(“If anyone from the bank shows up looking for a guy named Edward Targaryen, you never heard of him, okay?” via Getty.)
It has been a whirlwind handful of months for the Ronda Rousey camp, to put it lightly. Her loss to Holly Holm aside, it would appear as if Rousey’s support system is crumbling to the ground around her, or at the very least, setting all the charges for an eventual explosion.
(“If anyone from the bank shows up looking for a guy named Edward Targaryen, you never heard of him, okay?” via Getty.)
It has been a whirlwind handful of months for the Ronda Rousey camp, to put it lightly. Her loss to Holly Holm aside, it would appear as if Rousey’s support system is crumbling to the ground around her, or at the very least, setting all the charges for an eventual explosion.
Late last month, it was *then* revealed that Tarverdyan had failed to disclose his criminal past while applying for his cornerman’s license (or “Second’s license, as it’s called). MMAFighting explains:
Tarverdyan, 34, was arrested in December 2010 on two counts of felony identity theft and one count of misdemeanor resisting arrest, according to public records. The identity theft counts were bumped down to misdemeanors and Tarverdyan ended up pleading no contest to the three charges.
In 2011, the coach was sentenced to one day in jail (with a credit of one day), three years of probation and 30 days of community service, according to court documents. He was also fined $610.
So basically, everything we’ve come to know about Edmond Tarverdyan is a lie, right down to his age (if the information dug up by these redditors has any truth to it).
As a result of his most recent lie, Tarverdyan was stripped of his Second’s license indefinitely by CSAC, bringing into question his status as Rousey’s corner should her rematch with Holm be held in California (not that it would).
But even the darkest clouds have a silver lining, and yesterday, the CSAC handed down an official ruling on Tarverdyan following a complete investigation. The result: A surprisingly lenient suspension and fine (the latter of which we imagine Tarverdyan might have a tough time paying). As ESPN’s Brett Okamoto tweeted:
CSAC has re-instated Edmond Tarverdyan's corner license but suspended state for 3 months. $5k fine. Violation was false info on application.
His first order of business as Rousey’s newly-suspended coach? We couldn’t tell you exactly, but we do know that it won’t be showing Rousey tape of her UFC 193 performance. As he told Fox Sports:
“I know how to speak to Ronda. I know Ronda very well. She doesn’t need to watch that fight. The fight is over. It’s about what we’re doing now. It’s my job to watch the footage and I’m dedicating everything I have to Ronda’s rematch with Holly.”
Boy, can Mama Rousey ever spot a fraud when she sees one.
A few years ago, when it was time for free agency in the NBA, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh all decided to each take a little less money and play together for the Miami Heat. How did that turn out? Oh, not too bad. While they failed to live up to the expectations placed upon them, they still managed to win back-to-back championships and made the NBA Finals four years in a row.
What does this have to do with mixed martial arts?
Much like James, Wade and Bosh are considered three of the very best players in the NBA, there are currently three MMA fighters on the free agent market that have the opportunity to introduce a sea change to the sport.
A few years ago, when it was time for free agency in the NBA, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh all decided to each take a little less money and play together for the Miami Heat. How did that turn out? Oh, not too bad. While they failed to live up to the expectations placed upon them, they still managed to win back-to-back championships and made the NBA Finals four years in a row.
What does this have to do with mixed martial arts?
Much like James, Wade and Bosh are considered three of the very best players in the NBA, there are currently three MMA fighters on the free agent market that have the opportunity to introduce a sea change to the sport.
Before his victory over Junior Dos Santos in Dec. 15, Overeem stated his intent to test the free agent market when his UFC contract was up. Henderson announced just this morning that he had signed with a multi-fight deal with Bellator, while Sterling, who is represented by the same firm as Henderson, continues to mull over his options as a free agent.
The signing of Henderson to Bellator is a landmark deal for the sport, less so for the figures the former lightweight champion will making under the new promotion, but rather for what it represents in regards to the UFC’s lock on the sport’s top talent. Ever since the Fertitta brothers and The Baldfather took over the joint, the UFC has prided itself on housing “the world’s best fighters” while quickly eliminating any other promotion claiming the do the same. Following the dissolvement of Strikeforce back in 2013, the UFC’s status as the biggest game in town seemed more secure than ever, more or less forcing prospects and veteran fighters alike to sign with the promotion or start picking out their spot in the soup line.
But just as pride is the downfall of man, the UFC might have overplayed its hand (or underestimated Scott Coker) when it decided to get into business with Reebok.
From the moment the now landmark deal was signed, speculation began to arise from the UFC’s formerly contented roster. How would this affect my sponsors? Will I be making less money per fight? What the f*ck is a Fight Kit and do I have to wear it? And when the figures were released, allhellbrokeloose.
As it turns out, the only thing that motivates fighters more than championship gold is cold hard cash, so when it was revealed that they would be losing boatloads of it — all in the name of “legitimizing the sport,” mind you — well, it didn’t exactly sit well with them. Champions with exclusive sponsorship deals suddenly found themselves left out in the cold. Prominent figures in the sport suddenly found themselves making pennies to headline pay-per-views and FOX cards. Hell, even tentatively-connected MMA celebrities were taking to social media to trash Reebok, and not simply because the uniforms themselves are pieces of sh*t.
How did they do this? By not being the UFC, more or less.
The UFC might be the biggest game in town, but it’s not the ONLY game in town, and while you can debate the merits of the product that Bellator puts out vs. that of the UFC, it’s not an issue that fighters really seem to care about when money is on the line. Does Bellator continue to book ridiculous main events like Ken Shamrock vs. Kimbo Slice? They sure do, yet more and more of the world’s best fighters are preferring to call Bellator home for one simple reason: freedom.
And this is only the start. In an interview on yesterday’s MMA Hour, Coker unveiled his plans to start buying free agents “from the top down” in an effort to continue building Bellator’s brand.
“I think this is just the tip of the iceberg,” said Coker. “Fighters are fighting out their contracts. They want to negotiate. They really want to see what their value is. We’re going to help them to define what their value is. It’s always good for the industry to have more than one bidder.”
With the UFC moving closer and closer to a totalitarian state by a day, guys like Henderson, Sterling and Overeem have a real opportunity here. They have the right to make whatever choice they feel is best for their careers, and for once, that might not necessarily mean the UFC. Can you imagine if all three decided to pull a “Big Three” like James, Wade and Bosh in the NBA and sign with Bellator? The organization’s profile instantly rises 10-fold and at least enters the same neighborhood as the UFC, while the latter’s lock on “the best fighters in the world” continues to slip as a result of their own stubborn frivolousness.
Imagine Henderson facing the likes of Michael Chandler, Will Brooks or Michael “Venom” Page in Bellator. Imagine Sterling squaring off with Marcos Galvao, or WSOF bantamweight champion Marlon Moraes, for that matter. Talk about fireworks. With Bellator and WSOF’s heavyweight divisions in the state they are, Overeem would have a golden opportunity to have a division, or even an organization, revolve around him in a way in never truly has in the UFC.
While it’s likely that Sterling and Overeem will re-sign with the UFC, it is interesting to play fantasy booking and imagine the possibilities if they decide to “take their talents” elsewhere, to quote King James. I mean, I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’m absolutely dying to see Scott Coker announce the next Bellator “tent pole” card will feature Overeem facing Kimbo Slice in the main event. Imagine the ratings!
You might not know this, Potato Nation, but there’s a 19-year old kid who’s been making quite a splash in the UFC over the past few months. He goes by the name of Sage Northcutt, and while we may not have been paying him quite as much lip service around these parts as everywhere else, it’s safe to say that he has all the star-making potential that the UFC could use more of in these post-Rousey times.
Of course, with Northcutt’s incredible rise to popularity has come the inevitable, almost inexplicably-cruel backlash, and boy did Northcutt ever receive that following his hype train-derailing loss to short-notice opponent Bryan Barberena at UFC on FOX 18 last weekend.
You might not know this, Potato Nation, but there’s a 19-year old kid who’s been making quite a splash in the UFC over the past few months. He goes by the name of Sage Northcutt, and while we may not have been paying him quite as much lip service around these parts as everywhere else, it’s safe to say that he has all the star-making potential that the UFC could use more of in these post-Rousey times.
Of course, with Northcutt’s incredible rise to popularity has come the inevitable, almost inexplicably-cruel backlash, and boy did Northcutt ever receive that following his hype train-derailing loss to short-notice opponent Bryan Barberena at UFC on FOX 18 last weekend.
From what we’ve been able to glean, Northcutt’s crimes seem to be that he is 1) Impossibly wholesome/athletic/good-looking and 2) Gets paid “too much.” Now to us, those issues (especially the second) seem to reflect more on both the lack of charisma that most fighters possess and the pathetic state of fighter pay more than anything else, but every cause needs a scapegoat, and Northcutt — being the Ken Doll-looking, hand-picked prodigy that he is — was quickly assigned that status after being plucked from obscurity on Dana White’s Youtube series, Looking for a Fight.
Two quick victories and a couple massive paydays later (relatively speaking), the MMA community had already begun to vocalize its discontention for Northcutt, what with his penchant for awesome flips and “respect” for “people.” Like Tim Tebow before him, it seemed that many of our gripes with “Super” reflected more upon us than the man (kid) being put on trial, which rather than forcing us to look inward and examine ourselves, only fueled our need to see him fail all the more.
So from the moment Northcutt’s tap to Bryan Barberena’s arm-triangle was labeled “quick” by color commentator Joe Rogan — a declaration that seemed accurate, we might add — you just knew that the response from his doubters would be especially vicious. As it just so happens, many of Northcutt’s doubters were not online trolls as you might expect, but actual UFC-employed fighters.
“Woo!!! Tapped like a little Bitch & Tried to tel the Ref Different!! @sagenorthcutt VonFlu/Got You,” wrote top lightweight contender Tony Ferguson, a class act if there ever was one.
“I want 40k for a scaredy tap #northcut,” noted Angela Magana, proud owner of zero UFC wins and an Instagram account.
“Omg what a pussy!!! Dude gave up. No heart. Ufc give me his 40/40 next time cause no f—ing way I would get finished with that s—! Lol,” wrote James Vick, who I would make a joke about if he was a memorable enough personality to warrant one.
Again, you’ll notice that many of the fighters main complaints seem to be leveled at Northcutt, when it’s the UFC management that should be their intended target. It’s the kind of short-sightedness that perhaps helps one understand why no fighter union has been formed despite ever-restrictive UFC policies, but I’m getting away from the topic at hand here. Sage Northcutt lost, and because he dared to participate in the UFC’s hype machine, we took great pleasure in seeing him cut down to size. This year’s harvest will be plentiful and great, ye.
Elsewhere on UFC on FOX 18, Ryan Bader suffered a lightning fast KO loss to Anthony Johnson after attempting quite possibly the least set-up takedown attempt in the history of the sport. As was the case in his losses to Tito Ortiz and Lyoto Machida before — the former of which his career may never recover from — Bader proved that despite his many improvements, he is simply one mental mistake away from being completely outclassed by the division’s elite. And Tito Ortiz.
Also, “Rumble” Johnson hits hard — like really, really hard — and you probably wouldn’t want to get punched by him.
In other surprising developments from the card, Ben Rothwell continued his improbable career comeback by becoming the first man to submit Josh Barnett (with an actual submission). The incredible finish came via midway through the second round of their co-main event scrap, via the same Gogo choke that he used to submit Matt Mitrione in his last contest. Given just how proficient and skilled a grappler we know Barnett to be, the win should arguably place Rothwell on the short list of title contenders. The power of shelf expression, ladies and gentlemen.
The full results from UFC on FOX 18 are below.
Main card
Anthony Johnson def. Ryan Bader via TKO (R1, 1:26)
Ben Rothwell def. Josh Barnett via submission (guillotine) (R2, 3:48)
Jimmie Rivera def. Iuri Alcantara via unanimous decision
Bryan Barberena def. Sage Northcutt via submission
Undercard
Tarec Saffiedine def. Jake Ellenberger via unanimous decision
Diego Ferreira def. Olivier Aubin-Mercier via UD
Rafael Natal def. Kevin Casey via third-round TKO (3:37)
Wilson Reis def. Dustin Ortiz via unanimous decision
Alexander Yakovlev def. George Sullivan via KO (R1, 3:59)
Alex Caceres def. Masio Fullen via unanimous decision
Randy Brown def. Matt Dwyer via unanimous decision
Levan Makashvili vs. Damon Jackson ends in majority draw (29-27 Jackson, 28-28 x2)
Tony Martin def. Felipe Olvieri via submission (rear-naked choke) (R3, 3:02)
The injury-forced withdrawals of both Cain Velasquez and Fabricio Werdum from UFC 196 presented the UFC with a peculiar, if not unfamiliar scenario, and left many fans wondering what magic the promotion still had up its sleeve after all these years. Would Dana & Co. book a freakish but totally watchable fight to serve in its place, ala UFC 153? Would they bring Ben Rothwell in to save the day, ala what they should have done with Fight Night 76? Or would they throw their hands in the air and outright cancel the event, ala UFC 176? The options were literally limitless.
As it turns out, however, the UFC went and pulled a rabbit out of its hat that not many of us saw coming, bumping up the co-main event between Johny Hendricks and Stephen Thompson to main event status and shifting the card from its previous pay-per-view spot to the totally free (depending on your cable package) Fox Sports 1 network instead.
“A non-Fight Night, numbered UFC event on free TV? What madness is this?!” we cried with a mix of astonishment and jubilation. It was an unprecedented move, to be sure, and one that unfortunately was too good to be true…
The injury-forced withdrawals of both Cain Velasquez and Fabricio Werdum from UFC 196 presented the UFC with a peculiar, if not unfamiliar scenario, and left many fans wondering what magic the promotion still had up its sleeve after all these years. Would Dana & Co. book a freakish but totally watchable fight to serve in its place, ala UFC 153? Would they bring Ben Rothwell in to save the day, ala what they should have done with Fight Night 76? Or would they throw their hands in the air and outright cancel the event, ala UFC 176? The options were literally limitless.
As it turns out, however, the UFC went and pulled a rabbit out of its hat that not many of us saw coming, bumping up the co-main event between Johny Hendricks and Stephen Thompson to main event status and shifting the card from its previous pay-per-view spot to the totally free (depending on your cable package) Fox Sports 1 network instead.
“A non-Fight Night, numbered UFC event on free TV? What madness is this?!” we cried with a mix of astonishment and jubilation. It was an unprecedented move, to be sure, and one that unfortunately was too good to be true…
On a name basis, at least (you like that misdirection? SEO 101, babayy!!). Because while UFC 196′s card will still air on FS1 next Saturday as promised, it has officially been downgraded to “Fight Night 82,” per Bloody Elbow.
The UFC announced that the Super Bowl weekend show has been rebranded as UFC Fight Night: Hendricks vs. Thompson, as if it were a normal Fox Sports 1 card all along. The main card bout order has been upped to six fights (with the addition of Mike Pyle vs. Sean Spencer and Misha Cirkunov vs. Alex Nicholson) to fill the three-hour broadcast, and Hendricks vs. Thompson has been elevated from three rounds to five.
Ooh boy, Johny “Steakhouse” Hendricks in a suddenly-upgraded five-rounder? Does the UFC not realize that having this man make weight is struggle enough? “Bigg Rigg” just had to close down his restaurant, dammit, he is stressed out as it is!
As a result of the Fight Night shuffle, UFC 197: McGregor vs. Dos Anjos has now been changed to UFC 196: McIlroy vs. Dos Santos. It doesn’t make sense to us either, you guys, but we’ll be damned if we’re going to say so publicly and risk being called a goof by The Baldfather on Twitter. That’s the final kiss of death for any once-mid-level-but-now-something-slightly-less-than MMA blog!
MAIN CARD (FOX Sports 1, 10 p.m. ET)
-Johny Hendricks vs. Stephen Thompson
-Roy Nelson vs. Jared Rosholt
-Rafael Cavalcante vs. Ovince Saint Preux
-Joseph Benavidez vs. Zach Makovsky
-Misha Cirkunov vs. Alex Nicholson
-Mike Pyle vs. Sean Spencer
PRELIMINARY CARD (FOX Sports 1, 8 p.m. ET)
-Josh Burkman vs. K.J. Noons
-Damian Grabowski vs. Derrick Lewis
-Ray Borg vs. Justin Scoggins
-Noad Lahat vs. Diego Rivas
PRELIMINARY CARD (UFC Fight Pass, 7 p.m. ET)
-Mickey Gall vs. Mike Jackson
-Artem Lobov vs. Alex White
(“Addishunally, I put fawhth dat mouthguards should be replaced wit’ slices of gabagool.” via Chris Weidman’s instagram)
Next to mankind’s eternal battle with death, the UFC’s battle with New York legislatures might be the most one-sided and ultimately futile effort in the history of ever, and I say that with 100 percent sincerity.
(“Addishunally, I put fawhth dat mouthguards should be replaced wit’ slices of gabagool.” via Chris Weidman’s instagram)
Next to mankind’s eternal battle with death, the UFC’s battle with New York legislatures might be the most one-sided and ultimately futile effort in the history of ever, and I say that with 100 percent sincerity.
It’s gotten so bad — the constant, punishing defeats at the various governmental levels — that even the legitimate MMA media outlets have stopped covering it for the most part, save a friendly annual reminder of our failure when that time of the year rolls around. This year, however, it seemed as if the UFC knew something that we didn’t. Following former New York Assemblyman Sheldon Silver’s arrest and eventual conviction on corruption charges, the world’s premiere fight organization was apparently confident enough that its lawsuit against the state would pass that it went ahead and booked an event in Madison Square Garden for April 29th.
But the best laid plans are often shut down for no logical reason, so they say, and as such, the UFC’s primary injunction request was denied by a New York court earlier this week. MMAFighting passes along the all too familiar news:
Monday, Judge Kimba Wood of the Southern District of New York denied a preliminary injunction request by Zuffa, the UFC’s parent company, to allow the UFC to host events in New York while their larger lawsuit claiming the ban on MMA in the state is too vague to stand.
Their suit against the law banning MMA continues, but must work its way through the state’s Second Circuit before any further judiciary action can be taken. Legalization efforts have historically been pushed through the legislative chambers in the state, albeit unsuccessfully to date. More recently, New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo included language in his budget that would allow the UFC and other promoters to host MMA events. However, if MMA authorization is still included in the final budget, the deadline for approval isn’t until March 31.
Speaking with reporters after the hearing, UFC COO Lawrence Epstein was expectedly dour, stating “We are disappointed by the District Court’s denial of our motion for a preliminary injunction and its effort to redirect the litigation to the state courts.”
“Today’s decision, while disappointing, only underscores the importance of UFC’s pending appeal to the Second Circuit. UFC will evaluate this decision with an eye to pursuing every effective avenue to bring New Yorkers the same live events available to spectators throughout the United States.”
