Author: Steven Rondina

Chael Sonnen Demands Apology from Lance Armstrong

You may not remember this, but all the way back in 2010, Chael Sonnen made huge headlines when he made highly controversial comments regarding the relationship between Lance Armstrong, his battle with cancer, and his at-the-time alleged performance-enh…

You may not remember this, but all the way back in 2010, Chael Sonnen made huge headlines when he made highly controversial comments regarding the relationship between Lance Armstrong, his battle with cancer, and his at-the-time alleged performance-enhancing drug use. He later refuted the comments in a strange way.

This, by the way, was all before Sonnen‘s first fight with Anderson Silva.

If you haven’t been listening to the news lately, you might have missed how Lance Armstrong came clean, and admitted to using PEDs over the course of his cycling career on Oprah.

It is likely to be the top sports news story in 2013.

Well, Chael Sonnen has been watching the news, and he is now firing a big salvo at Armstrong. Via Twitter:

Apparently, Sonnen is taking credit for the comments, and is kicking the famed cyclist while he’s down. Armstrong has long been a lightning rod for allegations of PED-use, and recently had his Tour de France titles stripped.

All the while, he claimed he competed clean.

Sonnen, ironically, was suspended after his UFC 117 bout with Anderson Silva for a failed drug test, stemming from a high testosterone-to-epitestosterone ratio. The failure, he claims, stemmed from his TRT-use, which is necessitated by his doctor-diagnosed hypogonadism.

Sonnen has long been a provocateur. Over the years, he has picked fights with people of all walks of life. This includes fellow MMA fighters like Anderson Silva, Jon Jones, Lyoto Machida and Vitor Belfort, Octagon Girl Arianny Celeste, actor-turned-politician Arnold Schwarzenegger, boxer Juan Manuel Marquez, President Barack Obama and more.

Sonnen is scheduled to coach opposite UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones in The Ultimate Fighter, with the two scheduled to fight on April 27.

Make sure to keep an eye on Sonnen. He’s always entertaining.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Henderson vs. Melendez, Cormier vs. Mir Confirmed for UFC on Fox 7

In line with earlier reports, Kevin Iole from Yahoo! Sports is confirming that UFC on Fox 7 will feature the UFC debuts of two of Strikeforce’s hottest commodities. First, Daniel Cormier will finally face Frank Mir. Cormier was initially penned to…

In line with earlier reports, Kevin Iole from Yahoo! Sports is confirming that UFC on Fox 7 will feature the UFC debuts of two of Strikeforce’s hottest commodities.

First, Daniel Cormier will finally face Frank Mir. Cormier was initially penned to fight Mir in November at the aptly-named Strikeforce: Cormier vs. Mir. Mir had to pull out of the event with an injury and Zuffa was unable to secure a replacement in either Matt Mitrione or Pat Barry. The event was canceled, and Cormier would later go on to fight, and beat, promotional newcomer Dion Staring on Saturday at Strikeforce: Marquardt vs. Saffiedine.

Cormier became an overnight star when he beat Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva in 2011. Silva was heavily favored coming off his win over Fedor Emelianenko, but was knocked out in the first round. This advanced Cormier to the finals of the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix, where he beat Josh Barnett and became one of the top five heavyweights in MMA. After beating Staring, Cormier discussed how he still wanted a crack at Frank Mir before dropping to light heavyweight to fight champion Jon Jones.

He will, it seems, get his wish.

Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, longtime Strikeforce (and former WEC) lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez will indeed be fighting Benson “Smooth” Henderson in the headline to the event. This was reported yesterday, and is now confirmed.

Melendez has long been ranked among the top lightweights in the world, and his UFC debut is something fans have wanted to see for almost ten years now. He has fought for many promotions over the years, but has never fought in the world’s largest promotion. The bout has been rumored for several weeks, since Henderson beat Melendez’s teammate, Nate Diaz, at UFC on Fox 5.

This will be the third UFC on Fox event in a row to feature a championship bout in its top spot. UFC on Fox 6 will feature a flyweight title bout in Demetrious Johnson vs. John Dodson.

The other two bouts on the card are yet to be announced, so keep an eye on Bleacher Report as more details become available.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Bendo vs. Melendez Rumored for UFC on Fox 7 in San Jose

It looks like a UFC title unification might be waiting in the wings. MMAFighting.com is reporting that UFC lightweight champion Ben Henderson’s next title defense will be against final Strikeforce lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez at UFC on Fox 7 o…

It looks like a UFC title unification might be waiting in the wings. MMAFighting.com is reporting that UFC lightweight champion Ben Henderson’s next title defense will be against final Strikeforce lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez at UFC on Fox 7 on April 20 in San Jose, Calif.

Benson Henderson is reigning lightweight champ and most recently beat The Ultimate Fighter 5 winner Nate Diaz at UFC on Fox 5. Diaz and Melendez are teammates, both training under Cesar Gracie.

Melendez has long been a favorite for fans of fighters outside the UFC, and sports an impressive 21-2 record fighting for the WEC, Shooto, Pride and, most notably, Strikeforce.

Melendez long been ranked among the best at 155 pounds, but has never fought in the UFC, which has left many wondering how he would fare against top-ranked fighters from the last five years like BJ Penn, Frankie Edgar and Ben Henderson.

UFC on Fox 7 is scheduled to take place at HP Pavilion in San Jose. That venue was home to many Strikeforce events over the years, and Melendez himself has fought there eight times. Melendez was born and raised in Southern California, making this a homestate fight for him.

The centerpieces of the UFC’s TV deal with Fox had been struggling ratings-wise through 2012.

While the initial event, headlined by a heavyweight title fight between Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos drew numbers, it has been steadily downhill since. UFC on Fox 5 bucked that trend, averaging 4.4 million viewers and peaking at 5.7 million during Henderson’s fight with Diaz.

While there are still some hoops to jump through for the UFC in organizing this event, promotional brass is betting on lightning striking twice by booking Henderson to headline another event.

Keep checking Bleacher Report for official confirmation of these reports.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly from the History of Strikeforce

Strikeforce is officially done. After over 20 years in the fight business, the kickboxing organization turned MMA promotion is closing doors. Over that stretch, we’ve seen a great deal from the promotion. There were high highs, low lows, triumphs and m…

Strikeforce is officially done.

After over 20 years in the fight business, the kickboxing organization turned MMA promotion is closing doors. Over that stretch, we’ve seen a great deal from the promotion. There were high highs, low lows, triumphs and mistakes.

What then, were the best moments for the promotions? The worst?

Find out right here as we look at the good, the bad and the ugly moments from the promotion.

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Nate Marquardt Tweets Photo of His Badly Battered Leg

As you might have heard last night, UFC veteran and former No. 2 middleweight Nate Marquardt got upset in a big way by homegrown Strikeforce talent Tarec Saffiedine. Over the course of their brutal five-round fight, Marquardt’s lead leg was pounded aga…

As you might have heard last night, UFC veteran and former No. 2 middleweight Nate Marquardt got upset in a big way by homegrown Strikeforce talent Tarec Saffiedine. Over the course of their brutal five-round fight, Marquardt‘s lead leg was pounded again and again by kicks, leaving it swollen and discolored. 

This morning, Marquardt posted a photo of how his leg was healing on Twitter for the whole world to see:

According to the broadcasters, Marquardt entered the fight as a 3:1 favorite to win.

The vast majority of the card was made up of squash matches, pitting guys like Pat Healy, Tim Kennedy, Josh Barnett and Daniel Cormier against the likes of Kurt Holobaugh, Trevor Smith, Nandor Guelmino and Dion Staring, respectively. 

Saffiedine gave fans the one true upset of the evening.

Again, Marquardt is a UFC veteran who has beaten the likes of Martin Kampmann, Demian Maia, Rousimar Palhares and Jeremy Horn. In his Strikeforce debut, he beat at-the-time 10-0 Tyron Woodley in convincing fashion. Woodley, by the way, beat Saffiedine in 2011 via unanimous decision. 

Marquardt could very well have been looking past Saffiedine, as the build-up to the fight was primarily centered around his return to the UFC, and his willingness to fight teammate and UFC welterweight champ Georges St-Pierre.

Saffiedine advances to 6-1 in his Strikeforce career, and could be looking at some big-name fights in the UFC. Woodley is scheduled to face highly-ranked wrestler Josh Koscheck in his UFC debut, and Saffiedine could be in line to fight somebody like Martin Kampmann when he hits “the show”.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Memorable Moments from Strikeforce’s Final Fight Card

The swan song to the long-time number two promotion in the world is over and done with. The promotion that hosted epic fights like Nick Diaz vs. Paul Daley, Gina Carano vs. Cris “Cyborg” Santos and Dan Henderson vs. Fedor Emelianenko is now…

The swan song to the long-time number two promotion in the world is over and done with. The promotion that hosted epic fights like Nick Diaz vs. Paul Daley, Gina Carano vs. Cris “Cyborg” Santos and Dan Henderson vs. Fedor Emelianenko is now kaput.

Still, the memories remain and the event tonight had its moments.

What were the highlights of tonight’s lineup of fights? What were the greatest moments in Strikeforce’s last card?

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