MMA News Thread

[Shogun Locc]

UFC'S BRAD BLACKBURN OUT UNTIL 2010

One fighter who has made the most of his UFC opportunity over the last year is former IFL welterweight “Bad” Brad Blackburn.

Since making his debut for the UFC this past December, he has won all three of his fights for the promotion, turning in gritty, solid performances against James Giboo, Ryo Chonan, and Edgar Garcia.

It is his success that makes the recent news that he will be out for the remainder of the year that much more disappointing.

As Blackburn confirmed to MMAWeekly.com, “The doctors said when they went in to fix my AC (acromioclavicular) joint that I had a nice long tear in my labrum (shoulder).

“They had to fix both of those and my estimated time for recovery is nine months.”

Early in Blackburn’s fight with Edgar Garcia at the Ultimate Fighter 9 Finale in June, Garcia slammed him, causing the injury, and turning Blackburn into a one-armed fighter the remainder of the bout.

Since the fight, concern had risen in regards to the extent of the injury when it became apparent that Blackburn could not reach across his body with his injured shoulder, prompting doctors to want to check his labrum in addition to his AC joint.

While the news is upsetting, Blackburn remains in good spirits and plans to use his positive state of mind to motivate him towards a faster recovery.

“My personal goal is (to be fully recovered in) six months,” stated Blackburn. “If I go by what the doctors say then I wouldn’t be able to fight for a year, and there’s no way that’s happening.

“I’m going to do everything I can do to get better. If all I can do is kick, then I’ll kick a bag every day. If I can ride a bike or jog, I’ll do that. When I can drill submissions, I’ll be drilling submissions. I’m going to do as much as I can with the situation I’m in.”

Further motivating Blackburn towards a sooner than anticipated return is his desire to keep up with the constantly evolving fight scene.

“Everybody’s getting better all the time, so if I’m not improving, I’m falling behind,” he commented. “If I’m not doing something, it will mess with my head, making me think everyone’s getting better and I’m not.”

His agent, Ken Pavia, has spoken to the UFC about the extent of Blackburn’s injury, and all signs point to the promotion wanting him to return to the company as soon as he is healthy.

With that said, Blackburn is focused on proving the doctors wrong by getting back into the Octagon sooner than anticipated.

“I want to thank all the fans for their support and giving me positive feedback on my MySpace and Facebook,” he said. “I’ll definitely be back, and there’s no way it’s going to take me nine months.”

 

[Shogun Locc]

Overeem Comments On Hand Injury and Future

Press release from Alistair Overeem

My preparations for my fight in Strikeforce August 15th against Fabricio Werdum were not going as planned.

As many people know there was an incident, were I injured my hand just before I should have fought in the June Strikeforce event! Therefore I was advised to take some rest and this was not easy for me.

When I signed the deal with Strikeforce, I was happy and motivated and this motivation drove me to pick up my training too soon after my hand injury, I thought there may be a chance to still fight in the June Strikeforce event. Now I have to pay the price for that decision and am not able to fight August 15th. This is a decision that has not been easy to make, I am a professional and I want to fight for my living, honour and because I love it!

In 2008 I felt really strong in the heavyweight division and I feel I have brought my fighting to a higher level!

I know I can continue to develop my skills and become a better fighter!

I feel very disappointed that I can not work towards this goal yet because of an injury!

First I want to get my level back from my "demolition period of 2008." This will take a few months, I hope to be ready at the end of September, or the beginning of October, then we can see a vicious and hungry Alistair Overeem, more aggressive then ever!

For sure I will fight in October, maybe in Dream or Strikeforce. I definitely do not want to miss fighting for Golden Glory's 10 year anniversary on October 17th at the PTA Hallen in Amsterdam.

I do not really care against who or where I fight, but I want to be fit and ready!

When I am ready I am more than willing to fight Werdrum for the heavyweight title in Strikeforce!

Sincerely Alistair Overeem

 

[Shogun Locc]

K-1 World MAX 2009 semifinal bouts confirmed for Oct. 26

Fighting and Entertainment Group (FEG) has officially announced the pairings for the semifinals of its K-1 World MAX 2009 (154 lbs) tournament, which are scheduled to take place from the Yokohama Arena in Yokohama, Japan, on Oct. 26.

K-1 MAX Japan Tournament runner-up Yuya Yamamoto will face off against Italian bruiser Giorgio Petrosyan, who managed to outscore the first ever K-1 MAX champion Albert Kraus on the judges scorecards to claim victory in his preliminary bout at K-1 World MAX Final 8.

On the other side of the brackets will be a contest between a pair of former two-time K-1 World MAX Champions, Dutch blitzkrieg Andy Souwer (2005 and 2007 winner), taking on Muay Thai sensation Buakaw Por. Pramuk (2004 and 2006 winner), in what will be the third showdown between the two.

The pair have faced off twice before and are currently one apiece in the rivalry with Souwer winning a decision at the 2005 K-1 MAX Final and Buakaw exacting revenge with a vicious knockout in the 2006 K-1 MAX Final.

Now they will duke it out once more for the upper hand in the rivalry scorecards and also to reach this years tournament final and a chance to win it for a record third time; however, Yamamoto or Petrosyan may have something else to say about that.

The winners of the semifinal bouts will then be given time to rest and will meet later in the same evening in the main event of the show.

The winner of the K-1 MAX World 2009 Final is expected to get the honor of taking on K-1 legend Masato, on new years eve at the annual “Dynamite!!” event, in what will be Masato’s retirement match.

In addition, after both being victorious in their bouts at K-1 World MAX Final 8 this July, Yoshihiro Sato and Yasuhiro Kido will battle it out in a tournament reserve bout.

Here is the current line-up for K-1 World MAX 2009 Final:

K-1 World MAX 2009 Semifinals:
Giorgio Petrosyan (2-0) vs. Yuya Yamamoto (7-5)
Andy Souwer (19-3) vs. Buakaw Por. Pramuk (25-4)

K-1 World MAX 2009 Final:
Giorgio Petrosyan (2-0) or Yuya Yamamoto (7-5) vs. Andy Souwer (19-3) or Buakaw Por. Pramuk (25-4)

K-1 World MAX 2009 reserve bout:
Yoshihiro Sato (14-9) vs. Yasuhiro Kido (9-4)

 

[Shogun Locc]

Gegard Mousasi: ‘It’s all politics and I can do nothing but wait’

Disappointed would be an understatement to describe Dutch-Armenian fighting sensation Gegard Mousasi’s feelings following the recent cancellation of “Affliction Trilogy“.

After years of making his name overseas as one of the most dangerous men on the planet Mousasi finally had his opportunity to show the American public what he was capable of against the most dangerous foe he had ever faced in Renato “Babalu” Sobral.

Mousasi expressed his disappointment for not only himself, but his fellow combatants that will all suffer due to the scratching of the highly anticipated event in a recent statement issued to M-1Global.com

“The only thing important for me is what will be done for the fighters who all trained really hard for these fights,” Mousasi was quoted as saying to M-1Global.com. “It’s very difficult for me and the other fighters who have put a lot of time and energy in their training and now are treated like this because a fighter is caught on steroids? It’s all politics and I can do nothing but wait (and see) what will come of out this.”

No official word is out at this time regarding Mousasi’s return to action but a recent report by MMAJunkie.com states that he is presently being targeted to take part in the upcoming “M-1 Presents Breakthrough” card on August 28 from Anaheim, California which is set to feature a headlining bout between Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal and UFC legend Don Frye.

 

[Shogun Locc]

DREAM 12 HEADED FOR OSAKA

Japanese MMA promotion DREAM is headed to Osaka for DREAM 12.

The 16,000-seat Osaka-Jo Hall will host the event on Oct. 25, over three weeks away from the conclusion of the promotion’s Featherweight and Super Hulk tournaments at DREAM 11 on Oct. 6.

The promotion announced the news Saturday on their official website.

According to Japanese MMA website Nightmare of Battle, DREAM 11 could be the final 2009 broadcast for the promotion’s television partner Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS).

No match-ups for the event have been revealed. HDNet will broadcast the event live in the US.

 

[Shogun Locc]

NSAC to vote on rule changes in August; instant replay included on the agenda

The Nevada State Athletic Commission will be looking to vote on a handful of proposed regulatory changes when it convenes for a Regulation Hearing on Aug. 19.

And while a number of potential changes will be up for vote at the meeting, perhaps most interesting to MMA fans is the potential institution of limited instant replay.

NSAC executive director recently told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) that the proposal will be voted on at the meeting, and a passing vote would result in the immediate implementation of the program.

The proposed language, which can be viewed in its entirety on the NSAC's official website, reads as follows:


Sec. 7. NAC 467.682 is hereby amended to read as follows:

A referee may view a replay, if available, at the conclusion of a contest or exhibition stopped immediately due to an injury to an unarmed combatant pursuant to NAC 467.718 in order to determine whether the injury in question was caused by a legal blow or a foul.

(a) If the determination is made that the injury was the result of a legal blow, the injured unarmed combatant shall be determined to have lost the contest via technical knockout.
(b) If the determination is made that the injury was the result of a foul, it must be determined whether the foul was intentional or accidental.
(1) If deemed intentional, the outcome of the contest shall be determined in accord with NAC 467.698; or
(2) If deemed accidental, the outcome of the contest shall be determined in accord with NAC 467.702 or 467.7966.

As Kizer told MMAjunkie.com Radio in June, he believes the key to successful implementation of the program is to use it in very limited application.

"The problem with instant replay is, of course, even in football once the next play starts you can't go back and review something," Kizer said. "It's the same with boxing or MMA. You can't go back at the end of the round and look at whether something happened, say, one minute into the round. Had the ref called it differently, the rest of the round might have happened differently.

"I've had pretty intelligent boxing people say, 'You could review between rounds whether a knockdown happened.' No, you couldn't, because if Fighter A knocks down Fighter B, but the ref calls it a slip, then at the end of the round you say, 'That was a knockdown,' Fighter B would say, rightly so, 'Wait a second. Had I known that was a knockdown, I would have tried for my own knockdown to try and even out the round. But it was called a slip, so I treated it like a slip.'"

Instead, the proposal allows only for the match referee to determine whether a fight-ending blow was delivered legally or not, a la Kevin Burns vs. Anthony Johnson and Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic vs. Mostapha Al Turk.

"That's the proposed language of the regulatory changes," Kizer said. "It's all going to be on the agenda Aug. 19. We'll have a public hearing. People can also write in to us beforehand to give us their thoughts."

In addition to the implementation of instant replay, the NSAC will also be seeking closure in the complaints that were brought up regarding the alleged excessive greasing of Georges St. Pierre in his January contest with B.J. Penn.


Sec. 10. NAC 467.7962 is hereby amended to read as follows:

467.7962 The following acts constitute fouls in a contest or exhibition of mixed martial arts:

32. Applying any foreign substance to the hair or body that could result in an advantage.

Kizer said the key language in the new regulation is the elimination of the vague term "excessive" in reference to the application of vaseline or another greasing agent.

Additional changes being addressed include adjusting the age at which fighters are required to receive annual license reviews from 35 years old to 40 years old, the use of additional tape and gauze when wrapping contestant's hands, and the ability for promoters to contest five-round non-title fights without prior approval from the commission for the bout.

Kizer said the NSAC tries not to adjust the rules of mixed martial arts more than necessary, but he feels it's important to make improvements when possible.

"On average it seems like the commission has a regulatory hearing about every 18 months or so to kind of fine-tune things, unless it's something health and safety-wise," Kizer said. "If there's some kind of new and additional information available, we wouldn't wait that long.

"But for the most part about every 18 months seems to be the case. Even then, you don't see a lot of in-cage rule changes. But we're always looking to try and improve the regulation of the sport if we can."

 

[Shogun Locc]

Kenji Osawa out, WEC newcomer John Hosman in against Rani Yahya at WEC 42

A foot injury has forced Japanese bantamweight Kenji Osawa (15-8-2 MMA, 1-1-1 WEC) out of his WEC 42 contest with Rani Yahya (14-4 MMA, 3-1 WEC), and WEC newcomer John Hosman (13-4-1 MMA, 0-0 WEC) has agreed to take the contest on short notice.

VERSUS.com was the first to report the change, and MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) has since confirmed the switch.

Headlined by a bantamweight title fight between current champ Miguel Torres and challenger Brian Bowles, WEC 42 takes place Aug. 9. The main card airs live on VERSUS.

Hosman is currently riding a five-fight win streak, and has earned victories in 10 of his past 11 contests after starting his career just 3-3-1. Seven of the 28-year-old's 13 career wins have come by submission.

Yahya, a grappling ace, owns 13 submission wins in his 14 career victories. After back-to-back losses to Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto and Chase Beebe, Yahya has earned two-straight wins over Eddie Wineland and Yoshiro Maeda in the WEC.

 

[Shogun Locc]

Renato "Babalu" Sobral to defend Strikeforce title against Gegard Mousasi on Aug. 15

The first two pieces of the scrambled puzzle left by Affliction's recent demise have fallen into place as Strikeforce light heavyweight champion Renato "Babalu" Sobral (35-8) will defend his title against Gegard Mousasi (25-2-1) on Aug. 15.

MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) confirmed the rescheduled bout with Strikeforce Director of Communications Mike Afromowitz.

Sobral and Mousasi, who were originally scheduled to meet at the now-canceled "Affliction: Trilogy," will instead step into the cage at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif., on the main card of "Strikeforce: Carano vs. Cyborg," which airs live on Showtime.

Mousasi will compete on the card with a new Strikeforce contract, Afromowitz said, and not as a loaned commodity from M-1.

Mousasi is currently riding a 12-fight win streak, including a successful run to DREAM's middleweight crown in 2008, as well as a current semifinalist in DREAM's open-weight "Super Hulk" tournament.

The new contract is not likely to affect Mousasi's position in DREAM's tournament, as the Japanese-based organization and Strikeforce have a history of working together to share talent.

Sobral will take a five-fight win streak into the contest, and the Brazilian has won 15 of his past 17 contests. "Babalu" earned Strikeforce's 205-pound belt with a TKO win over Bobby Southworth in November 2008.

While previously announced competitors Fabricio Werdum and Nick Diaz are still without opponents following the withdrawal of Alistair Overeem and Joe Riggs due to various ailments, Afromowitz said he was unable to make any other announcements at this time.

 

[Shogun Locc]

RICARDO ALMEIDA TO USE UFC 101 AS A STEP TO 170

Ricardo Almeida has had a successful career competing as a middleweight, amassing a 10-3 professional record, but his UFC 101 bout against Kendall Grove will be the Renzo Gracie black belt's last in the 185-pound division. Following the Aug. 8 event at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, Almeida will make the drop down to the welterweight class.

"Most days I could make 185 by just going and training," Almeida told MMAWeekly.com. "I definitely feel 170 is the better weight class for my body right now. The plan is after this fight to definitely go to 170."

Following an injury last year that forced a change in Almeida's training regiment to a more technique and cardiovascular conditioning focused program, the New Jersey resident became leaner.

"When I was getting ready to fight Matt Horwich (at UFC Fight Night 18 on April 1), there were days when I finished training where I'd be 186-187," said Almeida. "Renzo was the first one to notice. Renzo was like, 'Ricardo, you look real light. You should definitely think about dropping to 170.'

“All my training partners, they would see me and say, 'you look light. Ricardo, you look lean. You look light.' Eventually when enough people that care about you are telling you something, it must be true."

Almeida planned to make the weight class change following his last fight, but circumstance and opportunity made him postpone the move. Residing in Bordentown in south New Jersey, about a 45-minute drive from Philadelphia, the 32-year-old fighter requested to be on the UFC 101 card.

"When I asked to be on the Philadelphia card, they offered me a fight at 185, or wait until a little bit later maybe in October and fight at 170. I really wanted fight right here, close to home and have that opportunity," explained Almeida. "I've been fighting at 185 my whole life. What's another fight at 85 going to do? But definitely, after this fight, my plans are to go down to 170."

Weighing the pros and cons of dropping to the welterweight division, Almeida commented, "The guys down at 170 are a lot quicker, a lot more movement than the guys at 185. At the same time, they'll be a little bit smaller. I won't be having to deal with guys that have like a six-inch reach advantage on me. I definitely want to give a strong performance and sort of set the tone for me going down to 170, which is probably the premier weight classes in the UFC.

"I think this has been one of those things that has been evolving. Everyone was learning how to cut weight. No doubt about it, in the UFC, if you don't know how to cut weight, you're going to get beat by somebody that does," added Almeida.

The "Big Dog" still has one last bout as a middleweight pitted against "The Ultimate Fighter 3" winner Kendall Grove, and he's not looking past the tall Hawaiian, but hopes his UFC 101 match-up will be a catalyst for his welterweight career.

"I still have this last fight at 185, and Kendall's certainly not an opponent to be overlooked" said Almeida. "I feel it's important for me to put on a good performance, an impressive performance to set the tone for when I go down to 170."

 

[Shogun Locc]

LOST IN THE DETAILS, FORREST READY FOR ANDERSON

The principle running through Forrest Griffin’s new-ish book “Got Fight? 50 Zen principles of Hand-to-Face Combat” is one he'll use to defeat Anderson Silva at UFC 101.

Lose yourself in the details.

"If you think about what a bad dude Anderson Silva is, you can (expletive) yourself silly," Griffin explained to MMAWeekly.

Middleweight terror Silva is back at 205, called by Dana White to move up after two snoozer performances in defense of the 185lb. belt. The antidote to another boring fight: Griffin, who through reckless abandon made himself one of the sport’s most popular figures.

Never mind the fact the Griffin, who once held the light heavyweight title by outpointing Quinton Jackson at UFC 86, has grown into a tactician inside the cage, a trait he attributes to time, money, and marriage. While the plans don’t always work--he lost the strap one fight later to Rashad Evans--he’s not winging punches without regard.

And there’s no way he’s going to do that for Silva, even if many have surmised that the champ’s Achilles heel is a “dirty fight,” or one where he’s not in control of distance and timing.

“Dan Henderson started to do that, and did you see how relaxed Anderson was?” asked Griffin.

So, as he does to order his life, Griffin lists things he’s trying to lose himself in, details he drills to keep manageable the idea of fighting a great. In the gym, they keep him from getting caught up in Silva’s aura. That, and the difficulty of finding someone to duplicate his attack.

“I want my foot outside of his foot,” said Griffin. “There’s a straight left coming. There’s a kick coming. Where’s the fence? Is he high, is he open for a takedown? Find your distance.

“There’s nobody you’re gonna spar with (that’s going to duplicate him) unless Machida wanted to come help me out, which I don’t think he would.”

Even without abandon, Griffin is confident he’ll take punches he used to welcome to get into a fight.

“He’s gonna hit you,” he continued. “You’re gonna miss him, and he’s going to hit you again. But you’ve got to keep pressure, keep moving. Once you close the distance, make it count for something. Go in, get hit, and then change your angle and go again. Look for the takedown, look to drive up against the fence.”

If there was one item he took from Henderson (not to mention Travis Lutter, Nate Marquardt, and Thales Leites), it’s that he needs wrestling to get the job done.

“Yeah, I’ve got to get on top of him, no doubt,” said Griffin. “I’ve gotta find a way to get him on the ground, make him carry my weight on the fence, on the ground, be heavy on him, hang on him. Otherwise, I’m just a big slow guy. I’ve gotta use the weight.”

And if all that fails?

“I don’t think they’re actually going to let him kill me,” he quips. “And if he does kills me, book sales will really go up. Boom…win-win, bitch.”

A little more Hollywood than Zen, but true nonetheless.

“When you’re climbing the mountain of life, you never look up to see how high the mountain is, because it’s scary,” said Griffin. “You look up and say ‘I’m never going to make it up that high.’ And if you look down, you say ‘what a fall.’ You keep your eyes straight ahead and on your next step, and your next footing in front of you. Worry is wasted energy.”

 

[Shogun Locc]

WEC Quick Quote: Miguel Torres needed a hug and Mark DellaGrotte gave it to him

“I said I don’t mind getting hit, and (DellaGrotta) said, ‘That’s not smart. Everyone knows you’re super tough, everyone knows you can take a punch. Everyone knows you’re the man. You want to impress somebody? Don’t get touched. Don’t get hit.’ I was frustrated by that. I said, No, I want someone to hit me. It’s the macho thing. And he said, ‘You know what you need? I’m going to help you.’ And he hugged me. At first, I said, Let go of me man. But he just kept hugging me. It was kind of funny, but I did need a hug. No one ever gave me a hug before. It was what I needed.”

 

[B-Buzz]

Kenji Osawa out, WEC newcomer John Hosman in against Rani Yahya at WEC 42

John works at the same place I do haha, him vs. Yahya should be a good fight. Hope we get a Chicago sweep with Hosman, Curran, Lamas and Torres (honorary Chicagoan)

 

[B-Buzz]

Renato "Babalu" Sobral to defend Strikeforce title against Gegard Mousasi on Aug. 15

Shit I skimmed over this, fucking awesome. I've got $20 on Mousasi against a friend and was bummed when Affliction went down. Gotta let him know it's back on!

 

[Shogun Locc]

FABER SAYS HAND WILL BE 100% IN A MONTH

Having suffered a severely broken hand in his rematch with Mike Brown at the beginning of June, Urijah Faber on Monday provided fines with an update on his healing progress via his Twitter account.

“The 4th metacarple is is completely healed. The 5th is filling in. Strength training on my hands starts today!” the former WEC champion posted.

(We swear Faber isn’t grammatically challenged. For the uninitiated, Twitter limits character count per post to 140 and many people update their accounts via cell phone, so it is common to see odd abbreviations and misspellings, etc.)

A guest on MMAWeekly Radio about three weeks ago, Faber explained the June 7 injury, "It was during the first round. I hit him right on top of the head. It wasn't until the third round that I hurt my left hand, though.

"The fourth and the fifth metacarpal were completely snapped. The fourth one was completely displaced. The fifth one... I could feel the bones grind together, so what was happening is it was splintering away. They basically put in some steel plates and some screws (to help the healing process)."

Faber has gone out of his way to rehabilitate the injury and speed up the healing process, employing such equipment as a bone stimulator.

His efforts appear to have paid off, as he stated on Monday, “One more month and the bone will b 100%.”

 

[Shogun Locc]

Demian Maia Preparing for UFC 102 with Wanderlei Silva

 

[Shogun Locc]

UFC 101 weigh-ins set for Wachovia Center; Dana White, Lorenzo Fertitta host Q&A session

Weigh-ins for "UFC 101: Declaration" take place Friday, Aug. 7 at Wachovia Center in Philadelphia.

The event, which takes place from 3-5 p.m. ET (with the first fighter hitting the scale at 4 p.m.), is free and open to the public.

Prior to the weigh-ins, UFC Fight Club members will have access to a special Q&A session hosted by UFC president Dana White and co-owner Lorenzo Fertitta.

Check-ins for Fight Club members begins at 1 p.m. ET, with the Q&A session beginning at 2 p.m. ET.

A live stream of the weigh-ins will be broadcast on Yahoo! Sports and UFC.com.

Featuring a lightweight title fight between current champ B.J. Penn and No. 1 challenger Kenny Florian, as well as a light-heavyweight showdown between former champ Forrest Griffin current middleweight title holder Anderson Silva, "UFC 101: Declaration" is the UFC's first trip to Philadelphia.

The full card currently includes:

MAIN CARD

* Champ B.J. Penn vs. Kenny Florian (for UFC lightweight title)
* Champ Anderson Silva vs. Forrest Griffin (non-title fight)
* Johny Hendricks vs. Amir Sadollah
* Ricardo Almeida vs. Kendall Grove
* Josh Neer vs. Kurt Pellgrino

PRELIMINARY CARD

* Shane Nelson vs. Aaron Riley
* John Howard vs. Tamdan McCrory
* Thales Leites vs. Alessio Sakara
* Dan Cramer vs. Matthew Riddle
* George Roop vs. George Sotiropoulos*
* Jesse Lennox vs. Danillo Villefort

* - Not officially announced.

 

[Shogun Locc]

HIERON TO STRIKEFORCE; EXPECTED TO FACE DIAZ (UPDATED)

It appears that Affliction refugee Jay Hieron has found a new home.

Three days after the clothing company ceased its prizefighting operations, the former International Fight League welterweight champion has agreed in principal to a multi-fight deal with Strikeforce, though a contract has yet to be signed.

In his first fight, Hieron would be expected to step in for Joe Riggs to face Nick Diaz at Strikeforce “Carano vs. Cyborg” in San Jose, Calif., on Aug. 15. The fight will likely be for the first ever Strikeforce welterweight title.

Carano vs. Cyborg, which boasted no less than four title fights, recently saw its championship schedule halved by injuries and withdrawals. Heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem, who was scheduled to defend his title in June, was forced to withdraw from a return against Fabricio Werdum due to a re-aggravated hand injury. Riggs withdrew last week after reportedly suffering an adverse reaction to prescription medication.

Hieron (17-4) was on the front lines for the collapse of the IFL in summer 2008 and fielded offers from the UFC and Strikeforce before accepting an offer with Affliction. In January, he fought Jason High in the swing bout for Affliction’s second event, “Day of Reckoning,” earning a brutal knockout in 64 seconds. A native of Long Island, New York, he is a mainstay of Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas.

The main event between Gina Carano and Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos for the women’s 145-pound divisional championship, and a lightweight title rematch between reigning champ Josh Thomson and former champ Gilbert Melendez remain the only five-round fights untouched, though rumors have circulated about a possible injury to Thomson.

(Editor's Note: This article initially stated that Jay Hieron had signed a multi-fight contract with Strikeforce. It was updated at 10:15 a.m. PT Tuesday to state that he has agreed to the deal in principal, but has yet to actually sign a contract with Strikeforce.)

 

[Shogun Locc]

WEC TO EXPAND GLOBAL FOOTPRINT VIA THE WEB

World Extreme Cagefighting vice president Peter Dropick on Tuesday announced that the promotion would take another big step towards expanding the company’s reach into foreign markets. WEC 42, which takes place at the new Joint in the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, will be available outside of North America as a web-based broadcast.

The web broadcast will be the same English language feed that airs live in the United States on the Versus network. It will air outside of North America on both WEC.tv and UFC.com and cost $9.99.

“Based on some international demand that we’ve seen, specifically coming out of Japan, WEC will be shown live internationally on our website WEC.tv along with UFC.com,” stated Dropick.

“Recently, we had some meetings in Japan. (Takeya) Mizugaki has got a lot of media interest, so Japan is one of the areas we really wanted to target.”

WEC 42 will be geo-blocked in North America due to the promotion’s broadcast licensing agreement with Versus, which airs the event live on basic cable in the United States.

The televised portion of the card feature No. 1 ranked bantamweight Miguel Torres defending his WEC title from No. 2 ranked Brian Bowles, Joseph Benavidez against Dominick Cruz, Ricardo Lamas versus Danny Castillo, and Takeya Mizugaki facing Jeff Curran, as well as any preliminary bouts that time permits.

 

[Shogun Locc]

Report: After failed drug test, Josh Barnett's next step a professional wrestling bout

After a failed pre-fight drug test led to his removal from the recently canceled "Affliction: Trilogy" event, top heavyweight contender Josh Barnett (24-5) will look to return to action on Aug. 9.

But the "Babyfaced Assassin" will be trading in his MMA gloves for a fight of the pre-arranged variety.

AOL FanHouse is reporting Barnett has agreed to wrestle in Japan's Inoki Genome Federation.

Barnett has yet to speak publicly about his future since his positive test, but AOL FanHouse was able to verify the heavyweight's status through his manager, Shannon Hooper.

Barnett's only public comments on the situation came via a MySpace bulletin posted shortly after the news of the positive test was made public.

"My representatives and I are working to gather as much info as possible and handle this situation as best as we can," Barnett stated. "I am embarrassed and want for nothing more than to resolve this issue and receive a license from the State of California as I have done many times already and for other states as well."

Barnett was forced out of his "Affliction: Trilogy" main-event fight with Fedor Emelianenko due to a drug test that detected a metabolite (2a-methyl-5a-androstan- 3a-ol-17-one) of the anabolic steroid Drostanolone. The failed drug test and Barnett's subsequent removal from his main event bout led to the eventual cancellation of "Affliction: Trilogy" and eventually the collapse of the promotion.

Barnett's "B" sample result has yet to be revealed by the California State Athletic Commission, but the positive result was the 31-year-old's third in his 12-year career.

 

[Shogun Locc]

Fedor Emelianenko to address media during Wednesday press conference in California

Following the cancellation of "Affliction: Trilogy" and the collapse of the entire Affliction promotion, the man widely considered to be the world's top-heavyweight, Fedor Emelianenko, is currently without an upcoming fight.

And as the world waits to see where the fighters from the now-defunct Affliction promotion end up, speculation continues to mount regarding where Emelianenko will fight next.

Emelianenko, himself, will address some of the speculation on Wednesday at a press conference in Anaheim, Calif.

"Since the cancellation (of "Affliction: Trilogy"), there has been a great deal of speculation regarding Fedor and M-1," Emelianenko's manager, Vadim Finkelchtein, stated in a release from his company. "On Wednesday, the media and fans will be able to hear what's going on with Fedor from the man himself."

Finkelchtein's company recently issued a statement that suggested now could be the time "The Last Emperor" finally makes his way to the UFC – if the world's largest MMA promotion was willing to deal with M-1's contractual demands.

"Of course, it still doesn't imply we are ready to accept any conditions [the UFC] will throw at us," Finkelchtein said. "We want to talk to the UFC about having Fedor compete against some of their fighters, but only within the framework of co-promotional efforts with M-1 Global."

UFC president Dana White has publicly stated that he wants to put together a fight between Emelianenko and UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar, but the UFC exec has had difficulty in landing the Russian in previous negotiations.

M-1's press conference announcement offered little insight into what Emelianenko will share, and a curiously worded passage left "The Last Emperor's" current contract status unclear.

"Emelianenko, 30-1, is perceived by many within the industry to be a free agent and it is believed he is being courted by every major MMA promotion in the world," read the statement.