MMAPayout.com contributor Kelsey Philpott recently sat down with Joe Ferraro on The Showdown Radio to discuss the issues surrounding MMA’s current battle to be legalized in key areas of the world, including Ontario and New York. Check out a podcast of the discussion here.
Jaime Martinez with The NHB Show has news on the UFC finding a broadcaster for UFC 100 in Mexico. The show will air live on Televisa. Televisa is one of the two big networks in Mexico, the other being TV Azteca, so this should provide for an excellent clearance for UFC programming. The TV deal looks to be a prelude to an event in Mexico in the future, judging from comments UFC President Dana White made to Mexican paper El Universal:
Of course, our prime objective is to bring a live UFC event to Mexico in the next year. We always knew that Mexico is a market we wanted to be in. UFC 100 is a great event with great fights, three of which will be featured on our live fight card. It’s a great opportunity to introduce the UFC to Mexico.
[Mexico] is just like the U.S. in that professional wrestling is very big; but we know that there are fans who love real fights. We know that we had to construct a solid foundation in the U.S. We are now the largest pay-per-view event in the world. We beat out boxing and the WWE. Now, Mexico is a priority for us.
This deal joins the WEC deal that was done recently with the WEC airing on Cadena Tres in Mexico. Zuffa also provide a wealth of Spanish language programming through their deals with “El Octágono del UFC” on Galavision and Fox Sports Espanol’s carriage of the WEC.
World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) will soon stage an event in Ohio for the first time ever, announcing today via Vindy.com that the Covelli Centre in Youngstown is the target for a show on Sept. 2, 2009.
WEC General Manager and Founder Reed Harris had this to say about the decision:
“We looked at a number of areas because we want to go and grow in new markets. Youngstown is a great fight town. We also looked at Pittsburgh and Cleveland, but we felt Youngstown would be a centralized venue.”
Lightweights Donald Cerrone and Benson “Smooth” Henderson are expected to headline WEC 43, competing for the interim division title that is now up for grabs with Jamie Varner sidelined indefinitely with a hand injury.
“Cowboy” most recently blasted rising prospect James Krause at WEC 41 en route to a dominating first round submission (rear naked choke). Henderson — who scored a quick technical knockout of Shane Roller in his last appearance at WEC 40 in April — has finished both his fights in the WEC and holds an impressive record (9-1) overall.
Expect more fights to be added to WEC 43 in the coming weeks and months ahead.
Tickets are scheduled to go on sale July 9, 2009, for those who may want to catch the event up close and personal. Of course, the WEC 43 main card will also air live on Versus at 9 p.m. ET on fight night.
The Strikeforce card slated for August 15 could soon see the addition of another fine bout by revisiting a good old fashioned heated rivalry.
Nick Diaz (20-7) may get the opportunity to avenge a 2006 loss to Joe Riggs (30-10), a welterweight fight that could go down at Strikeforce: “Carano vs. Cyborg” at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, California. It’s important to note that bout agreements have not been signed at this time — it is currently in the early stages of discussion.
The two outspoken veterans originally squared off at UFC 57: “Liddell vs. Couture III” in February 2006, which resulted in a close unanimous decision victory for “Diesel”; however, the fighting didn’t stop there. In fact, later that night at the hospital, Diaz and Riggs went at it for another five or 10 minutes, which resulted in “Diesel” literally crapping his shorts when he went for a takedown.
Those little hospital gowns don’t hide a whole lot, now do they? Riggs recently recounted the hilarious story to Larry Pepe, host of Pro MMA Radio, MMAmania.com’s exclusive radio partner.
Despite their hospital altercation, Riggs told Pep that he doesn’t hold a grudge against Diaz — someone “Diesel” calls “one of my favorite fighters to watch” — and that he was only interested in a rematch if a Strikeforce title was on the line.
With the rematch now possibly slated for the undercard on August 15, clearly things have changed.
It’s a showdown that more than likely can help support the all female main event — the always-game Diaz has proven that he can carry a card, while the one-time UFC title contender in Riggs is a well-known and crafty veteran with a decent-size fan base in his own right.
In the three-plus years since their last meeting, Riggs has fought 10 times, going 6-4, including his most recent unanimous decision victory over Phil Baroni at Strikeforce: “Lawler vs. Shields” in June, as well as UFC losses to Mike Swick (submission – “Swicko’tine”) and Diego Sanchez (KO – knee) and a loss to Kazuo Misaki at Strikeforce: “Playboy Mansion II.”
In that same period, Diaz has fought 12 times, going 9-2 with 1 NC, including UFC wins over Josh Neer and Gleison Tibau, in addition to wins over Frank Shamrock and, most recently, Scott Smith at Strikeforce: “Lawler vs. Shields.”
The victory over Smith, occurring at a catchweight of 180 pounds, saw Diaz set modern-day MMA records for most total strikes thrown by one fighter in one round (an astounding 221, breaking the previous record Diaz set against Frank Shamrock of 181 punches thrown) and for most total strikes landed by one fighter in one round (125, breaking Michael Bisping’s record of 105 vs. Elvis Sinosic).
Diaz’s losses during that time include a unanimous decision to Sean Sherk at UFC 59 and a TKO loss (due to cuts) to K.J. Noons under the EliteXC banner. The lone No Contest was a highlight reel submission (Gogoplata) victory over then-PRIDE FC lightweight champion and poster boy Takanori Gomi, the result of which was overturned by the Nevada State Athletic Commission after Diaz popped positive for marijuana.
For more on the still-developing Strikeforce: “Carano vs. Cyborg” fight card — which includes a 145-pound title fight between the two headlining female fighters, a lightweight title unification bout between reigning champ Josh “The Punk” Thomson and interim champ Gilbert “El Nino” Melendez, and a heavyweight title bout between champ Alistair Overeem and Brett “The Grimm” Rogers — click here.
World Victory Road recently announced the latest match-up for its next event, Sengoku 9, pitting former Pride FC and UFC veteran Akihiro Gono against Dan Hornbuckle at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, on Aug. 2.
Gono was recently released from his contract with the UFC after dropping two decisions, coming out on the losing side to top welterweight competitors Dan Hardy and Jon Fitch. The charismatic Gono is now set to return to his homeland where he should be welcomed with open arms.
And it’s not just because he’s a good fighter — Gono’s entertaining entrances and grand theatrics should resonate with the audience in Japan, which is something that a majority of North American fans sadly didn’t get to see with Gono toiling on the preliminary card of the UFC events.
His opponent, Hornbuckle, last competed under the World Victory Road banner at “Sengoku 2” in May of 2008, losing to current UFC fighter Mike Pyle. Since that hiccup Hornbuckle has had two impressive outings on the smaller circuits of North America.
During that span, he made short work of both opponents, firstly finishing Nabil Khatib early with a rear naked choke in June of 2008. And this February it took him only 46 seconds to score a knockout of Joe Alexander. The wins have earned a call up back to WVR and he’ll be able to get his name out there further to fans if he can have a good outing against a veteran such as Gono.
Elsewhere on the card, Satoru Kitaoka, is set to defend his Sengoku lightweight title for the first time against Mizuto Hirota. Kitaoka won the championship by making short work of former PRIDE FC poster boy, Takanori Gomi, at Sengoku: “Rebellion” back in January, dousing the flames of “The Fireball Kid” with a fight-ending Achilles lock just 1:41 into the opening stanza.
Hirota earned his shot at the gold by recently disposing of highly regarded lightweight standout, Mitsuhiro Ishida, ending the bout via technical knockout in the very first round earlier last month at Shooto: “Final Tradition.”
The pairings for World Victory Road’s featherweight grand prix semifinals are also set to go down at Sengoku 9.
The often overlooked Michihiro Omigawa — who earned his spot in the semifinals by dominating and garnering a hard fought decision victory over L.C Davis and then firing off an impressive performance against Nam Phan — will have another tough test when he faces the always dangerous Marlon Sandro.
Sandro — the Featherweight King of Pancrase — has been impressive in his own right throughout the tournament, submitting Matt Jaggers at Sengoku 7 with a standing arm triangle. He then went on to defeat Nick Denis at his own game by knocking “The Ninja of Love” out with a well placed uppercut just 19 seconds into the first round at Sengoku 8.
Tournament favorite and promotion poster boy Hatsu Hioki will collide with Masanori Kanehara. Hioki has been a dominant force thus far in the tournament, submitting American Top Team (ATT) jiu-jitsu coach Chris Manuel by triangle armbar at Sengoku 7. He then went on to submit formidable grappler Ronnie Mann with a triangle lock earlier last month. Kanehara has garnered decision victories over Jong Man Kim also Chang Sung to earn his spot.
The winners from both semifinal matches will meet in the featherweight tournament finals, which will be held later in the same evening.
Here is the current line-up for Sengoku 9:
Sengoku lightweight title bout:
Satoru Kitaoka (24-8-9) vs. Mizuto Hirota (11-3-1)Sengoku featherweight grand prix semifinals:
Hatsu Hioki (19-3-2) vs. Masanori Kanehara (13-5-5)
Marlon Sandro (14-0) vs. Michihiro Omigawa (6-7-1)Sengoku featherweight grand prix final:
Hatsu Hioki (19-3-2) or Masanori Kanehara (13-5-5) vs. Marlon Sandro (14-0) or Michihiro Omigawa (6-7-1)Sengoku Gold Cup Lightweight (154lbs) Final
Sengoku Gold Cup Featherweight (143lbs) Final
Sengoku Gold Cup Bantamweight (132 lbs) Final
Non-tournament bouts:
Kazuo Misaki (21-9-2) vs. Kazuhiro Nakamura (13-9)
Blagoi Ivanov (0-0) vs. Kazuyuki Fujita (15-7)
Yoshihiro Nakao (7-2) vs. Choi Mu Bae (9-3)
Eiji Mitsuoka (15-6-2) vs. Clay French (16-5)
Akihiro Gono (29-14-7) vs. Dan Hornbuckle (17-2)
For more on Sengoku click here.
“Honestly, I think big guys are easier to fight. They don’t move as fast, they get tired quickly and they’re not as technical…. If I want to sharpen my tools I have to work with somebody who’s not a sitting target like Forrest. Who moves around a lot, he’s extremely conditioned. He’s fast and can throw 300 punches compared to 30 punches a round. Forrest is my worst nightmare. Basically you have to go for broke and knock him out, and if you don’t he’s still going to be standing there coming after you…. There’s so many things going on in the fight. I think his mind will be paralyzed because he’s having to deal with so many new elements. Instead of going for things real slow and powerful, I may as well go for speed so I can add more chaos to his brain.”
– UFC Interim Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir tells CageWriter.com that he has opted to work with faster, busier and lighter training partners such as Forrest Griffin to get ready for the 6′2″ 285-pound ball of muscle also known as Brock Lesnar. Mir and Lesnar are scheduled to rematch in the main event at UFC 100 on July 11. Mir — a Brazilian jiu-jitsu stylist — took home the win (and almost Lesnar’s leg) with a first round submission in their first encounter back in 2008. So will speed and technique be too much for Lesnar to handle or will the behemoth be able to rely on his brute strength, wrestling and big ‘ole hamhocks to carry him to victory?
Props: MMAFanhouse.com
Quoteworthy:
“Winning is so important. It’s not just about fighting in the UFC. We get paid significantly more if we win. I have to win. I need to win…. I’m feeling better and I’ve learned to taper back a little bit. For example, I felt a little run down a few weeks ago, so I took a couple days off. Now, in the last two weeks of training, I’m only pushing hard once a day, while the second workout is lighter, not as intense…. I’ve been working on [my wrestling] a lot more. And, I kind of know he’s been working his standup a lot . So I wouldn’t be surprised if he traded with me for a little bit. But I expect his instincts to kick in and take me down, or try to take me down…. His biggest strength is wrestling and being on top of someone. Even with Shogun, you could see when he got him down, it was hard for Shogun to get up. It’s not a good place to be.”
The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) sensation from season one, Stephan Bonnar, talks about the importance of winning his next fight and what he is/isn’t doing in training to prepare for Mark Coleman at UFC 100 on July 11. One thing he certainly isn’t doing is feeling relaxed with what some might perceive as a “lifetime pass” from UFC President Dana White to compete inside the Octagon regardless of results. “The American Psycho” has lost three of his last five fights; however, he was looking sharp after stringing back-to-back wins before locking horns with super prospect Jon Jones earlier this year. Can he get back on the winning track less than two weeks from now or will Coleman drop “The Hammer” with his trademark takedowns/ground and pound en route to a victory of his own?
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) has had big bad plans on the table for some time now to stage a blockbuster outdoor event in Hawaii, smashing the record for the largest mixed martial arts (MMA) crowd to attend a show in the “Aloha State.”
The K-1: “World Grand Prix Hawaii” event at Aloha Stadium in 2005, which drew 12,000 fans to watch its native son BJ Penn defeat Renzo Gracie, is the show to beat.
But now that the promotion is actually on the cusp of realizing that dream for the first time ever — Hawaii will sanction this sport tomorrow (Wednesday, July 1) — it may happen later rather than sooner if at all.
That’s because the current mandates require “promoters, managers, trainers and ring officials to secure licenses from the commission and pay corresponding fees,” according to MMAHawaii.com. Furthermore, the report indicates that a bond “not less than $10,000 is required before a promoter gets a license” and “fighters maybe required to get insurance coverage.”
Put simply, promoters will have to jump through several hoops, as well as a pay a significant amount of cash up front. It is apparently too steep a price for several local-area promoters and even perhaps the worldwide leader.
Here’s what UFC President Dana White had to say a few months back:
“We finally get some regulations and they slap this huge tax on us that’s out of control, so probably never. I guess it’s their way of saying ‘OK, we’ll sanction this, but we’ll make sure nobody ever shows up and comes and does an event here.’”
Hawaii will adhere to the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts, which states such as Nevada, California and others on the UFC circuit follow. Whether or not we will get to see them and UFC fighters, including Hilo’s own lightweight champion BJ Penn, in action someday soon on one of the islands remains to be seen.
Props: CombatLifestyle.com
Can “The Count” really outwrestle the former Greco Roman Olympian as his trainer suggests on July 11?
World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) today put the finishing touches on its next event scheduled for the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Sunday, Aug. 9.
WEC 42 features a 10-fight card, including a main event between 135-pound champion Miguel Torres and undefeated challenger Brian Bowles who will collide in a five-round affair for the right to be called the bantamweight king.
Co-headlining the show is another exciting 135-pound showdown between one of the most dangerous young fighters in the organization, Joseph Benavidez, and the red hot former 145-pound standout, Dominick Cruz, who is currently enjoying a four-fight win streak, including three under the WEC banner.
Here is the complete WEC 42 fight card:
Main event:
135 lbs.: WEC Bantamweight Champion Miguel “Angel” Torres (37-1) vs. Brian Bowles (7-0)
Main card (Televised):
145 lbs.: Joseph Benavidez (10-0) vs. Dominick Cruz (13-1)
155 lbs.: Ricardo Lamas vs. Danny Castillo
135 lbs.: Jeff “The Big Frog” Curran (29-11-1) vs. Takeya Mizugaki (11-3-2)Under card (May not be broadcast):
145 lbs.: Leonard Garcia vs. Jameel Massouh
145 lbs.: Fredson Paixao (8-3) vs. Cole Province (5-1)
155 lbs.: Marcus Hicks vs. Shane Roller
145 lbs.: Phil Cardella (8-3) vs. Ed Ratcliff (6-1)
135 lbs.: Rani Yahya vs. Kenji Osawa
145 lbs.: Diego Nunes vs. Rafael Dias
MMAmania.com will provide LIVE blow-by-blow, round-by-round coverage of WEC 42, beginning with the Versus telecast at 9 p.m. ET. In addition, we will deliver up-to-the-minute quick results of all the under card action on fight night.
We’re still a few weeks away from showtime; therefore, feel free to share your thoughts and predictions on “Torres vs. Bowles” in the comments section below. And remember that MMAmania.com will be the spot for the latest news and event-related highlights before, during and after the event.
For everything you need to know about WEC 42 feel free to also hit up our event archive right here.
The UFC announced the release of their UFC 100 commemorative magazine, which is something of a trial balloon for a full roll out of the magazine. MMAPayout reported earlier that the UFC 100 magazine idea was more than what is was being sold as, with internal Zuffa chatter tabbing the commemorative issue as a pre-cursor to a full blown monthly magazine.
Dana White was asked on his twitter account if this was more than a one off and answered that “The first mag hits stands this week. We will see how it does then decide.” Those sentiments were echoed by the Editor in chief of the magazine, in his appearance on Fox Fight Game:
It seems to be a bit of a foregone conclusion, that the powers that be are paying lip service to the idea of holding off to decide. Pretty much everything they are touching is turning to gold. Editor Seth Kelly noted the excellent ad sales in talking with Mike Straka. The UFC magazine is being done in co-operation with the folks behind Men’s Fitness, who have done very good business at the newsstand whenever they have featured UFC fighters on the cover. With the UFC’s databases and the subscription rolls for MF, the combined efforts of the two should make for a strong start-up from a subscription basis as well.
With UFC Magazine possibly coming into the market full time, the question that arises is, Whither the MMA print media? There are multiple players in the market, including TapouT Magazine, Ultimate MMA, Real Fighter, Fighters Only, and Fight!. Fight! is the highest profile in the domestic market, while Fighters Only has an international reach with editions for the US, Canada, The UK, and Germany. I would view these two as being the main parties impacted by the UFC mag coming to market.
With the UFC entering the market, do the MMA print mags get the Sherdog treatment, with credentialing and photo usage being pulled, now that they are ostensibly competing? Or do they get MMAWeekly’d, with some degree of reasonable access being given? I’d probably lean toward the latter, as the general coverage by the big two is uncritical. With the exception of the Roger Huerta piece that appeared in Fight! that rattled a few Zuffa cages, little that appears in big two would deserve a heavy handed approach by the UFC, but to paraphrase Will Munny, deserved often has nothing to do with it. The coverage is generally pliable, and heavily leaning towards the Zuffa duo of the UFC and WEC (with Josh Barnett being being the only non-Zuffa fighter to grace the Fight! cover.) The MMA fan would be well served with these guys keeping credentials, but such a criteria often doesn’t enter the equation when bottom line decisions are being made.
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