Published by Stephen Rhodes

With UFC 102 now a distant memory, not only did four fighters earn their regular pay along with sponsor money, they also earned fight bonuses; each fighter earned $60,000 apiece. Below are the recipients of the fight bonuses; bonuses were earned for: Submission of the Night, Knockout of the Night and Fight of the Night:

• Submission of the Night: Jake Rosholt
• Knockout of the Night: Nate Marquardt
• Fight of the Night: Randy Couture vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira

Post a comment . Aug 30, 2009
Filed under: Octagon Buzz, Antonio Rodrigo Noguiera, fight bonuses, Fight of the Night, Jake Rosholt, Knockout of the Night, Nate Marquardt, Randy Couture, Submission of the Night, UFC 102

Published by Stephen Rhodes

Below are the final card results from UFC 102: Couture vs. Nogueira, which took place Saturday night from the Rose Garden in Portland, OR:

Preliminary Card:

• Evan Dunham defeated Marcus Aurelio, split decision (29-28, 28-29, 30-27)
• Mark Munoz defeated Nick Catone, split decision (28-29, 30-27, 29-28)
• Todd Duffee defeated Tim Hague (knockout – strikes), :07 of Round 1
• Mike Russow defeated Justin McCully, unanimous decision (29-28, 30-26, 30-27)
• Gabriel Gonzaga defeated Chris Tuchscherer (TKO – strikes), 4:27 of Round 1
• Aaron Simpson defeated Ed Herman (TKO – knee injury), :17 of Round 2

Main Card

• Brandon Vera defeated Krzysztof Soszynski, unanimous decision (all score 30-27)
• Nate Marquardt defeated Demian Maia (KO), :21 of Round 1
• Jake Rosholt defeated Chris Leben (rear-naked choke), 1:30 of Round 3
• Thiago Silva defeated Keith Jardine (KO – strikes), 1:35 of Round 1
• Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira defeatedc Randy Couture, unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

2 Comments . Aug 30, 2009
Filed under: Fight Results, card results, UFC 102

Published by Stephen Rhodes

Because of injury, Dan Lauzon will be unable to participate in UFC 103, according to MMAWEEKLY sources; he apparently suffered a back injury in training recently and will not be ready in time for the September 19 event.

He will undergo an MRI relatively soon to determine the full extent of the injury.  As of this post, there is no replacement for Lauzon.  Both Lauzon and his “former” opponent Rafaello Oliveira are acquisitions from Affliction by the UFC.

Post a comment . Aug 25, 2009
Filed under: Octagon Buzz, Dan Lauzon, UFC 103

Published by Stephen Rhodes

Boston Mass. – World Championship Fighting today announced four featured fights for their September 26th show at the Shriners Auditorium in Wilmington, Mass. In what promises to be a war, WEC Veteran Mike Campbell makes his return to World Championship Fighting when he takes on the ultra-tough brawler, Mike Medrano. When Campbell last fought for WCF, he was victorious in the night’s main event, knocking out Rich Moskowitz in les than 90 seconds. Both fighters have shown in their previous fights that they have the punching power to end the fight in an instant. You definitely don’t want to blink in this one!

After an unsuccessful run at the 135 pound title which snapped his five fight winning streak, Dan Bonnell moves back to his more natural weight of 145, and looks to get back to his winning ways. He is one of only two fighters to compete on every WCF card, and has gone 5-1 in the WCF. His opponent will be WCF newcomer Josh LaBerge, who recently defeated tough local fighters Frank Latina and Chris Simmons in consecutive weekends. LaBerge pushes the pace and will really bring the fight to Bonnell. No matter who wins this fight, it’s going to be action packed.

Also included on the WCF8 fight card is a grudge match between two undefeated WCF fighters. Kevin Corrigan from USMMA brings his 2-0 record (both via TKO) and heavy hands to the ring on September 26th when he takes on 4-0 Jiu-Jitsu ace Saul Almeida. Almeida was last seen defeating Dan O’Keefe by “Peruvian Necktie” at WCF 7, and he’s looking to keep to his winning ways against Corrigan.

In another featured fight, two local welterweight studs make their WCF debut. Dennis Olsen has quietly gone about his business up in NH, and seems to just keep submitting guys. He’s huge at 170 and hasn’t lost at that weight in quite some time. He’ll be taking on 7-1 Ryan Schieding. Both guys are great wrestlers, and both have great jiu-jitsu. You certainly don’t want to miss this technical battle.e

1 Comment . Aug 24, 2009
Filed under: MMA Calendar, Octagon Buzz Exclusive, WCF 8

Published by FightofYourLife

UFC Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar’s (4-1) next opponent and challenger has been determined, according to multiple MMA websites , and it’s almost as if the champ will be looking in a mirror. Shane Carwin (11-0) is another massive heavyweight with a strong amateur wrestling background, as well as devastating power in his hands. If anybody in the UFC’s heavyweight division can match up well with the size and strength of Lesnar, it’s Carwin. That being the case, this fight is an extremely interesting one.

Originally, Carwin was scheduled to face fellow undefeated big man Cain Velasquez (6-0), who trains at San Jose’s American Kickboxing Academy, at UFC 104 in Los Angeles on October 24th. That fight was scheduled to be a heavyweight title contender bout, but Velasquez will now reportedly face Ben Rothwell (30-6) at UFC 104 in a huge test for his young career. The winner of that fight is certainly in line to get a title short in short order.

As I stated earlier, Lesnar-Carwin is a hugely intriguing fight. Carwin can potentially match Lesnar’s strength, and is the only fighter in the UFC that wears larger gloves than the massive former pro wrestler (4X to 3X). He also has some devastating TKO/KO wins on his record, and his fight experience doubles that of Lesnar. One area of question with Carwin is what will happen if the fight drags into the later rounds. His fights have never passed the halfway limit of the 1st round, while Lesnar has a 15-minute fight with Heath Herring on his record. For Lesnar, the question is how he’ll match up with a man nearly as big as himself. As I said, interesting and intriguing…

Velasquez’s new opponent, Ben Rothwell, is one of the most experienced fighters in the heavyweight division, and is, in my opinion, a better test for Cain at this point in his career. If he can get a decisive win over a gamer like Rothwell, he really proves his legitimacy as a true heavyweight contender. Regardless, we can expect to see Velsaquez, Lesnar, Carwin, and possibly Rothwell contending for the UFC heavyweight strap in the future.

2 Comments . Aug 22, 2009
Filed under: Octagon Buzz, Ben Rothwell, Brock Lesnar, Cain Velasquez, Shane Carwin, UFC

Published by Stephen Rhodes

Now that Tito Ortiz and UFC president Dana White have kissed and made up, the next logical step is to find a suitable opponent for Ortiz.  You can certainly say that they accomplished that goal as it has been announced that Tito Ortiz will lock up with Mark Coleman at UFC 106, set to take place on November 21; the fight has been confirmed by Coleman’s training partner Mike Disabato.

Ortiz last fought in May 2008, losing a decision to current UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida; Ortiz immediately left UFC, with the assumption being that he would never return to the organization again.

Well, how times have changed – and in a sense, it wasn’t a complete shock that Tito returned to the UFC.  Despite the smack talk between White and Ortiz, it was a business decision more than anything.  And in the world of MMA, you sometimes have to expect the unexpected, hence Ortiz’s return to the UFC.  Certainly Ortiz has a following, and that will serve him and the UFC well short-term.  His next 2-3 fights will determine whether he stays for the long haul.

2 Comments . Aug 20, 2009
Filed under: Octagon Buzz, Dana White, Mark Coleman, Tito Ortiz, UFC 106

Published by Stephen Rhodes

Lou sent this in:

The Event will be held At USF Sun Dome in Tampa, FL on August 22nd and taped for a later airing.

Art of Fighting is proud to present its fourth mixed martial arts (MMA) event in the state of Florida and its first event in Tampa Bay. After three successful events in Sarasota, to include the first ever MMA light heavyweight Florida State Title, Art of Fighting has put together a bout worthy of a large scale venue in Tampa. Marcio “Pe de Pano” Cruz vs. Tom “Trauma” Sauer for the first ever WFO World Title and a Headline Bout worthy of large scale attention, Seth “The Silverback” Petruzelli vs. Tampa Area police officer Chris Baten.

CRUZ VS. SAUER
Sherdog.com, the most visited MMA website, rated this fight one of the top 10 in the WORLD to see!

Marcio Cruz is a 6′4″ Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu phenom who has conquered the world’s best fighters inside the cage to include current UFC Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir, UFC Veteran Dan Christison, and Japanese legend Mu Bae Choi. However Marcio Cruz is better known in the Jiu-Jitsu community as a six time Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World Champion, 5 time Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu National Champion, and 8 time Pan-American Champion. Also as a world class grappler, “Pe de Pano” has defeated Jeff “The Snowman” Monson, Roger Gracie, Paulo Filho, Marcelo Gracie, and many others.

Tom Sauer is a 6′1″ Greco Roman Wrestler with outstanding striking and submission ability. He has over 40 professional MMA fights and has beaten some of the best in the world including Jeff “The Snowman” Monson, Enson Inoue, Crafton Wallace and many more in his 30 professional wins. “Trauma” is on a 5 fight win streak and has hoisted himself as the hands down number one heavyweight in the state of Florida and possibly on the east coast. What may be more astonishing is Tom Sauer has Tourette syndrome. Outside of the cage he has very noticeable symptoms but inside the cage he is focused and poised as a possible world champion should be. Tom Sauer was featured on the VS channel Tapout show (Season 2 Episode 9) as the trainer of the recent winner of the Florida State Light Heavyweight Title Holder, TJ Cook.

This bout will be the first ever WFO(World Fighting Organization) world title. The WFO is the same sanctioning body as the IBO (International Boxing Organization), who’s boxing champions include Manny “Pac Man” Pacquiao, Vladimir “Dr. Steelhammer” Klitschko, and Chad Dawson. The IBO is looking to sanction MMA and aid in its lacking rank structure. Many believe the future of the sport is run through sanctioning bodies like the IBO and the Art of Fighting is proud to host the first ever World Title for the WFO.

PETRUZELLI VS. BATEN

Seth Petruzelli is a seasoned MMA fighter with appearances in the WEC, UFC, and EliteXC. Petruzelli is well known as the “Kimbo Killer” after his October 2008 destruction of street fighting youTube star Kimbo Slice. Petruzelli wasn’t even scheduled to fight Kimbo, but after a cut opened above MMA legend Ken Shamrock’s eye, Seth “The Silverback” Petruzelli stepped in to fill his spot and fill it he did. Now seen as the “Rocky” of MMA, Petruzelli KO’d Slice in an astonishing 14 seconds of the first round in front of a stunned crowd of millions on CBS. The August 22 bout at the USF SUN DOME will be Petruzelli’s first fight since defeating Kimbo Slice.

Chris Baten is no Kimbo. Baten is a seasoned MMA fighter who has made appearances in the now extinct IFL. At 205 lbs. Baten will be an entirely different opponent for Petruzelli as fans should expect to see a standup war. Baten is also a Tampa Area police officer who has a large following in the area. Baten will seek to defeat a big time name in the sport cementing his name as one of the world’s best fighters.

OTHER MATCHUPS
Other matchups include the IFL vet Delson “Pe de Chumbo” Heleno versus the heavy handed pride of Kansas Tyler Stinson. This fight is going to be extremely exciting as Stinson has already put on a great show of skill in his first AOF vicotry against the Swiss Muay Thai Champion Yasubey Enomoto. Delson Heleno is an extremely well rounded fighter who brings a nuclear amount of energy into the cage. These two fighters are amongst some of the other elite athletes to be in the Sun Dome on August 22.

UPDATE:

EliteXC star American Top Team Trainer, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Judo black belt Nicolae “Armor” Cury slated to fight WEC vet Justin Haskins at 170 lbs.

Lightweight State Champion, Eric Reynolds has been just added to the card to fight Ireland’s Greg Loughran. Both fighters did a short stint on ESPN Deportes’ Bellator Promotion. Eric is the Florida State Lightweight Champion, the belt is not on the line since Loughran is not from Florida.

TV
AMP Film Studios, a division of Active Media partners, has negotiated a distribution agreement for Art of Fighting 4 – Cruz vs. Sauer. The show, produced by AMP Film Studios Creative Director, Edward Isin, will be available in its entirety in over 44 million homes in the US, Canada, and parts of Mexico and the Caribbean using Pay Per View On Demand services on popular cable and Telco outlets, including ATT Uverse, Verizon Fios, Time Warner, Cox Communications, Comcast and More.

FightZone TV will air the event at a later date on Sun Sports, Sport South, DIRECTV, The Dish Network and ATT U-verse to over 25 million homes.

11 fights total
Doors Open at 7pm
All Ages Welcome

For more info on Art of Fighting, email info@aofmma.com or call the USF Sun Dome ticket office at 813-974-3002.

FightZone.TV produces and airs over 35 hrs monthly of the hottest sport in the world today – Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) – on SunSports (6,000,000+ FL Homes) and nationally on the FSN Sports Package carried by DIRECTV and The Dish Network (2,000,000+ subscribers).

Plus FZTV programming is carried to an additional 9 million homes 3 times weekly on FSN’s SportSouth which includes Mississippi, Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina and regions of central and western North Carolina with its 39+ Major Cities including Atlanta, Nashville, Charlotte, Birmingham. Memphis, Charleston, Chattanooga, Savannah, Mobile, Biloxi-Gulfport, New Orleans, Baton Rouge and 27 others with their surrounding areas.

Post a comment . Aug 20, 2009
Filed under: MMA Calendar, Octagon Buzz Exclusive, Art of Fighting, FightZone TV

Published by Stephen Rhodes

Make your plans now to come down to the Golden Nugget and meet Randy Couture and other top MMA pros at the second annual No-Limit Texas Hold ‘Em poker tournament.

OPERATION: ALL IN

WHEN: August 22, 2009

WHERE: Las Vegas, NV

CASINO: Golden Nugget – Grand Ballroom

ENTRY: $330 w/ $100 ReBuys

CONTACT: John Coville (G.N.)

INFO:

REGISTER: Poker Room (G.N.)702.385.7111

SCHEDULE OF PLAY: Click Here

Post a comment . Aug 19, 2009
Filed under: Octagon Buzz Exclusive, Golden Nugget, Randy Couture

Published by FightofYourLife

Silver Star is on of the top MMA clothing brands out there, sponsoring top stars like UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva, UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St-Pierre, Yoshihiro Akiyama, Chuck Liddell, Sean Sherk, Frank Trigg, Rich Franklin, Rashad Evans, Rob Emerson, Clay Guida, Antonio “Minotauro” Nogueira, Thiago Silva, Jon Jones, and Urijah Faber. I recently spoke with Luke Burrett, owner and CEO of the company, on a variety of interesting topics.

PL: For the readers that don’t know much about Silver Star, why don’t you give us a rundown of what the company is about, how it came into existence, and what its ultimate mission is. How did you get into MMA?
LB: Silver Star has been around since 1993. I started the company initially as a jewelry line doing high-end custom pieces for Tommy Lee and other celebrities, and eventually graduated to doing shirts. Since they liked my jewelry designs, so many people I knew wanted me to make shirts for them. Silver Star’s mission is to be Nike. Honestly, we have so much fun doing what we do, and we just want the company to keep growing for as long as we can make products people enjoy and give them the quality they deserve as consumers. I’ve always been a fight fan, and sponsored [former UFC fighter] Kimo [Leopoldo] back in the day, but the company’s focus was more lifestyle-oriented until recently, because I figured MMA has such awesome, loyal fans and they share something I have a passion for. It only made sense to make shirts for people who I have a connection with, and for these fighters I admire so much.

PL: Silver Star has many fighters it currently sponsors, including former WEC Featherweight Champion Urijah Faber, former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Rashad Evans, and current UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva. Are you looking to add more top-flight athletes to your stable?
LB: Definitely. We’re sponsoring Thiago Silva for UFC 102 and Antonio Rodrigo “Minotaura” Nogueira for UFC 102. We’ll always be looking for a standout fighter to support; it’s our way of keeping the sport going and showing fans who Silver Star identifies with in the Octagon.

PL: Are you involved in other sports, or is MMA your sole focus?
LB: We sponsor skateboarders, such as Duane Peters, who will be skating at the X Games in Los Angeles in August, Fabrizio Santos, who just won silver at the Asia X Games, and Tyler Hendley, who is another incredible street-skater. Kala Alexander is a Hawaiian surf legend who we also sponsor, and also Ricky Gonzalez, who is pretty much the best wakeboarder out there. He wins everything! So yeah, we’re going to continue backing all kinds of action sports, not just MMA. We started as a lifestyle brand, and MMA is super popular right now, so that branch of our business is highly visible.

PL: Silver Star was represented at the UFC 100 Fan Expo. Please tell the readers more about the experience.
LB: The UFC 100 Fan Expo was an insane experience. We had Rashad Evans, Urijah Faber, Clay Guida, Frank Trigg, and Jon Jones, who fought (and won!) at UFC 100, all signing autographs for us. The lines were wrapped around the booth. We also designed a shirt for the Armed Forces Foundation that we had at the booth, and two army vets who were wounded in Iraq were there talking to people. It was really cool to see everyone engage with them and help to give something back to a foundation that helps our national heroes.

PL: Where do you see the business side of MMA going?
LB: To the moon. I think MMA is going to be one of the biggest sports in the world, and we are happy to be a part of it.

PL: Do you have a message for MMA fans that may be thinking about jumping on the Silver Star bandwagon?
LB: Silver Star is especially for our loyal customers who have rocked our jewelry, clothes and accessories since 1993. The members of our team have invested a tremendous amount of time and energy to ensure that this product is unique and on the cutting-edge, with all the originality that customers have come to expect from Silver Star. We will continue to bring you high-quality, custom-made clothes and accessories that represent your innovative fashion sense and all your life passions.

PL: If a super-fight between Lyoto Machida and Anderson Silva ever happens, who takes the victory?
LB: Both fighters train hard, fight hard, and are amazing athletes. If a showdown ever happened between the two of them, it would be two forces of nature crashing into one another…who knows what cataclysmic event would occur!

Silver Star can be found at http://www.buysilverstar.com/

Post a comment . Aug 18, 2009
Filed under: Octagon Buzz Exclusive, Anderson Silva, Chuck Liddell, Georges St. Pierre, Sean Sherk, UFC, UFC 100, Urijah Faber

Published by Stephen Rhodes

Below are the final card results from Strikeforce: Carano vs. Cyborg. which took place Saturday from the HP Pavilion in San Jose, CA:

• Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos defeated Gina Carano (TKO – strikes), 4:59 of Round 1
• Gegard Mousasi defeated Renato “Babalu” Sobral (TKO – punches), 1:00 of Round 1
• Gilbert Melendez defeated Mistsuhiro Ishida (TKO – strikes), 3:56 of Round 3
• Fabricio Werdum defeated Mike Kyle (guillotine choke), 1:24 of Round 1 
• Jay Hieron def. Jesse Taylor, unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Scott Lighty def. Mike Cook (TKO – strikes), 2:05 of Round 1 
• Justin Wilcox def. David Douglas (rear-naked choke), 3:16 of Round 3
• James Terry def. Zak Bucia (TKO – strikes), 1:23 of Round 1 
• Alex Trevino def. Isiah Hill (side choke), 3:56 of Round 1

Post a comment . Aug 16, 2009
Filed under: Fight Results, Videos, Strikeforce: Carano vs. Cyborg