Roy Nelson’s been toying with us all about his new, streamlined look, and last night he dangled that carrot in front of us just a bit longer. “Big Country” stepped onto the stage concealing his new figure like the boys at Mercedes test driving a prototype in public. Even with the excess padding (and to be fair, we are just assuming that wasn’t his real physique), Nelson weighed only 252 lbs.
Roy Nelson’s been toying with us all about his new, streamlined look, and last night he dangled that carrot in front of us just a bit longer. “Big Country” stepped onto the stage concealing his new figure like the boys at Mercedes test driving a prototype in public. Even with the excess padding (and to be fair, we are just assuming that wasn’t his real physique), Nelson weighed only 252 lbs.
Despite dispensing nutritional advice earlier in the week, Tyson Griffin showed up three pounds over the allowance yesterday afternoon. Unable to cut the extra weight, he’ll forfeit 25% of his purse and his bout with Bart Palaszewski will go down at a catch weight of 148 lbs. Check out Rogan’s reaction when he’s on the scale, and we’ll let the looks of disappointment and anger from everyone else tell the rest of the tale.
Nick Diaz has spoken at length about BJ Penn being a friend, going so far as to say that tonight’s bout isn’t “a normal fight for me, it’s more of a sporting competition this time around. I hope nobody’s too disappointed if it doesn’t go the same as it always does.” Well, you can take the fighter out of Stockton (barely), but you can’t take the Stockton out of the fighter. As soon as the two main-eventers came head to head, this fight became as personal as any for the former Strikeforce champion. Hold up– is that Diaz taking a swing at Penn as the two are separated?!? Sometimes these things happen at weigh-ins.
“Ken-Flo wants a cheeseburger, and Ken-Flo wants it NOW!!!”
Following his decision loss to Featherweight Champion José Aldo at UFC 136, there were plenty of questions asked about Kenny Florian’s next move. Having just fallen short in his third shot at UFC gold, the thirty-five year old fighter said that he needed time to evaluate his options, leading some to speculate that retirement was on the horizon.
But in an interview with the Boston Herald yesterday, Florian announced his decision to stay in the game and cited a tough weight cut for his bout with Aldo as the motivating factor in his return to the lightweight division.
“I felt [the weight cut] warming up, unfortunately. I don’t want there to be an excuse because there’s still things I should have executed that I didn’t, but I feel that it’s tough to go in there at a weight class that you’re not sure if you’re going to be 100 percent.”
“Ken-Flo wants a cheeseburger, and Ken-Flo wants it NOW!!!”
Following his decision loss to Featherweight Champion José Aldo at UFC 136, there were plenty of questions asked about Kenny Florian’s next move. Having just fallen short in his third shot at UFC gold, the thirty-five year old fighter said that he needed time to evaluate his options, leading some to speculate that retirement was on the horizon.
But in an interview with the Boston Herald yesterday, Florian announced his decision to stay in the game and cited a tough weight cut for his bout with Aldo as the motivating factor in his return to the lightweight division.
“I felt [the weight cut] warming up, unfortunately. I don’t want there to be an excuse because there’s still things I should have executed that I didn’t, but I feel that it’s tough to go in there at a weight class that you’re not sure if you’re going to be 100 percent.”
Kenny’s drive to hold a title has seen him drop through a record four weight classes in the UFC. With a cut to bantamweight being physically impossible, Florian is coming to terms with not achieving his dream and focusing instead on his growth as a fighter.
“I didn’t get in this to be second-best, of course. But at the same time, not everybody can be a champion. I’m just going to go back to 155, work my way up, take it one fight at a time and see where it puts me.”
“I think there’s exciting fights out there for me, there’s still challenges out there for me, there’s still things I’d like to try to improve on and that’s the main thing. I don’t necessarily have the title in my eyes, but I do have my own personal goals as far as the technical level that I want to get to.”
While he may never achieve that number-one ranking, Florian belongs in the upper tiers of whatever division he chooses to call home, and a talent-rich division like lightweight can always use the help of someone to thin the herd at the top of the heap.
If our past pleas to him are any indication, God pretty much lets this MMA stuff sort itself out without much interference. That’s not to say that The Fates don’t follow the sport, and they had front row seats for the prelims at last night’s Bellator 55 event.
If there’s ever a good time to showboat, it’s when you’re pretty much dominating your opponent. From that standpoint, Edgar Garcia‘s timing was impeccable. With the sounds of the opening bell still reverberating through the air, Jacob Ortiz was crouched low and looking for the takedown, but with his first few attempts stuffed before they even really got started, he had little option but to duke it out with the former UFC competitor and look for an opening. And so Ortiz circled away throughout the first round with awkward footwork and hands down around his waist, getting tagged in the exchanges and eating a score of brutal leg kicks. When he did finally get to uncork a big right to Garcia’s jaw, his opponent seemed unfazed, tapping his own chin and inviting more blows. As Garcia would soon learn, Karma doesn’t care for such bravado.
If our past pleas to him are any indication, God pretty much lets this MMA stuff sort itself out without much interference. That’s not to say that The Fates don’t follow the sport, and they had front row seats for the prelims at last night’s Bellator 55 event.
If there’s ever a good time to showboat, it’s when you’re pretty much dominating your opponent. From that standpoint, Edgar Garcia‘s timing was impeccable. With the sounds of the opening bell still reverberating through the air, Jacob Ortiz was crouched low and looking for the takedown, but with his first few attempts stuffed before they even really got started, he had little option but to duke it out with the former UFC competitor and look for an opening. And so Ortiz circled away throughout the first round with awkward footwork and hands down around his waist, getting tagged in the exchanges and eating a score of brutal leg kicks. When he did finally get to uncork a big right to Garcia’s jaw, his opponent seemed unfazed, tapping his own chin and inviting more blows. As Garcia would soon learn, Karma doesn’t care for such bravado.
After absorbing a few more solid leg kicks, Ortiz lunged in with a massive overhand right, connecting squarely on Garcia’s jaw. Whatever power may have been lacking in his earlier punch was clearly being saved for this one, as Garcia dropped face first to the canvas. Ortiz managed to rattle off a couple of follow-up shots for good measure before being dispatched by the referee. Not that further proof was needed, but this solidifies the theory that taunting your opponent before knocking him out is awesome for you, while taunting your opponent before getting knocked out is awesome for us.
Host Jon Anik asks if Carlos Condit, having taken the title fight on short notice, has actually caught a break with GSP’s injury in that he’ll now have more time to prepare for his opponent and a five round affair (video) :
“I don’t think so, and I don’t think this fight’s going to come back for quite some time. Listen, if you’re the champion, you remain champion until you lose the title. If you’re the number one contender, you absolutely are not ingrained in any type of stone. As a matter of fact, not only do I believe he has lost this opportunity, I believe the winner of Diaz-BJ Penn will get the next opportunity against GSP.”
“Look into my eyes, Keith Kizer…look deep into my eyes. You are getting very sleepy…you hate drug tests...” (Photo: ESPN)
Host Jon Anik asks if Carlos Condit, having taken the title fight on short notice, has actually caught a break with GSP’s injury in that he’ll now have more time to prepare for his opponent and a five round affair (video) :
“I don’t think so, and I don’t think this fight’s going to come back for quite some time. Listen, if you’re the champion, you remain champion until you lose the title. If you’re the number one contender, you absolutely are not ingrained in any type of stone. As a matter of fact, not only do I believe he has lost this opportunity, I believe the winner of Diaz-BJ Penn will get the next opportunity against GSP.”
Chael brings up an interesting point. Dana has already stated that Diaz is on deck if he gets past Penn, and he was obviously the first choice to begin with. Is there any chance that Condit gets Rashad’d if the pride of Stockton puts on an impressive performance next week?
“Let’s not miss what’s really happening here. If you’re a Diaz fan, you got to swallow real hard when he tries to change the parameters that have already been agreed to. What he really just did was he came out and said, ‘Look, I can’t get the job done in fifteen minutes. Let’s change the agreement’. BJ comes back and simply says, ‘Hey, I got no problem with it. I can put you away in fifteen minutes.’ The third side of this is as a fan. Listen, guys, I want to see you compete but you’re getting fifteen minutes of my life and that’s it. After three rounds, fade to black, roll the credits, I got other things to do…You don’t change a deal once a deal’s in place.”
Sage words from the “American Gangster”. When a man challenges someone and lays out the stakes, he lives or dies by his words.
“I’m on the other side of the fence with Overeem. Look, the guy’s built for show, not for go, ok? He’s made for a poster. He looks like he’s made out of clay, I understand all of that stuff. He’s not a very good fighter. And as far as the K-1 being this great striking event, the K-1 is a striking only event. If you’re in the K-1 you’re allowed only to strike, but I’ve never seen a great striker there. I can discredit the K-1 with two syllables: Bob Sapp.”
“Built for show”? If there’s one person I’d expect to appreciate the fine art of body building it would be the owner of the “largest arm in West Linn, Oregon”.
Sonnen’s thoughts about Ed Soares’ recent statements that, although Chael doesn’t deserve a rematch, a bout with Michael Bisping “could be a good opportunity” for Silva. (video)
“Apparently the ‘Ed Soares Excuse Factory’ is open for business. There’s a couple of things going on here. First off, a champion doesn’t call somebody out. If you’re the champion you get called out. So I think it’s a little odd and unprecedented that Anderson is now trying to pick a fight. Secondly, he’s doing the same thing I am. He’s calling Bisping out because he’s an easy fight. Well, I want an easy fight too and that’s why I’m calling him out. So I get it.”
If Chael wants a rematch so badly, he’s going to have to drop the subtlety and just flat out ask for it.
To close the show, Chael gets in the Halloween spirit and takes one last shot at his nemesis. (video) :
“Let me ask a question, instead of fact or fiction, let me make it A or B. A) Will Anderson Silva go as a duck for Halloween this year or B) will he dress as a chicken? I’m going to go B. I think he goes as chicken because he already has the costume.”
“The People’s Champion” has given us a lot to chew on. What are the most credible, and least credible, of his assertions?
“It’s the weirdest thing, Doc. It feels just fine when I stand like this.” (Photo: Francis Specker)
In a post to his blog titled “Unfinished Business”, top UFC heavyweight Shane Carwin revealed yesterday that for the second time in a year he will be going under the knife.
“I have spent my entire fighting career dealing with injuries from my football career. I have done my best to get through my training and I have been blessed to get through my fights with relatively little to no damage.
As I ramped up my training for UFC 141 my body locked up during training. It wasn’t like the Lesnar fight but my back just tightened up and I froze. I scheduled an MRI and the results showed that my disc in my lower back is into the nerves . My doctor gave me two options; retire and I could probably go on for a few years without surgery or I could undergo surgery and continue my career.
The decision was easy. I have unfinished business. The UFC had me lined up to face one of the best in the world and I am confident I have everything I need to be a Champion. I am scheduling surgery and I hope to return to the Octagon by spring or summer 2012.”
“It’s the weirdest thing, Doc. It feels just fine when I stand like this.” (Photo: Francis Specker)
In a post to his blog titled “Unfinished Business”, top UFC heavyweight Shane Carwin revealed yesterday that for the second time in a year he will be going under the knife.
“I have spent my entire fighting career dealing with injuries from my football career. I have done my best to get through my training and I have been blessed to get through my fights with relatively little to no damage.
As I ramped up my training for UFC 141 my body locked up during training. It wasn’t like the Lesnar fight but my back just tightened up and I froze. I scheduled an MRI and the results showed that my disc in my lower back is into the nerves . My doctor gave me two options; retire and I could probably go on for a few years without surgery or I could undergo surgery and continue my career.
The decision was easy. I have unfinished business. The UFC had me lined up to face one of the best in the world and I am confident I have everything I need to be a Champion. I am scheduling surgery and I hope to return to the Octagon by spring or summer 2012.”
Time will tell how how Carwin will bounce back from this operation. Multiple spine surgeries in a short time span don’t sound promising for a fighter’s career, particularly for a fighter getting up there in years.
In a move straight out of the 1993 Vale Tudo circuit in Rio, Maxim Grishin, one of the two men vying for M-1’s coveted Heavyweight Interim Champion title on Friday night, was caught getting the ol’ Bengay rub down prior to his bout with Kenny Garner. If you’re not aware, that’s a no-no.
More details after the jump…
At least he won’t be a sore loser. (Photo: M-1Global.com)
In a move straight out of the 1993 Vale Tudo circuit in Rio, Maxim Grishin, one of the two men vying for M-1′s coveted Heavyweight Interim Champion title on Friday night, was caught getting the ol’ Bengay rub down prior to his bout with Kenny Garner. If you’re not aware, that’s a no-no.
According to Garner’s striking coach, Paulie “Gloves” Gavoni, the team immediately sensed something amiss as they were warming up in the locker room.
“One of our guys walked by and smelled the aroma of Bengay in the back,” Gavoni explained to MMA Nation. “So we had the commissioner check and they had to wipe the Bengay off (Grishin) before he walked in there.”
“They were rubbing it on his legs,” said the corner-man who spotted the infraction. “As soon as they noticed I was there, he took off back into the dressing room.”
As we mentioned yesterday, if Grishin’s legs were sore it wasn’t from an excessive cardio routine, as the fighter eventually halfheartedly tapped to punches and fatigue after a plodding affair that saw both men exhausted early on. Had the violation not been noticed, things could have gotten very interesting during the fight; moments before he tapped out, Grishin’s armbar and triangle choke attempts put his legs on and around Garner’s eyes.
