Author: Anthony Fusco

UFC 152: With 2nd Title Fight Added, Toronto Is in for a Show

As most of you have heard, UFC 151 was cancelled. Many of the fights have now been relocated to cards coming up in the near future.One card in particular that will benefit from the cancellation is UFC 152 in Toronto, featuring Jon Jones vs. surprising …

As most of you have heard, UFC 151 was cancelled. Many of the fights have now been relocated to cards coming up in the near future.

One card in particular that will benefit from the cancellation is UFC 152 in Toronto, featuring Jon Jones vs. surprising challenger Vitor Belfort.

It will be interesting to see if Belfort can get inside Jones’ long reach and use his lighting-fast hands to do some damage.

The rest of the fight card is pretty stacked as well. I’ll give you some fights to keep an eye on.

 

Joseph Benavidez vs. Demetrious Johnson

The two flyweights throw down for a chance at the first-ever flyweight title.

They are both exciting fighters and with a title on the line, expect the pace to be kicked way up.

 

Brian Stann vs. Michael Bisping

These two middleweight contenders want title shots. We’ll see who wants it more come Sept. 22.

Stann has the power, and Bisping has excellent technical striking. I can’t wait to see who comes out with the win.

 

Jimy Hettes vs. Marcus Brimage

A fight between featherweight up-and-comers that is sure to be a treat for fans.

Hettes has a rare combination of judo and Brazilian jiu-jitsu that he has used to win two straight fights in the Octagon.

Brimage has raw, explosive knockout power and never gives up. Keep a close eye on this fight.

 

Conclusion

This fight card could be the most stacked of 2012.

If the fighters all preform to their highest abilities, then Toronto fight fans will have lots to cheer about and a night they will never forget.

 

Shoot me a comment or check out my Twitter @FuscoNation16.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

UFC 151 Cancellation a Big-Time Loss to Small-Time Fighters

The UFC 151 card cancellation will have the biggest effect on the undercard fighters. Names like Jeff Hougland, Takeya Mizugaki, Yasuhiro Urushitani and John Lineker have all suffered.These fighters put the time and the money in for an eight-week train…

The UFC 151 card cancellation will have the biggest effect on the undercard fighters. Names like Jeff Hougland, Takeya Mizugaki, Yasuhiro Urushitani and John Lineker have all suffered.

These fighters put the time and the money in for an eight-week training camp for their fight.

Some probably spent a lot of time away from their families because that is just the nature of the business.

They needed this payday. They have to live and have families to take care of as well. That is a very heavy responsibility.

It must be absolutely shattering that because one man wouldn’t accept a fight, the entire card needed to be scrapped.

It won’t be bad for the top dogs, of course. Jon Jones probably doesn’t suffer much financially from this decision.

Sure, he’ll get the backlash and the hate, but the money will not be an issue. Same with Chael Sonnen.

He almost got himself a title shot when he wasn’t deserving of one. But he did it in an attempt to save an event, which earns him major points.

This cancellation was probably the worst thing that could have happened to the undercard fighters.

They want to grow their name; some desperately need a win to remain relevant and employed by the UFC. It all boils down to the money issue.

Bottom line is that the big fish aren’t feeling the effects of this cancellation. But the undercard fighters are.

The vast majority of fights on the UFC 151 card have been rescheduled, I’m very happy to report.

It was the worst possible outcome for the undercard fighters. They now have to wait for their payday that some desperately need.

It definitely affects them a whole lot more than the top fighters because let’s face it, none of these guys are champions being sponsored by Nike.

Shoot me a comment on the article or check out my Twitter @FuscoNation16.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Georges St. Pierre: How Will He Fight at UFC 154?

We haven’t seen Georges St. Pierre fight since UFC 129 which took place April 30th 2011. St. Pierre later tore his ACL during training and need surgery to repair it, keeping him out of action since last year.Now fans have a reason to cheer as the domin…

We haven’t seen Georges St. Pierre fight since UFC 129 which took place April 30th 2011. St. Pierre later tore his ACL during training and need surgery to repair it, keeping him out of action since last year.

Now fans have a reason to cheer as the dominant welterweight champion will make his return to the octagon at UFC 154 in Montreal.

Standing across from him will be the ever dangerous Carlos Condit, who defeated Nick Diaz to win the interim welterweight championship. It is a great return of a champion, however there are many questions of how he will perform coming off such a debilitating injury.

St. Pierre has to answer many questions in his return fight. How will his knee hold up during the fight? Will the knee surgery take away the explosiveness he’s had in previous fights? Will ring rust play a factor, seeing as he hasn’t fought since last year? How will he fair against a dangerous well-rounded opponent in Carlos Condit?

I think St. Pierre’s knee will hold up just fine in this fight. He’s always working to be one of the best conditioned athletes so I assume his rehab and training were done at the highest level––his knee will hold up fine.

Another matter is the explosiveness and ring rust. The way St. Pierre trains he should retain the explosive power he had pre-surgery, but I think it will be a bit more measured until he’s had it properly tested by his opponent.

Concerning rustiness, I think that St. Pierre will not have to deal with much of that. He is a true veteran of the sport and I truly believe ring rust will not affect him.

The final question is how will he fair against Carlos Condit? Condit is dangerous wherever the fight goes.

We need to see St. Pierre come out strong and attempt to finish Condit. Condit has all the tools to dethrone St. Pierre but I believe we will see a GSP with a chip in his shoulder.  He will control Condit and attempt to finish the fight when he is presented with an opportunity.

We are going to see a GSP with a different mindset in this fight. He is going to take more risks and attempt to finish the fight and silence his doubters. I for one can’t wait to see a dangerous and motivated GSP fight again at UFC 154.

Shoot me a comment or check out my Twitter @FuscoNation16.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Judo "The Gentle Way": Why Judo Is so Underrated in MMA Today

Mixed Martial Arts is exactly what the name implies. Competitors combine the knowledge and techniques of many different Martial Arts into one fluid style that works for them.There are many styles of martial arts used by fighters. Muay Thai, Tae Kwon Do…

Mixed Martial Arts is exactly what the name implies. Competitors combine the knowledge and techniques of many different Martial Arts into one fluid style that works for them.

There are many styles of martial arts used by fighters. Muay Thai, Tae Kwon Do, Boxing, Wrestling, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Karate, Kickboxing, Sambo and many more.

But I want to talk about one that has been thrust into the spotlight recently. A martial art that is vastly underrated in MMA today.

I’m talking about Judo.

Judo has been in the spotlight recently because of Strikeforce Bantamweight Champion Ronda Rousey. An Olympic Bronze medalist in judo, she has used her skills to finish six straight fights, all by first-round armbar. That is an incredible feat.

Judo is not as popular as other martial arts in MMA. When you think of MMA you think Muay Thai, or Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Judo in MMA can be extremely effective, if you know what you are doing.

Knowing Judo gives you some excellent moves to use in the cage. It improves your clinch work exponentially. Judoka do their best work while in the clinch. It can also be translated into excellent takedown defence.

Judo is no slouch on offense either. There are many explosive throws and tosses that can put your opponent on the mat in a bad position, or even at times a throw can stun your opponent while you swarm for the finish.

 A perfect example of this is Bellator lightweight Rick Hawn’s victory over Levon Maynard at Bellator 33. It’s embedded in this article. Check it out it won’t disappoint.

And of course there are the submissions. Chokes are popular, as are joint locks, such as the dreaded armbar.

Judo is finally starting to represent in MMA. Many fighters are using it to great effect in their careers. Ronda Rousey is a Strikeforce champion. Rick Hawn is the No. 1 lightweight contender in Bellator. Jimy Hettes is a rising UFC featherweight prospect. There are a variety of other names including Kazuhiro Nakamura, Yoshihiro Akiyama and Karo Parisyan.

Judo is gaining popularity rapidly on the MMA scene. Hopefully with Ronda Rousey leading the way this underrated martial art can finally get the respect it deserves in the cage.

 

Shoot me a comment on the article or check out my Twitter @FuscoNation16.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

One Fight from Each Division I Would Make If I Was Joe Silva for a Day

There are matchups in the UFC I’d personally love to see that will never happen.I’d like to see Jon Jones vs. Anderson Silva, or Jones vs. Junior dos Santos. Heck, I’d like to match Aldo up with anyone and see how it plays out. But sadly I can’t.What I…

There are matchups in the UFC I’d personally love to see that will never happen.

I’d like to see Jon Jones vs. Anderson Silva, or Jones vs. Junior dos Santos. Heck, I’d like to match Aldo up with anyone and see how it plays out. But sadly I can’t.

What I can do is give you one ideal and awesome matchup that I would create with fighters from each of the eight divisions.

Some of these matchups could happen, and some have been announced. All are exciting and fan friendly.

If you have other matchups you’d like to see, please let me know.

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Forrest Griffin vs. Chael Sonnen Head-to-Toe Breakdown

After much speculation, Chael Sonnen has finally decided on a course of action. He has decided to move up in weight to the light-heavyweight division.He’s barely been there for 48 hours, and he has already engaged in a twitter war with champion Jon Jon…

After much speculation, Chael Sonnen has finally decided on a course of action. He has decided to move up in weight to the light-heavyweight division.

He’s barely been there for 48 hours, and he has already engaged in a twitter war with champion Jon Jones.

That aside, I’m here to talk about the other thing Chael has done. He has found himself an opponent.

Forrest Griffin and Chael Sonnen will throw down at UFC 155 to determine who stays relevant at 205.

Let’s break down this fight, shall we?

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