Author: Ben Fowlkes

Falling Action: Best and Worst of UFC Fight Night 22

Filed under: UFCI don’t know about you, but when I sit through a bunch of commercials encouraging me to play an endless stream of video games on my rented TV while eating a fast-food breakfast, I expect to be rewarded with some quality fights. Fortunat…

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I don’t know about you, but when I sit through a bunch of commercials encouraging me to play an endless stream of video games on my rented TV while eating a fast-food breakfast, I expect to be rewarded with some quality fights. Fortunately, last night’s UFC Fight Night event didn’t let me down, even if I still woke up and ate a banana this morning instead of a 500-calorie grease bowl.

The big lesson we learned from last night’s fights is that if you are in a situation where another human being is trying to hurt you, it’s probably best to keep your attention on that person at all times. Don’t look away. Don’t get distracted by your oppnent’s soft, slippery smooth skin. Don’t assume that he would never hit a person who isn’t making direct eye contact with him. He totally will, and it will totally be your fault when he does.

Rousimar Palhares learned that lesson at the hands of Nate Marquardt last night, and he learned it in painful fashion. Let’s just hope he only has to learn it once. Now, on to the big winners, losers, and everything in between from last night’s fights.

Georges St. Pierre: I Know Josh Koscheck Better Than Ever Now

Filed under: UFC, FanHouse ExclusiveGeorges St. Pierre won’t lie, he didn’t exactly have a great time filming season 12 of “The Ultimate Fighter,” which premieres Wednesday night on Spike TV.

Don’t misunderstand him, he’s glad he went through it, he …

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Georges St. Pierre won’t lie, he didn’t exactly have a great time filming season 12 of “The Ultimate Fighter,” which premieres Wednesday night on Spike TV.

Don’t misunderstand him, he’s glad he went through it, he said. He’s also glad that it’s over. While some fighters dislike the reality show coaching gig because it takes them away from home and disrupts their normal routine, for St. Pierre the problem wasn’t so much the atmosphere as the company.

“I was with Josh Koscheck, so that was hard,” the UFC welterweight champ told MMA Fighting. “He’s very arrogant and I don’t like to be close to this guy. But I didn’t have a choice. It was a few weeks where I had to be there close to him.”

But while being alongside the brash challenger made St. Pierre’s coaching job considerably more irritating, there were some upsides to being forced to see Koscheck’s smirking mug in the gym.

Donald Cerrone Steps Over the Line Between Good Hype and a PR Problem

Filed under: WECYou’d think that after Frank Mir infamously talked himself into a deep, dark hole by wishing death in the cage upon Brock Lesnar, MMA fighters everywhere would have made a mental note to stay away from death threats altogether in their …

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You’d think that after Frank Mir infamously talked himself into a deep, dark hole by wishing death in the cage upon Brock Lesnar, MMA fighters everywhere would have made a mental note to stay away from death threats altogether in their pre-fight smack talk.

You’d be wrong.

The WEC’s Donald Cerrone is the latest fighter to map out a murder during a radio broadcast, telling Tapout Radio last night that when he rematches Jamie Varner at WEC 51 later this month, “…I hope my emotions take over and I just kill this dude. I hope this is the first death in MMA.”

I guess we can add “Cowboy’s” statement to the long list of regrettable remarks that have immediately followed the word ‘dude.’ Because honestly, if he had stopped there, we probably wouldn’t even be talking about it right now.

Nate Marquardt Trying to Ease Pain of Loss with Victory Over Palhares

Filed under: UFCIn case you were wondering, no, Nate Marquardt has not completely put his loss to Chael Sonnen at UFC 109 behind him. It’s still there in the back of his mind. Certain aspects of it still bug him. But that’s okay, he says. Hanging on to…

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In case you were wondering, no, Nate Marquardt has not completely put his loss to Chael Sonnen at UFC 109 behind him. It’s still there in the back of his mind. Certain aspects of it still bug him. But that’s okay, he says. Hanging on to a loss isn’t always a bad thing.

“You always have to look forward, but that doesn’t always mean putting it completely behind you,” Marquardt (29-9-2) told MMA Fighting. “It means looking at it and seeing why it happened and fixing your mistakes. I made technical mistakes and I made tactical mistakes, and that’s what cost me the fight.”

It cost him not only the victory, but also a title shot against his old nemesis, UFC middleweight champ Anderson Silva. Marquardt came into the cage that night as a heavy favorite to beat Sonnen and claim the number one contender spot. Fifteen minutes later, Sonnen was bloodied and battered, but Marquardt was declared the loser via unanimous decision.

There went the title shot. There went the chance at redemption.

Charles Oliveira: Jiu-Jitsu Is Above Wrestling

Filed under: UFCBrazilian fighter Charles Oliveira may be facing a step up in competition when he takes on Efrain Escudero at Wednesday night’s UFC Fight Night on Spike TV, but that doesn’t mean he felt the need to do anything special to prepare for th…

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Brazilian fighter Charles Oliveira may be facing a step up in competition when he takes on Efrain Escudero at Wednesday night’s UFC Fight Night on Spike TV, but that doesn’t mean he felt the need to do anything special to prepare for the specific challenges Escudero presents.

Speaking with MMA Fighting last week, Oliveira (13-0) said he didn’t bring in any wrestling-oriented sparring partners to mimic Escudero’s style, mainly because he doesn’t feel that he needs to. That’s because in a head-to-head competition, according to Oliveira, jiu-jitsu is simply the superior ground fighting style.

“We have no wrestlers helping, because the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is better for the ground game,” Oliveira said via an interpreter. “It’s above the wrestling. I’m just training normally, nothing special.”

Bobby Lashley Says Griggs Fight Would Have Been ‘Quick Win’ If Not for Health

Filed under: StrikeforceFormer pro wrestling superstar Bobby Lashley may have had a career setback in his loss to Chad Griggs in Strikeforce last month, but his MMA career is nowhere near done, he said.

“I’m fighting again [in 2010] for sure…in Nove…

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Former pro wrestling superstar Bobby Lashley may have had a career setback in his loss to Chad Griggs in Strikeforce last month, but his MMA career is nowhere near done, he said.

“I’m fighting again [in 2010] for sure…in November at the latest,” Lashley told Ariel Helwani on Monday’s episode of “The MMA Hour.”

As for who he’d like to face in his return to action, Lashley indicated that he wants a rematch with Griggs, who beat him via referee stoppage at the end of the second round in Houston, Texas on August 21. Lashley said he’s already asked Strikeforce for the fight, and explained that due to several health issues going into the fight he wasn’t able to perform at his best.

“I already asked for a rematch, because when you have certain events like I did that sort of hindered me from being able to open up and fight, I’ve got to go back,” Lashley said. “I’d hate for them to use that fight to boost somebody’s career, saying, ‘Okay, he beat Bobby,’ because that wasn’t really the case. If I didn’t have these problems, and I’d been able to go out there and fight, I think it would have been a pretty quick win for me. But I just didn’t have anything in me.”