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Ryo Chonan vs Brad Blackburn UFC 92 fight in the works Posted: 26 Sep 2008 08:23 AM CDT Ryo Chonan (15-8) is expected to collide with Brad Blackburn (12-9-1) in a solid welterweight match up at UFC 92 in the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, on December 27, according to MMAWeekly.com. Chonan dropped his Octagon debut to Karo Parisyan via unanimous decision at UFC 78: "Validation" back in November 2007. “The Piranha” rebounded to earn a split decision win over Roan Carneiro at UFC 88: “Breakthrough” earlier this month. He has a ton of experience competing overseas in DEEP and Pride FC, going up against some of the very best in the sport such as Anderson Silva (win), Paulo Filho (loss), Dan Henderson (loss), Ricardo Almeida (loss) and Hayato “Mach” Sakurai (win), among many others. Chonan is the winner of three of his last four and will look to make it two straight when he locks horns with “Bad.” Blackburn was able to parlay his success with the International Fight League (IFL) to score a second round technical knockout of James Giboo inside the Octagon at UFC Fight Night 14: “Silva vs. Irvin” back in July. During his seven-fight IFL tour Blackburn had his share of bright moments with impressive wins against high-caliber opponents such as Delson Heleno, Jay Hieron and Chris Wilson, among others. However, recent losses to Mark Miller and Rory Markham have overshadowed those accomplishments. Blackburn is currently the winner of three straight. UFC 92 features the main event between current coaches of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 8, interim heavyweight champion Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira and Frank Mir. To check out the latest UFC 92 fight card and rumors click here.

Sho XC predictions and preview for ‘Reis vs Cullum’ tonight Posted: 26 Sep 2008 08:01 AM CDT We’re about one week away from Elite XC: “Heat,” which will air next Saturday night on CBS, featuring a main event fight between Kimbo Slice and Ken Shamrock — it’s perhaps the biggest event in the history of the organization. In the meantime, the eighth installment of the monthly Showtime “Challenger Series” known as Sho XC is set to go off live from the Chumash Casino in Santa Ynez, Calif., tonight. The Showtime telecast begins at 11 p.m. ET and will feature five main card bouts. For the first time ever on a Sho XC card an Elite XC world title will be on the line when jiu-jitsu stud Wilson Reis meets King of the Cage Bantamweight Champion Abel Cullum for the right to become the company’s first featherweight champion. There are several other intriguing match ups taking place on the main card. To get you ready for those, we’ve dissected each fight and came up with some quick-hitting analysis and predictions. Check them out below. Wilson Reis (5-0) vs. Abel Cullum (11-1) for vacant Elite XC featherweight title Reis has earned his place in this title fight. He’s very young (24 years old) and inexperienced ( only five pro fights), but he’s been very impressive in his three fights for Elite XC. Here’s a snip from Reis: "I have grown up in a hurry in the cage and this is my chance to show how much I've developed. My last three fights have all been against fighters with more experience. But it hasn't been a problem yet. Cullum is a legitimate fighter with a lot of experience, too. This is going to be an excellent fight. The fans are going to love it. I am going to take him.” Cullum is a replacement for the injured Bao Quach who had some facial injuries and couldn’t compete. He’s been fighting professionally for three years and already has a legit title with King of the Cage. The knock on the Brazilian is that he doesn’t have very good stand up. Nobody can argue that his ground game isn’t solid, but he has yet to stop an opponent with his striking. Cullum, on the other hand, has demonstrated the ability to end fights with his striking, as well as boasts a strong submission game to go along with that. He’s a tough, well rounded fighter. Here’s what he had to say about his opponent: "I want to break Reis, take the fight out of him. You do that to someone, it makes you feel good. I can see it in the eyes.” Wilson Reis is a beast at 145 pounds. He’s short, but he’s lightning fast and very strong. Plus he is one of the best jiu-jitsu players on the Pro Elite roster. As long as he can keep the fight on the mat, he should be able to control Cullum and wear him out for a late submission or a decision. Prediction: Wilson Reis via unanimous decision Shane Del Rosario (4-0) vs. Carl Seumanutafa (4-0) This should be an awesome fight. Both of these guys are bangers and know how to finish fights. Other than Seumanutafa’s debut lasting to the second frame, neither of these guys have had an opponent last through round one. Sure, a case can be made that both fighters haven’t necessarily faced great competition, but nonetheless, these guys have finishing power. Del Rosario is a blue chip prospect, but Seumanutafa seems like the meaner, tougher guy. My money is on him in this slug fest. Prediction: Seumanutafa via technical knockout in round one Matt Makowski (3-0) vs Erik "Bad" Apple (9-1) This fight has a ton of potential. Makowski put a beating on Nick Serra at the fight CBS event on May 31 in Newark. He’s an athletic, well rounded fighter with a nice stand up arsenal. He used a lot of kicks and knees against Serra. Apple is well rounded, too, and has a decent resume. His only loss is to Brock Larson, which is nothing to be ashamed of. Plus he has a little bit more experience. He’ll be a tough out for Makowski, but Matt really impressed me in New Jersey. I think he gets his fourth win here against a quality opponent. Prediction: Makowski via unanimous decision. David Douglas (3-1) vs. Malaipet (3-2) This will be Malaipet’s first fight since being disqualified in the main event of Sho XC 5 after repeated illegal elbows to the back of Thomas Denny’s head. He’s an accomplished Muay Thai fighter and obviously has a strong stand up game. He should get a chance to show it off against Douglas who also likes to bang. This fight could end up being the most exciting on the card because it’s anyone’s fight. Malaipet is top notch with the Muay Thai, but Douglas is an absolute animal — I think he’ll be too aggressive for Malaipet and overwhelm him. Prediction: David Douglas via technical knockout in round two Givanildo Santana (11-0) vs. Jaime Jara (19-5) Santana is known as “The Arm Collector” because 10 of his 11 wins are from armbars all in the first round. He’ll look to add another to his collection tonight, but he’ll have a hard time finishing Jaimie Jara in the first round. Jara is the more experienced fighter and he’s high on confidence having only lost once in his last 16 fights. He knows Santana’s strength is his submission attack. I think he’s seasoned enough to be able to defend that successfully. Like Rampage said, “You can’t be a one trick pony in this sport.” I think Jara either gets a knockout or wins by decision. Prediction: Jamie Jara via technical knockout in round three The action begins at 11 p.m ET tonight on Showtime. Don’t miss it!

Kimbo Slice video on ESPNs Pardon the Interruption (PTI) Posted: 25 Sep 2008 08:43 PM CDT

‘MMA Live’ on ESPN video episode 20 Posted: 25 Sep 2008 04:06 PM CDT The crew weighs-in on the Anderson Silva retirement talk and much more:

MMA Quick Quote: Gina Carano weight issues stem from instability Posted: 25 Sep 2008 01:49 PM CDT “I get a lot of flack from people who are like 'oh she's not serious about fighting' and that's not it at all … I'm not just a fighter … I'm a bunch of things, I have a lot of interests…. I'm really looking forward to after this fight just sticking to a routine and a program. I'm just getting a handle on it, I think that's why I've slipped up in certain areas, missing weight, I've been all over the place, cause I didn't have any stability or anything…. I'm going to say that just in the last two months have I calmed down and started living normally and training normally…. Cause I've been completely like chaos for the last year it seems like or even longer. I've been all over the place…. I'm going to be a better fighter for it.” – Top female fighter Gina Carano provides some reasoning behind her recent inability to make the 140-pound division weight limit in a recent MMAWeekly.com radio interview. This is after the promotion allegedly created the weight class strictly to accommodate her before “Conviction” arrived on the scene. Carano has several irons in the fire in addition to her mixed martial arts career, including a role as “Crush” on “American Gladiators.” After several mishaps on the scale she now appears to “have a handle on it.” We’ll find out soon enough when she weighs-in for her bout against Kelly Kobald next weekend at Elite XC: “Heat” at the Bank Atlantic Center in Sunrise, Fla., on October 4, which will air live on CBS beginning at 9 p.m. ET.

Josh Barnett: ‘I did not turn down’ Elite XC fight with Andrei Arlovski on CBS Posted: 25 Sep 2008 01:17 PM CDT Props: MySpace.com Quoteworthy: “I read somewhere that I had declined the fight because I would have had to take a pay cut. I suppose others may also formulate some story about me declining the fight for other reasons. I never declined to take this fight. I was never told that I would have any part of my pay reduced since working with Affliction. To my knowledge, no one has been asked to take a pay cut that fights for Affliction. I did not turn down this fight.” Former UFC heavyweight champion, Pride FC superstar and current Affliction MMA contender Josh Barnett denies several published reports that indicated he turned down an offer to fight Andrei Arlovski at Elite XC: “Heat” at the Bank Atlantic Center in Sunrise, Fla., on October 4. Elite XC and Affliction caught the industry off guard yesterday with a surprise announcement that Arlovski would take on Roy Nelson on the main card of the CBS telecast. “The Pitbull” and the “Baby Faced Assassin” were supposed to go to battle at Affliction: “Day of Reckoning” on October 11 before the event was postponed. There’s no telling if Arlovski and Barnett will fight anytime soon.

Bad DREAM: Lackluster ratings could put Japanese promotion to sleep Posted: 25 Sep 2008 10:10 AM CDT Japan’s Fighting & Entertainment Group (FEG) had everything it needed to make sure its mixed martial arts promotion DREAM was a success. Well, almost everything. FEG secured a prime time spot on Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS), one of Japan’s top five TV networks and littered its fight cards with Japanese fan-favorites like Shinya Aoki, Ikuhisa Minowa and Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic. What it didn’t have was enough people to actually care about its product. The rabid fan base that was so desperate for a non-UFC fight promotion since the demise of PRIDE FC was a no-show. Either that, or the fan base was grotesuqely overestimated. Is mixed martial arts in Japan a thing of the past? In an attempt to prove its drawing power, DREAM 6 was aiming for a minimum 12.0 rating for its sixth event but had to settle for a much lower 9.0 - a mere .1 above it’s 8.9 debut back in March. DREAM has underperformed in all three of its contracted four television events, prompting FEG’s Sadaharu Tanikawahas to consider dissolving the company if they eventually lose their television contract. With their inability to hit their target numbers, it almost seems like a foregone conclusion. On paper, DREAM 6 was a can’t-miss. Unfortunately the show as a whole was average, with a quick ending to the middleweight grand prix and a dissappointing no-contest between Mirko Cro Cop and Alistair Overeem. Add to that an abundance of commercials during the TBS broadcast (and a choppy, watered down presentation on HDnet) and fans were left with little reason to come back for more. And fans aside, why should fighters continue to come back for more? Several DREAM combatants are still crying foul over back wages, including a very public report by Seoul Sports earlier this month. I guess there still wasn’t enough money to pay the actual fighters after dumping a pallet of cash onto Fedor Emelianenko’s yacht for his brief cameo at DREAM 6. FEG had plans to hold its fourth televised event on New Year’s Eve. If you’re a fan, I suggest finding a way to watch it. It could be the last time you see mixed martial arts in Japan. Unless of course the UFC decides to “get it on” in the house that Mothra built.

Roger Huerta video answers ’slippery’ accusations Posted: 25 Sep 2008 10:04 AM CDT Roger Huerta was recently in Toronto, Canada, putting on a seminar at Victory Fight Club. “El Matador,” of course, is fresh off his first loss inside the Octagon against Kenny Florian last month at UFC 87: "Seek and Destroy" — a tough unanimous decision defeat that put his immediate title shot hopes on temporary hold. Glenn Dextras of MMACanada.net recently caught up with Huerta to discuss the effects of his first loss in the UFC, the “greasing” accusations from Florian after the fight, how he contributes his time outside of the world of MMA and much more. To check out the video interview click here. And you can also check out the full picture gallery here.

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