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UFC Quick Quote: Chuck Liddell deserves the next title shot Posted: 28 Jun 2008 10:55 PM CDT “After I beat Rashad I think I deserve the next title shot.” – Former light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell tells MMANews.com that he deserves the next shot at the 205-pound crown that he used to sport if he can defeat Rashad Evans at UFC 88: “Breakthrough” in Atlanta, Ga., on September 6. “Iceman” rebounded from back-to-back losses to outpoint Wanderlei Silva on all three judges scorecards at UFC 79: “Nemesis” in December 2007. He is winless in two attempts against reigning division champion, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. Lyoto Machida, Wanderlei Silva, Thiago Silva and Evans (with a win) are also among those who are in contention.

Georges St. Pierre video on Jon Fitch UFC 87 fight and more Posted: 28 Jun 2008 10:28 PM CDT Props: TSN.ca (Thanks to MMAmania.com reader “Pat” for the assist.)

‘The Artist’ KJ Noons has no qualms painting another masterpiece on Nick Diaz’s face Posted: 28 Jun 2008 06:42 PM CDT Elite XC Lightweight Champion KJ Noons was a guest on HDNet’s “Inside MMA” yesterday, adding yet another chapter to the back and forth war of words between himself and his nemesis, Nick Diaz. By now it’s common knowledge that there is no love lost between these two. Noons and Diaz originally fought last November for the right to become the first-ever Elite XC lightweight champion. Noons won the match fight after a ringside doctor deemed the cuts around both of Diaz’s eyes were too severe for the fight to go on. Diaz obviously disagreed with the decision and he’s been clamoring for another shot at Noons ever since. When asked by Kenny Rice if there was going to be a rematch, the champ said this: “I was thinking about this earlier. Does he deserve a rematch? No. He’s not the number one contender. I want to fight other guys out there. Do people want to see the rematch? Of course. What it boils down to is, I got to take care of myself, and money talks. I think a lot of people forget what happened the first time. I think a lot of people, they want to see the rematch, but I destroyed this guy in five minutes. And I was trained to do five rounds, five minutes.” UFC heavyweight, Justin McCully, who was also a guest on the program interjected by mentioning the scar tissue on Diaz’s face. Noons replied with this: “A lot of people say scar tissue, but this guy’s not a professional boxer. He hasn’t had a lot of pro fights. He hasn’t taken a lot of damage to his face, so I don’t know where they come up with all this scar tissue.” Noons then brought out a picture of Diaz’s face after their fight in November. He asked the camera to zoom in so everyone at home could get a good look at it, and said this: “You see this face right here? Ok, this is the first time. See this guy’s face? This took five minutes. My nickname is KJ. I’m gonna do a little trash talking right now for you guys, make it a little fun. My nickname is KJ. The first show, they came up with “KO Artist.” Then they came up with “King Karl” for the last one. So, if we’re going to meet in a match again, I think I’m going to be called “The Artist” because this right here, this is a masterpiece, and I painted this. You see this? This is a masterpiece. So round two? Sure, let’s go.” There was speculation the rematch would be on July 26, in Stockton, Calif., at “Unfinished Business,” but for whatever reason the plans for the bout fell through. Diaz will remain on the card and face Thomas “Wildman” Denny. It’s unclear what Noons’ plans are for the immediate future. In an interview right here with MMAmania.com, he stated his intentions to go back into boxing at some point, but he also mentioned his contract with Elite XC called for him to defend his title three times this year. He’s got one out of the way with a successful defense against Yves Edwards. The question now is … when is the next one? Time will tell.

Brock Larson vs Carlo Prater WEC 35 fight set for August 3 Posted: 28 Jun 2008 09:53 AM CDT MMAmania.com has confirmed that Brock Larson and Carlo Prater have signed on to do battle in a welterweight tilt at WEC 35 on August 3, ensuring that the winner gets one step closer to a rematch with reigning 170-pound champion, Carlos Condit. Prater — who is one of the few who has actually defeated Condit albeit in an ancient encounter back in 2004 — made his debut for the Zuffa-owned promotion against the “The Natural Born Killer” at WEC 32 this past February. Condit, however, would avenge his loss in short order, submitting Prater in the first round via guillotine choke. Since that time, Prater has fought twice outside of the organization, picking up wins over Marcelo Brito and Garett Davis in the UWC and Raw Combat organizations, respectively. He certainly has his sights set on a rubbermatch with Condit, but Larson stands in his way for now. Larson is coming off a high charged disqualification victory over John Alessio at WEC 33. The fight was stopped after Alessio landed a knee as Larson attempted a takedown. Larson, however, had one knee down as he took the shot, meaning that the blow was illegal. He suffered a broken jaw as a result of the errant blow. And it added more fuel to the fire between the two rivals. In fact, after the official announcement was made with the result of the bout a melee between the two fighters and their camps broke out. Larson and Alessio ceratinly have unfinished business. But with the “Natural” now out with a broken arm — and no longer fighting for the WEC — Larson has to focus on Prater and then Condit. Somewhere along the way perhaps he will get to settle the score with Alessio. Again, the winner of this fight could still be next in line to fight Condit possibly later in the year. Condit will actually be one of three champions also booked to fight at WEC 35, taking on former middleweight Hiromitsu Miura in a co feature fight of the evening. WEC Light Heavyweight Champion Brian Stann and WEC Lightweight Champion Jamie Varner will also compete, as well as several talented up-and-coming fighters such as Micah Miller, Cub Swanson, Damacio page and more. This is a stacked line up of fights, which is set to go off from “The Joint” at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, and air on the Versus network at 9 p.m. ET.

Tyson Griffin crib tour and nutrition prior to UFC 86 Marcus Aurelio fight (Video) Posted: 28 Jun 2008 09:29 AM CDT Part I here | Part II here

Strikeforce recap for ‘Melendez vs Thomson’ June 27 event Posted: 28 Jun 2008 09:16 AM CDT Strikeforce: “Melendez vs Thomson” is in the books and there is a new lightweight champion for the San Jose-based organization. Josh “The Punk” Thomson used an array of kicks and scored takedowns in each round to secure a unanimous decision victory and pry the 155-pound title from one of the top fighters in the world, Gilbert Melendez. He was the more aggressive fighter throughout the five round fight, and was never really in any danger of being stopped. It’s unclear if all the injury talk heading into the fight was just a ploy by him to get the champ over confident, but he looked to be in top form. Indeed, Thomson was in great shape and was far and away the better man on this night. Hats off to him for a great performance … can’t wait to see who he fights next. As for Melendez, he looked hesitant to fully commit to attacking Thomson. He mixed in some decent boxing, but never had an answer for Thomson’s kicks or his takedowns. Perhaps, the loss to Ishida had him worried that Thomson might be looking to execute the same type of game plan. Therefore, he didn’t want to over commit to his striking and possibly fall victim to another dreaded case of the lay and pray. Not only that, but he looked slower and weaker than the challenger. He did a lot of chasing, but had a hard time catching “The Punk,” who looked to be in much better shape and was cat like with his quickness. Not only did that wear him down significantly throughout the fight, but as the fight grinded on, he grew more and more frustrated with being unable to land shots on the crafty Thomson. In the end, it was a solid five round fight, but a pretty one-sided victory for Josh Thomson. The production of the event was superb. There might be some who disagree, but events that Bas Rutten announces just seem better. Not only is he knowledgeable, but he brings comedic value to the microphone as well. It’s hilarious when he says stuff like comparing Billy Evangelista’s blood soaked head to that of Dennis Rodman. He’s no Joe Rogan, but I can live with Bas doing the color commentary all day long. It was also more than refreshing to not have to wait 20 minutes in between each fight. Strikeforce is all about the fights. They know we’re not there to watch dancing girls or ads for Sylvester Stallone’s next regretful attempt at a sequel. As soon as one fight was done, another was was beginning. That’s the way it should be. And Kudos to Strikeforce for that. In addition, HDNet provided some great stats and visuals between rounds. Sure it’s not a completely accurate source to use to score the fight because it doesn’t show things like submission attempts, but it’s informative to the viewers anyway. For example, we knew exactly how many kicks Thomson was throwing and landing. We knew exactly how many takedowns Bobby Southworth and Evangelista were getting. It adds that little something extra for the fans in between rounds. It’d be nice to see that utilized more in other organizations. So again, I think Strikeforce did a fantastic job with the production of the event. As far as the actual fights go, maybe some of them weren’t as competitive as I would have liked, or had the finishes that would have made those uncompetitive fights more exciting, but I think that’s something Strikeforce will get better with as it gets more and more events aired on HDNet. Like I said, at least they’re going in the right direction with their production. And without question the promotion will improve the matchmaking as its roster gets deeper with more shows being aired on HDNet and possibly NBC. There were a few things I didn’t like as far as the rules went. One, and I know this is a highly debated subject in mixed martial arts, is that I think elbows to a grounded fighter are important both offensively and defensively. There’s nothing wrong with adding more dimensions to a fight. Elbows make all the difference in the world, not only during the fight, but during preparation for the fight. Sure, elbows cause more cuts, but this is fighting and cuts should be expected. Again, that’s just this writer’s opinion. In addition, three minute round fights should be left for the females. In some cases, instead of the shorter rounds causing the pace to be pushed more, it leads to more fighters just looking for that one takedown or that one flurry that will stick out to the judges. It actually makes some of the fights less exciting, and obviously there’s less conditioning involved and certainly less fights being finished. In regard to the main card action, Chris Cariaso put on a very impressive performance. He dominated Cung Le-trained fighter, Anthony Figueroa. The two had fought previously with Cariaso winning a decision, but Cariaso improved dramatically for this fight. He scored the first submission victory of his career, and he was relentless in his attack for nearly two rounds before finally pulling off the rear naked choke. It will be interesting to see the 135 pounder fight again for sure. Something has to be said about Raymond “The Real Deal” Daniels getting dominated in his MMA debut. It goes to show you that MMA is a whole different game. Daniels — a highly touted professional kickboxer — was completely out classed by an 8-4 Jeremiah Metcalf tonight. The stat tracker showed that Daniels, the great striker, didn’t land one punch or kick in the entire fight. There was also one point in the second round when Metcalf landed a huge right hand that almost floored the talented striker. He just looked like he didn’t belong in that cage. Maybe he’ll do better his next time out, but he certainly didn’t look like a guy touting himself as wanting to be the greatest fighter of all time. Overall, it was a decent event. Not spectacular, but certainly worth watching. To check out all the results for Strikeforce: “Melendez vs Thomson,” as well as blow-by-blow commentary of the main card action click here.

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