(Photo courtesy of MMAFighting.com. Gif is now after the jump.)
Already a fixture on the UFC highlight reels of Junior Dos Santos and Roy Nelson, Stefan Struve became the victim of another first-round knockout tonight at UFC 130, succumbing to what might be the most devastating superman punch ever thrown inside of an eight-sided cage. The victorious Travis Browne increased his MMA record to 11-0-1, and was awarded UFC 130’s Knockout of the Night bonus for his efforts, picking up an additional $70,000.
UFC 130’s other performance bonuses went to Brian Stann and Jorge Santiago (Fight of the Night) for their two-round bang-up that kicked off the pay-per-view broadcast, and Gleison Tibau (Submission of the Night) for his rear-naked choke of Rafaello Oliveira during the prelims; it was the only fight on the card that ended via submission.
(Photo courtesy of MMAFighting.com. Gif is now after the jump.)
Already a fixture on the UFC highlight reels of Junior Dos Santos and Roy Nelson, Stefan Struve became the victim of another first-round knockout tonight at UFC 130, succumbing to what might be the most devastating superman punch ever thrown inside of an eight-sided cage. The victorious Travis Browne increased his MMA record to 11-0-1, and was awarded UFC 130′s Knockout of the Night bonus for his efforts, picking up an additional $70,000.
UFC 130′s other performance bonuses went to Brian Stann and Jorge Santiago (Fight of the Night) for their two-round bang-up that kicked off the pay-per-view broadcast, and Gleison Tibau (Submission of the Night) for his rear-naked choke of Rafaello Oliveira during the prelims; it was the only fight on the card that ended via submission.
There’s a very good chance that Tony Ferguson will be the next winner of The Ultimate Fighter. So it’s a shame that his primary legacy from the show — at least for the people who actually watched it — is the moment from this week’s episode when he attacked his own teammate Charlie Rader then needled Rader about having his son taken from him. It was particularly shocking because Ferguson hadn’t previously shown any signs of being a mean-spirited drunk. Now, he has to expect a small chorus of boos when he enters the Octagon at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas next Saturday. In his guest blog for SBNation.com, Ferguson tried to explain the circumstances that transformed him from humble front-runner to TUF 13‘s biggest heel:
You first have to understand we started drinking not long after we had just got done fighting. We had also done the semi-final picks. I think part of me brought the fight home since my real fight with Ryan ended so fast. When you bring alcohol into the mix, it was just bad from there.
We all drank a lot. It started out with shots of Patron and moved to Jim Beam. Miller Lites were mixed in the entire time. We weren’t just drinking to relax. We were going hard core. Everyone was drinking, too, although maybe not as much as some of us.
There’s a very good chance that Tony Ferguson will be the next winner of The Ultimate Fighter. So it’s a shame that his primary legacy from the show — at least for the people who actually watched it — is the moment from this week’s episode when he attacked his own teammate Charlie Rader then needled Rader about having his son taken from him. It was particularly shocking because Ferguson hadn’t previously shown any signs of being a mean-spirited drunk. Now, he has to expect a small chorus of boos when he enters the Octagon at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas next Saturday. In his guest blog for SBNation.com, Ferguson tried to explain the circumstances that transformed him from humble front-runner to TUF 13‘s biggest heel:
You first have to understand we started drinking not long after we had just got done fighting. We had also done the semi-final picks. I think part of me brought the fight home since my real fight with Ryan ended so fast. When you bring alcohol into the mix, it was just bad from there.
We all drank a lot. It started out with shots of Patron and moved to Jim Beam. Miller Lites were mixed in the entire time. We weren’t just drinking to relax. We were going hard core. Everyone was drinking, too, although maybe not as much as some of us.
Things got out of hand fast. My adrenaline was still going. Things were beginning to escalate around me. They didn’t show this, but Shamar Bailey got pissed after Ramsey started dancing on him. That helped to set things in motion.
Throughout the show, I tried to keep calm and poised. I excused myself from a lot of conversations or just insane bulls–t. I was trying to stay focused.
That all went away fast. Charlie Rader poured water on my head, but at the time I thought it was beer. I couldn’t understand why he would do something like that, even as minor as it may seem now. I had a short fuse. I’m usually not like that. When I saw myself, it was honestly kind of creepy.
Unfortunately, everyone saw The Boogeyman came out. That’s a side of my personality I usually only see in the cage, but somehow Charlie brought it out in real life. Something just snapped and I thought “This guy is your enemy now”. Rather than try to bring people close to me, I was pushing everyone away.
Why did I bring up Charlie’s son? I have no idea, but I have a guess. My birth father wasn’t there for me growing up. Somehow Charlie’s situation mixed in with my adrenaline from fighting and the booze all worked together to bring up my own issues. I learned a lot about myself watching that on tape and how I felt about certain things in my life. I was under a lot of pressure, I was trying to bottle up frustration and it didn’t work. Well, it worked for a while, but ultimately did not.
I said some things I shouldn’t have said. I was in a weird place. I was having crazy dreams in that house. The entire experience took me out of my own independence and removed all of my release valves.
I really regret saying what I said to Charlie and we’ve talked about it since the incident. I’ve spoke to Clay Harvison and Chuck, too. We are in a better place now than we were that night.
Part of me feels like this is what the producers wanted. Every season there is someone who cracks. It sucks it had to be me, but I’ve never lived in a house full of fighters competing against each other. That alcohol is also there for a reason. Maybe subconsciously I needed that to happen so I could fight Charlie and Chuck who were my friends in the house at the time.
The really weird part was how drunk I got. When I woke up the next morning, I didn’t remember much. I had a scar on my left arm, didn’t know where it came from. I started cleaning up and was basically none the wiser. But no one wanted to talk to me and who can blame them?
The last I will say is maybe all of this is related to me growing up angry. I only met my father two years ago. But I never wanted to bore anyone with my stories. My attitude was that no one cares about my problems, so I’ll just keep them to myself. That didn’t work, but that’s what I was working with when I was in the house at that time.
I’m sorry to all who I disappointed, but I want you all to know I haven’t had a drink at all during this camp. I’m training hard and staying on track. I’m living a healthy life, physically and emotionally. Thanks for all of the support over these past few weeks and watching me fight. If you want to contact me, get at me on Twitter or Facebook.
The nature of mixed martial arts competition means that you never know what you’re going to get when you tune in. Maybe a stand-up war, maybe a kinetic chess match. For some fans, there is nothing so thrilling as a technical back-and-forth mat battle. Hell, some people even enjoy watching Ben Askren catch a firm grip on his opponent and breakdance all over him for fifteen minutes, and they get all hot and bothered seeing a good hip heist or X-guard sweep. We enjoy all that stuff. Then there are a double handful of techniques that bridge the gap — that excite every single person in the arena, every fight fan at the bar, and every keyboard warrior watching at home. In the interest of finding common ground with all fans of this crazy fad that is ultimate fighting, we present to you this not-at-all exhaustive list of moves that seem more likely to be pulled off with an XBoX controller, rather than by a human being who is bound by the laws of physics.
Come one in past the jump, and let’s talk about the kinds of moves that make everyone jump up and spill their beer.
Special thanks to MMA-Core, IronForgesIron, mmaGIF, UpstandingCitizens.com, Tapology, Large Midget and The Forum Assholes, and GIF ninjas everywhere.
This guy knows what we’re talking about.
The nature of mixed martial arts competition means that you never know what you’re going to get when you tune in. Maybe a stand-up war, maybe a kinetic chess match. For some fans, there is nothing so thrilling as a technical back-and-forth mat battle. Hell, some people even enjoy watching Ben Askren catch a firm grip on his opponent and breakdance all over him for fifteen minutes, and they get all hot and bothered seeing a good hip heist or X-guard sweep. We enjoy all that stuff. Then there are a double handful of techniques that bridge the gap — that excite every single person in the arena, every fight fan at the bar, and every keyboard warrior watching at home. In the interest of finding common ground with all fans of this crazy fad that is ultimate fighting, we present to you this not-at-all exhaustive list of moves that seem more likely to be pulled off with an XBoX controller, rather than by a human being who is bound by the laws of physics.
Come one in past the jump, and let’s talk about the kinds of moves that make everyone jump up and spill their beer.
Special thanks to MMA-Core, IronForgesIron, mmaGIF, UpstandingCitizens.com, Tapology, Large Midget and The Forum Assholes, and GIF ninjas everywhere.
Kneeing a grounded opponent
No ground and pound attack showcases a fighter’s grappling dominance (or perhaps his opponent’s unwillingness to fight) more decisively than a dozen unanswered knees to the kidney. While knees on the ground have become more rare since the demise of Pride rules, you can still spot them occasionally.
Pride never die. Because “Pride Never Stop Pissing Blood” just sounds weird.
Oh yeah, GSP *did* have a stoppage victory celebration. Forgot about that.
Shogun decides pretty quickly that absorbing knees on the ground is a bad idea.
Some selected highlights from our friends around the MMA blogosphere. E-mail [email protected] for details on how your site can join the MMA Link Club…
– ‘Rampage’ Jackson’s Toughest Role? Convincing Us He Still Wants to Fight (MMA Fighting)
– Five Fights You Shouldn’t Miss at UFC 130 (LowKick)
– MTV Is Planning a New MMA Reality Show in the Vein of a ‘Redneck Jersey Shore’ (MiddleEasy)
– Eddie Wineland vs. Joseph Benavidez Booked for ‘UFC Live 5’ in August (Five Ounces of Pain)
– Antonio McKee Thinks He May Have Been Cut by UFC Because He ‘Rubbed Joe Silva the Wrong Way’ (MMA Mania)
– UFC 129 ‘St. Pierre vs. Shields’ Did Really Big Business (MMA Convert)
– Zoila & Jorge Gurgel talk MMA & Marriage (TheFightNerd)
– ‘Strikeforce Challengers’ Headed to Las Vegas (NBC Sports MMA)
Some selected highlights from our friends around the MMA blogosphere. E-mail [email protected] for details on how your site can join the MMA Link Club…
– ‘Rampage’ Jackson’s Toughest Role? Convincing Us He Still Wants to Fight (MMA Fighting)
– Five Fights You Shouldn’t Miss at UFC 130 (LowKick)
– MTV Is Planning a New MMA Reality Show in the Vein of a ‘Redneck Jersey Shore’ (MiddleEasy)
– Eddie Wineland vs. Joseph Benavidez Booked for ‘UFC Live 5′ in August (Five Ounces of Pain)
– Antonio McKee Thinks He May Have Been Cut by UFC Because He ‘Rubbed Joe Silva the Wrong Way’ (MMA Mania)
– UFC 129 ‘St. Pierre vs. Shields’ Did Really Big Business (MMA Convert)
– Zoila & Jorge Gurgel talk MMA & Marriage (TheFightNerd)
– ‘Strikeforce Challengers’ Headed to Las Vegas (NBC Sports MMA)
While making promotional appearances at the MMA Expo and MMA Live show in London, Ontario, UFC light-heavyweight champion Jon ‘Bones’ Jones took the time for an interview. [Ed. note: We’ll be posting the video later.] Speaking on a number of subjects, off-camera, the question of the authenticity of a recent racially-charged insult from Rashad Evans came up.
I took this photo of Jones’s smartphone (blacking out Evans’s number), which contradicts Rashad Evans’ earlier denial where he wrote, “Let me just state 4 the record I never made a racist statement 2 Jones. Jones creditability [sic] is gone with his fake surgery.”
Currently, Rashad Evans is expected to face Phil Davis at UFC 133; original opponent Jon Jones pulled out of the bout, citing a hand injury. Jones’s next opponent is undetermined.
UPDATE: Yes, this is real. I texted the number in the photo, asking for an interview with Rashad Evans, and Evans texted me back the info for his publicist, Jennifer Wenk. Evans is busy training, but Wenk mentioned that he would tell the entire story on ‘Inside MMA’ Friday evening. [Ed. note: Evans discussed his recent nightclub encounter with Jones, but we’re not sure if he talked about the text message. Anybody DVR the episode?] Jones also confirmed himself that the image was taken from his phone.
By Brian J. D’Souza
While making promotional appearances at the MMA Expo and MMA Live show in London, Ontario, UFC light-heavyweight champion Jon ‘Bones’ Jones took the time for an interview. [Ed. note: We’ll be posting the video later.] Speaking on a number of subjects, off-camera, the question of the authenticity of a recent racially-charged insult from Rashad Evans came up.
I took this photo of Jones’s smartphone (blacking out Evans’s number), which contradicts Rashad Evans’ earlier denial where he wrote, “Let me just state 4 the record I never made a racist statement 2 Jones. Jones creditability [sic] is gone with his fake surgery.”
Currently, Rashad Evans is expected to face Phil Davis at UFC 133; original opponent Jon Jones pulled out of the bout, citing a hand injury. Jones’s next opponent is undetermined.
UPDATE: Yes, this is real. I texted the number in the photo, asking for an interview with Rashad Evans, and Evans texted me back the info for his publicist, Jennifer Wenk. Evans is busy training, but Wenk mentioned that he would tell the entire story on ‘Inside MMA’ Friday evening. [Ed. note: Evans discussed his recent nightclub encounter with Jones, but we’re not sure if he talked about the text message. Anybody DVR the episode?] Jones also confirmed himself that the image was taken from his phone.
(The UFC Fighter Summit has a storybook ending. Congrats, Janitor.)
Some selected highlights from our friends around the MMA blogosphere. E-mail [email protected] for details on how your site can join the MMA Link Club…
– BJ Penn and Jake Shields Want to Fight Each Other (LowKick)
– Shane Carwin’s Cardio Under Microscope at UFC 131 (NBC Sports MMA)
– Rashad Evans Explains His Nightclub Altercation With Jon Jones; Insists ‘Bones’ Ducked Him (MMA Mania)
– Mac Danzig Out of Next Month’s Anticipated Clash With Donald Cerrone, Vagner Rocha to Replace (Five Ounces of Pain)
– Matt Mitrione: If Ortiz Is Still Upset After Confrontation, ‘Then We Can Scrap’ (MMA Fighting)
– Your Favorite Hooters Girl to Serve Ring Cards at ‘UFC 132: Cruz vs. Faber II’ (5thRound)
– This Will Be the Strangest Seven-Second Knockout You Will See This Year (MiddleEasy)
– Mark Coleman ‘Would Drop Everything’ To Fight Herschel Walker (MMA Convert)
– Video: Hector Lombard Gets Pissed at Reporter After Bellator 44 (TheFightNerd)
(The UFC Fighter Summit has a storybook ending. Congrats, Janitor.)
Some selected highlights from our friends around the MMA blogosphere. E-mail [email protected] for details on how your site can join the MMA Link Club…
– BJ Penn and Jake Shields Want to Fight Each Other (LowKick)
– Shane Carwin’s Cardio Under Microscope at UFC 131 (NBC Sports MMA)
– Rashad Evans Explains His Nightclub Altercation With Jon Jones; Insists ‘Bones’ Ducked Him (MMA Mania)
– Mac Danzig Out of Next Month’s Anticipated Clash With Donald Cerrone, Vagner Rocha to Replace (Five Ounces of Pain)
– Matt Mitrione: If Ortiz Is Still Upset After Confrontation, ‘Then We Can Scrap’ (MMA Fighting)
– Your Favorite Hooters Girl to Serve Ring Cards at ‘UFC 132: Cruz vs. Faber II’ (5thRound)
– This Will Be the Strangest Seven-Second Knockout You Will See This Year (MiddleEasy)
– Mark Coleman ‘Would Drop Everything’ To Fight Herschel Walker (MMA Convert)
– Video: Hector Lombard Gets Pissed at Reporter After Bellator 44 (TheFightNerd)
