Tag: Breaking News

GSP and Dana White Press Conference Play-by-Play

Georges St-Pierre joins UFC president Dana White on a conference call for members of the media Dec. 13 at 2:20 p.m. EST. 
One of the most decorated, respected fighters in the sport’s history, GSP has come under fire in recent months, beginning wit…

Georges St-Pierre joins UFC president Dana White on a conference call for members of the media Dec. 13 at 2:20 p.m. EST. 

One of the most decorated, respected fighters in the sport’s history, GSP has come under fire in recent months, beginning with a close split-decision victory over Johny Hendricks at UFC 167. 

Immediately after the fight (which many—White included—thought he lost), GSP said he needed to take time away from the sport and focus on other issues at hand. 

Since that time, much speculation has circulated regarding GSP‘s crisis, but nothing definitive has emerged and fully explained all the odd behavior on the parts of both GSP and White. 

Will they clear the air today, or will the mystery remain? 

Stay tuned as the conference call kicks off this afternoon. 

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Chael Sonnen Officially Invites Anderson Silva to Be Asst. Coach on TUF: Brazil

Chael Sonnen and Anderson Silva have one of the most storied rivalries in the current era of mixed martial arts.
The pound-for-pound great and the “Gangster from West Linn” have engaged in two memorable affairs, with the former middleweight king emergi…

Chael Sonnen and Anderson Silva have one of the most storied rivalries in the current era of mixed martial arts.

The pound-for-pound great and the “Gangster from West Linn” have engaged in two memorable affairs, with the former middleweight king emerging victorious on both occasions. While their time inside the cage certainly earned a place in MMA history, the build-up to the bouts was just as epic, as Sonnen launched a constant verbal assault on the longtime champion and the country of Brazil.

While the grudge between Silva and Sonnen has been put to rest following their final meeting at UFC 148 in 2012, the former two-divisional title challenger’s beef with Brazil still has a pulse. In fact, it could get downright lively as Sonnen will head down to the country largely heralded as the “birthplace of MMA” when he coaches The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil opposite another rival in Wanderlei Silva. Filming of the show will begin on Jan. 12 and continue until Feb. 21, with the two coaches squaring off at an event later in the year.

While Sonnen’s feud with “The Axe Murderer” may be red hot, the Oregon native has shown the ability to let the past be the past, as he has officially reached out to the former 185-pound champion to be one of his assistant coaches on the show.

“I have officially invited Anderson to coach TUF: Brazil as part of my staff,” Sonnen told MMAFighting.

The perennial contender told the MMA news outlet that he has reached out to Silva’s manager Ed Soares to extend the offer. Soares replied that he would pass the message on to his fighter. There has been no word yet if the former middleweight champion would take Sonnen up on his offer, but it would make for an interesting dynamic on the reality-based fighting program.

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Dana White Confirms Vitor Belfort Will Fight Winner of Silva vs. Weidman 2

The resurgence of Vitor Belfort has been one of the MMA biggest stories of 2013.
The former light heavyweight champion watched his 2012 campaign end with a failed yet spirited bid to dethrone 205-pound champion Jon Jones, as the pound-for-pound great s…

The resurgence of Vitor Belfort has been one of the MMA biggest stories of 2013.

The former light heavyweight champion watched his 2012 campaign end with a failed yet spirited bid to dethrone 205-pound champion Jon Jones, as the pound-for-pound great submitted Belfort in the fourth round at UFC 152 last year in September.

Following his loss to Jones, “The Phenom” decided to return to the middleweight fold, and the results have been nothing short of impressive. He has collected three solid victories with each resulting in a highlight-reel knockout finish.

The Blackzilians-trained fighter started his year by planting Michael Bisping in the second round with a beautifully timed head kick at UFC on FX 7 in January. He followed that up by salting former Strikeforce champion Luke Rockhold with a spinning wheel kick four months later. 

Those victories catapulted the Brazilian knockout artist to the front of the line in the middleweight upper tier, but with Anderson Silva and Chris Weidman tied up in a scheduled rematch at UFC 168, he had the choice of waiting to see how things played out or getting back to work. The well-traveled veteran chose to step back into the Octagon and promptly knocked out fellow legend Dan Henderson at UFC Fight Night 32 in November. 

With three consecutive wins and three brutal finishes, Belfort put himself in a position where another shot at the title would be difficult to deny. It appears the UFC has taken notice, and on Thursday in Sacramento, UFC president Dana White told FoxSports.com that Belfort would face the winner of the upcoming rematch between Silva and Weidman, regardless of the outcome.

With Weidman pulling off the shocking upset in their first match, there was speculation that a trilogy bout would be scheduled if “The Spider” were to reclaim his title on Dec. 28. White dispelled those rumors and deemed that Belfort would get his shot at the winner in 2014.

Silva and Belfort have squared off before, with The Spider blistering his counterpart with a front-kick knockout in the opening round at UFC 126 in 2011. Although Belfort didn’t offer the former champion much resistance in their first go-around, White revealed that the former middleweight king feels Belfort is worthy of another shot if he reclaims gold at UFC 168.

“[Ed] Soares was telling me that Anderson absolutely thinks Vitor deserves another shot,” White said. “The next move for him will be Vitor Belfort.”

If Weidman once again turns back Silva, the UFC’s plans for Belfort‘s next step won’t change all that much. White also addressed that issue as well, declaring the Brazilian powerhouse would face the Ray Longo-trained fighter in his next outing if things played out in Weidman’s favor at UFC 168 in Las Vegas.

“If Anderson Silva doesn’t win this fight, Chris Weidman and Vitor,” White confirmed.

 

Duane Finley is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. All quotes are obtained firsthand unless noted otherwise.

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Dana White, Georges St-Pierre to Hold “Special Conference Call” Friday at 2:30pm

LAS VEGAS—The Ultimate Fighting Championship announced on Thursday night that UFC president Dana White will be joined by longtime welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre on a Friday afternoon conference call.
No other details were provided by the…

LAS VEGAS—The Ultimate Fighting Championship announced on Thursday night that UFC president Dana White will be joined by longtime welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre on a Friday afternoon conference call.

No other details were provided by the promotion, which issued the news via a press release received by Bleacher Report. 

St-Pierre was scheduled to speak to Canadian media at a previously arranged engagement at a skating rink located in a Quebec City mall. Longtime mixed martial arts journalist Neil Davidson of The Canadian Press confirmed that St-Pierre is expected to announce his future plans at the media event; now, though, it seems the word will come a bit earlier when St-Pierre joins White on the conference call.

St-Pierre seemed on the verge of retirement, or something similar to it, after his razor-thin UFC 167 win over Johny Hendricks last month in Las Vegas. After the fight, White was adamant that St-Pierre would not be retiring and that he was confident St-Pierre would return to defend his title against Hendricks in a rematch of that controversial bout. St-Pierre has remained largely sheltered from the limelight since that night; tomorrow’s conference call, in fact, will be the first time St-Pierre has spoken on the record since the night of the fight and White’s subsequent meltdown.

White told Ariel Helwani earlier on Thursday that he would be speaking with St-Pierre at 4 p.m. PT; it appears that call happened, and now we just have to wait until tomorrow to find out the results.

Bleacher Report will have live coverage of the call as it unfolds.

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Diego Sanchez vs. Myles Jury Set for UFC 171 in Dallas

Diego Sanchez wanted to keep things moving in the new year, and it didn’t take long for the the UFC to line him up something exciting.
On Wednesday the organization announced on UFC Tonight that the former title challenger had recently signed an eight-…

Diego Sanchez wanted to keep things moving in the new year, and it didn’t take long for the the UFC to line him up something exciting.

On Wednesday the organization announced on UFC Tonight that the former title challenger had recently signed an eight-fight and was looking to make his return to the Octagon at UFC 171 in Dallas. While a return on March 15 was speculated, there was no talk of who he could potentially face on that card, and questions swirled around which fighters “The Dream” would scrap it out with in his next showing.

Those questions were answered on Thursday when the UFC announced via Twitter that a fight between the 31-year-old Jackson’s MMA fighter and Myles Jury had been made official for UFC 171.

The lightweight scrap is the latest high-profile tilt to be announced as the Dallas card begins to take shape. The event will also feature a welterweight tilt between Hector Lombard and Jake Shields in addition to the championship main event where pound-for-pound great Jon Jones puts his light heavyweight strap on the line against Brazilian powerhouse Glover Teixeira.

The matchup between Sanchez and Jury will feature one of the division’s grittiest veterans against one of the brightest prospects at 155-pounds. The 25-year-old Team Alliance fighter has found victory in all 13 of his professional bouts, including all four of his showings under the UFC banner. Where his first three wins inside the Octagon garnered praise and acclaim, his most recent win over Tristar product Mike Ricci at UFC 165 in September was panned for its lack of excitement.

He won’t have to worry about that aspect of the fight when facing Sanchez because that element is almost a certainty any time the New Mexico native steps inside the cage. That was certainly the case in his most recent bout against Gilbert Melendez at UFC 166 back in October as the two Mexican-American lightweights put on a “Fight of the Year” worthy battle over the course of the 15-minute affair. Where Melendez’s hand was raised at the end of the fight, Sanchez’s performance certainly proved he’s back to his hard-charging, forward pressure-based style.

While the fireworks in Houston certainly put Sanchez back on the map in the highly competitive lightweight division, he will be entering the bout with Jury with his back against the wall. The veteran has lost two of his last three showings and can ill-afford another setback if he hopes to remain in the upper-tier of the division.

On the other side of the coin, Jury will come into the bout looking to keep his undefeated record intact. A victory over an established name like Sanchez would certainly bolster his stock in the lightweight picture.

 

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Fabricio Werdum Willing to Wait for Cain Velasquez

After securing an epic submission victory over fellow Brazilian Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira back in June, former Strikeforce standout Fabricio Werdum was more or less guaranteed a UFC title shot.
He was seemingly being shelved until the winner of Cain Vel…

After securing an epic submission victory over fellow Brazilian Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira back in June, former Strikeforce standout Fabricio Werdum was more or less guaranteed a UFC title shot.

He was seemingly being shelved until the winner of Cain Velasquez vs. Junior dos Santos III was decided. 

Well, after news broke yesterday regarding Velasquez’s timetable to return from shoulder surgery, it looks like “Vai Cavalo” has to wait for the champ once again.

“They told me it’s my decision,” said Werdum, originally reported by Guilherme Cruz of MMAFighting.com.  “I had a meeting with Dana White and my team, the UFC said it’s up to me, if I want to wait or fight again.  I’m still thinking about it, but I believe I’m going to wait for this opportunity to fight for the title.  I’m the next in line. But it’s not 100 percent yet.”

If Werdum does decide to sit out and wait for Velasquez, he’d be essentially prolonging his Octagon absence to over a year.  However, if he decides to stay busy and make the UFC happy, he could fight the winner of UFC 168’s Travis Browne vs. Josh Barnett bout.

“I’ll make my final decision next week,” added the 36-year-old. “It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, something that I’ve been waiting for a long time.  My biggest dream is to fight for the UFC title.”

 

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