One way that female athletes have been able to build their brand, beyond dominating in their sport, is appearing in Sports Illustrated’s annual Swimsuit Issue. Ronda Rousey, who has already helped break barriers in UFC, is the latest female athlet…
One way that female athletes have been able to build their brand, beyond dominating in their sport, is appearing in Sports Illustrated‘s annual Swimsuit Issue. Ronda Rousey, who has already helped break barriers in UFC, is the latest female athlete to grace the pages of the magazine’s best-selling release.
Not only does Rousey join past athletes like Amanda Beard, Jennie Finch, Venus Williams and Danica Patrick, she’s also the first mixed martial artist to appear in the magazine. It’s a huge breakthrough for her and the sport.
Rousey did her best to provide some commentary on the photographs that appear in the magazine on social media. For instance, the UFC women’s bantamweight champion talked on Twitter about one suit that reminded her of a character from a 1990s movie:
Ironically, Leeloo Dallas was played by MillaJovovich, who has carved out a niche in movies by playing a warrior in the Resident Evil movies.
In addition to picking outfits that come from ’90s science fiction cinema, Rousey also noted in two separateInstagram posts that her day of shooting went from first thing in the morning until late in the evening. This one, specifically, notes the freezing temperatures outside:
Let it be said, children, that the life of a model isn’t easy. You have to wake up at the crack of dawn, put on a swimsuit in frigid temperatures and have a smile while freezing through all of the pictures being taken.
Also, for anyone concerned about Rousey‘s focus as an athlete, she made sure to let the world know that fighting is still her top priority on Instagram:
Speaking to Chris Strauss of USA Today, Rousey talked about how this experience differed from her past modeling venture in ESPN The Magazine‘s Body Issue:
The difference in how I approached it is when I posed for ESPN Body, I really tried to be a lot more cut and a lot more close to my prime fighting shape because I was being photographed as a fighter and trying to look more like a fighter.
I purposely tried to get a little bit heavier for the SI issue so I was a little bit curvier and not in top fight shape look but the look at which I feel I’m the most attractive. It’s very natural for a person’s body to go through seasons.
There are few athletes in the world as fascinating as Rousey. She’s built a fanbase on being great at her job and outspoken on anything that crosses her mind, especially as it relates to opponents in the Octagon. Seeing her headline UFC events speaks to how much mainstream appeal the 28-year-old has.
Discussing the shooting of the Swimsuit Issue allowed Rousey, who is robot-like in the way she walks through opponents, to show a different side to her personality. Fans like having more access to their favorite athletes on social media.
Rousey, while certainly under no obligation to give insight into who she is, is helping herself and the sport of female mixed martial arts because of her appearance in the Swimsuit Issue. She continues to build more crossover appeal, and that brings in more viewers to the sport.
The world of mixed martial arts was rocked when it was reported that Anderson Silva failed a pre-fight drug test for his match at UFC 183 against Nick Diaz.
There have been many comments and questions in the hours since Yahoo Sports’ Kevin Iole reporte…
The world of mixed martial arts was rocked when it was reported that Anderson Silva failed a pre-fight drug test for his match at UFC 183 against Nick Diaz.
There have been many comments and questions in the hours since Yahoo Sports’ Kevin Iolereported the failed drug test, but Silva has finally broken his silence with a statement provided to Ariel Helwani of MMAFighting.com by Silva’s manager Ed Soares:
I’ve been competing in this sport for a very long time. This is my nineteenth fight in the UFC. I have been thoroughly tested many times and have never had a positive drug test.
I have not taken any performance-enhancing drugs. My stance on drugs is, and will always be, the same. I’m an advocate for a clean sport.
I’m consulting with my advisors right now to explore all of my options and intend to fight this allegation and clear my name. I will not make any further comments until my team advises me to do so.
Iole tweeted the news of Silva and Nick Diaz failing separate drug tests on Tuesday:
Iole also released a report on Wednesday with the doctor in charge of the lab where Silva’s sample was tested, Daniel Eichner, explaining why it took so long for the results to come out.
“Would we like to get the reports out before an event? Of course,” Eichner said. “Of course we would. But think of the Olympic movement: You strip people of gold medals. You don’t stop them from racing. Sometimes these things take longer and then you have to go back and sanction after the fact.”
UFC has been overwhelmed by positive drug tests to some of its biggest stars recently. Silva’s failure comes on the heels of UFC lightweight champion Jon Jones testing positive for cocaine during an out-of-competition drug test in December.
Silva is widely regarded as the greatest fighter in mixed martial arts history, going seven years without losing a fight and owning a 17-2 record in UFC. His only losses have come against Chris Weidman, though the second one was the result of a gruesome leg injury suffered in the second round of their rematch at UFC 168.
A failed drug test could forever alter the perception of Silva in some circles, so it’s no wonder that he would want to take any steps possible to clear his name. Given that he does mention the previous drug tests he’s taken and passed, he may have a reason for why the test came back positive.
UFC is walking a delicate tightrope because of the public relations nightmare of these failed drug tests. The sport is trying to grow and should be able to do so with a national contract on Fox Sports, but the company has a lot of work to do to rebuild its reputation with fans.
There have been bigger mixed martial arts events before, but it’s possible that no show has been more anticipated than Saturday’s UFC 183. Not many shows can claim to feature the return of the greatest fighter in the history of the sport, Anderson Silv…
There have been bigger mixed martial arts events before, but it’s possible that no show has been more anticipated than Saturday’s UFC 183. Not many shows can claim to feature the return of the greatest fighter in the history of the sport, Anderson Silva, against one of the most enigmatic stars in Nick Diaz.
As compelling a figure as Diaz is, especially since he’s also returning after a nearly two-year layoff, all eyes will rightly be focused on Silva. Last time fans saw The Spider, he was being taken out of the Octagon after breaking his leg in horrific fashion against Chris Weidman.
That’s not the image Silva wanted to leave the fans with, nor the way he wanted his career to end, so the 39-year-old will undoubtedly be more determined than ever to make a statement. There are no shortage of storylines for this main event, which will be touched on after looking at the entire fight card.
UFC 183 Viewing Information and Fight Card
UFC Fight Pass at 6:30 p.m. ET
Matchup
Weight Class
Thiago Santos vs. Andy Enz
Middleweight
Richardson Moreira vs. IldemarAlcantara
Middleweight
Diego Brandao vs. JimyHettes
Featherweight
Fox Sports Prelims at 8 p.m. ET
Matchup
Weight Class
Rafael Natal vs. Tom Watson
Middleweight
Ian McCall vs. John Lineker
Flyweight
Derek Brunson vs. Ed Herman
Middleweight
Miesha Tate vs. Sara McMann
Women’s Bantamweight
PPV Main Card at 10 p.m. ET
Matchup
Weight Class
Jordan Mein vs. ThiagoAlves
Welterweight
Thales Leites vs. Tim Boetsch
Middleweight
Joe Lauzon vs. Al Iaquinta
Lightweight
TyronWoodley vs. Kelvin Gastelum
Welterweight
Anderson Silva vs. Nick Diaz
Middleweight
Card from UFC.com,
Is Anderson Silva Going to Be Inhibited?
One of the first questions that must be asked when an athlete returns from injury, especially one as gruesome as Silva’s, is how will they react mentally to being back where everything went down?
If you haven’t seen the video from UFC 168, basically Silva went for a leg kick on Weidman when his tibia snapped the same way a pencil would when you bent it in middle school.
Silva has had to answer nearly constant questions about the leg for the last 12 months but said during a media conference call this week that he was done talking about it, via Damon Martin of Fox Sports:
“So, this is part of my life I won’t talk to any more because my leg’s good now,” Silva said. “I train hard now and everything is newer. I don’t talk any more on this because this is the past. Sorry.”
In the same article, Silva is also quoted as saying that his big question after the injury was, “When will I fight again?” It’s an important distinction since most outside observers were wondering, “Can he fight again?”
The good news is Silva certainly sounds like he has no reservations about stepping back into the cage. He can’t afford to be impaired mentally because this is a crucial moment for the former UFC middleweight champion, as noted by Kevin Iole of Yahoo Sports:
Diaz is going to be there in the latter rounds. He has proven that. He absorbed a ton of early punishment from St-Pierre, who had him in all sorts of difficult positions, but couldn’t finish him.
It’s not unreasonable to wonder if Silva’s timing might be off as well, given the long layoff. Though Silva has been training for months, this is his first fight since the injury and the mind can play tricks on anyone, even a sport’s all-time great.
Silva is coming off consecutive losses for the first time in his career, though both came against the same opponent, and there were extenuating circumstances around the second defeat. He turns 40 on April 14, around the same age as Chuck Liddell when his career ended with a knockout loss against Rich Franklin.
It’s no secret that Silva is much closer to the end of his career than the beginning, but given how easy he’s made things look in the past, this fight could be a launching point for the greatest of all time to go out in a blaze of glory.
The Unpredictable Nick Diaz
No fighter has a more love-hate relationship with his sport than Diaz with mixed martial arts. The 31-year-old is immensely talented, winning welterweight titles in Strikeforce and WEC, but there’s an unstable quality to his personality that’s hard to work with.
Diaz had an inauspicious start to his UFC career in 2011, losing a welterweight title shot against Georges St-Pierre at UFC 137 after not taking part in media sessions leading up to the event. He defeated B.J. Penn on that show, then lost his next two fights against Carlos Condit and St-Pierre.
In May 2012, Diaz was retroactively suspended for 12 months dating back to February after failing a drug test for marijuana. His return fight was the loss to St-Pierre in March 2013, but since that time he hasn’t done anything.
That makes 22 months since Diaz‘s last fight with his return coming against Silva. It certainly adds another compelling dynamic to the bout, as neither fighter figures to be at the top of their game coming off long layoffs.
Even Diaz‘s quotes leading up to the fight show how enigmatic a character he is, like this one via UFC Store on Twitter:
Joe Schilling, who competes in Bellator and has been training Diaz, told Mike Bohn of MMA Junkie that Silva is going to get a different opponent than the one he’s expecting:
It’s a different Nick Diaz now. He’s definitely a little bit bigger, he hits a lot harder than I remember him hitting me back then. Anderson can win this fight if he catches Nick with something he doesn’t see. But in this training camp he’s been with the three best kickboxers available, and I don’t think he’s going to be surprised by anything.
The weight is another aspect of the fight that shouldn’t be overlooked. Diaz is moving up to 185 pounds for the first time in his career. He’s spent most of his fighting days at 170 pounds, with the exception of a 2007 bout against KJ Noons at 155 pounds.
Diaz is going into Silva’s territory for this fight, meaning he has to make the adjustment to his opponent’s power. The controversial star does have a boxing background that has allowed him to develop good strength in his punches, but adding weight can take away speed and quickness when moving.
Silva has made a career of picking on fighters who try to trade punches with him. Diaz has the tools in his arsenal to fight however he likes, but a punching match wouldn’t be the best way to approach this particular bout.
Prediction
Even though it seems like both fighters have too much to gain in this fight, making it too close to call, Silva feels like he has the advantage in every aspect. Unless Diaz decides to get back to his wrestling roots, which is something he hasn’t shown a lot of in recent years, it will be hard to defeat Silva.
Despite the age and layoff for Silva, he seems like the kind of fighter who will go into his twilight gracefully because he doesn‘t absorb a lot of hits and is such a chameleon in the Octagon that he can beat anyone in a variety of ways.
In a fight between two hard-to-predict stars, take the one who has proved himself to rise up in the darkest moments. Silva’s return will be a successful one.
UFC is kicking off 2015 in style with the long-delayed and much-anticipated light heavyweight title fight between champion Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier on Saturday night in Las Vegas.
Jones and Cormier were originally scheduled to fight in September, b…
UFC is kicking off 2015 in style with the long-delayed and much-anticipated light heavyweight title fight between champion Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier on Saturday night in Las Vegas.
Jones and Cormier were originally scheduled to fight in September, but the champion was forced to pull out of the bout with a knee injury that required surgery. Even though that did stall some of the momentum, these two have built such an explosive rivalry leading up to the fight that it’s still one of the biggest matches of the year.
While the entire event is built around the main event, UFC has stacked the card to make sure everyone remembers the first event of the new year. Here’s everything you need to know before the show begins tonight.
Where: MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas
When: Saturday, January 3
Start Time: UFC Fight Pass prelims start at 7 p.m. ET; Fox Sports 1 preliminary card starts at 8 p.m. ET; main pay-per-view card starts at 10 p.m. ET
As you can see from the video embedded above, there is no love between Jones and Cormier. Even though that happened prior to their originally scheduled bout last year, the lead-up to the match hasn’t gotten much friendlier.
Cormier was happy to have more time to prepare for his first championship fight in UFC, telling Steven Marrocco of MMAJunkie.com in August that his knee was also in bad shape before Jones had to withdraw:
I would be outside of myself to not say I went into this fight knowing my knee was pretty jacked up, and I was going to fight through it to get a title.
…
I’ll get a full training camp now. When I heard Jon was hurt, now him and (Alexander) Gustafssson are on the same schedule in order to be healthy. So my first question was, ‘I don’t have to go behind Gustafsson again now, right?’ And I was assured that it’s going to be me in January. He’s not going to take my place again.
However, according to a report by Kevin Nicholson of MMAInjury.com, Cormier‘s knee problem will present a problem because of what Jones likes to do:
As the mammoth fight between Cormier and Jon Jones approaches, there is one concern that I have for Cormier– Jones’ push kick (aka the oblique kick.)
…
Therein lies the danger for Cormier’s damaged right knee. Or his healthy left knee for that matter. If Cormier eats enough of these kicks to his left knee, causing him to switch out of his orthodox stance and expose his right knee, the consequences could be severe.
Only Cormier knows the full extent of the damage to his knee, but Jones does like to attack the legs to take away his opponent’s mobility. That sets up the rest of his offense later in the fight.
There’s also the question of mind games being played, mostly by the champion.
While Cormier has largely kept things civil, Jones has gone out of his way to criticize the challenger any chance he gets. The UFC light heavyweight champion poked fun at his opponent’s body type in a conference call, via Marrocco:
I would [sic] say there’s anything I necessarily like about him. I do respect that he’s able to use his frame so successfully, being a short guy and a thicker guy. When you look at him, his body type doesn’t scream athlete, but he’s been able to do some amazing things, both in the sport of wrestling and his MMA career.
That’s about as backhanded a compliment as Jones can give Cormier, but the champion has to be prepared for what his opponent can do.
Cormier isn’t a traditional light heavyweight. He fought as a heavyweight with Strikeforce and in his first two UFC fights, so he understands how to work against bigger and stronger opponents than Jones. He’s also one of the best pure wrestlers in the sport, boasting a perfect takedown defense and strong strike defense percentage (70), via UFC.com.
Jones is able to overwhelm his opponents because of his long limbs and ability to adapt styles, but Cormier is the best wrestler he’s ever gone up against. Even with a 21-1 record, the champion has had problems in recent fights against Alexander Gustafsson and Glover Teixeira despite being awarded unanimous-decision wins.
Cormier isn’t going to be intimidated or out of his element against Jones. Unfortunately, it’s hard to bet against the champion in this spot until someone is able to stop him. No one on the roster presents a bigger threat than Cormier, but Jones is going to be too much over five rounds and will earn a victory from the judges.
On the list of main event fights UFC could put together, Jon Jones defending the light heavyweight championship against Daniel Cormier would be right at the top. The two stars will finally lock horns at UFC 182 on Saturday night. Jones is a contro…
On the list of main event fights UFC could put together, Jon Jones defending the light heavyweight championship against Daniel Cormier would be right at the top. The two stars will finally lock horns at UFC 182 on Saturday night.
Jones is a controversial superstar with an ego to fill the Grand Canyon, while Cormier is the budding star looking to make a name for himself with the world’s biggest mixed martial arts promotion.
There’s certainly no love between the two fighters, as fans have seen dating back to the build for their originally scheduled bout in September and embedded in the video below, via MMAWeekly.com:
Given the way Jones has acted toward Cormier, as well as his arrogance over the years, fans have made him the fighter they love to hate. Cormier noted at the weigh-in on Friday he’s become the most popular fighter in the world because of his opponent, via Kevin Iole of Yahoo Sports:
Last April, Jones told Marc Raimondi of FoxSports.com that he didn’t want to go full heel because he didn’t “want to quite accept that role” and he wants “to be the good guy.”
In the same piece, Jones’ manager Malki Kawa admitted to cluing his fighter in on some of the best heels in professional wrestling history:
I’ve shown him The Rock clips from the WWE when he turned heel. I showed him ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin against the authority or going against Vince McMahon and him maybe one day against [UFC president] Dana [White] type of [stuff].
…
He doesn’t want to be a heel, but he’s not going to be phony for anyone. So if that means what he believes or says is going to turn people off, he’s going to say it regardless.
Whether Jones has turned a corner on the heel role or note in the last eight months, he’s not going to be the fan-favorite on Saturday night in Las Vegas.
Jones doesn’t need to be liked by everyone to retain his title, which seems to be the consensus from analysts around the web.
Dan Downes of UFC.com predicts a slow start for Jones against Cormier before he kicks it in gear during the second round:
Television cameras may catch Jon Jones off-guard, but Daniel Cormier won’t. Cormier has KO power, but I don’t see how he gets inside Jones’s reach. Even when he can generate offense, Cormier falls out of his stance. Heavyweights didn’t have the speed to take advantage of his miscues and neither did Cummins or Henderson. Jon Jones will make him pay for it. As Cormier loads up, Jones will slide out and counter with kicks, knees, and/or elbows. Jones will take damage because he’ll want to “prove a point” by out-wrestling Cormier, but he’ll eventually come to his senses and win by second-round TKO.
It’s no secret that Jones’ long limbs and reach give him a decided advantage over everyone in the sport. The champion has a reach of 84″, compared to 72″ for Cormier, which former UFC fighter Michael Guymon noted makes it difficult for the challenger even in training:
Elias Cepeda of FoxSports.com also believes that Jones will walk away with a victory but expects a much closer fight that ends at the judges’ table:
Cormier will have to be as quick against Jones as he was against heavyweight opponents, in order to press the champ backwards with prudent aggression. Jones largely backs straight up when attacked, instead of angling out.
If Cormier can hit angles on Jones and press him backwards, the champ will open himself up to takedowns and strikes.
If Cormier were four inches taller, we’d pick him to upset the champ. As is, he still stands a great chance of beating Jones.
Cormier is a standout wrestler who won’t be intimidated by Jones’ ability to work opponents to the ground. He’s proved to be a powerful striker, dating back to his time fighting as a heavyweight in Strikeforce, but the 35-year-old will have a hard time getting to Jones because of the reach difference.
Jones’ versatility is what makes him so lethal. He can attack opponents on the ground or standing up, showing no real weakness in either area. He can go from defense to offense in the blink of an eye. When you have so many ways to win a fight, it’s hard to think an upset is in store.
Nearly two years after his last fight in the Octagon, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson has come back to UFC in an announcement on the UFC Fight Night event Saturday in Brazil.
The news was tweeted by the official UFC on Fox Twitter account:
In the offi…
Nearly two years after his last fight in the Octagon, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson has come back to UFC in an announcement on the UFC Fight Night event Saturday in Brazil.
The news was tweeted by the official UFC on Fox Twitter account:
In the official release on UFC.com, Jackson stated that he wanted to return to the promotion because he wasn’t getting the same challenge anywhere else:
“I left, got my knees fixed and healed up and I got excited about fighting, and it showed in my training camps,” Jackson said. “I don’t feel like I was fighting the same caliber of guys that was in the UFC, but at the same time, my training camps went a lot smoother and made me more excited about being a fighter.”
Jackson had been competing with rival promotion Bellator, winning all three of his fights, most recently defeating MuhammedLawal in May. According to Ariel Helwani of MMAFighting.com, Bellator still holds Jackson’s rights despite what Rampage claims:
However, Bellator President Scott Coker took to Twitter and alerted the world that Jackson is still under contract with the promotion:
It’s clear that something has gotten lost in translation, which could lead to an interesting legal battle in the future. Jackson is the No. 1 contender for the Bellator light heavyweight title, though no match has been set.
Prior to leaving UFC, Jackson lost his last three fights with the promotion to Jon Jones, Ryan Bader and Glover Teixeira. He has been regarded as one of the best light heavyweight fighters in MMA history, but age has slowed him down in recent years.
As Jackson stated, the talent he was fighting in Bellator wasn’t at the same level as he was used to seeing in UFC. He just has to figure out the contract situation to determine who he will fight next and where that fight will be.
One way that female athletes have been able to build their brand, beyond dominating in their sport, is appearing in Sports Illustrated‘s annual Swimsuit Issue. Ronda Rousey, who has already helped break barriers in UFC, is the latest female athlete to grace the pages of the magazine’s best-selling release.