Wrestling is seen as one of the most important disciplines in modern mixed martial arts, with all fighters working to defend their wrestling and grappling.
It seems like an ironic twist that NCAA wrestling has seen a decline in attendance even though student athletes can enter MMA as fighters, coaches, and analysts.
This is an important time because NCAA wrestling and MMA both benefit if wrestling is well supported by school districts and colleges. Casual MMA fans may not appreciate the skill and ability of high-level wrestlers, such as Jon Fitch and Gray Maynard, but their grappling abilities allow them to win fights. 
Even though D-I wrestling teams are facing problems, amateur U.S. wrestling remains a strong sport, supporters note. Division II, Division III and NAIA schools have seen an increase in athletes, along with continued success for high school wrestling.
“Our vital signs are very strong at every level other than NCAA Division I,” said Mike Moyer, National Wrestling Coaches Association executive director, in an interview with Josh Gross. “That goes back to focused excellence and the down sizing trend at athletic departments across the country at non-enrollment-conscious schools.”
It’s obvious that struggling at the most important level of amateur wrestling, NCAA D-I, isn’t a good thing — but it’s a problem that can be resolved. It’s great to hear DII, DIII, NAIA and high school wrestling are thriving.
A new generation of wrestlers who grew up watching MMA instead of WWE will hopefully help keep younger generations interested in wrestling.
The sport of mixed martial arts will be legalized in Ontario, Canada, the Ministry of Consumer Services announced on its website.
The Ontario athletic commission is expected to adopt the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts — currently used for all sanctioned professional fights in North America — to regulate and sanction MMA in Ontario.
Sanctioned events are expected to begin in 2011, with events expected to be announced by several different organizations.
Politicians said sanctioning MMA wasn’t a priority, and the matter would be addressed in due time.
Ontario is expected to host 10-15 live MMA events each year, with the UFC expected to flock to the areas as quickly as possible. The UFC already has plans for a March 2011 event in Toronto — though it’s unknown if it will be hosted at the 20,000-seat Air Canada Centre, or 60,000-seat Rogers Centre. I’d rather see an event in the Air Canada building, but the UFC may think it can sell out with a GSP main event at the Rogers Center.
I think it’s great the UFC and other MMA organizations will finally be able to host events in Toronto and the rest of Ontario. Zuffa-owned UFC first tested the Canadian waters with a show in Montreal in April 2008, and has seen success ever since. WEC also has hosted events in Edmonton and Vancouver with good success.
There is some debate as to whether or not the UFC should delay the Georges St. Pierre vs. Josh Koscheck welterweight title fight until March 2011 — and I think that delaying the fight would be an absolutely horrible idea. I think GSP and Koscheck should fight, and then the title holder will face the winner between Martin Kampmann and Jake Shields.
During Bellator 33 on Oct. 21 in Kansas City, Missouri, current Bellator lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez will meet Roger Huerta during a three-round non-title fight.
Bellator season-two tournament champion Pat Curran is unable to fight due to injury, which forced Bellator to look for new options. Curran actually beat Huerta during the semifinals on his way towards the Bellator tournament championship — an upset that clearly threw a wrench in Bellator’s plans.
The injury to Curran, however, provides Bellator the chance to offer the fight Bellator wanted to arrange in the first place. Alvarez desperately needs a quality opponent he can face, and it looked like Bellator would have needed to look outside the organization for such a fight. 
I think Huerta still has legit skills, even though he’s lost three of his last four fights (last victory against Chad Hinton at Bellator 13 in April). However, I think a co-promoted fight between Alvarez and Strikeforce lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez would have been more appropriate.
Meanwhile, Alvarez will head into the fight with a large amount of confidence, as he’s on a five-fight win streak and has a 22 – 2 record.
If Huerta is able to come in re-focused and rack up a couple of wins — especially with his recent heroism by dropping a former University of Texas football player that sucker punched a lady in the street — Huerta could have his hand raised at the end of the night.
More likely, I believe Huerta will be able to eat Alvarez’s punches, but I’m unsure if he’ll be able to stop Alvarez from scoring takedowns — and locking in a submission over 15 minutes.
If it works out that way, I hope Huerta decides to wait and make meaningless movies until after his career is over.
The No. 1 contender for the UFC middleweight champion unleashed another verbal attack on a professional athlete, although Chael Sonnen chose professional cyclist Lance Armstrong:
“When you screw up, you have to own it. That stuff really gets under my skin. Take Lance Armstrong. Lance Armstrong did a number of things and he gave himself cancer. He cheated, he did drugs, and he gave himself cancer. Well, instead of saying ‘Hey listen, I cheated and gave myself cancer, don’t be like me.’ He actually made himself the victim and then went out and profited something like $15 million dollars from this ‘Hey, poor me, let’s find a cure for cancer’ campaign instead of just coming clean and saying, ‘Look, here’s what I did, I screwed myself up, and I hope people learn from my mistakes.’ You just watch these guys and can’t help but think, God, what a fraud. You got the whole Michael Phelps being a pothead thing too. I’m just glad I’m in the business I’m in so I can get them in the cage and kick the crap out of them.”
I’m an avid fan of professional cycling, and heavily support Lance Armstrong’s Livestrong organization, but the current federal investigation has damaged Armstrong’s public image. At the beginning of July when the Tour de France started, Armstrong had an 86 percent online approval rating — but that number slid to 58 percent by the end of July.
Many people already assume Armstrong has taken banned substances — but until it has been proven — he should be able to ride in the pro peloton and raise money for his foundation.
I’ve greatly enjoyed Sonnen’s continued trash talk, but I think he should remain focused at targeting Silva and his camp.
(Found article on BloodyElbow, but the interview was on the Pro MMA Radio/transcribed by MMA Mania.)
This is a great video by Ryron and Rener Gracie showing how Werdum was able to trap and submit Fedor so quickly.
MMA legend Randy Couture is helping former foe Brock Lesnar prepare for his upcoming five-round, 25-minute battle with Shane Carwin at UFC 116 in July. Couture said the trip to Minnesota was more to help learn from Lesnar’s camp, and not necessarily trying to train Lesnar.
At UFC 91 in November 2008, Couture lost via second-round TKO to Lesnar, so it’s unlikely their paths will meet inside the octagon. Since a rematch isn’t on the horizon, both fighters have been able to help each other train for upcoming fights in the octagon.
Possible ring rust was brought up by some MMA fans, but Couture shot down that idea. (Lesnar’s last fight was last July, and he picked up a TKO victory against Frank Mir.)
“I don’t think the year off has hurt him,” Couture recently said. He’s made the adjustments physically and dietarily. “He’s back to 100 percent full strength and I think that having the downtime wasn’t a huge issue for him. He was back pretty quickly to being able to train. Technically, he’s probably learned more and is a better fighter than he was a year ago.”
Despite dietary changes related to his battle with diverticulosis, the lighter, leaner Lesnar is still lighting fast and extremely powerful.
Whether you love him or hate him, Lesnar has a natural physical size, strength and ability to match a fast speed. Carwin also is a large heavyweight with good wrestling and heavy hands that have previously dismantled opponents. I don’t know who will win, but know the winner of UFC 116’s heavyweight title-unification bout is a true warrior.
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This Saturday June 12th, the UFC makes its first visit to Vancouver. The main story regarding this move to Vancouver has been the enormous insurance cost for this event. While Dana has refused to divulge the actual cost but the word on the street is that the UFC was forced to pay upwards of 12 million dollars (Canadian). It’s an outrageous amount and most people assume that the UFC will be lucky to break even in this event but I won’t get into it much further than that. Tito Ortiz dropped out of his fight against Chuck Liddell some months back, so now Rich Franklin will step up to fight “The Iceman”. David “The Crow” Loiseau makes his return to the octagon after being rejected by the commission Montreal. There will be 2 preliminary fights shown live on SpikeTV and you can also see this event in theaters if you like. Here is how I see this event playing out.
Chuck Liddell vs Rich Franklin : I wanted to see Chuck put Tito to sleep for a third time but we are actually in for a much more competitive fight with this substitution. Chuck is still a very dangerous striker although he has clearly slowed down, especially his reaction time. His takedown defense is as strong as ever but I doubt he will be using it much against Franklin. Dana White has once again stated that if Chuck loses this fight he will retire. Rich has been bouncing between 185, 195 and 205 for about 2 years now which has negatively impacted his performance. Not to mention the fact that he’s been fighting legends of the sport during this unending transitional period in his career. Hopefully Rich wasn’t too badly affected by his crushing defeat to Vitor Belfort about 9 months ago and will be at 100% physically and mentally for his battle with Liddell.
Chuck will be looking to KO Franklin in this fight using his tried and true sprawl and brawl counter punching game plan (surprise, surprise). Franklin has better footwork than Chuck and even though the reach will be equal for both fighters, Franklin will be able to work Chuck over from the outside. I have a feeling that after a good 1st round by Franklin, Chuck will change gears and be more aggressive which will likely fail. Chuck has gotten himself in some bad situations using forward motion and Franklin being quicker on his feet should be able to tag Chuck on the way in and get back out of range. However, Franklin has proved to be gun shy in his fights so I doubt he will REALLY be looking for a finish in this fight. A decision victory for Franklin, especially considering this is only a 3 round affair.
Winner : Rich Franklin
Mirko Filipovic vs Pat Barry : Most people are counting out CroCop in this fight and they think he’s done, blah blah… I haven’t given up on CroCop and I never will just like Wand, Saku, Fedor, etc.. So I am clearly biased about this fight. Pat Barry himself claims that Mirko is his idol and he was very animated about it in the pre-fight presser. In the past we have seen fighters seem to be slightly intimidated by fighting their idols which can impact their performance in the fight. They tend to give them too much respect and it can cause a fighter to be tentative about exchanging or being overly aggressive. I’m not saying this will decide the outcome of the fight but it will definitely be in the back of Pat Barry’s mind during the course of the fight. Mirko has been under a ton of pressure lately and since coming off his win over Anthony Perosh he has seemed to loosen up a bit inside the octagon. I think we will see a very decent version of CroCop on Saturday, and he may have a few tricks up his sleeve for Barry. Both fighters are very undersized Heavyweights.
Both of these guys are adept kickboxers with KO power in both their arms and legs so anything could happen at any moment. Mirko has experience and the better quality opponents on his side while Barry has youth and a slight reach advantage. Barry’s camp expressed to CroCop that they were willing to stand up if he was, and Mirko seemed to like the idea, but I have a feeling that Mirko will be looking to take this fight to the ground if he starts getting the worse of the exchanges. He’s actually a BJJ brown belt under Werdum and even though he is not particularly talented on the ground, he still greatly outclasses the full fledged white belt Pat Barry. The smart money is on Barry in this fight, but considering I’m biased and delusional I am picking CroCop to win this fight by submission.
Winner : Mirko Filipovic
Martin Kampmann vs Paulo Thiago : This could be the fight of the night, both these guys like to throw down, they’re both dangerous on the ground and they’re both finishers. Kampmann’s Muay Thai is his primary weapon and he will probably look to utilize his legs to keep Thiago at bay and slow him down. Paulo will be looking to close the gap on Kampmann to showcase his explosive hands. His Judo skills should allow him to land a throw or two and if he gets Kampmann on his back he could pound him out or soften him up for a submission. The thing is, the reverse is also true as Kampmann is very capable of using his wrestling to put Paulo on his back which is what makes this such an interesting fight. Kampmann is definitely the more conventional fighter while Thiago has a more unorthodox and exotic kind of style.
I think they exchange for a while, maybe light each other up a few times until someone get dropped or decides to take it to the ground. The man on top will have the advantage but Thiago is better off his back than Kampmann so that says something. I say Thiago wins this fight with some crazy unorthodox BOPE choke which momentarily catches a dazed Kampmann off guard.
Winner : Paulo Thiago
Ben Rothwell vs Gilbert Yvel : Both these guys have a wealth of experience under their belts but Yvel has just a little more. Ben has some great power in his strikes but I think Gilbert has a little more. Ben has passable speed for a guy his size but Gilbert is a bit faster. This is the story of this fight in my eyes. We should see a stand up war between the two and while they do have ground skills, I think the outcome of this fight will be decided by strikes.
Gilbert has been fading a bit and he may leave the door open for Big Ben to impose his will on Yvel by jamming him against the fence and wearing him down while winning the round by controlling the position. At some point Yvel will unleash hell on Ben and either knock him out or gas out. Ben is a tough dude and he may be able to weather the storm. This is tough fight to call, but unless Yvel lands a power shot flush, Rothwell squeaks out a decision.
Winner : Ben Rothwell
Carlos Condit vs Rory MacDonald : This is an interesting fight considering it showcases the only Canadian fighter on the main card. Condit is a well rounded fighter and former WEC champion who was absorbed by the UFC. He has a lot of fights under his belt some of which are very strong opponents and he’s had mixed results against the upper echelon fighters. Rory MacDonald is a 20 year old kid with a 10-0 record fighting in his home province. He made his octagon debut against Mike Guymon who he submitted in the 1st round but he really hasn’t faced anyone at Condit’s level in his young career.
Condit is a good bet here, but I’m pulling for the hometown boy to surprise everyone and pull off the upset. Rory has very good BJJ and I believe that he definitely has the capability of submitting Condit under the right circumstances. Condit had 3 of his 5 losses come by way of submission and he may have underestimated this kid, not likely because he is a smart fighter and a veteran of the sport but… As we saw at UFC 114 anything can happen and I believe Rory MacDonald can make it happen.
Winner : Rory Macdonald
** Note: Don’t forget to get your picks in on the playground. This will be the first event of the new season so get a good start as the first event usually sets the tone for the whole season. Good luck everyone!
I’ve had a long flight home to consider my actions and regret the mistake I made on Saturday. I would like to apologise to the UFC and the Athletic Commission for what I’ve done as well as all the fans and sponsors that support me.
I would also like to offer my sincerest apologies to Josh Koscheck who did not deserve the cheap shot I threw. He did what he needed to do in order to win the fight and get the job done, and I foolishly reacted to the situation. There is no excuse for my actions and I know what I did was very unprofessional. I was immensely frustrated by a collection of things that took place throughout the fight as well as leading up to it, but I’m certainly not trying to condone or excuse my actions.
Josh implemented his game plan perfectly taking me down and staying on top of me for the majority of the fight. I was also frustrated about him claiming (and acting like) I knee’d him in the head on the ground when it was clear for all to see in the video replay that I didn’t connect at all with the knee I threw. Then finally, the verbal abuse Josh hit me with in the final 30 seconds of the fight simply pushed me over the edge and my frustrations came out as I knew I’d lost the fight, was unhappy with my own performance and had then been ridiculed by my opponent to top things off.
This is certainly no excuse for my actions; I fully deserve to be punished for what I did and hope that everyone I have disappointed can forgive my rash decision. I feel very disappointed in myself for losing my cool and hope that I am able to address my temperament and bounce back from this low point in my career.
I feel ashamed and embarrassed by what I did and hope that together my team and I can get through this issue. It will be a long road back from where I am now to earning the trust and respect of the UFC and the MMA fans that have supported me for so long, I know I’ve let you all down but I’m determined to make it up to you all.
So what do you think? should Daley get a second chance?