According to ESPN, UFC welterweight linchpin Georges St-Pierre’s return to the Octagon could happen sooner than the envisaged date of November. “I feel very good. I’m ahead of schedule,” St-Pierre said. “I feel sometimes I want to do a litt…
According to ESPN, UFC welterweight linchpin Georges St-Pierre’s return to the Octagon could happen sooner than the envisaged date of November.
“I feel very good. I’m ahead of schedule,” St-Pierre said. “I feel sometimes I want to do a little bit more but even though I feel good my graft is not fused properly, 100 percent.
“I need to remain calm. The danger with a lot of athletes is to push through the pain and try to go too fast. If I do so, it might loosen up the graft and I might have to start the old process again and I don’t want to do that.”
St-Pierre’s (22-2 MMA, 16-2 UFC) last outing was a unanimous decision win over Jake Shields at UFC 129 back in April of 2011.
Following that victory, he was slated to throw hands with Nick Diaz at UFC 137. However, that never came to fruition as Diaz was bounced from the main event and St-Pierre incurred an injury to his knee.
He was then scheduled to face off against Carlos Condit at UFC 143—Diaz’s replacement for the headline act at UFC 137. However, that went up in smoke when the Diaz defeated B.J. Penn at the aforementioned event and then proceeded to call out St-Pierre, who willing obliged. With UFC President Dana White’s seal of approval, the match was made.
However, the fight never transpired, as St-Pierre fell victim to an injury yet again—a torn ACL and MCL damage to his right knee.
As St-Pierre was out on the sidelines for an indeterminate period, an interim welterweight title clash was set up between Diaz and Condit, with the winner earning a shot at the 170-pound crown.
Though St. Pierre was wishing for a Diaz victory, it was Condit who triumphed on fight night, making him the person he’ll now defend his belt against if all goes well in his second stint at recuperating from injury.
For additional information, follow Nedu Obi on Twitter.
In a recent interview with Tatame, UFC heavyweight champion Junior Dos Santos claims that Anderson Silva is the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world of mixed martial arts. […] “We gotta recognize and thank Anderson Silva for all he’s…
[…] “We gotta recognize and thank Anderson Silva for all he’s done for the sport, for all the doors he opened. Anderson is the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, and nobody can deny it.”
Dos Santos also shared his thoughts on the monetary aspect of the sport (past and present) with regards to what he and his Brazilian counterparts received in payment for services rendered.
In addition, he gives his insight into what it entails to be a fighter and makes a comparison between the sport of MMA and soccer. Furthermore, he appraises the current state of MMA in Brazil as well as the misconceptions surrounding its continued development in his country.
How do you see the worship of Brazilian fighters in terms of the purses they get?
Thank God it’s better now, but it has to do even more. I’ve fought for a R$ 300 purse, but the winner would get a R$ 1000 bonus for the victory. Thank God I won two fights and earned R$ 2300. The conditions are still bad in Brazil. I have many friends who fight for R$ 500, which is nothing compared to what he had to invest to get prepared for that fight.
It’s outrageous for such a magnificent sport that demands much dedication. MMA is not for everyone. A fighter must have blood in his eyes, and it has to be worshiped. You see many times in soccer, a non-expressive player winning great amount of money who doesn’t bring anything good to Brazil. Many are seen as drunks who set bad examples; while fighters raise the Brazilian image, go through hard times and have to do other things in order to survive. It’s a shame.
But things are changing, thanks to the moment that Anderson Silva, Jose Aldo and I’m living in the sport.
We gotta recognize and thank Anderson Silva for all he’s done for the sport, for all the doors he opened. Anderson is the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world and nobody can deny it.
How do you evaluate the growth of MMA in Brazil?
Thank God MMA is going through a special moment, and that’s excellent mainly for us fighters, and for everybody who works with the sport. TUF coming to Brazil will also create many opportunities for fighters who dream about fighting in the UFC. Now the kids don’t dream about becoming soccer players, they all wanna become MMA fighters. I’m really happy it is happening with the sport. UFC releasing this game here in Sao Paulo is cool, especially being hosted at Pretorian, which is a branch that embraced the sport and has been helping many Brazilian athletes. It feels like home.
Do you believe Brazil is ready to see MMA grow even more?
I’m sure it is, people just gotta believe it more. It doesn’t matter how much we talk about it on the news, it doesn’t matter it’s getting big, there are still few managers who really believe it. It may not seem like that, but there’s still prejudice towards MMA as a violent sport. The sport needs this aggressiveness. I can guarantee you there’s no such thing, because the athletes are really well-prepared to be in there, and they know what is going on. We have to take the leap and make the entrepreneurs really look at the sport so they believe in us. I know it’s better, but it could do a lot better.
“Cigano” made his debut for the Zuffa-based company almost four years ago in the co-main event at UFC 90. There he would register his primary win—a first-round KO of fellow compatriot and submission expert Fabricio Werdum.
He followed that up with impressive victories against Stefan Struve, Mirko Filipovic, Gilbert Yvel and Gabriel Gonzaga, before going on to win unanimous decisions against Roy Nelson and Shane Carwin, the latter of which set him up for a championship bout with Cain Velasquez at the inaugural UFC on Fox event.
Thus far, the Brazilian is 14-1 MMA and 8-0 in the UFC, with his sole loss coming via armbar submission, courtesy of Joaquim Ferreira, someone he’d already defeated in his fourth professional bout.
Dos Santos is currently convalescing following a knee injury and is expected to defend his title against former Strikeforce heavyweight champion and No. 1 contender Alistair Overeem in the summer of 2012.
For additional information, follow Nedu Obi on Twitter.
Against a worthy opponent in Diego Sanchez, the rising star that is Jake Ellenberger more than held his own in the main event of UFC on Fuel 1. Winning via unanimous decision, “The Juggernaut” now finds himself in that enviable position of …
Against a worthy opponent in Diego Sanchez, the rising star that is Jake Ellenberger more than held his own in the main event of UFC on Fuel 1. Winning via unanimous decision, “The Juggernaut” now finds himself in that enviable position of legitimate title contender.
The matchup per se brought to the fore the true warrior in the 28-year-old Ellenberger—taking nothing away from Sanchez, because he’s always worn his heart on his sleeve and on fight night he gave as good as he got, which almost resulted in him being declared the winner in the final frame when he took the back of the former marine.
Now that the Juggernaut has passed one of his sternest tests to date, does he move one rung up the ladder?
Yes, he could, if there were a rung left to set his foot on. But unfortunately, the No. 1 and 2 spots are, at present, monopolized by the UFC’s welterweight kingpin Georges St-Pierre and interim title holder Carlos Condit.
That however, leaves Ellenberger (27-5 MMA, 6-1 UFC) in his current location of No. 3-ranked 170-pounder.
Though, that could easily change by or before the year’s end if either St-Pierre or Condit were to lose their projected fight, or if the latter came unstuck whilst the Canadian was still in recuperation due to his injuries.
For now, Ellenberger just needs to sit tight and hope fate deals him a few good hands—further continuing his progress to the apogee of the welterweight division.
For additional information, follow Nedu Obi on Twitter.
Jake Ellenberger went the full three rounds with Diego Sanchez in the UFC on Fuel main event welterweight clash and, with the performance he put on, it’s a sure-fire bet that he’ll soon be knocking on the door of the 170-lb. title holder, w…
Jake Ellenberger went the full three rounds with Diego Sanchez in the UFC on Fuel main event welterweight clash and, with the performance he put on, it’s a sure-fire bet that he’ll soon be knocking on the door of the 170-lb. title holder, whoever that maybe when the time comes.
Albeit, he didn’t have things all his own way against Sanchez, Ellenberger still showed why he is a force to be reckoned with in one of the most precarious divisions the Ultimate Fighting Championship has.
Thus far, the NCAA Division-ll wrestler has taken care of business—adding the likes of Mike Pyle, Jake Shields and now Sanchez to his win column, which has so far resulted in a six-fight winning streak for “The Juggernaut.”
His only hiccup in the Octagon to date was his split decision defeat to Carlos Condit.
That said, which five contests could Ellenberger take next or more to the point, which fights could lead to an eventual tilt at UFC gold?
According to MMAMania, Chael Sonnen said his rematch fight against UFC middleweight titlist Anderson Silva has not been offered to him. “I have not even been offered the fight. I’ve read in the media that I’m going to have the fight. I’m telling …
“I have not even been offered the fight. I’ve read in the media that I’m going to have the fight. I’m telling people that I have the fight, but the reality is I’ve never been offered it,” Sonnen said.
The highly anticipated rematch first gained momentum back in 2010, after Sonnen’s unsuccessful tilt at the title at UFC 117—the ex-realtor was on the brink of capturing Silva’s 185-lb. crown, only to fall victim to a triangle armbar submission in the closing minutes of the final frame.
Though following the bout, Sonnen’s drug tests showed an elevated testosterone ratio in his urine, and as a result he was subsequently banned from professional MMA for 12 months (later reduced to six months on appeal).
That per se, put paid to an immediate rematch, and as a consequence, Silva (31-4 MMA, 14-0 UFC) went on to defend his title on two separate occasions—against Vitor Belfort and Yushin Okami.
On Sonnen’s (27-11-1 MMA, 6-4 UFC) return to the Octagon in October of 2011, he upended Brian Stann and in his most recent outing at UFC on Fox 2, defeated Michael Bisping to book his flight for a summer showdown with “The Spider” in Brazil.
However, as he has since intimated, that rematch was never proffered to him, which contradicts what UFC president Dana White said at the UFC 143 post-fight press conference—that both Sonnen and Silva had verbally agreed to the rematch.
Though, whether Sonnen was offered the fight or not, Silva still doesn’t believe he’s entitled to a rematch as he told the LA Times.
“In my opinion, Chael doesn’t deserve a rematch, but I’m ready for this fight. I’ll go back to my home, with my family, remembering Chael disrespects the people of Brazil, and start my focus on this fight.”
For additional information, follow Nedu Obi on Twitter.
In a recent interview with MMAWeekly Radio, women’s mixed martial artist and Strikeforce resident, Ronda “Rowdy” Rousey let rip on her thoughts of marijuana and Nick Diaz. The debate as to whether athletes should be suspended for posi…
In a recent interview with MMAWeekly Radio, women’s mixed martial artist and Strikeforce resident, Ronda “Rowdy” Rousey let rip on her thoughts of marijuana and Nick Diaz.
With regards to Rousey, she is totally against the idea of the NSAC (Nevada State Athletic Commission) testing for cannabis and deems it an invasion of athletes’ privacy and a breach of their constitutional rights.
The 25-year-old judoka also thinks NSAC are being overly officious in order to make athletes kowtow to their version of what is right.
Secondly, she believes that marijuana isn’t a performance enhancing drug and anyone who suggests otherwise has either never dabbled in marijuana or contested a fight.
Conversely, Rousey (4-0 MMA) made it crystal clear that she was wholly anti any type of performance enhancing drugs.
However, on the subject of Diaz and his ongoing marijuana dilemma, she gave the Stocktonian her full support.
“…it’s not like he’s breaking any laws, he has prescription, it’s been given to him by a doctor in California where it’s legal. It doesn’t help him to be a better fighter,” Rousey said.
The 145-pound fighter also claimed that the topic of smoking marijuana was akin to the elephant in the room.
Rousey is scheduled to face off against reigning Strikeforce women’s bantamweight champion Meisha Tate on Mar. 3, 2012, at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio.
For additional information, follow Nedu Obi on Twitter.
According to ESPN, UFC welterweight linchpin Georges St-Pierre’s return to the Octagon could happen sooner than the envisaged date of November.