Ronda Rousey vs. Liz Carmouche turned out to be the perfect storm
(mmafighting.com)From the start, UFC 157 was themed as a night that would be making history. And no matter what happened Saturday night when Ronda Rousey made her first defense of the newly- created UFC women’s bantamweight title, that wasn’t going to be an overstatement. The only question is what that history was going to be.
There may be bigger fights this year, in the sense that they sell more tickets and do more pay-per-views. In fact, there will be one in just three weeks, when Georges-St. Pierre faces Nick Diaz. But 20 years from now, unless the company can finally produce the elusive Anderson Silva dream match with St-Pierre or Jon Jones, Saturday night’s main event from the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif., will be the most historically significant fight of the year...
Diaz petition for judicial review of Nevada suspension, fine denied
(mmapayout.com)A Nevada Court has denied Nick Diaz’s request for a judicial review of his drug suspension. Diaz was seeking review of his drug suspension for not disclosing his marijuana use and fine fo $79,500.
The order which recites the Findings of Facts and Conclusions of Law found substantial evidence that Diaz used marijuana, a banned substance per the NAC, after testing positive following his post-UFC143 urine test. The use was a violation. The Court concluded that Diaz understood that his use of marijuana should have been disclosed to the Commission and on its pre-fight questionnaire...
'Nervous' Tito explains bungled press conference
(mmamania.com)Former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Light Heavyweight Champion, Tito Ortiz, was undoubtedly a great mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter during his tenure with the promotion.
Now that he's turned his attention to the management side of the business, he, admittedly, has some work to do when it comes to his public speaking skills. A tongue-tied Tito admitted on "The MMA Hour" he was rather nervous having to go live and says the stresses of setting up the press conference all by his lonesome only added to the pressure.
"Yes, I'm happy, just because I wanted to let (everyone) know the future of Cris Cyborg and what she is going to be doing. That was my main goal, just letting people know what she is going to be doing. But, in general? No, not really. I think I got some work to do, but, you know, (I) set up the whole press conference myself, literally. From the stage, the podium to the banners to the PR, press, everything, the people being there, I kind of put a little too much on my plate. And to go live TV on AXS television, this is as nervous as I've ever been with anything I've ever done with anything about mixed martial arts and I was so nervous because instead of holding my career, I'm holding someone else's career. I'll get better in time, as Dana White said. I'll get better. I just got to do a little more work and just make sure to get more comfortable on live television. I'm just so used to doing it during fights. You don't have nervousness after fights because your emotions are high. But making sure you say the right things for people to understand you, it's going to take a little work for me I guess. It's just time for me to slow down and explore exactly what I'm trying to say. It's going to take work and I will get better."
Top free agent Georgi Karakhanyan ready to hear more offers, including UFC's
(mmajunkie.com)With a sterling 20-3-1 record, a six-fight win streak and a recent high-profile victory over DREAM champion Hiroyuki Takaya, featherweight Georgi Karakhanyan is ready to hear some offers.
The 27-year-old Armenian-American fighter has never looked so good to potential suitors. And though he's talking to a few organizations – including Bellator MMA, as well as GLORY for both MMA and kickboxing bouts – he's certainly open to a UFC deal, as well.
The spike in interest is largely due to the Takaya win, which followed Karakhanyan's Tachi Palace Fights title victory over Isaac DeJesus and a successful defense over Micah Miller.
Bellator Reality Show Coaches Include Couture, Shamrock, Warren and Greg Jackson
(bleacherreport.com)Bellator and Spike TV are pulling out all the stops for their new reality show titled Fight Master: Bellator MMA that debuts later this year.
It was first announced last week that UFC Hall of Famer and two-weight class champion Randy Couture had signed on to be a coach on the new Bellator reality show.
He was the first confirmed coach, but now three more very well known names in the MMA industry have been announced to join Couture on the new reality show.
MMA legend and former UFC and Strikeforce champion Frank Shamrock, MMA coach and guru Greg Jackson and former Bellator champion Joe Warren will serve as the other three coaches working with a group of 32 up and coming athletes hoping to make their way to the Bellator cage later this year.
The greenest grass grows everywhere but under 'Rampage' Jackson's own feet
(mmajunkie.com)Quinton "Rampage" Jackson might not have given us everything we wanted in his farewell UFC fight, but he did give us all that we had a right to expect.
He came, he saw, he took his beating bravely. He went down but refused to stay put. He threw murderous hooks and uppercuts that sliced through the air, finding nothing. He looked at times like he might have wanted to quit, but he never did. Only in brief spasms did he resemble a fighter the UFC might be willing to shell out the big bucks in order to retain. At no point did he seem particularly bothered by that fact...
TUF 17 Recap, Week 1: A New Take Rejuvenates Ultimate Fighter Team Jones vs. Team Sonnen
(mmaweekly.com)The Ultimate Fighter returned on Tuesday night with a two-hour premier, narrowing the 28 welterweight hopefuls down to the 14 fighters that fought their way into the house.
The essence of the series is primarily the same as past seasons. There are 28 fighters trying to win a spot in The Ultimate Fighter house via a series of elimination bouts in the opening episode. The winner goes in the house; the loser goes home.
The series will see the 14 competitors fight their way through a series of tournament bouts, while shacked up in close quarters for six weeks...
Rashad Evans Can Beat Anderson Silva
(bjpenn.com)It would be a tremendous honor to have held the belt in two different division and also to beat Anderson Silva. I get excited every time I get a chance to watch him fight. When my career is said and done, i want to say I competed against some of the best guys in history. Fighting Anderson Silva is something for me, to say I went against the best ever. Fighting against that guy and beating that guy, because I do believe I can defeat Anderson Silva.
Ortiz: 'Going to be tough,' but Santos might make UFC's 135-pound limit
(mmajunkie.com)With his own fighting career over, UFC Hall of Famer Tito Ortiz is instead focused on his management career and first client, who could soon be heading to the UFC's 135-pound women's division.
Ortiz recently signed embattled ex-Strikeforce featherweight champion Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos (10-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC), who recently served a one-year suspension due to a failed drug test for an anabolic steroid.
However, while the former 145-pound champion initially dismissed the idea of getting down to 135 pounds for a potential superfight with newly crowned UFC champ Ronda Rousey (6-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC), Ortiz breathed some new life into the possibility – but there are conditions...
The Forward Roll - Strikeforce: Marquardt vs. Saffiedine edition
(mmafighting.com)Over the last few days, there has been some confusion about whether all of the Strikeforce fighters will be transferred over to the UFC. Many of them will. Strikeforce contracts were owned by the same parent company as the UFC, so they are legally transferrable. Others won't make it, either because they are victims of losses that will see them cut, or have become free agents with price tags that Zuffa does not want to meet.
Josh Barnett right now seems in danger of falling into the last category. Barnett's fight deal expired with his Saturday night win, and the UFC hasn't tipped their hand regarding their interest in bringing him into the fold...
Eddie Alvarez Situation Still Not Settled, Dana White Expects Things to Get “Ugly”
(mmaweekly.com)It appears Eddie Alvarez’s free agency won’t be coming to an end in the near future without a fight happening first but it’s not a battle in the cage.
No, the battle is likely to take place in negotiations because the former Bellator lightweight champion appears locked in a fight between the two suitors who both want to sign him.
Following Alvarez’s last fight, he officially became a free agent after competing under the Bellator banner for the last few years. While the promotion retained a matching period to offer Alvarez equal money to that of any other organization courting his services, they allowed him to seek out the best deal before they decided if they would try to re-sign him or not...
UFC Champ Jon Jones Makes Top 20 List in ESPN 2012 'Cross-Sport' Power Rankings
(bleacherreport.com)Following a dominant year of title defenses and star-making headline news, Jon Jones has been rated as one of the year's Top 20 athletes across all sports.
That list, compiled by ESPN, places the UFC light heavyweight king at No. 18 overall, ahead of more famous stars like Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers and Adrian Peterson of the Minnesota Vikings.
However, Jones is a long way from the peak of the list, which is topped by LeBron James of the Miami Heat, one of the highest-paid and most prolific athletes in the world...
Heavyweight Fighters Predict UFC 155 Main Event
(bjpenn.com)One of the most anticipated heavyweight clashes in history takes place this Saturday at the UFC’s year end show in Las Vegas.
Several of the sports heavyweight fighters took to various media outlets to discuss their opinion on the match up and MMAMania.com compiled the following:
Nam Phan Talks Short-Notice Fights
Nam Phan is certainly a favorite among MMA enthusiasts. A long time veteran of the sport, he puts on an exciting show every time he competes. He has won “Fight of the Night” Honors in two of his five previous UFC fights. And he has certainly endeared himself to the Zuffa brass, taking his fight this weekend against Dennis Siver on short notice.
Just days before making weight for his UFC on Fox 5 bout this Saturday, December 8th, Nam was generous enough to give us at MMA Playground some of his time and talk to us about short notice fights, and the preparation that comes with them.
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P$: With only a couple of weeks to prepare on short notice, time is of the essence. As such do you focus more on your opponent, watching tape of his previous fights, or more on yourself and your own technique and conditioning?
Nam Phan: You HAVE to do both. You can't go in there blind, not knowing who you are fighting. I studied what I could in the short time I had and I tried to get my conditioning up as much as I could in such a short time.
P$: Siver has moved down from Welterweight, to Lightweight, and now he is meeting you at Featherweight. As other fighters filter down to 145, have you noticed the division getting physically larger?
Nam Phan: Yeah definitely. There are a bunch of tough guys coming into the division, Frankie Edgar, Clay Guida, Dennis Siver. Everybody is moving to Featherweight man, making my job tougher!
P$: Has that affected you in the gym as far as the things you work on?
Nam Phan: Oh yeah, definitely. I'm always trying to keep up to date with the trends within MMA. When I can I always try to train at Alpha Male. Those guys are amazing and always show me great stuff, so I'm trying to learn what I can with the time I have left in the sport.
P$: Do you spend most of your time training at Team Alpha Male?
Nam Phan: No, I only go there when I'm training for a fight. Most of the time I'm back home in Orange County, where I train at my own gym (Nam Phan MMA Academy). I also spend some time at Anaheim Boxing.
P$: If you could book your own schedule, how many fights a year do you feel is the perfect amount for you?
Nam Phan: I think about 4 fights a year is good. It's not too much. It's just about right.
P$: You're coming off a big win against Cole Miller. Are you feeling good taking that momentum in to this fight?
Nam Phan: Yeah it definitely feels good. A win is always important, especially coming against someone as tough as Cole Miller. So hopefully that gives me the confidence to come in and beat someone up like Dennis Siver.
P$: You've been in the sport for a decade. What aspect(s) of the sport do you feel have changed the most?
Nam Phan: Definitely the transition from jiu-jitsu to wrestling. In the very beginning jiu-jitsu was dominant, but now wrestling has really taken over. With everyone having good boxing and takedown defense, submissions have become more rare these days.
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It was great chatting with Nam, big thanks to him from MMA Playground!
You can follow Nam Phan on Twitter @NamPhanMMA and visit his website at IamNam.com.
Nam would also like to shout out his sponsors Hayabusa and The Ally Restaurant in Westminster, CA.
The Fact of the Matter is Michael Bisping is the Unofficial Strikeforce Middleweight Champion
(mmaweekly.com)“Are they gonna come over and be number one contenders? Are they gonna come in and take the belt? I don’t think so. You’re in Strikeforce, come over to the UFC and earn your place.”
As a matter of fact… yes fact… Bisping believes Rockhold’s belt rightfully belongs around his waist.
“Let me put it like this,” said the brash Brit. “I’ve sparred with Luke Rockhold recently and let’s just say, I’m the unofficial Strikeforce champion.
“These are the facts.”
After Getting Shot and Going Through Addiction, Tim Means Building UFC Career
(sherdog.com)The 28-year-old has been shot, addicted to drugs and also served time in prison. He survived all of those ordeals, though, and is now 2-0 in the UFC. Ahead of his Dec. 8 bout against Abel Trujillo at UFC on Fox 5, Means joined the Sherdog Radio Network’s “Rewind” show and discussed his past with host Jack Encarnacao.
On getting shot: “I went out partying one night with some buddies, got drunk and winded up at a local business here. One thing led to another, walked outside a little while later and a guy winded up shooting six of us.
On what started the incident: “In all honesty, we supposedly cut in line and the guys had recognized me from a local fight organization. ... They didn’t want to fight then. We shook hands and left it alone. He winded up calling his cousin up. About an hour later, we walked outside and the dude just started shooting at us, no questions said, no nothing. He just started firing into a bunch of us.”
On where he was hit: “My femoral artery in my left thigh. I have about an eight- or nine-inch scar on my left thigh from where they had to cut me open, go in and tie my femoral artery. They said I was bleeding to death. I had a good buddy named Brian Shaw who wrapped a belt around my leg, and supposedly that saved my life. I was bleeding pretty good, so thanks to Brian Shaw for saving me that night. I thought I was going to die.”
Ronda Rousey: I have sex as much as possible pre fight
(mixedmartialarts.com)
UFC women's Bantamweight Champion Ronda Rousey appeared recently on the JIM Rome show, and discussed the "women weaken legs" rule in fighting.
“For girls it raises your testosterone," explained Rousey. "so I try to have as much sex as possible before I fight actually. Not with like everybody, I don’t put out like a Craigslist ad or anything, but if I got a steady I’m going to be like ‘yo, fight time’s coming up’."
There are limits however.
“You can’t (beep beep) somebody and go fight that day," said Rousey with a laugh.
She concluded by citing studies done that show that male fighters who abstain for months before a fight can actually suffer decreased performance (in fighting).
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