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Win an ‘Ultimate 100 Greatest Fights’ DVD Set in the Philo/CagePotato TUF 12 Finale Viewing Party!

Heads up, Potato Nation: The Ultimate Fighter 12 Finale goes down tonight at 9 p.m. (8 p.m. central) on Spike TV, and we’ll be posting round-by-round updates from the broadcast. If you’re around for it, you should also check out our new buddies at Ph…

Jonathan Brookins TUF 12 Ultimate Fighter UFC

Heads up, Potato Nation: The Ultimate Fighter 12 Finale goes down tonight at 9 p.m. (8 p.m. central) on Spike TV, and we’ll be posting round-by-round updates from the broadcast. If you’re around for it, you should also check out our new buddies at Philo, a social media service that lets you discuss your favorite TV shows with other like-minded fans, discover what your friends are watching, and win awards and prizes just for sitting on your ass.

Speaking of prizes, Philo and CagePotato are co-hosting an online viewing party for the TUF 12 Finale, and you are cordially invited. Here’s what to do: 1) Register at PlayPhilo.com, which you can do automatically if you’re a Facebook user. 2) Go to Philo’s Ultimate Fighter page and click that big yellow "Check In" button. 3) Share your thoughts in the page’s activity feed during the broadcast; your comments will also be posted to your social media accounts. Each comment will count as an entry for the night’s giveaway contest, with two winners scoring a UFC: Ultimate 100 Greatest Fights DVD set. The more you comment, the better your chances are.

Doing all that will spread awareness about the TUF finale, and (much more importantly) the site you’re reading right now, so help out if you can. Any questions, let us know in the comments section below. We’ll see you tonight…

Bum Rush Nugget: Stephan Bonnar Explains Forrest Griffin’s Media Hostility

(See, Forrest? You used to *love* microphones… / Photo courtesy of milwaukeemma.com)
When we hosted Stephan Bonnar on the latest edition of our Bum Rush Radio Show, we ran through the standard set of questions about his training for tomorrow night’…

(See, Forrest? You used to *love* microphones… / Photo courtesy of milwaukeemma.com)

When we hosted Stephan Bonnar on the latest edition of our Bum Rush Radio Show, we ran through the standard set of questions about his training for tomorrow night’s fight against Igor Pokrajac, his opinions on TUF 12, and his future as a broadcaster. But considering Bonnar’s long history with Forrest Griffin, we couldn’t resist asking for his take on the question that’s been plaguing us lately: "Why is Forrest such a dick to reporters?" Bonnar’s candid and insightful answer is after the jump. If you haven’t already, please give the new episode a listen, and subscribe on iTunes!

Arrests of the Day [UPDATED]: Maiquel Falcao Picked Up for Assault, Joey Villasenor Becomes Victim of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend

(Luckily, Falcao listed a prescription for assault on his pre-fight medicals. Photo courtesy of CombatLifestyle.com)
Maybe that video of Maiquel Falcao’s savage and prolonged beating of an old opponent should have served as a warning that the dude is…

(Luckily, Falcao listed a prescription for assault on his pre-fight medicals. Photo courtesy of CombatLifestyle.com)

Maybe that video of Maiquel Falcao‘s savage and prolonged beating of an old opponent should have served as a warning that the dude is a bit of a loose cannon. According to Diario Popular (via MMA Mania) Falcao was arrested on a corporal assault charge today in Pelotas, Brazil, by local police. The Chute Boxe prospect was pinched after giving an interview to Grupo Brasil de Comunicação, and offered no resistance while being arrested, according to witnesses. ~~No other details have been released yet, but we’ll update you when we know more.~~ From MMA Junkie:

The Brazilian native was detained after a warrant for his arrest was issued in relation to a 2002 assault charge. MMAjunkie.com confirmed with Falcao’s management that the fighter is currently incarcerated, though the Chute Boxe product hopes to be released as soon as today. According to Falcao’s camp, the Brazilian was ordered in 2002 to serve a 24-month house-arrest sentence. After eight months, Falcao moved to a new home, though his lawyer advised him that the Brazilian authorities would have no issue with him completing the sentence in a new location. Today, Falcao returned to his hometown, as he reportedly has several times since 2002, but authorities elected to take him into custody…[Falcao’s] camp did insist the matter was unlikely to affect his Octagon career.

Oddly enough, Falcao’s bust wasn’t the only MMA-related assault case in the news today. After the jump, an MMA fighter finds himself on the receiving end of a weird dust-up in Albuquerque…

Video: James Irvin’s Comeback Hits a Roadblock at ‘Tachi Palace Fights 7’

(Props: TachiPalaceFights. Fight starts at the 2:03 mark.)
Two months after he barely survived his first post-UFC outing against Angel DeAnda, James Irvin was back in action last night at "Tachi Palace Fights 7: Deck the Halls" in Lemoor…

(Props: TachiPalaceFights. Fight starts at the 2:03 mark.)

Two months after he barely survived his first post-UFC outing against Angel DeAnda, James Irvin was back in action last night at "Tachi Palace Fights 7: Deck the Halls" in Lemoore, California — and he wasn’t so lucky this time. In the main event of the evening, Irvin took on 5-2-1 Chute Boxe product Jorge "Van Damme" Oliveira, who holds victories over Shonie Carter and Mike Van Arsdale. After failing on a takedown attempt, Oliveira wound up on his back, and did his best to defend Irvin’s ground-and-pound. At the video’s 3:24 mark, Irvin’s gets enough space to rain down some nasty blows, and Oliveira kicks him off. Irvin dives back in, and is immediately caught in a triangle/armbar. Fun fact: Irvin hasn’t been out of the first round in over four years.

Maybe Oliveira is just an affectionate guy in general, but the dude lays it on a little thick in his post-fight show of respect, hugging and kissing Irvin on the mat, raising the Sandman’s arm in faux-victory, bowing to him in a "we’re not worthy" pose (dude, it’s James Irvin, you’re worthy), getting up to hug him some more, then hugging him again after a brief visit with his corner. Now we know why they call him "Van Damme."

The Tachi Palace event also featured an insane bout between TUF 11 castmember Seth Baczynski and WEC/UFC vet Tim McKenzie, which ended with Baczynski getting his left arm snapped in an armbar, then elbowing McKenzie into unconsciousness with his non-broken arm. 2010 Finish of the Year candidate, for sure. Check it out after the jump…

Videos: Bobby Lee, Steve-O Contribute Two Cringeworthy Moments to the World MMA Awards

(Props: Versus.com)
So, anybody watch those World MMA Awards last night? Jesus Christ, you’ll find better jokes at a CSAC board meeting. For an idea of how ugly things got, check out the above clip of "comedian" Bobby Lee and former UFC Oct…

(Props: Versus.com)

So, anybody watch those World MMA Awards last night? Jesus Christ, you’ll find better jokes at a CSAC board meeting. For an idea of how ugly things got, check out the above clip of "comedian" Bobby Lee and former UFC Octagon Girl Amber Nichole Miller presenting the Ring Girl of the Year award (to Arianny Celeste, naturally), which somehow required Lee to strip down and humiliate himself. Even Tiki Ghosn is disgusted. But at least Arianny saved the day with her dynamic personality. After the jump, Steve-O gets a guest-pass out of rehab to proposition Brittney Palmer for sex.

‘The Ultimate Fighter’ 12.11 Recap: The Easter Bunny

Note: In addition to the the lightweight finals, three more matches featuring TUF 12 cast-members have been added to Saturday’s finale show. Details are at the end of this post…
"Now, fuck the team," George St. Pierre says to Jonathan Br…

Note: In addition to the the lightweight finals, three more matches featuring TUF 12 cast-members have been added to Saturday’s finale show. Details are at the end of this post…

"Now, fuck the team," George St. Pierre says to Jonathan Brookins and Kyle Watson to kick off last night’s episode. "There’s no more team." GSP won’t be giving strategic advice to Brookins and Watson for their red-on-red semifinal match; it’s time for them to sink or swim as individuals. John Danaher says this is the fight that should have been the final, as they’re the two most talented athletes.

Watson has seen enough of Brookins to know that he loves to shoot at his opponent’s lead leg for takedowns. In practice, Watson goes over how he’ll make Brookins pay for that, with uppercuts and lead knees. Meanwhile on Team Koscheck, training has ground to a halt. Only Nam Phan is left in the semis, and everybody else is just sitting there with their teeth in their mouth, bitching about their lots in life. Marc Stevens feels like he didn’t learn much from the TUF experience, and the yellow team in general feels envious of all the great guest-coaches that GSP brought in for his guys. Sevak sort-of comes to Koscheck’s defense: "I got a lot of positive things from Josh. I expected less."