MMA News Thread

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Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker predicts DREAM co-promotion "in relatively short time"

While Strikeforce made major waves with the recent announcement that it would co-promote with Russia's M-1 Global organization, that's not the only formal partnership the California-based organization has created.

Following this past Saturday night's "Strikeforce: Carano vs. Cyborg" event in San Jose, Calif., Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker welcomed DREAM event producer Keiichi Sasahara to the post-event press conference.

The two shared the stage briefly, and Coker described a vision for the two organizations that included co-promotion and fighter exchanges for events both in the U.S. and Japan.

"In Strikeforce, we're committed to putting on the best fights that we can," Coker said. "They have a lot of great fighters in DREAM, and we'll be able to test the best fighters in Strikeforce against the best fighters in DREAM. Hopefully we'll be in Japan doing a co-promotion in relatively short time."

Sasahara said his company was happy to send Mitsuhiro Ishida and DREAM "Super Hulk" tournament fighter Gegard Mousasi to "Carano vs. Cyborg," and he hopes to continue sharing high-quality fighters between the two organizations.

"For this event, we have sent Ishida and Gegard Mouasi as fighters from Japan and DREAM," Sasahara said through an interpreter. "Not only these fighters, but we would like to send our champion-class fighters – and if Strikeforce will allow us, Strikeforce's champion-class fighters will come to Japan."

While neither Strikeforce nor DREAM can compete with the depth of talent present in the UFC, by pairing together the alliance can create some very intriguing matchups.

"I'd love to get (DREAM lightweight Shinya) Aoki to come here and fight Josh Thomson or Gilbert Melendez," Coker said. "I'd like to see Melvin Manhoef fight Robbie Lawler.

"There's some amazing fights that we can put together, and that's a reason we did this. As a martial arts promoter and as a fan of martial arts, you go, 'What would happen if this guy fought this guy?' Now we have the opportunity to do it, so we're excited."

Coker said he was also targeting a bout between Jason "Mayhem" Miller and Jake Shields – a bout that could potentially serve as Strikeforce's promised interim middleweight title fight.

"The thing about 'Mayhem,' he's fighting in Japan and his contract allows him to fight in Japan with DREAM, but he also has a contract with Strikeforce," Coker said. "You will see him in Strikeforce, and whether he's fighting for DREAM or for us, 'Mayhem' Miller vs. Jake Shields, we're trying to put that fight together."

Of course, DREAM was also trying to put together a third meeting between Miller and Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza. Coker said it wasn't completely determined how things would finally work out.

"Maybe 'Jacare' vs. 'Mayhem,'" Coker said. "'Mayhem' is an interesting character, and we're looking forward to having him fight."

Similar to the deal Strikeforce struck with M-1 Global to bring heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko to the organization, the promotion's partnership with DREAM doesn't appear to place it in any financially perilous or restrictive positions. Sasahara simply called the deal "an alliance" that "will allow fighters to go back and forth."

Allowing the potential for fights throughout the roster of both promotions will potentially allow a wide variety of new contests to be arranged and fighters to stay busier than they otherwise may have been.

Of course, first the plan must all be finalized.

"[Saturday night] it was Ishida fighting [in Strikeforce]," Coker said. "Maybe we'll send one of our fighters to Japan to fight in DREAM. It will go back and forth.

"All the details of the matchmaking or who would do what when we eventually do a co-promotion, those details haven't been worked out yet."

 

[Shogun Locc]

ISHIDA'S CAMP CLAIMS "GREASING" IN VERBAL PROTEST

A representative for Mitsuhiro Ishida made a verbal protest Saturday against Gilbert Melendez, claiming the Strikeforce interim lightweight champion was “greased” during their rematch at “Carano vs. Cyborg” at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif.

California State Athletic Commission Assistant Executive Officer Bill Douglas told Sherdog.com that the representative interrupted a meeting for officials held shortly after the event to make the proclamation, and was asked to leave the closed-door gathering.

Melendez, 27, blasted past Ishida during their championship bout Saturday, scoring a third-round technical knockout after the Japanese fighter failed on numerous occasions to ground the champion. Ishida absorbed ample punishment from the striker standing, and was dropped by a body knee in the third before Melendez coaxed out the stoppage on the canvas.

Douglas said his agency would not inform Melendez of the complaint unless it became official.

“In order for it to be considered official, we have to have something in writing,” said Douglas.

Douglas said Ishida’s camp has five days to file an official protest, and has not heard from the group since Saturday.

Melendez seemed surprised by the accusations when reached by Sherdog.com Monday.

“I did not grease in the fight,” said Melendez. “The athletic commission was with me the whole time. I didn’t bring any grease with me. I didn’t think there was much grappling in the fight anyway.”

Melendez, 27, lost a unanimous decision to Ishida in their first encounter at Yarennoka in December 2007, but had little issue with the southpaw wrestler on Saturday.

“It’s kind of funny, but kind of weak,” he said. “I beat him good and there’s no way I greased.”

Greasing allegations dominated the headlines last February, after B.J. Penn accused Georges St. Pierre and his cornermen of misconduct between rounds during a championship bout at UFC 94 in Las Vegas. After an investigation, the Nevada State Athletic Commission did not call a disciplinary hearing for the Canadian and his team.

”Ever since the Penn-St. Pierre fight, our inspectors have been duly trained to be very attentive to what’s happening backstage and in the corner,” said Douglas.

 

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TOM ATENCIO DETAILS AFFLICTION'S FINAL HOURS

The final hours of Affliction as a promotion will go down infamously as the one time powerful mixed martial arts sponsor turned fight organization canceled its show dubbed "Trilogy" just days before the event was set to take place in California.

A positive steroid test from main event participant Josh Barnett led to the decision to scrap the whole show. Affliction vice president Tom Atencio told MMAWeekly Radio in an exclusive interview what the deciding factor was to call a halt to the show entirely.

"We were scrambling looking for a fighter, quite a few guys stepped up to the plate who were wanting the fight. Guys were doing it for a reasonable amount of money, too, which was cool, but just after talking to Showtime, after talking to everybody involved, it just, we couldn't have done it," Atencio commented. "It was a bummer, probably one of the worst things that's ever happened to me."

While much of the MMA world immediately pointed the finger at Barnett for the positive test, Atencio says at the end of the day, it's just business and he holds no ill will towards the former UFC heavyweight champion.

"Could things have been handled differently? Yeah, for sure, but it wasn't and it is what it is. I just move on. I don't look at the past. I only look at the future," Atencio said about the Barnett situation. "Now it's time to turn this around and start sponsoring fighters and get back to what I was doing. I think it's good. We sponsor a lot of great fighters, and a lot of fighters were bummed out when we left the arena and now we're back."

The head of the Affliction fight promotion also says that he has spoken with Barnett about the situation since the event was canceled, and all in all he chalks it up to bad timing for everything.

"I've spoken with (Josh) since and he apologized and, like I said, I even told him it would have been nice to have known ahead of time so I could have at least prepared. So I could have at least said when I found out I have no one to blame but myself now, but the bottom line was I had no clue," Atencio stated. "I had no idea."

The rumors circled following the cancelation of the show that it was the pay-per-view providers that balked at a replacement for Barnett to step in to face Fedor Emelianenko on short notice, but Atencio says it was a group decision due to marketing and not wanting to cheat the fans out of their money.

"We just did not have the time to re-market whoever was coming up. We could not have changed the commercials for all the pay-per-view providers. We couldn't have changed any billboards or put up anything saying main event changed or anything like that," said Atencio. "We could not have risked the fact that somebody ordered it thinking that Barnett vs. Fedor was the main event."

Following the decision to scrap the show all together, it was the partners at Affliction who made the call to the Ultimate Fighting Championship, a company they had longstanding ties with before becoming a fight promotion, and a deal was struck.

"We ended up contacting the UFC and we made a deal and everything else is history," Atencio said. "We're back to where we were, and I'm back to doing sponsorships and it's good for everybody I think."

Since the show's cancellation, the majority of the fighters under contract to Affliction have landed with other promotions, and Atencio says that just about everybody has been financially secured since the show was shut down as well.

"It's my understanding that everybody was pretty much taken care of as far as where they're going. As far as me taking care of everybody, 90-whatever percent of the guys I've taken care of. There's always a few guys no matter what you do it's not good enough, or no matter what you do they're not going to be happy and that's just life unfortunately," stated Atencio. "The vast majority of the guys have been taken care of, they're happy, and we have a continued relationship like I always try to do."

So with the fight promotion shut down for good, Affliction has already started to contact fighters, and fighters have already started to contact them about being back on board with sponsorships. Atencio says that he's happy to be back with the UFC, and that just being a part of MMA is enough for him.

"I've always said I wouldn't be where I was as far as promoting if it weren't for (the UFC). They built this industry," he said. "I'm not a person that likes to burn bridges, you never know what's going to happen."

In the interview, Atencio also disclosed that fighters could be seen fairly soon wearing the Affliction brand back in the Octagon, but he will stand by the fighters who already have existing contracts with other sponsors and not interfere with their deals. As for the fight game, Affliction will always be a part of the sport, as seen by the great many fans that still sport their shirts to every event no matter where MMA is seen.

 

[Shogun Locc]

PROVINCE ADMITS NEGLIGENCE, DOESN'T DOUBT TEST

The Nevada State Athletic Commission on Monday released the post-fight drug test results for WEC 42, which took place on Aug. 9 in Las Vegas. Of the nine fighters tested by the commission, one turned up an alleged positive test result for a performance enhancing substance, that fighter being Cole Province.

He doesn’t deny his guilt, but he does want it to be known that it wasn’t intentional. Province wasn’t caught misjudging the timing of a steroid cycle, or trying to mask what he was taking to try and fool the test.

If he and his manager are being truthful, as much as being guilty of having a performance enhancing substance in his body, he was guilty of bad judgment and ignorance.

“He told me that he didn't take any supplements leading up to the fight. After weigh-ins, one of his training partners/friends had an over-the-counter supplement called ‘Double Dragon’ and he and Cole decided that it would help him retain water if he took it,” said Province’s manager, Leister Bowling, in a statement sent to MMAWeekly.com via e-mail.

“Looking back, obviously it wasn't a wise decision to take a supplement with the ingredients unknown and not first being approved by the commission and the WEC. Cole is having a really hard time being told that he tested positive for ‘steroids’ because the only thing he has taken was an over-the-counter supplement that he thought would help him retain water after dehydrating himself to make weight.”

The supplement that both Province and his manager admit to him taking is Double Dragon Pharmaceuticals SOS 500. According to a product description on SupplementCentral.com, “SOS 500 is the anabolic supplement you're looking for! It's unique blend of muscle building ingredients makes for an incredible, legal pro-hormone. You'll notice gains in strength, mass, and power that you never knew were possible. SOS 500 gives you all the energy and endurance you need for a great workout and then some.”

The substance that showed up in Province’s drug test results was Methasterone metabolite. Methasterone is a so-called "designer steroid" taken orally that is similar in chemical composition to Drostanolone, the steroid that Hermes Franca and Josh Barnett were flagged for by the California State Athletic Commission.

"I would never do anything to cheat in any form of competition. I did not knowingly consume any type of steroid,” said Province in the statement e-mailed to MMAWeekly.com. “However, it was my responsibility as a professional athlete to break down any substance that I chose to put in my body and in this case I didn't do that.

“Regrettably, I didn't check all of the ingredients when I consumed an over the counter supplement called ‘Double Dragon,’” he continued, accepting responsibility for his actions. “I apologize to my family, friends, and the WEC for my misjudgment, but please know that I am not a cheater, and I never would have consumed anything that I knew would have jeopardized my career, and my character in general."

If the result holds, the common penalty for similar infractions in Nevada, recently, has been a nine-month suspension and overturning a fighter’s victory to a “no contest.”

His license has been suspended temporarily pending the results of a full administrative review by the NSAC.

 

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SENGOKU X! Kawamura Vs. Silva II

Three new fights have been announced for SENGOKU X in September. In a Middleweight fight, Joe Doerksen will take on Laughter7’s (Sakuraba’s gym) Takenori Sato, who recently went to a draw with Izuru Takeuchi in a Pancrase title fight.

In a Welterweight fight which should result in who is headed for a title fight, Dan Hornbuckle returns fresh off his win over Akihiro Gono to take on Nick Thompson.

And in a Light Heavyweight fight, Ryo Kawamura returns to SENGOKU to take on the man who gave him his first career loss, Fabio Silva.

SENGOKU X
Date: September 23rd, 2009
Place: Saitama Community Arena in Tokyo, Japan

Lightweight Fights:
Kazunori Yokota vs. Ryan Schultz
Maxi vs. Tetsuya Yamada

Light Heavyweight Fight:
Ryo Kawamura vs. Fabio Silva

Welterweight Fight:
Dan Hornbuckle vs. Nick Thompson

Middleweight Fight:
Takenori Sato vs. Joe Doerksen

Opening Fights (2×5):
LW: Ikuo Usuda vs. Baek Woo Hyun
FW: Shigeki Osawa vs. Kim Ki Hyun
BW: Ryosuke Komori vs. So Jee Hyun

Participants:
Hiroshi Izumi, Makoto Takimoto, Antonio Silva

Possible Participants:
Xande Ribeiro, King Mo

 

[Shogun Locc]

Diaz Eyes Oct. Dream, Rep Meets With CSAC

While his re-licensure in California remains a work in progress, Nick Diaz is in talks to fight for Dream in October.

Cesar Gracie, Diaz’s longtime trainer and manager, met with Dream Event Producer Keiichi Sasahara at Strikeforce this past weekend in San Jose, Calif., to discuss the possibility of Diaz competing either Oct. 6 or 22. Gracie said Sasahara expressed an interest in the outspoken 28-year-old facing Japanese legend Hayato Sakurai, but that talks were in the preliminary stages.

Strikeforce announced an alliance with the Japanese promotion a few weeks ago, and the two have already begun an open exchange of talent that saw Dream’s Mitsuhiro Ishida compete on Saturday’s card.

Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker said he was “100 percent” open to Diaz competing overseas next, while Gracie said Diaz could return to Strikeforce for one of its November or December events.

Gracie said he’s been told Diaz will fight for the promotion’s welterweight title at that time.

Diaz was pulled from Saturday’s championship bout against Jay Hieron after the Stockton native did not take a pre-fight drug test required for his re-licensure in the state. Gracie said Diaz has a medical prescription for marijuana to treat the hyperactivity disorder ADHD and wasn’t given proper warning that his fighter would be tested per an arrangement he said was made with former CSAC Executive Officer Armando Garcia. Hieron went on to earn a unanimous decision against late replacement Jesse Taylor in a non-title bout on Saturday.

At a post-fight press conference, Coker said Hieron, who turned down a UFC contract to join Strikeforce, will fight Diaz for the title, although the timing of the bout is up in the air.

“It might be that Nick can’t fight (for Strikeforce) till the end of the year and Jay fights in-between there,” said Coker, “but that’s a fight we definitely want to put together because we made a commitment to Jay and we want to keep that commitment.”

Meanwhile, Gracie met with CSAC officials on Friday to discuss Diaz’s re-licensing and the testing procedures he will be placed under moving forward.

Gracie and CSAC Assistant Executive Officer Bill Douglas discussed the possibility of the state agency adopting a “Theraputic Usage Exemption” program, utilized by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). According to the WADA Web site, a TUE would allow an athlete to take medication that appears on the WADA Prohibited list without facing penalties.

Clarifying statements Gracie made to Sherdog.com last week, the trainer said an arrangement to test Diaz only on the night of his scheduled bouts was made between Diaz’ former employer, Pro Elite, and Garcia. Gracie also specified that the promotion relayed the agreement to him, not Garcia.

Both Gracie and Douglas told Sherdog.com that a former Pro Elite employee also attended the meeting to corroborate Gracie’s assertion that an agreement had been in place. Douglas said he had no knowledge of the agreement prior to Gracie telling him.

Gracie said he hopes Diaz will be granted an exemption for marijuana while out of competition, and that the fighter will abide by the testing procedures during competition.

“He does need (marijuana),” said Gracie. “He has ADHD and he’s had a prescription for Ritalin since he was a kid. He doesn’t want to take that. That’s worse than pot.”

Douglas called the meeting “extremely positive.”

“We don’t have a TUE program in California yet, not to say we won’t,” Douglas told Sherdog.com Monday. “I pledged to have the CSAC staff work with Gracie and his reps, because putting a TUE program together to present to the commission will take time and effort, as well as feedback from many parties. We can put the plan together, but ultimately the commission has to vote for it.”

Douglas said the first step will be to secure a date to present the idea to the commission board, but noted that if the commission is receptive, the entire process of incorporating the system could take up to a year.

In the meantime, Gracie said Diaz could be tested for re-licensure as early as in a few weeks. Gracie said Diaz would cease using marijuana during that time in order to pass the necessary testing.

Douglas recommended Diaz be ready for the testing this time around.

“I think that as soon as he finds out he has a fight, he’d need to do what he needs to,” said Douglas.

 

[Shogun Locc]

Kenny Florian "got a couple eye pokes" from B.J. Penn but doesn't fault them for UFC 101 loss

Kenny Florian received a "couple eye pokes" during his UFC 101 loss to UFC lightweight champion B.J. Penn earlier this month.

In fact, because of some blurry vision he's still experienced since that Philadelphia fight, he's seeing a doctor today to assure he sustained no serious injuries.

But as the UFC veteran and longtime lightweight contender today told MMAjunkie.com Radio (www.mmajunkie.com/radio), he doesn't blame the loss on the eye pokes and said Penn "deserved the win."

In an interview with FightHype.com, Keith Florian, the trainer and brother of Kenny, said the fighter got poked in the eye and that Penn is "notorious" for the illegal strikes. He pointed to Penn's previous fights with Georges St-Pierre and Matt Hughes as examples.

Kenny Florian, though, was much more diplomatic when asked if he was poked by Penn.

"I got a couple eye pokes, but that happens I guess," Florian said. "I don't want to use that as an excuse, though.

"I have a doctor's appointmemnt today to make sure the eye is OK."

After taking some time off after the fourth-round submission loss to Penn in the UFC 101 main event, Florian (11-4 MMA, 9-3 UFC) returned to training yesterday for the first time. However, he was still having problems with his sight and decided to see a doctor.

"I had some blurry vision," Florian said. "I just want to make sure there's no trauma to the eyeball itself. ... I'm confident there shouldn't an issue."

Of course, the obvious question is whether Florian thinks the eye pokes were intentional. In a combat sport with open-finger gloves, accidental eye pokes happen often and are an accepted danger of the game. Intentional eyes pokes, though, are a different matter.

So does Florian think they were intentional or accidental?

"I'm going to go ahead and say there were accidental," he said.

In fact, Florian complimented Penn and his game-planning numerous times. The term Florian used most often was "execute" when explaining why he fell short in his second quest for the UFC's lightweight.

"I was just off," said Florian, who also suffered a unanimous-decision loss to Sean Sherk for the vacant title in 2006. "It was an off night, and B.J. was on. ... He deserved the win. It was as simple as that.

"I was definitley disappointed. It was a tough few days after that event. I've got to say I didn't do what I should have done. ... I couldn't get my timing, couldn't get my range going. I couldn't execute. But I don't want to sit here and come up with excuses."

Florian, who trained with St-Pierre for this fight and said he will continue to do so for future bouts, hopes to get back in the octagon soon. He said the nine-month layoff between the Penn fight and his previous one (a first-round submission win over Joe Stevenson in November at UFC 91) was difficult to work through and that he doesn't want to be sidelined that long ever again.

"I want someone tough for my next fight," Florian said. "I want to fight every three or four months. I don't want to experience that lull (between fights) again.

"Hopefully I get a few wins against some tough guys and I can get right back there and fight for the title again."

 

[Shogun Locc]

Rafael Assuncao vs. Yves Jabouin bout promoted to televised WEC 43 main card

With the loss of an Alex Karalexis vs. Anthony Pettis bout due to injury, a featherweight fight between Rafael Assuncao (13-1 MMA, 1-0 WEC) and Yves Jabouin (14-4 MMA, 0-0 WEC) has been promoted to the Versus-televised main card of WEC 43.

Late last night the WEC announced Karalexis had suffered an undisclosed injury and that his fight with Pettis had been pulled from the Sept. 2 card.

Taking the fight's place on the main card is matchup between two top 145-pound fighters.

WEC 43 takes place at the Covelli Center in Youngstown, Ohio, with a main event between Donald Cerrone and Benson Henderson for an interim lightweight title.

Assuncao vs. Jabouin is now one of four televised fights.

Assuncao owns eight submission wins in 13 career victories. With previous victories over notables Joe Lauzon and Jorge Masvidalt – and a razor-thin loss to Jeff Curran as his career's lone blemish – he could be just a win or two away from a title shot with current champ Mike Brown.

"My next opponent is kind of unknown in the U.S.," Assuncao recently told MMAjunkie.com Radio (www.mmajunkie.com/radio). "He's a badass. I've seen some of his highlights. They (WEC officials) probably want to test me."

Jabouin makes his WEC debut with four straight wins and seven victories in his past eight bouts. The fighter is a veteran of the Canadian fight circuit, and of 14 pro victories, 11 have come via knockout and one via submission.

The finalized WEC 43 card now includes:

MAIN CARD

* Donald Cerrone vs. Benson Henderson (for WEC interim lightweight title)
* Dave Jansen vs. Richard Crunkilton Jr.
* Damacio Page and Akitoshi Tamura
* Rafael Assuncao vs. Yves Jabouin

PRELIMINARY CARD

* Scott Jorgensen vs. Rafael Rebello
* Wagnney Fabiano vs. Erik Koch
* Manny Tapia vs. Eddie Wineland
* Muhsin Corbbrey vs. Anthony Njokuani
* Charlie Valencia vs. Coty Wheeler
* Mark Hominick vs. Deividas Taurosevicius

 

[Shogun Locc]

"Strikeforce: Carano vs. Cyborg" draws 13,976 spectators for $736K live gate

While Strikeforce was forced to constantly shuffle fighters on the main card of the Aug. 15 event "Carano vs. Cyborg," the organization was still able to draw a strong attendance of 13,976 to HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif., for this past Saturday's Showtime-broadcast card.

The company also generated $735,710 in sales from the attendance, representing an average per ticket revenue of $52.64.

MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) on Monday requested the figures, and the California State Athletic Commission today released the information.

The attendance was down slightly from the 15,211 spectators that attended April's "Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Diaz" event, Strikeforce's most recent trip to San Jose prior to "Carano vs. Cyborg." Company officials reported that April's event generated "approximately $750,000."

The attendance figure for "Carano vs. Cyborg" represents a drop of 8.12 percent from April's "Shamrock vs. Diaz."

"Carano vs. Cyborg" also drew 576,000 viewers on Showtime, the highest-rated mixed martial arts program to ever air on Showtime Networks according to Showtime officials.

 

[Shogun Locc]

"Strikeforce: Carano vs. Cyborg" draws 576,000 viewers, UFC 100 replay nabs two million

As expected Spike TV's replay of a UFC 100 pay-per-view event outdrew the live broadcast of "Strikeforce: Carano vs. Cyborg" on Showtime this past weekend.

Spike TV, a basic cable station, is available in 98 million homes. Showtime, a premium cable station, has approximately 21 million paying subscribers.

"Strikeforce: Carano vs. Cyborg" drew an average audience of 576,000 viewers. The UFC replay drew nearly four times that with two million total viewers, Spike TV officials today confirmed with MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com).

Strikeforce's Aug. 15 event was one of the biggest shows in the promotion's history and featured the long-awaited Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos vs. Gina Carano title fight. As with other competitors, the UFC and Spike TV ultimately decided to counter-program the broadcast.

Strikeforce's event averaged 576,000 viewers (and peaked with 856,000 for the night's main event at midnight). UFC 100 averaged two million viewers, and it's 1.8 rating (513,000 viewers) was the highest-rated program in the male-18-34 demographic during its timeslot.

Additionally, Spike TV edged Showtime in that demo with 513,000 viewers to the premium channel's 181,000.

UFC 100 took place July 11 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas. The milestone event featured one of the most stacked cards in the organization's history with three headline-worthy fights, including the official main event of UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar vs. interim title-holder Frank Mir.

The Strikeforce event, which took place at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif., also featured Strikeforce interim lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez's title defense over Mitsuhiro Ishida, Gegard Mousasi defeating light-heavyweight champ Renato "Babalu" Sobral, and Fabricio Werdum easily defeating. Mike Kyle.

 

[Shogun Locc]

BIG NOG SAYS L'IL NOG TO UFC BY YEAR'S END (UPDATED)

Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, who on Aug. 29 headlines UFC 102 against Randy Couture in Portland, Ore., says his twin brother, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, will soon step into the Octagon.

During a media teleconference call promoting the bout, Nogueira said talks had already taken place between UFC officials and Antonio Rogerio.

“They’ve already talked to him, they’re dealing with my brother,” said Antonio Rodrigo. “For sure he’s coming to the UFC.”

The fate of Antonio Rogerio, a light heavyweight, had been undetermined following the sudden end of Affliction Entertainment. In January, he defeated former UFC contender Vladimir Matyushenko at Affliction “Day of Reckoning,” the second fight of a three-fight obligation. In his debut, he defeated “Ultimate Fighter” season four alum Edwin Dewees by TKO at last July’s “Banned.”

In late July, the UFC struck a deal with Affliction to cease promoting events in exchange for a sponsorship deal that reversed a ban on UFC fighters wearing Affliction apparel. As part of the deal, several Affliction fighters’ contracts were transferred to the UFC, including Vitor Belfort, Ben Rothwell, Chase Gormley, and Gilbert Yvel, among others, though a complete roster of the transfers was never disclosed officially.

On Monday, Strikeforce Director of Communications Mike Afromowitz told MMAWeekly.com that Antonio Rogerio had not been signed to his promotion, and believed he was UFC bound.

Antonio Rodrigo expected his brother to make his UFC debut by the end of the year, and expected an announcement from the promotion shortly.

MMAWeekly.com was later able to reach the Nogueira brothers' manager, Ed Soares, who fell short of saying that Antonio Rogerio would fight in the UFC, but did say, "We're in positive negotiations (with them)."

He also confirmed that a planned bout against Alex Stiebling on the Sept. 12 Bitetti Combat event in Brazil had been cancelled.

 

[Shogun Locc]

Randy Couture would be ‘very interested’ in a fight with Lyoto Machida

“I’m very intrigued by him and his style and what he’s done. He’s so patient, he doesn’t care what the crowd is saying. He’s gonna fight the way he’s gonna fight and he doesn’t [care]. He’s been very successful at it and I’ve enjoyed watching him. He’s got a very unique fighting style and he intrigues me. That’s a fight I would be very interested in. At some level you have to meet a guy and step onto his turf a little bit to engage him to lead him away. It would be very interesting to see what that would take.”

 

[Shogun Locc]

UFC 102 Far From Sold Out; Economy, Taxes Problematic

A story that’s seemingly flown right under the radar the last couple weeks is the fact that the UFC is having trouble selling tickets for its 102 event to be held at the Rose Garden in Portland, Oregon. The venue holds nearly 20,000 people for an MMA event, but has sold just over 9,000 tickets to date.

It’s surprising news for a number of reasons: Randy Couture is an Oregon boy, MMA is fairly popular in the state, and the UFC has built up a tremendous amount of momentum in recent months. When you look deeper, however, it’s not so surprising at all that UFC 102 is struggling to fill its arena.

The UFC was actually slated to bring their show to Portland back in November of 2008, but it is believed that the organization cancelled those plans and chose Las Vegas instead due to a combination of the poor economy in Oregon and exhoribidant event taxation in Portland.

Fast forward to 2009 and the economy is only getting worse:

Oregon’s economy, bad as it is, will get even worse over the coming months, threatening double-digit unemployment and early school closures while sucking billions of dollars from the state budget, according to a forecast released Friday.



“We’re falling basically into a pit,” said state economist Tom Potiowsky. He had the unenviable job of telling stone-faced state officials how much — or how little — they can spend on education, aid to the poor and other programs.



According to Potiowsky’s forecast, which is used to set state spending levels, the current state budget will come up short by $855 million. For the 2009-11 budget, the gap between projected revenue and the rising cost of state services grows to $3 billion.



The sharp drop stems from the same forces that clobbered the nation’s economy: dried-up export markets, tumbling home values, falling stock prices and frightened consumers.



“The perfect storm is here,” Potiowsky said. “And Oregon is feeling the recession stronger than many other states.” He predicted

Exacerbating the problem even further are the 6% gross receipt taxes levied by both the Oregon State Athletic Commission and the City of Portland for MMA events held in the city - ie., 12%.

The UFC subsequently set ticket levels at $600, $400, $300, $200, $100, and $50 ostensibly to recover some of the bottom line that will be taxed away. This has obviously left some UFC fans quite reluctant to pony up their hard earned cash in a very drab-looking economy.

Brad Darcy, the Executive Director of the Oregon State Athletic Commission captures the heart of the issue:

“It’s an obstacle, I’m afraid,” Darcy said. “There is a six percent tax on gross receipts of live events to the commission. And on top of that, there’s a city tax of six percent. We rank pretty high (nationally) in terms of our level of taxation.”

Payout Perspective:

Ticket pricing is a complex science designed to help firms maximize their revenue from any given event. I’d be curious to see if the UFC employs such a system when setting their prices. And, as it is a science, certain intangible variables such as the long-term benefit of a full house don’t always factor into the equation; it’s very much a short-term analysis.

Personally, I tend to take the long-term approach in thinking that an immediate sacrifice of revenue maximization at the event level is probably worth selling the tickets for less, filling the seats, maximizing sponsorship value, and reaping the benefits of an increased fan base in the future.

 

[Shogun Locc]

JAMES THOMPSON KEEN ON MOVE TO STRIKEFORCE

Things have been quiet for heavyweight behemoth James Thompson, but he wouldn't have had it any other way, the break has given him a rare opportunity for introspection.

"I had some time off after the last fight to get my head together, personal problems if you will, and I feel that now things are in place in myself and I can really push forward. Making the full-time move to London Shootfighters for training is really paying dividends," he explained to MMAWeekly.com.

Thompson has always been one of those fighters that appeared to be cursed. He has had some meteoric fights in his time, with excellent results, but sometimes he just can't catch a break. Case in point being the Kimbo Slice fight. He did everything that he could to put his opponent away, and arguably, the fight should have been stopped under the lack of intelligent defense or improving position rule – take your pick. Still, the end result was a bitter pill to swallow.

"I made mistakes in my training before that fight. I wasn’t listening to people properly and stuff like that carried over into the bout, but with the guys here pulling me up on all my mistakes, I am able to learn from them. The only way I am going to improve is the hard way through trial and error," offered Thompson.

So with his body and mind working in sync, who is next on the cards for “The Colossus?”

"I will most likely be fighting Neil Grove here in the U.K. on the Ultimate Challenge show in September. It's a fight I specifically asked for because I feel that I have something to prove to myself."

For those that weren't witness to their first encounter. Grove came in on two days notice as an unknown fighter with a beginners record. Ten seconds later and Thompson was flat out on the canvas asleep.

Thompson feels that things will be different next time, “That was the first time I had been knocked out cold like that and it came as a shock, but I am confident that this time I know what I am in for and how to deal with things. This isn’t a slur on Neil Grove, he beat me fair and square, but this is about setting personal goals and achievements for myself.”

U.K. fights have hung around Thompson like an albatross, but it is something that he feels he needs to crack. Whilst still being in demand on the international stage, he loves to fight at home, hence, the booking of the fight. Win or lose, he is likely to find a requirement for his services over at Strikeforce soon enough.

“I was offered King Mo (Lawal) a while back for them and it is a fight that I feel would suit me given his style and wrestling ability, but it hasn’t quite come to fruition yet. Strikeforce are a really switched on promotion and are comfortable with me fighting in other places, so once I have the ring rust blasted off, we should be looking at that fight soon enough,” he concludes.

 

[Shogun Locc]

IS ZELG GALESIC U.S. BOUND?

“I am currently without a contract,” exclaims devastating Croatian born striker Zelg Galesic (9-4).

A Dream veteran and former Cage Rage middleweight champion, he is confident that this brief spell of unemployment is only a temporary thing, “At the moment, it is likely that I will re-sign with Dream, but some other options have come to light this week and I am looking at them closely.”

With the UFC and Strikeforce engaging in a battle to snap up talent, could it be that the Croatian will be fighting in a cage again sometime soon?

“I started fighting in a cage and it would be good to get back to that at some point, but the main deciding factor will be based on the potential for exciting fights,” he explains. The Japanese haven’t really been able to see the full potential Galesic has due to matchmaking him with Judoka’s and jiu-jitsu players, but he looks at both the Dream and Strikeforce divisions and can see opponents that will really give him the type of fights he wants.

“I look at fighters like Robbie Lawler, Scott Smith, and Cung Le in Strikeforce; I would love to throw down with them, but in the same respect I look at people like Paulo Filho, Jason Miller, and Andrews Nakahara in Dream and see good fights there too – especially with Nakahara with his aggressive style.”

Galesic has largely been off of the fans minds due to injury and bad luck, but he feels that things are looking up and has been working his way back to full health. His heart pulls for Japan as he has been fighting there for a few years already, but he knows that wherever he decides to materialize, he will have to shake off some rust as well as answer some questions about how well he has healed. Pressure testing in the gym is one thing, actual combat and its inherent unpredictability is something else.

“It’s been nearly a year since I fought. I have broke my leg and spent two months in plaster, then had some other niggling injuries, then some health problems, but all that is behind me now and I have been training solidly for the last six months,” he offers.

The downtime and road to recovery has allowed him to experiment more with his approach to training, to seek out new sparring partners, plugging holes in his game, and a return to his homeland for a while. At the moment, he is as much of a free agent in training as he is in fighting. However, like many career fighters, training just isn’t enough anymore and he is itching for competition.

“In a ring or a cage, I will be back in action before the end of the year. You can count on that. I want to showcase my best side, my aggressive streak. So let’s see who I can get to stand up with me.”

 

[Shogun Locc]

DAMARQUES JOHNSON VS PETER SOBOTTA AT UFC 105

A welterweight contest between DaMarques Johnson (9-7) and Peter Sobotta (8-2) is set for UFC 105 on Nov. 14 in Manchester, England.

Sources close to the fight informed MMAWeekly.com of the match-up on Tuesday evening. The event has yet to be announced by the UFC, and is expected to take place at the Manchester Evening News Arena.

Johnson, 27, who trains out of Elite Performance Gym outside of Salt Lake City, will attempt to rebound from a disappointing submission loss to James Wilks at the season nine finale of "The Ultimate Fighter," where he was an early favorite.

Johnson got a healthy dose of camera time on the reality show for a rivalry with Team U.K. coach Michael Bisping. The two nearly came to blows when Bisping squirted Johnson with water over a perceived insult in the show's ninth episode.

Sobotta, a 22-year-old resident of Balingen, Germany, made his Octagon debut at UFC 99, where he lost to U.K. striker Paul Taylor by unanimous decision. Sobotta began his martial arts career in Judo and has won several submission accolades in East Germany. Seven of his eight career wins have come in the first round.

 

[Shogun Locc]

Report: Tito Ortiz and Mark Coleman set for UFC 106 on Nov. 21 in Las Vegas

A bout that UFC president Dana White in July mentioned as possible is apparently now official as reports have surfaced that Tito Ortiz (15-6-1 MMA, 14-6-1 UFC) will meet Mark Coleman (16-9 MMA, 7-4 UFC) at UFC 106.

Fighters Only magazine was the first to report the deal as complete, citing sources close to Coleman, and MMA Authentics executive Mike DiSabato, a sponsor of "The Hammer's," has since posted additional confirmation on his Twitter account.

UFC 106 is scheduled for Nov. 21 at Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas.

The bout will be Ortiz's first since May 2008, a period marked by often-malicious negotiating tactics by both the "Huntington Beach Bad Boy" and the UFC. The popular Ortiz will be seeking his first win since an October 2006 TKO of Ken Shamrock. The 34-year-old has gone 0-2-1 since that win, suffering losses to Chuck Liddell and Lyoto Machida while settling for a draw against Rashad Evans.

Coleman will be looking to build on a July win over Stephan Bonnar at UFC 100. The victory was Coleman's first since a February 2006 win over Mauricio "Shogun" Rua under the PRIDE banner – and his first in the UFC's octagon since a February 1997 submission win over fellow UFC Hall of Famer Dan Severn.

Ortiz's return to the UFC was officially announced in a July media call, at which point the former champion said he and White had forever put their differences aside.

"Dana came to me ... and apologized to me," Ortiz said. "For me personally it was about competition. (The UFC) is the best show in the world. That's why I'm here."

 

[Shogun Locc]

Nick Thompson suffers cut in training, scratched from "M-1 Global presents Breakthrough"

If M-1 Global officials are looking for a break, it apparently won't come this month.

MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) has learned from sources close to the fighter that UFC, Strikeforce and EliteXC veteran Nick Thompson (38-11-1) has suffered a cut in training and has been forced to drop out of "M-1 Global present Breakthrough." The loss of the co-main event contestant comes after the card was relocated from Los Angeles to Kansas City, Kan., and after main-event competitor Don Frye withdrew from the event due to the venue change.

M-1 Global officials weren't immediately available for comment, and it is currently unknown whether the promotion will be able to find a replacement opponent for French fighter Karl Amoussou (10-2-1) in time for the Aug. 28 event.

Thompson was looking to bounce back from a disappointing loss to Tim Kennedy in June under the Strikeforce banner. A timeframe for "The Goat's" return wasn't immediately known.

Meanwhile, Amoussou was hoping to build on a two-fight win streak, a stretch that includes a 23-second flying-knee knockout in his most recent contest.

Headlined by heavyweight contest between Mark Kerr and Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal and featuring an exhibition match between Fedor Emelianenko and Gegard Mousasi, "M-1 Global presents Breakthrough" will air on HDNet.

MAIN CARD

* Mark Kerr (15-10) vs. Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal (4-0)
* Karl Amoussou (10-2-1) vs. TBA
* Fedor Emelianenko vs. Gegard Mousasi (exhibition sparring match)
* Rogent Lloret (7-1) vs. Alexey Oleinik (24-4) (swing bout)
* Lucio Linhares (12-4) vs. Mikhail Zayats (8-3)
* Rob Broughton (10-4-1) vs. Jessie Gibbs (7-2)
* Lloyd "Kadillac" Marshbanks (17-8) vs. Michael Kitta (5-3)
* Ferrid Kheder (13-4) vs. Daisuke Nakamura (19-10)

PRELIMINARY CARD (un-aired)

* Joe Wilk (5-2) vs. TBA
* Molly Ahlers-Estes (1-0) vs. Andrea Caplan (0-0)

 

[Shogun Locc]

Kyle Bradley injured and ruled out against Sam Stout at UFC Fight Night 19

Lightweight Kyle Bradley recently sustained an undisclosed injury while training, forcing him out of his upcoming bout against Sam Stout at UFC Fight Night 19: “Diaz vs. Guillard” from the Cox Convention Center in Oklahoma City, Okla., on Saturday, Sept. 16.

No replacement to take on “Hands of Stone” is known at this time.

Bradley was out to prove that his first round technical knockout win over Phillipe Nover at UFC 98: “Evans vs. Machida” back in May, which took less than 65 seconds, was no fluke.

That’s because the 155-pound bout was mired in controversy when it appeared that Nover — The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 8 lightweight finalist — was in trouble after a big slam and subsequent flurry from Bradley. However, replays showed that Nover appeared to be maneuvering for a submission when the referee in charge of the action, Yves Lavigne, stepped in to stop the action.

Regardless, the result stood and Bradley registered his first win inside the Octagon in three attempts. He’ll now have to wait a little while longer to make it two out of four.

UFC Fight Night 19: “Diaz vs. Guillard” will feature a main event between hungry lightweight up-and-comers and former TUF grads Nate Diaz and Melvin “The Young Assassin” Guillard.

In addition, Roger “El Matador” Huerta will throwdown for perhaps the last time inside the Octagon as he tries to leave on a high note against the stifling super-wrestler Gray “The Bully” Maynard.

 

[VanD]

wtf is exhibition sparring? they gonna wear headgear and throw wack punch combos?