Tag: Breaking News

Julie Kedzie Retires from MMA Following UFC Fight Night 33 Loss

One of the original pioneers of women’s MMA, Julie Kedzie, has decided to retire from fighting following her split-decision loss to Bethe Correia at UFC Fight Night 33.
In several heartfelt posts on Twitter, Kedzie admitted the decision to step a…

One of the original pioneers of women’s MMA, Julie Kedzie, has decided to retire from fighting following her split-decision loss to Bethe Correia at UFC Fight Night 33.

In several heartfelt posts on Twitter, Kedzie admitted the decision to step away had been made prior to her bout on Saturday night.

Ronda Rousey generally gets credit for carrying women’s MMA to the UFC, but it was actually the fight between Kedzie and former MMA star Gina Carano back in 2007 that really put the ladies on the map.  

The vast majority of fans came into the fight completely oblivious as to what they were about to see. It was a real gutsy move by the EliteXC in showcasing a spectacle within a spectacle—a women’s MMA fight in a primetime slot on Showtime.

No one could have predicted the events that were about to unfold would change the way we viewed MMA forever.

For 15 minutes, Carano and Kedzie exchanged blow for blow in an epic battle that holds a similar historical significance to Forrest Griffin vs. Stephan Bonnar. If the EliteXC never took a chance or Carano vs. Kedzie failed to deliver, then perhaps women’s MMA would be in a much different place right now.

Unfortunately for Kedzie, she wasn’t consistent enough to bask in the same notoriety as many of her peers. She was never able to get a win in the UFC or Strikeforce, and her career comes to a close on a rather unsatisfying four-fight losing streak.

Let’s face it…There probably won’t be any blockbuster movie deals waiting in the wings like there was for Carano when she hung up her gloves back in 2009. For Kedzie, it will likely just be more of the same: a spot on Jackson MMA’s coaching staff and a commentating role in Invicta Fighting Championships.

Still, no amount of notoriety or wins could ever amount to the contributions Kedzie has made to women’s MMA.

We can only hope that she remains an ambassador of the sport and continues to influence and inspire thousands of young women hoping to one day throw on a pair of four-ounce gloves and step into the cage.

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UFC Fight Night 33 Fight Video Highlights: ‘Shogun’ Rua Blasts James Te Huna

On the verge of being bounced from the top 10 light heavyweight rankings, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua needed a big win over James Te Huna at UFC Fight Night 33.
He responded in a huge way, brutally stopping Te Huna with a left hook one minute into the openin…

On the verge of being bounced from the top 10 light heavyweight rankings, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua needed a big win over James Te Huna at UFC Fight Night 33.

He responded in a huge way, brutally stopping Te Huna with a left hook one minute into the opening round. As Te Huna lunged in with a left uppercut, Rua countered with a short left hook to the chin of his opponent, who folded to the canvas.

Coming off of losses to Alexander Gustafsson and Chael Sonnen, Rua appeared to be declining quickly. However, with a vintage performance on Friday, he proved he still has more left in the tank and isn’t ready to give up his position among the elite 205-pound fighters right now.

Like Shogun, Te Huna entered UFC Fight Night 33 coming off of a loss. The Australian was submitted by Glover Teixeira in May and hoped to turn things around drastically by beating a former UFC champion in Rua. Instead, he is now looking at two straight losses. He’ll be getting a step down in competition in his next outing and could suddenly be fighting for his UFC job. 

Below are the results from the entire UFC Fight Night 33 fight card.

 

Fox Sports 1 Main Card

  • Mark Hunt and Antonio Silva fought to a majority draw.
  • Mauricio Rua defeated James Te Huna by (T)KO in the first round.
  • Ryan Bader defeated Anthony Perosh by unanimous decision.
  • Soa Palelei defeated Pat Barry by (T)KO in the first round.
  • Clint Hester defeated Dylan Andrews by (T)KO in the second round.
  • Bethe Correia defeated Julie Kedzie by split decision.

 

Fox Sports 2 Prelims

  • Takeya Mizugaki defeated Nam Phan by unanimous decision.
  • Caio Magalhaes defeated Nick Ring by unanimous decision.
  • Justin Scoggins defeated Richie Vaculik by (T)KO in the first round.
  • Krzysztof Jotko defeated Bruno Santos by unanimous decision.

 

Online Prelims

  • Alex Garcia defeated Ben Wall by (T)KO in the first round.

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UFC Fight Night 33: Twitter Reacts to Mark Hunt vs. Bigfoot Silva

No one expected Mark Hunt and Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva to go the distance, but at UFC Fight Night 33, the towering heavyweights exchanged haymaker after haymaker in a bout that could go down as the greatest heavyweight fight in UFC history.
…

No one expected Mark Hunt and Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva to go the distance, but at UFC Fight Night 33, the towering heavyweights exchanged haymaker after haymaker in a bout that could go down as the greatest heavyweight fight in UFC history.

The main event on Friday night’s UFC Fight Night card was scheduled to be Hunt’s homecoming, but there were no favorites by the time the fourth round rolled around.

Thousands of screaming fans stood on their feet at Brisbane Entertainment Centre in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia cheering on both fighters in a heavyweight slugfest for the ages. The entire Octagon was reminiscent of a CSI crime scene by the time the final bell sounded.

Before the judges rendered their verdict, the MMA community had already made up its mind that there were no losers in this bout.

It didn’t matter if Hunt or Silva won. Both men could hold their heads high after this fight knowing they had succeeded in delivering something special, something that will be remembered for years to come.

Apparently, the judges saw the fight the same way. One solo judge scored the fight 48-47 for Hunt, and the other two had it 47-47 for a majority draw. After the fight, Twitter exploded with excited reactions to a bout that is a surefire candidate for “Fight of the Year.”

It certainly won’t be remembered as the most technical fight, but at the same time, it’s rare that MMA fans get to witness the pure nature of fighting.

Hunt vs. Silva wasn’t about a chess match or outscoring an opponent. It was a true battle of the same will and determination that helped build the foundation of the spectacle we know as combat sports.

We can all look back one day and be thankful to have been alive to witness it.

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UFC Fight Night 33: What We Learned from Mark Hunt vs. Antonio Silva

There are times in this profession where I have no words to describe what I’ve just seen. 
It doesn’t happen often. Most of the time, I feel like I’ve seen it all. 
But then, something will come along and make me realize that there are still …

There are times in this profession where I have no words to describe what I’ve just seen. 

It doesn’t happen often. Most of the time, I feel like I’ve seen it all. 

But then, something will come along and make me realize that there are still great things to see in mixed martial arts. Friday night, that realization came in the form of Mark Hunt and Antonio Silva.

In one of the greatest fights in UFC heavyweight history—and perhaps a top contender for fight of the year honors—Hunt and Silva spent five rounds absolutely battering each other. 

They knocked each other down.

They took each other’s best punches. 

They endured incredible punishment.

They showed enduring heart, continuing to stand and fight. 

And, in the end, when the judging scorecards were read aloud by Bruce Buffer, the result was a perfect one: a majority draw. Neither man won, but each emerged with more momentum, fan respect and visibility than they likely would have with a win.

 

WHAT WE LEARNED

Here’s one thing we learned that I never thought we’d see: Mark Hunt executing takedowns. And wrestling. Not just once, but multiple times.  And Silva was not able to get Hunt to the ground until late in the fight, when Hunt was exhausted. And yet Hunt often found a way to escape, to work his way back into situations where he had an advantage.

We learned that Hunt and Silva can take almost any kind of punch you throw at them. They may wobble a bit, and they might go down every so often. But mostly, they stand there and take punches and then throw giant bombs of their own.

Hunt, so long derided for not having cardio, certainly tired tonight. But he continued to fight through it, taking large, gasping breaths, waiting for his moment to launch counterattacks that nearly always landed and always hurt Silva. 

Silva did the same. He survived a dramatic knockdown. He took a hellacious beating that left him bloody beyond recognition. And yet, he survived. He found ways to continue. How? I have no idea. 

If this wasn’t the greatest heavyweight fight in UFC history, it’s up there. It wasn’t the most technical thing in the world. But man, it was the most exciting. It was the kind of fight that makes apathetic fans remember why they started watching mixed martial arts in the first place.

It was also one of the first times I can remember being completely satisfied with a draw. In a sport where judging is so often derided, they got this one right. Silva may have won more rounds, but Hunt did more damage. A draw? That’s just about right.

What a night. And what a fight.

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Rory MacDonald vs. Demian Maia Set for UFC 170

Talk of a fight between Demian Maia and Rory MacDonald has been swirling for some time, but on Friday night, it became official.
The matchup between two of the UFC’s top welterweights will go down at UFC 170, which will take place on Feb. 22 at The Man…

Talk of a fight between Demian Maia and Rory MacDonald has been swirling for some time, but on Friday night, it became official.

The matchup between two of the UFC’s top welterweights will go down at UFC 170, which will take place on Feb. 22 at The Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nev. The bout was announced on the promotion’s Canadian social media outlet on Friday, and it finally made the highly anticipated and speculated bout a reality.

The 24-year-old Canadian is coming off his first loss since 2010 when he was edged out by Robbie Lawler via split decision last month at UFC 167. The loss stunted what was a rapid rise to the divisional upper tier at 170 pounds for MacDonald and broke up a five-fight winning streak.

Immediately following the bout, he went public with his eagerness to get back into the cage and said he “needed the loss” to rediscover his motivation during an appearance on The MMA Hour.

In order for MacDonald to get back into the mix of the highly competitive welterweight title hunt, he needed to face a top-ranked opponent in his next bout, and that is exactly what Maia represents.

The former middleweight title challenger is in a similar position, as he also suffered a setback in his most recent outing. After picking up three consecutive victories in the welterweight ranks, the Brazilian submission ace was defeated by fellow grappling guru Jake Shields via split decision in their bout at UFC Fight Night 29 in October.

The loss broke up a solid surge of momentum that Maia was building toward a title shot, and much like his counterpart, the 36-year-old expressed an urgency to get back to action quickly.

Last month, Maia’s management told UFC Tonight he would like to face MacDonald, and it now appears he will get his wish. While the only other bout to be announced at UFC 170 is the main event between Rashad Evans and Daniel Cormier, it seems likely the welterweight tilt will receive a high billing on the fight card.

 

Duane Finley is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report.

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UFC’s John Dodson out 8-10 Weeks

Being absent from your respective division’s title scene is no laughing matter, especially when you’re one of the most exciting fighters around.
For John Dodson, any extended period of time he spends on the sidelines means he’ll be that much further aw…

Being absent from your respective division’s title scene is no laughing matter, especially when you’re one of the most exciting fighters around.

For John Dodson, any extended period of time he spends on the sidelines means he’ll be that much further away from another shot at UFC flyweight gold.

Following an injury to Dodson’s original opponent, Ian McCall, “The Magician” was all set to take on former bantamweight mainstay Scott Jorgensen next weekend at UFC on FOX 9, but an apparent knee injury has derailed those plans.

“I have partial tears of my MCL and ACL,” said Dodson in a recent Instagram video post, originally transcribed by Trent Reinsmith of Bloody Elbow.  “Don’t worry, I’m only going to be out eight to 10 weeks then I get back to training, and you get to see me back in the cage.  Bam, let’s get it.”

Tristen Critchfield of Sherdog had initially broke the story of the injury a few days ago, but the details were uncertain.

It’s truly a blow to Dodson’s chances of getting the winner of Demetrious Johnson vs. Joseph Benavidez II, as he’s the obvious choice considering how shallow the top of the flyweight crop heap continues to be.

In any case, eight to 10 weeks isn’t devastating.  Dodson is one heck of an athlete who should have no trouble regaining his Octagon explosiveness upon return.

Promotional newcomer Zach Makovsky will now fill in against Jorgensen.

 

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