Tag: Josh Burkman

Five Reasons to Watch ‘World Series of Fighting 1? This Saturday

In case you haven’t noticed, we’ve been all about the inaugural World Series of Fighting event around here lately. We’ve snagged interviews with former UFC welterweight Josh Burkman, who is taking on fellow UFC vet Gerald Harris on the undercard, and world renowned badass/WSOF President Ray Sefo. In the meantime, we’ve been doing our best to undermine the legitimacy of the UFC, in turn allowing the WSOF to rise to MMA supremacy and grant us exclusive press passes for all future events.

And regardless of whether or not our preposterous pipe dream ever becomes a reality, we will be tuning in on Saturday to catch all the action. Sherdog will be hosting a live stream of the undercard starting at 8 pm. EST and the NBC Sports Network will be picking up the main card at 10 p.m. EST, so none of you should really have any excuse to miss this. On the off chance you still do, however, here are five of our attempts to convince you otherwise.

1. Shit is Stacked

At first glance, the above event poster looks like some kind of sick joke. You’ve got three UFC veterans — two of which are former UFC/WEC champions — in Andrei Arlovski, Miguel Torres, and Anthony Johnson, taking on three completely unknowns in Cole, Moraes, and Linderman. On the other hand, squash matches are the new black, so if it’s good enough for the UFC, why not WSOF?

In case you haven’t noticed, we’ve been all about the inaugural World Series of Fighting event around here lately. We’ve snagged interviews with former UFC welterweight Josh Burkman, who is taking on fellow UFC vet Gerald Harris on the undercard, and world renowned badass/WSOF President Ray Sefo. In the meantime, we’ve been doing our best to undermine the legitimacy of the UFC, in turn allowing the WSOF to rise to MMA supremacy and grant us exclusive press passes for all future events.

And regardless of whether or not our preposterous pipe dream ever becomes a reality, we will be tuning in on Saturday to catch all the action. Sherdog will be hosting a live stream of the undercard starting at 8 pm. EST and the NBC Sports Network will be picking up the main card at 10 p.m. EST, so none of you should really have any excuse to miss this. On the off chance you still do, however, here are five of our attempts to convince you otherwise.

1. Shit is Stacked

At first glance, the above event poster looks like some kind of sick joke. You’ve got three UFC veterans — two of which are former UFC/WEC champions — in Andrei Arlovski, Miguel Torres, and Anthony Johnson, taking on three completely unknowns in Cole, Moraes, and Linderman. On the other hand, squash matches are the new black, so if it’s good enough for the UFC, why not WSOF? Besides the fact that the main card pairings are all but guaranteed to end in vicious fashion because of their experience discrepancies, just look at the rest of that card. You’ve got Tyrone Spong‘s MMA debut, a Gracie in action, and more big promotion veterans than you could shake a stick at. For Christ’s sake, the WSOF undercard has more recognizable names on it than most UFC undercards these days, and the fact that not one of the fights has been cancelled or even changed due to injury should be reason enough to tune in.

2. Tyrone Spong Goes MMA

As we just mentioned, Tyrone Spong will be making his MMA debut this Saturday against the 7-2 Travis Bartlett. You should be excited about this because Tyrone Spong is one bad motherfucker. Don’t believe us? Just check this out:

Spong’s kickboxing record currently stands at 68-6 (42 KO’s), with vicories over Ray Sefo, Alistair Overeem, and Melvin Manhoef, and he retired kickboxing legend Peter Aerts in his last fight. So yeah, dude can fight. And on Saturday night, we’ll get to see just how well The Blackzilians have been able to round off the rest of his MMA game. If he has truly been able to develop his grappling and ground game, we could be looking at a future heavyweight champion here, people.

3. Anthony Johnson: LHW Wrecking Machine

Despite his past troubles with the scale, there is little denying that when “Rumble” shows up to fight, he does so with the intent of brutalizing his opponent as much as humanely possible (Dan Hardy notwithstanding). You can argue that R.A. the Rugged Man was talking about Vietnam all you want, but we stand by our belief that he was describing an Anthony Johnson fight when he wrote “Body parts flying, loss of limbs, explosions, bad intentions” on the Jedi Mind Tricks track “Uncommon Valor.” And now that Johnson has finally settled down in a weight class he can actually compete in, a big win over Bellator veteran D.J. Linderman could easily earn him another shot in the UFC, who are apparently completely absent of actual 205 lb. contenders at the moment. If not, we will get to see either a brilliant knockout or a tremendous upset at the minimum, so everybody wins.

4. Sink or Swim 

Since the boom of the sport, we’ve seen hundreds of MMA promotions spring up across the country, only to fold just as quickly. The fact that World Series of Fighting has a fighter at the helm in Ray Sefo is a good indicator, but you should tune in on Saturday out of pure curiosity. Will WSOF go the way of OneFC, featuring an emphasis on local talent and quality matchups, or will it go the route of Super Fight League, wherein lavish productions and fancy entrances take precedence over the actual quality of the fights? Or even worse, will they go down the path of Affliction and literally spend themselves dry in a matter of months?

Since the UFC is dead set on absorbing any promotion that may pose a threat then leaving them to slowly decay, World Series of Fighting could provide a much needed fix for MMA fans in between UFC cards with the help of Bellator and InvictaFC, so let’s hope they’ve got a solid head on their shoulders heading into this expedition.

5. Did We Mention This Card is Stacked?

Seriously, you guys, this may be the most stacked card outside of the UFC that we have seen in years. Ronnys Torres vs. Brian Cobb has the potential for FOTN written all over it, as does the Cavalcante/O’Brien matchup. And to kick off the night, we’ve got the supremely overlooked Waylon Lowe — who, like Harris, was released after just one appearance in the UFC — taking on Fabio Mello, who has scored seven straight victories including two under the Bellator banner. Are we making the same point twice? Yes. Deal with it. This card is freaking stacked. Okay, three times.

–J. Jones

“Through The Eyes of the Underdog” Pt. 1: Josh Burkman Talks Injury and Resurgence, Sonnen vs. Jones, and Nightclub Brawls With Phil Baroni [EXCLUSIVE]

By Jared Jones

Unless you’ve been a close follower of the Utah MMA scene over the past few years, chances are that you’ve probably forgotten all about TUF 2 alum Josh Burkman. After a three fight skid saw him ousted from the UFC back in 2008, Burkman took over a year and a half off to recover from several injuries that could have ended any lesser man’s career, injuries Burkman admits in hindsight that he should have addressed much earlier. But if you were to ask Josh how the past few years have treated him, you’d think he was on top of the world.

I called Josh at approximately 5:15 p.m. EST yesterday. He was just stepping into his house after a long day of training for his November 3rd match against fellow UFC veteran Gerald Harris on the inaugural card of the Ray Sefo-run World Series of Fighting promotion. It’s a win that could very well propel “The People’s Warrior” back into the octagon for the first time in over four years, yet he doesn’t appear to be showing any signs of the pressure getting to him. I ask him how he’s doing. “Life is good,” he tells me, making sure to kiss his ten day old son as soon as he enters the house. From the get-go, I can tell that Josh is a much more open and laid back guy than some of the fighters I’ve dealt with in the past. But little did I know that before our conversation was over, we would discuss everything from his career comeback and newly found lease on life to his infamous in and out of the ring brawls with Jeremy Horn and Phil Baroni.

By Jared Jones

Unless you’ve been a close follower of the Utah MMA scene over the past few years, chances are that you’ve probably forgotten all about TUF 2 alum Josh Burkman. After a three fight skid saw him ousted from the UFC back in 2008, Burkman took over a year and a half off to recover from several injuries that could have ended any lesser man’s career, injuries Burkman admits in hindsight that he should have addressed much earlier. But if you were to ask Josh how the past few years have treated him, you’d think he was on top of the world.

I called Josh at approximately 5:15 p.m. EST yesterday. He was just stepping into his house after a long day of training for his November 3rd match against fellow UFC veteran Gerald Harris on the inaugural card of the Ray Sefo-run World Series of Fighting promotion. It’s a win that could very well propel “The People’s Warrior” back into the octagon for the first time in over four years, yet he doesn’t appear to be showing any signs of the pressure getting to him. I ask him how he’s doing. “Life is good,” he tells me, making sure to kiss his ten day old son as soon as he enters the house. From the get-go, I can tell that Josh is a much more open and laid back guy than some of the fighters I’ve dealt with in the past. But little did I know that before our conversation was over, we would discuss everything from his career comeback and newly found lease on life to his infamous in and out of the ring brawls with Jeremy Horn and Phil Baroni.

I started by asking him all the formalities about Harris — what Josh thinks his strongest and weakest areas are and how he has trained to deal with them– and he was more than frank when assessing his upcoming opponent. But rather than detail how he planned to defeat Harris, Burkman simply stated that the intrigue of figuring out another person’s fighting style is one of the reasons he became a mixed martial artist in the first place:

“[Harris] is so big and strong and he’s got heavy hands. And he’s a great wrestler. He seems to be able to control his fights and take them where he wants them to go. It’s always fun for me going into a fight to figure that out, and that’s kind of what my training revolves around; figuring out that problem out and how that plays into my game. It all comes out on November 3rd and I’m ready for that. That’s why I fight. I fight for that competition, for that chance to figure someone out, and I feel I’m more prepared for Gerald Harris than I’ve been for any other fight in my career.”

I asked Burkman whether or not he viewed himself as the underdog coming into the fight and Josh was quick to admit that he had been out of the public eye for quite a while longer than Harris, and could therefore find himself playing that role whether he wants to or not:

“You know, Gerald Harris, he’s kind of been in a bigger scene than I’ve been in as of late. I think that most people have heard about what he’s been doing a little bit more; he’s a little bit more high-profile than I am going into this fight and I think that’s probably what people are seeing.”

But don’t be fooled, Burkman is not exactly selling himself short. He mentioned that, since coming back from the devastating injuries that limited him during his last few fights in the UFC, he’s racked up five wins against only one loss, including wins over Bellator vet Jordan Smith (who was undefeated at the time) and UFC veterans Brandon Melendez and Jamie Yager.

“Harris is in that line of each opponent being better and better than the last for me. I think Harris the best guy I’ve fought since I’ve comeback, and I’m gonna try and show that. It’s coming quick, isn’t it?” he says with a chuckle.

As any conversation with a UFC veteran such as Burkman will inevitably take, we began to talk about his former promotion. Specifically, whether or not he felt a win over Harris would earn him another shot at Zuffa glory.

“This fight is right where I want to be in my career. I went on a nice little run in the UFC, then I got injured, and I couldn’t train like I wanted to train. I had to take a year and a half off and during that year and a half off I didn’t know whether I would be able to comeback and fight or not. As I came back, I wanted to fight in Utah and I fought Melendez and Smith, two guys that were big names in Utah and had fought on the UFC and Bellator level. I had to prove to myself that I could fight at that level again. And once I was able to, I was like ‘Alright, let’s step it up a little bit, then step it up a little bit more.’

When I was first in the UFC, I had only been fighting for two years and I was getting big fights and a lot of publicity. I felt like I was learning as I was going and as I was fighting. Now, I feel like I’ve been around and learned a lot of the different styles. I’ve trained with guys like Tito Ortiz and Randy Couture and the best in the business. I’ve kind of brought all that into my own style.”

But even more than what Burkman has been up to professionally, he credited his recent marriage to International Yoga Champion Brandy Lyn Winfield and incredibly recent birth of his son as the factors that pushed him to prove to the world that he was ready for another shot at the big time.

“All of those things have now come together to where I’m ready to get back out on a bigger scene and see how much better I am than I was then. A win over Gerald Harris let’s everyone know that [I] haven’t been sitting around. I’m better than I’ve ever been and I think that’s what this fight is going to show.”

Click on the “next page” tab to hear Burkman discuss everything from his former training partner Chael Sonnen’s upcoming TUF gig/fight against Jon Jones to the time he was spit on by Jeremy Horn and cheap-shotted by Phil Baroni at a nightclub. 

Andrei Arlovski, Miguel Torres, Anthony Johnson, And More UFC Vets Booked for ‘World Series of Fighting 1? on November 3rd


(Now that Anthony Johnson competes at light-heavyweight, we can all stop freaking out about this photo.)

You don’t call yourself the “World Series of Fighting” without lofty aspirations. The upstart MMA promotion launched by former K-1 star Ray Sefo (!) will be hosting its first event on November 3rd at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, and has already inked a deal to air its first card live on the NBC Sports Network (?!?).

And to give viewers a reason to tune in, the WSOF has been hard at work snatching up as many big name ex-UFC fighters as possible, and putting them in surprisingly competitive fights. Here’s a little taste of what the matchmakers have planned for World Series of Fighting 1…

– In the night’s main event, Andrei Arlovski will be returning from his no-contest/moral victory against Tim Sylvia to face Strikeforce vet Devin Cole, who won unanimous decisions over Shawn Jordan and Gabriel Salinas-Jones in his last two appearances.

– Anthony Johnson, now 2-0 as a light-heavyweight, will look to make it three in a row against 14-3 moneyweight DJ Linderman, who holds the Cage Warriors heavyweight title and was a semi-finalist in Bellator’s season 4 light-heavyweight tournament last year.


(Now that Anthony Johnson competes at light-heavyweight, we can all stop freaking out about this photo.)

You don’t call yourself the “World Series of Fighting” without lofty aspirations. The upstart MMA promotion launched by former K-1 star Ray Sefo (!) will be hosting its first event on November 3rd at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, and has already inked a deal to air its first card live on the NBC Sports Network (?!?).

And to give viewers a reason to tune in, the WSOF has been hard at work snatching up as many big name ex-UFC fighters as possible, and putting them in surprisingly competitive fights. Here’s a little taste of what the matchmakers have planned for World Series of Fighting 1…

– In the night’s main event, Andrei Arlovski will be returning from his no-contest/moral victory against Tim Sylvia to face Strikeforce vet Devin Cole, who won unanimous decisions over Shawn Jordan and Gabriel Salinas-Jones in his last two appearances.

– Anthony Johnson, now 2-0 as a light-heavyweight, will look to make it three in a row against 14-3 moneyweight DJ Linderman, who holds the Cage Warriors heavyweight title and was a semi-finalist in Bellator’s season 4 light-heavyweight tournament last year.

– Miguel Torres will make his first appearance since his recent UFC firing, facing two-time Brazilian national Muay Thai champion and BJJ brown belt Marlon Moraes (8-4-1), a training partner of Edson Barboza.

– Fresh off a successful welterweight debut in May, former middleweight/TUF vet/funnyman Gerald Harris will be facing fellow 170-pounder Josh Burkman, who’s gone 5-1 since being released by the UFC in 2008.

– Riding an 11-fight win streak — including an armbar victory over a dude named, no shit, Wanderson Silva — Ronys Torres will face UFC one-and-doner Brian Cobb, who most recently dropped a decision to Antonio McKee in a classic “you’re both getting fired” match under the MFC banner.

The current lineup is below. Additional undercard bouts will be confirmed shortly.

Main Card
Andrei Arlovski vs. Devin Cole (HW)
Anthony Johnson vs. D.J. Linderman (LHW)
Miguel Torres vs. Marlon Moraes (BW)
Gregor Gracie vs. Tyson Steele (WW)

Preliminary Card
Josh Burkman vs. Gerald Harris (WW)
Ronys Torres vs. Brian Cobb (LW)
Gesias “JZ” Cavalcante vs. TJ O’Brien (LW)
Tyrone Spong vs. Travis Bartlett (LHW)
David Branch vs. Dustin Jacoby (MW)
Steve Carl vs. Ramico Blackmon (WW)
Waylon Lowe vs. Fabio Mello (FW)

The 15 Greatest Knockouts in ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ History


(No, no, not THAT kind of ultimate fighter.) 

Seven years. Fifteen seasons. The Ultimate Fighter has been a part of our lives for nearly a decade, ladies and gentlemen, and not only is it still going strong, but it has spread at the rate of your average zombie apocalypse. With the first international installment of the hit reality show already under way, TUF has seemingly evolved beyond its counterparts, transcending even that of the sport in it’s ability to excite, and often inspire its audience. Sure, the next season of Jersey Shore will feature a piss drunk pregnant woman and a possible probable cokehead and will therefore rule the ratings from here to eternity, but The Ultimate Fighter has something better to bring to the table than fabricated drama. Mainly, sweet ass knockouts.

Seven years of sweet ass knockouts, to be precise. That’s the entire length of Tommy Callahan’s college career.

With these knockouts, we’ve seen underdogs pull off upsets, loudmouths get their comeuppance, and the emergence of future superstars. So in honor of what has already been a KO-ridden season of TUF, we decided to watch every season back to back, and determine the BEST knockout from its respective season. Enjoy.


(No, no, not THAT kind of ultimate fighter.) 

Seven years. Fifteen seasons. The Ultimate Fighter has been a part of our lives for nearly a decade, ladies and gentlemen, and not only is it still going strong, but it has spread at the rate of your average zombie apocalypse. With the first international installment of the hit reality show already under way, TUF has seemingly evolved beyond its counterparts, transcending even that of the sport in it’s ability to excite, and often inspire its audience. Sure, the next season of Jersey Shore will feature a piss drunk pregnant woman and a possible probable cokehead and will therefore rule the ratings from here to eternity, but The Ultimate Fighter has something better to bring to the table than fabricated drama. Mainly, sweet ass knockouts.

Seven years of sweet ass knockouts, to be precise. That’s the entire length of Tommy Callahan’s college career.

With these knockouts, we’ve seen underdogs pull off upsets, loudmouths get their comeuppance, and the emergence of future superstars. So in honor of what has already been a KO-ridden season of TUF, we decided to watch every season back to back, and determine the BEST knockout from its respective season. Enjoy.

Season 15 – James Vick vs. Daron Cruickshank

We imagine many of you would prefer to have Justin Lawrence’s KO of Christiano Marcello snag the top spot for this year’s brief (albeit brutal) list of knockouts. But the simple matter is, James Vick’s sorta-knee-sorta-kick knockout of Daron Cruickshank earns its place for a multitude of reasons, the first being how unexpected it was. Not many of us had picked Vick to come out victorious after seeing how diverse a striking attack Cruickshank showcased in his preliminary match. Add to that the first couple minutes of the fight, which were completely controlled by said diverse striking attack, and Cruickshank seemed all but destined to advance. Then he got cocky, went for a takedown, and was promptly knocked the fuck out.

These are the costs of hubris.

Season 14 – Diego Brandao vs. Jesse Newell

Diego Brandao blew through TUF 14 in more devastating fashion than the monsoon that wrecked the set of Apocalypse Now. The main problem we had when deciding upon last season’s top KO wasn’t figuring out who deserved it, but rather which one of Brandao’s deserved it. Was it his steamrolling of Steve Siler? Or maybe his beatdown of Bryan Caraway? The correct answer was actually his flying forearm KO of that poor albino bastard Jesse Newell in episode 1. Our reasoning; it was eerily reminiscent of Dan Henderson’s “‘Amurica” KO of Michael Bisping at UFC 100, something that opposing coach Jason “Mayhem” Miller couldn’t help but notice himself. And anything that makes us recall perhaps the single most glorious moment in MMA history will always gets its just deserves here at CP.