Finally! UFC Set to Introduce Five Round Non-Title Fights

So far 2011 has continued to build on 2010 for MMA fans; there’s been a ton of great fights put together, the UFC finally introduced the bantamweight and featherweight divisions, and from a pure fan’s perspective, Zuffa’s acquisition of Strikeforce should produce even more great tilts. Yes, we’ve all been…gaining…(we’d use ‘winning’ if not for […]

penn fitch

So far 2011 has continued to build on 2010 for MMA fans; there’s been a ton of great fights put together, the UFC finally introduced the bantamweight and featherweight divisions, and from a pure fan’s perspective, Zuffa’s acquisition of Strikeforce should produce even more great tilts. Yes, we’ve all been…gaining…(we’d use ‘winning’ if not for the nauseating overuse of the term lately)

Well, at this week’s pre UFC 129 festivities (another card that is cause for celebration), Dana White has apparently announced that five round, non-title fights are headed to the UFC. Yup, that’s right, and after you’re finished shouting ‘eff yeah’, finish it off with an ‘it’s about effin time.’ Apparently one of the deciding factors in this decision was the recent draw between BJ Penn and Jon Fitch, which if there ever was an example of the need for two more rounds, there it was.  MMA Fighting quoted the boss man saying:

“I hate draws worse than anything,” White said…”You sit there and watch a game for hours and nobody wins?” he said. “I don’t get it. That’s one thing I hate about fights, too. Draws suck.”

Yes, yes they do. The story also states that the UFC had looked at making the upcoming Brock Lesnar, Junior Dos Santos a five rounder, but eventually decided against it, as both men had already begun their preparations. Too bad, but we appreciate the UFC acknowledging that the fight should have two extra frames, and even more importantly, taking action to remove another item from our bitch list.

You’re running out of time to get some bets down on UFC 129….

TUF Veteran Vinny Magalhaes Wins M-1 Title

In ‘where are they now’ news, former season eight, “Ultimate Fighter” competitor Vinny Magalhaes won M-1’s light-heavyweight championship today in St. Petersburg, Russia. If you didn’t watch TUF 8, or aren’t on a MMA diet that includes anything non Octagon related, Magalhaes is a jiu-jitsu demi-god who has been on a bit of a tear […]

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In ‘where are they now’ news, former season eight, “Ultimate Fighter” competitor Vinny Magalhaes won M-1’s light-heavyweight championship today in St. Petersburg, Russia. If you didn’t watch TUF 8, or aren’t on a MMA diet that includes anything non Octagon related, Magalhaes is a jiu-jitsu demi-god who has been on a bit of a tear since exiting from the UFC in 2009.

Today, Magalhaes took on Viktor Nemkov, who despite pushing the Vegas fighter to his limit for a couple of rounds, eventually got caught with a ‘holy eff’ gogoplata, neck crank from the mount. Magalhaes has now won four straight. Look for Magalhaes to appear on another Showtime card real soon…

Lorenzo Fertitta Working on Hendo vs. Fedor

After Zuffa purchased Strikeforce during its most recent game of MMA Monopoly (it was right beside the WFA, two spots before Free Parking), one of the more discussed topics was what would go down with Fedor Emelianenko and M-1 Global. If you’re new to the sport, then you might not know that UFC boss man […]

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After Zuffa purchased Strikeforce during its most recent game of MMA Monopoly (it was right beside the WFA, two spots before Free Parking), one of the more discussed topics was what would go down with Fedor Emelianenko and M-1 Global. If you’re new to the sport, then you might not know that UFC boss man Dana White and the Russian star’s management aren’t exactly bestest buddies .

Of course, Fedor hasn’t exactly been bolstering his bargaining position by losing back-to-back fights to Fabricio Werdum and Antonio Silva, but despite his recent setbacks, people are still keen to see him tussle. For example, when reports surfaced stating Strikeforce was trying to put together a fight between Dan Henderson and Fedor, we, like many others, were pretty damn happy. Well, the good news is that Zuffa apparently is going to do their part to git r done as well. White reported this week at the UFC 129 pre-fight festivities (thanks to MMA Junkie for the quote) :

“Lorenzo’s working on it,” White said Thursday. “Me getting anywhere near that thing? You’ll never see that fight.”… “I’ve been out of it,” White added.  “Me involved in that situation would only make matters worse. The great thing about this company and the way we do things – there’s a lot of people I butt heads with. Lorenzo can handle it, and then I can handle stuff. (UFC matchmaker) Joe Silva handles stuff.”

Yes, feel free to wipe your forehead, as it’s looking more and more like this bout will happen. Speaking of UFC 129, to bet on any of the fights head here.

Mark Hominick Doesn’t Necessarily Expect Striking War With Jose Aldo

With all the understandable UFC 129 hoopla surrounding what could be Randy “The Natural” Couture’s last fight ever (cue single tear), and of course the main event tilt between GSP and Jake Shields, this Saturday’s featherweight bout between champion Jose Aldo and Mark Hominick has gotten lost in the shuffle a little bit no? This may also have […]

Mark-Hominick

With all the understandable UFC 129 hoopla surrounding what could be Randy “The Natural” Couture’s last fight ever (cue single tear), and of course the main event tilt between GSP and Jake Shields, this Saturday’s featherweight bout between champion Jose Aldo and Mark Hominick has gotten lost in the shuffle a little bit no? This may also have something to do with the fact that too many ‘UFC only’ fans have never seen  Aldo fight, which could be a rant for another day.

If you have seen Aldo throw down, then you know that the guy is a serious, serious badass, who is one of the sport’s more entertaining finishers. As for Hominick? Well, he isn’t nicknamed “The Machine” because he moonlights as a mechanic; the guy has reedonkously good, technical stand-up, amazing conditioning, and has also been known to floor an opponent or two with his fists. In other words, their title fight will be an epic, striking war right? Not necessarily says Mr. Hominick. (Thanks to MMA Weekly for the quote).

“We’ve got to look at it, Jose’s a world champion in jiu-jitsu, so if we’re treating this like a kickboxing fight, we’re in the wrong sport. We’re ready everywhere,” Hominick commented…“Everybody’s talking about the stand-up just because that’s where we’ve won a lot of our fights. You wouldn’t be surprised to see either of us shooting for a takedown, and mixing it up. This is MMA and it’s for the world title. You have to be ready for everything.”

Yes, this is true, but either way we’re hoping to be out of our minds with excitement during the tilt. To bet on the bout, or any others at UFC 129, head here.

Chuck Liddell is Picking Jake Shields Over GSP

Yesterday we discussed the fact that not only is the name Jake Shields still relatively new to a lot of ‘ultimate fighting’ fans, and thus, he’s not widely expected to dethrone Georges St. Pierre, many of the sport’s more ardent observers don’t expect the submission wiz to win either. Case in point? Just shift your […]

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Yesterday we discussed the fact that not only is the name Jake Shields still relatively new to a lot of ‘ultimate fighting’ fans, and thus, he’s not widely expected to dethrone Georges St. Pierre, many of the sport’s more ardent observers don’t expect the submission wiz to win either. Case in point? Just shift your eyeballs to the right of your screen right now and take a peek at the betting lines we have up…The mighty GSP is the favorite and then some.

So, who is picking Shields to win? Well, a certain ex-light-heavyweight champ named Chuck Liddell is just one example. Now, keep in mind that Liddell and Shields go way back and that the former Strikeforce champ used to train with “The Iceman,” so either bias is raising its ugly head here, Liddell is making an informed assessment, or, yeah, maybe it’s a bit of both ….Speaking to MMA Fighting, here’s what Liddell had to say about the upcoming UFC 129 main event.

“I’m siding with Jake,” Liddell said. “Jake’s going to have to take him down. I’m expecting him to be in great shape for the fight. He’ll be in great shape for GSP. But yeah, I expect him to take him down and finish him.”

Now if Chuck had predicted Shields to win via highlight reel head kick or something similar, it’s likely the word ‘biased’ would be getting muttered repeatedly right about now. Will Shields, in fact, be able to take down a dude who had few issues countering renowned wrestlers like Josh Koscheck and Jon Fitch? Guess we’ll find out Saturday.

To bet a little dough on this weekend’s action head here.

Georges St. Pierre Not Worried About Pressure in Fight With Jake Shields

We’re just a few days removed from UFC 129, and if you’re not excited about this Saturday’s event, you should probably keep that to yourself. After all, April 30th will feature not one, but two title fights, likely Randy Couture’s last fight ever, and…50,000 or so Canadian fans. Have you ever seen a hockey riot? […]

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We’re just a few days removed from UFC 129, and if you’re not excited about this Saturday’s event, you should probably keep that to yourself. After all, April 30th will feature not one, but two title fights, likely Randy Couture’s last fight ever, and…50,000 or so Canadian fans. Have you ever seen a hockey riot? There are some passionate sports fans in the Great White North.

Of course, the main event will feature welterweight champ Georges St. Pierre throwing down with Jake Shields. While avid observers of the sport understand that the former Strikeforce champ could pose a threat to GSP on the ground, a lot of mainstream fans aren’t really sure if they’ve even seen Shields fight, much less think he’s going to push St.Pierre. ‘Yeah dude, he fought that Martin Kampmann guy, and almost, well kinda lost, remember?’

In contrast, St. Pierre has consistently been saying that Shields is his toughest test to date, and with that in mind then, is he feeling the pressure come over him like a wet, soggy blanket? Yes, yes he is. Is that a bad thing? Non, non, it’s not. (Thanks to MMA Weekly for the quote).

“Let’s say I would fight Jake in a basement when nobody is watching, maybe the pressure would not have been that bad. Sometimes it’s having the people around and the entourage that makes it worse. But on the other side, I perform better when I’m under pressure,” St-Pierre stated.

Well, considering there’s going to be a few million people watching this fight, there’s probably going to be just a wee bit of pressure there… Saturday can’t get here soon enough. To bet on the bout head here.