SportsPotato: Joint Practice Between the Cowboys and Raiders Ends in Bench-Clearing Brawl

There must be something in the air, Nation.

For whatever reason, the Dallas Cowboys and the Oakland Raiders decided to host a joint practice in California yesterday. It did not end well.

The skirmish above is apparently one of several that broke out during the joint practice, which at one point saw Dallas cornerback B.W. Webb struck in the back of the head by a fan brandishing a helmet and respond by taking a swing of his own. To be fair, that fan probably should have known that a cowardice will never go unpunished in these post-Malice in the Palace times.

After the jump: A different angle of the brawl, via Instagram user sc_spitta.

There must be something in the air, Nation.

For whatever reason, the Dallas Cowboys and the Oakland Raiders decided to host a joint practice in California yesterday. It did not end well.

The skirmish above is apparently one of several that broke out during the joint practice, which at one point saw Dallas cornerback B.W. Webb struck in the back of the head by a fan brandishing a helmet and respond by taking a swing of his own. To be fair, that fan probably should have known that a cowardice will never go unpunished in these post-Malice in the Palace times.

After the jump: A different angle of the brawl, via Instagram user sc_spitta.

As of this write-up, the NFL has yet to issue an obligatory hand-wringing statement regarding the incident or disclose any possible fines or suspensions that may be levied. Who am I kidding? There won’t be.

One final thing of note, via ESPN:

“That passion, that’s mostly what I’d hoped what we would get out of getting these teams together,” said Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones, who half-jokingly praised the remarkable power of Raiders offensive lineman Austin Howard’s uppercut punches.

(What we refer to as) Professional sports, everybody.

J. Jones

Alexander Gustafsson: Jones-Cormier Media Brawl ‘Ridiculous’ and ‘Childish’

Alexander Gustafsson isn’t impressed with all of the media attention Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier are receiving for their brief scrap in the MGM Grand lobby Monday. For those living under a rock, UFC 178 media day ended with an intense staredown between Jones and Cormier before quickly escalating into thrown punches, a flying shoe […]

Alexander Gustafsson isn’t impressed with all of the media attention Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier are receiving for their brief scrap in the MGM Grand lobby Monday. For those living under a rock, UFC 178 media day ended with an intense staredown between Jones and Cormier before quickly escalating into thrown punches, a flying shoe […]

Joe Rogan: ‘Ridiculous’ Jones-Cormier Brawl Is a Weapon to Be Used Against MMA

Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier did MMA no favors by getting into a fight at UFC 178 media day, according to UFC commentator Joe Rogan. The sports world has been buzzing all week about the brief skirmish in the MGM Grand lobby in Las Vegas on Monday between the light heavyweight champ and the former […]

Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier did MMA no favors by getting into a fight at UFC 178 media day, according to UFC commentator Joe Rogan. The sports world has been buzzing all week about the brief skirmish in the MGM Grand lobby in Las Vegas on Monday between the light heavyweight champ and the former […]

UFC Reveals Trailer of the Ultimate Fighter: Brazil 3, Teases Sonnen-Silva Brawl

The UFC has put out a trailer for The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil 3, pushing focus on the previously announced on-set brawl between Chael Sonnen and Wanderlei Silva. Sonnen and Silva have been at odds since 2012, when Sonnen was pushing for a rematch with then-middleweight-champion Anderson Silva, and in the process systematically insulted every high-profile […]

The UFC has put out a trailer for The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil 3, pushing focus on the previously announced on-set brawl between Chael Sonnen and Wanderlei Silva. Sonnen and Silva have been at odds since 2012, when Sonnen was pushing for a rematch with then-middleweight-champion Anderson Silva, and in the process systematically insulted every high-profile […]

[VIDEOS] Freddie Roach Clashes With Brandon Rios’ Trainers — Who Are Despicable, Vile Assholes — At Open Workout in Macau

A few things you should know about Freddie Roach:

1) He is a world-renowned, Boxing Hall of Fame-inducted trainer whose list of credentials includes everyone from Manny Pacquiao and Oscar De La Hoya to Georges St. Pierre (who will never fight without Roach in his corner again, FYI) and Anderson Silva.
2) He suffers from Parkinson’s disease.
3) He once bit a dude’s eyeball out of his socket.
4) He is legend.

Yesterday morning, Roach entered a gym in Macau for an open workout scheduled ahead of Pacquiao’s clash with Brandon Rios this Saturday. Shortly after entering, Roach got into a heated altercation with Brandon Rios’ trainers, Robert Garcia and Alex Ariza, regarding gym time. When Rios’ crew refused to leave despite their time being up, Roach called Garcia a “piece of shit,” setting into motion a back-and-forth that would result in Roach being kicked in the chest, called a “faggot” repeatedly, and having his Parkinson’s disease mocked and laughed at by Rios and his crew of troglodyte cohorts.

Now, while some of the blame for this altercation can be placed on Roach for his overly-aggressive approach (and somewhat insidious use of the term “Mexican motherfucker”), to act as if Garcia and Ariza’s childish mocking of a boxing legend’s incurable disease is anything less than despicable, abhorrent behavior is to sell the incident short.

Fuck you, Robert Garcia. Fuck you, Alex Ariza. Fuck you both to Hell. May your tiny, tiny genitals be severed from your bodies and fed to the meanest, junkyardiest dogs this planet has to offer while the rest of you is cast to the boats.

After the jump: A second angle of the confrontation, as well as a little backstory on the rough history between Roach and Ariza.

A few things you should know about Freddie Roach:

1) He is a world-renowned, Boxing Hall of Fame-inducted trainer whose list of credentials includes everyone from Manny Pacquiao and Oscar De La Hoya to Georges St. Pierre (who will never fight without Roach in his corner again, FYI) and Anderson Silva.
2) He suffers from Parkinson’s disease.
3) He once bit a dude’s eyeball out of his socket.
4) He is legend.

Yesterday morning, Roach entered a gym in Macau for an open workout scheduled ahead of Pacquiao’s clash with Brandon Rios this Saturday. Shortly after entering, Roach got into a heated altercation with Brandon Rios’ trainers, Robert Garcia and Alex Ariza, regarding gym time. When Rios’ crew refused to leave despite their time being up, Roach called Garcia a “piece of shit,” setting into motion a back-and-forth that would result in Roach being kicked in the chest, called a “faggot” repeatedly, and having his Parkinson’s disease mocked and laughed at by Rios and his crew of troglodyte cohorts.

Now, while some of the blame for this altercation can be placed on Roach for his overly-aggressive approach (and somewhat insidious use of the term “Mexican motherfucker”), to act as if Garcia and Ariza’s childish mocking of a boxing legend’s incurable disease is anything less than despicable, abhorrent behavior is to sell the incident short.

Fuck you, Robert Garcia. Fuck you, Alex Ariza. Fuck you both to Hell. May your tiny, tiny genitals be severed from your bodies and fed to the meanest, junkyardiest dogs this planet has to offer while the rest of you is cast to the boats.

A second angle of the confrontation, as well as a little backstory on the rough history between Roach and Ariza, is below.

For those of you who think this was an isolated incident, think again. It turns out that, for a time, Ariza was the strength and conditioning coach for Pacquiao until he was fired on Roach’s advice. Yahoo’s Kevin Iole has the scoop:

“Ariza is just an [expletive],” Roach said. “He never did a thing for Manny. Manny always worked on his own. Alex just stretched him, and that was the extent of his job. I told Manny, ‘You’re paying this guy a lot of money just to stretch you.’ What fighter in the world, what professional athlete, can’t stretch himself?’ And Manny agreed and said, ‘I’m going to go back to the old way.’

“Alex is just a pain in the ass. My cornermen, Buboy [Fernandez], he used to cut off and go up in the ring. He cut Buboy off and would start yelling instructions over me. My cutman, Miguel Diaz, refused to work the corner if Alex was in the corner because he wanted to be the cutman also. If he would have just done his job, he would have been OK, but he wanted to do everyone else’s job.

Now let’s bring things back to the “racist” allegations being thrown Roach’s way in/as a result of this video.

To my understanding (which is somewhat limited on account of my “whiteness”), calling a person of Mexican descent “a Mexican” does not inherently qualify as racist. In the interest of fairness, however, I will say that Roach’s use of the term sure sounded racist, if only because of the context in which he was using it.

Calling someone with Parkinson’s disease “a stuttering prick” and “a faggot” before repeatedly mocking their disease, on the other hand, is a revolting act worthy of a swift and brutal punishment. While my previous suggestion of castration/scaphism might be a little on the extreme side, can we all agree that a good old fashioned kneecapping is in order for both Ariza and Garcia?

Oh, and the worst part? This isn’t even the first time that Rios & Co. have been caught mocking Roach’s Parkinson’s on camera.

You know what, fuck it. Fasten each and every last one of Rios’ crew to a boat and let the insects feast on their insides.

J. Jones

(Sort of) Update: Falcao & Mena Kicked Off Fight Team for Role in Gas Station Brawl, Mena Still Hospitalized


(Rest assured, this woman felt mighty foolish when she realized that Falcao was just trying to swat a deadly scorpion off her shoulder.) 

On Monday, we showed you video example #3401 of rule #1 in Brazil: Always show the proper hespect. Whether it’s to a fellow opponent, an elder, or some chick(a) at a gas station who just shot you down, dishespect is something that will simply not be tolerated and will usually end with a 2×4 being placed upside your head. It applied to Tommy Boy, and therefore it applies to the streets of Brazil.

Unfortunately, former Bellator middleweight title challenger Maiquel Falcao was never taught the aforementioned rule by the pack of feral dogs that raised him from ages 6-17 on account of them not speaking English and all, resulting in the horrific beatdowns that both he (deservedly) and fellow fighter Kaue Mena (not so much) received in their wild gas station brawl over the weekend.

Fortunately for Mena, he appears to be slowly improving after undergoing surgery yesterday, but remains in a coma. Falcao’s wife took to Facebook to detail the situation, stating, “Great news. Our brother Kaue has shown improvements. We are following his recovery. Glory be to God. We will continue praying in earnest.” The bad news, however, is that both Falcao and Mena have been subsequently kicked off Renovacao Fight Team, where the former has trained for the better part of two years. Fight team leader Marcelo Brigadeiro released an official statement via Portal do Vale Tudo yesterday, the entirety of which is after the jump.


(Rest assured, this woman felt mighty foolish when she realized that Falcao was just trying to swat a deadly scorpion off her shoulder.) 

On Monday, we showed you video example #3401 of rule #1 in Brazil: Always show the proper hespect. Whether it’s to a fellow opponent, an elder, or some chick(a) at a gas station who just shot you down, dishespect is something that will simply not be tolerated and will usually end with a 2×4 being placed upside your head. It applied to Tommy Boy, and therefore it applies to the streets of Brazil.

Unfortunately, former Bellator middleweight title challenger Maiquel Falcao was never taught the aforementioned rule by the pack of feral dogs that raised him from ages 6-17 on account of them not speaking English and all, resulting in the horrific beatdowns that both he (deservedly) and fellow fighter Kaue Mena (not so much) received in their wild gas station brawl over the weekend.

Fortunately for Mena, he appears to be slowly improving after undergoing surgery yesterday, but remains in a coma. Falcao’s wife took to Facebook to detail the situation, stating, “Great news. Our brother Kaue has shown improvements. We are following his recovery. Glory be to God. We will continue praying in earnest.” The bad news, however, is that both Falcao and Mena have been subsequently kicked off Renovacao Fight Team, where the former has trained for the better part of two years. Fight team leader Marcelo Brigadeiro released an official statement via Portal do Vale Tudo yesterday, the entirety of which is after the jump.

I, Marcelo Brigadeiro, in my role as leader of team Company Fight/RFT through this letter voice my official stance regarding the regrettable fight episode involving the athletes Maiquel Falcao and Kaue Mena.

Initially I’d like to make it clear that as far as my interpretation of the facts, I don’t believe any of the involved are innocent, all were wrong, in greater or lesser proportions. The actions of Maiquel Falcao which triggered all that occurred, despite it not being an aggression as many have characterized it, was disrespectful and not compatible with the behavior of an athlete. The reaction of the aggressors was in turn exaggerated, cowardly and criminal. Kaue Mena himself, who remains in a coma in the ICU at Hospital do Coracao (Coração) in Balneario Camboriu (Balneário Camboriú), also carries with him part of the guilt of what occurred; as a professional MMA athlete, he should not be on the streets at the hour of the event.

I also make it clear that the attitude of these two athletes does not reflect on the behavior of our entire team. We are known as one of the most successful teams in the world and also as a true family of athletes, good men of character, of exemplary behavior, as should be expected from true practitioners of martial arts. The attitudes of Maiquel Falcao and Kaue Mena do not meet what is taught by myself and practiced by my students, nor is it what’s expected by our sponsors and commercial partners.

I know that as professionals and practitioners of martial arts we should not and cannot be associated with night life, fights, altercations and the consumption of alcohol. We have the obligation to serve as an example to society and above all to children who see us as heroes.

Whoever knows me knows the immense love that I feel for my work and for my students, whom I treat as sons, including Maiquel Falcao and Kaue Mena.  However, as master or ‘father’, as they call me, I must not and cannot close my eyes to the flaws of my ‘boys’. Due to the aforementioned, it is with a broken heart and great sadness that I officially announce that Maiquel Falcao and Kaue Mena no longer are a part of team Company Fight/RFT. ?

Lastly, I hope that this tragedy serves as a lesson to all of us. May we be aware how much a simple and unfortunate action can affect our lives in negative and permanent ways. May those who are starting in this profession understand that choosing to be an athlete is not the selection of a job, but that of a philosophy of life that requires self-sacrifice, discipline and obedience. 

Heartfelt, honest and hespectful. This is a man who has clearly learned rule #1 of Brazil.

Bellator has yet to comment on the situation and is expected to make a statement later today. We will be sure to update you when/if they do.

J. Jones