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WMMA Veteran Julie Kedzie Pledges Brain To CTE Research

Retired mixed martial artist Julie Kedzie has confirmed that she intends for her brain to be donated CTE research post-mortem. A key early figure in women’s MMA, Julie Kedzie last fought in 2013. She lost to Bethe Correia via split-decision at UF…

Continue Reading WMMA Veteran Julie Kedzie Pledges Brain To CTE Research at MMA News.

10 Times MMA Stars Went Crazy Overseas

Some major MMA stars went crazy overseas in the early days of the sport.

The post 10 Times MMA Stars Went Crazy Overseas appeared first on LowKickMMA.com.

MMA is a global sport, and as such stars often find themselves traveling overseas to all kinds of exotic and outlandish locations to train or fight.

As you’ll see in this article, that can often lead to some of the craziest, scariest and most bizarre experiences of their lives.

Eddie Alvarez Knocks Out Mafia Man In Russia

Back in 2007, ‘The Underground King,’ Eddie Alvarez was the welterweight champion for Bodog Fighting Championships and traveled to St. Petersburg, Russia, to defend his title against Nick Thompson.

Following the event, he attended an after-party on a yacht hosted by one of Bodog’s owners from Russia, where, according to fellow fighter Chael Sonnen who was also in attendance that night, a Russian gangster at the party punched one of the Bodog ring girls.

Outraged by what he’d just witnessed and not realizing who he was dealing with, Alvarez then stepped forward and knocked him out cold with one punch.

Sonnen says that portion of the story is 100% true, but admits that he doesn’t have concrete proof of what happened next, though the rumor was that Alvarez was then escorted from the yacht by Russian mobsters and taken out to the middle of nowhere, where a hole was dug and his life was threatened before they finally set him free.

The post 10 Times MMA Stars Went Crazy Overseas appeared first on LowKickMMA.com.

Julie Kedzie Recounts Story Involving Vladimir Putin, Van Damme and Pooing Herself

Former UFC and Strikeforce fighter Julie Kedzie has a hilarious story involving the Russian leader, action hero Van Damme and a particularly unfortunate event. “Fireball” had an evening that she will never forget, which culminated in the American trying to find a place to dispose of her soiled panties in a Russian palace, of all […]

The Seven Most Influential Women’s MMA Fights Of All-Time

If you’ve kept up with the news lately, chances are you’ve probably heard one or two segments related to the UFC. Well that’s because it is the fastest growing sport in the world, and the UFC is currently the most popular MMA organization. While men have had much to do with the success of the

The post The Seven Most Influential Women’s MMA Fights Of All-Time appeared first on LowKick MMA.

While men have had much to do with the success of the UFC, we cannot forget about the women who have broken down barriers and broken records that the men have yet to reach. As women’s MMA becomes increasingly more popular thanks to the catapult of the UFC, we reflect on some of the most memorable fights that have helped not only WMMA become more recognizable, but helped the entire sport achieve insurmountable success.

Let’s take a road down memory lane and discuss the fights that we believe were vital in taking WMMA and the UFC from obscurity into worldwide stardom.

The post The Seven Most Influential Women’s MMA Fights Of All-Time appeared first on LowKick MMA.

Hit the Ground Runnin’: Julie Kedzie Lands Gig As Invicta FC’s New Matchmaker

(No, we will *not* stop using this photo of Julie Kedzie, thank you very much. Via MMAFighting.)

Well that didn’t take long.

Just a few weeks after announcing her retirement from the sport following a split decision loss to UFC newcomer Bethe Correira at Fight Night 33, Julie Kedzie has already found a new gig. During an appearance on yesterday’s “MMA Hour,” the WMMA pioneer/adorable cat lady announced that she will be pulling double duty over at Invicta FC moving forward, serving as the promotion’s matchmaker in addition to continuing with the color commentating role she has held since last year. Said Kedzie in a press release:

I am excited about this incredible new opportunity that will allow me to remain as active and hands on as ever in contributing to the growth of women’s competition in our great sport, Shannon Knapp has done an unbelievable job at pushing the envelope and helping transform women’s MMA into an aggressively expanding enterprise, a development that will undoubtedly lead to increased participation in the sport by young women athletes who want to challenge themselves in the world’s fastest growing sport.

Whew. For a second there I thought Kedzie was going to announce that she, just now, had reached the peak of her physical prime and was unretiring. Crisis averted, Taters.

I don’t know about you, but I’m excited as all hell to see what kind of matchups Kedzie puts together in Invicta’s *stacked* strawweight division. The possibilities are endless: Thug Rose vs. Hyatt, Van Zant vs. Herrig, Esparza vs….what’s that you say?

–J. Jones

(No, we will *not* stop using this photo of Julie Kedzie, thank you very much. Via MMAFighting.)

Well that didn’t take long.

I am excited about this incredible new opportunity that will allow me to remain as active and hands on as ever in contributing to the growth of women’s competition in our great sport, Shannon Knapp has done an unbelievable job at pushing the envelope and helping transform women’s MMA into an aggressively expanding enterprise, a development that will undoubtedly lead to increased participation in the sport by young women athletes who want to challenge themselves in the world’s fastest growing sport.

Whew. For a second there I thought Kedzie was going to announce that she, just now, had reached the peak of her physical prime and was unretiring. Crisis averted, Taters.

–J. Jones

And Now She’s Retired: Julie Kedzie Hangs Up Her Gloves Following Loss at UFC Fight Night 33

(Kedzie — being gawked at by Gina Carano and Gary Shaw — in the good ‘ol bad days of women’s MMA. / Photo via George Ruiz)

When Julie Kedzie dropped a split-decision to Bethe Correia at UFC Fight Night 33, it marked her fourth-consecutive loss in MMA, dropping her lifetime record to 16-13. But even before the scores were read, Kedzie had made up her mind that she had reached the end of the road. Directly following the fight, Kedzie went on twitter to announce her retirement from MMA, after nearly ten years in the sport:

Before walking out to my fight today, I had a long talk with my coach and we decided that this would be my last MMA fight. I would have loved to have gone out on a win, but c’est la vie-don’t leave it to the judges. Heartbreak is a huge part of this sport. I really truly want to thank all of you for being a part of my journey as a fighter. I will still be involved in MMA for the rest of my life..but now it’s time for me to accept that I can give more to the sport by stepping back and taking role in helping to develop other fighters. From the bottom of my heart, thank you to the @UFC, my team, and all of you who have made me achieve some amazing dreams.

Female bantamweight old-schoolers like Kedzie, Roxanne Modafferi, and Shayna Baszler have looked a step behind their more modern counterparts during their brief time featured in the UFC and on TUF, but it would be unfair to chalk it up to a lack of talent. What we’ve witnessed lately has been a generational changing-of-the-guard, in which the pioneers — who often start out one-dimensional, rounding out their games as they go along — are replaced by the young fighters who grew up with the sport.

(Kedzie — being gawked at by Gina Carano and Gary Shaw — in the good ‘ol bad days of women’s MMA. / Photo via George Ruiz)

Julie Kedzie began her career in 2004, when eight-person tournaments were still socially acceptable, before women’s MMA was readily available on television, and when there was virtually no incentive for a women to compete in MMA, other than the thrill of competition. After winning three fights in one night at the HOOKnSHOOT: 2005 Women’s Grand Prix — taking out Missy Karr, Jen Finney, and Molly Helsel — Kedzie became a regular in the fledgling WMMA circuit, tangling with other notable names like Baszler and Tara LaRosa.

Kedzie got her first big TV spot in February 2007, when she fought Gina Carano on the Showtime broadcast of EliteXC: Destiny, dropping a unanimous decision to Carano in an action-packed three rounder that marked the first women’s bout aired live on American television.

From there, Kedzie’s career endured the highs and lows of any regional fighter trying to make his or her way in the sport. She was part of Ultimate Women Challenge, which began as a promising TUF-clone for women, and quickly turned into a nightmarish fiasco. She also won the Jackson’s MMA Series women’s bantamweight title in April 2011, with a decision win against Kaitlin Young. It was the last time she’d taste victory.

Kedzie landed in Strikeforce, where she lost twice, first to Alexis Davis (by decision), then to Miesha Tate (by third-round armbar). Following the formal dissolution of Strikeforce at the beginning of this year, Kedzie was picked up by the UFC, and lost her Octagon debut to Germaine de Randamie by split-decision. Sometime after that, she decided that competing in MMA wasn’t in her blood anymore. By the time she fought Correia, she was already gone. (Thankfully, she left us with one more classic weigh-in moment.)

Since last year, Kedzie has worked as a broadcaster for the all-female promotion Invicta FC, and she’s also a contributing writer to Fightland, where she’s shared some incredible tales about her life in the sport. The point is, Julie has other things to occupy her, and she retired from the sport for the right reasons. Instead of slogging on for years in local shows, continuing to trade her physical health for small amounts of money, she recognized that being a pro MMA fighter wasn’t really working for her anymore. She doesn’t need it, so she left. Could have been worse.

Julie Kedzie helped build the foundation for American WMMA simply by being there when only a handful of women thought it was worth it, and for that she deserves all of our respect. CagePotato would like to wish Julie the best of luck with everything that comes after this. You can send her some love on twitter @julesk_fighter.

(Remember her well. Props: MMAFighting.com)