MMA News Thread

[Shogun Locc]

Additional clothing sponsors added to UFC’s banned list

A UFC fighter’s ability to obtain sponsorship from clothing apparel sponsors could take on a new degree of difficulty for upcoming fight cards, FiveOuncesOfPain.com has learned.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com was contacted by a manager on Wednesday night who spoke on the condition of anonymity and stated that he recently received an e-mail indicating that additional clothing sponsors have been added to the UFC’s list of banned companies.

Five Ounces of Pain was able to obtain an e-mail distributed by the UFC’s legal department that now lists Dethrone, One More Round, and Rolling Stone as a list of sponsors that will not be approved for UFC 100 on July 11. Unacceptable sponsors for UFC 100 also online Poker sponsors Full Tilt Poker, Ultimate Bet, and Party Poker.

Clothing sponsors that are approved for UFC 100 include Cage Fighter, MMA Authentic, Familia Gladitoria and MMA Elite. The source added that several clothing sponsors have indicated that they were contacted recently by the UFC and informed that in order to have the ability to sponsor a UFC fighter during a UFC-promoted event that they would have to pay a $100,000 fee to the UFC for the right to sponsor a fighter.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com contacted several other managers and agents who represent UFC fighters and they reaffirmed every detail brought forth by the original source.

Based on the details provided, certain clothing companies may have to pay the UFC an unofficial licensing fee to have the ability to utilize the UFC’s telecasts to market their product. All sources contacted for this article expressed a great deal of concern regarding their ability to generate income for their fighters.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com attempted to contact the UFC but messages left on voicemail as well as e-mail were not immediately returned.

 

[Shogun Locc]

Hermes Franca vs. Tyson Griffin targeted for September's UFC 103 in Dallas

A lightweight bout between Hermes Franca (19-7 MMA, 6-4 UFC) and Tyson Griffin (13-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) will take place in September at UFC 103.

Sources close to the fighters told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) that bout agreements have not been signed but both competitors have verbally agreed to the fight.

The Sept. 19 fight will take place on the main card of the event, which airs live on pay-per-view from the American Airlines Center in Dallas.

Franca returns to action for the first time since a torn ACL forced him out of a February UFC Fight Night 17 bout with Joe Lauzon. Prior to the fight, he scored a unanimous-decision win over Marcus Aurelio to rebound from back-to-back losses to Sean Sherk and Frankie Edgar (the only two opponents Griffin has ever lost to).

Prior to the losses, Franca had posted eight consecutive victories, which included wins over Toby Imada (who went to become Bellator's lightweight tournament runner-up), Jamie Varner (who later became WEC's lightweight champion), Nate Diaz (to defend the WEC lightweight title) and Spencer Fisher (who's 4-1 since the loss).

Griffin, meanwhile, enters the fight with five wins in his past six fights (all in the UFC) and a unanimous-decision win over Rafael dos Anjos in his most recent bout at UFC Fight Night 17. Aside from a decision loss to Sherk in October, Griffin is undefeated over the past two years. Even in his two losses (to Edgar and Sherk), Griffin has excelled, winning five Fight of the Night bonuses and one Submission of the Night award in just eight career UFC fights.

As MMAjunkie.com first reported earlier this month, bout agreement were distributed so that UFC 103 will also feature Josh Koscheck vs. Frank Trigg in a featured welterweight bout. However, a main event for the show will likely be announced in the next few weeks.

 

[Shogun Locc]

Twelve drug tests from The Ultimate Fighter 9 Finale come back clean

Twelve UFC fighters who were tapped for drug testing at The Ultimate Fighter 9 Finale on June 20 all tested negative.

Nevada State Athletic Commission executive director Keith Kizer today emailed the results to MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com).

Those testing negative were main-event fighters Diego Sanchez and Clay Guida, as well as DaMarques Johnson, James Wilks, Ross Pearson, Andre Winner, Chris Lytle, Joe Stevenson, Brad Blackburn, Nick Osipczak, Melvin Guillard and Tomasz Drwal.

All fighters except Guida, Johnson and Winner were victorious at the Spike TV-televised event.

The Ultimate Fighter 9 Finale took place at The Pearl at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas.

The above fighters were tested for drugs of abuse (such as marijuana and cocaine), as well as anabolic steroids and other performance-enhancers.

 

[Shogun Locc]

Lightweights Marcus Hicks and Shane Roller meet at WEC 42 in August

Marcus "The Wrecking Ball" Hicks (8-2 MMA, 3-2 WEC) will look to snap a two-fight losing streak when he meets fellow WEC lightweight Shane Roller (5-2 MMA, 2-1 WEC) in August at WEC 42.

A source close to the negotiations today told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) bout agreements have been signed and that an official announcement could be made shortly.

The fight is expected to be the featured bout on the preliminary card for WEC 42, which takes place Aug. 9 at The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas.

The night's main card, including a bout between WEC bantamweight champion Miguel Torres and Brian Bowles, airs on Versus.

Hicks quickly entered the lightweight title picture with submission wins (all via guillotine choke) over Sergio Gomez, Scott McAfee and Ed Ratcliff in his first three WEC bouts. He then earned his title shot with champ Jamie Varner but suffered a first-round TKO loss at the August 2008 event.

Hicks looked to rebound in March at WEC 39 but suffered a close majority-decision loss to former champ Rob McCullough.

Now, Hicks faces another stern test in Roller, a four-time high school state wrestling champion and three-time All-American wrestler at Oklahoma State University. Roller won his first two WEC fights via guillotine choke (over Todd Moore and the then-undefeated Mike Budnik) before suffering an April WEC 40 first-round TKO loss to fast-rising contender Ben Henderson.

The latest WEC 42 card now includes:

MAIN CARD

* Champ Miguel Torres vs. Brian Bowles (for WEC bantamweight title)
* Jeff Curran vs. Takeya Mizugaki
* Joseph Benavidez vs. Dominick Cruz
* Leonard Garcia vs. Jameel Massouh

PRELIMINARY CARD

* Marcus Hicks and Shane Roller
* Phil Cardella vs. Ed Ratcliff
* Fredson Paixao vs. Cole Province
* Danny Castillo vs. Ricardo Lamas

 

[Shogun Locc]

Interim WEC lightweight title fight between Donald Cerrone and Ben Henderson in the works

With World Extreme Cagefighting lightweight champion Jamie Varner having revealed on his official Twitter account yesterday that he’s sustained another setback in his recovery from a broken hand, Yahoo! Sports has reported that WEC officials are considering introducing an interim lightweight title.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com has learned from sources that the WEC has engaged in preliminary talks to make a match between number one contender Donald Cerrone and up-and-coming prospect Benson Henderson with an interim 155 pound title at take.

The WEC has yet to confirm the potential matchup and an exact date has not been determined as of yet.

Cerrone, 10-1, has been patiently awaiting a rematch with Varner since losing a technical split decision on Jan. 25 at 3:10 of round 5. The tightly contested bout was shortened after an illegal foul brought a premature conclusion to the bout and sent the outcome to the hands of the judges before the round had completed.

Looking to stay active, Cerrone took a fight vs. James Krause at WEC 41 earlier this month and submitted Krause with a rear naked choke at 4:38 of round 1.

Meanwhile, Henderson improved to 9-1 overall and 2-0 in the WEC following April’s first round TKO over former NCAA All-American Shane Roller at WEC 40. Henderson finished the talented prospect with punches at just 1:41 following the opening bell. The win proceeded his impressive WEC debut at WEC 38 in January that ended in victory for Henderson following a guillotine choke submission of Anthony Njokuani at 0:42 of round 2.

 

[Shogun Locc]

Frank Lester released from his UFC contract

It appears that welterweight Frank Lester has run out of chances to land a spot on the roster of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Sources informed FiveOuncesOfPain.com late Wednesday night that the Team Quest product received his formal release from the UFC shortly after losing via first round submission to Nick Osipczak during this past Saturday’s live finale for the ninth season of The Ultimate Fighter.

Lester qualified for TUF 9 as a member of Dan Henderson’s U.S. team after recording a first round TKO against Kiel Reid. However, he was eliminated from the competition in episode six after being submitted by James Wilks, the show’s eventual welterweight winner, following an armbar at 3:06 of round 2.

He would be given a second chance to advance in the competition after UFC President Dana White ruled that Jason Pierce would not be allowed to continue in the competition. Facing Dave Faulkner from the Team UK, Lester fought well and forced a third and final round. Lester advanced to the next stage of the competition after Faulkner was too tired to compete in the “sudden victory” portion of the fight.

Lester would once again face Wilks in the semifinals. For the second fight in a row, Lester forced a fight to go to “sudden victory” but he would not be as fortunate as he was against Faulkner after getting TKO’d by Wilks due to knees.

 

[Shogun Locc]

Brock Lesnar believes he has “room for improvement”

Speaking exclusively to Fighters Only magazine, UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar comments on his will to improve despite having beaten two former title holders in his ascension to title status.

With only four mixed martial arts bouts under his belt Lesnar has arguably become one of the most successful crossover athletes in modern Mixed Martial Arts. In the five-page feature he comments on his current status:

“I’m keeping everything in perspective and keeping it real. Even though I’ve got the belt I can still become a better fighter…I’m trying to evolve as a fighter every day…I think I have room for improvement, once you think you don’t the walls to the room come tumbling down.”

Some fans have been critical of the opportunities afforded Lesnar with such a short tenure in the sport but he is accepting of this commenting:

“I can understand some fans’ opinions, but I’ve been proving myself my whole life…You don’t just gain respect overnight, you’ve got to work for it.”

Lesnar will face off against interim Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir at UFC 100 on 11th July to decide the undisputed Champion.

Issue 5 of Fighters Only is available in stores now also featuring a special 8 page feature on ‘100 things you didn’t know about the UFC’ highlighting some of the more unusual, little known and interesting facts about the world’s most successful Mixed Martial Arts promotion.

Issue 5 of Fighters Only available in the US from Barnes and Noble, Borders, 7-Eleven, Walden Books, Hastings, Books-A-Million and in Canada from Macs, Chapters many more. For more information visit:

www.fightersonlymag.com

 

[Shogun Locc]

Silva training with the heavyweights for Keith

After 13 victories in the career, being ten by knockout, Thiago Silva was defeated for the first time in the MMA career, but is getting prepared to return to the UFC octagon, on August 29 (UFC 102). For the bout against Keith Jardine, the athlete of the American Top Team is training with the heavyweights of the team.

"I'm doing my training here in the ATT with the heavyweights. I'm doing my training with (Antônio Silva) Bigfoot, Todd (Duffee) and everybody here. The training is strong as always, I'm training a lot. Now I’m with the help of Katel Kubis, who came here and is giving me a Muay Thai training", says the fighter, commenting about the last fight of his opponent, against Quinton "Rampage" Jackson. "I thought it was very good. Both have a very high level, but I'm prepared and well trained. I know his pros and cons, I'm studying with my coaches and you will see in time, the strategy is always a surprise".

 

[Shogun Locc]

Bitetti and Nogueira’s training for Couture

Two times open class world champion of Jiu-Jitsu, Amaury Bitetti is excited for the next fight of Rodrigo "Minotauro" in the UFC. Responsible for the ground trainings of the former champion, Bitetti talked with TATAME about the preparation of the heavyweight for the fight against Randy Couture, in UFC 102.

"I arrived here in the United States now and Minotauro called me saying that will train in the mountains (Colorado), then he’ll returns to California, in Black House. The expectation is big, he is excited, training hard, and has already done all the exams... He is ready", says Amaury, eyeing, also, at the fight between Brock Lesnar and Frank Mir, on August 11 (UFC 100).

"This combat will be a tough fight to Frank Mir, because Lesnar developed a lot, is training with (Rodrigo) Comprido and other good coaches, and has a strong gripping. It will be a great fight", analyzes the black belt, seeing no favoritism to either side. "Mir isn’t fool... He can catch some submission, but, if he tries to strike, Lesnar knocks him out".

 

[Shogun Locc]

Ricardo Arona Interview

One of the greatest representatives of the Brazilian MMA, Ricardo Arona made his debut in the professional rings in 2000, but never fought in Brazil. Nine years later, Arona will do, on Bitetti Combat 4, his first fight "at home", and is excited for the challenge at returning to the rings. "I'm training every day, dedicated, concerned about the return... I’m just waiting for Amaury Bitetti to give me the details, present the opponent", said the fighter. "It’s very exciting to fight for our public for the first time... It’s a great honor to represent the country in Brazil, which is something I didn’t do yet". In an exclusive interview, which you check tomorrow at TATAME.com, the ex-fighter of Pride talked about the trainings and the possibility to prepare for the fight at Rodrigo Minotauro’s team, commented Wanderlei Silva’s loss and more.

How are the trainings?
I'm training every day, dedicated, concerned that everything goes well in the return to the rings.

Is it already confirmed that you’re fighting at Bitetti Combat?

Everything is right, I’m just waiting for Amaury Bitetti to give me the details, present the opponent. I’m waiting for the event, which has everything to be a great event at Rio de Janeiro.

How is the expectation to do your first MMA fight in Brazil?
The last time I fought here was in Abu Dhabi (ADCC), against Mark Kerr. Since then, I never fought in Brazil, then it is one more reason to be a great event, with the participation of athletes who doesn’t fight for a long time in Brazil. I’m worried about my presentation, so that everything goes well, and that people have enough respect to the event and understand that it is very important to everyone be polite and respect the rules, both the public and the fighters, for the event to be success and have more editions. I’m very exciting to fight for our public for the first time, in my case, and it is a great honor to represent the country in Brazil, which is something I didn’t do yet.

Where are you training? At home, with Minotauro or at BTT?
I’m training at home and I’m receiving important people to train with me, good coaches. I also have free access to train at the Minotauro Team, with Minotauro. I was there twice this month. We are united to train together, the doors are open between us, we have direct links in the training.

And the ADCC? How is the expectation? Are you really going to fight?
It’s confirmed, it will be at June 25th, in Spain, and, for now, has no super fight. There was the possibility that I would make a super fight, but, for now, it will be jus category (98kg).

They said that the super fight will be between Roger Gracie and Drysdale. Will you fight weight and open class?
I pretend to fight at 98kg division and open class too, for sure.

The Bitetti Combat will be on September 12 and the ADCC on 25th. How is your training for this? In what are you focusing?
Actually, I'm giving focus on the whole part, even Boxing, as Wrestling and Submission, but looking much the Submission, so that I can also define the MMA fight on the ground, if possible, and then go straight to the ADCC. I'm training everything, as has to be, but when pass to the MMA, I’ll devote more to the Submission in the last days that I’ll have.

What about the risk of injuries? How are you getting prepared to prevent the injuries that can happen in MMA?
I'm getting prepared and strengthening me enough so that I won’t get injured, but it’s very difficult in MMA. What I’ll do is try to make a smart fight, so that I can win and try to influence myself so that I won’t get hurt in this fight, which is most important. Of course that in the MMA we take these risks, but I would only be out of ADCC if I have a very serious injury.

How are you seeing this return of MMA to, perhaps, take you back to the international market?
For me, it’s a great opportunity to show that I'm back well, conditioned, as I always did great fights. Be able to return and get my place of duty, which is among the best in the world, or in the UFC or fighting at the Dream, in Japan, or the Affiction. Finally, be at the top events of the world.

Talking about UFC, how do you see this next fight of Rodrigo against Randy Couture?
Everyone that knows Rodrigo, knows the great warrior he is. He didn’t present very well in the fight against Frank Mir, but, definitely, that was a moment, he overcame many difficult moments. I think he must be extremely strategist, making a game in which Randy Couture can’t find himself. What I would suggest for him is this, strategy, which is very important.

And the return of Paulo Filho, Who will have a tough opponent ahead, Melvin Manhoef. How do you think this fight will be, of one of the best of Jiu-Jitsu against a dangerous striker?
As is well-defined, one is very good in Jiu-Jitsu and the other very good in striking. I hope that Paulão finds the right time of putting Melvin down and give him that pressure, which we already know he is capable of doing, because Melvin has already showed himself vulnerable in the ground. I hope Paulão finds himself in the fight and in the time, I trust him very much, who is specialist in fall. I wish that he can put Melvin down and make his game, which is what I hope.

The next title fight at 205 division in the UFC will be between the Brazilians Shogun, who you’ve already faced, and Lyoto. How do you think this fight will be?

It will be a very even fight, I think it’s difficult to say the way that it will take, even because both are aware of ground and standing. I think it will be a very technical fight and very studied. I won’t say who will be the winner, because both have potential for this, but, definitely, it will be a great fight.

Were you surprised with the way that Shogun and Lyoto won their last fights, against Liddell and Rashad?
I thought Lyoto would have more difficult to find himself standing, but he kept showing an excellent distance, calm and tranquility very important for a fighter. I thought he would lead the fight to the ground, because he has a good ground to work, but he defined standing and surprised me. He is much trained and is a surprise when people think the guy isn’t ready for it, but Lyoto was very prepared standing and on the ground, so it was a deserved victory. As for the other fight, I think it was a matter of time. Liddell fight for a long time, Shogun came after studying these fighters, has a very accurate technique standing, then managed to find himself inside the game of Chuck Liddell who, in my opinion, is a highly anticipated game, which makes his fight very vulnerable. So, I think Shogun knew well how to enjoy this.

Many people, after Shogun’s victory, said that Liddell should retire. Do you agree with this?
That goes from the fighter. A champion fighter shouldn’t retire after a defeat. A champion fighter has to retire after a great victory.

What’s your opinion about the change of category of Wanderlei, who made the “debut” against Rich Franklin?

Look, to be honest I haven’t seen the fight yet. But I believe that Wanderlei has felt a little this drop in weight, in my opinion, because it’s very difficult for a fighter to go down much in weight and fit in another category, where everyone is already adapted, and a different rhythm. I think Wanderlei will present well when he adjust better in the weight. Now was a question of adaptation, it’s different to go down in weight, it’s another rhythm, another speed, I think he will fit in the category and then present better.

It was even cogitated a fight between him and Anderson, who walked exchanging barbs. How do you think it would be a fight between both?
First, one knows the game of the other like the back of the hand. I think this fight would be much striking standing. Wanderlei has the virtue of having a strong punch and a violent attack, different than Anderson’s game, which is extremely technical. In this fight, I think it’s difficult to say the result, because Wanderlei can define the fight with one movement, as he did several times. It’s a difficult fight to say who would be the champion, because one knows the other very well.

 

[Shogun Locc]

Kazuo Misaki Sentenced Guilty! What About August 2nd?

SENGOKU fighter Kazuo Misaki was sentenced guilty in Tokyo for interference with a public servant in the execution of his or her duties on June 25th.

On the afternoon of March 19th Misaki was found talking on his cellphone while driving. The police officer demanded Misaki to stop but Misaki suddenly accelerated and escaped (It doesn’t say if he stopped and then accelerated or how exactly it happened). During that escape, he knocked into the left door mirror of the police car.

He was arrested in May and was sentenced guilty on June 25th after admitting to the accusations. It seems that he was sentenced to one year of penal servitude and three years of probation.

I guess now we know why he didn’t show up at Ishii’s outdoor signing event. These things are never good for a sport such as MMA where MMA fighters in Japan still don’t have as good of images as people might believe.

 

[naner12]

^~~ LMAO.

So much for his gay little lecturing to Akiyama in front of everyone.

 

[Shogun Locc]

^^^^^He still whooped akiyama"s ass even thought they later changed it to a NC

 

[Shogun Locc]

Still disappointed by UFC 99 loss to Hardy, Davis seeks changes in MMA judging

Nearly two weeks after his UFC 99 split-decision loss to Dan Hardy, UFC welterweight Marcus Davis (16-5 MMA, 8-3 UFC) still believes the win was awarded to the wrong fighter.

But the 36-year-old realizes there's no sense in complaining over what could have been, and he's hoping for a chance to revisit the decision as soon as possible.

In the meantime, Davis told MMAjunkie.com Radio (www.mmajunkie.com/radio) he's hoping the criteria by which judges around the world determine winners and losers can be given a much-needed update and increased clarification.

"A lot of the [judges] just kind of at the very end (of a round) remember the last 10 seconds or 15 seconds or whatever, and that's how they judge it," Davis said. "It should be maybe an easy breakdown for them in front of them. Maybe a card that has a breakdown of, I don't know if you want to do breaking a five-minute round up in to different quarters or by minute or whatever, but some way to easily categorize those things that they're looking at: cage generalship, grappling, takedowns, strikes."

Davis believes additional clarification is needed on the importance of those items in relation to their effectiveness in the outcome of the bout.

"We've got to figure out what do you score more," Davis said. "Do you score 'one takedown is greater than however many strikes,' or should a takedown even be considered for full points or full benefit if somebody takes somebody down and they don't so anything with it.

"If you take somebody down and automatically they stand up, or they take them down and they don't really do anything, they don't ground-and-pound, what kind of credit do you do for that?"

Davis cited a now-infamous September 2007 bout between "The Ultimate Fighter 3" teammates Michael Bisping and Matt Hamill in which "The Count" earned a controversial win over "The Hammer" as a perfect example of why the changes are needed.

"[Clarification on the importance of takedowns] would give some light to when Bisping fought Matt Hamill," Davis said. "Matt Hamill just kept taking Bisping down over and over and over again, but Bisping's argument was, 'But he didn't do anything. Every time he took me down, he let me stand back up.'

"It wasn't a wrestling match. Hamill just kept taking Bisping down, and Bisping kept standing back up. So, I mean it could give more clarity to everything."

Daivs said he believes there were similar issues in the scoring of his fight with Hardy, a fight in which Davis often dominated the action and pace of the bout, but in which "The Outlaw" scored the seemingly heavier blows.

"If you cut that fight up, if you sit down with a stopwatch and you cut that fight up – how much of the fight was each person in control and whatever – it's going to be a landslide for me," Davis said. "You're going to have a full almost-four minutes in the first round of me just on top, me in control. The next two rounds, pretty much the same thing. The beginning of the [round] I'm strong, and then he just ends the last 30 seconds to a minute of those rounds doing well."

Davis also believes the blood trickling from his face freely in the third round further hampered his shot at a win. Known to cut easily, Davis believes it's important for judges to not allow the blood to factor into their decisions.

"If you look at the criteria of the judging, I don't even know if the judges have ever even looked at that," Davis said. "Blood is not on there. On the criteria, it does not say, 'The guy that is bleeding more loses.' It doesn't say that. That's not on there.

"If you're going to judge a fight on damage or blood, I'm going to lose every time because that's what I do – I bleed. That's my thing. There's nothing I can do about that, and if you looked at me [after the fight], I had a black eye and a little scratch on my nose. I don't have some kind of gash open on my nose or anything like that. It's just that I open up on my face and I just bleed like a stuck pig."

Davis doesn't believe the entire system needs to be revamped, as others have at times suggested. Instead, he believes judges need assistance in helping to issue a decision that can easily be backed up with data from the bout.

"By using the set rules, octagon control, scoring for takedowns, scoring for ground control, submission attempts and strikes landed and things like that, they had the numbers," Davis said. "[The UFC] crunched the numbers, and they gave me all the numbers from the fight. As far as the numbers go, I did land more strikes, both on the ground and standing up.

"I obviously got the takedown. On the ground, I had five near submission attempts – going for the foot locks, the ankle locks, the arm-bar and what not. He had none. I passed his guard. I had mount. I had his back at one point. I had side-mount. He never passed my guard. All these different points, when you look at it that way."

Davis hopes his words, along with the complaints of other fighters who feel they've been the victims of poor decisions, can help to develop the process by which all bouts are scored. In the meantime, he just wants another shot at Hardy.

"I'm not going to talk about [the fight], bitch and moan like, 'Oh, I won the fight, I won the fight,'" Davis said. "That's not why I'm even doing the radio shows and talking. I'm talking because I want to do it again. I get a lot of flak from people saying, 'There have been other people that have had fights that were just as close, if not someone who was really robbed even worse, and they didn't get rematches.' Well my point is: other guys have.

"Tito Ortiz and Ken Shamrock has happened multiple times, and none of those fights was even close. There's many times that guys have been able to fight other guys over and over and over again. Now that I've fought Dan Hardy once – and he even said, 'I don't want to win this way' – well I don't want to lose this way. Neither one of us liked the way that this fight ended up. He did say that he would like to do it again. He would like to give me a rematch. That's what I want. I want another crack and make up for some of the poor decisions and stuff that I did make in that fight."

And while "The Irish Hand Grenade" has enjoyed fighting in Europe during his past seven UFC contests, does Davis think he'd have a better chance of coming up on the right side of a decision against the British-born Hardy if the fight took place in the U.S.

"I don't care," Davis said. "If they want to set it up in his backyard, we can do it. It doesn't matter to me."

 

[Shogun Locc]

With champion Mike Brown on brief hiatus, WEC's featherweight title future remains undecided

With WEC featherweight champion Mike Brown's (22-4 MMA, 3-0 WEC) recent victories over top 145-pound contenders Urijah Faber and Leonard Garcia, the division's title picture was opened to several willing contenders.

However, the organization is deep on talent, and several worthy potential adversaries have recently stepped forward.

With two of the top options, Jose Aldo (15-1 MMA, 5-0 WEC) and Wagnney Fabiano (12-1 MMA, 2-0 WEC), hailing from the same Nova Uniao camp, WEC co-founder and general manager Reed Harris recently said the organization has yet to determine who Brown will face next.

"(WEC matchmaker) Sean Shelby has had discussions with [Aldo and Fabiano]," Harris today told the radio show "GoodSports," which today featured MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) lead staff reporter John Morgan as a co-host. "The last I heard is that they don't really want to fight each other. But I haven't heard anything past that as far as who would do what."

Both Aldo and Fabiano have been mentioned in potential drops to the 135-pound division as a way to avoid an inevitable showdown as well as open up the potential for the Nova Uniao camp to hold two of the WEC's titles.

Aldo looked impressive in an eight-second win over Cub Swanson in June, and the 22-year-old has earned five-straight stoppage wins in the WEC in just 12 months.

Meanwhile, Fabiano has earned wins over Fredson Paixao and Akitoshi Tamura since his arrival to the WEC following a 6-0 run in the now-defunct International Fight League. Fabiano's lone career loss was a controversial split-decision to current WEC bantamweight Jeff Curran in a 2006 bout under the APEX Championship Fighting banner.

Harris admitted there are many possibilities for the pair, but the WEC exec said it will be a while before anything is determined.

"We certainly haven't made the Brown fight with anybody yet because it's off in the future," Harris said.

Harris said Brown took a well-deserved vacation after his June 7 win over Faber, and he joked that he wanted his new star to get back to work as quickly as possible.

"Mike Brown just got back from Italy a couple of days ago," Harris said. "He called me and was like, 'Oh, I was at the Colosseum,' I was like, 'Get back in the gym.' He's going to get all soft now."

Immediate attempts by MMAjunkie.com to reach Nova Uniao officials for comment on the immediate futures of both Aldo and Fabiano were unsuccessful.

 

[naner12]

^^^^^He still whooped akiyama"s ass even thought they later changed it to a NC

He won but the fight was pretty even. If Akiyama would've illegally kicked him in the face when he dropped him first maybe he would've won the first. Funny to lecture someone on cheating when you just beat him by doing it and now he goes to jail to be a great role model for the kids!

 

[Shogun Locc]

He won but the fight was pretty even. If Akiyama would've illegally kicked him in the face when he dropped him first maybe he would've won the first. Funny to lecture someone on cheating when you just beat him by doing it and now he goes to jail to be a great role model for the kids!

If Akiyama soccer kicked Misaki I believe it would be the same result as the real result NC. That was stupid on Misakis part for speeding now his fight with nakamura is in jeopardy.

 

[Shogun Locc]

Fight Path: WEC's Fredson Paixao literally worked his way from the floors up

As a boy in a poor Brazilian town in the heart of the Amazon, Fredson Paixao loved kung fu.

Jiu jitsu, of course, is considered by many the martial art of choice in his native country. But Paixao loved the aerial displays of Bruce Lee movies, dreaming of making such flying moves.

But, with a factory-working mother and three siblings, Paixao also had to find a way to earn some money. That need led him to a local dojo, where he swept the floors for the teacher he met through friends. As a tradeoff, the teacher gave him free jiu-jitsu lessons.

Long since swayed, Paixao, 30, has become one of the most well-known jiu-jitsu artists in the world and a budding WEC competitor. Even though he lost his WEC debut by decision to Wagnney Fabiano in April, many are excited by Paixao's skill in jiu jitsu, and his motivation is nearly unmatched after his difficult youth, albeit as part of a close family.

"After I learned jiu jitsu, I lost interest in everything else," Paixao told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) through close friend and interpreter Carlos Sanchez.

In a sport filled with new-age training techniques, Paixao is a link to its roots, where many levels of championships from local to regional to national determine whether a fighter gains the financial support of private citizens or companies and pulls himself out of one of the country's many poor villages.

"Jiu jitsu is usually for the people who have money," Sanchez said. "If you don't have someone paying for your training, it costs $75 a month, and not a lot of people have that."

Coming to America

Starting relatively late in jiu jitsu at age 16, Paixao quickly learned he was a skilled student. Understanding that skill, his attention turned to winning competitions, earning those sponsorships and, perhaps, traveling to fight in the United States.

He started in local shows, learning that the sport allowed him to compete against opponents who were sometimes much bigger. A businessman noticed Paixao as he won more competitions and soon became a sponsor, moving Paixao into a more respected level of the sport.

The dream remained with the U.S.

"They all want to come here," Sanchez said. "Who wouldn't want to come here?"

About two and a half years ago, Sanchez met Paixao through a friend, a female jiu-jitsu black belt, and he invited Paixao to come to his Las Vegas home.

"I thought, 'Let's see how good this guy is,'" Sanchez said.

He found out soon enough. Once back at Sanchez' house, the pair rolled in the garage. Paixao, admittedly, was not a fearsome character. No muscles, just a head and torso and two skinny legs.

"He manhandled me," Sanchez said with a laugh.

From there, Sanchez knew he had to keep Paixao in the U.S. Paixao moved in the Las Vegas home, and Sanchez taught him more about training, both with weights and proper diet.

Together, they also run an academy in Las Vegas, the International MMA Fight Club. So, with his jiu-jitsu skills, Paixao had earned his ticket to the U.S., a place to stay and a friend to help guide him.

Now he needed some serious fighting opportunities.

Growing in America

Paixao's first recoded professional fight came in May 2004, when he earned his first win at Jungle Fight 2. Still a veteran of the local, regional and national competitions in Brazil, Paixao felt confident heading into his second fight, an August 2004 duel against (future PRIDE and WEC fighter) Yoshiro Maeda.

It was a defining fight for Paixao, both in understanding his stamina and his ability to bounce back after a defeat.

The fight went the full three rounds, and Maeda won by unanimous decision. But, the situation surrounding the fight was nearly as perilous as the action inside the cage.

"He had to lose 15 pounds in the three hours before the fight," Sanchez said. "It was his second fight. And Maeda basically kicked the [crap] out of him. He really survived that fight, and it was the toughest one he's had. He learned he's human."

After that loss, Paixao won five straight, often showcasing his impressive and improving jiu jitsu. At Jungle Fight 6, in April 2006, he lost another unanimous decision, this time to Marcos Galvao.

For his 11th fight, Paixao made the move to the WEC, and he once again fought the entire three rounds, this time against Fabiano.

As Paixao continues to work on his training and his technique with Sanchez, he also has dreams of becoming a jiu-jitsu teacher, of returning the kindness the Brazilian teacher showed to him as he was sweeping the floors.

"He's the real deal, not like a lot of people with jiu jitsu," Sanchez said. "Here, you have 46 people in a class and all they want to do is get a belt. That's not how he learned, and that's not what he teaches.

"I think if he applies himself, he can take a belt from anybody."

 

[Shogun Locc]

DREAM 11: Andrews Nakahara vs Zelg Galesic in the works for Sept. 23

Karate stylist Andrews Nakahara is set to do battle with Croatian sensation Zelg Galesic in a middleweight showdown at DREAM 11 on September 23 from the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, according to Tatame.com.

The pair were originally penciled in to clash at DREAM 8 this past April, however Galesic fell ill and was admitted to the hospital which forced him to pull out of the fight just two weeks before it was set to go down.

Japanese Judoka Shungo Oyama stepped in to replace Galesic on short notice, only to be obliterated by Nakahara in the stand-up after some vicious strikes left him defenseless just two minutes into the bout.

Galesic’s last outing was a disappointing submission loss to Brazilian jiu-jitsu wizard Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza at DREAM 6 last September, which saw him getting caught in an armbar just 90 seconds into the opening frame.

Both of the fighters prefer the stand-up, which could make for exciting viewing should a striking war go down. Galesic doesn’t boast the finest grappling chops, but he still may want to take advantage of Nakahara’s lackluster ground game. We’ll have to wait till September to see what actually transpires.

Also slated for the card is a clash to take care of some unfinished business between the charismatic Jason “Mayhem” Miller and grappling phenom Ronaldo Souza.

The bout will once again be contested for the vacant DREAM middleweight title because the former holder, Gegard Mousasi, relinquished the strap to prepare for a move up to light heavyweight.

This will be the third encounter between the bitter rivals “Jacare” and “Mayhem” — the pair first met during the promotion’s middleweight grand prix quarterfinals at DREAM 4 in June 2008. The bout would go the distance and the conclusion would see Souza garner a unanimous decision victory.

The second outing at last month’s DREAM 9 was halted early in the first round because of an errant blow from Miller to a downed Souza. The strike carved a deep laceration to Souza’s head, which forced ringside officials to call off the match prematurely because of its severity.

The fight was ruled a no contest.

The outcome brought their rivalry to new heights, as well as left the DREAM middleweight title vacant. It now appears that we’ll have to wait until September to get a more decisive outcome and a new champion.

The semifinal bouts for DREAM’s open weight tournament, which has been dubbed the “Super Hulk” tournament, are also set to go down in September.

First up will be Japanese fan favorite Ikuhisa Minowa, who has fought virtually every big name overseas under the sun (albeit with inconsistent results). He has the daunting task of facing off against 7’2” gargantuan, Hong Man Choi.

Minowa earned his spot by knocking off the modern day Goliath, Bob Sapp, which he did by locking in an achilles lock that forced “The Beast” to tap at DREAM 9. He will face a similar assignment against Choi — who wailed on baseball’s steroid stool pigeon Jose “Can”seco for his advancement in the grand prix … at an even greater size disadvantage.

On the other side of the bracket, Gegard Mousasi, who vacated his DREAM middleweight title recently because he desired a move to light heavyweight, will face off against the dangerous Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou.

Mousasi made short work of “Super Samoan” Mark Hunt in his quarterfinal bout, taking his much larger counterpart to the mat quickly where he would go to work for a kimura straight away, eventually getting it and forcing Hunt to tap.

While in his preliminary bout, Sokoudjou got back to his winning ways by trouncing 6’ 11”, 330-pound Jan “The Giant” Nortje. Despite being considerably outsized, “The African Assassin” was able to take “The Giant” down and pound on him furiously, which forced the referee to intervene and waive off the action.

The “Super Hulk” tournament finalists will then do battle on New Years Eve at the annual Dynamite!! event.

DREAM 11 is also expected to feature the semifinal bouts of the featherweight grand prix. Though the pairings are still to be announced, it will feature fan favorite and underdog Hideo Tokoro, jiu-jitsu ace Bibiano Fernandes, hard-hitting slugger Hiroyuki Takaya and also wrestling stud Joe Warren, who shocked the World recently by defeating featherweight superstar Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto.

Here is the current line-up for DREAM 11:

DREAM middleweight title:
Jason Miller (22-6) vs. Ronaldo Souza (10-2)

Featherweight grand prix participants:
Joe Warren (2-0)
Hideo Tokoro (22-16-1)
Bibiano Fernandes (5-2)
Hiroyuki Takaya (11-6-1)

“Super Hulk” open weight grand prix semifinals:
Hong Man-Choi (2-2) vs. Ikuhisa Minowa (42-30-8)
Gegard Mousasi (25-2-1) vs. Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou (6-4)

Non-tournament bout:
Zelg Galesic (9-4) vs. Andrews Nakahara (2-1)

 

[B-Buzz]

Hell ya that fight's gonna be sweet, Nakahara reminds me a lot of Machida standup-wise. If they get some decent reserve matches that should end up being a pretty nice card.