Author: kmowatt

Report: Chris Leben in for Injured Wanderlei Silva at UFC 116

It is times like this that ‘bloggers’ really dread (no, we’re not completely opposed to being described as ‘hacks’); so just what in the hell are we referring to? Well, if you haven’t heard by now, and didn’t read the above headline, better put the coffee down as alas our friends, Wanderlei Silva has reportedly […]

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It is times like this that ‘bloggers’ really dread (no, we’re not completely opposed to being described as ‘hacks’); so just what in the hell are we referring to? Well, if you haven’t heard by now, and didn’t read the above headline, better put the coffee down as alas our friends, Wanderlei Silva has reportedly fractured his ribs while preparing for his scheduled UFC 116 bout with Yoshihiro Akiyama. The former Pride champ is out. Take a moment, grab another donut; it will help dull the pain.

MMA Fighting was apparently the first to confirm with Dana White that indeed “The Axe Murderer” is out of the co-main event for the promotion’s July 3rd event. Then, in a follow up report from MMA Junkie, the outlet confirmed with sources that Chris Leben has agreed to step in for Silva. MMA Fighting also confirmed afterwards that Leben will now face the accomplished judo competitor at UFC 116.

So, now we’ve got the “Cat Smasher” instead of the “Axe Murderer”; although it’s painfully clear that we here at Fix were really looking forward to seeing Wanderlei fight again (as keeping thoughts to ourselves isn’t something we do), Leben is a pretty good substitute no? We all know he’s going to go after the Japanese middleweight (just like Wandy would have), he also loves to slug it out (as does Mr. Silva) and Akiyama is no shrinking violet when it comes to stand-up battles. It’s also a huge opportunity for Leben; he just took out the rising Aaron Simpson last weekend, and another win over a notable dude like Akiyama would say a lot.

To bet on UFC 116 head here.

Brock Lesnar Says Fedor Emelianenko Greatest “In His Own Little World”

 
Earlier today we posted some comments from Fedor Emelianenko, who recently passed along the news, that he doesn’t concern himself with what his detractors say (and judging by his less than enthusiastic and indifferent demeanour- is anyone surprised by this?) In addition to not signing with the UFC last year, “The Last Emperor’s” recent statements […]

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Earlier today we posted some comments from Fedor Emelianenko, who recently passed along the news, that he doesn’t concern himself with what his detractors say (and judging by his less than enthusiastic and indifferent demeanour- is anyone surprised by this?) In addition to not signing with the UFC last year, “The Last Emperor’s” recent statements that he’s not a big fan of the MMA giant, of course, instantly kicked new life into the whole ‘what will be Fedor’s legacy’ debate. Is he still the world’s best heavyweight? Or does he need to throw down with the UFC’s top beasts like Shane Carwin, Cain Velasquez, or Brock Lesnar?

Well, speaking of the UFC Heavyweight Champion Lesnar, in a recent teleconference promoting his upcoming July 3rd bout with Carwin (MMA is a glorious thing), the former NCAA star tossed a few more criticisms Fedor’s way (that he’s free to ignore of course). When asked to comment on recent speculation that Fedor may in fact be looking to retire, sooner than later, (further dashing hopes that the Russian will ever step into the Octagon) Mr. Lesnar said this (thanks to MMA Weekly for the quote):

“Good for Fedor, I hope he does retire.” Lesnar commented. “He’s the greatest champion of all time. He’s the greatest champion ever, of all time, in his own little world. Good for him.”

Lesnar also reportedly said “absolutely” when asked if he thinks he could beat Mr. Emelianenko; no surprises there either. Too bad we’ll likely never find out for sure. To bet on Fedor’s next fight with Fabricio Werdum, or Carwin vs. Lesnar, head here.

Video: James Toney Pretends to Call 911 to Report “Murder”

Remember when Frank Mir stated in a radio interview that he wanted to break Brock Lesnar’s neck, so that the heavyweight champ would “be the first person that dies due to Octagon-related injuries”? Well, if you’re an avid MMA fan / regular ‘internet browser’ and don’t remember that, immediately find an emergency room, as you should […]

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Remember when Frank Mir stated in a radio interview that he wanted to break Brock Lesnar’s neck, so that the heavyweight champ would “be the first person that dies due to Octagon-related injuries”? Well, if you’re an avid MMA fan / regular ‘internet browser’ and don’t remember that, immediately find an emergency room, as you should recall that those comments prompted a firestorm of coverage.

Of course, at the time, there were some who pointed out that Mir’s comments weren’t really anything new to the sport, and approve of them or not, future similar statements were inevitable. Cue James Toney– now granted, in the video the boxing champ turned MMA fighter is clearly clowning around on some dude’s phone (and here’s hoping it still works after being drenched in sweat…), but here too, the charismatic fighter states that he plans on “murdering” UFC 118 opponent Randy Couture (he also threatens David Haye– who he’s boxing in October). Toney adds that “he’ll murder two people in three months and get away with it, and get paid for it; a lot of money.”

So, is this cause to lose one’s mind with righteous anger, at the audacity of Toney stating he’s going to “murder” people in the ring / cage? Or is it just the crazy, over-the-top, pre-fight antics of a fighter trying to hype a PPV bout? So whatever- let’s move on? We’re expecting both reactions.

To see the entire vid head here.

Fedor Emelianenko Not Interested in What Critics Say

Just days away from this Saturday’s Strikeforce tilt between Fedor Emelianenko and Fabricio Werdum, the customary round of pre-fight interviews with the competitors, has once again left the internet littered with more tonnage of ‘what does the future hold for Fedor?’ Granted, it’s nowhere near the amount of coverage Fedor was receiving when he was […]

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Just days away from this Saturday’s Strikeforce tilt between Fedor Emelianenko and Fabricio Werdum, the customary round of pre-fight interviews with the competitors, has once again left the internet littered with more tonnage of ‘what does the future hold for Fedor?’ Granted, it’s nowhere near the amount of coverage Fedor was receiving when he was a free agent last year, when countless keyboards were turned into dust due to overuse.

If Emelianenko wins Saturday then all signs (and we say this with a heavy bias hoping it will happen) point to “The Last Emperor” meeting Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion Alistair Overeem. After that, and depending on the result, who knows what Fedor and his management will do next. Fedor’s decision not to sign with the UFC last year, sparked a lot of criticism from certain circles (like a certain outspoken UFC executive whose last name rhymes with Night), who maintain that the former Pride champion is no longer interested in fighting MMA’s cream of the crop (sorry-we tried to think of some reference utilizing borsch). So what does Fedor think of his critics (thanks to MMA Weekly for the quotes)?

“As far as my reaction, I don’t have any reaction,” Emelianenko stated. “I don’t really have reactions to any compliments people tell me, nor criticism. It’s not something that’s that important to me. I have more important goals in my life than seeking out the Internet to see what people are saying about me.”

So there you have it; who’s willing to put money down on Fedor signing with the UFC now? To bet on this Saturday’s bout head here.

Video Shows Anderson Silva Training with Steven Seagal

Now, if your first reaction was to think the above header was a trick to reveal a punch line something like ‘Anderson Silva is shown training with Steven Seagal in his latest straight to DVD flick- ‘Today you Die; Tomorrow You Live’, good on you for being relatively grounded in reality. Here’s the kicker, however, […]

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Now, if your first reaction was to think the above header was a trick to reveal a punch line something like ‘Anderson Silva is shown training with Steven Seagal in his latest straight to DVD flick- ‘Today you Die; Tomorrow You Live’, good on you for being relatively grounded in reality. Here’s the kicker, however, (yes, hold on to your socks), in a recent episode of a Brazilian television program, the UFC Middleweight Champion is shown taking pointers from Seagal… no, not on how to avoid disastrously bad scripts, for fighting, and you know what? It looked like Silva was pretty damn impressed with the Aikido master (thanks to Cage Potato for the tip).

Now, before you get all fired up and kick into ‘I know all about MMA’ mode, take a look at the clip yourself. We’re not going to start saying that Aikido is the wave of the future in the sport (you’re probably well aware that the art has taken its fair share of pot-shots in MMA forums for years), but as noted, it does seem like Silva is blown away with a couple of Seagal’s techniques (come on- admit it- like the first time you watched “Above the Law”).  For example, Seagal demonstrates one move where you jam your palms into the dude’s nose as he drops down for a takedown…yes, that might make things uncomfortable if you can pull it off.

So, will we see Silva busting out some Aikido come August 8th versus Chael Sonnen? Nah. Would be kind of cool though no? The clip also shows Seagal sharing his thoughts on Sonnen, who he doesn’t think will be much of a test for the champ…huh.

Jamie Varner Calls Controversial Split Draw “Bogus”

Hate to sound like a broken record (guess saying ‘skipping cd’ is also rather dated….), but if you didn’t see last night’s WEC broadcast, yup, sh-ts gotta change. Once again the lil bro of the UFC put on one damn entertaining event (one Fix staffer actually wept tears of joy during the Mark Hominick / […]

Varner

Hate to sound like a broken record (guess saying ‘skipping cd’ is also rather dated….), but if you didn’t see last night’s WEC broadcast, yup, sh-ts gotta change. Once again the lil bro of the UFC put on one damn entertaining event (one Fix staffer actually wept tears of joy during the Mark Hominick / Yves Jabouin bout…). The main event tilt between former WEC lightweight champion Jamie Varner and wrestling powerhouse Kamal Shalorus was also thrilling, that is until the judge’s decision was announced, bringing that aforementioned record to a screeching halt.

Now Shalorus certainly didn’t get blown out in the fight; he was aggressive, constantly pursuing Varner while blasting the Arizona fighter’s with kicks. On the other side, Varner landed far more often, and on a couple of occasions, he rocked the Iranian with hard punches and may have been a shot or two away from finishing the fight. One other, rather, glaringly important detail, in his frequent  attempts to brutalize Varner’s lead leg, Shalorus ended up kicking the former champ’s ‘it can only do so much’ protective cup, not once, not twice, but thrice. Shalorus was deducted a point for the ‘yeesh’ infractions. So, considering Varner won the first two rounds, the deducted point to Shalorus, win for Jamie right? Wrong-o. Judges scored it a 29-27, 27-29, 28-28, draw….

Speaking after the bout, Varner, who actually was somewhat reserved by his usual ‘outgoing’ standards, had this to say about the decision (thanks to MMA Fighting):

“I think that was bogus,” Varner said. “I definitely feel I won the fight.”

You’re not the only one.