Tag: MMA

Brock Lesnar, Jon Jones, Edgar & Maynard: How Losing Them Impacts UFC PPV Buys

The UFC has recently run into a string of bad luck, losing their next two pay-per-view card’s main events due to injury and illness.First, Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard were both injured while training for their UFC 130 main event. Neither fighter wil…

The UFC has recently run into a string of bad luck, losing their next two pay-per-view card’s main events due to injury and illness.

First, Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard were both injured while training for their UFC 130 main event. Neither fighter will be able to compete on the May 28 card, as Edgar has back issues while Maynard has sustained a knee injury.

Due to the short notice, the new main event of UFC 130 will be Quinton “Rampage” Jackson vs. Matt Hamill.

On Thursday, the promotion revealed that Brock Lesnar would be forced out of his UFC 131 main event battle with Junior dos Santos due to a recurrence of the diverticulitis that forced him out of action for a year, earlier in his career.

The UFC moved fast, replacing Lesnar with Shane Carwin, who was already scheduled to fight on the June 11 card with his original opponent being Jon Olav Einemo.

Jon Jones is another fighter whose loss will be felt by the UFC in 2011. Jones was set to face his former friend and training partner Rashad Evans when a hand injury forced him out of that fight.

At the time Jones withdrew from the fight, there was no official date or location for the Jones versus Evans match up, but they hype for that fight had been building even before Jones defeated “Shogun” Rua for the UFC light heavyweight championship in March.

Phil Davis has been booked in Jones’ place and he will face Evans at UFC 133, which will take place on Aug. 6.

Bleacher Report takes a look at how the injuries and illness could impact the pay-per-view buys for these upcoming events.

All UFC PPV numbers provided by MMAPayout.com Blue Book.

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Brock Lesnar, Jon Jones, Edgar & Maynard: How Losing Them Impacts UFC PPV Buys

The UFC has recently run into a string of bad luck, losing their next two pay-per-view card’s main events due to injury and illness.First, Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard were both injured while training for their UFC 130 main event. Neither fighter wil…

The UFC has recently run into a string of bad luck, losing their next two pay-per-view card’s main events due to injury and illness.

First, Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard were both injured while training for their UFC 130 main event. Neither fighter will be able to compete on the May 28 card, as Edgar has back issues while Maynard has sustained a knee injury.

Due to the short notice, the new main event of UFC 130 will be Quinton “Rampage” Jackson vs. Matt Hamill.

On Thursday, the promotion revealed that Brock Lesnar would be forced out of his UFC 131 main event battle with Junior dos Santos due to a recurrence of the diverticulitis that forced him out of action for a year, earlier in his career.

The UFC moved fast, replacing Lesnar with Shane Carwin, who was already scheduled to fight on the June 11 card with his original opponent being Jon Olav Einemo.

Jon Jones is another fighter whose loss will be felt by the UFC in 2011. Jones was set to face his former friend and training partner Rashad Evans when a hand injury forced him out of that fight.

At the time Jones withdrew from the fight, there was no official date or location for the Jones versus Evans match up, but they hype for that fight had been building even before Jones defeated “Shogun” Rua for the UFC light heavyweight championship in March.

Phil Davis has been booked in Jones’ place and he will face Evans at UFC 133, which will take place on Aug. 6.

Bleacher Report takes a look at how the injuries and illness could impact the pay-per-view buys for these upcoming events.

All UFC PPV numbers provided by MMAPayout.com Blue Book.

Begin Slideshow

MMA Link Club: Jon Jones, Rashad Evans, Chael Sonnen, UFC 131 and More

Ryan Bader Makes a Funny on Cain Velasquez’s UFC Summit Satisfaction Survey (Middle Easy).Chael Sonnen’s Struggle With the Truth Isn’t Just His Problem—It’s Ours, Too (MMAFighting).Jon Jones and Rashad Evans Nearly Came to Blows in a Vegas Club T…

Ryan Bader Makes a Funny on Cain Velasquez’s UFC Summit Satisfaction Survey (Middle Easy).

Chael Sonnen’s Struggle With the Truth Isn’t Just His Problem—It’s Ours, Too (MMAFighting).

Jon Jones and Rashad Evans Nearly Came to Blows in a Vegas Club This Week (Cage Potato).

Pablo Garza reflects on path leading him to spectacular submission (Five Ounces of Pain).

Fabricio Werdum: I’m going to win the Strikeforce Tournament, then beat the UFC Champion (LowKick).

UFC 131: Junior dos Santos Cares More About When He Fights Than Who He Fights (MMA Convert).

Shane Carwin: I Have Everything to Gain From Fighting Junior Dos Santos (5th Round).

Dan Gable on Randy Couture’s retirement and wrestling in MMA (The Fight Nerd).

Management Breakup Splits Jon Jones, Rashad Evans (NBC Sports).

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Chuck Liddell, BJ Penn to Attend UFC Gym Grand Opening in Corona, CA

This Saturday, May 14th, the UFC will be opening a gym in Corona, CA.Several UFC vets will be in attendance for the grand opening, including Chuck Liddell, BJ Penn, and Urijah Faber.According to the UFC:”The day-long festivities will be action-packed a…

This Saturday, May 14th, the UFC will be opening a gym in Corona, CA.

Several UFC vets will be in attendance for the grand opening, including Chuck Liddell, BJ Penn, and Urijah Faber.

According to the UFC:

“The day-long festivities will be action-packed and feature autograph signings and Q&A sessions with some of the biggest names in the UFC. In addition, there will be exciting activities, including class demonstrations and participation from local vendors and partners such as the U.S. Marine Corps.”

The full list of UFC veterans who will be in attendance will be:

  • UFC Hall of Famer, Chuck Liddell
  • BJ Penn
  • Urijah Faber
  • Phil Davis
  • Leonard Garcia
  • Donald Cerrone

 

As well as Best of Pride host Kenda Perez and UFC Octagon Girl Arianny Celeste.

You can find the full schedule here.

 

I’ll be on-site covering the event and giving interviews for FindMMAGym.com.

While there, I plan on also live updating on B/R recaps of the day’s events, as well as some important (or memorable) quotes these guys give.

At the bottom of this article, leave some questions you have for any of these guys, and if/when I get the opportunity to talk with them, I’ll be sure to ask some of the good ones and share the replies with you all.

Keep in mind, I’m only going to ask reasonable and appropriate questions.

Look forward to some pictures and hopefully video as well.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

UFC News: Rashad Evans Doubting Jon Jones’ Injury, Focused on Phil Davis

The war of words between former training partners, Rashad Evans and Jon Jones, continues to intensify. With recent reports of Jones opting out of surgery to fix a torn ligament in his right hand, the former UFC light heavyweight champion seems qui…

The war of words between former training partners, Rashad Evans and Jon Jones, continues to intensify. 

With recent reports of Jones opting out of surgery to fix a torn ligament in his right hand, the former UFC light heavyweight champion seems quite confused regarding the 23-year-old’s actions.

In fact, Evans believes that Jones is faking his injury in order to avoid fighting him. 

“It’s obvious he doesn’t want to fight,” Evans told MMAJunkie.com.

“Because if you don’t need surgery and you’re not going to have it, then why tell the UFC that you’re going to have surgery and not have it?”

Both competitors were scheduled to meet at UFC 133, but Jones sustained an injury and was forced to withdraw. Jones was scheduled for surgery, but after being evaluated by a specialist, it was declared that the surgery was not necessary. As a result, Jones plans to make a return to the Octagon by late summer or early fall. 

The situation has irritated Evans so much, that the two former friends nearly came to blows after Evans confronted Jones at a nightclub last week in Las Vegas. According to Evans, nothing escalated but they did share a private conversation afterwards.

“He pulled me over, and he’s like, ‘I just want to tell you right now—I’m going to destroy you,'” Evans said.  “‘You’re going to be my first knockout highlight.’

“I’m looking at him in disbelief like, is this dude serious?,” he continued. “So I was like, ‘Okay, you are. Then why didn’t you take the fight?'”

Nevertheless, Evans will now have to turn his attention on Jones’ replacement, Phil Davis. Evans said he has already begun preparations for Davis, for a chance to earn a shot at Jones.

Evans looks at his rivalry with Jones as nothing more than a distraction. 

“I even hate the fact that I’ve got to talk about Jon Jones because I’ve got a great fighter in front of me,” he said.

“I’m coming back from injury and I need to go out there and have a good fight. So that’s my main focus.”

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

UFC 130 Fight Card: Is Matt Hamill In Over His Head Against Rampage Jackson?

Matt Hamill could be on the brink of becoming a light heavyweight contender. After losing a close split decision to Michael Bisping and a TKO loss to former middleweight champion Rich Franklin, Hamill has won five straight.This includes wins over middl…

Matt Hamill could be on the brink of becoming a light heavyweight contender.

After losing a close split decision to Michael Bisping and a TKO loss to former middleweight champion Rich Franklin, Hamill has won five straight.

This includes wins over middleweight up and comer Mark Munoz, tough fighter Keith Jardine, former UFC light heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz, and current champion Jon Jones.

Hamill’s fight with Jones was his to lose until Jones made the mistake of throwing down illegal elbows.No one likes to win or lose by disqualification, but unfortunately it happens.

I’m sure Matt Hamill would love another shot at Jones, but in order to do that he’ll have to take some big name fights.

In comes the opportunity of a lifetime to take on Quinton “Rampage” Jackson at UFC 130.

Rampage is one of the best UFC fighters today.The former champion has KO victories over Chuck Liddell, Wanderlei Silva and a memorable KO slam over Ricardo Arona.

Besides the Jones fight, this will be Hamill’s biggest test.Not only does Hamill risk being knocked out, he’s also taking this fight on short notice.

It will also be the first PPV fight that Hamill headlines, thanks to the original main event getting canceled.

When this fight was first announced, some fans thought Hamill would not stand a chance.Style wise, the fight may favor Rampage. His good boxing and great defense (besides leg kicks), is tough for anybody.

I believe this is a fight Hamill had to take though.

If he wants to make a serious push for a title, he’ll have to take on the top guys in the division.

Although Rampage is still considered one of the top light heavyweights in the world, his career has been on somewhat of a decline.

Despite going 9-2 in his last 11 fights, he has not had a KO victory since 2008. His last fight against Lyoto Machida could have easily gone the other way.

Jackson’s motivation for fighting has also been brought into question time and time again over that span of fights.

Hamill has everything to gain and nothing to lose in this fight.

This is MMA. Any fighter can beat any other one, if it’s their time.

Rampage is tough, but Hamill may prove he wants it more.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com