Michael Bisping and the 8 Best Trash Talkers in the UFC

Michael Bisping may not be the original heel of the UFC, but he’s emerged as a guaranteed smack-talker with some zingers tucked away in wait. Sure Tito Ortiz paved the way, but his days as an elite trash talker are as far distanced as his days as…

Michael Bisping may not be the original heel of the UFC, but he’s emerged as a guaranteed smack-talker with some zingers tucked away in wait. Sure Tito Ortiz paved the way, but his days as an elite trash talker are as far distanced as his days as an elite competitor.

Michael Bisping now holds the crown.

The outspoken Brit has an uncanny knack for getting under the skin of his foes, and it typically works. He called Jorge Rivera “an old man,” and promised the fight was nothing more than a “free payday,” Well, he was kind of right, on both points.

Before battering fellow TUF 14 coach, Jason “Mayhem” Miller, Bisping made it known that he found his hair-dyed rival “quite annoying.” He also made multiple promises to brutalize the wild Mayhem while making the promotional rounds. He lived up to his word, pummeling the longtime veteran and former Bully Beatdown host.

The man’s let a ton of quality lines loose, and some have been rather memorable. The reason Bisping ranks amongst the absolute best trash talkers in the UFC is the fact that he works his prodding with startling effectiveness.

This guy really, really gets inside the heads of his opponents. If you can walk the walk after talking that talk, you’re a mobile marketing machine.

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The UFC’s Nick and Nate Diaz: 13 Men We’d Love to See Them Fight

By now, if you are an MMA fan and have not heard of the Diaz brothers, then you are just missing out on the best things in the life of a fight fan. Some fighters are simply cut from a different cloth, and I am not talking about the fabric that separate…

By now, if you are an MMA fan and have not heard of the Diaz brothers, then you are just missing out on the best things in the life of a fight fan.

Some fighters are simply cut from a different cloth, and I am not talking about the fabric that separates you and me from those incredible men and women who put it all on the line in the cage.

I am talking about the differences between Nick and Nate Diaz, and all the rest of those rare human beings we call MMA fighters.

Nick and Nate Diaz weren’t just born to fight, they were born to war—and there is a difference. One need only look as far as the bout between Clay Guida and Gray Maynard to see that proved true.

While other fighters look to develop different strategies in order to defeat different opponents, the brothers Diaz look only to polish and refine their style of aggression as the means to any and all ends, and for them it is more than a style—it’s a religion.

And to it they are faithful.

So faithful in fact that as more fighters prove themselves, the fans who follow the faithful cannot help but imagine what might occur should Johny Hendricks scrap with Nick, or Anthony Pettis draw hands with Nate.

It’s no longer just a simple pondering; it’s become a compliment of sorts for those fighters to be imagined slugging it out with 209s most fearsome brotherhood.

So here is a list of 13 men we’d love to see exchange compliments with Nick and Nate Diaz, and in the listing it’s safe to say some compliments are best given and received by those who speak the same language.

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MMA Fighters as Characters in Quentin Tarantino Films

There is no one in Hollywood like Quentin Tarantino. Known for his famous, character-driven mash up films, Tarantino is known for revitalizing old movie genres. Although films such as Pulp Fiction, Inglourious Basterds and more recently Djang…

There is no one in Hollywood like Quentin Tarantino

Known for his famous, character-driven mash up films, Tarantino is known for revitalizing old movie genres. 

Although films such as Pulp Fiction, Inglourious Basterds and more recently Django Unchained are great works of cinema, it is the characters in his films that people remember the most. 

Just like Tarantino likes to mash up genres of film, here is a mash-up of MMA fighters as some of his greatest characters. 

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11 Fighters You Would Want by Your Side in a Bar Brawl This New Year’s Eve

Ever been hit with a pool stick? It’s a terrible, terrible thing for three reasons. First, it’s not entirely likely to knock you unconscious, second it hurts like you wouldn’t believe and third, it splits the scalp wider than a condom…

Ever been hit with a pool stick? It’s a terrible, terrible thing for three reasons. First, it’s not entirely likely to knock you unconscious, second it hurts like you wouldn’t believe and third, it splits the scalp wider than a condom-packed piñata at a frat party. It truly is a nasty experience, and one that’s more likely to occur inside a bar than anywhere else.

Barroom brawls aren’t cool, they’re not what I’d call fun, and if you don’t get your rear end moving fast enough once the dust has settled, they can carry a costly legal toll. In short, they’re not worth taking part in.

I wouldn’t recommend anyone test their physical fortitude in the cramped confines of a packed pub, but from time to time, it just happens. Sometimes it’s tough to avoid the testosterone-driven booze-hound who’s itching for a fight.

I don’t condone illegal fights, and I’m certain none of the men on this list do, either, but it sure would be entertaining to see any one of these 11 fighters tee off on a group of intolerable alcoholics. Feast on this list, just try to argue!

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UFC on FOX 5 Salaries: Ben Henderson Needs to Hire Mauricio Rua’s Agent, Like, Pronto


(I had to downgrade from my platinum toothpick for this shit?!) 

The UFC recently released the figures for UFC on FOX 5, and suffice it to say, it pays much better to be a fading legend than it does a rising star, or a lightweight champion for that matter (Author’s note: I guess Bisping was right after all *dials revolver*). Check out the full list of figures below, then get our thoughts on the matter after the jump.

Benson Henderson: $78,000 (includes $39,000 win bonus)
def. Nate Diaz: $50,000

Alexander Gustafsson: $60,000 (includes $30,000 win bonus)
def. Mauricio Rua: $175,000

Rory MacDonald: $42,000 (includes $21,000 win bonus)
def. B.J. Penn: $150,000

Matt Brown: $54,000 (includes $27,000 win bonus)
def. Mike Swick: $48,000

Yves Edwards: $32,000 (includes $16,000 win bonus)
def. Jeremy Stephens: $24,000

Raphael Assuncao: $38,000 (includes $19,000 win bonus)
def. Mike Easton: $14,000

Ramsey Nijem: $20,000 (includes $10,000 win bonus)
def. Joe Proctor: $8,000

Daron Cruickshank: $16,000 (includes $8,000 win bonus)
def. Henry Martinez: $8,000

Abel Trujillo: $12,000 (includes $6,000 win bonus)
def. Marcus LeVesseur: $8,000

Dennis Siver: $62,000 (includes $31,000 win bonus)
def. Nam Phan: $10,000

Scott Jorgensen: $41,000 (includes $20,500 win bonus)
def. John Albert: $10,000

Thoughts…


(I had to downgrade from my platinum toothpick for this shit?!) 

The UFC recently released the figures for UFC on FOX 5, and suffice it to say, it pays much better to be a fading legend than it does a rising star, or a lightweight champion for that matter (Author’s note: I guess Bisping was right after all *dials revolver*). Check out the full list of figures below, then get our thoughts on the matter after the jump.

Benson Henderson: $78,000 (includes $39,000 win bonus)
def. Nate Diaz: $50,000

Alexander Gustafsson: $60,000 (includes $30,000 win bonus)
def. Mauricio Rua: $175,000

Rory MacDonald: $42,000 (includes $21,000 win bonus)
def. B.J. Penn: $150,000

Matt Brown: $54,000 (includes $27,000 win bonus)
def. Mike Swick: $48,000

Yves Edwards: $32,000 (includes $16,000 win bonus)
def. Jeremy Stephens: $24,000

Raphael Assuncao: $38,000 (includes $19,000 win bonus)
def. Mike Easton: $14,000

Ramsey Nijem: $20,000 (includes $10,000 win bonus)
def. Joe Proctor: $8,000

Daron Cruickshank: $16,000 (includes $8,000 win bonus)
def. Henry Martinez: $8,000

Abel Trujillo: $12,000 (includes $6,000 win bonus)
def. Marcus LeVesseur: $8,000

Dennis Siver: $62,000 (includes $31,000 win bonus)
def. Nam Phan: $10,000

Scott Jorgensen: $41,000 (includes $20,500 win bonus)
def. John Albert: $10,000

Thoughts…

Overpaid: Is Nate Diaz really so hot of a commodity that he deserves a higher show rate than the champion of the division? Methinks not, homie. We’re also kind of shocked that Mike Swick, who has fought just twice in the past ever, is still making damn near 50k to show. And that takes us to our next item on the agenda…

Underpaid: Look, we know these figures are void of any locker room bonuses, end of the night bonuses and yada yada, and we know that Ben Henderson doesn’t exactly deserve the kind of money a legend like Shogun makes per fight, but come on. Forty thousand to show for a champion is absolute rubbish. Nick Diaz throws more dough at freakishly deformed homeless people on his way to the airport for fuck’s sake. But like we said, we’re pretty sure Bendo got a stack of undisclosed cash so high that not even Rain Man could count all the toothpicks he plans on purchasing.

J. Jones

‘UFC on FOX 5? Ratings Update: Henderson vs. Diaz Was the Ninth Most Watched MMA Fight of All Time in the U.S.; Kimbo Still Reigns Supreme


(Well, you can’t say he didn’t warn you. / Photo courtesy of Getty Images. Click for full-size version.)

According to a Yahoo! Sports report, Saturday’s UFC on FOX 5 broadcast averaged 4.4 million viewers, with viewership climbing steadily through the night until it peaked at a hearty 5.7 million sets of eyeballs for the main event of Benson Henderson vs. Nate Diaz.

Although total viewership still fell short of the first two UFC on FOX offerings, the 4.4 million average for “Henderson vs. Diaz” nearly doubled the audiences of the last two FOX broadcasts, which both averaged just 2.4 million viewers apiece. More importantly, “Henderson vs. Diaz” was television’s most-watched broadcast on Saturday night among males 18-34, males 18-49, adults 18-34, and adults 18-49. As Dana White told Yahoo!: “We just killed it. We killed it in every demo.”

The ratings performance was also enough to clinch Henderson vs. Diaz as the ninth most-watched MMA fight of all time in the United States. Four years ago, the top ten list was dominated by Kimbo Slice — and not much has changed since then. Here’s Dave Meltzer with an update on MMAFighting.com (number rankings added for clarity):


(Well, you can’t say he didn’t warn you. / Photo courtesy of Getty Images. Click for full-size version.)

According to a Yahoo! Sports report, Saturday’s UFC on FOX 5 broadcast averaged 4.4 million viewers, with viewership climbing steadily through the night until it peaked at a hearty 5.7 million sets of eyeballs for the main event of Benson Henderson vs. Nate Diaz.

Although total viewership still fell short of the first two UFC on FOX offerings, the 4.4 million average for “Henderson vs. Diaz” nearly doubled the audiences of the last two FOX broadcasts, which both averaged just 2.4 million viewers apiece. More importantly, “Henderson vs. Diaz” was television’s most-watched broadcast on Saturday night among males 18-34, males 18-49, adults 18-34, and adults 18-49. As Dana White told Yahoo!: “We just killed it. We killed it in every demo.”

The ratings performance was also enough to clinch Henderson vs. Diaz as the ninth most-watched MMA fight of all time in the United States. Four years ago, the top ten list was dominated by Kimbo Slice — and not much has changed since then. Here’s Dave Meltzer with an update on MMAFighting.com (number rankings added for clarity):

“The 5.7 million viewers drawn by the main event would rank it behind only five UFC fights in history: [#1] the record-breaking Cain Velasquez vs. Junior Dos Santos fight on November 12, 2001, which did 9.6 million viewers between FOX and Fox Deportes; [#3] the Oct. 10, 2006, Ken Shamrock vs. Tito Ortiz fight on Spike, which did 6.5 million viewers; [#5] the Jan. 28, 2012, Rashad Evans vs. Phil Davis fight on FOX and Fox Deportes, that did 6.4 million viewers; [#6] the Sept. 30, 2009, taped fight on the Ultimate Fighter reality show with Kimbo Slice vs. Roy Nelson, which did 6.1 million viewers on Spike; and [#8] the Sept. 8, 2007, taped fight from England pitting Dan Henderson vs. Rampage Jackson for the light heavyweight title, which did 5.8 million viewers on Spike.

The only other fights it trailed were Kimbo Slice fights on CBS with James Thompson [#2: 7.281 million viewers] and Seth Petruzelli [#4: 6.451 million viewers], and the first Robbie Lawler vs. Scott Smith fight [#7: 5.867 million viewers], which aired before Slice vs. Thompson on the first Elite XC show on CBS in 2008.

However, if you add in Spanish language viewership in the U.S. on Fox Deportes, numbers which are not available at press time, the total audience should top 6 million and move to either the No. 6 or No. 7 slot.”

In the past, Henderson has underperformed as a pay-per-view draw, but a brilliant fight against Diaz in front of a massive network audience might change all that. Can Bendo become the UFC’s next breakout star?