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Dana White: UFC on FOX a ‘Dream Come True’

LOS ANGELES – Dana White is a fight promoter. His purpose to sell the public on fight cards and main events are included in that responsibility. So, with that being the case, the UFC boss is more than willing to tell people why they should c…

LOS ANGELES – Dana White is a fight promoter. His purpose to sell the public on fight cards and main events are included in that responsibility.

So, with that being the case, the UFC boss is more than willing to tell people why they should care about the UFC on Fox event that takes place this Saturday.

In the main event, heavyweight champ Cain Velasquez will take on No. 1 contender Junior dos Santos. White all but guarantees an exciting fight.

The UFC boss says there were a number of fights he and Zuffa CEO Lorenzo Fertitta thought could headline UFC on Fox. While he’s not sharing which potential fights those were, White does admit that nothing made more sense than this heavyweight title fight.

Promoting fights as fight promoters do.

“Lorenzo [Fertitta] and I sat down and we talked about a lot of different fights we can make. This one made sense,” White says. “Not only with the heavyweight championship of the world, but the fight between these two athletes. These guys are monsters, man. When have you seen either of these guys in a boring fight that was just horrible? The answer is never.”

A great percentage of Velasquez’s fans are from a Mexican background. With dos Santos being from Brazil, some have even gone to the extent of making this a fight between countries. Like the Brazilian and Mexican national soccer teams, Velasquez and “JDS” are fighting for the pride of their nations.

However, the UFC president feels this is more than a fight between two countries; this fight is more global.

“This isn’t one of those fights that’s Mexico versus Brazil,” says the UFC president. “People from all over the world are watching this fight. On Twitter, on the Internet, people are going crazy.

“This is a global heavyweight fight.”

When the network deal with Fox was originally announced, White stated there were several networks in talks with the UFC. Major networks were all in the mix for who would be the first broadcast the Las Vegas-based promotion’s fights. Fox won the chase, according to White, and he couldn’t be happier.

It’s been a long 10-year journey for White and the Fertittas, but things have finally got to the next level. On Saturday night, they’ll do what they’ve been planning to do since purchasing the UFC in 2001; they’ll make their dreams become reality.

“It’s the biggest night in UFC history this Saturday night,” White proclaims. “And this is a dream come true. This is what we’ve been working for… the perfect deal at the perfect time with the perfect guys.”

Erik Fontanez is a senior writer and reporter for MMAWeekly.com.

Follow him on Twitter: @Erik_Fontanez.

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UFC on FOX 1: Junior dos Santos will be, "the First Guy to Beat Cain Velasquez"

Junior dos Santos is a man on a mission that will manifest into a collision course with Cain Velasquez this Saturday night when UFC on FOX makes its debut.Bleacher Report was on the scene at today’s open workouts for UFC on FOX 1 and caught up with JDS…

Junior dos Santos is a man on a mission that will manifest into a collision course with Cain Velasquez this Saturday night when UFC on FOX makes its debut.

Bleacher Report was on the scene at today’s open workouts for UFC on FOX 1 and caught up with JDS, who was nice as always; a humble hulk of a man with a singular vision of wearing UFC gold.

But he will have to get through the current kingpin, Velasquez, in a fight that many are billing as the biggest and most technical heavyweight fight of all time. This generation’s “Fedor vs. Big Nog,” if you will.

Can the best boxing, along with yet-to-be showcased and supposedly stellar BJJ, overtake the best kickboxing/wrestling combo the sport has ever seen?

Tune in as Velasquez and dos Santos get set to collide in the Octagon—for the first time on FOX—in front of what will be the most star-studded crown in UFC history, hearkening back to the big boxing matches of days gone by.

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Cain Velasquez’s Coach Javier Mendez Talks About Junior Dos Santos

There is an epic matchup on the horizon in the UFC heavyweight division that could mark the beginning of a new era in mixed martial arts. The ingredients have come together to create the perfect recipe of action for a one-of-a-kind event.

Never before in the history of MMA has a UFC event taken place on network television. Now this Saturday night, the UFC and FOX will showcase the UFC Heavyweight Championship free on live television for the entire world to see.

Heavyweight champ Cain Velasquez will look to defend his title against one of the most dangerous strikers the division has seen in quite some time, if ever. Junior Dos Santos is a wrecking machine with the heart of a saint, but a talent for war that makes him extremely lethal inside the Octagon.

Dos Santos is coming for the title secured tightly around the waist of Velasquez. It has become his life’s dream to attain it, and now this weekend he will have his chance. He will have his chance in a matchup that is extremely closely contested on paper.

These two heavyweights have unique skill sets yet share many similar qualities. Devastating striking, speed, agility, tremendous heart combined with equal desire to become or remain champion.

There are no “gimmes” in this matchup.

That is reflected heavily in the respect shared by American Kickboxing Academy teammates for the UFC No. 1 heavyweight contender known as “Cigano”. That respect was conveyed to Todd Jackson of Hurtsbad MMA when he sat down to speak with AKA head coach Javier Mendez.

Mendez spoke to Hurtsbad about exactly what he sees when he and his champion study Dos Santos, and how they think they can offset what he brings to the table on November 12th when the UFC heavyweight title will be contested on FOX.So what exactly does AKA’s Javier Mendez and Cain Velasquez see when they look across the Octagon at Dos Santos?

“I see an incredible challenge in front of Cain. And if we disrespect Dos Santos one bit we are going to end up in a bad situation,” Mendez told Hurtsbad.

That respect is reflected in the coaching staff and in the champion. That respect has become the platform for a specific game plan to retain that title. “There is no way in hell we are going to disrespect how great Junior Dos Santos is. Based on the fact that Cain respects him as much as we all do, we are going to have the right mind set and the right game plan to implement when the fight starts.”

One obvious threat that clearly must be accounted for is the precision and power striking of Dos Santos. Yet there is an unknown which is also on the minds of those prepping the champ. “He is definitely by far the best striker we have yet to face. The thing about Junior is because he has never been to the ground you don’t even know how good his ground game is.”

Javier sees potential for “Cigano” to perform where many might overlook possible strengths. “His ground game from what I hear is pretty decent. By pretty decent I’m talking about over a year ago. If you’re looking at it like Cain, a year from now if you’re training you’re a lot better than you were.”

Many would call Dos Santos a dangerous striker. But Javier sees more than that as far as what “Cigano” can threaten his champion with.

“I look at Junior as a total picture of an MMA fighter. He has got the heart and the desire to be a champion. It is just my opinion that having Cain ready for the challenge it is not going to be Junior’s day.”

Having Cain ready for the challenge is exactly what the staff at AKA have been working towards since his return from surgery earlier this year. They have been sharpening the edge of one of the most dangerous blades in the heavyweight division.

Cain Velasquez is as real as it gets, and Javier has no reservations whatsoever when describing exactly what he sees in his own student, a man he has honed into from rising star to UFC heavyweight champ.Javier told Todd Jackson, “You’re still looking at a kid who is improving vastly. He is improving all the time. And with Junior, you guys are going to see another Cain Velasquez, again not the best but a better Cain Velasquez than he has been in awhile because that is just the way it is with him.”

Mendez continually gave credit where it was due to the challenger. With a threat like Dos Santos, all bases must be covered, all scenarios planned for. But his pride and belief in Cain lies in the fact that he has watched this young fighter grow and evolve.

Simply put, Mendez does not see that this evolution has even come close to completion. So with all the threats that Dos Santos brings into the cage with him on fight night, Mendez feels that we are about to see a new Cain Velasquez, a sharper champ, a more lethal heavyweight on his way to even further greatness.

As unbelievable as that sounds, it is very very true if you know who to ask. And more so than that, it is extremely scary for any man walking this planet looking to earn that UFC heavyweight strap.

This article originally featured at Hurtsbad MMA. To hear this interview in its entirety visit The Truth Hurts Radio Show. Follow us on Twitter @hurtsbadmma.

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UFC on Fox 1’s Pablo Garza Is Glad He Stayed in MMA One More Year

Pablo Garza isn’t a household name among UFC fans, but if you bring up who was the guy who did the flying triangle at UFC 129 in Toronto, then the name rings a bell. That is nothing new for Garza (11-1 MMA, 2-0 UFC) as he faces Dustin Poirier (10-1 MMA…

The card streams live on Facebook while a main event pitting heavyweight champ Cain Velasquez against challenger Junior Dos Santos airs live on FOX.

The flying triangle choke on Yves Jabouin at UFC 129 which netted Garza submission of the night, was something Garza said was never really practiced and likes to try new things.

I didn’t practice that at all. It’s a move that after jiu-jitsu classes, me and a couple friends will stick around and try these like crazy moves. It’s kind of like after basketball practice, you go to the halfway line and starting to launch balls to see if you can make it. That’s like the equivalent of what we do every once in a while. Hey let’s try this crazy move, or look at this crazy move I saw on YouTube and that’s the extent of practicing it. I’ve done it in jiu-jitsu tournaments. I’ve done flying triangles before, it’s a lot easier with a gi on.

For his submission of the night victory at UFC 129, Garza got received a $129,000 bonus which is the largest bonus ever given out at a UFC event. You would think Garza would have lived it up, but that wasn’t the case for the North Dakota native.

People think I went out and bought a Mercedes or some awesome car or something. That’s definitely not what I did. It took a lot a of sacrifice to get to the UFC. It took a lot of not paying bills and just getting really in major debt. So I ended up being smart about it and paid off my debt. I went off and used some of the money to buy a house now.

Garza struggled a lot to get this point mentally and financially and has advice for the guys who are trying to make to the UFC.

Just keep going, especially when can’t go anymore. When you absolutely think you have to quit, keep going. Sometimes you get that big break. There’s been two or three times when I told my coach, ‘you know, I’m done, I can’t do this anymore. I’m done trying to be a professional fighter.’ Then we made a deal, ‘you stick around for one more year and if nothing happens in that year, I’ll let you quit.’ That’s what my coach told me. Within that year, I got onto The Ultimate Fighter, got into the WEC, got into the UFC and have had two UFC fights since. Got real lucky.

Garza and Poirier are 2-0 this year and looking to cap their years undefeated. Garza has great respect and admiration for Poirier.

Very impressive, he’s a really tough guy. Really great striker, top contender, legitimate fighter. I have a lot of respect for him. I think it’s going to be a great fight for the fans to see, can’t wait.

The Garza-Poirier scrap was the first announced for the Fox show when the UFC and Fox agreed to a deal a few months back. Garza is really honored he was a part of the first fight announced and wants to put on a show on quite arguably the biggest day in the history of the sport.

I couldn’t believe I was chosen to be on that show. It’s the first time in history the UFC is going to be on Fox. I just felt really honored that the UFC thought I would be a good fight on there and could perform. I’m sure they are expecting they want people who are going to perform and have really good fights. So for them to have faith in me, to do that meant a lot. Gonna try and not disappoint.

To listen to the entire interview with Pablo Garza listen here.

You can follow me on Twitter @fightclubchi.

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UFC’s Jake Shields Sheds Light on Signing, Teammates and Return to Action

UFC welterweight Jake Shields (26-6-1) is the latest world-class athlete to take his talents to Florida. This past October, Authentic Sports Management announced the signing of Shields, who joins the likes of former UFC light heavyweight champion Rasha…

UFC welterweight Jake Shields (26-6-1) is the latest world-class athlete to take his talents to Florida.

This past October, Authentic Sports Management announced the signing of Shields, who joins the likes of former UFC light heavyweight champion Rashad Evans, Kenny Florian, Anthony “Rumble” Johnson, Danillo Villefort and Melvin Guillard, to name a few who have signed with the premier sports management and marketing company.

While the decision was tough for Shields, joining forces with president Glenn Robinson and Authentic Sports Management provided the American jiu-jitsu black belt the opportunity to move forward with his career and continue his growth as a professional athlete.

“Well, it’s always a tough choice choosing your manager,” Shields recently told BleacherReport.com. “There’s lots of things that factor and for me, it just seemed like they cover everything and it seemed like a good environment. So, everyone got along and they treat you well. They cover all aspects between obviously the fights, the sponsors, the fight contract, as well as helping out with training and PR and anything else. He’s willing to go out and help.”

Shields began his career by going undefeated in 1999 and has since defeated 50 percent of his opponents by submission or knockout.

While his 2011 campaign hasn’t been ideal, the 12-year veteran hopes to find out who his next foe will be in the near future and return to his winning ways.

“I’m just trying to get back on track, I had a little setback and just trying to bounce back,” Shields said. “Some time to restructure some things and figure out what I’ve done wrong and correct that. So, right now I’m taking it one step at a time and I’m looking for my next opponent. I started training again and (I’ll) go out there and talk to Glenn about who we want to go after and talk to the UFC and hopefully in the next week, I’ll have an opponent set up.”

With Shields’ long-time teammate Nick Diaz recently joining the UFC welterweight roster alongside younger brother Nate Diaz, and UFC President Dana White stating his desire to see Gilbert Melendez inside the Octagon in the near future, the four talented Cesar Gracie fighters are all close to joining forces in the sport’s premier organization.

As for Shields, it’s an exciting time seeing his close friends and teammates achieve success.

“It’s great, I think we’ve all been fighting together for so long and we all pretty much came from absolutely nothing and to see each other rise in different levels. Different guys with different levels of fame throughout the way, but at this point it’s like me, Gil, Nick, and Nate are all hitting a really good point. I’m coming off a loss of course, so that ain’t great, but other than the whole team is.

“I just had a ton of publicity from the GSP (Georges St. Pierre) fight and Nick Diaz is going to be having that same thing fighting GSP, I’m glad he back that. Nate Diaz is in the co-main with “Cowboy” (Donald Cerrone at UFC 141), Gil Melendez fighting for a title, so it’s just great to see all these guys I’ve been fighting with for 10 plus years really at top right now.”

With Shields’ teammates all being scheduled for upcoming fights, he hopes to secure a date in February for his return to action.

UFC 143 on February 4, alongside teammate Nick Diaz, who challenges welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre would be a perfect fit.

“I haven’t really been thinking about my opponents, I’ve been trying to figure out what weight I’m going to go at. Because cutting that weights big and I’m kind of small for 85, so I’ve been lifting a little bit and seeing how I feel. I don’t have a date, but I was thinking February, that’s up to the UFC, but I was going to throw it out there and tell them I’d like to fight sometime around February and see what they say from there.

“It’d be great to fight the same time as Nick. It makes it easier, we can train together and get ready together. It’s always nice when we fight at the same time.

For additional information, follow Joshua Carey on Twitter.

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UFC on FOX 1: BR MMA Interview with Dethrone Royalty Founder Nick Swinmurn

The world of MMA attire has been dominated by the likes of TapouT and Affliction for the past few years, but anyone who has paid attention to the fighters entering the Octagon has noticed another player in the game, Dethrone Royalty.Dethrone’s bi…

Dethrone’s biggest representative in both stature and name recognition is the current UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez, who will defend his title against Junior dos Santos on Saturday, Nov. 12 on the first UFC on FOX card.

Bleacher Report MMA had the chance to speak to Nick Swinmurn, the founder of Dethrone, in the days leading up to UFC on FOX 1.

Swinmurn founded Zappos.com in 1999 and stayed with the company until 2006. While still with Zappos, he received his introduction to MMA when a friend called him and asked him if he had ever seen “The Ultimate Fighter,” which was then in its first season.

After the call, Swinmurn watched the replay of every episode of the show in the hours leading up to the final episode of Season 1, thinking while he was watching the show, “S**t, this is pretty cool.”

Swinmurn then scored tickets for the finale of Season 2 of TUF, where he watched from the balcony. “I was sitting up on the balcony and I remember that the table next to us was Leonardo DiCaprio and Jenna Jameson and I was thinking ‘Wow all these people are watching this.’

“It was Nick Diaz and Diego Sanchez (in the main event), and I remember Nick Diaz came up and was just standing there in jeans and a hoodie and I just thought he was a fan and not sitting at a table and all of a sudden 10 minutes later, he was getting ready to fight.”

From that point Swinmurn thought, “I want to start a brand for this sport and that’s what laid the early foundation…TUF 1 and going to that second fight. I think that’s when I thought hey, this is pretty cool.”

With the seed planted, it wasn’t all smooth sailing for Dethrone, “When you’re starting a brand, no one cares. There’s no one online searching for your brand because they don’t know that it exists. I remember when we started and thinking, ‘wow, this is so much harder than starting Zappos was.’”

Swinmurn also offered words of caution for those thinking that all it takes is a fighter wearing a company’s shirt into the Octagon for success, “There’s definitely a perception out there that if you put a shirt on a guy, then the next day, orders are just flooding your site and everyone in the world’s calling you, and that’s not the case.

“It takes a lot of time and a lot of money. You take a look at some of these brands that everyone thinks are so huge and so successful and then you realize that they kind of got taken over in a fire sale by ABG (Authentic Brands Group) or whatever, it makes you realize that just because everyone knows you, it doesn’t mean you’re making money or doing things the right way.”

With that being said, Swinmurn is comfortable where Dethrone is now and where they are headed as a company.

“It’s only been just over two years and we’ve done a good job of getting the name out there. Our sales have been increasing every year. We’re still primarily in fight shops and independent stores.

“With certain (larger) retailers, maybe there were some companies ahead of us that kind of left a sour taste in some people’s mouths as far as what MMA brands stand for; they’re very aggressive and angry and sometimes we have to battle that.

“We’re a lifestyle brand. We started in fights and we have a lot of fighters on our roster, but we try and use our designs and marketing to really bridge that gap. “

The idea of becoming a lifestyle brand and not strictly an MMA brand was a decision made by just looking around, “We had artists that were looking at what ‘MMA fans’ were wearing and then we realized from ourselves that we didn’t always want to wear those shirts.”

“I just think there’s a fine line, there’s definitely a negative perception in some circles of what the MMA shirts are typically going to look like. So we wanted to break away from that. This is what we do, so we don’t apologize for that, but we’re also, we don’t like the stereotypical MMA shirts any more than anyone else does, so we’re just going to do what we’re going to do.”

With that type of thinking driving them, Dethrone started to see success and hear positive feedback, “We started to notice that a lot of people that we never would see wearing the stuff, we just noticed that they were wearing the stuff and we noticed that fighters seemed to be wearing it a lot, lot more just casual and just randomly than they did in the very beginning.

“Guys that we were sponsoring, we sent them a box of stuff and they said, ‘this is the first one of my sponsors that I’ll actually be wearing the stuff when I’m not fighting.’”

In the end, the driving force for Dethrone seems to be, “It was just trying to come up with stuff that made sense to average people instead of, this must work, it’s on TV.”

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