Tag: Kris McCray

World Series of Fighting 2: Arlovski vs. Johnson — Live Results and Commentary


(Admit it. You kind of missed that tongue. / Photo via facebook.com/MMAWorldSeries)

Tonight in Atlantic City, former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski headlines World Series of Fighting 2 against former UFC whateverweight Anthony Johnson, in a battle that will surely earn the 2013 Minowaman Freak Show Hall of Fame Award. Also on the card: UFC vets Josh Burkman and Aaron Simpson throw down in the welterweight division, Paulo Filho hopefully shows up to fight David Branch, and Marlon Moraes returns from his win over Miguel Torres to face Bellator champ killer Tyson Nam.

Our man Oliver Chan is on the scene tonight at the Revel Casino, where he and photographer Rick Albrecht will be posting round-by-round updates, commentary, and visual aids after the jump, beginning at 9:30 p.m. ET / 6:30 p.m. PT. Refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest from the NBC Sports Network main card broadcast, and let your voices be heard in the comments section.


(Admit it. You kind of missed that tongue. / Photo via facebook.com/MMAWorldSeries)

Tonight in Atlantic City, former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski headlines World Series of Fighting 2 against former UFC whateverweight Anthony Johnson, in a battle that will surely earn the 2013 Minowaman Freak Show Hall of Fame Award. Also on the card: UFC vets Josh Burkman and Aaron Simpson throw down in the welterweight division, Paulo Filho hopefully shows up to fight David Branch, and Marlon Moraes returns from his win over Miguel Torres to face Bellator champ killer Tyson Nam.

Our man Oliver Chan is on the scene tonight at the Revel Casino, where he and photographer Rick Albrecht will be posting round-by-round updates, commentary, and visual aids after the jump, beginning at 9:30 p.m. ET / 6:30 p.m. PT. Refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest from the NBC Sports Network main card broadcast, and let your voices be heard in the comments section.

Please stand by.

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, children of all ages, I would like to wish myself a happy 32nd birthday on this lovely Saturday evening where I am sitting cage-side at the World Series of Fighting 2 coming at you LIVE on NBC Sports.  We’ll be bringing some of the action to you live on CagePotato as well.  But first, here are the prelims:

Frank Buenafuente vs. Bill Alego

Alego wins by Rear Naked Choke at 4:26 in the 2nd round

BrensonHansen vs. Tom Marcellino

Hansen wins by KO at 3:24 in the 2nd round

Chris Wade vs. Ozzie Dugulubgov

Ozzie (yeah, not attempting that name again) wins by Unanimous Decision

Igor Gracie vs. Rich Patishnock

Rich Patishnock wins after doctor stoppage (athough Igor clearly had won the round)

Waylon Lowe vs. Cameron Dollar

Waylon Lowe wins via 1st Round KO

Rick Glenn vs. Alexandre Pimentel

Rick Glenn wins via KO at 1:51 in the 3rd round

Danillo Villefort vs. Kris McCray

Villefort via split-decision

Main Event Coming Up!

JZ Calvalcante vs. Justin Gaethje

Well, for this fight, I will definitely be referring to these fighters by their first names.

Round 1

Justin comes in with a couple of leg-kicks.  JZ shoots for the takedown, but Justin defends connects with some heavy fists.  Justin gets JZ  against the fence and hits with some more combos.  JZ eats some knees from the clinch.  Justin slips after some monster knees and a series of punches in bunches, JZ takes the action to the center of the ring.  Justin gets JZ back against the fence and delivers some bone-crunching elbows to the face.  JZ struggles to get off the fence as Justin continues to deliver powerful uppercuts to the face of JZ who is now bloody.

Ref halts the action to have the doctor examin JV’s face which has a rather large gash above the eye.  Doctor comes in to check out the wound and calls the fight.

JZ is pretty pissed that the fight was stopped, understandably since he can still continue, however that giant gash above his eye will only get worse if they continue.

Justin Gaethje wins by Doctor’s Stoppate at 2:27 of the first round

Josh Burkman vs. Aaron Simpson

Simpson coming out to Quiet Riot.

Josh Burkman Twisted Sister.  Lot of 80s hair-band music… We are SO in New Jersey right now.

Round 1

Simpson ties up Burkman against the fence.  Burkman reverses.  The two separate and square off again.  Simpson is bleeding from the mouth.  Burkman drops Simpson to one knee with a vicious right hook.  The two square off again.  Nasty leg-kick by Burkman.  He unleashes on Simpson! Gets him against the fence KNEE TO THE HEAD! Simpson is down and the ref jumps in to end it.

The round started off pretty slow, but ended with a huge exclamation point.

Final decision coming up.

Burkman wins by KO 3:04 in the first

Burkman: “Jon Fitch needs to earn his title-shot”

Paulo Filho vs. David Branch

Branch channeling his inner Wandy with his entrance music.

Round 1

Branch pops Filho with a few jabs before taking hi down to the mat.  He’s in Filho’s half-guard looking to ass.  Branch works some GnP from the half-guard.

There’s certainly some Brooklyn fans here.

Branch is landing some hard shots to Filho’s mid-section.  While in the half-guard.

And there’s a failed attempt to start a “U.S.A.” chant.

Branch passes the guard into the mount, but Filho is able to get Branch in his full guard before any damage can be done.  Branch works some body shts from the guard.  He has Filho up against the cage.  Filo attempts some sweeps from the guard.  Branch is able to defend and works some shots from the guard.

Yep… Here come the boo-birds… Like they can do better.

Branch lands some more shots now from the guard as the round ends.

Round goes to Branch 10-9.

Round 2

The two square off in the center.  Branch drops FIlho with a kick to the midsection.  Filho scrables up and Branch lands some strong combos.  FIlho lands an overhand, but Branch drops him to the knees.  Filho gets up, Branch lands the double leg and pins Filho to the cage.  Filho stands up, but is tied up against the cage.  Ref separates them.

Filho with a left hook.  Branch ducks, double leg into side control.  Branch in the mounted crucifix.  ands some shots to Filho’s head a la Matt Hughes vs. BJ Penn.  Filho attempts to rll into Branch.  Filho is looking tired.  Branch flattens Filho out and keeps popping Filho in the head.  Branch attempts to transition into the mount, but goes back to side control.  Filho attempts to hip out, but Branch again flattens out his shoulders.  Branch lands some elbows to the face and body from side control. Now adding knees into the mix.  Branch gets the knee on belly, but moves back to side control.  Branch goes to north-south and lands more body shots to Filho’s midsection.  End of round 2.

Branch dominates the second round.  Easily another 10-9 to the Renzo Gracie fighter.

Round 3

Filho attempts a spinning back kick, but it’s stuffed by branch who gts into th mount and lands some vicious ground and pound.  Filho gets Branch into his half guard as Branch continues to land some powerful elbows.  Filho can’t seem to get out of the bottom position as Branch continues to land some powerful body shots while in the half guard.  Filho gets Branch into the full-guard and lands some elbows, but Branch continues to control Filho from inside the guard.

Ref stands the up and the crowd cheers.

Branch gets Filho into the clinch against the fence and lands some knees.  The separate and a left kick by Branch.  Branch gets Filho against the fence again, knees to the face and body.  Branch gets the double leg and some more ground and pound and the round ends.

Branch easily takes the third once again 10-9.

Official decision:  David Branch wins by unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27, 30-27)

Tyson Nam vs. Marlon Moraes

Moraes coming out to some 90s Nirvana.  I like.

Round 1

Tyson and Moraes feel each other out for a bit.  Moraes starts to throw some heavy hands, but does not connect.  He lands a strong leg kick on Nam.  Nam comes in with a cross, Moraes steps away and lands a hard body kick.  Morares and Nam exchange a few punches.  Moraes with a nice combo.  Moraes takes Nam down, but unable to capitalize as Nam quickly gets to his feet.  Moraes lands a ROUND HOUSE  Kick to the head and Nam is OUT!!!!

Official Decision: Moraes wins by KO 2:35 in the 1st Round

 

Andrei Arlovski vs. Anthony Johnson

Get ready for the main event.  Quick note, thanks to CagePotato for this opportunity to come to the fights in person.  Been here since 6 and been running on coffee and EBoost all night.

A quick shout-out to the comment section specifically “Thumblaster” for the comment that made me chuckle: “Rumble got his nickname because that’s what his stomach always used to do when he would fight welterweight”.  Congrats.  You win my approval.

Rumble Johnson coming out to some more Nirvana! This time it’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit”.  I’m pumped! Looking at Rumble one must wonder how he once fought at 170!

Andrei is coming out to “Eye of the Tiger.  The crowd here is definitely pumped now!

Round 1

Rumble comes in with some heavy hands and kicks.  He is definitely pushing the pace and looking good.  Rumble lands a nice combo.    Andrei returns with a strong jab.  Rumble throws to head-kicks, but fails to connect.  Rumble with a nice body-kick.  Andrei with a few body jabs and has Rumble backing up a bit.  Rumble comes in with a combo, goes for a double leg and has Andrei against the cage.  Andrei has the overhook, but Rubmle continues to press him against the cage.  Rumble throws a few knees to Andrei’s legs.  Ref separates.

Andrei with a nice combo.  Rumble goes for the single-leg, but Andrei defends and now has Rumble against the cage.  Andrei throws a few knees as the two pummel.  Again, the Ref separates and the two are squaring off throwing punches in the center.

Rumble knocks Andrei down.  Lands a few punches.  He has Andrei against the cage as the bell rings.

Solid round by Rumble 10-9.

Round 2

Both fighters connect with some powerful shots to the head.  Rumble has Andrei against the cage looking for a take-down.

Once again, the ref moves them to the center of the ring and they square off.  Andrei lands some nice jabs.

Rumble comes in with a few overhands and connects.  Andrei counters with a nice uppercut.  Some front kicks to Rumble’s body.  The two exchange some more.  Rumble goes for the take-down, Andrei sprawls and the two press up against the cage.  Andrei reverses and now has Rumble against the cage.  The two exchanges some knees and continue to pummel.  Andrei catches Rumble in the jewels with a knee and a Rumble is given some time to recover.

Rubmle is back up, they touch gloves and back at it.  Rumble comes in with some strong overhands shoots in for the take-down and once again has Andrei against the cage.  Rumble gets the take down.  Andrei rolls out, Rumble has control of his back.  Andrei is back up against the cage.  Rumble going for the take-down as Andrei lands some hammer-fists.  Andrei sprawls, defending the take-down and Rumble presses him against the cage.  Round 2 over.

Bit closer round.  I’m going to side with Andrei on this, but it could go either way.  10-9 the Pitbull.

Round 3

Rumble goes in for an overhand and Andrei counters.  The two exchange punches and now Rumble has Andrei against the cage.  Andrei lands some strikes to the boy.  The Ref resets once again.

Rumble with a nice head-kick.  Andrei answers with a front kick to the body.  Rumble lands a nice cross to Andrei’s chin that definitely would kill a normal man.  Rumble has Andrei pressed against the cage… Just waiting for another reset now.  Andrei reverses and has Rumble pressed against the cage.  The two exchange knees to the boy.  The two make their way to the middle.  Some hard hits are exchanged and Rumble has Andrei against the cage.  Andrei reverses and the two make their way back to the center.  More hard hits are exchanged.  Andrei’s mouth is open ans he connects with some nice body shots and one to Rumble’s Chin.  Rumble goes for the single-leg, but gives up on it.  Goes for another one and the two are against the cage.  Andrei with some body shots and that’s the third round.

A close round, but I think Andrei landed the better shots.  Tough one for me to call, but I’m leaning to Andrei in a close 10-9 round.  Official decision coming up now.

Official Decision:  Anthony Johnson (29-28 all)… I was waaaaaaaaay off!

Well, folks, thank you for joining me on my birthday (although technically now it isn’t my birthday anymore).  Great fights put together by the WSOF.  Hopefully more to come.  Thanks to Ben and the rest of the CP staff for giving me this opportunity.  Thanks to my Rick Albrecht for his great photog work.  Thanks to EBoost for keeping me going for 6 hours straight.  Don’t forget to donate to Nick Newell’s favorite charity, Tap Cancer Out, by visiting my fundraiser page at www.stayclassy.org/oliverchan

And Now He’s Fired: Carlos Eduardo Rocha Released Following “Bullshit” Loss to Mike Pierce at UFC on FX 3


(Gentlemen, no need to show me the door, because THERE IT IS RIGHT THERE!) 

There aren’t many fighters in the UFC who have had longer layoffs in between fights than Carlos Eduardo Rocha. Well, maybe before this summer began, that is. Fighting just three times between November of 2010 and June of 2012, Rocha’s 1-2 UFC record included a submission via kneebar win over Kris McCray and a pair of close decision losses to Jake Ellenberger at UFC 126 and most recently, Mike Pierce at UFC on FX 3. The latter fight, which you may recall was originally scored a split decision victory for Pierce rather than a UD thanks to the general incompetency of Floridians, was a relatively lackluster affair that was dominated by Pierce’s clinch and wrestling game ala Couture vs. Vera.

It might surprise you to learn that Rocha, an incredibly decorated BJJ practitioner whose only trips to the scorecards have come in the UFC, was let go following the loss. As one might understand, Rocha was none too happy to learn of this news, and quickly vented his frustrations (mainly, those relating to Pierce’s performance) when interviewed by Tatame:

I went there to fight MMA and he wants to win by points. There were 15 minutes of pure stalling This is bullshit. And UFC fires me after a fight where the guy just stood there stalling. I had good performances and even so I was cut off. I didn’t expect this.

Ah, the Nick Diaz defense. Classy move, Mr. Rocha.

More from this interview after the jump. 


(Gentlemen, no need to show me the door, because THERE IT IS RIGHT THERE!) 

There aren’t many fighters in the UFC who have had longer layoffs in between fights than Carlos Eduardo Rocha. Well, maybe before this summer began, that is. Fighting just three times between November of 2010 and June of 2012, Rocha’s 1-2 UFC record included a submission via kneebar win over Kris McCray and a pair of close decision losses to Jake Ellenberger at UFC 126 and most recently, Mike Pierce at UFC on FX 3. The latter fight, which you may recall was originally scored a split decision victory for Pierce rather than a UD thanks to the general incompetency of Floridians, was a relatively lackluster affair that was dominated by Pierce’s clinch and wrestling game ala Couture vs. Vera.

It might surprise you to learn that Rocha, an incredibly decorated BJJ practitioner whose only trips to the scorecards have come in the UFC, was let go following the loss. As one might understand, Rocha was none too happy to learn of this news, and quickly vented his frustrations (mainly, those relating to Pierce’s performance) when interviewed by Tatame:

I went there to fight MMA and he wants to win by points. There were 15 minutes of pure stalling This is bullshit. And UFC fires me after a fight where the guy just stood there stalling. I had good performances and even so I was cut off. I didn’t expect this.

Ah, the Nick Diaz defense. Classy move, Mr. Rocha.

Rocha stated that his main frustration with Pierce’s gameplan was a result of the ridiculous amount of Sonnen-esque shit-talking Pierce was dropping on the nation of Brazil beforehand.

Wasn’t he the one who said he’d fight any Brazilian because it’s an easy fight? I thought he could come for me but he didn’t. He didn’t attack me on the clinch, he didn’t hit me nor let me hit him. That’s not MMA.
There was one promotion (that made him an offer), but the guy didn’t wanna fight me. Now let’s move on, keep my head up. I never give up. I know I’ll get better next time so I can have another chance in the UFC.

As much as we tend to crucify (or at least condescend) fighters who bitch about their opponent’s gameplan in hindsight, Rocha kind of has a point here. Aside from the aforementioned trash talk Pierce was spouting leading up to the fight, his past two losses have come as the result of close split decisions. One could even argue that he deserved the nod in his loss to Josh Koscheck at UFC 143, so the fact that Pierce seemed all too content to ride out another decision against a relatively low-level guy like Rocha seems like kind of a weak move on his part. Plus, when the BJJ guy is complaining about not being hit enough, you know the fight must have sucked.

Then again, it takes two to tango, so if Rocha really wanted to do something to negate Pierce’s wall-n-stall tactics, perhaps he should have trained takedown defense and clinch work just a bit more in the months before the fight. In either case, at least he’s looking to the future and not dwelling on this loss for too long.

And hey, there’s always Strikeforce. They still have a welterweight division, right?

–J. Jones

UFC Fight Night 24 Undercard Live Blog: Hathaway vs. McCray, More

Filed under: UFCSEATTLE, Wash. — This is the UFC Fight Night 24 live blog for all the preliminary bouts in support of tonight’s UFC on Spike TV event at the Key Arena.

The five bouts to be streamed on Facebook are Alex Caceres vs. Mackens Semerzier, …

Filed under:

SEATTLE, Wash. — This is the UFC Fight Night 24 live blog for all the preliminary bouts in support of tonight’s UFC on Spike TV event at the Key Arena.

The five bouts to be streamed on Facebook are Alex Caceres vs. Mackens Semerzier, Jon Madsen vs. Mike Russow, John Hathaway vs. Kris McCray, Michael McDonald vs. Edwin Figueroa and Sean McCorkle vs. Christian Morecraft. The three unaired bouts are Aaron Simpson vs. Mario Miranda, TJ Waldburger vs. Johny Hendricks and Waylon Lowe vs. Nik Lentz.

The live blog is below.

The MMA Hour With Kris McCray in Studio, Joe Lauzon, Glenn Parker

Filed under: MMA Videos, UFC, WEC, FanHouse Exclusive, VideosOn Monday’s live edition of The MMA Hour, we will be joined in studio by UFC welterweight and TUF finalist Kris McCray, just hours before he leaves to Germany to compete at UFC 122 against Ca…

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On Monday’s live edition of The MMA Hour, we will be joined in studio by UFC welterweight and TUF finalist Kris McCray, just hours before he leaves to Germany to compete at UFC 122 against Carlos Eduardo Rocha.

* Later in the show, we will be joined by Joe Lauzon to talk about his important UFC 123 fight against George Sotiropoulos.

* Former NFL player turned Versus college football analyst Glenn Parker will also stop by to preview Thursday’s WEC 52 card and talk about his love for MMA and jiu-jitsu.

* And MMA Fighting’s own Ben Fowlkes will discuss all kinds of news and notes making headlines in the sport.

And of course, we’ll be taking your calls. Give us a shout at: 212-254-0193 or 212-254-0237.

Watch the show live below beginning at 1 PM ET / 10 AM PT. Download previous episodes of The MMA Hour on iTunes here.

Kris McCray Facing Homecoming Pressure at UFC 122

Filed under: UFCReturning to his birth country and coming off a UFC debut loss, the pressure is on for TUF 11 runner-up Kris McCray at this Saturday’s UFC 122 in Oberhausen, Germany.

“It’s a lot of pressure,” the German-born McCray said Monday. “I’m o…

Filed under:

Returning to his birth country and coming off a UFC debut loss, the pressure is on for TUF 11 runner-up Kris McCray at this Saturday’s UFC 122 in Oberhausen, Germany.

“It’s a lot of pressure,” the German-born McCray said Monday. “I’m over there in my hometown. I came from a good camp and everything. I want to perform well for my friends and family. So it’s a lot of pressure.”

Hours before his scheduled departure to Germany, McCray (5-1) stopped by the AOL studios Monday in New York City to discuss his upcoming welterweight debut against Carlos Eduardo Rocha.

Video: Court McGee and His Family Members Talk About His Triumph Over His Struggles With Addiction

Video courtesy KSL)
Hearing guys like Joe Rogan and Mike Goldberg explain that Court McGee has come a long way from his days as a junkie pale in comparison to hearing Court and his family members speak about their recollections of some of McGee’s dar…


Video courtesy KSL)

Hearing guys like Joe Rogan and Mike Goldberg explain that Court McGee has come a long way from his days as a junkie pale in comparison to hearing Court and his family members speak about their recollections of some of McGee’s darkest and lowest points in his life.

The guy literally died and was seconds away from suffering irreparable brain damage, but because of a combination of luck and good timing, was resuscitated before becoming a vegetable.

According to The Ultimate Fighter 11 winner, he didn’t know how far he had sunk until after he hit rock bottom and came back to reflect on the life changing experience.

"I started hanging out with the wrong people — drinking, partying. It went from that to worse, to drinking every night," McGee explained. "I started mixing that with the alcohol and then it got worse. It went from that to cocaine and heroin, and then overdose."

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