Xtreme Sports News

Chael Sonnen has a long way to go before he wins back the trust of many MMA fans and media folks.

That tends to happen in the world of sports anytime you’re connected with a "steroid" suspension.

The California State Athletic Commission accepted Sonnen’s explanation about needing doctor prescribed testosterone replacement therapy and reduced his suspension from one year to six months. TRT is controversial subject across the board in sports.

In order to avoid future problems, CSAC officials admit that a TRT policy needs to be on the books.

One thing’s for sure, it doesn’t sound like Sonnen is going to stop getting the treatment. His physician Dr. Mark Czarnecki indicated Sonnen has no choice and he wouldn’t be cleared to participate in mixed martial arts without TRT.

"Chael’s body would not tolerate the extreme stress associated with such a sport," Czarnecki told the L.A. Times. "With the amount of trauma to the body, his healing would be deteriorated. His anemia in his blood level would increase. He would not have adequate oxygenation. It would just not be safe [for him.]"

The doc said Sonnen’s near-25-minute fight against Anderson Silva at UFC 117 was a prime example.

"At his state and at his level of fatigue, he was already displaying signs of severe mental fogging," Czarnecki said. "He would have an accelerated mental function at times, an accelerated coronary artery, accelerated muscle deterioration and accelerated fat accumulation and he’d have anemia due the lack of bone marrow stimulation."

The unresolved issue with Sonnen is still who he told and how long before the fight. The Nevada State Athletic Commission became part of this story as well when Sonnen indicated he had told Keith Kizer, the NSAC’s executive director, as far back as 2008 about his TRT.

Kizer went on record saying he’s never spoken to Sonnen about the subject. He went on to indicate that Sonnen, even when his six-month suspension in California is finished, is still not cleared to fight in Nevada. Kizer told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that a future license in Nevada won’t simply be rubber stamped.

Kizer said Sonnen would likely be required to appear at a commission meeting in person before being licensed again in Nevada.

"I think there’s a lot of questions about him that need to be answered, and we want to give him a full and fair opportunity to respond to those questions," Kizer said.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Doctor-suggests-Sonnen-couldn-t-fight-without-te?urn=mma-292477

Chuck The Iceman Liddell Shad Lierley  Jushin Thunder Liger Zach Light Scott Lighty

Michael Johnson and Jonathan Brookins will battle it out for the Season 12 "Ultimate Fighter" title this weekend in Las Vegas. Four more cast members made the cut but it’s semifinalist Nam Phan who gets the toughest assignement.

Phan will face veteran UFC and WEC fighter Leonard Garcia.

Phan (16-7) is wise to drop down to featherweight. He’s too small to make any sort of mark in the UFC’s lightweight division.

Before for you shed a tear for the Vietnamese-American fighter, keep in mind he was a very experienced guy before he gained that slot on TUF 12.

Garcia (14-6-1, 4-3-1 WEC, 1-2 UFC) will be tough. He’s a slugger with his back against the wall. The Texan is one of the Greg Jackson fighters that Dana White actually admires, but he’s just 2-3-1 in his last six fights.

Garcia was originally set to face Tyler Toner but was mysteriously pulled from the bout a few weeks back. That must’ve been when the promotion found out that Alex "Bruce Leeroy" Cacares, Phan’s original opponent, would be unavailable.

Phan won’t be an easy fight for Garcia either. He’s got seven losses but names like Michihiro Omigawa, Rob McCullough, Josh Thomson, Billy Evangelista and JZ Cavalcante highlight his resume. 

Fellow semifinalist Kyle Watson will battle Sako Chivitchian. From the TUF 12 roster, only Phan’s fight and the TUF 12 title bout are slated to appear on the Spike broadcast. MMAjunkie has the official card and televised bouts.

SPIKE CARD
Stephan Bonnar vs. Igor Pokrajac
Jonathan Brookins vs. Michael Johnson
Kendall Grove vs. Demian Maia
Rick Story vs. Johny Hendricks
Leonard Garcia vs. Nam Phan

PRELIMINARY CARD
Rich Attonito vs. Dave Branch
Pablo Garza vs. Fredson Paixao
Will Campuzano vs. Nick Pace
Kyle Watson vs. Sako Chivitchian
Ian Loveland vs. Tyler Toner
Cody McKenzie vs. Aaron Wilkinson

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/-Bruce-Leeroy-absence-makes-Garcia-Phan-possibl?urn=mma-291282

Branden Lee Hinkle Sam Hoger Mark Hominick Choi Hong man Jeremy Horn

The latest surf photographer on COTW, incredibly is only 17 years old and is nailing shots like the one below!! Wow. Look out for this guy in the future; Australian Josh Househam…

www.clubofthewaves.com/surf-photographer/josh-househam.php

http://joshhousehamphoto.tumblr.com

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/cotw/~3/Mmg4lROHG3M/surf-artist-mo-ryan.html

Hirotaka Yokoi Hidehiko Yoshida Yoshiyuki Yoshida Yoon Dong Sik Gilbert Yvel

Source: http://nedsurfshots.blogspot.com/2010/08/take-off.html

Yoshihiro Nakao Roy Nelson Mario Neto Carlos Newton Mike Nickels

Fresh off his appearance in front of the California State Athletic Commission, Chael Sonnen sat down with HDNet’s Mike Straka. On Thursday, his suspension was reduced from one year to six months. Sonnen has been pounded by some members of the media and fans, but he feels no shame at all. 

"I don’t plan on dealing with it at all. I don’t know really anybody who thinks I was on steroids and if they do I wouldn’t offer an explanation or an apology," Sonnen said. "The facts were the facts. That was between me and the commission."  

Sonnen said it was a matter of protocol. He got nabbed for not reporting what he was taking in proper fashion. He made sure to mention that people need to stop saying he was popped for "steroids."

"It’s a big catch word. It’s really not fair. With that said, testosterone falls under the category of steroids. But that’s like saying that mouthwash falls in the category of alcohol. Or cough syrup is alcohol. It’s not exactly the same thing," said Sonnen.

Sonnen also said he’s not a victim and he understands some rules were broken. He does think that there was a lot of confusion on the side of California and for that he should’ve been given the benefit of the doubt. 

When Sonnen was asked what’s next, the fighter said he does know what’s it store for him, but it’s a secret. There’s plenty of good fights out there at middleweight and don’t forget, the coaches for Season 13 of "The Ultimate Fighter" still haven’t been chosen. 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Chael-Sonnen-speaks-Won-t-apologize-and-didn-t-?urn=mma-292339

Pascal Krauss Keigo Kunihara Mike Kyle Achmed Labasanov Jason Lambert

Source: http://nedsurfshots.blogspot.com/2010/02/wet-and-bleak-sunday-8-february-2010.html

Dai Shuanghai  Mac Danzig  Karen Darabedyan Viacheslav Datsik Marcus Davis 

The Fight Network presents a news brief on the announcement that the UFC would be coming to Toronto’s Rogers Centre for UFC 131 on Apr. 30

Source: http://mmalice.com/ufc-131/ufc-announces-date-in-toronto-ufc-131-april-30-video_4e2013d03.html

Edwin Dewees  Nick Diaz  Tadhg Steamfist Dixon Joe Doerksen  Chris Dolman

Following the speedy destruction of his opponent in St. Louis, Ruthless Robbie Lawler discusses why Matt Lindland’s decision to fight a standup battle was obviously a bad one.

Source: http://mmalice.com/robbie-lawler/robbie-lawler-post-strikeforce-st-louis-interview-video_8fe07e8ec.html

Alex Karalexis Mark Kerr Mamed Khalidov Sergei Kharitonov Min Soo Kim

Source: http://nedsurfshots.blogspot.com/2010/02/tilt-shift.html

Thales Leites Fabio Leopoldo Kimo Leopoldo Brock Lesnar John Lewis

Let’s say you’re headed to the gym today, and you get assigned THAT guy as a sparring partner. The one who says he can submit anyone. The one who says "he trains UFC." The one who no one at your gym likes to work out with. What should you wear to knock him off his game a bit?

This. This shirt is $9.95 at Title Boxing and MMA, and would be a steal at twice the price. Obviously, it’s not the shirt you should wear to your family’s holiday party, but in the right context, this shirt is golden. 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/MMA-Marketplace-T-shirt-to-shut-up-any-mouthy-f?urn=mma-290906

Achmed Labasanov Jason Lambert Jose Landi Jons Icho Larenas Bobby Lashley

by Michael David SmithIn one of the biggest mixed martial arts fights of the year, UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre will defend his title in his hometown against Josh Koscheck at UFC 124. We’ve got the predictions right here.

What: UFC 124: St. Pierre vs. Koscheck 2

Where: Bell Centre, Montreal

When: Saturday, the non-televised undercard starts around 7 PM ET and the pay-per-view broadcast begins at 10.

Predictions on the five pay-per-view fights below.

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/12/08/ufc-124-predictions/

Ivan Pack Ido Pariente Karo Parisyan Sherman Pendergarst B J Penn

Just a week ago, Strikeforce: Henderson vs. Sobral was set with Alistair Overeem’s brother’s Strikeforce debut against Antonio Silva, Herschel Walker’s second MMA fight, and a showcase for local favorite Jesse Finney.

Scrap that. Now, the card has a completely different look. Valentijn Overeem, Walker and Finney have all been scratched from the card because of injury.

Now, Mike Kyle has stepped in to face Silva, so one fight is salvaged, but the card has a vastly different look than it did just one week ago. 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Strikeforce-Henderson-vs-Sobral-is-not-quite-a?urn=mma-290094

Min Soo Kim Dong Hyun Kim Kevin Knabjian John Kolosci Cheick Kongo

Introducing Matthew Clark, a surf photographer in New York. Matt won the Follow the Light Foundation grant back in 2007, has a great eye and a portfolio well worth checking out…

www.clubofthewaves.com/surf-photographer/matthew-clark.php

www.clarkography.com

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/cotw/~3/kPR-S0aV-lA/surf-photographer-matthew-clark.html

Matt Serra Jens Pulver Sean Sherk B J Penn Frankie Edgar

Interested in downloading high-quality clips of Chris Sharma climbing?
Today I checked out the website for Chris Sharma’s King Lines movie – and there’s a new addition!
Early versions of the DVD didn’t feature all of the extras properly, so the website features downloadable clips from the extras.
This won’t replace the need to buy the DVD, but [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/rock-climbing-blog/~3/v-YQWecn-lk/philsheard

Krzysztof Soszynski George Sotiropoulos Haik Soukiasian Ronaldo de Souza Ron The Monster Sparks

Location: Stanage Plantation
Date: Sunday 27 July
Sunday shone this weekend. A planned trip to the gym was quickly canned and instead we made a trip out to a new bouldering spot. After a recommendation that Stanage plantation had some good climbing (thanks Jonny!) we checked my bouldering guide book and set out.
If you’re reading this wondering [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/rock-climbing-blog/~3/PAQVWyt9-Yc/philsheard

Wanderlei Silva Marcus Silveira Aaron Simpson Wes Sims Rob Sinclair

Source: http://nedsurfshots.blogspot.com/2010/02/wet-and-bleak-sunday-8-february-2010.html

Zhang Tiequan Igor Zinoviev Mark Coleman Maurice Smith Randy Couture

A long, long time ago (February of 2000) in a galaxy far, far away (Tokyo), Dan Henderson faced Renato "Babalu" Sobral as part of the Rings King of Kings tournament. Not far removed from being an elite Greco-Roman wrestler, Henderson won using his wrestling to control the baby-faced, doughy Sobral and won by majority decision. Click ahead to around the 2:30 mark and stay tuned for about three minutes to see the best action.

Both fighters had plenty of bouts before this one, so they are hardly unseasoned. Still, you’re not seeing the punishing strikes from Henderson or the slick submissions from Babalu that we’ve become accustomed to more recently in their careers.

They’ll face off for Strikeforce this Saturday in St. Louis. Do you think this fight will resemble their first one? 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Henderson-vs-Babalu-the-first-time-around?urn=mma-290040

Mario Sperry Pete Spratt Brian Stann Aaron Stark Kalib Starnes

Strikeforce announced Wednesday that Herschel Walker had to pull out of his bout with Scott Carson at Strikeforce: Henderson vs. Babalu. He sustained a cut under his eye that needed several stitches, and won’t be able to heal in time for next weekend’s bout. From the press release:

“I feel terrible about this,’’ said Walker, who was cut from a knee strike while training with AKA teammate and two-time United States Olympic wrestling team member Daniel Cormier. “I know things like this happen in all sports, but I had trained very hard and was excited to be returning to the cage again. I hope to fight again as soon as the cut heals.’’

The card remains strong, headlined with Dan Henderson taking on Renato "Babalu" Sobral, and also including Paul Daley vs. Scott Smith, Robbie Lawler vs. Matt Lindland, and Antonio Silva vs. Valentijn Overeem.

– If you’re headed to the Strikeforce event in St. Louis, stop at a toy store on your way in. Strikeforce is partnering with Toys for Tots to collect holiday presents for underprivileged children. Bring a new, unwrapped toy with you to the fights, and volunteers will be there to collect your gift. 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Herschel-Walker-off-Strikeforce-s-St-Louis-card?urn=mma-289085

Alexandru Lungu Travis Lutter Stevie Lynch Adam Lynn Chris Lytle

After his last-minute withdrawal last month from UFC 122, Alessio Sakara will return to action when he meets fellow middleweight Maiquel Falcao at UFC on Versus 3 on March 3.

UFC on Versus 3 also features Diego Sanchez vs. Martin Kampmann and CB Dollaway vs. Mark Munoz.

Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/16824/alessio-sakara-vs-maiquel-falcao-booked-for-ufc-on-versus-3-in-march/

Jon Fitch Kenny Florian Jesse Forbes Xavier Foupa Pokam Hermes Franca

ST. LOUIS — Paul Daley became the star of the Strikeforce post-fight press conference on Saturday night. The welterweight, who knocked out Scott Smith, said he didn’t pay attention to Smith’s underdog comparisons.

"He isn’t Rocky, and this wasn’t a movie. I hit him to stay hit," Daley said.

Daley also didn’t seem to mind that his knockout came too late to be included in consideration for the World MMA Awards, which took place in Las Vegas on Wednesday.

"I think MMA awards are a joke. I don’t collect awards. I collect paychecks."

Daley wants to face KJ Noons next because Noons is a big name, and he thinks he could knock Noons out. When Strkeforce CEO Scott Coker was asked about the fight, Daley answered for him.

"Scott doesn’t like that fight because he likes KJ."

– Mike Kyle’s hand was wrapped up at the press conference, and he said that he wasn’t sure exactly when he broke it, but it was in the first round. He knew it was broken, kept punching Antonio Silva and then felt it break again. The second break also broke him mentally, leading to the loss, but Kyle was proud of how he left it all in the cage. He said that owes that to the UFC heavyweight champion.

"Cain Velasquez beat that quit out of me. I wanted to leave it all in the cage," Kyle said.

Velasquez and Kyle train together at the American Kickboxing Academy in San Jose.

– Despite the fact that he fought Antwain Britt on Nov. 19, then decisioned Benji Radach tonight, Ovince St. Preux said that he wants to fight again as soon as possible, as early as Strikeforce’s Challengers event on Jan. 7.

– Speaking of that Jan. 7 card in Nashville, Strikeforce announced that welterweights Tyron Woodley and Tarec Saffiedine will face off as the card’s main event. Two-time Olympian Daniel Cormier will also be on that card, fighting Devin Cole.

If that card can be half as exciting as the card that Strikeforce put together tonight, they will have a very merry beginning to 2011.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Strikeforce-press-conference-highlights-Daley-b?urn=mma-291921

Kit Cope  Wesley Cabbage Correira  Patrick The Predator Côté  Randy The Natural Couture  Dan Cramer

theProgram Zine has a sick Brooks Schuping Throwaway Part. No direct link, so just find it and enjoy it.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/MostlySkateboarding/~3/rZCz78Dkl_8/brooks-schuping-throwaway-part.html

Viacheslav Datsik Marcus Davis  Tony DeSouza  Edwin Dewees  Nick Diaz 

theProgram Zine has a sick Brooks Schuping Throwaway Part. No direct link, so just find it and enjoy it.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/MostlySkateboarding/~3/rZCz78Dkl_8/brooks-schuping-throwaway-part.html

Joe Hybrid Duarte Aldrin de Jesus  Todd Duffee  Marvin Eastman  Stav Crazy Bear Economou 

Source: http://nedsurfshots.blogspot.com/2010/02/tilt-shift.html

Mikko Rupponen Bas Rutten Tarec Saffiedine Alessio Sakara Kazushi Gracie Hunter Sakuraba

ST. LOUIS — Paul Daley became the star of the Strikeforce post-fight press conference on Saturday night. The welterweight, who knocked out Scott Smith, said he didn’t pay attention to Smith’s underdog comparisons.

"He isn’t Rocky, and this wasn’t a movie. I hit him to stay hit," Daley said.

Daley also didn’t seem to mind that his knockout came too late to be included in consideration for the World MMA Awards, which took place in Las Vegas on Wednesday.

"I think MMA awards are a joke. I don’t collect awards. I collect paychecks."

Daley wants to face KJ Noons next because Noons is a big name, and he thinks he could knock Noons out. When Strkeforce CEO Scott Coker was asked about the fight, Daley answered for him.

"Scott doesn’t like that fight because he likes KJ."

– Mike Kyle’s hand was wrapped up at the press conference, and he said that he wasn’t sure exactly when he broke it, but it was in the first round. He knew it was broken, kept punching Antonio Silva and then felt it break again. The second break also broke him mentally, leading to the loss, but Kyle was proud of how he left it all in the cage. He said that owes that to the UFC heavyweight champion.

"Cain Velasquez beat that quit out of me. I wanted to leave it all in the cage," Kyle said.

Velasquez and Kyle train together at the American Kickboxing Academy in San Jose.

– Despite the fact that he fought Antwain Britt on Nov. 19, then decisioned Benji Radach tonight, Ovince St. Preux said that he wants to fight again as soon as possible, as early as Strikeforce’s Challengers event on Jan. 7.

– Speaking of that Jan. 7 card in Nashville, Strikeforce announced that welterweights Tyron Woodley and Tarec Saffiedine will face off as the card’s main event. Two-time Olympian Daniel Cormier will also be on that card, fighting Devin Cole.

If that card can be half as exciting as the card that Strikeforce put together tonight, they will have a very merry beginning to 2011.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Strikeforce-press-conference-highlights-Daley-b?urn=mma-291921

Vitor Belfort Randy Couture Chuck Liddell Quinton Jackson Forrest Griffin

Randy Couture meets with Conner Cordova and talks about the youth training schedule at the Xtreme Couture facility, plus his own experiences as a young man in high school.Reports that Randy took Conner’s lunch money after filming ceased cannot be confirmed at this time.

Source: http://mmalice.com/randy-couture/randy-couture-on-training-kids-anti-bullying-video_e4b28593e.html

Jon Jones Nathan Jones  Kevin Jordan Jeff Joslin Scott Junk 

by Michael David SmithIn one of the biggest mixed martial arts fights of the year, UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre will defend his title in his hometown against Josh Koscheck at UFC 124. We’ve got the predictions right here.

What: UFC 124: St. Pierre vs. Koscheck 2

Where: Bell Centre, Montreal

When: Saturday, the non-televised undercard starts around 7 PM ET and the pay-per-view broadcast begins at 10.

Predictions on the five pay-per-view fights below.

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/12/08/ufc-124-predictions/

Jan Nortje Phillipe Noer Jake O Brien Naoya Ogawa Sean O Haire

Season 12 of "The Ultimate Fighter" was deemed a big ratings success. The show accomplished the feat without turning to the bizarre, abhorrent behavior, which had been commonplace in the past. But that doesn’t mean the wacky material wasn’t there. Apparently, Spike chose to keep that footage out of the finished product.  According to TUF 12 champ Jonathan Brookins, there were plenty of shenanigans.

Brookins told ProMMARadio that Jeff Lentz was the wild man of the house.

Lentz served as a sort "Situation" for the TUF house. He was part troublemaker, part gourmet chef. Lentz was an early loser on the show and that meant he could party away the rest of the season. Brookins said it got so bad one night, after Lentz did 26 shots of Jagermeister, that the show’s crew had to step in to stop the fighter from doing serious damage to himself.

There was also a scenario similar to the knockout scene from TUF 8. That’s when Dave Kaplan asked Tom Lawlor to slug him. The lightweight got starched by Lawlor.

Brookins said something similar happened late in the season when Spencer Paige asked housemates to crack him and see if they could knock him out. Lentz obliged and gave Paige, what Brookins called, a broken jaw.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Brookins-says-TUF-12-s-alcohol-related-craziness?urn=mma-292869

Siyar Bahadurzada Bao Ligao  Josh Barnett  David Baron  Phil Baroni

Brent O’Donnell made this artful video of Ty Beall cruising Richmond with enough good tricks to keep me interested. Well done.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/MostlySkateboarding/~3/23VhmzNaTuI/ty-beall-in-richmond.html

Jason Lambert Jose Landi Jons Icho Larenas Bobby Lashley Joe Lauzon

by Michael David SmithAll of the fighters taking part in Saturday night’s Ultimate Fighter Finale will hit the scale on Friday afternoon for the weigh-in, and if you can’t be there in person at the Palms in Las Vegas you can watch it live right here at MMAFighting.com.

Prior to the weigh-in, Forrest Griffin will take the stage at the Palms for a question-and-answer session with UFC fans, and that will also stream live.

The Griffin Q&A starts at 5 PM ET and the weigh-in starts at 7 PM ET.

Video is below.

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/12/03/ultimate-fighter-finale-weigh-in-video/

Royler Gracie Ryan Gracie Peter Graham Forrest Griffin Tyson Griffin

After a DVR-needed Saturday night of fights with Strikeforce and "The Ultimate Fighter" finale going head-to-head, who emerged as the biggest stars?

No. 1 star — Paul Daley: With one hook, Daley announced his presence in Strikeforce’s welterweight division. He has had quite a year — going from a loss to Josh Koscheck, a sucker punch and an unceremonious dismissal from the UFC to being one of the top welterweights at Strikeforce. He’s hoping for K.J. Noons next, which sounds like an interesting match-up of two strikers.

No. 2 star — Dan Henderson: Who are you calling old? Henderson may be 40, but he still has plenty of gas left in his tank. Hendo rebounded from his loss to Jake Shields with a TKO of Renato "Babalu" Sobral and now will reportedly take on Rafael Cavalcante for the Strikeforce light heavyweight title next.

No. 3 star — Nam Phan: No matter what the judges saw, "The Ultimate Fighter" cast member Phan fought an incredible bout against Leonard Garcia in Las Vegas. He had Garcia on the ropes in the second round, and fought well for the rest of the bout. The good news for him is that the UFC is often forgiving of a loss when it came by a questionable decision. 

Honorable mention — Robbie Lawler: Since he was fighting an Olympic wrestler, Lawler worked on his wrestling before his fight with Matt Lindland. It turns out he didn’t need it, as he knocked out Lindland in just 0:50 at Strikeforce

Honorable mention — Cody McKenzie: Sure, McKenzie may have nothing more than that guillotine, but it’s a rather lethal weapon to have. He crushed Aaron Wilkinson with that guillotine at "The Ultimate Fighter" finale. He has plenty more to learn, but he started off his UFC career in style.

Dishonorable mention — Judges: Since I was at the Strikeforce fights, I heard about the Nam Phan judging controversy before I saw the fights. When I watched the bout, I did it trying to see what the judges saw. Maybe Garcia was more impressive and the people who saw the fight live were swayed by a few impressive flurries from Pham? Nope. There was no excuse for that decision. Phan came close to finishing Garcia in the second, and controlled the bout in the first and third.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Three-Stars-from-packed-weekend-of-MMA-Daley-H?urn=mma-292219

Vagam Bodjukyan Kotetsu Boku  Tony Bonello Stephan Bonnar Lorenzo Borgomeo 

Randy Couture has seen a lot of fighting over the years and while the scoring system has improved, the 13-year veteran of mixed martial arts feels like the quality of MMA judges is still a work in progress. He thought the Quinton "Rampage" Jackson split decision win over Lyoto Machida at UFC 123 was a prime example.

"They see some superficial things like Rampage moving forward the whole time in that fight and they attribute that to him winning those rounds," Couture told Paul Howard of ESPNRadio1100 in Las Vegas. "And technically that’s not what was happening. It sucks to be a fighter and have that happen to you."

UFC president Dana White came out strongly in support of Jackson in that fight. Couture disagreed. 

"I think it’s a huge issue. It’s a lot different than judging boxing and unfortunately a lot of judges transferred over," Couture said. "They don’t understand a lot of the intricacies of our sport. Who’s controlling the tempo of the fight. Who’s actually technically scoring."

Veteran judge Cecil Peoples was mentioned as an example. Peoples has been on what seemed to be the wrong side of several close decisions over the last few years. He also exacerbated fans’ angst when he decided to make a statement about not scoring leg kicks following the UFC 104 Machida-Mauricio Rua fight. 

"Unfortunately guys like Peoples, and some of these guys have been around for a long time, (you’d) think they’d have figured it out by now," Couture said. "I think there has to be some sort of education or certification program for these judges to get them up to speed on the criteria and what they’re looking at to the judge these fights."

There are some schools popping up, but more for the guys in the cage or ring.

Yahoo! Sports’ Kevin Iole has a feature on veteran ref Herb Dean, who has opened his own MMA Referee School in Pasadena, Ca.

The judges for these major fights could also get a little help from the promotions. We’ve said it for years that it’s time to make all main events five round, regardless of whether there’s a title on the line. If they’re not for a title, most main events have title implications. Why not give the fighters a better chance to state their case for a win and the judges more material to work with?  

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Couture-didn-t-like-Rampage-decision-at-UFC-12?urn=mma-289911

Jesse Forbes Xavier Foupa Pokam Hermes Franca Rich Franklin Ian Freeman

Mat Kinsman’s Cakebread Mews part is on point. I’d be so stoked to find that bank to dumpster…

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/MostlySkateboarding/~3/9JZ1K_bbIo4/mat-kinsman-in-cakebread-mews.html

Kyle Bradley  Jai Bradney  Ebenezer Fontes Braga Chris Brennan Marcelo Brito 

Mike Freeman used to judge mixed martial arts on two things – Dana White’s rants and the loudest, most obnoxious fans who lurk on message boards. He trashed White and the sport calling it garbage in an Apr. 2009 column.

Then, unlike most national columnists and scribes stuck in the 70′s, Freeman actually took the time to look into the sport a little more.

The CBSSports’ writer made a trip to a local training center to see what mixed martial arts was all about. Working at the same gym as the UFC’s Miller brothers, the AMA Fight Club in Whippany, N.J., Freeman fell in love. In a recent column, he wrote:

I remember the first time I got punched hard. These are the things you don’t soon forget.

It was during one of my first sparring sessions in New Jersey. The guy I was sparring was a bit of a bully, known for going hard at newer students. He hit me with a solid right cross. For a moment, I saw stars. They danced in my head and disappeared suddenly after he hit me hard again, this time with a left hook. The stars were gone, but the pain in my face wasn’t.

That moment made me angry rather than fearful and I trained twice as hard. I wasn’t going to be battered again. Sparring again about two months later, he and I got into it in the center of the mat — a hardcore brawl exacerbated by the presence of his girlfriend, who he wanted to show off for. No technique, just punches and kicks thrown with abandon. None of his punches got through my defenses. My switch-kick and overhand penetrated his. He backed off. He never tried to bully me again.

That was it. I was hooked. It wasn’t that I inflicted damage on another human being. Some people love that part of fighting. I’m the opposite. I enjoy taking another man’s best kicks and punches and still standing.

Freeman took things to the next level with a trip Thailand where he trained with some of the best Muay Thai practioners in the world. He got a look at what truly drives most people to fight. It’s certainly not the money.

Freeman joined ESPNRadio1100 in Las Vegas to recap his trip and talk about his column.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Training-and-a-trip-to-Thailand-helps-national-c?urn=mma-289013

Bobby Ologun Andy Ologun Alan Omer Michihiro Omigawa Tito Ortiz

Michael Johnson is fired up to get his chance at the six-figure deal that the winner of "The Ultimate Fighter" receives for winning the show’s finale. He’ll meet Jonathan Brookins tomorrow night in Las Vegas at the TUF 12 Finale. Frankly, he’d hoped the opportunity would’ve come sooner. 

Johnson, 24, thought he would get the chance to live out his dream during Season 8 and Season 9 of the UFC’s reality show. He tried out for both seasons but didn’t make the final cut, but Johnson wasn’t going to give up. 

"In the back of my mind, I was like, you know maybe I’m not going to make this. But at the same time, I was like, OK, well, if I won’t make it in the "Ultimate Fighter," my goal is to still make it in the UFC," Johnson said during the TUF 12 teleconference. "So I’m still going to train harder and continue to win fights."

After falling short two times, Johnson approached the TUF 12 tryouts with a relaxed attitude.

"And when this season tryouts came up, you know I had a week to raise the money and actually get out there, and it was just a different attitude, you know. It was more of a laidback, nonchalant, like, ‘Hey, you guys, I’m still going to try out here no matter what, but I mean, I’m going to be persistent. I’m going to keep trying out until you guys pick me,’" said Johnson.

Not only was Johnson chosen for TUF 12, he was tabbed the top prospect on the show by both coaches, Georges St. Pierre and Josh Koscheck. GSP fooled Koscheck into selecting Marc Stevens as the No. 1 overall pick. St. Pierre was able to land both Johnson and Brookins with his top picks. 

SPIKE CARD (Courtesy of MMAjunkie)

Jonathan Brookins (154) vs. Michael Johnson (156)
Stephan Bonnar (205) vs. Igor Pokrajac (205)
Kendall Grove (186) vs. Demian Maia (186)
Rick Story (170) vs. Johny Hendricks (171)
Leonard Garcia (145) vs. Nam Phan (146)

PRELIMINARY CARD
Cody McKenzie (154) vs. Aaron Wilkinson (155)
Ian Loveland (145) vs. Tyler Toner (146)
Kyle Watson (156) vs. Sako Chivitchian (156)
Will Campuzano (136) vs. Nick Pace (138)*
Pablo Garza (126) vs. Fredson Paixao (125)
Rich Attonito (185) vs. Dave Branch (185)

*Pace missed weight and will be fined 20 percent of his purse. 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/TUF-12-Finalists-make-weight-Perseverance-paid-?urn=mma-291804

Shungo Oyama Fredson Paixao Soa Palalei Bart Palaszewski Rousimar Palhares

If you weren’t already aware… A couple of weeks back we started a new feature on Club Of The Waves whereby YOU can interview your favourite surf artist or photographer! So far we’ve had a great response! Going through fans’ suggestions we noticed we had two for surf artist Heather Brown, so we thought that would be a good place to start… Visit the site to see what Samantha (Hawaii) and Chris (England) asked her…

www.clubofthewaves.com/surf-art/interview-an-artist.php

http://www.heatherbrownart.com

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/cotw/~3/oZw__ZbrLFg/interview-artist-heather-brown.html

Andrei Arlovski  Ricardo Arona  Noboru Asahi Marcus Aurelio  Mikhail Avetisyan

by Michael David SmithDemian Maia controlled two rounds on the ground while Kendall Grove controlled one round standing up, and as a result Maia won a fairly easy and fairly uninteresting unanimous decision victory at Saturday night’s Ultimate Fighter Finale.

The judges all scored it for Maia, 29-28, giving Maia his second straight victory after his embarrassing loss to Anderson Silva earlier this year.

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/12/04/ufc-results-demian-maia-beats-kendall-grove-by-decision/

Caol Uno Alexander Ustinov Umer W Chheena Victor Valimaki Mike Van Arsdale

Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/16785/ufc-124-videos-blog-with-dana-white-episode-one/

Georges St Pierre Matt Serra Jens Pulver Sean Sherk

Source: http://nedsurfshots.blogspot.com/2010/02/wet-and-bleak-sunday-8-february-2010.html

Matt Hughes Matt Hume Mark Hunt Brad Imes Enson Inoue

In a spectactular night of MMA action, Dan Henderson, Paul Daley and Robbie Lawler all scored first round KOs against Babalu Sobral, Scott Smith, and Matt Lindland. In the other two bouts, Antonio Silva scored a TKO against Mike Kyle and Ovince St. Preux won his bout by unanimous decision over Benji Radach.

Source: http://mmalice.com/strikeforce-st-louis/strikeforce-henderson-vs-sobral-fight-highlights-and-recap-daley-smith-lawler-lindland-silva-video_9361879ea.html

Ryo Piranha Chonan  Dan The Sandman Christison  Logan The Pink Pounder Clark  Steve The Snake Claveau  Rich No Love Clementi 

Since an old friend told me about his climbing trips to Thailand it’s been one of my boxes-to-tick. Climbing by the beach and then relaxing in the blue seas sounds too good to be true. I’m about to find out – I’ve decided to do it later this year…

Photo kindly shared by HalonaCoast on Flickr
I’m [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/rock-climbing-blog/~3/38U5UCpl448/philsheard

Eddie Alvarez Thiago Alves  Andre Amade  Dean Amasinger  Jimmy Ambriz

Bigfoot Silva and Mike Kyle answer questions from the press before their fight Saturday night. Don’t miss Strikeforce St. Louis: Henderson vs Babalu LIVE on Showtime 10 PM ET/PT http://strikeforce.com

Source: http://mmalice.com/strikeforce/bigfoot-silva-and-mike-kyle-final-press-conference-video-video_bbcee6a83.html

Grant Campbell  Gesias JZ Calvancante  Luiz Cane  Dos Caras Jr   Phil Cardella

Dana White, media members, fellow fighters and fans all used the word humble to describe Jonathan Brookins in recent days. The kid is very talented but refuses to come off as cocky, jerk. After tonight’s "Ultimate Fighter 12 Finale" it’s time to add tough, granite chin and resilient to his bio. Brookins got crushed in the standup game in the opening round but bounced back to run roughshod on Michael Johnson in the next two rounds to take the TUF 12 lightweight title via unanimous decision, 29-28, 29-27 and 29-28, in Las Vegas.

"My game still has a lot to improve on," Brookins told UFC analyst Joe Rogan. "I just want invite everybody to come along for the ride with me because I got a lot of improvements to do. If they’re willing, I love for you guys to watch it."

Beyond that, Brookins only wanted to speak about his opponent. 

"It was no surprise," Brookins said of the early beating he took in the first round. "Even in the house, he was the best athlete, hands down on the whole season. He’s going to have a long career."

Johnson, 24, has great potential but it was his one weakness during the show, a lack of stamina, that did him in.

Brookins made Johnson look like a brilliant striker in the opening round. The Orlando-based fighter uses very little head movement, so Johnson teed off on the stationary target. Just over 90 seconds into the fight, he dropped Brookins with a left hook. He continued to batter Brookins on the feet but he couldn’t take him out. The kid has a ridiculous chin.

"Man, I was stunned. I was like ‘oh man, here comes Michael Johnson.’ Typical Michael Johnson. Just beatin up on people. He’s an incredible competitor. My hat’s off to him," said Brookins. 

Brookins, 25, took UFC featherweight champ Jose Aldo, widely regarded a top 10 pound-for-pound fighter, into the third round during a fight in late 2008. He showed an awesome chin in that one and it was no different tonight.

Johnson exhibited good takedown defense in the opening round, but that changed in the second. Brookins, a ground specialist, was relentless. He scored a takedown early in the second. Johnson couldn’t rise to his feet for over three minutes and when he did, he got lifted in the air and slammed down again. Brookins did a lot of damage during the round by grinding his elbow into Johnson’s face and landing some big shots.

At the start of the third, Johnson’s right eye was swelling and he had bruising around the left. Brookins scored another takedown just 45 seconds into the round. Johnson’s mouth was open. He was taking deep breaths. Brookins didn’t do a ton of damage this time around and Johnson actually got back to his feet with two and half minutes left in the fight. He still had a chance. Unfortunately the exhausted Johnson tried a sloppy shot for a takedown and got thrown by Brookins, who finished the fight with top control.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Brookins-comes-off-the-deck-to-win-TUF-12-Finale?urn=mma-291919

Luiz Cane  Dos Caras Jr   Phil Cardella Roan Jucao Carneiro Shane The Engineer Carwin 

After Wednesday night’s episode of "The Ultimate Fighter," we now know that the show will be co-headlined by Jonathan Brookins vs. Michael Johnson. Other bouts have also been added to the card: WEC veteran Leonard Garcia will fight Nam Pham while TUF 12 castmembers Aaron Wilkinson and Cody McKenzie will face off and Sako Chivitchian will fight Kyle Watson.

Johnson’s stock was hot early in the season, as Georges St. Pierre even played some mind games with Josh Koscheck so that GSP could have Johnson on his team. At 24 years old, he’s young, loaded with talent and has a good base in wrestling. He has a beautiful blast double takedown that proved to be hard to stop.

Still, he clearly has a lot to learn about fighting, as he ate many strikes during his bout with Nam Phan. His movement is slow and plodding, and he has an odd tendency of ducking strikes instead of trying to check, catch or block them. With his short, squat frame, ducking punches doesn’t really work.

Despite being a fighter who fought UFC featherweight champ Jose Aldo and lived to tell about it, Brookins wasn’t as sought after. That’s hard to believe when looking at how his skills progressed and how dominant he was on the show. He choked out Sevak Magakian, rear naked choked Sako Chivitchian and then to get in the final, dominated teammate Kyle Watson.

Brookins has a nasty submission game, which could prove to be a problem for Johnson. All four of Johnson’s losses before the show came by submission. Brookins also has more experience of the bright lights of a big promotion, having fought both in Bellator and in the WEC.

What do you think? Will Johnson’s raw talent trump Brookins’ calm but deadly ground game?

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Brookins-Johnson-final-rounds-out-TUF-12-finale-?urn=mma-291173

Kristian Rothaermel Ben Rothwell Chad Akebono Rowan Mauricio Shogun Rua Murilo Ninja Rua

Win or lose this Saturday, Josh Koscheck should get some massive bonuses from the UFC and even Spike. The welterweight title contender took it up a notch during this season’s edition of "The Ultimate Fighter."

The heel versus hero angle played well with television audiences. Twelve seasons in, and TUF put up the third highest ratings in the history of the show.

TUF 12 was just behind TUF 3, the season headlined by MMA legends Ken Shamrock and Tito Ortiz. The highest rated season ever was Kimbo Slice’s TUF 10 with Rashad Evans and Quinton Jackson on the verge of brawling in every episode. 

While those four coaches all brought their A-game when it came to trash talking, TUF 12 worked because one guy absorbed all the fan hatred.

Koscheck needled and smirked his way out of the hearts of thousands. 

"Here’s what I didn’t think going into ‘The Ultimate Fighter.’ That people could possibly love Georges St-Pierre more than they already did. And that people could possibly hate Josh Koscheck more than they already did," Dana White said. "And that’s what happened this season."

Hard to believe St. Pierre could gain more fans, but that’s what he did.  

"What I thought could happen was he would eventually snap and get tired of the [expletive] Josh was talking and the stuff he was doing," White said.

"But one of the things about Georges St-Pierre, one of the things that I think makes him not only a great mixed martial artist, a great human being and a great champion is the way this guy carries himself."

Kos has accepted the heel role, and the setting at the Bell Centre in Montreal, as he and St. Pierre square off, should be amazing. GSP’s hometown has always turned out for the big UFC cards, but UFC 124 could set records. White expects the crowd to break attendance and possibly all-time gate numbers.

Neil Davidson from the Canadian Press points out that marketing pops like St. Pierre’s recent ESPN Sportscenter commercial, his deal with Under Armour and several trips abroad to promote MMA, should also help pay-per-view numbers.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Disliked-more-than-ever-Koscheck-set-to-help-UF?urn=mma-292353

Daiki DJ taiki Hata He Peng David Heath Delson Heleno Dan Henderson

Filed under: MMA Videos, UFC, WEC, Strikeforce, FanHouse Exclusive, Videos

Another Monday, another live two-hour edition of The MMA Hour for you viewing pleasure. Here’s who will be stopping by this week.

* UFC welterweight star Jon Fitch will preview Saturday’s title fight between Josh Koscheck and Georges St-Pierre, as well as his upcoming fight against BJ Penn at UFC 127.

* Nam Phan will talk about his controversial decision loss to Leonard Garcia on Saturday night.

* Heavyweight Pat Barry will discuss his upcoming fight against Joey Beltran on Jan. 22.

* Amir Sadollah will look back on his win at UFC 122 and discuss what’s next.

* Lightweight Bart Palaszewski will talk about his fight on the final card in WEC history against Kamal Shalorus at WEC 53.

Plus, we’ll look back on this weekend’s Strikeforce and UFC cards and ahead to UFC 124 in Montreal.

And of course, we’ll be taking your calls. Give us a shout at: 212-254-0193 or 212-254-0237.

Watch the show live below beginning at 1 PM ET / 10 AM PT. Download previous episodes of The MMA Hour on iTunes here.

Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/12/06/the-mma-hour-with-jon-fitch-pat-barry-amir-sadollah-bart-pala/

Jung Chan Sung Minoru Suzuki Tim Sylvia Javier Torres Tor Troeng

by Michael David SmithIn a fun if sloppy fight to start Saturday night’s Spike TV broadcast of the Ultimate Fighter Finale, Leonard Garcia and Nam Phan bashed each other for 15 minutes before Garcia won a close and controversial split decision.

Two judges scored it 29-28 for Garcia while one scored it 30-27 for Phan, leading the fans to boo and offer a profane chant. Garcia was apologetic in his post-fight comments and acknowledged that the decision easily could have gone to Phan, who was loudly cheered by the crowd.

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/12/04/ultimate-fighter-finale-results-leonard-garcia-beats-nam-phan/

Rich Franklin Anderson Silva Pat Miletich Carlos Newton Matt Hughes

ST. LOUIS — To kick off Strkeforce: Henderson vs. Babalu, SF feature eight undercard bouts with local fighters and a few promising prospects at the Scottrade Center.

Pat Cummins, a two-time All-American wrestler for Penn St. and a member of the U.S. national team, debuted on Saturday with a bang. He took down Terrell Brown and ground and pounded until he won by TKO at 2:44 in the first round. 

The bout between Justin Lawrence and Max Martyniuk ended in controversy. Lawrence dominated for two and a half rounds, and in the third, threw a right that knocked Martyniuk to the ground. Lawrence followed up with a kick to the head, and the bout was stopped for the foul. The kick was called accidental, and Lawrence won by the judges cards.

Mike Glen mounted an unbelievable comeback, beating Lee Brousseau after he was beaten on for a minute. Brousseau then tried for a guillotine, but gave up the mount. Glen followed up with a barrage of punches, winning by TKO at 2:00 in the first round.

Results from the rest of the undercard bouts:

J.W. Wright def. Josh Epps via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 1, 1:29

Booker DeRousse def. Coltin Cole via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 3:04

Matt Ricehouse def. Tom Aaron via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 29-28)

UPDATE: Wayne Philips def. Fernando Battega via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)

The scorecard was added up wrong when the result was announced.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Strikeforce-undercard-highlights-Cummins-Glenn?urn=mma-291898

Daiju Takase Oleg Taktarov Akitoshi Tamura Kiyoshi Tamura Evan Tanner

Just like turkey on Thanksgiving, big sales on the day after Thanksgiving is a tradition. That extends to MMA retailers, who will have some great discounts for this Friday.

– MMA Warehouse has a wide variety of markdowns, on everything from the Tri-Coasta Korean Zombie shirt to the Georges St. Pierre garbage can. You can even get some fighter dolls for less than $10.

– Six Deuce will take 25% off every order over $30, and free shipping to the U.S. and Canada for any order over $50. May we suggest the "Glorious Sweater of Absolute Victory" sweatshirt, patterned after Fedor Emelianenko’s famous sweater?

– MMA Stop has a coupon for free domestic shipping. Use it to buy the sweatshirt your brother dropped a not-so-subtle hint about. 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/MMA-Marketplace-Black-Friday-specials?urn=mma-288904

Mikhail Avetisyan Luiz Azeredo  Luciano Azevedo  Ba Te er  Ryan Bader 

Irvine Sucks has Chris Gregson’s full length video, Be Here Now online minus John Dickson’s ender part which is rumored to be the makings of something for Deathwish.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/MostlySkateboarding/~3/K-757mqKGsI/be-here-now-in-full.html

Matt Hughes B J Penn Georges St Pierre Matt Serra

Matt Lindland and Dan Henderson are cut from the same cloth. They have great amateur wrestling pedigrees and MMA careers that have taken them around the world. Along with Randy Couture, the Greco-Roman wrestling greats, started Team Quest back in 1999 to see if they could make some money at this MMA thing. Eleven years later Lindland and Henderson are headlining today’s card in St. Louis for Strikeforce.

Henderson’s move to Strikeforce in 2009 made big news, but his first fight with the promotion, a loss against Jake Shields, was a disappointment. The 40-year-old needs a win over Renato "Babalu" Sobral to get back in the mix for a major fight.

Lindland is just trying to survive at this point. Also 40, he’s lost three of his last five fights. The takedowns are still there but his standup game puts him at risk. Robbie Lawler, one of the bigger power punchers in the world at middleweight, will test Lindland’s chin.

Strikeforce betting odds (Courtesy Lagasse Stadium)

Renato Sobral (+200) vs. Dan Henderson (-250) – Light heavyweight
Scott Smith (+300) vs. Paul Daley (-400) – Welterweight
Matt Lindland (+130) vs. Robbie Lawler (-160) – Middleweight

Off-shore odds: 
Antonio Silva (-384) vs. Mike Kyle (+336) – Heavyweight
Benji Radach (+118) vs. Ovince St. Preux (-121) – Light heavyweight

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Strikeforce-picks-How-much-do-old-Team-Quest-gu?urn=mma-291851

Sylvester Terkay Harout Terzyan James Thompson Nick Thompson Josh Thomson

ST. LOUIS — Strikeforce held weigh-ins to for Saturday night’s bouts in front of a lively crowd at the Scottrade Center in downtown St. Louis. All of the main card fighters made weight on their first attempt.

After having trouble with getting to 185 lbs. for his bout with Jake Shields, Dan Henderson looked healthy as he easily made light heavyweight at 204.5 lbs. His opponent, Renato "Babalu" Sobral also had no trouble at the scales, as a loud group of Brazilian fans and fighter cheered him on. That crowd included Fedor-slayer Fabricio Werdum, who Strikeforce announcer misidentified as the Strikeforce heavyweight champ.

Late replacement Mike Kyle had an intense staredown with Antonio Silva, who outweighed Kyle by more than 40 lbs. for their heavyweight bout. Scott Smith, who is fighting Paul Daley at welterweight, looked thin and drawn out on the scales.

The full results from the weigh-in are below, including the undercard that is packed with local fighters. Check out a gallery from the weigh-ins at Combat Lifestyle.

MAIN CARD
    •    Dan Henderson (204.5) vs. Renato "Babalu" Sobral (202)
    •    Paul Daley (169) vs. Scott Smith (170)
    •    Robbie Lawler (186) vs. Matt Lindland (185.5)
    •    Mike Kyle (219) vs. Antonio Silva (263)
    •    Benji Radach (205.5) vs. Ovince St. Preux (205.5)
PRELIMINARY CARD
    •    Fernando Bettega (170.25) vs. Wayne Phillips (171)
    •    Justin Lawrence (155.5) vs. Max Martytnuk (154.5)
    •    Terrell Brown (208.25)* vs. Patrick Cummins (205.5)
    •    Cortez Coleman (184.75) vs. Lucas Lopes (185)
    •    Tom Aaron (155.5) vs. Matt Ricehouse (156)
    •    Lee Brousseau (204) vs. Mike Glenn (207.25)
    •    Booker DeRousse (185) vs. Coltin Cole (185.5)
    •    Josh Epps (127.5) vs. J.W. Wright (130.5)

* – Missed weight on initial attempt; has two hours to make 206-pound limit 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Strikeforce-weigh-ins-Babalu-Hendo-ready-to-ro?urn=mma-291796

Mike Kyle Achmed Labasanov Jason Lambert Jose Landi Jons Icho Larenas

Leonard Garcia, Nam Phan, Cody McKenzie, and Pablo Garza all earned $30,000 bonuses for their performances at Saturday’s TUF 12 Finale. Garcia and Phan earned “Fight of the Night,” McKenzie won “Submission of the Night”, and Garza scored the “Knockout of the Night”.

Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/16769/garcia-phan-garza-and-mckenzie-earn-bonuses/

Dan The Sandman Christison  Logan The Pink Pounder Clark  Steve The Snake Claveau  Rich No Love Clementi  Mark The Hammer Coleman

The UFC put on another quality fight card at "The Ultimate Fighter 12," but it may be be overshadowed by one shaky call by the judges. Leonard Garcia got what appeared to be a gift in taking a split decision from Nam Phan in the opener of the Spike telecast.

Twitter and the MMA blogosphere exploded. The crowd at the Palms in Las Vegas chanted bull[expletive], Phan looked shocked and Garcia apologized. All that was tame compared to the rant unleashed by UFC color analyst Joe Rogan.   

As Johny Hendricks and Rick Story waged a fight that appeared to be headed towards another decision, Rogan cautioned the fighters to not leave it in the judges’ hands. 

"I don’t think the last fight was close and the decision went the wrong way," Rogan said on Spike. "It puts a tremendous amount of pressure on fighters not knowing what kind of officiating you’re getting."

Then Rogan got more heated. 

"It’s gross. You should be able to leave it in the hands of the judges. You should be able to just fight," Rogan said.

There’s been some shaky decisions on UFC cards all over the world in 2010, but Rogan launched into an attack on the quality of judging in Nevada. 

"And we should point out, that is the situation because of the Nevada State Athletic Commission. It has nothing to do with the UFC," said Rogan. "People keep saying ‘oh the UFC!’ We have no say whatsoever. And (NSAC executive director) Keith Kizer has denied that there’s an issue"

Rogan wants most of the judges relieved of their duties. 

"I think (Kizer) needs to clean house. There’s a few very good judges surrounded by a bunch of incompetent morons, who know nothing about the sport," said Rogan.

The UFC color analyst then entered blogger, dopey sports talk radio guy, young media-member mode.

"They need to do something about that, because it’s ruining MMA. It’s making people think that this sport is corrupt," Rogan said. "It has nothing to do with corruption. It’s sheer and total incompetence."

Rogan was speaking with some emotion and that’s fine. It was just minutes after he saw a kid fight hard and lose because of a wacky decsion.

There are bad decisions now and there will be forever. That’s the fight game. Judging is subjective. Boxing has dealt with this "controversy" for over a hundred years. But unlike boxing, the MMA judges are pulling from a sample of three and five rounds, not 10, 12, and in the past 15.

The UFC along with several other major companies are putting on more and more MMA cards each year. That’s means hundred of televised and non-televised fights. More fights means more decisions, meaning a better chance they get some wrong. 

It’s not ruining the sport. And unless the broadcasters at the event – and the thing same goes for guys like HBO’s boxing voices Jim Lampley and Max Kellerman – harp on this judging incompetancy thing, most casual fans will let shaky decisions slide after a few days.

These claims of corruption happen in every sport. There was a referee betting scandal in the NBA and fans have forever believed the league office asks the officials to give preferential treatment to its glamour teams. Has the league folded? Thursday night’s LeBron James return to Cleveland beat the NFL game in the ratings. 

The NCAA and major conferences like the SEC and Big 10 clearly back this stupid BCS and there’s been some shaky calls that have helped teams like Oregon and Auburn along the way. In spite of how shady the Cam Newton eligibility decision was and the long history of selective prosecution when it comes to the power programs (aside from USC recently), college football hasn’t been ruined.

Everyone who’s up in arms about this should speak with Marc Ratner. Ratner, a VP with the UFC, would probably chuckle at the assertion that there’s a judging epidemic. He was in Kizer’s position for years, essentially serving as the czar of boxing. He heard the same thing in the 70′s, 80′s and 90′s in boxing.

It probably bothers him even more now with MMA as he tries to sell dummies like N.Y. assemblyman Bob Reilly on the notion that the sport is safe and legitimate. It makes it difficult when some of the biggest people around the sport undermine the effort by saying MMA is way short on qualified referees and judges.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/After-shaky-decision-Rogan-unloads-on-judging-a?urn=mma-291922

Brock Lesnar Frank Shamrock Tito Ortiz Randy Couture Vitor Belfort

The Nevada State Athletic Commission has issued medical suspensions to seven fighters from Saturday’s The Ultimate Fighter 12 Finale, including a six-month suspension to TUF 12 winner Jonathan Brookins for a possible foot injury.

Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/16783/tuf-12-finale-medical-suspensions-jonathan-brookins-sidelined-six-months/

Zhang Tiequan Igor Zinoviev Mark Coleman Maurice Smith Randy Couture

UFC light heavyweight Jon Jones spends a few minutes with MMA H.E.A.T.’s Karyn Bryant after winning “Breakthrough Fighter of the Year” at the Fighters Only World MMA Awards.Be sure to visit http://www.MMAheat.com for more interviews and our 1/2 hour show.

Source: http://mmalice.com/jon-jones/jon-bones-jones-wins-breakthrough-fighter-of-the-year-video_3ec056b59.html

Tyson Griffin Karn Grigorian Karen Grigoryan Kendall Grove Clay Guida

by Michael David SmithStrikeforce has a lightweight champion, Gilbert Melendez, whose only fight in 2010 was a win over the lightweight champion of Dream, Shinya Aoki, and who keeps talking about his desire to fight the lightweight champion of Bellator, Eddie Alvarez. So doesn’t Strikeforce have any of its own lightweights for its champion to fight?

No, not really. At least not right now, where the best fight for Melendez really would be outside the organization. But as we look at the state of the Strikeforce lightweights below, we’ll examine whether the promotion can beef up its lightweight roster and make bigger things happen in 2011.

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/12/01/state-of-the-strikeforce-lightweights/

Fedor Emelianenko Yasubey Enomoto Mark Epstein Tom Big Cat Erickson Martinsh Egle

MMA H.E.A.T.’s Karyn Bryant catches up with TUF 12 finalist Jonathan Brookins at the media workout, days before he fights for a UFC contract. The pair talk about Jonathan’s experience in the fighter house and how he plans to beat Michael Johnson in the show’s finale. And for some comic relief, watch Karyn (3:42) try to keep her composure when Jonathan discusses Josh Koscheck’s issues with lip gloss…Be sure to visit http://www.MMAheat.com for more interviews and our 1/2 hour show. Nós falamos Português!* We’re on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/MMAheat* Follow MMAheat on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/MMAheat* Follow Karyn on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/KarynBryant

Source: http://mmalice.com/jonathan-brookins/tuf-12-finalist-jonathan-brookins-talks-tuf-finale-and-koschecks-lip-gloss-video_1a3e468b1.html

Andy Ologun Alan Omer Michihiro Omigawa Tito Ortiz Alexander Otsuka

After Wednesday night’s episode of "The Ultimate Fighter," we now know that the show will be co-headlined by Jonathan Brookins vs. Michael Johnson. Other bouts have also been added to the card: WEC veteran Leonard Garcia will fight Nam Pham while TUF 12 castmembers Aaron Wilkinson and Cody McKenzie will face off and Sako Chivitchian will fight Kyle Watson.

Johnson’s stock was hot early in the season, as Georges St. Pierre even played some mind games with Josh Koscheck so that GSP could have Johnson on his team. At 24 years old, he’s young, loaded with talent and has a good base in wrestling. He has a beautiful blast double takedown that proved to be hard to stop.

Still, he clearly has a lot to learn about fighting, as he ate many strikes during his bout with Nam Phan. His movement is slow and plodding, and he has an odd tendency of ducking strikes instead of trying to check, catch or block them. With his short, squat frame, ducking punches doesn’t really work.

Despite being a fighter who fought UFC featherweight champ Jose Aldo and lived to tell about it, Brookins wasn’t as sought after. That’s hard to believe when looking at how his skills progressed and how dominant he was on the show. He choked out Sevak Magakian, rear naked choked Sako Chivitchian and then to get in the final, dominated teammate Kyle Watson.

Brookins has a nasty submission game, which could prove to be a problem for Johnson. All four of Johnson’s losses before the show came by submission. Brookins also has more experience of the bright lights of a big promotion, having fought both in Bellator and in the WEC.

What do you think? Will Johnson’s raw talent trump Brookins’ calm but deadly ground game?

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Brookins-Johnson-final-rounds-out-TUF-12-finale-?urn=mma-291173

Gilbert Aldana  José Aldo  John Alessio  Houston Alexander Ricardo Almeida 

Source: http://nedsurfshots.blogspot.com/2010/05/sunday-30-may-2010.html

Jae Suk Lim Daniel Lima Matt Lindland Liu Jinwen David The Crow Loiseau

Alistair Overeem has been on a quite tear in and out the ring. Since 2007, he’s ripped through his MMA and K-1 fights, winning 14-of-16. He’s also wrecked weight rooms around the world. At 6-foot-5, 245 pounds, he possesses one of the most impressive physiques in the fight game. Plain and simple, he looks like a heavyweight champ.

Japan is fascinated with the Dutchman. His endorsement and merchandising potential in Japan is massive. Overeem, 30, released another great episode in his documentary series "The Reem." It’s a nice look into the Japanese culture and its relationship with star athletes from the West.

Overeem’s future will be interesting to track. When Dana White questions his standing in the heavyweight rankings, in what may be an effort to push him towards the UFC, should "The Reem" even pay attention?

It depends on what Overeem wants.

"For me, it’s all about my career and my success. And my financial situation. On the other hand I’m kind of proud to represent K-1," Overeem said. "I think I’ve grown as a striker. I think the striking has really developed me as an MMA fighter. I want to win that (2010 K-1 WGP) title. I want to prove to the world that I’m unique, a champion in MMA (and) a champion in K-1."

If he wants to fight the best in MMA – and that’s certainly a debatable topic when it comes to heavyweights – then he’ll eventually make his way to the UFC.

If Overeem covets the freedom of fighting both MMA and kickboxing, then he’ll never fight for Zuffa.

There’s also the issue of money. Just look at the endorsement career of someone like Bob Sapp, to witness how much potential the Japanese market holds for elite fighters who have that certain look. If Overeem came to the UFC and eventually won the title, he could make a killing in the U.S. If he fell short and was just one of many on the massive UFC roster, then most major U.S. corporations would have zero familiarity with him and he’d probably lose out on some serious cash.  

Overeem is currently ranked No. 8 in the USA Today/Bloody Elbow rankings. He’s ahead of UFC heavyweights like Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Cheick Kongo, Brendan Schaub and Roy Nelson. Should he yearn for a spot with America’s biggest promotion or is it counterproductive to his career? 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/With-love-affair-in-Japan-maybe-Overeem-doesn-t-?urn=mma-288574

Mike Plotcheck Ross Pointon Trevor Prangley Daniel Puder Jens Pulver

Dan Henderson and Babalu Sobral answer questions from the press before their rematch this Saturday live on SHOWTIME! http://strikeforce.com

Source: http://mmalice.com/strikeforce/dan-henderson-and-babalu-sobral-final-press-conference-video-video_fb5ac2dce.html

Crosley Gracie Gregor Gracie Ralek Gracie Renzo Gracie Rickson Gracie

IAIS has a montage from Ruff Ryders in quicktime.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/MostlySkateboarding/~3/e09kU1T2pxs/ruff-ryders-montage.html

Mark Kerr Mamed Khalidov Sergei Kharitonov Min Soo Kim Dong Hyun Kim

Somehow the Atlanta Hates Us guys are still finding new spot and making skating look fun. Check the latest montage to see what I mean.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/MostlySkateboarding/~3/OjHBxxbuRrc/atlanta-hates-us-fall-montage.html

Akihiro Gono Gabriel Gonzaga Lyman Good Gary Goodridge Gerard Gordeau

Filed under: Strikeforce

Put away the rocking chair, Dan Henderson is not ready for the retirement home just yet. Writing Henderson off was the instinct of some fans and media after Henderson’s last fight, saying he’d gotten old fast and that his days as an elite fighter were gone for good.

Even in this sport where we’re usually forced to come to conclusions based on 15 minutes of observation — and often less — it was a severe overreaction.

As long as Henderson brings his thunderous right hand, his granite chin and wrestling pedigree, he’ll have the opportunity to be in any fight. Just ask Renato “Babalu” Sobral, who tried and failed on a takedown try, and paid for it by eating a series of hellacious right hands that turned his lights out in less than two minutes in the main event of last night’s Strikeforce show.

Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/12/05/with-quick-ko-40-year-old-dan-henderson-proves-hes-far-from-do/

Tomasz Drwal Joe Hybrid Duarte Aldrin de Jesus  Todd Duffee  Marvin Eastman 

The Shoot – Dan Henderson as he gets ready for Babalu! Video by Dan Henderson

Source: http://mmalice.com/dan-henderson/the-shoot-dan-henderson-as-he-gets-ready-for-babalu-video_c1bfa1ee0.html

Mo Lawal Ruthless Robbie Lawler Eric Lawson Cung Le Chris Leben

Stephen Marino has a montage for Queens Finest.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/MostlySkateboarding/~3/3_TlcovVBCE/queens-finest.html

Mike Nickels Alexandre Franca Nogueira Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira Antônio Rogério Nogueira Karl James Noons

Chael Sonnen won his battle against the California State Athletic Commission. Well, sort of. The fighter, who tested positive for high levels of testosterone after UFC 117, had his suspension reduced to six months.

He was suspended for one year back on Sept. 22. He’s now eligible to return in March. His fine of $2,500 remained the same.

According to USA Today:

The defense for Sonnen revolved around his contention that he has previously disclosed that he was taking shots to treat unusually low levels of testosterone. Sonnen argued that he provided information to a doctor whom he mistakenly believed worked for the California commission.

A motion to uphold the initial one-year penalty failed to pass when it only received a 2-2 vote. Commissioner DeWayne Zinkin, citing concerns about the scant records surrounding Sonnen’s disclosure of testosterone replacement therapy, proposed halving the suspension.

The measure to reduce the suspension passed 3-1. 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Sonnen-s-suspension-reduced-to-six-months?urn=mma-291433

Hector Lombard Alexandru Lungu Travis Lutter Stevie Lynch Adam Lynn

Interested in downloading high-quality clips of Chris Sharma climbing?
Today I checked out the website for Chris Sharma’s King Lines movie – and there’s a new addition!
Early versions of the DVD didn’t feature all of the extras properly, so the website features downloadable clips from the extras.
This won’t replace the need to buy the DVD, but [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/rock-climbing-blog/~3/v-YQWecn-lk/philsheard

Marcus Davis  Tony DeSouza  Edwin Dewees  Nick Diaz  Tadhg Steamfist Dixon

by Michael David SmithJonathan Brookins is the Season 12 winner of The Ultimate Fighter, taking the championship of the UFC’s reality show with a unanimous decision victory over Michael Johnson on Saturday night in Las Vegas.

It was an impressive display by Brookins, who managed to survive even though he appeared to be badly hurt in the first round, then came back to win the second and third rounds, and win the decision.

“My game’s still got a lot to improve on,” Brookins said afterward. “I want to invite everybody to come along for the ride with me because I’ve got a lot of improving to do.”

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/12/05/jonathan-brookins-beats-michael-johnson-to-win-the-ultimate-fig/

Keith Hackney Matt Hamill Volk Han Joachim Hansen Antoni Hardonk

Filed under: MMA Videos, Strikeforce, FanHouse Exclusive, Videos

ST. LOUIS — MMA Fighting spoke to Dan Henderson following his first round TKO win over Renato “Babalu” Sobral Saturday night. The MMA veteran talked about getting his first win since July 2009, how he finished the fight, which weight class he prefers to fight in and his next move.

Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/12/05/dan-henderson-it-feels-great-to-be-back-on-the-winning-side/

Jorge Gurgel Andre Gusmao Alexander Gustafsson Jaime Gutierrez Dave Gomez

The Fight Network looks ahead at Saturday’s Strikeforce event featuring Dan Henderson vs. Renato “Babalu “Sobral, Paul Daley vs. Scott Smith, Matt Lindland vs. Robbie Lawler and Mike Kyle vs. Antonio Silva.

Source: http://mmalice.com/strikeforce/strikefroce-henderson-vs-babalu-fight-preview-show-video_f4aaadd1e.html

Mauricio Shogun Rua Murilo Ninja Rua Marco Ruas Rodrigo Ruas Gabe Ruediger

More and more, MMA fighters are seeking the advice of legitimate boxing trainers like Freddie Roach. Georges St. Pierre has aggressively pursued the opportunity to work with Manny Pacquiao’s trainer. That includes making sure that he stopped by to see "Pac-Man" and Roach during a trip the Philippines.

Roach got to work about eight rounds on the mits with GSP and said his hands are coming along nicely. It’s got to be pretty humbling for an MMA fighter to take a step back after they’re told that their boxing really isn’t up to snuff. Remember GSP is the same guy who’s battered several opponents on the feet in the past. Roach said St. Pierre still needs to loosen up and then his speed will come with it. 

Roach did indicate that GSP is way ahead of his opponent next week at UFC 124, Josh Koscheck, saying the former wrestler has a major flaw in his striking game. 

"Koscheck, he jumps in from far away," Roach told Marcos Villegas of FightHubtv.com. "I told him to not pull away from that and beat that on the counter. I told him, ‘I think you’ll knock him out with the left hook in that fight.’"

It’s unique to hear a trainer reveal part of a fighter’s gameplan. Roach said it doesn’t matter. 

"I can take that public because (Koscheck) can’t stop from doing it, because that’s one of his habits," said Roach.

St. Pierre wanted Roach to work his corner in Montreal on Dec. 11. Roach is interested in doing so in the future but next weekend, he’s already booked to corner Amir Khan against Marcos Maidana in Las Vegas. 

Make sure you note the story of GSP visiting Pac-Man’s camp in the Philippines (2:30 mark). St. Pierre is becoming a pretty big star in the sports world yet he was hesitant about even walking into the gym to see Pacquiao.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Freddie-Roach-says-Josh-Koscheck-is-going-to-get?urn=mma-290790

Georges St Pierre Masanori Suda Genki Sudo Amar Suloev Mike Swick

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — Nick Lentz started out UFC 123 with controversy, beating Tyson Griffin in a split decision, 29-28, 27-30 and 29-28 at the Palace of Auburn Hills in suburban Detroit on Saturday.

Griffin and Lentz switched control often in the first round, with Lentz striking first with a takedown, and then Griffin reversing position and driving Lentz in the fence for much of the round. They then exchanged blows during the final minute of the round, with Lentz getting the better of striking. Griffin finished the round with an ineffective slam of Lentz.

Their stand-up drew boos from the crowd in suburban Detroit early in the second round, but that seemed to spur them on. They started to exchange more punches and kicks, until Griffin took down Lentz with about a minute and a half left in the round. Griffin tried for ground and pound but had trouble getting anything going.

Griffin wobbled Lentz to start the third and final round, and followed that up with several unanswered punches. Lentz tried for a takedown to stop the onslaught, but Griffin ended up on top. With a profusely bleeding face, Lentz was able to reverse position with a slam of Griffin. He tried for a chicken wing submission, but Griffin somehow got out of it and remained in control for the rest of the round.

The result elicited loud boos from the crowd, who were surprised that Griffin did not win. His record falls to 14-5 while Lentz’s improves to 21-4.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Lentz-wins-a-close-split-decision-to-kick-off-UF?urn=mma-287712

Rey Phillip Santos Bob Sapp Rumina Sato Kerry Schall Nino Schembri

Mixed martial arts, in particular the UFC, has cultivated an amazingly passionate fanbase. Boxing and its fans treat card-filling fighters like throwaways with little interest. Meanwhile, because of the coverage from sites like MMAJunkie, FanHouse, Bloody Elbow and MMAWeekly, hardcore mixed martial arts fans often view the guys in match No. 9 with a reverence just short of the attention given to main eventers.

Which bring us to the latest cut made by the UFC. Gerald Harris, a cast member from Season 7 of "The Ultimate Fighter," was given his walking papers after losing to Maiquel Falcao at UFC 123.

Upon hearing of the Harris cut, the MMA community erupted. Keep in mind, Harris (17-3, 3-1 UFC) is well-liked by many bloggers and fans for appearing on lots of podcasts and being active on Twitter. Now some are using the Harris firing to question Dana White’s motives and business acumen. From SB Nation:

Gerald Harris was cut after going 3-1 in the top MMA organization in the world. Cutting someone because of  "boring" performance (which is subjective) is not the way a so-called sport works. I would wager that if Harris had been choked out in the 1st round, he would still have a job. This whole thing seems like a "I put you on the main card and this is how you repay me? With a boring fight?" type personnel move. Doesn’t seem like the right way to run a business. Now, in the big picture, the Harris cut seems insignificant, but moves like these add up over time.

S.C. Michaelson says emotion is playing a role in the UFC’s roster moves. 

The Harris cut for a "boring" fight also ties into my other point of vindictive booking. Let me state outright vindictive booking has no place in any sport. The NFL or NBA schedulers don’t make matchups trying to obtain a certain outcome. It seems like the UFC is doing this more and more.

That’s an interesting view. On the flip side, many fans trash the heck out of cards any time there are slow fights. It seems like White is simply giving the casual fans what they want — action fighters. The UFC’s head honcho says he’s operating like the major sports:

"It’s exactly the way it works. You want to stay at the top of the food chain, you deal with it. If you don’t, you won’t. You know how many guys get cut by the NFL and Major League Baseball every day? It’s crazy, staggering. Same thing here, no difference." 

He wants action in the Octagon. If that message hasn’t been sent by the recent cuts, maybe all fighters on the roster need to read this Dana White doozy (also from MMA Fighting via SB Nation):

"This isn’t the [expletive] Ultimate Staring Competition, it’s the Ultimate Fighting Championship."

Harris seems like a nice guy and he was entertaining in his previous fights, but with dozens of fighters being added to the roster from the 135- and 145-pound divisions there isn’t much margin for error.

Because of a clock error in the first round, Harris got new life in the Falcao bout. He did little with the opportunity in the final two rounds. Falcao certainly took a lot of starch out of him and he probably didn’t have a whole lot left in the gas tank.

On the positive side, these roster trimmings will have more fighters going for broke knowing their jobs are far from safe.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Welcome-to-UFC-s-post-merger-world-Harris-cut-w?urn=mma-289037

Aaron Simpson Wes Sims Rob Sinclair Rory Singer Elvis Sinosic

theProgram Zine has a sick Brooks Schuping Throwaway Part. No direct link, so just find it and enjoy it.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/MostlySkateboarding/~3/rZCz78Dkl_8/brooks-schuping-throwaway-part.html

Randy Couture Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira Brock Lesnar Frank Mir Brock Lesnar

Quinton "Rampage" Jackson and Dana White have some personality similarities. It’s probably why the fighter and UFC owner bicker quite often. They both say what they feel and there isn’t much of a filter.

Jackson won a narrow decision over Lyoto Machida at UFC 123, but was stunned when the announcement was made. Just seconds earlier, he was getting punched in the grill and losing the third round. His reaction added to the controversial nature of the decision and it didn’t please his boss. 

"Me and Rampage are getting along OK, but he pisses me off again," White said at the UFC 123 postfight press conference (2:15 mark — video). "I had Rampage winning that fight two rounds to one. I scored that fight for Rampage. Rampage is slumping down and raising the other guy’s hand and acting like he lost. I thought he won the fight."

It didn’t seem like Jackson did anything wrong. After escaping with a tight decision win, it’s pretty rare for a fighter to show that kind of honesty and class.

Forty-five minutes later, when Jackson entered the presser, he was in apology mode.

"I’m sorry man. I had just gotten done getting punched in the face a couple times," Jackson said (7:52 mark). "Don’t pay me no mind.

"When I was in the fight I had a one-track mind, you know knockin’ him out. In the third round, when he dominated me so much, I forgot what happened in the first two rounds. … It’s one of those things, at the time I thought I got my ass whooped because I was just getting up off the ground and he [just] ran a flurry up on my face."

That seems plausible. Jackson was probably a little stunned. With all the adrenaline flowing right after a match, fighters are speaking with raw emotion. 

White looked at the entirety of the fight and liked what Rampage did over 15 minutes. 

"That’s not the fight I saw. He definitely put on that burst where he landed five or six punches and definitely rocked him. You don’t win a fight off four or five punches," said White.

Scoring is very subjective. Some judges, media members and fans like Octagon control and counterstriking. Others favor the man pushing the action. Compustrike backed the judges and White. Jackson outlanded Machida 59-38 in a fight that spent 12:28 of 15 minutes on the feet.

"Rampage was the aggressor. He moved forward the entire fight. Everytime Lyoto would go with that leg kick, he’d fire and go after him," said White. "I 100 percent had Rampage winning the first two rounds and had the third round going to Machida. Again, nobody gives a [expletive] what I think, but I’m not a judge. But that’s how I scored the fight." 

In the seconds following the fight, Jackson said several times that Machida deserved a rematch. White emphatically shot down that idea (6:10 mark).

"No, no," said White when asked about Rampage-Machida II. "As far as I’m concerned, and apparently as far as the judges are concerned, Rampage won that fight."

White then repeated his displeasure of Jackson’s postfight behavior.

"Rampage is in there raising [Machida's] hand, slumping down, acting bummed out,  acting surprised when he won," White said. "He won two rounds. It’s a three-round fight. He won two of them." 

With White in his presence during the presser, Jackson made sure not to repeat the rematch offer. 

"This ain’t my show. I don’t own UFC homey. I just fight here," said Jackson (8:30).

Jackson also revealed that he almost had to back out of the fight after coming down with a stomach ailment he’d caught from his kids. 

"Dana’s always been there for me. Even if we don’t see eye to eye all the time," Jackson said (9:40 mark). "I just couldn’t tell Dana ‘I cant make this fight because I’m sick.’ He probably would’ve cussed me the [expletive] out."

Jackson comes out a big winner from this fight. He didn’t complain about Machida’s counterstriking style, as so many others have done. Fans who thought it was a boring fight should listen to Jackson when he says Machida is a beast. Jackson’s reaction probably saved the Brazilian’s reputation a bit too. 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Quinton-Jackson-humble-in-victory-irks-his-boss?urn=mma-288037

Lyoto Machida Mauricio Rua Dave Menne Murilo Bustamante Evan Tanner

by Michael David SmithAfter seven months off, Dan Henderson is finally stepping back into the cage on Saturday night, hoping to earn his first victory in Strikeforce and first anywhere since knocking out Michael Bisping at UFC 100. Henderson will have a tough test against Renato “Babalu” Sobral in what should be an entertaining main event in Strikeforce’s final card of 2010.

What: Strikeforce: Henderson vs. Babalu 2

Where: Scottrade Center, St. Louis

When: Saturday, the Showtime broadcast begins at 10 PM ET.

Predictions on the four televised fights below.

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/12/01/strikeforce-henderson-vs-babalu-2-preview-and-predictions/

Harout Terzyan James Thompson Nick Thompson Josh Thomson Din Thomas

Phil Davis looks more impressive every time he hits the Octagon. The former Penn State wrestler had only three fights under his belt in the UFC, but made Tim Boetsch look like the guy with little experience.

Davis absolutely dominated the grappling game against the former Div. 1 wrestler at Lock Haven. Then he worked some submission magic. With Boetsch pinned against the cage, Davis switched from a conventional arm lock and cranked his opponent’s arm behind his back. The pain was too much to take for Boetsch, who tapped at 2:55 of the second round.

UPDATE: Davis’ "Mr. Wonderful" submission nabbed him the submission of the night award and an $80,000 bonus.

Davis, 26, is a perfect 8-0 in MMA. He’s beginning to move into top prospect status at light heavyweight along with Jon Jones and Ryan Bader. This was a return fight for Boetsch in the UFC, after four straight wins with smaller promotions. 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Davis-invents-his-own-submission-to-take-out-Boe?urn=mma-287736

Tim Sylvia Frank Mir Andrei Arlovski Tim Sylvia Randy Couture

Randy Couture meets with Conner Cordova and talks about the youth training schedule at the Xtreme Couture facility, plus his own experiences as a young man in high school.Reports that Randy took Conner’s lunch money after filming ceased cannot be confirmed at this time.

Source: http://mmalice.com/randy-couture/randy-couture-on-training-kids-anti-bullying-video_e4b28593e.html

Chris Brennan Marcelo Brito  Rob Broughton  Mike Brown  Junie Browning

Robbie Lawler and Matt Lindland answer questions from the press before their fight Saturday night. Don’t miss Strikeforce St. Louis: Henderson vs Babalu LIVE on Showtime 10 PM ET/PT http://strikeforce.com

Source: http://mmalice.com/strikeforce/matt-lindland-and-robbie-lawler-final-press-conference-video-video_d80570b0b.html

Karo Parisyan Sherman Pendergarst B J Penn Anthony Perosh Seth Petruzelli

Dan Henderson and Renato “Babalu” Sobral successfully weighed in on Friday for their headlining rematch for tomorrow’s “Strikeforce: Henderson vs. Babalu” event in St. Louis.

The rest of the Showtime-televised main card also made weight, including Paul Daley vs. Scott Smith and Robbie Lawler vs. Matt Lindland.

Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/16738/strikeforce-henderson-vs-babalu-weigh-in-results/

Matt Hamill Volk Han Joachim Hansen Antoni Hardonk Dan Hardy

You’re not going to hear anything about "going to war" or "ripping someone’s head off" when Jonathan Brookins discusses his approach to fighting. Nor is he going to brag about his abilities. He certainly can, though, after emerging as one of the top prospects on Season 12 of "The Ultimate Fighter" along with Michael Johnson, his opponent Saturday night.

Brookins admitted that he got matched up with the right coach on TUF 12. Georges St. Pierre’s thinking man’s approach meshed nicely with his game.

"I think what was starting to happen is like we were starting to kind of be – you know you’re kind of locked up, and we were beginning to kind of be [cultured] from these people from all over the world. And it became kind of like, you almost didn’t want to brag to the other team, you almost kind of had something to brag about," Brookins said during the TUF 12 teleconference.

St. Pierre brought in American boxing trainer Freddie Roach, French muay thai savant Jean-Charles Skarbowsky and his jiu-jitsu expert John Danaher, a Brit, who was heavy on the cerebral side of fighting. 

"What these guys would kind of start to notice real fast that like they’re getting the same guys from, you know, one school, and there’s no variety," said Brookins.

Josh Koscheck’s team worked exclusively with fighters and coaches from the San Jose-based American Kickboxing Academy.

"And so you can kind of tell kind of quick that we were getting a better coaching staff than the other team."

It only added to Brookins’ unique view of the sport.  

"I think the biggest thing that I took from it was just my mental outlook towards fighting. You know everything that I learned is going to – you know, on the physical front, you know, I realized after the show is going to take me years to kind of perfect and to really kind of understand, because that’s how long it kind of takes, but – you know, but the way that I perceive the sport, the way I go about it, was changed completely by that set of coaches, and I was really thankful for that," said Brookins.

After the taping of the show, Brookins returned home to Orlando to train out of Gracie-Barra Academy. Johnson took a different approach bouncing around a bit. He spent three weeks at Jackson’s Submission Fighting in Albuquerque and got the chance to work with experienced fighters like Donald Cerrone, Diego Sanchez and Carlos Condit.

Video courtesy of the Orlando Sentinel

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Brookins-philosophical-about-opportunity-in-fron?urn=mma-291661

Valentijn Overeem Shungo Oyama Fredson Paixao Soa Palalei Bart Palaszewski

Source: http://nedsurfshots.blogspot.com/2010/08/24-hrs-later.html

Vitor Belfort  Robert Berry David Bielkheden Michael Bisping  Dan Bobish

Chael Sonnen’s day has finally arrived. He became a national laughingstock when it was revealed that he had tested positive for unusually high levels of testosterone after his UFC 117 loss to Anderson Silva. This was the same Sonnen who had gone on a bizarre rant before his fight about how Lance Armstrong, using performance enhancing drugs, had cheated and gave himself cancer.

Sonnen was due to appear this morning in front of the California State Athletic Commission along with his lawyer Howard Jacobs. The hearing has now been pushed back to 1 p.m. PT and a decision may not come at all today. You can watch the proceedings below.

Mike Chiappetta from Fanhouse got a hold of 100-plus pages of info on the Sonnen case.

According to the documents, on Aug. 6 — the day of his drug test — Sonnen admitted to event supervisor Frank Munoz that he had taken testosterone as recently as the day before. In fact, Sonnen listed the substance on a section of the urine sample form in which the party to be tested is asked to divulge any medications or substances he has taken in recent days, including vitamins or minerals. On the forms, the 33-year-old Sonnen listed "1 shot" of testosterone, which he stated he took on Aug. 5, just two days before his title match with Silva.

According to CSAC time lines, Sonnen’s urine sample was sent to the UCLA Olympic Analytical Laboratory, received on Aug. 10 and testing procedures began on Aug. 13.

On Sept. 2, the lab informed the CSAC that Sonnen’s testosterone to epitestosterone ratio (T/E) tested at 16.9. Though testosterone is naturally occurring in the human body, that number is well above the T/E threshold ratio of 4.0. A follow-up carbon isotope analysis was conducted on Sept. 7, with the finding that the test results were consistent with the administration of a steroid. The lab subsequently sent the CSAC 66 pages of documentation with the intent of scientifically supporting their findings, establishing chain of custody of the specimen and proving the sample’s integrity was maintained throughout the process.

This is only some of the documentation and very little from Sonnen’s side.

Watch Kalib Run says Sonnen’s suspension should be upheld. Yahoo! Sports’ lead MMA writer Kevin Iole isn’t ready to throw the book at Sonnen. 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/California-pushes-back-Sonnen-s-hearing-to-1-p-m?urn=mma-291317

Frank Shamrock Tito Ortiz Randy Couture Vitor Belfort Randy Couture

Mark Munoz had a daunting puzzle to solve at UFC 123. He was basically facing a carbon copy of himself in Aaron Simpson. So it was no surprise to see the former NCAA wrestlers nullify each other on the grappling front. Munoz showed off a more impressive arsenal in the striking game and a little more in the stamina department in the final round to take a unanimous decision, 29-28 on all cards.

Munoz, an NCAA champ out of Oklahoma State, was a half-second behind in the first round. He got tagged on the feet and kept getting his leg kicks caught. In the second, Munoz did more with his stand up work, including a beautiful swinging elbow that landed coming out of a clinch, and he really nailed Simpson with a head kick.

Simpson, an two-time All-American at Arizona State, has struggled in recent fights with his conditioning. He thought he had solved those woes by a paying closer attention to his diet before the fight. Simpson looked better but he was definitely the less fresh fighter in the final round.

He scored a takedown just 25 seconds into the third but then got easily reversed by Munoz. With hip control, Munoz got off some excellent punches to the head. The rest of the round was spent primarily in clinch position along the cage. They slugged away at each other, but it was Munoz who landed the heavier shots.

Munoz (9-2, 4-2 UFC) is now 4-1 down at middleweight with his only loss coming against future title challenger Yushin Okami. After a 3-0 start wth the promotion, Simpson (7-2, 3-2 UFC) has dropped two straight. 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Munoz-shows-off-well-rounded-game-in-outlasting-?urn=mma-287721

Matt Hughes B J Penn Georges St Pierre Matt Serra

Check out exclusive pictures by Tracy Lee from the UFC’s return to Michigan at UFC 123. See a poignant post-fight shot of Matt Hughes and BJ Penn, George Sotiropoulos submitting Joe Lauzon, and Phil Davis’ new submission. 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Exclusive-pictures-from-UFC-123?urn=mma-288271

Andrew Gardner Tiki Ghosn Dennis George Kultar Gill Allan Goes

Hats off to Billabong who have teamed up with team rider Dave Rastovich to produce a line of clothing for Surfers for Cetaceans, called the "Rasta Collection". The clothing line is all made from recycled materials. Billabong even ran an advert for the collection on their highly trafficked event site for the recent Billabong Pro in Jeffreys Bay! Way to go Billabong!

For more info on this series and to purchase online, visit the Billabong Europe store or to purchase and watch a video visit the Billabong US store

Read more about the dolphin slaughters in Japan that organisations like Surfers for Cetaceans and the Visual Petition are fighting to put an end to.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/cotw/~3/fEgzrYHHCdM/billabong-surfers-for-cetaceans.html

Jonathan Goulet Wilson Gouveia Jason Grace Crosley Gracie Gregor Gracie

I’m pleased to claim this blog officially on Technorati so that more people will read it
This link to my Technorati Profile is all it takes.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/rock-climbing-blog/~3/US4y7aAlJk8/philsheard

Chris Brennan Marcelo Brito  Rob Broughton  Mike Brown  Junie Browning

This week’s episode of "The Ultimate Fighter" has two fights, a coaching legend and an incredibly kind compliment just for you. Read on for spoilers and a recap of this week’s episode.

Stupid prank of the week: Sevak Magakian rigged the kitchen faucets so that they would spray on Michael Johnson, who promptly blamed it on on Alex "Bruce LeRoy" Caceres. Seriously, guys, these pranks are getting weaker by the episode.

Fight One of the Week: Kyle Watson (Team GSP) vs. Aaron Wilkinson (Team Koscheck) 

Round 1: Watson started with a quick takedown and instantly moved to side control. He continued to work to control Wilkinson on the ground, and despite a few bursts of movement, Watson owned the Team Koscheck fighter. With more than a minute left in the round, Watson methodically took Wilkinson’s back and sunk in a rear naked choke. As his coaches yelled, "Don’t tap!" Wilkinson was forced to tap, making Watson a semi-finalist.

"Rear naked choke! Another one. How many rear naked chokes has my team … I mean, I can’t believe it!" Koscheck said after the bout.

Legendary coach cameo of the week: Freddie Roach stopped by Team GSP’s training — the same Freddie Roach who trains Manny Pacquaio. The fighters are all blown away just to be able to talk to Roach, much less train with him. Roach dropped an astounding compliment about Johnson:

"Michael Johnson has great speed. Reminds me of Pacquaio, a little bit," Roach said.

Neutral corners of the week: Roach worked with both Johnson and Caceres to get them ready to fight each other. GSP decided to not corner either fighter, so we’re due for another eerily quiet bout.

Not-so-neutral coach of the week: Though GSP is not cornering either fighter, Koscheck is clearly behind Alex Caceres. He cheers on "Bruce LeRoy" throughout the weigh-ins, and claims that GSP fought for this match-up to get rid of the fighter he thinks is the weaker link. GSP stays silent and smiles as Kos jabbers on. Kos even offers to help out Caceres, but stops short at wearing a red jersey.

Watson corners Johnson, while Jeff Lentz corners Caceres.

Fight Two of the Week: Michael Johnson (Team GSP) vs. Alex Caceres (Team GSP) 

Round 1: Johnson starts with a quick takedown, but doesn’t keep Caceres down for long. When the two pop back up, Johnson controls the stand-up and knocks Caceres’ mouthguard out. When he reaches down to pick it up, Johnson appears annoyed, and Caceres responds with, "C’mon, dog." The action restarts, and Johnson continues to control, Caceres has great movement throughout the bout. Still, in-between rounds, Koscheck yells, "You won that round, Alex." Jonathan Brookins tells Caceres the same thing.

Round 2: Caceres starts the round smiling and then promptly gets taken down. Johnson works side control and then ground and pound until Caceres works to his base and then stands up. Caceres briefly gains control on the ground, but doesn’t do much with it, and after a short time standing, Johnson takes top position again. Caceres regains standing position for a bit, until Johnson takes him down one more time to end the bout.

The judges scored it 20-18, 20-18 and 20-18 for Michael Johnson, earning him a spot in the semifinals.

Koscheck and GSP head into White’s office to talk about semifinal match-ups, and much to Dana’s surprise, they come to a consensus quickly, picking these semifinals:

Jonathan Brookins vs. Kyle Watson and Michael Johnson vs. Nam Phan

These first of these fights will air next week. Tune in.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/What-you-need-to-know-from-this-week-on-The-Ult?urn=mma-285961

David Baron  Phil Baroni Don Barr Pat Barry  Vitor Belfort 

by Michael David SmithFor most of a bumbling, badly run meeting before the California State Athletic Commission, Chael Sonnen looked like he was toast. Yes, he had brought a couple of highly regarded lawyers with him, and yes, he had a doctor who testified that he had prescribed Sonnen with testosterone to deal with hypogonadism. But rules are rules, and the members of the Commission, despite seeming at times like they didn’t know what their own rules were, appeared to be in general agreement that Sonnen had violated their rules by failing to properly disclose he was taking testosterone.

And then, in a surprising vote at the end of the Commission hearing, Sonnen got off easy: After the Commission members first deadlocked 2-2 when voting on whether to uphold Sonnen’s one-year suspension, they voted again on a measure to cut his suspension in half, to six months, and that measure passed, 3-1.

Call it a split decision victory for Sonnen, a Fight of the Night-quality performance by his lawyers, and a big loss for the California State Athletic Commission — and for everyone who wants the rules on performance-enhancing drugs to be upheld fairly and uniformly.

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/12/02/chael-sonnen-gets-off-easy-with-california-commission/

Royce Gracie Royler Gracie Ryan Gracie Peter Graham Forrest Griffin

There will never be answer to who really won last night’s main event at UFC 123. Some favor Quinton "Rampage" Jackson while others liked the Octagon control exhibited by Lyoto Machida. Jackson took a split decision win from the Brazilian. He stated several times that he was lucky to win and even said Machida deserved a rematch.

The good feelings continued until Rampage arrived back home in Los Angeles. That’s when he decided to take on his manager Anthony McGann. Jackson got nailed playing bag tag and went for a ride. 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/-Rampage-finally-suffers-a-definitive-loss?urn=mma-287857

Thiago Alves  Andre Amade  Dean Amasinger  Jimmy Ambriz Matt Andersen 

by Michael David SmithPhil Davis showed Saturday night at UFC 123 why he’s one of the most promising young light heavyweights in mixed martial arts, submitting Tim Boetsch with a very impressive kimura from the top for a second-round victory that improved Davis’s record to 8-0.

Davis came out throwing a lot of kicks in the early going, landing some but also throwing a couple of them too slowly and allowing Boetsch to catch them. About halfway through the first round Davis, an NCAA champion wrestler at Penn State, went for a takedown and got on top of Boetsch, completely controlling him. It was a round that very easily could have gone 10-8 for Davis.

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/11/20/ufc-123-phil-davis-submits-tim-boetsch/

Quinton Jackson Forrest Griffin Rashad Evans Lyoto Machida Mauricio Rua

Source: http://nedsurfshots.blogspot.com/2010/02/tilt-shift.html

Alex Andrade  Jermaine Andrè  Yoji Anjo  Ao Hailin  Shinya Aoki 

Source: http://nedsurfshots.blogspot.com/2010/01/view-from-below-big-hill-beach-january.html

Antonio Silva Assuerio Silva Paulo Silva Jay Silva Jean Silva

The adrenaline’s pumping. It’s finish or be finished in the cage. The action in the Octagon can push combatants to the brink mentally, so if a fighter throws a few extra punches to close out a fight or holds onto a submission for a split second too long it’s understandable.

Then there’s cases like Paul Daley, Renato "Babalu" Sobral and Rousimar Palhares.

Daley and Babalu were dumped from the UFC for dirty tactics. Daley sucker punched Josh Koscheck just seconds after their bout ended while Babalu refused to let go off a rear naked choke he had locked onto David Heath. Palhares wasn’t fired but he was suspended for refusing to let go of a leg lock for a few seconds against Alessio Sakara at UFC 111. 

UFC 123 was close to having a similar situation unfold when Maiquel Falcao seemed unwilling to let go of a choke he had slapped on Gerald Harris. Two issues saved Falcao from being labeled a dirty fighter. There was a major clock snafu. The round was ended six seconds prematurely, and Harris came close to tapping on several occasions. 

"He tapped out in three different occasions, hiding it. It was a new thing for me, it was the first time I got three wins on the same bout," Falcao told Tatame.com. "On the first round, he tapped out the first time when he was on the four points position, then he tapped out again in the end of the first round, when I got him on the rear naked choke with his body turned up, and on the third round he tapped out again on a rear naked choke."

That’s a plausible explanation, but there is one troubling issue with Falcao. Just like Palhares, he has a history of ignoring officials in the cage at the end of fights. This 2007 fight in Brazil is pretty disturbing. There’s no clock malfunction or confusion about the fact that the fight is over, yet Falcao keeps pounding away (0:17 mark) as the referee is trying to pull him off the battered fighter. 

It’s unlikely Falcao will pull something like this in the UFC, but the promotion and officials on hand need to show a little extra care around his future fights. 

Tip via Fightlinker

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/UFC-may-want-to-keep-an-eye-on-future-Falcao-fig?urn=mma-290361

Shungo Oyama Fredson Paixao Soa Palalei Bart Palaszewski Rousimar Palhares

Mark Munoz and Aaron Simpson are remarkably similar. Both have strong wrestling pedigrees: Munoz was a national champion at Oklahoma St. while Simpson was an All-American at Arizona St. They both coached in the wrestling Pac-10. Munoz helped UC-Davis to their first national champion, and Simpson was key to success at both Arizona St. and Cal Tech. They both got into the MMA game relatively late, but won right from the start. Munoz is 8-2 and Simpson is 7-1.

They are old friends, and even helped each other get into MMA when coaching wrestling. Check the 3:30 point in the video to hear how Simpson and Munoz discussed getting into MMA while coaching at the NCAA championships in 2007 at the Palace in Auburn Hills, Mich.

When they fight at UFC 123 at the Palace in Auburn Hills, Mich., two remarkably similar men will have to put their friendship aside. Munoz admits that he’s not looking forward to punching Simpson, but he’ll find a way.

"No, I’m not. I’ll try to picture somebody else’s face in front of him."

Thanks to Fight! Magazine

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Munoz-and-Simpson-Fighters-put-friendship-aside?urn=mma-286087

Mark Coleman Maurice Smith Randy Couture Bas Rutten Kevin Randleman

Source: http://nedsurfshots.blogspot.com/2010/09/south.html

Randy Couture Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira Brock Lesnar Frank Mir Brock Lesnar

Phil Davis looks more impressive every time he hits the Octagon. The former Penn State wrestler had only three fights under his belt in the UFC, but made Tim Boetsch look like the guy with little experience.

Davis absolutely dominated the grappling game against the former Div. 1 wrestler at Lock Haven. Then he worked some submission magic. With Boetsch pinned against the cage, Davis switched from a conventional arm lock and cranked his opponent’s arm behind his back. The pain was too much to take for Boetsch, who tapped at 2:55 of the second round.

UPDATE: Davis’ "Mr. Wonderful" submission nabbed him the submission of the night award and an $80,000 bonus.

Davis, 26, is a perfect 8-0 in MMA. He’s beginning to move into top prospect status at light heavyweight along with Jon Jones and Ryan Bader. This was a return fight for Boetsch in the UFC, after four straight wins with smaller promotions. 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Davis-invents-his-own-submission-to-take-out-Boe?urn=mma-287736

Eddie Alvarez Thiago Alves  Andre Amade  Dean Amasinger  Jimmy Ambriz

We’re proud to announce an exclusive illustrated story by one of our favourite surf artists; Ron Croci… We were alarmed to hear that Ron nearly ‘met his end’, due to a serious (and sudden) illness on his recent vacation to Hawaii! But we’re happy to say he came through it and has shared his story with us in a series of annotated watercolor paintings documenting his near death experience, the unusual effects of morphine and the beautiful Hawaiian islands he enjoyed and surfed up until falling ill…

www.clubofthewaves.com/surf-culture/hawaii-vacation-watercolors.php

www.roncroci.com

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/cotw/~3/nTRasQgs8IM/watercolors-from-hawaii-by-ron-croci.html

Tim Sylvia Randy Couture Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira Brock Lesnar Frank Mir

by Michael David SmithIn a battle of two excellent collegiate wrestlers that was fought mostly on the feet, Mark Munoz beat Aaron Simpson by unanimous decision at UFC 123.

“I was prepared to go three rounds and go as hard as I can,” Munoz said afterward. “I know Aaron doesn’t back down, and I didn’t back down for three rounds.”

As is so often the case when two wrestlers step into the Octagon, they ended up spending most of the time on their feet in the first round, feeling each other out in the stand up, trading punches, and stalemating more than anything else when they clinched. Simpson probably did a little more than Munoz and deserved to win the first.

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/11/20/ufc-123-results-mark-munoz-beats-aaron-simpson/

Jon Fitch Kenny Florian Jesse Forbes Xavier Foupa Pokam Hermes Franca

Filed under: UFC, News

In the months leading up to his UFC 117 title challenge, Chael Sonnen had plenty to say. Sonnen seemed to be everywhere, talking up his potential to dethrone champion Anderson Silva in a middleweight championship match. More than 20 minutes into the fight, he was making good on his pre-fight boasting, seemingly on his way to a career-defining victory when Silva caught him with a fifth-round triangle/arm bar submission.

In the months since, Sonnen has had almost nothing to say publicly, his silence precipitated by a positive drug test in the days after the fight.

On Thursday in Sacramento, Calif., Sonnen will have his chance to defend himself from a California state athletic commission (CSAC) finding that he illegally used performance-enhancing steroids prior to the bout.

Over 100 pages of documents recently released by the CSAC give a clearer picture of the commission’s contention that Sonnen cheated.

Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/12/01/as-chael-sonnen-prepares-for-steroids-hearing-more-details-emer/

Nam Phan Mike Pierce Mike Plotcheck Ross Pointon Trevor Prangley

by Michael David SmithJustin Wilcox, Ovince St. Preux and Liz Carmouche all had the biggest wins of their MMA careers at Friday night’s Strikeforce Challengers event on Showtime. So it’s a shame that an accidental eye poke ending a fight in just six seconds is what everyone will be talking about.

But that’s exactly what happened on Friday night: The fight between Dream welterweight champion Marius Zaromskis and Waachiim Spiritwolf was over as soon as it started when Zaromskis charged across the cage at the opening bell, went for a flying knee and accidentally poked Spiritwolf in the eye, causing an injury that led the ringside doctor to call off the fight. The official ending was a no contest, six seconds into the first round, in one of the fastest, strangest endings to a fight in MMA history.

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/11/20/eye-poke-steals-the-show-at-strikeforce-challengers/

Alexander Otsuka Alistair Overeem Valentijn Overeem Shungo Oyama Fredson Paixao

Filed under: Strikeforce

After seven months off, Dan Henderson is finally stepping back into the cage on Saturday night, hoping to earn his first victory in Strikeforce and first anywhere since knocking out Michael Bisping at UFC 100. Henderson will have a tough test against Renato “Babalu” Sobral in what should be an entertaining main event in Strikeforce’s final card of 2010.

What: Strikeforce: Henderson vs. Babalu 2

Where: Scottrade Center, St. Louis

When: Saturday, the Showtime broadcast begins at 10 PM ET.

Predictions on the four televised fights below.

Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/12/01/strikeforce-henderson-vs-babalu-2-preview-and-predictions/

Katsuyori Shibata Jake Shields Akira Shoji Anderson Silva Antonio Silva

Mike Lullo out of suburban Chicago is the latest addition to UFC 123. He is replacing the injured Darren Elkins to face Edson Barboza, and is on an eight-fight win streak. Lullo trains at Midwest Training Center where he has worked with Clay Guida, and is pictured above winning by gogoplata over Jeremy Castro in June.

There is one more thing you should know about Lullo:

He is my cousin, and full disclosure, I am incredibly proud of Mikey for getting one step closer to his dream. Cagewriter will be on hand to cover Lullo, "Rampage" Jackson, Lyoto Machida and all of the other fighters at UFC 123 next week.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Lullo-replaces-Elkins-to-complete-UFC-123-line-u?urn=mma-285309

Mark Hunt Brad Imes Enson Inoue Takeshi Inoue Tokimitsu Ishizawa

MORE: UFC 124 coverage, GSP UFC 124 shirt, Koscheck UFC 124 shirt

Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/16718/ufc-124-video-preview-for-st-pierre-vs-koscheck-2-on-dec-11/

Ken Shamrock Dan Severn Tank Abbott Hiroyuki Abe Cyril Abidi 

Just like turkey on Thanksgiving, big sales on the day after Thanksgiving is a tradition. That extends to MMA retailers, who will have some great discounts for this Friday.

– MMA Warehouse has a wide variety of markdowns, on everything from the Tri-Coasta Korean Zombie shirt to the Georges St. Pierre garbage can. You can even get some fighter dolls for less than $10.

– Six Deuce will take 25% off every order over $30, and free shipping to the U.S. and Canada for any order over $50. May we suggest the "Glorious Sweater of Absolute Victory" sweatshirt, patterned after Fedor Emelianenko’s famous sweater?

– MMA Stop has a coupon for free domestic shipping. Use it to buy the sweatshirt your brother dropped a not-so-subtle hint about. 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/MMA-Marketplace-Black-Friday-specials?urn=mma-288904

Minoru Suzuki Tim Sylvia Javier Torres Tor Troeng Nobuhiko Takada

UFC 123 betting odds (Courtesy Lagasse Stadium)
Official plays in bold

Quinton Jackson (+210) vs. Lyoto Machida (-270) — Light heavyweight
Matt Hughes (+130) vs. B.J. Penn (-160) — Welterweight
Joe Lauzon (+170) vs. George Sotiropoulos (-200) — Lightweight
Tim Boetsch (+450) vs. Phil Davis (-700) — Light heavyweight
Maiquel Falcao (+220) vs. Gerald Harris (-300) — Middleweight
Matt Brown (+120) vs. Brian Foster (-150) — Welterweight
Aaron Simpson (+120) vs. Mark Munoz (-150) — Middleweight
Dennis Hallman (+110) vs. Karo Parisyan (-140) — Welterweight
Mike Lullo (+300) vs. Edson Barboza (-400) — Lightweight
T.J. O’Brien (+150) vs. Paul Kelly (-180) — Lightweight
Nik Lentz (+200) vs. Tyson Griffin (-250) — Lightweight

Check here for Yahoo! Sports’ staff straight picks of the fights at UFC 123. 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/UFC-123-picks-Vegas-style-Little-respect-for-?urn=mma-287223

Shinya Aoki  Andrei Arlovski  Ricardo Arona  Noboru Asahi Marcus Aurelio 

Check out a cool little interview with Cornish COTW featured surf artist Bryn Hall put together by myCornwall.tv…

Click the video below to watch…

- Bryn’s website/blog
- Bryn on Switch-foot

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/cotw/~3/d_78KfYWquQ/surf-artist-bryn-hall-interview.html

Pete Spratt Brian Stann Aaron Stark Kalib Starnes Joe Stevenson

No fighter likes to get slugged in the face, but it’s part of the job. From MMA to boxing, the best fighters in the world can absorb shots and return fire without hesitation. Just seven fights into his MMA career, Brock Lesnar isn’t there yet. In fact, after watching him turn and run from Cain Velasquez, he’s really at square one.

Urijah Faber knows the feeling. The former featherweight king also comes from an NCAA wrestling background and said that five years ago he was in the same place as Lesnar.  

"We’ve all been there, where Lesnar is at," Faber said (6:00 mark). "Dude, getting hit is not the coolest thing to have done to you, but it’s not that big of a deal. It takes a ton of sparring and some great defense and a knowledge of what it’s like to get hit, to be able to get used to it."

Faber’s career skyrocketed when he began working with Master Thong, a veteran of muay thai. The top level muay thai fighters have a calm demeanor and the uncanny ability to eat big shots so they can fire back. Lesnar has to bring in striking experts and allow himself to get blasted. 

"I think he’s going to be a great fighter as long as he decides to do that," Faber told ProMMARadio. "He needs to get in there and accept ‘hey I’m going to get hit and there are guys who are better at punching than I am. But he just needs to put in the time like everyone else."

Faber’s had a change of heart about Lesnar. After UFC 100, Faber was actually one of his detractors inside the sport.  

"I just kinda didn’t like the fact that he had so many eyes on him, and had so much influence in the sport when he came off so bad for the sport after his fight with Mir. But I think he’s grown a lot."

Faber’s Team Alpha Male in Sacramento is filled with little guys but he’d be interested in working with the former heavyweight king on his issues.

"Man, I’d be willing to help him out, if he was really into learning," Faber said. "I think some simple things that would help him out a lot. He shouldn’t be losing to guys that are 40 pounds lighter than him."

Lesnar may face Mir for a third time in 2011. UFC president Dana White confirmed that the match is being discussed but was also getting some negative feedback from fans on Twitter. Lesnar’s rumored fight against Roy Nelson hit a snag because "Big Country" is dealing with contractual issues.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Faber-says-he-d-work-with-Lesnar-to-fix-his-fear?urn=mma-285653

Alex Schoenauer Ryan Schultz Pete Sell Andrei Semenov Ivan Serati

Fight Hub TV had a quick minute to speak with former Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion Gegard Mousasi about what he has been up to and how he has handled his loss to King Mo. He also commented on his reaction to Feijao’s surprise win over King Mo and tells us that Satoshi Iishi might be his next opponent at Dream in Japan for their annual New Years show.

Source: http://mmalice.com/gegard-mousasi/gegard-mousasi-talks-feijao-win-over-king-mo-video_26a12e05e.html

Edson Drago  Tomasz Drwal Joe Hybrid Duarte Aldrin de Jesus  Todd Duffee 

Rising middleweight Alessio Sakara is still recovering from a stomach virus that forced him out of UFC 122′s co-main event with Jorge Rivera earlier this month, but is already training for a February or March UFC return.

Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/16708/alessio-sakara-ufc-return-likely-for-february-or-march-after-ufc-122-withdrawl/

Antônio Rogério Nogueira Karl James Noons Jan Nortje Phillipe Noer Jake O Brien

Light heavyweights Kyle Kingsbury and Ricardo Romero are expected to square off on the preliminary card of UFC 126 on Feb. 5 in Las Vegas.

UFC 126 is headlined by middleweight champ Anderson Silva vs. Vitor Belfort and also features Rich Franklin vs. Forrest Griffin and Jon Jones vs. Ryan Bader.

Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/16726/kyle-kingsbury-vs-ricardo-romero-added-to-ufc-126-prelims/

Kalib Starnes Joe Stevenson Luke Stewart Denis Stojnic Curtis Stout

Finally a little sun! Yesterday I went climbing in Burbage (specifically Burbage south boulders) in the Peak District near Sheffield. I’m really glad I’ve got these boulders within 15 minutes of my home.
Although in a climbing wall / gym I’m happy on 6a/6b the techniques on grit boulders are a different world: lots of smearing [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/rock-climbing-blog/~3/cezufJsw-4w/philsheard

Anthony Walsh Wang Guan Wang Sai Ron Waterman Roman Webber

by Michael David SmithStrikeforce has a lightweight champion, Gilbert Melendez, whose only fight in 2010 was a win over the lightweight champion of Dream, Shinya Aoki, and who keeps talking about his desire to fight the lightweight champion of Bellator, Eddie Alvarez. So doesn’t Strikeforce have any of its own lightweights for its champion to fight?

No, not really. At least not right now, where the best fight for Melendez really would be outside the organization. But as we look at the state of the Strikeforce lightweights below, we’ll examine whether the promotion can beef up its lightweight roster and make bigger things happen in 2011.

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/12/01/state-of-the-strikeforce-lightweights/

Mark The Hammer Coleman Wes Soldier Combs  Ray Cooper  Kit Cope  Wesley Cabbage Correira 

The new and improved Josh Koscheck is set for his rematch with champion, Georges St-Pierre. Watch and see if Kos can avenges his loss and claim the welterweight title – UFC 124: St-Pierre vs Koscheck Live on Pay-Per-View Saturday, Dec 11th at 7pm PT/ 10pm ET.

Source: http://mmalice.com/ufc-124/josh-koscheck-vs-st-pierre-pre-fight-interview-video_3e0b7490c.html

Antônio Rogério Nogueira Karl James Noons Jan Nortje Phillipe Noer Jake O Brien

Hats off to Billabong who have teamed up with team rider Dave Rastovich to produce a line of clothing for Surfers for Cetaceans, called the "Rasta Collection". The clothing line is all made from recycled materials. Billabong even ran an advert for the collection on their highly trafficked event site for the recent Billabong Pro in Jeffreys Bay! Way to go Billabong!

For more info on this series and to purchase online, visit the Billabong Europe store or to purchase and watch a video visit the Billabong US store

Read more about the dolphin slaughters in Japan that organisations like Surfers for Cetaceans and the Visual Petition are fighting to put an end to.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/cotw/~3/fEgzrYHHCdM/billabong-surfers-for-cetaceans.html

Georges St Pierre Matt Serra Jens Pulver Sean Sherk

Fight Hub TV had a quick minute to speak with former Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion Gegard Mousasi about what he has been up to and how he has handled his loss to King Mo. He also commented on his reaction to Feijao’s surprise win over King Mo and tells us that Satoshi Iishi might be his next opponent at Dream in Japan for their annual New Years show.

Source: http://mmalice.com/gegard-mousasi/gegard-mousasi-talks-feijao-win-over-king-mo-video_26a12e05e.html

Eddy Rolon João Roque Kristian Rothaermel Ben Rothwell Chad Akebono Rowan

Things are going well for Randy Couture. He dominated his last two MMA fights and he’s making waves in Hollywood. Sylvester Stallone is pretty good guy to have as a pal.

Stallone’s movie "The Expendables" did well at the box office and was just released on DVD. Couture’s work on that project helped him land two more roles which should lock up his schedule through the spring of 2011.

"I’m really excited about the movie career and all the other business stuff I’ve got going on with the supplements, the clothing line, the action figures, the training centers are doing fantastic," Couture told ESPNRadio1100 in Las Vegas. "So I want to focus on those things and enjoy life a little bit. And focus on playing some more characters."

Couture’s got three fights left on his UFC deal. He said that’s not really an issue. The point of the last seven-fight deal with the UFC was to make sure Couture finished his career with the promotion and wouldn’t have to fight somewhere else.

In what turned out to be the most important note to emerge from this interview (3:55 mark), Couture admitted he has not seen the Arianny Celeste spread in Playboy and he never wants to!

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Without-a-major-fight-on-the-horizon-Couture-do?urn=mma-290404

Frank Mir Brock Lesnar Shane Carwin Brock Lesnar Frank Shamrock

Tyson Griffin ‘on Verge of Tears’ Following Controversial Decision Loss Video by UFC 123

Source: http://mmalice.com/ufc-123/tyson-griffin-on-verge-of-tears-following-controversial-decision-loss-video_a9f12f475.html

Dan The Sandman Christison  Logan The Pink Pounder Clark  Steve The Snake Claveau  Rich No Love Clementi  Mark The Hammer Coleman

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — Brian Foster won a welterweight battle over Matt Brown via submission at UFC 123 in suburban Detroit on Saturday.

Foster started quickly with a takedown. He gave up position for a moment until, then Foster reversed position and took Brown’s back. Foster took over the round with a series of unanswered strikes. As Foster worked on the back, he gave up an arm, and it looked like Brown was going to be able to finish the fight with a submission, but Foster methodically and patiently worked out near the end of the round.

The two exchanged heated words between rounds, leading into the second round that started with Foster taking a low blow from Brown. Foster wowed the crowd by catching a kick and using it to deposit Brown on his back. Foster then worked his arms around Brown for a guillotine, forcing Brown to tap at 2:11 in the second.

This is Foster’s second win in a row, making the H.I.T Squad fighter 17-5. Brown, an alumnus of "The Ultimate Fighter," is now 13-10.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Brian-Foster-taps-out-Matt-Brown-at-UFC-123?urn=mma-287724

Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira Brock Lesnar Frank Mir Brock Lesnar Shane Carwin

Rousimar Palhares has signed a new four-fight deal with the UFC and the middleweight jiu jitsu specialist is looking to avenge his September knockout at the hands of Nate Marquardt, which halted “Toquinho’s” three-fight win streak.

Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/16697/rousimar-palhares-re-signs-with-ufc-eyes-nate-marquardt-rematch/

Tito Ortiz Randy Couture Vitor Belfort Randy Couture Chuck Liddell

Duane "Bang" Ludwig took a split decision in his first fight back since suffering a horrific ankle injury in March. He tweeted this picture of his face after the weird fight that had Nick Osipczak barely engage in the third round.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Duane-Ludwig-s-entry-into-the-Gallery-of-Ow?urn=mma-285478

Mark Hunt Brad Imes Enson Inoue Takeshi Inoue Tokimitsu Ishizawa

The message coming from the head honcho of the UFC is loud and clear  – fight aggressively or you could be on your way back to the minors.

Recently, Dana White has called Nate Marquardt a choker, suggested that Lyoto Machida needs to attack more and dumped Gerald Harris, a fighter with a 3-1 mark with the promotion, after he failed to go for the win against Maiquel Falcao.

White calls it "safety first" fighting and is calling out camps like Jackson’s Submission Fighting as a big culprit. Trainer Greg Jackson was in the corner of Marquardt, who fought a measured bout against Yushin Okami at UFC 122.

"I have a lot of respect for Greg Jackson. It’s not like I don’t like him or I’m trying to say something bad about him, but there’s a pattern there. The game plans they come up with and a lot of the corner work is very weird," White told CSN Washington.

White still can’t understand how a guy as explosive and powerful as Marquardt is involved in a boring fight.

"You’ll see guys who are traditionally exciting fighters, but when they go to the Greg Jackson camp they become safety first fighters," White said. "Why wouldn’t you tell him ‘go for broke in this third round. This is a close fight.’"  

White then tried to back away a bit.

"At the end of the day, my opinion means nothing. I’m not their corner man. I’m not the trainer. I’m just the promoter. I’m just being honest. There’s obviously some consistency there with the Jackson camp with the safety first," said White.

Of course, White’s opinion means something. And now that available rosters spots are harder to come by since the addition of fighters from three weight classes from the WEC, it means even more.

This is an interesting dilemma that trainers have to deal with now. Fighters should be intelligent in their approach but the promotion is sending the message that just getting wins doesn’t guarantee you a long range future with the UFC.   

On Las Vegas NBC affiliate KSNV, Cagewriter also addressed fight scoring and the UFC’s approach.

Tip via Bloody Elbow

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/White-continues-to-call-out-Jackson-camp-s-strat?urn=mma-289990

Karl James Noons Jan Nortje Phillipe Noer Jake O Brien Naoya Ogawa

John Anderson thinks twice about borrowing from Georges St. Pierre (GSP).

Source: http://mmalice.com/georges-st-pierre/georges-st-pierre-espn-sportcenter-commercial-video_c09e2d822.html

Gilbert Aldana  José Aldo  John Alessio  Houston Alexander Ricardo Almeida 

Quinton "Rampage" Jackson and Dana White have some personality similarities. It’s probably why the fighter and UFC owner bicker quite often. They both say what they feel and there isn’t much of a filter.

Jackson won a narrow decision over Lyoto Machida at UFC 123, but was stunned when the announcement was made. Just seconds earlier, he was getting punched in the grill and losing the third round. His reaction added to the controversial nature of the decision and it didn’t please his boss. 

"Me and Rampage are getting along OK, but he pisses me off again," White said at the UFC 123 postfight press conference (2:15 mark — video). "I had Rampage winning that fight two rounds to one. I scored that fight for Rampage. Rampage is slumping down and raising the other guy’s hand and acting like he lost. I thought he won the fight."

It didn’t seem like Jackson did anything wrong. After escaping with a tight decision win, it’s pretty rare for a fighter to show that kind of honesty and class.

Forty-five minutes later, when Jackson entered the presser, he was in apology mode.

"I’m sorry man. I had just gotten done getting punched in the face a couple times," Jackson said (7:52 mark). "Don’t pay me no mind.

"When I was in the fight I had a one-track mind, you know knockin’ him out. In the third round, when he dominated me so much, I forgot what happened in the first two rounds. … It’s one of those things, at the time I thought I got my ass whooped because I was just getting up off the ground and he [just] ran a flurry up on my face."

That seems plausible. Jackson was probably a little stunned. With all the adrenaline flowing right after a match, fighters are speaking with raw emotion. 

White looked at the entirety of the fight and liked what Rampage did over 15 minutes. 

"That’s not the fight I saw. He definitely put on that burst where he landed five or six punches and definitely rocked him. You don’t win a fight off four or five punches," said White.

Scoring is very subjective. Some judges, media members and fans like Octagon control and counterstriking. Others favor the man pushing the action. Compustrike backed the judges and White. Jackson outlanded Machida 59-38 in a fight that spent 12:28 of 15 minutes on the feet.

"Rampage was the aggressor. He moved forward the entire fight. Everytime Lyoto would go with that leg kick, he’d fire and go after him," said White. "I 100 percent had Rampage winning the first two rounds and had the third round going to Machida. Again, nobody gives a [expletive] what I think, but I’m not a judge. But that’s how I scored the fight." 

In the seconds following the fight, Jackson said several times that Machida deserved a rematch. White emphatically shot down that idea (6:10 mark).

"No, no," said White when asked about Rampage-Machida II. "As far as I’m concerned, and apparently as far as the judges are concerned, Rampage won that fight."

White then repeated his displeasure of Jackson’s postfight behavior.

"Rampage is in there raising [Machida's] hand, slumping down, acting bummed out,  acting surprised when he won," White said. "He won two rounds. It’s a three-round fight. He won two of them." 

With White in his presence during the presser, Jackson made sure not to repeat the rematch offer. 

"This ain’t my show. I don’t own UFC homey. I just fight here," said Jackson (8:30).

Jackson also revealed that he almost had to back out of the fight after coming down with a stomach ailment he’d caught from his kids. 

"Dana’s always been there for me. Even if we don’t see eye to eye all the time," Jackson said (9:40 mark). "I just couldn’t tell Dana ‘I cant make this fight because I’m sick.’ He probably would’ve cussed me the [expletive] out."

Jackson comes out a big winner from this fight. He didn’t complain about Machida’s counterstriking style, as so many others have done. Fans who thought it was a boring fight should listen to Jackson when he says Machida is a beast. Jackson’s reaction probably saved the Brazilian’s reputation a bit too. 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Quinton-Jackson-humble-in-victory-irks-his-boss?urn=mma-288037

Dean Amasinger  Jimmy Ambriz Matt Andersen  Alex Andrade  Jermaine Andrè 

Hold Tight Henry is cleaning out his hard drive and made a montage of these forgotten clips.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/MostlySkateboarding/~3/nssF9Edv8Hk/hold-tight-clear-out.html

Ao Hailin  Shinya Aoki  Andrei Arlovski  Ricardo Arona  Noboru Asahi

by Michael David SmithBrazilian newcomer Maiquel Falcao didn’t do anything to endear himself to the UFC fans on Saturday at UFC 123, beating Gerald Harris by unanimous decision but doing it in fairly dull fashion, and doing it after a fight that included a dirty tactic of holding onto a choke after the bell rang.

The judges scored the fight for Falcao 29-27, 29-28 and 29-28, improving Falcao’s professional record to 26-3. Harris, who had been on a tear this year, fell to 17-3.

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/11/20/ufc-123-maiquel-falcao-beats-gerald-harris-in-unimpressive-fash/

Kerry Schall Nino Schembri Fabiano Scherner Semmy Schilt Alex Schoenauer

Everyone wants a piece of the MMA game. That includes a former hoops star who made $66.7 million during his time in the NBA. Glen Rice is an MMA convert and he’s got a card coming up Thursday night in South Florida.

"They’re conditioned athletes. Their workouts are extremely difficult," Rice said. "Me as being an ex-professional basketball player, we worked hard but we didn’t work as hard as these guys do."

Rice’s G-Force promotions has also booked Trick Daddy to perform at the Bank United Center. The card has a mix of male and female fights. Rice and fighters Jessica Aguilar and Mike Vallejo appeared on WQAM in Miami to push Bad Blood 4. 

Aguilar, a 2010 Bellator featherweight tournament semifinalist, is on the card. She talked about her passion for fighting and said Mexican pride fuels her when she’s getting battered. WQAM host Joe Rose got into the great history of Mexican fighters.

"But don’t compare me to the Mexican who fought this weekend," Aguilar said referencing Antonio Margarito. "I don’t like to talk. I like to do. I guess I think he deserved it for talking so bad."

Margarito suffered a unanimous-decision defeat at the hands of Manny Pacquiao. By the end of the fight, Margarito’s eyes were closed and he had suffered a broken orbital bone. Aguilar said she doesn’t believe Margarito’s excuses about his illegal hand wrap before the Shane Mosley fight.

The main event of Bad Blood 4 features Dhafir Harris. In Florida, "Da Da 5000" is being talked about as Kimbo Slice 2.0.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Former-NBA-star-Glen-Rice-is-an-MMA-promoter?urn=mma-286517

Jimmy Smith Maurice Mo Smith Patrick Smith Scott Smith Renato Babalu Sobral

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — Quinton "Rampage" Jackson beat Lyoto Machida in a 29-28, 28-29, 29-28 decision in the main event at UFC 123 in front of a loud crowd at the Palace of Auburn Hills. Jackson won the with aggressiveness, and escaped a close call in the final round.

The first round began just as expected, with Rampage immediately stalking, and Machida immediately being elusive. Machida used leg kicks, movement and misdirection to keep the distance, until Jackson finally chased him and was able to land combinations. After the second flurry of punches, Machida clinched with Rampage. They broke apart, and Machida again the clinch to defend against Jackson’s aggressiveness.

The clinching continued in the second round, with little action coming from it until two minutes in, when Jackson completed a takedown. They returned to their feet and the clinch. Machida landed a knee again, followed by Jackson breaking free and then landing a huge uppercut that Machida survived. Machida’s elusiveness continued to frustrate Jackson, who did everything he could to get into punching distance of Machida.

Machida finally exploded with offense in the third round, throwing a flurry of punches and then a headkick. Jackson appeared in trouble, then roared back with a few punches of his own until Machida took him down. Then, the two were immobile again. Machida passed guard into full mount and tried to get an arm bar, but Jackson’s strength won out. He picked up Machida for a slam, but Machida popped out before he could finish it. Back on their feet, they clinched again for another takedown attempt. Machida tried for one more submission before the fight was over, but the round ended before he could complete it.

"Machida is hard to hit. He’s going to be around for a long time," Jackson said after the fight. "Even though I don’t want to, I think it would be fair to have an immediate rematch."

Both fighters held and successfully defended the UFC light heavyweight belt and desperately want to get back into the title mix. Both were also coming off losses. Machida lost the belt to Mauricio "Shogun" Rua in May. Later that month, Rashad Evans decisioned Jackson in a grudge match between the two.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Jackson-takes-tight-decision-from-Machida-at-UFC?urn=mma-287737

Hayato Sakurai Ivan Salaverry Sean Salmon Diego Sanchez Jorge Santiago

Kyle Billups flings his board down some shit in this part for Blooka.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/MostlySkateboarding/~3/ymmfKfjXbtc/kyle-billups-part.html

Miguel Torres Roberto Traven Frank Trigg Mostapha Al Turk Ryuki Ueyama

by Michael David SmithBrazilian newcomer Maiquel Falcao didn’t do anything to endear himself to the UFC fans on Saturday at UFC 123, beating Gerald Harris by unanimous decision but doing it in fairly dull fashion, and doing it after a fight that included a dirty tactic of holding onto a choke after the bell rang.

The judges scored the fight for Falcao 29-27, 29-28 and 29-28, improving Falcao’s professional record to 26-3. Harris, who had been on a tear this year, fell to 17-3.

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/11/20/ufc-123-maiquel-falcao-beats-gerald-harris-in-unimpressive-fash/

Adam Lynn Chris Lytle Lyoto Machida Marzagui Ayoub Paul McVeigh

Georges St-Pierre vs Josh Koscheck pre-fight interview Video by UFC 124

Source: http://mmalice.com/ufc-124/georges-st-pierre-vs-josh-koscheck-pre-fight-interview-video_d860c07ac.html

Tito Ortiz Alexander Otsuka Alistair Overeem Valentijn Overeem Shungo Oyama

Interview with UFC fighter Brian Stann

Source: http://mmalice.com/brian-stann/brian-stann-prepares-for-chris-leben-at-ufc-125-video_d7262915a.html

Stephan Bonnar Lorenzo Borgomeo  Kyle Bradley  Jai Bradney  Ebenezer Fontes Braga

Phil Davis Discusses Birth of ‘Mr. Wonderful’ Submission Video by UFC 123

Source: http://mmalice.com/ufc-123/phil-davis-discusses-birth-of-mr-wonderful-submission-video_cd2915d7b.html

Forrest Griffin Rashad Evans Lyoto Machida Mauricio Rua Dave Menne

by Michael David SmithWhen a UFC fighter goes on SportsCenter two days before his fight, he’s usually expected to try to sell the viewers on a fight that he guarantees is going to be a “brawl” or a “barn burner” or a “slugfest” or whatever other word you want to use to describe the kinds of fights that will make the casual MMA fan watching ESPN buy the pay-per-view.

That’s not what Rampage Jackson did on Thursday morning.

Instead, Jackson went on SportsCenter and described his fight with Lyoto Machida Saturday night at UFC 123 as one that could easily be boring.

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/11/18/rampage-jackson-worries-lyoto-machida-will-give-him-a-boring-fig/

Rich Franklin Ian Freeman Don Frye Tony Fryklund Kazuyuki Fujita

The Chrome Ball Incident has a new interview with Chris “Dune” Pastras.

Source: http://theskateboardmag.com/blogs/templeton-elliott/2010/11/29/chris-pastras-chrome-ball-interview/

Jorge Gurgel Andre Gusmao Alexander Gustafsson Jaime Gutierrez Dave Gomez

by Michael David SmithStrikeforce’s light heavyweight title has been held by three different fighters this year, and two more fighters will vie for the right to fight for the belt in the main event of the promotion’s December 4 show. Although the Strikeforce light heavyweight division doesn’t have the depth of the UFC, it does have several good fighters and the potential for a bunch of exciting fights over the next year.

So can Strikeforce make those fights happen? If they can, which fights should they book first? And who will be the Strikeforce light heavyweight champion in a year’s time? We answer those questions in our state of the Strikeforce light heavyweight division, below.

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/11/28/state-of-the-strikeforce-light-heavyweights/

Matt Hamill Volk Han Joachim Hansen Antoni Hardonk Dan Hardy

Check out exclusive pictures by Tracy Lee from the UFC’s return to Michigan at UFC 123. See a poignant post-fight shot of Matt Hughes and BJ Penn, George Sotiropoulos submitting Joe Lauzon, and Phil Davis’ new submission. 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Exclusive-pictures-from-UFC-123?urn=mma-288271

Daiju Takase Oleg Taktarov Akitoshi Tamura Kiyoshi Tamura Evan Tanner

This week’s episode of "The Ultimate Fighter" has two fights, a coaching legend and an incredibly kind compliment just for you. Read on for spoilers and a recap of this week’s episode.

Stupid prank of the week: Sevak Magakian rigged the kitchen faucets so that they would spray on Michael Johnson, who promptly blamed it on on Alex "Bruce LeRoy" Caceres. Seriously, guys, these pranks are getting weaker by the episode.

Fight One of the Week: Kyle Watson (Team GSP) vs. Aaron Wilkinson (Team Koscheck) 

Round 1: Watson started with a quick takedown and instantly moved to side control. He continued to work to control Wilkinson on the ground, and despite a few bursts of movement, Watson owned the Team Koscheck fighter. With more than a minute left in the round, Watson methodically took Wilkinson’s back and sunk in a rear naked choke. As his coaches yelled, "Don’t tap!" Wilkinson was forced to tap, making Watson a semi-finalist.

"Rear naked choke! Another one. How many rear naked chokes has my team … I mean, I can’t believe it!" Koscheck said after the bout.

Legendary coach cameo of the week: Freddie Roach stopped by Team GSP’s training — the same Freddie Roach who trains Manny Pacquaio. The fighters are all blown away just to be able to talk to Roach, much less train with him. Roach dropped an astounding compliment about Johnson:

"Michael Johnson has great speed. Reminds me of Pacquaio, a little bit," Roach said.

Neutral corners of the week: Roach worked with both Johnson and Caceres to get them ready to fight each other. GSP decided to not corner either fighter, so we’re due for another eerily quiet bout.

Not-so-neutral coach of the week: Though GSP is not cornering either fighter, Koscheck is clearly behind Alex Caceres. He cheers on "Bruce LeRoy" throughout the weigh-ins, and claims that GSP fought for this match-up to get rid of the fighter he thinks is the weaker link. GSP stays silent and smiles as Kos jabbers on. Kos even offers to help out Caceres, but stops short at wearing a red jersey.

Watson corners Johnson, while Jeff Lentz corners Caceres.

Fight Two of the Week: Michael Johnson (Team GSP) vs. Alex Caceres (Team GSP) 

Round 1: Johnson starts with a quick takedown, but doesn’t keep Caceres down for long. When the two pop back up, Johnson controls the stand-up and knocks Caceres’ mouthguard out. When he reaches down to pick it up, Johnson appears annoyed, and Caceres responds with, "C’mon, dog." The action restarts, and Johnson continues to control, Caceres has great movement throughout the bout. Still, in-between rounds, Koscheck yells, "You won that round, Alex." Jonathan Brookins tells Caceres the same thing.

Round 2: Caceres starts the round smiling and then promptly gets taken down. Johnson works side control and then ground and pound until Caceres works to his base and then stands up. Caceres briefly gains control on the ground, but doesn’t do much with it, and after a short time standing, Johnson takes top position again. Caceres regains standing position for a bit, until Johnson takes him down one more time to end the bout.

The judges scored it 20-18, 20-18 and 20-18 for Michael Johnson, earning him a spot in the semifinals.

Koscheck and GSP head into White’s office to talk about semifinal match-ups, and much to Dana’s surprise, they come to a consensus quickly, picking these semifinals:

Jonathan Brookins vs. Kyle Watson and Michael Johnson vs. Nam Phan

These first of these fights will air next week. Tune in.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/What-you-need-to-know-from-this-week-on-The-Ult?urn=mma-285961

Jeff Joslin Scott Junk  Martin Kampmann Denis Kang Georgi Karakhanyan

This week’s episode of "The Ultimate Fighter" has two fights, a coaching legend and an incredibly kind compliment just for you. Read on for spoilers and a recap of this week’s episode.

Stupid prank of the week: Sevak Magakian rigged the kitchen faucets so that they would spray on Michael Johnson, who promptly blamed it on on Alex "Bruce LeRoy" Caceres. Seriously, guys, these pranks are getting weaker by the episode.

Fight One of the Week: Kyle Watson (Team GSP) vs. Aaron Wilkinson (Team Koscheck) 

Round 1: Watson started with a quick takedown and instantly moved to side control. He continued to work to control Wilkinson on the ground, and despite a few bursts of movement, Watson owned the Team Koscheck fighter. With more than a minute left in the round, Watson methodically took Wilkinson’s back and sunk in a rear naked choke. As his coaches yelled, "Don’t tap!" Wilkinson was forced to tap, making Watson a semi-finalist.

"Rear naked choke! Another one. How many rear naked chokes has my team … I mean, I can’t believe it!" Koscheck said after the bout.

Legendary coach cameo of the week: Freddie Roach stopped by Team GSP’s training — the same Freddie Roach who trains Manny Pacquaio. The fighters are all blown away just to be able to talk to Roach, much less train with him. Roach dropped an astounding compliment about Johnson:

"Michael Johnson has great speed. Reminds me of Pacquaio, a little bit," Roach said.

Neutral corners of the week: Roach worked with both Johnson and Caceres to get them ready to fight each other. GSP decided to not corner either fighter, so we’re due for another eerily quiet bout.

Not-so-neutral coach of the week: Though GSP is not cornering either fighter, Koscheck is clearly behind Alex Caceres. He cheers on "Bruce LeRoy" throughout the weigh-ins, and claims that GSP fought for this match-up to get rid of the fighter he thinks is the weaker link. GSP stays silent and smiles as Kos jabbers on. Kos even offers to help out Caceres, but stops short at wearing a red jersey.

Watson corners Johnson, while Jeff Lentz corners Caceres.

Fight Two of the Week: Michael Johnson (Team GSP) vs. Alex Caceres (Team GSP) 

Round 1: Johnson starts with a quick takedown, but doesn’t keep Caceres down for long. When the two pop back up, Johnson controls the stand-up and knocks Caceres’ mouthguard out. When he reaches down to pick it up, Johnson appears annoyed, and Caceres responds with, "C’mon, dog." The action restarts, and Johnson continues to control, Caceres has great movement throughout the bout. Still, in-between rounds, Koscheck yells, "You won that round, Alex." Jonathan Brookins tells Caceres the same thing.

Round 2: Caceres starts the round smiling and then promptly gets taken down. Johnson works side control and then ground and pound until Caceres works to his base and then stands up. Caceres briefly gains control on the ground, but doesn’t do much with it, and after a short time standing, Johnson takes top position again. Caceres regains standing position for a bit, until Johnson takes him down one more time to end the bout.

The judges scored it 20-18, 20-18 and 20-18 for Michael Johnson, earning him a spot in the semifinals.

Koscheck and GSP head into White’s office to talk about semifinal match-ups, and much to Dana’s surprise, they come to a consensus quickly, picking these semifinals:

Jonathan Brookins vs. Kyle Watson and Michael Johnson vs. Nam Phan

These first of these fights will air next week. Tune in.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/What-you-need-to-know-from-this-week-on-The-Ult?urn=mma-285961

Dan The Beast Severn Frank Shamrock Ken Shamrock Sean Sherk Katsuyori Shibata

The Ultimate Fighter 9 welterweight Nick Osipczak has been released by the UFC after suffering his third-straight loss to Duane “Bang” Ludwig earlier this month on the preliminary card of UFC 122.

Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/16689/nick-osipczak-cut-by-ufc-following-third-straight-loss-at-ufc-122/

Kevin Randleman Vitor Ribeiro Aaron Riley Joe Riggs Pedro Rizzo

The Suichi Crew puts down a sick video for some Arnette contest.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/MostlySkateboarding/~3/gC_JSdyXpaA/suichi-crew-montage.html

Maurice Smith Randy Couture Bas Rutten Kevin Randleman Randy Couture

by Michael David SmithFor the first time since Dan Severn beat Ken Shamrock at UFC 9, the Octagon is back in the Detroit area, with four former UFC champions in the main event and co-main event at UFC 123 on Saturday night.

What: UFC 123: Rampage vs. Machida

Where: The Palace of Auburn Hills, Michigan

When: Saturday, the undercard begins at 7:30 PM ET, the Spike TV card begins at 9 and the pay-per-view starts at 10.

Predictions on the five pay-per-view fights below.

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/11/17/ufc-123-predictions/

B J Penn Georges St Pierre Matt Serra Jens Pulver

by Michael David SmithJustin Wilcox, Ovince St. Preux and Liz Carmouche all had the biggest wins of their MMA careers at Friday night’s Strikeforce Challengers event on Showtime. So it’s a shame that an accidental eye poke ending a fight in just six seconds is what everyone will be talking about.

But that’s exactly what happened on Friday night: The fight between Dream welterweight champion Marius Zaromskis and Waachiim Spiritwolf was over as soon as it started when Zaromskis charged across the cage at the opening bell, went for a flying knee and accidentally poked Spiritwolf in the eye, causing an injury that led the ringside doctor to call off the fight. The official ending was a no contest, six seconds into the first round, in one of the fastest, strangest endings to a fight in MMA history.

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/11/20/eye-poke-steals-the-show-at-strikeforce-challengers/

Ebenezer Fontes Braga Chris Brennan Marcelo Brito  Rob Broughton  Mike Brown 

Finally a little sun! Yesterday I went climbing in Burbage (specifically Burbage south boulders) in the Peak District near Sheffield. I’m really glad I’ve got these boulders within 15 minutes of my home.
Although in a climbing wall / gym I’m happy on 6a/6b the techniques on grit boulders are a different world: lots of smearing [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/rock-climbing-blog/~3/cezufJsw-4w/philsheard

Mark Weir Fabricio Werdum Vernon White Mike Whitehead Jonathan Wiezorek

The UFC is Detroit tonight so the UFC video crew decided to pay a visit to a Michigan football practice as the Wolverines prepped for their game against Wisconsin. The best guy to bring out to Ann Arbor was none other than Forrest Griffin. A former high school football player, Griffin fights with a gridiron mentality.

Unfortunately, his presence didn’t fire up the troops enough. Michigan got bombed today 48-28 by the Badgers. There wasn’t much tackling done by the boys in blue.

Rich Rodriguez gave Griffin a Michigan jersey with his old high school number 67 on it. If Griffin were a little younger, the 6-foot-3, 240-pounder could’ve suited up at defensive end for the Wolverines.

We don’t know if Griffin was any good at football, but it’s clear he liked to hit. Check out this classic video of Griffin headbutting a helmet-wearing teammate without his helmet on.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Forrest-Griffin-s-visit-didn-t-help-Michigan-s-c?urn=mma-287703

Anthony Walsh Wang Guan Wang Sai Ron Waterman Roman Webber

by Michael David SmithBrian Foster beat Matt Brown with a guillotine choke in the second round of an action-packed fight at UFC 123 on Saturday night.

“I’m ecstatic,” Foster said afterward, grinning from ear to ear after improving to 15-5 in his MMA career with his second consecutive win inside the Octagon. Brown fell to 11-10 with the loss, and he could get dropped from the UFC after this loss.

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/11/20/ufc-123-results-brian-foster-submits-matt-brown/

Lyoto Machida Marzagui Ayoub Paul McVeigh Frank Mir Daniel Moraes

The man is from Boston but allow Dana White a chance to gloat a bit today. The Patriots fan declared last August that he was also an Eagles fan. White knows that statement might earn him a scowl from an old lady and make several New Englanders throwing snowballs at his house, but the UFC president likes to back the underdog. It was last year, before the NFL season began, White stated he was a backer of Michael Vick.

"I hope Michael Vick wins the Super Bowl, makes $3 billion and is the greatest comeback story in the history of sports, man," White told Yahoo! Sports’ Kevin Iole. "When are they going to stop crucifying this [expletive] guy?"

After spending 19 months in prison on dog fighting charges, Vick has been back in the NFL for 21 games. He’s started less than half and put up solid numbers. Last night in a win over the Washington Redskins, he broke through with an all-time performance. Vick passed for 333 yards, ran for 80 and produced six touchdowns.  

"I think the guy has taken it on the chin like a man. You haven’t seen him bitch about it. … He walks out of bankruptcy court this morning, because he has to pay creditors back $20 [expletive] million and he walks out smiling and he’s going to play tonight," White said in August of 2009.

A month later in Dallas at UFC 103, White reiterated his stance, telling radio personality "Big" Dick Hunter that he’d never seen anything like the Vick saga (0:25 mark – NSFW).

White’s pretty consistent in his support for athletes who get slaughtered by the media. In Dec. of 2009, at the UFC 107 postfight press conference, he donned a Tiger Woods hat saying he was sick of watching the golfer’s troubles played out publicly.  

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Mike-Vick-probably-put-a-smile-on-Dana-White-s-f?urn=mma-286067

James Thompson Nick Thompson Josh Thomson Din Thomas Gleison Tibau

Filed under: UFC, News

The Michigan athletic commission has announced that they will investigate why and/or whether the first round of the Gerald Harris vs. Maiquel Falcao fight, which was eventually won by the Brazilian via unanimous decision, ended prematurely Saturday night at UFC 123 in Auburn Hills, Mich.

MMA Fighting’s repeated attempts to contact members of the Michigan Unarmed Combat Commission were unsuccessful, however, Barrington Carr, the Commission’s director of enforcement told The Fight Show With Mauro Ranallo on Tuesday that they are looking into the matter.

Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/11/23/michigan-commission-to-investigate-alleged-premature-ending-of-u/

Jeremy Jackson Quinton Rampage Jackson Jaime Jara Keith Jardine Antoine Jaoude

Team Blackhouse must be sold on the teachings of Steve Seagal. Just like he did before Anderson Silva’s last fight at UFC 117, the action movie star turned Louisiana deputy, is seen working with another one of the team’s fighters.

Seagal, a seventh-degree black belt in Aikido, takes Lyoto Machida through a number of positions. Most of the drills cover counterstriking and defense.

At the 1:23 mark, Seagal talks about how Mauricio "Shogun" Rua overwhelmed Machida with flurries. He tells Machida to move to the side and use the opponent’s offense to counter. Machida is already one of the best counterstrikers in MMA. If Seagal can add anything to his game, look out! 

Silva told Tatame that people need to stop cracking on Seagal. He learned a lot from the movie star.

Machida lost his UFC light heavyweight title to Shogun back in May. He steps back into the Octagon this weekend against Quinton Jackson. 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Seagal-is-back-Zaftig-action-star-works-on-Mach?urn=mma-285640

Umer W Chheena Victor Valimaki Mike Van Arsdale Paul Varelans Jovany Anaconda Varela

Introducing Matthew Clark, a surf photographer in New York. Matt won the Follow the Light Foundation grant back in 2007, has a great eye and a portfolio well worth checking out…

www.clubofthewaves.com/surf-photographer/matthew-clark.php

www.clarkography.com

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/cotw/~3/kPR-S0aV-lA/surf-photographer-matthew-clark.html

Antoni Hardonk Dan Hardy Lee Hasdell Musse Hasselvall Daiki DJ taiki Hata

Jean Claude Van Damme has made it somewhat official that he will return to the ring for a real kickboxing match in 2011. In this video, the soon-to-be 50-year-old is seen signing the contract to face former Olympian Somluck Kamsing.

JCVD said he wants to be the first action star to prove he can really fight. The celebration got a little sappy when Van Damme started apologizing for falling off the good-guy wagon.

"I did my rock n’ roll type life, I fell down rock bottom," Van Damme said (1:42 mark — NSFW). "And I’ve got that spot following me about Van Damme is drinking. Van Damme is doing cocaine. Van Damme is doing all that [expletive]. So I’m [branded] for life."

Then it was time to say sorry to the kids (1:55 mark).

"… the only way to forgive myself to all those children, with their posters ‘Bloodsport’ and ‘Kickboxer’ and their father telling them that ‘you know he’s a great guy and you should train like him’ and all that. Then I [expletive] up my life and everything. I want to go back in that ring to prove to those children that they’ll fight in my heart."

The fight is scheduled for April of 2011 in Las Vegas. We still have our doubts that the Nevada State Athletic Commission will license a 50-year-old, who hasn’t fought in 20 years, but we don’t want to ruin this special moment.  

Tip via The Big Lead

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Emotional-Van-Damme-signs-contract-for-his-kickb?urn=mma-287221

Jonathan Goulet Wilson Gouveia Jason Grace Crosley Gracie Gregor Gracie

UFC Hall of Famer Chuck Liddell is still undecided on the future of his fighting life, but he has made a major commitment in his personal life. Liddell recently proposed to his girlfriend Heidi Northcott.

According to People Magazine, Liddell popped the question after the two went on a helicopter ride of the Grand Canyon. On Twitter, they responded to congratulations messages from baseball player Brad Penny and Liddell’s "Dancing with the Stars" castmate, Karina Smirnoff.

The pair have not shied away from headlines. They starred in a viral advertisement that showed Liddell and Northcott working out in the nude. Before his bout with Rich Franklin at UFC 115, Liddell credited Northcott for helping him refocus on training and fighting. He went on to get knocked out in that bout.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Chuck-Liddell-s-next-challenge-Marriage?urn=mma-285482

Ken Shamrock Sean Sherk Katsuyori Shibata Jake Shields Akira Shoji

Lyoto Machida spoke with the media about his UFC 123 main event bout with Quinton “Rampage” Jackson.

Source: http://mmalice.com/ufc-123/lyoto-machida-ufc-123-pre-fight-presser-comments-video_7cd574bb1.html

Ray Cooper  Kit Cope  Wesley Cabbage Correira  Patrick The Predator Côté  Randy The Natural Couture 

Filed under: Strikeforce, News

NFL star turned mixed martial arts fighter Herschel Walker has been forced to withdraw from his second pro MMA bout due to a cut suffered in training.

Walker (1-0) was scheduled to face Scott Carson (4-1) at next weekend’s Strikeforce event in St. Louis, however after recently suffering a cut under his eye, the organization decided to pull him off the card.

MMA Weekly first reported the news, and MMA Fighting confirmed it with Strikeforce director of communications Mike Afromowitz.

“I feel terrible about this,” Walker stated in a press release. “I know things like this happen in all sports, but I had trained very hard and was excited to be returning to the cage again. I hope to fight again as soon as the cut heals.”

Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/11/24/herschel-walker-off-strikeforce-card-due-to-injury/

Norifumi Kid Yamamoto Ryushi Yanagisawa Yoshiaki Yatsu Hirotaka Yokoi Hidehiko Yoshida

UFC president Dana White says judges are ruining fighters’ legacies with bad decisions.

Source: http://mmalice.com/ufc-123/dana-white-says-judges-are-ruining-fighters-legacies-video_f704249d6.html

Luciano Azevedo  Ba Te er  Ryan Bader  Siyar Bahadurzada Bao Ligao 

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — B.J. Penn had lost his past two fights as a lightweight, but scored a 21-second win as a welterweight. Penn said he isn’t sure where he wants his career to go next.

"For first time in my career, I’m going to make Dana make the call on my weight," Penn said. White laughed and said, "It took 10 years!"

– George Sotiropoulos is leaving Detroit as a big winner. Not only did he beat Joe Lauzon, he won an $80,000 Fight of the Night bonus with Lauzon, and was already given his next bout. White announced that Sotiropoulos will fight Dennis Siver at UFC 127 in Sotiropoulos’ native Australia.

– The other $80,000 bonuses were given to B.J. Penn for Knockout of the Night and Phil Davis for "Submission of the Night."

– White was not happy with the judges decision on the Tyson Griffin/Nik Lentz decision. Though Lentz was given the split decision, White said that "Tyson got [expletive]."

– Though Quinton "Rampage" Jackson asked for an immediate rematch, White shot that notion down, saying that Jackson won that fight. Jackson said that he is leaving his career in the UFC’s hands.

"I don’t own the UFC, homey. I just fight here," Jackson said.

– Jackson walked out to the theme song for Pride, the now-defunct Japanese promotion where he made his name as a fighter. He used it to remember the energy of the crowd, and how he used to fight for honor when he fought in Pride.

– Phil Davis said that his unique submission is going to be called the "Mr. Wonderful." 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/UFC-123-post-fight-notes-Penn-leaving-career-in?urn=mma-287741

Stevie Lynch Adam Lynn Chris Lytle Lyoto Machida Marzagui Ayoub

The man is from Boston but allow Dana White a chance to gloat a bit today. The Patriots fan declared last August that he was also an Eagles fan. White knows that statement might earn him a scowl from an old lady and make several New Englanders throwing snowballs at his house, but the UFC president likes to back the underdog. It was last year, before the NFL season began, White stated he was a backer of Michael Vick.

"I hope Michael Vick wins the Super Bowl, makes $3 billion and is the greatest comeback story in the history of sports, man," White told Yahoo! Sports’ Kevin Iole. "When are they going to stop crucifying this [expletive] guy?"

After spending 19 months in prison on dog fighting charges, Vick has been back in the NFL for 21 games. He’s started less than half and put up solid numbers. Last night in a win over the Washington Redskins, he broke through with an all-time performance. Vick passed for 333 yards, ran for 80 and produced six touchdowns.  

"I think the guy has taken it on the chin like a man. You haven’t seen him bitch about it. … He walks out of bankruptcy court this morning, because he has to pay creditors back $20 [expletive] million and he walks out smiling and he’s going to play tonight," White said in August of 2009.

A month later in Dallas at UFC 103, White reiterated his stance, telling radio personality "Big" Dick Hunter that he’d never seen anything like the Vick saga (0:25 mark – NSFW).

White’s pretty consistent in his support for athletes who get slaughtered by the media. In Dec. of 2009, at the UFC 107 postfight press conference, he donned a Tiger Woods hat saying he was sick of watching the golfer’s troubles played out publicly.  

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Mike-Vick-probably-put-a-smile-on-Dana-White-s-f?urn=mma-286067

Chris The Pitbull Myra Jason MacDonald Cory MacDonald Matt MacGrath Leonardo Lucio Nascimento

Source: http://nedsurfshots.blogspot.com/2010/01/mid-north-coast-nsw-january-2010.html

Chris Brennan Marcelo Brito  Rob Broughton  Mike Brown  Junie Browning

Introducing Matthew Clark, a surf photographer in New York. Matt won the Follow the Light Foundation grant back in 2007, has a great eye and a portfolio well worth checking out…

www.clubofthewaves.com/surf-photographer/matthew-clark.php

www.clarkography.com

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/cotw/~3/kPR-S0aV-lA/surf-photographer-matthew-clark.html

Luiz Cane  Dos Caras Jr   Phil Cardella Roan Jucao Carneiro Shane The Engineer Carwin 

Filed under: UFC, FanHouse Exclusive, News

Roy Nelson, Shonie Carter — they’re all clearly interested in pursuing a career in World Wrestling Entertainment.

Matt Mitrione, on the other hand, is not. And quite frankly, he isn’t sure why you think he is.

A rumor began circulating around the MMA world following Mitrione’s win over Joey Beltran at UFC 119 that the former NFL player turned MMA fighter was going to cut short his promising fighting career to pursue a life as pro wrestler.

Not so, says Mitrione.

“That’s such a weird situation that my name got thrown in the mix, and then after that, that Pat Barry’s name got thrown in the mix,” Mitirone said on Monday’s episode of The MMA Hour. “Like, why is my training camp getting assaulted by the WWF people, man?”

Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/11/25/matt-mitrione-squashes-wwe-rumors/

Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou Joe Son Chael Sonnen Krzysztof Soszynski George Sotiropoulos

The Suichi Crew puts down a sick video for some Arnette contest.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/MostlySkateboarding/~3/gC_JSdyXpaA/suichi-crew-montage.html

Ivan Titenkov Sylvester Terkay Harout Terzyan James Thompson Nick Thompson

Matt Hughes spoke to the media about his UFC 123 trilogy bout with BJ Penn.

Source: http://mmalice.com/ufc-123/matt-hughes-ufc-123-pre-fight-presser-comments-video_765cc5112.html

Yoshihiro Takayama Daiju Takase Oleg Taktarov Akitoshi Tamura Kiyoshi Tamura

Filed under: UFC, News

In theory, a bantamweight fighter shouldn’t be able to end a heavyweight’s career, but that’s the exact scenario that is likely to play out at some point over the coming months as the UFC and WEC officially merge and fighters jockey for precious roster slots.

With the Jan. 1 addition of the bantamweight and featherweight divisions in the UFC – bringing the total of weight classes to seven – the number of fighters looking for jobs will rise, but the total number of slots available to fighters is expected to hold steady.

That means fighters who might have gotten one more chance in the past after a questionable performance might no longer be so lucky. Instead, they might find themselves on the outside of the octagon looking in.

Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/11/24/ufc-wec-merger-brings-excitement-warning-about-jobs-on-the-line/

Vitor Ribeiro Aaron Riley Joe Riggs Pedro Rizzo Colin Robinson

Source: http://nedsurfshots.blogspot.com/2010/01/view-from-below-big-hill-beach-january.html

Joe Lauzon Mo Lawal Ruthless Robbie Lawler Eric Lawson Cung Le

Stay Stacking has Nick Immediato’s Stimulus welcome video.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/MostlySkateboarding/~3/CBk2XHTH7SI/nick-immediato-welcome-video.html

Joe Hybrid Duarte Aldrin de Jesus  Todd Duffee  Marvin Eastman  Stav Crazy Bear Economou 

This is cool. A "Plastic Wave" made out of 500 Pet bottles by TWOTHRIDS in co-operation with artist Kathleen Egan. The sculpture was exhibited at the Bread & Butter trade show in Germany. TWOTHIRD say; "It helped us create awareness on the fact that our ocean is becoming a giant landfill full of plastic but that we have the power to stop this". Alongside the exhibit TWOTHIRD collected signatures in a petition titled "Make a stand for an ocean free of plastic!". Nice one TWOTHIRD, and great work Kathleen!

Click image above for enlargement

Click here to see the original post by TWOTHIRDS and more photos.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/cotw/~3/vwzGc0cL2SE/plastic-wave.html

Travis Wiuff Wu Haotian Rani Yahya Kenichi Yamamoto Norifumi Kid Yamamoto

UFC 123 weigh-in (Courtesy MMAjunkie):

PAY-PER-VIEW
Quinton "Rampage" Jackson (205) vs. Lyoto Machida (205)
Matt Hughes (169) vs. B.J. Penn (169)
Tim Boetsch (205) vs. Phil Davis (205)
Joe Lauzon (155) vs. George Sotiropoulos (155)
Maiquel Falcao (185) vs. Gerald Harris (185)

PRELIMINARY CARD (Spike TV)
Matt Brown (170) vs. Brian Foster (170)
Mark Munoz (185) vs. Aaron Simpson (185.5)

PRELIMINARY CARD (un-aired)
Dennis Hallman (170) vs. Karo Parisyan (170)
Edson Barboza (155) vs. Mike Lullo (155)
Paul Kelly (155) vs. T.J. O’Brien (155)
Nik Lentz (155) vs. Tyson Griffin (155)

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/UFC-123-weigh-in-Jackson-hoping-Machida-doesn-t?urn=mma-287603

Chris Brennan Marcelo Brito  Rob Broughton  Mike Brown  Junie Browning

Source: http://nedsurfshots.blogspot.com/2010/05/kobi-graham-incident-at-cape-solander.html

Dave Menne Murilo Bustamante Evan Tanner Rich Franklin Anderson Silva

Maiquel Falcao was ripped to shreds throughout the third round of his fight against Gerald Harris. The criticism was well-deserved. He did nothing over the final five minutes of the fight, taking the safe route to victory during his UFC debut. That’s not a great way to win over the promotion, Dana White and fans in attendance.

Amazingly, the 16,000-plus in attendance and everyone cageside failed to notice that the fight probably should’ve been over in the first round.

UPDATE: A good point from one of our readers. Even though Falcao still got a win, the error may have cost him the $80,000 submission of the night bonus. That said, Phil Davis’ "Mr. Wonderful" improv submission was pretty sweet. 

Falcao locked on a nasty rear-naked choke with 13 seconds left in the round. A little over seven seconds later, the horn sounded to end the round.

There was a clear timing error and no one noticed it.

This isn’t the first time there’s been clock issues in the Motor City.

NBA bettors thought there was a massive scandal in the mid 80′s going down at Pistons’ games.

There was a crew operating on the Las Vegas Strip, getting down all it could on NBA totals. Two things made this NBA betting syndicate unique. First, they only bet on Detroit Pistons games. Sometimes they bet ‘over’ and sometimes they bet ‘under’ but they always risked a ton of money.

Second, they were very, very good, at one point during their three-year run winning 16-of-18 games, a streak which tested the bottom lines of many books.

After a while, word spread that the Pistons Syndicate had someone on the inside. Reportedly, it was the Detroit timekeeper, a man in a position to manipulate seconds on the end of each play to either add or subtract time from the game clock. Supposedly, the syndicate bet ‘over’ when he added time and ‘under’ when he subtracted it.

The only problem with this revelation was that it wasn’t true. Bookmakers finally proved this to themselves when they were allowed to review the tapes of several Detroit games. A lot of the bet takers timed the games themselves and found that there was no manipulation of the clock.

At UFC 123, there was no "inside job" to save Harris or ensure the over, but whoever was working the horn and clock screwed Falcao out of a chance for a submission victory.

Tip via Cage Potato

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Falcao-s-submission-win-at-UFC-123-blown-by-time?urn=mma-288523

Marcus Aurelio  Mikhail Avetisyan Luiz Azeredo  Luciano Azevedo  Ba Te er 

by Michael David Smith
In a hard-fought, hard-to-judge main event at UFC 122, Yushin Okami defeated Nate Marquardt by unanimous decision.

“Nate is a great fighter, but I thought I deserved it,” Okami said afterward, through his translator. “I’m ready for the championship.”

UFC President Dana White has said Okami will get that shot, after champion Anderson Silva takes on Vitor Belfort in February. Okami was the last man to beat Silva, winning by disqualification in 2006 when Silva illegally kicked him in the head on the ground, and both of them have said in the past that they want to settle the score. If Silva beats Belfort they’ll finally do it.

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/11/13/ufc-122-yushin-okami-beats-nate-marquardt-by-unanimous-decision/

Joe Riggs Pedro Rizzo Colin Robinson Ricco Rodriguez Jason Reinhardt

Zero demos at Pit Crew. Real has a new Justin Brock teaser for Since Day One. In case you missed it here is Shane O’neill’s Berrics part with no music. Norman Woods does 10 tricks 10 questions for WarCo. Lindsey Robertson and Jake Brown talk about their Paradox Experience.

Source: http://theskateboardmag.com/blogs/templeton-elliott/2010/11/24/zero-real-oneill-warco-and-paradox-videos/

Michael Bisping  Dan Bobish Vagam Bodjukyan Kotetsu Boku  Tony Bonello

If you are hoping to improve your ability or learn more about training techniques and tools, then this blog will give you some of the answers – because that’s what I’m going to do too!
I’ve been climbing for about three years and have developed enough basic ability to get me up 6a routes. I’ve set [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/rock-climbing-blog/~3/aFRHTPVmui0/philsheard

Phillipe Noer Jake O Brien Naoya Ogawa Sean O Haire Yushin Okami

The second successive surf artist based in Costa Rica to be added to Club Of The Waves. This time John Coopwood, with a great portfolio mix of fine art, murals and surreal art. "Here is an artist who uses rich colors and various blends of dreams, reality, and a touch of Salsa Fresca to bring his subjects to life… His insane depth has allowed him to challenge his innermost self to bring forth pictures of mood, imagination and bold imagery". Enjoy…

www.clubofthewaves.com/surf-artist/john-coopwood.php

www.coopwoodart.com

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/cotw/~3/j7yXqTtxS5w/surreal-surf-artist-john-coopwood.html

Cain Velasquez Brandon Vera Renato Verissimo Marcus Vinicios Falaniko Vitale

by Michael David SmithJustin Wilcox, Ovince St. Preux and Liz Carmouche all had the biggest wins of their MMA careers at Friday night’s Strikeforce Challengers event on Showtime. So it’s a shame that an accidental eye poke ending a fight in just six seconds is what everyone will be talking about.

But that’s exactly what happened on Friday night: The fight between Dream welterweight champion Marius Zaromskis and Waachiim Spiritwolf was over as soon as it started when Zaromskis charged across the cage at the opening bell, went for a flying knee and accidentally poked Spiritwolf in the eye, causing an injury that led the ringside doctor to call off the fight. The official ending was a no contest, six seconds into the first round, in one of the fastest, strangest endings to a fight in MMA history.

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/11/20/eye-poke-steals-the-show-at-strikeforce-challengers/

Jushin Thunder Liger Zach Light Scott Lighty Jae Suk Lim Daniel Lima

Introducing a new photo exhibit on COTW by photographer Jim Russi. Featuring surfing, action & wave photos from the north shore of Hawaii, mixed with stunning water photography, art and lifestyle shots celebrating the feminine form and women’s surfing. Jim has served as Senior Staff Photographer for all the major U.S. surf magazines, and in addition to his editorial work, he has collaborated closely on numerous advertising campaigns for Swell and has worked on Roxy ad campaigns for over a decade now. Well, well worth checking out his portfolio! Enjoy…

www.clubofthewaves.com/surf-photography/exhibit-jim-russi.php

www.jimrussi.com

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/cotw/~3/TsCYYDbT7Jo/action-and-lifestyle-photos-by-jim.html

Daiki DJ taiki Hata He Peng David Heath Delson Heleno Dan Henderson

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — Quinton "Rampage" Jackson beat Lyoto Machida in a 29-28, 28-29, 29-28 decision in the main event at UFC 123 in front of a loud crowd at the Palace of Auburn Hills. Jackson won the with aggressiveness, and escaped a close call in the final round.

The first round began just as expected, with Rampage immediately stalking, and Machida immediately being elusive. Machida used leg kicks, movement and misdirection to keep the distance, until Jackson finally chased him and was able to land combinations. After the second flurry of punches, Machida clinched with Rampage. They broke apart, and Machida again the clinch to defend against Jackson’s aggressiveness.

The clinching continued in the second round, with little action coming from it until two minutes in, when Jackson completed a takedown. They returned to their feet and the clinch. Machida landed a knee again, followed by Jackson breaking free and then landing a huge uppercut that Machida survived. Machida’s elusiveness continued to frustrate Jackson, who did everything he could to get into punching distance of Machida.

Machida finally exploded with offense in the third round, throwing a flurry of punches and then a headkick. Jackson appeared in trouble, then roared back with a few punches of his own until Machida took him down. Then, the two were immobile again. Machida passed guard into full mount and tried to get an arm bar, but Jackson’s strength won out. He picked up Machida for a slam, but Machida popped out before he could finish it. Back on their feet, they clinched again for another takedown attempt. Machida tried for one more submission before the fight was over, but the round ended before he could complete it.

"Machida is hard to hit. He’s going to be around for a long time," Jackson said after the fight. "Even though I don’t want to, I think it would be fair to have an immediate rematch."

Both fighters held and successfully defended the UFC light heavyweight belt and desperately want to get back into the title mix. Both were also coming off losses. Machida lost the belt to Mauricio "Shogun" Rua in May. Later that month, Rashad Evans decisioned Jackson in a grudge match between the two.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Jackson-takes-tight-decision-from-Machida-at-UFC?urn=mma-287737

Grant Campbell  Gesias JZ Calvancante  Luiz Cane  Dos Caras Jr   Phil Cardella

– The WEC gave out $10,000 bonuses. Fight of the Night went to Mackens Semerzier and Cub Swanson (pictured above), Submission of the Night to Urijah Faber and Erik Koch will take the Knockout of the Night bonus back to Milwaukee.

– Chad Mendes said that Javier Vazquez’s mind games went beyond trash talk. Vazquez sent baby food, stuffed animals and toys to his hotel room in Las Vegas, but Mendes enjoyed every minute of it.

– In his first bout at bantamweight, Faber said the weight cut was easier than he expected, but a clean diet helped him hit 135 lbs. He said cutting down was fun, which is not something that many fighters will call weight-cutting. He came into the fight around 149.5 lbs.

– Faber also said that he had no idea that Takeya Mizugaki was choked out. Because of the position he was in, he didn’t know and couldn’t see that his opponent was unconscious. WEC GM Reed Harris pointed out that Faber went above and beyond in sportsmanship after the fight was stopped by staying prone underneath Mizugaki so that medical staff could tend to him.

– Though Faber is old friends with Scott Jorgensen, he said that he wouldn’t be against fighting Jorgensen for a belt, should Jorgensen win at WEC 53. He said he would rather fight Dominick Cruz, but is rooting for Jorgensen to win that title bout.

– "I think flyweight is a necessity for me. I have to eat a lot and work hard to get to this weight," Demetrious Johnson said. Though he has done well at 135, Johnson’s size would be better suited to flyweight (125 lbs.) He said he’ll fight wherever he is asked to, but he would like flyweight better.

– Wins from Faber, Mendes and Joseph Benavidez meant that Team Alpha Male had a clean sweep at 52. Faber called the evening a "proud papa moment," as he helped both Benavidez and Mendes get into MMA.

– When asked about future career plans, Mendes said that he wants to have his own hunting, fishing and outdoors show. Since the fights aired on Versus, the home of many such programming, Mendes will get his wish.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/WEC-52-post-fight-notes-Bonuses-baby-food-and-?urn=mma-284792

Tadhg Steamfist Dixon Joe Doerksen  Chris Dolman Edson Drago  Tomasz Drwal

by Michael David SmithWhen a UFC fighter goes on SportsCenter two days before his fight, he’s usually expected to try to sell the viewers on a fight that he guarantees is going to be a “brawl” or a “barn burner” or a “slugfest” or whatever other word you want to use to describe the kinds of fights that will make the casual MMA fan watching ESPN buy the pay-per-view.

That’s not what Rampage Jackson did on Thursday morning.

Instead, Jackson went on SportsCenter and described his fight with Lyoto Machida Saturday night at UFC 123 as one that could easily be boring.

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/11/18/rampage-jackson-worries-lyoto-machida-will-give-him-a-boring-fig/

Sylvester Terkay Harout Terzyan James Thompson Nick Thompson Josh Thomson

This week’s episode of "The Ultimate Fighter" has two fights, a coaching legend and an incredibly kind compliment just for you. Read on for spoilers and a recap of this week’s episode.

Stupid prank of the week: Sevak Magakian rigged the kitchen faucets so that they would spray on Michael Johnson, who promptly blamed it on on Alex "Bruce LeRoy" Caceres. Seriously, guys, these pranks are getting weaker by the episode.

Fight One of the Week: Kyle Watson (Team GSP) vs. Aaron Wilkinson (Team Koscheck) 

Round 1: Watson started with a quick takedown and instantly moved to side control. He continued to work to control Wilkinson on the ground, and despite a few bursts of movement, Watson owned the Team Koscheck fighter. With more than a minute left in the round, Watson methodically took Wilkinson’s back and sunk in a rear naked choke. As his coaches yelled, "Don’t tap!" Wilkinson was forced to tap, making Watson a semi-finalist.

"Rear naked choke! Another one. How many rear naked chokes has my team … I mean, I can’t believe it!" Koscheck said after the bout.

Legendary coach cameo of the week: Freddie Roach stopped by Team GSP’s training — the same Freddie Roach who trains Manny Pacquaio. The fighters are all blown away just to be able to talk to Roach, much less train with him. Roach dropped an astounding compliment about Johnson:

"Michael Johnson has great speed. Reminds me of Pacquaio, a little bit," Roach said.

Neutral corners of the week: Roach worked with both Johnson and Caceres to get them ready to fight each other. GSP decided to not corner either fighter, so we’re due for another eerily quiet bout.

Not-so-neutral coach of the week: Though GSP is not cornering either fighter, Koscheck is clearly behind Alex Caceres. He cheers on "Bruce LeRoy" throughout the weigh-ins, and claims that GSP fought for this match-up to get rid of the fighter he thinks is the weaker link. GSP stays silent and smiles as Kos jabbers on. Kos even offers to help out Caceres, but stops short at wearing a red jersey.

Watson corners Johnson, while Jeff Lentz corners Caceres.

Fight Two of the Week: Michael Johnson (Team GSP) vs. Alex Caceres (Team GSP) 

Round 1: Johnson starts with a quick takedown, but doesn’t keep Caceres down for long. When the two pop back up, Johnson controls the stand-up and knocks Caceres’ mouthguard out. When he reaches down to pick it up, Johnson appears annoyed, and Caceres responds with, "C’mon, dog." The action restarts, and Johnson continues to control, Caceres has great movement throughout the bout. Still, in-between rounds, Koscheck yells, "You won that round, Alex." Jonathan Brookins tells Caceres the same thing.

Round 2: Caceres starts the round smiling and then promptly gets taken down. Johnson works side control and then ground and pound until Caceres works to his base and then stands up. Caceres briefly gains control on the ground, but doesn’t do much with it, and after a short time standing, Johnson takes top position again. Caceres regains standing position for a bit, until Johnson takes him down one more time to end the bout.

The judges scored it 20-18, 20-18 and 20-18 for Michael Johnson, earning him a spot in the semifinals.

Koscheck and GSP head into White’s office to talk about semifinal match-ups, and much to Dana’s surprise, they come to a consensus quickly, picking these semifinals:

Jonathan Brookins vs. Kyle Watson and Michael Johnson vs. Nam Phan

These first of these fights will air next week. Tune in.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/What-you-need-to-know-from-this-week-on-The-Ult?urn=mma-285961

Junie Browning Paul Buentello  Josh Burkman  Mikey Burnett  Murilo Bustamante 

by Michael David SmithIn the third fight between two of the sport’s all-time greats, B.J. Penn knocked out Matt Hughes with a quick, brutal display of precision striking at UFC 123.

The whole fight lasted just 21 seconds, and delivered Penn one of the most spectacular wins of his MMA career. Penn had lost two straight lightweight title fights this year and seemed to be on the downside of his career, but he bounced back in a big way by beating Hughes.

Penn got things started with a 1-2 combination, and when Hughes threw a kick, Penn caught it and nailed Hughes again. They briefly stepped back, and then Penn nailed Hughes with an overhand right, knocking Hughes flat on his back. Penn landed four more punches on the ground and Hughes wasn’t defending himself, and the referee stepped in and stopped the fight.

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/11/20/b-j-penn-kos-matt-hughes-at-ufc-123/

Ricco Rodriguez Jason Reinhardt Eddy Rolon João Roque Kristian Rothaermel

Mark Munoz and Aaron Simpson are remarkably similar. Both have strong wrestling pedigrees: Munoz was a national champion at Oklahoma St. while Simpson was an All-American at Arizona St. They both coached in the wrestling Pac-10. Munoz helped UC-Davis to their first national champion, and Simpson was key to success at both Arizona St. and Cal Tech. They both got into the MMA game relatively late, but won right from the start. Munoz is 8-2 and Simpson is 7-1.

They are old friends, and even helped each other get into MMA when coaching wrestling. Check the 3:30 point in the video to hear how Simpson and Munoz discussed getting into MMA while coaching at the NCAA championships in 2007 at the Palace in Auburn Hills, Mich.

When they fight at UFC 123 at the Palace in Auburn Hills, Mich., two remarkably similar men will have to put their friendship aside. Munoz admits that he’s not looking forward to punching Simpson, but he’ll find a way.

"No, I’m not. I’ll try to picture somebody else’s face in front of him."

Thanks to Fight! Magazine

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Munoz-and-Simpson-Fighters-put-friendship-aside?urn=mma-286087

Bart Palaszewski Rousimar Palhares Mike Patt Ivan Pack Ido Pariente

Karo Parisyan has had a lot of low points over the years, but he was at rock bottom the Friday before UFC 106. Because of struggles with an anxiety disorder and injuries, the veteran fighter had to drop out of his bout against Dustin Hazelett. Dana White lost his cool, going ballistic on Twitter.

Karo Parisyan has [expletive] over the UFC, the fans and his opponent again!!! He will not be fighting saturday or ever again in the UFC!!

Parisyan has worked way back into the good graces of the promotion and the UFC president. He returns to the Octagon this weekend at UFC 123 against Dennis Hallman.

The Armenian had been fighting for White since 2003, so he never lost hope.

"I never thought the door was closed," Parisyan told The Canadian Press. "I knew that I would fight again, I just knew it. I know Dana White. I know how he thinks, I know how he works. And when somebody says something like that, I know that in the heat of the moment he got pissed and he just said that. I knew I would eventually make my way back to the UFC because I didn’t kill nobody."

In addition to bailing from a fight at UFC 88 because of his mental struggles, he was also fined $32,000 and suspended for nine months by the Nevada State Athletic Commission after a positive test for pain killers at UFC 94.

"Anxiety led to that going even more crazy," Parisyan said. "It was just whole combination of things, man. I’ve never been 100 per cent walking in the cage. The best I’ve been was maybe 70 per cent and I wasn’t even 10 per cent for that (UFC 88) fight."

Optimism was about all Parisyan had after what were two difficult years. He was also confident that he could talk White into giving him another shot.

"Dana’s got a heart, man. He has a heart. And he does care about his fighters. He does care about people," Parisyan said. "Sure, if you need money, you talk to him, you tell him. Dana never says no that much, unless it’s something outrageous. He’ll work with you."

Now the pressure is really on for Parisyan. He’s only fought once in 22 months and the NSAC fine buried him in debt. At least this is a start. It’d be nice to see Parisyan reach his potential. This was a guy who was on the verge of a UFC welterweight title shot back in 2005. His career is now a fight-by-fight proposition.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Parisyan-always-thought-White-would-let-him-figh?urn=mma-286577

Jose Landi Jons Icho Larenas Bobby Lashley Joe Lauzon Mo Lawal

Mark Munoz had a daunting puzzle to solve at UFC 123. He was basically facing a carbon copy of himself in Aaron Simpson. So it was no surprise to see the former NCAA wrestlers nullify each other on the grappling front. Munoz showed off a more impressive arsenal in the striking game and a little more in the stamina department in the final round to take a unanimous decision, 29-28 on all cards.

Munoz, an NCAA champ out of Oklahoma State, was a half-second behind in the first round. He got tagged on the feet and kept getting his leg kicks caught. In the second, Munoz did more with his stand up work, including a beautiful swinging elbow that landed coming out of a clinch, and he really nailed Simpson with a head kick.

Simpson, an two-time All-American at Arizona State, has struggled in recent fights with his conditioning. He thought he had solved those woes by a paying closer attention to his diet before the fight. Simpson looked better but he was definitely the less fresh fighter in the final round.

He scored a takedown just 25 seconds into the third but then got easily reversed by Munoz. With hip control, Munoz got off some excellent punches to the head. The rest of the round was spent primarily in clinch position along the cage. They slugged away at each other, but it was Munoz who landed the heavier shots.

Munoz (9-2, 4-2 UFC) is now 4-1 down at middleweight with his only loss coming against future title challenger Yushin Okami. After a 3-0 start wth the promotion, Simpson (7-2, 3-2 UFC) has dropped two straight. 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Munoz-shows-off-well-rounded-game-in-outlasting-?urn=mma-287721

Chris Dolman Edson Drago  Tomasz Drwal Joe Hybrid Duarte Aldrin de Jesus 

Phil Davis looks more impressive every time he hits the Octagon. The former Penn State wrestler had only three fights under his belt in the UFC, but made Tim Boetsch look like the guy with little experience.

Davis absolutely dominated the grappling game against the former Div. 1 wrestler at Lock Haven. Then he worked some submission magic. With Boetsch pinned against the cage, Davis switched from a conventional arm lock and cranked his opponent’s arm behind his back. The pain was too much to take for Boetsch, who tapped at 2:55 of the second round.

UPDATE: Davis’ "Mr. Wonderful" submission nabbed him the submission of the night award and an $80,000 bonus.

Davis, 26, is a perfect 8-0 in MMA. He’s beginning to move into top prospect status at light heavyweight along with Jon Jones and Ryan Bader. This was a return fight for Boetsch in the UFC, after four straight wins with smaller promotions. 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Davis-invents-his-own-submission-to-take-out-Boe?urn=mma-287736

Jaime Jara Keith Jardine Antoine Jaoude Steve Jennum Ryan Jensen

DETROIT — George Sotiropoulos has quietly worked his way up the UFC’s lightweight ladder. Since losing in the semifinals of season six of "The Ultimate Fighter," the Australian fighter has had six straight wins in the UFC.

However, he wasn’t quiet at the press conference for UFC 123 at the MGM Grand in Detroit on Wednesday. Sotiropoulos, who is fighting fellow TUF alum Joe Lauzon on Saturday, was assertive in asking for a spot on the UFC’s planned February event in Australia. A reporter asked Sotiropolous if he wanted to be on that card.

Sotiropolous: I will definitely be on that card. It’s an absolute.

("Oh, really?" look from Dana.)

Australian reporter: Dana, can you confirm that?

Sotiropoulos: Say that again?

Reporter: Can you concur, Dana? Will you hope to see him on that card? That question is for Dana.

(Pause)

Dana: Are you talking to me? First, I didn’t know you were talking to me, and second I couldn’t understand a word you said. I’m going to turn to my Australian translator. (To Sotiropoulos) What did he say?

Sotiropoulos: He said, do you concur, would you want to see George on the Australian card, and of course, the answer is yes, he does. 

This fight has him in the spotlight. Though Sotiropoulos has recent wins over Kurt Pellegrino and Joe Stevenson, both decisions, the expectations for him have grown with each fight. That hasn’t changed the way he has gotten ready for this fight.

"The intention, the goal and the lifestyle is the same. Everything is the same. Nothing like that changes."

He shared the dais with Matt Hughes, the opposing coach during his season of "The Ultimate Fighter." Sotiropoulos said that was a sign of how far he’s come.

"It’s a culmination of a long road, and many years of training. Guys I was watching many years ago, now they’re fighting on the same card as me."

And if he gets through Joe Lauzon on Saturday, maybe he’ll get his wish to fight with more of his heroes in his native land.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Sotiropoulos-eager-to-fight-Saturday-then-in-Au?urn=mma-286851

Karen Grigoryan Kendall Grove Clay Guida Jason Guida Melvin Guillard

Source: http://nedsurfshots.blogspot.com/2010/07/behind-and-below-18-july-2010.html

Shungo Oyama Fredson Paixao Soa Palalei Bart Palaszewski Rousimar Palhares

The last time Spike television and the UFC decided to show UFC 120 on a tape-delayed basis in the United States, many fans were irked. The frustration was inflamed when ESPN decided to reveal the results on the bottomline newswire/scoreboard before the show hit U.S. television sets

Get used to it folks. It’s going to be the same tomorrow for UFC 122 in Germany and commonplace in 2011 when the promotion looks to double the amount of international events we saw this year.

"I think definitely in the next few years that there’s a real prospect that we’re going to be running more and more events that you might not see live on U.S. television, or even close to live," Marshall Zelaznik told USA Today.

The UFC’s managing director of international development added that the promotion is planning for up to eight shows around the world in 2011.

"I think that we can really see ourselves hitting our stride in the next five years internationally, that we can see our percentages (of UFC’s) overall revenue increasing twofold," Zelaznik said. "If we effectively double what we’re doing now internationally over the next five years, it’s going to be a massive number for the company overall."

The plan for the first quarter of next year calls for shows in Sydney, Abu Dhabi and possibly Dublin. Further down the road, UFC officials expect an event in Scandinavia and possibly Italy. UFC eventually could find itself running parallel circuits around the world.

Zelaznik (pictured on the far right) said UFC 122 is within 1,000 of a sellout of 9,400. 

UFC 122 weigh-in (Courtesy Bloody Elbow):

Spike television
Nate Marquardt (186) v. Yushin Okami (185)
Jorge Rivera (185) v. Alessio Sakara (186)
Dennis Siver (155) v. Andre Winner (155)
Amir Sadollah (170) v. Peter Sobotta (169)
Krzysztof Soszynski (206) v. Goran Reljic (205)

Preliminary card:
Alexandre "Cacareco" Ferreira (204) v. Vladimir Matyushenko (205)
Pascal Krauss (170) v. Mark Scanlon (170)
Duane Ludwig (170) v. Nick Osipczak (171)
Rob Kimmons (184) v. Kyle Noke (185)
Seth Petruzelli (205) v. Karlos Vemola (205)
Kris McCray (171) v. Carlos Eduardo Rocha (170)

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/UFC-122-weigh-in-Return-to-Germany-marks-anothe?urn=mma-285215

Lee Murray Gary Myers Chris The Pitbull Myra Jason MacDonald Cory MacDonald

by Michael David SmithIn an exciting battle of former light heavyweight champions that ended up with a shocking split decision, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson defeated Lyoto Machida in the main event at UFC 123.

I scored the fight for Machida 29-28 and was sure Machida would win the decision, and I was stunned that two judges gave the fight to Rampage, 29-28. One judge gave it to Machida, 29-28.

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/11/21/rampage-jackson-beats-lyoto-machida-in-stunning-decision-at-ufc/

Jérôme Le Banner Jess Liaudin Chuck The Iceman Liddell Shad Lierley  Jushin Thunder Liger

Mystery Welcomes Sascha Daley with a gnarly HD welcome video.

Read More

Source: http://theskateboardmag.com/blogs/templeton-elliott/2010/11/24/mystery-welcomes-sascha-daley/

Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou Joe Son Chael Sonnen Krzysztof Soszynski George Sotiropoulos

Introducing French artist (now living in India, which is a new location for COTW’s artist base); Dominique Amendola. Dominique paints a vast array of subject matter, but her ‘surf art’ is particularly interesting and something ‘new’… She takes famous paintings from great artists (e.g. Van Gogh) and gives them a surfing twist! She calls this the "Amadeus series" and she tells us there are more on the way, so watch this space…

www.clubofthewaves.com/surf-artist/dominique-amendola.php

Artist’s rendition of The Great Wave off Kanagawa

www.dominiqueamendola.com/collections/amadeus-series

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/cotw/~3/1jiIZaJhAZE/surf-artist-dominique-amendola.html

Andrei Arlovski  Ricardo Arona  Noboru Asahi Marcus Aurelio  Mikhail Avetisyan

Hats off to Billabong who have teamed up with team rider Dave Rastovich to produce a line of clothing for Surfers for Cetaceans, called the "Rasta Collection". The clothing line is all made from recycled materials. Billabong even ran an advert for the collection on their highly trafficked event site for the recent Billabong Pro in Jeffreys Bay! Way to go Billabong!

For more info on this series and to purchase online, visit the Billabong Europe store or to purchase and watch a video visit the Billabong US store

Read more about the dolphin slaughters in Japan that organisations like Surfers for Cetaceans and the Visual Petition are fighting to put an end to.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/cotw/~3/fEgzrYHHCdM/billabong-surfers-for-cetaceans.html

Patrick Smith Scott Smith Renato Babalu Sobral Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou Joe Son

Joe Lauzon is great in short stints but he’s got to learn how to pace himself. The last time he had a chance to break through into UFC’s top five at 155 pounds, he gassed badly against Kenny Florian. The same thing happened tonight versus George Sotiropoulos in the first bout on the pay-per-view portion of UFC 123.

After a strong first round, Lauzon looked exhausted to the start of the second. Ninety seconds into the round, a Lauzon trip failed and the Aussie got into a dominant north-south position on the ground. Sotiropoulos got hold off Lauzon’s arm in a kimura and nearly ripped the limb off. With the win at 2:43 of the second, Sotiropoulos moved to 7-0 with the promotion. 

UPDATE: Sotiropoulos and Lauzon were given the fight of the night bonus, good for $80,000 each. 

UPDATE II: UFC president Dana White announced that Sotiropoulos will fight Dennis Siver at UFC 127 in Sotiropoulos’ native Australia. 

Sotiropoulos (14-2, 7-0 UFC) admitted that he got off to a slow start. 

"It was the calm before the storm," Sotiropoulos told UFC analyst Joe Rogan. "I knew I’d find my range and get in my shots."

Lauzon showed he’s a high class fighter in the opening minutes. He was faster in the striking game, tagging Sotiropoulos with several clean rights. His takedown defense was excellent as well, but fatigue set in at around 90 seconds left in the first. Sotiropoulos got top control, providing a preview of what was to come in the second. 

Lauzon (19-6, 6-3 UFC) came off his stool with his mouth open and was throwing sloppy, slow punches. Sotiropoulos reversed a Lauzon takedown attempt and moved immediately to north-south position. Once the kimura was locked on, Lauzon tapped almost instantly. 

Sotiropoulos was a heavy favorite during Season 6 of "The Ultimate Fighter," but was upset in the semifinals by Tommy Speer. He battled injuries for much of 2008 into early 2009. Now healthy, and happy with his training camp, the Aussie has quickly emerged as a title contender with wins over Lauzon, Joe Stevenson and Kurt Pellegrino.  

"I want to face the best," Sotiropoulos said. "I want to earn what I get. I want to make a case for the belt. I’ll continue making my case."

Sotiropoulos asked the promotion for a quick turnaround. He’d like to fight in less than 13 weeks when the UFC visits Sydney, Australia on Feb. 27.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/UFC-123-PPV-opener-Lauzon-fades-again-Sotiropo?urn=mma-287727

Diego Sanchez Jorge Santiago Evangelista Santos Rey Phillip Santos Bob Sapp

by Michael David SmithIn an exciting battle of former light heavyweight champions that ended up with a shocking split decision, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson defeated Lyoto Machida in the main event at UFC 123.

I scored the fight for Machida 29-28 and was sure Machida would win the decision, and I was stunned that two judges gave the fight to Rampage, 29-28. One judge gave it to Machida, 29-28.

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/11/21/rampage-jackson-beats-lyoto-machida-in-stunning-decision-at-ufc/

Mike Brown  Junie Browning Paul Buentello  Josh Burkman  Mikey Burnett 

Finally after MONTHS of hard grafting, the new website is online! The original website had a great innings; online since April 2006. But it was time for us to retire her, which was surprisingly hard to do (!)… And so we proudly present the new Club Of The Waves (hope you like it!)…

P.S. We hope it’s not broken in anyway, but if you find anything wrong with it, please let us know and we’ll get it fixed asap!

P.P.S. Here’s a brief summary of what’s new…

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/cotw/~3/rE9pCFsK2xw/new-website-for-club-of-waves.html

Renzo Gracie Rickson Gracie Rodrigo Gracie Roger Gracie Rolles Gracie

MPORA has a quick clip of Michael Juras, one of my favorites out of Europe right now. Maybe Tony Hawk will put him on Birdhouse. Found at MPORA among other skateboarding videos.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/MostlySkateboarding/~3/oR-0sW6m-zk/kingpin-expand-michael-juras.html

Min Soo Kim Dong Hyun Kim Kevin Knabjian John Kolosci Cheick Kongo

by Michael David SmithB.J. Penn is generally recognized as the best lightweight in MMA history, but after losing two straight fights to lightweight champion Frankie Edgar, he’s now moving up to welterweight to face Matt Hughes at UFC 123. Penn apparently doesn’t see it as a permanent move.

In an interview on SportsCenter Wednesday morning, Penn said that he doesn’t view his two losses to Edgar this year as a sign that he’s no longer competitive in the lightweight division. Instead, he thinks he’s going to win his welterweight rubber match with Hughes and then move back down to be the best lightweight again.

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2010/11/17/b-j-penn-i-know-ill-be-ufc-lightweight-champion-again/

Mike Brown  Junie Browning Paul Buentello  Josh Burkman  Mikey Burnett 

George Sotiropoulos spoke with the media at the UFC 123 pre-fight press conference about his fight with Joe Lauzon

Source: http://mmalice.com/ufc-123/george-sotiropoulos-ufc-123-pre-fight-presser-comments-video_4280598cb.html

Gesias JZ Calvancante  Luiz Cane  Dos Caras Jr   Phil Cardella Roan Jucao Carneiro

Check out a cool little interview with Cornish COTW featured surf artist Bryn Hall put together by myCornwall.tv…

Click the video below to watch…

- Bryn’s website/blog
- Bryn on Switch-foot

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/cotw/~3/d_78KfYWquQ/surf-artist-bryn-hall-interview.html

Karl James Noons Jan Nortje Phillipe Noer Jake O Brien Naoya Ogawa

I love no push lines. This quick part is mostly lines but only one push.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/MostlySkateboarding/~3/ccgSPh_Fhgs/mostly-lines-one-push.html

Dan Henderson Josh Hendricks Ed Herman Heath Herring Branden Lee Hinkle