It was announced today that Takanori Gomi has finalized a deal with World Victory Road and is signed on to fight on the star studded March 5 show. “The Fireball Kid” is coming off a year long lay-off and looks to regain his winning ways and silence the critics. Gomi is shrouded in controversy especially when it comes to the usually chaotic issue of rankings. Some feel that he is the consensus number 1 Lightweight Fighter in the World, while others seem enraged at the notion of putting a 1 next to his name. It’s very hard to find another fighter in his weight division who has faced as much current World Class competition and come out victorious.Wins over Tatsuya “Crusher” Kawajiri, Mistuhiro Ishida, and Hayato “Mach” Sakurai give Gomi a strong case but recent droughts of inactivity leave it open for discussion, not to mention 1 loss and 1 NC in the last 2 years in which Gomi looked less than spectacular in.

The Fireball Kids start in SHOOTO to his future stint in WVR seem like complete opposites when you reflect on his past and current skill sets. It’s really weird to think of Gomi as a wrestler using takedown to secure positions and also winning decisions seems kind of a thing of the past. He became SHOOTO’s World Welterweight Champion at 20 years old beating Rumina Sato by Decision. His reign as World Champion would last about 2 years until he was derailed by Joachim “Hellboy” Hansen, whom squeezed out a very close decision. Desiring to pursue different ventures he ended up fighting the talented BJ Penn in Hawaii, where he suffered his 1st stoppage loss.

I think many people would agree that Gomi’s rise was due to the push of the BUSHIDO series in PRIDE. He would make his PRIDE debut at PRIDE 2 were he was part of Team Japan against Team Chute Boxe. He was the only successful Team Japan member to secure a win. His came over Jadson Costa and little did anyone know that a mini feud with Chute Boxe would ignite his career. He was also the 1st PRIDE Lightweigh to headline an event at BUSHIDO 5 were he took on the colorful Charles “Krazy Horse” Bennett and secured a submission win. Also at Shockwave 2004 he shocked many when he knocked out former UFC Lightweight Champion, Jens “Lil’ Evil” Pulver in which basically was a Kickboxing match because of the lack of takedown attempts by either men.

Bushido 7. Other than being one of the best shows in MMA History, it holds a real turning point in Gomi’s career. I think if you hadn’t heard or seen him before that you would get a rude awakening after this event. It pitted the Fireball Kid against Chute Boxe’s Luis Azeredo, who had just come off a great showing against Luis “Buscape” Firmino in one of the best bouts in BUSHIDO history. It was very evident that neither men wouldn’t necessarily look to put the fight on the floor but rather keep it completely on the feet. Azeredo’s style and quick pace pushing looked like it was throwing Gomi completely off his game and comfort zone until eventually the 2 “legal” punches that caught Azeredo put him to sleep. Even a sleeping Azeredo wasn’t ready for what occured next as Gomi continued to strike at him even though he was knocked out and wouldn’t stop until he was constrained by Daisuke Noguchi and many others of the PRIDE reffing and judging staff. One thing I’ve also noted about this fight is the need of Pres. Sakakibara to enter the ring to cool emotions, which is something rarely ever seen in PRIDE. Sakakibara almost never entered the ring unless for a Title Match or GP Final, unlike other certain attention loving Promoters/Presidents.

This ignited a short Feud with Chute Boxe that even saw PRIDE bring in former Cage Rage Champion Jean Silva to fight Gomi. But 2005, his 2005 was definitely marked by his perfect performance at the Inaugural BUSHIDO GP, BUSHIDO 9. He faced and displayed massive heart and sportsmanship against Tatsuya “Crusher” Kawajiri and again rematched Azeredo and eventually won a decision that saw him face the other bracket winner and former mentor, Hayato “Mach” Sakurai at Shockwave 2005. Gomi would go on to beat Sakurai by Knockout and go on to crown himself Grand Prix champion and the 1st (and only) PRIDE Lightweight.

As high as he got, the Fireball Kid would be extinguished when he was dramatically and unpredictably submitted by Marcus Aurelio. He would need to a comeback fight, which presented itself in the shape of David Baron, which he won. He faced Aurelio for the Title at the final BUSHIDO show, BUSHIDO 13, were Gomi looked like anything but himself. Unwilling to really engage and ultra-hesitant, Gomi secured a lack luster decision win over Aurelio. It seemed that the secret was out there. Gomi had no submission defense and was incredibly weak on his back. He faced Mitsuhiro Ishida at Shockwave 2006, and just steam rolled him in what was expected to be a very competitive fight. Gomi would again experience the bitter taste of defeat in what was one of the best fights of 2007 against Nick Diaz. This fight was a back and forth battle for the 1st couple minutes until a very weak and gassed Gomi would become target practice against Nick Diaz’s peppering boxing style. Gomi was stopped by the than rare Gogoplata, but the loss would be changed to a no contest due to Diaz testing positive for banned substance.

Ok… If you’ve never seen Gomi fight or even heard of him (I hope not) than there’s kind of a breif summary of his career and accomplishments. Why 1 year? Why did it take a whole year for the number 1 lightweight in the world to see action again? I think its very sad that fighters like Gomi, Ishida, Kawajiri, Hansen, Aoki, and Sakurai went over 8 months without seeing action and I think it was the than understandable notion that PRIDE would return. There were hints that PRIDE would in fact make a comeback and all the fighters and public may have been mislead into believing this myth. Sadly, the fans suffer but the fighters are completely helpless and ill-informed. The T-Blood fighters in PRIDE just sat around thinking that PRIDE would eventually reemerge and basically waited and waited. They saw nothing happening and just still waited. They didn’t make any money due to this inactivity. It’s sad to think that talent is just waiting around and waiting for things that weren’t going to ever happen to occur.

Sadly, I think that Gomi, like others, may not get to comfortable in their new World Victory Road home. The promotion is yet to secure a TV Deal and seems destined to fade away sooner than later. I do hope that it will stick around and give fighters a home and a decent way to pay for things they need. As for his 1st opponent, I do believe they will secure somebody of a decent caliber. Maybe somebody like a Yusuke Endo or Artur Oukmahanov is possible but maybe someone even up the food chain like maybe a rematch with Joachim Hansen. Any of these would prove to be great. I’m just anxious to see the Fireball Kid getting back to what he does best, which is putting on some epic fights.

Poor Andre Arlovski. The guy had to wait 9 months since his last fight against Fabricio Werdum and now he is officially up against the UFC’s newest lay and pray artist, Jake O’Brien. What else could go wrong for the 28 year old former heavyweight champ? Well, if he loses, he can say goodbye for the UFC. And If he wins, he most likely will get dumped by the largest MMA organization for reasons unknown as well. I don’t think we’ll even understand how Dana White and his crew thinks these days. If you have one boring fight standup fight, you’re out for good. But, if you lay and pray to a decision win for two consecutive fights, no worries!

Sure, nobody likes a cautious standup fighter, but why is Lyoto Machida getting a big fight against Tito Oritz while other fighters are getting dropped? Oh wait, everyone’s favorite standup fighter, Chuck Liddell is a counter-puncher. The UFC management thinks that by catering to the casual Liddell-loving fanbase, they can create excitement. But they are making a big mistake thinking that everyone will get excited for guys like Machida and O’Brien. Liddell has the celebrity status, the other guys have a cautious game plan going into the cage. There’s a big difference.

Maybe the UFC thinks that Arlovski’s losses to the big heavyweight, Tim Sylvia, are another reason to drop him. What’s going to happen if Antonio Nogueira if he can’t defeat his larger and heavier opponent during UFC 81? Will the UFC think about dropping him too?

It looks like MMA Junkie has learned that The Ultimate Fighter Season 7 had a “big” change in format. Yes, just one and it’s really not what we had expected, but it’s better than nothing. If that is the only big change this year, is that going to be enough to keep viewers from complaining about the lack of real action on the show? Maybe. Is it going to be enough to keep the entire show interesting? Well, no.

With the news that The Ultimate Fighter will initially feature 32 fighters, you may be wondering how the show will be able to keep track of 32 guys over the course of two hours or less. Well, with 16 matches determining the 16 fighters to stay on the show, we’ll quickly learn who stays and who goes and the 16 losers won’t get their 15 (or even just 10) minutes of fame.

In just one or two episodes, we can expect up to 16 fights - most likely crammed into a highlight of fight inexperience and wrestling abilities. While that sounds like a good reason to watch the upcoming season, it really only gives us a reason to watch the first couple episodes. After the initial fights, should we expect the same boring “16 fights in a house” drama? For the sake of all viewers, I certainly hope not. Let’s see if the UFC had some other ideas for TUF 7 before we start complaining again.

There is speculation that Olympic Gold Medalist Hidehiko Yoshida might not be fighting another Gracie after all. Yoshida, who was supposedly going to match up against Roger Gracie, might not get the chance to fight the 2005 Abu Dhabi 88+ kg and Absolute Weight class Champion as originally reported. GracieMag.com had originally reported that Yoshida vs. Gracie was close to finished but there is still a chance for that to change. The name Josh Barnett has been thrown around as a possibility to face the Japanese Judoka.

There seems to be a weird lust in Japan for seeing their Idols get smashed, literally, by bigger fighters on a constant basis. I guess popularity comes at a very heavy price. Ikuhisa Minowa, Hidehiko Yoshida, and Kazushi Sakuraba have all been subjected to this kind of treatment. Not to mention fighters some of the time get the discourtesy of not having a “tune up” fight to get their careers rolling, which is definitely the case with Kazuhiro Nakamura, who questionably has one of the craziest looking records in MMA. In his 1st 2 years of fighting he’s faced Wanderlei Silva, Igor Vovchanchyn, Dan Henderson, Murilo Bustamente, Kevin Randleman, and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira on 2 occasions and 1 of those being his MMA debut.

Both men (Yoshida and Barnett) last saw action at PRIDE 2006 Shockwave show were both men fell to their opponents. Barnett had a hard fought rematch with Antonio Rodrigo Noguiera, while Yoshida saw himself nearly forcefully retired at the hands of the “Colossus” James Thompson, which proved to be a very brutal fight. I see it highly unlikely that Barnett is actually the person who Yoshida will face in March. I think that the Yoshida vs. Gracie match-up, while still kind of obscure and weird, is more likely to happen considering that Gracie is already confirmed at the event and opponent-less, and that talks about a potential Aleksander Emelianenko vs. Josh Barnett match-up are sprouting up. We’ll see from here to March what happens and how this all unfolds.

Speaking of March, it was re-officially announced that Shinya Aoki vs. Gesias “JZ” Calvancanti will still happen on the inaugural HERO’S or DREAMS show of 2008. No sure word if we’ve seen the end of HERO’S, but signs show that HERO’S will be changed. Another rumored match-up for this event is the Jeff Monson vs. Sergei Kharitonov fight. Kharitonov was supposed to fight “Might Mo” at Dynamite!! 06 but that fight was axed from the show silently. March is definitely going to be a great month with UFC 82, Sengoku, and the New FEG Show all happening at relatively the same time.

With the recent news that the Nevada State Athletic Commission will be monitoring steroid use closely through random drug testing, can we expect fighters to finally come clean? If so, will we still be waiting weeks after the fight to learn if anyone tested positive for banned substances? Considering that we are still not quite sure how often or how quickly the drug tests need to be performed, it’s still not a perfect solution. But, the bigger question remains - what if the NSAC, or the other athletic commissions, began the random drug testing months ago?

K-1 Dynamite brought an event over to the U.S. back in June of 2007. With this event, they also brought three controversial test failures. Former NFL football player Johnny Morton, knocked unconscious in less than a minute, refused to take a post-fight drug test. It didn’t really matter considering he failed his pre-fight test. Tim Persey tested positive for methamphetamine and there were also issues with the headlining fight. UFC veteran Royce Gracie was up against Pride “Gracie Hunter” Kazushi Sakuraba. After taking the fight with a decision win, Gracie was found to be using steroids prior to the bout. Gracie denied using the drugs, but his name has been tainted since the fiasco. This could have all been easily avoided if these fighters were randomly tested weeks, if not months, before K-1 finalized their production.

Now let’s go back to just before UFC 73. Sean Sherk and Hermes Franca were slated to fight for the lightweight championship on July 7th, 2007 in Sacramento, California. Both fighters tested positive after Sherk pulled off the decision win. Franca admitted to using drugs, but Sherk remained adamant that he never purposely used any type of steroids. This fight and the fiasco that followed could have been averted (at the expense of the UFC, of course) with the use of random drug testing prior to the fight. Would either fighter have made it into the arena if the CSAC had decided to use these random drug tests? We’ll never know, but the outcome of the fight could have certainly changed for the better. Thanks to Sherk, B.J. Penn is now the lightweight champion with his recent UFC 80 submission win over Joe Stevenson. Stephan Bonnar, removed from the cage for 9 months after testing positive for Boldenone in 2006, returned to fight Mike Nickels on this card. Bonnar could have avoided spending his fine and suspension as well.

Dont’ forget about Melvin Guillard and his cocaine problems during UFC 69. Phil Baroni also tested positive during his Strikeforce bout against Frank Shamrock. Anthony Torres tested positive after UFC 75 and there are plenty more, but the facts are clear; the athletic commissions have waited too long to begin random drug testing for MMA fighters. Because of this, MMA organizations have been given a bad name for no reason while the athletic commissions are showing positive drug use left and right. Don’t forget that fighters were not taking drug testing seriously and simply cycling off, or temporarily stopping, their drug use before fights, but still recklessly risking the loss of income for up to a full year. Let’s just hope that Nevada has set a precedent for the other commissions to begin taking control of the obvious drug problem in MMA.

We’ll also see how the UFC handles the random drug testing - will they book more events outside of Nevada or will they trust their fights to be drug free? It will be interested to see how this pans out int he second half of 2008. As for now, drug use may be on its way out of MMA - a good thing for the sport indeed.

Ever since he showed up with Royce Gracie at a press conference for K-1, I’ve been watching all the folks clamoring to see how Brock Lesnar will do in a real fight.

When I first heard that they were lining him up against Hong Man Choi, I was genuinely interested. Unfortunately, that never went down. Instead we were treated to Lesnar taking on the undersized and out gunned Min Soo Kim. Read the full story

I’ve been finding myself staring at ESPN with a look of disbelief. I’m reading around and shaking my head, because there is this cloud of hype that seems to be hanging over the entire MMA landscape as we approach this weekend.

Chances are, you know exactly what I’m talking about.

Here we are, just a few days away from one of the most historical match ups EVER in the UFC. Yet there are few people talking about it. Nope. There is no one really out there talking about the big and very significant match that isn’t even getting top billing. All I hear about is some former pro wrestler coming into the mix………

Pardon me if I’m not hopping out of my skin with excitement over that.

What has my attention is more than likely the same thing that has the attention of the fans who are not going to buy into hype until it is legitimized in a setting that is real, not fantasy.

Nope, not that gorilla who’s value is yet to be determined……

I’m talking about a fight between a former UFC HW Champion and a former Pride HW Champion. Tim Sylvia vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. The Maine-Iac vs. Minotauro. The history here is so long, it just baffles me that the contest is generating so little discussion.

I suppose a lot of that has to do with Big Nog’s only performance in the cage thus far. Where all the neophytes and their MMA math (MMAth) spew quarter baked opinions about Big Nog’s abilities, based entirely on his fight with Heath Herring, I hope there will be more seasoned fans who can show these new fans the err of their ways.

First of all, Heath Herring just gets completely disrespected in that analysis. People say Big Nog looked “bad” in his fight with Herring. To those people, I always ask the question:

“What are you talking about?”

The constant response is that Herring floored Nogueira with a kick, and had the fight won, but gave it away. Those people……those people make me want to strap them to a chair and show them the real deal with Nogueira. Heath Herring has been to the mat with Big Nog before, and he knows better than anyone currently in the UFC how skilled Big Nog is on the ground.

And then take it one step further. While those people think Big Nog did poorly in that fight, those people must not understand that the kick which Nog survived would have ended the night for just about anyone else in the HW division. Does the fact that it was delivered by Herring make seem like it was less than crushing? I have no idea.

Prior to arriving in the UFC Big Nog went on one of the most dominant streaks in MMA history. His BJJ was off the chain. Slowly but surely, he developed some very strong boxing skills as well. If it weren’t for Fedor Emelianenko’s rise, Big Nog would have stayed the Big Dog in Pride until the promotion collapsed.

Just several years ago, a fight between Big Nog and Tim Sylvia would have had Big Nog as the head and shoulders favorite in the eyes of the hard core fans. These days, the majority aren’t even giving him a strong chance. I don’t know what this analysis could possibly be based on, but it sure can’t be history.

This entire fight is getting disrespected. Not enough talk, not enough promotion, the fact that it is being overshadowed, and even the “interim” title that the fight is for. All of these factors make me wonder what kind of direction the UFC is going in.

This is an interesting match up, far more so than the one that is getting all the attention.

You’ve got a massive guy with vastly underrated takedown defense and very credible stand up skills lined up against a guy who could be called a wizard on the ground, who’s stand up is just as credible, if not technically better than his opponent’s! Granted, this could have stolen some of the Lesnar-Hype if Sylvia was still knocking people out. Then you’d also have the unstoppable force of Sylvia’s right hand meeting the immovable object that is Nog’s chin.

I for one will be watching anxiously for this fight. This is the a for the “middle school” fans to get excited about. The folks who were around a little while before The Ultimate Fighter was a twinkle in Dana’s eye know the importance of this fight. The “old school” fans don’t need it explained. The “new school” fans still don’t care. The fact that Big Nog could climb to the position of number one heavyweight in the world with a win here is pretty huge to me. A heck of a lot more huge than some former professional wrestler coming into the mix anyway.

Maybe if Big Tim and Big Nog were a couple of tatted up pretty boys with fake tans and highlights in their hair, this would be different? But man, I really hope that’s not true.

I expect this fight to go the distance, but am very interested to see how Big Nog’s ground attack works with Sylvia. That is of course, assuming he can get the fight to the ground in the first place. Standing up, this one should be an interesting technical match up. I can’t see Tim getting his first KO in almost three years (Arlovski ran into that punch, and I don’t care what anyone says on the matter.) against Big Nog. I hope we see Big Nog and Sylvia both at their best on Saturday night, and I hope that they get the attention of all the new schoolers tuning in to see that side of beef with the lame tattoo on his chest……

Last night in Virginia Beach snow fell and the only sounds that could be heard were that of the ocean. Inside the Surfside Oceanfront Suites it wasn’t as quiet. The cheers and screams of 500 of Virginia’s best MMA fans echoed throughout the business hall turned fight arena. King of the ring 24 was an outstanding stage for 28 amateur fighters from local gyms to showcase their fighting skills. This event had a little bit of everything; great submissions, knockouts, and of course great fights. Some of the fighters were starting their career with their first MMA fight like Scott Cozart, while others continued to claw their way to a championship shot. There were bouts in almost every weight class, and even had a few female fights. The numbers of participants show the growth of the sport in this area. This growth is also generating a handful of serious fighters, including one that will be fighting in the IFL next season. As the popularity for this booming sport grows, more events like this will be held in this area, and the rest of the nation.

The fighters competing in the event were from several local gyms. The most impressive gym of the night was Bushido MMA. Bushido went undefeated with two fighers on the night. These two fighters performed impressively, as they were part of the fight of the night and submission of the night. The submission of the night came from a nasty triangle to arm bar transition, which led to a picture perfect arm bar, and submission. The fight of the night came from our selected fighter Scott Cozart and his opponent Lee Higgins. Cozart has been training MMA for the past two years, and needed every bit of this training to become victorious. Cozart started a bit slow in the first round and was cut over his left eye. Higgins seemed to be getting the better of him on his feet so Cozart decided to attempt a few takedowns, but unfortunately his ankle was injured on one of the attempts. When the fighters went to their corners after the first round, Cozart was in pain, but did not let it affect his solid mental focus. At the start of the second round it was apparent that Cozart was there to fight. He proved this by landing a solid left hook and multiple leg kicks. At the midway in the second round Cozart shot a double leg that Dan Gable would have been proud of, pushing his opponent into the ropes. The ropes slowed the momentum, but he eventually got the takedown. After the second round, the fans could tell this battle had yet to be won, and the third round would be an amazing showcase of heart and determination. When the third round started, Cozart decided to bring the pain train. In the third round alone he connected on two left hooks that rattled his opponent. One of which knocked out a tooth. In this round Cozart had complete control, as he used his leg kicks and hands to keep his challenger at bay. When the final bell rang the crowd went wild. This was the type of fight that made the event worth the cover charge. In the end Cozart was the better fighter, but both deserve a large amount of credit. Fights like this are the reason the sport is growing in popularity everyday. This displayed the best parts of the sport, and was exciting from bell to bell. If there was someone in the crowd that wasn’t a sure fan, they were after this fight.

Fighters like Cozart and Higgins make it easy to love this sport. They both showed the heart and desire it takes to be successful. The best part of this type of event is that the athletes fight for the love of the game. It is their love for fighting and the overall sport of MMA that pushes them. It is the adrenaline of the fight and the roar of the crowd that keeps them coming back for more. The next ring event is in April, but there are several events before then. At this point there are a handful of fighters that I follow and feel could have a future in the sport. Cozart is now the newest addition to this list, and be sure; the next time he fights I will be in attendance.

   

Mixed Martial Arts is a sport that is on an amazing popularity high. Daily you can turn on your television and view some sort of MMA show. There are many fans that see the shows on television, and have no clue what it takes for a fighter to get to that level of competition. To become a professional fighter it takes years of training and dedication. B.J. Penn is known as one of the most naturally gifted jiu-jitsu artists, and it took him years to fight in the UFC. This weekend there is an event for amateur fighters in Virginia Beach and other nearby areas. For this card, there are fighters driving as many as 4 hours to compete. To shine a light on my local MMA scene, I want to focus on one school and a fighter, as well as the things needed to prepare for the fight. This is part 1 of a 2 part series of articles that will focus on one of the local fighters and his gym, as he steps in the ring for his first amateur fight.

Scott Cozart by record is new to the sport of Mixed Martial Arts. This weekend he will be participating in his first full contact fight. Even though his record is 0-0, he has been training for this for several years in many different ways. He is a physical beast at his 170 pound weight class, and will be a tough draw for any upcoming opponent. Cozart was a solid wrestler in high school, placing top 3 in the grueling state tournament in California twice. Having a wrestling background like Cozart creates a solid foundation for hip movement and mat presence crucial to the ground game in MMA. Cozart also boxed for a few years, and has been preparing for this fight for almost 2 years. During this tenure he has trained BJJ, Muay Thai, and other Mixed Martial Arts skills at Bushido MMA in Chesapeake Virginia. This is one of the premier gyms in the Hampton Roads area, and does very well in all areas of competition. Having a great place to train is also important in fine tuning or establishing your skills. It helps tremendously to have great teachers, training partners, and friends to push you in every aspect of your training. Having a great camp around you can help you get that desired win.

King of the Ring this Saturday will showcase many different styles and experience level of athletes. Cozart is just one fighter that is on the card. This event typically has 15 to 20 fights, including title fights. The fighters come from all around, and represent many different gyms. It is so popular, there are Independent fighters that are self trained. However, this is not the recommended path as these fighters typically lose more than win. The promoter attempts to match fighters up by style and in ring experience as well. The close and interesting fights are what the fans want to see. When they purchase their tickets, they want to get their money’s worth. Looking at the big picture, this sport is growing daily. The smaller shows are proof of that. Check the Internet, magazines, and newspapers for an upcoming event in your area. You never know when you might get to watch the makings of the next George St. Pierre, Chuck Liddell, or future champion.

Tonight’s fight card should be named Fight Night 12, Quest of the Ultimate Fighter. This card shows that the reality television show is having a major impact on the UFC. Many fans have mixed feelings about the show. Some think the show will have a negative affect in the future, but I disagree. Looking at the number of fighters that have benefited from the show, such as Josh Koscheck, Diego Sanchez, Rashad Evans, Michael Bisping, and almost half of the card for tonight’s event, shows proof that the show is helping the organization find talent.

Tonight’s fight card is full of former Ultimate Fighter participants. All of these fighters have high hopes of making it in the UFC, but there is one getting serious backing. Corey Hill is a fighter at 155. His trainer is one of the biggest names in MMA. Pat Miletich has been training fighters for years, and has coached many of the UFC greats including Matt Hughes and Jens Pulver. Miletich has nothing but great things to say about this future superstar. Hill is a physical specimen at 155. His 6 foot 4 inch frame will allow him to tower over most of his opponents. This also gives him a reach advantage that can catapult him to the top of the division, and of all of The Ultimate Fighter alumni fighting tonight, he has the most potential. Tonight Hill tries his luck in the Octagon against Joe Veres.

Another fighter on tonight’s card that shows true promise is Nate Diaz. His last name may sound familiar. His older brother is a professional MMA fighter that once fought in the UFC, and now fights for EliteXC. The two brothers are both known for having a great ground game. This strong ground game carried Nate to this point, and to a win in The Ultimate Fighter Finale crowning him The Ultimate Fighter. If Nate Diaz can put a standup game with his ground game he will be a tough opponent for most of the fighters in the division. Diaz will fight against Alvin Robinson.

After Hill, in my opinion the fighter with the most potential is Gray Maynard. This Extreme Couture trained athlete has a ton of talent, and showcases a game that could be hard to defend by weaker wrestlers. Randy has a knack with fighters, and Maynard’s skills are similar to a young Matt Hughes. He has good ground and pound, and has decent hands. If he continues to work with Couture he will go far. Tonight he will battle against Dennis Siver.

The Ultimate Fighter television show in my opinion is creating a buzz around the sport that is different then it has ever experienced. The weekly show gives fans of reality shows and MMA something to watch. It also gives a stage to showcase raw talent that could be the future of the sport. Imagine if Matt Hughes could have been a beneficiary of this show, and fans could have watched his amazing career from start to finish. The next Ultimate Fighter will have two fighters that are exciting and full of character. Rampage Jackson and Forrest Griffin will put on their coaching hats, and attempt to lead their teams to victory. They will have their hand in influencing the participant’s careers, and possibly a future champ! Tonight’s show will do one of two things for the former reality stars. It will either put a damper on their dreams, or help continue the run up the championship totem pole.

TheBass from MMA.tv’s underground forum proves that MMA fighters have the upper hand against wannabe thugs these days.

The gym I train at is currently relocating and is still under construction so we’re not open to the public but we already have mats down so the fighters can still grapple and train a little in the meantime. Myself and 6 other guys had just finished rolling and were sitting around discussing technique when a guy and his gf walk in, both holding Budweisers, and ask for me and my coach by name. I reply that I’m the guy they’re looking for and the guy says he’s there to kick my ass. I brush it off at first as I’m told he’s a friend of a friend but he keeps saying he wants to fight. I remind him he’s drunk and tell him to come back when we’re open and take classes but he insists he’s there to kick my ass. After much more nagging and the fact that he called me out by name I agree and go get 2 pair of 4 oz gloves with the intent of just roughing him up a little. The guy has 5 or 10 lbs on me and looks to be in pretty good shape so I’m thinking he might be a dojo buster from another school in the area so i warm back up a little as he’s yelling and saying he’s ready. he didn’t have a mouthpiece so I didn’t wear mine and we began. So I’ve got my hands up and waiting to see what he’s gonna do and he rushes at me flailing and I hit him with a right mid kick that makes him grunt and back away circling as he continues to rush. Once again, he has no mouthpiecs so I don’t want to knock his teeth out so I duck under and body lock him and take him down and mount him quickly. Once there, I let him quit flailing and posture up and ask him if he’s ok, to which he replies hell yea. I then proceed to lump his forehead up, careful to not knock his freakin teeth out until he rolls over giving me his back. The RNC takes all of 15 seconds to gently secure and put him completely to sleep.

Afterwards I immediately rolled him on his side, slapped him on his back until he woke up, sat him up and gave him some water. I felt like a real piece of shit for about 5 min but I was really nice to him thru the whole thing. Then, get this, all knotted up and complaining about his ribs from the body kick he says he wants another round, WTF!!!………

There was a little more to it but this was getting a bit lengthy so I’ll leave it at that, just doing my part to entertain. Thoughts,,,,,,,,

Link to the first video (YouTube)

Link to the second video (YouTube)

Keep in mind that throughout both fights, the guy is talking trash while he is getting beat by someone who was nice enough not to not knock his teeth out or even kill him. Good stuff.

A crazy 2007 left us with a lot of questions and discussion to last us a while but 1 fight, Misaki vs. Akiyama, definitely gave us a lot to talk about in early 2008. Was it legal? Was it wrong? His hand was down.. etc. We saw lots of good arguments from both sides but finally I feel some justice was done. Even though we rarely see it in MMA, we saw a fight overturned due to video and photo evidence that the Grabaka Hitman, Kazuo Misaki illegally struck, the always controversial, Yoshihiro Akiyama with an illegal kick in their much anticipated bout at Yarennoka!! 2007.

I think that it is a great thing that the Yarennoka!! staff and FEG went back and reviewed the issue at hand and came out with a fair and honest decision, which was also a not so lenient one. We see very often in fights were fighters are unable to continue due to illegal strikes and are usually awarded the fight. The case was this with Yoshiyuki Yoshida’s less than spectacular win at the Cage Force Tournament Finals in December against Dan Hardy, where he was not only awarded the tournament title, but also a 4 Fight UFC deal too. I think the judging should have been the same for this fight. The fight should definitely be awarded to Akiyama like we’ve seen so often in the past. My only thought is that the reason why this fight wasn’t given to Akiyama is for reasons that don’t necessarily pertain to fighting but that’s a whole different story.

Where do they both go from here? Akiyama is recovering from an injury sustained in the bout, which definitely sidelines him to until March. FEG is having a show in March but I doubt Akiyama will be participating in it due his need to recover. Misaki on the other hand will be very active when he meets Shooto World Champion at 83 Kg. Siyar Baharduzada at the Inaugural World Victory Road (WVR) Show, Sengoku also in March. Also recently announced was the match up between Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos against Makoto Takimoto and Phil Baroni vs. Sanae Kikuta. Also, the 3rd standout member of the Grabaka squad, the colorful Akihiro Gono was supposed to see action against the very talented, Jon Fitch, but Gono was forced to pull out due to an injury he suffered.

If this is true, their may be a very marketable free agent floating around. Time is running out in the relationship between the UFC and Tito Ortiz. The UFC believes that Ortiz is no longer the fighter he once was, and that he is no longer worthy of the pay check that he desires. Tito, once a world champion in the UFC, has became more of a celebrity than a fighter of late. He is currently on the television show Celebrity Apprentice, he runs his own clothing line and is dating Jenna Jameson. With all of the time he has spent on television, I am curious how much training he has done.

Over his career he has fought the likes of Randy Couture, Chuck Liddell, Wanderlei Silva, Ken Shamrock, and Forrest Griffin, but the biggest fight of his career has been with Dana White. Throughout his career the two haven’t exactly seen eye to eye. It was bad enough to schedule a three round boxing fight that never happened. It seems that feud is still continuing between the two. It has been reported by multiple sources that the two have been in contracts talks for over 6 months, and Ortiz even skipped Dana and went to Zuffa. He still had the same results, and still doesn’t have a new contract.

At this point it does not look like the UFC will renew his contract. This means in the future a bidding war could ensue. This winner of this war will get one of the highest profile fighters in the history of the UFC, a former Ultimate Fighter Coach, and former UFC Champion. That in itself is will attract fans. If he goes to an organization such as HDNet Fights, he could help lift them into the limelight. Add Tito to a card with Floyd Mayweather at 155 and you have a monster fight card! Marc Cuban is not a dummy, and he would market such a card to the extreme.

No one knows what the future holds for the UFC or Tito Ortiz. Unless he fights and loses again, or fades away in the sunset, he will continue to be a popular fighter. People want to see him fight, and will pay to do so. Tito needs to get back in the gym and commit to training. He has the ability to be a superstar in other organizations. The UFC has left him behind. He will never be champion again in the UFC. He can’t beat Evans, let alone Chuck or Rampage. He is better off leaving the UFC, and starting a fresh career somewhere else. If he can not rejuvenate his career somewhere else, then it may be time to hang it up and use his celebrity status to make a paycheck.

After all kinds of speculation that Tito Ortiz wouldn’t take a fight against Lyoto Machida, word came down today via a Sirius Fight Network Radio interview with Tito that he has agreed to the fight. Ortiz stepped back from his typical public relations driven verbiage, and took the candid stance that is standard for him when discussing money.

“They don’t want the fighters to get as big as a ‘Tyson’ or a ‘De La Hoya’ or one of those types because all of a sudden, they’ll be expecting to see a lot more payment,” Tito explains. “The UFC makes about 99 percent of the money, and the rest goes to the fighters. That one percent ain’t nothing compared to what they make on merchandising, on pay-per-view, and everything else they make around the world.”

Now, I’m not certain where Tito is getting his numbers from. But I find it pretty hard to believe that the ones he quoted above are accurate. As usual when it comes to Tito negotiating, he’s overstating things to make himself look like the mistreated dog in the situation. But he’s right when he says that the “UFC” is making 99% of the money. I noticed how he said “The UFC” instead of “Zuffa”. I thought this was actually pretty amusing, considering what followed from Tito in the interview.

“They said I wasn’t worth the money, that I was worth no more than what I’m getting paid now, and I’m not a commodity to them anymore. I’m not as viable to them anymore. That was a sign of disrespect.”

But seriously, is it disrespect or is it just reality? Word around the mats is that Tito’s constant nagging “back injuries” that he references after each fight is actually one specific spinal issue, and his takedowns have lost their former explosiveness because of this. This has crushed Tito’s ability to finish fights off, unless he’s fighting Ken Shamrock. A simple glance at history reveals that Ortiz hasn’t finished an opponent other than Shamrock in six and a half years. June 29th, 2001 against perennial journeyman Elvis Sinosic is the last time Tito ended a fight before time expired.

It is also important to note that Tito’s negotiations have not involved Dana White at all. He’s been at the table with Lorenzo Fertitta, and Lorenzo is one of the 400 richest people in the world. Who do you think has the better business sense out of the two?

Another standard tactic employed by Tito is his implication that his fight with Machida will be his last fight in the UFC.

“…I’m just looking to get my final fight over with the UFC.”

Now, regarding Tito’s talk about the UFC making all the money? Well, that’s true if you’ve been paying attention. No one fighter is bigger than the company itself, and I’m pretty certain this is what Fertitta and White had in mind when they followed the business model of the WWE. It is the UFC that is the product, not specific fighters.

Lorenzo Fertitta loves boxing. So should it come as a surprise that he doesn’t want Tysons and De La Hoyas? When you have a phenom driving the entire sport, your success has a shelf life that is only as long as that phenom maintains dominance. Boxing’s slide isn’t entirely due to this, but there is no doubt that it has been a significant factor in that equation. The UFC won’t go down the same road boxing went down, but there will always be the catch 22 in that the people running the company want to maximize profits, and the fighters will always want more money.

And so, here we go again. Tito has one fight left on his contract and he’s not happy that he’s getting lined up against the dangerous, yet still not marquee-ready Machida. Whether he likes it or not, the fine gentlemen at Zuffa are still the highest paying game in town, and he’s now posed with a situation that every other fighter under a Zuffa contract must deal with:

Earn your keep via putting on exciting performances, and you’ll be taken care of. The days of needing one posterboy are over. The days of being one of the top paid guys just because you’ve got an image that doesn’t live up to itself through your performances are over. The guys who are out there finishing people and putting on exciting fights are the people who should be collecting the lion’s share. And it will never be in Zuffa’s best interest to bring their champions to the status of multi-multi-millionaire, because these fighters lose their edge when that happens.

Too bad it had to be Lorenzo who filled Tito in on these minor little details. I’d think a businessman who got himself onto Trump’s program would understand these things…….

Brandt put together an article that I am sure a lot of disenfranchised fans would agree with. Another card full of “go-nowhere” fights that the fans are forced to pay for if they want to continue to enjoy MMA’s Juggernaut. Yes, aside from the night’s top two fights, UFC 80: Rapid Fire, was littered with fighters who were not really going to make any impact in their respective divisions anytime soon. Yes, we had to pay for it. However, I challenge all fans of the sport to embrace shows with lesser names filling up the card because an event (even one put on by the sport’s biggest promotion) doesn’t have to be UFC 73: Stacked!

I use “Stacked” to make a point; big names don’t always produce results worth the money. At UFC 73 we had the always dynamic and rising legend Anderson Silva dismantle the very game Nate Marquardt. It almost seems impossible for Silva to disappoint these days. Aside from Anderson (and for some, Sherk), “Stacked” did not deliver. Sean Sherk gave us the visual definition of grinding out a decision. Ortiz vs. Evans was a snooze fest that ended in a Draw. “Minotauro” Nogueira made the most lackluster debut in a long time. So much for the big names making it worth my money. There wasn’t a person I spoke with who didn’t think that “Stacked” lacked the energy that those fighters were expected to bring.

Many fans were frustrated with the pointless fights that filled the UFC 80 card this past weekend. I am sure Jess Liaudin’s Uncle would take offense to that. I for one am a big fan of undercard status fights. In fact, I often find the rare swing bout to be one of the most entertaining fights of a pay-per view. It usually features two lesser-known fighters. Lesser-known almost always equals hungry. Hungry usually makes for an exciting fight. Sometimes it is not always about what a fight will lead to. Sometimes it is just about a good old fashion fight.

Since we’re in the vicinity of Jess Liaudin, we’ll start with his fight. Who wouldn’t want to watch a guy who has finished his last five fights by submission or (T)Ko go up against a 10 fight-win streak and battle-ready Marcus Davis? The prospect of seeing these two go at it had me chomping at the bit to see the results (really, it did)! I was not disappointed with a KO finish, I only wished it had lasted a little longer. That’s not Dana’s fault, can’t get mad at him for a KO.

Now lets get back in fight order. We opened with Grove vs. Rivera. One of the great things about The Ultimate Fighter reality show is it allows you to give a damn about a fighter, be it positive or negative. I for one, found season 3 winner, Kendal Grove, to be a little annoying. Season 4 loser, Jorge Rivera, was meant to be a lamb sent to slaughter. With absolutely no expectations for this fight, I was pleasantly surprised to see Jorge “The Sacrificial” Rivera absolutely maul the Team Dagger co-founder (lame reference, I know). Nothing sets off a night like that kind of upset. Damn you Dana! That’s what you get for trying to hand feed your fighters! And I reap the benefits!

Next, was Gouveia vs. Lambert. “The Punisher” showed a frantic pace in the first frame that kept everyone I watched the fight with wondering when the TKO was coming. A second round KO out of nowhere from Gouveia had the group at my house cheering. I believe this was a fight that had ramifications for either in the division. Gouveia will soon find out what 205 is really about. Win or lose for him in the future, this will probably produce a decent fight with some hype around it. 205 just excites me as a fan right now and this fight was an important part of the Light Heavy Weight long haul for the UFC.

Then we got the treat of seeing Paul Taylor fight. After watching him at UFC 75, I couldn’t wait to see him again. He did not disappoint the crowd (maybe his ground coaches were a little perturbed). Another great part of that fight was the rugged newcomer Paul Kelly. Nothing like an unexpected fight popping up during the pay-per view to make that $40 stretch a little farther.

On to the main card. Two big Brazilians go at it. This is what paying for a fight was all about. Gonzaga looked as mean as he ever did and almost crumpled Werdum. Werdum turns the second round into a heavyweight pounding of the former threat to the division. Turns out this fight will put Werdum in the number one contender slot. Blame his contender status on an always shaky division… that’s an article for another day.

And of course BJ Penn. We all saw it coming, we just had to tune in to make sure it happened. I think more people bought this to see if BJ really did train and really took himself seriously this time instead of blowing another big shot. Well he looks to be very determined and I think his prediction for Sherk is Kreskin-esque. If he gets past Sherk, the Light Weight division will be praying Penn has aspirations to fight at Super Heavy Weight.

So my $40 went far. I even got a couple of more fights out of it. They weren’t stellar, but they ended with a finish- and from that crop of fighters it is all you can hope for.

So all in all, I got 8 fights for $40. Not bad considering I am unemployed most of the month. I go without the extra fast food or lame movie in theaters and it all evens out.

I hope that the numbers for UFC 80 are great because the more success for this sport the better. The expansion into Europe means more fighters for more cards. I see nothing wrong with more variety especially since the Welterweight, Middleweight and Heavyweight divisions need more talent.

Brandt wanted more hype and excitement. Tito is great at hype and he put together a lot of it for “Stacked.” Don’t believe the hype - believe in hungry fighters.

If anything I just want to add my opinion to the mix, not discredit Brandt’s, or many of the other well-educated fans out there. Taste is subjective. I merely ask that we give every card a chance. If I based my fight purchases on who was on the card, I would have missed out on what I thought was a night of fights worth watching. And I wish bigger and better success on the UFC so that future cards with a lineup similar to UFC 80 and 78 can be had for free. They gave us Rampage vs. Henderson for free. It’s no question they lost money to give us that fight and promote the hell out of their product. We are the ones who will reap the benefits. We must be patient and support all the fights and promotions we can afford to.

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Sorry to hear that. After reading over the quick results from the fights, I realized just how weak the card was from the standpoint of an cash-strapped enthusiast. Aside from the Penn vs. Stevenson fight, nothing else on the card had the potential to lead into something bigger and I certainly wasn’t about to drop my $50 to really watch two bouts and 8 rounds. Only boxing promoters and fans throw away their money like that. I saw everything I needed to see on the animated GIF’s at Fight Report.

So, for those of you who paid to see a delayed UFC 80; why? Why did you let Dana White set up a card that made UFC 78 look good while taking your money? Did you just want to see B.J. Penn up against someone with some ground skills? Do you like big Brazilians with upset oppurtunity? Are you Jess Liaudin’s uncle?

Once the numbers come back, Zuffa and White can tell everyone that Joe Silva is a genius for putting together this card. Truth be told, most of the British fans didn’t care who was fighting - just that the UFC was back in the country and this was their chance to take part in some violence. Not there is anything wrong with controlled violence - I am a MMA fan myself, you know.

Be on the lookout for the numbers and let’s hope there is some disappointment in the eyes of White or else we can look for more random fight cards in the future. And if the UFC decides to come to New Jersey again, they better put something better than that shipwreck. Maybe I’m just a little upset that it was one of the few cards that I could have realistically attended without breaking the bank. Or maybe I want to see some more hype and more excitement with the matches that the UFC throws together. So far I have been more excited to watch my HDNet Fight Nights on the DVR on a weeknight by myself. That’s probably not what White would want to hear, but he has the ability to change that. But will he?

It was Sam Caplan’s Five Oz. of Pain article that caught my eye, but Pramit Mohapatra over at Sports Illustrated was able to talk to Dana White about an upcoming television deal. And while White was quick to say that a deal was in the works and that the UFC would “absolutely” be on television in the near future, I don’t believe a word. White is a good talker, but he hasn’t been living up to his talk when it comes to signing with a major network. While understand that many networks would be hesitant to ink a deal with a fighting organization, White seems to want to assure us that something is going to happen when we know it won’t. It’s the typical politician move and the best Q&A is this one:

Pramit Mohapatra: You’ve been connected to three major networks — two broadcast and one cable — HBO, CBS, and NBC. Which of those would you say the deals are still alive and which are dead?

Dana White: That’s a good, sneaky question. I’d say they’re all still alive. We’re talking to a lot of different networks, and no door has closed with any network.

You notice how White had to say “sneaky”? He’s still a trash talker who who has a hard time absorbing the intentions of the media. But let’s go back to his response of “We’re talking to a lot of different networks.” I’ll say that is a lie. Why? Well White doesn’t want to give up anything. He’s a control freak and while talking to John Philapavage, he mentioned one of the big reasons for the broken HBO deal was the issue of having 100% control over everything. I guess I just didn’t realize just how ridiculous Dana White is. The media world just doesn’t work that way and when it comes to the UFC, I don’t blame any of the networks for wanting some control over the content. Just look at Dana White and his potty mouth.  Or perhaps “talking” means “asking” and “a lot” means “three.” I honestly just don’t know anymore. Except for the bluff thing, of course.