You know, Jared’s right — we could use a fresh CagePotato t-shirt design around here. And while I don’t necessarily agree that our next shirt should feature the bizarre catchphrase of a diabetic XARM fighter, it’s always fun to see what the artistic types in the Potato Nation can come up with when presented with a challenge.
And so, we hereby announce the Tater Williams Memorial CagePotato T-Shirt Design Contest of 2012, Bitches. The rules are simple…THERE ARE NO RULES. Well, maybe there’s a couple rules. Shirt designs can be based on anything MMA-related, but must incorporate our name and/or logo (image links below), and must be e-mailed to [email protected] by October 16th. That gives you three full weeks to find inspiration and hustle something up. We’ll announce the winner(s) by the following Monday.
If we actually use your design to produce shirts, we will give you $100 cash, straight up. Plus, there’s the whole pride-of-victory thing, and the knowledge that your creation could end up being seen in literally tens of sports bars and gyms one day. Sound good? Any questions, let us know in the comments section.
You know, Jared’s right — we could use a fresh CagePotato t-shirt design around here. And while I don’t necessarily agree that our next shirt should feature the bizarre catchphrase of a diabetic XARM fighter, it’s always fun to see what the artistic types in the Potato Nation can come up with when presented with a challenge.
And so, we hereby announce the Tater Williams Memorial CagePotato T-Shirt Design Contest of 2012, Bitches. The rules are simple…THERE ARE NO RULES. Well, maybe there’s a couple rules. Shirt designs can be based on anything MMA-related, but must incorporate our name and/or logo (image links below), and must be e-mailed to [email protected] by October 16th. That gives you three full weeks to find inspiration and hustle something up. We’ll announce the winner(s) by the following Monday.
If we actually use your design to produce shirts, we will give you $100 cash, straight up. Plus, there’s the whole pride-of-victory thing, and the knowledge that your creation could end up being seen in literally tens of sports bars and gyms one day. Sound good? Any questions, let us know in the comments section.
Finally, a Sensei Seagal claim that I don’t immediately label as bullshit.
As hard as we’ve been trying, we just can’t change the subject from holier-than-thou hypocrites around here. At least not in the comments sections of our articles. It seems like the comments sections of every article we’ve written since Thursday have deflated into a bunch of angry, semi-literate geeks who possibly don’t even like MMA calling each other the worst names they can think of before accusing each other of being hypocrites. Coincidentally, I just started reading the comments section of our articles on Thursday morning.
So in that spirit, I’m relaying news to you about a certain lawman who seems to actually fancy himself as Above the Law. It appears that UFC trainer/Actor/CIA agent/Energy Drink Salesman Steven Seagal owes a boat load of money to the State of California. As in, more money than training playing patty-cake with Rafael Cavalcante can possibly be bringing in. To hear it from TMZ.com:
Taking out a boatful of terrorists hell-bent on nuking Honolulu does not mean you can skip out on paying your taxes … so the State of California has filed a giant tax lien against action film star Steven Seagal, TMZ has learned.
Finally, a Sensei Seagal claim that I don’t immediately label as bullshit.
As hard as we’ve been trying, we just can’t change the subject from holier-than-thou hypocrites around here. At least not in the comments sections of our articles. It seems like the comments sections of every article we’ve written since Thursday have deflated into a bunch of angry, semi-literate geeks who possibly don’t even like MMA calling each other the worst names they can think of before accusing each other of being hypocrites. Coincidentally, I just started reading the comments section of our articles on Thursday morning.
So in that spirit, I’m relaying news to you about a certain lawman who seems to actually fancy himself as Above the Law. It appears that UFC trainer/Actor/CIA agent/Energy Drink Salesman Steven Seagal owes a boat load of money to the State of California. As in, more money than training playing patty-cake with Rafael Cavalcante can possibly be bringing in. To hear it from TMZ.com:
Taking out a boatful of terrorists hell-bent on nuking Honolulu does not mean you can skip out on paying your taxes … so the State of California has filed a giant tax lien against action film star Steven Seagal, TMZ has learned.
According to documents filed with the Los Angeles County Recorder’s Office, Seagal owes the Golden State a whopping $335,606.35 for the year 2010. It’s hard to imagine how Seagal amassed such a large tax bill [Author Note: You’ve obviously never needed a good tailor.]– he has appeared in mostly direct-to-video movies for the past decade, with his only real work being a small role in “Machete” in 2010 and his reality show, “Steven Seagal: Lawman.”
Calls to Seagal were not returned.
For those of you who are experiencing déjà vu, Steven Seagal has previously been sued for non-payment to a former movie producer and business associate with mob ties. He reportedly owed that person $500,000. The guy spends that Anderson Silva money faster than The Spider brings it in, is what you should be learning from all of this.
Speaking of which, it’s safe to assume that we won’t be seeing Sensei Seagal at any UFC events in the near future. Naturally, this is a devastating blow to the entire Team Black House camp – who can they possibly find to take credit for their fighters’ victories on such short notice? Who will troll us on slow news days? Who is left to teach us how to defend against open palm slaps with wrist locks? Also, considering the badass high kicks that Jean-Claude Van Damme has been showcasing at Tristar Gym, maybe Anderson Silva might want to think twice about rallying for that Georges St. Pierre superfight for the time being.
At UFC 144, the organization made a triumphant return to the Land of the Rising Sun with an evening full of exciting fights, culminating in Benson Henderson winning the lightweight championship from Frankie Edgar. Add on the way that the polite, educated Japanese fans packed the Saitama Super Arena, and it felt like it would only be a matter of time before the organization returned to Japan for more events.
Today, Japanese sportspaper NikkanSports is reporting (translated by MMAWeekly) that the UFC is planning on returning to Japan with a series of four smaller events in 2013. The events will showcase local, Japanese talent and will take place at a small, yet-to-be-determined venue. The UFC is reportedly aiming for 5,000 people attending each event.
At UFC 144, the organization made a triumphant return to the Land of the Rising Sun with an evening full of exciting fights, culminating in Benson Henderson winning the lightweight championship from Frankie Edgar. Add on the way that the polite, educated Japanese fans packed the Saitama Super Arena, and it felt like it would only be a matter of time before the organization returned to Japan for more events.
Today, Japanese sportspaper NikkanSports is reporting (translated by MMAWeekly) that the UFC is planning on returning to Japan with a series of four smaller events in 2013. The events will showcase local, Japanese talent and will take place at a small, yet-to-be-determined venue. The UFC is reportedly aiming for 5,000 people attending each event.
Obviously, none of these events will be numbered events, although there are no current plans in place pertaining to what network will broadcast the series. Still, the series seems like a good compromise. On one hand, it’s no secret that the UFC wants to re-establish itself in Japan, which has to include regularly holding events in Japan. However, good luck finding an abundance of Japanese fighters in the UFC who can headline a pay-per-view. Sure, guys like Takanori Gomi, Takeya Mizugaki and Hatsu Hioki are good for some entertaining fights, but I wouldn’t exactly rush to buy a pay-per-view headlined by any of them. With the UFC 151 fiasco fresh on everybody’s mind, a four event cable television series seems like a great way to book fights that the Japanese fans want to watch but the American fans don’t want to pay for.
We’ll keep you up-to-date as events are named, dates are set and fights are booked. Until then, have at it in the comments section on whether or not this is a good strategy for the UFC. And try not to turn this into another Jon Jones/Chael Sonnen war, okay?
(Jon Jones is now the UFC’s public enemy #1. Does that mean we can come out of hiding now? / Photo via MMAJunkie)
The rumors were true — and even worse than we thought. Due to a knee injury suffered in training, Dan Henderson has been forced to withdraw from his scheduled light-heavyweight title fight against Jon Jones at UFC 151, and because the UFC couldn’t find a suitable main event replacement, the UFC is canceling an event for the first time in the Zuffa era. Dana White confirmed the news in a press conference held earlier today — describing the cancellation as “probably one of my all-time lows as being president of the UFC” — and he made no attempt to hide his heated emotions during the call. Here are the brass tacks…
– Henderson suffered a partial tear in his MCL during training, which was serious enough to keep him from competing.
– According to Dana White, Chael Sonnen immediately jumped up to take the fight (“I’ll fly to Vegas tonight and fight him,” White quoted Sonnen as saying), and the UFC immediately began preparing behind-the-scenes to promote Jones vs. Sonnen on eight days’ notice. But Jon Jones turned down the matchup, refusing to fight Sonnen on short notice.
– White is extremely upset that Jones, a UFC champion and pound-for-pound candidate, would turn down a fight that would save an event. Even Tito Ortiz never pulled this shit, he pointed out. White lambasted the idea that Jones would turn this fight down for business reasons. “If he was a businessman, we wouldn’t be having this conversation right now,” he said. White agreed that his relationship with Jones would change “a lot” after this: “Me and Lorenzo are both disgusted.” Later in the call, White pointed out how Jones turning down the fight now screws all the supporting-card fighters out of paychecks.
– White saved additional venom for trainer Greg Jackson, who reportedly told Jones, “There’s no way you take this fight on eight days notice, it would be the biggest mistake of your entire career.” Said White: “How much faith do you have in your champion and your guy? [Jackson] is a fucking sport killer. This guy’s from another planet….Greg Jackson should never be interviewed by anybody ever again, except by a psychiatrist.”
(Jon Jones is now the UFC’s public enemy #1. Does that mean we can come out of hiding now? / Photo via MMAJunkie)
The rumors were true — and even worse than we thought. Due to a knee injury suffered in training, Dan Henderson has been forced to withdraw from his scheduled light-heavyweight title fight against Jon Jones at UFC 151, and because the UFC couldn’t find a suitable main event replacement, the UFC is canceling an event for the first time in the Zuffa era. Dana White confirmed the news in a press conference held earlier today — describing the cancellation as “probably one of my all-time lows as being president of the UFC” — and he made no attempt to hide his heated emotions during the call. Here are the brass tacks…
– Henderson suffered a partial tear in his MCL during training, which was serious enough to keep him from competing.
– According to Dana White, Chael Sonnen immediately jumped up to take the fight (“I’ll fly to Vegas tonight and fight him,” White quoted Sonnen as saying), and the UFC immediately began preparing behind-the-scenes to promote Jones vs. Sonnen on eight days’ notice. But Jon Jones turned down the matchup, refusing to fight Sonnen on short notice.
– White is extremely upset that Jones, a UFC champion and pound-for-pound candidate, would turn down a fight that would save an event. Even Tito Ortiz never pulled this shit, he pointed out. White lambasted the idea that Jones would turn this fight down for business reasons. “If he was a businessman, we wouldn’t be having this conversation right now,” he said. White agreed that his relationship with Jones would change “a lot” after this: “Me and Lorenzo are both disgusted.” Later in the call, White pointed out how Jones turning down the fight now screws all the supporting-card fighters out of paychecks.
– White saved additional venom for trainer Greg Jackson, who reportedly told Jones, “There’s no way you take this fight on eight days notice, it would be the biggest mistake of your entire career.” Said White: “How much faith do you have in your champion and your guy? [Jackson] is a fucking sport killer. This guy’s from another planet….Greg Jackson should never be interviewed by anybody ever again, except by a psychiatrist.”
– Though Lyoto Machida was considered for a replacement opponent for Jones, Machida was flying back to Brazil when all this went down, and it simply wasn’t possible from a timing perspective. “I can accept why Machida didn’t take the fight,” White said.
– Now, Jon Jones vs. Lyoto Machida is scheduled for UFC 152 (September 22nd, Toronto). Or actually, UFC 151, since UFC 151 never happened. (Thanks to Ariel Helwani for that important clarification.) “I can tell you right now, [Jones] ain’t turning down the Machida fight. If he does, we’re gonna have another conference call this afternoon.” [*cue spooky music*]
– There wasn’t enough time to consider other options like putting the PPV on free TV. Dana White disagreed with the suggestion that the event would still go on if it had a stronger co-main event.
– Our suggestion of having Ronda Rousey vs. Cris Cyborg step in to headline the card with a 140-pound superfight was politely ignored.
Jesus, what a fiasco. We’ll update you when we get Jones’s reaction to this mess.
CagePotato.com — the site that brought you “Ask Gary,” “Ask Dan,” and “Ask Carmen” — is pleased to announce our next celebrity correspondent. We’ve secured the talents of legendary MMA brawler/actor/commentator/relationship counselorDon Frye for a weekly interview series that will begin later this month. And we’re going to try* it a little different this time; instead of a written mailbag column, we’re going to organize an interactive video podcast where you can ask Don questions yourself, face to face.
But first, let’s seed this little garden with some questions to start off with. If you have anything you’d like to ask Don, please toss your questions in the comments section below. From his early UFC career, to his classic battles in Japan, to his beef with Dana White, to his alleged sexual assault of Rob Schneider, nothing is off limits. Thanks so much, and brace yourselves. More details about our Ask Don broadcasts will arrive next week. In the meantime, follow check out Don’s official web site, thepredatordonfrye.com.
* Pending our own technological capabilities. I mean, you remember how shaky this kind of thing was last time.
(Right back atcha, buddy!)
CagePotato.com — the site that brought you “Ask Gary,” “Ask Dan,” and “Ask Carmen” — is pleased to announce our next celebrity correspondent. We’ve secured the talents of legendary MMA brawler/actor/commentator/relationship counselorDon Frye for a weekly interview series that will begin later this month. And we’re going to try* it a little different this time; instead of a written mailbag column, we’re going to organize an interactive video podcast where you can ask Don questions yourself, face to face.
But first, let’s seed this little garden with some questions to start off with. If you have anything you’d like to ask Don, please toss your questions in the comments section below. From his early UFC career, to his classic battles in Japan, to his beef with Dana White, to his alleged sexual assault of Rob Schneider, nothing is off limits. Thanks so much, and brace yourselves. More details about our Ask Don broadcasts will arrive next week. In the meantime, follow check out Don’s official web site, thepredatordonfrye.com.
* Pending our own technological capabilities. I mean, you remember how shaky this kind of thing was last time.
Earlier in the week Dana White stated that “whoever wins the most impressively” from the contests involving Mauricio “Shogun” Rua VS Brandon Vera and Lyoto Machida VS Ryan Bader would be deemed the #1 contender for the LHW title. After watching the events unfold the UFC’s decision remained even more of a cluster f*ck due to a devestating Machida KO and a hard-fought TKO victory by Shogun. Even before Dana White stepped to the podium for the post-fight press conference, he announced LIVE just prior to the conclusion of the UFC on FOX 4 festivities telecast, that Lyoto Machida held the golden ticket.
By the time DW made his way to the dias for the post-fight press conference, the announcement had already spread across the MMA universe but he did say – during the media frenzy – that Machida “wants it bad.” The Dragon earned a convincing KO victory against a very tough competitor. Ryan Bader’s evening ended when he charged forward and ran directly into a perfectly-timed and placed right hand counter by Machida. Good night Irene.
Earlier in the week Dana White stated that “whoever wins the most impressively” from the contests involving Mauricio “Shogun” Rua VS Brandon Vera and Lyoto Machida VS Ryan Bader would be deemed the #1 contender for the LHW title. After watching the events unfold the UFC’s decision remained even more of a cluster f*ck due to a devestating Machida KO and a hard-fought TKO victory by Shogun. Even before Dana White stepped to the podium for the post-fight press conference, he announced LIVE just prior to the conclusion of the UFC on FOX 4 festivities telecast, that Lyoto Machida held the golden ticket.
By the time DW made his way to the dias for the post-fight press conference, the announcement had already spread across the MMA universe but he did say – during the media frenzy – that Machida “wants it bad.” The Dragon earned a convincing KO victory against a very tough competitor. Ryan Bader’s evening ended when he charged forward and ran directly into a perfectly-timed and placed right hand counter by Machida. Good night Irene.
Shogun, on the other hand, had a much more difficult task as (we can only surmise) the pink-slip-motivated Brandon Vera landed repeatedly with sharp elbows early on during their contest. A back and forth battle ensued between the men and it wasn’t until the closing stages of the 4th round that Shogun was able to finalize the main event with the TKO stoppage after Vera was overwhelmed by fatigue and punishment.
Judging a main event UFC fight with title implications is difficult enough (*unless you are Cecil Peoples – then you can seemingly do Sodoku throughout the scrap then fill in a 10-9 wherever you eenie-meenie-minie-moe feel like it on the official scorecard*). Objectively judging a UFC battle that is “most impressive” is a completely different thing. Which is more impressive?
Decking a young buck contender full of piss and vinegar or stopping a veteran that has his career, income and family’s wellbeing on the line?
Well, DW and the UFC went with the former and Lyoto Machida will be the opponent for the winner of Jon Jones VS Dan Henderson. So there you have it. Machida is next in line and another CP writer is proven prophetic. The Dragon was asked who he would prefer to face, Bones or Hendo, to which he replied “It doesn’t matter.” The verbose Machida was also asked what he plans to do if he faces Jones again. His response was typical. “I have to improve my wresting.” Considering Machida was choked out (go get youself some fans) COLD while standing, we can only hope the rematch is more competitive – unless, of course, Jon Jones runs his Bentley into the Dan Henderson tree.
We have months to speculate but who you got on both Potato Nation?
*Cecil Peoples is a respected and licensed combat sports judge and the bullshit within this article is simply personal opinion*
