Tag: MMA Gambling

Well rested from what will end up being an eight-month break from
competition, UFC lightweight contender Roger Huerta is poised for his
return to the organization and an upcoming August fight.

Huerta discussed his past success and future plans, which include
training time with Georges St. Pierre and Nate Marquardt, while a
recent guest on TAGG Radio, a content partner site
of MMAjunkie.com.

Huerta, who most recently defeated Clay Guida with a come-from-behind
victory at The Ultimate Fighter 6 Finale, next meets Kenny Florian at
UFC 87.

He’s made steady progress since a Jan. 15 shoulder surgery, but Josh
Thomson (14-2) knows he’ll need to be near 100 percent when he takes on
Gilbert Melendez (14-1), an opponent he’s dubbed “mini Fedor.”

The two fighters will put their belts on the line — Melendez’s
Strikeforce world lightweight title and Thomson’s Strikeforce U.S. belt
— when they meet in the main event of a June 27 Strikeforce event.

Thomson discussed the bout while a recent guest on TAGG Radio, a content partner of MMAjunkie.com.

Interim UFC heavyweight champion Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and former
title-holder Frank Mir will serve as coaches on the eighth season of
“The Ultimate Fighter,” which debuts Sept. 17 on Spike TV.

Spike TV made the announcement on Monday.

The two fighters will not compete again until a tentatively scheduled
pay-per-view match-up that will take place after the season is finished
airing in December.

The American Fight League has announced its full card for May 30’s
“AFL: BULLETPROOF,” the first-ever mixed martial arts event to take
place at the Phillips Arena in Atlanta.

Three titles will be on the line as AFL lightweight champ Diego Saraiva
meets challenger Josh Cate, and AFL welterweight title-holder Douglas
Lima takes on Brent Weedman.

Additionally, George Lockhart and George Allen meet for the AFL’s
first-ever AFL middleweight title, and UFC veteran Dan Christison takes
on Sam Holloway.

Not only are EliteXC officials considering the creation of championship
belts for its growing stable of female fighters, but they’re also
planning to host a women’s-only show that could take place next year.

EliteXC Live Events President Gary Shaw reaffirmed his company’s
dedication to female MMA during today’s media conference call with Gina
Carano (5-0) and Kaitlin Young (4-1), who fight May 31 during the debut
EliteXC-CBS event.

In fact, the first women’s belt will likely be at 140 lbs., and the
winner of the the upcoming Carano vs. Young bout could earn the right
to fight for the title in the fall.

It was a big night for the American contingent at the third card put on
by the Japanese DREAM promotion, with Eddie Alvarez, Nick Diaz and
Jason “Mayhem” Miller all scoring impressive wins Sunday before an
announced crowd of 21,789 at the Saitama Super Arena.

The idea behind DREAM was to give the Japanese audience the new version
of PRIDE, the popular promotion that collapsed due to a Yakuza scandal
that cost the company its network television contract.

The card, which aired live in the U.S. on HDNet, had a lot of the PRIDE
feel, with the same type of entrances, and the trademark 10-minute
first round and five-minute second. The ring looks similar, and most of
the shows are held in PRIDE’s former home base in Saitama, a city just
outside Tokyo.