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UFC 98 video blog with Matt Serra (Episode three) Posted: 09 May 2009 09:40 PM PDT

UFC Quick Quote: Winning means everything inside the Octagon Posted: 09 May 2009 09:35 PM PDT "In Pride, I used to take fights on 10-day notice, one-week notice. And as long as you went out and put on a good show, you were fine. You'd be back next time. UFC's a little different. And I think the drawback of that is that sometimes you get really boring fights. You have guys that are worried about winning; they're not really worried about putting on a show. I think you've seen that in the last couple of events in the UFC, and that's the double-edged sword…. It's a lot of added pressure and stress. I think the most important thing is to go out there and put on a good show. There's other organizations out there, other promotions out there. I think at the end of the day, even if the UFC was to cut me, I'll go back to Japan or find somewhere else. Worse things have happened." -- Former Pride FC star and current UFC heavyweight, Heath Herring, talks to MMAWeekly.com about the importance that fighters place on winning inside the Octagon … even if it means fighting careful and not putting on exciting matches. His promotional debut against Jake O’Brien in 2007 is a prime example. “The Texas Crazy Horse” has struggled since that time, winning just two of five fights with the organization. His next fight against Cain Velasquez at UFC 99: “The Comeback” in Cologne, Germany, on June 13 is more than likely a “do or die” situation, but he doesn’t seem to concerned about his future — there are other options beyond the eight-walled cage.Then again, fighters such as Clay Guida, Patrick Cote, Chris Leben, Alessio Sakara and Chris Lytle, to name just a few, have all struggled at times in their careers and still been invited back because of their styles. Where should the UFC draw the line?

Yahir Reyes scores stunning spinning backfist technical knockout over Estevan Payan at Bellator VI (Video) Posted: 09 May 2009 08:13 PM PDT Wow … check out the full-facial landing:

M-1 Challenge 2009: Brazil shuts out Team Imperial 5-0 Posted: 09 May 2009 06:35 PM PDT Sau Paulo, Brazil - After losing to Team USA West by a 3-2 margin during the season opener of the 2009 “M-1 Challenge Presented by Affliction,” losing at home in their second head-to-head series was not an option for Team Brazil. However, matched up with the 2008 defending M-1 Challenge Cup Champions Team Imperial, Brazil felt the need to change four of its five fighters heading into Saturday’s “Fourth Edition” of the 2009 M-1 Challenge from the Ginasio Esporte Club Sirio in Sau Paulo, Brazil. Led by former IFL superfight veteran Eduardo Pamplona, the team’s lone holdover from the opener, Brazil swept Imperial by a score of 5-0. Pamplona earned “Fight of the Night” honors after improving his record to 11-2 following his majority decision victory over BodogFIGHT veteran Erik Oganov (9-10). Prior to Pamplona’s fight contested in the M-1 Challenge welterweight division, Brazilian prospect Hacran Dias preserved his perfect record (11-0-1) after submitting Amirkhan Mazikhov (1-1), the first-ever graduate of the M-1 Selection fight series. The M-1 Selection was created with the intent to established qualifiers for the 2010 M-1 Challenge. However, Mazikhov received the promotion to the M-1 Challenge sooner than anticipated after an injury replacement was needed for Mikhail Malyutin. With big shoes to fill, Mazikhov held tough in the early going before Dias took control of the fight by submitting Mazikhov with a rear naked choke at 3:58 of round 1. The Brazilians clinched the best-of-five series to move to 1-1 on the season after middleweight Leandro “Batata” Silva (14-5) was victorious over Dmitry Samoilov (7-4-1). Down 3-0, the Imperial Team needed to try and salvage the final two fights in order to keep their playoff hopes alive in the all-important individual victories tie-breaking category. Mikhail Zayats (8-3), one of the top fighters during the 2008 M-1 Challenge, was primed and positioned to bounce back from his shocking season opening loss in February to South Korea’s Jae Young Kim. Once again this was not Zayats’ night, as Machado won a three-round unanimous decision, marking the first-time in the Russian light heavyweight’s career that he has suffered consecutive losses. Heavyweights Joaquim Ferreria (Brazil) and Maksim Grishin (Imperial) were the last two fighters to take the stage with Ferreira (8-2) allowing Brazil to complete the 5-0 sweep over Imperial after submitting Grishin, another graduate of the M-1 Selection, with a North-South choke at 3:57 of round 1. With the 5-0 victory, Brazil took sole possession of second place in Group B. With a 1-1 challenge record and an individual record of 7-3, a second Brazil victory coupled with a loss for Team USA West could put Brazil in a position to qualify for a post-season berth. In the night’s second team challenge, Russia Legion supplanted Germany for first place in Pool D by defeating the Germans by a score of 4-1. The end result was quite disappointing for a German team that recorded a 5-0 victory over Turkey in Bourgas, Bulgaria this past March. Kicking it off for Legion was steady veteran Yura Ivlev (7-5), who forced Franco de Leonardis (11-4) to tap out to knee strikes on the ground at 2:14 of round 1. Legion then moved to 2-0 following Magomed Shihshabekov’s knockout of Sven Heising. Shihshabekov also defeated Jason Ponet of the World Team during March’s event in Bulgaria and now holds a perfect 3-0 record. Down 2-0, Gregor Herb kept the Germans’ hopes alive after submitting Sergey Kornev at 4:32 of round 1. It was a quick and dramatic comeback for Herb, who was losing the round and appeared to be running low on energy before catching Kornev in an armbar. Unfortunately, Germany’s hopes of a comeback were dashed by Legion light heavyweight Gadzmyrat Omarov, who improved to 4-0 after submitting last-minute replacement Ismail Centikaya. Despite having clinched it team challenge vs. Germany, Legion still needed to notch an additional individual win to take over first place. Enter heavyweight Akhmed Sultanov (4-3), who submitted German heavyweight Lars Klug (1-3) with an armbar at just 1:21 of round 1. The fourth edition of the M-1 Challenge opened with an upset, as Bulgaria won a 3-2 head-to-head challenge match with Team Benelux. Benelux, an amalgamation of Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg, was a finalist in the 2008 M-1 Challenge under its previous identity, Team Holland. After being upset in Tacoma this past February vs. Finland during the season opener, Benelux was favored to defeat a Bulgaria team that lost 5-0 to Team USA East in its home country this past March. However, it was Bulgaria that was the team able to redeem itself and not Benelux. Things started off poorly for Benelux after Danny van Bergen (7-4-3) was submitted by Yanko Yanev despite dominating the fight with strikes administered from the top position. However, Yanev had a slipper guard and tried numerous submission attempts from the bottom before eventually catching Yanev with armbar at 2:23 of round 1. Yanev improved to 7-1 after suffering his first professional lost in March against jiu-jitsu ace Renato Migliaccio. There was a brief momentum change during the welterweight matchup between Benelux and Bulgaria, when Raymond Jarman (10-8) landed a beautiful flying knee to Ivan Ivanov (5-1), earning himself a TKO victory just 35 seconds into the fight. Former UFC veteran and one-time Bulgarian national wrestling team member Jordan Radev (19-4) put Bulgaria back in front following a unanimous decision victory over Danny Smit. Despite a 2-1 lead, Bulgaria was still an unlikely candidate to complete the victory with Benelux’s two best fighters, Jason Jones and Jessie Gibbs, still slated to compete. However, Jones (8-7) suffered his second loss of the season after a doctor forced a stop to his light heavyweight encounter vs. Emil Samoilov (4-0-1) due a doctor’s stoppage as a result of excessive blood from Jones’ nose. Despite having been guaranteed a team loss, a rejuvenated Gibbs enacted a measure of revenge for his Benelux teammates. After missing the team’s February opener, Gibbs (7-2) needed just 1:37 to submit Nikola Dipchkov (0-1) at 1:37 of round 1. The fifth edition of the M-1 Challenge is scheduled to take place on Friday, June 5 in Kansas City, MO with Team USA East returning to action against Finland. Lineup information will be released soon at www.M-1Global.com, with updated results and current team standings currently available at the site as well. Official Results of Saturday’s M-1 Challenge Event: Team Challenge Number One: Bulgaria vs. Benelu 1. Lightweight (154 lbs./-70 kg): Yanko Yanev (Bulgaria) def. Danny van Bergen (Benelux) via submission (armbar) at 2:23 of round 1 2. Welterweight (167.2 lbs./-76 kg): Raymond Jarman (Benelux) def. Ivan Ivanov (Bulgaria) via TKO (flying knee) at 0:35 of round 1 3. Middleweight (184.8 lbs./-84 kg): Jordan Radev (Bulgaria) def. Danny Smit (Benelux) via unanimous decision 4. Light Heavyweight (204.6 lbs./-93 kg): Emil Samoilov (Bulgaria) def. Jason Jones (Benelux) via TKO (doctor’s stoppage) at 2:09 of round 1 5. Heavyweight: (204.7 lbs.-plus/+93 kg): Jessie Gibbs (Benelux) def. Nikola Dipchkov (Bulgaria) submission (strikes) at 1:37 of round 1 Bulgaria defeats Benelux 3-2 Team Challenge Number Two: Russia Legion vs. Germany 6. Lightweight (154 lbs./-70 kg): Yura Ivlev (Legion) def. Franco de Leonardis (Germany) via TKO (strikes) at 2:14 of round 2 7. Welterweight (167.2 lbs./-76 kg): Magomed Shihshabekov (Legion) def. Sven Heising (Germany) via knockout (strikes) at 4:27 of round 1 8. Middleweight (184.8 lbs./-84 kg): Gregor Herb (Germany) def. Sergey Kornev (Legion) via submission (armbar) at 4:32 of round 1 9. Light Heavyweight (204.6 lbs./-93 kg): Gadzimyrat Omarov (Legion) def. Ismail Centinkaya (Germany) via submission (strikes) at 1:09 of round 1 10. Heavyweight: (204.7 lbs.-plus/+93 kg): Akhmed Sultanov (Legion) def. Lars Klug (Germany) via submission (armbar) at 1:21 of round 1 Russia Legion defeats Germany 4-1 Team Challenge Number Three: Brazil vs. Team Imperial 11. Lightweight (154 lbs./-70 kg): Hacran Dias (Brazil) def. Amirkhan Mazikhov (Imperial) via submission (rear naked choke) at 3:58 of round 1 12. Welterweight (167.2 lbs./-76 kg): Eduardo Pamplona def. Erik Oganov (Imperial) via majority decision 13. Middleweight (184.8 lbs./-84 kg): Leandro Silva (Brazil) def. Dmitry Samoilov (Imperial) via three-round unanimous decision 14. Light Heavyweight (204.6 lbs./-93 kg): Alexander Machado (Brazil) def. Mikhail Zayats (Imperial) via three round unanimous decision 15. Heavyweight: (204.7 lbs.-plus/+93 kg): Joaquim Ferreira (Brazil) def. Maksim Grishin (Imperial) via submission (North-South Choke) at 3:57 of round 1 Brazil defeats Imperial Team 5-0

Is Dana White ‘too volatile to get the sport to the next level?’ Posted: 09 May 2009 06:22 PM PDT ESPN E:60 correspondent Tom Farrey raises the question in a recent interview with MMA Fanhouse: “I think he’s a fascinating figure in many ways. You could say that he’s refreshingly obvious. At a time when everybody gets spun in every direction, Dana White is different. You ask him a question and he answers it, and you certainly get the sense that he answers with sincerity. Now, he also speaks with a lot of profanity, and a lot of insults, occasionally, and a strident tone that is atypical for the leaders of any sports enterprise…. I don’t know of any sports leader who’s more polarizing than Dana White. But so far he’s survived and thrived. You’ve got to give him a lot of credit. He knows how to put together the fights the fans want to see, and he makes great use of promotional techniques to build up his fighters…. He’s clearly lifted the sport, he’s done a number of brilliant things to lift the sport to where it is. But one of the things we ask in the piece is, Is he too volatile to get the sport to the next level?” What do you think, Maniacs?

Rachelle Leah YRB magazine pictorial (Pic) Posted: 09 May 2009 05:37 PM PDT Props: GasolineGlamour.com (Thanks to MMAmania.com reader “Mario” for the assist.)

Bellator Fighting Championships VI results and quick recap Posted: 09 May 2009 09:57 AM PDT The championship fight is now set for Bellator Fighting Championships featherweight tournament following the promotion’s seventh event in a twelve part series last night at the Central Pavilion Arena at Richard M. Borchard Regional Fairgrounds in Robstown, Texas. And surprise, surprise, the tournament favorite Wilson Reis will not be a part of that final bout. Taking his place will be the man that mopped the cage floor with him on Friday night - undefeated 22 year old Joe “The Hammer” Soto. The former All-American wrestler from Iowa Central Community College needed all three rounds and the approval from the three cageside judges to pull off the win, but the actual fight itself wasn’t that close. The Hammer used his wrestling pedigree to control the fight by stuffing any and all of Reis’ takedown attempts and forcing the Brazilian jiu-jitsu expert to work outside of his comfort zone and trade strikes for the full fifteen minutes — not exactly his strong suit — and it showed. Soto was dominant on his feet with a much more technical and effective stand up game. He was the clear cut winner and takes over as the new favorite to win this tournament. If after this Bellator experiment is all said and done, it turns out to be deemed a failure, they’ll have one thing to hang their hat on - being responsible for introducing the mixed martial arts world to Joe Soto. The sky is the limit for this kid. The opponent he’ll be facing sometime in the next six weeks was decided in the co-main event bout between Yahir Reyes and Estevan "El Terrible" Payan. The much bigger Payan, who failed to make weight for this semifinal bout, tried to be the aggressor as the fight wore on, but he paid dearly in the second round when he walked right into a perfectly timed spinning back fist, ala Shonie Carter, from Reyes that brought an immediate halt to the fight. Reyes, who has now pulled off back-to-back upsets to reach the championship final, will face off against Soto with the winner earning a $100,000 paycheck. Check out the full results from Bellator VI below: 145 lbs.: Joe Soto defeated Wilson Reis via unanimous decision 145 lbs.: Yahir Reyes defeated Estevan Payan via knockout (spinning back fist) at 1:56 of round two 145 lbs.: Luis Palomino defeated Nick Gonzalez via technical knockout (strikes) at 2:13 145 lbs.: Roberto Vargas defeated Daniel Pineda via unanimous decision 145 lbs.: Jose Santibanez defeated Dustin Phillips via submission (rear naked choke) at 3:34 of round one 185 lbs.: Bubba McDaniel defeated Chris Spicer via submission (rear naked choke) at 2:53 of round one 175 lbs.: Hector Urbina defeated Ira Boyd via technical knockout (injury) at 0:19 of round one Next week Bellator Fighting Championships VII will take place at the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago, Illinois. The four remaining contestants in the welterweight tournament will be in action. On one side of the bracket, former UFC champion Dave Menne will battle Omar De La Cruz, and Jorge Ortiz and Lyman Good will square off in the other semifinal bout. UFC heavyweight veteran Eddie Sanchez is also expected to be in action on the card. You definitely won't want to miss that. To catch up on all the latest from Bellator Fighting Championships click here.

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