Author: Ben Fowlkes

Fedor Emelianenko Voices Questions About Overeem’s Weight Gain

Filed under: StrikeforceFedor Emelianenko insisted he wasn’t “insinuating anything” on Monday’s edition of The MMA Hour, but at the same time, even he seems curious as to how Strikeforce heavyweight champ Alistair Overeem managed to pack on so much mus…

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Fedor Emelianenko insisted he wasn’t “insinuating anything” on Monday’s edition of The MMA Hour, but at the same time, even he seems curious as to how Strikeforce heavyweight champ Alistair Overeem managed to pack on so much muscle in the last few years.

“Alistair Overeem is a great fighter,” Emelianenko told MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani via a translator. “He is very strong and is a very serious fighter. Lately he has won a K-1 tournament, as well. The only question I have [is] how he managed to gain 20 kilos of weight in such a short period of time. But frankly speaking I don’t care, if he passes [the] drug tests successfully.”

‘Rampage’ Jackson Offers Weighty Explanation for Turning Down Title Shot

Filed under: UFCQuinton “Rampage” Jackson did indeed turn down a chance to fight Mauricio “Shogun” Rua for the UFC light heavyweight title at UFC 128, Jackson confirmed via his Twitter earlier today, but it’s the reason he turned it down that gives us …

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Quinton “Rampage” Jackson did indeed turn down a chance to fight Mauricio “Shogun” Rua for the UFC light heavyweight title at UFC 128, Jackson confirmed via his Twitter earlier today, but it’s the reason he turned it down that gives us an insight into the current state of his MMA career.

“I turned down the fight cause of short notice,I would have 2 lose 45 lbs n 4 weeks,u would have 2 be a fighter 2 understand,life goes on,” Jackson tweeted on Tuesday.

Of course, after he turned down the chance to step in for the injured Rashad Evans, the UFC offered it to Evans’ teammate, Jon Jones, who was only too happy to seize the opportunity. So what does that tell us, aside from the fact that Jackson is walking around closer to the heavyweight limit than the light heavyweight one?

Mike Brown on Recent UFC Losses: ‘My Heart Is Broken’

Filed under: UFCBack when Mike Brown was the WEC featherweight champion, he heard the same question all the time. People who barely followed the sport, people who didn’t know any better, they’d ask him, ‘Does this mean you get to go to the UFC now?’

O…

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Back when Mike Brown was the WEC featherweight champion, he heard the same question all the time. People who barely followed the sport, people who didn’t know any better, they’d ask him, ‘Does this mean you get to go to the UFC now?’

Only now that the UFC has absorbed the lighter weight fighters from the WEC roster, Brown’s stay in the UFC isn’t going at all like he planned. It started with a split decision loss to Diego Nunes at UFC 125. Three weeks later, he was back in action again for a unanimous decision loss to Rani Yahya.

In less than a month’s time the former champ was 0-2 as a featherweight in the UFC, and his career outlook was suddenly quite grim.

Falling Action: Best and Worst of UFC 126

Filed under: UFCIt may not have been the Super Bowl of MMA events, but at least UFC 126 has one thing over football’s climactic game: it didn’t force us to watch Fergie mime human emotions for an extended period of time.

After a main event that resemb…

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It may not have been the Super Bowl of MMA events, but at least UFC 126 has one thing over football’s climactic game: it didn’t force us to watch Fergie mime human emotions for an extended period of time.

After a main event that resembled the finish to ‘Karate Kid’ just a little more than we were prepared for, it’s time to break down all the action and see who were the biggest winners, losers, and everything in between after Saturday night in Las Vegas.

Biggest Winner: Anderson Silva
Admit it, when he spent the first couple minutes floating around the cage and blocking invisible punches, you thought to yourself: ‘Dear God, not again.’ Then he front-kicked Vitor Belfort in the face and you leapt three feet in the air while proclaiming him the greatest fighter to ever live. Such is the rollercoaster of emotions that comes with any Silva fight. Beating Belfort might not be the crowning jewel in his already stellar career, but doing it in action movie fashion can only add to his mythical status. Even if he retires tomorrow he’ll be remembered as one of the greatest mixed martial artists of all time. Although if he retires before fighting GSP – who, one hopes, won’t screw things up by losing to Jake Shields – it will be a minor tragedy.

The MMA Wrap-Up: Post-UFC 126 Edition

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After another successful title defense by Anderson Silva at UFC 126 — and with it, another highlight reel finish — the MMA Wrap-Up returns to look at Silva’s win and the man who is perhaps getting just a little too much credit for it. That’s right, we’re talking about Steven Seagal here. Enjoy.

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After another successful title defense by Anderson Silva at UFC 126 — and with it, another highlight reel finish — the MMA Wrap-Up returns to look at Silva’s win and the man who is perhaps getting just a little too much credit for it. That’s right, we’re talking about Steven Seagal here. Enjoy.

Fighter vs. Writer: UFC 126 Picks

Filed under: UFCLast time on Fighter vs. Writer, Sean McCorkle suffered one of the most lopsided defeats in the history of the series. It was brutal, it was ugly, and — I have to be honest — it was not anywhere near as satisfying as I thought it woul…

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Last time on Fighter vs. Writer, Sean McCorkle suffered one of the most lopsided defeats in the history of the series. It was brutal, it was ugly, and — I have to be honest — it was not anywhere near as satisfying as I thought it would be.

So for UFC 126 I decided to challenge myself. I decided to go after bigger (although technically physically smaller) game. I decided to take on someone who would make picks on the basis of something other than his hatred for Clay Guida’s brother.

Enter Kenny Florian. As an ‘MMA Live’ analyst and occasional color man on the UFC broadcasts, he’s serious competition. But is he good enough? Find out below, as we go head to head with our UFC 126 picks.