UFC on Versus Preview and Predictions

UFC on Versus Preview and Predictions

Michael David Smith

A slow July for mixed martial arts has finally passed, and now August is finally upon us, a month so jam-packed with MMA action that it will be hard to keep up with it all. First up is UFC Live on Versus 2, a solid fight card on basic cable with Jon Jones taking on Vladimir Matyushenko in the main event. We've got the full preview and predictions below.

What: UFC Live: Jones vs. Matyushenko

When: The non-televised undercard will start around 6PM ET on Sunday, and the live Versus card starts at 9PM ET.

Where: San Diego Sports Arena

Preview of the four televised fights:

Jon Jones vs. Vladimir Matyushenko
Jones is one of the up-and-coming stars of the UFC, a 23-year-old who absolutely destroyed seasoned veterans Brandon Vera and Matt Hamill in his last two fights. Matyushenko is an even more seasoned veteran, and Jones calls Matyushenko the toughest opponent he's ever faced, but I don't see much reason to believe Matyushenko will have an answer for Jones' rare combination of size, strength and speed. This is a fight Jones should dominate.
Pick: Jones

Yushin Okami vs. Mark Muñoz
Munoz is a former NCAA champion wrestler who is continuing to develop into a well-rounded mixed martial artist and has looked better since moving down to 185 pounds, and as Chael Sonnen showed, a good wrestler can control Okami and grind out a decision. But I don't think Munoz is quite ready for an opponent of Okami's caliber, and I like Okami to win this fight by TKO.
Pick: Okami

John Howard vs. Jake Ellenberger
After winning his first four UFC fights, with a Fight of the Night bonus and a Knockout of the Night bonus along the way, Howard is finally getting called up to the main card. Ellenberger, a former college wrestler with big punching power, is a dangerous opponent for him, but I see Howard staying undefeated inside the Octagon.
Pick: Howard

Tyson Griffin vs. Takanori Gomi
This could be the end of the line for Gomi, the former Pride lightweight champion who was among the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world five years ago but is now 31 and no longer the explosive athlete he once was. Gomi was thoroughly dominated by Kenny Florian in his UFC debut in March, and if he loses to Griffin, he probably won't get a third UFC fight.
Pick: Griffin

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Jon Jones May Not Have Asked for the Hype, but He's Stuck with It

Jon Jones May Not Have Asked for the Hype, but He's Stuck with It

Jon Jones May Not Have Asked for the Hype, but He's Stuck with It

7/30/2010 1:38 PM ET By Ben Fowlkes

A year ago, Jon Jones was what you might call an up-and-comer in the MMA world. He had a couple UFC wins under his belt, mostly on the unaired prelims of pay-per-view cards, and primarily against middle of the pack opponents. He'd only been in the sport for a little over year, and people were just starting to come around to the idea that he was someone worth watching.

All that's changed now. After demolishing Matt Hamill (okay, so he lost via disqualification, but we all saw where that fight was headed) and then Brandon Vera, he has since been officially upgraded from up-and-comer to bright prospect. Instead of asking if he might one day fight for a title, fans have started asking when.

The hype is growing, and with it, the expectations. Only now that Jones has got the MMA world's attention, he's not entirely certain that he wants it.

"The hype thing, I kind of wish it would all go away," Jones told MMA Fighting. "I feel like I'm just a guy who has a job and I'm good at it, but I didn't ask for all the hype or to be the next big thing. I'm just trying to go out there and do what I love doing. It's weird though, because I'm saying that I never asked for it, but I do want to be the best and I'm aware that this is going to come with it, so what do you do? You just realize it's part of the game, try to be yourself, and remember that you're not anything until you're the champion."

And there's the rub. The more big fights you win, the more they talk about you. The more they want from you. It's a package deal, and the only way out is through defeat, which isn't in anyone's plans in this sport.

When Jones takes on Vladimir Matyushenko in the main event of the UFC on Versus 2 event this Sunday night, he'll face another part of the same dilemma. With so much hype surrounding him, and as such a heavy favorite with oddsmakers, anything less than a dominant victory may seem like a disappointment.

The hype thing, I kind of wish it would all go away.
-- Jon Jones

Before being offered the fight with Matyushenko, Jones said he wanted a big name opponent. He wanted a situation where he had as much to gain with a victory as his opponent did. Instead, he got a tough, grizzled vet of the fight game, but one who many casual fans remain relatively clueless about.

Jones knows who he is, which is why he spent more than two months at Greg Jackson's New Mexico gym preparing for this fight – the longest training camp he's ever done for any one fight in his brief MMA career.

"I look at Vladimir as the toughest guy I've ever faced. A lot of people might be thinking, 'Oh, Jones is taking him lightly.' That's silly. Look at the guy's record. I've never fought anyone with a record like that. The average fan might take him lightly because they don't know who he is, but I do and I'm going to try and whoop him up. He's fought for a belt before. Who else have I fought who's fought for a belt before? No one."

On paper, almost all of the advantages in the fight belong to Jones. He's bigger, faster, and younger. He has the wrestling chops to stay off his back, and he acknowledges that the striking game against someone of Matyushenko's somewhat limited arsenal will be "fun" for him.

The only thing he lacks that Matyushenko doesn't is experience, though he doesn't expect that to make much of a difference once the cage door closes.

"You can have all the experience in the world, but if you haven't fought a guy who fights like me, I'm not sure how much that's going to help you. I've watched his fights and he's definitely fought some warriors. I'm not saying I'm better than any of them. I'm just saying that I'm different, and I'm aware of that. I'm a fighter who can throw high kicks with both legs. I can throw you or I can shoot for your legs and take you down that way. I can do a spinning technique or a flying technique. I'm just very different from anyone he's ever fought."

Judging by Matyushenko's recent comments, he wouldn't necessarily disagree with that assessment. Truth be told, there may be no other fighter quite like Jones in all of MMA right now. That would explain the hype. It would also explain why the only way for Jones to meet expectations this weekend is to exceed them. Such are the perils of the prospect.

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Phil Baroni Pours His Heart Out About Recent Injury, Survival in UFC

Phil Baroni Pours His Heart Out About Recent Injury, Survival in UFC

Phil Baroni Pours His Heart Out About Recent Injury, Survival in UFC

7/30/2010 10:24 AM ET By Ariel Helwani
Phil Baroni has never been known to hide his emotions, and when MMA Fighting contacted "The New York Bad Ass" to discuss his recent collarbone injury, which forced him to pull out of his UFC 118 fight against John Salter, Baroni provided one of his more heartfelt interviews to date.

Like many other fighters in a similar position, Baroni clearly recognizes that he is at a crossroads in his career. But his brutal honesty concerning his current status in the sport and what he needs to survive in the UFC is something you don't often hear from professional fighters.

The 13-12 veteran has experienced his fair share of highs and lows, and it seemed he viewed this August fight as the beginning of his final run in the UFC. Unfortunately, a freak injury got in the way, and as he explains in the interview below, the 33-year-old has been forced to take a deep look within himself to see if he still has what it takes to hang with the best middleweights in the world.

Check out the interview below.

Ariel Helwani : What exactly happened?

Phil Baroni: I felt my ground game was not as sharp as it needed to be and I was behind in my prep. So I went to [Robert] Drysdale's to get some extra ground and train pure jits. I wanted to see if I could pull off some of the new sh** I had been training. On my fourth round, I was tired and let a guy lock up an anaconda choke. When I tried to power out of it, I felt a bad pain in my collarbone joint in the front of my chest. I tried to keep rolling another round, but I felt my chest and felt it poking out. I went to the bathroom and looked in the mirror, and saw I had a major problem. I was really pissed and just went home.

Did you try to fight through the pain so you wouldn't have to pull out of the fight?

Yeah. I think I hurt it on Wednesday morning, so I took the rest of the week off and got it shot with cortisone. I ran over the weekend and started regular training on Monday. It was grinding and hurting when I wrestled and I was very uncomfortable training. I felt I had to protect it. I needed to push hard that last month. I couldn't have an another injury holding me back. I've been pretty banged up last few years. My left shoulder is dead. [It's] been dead since before [Frank] Shamrock fight. I can't jab fast or hard with it, and it's killing my stand up. It's really slow too. Fast hands have always been an advantage for me, and I have not had fast hands since.

Now with collarbone joint half dislocated, I can't punch at all with my left arm. It sucks and it's is very frustrating. But I need to win this next fight. I mean, really, it's no secret the position I'm in. It sucks and it's scary. I don't like it. I hate it. It's hard to deal with. It's always on the back of your mind. I need this. My family needs this. I want to be at my best; give it my all and be 100 percent, and if it doesn't work, at least I can say, 'F**k, I lost,' but not, 'I should have, could have or would have.' And if I lost and got cut, I would still be fighting, trying to earn my way back into a big show.

I want to be a contender -- I want to matter again. I want to be the biggest comeback story ever -- a Cinderella Man.
-- Phil Baroni

Considering how important this fight was, how difficult was it for you to pull out of it?

Very difficult. First off, I really want to fight. It's a big show -- first one in Boston. It would have been great. The card is huge, and maybe I could have a good fight and get on TV. Get some exposure. I need it now badly. I'm left out of a lot of sh** nowadays. I'm forgotten at the expos and appearances. Just everything with the UFC. I wanted to win a big fight, look impressive and get considered again. I wanted to say, 'Hey Dana, I'm still f**king here. I still can fight.' I wanted to say it to everyone: the fans, the media. I'm still Phil f**king Baroni. That used to mean something. I want it to mean something again. I want to say, 'Hey Strikeforce, you made a big mistake letting me go. You f**ked up. You blew it. I'm still somebody, and I still bring things to the table that not many fighters do.'

I just want to be a contender. I want respect from my peers, the fans, media and the promotions. I wanted to say, 'I'm still here, don't f**king forget about me. I'm not dead yet. I want to be a contender -- I want to matter again. I want to be the biggest comeback story ever -- a Cinderella Man. It's not depression, but I'm going through my share of problems like a lot of people in Vegas and across the country with foreclosure, money ... everything. I'm almost in the same position I was 10 years ago, but now the window of opportunity is closing. I don't want to be here when it shuts with none of my goals accomplished and all my dreams dead. I still have a little time, and I want to shove them all through the window with me. It's a million-to-one shot, but, hey, Rocky did it.

How did the UFC respond when you officially pulled out of the fight?

I called Joe Silva, and asked him to push my fight back to another card. He said he couldn't. I said give me a few days to see if I can get through it. He said I'm pulling you out. I need this fight and can't afford to fight hurt. So he gave me time to get healthy and have a good preparation.

When do you think you will be able to return to action?

Man, I'm already doing rehab on my shoulder, hip and back. The collarbone needs time heal -- maybe a month. I'm running and keeping my weight around 200. I'm going to lift and just do everything I can to stay in shape, get stronger and heal up. It's going to be difficult, but I got to do it. I'm working again, so I can afford to get healthy. My wife works a lot and hard also. She always does, but she really stepped up and got a second job. It sucks, man. I feel bad, but I'm lucky, and when I win my next fight, she won't have to work so hard. I'll be able to stay afloat and get healed and be ready in, I hope, a month. Then, I'll probably need at least to be peaked for my fight. It's hard. I want to back in there, but I'm not going to rush. I have a lot riding on this fight. I really want to look good and win.

Where are you working?

I would rather keep that private.

Will your next fight be in the UFC?

Yeah, I'm pretty sure. I think about a tune-up [fight], but there are no safe tune-ups. I got to just train and spar hard. It's too risky to fight outside the UFC. I need to train, fight, win, and fight often. Get my rhythm going; make noise. I'm still here; I'm still tough; I'm still relevant. Look, it's Phil f**king Baroni, 'The New York Bad Ass' is the real deal. I'm back, and in the immortal words of my boy Kevin Randleman, 'Lets trade b***h!'

What did you mean when you tweeted: "I cant take it anymore. Im freaking out. anxiety im shot. beaten. [sic]"

The stress and the pressure; fight hurt or not; take time, pull out or f**k it, fight. I've been fighting hurt for a while now. It is what it is. I don't know what to do. I want to make the right move. I have nobody to ask. I just feel beaten, down, nobody to turn to for answers. Just thinking out loud. I cant help it -- I wear my heart on my sleeve. I've always been that way. No fakes, no front; what you see is what you get.

Are you going to travel elsewhere to prepare for this fight now that you have more time?

I'm not sure what I'm going to do. I just don't know. I don't have a winning formula, which is my biggest problem and concern. It sucks, it's frustrating, it's hard to deal with. I don't know exactly what to do. What's best, how or where. It's nuts, I've been at this so long and don't have at least that. Nowhere to turn or go back to. It's hard, but it's my problem that I have to deal with -- my issue.

Most important to me is finding someone to believe in me; someone who thinks I can still do this and that I'm worth training; someone who cares and can put time in. I need someone to believe in me even when I don't and push me and help me; someone who can get me to the fight with a healthy mind. That's most important. I need that. Once I'm in the ring, everyone knows this, and I've shown it time and time again: I will not quit. I will fight to the very end. But finding that somebody is the challenge. Mark Coleman has always been there for me, and helped me, but he is in Ohio now raising his daughters. Maybe it's time to find it in myself?

Is there anything else you want to say to those who have supported you through this time?

I'm sorry I pulled out and I'm sorry I let you down, but I owe it to myself, my wife and family to be at my best. I owe it to my fans to go out there, not take a beating and show heart but to bring home a win for them and for me. I need to win. I deserve it. I'm better than I've been fighting. I can still compete and improve. I want to show everyone and myself that I can do this; that I still got it. I'm thankful for the support. I know my mistakes; same ones I always made. Now I need to fix them, come out guns blazing -- the way I came in. It's better to burn out than fade away. Now I'm fading away; an afterthought, if a thought at all.

I need some big middleweight fights, ones I know I can win and show my best: Bisping, Akiyama, Wanderlei Silva, Leben, Gerald Harris. Those are the good guys; guys I like and respect a lot. But they are also guys who are in my spot that have passed me by. It's time to put it into overdrive and beat the best. I just need to win and put myself in position to get the big fights again ... and win them this time. Win those fights, beat that caliber opponent, or die trying.

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Round 3 of the 32 man Heavyweight Tournament

Round 3 of the 32 man Heavyweight Tournament

This is Round 3 of the 32 man Heavyweight Tournament to determent the best HW in the world and to have fun debating some fights that we might not think of otherwise. These fights will be under UFC Rules, Testing and Cage. They will have 3 months to train for each other in this 3 round fight.

Vote here: http://mmacrypt.com/forum/misc.php?do=form&fid=46

And if you want to view the results, click here - http://mmacrypt.com/forum/misc.php?d...ts_poll&fid=46

1: Fedor Emelianenko (32-2 1nc) vs 8: Junior Dos Santos (11-1)

5: Alistair Overeem (33-11 1nc) vs 4: Cain Velasquez (8-0)

6: Josh Barnett (25-5) vs 3: Shane Carwin (12-1)

7: Frank Mir (13-5) Vs 2: Brock Lesnar (5-1) III

Vote here: http://mmacrypt.com/forum/misc.php?do=form&fid=46

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Are you ready for the next Wandy?

Are you ready for the next Wandy?

Wanderlei Silva protege Vitor Vianna targets big-show contract with MMA Xplosion fight

Vitor Vianna (8-1-1) hasn't had a mixed-martial-arts fight in 26 months.

But just think about what he has done since: Move from his native Brazil to Las Vegas because Wanderlei Silva was once so impressed with fights he saw years ago he wanted Vianna in his camp. Become a teacher at Silva's gym. And gain a buzz that is one of the most significant for the relatively unknown fighter in Vegas.

He just hasn't been fighting, but not all by his choice.

"It's been difficult for us," said manager Rob Cardenas. "It's been … I don't want to say people are afraid to fight him because that's not exactly true, but it's been difficult."

But now, after more than two years, a major move and significant improvement in his standup, Vianna is ready to be re-introduced to the MMA world. Vianna, 8-1-1 as an MMA pro, will face B.J. Lacy at an MMA Xplosion show on Saturday at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino.

The 185-pound fight, both Vianna and Silva hope, will help the MMA world understand Vianna's improvement and power and boost him into gaining more fights and a shot at bigger promotions.

"I feel very different from my last fight," Vianna said. "I feel more strong, I feel more confident, and (Silva) helps me in hours of training of using your hands. It makes me feel very good."

For those who don't know Vianna, Cardenas said, the fact he has the full support from Silva should say plenty. Silva, in fact, wants to be at the fight so much he'll be coming in a wheelchair after undergoing knee surgery this past week.

"This is kind of like Vitor's coming out party, again," Cardenas said.

Finding Vitor

The decision was not hard for Silva.

When he opened his gym in Las Vegas, he was looking for skilled teachers, and he thought back to times he had visited fights back in Brazil, where Vianna got his MMA start.

"He had seen me fight, maybe three or four times," Vianna said. "He remembered me, and he asked me to come help him here."

Even though he was somewhat unknown in the U.S. at the time, Vianna had a long and varied fighting career. He started jiu-jitsu training at age 15 before gaining his black belt in 2002. Before that, he had been mainly a soccer player, but there was a gym near his home with a respected teacher, so he first tried it as a hobby and found success.

He got into Muay Thai training in Holland, but Brazilian jiu-jitsu is where he has mostly made his international mark.

Vianna estimated he has fought 300 times in BJJ, most of them in tournaments, and most of them with strong success. Despite his layoff in MMA, Vianna has never been hesitant to fight often.

"In Brazil, you can fight every weekend in a tournament," Vianna said. "You can fight six, seven, eight times in one day.

"The more you compete, you train your body, your mind and you get comfortable. That helps me a lot."

His grappling, because of his experience, was never questioned. And, he has been impressive enough to gain the attention of some of the world's best, including Silva.

But he still holds the frustration of his lone loss (which occurred because of a broken arm) and the understanding that many MMA fans might not remember his previous fights.

MMA layoff

Vianna first entered the MMA consciousness in October 2004, when he took his first fight at a Shooto Brazil show.

In the next two years, he fought nine times. He won seven of his first eight fights, with a lone draw, and entered his November 2006 matchup against a pre-UFC Thiago Silva at a Fury Fighting Championships show with plenty of momentum.

Then, a broken arm changed things.

"It was a head kick from Thiago, and Vitor blocked it," Cardenas said. "It just broke his arm."

The TKO stoppage gave him his only loss, and he has fought just once since, winning a Beast of the East fight in May 2008. That means, in 44 months, Vianna has fought one time.

But don't think he hasn't been working.

"I've been training in the gym hard," Vianna said. "I've been sparring hard, I have great training partners. Now I have the opportunity to show America who I am, and I'm ready to do it."

So what will the MMA world see from him?

"He's a great jiu-jitsu guy, obviously, but he's also become phenomenal in the standup game," Cardenas said. "He has that Wanderlei style, very aggressive. It doesn't matter where the fight goes, he can do whatever he needs to do."

Vianna has often fought at 205, but he is down to 185 for the Saturday bout, and Cardenas said he can fight comfortably at both. Either way, Vianna hopes to make a good enough impression to gain more fights and hopefully move up to a bigger promotion.

One thing is clear: For as powerful and exciting Vianna has become in the cage, he also has big-time backing from Silva and the Wand Fight Team, which is another boost. Silva, especially, is thrilled with him, Cardenas said.

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Aleksander Emelianenko reaches verbal deal with KSW

Aleksander Emelianenko reaches verbal deal with KSW

KSW Federation has informed MMA Spot that KSW owners Maciej Kawulski and Martin Lewandowski recently met with Russian MMA fighter and Pride Fighting Championships veteran, Aleksander Emelianenko, at the Hyatt hotel, in Warsaw, Poland. Under discussion was Emelianenko’s participation in upcoming KSW events. According their report, the meeting was both substantive and amenable to the parties involved, as a verbal agreement was reached.

The special invitation extended to Emelianenko from the Polish MMA promotion was considered a success, with all participants content with the results. “We have a verbal agreement in place with Aleksander and we can reveal that Polish MMA fans will be soon able to see this formidable fighter in the KSW ring,” Lewandowski and Kawulski announced.

The first fight for Fedor Emelianenko’s younger brother has not been officially determined, though it is likely to be against polish strongman Mariusz Pudzianowski. Earlier this week, KSW revealed that an opponent for Pudzianowski would be confirmed at a press conference for the upcoming KSW 14 event. Among the candidates being considered are Eric "Butterbean" Esch and Aleksander Emelianenko, according to the organization.

The press conference is set for Tuesday, Aug. 3 at 12 p.m. CEST, and will be broadcast via the KSW Federation website (www.konfrontacja.com).

Pudzianowski (2-1), a relative newcomer to the fight game, is a former five-time World’s Strongest Man. He last fought at “Moosin: God of Martial Arts” on May 21, in Worcester, Mass. losing a lopsided bout where he verbally submitted to the strikes of former UFC heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia in the second round.

Esch (12-7-1), the face of the Moosin organization, was highly critical of Pudzianowski—giving some credence to the possibility of an upcoming match between the two.

“I know he allegedly broke his foot in the fight against Sylvia,” Butterbean commented, “but he didn’t show anything before he quit. Pudzianowski has no stand-up and as strong as he is, he punches like a girl. All he does is throw arm punches. He needs a lot of help. He’s the 5-time World’s Strongest Man but hits like a 130-pounder, not a strong man who weighs 270 pounds. He doesn’t have the skill level to get to the level he wants to fight.

“Once he gets a stand-up game—you can’t have a ground game working without one—he could be a force in MMA. He still needs some work on his ground game, too. We all know he’s very strong but that’s not enough at the highest level of MMA. I don’t know who has been coaching him but that trainer should be fired. Pudzianowski needs to prove himself, showing he has a good stand-up game by beating a good MMA fighter, before he gets another big fight like a spot on the October ninth show.”

KSW founders, Lewandowski and Kawulski for their part, took exception, and looked to put the two fighters together in the ring.

"I don't understand the reasoning behind Mr Esch's statements. One would think it's just a publicity stunt. However, if ‘Butterbean’ is really interested in this bout, we can seriously consider it. But in order to that, we need more precise declarations from Mr Esch," Lewandowski suggested.

Kawulski echoed the sentiment, "’Butterbean’ is an MMA superstar in the USA...this fight could end up being an unforgettable show for all KSW fans. Once both sides express their interest in the fight, KSW Federation will try to book this bout."

With Emelianenko (17-3) entering the picture, another exciting, and significantly marketable, match-up presents itself. The Russian fighter last competed at “APF: Azerbaijan vs. Europe” this May in Baku, Azerbaijan, where he defeated Miodrag Petkovic via technical knockout in round one. The victory was Emelianenko’s eighth consecutive; his last loss came courtesy of Fabricio Werdum, by submission, in November of 2006.

KSW is scheduled for Sept. 18 with the venue still to be determined. Three “Super Fights” and the finals of the light heavyweight tournament have been announced thus far.

• Light Heavyweight Tournament Final: Daniel Tabera vs. Jan Błachowicz
• Superfight: Krzysztof Kułak vs. Daniel Dowda
• Superfight: Przemysław Saleta vs. Marcin Najman
• Superfight: Mariusz Pudzianowski vs. TBA

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Bellator: Zuffa lawsuit is a big pile of nothing

Bellator: Zuffa lawsuit is a big pile of nothing

While Zuffa, LLC – the parent-company of the Ultimate Fighting Championship and World Extreme Cagefighting – has traditionally been voracious in terms of protecting its product, Thursday night's revelation that the company was suing the Bellator Fighting Championships, as well as influential agent Ken Pavia, came as quite a surprise.

Bellator officials were just as taken aback, according to the company's newly hired attorney, Patrick English.

"I was asked to represent Bellator yesterday when they heard there had been a lawsuit filed," English told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). "Originally, they had no idea what it was about. It was actually Kevin Iole who was kind enough to tell me what it was about."

It was combat sports journalist Iole's report on Yahoo! Sports that first sent shockwaves through the MMA community. Iole outlined the details of Zuffa's lawsuit – filed in Clark County, Nevada, and a copy of which MMAjunkie.com has since obtained – which alleges that Pavia and Bellator "conspired to misappropriate Zuffa's confidential information and trade secrets in an effort to unfairly compete against Zuffa in the MMA marketplace."

While English doesn't deny that certain documents were shared, he insists that the lawsuit was hardly necessary and that Bellator officials did not participate in any wrongdoing.

"They weren't, per se, confidential UFC documents that were being talked about," English said. "It was very simple. Bellator was interested in checking on forms that the UFC typically uses in order to see if it was missing anything in terms of its own forms. The types of forms that we're talking about, by and large – there's a form that the UFC uses making sure that the fighters don't use the same colored trunks. There's forms that notify them that they're not supposed to have sponsorship stuff on their attire. There was a form that dealt with termination of contracts. Those are not confidential documents, and the bulk of what we're talking about is that.

"We're not talking about proprietary information, meaning information that would include things like confidential financial information or anything like that."

Of course, as the UFC's representatives readily admit in the complaint, they really aren't fully aware what was shared between Pavia and Bellator, hence the lawsuit. The complaint alleges that the documents may have included "promotional agreements, bout agreements, sponsorship forms, extension letters, injury forms, and the like."

As Zuffa representative Donald Campbell, Esq., a partner in the Las Vegas-based firm Campbell & Williams, told MMAjunkie.com, "We intend to conduct a very intensive and thorough investigation and hold all of the parties engaged in wrongdoing fully accountable to the full measure of the law."

The email

At the center of the lawsuit is a particularly concerning email from Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney to Pavia.

The full (un-edited) email reads:

Ken,

Tim and I know that you've been doing great about sending us "All" of the seminal docs from the UFC, so that we can re-do them and implement them for Bellator.

Can you please re-send emails with those attachments. Literally list them 1-TBD.

Please list each in terms of what it is for and how the UFC uses them/implements them.

Please also make sure they are attached and correspondingly listed.

Then I'm going to have our team Monday re-type them and we will sufficiently alter them such that they will appear to be ours and not theirs.

If you can get this over to us late today, that would be great.

Thanks,

B

While some MMA observers questioned the authenticity of the email, English didn't claim the correspondence was a forgery in any way. Instead, he simply believes the documents in question should not create concern – and he's quite happy to share them all with Zuffa's counsel.

"The bottom line is this: Despite a rather inflammatory email that Bjorn sent out, Bellator has not received – in the bulk of what Ken Pavia sent – confidential information," English said. "I can understand why the UFC would be upset given the email, but I reached out for them to explain exactly what Bellator did receive, and I would hope they'll understand once they understand exactly what was transmitted and why.

"Bellator hasn't actually used anything it was sent. In fairness to the UFC, they don't know that. I'm willing to share with them exactly what that is, and I think that will allay their concerns at the end of the day."

While the natural question asked by many is, "Where did the UFC get the e-mail?", English said he's not concerned.

"It certainly wasn't through Bellator, but it doesn't really matter," English said.

"There will be no financial damages"

Understandably, Rebney is currently unwilling to discuss the pending litigation directly. But the Bellator CEO did state that with his promotion's third 12-week season less than 14 days away, he's not letting the lawsuit provide any distraction.

"We're working 20 hours a day right now," Rebney said. "We've been relentless. ... We've just been going nuts. I think we've got a spectacular show coming up with the first show to kick everything off. There are fights on the show that won't even make the TV show that I'm excited to see. Yves Edawrds-Luis Palomino and some of the other fights that aren't even going to be on the show are going to be great.

"We've just been working like dogs – going nuts and getting it all together. It never ceases to amaze me how much effort goes into 12 shows in sequence on a weekly basis. I actually wish something would disrupt the amount of time we're putting into it."

Of course, when the news first came out, many MMA messageboards erupted with doomsday scenarios for Bellator. Rebney believes nothing could be farther from the truth.

"I've never given it a thought," Rebney said. "We're in a better position right now than the company has ever been in since the day I founded it – since the first day I came up with the idea when I was sitting in my living room in Brentwood, Calif. We're in a stronger position right now than we've ever been in. We're in a good spot. I'm very comfortable with where we are right now.

"I'm by no stretch of the imagination calm just because we've got so much going on and we've got so much happening in terms of production. We're constantly changing and adjusting and adapting and trying out new stuff, but we're in a great spot. Everything is going extremely well. We're thrilled with where we are. We're thrilled with what's going on in terms of TV. We're in a very, very good spot right now."

English also stated despite Zuffa's request for compensatory and exemplary damages, as well as attorney's fees and court costs, Bellator's financial well-being is not in peril.

"It's very simple: there will be no financial damages because it's a big pile of nothing," English said. "I don't mean this to be critical of the UFC. The UFC simply doesn't know what was sent as of the time they filed this – and frankly, right now. There's absolutely no difficulty sharing with the UFC exactly what was sent and dealing with any concerns they've got.

"It's much ado about nothing. If they knew, they wouldn't have filed the lawsuit, I'm sure. In this particular case, the easiest thing to do is to be forthright and truthful and discuss it with them. It's that simple."

"There's nothing really to fight about"

Meanwhile, Pavia's standing with the UFC is unclear. The MMA Agents boss wasn't available for comment when contacted by MMAjunkie.com, but one of his many clients, Todd Brown, was officially announced as a UFC newcomer today and will compete at next week's UFC 117 event.

Requests for comment from UFC president Dana White were not immediately returned, and Zuffa's counsel declined to speculate on the current condition of the relationship.

"That's a question better left addressed by Mr. Pavia," Campbell said.

Both Zuffa and Bellator representatives confirm they have yet to address each other directly, but English suggests the issue should be settled quickly and painlessly.

"It should be because there's nothing really to fight about," English said. "I've called into them. I have a letter into them. I know they've got a show this weekend. They know me. These are people that I've worked with over the years in other capacities.

"This is nothing more than a company making sure it wasn't missing any bases."

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Brock Lesnar Penthouse story.

Brock Lesnar Penthouse story.

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Amateur female kickboxer dies days after KO loss

A woman kickboxer has died after being felled by a left hook to the face during an amateur tournament in Florida.
Adrienne Simmons, 34, was knocked out in the final round of a three-round bout in Orlando on Sunday.
The fight was stopped and ringside doctors treated Miss Simmons, who sat up and spoke to paramedics as she was helped to the dressing room.
But the Atlanta-based fighter collapsed soon after and was eventually airlifted to hospital where she died on Monday.

Fatal blow: Adrienne Simmons died after being felled by a punch to the head during a championship fight
She is thought to be the first women kickboxer to die following a fight.
Simmons' boyfriend yesterday claimed tournament organisers, International Kickboxing Federation, had failed to provide adequate medical facilities.
Chike Lindsay-Ajudua said there was no ambulance immediately available and it took almost 60 minutes to get Simmons to Orlando Medical Centre.
He told Atlanta's 11Alive.com: 'It took over half an hour after the incident for her to even be loaded onto a gurney for transport.
Fighter: The 30-year-old is the first woman to be killed in the contact sport

'Transportation took another 20 minutes, which gave over an hour of time for the swelling of her brain to get to a point where there was little that doctors could do.
'The severity of this accident is a direct result of the proper precautions not being taken by the IKF.'

Simmons had been fighting Lindsay Scheer in a Muay Thai match, when she was knocked out.

The Thai form of kick-boxing allows fighters use feet, elbows, hands and knees to rain blows on their opponents although women have to wear headguards.

Miss Simmons had emergency surgery to relieve swelling on the brain but never recovered consciousness.
Her death has been ruled an accident by the Orange County coroner.
Speaking about the fatal blow, her trainer Eric Haycraft said: 'It really just seemed like a normal bout.

'It was a heavy shot but everyone involved had no reason to believe there was anything abnormal except a fighter getting their bell rung like we all have had at some point in our careers.'
On her Facebook page, Ms Scheer described her opponent as 'brave', and wrote that part of herself had died along with Ms Simmons.
'I have been inconsolable since that moment,' she wrote. 'I did not know what it really felt like to cry. I was and am broken.'

Steve Fossom, the president of the International Kickboxing Federation, could not be reached for comment.

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The Crypt thoughts are with her and her family.

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Jacob Volkmann The Doctor is In

Jacob Volkmann The Doctor is In

“You gotta start growing up and taking things serious.”

The words directed at Jacob Volkmann two years ago didn’t come from his wife, his parents, or a close friend, but from the owner of a bank in his hometown of Fergus Falls, Minnesota who apparently believed that being a professional fighter wasn’t the right path for a family man who was also a practicing chiropractor.
“Easy for you to say because I’ve got bills to pay,” responded Volkmann, who was in the early stages of a career that eventually brought him to the UFC in November of 2009.
What he didn’t tell the bank owner was that after being a athlete since he began wrestling at the age of four, turning off those competitive urges doesn’t come easy, and that in mixed martial arts, he found a way to continue being an athlete after a stellar college career that saw him earn recognition as an All-American three times for the University of Minnesota.
“I want to keep fighting as long as I can, until my body gives out,” said Volkmann, currently 10-2 as a pro. “I’m focused on fighting and I want to do it long-term.”

That’s not to mean that he’s abandoned his practice, Volkmann Chiropractic, in White Bear Lake, Minnesota, but he admits that “the office just started, so it barely pays for itself.”
So in the meantime, he coaches high school wrestling and focuses on his career in the Octagon, which got off to a rocky start as he lost his first two bouts, to Thiago and Martin Kampmann. With his back against the wall, he entered his March bout against Ronys Torres knowing that a third straight loss would probably mark the end of his UFC stay for the time being. In response, Volkmann delivered a workmanlike, yet unspectacular, three round split decision win that kept him alive in the ultra-competitive UFC lightweight division.

“Every fight until my new contract is a must win,” said Volkmann, who returns to action this Sunday against the UK’s Paul Kelly. “This fight is a must win. I thought the Paulo Thiago fight was pretty exciting. The Kampmann fight wasn’t too exciting, it was short, and the Torres fight wasn’t very exciting, so I think I’m still on the border.”
And while he got the win against Torres, he knows that it wasn’t going to win any awards for Fight of the Year, something you can tell irks him a bit.
“When I was wrestling in college I always wrestled the same way – keep on moving, keep the pace up, and it was pretty exciting,” he said. “I’ve always trained to make it exciting in the fights too. (Against Torres) I needed to work on controlling him more and I didn’t work on my hands like I should have and that kind of threw me for a loop during the fight.”

Even coach Greg Nelson got on Volkmann’s case, telling him that his standup looked like he was “swatting bees”.
“I was pretty embarrassed at how my standup was against Torres,” he said. “My hands should be better.”
It’s the curse of many lifelong wrestlers, who finally get to throw hands when they crossover to mixed martial arts and either develop poor technique or abandon what got them to the dance in the first place.
“I do so much better when I just straight grapple, but when I throw punches, I keep on forgetting that there are submissions there,” said Volkmann, who has six subs (two via strikes) on his record. “Against Torres, I was just thinking about punching him. That’s what I’m hoping to change with Paul Kelly here.”

To get to where he wants to be, Volkmann and Nelson have been working the pads daily, and have also altered their training regimen a bit.
“We’re intertwining everything with punches and takedowns and submissions,” he said. “Before we were doing punches or takedowns or submissions.”
And if the idea of a second straight UFC win and showing off an improved fight game isn’t enough motivation for him, consider that in Kelly, he’s facing a fighter he doesn’t exactly want to send “Christmas” (pardon the pun) cards to.
“I really don't like Paul,” said Volkmann. “I like him less than all my previous opponents put together.”
So where did all this bad blood come from? All from the fact that the original meeting between the two at UFC 116 in July was postponed because of visa issues on Kelly’s side.
“He had two months to get a visa?” asks Volkmann. “It doesn’t take two months to get a visa. He messed that up and I lost a lot of sponsorships, so I’m pretty irritated with him.”

But despite losing what he estimates to have been three to five thousand dollars in sponsorship money, Volkmann won’t be coming out reckless on Sunday in order to take his frustration out on his opponent, and he doesn’t believe Kelly will either.
“I’m assuming the worst and I’m assuming that he’s gonna play it smart,” he said. “I don’t want to expect him to come at me like an idiot, because what if he doesn’t? I’m expecting the hardest that he can give, and I always train for that.”

As for his scouting report on Kelly, Volkmann doesn’t seem too impressed with the Liverpool product.
“When I was watching his fights, he didn’t move his head as much as I thought a standup guy would,” he said. “He did have pretty good placement with his hands, but it didn’t seem like they had very much power. I’ve been working my hands and my feet and moving my head a lot so hopefully I can avoid his punches. As far as his ground game goes, he doesn’t have much – elbows are about all he’s got and I don’t care about elbows. He’s probably working on his takedown defense, which is fine. He probably thinks that I’m gonna shoot, which is not that smart because I’m a Greco guy. I don’t know if he knows that or not and Greco is a whole different ballgame.”
And Jacob Volkmann is a lot different

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The Mid-Fight Conversation Between Pat Barry and 'Cro Cop' You Didn't Hear

The Mid-Fight Conversation Between Pat Barry and 'Cro Cop' You Didn't Hear

The Mid-Fight Conversation Between Pat Barry and 'Cro Cop' You Didn't Hear

7/25/2010 7:52 AM ET By Ben Fowlkes

Pat Barry could tell right away that he had a problem. He'd just floored his idol, Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic, for the second time in the first round of their UFC 115 bout with a beautiful right hand that landed flush on the Croatian's skull, and he knew immediately that he'd broken his hand in the process.

"The world couldn't see it because the camera wasn't close enough to my face, but as soon as I broke my hand – that was the second punch I landed that knocked him down – as soon as it happened, my lip was starting to tremble, and for two reasons. One, it hurt terribly. And two, I honestly thought that was going to be the end of my career. I never would have guessed that it was only one broken bone. I felt like all the bones in my hand were, like, entirely disintegrated."

The injured hand was a problem, Barry knew, but it wasn't the end of the world. He'd come into the fight with a game plan that hinged on two main weapons: his right hand and his right foot. At least he still had one. At least he could still kick his way to a victory even if his hand was shattered.

You know how this story goes. It's like that scene in a comedy movie where a beleaguered character remarks to himself that hey, at least it's not raining. Cue the thunder and lightning, the sudden angry downpour. Or, in Barry's case, the fractured foot.

"After the hand broke I panicked for a little bit, then I pulled myself together, thinking, it's just a hand, you've got other weapons," Barry said. "Then I threw a kick and broke my foot, and then I panicked. Complete, oh-sh*t-I-don't-know-what-to-do panic. I don't know how I got through the next two rounds. Honestly, it was like I could hear the clock slow down. Those rounds went from five minutes to about a half-hour each."

Part of how he got through, he said, was by putting his sense of humor to work for him. After the first, when he came back to his corner and told his coach that his two main weapons were now non-operational, the only advice he got was to get on his bicycle and try to score some points and survive for the next two rounds.

"I said, 'Excuse me? Did you not hear what I said? I got nothing.' So we started laughing about it, and that's what sort of enabled me to get back up for round two."

Barry managed to get off the stool for the second frame, but he was a fraction of the fighter he'd been in the first. He tried to talk himself into throwing the right hand. He kept seeing the openings for it, and it was tough to resist. He told himself to stop being a baby. How horribly could it hurt, anyway?

So he threw it. Bad idea.

"I almost screamed," Barry said. "I'm not manly enough to say that didn't hurt. It hurt a lot. I mean, a lot."

It didn't take "Cro Cop" long to notice the change that had come over his opponent. One minute he'd been knocked flat on his backside by a right hand from Barry, then it was as if Barry had decided to completely abandon the weapon that had been working so well, and Filipovic didn't know why. Rather than guess at the reason, he went straight to the source.

"We were on the ground in the second and he was on top of me punching me and he asked me what was wrong," said Barry. "He said, 'What's wrong with you? Why'd you stop fighting?' I told him, 'I broke my hand,' and he was like, 'Bullsh*t.' I said, 'No sir. My hand is broken. That hand is gone.'"

The way Barry saw it, there wasn't any point in lying to his opponent about it. Even if Filipovic knew that the right hand was no longer a factor, he'd still have to worry about the left. And besides, what were the chances that he'd really take Barry's word for it? He might as well tell the guy the truth, he reasoned.

Barry made it to the third round that night before finally being overwhelmed by a late surge from "Cro Cop." A sharp punch combo in the final minute dropped him, and a few seconds later Filipovic slapped on a rear naked choke that Barry, with his broken claw of a right hand, was unable to defend.

After the fight Barry took all sorts of criticism for letting his hero off the hook. People said he was too pleased with his own performance too early. They said he should have been trying to finish "Cro Cop" instead of high-fiving him. Some even said he didn't really want to beat his idol.

"Of course you always hear different questions and assumptions. Some people are like, 'I hope you got paid a lot to throw the fight,' which is just absurd. Then there's others saying, 'You were scared of beating your idol,' or the one that bugs me the most, 'You were showing him too much respect.' What does that mean? Does it mean, I got in the ring and respected his abilities in the fight? I don't know. How can you have too much respect for 'Cro Cop'? He's 'Cro Cop'!"

Now Barry's right hand is out of the cast six weeks early, thanks to what he sees as his Wolverine-like mutant healing ability. He still doesn't use the hand, though. Not even to brush his teeth or start his car.

To help the healing process along, he sings to his injured hand. "Rosanna" by the band Toto works best, he said, although "Africa" will do in a pinch.

It's hard for him not to feel frustrated by being so close to putting away his idol only to get injured and see the chance of a lifetime slip away, but he's trying to stay positive. It helps to remember the moment he would later be criticized for, when both he and "Cro Cop" paused to high-five one another and smile in appreciation of each other. That's something you don't forget, he said, even if you didn't come out on the winning end that particular night.

"How cool is it that 'Cro Cop' gave me a high-five twice in the first round? To me, that was an acknowledgement of my presence, an acknowledgement from him that, hey, you did show up to fight and you deserve to be in this cage. That's what I took from it. That means a lot."

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Joe Rogan, Mayhem Miller Rip Gus Johnson

Joe Rogan, Mayhem Miller Rip Gus Johnson

Joe Rogan, Mayhem Miller Rip Gus Johnson

7/22/2010 1:59 PM ET By Michael David Smith

Strikeforce fighter Jason Mayhem Miller thinks CBS announcer Gus Johnson is an "idiot" for his comments at the end of the April Strikeforce show, and UFC announcer Joe Rogan agrees with that assessment.

In a wide-ranging discussion on Rogan's UStream show, Miller and Rogan expressed their agreement with what many MMA fans said immediately following the CBS broadcast: Johnson made a bad situation even worse by describing the brawl following the main event as the kind of thing that just sometimes happens in MMA.

Miller, who provoked the brawl that broke out in the cage by confronting Jake Shields following his victory in the main event, said that as he was being hit by Shields' entourage, "The freaking idiot Gus Johnson goes, 'Gentlemen, this is national television.' I'm like, 'Ha ha, no s**t'."

Rogan sounded disgusted as he then asked Miller, referring to Johnson, "What's up with that dude?"

His voice dripping with sarcasm, Miller said of Johnson, "He's the best commentator in mixed martial arts."

Rogan then said, "You're entitled to your opinion," before saying Johnson's voice makes him sound like he's "in a mold."

To some extent I think Miller is being unfair to Johnson here: Miller is, after all, the one who got the ugly events at the end of the Strikeforce show started. If Miller had stayed out of the cage, Johnson wouldn't have said what he said.

But while I've been a fan of Johnson's work on college basketball, I tend to agree with those who think Johnson doesn't bring his A-game to MMA.

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.James Toney: 'When Randy Goes to Sleep, I Guarantee He's Thinking About Me'

James Toney: 'When Randy Goes to Sleep, I Guarantee He's Thinking About Me'

(How did I train? I didn't train. I bought me one of these Fedor sweaters and ate ice cream for eight weeks. I'm ready to go.)

James "Lights Out" Toney Sat down with MMAFighting.com lead blogger Michael David Smith today for an online chat with fans about the boxer's upcoming MMA debut fight with UFC Hall-of-Famer Randy Couture.

Although Toney's responses seemed suspiciously devoid of their usual incoherency, hearing him call MMA fighters "a bunch of girls" will just add to the collective satisfaction of fans and pundits when he gets beaten by a member of the fairer sex on August 28 at UFC 118.

Here's are Toney's replies to fans on the chat, who incidentally obviously didn't read Ben's piece on what not to ask in an MMA interview.

If you win does that prove boxing is better than mixed martial arts?

James Toney: No doubt. It's already known that boxing is better than MMA but I'll prove that and that James Toney is the best fighter no matter if it's boxing or MMA.

What will James do when Couture clinches on the feet and when he smothers him on the ground, meaning Couture is never going to trade with you, just smother you with wrestling?

James Toney: God bless him if he wants to try. I'm ready for anything he tries to do. Nothing he tries is going to be enough. I've been in there with plenty of guys tougher than him. I'm ready.

As we all know the boxing aspect of MMA is totally different from professional boxing. All the bobbing and weaving, shoulder rolling might not work when the opponent can take you down. So how has your experience been trying to adjust to leg kicks and takedowns? How has it been going for you in training, and what do you think about bobbing, weaving and shoulder rolling in mixed martial arts?

James Toney: My style is perfect for this fight. I'm ready for his leg kicks, I'm ready for him trying to shoot; I'm ready for anything he does.

Have you sparred with 4-ounce gloves, and if you have, what’s your experience regarding the power, and the lack of defense they provide?

James Toney: I don't spar with four-ounce gloves because when I tried that at first and my sparring partners were getting hurt.What do you think someone's going to do when I hit them with four-ounce gloves? They're getting knocked out.

Do you think that the fans of MMA are over looking the fact that you have years of combat training? If you make this into a fight, do you think that all the supposed differences will go out the window when punches start flying?

James Toney: I feel that everybody is overlooking me. In MMA there are so many different characteristics of a fight and people think I'm not ready for it, but I'm really looking forward to showing what I can do on August 28 and showing that I'm the best in the world.

What will happen when Randy takes you down?

James Toney: If Randy takes me to the ground he's going to have to worry. I'm not the one who's worried about that. I guarantee you, Randy is worried. I'm not losing sleep on Randy Couture but I guarantee when he goes to sleep, he's thinking about me. People seem like they're forgetting that the fight starts standing up.

James, you do realize Dana White is trying to embarrass you with having you face a world-class wrestler, don't you?

James Toney: You better realize that Dana White has just signed one of the best fighters in the world, period. And if that's the way they're thinking, then the one that will be embarrassed is the UFC.

How many fights did you have on your UFC contract?

James Toney: It will be 3-5. After I knock out Randy Couture I plan on coming back and fighting in October and then hopefully I'd fight Brock Lesnar in the New Year. My main goal is to stay busy and show that I'm the people's champion either in boxing or in MMA. I'm the heavyweight champion of the world. I'm the heavyweight champion of the IBA so why can't I be the UFC heavyweight champion? My biggest problem in boxing is that everyone is scared to fight me, so now I'm coming to the UFC to fight. I give Randy Couture all the credit in the world because he wasn't afraid to fight me, but he's going to get knocked out come August 28.

What MMA fighter do you think could make a successful transition to boxing?

James Toney: None of them could. MMA fighters don't like to get hit. They can't stand in the pocket and trade punches. MMA guys want to submit somebody or kick them like a little girl. I think Wanderlei Silva could maybe be a good boxer, and Anderson Silva would have a chance. Georges St. Pierre might too. But seriously: Can you name me one MMA fighter who can punch as well as me?

Randy has been training wrestling for decades and is considered to be one of the best Greco-Roman practitioners in MMA. How do you plan to neutralize his grappling skills?

James Toney: I've had a great training camp and my trainers are getting me ready to take the best of what Randy does. I guarantee, once we get in there, he can't do too much.

How high do you rate Randy's striking?

James Toney: He's pretty good for a girl. He's got the balls to fight me but there's no MMA fighter who has the balls to trade punches with me. If they do, it's suicide. If Randy tries to grab me I'll hit him so hard his grandparents will feel it. I keep reminding everybody, the fight starts standing up. To shoot you have to get close and when you do, you're going to get hurt. I'm in the business of hurting people and that's what I'm planning on doing.

Coming into UFC is there a certain person that you would have rather fought than Couture?

James Toney: The person I wanted to fight right off the bat was Brock Lesnar. He's a champion, I'm a champion and I wanted to do it. But they said I couldn't do that. Then they said, "How about Kimbo?" But I said, "That's too easy. That's like kicking a little kid's butt." But then Randy started saying he wanted to fight me, so I said, "OK, you're the first one getting it."

What will be your strategy when Randy pins you against the cage and controls your arms so you can't throw knockout punches? Also, after having not fought in a cage before do you feel that the cage could be a game changer for you?

James Toney: I'm in a cage every day. I train in a cage every day. If Randy wants to hold me against the cage, he can't do it. I'm tougher than he is. Randy is fragile. People think Randy is a god in the MMA world, but in the boxing world he'd be considered a journeyman – a bum. How many knockouts does he have, nine or 10? And people think he's a Hall of Famer? In a real sport you've got to be retired before you're in the Hall of Fame? When I fight Randy he won't be Hall of Fame, he'll be Hall of Shame.

Are you prepared for [three] 5-minute rounds of MMA fighting or are you essentially looking at the attempt to knock out Couture as soon as possible?

James Toney: I'm prepared to go however long the fight takes. I've got the best conditioning coach in the world. Every day my trainer puts me through hell and back. Everybody calls me fat and all that? Watch me at the weigh-in on August 27 and see how much I weigh.

Freddie Roach commented that the most difficult aspect of boxing for MMA fighters to understand is the distance between you and your opponent; did you encounter the same problem when transitioning to MMA?

James Toney: I'm not worried about distance. Randy better make sure he's not in my range. I'm a real fighter. I'll do things you haven't seen in 40 years. I'm an old-school fighter, and all the other old-school fighters are dead.

Do you think you would continue an MMA career after the fight with Couture?

James Toney: We're in the process of figuring that out right now, but I told Dana my goal is to hold the heavyweight championship of the UFC and in boxing at the same time. So as long as it takes me to get Brock Lesnar, that's how long it'll be. If Lesnar gets by Cain Velasquez, I'll fight Lesnar in February or March. But right now my focus is on Randy Couture. Randy's gonna get it. I ain't playing with that dude. I like Cain Velasquez, and I think he has the ability to knock Lesnar out. I think that fight is a toss-up. Lesnar ran away from Shane Carwin like a girl, but then Carwin ran out of gas and quit. But I'll fight any of them, any time anywhere. That's my motto.

What do you have to say about the comments made by Joe Rogan regarding your chances against Brock Lesnar? Comments such as, "...[Brock’s] going to do whatever he wants to [Toney]. He's going to have [James Toney] work for him... Lesnar is going to be [Toney’s] master. He's going to put a dog collar on [Toney]. He's going to do whatever the F*** [Lesnar] wants”?

James Toney: When did he say that? I was just with Joe Rogan a few days ago and he didn't say that to me. But everybody's got their opinions.

Do you realize if you get taken to the ground you have no chance?

James Toney: I'm very comfortable on the ground. I'm not worried about that. If I couldn't fight on the ground I wouldn't be fighting in MMA. I'm a born fighter and somebody like me comes along once every 30 years.

[Are] there any MMA [fighters] who you like to watch fight?

James Toney: Absolutely. Everybody has this misconception I don't like MMA. I love MMA. I love Georges St. Pierre, I love Rich Franklin, I like BJ Penn, I like Anderson Silva, Rampage Jackson, Rashad Evans; I like a ton of these guys. I don't have a problem with those dudes. MMA is a great sport.

Is it true that you tapped out King Mo?

James Toney: It's true. I've been training with King Mo, I've been training with some good King of the Cage fighters, and I've been doing well. Ask them yourself, they'll tell you.

After you lose do you plan on apologizing for all the disrespect you've shown?

James Toney: Kiss my behind (editor’s note: I’m betting Smith censored his actual reply). Other people should be apologizing to me.

What is your Silva vs. Sonnen prediction?

James Toney: Good fight. Silva is similar to me except that I'm a hell of a lot better fighter than Anderson Silva and Chael Sonnen is a hell of a lot better wrestler than Randy Couture.

Joe Rogan didn't say those things.

What kind of submission did you use [to tap out King Mo]?

James Toney: guillotine choke

What does a kick feel like compared to a punch? Ray Mercer got kicked on the top of the head in a kickboxing match and didn't even know where he was after it.

James Toney: I'm not a kicker so I'm not worried about kicking. I'm not trying anything new. I don't need to. (editor’s note: I’m betting Smith didn’t censor his actual reply)

Why do MMA when you are a great boxer and make more money in boxing ?

James Toney: I can make more money in boxing if I become the heavyweight champion of the world, but I came in because Dana White brought me in here and I have something to prove.

Who do you think is the pound-for-pound fighter in MMA and in boxing?

James Toney: James "Lights Out" Toney. I'm the champ. I've had 32 title fights.

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Team Fabricio Werdum: “There’s No Upside to a Rematch with Fedor Emelianenko, UNLESS…

Team Fabricio Werdum: “There’s No Upside to a Rematch with Fedor Emelianenko, UNLESS…

Team Fabricio Werdum: “There’s No Upside to a Rematch with Fedor Emelianenko, UNLESS…”

Written by Tom Ngo
July 26th, 2010

After initially asking for an immediate rematch to legitimize his “fluke” victory over Fedor Emelianenko, it appears the Brazilian is now backpedaling from those demands as he prepares to attack the negotiating table.

“That was with the emotions of the fight running high,” Werdum’s manager, Richard Wilner, told MMAFighting.com. “Once emotions subside and rationale thought prevails, Fabricio understands there’s no upside to a rematch with Fedor unless M-1 puts a significant amount of money on the table.

“We have no rematch clause in our contract with Strikeforce.”

After parting ways the UFC following his TKO loss to Junior dos Santos in October 2008, Werdum now finds himself in a precarious position. Now that he’s hung submission victories over Fedor and Strikeforce champion Alistair Overeem, the jiu jitsu specialist carries quite a bit of bargaining power in regards to his next date.

“While we’re open to the possibility of fighting Fedor again, whatever opportunity that Strikeforce puts in front of us, as long as it makes sense, we’ll consider it,” Wilner stated.

What Werdum’s camp appears to be telling M-1 Global is, ‘if you want the opportunity to avenge your meal ticket’s only loss in the last decade, you’re going to have to do it on our terms.’

That goes for you too, Mr. Ubereem.

Wilner took a brief moment to address the presumptuous promise Overeem recently made when he requested a mulligan with Werdum – who has quickly emerged as the most popular kid in class after snapping Emelianenko’s 27-fight winning streak.
“[Overeem] guarantees he’ll win, just like the last time Fabricio kicked his ass,” Wilner said while laughing about his client’s kimura submission of the Dutchman back in May 2006.

Strikeforce and M-1 Global have been actively meeting to discuss Emelianenko’s future, as both sides are aiming for an October/November return. Although Werdum and Overeem weren’t invited to the V.I.P. summit, their futures will be directly impacted by what takes place during those talks

http://http://www.5thround.com/45284/team-fabricio-werdum-theres-no-upside-to-a-rematch-with-fedor-emelianenko-unless/

Ahhh greed and $$$$$ rearing it's ugly head.......

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Uncovering the mysteries of Igor Pokrajac

Uncovering the mysteries of Igor Pokrajac

If you had your eyes on nearly every Pride FC event since April of 2002, you would have seen the same tough guy in Mirko Cro Cop’s corner – current UFC light heavyweight Igor Pokrajac.
And though Pokrajac never fought in the premier Japanese organization, the 31-year old Croatian now has the chance to make a name for himself on the sport’s biggest stage in the UFC, and after two hard-fought losses to Vladimir Matyushenko and James Te Huna, he will put everything on the line this Sunday against James ‘The Sandman’ Irvin.
So who is this mystery man? Read on to find out.

How did your history with traditional martial arts begin?
I started martial arts in 1999, training Greco-Roman wrestling, and I made the Croatian National team. In 2001 I joined Cro Cop Team and began training MMA for the next eight years. In 2009 I joined the Croatian Top Team.
Why did you decide to become a MMA fighter?
In 1995, I had my first contact with MMA watching a VHS tape of UFC 1. I was overwhelmed and excited by it and wanted to do it, but I didn't have the opportunity until 2001.
Soon after your MMA debut, you took part in a tournament in 2003. What can you tell us about fighting three times on the same night?
I was an outsider and an underdog not expected to win. It was only my second time fighting and I was facing very experienced opponents. But I had good conditioning, was prepared for the fights, and I had confidence in myself. I won all three matches by TKO. A tournament is tough in that you have to learn to deal with injuries so you are able to continue to the next match. On the night I injured my ankle in the first fight and elbow in the second fight. I had to deal with it before the final.

From your debut to 2006, you kept yourself very active on the European scene, fighting 14 times. But even though you were a Cro Cop Team fighter and Mirko was a success in Japan, why did you never appear in Pride FC?
I wanted to fight and was ready to fight, but I didn't have the opportunity.

It seems that you got more publicity after your defeat to Pride and UFC veteran Assuerio Silva in 2006. That fight consisted of Silva refusing to trade blows with you while taking you down. A lot of people said that basically the only reason you lost was because he decided to strictly fight on the ground.
I knocked him down with a right cross and didn't use the opportunity to finish him. He outweighed me by 55 pounds at the time and had good control on the ground. My goal was to stand up with him.
You had a superb eight fight winning streak before signing with the UFC. In your first UFC fight you lost a decision to Vladimir Matyushenko. Did you feel the first-time UFC jitters?
My right ankle was injured three weeks before the fight. The last weeks of preparation I was only punching and could only punch in the fight too.

So that was the reason we didn’t see many of your haymaker leg kicks against Vladdy?
Yes, plus I just didn’t capitalize on the chance when I got him with left hook. Also, many of his jabs landed on my head because I didn’t move properly, thanks to the problem with my right ankle.

Did you make any new adjustments from that defeat to your meeting with James Te Huna at UFC 110?
For that fight I had 12 weeks of preparation, 9 weeks in Croatia and 3 weeks in Australia. I trained in striking, wrestling, and grappling and did a lot of conditioning, including running and weights.

You were very well trained and without injuries for the Australian UFC, but lost via TKO at 3:26 of third stanza. What happened that night?
Referee (Steve) Percival came to me before the fight and explained the rules that we all know and told me that if I get in some position where he’d stop the fight, but I was okay, just give the thumbs up and he’d let the fight go... as soon I did that (at 3:24) in the fight he stopped it and gave the fight to Te Huna by TKO. For me that was a big lesson. I could smell Te Huna’s fear. I was waiting for them to stop the fight on the end of the second round (when he rocked Te Huna with 17 seconds to go) and then it would be a TKO (victory).

Two defeats in two UFC fights; do you have any extra pressure before facing James Irvin?
I don't think of my losses as a problem or obstacle but rather a learning experience. Now everybody knows what happened against Te Huna and against Vladdy - this was timing, and that type of stuff won’t happen again. For me every fight is like that...I’ll be better than the last time.
For the fans that haven’t seen your fights yet, what should they expect from your fight with Irvin this weekend?
I gave two great fights. I don’t see anything different than that in my next fight, only a better one than last time. I’ll go after him and the final message is to come to the UFC in San Diego and have a blast with all of us.

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UFC champ Anderson Silva: I now want to retire at middleweight

UFC champ Anderson Silva: I now want to retire at middleweight

Forget light heavyweight, forget heavyweight, and especially forget welterweight; Anderson Silva says he wants to stick to middleweight.

The UFC's 185-pound champion today said that he plans to retire in the 185-pound class and apparently is uninterested in fighting at light heavyweight (where he's competed twice) or heavyweight (a class in which he's previously expressed interest).

"I like my weight division that I fight in, and I'm prepared to stay in my weight division," Silva today said through translator and manager, Ed Soares.

That answer came as a clarification to an earlier question. Asked whether he had grown bored in the middleweight division – where he's set the record for most consecutive title defenses at six – Soares translated the previous quote.

Then, Silva interrupted the next question.

"Basically, what he said is that he said I didn't translate it exactly, but he wants to retire fighting in his weight category," Soares said.

Next weekend, on Aug. 7, Silva (26-4 MMA, 11-0 UFC) makes his seventh title defense when he meets Chael Sonnen (24-10-1 MMA, 4-3 UFC) at UFC 117 in Oakland, Calif.

The champion has largely been on the defensive since his most recent title defense, a unanimous-decision win over Demian Maia at UFC 112 that was almost universally panned by fans and critics. It followed another action-light fight at UFC 97 in which he and challenger Thales Leites failed to create fireworks over the course of a five-round, 25-minute affair.

Silva took the heat in stride and said he will continue to do his job.

"The fans are fans," he said. "They're cheering one minute; they're booing you the next minute. A lot of times, fans (are) the greatest thing ever. But sometimes fans don't really understand what's happening in the ring at times. So, I don't really blame them for reacting in some of the ways they react."

UFC president Dana White appears less forgiving. Upon the announcement of Silva vs. Sonnen, he said he will fire Silva in the event of another lackluster performance.

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Anderson Silva to GSP, Shogun: 'Come Fight Me in My Division'

Anderson Silva to GSP, Shogun: 'Come Fight Me in My Division'

Considered by many the reigning pound-for-pound king in mixed martial arts, UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva has been imagined in many fascinating scenarios. Some have envisioned him fighting welterweight champ Georges St. Pierre at a catch weight (Silva himself once suggested the possibility of fighting at welterweight). A permament move up one division to light-heavyweight has also been mentioned, and UFC President Dana White has voiced a belief that he's big enough and talented enough to fight some UFC heavyweights.

Well, put all those dream bookings on hold. The mercurial star now says that he's perfectly content ruling over the 185-pound weight class, and that he plans to stay there for the remainder of his career.

Eschewing possible superfights with the likes of St. Pierre and Mauricio "Shogun" Rua, Silva says they'll have to meet him on his own turf to face him.

"If you want to beat me up, make weight and come fight me in my category, my division," Silva said through his manager and interpreter Ed Soares.

Silva is in the midst of a historic run in the sport. At 26-4 overall, he is the holder of 11 straight victories in the octagon, a UFC record. He next defends the championship against No. 1 contender Chael Sonnen at UFC 117 on August 7.

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Three Reasons Why Silva vs. Sonnen Will Suck (And Three Reasons Why It Might Not)

Three Reasons Why Silva vs. Sonnen Will Suck (And Three Reasons Why It Might Not)

Three Reasons Why Silva vs. Sonnen Will Suck (And Three Reasons Why It Might Not)

In hyping UFC 117's main event, the UFC is doing their best to convince fans that Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen won't be as painful to watch as Silva's last three middleweight title defenses against Demian Maia, Thales Leites, and Patrick Cote. Sonnen has the perfect style to beat Silva (so the story goes) and Chael's outlandish trash talk might even inspire the champion to actually handle his business in the cage for a change. Do you buy it? I'm not quite convinced yet — personally, I think all the factors that made Silva's fight against Maia so awful are also present in the Sonnen matchup — but in the interest of fairness, I figured I'd lay out both sides of the argument. First, why Silva vs. Sonnen will be another infuriating bust...

1. Silva Will Want to Avoid the Mat at All Costs

From a technical perspective, what made Silva's fights against Demian Maia and Thales Leites so dull? Silva understood that those fighters posed their only threats on the ground, and he simply refused to allow the fights to go in that direction, which is something you can get away with when you're a genius on your feet. Silva can't be baited into going to the mat if he doesn't want to, and he won't full-out brawl with a grappler, and run the risk of getting grabbed and taken down. So he keeps his distance, landing a punch to the knee once in a while just to keep himself entertained. As a wrestler, Chael Sonnen's attack is a little different — he wants to be on top and grind you down — but winning fights still means landing a takedown and turning the action horizontal, and Silva knows that. So if you're expecting a firefight between these two, keep dreaming. It'll be another stick-and-move-and-move-and-move-and-move-and-move exhibition from the champ.

2. Silva Doesn't Handle Insults Well

We all want to believe that Silva will respond to Sonnen's trash-talk with brutality. That's kind of how this narrative goes — Chael has been throwing rocks at a hornet's nest, and he's about to get stung the fuck up. Oh, if only. After UFC 112, Ed Soares explained Silva's odd performance by saying Anderson felt personally disrespected by the things Maia said before the fight. Of course, Maia only said he was going to take one of the Spider's eight limbs home with him — in between repeated claims that Silva is the best, most complete fighter in the world — but that was enough, apparently, to make Silva want to spend five rounds clowning Maia with an interpretive dance routine while verbally taunting him. Punching and kicking rarely seemed to cross his mind. So what will happen when Silva is faced with an opponent who has actually insulted him? I think Silva will want to humiliate Sonnen, but he'll do it his way — dancing like a jackass and refusing to engage. Maybe the dancing will be even more ferocious this time, but the general strategy won't be any different.

3. Silva Doesn't Consider Sonnen a Worthy Challenger

One of the most common explanations for Silva's horrible showings in his recent middleweight title fights is that he's bored. Could there be something to that explanation? Perhaps the reason Anderson has sleepwalked through every 185-pound fight since his battle with Dan Henderson in March 2008 was because he hasn't fought anybody like Dan Henderson since then. Cote, Leites, and Maia could all be described as one-dimensional fighters who didn't have a mandate on #1 contendership. As for Sonnen, Ed Soares didn't think he earned his shot yet. Silva has already dismissed Sonnen as a bit of an idiot who brings nothing new to the table. At this point, the only things that seem to motivate Silva are true competitive challenges. Silva knows he's a better fighter than Chael Sonnen, and the opportunity to shut Chael's mouth might not be a great enough incentive.

But hold on — could we be wrong? Will this finally be the fight that gets Anderson Silva to defend his belt with some measure of enthusiasm? Possibly. Here are three reasons why...

1. Silva's Been Warned

Dana White was clearly upset after the Cote and Leites fiascos, but after being thoroughly embarrassed in Abu Dhabi by Silva's non-fight against Maia, White really laid down the law, claiming that he will cut Silva if he puts in one more bizarre performance, champion or not. The UFC president is tired of making excuses for his main events and apologizing to the fans. Silva, who's never been a substantial PPV draw, has now officially become a liability. Even he must understand that it's time to fight like a freakin' normal person, or else.

2. Brazilian Pride

As we pointed out earlier, UFC 117 is going to be well-stocked with Brazilian fighters, who will surely want to see Anderson take home a big win in the main event. Whatever the Portuguese equivalent of "kick his ass!" is, Silva will be hearing that all night in the dressing room. National pride is on the line — something that wasn't a factor during his fights against fellow Brazilians Demian Maia and Thales Leites. Maybe that will be enough to convince Silva to end the night dramatically.

3. Sonnen Doesn't Know the Meaning of 'Buttflopping'

Okay, this is going to sound ridiculous, but maybe Chael Sonnen does have the perfect style to beat Silva. He'll be under no illusions that he can hang with Silva standing. We all know that buttflopping into guard doesn't work against Silva, and Sonnen wouldn't try that approach anyway, you know, because he's a Republican. His only hope — and the only thing Sonnen really knows how to do — is to push forward and shoot, shoot, shoot.

The last time we saw Silva clearly lose a round was when Dan Henderson took him down in the first frame of their fight at UFC 82; Hendo then spent the majority of the round covering Silva's mouth and nose with one hand and smashing him with the other. This is basically what Sonnen will be trying to accomplish. You don't think he can pull it off? You probably didn't think he could pull it off against Nate Marquardt. Sonnen is not a timid fighter, and getting his forehead split open doesn't deter him from his goals. He'll be bringing Silva the kind of pressure that the champ hasn't seen in a long time. And it might be enough to get Silva to snap out of whatever haze he's in and start swinging again.

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