Joe Rogan has never been one to hide his opinions. Whether it’s an early stoppage, a late stoppage, or a botched judges’ decision, many UFC fights have ended with Rogan passionately expressing his disagreement. But at UFC 142 earlier this month, Rogan went even further and corralled referee Mario Yamasaki for an unscheduled post-fight interview, asking Yamasaki to justify his disqualification of Erick Silva for shots to the back of the head. It was an uncomfortable moment, but as Rogan explained, he felt it was his duty to ask the questions that the viewers might have at that moment.
One notable fighter has come forward to stand up for Yamasaki — Carlo Prater, the guy who actually took the alleged illegal shots from Silva that night. As Prater sees it, his perspective and Yamasaki’s perspective hold a lot more weight than Joe Rogan’s, who’s just a “swagger,” in his opinion. (Continue reading for a definition of “swagger” as used in this context. It might not be what you think.) Here’s what Prater told SportTV.com in a new interview:
Joe Rogan has never been one to hide his opinions. Whether it’s an early stoppage, a late stoppage, or a botched judges’ decision, many UFC fights have ended with Rogan passionately expressing his disagreement. But at UFC 142 earlier this month, Rogan went even further and corralled veteran referee Mario Yamasaki for an unscheduled post-fight interview, asking Yamasaki to justify his disqualification of Erick Silva for shots to the back of the head. It was an uncomfortable moment, but as Rogan explained, he felt it was his duty to ask the questions that the viewers might have.
One notable fighter has come forward to defend Yamasaki — Carlo Prater, the guy who actually took the alleged illegal shots from Silva that night. As Prater sees it, his perspective and Yamasaki’s perspective hold a lot more weight than Joe Rogan’s, who’s just a “swagger,” in his opinion. (Continue reading for a definition of “swagger” as used in this context. It might not be what you think.) Here’s what Prater told SportTV.com in a new interview:
“I felt very strong blows in the region of my neck and my right shoulder. I felt very painful shocks. I was trying to overthrow Erick on the floor, out of instinct, but I could not because it was the worst physical pain I’ve ever had in my entire life. I think in the end I was made out as a villain. I had to stay in the hospital until Monday. They asked me not to go public because, indeed, that wouldn’t do any good for me or Erick. In my opinion, Mario did the right thing. You are not allowed to do anything you want inside the cage. Watching the fight video, I could see at least nine blows to the back of the head.”
“I think the way Joe Rogan behaved was completely unethical. He went with the crowd. A real professional doesn’t do that. He was acting like a fan when he should be acting as a commentator. Mario is a million times more competent than him. He’s been living off this for 20 years. Joe Rogan is just a swagger, someone who walks amongst fighters but isn’t really a fighter himself. He doesn’t understand. Whatever, human beings make mistakes and I am not going to be holding grudges against him.”
Was it a controversial moment? Absolutely, especially when you consider all the UFC fights that have ended with shots to the back of the head that weren’t called disqualifications. But it’s nice to get the other guy’s perspective once in a while. Even one illegal blow should call a fight’s result into question.
Filed under: UFCAfter a review of the controversial finish to UFC 142’s Erick Silva vs. Carlo Prater bout, UFC’s vice president of regulatory affairs Marc Ratner has decided not to overturn referee Mario Yamasaki’s decision.
After a review of the controversial finish to UFC 142‘s Erick Silva vs. Carlo Prater bout, UFC‘s vice president of regulatory affairs Marc Ratner has decided not to overturn referee Mario Yamasaki’s decision.
Prater was awarded the victory when Yamasaki ruled that at least some of a series of Silva’s finishing blows landed to the back of Prater’s head, making them illegal. In a statement released by the UFC, Ratner noted that Silva had been previously verbally warned during the fight, making it “not the type of decision that can be reviewed.”
Ratner’s decision not to overturn the ruling is understandable, as the promotion does not want to put themselves in a position where their power supersedes that of the referee or any presiding athletic commission. But it does highlight the need for two things: instant replay, and a clear and consistent definition of the “back of the head” a vague term that leaves things far too open for interpretation in a sport that is fast enough and hard enough to referee as it is.
Depending on who you talk to, there are two explanations of it. Some referees use the term “mohawk,” saying the illegal spot is an approximately one-inch wide strip right down the back of the head similar to the haircut. Others say the illegal area would be anywhere behind where a pair of earmuffs would be situated on the head.
There is simply too much at stake for the athletes for vague definitions to continue to exist. Silva, who momentarily believed he had a 29-second knockout, was suddenly robbed of a win that would have extended his unbeaten stretch to 11 straight.
Let’s make one thing clear: the sport moves so quickly that refereeing a match becomes an exercise in split-second judgments. It’s a difficult and often thankless job, and Yamasaki made his decision quickly and decisively.
That, of course, doesn’t mean he can’t be wrong from time to time. Much like NFL games can turn to replay to see whether a pass was caught in or out of bounds, MMA fights should be able to go to review to see if a blow that ended a fight was in fact, illegal. The fact that he warned Silva first shouldn’t matter; a mistake should be corrected, period.
Replay and the vague definition are two separate issues, of course.
Cageside instant replay was not available at UFC 142, but in a statement, Ratner said Zuffa has “decided to implement the use of instant replay at all international events that are self-regulated, and to encourage all regulators to consider the feasibility and effectiveness of instant replay in the sport of MMA.”
That change would be a positive step.
Replay has been used in Nevada for a few years now. In one memorable case, ref Steve Mazzagatti consulted a replay screen to determine that Jon Jones had committed an intentional foul against Matt Hamill, a decision that ultimately led to the first and still only loss on the UFC champion’s record. That is an example of a fair use of replay; Mazzagatti had doubt, looked over the video and made the right call.
Expanded replay would give referees a chance to review their calls in pivotal situations. In the case of Silva-Prater, Yamasaki had to make his call, and then was faced with a situation where he was put on the spot to defend it when the replays were shown on the arena’s big screens.
Of course, it might not have been necessary if we had a more decisive definition of what exactly the “back of the head” was. Yamasaki was notably the referee in an August 2011 bout between Vitor Belfort and Yoshihiro Akiyama, a fight that ended with questions about Belfort’s finishing strikes, which many believed were to the back of Akiyama’s head. In fact, you’d be hard pressed to watch the Belfort-Akiyama and Silva-Prater fights and determine one to be fair and the other worthy of a disqualification.
But those are the rules we play by in MMA today. As long as there’s no clarification of the “back of the head” rule, we’ll continue to face situations where the same strike will be interpreted as illegal in one fight, and never cause a blip of controversy in another. At least if we had a concise definition, we would know if our outrage is warranted.
Joe Rogan issues explanation for calling out referee, Mario Yamasaki for highly questionable call in Erick Silva‘s DQ loss to Carlo Prater at UFC 142. It is all an unfortunate situation, we hope is at.
Joe Rogan issues explanation for calling out referee, Mario Yamasaki for highly questionable call in Erick Silva‘s DQ loss to Carlo Prater at UFC 142. It is all an unfortunate situation, we hope is at least overturned to a No Contest.
Anthony Johnson‘s legs got tired in his fight with Vitor Belfort at UFC 142. Johnson has since been cut from the UFC.
Um…maybe referee Dan Miragliotta stood up Vitor Belfort and Anthony Johnson a bit quickly…say some critics.
Jon Jones is too sexy and walked a fashion catwalk runway in Brazil.
Georges St. PierrewantsNick Diaz to win…but probably not ’cause he likes him.
Dana Whitehas some words in response to ESPN‘s “Outside the Lines” segment. You can watch Lorenzo Fertitta‘s entire uncut interview: here.
Because it’s so great, you can watch Jose Aldo‘s celebration in the stands after his victory against Chad Mendes in UFC Rio again and again: here.
Wow! This is the hottest shoot ever with Arianny Celeste and Chandella Powell. Thank you, Paparazzo! Enjoy the gallery below and find MORE pictures: here.
(An artist’s depiction of what was going through Joe Rogan’s mind the moment he found out Eric Silva had been DQ’ed. And yes, Joe Rogan appears in his own fantasies.)
Much has been made of Joe Rogan‘s impromptu interview with referee Mario Yamasaki following his decision to disqualify Erick Silva at UFC 142 this past weekend. Some are saying it was a totally unprofessional move by Rogan, while others believe it would have been unprofessional of him not to question the seemingly botched ruling by the longtime UFC official. Whether or not you agree with Rogan’s decision (or Yamasaki’s, for that matter), we can all agree that the Silva/Prater fight proved the necessity for a stricter policy in regards to an instant replay in areas other than Nevada. Rogan, however, has already taken to the internet, specifically the UG, to explain why he chose to put Yamasaki on the spot:
He’s a great guy, and I’m always happy to see him. When I step into the octagon however, I represent the people watching at home that might have obvious questions, and when something is controversial I’m forced to confront it honestly because that’s what I would want to hear from a person in my position if I was a fan watching it at home.
I think Mario Yamasaki is one of the best in the world at refereeing MMA. No doubt about it. He’s got great insight to the sport, he’s a life long martial artist, and he’s a really smart guy. What I was acting from, is that I saw an incredible young talent get denied a KO victory for a questionable call. When I entered into the Octagon and was told of the official ruling that Silva was going to be disqualified for illegal blows to the back of the head everyone that I was around who heard the news opened their mouths in shock. Everyone said, “what?”
The people in the truck couldn’t believe it. I had to read it back to them because I thought it was a mistake, and when I leaned over to explain it to Goldie he couldn’t believe it either. I had to ask Mario about it. I didn’t know how he was going to respond, but I had to ask him.
Erick Silva is a very promising fighter and I felt like I had a responsibility to address the issue. No disrespect intended.
Join us after the jump for more interesting tidbits from around the MMA world, some of which may or may not be completely made up.
(An artist’s depiction of what was going through Joe Rogan’s mind the moment he found out Eric Silva had been DQ’ed. And yes, Joe Rogan appears in his own fantasies.)
Much has been made of Joe Rogan‘s impromptu interview with referee Mario Yamasaki following his decision to disqualify Erick Silva at UFC 142 this past weekend. Some are saying it was a totally unprofessional move by Rogan, while others believe it would have been unprofessional of him not to question the seemingly botched ruling by the longtime UFC official. Whether or not you agree with Rogan’s decision (or Yamasaki’s, for that matter), we can all agree that the Silva/Prater fight proved the necessity for a stricter policy in regards to an instant replay in areas other than Nevada. Rogan, however, has already taken to the internet, specifically the UG, to explain why he chose to put Yamasaki on the spot:
He’s a great guy, and I’m always happy to see him. When I step into the octagon however, I represent the people watching at home that might have obvious questions, and when something is controversial I’m forced to confront it honestly because that’s what I would want to hear from a person in my position if I was a fan watching it at home.
I think Mario Yamasaki is one of the best in the world at refereeing MMA. No doubt about it. He’s got great insight to the sport, he’s a life long martial artist, and he’s a really smart guy. What I was acting from, is that I saw an incredible young talent get denied a KO victory for a questionable call. When I entered into the Octagon and was told of the official ruling that Silva was going to be disqualified for illegal blows to the back of the head everyone that I was around who heard the news opened their mouths in shock. Everyone said, “what?”
The people in the truck couldn’t believe it. I had to read it back to them because I thought it was a mistake, and when I leaned over to explain it to Goldie he couldn’t believe it either. I had to ask Mario about it. I didn’t know how he was going to respond, but I had to ask him.
Erick Silva is a very promising fighter and I felt like I had a responsibility to address the issue. No disrespect intended.
Check out some more interesting tidbits from around the MMA world below, some of which may or may not be completely made up.
–Melvin Guillard wants in on this “Blackzilian” thing, leaves Team Jackson:
Both camps are great, both sets of coaches are awesome. It’s just a decision I had to make for myself professionally. Did I want to split the time? Yeah, I did, but it’s kind of like trying to work for Exxon and work for Shell. You won’t be able to split your time between both. Cause both of those companies wouldn’t allow it. So it came to one of those points in my life where I had to make a grown-up decision. Kind of an executive decision, and this is the decision I made. I didn’t leave Jackson’s in a bad way. I love those coaches to death, love that team, and if anything every occurs and I have to go back to Jackson’s, I hope I’m still welcome, because I didn’t leave in the wrong way. As fighters we have to make the decision who’s going to get us ready to take us to that next level. At the end of the day, all this hype about which coach is better than who, at the end of the day we’re the ones in there doing the job. We’re the ones that have to get in there and bust our butts. All they can do is give direction and make things go from there.
It’s real simple. I want the title. I want to be champion. I don’t want it just because I want a belt, I want to be the best. I want to look in the mirror and know I’m the best in the world. If I can’t beat Mark Munoz, then I’m not. Munoz and I aren’t fighting because this is the match that made sense. We’re fighting because Anderson doesn’t want to fight me. Anderson trained with Munoz, he got destroyed by Munoz, he doesn’t want to fight Mark. Ed Soares, Anderson’s manager, worked diligently behind the scenes to make Mark and I fight each other. So I don’t have a big problem fighting Mark. my resentment is that Anderson got his way.
-Terry Etim congratulates Edson Barboza on his amazing KO:
…e’saverytough opponint and i congratulate da’man forineggscellentmanhoovr, ajhgksahfakjhsjjkieiefknwheel kick to mebobsyouruncle…jkdsjhdkfsknickers…
The Good
• Edson Barboza‘s astounding spinning heel kick knockout of Terry Etim. Mike Goldberg might have been exaggerating a bit when he called it “maybe the most spectacular knockout in UFC history,” but it’s certainly the early front-runner for Greatest Knockout of 2012. And props to Joe Rogan for immediately recalling Baraboza’s prior use of the kick against Anthony Njokuani. As Rogan mentioned, it’s an under-utilized technique that we may start to see come in-vogue in 2012, much like the crane kick in 2011.
• Gabriel Gonzaga needed a good performance to provoke any sort of excitement in his return to the UFC’s heavyweight division. Even sweeter than his early finish was his proclamation that we can expect to see him return to the submission base that generated so much interest in his first run at UFC contention.
• After two highly energetic Brazilian shows within a year, the UFC has found its most passionate and dedicated audience. The crowd at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro was loud, enthusiastic, and everything one would expect from a bunch of rowdy Brazilian fight fans. There was a good amount of variation in the chants throughout the night — from “U.S.A., to “Thiago,” to the famous soccer anthem “ole ole ole” — and a surreal crowd-surfing celebration from defending featherweight champion Jose Aldo capped off the incredible fan involvement.
The Good
• Edson Barboza‘s astounding spinning heel kick knockout of Terry Etim. Mike Goldberg might have been exaggerating a bit when he called it “maybe the most spectacular knockout in UFC history,” but it’s certainly the early front-runner for Greatest Knockout of 2012. And props to Joe Rogan for immediately recalling Baraboza’s prior use of the kick against Anthony Njokuani. As Rogan mentioned, it’s an under-utilized technique that we may start to see come in-vogue in 2012, much like the crane kick in 2011.
• Gabriel Gonzaga needed a good performance to provoke any sort of excitement in his return to the UFC’s heavyweight division. Even sweeter than his early finish was his proclamation that we can expect to see him return to the submission base that generated so much interest in his first run at UFC contention.
• After two highly energetic Brazilian shows within a year, the UFC has found its most passionate and dedicated audience. The crowd at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro was loud, enthusiastic, and everything one would expect from a bunch of rowdy Brazilian fight fans. There was a good amount of variation in the chants throughout the night — from “U.S.A., to “Thiago,” to the famous soccer anthem “ole ole ole” — and a surreal crowd-surfing celebration from defending featherweight champion Jose Aldo capped off the incredible fan involvement.
The Bad
• Referee Dan Miragliotta’s stand-ups in the Belfort/Johnson fight were far too quick. In both instances, Miragliotta should have allowed Anthony Johnson more time to improve his position or inflict some damage from the top. [Ed. note: A Bleacher Report column went as far as to suggest that Miragliotta was paid to make things difficult for Johnson, but the article has since been removed from the site.] If Johnson were in any position to complain, he might have a case; however, nobody wants to listen to any more of this guy’s excuses. Hope the free agent market treats you well, AJ.
• For a channel trying to brand itself as the new home of the UFC, FX did not seem to put much effort into their promo for this Friday’s upcoming UFC on FX 2 card during their prelims broadcast. All they could manage was a promo that featured split-second highlights of Melvin Guillard and Jim Miller and an animated fighter made out of chain-link fence that pretended to punch the screen. Needless to say, it seemed like a missed opportunity.
• Felipe Arantes looked pretty silly jumping on the cage in celebration prior to confirmation that he had edged out a unanimous decision win over Antonio Carvalho, in their card-opening match on Facebook. Obviously, Arantes wanted to soak in what he was sure would be an appreciative hometown crowd but it seemed excessive for a performance that lacked the fight-ending dominance we’ve come to expect from post-fight cage jumps.
The Ugly
• Even though Rousimar Palhares’s submissions are a thing of beauty for leg-lock fanatics, they serve as an ugly reminder of the hideous damage that the “Tree trunk” can inflict on his opponents. When Palhares gets within snatching distance of an opponent’s leg, there is a large part of me that wants to scream at the referee to stop it already for the love of God before he inflicts permanent damage on this poor man! Get in the cage with Palhares and there’s a good chance he will get hold of your leg and tear some of the major tendons, ligaments and muscles. If that’s not ugly, I don’t know what is.
• The “Keys to Victory” segment has got to go. It was a horrible feature when Frank Shamrock did it on CBS and it’s horrible now. If the UFC insists on breaking something down in such a simplistic and grossly misleading manner, they should at least get somebody other than Joe Rogan to deliver it. As the color commentator, he’s already influencing audience perceptions about each fighter’s skills. It would make sense to mix things up by having a veteran like Randy Couture or Kenny Florian breaking things down.
• Mario Yamasaki may have made a bad call in disqualifying Erick Silva for what he deemed to be illegal shots to the back of the head but Joe Rogan challenging him about it post-fight was even more cringe-inducing. Joe should stick to interviewing fighters, not referees. It was disrespectful to Mario, a mainstay in the Brazilian MMA community. Mario seemed none too pleased with being called out and paced anxiously in the background as Rogan continued to rip on the decision while interviewing Silva. It was an uncomfortable moment in the broadcast and the empathy it invoked on behalf of Yamasaki almost seemed to negate his poor judgment in the fight.
Filed under: UFCIn the first week of the 2010 NFL season, Detroit Lions receiver Calvin Johnson caught what appeared to be a game winning touchdown pass, only to have a referee overturn the call on an obscure, ill-defined rule about what actually const…
In the first week of the 2010 NFL season, Detroit Lions receiver Calvin Johnson caught what appeared to be a game winning touchdown pass, only to have a referee overturn the call on an obscure, ill-defined rule about what actually constitutes a catch — a rule that has come to be known as the Calvin Johnson rule by fans who still have a hard time understanding why Johnson’s apparent catch was not a catch.
Few things bother NFL fans more than the way the NFL’s complex rules — and the referees’ enforcement of those rules — detract from an otherwise thriving sport. The same could be said for MMA, where the UFC and the state athletic commissions have worked together to codify a unified set of rules — only to find time after time that those rules aren’t as clear as they should be, and that referees don’t enforce the rules uniformly.
The latest example came at UFC 142, where referee Mario Yamasaki disqualified Erick Silva for hitting Carlo Prater in the back of the head, even though no one seems to agree about whether a disqualification was the correct response, or even about what constitutes the back of the head.
UFC President Dana White wrote on Twitter immediately afterward that disqualifying Silva was a “BS call,” and he was right: Silva deserved to win. The UFC needs to work with the athletic commissions to more clearly define the rules, and to recruit and train better referees to enforce those rules.
I don’t know what the precise rule on strikes to the back of the head is, and neither do you, and neither does anyone. No one knows because there is no precise definition of “back of the head.” Some referees use the term “mohawk,” meaning the back of the head is an inch-side strip right in the middle of the back of the head, the area that would be covered by a mohawk haircut. Other referees use the term “earmuffs,” meaning the back of the head is a larger area that includes everything that would be behind a pair of earmuffs.
Under the “mohawk” definition, Silva didn’t hit Prater in the back of the head. Under the “earmuffs” definition, Silva did hit Prater in the back of the head.
UFC announcer Joe Rogan clearly was buying into the “mohawk” definition, and he went off on Yamasaki during an awkward post-fight interview in which Yamasaki clearly wasn’t prepared to defend his decision. Yamasaki didn’t inspire a lot of confidence by his inability to defend his decision, but in fairness to Yamasaki, referees aren’t generally put on the spot the way Rogan put him on the spot, so it’s not surprising that Yamasaki was caught off guard.
Even if you think SIlva did commit a foul by hitting Prater in the “earmuffs” area, Yamasaki didn’t handle it the right way. If Silva committed an illegal strike, Yamasaki should have stepped in and taken a point away from Silva, and only stopped the fight after having the doctor check on Prater and determine whether Prater could continue. Instead, Yamasaki stepped in and waved his arms to stop the fight instantly.
A disqualification for an illegal strike should only take place if the illegal strike is what caused the fight to end. But it appeared that Silva’s legal strikes — a brutal knee to the body and several powerful hammer fists to the side of the head — were enough to finish Prater off. Prater suggested after the fight that it was really the knee that did him in.
“I’m not a judge,” Prater said afterward. “I didn’t stop the fight. All I know is that he hit me and it sent a shock of pain through my body unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. I don’t know if the shots were legal. I just know it was unlike anything I’ve ever felt.”
It’s frustrating for fans — and could be dangerous for fighters — to see how inconsistent referees are about enforcing the rule against hitting opponents in the back of the head. For high-profile examples of much more severe strikes to the back of the head that the referees let go, watch Vitor Belfort‘s victory over Rich Franklin or Shane Carwin‘s win over Frank Mir. In those fights, the victors landed much harder strikes to the back of the loser’s head, and the referees let those strikes go. Consistency is needed in refereeing of any sport, and it’s seriously lacking in MMA.
UFC 142 Notes — Gabriel Gonzaga landed only four strikes in his win over Ednaldo Oliveira, according to CompuStrike. But Gonzaga successfully completed both of his takedown attempts, achieved two dominant positions on the ground, and sunk in a rear-naked choke to end it. Gonzaga said, “I’m back,” afterward, but that remains to be seen — beating Oliveira doesn’t prove that Gonzaga is back to his previous form as one of the elite heavyweights in the world. But there’s no question that a fighter with Gonzaga’s Brazilian jiu jitsu skills can make short work of a guy with a rudimentary ground game like Oliveira.
— Vitor Belfort finished Anthony Johnson off in the first round, a day after Johnson came in overweight by 11 pounds, and UFC President Dana White said afterward that he plans to cut Johnson. It’s a shame that a fighter as talented as Johnson is losing his job, but if you can’t make weight, you can’t fight. And Johnson has repeatedly failed to make weight.
UFC 142 Quotes
— “This was my first fight without Shawn. It was definitely an adjustment not having him in my corner. I hope Shawn would be proud.”–Sam Stout, losing a tough decision in the first fight since his coach, friend and brother-in-law Shawn Tompkins died.
— “I went out there and proved to the people of Brazil that I belong in the Octagon. He was a very tough opponent. I had a tough camp and battled some injuries, but I was able to get in there tonight and control the striking and win.”–Felipe Arantes, who put on a good showing in his victory over Antonio Carvalho and appeared ecstatic to win in front of his fans back home in Brazil.
— “This was like the World Cup for me tonight. To fight against a veteran like him was a true honor. I hope this win proved to the UFC that I’m ready for the main card. I felt like a complete fighter in there tonight.”–Yuri Alcantara, using a soccer analogy to describe the feeling of beating Michihiro Omigawa at home in Brazil.
Good Call — When the first fight went to the judges’ scorecards, it was a relief to hear all three judges get it right — 29-28 for Felipe Arantes over Antonio Carvalho. Arantes clearly took the second and third rounds and deserved to win the fight, and it was also good to see that the judges didn’t favor the Brazilian in the first round, as the Canadian Carvalho got off to a good start and deserved to win the first.
Bad Call –Thiago Tavares took a unanimous decision over Sam Stout in a fight that easily could have been 29-28 either way. But the bad call was UFC announcer Bruce Buffer not announcing the judges’ scores — the fans were left with no idea how the judges arrived at their unanimous decision for Tavares, just that Tavares had won by unanimous decision. Announcing the scores is a must, especially in a decision so close.
Stock Up Edson Barboza is now 10-0 in his MMA career after an incredible knockout kick of Terry Etim. We already knew Barboza was one of the most explosive strikers in the lightweight division, but no one could have predicted that he’d produce one of the all-time great knockouts against a good opponent like Etim. Barboza might struggle against some of the lightweight division’s top wrestlers, but as a striker he’s just about as good as it gets at 155 pounds.
Stock Down Michihiro Omigawa has now lost three of his four fights since returning to the UFC early last year, after getting thoroughly dominated by Yuri Alcantara. Omigawa went on a tear in Japan in 2009 and 2010 and looked like one of the best featherweights in the world, but in the Octagon he simply hasn’t been able to get the job done. He might be finished in the UFC.
Fight I Want To See Next Jose Aldo put on such a show against Chad Mendes that I just don’t see any challenges emerging for him in the featherweight division. The fight I want to see next is Aldo vs. Frankie Edgar. If Edgar beats Ben Henderson next month, I’d love to see both Aldo and Edgar keep their titles and meet at a catchweight of 150 pounds for a champion vs. champion superfight.
After a review of the controversial finish to 
In the first week of the 2010 NFL season, Detroit Lions receiver Calvin Johnson caught what appeared to be a game winning touchdown pass, only to have a referee overturn the call on an obscure, ill-defined rule about what actually constitutes a catch — a rule that has come to be known as the Calvin Johnson rule by fans who still have a hard time understanding why Johnson’s apparent catch was not a catch.
