Author: Mike Hodges

‘Believe Your Eyes’ Video Featuring Jon Jones

UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones is one of the UFC’s rising stars and is a talent to watch perform in the Octagon.Having successfully defended the 205-pound crown twice, Jones looks to solidify his reign as an undisputed champion and one of the…

UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones is one of the UFC’s rising stars and is a talent to watch perform in the Octagon.

Having successfully defended the 205-pound crown twice, Jones looks to solidify his reign as an undisputed champion and one of the best fighters in the sport. 

The UFC has released a promo via YouTube featuring Jones in his most recent title defense against Lyoto Machida at UFC 140. It shows the champion dispatch of the former title holder, Machida, in emphatic fashion by submitting him with a standing guillotine in the second round.

Although it is brief, the trailer easily capitalizes on Jones’ dominance inside the Octagon and the UFC will continue to build his image as a young phenom ahead of his upcoming title bout against Rashad Evans at UFC 145. 

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Rashad Evans Says Experience with Jon Jones Gives Him Confidence to Win

Rashad Evans’ past with Jon Jones has the former UFC light heavyweight champion feeling very confident in his skills to dethrone the 24-year-old and recapture the title.The two former teammates spent a considerable amount of time training out of Greg J…

Rashad Evans‘ past with Jon Jones has the former UFC light heavyweight champion feeling very confident in his skills to dethrone the 24-year-old and recapture the title.

The two former teammates spent a considerable amount of time training out of Greg Jackson’s Mixed Martial Arts in New Mexico just a short time ago. Eventually both competitors would have to square off at some point, causing a rift between them, which forced Evans to switch camps.

But as Evans told UFC.com, he believes a new training camp has allowed him to evolve into a better fighter than Jones.

“I think I’ve improved more since the last time we trained together,” Evans said. “I’m in a new environment, I had to learn. He’s in the same environment, same coaches, learning the same thing.”

Evans also added that his experience training with Jones will give him an advantage in the bout and the opportunity to expose flaws in the champion’s arsenal, something that no one has come close to doing thus far.

“I know how to beat him. There are things about his game which he can’t change. The fact that we used to train together gives me a lot of confidence,” he said. “I see a lot of spaces in Jon’s game for a lot of different things.”

Evans has obviously become a much more complete fighter than he was during his tenure with his former camp in New Mexico.

However, Jones has too. 

It will be intriguing to see if Evans’ time away from Greg Jackson has benefited him, or if Jones is the superior fighter to “Suga.” 

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Anderson Silva Disagrees With Decision to Give Chael Sonnen a Rematch

Anderson Silva is prepared to defend his middleweight title against Chael Sonnen in a rematch from their first encounter at UFC 117 nearly two years ago, but that doesn’t mean he is keen on the idea.Sonnen has continuously belittled and disrespected Si…

Anderson Silva is prepared to defend his middleweight title against Chael Sonnen in a rematch from their first encounter at UFC 117 nearly two years ago, but that doesn’t mean he is keen on the idea.

Sonnen has continuously belittled and disrespected Silva in every way imaginable, to the point where the Brazilian has forced himself to accept the bout.

In an exclusive interview with SporTV (Courtesy of Bloodyelbow.com), Silva was quite genuine in his response and he was opposed to the idea of facing Sonnen once again.

“(What does Chael Sonnen represent for my career?) Nothing!,” Silva said. “I respect the opinions and the positions of the promoters of the fight and the owners of the event, but in my opinion he shouldn’t get the chance to fight me again.” 

Since Sonnen has solidified himself as the No.1 contender and surfaced back into the media with trash-talk, Silva has become agitated and frustrated. 

The event is presumed to be held in Brazil, tentatively scheduled for UFC 147 in June. Despite Silva’s best attempts to disregard his opponent’s remarks, Sonnen’s words continue to anger the champion, which will likely lead to a very entertaining build-up prior to their highly-anticipated bout later this year.

Silva said he feels Sonnen has crossed the line with some of his antics and has shown nothing but disrespect towards him and to the sport. 

“He disrespected our idols that made history in the world of sports, such as Lance Armstrong. This guy is complicated, he’s got personal issues,” he said. “If any Brazilian would be in the position that he finds himself in, if they would talk about the US as he does about Brazil and the American idols, we wouldn’t even have the same opportunities of going in their country or talking to the American media.”

Silva has clearly become fed up with Sonnen and will only continue to express his disinterest in fighting him again. “The Spider” is known for his quiet demeanor, but lately his tone has changed and it has brought out a different side in Silva that fans are not used to seeing.

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Georges St-Pierre Releases Second Video in ‘Road to Recovery’ Series

Georges St-Pierre continues to work his way back to the UFC from his current rehabilitation stint, which has kept him out of action since last year.The UFC welterweight champion released a second video in “Road to Recovery” series on YouTube, which fea…

Georges St-Pierre continues to work his way back to the UFC from his current rehabilitation stint, which has kept him out of action since last year.

The UFC welterweight champion released a second video in “Road to Recovery” series on YouTube, which features GSP training and doing multiple knee-related exercises.

St-Pierre has been on the sidelines since October after suffering a knee injury, which forced him to pull out of bouts aganst Nick Diaz and Carlos Condit.

The champion has stated he is making good progress in his rehabilitation, and that he hopes to return to face interim champ Carlos Condit in November this year.

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Cesar Gracie: Gilbert Melendez Wants Anthony Pettis or BJ Penn in Next Fight

In a recent Twitter post, Gilbert Melendez’s manager Cesar Gracie said the Strikeforce lightweight champion is confirmed to fight on the next Strikeforce card, scheduled for May 19, but an opponent has yet to be named.But if Team Gracie Jiu-Jitsu get t…

In a recent Twitter post, Gilbert Melendez‘s manager Cesar Gracie said the Strikeforce lightweight champion is confirmed to fight on the next Strikeforce card, scheduled for May 19, but an opponent has yet to be named.

But if Team Gracie Jiu-Jitsu get their wish, it could be one of the top contenders at 155 pounds.

“@ufc Gil is fighting May 19th. I hope Penn or Pettis,” Gracie wrote.

Melendez is one of the few Strikeforce standouts remaining, and it is likely that he moves to the UFC at some point within the year. However, the idea of seeing either BJ Penn or Anthony Pettis drop to maintain some star power in the division is questionable. 

Penn is still in retirement following his loss to Melendez’s fellow teammate, Nick Diaz, at UFC 137, and Pettis is riding momentum after coming off a knockout victory over Joe Lauzon at UFC 144.

It is possible to see Pettis earn himself a title shot after being denied his opportunity at a title shot against UFC lightweight champion Benson Henderson, considering he feels he is deserving of one, but it isn’t worth demoting himself to a second-tier organization.

Melendez’s next possible opponent could be a rematch against Josh Thomson but not many fans feel Thomson is a worthy opponent from a business perspective.

But if Pettis or any 155-pound challenger is willing to make the transition to Strikeforce for a title shot, it could provide for some intriguing matchups in the future.

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Anderson Silva and Dana White Feud Over Teammates Fighting Each Other

The notion of seeing two teammates squaring off against each other, who also happen to compete in the same weight class, might be an ideal matchup for some fans.But the idea hasn’t sat well with some of those fighters who have been persuaded to partici…

The notion of seeing two teammates squaring off against each other, who also happen to compete in the same weight class, might be an ideal matchup for some fans.

But the idea hasn’t sat well with some of those fighters who have been persuaded to participate, particularly Anderson Silva.

Silva has been caught in the center of this topic and he has refused to involve himself in any sort of altercation between himself and his teammates.

In an exclusive interview with SporTV, (courtesy of BloodyElbow.com) Silva said that he values the honor and bond that teammates share and believes it is not necessary to potentially damage it in order to satisfy the fans and UFC President Dana White.

“I have nothing against Dana (White), I admire him, but he doesn’t know what this is, and he can’t say that two friends should fight,” Silva said. “We spend more time together than with our own families. We share the pains, the frustrations, and just because he wants to sell a fight that he thinks it would be cool and that the public would like to see two companions fighting.”

White responded to the champion’s comments and said as a fighter, Silva’s job is to fight whoever is put in front of him, regardless of his relationship with them.

“If they have to fight, it doesn’t mean that they don’t like each other, that they can’t be friends. It’s business, it’s what they do for a living,” White said. “Vitor used to train with him. Did you see what he did to his friend? I guarantee you that the guys that are his friends want to be like him.”

White’s aggressive approach to put on big fights can often be perceived as unethical at times. It’s his job to promote fights, but he cannot force it upon his employees to be put in an uncompromising situation that can affect their relationship with a fellow fighter and their training camp.

White’s handling of Jon Jones and Rashad Evans might be the UFC boss’ first legitimate attempt at constructing a rift between two former teammates, but it isn’t the most popular choice among the rest of the mixed martial arts community.

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