Above you’ll see the official poster for In the Blood, the new Gina Carano action-movie vehicle which will be released April 4th in select theaters and on iTunes and On Demand. From an art-direction standpoint, I rank this above the UFC’s Gustafsson vs. Manuwa trainwreck, but only slightly. While it’s nice to see Gina as the central focus of the film’s marketing, the poster doesn’t really tell you anything about the movie. It’s just a chick aiming a gun at somebody or something, for some reason, while projecting a generic air of calm determination. Plus, not including Danny Trejo’s horrifying mug somewhere is a missed opportunity. Look, it’s not like we won’t watch the damn movie, but sometimes complaining about things is all you have in the world.
After the jump: Six Gina-related photo stills from the movie, via JoBlo.com.
(Click for full-size version.)
Above you’ll see the official poster for In the Blood, the new Gina Carano action-movie vehicle which will be released April 4th in select theaters and on iTunes and On Demand. From an art-direction standpoint, I rank this above the UFC’s Gustafsson vs. Manuwa trainwreck, but only slightly. While it’s nice to see Gina as the central focus of the film’s marketing, the poster doesn’t really tell you anything about the movie. It’s just a chick aiming a gun at somebody or something, for some reason, while projecting a generic air of calm determination. Plus, not including Danny Trejo’s horrifying mug somewhere is a missed opportunity. Look, it’s not like we won’t watch the damn movie, but sometimes complaining about things is all you have in the world.
After the jump: Six Gina-related photo stills from the movie, via JoBlo.com.
(Moments later, a tricked-out Mitsubishi Lancer crashed through the window, and Ronda armbarred it. Cut to tasteful sex scene. / Photo via FlicksandBits)
According to Variety, Rousey has landed a gig as one of the female leads in the upcoming Entourage movie, which starts filming in mid-March. [Ed. note: Please be Turtle’s girlfriend…please be Turtle’s girlfriend…] After that, Rousey is attached to star in a Warner Bros. adaptation of The Athena Project, which is about “a top secret, all-female Delta Force counter-terrorism team…sent in to hunt and kill a master terrorist after a bombing in Rome kills 20 Americans. Trouble ensues once the team realizes there’s more at play than a simple bombing.” Man, isn’t there always?
Though Warner Bros. is still negotiating rights to produce The Athena Project, which currently lacks a script, Variety‘s sources say that Rousey “fell in love with the book and also quickly clicked with author [Brad] Thor, attaching herself to the project before it even had a studio involved.” And here’s one more line from Variety’s report that was interesting:
(Moments later, a tricked-out Mitsubishi Lancer crashed through the window, and Ronda armbarred it. Cut to tasteful sex scene. / Photo via FlicksandBits)
According to Variety, Rousey has landed a gig as one of the female leads in the upcoming Entourage movie, which starts filming in mid-March. [Ed. note: Please be Turtle’s girlfriend…please be Turtle’s girlfriend…] After that, Rousey is attached to star in a Warner Bros. adaptation of The Athena Project, which is about “a top secret, all-female Delta Force counter-terrorism team…sent in to hunt and kill a master terrorist after a bombing in Rome kills 20 Americans. Trouble ensues once the team realizes there’s more at play than a simple bombing.” Man, isn’t there always?
Though Warner Bros. is still negotiating rights to produce The Athena Project, which currently lacks a script, Variety‘s sources say that Rousey “fell in love with the book and also quickly clicked with author [Brad] Thor, attaching herself to the project before it even had a studio involved.” And here’s one more line from Variety’s report that was interesting:
“While the ‘Entourage’ gig gives Rousey a recognizable property through which to get noticed for her acting, ‘The Athena Project’ could give her a possible franchise and perhaps the chance to become the female action star Hollywood is lacking.”
Huh. The fact that Hollywood lacks a female action star should give Rousey pause, considering that WMMA superstar Gina Carano left MMA for Hollywood herself, and was thought to have breakout potential. And it’s going alright for Gina, relatively speaking. For example, she just had a thrilling performance in some animated GIFs taken from a FOX TV show. In other words, Carano’s acting crossover is still a work in progress…but I’d take minor TV roles over getting punched in the face by Cris Cyborg all day, every day.
Rousey will make her next title defense against Sara McMann at UFC 170, 15 days from now. By all accounts, her training camp is going really well.
(Thanks to CP reader Steven Wong for the tip/image.)
Good news, Taters! Former MMA starlet Gina Carano is making her triumphant return to the world of television and all we can say is Hnnnnnng.
Carano, who is coming of a successful turn in Fast and Furious 6*, will guest star on the next episode of Almost Human, the future cop/Robocop buddy cop show on FOX. If the episode promo after the jump is to be believed, it looks like Carano will be playing an emotionless cyborg killing machine that has gone off the reservation…Haywire, you might even say. (*sad rimshot*)
Carano also has two projects currently in the works — In the Blood (a.k.a female Taken) and an untitled Adi Shankar project (a.k.a female Expendables). It’s always nice to see an old friend finding employment, but especially so when that friend is Gina Carano and that work involves corsets and fishnets.
The next episode of Almost Human airs February 3rd on FOX, so join us after the jump for a sneak peak.
(Thanks to CP reader Steven Wong for the tip/image.)
Good news, Taters! Former MMA starlet Gina Carano is making her triumphant return to the world of television and all we can say is Hnnnnnng.
Carano, who is coming of a successful turn in Fast and Furious 6*, will guest star on the next episode of Almost Human, the future cop/Robocop buddy cop show on FOX. If the episode promo after the jump is to be believed, it looks like Carano will be playing an emotionless cyborg killing machine that has gone off the reservation…Haywire, you might even say. (*sad rimshot*)
Carano also has two projects currently in the works — In the Blood (a.k.a female Taken) and an untitled Adi Shankar project (a.k.a female Expendables). It’s always nice to see an old friend finding employment, but especially so when that friend is Gina Carano and that work involves corsets and fishnets.
The next episode of Almost Human airs February 3rd on FOX, so join us after the jump for a sneak peak.
Huh, well that was a thing.
Maybe it’s just me, but I feel like the screenwriters for this episode could have done a little more with the “You’re telling me I gotta…Great” exchange. I’ve heard that bit easily 100 times in my life, and the way the dude delivered it, he might as well have turned to the camera and gave a Jim from the Office smirk. What I’m trying to say is that I hate almost everything on television now that Breaking Bad is over.
*Or at least, I’m assuming Carano was good in the film. My interest in the Fast franchise was killed as soon as Lil’ Bow Wow walked on screen. Come to think of it, I still haven’t even seen Haywire yet. It’s not that I have anything against the film — I mean, I’m sure it’s decent — but it’s so far down on my list of “Things to Do” that it might as well be “return credit card company’s phone calls,” you know what I mean?
Following Anderson Silva’s devastating leg-break against Chris Weidman at UFC 168, many observers hoped that one of the greatest fighters of all time would decide to retire in order to spend time with his family and count all of the “Anderson Silva money” he’s earned from fighting. Hell, even Silva’s son was hoping he would hang his gloves up. But following successful surgery, Silva has expressed his desire to return to the cage. Hopefully this is not the case. Silva has nothing left to accomplish in the sport, and at 38 years old, he would be facing a steep uphill battle to recover and earn back his belt.
Choosing to walk away from a long, fruitful MMA career is not an easy decision. Most fighters continue to compete long after they should have walked away. Nevertheless, every once in a while, an astute fighter realizes that their best days are behind them, and they decide to leave the sport for greener pastures. The following list is a tribute to five fighters who decided to leave MMA at the right time.
(Photo via Esther Lin/MMAFighting)
Georges St-Pierre recently decided to leave the sport of MMA for an undetermined amount of time. The reason why GSP’s decision to vacate his welterweight title is so incredible is because it’s so rare to see athletes leave at the top of their game. We’re used to dominant athletes staying too long, unable to give up the roar of the crowd and the lure of the paycheck. The list of accomplishments on GSP’s resume is long, varied and practically unparalleled in the sport of MMA. His in-cage achievements make him a legitimate candidate for the greatest of all time, with only fighters like Anderson Silva and Fedor Emeliananko even worthy of being mentioned in the same breath.
Following Anderson Silva’s devastating leg-break against Chris Weidman at UFC 168, many observers hoped that one of the greatest fighters of all time would decide to retire in order to spend time with his family and count all of the “Anderson Silva money” he’s earned from fighting. Hell, even Silva’s son was hoping he would hang his gloves up. But following successful surgery, Silva has expressed his desire to return to the cage. Hopefully this is not the case. Silva has nothing left to accomplish in the sport, and at 38 years old, he would be facing a steep uphill battle to recover and earn back his belt.
Choosing to walk away from a long, fruitful MMA career is not an easy decision. Most fighters continue to compete long after they should have walked away. Nevertheless, every once in a while, an astute fighter realizes that their best days are behind them, and they decide to leave the sport for greener pastures. The following list is a tribute to five fighters who decided to leave MMA at the right time.
(Photo via Esther Lin/MMAFighting)
Georges St-Pierre recently decided to leave the sport of MMA for an undetermined amount of time. The reason why GSP’s decision to vacate his welterweight title is so incredible is because it’s so rare to see athletes leave at the top of their game. We’re used to dominant athletes staying too long, unable to give up the roar of the crowd and the lure of the paycheck. The list of accomplishments on GSP’s resume is long, varied and practically unparalleled in the sport of MMA. His in-cage achievements make him a legitimate candidate for the greatest of all time, with only fighters like Anderson Silva and Fedor Emeliananko even worthy of being mentioned in the same breath.
During his career, GSP won the belt off the previous “most dominant Welterweight on the planet” and then went on to face every single 170-pound challenger to his belt. To borrow a phrase from Joe Rogan, St-Pierre faced a “murderer’s row” of contenders including Matt Hughes, Josh Koscheck, BJ Penn, Thiago Alves, Carlos Condit, Nick Diaz, and Johny Hendricks. And it’s not as though he left the sport with a slew of guys who hadn’t yet had the chance to try and beat him. He gave all comers their opportunity and beat them all. Whether you like it or not, he even won his final match. He may have been clearly beaten up, but he won 3 of the 5 rounds and, according to the 10-point must system, that makes him the winner.
The reason why vacating the title is the right move for GSP is because he left the sport on his own terms. The multiple-time Canadian Athlete of the Year has done nearly everything any mainstream athlete ever could to maximize his earnings outside of the court of play. He has appeared on reality TV — as a coach on TUF — has already appeared in two films, and will portray the villain in the new Captain America movie. He also has huge endorsements, is a best-selling author, a fitness guru, and a certified ladies man. That, my friends, is why GSP is not only one of the greatest fighters ever…he is also one of the smartest.
(Lytle slugs it out with fellow recent-retiree Paul Taylor. / Photo via MMAWeekly)
Throughout his long career, Chris “Lights Out” Lytle was a technically proficient fighter but he employed a fan-friendly style of brawling that pleased both fans and the UFC brass alike. Lytle ended his career in the UFC having won five of his last six fights, so when he announced his retirement in 2011 — prior to his main-event fight against Dan Hardy at UFC on Versus 5 — many fans were shocked. That night, Lytle submitted Hardy, something that even then-champion GSP couldn’t do. The performance earned him Fight of the Night and Submission of the night bonuses and he celebrated the moment by bringing his kids into the Octagon. It was an emotional ending to an incredible 54-fight career that saw him earn 10 “Of the Night” bonuses, including an unofficial 11th one for his submission over Matt Brown (the actual bonus went to the Brock Lesnar).
Lytle fought for many of the top MMA promotions around the world including Cage Rage, Pancrase, IFL, WEC, and UFC. Incredibly he was never submitted or knocked out in his entire 54-fight career. When Lytle was cast on The Ultimate Fighter 4: The Comeback season, he was already well-known to hardcore fans, but it was the reality show that introduced him to mainstream fans and earned him a reputation as a gritty fighter and all-around good guy. In the final, Lytle lost a decision to Matt Serra, but it was close and one judge even gave him the fight 30-27. Even though he lost that fight, he did manage to beat Serra in a rematch.
Part of Lytle’s blue-collar appeal can be attributed to the fact that while training and fighting he also worked full-time as a firefighter at the Indianapolis Fire Department. He was also highly involved in the local community, running for the Indiana State Senate in 2012 and establishing a charity for at-risk youth. In late 2013, Lytle indicated that he could be lured back to the UFC — with his wife’s approval no less — for a big paycheck so that his family could finally “get that lake house.” Still training and sparring, Lytle said he’d be willing to come back for a short notice fight against a Nick Diaz-type fighter, as long as it didn’t require a long, arduous and time-consuming training camp. Whether or not a comeback ever happens, Lytle had a storybook ending to his illustrious MMA career. His decision to retire wasn’t about chronic injuries or declining ability; it was about other obligations and wanting to spend more time with his family. It’s a lesson that up-and-coming fighters should take note of.
(Photo via Getty)
Brian “All-American” Stann may have ended his career going 1-3, but this isn’t a list about fighters who ended on a winning streak; it’s about fighters who realized they had nothing left to prove and left the sport for longer-lasting pursuits, which is exactly why Stann deserves to be on this list. Besides, it’s not as though Stann’s final losses were against scrubs; they were against some of the best middleweights to ever enter the Octagon, including Wanderlei Silva, Chael Sonnen, and Michael Bisping.
Stann was the type of fighter who struggled against top-10 fighters but easily disposed of the mid-tier fighters. Personable and a favorite of the UFC brass, he certainly could have competed in the UFC for a long time as a gatekeeper for the middleweight division. But Stann was too smart to fall into that life. He has more going on outside of the fight game than most fighters, and he chose to capitalize on his non-fighting skills rather than being resigned to “perennial contender” status. As far as a life outside of fighting, Stann is best known as being a Silver Star U.S. Marine who served in Iraq. Currently, he runs a non-profit, called Hire Heroes, for U.S. military veterans to find work, and acts as a commentator for both the UFC on Fox and Atlantic Coast Conference football games. He has also authored a book about his life in and out of the cage.
Stann is now retired, focusing on broadcasting, his charitable endeavors and family. When he announced his departure from MMA, Stann stated it was because he has three young daughters and he didn’t want to risk brain injury after years of football, MMA and explosions in combat. He left the game with some hardware — he won the WEC Light Heavyweight Championship — and his final bout against Wanderlei Silva was one of the most thrilling UFC fights of all time. Silva called their two-round war, at the UFC’s return to Japan in March 2013, one of the best fights of his career, which is incredible considering the wars that Silva has been in. Stann may not have ended his career on a win but that fight cemented his legacy as a warrior who will be fondly remembered by fight fans.
On the next page: The first “Face of WMMA,” the “Engineer of Pain,” and five honorable mentions…
“I get a lot of flack from people who are like ‘oh she’s not serious about fighting’ and that’s not it at all…I’m not just a fighter…I’m a bunch of things, I have a lot of interests…I’m really looking forward to after this fight just sticking to a routine and a program. I’m just getting a handle on it, I think that’s why I’ve slipped up in certain areas, missing weight, I’ve been all over the place, cause I didn’t have any stability or anything.”
That’s former WMMA star Gina Carano defending herself after missing weight by nearly 5 pounds prior to her bout against Kaitlin Young at EliteXC: Primetime. And indeed, many fans were questioning Carano’s “Conviction” after her weigh-in blunder, but those questions would quickly turn into cheers when Carano was forced to drop trou to make weight for her next bout with Kelly Kobold at EliteXC: Heat — five years ago today.
Of all the “On This Day in MMA History” posts we have ever done, this is the only entry in which we almost got to see a naked Gina Carano, and that’s kind of what MMA is all about, is it not? While Carano would defeat both Young and Kobold despite missing weight, she would be chased right out of the sport by Cyborg Santos (who is looking pretty good herself these days, all things considered) in their August 2009 Strikeforce title fight. While we would try to replace Carano with Ronda Rousey some three years later, WMMA would truly never be the same again.
These days, Carano is enjoying a budding film career, with a starring role in Steven Soderbergh’s Haywireand a supporting role in Fast & Furious 6already under her belt, as well as an upcoming role in an all-female version of The Expendables on the horizon. Carano is also set to star in the action-thriller In the Blood, which according to The Hollywood Reporter, will see Carano play, “A wife whose husband disappears while they’re on their honeymoon in the Caribbean. She takes matters into her own hands and pursues the men who took him, uncovering a deeper conspiracy.”
(Photo via Esther Lin/Combat Lifestyle.)
“I get a lot of flack from people who are like ‘oh she’s not serious about fighting’ and that’s not it at all…I’m not just a fighter…I’m a bunch of things, I have a lot of interests…I’m really looking forward to after this fight just sticking to a routine and a program. I’m just getting a handle on it, I think that’s why I’ve slipped up in certain areas, missing weight, I’ve been all over the place, cause I didn’t have any stability or anything.”
That’s former WMMA star Gina Carano defending herself after missing weight by nearly 5 pounds prior to her bout against Kaitlin Young at EliteXC: Primetime. And indeed, many fans were questioning Carano’s “Conviction” after her weigh-in blunder, but those questions would quickly turn into cheers when Carano was forced to drop trou to make weight for her next bout with Kelly Kobold at EliteXC: Heat — five years ago today.
Of all the “On This Day in MMA History” posts we have ever done, this is the only entry in which we almost got to see a naked Gina Carano, and that’s kind of what MMA is all about, is it not? While Carano would defeat both Young and Kobold despite missing weight, she would be chased right out of the sport by Cyborg Santos (who is looking pretty good herself these days, all things considered) in their August 2009 Strikeforce title fight. While we would try to replace Carano with Ronda Rousey some three years later, WMMA would truly never be the same again.
These days, Carano is enjoying a budding film career, with a starring role in Steven Soderbergh’s Haywireand a supporting role in Fast & Furious 6already under her belt, as well as an upcoming role in an all-female version of The Expendables on the horizon. Carano is also set to star in the action-thriller In the Blood, which according to The Hollywood Reporter, will see Carano play, “A wife whose husband disappears while they’re on their honeymoon in the Caribbean. She takes matters into her own hands and pursues the men who took him, uncovering a deeper conspiracy.”
Perhaps the most fascinating thing about Carano’s nude weigh-in — and really, the EliteXC: Heat weigh-ins in generals (video below) — was that it served as precursor to the batshit insanity that would take place the following evening.
One thing led to another on fight night and before Kimbo knew what hit him, ROCKY WAS HERE!! Unfortunately for EliteXC, “Rocky” later informed several media outlets that he was more or less (more) paid to stand and trade with Kimbo, leading to the eventual collapse of the promotion altogether.
While you could argue that the blame for EliteXC’s undoing rests solely on the shoulders of $kala, we’d like to think that the events which transpired on the weekend of October 3rd, 2008 were all thanks to the otherworldly power of Gina Carano’s awesome boobage. We’re cup half full kind of guys.
(Things start to get interesting around the 2:15 mark.)
Despite her relatively short time in the spotlight, Ronda Rousey is already a master manipulator of MMA media. From dissing shallow celebrities to floating her theories on pre-fight sex, Rousey has a way of making provocative statements that seem designed to get the MMA blogosphere churning out headlines. So keep in mind that this entire post is based on something that Ronda may have said only for the purposes of self-promotion. You’ve been warned.
“I said from the beginning that I work in quadrennials,” Rousey told MMAjunkie.com. “I do four-year cycles. I think I’ve got two years left in me, realistically, if I’m going to do this like an Olympic run…
“I think one profession has a much-longer shelf life than the other,” Rousey said. “My last fight, I was kind of forced to face my mortality a little bit. I had an air of invincibility about me, and I was kind of forced to realize statistically there is a chance you could get permanently hurt or even die. There’s only so many times you can roll the dice.
“I am the best f—ing fighter in the world, and I truly believe that, but you’re still rolling the dice no matter who you are, so I do have to kind of set up an exit strategy. That’s what I did wrong in judo. I followed it all the way until the end, and I didn’t put any thought into after…
Despite her relatively short time in the spotlight, Ronda Rousey is already a master manipulator of MMA media. From dissing shallow celebrities to floating her theories on pre-fight sex, Rousey has a way of making provocative statements that seem designed to get the MMA blogosphere churning out headlines. So keep in mind that this entire post is based on something that Ronda may have said only for the purposes of self-promotion. You’ve been warned.
“I said from the beginning that I work in quadrennials,” Rousey told MMAjunkie.com. “I do four-year cycles. I think I’ve got two years left in me, realistically, if I’m going to do this like an Olympic run…
“I think one profession has a much-longer shelf life than the other,” Rousey said. “My last fight, I was kind of forced to face my mortality a little bit. I had an air of invincibility about me, and I was kind of forced to realize statistically there is a chance you could get permanently hurt or even die. There’s only so many times you can roll the dice.
“I am the best f—ing fighter in the world, and I truly believe that, but you’re still rolling the dice no matter who you are, so I do have to kind of set up an exit strategy. That’s what I did wrong in judo. I followed it all the way until the end, and I didn’t put any thought into after…
“I really want to do something special, and I really want to be the person that was able to do both (acting and fighting),” Rousey said. “When I feel like I’m done fighting, I’m done fighting. But I’m not done fighting yet. It’s still my priority, and I feel like if I can have three jobs on the side and still train and fight, then I can every once in a while go do a movie. I’ll still train while I’m there and then go fight.”
Still, two years doesn’t seem like a long time, especially when the UFC women’s bantamweight division still relies heavily on Rousey to generate interest. Let’s hope Ronda and Cris Cyborg can come to terms on a superfight while it’s still a possibility.
