Author: Ben Fowlkes

Chad Griggs Says Bobby Lashley’s Excuses Are ‘Bad Sportsmanship’

Filed under: StrikeforceEver since Chad Griggs defeated former pro wrestler Bobby Lashley at Strikeforce: Houston, things in his life have been, as he puts it, “pretty crazy, but good crazy.” The calls have come in a steady stream. His website traffic …

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Ever since Chad Griggs defeated former pro wrestler Bobby Lashley at Strikeforce: Houston, things in his life have been, as he puts it, “pretty crazy, but good crazy.” The calls have come in a steady stream. His website traffic has jumped tremendously. Suddenly people in the MMA world know his name. That’ll happen when you beat an 8-1 favorite on national TV.

But recently Lashley appeared on “The MMA Hour” and offered a handful of reasons why he wasn’t at his best on that particular night, even claiming at one point that had he been completely healthy, he would have notched “a pretty quick win” over Griggs in Houston.

Not surprisingly, this is the kind of thing that rubs Griggs the wrong way.

CSAC Says Sonnen Will Get Chance to Explain Elevated Testosterone Levels [Updated]

Filed under: UFCShould Chael Sonnen file an appeal with the California State Athletic Commission as his manager Mike Roberts indicated he would, he’ll have his chance to explain why his post-fight drug test at UFC 117 showed elevated levels of testoste…

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Should Chael Sonnen file an appeal with the California State Athletic Commission as his manager Mike Roberts indicated he would, he’ll have his chance to explain why his post-fight drug test at UFC 117 showed elevated levels of testosterone. But that explanation may or may not be enough to placate the commission after the fact, said CSAC executive officer George Dodd.

Dodd told MMA Fighting on Tuesday that fighters are instructed to provide documentation explaining what substances they’re taking and why before the fight, but couldn’t say what might happen to Sonnen if he provides that documentation at a forthcoming appeal hearing.

“I can’t speak for the commission as far as what they would do if someone came in afterwards,” Dodd said. “I will say that usually when a fighter calls me up and says, ‘Hey, I’m going to be fighting in California and this is what I’m taking,’ I inform them right off the bat to get all the necessary documentation from the doctor and why you’re taking it and they provide that to us. We send that to one of our doctors and they verify that that is a reason why and that is a proper treatment for that type of problem, and we usually don’t have any problems after that.”

Chael Sonnen Could Use the Credibility He Gave Away Right About Now

Filed under: UFCMost fighters who test positive for a performance-enhancing substance have two options: 1) they can deny it all the way to the grave, hoping that a fervent and lengthy appeal will bolster the case for their innocence, or 2) they can own…

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Most fighters who test positive for a performance-enhancing substance have two options: 1) they can deny it all the way to the grave, hoping that a fervent and lengthy appeal will bolster the case for their innocence, or 2) they can own up to it, do the mea culpa dance, and spend the next year laying low.

Chael Sonnen isn’t most fighters. He likes to keep us guessing. When an apology or at least an explanation seems like the most rational course of action – remember when he claimed that Lance Armstrong gave himself cancer? – he instead opts for the completely implausible denial. When you think he’s going to be as virulently obstinate as ever, such as after his loss to Anderson Silva at UFC 117, he throws you a curveball and acts like a dignified gentleman, declaring that the better man always wins.

So now that he’s been branded a cheater by the California State Athletic Commission and the MMA world awaits his reaction, what path will he choose? Will he blame supplements or over-the-counter medication? Will he explain that he needed help pushing through an injury? Will he say he did it and he’s not at all sorry? Will he blame some guy with a Hispanic accent?

We have yet to find out, but it’s worth noting that in times like these it sure would be nice to have a reputation for something other than being the guy who’s willing to say absolutely anything.

Josh Barnett Eyes Strikeforce Debut in 2010 Against ‘Whoever’s Willing to Do It’

Filed under: StrikeforceWith the ink on his Strikeforce contract barely dry, former Pride and UFC heavyweight standout Josh Barnett made his career intentions very clear on Thursday’s edition of “The MMA Hour.”

“My goal is to be the absolute best in t…

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With the ink on his Strikeforce contract barely dry, former Pride and UFC heavyweight standout Josh Barnett made his career intentions very clear on Thursday’s edition of “The MMA Hour.”

“My goal is to be the absolute best in the world and to beat everybody who walks this earth,” Barnett told MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani. “And you know what? There’s a lot of people out there.”

Barnett said he signed a contract with Strikeforce that is “not perfect,” but good enough to get him back in front of American audiences for the first time since a failed drug test torpedoed his hopes of getting licensed to fight Fedor Emelianenko in an Affliction event back in July of 2009.

While Barnett said he doesn’t yet have an opponent or a date planned for his Strikeforce debut, he expects to have his first fight in the organization “before the end of the year.”

Sarah Kaufman Says Fighters Need to Stand Up for What They Deserve

Filed under: StrikeforceStrikeforce 135-pound women’s champion Sarah Kaufman will get her wish when she takes on Marloes Coenen on the main card of Strikeforce’s next big Showtime event on October 9 in San Jose, and she has no regrets about what she ha…

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Strikeforce 135-pound women’s champion Sarah Kaufman will get her wish when she takes on Marloes Coenen on the main card of Strikeforce’s next big Showtime event on October 9 in San Jose, and she has no regrets about what she had to do to make it happen.

“I think it’s important for fighters to stand up for what they deserve,” Kaufman said on Friday afternoon’s Strikeforce media call, responding to questions about her post-fight remarks following a victory over Roxanne Modafferi on a Strikeforce Challengers card in July.

“You don’t want to make your organization look bad, but if your issue needs to be said, I’m happy I said what I said and I think my fight kind of backed that up,” Kaufman added. “Whether it was me talking or the fans reacting or the fight itself getting highlighted on ESPN, I think they all worked together in helping push the division and have a title [fight] on the main card.”

That title fight pits the undefeated Kaufman against a Dutch challenger who posted a loss in her last outing – a 145-pound title scrap against Strikeforce champ Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos – only don’t try telling Coenen that she doesn’t deserve back-to-back title shots in different divisions.

Twitter Mailbag: Shogun’s Layoff, Daley’s Impact in Strikeforce, and More

Filed under: UFC, StrikeforceIn this installment of the Twitter mailbag we comb through questions on what Paul Daley’s future with Strikeforce will look like, whether a change to fighter contracts instead of MMA rules is the solution to cutting down on…

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In this installment of the Twitter mailbag we comb through questions on what Paul Daley‘s future with Strikeforce will look like, whether a change to fighter contracts instead of MMA rules is the solution to cutting down on boring fights, and of course at least one Butterbean query makes it in there too. It is Friday, after all.

If you have a question of your own for a future mailbag column, hit me up @BenFowlkesMMA. Until then, let’s all revel in the wonderfully inquisitive nature of some of my other Twitter friends. Who’s first?

@johnkwon89 what’s your thought on Shogun’s long lay off. He looks pretty fat now. Do you think he’ll deal well with five round return?