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UFC 137: GSP vs Diaz Pre-Fight Breakdown and Preview

For as long as many can remember, Georges St-Pierre has been on top in the welterweight division. He is a three-time UFC welterweight champion (once was interim), and is currently riding a nine-fight winning streak. He has defeated everyone put in fron…

There is one thing that GSP has not encountered, a man that will bring the fight to him. A fighter that has the ability to not only test his cardio, but also every aspect of the fight game.

On June 1, UFC president Dana White made the announcement that GSP’s next opponent would be Nick Diaz.

Diaz brings all of those problems to the table.

Diaz is the current Strikeforce welterweight champion and is on a 10-fight winning streak. He is overlooked by many and is truly an unappreciated fighter. Diaz is known for finding out what his opponent is best at and defeating them at their own game.

Has Diaz faced the level of fighters that GSP has faced? No. One thing is that most recently Diaz scored a TKO on Paul Daley, and though people say who cares, it has a significant meaning to it.

If people think back, Daley fought Josh Koscheck and if he won, he would face GSP for the welterweight title and also be a coach on The Ultimate Fighter. Daley has had one TKO loss in his career, and it was due to a thumb injury.

Daley is a power-puncher and is overall a very good striker and everyone remembers what he did to Martin Kampmann. Diaz beat Daley at his own game, and was the first man to win by the method of TKO.

Should Diaz have had to face a couple of guys in the UFC welterweight division before getting this fight? In all truths, yes, but this fight is such a marketable fight that at this moment putting this fight at risk at not taking place is not a smart business move.

The fans wanted this fight and the UFC delivered. That being said, is this the fight that opens the door to more crossover fights? It almost has to mean that.

There is virtually no reason to leave some of these bigger names in Strikeforce waiting on an opponent. Zuffa, LLC, in a whole, is in a great position at the moment because the fights and money that can be made is just literally a fantasy that can now come true.

Diaz vs. St-Pierre, is more of a marketed fight than a deserved fight, but how will it go?

St-Pierre is an extremely talented technical striker. His kicks are top notch, and his punches are spot on. His main problem is that he really doesn’t possess the one-punch knockout power, but good thing for him, neither does Diaz.

Diaz possesses very good boxing, he always pushes the pace in fights and his cardio is never in question. GSP has the advantage in the wrestling department, but does he really want to risk Diaz being on his back?

In the Shields fight, St-Pierre kept it standing, the only problem is that Diaz is a much better striker.

Every fight it is stated that this opponent is the guy that will dethrone GSP, but in this case, Diaz is truly the biggest threat. How will GSP be able to handle all of the vocal taunts that Diaz will throw his way?

This fight is just overall a great matchup and has many potential outcomes.

Anyone can call a winner for this fight, but let’s keep it real. Actions speak louder than words. Prepare for war everyone, because this fight will not disappoint.

Follow me on twitter @slocomania.

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Bellator 45 Preview: Light Heavyweight and Featherweight Tourney Finals

Bellator 45 will be taking place Saturday, May 21, 2011 in Lake Charles, LA.This is a very solid card and will feature the featherweight and light geavyweight tournament finals. In the featherweight finals we will see Daniel Straus vs. P…

Bellator 45 will be taking place Saturday, May 21, 2011 in Lake Charles, LA.

This is a very solid card and will feature the featherweight and light geavyweight tournament finals. In the featherweight finals we will see Daniel Straus vs. Patricio Freire, in what will be a very explosive matchup.

In the light heavyweight final we will see Richard Hale vs. Christian M’Pumbu.

Patricio Freire is a very explosive fighter. He is 16-1 with his lone loss coming to Joe Warren via split decision. Daniel Straus is 14-3 and has really come from under the radar. He has won 12 fights in a row, and now has the chance to fight for the Bellator featherweight title with a win over the “Pitbull” Saturday night.

The style matchup truly favors Straus coming into this match. He is the type of fighter that is more known for taking you to the distance, while Freire is explosive and can end the fight at any given moment.

Expect both fighters to be pushed to the limit. Freire could pull off the win, and in many eyes should but I am leaning towards Straus to win this fight via Unanimous decision.

In the light heavyweight final, Richard Hale has a 17-3-1 record and won a controversial split decision in his last bout over DJ Linderman. He is very well-rounded and can pull out a victory from every angle.

Christian M’Pumbu is also 17-3-1 it is funny because they both have the same amount of submission, knock out and decision victories.

I expect a fight where neither man holds back. I personally think that M’Pumbu has the slight advantage, but you never know, because it’s MMA and anything is possible.

I say it starts close and end of the second or early third round M’Pumbu catches him and finishes the fight via TKO.

Overall the event will be a solid card that is definitely worth the watch. So check it out on MTV2.

*Fight Card*

Bellator Light Heavyweight Tournament Final
Richard Hale vs. Christian M’Pumbu

Bellator Featherweight Tournament Final
Daniel Straus vs. Patricio Freire

Karl Amoussou vs. Sam Alvey
Luis Santos vs. Nicolae Cury
Joseph Abercrombie vs. Ben Parpart
Shawn Jordan vs. John Hill
Tim Ruberg vs. Mike Fleniken
Rene Nazare vs. Kalvin Hackney

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UFC: Diaz vs GSP in December?

It’s funny how business works. Dana White has been quoted on many things. For example, he has said that Nick Diaz will never be back in the UFC.It’s funny because, as years went by, Diaz improved and he was calling out top talent. Diaz defended his Str…

It’s funny how business works. Dana White has been quoted on many things. For example, he has said that Nick Diaz will never be back in the UFC.

It’s funny because, as years went by, Diaz improved and he was calling out top talent. Diaz defended his Strikeforce Welterweight title against a man who fought for a No. 1 contender championship in the UFC, Paul Daley.

Paul is a striker and one of the most powerful in the world at welterweight. In the fight, Paul catches Nick with two solid shots and drops Nick twice. As the round closes Nick catches him, Paul drops, Nick capitalizes and scores the TKO victory.

What does this all mean? Well, for one, Daley is a good striker and has never been out-struck in his career. He had never been KO/TKO’d due to strikes, and was a top-10 ranked fighter. After that fight, the Cesar Gracie camp had both defended their belts in dominating fashion and it showed that both Diaz and Gilbert Melendez needed a step up in competition.

At UFC 129, GSP fought Diaz’s teammate, Jake Shields. Shields had an impressive winning streak coming into the fight and hadn’t lost since 2006. He decided to stand, allowing GSP a unanimous decision victory. After this bout, a few big question marks arose: Who’s left for GSP? Should he move up to middleweight?

That’s when the talk of Diaz returning to the UFC started. Many thought it was just a rumor, then it was reported that Nick would box Jeff Lacy, an interesting move for Diaz, to say the least.

Nick later stated that he would not take the boxing match if he were granted a shot against GSP. Well, here we are today, May 19, and here is the latest report.

MMA writer Dave Simon is reporting that GSP is scheduled to return on Dec. 10 in Montreal at the Bell Centre. Most likely against Diaz. If this fight is signed, Diaz will not be fighting Jeff Lacy in a Pro Boxing match.

Last night on Facebook, Gracie stated that Diaz would be meeting with Dana White today.

There are many things that could come of this, but the matchup with GSP seems to be the most logical. When more information arrives, we will be sure to keep you updated.

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Chael Sonnen: Even with the Bad, We Can Remember the Good

In the past year, Chael Sonnen has become one of the most popular faces in Mixed Martial Arts.An accomplished wrestler, Sonnen found success during his career despite a weakness against submissions. Sonnen is perhaps best known for his ability to trash…

In the past year, Chael Sonnen has become one of the most popular faces in Mixed Martial Arts.

An accomplished wrestler, Sonnen found success during his career despite a weakness against submissions. Sonnen is perhaps best known for his ability to trash talk and hype up a fight, and became famous for his quotes in the months leading up to his fight against Anderson Silva.

Many people dislike Sonnen, and while everyone is entitled to their own opinion, they can’t deny his amazing talent.

In Sonnen’s bout with Silva, the biggest of his career to date, he took Silva to the limit. There were reports that Silva had a broken rib going into the fight, but afterward it was revealed that Sonnen broke Silva’s rib in the first round. Sonnen caught Anderson with some vicious shots, and landed takedowns in nearly every round. If Sonnen hadn’t been caught in a triangle in the fifth round, he would have likely won the fight via a 50-43 decision.

Sonnen didn’t get the job done, but he gave it his all. He may have lost the fight, but in the weeks that followed the loss turned out to be the least of his worries.

When it came out that Sonnen had failed his post-fight drug test, it was bad news for both Sonnen and the MMA community in general. It appeared that Sonnen and his doctor would clear his record in a meeting with the California State Athletic Commission, but the case seemed fishy. Sonnen’s suspension was lowered to six months, but suspicions on both sides remained after the trial was rescheduled several times.

Today, Sonnen met with the CSAC, who didn’t like what he had to say. His suspension was made indefinite, and according to Dana White, Sonnen is done in the UFC if the commission refuses to reinstate his license. Now that it appears Sonnen’s days in the UFC are done, let’s take a look back at some of the highlights.

Sonnen holds a career record of 25-11-1. While he never technically won a major championship in his career, Paulo Filho forfeited his belt to Sonnen in a rematch of a previous bout.

After starting his career 14-6-1, he was given a shot at Ronato Sobral at UFC 55, which was billed as a light heavyweight bout. In that bout, Sonnen dominated the first round standing up and landed multiple take downs, but in the second round was caught in a rear triangle choke.

After posting a 1-2 record in the UFC, Sonnen was cut from the promotion. After going on to win five matches in a row, he was rewarded with his title shot against Filho and went on to lose via submission.

After winning his next two fights, Sonnen headed back to the UFC where he lost to Damian Maia through with a triangle choke. Next, he defeated Dan Miller and Yushin Okami, which earned him a chance to face Nate Marquardt in a title eliminator bout. Marquardt wanted his rematch with Silva, but Sonnen wanted a shot as well.

The fight took place at UFC 109. Sonnen outclassed Marquardt in every aspect of the fight, leading to a literal beatdown. It was Sonnen’s best fight of his career, start to finish, and after getting the win and fight of the night honors, he appeared ready for his shot at taking down Silva.

Leading up to his title shot, Sonnen showed the personality and humor that made him one of the more popular UFC fighters of the past year. His fight against Marquardt earned him a great deal of respect in the MMA community, which he sadly went on to lose following his failed drug test.

Chael Sonnen made some mistakes, but so does everyone. Does he deserve special treatment? I won’t say he does, but in my personal opinion he’s paid his dues.

What does the future hold for Sonnen if UFC releases him? With his athletic ability and hilarious personality, I could see pro wrestling in his future. If he wants to stick with legitimate fighting, going to Japan or signing with M-1 global aren’t out of the question.

Sonnen has a few solid possibilites. He may indeed decide to retire and work as a trainer, but whatever Sonnen does, I’m sure he will do it well.

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Maximo Blanco Signs with Strikeforce: Will He Dethrone Gilbert Melendez?

It has now been announced that Strikeforce has signed former King of Pancrase Maximo Blanco to a multi-fight contract. With this taking effect, what is the promotional plan with him? There are many possibilities for him in the organization, but if not …

His record is 8-2-1 (1 NC). He has won his last six fights, most notably scoring a TKO victory over former Strikeforce title contender Rodrigo Damm. In April it was announced that he would vacate his King of Pancrase title because he was unable to defend it due to numerous injuries.

Now that it is official that Maximo will be fighting under the Zuffa banner, what will be the first move for the company? Gilbert Melendez is in need of an opponent, but recently stated that his next fight will most likely be outside of Strikeforce. Would the company want to set him up with a big test in the likes of Tatsuya Kawajiri or a Josh Thompson type of contender? Or would they want him to start low and work his way up? A person like Pat Healy or Lyle Beerbohm would be a good stepping stone to build his name up to American fans.

He is a highly looked upon fighter, but does he have the tools to defeat Gilbert Melendez, or any of the top-tier lightweights that Strikeforce has to offer? There is no doubt he could beat a lot of the top guys in the division, but adapting to the cage may be a tough obstacle for him. At the current moment in time, I’d say that Gilbert would most likely run through him in a cage and Maximo wouldn’t receive the credit that he deserves.

Truth be told, Maximo needs five solid wins under the Strikeforce banner, but with the lack of depth of the roster, three wins may earn him a shot at Gilbert Melendez.

This is the best prospect that Strikeforce has acquired since being bought by Zuffa; now is the time to capitalize on it. Maximo is a very explosive fighter, so expect great things out of this new talent.

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Combat Sports: Fan Interactive Piece for the Sports That We Love

Almost every MMA article that is published is about current events in the sport or about a fighter in general. In this article it is all about the people who make this sport possible, the fans.Everyone has their favorite fighters, but when do you truly…

Almost every MMA article that is published is about current events in the sport or about a fighter in general. In this article it is all about the people who make this sport possible, the fans.

Everyone has their favorite fighters, but when do you truly get to talk about it? Well now is the time.

Let’s talk about combat sports. Who is your favorite MMA Fighter? Kick Boxer? Boxer? Tell the world we all want to know. This article will explain who mine are and why. Everyone will have different opinions, and that is why this article is being made.

MMA

Wanderlei “The Axe Murderer” Silva is my favorite mixed martial artist. He gives it all he has in every fight and is all about the fans. The generation I grew up in was the mean Wanderlei that was alway ready to hurt someone.

Nowadays he is a changed man. He is still a vicious fighter, but is also more for the fans and is an all around good person. At UFC 132 he will fight Chris Leben in what could be the fight of the decade. So tell me, who is your favorite MMA fighter?

Kick Boxing

Badr “The Golden Boy” Hari is my favorite kick boxer. His style is just so pure. You never know what angle he will attack you from.

At 26 years old, he has more fights than most people who are 35-40. He truly has a who’s who list of victories under his belt in his young career. His most recent fight was against Gregory Tony at “It’s Showtime, Lyon” which took place just a couple of days ago. In that bout it was his first in almost a year and he came out and won. The funny part is that he literally did nothing to obtain the victory and this was arguably his easiest bout to date.

If you do not watch Kick Boxing I highly recommend that you check out Badr Hari. So, who is your favorite Kick Boxer?

Boxing

Juan Manuel Marquez has always been my favorite boxer to watch. He has fought Pacquiao twice, one time being a draw and the other a split decision. He is now slated to face Pacquiao in November. Many people like Pacquiao, which is understandable because I like him as well. Marquez to me has always been a fun guy to watch.

As of late his only losses have been to elite guys, which is why at 37 he is still one of the best pound for pound guys in the world.

Those are just my personal favorite combat sports fighters in the world. Please leave input. I want to know who are your favorites in each category. We all have different views, but we have love for the same sport, so let’s use this to show everyone who we represent.

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