Official MMA Thread!

[Horhay]

Yes, I think it's about time I start this! Place all info relating to MMA in this thread!

 

[Off_contstantly]

I agree with most of those too, although I have to go with Miller over Bisping. I think I'm headed to B-dub's for the fights, I can't miss a main event like this.

We might do that too. The last time we went to B-dub's for some UFC, we got to see Bisping get elbow dropped through the canvas by Hendo.

 

[max041104]

I agree with most of those too, although I have to go with Miller over Bisping. I think I'm headed to B-dub's for the fights, I can't miss a main event like this.

+1

 

[Horhay]

+1

I think you two might be onto something, but Bisping did look much much better against Kang and Wanderlei Silva.

 

[Horhay]

Here's the video I was telling you about wreck. It's freaking hilarious. Kevin Casey is a self proclaimed Jiu Jitsu Black Belt lol

 

[Off_contstantly]

With the World Cup going on this weekend, I think that Diva and I are going to be the only ones watching UFC 115.

Here's my picks:

Chuck Liddell v. Rich Franklin
Mirko Cro Cop Vs. Pat Barry
Paulo Thiago Vs. Martin Kampmann
Ben Rothwell Vs. Gilbert Yvel
Carlos Condit Vs. Rory MacDonald
Tyson Griffin Vs. Evan Dunham
Mac Danzig Vs. Matt Wiman
David Loiseau Vs. Mario Miranda
James Wilks Vs. Peter Sobotta
Ricardo Funch Vs. Claude Patrick
Mike Pyle Vs. Jesse Lennox

 

[Horhay]

I am skipping it because I didn't really like the fight card.

BTW I agree with all your picks there Chuck Lidell looks damn ready. He's probably the most fit I've ever seen him.

 

[MacDaddyOJack]

I agree with most of those posts as well, but I think that Paulo Thiago will knock Kampmann's jaw off.

 

[Off_contstantly]

I am skipping it because I didn't really like the fight card.

BTW I agree with all your picks there Chuck Lidell looks damn ready. He's probably the most it I've ever seen him.

+1

 

[Horhay]

MMAFighting.com is reporting that Wanderlei Silva has been forced to withdraw from his scheduled July 3 UFC 116 bout with Yoshihiro Akiyama due to broken ribs "The Axe Murderer" sustained while training for the fight.

For Silva, who is 2-3 in his most recent stint the Octagon, the fight was to be an opportunity to potentially elevate his UFC record to .500 for the first time since re-joining the organization in 2007

UFC president Dana White informed Ariel Helwani of the news this afternoon.

No replacement has been signed as of posting, but there will likely be no shortage of middleweights eager to step up to the last-minute challenge, even if most of the UFC's top-tier 185-pound fighters aren't available.

Personally, I'd like to see him fight Dan Miller or Patrick Cote, but since Miller is under medical suspension until June 29 from a cut he sustained in his UFC 114 loss to Michael Bisping and Cote recently had surgery for a broken hand he injured in his UFC 113 loss to Alan Belcher, neither fighter will likely be ready for the card.

Nate Marquardt would be another prime candidate for the fight if he weren't fighting Rousimar Palhares at UFC 118.

Another interesting opponent would be Denis Kang, who submitted Dae Won Kim in Montreal last weekend. He lost to Akiyama under the K-1 Hero's banner a few years back and after Akiyama's glove grazed his cornea and impaired his depth perception and has mentioned his strong desire for a rematch on several occasions. Unfortunately, since he is scheduled to face Paulo Filho in ImpactFC in July, I can't see him taking the fight.

We'll just have to wait and see who the UFC has in mind for the fight, but I have a hunch it will be someone of note like Michael Bisping or a dark horse like Phil Davis.

*UPDATE* According to MMAJunkie, Chris Leben has verbally agreed to step in for Silva and is waiting on the bout agreement.

Damn I was looking forward seeing Silva against Akiyama.

 

[Horhay]

After a difficult bidding period in which Jake Shields was asking for more money than Scott Coker thought he was worth, Strikeforce released their middleweight champion yesterday, putting Shields on the open market. Shields's Strikeforce contract ended after his April title defense against Dan Henderson, which allowed other organizations to make bids on his services. Strikeforce was in the matching stage of the process, and had the option to meet any competing offers, but ultimately decided that letting Shields walk was their best option.

As Scott Coker said on MMA Weekly radio, "The numbers, there was a big gap between what we thought was real, and what we thought was going to work, and I call that the numbers dance. It is what it is, and we're going to probably be moving forward with that tournament."

Tensions between Shields and Strikeforce have reportedly been strained since he appeared at WEC 48, sitting next to UFC president Dana White, who mouthed "he's mine" at the camera. Strikeforce may have even tried to block Shields from attending Saturday's Fedor vs. Werdum show.

It goes without saying that Jake and his father/manager Jack Shields are leaning toward the UFC and the big fights the organization holds. From Sherdog:

Prior to news of the release, Jack Shields told Sherdog.com that he submitted the fighter’s asking price to the UFC on Wednesday and was awaiting an initial bid from the rival promotion to pass onto Strikeforce for review. The elder Shields said he submitted figures for a series of bouts he thought requisite if his son fought the top contenders in both the UFC’s welterweight and middleweight divisions.

Shields said his son would like to debut as a UFC middleweight, possibly against champion Anderson Silva, as welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre will be tied up with “The Ultimate Fighter” reality TV series and a pending bout with rival coach Josh Koscheck later this year.

“We didn’t come to agreement with Strikeforce, but Jake’s excited to challenge himself against the likes of Anderson Silva and others in the UFC,” said Shields.

Shields obviously belongs in the UFC, but he might be overeager in his desire to fight Silva or GSP, at least right away. After all, he began competing as a middleweight in Strikeforce more out of necessity than anything else. I'd think Shields would need at least one qualifying fight at welterweight before taking on GSP, and several at middleweight before the name Anderson Silva even crosses his mind. Your thoughts?

Officially let go, UFC bound? I really hope so!

According to Antonio Rogerio "Minotoro" Nogueira's boxing coach, Luis Carlos Dórea in an interview with TATAME today, his charge will likely be back in action in September against Quinton "Rampage" Jackson.

“It’s set that he’ll be back in September, and rumors point that his opponent might be Quinton Jackson. It’d be a great fight for Rogério, he’s a former UFC champion and a victory over him will move us pretty close to the title. The UFC only has top athletes and Quinton Jackson is really dangerous. It’d be a great fight, but the UFC didn’t confirmed anything yet”, Dórea said.

Although Dorea didn't admit that the fight was any more than a rumor at this point, TATAME's Guilherme Cruz reports that sources close to Nogueira's camp have confirmed that the fight has indeed been verbally agreed to.

Dorea would say that, if it happens, it will be a tough fight, but he feels Minotoro's stand-up will win Nogueira the fight.

“He’s a complete athlete, hard to be taken down… Who puts its own strategy on the fight will win, but we believe a lot on Rogerio’s movement… We’ll work hard to get this victory”, he said.

Both fighters are coming off of lackluster performances in their last fights and will be hungry to win this bout. Nogueira pulled off a hotly contested split decision at UFC 114 last month against a last-minute replacement opponent, Jason Brilz who stepped in with less than two weeks notice for an injured Forrest Griffin.

Rampage dropped a unanimous decision in his heavily anticipated grudge match with Rashad Evans on the same card.

The bout will likely take place at UFC 119 on September 25, 2010 at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana as the only other event scheduled for the month thus far is UFC Ultimate Fight Night 22 on September 15.

this would be a cool fight to see, Lil Nog vs Rampage!

 

[Horhay]

Dana White confirmed with MMAFighting.com over the weekend that Brock Lesnar's expected title defense against Cain Velasquez will come at UFC 121, slated for October 23rd at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. The meeting will come nearly four months after Lesnar's comeback submission win over Shane Carwin at UFC 116, and eight months after Velasquez stormed through Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira at UFC 110.

Though betting odds for the fight opened with Lesnar as a minor favorite (-125 to Cain's -105), Lesnar has already moved as high as -160, due to money flooding in on the champ. At this point, the only other matchup reported for UFC 121 is a lightweight scrap between Sam Stout and Paul Taylor. In other booking news...

Woohoo might have to attend!!

— Matt Serra and Chris Lytle will meet at UFC 119 (September 25th, Indianapolis) in a rematch of their TUF 4 Finale fight, which Serra won by split decision after three dull rounds of wall-and-stall. Serra is coming off his first-round knockout of Frank Trigg at UFC 109, while Lytle has won three consecutive matches against Kevin Burns, Brian Foster, and Matt Brown.

Matt Serra will get beat. I think Lytle's JJ is so underrated, but he is so damn good.

— After getting creamed by UFC newcomer Travis Browne at the TUF 11 Finale, James McSweeney will make a wise drop to light-heavyweight and take on Tom Blackledge, another UFC first-timer, at UFC 120 in London. Blackledge is a Wolfslair member who appeared as part of Quinton Jackson's coaching staff on TUF 10.

James McSweeney is garbo! only person who thinks he is good is that clown Rashad. During his time at TUF, he didn't exactly show anything or at least anything to say wow this guy has some potential.

 

[Horhay]

GracieFighter.com makes it official — and we can forget this nonsense about Jake staying at middleweight:

Jake Shields will be debuting at the 170lbs weight division in the UFC. After careful consideration and consulting with UFC representatives it was determined Jake would be finally going back to his original fighting weight. Jake's opponent is one of the UFC's top contenders and will be announced shortly.

It's obviously the best way to go. If Shields can run through one or two prominent welterweights by the time Georges St. Pierre and Josh Koscheck finish their little lover's spat on TUF 12 (and subsequent title fight), he'll be nicely set up for a shot at the belt. Any guesses as to who he'll draw first?

Currently on a 14-fight win streak, Shields has spent the majority of his career at welterweight, but hasn't competed at 170 since October 2008, when he defeated Paul Daley by second-round armbar in an EliteXC title defense. Since then, he's gone 3-0 as a middleweight in Strikeforce, scoring wins over Robbie Lawler, Jason Miller, and Dan Henderson.

(Random thought: I wonder if Jake's original desire to stay at 185 came from the fact that his only Cesar Gracie camp-mate in the UFC, Nate Diaz, is now competing at welterweight. Probably too early to start worrying about something like that, but you know how loyal these guys are...)

We saw this coming for a while. I am glad to see this talented fighter joining the UFC ranks!

 

[Horhay]

According to a new report on MMA Junkie, the rumored fight between former UFC light-heavyweight champs Quinton Jackson and Lyoto Machida has been targeted for a yet-to-be-announced event on November 20th. As Rampage tweeted last night, "almost ready 2 sign the bout agreement! i would tell yall who im gonna get down with, but i cant spell his name....hahaha." As always, Quinton, your near-illiteracy is hilarious. (Come on, it's not like he's fighting Vinicius Kappke de Quieroz.)

Both fighters are coming off of tough defeats, with Jackson suffering a unanimous decision loss to Rashad Evans at UFC 114 in May, and Machida getting KTFO'd by (and losing his belt to) Mauricio Rua earlier the same month at UFC 113. The winner of this fight would rebound to the top of the light-heavyweight pile, while the loser would plummet out of title contention. Can Rampage follow the Shogun game-plan and smash the Dragon, or will he be a sitting-duck for Machida's unorthodox attacks?

No other matchups are currently rumored for the 11/20 event, which would come just a week after the UFC's return to Germany at #122.

Rampage FTW!!

At first, I thought James Toney was just just posturing when he said that MMA fighters wouldn't stand a chance against top-level boxers, but now I'm beginning to think that "Lights Out" really believes it when he says that mixed martial arts is an inferior combat sport and that he will dominate any heavyweight the UFC throws at him, starting with his upcoming UFC 118 opponent Randy Couture.

In a recent interview with Fighters Only Toney, who is still delusional enough to believe that he is one of the best boxers in the world -- a distinction he hasn't known for a number of years -- said that wrestling is not a man's sport and that his credentials cancel out those of Couture, despite the fact that he is fighting him in his sport.

“I don’t care if Randy Couture is a legend in this sport, I have had a career of knocking guys out in their back yards," he says. "Boxing is the superior science, we are the best. I am going to show that wrestling and hugging people is for women. That’s not going to happen against me. I have a lot of KO’s in my career and you will see another one on August 28th."

When asked about whether the rumors were true about him submitting Strikeforce light heavyweight champ Muhammed Lawal in training, Toney said the story was true, but gave a different account of the method he used to tap "King Mo," who said it was by guillotine.

“Yeah its true, I worked with King Mo. He was happy to come down and spar with me," he explains. "He showed me some skills and I submitted him with a rear-naked choke. But you know that jiu jitsu, all the hugging… its for girls."

Shrugging off any insinuations that he may be in over his head in the UFC, Toney pointed to Brock Lesnar being a former pro-wrestler and came into the promotion and won the belt as evidence of how ludicrous the claim is.

“Lesnar is a former wrestler-actor [and he’s] now in the UFC. He runs with his head down. Yeah I want to fight him down the line. I’ll fight the lot of them - in one night if I have to!”

The difference is, Lesnar wrestled for real before he did all that fake stuff.

It's beginning to seem like Toney is trying to use the insults about wrestling being feminine to bait Randy like a child into standing with him by insulting his bread and butter, but as "The Natural" told Ben this week, he isn't falling for it.

At least he'll have his excuse ready if he loses.

I can picture his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan:

Joe Rogan: "Well, James, you came here to prove that boxing was a superior sport to MMA and you fell short of your goal. What went wrong tonight?"

James Toney: "Randy didn't come to fight, he came to hug me. That's not a fight. Nobody calls 911 when somebody gets hugged for 15 minutes in the hood. This just proves boxing is better, because Randy was afraid of my craft. His just made me feel half a homosexual."

Rogan: "This isn't boxing. Why would he want to box with a boxing champion in an MMA fight?"

Toney: "He wouldn't, because he'd get knocked the **** out. I want Brock Lesnar. Lets see if he's afraid to fight me or if he's gay too and wants to snuggle me."

Rogan: (laughing) "Ladies and gentlemen, James "Lights Out" Toney."

This piece was hilarious!!

 

[Horhay]

Apparently Dana White Sides with me on my opinion that Jake Shields should have to win at least two fights in the UFC before earning a title shot.

The UFC president announced today during the pre-fight press conference for UFC 117 that the winner of Saturday night's welterweight showdown between Jon Fitch and Thiago Alves will garner a title shot early next year.

Perhaps not coincidentally, in an interview he did at yesterday's open workout with MMAFighting's Ariel Helwani that we posted earlier today, Fitch voiced his displeasure at the prospect of Shields becoming the number one contender if he manages to get by Martin Kampmann in his Octagon debut at UFC 121 in October.

With the announcement by White come a number of intriguing questions.

Does it matter who wins if St-Pierre gets by Koscheck since GSP had no problems beating either man the last time he faced both of them?

If Alves fails to make weight and Fitch refuses to fight him at a catchweight does he automatically get the next title shot by default?

If Koscheck beats St-Pierre in December, and Fitch beats Alves on Saturday, will they renege on their steadfast "I won't fight a teammate," vows or will Fitch forfeit the title shot he feels he deserves?

If the Koscheck-Fitch title fight is agreed to by both fighters, who will leave American Kickboxing Academy to train elsewhere and will there be hard feelings from the guy who trains with a different camp?

I guess we'll have to wait and cross these bridges if and when we get to them, but I'm almost more excited to see what happens if Koscheck beats GSP.

Jake Shields was only dreaming of a title shot if he beats Kampmann. BJ Penn should jump on the I want GSP bandwagon too!

Tomorrow's card looks interesting and I hope Silva destroys Sonnen for having a big mouth.

 

[Off_contstantly]

Jake Shields was only dreaming of a title shot if he beats Kampmann. BJ Penn should jump on the I want GSP bandwagon too!

Tomorrow's card looks interesting and I hope Silva destroys Sonnen for having a big mouth.

Either way Koscheck will try to "act" his way to a victory over GSP. GSP needs to pull a Chuck Norris and round house kick Koscheck in the back of the face.

 

[MacDaddyOJack]

nobody is going to beat GSP.... ever. That guy is a machine, he even sounds like a french robot when he talks!

Roundhouse kick to the back of the face? You mean though the brain? That would be awesome!!!

 

[Off_contstantly]

nobody is going to beat GSP.... ever. That guy is a machine, he even sounds like a french robot when he talks!

Roundhouse kick to the back of the face? You mean though the brain? That would be awesome!!!

I was trying to go for an adaptation of a Chuck Norris joke. Chuck Norris is the only person that can punch someone in the back of the face.

 

[MacDaddyOJack]

..... it would still be awesome!

 

[Off_contstantly]

Here's the line up for UFC 118. Who's going to win? My pics are in bold.

Main card
Lightweight Championship bout: Frankie Edgar vs. B.J. Penn
Heavyweight bout: Randy Couture vs. James Toney
Middleweight bout: Demian Maia vs. Mario Miranda
Lightweight bout: Kenny Florian vs. Gray Maynard
Welterweight bout: Nate Diaz vs. Marcus Davis

Preliminary card (Spike TV)
Lightweight bout: Joe Lauzon vs. Gabe Ruediger
Lightweight bout: Andre Winner vs. Nik Lentz

Preliminary card
Middleweight bout: Dan Miller vs. John Salter
Welterweight bout: Nick Osipczak vs. Greg Soto
Welterweight bout: Mike Pierce vs. Amilcar Alves

I'd also like to see an actual fight between Nate Diaz and Jason "Mayhem" Miller. Settle that unofficial fight after Mayhem's last fight.

 

[Horhay]

Main card
Lightweight Championship bout: Frankie Edgar vs. B.J. Penn
Heavyweight bout: Randy Couture vs. James Toney
Middleweight bout: Demian Maia vs. Mario Miranda
Lightweight bout: Kenny Florian vs. Gray Maynard
Welterweight bout: Nate Diaz vs. Marcus Davis

Preliminary card (Spike TV)
Lightweight bout: Joe Lauzon vs. Gabe Ruediger
Lightweight bout: Andre Winner vs. Nik Lentz

Preliminary card
Middleweight bout: Dan Miller vs. John Salter
Welterweight bout: Nick Osipczak vs. Greg Soto
Welterweight bout: Mike Pierce vs. Amilcar Alves

Those are my picks

Edgar will use the same strategy that he used in his previous fight with BJ. I am a bit curious about the James Toney vs Randy Couture though, I'd like to see what Toney brings to the table.