Tag: Breaking News

Melvin Guillard on Melendez, Sanchez: ‘I Would’ve Dropped Either One of Them.’

Hot off the heels of one of the greatest lightweight fights ever between Gilbert Melendez and Diego Sanchez, Melvin Guillard will be stepping into the cage to face Ross Pearson on the UFC Fight Night 30 card in the co-main event slot.
One would imagine…

Hot off the heels of one of the greatest lightweight fights ever between Gilbert Melendez and Diego Sanchez, Melvin Guillard will be stepping into the cage to face Ross Pearson on the UFC Fight Night 30 card in the co-main event slot.

One would imagine trying to follow that fight would be a great deal of pressure for any two lightweights; but if it is, Melvin Guillard isn’t feeling it. In fact, while not dismissive of either Melendez or Sanchez, he was “optimistic” about his chances against either man (h/t Mike Bohn and Matt Erickson at MMAJunkie.com).

“I would have dropped either one of them,” Guillard said. “I used to drop Diego Sanchez in practice all the time. When I hit people, I hurt people. That’s just what I do.”

While this might sound like hubris, Guillard does have proven KO power. The problem he has always seemed to have is that he never follows any kind of game plan and on the ground he’s highly susceptible to submissions; of his 12 losses, nine have come via submission.

Guillard has been an up and down fighter in the UFC. He’s incredibly experienced, with a record of 32-12-2, and he’s had 20 fights in the UFC; he’s just never managed to remain consistent enough to earn a title shot.

And in spite of all of that, Guillard’s enthusiasm for himself remains unabated as he heads into hostile territory against a gritty fighter in Pearson, who is on a two-fight win streak.

“Ross better worry about my hands,” Guillard said. “I am the hardest hitting ‘55er at 155. I’ve watched him bang with guys, I’ve watched him connect on good shots and not even drop people. Everybody I hit, I drop. Everybody I hit, I f**k them up.”

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Lyoto Machida Hints at Impending Anderson Silva Retirement

With his impending fight with former training partner Mark Munoz just around the corner, Lyoto Machida is being faced to answer an old question all over again: “Would you fight Anderson Silva?”
He has been asked that question before when Si…

With his impending fight with former training partner Mark Munoz just around the corner, Lyoto Machida is being faced to answer an old question all over again: “Would you fight Anderson Silva?”

He has been asked that question before when Silva was making occasional appearances at light heavyweight. Of course, both men have always stated they would not fight each other.

But now, Machida is being asked the question once again (h/t Steven Marrocco and Matt Erickson of MMAJunkie.com).

“We are friends, but it’s too early to think about that,” Machida said. “I don’t know about the future. That’s what I say to everybody. I’m just arriving. It’s hard to say about a title shot. Everybody is asking about it, but I prefer not to talk about it.”

Right now, Silva is trying to retake his throne from current champion, Chris Weidman.

Yet even if he manages to do so, the role of champion is nothing new to Silva, who has set more championship records than anyone.

But the facts are clear: Machida is now at middleweight, and thus come the question.

“I don’t know how long he’s [Silva] going to fight,” Machida said. “That’s why I don’t think about it.”

And his reasons for going down to middleweight in the first place?

“I just dropped down because I was going to fight against Jon Jones, and that fight couldn’t happen. The UFC gave me an opportunity to fight at 185. I want to stay active.”

Given their longstanding friendship, it is no stretch of the imagination to think that Machida not only knows what Silva’s plans for the future are, but also knows he can make the move freely, without worry of damaging that friendship.

After all, according the Bleacher Report’s Jeremy Botter, Silva said earlier this month that he would retire before fighting Machida, and that says a great deal.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Wanderlei Silva Wants to Coach ‘TUF Brazil vs. USA’ with Chael Sonnen

In light of the blockbuster news that longtime rivals Wanderlei Silva and Chael Sonnen will be coaching opposite one another on season three of The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil, “The Axe Murderer” is interested in taking the bitter rivalry to the next…

In light of the blockbuster news that longtime rivals Wanderlei Silva and Chael Sonnen will be coaching opposite one another on season three of The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil, “The Axe Murderer” is interested in taking the bitter rivalry to the next level. 

Earlier this afternoon, the Brazilian brawler posted a statement on his Facebook page about the new coaching gig in Portuguese, which MMA Fighting has since posted an English translation of. 

“It’s official, I’ll be the responsible for representing our country and yes, I’ll make him pay for everything he said about us,” Silva wrote on Facebook. “I asked Dana to do a USA vs. Brazil season. He picks his fighters, the ones he believes are the best of the United States, and I’ll pick Brazil’s bests,” he suggested. “There’s no reason why he should coach our (Brazilian) fighters, but I want to pick our fighters. Let’s ask the boss (UFC President Dana White), send him a message on Twitter asking for that.”

The first two seasons of TUF: Brazil featured only Brazilian fighters, with the exception of contestant Santiago Ponzinibbio, so it would seem likely the UFC wasn’t going to rewrite the script this time around. 

Few details about the upcoming show are currently available, though MMA Fighting also reports that tryouts will take place in Rio de Janeiro on November 11, with the opportunity open to middleweight, light heavyweight and heavyweight competitors. 

About a month ago, Silva confronted Sonnen at the Mr. Olympia Expo in Las Vegas, though many, including “The American Gangster” himself, laughed the incident off as a poorly staged publicity stunt.

Nevertheless, this grudge match has been brewing for at least a couple years now and most fight fans are excited to finally see the matchup come to fruition in 2014, barring any injuries or other unforeseen circumstances.

Before he finally settles the score with the former Pride champion, Sonnen must get through ex-UFC light heavyweight titleholder Rashad Evans at UFC 167 next month.

Despite losing to current 205-pound champ Jon Jones convincingly at UFC 159 in April, back-to-back wins over Mauricio “Shogun” Rua and Evans would put “Uncle Chael” right back into the title picture.

Would TUF: Brazil vs. USA be the best approach to reel as many fans in as possible for season three of TUF: Brazil?  

 

John Heinis is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also the MMA Editor for eDraft.com.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Roy Jones Says He’s Taking a Tune-Up for Anderson Silva Bout

One of the greatest boxers in the sport’s history, Roy Jones Jr., apparently believes a boxing match with former UFC pound-for-pound king Anderson Silva could still materialize. 
Despite being in the worst rut of his career and well out of his ath…

One of the greatest boxers in the sport’s history, Roy Jones Jr., apparently believes a boxing match with former UFC pound-for-pound king Anderson Silva could still materialize. 

Despite being in the worst rut of his career and well out of his athletic prime, the soon-to-be 45-year-old Jones continues to plead his case for a future scrap with “The Spider.”

Whether he believes he can resurrect his career with a win over Silva, he feels he has something to prove, or he just wants another easy payday, Jones still is genuinely interested in this endeavor.

In the latest development in his saga with The Spider, Jones told John Dennen of Boxing News that he plans to use his December bout with cruiserweight Bobby Gunn as a warm-up for Silva.

If [Silva] beats [Chris] Weidman, then we’ll do a boxing match, which is what he wants to do. The Gunn fight would give me a tune-up so I’m ready for the fight in case he beats Weidman. So if he beats Weidman, I’ve got to be ready for it because he’s going to be coming for me and I want to be ready when he comes for me. I want to give him what he wants.

Although he’s a winner of his last two bouts, Jones (56-8) has prevailed in just seven of 13 fights since losing via TKO in his rematch with Antonio Tarver in 2004. In that span, Jones got knocked out three times.

The 38-year-old Silva, on the contrary, has tasted defeat just once since 2006. In fact, before losing to Chris Weidman by KO at UFC 162 in July, The Spider had racked up a 16-0 UFC record, winning 11 straight title bouts.

Their career trajectories seem radically different, but Jones still contends he represents Silva’s dream opponent. 

“He said that’s his lifelong dream. We’ve got to make that happen. He’s a great striker and a great defender,” Jones told Dennen. 

For now, Jones should concentrate solely on his match with Gunn (21-5-1), a former cruiserweight world champion who lost his last bout to James Toney in 2012.

If Jones can’t dispose of the 39-year-old Gunn, who failed to answer the bell at different points in each of his last two losses, then the former multi-division world champ should nix the idea of fighting Silva.

As for The Spider, he should zero in on regaining his footing in his rematch with Weidman. After all, if he drops a second straight fight to Weidman, will Silva really entertain the idea of fighting Jones?

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Diego Sanchez to Gilbert Melendez: ‘World War 2 Will Happen’ and Be Five Rounds

After a grueling and massively entertaining three-round battle with top contender Gilbert Melendez at UFC 166 on Saturday, Diego Sanchez is already thinking about a five-round rematch with the former Strikeforce champ. 
Check out what “The Dream” …

After a grueling and massively entertaining three-round battle with top contender Gilbert Melendez at UFC 166 on Saturday, Diego Sanchez is already thinking about a five-round rematch with the former Strikeforce champ. 

Check out what “The Dream” tweeted at Melendez last night: 

Thankfully for the fans, “El Nino” was quick to respond and made it clear he is also looking forward to a championship rematch somewhere down the line.

For any fight fan who still hasn’t seen Sanchez vs. Melendez, the bout is a must-see. The Cesar Gracie fighter picked apart the original Ultimate Fighter for 10 minutes, yet the underdog refused to stop coming forward and throwing his own shots. 

Clearly well ahead on the scorecards after two rounds—turning his opponent into a bloody mess in the process—Melendez refused to take the easy way out and continued to trade leather with his fellow Mexican-American adversary for one more round. 

As the fans at Houston’s Toyota Center clapped and cheered in appreciation and astonishment, Sanchez nearly scored the comeback of a lifetime by dropping Melendez with an uppercut. 

For better or for worse, Sanchez attempted to end the fight with a guillotine choke. However, it was to no avail, as both fighters ended up swinging for the fences for a few seconds longer after they climbed back to their feet. 

The front-runner for 2013 “Fight of the Year”—and a blatantly obvious choice for UFC 166 “Fight of the Night”—has UFC President Dana White strongly considering giving Melendez the winner of Anthony Pettis vs. Josh Thomson at UFC on FOX 9 in December, per BJPenn.com. 

Melendez fought then-champ Benson Henderson at UFC on FOX 7 in April, losing a heavily disputed decision. 

While White has been non-committal about what’s next for Sanchez, the entertaining brawler has thrown former title challenger Nate Diaz‘s name into the equation. 

Needless to say, Sanchez doesn’t feel three rounds will do this matchup the justice it deserves. 

Diaz is booked to face Gray Maynard at TUF season 18 finale next month, entering the bout on a two-fight losing streak with a 3-4 record in his past seven fights. 

Sanchez holds a victory over Nate’s brother Nick, a welterweight contest that mostly took place on the ground all the way back in November 2005. 

Does Sanchez have what it takes to work his way back into the title picture at lightweight, or is any hope of Sanchez vs. Melendez II simply wishful thinking? 

 

John Heinis is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also the MMA Editor for eDraft.com.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

UFC 166: Dos Santos, Jordan Headline List of Medical Suspensions

UFC 166 was described by UFC boss Dana White as, “The greatest card in UFC history.” That may have come at a price for some of the performers.
The medical suspensions were released for UFC 166, with three major performers earning indefinite suspensions…

UFC 166 was described by UFC boss Dana White as, “The greatest card in UFC history.” That may have come at a price for some of the performers.

The medical suspensions were released for UFC 166, with three major performers earning indefinite suspensions. Those three men were main-card performers Junior dos Santos and Shawn Jordan, as well as prelim headliner Tim Boetsch.

Boetsch, of course, was the recipient of multiple eye pokes, which is the reason he took such a long layoff. Jordan and dos Santos were on the receiving end of brutal performances, as Jordan was destroyed quickly by Gabriel Gonzaga, while dos Santos took a five-round stomping at the hands of Velasquez.

Speaking of Velasquez, he also took a long medical suspension himself. He is suspended until at least April for a possible broken jaw suffered during his bout with dos Santos.

Those four men are all top performers in their respective divisions. Obviously, three of those men are heavyweights, which will put things on hold for a bit, especially the title picture if Velasquez is out until midway through 2014.

Another notable suspension was given to TJ Waldburger, who was stretchered out of the Octagon and sent to the hospital immediately following a brutal KO at the hands of Adlan Amagov. He will be out until mid-January for precautionary reasons.

All 26 men and women on the card were given suspensions. The shortest suspensions went to seven fighters, who were all suspended until October 27, or this Sunday.

Here are the complete medical suspensions.

  • Junior dos Santos suspended indefinitely pending clearance from ear, nose and throat doctor
  • Shawn Jordan suspended indefinitely pending clearance from ear, nose and throat doctor
  • Tim Boetsch suspended indefinitely pending clearance from ophthalmologist
  • Cain Velasquez suspended until April 18 due to possibly broken jaw
  • Diego Sanchez suspended until January 18 due to cuts
  • Darrell Montague suspended until January 18 for precautionary reasons
  • TJ Waldburger suspended until January 18 for precautionary reasons
  • Nate Marquardt suspended until December 19 for precautionary reasons
  • Andre Fili suspended until December 19 due to cuts
  • George Sotiropoulos suspended until December 4 due to cuts
  • Gilbert Melendez suspended until November 19 for precautionary reasons
  • CB Dollaway suspended until November 19 due to cuts
  • Dustin Pague suspended until November 19 for precautionary reasons
  • Daniel Cormier suspended until October 29 for precautionary reasons
  • Roy Nelson suspended until October 29 for precautionary reasons
  • Jessica Eye suspended until October 29 for precautionary reasons
  • Sarah Kaufman suspended until October 29 for precautionary reasons
  • KJ Noons suspended until October 29 for precautionary reasons
  • Jeremy Larsen suspended until October 29 for precautionary reasons
  • Gabriel Gonzaga suspended until October 27 for precautionary reasons
  • John Dodson suspended until October 27 for precautionary reasons
  • Hector Lombard suspended until October 27 for precautionary reasons
  • Adlan Amagov suspended until October 27 for precautionary reasons
  • Mike Rio suspended until October 27 for precautionary reasons
  • Tony Ferguson suspended until October 27 for precautionary reasons
  • Kyoji Horiguchi suspended until October 27 for precautionary reasons

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com