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- Vitor Belfort vs Jorge Santiago Affliction video for Aug. 1
- Jorge Gurgel vs Billy Evangelista Strikeforce Challenger Series main event in the works for Oct. 25
- Alistair Overeem withdraws from Aug. 15 title defense against Fabricio Werdum
- Back from the dead: ‘Confirmed’ reports of Kimo Leopoldo’s untimely demise prove to be untrue
- Mirko ‘Cro Cop’ Filipovic: Brock Lesnar has ‘yet to have a real struggle’
- UFC 103: Eliot Marshall vs Jason Brilz on tap for Sept. 19
- UFC 100 gate does more than $5.1 million and 11,000 attendees
- UFC ‘Fights of the Year’ for 2009 … so far
- MMA Quick Quote: Jesse Taylor wants the best Japan has to offer
- Ultimate Fighter Kimbo Slice motivated to not get smashed in the UFC (Video)
| Vitor Belfort vs Jorge Santiago Affliction video for Aug. 1 Posted: 21 Jul 2009 07:41 PM PDT Sleeper fight of the night: |
| Jorge Gurgel vs Billy Evangelista Strikeforce Challenger Series main event in the works for Oct. 25 Posted: 21 Jul 2009 07:31 PM PDT Jorge Gurgel announced today that he will headline the next Strikeforce Challenger Series event against American Kickboxing Academy (AKA) standout Billy Evangelista at the Save Mart Center in Fresno, Calif., on Oct. 25. Gurgel scored a unanimous decision win over Conor Heun in his debut for the promotion last month. The Brazilian jiu-jitsu blackbelt once again abandoned his ground game in favor of an all out slugfest. This time, however, unlike in his UFC career, Gurgel had his hand rasied after a three-round, which Showtime commentator Mauro Ranallo classified as "a fight for the ages at 160 pounds." The seven-fight Octagon veteran and former The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 2 contestant snapped a two-fight losing skid with the performance and will look to string together consecutive wins for the first time since 2007. Evangelista lost for the first time in his career to Mike Aina last night back in May. He was accused of "intentionally" (and illegally) kneeing the Hawaiian fighter in the head while he was down in the second round. "Iron" was said he was hurt and unable to continue, which forced referee to call a stop to the action on the recommendation of the cageside doctor. Evangelista planned to appeal the loss after video footage appeared to indicate that his errant blows landed on Aina’s shoulder area; however, the loss still stands. Strikeforce Challenger Series serves as a proving ground to promote up-and-coming (and lesser known) fighters. The events are similar to what Elite XC used to promote with its SHO XC: "Challenger Series" on Showtime. Stay tuned to MMAmania.com for more on the fight card as it becomes official. |
| Alistair Overeem withdraws from Aug. 15 title defense against Fabricio Werdum Posted: 21 Jul 2009 03:56 PM PDT
Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion Alistair Overeem has been forced to withdraw from his upcoming title defense against Fabricio Werdum at the "Carano vs. Cyborg" event from the HP Pavilion on August 15 after re-aggravating a previous hand injury. MMAmania.com confirmed the change with Strikeforce officials earlier today. Overeem has yet to defend his heavyweight crown after capturing it with a second round submission win over Paul Buentello way back in 2007. "Demolition Man" has since been employed in Japan, racking up a 3-0 record in MMA (1 NC) and a 1-1 record under the K-1 banner during that span. Werdum holds a second round submission win over the hulk from Holland when they tangled at PRIDE: "Total Elimination Absolute" in May 2006. Now it looks as if he’ll have to wait for his chance to make it two straight while Overeem nurses a bum hand. Unfortunately with just over three weeks until fight night, Strikeforce officials have been forced to scratch the bout altogether and are currently in the process of finding a replacement fight for the main card. We’ll bring you more information on a potential replacement as soon as it becomes available. Strikeforce: "Carano vs. Cyborg" will feature a 145-pound title fight between female fighting sensation Gina "Conviction" Carano and her nemesis Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos as well as a lightweight title unification bout between reigning champ Josh "The Punk" Thomson and interim champ Gilbert "El Nino" Melendez. For all the latest on the August 15 event click here. |
| Back from the dead: ‘Confirmed’ reports of Kimo Leopoldo’s untimely demise prove to be untrue Posted: 21 Jul 2009 03:55 PM PDT
The story was picked up earlier this morning and confirmed by TMZ before subsequently being reported by the Orange Country Register and the New York Daily News, leading us right here at MMAmania.com to incorrectly and prematurely pass along the news. Fortunately after pursuing the Leopoldo camp throughout the day, we managed to reach his publicist, Bob Trieger, who gave us the good news that his client was in fact, alive and well. The 41-year-old MMA veteran last competed inside the Octagon at UFC 48 in 2004, losing to Ken Shamrock via first round knockout (knee). He fared no better in the last performance of his career, which was a technical knockout loss to Wes Sims at Extreme Wars 5: "Battlegrounds" in 2006. Kimo (10-7-1) is perhaps best known for wearing down Royce Gracie in a losing effort at UFC 3, thus allowing Nebraska police officer Steve Jennum his 15 minutes of fame. Throughout his 12-year career, Kimo struggled with substance abuse. He tested positive for steroids several times, including after his last fight with Shamrock and prior to a scheduled bout against Bas Rutten at the World Fighting Alliance that never materialized. Kimo — who made an unsuccessful bid to become the executive director of the California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) — was also recently held by police for drug possession in Tustin, Calif., after authorities spotted the ex-fighter wearing a Long Beach Police Department jumpsuit complete with patches and a cloth badge. Leopoldo is expected to make a statement by tomorrow. |
| Mirko ‘Cro Cop’ Filipovic: Brock Lesnar has ‘yet to have a real struggle’ Posted: 21 Jul 2009 01:30 PM PDT
Props: Index.hr via MMA Fanhouse Quoteworthy:
Pride FC 2006 Open Weight Grand Prix winner Mirko Filipovic (25-6-2) talks about Brock Lesnar’s ability to win using strength and power rather than technique and skill. “Cro Cop” recently returned to Zuffa at UFC 99, performing unlicensed orogolomistician surgery on Mustapha Al-Turk en route to a TKO victory back on June 13. While the Croat is agog over Lesnar’s masterful mutilation, he does raise an interesting point in that the Champ has never really been tested by a striker who can utilize the tried-and-true method of leg kicks to chop down a larger opponent. I wonder if Filipovic had anyone in particular in mind? Maybe he does — though I’m sure Junior Dos Santos might have a thing or two to say about it first on September 19. What say you? |
| UFC 103: Eliot Marshall vs Jason Brilz on tap for Sept. 19 Posted: 21 Jul 2009 12:43 PM PDT
The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 8 semifinalist Eliot Marshall (7-1) and surging light heavyweight Jason Brilz (17-1-1) are set to collide on the undercard of UFC 103 from the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas, on September 19 according to Five Ounces of Pain. Marshall cut his teeth in the 'Ring of Fire' promotion before making his debut on the eighth season of TUF. He would eventually fall to division winner Ryan Bader in the semifinals, but bounced back at the TUF 8 Finale with a submission victory over castmate Jules Bruchez. “The Fire” made it two in a row under the Zuffa banner when he outpointed dangerous submission fighter Vinny Magalhaes at UFC 97: “Redemption” back on April 18. Brilz boasts a near perfect professional record and has won 12 straight contests, including his first two UFC appearances. He first stopped Brad Morris in the second round at last year’s Fight Night 15 before taking a unanimous decision win over Tim “The Barbarian” Boetsch at UFC 96 this past March. The Nebraska-based fighter –- who is a decorated amateur wrestler -– has notable wins over veterans such as Jason MacDonald, Alex Schoenauer and others. UFC 103 will feature a main event between Rich “Ace” Franklin locking horns with “Dangerous” Dan Henderson in a rematch from their UFC 93 main event back on January 17 that saw Hendo squeak out a split decision victory. Also slated for the main card is a heavyweight tilt between former PRIDE superstar Mirko Cro Cop and surging heavyweight prospect Junior Dos Santos. In addition, Martin Kampmann and Mike Swick will collide to determine the number one contender for Georges St. Pierre's 170-pound title. For the latest UFC 103 fight card click here. |
| UFC 100 gate does more than $5.1 million and 11,000 attendees Posted: 21 Jul 2009 11:24 AM PDT
A sell-out crowd of more than 11,000 fans attended UFC 100 from the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas on July 11, tallying a juicy $5,128,490 live gate for the promotion, according to provisional numbers released today by the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC). In addition to the live gate, the NSAC reports that 6,256 closed circuit tickets were sold for a grand total of $312,800. That means the historic centennial pay-per-view (PPV) ranks second all time behind UFC 66: "Liddell vs. Ortiz 2" in Dec. 2006 ($5.3 million) as the most successful show in the history of the organization. However, that figure does not include PPV buys, which are expected to well over one million, as well as merchandise sales and other event-related profits. And remember that tens of thousands of fans from around the world descended on "Sin City" for the first-ever two-day fan expo. In short, it was a very successful weekend for the UFC. But it did come at a price: The promotion dished out $1,790,000 in fighter salaries and another $400,000 in additional bonus money for the four participants who delivered outstanding performances. Production costs and employee salaries, too, more than likely cost a pretty penny. Inside the Octagon, Brock Lesnar unified the UFC heavyweight championship with a second round mutilation of Frank Mir in the UFC 100 main event. Current Welterweight Champion Georges St. Pierre solidified his place among the pound-for-pound best with a dominating five round victory over Thiago Alves in the co-featured fight of the night. And who could forget Dan Henderson’s knockout of the night (and perhaps century) when he iced Michael Bisping in the second round with a crushing overhand right. For complete UFC 100 results and blow-by-blow coverage of the main card action click here and here. |
| UFC ‘Fights of the Year’ for 2009 … so far Posted: 21 Jul 2009 09:13 AM PDT
Props: UFC.com Quoteworthy:
Honorable mention included Dan Henderson vs. Rich Franklin, Marcus Davis vs. Chris Lytle, Frankie Edgar vs. Sean Sherk, and Matt Hughes vs. Matt Serra, among others. Agree or disagree with the “highly unofficial” list from the promotion? Have other memorable fights in mind outside of the UFC that are even better than those mentioned above? Let’s hear what ya’ got. |
| MMA Quick Quote: Jesse Taylor wants the best Japan has to offer Posted: 21 Jul 2009 08:59 AM PDT
– Former contestant on Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 7, Jesse Taylor, talks about his most recent win over Korean Judoka Dong Sik-Yoon at DREAM 10 during the post-event press conference (transcript via FightOpinion.com). “JT Money” dominated the action from the get-go before it was halted because of an injury — Sik-Yoon appeared to suffer a serious leg/foot injury while defending a takedown. It was the seventh straight win for Taylor and his sixth in 2009 alone. He’s certainly been a busy man since losing to CB Dollaway via submission (Peruvian Necktie) at UFC Fight Night 14 back in July 2008. And he wants to keep the pedal to the medal, competing against top welterweights and middleweights under the DREAM umbrella. DREAM 2009 Welterweight Grand Prix winner Marius Zaromskis might be a good start. |
| Ultimate Fighter Kimbo Slice motivated to not get smashed in the UFC (Video) Posted: 21 Jul 2009 08:06 AM PDT |
Despite several early morning reports that ‘confirmed’ the death of MMA’s Kimo Leopoldo, MMAmania.com is happy to pass along the news that the former UFC competitor is alive and well — and likely a bit confused over all the recent attention.
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