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| UFC 96 drug test results come back clean from the OAC for ‘Jackson vs. Jardine′ Posted: 28 Mar 2009 12:30 AM PDT
The Ohio Athletic Commission (OAC) has confirmed that 11 of the 20 competitors who were tested for illegal/banned substances after competing at UFC 96: "Jackson vs. Jardine″ at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio, on March 8 have all passed with flying colors. Former UFC light heavyweight champion Quinton Jackson along with Shane Carwin, Matt Brown, Matt Hamill, Gray Maynard, Tamdan McCrory, Kendall Grove, Jason Day, Jason Brilz, Brandon Vera and Shane Nelson were all screened for performance enhancers such as steroids, as well as drugs of abuse like cocaine and marijuana, among others. Results of those tests all returned negative. The fighters mentioned above were randomly selected. However, athletic commissions typically test the main event participants and fight night winners, as well as those who have failed tests in the past. The UFC dished out $762,000 in fighter salaries for the pay-per-view (PPV) event and another $180,000 in additional bonus money for three participants who delivered outstanding performances. “Rampage” defeated Keith Jardine via unanimous decision to earn another crack at the 205-pound title after "Sugar" Rashad Evans defends it against Lyoto “The Dragon” Machida at UFC 98 on May 23. And heavyweight sensation Shane Carwin put himself into possible title contention with a first round drubbing of established veteran Gabriel "Napao" Gonzaga. For complete UFC 96 results and blow-by-blow coverage of the main card action click here . |
| Deadliest Warrior: Modern-day gladiator Chuck Liddell tests ancient weapons (Video) Posted: 27 Mar 2009 01:41 PM PDT He goes Tito Ortiz on the side of beef: |
| Brett Rogers vs Abongo Humphrey Strikeforce fight booked; Completes April 11 card Posted: 27 Mar 2009 11:41 AM PDT
We’re just a little more than two weeks out from the April 11 unveiling of a brand new Strikeforce MMA on the premium cable network Showtime. And by the looks of the fight card, which was made official today, the San Jose-based mixed martial arts promotion is coming out with guns blazing. At least five of the 40 or so professional fighters who had their contracts purchased just two short months ago from the now defunct Elite XC will be in action on the card, including undefeated heavyweight knockout machine Brett “The Grim” Rogers, whose match against fellow undefeated prospect, Ronald “Abongo” Humprey, was today made official. Rogers made a name for himself fighting under the Elite XC banner last year, posting three straight first round knockouts over Ralph Kelly, James Thompson and Jon Murphy. The Team Bison product lobbied hard for a fight with Kimbo Slice following the Murphy fight in May, but never succeeded in convincing the promoters to book the match before the company went under in October 2008. Humphrey was a participant on BET’s reality series “Iron Ring” last year, and he won two fights on the show while being coached by UFC veteran Shonie Carter. The Atlanta, Georgia resident stands only 5′11″ and will give up a full six inches in height to Rogers. However, he feels like he still has his advantages. Here’s a snip:
In a combined 14 professional fights, nobody has ever made it out of the first round with either of these guys. So chances are somebody’s likely going to sleep early in this one. The main event will feature Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt Nick Diaz against former Strikeforce middleweight champion Frank Shamrock. A renewal of the classic Shamrock vs. Gracie rivalry that has been such a big part of MMA over the years should provide plenty of drama, as Diaz will look to avenge a 21-second knockout loss suffered by his trainer and mentor, Cesar Gracie, at the hands of Shamrock three years ago. Company lightweight champion Josh “The Punk” Thomson will put his title on the line against former training partner Gilbert “El Nino” Melendez in the co-featured bout of the evening. The fight will mark The Punk’s first official title defense since capturing the gold from his long-time friend last summer. There’s plenty of other exciting action on the card as well, including Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos, Benji “Razor” Radach, Scott “Hands of Steel” Smith and others. Check out the full lineup below:
The promotion will stick with its usual stomping grounds for perhaps the biggest event in its young history, returning to the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif., for the first show of 2009. The main card will air live on Showtime beginning at 9 p.m. ET. Remember that MMAmania.com will provide live coverage of the event, beginning with the Showtime telecast, and we’ll include up to the minute undercard results, tool. Check in early and often on fight night! |
| Hang 10: MMAmania.com exclusive UFC Fight Night 18 interview with Ricardo Almeida Posted: 27 Mar 2009 11:24 AM PDT
You can't always get what you want. And if you know the rest of the lyrics, you know a thing or two about overcoming adversity. Such is the case with Ricardo Almeida. Riding a six-fight wave, Almeida temporarily retired from the sport of mixed martial arts in 2004 in order to open the Ricardo Almeida Jiu-Jitsu Academy in Hamilton, N.J., and to concentrate on his family. But the desire to compete was always there — especially since the sport experienced unprecedented growth during the same time. It's kinda hard to sit on the sidelines when so many great athletes deserve to be armbarred. UFC 81 was set for the big return to MMA competition from a three-and-a-half-year hiatus. And "Cachorrao" marked the occasion by making quick work (68 seconds, to be exact) of previously unbeaten Rob Yundt, who took the fight on very short notice. It wasn't long before a UFC 86 matchup with Patrick Cote was scheduled with talk of a potential title shot opportunity. Unfortunately, that's where the train falls off the tracks. Cote squeaked out a hard-fought split decision victory (29-28, 28-29, 29-28), earning a title shot against middleweight kingpin Anderson Silva along the way. And the rest, as they say, is history. But Almeida says that loss might just be the best thing that's ever happened to him. He now seems more focused than ever to get back to his winning ways in his quest for middleweight gold. Almeida (9-3) next faces the dangerous Matt Horwich (22-11-1) at UFC Fight Night 18: "Condit vs. Kampmann" on Wednesday, April 1. The event serves as the prelude that kicks off the premiere of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) Season 9: "U.S. vs. U.K." It all gets underway live from the Sommet Center in Nashville, Tenn., and airs on Spike TV. We recently caught up with Almeida via email as he was preparing for the fight. We asked him about everything from Patrick Cote and boxing, to surfing and fighting jiu-jitsu guys. Almeida set the record straight on a number of things, including bouncing back from his recent loss to Cote, being misquoted by the press, and realizing his commitment to returning to the sport of mixed martial arts. Let's get after it:
Adam Wagner (MMAmania.com): You last fought Patrick Cote at UFC 86 to a close split decision that didn't go your way. Give us your thoughts on the fight. Did you agree with the decision? Ricardo Almeida: At the risk of sounding biased, I still feel I won the fight. I have had many people tell me I should have won that decision. When I come to think of it, they were all my friends though. When it comes down to it, when people talk about either me or Cote, that will not be the fight they remember. Patrick went on to fight for the title and will have a very successful career by any standards. I am also looking ahead toward many fights to come. May be that point they took away from me at the Cote fight will come back at a more opportune time, who knows. Adam Wagner (MMAmania.com): I read a story that appeared on Setanta Sports that you were bored with the fight and that that might have cost you the victory. Can you comment on that? Ricardo Almeida: Just to be sure I re-watched the post-fight video on ESPN, and I never said, "I was bored." I said that I felt it had been a boring fight. From the second round on not much happened, and when at the end of the third round I got a takedown, I felt I should push toward the finish. I ended up moving to side control, and Cote turned to his knees, I went for the guillotine but missed. My point is that I didn't want to end the fight throwing hammer fists from the guard, I went for the finish. Next time the reporter from Setanta might want to take better notes, especially if they are going to quote fighters. Adam Wagner (MMAmania.com): Between the first and second rounds, the fight was stopped to repair your torn glove. When it resumed, there seemed to be a marked difference in the fight — you seemed to have dominated the first round, but after the glove incident, Cote won the final two rounds, according to a majority of the judges. Did the glove incident break your focus? Did you think it was necessary to halt the fight (was the glove damaged that badly)? Ricardo Almeida: I can't really blame my loss on the cutting of the gloves, it was my fight to win or lose. I knew Cote had good submission defense, so I wanted to ground and pound him before moving in for the finish in the second or third round. At the end of the first round he had a bloody nose and everything was going according to the game plan. I just never fully recovered from the first to the second round. My body got real stiff and I got real tired. The whole second round was the most physically challenging thing I ever had to do. I felt like throwing up every second of that round. During the third round I loosened up again and was beginning to find my distance again and wasn't as tired. The challenge in MMA with the five minute rounds is that you have little time to adapt and change strategy. But overall I am happy I had such a tough time during that fight. I have learned a lot, and it has prepared me to better deal with similar situations in my future fights. Adam Wagner (MMAmania.com): This was the first time you've tasted defeat in more than six years. How do you bounce back from that, especially since you were potentially so close to a title shot? Ricardo Almeida: Losing, especially in MMA, never tastes good. You throw in the title shot and the fact I was on a 7-fight winning streak and it becomes even worse. But I believe I needed that loss. It was a transitional year for me, coming back from retirement and all. I needed to experience a setback in order to test my commitment. Everyone wants to be a fighter when they are winning, but pushing through your own failures and shortcomings is the mark of a real fighter. Adam Wagner (MMAmania.com): You're now set to face Matt Horwich at Fight Night 18. This fight was originally slated to occur at UFC 90; however, an injury forced you off the card. Do you care to disclose what the injury was, and are you all healed up now? Ricardo Almeida: I was diagnosed with a sports hernia, which is a tear on your lower abdomen region. It is a pretty scary diagnosis because even surgery is not guaranteed to solve the problem. I spoke to a real good friend of mine who is a doctor in Brazil, and he told me it has forced many professional soccer players to retire. Luckily with therapy and some changes in my training, I have been able to fully recover. Adam Wagner (MMAmania.com): Horwich is a tough fighter and the first ever IFC middleweight champion. What are your thoughts on Horwich? How do you feel the two of your fighting styles measure up? Ricardo Almeida: Horwich is a very tough guy to prepare for and fight because he is so unorthodox. He comes forward every second of every round, and that throws a lot of fighters off. He has a well-rounded game, but I believe his biggest strength is on the ground. He is probably the best ground fighter I have ever fought in MMA. I hope it becomes a super high-paced ground battle. Adam Wagner (MMAmania.com): How have you prepared for this fight? Have you changed anything up from your normal camp? Ricardo Almeida: I feel last year I was perhaps doing more coaching than I should have leading up to my fights. This time around I am focusing 100 percent on my own training and preparation. Renzo Gracie has been running almost every training session and overlooking everyone. It has been great to have someone with his knowledge on the sidelines, not only for the fight but the entire preparation. I believe we are all improving twice as much in half the time. Adam Wagner (MMAmania.com): How have you been working on developing your striking? Are you still working with Bo Lattimere? Ricardo Almeida: I have been diligently working on my boxing week in and week out. Each fight I feel more comfortable. I felt my defense was not bad last fight. Cote is one of the hardest punchers at 185 lbs. I am now working with boxing coach Mark Henry. He has been training Frankie Edgar and Chris Liguori for the past few years. I still work with Bo as well. Adam Wagner (MMAmania.com): There are a lot of jiu-jitsu practitioners who also have a love of surfing, as you do. Can you talk a bit about the relationship between the martial art and surfing? Ricardo Almeida: I believe any man's finest hour is when he is working single-mindedly toward a goal, without any thought other than achieving that goal, whatever the goal may be. Jiu Jitsu in the physical sense is decoding the signals of an ever-changing environment. Your objective is simply to submit your opponent or training partner. Surfing is essentially the same. The waves are generated thousands of miles away by wind and travel toward the coast. When they get close to shore, they break. At that moment you have to be in perfect position to be able to safely ride it. For both though you need a partner or opponent, depending on how you look at it: in Jiu Jitsu's case, another trained person who has dedicated their life to the development of their skills; in surfing, the perfect conditions of swell size and direction, wind, tide etc. Because of the specific skills/conditions required for perfect practice, they become an almost spiritual experience. Adam Wagner (MMAmania.com): The UFC's middleweight division has some of the best jiu-jitsu practitioners in the world. Would you be interested in putting your own jiu-jitsu skills up against guys like Demian Maia and Rousimar Palhares? Ricardo Almeida: It will always feel somewhat wrong for me to fight another Jiu Jitsu guy in MMA. Sort of like when you do something your parents told you never to do. However, with the growth of the UFC and so many Jiu Jitsu fighters doing well, it will become inevitable. Adam Wagner (MMAmania.com): I appreciate your time in answering our questions, and I wish you luck in your upcoming fight with Horwich. Lastly, would you like to thank any sponsors, or do you have any parting words for your fans? Ricardo Almeida: Thank you for the opportunity to speak with MMAmania.com. I want to thank the fans for making the UFC the greatest sport there is. I would also like to thank all of the people who support me on a daily basis. I couldn't do this without your help. |
| Keith Jardine graces list of top 100 unsexiest men for 2009 Posted: 27 Mar 2009 10:02 AM PDT
Check out The Boston Phoenix for the rest of the not-so-distinguished gentlemen. |
| Posted: 27 Mar 2009 09:49 AM PDT
Bellator Fighting Championships announced today that Bellator IV, the fourth event of the highly anticipated 12-week tournament series airing on ESPN Deportes, will be held in Colorado Springs, Colo., on April 24, 2009. The event will take place at the World Arena in Colorado Springs, which rests just south of Denver in the shadow of the neighboring Rocky Mountains, a natural metaphor for Bellator's combined feature events, "A Night of Heavyweights & the Semi-Final Round of the World Championship Lightweight Tournament." The commanding roster of heavyweight fighters will anchor an action filled evening of competition featuring some of the best fighters this weight class has to offer. This Bellator special event will also feature a Lightweight semi-final tournament match-up, with the resulting winner advancing as a finalist for Bellator's $175,000 Lightweight World Championship Fight. "The fight card is packed with great Heavyweight match-ups and what promises to be a compelling Lightweight World Championship tournament Semi-Final," said Bellator Fighting Championships CEO Bjorn Rebney. "Colorado MMA fans and our worldwide television audience should expect to see a night of powerful strikes, tactical submissions and crowd pleasing knockouts." Bellator IV will feature a collection of highly-competitive, action-packed Heavyweight bouts, a World Championship Semi-Final as well as a collection of spectacular special feature fights. The evening will also feature a bout between two top form female fighters, Molly Helsel versus Angela Hayes. The non-tournament Heavyweight bouts on show are detailed below:
Non-Tournament Bouts: Special Lightweight World Championship Semi-Final Tournament match-up based on the outcome of Bellator I, II & III Bellator Fighting Championships' premiere season consists of 12 two-hour events to be broadcast weekly in primetime on Saturday nights. The nationally televised events will feature a combination of tournament and non-tournament special feature bouts. There will be four simultaneous tournaments taking place in season #1 over a three month period: one in each of the Featherweight (145 lb.), Lightweight (155 lb.), Welterweight (170 lb.) and Middleweight (185 lb.) divisions. Tickets will go on sale at 12:00 pm MT Friday, March 27, 2009 and can be purchased at the World Arena box office and through TicketsWest. For more information on Bellator Fighting Championships, visit www.Bellator.com. For the Spanish language version of the Web site, visit www.Espanol.Bellator.com. |
| MMA quick pic: And the Oscar goes to…Remy Bonjasky? Posted: 27 Mar 2009 08:55 AM PDT
Props: Nightmare of Battle Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion Alistair Overeem pokes fun at K-1 World Grand Prix 2008 Champion Remy Bonjasky during a press conference for tonight’s K-1 World Grand Prix 2009 from the Yokohama Arena in Yokohama, Japan. Bonjasky, who won the 2008 GP after some illegal strikes from DQ’d opponent Badr Hari, has been accused by Overeem of acting his way into the victory by overselling his injuries during the bout. We’ll see who has the last laugh when the two collide in the main event later tonight on HDNet starting at 4:00 a.m. ET. |
| Quinton Rampage Jackson is ‘being a good boy’ (Video) Posted: 27 Mar 2009 08:53 AM PDT |
| Programming reminder: ‘FieLDS K-1 World Grand Prix 2009 Yokohama′ to air live via HDNet on March 28 Posted: 27 Mar 2009 08:27 AM PDT
Tune in this Saturday, March 28 for "HDNet Fights Presents: FieLDS K-1 World Grand Prix 2009 Yokohama″ from the Yokohama Arena in Yokohama, Japan. The stacked kickboxing event airs LIVE at 4:00 a.m. ET with a special encore presentation at 9 p.m. ET for all you sleepyheads and chislers who refuse to shell out the few extra clams for a DVR. That’s Friday night into Saturday if you’re still doing the math. This is the first event in 2009 of the much anticipated K-1 World Grand Prix. HDNet’s partnership kicked off late last year with the K-1 World Grand Prix Finals and features the best kickboxers in the world. LIVE coverage of this event will include Peter Aerts vs. Errol Zimmerman, Jerome Le Banner vs. Ewerton Teixeira and a four-man, one night tournament for the K-1 Heavyweight Title featuring Melvin Manhoef. In addition, current Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem will try to shock the world for a second straight time when he clashes with reigning three-time K-1 World Grand Prix champion Remy Bonjasky. “Demolition Man” upset the boys over at K-1 with a stunning first round knockout over former K-1 heavyweight champion Badr Hari in a K-1 rules match back on New Year’s Eve. Overeem has been on a frightening tear as of late and a win over Bonjasky could turn the K-1 world on its head. The fight card for FieLDS K-1 World Grand Prix 2009 Yokohama is as follows:
The next K-1 event will be FieLDS K-1 World MAX 2009 “Final 16″ World Championship Tournament on April 21 in Fukuoka, Japan. Be sure to get up to speed on all things K-1 by checking out our archive here. |
| UFC Quick Quote: Wanderlei Silva will show all his heart on June 13 Posted: 27 Mar 2009 07:48 AM PDT
– Former PRIDE middleweight champion Wanderlei Silva talks to Sherdog.com about his upcoming fight against Rich Franklin at UFC 99 from the the Lanxess Arena in Cologne, Germany, on June 13. "The Axe Murderer" has been on a serious downturn as of late, losing four of his last five with three brutal knockouts. Still, Silva refuses to hang it up as long as the fans still come to see him fight, which I for one hope will be a very long time — that is unless “Ace” puts him to sleep. There are only so many KO’s one man can (or should be allowed) to endure. |
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