Author: Matthew Roth

B.J. Penn Willing to Come out of Retirement for Rory MacDonald at UFC 152

Recently, the MMA world has been wondering what it will take to get BJ Penn out of retirement and back inside the UFC cage. Every attempt that Zuffa made to bring the former lightweight and welterweight champ back was declined, as Penn was seemingly ha…

Recently, the MMA world has been wondering what it will take to get BJ Penn out of retirement and back inside the UFC cage. Every attempt that Zuffa made to bring the former lightweight and welterweight champ back was declined, as Penn was seemingly happy spending time with his family. Even Josh Koscheck was unable to draw the Hawaiian out. 

Well, it appears that it just took the right fight and the right fighter to motivate Penn. Rory MacDonald recently stated that he wanted to face Penn at UFC 152 in Toronto. His intentions are seemingly pure, as he wants to face the legend before he hits the end of his career. 

Penn has apparently accepted the challenge as he released a short statement via his personal Website saying, “Rory, I accept your challenge.” 

The UFC has yet to confirm the fight, but it is expected that this will be booked. The UFC is in dire need of main-event-caliber fighters, and Penn still has a name in the industry. The fight also makes sense from a rankings perspective, as Rory is currently in need of a big-name win to propel himself into title contention. 

Personally, I love this fight. I, like many, believe that Rory is the future of the division. A matchup with BJ Penn will provide a look at the development of the young Canadian. It’s likely that Penn won’t continue to fight much longer, so it’s best to use his name to build future stars before he leaves the sport permanently. 

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Jon Fitch Scratched from UFC on Fuel 4 Due to Injury

You know what I’m getting really tired of? Injuries. Mainly because I hate being the bearer of bad news, and I’ve got more to deliver right now.On Saturday, the Wrestling Observer reported Jon Fitch must withdraw from his fight at UFC on Fuel 4 with Aa…

You know what I’m getting really tired of? Injuries. Mainly because I hate being the bearer of bad news, and I’ve got more to deliver right now.

On Saturday, the Wrestling Observer reported Jon Fitch must withdraw from his fight at UFC on Fuel 4 with Aaron Simpson due to a knee injury. This report was later confirmed by MMAFighting.com with Jon Fitch’s trainer, “Crazy” Bob Cook.  

There is still no word on who is expected to step in as a replacement. 

Jon Fitch was looking to get back in the win column after suffering the most devastating loss of his career at the hands of Johny Hendricks at UFC 141. The knockout was the one that Josh Koscheck referenced when building his fight with Hendricks at UFC on FOX 3. 

I know that if I’m getting tired of hearing about all these injuries, then Joe Silva and Dana White are losing their collective minds. The summer has turned into a nightmare with how many fighters have been bitten by the injury bug.

Hopefully, this will be the end of it. I don’t want to create any kind of conspiracy theory that the fighter insurance is the cause for all these fighters dropping out. That’s not a theory I wish to pursue.  

UFC on Fuel 4 is scheduled for this summer in San Jose, California. The card is headlined by Chris Weidman and Mark Munoz. 

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‘The Ultimate Fighter’ Finale Results: Questions Answered and Lessons Learned

The 15th season of The Ultimate Fighter was the first time that Zuffa attempted to air every fight live. The season lasted 13 weeks, more than twice that of previous years.The finale saw The Ultimate Fighter winner get crowned in a fight between Mike C…

The 15th season of The Ultimate Fighter was the first time that Zuffa attempted to air every fight live. The season lasted 13 weeks, more than twice that of previous years.

The finale saw The Ultimate Fighter winner get crowned in a fight between Mike Chiesa and Al Iaquinta.

In the main event, Martin Kampmann faced Jake Ellenberger for a spot in a title eliminator in an action-packed fight with a storybook ending. 

That doesn’t mean that the night was without controversy, though, courtesy of referee Kim Winslow.

Still, the fights are over and the results are in. 

I had questions, and I learned lessons.

Let’s find out what they were…

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Ultimate Fighter Finale Results: Grades for All Main-Card Fighters

The 15th season of The Ultimate Fighter has officially come to a close with the conclusion of the Ultimate Fighter Finale. This card didn’t have the name value that past finales had, but every fight was exciting. There was some controversy in the …

The 15th season of The Ultimate Fighter has officially come to a close with the conclusion of the Ultimate Fighter Finale. 

This card didn’t have the name value that past finales had, but every fight was exciting. There was some controversy in the opening fight, as Kim Winslow stopped the fight without the fighter actually submitting. 

On the main card, Michael Chiesa completed his storybook run through the field with a quick submission over Al Iaquinta. And in the main event, Martin Kampmann overcame early adversity to knock Jake Ellenberger out in the second round. 

With the night finally over, let’s grade the performances of everyone on the main card. 

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UFC: 5 Fights to Watch in June

The UFC continues its busy schedule with five very fun fight cards in June. Starting with tonight’s Ultimate Fighter finale, the month will culminate with a fight between Wanderlei Silva and Rich Franklin at UFC 147 in Brazil. Prepare yourselves a…

The UFC continues its busy schedule with five very fun fight cards in June. Starting with tonight’s Ultimate Fighter finale, the month will culminate with a fight between Wanderlei Silva and Rich Franklin at UFC 147 in Brazil. 

Prepare yourselves as every week is fight week. And enjoy when fighters become contenders in their respective divisions. 

Take a look at the top five most anticipated fights in June. 

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Frank Mir Received Testosterone Replacement Therapy for Dos Santos Fight

There was a time when the biggest concern in MMA was that a fighter would test positive for steroids. There’d be shock and a little bit of outrage, but people would move on and accept that it is a part of the sport. Well, those times are well behi…

There was a time when the biggest concern in MMA was that a fighter would test positive for steroids. There’d be shock and a little bit of outrage, but people would move on and accept that it is a part of the sport. 

Well, those times are well behind us.

Because of a loop hole in the ABC’s drug testing guidelines, more and more fighters are using Testosterone Replacement Therapy to counter low testosterone levels. In the past, we’ve heard of Chael Sonnen, Nate Marquardt and Dan Henderson all requiring TRT to raise their low levels of testosterone. 

Well, we can now add Frank Mir to that list. 

This sport is getting more and more ridiculous every day.

The Nevada commission awarded Chael Sonnen a Therapeutic Use Exception for UFC 147 and an advisory role for dealing with TRT. On that same day, Nick Diaz received a very harsh penalty for smoking marijuana before his UFC 143 fight against Carlos Condit. 

If this is the direction that the sport is going, I’ll be honest and say that I really don’t want to be a part of it. If fighters are able to “game” the system by getting an endocrinologist to sign off on them having low T levels, it changes how the sport is perceived. 

The UFC does have a problem with testing; it’s just not the one they think.

Marijuana and steroids are old news. The focus now must be shifted to how many fighters in their employ actually require TRT and how many of them are just using it as an excuse to boost their testosterone prior to fights. 

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