UFC Betting Sites – The Best MMA Online Bookies
UFC best betting sites and the best MMA odds and gambling news
(Video courtesy YouTube/UFC StannFan1)
The hype behind this weekend’s James Toney-Randy Couture showdown has focused largely around the "Is MMA better than Boxing?" quandary, which, up until this point has never really been answered, and in m…
(Video courtesy YouTube/UFC StannFan1)
The hype behind this weekend’s James Toney-Randy Couture showdown has focused largely around the "Is MMA better than Boxing?" quandary, which, up until this point has never really been answered, and in my opinion really won’t be answered by this fight.
The question really should be "Who would win in a fight between a top-tier boxer and a top-tier MMA fighter?"
(Like "Good Will Hunting," without the smart one. PicProps: CombatLifestyle.)
Given the location of this weekend’s card and the company’s insistence on promoting the co-main event as a “UFC vs. boxing,” spectacle it&rs…
(Like "Good Will Hunting," without the smart one. PicProps: CombatLifestyle.)
Given the location of this weekend’s card and the company’s insistence on promoting the co-main event as a “UFC vs. boxing,” spectacle it’s a bit surprising we haven’t heard more from Marcus Davis leading up to UFC 118. Davis after all is a former professional pugilist who made the transition to MMA long before James Toney began mastering the art of the “side check kick.” But maybe because he’s just 3-3 in his last six fights and his upcoming bout with Nate Diaz is scheduled to be first on Saturday’s PPV card, the “Irish Hand Grenade” hasn’t grabbed many headlines as the Octagon prepares to storm Beantown.
Davis did however sit down for an equal parts funny and scary interview with MMA Junkie this week. In it, he discusses how he made his bones in the hardscrabble world of the small-time Boston boxing scene in the late ’90s and basically makes his life sound like the plot of an unproduced Sylvester Stallone movie. You know, back before Sylvester Stallone movies were just a collection of one-liners tied loosely together by scenes of shit blowing up.
When James Toney meets Randy Couture at UFC 118 next Saturday, he’ll be attempting to prove the dominance of the "sweet science" over that weird stuff that gay skinheads do. Of course, he won’t be the first pugilist to try to beat an MMA…
When James Toney meets Randy Couture at UFC 118 next Saturday, he’ll be attempting to prove the dominance of the "sweet science" over that weird stuff that gay skinheads do. Of course, he won’t be the first pugilist to try to beat an MMA fighter at their own game — boxing vs. martial arts challenge matches have been around since before "Lights Out" was born. Join us as we take a look back at the brave boxers who preceded Toney…and what became of them.
MILO SAVAGE vs. "JUDO" GENE LeBELL
December 2, 1963
Arguably the first sanctioned MMA match in American history, Savage vs. LeBell came together when legendary judoka/actor Gene LeBell answered a challenge from boxer Jim Beck, who claimed that a professional boxer could beat any martial artist. (Yep, they’ve been making the same boast for almost 50 years.) According to LeBell, he was expecting to fight Beck himself in the televised match, but his opponent was switched at the last minute to Milo Savage, a top-5-ranked light-heavyweight who was allegedly wearing brass knuckles under his fingerless speed-bag gloves, and was greased from head to toe. Despite the disadvantages, Gene sunk a lapel choke in the 4th round and put Savage to sleep. But as with most stories involving Judo Gene, the details are somewhat debatable; this Jonathan Snowden article debunks several aspects of LeBell’s version. Still, LeBell vs. Savage deserves credit as the first MMA-style fight on television, and set up a rivalry between boxing and martial arts that’s somehow still relevant today.
MUHAMMAD ALI vs. ANTONIO INOKI
June 26, 1976
It sounded like good, harmless fun — the greatest boxer of all time taking on Japanese pro-wrestling kingpin Antonio Inoki in an exhibition match in Tokyo. But in the days leading up to the show, bizarre rules were added that restricted certain attacks. Most notably, Inoki could only kick if he had one knee on the ground. So, he scooted around the ring kicking Ali’s legs for the entire 15-round duration. Ali only landed six punches the entire fight and went home with two blood clots and an infection. The bout was ruled a draw, and has garnered a reputation as one of the ugliest fiascos in the history of combat sports. Fun fact: The referee of this match? None other than mixed-fighting pioneer Gene LeBell.