UFC on Versus 4 Live Blog: Matt Brown vs. John Howard Updates

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This is the UFC on Versus 4 live blog for Matt Brown vs. John Howard, a welterweight bout on tonight's event at the CONSOL Energy Center in Pittsburgh.

Brown (11-10) is looking to snap a three-fight skid. Howard (14-6) is on a two-fight losing streak and is coming off a loss to Thiago Alves at UFC 124 last December.

The live blog is below.




Round 1: Brown managing the distance early with jabs. Howard catches a kick and looks to take Brown down, but he's unsuccessful. Back circling each other now, Howard peppers Brown with leg kicks. Howard takes Brown to the mat midway through the round but Brown is back up in a flash. Howard continues holding on to the leg against the cage. Finally they break. Brown lands a shot and Howard falls backward. Brown lands on top. He looks for a D'arce. Howards pops free and slams Brown to the mat. Back up again. Brown with a succession of jabs to end the round. Several momentum shifts in the round, but we'll score it for Brown 10-9.

Round 2: Howard spent an inordinate amount of time holding on to one of Brown's legs trying to take him down, but he failed. Brown finally ended it by trying a standing guillotine. Howard pulled out. Brown tripped Howard down and took top position. Howard worked half-guard. Brown worked to improve position but Howard threatened submissions from the bottom to slow him down. Howard threatened a leg lock. Brown pulled out and Howard grabbed a leg and took him down. Brown tried a triangle but switched to an omoplata. Howard got out but Brown took the round 10-9.

Round 3: Leg kicks early from Howard, then a head kick. Brown flips the script and takes Howard down. Howard gets up and looks to take Brown's back. He spends forever pushing Brown against the fence and trying to take him down. Nothing doing. He works free and Brown follows him across the cage throwing punches. Brown right back to another takedown try. The crowd is booing now. This was not the fight they were expecting, but both guys are on losing streaks and probably just want a win, no matter how ugly. Howard takes him down again. He's looking for a kimura as the final horn sounds. Howard 10-9.

Winner: Matt Brown via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Brown to Rogan: "I was going to win this fight even if it was a decision. I don't like that, but I got kids to feed."

 

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Source: http://mmafighting.com/2011/06/26/ufc-on-versus-4-live-blog-matt-brown-vs-john-howard-updates/

Rich No Love Clementi  Mark The Hammer Coleman Wes Soldier Combs  Ray Cooper 

?Ultimate Fighter? Winner Tony Ferguson Meets Aaron Riley at UFC 135

Tony ?El Cucuy? Ferguson (11-2) will make his lightweight debut at UFC 135 in Denver as he is scheduled to face battle-tested veteran Aaron Riley (30-12-1). The UFC announced the fight today via Twitter.

Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/18990/%e2%80%9cultimate-fighter%e2%80%9d-winner-tony-ferguson-meets-aaron-riley-at-ufc-135/

Marcus Aurelio  Mikhail Avetisyan Luiz Azeredo  Luciano Azevedo 

Josh Barnett Will Fight At Strikeforce "Overeem vs. Werdum", But Is That A Good Thing?

Josh Barnett is a very controversial man, for several reasons. First and foremost, his checkered past and history of steroid use has caused him to be completely alienated by a strong contingent of anti-fans. Secondly, Barnett is prone to bizarre interviews where he claims that he wants to decapitate his opponents and drink their blood. [...]

Source: http://www.fighters.com/06/15/josh-barnett-will-fight-at-strikeforce-overeem-vs-werdum-but-is-that-a-good-thing

Fedor Emelianenko Yasubey Enomoto Mark Epstein Tom Big Cat Erickson

A Closer Look At Strikeforce "Overeem vs. Werdum": Daniel Cormier vs. Jeff Monson

Hello once more fans and friends, it?s now time for a new addition to my ?A Closer Look? series. Right now I?m focusing on strikeforce?s upcoming and highly-anticipated ?Overeem vs. Werdum? event, giving a fight-by-fight breakdown of all the major fighters, what they bring to the table, and whether or not I see them winning. [...]

Source: http://www.fighters.com/06/16/a-closer-look-at-strikeforce-overeem-vs-werdum-daniel-cormier-vs-jeff-monson

Ralek Gracie Renzo Gracie Rickson Gracie Rodrigo Gracie

UFC 132 looks like a win or retire match for Tito

Tito Ortiz is making a pretty hefty paycheck by MMA standards and he's lost four of his last five fights. Is he earning his keep? Well, that's a matter of perspective. Either the UFC believes Ortiz isn't keeping up his end of the bargain or it's concerned for his safety because the promotion asked him to walk away from the sport after his last fight against Matt Hamill.

"The UFC called me after that fight and said 'we want you to retire.' I was shocked, I thought they were kidding around. I took it as they didn't want to pay me, to give me what I'm worth. I'm competing against the top guys and I'm not getting dominated," Ortiz told The Telegraph.

Ortiz (15-8-1, 14-8-1 UFC) went into salesman mode.

"I pretty much begged for my job, to show how much I want to fight, but I still have it in my heart to compete, to fight. I told them I want to still fight against the top guys, I want to put on a show," Ortiz said. "I've just turned 36, but when they put me against the top guys, I think I can still compete."

Ortiz's losses aren't bad and he hasn't gotten crushed in fights against Rashad Evans, Matt Hamill, Lyoto Machida and Forrest Griffin. But how long can you keep a former star around if he can't beat anyone in the top 10?

His next matchup seems like an awful one. Ortiz's only shot in a fight is to get it the ground. Ryan Bader, a high-level former college wrestler, isn't going to get taken down by Ortiz and has a lot more power on the feet. The sports books seem to think Tito is done. Bader's been installed as a minus-450 favorite at UFC 132.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/UFC-132-looks-like-a-win-or-retire-match-for-Tit?urn=mma-wp3760

Jason Hollywood Chambers Ryo Piranha Chonan  Dan The Sandman Christison  Logan The Pink Pounder Clark 

UFC on Versus 4 Live Blog: Pat Barry vs. Cheick Kongo Updates

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This is the UFC on Versus 4 live blog for Pat Barry vs. Cheick Kongo, a heavyweight bout and main event of tonight's event at the CONSOL Energy Center in Pittsburgh.

Barry (6-2) in January defeated Joey Beltran at UFC Fight for the Troops 2. Kongo (15-6-2) fought to a draw in his most recent outing last October against Travis Browne.

The live blog is below.




Round 1: Barry with a hard kick to the thigh early. Barry rushes in but they break. Probably giving him something to think about. Kongo fires back with leg kicks of his own. Kongo with a combo ending in a right hand. Barry drops Kongo with a right behind the ear. Kongo looks in huge trouble. Barry looking for the finish. Back to their feet, and BOOM, Kongo knocks Barry out with a one-shot knockout. It was an uppercut. Barry went down like he'd been shot, completely unconscious. That was a wild momentum swing, from Kongo on the verge of being KO'd to knocking Barry cold within 20 seconds.

Winner: Cheick Kongo via KO, Rd. 1 (2:39)

Kongo: "I had to win this fight with huge time off from injuries. I'm very happy."

 

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Source: http://mmafighting.com/2011/06/26/ufc-on-versus-4-live-blog-pat-barry-vs-cheick-kongo-updates/

Noboru Asahi

What's Next For The Winners And Losers Of Strikeforce "Challengers 16"?

The sixteenth edition of Strikeforce?s ?Challengers? series of events is now over and done with, and what a strange event it was. For a card that looked great on paper, a vast majority of the fights ended up being let-downs. Even the good fights didn?t live up to their full potential. Now once again it?s [...]

Source: http://www.fighters.com/06/25/whats-next-for-the-winners-and-losers-of-strikeforce-challengers-16

Karen Grigoryan Kendall Grove Clay Guida Jason Guida

Kongo scores eye-popping comeback knockout over Barry

PITTSBURGH -- Mark Cheick Kongo down as a candidate for Knockout of the Year, as he survived a barrage of Pat Barry punches to knock out Barry in the first round of their main event bout at the Consol Energy Center for UFC on Versus 4.

The fight started slowly, with both fighters tentatively throwing leg kicks at each other. Then, Barry appeared to be on his way to a win with a right hand that staggered Kongo. Barry jumped on top to try to finish the bout, but Kongo survived and scrambled to stay on his feet. From there, he delivered two punishing rights that sent Barry straight to the canvas. Barry was out cold. The bout was stopped at 2:39 of the first round.

Both fighters had talked about how this bout would show off their more well-rounded games, but it still ended up a battle of two great strikers. Kongo showed off the strength of his chin in surviving Barry's strikes, and that he could stay calm and persevere for the win.

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Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Kongo-scores-eye-popping-comeback-knockout-over-?urn=mma-wp4028

José Aldo  John Alessio  Houston Alexander Ricardo Almeida