UFC 146 is unlike anything else in the long history of the UFC. Never before has the promotion considered filling a card with heavyweight fights.The major reason it’s never happened is due to the lack of quality heavyweights in the UFC’s biggest weight…
UFC 146 is unlike anything else in the long history of the UFC. Never before has the promotion considered filling a card with heavyweight fights.
The major reason it’s never happened is due to the lack of quality heavyweights in the UFC’s biggest weight class in the past. Just a few years ago, the division had a few top contenders and a rash of guys who were as far away from title shots as you can possibly get. It’s hard to fill up a pay-per-view card when you have Tim Sylvia, Andrei Arlovski and not much else to speak of.
That’s no longer the case. The UFC’s heavyweight division has grown by leaps and bounds, and it’s now deep enough that a card of this nature could finally be created. The top of the division is more stacked than ever, with guys like Cain Velasquez, Frank Mir, Fabricio Werdum and the suspended Alistair Overeem all close to title contention. Rising young stars such as Travis Browne and Stefan Struve are filling out the middle of the division.
And that’s not even counting Daniel Cormier and Josh Barnett, who will make their way to the UFC after each fighting once more in Strikeforce.
Point being, the UFC’s heavyweights are ready for a showcase like the one they’ll get on Saturday night. Whether or not they’ll deliver exciting fights is a different story.
Urijah Faber’s new opponent at UFC 148 is a tough one. In some ways, Renan Barao may be a tougher opponent for Faber than even Dominick Cruz. The Brazilian has put together an incredible winning streak and has a devastating all-around game that could r…
Urijah Faber‘s new opponent at UFC 148 is a tough one. In some ways, Renan Barao may be a tougher opponent for Faber than even Dominick Cruz. The Brazilian has put together an incredible winning streak and has a devastating all-around game that could really give Faber problems when they meet for the interim bantamweight title on July 7 in Las Vegas.
Faber never thought he would be facing Barao, though. According to an interview with Pro MMA Radio, Faber was under the impression that Ivan Menjivar, and not Barao, would be the replacement for Cruz. Faber noted that Dana White told him that Michael McDonald was injured and that Barao didn’t want to leave Brazil, leaving him with the idea that he’d be facing Menjivar.
For like two days I thought I might be fighting Menjivar. Then the day of the announcement, I was like ‘Are you sure it’s not Barao?’ And he was like, ‘Yeah.’ But I had a feeling that it was. Then Dana apologized right before he announced it, for basically lying, which is kinda weird, I thought, because Barao was there. I don’t care who I fight, I told Dana I wouldn’t say anything anyway, if he was thinking I might spoil the surprise, or what the deal was.
This is par for the course. The UFC works hard to make fight announcements themselves, using a combination of their website and Twitter account.
A year ago, we saw most fights broken by a handful of major MMA websites. But the UFC decided to change the game by making their own fight announcements, often before they even have written bout agreements in hand from the fighters in question. Releasing news of fight bookings shortly after they receive verbal agreements from the fighters gives them a speed edge that can’t be replicated by journalists outside of the company.
I understand White’s need for secrecy in this situation. One of the drawing points for last Friday’s episode of The Ultimate Fighter was the announcement of Faber’s new opponent, so they took every precaution to keep that from happening.
In the end, we’re still getting the best fight possible. Barao is a legitimate stern test for Faber, and although I think “The California Kid” will ultimately come out on top, he’s facing a guy who he will not, and should not, take lightly.
The Strikeforce World Heavyweight Grand Prix—once considered a novel throwback idea to the PRIDE days of all—is finally and inexplicably over. I say inexplicably because there were at least three instances over the course of the past y…
The Strikeforce World Heavyweight Grand Prix—once considered a novel throwback idea to the PRIDE days of all—is finally and inexplicably over.
I say inexplicably because there were at least three instances over the course of the past year where it seemed impossible that the tournament, and Strikeforce as a whole, would continue to exist. But it did, and here we are after the culmination of the tournament and the rise of a brand new heavyweight force in mixed martial arts.
No longer a prospect, Daniel Cormier’s easy capture of the grand prix title—after not being an official member of the tournament in the first place—vaulted him into the ranks of title contenders. But he can’t simply jump to the UFC after his win; a contractual agreement between Zuffa and Showtime will keep him tied to the premium cable network for one more fight.
What’s next for Cormier and the rest of the stars from Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Cormier?
You remember UFC 117, don’t you? The main event between Anderson Silva and Chael Sonnen was one of the greatest fights in UFC history, and it was certainly among the greatest comebacks in the history of the sport. Hell, in my mind, it was the absolute …
You remember UFC 117, don’t you? The main event between Anderson Silva and Chael Sonnen was one of the greatest fights in UFC history, and it was certainly among the greatest comebacks in the history of the sport. Hell, in my mind, it was the absolute greatest come-from-behind win of all time. There’s no doubt in my mind.
Prior to that first fight, Sonnen spent months creating a character that ignited public interest in him for, well, the first time in his career. And much of that legend was created during appearances on radio personality Jim Rome’s nationally syndicated radio program.
The highlight of those early radio appearances consisted of Rome confronting Sonnen about comments he made regarding Lance Armstrong. If you missed it, Sonnen said that Armstrong had given himself cancer by taking performance-enhancing drugs. But when he appeared on Rome’s radio show, Sonnen denied ever making the comments—shortly after Rome played him the comments, mind you—and concluded by saying that the fake Sonnen actually sounded Hispanic.
Hilarious stuff, to be sure. To most people anyway.
Ever since that day, Sonnen has been a favored guest of both Rome and his millions of listeners. Rome invites Sonnen back on the show every few months, whether he has a fight to promote or not, and earlier this week, Sonnen appeared on Rome’s new CBS Sports network television show to promote his new book, The Voice of Reason.
Rome and Sonnen talked about the book only briefly, instead focusing on Sonnen’s upcoming rematch with Silva. Rome essentially gave Sonnen a chance to say wacky things and shine in the public eye like he does so well, and Sonnen more than lived up to the task when describing his loss to Silva in the first fight.
Sonnen: It was an absolute misunderstanding and misapplication of the rules by me. We’re in the fifth and final round and he locks on a submission. I acknowledge that he has it on tight by slapping my hand on his leg.
Rome: You tapped.
Sonnen: I tapped. So what I thought is that we go to the cards and he’d win that round. Apparently, if you tap, it ends the entire contest, which I was not made privy to.
Rome: Isn’t that what a tap is? You tap and you’re done?
Sonnen: Apparently, it is.
Rome: C’mon. You don’t know what it means to tap?
Sonnen: I do now.
Rome: Chael, that’s a crazier thing than the noise you were running to me on my radio show.
This one goes in the Chael P. Sonnen Hall of Awesome Quotes, folks. It has all the hallmarks of a great Sonnen piece of work, and by that I mean it’s complete and utter nonsense, it’s creative and Sonnen delivered it with a straight face. I don’t know how he keeps himself from laughing while saying it, but it’s an incredible talent.
I understand that there are those of you who don’t like Sonnen’s game. But honestly, if you’re so stuck up that you can’t enjoy what is quite obviously a complete farce done for entertainment purposes, you probably need to find a new hobby.
It’s hard to believe that, after 16 months of waiting, speculating and hand-wringing, the Strikeforce world heavyweight grand prix is actually going to come to an end.Back when it was announced, MMA nerds—and yes, I include myself in that illustr…
It’s hard to believe that, after 16 months of waiting, speculating and hand-wringing, the Strikeforce world heavyweight grand prix is actually going to come to an end.
Back when it was announced, MMA nerds—and yes, I include myself in that illustrious group—went bonkers over the possibilities the tournament held. After all, there are three things that every fan adores about the sport, and two of them are heavyweights and tournaments. The other two things? Arianny Celeste and Brittney Palmer, of course.
There was a chance the tournament would never be completed at all. Back in August, it looked like Strikeforce was all but dead. But here we are. Scott Coker’s last grand experiment is finally coming to an end.
As per usual, we’re going to power rank each of the main-card fighters. Think of this as a pound for pound list, but one that only includes the dudes fighting on the main card.
Oh, and I’m excluding Nah-Shon Burrell and Christopher Spang because, well, they’re Nah-Shon Burrell and Christopher Spang.
We’ve all heard the jokes about Jon Fitch. How watching Fitch fight is something like watching paint dry or watching grass grow. Dana White even gets in on the jokes from time to time, needling the welterweight for his dry fighting style on Twitter.It’…
We’ve all heard the jokes about Jon Fitch. How watching Fitch fight is something like watching paint dry or watching grass grow. Dana White even gets in on the jokes from time to time, needling the welterweight for his dry fighting style on Twitter.
It’s all a bunch of nonsense, of course. I love exciting fights as much as the next guy, and I think they’re a valid thing when you’re trying to bring in new fans. But there’s one thing more important than being exciting or cutting Chael Sonnen promos or wearing outlandish clothes during your walkout: winning.
That’s the bottom line, really. You can be the most exciting fighter in the world, and it might buy you a few extra losses in the UFC before they send you packing. But it’s not going to help you stick around forever as you rack up loss after loss. Winning is the only thing that keeps you employed, and it doesn’t matter what it looks like.
“I haven’t been paying enough attention to the sport to know what other guys are doing or if, in fact, the squeaky wheel is getting the grease,” Fitch said. “I don’t know who is squeaking or not. My daily life consists of me training my ass off and spending time with my family. I don’t go outside that bubble. Going to the UFC in New Jersey was the first time I had done anything like that in a while. I’m in the fight environment if I’m fighting or if I have a teammate fighting. Otherwise, I don’t pay much attention.
“If people think that I’m not beating people up in there, all they have to do is look at my opponent’s face after the fight. If I’m not doing work in there, then how did their face get so f***ed up?”
Fitch has a point. He’s got a style that doesn’t endear itself to meathead audiences, but it’s effective. And think about it this way: Randy Couture has been using the same style for years, only it’s a stand-up version that’s heavily based on wrestling, and he’s lauded as a hero while Fitch gets booed out of the building every time he steps in the cage. How is that fair?
