UFC blog for latest news, videos, results, betting odds, fighter interviews and MMA rumors - UFCmania.com

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• UFC Quick Quote: Hell hath no fury like Dan Hardy on 'UFC Primetime'
• Georges St. Pierre's 48-inch vertical leap is not impressed with BJ Penn's pool jump
• UFC 115: Martin Kampmann vs Paulo Thiago under consideration for June 12
• Dan Hardy UFC 111 video blog (Day 1)
• WEC Quick Quote: Matchmaker Sean Shelby not big on championship rematches
• Calling all card sharks: Win cash by beating Dana White in the UFC Poker Room on March 11
• WEC 47 highlights and video recap for 'Bowles vs Cruz'
• Undefeated NABO Cruiserweight Champion BJ Flores agrees to multi-fight MMA contract with Shine Fights
• M-1 Director: Fedor Emelianenko (and Strikeforce relationship) healthy and ready to return
• George Roop vs Leonard Garcia 'Fight of the Night' from WEC 47 (Video)
• Renzo Gracie and Georges St. Pierre train together (Pic)
• UFC signs distribution deal with Asia's ASN HD Sports Channel

UFC Quick Quote: Hell hath no fury like Dan Hardy on 'UFC Primetime' Posted: 09 Mar 2010 04:11 PM PST "I know that I can give GSP hell when the times come. It’s so sweet stepping out into the Octagon on the other side saying, ‘I told you so.’ All these GSP fans that are betting the house on him, when they wake up Sunday morning ... they aren’t going to be too impressed with themselves." -- Tough talk from welterweight number one contender Dan Hardy, who gets his chance at the Canadian uber-champ at UFC 111 on March 27 in Newark. "The Outlaw" gets to further burrow himself under the skin of St. Pierre fans when he debuts on "UFC Primetime" this Wednesday, March 10 at 10 p.m. ET on Spike TV. Is the Brit simply making the most of his time in the spotlight? Or is he genuinely confident in his ability to dethrone one of the greatest fighters in the game today?

Georges St. Pierre's 48-inch vertical leap is not impressed with BJ Penn's pool jump Posted: 09 Mar 2010 02:28 PM PST Georges St. Pierre's 48-inch vertical leap is not impressed with BJ Penn's pool jump

UFC 115: Martin Kampmann vs Paulo Thiago under consideration for June 12 Posted: 09 Mar 2010 12:23 PM PST There's an intriguing welterweight match-up brewing between 170-pound standouts Martin Kampmann and Paulo Thiago as the Las Vegas Sun reports the two have verbally agreed to a showdown at UFC 115 on June 12 from Vancouver. Kampmann appears to be on the mend after withdrawing from his UFC 111 fight against Ben Saunders to heal a grisly eyelid gash he suffered in training. "The Hitman" emptied his clip into Jacob Volkmann when "Christmas" rang in the New Year for the injured Rory Markham at the UFC 108: "Evans vs. Silva" event earlier this year. It was a much needed win for the Dane, who saw his title aspirations evaporate at the hands of Paul "Semtex" Daley back at UFC 103: "Franklin vs. Belfort" in September 2009. No question he'll be looking to inch his way back into contention by arresting the rise of the Brazilian supercop. Thiago has made a habit out of spoiling the progress of top welterweights from the American Kickboxing Academy, including his debut win over Josh Koscheck at UFC 95 back in 2009. Aside from Jobn Fitch, who outworked him en route to a unanimous decision win at UFC 100, Thiago made "Quick" work of Mike Swick at February's UFC 109 event to cement himself as the real deal and not just a flash in the pan. He'll need to be careful with Kampmann, who has skills both on his feet and on the ground -- but more importantly may be fighting to stay relevant in the 170-pound division after the loss to "Semtex." UFC 115 is expected to feature the third (and hopefully final ) dance between former light heavyweight champions Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz, fresh off their coaching gigs at The Ultimate Fighter 11. Mirko Cro Cop and Pat Barry are also expected to hook 'em up. Stay tuned to MMAmania.com for future updates on this still-developing fight card.

Dan Hardy UFC 111 video blog (Day 1) Posted: 09 Mar 2010 11:37 AM PST

WEC Quick Quote: Matchmaker Sean Shelby not big on championship rematches Posted: 09 Mar 2010 11:36 AM PST "[Benavidez] can get a title shot now. I think there's a great argument for him to get one. When Dominick Cruz comes back will factor in immensely. I think Benavidez recognized that since his loss to Cruz and the last two times out he's really making a case. The problem with that is, and I'm not a big rematch guy especially on the championship level, if a guy is going to rematch a guy you as the public and me as the matchmaker have to believe there might be a different outcome. Their games might have evolved. They might have completely different attitudes and that's what I have to believe before I'm going to give someone a rematch. If I went down the list, Torres is still in the mix, but you do have Benavidez, Valencia, Banuelos and Page and Gomez and Wineland and even Wagnney Fabiano is out there along with Scott Jorgensen and Pickett. Long story short, either way, whether Cruz is coming right back I don't think I'll have a problem and I don't think the public will complain who he's fighting next." -- WEC matchmaker Sean Shelby tells Sherdog.com that Joseph Benavidez has made a strong case for a title shot after disposing of former bantamweight champion Miguel Torres at WEC 47 back on March 6. Benavidez is now 12-1 with his lone defeat coming at the hands of newly-crowned 135-pound champion Dominick Cruz at WEC 42 last August. Shelby needs to be convinced there would be a different outcome if the two squared off again before booking the fight. Anyone out there in MMA land who can argue for a fighter more deserving of the first crack at Cruz?

Calling all card sharks: Win cash by beating Dana White in the UFC Poker Room on March 11 Posted: 09 Mar 2010 11:16 AM PST Think you've got what it takes to send UFC President Dana White up the river before the turn? Well, now you can prove it when the Zuffa Chief mixes it up in the UFC Poker Room this Thursday, March 11 at 10 p.m. ET. It's free to play and the tournament winner will receive a $500 dollar payout -- and the lucky card shark who bounces White from the room will get a $300 reward for their efforts.  Placing in the top ten nets you a $25 payday. Click here for more information on how to sign up and rules of the tournament.

WEC 47 highlights and video recap for 'Bowles vs Cruz' Posted: 09 Mar 2010 09:47 AM PST

Undefeated NABO Cruiserweight Champion BJ Flores agrees to multi-fight MMA contract with Shine Fights Posted: 09 Mar 2010 09:22 AM PST Consider the floodgates opened. Current undefeated NABO Cruiserweight Champion B.J. Flores is planning on becoming the next world class boxer to make the transition to mixed martial arts. After fielding interest from several major promotions, the 31-year-old San Francisco native has agreed in principle to a non-exclusive, multi-fight contract with Shine Fights. MMAmania.com (www.mmamania.com) confirmed the pending deal with sources close to the negotiations earlier today. Unlike the recent high profile signings of James Toney and Ricardo Mayorga, Flores will be a champion switching sports while still in his prime. Flores is currently in London, England, where he's serving as a sparring partner for John Ruiz while he prepares for his upcoming WBA championship fight against current titleholder David Haye on April 3. "El Peligroso" is scheduled to return to the United States immediately afterward and join a fight camp that has yet to be selected at this time. This would position him to compete in his first professional MMA fight in early summer, possibly in June or July. For those unfamiliar with Flores he has accumulated a professional boxing record of 24-0-1 since he turned pro in 2003 with 15 knockouts. He is also a former National Golden Gloves light heavyweight champion and National Amateur heavyweight champion. You may also recognize him from ESPN2's Friday Night Fights where he can be seen as a frequent guest analyst. The 6'2" Flores currently competes in the cruiserweight (or junior heavyweight) division, which has a limit of 200 pounds, and should transition nicely into either the middleweight or light heavyweight division in MMA. Stay tuned to MMAmania.com for further details regarding his upcoming debut.

M-1 Director: Fedor Emelianenko (and Strikeforce relationship) healthy and ready to return Posted: 09 Mar 2010 06:59 AM PST Props: Sherdog.com Quoteworthy: "I think June, July is realistic (for Emelianenko's return). It's not 100 percent. Don't take this as a fight announcement, but I think during the summer. After the CBS show, we thought that the (Strikeforce) terms needed a little bit tweaking -- nothing major, just a little bit of tweaking. So, we had a round of negotiations with Strikeforce. Everything went positively. We're pretty much at the end. For us, it's really important that the M-1 Global brand is acknowledged on these co-promotion events. As much as the partners made a lot of effort to acknowledge the co-branding, the media basically picked up on the fact that it was Strikeforce and kind of forgot about everything else, which wasn't the most ideal for us." Evgeni Kogan, M-1 Global's Director of Operations, dismisses reports that promotion star Fedor Emelianenko is out of action due to internal conflict or a chronic hand injury. Instead, Kogan reveals that the co-promotion agreement between his company and Strikeforce needed a bit of "tweaking," that perhaps the existence of M-1 was being overshadowed by the glitz and glamor of the Strikeforce presence on CBS. Now with both sides crossing their T's and dotting their I's, "The Last Emperor" could return by July 2010 to answer the call of Fabricio Werdum. Any Maniacs out there confident in this timetable? Or is this a classic case of "I'll believe it when I see it?"

George Roop vs Leonard Garcia 'Fight of the Night' from WEC 47 (Video) Posted: 09 Mar 2010 06:56 AM PST Part two after the jump. For WEC 47 results and recap click here and here.

Renzo Gracie and Georges St. Pierre train together (Pic) Posted: 09 Mar 2010 06:14 AM PST UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St. Pierre recently visited Manhattan to sharpen his jiu-jitsu skills with Renzo Gracie for his upcoming title defense against British contender Dan Hardy at UFC 111 on March 27. Renzo, meanwhile, has been training to return to the fight business at UFC 112 that takes place in Abu Dhabi against veteran Matt Hughes. “Look, I’d heard about Renzo’s guillotine, but I’d never felt it. It’s amazing” commented St. Pierre after one-round practice with the Gracie icon. To check the pictures from training session in which Gunnar Nelson, David Branch and coach Firas Zahabi also took part in click here. Is jiu-jitsu the pathway for both fighters to win their respective challenges?

UFC signs distribution deal with Asia's ASN HD Sports Channel Posted: 09 Mar 2010 06:12 AM PST Las Vegas, NV (USA) - UFC® today announced it has reached a long-term agreement with ASN, the first 24-hour HD sports channel in Asia to distribute UFC programs in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Malaysia, Macau, Indonesia, Brunei, Singapore, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Thailand. ASN will officially launch UFC programming on April 10 with UFC 112: SILVA vs. MAIA, a live event taking place in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates and featuring two world title fights. In addition to broadcasting live UFC events, ASN will also feature UFC® Unleashed, a compilation highlight show featuring some of the best fight action in UFC history as well as select seasons of The Ultimate Fighter® reality television series. Thomas Kressner, CEO of ASN, said, "ASN is thrilled to deliver UFC, the world's fastest-growing sports organization to audiences in Asia and with HD production quality, our viewers will not miss a single striking detail." "We are excited to sign a deal with ASN and to distribute UFC on this HD sports channel," said Dana White, UFC President. "Asia is a huge market for us, it has a deep-rooted history and appreciation for the martial arts. We are thrilled to be working with ASN and to deliver the UFC to all of our fans in Asia." Launched in 2009, ASN broadcasts exclusive, thrilling action from some of America's biggest sports leagues including the National Football League (NFL), National Hockey League (NHL), NCAA college championship basketball and football and NASCAR. Other programs include Formula Drift and extreme sports. With about 20 live games or events per week, ASN brings to Asian audiences more American sports action than ever before.

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