Kamikaze Overdrive MMA: UFC 135 Predictions

My picks for UFC 135 Jones vs Rampage, predictions for the 5 main card fights and 4 prelim fights. Also included are my rankings for the 7 UFC divisions, the Champion and top 15 Contenders and Kamikaze Countdown. Please comment and please subscribe

Logan The Pink Pounder Clark  Steve The Snake Claveau  Rich No Love Clementi  Mark The Hammer Coleman Wes Soldier Combs 

Does this look like people in search of trouble or what?

@mark_munoz and me looking for the almighty dimsum!!!

Karen Darabedyan Viacheslav Datsik Marcus Davis  Tony DeSouza  Edwin Dewees 

James Head injured, UFC newcomer John Maguire now meets Justin Edwards at UFC 138

Mark Scanlon was recently injured and forced out of a fight with James Head at UFC 138. He was replaced by UFC newcomer John Maguire against James Head, but now Head has suffered an injury as well, and Maguire will meet Justin Edwards instead.

Maguire brings a 16-3 record with him into his Octagon debut, while Edwards looks to build on his victory over Jorge Lopez at UFC Fight Night 25 earlier this month.

Shane The Engineer Carwin  Jason Hollywood Chambers Ryo Piranha Chonan  Dan The Sandman Christison  Logan The Pink Pounder Clark 

Bellator 51 sees slight uptick in viewership from Bellator 50 with 158,000 viewers

Saturday's Bellator 51 event saw a slight ratings bump from Bellator's series-low of 114,000 viewers for last week's Bellator 50 event. MMAJunkie.com reports that the card brought in 158,000 viewers, which while higher than last week's low-mark, still ranked as only the 14th out of 17 events on the network.

The card featured the kick off to the season five bantamweight tournament, with Bellator Featherweight Champion Joe Warren getting knocked out by Alexis Vila and Marcos Galvao, Eduardo Danta and Ed West all moving on to the semifinals.

Ebenezer Fontes Braga Chris Brennan Marcelo Brito  Rob Broughton  Mike Brown 

Strikeforce Challengers 19 Salary Information

This past Friday the latest Strikeforce Challengers Series took place, featuring an evenly-matched night of action with top prospects Ryan Couture, Jason High, and Lorenz Larkin all coming out of the festivities ahead on the judges? scorecards.
A few days removed, the Nevada State Athletic Commission has since released the Strikeforce Challengers 19 with a number [...]

Luiz Azeredo  Luciano Azevedo  Ba Te er  Ryan Bader  Siyar Bahadurzada

Dave Herman out of UFC 136 due to failed drug test

UFC heavyweight Dave Herman was pulled from UFC 136 earlier this week for undisclosed reasons. Herman has stated that the reason he was pulled from UFC 136 was due to a failed drug test.

The UFC 136 main card bout between Herman and Mike Russow was scrapped and replaced by an anticipated rematch between Leonard Garcia and Nam Phan.

Siyar Bahadurzada Bao Ligao  Josh Barnett  David Baron  Phil Baroni

Jones adds to trophy case, finishes ?Rampage? in fourth

The light heavyweight division should be extremely scared.

Jon Jones is still learning on the job, yet he's putting the division to shame. Jones schooled Quinton "Rampage" Jackson in every area of the game and finished the former champ via rear-naked choke at the 1:14 mark of the fourth round in the main event of UFC 135 in Denver.

This was Jones' first defense of the UFC light heavyweight title, a belt he won back in March by destroying another highly accomplished veteran in Mauricio "Shogun" Rua.

The 24-year-old Jones (14-1, 8-1 UFC - only loss via disqualification) has barely been threatened in nine UFC fights. Keep in mind, Jones started his MMA career just three and half years ago. His control of the fight Saturday night was awe-inspiring.

The veteran Jackson (32-9, 7-3 UFC) is still a very good fighter, but he never found a way to ward off the versatile attack coming from Jones.

"The goal was to prove we can strike with Quinton Jackson," Jones said. "He kind of insulted me saying I have no punching power. So my trainer Mike Winkeljohn cleaned up my striking to prove a point."

During the lead up to the fight, Jackson said Jones was all hype. After three-plus rounds of absorbing dozens of nasty kicks, punches and elbows as well as fighting off takedowns, mark down Jackson as a believer.

"I'm in the best shape of my life. I expected to be able to close the distance. I couldn't do it," Jackson said. "He's great guys. I thought it was hype. The kid is good. I have to take my hat off to him."

[Related: Phenom Jones outclasses Jackson at UFC 135]

When Jones references his striking, he's talking about his hands, which are still a work in progress. But there's no denying his kicking game is as dangerous as anyone who's ever stepped into a cage.

Over the first 15 minutes, Jones brutalized Rampage's lead leg with kicks to the inside and outside. By the fourth round, Jackson was limping badly.

In the opening seconds of the round, Jones showed off some of that improvement with his boxing by landing a left hook that hurt Jackson. The 33-year-old backed up to the cage and Jones took him down. Rampage was sitting up against the cage when Jones delivered a big knee to his chest. It had to knock the wind out of Jackson because he slumped to his side. He was there for the taking.

Jones worked him to his back and rolled it over. He slapped on a choke and Jackson tapped six seconds later.

"Before the fourth round, my corner felt he was starting to break a little bit, so we came out and finished the fight," said Jones.

[Related: After yet another thorough win, can anybody stop Jon Jones?]

Jones' kicks really set things up over the course of the first three rounds, but Jackson was quick to point out the champion's wrestling pedigree also made him hesitant to attack.

"Jon is a great wrestler so you don't want to take too many chances. Jon keeps his fingers in your face so it's hard to get close to him," Jackson said of Jones, who possesses an incredible 84-inch reach. "Jon is good. I'm telling you, the kid's here to stay. I don't know ... whoever he fights next, I don't know who's going to beat him. He had me mesmerized."

Up next is Jones' former training partner Rashad Evans. Evans, also a former UFC 205-pound champion, had a bitter split with Jones and their gym in Albuquerque, NM. earlier this year. The trash talking between the two has been going on for the better part of nine months. It should make for a dynamite promotion.

The fight itself? Like Rampage said, who knows? If Jones keep improving and adding to his arsenal with each fight, the guy who'll eventually beat him may be in junior high school right now.

Other popular stories on Yahoo! Sports:
? Passan: Red Sox clubhouse is full of confusion
? College football's Week 4 Winners and Losers
? Durant gives teammate Westbrook vote of confidence

John Alessio  Houston Alexander Ricardo Almeida  Eddie Alvarez Thiago Alves 

Pick a Card: Dream 17 (Bantamweight Grand Prix)

This Friday kicks off a ridiculously busy weekend of MMA. In terms of national telecasts, you?ve got Titan FC, Strikeforce Challengers, UFC 135 and, as evident from the title of this article, the latest DREAM event. This one, the seventeenth in the perennial Japanese MMA powerhouse?s series says goodbye to a popular tradition ? the [...]

Joe Doerksen  Chris Dolman Edson Drago  Tomasz Drwal Joe Hybrid Duarte

Will UFC on Fox help boxing?s cause? De La Hoya says yes

Golden Boy Promotions and boxing had a huge week with the Floyd Mayweather-Victor Ortiz fight. Meanwhile, the UFC was putting together all the details on its first network television show on Fox on Nov. 12. It's short term vs. long term. Boxing promoter Oscar De La Hoya understands that and had nothing but good things to say about the Fox deal.

"I congratulate Dana White for doing an amazing job," De La Hoya said. "My utmost respect to Dana White. I believe he's a brilliant guy. He's a tremendous guy to have in a combat sport."

There is no jealousy coming from DLH because he believes the Fox deal could pave the way for boxing to get back on network TV.

"I can feel very confident in saying that, sooner rather than later,� it will be back on network television," De La Hoya said. "When you put good fights together people want to watch, and when you have any type of network television behind boxing you will create good ratings."

De La Hoya said Golden Boy is working on taking those steps. Would boxing sacrifice HBO, Showtime and most importantly pay-per-view money to put free fights on network television? We'll see. Frankly, it's probably not up to the boxing promoters. Television executives will make the decision and they certainly need to be re-sold on the viability of the combat sport that was on network television until the early 80's.

Murilo Bustamante  Grant Campbell  Gesias JZ Calvancante  Luiz Cane  Dos Caras Jr  

I get bored very easily

And tend to daydream during lectures at school and sometimes when ppl are talking to me . The only way I don't get bored easily if I have a few beers...

Roan Jucao Carneiro Shane The Engineer Carwin  Jason Hollywood Chambers Ryo Piranha Chonan  Dan The Sandman Christison 

Hendo Returns to Face Shogun at UFC 139

Alex Andrade  Jermaine Andrè  Yoji Anjo  Ao Hailin  Shinya Aoki 

WWE SmackDown! Taping Draws 1,600 Paying Customers

Last Tuesday’s SmackDown! taping in Toledo, Ohio was one of the worst attended WWE events in years as it drew 3,200 fans, with only 1,600 paid.
Following the event’s poor advance, WWE only sold tickets facing the camera so the Huntington Center would appear full on television. SLAM! Wrestling columnist Matt Bishop, who attended the event, described the venue’s appearance: “Tuesday’s tapings of WWE Smackdown, Superstars and NXT wasn’t notable because of what happened in the ring, but rather because of what was happening outside the ringside area. Or more appropriately, ...

Justin Eilers  Jon Olav Einemo Per Eklund Jason Ellis Aleksander Emelianenko

Gil Martinez Blog: Chandler's Future, UFN 25, and UFC 135

Back again with another round, as it were. As you may have heard by now our camp got some bad news with Eddie Alvarez having to pull out of his title-fight against Michael Chandler at Bellator 54. Mike was completely disappointed, but, as I told him, all it means is it taking a little longer [...]

Jermaine Andrè  Yoji Anjo  Ao Hailin  Shinya Aoki  Andrei Arlovski 

Chris Clements trains for title bout

TWP visits Adrenaline training centre to see Chris Clements training for his Professional Fighting Championships Welterweight title bout.copyright2011vipproductions

Kotetsu Boku  Tony Bonello Stephan Bonnar Lorenzo Borgomeo  Kyle Bradley 

HYDEN BLOG: Wrestlers, Matt Hughes, and Jon Jones

By: Frank Hyden, MMATorch contributor

A lot of people say that wrestling is the dominant discipline in mixed martial arts. The truth is that there isn't a true dominant discipline in MMA. Wrestling helps you get and avoid takedowns, but if you don't have other skills you can only get so far. It's the same with striking, you can knock out opponents and avoid getting knocked out, but what happens when you get taken down? Being able to apply and defend submissions is great, but you have to first get the fight to the ground.

Being one-dimensional can get you to the upper-midcard level and maybe, if the division is lacking challengers, even a title fight. However, the second you run into a more well-rounded opponent you're made to look bad as he destroys you.

The only reason I bring this up is because of what happened to Joe Warren this past weekend at Bellator 51. Warren is a great wrestler, but he doesn't really have a well-rounded game. In his defense, though, Warren has only had nine MMA fights, including this past Saturday when he lost to Alexis Vila. I'm not singling out Warren to trash him, he's merely the most recent example of a great one-dimensional fighter losing to a more well-rounded fighter. Vila won a bronze medal in the Olympics in 1996, he's obviously a great wrestler in his own right. Vila is 10-0, with seven of those wins by knockout and two by submission. That means he's more well-rounded than Warren is.

My point is that if you want to be considered an elite MMA competitor you have to be well-rounded. Being great at one thing is a good foundation, but you have to build upon that to go far.

*************

I expected Josh Koscheck to beat up Matt Hughes at UFC 135. I would say most expected that to happen. I've said many times before that I never want to tell a guy when to retire, but we've now reached the point with Hughes where he has to seriously consider retiring for his long-term health. Hughes has suffered two brutal knockouts in his last two fights. It might be time to concede that age has caught up to him. If Hughes wants to keep fighting, then he'll have to move into that Special Attraction territory where he only fights other older fighters who won't knock his head off.

The legacy of Matt Hughes is secure and nothing can change that. The lowlights towards the end of your career don't diminish the highlights you gave at your peak. When people picture Michael Jordan they don't imagine his run with the Washington Wizards, they think of his title runs with the Chicago Bulls. In a few more years, people will mainly remember Chuck Liddell's knockouts and highlight reel finishes, not the way he went out. People don't forget that stuff, but it's not the first thing that springs to mind when they think of that athlete. The same will even be true of Ken Shamrock, whenever he decides to give it up. About five years or so after Shamrock retires for real, people will mainly remember the good, not the bad.

I don't want to force Matt Hughes to retire, but he needs to take a serious look at himself and what he wants from life after his fighting career is over.

*************

Jon Jones is beginning to show the signs of becoming the dominant force in MMA that we all think he'll become. It's a long road for him to get to the same level that guys like Georges St-Pierre and Anderson Silva are on, but it's looking like only a matter of time now. Jones and his ridiculous reach of 84 inches makes him very dangerous in so many ways. The first thing you think of is his ability to punch you while keeping himself out of harm's way. He can jab you to death, or throw punches from crazy angles to keep you guessing. Jones is also able to utilize his long limbs to apply submissions that guys with shorter arms and legs wouldn't be able to.

There's no question that Jones has been blessed with many physical gifts. However, being physically talented will only get you so far. If Jones puts the work in, and all indications are that he is, he can become the best fighter in history. That's a big if, but it's an exciting prospect. The fight world is full of guys with tremendous physical ability who never realized that potential. If Jones is able to fulfill that potential, we could be looking at the best of all-time.


Comments and suggestions can be e-mailed to me at hydenfrank@gmail.com

Jimmy Ambriz Matt Andersen  Alex Andrade  Jermaine Andrè  Yoji Anjo 

Ultimate Submissions presents 'chain grappling' featuring Nate Diaz and TJ Waldburger

Eric Butterbean Esch Efrain Escudero Rashad Evans Urijah Faber Tank Abbott

EliteXC?s Gary Shaw Tried To Sign Fedor Emelianenko, But Wouldn?t Meet M-1 Global?s Demands

Dana White and the UFC weren’t the only ones that passed on Fedor Emelianenko. Former EliteXC frontman Gary Shaw revealed to FightHubTV that they also considered signing Fedor, but passed for all the same reasons the UFC did. “I did try several times to get Fedor to come to EliteXC, but the numbers they were [...]

David Bielkheden Michael Bisping  Dan Bobish Vagam Bodjukyan Kotetsu Boku 

One FC's Eddie Ng ready to shine in 2012

Eddie Ng burst onto the Asian scene with a bang with a spectacular one punch knock out win at ONE Fighting Championship 1. It has been a roller coaster ride for the Cantonese fighter who was living and training in England until he was recruited by Evolve MMA and promptly offered a contract with Asia?s [...]

Chris Brennan Marcelo Brito  Rob Broughton  Mike Brown  Junie Browning

Jones shares his big moment with his flooded hometown

Jon Jones experienced the most triumphant moment of his career on Saturday night, defending the light heavyweight championship with a fourth-round submission of former champ Quinton Jackson. He could have savored the moment and made it all about him, but instead he talked about his beleaguered hometown.

Saying, "Endicott, New York, my heart goes out to you," Jones mentioned the flooding that has hit New York state hard. Endicott, which is near Binghamton in the southern part of the state, is rebuilding now after floods in the wake of Hurricane Irene forced evacuations. Water covered the town in a scene that was described as surreal.

While in the Octagon, Jones asked for fans to make donations to help with the clean-up. Through a representative, he recommended the Broome County Council of Churches, who is working to clean up the area. Make a donation here.

Ryo Piranha Chonan  Dan The Sandman Christison  Logan The Pink Pounder Clark  Steve The Snake Claveau  Rich No Love Clementi 

Pre-fight Press Conference - UFC 131

Hear from Dana White, Junior dos Santos, Shane Carwin, Kenny Florian, Diego Nunes, Sam Stout and Yves Edwards at the UFC 131 pre-fight press conference held June 9 in Vancouver, BC.

John Alessio  Houston Alexander Ricardo Almeida  Eddie Alvarez Thiago Alves 

UFC on Versus 6 Conference Call Audio

Audio from yesterday’s UFC on Versus 6 conference call with Dominick Cruz, Demetrious Johnson, Pat Barry and Stefan Struve via BJPenn.com.

Tank Abbott Hiroyuki Abe Cyril Abidi  Daniel Acacio Bernard Ackah 

Koch takes UFN 25 decision over TUF winner Brookins

Erik Koch took a unanimous decision win at Ultimate Fight Night 25 over "The Ultimate Fighter" winner Jonathan Brookins. Koch won the fight 30-27, 29-28, 30-27 on the judges cards.

Koch was strong in the first round, landing more strikes and controlling Brookins against the fence. After Koch got the better of Brookins in striking in the second round, Brookins tried for a takedown. He had a hard time bringing the fight to the ground and when he did, Koch landed on top of him. They worked back to their feet, where Koch landed leg kicks. Brookins finally got the takedown in the final minute of the second, but was not able to do much with it except take knees from Koch as they returned to their feet.

Koch continued to win the striking game in the third round, as he stuck to the game plan of punch-punch-kick and using his speed to throw Brookins off. He also continued to be successful in holding off Brookins' takedown attempts.

A one-time WEC fighter, Koch has rattled off four straight wins. His record is now 13-1, with the lone loss coming to Chad Mendes. Brookins, who won the 12th season of TUF, falls to 12-4. His last previous loss was to featherweight champ Jose Aldo.

Per Eklund Jason Ellis Aleksander Emelianenko Fedor Emelianenko Yasubey Enomoto

UFC Quick Quote: Jon Jones already has the 'Mike Tyson effect'

Roan Jucao Carneiro Shane The Engineer Carwin  Jason Hollywood Chambers Ryo Piranha Chonan  Dan The Sandman Christison 

Shane Carwin Discusses Leaner Diet, Plan of Attack Against Junior dos Santos - UFC 131

Shane Carwin Discusses Leaner Diet, Plan of Attack Against Junior dos Santos Video by UFC 131

John Alessio  Houston Alexander Ricardo Almeida  Eddie Alvarez Thiago Alves 

UFC 135 Results ? Jon Jones vs. Rampage Jackson

UFC 135 features light heavyweight champion Jon “Bones” Jones defends his title against former champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. Follow along with the results from the event which takes place from the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado. UFC 135 Preliminary Card Results James Te Huna defeats Ricardo Romero by knockout at 47 seconds of the first [...]

UFC 135 Results – Jon Jones vs. Rampage Jackson is a post from: MMA Interplay UFC News

Tadhg Steamfist Dixon Joe Doerksen  Chris Dolman Edson Drago  Tomasz Drwal

Steven Seagal Liked Rampage Jackson Head Movement, Not Happy With Jones

Seagal gives out more of his “Humble Opinions” in interview with Ariel Helwani.

Kit Cope  Wesley Cabbage Correira  Patrick The Predator Côté  Randy The Natural Couture  Dan Cramer

ENNIS: Forget heavyweight fights from UFC 135, the weekend belonged to lighter weight classes

By: Shawn Ennis, MMATorch Senior Columnist

I'm not one of those guys who trashes relatively weak UFC cards. They can't all be UFC 100, right? You'll never catch me saying before Saturday night that Bellator will be better than the UFC. Besides the fact that UFC cards are, if nothing else, more significant than anyone else's, they frequently also put on the best and most entertaining fights. Having said all that, let's face the facts. What we saw on Saturday night in Denver, between the gasp-fests of Browne-Broughton and Hunt-Rothwell and the clinic of Jones-Jackson, the heavier weight classes left something to be desired. I'm still working my way through the weekend's events (my DVR is exhausted), but from what I've seen between the UFC's Facebook prelims and the Bellator and Dream tournament opening rounds, this weekend belonged to the little guys - especially the bantamweights. And it wasn't remotely close.

Besides putting on some fantastic fights, we actually saw some guys who could be breaking out. Here's a breakdown:

-Bellator Featherweight Champion and self-proclaimed "Baddest Man on the Planet" Joe Warren entered Bellator's second bantamweight tournament, hoping to add another title to his collection. His ambitions proved to be too much as undefeated Alexis Vila ended Warren's night just a little over a minute into the first round, knocking the Greco-Roman ace out cold with a vicious punch after stunning him earlier. Vila immediately becomes one to watch.

-After dropping a decision in a rematch with Hiroyuki Takaya, Bibiano Fernandes rebounded in a big way with a nasty technical submission over Takafumi Otsuka. Fernandes would be a great addition to any organization's bantamweight division.

-Antonio Banuelos and Hideo Tokoro will never be Bantamweight Champions. But they put on a heck of an entertaining fight. Tokoro frequently puts on a show whether he's winning or losing. His fights with Daiki Hata, Abel Cullum and Yoshiro Maeda are good examples.

-Wilson Reis was a highly touted prospect back in the EliteXC days. He hasn't quite lived up to what people expected him to do since then, though he's had respectable fights. He's shown susceptibility to good strikers, though, and Eduardo Dantas continued that trend with a flying knee TKO on Saturday night. The Bellator bantamweight tournament is almost certainly the best tournament they've ever had. It's a very respectable bracket.

-I was traveling to Ohio on Friday night, so I haven't been able to completely watch the Titan FC card, but I did get where I was going just in time to watch Jamie Varner catch a hellacious beatdown at the hands of the unheralded Dakota Cochrane. Cochrane was positively dominant and just busted Varner up. He's only been fighting since November of 2009, and he's already 11-1. That's a lot of fights in under two years. Watch out for this guy.

-And of course on the UFC side there was Takeya Mizugaki more than likely ending Cole Escovedo's run in the UFC with a nice striking attack that resulted in a TKO, and there was Nate Diaz smoking the shell of Takanori Gomi.

The light heavyweight and heavyweight divisions are the default marquee divisions in combat sports, but to miss out on the little guys of 155 and under would be an absolute crime. The current drawing power of lightweight and featherweight will be tested at UFC 136 when Frankie Edgar and Jose Aldo both look to defend their titles in what look to be stellar match-ups. Here's hoping that the combination of UFC 136, this season of TUF and the UFC's new deal with Fox/FX/Fuel, we'll have some new marquee divisions soon.

Josh Burkman  Mikey Burnett  Murilo Bustamante  Grant Campbell  Gesias JZ Calvancante 

Mark Hominick clashes with Chan Sung Jung at UFC 140

The UFC has given another Canadian product an opportunity to compete in his home-country this December when the promotion returns to Toronto for UFC 140. Already featuring popular area-athletes like Rory MacDonald and Mark Bocek, the card will now boast a match-up between featherweight contender Mark Hominick and always-exciting Chan Sung Jung.

The UFC recently revealed [...]

Logan The Pink Pounder Clark  Steve The Snake Claveau  Rich No Love Clementi  Mark The Hammer Coleman Wes Soldier Combs 

UFC 135 Results Recap: Jon Jones vs. Rampage Jackson

Vitor Belfort  Robert Berry David Bielkheden Michael Bisping  Dan Bobish

Another New Start for Tony Ferguson

Joe Doerksen  Chris Dolman Edson Drago  Tomasz Drwal Joe Hybrid Duarte

White video scrum: Henderson and Le wanted to be in the UFC, Showtime?s deadline is quickly approaching

The defection of Strikeforce fighters to the UFC was inevitable, but even the most cynical MMA viewer has to admit it's happening at an accelerated pace.

Cung Le is gone from Strikeforce and slated for a fight in San Jose at UFC 139 against Wanderlei Silva. Dan Henderson just left the promotion as well to headline that same UFC card against Mauricio "Shogun" Rua.

Strikeforce, purchased by Zuffa back in March, has now lost its heavyweight, light heavyweight and welterweight champions to the UFC. How much longer is Showtime interested in broadcasting a promotion that's losing all its big stars?

"It depends on whether they want to seriously stay in the business, in the mixed martial arts business," White told the gathered media following the UFC 135 prefight press conference. "There's a deadline on the deal. [...] I think it's another month [they need to decide] if they want to be in the business."

White said the problem with smaller promotions is their desire to get a television deal come hell or high water.

"Everybody that comes into this business thinks pay-per-view or free TV is the answer, is the Holy Grail, it's the answer to everybody's problems. [Expletive]. Either one of those two things will put you out of business. They get into these bad deals with companies, and next thing you know, you're $30 million in the whole," White said. "I would classify everybody who's done a television deal out there besides us has done a bad deal. Everyone."

As far as Le and Henderson, White said in matter-of-fact fashion that both wanted to fight in the UFC. He also called the Rua-Henderson match up a great fight and that the winner is probably in line for the next 205-pound title shot after Rashad Evans gets his crack.

Tony DeSouza  Edwin Dewees  Nick Diaz  Tadhg Steamfist Dixon Joe Doerksen 

Bellator 51 Results: Vila, Dantas, Galvao, West Advance to Bantamweight Semis

Bellator 51 took place on Saturday in Canton, Ohio and MMAFrenzy.com was in attendance as Bellator's season five bantamweight tournament kicked off with Alexis Vila knocking out Joe Warren and Eduardo Dantas upsetting Wilson Reis in quarterfinal matchups.

Logan The Pink Pounder Clark  Steve The Snake Claveau  Rich No Love Clementi  Mark The Hammer Coleman Wes Soldier Combs 

B.J. Penn doesn?t want to make it personal against Nick Diaz

In last week's UFC 137 switcheroo, B.J. Penn ended up facing Nick Diaz instead of Carlos Condit. Because of that, the producers of "Countdown," the show that airs to hype up UFC cards, had to work with Penn again to make the show suitable for the new line-up.

Penn says that the UFC asked him to say Diaz's name and "I'm going to beat Nick Diaz," something Penn found a problem with.

A few things to mention here:

1. Countdown's role is to hype up fights. Of course they want Penn to say something about his opponent. That will help sell pay-per-views, which is a good goal for everyone, right?

2. Penn has threatened to lick blood off his opponents. He has trash-talked before every fight, except for when he fought his friend Matt Hughes. Now he's worried about saying, "I'm going to beat Nick Diaz?" C'mon, son.

3. He says that he is worried that Diaz will be edited to look like a bad guy. Really, B.J.? This video was not edited, and Diaz still didn't come out looking that hot.

If Penn doesn't want to talk trash, that's fine. But that's not what he was asked to do. He was asked to say he was going to win the fight. Is that really all that bad?

Marcus Aurelio  Mikhail Avetisyan Luiz Azeredo  Luciano Azevedo  Ba Te er 

WWE SmackDown! Taping Draws 1,600 Paying Customers

Last Tuesday’s SmackDown! taping in Toledo, Ohio was one of the worst attended WWE events in years as it drew 3,200 fans, with only 1,600 paid.
Following the event’s poor advance, WWE only sold tickets facing the camera so the Huntington Center would appear full on television. SLAM! Wrestling columnist Matt Bishop, who attended the event, described the venue’s appearance: “Tuesday’s tapings of WWE Smackdown, Superstars and NXT wasn’t notable because of what happened in the ring, but rather because of what was happening outside the ringside area. Or more appropriately, ...

Mike Brown  Junie Browning Paul Buentello  Josh Burkman  Mikey Burnett 

UFC allows questionable music choices at UFN 25

One of the fun parts of a live UFC event is the way fighters use music to pump up as they walk out to the Octagon, but two fighters made questionable choices in their walkout songs at Ultimate Fight Night 25. Those bad decisions were then repeated by UFC president Dana White, who approves every song that is used by fighters.

Ken Stone, who won via submission, walked out to the Prodigy song, "Smack My Bitch Up." The song repeats two lines, "Smack my bitch up, change my pitch up." When it was released in 1997, it was protested by women's groups as condoning violence towards women. MTV only allowed the song to be played late at night, and Wal-Mart and K-Mart pulled the CD from its stores. Prodigy released a statement that the song was not about violence, but that's not apparent from its lyrics.

The next bad decision was when Matt Riddle walked out to the Scorpions song, "Rock You Like a Hurricane." In most cities, it's the perfect song to walk out to, but these fights took place in New Orleans. That's a city that was literally rocked by a hurricane in 2005. Hurricane Katrina's effects are still being felt in New Orleans, as they struggle to restore their population and status as a tourist destination to pre-Katrina levels.

The UFC generally controls their brand very tightly, and UFC officials confirmed to Cagewriter that White approves every walkout song. He has vetoed songs in the past. It's surprising that the UFC would let these two songs slip through.

Josh Barnett  David Baron  Phil Baroni Don Barr Pat Barry 

Featherweight Erik Koch brings GTL to the UFC

Erik Koch is from Cedar Rapids, Iowa and trains in Milwaukee, Wisc. Neither place is known for its sunshine, so Koch's George Hamilton-esque tan was noticed by reporters at the Ultimate Fight Night 25 open workouts.

At least he admits that the tan is not au natural, though someone should break it to Koch that a glass of milk is a way better source of vitamin D.

Koch will face "The Ultimate Fighter" winner Jonathan Brookins on Saturday. He was supposed to face Cub Swanson at UFC 132, but Swanson pulled out due to an injury. Koch is coming into this fight on a three-fight win streak. His one loss under the Zuffa banner is to Chad Mendes on a fight that Koch took on short notice.

Dan Cramer Alberto Crane Marcio Pe de Pano Cruz Luke Cummo  Jeff Big Frog Curran

Zoila Gurgel vs. Carina Damm non-title fight slated for Bellator 57

Bellator women's 115-pound champion Zoila Gurgel has signed to fight recent Strikeforce fighter Carina Damm in a non-title fight at Bellator 57.

Gurgel today confirmed the bout via Twitter following an initial report from MMARising.com. It'll be contested at 125 pounds.

Bellator 57 takes place Nov. 12 at Casino Rama in Rama, Ontario, Canada.

Siyar Bahadurzada Bao Ligao  Josh Barnett  David Baron  Phil Baroni

Another Strikeforce defection: Henderson vs. Rua at UFC 139

Strikeforce light heavyweight champion Dan Henderson will reportedly meet up with former UFC light heavyweight champ Mauricio "Shogun" Rua at UFC 139 on Nov. 19. This bout should make longtime MMA fans happy, but raises even more questions about the future of Strikeforce.

Both fighters made their names while in the Pride Fighting Championships in Japan. Rua was Pride's Grand Prix middleweight winner, while Henderson held multiple titles with the now-defunct promotion. Even with that shared history, this will be the first time they meet in a fight. Ten years ago, Henderson did defeat Shogun's brother, Murilo.

Henderson's last bout was a knockout of Fedor Emelianenko in what turned out to be the last Strikeforce fight for both men. Just weeks ago at UFC 134 in Brazil, Rua KOed Forrest Griffin.

This will be Henderson's third stint with the UFC. He fought at UFC 17 before Pride, then came back after Zuffa, the promotion that owns the UFC, bought Pride. When Strikeforce offered him a better contract, Henderson defected, but Zuffa purchased Strikeforce in March.

That purchase has allowed the UFC to pick off some of the Strikeforce's champs, like Nick Diaz, who will fight B.J. Penn at UFC 137, and Alistair Overeem, who will take on Brock Lesnar at UFC 141. Three men's championship belts -- heavyweight, light heavyweight and welterweight -- now stand vacant. After his win over Roger Gracie, former Strikeforce light heavyweight champ Mo Lawal said that he was not interested in fighting for a vacant belt, so that division's future is in flux.

[Related: Win tickets to UFC 135 from Edge Shave Gel and Cagewriter]

Henderson won't be the only former Strikeforcer to fight at UFC 139, as former middleweight champ, Cung Le, will take on Vitor Belfort at 139. The fights are expected to take place in San Jose, the one-time home of Strikeforce's offices.

***

Win tickets to UFC 135 though Edge Shave Gel and Cagewriter. Click here for more information.

Other popular stories on Yahoo! Sports:
? NFL player beans bystander during touchdown celebration
? Brad Pitt's 'shameful' baseball secret
? High school team punished for 9/11 tribute

Urijah Faber Tank Abbott Hiroyuki Abe Cyril Abidi  Daniel Acacio

MMA Gear for Enthusiasts

ShareThis

Efrain Escudero Rashad Evans Urijah Faber Tank Abbott Hiroyuki Abe

Dana White confirms title shot likely on the line in Dan Henderson vs. Mauricio "Shogun" Rua bout at UFC 139

There have been a lot of instances in the UFC of not having a clear cut challenger for a division's title. However, after confirming a number one contender's fight for this December in the heavyweight division between Brock Lesnar and Alistair Overeem, UFC President Dana White on Wednesday also confirmed what many suspected about a fight that was made just this week. White revealed that the winner of the UFC 139 main event between Mauricio "Shogun" Rua and Dan Henderson will likely receive the next title shot after Rashad Evans.

If no injuries mess up the plan, the Jon Jones-"Rampage" Jackson winner could face Evans by January, with the winner of that fight defending against "Shogun"/Henderson by May.

Marcio Pe de Pano Cruz Luke Cummo  Jeff Big Frog Curran Dai Shuanghai  Mac Danzig

'Rampage' Jackson: I Got No Respect for Jon Jones.-.

As pre-fight verbal battles go, the one between UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones and challenger Quinton "Rampage" Jackson is starting to get a little bit meta. During Monday's UFC 135 media...

Grant Campbell  Gesias JZ Calvancante  Luiz Cane  Dos Caras Jr   Phil Cardella

The Blueprint - Diaz vs. Gomi

Viacheslav Datsik Marcus Davis  Tony DeSouza  Edwin Dewees  Nick Diaz 

Video - Jon Jones and Quinton "Rampage" Jackson on ESPN's SportsCenter ahead of UFC 135

Jon Jones and Quinton "Rampage" Jackson had another tension fueled appearance together on Friday, jawing back and forth at each other on ESPN's SportsCenter. With both fighters in the middle of a weight cut for today's weigh-ins, they were certainly on edge throughout. Check out the back and forth below:



Video URL: http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:7008199

Steve The Snake Claveau  Rich No Love Clementi  Mark The Hammer Coleman Wes Soldier Combs  Ray Cooper 

Tweets of the Week - 9/16

Tom Big Cat Erickson Martinsh Egle Eric Butterbean Esch Efrain Escudero Rashad Evans

Kamikaze Overdrive MMA: UFC Battle on the Bayou

My picks for UFC Live Battle on the Bayou, predictions for the 4 main card fights and 3 prelim fights. Also included are my rankings for the 7 UFC divisions, the Champion and top 15 Contenders and Kamikaze Countdown. Please comment and please subs...

Dai Shuanghai  Mac Danzig Karen Darabedyan Viacheslav Datsik Marcus Davis 

Cain Velasquez: ?It's going to be a war out there for five rounds.?

UFC heavyweights Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos sat down with media earlier today for the first time since their headlining bout at UFC on FOX was announced and spoke about the challenges each faces in the other. As might be expected given their general attitudes, both showed great respect to the other and made [...]

Matt Andersen  Alex Andrade  Jermaine Andrè  Yoji Anjo  Ao Hailin 

Gil Martinez Blog: Strikeforce Grand Prix, Vitor vs. Cung

Back again after a weekend filled with fights and, of course, the opening kickoff of the new NFL season! Those of you who read my blog last week might remember I had a bet against Ulysses Gomez about the Raiders vs. Broncos game and anyone who watched Monday night knows who came out on the [...]

Andre Amade  Dean Amasinger  Jimmy Ambriz Matt Andersen  Alex Andrade 

Matt Hughes Talks Relationship With Pat Miletich, Then And Now

By <a href="mailto:howie@mmanews.com">Chris Howie</a> <Br>
MMANEWS.COM Staff Writer<Br><Br>

Matt Hughes steps into the cage this weekend at UFC 135 against Josh Koscheck in a fight that could make or break whether he steps back into the cage again.<Br><Br>

At the age of 37, Hughes isn't getting any younger but still is one of best welterweight fighters to have ever stepped inside the cage.<Br><Br>

After a few years away from long time trainer Pat Miletich, Hughes spent time with his old mentor in preparation for his fight this weekend and discussed it with Luke Thomas:<Br><Br>

"Pat and I, of course we're both busy and we do more texting than we do talking but I said, "Hey, I'm having a training camp in Hillsboro. Are you free in that week to come down?" and he said, "Yeah, I can come down for three days." It was very good. It was the first time we'd trained in quite a few years. Pat and I are like brothers, no doubt about it. If Pat would ever need anything, he'd call me up at 3 o'clock in the morning, need me to drive him somewhere, I'd do it and I'm sure he'd do the same thing for me for sure.<Br><Br>

"Back when Miletich had his big camp up there and there were quite a few world champions that would walk in the door every day and there's a bunch of guys up there, it was a meat market. If someone new walked in the gym, they were probably gonna get beat up pretty bad. Us core guys were kinda the ones doing the beating. It's not that way anymore. I've gotten older, a little more mature and I don't beat up on people like I used to when they step in the gym. Jeremy's out here in Salt Lake City. He moved away first. I moved away after Jeremy did so all us getting back together for this fight was a good thing. We had a lot of fun together."<Br><Br>

You can listen to the whole interview after the jump.<Br><Br>

<object style="height: 390px; width: 540px"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/xduAZZ16qtk?version=3"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/xduAZZ16qtk?version=3" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" width="540" height="360"></object><Br><Br>


Leave your feedback on this article by posting a comment directly below! You can also chat about the latest news in the MMANEWS.COM <a href=http://www.mmanews.com/forums
>Forums</a> and/or the MMANEWS.COM <a href=http://www.facebook.com/mmanewsdotcom
>Facebook</a>. If that wasn't enough, MMANEWS.COM is now on Twitter as well <a href=http://twitter.com/mmanewsdotcom
>@mmanewsdotcom</a>.<Br><Br>

Ricardo Almeida  Eddie Alvarez Thiago Alves  Andre Amade  Dean Amasinger 

The Blueprint - Hughes vs. Koscheck

Jermaine Andrè  Yoji Anjo  Ao Hailin  Shinya Aoki  Andrei Arlovski 

Cormier takes out ?Big Foot? with vicious KO at Strikeforce Grand Prix

Daniel Cormier doesn't look like the prototypical new age, massive heavyweight, but he proved Saturday that athleticism and technique will usually beat the giants of the division. Cormier, a former Olympic wrestler, flashed excellent boxing in dropping Antonio "Big Foot" Silva twice in less than four minutes. On the second occasion, Silva couldn't recover and referee Greg Franklin jumped in to save him at 3:56 of the first round at U.S Bank Arena in Cincinnati, OH.

Cormier, a late replacement for the deposed Alistair Overeem, advanced to the finals of the Strikeforce heavyweight Grand Prix. The 5-foot-11, 247-pound Cormier was ecstatic seconds after the fight.

"It was great man," Cormier shouted to the crowd during his postfight interview. "I fought one of the top five heavyweights in the world and knocked him out. Give me some respect now!"

Even with his wrestling background, Cormier has constantly had to address the issue of dropping down to light heavyweight. But Saturday was a prime example of what a skilled heavyweight can do against one of the big boys of the division. Fighting out San Jose's American Kickboxing Academy, Cormier's growth as a fighter was on full display. His hands were relaxed from the start and he threw punches in bunches.

Silva is a massive 6-foot-4 and probably fights in excess of 280 pounds on fight night. Against Cormier, he looked like a statue. The smaller fighter worked effectively behind a double jab. Just 45 seconds into the fight, Cormier dropped Silva with a well-placed overhand right. Silva stayed on his back and Cormier wisely chose to stay out of his guard to get the fight back on the feet.

The next two minutes looked like Cormier was putting on a boxing clinic. Silva was too slow to defend himself. He nearly went down again after getting drilled by a left hook with 3:30 left. A little over two minutes later, Cormier dropped the hammer on Silva with a beautiful three-punch combo.

"I hit him with the jab, left hook, uppercut," said Cormier, speaking of the finishing flurry. "He's no Cain Velasquez and that's who I train with everyday."

Velasquez, the UFC heavyweight champ, is the No. 1 big man in the world right now. If Cormier truly hangs in the gym with that beast, we know why he's so good. Cormier landed an amazing 26-of-38 (68 percent) strikes. He delivered this upset as a plus-125 underdog.

Overeem, the pre-tourney favorite and former Strikeforce heavyweight champion, was dumped from the tournament because an injury and management squabble with Zuffa, the parent company of both Strikeforce and UFC. That dispute was settled this week and Overeem was signed to a new deal with the UFC. He faces Brock Lesnar on Dec. 30 in Las Vegas at UFC 141.

Alex Andrade  Jermaine Andrè  Yoji Anjo  Ao Hailin  Shinya Aoki 

Video - New preview video for The Ultimate Fighter 14

The Ultimate Fighter 14 premieres tonight on Spike TV with a special two-hour episode to kick off the season. But before then, you can check out another quick preview of what this season will bring from the coaches and the fighters below:



Video URL: http://youtu.be/8rMm6GrvCJw

Ebenezer Fontes Braga Chris Brennan Marcelo Brito  Rob Broughton  Mike Brown 

ROUNDTABLE: Reactions to UFC 137 shakeups and new bouts in GSP-Condit and Penn-Diaz - Amadi, Hyden, Perez, Hobaugh, Park and Williams

What are your thoughts on the UFC 137 shakeups with Nick Diaz and the new fights now set in GSP-Condit and Diaz-Penn?

JASON AMADI, MMATORCH COLUMNIST

The fact of the matter is, Condit is capable of lacing a kill shot much more suddenly than anyone GSP has faced. Beating Georges St-Pierre on points is virtually impossible at this point, but unfortunately for him, stopping opponents at 170 has been Condit's specialty for nearly a decade now.

The volume punching that Nick Diaz brings is all wrong for Georges St-Pierre, but it's great for B.J. Penn. Getting into a scrap with Penn is usually suicidal, but if Diaz can withstand punishment early on, Diaz can take him into the type of deep waters that Penn has historically drowned in.

Overall, these are better fights. Nick Diaz's ability to draw on pay-per-view is far from proven, only hardcores really know who he is, and Georges St-Pierre is still headlining this card. This card has competitive fights, high stakes, and a major draw headlining. It's got everything anyone could ever want.


FRANK HYDEN, MMATORCH CONTRIBUTOR

To be blunt, I think Diaz really screwed the pooch here. I just mean for himself, as the UFC knows that GSP-Condit will draw just as well as GSP-Diaz would have. Plus, if Diaz were to beat Penn, they could try it again by threatening to cut Nick if he doesn't play nice. There's a line around the corner of guys who want to fight GSP, and they're all good fighters.

I don't think the shakeup hurts the UFC at all, but it's a major dent in Nick's career.


ANWAR PEREZ, MMATORCH COLUMNIST

The changes to UFC 137 definitely make the card almost less than stellar due to the fact that it was an anticipated build up between Diaz and GSP.� Condit will make the match interesting, but if GSP is in top form as he usually is, he will make Condit look out of place in the cage.� Diaz and Penn should be a good match, but it's almost like a fight between two fighters that seem to have had more PR issues outside of the cage, be it with Penn's greasing accusations or lack of training camps in the past, and Diaz's recent "anxiety" issues, than anything worthy in the cage.� Either way, shake ups or no shake ups, this card will indeed be a stellar one with great fights.


ERIC HOBAUGH, MMATORCH CONTRIBUTOR

I think Nick Diaz is a great fighter. I love his 'screw you' attitude. �He is always fun to watch and usually has excellent and exciting fights. I will always remember his victory over Takanori Gomi at Pride 33 back in 2007; he was a huge underdog in the fight and almost no one gave him a chance of winning. �He beat the Pride lightweight champ, only to have his amazing victory overturned because he tested positive for marijuana. �

I think that is a good way of summing up his career. �He is one of the best fighters in the world. No doubt about it. �He also seems to self destruct at the most inopportune times. �This is a similar situation with the GSP fight. �Was he afraid to compete with GSP? �Of course not! What he was unable to do was "play the game" as Dana White put it. �It's such a waste of talent and energy. �

It is hard for me to understand how he could squander a title shot. �So many fighters would kill to have had that opportunity and he will probably never get another chance. �Do I feel like he would have beaten GSP? No, I do not realistically think he would have beaten the champ. �What I do think is that he would have gotten in GSP's face and made a better challenger than most of the opponents in recent memory. �The GSP vs. Condit fight is less fun for me, in that Condit possesses less weapons than Diaz and the fight will be drastically less exciting. �I think GSP handles Carlos Condit with little problem. �The Diaz versus B.J. Penn has the potential to be fight of the night. � That fight is a toss up, but I think Diaz will win in a razor close decision.


CHRIS PARK, MMATORCH UK SPECIALIST

The way the chips have fallen, for me, two better fights have emerged. While I don't necessarily think Carlos Condit will defeat Georges St. Pierre, I don't think any 170 pounder can and I think he will give a good account of himself.

As for Penn vs. Diaz - this could be amazing. Wherever the fight goes these two have the abilities to tackle each other head on.

If the trash talking becomes a big part of the build up then we could see a stand-and-bang war between two of the division's best chins. If it hits the mat these two are simply masters of their craft and we could see one of the most entertaining ground fights in UFC history. @MMATorchUK


ALEX WILLIAMS, MMATORCH CONTRIBUTOR

The UFC should require Nick Diaz to obtain a psychological evaluation and, depending on the results, psychotherapy. �If he really does have social anxiety disorder, he could benefit tremendously from cognitive behavioral therapy. �The UFC should pay for Diaz to get the best services, too. �They already pay for physical injuries their fighters�suffer from accidents, training-related or not (for example, slipping on stairs). �While Diaz's condition (if he has one) likely existed before he was under Zuffa contract, his avoidance mechanisms were activated by the press conferences Zuffa required he attend. �

Even if one disagrees that this is a logical extension of the philosophy behind Zuffa providing its fighters with insurance, the company's paying for his treatment is just the decent, humanitarian thing to do. �The right business move, too. �After all, if Diaz beats B.J. Penn but goes untreated, who is to say he will not avoid the press conferences the next time he is booked in a title fight?

Mac Danzig Karen Darabedyan Viacheslav Datsik Marcus Davis  Tony DeSouza 

Dana White does his best Chuck Liddell impersonation, reacting violently to the action tonight on...

David Bielkheden Michael Bisping  Dan Bobish Vagam Bodjukyan Kotetsu Boku 

Browne Looks to Play Superhero Again Saturday Night

Kyle Bradley  Jai Bradney  Ebenezer Fontes Braga Chris Brennan Marcelo Brito 

Kenny Florian: ?I think I do everything well.?

Kenny Florian is one of the many faces who helped the UFC reached the level that it?s at today. While most fans and pundits credit Forrest Griffin vs. Stephan Bonnar 1 or the trio of Chuck Liddell, Tito Ortiz, and Randy Couture, rarely do they mention Florian, who competed on The Ultimate Fighter 1 and [...]

Tank Abbott Hiroyuki Abe Cyril Abidi  Daniel Acacio Bernard Ackah 

Statement from Golden Glory head Bas Boon reveals UFC return of Jon Olav Einemo, contract offer to Siyar Bahadurzada

By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

Golden Glory head Bas Boon has released a lengthier statement about Alistair Overeem's departure from the management and fight team via FightOpinion.com:

The UFC is not wrong!

I want to make the following statement to clear up any speculation.

The UFC did nothing wrong and neither did Golden Glory management when signing up Alistair Overeem with the UFC. It is public knowledge how the UFC does business. The fighters sign their own contracts and agreements. If journalists have any questions regarding Alistair Overeem?s statement about G.G please contact the UFC for any further questions. ALL correspondence between the UFC and Golden Glory was also shared/CC'd to Alistair Overeem, who finally made a decision to sign the agreements.

These are difficult times in the fighting industry. We are still waiting for payment of FEG, as Alistair said in the press, and the future of FEG is still unclear. There is a Dutch law called bibop in the Netherlands which makes promoting events there extremely difficult. There will be a lot of rumors like in the recent past when 4 G.G fighters were released from the UFC and Strikeforce and that was the so called end of G.G relationship with the UFC.

Not long after this rumor, Golden Glory made a mega-deal with Alistair Overeem signing with the UFC. John Olaf Einemo is now back with the UFC and Siyar Bahadurzada just got offered a UFC contract.

There is also some really good news coming soon about the situation in Japan and I really want to let everybody know the details ? but I have signed multiple NDAs (non disclosure agreements) and I have to wait before publicly elaborating further.

With Sporting Greetings,
Bas Boon

Penick's Analysis: Getting Einemo back in the UFC is good news, as his release (and Marloes Coenen's from Strikeforce) were the two that didn't make much sense initially when the situation blew up this summer. Bahadurzada to the UFC would be a good move as well. He's fought in a number of weight classes and holds a very impressive 20-4-1 record, and would make a great addition to the UFC's welterweight division. He hasn't signed just yet, but the contract offer is a good sign. There isn't much to this statement outside of those revelations, though, as he's essentially repeating what he told several outlets on Tuesday with a little more detail on the situation of coming to a deal with the UFC and Overeem signing said deal.

Kyle Bradley  Jai Bradney  Ebenezer Fontes Braga Chris Brennan Marcelo Brito 

Jorge Lopez - Born to Fight

Efrain Escudero Rashad Evans Urijah Faber Tank Abbott Hiroyuki Abe

Dana White talks after UFC 137 "I Will Never Trust Nick Diaz Again" - Dana White

Nick Diaz was a no-show at the UFC 137 press conference in Las Vegas - just like he was a no-show at the press conference in Toronto the day before. Dana White decided enough is enough and axed him from the card, giving Carlos Condit the title shot in his place. In this interview with MMA:30's Dave Farra; Dana White talks about the trust lost, why he thinks he'll never heard from Diaz again, and touches on Overreem vs. Lesnar and the UFC's return to Japan. See more videos at MMA30.com

Robert Berry David Bielkheden Michael Bisping  Dan Bobish Vagam Bodjukyan

Roger Huerta vs 'War Machine' booked for Nov. 26 in Texas

Josh Burkman  Mikey Burnett  Murilo Bustamante  Grant Campbell  Gesias JZ Calvancante 

Nevada air show crash a 'mass casualty situation'

Wow. Horrible.

http://www.canberratimes.com.au/news/world/world/general/12-dead-in-us-air-show-crash/2295158.aspx

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o6KNpqGCgFE&feature=player_embedded

Karen Darabedyan Viacheslav Datsik Marcus Davis  Tony DeSouza  Edwin Dewees 

"Why's he grabbing his shoulder like that? Is there a bug?"

Terrance Aflague Yoshihiro Akiyama  Gilbert Aldana  José Aldo  John Alessio 

Mark Bocek battles Nik Lentz at UFC 140

It appears Toronto?s own Mark Bocek has been afforded a second consecutive opportunity to compete on a UFC card in front of a hometown crowd, as multiple reports have surfaced stating the ginger grappler will fight well-rounded Minnesotan Nik Lentz on December 10 at UFC 140.

The match-up was first reported by the Canadian Press and [...]

Daniel Acacio Bernard Ackah  Terrance Aflague Yoshihiro Akiyama  Gilbert Aldana 

Alan Belcher ready to resume title run after one-sided win over Jason MacDonald at UFC Fight Night 25

By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

Alan Belcher made a successful return to the Octagon on Saturday night, taking out Jason MacDonald with a brutal ground and pound attack that forced MacDonald to submit to strikes in the first round.

After 16 months out of action due to a torn retina that nearly ended his career, Belcher entered Saturday's card with a lot of doubts, but after shaking that off with an excellent performance, he's ready to resume his career from where he left off prior to the injury.

"Even up until [the fight], I was kind of uncertain of what I wanted to do," Belcher said after the event (transcribed by MMAJunkie.com). "I gave my all in this training camp and everything, but I was nervous as hell going into this fight, coming back. I missed the feeling, and I feel like I can definitely continue down the path I was on, trying to go for a title shot. I think that's what I'm going to do now."

Belcher has won five of his last six fights, with the sole loss being a split decision against Yoshihiro Akiyama that many felt he should have won. Prior to the injury, Belcher was determined to be recognized as a viable challenger for the Middleweight Title, and was taking all the fights he could to make that statement. Now that he's back, however, he's more than willing to let that shot come to him.

"I think before I had the injury, I was in such a hurry to try and get a bunch of wins and get to the top and everything," Belcher said. "Through this whole experience, it just taught me to be a lot more patient. I think now that I'm a lot more patient.

"My new mindset, I think it's going to come a lot faster now. I've got a feeling that the title shot is going to come faster than I want it to now, so I'm not really worried about it now."

Penick's Analysis: It was great to see Belcher get back into the cage after the eye injury, and he looked great in the fight against MacDonald. He's not quite at "title challenger" stage, but he's on the next level below that group of fighters, and a few more wins will bring him in line. He's continued improving his all around game over the last several years, and prior to the injury he was looking as good as he ever had. If he's back to 100% and can continue with the strides he made before the layoff, he'll be a force at middleweight for a while to come. He's only 27-years-old, and has a lot of years left in the sport, so if he can put a run together that shot will come to him.

Eddie Alvarez Thiago Alves  Andre Amade  Dean Amasinger  Jimmy Ambriz

UFC Fight Night 25 win fuels Alan Belcher to again consider middleweight title shot

NEW ORLEANS - On the surface, everything seemed to be fine.

After all, UFC Fight Night 25 competitor Alan Belcher was saying all the right things. The eye injury? A thing of the past. Lingering concerns? No way.

But in truth, Belcher admits there were a lot of question marks in his head. Was he really back to 100 percent? Did he still belong among the elite in the UFC's 185-pound division? All that was answered on Saturday night.

Ao Hailin  Shinya Aoki  Andrei Arlovski  Ricardo Arona  Noboru Asahi

Ryan Ford Post Nick Hinchliffe Interview - Ryan Ford

Ryan Ford Post Nick Hinchliffe Interview Video by Ryan Ford

Ebenezer Fontes Braga Chris Brennan Marcelo Brito  Rob Broughton  Mike Brown 

Fucking Monkey!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mWv2KDjkNNM&feature=player_embedded

Tony DeSouza  Edwin Dewees  Nick Diaz  Tadhg Steamfist Dixon Joe Doerksen 

Everyone & Everything can go get FUCKED !!!

that :suicide: is all

Kyle Bradley  Jai Bradney  Ebenezer Fontes Braga Chris Brennan Marcelo Brito 

With Cormier injured, Barnett suggests alternative for Grand Prix finals

Daniel Cormier scored the biggest win of his MMA career on Saturday night, but it came with a price. In his knockout win over Antonio Silva, Cormier broke his hand. Via Twitter, he said that he will be for six weeks with the injury.

Josh Barnett beat Sergei Kharitonov on Saturday for the chance to fight Cormier for the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix title. When he heard about Cormier's injury, Barnett tweeted a fair alternative to fighting.

YES. Who wouldn't want to see Cormier and Barnett involved in a battle that resembled "West Side Story," where they would both yell, "MAMBO? MAMBO! GO!"

In reality, six weeks off for Cormier is not the worst thing. That means Cormier should be able to go sometime in November. Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker said that the final will take place sometime in the first quarter of 2012, so Cormier's injury shouldn't delay the fight. It also won't necessitate the really terrible idea that Coker floated: a replacement for Cormier in the finals.

Justin Eilers  Jon Olav Einemo Per Eklund Jason Ellis Aleksander Emelianenko

We know there?s at least one Diaz fan left; White gives him Penn fight at UFC 137

Just when you thought everyone was steaming mad at Nick Diaz, Dana White pulled off a shocker by re-booking the quirky fighter for another fight at UFC 137 against B.J. Penn.

Thursday evening, White announced the move via Twitter. This was less than 24 hours after he dropped Diaz from the main event title fight against Georges St-Pierre.

When it comes down it, White is willing to deal with all of� Diaz's drama to simply satisfy fight fans. Are you any less excited for the Diaz-Penn versus Diaz-GSP? That's been a dream fight for many fans, for years. White could've easily banished Diaz to the MMA minor leagues for life, but the recognizes the guy is a great fighter with some serious psychological issues.

The door opened for Diaz when a Penn-Jon Fitch rematch couldn't be made. Penn ripped Fitch on Twitter and said he had enough of waiting for Fitch to commit. Twitter is hilarious though. Penn went from nasty to nice in 42 minutes when he was offered the Diaz fight.

Why did Diaz get another chance? White spoke to him and got a basic understanding of what was going through his head when he missed two prefight conferences and missed three flights.

"To tell you the truth, the excuses he gave me made no sense," White told Yahoo! Sports' Kevin Iole. "You've interviewed Nick Diaz before. You know what I'm talking about. But I started thinking about this: This kid is a real fighter and I love the B.J. Penn-Nick Diaz fight. He always does show up to fight. We have trouble with him doing p.r. We also sometimes have problems with [his brother] Nate, whom I have a great relationship with, in getting him to do his p.r."

"What basically happened is, Nick freaked out. He disappeared. He told me he couldn't handle the pressure of the main event. It wasn't that he couldn't fight it or wouldn't have fought it, but all the responsibilities that come with fighting in the main event, he said he couldn't deal with that. The fighting part is the easy part to him."

David Baron  Phil Baroni Don Barr Pat Barry  Vitor Belfort