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Nick Diaz Vs. KJ Noons Rematch Set For October 9 On Showtime.

NEW YORK (Sept. 21, 2010) – In anticipation of their must-see grudge rematch on Saturday, Oct. 9, SHOWTIME® will re-air the memorable first fight between Nick Diaz and KJ Noons as part of an hour-long, multi-fight highlight package on SHO 2 beginning Friday, Sept. 24, at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast). […]

The Diaz-Noons special, which features their original showdown along with three of Diaz’s past fights and three of Noons’ past fights, will also air on Tuesday, Sept. 28, at 10:10 p.m. ET/PT on SHO 2 immediately following an airing of Oscar-winning film The Hurt Locker. It will air again on Monday, Oct. 4, at 10 p.m. ET/PT on SHO2. The program will also be available On Demand beginning Sept. 24.

The first slugfest ended in bloody controversy when Noons won a disputed, first-round upset TKO over Diaz in a thrilling, give-and-take brawl, Nov. 7, 2007, on SHOWTIME. Both fighters have gone undefeated since their last meeting and bad blood between the brash fighters has only been growing.

Diaz-Noons II will be for Diaz’s STRIKEFORCE World Welterweight Title in the main event of a sensational fight card at HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif., which will also feature Sarah Kaufman defending her STRIKEFORCE Women’s Welterweight World Title against No. 1 contender Marloes Coenen.

The following Diaz and Noons fights, consisting of five knockouts and one submission, will also appear on the highlight video: Diaz vs. Thomas Denny (July 26, 2008), Diaz vs. Scott Smith (June 6, 2009), Diaz vs. Marius Zaromskis (Jan. 30, 2010), Noons vs. James Edson Berto (July 27, 2007), Noons vs. Yves Edwards (June 14, 2008) and Noons vs. Jorge Gurgel (Aug. 21, 2010).

About STRIKEFORCE
STRIKEFORCE (www.strikeforce.com) is a world-class mixed martial arts cage fight promotion which, on Friday, March 10, 2006, made history with its “Shamrock vs. Gracie” event, the first sanctioned mixed martial arts fight card in California state history. The star-studded extravaganza, which pitted legendary champion Frank Shamrock against Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Cesar Gracie at San Jose’s HP Pavilion, played host to a sold-out, record crowd of 18,265. Since 1995, STRIKEFORCE, sanctioned by ISKA, has been the exclusive provider of martial arts programming for ESPN and, after 12 years of success as a leading, world championship kickboxing promotion, the company unveiled its mixed martial arts (MMA) series with “Shamrock vs. Gracie.” In May 2008, West Coast Productions, the parent company of STRIKEFORCE, partnered with Silicon Valley Sports & Entertainment (SVS&E), an entity created in 2000 to oversee all business operation aspects of the San Jose Sharks and HP Pavilion at San Jose. In March 2009, STRIKEFORCE signed a multi-year agreement with SHOWTIME® to stage live events on the premium cable television network. The promotion has since also produced two live, primetime events on the CBS Television Network.

About Showtime Networks Inc.
Showtime Networks Inc. (SNI), a wholly-owned subsidiary of CBS Corporation, owns and operates the premium television networks SHOWTIME®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL™ and FLIX®, as well as the multiplex channels SHOWTIME 2™, SHOWTIME® SHOWCASE, SHOWTIME EXTREME®, SHOWTIME BEYOND®, SHOWTIME NEXT®, SHOWTIME WOMEN®, SHOWTIME FAMILY ZONE® and THE MOVIE CHANNEL™ XTRA. SNI also offers SHOWTIME HD™, SHOWTIME 2 HD™, THE MOVIE CHANNEL HD™, SHOWTIME ON DEMAND®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL ON DEMAND™ and FLIX ON DEMAND®. SNI also manages Smithsonian Channel™, a joint venture between SNI and the Smithsonian Institution. All SNI feeds provide enhanced sound using Dolby Digital 5.1. SNI markets and distributes sports and entertainment events for exhibition to subscribers on a pay-per-view basis through SHOWTIME PPV®.

BJ Penn Explains Why He’s Fighting Matt Hughes, Not Kenny Florian.

Former UFC lightweight champion BJ Penn is still very relevant in the overall division picture, but he’s taking on Matt Hughes at welterweight rather than fighting lightweight top contender Kenny “Kenflo” Florian. Many wondered if Penn was looking for a more likely win versus a tough battle, but that doesn’t seem to be the […]

“I talked to Dana, and they tried to put me in the ring with Florian, (and) Dana said Florian was hurt,” said Penn, who submitted Florian in 2009 to defend the belt. “[Dana] said, ‘What do you think about Hughes?’ I said, ‘Matt Hughes?’ I got chicken skin all over my body. I said, ‘Tell him I’m coming. Tell him, let’s go.’”

After suffering back-to-back defeats, Penn said he had more sense than to request a fight with a UFC Hall of Famer who fights at a heavier weight class – especially one who’s climbed back into title contention with a string of wins over Matt Serra, Renzo Gracie and Ricardo Almeida. But with the opportunity to fight again quickly, and with Hughes on board, he simply couldn’t pass it up.

“I’m more respectful than that to lose two fights in a row and say, ‘OK, give me Matt Hughes,’” Penn said. “They offered me that fight. Matt was really excited about the fight. Dana called me and said, ‘We offered Matt the fight. He’s going to put everything on hold to take the fight if you want it.’ And I said, ‘I’ve got nothing else better to do. Let’s do this.’

Penn doesn’t gain much with a win except for a paycheck, as most would expect him to return to the lightweight division and make another run at the title. With current champion Frankie Edgar next looking to take on Gray Maynard you could certainly see Penn still fighting Florian for rights to the next title shot. Still a matchup with Hughes does seem like something that fans want, and it should make for a very entertaining bout especially with Hughes recent ressurgence.

Belfort Vs. Okami Headlining UFC 122 In Germany Official.

London, England – The Ultimate Fighting Championship® organisation returns to Germany on November 13 when UFC 122 emanates from König-Pilsener-Arena in Oberhausen.
In the high-stakes main event, mixed martial arts legend Vitor ‘the Phenom’ Belfort will face Japanese powerhouse Yushin ‘Thunder’ Okami in a three-round contest to determine who will challenge for the UFC Middleweight […]

London, England – The Ultimate Fighting Championship® organisation returns to Germany on November 13 when UFC 122 emanates from König-Pilsener-Arena in Oberhausen.

In the high-stakes main event, mixed martial arts legend Vitor ‘the Phenom’ Belfort will face Japanese powerhouse Yushin ‘Thunder’ Okami in a three-round contest to determine who will challenge for the UFC Middleweight Championship in 2011.

UFC 122 is the first UFC event to take place in Germany since the world’s premier combat sports organisation made its mainland Europe debut in Cologne last June.

UFC Managing Director of International Development Marshall Zelaznik said: “We are glad to be coming back to Germany with UFC 122 and to reward our loyal UFC fans in Germany. Both Vitor Belfort and Yushin Okami are one win away from a shot at the UFC Middleweight Title and are coming to Germany with a great deal to win and lose. This is a sporting event with tremendous international significance, and we are delighted to have been able to bring this event to Oberhausen.”

Marek Lieberberg of MLK, the UFC’s promotional partner in Germany, said: “We are excited to bring the world’s most popular combat sport back to Germany, following our great event last summer. Mr Belfort and Mr Okami are two of the greatest martial artists in the world and this is an excellent main event attraction. Vitor holds a black belt in judo as well as jiu-jitsu and has competed as a professional boxer while Yushin is an outstanding martial artist in his own right.”

Tickets for UFC 122 are priced at €225, €145, €85, €65 and €45 and will be available on Monday, September 20 to UFC Fight Club members from Tuesday 21 to UFC and MLK Newsletter subscribers and to the general public from Wednesday 22 September. Tickets will be available from eventim.de, the arena box office and Bundesweite Ticket Hotline: 01805 – 570 000.

Please note tickets are only available to over 18s, and that ID will be checked at the arena on the night.

Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Vitor Belfort, 19-8 a career which began in 1996, has earned his reputation as one of the greats in his sport. The 33-year-old from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, has spent a decade and a half travelling the world and defeating a who’s who of mixed martial arts; ‘The Phenom’ holds wins over the likes of Tank Abbott, Wanderlei Silva, Kazushi Sakuraba, Randy Couture, and Matt Lindland, and he most recently stopped Rich Franklin in just three minutes.

Rightly considered a pioneer of MMA, Belfort believes he is also the future of the 185lbs middleweight division, and knows victory in Germany will put him in striking distance of becoming only the third man to ever win UFC world titles in two different weight divisions.

“It is a joy to go to other parts of the world and fight for fans there,” said Belfort. “I am here to regain my legacy as one of the best fighters in the world. I’ve accomplished so many things in my career, but I am always happy to be in the gym and working on getting better.

“The German fans will see a 100% performance from me against Okami. I am looking for the knockout, I always look for the knockout. I know Okami is the type of guy who can bang a little and also has that judo style, but I am on a mission to be the UFC Champion once again.”

Obe of the most feared fighters in the middleweight division since his UFC debut win over Alan Belcher four years ago, Kanagawa, Japan, native Yushin Okami, 26-5 in MMA, is finally in a position to force his way into title contention. ‘Thunder’ already holds victories over Mike Swick, Evan Tanner, Dean Lister and most recently Mark Munoz, and he knows a win over an icon like Belfort will cement his status at the top contender at 185lbs.

“I’m looking forward to the opportunity to fight a great like Vitor Belfort in the main event of a big card,” said Okami. “Vitor Belfort is still kind of my idol, so I am very excited. He will bring out the very best in me. Belfort is a great fighter but I feel I have certain advantages I can use in the fight. I will shock MMA fans around the world with my performance.”

Further bouts for UFC 122 will be announced shortly.

Belfort Out Due To Injury, Marquardt In Against Okami At UFC 122.

Word has come out via MMAWeekly.com that “The Phenom” Vitor Belfort has suffered another injury and will be sidelined from his UFC 122 fight against Yushin Okami. Nate Marquardt, who recently fought, has been tapped to replace him in the number one contenders bout. We’ll update this story as word come out. […]

Inteview With Akiyama And Coach Wink.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Yoshihiro Akiyama is ready for a tough fight against Michael Bisping at UFC 120: Bisping vs. Akiyama and will be looking to rebound from a tough loss to Chris Leben suffered at UFC 116: Lesnar Vs. Carwin. The fight headlines what some British fans have called an extremely lackluster card but what Dana White has called very compelling match making. In any case UFC 120 is set for October 16, 2010 at the O2 Arena in London, England and will also coincide with the first ever UK UFC Fan Expo.

Josh Barnett Still Down With Fighting Fedor Emelianenko.

Recent Strikeforce heavyweight acquisition Josh Barnett has long been known to be a close friend of Fedor Emelianenko, and both were slated at one time to fight each other under the ill-fated Affliction promotion. With Barnett testing positive for banned substances the fight, and the promotion went poof but Barnett is still thought of as one of the best heavyweight fighters out there. Currently riding a 6 fight win streak, Barnett still wants to fight Fedor and thinks that despite Fedor’s recent loss that the fight would be very compelling. Here’s the quote, via MMAWeekly Radio:

“At some point me and Fedor, I said to him, I go, ‘look, the only people that can beat you. I can beat you and you can beat me. If we actually have to lose, if there’s any reason we have to lose to anyone,’ and I preferred it be like that, but this is fighting and things happen. Fedor was careless with his offense and his movements and he got caught in a very bad spot by a guy who one of his specialties is the triangle off his back. When you put yourself in that kind of position with a guy like Werdum, it’s not by chance that you get put in a triangle or an armbar. People lose, and it doesn’t diminish anything in my eyes about Fedor or the importance of a fight between the two of us. I’m sure it will happen at some point, and it will be just as amazing, at least for me anyways, as it would have been.”

There’s still no word on who Barnett will face first, but a matchup with Fedor would be amazing to say the least. The MMA News will bring you the word as it comes down.