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| Nick Diaz surgery on eyes to prevent future cuts (Pics) Posted: 18 Jun 2008 08:32 AM CDT |
| Ricardo Almedia: ‘I dont see this fight going three rounds’ against Patrick Cote at UFC 86 Posted: 18 Jun 2008 08:27 AM CDT
Props: MMAYou.com Quoteworthy:
Ricardo Almeida talks about his game plan and thoughts heading into his middleweight tilt with Patrick Cote at UFC 86: “Jackson vs. Griffin” at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, on July 5. It’s a fight that will catapult the winner very close to a title shot against UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva. |
| Dana White bench press 315 pounds (Video) Posted: 18 Jun 2008 08:11 AM CDT There’s more to the workout, but the serious lift comes in around the five-minute mark: |
| MMA Quick Quote: Affliction MMAs Tom Atencio ‘flattered’ with UFC counter programming Posted: 17 Jun 2008 10:56 PM CDT
– MMARated.com captures the initial reaction of Affliction MMA Vice President of Entertainment, Tom Atencio, regarding the surprising news that the UFC has put together a free night of fights on less than five weeks notice the same night the upstart mixed martial arts promotion has planned its first-ever pay-per-view (PPV) event. It’s a move that could significantly impact buys on July 19, which Affliction MMA is banking on to offset its large payroll and production costs. UFC President Dana White, however, recently denied that UFC Fight Night 14 was a counter programming maneuver, saying that he is simply “giving the fans what they want. And Silva just wants to fight more.” |
| Brandon Vera vs Reese Andy UFC Fight Night 14 fight set Posted: 17 Jun 2008 10:12 PM CDT
As expected, former heavyweight contender Brandon Vera (8-2) will make his light heavyweight debut at UFC Fight Night 14 at The Pearl at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Saturday, July 19. “The Truth” will take on Octagon newcomer and International Fight League (IFL) veteran Reese Andy (7-1) in the Spike TV special co main event, according to Sherdog.com. It’s a quick turnaround for Vera who just competed at UFC 85: “Bedlam” on June 7, losing to Fabricio Werdum via first round technical knockout. However, the stoppage appeared to happen a bit too soon — Vera protested the call almost immediately. Regardless, it marked his second straight defeat in the division after a unanimous decision loss to Tim Sylvia at UFC 77: “Hostile Territory” in October 2007 the fight prior. And the loss to Werdum more than likely forced his hand to dip down to 205 pounds, which should not be a difficult cut for the Muay Thai specialist. Andy is on a four-fight win streak, including impressive victories over Krzysztof Soszynski, Justin Levens, Mike Ciesnolevicz and others. He also has a win over Icon Sport Middleweight Champion Kala “Kalohe” Hose earlier in his career. Like Vera, Andy is accustomed to fighting at heavyweight. However, this will certainly mark the biggest test to date for Andy — Vera will likely come in ticked off and faster than ever. He can make some serious waves in the loaded UFC 205-pound class. And it all starts on July 19 … maybe. To check out the rapidly growing UFC Fight Night 14 card click here. |
| Next Elite XC show on CBS ‘Unfinished Business’ card takes shape for July 26 Posted: 17 Jun 2008 07:58 PM CDT
As we mentioned earlier, “Unfinished Business” will feature a rematch between Elite XC Middleweight Champion “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler and Scott “Hands of Steel” Smith. The pair put on a show in their first encounter last month, only to have the bout halted in the third round because of an inadvertent eye poke, resulting in a disappointing “No contest.” Had the bout been able to resume it could have turned out to be the best fight in the history of the young organization. Therefore, a rematch was a must … and is definitely worthy of main event status. Top welterweight stand out Jake Shields has also been tapped to make an appearance; however, he will likely not take on Drew Fickett. Several reports have indicated that Nick Thompson, Jay Hieron or Paul “Semtex” Daley are all possible opponents to fight Shields for the vacant welterweight crown.
In addition, Elite XC is considering a heavyweight fight — that could also have heavyweight title implications — that includes Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva, according to SI.com. An opponent for Bigfoot is also unknown at this time, but IFL champ Roy “Big Country” Nelson’s name has been mentioned by numerous outlets as the top choice. And a female match between Shayna Baszler and Kelly Kobald is also being talked about. The promotion’s most marketable female fighter, Gina Carano, will likely return to action for the third televised CBS show sometime in the fall. It could possibly mark the first-ever woman’s championship in the newly designed 145 pound weight class. The winner of the fight between Baszler and Kobald, in theory, would be a likely choice for that spot. Besides having two (or possibly three) title fights headlining the network broadcast, Elite XC is also exploring additional options to spice up the action — a joint CBS/Showtime telecast. The plan being discussed will have Showtime air a 60- to 90-minute show with three or four fights starting at 7:30 p.m. ET that would serve as a lead-in to the CBS main card telecast at 9 p.m. ET. Wilson Reis — who competed on the under card of the May 31 show and dominated Justin Robbins with his sensational Brazilian jiu-jitsu skills en route to winning with a first round rear naked choke — is expected to be featured on the Showtime portion of the joint-telecast. It seems like a great idea on paper, but Elite XC had a lot of problems keeping the last “Saturday Night Fights” event within the scheduled two-hour time slot. And that card was set up for a lot of quick finishes. With this event looking to be more of a competitive one, and having three potential five-round fights, those time problems could certainly persist. The Sawis Center in St. Louis, Missouri, is being looked at as a possible venue for the night. However, no location has been made official at this time. |
| Anthony Johnson vs Kevin Burns UFC Fight Night 14 fight booked Posted: 17 Jun 2008 07:34 PM CDT
MMAmania.com learned about the match up this afternoon. Johnson destroyed The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 6 finalist, Tommy Speer, at UFC Fight Night 13 via first round knockout. “Rumble” also made quick work of Chad Reiner in his Octagon debut with a 12-second first round knockout at UFC Fight Night 10 back in June 2007. Sandwiched between those fights Johnson lost to Rich Clementi at UFC 76: “Knockout” via submission (rear naked choke) in a catchweight bout that was contested at 177 pounds because it was scheduled on short notice. Burns — a banker by day and fighter by night — burst on to the scene with an impressive submission win over veteran and Brazilian jiu-jitsu specialist, Roan Carneiro, at UFC 85: “Bedlam” earlier this month on just two weeks notice. That’s impressive. He’ll likely look to take this fight to the ground as soon as possible to avoid the heavy-handed attack of Johnson. Stay tuned for more details on this developing card, which features UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva taking on James Irvin in a non-title light heavyweight bout in the main event of the eving. |
| Anderson Silva vs James Irvin UFC Fight Night 14 main event set Posted: 17 Jun 2008 06:21 PM CDT
Win or lose the “Spider” will retain his middleweight crown and likely still defend it in the near future, according to Yahoo!Sports.com. It’s an interesting twist to say the least, considering Silva had been recently linked to a blockbuster bout with former light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell. That’s a showdown that can still happen; however, for now the “Sandman” gets the unenviable task of taking on Silva. Irvin rebounded from an injury-riddled and bizarre 2007 fight campaign, during which he blew out his knee in a loss to Thiago Silva and was knocked silly courtesy of an errant Luis Arthur Cane knee that resulted in a disqualification win, to knockout Houston Alexander in record time at UFC Fight Night 13 this April. He was supposed to take on Rashad Evans at UFC 85: “Bedlam” earlier this month; however, he had to withdraw because he broke several toes while training for the bout. Irvin boasts a 4-3 record inside the Octagon. Silva, on the other hand, has stopped every single fighter put in front of him since his UFC debut in 2006, including Chris Leben, Rich Franklin (twice), Travis Lutter, Nate Marquardt and Dan Henderson. It’s a ridiculous hit list to say the least. There’s really only one man in the division remaining, Yushin Okami, who he has not defended against and has worked his way toward a title shot. In fact, Okami holds a controversial win over the Brazilian from back in 2006. Perhaps that will happen sometime soon … just not next. In addition to the main event between Silva and Irvin, the UFC is working overtime to put together a card in five weeks that will get people to tune in to Spike TV. Here’s the latest we have so far:
Stay tuned for more details, including whether or not Brandon Vera will still co headline the card as previously mentioned. These fight announcements should come fast and furious. The previously announced Ultimate Fight Night 14 on September 17 from Omaha, Nebraska, on September 17 will likely be renamed to UFC Fight Night 15. |
| UFC green lights Spike TV special on July 19 (Update) Posted: 17 Jun 2008 03:04 PM CDT
We first passed along the news over the weekend that several fighters had been approached about participating in the event, which is less than five weeks away. It is widely believed that the decision to stage an event on such short notice is to counter the Affliction: “Banned” debut event on pay-per-view (PPV) that same evening. Regardless of the intent, this means that mixed martial arts fans worldwide have some nice available options in mid-July. And there’s no reason to not watch both. As we mentioned in our previous report, promising heavyweight prospect Cain Velasquez is expected to compete on the July 19 card against a soon to be announced opponent. Brandon Vera — who we can confidently report is making the drop to light heavyweight — has been asked to headline the event. There was some valid speculation that he would take on Wanderlei Silva; however, it appears that “The Axe Murderer” will not accept the bout because he does not have enough time to prepare. The hunt for someone to challenge “The Truth” is still ongoing. In addition to Vera, Velesquez and others, there are a handful of fights already slated for other events that will be shuffled and added to this card. We’ll pass those along to you as soon as possible. The UFC July 19 show will take place in Las Vegas — most likely at The Palms Resort & Casino. UPDATE: MMARated.com is reporting that UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva will make his 205-pound debut against James Irvin in the main event. Stay tuned for more details. |
| UFC announcement delay … again Posted: 17 Jun 2008 01:24 PM CDT
This better be good. And even though we promised not to speculate, it is worth noting that the New York Assembly Tourism, Arts and Sports Development Committee is expected to cast a preliminary vote (again) on proposed legislation to legalize mixed martial arts in the “Empire State” tomorrow. Perhaps the two are somehow related … or not. (Thanks to Michael Rome of BloodyElbow.com for clarification on the vote.) |
Welterweights Anthony Johnson (5-1) and Kevin Burns (6-1) are set to do battle at UFC Fight Night 14 at The Palms Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, on July 19.
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