After weeks of one of the strangest beefs in MMA history, Brendan Schaub says he is done squabbling with Ariel Helwani. For months, Helwani let Schaub talk about him without saying anything back, supposedly spreading lies fueled by Joe Rogan. Then from the dark depths rose the dreaded Kaiju, Heelwani, who had finally decided to […]
Nevertheless, Brendan Schaub has had enough of the squabbling between him and Helwani and decided to call an end to it all. Speaking on a recent episode of his podcast, the former UFC heavyweight explained that he and the journalist spoke on the phone, and he got an understanding of the impact his words had on Helwani.
“We had a conversation, a straight-up phone call like two grown-ups. I don’t hate the guy… I think this kind of spiraled out of control a little bit on his end because when I made those off-putting comments about him, I didn’t realize how bad I hurt him… The context on ‘Fighter and the Kid’, it came off as a joke. I get it from a number of different angles… Ariel, there might be some people out there who want to carry this on. That has nothing to do with me. This is it from here. This is it on my side of things,” said Schaub (h/t Sportskeeda).
Time will tell if this is truly the end of the Brandan Schuab vs Ariel Helwani beef or if either party will start things back up again for some other reason. In any event, seeing as how these two will never actually end up fighting each other, this was an odd back and forth between the two.
You can watch Brendan Schaub’s full podcast episode below:
Like it or not, Chuck Liddell vs. Tito Ortiz III is happening. The longtime UFC champions and rivals met face-to-face in an intense staredown to cap off today’s introductory press event for their trilogy fight under Golden Boy Promotions this November. Ortiz was the one not surprisingly driving the smack talk as he ran his mouth up […]
Like it or not, Chuck Liddell vs. Tito Ortiz III is happening.
The longtime UFC champions and rivals met face-to-face in an intense staredown to cap off today’s introductory press event for their trilogy fight under Golden Boy Promotions this November.
Ortiz was the one not surprisingly driving the smack talk as he ran his mouth up close and personal in Liddell’s face. It was only an extension of his attitude throughout the entire press event, were the polarizing ground and pound specialist went off on Liddell.
He may have two previous losses to “The Iceman,” but Ortiz said he would defeat Liddell on his terms this time around (via MMA Fighting’s Shaun Al-Shatti):
“Live at The Forum, November 24th, I get an opportunity to put you out once and for all. This came around, I fought last year against Chael Sonnen at Bellator 170, I choked him out in two-and-a-half minutes. He’s still in the heavyweight tournament and still beating guys.
“This guy next to me (Liddell), he hasn’t fought in over 10 years. He wants to come out of retirement and call me out? I’ve been passionately busy with my other businesses, but you know what? I see the opportunity to finally shut this guy up, to finally get my hand raised on my terms.”
Liddell hasn’t fought for over eight years, but who’s counting. Anyway, Ortiz, who’s a vocal supporter of Donald Trump, kept the smack talk rolling hard by using one of his fans’ favorite insults:
“Like I said, I’m 43 years young. I’ve watched guys, the greatest, like Bernard Hopkins be 52 and be a world champion. See guys who are the greatest, like Randy Couture, at 43 being the world champion. You’re going to see Tito Ortiz on November 24th, at 43, getting his hand raised over an old man, a shell of a man, Chuck ‘The Snowflake’ Liddell.”
The famed knockout artist and one-time face of the UFC had a somber response for his longtime rival:
“First, to address Tito, I know you’re hoping I’m a shell of the man that I was, because that’s the only way you have a chance of beating me. But he’s going to find out real quick, November 24th, that I’m not,” Liddell said. “I still hit just as hard, I still wrestle just as well, and he’s gonna get knocked out.
“I’m excited to be back in the sport, and I’m excited to prove to everyone that I’m not too old. You can do anything you put your mind to. I will be there, I will be in shape, and I will be ready. This guy’s getting knocked out, and I am going to enjoy it.”
History would state that would be the case, but with Liddell much older and having suffered more brutal knockout losses than Ortiz late in his career, it’s anyone’s guess who will win this highly-criticized affair.
It’s also anyone’s guess why it got licensed by the California State Athletic Commission (CSAC), but that’s another discussion for another time.
Ortiz closed with a simple bit of smack talk to end the proceedings:
“You ain’t doing ****.”
MMA fans will see who does what this November, and if my senses prove right, it should be akin to watching MMA’s version of a trainwreck. What say you?
Heading into their controversial trilogy fight in November, longtime mixed martial arts (MMA) rivals Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz got into a heated staredown in Las Vegas today. The former UFC light heavyweight champions appeared in a pre-fight news conference for their upcoming pay-per-view event promoted by Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions, which […]
Heading into their controversial trilogy fight in November, longtime mixed martial arts (MMA) rivals Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz got into a heated staredown in Las Vegas today.
The former UFC light heavyweight champions appeared in a pre-fight news conference for their upcoming pay-per-view event promoted by Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions, which recently decided to make a foray into the MMA game.
48-year-old Liddell and 43-year-old Ortiz have a long history with one another, as “The Iceman” finished “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” twice during their respective primes in the octagon. They’ll now meet for a third time in a fight most believed wouldn’t actually happen but will.
The trash talk got started today, with Ortiz running his mouth and posturing at Liddell while the usually stoic “Iceman” remained calm. Check it out via MMAjunkie right here:
Conor McGregor has never been one to shy away from confrontation, whether it’s physical or verbal. During the leadup to his August 2017 super fight with boxing legend Floyd Mayweather, Floyd’s on-again, off-again friend rapper 50 Cent decided to post his feelings on social media regarding McGregor. The two have gone back-and-forth since then, with […]
Conor McGregor has never been one to shy away from confrontation, whether it’s physical or verbal.
During the leadup to his August 2017 super fight with boxing legend Floyd Mayweather, Floyd’s on-again, off-again friend rapper 50 Cent decided to post his feelings on social media regarding McGregor.
The two have gone back-and-forth since then, with “The Notorious” firing back after the rapper made a post that has since been deleted saying he was ‘a decent fighter for a white boy’ about him online.
McGregor took it a bit personally, firing back at 50 with a seething online post full of several disses focusing on the star rapper’s age:
Happy international Women’s day everyone! Get your tits out for the lads ladies. We love you Superior genes my big ballsack mate. I am made of granite. You need a bra. You jabbed up fool.Hahahaha you should have stayed quiet and promoted that fight for me on the free like you did. But you just kept going with them fucking memes. Your 50, 50. 50 years old. Fuck off. It’s all love tho fifty serious, you are a mad bastard, but we still proper love a few of your tunes over on this side of the world.I even blasted one of them on the free walking into madison square garden to take one of my belts. It was called I run New York. @beatsbydre
What do you make of the beef between the two? Is it just a way for McGregor to stay relevant while he continues his absence from active competition? Or is the rivalry real?
Joe Lauzon vs. Michael Chiesa was as predictable as it was unexpected, if that makes any sense. Allow me to explain. The Fight Night 50 main card opener that pitted the TUF 5 alum against the TUF 15 winner was predictable in the way that all Joe Lauzon fights are: It was a back-and-forth, ferociously paced banger that brought the crowd to life from the very moment it started. There’s a reason why Lauzon has scored a UFC record 13 fight bonuses, and his most recent performance was no exception.
The fight’s ending was unexpected, however, in that Lauzon emerged victorious via TKO — something he hasn’t accomplished since 2008 — and that said TKO came due to the doctor’s intervention. As you might expect, Chiesa was upset with the decision and immediately took to Twitter to protest the stoppage while demanding an immediate rematch.
“Out of all the bloody three-round wars I’ve seen … Diego, Lauzon and many others, why the hell did they stop my fight?” asked Chiesa. “I was never beat, my will was never broken, I was winning that fight. I demand a rematch before the year ends. I hope you all were entertained, you guys got robbed as much as me. That fight was going to be a three-round war. We all got robbed.”
Lauzon responded shortly thereafter with the above Instagram post, showing that not only had all 3 judges had scored the first round for him, but stating his belief that “rematches are dumb.” That led to this exchange between the two lightweights on Twitter:
Joe Lauzon vs. Michael Chiesa was as predictable as it was unexpected, if that makes any sense. Allow me to explain. The Fight Night 50 main card opener that pitted the TUF 5 alum against the TUF 15 winner was predictable in the way that all Joe Lauzon fights are: It was a back-and-forth, ferociously paced banger that brought the crowd to life from the very moment it started. There’s a reason why Lauzon has scored a UFC record 13 fight bonuses, and his most recent performance was no exception.
The fight’s ending was unexpected, however, in that Lauzon emerged victorious via TKO — something he hasn’t accomplished since 2008 — and that said TKO came due to the doctor’s intervention. As you might expect, Chiesa was upset with the decision and immediately took to Twitter to protest the stoppage while demanding an immediate rematch.
“Out of all the bloody three-round wars I’ve seen … Diego, Lauzon and many others, why the hell did they stop my fight?” asked Chiesa. “I was never beat, my will was never broken, I was winning that fight. I demand a rematch before the year ends. I hope you all were entertained, you guys got robbed as much as me. That fight was going to be a three-round war. We all got robbed.”
Lauzon responded shortly thereafter with the above Instagram post, showing that not only had all 3 judges had scored the first round for him, but stating his belief that “rematches are dumb.” That led to this exchange between the two lightweights on Twitter:
Now 0-2 against Lauzon thanks to that sweet burn, Chiesa took to the media to vent his frustrations with the stoppage, telling MMAJunkie that he would even being willing to give up the $50,000 “Fight of the Night” money he earned in order to receive a rematch.
Everyone’s like, ‘Cheer up, you got the bonus.’ I don’t care. I would give that $50,000 back just to be able to go the rest of the fight.
It just upsets me. I’m not taking a shot at the commission, but I feel like they should have at least given me through the round. Herb did his job coming in and checking the cut, but we train three months for one moment. To take it away from me in a fight where I was never out of the fight isn’t right.
Again, it’s easy to see where Chiesa is coming from. The loss to Lauzon snapped a two-fight win streak for the TUF 15 winner, whose only professional loss prior to last weekend came at the hands of former Strikeforce title challenger Jorge Masvidal in July of 2013. But it’s easy to claim that you’d hand over 50K when the option isn’t actually on the table, which is why Lauzon proceed to grant Chiesa his rematch on Instagram this morning under one condition: Chiesa put his money where his mouth is.
“Accept the loss like a man, or the @UFC can send me your FoTN check and we do it again,” wrote Lauzon.
I think we can all agree that immediate rematches are best when saved for title fights, and even then often seem rushed and/or doomed to fail (*cough* Dillashaw-Barao *cough*). In the case of Lauzon-Chiesa, a rematch seems especially impractical — it’s not like Chiesa suffered his cut from an accidental headbutt ala Bonnar-KSos 1. He received it while eating a flurry of knees and punches, and like Lauzon pointed to, all three of the judges had scored the first round for him. Simply put, it does not appear as if Chiesa was exactly “robbed” like he claims.
A rematch would do next to nothing for Lauzon, but God love the kid, he’s willing to accept one for the mere price of Chiesa’s bonus check. Because Joe Lauzon loves bonus checks. He likes the smell of freshly printed paper. He loves the Arabic Typesetting font. Hell, Lauzon even likes it when he cuts himself between the thumb and forefinger while opening a bonus check, and it’s that kind of attitude that has made “J-Lau” the UFC’s first billionaire.
The ball is now in Chiesa’s court, in any case. In the meantime, we guess he’ll just have to bite his tongue and accept that…
(“But why is the lady having sex with the horse when she could be eating it?” via FighterXFashion.)
If Hollywood ever opted to do a straight-up remake of Predator starring only MMA fighters (not that they ever, *ever* should), I’d like to think that Alistair Overeem and Anthony “Rumble” Johnson would be prime candidates for the Dutch and Dillon roles, respectively, based purely on body mass. I say this despite the fact that the former has been rapidly shrinking down from heavyweight and the latter steadily ballooning up from welterweight in recent years.
Come to think of it, it’s entirely possible that Rumble has been slowly accumulating/absorbing Overeem’s mass through some sort of voodoo this entire time. Johnson and Overeem are former “Blackzilian” training partners, for one, which means that Rumble could have easily secured the hair strand/toenail clipping/jar of sweat necessary to conduct such a voodoo ritual, and both appear to hate the everloving sh*t out of each other. It’s the only logical explanation outside of “Johnson was never a true welterweight and Overeem owed his Herculean physique to steroids” that I can honestly think of.
Looking to continue the middle school method of hyping a fight that hasn’t been booked yet, Johnson lashed out at Overeem on Twitter this morning:
(“But why is the lady having sex with the horse when she could be eating it?” via FighterXFashion.)
If Hollywood ever opted to do a straight-up remake of Predator starring only MMA fighters (not that they ever, *ever* should), I’d like to think that Alistair Overeem and Anthony “Rumble” Johnson would be prime candidates for the Dutch and Dillon roles, respectively, based purely on their collective body mass. I say this despite the fact that the former has been rapidly shrinking down from heavyweight and the latter steadily ballooning up from welterweight over the past few years.
Come to think of it, it’s entirely possible that Rumble has been slowly accumulating/absorbing Overeem’s mass through some sort of voodoo this entire time. Johnson and Overeem are former “Blackzilian” training partners, for one, which means that Rumble could have easily secured the hair strand/toenail clipping/jar of sweat necessary to conduct such a voodoo ritual, and both appear to hate the everloving sh*t out of each other. It’s the only logical explanation outside of “Johnson was never a true welterweight and Overeem owed his Herculean physique to steroids” that I can honestly think of.
Looking to continue the middle school method of hyping a fight that hasn’t been booked yet, Johnson lashed out at Overeem on Twitter this morning:
As the official Twitter beef judge ’round these parts, I give Rumble a 6 out of 10 for this attack. The Overeem-JDS stuff surely stung a bit, but “Overshit” is just way too hackneyed an insult to be effective. “Oversemen” maybe could have worked, but even that’s a bit of a stretch. I also took points away from Rumble for responding to being called a pussy by calling Overeem…a pussy. That’s just plain unoriginal, like rhyming a word with the same word in a rap (more commonly known as “Fred Dursting”).
Overeem, as you know, has not fought since his three-round drubbing of Frank Mir at UFC 169, and is currently scheduled to face Ben Rothwell at Fight Night Mashantucket (lol!) this Friday. Johnson similarly beat down an aging legend in his last contest, stopping Antonio Rogerio Nogueira with strikes in the first round of their fight at UFC on FOX 12.
Superior genes my big ballsack mate. I am made of granite. You need a bra. You jabbed up fool.Hahahaha you should have stayed quiet and promoted that fight for me on the free like you did. But you just kept going with them fucking memes. Your 50, 50. 50 years old. Fuck off. It’s all love tho fifty serious, you are a mad bastard, but we still proper love a few of your tunes over on this side of the world.I even blasted one of them on the free walking into madison square garden to take one of my belts. It was called I run New York. 
