Kazushi Sakuraba - MMA Legend

Kazushi Sakuraba - By the MMA Blaster

The extremely entertaining Kazushi Sakuraba (26-17) appears to have retired from MMA for good, after dropping his last five bouts which were well after his prime.  Sakuraba was the face of Pride during its early days, eventually handing off the reigns to Fedor and Wanderlei Silva. Sakuraba will return for a grappling match against Dan Henderson at Rizen FF 7 in Japan.

Sakuraba's skills inside the ring were legendary, improvising kicks, punches, submissions, and passes that had never been seen before. Watching Sakuraba put his body on the line time and time again was something of beauty. Weighing 183 pounds, and sometimes less, he usually faced opponents with a considerable size, reach and strength advantage.

Sakuraba started as an amateur wrestler, wrestling in college and eventually placing fourth in the Japan championship. After graduating, Sakuraba started his career in professional wrestling and began to get schooled in catch wrestling.

Sakuraba was placed in the UFC Japan tournament only after another Japanese pro wrestler was injured. In his first bout with Marcus Silveira (6-4) John McCarthy incorrectly stopped the bout and reversed his call. The match was repeated for the championship and Sakuraba won via arm bar to be one of the last UFC tournament champs.

Sakuraba entered Pride and posted an armbar victory over Vernon White in his first fight. His second Pride fight was one of the best grappling displays ever in an MMA match against Carlos Newton (UFC WW champ) which Sakuraba eventually won via kneebar.

After a draw with Allen Goes , Sakuraba dominated Vitor Belfort (UFC LHW champ) with leg kick after leg kick and crazy guard passes for an innovative decision victory. He beat Royce Gracie (3X UFC Tournament Champ) in an unlimited time match in the 6th round. That fight single handedly erased much of the Royce Gracie hype and may have been the best he ever looked.


Sakuraba holds other notable victories over Ebenezer Fontes Braga , Anthony Macias, Royler Gracie , Guy Mezger (UFC 13 LW Champ), Renzo Gracie , Ryan Gracie , Quentin Jackson (UFC LHW Champ), Kevin Randleman (UFC HW Champ), Ken Shamrock (UFC Superfight Champ), Ikuhisa Minowa, and Masakatsu Funaki (2X King of Pancrase).  Sakuraba's last wins were over Zelg Galesic and former boxer Rubin Williams.

The Gracie Challenge - Mike Tyson

Sitting at 10-0-1 in 1995 3 UFC tournament championships under his belt, Royce Gracie was far and away the most popular MMA/NHB fighter at the time. Royce fought to a draw at UFC 5 with Ken Shamrock and wouldn't fight again until a Pride match-up with Nobuhiko Takada at the Pride Grand Prix 2000.

Here is the challenge Royce issued to Mike Tyson that was pending on the Gracie family website in 1997. The Gracie family had open challenges against those in other martial arts disciplines throughout the 1990's as seen below. (click to enlarge)


Here is the classic Gracie Challenge no holds barred fight between Royce Gracie and Jason Delucia. Delucia turned in a solid NHB/MMA career going 33-21-1 with wins over Masakatsu Funaki, Chris Lytle, Minowaman and Takafumi Ito.

Video of the Day - Gracie v. Akebono

Here is video of MMA legend Royce Gracie taking on sumo legend Akebono Chad Rowan from K-1 Dynamite 12/31/04.

Gracie (15-2) recently came out of retirement to TKO Ken Shamrock who complained of a low blow after the bout. Rowan meanwhile came back for a kickboxing bout against Bob Sapp in Rizen NYE where he lost due to a cut on his head. The fight starts at 3:00.

Metamoris Mega Match Forecast

Metamoris is a professional grappling organization which holds submission only matches on a square mat. Athletes are allowed to wear gi pants, full tights, wrestling shoes, knee pads and rashguards during the 20 minute round. Each event so far has had consisted of 6 bouts, consisting of BJJ superstars, current/former MMA stars and fantasy match-ups.

After seeing the mega-star match-ups of Eddie Bravo v. Royler Gracie, Andre Galvao v. Chael Sonnen and Dean Lister v. Josh Barnett, Metamoris 5 featured MMA pioneers Renzo Gracie and Kazushi Sakuraba. The pair were involved in an epic battle at Pride 10 which saw awesome scrambles for position with Sakuraba eventually latching on a fight ending kimura. The grappling match didn't quite prove to be as entertaining as it was nostalgic.


With many pioneers of MMA retired or retiring, Metamoris is an event to give them an outlet for competition while promoting grappling. Who are some of the other legendary former fighters and what match-ups are possible? I've conjured up a few interesting names below, ranked from most likely to least likely to compete:

Matt Hughes- the former UFC welterweight champ and UFC HOF'er is rumored to be grappling Renzo Gracie in ADCC in 2015. A former Eastern Illinois wrestler, Hughes placed 5th in the NCAA tournament in 1997. In the ADCC he has defeated Jeremy Horn and Ricardo Almeida, while losing in absolute matches to Tito Ortiz and Jeff Monson. He was known for power slams in MMA, slamming is illegal from the top position in Metamoris. Interesting bouts for Hughes would be against BJ Penn, Frank Trigg, Carlos Newton, Royce Gracie or GSP. Hughes compiled an MMA record of 45-9 with 18 submission victories.


Randy Couture- the former HW and LHW UFC champ and UFC HOF'er has been on the outs with Dana White since his decision to coach on Bellator's Fight Master reality show. Couture is a 2X runner-up NCAA champ, multiple time Greco Olympic alternate and won a Greco Pan Am Games Gold in 1991. Couture was awarded a black belt in Neil Melanson's No Gi submission wrestling system following his arm triangle of James Toney. Couture had an epic battle with Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira in 2009 and a rematch would make sense. It would be cool to see a rematch against Enson Inoue. The blockbuster would be a bout against former Pride superstar Fedor Emelienenko.


BJ Penn- the former LW and WW champ retired from MMA following his TKO loss to Frankie Edgar, but may still have a drive to compete. BJ was awarded his BJJ Black belt in 2000 by Andre Pederneiras. He won gold at the IBJFF World Championships in 2000, has won a World Jiu Jitsu Championship. There are several former MMA opponents that would lend themselves to huge match-ups, such as Matt Hughes, Rodrigo Gracie, Renzo Gracie and perhaps even GSP. The big X-factor would be whether or not BJ wants to train.


Masakatsu Funaki- The co-founder of Pancrase, Funaki began fighting in 1993, last fighting to a draw against Volk Han in 2012. A two time King of Pancrase winner, Funaki started off in professional wrestling and last took part in a 2013 Wrestle-1 show. While some of the early Pancrase fights were a little suspect, Funaki holds submission wins over Bas Rutten, Frank Shamrock, Guy Mezger and Yuki Kondo. Potential match-ups could include bouts with Sakuraba, Frank Shamrock, Minowaman and Bas Rutten.


Ricardo Arona- At 13-0 in ADCC competition including 3 tournament championships, Arona last competed in MMA in 2009 defeating Marvin Eastman via decision. Arona would win a Rings middleweight title and become a Pride superstar with his performance at the 2005 MW Grand Prix. He holds wins over Wanderlei Silva, Jeremy Horn, Dan Henderson, Sakuraba and Alistair Overeem. Match-ups could include an MMA rematch with Dean Lister or ADCC rematches against Ricardo Almeida or Babalu Sobral.


Carlos Newton- A legend of Canadian MMA, Newton is an IBJJF 3rd Degree Renzo Gracie Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt under coach Terry Riggs. While retiring from MMA following a decision loss to Brian Ebersole, Newton has remained active in running Warrior MMA. Newton versus Kazushi Sakuraba in Pride 3 remains one of the most thrilling grappling based MMA contests. Newton won the UFC championship with a bulldog choke submission over Pat Miletich at UFC 31, only to be controversially slam KO'd to lose the belt at UFC 34. Some maintain that Hughes was asleep for the slam. He had other career wins over Erik Paulsen, Daijiro Matsui, Jose Landi-Jons, Renzo Gracie and Pete Spratt. Interesting match-ups would include a rematches with Sakuraba, Paulsen(who probably has a weight advantage), Renzo Gracie or Matt Hughes.


Genki Sudo- With flair and charisma to spare, Sudo was one of the most entertaining and unorthodox fighters to ever enter an MMA arena. Sudo has career submission victories over Nate Marquardt, Mike Thomas Brown, Kazuyuki Miyata and Hiroyuki Takaya, and KO'd Royler Gracie. In 2010 he received his BJJ black belt from Naoyoshi Watanabe at Triforce Academy, and was lightening fast in transition. Re-matches with Mike Thomas Brown, Kid Yamamoto or Royler Gracie make sense.


Fedor Emelianenko- Perhaps the greatest fighter of all-time, Fedor retired from MMA in 2012 following a KO win over Pedro Rizzo. Fedor has taken part in many Combat Sambo tournaments over the years, winning multiple gold medals in the Russian and World championships. He also has a bronze medal in Russian Judo Championships. Fedor accumulated 16 submission victories among his 34 total victories, submitting Tim Sylvia, Matt Lindland, Mark Hunt, Mark Coleman and Kevin Randleman during his MMA career. Obvious roadblocks to his potential entrance include his fee, potential co-promoting with his old management team M-1 and whether or not he has interest. He is supposedly considering a return to MMA. Match-ups could include Randy Couture, Josh Barnett, Antonio Nogueira and Mark Coleman.


Royce Gracie- The face of the early UFC and one of the reasons the UFC exists today, Royce and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu revolutionized fighting as we know it today. Royce captured the UFC 1, 2 and 4 tournament titles notching submission wins over Ken Shamrock, Dan Severn and Kimo Leopoldo. He was TKO'd by Sakuraba at Pride GP 2000 and won a rematch via decision in 2007. For the 2007 fight, Royce was failed a drug test for Nandrolone. A 6th degree black belt, it appears that he will be content with running his California schools and teaching private lessons. A rematch with Matt Hughes or Sakuraba makes sense.



Rickson Gracie- An 8th degree red and black belt in Gracie Jiu Jitsu and sporting a 12-0 MMA record, Rickson claimed to be undefeated in over 400 bouts. He acheived much notierity for the documentery Choke, which followed him as he prepared for Vale Tudo Japan tournament. A son of the legendery Helio Gracie, his son Kron Gracie tapped out Shinya Aoki and Otavio Sousa at the first and second Metamoris events. Any competitor over fifty would be a good one for Rickson, such as Dan Severn, though the odds of him returning are slim to none.


*GSP was not included due to his knee ailments. Was on the fence with Mark Coleman, Ken Shamrock, Kevin Randleman, Shane Carwin and Mark Kerr, but they might be too injured to return to a competition like this. I'd also say Dan Severn, but he is 56 years old. Frank Mir and Antonio Nogueira each may retire following their rumored UFC match-up, this type of event would be perfect for them. Lesnar probably would want way more money than Metamoris could offer and this might not be the right type of event for him.

UFC Hall of Fame

Commentary on the UFC Hall of Fame - Who's Next by MMA Blaster

The UFC is the only mixed martial arts organization with a Hall of Fame. As of now, the members of the hall include Royce Gracie, Ken Shamrock, Dan Severn, Randy Couture, Chuck Liddell, Mark Coleman, Matt Hughes and Tito Ortiz. The late, Charles "Mask" Lewis was inducted as a contributor to the sport.

(Dan Severn Pictured)

Tito Ortiz (16-11-1, 15-11-1 UFC) (LHW belt holder) is the latest entrant into the Hall.  Ortiz kept the UFC in the limelight during the dark ages, winning the LHW belt after Frank Shamrock left the UFC. He defended the belt five straight times, a mark just tied by Jon Jones. Victories over Vitor Belfort, Forrest Griffin, 3X Ken Shamrock, Jerry Bohlander, Ryan Bader, Evan Tanner, Yuki Kondo, Vladimir Matyushenko, Wanderlei Silva and a split with Guy Mezger anchor his resume.

Hall of famer Chuck Liddell's UFC career came to a crashing halt at the hands of Rich Franklin at UFC 115, marking his 3rd straight loss.  However, Liddell will always be remembered for his epic knockouts of his opposition.  The Iceman notched UFC wins over Kevin Randleman, Vitor Belfort, Randy Couture, Tito Ortiz, Wanderlei Silva and owns Pride wins over Guy Mezger and Alistair Overeem.

9X UFC champ Matt Hughes (45-8, 18-5 UFC) was another recent entrant. Hughes, known for his wrestling, submissions and ground game, is the most dominant 170 pounder in the history of the UFC. Hughes holds victories over Frank Trigg, Georges St. Pierre, Carlos Newton, Royce Gracie, Renzo Gracie, Sean Sherk, Hayato Sakurai and split with BJ Penn.

My hope would be that the UFC would look at inducting Don Frye and Pat Miletich into the Hall of Fame next. Each is long overdue, especially considering what they have accomplished inside and outside the UFC. Bad blood was definitely created when each joined the IFL as coaches, but I believe that has passed.

Don Frye (20-9, 9-1 UFC)(UFC 8, UU96 belts)- Plowed through the competition in UFC 8 to win the belt. Won the UU96 and UFC 8 title's in a epic fashion defeating Tank Abbott and Gary Goodridge, respectively. Runner-up at UFC 10.  Was an innovator with solid stand-up with excellent take down defense. 


Pat Miletich (29-7, 8-2 UFC)(UFC 16 Lightweight tourney winner, WW belt holder)- Won two bouts to take UFC 16. Won a slim decision over Mikey Burnett to take the WW belt. Defended 4 times before losing to Carlos Newton. Other wins over John Alessio and Shonie Carter. Bigger impact may be in the UFC champions he has trained over the years.

Locks for the Hall of Fame:

1. Georges St. Pierre (24-2, 18-2 UFC)(WW belt holder)- Currently, Georges has looked unbeatable during his 9 fight win that has spanned four years. GSP has TKO's over BJ Penn and Matt Serra, while submitting Matt Hughes and taking decisions over Dan Hardy, Jake Shields, Thiago Alves, Jon Fitch and Josh Koscheck. Other victories over Sean Sherk, Josh Koscheck, Jason "Mayhem" Miller, Frank Trigg, Jay Hieron and Karo Parisyan.


2. Anderson Silva (33-4, 16-0 UFC)(MW belt holder)- Has crushed all comers while rarely getting touched in his matches. Worked over James Irvin, Stephen Bonnar and Forrest Griffin in the first round at 205. Won the belt in his second UFC fight over Rich Franklin and has defended eight more times. Victories over Vitor Belfort, Chael Sonnen, Dan Henderson, Rich Franklin 2X, Nate Marquardt, Travis Lutter, Thales Leites, Demian Maia and Chris Leben.


3. Rich Franklin (29-7, 13-5 UFC) (MW belt holder)- Won MW belt from Evan Tanner and defended twice. Victories over Yushin Okami, Jason MacDonald, Ken Shamrock and Evan Tanner 2X. More recent wins over Chuck Liddell, Travis Lutter and Matt Hamill with a close decision loss to Dan Henderson. Was crunched twice by Anderson Silva at 185. Defeated Wanderlei Silva at a 195 pound catch-weight then was TKO'd by Vitor Belfort.


4. BJ Penn (16-9-2, 12-8-2 UFC)(LW and WW belt holder)- Won the LW belt over Joe Stevenson and then defended against Sean Sherk, Kenny Florian and Diego Sanchez as the most dominating 155 in UFC history. Won WW belt from Matt Hughes in a great fight, recently scored a KO over Hughes. Victories over Din Thomas, Matt Serra, Caol Uno and split with Jens Pulver. Two of his losses are to GSP at 170.


5.  Jon Jones (18-1, 12-1 UFC)(LHW belt holder)- In 5 years, Jones has gone from JUCO wrestling champion to the greatest 205 pounder to ever fight in the UFC.  He has dominated all foes, looking vulnerable only on one occasion when Vitor Belfort had an armbar briefly locked in.  Jones has won over Rashad Evans, Lyoto Machida, Shogun Rua, Rampage Jackson and recently Chael Sonnen despite a dislocated and gnarly toe injury.

6. Forrest Griffin (19-7, 10-5 UFC, LHW belt holder)- Two back to back victories over the number one light heavyweights in Shogun Rua and Rampage Jackson. Won a decision in one of the sports biggest fights over Stephen Bonnar in the 1st Ultimate Fighter.  Lost the LHW belt to Rashad Evans, then was crushed by Anderson Silva. He rebounded with a victories over Tito Ortiz and Rich Franklin. Dana White has stated that Griffin will be inducted to the Hall of Fame in short order.

Former champs who are close:

1. Frank Mir (16-7, 14-7 UFC)(HW belt holder)- Biggest win by far was the arm break of Tim Sylvia for the HW title and then the knee bar come from behind win over Brock Lesnar. His most recent wn was an arm breaking victory over Antonio Noguira for the interim belt following his stint coaching TUF.  Other wins over Pete Williams, Tank Abbott, Roy Nelson, Cro Cop, Cheick Kongo and Roberto Traven.

2. Rashad Evans (18-3-1, 13-3-1 UFC, LHW belt holder)- Won the LHW belt over Forrest Griffin, but then was KO'd by Lyoto Machida in brutal fashion in first defense.  Has since rebounded with wins over Thiago Silva, Rampage Jackson and Tito Ortiz. Defeated Sean Salmon with a nasty high kick. KO'd Chuck Liddell and Jason Lambert. Decision victories over Dan Henderson, Micheal Bisping, Stephan Bonnar and Brad Imes for the TUF 2 HW belt.

3.  Lyoto Machida (19-3, 11-3 UFC)(LHW belt holder)- Won LHW belt with brutal KO of Rashad Evans, took a controversial decision win in first defense over Shogun Rua, before being KO'd in the rematch.  Brilliant kick to the face of Randy Couture for KO win in last fight.

4.  Vitor Belfort (23-10, 12-6 UFC)(HW tourney/LHW belt holder)- A big draw in the early days of the UFC when he won a 4 man tournament at UFC 12 TKO'ing Tra Telligman and Scott Ferrozzo in 2 minutes in total.  He defeated Randy Couture for the LHW belt via cut.  He blitzkrieged Wanderlei Silva for a 44 second KO.  Other wins over Anthony Johnson, Michael Bisping, Rich Franklin and Tank Abbott.

5. Tim Sylvia (31-9, 9-4 UFC) (HW belt holder)- Won HW belt over Ricco Rodriguez at UFC 41, reclaimed at UFC 59 over Arlovski defending twice. Other victories include Brandon Vera, Jeff Monson, Gan McGee and Assuerio Silva. He has gone 1-2 since leaving the UFC, losing in 36 seconds to Fedor Emelianenko, then in 9 seconds to Ray Mercer.

6. Andrei Arlovski (19-10, 10-4 UFC)(HW belt holder)- Won HW belt from Tim Sylvia with an achilles lock. Defended twice against Justin Eilers and a 15 second KO of Paul Buentello. Other victories over Vladimir Matyushenko, Marcio Cruz, Ian Freeman, Fabricio Werdum and Jake O'Brien. His contract expired after the O'Brien fight and the UFC shunned him to the under card. After KO'ing Roy Nelson in Elite XC, he has really fallen off the radar losing four straight.

Too bad - Frank Shamrock (23-10, 5-0 UFC)(LHW, then called MW belt)- Entered the UFC winning the MW belt (now LHW) over Olympic Gold medalist Kevin Jackson (4-2) with an arm bar in 16 seconds. He then slammed undefeated Igor Zinoviev (4-1) into retirement in 22 seconds in his first title defense.

Shamrock then submitted Jeremy Horn with a kneebar and John Lober submitted to punches in his next two defenses. Shamrock defended the belt once more in one of the best fights in MMA history against Tito Ortiz. The UFC has a rocky relationship with Frank, after his retirement as he fought and comments with rival Strikeforce and was a coach in the IFL.

Maybe - Evan Tanner (32-8, 11-6 UFC) (MW belt holder)- Wins over Robbie Lawler, Homer Moore, Phil Baroni 2X and David Terrell (MW belt). Unfortunately, Evan Tanner has passed away. With 17 total fights in the UFC and a title, I think Tanner deserves a spot.

**All text copyright of MMA Blaster**

Top UFC 100 Fights Snubs

The UFC counted down the supposed list of the 100 top UFC fights of the promotion's illustrious 16 year existence on Spike TV. However, this list is basically a device to publicize and push its video game and current fighters.

Any fighter on the outs with the UFC was not listed unless it is a fight they lost. The best high kick in UFC history, Yves Edwards ridiculous high kick of Josh Thomson, is mysteriously left out. My guess is that it had something to do with Thomson winning the Strikeforce LW Championship.

Regardless, these ten fights are absolute gems in the history of the UFC. Each fight was a war, epitomizing the energy and excitement that is illuminates the top fight promotion in the world.

Top 10 Snubs:

1. Frank Shamrock v. Tito Ortiz at UFC 22- An epic battle for a championship belt that has been the finest fight in the history of the UFC. In the beginning, the brash, young and explosive Ortiz was able to get takedowns and ground and pound. Shamrock worked shots from the bottom position, and eventually wore Ortiz down. During a missed shot in the fourth round, Shamrock pounded Ortiz with punches. An incredible bout that was a comeback and a triumph.

(Frank with 4 UFC belts)

2. Marco Ruas v. Paul Varelens at UFC 7- The brawl in Buffalo featured an epic battle not seen since Royce Gracie v. Kimo. After Marco submitted Larry Cureton and Remco Pardoel, he had to face a giant smashing machine in Paul Varelens. Marco came out in the finale throwing the first effective leg kicks in MMA competiton, reddening the thigh of Varelens. Ruas also threw the first footstomps that looked absolutely nasty. Combine with bare-knuckle punches and after 13 minutes, Varelens was chopped down like a big redwood.

(Ruas throwing a nasty leg kick on Varelans)

3. Bas Rutten vs Tsuyoshi Kohsaka at UFC 18- An epic battle between two of the elite strikers of the day. The ending of this fight was one of the best technical flurries of all time, as Bas landed all his big punches to get the KO around 14 minutes in.

(Bas Rutten with UFC and Pancrase belts)

4. Yves Edwards v. Josh Thomson at UFC 49- One of the best rounds ever fought, as these two lightweights laid everything on the line. Near the end of the first, a scramble occured and as Thomson threw a spinning backfist, Edwards came out with a jumping/flying kick that landed flush to Thomson's face. By far the best head kick in the history of the UFC.

(Edwards head kick)

5. Dan Severn v. Anthony Macias at UFC 4- While this bout ended in quick fashion, it was the first demonstration of how wrestling could be utilized in mixed martial arts. Severn landed two perfect belly to back suplexes which had the crowd in a hysteria. To finish, Severn used his trademark Severn rear naked choke, torquing Macias' chin towards him. Despite being his debut mixed martial arts fight, Severn dominated.

(Severn with UFC belts)

6. Oleg Taktarov v. Tank Abbott at UFC 6- The finale at UFC 6 was an outstanding battle of striker versus sambo. Both men fought hard in the high altitude of the Rocky Mountains, throwing everything they had. After 17 minutes of straight fighting, Oleg was able to slap a rear naked choke on the Tank. After the victory, Oleg and Tank laid on the canvas unable to get up. Oxygen was needed.

7. Andre "Big Chief" Roberts v. Ron Waterman at UFC 21- These two super-heavyweights threw big leather, with muscle bound Waterman having Roberts all but put away. However, the Native American Roberts was able to pull off a huge upset and comeback, knocking out Waterman after a big right, left, right combo and punches to the stunned Waterman.

8. Goran Reljic v. Wilson Gouveia at UFC 84- This fight featured outstanding kickboxing, as Reljic landed head and body kicks at will with good snap. Near the end of the first, Gouveia came back with flurries of punches. In the second, Gouveia got the most of the stand-up and a takedown. After it was stood back up, Reljic landed a power left, then a barrage of hammerfists for the win.

9. Royce Gracie v. Dan Severn at UFC 4- Severn took Gracie down at will, landing ground and pound shots repeatedly. What happened at the 15 minute mark was a tight triangle choke, the first time it had been seen in UFC competition.

10. Tito Ortiz v. Guy Mezger II at UFC 19- The rematch was fast and furious combination of grappling, striking and submission attempts. Tito came out on top.

Ring of Fire First Round Results

I recently found the results of the Ring of Fire event held in the Philippines posted on Josh Barnett's website. I wrote a previous story about this team event a couple weeks back. The results of the match-up were pretty predictable, but at least the two strongest teams are left. I'll preview the finals match-ups shortly. Here are the results:

Team Shamrock vs. Team Gracie

155lbs
Even Dunham wins by Front Choke over Cleber Luciano
185lbs
Kyacey "Ice Cold" Uscola wins by UD over Jorge "Macaco" Patino
205lbs
Mike Whitehead wins by UD over Daniel Serafian
Heavyweight
Ricco Rodriguez wins by TKO (Low Kicks) over Kevin Filal
Women 130lbs
Tonya Evinger wins by Cross Arm Lock over Kat Alendal

Team Shamrock wins 5-0

Team Barnett vs. Team Gokor

155lbs
Koji Oishi wins by UD over Karen Darabedyan
185lbs
Yuki Kondo wins by UD over August Wallen
205lbs
Renato "Babalu" Sobral wins by Side Choke over Rodney Faverus
Heavyweight
Jeff "The Snowman" Monson wins by UD over Hakim Gouram
Women 130lbs
Ginele Marquez wins by Forfeit

Team Barnett wins 5-0

Female fighter of the night: Tonya Evinger
Male fighter of the night: Yuki Kondo
Fight of the night: Tonya Evinger vs. Kat Alendal

Team Championsip finals in Macau:
Team Barnett vs. Team Shamrock


Photo of Shamrock v. Gracie II found on Photobucket and used incidently to the story

New Team Event - Josh Barnett, Royce Gracie, Ken Shamrock and Gokor Chivichyan Coaches

Anaylsis by the Blaster

Apparently another mixed martial arts promotion from Vegas is starting a new event using a team format, ala IFL, called Ring of Fire. They have three very recognizable names in Shamrock, Gracie and Barnett, but Gokor is probably only recognizable to hardcore fans of judo and sambo, as well as Armenians. I don't think they will be fighting, but a Gracie v. Shamrock fight would be nostalgic.

Since the promotion's first event is in the Philippines, I have doubts that we in the US and Europe will get to see much of the action. I am guessing the best way to catch these fights will be the internet. Ken Shamrock is apparently still a coach for the IFL season, don't worry about him jumping ship.

The teams:

Team Gracie - Cleber Luciano (1-2), Jorge Patino (20-10), Daniel Serafian (?), John Marsh (7-6) and Katrine Alendal (0-1).

Team Barnett - Koji Oishi (15-7), Yuki Kondo (47-20), Renato “Babalu” Sobral (28-7), Jeff Monson (23-7) and Ginele Marquez (5-7).

Team Gokar - Karen Darabedyan (2-0), August Wallen (2-1), Rodney Faverus (24-13, KO of Manhoef, w's over Riggs, Kongo, but 2-5 in last 7), Hakim Gouram(?) and Amanda Buckner (10-4).

Team Lion’s Den - Evan Dunham (4-0, small shows), Kyacey Uscola (13-10, 3 straightlosses), Mike Whitehead (19-5, 10 straight wins), Ricco Rodriguez (26-7) and Tonya Evinger (4-3).

Looking at the teams, from left to right for weight classes, it seems that Team Barnett is the clear favorite. Babalu, Monson, Oishi, and Kondo would make a killer IFL team on their own. Right behind I would put Shamrock's team. Teams Gokor and Gracie look to be a touch behind in terms of talent and experience, even though Buckner is probably the most talented of the women. Babalu v. Whitehead would be a good matchup as would Rodriguez v. Monson.

*Why use Ring of Fire? That is a pretty lame name to choose considering it is also the name of a promotion in Colorado, and a Johnny Cash song. Why not come up with something more unique? **The MMA Blaster is full of ideas**


Stock photo of Josh Barnett used incidentally to story.

Happy 14th Birthday UFC!

Happy Birthday by the MMA Blaster

The UFC was officially born on November 12, 1993, when Teili Tuli had his tooth brutally knocked out of his mouth. Ken Shamrock broke Patrick Smith's leg that night with a heel hook, and afterwards Ken was choked out by Royce Gracie. Royce took that first tournament with ease. It was the first mainstream broadcast of mixed martial arts to the United States. At this point it was still "no holds barred" or NHB. At that point, everything was legal except biting, attacking the eyes and attacking the groin (legal in UFC 2). It is good that the rules have made the sport safer, but I hope the various states keep MMA as close to a real sport as possible.

Happy birthday UFC, lets see 14 more years.



Royce Gracie Highlight


*It is also the 14 year anniversery of Art Jimmerson wearing one boxing glove to fight Royce Gracie. Don't think this tactic has been duplicated since.