Author: Trent Reinsmith

UFC 131: Dos Santos, Carwin and the Top 25 Heavyweight Strikers in MMA History

Bleacher Report’s Sean Smith:At UFC 131, two of the best heavyweight strikers in the sport will meet to determine the top contender in the weight division. In what promises to be a stand-up war, Shane Carwin’s power will meet Junior Dos Santos’ spee…

Bleacher Report’s Sean Smith:

At UFC 131, two of the best heavyweight strikers in the sport will meet to determine the top contender in the weight division. In what promises to be a stand-up war, Shane Carwin‘s power will meet Junior Dos Santos’ speed and technique.

As both fighters continue to pile up knockouts on their records, Dos Santos and Carwin have climbed their way into the conversation of greatest heavyweight strikers in the history of MMA. If the winner of their fight at UFC 131 scores another knockout, they could see themselves very near the top of the heap when it comes to all-time heavyweight strikers.

Based on power, technique and MMA accomplishments, let’s take a look at how the greatest heavyweight strikers in MMA history stack up against one another.

UFC 131 Fight Card: What If Diego Nunes Beats Kenny Florian?

Bleacher Report’s Dale De Souza:Mixed Martial Arts is unpredictable to where sometimes the most unfathomable of events can become a reality, but some people forget that anything and everything can and will happen in this sport.Maybe we’re convinced …

Bleacher Report’s Dale De Souza:

Mixed Martial Arts is unpredictable to where sometimes the most unfathomable of events can become a reality, but some people forget that anything and everything can and will happen in this sport.

Maybe we’re convinced that fights are going to go a certain way, maybe we just like one guy more than the other, and maybe we’re just going by the name recognition when we pick, but for some reason, we sometimes find ourselves judging certain fights before they happen.

Case in point: Kenny “KenFlo” Florian’s UFC 131 Featherweight bout against Diego “The Gun” Nunes.

Florian is not the Jaime Jara of the lighter weights–he’s not the first (and so far, only) man in MMA history to have won titles in four divisions, nor does he have any sick tattoos or the Stone Cold Steve Austin-like stare in his eyes or a reputation in Gladiator Challenge.

Florian is merely the first person in the UFC to have fought in four divisions, and all to get his hands on one UFC title.

Perhaps that’s the reason why he’s such a heavy favorite to not only defeat, but make convincingly short work of Nunes–because many feel his Jiu-Jitsu, Boxing, and Muay Thai will look its best at the Featherweight level.

UFC 131 Results: What If Diego Nunes Beats Kenny Florian?

UFC 131 Results: How Will A Diego Nunes Win Impact the Featherweight Division?Bleacher Report’s Dale De Souza:Mixed Martial Arts is unpredictable to where sometimes the most unfathomable of events can become a reality, but some people forget that any…

UFC 131 Results: How Will A Diego Nunes Win Impact the Featherweight Division?

Bleacher Report’s Dale De Souza:

Mixed Martial Arts is unpredictable to where sometimes the most unfathomable of events can become a reality, but some people forget that anything and everything can and will happen in this sport.

Maybe we’re convinced that fights are going to go a certain way, maybe we just like one guy more than the other, and maybe we’re just going by the name recognition when we pick, but for some reason, we sometimes find ourselves judging certain fights before they happen.

Case in point: Kenny “KenFlo” Florian’s UFC 131 Featherweight bout against Diego “The Gun” Nunes.

Stay tuned to Bleacher Report for all things UFC 131, including the latest UFC 131 results, Fight Card Analysis,  UFC 131 news, and live reaction, from Vancouver.

Florian is not the Jaime Jara of the lighter weights–he’s not the first (and so far, only) man in MMA history to have won titles in four divisions, nor does he have any sick tattoos or the Stone Cold Steve Austin-like stare in his eyes or a reputation in Gladiator Challenge.

Florian is merely the first person in the UFC to have fought in four divisions, and all to get his hands on one UFC title.

Perhaps that’s the reason why he’s such a heavy favorite to not only defeat, but make convincingly short work of Nunes–because many feel his Jiu-Jitsu, Boxing, and Muay Thai will look its best at the Featherweight level.

However, what if Diego Nunes not only wins against Florian, but beats him decisively?

Click here read the entire article:

UFC 131 Fight Card: Demian Maia and 15 Best Submission Artists in MMA Today

Bleacher Report’s Andrew Barr:In Mixed Martial Arts,  the submission game often goes unappreciated.The sport is still in it’s early stages. and with so many of the fans crossing over from boxing, stand-up fighters tend to be glamorized, while g…

Bleacher Report’s Andrew Barr:

In Mixed Martial Arts,  the submission game often goes unappreciated.

The sport is still in it’s early stages. and with so many of the fans crossing over from boxing, stand-up fighters tend to be glamorized, while ground fighters don’t receive the same level attention.

It’s a shame, really.

The ground game isn’t as obviously entertaining as watching a stand-up fight, but once familiar with the subtleties of it, it can be just as enjoyable to watch.

Let’s take a look at the best submission fighters in MMA today; you don’t need to be a Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner to appreciate there guys’ ground games.

UFC 131 Fight Card: 5 Reasons Why Mark Munoz Will Beat Demian Maia

Bleacher Report’s Chris Ternate:Since his drop down to middleweight, Mark Munoz has been on a run towards becoming a contender in the division.Despite his loss to number current one contender Yushin Okami back at UFC Live: Jones v.s. Matyushenko, “Th…

Bleacher Report’s Chris Ternate:

Since his drop down to middleweight, Mark Munoz has been on a run towards becoming a contender in the division.

Despite his loss to number current one contender Yushin Okami back at UFC Live: Jones v.s. Matyushenko, “The Filipino Wrecking Machine” rebounded.  He returned with a decision win over Aaron Simpson at UFC 123 followed by a big knockout of Ultimate Fighter alum C.B. Dolloway at UFC Live: Sanchez v.s. Kampmann.

Now, he will be looking to throw his name into the contender’s mix when he faces former number one contender and submission specialist Demian Maia at UFC 131.

The bad news for Maia however, is that he’ll be walking out of the cage without his hand raised and here are five reasons why.

UFC 131’s Shane Carwin and Fighters with Some of the Worst Nicknames in MMA

Bleacher Report’s John Heinis:A good nickname in MMA is never a bad thing to go along with solid, committed training, and a few quality wins on a resume.  So what does a bad nickname do?  In all likelihood, probably next to nothing, but it …

Bleacher Report’s John Heinis:

A good nickname in MMA is never a bad thing to go along with solid, committed training, and a few quality wins on a resume. 

So what does a bad nickname do?  In all likelihood, probably next to nothing, but it is pretty amusing how terrible some nicknames can get.

That’s what this slideshow is about: nicknames that should have no place in the world of mixed martial arts.

I did my best to stick with known fighters that have at least been in one major American MMA promotion; of course there are a number of worse aliases out there in more obscure fight leagues.