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So We’re Serious About this War MMA Thing, Huh? Main Event of War MMA 1 Confirmed

(Screen capture of the War MMA website, NickDiazPromotions.com.)

If you assumed that War MMA would never get past the planning stages, then do I have a surprise for you: It looks like Nick Diaz got that temporary promoter’s license, because War MMA 1 is officially set for June 22 from the Stockton Arena and the main card appears set for the inaugural event.

Hell, tickets even went on sale, with ringside (yes, as in a ring not a cage) seats still available as of writing this!

Unsurprisingly, the main event will feature a Team Cesar Gracie fighter – UFC veteran Daniel Roberts (14-4, 3-4 UFC) – fighting against the most formidable local opponent the promotion can find. Via NickDiazPromotions.com:

(Screen capture of the War MMA website, NickDiazPromotions.com.)

Hell, tickets even went on sale, with ringside (yes, as in a ring not a cage) seats still available as of writing this!

Fighting out of San Francisco, Daniel Roberts is set to face challenger Justin Baesman from the East Bay of California. Roberts has had numerous bouts in the UFC and trains with the Cesar Gracie Fight Team. Baesman now with a 12-4 record, has looked good as of late and a win over Roberts would catapult him to the next level of his career.

As for the rest of the main card, there are a few names you may recognize:

Main Card:
Daniel Roberts vs. Justin Baesman
Antonio Banuelos vs. Benny Vinson
Caleb Mitchell vs. Evan Esguerra
Mike Persons vs. Clayton McKinney
Darin Cooley vs. Cody Gibson
Roy Boughton vs. Liron Wilson
Chris Quitiquit vs. Dominic Clark

There haven’t been any announced bouts for the undercard, so if you’re holding out on hope that there will be a gloriously preventable screw-up somewhere in the planning of this event, it may come here. But as for now, things appear to be running very smoothly, despite all of us expecting the contrary.

So now the only question that remains is, do you plan on watching War MMA’s inaugural event in a few weeks?

@SethFalvo

Best GIFS of The Day: LFC 14

I’ve been trying all day, but I can’t seem to find *any* opportunities for sophomoric humor. Props to Zombie Prophet for the GIFs

The Legacy Fighting Championships promotion may anywhere near the most famous or popular MMA organization out there but hot damn their fighters put on a great show Friday night in Houston Texas. Since you probably didn’t see LFC14 last night, we’ve got you covered with some of the best GIFS from the event.

Crazy chokes, power punches and even a honest to God sidekick to the head that lands cleanly…in MMA competition! Catch it all after the jump.

I’ve been trying all day, but I can’t seem to find *any* opportunities for sophomoric humor. Props to Zombie Prophet for the GIFs

Crazy chokes, power punches and even a honest to God sidekick to the head that lands cleanly…in MMA competition! Catch it all after the jump.

Jeff Rexroad submitting Lucas Pimenta off of his back in their welterweight title main event.

Josh Sampo drops Antonio “Mini-Liddell” Banuelos with a Superman punch.

Cody Williams drops Steven Peterson twice.

Peterson with a rare omaplata finish in MMA, after surviving the knockdowns.

Brandon Farran with a slick take down.

Derrick Krantz turns things around and finishes the fight over Farran.

Ryan Hollis with a mother fucking sidekick to the head, flush, on Matt “Danger” Schnell, of MTV’s Caged.

Full Results:

Jeff Rexroad def. Lucas Pimenta via submission (triangle choke), 3:17 of Round Two
Joshua Sampo def. Antonio Banuelos via unanimous decision
Steven Peterson def. Cody Williams via submission (omoplata), 4:46 of Round Two
Derrick Krantz def. Brandon Farran via submission (rear-naked choke), 1:11 of Round One
Lester Batres def. Jonathan Harris via KO (knee to the body and punches), 2:11 of Round One
Matt Schnell def. Ryan Hollis via split-decision
Darrion Caldwell def. David Armas via unanimous decision
Charles Ontiveros def. Anthony Tatum via unanimous decision
Terrance Ferguson def. Patrick Hutton via submission (rear-naked choke), Round One
Kaileb Cummins def. Patrick Greene via submission (guillotine choke), Round Three

Fight For Japan Genki Desu Ka Omisoka 2011Quick Results: Fedor Cruises, Sylvia “Loses,” Fernandes Wins Bantamweight Tourney

Spoilers after the jump, along with the Fedor/Ishii fight, the Sylvia/Le Banner “fight,” and the bantamweight tournament final match between Bibiano Fernandes and Antonio Banuelos.

Main Event:
Fedor Emelianenko def. Satoshi Ishii via knockout at 2:29 of round 1

Main Card:
Shinya Aoki def. Satoru Kitaoka via unanimous decision
Hiroyuki Takaya def. Takeshi Inoue via unanimous decision
Hayato Sakurai def. Ryo Chonan via unanimous decision
Tatsuya Kawajiri def. Kazuyuki Miyata via submission (arm triangle choke) at 4:55 of round 2
Megumi Fujii def. Karla Benitez via submission (armbar) at 1:15 of round 1

DREAM Bantamweight Grand Prix:
Bibiano Fernandes def. Rodolfo Marques via unanimous decision
Antonio Banuelos def. Masakazu Imanari via split decision
Yusup Saadulaev def. Hideo Tokoro via knockout (slam) at 0:42 of round one
Bibiano Fernandes vs. Antonio Banuelos via TKO at 1:21 of round 1

Mixed Rules Bout:
Katsunori Kikuno def. Yuichiro Nagashima via TKO in round two

Kickboxing Bouts:
Yuta Kubo def. Nils Widlund via knockout at 1:10 round three
Masaaki Noiri def. Kengo Sonoda via unanimous decision

Pro Wrestling Bouts:
Kazushi Sakuraba and Katsuyori Shibata def. Shinichi Suzukawa and Atsushi Sawada via submission (neck crank)
Kazuyuki Fujita def. Peter Aerts via submission (ankle lock)
Josh Barnett def. Hideki Suzuki via pinfall
Jerome LeBanner def. Tim Sylvia via TKO

Fedor vs. Ishii

(Props to Youtube/KSWFights)

Banuelos vs. Fernandes

Sylvia/Le Banner

-Danga

Dream New Year’s Eve Predictions

Filed under: DREAMWill Fedor Emelianenko continue his winning ways on New Year’s Eve in Japan? Or will Satoshi Ishii take an enormous step forward in his MMA career with a huge upset? Will Japanese stars Shinya Aoki, Hiroyuki Takaya and Tatsuya Kawajir…

Filed under: DREAM

Will Fedor Emelianenko continue his winning ways on New Year’s Eve in Japan? Or will Satoshi Ishii take an enormous step forward in his MMA career with a huge upset? Will Japanese stars Shinya Aoki, Hiroyuki Takaya and Tatsuya Kawajiri put on impressive performances? Will American fans manage to stay awake after UFC 141 and watch several more hours of fighting into the wee hours of Saturday morning?

We’ll attempt to answer those questions and more as we predict the winners of this year’s New Year’s Eve event in Japan below.

What: Dream: Fight for Japan New Year 2011

Where: Saitama Super Arena, Saitama, Japan

When: Friday late night, the HDNet broadcast will begin at 1 AM ET, just after the conclusion of UFC 141.

Predictions on all the MMA fights below.

Fedor Emelianenko vs. Satoshi Ishii
Fedor is 5-0 fighting in Japan on New Year’s Eve, and it would be an enormous upset if he doesn’t improve to 6-0 against Ishii, a former Olympic judo gold medalist who is 4-1-1 in his MMA career. Fedor has obviously declined significantly from the days when he was the top fighter in the sport, but I don’t think he’s fallen so far that he’ll lose to Ishii. This should be a relatively easy win for Fedor.
Pick: Emelianenko

Shinya Aoki vs. Satoru Kitaoka
Aoki is arguably Japan’s best pound-for-pound fighter, but he’ll have his hands full with Kitaoka, who’s a good grappler and has beaten some very solid opponents, including Carlos Condit, Paul Daley and Takanori Gomi. I see this one going the distance and being closer than most people think, with Aoki eking out a close decision.
Pick: Aoki

Hiroyuki Takaya vs. Takeshi Inoue
Takaya is making his second defense of the Dream featherweight title, which he won by defeating Bibiano Fernandes on New Year’s Eve last year. Inoue is coming off a great head kick knockout of Caol Uno, but Takaya’s kickboxing is better than Inoue, and I like him to win by decision.
Pick: Takaya

Tatsuya Kawajiri vs. Kazuyuki Miyata
Kawajiri dropped to featherweight and looked great in his recent win over Joachim Hansen. His striking will be too much for Miyata.
Pick: Kawajiri

Hayato Sakurai vs. Ryo Chonan
Both of these guys are past their primes (Sakurai is 36 and has lost four in a row; Chonan is 35 and has fought low-level competition since losing three of four in the UFC a few years ago), but I think Sakurai has a little more gas left in the tank and will avenge Chonan’s 2003 victory.
Pick: Sakurai

Megumi Fujii vs. Karla Benitez
Fujii is one of the best pound-for-pound female fighters in the world, and Benitez is simply not at her level. This should be an easy submission victory for Fujii.
Pick: Fujii

Bantamweight Tournament Semifinal: Bibiano Fernandes vs. Rodolfo Marques
Fernandes, the former Dream featherweight title, is more comfortable fighting at bantamweight, and he has to be considered the favorite to win this tournament. I look for him to beat Marques easily.
Pick: Fernandes

Bantamweight Tournament Semifinal: Masakazu Imanari vs. Antonio Banuelos
Banuelos was released by the UFC after losing a decision to Miguel Torres early this year, but he’s a dangerous opponent for anyone and a much better striker than Imanari. I like Banuelos to win by TKO.
Pick: Banuelos

Bantamweight Tournament Reserve Bout: Hideo Tokoro vs. Yusup Saadulaev
Tokoro, who lost a split decision to Banuelos in the tournament quarterfinals, should win the reserve bout against Saadulaev, who lost to Marques.
Pick: Tokoro

Bantamweight Tournament Final: Winner of Imanari/Banuelos vs. Winner of Fernandes/Marques
Fernandes has an excellent opportunity to make a statement that he’s the best bantamweight outside Zuffa, and I think he’ll put on a show by beating Banuelos in the tournament finale.
Pick: Fernandes

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Fedor Emelianenko to Face Satoshi Ishii in Japan on New Years Eve

(What? Was Zuluzinho not ready for a rematch?)

Fresh off a unanimous decision victory over Jeff Monson that snapped the only multiple fight losing streak of his career, word has just broke that Fedor Emelianenko will be fighting in Japan for the first time since his armbar victory over Hong Man Choi at Yarennoka – New Years Eve 2007. As luck would have it, “The Last Emperor” will be fighting on New Years Eve once again, this time under the DREAM banner and against 2008 Olympic gold medal winning Judo practitioner Satoshi Ishii.

Not exactly the freak show bout that Japan (and Fedor) have been known to dabble in, but to call it a mismatch would be somewhat of an understatement. After winning the gold medal in Beijing, China over three years ago, Ishii has built up a 4-1-1 MMA record, with wins over the likes of Ikuhisa Minowa and former K1 great Jerome Le Banner, but has not fought since his draw with pill popper and occasional fighter Paulo Filho back in September. Ishii’s lone loss came in his MMA debut at the hands of fellow Judoka gold medalist Hidehiko Yoshida.

(What? Was Zuluzinho not ready for a rematch?)

Emelianenko, on the other hand, is no stranger to the kind of offense Ishii will bring; he has not only medaled in the Russian National Judo Championships, but is a four time World Combat Sambo champion as well. And along with an experience advantage over Ishii that borders on brobdingnagian, Fedor can also fall back on the fact that he has a pair of Phantasm-esque murderballs for hands and an arsenal of submissions that would give any member of the Gracie family an erection. So yeah, Fedor should be able to take this one with relative ease.

DREAM “Genki Desu Ka! New Year! 2011 will also conclude (finally) DREAM’s bantamweight tournament, featuring the semifinals and final match-ups of the four remaining participants: Antonio Banuelos, Masakazu Imanari, Bibiano Fernandes and Rodolfo Marques.

Genki Desu Ka! is set to transpire December 31st from the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan.

-Danga

DREAM Bantamweight Semifinals Set for ‘Genki Desu Ka!!’

Filed under: News, JapanTo close out DREAM’s World Bantamweight Grand Prix, Bibiano Fernandes will face Antonio Banuelos, while Masakazu Imanari will fight Rodolfo Marques on the Dec. 31 “Genki Desu Ka!!” (How are you?) card in Saitama, Japan.

Fernan…

Filed under: News, Japan

To close out DREAM’s World Bantamweight Grand Prix, Bibiano Fernandes will face Antonio Banuelos, while Masakazu Imanari will fight Rodolfo Marques on the Dec. 31 “Genki Desu Ka!!” (How are you?) card in Saitama, Japan.

Fernandes, Baneulos, Imanari and Marques were all victorious in opening round bouts at DREAM.17 in September to advance to the semifinals. The winners of the semifinals will meet the same night on Dec. 31 to determine the Grand Prix champion.

Former DREAM Featherweight GP winner and titleholder Fernandes (9-3) is coming off a win against Takafumi Otsuka via rear-naked choke. Marques (14-1) out of Brazil’s Nova Uniao advanced with a unanimous decision win over Yusup Saadulaev.

Leglock specialist Imanari (24-9-2) has been one of the most active fighters in Japanese MMA in 2011. He’s 3-2 this year with wins over Abel Cullum, Kenji Osawa and Keisuke Fujiwara and loses to Hideo Tokoro and Hiroshi Nakamura. Banuelos (19-7) made his UFC debut in February in a losing effort against Miguel Torres and then bounced back with a win over Hideo Tokoro at DREAM.17.

Event promoters also announced Friday the addition of Hayato “Mach” Sakurai vs. Ryo Chonan to the card.

Sakurai (35-12-2) will be in search of his first win since knocking out Shinya Aoki back at DREAM.8 in April 2009. The former UFC title contender last competed last New Year’s Eve in a loss to Jason High. He was booked to fight at DREAM.17 but bowed out due to injury. Chonan (20-12), best known for a submission win over Anderson Silva, won both his fights in 2011 fighting under the DEEP banner.

The final “Genki Desu Ka!!” card will be a mix of MMA, kickboxing and pro wrestling matches.

Current lineup:

Bibiano Fernandes vs. Rodolfo Marques
Masakazu Imanari vs. Antonio Banuelos
Winner of Fernandes-Marques vs. Winner of Imanari-Banuelos
Hayato “Mach” Sakurai vs. Ryo Chonan
Hiroyuki Takaya vs. Takeshi “Lion” Inoue
Tatsuya Kawajiri vs. Kazuyuki Miyata

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