But if Jorge Gurgel’s assertion that the fighters who lose on Saturday will not be headed to the UFC is in fact true, one thing we will surely not witness this weekend is caution. So with that in mind, we threw together a little poll: Which (massive) underdog could most likely score an upset at ‘Strikeforce: Marquardt vs. Saffiedine?’ All the usual suspects are included in the survey that awaits you after the jump, so join us in a little harmless speculation, won’t you?
(What makes Nandor so angry, you ask? Dirt. He *hates* dirt.)
But if Jorge Gurgel’s assertion that the fighters who lose on Saturday will not be headed to the UFC is in fact true, one thing we will surely not witness this weekend is caution. So with that in mind, we threw together a little poll: Which (massive) underdog could most likely score an upset at ‘Strikeforce: Marquardt vs. Saffiedine?’ All the usual suspects are included in the survey that awaits you after the jump, so join us in a little harmless speculation, won’t you?
Create your free online surveys with SurveyMonkey, the world’s leading questionnaire tool.
Leister Bowling III is the wrestling coach for Grudge MMA and Easton BJJ. Last fall, he was an assistant coach on the Ultimate Fighter 15: Carwin vs. Nelson. Recently, he and I sat down to talk about his experience on TUF, training some of the be…
Leister Bowling III is the wrestling coach for Grudge MMA and EastonBJJ. Last fall, he was an assistant coach on the Ultimate Fighter 15: Carwin vs. Nelson. Recently, he and I sat down to talk about his experience on TUF, training some of the best in MMA and Nate Marquardt‘s Strikeforce fight this weekend against TarecSaffiedine.
What were your first thoughts when Shane Carwin asked you to join him as a coach on TUF?
I was honored when Shane asked. I was surprised because Donald Cerrone had asked me, as well, due to the rumors that he was coaching that season, so I was completely caught off guard when Shane called.
Did you have any reservations to going?
Anytime you have to leave your family for an extended period of time there are reservations. Also, I have a family business that I manage, so I had to make sure it would work. I was able to go as one of the full-time coaches, but i flew home every Thursday night to work Friday and Saturday and then fly back to Vegas.
How did you get hooked up with Grudge and Carwin?
I fought a little right out of college and I was coaching at University of Northern Colorado. We had a tough heavy weight at the time. I happened to be at a local fight where they announced Shane Carwin out of Greeley, Colo. He was probably 4-0 or so at the time. I reached out to see if he would be interested in coming in to wrestle with our guy at UNC. He said he would if I would help Nate Marquardt with his wrestling. I said yes.
Nate and I immediately clicked and worked well together. Nate began bringing guys from Grudge with him to Greeley for wrestling (one hour drive each way). After about a year and a half of them making the trip, I decided to quit at UNC and focus more on training MMA fighters.
What do you think helps to set Grudge apart from other gyms?
Grudge is a great gym to be a part of. We have teamed up with Easton‘s BJJ and Loren Landow at Steadman Hawkins does our strength and conditioning. Loren is one of our biggest assets that people don’t hear about. He is the most knowledgeable strength and conditioning coach I have ever been around because he truly understands the body and the nagging injuries that go along with being a professional athlete. He has the knowledge and facility to treat their injuries and helps us structure training camps that make our fighters peak at the right time.
How has Nate Marquardt‘s training gone for his upcoming fight against TarecSaffiendine?
Nate is an absolute nightmare for anyone in the world at 170 pounds. He is a new man. At 185, Nate was constantly the No. 1 or No. 2 contender. At 170 pounds, he is the world champ for a reason and I think the world is about to experience the “Nate Marquardt era!”
What do you think Nate needs to do this weekend to get the win?
Nate just has to be Nate. He is better in every aspect. When Nate fights to inflict damage, he will make a bad night for anyone standing across the cage from him. We are not overlooking Tarec in any way, but I feel like Nate will win this fight in dominating fashion.
Trevor Wittman comes across as a very positive coach who will get after fighters when needed. How do your personalities bounce off one another?
You nailed it. Trevor is one of the most positive people I’ve ever been around. He has the ability to always keep things light. I think our personalities mix very well for the fighters, as I am a lot more intense and don’t smile nearly as much! Honestly, though, I think our team of coaches is a perfect balance. Trevor, Loren, Eliot, Amal and myself all work very well together. It is an honor to coach with all of them!
We always see the fighter’s house, but people forget that you guys are staying in Vegas, too. What were your digs like?
They had us staying in fully furnished condos a few miles up the strip from Mandalay Bay. They were very nice with a pool, tennis court, gym, etc.
Any stories you can share from the coaches’ house?
The most action we had at the coaches’ house was a friendly game of tennis. There were six of us (Shane, Marquardt and I vs. Trevor, Loren and Eliot Marshall), but there were only three tennis rackets available. We went down with a basket of about 50 tennis balls and three rackets, and without saying anything, the teams were split and a game of dodgeball ensued for 2.5 hours. All of our arms were sore for three to four days! It was madness. A crowd of people watched from balconies, there were groin shots, face shots, an all-out war!
Take me through the average day on TUF:
The average day was a structured practice from 12 to 2 p.m. As a coaching staff, we made it a priority to get to practice 30 minutes early and make sure we were ready for practice to start on time. The 12 p.m. practice was structured (wrestling, BJJ, striking, sparring). The 4 p.m. practice was more one-on-one training/open room for guys that needed it.
What is something you like that doesn’t come across on TV the way it should?
I wish more of the training would have been shown on both sides. Roy has caught a lot of criticism for his “lack of coaching,” but he had some great assistant coaches and guest coaches. That is something I would have liked to see compared to what we offered as a team.
What surprised you the most (good or bad) on the last TUF?
The thing that shocked me the most coaching TUF was how quickly a bond forms between coach and athlete. Loren Landow and I had talked about how we had a very short time frame to “sell” ourselves as coaches to these guys and make them believe in us and I think we accomplished that. Our guys believed in us and never questioned anything we did. We still have good relationships with them and a few have even been out to Grudge to train.
Who do you think has the best possibility for a long-term career in the UFC from the last TUF?
Based off the show alone, i would say Neil Magny and Mike Ricci. Colton Smith won the show and I think he has a bright future, as well. Neil is so young in this sport and he has been training with us full time at Grudge since the show ended. He is leaps and bounds better than he was on the show. He just keeps getting better and has a huge future ahead of him. Ricci is cutting to 155 and is a very talented guy with a great team behind him. The sky is the limit for those guys.
What advice would you give fighters for upcoming season’s of TUF?
Well, since this season has already been filmed, my advice would be not to talk about it!
Guys going into TUF need to go in with an open mind and take advantage of a situation where they get to be full-time fighters. Yes, it’s hard to be away from family and friends for six weeks, but you are living in a mansion in Vegas, training in a world-class facility with world-class coaches and training partners, you get any kind of food you want daily and you get to live like a professional fighter should. Focus on that. Oh, and let’s be honest; People are sick of watching grown men throw temper tantrums, so find something else to make yourself stand out!
What advice would you give coaches?
Go in with an open mind. Coaches can never stop learning either. I was learning daily from the coaches we had there and it was a great opportunity for me to be open minded and become a student again! Enjoy the experience and don’t lose too much money gambling! Six weeks is a long Vegas vacation!
This was your first chance to really work closely with Dana White, was he what you expected him to be?
We didn’t have too much interaction with Dana, but he was exactly how I expected him to be; real. He speaks his mind and doesn’t hold back any words. I am very similar in that way, so I respect the fact that he speaks what he feels and doesn’t care if you like it or not.
Even though Nate Marquardt doesn’t want to fight one of his teammates, the Greg Jackson MMA fighter says he won’t turn down a title shot against UFC champion Georges St-Pierre.During a series of media interviews in Las Vegas on Tuesday, Marquardt spoke…
Even though Nate Marquardt doesn’t want to fight one of his teammates, the Greg Jackson MMA fighter says he won’t turn down a title shot against UFC champion Georges St-Pierre.
During a series of media interviews in Las Vegas on Tuesday, Marquardt spoke about the potential situation on The Ultimate Show, stating that he’ll fight anyone for the UFC welterweight title—even if it happens to be his longtime training partner:
Georges [St-Pierre] is my friend. He’s been a training partner since before he won the belt. Honestly, I love the guy, but I’m not in a position to turn down a fight. I’ll fight whoever I have to. I have to for my family and for my welfare. So, like I said, I can’t turn down fights.
But before Marquardt can expect a UFC title fight, he’ll have to defeat TarecSaffiedine in the main event of Strikeforce’s final card on Jan. 12 at the Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City.
It will be Marquardt‘s first (and only) defense of his welterweight championship belt, as the former middleweight is expected to return to the UFC after Strikeforce closes its doors this month.
This follows over 18 months of exile after being cut from the promotion by Dana White after Marquardt failed his physical exam prior to headlining UFC Live 4, due to a positive test for elevated testosterone.
Since then, Marquardt dropped from the middleweight to welterweight division, claiming Strikeforce’s vacated 170-pound championship in a one-sided victory over formerly undefeated TyronWoodley last July.
If Marquardt does challenge GSP, however, it won’t be the first time that Greg Jackson MMA teammates have had to fight each other.
At UFC 154, former interim welterweight champion Carlos Condit fought St-Pierre in a title unification match, causing their head coach Greg Jackson to vacate the event entirely. Now that St-Pierre has defeated Condit, he’ll defend his title next against the Strikeforce welterweight champion who preceded Marquardt—Nick Diaz.
(“Oh, Georges, you couldn’t pull off a mean mug if you tried. Your eyes, they just have too much…soul in them.”)
You might not know this about the CagePotato writing staff, but not a one of us is a UFC-caliber fighter. Sure, Elias lays boots to asses every now and again and Goldstein once slapped Bas Rutten in public and lived to tell the tale, but none of us here at CP have ever had a situation arise where we forced to fight one of our fellow writers for the right to be called “King of the Mountain.” So maybe we’re not the correct sources to come to when discussing whether teammates in a given MMA camp should be more open to fighting one another or not. Then again, none of us (to my knowledge) have ever been busted for steroids before, yet we’re perfectly fine casting our respective opinions toward those who have, so here we go.
This whole “Fighter X won’t fight Teammate Y” nonsense is out of control. Rory MacDonald won’t fight GSP. Cain Velasquez won’t fight Daniel Cormier. Anderson Silva won’t fight anyone who doesn’t wear a kimono and firing range goggles 24/7. It’s getting ridiculous. Simply put, if you are unable to separate your personal life from your professional one in the fight game, then you probably shouldn’t be involved in the fight game. MMA is not a team sport, especially when a title shot and thousands of dollars are on the line.
Thankfully, guys like Dan Henderson are still around — old school, take-on-all-comers-even-if-that-means-fighting-at-heavyweight type guys who would fight their bedridden aunt for the last slice of pizza if she dared call dibs on it first. Ever since Hendo blew out his knee and was passed over for the next light heavyweight title shot by Chael Sonnen, things have been rather tense over at Team Quest, to the point that Hendo recently told FightersOnly that he would no doubt fight Sonnen now that he’s a LHW:
We’re friends, but above all we fight now in the same category and therefore have the same goal. We both compete for the same belt.
(“Oh, Georges, you couldn’t pull off a mean mug if you tried. Your eyes, they just have too much…soul in them.”)
You might not know this about the CagePotato writing staff, but not a one of us is a UFC-caliber fighter. Sure, Elias lays boots to asses every now and again and Goldstein once slapped Bas Rutten in public and lived to tell the tale, but none of us here at CP have ever had a situation arise where we forced to fight one of our fellow writers for the right to be called “King of the Mountain.” So maybe we’re not the correct sources to come to when discussing whether teammates in a given MMA camp should be more open to fighting one another or not. Then again, none of us (to my knowledge) have ever been busted for steroids before, yet we’re perfectly fine casting our respective opinions toward those who have, so here we go.
This whole “Fighter X won’t fight Teammate Y” nonsense is out of control. Rory MacDonald won’t fight GSP. Cain Velasquez won’t fight Daniel Cormier. Anderson Silva won’t fight anyone who doesn’t wear a kimono and firing range goggles 24/7. It’s getting ridiculous. Simply put, if you are unable to separate your personal life from your professional one in the fight game, then you probably shouldn’t be involved in the fight game. MMA is not a team sport, especially when a title shot and thousands of dollars are on the line.
Thankfully, guys like Dan Henderson are still around — old school, take-on-all-comers-even-if-that-means-fighting-at-heavyweight type guys who would fight their bedridden aunt for the last slice of pizza if she dared call dibs on it first. Ever since Hendo blew out his knee and was passed over for the next light heavyweight title shot by Chael Sonnen, things have been rather tense over at Team Quest, to the point that Hendo recently told FightersOnly that he would no doubt fight Sonnen now that he’s a LHW:
We’re friends, but above all we fight now in the same category and therefore have the same goal. We both compete for the same belt.
Our friendship is more than a title and we are professional enough to let the rivalry be just inside the Octagon. It would be a different situation, but our profession in this type of situation is quite possible to happen.
Hendo, you old dog, you. Only you can take a situation as (apparently) complex as this and simplify it down to a few sentences or less like the Zen master you truly are. Have you met our friend Donald Cerrone, by chance? You guys could probably share a story or two whilst splitting firewood and consuming copious amounts of beef jerky, but that’s beside the point.
And it turns out, Hendo isn’t the only man willing to throw down with his teammates when a title is on the line. We know, right? MMAFighting recently interviewed Strikeforce welterweight champion Nate Marquardt and pressed him on the same issue in regards to his friend/occasional teammate, welterweight champ Georges St. Pierre. Marquardt was exceptionally candid when giving his response:
Of course, yeah (laughs). Honestly man, anyone of those welterweights on that card, that card is stacked and any one of the three that win, that’s who I want to fight. Obviously, I’d rather not fight Georges. He’s my friend and training partner for a long time now. But, like I said before, I’m not in the position to be turning down fights, so I’d rather not fight him, but I’m not going to turn down any fights.
At this point, it seems like more and more fighters are declaring who they wouldn’t want to fight as soon as they get in a position of power, rather than the other way around. And while it’s usually hilarious when Forrest Griffin does it, from both a fan’s perspective and a business perspective, it’s rather foolish for said fighters to turn down what could be lucrative paydays before the option is even on the table. So kudos to these two for going against the grain, although their performances against Tarec Saffiedine and Lyoto Machida will determine more than anything else whether or not they will have to face off against their teammates down the line.
But please, actual MMA fighters, please fall in line with guys like Hendo and Marquardt. There’s no reason to believe that you and your buddy can’t throw down for 15 to 25 minutes and not walk away friends after. Look at it like a video game if you have to: you sign in, insult each others mothers for a bit, and then storm off in a jealous rage should you lose. But the next day, you’re still willing to call each other friends over shots of Jager, even if one of you did piss on the other’s oriental rug on the way out.
On January 12, the Strikeforce crew will set up the six-sided cage one final time before the promotion closes its doors for good. Strikeforce: Marquardt vs. Saffiedine is a stacked card that features some of the biggest names on the roster, and the eve…
On January 12, the Strikeforce crew will set up the six-sided cage one final time before the promotion closes its doors for good. Strikeforce: Marquardt vs. Saffiedine is a stacked card that features some of the biggest names on the roster, and the event will now take place on free TV.
The Showtime network has long been the home of Strikeforce, but the subscription-based premium network is only available to those willing to pay an additional fee on their monthly cable or satellite provider. With 22 million subscribers, the most recent card, Rousey vs. Kaufman, peaked with 676,000 viewers.
However, by running a free preview weekend from January 11 through January 13, the final Strikeforce card will be available free of charge in more than 80 millions homes across the United States.
Headlined by a welterweight championship fight between UFC veteran Nate Marquardt and 13-3 TarecSaffiedine, the card also features high-profile talent such as Daniel Cormier, Josh Barnett and GegardMousasi. In addition, an inter-promotional matchup between UFC middleweight Ed Herman and former Strikeforce middleweight champion Ronaldo Souza kicks off the main card.
While this free preview weekend is a major gift for MMA fans, it is designed to coincide with the season premieres of hit Showtime programs Shameless, House of Lies and Californication.
But who are we to look a gift horse in the mouth? Regardless of why we are getting the final Strikeforce card for free, as MMA fans, it’s time to be thankful.
Strikeforce: Marquardt vs. Saffiedine takes place on January 12 and the main card will air live on Strikeforce beginning at 10 p.m. EST. Four preliminary fights will be aired on Showtime Extreme immediately prior and will feature the likes of Roger Gracie, Tim Kennedy, KJ Noons and Pat Healy.
(“Come on, you guys, give him a hand for trying.”)
If you were looking over the UFC 156 fight card and thinking to yourself “Hey, this card is almost too stacked. I could really use a lackluster fight to make a sandwich or go to the bathroom during,” well then do we have some great news for you. Now that Erick Silva has fallen victim to the great injury curse of 2012 (2013 status pending), it appears that Strikeforce welterweight Tyron Woodley has been called over to the UFC in his absence. As was the case with future highlight reel victim Lucas Martins, Woodley will be making his promotional debut on short notice against a much more experienced opponent. However, unlike Martins, Woodley actually finds himself in a matchup that he stands a good chance of winning.
Woodley will be squaring off against Jay Hieron, a Bellator/IFL/Strikeforce veteran who has simply not been able to put it together in the octagon, going 0 for 3 in the promotion thus far. After we hyped the hell out of his UFC return, Hieron put on an incredibly disappointing — not to mention tepid — performance against Jake Ellenberger at UFC on FX 5, resulting in a unanimous decision victory for the Omaha native. You guys remember that fight, right? Anyone? Who am I kidding, not even Hieron’s mom remembers that fight.
(“Come on, you guys, give him a hand for trying.”)
If you were looking over the UFC 156 fight card and thinking to yourself “Hey, this card is almost too stacked. I could really use a lackluster fight to make a sandwich or go to the bathroom during,” well then do we have some great news for you. Now that Erick Silva has fallen victim to the great injury curse of 2012 (2013 status pending), it appears that Strikeforce welterweight Tyron Woodley has been called over to the UFC in his absence. As was the case with future highlight reel victim Lucas Martins, Woodley will be making his promotional debut on short notice against a much more experienced opponent. However, unlike Martins, Woodley actually finds himself in a matchup that he stands a good chance of winning.
Woodley will be squaring off against Jay Hieron, a Bellator/IFL/Strikeforce veteran who has simply not been able to put it together in the octagon, going 0 for 3 in the promotion thus far. After we hyped the hell out of his UFC return, Hieron put on an incredibly disappointing — not to mention tepid — performance against Jake Ellenberger at UFC on FX 5, resulting in a unanimous decision victory for the Omaha native. You guys remember that fight, right? Anyone? Who am I kidding, not even Hieron’s mom remembers that fight.
Anyway, considering he’s fighting one of the most prominent lay-n-pray artists in the sport in Woodley, expect this one to go down in similar fashion to Hieron’s Bellator 56 title scrap against Ben Azzzzkren. In other words, Hieron will spend most of the fight fending off takedowns and scoring minimally from the outside, his jabs doing little to stifle the chorus of boos from the audience. By the end of three rounds, he will have emerged a clear victor, yet the fight will be scored a split decision in favor of Woodley. Hieron will then walk away in disgust and rant and rave in his post-fight interviews that Woodley “Didn’t come to fight” and yadda yadda yadda I’m really tired today.
Who do you like for this one, Potato Nation? And more importantly, how do you plan on entertaining yourself for the loong fifteen minutes this fight will ultimately last?
