Tag: Andrei Arlovski

CagePotato Video Tribute: 11 Insane MMA Fighter Movie Cameos

(‘Here Comes the Boom’ trailer, via FilmsActuTrailers. It’s basically like Warrior, but with barf.)

Kevin James has been one of the UFC’s most visible celebrity fans, and he clearly called in a few favors for his upcoming MMA comedy, Here Comes the Boom. The movie centers on a 40-something science teacher who turns to cage-fighting to raise money for his school, and features our hero Bas Rutten in a supporting role, as well as cameos from Jason Miller, Krzysztof Soszynski, Joe Rogan, and Bruce Buffer. With Boom slated to hit theaters on October 12th, we decided to round up a bunch of our favorite MMA fighter movie cameos. And as you’ll see, they’re usually not hired for their acting ability…

Movie: Blood and Bone (2009)
Fighter: Gina Carano

You know, it’s nice to see women entering the world of underground illegal fighting rings. Before she was Mallory Kane, Gina Carano got her feet wet in the movie business as a badass female street-fighter. Later, she asks Michael Jai White to call her, maybe.


(‘Here Comes the Boom’ trailer, via FilmsActuTrailers. It’s basically like Warrior, but with barf.)

Kevin James has been one of the UFC’s most visible celebrity fans, and he clearly called in a few favors for his upcoming MMA comedy, Here Comes the Boom. The movie centers on a 40-something science teacher who turns to cage-fighting to raise money for his school, and features our hero Bas Rutten in a supporting role, as well as cameos from Jason Miller, Krzysztof Soszynski, Joe Rogan, and Bruce Buffer. With Boom slated to hit theaters on October 12th, we decided to round up a bunch of our favorite MMA fighter movie cameos. And as you’ll see, they’re usually not hired for their acting ability…

Movie: Blood and Bone (2009)
Fighter: Gina Carano

You know, it’s nice to see women entering the world of underground illegal fighting rings. Before she was Mallory Kane, Gina Carano got her feet wet in the movie business as a badass female street-fighter. Later, she asks Michael Jai White to call her, maybe.

Movie: Big Stan (2007)
Fighters: Bob Sapp, Don Frye, Randy Couture

At the time, the idea of Rob Schneider beating Bob Sapp in a fight was utterly laughable — and not in the way that Schneider may have intended. But these days? Yeah, I’d put my cash on Rob. After Rob establishes himself as a prison badass (!?), Randy Couture throws in his two cents in a discussion about prison rape, while Don Frye is just there hanging out, enjoying the nice weather.

Movie: The Midnight Meat Train (2008)
Fighter: Quinton “Rampage” Jackson

Rampage was a shoe-in for this role, considering all of his past experience fucking with strangers for no reason. But going for that rear-naked choke was probably a bad idea. Come on bro, stick to your bread-and-butter.

Movie: Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008)
Fighter: Teila Tuli (credited as Taylor Wily)

The UFC 1 sumo wrestler/trivia answer shows up as a kindly Hawaiian local who befriends the heartbroken main character played by Jason Segel. He also gets to slap a dude in the face later, so it’s not like his talents were totally wasted.

Movie: Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997)
Fighter: Joe Son

Everybody’s least-favorite sex offender gets his Oddjob on. In a related story, War Machine has just constructed a fully-functional penis-pump out of a bologna sandwich. True story.

Movie: Locked Down (2010)
Fighter: Kimbo Slice

Method-actor Kevin Ferguson plays a prison-fighter who tells his opponent — and I quote — ”I’mma smush yo shit in.” Do you get the feeling that he was being typecast?

One FC Changes Adopts ‘Full Pride Rules,’ to Allow Soccer Kicks


(The match up that launched a thousand rematches)

Last Friday we (and the rest of the known cyber MMA world) complained about Singapore MMA promotion One FC botching an otherwise solid event in the Philippines with convoluted rules relating to kicks to the heads of downed opponents. Referees somehow had to give fighters “permission” in the moment to throw kicks to the heads of their fallen opponents.

You might remember that Phil Baroni won his fight with a barrage of punches and kicks to the head of his opponent Rodrigo Ribeiro while Andrei Arlovski was penalized for kicking the head of the dropped Tim Sylvia. When the “Mainiac” could not continue, their fight was ruled a no-contest (GIFS of both fight endings here, full fight videos here).

Sunday night, a message was sent out from the OneFCMMA twitter account, hoping to set things right.

Effective immediately, ONE FC has adopted full PRIDE rules for soccer kicks.Catch ONE FC: Rise of Kings on Oct 6!

— ONE FC (@ONEFCMMA) September 3, 2012


(The match up that launched a thousand rematches)

Last Friday we (and the rest of the known cyber MMA world) complained about Singapore MMA promotion One FC botching an otherwise solid event in the Philippines with convoluted rules relating to kicks to the heads of downed opponents. Referees somehow had to give fighters “permission” in the moment to throw kicks to the heads of their fallen opponents.

You might remember that Phil Baroni won his fight with a barrage of punches and kicks to the head of his opponent Rodrigo Ribeiro while Andrei Arlovski was penalized for kicking the head of the dropped Tim Sylvia. When the “Mainiac” could not continue, their fight was ruled a no-contest (GIFS of both fight endings here, full fight videos here).

Sunday night, a message was sent out from the OneFCMMA twitter account, hoping to set things right.

While, grammatically, the announcement may still leave some uncertainty (are they adopting and implementing all of the rules last used by the now defunct Japanese MMA organization, Pride, or just the Pride rules pertaining to ‘soccer kicks?’ Also, we have to assume that they are referring to Pride rules used in Japan, not the adapted ones used by the organization in fights held in the United States) but it is probably safe to assume, at least, that One FC fighters will now be allowed to kick and knee the heads of their opponents on the feet and on the ground without fear of being penalized.

Last Friday, this writer said that what was needed from One FC was a simple, clear-cut decision to allow or not allow kicks and knees to the heads of downed opponents, not equivocation or delay. If they’ve done that, then it is a step in the right direction.

By the way, things sure do move fast without having to deal with athletic commissions to approve your organization’s rules, huh?

– Elias Cepeda

[VIDEO] The Highs and Lows from ‘One FC: Pride of a Nation’


Hmm…do we count Tim Sylvia’s weight as a high or a low?

If you didn’t get to catch One FC’s fifth event yesterday, you more than likely are under the impression that it was an event crushed by its completely preposterous stance on soccer kicks. While the soccer kick fiasco brought the sort-of anticipated fourth bout between Tim Sylvia and Andrei Arlovski to new heights of freak show ridiculousness, the show gave fans plenty of reasons to cheer and a few things to jeer as well. With videos beginning to surface from yesterday’s bouts, and no other televised MMA to look forward to tonight, let’s take some time to re-watch some of the better fights.

Unfortunately, the best fight from yesterday’s card – a lightweight slugfest between Eduard Folayang and Felipe Enomoto – isn’t available as of now. We’ll keep you posted if a video surfaces, but if one doesn’t, you’ll only have to wait until October 6 to see Folayang battle Zorobabel Moreira for the promotion’s lightweight title. Videos from the rest of the card available after the jump.


Hmm…do we count Tim Sylvia’s weight as a high or a low?

If you didn’t get to catch One FC’s fifth event yesterday, you more than likely are under the impression that it was an event crushed by its completely preposterous stance on soccer kicks. While the soccer kick fiasco brought the sort-of anticipated fourth bout between Tim Sylvia and Andrei Arlovski to new heights of freak show ridiculousness, the show gave fans plenty of reasons to cheer and a few things to jeer as well. With videos beginning to surface from yesterday’s bouts, and no other televised MMA to look forward to tonight, let’s take some time to re-watch some of the better fights.

Unfortunately, the best fight from yesterday’s card – a lightweight slugfest between Eduard Folayang and Felipe Enomoto – isn’t available as of now. We’ll keep you posted if a video surfaces, but if one doesn’t, you’ll only have to wait until October 6 to see Folayang battle Zorobabel Moreira for the promotion’s lightweight title. Videos from the rest of the card available after the jump.

Phil Baroni vs. Rodrigo Ribeiro

High: I know how much you all love the technical, methodical fighting styles of Jon Fitch and Ben Askren, but sometimes quick, brutal knockouts are exciting. This one is over before it really ever begins…
Low: …and yet it still went on for at least thirteen seconds longer than it needed to. Props to Phil Baroni for begging the referee to stop the fight, but it should have never had to come to that.

Rolles Gracie vs. Tony Bonello

High: In this three round grapplefest, Rolles Gracie demonstrates that he’s one of One FC’s premier heavyweights.
Low: See above.

Eric Kelly vs. Jens Pulver

High: Pulver was surprisingly competitive, coming close to pulling off the upset a few times during the fight.
Low: Unless you’re a total masochist, you’ll find nothing fun about watching the former world champion get knocked out by yet another fighter you’ve never heard of.

Andrei Arlovski vs. Tim Sylvia

High: It wasn’t nearly the pathetic freak show you were expecting it to be.
Low: At least not until it ended as a no contest. Then it was much worse.

Bibiano Fernandes vs. Gustavo Falciroli

High: It wasn’t pretty, but Bibiano Fernandes continued to make his case for being one of the top bantamweights on the planet with a victory over the blue-haired Gustavo Falciroli.
Low: After bailing on the UFC, Fernandes needed a much stronger performance than this to still be a top bantamweight in the eyes of most fans. We’ll have to wait and see how he rebounds from this fight.

@SethFalvo

Andrei Arlovski vs. Tim Sylvia V: The Fight Absolutely No One Cares About

If you were to think of the classic rivalries in MMA, what’s the first one to come to mind? You’re probably thinking of Rampage Jackson vs. Wanderlei Silva or Fedor vs. Big Nog. If you’re newer to MMA, it’s probably Edgar vs. Maynard, which was a great…

If you were to think of the classic rivalries in MMA, what’s the first one to come to mind? You’re probably thinking of Rampage Jackson vs. Wanderlei Silva or Fedor vs. Big Nog. If you’re newer to MMA, it’s probably Edgar vs. Maynard, which was a great modern-day trilogy. 

Now what about the rivalries that you no longer care about? I’m guessing at the very top of that list is Andrei Arlovski vs. Tim Sylvia. They got off to a brilliant start with the first two fights. They had compelling back-and-forth action to really make fans care. 

Then the third fight happened at UFC 61. A fight so miserable, I thank my lucky stars that I wasn’t covering MMA at the time or it would have made me rethink my career choices. When the UFC’s heavyweight division lacked depth, Arlovski and Sylvia made it painfully apparent just how shallow it actually was. 

For 25 minutes they danced around, neither wanting to commit nor risk picking up another loss to the other. It was appalling and was the turning point where fans realized just how boring these two fighters could possibly be when scared of losing.

It’s a theme that has remained with Sylvia for six years. He’s the heavyweight who wants so badly to return to the Octagon that he’s willing to bore fans to tears with sloppy clinch work. To his credit, Arlovski has been able to shake that reputation. He’s replaced it instead with being known as a fighter who goes out quicker than a fainting goat.

Which brings us to today. This morning at OneFC 5, Arlovski and Sylvia met for a fourth time. The fight was, surprisingly, pretty entertaining. Both fighters had opportunities to finish and there were times when both were rocked. 

The ending was actually captivating, though incredibly illegal. In OneFC, a fighter needs to wait for referee approval before going in for a soccer kick. Arlovski dropped Sylvia with a pair of overhand rights and went in for the kill with two soccer kicks to the face. 

Sylvia was given five minutes to recover and Arlovski received a yellow card. Unfortunately, Sylvia was seeing double and the fight was ruled a no contest. From the video, it’s clear that the damage was done with the right hands and not the soccer kicks. 

But that doesn’t mean much, as OneFC have decided to put together a fifth bout between the two.

It’s literally the last fight that I want to see. The first three meetings were definitive enough that there was no reason for the fourth. The fact that this bout ended in controversy doesn’t mean that there’s reason for a fifth scrap.

OneFC is doing some really interesting things in Asia and have essentially become the home for high-level MMA in the Far East. They have the budget and promotional know-how to showcase some really good fighters who would otherwise have limited options. 

They have been doing some great things and can really put Asia back on the MMA map. They should be focusing on building fighters such as Bibiano Fernandes and Eduard Folayang, both of whom have long-term viability for the promotion. 

What I’m saying is, skip the fifth bout between Arlovski and Sylvia. Put this debacle behind you. Instead, focus on the future of the promotion with the best that Asia has to offer. It’s why I want to watch OneFC in the first place. 

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Sylvia vs. Arlovski 4, Baroni vs. Ribeiro Marred by Confusing and Dangerous Rules at ‘One FC: Pride of a Nation’


(Hey, this just means One FC will rake in big bucks for “Sylvia vs. Arlovski 5: Please, God, Make It Stop”)

By Elias Cepeda

It’s a good thing the MMA world was so excited to see the fourth meeting of Tim Sylvia and Andrei Arlovski at One FC 5: Pride of a Nation today in the Philippines, because now it might just get a fifth. The two former UFC champions were set to clash Friday near the top of the Singapore-based organization’s card, and they did, but with an unsatisfying result for fighters and fans alike, thanks to One FC’s convoluted and dangerous rules regarding kicks to the head of downed opponents.

They are legal. Sort of.

Phil Baroni won his bout earlier in the evening after effectively using kicks to the head of his opponent Rodrigo Ribeiro. However, when Arlovski landed glancing kicks to the head of Sylvia after dropping him to the mat on all fours with a punch combination, the referee called the blows illegal and gave Sylvia time to recover. When Sylvia could not, the fight was ruled a no contest. You see, One FC allows kicks to the head of a downed opponent only after a fighter is given express, in-the-moment permission by the referee. What could possibly go wrong?

(Check out GIFs of the Baroni and Arlovski finishes — as well as full results from One FC 5 — at the bottom of this post.)

Besides giving referees a strange discretion that would seem to do nothing but open up new and exciting opportunities for oversight, slip ups, and corruption, such a rule necessarily stops the action in fights and gives fighters something else to think about other than the only two things they should be — attacking their opponent and defending themselves.


(Hey, this just means One FC will rake in big bucks for “Sylvia vs. Arlovski 5: Please, God, Make It Stop”)

By Elias Cepeda

It’s a good thing the MMA world was so excited to see the fourth meeting of Tim Sylvia and Andrei Arlovski at One FC 5: Pride of a Nation today in the Philippines, because now it might just get a fifth. The two former UFC champions were set to clash Friday near the top of the Singapore-based organization’s card, and they did, but with an unsatisfying result for fighters and fans alike, thanks to One FC’s convoluted and dangerous rules regarding kicks to the head of downed opponents.

They are legal. Sort of.

Phil Baroni won his bout earlier in the evening after effectively using kicks to the head of his opponent Rodrigo Ribeiro. However, when Arlovski landed glancing kicks to the head of Sylvia after dropping him to the mat on all fours with a punch combination, the referee called the blows illegal and gave Sylvia time to recover. When Sylvia could not, the fight was ruled a no contest. You see, One FC allows kicks to the head of a downed opponent only after a fighter is given express, in-the-moment permission by the referee. What could possibly go wrong?

(Check out GIFs of the Baroni and Arlovski finishes — as well as full results from One FC 5 — at the bottom of this post.)

Besides giving referees a strange discretion that would seem to do nothing but open up new and exciting opportunities for oversight, slip ups, and corruption, such a rule necessarily stops the action in fights and gives fighters something else to think about other than the only two things they should be — attacking their opponent and defending themselves.

Rules like this are also going to be needlessly open to uneven application and enforcement. For example, Baroni won his fight and didn’t appear to look for nor receive permission to kick the head of the dropped Ribeiro, prior to striking. Neither did Arlovski. But Baroni won, Ribeiro lost, and Arlovski walked away with a no-contest despite convincingly beating his rival.

One FC put together a solid card with some great mixed martial arts competitors for their fifth event. Unfortunately, what will be most remembered is how the organization’s confused and unorganized rules left their referees, athletes, and spectators confused as well.

We don’t need an accounting from the organization as to what rationale led to their strange rule-set. They simply need to recognize the damage that they have done and abandon them.

Allow kicks and knees to the head of downed opponents, or don’t. One FC has to choose.

GIF of Baroni’s win:

GIF of Arlovski and Sylvia’s no contest:

GIFs courtesy of BloodyElbow

“One FC 5: Pride of a Nation” results
– Bibiano Fernandes def. Gustavo Falciroli via unanimous decision
– Eduard Folayang def. Felipe Enomoto via unanimous decision
– Andrei Arlovski vs. Tim Sylvia ended in a no contest (illegal kicks)
– Eric Kelly def. Jens Pulver via TKO, 1:46 of round 2
– Rolles Gracie def. Tony Bonello via submission (rear-naked choke), 1:33 of round 3
– Jung Hwan Cha def. Igor Gracie via TKO, 1:03 of round 3
– Soo Chul Kim def. Kevin Belingon via unanimous decision
– Gregor Gracie def. Nicholas Mann via submission (armbar), 3:38 of round 1
– Phil Baroni def. Rodrigo Ribeiro via TKO, 1:00 of round 1
– Shannon Wiratchai def. Mitch Chilson via KO, 3:02 of round 2
– Honorio Banario def. Andrew Benibe via KO, 3:47 of round 3

Holy Sh*t, Tim Sylvia vs. Andrei Arlovski Is the Most Relevant Fight This Weekend in 2012!?


At least Tim Sylvia still has a remotely athletic physique from the chins up.

When I woke up this morning, Lafayette was beginning to take on water, a two hundred pound athlete was destroying fools in sumo wrestling, and Tim Sylvia vs. Andrei Arlovski was the most relevant fight taking place this weekend. Wait…this guy? And this guy? The most relevant fight of the weekend?! Naturally, the first thing I did was check my calendar to make sure I didn’t somehow travel back in time to 2005- as most of you did after reading that last sentence, I’m sure. Upon realizing that yes, it is in fact 2012, I said “Fuck it,” ate a gallon of ice cream for breakfast, and went back to sleep. If the rest of the universe just doesn’t care anymore, then neither do I.

Since it’s all we have to look forward to this weekend, we might as well at least try to get excited about the relatively meaningless nostalgia fight with this video of Andrei Arlovski’s open workout for the local Philippine press. Arlovski introduces himself with an enthusiastic “How’s taste my pee pee?” as he does some light drilling with Travis Browne (yes, that Travis Browne). After some basic drills, Andrei Arlovski answers some questions for the local media. The Pitbull, bless his heart, avoids an uncomfortable rape reference by saying he’s going to “play proctologist” and stick his hand up Tim Sylvia’s ass during the fight – not in a sexual way, but in an “I am beating the shit out of you and want to make this as humiliating as possible” way. He then tells the media that he plans on knocking out Tim Sylvia during the fight, a strategy we’ve seen backfire on him before. Before the clip ends, he brings things up to 2007 by shouting “THIS IS SPARTA!” while everyone laughs.
Video is after the jump.


At least Tim Sylvia still has a remotely athletic physique from the chins up.

When I woke up this morning, Lafayette was beginning to take on water, a two hundred pound athlete was destroying fools in sumo wrestling, and Tim Sylvia vs. Andrei Arlovski was the most relevant fight taking place this weekend. Wait…this guy? And this guy? The most relevant fight of the weekend?! Naturally, the first thing I did was check my calendar to make sure I didn’t somehow travel back in time to 2005- as most of you did after reading that last sentence, I’m sure. Upon realizing that yes, it is in fact 2012, I said “Fuck it,” ate a gallon of ice cream for breakfast, and went back to sleep. If the rest of the universe just doesn’t care anymore, then neither do I.

Since it’s all we have to look forward to this weekend, we might as well at least try to get excited about the relatively meaningless nostalgia fight with this video of Andrei Arlovski’s open workout for the local Philippine press. Arlovski introduces himself with an enthusiastic “How’s taste my pee pee?” as he does some light drilling with Travis Browne (yes, that Travis Browne). After some basic drills, Andrei Arlovski answers some questions for the local media. The Pitbull, bless his heart, avoids an uncomfortable rape reference by saying he’s going to “play proctologist” and stick his hand up Tim Sylvia’s ass during the fight – not in a sexual way, but in an “I am beating the shit out of you and want to make this as humiliating as possible” way. He then tells the media that he plans on knocking out Tim Sylvia during the fight, a strategy we’ve seen backfire on him before. Before the clip ends, he brings things up to 2007 by shouting ”THIS IS SPARTA!” while everyone laughs.

If forced movie references are your thing, The Great White Hype may have come to mind while watching that clip. We’ve got a challenger who is taking this fight seriously and a champion (using the word as loosly as possible; suck it Powerhouse World Promotions) who is probably chasing ice cream trucks somewhere. If my forced pop culture reference is accurate, Arlovski will land exactly one punch before getting demolished by a pregnant looking Tim Sylvia, Travis Browne will storm the cage looking to fight The Maine-iac, and Greg Jackson will advise them not to give away a pay-per-view quality fight for free, thus earning Tim Sylvia one last bout in the UFC.

By the way, if you’re looking to take a trip down memory lane, check out the rest of the ONE FC fight card. Aside from the above match, we’ve got Jens Pulver returning to action against Eric Kelly, Phil Baroni squaring off against Rodrigo Ribeiro and Rolles Gracie pitted against Tony Bonello. We also have fights with Bibiano Fernandes and Felipe Enomoto to look forward to, if watching the old guys fight isn’t really your thing.

So tell us, are you excited for this weekend’s fights? Does Andrei Arlovski have a good shot at breaking even against Tim Sylvia? Or will you give up and just watch college football this weekend? Let us know what you think.

@SethFalvo