Tag: MMA

Muhammad Lawal: King Mo Talks Positive Steroid Test, Says "I’m Not a Cheater"

Muhammad “King Mo” Lawal may have tested positive for steroids after his fight with Lorenz Larkin, but he isn’t admitting to it. In an article with ESPN Lawal states that he was surprised to find out he had a prohibited substance in his system.&nb…

Muhammad “King Mo” Lawal may have tested positive for steroids after his fight with Lorenz Larkin, but he isn’t admitting to it. 

In an article with ESPN Lawal states that he was surprised to find out he had a prohibited substance in his system.  Most fans take cheating in MMA very seriously and many are skeptics when it comes to those who try and clear their names.

It is hard to believe a grown man of 31 didn’t know what he was putting into his body for the upcoming fight.  This is Lawal’s job and he is paid to be a professional.  

There are plenty of other professionals who fall short in other fields as well, but when they do, they rarely get a serious assignment or part of their career stricken from the record and their pay taken away.

Most don’t get banned from their field of work for a certain time either.  That isn’t to say such punishments don’t happen, but it is something that is special to sports.

Lawal promised to get to the bottom of what happened, but there is a better chance that he is trying to save face.

Fighters are under immense pressure to always perform well and King Mo is a central draw in the depleted Strikeforce roster.

No one is perfect and this is Lawal’s first offense, so hopefully the commission won’t punish him too hard.

Lawal made a mistake.  Even if he did somehow miss a substance being introduced into his regimen the fault falls on his shoulders.  As long as he steps up and admits it he should be able to turn his career around and repair the damage to his name.

Matthew Hemphill writes for the boxing, MMA, and professional wrestling portion of Bleacher Report. He also hosts a blog elbaexiled.blogspot.com which focuses on books, music, comic books, video games, film, and generally anything that could be related to the realms of nerdom.

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UFC 145 in Montreal Officially Canceled, Showing the Company Has a Ways to Go

The UFC has had to officially call off UFC 145, which was supposed to take place in Montreal.  In an article by the Winnipeg Free Press, the UFC head of the Canadian division, Tom Wright, admitted it was because the card lacked championship-level …

The UFC has had to officially call off UFC 145, which was supposed to take place in Montreal.  In an article by the Winnipeg Free Press, the UFC head of the Canadian division, Tom Wright, admitted it was because the card lacked championship-level quality.

This isn’t a devastating blow for the UFC.  Montreal is a great fight town and when the company returns, they will generate a lot of revenue and interest.

It does tell fans something about the company itself.  Namely that the UFC has been spreading their talent and names a bit thin in the past few years and that, without fighters like Georges St-Pierre to put at the top of the card, the projected income wasn’t worth the venture.

The card had already had fights announced for it, but not a main event.  Without a marquee headline, the card wouldn’t do as well.

It was a smart business decision by the UFC to cut losses, but it shows that for all their expansion, they are having trouble finding enough talent to help sell events.

The UFC doesn’t necessarily need to sell a main event with a Canadian in it, though, it helps.  They have done it before when Lyoto Machida and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua fought for the light heavyweight title at UFC 113.

The fact that no serious, top-level talent would be available for the event could take the UFC in several directions.  

They could shrug their shoulders and continue to surge forward.

They could choose to slow down the growth of their company.

Or in a final step, they could choose to try and acquire more talent.  The best way to do this would be to axe more divisions or fighters from Strikeforce.

The first two won’t happen and the last one isn’t likely with Strikeforce and Showtime moving forward to promote more fights in 2012, but moments like these will help shape the future of the company and help make decisions on where they go.

Matthew Hemphill writes for the boxing, MMA and professional wrestling portion of Bleacher Report.  He also hosts a blog (elbaexiled.blogspot.com), which focuses on books, music, comic books, video games, film and generally anything that could be related to the realms of nerdom.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

UFC on Fox 2: Possible Last Minute Replacement to Face Demian Maia

On Tuesday, it was announced that Mark Munoz was forced out of his matchup against Chael Sonnen, and that Michael Bisping would be stepping up to face Sonnen.However, Bisping’s original opponent, Demian Maia, is now left in limbo.Maia was going to face…

On Tuesday, it was announced that Mark Munoz was forced out of his matchup against Chael Sonnen, and that Michael Bisping would be stepping up to face Sonnen.

However, Bisping’s original opponent, Demian Maia, is now left in limbo.

Maia was going to face Bisping, and then the winner of that was going to face the winner of Sonnen-Munoz-Anderson Silva.

Now, Maia needs an opponent to stay on the card.

There are several options for who Maia could fight, so let’s take a quick look at the potential opponents.

Fighters you can immediately rule out include Anderson Silva due to injury, Vitor Belfort due to an already agreed upon fight with Wanderlei Silva—who you can also rule out—Yushin Okami due to an already scheduled fight with Tim Boetsch, Brian Stann due to a scheduled fight with Alessio Sakara and Chris Leben due to a drug suspension.

There are plenty of lower level fighters who could step up to face Maia, but there are really only two solid contenders for Demian Maia to fight.

The first fighter is Alan Belcher. Belcher is 17-6, and is one of the most exciting fighters in the middleweight division. Belcher is on a three-fight win streak, and has faced guys such as Yushin Okami and Yoshihiro Akiyama.

The other option, and most preferable, would be Rousimar Palhares.

Palhares just fought at UFC 142, where he earned a first round submission victory over Mike Massenzio, and left the cage unscathed.

Palhares and Maia are two of the top jiu-jitsu fighters in MMA today, and a fight between these two would be an epic grappling battle.

If this fight happens, somebody would have a new limb to put on their mantle.

 

Tim McTiernan is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. For the latest news on everything MMA, follow me on twitter @TimMcTiernan.

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UFC on FX: Betting Odds and Predictions

In just a few short hours, the Ultimate Fighting Championship will look to continue their recent success when they present fans and viewers with UFC on FX.UFC on FX will take place at the jam-packed Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee, beginning…

In just a few short hours, the Ultimate Fighting Championship will look to continue their recent success when they present fans and viewers with UFC on FX.

UFC on FX will take place at the jam-packed Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee, beginning at 6:00 p.m. PT and 9:00 p.m. ET.

In the main event of the evening, heavy-hitting Melvin Guillard will look to bounce back from his previous defeat when he takes on rough-and-tough lightweight Jim Miller.

The main card consists of four action-packed fights that could help UFC on FX become a force on national television.

The following slides display betting odds and predictions for UFC on FX.

Begin Slideshow

UFC on FX: Power Ranking Every Main Card Bout

The debut of the UFC on FX is filled with three exciting fights and a main event that’s sure to bring fight fans to their feet. Melvin Guillard and Jim Miller will main event the free card, and both men are on a hunt to challenge Frankie Edgar fo…

The debut of the UFC on FX is filled with three exciting fights and a main event that’s sure to bring fight fans to their feet.

Melvin Guillard and Jim Miller will main event the free card, and both men are on a hunt to challenge Frankie Edgar for his lightweight championship, and considering that both of these great fighters are coming off of a loss, both fighters should go for broke.

That and the fact that Pat Barry is on the card is enough to bring excitement to every fight fan. These are the best fights on the card.

Begin Slideshow

Zuffa Institutes Pre-Contract Drug Screening for UFC and Strikeforce

Zuffa announced today that they will institute a new performance-enhancing drug (PED) screening policy for all potential fighters prior to signing their contracts with either the UFC or Strikeforce.The move is a landmark decision by Zuffa, the parent c…

Zuffa announced today that they will institute a new performance-enhancing drug (PED) screening policy for all potential fighters prior to signing their contracts with either the UFC or Strikeforce.

The move is a landmark decision by Zuffa, the parent company of both major mixed martial arts promotions, that will help in its commitment in keeping fighters who use PEDs out of the cage.

“We’re committed to the health and safety of our athletes and we take it very seriously,” UFC Chairman and CEO Lorenzo Fertitta said in a press release. “We already work closely with athletic commissions to protect our athletes and now we’re taking it one step further. We’re going to test any potential UFC or STRIKEFORCE fighter before finalizing their contract. This shows that we don’t want performance-enhancing drugs in our sport.”

The new policy will require that any prospective UFC or Strikeforce fighter must submit themselves to a drug test prior to the finalization of their contracts with either promotion. This policy was instituted on Jan. 1 of this year.

Any fighter currently under contract with the UFC or Strikeforce will continue to be tested under the jurisdiction of the various state athletic commissions in conjunction with the guidelines set out by Zuffa and its promotions.

“The health and safety of our athletes is our top priority,” UFC President Dana White said. “We’ve seen the issues performance-enhancing drugs have caused in other sports and we’re going to do everything we can to keep them out of the UFC and Strikeforce.” 

In recent weeks, two of Strikeforce’s most high profile fighters have been cited for violations. Strikeforce Women’s Featherweight champion Cris Santos was suspended a year for testing positive for steroids after her December bout and former champion Muhammed Lawal was revealed to have tested positive for steroids earlier today.

“Our athletes are already held to the highest testing standards in all sports by athletic commissions,” said White.  “Our new testing policy for performance-enhancing drugs only further shows how important it is to us to have our athletes competing on a level playing field.” 

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