5 Reasons To Watch UFC 133

In just a few hours from now, the UFC will hold its highly-anticipated ?UFC 133? event, featuring Tito Ortiz taking on Rashad Evans for the second time in a showdown that?s divided many MMA fans. Also, Vitor Belfort takes on Yoshihiro Akiyama in a battle of tough, entertaining Middleweights. Still, some fans may be asking [...]

Source: http://www.fighters.com/08/06/5-reasons-to-watch-ufc-133

Jon Olav Einemo Per Eklund Jason Ellis Aleksander Emelianenko

Video analysis: Iole on Jones? tweets, plus his battle versus Evans and ?Rampage?

This is about as close to WWE as you can get. The triangle of trash talk between Rashad Evans, Jon Jones and Quinton "Rampage" Jackson is going to reach epic proportions during the lead up to UFC 135 in Denver on September 24.

Before and after UFC 133, Jones took some shots at Evans on Twitter.

Evans responded by saying Jones is so cocky that he praises himself before he goes to sleep. Evans took a jab at Rampage too, saying the veteran moves like Frankenstein in the cage. Evans poured gasoline on the fire when he invited Rampage to train with him before the UFC 135 showdown.

Yahoo! Sports' lead MMA writer Kevin Iole checked in on video to talk about the latest in this three-headed feud. One can only hope Evans jumps into the Octagon on Sept. 24 with a steel chair or distracts the referee.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Video-analysis-Iole-on-Jones-tweets-plus-his-?urn=mma-wp5599

Keith Hackney Matt Hamill Volk Han Joachim Hansen

Tito Ortiz Receives 45 Day Medical Suspension Following UFC 133 Loss to Rashad Evans

The Pennsylvania State Athletic Commission has suspended seven UFC 133 contestants, including featured fighter Tito Ortiz, for various injuries sustained during this past Saturday’s scraps. “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” suffered a 2ndRound TKO loss to fellow former light heavyweight champ Rashad Evans in the card’s featured attraction. After taking the contest on two-weeks notice, [...]

Source: http://www.5thRound.com/84618/tito-ortiz-receives-45-day-medical-suspension-following-ufc-133-loss-to-rashad-evans/

Bernard Ackah  Terrance Aflague Yoshihiro Akiyama  Gilbert Aldana 

ProElite Notebook: TV Deal, Heavyweight Grand Prix and More

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ProElite 2.0, as Vice President of Fight Operations T. Jay Thompson likes to call it, is set to get back on track on Aug. 27 in Hawaii. The organization is looking to reinvent itself after crumbling in 2008 following Kimbo Slice's loss to Seth Petruzelli in Florida.

So with its first show in almost three years less than three weeks away, here are some news and notes about MMA's newest -- or not so new depending on how you view them -- kid on the block.

* Thompson vehemently denied a Cage Potato report that the organization was close to signing a TV deal with Viacom to broadcast its events on CBS and Showtime in the near future.

"There is absolutely no truth to the report that we are close to a deal with CBS and Showtime," he said.

Thompson said they are talking to "everyone" in the TV world but stopped short at saying who was the frontrunner. The organization's Aug. 27 show will stream live on Sherdog.com, but Thompson hopes he will have a TV deal in place by the promotion's second show.

* Speaking of its second show, Thompson said "early November" in Atlantic City, N.J., is when ProElite's sophomore event will take place. No specific date or location has been finalized yet.

* One of the main attractions scheduled for the event will be the start of a heavyweight grand prix. But before you roll your eyes at the idea of another heavyweight GP, Thompson says this one will feature mostly "unknown" big men from around the world. Andrei Arlovski and Mark Ellis, who are scheduled to fight in different bouts in Hawaii, could be a part of it if they win their debut fights.

"It will outperform whatever people are expecting," he said. "I'm very excited about that."

* Ticket sales for the Aug. 27 event at the Neal S. Blaisdell Center in Honolulu, HI, have been "strong," according to Thompson. The long-time promoter says he expects to sell at least 5,000 tickets to the event. A sellout would be approximately 7,800 fans.

* When asked about the recent Golden Glory free agents, Thompson said he was "very interested" in having Marloes Coenen fight on the November show. And while he admitted that Alistair Overeem is probably out of his price range, he said Jon Olav Einemo could be the perfect fit for the aforementioned GP. According to Thompson, the lines of communication between himself and Golden Glory head trainer Martijn de Jong, who fought for Thompson in 2002, have just been opened. He sounded very excited at the prospect of signing Coenen.

* Don't expect any title fights in ProElite any time soon.

"I hate when events do world championship fights with no world championship fighters," he said.

That's not to say Thompson is down on the quality of his fighters, but he explained that he needs to build the fighters first before putting them in title fights. And if you followed Thompson back when he was promoting SuperBrawl and ICON Sport, you'll recall that title fights in those promotions were scarce.

Check out the full lineup for ProElite: Arlovski vs. Lopez and the organization's new Web site here. A promo for the Aug. 27 can be seen below.

 

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Source: http://mmafighting.com/2011/08/09/proelite-notebook-tv-deal-heavyweight-grand-prix-and-more/

Mark The Hammer Coleman Wes Soldier Combs  Ray Cooper  Kit Cope 

Strikeforce done with Overeem, heavyweight champ reportedly dropped by Zuffa

There's a new sheriff in town and he's not messing around. Strikeforce fighters were sent a message tonight by their new boss Zuffa - play the game or play it elsewhere.

Back on July 18, the promotion's heavyweight champ Alistair Overeem got in a public beef over a fight date. Overeem said he wasn't available to fight on Sept. 10 on Showtime. It took less than 12 hours for Zuffa to pull him from the Strikeforce heavyweight Grand Prix. Now less than two weeks later, he's a free agent as Zuffa released Overeem from his contract according to HDNet's "Inside MMA."

Sources close to the situation have told "Inside MMA's" Ron Kruck that Strikeforce has exercised its right to eliminate the one remaining fight on Overeem's contract effective July 22nd.

Also according to the source, Overeem has been dealing with more serious injuries than originally reported, including a broken toe and rib and elbow problems. Overeem will fight next in October in Russia for the promotion United Glory.  No word on who his opponent will be.

This is a terrible blow for MMA fans. Overeem is certainly one of the top five heavyweights in mixed martial arts. Fights against the likes of Cain Velasquez, Junior dos Santos, Josh Barnett, Antonio Silva or even Brock Lesnar would've been big sellers. It seems unlikely Overeem will be fighting under the Zuffa umbrella anytime soon.

Zuffa, the parent company of the UFC, purchased Strikeforce back in March. The organization immediately got an overhaul in the front office and with some of the support staff.

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Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Strikeforce-done-with-Overeem-heavyweight-champ?urn=mma-wp5153

Lyman Good Gary Goodridge Gerard Gordeau Jonathan Goulet

Paul Daley talks Woodley, wrestling, and ?Marq-fart?

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. -- Paul Daley's loss to Nick Diaz in April a back-and-forth fight, with Daley looking close to the win during the bout, but Diaz coming back for the win. At the Strikeforce open workouts, he talked about how he got over that loss.

"The usual way that we do in England. Go out, have a drink, party."

Cagewriter mentioned that it's also how we get over losses in America.

"I've drank with Americans, and I think us Brits do it a little bit better. Nah, I'm joking. I just relaxed, tried to take my mind off the loss, and look at a way that I can come back stronger. The goal is to be a champion."

His path to be a champion in Strikeforce started when he was cut from the UFC after 113, when he threw a punch at Josh Koscheck after their fight had ended. It's not a moment that he's particularly proud of, but it's one that fans continue to congratulate him on.

"Everybody saying they hate Koscheck and saying well-done for hitting him? That's what I keep getting greeted with in the lobby. Obviously, I'm sorry for what I did, it's not something I'd repeat, and it's not something that I'm proud of, but I think the fan backlash is a little bit twisted. If I had a pound for every time somebody said well done for hitting Koscheck, I'd be a millionaire."

The Brit is hoping to create more memorable moments against another wrestler. In his first fight since losing to Nick Diaz in April, Daley will face Tyron Woodley at Strikeforce this weekend. Woodley was an All-American wrestler at the University of Missouri.

"Obviously, being the top fighter that I am, my least favorite fight is going to be against wrestlers, so I have to look at improving that area. It's something that I've continuously done. It's not something that I've stopped just because in recent fights I haven't faced wrestlers. I have to find all the best wrestlers I can and continue to improve in that area. I think I'm going to be there, and I think that Woodley is going to be surprised at the improvements I've made since my last fight with a wrestler.

With his unceremonious dismissal from the UFC after 113, you would expect that he would be in an awkward position after Zuffa, the UFC's parent company, bought Strikeforce. Instead, Daley was surprised by overtures from Lorenzo Fertitta.

"Lorenzo came to my dressing room before the Diaz fight, and he's a very cool guy. I've always said that. Very humble and approachable. He came to my fight and wished me good luck. He came out of his way to say hello, and he doesn't have to do that."

That quick cut from the UFC means that Daley has something in common with Nate Marquardt, the former UFC fighter who was released when he not allowed to fight on the UFC on Versus 4 card by the Pennsylvania State Athletic Commission. But don't look for any camaraderie between the two.

"I voiced my opinions about what he did and what he got caught for, and he comes back calling me a coward and a bully. I'm sure that's what he used to call people in the playgrounds. I aired my views in a sophisticated and direct manner, and he came back with that bullshit. If I am able to fight Nate 'The Great' Marq-Fart, then I will."

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Paul-Daley-talks-Woodley-wrestling-and-Marq-f?urn=mma-wp5110

Luke Cummo  Jeff Big Frog Curran Dai Shuanghai  Mac Danzig 

UFC 133 Main Card Results: Evans Stops Ortiz in Rematch, Belfort Dominates Akiyama

Rashad Evans ended his 14-month layoff in impressive fashion as he finished fellow former light heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz with a knee to the body and punches in the second round in a rematch of their 2007 draw. Middleweight contender Vitor Belfort returned to form in the UFC 133 co-main event with a first-round KO of Yoshihiro Akiyama.

Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/23724/ufc-133-main-card-live-results-and-discussion/

Joachim Hansen Antoni Hardonk Dan Hardy Lee Hasdell

Chad Mendes injures hand in victory, title-shot could be delayed

Chad Mendes risked his featherweight title shot at UFC 133 by choosing to fight Rani Yahya instead of sitting on the sidelines and waiting for the winner of Jose Aldo vs. Kenny Florian. Mendes defeated Yahya, but it looks like his title shot may unfortunately be delayed once again. Mendes injured his right hand at [...]

Source: http://fiveouncesofpain.com/2011/08/07/chad-mendes-injures-hand-in-victory-title-shot-could-be-delayed/

Keith Hackney Matt Hamill Volk Han Joachim Hansen