Affliction - King Fedor Rules Supreme

With one devastating punch to the face, Fedor Emelianenko knocked Andrei Arlovski into another stratosphere. He also knocked out anyone who thinks Fedor does not deserve the status as the worlds top heavyweight fighter.

Arlovski was on a hot streak coming into the bout, defeating Roy Nelson, Ben Rothwell, Jake O'Brien, Fabricio Werdum and Marcio Cruz. But Arlovski's fate would be different against the legend of Fedor.

Through first three minutes, Arlovski and Fedor traded punches. Arlovski used his height and reach advantage to create distance. Fedor fed Arlovski a steady diet of overhand rights but Arlovski seemed to be a hair faster with his straight punches. Even Tito's praise of Arlovski could help him against the unstoppable Fedor.

In a flury, Fedor was knocked to the corner with an Arlovski push kick that would seem to have stunned a normal fighter. But the ever calm Fedor slowed down the game as Arlovski turned on his jets. Andrei sprang forward with a flying knee, but waiting for him was a Fedor right hand that landed right on the button. Another one bites the dust.


As the power punch met its target on Arlovski's jaw, the 6'4" heavyweight came crashing to the canvas. Fedor calmly walked away, his hand raised. Three minutes and fourteen seconds had passed and another former UFC heavyweight champ fell victim to the top HW in the world. Fedor needed just 3:14 to take out another challenger.

The next challenge for Fedor will likely be top 4 HW Josh Barnett. Barnett defeated Gilbert Yvel at 3:05 of the third round due strikes. Josh has kept a fairly busy schedule despite Affliction's light schedule fighting twice in Japan for the Sengoku in 2008.

In other action, Vitor Belfort unleashed a fury on Matt Lindland knocking him senseless at with a left hand punch to Lindland's chin. Belfort followed up with a couple punches, but they weren't needed. Vitor notched his 4 win in a row, utilizing his hand to knock out a world class wrestler.

In the second round, Babalu Sobral was able to choke out Sokoudjou with an anaconda choke. Sobral tried and tried to bring the fight to the ground, and once his finished a double leg, Sokoudjou was cooked.

Paul Buentello def Kiril Sidelnikov via TKO (doctor's stoppage), R3- 4:18- Buentello simply outclassed baby Fedor in this heavyweight tilt. Buentello measured his opponent and found his jab enroute to opening up a cut on the Russian. From there, the fight was stopped in the third round.

Antonio Rogerio Nogueira def Vladimir Matyushenko via KO (Knee), R2- 4:26- For some reason, Vladdy Matyushenko didn't attempt a takedown in this fight and he sure paid for it. Vladdy lost in brutal fashion being rocked by knees and punches before finally crumpling to the mat.

Brett Cooper def Patrick Speight via TKO (Punches), R2- 4:10- Brett Cooper and his Clay Guida style caveman locks used superior boxing and cardio to put out Patrick Speight.

Albert Rios def Antonio Duarte via Decision (Unanimous)
L.C. Davis def Bao Quach via Decision (Unanimous)
Dan Lauzon def Bobby Green via Sub (Rear-Naked Choke), R1- 4:55
Jay Hieron def. Jason High via KO (punches) -- Round 1, 1:04.

WEC 38 Results

Charlie Valencia def Seth Dikun via Decision (Unanimous)
Jesse Lennox def Blas Avena via KO (Knee and Punches) R2, 0:41
Scott Jorgensen def Frank Gomez via Sub (Guillotine Choke) R1, 1:09
Dominic Cruz def Ian McCall via Decision (Unanimous)
Edgar Garcia def Hiromitsu Miura via KO (Punches) R1, 1:18
Benson Henderson def Anthony Njokuani via Sub (Guillotine) R2, 0:42
Jose Aldo def Rolando Perez via KO (Knee and Punches) R1, 4:15
Danillo Villefort def Mike Campbell via TKO (Punches) R1, 3:53
Urijah Faber def Jens Pulver via Sub (Guillotine Choke) R1, 1:34
Jamie Varner def Donald Cerrone via Technical Decision (Split) R5

Fight of the Night: Jamie Varner vs. Donald Cerrone
Knockout of the Night: Jose Aldo
Submission of the Night: Urijah Faber

West Coast Submission Grappling Tourney

Video of the Day - Sakurai v. Gilbert

Here is Hayato "Mach" Sakurai v. Dan Gilbert from Shooto, To the Top Final Act. It took place on 12/16/01.

UFC 93 Results

UFC 93 took place in Dublin, Ireland this past Saturday. Unfortunately for fans, we got a very lackluster main event and co-main event. Dan Henderson edged out a pretty uneventful split decision victory that could have ended in a draw. With the victory, which featured a few takedowns and an accidental eye poke, Henderson is now the likely coach for TUF 9: England v. USA.

(Dan Henderson pictured)

Shogun Rua managed to finish Mark Coleman at the very end of the third frame. Unfortunately, both fighters were relatively gassed the entire fight. Palhares versus Horn turned out to be a good fight, but it also went to decision. The saving grace was Lytle v. Davis which featured a stand-up war.

The undercard was probably more exciting as it featured 5 TKO victories. Martin Kampmann was successful in his debut at 170 pounds. He should be a force to be reckoned with possessing solid stand-up and striking skills.

Dan Henderson def Rich Franklin via split decision
Mauricio "Shogun" Rua def Mark Coleman via TKO (strikes) R3, 4:36
Rousimar Palhares def Jeremy Horn via unanimous decision
Alan Belcher def Denis Kang via sub (guillotine choke) R2, 4:36
Marcus Davis def Chris Lytle via split decision
John Hathway def Tom Egan via TKO (strikes) R1, 4:36
Martin Kampmann def Alexandre Barros via TKO (strikes) R2, 3:09
Eric Schafer def Antonio Mendes via TKO (punches) R1, 3:35
Thomasz Drwal def Ivan Serati via TKO (punches) R1, 2:02
Dennis Siver def Nate Mohr via TKO (strikes) R3, 3:47

Ultimate Fight Night 17 Preview

UFN 17 takes place this Saturday night from the University of South Florida. The event will be shown for free on Spike TV. It features a main event of Joe Lauzon v. Jeremy Stephens. Below is a video of Joe Lauzon v. Antoine Skinner from Combat Zone 12 in November of 2005.



MAIN CARD

Joe Lauzon vs. Jeremy Stephens
Denis Stojnic vs. Cain Velasquez
Mac Danzig vs. Josh Neer
Luigi Fioravanti vs. Anthony Johnson

UNDERCARD

Rob Emerson vs. Kurt Pellegrino
Dan Miller vs. Jake Rosholt
Matt Grice vs. Matt Veach
Rich Clementi vs. Gleison Tibau
Nick Catone vs. Derek Downey
Steve Bruno vs. Matthew Riddle

UFC 94 Preview

UFC 94 kicks off this Saturday, January 31st at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. The BJ Penn v. GSP fight is being hyped up as the Superbowl of MMA. We will see how the card plays out, hopefully Machida is feeling peppy. All fighters made weight, with former heavyweights Christian Wellish and Jake O'Brien debuting at 205 pounds.

MAIN CARD

Georges St. Pierre vs. B.J. Penn- This fight is being hyped as the fight of the year. The undisputed king of the 170 pound class versus the king of the 155 pound class. In addition, this is a rematch of a match from UFC 58 where BJ lost a close split decision. I would expect to see GSP go for the takedown early and often. The question in this fight may come down to whether or not BJ can get a submission off his back.

Since a crazy upset loss to Matt Serra, Georges St. Pierre has been on quite a streak. He has outwrestled Josh Koscheck, armbarred Matt Hughes and punished Matt Serra and Jon Fitch since that loss. Georges is an incredible athlete, with suberb striking, cardio and wrestling ability. Georges also holds wins over Jay Hieron, Sean Sherk, Mayhem Miller and Frank Trigg.

(Georges St. Pierre pictured)

Since a disappointing loss to Matt Hughes at UFC 63, BJ Penn reinvented himself at 155, dominating his competition. He won over Jens Pulver following TUF 5, then crushed Joe Stevenson for the interim 155 pound title. He then went on to outstrike and eventually TKO Sean Sherk to unify the 155 pound title. BJ will be looking to strike with GSP and possibly go for a submission. If BJ has one clear advantage, it would be in the submission game. BJ also has wins over Duane Ludwig, Takanori Gomi, and Caol Uno.

(BJ Penn pictured)

Lyoto Machida vs. Thiago Silva- Someone's undefeated status will be loss against in this battle for the number one contender spot at 205 pounds. Machida is a karate and BJJ black-belt who utilizes a countering style that frustrates many opponents. Silva, who owns a great ground game rarely uses it. Silva instead uses his heavy hand to knock his opponents out.

I expect this fight to remain standing, with Machida waiting to capitalize on a Silva mistake. Machida is 13-0 with victories over Rich Franklin, Stephan Bonnar and BJ Penn outside the UFC. He holds wins over Sokoudjou, Tito Ortiz, Kazuhiro Nakamura, David Heath and Sam Hoger inside the UFC.

(Lyoto Machida pictured)

Thiago Silva (13-0) has ten knockouts and two submission wins in his career. He has beaten Antonio Mendes, Houston Alexander, Tomasz Drwal and James Irvin in the UFC. I expect Silva to try to get in close on Machida to throw punches in the clinch.

Stephan Bonnar vs. Jon Jones
Karo Parisyan vs. Dong Hyun Kim
Nate Diaz vs. Clay Guida

UNDER CARD

Jon Fitch vs. Akihiro Gono
Manny Gamburyan vs. Thiago Tavares
John Howard vs. Chris Wilson
Jake O'Brien vs. Christian Wellisch
Matt Arroyo vs. Dan Cramer

MMA Blaster 2008 Awards

2008 was an awesome year for mixed martial arts. With the year wrapped, I've got some awards to hand out. They choices were difficult, so if you have any some comments feel free to leave them.

Fighter of the Year (UFC)- Anderson Silva- Anderson remained dominant in 2008 as he defended the MW belt with wins over Dan Henderson and Patrick Cote. He also defeated James Irvin in a match at 205 pounds for three wins in the UFC for 2008. As usual, Anderson did not let any match go to the judges hands. He won over Henderson via rear naked choke, Irvin via nasty KO, and Cote after he injured his knee. It was also nice to see him appear on The Ultimate Fighter Season 8.

(Anderson Silva pictured)

*Runner-up- Rashad Evans- won twice over top ten opponents, defeating Chuck Liddell via first round KO to get the number one contender spot and then Forrest Griffin via TKO for the LHW belt.
*Runner-up- BJ Penn- won twice over top ten opponents, defeating Joe Stevenson for the LW belt via rear naked choke then Sean Sherk in a great fight where BJ finsihed sending Sherk to the fence and finishing him with knees and punches.
*Runner-up- Georges St. Pierre- won twice in convincing fashion beating Matt Serra to unify the WW belts via 2nd round TKO and defending the belt against Jon Fitch in an epic 5 round decision.

Fighter of the Year Outside UFC- Gegard Mousasi- Mousasi had a busy 2008, winning the Dream middleweight tournament with wins over dangerous striker Melvin Manhoef, world class grappler Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza, elite judoka Dong Sik Yoon, and Pride and K-1 vet Denis Kang. Outside Dream, Mousasi claimed victories over Steve Mensing and the gritty veteran Cyborg Santos. With 6 mma wins, Mousasi also won a K-1 rules match over Musashi via first round TKO. Mousasi's 6-0 mma record (3 KO/TKO's, 2 subs and 1 dec) and 1-0 K-1 record for 2008 make him an easy choice for this honor.

(Gegard Mousasi pictured)

Fight of the Year- Cung Le v. Frank Shamrock, Strikeforce, March 29, 2008- The fight was three rounds of non-stop action. Frank kept to his word and preferred to stay on his feet. He attempted a takedown only one time, with the announcers eluding to a possible ACL injury. While standing, Cung got the most of Frank with his assortment of kicks, punches, spinning backfists, and a couple leg catches. The leg catches were very impressive, as Cung caught the leg of a Shamrock high kic and blasted Shamrock's grounded ankle with a sweep kick (reminiscent of San Shou).

Frank was able to land a couple kicks on Cung and was able to close the distance in the third round. When in close, Frank did some damage with punches. However, it was only temporary as Cung was able to break away. Cung's kicks proved too much for Frank in the end as he broke his ulna(forearm) while defending high kicks, not answering the bell in the third. This fight is an absolute must see.

(Cung Le kick of Frank Shamrock pictured)

Runners Up- Joachim Hansen v. Eddie Alvarez, Urijah Faber vs. Jens Pulver, Forrest Griffin vs Rampage Jackson, Jon Fitch v. Georges St. Pierre, BJ Penn v. Sean Sherk, too many to list.

Submission of the year- Three way tie- Shinya Aoki's mounted gogoplata over Katsuhiko Nagata, Demian Maia's mounted triangle over Ed Herman, and Dustin Hazelett's arm bar over Josh Burkman. All are works of art and should be viewed over and over again. Fight fans will see all three of these guys getting more awesome submissions in 2009.

Runners Up- Marcus Aurelio's armbar over Ryan Roberts, Mitsuhiro Ishida's armbar over Justin Wilcox, C.B. Dollaway's Peruvian Necktie over Jesse Taylor, and Frank Mir's kneebar victory over Brock Lesnar.

KO of the year punch(2-way tie)- Rampage Jackson KO of Wanderlei Silva and Rashad Evans KO of Chuck Liddell. Rampage had lost twice to Wanderlei before this fight via big knockouts. In the first round, Rampage ducked Silva’s blow and unleashed a left hook that crushed Silva directly on the chin, leaving him unconscious.

Rashad Evans was able to get the number one contender status after blasting Liddell into the next hemisphere. Rashad placed a devastating right hand to Liddell's chin while Liddell was throwing an ill advised uppercut.

Runners Up- Jeremy Stephens come from behind uppercut KO of Rapheal Dos Anjos, Wanderlei Silva mauling of Keith Jardine, and Josh Koscheck over Yoshiyuki Yoshida.

KO of the year kick- Rory Markum's high kick KO of Brodie Farber. Rory was losing the fight after being tagged several times by Farber. While backing up, Rory threw the high kick with his shin striking Farber's neck. Farber was out cold.

Runners Up- Anthony Johnson's third round high kick KO of Kevin Burns for revenge from a previous eye poke and Gegard Mousasi's upkick KO of Jacare to win the Dream MW tourney championship.

Top Up and Coming Fighter- Dave "Pee Wee" Herman (13-0). The undefeated heavyweight prospect Herman scored four victories in 2008, including three for the now defunct Elite XC organization. Herman TKO'd Kerry Schall, Ron Waterman, Mario Rinaldi and Chris Guillen. Only Rinaldi was able to get out of the first round. The 6'5" Herman is very athletic and can throw a variety of punches and kicks while possessing a wrestling background from the University of Indiana.

Video of the Day - Pulver v. Liang

I believe this video is from the S-Cup of Shootboxing. Shootboxing is full contact kickboxing with standing submissions I believe. Nevertheless, these two are thowing some serious punches and kicks in this fight. Pulver takes on Urijah Faber again at WEC 38.

Video of the Day - Hieron v. Miller

This Saturday, Jay Hieron will fight Jason High in Affliction's second event. Hieron was the IFL 170 pound Grand Prix winner and this is his first title defense so to speak. Unfortunatley the IFL clung to his contract as they dissolved and Hieron was only able to fight twice in 2008. Hieron combines wrestling and boxing into his fighting style.

This fight is from IFL New Jersey which took place on April 4, 2008.

Video of the Day - GSP v. Penn

UFC 94 will feature a main event of WW Champ Georges St. Pierre v. LW Champ BJ Penn. The two fought previously at UFC 58 and St. Pierre won a razor thin split decision. The fight could easily have gone the other way.

Here is GSP's second pro fight against Justin Bruckman from UCC 10. At the time GSP was 1-0 and Bruckman 4-1. GSP's athletic gifts were already known despite this being his second fight.

St. Pierre v. Bruckman


Here is BJ Penn v. Duane Ludwig in K-1 MMA Romanex. At the time Ludwig was 10-2 and Penn was 7-1. Ludwig recently won over Yves Edwards via decision.

Crazy Krazy Horse Video

Here is a backstage altercation between Krazy Horse and Christian Marcello. Apparently Krazy Horse shared a locker room with the Chute Boxe guys and was talking trash. Krazy Horse had just fought Ken Kaneko. I normally don't post stuff like this, but it is one of the crazier things that I have seen go down backstage.

WEC 38 Preview

WEC 38 will take place this Sunday, January 25th in San Diego, California. There are 10 fights scheduled and hopefully more than four make the live Versus telecast. With no Super Bowl for another week, it will be great to watch some live MMA.

MAIN CARD

Champ Jamie Varner vs. Donald Cerrone- This fight is for the WEC LW Championship. Jamie Varner (15-2) is riding a four fight win streak, defeating Razor Rob McCullough for the title, defending against Marcus Hicks and beating Sherron Leggett in his first WEC fight. Varner also defeated Jason Gilliam in the UFC, last losing to Hermes Franca. Varner utilizes excellent wrestling, boxing, and superb cardio to win fights.

(Jamie Varner pictured)

Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone (9-0) was initially trained as a muay thai fighter before transitioning to mma. Despite the stand-up pedigree, 8 of Cerrone's wins have come by way of submission. Varner should look out for a potential triangle choke as Cerrone has 5 on his resume. Cerrone was the focus of a Tapout show where he defeated Anthony Njokuani.

(Cowboy Cerrone pictured)

Urijah Faber vs. Jens Pulver- This is a repeat of an epic five round fight that Faber won via unanimous decision at WEC 34 defending his featherweight belt. Faber is eager to erase a loss to Mike Thomas Brown that occured at WEC 36. Faber has victories over Jeff Curran, Charlie Valencia, Chance Farrar and Charles "Krazy Horse" Bennett.

(Urijah Faber pictured)

Jens Pulver (21-10) is riding a two fight losing streak, last losing via TKO to Leonard Garcia. His last victory was over Cub Swanson at WEC 31. Pulver will likely try to keep the fight standing and try to knock out Faber. The former UFC lightweight has victories over Joe Stevenson, Caol Uno, Dennis Hallman, BJ Penn, and Stephen Palling.

(Jens Pulver pictured)

Other Bouts

Mike Campbell vs. Danilo Villefort
Jose Aldo vs. Rolando Perez
Benson Henderson vs. Anthony Njokuani
Edgar Garcia vs. Hiromitsu Miura
Dominick Cruz vs. Ian McCall
Frank Gomez vs. Scott Jorgensen
Blas Avena vs. Jesse Lennox
Charlie Valencia vs. Seth Dikun

Affliction: Day of Reckoning Preview

Here is the rumored card for Affliction: Day of Reckoning which takes place this Saturday. The under card will be shown live on HDNet. The fights will take place at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California.

MAIN CARD

Fedor Emelianenko vs. Andrei Arlovski- Fedor's lone mma appearance in 2008 was a 36 second destruction of former UFC champ Tim Sylvia. Fedor will most likely try to bring the fight to the ground in an attempt to submit Arlovski. Then again, Fedor may try to use his boxing to take out Arlovski.

A highly decorated fighter that some call the greatest of all-time, Fedor has beat the best fighters at their primes. We will see how much longer Fedor's reign can continue. Fedor holds wins over Tim Sylvia, Antonio Nogueria, Mirko Cro Cop Filipovic, Renato "Babalu" Sobral, Semmy Schilt, Ricardo Arona, Heath Herring, Gary Goodridge, Tsuyoshi Kohsaka, Mark Coleman, Mark Hunt, Matt Lindland, Naoya Ogawa, Kevin Randleman and Kazuyuki Fujita.

(Fedor choking out Tim Sylvia)

If Arlovski has one thing going for him, its a lack of ring rust. Arlovski fought three times in 2008 earning TKO/KO wins over Jake O'Brien, Ben Rothwell and Roy Nelson. The former UFC heavyweight champ will likely try to utilize his boxing skills that he has been honing recently with legendery boxing coach Freddie Roach. Arlovski has beat Vladimir Matyushenko, Justin Eilers, Tim Sylvia (w/two losses), Paul Buentello and Ian Freeman in the UFC.

(Andrei Arlovski pictured)

Josh Barnett vs. Gilbert Yvel- Barnett is an absolute monster in the submission game. In his three appearances in 2008 Barnett won over Jeff Monson via unanimous decision, Hidehiko Yoshida via heel hook and in his most impressive performance KO'd legendary striker Pedro Rizzo.

Josh Barnett has victories over Mirko Cro Cop, Aleksander Emelianenko, Semmy Schilt, Dan Severn, Mark Hunt and Yuki Kondo in his career. With 14 of his 23 victories won via submission, common logic would seem to lend Barnett going for a submission. Barnett should have a weight advantage in this fight.

(Josh Barnett pictured)

Gilbert Yvel (35-12) is a controversial figure in the mma world. He infamously has eye gouged Don Frye and KO'd a referee. What's lost is that he has a solid resume with 30 wins via KO/TKO and 5 sumission victories. His big wins have come against Semmy Schilt, Tsuyoshi Kohsaka, Cheick Kongo, Valentijn Overeem and Fabiano Scherner. Gilbert will look to get a KO on a takedown attempt.

(Gilbert Yvel throwing the knee)

Vitor Belfort vs. Matt Lindland- These two ten year UFC vets will fight in an interesting 185 pound contest. Vitor Belfort (17-8) last defeated UFC vet Terry Martin at the first Affliction with flashes of his devastating striking style. Vitor is currently on a three fight win streak and has victories over Randy Couture, Heath Herring, Wanderlei Silva and Gilbert Yvel.

(Vitor Belfort pictured)

Matt Lindland, the former Olympic silver medalist in Greco Roman wrestling will carry a chip on his shoulder after a decision victory of Fabio Nascimento at the first Affliction. Previous to that fight, Lindland lost to Fedor in Bodog Fight. Lindland has victories over Jeremy Horn, Carlos Newton, Joe Doerkson, Travis Lutter and Pat Miletich.

(Matt Lindland pictured)

Renato "Babalu" Sobral vs. Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou
Paul Buentello vs. Kiril Sidelnikov

UNDER CARD (HDNet)

Vladamir Matyushenko vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
Jay Hieron vs. Jason High
L.C. Davis vs. Bao Quach
Antonio Duarte vs. Albert Rios
Patrick Speight vs. Brett Cooper

*Chris Horodecki vs. Dan Lauzon- scratched due to a Horodecki bulging disc.

The Reverend Looking For a Fight

Interview by MMA Blaster

I was able to catch up with The Reverend Chuck Grigsby while snowed in yesterday. As his contract with his WEC contract dissolved, Rev is actively looking for fights. He recently fought and won at MCC 17 in Des Moines, Iowa.

MMA Blaster- How did your fight go on November 26th?

My fight went well. My opponent changed at the last second, he was a former collegiate wrestler and now wrestling coach who was undefeated. At the time he was 6-0. I ended the fight with a KO in the first round, but they listed it as TKO because I didn’t know he was out for sure, and the ref pulled me off of him.

MMA Blaster- Did you take that fight at heavyweight?

No, at least this local promotion I fought for told me that they weren’t interested in having me fight the big guys because the talent pool is too lean. I'm not really interested in fighting at heavyweight unless its really worth my while.

MMA Blaster- Was that for a championship belt?

My last fight was my second title defense for MCC. Does that mean I'm undisputed? Tentatively I'm supposed to defend my other title late February but the contract and details still have to be worked out.

MMA Blaster- What is your MMA record now? How many of those wins came from a TKO or KO?

16 wins 4 losses, some databases have one or two fights missing but I think as far as KO and TKO that’s 11 or 12 of them.

MMA Blaster- Do you consider yourself a free agent?

Yeah, I'm free to fight anywhere I imagine. People, skeptics, fans were wondering what was up after my loss in June and the WEC getting rid of my weight class. I just fought and won an I'm ready to bang whoever and whenever my training and availability allows. I'm full throttle right now, I don’t care if I fight in front of 10 people or 10,000. Before my June fight I was on the shelf for about 7 months with getting the opportunity and then not being allowed to take any fights. I think that hurt me the most as far as my performance, so I just wanna stay active at least every other month as long as I'm healthy.

MMA Blaster- When is your next scheduled fight?

I have a possible deal set up with Legends Fighting Championship but contract and opponent is still in the works, same with my title defense, Victory Fighting Championship. I believe those will take place in the next couple of months or so.

MMA Blaster- Do you want to get a fight before that?

I want to have a fight in January, but now it the end of December so February would be the most realistic at this point.

MMA Blaster- Would you be willing to fight in the Chicagoland area?

I'll fight in Chi-Town to Japan to be honest.

MMA Blaster- You would be willing to fight in Japan?

Yeah, I've traveled all over the world but haven’t been to Japan yet. That would be hot. I was cornering my friend, Razak Al-Hassan, for UFC Fight For The Troops and Yoshida was fighting. I like his intensity and style. Even though he came up short that night, it would cool to train with or fight some guys over there.

MMA Blaster- Have you seen any fights that have taken place in Japan? What do you think of the fans over there?

The fans over there want to be entertained and seem to careless about the politics of the fight game. I think my style of stand-up is a good match up cosmetically for Japan, America, Russia, anywhere people love a fighter who finish fights.

MMA Blaster- How has your training been going since your November fight?

Very well. Not having to run my own gym has allowed me to concentrate on myself. I'm in the lane to be more successful.

MMA Blaster- Anything else to add?

If your interested or have additional questions or a potential fight you can reach me on my myspace fan site myspace.com/godsson60 or email chas_bo2005@yahoo.com (just title it “FIGHTNIGHT” so I don’t delete it).


(Chuck "The Reverend" Grigsby pictured)

UFC 93 Preview

UFC 93 will occur on January 17th in Dublin, Ireland. The event features no title fights, but big bouts in Rich Franklin v. Dan Henderson and Mauricio "Shogun" Rua v. Mark Coleman as well as the arrival of Denis Kang. The fights will be shown on ppv. All fighters made weight. Henderson weighed in at 202 and Mark Coleman came in at 206.

MAIN CARD

Dan Henderson vs. Rich Franklin- This fight will likely determine the coach for the next season of the Ultimate Fighter. Franklin seems to have the edge standing in the match and will have a little bit of a height and reach advantage on Henderson. Henderson should have a sizable advantage grappling wise, but Franklin usually makes people pay when they try to take him down.

Dan Henderson (23-7), the former Pride LHW and MW champ, last fought against Rousimar Palhares winning by unanimous decision. His previous two fights were losses to Anderson Silva and Rampage Jackson, two of the best in the sport. Henderson has wins in his career over Wanderlei Silva, Vitor Belfort, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Murilo Bustamante and Renzo Gracie.

(Dan Henderson pictured)

Rich Franklin (24-3), the former UFC MW champ, last fought against Matt Hamill winning with a vicious body kick and punches in the third round. Rich has wins over Yushin Okami, Travis Lutter, David Loiseau, Evan Tanner and Nate Quarry in his career.

(Rich Franklin pictured)

Mark Coleman vs. Mauricio "Shogun" Rua- This fight is a repeat of a prior match-up in Pride which Coleman (15-8) won after a takedown in which Rua's elbow dislocated. Both marquee fighters have been on the shelf for some time due to injuries and other setbacks. Coleman was orginally a rumored opponent for Brock Lesnar, but Coleman sustained a back injury. Rua meanwhile went into the Forrest Griffin fight with a bad knee and has been recovering from surgery since that fight.

Coleman, the Pride 2000 Open Weight Grand Prix winner is also a UFC Hall of Famer, capturing the UFC 10 and 11 tournament championships(4 man) and the HW crown at UFC 12. He is credited with developing the ground and pound strategy and being one of the best wrestlers in MMA during his prime. Coleman has victories over Dan Severn, Don Frye, Igor Vovchanchyn and Kazuyuki Fujita.

(Mark Coleman pictured)

Shogun Rua, (16-3) the 2005 Pride Grand Prix (93 kg) winner, was a fast rising star in Pride before its eventual demise. Rua is known for his quickness and striking ability. He has wins in his career over Alistair Overeem, Kevin Randleman, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira(lil Nog), Rampage Jackson, Ricardo Arona and Akihiro Gono.

(Shogun Rua pictured)

Alan Belcher vs. Denis Kang- This will be high profile Pride and Spirit MC veteran Denis Kang's (31-10) debut in the UFC. Kang has solid grappling skills, possessing a BJJ black belt, and has developed a decent stand-up game. He has wins over Aikhiro Gono, Andrei Semenov, Murilo "Ninja" Rua and recently over Marvin Eastman via 49 second TKO.

(Denis Kang pictured)

Belcher (13-5) will try to keep this fight standing in order to utilize his Muay Thai skills. Belcher's last fight was a close split decision victory over Ed Herman at an Ultimate Fight Night in September. Belcher has a 4-3 record in the UFC, with a KO victory over highly ranked Jorge Santiago, guillotine choke victory over Sean Salmon and a TKO of Kalib Starnes.

(Alan Belcher pictured)

Jeremy Horn vs. Rousimar Palhares- Horn's record is listed as 80-18, but he has fought more than the listed record indicates. The 13 year mma veteran debuted in the UFC at UFC 17 losing to Frank Shamrock for the light heavyweight title (then called middleweight with a 200 pound cut-off). Horn's career highlight was an arm triangle choke of Chuck Liddell at UFC 19. Horn has looked like age may be catching up with him in recent losses to Dean Lister and Nate Marquardt, but still has amazing submission skills with about 50 submission wins in his career. Horn has victories over Daiju Takase, Gilbert Yvel, Travis Fulton, Forrest Griffin, David Loiseau, Chael Sonnen, Trevor Prangley, Falaniko Vitale and many others in his mma career.

(Jeremy Horn pictured)

Rousimar Palhares is an elite submission fighter with a BJJ blackbelt under Murilo Bustamante. Palhares last lost an uneventual decision to Dan Henderson in which Henderson was unwilling to engage with him on the ground. Palhares debuted in the UFC with an excellent armbar victory over Ivan Salaverry.

Marcus Davis vs. Chris Lytle- This fight promises to be an all out war on the feet. Lytle and Davis have pro boxing backgrounds and will look to use those talents to please the crowd. Both fighters usually please the crowd, having won fight of the night, knockout of the night and submission of the night bonus' from the UFC.

Entertaining the crowd aside, each fighter needs a win at this stage of their career. Davis suffered a loss to Mike Swick at UFC 85 before rebounding at UFC 89 with a guillotine choke victory over Paul Kelly. Lytle had a decision loss to Josh Koscheck at UFC 86 and rebounded with a razor thin decision victory over Paul Taylor at UFC 89. At UFC 89, Lytle asked for a fight with Davis during his post-fight interview.

UNDER CARD

Alexandre Barros vs. Martin Kampmann
Antonio Mendes vs. Eric Schafer
Thomasz Drwal vs. Ivan Serati
Tom Egan vs. John Hathaway
Denis Siver vs. Nate Mohr

T.J. O'Brien Update

MMA Blaster Exclusive on TJ O'Brien

(T.J. O'Brien pictured throwing punches)

MCC Featherweight Champ T.J. O'Brien will be defending his title against veteran fighter Chris Mickle at MCC 18: O'Brien v. Mickle. T.J. is an up and coming 145 pound fighter that has some serious submission skills. At 6'2" he usually has a size advantage over most 145 pounders. MCC 18 takes place on Friday, January 16th at the Val Air Ballroom in West Des Moines, Iowa.

MMA Blaster: How did your last fight go against Will Shutt? Did fighting him for the second time pose any problems?

T.J. O'Brien: The fight with Shutt went a little longer than I planned. I took the fight on a couple weeks notice so I wasn't at my best. I still got the win early in the 2nd round.

MMA Blaster: How has your training been going? Who are you working out with now?

T.J. O'Brien: Training has been going great. I've been moving around from gym to gym and have been taking private jiu jitsu lessons with some great teachers.

MMA Blaster: Does your training change at all as it gets colder outside?

T.J. O'Brien: Since it has got colder outside my training has changed quite a bit. I love working outside with tires, car pushes, sprints and stuff like that.

MMA Blaster: Sherdog. com has you in a 6 way tie for fourth with 7 triangle choke wins in mma history, what's it about that particular submission that fits your game?

T.J. O'Brien: The triangle fits my game because of my long legs and flexibility. I also use the move for offense, most people just use it as a defensive move.

MMA Blaster: You next fight Chris Mickle on January 16th, what do you know about him? Will that fight be for the 145 pound title?

T.J. O'Brien: I am defending my belt against Chris Mickle. It should be the toughest fight I have had so far. He has good submissions and has fought a hand full of UFC veterans.

MMA Blaster: How has fighting for MCC been?

T.J. O'Brien: The MCC organization has treated me great and I've fought for them a lot. I still would like to get some traveling in so I can get a chance at some other fighters.

MMA Blaster: Are you looking for sponsors? If so, how do they contact you?

T.J. O'Brien: Yes, I am. Sponsors can contact my manager Shaun McDermott. His email is shaunm.mcdermott@gmail.com


*Veteran Mike Van Meer will also be fighting on this card.
*Check out midwestcagechampionship.com for ticket information.

Video of the Day - Rickson Gracie

Here is Rickson Gracie v. David Levicki from the Vale Tudo Japan 94 tournament. Of course, Rickson got the tourney title. He also won the 1995 VTJ tournament.

Fedor Emelianenko v. Hong Man Choi

Here is video from Fedor Emelianenko v. Hong Man Choi from Yarennoka - NYE which took place on 12/31/07 at Japan's Saitama Super Arena.

Fedor (36-4) recently signed a contract with Bellator and will fight Matt Mitrione in his promotional debut.

K-1 Fields Dynamite Results

I've been watching the fights on dailymotion.com. Unfortunately, K-1 and HDNet couldn't work out a deal to get the card broadcast in the states. The Joachim Hansen v. JZ Calvancante was scratched as Hansen did not pass his pre-fight physical.

The Melvin Manhoef KO of Mark Hunt is pretty awesome, check that one out. The biggest upset of the night has to go to Alistair Overeem knocking out K-1 Grand Prix runner-up Badr Hari. The best comeback I've seen so far was the surprising effort by Bob Sapp. Sapp was taken down and absorbing light hammerfists on his back before getting out of it and tagging his anime masked foe. Despite having an arm free for the taking, apparently anime characters don't know arm bars.

MMA Bouts
Ikuhisa Minowa def Errol Zimmerman via Sub (Toe Hold) R1, 1:01
Daisuke Nakamura def Hideo Tokoro via Sub (Armbar) R1, 2:23
Andy Ologun def Yukio Sakaguchi via KO (Punches) R1, 3:52
Bob Sapp def Akihito Tanaka via TKO (Punches) R1, 5:22
Semmy Schilt def Siala Siliga via Sub (Triangle Choke) R1, 5:31
Hayato Sakurai def Katsuyori Shibata via TKO (Punches) R1, 7:01
Mirko Filipovic def Hong Man Choi via TKO (Leg Kicks) R1, 6:32
Melvin Manhoef def Mark Hunt via KO (Punches) R1, 0:18
Shinya Aoki def Eddie Alvarez via Sub (Heel Hook) R1, 1:32
Kiyoshi Tamura def Kazushi Sakuraba via Dec(Unanimous)

K1 Bouts
Tatsuya Kawajiri def Kozo Takeda via KO, R1 2:31
Artur Kyshenko def Yoshihiro Sato via majority dec
Gegard Mousasi def Musashi via TKO, R1 2:32
Alistair Overeem defeated Badr Hari via KO, R1 2:07


(Bob Sapp pictured)

Video of the Day - Silva v. Franklin RPS

In one of the funniest and bizarre video's I've ever found, here is Rich Franklin v. Wanderlei Silva at the rock paper scissors championships. Franklin takes on Dan Henderson this Saturday at UFC 93. Wanderlei Silva is rumored to be dropping to 185 for his next UFC fight. In his last fight, Silva lost via KO to Rampage Jackson at UFC 92.