Author: UFC News

The Ultimate Fighting Championship® (UFC®) will partner with innovative digital theatrical distribution company Cinedigm Digital Cinema (NASDAQ:CIDM) for the first ever, live 3D broadcast of a UFC Pay-Per-View event when it brings it Feb. 4, 2012 fight card to upwards of 120 theatres across the nation. The 3D broadcast will be the first of four annual Pay-Per-Views set to air in theatres via the partnership between UFC and Cinedigm.

“We are extremely pleased that UFC® has chosen to work with Cinedigm on this ground-breaking, live 3D broadcast,” said Chris McGurk, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer at Cinedigm.  “We know the legions of avid UFC fans will be blown away when they see what promises to be an exciting night of championship fighting on the big-screen and in 3D.”

“By partnering with Cinedigm, we’re taking the UFC viewing experience to a whole new level,” UFC President Dana White said. “For the first time ever, fight fans can watch a UFC Pay-Per-View card in 3D at theatres across the country.  We want UFC fans to have the best viewing experience possible and now they get a chance to experience major UFC Pay-Per-Views in 3D.”

For more information on theatre locations and ticketing, visit ufc3d.cinedigm.com.

UFC GYM® announces it will begin selling memberships to its newest, and first, location in Honolulu, Hawaii with an enrollment center set to open Tuesday, October 18. Partnering with Hawaii native and two-division UFC champion BJ Penn, this is the first signature gym for the brand. The location, which will open for workouts in early 2012, looks to bring the unique “Train Different” approach of the UFC GYM brand to the Island, offering residents the opportunity to train like Penn and world-class UFC fighters.

“It is such an honor to bring UFC GYM to my homeland of Hawaii and show our community how to not only train like an elite UFC athlete, but introduce them to an entirely new way to approach fitness,” said Penn, a native of Hilo. “This gym truly is for everyone; athletes, dads, moms, and kids will all be able to train and learn in a different way, a way that gets results!”

“BJ Penn has been a UFC champion at 155 and 170, a future Hall of Famer, and an icon in his home state of Hawaii,” UFC President Dana White said. “We’re excited to open the UFC GYM enrollment center in Honolulu. We know UFC GYM BJ PENN will become the ultimate fitness destination in Honolulu.”

The massive 37,000 square foot facility will be located in the Kaka’ako community in the space formerly occupied by Pipeline Café. The club will offer a unique “Train Different” approach created by fitness industry icons, Mark Mastrov and Jim Rowley, along with Frank Fertitta, Lorenzo Fertitta and Dana White, owners of the Ultimate Fighting Championship®.  And now with additional input from partner, BJ Penn, the UFC Gym will help members “Train Different” from any other fitness facility.

Members will benefit from an array of amenities to “Train Different” – “Sweat Different” in the bag room, grappling room, or on state-of-the-art cardio equipment and weight machines. Members can also “Move Different” in the expansive group fitness studio featuring traditional classes with an edge, as well as signature ultimate programming. “Burn Different” with UFC GYM’s expert trainers for the ultimate workout or mixed martial arts specialists in disciplines such as Muay Thai or Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

UFC GYM and Penn look to bring the Kaka’ako community together by creating a space for the whole family. The new facility will house UFC GYM Kids, a private kids’ training area, offering Youth Fitness Classes, Active Fitness Gaming, Youth Mixed Martial Arts Training and Ultimate Birthday Parties. Members can also “Recover Different” in the Arm Bar Café™, offering protein shakes and healthy snacks, selected by Penn himself.

“BJ Penn is an icon in his home state and we’re thrilled to open a signature UFC GYM with his name on it,” said Mark Mastrov, NeV chairman and co-founder. “From the young adult to the working professional, and everyone in between, UFC GYM provides unique training regimes for all ages and fitness levels, creating a one-of-a-kind fitness experience for the whole family.”

Potential members will have an opportunity to join with significant savings prior to the facility opening at the UFC GYM BJ® Penn Hawaii enrollment center located at 660 Ala Moana Blvd. in Honolulu. For more information visit www.ufcgymhawaii.com, or call 808-672-2655. UFC GYM currently has three locations in operation in California – Concord, CA, Rosemead, CA, Corona, CA, with a fourth opening soon in Torrance, CA, and plans to continue its rapid expansion. Go to www.ufcgym.com to learn more.

October 10, 2011 (Gulfport, MS) –  Our coast’s own UFC Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) Fighter and Gym owner, Alan “The Talent” Belcher is partnering with the Humane Society of South Mississippi (HSSM) to promote pet adoption this Friday, October 14 from 2pm to 8pm.

On Friday, October 14, Alan “The Talent” Belcher will be at HSSM’s facility on Hwy 49 to promote pet adoption in conjunction with HSSM’s efforts in the ASPCA $100K Challenge. Belcher will be locked inside one of Humane Society’s kennels i.e. “the cage” and available for autographs and photo opportunities to adopters starting at 2pm. Belcher will not be released from his kennel until HSSM has completed 50 adoptions.*

All adoptions on Friday, October 14 will be $14** in accordance with current adoption special “Pay By the Day” and ONLY those people adopting or sponsoring a pet will get an autograph and photo opportunity with Belcher AND a chance to win an autographed t-shirt or a 3-month free membership including a class of their choice at the Alan Belcher MMA Club in D’Iberville.  For more information go to UncageBelcher.webs.com

Alan “The Talent” Belcher is an ongoing advocate for animal welfare on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. He is featured in HSSM’s spay/neuter advertising featuring the tagline “Tough Guys Neuter Their Pets” and he continues his support of animal welfare with his participation in this adoption event.

As a fighter, Belcher is one of the top, rising stars in the UFC. He holds a 16-5 career record and won his most recent fight on Sept. 17 by submission, an impressive feat considering that he had not fought in over one year after suffering a detached retina.

Belcher’s participation and “Pay By the Day” are an integral part of HSSM’s efforts in the ASPCA $100K Challenge. The 49 shelters in the Challenge are competing to save the most number of lives from August 1-October 31, 2011 as compared to the same period in 2010. After the first month in the Challenge, HSSM was ranked first in the nation with an increase of 309 over the same month in 2010. The September rankings come out October 12. The grand prize is a $100,000 grant from the ASPCA, but there are several other grants available, for a total of over $300,000 that could be won throughout the Challenge.

Toronto, Ontario (CANADA) – The Ultimate Fighting Championship® returns to Toronto this December with an epic light heavyweight title fight pitting champion and rising superstar Jon “Bones” Jones against dynamic striker and former titleholder Lyoto “The Dragon” Machida. A mere eight months after holding its largest event ever in Toronto, UFC® 140: JONES vs. MACHIDA hits the Air Canada Centre on Saturday, Dec. 10.

UFC’s return to Toronto will also feature a rematch between former UFC heavyweight champions Frank Mir and “Minotauro” Nogueira, as well as a highly anticipated light heavyweight collision between former champion Tito Ortiz and “Lil Nog,” Rogerio Nogueira. Plus, Ontario’s own Mark “The Machine” Hominick takes on “The Korean Zombie,” Chan Sung Jung, in featherweight action, while British Columbia’s Rory MacDonald looks to continue his ascent up the welterweight ranks when he meets Brian Ebersole.

“After his performance against Rampage, there’s no doubt that Jon Jones is one of the top pound-for-pound fighters in the sport,” UFC President Dana White said. “He’s already beaten Shogun and Rampage this year and now he gets Machida, a former champion. Machida is one of the most elusive and dangerous strikers in the UFC and he’s motivated to get the belt back. We’re giving the fans in Toronto a really great title fight.”

Tickets for UFC® 140: JONES vs. MACHIDA, which is presented by TapouT, go on sale on Saturday, Oct. 15 at 10 a.m. ET and are priced at $700, $500, $350, $225, $175, $125 and $85. Tickets will be available at the Air Canada Centre Box Office, by calling Ticketmaster at 1-855-985-5000 or online at Ticketmaster.ca.

UFC® Fight Club™ members will have the opportunity to purchase tickets to this event Thursday, Oct. 13 at 10 a.m. ET via the website www.ufcfightclub.com. Non-members may join at Ticketmaster on Thursday to take advantage of the pre-sale. A special Internet ticket pre-sale will be available to UFC newsletter
subscribers Friday, Oct. 14, starting at 10 a.m. ET. To access this presale, users must register for the UFC newsletter through UFC.com.

UFC® 140: JONES vs. MACHIDA will be available live on Pay-Per-View at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT on UFC.TV, iN DEMAND, DirecTV, DISH Network, Avail-TVN, BellTV, ShawTV, SaskTel,Viewer’s Choice Canada and Canal Indigo for a suggested retail price of $44.99 US/$54.99 CAN for Standard Definition and $54.99 US/$59.99 CAN for High Definition.

After capturing the UFC light heavyweight crown by stopping Mauricio “Shogun” Rua in March, Jon Jones (fighting out of Endicott, N.Y.) made his first title defense at UFC 135 in Denver by dominating Rampage Jackson to improve to 14-1. The 24-year-old also owns wins over the likes of Stephan Bonnar, Vladimir Matyushenko and Ryan Bader, but knows Machida brings another dimension that he has never faced in the Octagon – one he must prepare intensely for.

“I am thrilled to be fighting Lyoto Machida at UFC 140 in Toronto, which is just a few hours from my hometown, Endicott, N.Y.,” Jones said. “He is an incredibly skilled fighter and one who poses numerous challenges inside the Octagon. He has only been defeated twice in his career and is coming off a big victory in April. For me, it will be important to just continue to focus on making myself better as a fighter, and keeping the fight at my intensity and aggression levels. It is my goal to become the first UFC fighter to defeat three former champions in one year.”

With his unique and unorthodox style, Lyoto “The Dragon” Machida (fighting out of Belem, Brazil) is one of the most dynamic and technical fighters in mixed martial arts today. The 33-year-old former lightweight champion has defeated the likes of Randy Couture, BJ Penn, Rich Franklin and Stephan Bonnar and looks to end Jones’ reign as 205-pound champion.

“I’m really excited to be fighting for the light heavyweight title again,” Machida, owner of a 17-2 record, said. “Jon Jones is a great fighter and a great champion. It’s going to be my experience and technique against his youth and athleticism. It’s going to be a great fight.”
 
In a long-awaited rematch, Frank Mir (fighting out of Las Vegas, Nev.) faces “Minotauro” Nogueira (fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) in a clash of former heavyweight champions. The 32-year-old Mir (15-5) returns to the Octagon® following a unanimous decision victory over Roy Nelson in May. He’ll look to stretch his win streak to three straight when he meets the Brazilian legend. The 35-year-old Nogueira (33-6-1, 1 NC) is coming off a highlight reel knockout of Brendan Schaub in August and looks to avenge his 2008 loss to Mir when the two meet again in Toronto.

Meanwhile, Nogueira’s brother Rogerio (also fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) faces off against a candidate for comeback fighter of 2011, Tito Ortiz (fighting out of Huntington Beach, Calif.). “Lil Nog” and the “Huntington Beach Bad Boy” were originally set to meet in the main event of UFC Fight Night in March, but an injury sidelined Ortiz, and Phil Davis fought in his place. Since that time, the 36-year-old Ortiz (17-9-1) has had a resurgence in his storied career, scoring a submission win over Ryan Bader in July and battling with Rashad Evans on short notice in August. Now he meets Rogerio (19-5), a powerful boxer and grappler who owns wins over Alistair Overeem, Dan Henderson and Luiz Cane.

Ontario native Mark “The Machine” Hominick (fighting out of Thamesford, Ontario, Canada) returns to Toronto – site of his valiant battle with featherweight champion Jose Aldo – to face sensational UFC contender “The Korean Zombie” Chan Sung Jung (fighting out of Po-Hang, South Korea). The 29-year-old Canadian striker looks to return to his winning ways, having won five of his last six. He now faces Jung, who became the first fighter to pull off the ‘twister’ submission in the UFC to defeat rival Leonard Garcia at UFC Fight Night in March.

Two fighters fresh off wins at UFC 133 in August will now battle each other to see who comes out on top in the jam-packed welterweight division as highly-regarded phenom Rory “Ares” MacDonald (fighting out of Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada) meets the always entertaining and unorthodox Brian Ebersole (fighting out of Melbourne, Australia). The third youngest fighter in the UFC at 22 (behind Michael McDonald and Charles Oliveira), MacDonald (12-1) has impressed with wins over Mike Guymon, Nate Diaz and Mike Pyle en route to becoming one of the organization’s hottest contenders. His opponent, “Bad Boy” Ebersole (48-14-1, 1 NC), made quick work of Dennis Hallman in Philadelphia and dispatched of veteran Chris Lytle in Sydney to move to 2-0 in his UFC career.

All bouts live and subject to change.

THQ Inc. (NASDAQ: THQI) and Zuffa, LLC today announced that reigning UFC® middleweight champion Anderson Silva has been named the cover athlete for UFC Undisputed® 3, the forthcoming installment in the critically acclaimed mixed martial arts (MMA) videogame franchise from the Ultimate Fighting Championship®. The Brazilian-sensation Silva, who most recently defeated top contender Yushin Okami at UFC® Rio in August to retain his middleweight championship, currently holds both the longest winning streak and longest title defense streak in UFC history.

In a franchise-first opportunity, fans were invited to vote online for one of five current UFC champions – Silva, UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar, UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre, UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones or UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez – to be this year’s cover athlete.  More than 110,000 votes were cast by fans from around the world, with Silva garnering the largest percentage among his fellow competitors.

“Enabling fans worldwide to select the UFC Undisputed 3 cover athlete has been an incredibly rewarding experience,” said Danny Bilson, Executive Vice President, Core Games, THQ.  “Anderson Silva possesses a tremendous work ethic and incredible prowess inside the Octagon, making him an excellent choice to serve as our cover athlete for the game.”

“The fans have voted and Anderson Silva will be on the cover of UFC Undisputed 3,” UFC President Dana White said. “This game has a ton of new features, including the PRIDE mode, and we can’t wait for fans to get a chance to play it.”

After the main event of UFC 136: Edgar vs. Maynard 3 in Houston, Dana White and the night’s big names spoke with the media.

UFC president Dana
White announced the winners of the post-fight bonuses. Frankie Edgar received Knockout of the Night for his fourth-round TKO finish of Gray Maynard. Joe Lauzon was awarded Submission of the Night for his first-minute tapout of the highly-favored Melvin Guillard. Nam Phan and Leonard Garcia earned Fight of the Night for the second time for their entertaining rematch. Each bonus was
$75,000.

Lightweight champion Edgar and featherweight champion Jose Aldo both attended after successfully defending their belts, as did their opponents, Maynard and Kenny Florian. Phan appeared alongside his opponent Garcia, with whom he is now 1-1.

Main card winners Lauzon and Chael Sonnen rounded out the dais.

Video highlights from the following fighters are linked below:
Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard
Jose Aldo and Kenny Florian
Chael Sonnen