Author: Todd Seyler

Strikeforce: The Big Payback: Overeem Predicts Different Outcome with Werdum

Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum will take place this Saturday, June 18 from Dallas.Highlighting the night’s action will be a quarterfinal matchup between current Strikeforce heavyweight champion, Alistair “The Demolition Man” Overeem, and jiu-jitsu wiz…

Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum will take place this Saturday, June 18 from Dallas.

Highlighting the night’s action will be a quarterfinal matchup between current Strikeforce heavyweight champion, Alistair “The Demolition Man” Overeem, and jiu-jitsu wizard, Fabricio “Vai Cavalo” Werdum, as they collide in the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix.

Competing against one another back in 2006, both fighters were in different stages of their careers.

Fabricio Werdum has since gone on to secure a tapout victory over the legendary icon, Fedor Emelianenko, elevating his status within the elite of the heavyweight division in all of mixed martial arts.

Similarly, Overeem has catapulted his career over the past five years.

Since originally facing Werdum, Overeem has added nearly 60 pounds of ferocious muscle to his 6’5″ frame. His imposing physique will be a glaring difference between the two competitors when they enter the Octagon in Dallas.

Additionally, like Werdum who is riding a wave of momentum with his submission victory over the immortal Emelianenko, Overeem is currently on a nine-fight win streak, defeating four of those opponents by (T)KO.

A much more confident stand-up striker, “The Demolition Man” has put his nickname to the test as he has annihilated virtually every opponent over the past two years.

Speaking with www.mmaweekly.com, Overeem commented on his fight plan going into this Saturday’s event.

“This fight is going to be different than the last time. You’re going to see a way more aggressive Alistair Overeem, and I’ll be looking for the knockout from the first second,” Overeem stated.

Oddsmakers favor the Dutch man going into this weekend’s quarterfinal matchup. Currently the Strikeforce heavyweight champion and K-1 kickboxing champion, Overeem has a humongous wave of momentum.

Without a fight for six months, Overeem is still focused and dedicated to avenging his previous loss to Werdum.

“I have a lot of motivation, believe me,” commented Overeem. “I’m just happy. I’m just happy this fight is happening. I wanted to fight Fabricio then the tournament came around, for me and excellent opportunity to fight him. I’m motivated, you’re going to see that next week exactly how motivated I am.”

Highly motivated, a monster of a man, tremendously aggressive in his stand-up skills, and riding a volatile wave of momentum, Alistair Overeem will be looking to savagely beat-down Fabricio Werdum, avenging his previous loss, and continue in the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix tournament.

Stay tuned this Saturday to see if vengeance will be secured by the Dutch man.

I welcome your comments.

Todd Seyler

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UFC 131 Results: Junior Dos Santos Happy with Win over Shane Carwin

Earning the No. 1 contender ranking after a decisive victory over the heavy-handed Shane Carwin at UFC 131 in Vancouver, Canada, Junior “Cigano” dos Santos sat down with Tatame.com to discuss his victory.With momentum on the Brazilian’s side, dos Santo…

Earning the No. 1 contender ranking after a decisive victory over the heavy-handed Shane Carwin at UFC 131 in Vancouver, Canada, Junior “Cigano” dos Santos sat down with Tatame.com to discuss his victory.

With momentum on the Brazilian’s side, dos Santos will capitalize on his one-sided affair against Carwin as he eagerly awaits his future matchup with the current UFC heavyweight champion, Cain Velasquez.

“He’s a great champion (referring to Cain Velasquez), he earned it, but I’ll be good to fight him. I’m going through a good patch, so I’ll do my best to bring this title to Brazil”, said dos Santos.

Commenting on his fight with Carwin, “Cigano” referenced the fact that he did not earn a knockout victory, in humble dos Santos fashion of course.

“Just didn’t get the knockout that I wanted so badly,” dos Santos said as he laughs. “I’m kidding, it was ok. It was a good fight, another three-round bout experience, which is something good for someone on the line for the title shot.”

Executing a flawless game plan, dos Santos utilized his tremendous boxing prowess to keep Carwin off balance and without any viable offensive threat.

“The game plan was to keep striking and fight on a long distance, punching him. I managed to do it, so that was important. I didn’t get the knockout, but I got some pretty efficient shots which leaded (sic) me to the win. I followed the game plan,” dos Santos commented.

In the final round of his three-round affair with Carwin, dos Santos planted the wrestler with two brilliantly executed double-leg take-downs. Unseen in the Octagon thus far, “Cigano” spoke about his wrestling ability.

“Yeah…I like striking, my thing is trading punches, but I train everything. I’m learning a lot of wrestling, that i also like doing, and I also do Jiu-Jitsu…I’m prepared to fight on the floor too.”

Junior dos Santos is scheduled to face Cain Velasquez at a date yet established this year. In the meantime, JDS will ride his momentum back into training camp as he prepares for the champion and the opportunity to bring the title “back to Brazil.”

I welcome your comments.

Todd Seyler

 

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UFC 131 Results: Dana White Furious with the Judges’ Discrepancies

ESPN.uk has reported that UFC President Dana White left the Rogers Centre in Vancouver, Canada angry and mystified over bizarre decisions by the judges at UFC 131.Dana White and the UFC have attempted to minimize errors by the judges sitting cage-side …

ESPN.uk has reported that UFC President Dana White left the Rogers Centre in Vancouver, Canada angry and mystified over bizarre decisions by the judges at UFC 131.

Dana White and the UFC have attempted to minimize errors by the judges sitting cage-side by installing video monitors to improve on the accuracy of the decisions.

Unfortunately, even with the use of monitors and clear vision into the Octagon, White believes that grave errors in judgment resulted in obviously blown decisions by the judges.

In the night’s first bout, Darren Elkins was awarded the win over Michihiro Omigawa, much to the chagrin of Dana White who believes Omigawa won this lightweight matchup.

To further enrage White, one of the judges even awarded Elkins all three rounds over the Japanese star.

“One of the things I want to say—because you guys always hear me, and I did again tonight, smashing the judges—is the guy that was scoring 30-27, seriously?” White said. “I don’t know what the f*** in the world that guy was seeing. He should never judge a fight again, ever.”

Dana White then went on to state that Michihiro Omigawa would be provided his win bonus en lieu of his defeat.

“And now we’ve got TV screens. What the f***? You’ve got a TV screen. How did you judge that 30-27? We’re going to pay (Omigawa) his win money. I don’t care what the judge says, he won the fight. … I say he won. Overruled.”

Further controversy erupted in the Mark Munoz, Demian Maia contest. Maia seemingly controlled the first round. However, all three judges awarded Munoz the first round.

Commenting on Munoz’s controversial decision victory, White added, “I had the first round going to Maia, second round going to Munoz, and the third round was tough to score. Third round was tough. If that went either way in the third round, I could have said, ‘Yeah.’ But 30-27? Come on.”

In swift contrast to the judges incompetence, White was quick to provide praise to referee Herb Dean during the night’s main event between Junior dos Santos and Shane Carwin.

Dropping Carwin in the first round, dos Santos followed up with a flurry of unanswered punches. Dean, a respected and veteran referee, allowed the fight to continue as Carwin maintained a defensive posture and was intelligently defending himself from the onslaught of savage strikes.

“Herb Dean is the best referee in the business. I thought it before (tonight),” White said. “When you’ve got a fighter there, sometimes these guys get scared, and they get nervous or whatever, and they don’t want to get booed. You’re in charge in there. You make the decisions.”

White continued to sing Dean’s praises by stating, “If I’m a fighter, and I’m in there, and my record is on the line, my money is on the line, everything, I want to see Herb Dean standing in the Octagon in between me and the next fighter,” White said. “I believe (Dean) is the best in the business—maybe the best referee ever in this sport.”

Strong praise for Herb Dean and undeniable lament for the cage-side judges in Vancouver by Dana White.

I welcome your comments.

Todd Seyler

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UFC 131: Why Is Junior Dos Santos the Betting Favorite over Cain Velasquez?

The main event of UFC 131 between Junior “Cigano” dos Santos and Shane “The Engineer” Carwin stood up to the hype.During 15 minutes of the seemingly one-sided beat-down delivered by JDS on Carwin, there were numerous highlights.First, Carwin has an iro…

The main event of UFC 131 between Junior “Cigano” dos Santos and Shane “The Engineer” Carwin stood up to the hype.

During 15 minutes of the seemingly one-sided beat-down delivered by JDS on Carwin, there were numerous highlights.

First, Carwin has an iron jaw and is capable of enduring a hellacious beating.

With the will of a champion, “The Engineer” continued to press forward against JDS, even though his strikes were off point and his takedown attempts failed to secure any control.

Secondly, the main event highlighted the fact that dos Santos is clearly the No. 1 contender for the UFC heavyweight championship. As Joe Rogan eloquently states, JDS “is a bad man.”

There is no denying this light-hearted moniker for the Brazilian, dos Santos is an extremely talented mixed martial artist with explosively fast hands and a potentially unmatched boxing prowess within the division.

The thorough annihilation of Carwin by dos Santos has provided “Cigano” with a slight betting edge over current UFC heavyweight champion, Cain Velasquez.

It is rare for Las Vegas to side with the contender, especially when, on paper, both Velasquez and dos Santos are almost evenly matched.

Comparing each heavyweights body of work inside the Octagon, JDS is 7-0 with four stoppages by (T)KO. Similarly, Velasquez is 7-0 with six victories by (T)KO.

Clearly, both fighters possess knockout power and the ability to dominate their opponents.

Is there a disparity between the level of competition that would provide dos Santos with the edge in the eyes of bookies?

“Cigano” has defeated the likes of Fabricio Werdum, Stefan Struve, Mirko Cro Cop, Gabriel Gonzaga, and most recently, Shane Carwin. An elite stable of high caliber of fighters have suffered defeat at the hands of the hard-hitting Brazilian.

Defeating a potentially lower level of competition as compared to JDS, Velasquez has secured victories over Cheick Kongo, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, and in his last fight, Brock Lesnar, to win the heavyweight strap.

Viewing their fighting resumes, dos Santos has seemingly defeated tougher competition. With that said, Velasquez has little control over who he fights. And, as a champion should, has defeated each and every opponent the UFC has placed in front of him.

With each fighters body of work eerily similar, is the fact that Cain Velasquez is recovering from shoulder surgery the rationale behind his underdog status?

Surgeries performed on today’s elite athletes are technologically advanced. Whereas athletes would typically need over one year to rehabilitate from an ACL tear, because of modern medicine, those athletes are performing in a little over eight months.

Additionally, baseball players who require Tommy John surgery come back throwing harder than prior to being placed under the knife.

Would I expect Cain Velasquez to suffer any long-term effects from his shoulder surgery? Personally, no. He is provided the best surgeons and will endure the highest level of physical therapy to guarantee that his shoulder can compensate for the demands of being an ultimate fighter.

Therefore, both fighters possess an impressive Octagon resume. Both fighters are tremendously gifted on their feet and can finish a fight with one punch. And both fighters will enter the cage on October 8th at UFC 136 completely healed and fully prepared for a heavyweight showdown for the championship.

These facts are indisputable. So why is Junior dos Santos the betting favorite over Cain Velasquez?

I honestly do not have a sound rationale as to why Vegas is favoring the challenger.

Without an answer, I ask you the knowledgeable Bleacher Report readers to justify why Junior dos Santos is supposed to beat Cain Velasquez and proudly adorn the UFC heavyweight championship.

Please provide me with your rationale so that I may have some clarity on this decision by the bookies.

Thank you,

Todd Seyler

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UFC 131: Fans and Fighters React to the Action Inside the Octagon on Twitter

UFC 131 from the Rogers Centre in Vancouver, British Columbia was an action-packed pay-per-view.The main card was highlighted by the featherweight debut of Kenny Florian as he defeated the highly talented Brazilian, Diego Nunes in an extremely entertai…

UFC 131 from the Rogers Centre in Vancouver, British Columbia was an action-packed pay-per-view.

The main card was highlighted by the featherweight debut of Kenny Florian as he defeated the highly talented Brazilian, Diego Nunes in an extremely entertaining affair.

Not to be outdone, Mark Munoz capitalized on his wrestling background, boxing talent, and savage ground-and-pound as he secured a controversial decision victory over Demian Maia.

On Spike TV, Sam Stout secured his “Hands of Stone” nickname as he left Yves Edwards unconscious in the center of the Octagon from a hellacious left hook.

And to wrap up the night’s fights, Junior dos Santos exhibited a boxing clinic on the steel-jawed Shane Carwin securing his number one contendership position against the current UFC heavyweight champion, Cain Velasquez.

A tremendous fight card with non-stop action caused immediate buzz worldwide. Millions of fans and fighters took to twitter in response to the action inside the Octagon.

Please follow along as I bring you “tweets” from numerous fighters and fans documenting their reactions to UFC 131.

Kenny Florian

rory_macdonald – “I had an awesome weekend in van with the hayabusa crew and also congrats to my friend @kennyflorian on the awesome fight and the win”

Arin_m – “First one to meet @kennyflorian today! Sucha nice guy. Thanks!”

kennyflorian – “my tweeps crack me up. Best fans eva! I’m retweeting u all in mind. Haha”

– “Big thank you to my great sponsors & supporters @musclepharm @deadontools @Tapout @MicroTechCEO & @MicroTechbuzz Support them!!”

– i believe that @thegunness will be a champion. Much respect to him and his great team. It was an honor to face him.”

Junior dos Santos

roynelsonmma – “man @ShaneCarwin cardio looks ten times better, diet, and supplements make the difference”

– “@ufcfanrich look at his face” (Nelson referring to Shane Carwin’s beaten face)

– “10+ unanswered punches”

– “come on herb!” (Nelson speaking to Herb Dean, the referee)

Random Tweets

dustinpoirier – “my legs hurt so bad”

Thugjitsumaster (Yves Edwards) – “Thank you everyone for your support. I’m fine and appreciate your concern. Congrats@sammyjstout it was fun while it lasted. Great job!”

KSoSUFC (Krzysztof Soszynski) – “Thank you @danawhite for the opportunity to fight in Canada”

ChrisWeidmanUFC – “Whatsup to all my new followers! When I get back home tomorrow I’m going to give out signed gloves, banner, walkout shirt to a random follower”

jakerosholt – “Some really good fights last night. @kennyflorian @mark_munoz looking good & making moves up the ladder”

Jon_Anik – “Was just informed that Junior dos Santos has opened as a slight favorite against Cain Velasquez for the UFC heavyweight title.”

mark_munoz – “Much love to my team! @train2reign @kings_mma @ryongracie @Abelito01 @Todd_Newman @KSoSUFC @FabricioWerdum @mayhemmiller @Ellenbergermma”

danawhite – “Great night of fights! Thanks Vancouver now off to Vegas then Brazil”

I realize that there are millions of other tweets that I have missed. Please feel free to add to this list with your comments. Thank you.

Todd Seyler

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UFC 131: Dos Santos vs Carwin: Top 10 Junior Dos Santos Images on the Web

Junior “Cigano” dos Santos stormed into the UFC heavyweight division with thunderous right hands and violently explosive left hooks.Leaving a path of destruction in his wake, JDS has compiled an undefeated 6-0 UFC record with five (T)KO’s.This Brazilia…

Junior “Cigano” dos Santos stormed into the UFC heavyweight division with thunderous right hands and violently explosive left hooks.

Leaving a path of destruction in his wake, JDS has compiled an undefeated 6-0 UFC record with five (T)KO’s.

This Brazilian wrecking machine has defeated the likes of Stefan Struve, Roy Nelson, Gilbert Yvel, and Gabriel Gonzaga.

This Saturday, he will face his toughest challenge to date as he steps foot inside the famed Octagon against fellow hard-hitting heavyweight with dynamite in his punches, Shane Carwin.

Winner of the UFC 131 main event will be the No. 1 contender, next in line to face Cain Velasquez for the most coveted belt within all of mixed martial arts.

Please follow along as I provide Junior dos Santos’s 10 most decisive images on the internet.

Enjoy the fights.

I welcome your comments.

Todd Seyler

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