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- UFC announces official collaboration with Affliction; plans July 31 press conference
- Bas Rutten becomes latest fighter to choke out hapless media mark (Video)
- Dana White: Tito Ortiz next fight in the UFC a ‘possibility’
- Report: Affliction MMA folds, will now be allowed to sponsor UFC and its fighters
- UFC Quick Quote: Dana White spurns offer from Affliction to acquire fighter contracts
- Affliction cancels Aug. 1 ‘Trilogy’ event
- UFC 107: Frank Mir in talks to face Cheick Kongo on Dec. 12
- Now Playing: UFC Radiothon in the fight against cancer
- Miguel Torres: ‘Floyd Mayweather is a cocky A-hole and I will smash his ass’
- Report: Joe Riggs hospitalized, won’t rematch Nick Diaz on Aug. 15 for Strikeforce
| UFC announces official collaboration with Affliction; plans July 31 press conference Posted: 25 Jul 2009 12:34 AM PDT
Who says you can’t go home again? Affliction MMA reportedly burned plenty of money after becoming fight promoters a little over year ago — though it looks as if they haven’t burned any bridges. If they have, the UFC got those puppies rebuilt in a matter of hours. Affliction Entertainment and The Ultimate Fighting Championship announced yesterday (July 24) an official collaboration that would bring the popular clothing line back into the world’s biggest MMA promotion, effectively removing the ban implemented after “The T-shirt Guys” threw their hat into the MMA ring. From UFC President Dana White:
The two sides had been reportedly trying to mend their fences for quite some time, but couldn’t seem to agree on acceptable terms for a reunification of brands. Fortunately for them, Josh Barnett was able to “inject” new life into those negotiations. Barnett became the Seth Petruzelli of Affliction by helping to destroy a financially crippled organization in one swift move. Instead of knocking out the company poster boy, he knocked himself right out of an upcoming event by failing a random, pre-fight drug test intended to nab users of banned substances before they can cycle off. By testing positive, “The Babyface Assassin” was denied a license to compete, forcing company officials to scramble for a replacement to headline opposite Fedor Emelianenko at the “Trilogy” event planned for August 1 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Atop of a short list of candidates to fill in was current middleweight contender Vitor Belfort, who was scheduled to face Jorge Santiago that same night, but who also stated he was willing to move up in weight to fight "The Last Emperor." Dark horse Brett Rogers, fresh off a stunning first round knockout of former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski, as well as freelance fighter Jeff Monson were also under consideration. In the end, Atencio & Co. opted to cancel the event altogether, cut their losses and go back to the proven formula of sponsoring fighters and promoting their clothing line at UFC events. From Eric Foss, co-founder of Affliction:
To help make heads or tails of this incredible turn of events, the UFC has tentatively scheduled a press conference on July 31 to cover the new Affliction deal, among other things. As of today, Tito Ortiz, Affliction Clothing and Kimbo Slice are all property of the UFC, which if I’m not mistaken is three of the seven signs of the apocalypse — four if you include a certain WWE wrestler who went on to become heavyweight champ. Anyone taking a guess as to what 2010 might bring? |
| Bas Rutten becomes latest fighter to choke out hapless media mark (Video) Posted: 24 Jul 2009 11:22 PM PDT |
| Dana White: Tito Ortiz next fight in the UFC a ‘possibility’ Posted: 24 Jul 2009 07:08 PM PDT
Dana White may not be out of the Tito Ortiz business after all. While nothing is official at this time, and despite a “welcome back Tito” message on White’s Twitter account earlier this afternoon, “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” could “possibly” return to the Octagon sometime soon. White clarified the situation, sort of, on ESPN 1100’s Radiothon just a few minutes ago. Here’s a snip:
White and Ortiz began to mend fences at the fan expo on UFC 100 weekend, which was another surprising twist in their tumultuous relationship. It appears now that both parties may have put their prides aside to once again make money together. Lots of it. Ortiz — one of the most recognizable and controversial faces in the sport — has been a part of several of the top-grossing pay-per-view (PPV) events ever for the promotion. All but one of his 22 professional fights have come under the UFC banner in a career that dates back to 1997. He has three wins, two defeats and one draw since he returned to action in 2006 from a brief hiatus. And those three victories have come at the expense of a past-his-prime, Ken Shamrock (twice), and a controversial split decision over Forrest Griffin. His last fight was a unanimous decision loss to current 205-pound light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida at UFC 84: “Ill Will” back in May 2008. Ortiz has blamed nagging back injuries, which he recently underwent major spinal fusion surgery to correct, as the reason for his most recent lackluster performances. |
| Report: Affliction MMA folds, will now be allowed to sponsor UFC and its fighters Posted: 24 Jul 2009 03:32 PM PDT
Affliction has apparently tapped out of the mixed martial arts promotion business almost one year to the day it held its first event on July 19, 2008. Yahoo!Sports today issued a report that Affliction MMA will cease to exist, coming to terms with Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) under an agreement that will allow the clothing brand to once again sponsor the world’s top promotion and the fighters under its umbrella. Affliction was “banned” from doing so when it decided to begin promoting events last year. The cancelation of Affliction: “Trilogy,” which was expected to take place for the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif., on Aug. 1., was the genesis for this stunning turn of events. Affliction indicated that an inability to find a worthy replacement for Josh Barnett — who tested positive for anabolic steroids and was denied a license to compete — led to its decision to scrap the show. Barnett was supposed to challenge Fedor Emelianenko in the main event of the evening. What a difference a needle makes. Affliction and UFC are expected to release a joint statement later on today. Stay tuned to MMAmania.com for more on this breaking news as it develops. |
| UFC Quick Quote: Dana White spurns offer from Affliction to acquire fighter contracts Posted: 24 Jul 2009 01:59 PM PDT
– UFC President Dana White tells Yahoo!Sports.com that an Affliction attorney “flew to Las Vegas only days after UFC 100 and offered to fold and turn its contracts over to the UFC if the UFC would remove its ban on its fighters wearing Affliction T-shirts.” White, allegedly, told him he wasn’t interested (in his own unique way its seems) — perhaps because Affliction contracts are non-exclusive and/or they would be difficult to transfer similar to the Pride FC debacle. If the statement is accurate then it would clearly indicate that Affliction is no longer interested in promoting mixed martial arts events long-term. However, it contradicts a statement today about the cancelation of its most recent event on Aug. 1, in which Affliction said that its “first priority is to ensure that all future events live up to the company's high standards.” On another note, the Yahoo!Sports report indicates “several sources” revealed that the promotion turned to “Plan B” and is currently in the process of merging with Strikeforce. Officials from Affliction and Strikeforce could not be reached for comment on the possibility. Lot’s of mixed messages out there right now. Only time will really tell the true tale. In the meantime, interested in telling us what you think is the best possible outcome for the fighters and the fans? |
| Affliction cancels Aug. 1 ‘Trilogy’ event Posted: 24 Jul 2009 10:31 AM PDT
Affliction has canceled its upcoming “Trilogy” event, which was planned for the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif., on Aug. 1. The promotion today announced the bad news in an official statement. It comes just days after Affliction suffered a major blow to its pay-per-view main event when headliner Josh Barnett tested positive for anabolic steroids in the first ever random drug test administered by the California State Athletic Commission on June 25. As a result, Barnett was denied a license to compete, forcing company officials to scramble for a replacement opponent opposite Fedor Emelianenko. Speculation had revolved around who that replacement fighter would be. At the top of a short list of candidates was current middleweight contender Vitor Belfort, who was scheduled to face Jorge Santiago that same night, but who also stated he was willing to move up in weight to fight “The Last Emperor.” Dark horse Brett Rogers, fresh off a stunning first round knockout of former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski, as well as freelance fighter Jeff Monson were also under consideration. Now it appears their services will no longer be needed, as Atencio didn’t want to commit to a replacement bout without sufficient time to promote it. Here’s a snip:
What impact this cancellation has on the future of Affliction MMA remains to be seen — but as of now it’s not looking very promising. Stay tuned to MMAmania.com for more breaking news on this unfortunate turn of events. |
| UFC 107: Frank Mir in talks to face Cheick Kongo on Dec. 12 Posted: 24 Jul 2009 09:59 AM PDT
Eager to rebound from their recent losses, UFC heavyweights Frank Mir and Cheick Kongo are in talks to collide at UFC 107, tentatively scheduled for the FedEx Forum in Memphis, Tennessee on December 12. While bout agreements have not been distributed, MMAmania.com has been able to confirm an earlier report by Sportsnet.ca that both sides have expressed interest in the potential showdown. Mir is coming off a smothering and painful loss Brock Lesnar at UFC 100 on July 11 in the final round of the mini heavyweight tournament set up to declare an undisputed division champion. Prior to that, Mir did what no man before him ever had, finishing the legendary Antonio Nogueira for the first time in his prestigious career with crisp stand up and not his bread and butter, the submission game. Whether or not Mir keeps it standing against Kongo — who has been susceptible to the takedown — remains to be seen. Like Mir, Kongo was on the wrong end of wrestler’s bludgeoning when he got planished by Cain Velasquez at UFC 99 this past June. While the Parisian manged to drop the up-and-coming prospect with his heavy hands, Velasquez survived and utilized his ground and pound to grind out the lopsided decision. Kongo went into UFC 99 winning five of six after dismantling Antoni Hardonk at UFC 97: "Redemption" back in April, stopping the Dutch kickboxer in the second round via technical knockout — the first TKO loss in Hardonk's career. A win over the crafty Mir would certainly get people talking about his place in this division. UFC 107 is expected to be headlined by “Sugar” Rashad Evans vs. Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, bitter rivals and opposing coaches on the tenth season of The Ultimate Fighter. Stay tuned for more updates on this developing fight card. |
| Now Playing: UFC Radiothon in the fight against cancer Posted: 24 Jul 2009 09:57 AM PDT
The UFC has teamed up with ESPN Radio 1100 in Las Vegas for a 24-hour radio show featuring a slew of UFC superstars and other sports personalities to benefit the The Caring Place of Nevada. Now underway, the program features guests such as Chuck Liddell, Randy Couture, Forrest Griffin, Matt Serra, Mike Swick and Rashad Evans. Also during the broadcast, UFC president Dana White will be honored as the 2009 Nevada Sportsman of the Year. Here is the schedule along with a complete guest list:
For more information click here. |
| Miguel Torres: ‘Floyd Mayweather is a cocky A-hole and I will smash his ass’ Posted: 24 Jul 2009 08:55 AM PDT
Props: Yahoo Sports Quoteworthy:
Fresh off his cobra venom and lions blood performance at last night’s White Sox game, WEC Bantamweight Champion Miguel Torres responds to boxing big-mouth Floyd Mayweather who recently slammed mixed martial arts as a sport for beer drinkers and white people. The non-Anglo Torres takes exception to the Mayweather generalization and promises to show “Pretty Boy” an eight-sided beatdown should he ever be man enough to find his way to the cage. Torres (37-1), who is widely considered the best bantamweight in the world, will next fight Brian Bowles (7-0) and defend his title once again in the WEC 42 main event on August 9 while Mayweather will go head-to-head with Juan Manuel Marquez inside the ring and UFC 103 outside of it on Sept. 19. |
| Report: Joe Riggs hospitalized, won’t rematch Nick Diaz on Aug. 15 for Strikeforce Posted: 24 Jul 2009 05:56 AM PDT
Another one bites the dust. Joe Riggs has been forced out of his upcoming rematch against Nick Diaz for the first-ever Strikeforce welterweight title at "Carano vs. Cyborg" from the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif., on Aug. 15. GracieFighter.com reports that "Diesel" suffered "a bad reaction to an as of yet undisclosed drug" and "will be recovering in the hospital for the next couple of weeks." The good news is that Diaz plans to still compete on the card; however, no possible replacement is known at this time. Of course, Riggs joins Alistair Overeem on the recently-scratched list for the promotion’s upcoming event, which originally featured four championship bouts. More on this story in a bit. Stay glued to MMAmania.com for the latest and greatest on this breaking news. |
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