UFC 146 - Heavyweight Blowout!

This Saturday, UFC 146 will take place in Las Vegas in the MGM Grand Arena.  The card features an all heavyweight main card with some serious power punchers stacking the card.  Headlining is the HW title fight between champion Junior Dos Santos and Frank Mir. 


Originally Alistair Overeem was scheduled to fight champion Junior Dos Santos (14-1), but a random drug test by NSAC discovered elevated testosterone led to his dismissal from the card.  In stepped Frank "Bone Breaker" Mir (16-5).  


Mir is coming off a dominant arm breaking submission victory over Antonio Nogueira. Expect Dos Santos to do everything in his power to keep the fight standing where he can utilize his devastating boxing.  Dos Santos has delivered 6 TKO wins in his 8 UFC wins, taking the title from Cain Velasquesz in his last bout.  The Brazilian slugger has also defeated Shane Carwin, Roy Nelson and Fabricio Werdum in the UFC. 


(Dos Santos punching Cro Cop)

Former UFC champ Frank Mir was getting tagged by Big Nog in his last bout before transitioning to the ground.  Once there, Mir cranked a kimura breaking the large Brazilian's humerus bone.  
While Mir's stand-up has improved dramatically over the past few years, he needs to get the fight to the ground against Dos Santos to have a chance to win.  Mir's biggest wins have come over Brock Lesnar, Cro Cop and Tim Sylvia in the UFC.

(Frank Mir pictured)

UFC 130 Preview - Rampage Returns

UFC 130 took a big hit as both Gray Maynard and Frankie Edgar pulled out of their proposed lightweight title fight with injuries. Each is looking at 6-8 weeks to heal, as Maynard is dealing with knee injury and a cut that required stiches, while Edgar nurses a rib injury.

Filling the void will be a 205 pound match between Rampage Jackson and Matt Hamill. Rampage is coming off a razor thin decision win over Lyoto Machida. While Rampage (31-8) won the first two rounds on most scorecards, Machida rallied in the third nearly pulling off the win.

(Rampage KO's Chuck Liddell and takes the LHW belt)

It has been almost two years since Rampage has looked like his old powerful, explosive self. Rampage mainly looks to counter-punch standing, rarely looking for the textbook power takedowns and slams he was once known for. Rampage will be defending Hamill takedowns en mass throughout this bout, counterstriking and looking for an opening to land a texbook power KO punch.

While Matt Hamill (10-2) technically is riding a five fight win streak, he was destroyed by Jon Jones at the TUF 10 Finale a year and a half ago. Always the power wrestler, Hamill has looked good in his past two outings, defeating Keith Jardine and Tito Ortiz.

(Hamill KO's Mark Munoz with a head kick)

Hamill will look to set-up his takedowns, boxing his way in. Hamill may want to take a page out of the Forrest Griffin handbook, utilizing leg kicks to take the steam out of Rampage.

In the co-main event, former UFC champ Frank Mir will be locking horns with TUF 10 champ Roy "Big Country" Nelson. The winner could be next in line for a title shot, following the Carwin v. Dos Santos fight.

Frank Mir (14-5) has looked to strike early and often in his recent UFC bouts, going 5-2 in his last 7 fights. With a likely reach advantage, expect Mir to utilize a mix of kicks and punches from distance against Nelson. Mir has career victories over Cro Cop, Tim Sylvia and Big Nog.

(Mir wins the UFC belt)

Roy Nelson (15-5) first made a name for himself as the big bellied champion of the International Fight League. With solid hands and a BJJ blackbelt, Nelson is a wily veteran who poses problems to any heavyweight. Expect Nelson to look to get inside on Mir, throw heavy hands, and try a couple takedowns. Nelson's big victories have come over Brendan Schaub, Stefan Struve and Brad Imes.

(Roy Nelson wins the IFL belt)

In what is almost guaranteed to be a heavy handed slugfest, the 6'11" Stefan "Skyscraper" Struve (21-4) will fight the massive 6'7" Travis "Hapa" Browne (10-0-1). Expect plenty of fireworks as both these guys like to throw punches.

The 23 year old Struve always seems to be improving his game, with two straight wins over Sean McCorkle and Christian Morecraft in his last two UFC bouts. The Dutchman has been working to put on extra weight for this fight, and has solid submission and kickboxing skills.

(Stefan Struve TKO of Morecraft)

The Hawaiian Travis Browne is coming off a solid performance in which he fought to a draw against Cheick Kongo. A striker who loves to swing big, Browne has KO wins over James McSweeney, Aaron Brink and Abe Wagner.

(Travis Browne TKO over McSweeney)

In other action, former Sengoku champion Jorge Santiago (23-8) will make his return to the UFC after posting solid wins over Jeremy Horn, Trevor Prangley, Kazuo Misaki and Mamed Khalidov. Former WEC champ Brian Stann (10-3) will look to build off the momentum of a Chris Leben TKO in this fight.

Dominant striker Thiago Alves (18-7) will meet Ricky Story (12-3) in what is sure to be an entertaining 170 pound contest. Story has used stifling grappling and accurate striking during his 5 fight UFC win streak which includes his latest win over Johny Hendricks.

PPV CARD

Matt Hamill v. Quinton "Rampage" Jackson
Frank Mir v. Roy Nelson
Travis Browne v. Stefan Struve
Jorge Santiago v. Brian Stann
Thiago Alves v. Rick Story

SPIKE TV CARD

Demetrious Johnson v. Miguel Torres
Tim Boetsch v. Kendall Grove

FACEBOOK CARD

Rafaello Oliveira v. Gleison Tibau
Chris Cariaso v. Michael McDonald
Renan Barao v. Cole Escovedo

UFC 119 Indy Preview

On September 25, 2010 in Indianapolis, Indiana, Frank Mir and Mirko Cro Cop will fight in the main event of UFC 119 at the Conseco Fieldhouse. This PPV event will also feature free pre-lim fights on Spike TV.

For Mirko Cro Cop (27-7-2), a win over Frank Mir would be the biggest of his UFC career. Cro Cop, a former K-1 kickboxer, has had a rocky road in the UFC, going 4-3. Cro Cop has defeated the likes of Pat Barry, Anthony Perosh and Eddie Sanchez in the UFC. Expect Cro Cop to be defending the takedown and looking to use his kicks.

(Cro Cop head kick of Wanderlei Silva)

In Pride, Cro Cop was in his prime, winning the 2006 Open Weight Grand Prix with TKO wins over Minowaman, Hidehiko Yoshida, Wanderlei Silva and Josh Barnett. Cro Cop also has KO wins over Igor Vovchanchyn, Mark Coleman and Aleksander Emelianenko.

Frank Mir (13-5) is in need of a win to remain relevent in the UFC after dropping his past two high profile contests via TKO to Shane Carwin and Brock Lesnar, mixing in submission win against Cheick Kongo. Mir should look to use the same strategy he used against Kongo on Cro Cop, looking for takedowns and submissions early and often.

(Mir knee-bar of Brock Lesnar)

Mir earned fame in the mixed martial arts world for his arm breaking submission of Tim Sylvia to claim the UFC Heavyweight title at UFC 48. After the win, Mir was stripped of his title after a devastating motorcycle accident. Mir's second career defining moment came after kneebarring Brock Lesnar at UFC 81. Mir has other wins over Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira for the interim UFC title, Pete Williams and Roberto Traven.

Ryan Bader will be fighting Antonio Rogerio Nogueira in the co-main event. Bader, the TUF 8 LHW champ, is an all-american wrestler from Arizona State University. Bader (11-0, 4-0 UFC) has two KO's and two decision wins in his time in the UFC.

(Ryan Bader Promo Pic)

Antonio Nogueira (19-3, 2-0 UFC), aka the Lil Nog, is coming off a controversial split decision win over Jason Brilz. The striker and BJJ blackbelt has KO wins over Alistair Overeem, Luis Cane and Vladdy Matyushenko. His other victories include Dan Henderson, Guy Mezger and Kazushi Sakuraba.

Here is a look at the full line-up of bouts:

MAIN CARD

Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic v. Frank Mir
Ryan Bader v. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
Chris Lytle v. Matt Serra
Evan Dunham v. Sean Sherk
Melvin Guillard v. Jeremy Stephens

SPIKE PRE-LIMS

C.B. Dollaway v. Joe Doerksen
Joey Beltran v. Matt Mitrione

PRELIMS (Select bouts air on delay if time allows)

Pat Audinwood v. Thiago Tavares
Steve Lopez v. Waylon Lowe
T.J. Grant v. Julio Paulino
Mark Hunt v. Sean McCorkle

UFC 111 - GSP v. Hardy Preview

UFC 111 will be broadcast live this Saturday from the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. The main event pits UFC's 170 pound champion Georges St. Pierre against upstart UK challenger Dan Hardy. In the co-main event, former UFC champ Frank Mir will fight bruising wrestler Shane Carwin for the interim title.

MAIN CARD

Georges St. Pierre vs. Dan Hardy- Georges St. Pierre (19-2, 13-2 UFC) will be looking for his seventh straight win and fifth straight title defense in this welterweight title match. St. Pierre should be able to take down UK's Dan Hardy at will if he chooses.

Expect St. Pierre to come out pushing the pace and using his athleticsm. Georges is a sure fire future Hall of Famer, with career victories over Mayhem Miller, BJ Penn, Thiago Alves, Josh Koscheck, Matt Hughes and many more.

(GSP throwing a high kick against Matt Hughes)

Dan Hardy (24-6, 4-0 UFC) has been on a tear in the UFC, using his underrated striking ability. Look for him to try to keep the fight standing and outstrike St. Pierre. In Hardy's last bout, he defeated Mike Swick via unanimous decision by winning most of the exchanges and landing some heavy shots to wobble Swick. Hardy has also defeated Akihiro Gono, Marcus Davis and Rory Markham.

(Dan Hardy pictured)

Shane Carwin vs. Frank Mir- This fight is for the interim UFC heavyweight championship and will be five rounds of stellar action. Look for Carwin to throw heavy bombs Mir's way, closing the distance and beating up Mir against the fence.

Mir (13-4, 11-4 UFC) will want to keep distance, using his kickboxing, or getting the fight to the ground where the BJJ black belt has an advantage in his submission game. However, getting Carwin, an NCAA division 2 wrestling champ, to the ground will be a tough task. Mir is a former UFC champ with career wins over Antonio Nogueira, Tim Sylvia, Brock Lesnar and Cheick Kongo.

(Frank Mir pictured)

Carwin (11-0, 3-0 UFC) has never been out of the first round with his longest match lasting a mere 2 minutes 11 seconds. His three matches in the UFC have resulted in a 44 second KO of Christian Wellisch, a minute and thirty second TKO of Neil Wain and a minute and nine second TKO of Gabriel Gonzaga. Carwin suffered a broken nose in the Gonzaga fight before unleasing a blitzkrieg attack on the BJJ blackbelt.

(Shane Carwin pictured)

Ben Saunders vs. Jon Fitch- After Thiago Alves was forced out of the UFC 111 card due to an abnormal CT scan of the brain, Ben Saunders volunteered to face Fitch. Look for Ben Saunders to attempt to utilize his height and reach advantage from the outside. I would expect Fitch, an All-American wrestler to try to get the fight to the ground.

SPIKE TV PRE-LIMS

Nate Diaz vs. Rory Markham
Ricardo Almeida vs. Matt Brown

UNDERCARD

Mark Bocek vs. Jim Miller
Fabricio Camoes vs. Kurt Pellegrino
Jared Hamman vs. Rodney Wallace
Tomasz Drwal vs. Rousimar Palhares
Matthew Riddle vs. Greg Soto

UFC 100 Review

UFC 100 proved to be an excellent card as champions Brock Lesnar and Georges St. Pierre dominated their respective opponents to defend their titles. Even though there have been many more than 100 events in UFC history, including Fight Nights and the ever popular UFC 37.5, this card stuck out as one of the best.

Yoshihiro Akiyama def Alan Belcher via Dec (Split)- Akiyama and Belcher slugged it out in the first televised fight of the night. Akiyama seemed to land clean punches and high kicks. Belcher worked the legs with low kicks. Akiyama closed the first by getting dazed by a Belcher punch, then getting a takedown.

In the second it was all Akiyama, as he was able to get a takedown and rain down some solid punches from top position. Belcher was able to get a few leg kicks to close the round. In the third, Belcher scored a nasty superman punch in the third pushing it off the fence. Akiyama wouldn't be deterred as he scored a very close split decision. I gave the fight to Akiyama, taking the first and second rounds.
*Akiyama and Belcher win Fight of the Night bonus.

Dan Henderson def Michael Bisping via KO (Punch) R2, 3:20- Dan Henderson completely destroyed Mike Bisping throughout the fight. In the first round, Henderson was able to stun Bisping with a punch and brutalize him with knees. In the second round, Bisping was circling into Henderson's big right hand. One big one connected, and Bisping was out cold. Henderson threw one extra punch to seal his KO of the night award.
*Henderson wins KO of the Night bonus

Georges St. Pierre def Thiago Alves via Dec (Unanimous)- Georges St. Pierre looked phenomenal in this fight that featured takedowns, ground and pound, and precision striking. In the second round, St. Pierre busted up a couple cuts while getting in shots in the mount position. GSP was also able to get the back of Alves on numerous occasions.

Every round in this fight went to St. Pierre who ran into trouble in the third round. In that round, in the only time St. Pierre went to his back, he injured his groin when Alves attempted to pass guard. In the fourth round break, GSP was heard saying that he pulled his groin. Trainer Greg Jackson said that he didn't care. GSP headed his advice and continued to beat him up to seal the unanimous decision.

(WW Champ Georges St. Pierre pictured)

Brock Lesnar def Frank Mir via TKO (Punches) R2, 1:48- Lesnar was able to get revenge in this much hyped title fight. After Mir pulled out of their proposed bout at UFC 98, then talk serious smack, Lesnar's hatred began to build. Lesnar came to the bout ready for war. Mir looked a little banged up with a completely taped knee and recently drained hematoma.

In the first round, Lesnar was more cautious and focused fighter, as he was able to get a takedown and do damage. He looked to get position on Mir pinning his arm up and throwing punches. He landed numerous shots from the ground to cause serious damage. In the second, Mir had his best chance as he briefly stunned Lesnar with a knee. However, Lesnar was just too much as he clobbered Mir with punches until Herb Dean stopped the fight. Lesnar unifies the HW belts.
*MMA Blaster readers correctly choose Lesnar 104-79.

(HW Champ Brock Lesnar pictured)

Jon Fitch def Paulo Thiago via Dec (Unanimous)- In this fight, squeezed in at the end of the show, Fitch laid a whooping on Paulo Thiago. Fitch consistently scored takedowns, got Thiago's back, and nearly won by TKO as the bell rang.

UNDERCARD RESULTS

Shannon Gugerty def Matt Grice via Sub (Guillotine) R1, 2:36
Dong Hyun Kim def T.J. Grant via Dec (Unanimous)
Jon Jones def Jake O'Brien via Sub(Guillotine) R2, 2:43
Jim Miller def Mac Danzig via Dec (Unanimous)
Mark Coleman def Stephan Bonnar via Dec (Unanimous)
Tom Lawlor def CB Dollaway via Sub (Guillotine) R1, 0:55
*Lawlor wins Submission of the Night Bonus.

UFC 92: Ultimate 2008 Results

Rashad Evans def. Forrest Griffin via TKO (punches) R3, 2:46- Rashad and Forrest traded shots for the first two rounds. Forrest probably got the better of Rashad in the first two with more punches and kicks landed. In the third, Rashad was able to get a takedown from a Griffin kick and then unleashed a flurry of punches and hammerfists forcing the ref to intervene.

(Rashad Evans pictured)

Rashad, with the 205 pound belt in hand, now has to be the most accomplished fighter to emerge from TUF. Evans now has 8 straight official victories inside the octagon. He had three additional wins in TUF that are not official.
*Fight of the Night Bonus
*MMA Blaster readers picked Evans over Griffin 17-15

Frank Mir def. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira via TKO (punches) R2, 1:54- Frank Mir dominated the fight as Nogueira never mounted any offense. Through the two rounds, Mir looked to be the better striker, knocking Nog to the floor and bouncing his head back throughout the fight. After knocking Nog to the ground in the second, Mir followed with punches until the ref stepped in. While the stoppage may have been a little early, Nog wasn't intelligently defending himself.

(Frank Mir pictured)

Mir, with Interim HW Belt in tow, will now face Brock Lesnar sometime next year. My guess would be that the fight happens sometime in March or April. This will be a repeat of the fight which ended in a Mir victory via kneebar. Mir was getting beat up before securing the submission in that fight.


C.B. Dollaway def. Mike Massenzio via TKO (strikes) R1, 3:01- CB was technically sound in this fight getting the takedown, mount and then throwing strikes until the ref had to step in and stop the fight.

Quinton "Rampage" Jackson def. Wanderlei Silva via KO (punch) R1, 3:21- Rampage emphatically got the the demons off his back in this fight. After losing a razor thin decision to Forrest Griffin, and a public meltdown, Rampage desperately needed a victory. Rampage landed a flush left hook sending Silva to the ground then followed it with strikes until the ref stepped in.

A fight with Rashad Evans for the 205 pound title will probably be Rampage's next fight. Rampage had lost his previous two fights with Wanderlei.

Cheick Kongo def. Mostapha Al-Turk via TKO (strikes) R1, 4:37- After some inadvertent knees thrown by Kongo, he found his mark. Kongo threw a right hand that dropped Al-Turk then brought elbows and punches until the fight had to be stopped.

Yushin Okami def. Dean Lister via unanimous decision- Lister could not get any offense going in his loss to Okami. Okami used a systematic approach to grind out the decision.

Antoni Hardonk def. Mike Wessel via TKO (strikes) R2, 2:09- Wessel looked good in the first round, but in the second, Hardonk turned the tide. Hardonk got a sweep, then dominant position, then threw strikes until the bout was stopped.

Matt Hamill def. Reese Andy via TKO (strikes) R2, 2:19
Brad Blackburn def. Ryo Chonan via unanimous decision
Patrick Barry def. Dan Evensen via TKO (injury) R1, 2:36

UFC Ultimate 2008

UFC Ultimate 2008 will take place on December 27, 2008. It will feature two title matches and a superfight between Wanderlei Silva and Rampage Jackson. The fights will take place in Las Vegas. All 20 fighters made weight at the weigh-ins, as a Wanderlei and Rampage scuffle served as a highlight.

Forrest Griffin vs. Rashad Evans- This UFC light heavyweight title match will most likely become a slugfest. Rashad has been testing his foes on his feet in recent matches. Forrest will look to defend the takedown and find a rhythm to Rashad's sometimes style.

Champ Forrest Griffin (16-4) won the title with a very slim decision victory over Rampage Jackson. Prior to that fight, Griffin dominated Pride superstar Mauricio Shogun Rua, finishing him with a rear naked choke. Griffin has defeated Stephen Bonnar, Hector Ramirez, Elvis Sinosic, Chael Sonnen and Jeff Monson in his career. Griffin won TUF 1 in an epic battle against Stephan Bonnar.

(Forrest Griffin pictured)

Rashad Evans (14-0-1) knocked out Chuck Liddell to earn a shot of the title in September. Previously Rashad won a split decision over Michael Bisping, drew with Tito Ortiz, and viciously knocked out Sean Salmon with a head kick and Jason Lambert with ground and pound. Rashad won the heavyweight season of TUF in the second season with a victory over Brad Imes.

(Rashad Evans pictured)

Champ Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira vs. Frank Mir- This fight is for the interim Heavyweight Title. The winner will face Brock Lesnar sometime next year in a unification match. Nogueira won the fight with a come from behind guillotine choke victory over Tim Sylvia last February.

Nogueira is an indestructible opponent who has never been submitted or knocked out. He seems to be able to take a monstrous amount of punishment and can't be stopped. Nogueira has victories over Josh Barnett, Heath Herring, Fabricio Werdum, Sergei Kharitonov, Mirko Filipovic, Mark Coleman and countless others.

(Nogueira getting the guillotine)

Frank Mir has been on a mission since his horrific motorcycle crash that broke his leg. Mir won over Antoni Hardonk via kimura before his kneebar victory over Brock Lesnar. Mir did not look good in the fights prior to that looking slow in his loss to Brandon Vera, decision victory over Dan Christison and loss to Marcio Cruz. Mir holds an arm breaking victory over Tim Sylvia and submission victories over Roberto Traven and Pete Williams.

(Frank Mir pictured)

Quinton Jackson vs. Wanderlei Silva- This fight will more than likely result in another war. Silva has won the past two in devasting fashion. However, what most people forget is that Rampage has had opportunities to win the two fights. If Rampage can get some takedowns he will have a chance to win. Silva will look to keep the fight standing and utilize his superior Muay Thai game.

C.B. Dollaway vs. Mike Massenzio
Mustafa Al-Turk vs. Cheick Kongo

UNDERCARD
Dean Lister vs. Yushin Okami
Antoni Hardonk vs. Mike Wessel
Reese Andy vs. Matt Hamill
Brad Blackburn vs. Ryo Chonan
Pat Berry vs. Dan Evensen

TUF 8 - Krzysztof Style

This episode features a fight between Kyle Kingsbury and Krzysztof Soszynski. Krzysztof is a former fighter from the IFL who holds an armbar victory over Devin Cole and a unanimous decision over Dan Christison at heavyweight. Kingsbury is a former football player for Arizona State University who holds a 7-1 record and has been fighting since June of 2006. Apparently he had only 6 months of ground training before the fight and also came down from heavyweight.

Before the fight, we get to see last week's loser Dave Kaplan hit the bottle. Tom Lawlor and Dave down a bottle of vodka and get a little crazy. Apparently some antics were editted at the last second and that was probably a good idea. Dave says, "I can not be knocked out" and begs Tom to punch him in the face. Finally, Dave is struck in the jaw by Tom and Dave goes completely limp before waking up a few seconds later. Dave still denied being unconscious. Delusional?

Next, the coaches challenge goes down. Mir basically starts hyping himself up again stating that he can beat Nogueira in any contest. Nogueira stated that while soccer is Brazil's number one sport, he was very bad as a kid and never really played. Despite those words, Noguera is physched about winning the 10K for himself and a grand for each of his players. Mir doesn't put much effort in the game and ends up losing to Nogueira who dives after balls and gets into it.

The fight starts and Krzysztof lands a couple punches to Kyle's face. They get to the fence and Kyle lands a couple knees, one of them getting a little close to the cup. After the break-up, the fighters end up in the same position. This time Kyle gets underhooks and gets a takedown. Unfortunately, Kyle doesn't posture quick enough and gets stuck in an armbar.

Kyle takes the loss in stride and tries to pump up his other teammates. Krzysztof meanwhile is icing his injured thumb. He hurt his hand in his first fight and the thumb is still bothering him. We'll see if it affects his performance in the next round.

UFC Title Picture

With UFC 89 and 90 taking place within a span of seven days, here is the current breakdown of the UFC Title picture.

LW- BJ Penn(Champ)- BJ will fight GSP at 170 before returning to 155. The bout will take place on January 31st at UFC 94.

Contenders- Kenny Florian v. Joe Stevenson- rumored to be the fight for number one contender. The fight takes place at UFC 91.
Sean Sherk- recent victory over Tyson Griffin at UFC 90 moves him closer to another shot at reclaiming the title.
Nate Diaz- has put together 5 straight victories in the UFC, recently against Josh Neer. A rumored bout with Clay Guida has been scratched as Guida injured his foot.
Gray Maynard- has 4 straight victories, momentarily crushing Rich Clementi and Frank Edgar's title hopes.
Roger Huerta- shot at a title dashed by Kenny Florian.


WW- Georges St. Pierre(Champ) v. BJ Penn- The fight will take place at UFC 94.

Contenders- Thiago Alves- With dominating performances over Josh Kosheck at UFC 90, Matt Hughes at UFC 85 and Karo Parisyan at UFN 13, Alves is next in line for a title shot.
Jon Fitch- Recently lost a five round fight with St. Pierre, probably needs a win or two to get another shot.
Diego Sanchez- has two wins in a row since back to back decision losses to Josh Koscheck and Jon Fitch.
Josh Koscheck- Title hopes put on hold after loss to Alves.
Jake Shields- I'd like to see the Elite XC champ come to the UFC and fight a top tier opponent or two before a title shot.


MW- Anderson Silva(Champ)- Anderson is sitting pretty on top of the division with his latest victory over Patrick Cote. Anderson could turn up at 205 before another fight at 185, but we will see. Anderson was not pleased with his performance at UFC 90 and would like to jump back in the UFC as soon as possible.

Contenders- Yushin Okami v. Dean Lister- A win by Okami at UFC 92 could thrust him into the number one spot. Okami won over Silva via disqualification in January of 2006 for a an upkick that KO'd Okami while he was still on his knees.
Dan Henderson v. Rich Franklin v. Michael Bisping- The word on the street is that the winner of Dan Henderson and Rich Franklin at UFC 93 will coach TUF 9 opposite Michael Bisping. The overall winner could get a shot at Silva.
Thales Leites- five victories in a row since his loss to Martin Kampmann. That includes a controversial win over Nate Marquardt at UFC 85.
Nate Marquardt- recently won in dominant fashion over Martin Kampmann after the Leites loss. Needs another victory to get a rematch with Anderson Silva.
Robbie Lawler- could get into the UFC sooner rather than later. Lawler is 8-1 since leaving the UFC capturing the Elite XC belt.
Cung Le- the movie star and Strikeforce MW champ presents an interesting stand-up match-up for Anderson Silva.


LHW- Forrest Griffin(Champ) v. Rashad Evans- This match for the light heavyweight title will take place on the stacked UFC 92 card.

Contenders- Lyoto Machida- has won five straight including a victory over Tito Ortiz.
Rampage Jackson v. Wanderlei Silva- the winner of this UFC 92 bout could be setting himself up for a title shot.
Keith Jardine- Recent win over Brandon Vera, but before that was knocked out cold by Wanderlei Silva.
Chuck Liddell- recently lost to Rashad Evans.
Rich Franklin- recently won over Matt Hamill in his recent fight at 205. Has an upcoming match with Dan Henderson at UFC 93.


HW- Randy Couture(HW Champ) v. Brock Lesnar- This match will be for the heavyweight title at UFC 91 on November 15th. Winner to face the victor below in their next bout to unify the title:

HW(I)- Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira(HW Champ Interim) v. Frank Mir- After Couture's brief second retirement, the UFC decided to put an interim belt HW belt on the line which Nogueira beat Tim Sylvia for.

*This is basically a four man tournament for the unified belt. Both matches should be very entertaining and are highly anticipated.

Other contenders- Fabricio Werdum's potential title hopes were shot down in his loss to Junior dos Santos. Cain Valesquez and Shane Carwin have looked impressive with each capturing first round TKO's in their first two victories. Cheick Kongo hasn't been able to put three straight victories together in a row. Heath Herring alternates wins and losses.

Darth Bader Strikes First

The 3rd Episode of Ultimate Fighter debuted on Wednesday. It is the fighters introduction to the house as the previous two episodes featured fighters fighting for their spot in the house

Unfortunately quite a few fighters were injured during the first round of fights to get into the house. I can see how that can happen with wanting to make it in the house, trying to impress the coaches and Dana White, and other factors will lead fighters to go all-out. Karn Grigoryan and Brian McLaughlin had very short stays in the house. Each sustained fractures to the nose which prompted 180 day suspensions from the Nevada State Athletic Commission. In addition, Krzysztof Soszynski noted in his blog that he had injured his hand during the KO of his first round opponent.

In to replace Grigoryan is Kyle Kingsbury, who fought hard in the opening round against one of the front-runners Ryan Bader. Replacing McLaughlin is originally a mystery fighter before Roli Delgado. Both fighters seemed very happy to be back, with Kingsbury sporting a little bit of a black eye.

Next, teams are picked with Mir using his first pick on Soszynski. Nogeria chooses Ryan Bader. Nogeria won the right to choose the first match as Mir got first pick.

Team Mir
205
Krzysztof Soszynski
Vinny Magalhaes
Eliot Marshal
Tom Lawlor

155
Junie Allen Browning
Shane Nelson
David Kaplan
George Roop

Team Nogueira
205
Ryan Bader
Shane Primm
Kyle Kingsbury
Jules Bruchez

155
Phillipe Nover
Efrain Escudero
John Polakowski
Roli Delgado

We got to see a decent amount of training time. Mir introduced Ken Hahn for stand-up and Robert Drysdale for BJJ as his two coaches. Drysdale is world class in his ju-jitsu game as he is a blackbelt and ADCC champ. Mir looked pretty good teaching technique to his fighters. He remarked that fighting is an individual thing, even though you are on a team, you are fighting for yourself.

Nogeria in contrast talks about having respect for the team and coaches. He wants to build team unity, reminding me of Tito Ortiz when he was a coach on TUF 3. Nogeria has dinner with the guys the day before the first fight and they all sit around a table like a big family. Nogeria has Daniel Valverde for his BJJ and a 67 year old maniac Al "Stankie" Stankiewicz.

In the meantime, Junie Browning got pretty drunk and Soszynski and others shrink wrapped Team Nogeria's undies to the diving board. Bader also had some clothes shrink wrapped to his bed.

The first fight is set by Nogeria as Ryan Bader v. Tom Lawlor are set to fight. Each has a pedigree in wrestling, but Bader has the 2X All American thing going for him. Neither fighter has a problem making weight as Lawlor looks to maybe have a little extra weight on him.

The fight starts with brief exchanges of punches. Bader next tried to get a take down and failed. After, Bader was able to get the takedown and was trying to work in some punches and another arm triangle, but Lawlor was able to escape back to his feet.

Lawlor next rushed in on Bader, however that is not a smart thing to do against a wrestler. Bader got the double leg slam take down that took the wind out of Lawlor's sails. Bader landed a couple punches, and then was standing holding one of Lawlor's feet. After an attempted up kick, Bader threw a nasty punch directly to Lawlor's face, knocking him out.

After the victory, Stankie led the cheers and Bader was eventually hoisted on someone's shoulders. Nogeria will be picking the first 155 pound bout next week.

*Picture of Ryan Bader from photobucket

TUF 8 Premier Episode

By MMA Blaster

The first episode of TUF 8 did not disappoint. From the get go you know it will be a crazy season. Phillipe Nover fainted in the opening frame of Dana White's speech. The look on the guy standing in front of him is hilarious as Nover initially starts to lean and then goes out.

The coaches Frank Mir and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Big Nog, come out and the fighters don't seem too excited. Reason being, they have to make weight the next day and fight to get into the house.

It will be interesting to see how much talk time each coach gets. Big Nog, a native Brazilian, seems to have the subtitles flowing after every sentence. Mir is a well spoken guy as a WEC color commentator.

We don't see how they are matched up to fight, so I hope that Joe Silva seeded them somehow and Dana White didn't just randomly match them up.

*Pic of Frank Mir as champ

While weight cutting, Jason Guida has by far the worst time. He is 217 off the start, and needs to get down to 206. During his cut, Mir commented on how it looked like Guida was having the worst of everyone else. The next scene brings those comments to life, as Guida, with a towel slightly covering his groin experiences some bad leg cramps. His legs go stiff, like a grounded Frankenstein, and he has a couple guys try to loosen him up.

When they manage to get him on the scale, he comes in at 207, one pound over. The doctor monitering the situation and Ken Kizer of NSAC end up not letting Guida continue. To Guida's credit he wanted to lose the pound, but he just wasn't allowed to as the doctor knew how dehydrated he Guida had become.

Mike Stewart jumps in to replace Guida in his fight against former IFL fighter Krystof Soszynski. Soszynski is a big guy who had a spat in pro wresting before MMA. In his mma career, Soszynski has fought in the IFL on the big stage, then at heavyweight. Stewart looks to maybe have an amateur fight or two on his resume.

The fight is quick as Soszynski drops Stewart with punches and keeps going as Stewart goes to his knees. The ref stops the fight shortly thereafter.

The next fight is Fernando "The Machete" Bernstein and Dave Kaplan. While Bernstein threw some snapping kicks and looked decent on his feet, he proved to lack a ground game. Kaplan took him down from the clinch, got his back, and the fight was done in a couple minutes.

Phillipe Nover and Joe Duarte faced off next. I was a little disappointed because I thought each of these fighters would have decent showings in the house. They battled back and forth on their feet in the first. Both throwing some mean punches and kicks. Duarte almost had Nover finished in the first before the bell sounded.

In the second, Nover pressed the action getting a takedown, elbows, then sinking in a rear naked choke. While losing, Duarte still looked good and I wouldn't be surprised seeing him back in the house if a fighter was injured.

Eric Magee and Jules Bruchez faced off next in what I would call a lackluster fight. Neither 205 pounded looked in great shape or to have too much skill. Bruchez was able to get a rear naked choke victory and talk some junk after the fight. He is a farmer and gets his power country style.

Vinny Magalhaes and Lance Evans- The first round was more of a highlight montage, and we see Evans get kicked in the ribs. Evans, brother of Rashad Evans, clutches his ribs as he goes to his corner at the end of the round. He is not able to continue and sent packing. Magalhaes looks in good shape and moved well on his feet.

Antwain Britt and Ryan Jimmo also get the highlight montage treatment. Britt wins a split decision.

Brian McLaughlin and Garner fought next, as McLaughlin looked to be winning the bout in the first. In the second Garner threw a knee while McLaughlin had both knees on the ground. McLaughlin when to the canvas and told the doctor he was dizzy. The ref called the bout a no contest and the knee unintentional, but Dana White decided McLaughlin would move on.

Junie Browning fought Jose Aguilar in the final bout of the night. Aguilar talks some interesting trash talk as he proclaims himself to be on the level of historic greats, like Napoleon and Alexander the Great. If Aguilar was in the BC times, he'd be conquering people. He proclaims himself as a, "straight up criminal."

Browning says there is no way Aguilar will beat him and that he has a, "better chance of getting me pregnant than beating me." Well Browning's trash seemed to be a little more accurate. Aguilar was taken down and punched and elbowed until the bell was rung. Aguilar promptly tells the ref that he has had enough.

If Ghengis Khan was in mma, he'd answer the bell, knock you out, then conquer your village.

Moving into the house are:
LHW - 205
Krzysztof Soszynski
Jules Bruchez
Vinny Magalhaes
Antwain Britt

LW - 155
Dave Kaplan
Phillipe Nover
Brian McLaughlin
Junie Browning

Couture v. Lesnar at UFC 91

Randy Couture and Brock Lesnar will fight at UFC 91. Reportedly, the winner will face the winner of Frank Mir and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira who are coaches on TUF 8. This fight will be preceded by the biggest UFC hype fest we've ever seen. Lesnar proved he was an animal in his victory over Heath Herring. However, he basically has one submission loss and one decision victory in the UFC.

Meanwhile, Fabrico Werdum has two TKO victories in a row over Brandon Vera and Gabriel Gonzaga since his loss to Andrei Arlovski. He may have to wait for the Lesnar/Couture v. Mir/Nogeria fights work themselves out. Werdum is slated to face Junior dos Santos at UFC 90 in October 25th.

TUF 8 Trailer and Cast

*Joe Duarte

Here is the trailer for the next Ultimate Fighter show that debuts September 17th after Ultimate Fight Night 15. The coaches are former HW Champ Frank Mir and current HW Champ Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. Not really sure why they didn't have heavyweights on the show as it is a division the UFC needs to bolster. Plus, the coaches are heavyweights.

The cast will feature a roster of light heavyweights and lightweights. Like last season, there will be 32 fighters coming in with 16 making it into the house. Thankfully, my original rumored contestants were all confirmed, plus I have added those that have popped up on Sports Illustrated.

LHW- * means seen in first episode (W/L next to name)
*Krzysztof Soszynski (15-8, 3-4 IFL W), Ryan Bader (7-0), *Ryan Jimmo (6-1 L), *Lance Evans (2-2 L), *Vinicius Magalhaes (2-2 W), *Antwain Britt (3-1 W), Shane Primm (2-0), Eliot Marshall (5-1), Tom Lawlor (4-1, with DQ loss to Shane Primm), Kyle Kingsbury (7-1), *Jules Bruchez (0-0 W), Karen Grigoryan (4-0), *Jason Guida (23-16 OVERWEIGHT), Ryan Lopez (5-4), *Eric Magee (3-1 L), Sean O'Connell (SI has 1-0, I found 0-1), *Mike Stewart (L)

LW- * means seen in first episode (W/L next to name)
*Joe Duarte (3-0 L), Shane Nelson (9-3), *"Junie" Allen Browning (2-0 W), Efrain Escudero (10-0), George Roop (8-3), Spencer Paige (5-2), *Phillipe Nover (5-0 W), Wesley Murch (3-2), *Jose Aguilar (L), *Fernando Bernstein (2-0 L), Rolando Delgado (7-3), Charles Diaz, *Brandon Garner (4-1 L-NC), *Brian McLaughlin (5-0, wins in Ring of Combat W- NC), Ido Pariente (13-4, 1-1 in K-1 MMA), John Polakowski (2-1, all three fights against Olaf Alfonso, 2 in the WEC), *Dave Kaplan (3-1, W)




^Ryan Bader is pictured above. He is a former 2X All-American wrestler at ASU.

UFC 81 Results and Recap

UFC 81 will go down as one of the most entertaining events the promotion has ever put on. Most fights ended quickly with three guillotine chokes in the main card. The audience was star studded, with the Undertaker, Stone Cold, Ken Griffey Jr., Rampage and various others and they got their money's worth. Just like the old UFC's ju-jitsu dominated over brute force.

Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira def. Tim Sylvia via submission (guillotine choke) — R3, 1:28 - UFC HW Championship belongs to Nogeueira and he earned it. Nogueira took punishment from Sylvia for two and a half rounds as Sylvia hit him with everything in his aresenal. But it only took one mistake for Nogeria to sweep Sylvia and choke him out. Reminiscant of the Bob Sapp and Cro Cop fights, the legend of Nogueira continues.
*Both fighters won fight of the night bonuses.
(Poll results Nogueria 29-20, MMA Blaster readers correct)

Frank Mir def. Brock Lesnar via submission (knee bar) — R1, 1:30 - Lesnar came out in a fury taking down Mir immediately before starting to rain down hammerfists on Mirs face. Mir turned, and Lesnar inadvertantly struck the back of Mir's head. Lesanr was deducted a point, and the match resumed.

Off the bat on the restart, Lesnar threw a jab that knocked Mir to the canvas. After a couple punches in half guard, Lesnar looked out of place and a leg was open for Mir to get a knee bar. It was inexperience at its finest, and Lesnar didn't know what to do, tapping.

Lesnar's performance indicates that he has raw tools. He is big, he is powerful, he is agile. But, he is inexperienced. Mir had absolutely no answer for Lesnar's two takedown attempts. The punches that were thrown looked powerful and did damage. Maybe the point deduction distracted Lesnar slightly, but it did not have any real impact on the fight. You would think Lesnar or someone in his camp would have bothered looking at the toe hold Mir put on Tank Abbott and thinking a leg lock would be probable.
*Mir wins submission of the night.
(Poll Lesnar 59-37, MMA Blaster readers incorrect)



Nate Marquardt def. Jeremy Horn via submission (guillotine choke) — R2, 1:37 - Marquardt punished Horn for virtually the entire first round. Horn eventually worked in an omaplata shoulder lock to a sweep near the end of the round. The second round was more of the same as Horn fell into the guillotine after taking alot of punishment. Marquardt was sound on his feet working his punches and combos.

Ricardo Almeida def. Rob Yundt via submission (guillotine choke) — R1, 1:08 - Almeida overwelmed the inexperienced Yundt before getting the choke. Yundt attempted to slam himself out, but was unsuccesful.

Tyson Griffin def. Gleison Tibau via unanimous decision - Griffin probably had the edge standing, but Tibau was able to get some takedowns.

Chris Lytle def. Kyle Bradley via KO (strikes) — R1, 0:33 - Lytle came out swinging, and tagged Bradley sending him to the canvas where he absorbed another punch before the ref stepped in. A dazed Bradley pulled the ref into his guard before realizing what was going on.
*KO of the night.

Tim Boetsch def. David Heath via TKO (strikes) — R1, 4:52 - IFL vet Boetsch worked his front kick and unorthodox body punches. After getting the thai clinch, Boetch worked devastating knee strikes. To finish it off, Boetsch hip tossed Heath to the canvas and finished Heath off.



Marvin Eastman def. Terry Martin via unanimous decision

Rob Emerson def. Keita Nakamura via split decision

UFC 81 - Lesnar Commeth

Commentary by the MMA Blaster

The UFC 81 card is shaping up to be the type of card that destroys MMA pay per view numbers. The card is officially headlined by Tim Sylvia vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira for the Heavyweight Belt. The unoffical headlining fight that will be hyped to death will be Brock Lesnar v. Frank Mir. Here is a look at the potential fights:

Tim Sylvia (24-3) vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (30-4-1)- HW Title- Two time UFC HW Champ Sylvia just beat Brandon Vera after losing the belt to Couture. Nogueira did not look impressive in his bout with Herring, but is widely regarded as the second best heavyweight of alltime with wins over Josh Barnett, Sergei Kharitonov, Cro Cop, Fabricio Werdum, Dan Henderson and Mark Coleman.

Ricardo Almeida (8-2) vs. *Rob Yundt (6-0)- Almeida has six wins in a row including Ryo Chonan, Nate Marquardt, Kazuo Misaki, Yuki Sasaki and Ikuhisa Minowa. Alan Belcher has withdrawn from the fight. MMA Weekly rumors Alaska Fighting Championships' Rob Yundt will be filling in.

Nate Marquardt (25-7) vs. Jeremy Horn (79-15)- Marquardt, former King of Pancrase, is coming off a MW title loss to Anderson Silva. Jeremy Horn is a well traveled veteren with wins spanning from 1996 to present. Horn's victories include Chuck Liddell (21-5), Falaniko Vitale (24-8), 2X over Chael Sonnen (19-9), Trevor Prangley (17-5), Josh Burkman (9-4), David Loiseau (15-7), Dean Lister (10-5), Forrest Griffin (15-4), Travis Fulton (182-44) and Gilbert Yvel (32-12).

Tyson Griffin (10-1) vs. Gleison Tibau (15-4)- Tyson has wins over Clay Guida and Thiago Taveres since his loss to Frank Edgar. Tibau has four wins in a row, three in the UFC, since his loss to Nick Diaz in UFC 65. This fight will be all action.

Marvin Eastman (14-7) vs. Terry Martin (16-3)- I'd like to see this fight make the ppv because there will be plenty of bombs thrown. Eastman's last UFC appearance was a KO loss to Rampage. Martin last was KO'd by Chris Leben. Wouldn't be surprised if one of these guys is moved to fight Marquardt.

Tim Boetsch (6-1) vs. David Heath (7-2)- Heath is coming off of the Babalu choke incident. Boetsch is replacing Tomas Drwal.

Keita Nakamura (14-2) vs. Rob Emerson (6-6)- Nak is looking for his first UFC win.

Chris Lytle (24-15) v. Kyle Bradley (13-4)- Lytle is coming off a loss due to a cut from Thiago Alves. Bradley has 7 straight victories.

Brock Lesnar (1-0) vs. Frank Mir (10-3) - Hype Machine commence

"Finally" is all I have to say about this dynamite heavyweight contest. The anticipation of Lesnar's entrance into the UFC has been all the rage on internet MMA forums. People have been waiting for this for a long time. There are three different distinct opinions when it comes to Lesnar and his chances in MMA - the Lesnar is God and can take Fedor on next camp, the Lesnar is a former NCAA Champ/freak athlete division, and the Lesnar will suck because he has no standup or submission defense camp.

I fall into the Lesnar is a former NCAA Champ and freak athlete camp. You can't deny the fact that NCAA champions can and do perform exceptionally in mixed martial arts. His training video is something of legend. He has been training for two years in preparation for his big UFC debut and I hope he has been practicing his submission defense for this contest.

Mir is simply no joke when it comes to submissions, and after he broke Tim Sylvia's arm to capture the UFC Heavyweight title, he had everyone clamoring about the excellent JJ Mir had on display. His toe hold over Tank was really no surprise, but if you haven't seen that video, it is pretty good.

For anyone who didn't see Lesnar's debut in K1 I have posted it below. As you can see, Lesnar's gameplan was simple. Take Min So Kim down and pound him into oblivion. He made a good pass to the mount which I don't see Mir allowing.

My prediction is Lesnar by ground and pound in the second or third round. Yes, Mir could find Lesnar's overextended arm for a sub, but I don't think you can secure that mammouth neck for a choke. One thing is for certain, this will be one of the UFC's most hyped events. For those of you who don't necessarily appreciate the UFC hype machine, I feel for you.

Some additional notes: Many have labeled Lesnar's sole MMA opponent Min Soo Kim a can. However, he recently TKO'd Ikuhisa "The Punk" Minowa on October 28 of 2007 in K1. Minowa has victories over MMA vets Gilbert Yvel, Kimo and Phil Baroni.