Author: Shaun Al-Shatti

Wednesday was looking like a pretty slow news day right up until the moment it wasn’t. Two announcements later and the MMA community had experienced a minor explosion.

Within a span of a few hours, UFC 146 transformed from a solid card to one of the year’s best lineups (and perhaps one of the best in recent memory). What we now had was a heavyweight extravaganza, sporting a mammoth title fight (dos Santos vs. Overeem), a solid number-one contenders bout (Velasquez vs. Mir), and a slobber-knocker duel between lower contenders (Silva vs. Nelson). Score one for the big guys.

Around this time, various commentators on this site starting referring to the Memorial Day weekend event as a theme card, the likes of which we haven’t seen in quite a while. But why? While booking all heavies surely doesn’t do much in the way of diversity, it certainly seems like a cool way to keep a division running smoothly. No more waiting around for everyone’s timetable to match up. Instead just have the top six or eight guys slug it out on the same night. Winners fight winners as soon as possible. Everything keeps flowing, unlike some divisions (I’m looking at you, lightweight).

Of course, overuse of this would probably get a little boring. But every once in a while, why not just throw a theme card out there to get people’s blood pumping? Besides, multiple hours of heavyweight violence is an idea I think most of us can get behind.

5 MUST-READ STORIES

Cain Velasquez vs. Frank Mir set for UFC 146. Velasquez and Mir have agreed to meet in a Memorial Day weekend match-up to determine the UFC heavyweight division’s next number-one contender.

Antonio ‘Bigfoot’ Silva vs. Roy Nelson slated for UFC 146. Roy Nelson’s drop to 205 pounds may seem inevitable at this point, but right now he’s still a heavyweight. So what better way for him to go out than by taking on a giant of a man on the year’s premier heavyweight card?

Josh Koscheck: If AKA had real coaches, it would have produced more champions. Koscheck blasts his former coaches at American Kickboxing Academy, before discussing his new gym and his upcoming fight against Johny Hendricks.

Michael Chandler vs. Akihiro Gono booked for Bellator 67. Bellator’s latest “superfight” sees lightweight champion Michael Chandler take on PRIDE/UFC veteran Akihiro Gono on May 4 in Ontario, Canada.

Pat Barry planning on letting hair grow until he submits someone in UFC. Ariel Helwani caught up with the always-entertaining Pat Barry and somehow the conversation turned to pizza and haircuts.

COUNTDOWN TO A SLIMMER ROY NELSON

Started (on March 4th): 32,000 likes.
Yesterday’s mark: 92,183 likes.
As of this writing: 97,282 likes.
Goal (by March 18th): 132,000 likes.

MEDIA STEW

Watch as The Ultimate Fighter 15 coaches Dominick Cruz and Urijah Faber go to war at UFC 132’s contentious championship match that, even to this day, each man still believes he won. (via UFC.tv) Click the image to watch.

Our own Ariel Helwani found himself embroiled in the latest MMA judging controversy on UFC Tonight’s “Fighter vs. Writer.”

Take a look at Myles Jury, one of TUF 15’s early favorites, as he takes on Tyronne Holmes at KOTC: Encore. (Check out the bonus cameo by referee Cecil Peoples.)

Joe Lauzon provides some refreshing perspective on this final UFC 144 vlog, which documents the before and after of his fight with Anthony Pettis. Click the image to watch.

AND IT BEGINS

Now May 5 is coming! Mr lucky punch Jonny was a fat lil boy yesterday in NYC. Better get training kid! Bc I am in shape& it’s not round!

— Josh Koscheck (@JoshKoscheck) March 8, 2012

STEALING A PAGE FROM SONNEN

WANTED: no work ethic, no cardio, terrible striking and limited ground game. Brazilians, please send fight applications to Joe Silva.

— Mike Pierce (@MikePierce170) March 8, 2012

FIGHT ANNOUNCEMENTS

Announced yesterday (Wednesday, March 7, 2012):

– UFC 146: Cain Velasquez (9-1) vs. Frank Mir (16-5) for number-one contender spot

– UFC 146: Roy Nelson (16-7) vs. Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva (16-3)

– Bellator 67: Michael Chandler vs. Akihiro Gono (32-17-7), non-title “super-fight”

– Bellator 67: Ryan Ford (17-4) vs. Luis Santos (50-7)

FANPOST OF THE DAY

Today’s Fanpost of the Day goes to BE’s Tim Bernier: Spring Break – Analysis of UFC’s First Quarter of 2012

Looking Ahead

The UFC doesn’t hold another event until April 14th. Until then, TUF has to hold us over, but once we get there, it should be great. The UFC has 8 scheduled events for April, May, and June. Five of those are free, and three are Pay Per Views. In the three Pay Per Views, we get to see three Title Fights as Jon Jones finally fights Rashad Evans (one of them will probably get injured and have to pull out though), then the epic Heavyweight fight between Junior dos Santos and Alistair Overeem, and finally the long awaited rematch between Chael P. Sonnen and Anderson Silva-in Brazil, no less. The UFC better hire extra security. If you thought the “You’re gonna die” chants directed at Chad Mendes were crazy, just wait til they see Sonnen. UFC 145 and 147 are both going to do more than 500,000 buys, which the UFC is starving for. 146 is a total wildcard since we have no idea how well JDS or AO will draw.

In terms of free events, the UFC will continue to kill it. We’re getting 50 to 60 free fights in the next three months. Just think about that for a second. Has this ever happened in UFC or MMA history?

Found something entertaining, brutal, or bizarre you’d like to see in the Morning Report? Just send it to @shaunalshatti and we’ll include it in tomorrow’s post.

Antonio Silva’s long-awaited Octagon debut is finally in the books.

Announced Wednesday, “Bigfoot” has agreed to face Roy “Big Country” Nelson in a heavyweight tilt at UFC 146, slated for May 26, 2012 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, NV. UFC officials confirmed the bout via Twitter.

Silva and Nelson join their heavyweight brethren on the Memorial Day weekend card, which is headlined by a mammoth title scrap between Junior dos Santos and Alistair Overeem. Notable fan-favorites Dan Hardy, Jason “Mayhem” Miller, Edson Barboza, and Diego Brandao are also among the confirmed participants.

Considered to be one of the top scores of Strikeforce’s heavyweight migration, Silva (16-3) enters the UFC fresh from a roller-coaster run through the promotion’s heavyweight grand prix.

“Bigfoot” notched a stunning upset in the tourney’s opening round, dominating Fedor Emelianenko en route to a second-round TKO finish and handing the PRIDE legend just his second loss in over a decade. However Silva’s victory would be short-lived, as he then fell victim to an overhand right from injury-replacement Daniel Cormier early in their semi-final match.

Likewise, Nelson (16-7) hopes to rebound after dropping a ‘Fight of the Night’ decision loss to Fabricio Werdum last month. Following the setback, the 35-year-old former TUF winner has now lost three of his last four contests to top opponents, with his only win coming in a three-round war that would prove to be Mirko Cro Cop’s final MMA match.

Though despite his struggles, “Big Country” has gained recent notoriety for an online bet he made with the mixed martial arts community, in which he pledged to drop to light heavyweight if he gained 100,000 Facebook ‘likes’ within two weeks. Just days into the wager, Nelson is already approaching his mark, so it remains to be seen if UFC 146 will be his final bout at heavyweight.

Bellator lightweight champion Michael Chandler is slated to meet flashy UFC and PRIDE veteran Akihiro Gono in a three-round non-title “superfight” at Bellator 67, scheduled for Friday, May 4 at the Casino Rama in Ontario, Canada.

Bellator officials confirmed the headlining match-up on Tuesday.

Bellator 67 broadcasts live on MTV2 and in commercial-free HD on EPIX. The night’s preliminary card will stream online at Spike.com.

The announcement marks Chandler’s (9-0) first appearance since his electrifying title-winning performance against Eddie Alvarez last November, which capped the end of a stunning run through Season 4’s lightweight tournament. The 25-year-old former Division I wrestler dispatched Marcin Held, Lloyd Woodard, and Patricky Freire in succession, before upsetting the then-champion with a fourth-round rear-naked choke in a contest many outlets considered to be the “Fight of the Year.”

Now just three years into his professional MMA career, Chandler has become a fixture on top-ten rankings and remains undefeated with seven stoppage wins.

“I’m just excited to get back into the cage,” he said. “I fought four times in 2011 and I’m ready to get back to work. Gono has beaten some of the best fighters in the sport and this should be a good test for me.”

Meanwhile, Gono (32-17-7) climbs back into the cage after recently ending a 17-month leave of absence with a decision loss to Daisuke Nakamura. Known as one of MMA’s greatest showmen, the 37-year-old has competed for a litany of promotions while picking up notable wins over Gegard Mousasi, Hayato Sakurai, and Bellator middleweight champion Hector Lombard.

Though Gono’s stock has fallen of late, as the fighter tasted defeat in five of his last eight contests, including a current two-fight losing streak.

Roy Nelson is 35 years old. He’s been under UFC contract for the last three of those years. Conveniently, that’s also about how long Dana White has been pressuring “Big Country” to cut the belly-rubbing and downsize to light heavyweight.

Now, apparently being on the wrong end of a beating from Fabricio Werdum may have finally brought Nelson around to the idea. But it’s not going to be that easy.

Nelson has proposed a friendly wager with the mixed martial arts community, and if he loses, he says he’ll begrudgingly trim his six-foot, 245-pound frame down to a sleeker 205-pound model. Find out all the details and catch up with the biggest stories in MMA with the Morning Report.

5 MUST-READ STORIES

Roy Nelson’s bet: he will drop to light heavyweight if you ‘like’ him on Facebook. We briefly touched on this yesterday, but what was first a drizzle has now become a downpour. Basically, Nelson says he’ll make the drop to 205 pounds if he can add 100k Facebook likes in two weeks. He started at 32,000 on Sunday night. As of this writing, he’s at 73,423 and counting. He might want to start cutting down on that diet.

The MMA Hour is back. Ariel Helwani and The MMA Hour returns with a doozy of a show, featuring Strikeforce star Ronda Rousey, new UFC champ Ben Henderson, the legendary “Judo” Gene LeBell, exiled UFC heavyweight Tim Sylvia and a few bonus surprises along the way.

Strikeforce medical suspensions and injuries. Miesha Tate and three others have been suspended indefinitely for injuries sustained during Saturday’s Strikeforce: Tate vs. Rousey event.

Ben Henderson says Frankie Edgar deserves a rematch. Ben Henderson finally broke his silence to explain why Frankie Edgar deserves a rematch and why Anthony Pettis still has a few rungs left to climb on the lightweight ladder.

Josh Barnett granted California license. Barnett was granted a conditional fighters license by the California state athletic commission via a 4-2 vote, clearing the way for “The Warmaster” to fight in Strikeforce’s Grand Prix Final against Daniel Cormier on May 19.

MEDIA STEW

There are no words to describe how catastrophic this Bryan Jones leg/knee injury is from Saturday’s CAGEQUEST event. Seriously. Don’t even watch this. NOT SAFE FOR LIFE. (HT: MMA Mania)

Dana White lambasts Floyd Mayweather when the conversation turns to Mayweather vs. Pacquiao. Take it away Dana: “Split the money. It’s going to be the biggest PPV ever, shut the [bleep] up and fight. Just [bleep] do it, people are tired of it.”

Perennial BFF’s Dominick Cruz and Urijah Faber watch their contentious UFC 132 title match while enjoying one another’s company.

Rener and Ryron Gracie run through Ronda Rousey’s vicious arm-snapping victory over Miesha Tate in their latest Gracie Breakdown. (HT: Bloody Elbow)

Jacare Souza says he broke his left hand about ten minutes before submitting Bristol Marunde on Saturday night. And if you don’t believe him, maybe this x-ray will change your mind. (Protip: check out the thumb.) Click the image for closer look. (HT: Tatame)

King Mo finally has some good news.

I think I’m winning the battle vs staph infection!!!! I not easy to finish….ask Feijao!!! Lol.

— King Mo (@KingMoFH) March 5, 2012

How much would you pay to see this? At least five or ten bucks, right?

Yo @UFC, @DanaWhite, set up the fight between @OchoCinco & I already. twitpic.com/8sj9vj

— Miguel Angel Torres (@MiguelTorresMMA) March 5, 2012

FIGHT ANNOUNCEMENTS

Announced yesterday (Monday, March 5, 2012):

N/A

FANPOST OF THE DAY

Today’s Fanpost of the Day goes to BE’s John Nash: Nottheface’s The Martial Chronicles: Jiu-Jitsu Conquers Australia

The introduction of jujutsu to Australia is often credited to Mr. Cecil Elliott, who’s story resembles that of Edward Barton-Wright, the founder of Bartitsu, and his introduction of jujutsu to England and Europe. Like Edward Barton-Wright, Cecil Elliott was an Englishman, having been born in the village of Hackelton, North Hamptonshire on May 20, 1875, and also like Wright he traveled extensively, having enlisted in the Royal Navy as an Apprentice Seaman at age 16. Eventually he would become an officer and his duties would take him to Japan where, just as Barton-Wright had done before him, he took up the study of jujutsu, obtaining first dan in Yokohama in 1904. The next year he left the Navy and relocated to Sydney, Australia, where he found employment at Mr. R.F. Young’s School of Physical Culture. The school’s primary focus had been on the Sandow system of physical exercise, but Mr. Young had not failed to notice the interest jujutsu was garnering around the globe (partly thanks to the efforts of Barton-Wright), advertising that:

“Schools have been established in England and America. His Excellency President Roosevelt has evinced great interest in the method by taking instruction therein from a well-known Japanese Instructor, and the United States Government are having it specially taught as SCIENCE to the young officers of the Army and Navy.”

The School of Physical Culture soon added jujutsu to the curriculum, and in early 1906, Elliott hosted a jujutsu exhibition before an audience that included the New South Wales Commissioner of Police, Mr. Mackay. It is often reported as having been the first such public demonstration of the Japanese martial art ever held in Australia. It also proved to be a success and soon the school was flooded with inquiries from potential students. When in need of instructors for his Bartitsu club, Barton-Wright had imported jujutsukas from Japan, and so Elliott wired Yokohama, looking to do the same.

Found something entertaining, brutal, or bizarre you’d like to see in the Morning Report? Just send it to @shaunalshatti and we’ll include it in tomorrow’s post.

Benson Henderson just can’t seem to get his name out of everyone’s mouth.

Since earning the UFC lightweight strap with a unanimous decision victory over Frankie Edgar at UFC 144, Henderson has somehow found himself within the crossfires of the MMA world, a casualty of the UFC’s latest high-profile judging debate.

Weeks after the controversial decision, Edgar, the former champion, has atypically embarked on a crusade for the rematch he feels he justly deserves. UFC President Dana White, on the other hand, steadfastly stands by his opinion that Edgar would be better served at featherweight, and even offered an immediate title shot against reigning 145-pound champion Jose Aldo to sweeten the deal.

To no one’s surprise, Henderson has thus far stayed out of the way, instead travelling to Korea in an experience he called “surreal.” However, after nine days of mounting frustration, the 28-year-old fighter broke his silence on Monday’s edition of The MMA Hour.

“Frankie had a very tough situation,” Henderson admitted. “He had a rough road with two rematches right away after his title defenses. So the fan in me feels that he deserves (the rematch). He had to put himself on the line, I don’t want anybody coming back to me and saying ‘oh, Henderson didn’t want to rematch Frankie because he was scared.’

“I’m more than willing to give Frankie a rematch. Let’s do it. Set it up for tomorrow.”

Henderson’s logic is sound, and essentially follows the script laid out by Edgar. However, as White has voiced, yet another lightweight title rematch would clog up a division that just escaped a two-year traffic jam.

And what of the odd man out of this equation — Anthony Pettis? The electrifying fan-favorite who scored a highlight-reel knockout on very same card, and also happens to be the last person to defeat Henderson.

Pettis, who was once guaranteed his own ill-fated UFC title shot, expressed disappointment through his manager last week, stating he feels disrespected by Henderson’s seeming disinterest in fighting him. Though according to “Bendo,” that’s just par for the course.

“Of course he’s going to go out and say that stuff because he wants his guy to fight for the belt,” Henderson tensely responded. “What did you have Jeremy Stephens ranked before the Anthony Pettis fight? Not in the top ten. What did you have Joe Lauzon ranked before his fight?

“Does someone who has a split-decision over someone who is not ranked, and then has a pretty good win against the No. 10 guy, is he deserving of a title shot because of those two wins? Or is he deserving of a title shot because he beat me last?”

Pettis did indeed hand Henderson his last loss, stealing away the final WEC lightweight championship at WEC 53 with a last-second off-the-cage ninja maneuver he dubbed the “Showtime Kick.” It was a battle that many media outlets christened the “Fight of the Year,” which adds to the perceived public interest in a rematch.

But Henderson wants to make it clear, he has no problems accepting that fight eventually. Right now there’s just a few people who are ahead in line.

“Do I want to face Pettis again? Absolutely,” Henderson explained. “We will see each other again. Before I retire, before I die, I’m going to see Anthony Pettis again. But it’s not my job to give him a title shot. It’s not up to me be like, ‘oh hey, I want to fight this guy. Lets go see this guy.’ It’s his job to work his way up to me.

“I can’t jump the line and not fight the No. 1 contender, and then go fight the No. 4 guy or No. 3 guy or No. 10 guy.”

Such is the life of a champion. Everybody wants a piece and everybody is a critic.

For someone as respectful as Henderson, the backlash has been an unexpected addendum to the belt. He’s already received hundreds of messages from fans accusing him of fearing everybody from Jim Miller and Nate Diaz, to Jacob Volkmann.

But like he always says, it is what it is.

“Either way I go, I’m going to get crap,” Henderson finally acknowledged.

“Hopefully people will start to realize and understand, I will fight anybody. I don’t care. I’m going to smash them.”

Miesha Tate and three others received indefinite medical suspensions in the aftermath of Strikeforce: Tate vs. Rousey, the Ohio Athletic Commission confirmed to MMAFighting.com on Monday.

Tate, the former Strikeforce women’s bantamweight champion, appeared to injure her left arm while defending two grisly armbar attempts during her headlining loss to Ronda Rousey. “Takedown” later revealed to MMAFighting.com that her arm was not broken, miraculously, and she was awaiting further MRI results to discover the extent of the damage.

Former Strikeforce middleweight champion Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza, and undercard participants Roger Bowling and Conor Heun also received indefinite suspensions for various hand injuries.

Strikeforce: Tate vs. Rousey took place Saturday, March 3, 2012 at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio and aired live on Showtime and Showtime Extreme.

Additionally, PRIDE veteran Kazuo Misaki received a 45-day suspension due to minor facial damage, and Pat Healy, Alexis Davis, and Brandon Saling each received 30-day suspensions for assorted injuries.

The official Strikeforce: Tate vs. Rousey medical suspension report can be read below:

Miesha Tate: Indefinite suspension – elbow injury
Ronaldo Souza: Indefinite suspension – hand injury
Roger Bowling: Indefinite suspension – hand injury
Conor Heun: Indefinite suspension – hand injury
Kazuo Misaki: 45 days – facial laceration
Pat Healy: 30 days – head laceration
Alexis Davis: 30 days – facial laceration
Brandon Saling: 30 days – precautionary reasons