News of former Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem testing positive before his fight with UFC heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos has the entire MMA world talking, and HDnet’s Inside MMA tackled the controversial subject in their lates…
News of former Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem testing positive before his fight with UFC heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos has the entire MMA world talking, and HDnet’s Inside MMA tackled the controversial subject in their latest show, which can be watched in its entirety here.
The show’s guests for this week include UFC commentator Joe Rogan, Australian sports commentator Michael Schiavello and former UFC heavyweight champion Josh Barnett.
Everything from Overeem’s outrageous 14-to-1 testosterone levels and kids participating in mixed martial arts is discussed before Rogan and Barnett demonstrate some of their fighting skills on Bas Rutten.
“Obviously, something is going on,” Rogan said in regards to Overeem’s levels of testosterone. “If there is a logical explanation for it that we are not aware of, then he has his chance. He has his hearing, and you got to let the man talk. I don’t know what happened. I have no information other than what you guys have.”
“I got Alistair Overeem fans start tweeting me going, ‘oh, but you used yourself,’ Rutten said. “Never, ever, in my whole life. Bring a lie detector in. Let me test. It’s for losers. I can’t look myself in the mirror if I would.”
Schiavello took a different approach to the situation, declaring Overeem wasn’t technically cheating because he had been tested months before his fight. He also showed concern for Overeem being tested by an athletic commission that he was not licensed to fight under.
Barnett discussed his next fight versus Daniel Cormier, which will go down at Strikeforce 40 on May 19. UFC president Dana White hinted at a possible return for Barnett if he emerges victorious against the former Olympic and NCAA Division I wrestler.
On the rebound with a two-fight winning streak and with little left to prove, Fedor Emelianenko’s unassailable legacy as one of the greatest MMA fighters ever received another boost. No, it’s not another win inside the ring, as The Last Emp…
On the rebound with a two-fight winning streak and with little left to prove, Fedor Emelianenko’s unassailable legacy as one of the greatest MMA fighters ever received another boost.
No, it’s not another win inside the ring, as The Last Emperor’s next fight against a still-unnamed opponent is still two months away. Rather, it comes from Alistair Overeem’s failure of his drug test.
Just to refresh our memory on Overeem’s debacle, here are excerpts of Mike Whitman’s April 5, 2012 report on Sherdog.com:
Keith Kizer, Nevada Athletic Commission (NAC) executive director, told Sherdog.com on Thursday that Overeem’s testosterone to epitestosterone (T/E) ratio was 14-to-1, more than double the allowable 6-to-1 ratio. […]
The former Strikeforce heavyweight champion may request that his B-sample be tested, but Kizer told Sherdog that Overeem has not contacted the commission as of yet. […]
The Dutchman ran through Lesnar in that [UFC 141] bout…It is currently unknown if that result will be affected by Overeem’s recent positive test.
Last April 9, Overeem was reported to have applied for his fighting license in the State of Nevada, but he has still not requested the NAC to test his B-sample.
Mark Hunt, who is fast becoming a hot replacement prospect in place of Overeem in the fight versus Junior Dos Santos, has already stated that, “Everything that Alistair has done is meaningless now.”
And Hunt is definitely not alone aboard this punitive train of thought. But, allow me to humbly contribute in dousing, in my own little way, the fiery words and thoughts cast at Overeem.
Let us not forget that he may and can still request for the testing of his B-sample. And in case the results turn out clean when he does comply, he may still be absolved and allowed to fight Dos Santos.
Still, the court of public opinion is already irrevocably divided on the honesty and integrity of Overeem, and on all his accomplishments inside the ring.
Conversely, this same court should unanimously judge Emelianenko—with no evidence supporting the contrary—as a fighter who has achieved his greatness by dint of talent and honest hard work like any true sportsman concerned over his influence on the future generation of athletes should.
There has never been a better time for UFC President Dana White to bite the bullet and sign Fedor Emelianenko.Thanks to Alistair Overeem failing his pre-fight drug test for UFC 146, the promotion is scrambling to find a suitable replacement to step in …
There has never been a better time for UFC President Dana White to bite the bullet and sign Fedor Emelianenko.
Thanks to Alistair Overeem failing his pre-fight drug test for UFC 146, the promotion is scrambling to find a suitable replacement to step in against heavyweight champion Junior Dos Santos on May 26.
Dan Henderson and Mark Hunt appear to be the potential frontrunners for the title shot if Overeem is denied license from the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
Isn’t the sport about giving fans the fights they want to see?
Fans have been pleading for the UFC to sign Emelianenko for years. Unfortunately, M-1 Global has held up the process in the past with useless hopes of co-promoting with the UFC.
In a recent post on Twitter, UFC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta was asked if he would negotiate with Emelianenko and his management if they sought a contract without co-promotion.
Before getting cut from Strikeforce, Emelianenko was coming off three straight losses to Dan Henderson, Fabricio Werdum and Antonio Silva. He has since picked up a pair of wins over Jeff Monson and Satoshi Ishii.
Do wins over Monson and Ishii warrant a UFC title shot?
The answer to that question is a resounding no, but the UFC heavyweight division finds itself in an unusual situation. Every top-10 heavyweight is either already tied up with another fight or not ready to headline a major UFC pay-per-view.
Henderson is an interesting prospect, but considering the significant size advantage he’d be giving up to Dos Santos, it’s a bout that really doesn’t make any sense.
Hunt is probably the most deserving heavyweight. After enduring six straight losses, the former K-1 star has turned his career around with three consecutive wins in the Octagon over Cheick Kongo, Ben Rothwell and Chris Tuchscherer.
A UFC title shot for Hunt at this point in his career could live out one of the grandest Cinderella stories in MMA history.
With that said, the average fan still doesn’t even know who Mark Hunt is.
He has only been featured on two main cards in nearly two years of fighting under the UFC banner. Fans have begun to rally around Hunt as Overeem’s potential replacement, but generally speaking, that group mainly consists of hardcore MMA fans.
The blockbuster fight is Dos Santos and Emelianenko. Regardless of Emelianenko’s recent track record, fans still want to see him fight in the UFC.
UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture was coming off a loss to Chuck Liddell when he stepped in against Tim Sylvia for the heavyweight title back in March 2007.
What say you? Would you rather drop 50 bucks on Dos Santos vs. Hunt or Dos Santos vs. Fedor?
Looking for some more MMA news, and perhaps a couple of laughs? Follow me on Twitter @JordyMcElroy
The UFC returns to the airwaves with UFC on Fuel 2 from the Ericsson Globe Arena in Stockholm, Sweden, and in addition to Alexander Gustafsson’s marquee meeting with Thiago Silva, four new fighters will represent Sweden on the Facebook portion of an ac…
The UFC returns to the airwaves with UFC on Fuel 2 from the Ericsson Globe Arena in Stockholm, Sweden, and in addition to Alexander Gustafsson’s marquee meeting with Thiago Silva, four new fighters will represent Sweden on the Facebook portion of an action-packed UFC event.
Joining “The Mauler” in representing Sweden this Saturday, fighters such as PapyAbedi, MagnusCedenblad, BesamYousef, and Reza “Mad Dog” Madadi will be in action in from of the multitudes in Stockholm for a show that will answer quite a few questions moving forward into the future of MMA in Sweden.
One major question that will be addressed is the future of the Swedish market in MMA and whether or not the sport of MMA will be able to break into the market, and while MMA may not be immediately accepted by many countries, those who have seen Magnus, Yousef and Madadi in action will have a good time seeing what many around the world will only see on Facebook. Lest one of the fights either ends with a slick finish or starts off wildly. Many would beg to differ with those expecting a great card on Fuel TV, as some cannot see the multitudes embracing the UFC brand of MMA in the same way many other countries have in the past.
Count me in with the company that thinks that this one will help develop something special in the Swedish market, if you will, and understand why I empathize greatly with some of the optimists. Of course we are talking about a new market, and one that the UFC may not be able to break into with ease, but do they not always find a way to leave fans demanding more action in their hometown?
To say they always find a way to break through and eventually secure certain markets would be a gigantic understatement.
They’ve had consistently well-received shows in the UK, their first trek into Germany for UFC 99 was seen as enough of a hit to where the UFC came back to Germany for UFC 122, and their three trips to Australia have also provided the type of cards that fans love to see.
In addition, their return to Japan for UFC 144 was arguably their best fight card of 2012, and both of their recent events in Rio deJaneiro were two of the organization’s most exciting cards to watch. On the basis of UFC 142 and the upcoming UFC 147 fight card alone, fans will likely consider 2012 as strong a year for MMA as they considered 2011—provided UFC 147 sees similar success to what UFCs 134 and 142 experienced.
The bottom line here is that UFC cards have very, very rarely failed to underwhelm in their first go-round because the cards themselves, though sometimes tweaked in accordance with the constant injuries that have happened, still manage to provide a little bit of something for everyone. that’s how they have broken into these markets in order to not only do more events in certain countries, but also to land TV deals (and now, even seasons of The Ultimate Fighter) in certain countries, which in turn helps their global expansion greatly as it helps to put many new fans on to the UFC brand of Mixed Martial Arts.
Now, does a successful first card necessarily mean that we can expect a “TUF: Sweden” this summer? Absolutely not, but a first event always gives off a particular outlook on what the future may hold for that sport or that brand thereof in a country. And although we are still looking at UFC on Fuel TV 2 on paper, there’s no real reason to think that the card will not deliver in living color.
As far as how big it can become for the UFC is concerned, it’s not inconceivable to see the Swedish market prosper as a result of this event.
The world knows what they are getting when it gets the UFC product on their home soil, but the UFC brass is not a foolish bunch. They know that there are only five Swedes on this card, they know one of those five is headlining and they know that this card will aim to give the Swedish crowd championship-caliber action from the opening bell of the first Facebook prelim until the official decision for the main event. If they didn’t know either of those things, why would they let Stockholm get this card?
Clearly, the UFC brass has enough confidence in what the fighters featured on this showcase can do when it comes time to put up or shut up, and if they should have their thoughts proven correctly on this card, could it be that the Swedish market will grow and flourish for the UFC?
Absolutely, it is possible.
The Swedish market may not ever be the same as the Brazilian market or the Canadian market, but it will flourish in some mirroring fashion nonetheless.
Whether or not anyone sees it coming is a whole different story, but none of us should be surprised if it does happen, even if only in the long-term instead of the short-term because it is the UFC that we are talking about. After all, and the last time anyone checked, the UFC made big things happen in some of the last places that one would’ve expected those big things to happen.
We’ve got less than two weeks remaining until Jon Jones and Rashad Evans finally step in the cage at UFC 145 in Atlanta. The pair continue to fire shots at one another, building the hype for what should ultimately be one of the UFC’s biggest bouts of 2…
We’ve got less than two weeks remaining until Jon Jones and Rashad Evans finally step in the cage at UFC 145 in Atlanta. The pair continue to fire shots at one another, building the hype for what should ultimately be one of the UFC’s biggest bouts of 2012.
But it’s no longer an issue strictly between Jones and Evans. As I expected, coaches Greg Jackson and Mike Winkeljohn have been pulled into the mix after hearing Evans blast them on numerous occasions.
Winkeljohn recently told Bleacher Report that he convinced Jackson to corner Jones in the fight after Evans continually threw Jackson under the bus and blamed him for the split that led Evans to leave his longtime fight camp and head to Florida. Winkeljohn says he’s still cool with Evans, but that enough was enough:
But he upset me in that he kept throwing Greg under the bus. Enough’s enough. You have your disagreements, I understand that, but there’s more important things out there and it’s time for Greg to work in Jon’s corner.
Evans told USA Today that he isn’t really mad at Jackson for deciding to corner Jones. After all, it’s what he expected to happen from the beginning:
I’m not surprised. Once Greg said that he was able to stay at his gym, I knew he was going to work with him. I knew he was going to corner him. And that’s fine. I expected him to do that.
That’s just Greg for you. I can’t be mad at somebody for being himself, you know?
Evans also believes Jackson has turned his back on the people that helped turn him into an elite MMA coach:
It’s like — who would Greg Jackson be if it wasn’t for the original fighters who really put Greg Jackson on the map? Nobody would be hearing about him. Nobody would be hearing about this gym that he has in Albuquerque. He would just be a guy who likes fighting and who coaches guys.
But to turn your back and to against the grain on people who made you who you really are — to me, that’s just low.
We’ve heard plenty of talk from Evans, Jones and Jackson at this point. You know who I really want to hear from? Keith Jardine. “The Dean of Mean” was one of Evans’ best friends in the camp. As Evans rightly points out in the USA Today interview, he and Jardine were two of the fighters who helped turn Jackson’s camp into one of the most well-known in the sport.
I’d like to hear what Jardine has to say about the rift between Evans and Jones/Jackson/Winkeljohn. Something tells me we’d get something closer to the whole truth than we’ve gotten thus far.
The infamous Victor Conte, the man behind one of the biggest steroid abuse scandals in US sports history, was on Ariel Helwani’s MMA Hour last night charging the vast majority of UFC fighters of using performance enhancing drugs (PEDs) and accusi…
The infamous Victor Conte, the man behind one of the biggest steroid abuse scandals in US sports history, was on Ariel Helwani’s MMA Hour last night charging the vast majority of UFC fighters of using performance enhancing drugs (PEDs) and accusing Dana White of turning a blind eye.
“Do I believe that 90%… are using some sort of performance enhancing drug in the UFC? I do,” said Conte. “But there are those that do not and I think that number’s going to grow over time. They realize that the testing is weak. The Nevada Commission’s testing is weak.”
Conte was the man behind the Bay Area Laboratory Co-operative (BALCO) which supplied athletes with undetectable PEDs until the whole operation came crashing down following a federal investigation in 2003. After serving several months in prison for his role at BALCO, Conte has come out as a crusader pointing the finger at the absurdity of drug testing in sport.
Conte says that both the UFC and state athletics commissions, such as the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC), should be doing more.
“And listen, Dana White’s a very smart man. [NSAC executive director] Keith Kizer’s a very smart man, and he’s an attorney. But the logic for argument that they present in this particular situation just does not fly,” Conte told Helwani. “There are options available. Is it ever going to be perfect, is it ever going to be foolproof? The answer is no. But can it be much more effective, and can the use of [testosterone-replacement therapy] and other anabolic steroids and performance-enhancing drugs, can the rampant use be significantly reduced? I believe it can and I believe there’s some simple answers.”
“I would definitely say somewhere in the percentage of 85% of guys are definitely using, especially the guys who can afford it are definitely using” said Krzysztof. “I would even go as high as 95-96% of the top level athletes that are definitely using it. You can clearly see it.”
These numbers may sound wildly outlandish, especially coming from an athlete who admitted to having used PEDs in the past himself, but considering the scandals that engulfed Major League Baseball and cycling in recent years, such systemic and widespread use of PEDs has many precedents in sport.
Take for example the whole issue surrounding testosterone replacement therapy (TRT). This topic blew up after Chael Sonnen failed a drugs test following his fight against Anderson Silva in 2010. No synthetic substance was found in his body, however, his ratio of testosterone-epitestosterone revealed he had been using.
At the time, the NSAC accepted his TRT excuse, despite accusing him of failing to follow procedures in order to get his use approved. Since then, a whole series of MMA fighters have been revealed to have obtained testosterone-use exemptions (TUEs) on medical grounds.
“[If] it was similar in structure to testosterone, a testosterone derivative or a modified testosterone molecule… These derivatives always show on mass-spectrometry tests and so athletes are gravitating towards using pure testosterone,” said Conte on Helwani’s show. “This is why you see so many athletes are doing TRT, because the testing has taken away designer steroids, and now what’s left is this huge loophole involving micro-dosing of testosterone.”
“I don’t think you go with an outright ban, I think you have a very strict protocol in being granted a TRT… But do I think that 99.9% of cases where they’re granting these [TUEs] is complete BS? I do,” he added.
TRT use is a convenient loophole for any would-be cheat. It effectively allows athletes to use as much steroids as they want, as long as they are within the normal range of testosterone come fight time. This problem was exposed by the case of Nate Marquardt last year.
Marquardt had a TUE under the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board. This meant that he would automatically pass the T/E ratio test, because any use of the synthetic test would skew those numbers.
What he was not allowed, under his exemption, was to have higher than normal test levels. Nate’s levels, though trending down over the last week before the fight, still failed to fall to within the range required in time for him to be cleared to fight.
What does this say about the TRT loophole? Well, a fighter with a TUE could use extreme amounts of testosterone during training, as long as he times it so that come fight night his levels fall back within the normal range. That’s a loophole you can drive a tank through.
On the rebound with a two-fight winning streak and with little left to prove,