This Saturday at UFC on FX 8, Vitor Belfort will welcome Strikeforce middleweight champion Luke Rockhold to the Octagon for the first time, in front of a friendly crowd in Jaraguá do Sul, Brazil. Belfort is coming off of his second-round TKO of Michael Bisping at UFC on FX 7 (which also happened to take place in Brazil), while Rockhold hasn’t competed since last July, when he picked up his ninth-consecutive win against Tim Kennedy. At this point, you should start formulating your opinion about which of these guys will win, and how — because if you can predict the future, we’ll make it worth your while.
Yes, ladies and gents, it’s fight-picking time once again. Shoot us your prediction for the Belfort vs. Rockhold fight in the comments section of this post, and the two closest guesses will each score a copy of Bruce Buffer‘s new autobiography It’s Time! My 360° View of the UFC, autographed by the Buffman himself. (If you missed our review of the book yesterday, click here.) Your predictions should be arranged like this…
This Saturday at UFC on FX 8, Vitor Belfort will welcome Strikeforce middleweight champion Luke Rockhold to the Octagon for the first time, in front of a friendly crowd in Jaraguá do Sul, Brazil. Belfort is coming off of his second-round TKO of Michael Bisping at UFC on FX 7 (which also happened to take place in Brazil), while Rockhold hasn’t competed since last July, when he picked up his ninth-consecutive win against Tim Kennedy. At this point, you should start formulating your opinion about which of these guys will win, and how — because if you can predict the future, we’ll make it worth your while.
Yes, ladies and gents, it’s fight-picking time once again. Shoot us your prediction for the Belfort vs. Rockhold fight in the comments section of this post, and the two closest guesses will each score a copy of Bruce Buffer‘s new autobiography It’s Time! My 360° View of the UFC, autographed by the Buffman himself. (If you missed our review of the book yesterday, click here.) Your predictions should be arranged like this…
Belfort def. Rockhold via TKO, 3:48 of round 2
or Rockhold def. Belfort via unanimous decision (48-47 x 2, 49-46)
In other words: Winner’s last name first, and include the method of victory, time of stoppage, round of stoppage, or the judges’ scores if you think the fight will go all five rounds; we’ll need that in case of a tie-breaker. Please submit your picks to the comments section by noon PT on Saturday. Winners will be announced the following Monday. Only one entry per person, please. Any questions, let us know in the comments. Good luck, guys. And props to Random House for hooking us up with the signed copies of It’s Time!
(Note: Vitor’s hair looks wayfreakier now than it does in that picture.)
If you think Gilbert Melendez deserves an immediate rematch, don’t bother reading the article. Just stare at this GIF for five seconds and go directly to the comments section.
If you watched UFC on Fox 7’s main event between UFC lightweight champion Benson Henderson and former Strikeforce champion Gilbert Melendez, you saw an extremely close fight. In the end, Henderson walked away with a split decision victory that many fans felt should have went to Melendez. While the debate over who won the fight continues to rage on [Author Note: For what it’s worth, Fight Metric stats seem to confirm that Henderson won.], the talks of an immediate rematch have already been squashed.
By the end of the post-event press conference, Dana White confirmed that the winner of the upcoming bout between Gray Maynard and TJ Grant at UFC 160 – which takes place on May 25 – is next in line for a shot at the lightweight title. At this time, there is no target date for Henderson’s next title defense. In White’s own words:
“Gray Maynard is ranked number three. TJ Grant is ranked number seven. Those guys are gonna fight at UFC 160 on May 25. The winner of that fight is gonna fight Ben Henderson next.”
If you think Gilbert Melendez deserves an immediate rematch, don’t bother reading the article. Just stare at this GIF for five seconds and go directly to the comments section.
If you watched UFC on Fox 7′s main event between UFC lightweight champion Benson Henderson and former Strikeforce champion Gilbert Melendez, you saw an extremely close fight. In the end, Henderson walked away with a split decision victory that many fans felt should have went to Melendez. While the debate over who won the fight continues to rage on [Author Note: For what it’s worth, Fight Metric stats seem to confirm that Henderson won.], the talks of an immediate rematch have already been squashed.
By the end of the post-event press conference, Dana White confirmed that the winner of the upcoming bout between Gray Maynard and TJ Grant at UFC 160 – which takes place on May 25 – is next in line for a shot at the lightweight title. At this time, there is no target date for Henderson’s next title defense. In White’s own words:
“Gray Maynard is ranked number three. TJ Grant is ranked number seven. Those guys are gonna fight at UFC 160 on May 25. The winner of that fight is gonna fight Ben Henderson next.”
As for Melendez? He lost a close fight and won’t be getting an immediate rematch. I’d love to play “Offended guy on the Internet” here, but considering he was offered a title shot in his UFC debut, I have no problem with asking him to win a fight in the promotion before being granted another shot at the title. What do you think?
Despite being one of many fighters released from the UFC in February, forty-two year old Vladimir “The Janitor” Matyushenko won’t be hanging up his gloves just yet. Earlier today, Bellator announced that they have signed the former IFL champion to compete at a future event. While it was announced that Matyushenko will be making his promotional debut in a non-tournament bout, neither a date for the fight nor a prospective opponent have been named yet.
In a news release posted on Bellator’s website, Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney appeared very optimistic about the signing. “Vladimir is a fighter I’ve watched for years. He’s an exciting fighter with an incredible wrestling background and a great pedigree in our sport. When the opportunity presented itself and we had the chance to have him join the Bellator family it was a very easy decision to make,” he said.
Photo courtesy of Scott Hirano/LowKick.com
Despite being one of many fighters released from the UFC in February, forty-two year old Vladimir “The Janitor” Matyushenko won’t be hanging up his gloves just yet. Earlier today, Bellator announced that they have signed the former IFL champion to compete at a future event. While it was announced that Matyushenko will be making his promotional debut in a non-tournament bout, neither a date for the fight nor a prospective opponent have been named yet.
In a news release posted on Bellator’s website, Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney appeared very optimistic about the signing. “Vladimir is a fighter I’ve watched for years. He’s an exciting fighter with an incredible wrestling background and a great pedigree in our sport. When the opportunity presented itself and we had the chance to have him join the Bellator family it was a very easy decision to make,” he said.
“With our Champion Attila Vegh sitting at the top of the mountain right now, and with guys like Emanuel Newton, Mikhail Zayats and King Mo coming on strong, the light heavyweight division for Bellator continues to evolve and Vladimir should fit in perfectly to that mix.”
Of course, Matyushenko also joins the ranks of fellow UFC washouts Seth Petruzelli and Renato “Babalu” Sobral, but let’s not talk about that right now.
Matyushenko may bring an impressive resume into his Bellator tenure, but how much of an impact can he actually make on the promotion? Bellator’s light-heavyweight division is extremely competitive, and the tournament format won’t exactly be an advantage for an aging fighter. Will “The Janitor” put together one last title run in Bellator, or will he be an also-ran in the promotion’s surprisingly deep light-heavyweight division?
(Knocks out a former UFC star, still can’t get his friends backstage passes. No respect, I tells ya. Photo via Dave Mandel of Sherdog.)
On the heels of a successful second event in March, upstart promotion World Series of Fighting has officially announced the date, location, ticket dates, and TV lineup for WSOF 3 earlier today. Featuring a main event rematch between Josh Burkman and Jon Fitch for the promotion’s inaugural welterweight title (a ballsy decision considering Fitch’s somewhat…ahem…polarizing style of fighting), WSOF 3 is set to transpire Friday, June 14th from the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tickets for the event are set go on sale April 19th and start at just $29.00.
At this point, you’re probably thinking, “Thirty bucks for a rematch between to mid-tier UFC castaways? My mom will never float me the money for such nonsense!” Well, tell those shyster parents of yours that WSOF 3 will also feature the likes of Tyrone Spong, Rolles Gracie, and Justin Gaethje as well.
On the heels of a straight vicious performance in his MMA debut at WSOF 1, Spong will face off against Angel “The Dream” (Author’s note: Uh-oh…) DeAnda, an 11-2, 5’8″ light heavyweight currently riding a four-fight win streak over a bunch of guys you’ve probably never heard of. DeAnda’s last loss dates back to 2010, where he was knocked out by one-time XARM competitor (and former UFC fighter, we’re being told) James “Why Me?” Irvin in under two minutes. Expect something similar to happen to this poor bastard here as well.
The rest of the announced lineup for WSOF 3 is after the jump.
(Knocks out a former UFC star, still can’t get his friends backstage passes. No respect, I tells ya. Photo via Dave Mandel of Sherdog.)
On the heels of a successful second event in March, upstart promotion World Series of Fighting has officially announced the date, location, ticket dates, and TV lineup for WSOF 3 earlier today. Featuring a main event rematch between Josh Burkman and Jon Fitch for the promotion’s inaugural welterweight title (a ballsy decision considering Fitch’s somewhat…ahem…polarizing style of fighting), WSOF 3 is set to transpire Friday, June 14th from the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tickets for the event are set go on sale April 19th and start at just $29.00.
At this point, you’re probably thinking, “Thirty bucks for a rematch between to mid-tier UFC castaways? My mom will never float me the money for such nonsense!” Well, tell those shyster parents of yours that WSOF 3 will also feature the likes of Tyrone Spong, Rolles Gracie, and Justin Gaethje as well.
On the heels of a straight vicious performance in his MMA debut at WSOF 1, Spong will face off against Angel “The Dream” (Author’s note: Uh-oh…) DeAnda, an 11-2, 5’8″ light heavyweight currently riding a four-fight win streak over a bunch of guys you’ve probably never heard of. DeAnda’s last loss dates back to 2010, where he was knocked out by one-time XARM competitor (and former UFC fighter, we’re being told) James “Why Me?” Irvin in under two minutes. Expect something similar to happen to this poor bastard here as well.
Also set for WSOF 3 is a matchup between Rolles Gracie and knockout artist Dave “Bad Man” Huckaba. Since being ousted from the UFC following a disastrous performance in his lone appearance at UFC 109, Gracie has scored five straight wins via submission including a triumphant submission via pitter-patter punches victory over Bob Sapp. Huckaba, on the other hand, has collected nine victories in his past ten contests (eight by stoppage) and holds notable victories over Tank Abbott’s next opponent, the manbearpig who died after fighting a roided up Ken Shamrock, and the guy who tapped to Kimbo’s strikes in under 20 seconds. Should be a fun scrap.
The rest of the announced lineup for WSOF 3 is below.
MAIN CARD (NBC Sports Network, 11 p.m. ET),
-Josh Burkman vs. Jon Fitch
-Brian Cobb vs. Justin Gaethje
-Angel DeAnda vs. Tyrone Spong
-Rolles Gracie vs. Dave Huckaba
PRELIMINARY CARD (Untelevised, 8 p.m. ET)
-John Gunderson vs. Dan Lauzon
-Kendrick Miree vs. Krasimir Mladenov
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.
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.
This is not an April Fool’s Day joke: CagePotato.com will be sponsoring undefeated strawweight Rose Namajunas for her Invicta FC 5 fight against Kathina Catron, this Friday at the Ameristar Casino Hotel in Kansas City, Missouri, and we’re very, very psyched about it. Check out this first-look at Rose’s sponsor banner, which features our logo in big-ass fashion; she’ll also be sporting it on her gear during the fight.
This is not an April Fool’s Day joke: CagePotato.com will be sponsoring undefeated strawweight Rose Namajunas for her Invicta FC 5 fight against Kathina Catron, this Friday at the Ameristar Casino Hotel in Kansas City, Missouri, and we’re very, very psyched about it. Check out this first-look at Rose’s sponsor banner, which features our logo in big-ass fashion; she’ll also be sporting it on her gear during the fight.
