It’s deja vu in the MMA world as Josh Thomson claims that his phone was stolen after his twitter issued an inflammatory call-out of Nick Diaz early this morning.
Stern words, sterner than Thomson is usually known for (unless he’s talking about gay marriage). July 26th, in case you forgot, is the date of UFC on FOX 12, located in Thomson’s hometown of San Jose.
Thomson sent out a series of tweets several hours later, claiming that his phone was stolen and that he’d never tweet such sordid things:
(Photo via Getty)
It’s deja vu in the MMA world as Josh Thomson claims that his phone was stolen after his twitter issued an inflammatory call-out of Nick Diaz early this morning.
Stern words, sterner than Thomson is usually known for (unless he’s talking about gay marriage). July 26th, in case you forgot, is the date of UFC on FOX 12, located in Thomson’s hometown of San Jose.
Thomson sent out a series of tweets several hours later, claiming that his phone was stolen and that he’d never tweet such sordid things:
What’s the CagePotato verdict? Meh. The tweet, while crass, was ultimately benign. It’s not like he was pulling a Jon Jones. Furthermore, Thomson’s reaction to it was swift and consistent. Unlike Jones, he didn’t give a dozen different excuses ranging from a rogue PR firm to a hacked phone. Was Thomson telling the truth though? That’s a little harder to tell. It’s pretty miraculous that the thief was an MMA fan knowledgeable enough not only to know Nick Diaz was from Stockton, but that UFC on FOX 12 took place on the 26th and in San Jose. Maybe Thomson called out Diaz in an alcohol induced haze? The tweet was written at about 4 am, after all. MMA historian and Bleacher Report lead writer Jonathan Snowden put it a little more succinctly:
We’ll add any updates as they come. Until then, we’ll be working on a database of all the times phones were hacked and stolen in MMA.
(“I’m telling you people, this is the most stacked UFC card OF ALL TIME!” / Photo via Getty)
Like price sticker residue on a prized picture frame, these myths refused to be scrubbed away. You’ll encounter them on forums, barroom discussions, and even from the mouths of so-called experts. What myths are these? We’re glad you asked…
By CagePotato.com Staff
1. MMA wouldn’t exist without Dana White. Wrong. See here.
2. Royce Gracie was a humble, respectful warrior. [Ed’s note: Hopefully there’s been enoughrecentevidence to put this falsehood to bed until the end of time.]
3. Chuck Liddell in his prime would have destroyed ________.
4. MMA has nothing in common with professional wrestling.
5. [Celebrity with zero combat sports experience] would make a great MMA fighter!
6. Motivated BJ Penn could/still can beat anybody.
(“I’m telling you people, this is the most stacked UFC card OF ALL TIME!” / Photo via Getty)
Like price sticker residue on a prized picture frame, these myths refused to be scrubbed away. You’ll encounter them on forums, barroom discussions, and even from the mouths of so-called experts. What myths are these? We’re glad you asked…
By CagePotato.com Staff
1. MMA wouldn’t exist without Dana White. Wrong. See here.
2. Royce Gracie was a humble, respectful warrior. [Ed’s note: Hopefully there’s been enoughrecentevidence to put this falsehood to bed until the end of time.]
3. Chuck Liddell in his prime would have destroyed ________.
4. MMA has nothing in common with professional wrestling.
5. [Celebrity with zero combat sports experience] would make a great MMA fighter!
6. Motivated BJ Penn could/still can beat anybody.
MMA is the ultimate “nice guys finish last” sport. It’s called prize fighting for a reason, and “I respect him; he’s a great opponent” doesn’t sell.
This is no secret. Just look at how Chael Sonnen—a perennial mid-carder who nobody knew or cared about—resurrected his career with carefully executed, bombastic trash talk.
Why am I telling you this if it’s common sense? Because it’s only common sense to people who appreciate MMA for what it is—real-life pro wrestling. Unfortunately, most hardcore MMA fans (and some media members) refuse to see it this way. They either believe in a non-existent code of honor, or an even less corporeal competitive architecture. “It’s a sport,” they maintain. “It should be only about competition. Besides, who wouldn’t want to see the best fighters go at it, even if they have less charisma than a light bulb?” The answer to that question: Most of the country.
There’s a sport with no flash, no glitz, and none of the other maligned “entertainment” trappings of the UFC and the WWE. It’s called amateur wrestling, and nobody watches it. MMA turning into amateur wrestling hurts the fighters. If there’s no viewers, there’s no money. It’s crazy that people still need to be reminded of this, but selling the fight is equally as important as fighting the fight. To quote The Simpsons, “Every good scientist is half B.F. Skinner and half P.T. Barnum.”
MMA is the ultimate “nice guys finish last” sport. It’s called prize fighting for a reason, and “I respect him; he’s a great opponent” doesn’t sell.
This is no secret. Just look at how Chael Sonnen—a perennial mid-carder who nobody knew or cared about—resurrected his career with carefully executed, bombastic trash talk.
Why am I telling you this if it’s common sense? Because it’s only common sense to people who appreciate MMA for what it is—real-life pro wrestling. Unfortunately, most hardcore MMA fans (and some media members) refuse to see it this way. They either believe in a non-existent code of honor, or an even less corporeal competitive architecture. “It’s a sport,” they maintain. “It should be only about competition. Besides, who wouldn’t want to see the best fighters go at it, even if they have less charisma than a light bulb?” The answer to that question: Most of the country.
There’s a sport with no flash, no glitz, and none of the other maligned “entertainment” trappings of the UFC and the WWE. It’s called amateur wrestling, and nobody watches it. MMA turning into amateur wrestling hurts the fighters. If there’s no viewers, there’s no money. It’s crazy that people still need to be reminded of this, but selling the fight is equally as important as fighting the fight. To quote The Simpsons, “Every good scientist is half B.F. Skinner and half P.T. Barnum.”
Chael Sonnen understood this. And so does boxing superstar Floyd Mayweather Jr. Remember when Mayweather said he was interested in buying the L.A. Clippers after the Donald Sterling fiasco? That’s brilliant promotion; he injected himself into a highly volatile, nation-wide story and in doing so drew more eyeballs onto his upcoming fight. Then there’s the chicanery about cancelling the fight over gloves, which was another great way to build buzz.
Bethe Correia is another example. After defeating Jessamyn Duke at UFC 172, she mocked Ronda Rousey‘s “four horsewomen” (ugh) stable with a gesture, putting up four fingers and then knocking one down. Now it’s a legitimate plot in a division that typically serves as a promotional vehicle for Ronda Rousey. Bethe Correia stood out in a weight class of sacrificial lambs because she said something interesting when she opened her mouth.
Of course, trash talk doesn’t always work (see: Phil Davis), but the rewards far outweigh the risks. More fighters need to embrace their brazen sides, lest they fade into the abyss of generic, video game create-a-fighter lookalikes that is the UFC’s current roster.
This is the jackpot, Potato Nation. It’s the most god-awful Martial Arts Fail we’ve ever seen.
Before you keep reading, watch the video. Our words can’t do it justice. It epitomizes the unfortunate but ever-present fraudulent side of martial arts. For every legitimate school teaching people how to defend themselves, there are 1,000 schools teaching the kind of complete crap in the video.
Did you watch it yet? Because you really need to.
The guy in the video is no martial artist. He’s a conman who calls himself Ashida Kim. Bullshido.net, a website dedicated to exposing martial arts fraud, performed an in-depth investigation on Kim, who’s real name is Radford W. Davis. In addition to peddling this deadly ninja master bullshit, Kim/Davis also mails out phony martial arts certifications. An investigator from Bullshido even managed to get a certificate saying he was a black belt in Vale Tudo from Kim/Davis.
Feeling like you wanna punch this guy yet? Well, he’s got a plan for that. It’s called the $10,000 Challenge, which includes such stipulations as posting a $25,000 “appearance bond” to make sure you don’t skip town as well as paying Kim $10,000 to show, as well as footing the bill for his lodging and food. Nice.
Oh, and this guy also claims he can levitate. Watch the video of him attempting to do so after the jump.
This is the jackpot, Potato Nation. It’s the most god-awful Martial Arts Fail we’ve ever seen.
Before you keep reading, watch the video. Our words can’t do it justice. It epitomizes the unfortunate but ever-present fraudulent side of martial arts. For every legitimate school teaching people how to defend themselves, there are 1,000 schools teaching the kind of complete crap in the video.
Did you watch it yet? Because you really need to.
The guy in the video is no martial artist. He’s a conman who calls himself Ashida Kim. Bullshido.net, a website dedicated to exposing martial arts fraud, performed an in-depth investigation on Kim, who’s real name is Radford W. Davis. In addition to peddling this deadly ninja master bullshit, Kim/Davis also mails out phony martial arts certifications. An investigator from Bullshido even managed to get a certificate saying he was a black belt in Vale Tudo from Kim/Davis.
Feeling like you wanna punch this guy yet? Well, he’s got a plan for that. It’s called the $10,000 Challenge, which includes such stipulations as posting a $25,000 “appearance bond” to make sure you don’t skip town as well as paying Kim $10,000 to show, and also footing the bill for his lodging and food. Nice.
Oh, and this guy also claims he can levitate:
Can it possibly get worse than this?
If you see any video that’s good (or bad) enough to make the cut, let us know! Send it to [email protected].
Bellator 118 is Bellator season 10’s penultimate event. Joe Warren had a chance to claim the interim bantamweight title if he beat Rafael Silva. And that wording is deliberate. Silva missed weight, so if he won, Bellator wouldn’t award him the title. It was only a championship fight for Warren. Semifinal bouts for the welterweight tournament and summer series light heavyweight tournament took place as well.
What fights should you fast forward when you watch this card on your DVR and which ones should you watch intently? Read on and find out.
Bellator 118 is Bellator season 10′s penultimate event. Joe Warren had a chance to claim the interim bantamweight title if he beat Rafael Silva. And that wording is deliberate. Silva missed weight, so if he won, Bellator wouldn’t award him the title. It was only a championship fight for Warren. Semifinal bouts for the welterweight tournament and summer series light heavyweight tournament took place as well.
What fights should you fast forward when you watch this card on your DVR and which ones should you watch intently? Read on and find out.
British light heavyweight prospect Liam McGeary is on many a radar in MMA (including ours), and has been since Bellator season 9. He took on Mike Mucitelli in the first of the Summer Series tournaments.
Round 1: Mucitelli hit a double leg, but McGeary reversed it and landed in mount. Mucitelli managed to escape mount and return to his feet, but it didn’t matter. McGeary hit a hook that lawnchair’d Mucitelli. It was like turning off a light switch. All strength left Mucitelli’s body and he collapsed lifeless to the canvas like an intern who’s just been told they’re not getting hired. This one warrants posting the GIF (via Zombie Prophet).
Round 1: Not much action after the first minute, but then Galvao rushed Vasquez, secured a body lock, and slammed him. Galvao wasn’t able to make much use of the takedown though. Vasquez returned to his feet midway through the round, and landed a handful of stiff jabs to boot. Vasquez bum-rushed Galvao with a flurry of inaccurate punches, then clinched him. This was a mistake as Galvao hit a gorgeous throw. Vasquez immediately got to his feet though, and then took down Galvao, who got up quickly as well. Vasquez rushed Galvao again and it looked like he almost pulled guard, which was a very questionable decision. Not much else happened in the last 30 seconds. Galvao landed some ground and pound.
Round 2: Galvao landed an overhand right to counter Vasquez’s lazy jab. Vasquez hit a decent left hook. His footwork allowed him to stay out of Galvao’s range, but he never capitalized on it. He’d either throw one punch at a time or a messy flurry. Vasquez moved in to trade but Galvao timed a double-leg perfectly and slammed him to the mat with authority. After like two minutes of stalling, Vasquez got back up…only to be taken down again and for more ineffective ground and pound and guard passing to take place. Vasquez gets up again as the round ends in a front face-lock. Vasquez keeps one hand on the ground to avoid a knee but Galvao throws two of them anyway. The ref doesn’t give a shit. Cool.
Round 3: Both dudes missed basically all their strikes for the first two minutes. Galvao grabbed a body lock and got takedown. He took Vasquez’s back and attempted a rear-nakd choke; he couldn’t clinch it. The second attempt failed too. The other 500 attempts fail too. Right as the round ends, Vasquez escapes and sits in Galvao’s guard, throwing weak punches. Galvao earned a decision victory.
This welterweight tournament semifinal was originally supposed to feature Andrey Koreshkov vs. Sam Oropeza–and it was supposed to take place at Bellator 115. Alas, Oropeza weighed in heavy at 172.4 pounds. He was unable to make weight after given an hour, and was replaced by Justin Baesman. And there were about 45 minutes of commercials before this fight. Holy shit.
Round 1: Koreshkov started off throwing an array of kicks from the outside, but didn’t land any too convincingly. His hands worked better. He hit a nice combo topped off with an uppercut. Koreshkov threw a spinning back kick that nearly landed, and then threw a wild flurry followed up by a flying knee that knocked Baesman out cold. Squash match, but what else do you expect from a late replacement jobber?
Round 1: Joe Warren clinched immediately but it was Silva that got the takedown and slam. Then he took Warren’s back, but Warren exploded out of the position and rose back to his feet…only for Silva to press him up the cage for the next few minutes. Surprisingly, Silva dominated the clinch work for the first few minutes, that was until Warren landed a giant knee to the body. Silva backed off after that, then Warren nearly locked up a guillotine. The two got back up. After a lull, Silva started spamming right hands and hurt Warren badly. Warren landed a desperation takedown that saved his consciousness with about a minute to go, and then nothing happened on the ground while the round ended.
Round 2: Warren through a shitty flying knee and almost paid for it with his consciousness a la Andrei Arlovski. Warren hit a double leg, but Silva stood up about 20 seconds after getting taken down. Both fighters look gassed, but Silva looks worse. Despite being tired, Silva hits a spinning back kick to the body, and then a stiff uppercut. Warren took Silva down again but Silva used his butterflies to sweep warren and return to his feet. Silva turned up the volume with his strikes, landing right hands at will. Silva caught Warren in the air during a flying knee and threw him to the floor. Silva attempted a spinning back kick as a follow-up but got taken down off it. Like with every other take down in this fight, Silva got up almost immediately. Then he turned the tables on warren and took him down. The round ends after a pattern of both guys taking each other down and getting up.
Round 3: Warren hit Silva with a massive right hand that wobbled him, then attempted an awful-looking flying round kick. Warren stepped into a right hand, then threw a massive overhand right of his own which missed. Warren ate a big right, but then shot a double-leg and landed it. This time Silva didn’t get up right away; he was tired. Warren landed some elbows. He’d occasionally stack Silva but would never land any great ground and pound from the position. Silva went for an arm-bar but it failed; Warren’s arm wasn’t deep enough. Warren finished the round on top in side control. This was pretty brutal in terms of entertainment value.
Round 4: Warren pressed Silva immediately and took him down. Unlike last round, Silva got back up, then tried a takedown of his own. The two battled in the clinch for a little bit before Warren wrestled a breathing-heavy Silva to the mat. He took Silva’s back, then switched to mount, but couldn’t keep it. Cue the same pattern of get up-clinch-get taken down and repeat. Warren tried a pro wrestling pile driver but didn’t have the strength left. Warren took Silva’s back right as the round ended.
Round 5: This round was basically the same as the last one. I don’t wanna use the term “lay and pray” but ugh. About half way through the fight Warren hit an illegal knee in the clinch while Silva had his hands on the mat. The Joe Warren clinch/ground smother continues. The fight ends. Warren wins a decision and the interim bantamweight belt.
Here are the complete results:
Main Card
Joe Warren def. Rafael Silva via unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47, 48-47)
Andrey Koreshkov def. Justin Baesman via KO (flying knee), 1:41 of round 1.
Marcos Galvao def. Thomas Vasquez via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Liam McGeary def. Mike Mucitelli via KO (punch), 0:20 of round 1
Preliminary Card
Dante Rivera def. Gemiyale Adkins via majority decision (29-29, 30-27, 30-27)
Jesus Martinez def. Ryan Caltaldi via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-26)
Tim Woods def. Eugene Fadiora via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
Darrion Caldwell def. Joe Pingitore via submission (rear-naked choke), 1:32 of round 1
Lester Caslow def. Jay Haas via submission (guillotine choke), 2:29 of round 1
Sidney Outlaw def. Mike Bannon via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Kevin Roddy def. Amran Aliyev via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Note: This timeline of MMA’s history is extremely abridged for the sake of brevity. If you’re interested in the topic, Jonathan Snowden’s Total MMA and Shooters, and Clyde Gentry’s No Holds Barred cover MMA history in detail better than I ever could.
684 BCE: Pankration—a hybrid martial art whose name means “all powers”—is introduced into the Olympic games.
19th century: Various mixed rules contests take place throughout the United States, ultimately morphing into what we now call professional wrestling. (Seriously, I can’t recommend Shooters enough for information about this phase of combat sports’ evolution.)
1898: Edward William Barton-Wright invents Bartitsu–a martial art combining boxing, judo, savate, and stick fighting and one of the first dedicated “mixed martial arts” in the entire world. This mixing of styles occurs 42 years before the birth of Bruce Lee, the so-called “father of MMA.”
1905: President Theodore Roosevelt conceptualizes MMA on a whim in a letter to his son, Kermit. “With a little practice in [jiu-jitsu], I am sure that one of our big wrestlers or boxers, simply because of his greatly superior strength, would be able to kill any of those Japanese,” he says in reference to watching a Japanese grappler submit an American wrestler named Joseph Grant.
1914: Judo ambassador and all around tough guy Mitsuyo Maeda arrives in Brazil. In the coming years, he’ll begin teaching the Gracie family judo techniques, planting the seeds for BJJ.
Early-mid 20th century:Vale Tudo competitions emerge in Brazil, and ultimately gain popularity. The Gracie family rises to prominence and enjoys success in these “everything allowed” contests.
Note: This timeline of MMA’s history is extremely abridged for the sake of brevity. If you’re interested in the topic, Jonathan Snowden’s Total MMA and Shooters, and Clyde Gentry’s No Holds Barred cover MMA history in detail better than I ever could.
684 BCE: Pankration—a hybrid martial art whose name means “all powers”—is introduced into the Olympic games.
19th century: Various mixed rules contests take place throughout the United States, ultimately morphing into what we now call professional wrestling. (Seriously, I can’t recommend Shooters enough for information about this phase of combat sports’ evolution.)
1898: Edward William Barton-Wright invents Bartitsu–a martial art combining boxing, judo, savate, and stick fighting and one of the first dedicated “mixed martial arts” in the entire world. This mixing of styles occurs 42 years before the birth of Bruce Lee, the so-called “father of MMA.”
1905: President Theodore Roosevelt conceptualizes MMA on a whim in a letter to his son, Kermit. “With a little practice in [jiu-jitsu], I am sure that one of our big wrestlers or boxers, simply because of his greatly superior strength, would be able to kill any of those Japanese,” he says in reference to watching a Japanese grappler submit an American wrestler named Joseph Grant.
1914: Judo ambassador and all around tough guy Mitsuyo Maeda arrives in Brazil. In the coming years, he’ll begin teaching the Gracie family judo techniques, planting the seeds for BJJ.
Early-mid 20th century:Vale Tudo competitions emerge in Brazil, and ultimately gain popularity. The Gracie family rises to prominence and enjoys success in these “everything allowed” contests.
1960s: Bruce Lee founds Jeet Kune Do and makes loads of movies. While these films raise awareness of the martial arts in general, they warp America’s perception of hand-to-hand combat for decades. Fighting becomes flashy kicks and punches–the antithesis of real unarmed combat–to much of the nation.
685 BCE-1960 CE: There is a great void in all martial arts. Boxers do not wrestle. Wrestlers do not box. Judo fighters don’t even know what a kick is. The art of fighting is mired in complete and total darkness. Innovation is nowhere to be found. Not a soul on earth has ever even begun to think about mixing styles.
1960s: Bruce Lee founds Jeet Kune Do and in doing so becomes the first man in human history to combine the tenets and techniques from different fighting systems.
1973: Bruce Lee passes away and the concept of “mixed martial arts” dies along with him.
1987: Ronda Rousey is born. She armbars the doctor who pulls her from the womb.
1993: The UFC is founded and holds their first event. Something about a guy named Gracie.
1994-2000: The original owners of the UFC (those who shall not be named) nearly kill MMA by not introducing a single reform into the sport. Not only is the UFC “human cockfighting” under their tenure, but it’s worthy of every other unpleasantry in the entire universe.
2001: Zuffa purchases the UFC, rescuing it (and MMA by extension) right as it was about to disappear from the face of the earth once and for all. The UFC’s new owners introduce rules to the sport—a novel concept that had never, ever been tried in MMA until then.
Early 2000s: Dana White saves MMA. We’re not really clear on when this happened, just that it did.
2004: The UFC light heavyweight title materializes around the waist of Vitor Belfort after a session of prayer, but disappears just as quickly. Who are [censored], [censored], and [censored]?
2005: The UFC Light Heavyweight title is bestowed upon Chuck Liddell with divine blessing. Dana White invents The Ultimate Fighter, which ushers in an age of unparalleled growth and popularity.
2006: The UFC becomes bigger than the NFL.
2007: Zuffa purchases Pride, signaling the beginning of MMA’s new golden age analogous to the NFL’s golden age after the AFL-NFL merger.
2010: The UFC becomes bigger than soccer. Riots break out in the UK when Michael Bisping loses to Wanderlei Silva.
2012: Ronda Rousey signs with the UFC and instantly becomes the biggest star the sport has ever seen. Jon Jones faces his toughest test ever.
2013: Ronda Rousey travels back through time to invent the Olympic Games. She wins the UFC Women’s bantamweight championship the night of her return. Jon Jones faces his toughest test ever (seeing a pattern?).
