UFC 139 was originally rumored to serve as the pay-per-view event to house the heavyweight title bout between challenger Junior dos Santos and champion Cain Velasquez. However, as we have all learned earlier today, such is not the case and both men wil…
UFC 139 was originally rumored to serve as the pay-per-view event to house the heavyweight title bout between challenger Junior dos Santos and champion Cain Velasquez. However, as we have all learned earlier today, such is not the case and both men will instead take part in the organization’s first venture onto Fox.
UFC 139 takes place on Nov. 19 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Cali., and though Velasquez, a product of the famed American Kickboxing Academy, would have been a huge local draw for the event, the promotion is currently underway in developing a respectable main event to take it’s place.
Several options exist, though limited they are, could still very well pull in a decent crowd to an always burgeoning hot bed for mixed martial arts action.
The HP has served home for many Strikeforce events and now that Zuffa, the parent company of the UFC, has since purchased the organization, they will use all of their new tools at their disposal in order to open to a wider audience.
So, who can fill in these big shoes come this November?
Who can beat Anderson Silva?
This topic has been debated over and over again. Fighters that propose a great style match for the pound-for-pound kingpin have stepped up and been dispatched of like first class amateurs.
Like many great fighters, Silva ha…
This topic has been debated over and over again. Fighters that propose a great style match for the pound-for-pound kingpin have stepped up and been dispatched of like first class amateurs.
Like many great fighters, Silva has an aura that mesmerizes even his peers. His opponents tend to sit back and watch what he does instead of implementing their own game plans.
For example, Yushin Okami, a strong grappler, only made one half-hearted attempt at a takedown in his UFC 134 bout against Silva. He basically sat there as Silva danced on the outside and landed the inevitable punch that would end the fight.
After cleaning out all of the notable challengers in the middleweight division, Silva is left at a crossroads of rematches and jumping weight classes.
It’s tough to see Silva lose at this point, but as long as he keeps fighting, his time will come to take the inevitable plunge like the other all-time greats before himself.
If given the opportunity, here are five fighters with the best chance to squash “The Spider.”
Filed under: Strikeforce, NewsAs if Scott Coker didn’t have enough championship belts already in flux, Dan Henderson’s last win on his Strikeforce deal just added to Coker’s list.
Henderson beat Fedor Emelianenko last month to finish off his Strikefo…
As if Scott Coker didn’t have enough championship belts already in flux, Dan Henderson‘s last win on his Strikeforce deal just added to Coker’s list.
Henderson beat Fedor Emelianenko last month to finish off his Strikeforce contract, making him a free agent. The UFC has expressed interest in bringing Henderson back into the mix, and Henderson has expressed interest in returning to the promotion.
But Coker said Tuesday nothing has been figured out yet, and that if Henderson did return to the UFC, vacating his light heavyweight title, he was not yet sure how that belt would be filled – but that the winner of a fight between Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal and Roger Gracie, on Sept. 10, could position himself to be in the picture.
“There are ongoing discussions with Hendo, and it hasn’t been determined yet,” Coker said during a Strikeforce media call.
“I like to watch the fight and stir the pot after,” Coker said. “Let’s see who wins and how they win. We also have some other fights coming up in the 205 weight class – Mike Kyle will be fighting again shortly, and Gegard Mousasi will be probably be fighting before the end of the year. When the time is right, we’ll let everybody know.”
Lawal has not fought since he lost the light heavyweight title to Rafael Cavalcante a year ago, his first career defeat. Gracie is 4-0 with four submission victories, but has fought just twice the last three years.
No decisions yet on vacant heavyweight title
When heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem was given the boot from Strikeforce earlier this summer, many assumed the easiest solution to fill the suddenly vacant belt would be to hand it over to the winner of the ongoing heavyweight tournament.
But that won’t be the case, Coker said. The CEO said there are no plans for the tournament winner to automatically assume the role of Strikeforce heavyweight champion, and that the promotion was “in discussions” to figure out what will happen.
Coker reiterated that he expects the finals of the heavyweight tournament to take place sometime in the first quarter of 2012.
In other news from Coker on Tuesday’s call:
Cormier always in the heavyweight tournament mix Daniel Cormier was inserted quickly into the heavyweight tournament when Alistair Overeem was cut from the promotion, and Coker said that was no coincidence.
“He was always considered the top alternate,” Coker said. “Cormier was the first person under consideration. He had a great performance against a seasoned veteran like (Jeff) Monson. That fight, he looked like a kickboxer. He showed he had the ability to take it to the next level. We just felt he was the right guy. Anyone who has Olympic-level wrestling is going to give people in this tournament a tough time.”
Cormier stepped in for Overeem and will face Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva in one semifinal bout. The winner of that fight will face the Josh Barnett–Sergei Kharitonov winner.
“Cyborg” Santos should fight again by year’s end
Coker said Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos has officially re-signed with the promotion. Santos reportedly signed a new deal with Strikeforce last week after more than a year on the sidelines.
Santos (10-1, 4-0 Strikeforce) has not competed since a June 2010 knockout win over Jan Finney to retain her Strikeforce 145-pound title. Coker said no opponent has been set for Santos’ return, but he expects she will fight before the end of 2011.
In court documents filed in California, Henderson claims that Lindland is unlawfully using the Team Quest brand to promote his gym and that he is the rightful owner of the name and logo made popular by himself, Lindland and Randy Couture in the 1990s. He is suing for trademark infringement, copyright infringement and unfair competition regarding the Team Quest brand. Lindland is countersuing Henderson for trademark and copyright infringement, unfair competition, deceptive advertising, breach of contract and interference with his future business relationships.
According to “The Law” he hasn’t spoken to Henderson about the case and was taken aback when he received notice that he was being sued as it was never discussed prior to court documents being filed.
(Back when Team Quest was all about fighting and orgies.)
In court documents filed in California, Henderson claims that Lindland is unlawfully using the Team Quest brand to promote his gym and that he is the rightful owner of the name and logo made popular by himself, Lindland and Randy Couture in the 1990s. He is suing for trademark infringement, copyright infringement and unfair competition regarding the Team Quest brand. Lindland is countersuing Henderson for trademark and copyright infringement, unfair competition, deceptive advertising, breach of contract and interference with his future business relationships.
According to “The Law” he hasn’t spoken to Henderson about the case and was taken aback when he received notice that he was being sued as it was never discussed prior to court documents being filed.
“I never heard anything from [Henderson] before he filed the lawsuit,” he told Sherdog.com. “I thought we were friends. He never called me and said he had a problem with me. He just filed the lawsuit. That’s not how I do things. You don’t sue your friends.I guess we didn’t have the same opinion when it came to our friendship.Maybe that’s the way they do things [where Henderson lives]. Dan wouldn’t call me before the lawsuit, and we haven’t talked since it got filed.”
“The litigation is ongoing and I can’t talk that much about it, but I have no idea what the basis for the lawsuit is,” Lindland said. “None of the documents we’ve asked for have been delivered to us, so I have no idea what we’re being sued for. That would at least tell me why [Henderson] thinks he has a case. We’ll figure it out, though.”
Lindland, who in spite of rumors that his fighting days are behind him, says that he hasn’t retired, but explains that coaching and his other business ventures outside the cage have left him with little time to train.
“Lately, I’ve been in Vancouver doing a lot of business consulting,” said Lindland. “For the six weeks prior to that, I was running Okami’s camp to get him ready for [UFC 134]. I didn’t make the trip to Rio because I don’t speak Japanese. Josh Thomson just fell out of a fight [for Strikeforce] and we’re hoping to get a guy in his place, and [Chael] Sonnen has a fight camp coming up [for his matchup with Brian Stann at UFC 136], as well,” said Lindland. “I’ve been busy running the gym and being the head coach of Team Quest. I’m pursuing a lot of business opportunities that I didn’t have a chance to do when I was a more active fighter.I’m not retired. I still possess the skills and am learning new things every day. I just have no plans of fighting soon, and I’m prioritizing things differently. I’m focusing more on the money-making opportunities in MMA right now.”
He might need that money if he continues to be sued like he has been twice in the past year alone.
UPDATE: Anderson Silva will not headline the UFC on Fox card.Lately, rumors have been running rampant that if Anderson Silva is to defeat Yushin Okami on Saturday, he will be booked for the main event of the UFC’s debut on Fox, where he will battle Dan…
UPDATE: Anderson Silva will not headline the UFC on Fox card.
Lately, rumors have been running rampant that if Anderson Silva is to defeat Yushin Okami on Saturday, he will be booked for the main event of the UFC’s debut on Fox, where he will battle Dan Henderson for the UFC Middleweight Championship.
These rumors were fueled further when UFC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta confirmed that the UFC would be interested in having Silva headline the card on Fox.
Henderson is the Strikeforce light heavyweight champion, and in a recent conversation with mmafighting.com, Henderson’s manager, Aaron Crecy, said that the only fight Dan would be interested in at middleweight is a rematch with Anderson Silva, so it looks as though these rumors will continue to grow.
He also said though that there is nothing official, and that “Nothing is signed.”
He went on to say that preliminary talks had just begun a few days ago, and that Henderson hadn’t thought much about where he would fight next.
On the subject of Henderson returning to the UFC, Crecy said “He’s open to going back…”
Crecy also said that “At this point of his career, he just wants to have good, big fights.”
There’s only a few fights out there that would be bigger than a champion vs. champion rematch.
The first fight between Silva and Henderson took place at UFC 82, when Silva submitted Henderson in the second round to unify the UFC and Pride middleweight titles.
Stay tuned for more updates on this potential headliner.
For the latest news on everything MMA, follow me on twitter @tmt2393. It’s more outta sight than Anthony Pettis’ title shot.
Filed under: UFC, MMA Fighting Exclusive, NewsAfter the expiration of his Strikeforce deal, current light-heavyweight champion Dan Henderson remains unsigned, but is apparently a wanted man.
In recent days, UFC executives including Lorenzo Fertitta ha…
After the expiration of his Strikeforce deal, current light-heavyweight champion Dan Henderson remains unsigned, but is apparently a wanted man.
In recent days, UFC executives including Lorenzo Fertitta have confirmed that the UFC would be interested in possibly having middleweight champ Anderson Silva fight on its upcoming Nov. 12 event, a show that would mark the promotion’s anticipated debut on FOX. Some reports have had him potentially facing Henderson.
At this stage, however, nothing is even close to concrete, including Henderson’s future. Henderson’s manager Aaron Crecy told MMA Fighting that he currently remains a free agent.
“Nothing is signed,” he said.
Crecy said that preliminary talks have just begun a few days ago after Henderson returned from vacation. According to Crecy, since defeating Fedor Emelianenko on July 30, Henderson hasn’t spent much time thinking about his next home.
That said, Henderson is open to a possible UFC overture, including one as big as headlining the first-ever UFC network TV card. The prospective fight would still depend on a few things, including Silva winning, coming out healthy, and having a willingness to fight again just over two months later. Along with that, Henderson would have to be signed to a UFC deal, something he would clearly consider.
“He’s open to going back,” Crecy said. “And to face Anderson, that’s probably the only fight he’d consider at 185. If they offered it, I’m sure he’d accept that, but that’s my own opinion.”
Henderson (28-8) turned 41 on Wednesday. In his Strikeforce tenure, he went 3-1, defeating Emelianenko, Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante and Renato Sobral while losing only to Jake Shields. Altogether, he’s won six of his last seven.
Back in March 2008, Henderson and Silva faced off in a UFC champion vs. PRIDE champion matchup. Henderson had his moments in the first round, but Silva emerged victorious with a second-round rear naked choke.
Henderson’s place in the annals of MMA history may already be safe, but he still finds motivation in challenges, and Silva would certainly present a challenge.
“At this point of his career, he just wants to have good, big fights,” Crecy said.
As if Scott Coker didn’t have enough championship belts already in flux, 
UPDATE: 
After the expiration of his