Author: UFC News

5. Michael Bisping vs. Jorge Rivera, UFC 127
Bisping is a testy guy to begin with. Factor in a series of videos made by Rivera poking fun at ol’ Count “Pillowhands”, and you can see why Dana intervened even before Bisping made his way to the side of the stage. watch the staredown

4. Pat Barry vs. Stefan Struve, UFC on Versus 6
Matchmaker Joe Silva may have thought he was being hilarious by pairing the heavyweight division’s shortest athlete (the 5’11” Barry) against its tallest (the 6’11” Struve). But class clown Pat Barry got the last laugh at the mismatched face-off. watch the staredown

3. Jon Jones vs. Rampage Jackson, UFC 135
During staredowns, the now-light heavyweight champion gazes off into the distance, never making eye contact. Call it a mind game, an affect, a Fedoristic approach… it’s his. By mocking this move at a pre-fight press conference, Rampage accomplished what no other opponent has – he got Jones to stare right at him on-stage at weigh-ins. watch the staredown

2. BJ Penn vs. Nick Diaz, UFC 137
After a series of fight card change-ups the eventual main event was supposed to show us the softer side of Stockton sniper Nick Diaz. After all, Penn had been an idol of his growing up, and they both trained under different branches of the Gracie tree. That said, have you met Nick Diaz? watch the staredown

1. Anderson Silva vs. Vitor Belfort, UFC 126
Take a title fight that’s been postponed for over a year, throw in a perceived insult, a showboating champ and a creepy mask, and you’ve got the staredown that’s scored over a million views on YouTube. How could The Spider ever top this latest “Did you see that?!” moment? With a first-round front-kick KO the following night, of course. watch the staredown

Bonus: Nate Diaz vs. Donald Cerrone, UFC 141
Diaz has perfected the art of the on-stage towl – towering over an opponent while scowling. Witness his ferocious approach to Takanori Gomi and “The Carpenter” Clay Guida, the huffing and puffing at Gray Maynard, the goading of the perfectly inoffensive Dong Hyun Kim.

Cerrone is no slouch on the scale either, though he takes a cooler, more sociopathic approach, unsettling his opponents with a smile that stays put even while he’s trash-talking. But when he flat-out hates his opponent, well, watch his second staredown with Jamie Varner for yourself.

Even their press conference staredown was over-the-top wild. I’m not a betting man (I’m not even a man), but given the brewing bad blood between these two, this could well top the list by sundown on Thursday.

Live in Vegas! Lesnar and Overeem – are you kidding?! This is one main event that should be seen in person to be believed. Bonus: Hotel prices are lower than they’ve been for NYE weekends past and there are tons of free fan events going on, so score your tickets, book your travel and come see us in person.

Pay-Per-View New Year’s Eve is the night to go out – New Year’s Eve Eve is the night to live it up from the comfort of your own couch, UFC 141 can be seen on Pay-Per-View through your local cable
operator.

UFC.tv Hear every word Nate Diaz’ or Cowboy’s corners say (scary thought, we know). Re-watch every knockout from multiple angles or keep the camera on your favorite fighter even during his opponent’s walkout. Watch the free demo of UFC.TV with its multiple camera angles, HD-quality stream, audio feeds and DVR controls. It’s a futuristic experience available at your fingertips today – www.UFC.tv.

At a bar ‘Tis the season to be out with friends, right? Visit bars.ufc.com from your computer or mobile device to find a location showing the big guys nears you.

On your Android On the move with your phone? Use the UFC Android Application watch UFC 141 live.

On Your Favorite Site The biggest online video portals are catching UFC fever – catch the Pay-Per-View on YouTube, UStream, Yahoo!, and more.

On Facebook Fans outside of the US and Canada can use Facebook credits to view the stream right on the same tab where you watch the prelims. Like!

On ROKU This UFC experience combines internet streaming on large-screen televisions. Make sure you download the UFC Channel on
your ROKU set-top box.

With the New Year rapidly approaching, residents in Torrance, Calif. now have the opportunity to Train Different in 2012. UFC GYM®, the ultimate fitness destination that goes beyond the traditional workout, announced today that its newest 24-hour location in Torrance will open for workouts on Thursday, Dec. 22 at 8 p.m.

Tours of the new, 40,000 square foot UFC GYM Torrance will be held at 12 p.m., 4 p.m. and 7 p.m., allowing members and guests a sneak peek of the facility, including a comprehensive tour featuring the 32-foot Octagon®, bag room, grappling room, the latest cardio equipment and high-tech weight machines. Attendees will also enjoy MMA training that allows them to work out like their favorite UFC® athletes, as well as group fitness class demos.

 “We’re excited to open our latest UFC GYM in Torrance and truly give residents here the chance to train like never before,” said UFC GYM Senior Vice President Adam Sedlack. “We’ve built the ultimate family fitness facility, with something for every member of your family. We hope everyone takes this opportunity to Train Different in 2012 and experience UFC GYM.”

UFC GYM Torrance is located in the Torrance Promenade at 19800 Hawthorne Blvd. #420. For more information visit www.ufcgym.com or call 877-2-UFCGYM. UFC GYM recently announced the opening of UFC GYM BJ PENN HAWAII and currently has three locations operating in Concord, Rosemead and Corona, Calif.

Step into the Octagon® and get closer to the action of the Ultimate Fighting Championship® than ever before with your ultimate fight center on Xbox 360. Available for download today for all Xbox LIVE subscribers, UFC® on Xbox LIVE® allows you to experience the intensity and excitement of the world’s fastest growing sport from one central hub – your Xbox 360. 

To celebrate the launch, UFC on Xbox LIVE will make available UFC® 141: LESNAR vs. OVEREEM on Saturday, Dec. 30 for free to the first 25,000 fans that complete the order process.* These fans will be able to make predictions and prepare for a night of epic fights by watching the weigh-ins, pre-fight press conferences and other related videos live or via the on-demand library. **

All Xbox LIVE viewers who download the app will be able to purchase Pay-Per-Views using the service starting with UFC 142 on January 14.

For the first time, Xbox 360 and Xbox LIVE deliver all the heart-pounding UFC action you crave. Purchase Pay-Per-View events in stunning HD, compete with friends in an exclusive fight prediction game, measure your success via friends leaderboards, access the interactive Fight Card, and view pre-fight weigh-ins, press conferences and previews live or through an expansive on-demand video catalogue, only on Xbox 360.

Check out the latest sizzle reel to see the application in action, and hear what UFC President Dana White and UFC Hall of Fame legend Chuck “The Iceman” Liddell are saying about UFC on Xbox LIVE. To watch the sizzle reel, click here.

Broadcasting live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas at 10 p.m. EST / 7 p.m. PST on Dec. 30, UFC 141 is headlined by a title contender bout between former eavyweight champion Brock Lesnar and international superstar Alistair “The Demolition Man” Overeem.  In addition, UFC 141 is set to usher in the New Year with an entire night of action-packed fights between the UFC’s most elite talent, including Nate Diaz, Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone, Jon Fitch, Johny Hendricks and more.

*UFC on Xbox LIVE Holiday Gift Promotion is a limited time offer good only to the first 25,000 Xbox LIVE members (Free (Silver) or Gold) in the United States and Canada age 18+ to order the UFC 141 Pay-Per-View event on Xbox LIVE. Valid credit card required for order. Limit one PPV event per account. Offer ends at 11:59pm PST on December 30, 2011, or while supplies last. This offer is not transferable, not redeemable for cash, and not combinable with any other offers. Microsoft will not be responsible for any late, lost, misrouted, or non-delivered e-mails—or any other network, Internet, or other computer- or communications-related failures—caused by events beyond the reasonable control of Microsoft. Sponsor: Microsoft Corporation, One Microsoft Way, Redmond, WA  98052.

**Pay-Per-View events sold separately. Xbox LIVE Gold Membership required for video content and other premium features. Kinect for Xbox 360 required for voice and gesture controls.

Showtime Networks Inc. and world championship mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion STRIKEFORCE® have entered into a new broadcast agreement to continue producing live MMA events on the premium television network, SHOWTIME. The agreement was announced jointly today by Stephen Espinoza, Executive Vice President and General Manager, SHOWTIME Sports®, Dana White, UFC® President, and Scott Coker, STRIKEFORCE CEO.  
 
Under the new agreement, SHOWTIME will produce and televise up to eight live events. STRIKEFORCE athletes such as lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez, middleweight champion Luke Rockhold, women’s featherweight champion Cris “Cyborg” Santos, women’s bantamweight champion Miesha Tate and other world-class MMA fighters will continue to compete for the organization on SHOWTIME.

The new deal kicks off during the network’s Free Preview Weekend, Saturday, Jan. 7, as champion Rockhold defends the STRIKEFORCE 185-pound title against dangerous veteran Keith Jardine at The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, live on SHOWTIME at 10 p.m. ET/PT. Notable STRIKEFORCE contenders such as Robbie Lawler, “King Mo” Lawal and Tyron Woodley are also set to compete on the televised card, which—as part of Free Preview Weekend—will be available in more than 60 million households nationwide across SHOWTIME, SHOWTIME HD™ and SHOWTIME On Demand®.

Beginning with the Jan. 7 card, SHOWTIME will also televise undercard fights for all STRIKEFORCE events live on SHOWTIME EXTREME. The live SHO Extreme preliminary telecasts will afford network subscribers with expanded live fight coverage by up to two hours and provide invaluable exposure for the sport’s next generation of STRIKEFORCE contenders.

Under the new deal, the World Grand Prix Heavyweight Tournament champion will be determined when Josh Barnett battles Daniel Cormier. The winner will compete again on SHOWTIME under the STRIKEFORCE banner in the months to follow.

“Since its advent on SHOWTIME in 2007, live mixed martial arts has always performed well with our subscribers, particularly in the younger demographics,” said Espinoza, who now heads the division of the network responsible for programming live boxing, studio shows from National Football League and NASCAR as well as multiple sports documentary series. “As the one and only premium network in the MMA business, we are proud to renew our commitment to the sport and to our partners at Strikeforce.  This agreement ensures that we can continue to deliver the edge-of-your-seat programming that each live MMA event produces in the New Year and beyond.

“This exciting announcement could not have come at a better time,” he continued. “During our nationwide Free Preview Weekend a whole new crop of MMA fans will have the opportunity to sample the Strikeforce brand free of charge.”

“We’re excited about this renewal with SHOWTIME and I expect to put on some big STRIKEFORCE events next year,” White said.  “I never thought I would say this, but I am very much looking forward to building STRIKEFORCE and working very closely with SHOWTIME.”

 “SHOWTIME has been a great TV partner for us and we’re happy to renew our agreement with them,” Coker said. “Together, we’ve put on some really amazing events and we’re going to keep doing that with this new deal. We have a great core of talented fighters on our roster and MMA fans are in for a real treat.”

STRIKEFORCE®: MELENDEZ vs. MASVIDAL airs live on SHOWTIME this Saturday at 10:30 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on West Coast) as lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez defends the title against hard-hitting contender Jorge Masvidal. In the night’s co-main event, women’s featherweight champion Cris “Cyborg” Santos meets gifted Japanese star Hiroko Yamanaka.