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UFC News: Carlos Condit Speaks About Nick Diaz, Georges St-Pierre and UFC 137

September 7, 2011 is a date that UFC welterweight contender Carlos “The Natural Born Killer” Condit may never forget.Eating lunch at his favorite restaurant in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Condit received a phone call from UFC President Dana White. He was …

September 7, 2011 is a date that UFC welterweight contender Carlos “The Natural Born Killer” Condit may never forget.

Eating lunch at his favorite restaurant in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Condit received a phone call from UFC President Dana White. He was told that he had been offered the title opportunity vacated after Nick Diaz’s bizarre behavior. Condit broke down in tears of elation.

Speaking with Megan Olivi from Heavy.com, Condit discussed his thoughts on Diaz, the current UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre and his title opportunity at UFC 137.

When asked about the media expectations associated with competing in the world’s largest mixed martial arts promotion, Condit said he understands that this is a necessary component of the sport.

“It’s just part of it. Especially at this level. If you want to be a champion in the biggest organization, you have to do it. If not, if you’re not ready to handle it, then you’re not ready to be a champion,” Condit stated.

Originally scheduled to face BJ Penn at UFC 137, the switch of Condit’s opponent does not mean that “The Natural Born Killer” would not like to face “The Prodigy” at some point in his career.

“B.J. Penn is a great fighter and has a great legacy in the sport. That would definitely be a win that I would want on my record,” explained Condit.

Already training for Penn, Condit believes that St-Pierre’s style will be similar to that of “The Prodigy.”

“I was training for BJ, who has great stand-up and a great ground game. He would probably have tried to take me down and impose his ground game against my wishes. It’s similar to what Georges is going to try to do. So the approach to both of them would be similar,” Condit said.

With 13 knockout and 13 submission victories with only one decision in 27 professional fights, Condit is known for finishing his opponents. Conversely, St-Pierre has been under much scrutiny lately for not finishing his fights.

“I’m always been motivated to finish my opponents. That’s just the way that I fight. I think that’s something that’s definitely going to be in his head when he’s game-planning for me,” Condit stated regarding St-Pierre’s preparation for UFC 137.

Always humble, Condit then when on to state that GSP has “fought a lot of very tough guys and a lot of very dangerous guys… He’s very, very dangerous.”

With UFC 137 roughly six weeks away, Condit is confident in his abilities to walk out of the Mandalay Bay Events Center the new UFC welterweight champion.

“It’s going to be an entertaining fight. I’m not stepping into this fight to say that I fought Georges or to say that I fought for the title. I’m stepping into this fight to beat Georges and take that title. I’m going to use every one of my tools and all of the weapons in my arsenal to make that a reality,” Condit confidently stated.

Clearly Condit is fully preparing to give Georges St-Pierre an absolute challenge inside the Octagon on October 29.

Stay tuned to Bleacher Report for updates and analysis as the event nears closer.

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Brock Lesnar vs. Cain Velasquez: A Breakdown of Their Future Rematch

Brock Lesnar’s UFC heavyweight title reign came to a screeching halt in Anaheim, California on October 23, 2010.The challenger, Cain Velasquez, assaulted Lesnar with a myriad of indefensible strikes chopping the fortress of a man down to his foundation…

Brock Lesnar‘s UFC heavyweight title reign came to a screeching halt in Anaheim, California on October 23, 2010.

The challenger, Cain Velasquez, assaulted Lesnar with a myriad of indefensible strikes chopping the fortress of a man down to his foundation, ultimately leaving Lesnar in a pool of his own blood.

Bloodied, beaten, battered; Lesnar peered into the eyes of the man who had stripped him of his belt.

This memory of looking up to an elated Velasquez should be permanently imprinted into the psyche of Lesnar. A vision of championship dominance hovered proudly over Lesnar as the former champion attempted to gain his bearings and pick up his once dominant career.

Fast forward to UFC 141 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on December 30, and Lesnar will have his opportunity to reestablish himself as one of the top heavyweights in the UFC. The only one standing in his way is the former Strikeforce and K-1 champion, Alistair Overeem.

If Lesnar can defeat “The Reem,” he will position himself within clear title contention and should deserve a chance to fight for the belt.

Now, let us flip the script.

On November 12, current UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez will defend his title against the hard-hitting Brazilian, Junior dos Santos.

If Velasquez is victorious in his first title defense and Lesnar earns a victory over Overeem, UFC president Dana White will surely align a rematch between these two men.

It is no secret that Lesnar epitomizes the term genetic freak. Tapping into his God-given strength, power and explosiveness, this 280-pound behemoth saunters around the Octagon displaying herculean feats of athleticism that only Lesnar can perform.

With that said, Lesnar has transitioned his talents into a successful wrestling pedigree, yet lacks the balance of a well-versed stand-up striking game.

Lesnar’s skill set is very one-dimensional. Without the ability to execute solid striking combinations on his feet, his stand-up game is a liability.

This liability was exposed in their first matchup in Anaheim, and unless Lesnar has elevated his deficiencies in his striking, this liability will once again be exposed in a rematch with Velasquez.

Velasquez is an excellent striker who utilizes a non-traditional mixture of punches and kicks to pick apart his opposition.

Fluid and graceful on his feet, Velasquez displays the footwork of a middleweight, yet he is more than 240 pounds.

Additionally, with six (T)KO victories within the UFC, the current champion possesses a reservoir of tremendous power and the ability to finish his fights.

The innate talent to stick and move while minimizing any residual damage is a skill that cannot be overlooked. And Cain Velasquez possesses this Muhammed Ali-esque talent.

He creates his own striking angles, yet gracefully avoids counter-strikes all while delivering vicious damage to his opposition.

Velasquez’s skill set is still superior to that of Lesnar’s. A rematch for the championship will result in the same fate for Lesnar. His liability on his feet will once again prove to be Lesnar’s Achilles heel.

I welcome your comments.

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Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov Analysis and Predictions of Main Card Action

Semifinal action continues in the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix live from Cincinnati, Ohio, at the US Bank Arena on Saturday, September 10.The winner between Josh Barnett and Sergei Kharitonov will challenge the victor of Antonio Silva and Daniel …

Semifinal action continues in the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix live from Cincinnati, Ohio, at the US Bank Arena on Saturday, September 10.

The winner between Josh Barnett and Sergei Kharitonov will challenge the victor of Antonio Silva and Daniel Cormier in the championship match.

Additional action includes a middleweight championship fight between current champion Ronaldo Souza and challenger Luke Rockhold.

In light heavyweight action, former Strikeforce champion Muhammed Lawal will enter the cage against jiu-jitsu wizard Daniel Gracie, as he drops down from the heavyweight division.

Rounding out the night’s main card action, Pat Healy takes on Maximo Blanco in the lightweight division.

Please follow along as I dissect and predict each victor.

Enjoy the fights.

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Brock Lesnar vs. Junior Dos Santos: Breaking Down the Matchup

With the healthy advent of Brock Lesnar back in the UFC heavyweight division, experts are busy chronicling future matchups between the former heavyweight champion and the sport’s greatest heavyweight practitioners.In a stylistic clash of brawn versus s…

In a stylistic clash of brawn versus skill, a bout between Lesnar and Junior dos Santos is within the realm of future possibilities.

Clearly a contrast of styles inside the Octagon, Lesnar is known for his brute force and power to dominate his opposition, whereas JDS is hands down MMA‘s greatest heavyweight boxer presently.

Understanding that this matchup may never occur, we live in a world of probabilities. While this potential epic clash is exciting to dissect, the anticipation of a matchup of this caliber strikes excitement in fans worldwide.

Please follow along as I analyze the necessary skills needed to predict a victor as well as who would reign supreme between Lesnar and dos Santos.

I welcome your comments.

Please “Like” Todd Seyler on Facebook and Follow me on Twitter. Gracias.

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UFC 134 Results: Anderson "The Spider" Silva May Never Be Defeated Again

Anderson “The Spider” Silva devastated Yushin “Thunder” Okami in front of his home country at UFC 134 in Rio de Janeiro.With the support of the Brazilian-biased HSBC Center crowd, Silva’s elite level stand-up striking overwhelmed Okami en route to a Ro…

Anderson “The Spider” Silva devastated Yushin “Thunder” Okami in front of his home country at UFC 134 in Rio de Janeiro.

With the support of the Brazilian-biased HSBC Center crowd, Silva’s elite level stand-up striking overwhelmed Okami en route to a Round 2 TKO.

Utilizing his customary head movement, feinting and some razzle dazzle, “The Spider” tactically picked apart Okami with an array of jabs, leg kicks and pin-point power punches.

Dazed and dismantled, “Thunder’s” skill set was no match for Silva, who went on to defend his UFC middleweight championship a record nine times, with his 14th straight victory inside the Octagon.

Absolutely mesmerized by Silva’s abilities, this author sat in awe as he once again has made the No. 1 contender look amateur.

Clearly the greatest striker on the planet and arguably the pound-for-pound king within all of mixed martial arts, I do believe Anderson Silva will retire as the UFC middleweight champion without succumbing to another loss.

Until his retirement from the sport occurs, Silva will defend his title against the following list of competitors.

Please follow along as I detail the top four contenders for Silva’s crown and why they will not defeat “The Spider.”

I welcome your comments.

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UFC 134 Fight Card: Yushin Okami to Anderson Silva: "I’m Not Chael Sonnen"

UFC 134 storms into Rio de Janeiro at the HSBC Center on Saturday, Aug. 27. Highlighting the night’s action is a middleweight championship bout between the current king, Anderson “The Spider” Silva, and Japanese star Yushin “Thunder” Okami.Silva is han…

Silva is hands down the greatest mixed martial artist on the planet. With legendary striking prowess and the ability to knockout the greatest of fighters, Silva is on a 13-fight win streak and has not been defeated since a disqualification defeat to the very same Okami back in 2006.

Okami is also riding a wave of momentum coming into Rio. Not the same magnitude of dominance exhibited by Silva, but Okami is 10-2 inside the UFC.

Both Silva and Okami have challenged the grappler Chael Sonnen in the past. Silva defeated Sonnen with a triangle choke in the fifth round of their matchup. Whereas, Okami was defeated by Sonnen by unanimous decision in their only bout.

Speaking to Tatame.com, Okami discussed Silva’s matchup with now training partner Chael Sonnen as well as his fight with “The Spider” this Saturday.

Surprised by Sonnen’s success against Silva, Okami told Tatame, “I was expecting that Chael will be able to take Silva down, but never thought he will overwhelm by using his mixed technique of boxing and wrestling,” Okami said.

Understanding that he is a different fighter than Sonnen, Okami followed up that statement by stating, “that looked really effective and it is great reference, but I’m not Chael so I should use my own skill and technique which will be able to use my physical effectively.”

Silva has developed as a fighter since their initial matchup in 2006. According to Okami, “the biggest change is his experience of defending his title several times at UFC. That must give him a lot of confidence, which I could see from his recent fights. He has atmosphere that controls opponent’s performance.”

Also developing since their initial fight, “Thunder” stated that he “improved almost everything, especially physical.”

A physically strong competitor with a black belt in judo, Okami is a solid grappler inside the Octagon. Ever improving on his stand-up skills, “Thunder” is confident in his abilities to defeat Silva on Saturday.

Understanding that he will need to capture the belt from Silva in his home country, Okami stated, “I always feel the pressure, but this time is a Championship, a lot of fans are cheering for me. It’s giving me a lot of power to prepare for the fight and I’m highly motivated. I want to change all of the expectations to positive pressure. I must not compromise in any point and prepare for Aug. 27. I want all of my fans to enjoy the fight and my peak performance.”

Okami will have his chance this Saturday to dethrone the king and take over as the current UFC middleweight champion. Tune in to the fight to see if Okami’s confidence comes to fruition.

I welcome your comments.

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