Fighters like Nelson, Faber and Mir fired up for tonight?s main event at UFC 141

Fighters like Nelson, Faber and Mir fired up for tonight?s main event at UFC 141

LAS VEGAS - It's a special main event if the fighters are jacked up about the possibilities and that was clear yesterday at the MGM Grand Garden Garden Arena.

Set up on the concourse with our show on ESPN1100/98.9 FM in Las Vegas, fighter after fighter stopped by and beamed about tonight's fight between Alistair Overeem and Brock Lesnar (10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT).

Most said it comes down to the fighter that dictates the style of the fight and all of them suggested that there's no way it goes past the second round.

"Different athletes are well-rounded and then there are athletes that are very good at one particular skill set," Roy Nelson told "The MMA Insiders" show with myself, Yahoo! Sports' Kevin Iole and  fighter/MMA analyst Frank Trigg. "If Brock tries to go in there throwing punches with Alistair, he's gonna lose. If Alistair tries to wrestle with Brock, he's gonna lose. This fight is whoever gets off first."

Outside of the respective camps, Frank Mir probably has the strongest opinion we've heard on the fight. The former UFC heavyweight champ likes Lesnar big and isn't backing off his pick.

"Of all the accolades we can heap on Overeem footwork is not one of them," Mir said. "[...] If he were to land a good shot on Brock he very well could win. But I mean, land a good shot or Brock land his double-leg? What is the higher percentage of what's probably gonna happen?"

Mir also thinks that Lesnar's more comfortable at 266 pounds versus Overeem, who's added the weight over the last four years. That could lead to stamina issues for the Dutchman.

Forrest Griffin says the mystery of the fight will be solved quickly.

"We'll know how the fight's going to go in the first minute," said Griffin. He also pointed that Lesnar's long layoff since Oct. of 2010 could be a factor.

For the last few weeks, Urijah Faber was squarely on the side of Overeem, but now he's 50-50 on the fight.

"The one wild-card in there is that Brock doesn't seem to understand how to take a punch," said Faber.

The featherweight title contender doesn't question Lesnar's chin. It's more about being able to slip, absorb and shake off punches mentally. Trigg and Faber got into an interesting discussion about what needs to be happening in Lesnar's camp.

Faber was quick to point out that Lesnar is a desperate fighter right now and that he will score a takedown at some point in the fight. That's when the ultimate test comes for Overeem.

Watch UFC 141 right here on Yahoo! Sports

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Fighters-like-Nelson-Faber-and-Mir-fired-up-for?urn=mma-wp11266

Luiz Azeredo  Luciano Azevedo  Ba Te er  Ryan Bader 

Fans can re-live the excitement of Strikeforce: Melendez vs. Masvidal with highlights clip

If you were not among the group tuning in last weekend to Strikeforce: Melendez vs. Masvidal you not only missed an entertaining show but likely heard about some of the evening’s action including featherweight champion Cristiane Santos‘ massacare of 12-1 grappler Hiroko Yamanaka and 155-pound title-holder Gilbert Melendez‘s successful, strike-oriented defense against polished striker Jorge [...]

Source: http://www.fighters.com/12/23/fans-can-re-live-the-excitement-of-strikeforce-melendez-vs-masvidal-with-highlights-clip

Ryo Piranha Chonan  Dan The Sandman Christison  Logan The Pink Pounder Clark  Steve The Snake Claveau 

Strikeforce weigh-in: With title fights official, is Masvidal focused?

Strikeforce weigh-in: With title fights official, is Masvidal focused?

The craziest weight class miss in recent memory was the only notable highlight of the Strikeforce weigh-in earlier today.

Jerron Peoples knew he was nowhere close to welterweight limit of  170 pounds, so his camp negotiated with Roger Bowling's to meet at 179. Incredibly enough, Peoples still missed the super high catchweight. He weighed 180.5 and couldn't get down to 179.

There were no such issues with pros like Gilbert Melendez (155) and Jorge Masvidal (155) along with the females fighting for the 145-pound title. Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos and Hiroko Yamanaka both came in on point.

After reading Kevin Iole's excellent piece on Masvidal's weird diet and nightlife habits, it's a surprise the challenger didn't come in weighing 200 pounds.

Masvidal is a self-proclaimed fast food junkie.

He spends a lot of time in the nation's fast food restaurants. He said, "I'm a humungous fan of McDonald's," putting a significant emphasis on the word "humungous." "I can't tell you how much I love that place. Taco Bell. Rally's. Checker's. I don't know if you have one of those where you are, but let me tell you, that place is awesome."

One of life's pleasures, he says, is a grilled burrito at Taco Bell. But he has so many favorites, it's difficult to remember all of them.

"Wow, that is one of the toughest questions ever," he said, asked his favorite fast-food meals. "There are so many great ones."

He also loves night clubs and strip clubs.

[...] Give him four hours and he's a happy man. He's often out prowling after midnight, hanging in night clubs, stopping in strip joints, just looking for a place to spend some time and have some fun.

"I just can't sleep a lot," he says. "I'm not out partying. I don't drink; I don't smoke. I'm just out hanging with my friends. I only need about four or five hours a sleep a night at most. So if I can't sleep, I might as well be out doing something."

Unless this is a recent development, there's no reason to call Masvidal on his unconventional habits. He enters the fight winning two straight and 3-of-4. He destroyed KJ Noons back in June.

MAIN CARD (Showtime - courtesy MMAjunkie)

Gilbert Melendez (155) vs. Jorge Masvidal (155)
Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos (145) vs. Hiroko Yamanaka (145)
Gegard Mousasi (206) vs. Ovince St. Preux (206)
Billy Evangelista (156) vs. K.J. Noons (156)

PRELIMINARY CARD

Caros Fodor (156) vs. Justin Wilcox (156)
Roger Bowling (170) vs. Jerron Peoples (180.5)* - 179-pound catchweight fight
Devin Cole (248) vs. Gabriel Salinas-Jones (265)
Fernando Gonzalez (186) vs. Eddie Mendez (186)
Chris Brown (170) vs. Herman Terrado (170.5)

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Strikeforce-weigh-in-With-title-fights-official?urn=mma-wp10832

Ao Hailin  Shinya Aoki  Andrei Arlovski  Ricardo Arona 

Ed Herman scheduled to face Clifford Starks at UFC 143 in February

Just over a month away, the UFC 143: Condit vs. Diaz continues to grow as the organization recently added a middleweight bout between former Ultimate Fighter 3 finalist Ed Herman and the undefeated Clifford Starks. The contest is expected to be part of the nights preliminary card, scheduled to air on FuelTV. The fight has [...]

Source: http://fiveouncesofpain.com/2011/12/29/ed-herman-scheduled-to-face-clifford-starks-at-ufc-143-in-february/

Dan Cramer Alberto Crane Marcio Pe de Pano Cruz Luke Cummo 

Alistair Overeem cleared by NSAC for UFC 141 battle with Brock Lesnar

Hard-hitting Dutchman Alistair Overeem was finally able to put some speculation to rest this week after testing negative for any illegal drug use and thus receiving clearance from the Nevada State Athletic commission to compete. Overeem?s status was originally called into question when the 31-year old was granted a conditional license in light of a [...]

Source: http://www.fighters.com/12/21/alistair-overeem-cleared-by-nsac-for-ufc-141-battle-with-brock-lesnar

Daniel Acacio Bernard Ackah  Terrance Aflague Yoshihiro Akiyama 

Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. puts gold up for grabs at Super Bowl Weekend event in Texas

Super Bowl Weekend is shaping up to be an amazing few days for fight fans, as it appears 25-year old sensation Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. will put his WBC middleweight title and unbeaten record on the line against 53-5-1 Marco Antonio Rubio. Adding to what should already be a great environment, the event will take [...]

Source: http://www.fighters.com/12/28/julio-cesar-chavez-jr-puts-gold-up-for-grabs-at-super-bowl-weekend-event-in-texas

Royce Gracie Royler Gracie Ryan Gracie Peter Graham

Miguel Torres Back in the UFC

Miguel Torres is back in the UFC less than a month after the former WEC bantamweight champion was released for making a joke about rape on Twitter. UFC President Dana White announced at today's UFC 141 press conference that Torres had rejoined the promotion after he "handled his business like a man."

Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/26999/miguel-torres-back-in-the-ufc/

Grant Campbell  Gesias JZ Calvancante  Luiz Cane  Dos Caras Jr Â