Author: Ben Fowlkes

Another UFC Interim Title? Thanks, But No Thanks

Filed under: UFCWell, that didn’t take long. With the recent news that UFC light heavyweight champ “Shogun” Rua will likely be out until March of 2011, already the calls are coming for the UFC to create another interim title belt for the healthy 205-po…

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Well, that didn’t take long. With the recent news that UFC light heavyweight champ “Shogun” Rua will likely be out until March of 2011, already the calls are coming for the UFC to create another interim title belt for the healthy 205-pounders to fight over in the meantime.

As if fans haven’t had enough of “fake” titles lately. As if any fight becomes instantly more important as soon as there’s some chunk of hardware at stake.

The latest MMA figure to ask for an interim title fight is manager Ed Soares, who suggested this week that while Rua heals up from knee surgery, Lyoto Machida should fight Rashad Evans for the interim belt, with the winner to take on Rua once he’s ready to return to action.

Falling Action: Winners and Losers in the Aftermath of UFC 116

Filed under: UFCThe UFC’s July pay-per-view event is quickly becoming the MMA version of a mid-summer classic. Last year it was UFC 100 that took the organization – and, you could argue, the sport – to a whole new level. This year, UFC 116 brought us a…

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The UFC’s July pay-per-view event is quickly becoming the MMA version of a mid-summer classic. Last year it was UFC 100 that took the organization – and, you could argue, the sport – to a whole new level. This year, UFC 116 brought us a slightly less star-studded card, but one that delivered just as many great moments.

It’s one thing to stack an event with multiple title fights or big pay-per-view draws. That’s the easy way to guarantee big numbers, though it doesn’t always guarantee great fights. UFC 116 delivered in part because of guys like Brock Lesnar, but also in no small part because of guys like Chris Leben, Chris Lytle, and Stephan Bonnar.

They aren’t mainstream superstars and they can’t headline a pay-per-view on their own. All they do is put on gritty, entertaining fights on a consistent basis, which is exactly what they did on Saturday. For that, they deserve a greater share of the attention, and maybe also a bigger cut of the money. But enough preamble. Now on to the best and worst of UFC 116.

Brock Lesnar 101: What Did We Learn About UFC Heavyweight Champion?

Filed under: UFCOK, so maybe that’s not exactly how Brock Lesnar’s team drew it up. Odds are they didn’t plan to have their fighter take a beating for the entire first round just to tire Shane Carwin out. If they did, Lesnar should fire his trainers an…

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OK, so maybe that’s not exactly how Brock Lesnar‘s team drew it up. Odds are they didn’t plan to have their fighter take a beating for the entire first round just to tire Shane Carwin out. If they did, Lesnar should fire his trainers and hire people with a little more regard for keeping his blood on the inside of his body.

But despite the rough start at UFC 116 on Saturday night, Lesnar showed a lot of grit in lasting through the early trouble to submit Carwin with a second-round arm triangle to retain the UFC heavyweight championship.

Beyond just providing a frantic few minutes worth of entertainment, the fight also gave us the chance to learn a little bit more about the man who may be one of the best fighters we’ve seen the least of in the cage. Below, five of the most valuable lessons gleaned from Lesnar’s latest title defense.

Shane Carwin Says His Body "Seized Up" Against Brock Lesnar

Filed under: UFCAfter the start that Shane Carwin got off to at UFC 116 on Saturday night, it almost didn’t seem possible for him to lose. He had Brock Lesnar bloodied and hurt, cowering against the fence with his arms covering his face as Carwin kept …

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After the start that Shane Carwin got off to at UFC 116 on Saturday night, it almost didn’t seem possible for him to lose. He had Brock Lesnar bloodied and hurt, cowering against the fence with his arms covering his face as Carwin kept the punches coming in a steady stream.

Then the stream slowed, and finally came to a stop. When it did, Carwin started to seem as though he’d spent everything he had for a finish that didn’t materialize.

“When I had him in trouble the ref keep saying he was going to stop it and then towards the end of the 1st my body began to seize up,” Carwin wrote on his official website. “In between rounds I could not move my legs and had what felt like a whole body cramp. My cardio was fine but my body was not. What can you do? You have to stand up and face your opponent.”

The MMA Wrap-Up: Post-UFC 116 Edition

Filed under: UFC, VideosThis week’s episode of the MMA Wrap-Up looks back on UFC 116 in an attempt to calm down a little bit after a fantastic night of fights and ask ourselves a very serious question: really, Brock Lesnar is now the world’s best heavy…

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This week’s episode of the MMA Wrap-Up looks back on UFC 116 in an attempt to calm down a little bit after a fantastic night of fights and ask ourselves a very serious question: really, Brock Lesnar is now the world’s best heavyweight? The guy who has only six pro fights on his record? One of which was against Min Soo Kim? Really? Okay.

Since it does indeed appear to be the case that Lesnar occupies the top spot, and since that does seem a little weird to me, the next goal is to figure out why it should be any stranger for Lesnar to be #1 than it was for Fedor Emelianenko, who suddenly seems like a puppy that the MMA world loved intensely until he chewed their shoes and was summarily stuck in the backyard and then forgotten about it. I promise this analogy did not make it into the video.

Check out this week’s episode below to see which flawed attempts at logic and humor did find their way to the internet.

Writer vs. Fighter: UFC 116 Predictions With Mike Swick

Filed under: UFCAfter finishing 10th out of over 2500 competitors in last week’s World Series of Poker, UFC fighter Mike Swick must be feeling pretty lucky. Either that, or he was not intimidated by my 0-3 record in Writer vs. Fighter and saw a chance …

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After finishing 10th out of over 2500 competitors in last week’s World Series of Poker, UFC fighter Mike Swick must be feeling pretty lucky. Either that, or he was not intimidated by my 0-3 record in Writer vs. Fighter and saw a chance for an easy victory. Whatever the reason, Swick was gracious enough to agree to face me in a UFC 116 prediction contest this afternoon, and for that I thank him.

I may have gotten smoked by “Babalu” Sobral in last week’s match-up, but I’m trying to stay positive. I figure it can only help me that I got Swick to make his predictions after he’d stayed up until 5 a.m. playing poker in Las Vegas, where he says he’s been doing “very well.”

Well Mr. Swick, prepare to have your fortunes changed. Maybe. Hopefully.