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| Akihiro Ghono will send English fans home in tears after he beats Dan Hardy at UFC 89 Posted: 27 Aug 2008 08:45 AM CDT
Quoteworthy:
Akihiro Ghono is ready to spoil the Octagon debut of Dan Hardy — a top British welterweight |
| Iceman Rx: Chuck Liddell vs. Forrest Griffin at UFC 92 (If all goes to plan) Posted: 26 Aug 2008 11:55 PM CDT
Who could have ever predicted the career of Chuck Liddell would be sandwiched between two contestants from The Ultimate Fighter (TUF)? Yet that’s exactly what’s happened to the former light heavyweight champion, who’s had an interesting 2008. Liddell was originally scheduled to face PRIDE assassin Mauricio Rua at UFC 85 until “Shogun” re-injured his ailing knee and was forced to withdraw. TUF Season 2 winner and undefeated light heavyweight Rashad Evans answered the call to replace Rua, but this time it was Liddell who canceled after a devastating hamstring injury. Now fully healed, Chuck is set to honor his commitment by battling Rashad Evans at UFC 88 at the Philips Arena in Atlanta, Ga., on Saturday, September 6. At that time of the announcement (June), it was sort of anti-climatic. After all, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson was still the 205-pound champion. Defeating Evans meant a possible autumn superfight against Shogun Rua and not the title shot for which he was hoping. But boy have things changed since then. Jackson was narrowly defeated by TUF Season 1 winner Forrest Griffin at UFC 86 and spent some time after the fight ranting and raving on the highway like Dr. Miles Bennell. And Shogun somehow ended up bypassing Liddell altogether and could go straight to a Jackson rematch (from their PRIDE days) in November/December. That’s assuming he can make it that long without his knee folding up like George Jetson’s car. So where does that leave the Iceman? In line for a title shot against Forrest Griffin at UFC 92, according to his nutrition company Iceman Rx. Unless of course “Sugar” Rashad Evans has anything to say about it. Liddell will likely fight at UFC 92, but whether or not its for the gold all depends on his performance at UFC 88. At 11-0-1, Evans is no pushover and does happen to train with Keith Jardine — one of the few men to have a victory over the Icy one. To hype December’s fight, Iceman Rx is holding a sweepstakes starting on September 1 and ending on December 27 (to coincide with Liddell’s appearance at UFC 92). The winner receives a special edition Chuck Liddell Iceman Rx Hummer H2. See for yourself:
There was a time when Chuck Liddell dismissed Griffin as a viable opponent. But that opinion has changed after the maturation of Griffin as both a fighter and a UFC ambassador. From the Man of Ice in his chat with UK’s The Sun:
Chuck has to beat Rashad Evans to get to Forrest Griffin. I almost can’t believe the words even as I type them. But that’s an indication of how far the sport has come and also how successful the TUF product has become. Successful enough to drive out established stars like Chuck Liddell? We’ll find out at UFC 88 in little more than one week … or possibly beyond on New Year’s Eve weekend. |
| UFC Quick Quote: Lyoto Machida predicts fast finish in Thiago Silva UFC 89 fight Posted: 26 Aug 2008 10:32 PM CDT
– Lyoto Machida tells Tatame.com that he expects his light heavyweight showdown against Thiago Silva at UFC 89: “Bisping vs Leben” at the National Indoor Arena (NIA) in Birmingham, England, on October 18, to not go the distance. It’s a sensational 205-pound match up between two undefeated fighters with identical records. Whether it goes the full distance or not one thing is certain: someone will go home with a 13-1 record and the winner will likely be on the door step of a title shot in early to mid 2009. Perhaps even sooner, depending on what happens with Chuck Liddell at UFC 88 next weekend. |
| UFC 88 weigh-in details and information for ‘Breakthrough’ at Philips Arena Posted: 26 Aug 2008 08:17 PM CDT
Of course, MMAmania.com will provide up-to-the-minute coverage of the UFC 88 weigh-in, as well as provide a detailed recap of the festivities as soon as they conclude for those who miss it on UFC.com. Here's the complete line up:
For those in town for the UFC debut in "Hotlanta" remember that the weigh-ins are FREE to attend and open to the public. And for those who want to make the most out of the experience get there a little early for Harley-Davidson Fan/Fighter Photo Session at 10 a.m. local time. In addition, several fighters will be in attendance to sign autographs and pose for photos at a session that begins at 1 p.m. Of course, UFC Fight Club members will also be able to attend an exclusive Q&A session with a soon-to-be-named star at around that same time (1 p.m.). In addition to coverage of the weigh-in, remember that MMAmania.com will also provide LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the main card action on fight night, which is slated to air at 10 p.m. ET on pay-per-view (PPV) from the Philips Arena on Saturday, September 6. Of course, the latest quick updates of the prelim bouts will begin to flow earlier than that at around 8:30 p.m. ET. It's going to be a fun night of fights … check us out for all the pre, during and post-fight coverage you can handle. |
| Malaipet vs David Douglas Elite XC fight scheduled September 26 Posted: 26 Aug 2008 07:16 PM CDT
Douglas’ lone loss was the first fight of his career to world-ranked Jeff Curran in 2005. He took a two year break from competition after the loss and has reeled off three straight impressive wins ever since. He was a part of the swing bout for the July 26 second installment of “Saturday Night Fights on CBS” against Marlon Mathias. Despite handling Mathias in 12 seconds with a technical knockout from strikes, the bout did not make the telecast. He competed three weeks later at the Sho XC 7 on August 15 against William Jacobson. Again Douglas scored an early technical knockout victory, which apparently impressed the powers that be at Elite XC enough to earn himself some airtime on the September 26 Sho XC Showtime event. Malaipet has gone (1-1) under the Elite XC banner. The loss was to Thomas Denny at Sho XC 5 back in March. He was disqualified after illegally elbowing Denny numerous times to the back of the head. He was rumored to be a part of the July 26 “Unfinished Business” card, but was forced off with a minor injury. The bout against Douglas will be his first fight since the loss to Denny. Jon Murphy is also scheduled to face Shane Del Rosario in a heavyweight tilt on the same evening, and Bao Quach will challenge Wilson Reis for the company’s first ever featherweight title in the main event of Sho XC 8. |
| Renato ‘Babalu’ Sobral vs Anthony Ruiz Strikeforce at Playboy Mansion Posted: 26 Aug 2008 01:12 PM CDT
The champ’s injury is not known at this time, but we do know he is out and “El Toro” is in. Ruiz was the last guy to challenge Southworth for his 205-pound gold. He lost a unanimous decision in June at Strikeforce: “Melendez vs. Thomson” after repeatedly getting taken down by the champ. However, Ruiz does hold a previous technical knockout win over Southworth because of a cut in a non-title fight at a Strikeforce event last year. If you remember, Ruiz spoke about Babalu in an interview right here with MMAmania.com a few short months ago and had this to say:
It was an interesting take on Babalu’s mental toughness. He’ll get his chance to back those statements up thanks to an injured Southworth — let’s see how he actually does match up against the tough Brazilian. Babalu has long been considered one of the better light heavyweights in the world. He was never able to take the UFC gold from Chuck Liddell, but there weren’t many who could; therefore, it’s hard to hold that against him. He did have that disappointing knockout loss to Jason Lambert at UFC 68. And Babalu was then booted from the organization for refusing to release a choke hold on a passed out David Heath at UFC 74 last August. Apparently Sobral has put all that behind him and is now looking to go after the Strikeforce world title. He’s won his last two fights since the David Heath incident, including a unanimous decision over Mike Whitehead at last month’s inaugural Affliction event. Babalu is a sick jiu-jitsu player, meaning Ruiz will have to keep his submission defense alert at all times to stay competitive in this one. On paper, Babalu should win relatively easy, but Ruiz is relentless and has a heart of gold. He’ll give the Brazilian all he can handle and look to use this huge opportunity against a big name opponent to garner some recognition for himself. Southworth vs. Babalu was believed to be the main event for this card, but that was unclear and it’s even less clear now. We’ll keep you posted on any news regarding “Strikeforce at the Mansion II.” |
| Karo Parisyan ‘trying to deal with’ panic attacks Posted: 26 Aug 2008 09:25 AM CDT
Props: UFC.com Quoteworthy:
Experienced mixed martial arts veteran and long-time Judo competitor, Karo Parisyan, reveals that he has recently been dealing with panic attacks. Being locked inside a cage with another man who wants to tear his head off — in front of a massive screaming crowd and television audience — is perhaps the worst place for someone with his condition to be. “The Heat” admits to feeling “girly” when the episodes emerge, but it seems like a step in the right direction to discuss and address them in the open — it must be extremely difficult for the the proud Armenian. Parisyan will take on the super tough Yoshiyuki Yoshida at UFC 88: “Breakthrough” at the Philips Arena in Atlanta. Ga., on September 6. Let’s hope his mind is right because this is a very good fight, which will surely deliver the goods if both fighters are in top form. |
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