The Ultimate Fighter season 18 Finale is starting to take shape, as a huge women’s MMA bout between Team Rousey fighters Peggy Morgan and Jessamyn Duke has been announced by the UFC (via MMA Junkie).
TUF 18 has had a load of female talent on displ…
The Ultimate Fighter season 18 Finale is starting to take shape, as a huge women’s MMA bout between Team Rousey fighters Peggy Morgan and Jessamyn Duke has been announced by the UFC (via MMA Junkie).
TUF 18 has had a load of female talent on display, with almost all the women walking into the House with pro-level skills even before the season’s beginning. Morgan and Duke represented two of the most physically gifted athletes on the show this season, measuring 6’1″ and 5’11” respectively. On top of their frame, they both own strong grappling chops and serviceable striking.
Morgan won her way into the House by beating Bethany Marshall in convincing fashion (which you can watch here). However, she would go on to lose her quarterfinal bout with Team Tate’s Sarah Moras, who took her down and submitted her without incident.
Jessamyn Duke, meanwhile, roughed up Laura Howarth to get into the House (check it out here), but dropped a decision to Raquel Pennington that many pegged as one of the best fights in the history of women’s MMA. Duke’s combination of lengthy, Stefan Struve-like grappling and strong striking in the clinch made her a popular pick to win the show.
While both fighters lost their first official fight of the season, a combination of their obvious skills and the shallowness of the women’s division make them very valuable additions to the UFC in spite of that.
It is unknown as of yet which other fighters from TUF 18 will be making a return, but we know that Shayna Baszler will be cornering Jessamyn Duke and unable to fight at this time due to injury.
Well since it was announced, even tho injury is keeping me from fighting, I will still be at the #TUF18Finale helping corner @jessamynduke
UFC middleweight contender Tim Kennedy knows that Greg Jackson’s MMA, his home away from home, gets a bad rep for teaching fighters how to fight safe and outpoint their opponents in the cage.
In a recent interview with MMA Mania, the respected Un…
UFC middleweight contender Tim Kennedy knows that Greg Jackson’s MMA, his home away from home, gets a bad rep for teaching fighters how to fight safe and outpoint their opponents in the cage.
In a recent interview with MMA Mania, the respected United States Army veteran did everything he could to dispel this notion.
“… If you look at the past ten fights. The fighters that have won the ‘submission of the night’, the ‘knockout of the night’, and ‘fight of the night’ bonuses are almost exclusively Jackson guys,” Kennedy said. “In my last fight camp, it was me, Rustam (Khabilov), Adlan (Amagov), and (Donald) Cerrone, all in fight camp at the same time. All of us fighting three weeks apart and all of us had a ‘knockout of the night’ or ‘fight of the night.’ Then you look at Firas (Zahabi) and you look at Rory MacDonald … I remember when he fought Nate Diaz and it was extreme grappling, vicious strikes. That guy was scary. Now we’re two years removed from that fight and the transition is now a guy jabbing from the outside. Not even in volume. It’s just horrible. It’s so boring.”
Bleacher Report then reached out to Kennedy directly to elaborate on the matter at hand.
“I was referring to Rory MacDonald and GSP compared to the current crop of Jackson’s (MMA) fighters: Rustam (Khabilov), Adlan (Amagov), “Cowboys” Cerrone and myself. All of us won our respective fights with a finish,” Kennedy said over the phone.
“Jackson’s is producing exciting finishes: leaping left hooks, spinning heel kicks, triangle chokes…bringing home Fight Night bonuses. … GSP, when was his last finish? I don’t even know.
“If we’re going to call out coaches, let’s make sure we call out the right ones. The biggest, most dramatic change is guys from there (Tristar Gym).”
Kennedy is currently ranked the No. 10 middleweight in the world, according to the UFC’s official rankings, and captured Knockout of the Night honors for stopping Rafael Natal with strikes at UFC Fight for the Troops 3 earlier this month.
Lightweight Rustam Khabilov earned Fight of the Night honors for upsetting former Strikeforce title challenger Jorge Masvidal on the same card, dropping “Gamebred” with a spinning wheel kick in the third round.
Fellow Russian striker Adlan Amagov competed at UFC 166, stopping grappling ace T.J. Waldburger with brutal punches in the opening frame of their bout last month.
Most recently, former WEC champ Donald Cerrone put on a vintage performance against Evan Dunham at UFC 166 last Saturday, tapping out the scrappy wrestler with a triangle choke in the second frame.
Cerrone took home the Submission of the Night bonus for the stoppage.
For the record, the first time “Rush” trained at Zahabi’s Tristar gym was prior to his second win over BJ Penn at UFC 94 in January 2009, splitting teams between Jackson’s MMA and Tristar for that particular fight camp.
Additionally, this was the last time St-Pierre finished a fight, as Penn’s corner threw in the towel in between the fourth and fifth rounds, giving the champ a TKO via a corner’s stoppage.
St-Pierre then left Jackson’s MMA in favor of the Tristar Gym prior to his title bout with Jake Shields at UFC 129 in April 2011.
As for MacDonald, he trained at the Toshido Fighting Arts Academy but opted for the move to Tristar after losing to Carlos Condit at UFC 115 in June 2010.
He’s compiled a 5-1 record since then, with two victories coming by way of TKO.
Kennedy also told Bleacher Report that he currently doesn’t have a fight line up, though it is pretty obvious he is eyeing a showdown with perennial contender Michael Bisping next.
“I’m really diligent in rehabbing my quad injury, and while I rehab, I’m attacking the guy I want to fight the most,” Kennedy said, though also noting that the fight has not been formally offered yet by the UFC.
Does Kennedy make a valid point that really hasn’t been made publicly about Zahabi and the Tristar Gym with his comments here?
John Heinis is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also the MMA Editor for eDraft.com.
Ben Askren is the Bellator welterweight champion.
Or, he was. With his surprising Nov. 14 release from the promotion, it’s safe to assume that belt is no longer around Askren’s waist. Despite having never actually lost inside the Bellator cage, Askren …
Ben Askren is the Bellator welterweight champion.
Or, he was. With his surprising Nov. 14 release from the promotion, it’s safe to assume that belt is no longer around Askren‘s waist. Despite having never actually lost inside the Bellator cage, Askren is no longer the champion.
That fact is abundantly clear when you consider Bellator‘s announcement that Rick Hawn—who won the Season 9 welterweight tournament—will step in the cage with Douglas Lima to determine the next welterweight champ. Lima booked his place in the title fight by defeating UFC veteran Ben Saunders via head kick in the Season 8 welterweight tournament finals in September.
No matter when happens with Lima vs. Hawn, many will point to Askren as the real Bellator champion. After all, he was released from the promotion having never lost the belt. Despite Dana White’s protests to the contrary, Askren could ultimately end up in the UFC as the reigning Bellator welterweight champion, and all because Bjorn Rebney considers Askren to be a boring fighter.
Which, if you think about it, is Rebney‘s way of telling us to forget all of that nonsense he says about Bellator being a real sport and the UFC being entertainment. Much like the time Rebney said he wasn’t going to sign UFC castoffs (and then started signing every UFC castoff he could get his hands on), Rebney is essentially asking us to ignore everything he’s said in the past.
Askren? He’s undefeated and one of Bellator‘s best fighters. He’s a champion. But because he’s boring, he’s expendable.
I was kind of (surprised) because he was the undefeated champion and a really tough fighter. But he didn’t sell his fights because of his fighting style and I think that’s really important for the promotion. I believe that’s the reason why Bellatordidn’t want to fight that much for him.
Even though he was surprised by Askren‘s release, Lima also said he’s just fine with the idea of facing Hawn for the welterweight title that Askren never lost:
It’s not my fault that he’s out of Bellator and I just want my shot at the title. People can say whatever they want. They can say that (Askren) is the real champion after I beat Hawn, but that doesn’t bother me at all. I just want to beat whoever they put in front of me.
One can’t blame Lima for accepting the hand he’s deal. Iit’s not his fault Rebney released Askren for being a boring fighter. And besides, we all remember what happened the last time Lima stepped in the cage with Askren: He was blanketed by Askren‘s superior wrestling and lost a unanimous decision with 50-45 scorecards from all three cageside judges. There’s very little chance a rematch between Askren and Lima would go any differently.
Askrenmeets with UFC President Dana White and CEO Lorenzo Fertitta today in Las Vegas. White has repeatedly stated that he won’t be signing Askren, but he’s also susceptible to changing his mind after hearing authentic pleas from fighters. White says Askren isn’t ready for the UFC, but that’s a non-sensical excuse when there are fighters on the roster with far less experience than Askren.
Something tells me Askren will be a member of the UFC roster by the end of this week.
He’s never stepped foot in an Octagon to compete but is one of the world’s best welterweights. He also happens to be available for hire.
Ben Askren, the former Bellator welterweight champion, took time to speak…
He’s never stepped foot in an Octagon to compete but is one of the world’s best welterweights. He also happens to be available for hire.
Ben Askren, the former Bellator welterweight champion, took time to speak with Bleacher Report MMA about a future that’s uncertain. It was widely suspected that Askren would immediately head towards the UFC with his run in Bellator done, but that doesn’t appear to be the case.
“I’d be shocked if I didn’t get an offer from the UFC,” Askren said. “I’m the sixth ranked fighter in the division.”
Askren achieved that kind of recognition by amassing a 12-0 record while competing mainly in Bellator. He’s one of the best wrestlers to enter the sport in recent memory and outside of the fight with Jay Hieron, has rag-dolled the 170-pound division in Bellator.
It would make sense for Askren to be signed for the promotion, as it’s hard to be the premier promotion in the world and not sign a top 10 talent if they’re available. Askren has even offered to help Joe Silva by picking his opponent for his UFC debut, Rory MacDonald.
Askren came on The MMA Hour to call out the Tri-Star product as someone who irked him, even offering to fight for free and retire if he lost. It’s quite the confident statement for a fighter who’s never faced a top 10 opponent and calling out a fighter who was widely regarded as the future of the 170-pound division.
“You know, there’s people in life that you can’t put your finger on it, but you just know they bother you. That’s him,” Askren said of MacDaonald.
But why MacDonald? Other than the fact Askren doesn’t like him, he believes it’s a great matchup for him.
“I feel like my jiu-jitsu and wrestling are better. When it got tough (at UFC 167) he backed down. You might land a good punch here and there but to beat me, you’re going to have to be tough. I think he was severely over-hyped.”
Over-hyped is a sentiment about Askren that’s shared by a number of MMA fans. It’s easy to discredit Askren’s credentials based on the level of competition he’s faced and how easily he’s dispatched of his opponents. Although fans may not be universally backing a “#SignAskren” movement, the former Bellator champion has his eyes focused on the future.
“You know I do or say things sometimes to get a reaction out of fans,” Askren said. “It’s all about the fans wanting to see you. Whether they want to see you win or lose, as long as they tune in.”
The UFC could certainly use the interest Askren would undoubtedly create. With their biggest pay-per-view draw, Georges St-Pierre, uncertain if he wants to come back, the UFC is in need of guys who can sell a card. And like Askren pointed out, plenty of fans will tune in to watch him win or lose.
But the UFC seems content on not rushing to sign Askren, even though the World Series of Fighting has already put an offer on the table. But it’s clear from hearing Askren speak that competing in the WSOF is at the top of his wish list.
I’d have to think long and hard about joining the World Series of fighting. I honestly think there’s more competition in Bellator at 170 pounds. I mean their champion (Steve Carl) couldn’t even get past the semifinal round of Bellator’s tournaments. I can make money a lot of ways besides being locked in a cage.
Since being let go by Bellator, Askren has manged to keep himself busy outside a MMA cage. He has two wrestling schools in the Milwaukee area and is, of course, training and coaching his teammates at Roufusport. He also competed at Agon Wrestling Championship against Penn State’s Quentin Wright and dominated their match by the score of 22-8.
Askren explained that he likes the vision of AWC and said there’s six, possibly seven events on the horizon. It’s an attempt to not only raise awareness about wrestling due to the Olympics fiasco, but also a chance to see many of the best collegiate wrestlers competing against one another such as when Bubba Jenkins faces Kyle Dake in Madison Square Garden later this year.
However, virtually everyone in the MMA world is waiting for Askren and the UFC to put pen to paper. The jump in competition from Bellator to the UFC is sure to be vastly different, but it’s not something Askren is concerned about.
“I’m going to keep doing what I do best,” Askren said. “I’m working on my weaknesses at Roufusport and I train with Anthony Pettis, who I could argue is the best striker in all of MMA. And we train kickboxing, boxing, not just MMA.”
True, Askren does train with a very talented camp and one of the best coaches in all of MMA. He’s accomplished a lot not only in MMA, but in amateur wrestling as well. All that’s missing is a chance at UFC gold.
All quotes, unless otherwise stated, were obtained by the author.
There is a general consensus among Georges St-Pierre’s coaching staff that UFC 167 may have indeed been the last time the reigning welterweight champ ever steps foot into the Octagon.
After winning a controversial split decision over Johny Hendri…
There is a general consensus among Georges St-Pierre’s coaching staff that UFC 167 may have indeed been the last time the reigning welterweight champ ever steps foot into the Octagon.
After winning a controversial split decision over Johny Hendricks a little over a week ago, St-Pierre told UFC commentator Joe Rogan in his post-fight interview that he would be hanging up the gloves and going on an indefinite hiatus to deal with personal problems in his life.
Immediately after the interview, an enraged UFC President Dana White blasted the champ for his post-fight comments. During the UFC 167 post-fight press conference, White claimed that St-Pierre owed it to the UFC, the fans and Hendricks to step up and do a rematch. It was certainly one of the most uncomfortable press conferences in recent memory, as a bruised up St-Pierre sat in silence taking in all the criticism.
Things have cooled off significantly since UFC 167, and White remains confident that St-Pierre will ultimately return to fighting and give Hendricks a rematch.
Despite White’s unrelenting assurance, a different tone is coming from the St-Pierre camp. Most have chalked St-Pierre’s post-fight comments up as gibberish spoken by a man who had taken far too many “H-bombs” from Hendricks, but St-Pierre’s manager, Rodolphe Beaulieu, told MMA journalist Ariel Helwani the champ meant every word that he said:
I spoke to Georges manager, Rodolphe Beaulieu, just a couple of days ago, and he told me that it is quote, unquote possible that that fight on Saturday night was Georges last in his entire MMA career, Helwani revealed during Wednesday’s episode of UFC Tonight. …He said that everything Georges said inside the Octagon and after on Saturday night, he meant it. This wasn’t something that just came out of nowhere. It had been building up over time. …Right now, that rematch is not set in stone.
There have been subtle hints in the media regarding St-Pierre’s impending retirement dating all the way back to his November 2012 bout with Carlos Condit.
FirasZahabi, St-Pierre’s head coach, admitted to fans at the Gentleman’s Expo on Saturday, via MMA digest, that St-Pierre had indeed been off and on about retiring since returning from his ACL injury to fight Condit:
He was thinking about stopping after Condit, then Diaz called him out and he had to come back for Diaz. He had to do the Diaz fight. Then after Diaz they said, ‘If you leave, you’re ducking Hendricks.’ So he had to do Hendricks. Now he has to do a rematch with Hendricks, and if he loses, he’s got to do a rubber match.
If he wins that, he’s got to fight some new young gun that knocked out somebody that Georges can’t duck. It never ends. It’s been like that for seven or eight years, and I think it’s time for him to sit back and think about himself for a while because I think he’s paid his dues. I don’t think anybody can disagree that Georges paid his dues.
If St-Pierre is still in debt to the UFC, then the same would hold true for every fighter that ever stepped into the Octagon.
St-Pierre holds both UFC records for wins and time spent in the Octagon. The UFC hasn’t shied away from the fact that St-Pierre is the promotion’s breadwinner.
White has stated on multiple occasions, including the UFC 167 post-fight presser, that St-Pierre is by far the biggest pay-per-view draw in the UFC.
From purely a promotional perspective, it makes a lot of sense for St-Pierre to come back for at least one more fight. A rematch with Hendricks would be big enough to warrant a stadium show and draw gargantuan pay-per-view numbers.
As for St-Pierre, what more does he have to prove?
He is without a doubt the best welterweight in UFC history and arguably the greatest fighter of all time.
Most would argue that St-Pierre owes Hendricks a rematch based off the mere principle of a close fight. If this were the case, Hendricks owes both Josh Koscheck and Mike Pierce rematches considering those were also controversial split decisions.
Bottom line, it will never be over for St-Pierre as long as he keeps fighting. There will always be another big fight for him to take. Fighting has already taken a toll on him mentally and physically.
On The Opie & Anthony Show, Rogan pointed to St-Pierre talking about missing time and being abducted by aliens as clear evidence he needs to hang up the gloves. After the Hendricks fight, St-Pierre told fans at the post-fight presser he couldn’t even remember a large portion of the bout after taking multiple blows to the head.
St-Pierre’s mentor, Kristof Midoux, told Le Journal de Montreal, which was translated by BloodyElbow.com, that he can no longer sit idly and watch St-Pierre put himself in harm’s way. If St-Pierre decides to keep fighting, Midoux will no longer be in the champ’s corner:
I think Georges will abandon his belt and there will be a world championship without him. The decision is up to him and I expect him to come back from vacation to sit and talk with him. But he is aware that he needs to rest. It must leave room for anything else in his heart.
…I think he made the biggest career in this sport, but if he decides to return, for any reason, I will not be in his corner. I do not want to see him suffer more, having accomplished what all dream to accomplish. He has another life awaits. I think he has many other things to do, instead of trying to find out who is the strongest in the world, because he has proved that it was him.
As a fan, it’s rare to get an opportunity to witness true all-time greatness unfold before your very eyes. Fans of this generation have been lucky to see guys like St-Pierre and Anderson Silva compete in the same era. If this truly is the end for St-Pierre, it makes the massive amount of drama he was subjected to after UFC 167 even more unfortunate.
The entire MMA world will certainly miss him when he’s gone.
Vitor Belfort has become the face of the ongoing testosterone replacement therapy debate in MMA. His latest comments aren’t doing anything to quell it, either.
Speaking with Guilherme Cruz of MMA Fighting, Belfort shared his thoughts on what the future…
VitorBelfort has become the face of the ongoing testosterone replacement therapy debate in MMA. His latest comments aren’t doing anything to quell it, either.
I’m just waiting for the winner. I don’t create expectations because I can get frustrated in the end. I’ve earned my shot at the title and I will fight whoever wins this fight. I just want to get in there and hear them say ‘the new middleweight champion’. I have a goal. I will defeat the champion and get the title.
The “winner” that Belfort is referring to is, of course, the winner of Chris Weidman vs. Anderson Silva. Weidman took the UFC title from Silva earlier this year and will look to defeat “The Spider” once again at the UFC’s final event in 2013.
Belfort surprisingly didn’t mention lions or Jesus while talking, but he did manage to continue his streak of putting his foot in his mouth while speaking with the MMA media.
“I’ll be even better when I return to the Octagon,” Belfort said. “I know it’s hard to believe that I can get even better than this, but I will. I’ve been training hard, and there are a lot of things that I haven’t done yet. My best is yet to come.”
That’s pretty standard pre-fight talk coming from a veteran, but it only opens the door for Belfort-TRT talk. But proving himself to be a prophet, Belfort‘s best line in the interview was yet to come.
This fight will be in a soccer stadium. Whoever wins, I’m sure we can sell out Maracana or any other soccer stadium in Brazil. It would be really interesting. I know the UFC will come up with the best idea. They are really focused in Brazil right now. Globo is offering great fights for the Brazilians. I just want to enjoy my training. I will train focused on both, and focused on working my abilities.
The UFC has come under fire from MMA fans for putting Belfort exclusively on cards in Brazil. Despite the claims that they aren’t “hiding” Belfort in South America, the fact remains that we’ve yet to see Belfort compete in the United States since UFC 133.
If Weidman were to defeat Silva for a second time, it’d be hard for the UFC to justify not having Weidman fight in New Jersey or somewhere as close to New York as possible. The man would have just defeated the greatest fighter of all time twice and would sport an undefeated record to boot.
The UFC continues to sport the claim they won’t risk their credibility by allowing Belfort to compete in Brazil while abusing TRT, but you have to feel that they’re damaging their credibility by not putting Belfort on cards outside Brazil.
There is a general consensus among Georges St-Pierre’s coaching staff that UFC 167 may have indeed been the last time the reigning welterweight champ ever steps foot into the Octagon.