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UFC Fight Night 83 Loses Another Planned Bout

As it currently stands, the UFC Fight Night 83 card sits without three complete bouts.

According to a report by MMAjunkie.com on Monday, Trevor Smith has been forced out of a planned fight with Leonardo Augusto Guimaraes for the event.

The card …

As it currently stands, the UFC Fight Night 83 card sits without three complete bouts.

According to a report by MMAjunkie.com on Monday, Trevor Smith has been forced out of a planned fight with Leonardo Augusto Guimaraes for the event.

The card takes place this Sunday from Pittsburgh’s Consol Energy Center. The headline fight is scheduled to pit Donald Cerrone against Alex Oliveira live on FOX Sports 1.

Smith (13-6) was looking to move above the .500 mark inside the Octagon after splitting his six bouts. Guimaraes (11-1) has yet to make his UFC debut, but has won his last seven overall.

The card was originally set to feature Cerrone vs. Tim Means, but Means was removed after issues with a drug test. Cody Garbrandt lost his planned opponent, John Lineker, earlier on Monday, while Lauren Murphy remains in the lineup despite Sarah Moraes bowing out recently.

Fights that are still on to this point include Derek Brunson-Roan Carneiro, Dennis Bermudez-Tatsuya Kawajiri, Chris Camozzi-Joe Riggs and James Krause-Shane Campbell.

Why Cole Miller Got the Much-Desired Shot at Conor McGregor

UFC featherweight Conor McGregor called out just about everyone the division has to offer, from champion Jose Aldo to top contender Chad Mendes. He even made it known that lightweights were in his sights such as Diego Sanchez.
But McGregor won’t be mak…

But McGregor won’t be making his return later this year from a knee injury against Aldo, Mendes or Sanchez. No, he’ll face Cole Miller at UFC Fight Night 46 from Dublin.

Why Miller? Good question.

Miller (21-8) is coming off back-to-back victories inside the Octagon over Sam Sicilia and Andy Ogle, two unranked fighters. The 30-year-old, though, has a resume that features names like Manny Gamburyan, Ross Pearson, Dan Lauzon, Jeremy Stephens and Leonard Garcia.

He’s fought in the UFC since appearing on The Ultimate Fighter in 2007, going an overall 10-6. Is he the toughest test to date for McGregor? Likely.

Will McGregor improve his stock in the division? That’s the real question.

McGregor (14-2) has looked strong in his two initial UFC fights, finishing Marcus Brimage last year and scoring a decision over Max Holloway. But he’s returning from knee surgery, and you can bet the UFC wants to build him up.

Miller allows the promotion to do that because of his experience and resume, and he’s also provided that extra spark by taking to social media and egging McGregor, who is always at the ready for verbal battles, as the two displayed during a previous episode of The MMA Hour.

If McGregor looks as good as he has against Brimage and Holloway, he should be able to do what Gamburyan, Steven Siler and Matt Wiman have in the past and handle the tough Miller. A finish would go a long way in shooting his stock up the rankings, as Miller hasn’t been knocked out since a 2009 loss to Efrain Escudero.

And if Miller should pull the upset and stun McGregor in front of his fans overseas, the UFC can push him into the role of possible contender.

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Bellator 120 Hit with Crippling Blow as Eddie Alvarez Injured, out of Main Event

According to reports from both Sherdog and MMA Fighting, Bellator lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez will not make his planned third meeting with Michael Chandler next Saturday night at Bellator 120.
Alvarez, who won the belt from Chandler last year in…

According to reports from both Sherdog and MMA Fighting, Bellator lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez will not make his planned third meeting with Michael Chandler next Saturday night at Bellator 120.

Alvarez, who won the belt from Chandler last year in a rematch between the two, suffered a concussion in training. The reports state that Season 9 tournament winner Will Brooks will move from a main card bout with Nate Jolly to face Chandler.

Bellator was hit with the same devastating news in 2013 when it attempted to host a pay-per-view event for the first time. Just days before the card was to go down, Tito Ortiz suffered a neck injury and could not make his planned main event fight with fellow former UFC light heavyweight champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson.

Now, it is Alvarez (25-3) who will be out of action for an unknown amount of time at the moment. The two-time Bellator champion was involved in a lengthy legal battle with the promotion after first losing the title to Chandler in 2011. He was offered a deal by the UFC, but Bellator fought to match it in the court room, and Alvarez eventually agreed to the contract.

He returned last year and earned a split decision over Chandler to become the champion. All of Bellator‘s promotional work for this pay-per-view event has centered around Alvarez-Chandler fighting for a third time, including many preview shows on Spike TV.

The card is expected to feature Jackson taking on Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal in the Season 10 light heavyweight tournament final along with Ortiz making his debut with Bellator against middleweight champion Alexander Shlemenko in a non-title fight.

Bellator officials, including chairman and CEO Bjorn Rebney, have yet to make a statement regarding the Alvarez injury. When asked during the Bellator 119 post-fight press conference, Rebney stated the fight was still on, per MMA Junkie.

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Mark Munoz vs. Gegard Mousasi Is a Fight Worth Getting Excited for

One is a former Strikeforce and DREAM champion, and the other won gold while competing on the NCAA wrestling mat. When Gegard Mousasi and Mark Munoz meet up in Germany at UFC Fight Night 41 later this month, it will be a clash of two unique styles.
Mou…

Mousasi and his trademark ability to lull opponents to sleep before putting them to bed will be tested from the opening bell because Munoz likes to do the complete opposite.

Known as “The Filipino Wrecking Machine,” Munoz has transitioned his MMA game from that of a wrestler into a knockout artist. Of his 13 career wins, six have come via knockout, including stoppage wins over the likes of Chris Leben, CB Dollaway and Kendall Grove.

Can he take Mousasi, a black belt in judo, down to the canvas and impose his will? Or will “The Dreamcatcher” strike first and add to his 29 career knockout and submission wins?

As they like to say, that is why you play the game. Or in this case, fight the fight.

Fans will be treated to an interesting contest over the scheduled five rounds in Germany, and bringing in to play the expected rowdy international crowd, they will be thirsting for blood early and often.

Mousasi (34-4-2) was dealt a tough decision defeat to Lyoto Machida earlier this year, seeing his seven-fight unbeaten streak come to an end. Prior to the loss, he had finished four of those seven foes, including three by submission.

If you take a quick look at Mousasi‘s resume of opponents, you will find the likes of Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou, Renato Sobral, Mark Hunt, Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza, Melvin Manhoef and Hector Lombard listed. That alone shows you this is a man who will fight anyone, anywhere at anytime. Hunt has worked his way into a contender role in the UFC’s heavyweight division, while Souza has done the same in the middleweight division and is a former Strikeforce champion.

Sobral, Sokoudjou and Manhoef have incredible followings because of their fighting careers, while Lombard is a welterweight contender and former Bellator champion.

When it comes to the short list of fighters who have spanned the globe and met up with all types of opponents, Mousasi is on it.

Ironically enough, Munoz is also coming off a loss to Machida, as he agreed to face the former UFC champion when he replaced Michael Bisping last October. Of his last seven fights, two have been losses by knockout, as current UFC champion Chris Weidman stopped him in 2012.

Along with the losses, Munoz has been dealing with a series of injuries that kept him sidelined for almost a year. But last July, he flashed that old ground-and-pound attack when he defeated Tim Boetsch. The former Oklahoma State University wrestler will need to be in tip-top shape when he squares off with Mousasi.

Since signing with the UFC in 2009, Munoz has gone to the scorecards five times, posting a 4-1 mark in those fights. But he has never been involved in a five-round battle, something Mousasi has done twice in his career.

The odds of this one making it 25 minutes appear low at this point, but stranger things have happened. Regardless, we will be seeing two highly trained middleweights who want to get back into the win column in Berlin.

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Bellator Champion Douglas Lima: Is He the Most Underrated Welterweight in MMA?

Douglas Lima has perfected the art of finishing fights, his latest such victory earning him the Bellator welterweight championship and a spot on the short list of top 170-pound fighters in the world.
In each of his last five fights, Lima has scor…

Douglas Lima has perfected the art of finishing fights, his latest such victory earning him the Bellator welterweight championship and a spot on the short list of top 170-pound fighters in the world.

In each of his last five fights, Lima has scored wins inside the distance, including an April TKO over Rick Hawn that secured his first title in Bellator. Lima bruised and battered Hawn so badly over eight minutes of action that the corner threw in the towel to save him from any further punishment.

When you think about the welterweight division, names like Johny Hendricks, Rory MacDonald, Tyron Woodley, Carlos Condit and of course Georges St-Pierre come to mind.

Lima believes he is in that same group, as he said in an interview with Fightline: “I put myself up there. I’m definitely not the best, but I’m training hard to be. I just want to fight the best and move up in the ranks. I watch all the 170 pounders. I’ll fight any of them.”

Bellator lost unbeaten fighter and former U.S. Olympic wrestler Ben Askren to ONE FC last year, as Askren left without surrendering the belt. He was the last man to defeat Lima, earning a decision over him in 2012.

Since that defeat, Lima has turned himself into a monster, training with the crew at American Top Team in Atlanta that includes Dhiego Lima, his brother and a current member of The Ultimate Fighter 19 cast. He came back almost seven months after the defeat to Askren and finished Jacob Ortiz in the third round after delivering a head kick.

In 2013, the 26-year-old started off his run in the Bellator season eight tournament by defeating Michail Tsarev with leg kicks in the second round. Less than a month later, he knocked out Bryan Baker with a first-round knockout that was only topped later that year when he dropped Ben Saunders with a head kick that landed him on the highlight reels.

His ability to stop an opponent by taking out his most vital ligaments, his legs, is on par with what we’ve seen from other Brazilians like UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo and UFC bantamweight champion Renan Barao. It’s proven to be an effective weapon once fighters step inside the cage.

Other than the loss to Askren, the only things that have troubled Lima have been issues with breaking his hand and making the cut to 170 pounds. He admits that he’s eventually going to outgrow the division and will need to make the move to the middleweight ranks, but he has his focus set on becoming a legend at welterweight first.

Before settling in at his current weight class, Lima won the 2010 REDLINE Middleweight Grand Prix by besting the likes of UFC fighter Clint Hester and Cortez Coleman while stringing together a nine-fight win streak that also included a victory over former World Series of Fighting welterweight champion Steve Carl.

He has discussed a potential match with Bellator middleweight champion Alexander Shlemenko, telling FightLine that “I would love this match up. Shlemenko is very tough and durable, and he’s been on top forever, finishing everybody. I respect him a lot and I do see myself again him down the road.”

Lima is right there with him in terms of stopping foes, and Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney has taken note of what he can do and where he might be headed.

Rebney told Sherdog’s “Beatdown” radio show, “The future is incredibly bright for this guy. He’s got a huge future ahead of him here. I think that future probably, at some point, sees him move up to 185, but for the time being, he’s a devastating 170-pound champ.”

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Chad Mendes Is the Correct Fighter to Challenge Jose Aldo at UFC 176

When it comes down to it, Chad Mendes was the right choice as the next challenger to Jose Aldo’s UFC featherweight championship. Mendes will get his rematch with Aldo this summer at UFC 176, as Lance Pugmire of the Los Angeles Times reported Sunday.
A …

When it comes down to it, Chad Mendes was the right choice as the next challenger to Jose Aldo‘s UFC featherweight championship. Mendes will get his rematch with Aldo this summer at UFC 176, as Lance Pugmire of the Los Angeles Times reported Sunday.

A quick look at the official UFC rankings leaves a somewhat sour taste in the mouth.

Frankie Edgar is sitting there, and as a former UFC champion, he has the resume to back his credibility. But he’s locked in to face BJ Penn while the current season of The Ultimate Fighter airs.

Ricardo Lamas is next, but he was given his shot earlier this year and came up empty. Cub Swanson could solidify his status with a win over Jeremy Stephens in a few months.

Dustin Poirier has a bout scheduled, Chan Sung Jung is injured, and Dennis Siver is suspended. Clay Guida, Nik Lentz and Stephens round out the rest of the rankings, but none of them are ready to face Scarface, either.

That leaves Mendes as the one to seek redemption.

Let’s take a quick trip back in time to 2012. Coming off back-to-back decision victories in his first two UFC fights, Money was poised to remain unbeaten and take the strap from Aldo. He even ventured to Brazil, the native home of the champion, to challenge him.

Moments into the fight, Mendes seemed cool, calm and confident. The Team Alpha Male fighter and former NCAA wrestler shot in and had a good takedown attempt on Aldo. However, a quick grab of the cage kept Aldo from hitting the canvas.

In just a matter of seconds, Aldo landed a knee that floored Mendes, knocking him out with one second remaining in the first round and subsequently setting off a wild celebration.

Mendes didn’t sulk in his home or gym, taking a fight a few months later against Cody McKenzie. Thirty-one seconds after the bell sounded, Mendes had finished McKenzie with a body shot. He did the same to Yaotzin Meza in under two minutes to close out the year and added a third straight first-round victory when he stopped Darren Elkins to start 2013.

Last August, Mendes became the first fighter to score a knockout win over Guida when he finished the veteran in the third with a series of strikes. A decision win over Lentz to complete the year set him up for Aldo.

Having just turned 29 years old, Mendes remains in the prime of his career. He’s getting better, improving his striking, wrestling and fundamentals each day. While Aldo is also doing the same, with his skills and talent, Mendes is the right man to challenge him for the gold belt right now.

He still has several more months and a full training camp to go through, and by the time we reach August and the Staples Center in Los Angeles, we could be looking at the new UFC champion and man to end Team Alpha Male’s long drought in title matches.

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