“She’s (expletive) strong.” Those were the words uttered by former light heavyweight champion and future UFC Hall of Famer Tito Ortiz after getting slammed during a grappling session with Strikeforce women’s middleweight champion Cristiane “Cyborg” San…
“She’s (expletive) strong.”
Those were the words uttered by former light heavyweight champion and future UFC Hall of Famer Tito Ortiz after getting slammed during a grappling session with Strikeforce women’s middleweight champion Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos.
Gina Carano may be the face of women’s MMA, but there has never been a female fighter as imposing as Cyborg.
Strikeforce is constantly forced to scour the globe for suitable opponents willing to challenge the MMA amazon.
Cyborg’s strength and athleticism allow her to train with professional fighters of the opposite sex. These aren’t light sparring sessions either. In the video below, Ortiz is training with Cyborg like he would any teammate.
People may poke fun at Cyborg’s femininity with masculine jokes, but any true fan of the sport has to respect her talent.
Despite being a world champion, Cyborg remains the most ambitious female in women’s MMA. She’s constantly working hard to improve her technique and shore up holes in her game.
Skeptics of women’s MMA tend to blame their reasoning on a lack of excitement and quality names. While there is definitely truth to the latter, it would be disingenuous to discount the excitement level of female fighting. The ladies are generally involved in some of the more entertaining scraps on a fight card.
In sports, we want to see the biggest and strongest athletes compete, and both of those qualities aren’t usually associated with women.
This is where Cyborg differs from the rest. People continuously point to her overbearing strength, but it’s her athleticism that truly stands out. There are very few women that come into this world with the ability to move and explode like Cyborg. She is constantly breaking boundaries and turning new heads to female fighting.
Who is the true face of women’s MMA?
Watch this video, and see if it doesn’t change your mind.
It looks like fans will have to wait a while longer for Gina Carano’s MMA return. At a media conference call on Tuesday, Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker stated that Carano wasn’t able to get medical clearance from her doctor in time for the fight. The prop…
It looks like fans will have to wait a while longer for Gina Carano‘s MMA return.
At a media conference call on Tuesday, Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker stated that Carano wasn’t able to get medical clearance from her doctor in time for the fight.
The proposed “Face of Women’s MMA” was expected to face Sarah D’Alelio on the main card of the June 18 Strikeforce event, which is headlined by the Grand Prix quarterfinal bout between Alistair Overeem and Fabricio Werdum.
“I’m disappointed not to be fighting June 18. I’d like to thank Greg Jackson, and I hope this is just a brief setback,” Carano said in a statement read by Coker.
There isn’t any news in regards to why Carano failed to get medical clearance on time, but it was confirmed that the Strikeforce lightweight tilt between K.J. Noons and Jorge Masvidal would be bumped to fill the open main card slot.
Stay tuned to Bleacher Report on this developing story.
While Rashad Evans rolls the dice with his title ambitions at UFC 133, the Grispi Effect lurks in the shadows looking to make him pay. What is the Grispi Effect? The Grispi Effect is a phenomenon based off UFC featherweight Josh Grispi, who lost his ti…
While Rashad Evans rolls the dice with his title ambitions at UFC 133, the Grispi Effect lurks in the shadows looking to make him pay.
What is the Grispi Effect?
The Grispi Effect is a phenomenon based off UFC featherweight Josh Grispi, who lost his title shot on January 1.
Grispi was scheduled to challenge featherweight champion Jose Aldo on the UFC 125 card, but Aldo had to withdraw from the bout due to an injury.
Instead of waiting around for his hard-earned title shot, Grispi decided to still compete on the card against Dustin Poirier. Despite his attempts to keep warm, Grispi’s performance was cold as Poirier picked up the upset in a lopsided decision.
The woes of the 22-year-old Grispi continued at the Ultimate Fighter Season 13 Finale, where he was stopped in the third round by George Roop.
In a little over five months time, Grispi went from contender to being on the UFC chopping block.
Who else has this affected?
Former WEC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis came to the UFC as the top contender for Frankie Edgar’s lightweight title, but the original plans were scrapped when Edgar’s title bout against Gray Maynard ended in a draw at UFC 125.
With no clear timeline for a future title shot, Pettis and the UFC agreed upon a bout against Clay Guida to keep the Taekwondo black belt busy.
UFC President Dana White assured fans that Pettis was the top contender for the UFC title despite a multitude of other candidates. All Pettis had to do was beat Guida at the TUF Season 13 Finale.
It was by no means an easy task, but Guida seemed to always come up short in big moments. Unfortunately for Pettis, that version of Clay Guida is dead and gone. There was nothing flashy about his performance, but Guida was consistent with his takedowns and picked up a workmanlike unanimous decision.
Being slapped with a double dose of reality, Pettis was forced to come to the realization that he needs to work on his takedown defense, and he was no longer the top contender for the lightweight title.
Now, Evans is on deck to face rising star Phil Davis in a bout to decide the next light heavyweight title contender.
A bout between Evans and light heavyweight champion Jon Jones was set for UFC 133, but Jones pulled out of the fight with a hand injury. It was initially thought that Jones would need to undergo surgery to repair the injury, and Evans took a fight with Davis to avoid extending his already long hiatus.
Not long after the Evans and Davis bout was announced, Jones found out that he wouldn’t need surgery to repair his hand, and he would be ready to fight again by October. With Evans already locked into a bout with Davis, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson was promoted as the next title contender.
Davis is a really dangerous opponent for Evans. It’s incredibly hard to gage where Davis is at in his young career. He continues to improve with every fight, and it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to decipher his everlasting potential.
After it became known that Jones wouldn’t need surgery, would it have been smarter for the UFC to continue with its original plans of Evans versus Jones and match Davis with Jackson instead?
A bout between Evans and Jones could be deemed a superfight. The amount of drama surrounding this newfound rivalry of former teammates could serve as a perennial slot on daytime television.
Why not strike while the iron is hot? What if Jackson or Davis picks up an upset?
There is never a sure thing in MMA, and if either Jones or Evans incur losses, it would take a lot of steam out of the anticipated grudge match.
For now, fans are forced to wait and see how the altered scenario unfolds.
The Grispi Effect claimed Anthony Pettis. Is Rashad Evans next?
On February 2, 2008, a rivalry was born. Despite plenty of jokes and criticism, former WWE superstar Brock Lesnar made his UFC debut against former heavyweight champion Frank Mir.
The jokes were short lived as Lesnar came within seconds of a first roun…
On February 2, 2008, a rivalry was born. Despite plenty of jokes and criticism, former WWE superstar Brock Lesnar made his UFC debut against former heavyweight champion Frank Mir.
The jokes were short lived as Lesnar came within seconds of a first round stoppage.
After a few “illegal” ground strikes, referee Steve Mazzagatti deducted a point from Lesnar and saved Mir from drifting into unconsciousness.
The reset gave Mir just the time he needed to regain his composure and pull off a kneebar to avoid the upset.
The two met again in the main event of the celebrated UFC 100 card, but it was a much different fight the second time around. Fans no longer saw Lesnar as an MMA circus act.
After defeating UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture for the heavyweight title, Lesnar had emerged as arguably the best heavyweight in the world, and he didn’t hold back in his violent demonstration to Mir.
Once again, both fighters find themselves in a position where it would be plausible for paths to cross. Mir is in need of a top five opponent to continue his heavyweight ascension, and Lesnar will be looking for upper-echelon opposition in his return from an extended hiatus.
Time is the primary hurdle in this bout coming to fruition. Lesnar was recently diagnosed with his second case of diverticulitis and is expected to be sidelined until early 2012.
Will Mir wait around for a possible rubber match with Lesnar, or will he chance his status as a heavyweight contender against a UFC up and comer?
Here are five reasons the rubber match between Mir and Lesnar makes the most sense.
After weeks of hoping and pleading, fans will finally get their wish on October 29 when UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre takes on Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz. The idea of champion versus champion is a rare and interesting occ…
After weeks of hoping and pleading, fans will finally get their wish on October 29 when UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre takes on Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz.
The idea of champion versus champion is a rare and interesting occurrence in combat sports.
The lines are no longer blurred by contracts and organizations, and fans are given the opportunity to watch two champions duke it out for undisputed supremacy.
Since leaving the UFC, Diaz has amassed an extensive résumé over notable opposition. His recent success has skyrocketed him to superstardom.
Despite major names like Fedor Emelianenko, Alistair Overeem, and Dan Henderson, it was Diaz that became the face of the Strikeforce promotion. Some have even threw out Tito Ortiz comparisons. Like Ortiz in his prime, fans care about watching Diaz fight, whether they love him or hate him.
The outspoken Stockton native has never been shy about expressing his feelings, and he has quickly become one of the most controversial figures in the sport. Still, fans always tune in to watch him fight.
Some watch in hopes that Diaz will finally get his mouth shut, and others love Diaz’s personality and hope for his continued climb up the MMA hierarchy.
At UFC 137, Diaz will get an opportunity to ascend all the way to the top of the welterweight division. St-Pierre has defended his UFC title six consecutive times, and he is widely considered as one of the top pound-for-pound fighters in the world.
While he’s definitely a top-10 welterweight, Diaz hasn’t necessarily faced upper-echelon opposition. The only ranked welterweight he’s defeated in his run is Paul Daley, but history is far harsher on Diaz’s leap into UFC title contention.
During his earlier UFC run, Diaz struggled against strong grapplers with good submission defense. This led to a 2-4 stint, where Diaz incurred losses to Diego Sanchez, Sean Sherk, Karo Pariyan, and Joe Riggs.
Despite his world class Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) and improved striking, Diaz has never been known for his wrestling.
St-Pierre is arguably the best wrestler in the entire sport, and he possesses the BJJ chops to stay out of danger and muster up offense of his own.
It’s dangerous in this sport to purely look at things from a black and white perspective, but on paper, this is as bad as it gets for Diaz. Still, people are overly excited to see the guy that will finally “take the fight to St-Pierre.”
What is it about Diaz that makes him more worthy of a title shot than Jon Fitch, Carlos Condit, Diego Sanchez, or even Rick Story?
Some may laugh at the addition of Story, but he recently routed Thiago Alves, who was widely considered the number three welterweight in the world. Sanchez is coming off back to back wins over ranked opposition in Martin Kampmann and Paulo Thiago.
After losing a controversial decision to Kampmann, Condit rebounded with wins over Jake Ellenberger, Rory MacDonald, and Dan Hardy.
Fitch has defeated a plethora of upper-echelon talent, and outside of his loss to St-Pierre, he hasn’t been defeated since December 2002.
The champion versus champion bout is more aesthetically pleasing to fans. Like any other sport, the title serves as recognition for being the best in the world, but in MMA, all of the best fighters don’t compete under one umbrella. They are scattered throughout the world in various organizations.
The majority of the top fighters compete in the UFC, and Diaz hasn’t faced the best in the 170-pound division.
Does any of this even matter?
The UFC has prided itself on delivering the fights fans want to see, and UFC President Dana White has done a tremendous job in putting this fight together.
The majority don’t care about Diaz’s past UFC tenure or his struggles with world class wrestlers.
They see a superstar brandishing a golden strap and 10 straight victories. People also see a fresh opponent for the French-Canadian.
Diaz has been seeking a superfight with St-Pierre for over a year now. This is the chance he’s been waiting for to finally prove that he is the best fighter in the world, but as the saying goes, be careful what you wish for.
Lyoto Machida may have crane kicked his way back into title contention. While nothing is official, the UFC could offer the Brazilian a shot at light heavyweight champion Jon Jones depending on the status of anointed top contender Quinton “Rampage” Jack…
Lyoto Machida may have crane kicked his way back into title contention.
While nothing is official, the UFC could offer the Brazilian a shot at light heavyweight champion Jon Jones depending on the status of anointed top contender Quinton “Rampage” Jackson.
After his UFC 130 bout with Matt Hamill, Jackson admitted that he had sustained a hand fracture prior to the fight. Despite a doctor’s confirmation of the injury, Jackson still decided to take the fight.
The bout was noticeably one-sided, as Jackson bested the exchanges and stuffed all of Hamill’s takedown attempts en route to a unanimous decision.
In a division plagued with injuries, Jackson’s victory over Hamill pretty much assured a 2011 meeting with Jones, but those plans could be scrapped if he isn’t medically cleared.
According to TATAME, Machida is prepared to step in for Jackson if given the opportunity.
“I’m ready. I’m already moving to another training part, and I’d be ready to fight in 12 weeks,” Machida said in a phone interview.
After losing back-to-back bouts to Mauricio Rua and Quinton Jackson, Machida bounced back at UFC 129 with a highlight reel knockout win over UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture.
The victory could grant Machida an opportunity to reclaim his light heavyweight title, but he doesn’t want to get his hopes up.
“There’s nothing yet, but it’s a great chance for me,” said Machida. “I don’t want to create hopes, and I don’t know what’s gonna happen, but if they do it, I’ll get this big opportunity to restart my walk in the UFC.”
Since becoming UFC champion, Jones has skyrocketed up the pound-for-pound rankings. His world class status can be attributed to an everlasting reach, high level grappling and a propensity for unorthodox stand up.
Fans have continuously scratched their heads over possible opponents that would prove to be a legit threat to Jones’ reign.
Could Machida be that guy?
“We know Jones is a great champion. He showed why (against Shogun), but everybody has strong and weak points,” stated Machida. “I haven’t studied Jones’ game yet because he was never ‘my problem,’ but I already saw him fighting.”
“She’s (expletive) strong.”