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Gina Carano to Star in Comic Book Based Movie ‘Avengelyne’

Kickboxer turned mixed martial artist turned actress Gina Carano has another movie deal lined up. After starring in the 2012 action flick Haywire and making a bit appearance in Fast & Furious 6, Carano will now be playing 1…

Kickboxer turned mixed martial artist turned actress Gina Carano has another movie deal lined up. After starring in the 2012 action flick Haywire and making a bit appearance in Fast & Furious 6, Carano will now be playing 1990s comic book relic Avengelyne, the namesake from the oft-resurrected series created by Rob Liefeld.

Carano is a name very familiar to fight fans. Incredibly attractive and owning legitimate striking skills, she was the unquestioned face of women’s MMA from 2006 through 2010. She pioneered new ground in the sport, appearing on the cover of the 2009 ESPN The Magazine’s Body Issue, headlining the first ever major MMA card with women given top billing and establishing women as a viable draw in the sport.

She owned a 7-1 MMA record, her final fight being a harsh knockout loss to Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos (now Cristiane Justino, after divorcing her husband, Evangelista Santos). Afterward, Carano more or less hung her gloves up and achieved moderate success as an actress, but is still best remembered for her setting the foundation for fighters like Ronda Rousey and Miesha Tate.

While Carano is, for the most part, remembered favorably by MMA fans, Avengelyne is widely panned by comic book aficionados. Created in 1995 by Rob Liefeld, an artist who is largely blackballed in the comic industry these days, Avengelyne is remembered as a generic story that served as a flimsy stage for a scantily-clad heroine.

A fallen angel banished to an Earth overrun by demons, Avengelyne is tasked by God to protect “The One,” who will fix all the world’s ills. However, she must do this while wearing essentially no clothing to obscure her disgusting, genuinely inhuman proportions.

The story will reportedly be retooled by Liefield and Carano, and the movie will be produced by Scott Karp and Brooklyn Weaver.

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Dan Henderson off TRT for UFC 161

Testosterone Replacement Therapy (TRT) is one of the most controversial topics in MMA today, but one of the best-known users of the treatment, former two-division Pride champion, former Strikeforce light heavyweight champion and frequent UFC title cont…

This is not especially surprising.

Earlier this week, word came out from the Manitoba Combative Sports Commission (the governing body of MMA in Manitoba, Canada) that there were no Theraputic-Use Exemptions (TUE) handed out for the event.

A TUE is required for TRT use with North American athletic commissions, or the fighter is subject to fines and suspensions, which was quite surprising, as Henderson’s use of TRT is well-documented, and has been receiving TUEs since 2007.

When asked about this, Henderson opened up to MMAJunkie.com.

“It didn’t look like they would approve it, so I just quit taking testosterone,” he said. “I stopped about six to eight weeks out. I was told by my doctor that wouldn’t be a problem at all. I wasn’t using that much, anyway.”

Henderson was diagnosed with hypogonadism, commonly referred to as low testosterone, several years ago. This ailment can be caused by a number of factors, including age, head trauma and steroid use. At 42 years old, with 15 years of professional MMA experience under his belt, and with no history of PED use, most MMA fans accept the TRT use of “Hendo,” a courtesy which has not been extended to the likes of Vitor Belfort or Chael Sonnen.

Still, Henderson found himself unlikely to receive a TUE in Winnipeg, saying, “they won’t approve it unless you can prove a physical problem with your body that would explain why you need it…they weren’t going to approve me, so I didn’t even apply for it.”

While fans are quick to prop up TRT as a king-making wonder drug, other users like Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, Forrest Griffin and Frank Mir have had minimal success since undergoing treatment. Henderson off TRT looked very similar to Henderson on TRT: “I didn’t feel too big of a difference…I was a little tired here and there, but that’s not too different from all my other training camps.”

Henderson was also quick to brush off any allegation that TRT has a major impact on his performance.

“It’s hard to tell, I never noticed a huge difference,” he said. “I just know my doctor says it’s healthier for me. I know I was getting sick less often when taking TRT and I seemed to have more energy…I work my ass off with or without it.” Henderson lost the fight to Rashad Evans via split decision, and did not look any better or worse than he did when he fought Lyoto Machida in February.

Ultimately, this development will likely do very little to change any perception of TRT use in MMA. Again, Henderson’s sterling reputation, experience and age makes him one of the fighters that fans willingly accept as a “legitimate” TRT user.

Even so, this is a case that people can look back to when discussing this hot-button issue.

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Dana White Claims No One at the UFC Has Spoken to Nick Diaz’s Camp

Few fighters have as dedicated a fanbase as UFC welterweight Nick Diaz. So naturally, when news broke from his management that he was coming out of his half-hearted retirement to once again throw down in the Octagon, the MMA world took notice.

U…

Unfortunately, it seems as though any announcement of his return was premature. UFC President Dana White flatly told MMAFighting.com, “nobody at the UFC talked to [Diaz Manager] Cesar Gracie, or anyone else that reps Nick.” This runs completely opposite to what Gracie told BJPenn.com Radio, who said that “there is an offer on the table…Dana has offered him a fight.”

While Gracie is one of the most prominent non-fighting personalities in MMA, he has frequently found himself at odds with fans and UFC executives. White famously called the trainer a “dick” before Diaz’s title fight at UFC 158 against Georges St-Pierre. Diaz would lose the fight, and announce his retirement immediately after the fight, claiming he would only put his gloves back on for a rematch with St-Pierre, or a superfight with at-the-time middleweight champion Anderson Silva.

This is undoubtedly disappointing news for Diaz fans. While Diaz has been keeping busy since what he claimed to be his final fight, there are almost a dozen interesting matchups that could realistically be made involving the 12-year MMA veteran, including bouts with Carlos Condit, Rory MacDonald, Dong-Hyun Kim and Demian Maia.

That said, it is by no means uncommon for fighters to retire immediately after harsh losses, and then renege shortly thereafter. While Diaz was understandably distraught over the loss, few believed his gloves were going to remain on the hook permanently.

What’s more, Diaz is a recognizable, popular fighter and a solid draw on pay per view. If Diaz wants to return to the sport, which seems to be the case, the UFC is going to actively look for ways to accommodate him.

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Daniel Cormier Tweets UFC 166 ‘Contract’ to Roy Nelson

Daniel Cormier plans to drop to light heavyweight before the end of the year, but he wants one more fight at heavyweight before then.
As it happens, he recently signed on to fight Roy Nelson at UFC 166.
Well, he signed his name—and apparently Nel…

Daniel Cormier plans to drop to light heavyweight before the end of the year, but he wants one more fight at heavyweight before then.

As it happens, he recently signed on to fight Roy Nelson at UFC 166.

Well, he signed his name—and apparently Nelson’s too—on a piece of lined paper that is titled “UFC 166” in bubble letters.

Are there any lawyers out there who can confirm the validity of this type of commitment?

Cormier tweeted a photo of the “contract” to Nelson with the words “I’m in!!!” scribbled below all the fight details.

The highlights include Cormier‘s show and win money to be $$$ and Nelson’s win bonus listed as “No point.”

Cormier made his UFC debut earlier this year, outdueling Frank Mir in a decisive three-round affair, and he’ll be looking to build on that success before the year is out.

Nelson is a curious choice of opponent, however, since he still hasn’t re-signed with the UFC. But maybe Cormier can help the promotion out with that by scribbling Nelson’s name on another scrap of paper.

“Big Country” faltered badly in his last outing, taking a 15-minute thrashing by the hand of Stipe Miocic. Still, he remains a legitimate top-10 heavyweight, and a popular one at that.

Cormier vs. Nelson is a match fans would have little difficulty in getting behind. Nelson just needs to be convinced that it is in his best interest to return to the promotion.

Apparently he at least holds some interest in fighting Cormier. Nelson tweeted back:

@dc_mma signed & waiting Good thing U didnt show the $$$$$$$$$$$ to kick your butt So we R both nephews 2 @danawhite

If only tweets and homemade crafts passed as legal documents, we’d have a nice heavyweight tilt to look forward to.

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Chael Sonnen Lets LeBron James ‘Off the Hook,’ Squashes Beef with NBA Star

Never let it be said that UFC fighter Chael Sonnen is not the forgiving type.
Over the Fourth of July holiday, Sonnen hosted a Q&A session during the UFC 162 fan expo in Las Vegas, during which Sonnen lashed out at Miami Heat superstar Le…

Never let it be said that UFC fighter Chael Sonnen is not the forgiving type.

Over the Fourth of July holiday, Sonnen hosted a Q&A session during the UFC 162 fan expo in Las Vegas, during which Sonnen lashed out at Miami Heat superstar LeBron James: “He’s been invited to the show (UFC 162), and if he comes tonight, I’m going to beat his ass and put the picture up on Twitter. I’m telling you that now for the lawsuit. He’s been warned. I would have beat his ass at the last show if I could have got to him. He knows what he did, ask him.”

Sonnen had to cross that scheduled beating off his to-do list, as James was a no-show at the MGM Grand Garden Arena the night of the Anderson Silva-Chris Weidman fight.

Now it seems as if things have been patched up between the two. Sonnen, appearing on “The Toucher and Rich Show” on 98.5 Boston Thursday morning, stated:

“LeBron is off the hook. LeBron has made it right. He’s off the hook. That’s between LeBron and I, but he did the right thing and I forgive him. I was going to beat him up and tweet out the photos of it.”

While Sonnen did not say what he was forgiving James for, it would not be a stretch to imagine it was an incident that reportedly occurred between James and Sonnen’s fiancée (now wife) backstage at UFC 148. Sonnen recently recalled the incident to Bleacher Report’s Jeremy Botter: “This guy walked up to my fiancée backstage and asks her if there’s a Tic Tac in her blouse or if she was just happy to see him.”

Whatever the case, it looks like any beef between Sonnen and James, the recent multiple ESPY Award winner, has been squashed.

Now we’ll have to see if Sonnen invites James as his special guest when Sonnen faces Mauricio “Shogun” Rua in the main event of the inaugural UFC card on Fox Sports 1 on Aug. 17 from the TD Garden in Boston.

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UFC: Anthony Pettis Says No One Will ‘Clay Guida’ Him Again

The upcoming challenger for the UFC lightweight title, Anthony Pettis, doesn’t believe champion Benson Henderson’s wrestling advantage will be a difference-maker in their rematch at UFC 164 next month.
Speaking with ESPN’s Brett Okamoto, “Showtim…

Speaking with ESPN’s Brett Okamoto, “Showtime” believes that his decision loss to Clay Guida in his promotional debut two years ago isn’t a game plan others will be able to replicate against him.

“That was the fastest fight of my life,” Pettis said. “It was just one of those I didn’t get up for. All I kept thinking was, ‘I’m going to knock this guy out, and I’ll get my title shot.’ Even during the fight, I thought I’d catch him in a triangle—catch him somewhere. It just never happened…

“Uh, I think he (Henderson) saw the Guida fight and he’s saying the same thing everybody else said. Ben did what he wanted to do in the first fight, we went five rounds, we both had our moments and I got my hand raised. People say they can go in and ‘Guida’ me, but that’s not happening again.”

Since the disappointing loss to Guida, Pettis has rattled off three straight wins, including back-to-back knockouts over perennial top-10 lightweights Joe Lauzon and Donald Cerrone.

The Roufusport standout was originally scheduled to make his 145-pound debut against divisional champ Jose Aldo at UFC 163, which takes place four weeks prior to UFC 164.

However, Pettis withdrew from the bout citing a knee injury and seemed content to take a lightweight bout with fellow contender Josh Thomson (via MMA Fighting).

Things got interesting when T.J. Grant, who was originally scheduled to fight Henderson in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on August 31, withdrew from the fight after suffering a concussion (via Bloody Elbow).

Pettis was more than happy to fill in for Grant, though conspiracy theorists have been having a field day over the situation, especially since both Grant and UFC President Dana White assured the fans Pettis vs. Henderson II wouldn’t happen this summer.

Whether it’s an odd coincidence or an elaborate scheme—with Pettis and Grant arguing its definitely the former—the bottom line is that Pettis vs. Henderson II is indeed taking place next month at the BMO Harris Bradley Center.

Will “Bendo” be able to use his grappling advantage to outclass Pettis on the ground, a la Nate Diaz, or will Pettis prove that his loss to Guida really was a one-night only ordeal?

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

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