(Damn, Brittney, where’d you get those vintage Brawlin’ Buddies?)
It’s a good time to be Chad Mendes, Nation. Not only has he been all but cleared of the battery charges he was facing following a massive bar brawl in October, but the UFC apparently feels so bad for sacrificing his undefeated virginity to Jose Aldo at UFC 142 that they’ve thrown him three straight gimme fights against dudes who would be lucky to wash his jockstrap at Team Alpha Male.
First he got called out by Cody McKenzie, which somewhat justified their insane pairing at UFC 148 (which ended in just over 30 seconds, by the way). And last weekend, Mendes dispatched promotional newcomer Yaotzin Meza in just under two minutes at UFC on FX 6. That’s two fights at 36K a piece with a total fight time of under half a round. No wonder he calls himself “Money,” the dude’s somehow become the most efficient worker in the UFC. Think about that for a second, Potato Nation, then take a moment to wonder aloud why Mendes has been paired against TUF 5 runner-up Manny Gamburyan at UFC 157.
(Damn, Brittney, where’d you get those vintage Brawlin’ Buddies?)
It’s a good time to be Chad Mendes, Nation. Not only has he been all but cleared of the battery charges he was facing following a massive bar brawl in October, but the UFC apparently feels so bad for sacrificing his undefeated virginity to Jose Aldo at UFC 142 that they’ve thrown him three straight gimme fights against dudes who would be lucky to wash his jockstrap at Team Alpha Male.
First he got called out by Cody McKenzie, which somewhat justified their insane pairing at UFC 148 (which ended in just over 30 seconds, by the way). And last weekend, Mendes dispatched promotional newcomer Yaotzin Meza in just under two minutes at UFC on FX 6. That’s two fights at 36K a piece with a total fight time of under half a round. No wonder he calls himself “Money,” the dude’s somehow become the most efficient worker in the UFC. Think about that for a second, Potato Nation, then take a moment to wonder aloud why Mendes has been paired against TUF 5 runner-up Manny Gamburyan at UFC 157.
While both of these men have had the privilege of getting their asses handed to them on a silver platter by Jose Aldo, claiming that these two are within earshot of one another in the featherweight division is ludicrous. Gamburyan just broke a three fight losing streak with a decision win over Michihiro Omigawa — a fighter with a 1-6 octagon record who was released from the UFC immediately after the fight – at UFC on FOX 4. The only logic we can see behind this matchup is that the UFC must believe Mendes is destined for another title shot down the road and they might as well help him add another clip to his somewhat vacant highlight reel in the mean time. Otherwise, what in the hell are they doing booking a top 5 featherweight against these guys?
Also on tap for UFC 157 is a matchup between fellow featherweights Dennis Bermudez and Matt Grice. Bermudez has notched up two straight victories in the octagon since falling short of the TUF 14 featherweight plaque thanks to a last second Diego Brandao armbar. On the heels of a first round submission over Tommy Hayden at UFC 150, Bermudez should have little trouble dispatching Grice, who recently picked up just his second UFC win in six contests by decisioning the similarly struggling Leonard Garcia at UFC on FX 3 in June.
UFC 157 goes down from the Honda Center in Anaheim, California on February 23rd.
Who do you like for these, Potato Nation? That was a rhetorical question.
One of the UFC’s finest featherweights, Chad Mendes, will face Manny Gamburyan at UFC 157, according to Grant Gordon of the Glendale News-Press. Mendes is coming off his second first round KO victory in a row after defeating Yaotzin Meza at UFC o…
Mendes is coming off his second first round KO victory in a row after defeating YaotzinMeza at UFC on FX 6 last Saturday, and has wasted no time in stepping up to fight at the historic UFC event in February, which will feature the first ever female fight in the promotion.
The event has significance for Gamburyan too, as his long-time teammate at Glendale Fighting Club and Team Hayastan, Ronda Rousey, will defend the UFC’s first women’s bantamweight title against Liz Carmouche.
Mendes’ only career loss in 14 fights came at the hands of Jose Aldo, the man some consider the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, in January at UFC 142.
Since that fight Mendes has found winning ways again and has looked all but unstoppable in his last two fights.
He’ll take on Gamburyan who’s only won one fight in his last four.
The Armenian had an earlier stint in the UFC between 2007 and 2009 when he lost The Ultimate Fighter 5 finale to Nate Diaz. He was eventually cut after dropping two fights to Rob Emerson and ThiagoTavares.
Gamburyan has also faced Aldo before, losing to him in 2010 for the WEC featherweight title.
UFC 157 will go down on Feb. 13 in Anaheim, California. The co-main event will feature a light heavyweight bought between Dan Henderson and LyotoMachida, fighting for the 205 pound contender’s spot. Urijah Faber is also slated to face Ivan Menjivar in a rematch on the main card.
(Before she became MMA’s sweetheart, Ronda battled through some tough personal bouts growing up.)
We’ve all read stories about how Ronda Rousey became a beast on the mats training with the tough Armenians like Karo Parisyan and Manny Gamburyan as a girl at Gokor Chivichyan’s gym, but few actually know the real battles the bubbly Strikeforce number one bantamweight contender has gone through in her life.
In a recent feature by SI’s Loretta Hunt, Rousey revealed that her precarious life path began early in life as she could not speak until she was six due to complications at birth.
Of any fighter, it’s fitting that Rousey knows the value of making her voice be heard — she couldn’t put together coherent sentences until the age of six.
Rousey was born with her umbilical cord wrapped around her neck; her body was blue and she wasn’t breathing. She was revived in the delivery room, but when her communicative skills quickly fell behind the norm, the doctors thought she’d suffered brain damage or that she might be deaf.
When she began to talk, Rousey’s words were jumbled and she was sent to speech therapy classes. Frustration was a daily occurrence, as nobody could understand her.
(Before she became MMA’s sweetheart, Ronda battled through some tough personal bouts growing up.)
We’ve all read stories about how Ronda Rousey became a beast on the mats training with the tough Armenians like Karo Parisyan and Manny Gamburyan as a girl at Gokor Chivichyan’s gym, but few actually know the real battles the bubbly Strikeforce number one bantamweight contender has gone through in her life.
In a recent feature by SI’s Loretta Hunt, Rousey revealed that her precarious life path began early in life as she could not speak until she was six due to complications at birth.
Of any fighter, it’s fitting that Rousey knows the value of making her voice be heard — she couldn’t put together coherent sentences until the age of six.
Rousey was born with her umbilical cord wrapped around her neck; her body was blue and she wasn’t breathing. She was revived in the delivery room, but when her communicative skills quickly fell behind the norm, the doctors thought she’d suffered brain damage or that she might be deaf.
When she began to talk, Rousey’s words were jumbled and she was sent to speech therapy classes. Frustration was a daily occurrence, as nobody could understand her.
Soon after Ronda began speaking and had overcome one of her biggest challenges, one of the most important people in her life was struck with a double-whammy.
She watched her father break his back after crashing into a snow-covered log at the bottom of a hill on a family sledding trip. He was later diagnosed with Bernard-Soulier syndrome, a rare blood disorder that made a full recovery from his back injuries impossible.
What came next would change Rousey’s life forever.
When doctors told him he’d be paralyzed and would die within two years, Rousey’s father committed suicide in 1995 rather than have his family watch him deteriorate. Rousey was only eight years old.
“He said he didn’t want our last memories of him laying in a hospital bed with tubes coming out of him,” Rousey told Hunt. “He was a proud man, a provider. He didn’t want to drain the family anymore.”
As if we needed another reason to root for “Rowdy.” Now we have one.
Do yourself a favor and check out Hunt’s story. It’s worth the read.
Filed under: UFCUFC 141 promises a big bang to close out an eventful year for the UFC and its parent company Zuffa. Everywhere you look on the main card there are major draws and serious contenders. Take a look a little lower down the lineup, however, …
UFC 141 promises a big bang to close out an eventful year for the UFC and its parent company Zuffa. Everywhere you look on the main card there are major draws and serious contenders. Take a look a little lower down the lineup, however, and you’ll see no shortage of fighters who are facing the possibility of a very bleak 2012 if they can’t notch a victory before the calendar turns its final page.
Who are they, and what are their prospects on Friday night in Vegas? For answers, we turn to the Cut List.
Ross Pearson (12-5, 4-2 UFC) Who he’s facing: Junior Assuncao Why he’s in danger: Okay, so maybe danger isn’t the word. Pearson is an Ultimate Fighter winner and a nice guy to have on the roster for future U.K. events, so he’s probably not going anywhere no matter what happens on Friday night. At the same time, he’s lost two of his last three. Maybe his back isn’t all the way against the wall yet, but it’s getting there. The good news is, he has a couple things going for him here. His last loss came via a very close decision, and it was a Fight of the Night recipient, so obviously the UFC likes what it sees from him. He’s also facing a much easier test this time around, at least according to the oddsmakers who have pegged him a 3-1 favorite over Assuncao. Of course, the downside to fighting a guy who you’re supposed to beat is that you’re supposed to beat him. A loss to Assuncao looks worse on the resume than a split decision against Edson Barboza. If Pearson wants to turn his career trajectory around, he might not get a better opportunity than this. Outlook: Good. Barring any huge screw-ups, Pearson should get back in the win column here. Even if he doesn’t, he’d have to look pretty awful to risk the axe right away.
Matt Riddle (5-3, 5-3 UFC) Who he’s facing: Luis Ramos Why he’s in danger: It’s the same old story. Two losses in a row leaves him one bad night away from the dreaded three-fight skid. But how did it get to this point? Things were going so well for a time. He won his first three fights in the UFC — which also happened to be his first three fights as a professional — and after six he was a very respectable (and somewhat surprising) 5-1. And then the current tumble began. Riddle lost a decision to Sean Pierson at UFC 124, then another to Lance Benoist nine months later, and here we are. Is this a must-win scenario for Riddle? Probably, but the same might be true of Ramos. He’s only lost one fight in the UFC, but then, he’s only had one fight in the UFC. When two guys scrap with that sort of desperation hanging over them, things often get ugly. Or else one guy decides it’s worth playing it safe and dull, if it nets him a job-saving win in the end. Outlook: Cautiously optimistic. Riddle may be giving up a lot of experience against Ramos, but you don’t stick around in the UFC this long if you don’t have some skills.
Manny Gamburyan (11-6, 2-4 UFC) Who he’s facing: Diego Nunes Why he’s in danger: If you go back to his recent WEC stint (and it’s all in the Zuffa family, so why not?), he’s on a two-fight losing streak. You know what that means. Then again, his last loss in the WEC was to Jose Aldo, so he deserves a little slack. And his most recent UFC loss was a majority decision to Tyson Griffin, which, okay, doesn’t look great in light of Griffin’s recent stretch. The worst part is, against Nunes it would seem as though Gamburyan is really going to have his hands full. The Brazilian can be outwrestled, as we’ve seen, but is Gamburyan the guy to do it? Better yet, if he isn’t, what will the UFC have to gain by keeping him around? Outlook: Neutral. Gamburyan has the chops to make a fight out of it against just about any featherweight in the game, but opponents seem to be figuring him out more and more lately. If he can’t beat Nunes — who’s a tough draw, no matter who you are — he’s in real trouble.
Efrain Escudero (18-3, 3-2 UFC) Who he’s facing: Jacob Volkmann Why he’s in danger: The former TUF winner is back in the big show, and he’s got his work cut out for him. After being cut following a disastrous Fight Night appearance in which he failed to make weight and then got submitted by Charles Oliveira, he knocked around in the small shows and did well enough to merit a phone call when the UFC found itself in need of a quality lightweight. And Escudero is a quality lightweight. His record tells us that much. But is he an elite lightweight, and can he prove it before the UFC again loses its patience with him? Volkmann is exactly the kind of guy you don’t want to face on short notice in your return to the UFC. He’s methodical, patient (sometimes to the point of being boring), and can absolutely suffocate you if you don’t shut him down early. In other words, he can make you look very, very bad in defeat, which is the last thing Escudero can afford right now. Outlook: Mildly pessimistic. It’ll be a significant upset if he can find a way to beat Volkmann, and I don’t see it happening. He’ll probably get one more chance to prove himself with due notice and a full camp, but then it’ll be make-or-break time for sure.
Filed under: UFC, NewsThe UFC’s year-end show in Las Vegas continues to take shape.
Not long after announcing a lightweight battle between still-surging contender Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone and Nate Diaz – who combined have 15 fight night bonuses in the…
Former WEC featherweight title challenger Manny Gamburyan will face Diego Nunes, a bout rescheduled from UFC 135 in September. And Junior Assuncao will take on “The Ultimate Fighter” winner Ross Pearson. The UFC made the announcement of the fights on its Twitter feed and official website.
Gamburyan (11-6, 2-4 UFC) looks to break out of a two-fight skid that started with his featherweight title knockout loss to champ Jose Aldo at WEC 51 in September 2010. In June, returning to the UFC for the first time since January 2009, Gamburyan lost a majority decision to Tyson Griffin, who was making his featherweight debut. Gamburyan was a Season 5 contestant on “The Ultimate Fighter,” and reached the finals before losing to Diaz.
Nunes (16-2, 1-1 UFC) will return for the first time since a close decision loss to Kenny Florian at UFC 131 in June. The former WEC standout has gone to a decision in his last seven bouts.
Assuncao (13-4 MMA, 2-2 UFC) won his return to the UFC in September with a unanimous decision over the debuting Eddie Yagin. It was Assuncao’s first fight at featherweight after competing at lightweight throughout his career. Assuncao went 1-2 in his first stint in the UFC from 2006-07.
Pearson (12-5 MMA, 4-2 UFC) suffered a split decision loss to Edson Barboza at UFC 134 in June in Rio de Janeiro. Pearson won Season 9 of “The Ultimate Fighter,” taking a unanimous decision against Team Bisping teammate Andre Winner. He won two more after that, including a decision win over Dennis Siver. But with two losses in his last three fights, a win may be crucial for him.
UFC 141 will take place Dec. 30 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The pay-per-view will be headlined by a heavyweight contenders fight between former champion Brock Lesnar and former Strikeforce champ Alistair Overeem, who will make his UFC debut. The co-main event will be the lightweight bout between Cerrone and Diaz.
UFC 137 is just a week away, featuring what some believe to be a welterweight number one contender match between B.J. Penn and Nick Diaz. If you weren’t convinced by our betting advice for the main event, then perhaps the words of Stephan Bonnar, Manny Gamburyan, Tyson Griffin, and Phil Baroni will do your thinking for you. And from the looks of it, you’re thinking B.J. Penn is going to come out on top, because that’s what the consensus seems to be for these pros.
UFC 137 is just a week away, featuring what some believe to be a welterweight number one contender match between B.J. Penn and Nick Diaz. If you weren’t convinced by our betting advice for the main event, then perhaps the words of Stephan Bonnar, Manny Gamburyan, Tyson Griffin, and Phil Baroni will do your thinking for you. And from the looks of it, you’re thinking B.J. Penn is going to come out on top, because that’s what the consensus seems to be for these pros.
The question on everyone’s mind is of course, which B.J. Penn will show up to this fight; will it be the killer that put Matt Hughes away in less time than it takes to peel an anti-theft sticker off a DVD, or the somewhat lackadaisical Penn that was picked apart by Frankie Edgar and George St. Pierre? Well, according to our inside sources, Penn is indeed training his ass off for this one, but Nick Diaz has never been one to go away quietly, unless it’s at a press conference or any sort of interview type scenario. The other outside factor that’s been overlooked in this match-up is that of Diaz’s reach, which could pose heaps of problems for Penn as it did in his second fight with GSP.
So, what say you, Potato Nation? Who takes this one?
One of the UFC’s finest featherweights, Chad 
The