compelling match ups for the fans. Bob is a great consultant, a great sounding board. He will bring some great ideas to the boardroom.

Brian Oswald (MMAmania.com): Dana White’s squabbles with the AKA training camp are well publicized. Things reached a boiling over point when he actually “fired” AKA fighter and welterweight stud Jon Fitch for a brief period. I know it’s not your style, but would you consider signing the entire AKA roster, which includes Fitch, Josh Koscheck, Mike Swick, Cain Velasquez and others?

Scott Coker: AKA is one of the prominent gyms in the world. In my mind those guys are all UFC fighters and of course we have a couple of guys out of AKA on the roster. My feeling is I want to be able to build up and promote Strikeforce fighters. That is the model we want moving forward, in the way we built up a guy like Cung Le. Like I said, we will always talk to fighters who are free agents, and if there is a win-win to be had great, but for the most part, we want to build our own stars.

Brian Oswald (MMAmania.com): I recently wrote an article entitled, “In the Next 10 Years, MMA Will Be the Biggest Sport on the Planet” based on a Dana White quote. While the statement is rather ambitious, how are you going to go about helping Dana accomplish this lofty goal?

Scott Coker: Our sport has great fighters and great fans. And the fans really get to connect to those fighters. Strikeforce is here to stay — we are definitely going to do our part to grow the sport and to be good ambassadors of the sport. It’s about pushing forward. The relationship with Showtime was huge and now we are looking forward to putting on 12 to 14 shows a year.

We would like to hearken back to the old PRIDE days when you used to see a lot of big fights in one night. Not just a headliner and four “okay” fights. That is what we want to get back to. When a fan can come in, pay as little as $30 to get into the stadium, and see five superstar fights. I think that everyone would like to see that.

Brian Oswald (MMAmania.com): That’s a fantastic goal and one that I’m sure all the fans out there hope you accomplish. Best of luck with Strikeforce, Scott, and thank you for all your time.

Scott Coker: Thank you, Brian
 
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Lyle Beerbohm vs. Duane Ludwig expected to headline Strikeforce card on June 19

FiveOuncesOfPain.com has learned from sources close to the bout that undefeated lightweight Lyle Beerbohm is expected to face off with Duane Ludwig in the main event of a Strikeforce event that will take place on June 19.

Beerbohm has amassed a record of 9-0 while fighting for the EliteXC, KOTC, and Strikeforce promotions. He is known for his strong wrestling, striking and relentless agression. Beerbohm is not the type to let his fights go to the judges as he has finished eight of his nine fights on his own terms. His most recent appearance saw him stopping Jorge Sarat by TKO in January.

Ludwig is a seasoned and dangerous mixed martial artist with an extremely strong kickboxing background. Ludwig trained under Bas Rutten for a long period during the beginning of his fighting career and has put together wins over Genki Sudo, Jens Pulver and most recently Yves Edwards.

The bout will serve as a fantastic measuring stick for the extremely talented Beerbohm as he has been running through the majority of his competition up until this point in his career while Ludwig has a lot to gain in defeating a highly touted prospect such as Beerbohm while coming off of two consecutive victories.

Regardless of the bouts outcome, it is very unlikely that the judges will be necessary in this showdown between lethal lightweights
 
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Jeff Curran vs Takeya Mizugaki in the works for WEC 42 in August

There is a potential bantamweight clash being discussed between former featherweight top contender Jeff Curran (29-11-1) and the man who took 135-pound kingpin Miguel Torres to a five round decision, Takeya Mizugaki (11-3-2), for the WEC 42 event planned for August 2009 according to MMA Fanhouse.

Curran made his bantamweight debut after dropping back-to-back losses in the featherweight division against top dogs Urijah Faber and Mike Thomas Brown.

Unfortunately “The Big Frog” had a very unwelcome reception at 135-pounds from dangerous up-and-comer Joseph Benavidez, who sent the submissions guru to his third straight defeat under the WEC banner after outpointing him for three rounds.

Now he has to turn things around — and fast — if he ever wants that shot at bantamweight deity Miguel Torres. Standing in his way is the Japanese import who both surprised and impressed fans with his gritty performance against one of the worlds best.

Priot to his decision loss to Torres, Mizugaki (11-3-2) was riding a five-fight win streak under the Greatest Common Multiple banner over in the land of the rising sun. He’s also a 10-fight veteran of the Shooto promotion, which has also been a breeding ground for other top mixed martial artists such as Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto, Shinya Aoki, Anderson Silva, Tatsuya Kawajiri and others.

Mizugaki may not have been able to blow a tire on the Torres war wagon, but his powerful striking and adamantium chin kept fans on the edge of their seats for 25 minutes.

WEC 42 is expected to feature Miguel Torres in the main event, defending his bantamweight title for the fourth time against undefeated “Hard Core” product Brian Bowles this August.
 
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UFC Quick Quote: Frank Mir getting buff for Brock Lesnar rematch

“If you train all the time, it’s easy to peak out and get strong. But if you just try to be a weekend warrior at this sport, it ain’t gonna happen…. After the Brandon Vera fight I just really changed everything up and decided that that’s not how I wanted to go out in my career… Our biggest argument right now is they keep trying to get me out of the gym. They’re saying right now I’m doing too many rounds, my conditioning’s at too high of a level for this far out of the fight. And now they’re starting to panic that I’m going to burn out…. My body fat percentage is pretty obvious if you look at me right now.”

– UFC interim heavyweight champion Frank Mir apparently now boasts “barn-door shoulders” and “powerful piston-like legs,” according to the Edmonton Sun, as he prepares for his rematch against Brock Lesnar at UFC 100 on July 11. Mir — fresh off minor knee surgery — was at one point in his career assailed for his lack of dedication in the training room, opting to train just eight weeks out from each fight. Now, it appears that his trainers have to force him out of the gym. And the results have been evident — he is on a three-fight win streak, which includes huge victories over Lesnar and a stoppage of the legendary Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueria. His confidence and conditioning appear to be at record levels, which combined with his solid ground game and ever-improving striking arsenal, could keep the 29-year-old fighter atop the division for years to come. What say you?
 
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Ryan Bader: A Force To Be Reckoned With

As a former All-American wrestler at division I Arizona State, Ryan Bader is no stranger to success. While in high school Bader won two state championships and was ranked as high as fourth in the country. While in College he compiled an amazing 120 wins while earning All-American honors twice and he was also a three time PAC 10 champion.

After fighting on some smaller circuits Bader was cast on the eighth season of The Ultimate Fighter and was coach Antonio Noguiera’s first overall pick. He did not disappoint as he plowed through the competition defeating Vinny Magalhaes in the finale to earn the six figure contract.

Bader trains at Arizona Combat Sports with fellow Arizona State teammate C.B. Dolloway, Jamie Varner, Aaron Simpson and Carlos Condit. Bader recently defeated UFC and WEC veteran Carmelo Marrero at the UFC Fight Night on April 1 by unanimous decision. Unfortunately the victory did not come without consequences as Bader suffered a knee injury during the first round of the fight. On the bright side the injury wasn’t as serious as first believed and Bader should be back in action before you know it.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com recently had the chance to speak with Bader and found him to be extremely articulate and engaging while holding nothing back. Here is how the conversation went down.

Bryan Levick for FiveOuncesOfPain.com: What was the exact nature of the injury you suffered during your fight against Carmelo Marrerro April 1?

Ryan Bader: I tore my MCL off the bone on my knee and I tore my PCL. I am going in for another MRI in about an hour. I completely tore my MCL but as of right now I am not going to require surgery which is good so I will just try and let it heal up right now.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: How long do you think you will out of action for?

Ryan Bader: I was told about 6 weeks and right now I am not doing much as far as any wrestling or grappling, I have to wait to start that back up we just have to see how the rehab goes. I am in the gym hitting the mitts so it’s not too bad.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: How and when did the injury occur?

Ryan Bader: It was in the first round, I had taken him down and had passed into side control and my toes got caught up on his knee a little bit and I hurt a loud pop. While I was down it didn’t hurt too much but when I stood back up I could feel it.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: How would you grade your overall performance?

Ryan Bader
: I am my toughest critic and I felt like I could have used more jiu-jitsu, when I had his back I could have thrown in the hooks but it was difficult maybe because of the injury to my knee. Other than that I am fine with it. My stand up could have been tighter. The injury caused me to change up my game plan a little bit. It is what it is and I am happy to have won.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: During the first round I was impressed with your attempt at an arm bar, I didn’t really see any jiu-jitsu from you while on the The Ultimate Fighter. Who is you BJJ trainer these days?

Ryan Bader: Gustavo Dantas is the instructor down here at Arizona Combat Sports. He was won the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu world championship a couple of times. He is the main coach. I did practice jiu-jitsu while on the show and I learned a lot from Noguiera. You will see more jiu-jitsu from me as I get more comfortable as the fights go on.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Regarding your time spent on The Ultimate Fighter what did you do to keep yourself occupied while in the house?

Ryan Bader: Well there really was nothing to do so we sat around and told stories most of the time. We just tried to keep busy and I looked forward to training twice a day. We would cook dinner together and spent time in the hot tub talking about our past.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Was it hard not to get caught up in all of the extra-curricular activities?

Ryan Bader: Sometimes especially when it was all around you but you just have to focus on your goals at hand. I wanted to win the show and that’s all I needed to stay away from all the crap going on around me. I just stuck to my goals and didn’t worry about getting drunk all the time.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Was there ever a time that you wanted to grab a hold of Junie and tell him to knock it off?

Ryan Bader: Oh yeah first was the swimming pool incident and then when he threw the glass at Kyle. There were a couple of times when I just said what is wrong with you and I wanted to beat his ass but we knew we would get in trouble so we learned to keep our cool no matter how much he provoked us.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: How were you contacted about being a contestant on the show?

Ryan Bader
: I was kind of recruited a little bit. C.B. Dolloway who is one of my training partners was on the show the season before and he put in a word for me. At the time I was undefeated with 6 or 7 wins. So I went and tried out and passed all the medicals and the rest is history.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: What was it like training under Noguiera?

Ryan Bader: It was amazing I got to watch how a true champion trains day in and day out, he was one of the coolest guys I have ever met and I can’t say enough good things about him. Just watching him work actually help me elevate my game. He forced us to be a team and we were tight. That is why both winners came from our team. The whole coaching staff was amazing they invited me to come down to Miami to train before The Ultimate Fighter Finale and it was truly amazing working with all of them.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Were you surprised at the outcome of his fight with Mir?

Ryan Bader: Yes, I was surprised to watch the fight and see it end like that. I had heard he had a staph infection and it was hard to watch but he will be back. He is fighting Randy Couture soon and he will be back in true form.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: What other MMA fighters attended Arizona State University with you?

Ryan Bader: Cain Velasquez who is one of the UFC’s top heavyweight prospects. He graduated with C.B. Dolloway and myself and we were All-Americans. Aaron Simpson was one of our assistant coaches, he had a big knockout victory on the same card I fought on April 1.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: What is it like having Carlos Condit part of the Arizona Combats Sports team?

Ryan Bader: Having Carlos here is awesome he came in and immediately elevated the intensity of the room. He has a lot of great knees and elbows and we needed that at the gym. We have a lot of great wrestlers and kick boxers but he brings a whole new dimension to the gym. He is an extremely hard worker and when we were all training for our fights together it was amazing the way we all pushed each other. He will not let anyone slack off and he has been a great addition to our camp.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Your camp is quickly becoming one of the top camps in MMA. Who are some of the younger guys you train with that we should keep our eyes on?

Ryan Bader: We have a ton of younger guys in fact there are too many too name. Jacob McClintock is coming up he is a jiu-jitsu guy. We have some guys who are fighting in the Bellator tournament. Basically anyone who fights at Arizona Combat Sports you should watch out for.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com:: Besides your wrestling what would you say are your strengths?

Ryan Bader: I have pretty heavy hands in the gym I am getting better and better with my stand-up.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: What are the areas you feel you need to work on most?

Ryan Bader: I would say throwing combinations kick boxing wise. I need to learn to throw more combinations.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Were you a fan of MMA growing up?

Ryan Bader: I watched it here and there but I didn’t think about fighting until I got out of college. Jesse Forbes came in and was fighting Matt Hamill and he needed some wrestlers to spar with. So I went into the gym and was just going to train and how things went. Then I had my first fight and I loved it and stuck to it.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Who are some of the fighters around today that you really enjoy watching?

Ryan Bader: I really like watching Nogueira fight. Getting to train with him for six weeks gave me a great appreciation for what he does in his fights. I really like watching any wrestler fight, someone with the same background as me. I also really like watching Couture and Dan Henderson fight as well.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Who do you think will win the rematch between Frank Mir and Brock Lesnar?

Ryan Bader: I would have to say Lesnar as he is too big and too strong. I think he has learned and grown a lot in the year that has passed since they fought the first time. Mir told us that when he was on the ground and Lesnar was on top of him that those were some of the hardest punches he has ever felt even though Mir is saying different now he was pretty clear when he was telling us about it while on the show.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: If there was one fighter from the past that you could fight who would it be?

Ryan Bader: I would actually like to fight Royce Gracie in one of the early tournaments when he was wrecking everybody. Just to see how much MMA has progressed since then.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Is there anyone you would like to thank? Your fans or any sponsors?

Ryan Bader: I have my website up it is www.ryanbader.com and you can see videos on there of me training. I also have a blog on there and you will see my sponsors. I would really like to thank Klenz Towel for their support you can visit their site at www.klenztowel.com they are doing a whole program to support the troops. If anyone sends a box over to the troops I will send them a autographed photo and they will be doing something to help out the troops which is really cool.
 
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Mike Swick hopeful ‘exciting win in Germany’ over Ben Saunders will earn him a title shot

“I think it will be very exciting! He is a tough opponent who is scrappy and likes to clinch and bang. I definitely will want to bang so it should be good!I just fight who they tell me. Ben’s name came up as an available opponent and I said ok…. I think an exciting win in Germany will grant me a title shot. At least, thats what I hope.”

The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) alum, Mike Swick, feels that he could score and opportunity to fight for the 170-pound belt with an impressive performance against Ben Saunders at UFC 99: “The Comeback” on June 13. “Quick” is on a three-fight win streak since dropping from middleweight to the welterweight class, defeating Josh Burkman, Marcus Davis and Jonathan Goulet. He seems to now be finding his groove, finishing “The Road Warrior” in just 33 seconds and returning to his form that earned him the nickname. Swick has just one loss (Yushin Okami) in nine fights inside the Octagon that dates back to 2005. Has he certainly paid is dues. But is he deserving of a title shot with a win over Saunders or does he still need to prove he belongs in the land of 170s with more wins over bigger names?
 
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TUF US vs UK Episode 4 Ratings

MMAPayout.com has learned that TUF Season 9 Episode 4 earned a 1.0 household rating — a 1.20 in Men 18-49, a .9 in People 18-49, a 1.5 in Men 18-34, a .7 in Men 12-17, and an average audience of 1.4 million viewers

The quarter hours were:

.90
.99
1.02
1.20
 
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Sergio Cunha celebrates Shogun’s “present”

After the victory over Mark Coleman, Sérgio Cunha called Mauricio "Shogun" and offered his help. Used to work with the fighter, the former Chute Boxe coach proposed an intensive training with the Pride champion, and the result come out in short time. Against the former UFC champion Chuck Liddell, Shogun came well and showed why he was pointed as the best light heavyweight in 2007.

"I thought it was a very good fight, the result was phenomenal", celebrates Cunha, remembering that this was the first victory of a Brazilian over Liddell, after the American beat five Brazilians (Wanderlei Silva, Renato Babalu, Vitor Belfort, Murilo Bustamante and José Pelé Landi). "Liddell won some of the best fighters in the world and Shogun was superior because he worked hard and took everything seriously. Maurício was professional, dedicated himself a lot ", said, gaining the victory as a birthday present, celebrated on April 20th, two days after the fight.

"This was a big present (laughs)", jokes. After two performances below expectations in the UFC, the coach believes that Shogun finally "debuted" in the American octagon. "The American press and fans were left with a bad impression, that he wouldn’t be able to be the fighter he were in the beginning of his career, when he won the GP (Pride), especially after the injuries, but, after recovering from all this, he looked for the best team and worked very seriously, with the right people, and restarted his career", praises Cunha.
 
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Aldo looking for another knockout at WEC

José Aldo has confirmed all his potential and it seems that doesn’t exist opponents able to stop the Brazilian at the WEC. After knocking the favorite Alexandre "Pequeno" Nogueira out in his debut, the Nova União athlete demolished other three opponents, and now will have another difficult challenge ahead, Cub Swanson, at WEC 41, which takes place at California, on June 7.

Cub Swanson, who lost his last fight, has four other fights at WEC, two by unanimous decision and two for submissions. But Aldo guarantees that he’ll go inside the American and believes that if he wins, could get the chance to fight for the belt.

"Definitely I look forward for that opportunity, I’m working hard and I’ll get what I want, bring this belt home. I’ve already studied my opponent’s fights with Dedé (André Pederneiras) and I’m not going with strategy set, I’ll use all my skills. Either on the ground or standing, I'm ready for anything that the fight will bring", finished the fighter.
 
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Bout order announced for Sengoku.8

World Victory Road(WVR) announced the fight order of Sengoku.8 today. In the main event, Hatsu Hioki faces Ronnie "Ushiwaka" Mann.

Sengoku.8
Date: May 2, 16:00~
Place: Yoyogi National Gymnasium, Tokyo

1. Maximo "Maxi" Blanco vs. Akihiko Mouri
2. Makoto Takimoto vs. Michael Costa
3. Marlon Sandro vs. Nick Denis~Featherweight GP~
4. Masanori Kanehara vs. Jung Chan Sung~Featherweight GP~
5. Alexandre "Xande" Ribeiro vs. Kei Yamamiya
6. Kazunori Yokota vs. Leonardo Santos
7. Michihiro Omigawa vs. Nam Phan~Featherweight GP~
8. Hatsu Hioki vs. Ronnie "Ushiwaka" Mann~Featherweight GP~

Opening Fight
1. Hirotoshi Saito vs. Yoshitaka Abe
2. Shigeki Osawa vs. Kota Ishibashi
 
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WVR Reveal Future Title Plans! Takimoto At Welterweight

WVR’s Kokuho revealed some future SENGOKU title plans today after the opening training session of Makoto Takimoto. He said that Kazunori Yokota, Leonardo Santos, or Mizuto Hirota will most likely face Satoru Kitaoka in a title fight in August. It depends on who wins and how they win.

A Middleweight number 1 contender fight will be held in August and the winner will face Santiago in October. Possible names mentioned for the fight were Kazuo Misaki, Kazuhiro Nakamura, and Frank Trigg. Also in August, in preparation for crowning a LHW champion, LHW single fights will be held.

Makoto Takimoto’s weight cut looks like it’s going well. He says that when he stopped drinking he immediately lost 2-3 kg. He also says that his power and stamina in training are the same even though he has been losing weight.
 
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Open Training Session! “If It’s A Fight The Fans Desire I Want To Have A Go At It”

Takanori Gomi and Rumina Sato held an open training session together today at Gomi’s Kugayama RASCAL Gym. Gomi has popular sports trainer Cabin Yamasaki (personal trainer of Kazuhiro Kiyohara, helped Akira Maeda in preparation for his retirement match in 1999, started Total Workout gyms, etc.) by his side in preparation for the fight. Yamasaki says that even though he has been with Gomi for only two months he sees that among other things the speed and power of Gomi are improving.

The most interesting comment by Gomi was when he was asked about a July fight with Masato under K-1 rules. Gomi is definitely interested in the fight as you can see by his comment above. The fight has been mentioned in other places as well. However, Gomi is focused at Nakakura right now.
 
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Gleison Tibau replaces Thiago Tavares at The Ultimate Fighter 9 Finale

That didn't take long.

Earlier today reports surfaced that Thiago Tavares (14-3 MMA, 4-3 UFC) was out of his TUF 9 Finale bout with Melvin Guillard (21-7-2 MMA, 5-3 UFC), and MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) has now learned from sources close to "The Young Assassin" that Gleison Tibau (17-6 MMA, 5-3 UFC) has agreed to step in for his American Top Team teammate.

The TUF 9 Finale, scheduled for June 20 at the Pearl at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, concludes the "The Ultimate Fighter: U.S. vs. U.K.."

Tibau has fought twice already in 2009, earning a decision win over Jeremy Stephens at UFC Fight Night 18 and a submission victory over Rich Clementi at UFC Fight Night 17.

Those wins followed a difficult 2008 for Tibau. The Brazilian told MMAjunkie.com prior to the bout with Clementi that he had different plans for this year.

"I completely changed my preparation," Tibau said. "I've got a new conditioning coach, and I plan on doing a better job. I'm starting 2009 in very good shape, and I'm going to be very aggressive and fast."

A former welterweight, Tibau is a large lightweight that will have a decided advantage on the ground should he be able to withstand Guillard's dangerous striking attack.
 
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EVANS COMMMENTS ON SILVA AND LIDDELL

UFC light heavyweight champion Rashad Evans can relate to middleweight champion Anderson Silva, if it’s the case that the record-setting fighter is bored with his job.

“I’ve been out there and felt like not even fighting,” he told MMAWeekly.com. “You never know who’s going to show up on fight day. You go out there, and that night, you just don’t feel it. Sometimes you just walk into the arena, and you’re like, ‘you know what, man? Today, I just don’t feel like it. I don’t feel like I got that same spring.’ It just happens like that. Maybe he just woke up and felt like he was rhyming slow that day.”

On the other hand, he believes the champion has equal responsibility with the challenger to create an exciting fight. Silva has gotten most of the blame for the main event of UFC 97, a fight that saw the UFC fans turn on him and Thales Leites.

“As a challenger, you’ve gotta be hungry enough to get after it, that’s first and foremost, but the champion, you’ve gotta have a little like, ‘(expletive) do you think you can take this belt from me?’” continued Evans. “You gotta be a little pissed at the fact that they even accepted the fight with you, you know what I’m saying? You’ve got some nerve to even take this fight.”

Evans takes his motivation from Georges St. Pierre trainer Firas Zahabi when looking at an opponent.

“He said, ‘you need to make an example of him,’” said Evans. “That’s a very powerful statement. That way, people don’t want to fight you. They’d rather move to another weight class to have a title shot. That’s the kind of fear you should put into somebody as a champion. “

Though Silva has had no trouble with his weight class, the question of whether he’ll make things interesting by moving up to light heavyweight is one that’s in the works right now.

Evans thinks Silva needs to get in touch with the guy who first came into the UFC in June of 2006.

“Anderson’s a big boy, but I think he’s fallen in love with his movement a little bit,” said Evans. “He don’t have that dog in him, that hunch on his shoulder like when he first came into the UFC. ‘They gonna put me against Chris Leben? I’m gonna murder this dude.’ And he murdered that dude. ‘And Rich Franklin, Rich Franklin’s a great champion, but he doesn’t know what being the champion is about.’ He destroyed him. I think he’s missing that attitude that he had. I don’t know if he’s bored, or whatever the case may be, but he just don’t have that same dog in him.”

One fighter that still has the dog is Chuck Liddell, but it’s questionable whether his body can back it up. Evans says no.

“It’s lost for him,” he said. “A season ago, he was just the man. I don’t know if I took his soul, but it’s hard to believe things went down for him. It’s sad, because as a fighter, you get a glimpse of what’s in store for you. You’re like, ‘Is this how it’s going to end for me? Am I just going to go out as abruptly as a came in, or am I going to fade out?’ It’s so hard to see somebody like Chuck Liddell go out like that because, no matter what, you got love for Chuck Liddell. Any fight fan, you’ve got love for Chuck Liddell. But seeing him like that, it was painful to see.”

Evans is unsure of how he would respond in the same situation.

“I would want to go out on top,” he said. “But it’s always easy to say, 'I wouldn’t do this,' and, 'I’d be able to go out on top,' because you don’t know how you’re going to feel. I’m sure Chuck is like, ‘Damn, I still got it.’ I’m sure he feels like that, but his reactions are really bad. He has really bad reaction time. He doesn’t react good anymore. It’s like damn, dude, you might have to just call it.”

The light heavyweight champion has a couple more weeks of hard training before he begins his slow cut to 205. His challenger on May 23, Lyoto Machida, may be the toughest fight he’s ever had.

Boredom will not be an option.
 
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Report: Frank Gomez vs. Eddie Wineland set for WEC 41 in June

A bantamweight contest between Frank Gomez (6-1 MMA, 0-1 WEC) and former WEC champ Eddie Wineland (14-6-1 MMA, 1-2 WEC) has reportedly been added to "WEC 41: Brown vs. Faber II."

The news comes courtesy of The Northwest Indiana Times.

Headlined by a featherweight title fight between current champ Mike Brown and former champ Urijah Faber, WEC 41 is scheduled for June 7 at the ARCO Arena in Sacramento, Calif.

The bout will be Gomez's second in the WEC. Training with Greg Jackson in Albuquerque, N.M., Gomez earned wins in his first six career bouts before being submitted in 69 seconds in his January WEC debut against Scott Jorgensen.

Wineland is also looking to rebound from a defeat. The former WEC champ was submitted by Rani Yahya in 67 seconds at April's WEC 40 in Chicago. While the loss was Wineland's second-straight for the WEC, the bantamweight has gone 11-2 in his past 13 total contests.

With the addition to the event, the complete card now includes:

* Champ Mike Brown vs. Urijah Faber (for WEC featherweight title)
* Jose Aldo vs. Cub Swanson*
* John Franchi vs. Manny Gamburyan*
* Josh Grispi vs. Jens Pulver
* Donald Cerrone vs. Richard Crunkilton*
* Frank Gomez vs. Eddie Wineland*
* Kyle Dietz vs. Charlie Valencia*
 
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Bellator's featherweight semi-finals set for May 8 in Texas

Bellator's sixth event will feature both semi-final matchups of the organizations debut featherweight tournament.

The organization recently announced that Wilson Reis (7-0) meets Joe Soto (5-0) on one side of the bracket, while Estevan Payan (7-1) faces Yahir Reyes (13-5) in the other semi-final bout.

Bellator's sixth event is scheduled for May 8 at the Central Pavilion Arena in Robstown, Texas.

Former EliteXC champion Reis earned his way into the bout with an April 10 unanimous-decision win over Henry Martinez, while Soto earned a first-round TKO over Ben Greer on April 3.

Meanwhile, Payan edged out Luis Palomino via split decision on April 3, while Reyes upset Nick Gonzlaez with a first-round submission win on the same card.

Each semi-finalist earned $25,000 for their quarterfinal wins. A win at the May 8 event would earn them an additional $50,000.

The night will also feature six non-tournament bouts. Tickets are currently on sale for the event at the Richard M. Borchard Regional Fairgrounds box office and RMBFairgrounds.com. Ticket prices range from $20 to just $40.

The full card currently includes:

* 145-pound semi-final: Wilson Reis vs. Joe Soto
* 145-pound semi-final: Estevan Payan vs. Yahir Reyes
* Non-tourney: Nick Gonzalez vs. Luis Palomino
* Non-tourney: Diego Garijo vs. Hector Munoz
* Non-tourney: Jeff Messina vs. Sergio Moraes
* Non-tourney: Daniel Pineda vs. Roberto Vargas
* Non-tourney: Travis Lamb vs. Dustin Phillips
* Non-tourney: Prince McClean vs. Robert "Bubba" McDaniel
 
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UFC WIN UNDER HIS BELT, IS DENIS KANG BACK?

A lot is to be said of Denis Kang. His career spans over 10 years and, in that time frame, he’s accomplished more things than most fighters could hope for.

With over 40 professional bouts to his credit, the Canadian native has consistently competed amongst the best in his weight class, staking claim as a Top 10 caliber fighter, with victories over Murilo “Ninja” Rua, Akihiro Gono, and Amar Suloev, among others in his near 18-month stint with the now defunct Pride Fighting Championships.

After back-to-back losses to Yoshihiro Akiyama and Gegard Mousasi, the Spirit MC heavyweight champion appeared back in form with two consecutive knockout victories over Jae Young Kim and Marvin Eastman inside of the first round.

Initially considering a slot on the UFCs’ first installment of The Ultimate Fighter, Kang turned down the offer, but with hopes of always returning back to the promotion in the foreseeable future. His dream became a reality when he made his debut this past January at UFC 93 against rising prospect Alan Belcher. Although Kang was not able to pick up the victory in his debut, he made a quick turn around and was right back in action with a shutout victory over Xavier Foupa-Pokam, winning each round on the judges' scorecards.

“It feels really good. It feels like I've gotten that first win out of the way so to speak and now I can just concentrate on being a dominant force in (the middleweight) division,” he explained while a guest recently on MMAWeekly Radio.

After a considerable amount of hype on Kang’s initial move to the UFC, there were a lot of expectations of him being a crushing force in the middleweight division, becoming an immediate challenger to Anderson Silva’s title. However, it’s those same expectations that have taught him a lesson in defeat.

“What I realized was that I focus too much on things outside of the fight itself, on people’s expectations of me, on expectations of myself, and (I should) just concentrate on fighting the good clean fights instead of trying to go to a fight with a crazy bang; fight too hard.”

Now with the win under his belt, the Vancouver turned Montreal native was able to relish in the victory in front of another ruckus sold-out crowd in his own backyard.

“It was incredible. Fighting in my hometown was cool, but getting the ‘W’ in Canada in front of what is now my hometown (Montreal) because I live here now, was really neat. I had a lot of people I knew watching, a lot of people came from my other hometown in Vancouver to watch me fight, so it was really cool to represent.”

Now settling into his own, Kang is ready to fulfill those expectations with another commanding performance over a quality opponent. With four fights within the past nine months, he is eager to have some time off to relax and hone his skills to be back in the Octagon, better than ever.

“I need to take a little bit of a break because I just fought two big fights back-to-back. It’s not the fights that wear on you; it’s the training. I need to take a little time off to rest my body and we’ll see who’s going to be next. I know I’m not in line for a title shot yet, but there’s a couple of other 185ers who got wins that night (UFC 97) so maybe the UFC will line me up with that, but I do need a little break.”
 
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Bellator's tournament finals set for June 19 in Florida

Returning to the site of its April 3 debut, upstart promotion Bellator Fighting Championships will host its first tournament finals at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida.

The June 19 event will play host to the organization's debut tournament finals in the featherweight, lightweight, welterweight and middleweight divisions.

As with all previous Bellator cards, the event will air on a one-day tape delay on ESPN Deportes.

Semi-finalists in the four divisions have already been determined in the programs first four weeks. The victors each won $25,000 for their quarterfinal wins. A victory in the semi-finals would mean an additional $50,000 for the competitors.

A win in the finals would earn the tournament champions an additional $100,000 for a total of $175,000 in a 12-week period.

The featherweight semifinals are slated for May 8 in Robstown, Texas, and will feature Wilson Reis (7-0) vs. Joe Soto (5-0) and Estevan Payan (7-1) vs. Yahir Reyes (13-5).

The lightweight finalists will be determined on May 1 in Dayton, Ohio, when Toby Imada (21-11) meets Jorge Masvidal (17-3) and Eddie Alvarez (16-2) faces Eric Reynolds (11-1).

The welterweight bracket features Lyman Good (8-0) vs. Jorge Ortiz (16-4) and Dave Menne (43-15-2) vs. Omar De La Cruz (4-1), while the middleweight tourney has Hector Lombard (19-2-1) vs. Damien Stelly (10-2) and Yosmany Cabezas (8-1) vs. Jared Hess (7-0-1). Dates for the resolution of those two brackets have not been announced.

Tickets are currently on sale for the June 19 tournament finals at Ticketmaster.com. Prices are set at $25, $50, $100 and $150.
 
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Bush vs. Johnson, Quach vs. De Jesus set for May 15 ShoMMA event

Strikeforce has finalized the main card for its debut "ShoMMA: Strikeforce Challengers" event with the official announcement of two additional contests.

Heavyweight George Bush (5-1) will meet Lavar Johnson, while featherweight Bao Quach (15-9-1) will face Isaac De Jesus (2-0).

Headlined by lightweights Mike Aina and Billy Evangelista, the debut ShoMMA event is scheduled for May 15 in Fresno, Calif. The main card airs live on Showtime.

Bush opened his career with five-straight wins, including a 2007 unanimous-decision win over "The Ultimate Fighter 8" finalist Vinny Magalhaes. Bush last fought in a unanimous-decision loss to former UFC champ Ricco Rodriguez under the one-and-done YAMMA Pit Fighting banner.

The heavy hitting Johnson is currently on a four-fight win streak. The hulking "Big" Johnson has fought out of the first round just twice in his five-year career, and 10 of his 11 career victories have come by way of knockout or TKO.

The remaining win was earned by a submission due to strikes.

Quach is an eight-year veteran that has fought for ShoXC, Shooto and King of the Cage. The 29-year-old recently had a nine-fight winning streak snapped by L.C. Davis in an entertaining, high-energy bout at January's "Affliction: Day of Reckoning."

De Jesus has opened his career with two-straight wins, both earned by decision. His most recent appearance was in a July 2008 War Gods win over Lealand Gridley.
 
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Rib injury healed, Escudero out to prove he's "no scrub" at UFC 103

The career of undefeated UFC lightweight and "The Ultimate Fighter 8" winner Efrain Escudero (11-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) took an unfortunately familiar turn just one month ago.

Similar to "TUF 7" winner Amir Sadollah, injury forced Escudero out of his UFC Fight Night 18 bout with Jeremy Stephens.

With no disrespect toward Sadollah intended, Escudero recently told MMAjunkie.com Radio (www.mmajunkie.com/radio) that he's out to prove his career is heading down a different path.

"I think that I have to come in and give the fans what they were hoping to see," Escudero said. "I do apologize to Amir Sadollah on all my interviews that I gave, but he hasn't fought since 'The Ultimate Fighter,' and I do not want to be that person.

"I don't want people to believe that everyone that wins 'The Ultimate Fighter' is just going to wait two years then fight."

Escudero said he tried to fight through the rib injury that forced him out of his April 1 bout, but the pain simply made it impossible.

"I got injured on March 9 – my rib injury – and I didn't tell anybody," Escudero said. "I was just like, 'I'm going to rest it. I'm just going to sit back, and I'm still going to go through it.'

"Then my coach found out that I couldn't even punch when he was holding mitts without it hurting. Then my manager found out, and they were like, 'Are you OK? Are you good to fight?' I said I wanted to go through with it, then everybody was like, 'No, you're not fighting.'"

Escudero explained the injury was tied to torn cartilage.

"On the bottom ribs – like the floating ribs – it goes from bone, which is your rib, and it connects to cartilage, which goes into your sternum," Escudero said. "Well, where it connects it was half-torn. It got to the point where I couldn't even throw a punch without it hurting. It kind of sucked, but I had to pull out. I apologized to Jeremy, but things happen."

Escudero said he actually called Stephens himself to break the unfortunate news, and "Lil' Heathen" was understanding of the change.

With proper time to heal, Esudero now says he's now healthy.

"I'm actually 100 percent," Esudero said. "I've been putting in the time. I tested it two-and-a-half-weeks ago. I went down and did some full MMA sparring over at [Arizona Combat Sports] with a couple guys. I've been testing it out."

Escudero will need to be healthy if he hopes to keep his undefeated record in tact. Escudero recently revealed that he will face submission ace Cole Miller (15-3 MMA, 4-1 UFC) at UFC 103.

"[Miller] is a well-rounded guy," Escudero said. "He's a [solid] opponent. He has great jiu-jitsu.

"I think that I can roll around with his jiu-jitsu. I roll with black belts everyday. (But) I'm not taking anything away from him."

While Miller's tall frame creates problems for many lightweights, Escudero is unconcerned.

"[Miller] is a well-rounded guy and he's very skilled," Escudero said. "I think that I'm going to have to let my hands go. He's really tall. He's 6-foot-1 with a 72-inch reach. (But) he doesn't have any reach advantage on me. He's very tall, but he doesn't have a reach advantage.

"I'm looking forward to this fight. I think it's going to be a straight-up brawl. I think he's going to go for submissions, and I'm going to try to knock him out and try to submit him as well."

Escudero isn't positive where UFC 103 will take place, but he did say he has heard the same rumors of a U.K. venue that are currently circulating in several media outlets.

While Miller is the current target in Escudero's sites, the "TUF" winner said it's overall respect that is his main goal.

"I've put aside me winning 'The Ultimate Fighter' already," Escudero said. "That's in the past. Now I have to prove that I'm for real.

"Everybody might say, 'Oh, he had the flu,' or, 'You got lucky,' or, 'You did this.' I want to prove to everybody that, 'You know what? I am not no scrub.'

"I put in my time. I'm well dedicated, and I'm willing to fight anyone out there. I'll prove it."