UFC event in Japan will be shown for free as lead-in for Stateside PPV

A little more detail has emerged regarding the UFC?s intent to hold cards on the same day in February when the organization heads overseas to the Land of the Rising Sun. Head-honcho Dana White opened up about Zuffa?s plan after the conclusion of UFC Live 6 this past Saturday night, stating the UFC would capitalize [...]

Source: http://www.fighters.com/10/02/ufc-event-in-japan-will-be-shown-for-free-as-lead-in-for-stateside-ppv

David Heath Delson Heleno Dan Henderson Josh Hendricks

UFC 136 Predictions

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Gray Maynard will look to win the UFC lightweight belt Saturday night at UFC 136.Will Gray Maynard take the UFC lightweight belt from Frankie Edgar, or will Edgar finally get his hand raised at the end of their third fight? Is Jose Aldo going to continue to run roughshod over the featherweight division, or is Kenny Florian the man to defeat him? Can Chael Sonnen return from a 16-month absence and show he's still the second-best middleweight in MMA? We'll try to answer those questions as we predict the winners for Saturday night's UFC 136 pay-per-view.

What: UFC 136: Edgar vs. Maynard 3

When: Saturday, the Facebook preliminary fights start at 6 PM ET, the Spike card starts at 8 and the pay-per-view starts at 9.

Where: Toyota Center, Houston

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

Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard
The first time Edgar and Maynard fought, three and a half years ago, Maynard easily won, 30-27 on all three judges' cards. The second time they fought, on New Year's Day this year, Maynard obliterated Edgar in the first round, winning 10-8 on all three judges' cards. I give Edgar all the credit in the world for the way he survived that first round and fought back hard enough to earn a draw, but I think the first four rounds the two of these guys fought were more indicative of their respective abilities than the second four rounds they fought.

Edgar has better cardio than Maynard and might be able to out-work Maynard on his way to winning a five-round decision, but Maynard has superior size and strength, and I think he's going to take Edgar down, get on top of him and hurt him with ground and pound enough to win this fight, either by TKO or decision.
Pick: Maynard

José Aldo vs. Kenny Florian
Florian looked good in his featherweight debut against Diego Nunes, but Aldo is on a completely different level from Nunes. Aldo is a vicious striker whose leg kicks are likely to have Florian hobbling around the Octagon if Florian can't get the fight to the ground quickly.

If Florian can get the fight to the ground, that's when things get interesting. Aldo has a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt, but he hasn't really been tested on the ground the way Florian has: If there's a place where Florian might have the advantage over Aldo, it's in the grappling department.

But I think Aldo's advantage as a striker is so great that by the time this fight goes to the ground, it will be after Aldo has battered Florian mercilessly, and it will be Aldo finishing Florian on the ground by TKO.
Pick: Aldo

Chael Sonnen vs. Brian Stann
The winner of this one likely gets the next shot at UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva. The big question is what kind of shape Sonnen is going to be in after 16 months battling suspensions and legal problems: Will he be the big, physical wrestler who took Silva to the brink? Or will ring rust and age catch up with him? Stann is a good enough fighter to beat Sonnen if he's at less than 100 percent, but I think we're going to see Sonnen looking as good as ever, and earning a rematch with Silva.
Pick: Sonnen

Joe Lauzon vs. Melvin Guillard
Guillard has been on a tear lately, winning five in a row and brutally finishing his last two opponents in the first round. Lauzon's submission skills make him dangerous exactly where Guillard is weakest, but I think Guillard out-strikes Lauzon and continues his march toward lightweight title contention.
Pick: Guillard

Leonard Garcia vs. Nam Phan
Garcia is on a bad decision redemption tour. In March he lost his rematch with Chan Sung Jung, whom Garcia beat by controversial split decision in 2010. Now he's taking on Phan, whom Garcia beat in another controversial split decision in 2010. I see this one being a similarly wild brawl to their previous fight, but this time Phan rightly getting his hand raised.
Pick: Phan

 

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Source: http://mmafighting.com/2011/10/05/ufc-136-predictions/

Ao Hailin  Shinya Aoki  Andrei Arlovski  Ricardo Arona 

Bobby Lashley Reveals Next Opponent, Eyes Winner-Take-All Fight with Dave Bautista

Bobby LashleyBobby Lashley has a name and a date for his next MMA fight, and his opponent will be a familiar face to fans of The Ultimate Fighter.

On November 11 in Lubbock, Texas, Lashley will face TUF 10 contestant Darrill Schoonover for the Shark Fights heavyweight title, the former pro wrestler told Ariel Helwani on Monday's edition of The MMA Hour. It will be the first in his multi-fight deal with the Shark Fights organization, and Lashley hopes it will help build him back up after his short, unimpressive stay in Strikeforce.

"I believe [Strikeforce CEO Scott] Coker said this, he said he doesn't believe that I want it," Lashley said. "...I have all the respect in the world for Coker, and he may have been right. Maybe I wasn't ready for Strikeforce at the time. ...I didn't have everything together and I wasn't training the way I should have."

Lashley won his Strikeforce debut over journeyman heavyweight Wes Sims, but in his second bout with the organization he was undone by exhaustion against Chad Griggs. After starting strong against Griggs, Lashley suffered a cut and was later barely able to pick himself off the mat at the end of round two, prompting a stoppage that put the first blemish on his professional record.

Back then, Lashley said, he thought he was in shape, but with the help of a new strength and conditioning coach he recently learned that "I was just in the wrong kind of shape."

That was a little over a year ago, and Lashley rebounded in March with a win over John Ott in the Titan FC organization, but he still hasn't given up on the prospect of a rematch with Griggs.

"I would like to get that fight against Griggs some day," Lashley said. "That's one thing that still burns in my stomach, is having that loss on my record."

Another fight Lashley wouldn't mind is one with fellow WWE alum Dave Bautista, who was at one point rumored to be making his MMA debut in Strikeforce. That coming out party never materialized, but now that Lashley is with Shark Fights and Bautista is unsigned, Lashley has some ideas about how they could make it happen on a limited budget.

"If we do the fight, let's do winner-take-all. Let's put one purse up there, winner takes all," said Lashley, who acknowledged that a bout between two former pro wrestlers might not be well received by every fight fan.

"I'd love to fight Dave. I guess that's a super fight and that's a fight for maybe the wrestling fans. I don't know how well the MMA community would take it. I guess they would just sort of shrug their shoulders and say, 'whatever,' but I know it's a fight that a lot of wrestling fans would love to see."

As for his long-term future in the sport, Lashley said he remains committed to proving that he is a serious fighter, and not just a pro wrestler dabbling in MMA. His conditioning program has been adjusted to meet the demands of the sport, he said, and he's spent a lot of time working on his stand-up skills and increasing his sparring load, despite not sparring at all before his last two fights.

"I think it's good for me to get back there and try to prove myself. That's what I'd like to do. I'm not one to fight what someone else says about me. It's better to go out there and prove that, hey, I want to fight. I'm here, I'm taking this seriously, and I do want it," said Lashley.

Ultimately, he said, he'd like to get back in the big leagues, which is easier said than done.

"I want to get some fights in and I want to really prove myself in front of these guys, so that I can have that door open and maybe go back with Strikeforce or maybe talk to Dana White later on and get up there and do some big things and show what I'm really capable of doing," he said.

Beating Schoonover wouldn't be a bad start. But considering Schoonover's 1-4 record since losing to James McSweeney in the TUF 10 Finale, it would most likely be the first step in a long journey.

 

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Source: http://mmafighting.com/2011/10/03/bobby-lashley-reveals-next-opponent-eyes-winner-take-all-fight/

Alberto Crane Marcio Pe de Pano Cruz Luke Cummo  Jeff Big Frog Curran

Bisping vs. ?Mayhem? Set for Five-Round Main Event at The Ultimate Fighter 14 Finale

The Ultimate Fighter 14 Finale is now official for December 3 at The Palms in Las Vegas, with middleweight coaches Michael Bisping and Jason "Mayhem" Miller meeting in a five-round main event on the Spike-televised card. The Ultimate Fighter 14 Finale fight card also includes the season's bantamweight and featherweight tournament finals.

Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/26267/bisping-versus-miller-set-for-five-round-tuf-14-finale/

Tony DeSouza  Edwin Dewees  Nick Diaz  Tadhg Steamfist Dixon

Hominick on Team Tompkins, Jung and fatherhood

Hominick on Team Tompkins, Jung and fatherhoodMark Hominick has had a roller coaster of a year. He went from a TKO of George Roop to a five-round decision loss to featherweight champ Jose Aldo to the birth of his daughter to the sudden and shocking death of his coach Shawn Tompkins. Next, he has to face Chan Sung Jung, also known as "The Korean Zombie," at UFC 140, and for the first time, will prepare for a fight without Tompkins in his corner.

Hominick, who spoke to Cagewriter as part of a lobbying trip to Ottawa, Can., said that he will use the turmoil of the year in his December fight.

"The passing of Shawn was obviously beyond a shocker. He was the best man in my wedding. He was more than just a mentor in the sport. He became a life mentor for me. That's a huge void, but everyone on our team has stepped up. We became closer because of it, because we know we all have to step up to try to fill that void. It's our duty to carry on his legacy: to keep training, to keep winning, to keep performing in the cage."

Hominick, along with Team Tompkins members Chris Horodecki and Sam Stout (Tompkins' brother-in-law), is focused on continuing the Team Tompkins legacy.

"This is going on 15 years that we've all been together. We're a very tight-knit group, and that's what we're trying to stress right now. To keep that unity. Even Shawn's dad stepped up. Shawn's dad came into the gym and talked to the group, and Shawn's brothers. Just kind of letting everyone know that we're not sitting idly by. We're working for his legacy."

That loss to Aldo came during UFC 129, the UFC's biggest event. It took place in the sold-out Rogers Centre, just an hour from Hominick's hometown of London, Ont. He says that being in that fight taught him what it means to be at the top of the heap, and how much he wants to get back there.

"There's a lot of extra pressure, a lot of extra time and a lot of extra commitment for being the title contender. Being the hometown guy in the biggest show in UFC history in an arena an hour from where I lived definitely overwhelmed me at times, so I have a newfound respect for it. I know I have to make certain changes to make sure that not only can I make it there, but I'm staying at the top."

Hominick's next bout will again take place in Toronto. He won't have the pressure of being a co-main eventer, but he will have to face the always difficult Jung. He plans to draw on the experiences of his WEC win over Leonard Garcia.

"It's going to be pretty similar to the Leonard Garcia fight. Very similar, very wild. The main thing is just getting a wide variety of sparring partners. You've got to get someone who is all over the place."

For the first time, Hominick will come to the Octagon as a father. His daughter was born weeks after the loss to Aldo. He says that his daughter's birth hasn't changed him as a fighter, but does add some perspective to his days.

"She puts a smile on my face. I started learning that it's not your time any more. It's their time. They're the moments of the day that matter."

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Hominick-on-Team-Tompkins-Jung-and-fatherhood?urn=mma-wp7552

Yoshihiro Akiyama  Gilbert Aldana  José Aldo  John Alessio 

Dong Hyun Kim vs. Sean Pierson Added to UFC 141

A welterweight clash between Dong Hyun Kim and Sean Pierson has been added to December's UFC 141 fight card, as UFC officials officially announced the matchup earlier today. UFC 141 takes place December 30 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas and features the UFC debut of former Strikeforce title-holder Alistair Overeem against former UFC champion Brock Lesnar.

Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/26270/dong-hyun-kim-vs-sean-pierson-added-to-ufc-141/

Yoji Anjo  Ao Hailin  Shinya Aoki  Andrei Arlovski 

Dong Hyun Kim Meets Sean Pierson at Year-End UFC 141 in Las Vegas

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Dong Hyun Kim will try to rebound from the first loss of his career, but he'll have to do it against a fighter also looking for a little redemption.

Kim will face Sean Pierson in a welterweight bout at UFC 141, the promotion's year-ending pay-per-view at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The UFC announced the fight Monday.

UFC 141 will be headlined by the promotional debut of former Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem, who will be immediately tested by the return of former UFC heavyweight champ Brock Lesnar.

Kim (14-1-1, 1 NC, 5-1, 1 NC UFC) was drilled by a Carlos Condit flying knee at UFC 132 in July, then finished with punches on the ground for the first loss of his career - technically. At UFC 94, Kim lost a split decision to Karo Parisyan, but that loss was overturned to a no contest when Parisyan's drug test came back positive for banned substances.

Prior to his loss to Condit, who went on to get a top contenders fight with BJ Penn that turned into a title fight against Georges St-Pierre at the end of this month after UFC president Dana White pulled Nick Diaz from the fight, Kim had won three straight with decision wins over TJ Grant, Amir Sadollah and Nate Diaz.

Pierson (11-5, 1-1 UFC) was riding a six-fight winning streak going into a bout with Jake Ellenberger at UFC 129 in Toronto. But the Toronto native was stopped just over halfway through the first round by Ellenberger, who went on to fight with Jake Shields last month that he won with a devastating 53-second TKO.

UFC 141 will be Pierson's first fight on American soil since the third fight of his career - more than 11 years ago. The other 15 fights in his pro career have come in his native Canada.

Aside from the heavyweight contenders bout between Overeem and Lesnar, UFC 141 is also expected to include a light heavyweight bout between Alexander Gustafsson and Vladimir Matyushenko and a welterweight bout between Jon Fitch and Johny Hendricks.

 

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Source: http://mmafighting.com/2011/10/04/dong-hyun-kim-meets-sean-pierson-at-year-end-ufc-141-in-las-vega/

Ao Hailin  Shinya Aoki  Andrei Arlovski  Ricardo Arona 

Gray Maynard: ?I am going into this fight angry.?

Top UFC lightweight contender Gray Maynard is entering his upcoming fight with champion Frank Edgar at UFC 136 an ?angry,? ?obsessed? individual and he?s not afraid of who knows it. Maynard recently wrote about his feelings regarding his second shot at dethroning Edgar where he made it clear his emotions are riding high for the match-up [...]

Source: http://www.fighters.com/09/28/gray-maynard-%e2%80%9ci-am-going-into-this-fight-angry-%e2%80%9d

Vitor Belfort  Robert Berry David Bielkheden Michael Bisping