Tag: Alexander Gustafsson

Quote of the Day: “It Doesn’t Make Sense” for Lyoto Machida to Fight Alexander Gustafsson


(I’ll never let go, Lyoto. I’ll never let go…)

We’re of two minds about the latest interview snippet from Lyoto Machida’s manager, Jorge Guimaraes, in which he all but sealed the door on the potential of a Machida/Alexander Gustafsson fight following the Swede’s call out of Machida some weeks ago. On one hand, Machida was promised a title shot with a win over Dan Henderson at UFC 157, and to his credit, he was able to do so (albeit in rather tepid fashion). On the other hand, Dana White then promised Gustafsson a title shot with a win over Gegard Mousasi before that all fell apart.

But on the third hand, Machida was offered a shot against Jon Jones on short notice at UFC 152, then turned the goddamn thing down. Throw in the fact that Jones already choked Machida unconscious at UFC 140 and couldn’t care less if he ever fought Machida again, and it would appear that the Brazilian isn’t exactly in the position to be making demands. Regardless, Guimaraes told Lancenet that Machida would prefer to sit on the sidelines until this whole Jones/Sonnen nonsense is finished (translation via FightersOnly):

Lyoto is on stand-by list waiting for the winner of Jon Jones vs. Chael Sonnen. I think it is almost impossible for Chael to win this bout, but anything may happen. A fight is a fight, but it has already been scheduled, there’s no history about it.

Lyoto is the number one contender and he is only waiting to see who is going to be the winner of this fight. He is not convinced about Jones…he is not convinced from that loss.


(I’ll never let go, Lyoto. I’ll never let go…)

We’re of two minds about the latest interview snippet from Lyoto Machida’s manager, Jorge Guimaraes, in which he all but sealed the door on the potential of a Machida/Alexander Gustafsson fight following the Swede’s call out of Machida some weeks ago. On one hand, Machida was promised a title shot with a win over Dan Henderson at UFC 157, and to his credit, he was able to do so (albeit in rather tepid fashion). On the other hand, Dana White then promised Gustafsson a title shot with a win over Gegard Mousasi before that all fell apart.

But on the third hand, Machida was offered a shot against Jon Jones on short notice at UFC 152, then turned the goddamn thing down. Throw in the fact that Jones already choked Machida unconscious at UFC 140 and couldn’t care less if he ever fought Machida again, and it would appear that the Brazilian isn’t exactly in the position to be making demands. Regardless, Guimaraes told Lancenet that Machida would prefer to sit on the sidelines until this whole Jones/Sonnen nonsense is finished (translation via FightersOnly):

Lyoto is on stand-by list waiting for the winner of Jon Jones vs. Chael Sonnen. I think it is almost impossible for Chael to win this bout, but anything may happen. A fight is a fight, but it has already been scheduled, there’s no history about it.

Lyoto is the number one contender and he is only waiting to see who is going to be the winner of this fight. He is not convinced about Jones…he is not convinced from that loss.

The fight between Jones and Sonnen is going to happen now, it doesn’t make sense to fight Alexander. We’re almost there. If it were a little before, this fight could have already happened, but he just fought… and Dana White has made it clear that Lyoto is the number one. We’ll be waiting. 

First off…not convinced? For a guy who has been on both ends of some questionable decisions in his career, you’d think Machida would at least give due credit to the guy who was responsible for turning him into the human water urine balloon pictured above. And secondly, Machida’s reasoning seems to hinge on the fact that Jones will come out completely unscathed from his fight with Sonnen on the 27th. Actually, that one seems about right.

In either case, we think it’s safe to say that the promos for Jones/Machida II are going to suuuuuuuck. 

–J. Jones

UFC on Fuel TV 9 Video Party

(UFC on Fuel 9 Main Event, Gegard Mousasi vs. Ilir Latifi via Fox Sports)

Despite Alexander Gustafsson’s best efforts, yesterday’s UFC event in Stockholm did indeed take place and we’ve got highlights of some of the better fights of the night, along with the post-event press conference and a dope fight day blog from Conor McGregor.

Matt Mitrione vs. Phil De Fries:


(UFC on Fuel 9 Main Event, Gegard Mousasi vs. Ilir Latifi via Fox Sports)

Despite Alexander Gustafsson’s best efforts, yesterday’s UFC event in Stockholm did indeed take place and we’ve got highlights of some of the better fights of the night, along with the post-event press conference and a dope fight day blog from Conor McGregor.

Matt Mitrione vs. Phil De Fries:

Ross Pearson vs. Ryan Couture:

Conor McGregor UFC Fight Day Vlog:

Post Event Press Conference:

– Elias Cepeda

Friday Link Dump: The Blackzilians Hire New Coaches, The Weirdest Japanese Video Games Ever, How to Annoy Your Ex on Facebook + More


(Fortunately, Michael Jackson was able to shake his “hard-partying ladies man” image. / Check out even more WTF-worthy celebrity photos at WorldWideInterweb)

Chris Weidman Training with Uriah Hall to Prepare for Anderson Silva (BleacherReport)

Alexander Gustafsson Injury Put UFC in Bad Position, But Situation Could’ve Been Handled Better (MMAFighting)

UFC on Fuel TV 9: Everything You Need to Know (FightDay)

After Rough Stretch, Blackzillians Hire High-Profile Coaches (CageWriter)

Amir Sadollah Injured, Nah-Shon Burrell Now Meets Stephen Thompson at UFC 160 (MMAJunkie)

UFC 158 Drug Tests Come Back Clean, But Not Without Some Controversy (MMAWeekly)

The 10 Weirdest Japanese Video Games Ever Made (Complex)

10 Ways You’re Sabotaging Your Workouts (MensFitness)

Sesame Street: Evil, Awful, and Terrible for Kids (EgoTV)

Sinkholes Are In Style: 3 Most Amazing Holes Around the Planet (DoubleViking)

Ryan Gosling Is Acting Quiet And Killing Guys Again In ‘Only God Forgives’ Trailer (ScreenJunkies)

The People’s Critic: Remembering Roger Ebert (Grantland)

How to Annoy Your Ex on Facebook (Break.com)


(Fortunately, Michael Jackson was able to shake his “hard-partying ladies man” image. / Check out even more WTF-worthy celebrity photos at WorldWideInterweb)

Chris Weidman Training with Uriah Hall to Prepare for Anderson Silva (BleacherReport)

Alexander Gustafsson Injury Put UFC in Bad Position, But Situation Could’ve Been Handled Better (MMAFighting)

UFC on Fuel TV 9: Everything You Need to Know (FightDay)

After Rough Stretch, Blackzillians Hire High-Profile Coaches (CageWriter)

Amir Sadollah Injured, Nah-Shon Burrell Now Meets Stephen Thompson at UFC 160 (MMAJunkie)

UFC 158 Drug Tests Come Back Clean, But Not Without Some Controversy (MMAWeekly)

The 10 Weirdest Japanese Video Games Ever Made (Complex)

10 Ways You’re Sabotaging Your Workouts (MensFitness)

Sesame Street: Evil, Awful, and Terrible for Kids (EgoTV)

Sinkholes Are In Style: 3 Most Amazing Holes Around the Planet (DoubleViking)

Ryan Gosling Is Acting Quiet And Killing Guys Again In ‘Only God Forgives’ Trailer (ScreenJunkies)

The People’s Critic: Remembering Roger Ebert (Grantland)

How to Annoy Your Ex on Facebook (Break.com)

[VIDEOS] Get to Know UFC on FUEL 9 Headliner Ilir Latifi a Little Better (Or At All) in This Awesome Documentary

(Part 1 via Katla Studios. Parts 2 and 3 are after the jump.) 

Depending who you ask, the man stepping in on just days’ notice to face Gegard Mousasi at this weekend’s UFC on FUEL 9 event is either named Illi Latifi, Illiar Latifa, Iliir Latifa, or Alexander Gustafsson’s soon-to-be-deceased training partner. At just 7-2 (with notable victories over ______ and _____) the oddsmakers are giving Latifi about as good a chance of beating Mousasi as my birth mother gave me at life — but I survived that abortion, dammit. However, if word of mouth is any indication, it appears that we all might be sleeping on the unknown Swede. For further proof of this, just ask CP reader dumbasses, who chastised us/praised Latifi in our original post while simultaneously misspelling his name. Classic CagePotato, amiright?

Anyway, it turns out that this Latifi feller is a legitimate wrestler — a former national champion, actually — who could really pose some threats to grappling-deficient Mousasi. So to help familiarize you all with the soft-spoken Swede on the eve(ish) of his event-headlining UFC debut, we’ve posted a trio of videos documenting everything from Latifi’s quiet beginnings to his May 2012 victory over WEC veteran Tony Lopez.

As far as fighter docs go, it’s a pretty damn entertaining one — painting Latifi as an intelligent, hard-working, and overall humble guy — so check out episodes 2 and 3 of the documentary after the jump and let us know in the comments section if you give him any better of a chance than you previously did. Or use it as a platform to continue arguing about the merits of dick-tucking vs. full on sex changes in relation to an MMA fighter’s chances in a given fight. See if I care.


(Part 1 via Katla Studios. Parts 2 and 3 are after the jump.) 

Depending who you ask, the man stepping in on just days’ notice to face Gegard Mousasi at this weekend’s UFC on FUEL 9 event is either named Illi Latifi, Illiar Latifa, Iliir Latifa, or Alexander Gustafsson’s soon-to-be-deceased training partner. At just 7-2 (with notable victories over ______ and _____) the oddsmakers are giving Latifi about as good a chance of beating Mousasi as my birth mother gave me at life — but I survived that abortion, dammit. However, if word of mouth is any indication, it appears that we all might be sleeping on the unknown Swede. For further proof of this, just ask CP reader dumbasses, who chastised us/praised Latifi in our original post while simultaneously misspelling his name. Classic CagePotato, amiright?

Anyway, it turns out that this Latifi feller is a legitimate wrestler — a former national champion, actually — who could really pose some threats to grappling-deficient Mousasi. So to help familiarize you all with the soft-spoken Swede on the eve(ish) of his event-headlining UFC debut, we’ve posted a trio of videos documenting everything from Latifi’s quiet beginnings to his May 2012 victory over WEC veteran Tony Lopez.

As far as fighter docs go, it’s a pretty damn entertaining one — painting Latifi as an intelligent, hard-working, and overall humble guy — so check out episodes 2 and 3 of the documentary after the jump and let us know in the comments section if you give him any better of a chance than you previously did. Or use it as a platform to continue arguing about the merits of dick-tucking vs. full on sex changes in relation to an MMA fighter’s chances in a given fight. See if I care.

–J. Jones

Photos of the Day: Alexander Gustafsson Heals Like Wolverine, Apparently


(“Tell me, was it regular print or construction paper that was responsible for that boo-boo?” – Martin Kampmann’s axe wound.) 

After being forced out of his fight with Gegard Mousasi at this weekend’s UFC on FUEL 9 event (a fight that would have earned him a shot at Jon Jones had he won) yesterday, light heavyweight contender Alexander Gustafsson released a photo of the cut in question earlier today, along with following statement explaining what exactly caused it (via MMAnytt):

During Thursday’s (March 28) passes as we ran wrestling exercises I lost my balance and pitched eyebrow in a very unfortunate way when I hit my head on one burpelaren. Immediately after it happened, I went to the hospital and sewed three stitches. I was quite prepared to compete until the doctors called and told me that cut is unfortunate and will not have time to heal in time until the gala.

It is of course extremely sad when träningscampet has gone very well. In addition to the eyebrow, I am in my best form and completely ready for the match. It is also sad for my opponent, Gegard Mousasi, who has also been training long and hard for this match.

I and my team have done everything we can to get set up and race despite the injury, but the decision is unfortunately not in our hands. I am extremely sorry for this and I feel with Gegard Mousasi. I also suffer with the fans who have been looking forward to this event and this match. Would also like to thank my entire team who have helped and supported me all the way. The next step now is that I sit down with the team and planning the future. 

As you know, Gustafsson was eventually replaced by training partner Ikea Laticifer (or something like that), which would be fine and all, had Dana White not tweeted this photo of Gustafsson just hours ago…


(“Tell me, was it regular print or construction paper that was responsible for that boo-boo?” – Martin Kampmann’s axe wound.) 

After being forced out of his fight with Gegard Mousasi at this weekend’s UFC on FUEL 9 event (a fight that would have earned him a shot at Jon Jones had he won) yesterday, light heavyweight contender Alexander Gustafsson released a photo of the cut in question earlier today, along with following statement explaining what exactly caused it (via MMAnytt):

During Thursday’s (March 28) passes as we ran wrestling exercises I lost my balance and pitched eyebrow in a very unfortunate way when I hit my head on one burpelaren. Immediately after it happened, I went to the hospital and sewed three stitches. I was quite prepared to compete until the doctors called and told me that cut is unfortunate and will not have time to heal in time until the gala.

It is of course extremely sad when träningscampet has gone very well. In addition to the eyebrow, I am in my best form and completely ready for the match. It is also sad for my opponent, Gegard Mousasi, who has also been training long and hard for this match.

I and my team have done everything we can to get set up and race despite the injury, but the decision is unfortunately not in our hands. I am extremely sorry for this and I feel with Gegard Mousasi. I also suffer with the fans who have been looking forward to this event and this match. Would also like to thank my entire team who have helped and supported me all the way. The next step now is that I sit down with the team and planning the future. 

As you know, Gustafsson was eventually replaced by training partner Ikea Laticifer (or something like that), which would be fine and all, had Dana White not tweeted this photo of Gustafsson just hours ago…


(“This pic was taken of Gustafsson today and u can’t even see the cut!!! Worst decision I have EVER seen to pull fight.” –DW, echoing the sentiment of Martin Kampmann’s axe wound via his Twitter.) 

Now, far be it from us to disagree with the opinions of Sweden’s finest doctors, but we’re still three days out from UFC on FUEL 9. You mean to tell us that the man above is not medically fit to continue? Gustafsson’s cut required a mere three stitches to seal, stitches that — if the above photo is any indication — have long since been removed.

Granted, a good punch from Mousasi would have likely split that thing wide open, but damn, now we are stuck with a main event pairing a UFC rookie against a 7-2 unknown and a co-main event featuring another UFC rookie battling a mid-tier lightweight/featherweight. It’s pretty much the nadir of garbage-ass by UFC standards.

Let’s just hope this event pulls a TUF 16 Finale and completely blows our expectations out of the water. Just don’t hold your breath waiting.

–J. Jones

Ilir Latifi to Sub In for Alexander Gustafsson Against Gegard Mousasi at UFC on Fuel TV 9


I can’t help but feel I’ve seen this picture before… (Image via adccbarcelona.com)

It has only been a few hours since we learned that Alexander Gustafsson was officially forced out of the main event of UFC on Fuel TV 9 due to a gash in his eyebrow, yet the UFC has already announced who Gegard Mousasi’s new opponent will be. No, it won’t be Wanderlei Silva. No, it won’t be Tom Lawlor, either. I know, I’m just as disappointed as you are.

Instead, Dana White took to his Twitter account to announce that UFC newcomer Ilir “The Sledgehammer” Latifi will be fighting Gegard Mousasi in the main event of UFC on Fuel TV 9. Via Twitter:

Not to be a pessimist, but when your boss misspells your name while announcing that you’ll be fighting a UFC-ranked Top Ten light-heavyweight, things aren’t exactly looking good for you.


I can’t help but feel I’ve seen this picture before… (Image via adccbarcelona.com)

It has only been a few hours since we learned that Alexander Gustafsson was officially forced out of the main event of UFC on Fuel TV 9 due to a gash in his eyebrow, yet the UFC has already announced who Gegard Mousasi’s new opponent will be. No, it won’t be Wanderlei Silva. No, it won’t be Tom Lawlor, either. I know, I’m just as disappointed as you are.

Instead, Dana White took to his Twitter account to announce that UFC newcomer Ilir “The Sledgehammer” Latifi will be fighting Gegard Mousasi in the main event of UFC on Fuel TV 9. Via Twitter:

Not to be a pessimist, but when your boss misspells your name while announcing that you’ll be fighting a UFC-ranked Top Ten light-heavyweight, things aren’t exactly looking good for you.

A quick glance at Latifi’s qualifications won’t exactly change your outlook, either. Aside from being a training partner of Alexander Gustafsson, Latifi is 7-2 as a professional with one no contest. He has fought one guy you’ve heard of, and lost that fight by unanimous decision back at Shark Fights 17 in July 2011. Also of note, he is only 5’8” tall, giving Gegard Mousasi a significant height advantage. It is what it is, I guess.

As MMAJunkie is reporting, Mousasi vs. Latifi will be the new main event of UFC on Fuel 9. However, due to the bout being booked on short notice, it will be three rounds instead of five rounds.

Does Ilir Latifi have any chance here, or will Gegard Mousasi be too much for the Swedish prospect? Or for that matter, does this card still appeal to you, or are you planning on watching something else this Saturday? Let us know how you feel in the comments section.

@SethFalvo