Stipe Miocic vs. Shane Del Rosario at UFC 146

UFC 146 can still claim an all-heavyweight main card, despite Alistair Overeem's withdrawal from the main event and subsequent line-up shuffling. Unbeaten heavyweight prospect Stipe Miocic (8-0) has stepped up to fill the final gap left by Overeem's absence and will be taking on fellow undefeated big man Shane Del Rosario (11-0) on the night's main card.

Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/28313/stipe-miocic-vs-shane-del-rosario-at-ufc-146/

Renzo Gracie Rickson Gracie Rodrigo Gracie Roger Gracie

"Minotauro" Nogueira returns at UFC 149 to face Cheick Kongo

When Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira?s arm was laid to waste by Frank Mir in December it was hard to tell how long the seasoned veteran would be sidelined, suffering what appeared to be massive trauma to an unknown combination of bones/ligaments. Fortunately the damage wasn?t as bad as it appeared and, after surgery and rehab, the [...]

Source: http://www.fighters.com/04/25/minotauro-nogueira-returns-at-ufc-149-to-face-cheick-kongo

Luciano Azevedo  Ba Te er  Ryan Bader  Siyar Bahadurzada

Bellator 66 Fighter Payouts; Alvarez and Aoki Earn Top Salaries

Bellator 66 went down last weekend from the I-X Center in Cleveland, Ohio and featured the semi-finals of the current lightweight and middleweight tournaments. The Ohio Athletic Commission has released the full list of fighter salaries from the event, which we pass along inside. Unsurprisingly, main event fighters Eddie Alvarez and Shinya Aoki took home the night's biggest disclosed paydays.

Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/28301/bellator-66-fighter-payouts-alvarez-and-aoki-earn-top-salaries/

Gabriel Gonzaga Lyman Good Gary Goodridge Gerard Gordeau

UFC on Fuel 2 will be aired live and during the day

Saturday's UFC on Fuel 2 fights featuring Alexander Gustafsson vs. Thiago Silva as the main event will air live from Sweden. It's a welcome change from Spike's policy to show European fights on a tape delay, and it does mean UFC fans will have to experience the joy of daytime sports-watching.

People lucky enough to have Fuel TV can tune into the main card at 3 p.m. ET/12 p.m. PT. For those of us who cannot get their hands on Fuel (Say, because we live in apartment building that does not allow satellite dishes and Fuel is not available on Comcast, the building's cable provider,) I will host a chat here on Cagewriter. Using Twitter feeds and play-by-plays from people onsite in Sweden, we will cobble together what's happening in the Octagon. It will be just like how your grandpappy followed baseball.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/ufc-fuel-2-aired-live-during-day-213827085.html

Roger Gracie Rolles Gracie Royce Gracie Royler Gracie

Andreas Spang penalized for his post-fight actions this past weekend

Andreas Spang went home last weekend with lighter pockets than expected and will have to try to make up for lost wages when he competes for the Bellator Seaseon 6 Middleweight Tournament title next month. Spang, who defeated Brian Rogers this past Friday night at Bellator 66, was docked a percentage of his purse for [...]

Source: http://fiveouncesofpain.com/2012/04/24/andreas-spang-penalized-for-his-post-fight-actions-this-past-weekend/

Michael Bisping  Dan Bobish Vagam Bodjukyan Kotetsu Boku 

Rashad Evans expects eventual chance at redemption against Jon Jones

Last night former UFC champion Rashad Evans became the latest high-level fighter to fail at solving the puzzle current title-holder Jon Jones presents inside the Octagon. Evans, who landed a few solid shots, absorbed a good deal of damage throughout the five-round affair including some of the stiffest standing elbows ever witnessed in the sport. [...]

Source: http://www.fighters.com/04/22/rashad-evans-expects-eventual-chance-at-redemption-against-jon-jones

Hiroyuki Abe Cyril Abidi  Daniel Acacio Bernard Ackah 

Michael Chiesa continues march to honor late father on ?The Ultimate Fighter?

Michael Chiesa is one of those rare individuals who had one of the most private, personal and emotional moments of his life played out on national television.

Chiesa was one of 32 mixed martial arts fighters chosen to appear on the first episode of Season 15 of the UFC's reality series, "The Ultimate Fighter." On March 9 at the UFC Training Center in Las Vegas, those 32 men would fight for 16 spots as cast members.

When Chiesa left his home in Spokane, Wash., a few days earlier, he did so knowing that it might be the final time he ever saw his father, Mark. The 52-year-old Mark Chiesa was fighting a losing battle with leukemia.

Michael Chiesa submitted Johnavan Vistante with a rear naked choke on March 9. When Vistante tapped, Chiesa leaped to his feet in jubilation, raced toward a camera and shouted, "That was for you, Dad!" In Spokane, his dying father gave a thumbs up and then smiled.

A few hours later, he died. Michael Chiesa flew home -- for barely 24 hours -- to pay his respects. He's been back in Las Vegas since and, tonight, will get his first chance to fight when he meets Jeremy Larsen of Team Cruz.

"I feel very good about the matchup," said Chiesa, the fifth-round pick of Team Faber. "Larsen is a tough guy and I realize that. I'm looking to be the better fighter in all aspects and come out with a finish."

He said that having to break camp, even temporarily, didn't impact him. Once the fighters make the show, they're not allowed any contact with the outside world for the duration. They have no television, no Internet, no newspapers and they normally aren't allowed to leave the house where their every move is filmed. In Chiesa's case, UFC president Dana White made an exception to allow him to fly home to Spokane, Wash., to allow him to attend a service for his father.

Chiesa said leaving didn't put him behind the other fighters. Team Faber coach Urijah Faber said that if Daron Cruickshank had won the first week, he would have picked the Chiesa-Larsen matchup for Week 2.

"Chiesa is ready and he's a very hungry guy," Faber said. "He's highly motivated and I love this matchup for him. I think he has a big edge in grappling."

Chiesa said he'll fight as he always does and work to finish the fight. He noted that Larsen is resilient and was able to withstand several bad positions in his qualifying fight to get into the house.

"He's shown he can weather the storm, so I have to be aware of that, but I will go for the finish like I always have," Chiesa said. "If you look at my fights, you see I finish a lot. It's just how I like to go and I'm always looking for a way to end it."

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/michael-chiesa-continues-march-honor-father-ultimate-fighter-144900922.html

Gabriel Gonzaga Lyman Good Gary Goodridge Gerard Gordeau