(I had no idea what image to use for this post, so since we’re talking about sports propaganda, let’s leave that to the experts. Props: sportspropaganda.com)
If only it were that simple. Perhaps you’ve read that the suspects – Tamerlan Tsarnaev and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev – trained MMA [Author note: I’m not linking to other sites that have been claiming this, Google it if you’re so curious]. Don’t bother looking for a professional record for either suspect, because it doesn’t exist. Neither does an amateur record. Or any proof that they were preparing for MMA bouts of any kind, for that matter.
(I had no idea what image to use for this post, so since we’re talking about sports propaganda, let’s leave that to the experts. Props: sportspropaganda.com)
If only it were that simple. Perhaps you’ve read that the suspects – Tamerlan Tsarnaev and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev – trained MMA [Author note: I’m not linking to other sites that have been claiming this, Google it if you’re so curious]. Don’t bother looking for a professional record for either suspect, because it doesn’t exist. Neither does an amateur record. Or any proof that they were preparing for MMA bouts of any kind, for that matter.
So, a boxer occasionally sparring at an MMA gym and a high school wrestler are MMA fighters, because ___________…and the favorite sports of two alleged terrorists are completely relevant, apparently, because ___________. If anyone can fill in those blanks, I’d greatly appreciate it.
Despite being one of many fighters released from the UFC in February, forty-two year old Vladimir “The Janitor” Matyushenko won’t be hanging up his gloves just yet. Earlier today, Bellator announced that they have signed the former IFL champion to compete at a future event. While it was announced that Matyushenko will be making his promotional debut in a non-tournament bout, neither a date for the fight nor a prospective opponent have been named yet.
In a news release posted on Bellator’s website, Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney appeared very optimistic about the signing. “Vladimir is a fighter I’ve watched for years. He’s an exciting fighter with an incredible wrestling background and a great pedigree in our sport. When the opportunity presented itself and we had the chance to have him join the Bellator family it was a very easy decision to make,” he said.
Photo courtesy of Scott Hirano/LowKick.com
Despite being one of many fighters released from the UFC in February, forty-two year old Vladimir “The Janitor” Matyushenko won’t be hanging up his gloves just yet. Earlier today, Bellator announced that they have signed the former IFL champion to compete at a future event. While it was announced that Matyushenko will be making his promotional debut in a non-tournament bout, neither a date for the fight nor a prospective opponent have been named yet.
In a news release posted on Bellator’s website, Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney appeared very optimistic about the signing. “Vladimir is a fighter I’ve watched for years. He’s an exciting fighter with an incredible wrestling background and a great pedigree in our sport. When the opportunity presented itself and we had the chance to have him join the Bellator family it was a very easy decision to make,” he said.
“With our Champion Attila Vegh sitting at the top of the mountain right now, and with guys like Emanuel Newton, Mikhail Zayats and King Mo coming on strong, the light heavyweight division for Bellator continues to evolve and Vladimir should fit in perfectly to that mix.”
Of course, Matyushenko also joins the ranks of fellow UFC washouts Seth Petruzelli and Renato “Babalu” Sobral, but let’s not talk about that right now.
Matyushenko may bring an impressive resume into his Bellator tenure, but how much of an impact can he actually make on the promotion? Bellator’s light-heavyweight division is extremely competitive, and the tournament format won’t exactly be an advantage for an aging fighter. Will “The Janitor” put together one last title run in Bellator, or will he be an also-ran in the promotion’s surprisingly deep light-heavyweight division?
(If you’re short on time, this image sums everything up pretty well.)
To say that Miesha Tate has been unhappy with the outcome of her Fight of the Night earning scrap against Cat Zingano during the TUF 17 Finale is putting things mildly. Despite controlling the first two rounds of the fight, Tate was eventually knocked out in the third round by Zingano. Tate immediately expressed that she felt that referee Kim Winslow stopped the fight early, but with Cat Zingano being sort-of busy for the time being, an immediate rematch has pretty much been out of the question.
That hasn’t exactly stopped Tate from trying. Yesterday, Tate posted a picture of herself in order to further demonstrate why she felt that the fight was stopped early, claiming that she wants a rematch against Zingano with a different referee overseeing the bout. Via Facebook:
“Post fight pic taken Monday, you all are wondering about my nose, its fine still a little swollen but im going to get the suspension lifted ASAP, and I will be back! Cant help my nose bleeds a lot still frustrated at the stoppage, think the ref freaked because of blood when she should have been focusing on the fact that I was still perfectly coherent and shooting for a takedown after two solid knees landed I was still in the fight and up on the score cards. Can’t pay enogh respect to Cat she’s a warrior & I’d love the honor of fighting her in the future again but NOT with Kim Winslow as the ref”
(If you’re short on time, this image sums everything up pretty well.)
To say that Miesha Tate has been unhappy with the outcome of her Fight of the Night earning scrap against Cat Zingano during the TUF 17 Finale is putting things mildly. Despite controlling the first two rounds of the fight, Tate was eventually knocked out in the third round by Zingano. Tate immediately expressed that she felt that referee Kim Winslow stopped the fight early, but with Cat Zingano being sort-of busy for the time being, an immediate rematch has pretty much been out of the question.
That hasn’t exactly stopped Tate from trying. Yesterday, Tate posted a picture of herself in order to further demonstrate why she felt that the fight was stopped early, claiming that she wants a rematch against Zingano with a different referee overseeing the bout. Via Facebook:
“Post fight pic taken Monday, you all are wondering about my nose, its fine still a little swollen but im going to get the suspension lifted ASAP, and I will be back! Cant help my nose bleeds a lot still frustrated at the stoppage, think the ref freaked because of blood when she should have been focusing on the fact that I was still perfectly coherent and shooting for a takedown after two solid knees landed I was still in the fight and up on the score cards. Can’t pay enogh respect to Cat she’s a warrior & I’d love the honor of fighting her in the future again but NOT with Kim Winslow as the ref”
Believe it or not, Kim Winslow didn’t exactly take the implication that she sucks at her job lying down. Despite being unable to specifically comment on the fight, Winslow issued a statement to US Combat Sports explaining her rationale behind her decision to stop fights this week. Via USCS:
“I will tell you what I tell ALL my fighters in the prefight one on ones. If I say ‘fight back’ you are in imminent danger of me stopping your fight and you have to give me a reason not to. If you respond to the command and show that you can intelligently defend yourself I will let it continue whether or not your attempts are successful. It is on you to continue to try until you are out of danger or the round has ended. When you stop attempting to get out of the situation or just go back to what got you warned in the first place it’s your way of letting me know you have had enough and I am coming in to stop it. How much time I give you is always dependent on the amount of damage you are taking. Safety is the first priority and it’s my job to make sure you come back to fight another day if you choose to. ”
Whether or not Tate was “perfectly coherent” after eating those knees from Cat Zingano is debatable. Tate may claim she felt fine – and Kim Winslow certainly has a history of questionable stoppages – but it’s easy to see why this fight was stopped when it was. For what it’s worth, Dana White – who isn’t exactly shy about criticizing incompetent referees after questionable stoppages – thought that the stoppage was fair as well.
Was this fight yet another early stoppage on Kim Winslow’s resume, or did she make the right decision stopping the action when she did?
Judging by the comments section on our TUF 17 Finale Aftermath, the majority of you felt that Travis Browne’s victory over Gabriel Gonzaga should have an asterisk next to it. Early in the fight, Gonzaga pressed Browne against the cage looking for a takedown. Browne unleashed a series of elbows to Gonzaga’s head that knocked him out just one minute and eleven seconds into the first round and earned Browne the Knockout of the Night bonus. However, as many fans have pointed out, it appeared that the elbows that ended the fight hit Gabriel Gonzaga directly in the back of the head.
Shortly after the fight, Gabriel Gonzaga’s manager, Marco Alvan, took to his Facebook page to inform fans that he would be appealing the outcome. Via Facebook:
Guys Gabriel Gonzaga is ok, thanks for the messages.
I need to review it to count how many illegal elbows but Its a fact that it was illegal.
I contacted Keith Kizer head of Nevada Athletic Comission and he told me to file a complaint and he would review it.
I true believe it was illegal. I never complaint about a losses who knows me know that I handle it good but illegal we can not accept.
In a follow-up post, Alvan also expressed his interest in setting up a rematch against Travis Browne:
Judging by the comments section on our TUF 17 Finale Aftermath, the majority of you felt that Travis Browne’s victory over Gabriel Gonzaga should have an asterisk next to it. Early in the fight, Gonzaga pressed Browne against the cage looking for a takedown. Browne unleashed a series of elbows to Gonzaga’s head that knocked him out just one minute and eleven seconds into the first round and earned Browne the Knockout of the Night bonus. However, as many fans have pointed out, it appeared that the elbows that ended the fight hit Gabriel Gonzaga directly in the back of the head.
Shortly after the fight, Gabriel Gonzaga’s manager, Marco Alvan, took to his Facebook page to inform fans that he would be appealing the outcome. Via Facebook:
Guys Gabriel Gonzaga is ok, thanks for the messages.
I need to review it to count how many illegal elbows but Its a fact that it was illegal.
I contacted Keith Kizer head of Nevada Athletic Comission and he told me to file a complaint and he would review it.
I true believe it was illegal. I never complaint about a losses who knows me know that I handle it good but illegal we can not accept.
In a follow-up post, Alvan also expressed his interest in setting up a rematch against Travis Browne:
This videois clear about the elbow [Author Note: This appears to be a video of the fourth and fifth elbows landed].
I very hope the commission look it carefully and make a correct decision about it. We respect Travis and his camp but it was a sad night. We hope this result can be fixed and get a new fight between them.
I don’t know who post it but thanks to clarify for all of us!
If you watch the ending again, you’ll see that the first two elbows landed cleanly to the side of Gonzaga’s head. The elbow that put Gonzaga out was possibly illegal, and the last three elbows clearly hit the back of the head. However, since Gonzaga was already out when they landed, they didn’t potentially affect the outcome of the fight. The NSAC’s ruling on the third elbow will more than likely decide the outcome of this case.
In the meantime, what do you think happened? Should Gonzaga get a rematch against Browne, or was he already out by the time he was hit in the back of the head?
Every UFC main event has to be about something, and when there aren’t any titles on the line, things tend to get pretty creative. Leading up to the main event of the TUF 17 Finale, the talk surrounding the bout focused on the friendship between competitors Urijah Faber and Scott Jorgensen and how it may affect the bout. Whether the two were actually the close friends that the media made them out to be was completely irrelevant; which is good, because Jorgensen revealed during fight week that they weren’t.
What we were left with was a bout between the number two and number seven ranked bantamweights that played out as expected. This isn’t to say that the fight wasn’t entertaining (it was), but Jorgensen was outgunned early and often by Faber before “The California Kid” sank in the fight ending rear-naked choke in the fourth round. It was closer than the gambling odds indicated it would be, but not exactly a close fight, and though Jorgensen managed to mount some offense of his own, he never appeared to be any real threat to Faber.
The bantamweight division is very top-heavy, which perhaps more than anything explains why Urijah Faber is seemingly always one fight away from a title shot. The gap between the top five guys and the rest of the division is wider than most fans would care to acknowledge, and it showed last night. Still, I’d rather watch Urijah Faber fight Michael McDonald than watch him get crammed into yet another title fight. I doubt I’m in the minority here – at least among hardcore fans.
Photo Courtesy of Getty Images.
Every UFC main event has to be about something, and when there aren’t any titles on the line, things tend to get pretty creative. Leading up to the main event of the TUF 17 Finale, the talk surrounding the bout focused on the friendship between competitors Urijah Faber and Scott Jorgensen and how it may affect the bout. Whether the two were actually the close friends that the media made them out to be was completely irrelevant; which is good, because Jorgensen revealed during fight week that they weren’t.
What we were left with was a bout between the number two and number seven ranked bantamweights that played out as expected. This isn’t to say that the fight wasn’t entertaining (it was), but Jorgensen was outgunned early and often by Faber before “The California Kid” sank in the fight ending rear-naked choke in the fourth round. It was closer than the gambling odds indicated it would be, but not exactly a close fight, and though Jorgensen managed to mount some offense of his own, he never appeared to be any real threat to Faber.
The bantamweight division is very top-heavy, which perhaps more than anything explains why Urijah Faber is seemingly always one fight away from a title shot. The gap between the top five guys and the rest of the division is wider than most fans would care to acknowledge, and it showed last night. Still, I’d rather watch Urijah Faber fight Michael McDonald than watch him get crammed into yet another title fight. I doubt I’m in the minority here – at least among hardcore fans.
Of course, the “friendship” angle between Faber and Jorgensen wasn’t the only storyline from last night to abruptly fall apart. After Anik’s interview with Jon Jones and Chael Sonnen, it’s safe to say that any possibility of the UFC marketing these two guys as bitter rivals/sworn enemies/anything other than apathetic about fighting each other is off the table. Judging by the comments on last night’s liveblog, I may be the only person who actually enjoyed the segment, but I digress. Oh, one more obvious storyline fell apart last night, too.
Elsewhere on the card…
– Throughout this season of The Ultimate Fighter, it seemed obvious that Uriah Hall was destined for stardom. He steamrolled his way through his competition on the show, impressed us with flashy, Tekken-inspired kicks and appeared ready to make an immediate impact on the UFC middleweight division. On paper, Hall’s co-main event clash with Kelvin Gastelum for this season’s championship was strictly a formality, as Gastelum was no threat to actually win this fight, right?
Not quite. Gastelum surprised many – including Hall – by being more than willing to press the action against the feared striker, and earned takedowns throughout the course of the bout. Even though Hall managed to reverse some of Gastelum’s attempts, in the end Gastelum took the fight – and this season’s championship – by way of split decision.
Perhaps it’s fitting that the most interesting season of The Ultimate Fighter in recent memory ended with an underdog winning it all, but don’t be quick to dismiss Kelvin Gastelum. Gastelum may not have the resume that Hall has, but a good wrestler who doesn’t get gun-shy has unlimited upward mobility in the UFC. As the youngest TUF champion in the history of the show, Gastelum has the potential to make quite the impact on the middleweight division. Likewise, don’t give up on Uriah Hall just yet. The close loss may be a product of Hall having the Octagon jitters, something that happens to many fighters the first time they fight in the UFC. Time will tell how Hall bounces back from this defeat.
– The $50,000 Fight of the Night bonus rightfully went to Cat Zingano and Miesha Tate for their three round brawl. Although Zingano kept the bout close, Tate’s wrestling earned her the edge on the judge’s scorecards heading into the third round. However, Zingano was in complete control in the third round, earning a takedown and landing strikes at will against Tate. After catching Tate with a knee during a scramble, Zingano kept swinging until Kim Winslow stopped the bout. Cat Zingano earned a coaching slot on The Ultimate Fighter 18 alongside Ronda Rousey – as well as a title shot at the end of the season – with the victory.
Fights are virtually guaranteed to end in controversy whenever Kim Winslow is in the cage, and this fight proved to be no exception. After the event, Miesha Tate expressed her anger over the stoppage, claiming that Winslow waived things off too soon. “She told me, ‘Show me something,’” said Tate. “I don’t know what you want. I sat up, I shot a double, I got back to my feet. I took some damage because of that, because I was trying to listen to the referee, and she fucking stopped the fight.” Despite Tate’s argument that the stoppage was early (for what it’s worth, I didn’t think it was), it was a great fight that further demonstrated why women belong in the UFC.
– Travis Browne is certainly one of the most creative strikers in the UFC, but I know I can’t be the only person who thought “not this again” when he started his bout against Gabriel Gonzaga with a wild high kick that completely missed its target. Throughout the next minute of the fight, it was obvious that Gonzaga wanted nothing to do with Browne’s striking. During the last six seconds of the fight, it was obvious why. Despite Gonzaga’s best efforts to neutralize Browne’s dynamic stand-up, Browne only needed a few standing hellbows to shut out Napao’s lights, earning himself the $50,000 Knockout of the Night bonus.
– If you didn’t like watching Bubba McDaniel thoroughly outclass Gilbert Smith on his way to a third round triangle choke victory, you’ll possibly take comfort in knowing that he didn’t win the $50,000 Submission of the Night bonus for his efforts. Instead, the honor went to Daniel Pineda, who kicked off the card with a first round victory by kimura over Justin Lawrence.
– As for the $25,000 End of the Season awards, Fight of the Season went to Dylan Andrews and Luke Barnatt for their back-and-forth quarterfinal fight that Andrews eventually won by TKO, Submission of the Season went to Kelvin Gastelum for his rear-naked choke victory over Josh Samman during the semifinals, and I think it’s pretty obvious who took home Knockout of the Season.
Full Results:
Main Card:
Urijah Faber def. Scott Jorgensen via submission (rear-naked choke), 3:16 of Round Four
Kelvin Gastelum def. Uriah Hall via Split-Decision
Cat Zingano def. Miesha Tate via TKO (knees & elbow), 2:55 of Round Three
Travis Browne def. Gabriel Gonzaga via KO (elbows), 1:11 of Round One
Bubba McDaniel def. Gilbert Smith via submission (triangle choke), 2:49 of Round Three
Preliminary card:
Josh Samman def. Kevin Casey via TKO (knees), 2:17 of Round Two
Luke Barnatt def. Collin Hart via Unanimous Decision
Dylan Andrews def. Jimmy Quinlan via TKO (punches), 3:22 of Round One
Clint Hester def. Bristol Marunde via KO (elbow), 3:53 of Round Three
Cole Miller def. Bart Palaszewski via submission (rear-naked choke), 4:23 of Round One
Maximo Blanco def. Sam Sicilia via Unanimous Decision
Daniel Pineda def. Justin Lawrence via submission (kimura), 1:35 of Round One
Berto (left) on his way to a unanimous decision victory over Luis Collazo
I can’t help but feel like I’ve seen this scenario play out before.
Earlier in the week, ES Boxing News caught up with two-time welterweight boxing champion Andre Berto, and spoke to the former champ about the possibility of seeing him fight MMA. The question isn’t exactly posed to Andre without merit – current Bellator fighter James Edson Berto is his brother and his sister, Revelina Berto, is trying out for the co-ed season of The Ultimate Fighter – even though it quickly becomes obvious that Berto is only a (very) casual fan of the sport. As in, he admits that he doesn’t know anything about MMA weight classes and possibly has Jon Jones confused with Anderson Silva (A Jon Jones/GSP super fight?).
Despite this, Berto claims to have spoken to Dana White about competing in the UFC – an idea that White was in support of. According to Berto, White was very complimentary of his boxing career, saying that he is “one of the only guys in boxing that keeps it alive” when they spoke.
Berto (left) on his way to a unanimous decision victory over Luis Collazo
I can’t help but feel like I’ve seen this scenario play out before.
Earlier in the week, ES Boxing News caught up with two-time welterweight boxing champion Andre Berto, and spoke to the former champ about the possibility of seeing him fight MMA. The question isn’t exactly posed to Andre without merit – current Bellator fighter James Edson Berto is his brother and his sister, Revelina Berto, is trying out for the co-ed season of The Ultimate Fighter – even though it quickly becomes obvious that Berto is only a (very) casual fan of the sport. As in, he admits that he doesn’t know anything about MMA weight classes and possibly has Jon Jones confused with Anderson Silva (A Jon Jones/GSP super fight?).
Despite this, Berto claims to have spoken to Dana White about competing in the UFC – an idea that White was in support of. According to Berto, White was very complimentary of his boxing career, saying that he is “one of the only guys in boxing that keeps it alive” when they spoke.
It wouldn’t be fair to compare Andre Berto to James Toney, a has-been who blatantly only wanted to compete in MMA for a quick paycheck. However, I think a comparison of his interest in MMA to Manny Pacquiao’s curiousity towards our sport isn’t too far of a stretch. Sure, it’d be fun to watch Berto step in the cage with a featherweight striker (Frankie Edgar and Leonard Garcia quickly come to mind), but there is absolutely no way that his management lets him accept an MMA fight while he’s still a relevant draw in the boxing world.
Besdies, Berto isn’t exaggerating when he says that he “definitely gets paid handsomely.” As BloodyElbow pointed out, he made $1,625,000 in his most recent fight – a unanimous decision loss to Robert Guerrero. Safe to say Dana White won’t be offering him that much money.
My personal favorite quote comes at the 4:38 mark, when Berto is asked who would win a fight between Cyborg Santos and Ronda Rousey. Berto takes a few seconds to think over the question, then replies “Cyborg’s like a dude! She’s a beast!” If you only watch one part of the interview, this is the part to watch.
So what do you think about the idea of Andre Berto competing in MMA? Would you be interested in seeing whether he could be competitive in this sport, or would he get lay-and-prayed into irrelevance? Or are we all just wasting our time discussing this, because he’ll never step foot in the cage? Let us know.
