Tag: News

Alexander Gustafsson’s Head Coach Refutes Alliance Team Split…Or Does He?


(The often scruffy, always inscrutable Alexander Gustafsson | Photo via MMAnytt.se)

Yesterday we shared a report that quoted UFC light heavyweight champion contender Alexander Gustafsson as saying that he no longer planned to train in San Diego with the Alliance team or Phil Davis before fights. “Now I’m in that stage of my career that I will compete three or four times a year, so I can not hold on and go off all the time,” Gustafsson said. “It costs too much and it takes too much time away from my family. It’s simply not worth it.”

Furthermore, Gustafsson said that he believed that he and Davis would soon fight again so, you know…awkward. “We both belong to the top, and that’s not a difficult guess that we’ll meet again soon…it feels better to not train together right now,” Gus said.

Well, Gustafsson’s head trainer Andreas Michael is now saying that the media took the fighter’s words out of context. In an interview with Kimura.se the coach says that the media interpreted Gustafsson’s statements incorrectly in order to “sell” the news. Kimura.se reports that Michael also said that “the partnership between the Alliance and Alex / Allstar Fitness that it will continue cooperation for a long time to come. Thoughts on finishing the fine relationship that the two clubs have between them does not exist and has never existed.

“Rumors of a bout between Davis and Alex is also not [accurate], it is just something the media created out of thin air.”


(The often scruffy, always inscrutable Alexander Gustafsson | Photo via MMAnytt.se)

Yesterday we shared a report that quoted UFC light heavyweight champion contender Alexander Gustafsson as saying that he no longer planned to train in San Diego with the Alliance team or Phil Davis before fights. “Now I’m in that stage of my career that I will compete three or four times a year, so I can not hold on and go off all the time,” Gustafsson said. “It costs too much and it takes too much time away from my family. It’s simply not worth it.”

Furthermore, Gustafsson said that he believed that he and Davis would soon fight again so, you know…awkward. “We both belong to the top, and that’s not a difficult guess that we’ll meet again soon…it feels better to not train together right now,” Gus said.

Well, Gustafsson’s head trainer Andreas Michael is now saying that the media took the fighter’s words out of context. In an interview with Kimura.se the coach says that the media interpreted Gustafsson’s statements incorrectly in order to “sell” the news. Kimura.se reports that Michael also said that “the partnership between the Alliance and Alex / Allstar Fitness that it will continue cooperation for a long time to come. Thoughts on finishing the fine relationship that the two clubs have between them does not exist and has never existed.

“Rumors of a bout between Davis and Alex is also not [accurate], it is just something the media created out of thin air.”

Well, not so much “thin air” as they were Gustafsson’s own words, but alright. Michael certainly seems upsets by the reports of Gustafsson’s leaving Alliance but doesn’t actually refute any of the important specifics — namely that Alexander will hold his training camps in Sweden instead of San Diego from now on and that the Swedish fighter believes it is inevitable that he and Davis will fight again soon so he prefers not to train with the national champion wrestler right now.

If Gustafsson’s coach won’t refute any of the reported facts, why is he so upset? Who knows?

Perhaps Gustafsson wasn’t supposed to talk publicly about his plans before all the details could be worked out. It isn’t uncommon for teams to enter into business relationships in which fighters sign to train with and pay a percentage of their purses for a set period of time or number fights.

If that is/was the case with Gustafsson and Alliance, he may still need to figure out how to fulfill a contract to them and/or pay them fees even if he wants to train elsewhere. Alliance head coach Eric Del Fierro told MMA Junkie that he didn’t know how Gustafsson camps would proceed because he hadn’t been told, but seemed to express optimism that he and Alliance would still be able to work in consultation with the fighter, remotely, as they did before Alexander trained to fight Gegard Mousasi.

– Elias Cepeda

TUF 18 Ratings Update: A Round of Applause For Our First Group of Female Contestants


(“I’m so sorry…I’m sorry…I’m…*looks down*…hey, those really are nice shoes.” Photo via Getty.) 

If you’ve been following The Ultimate Fighter this season, chances are that, like us, you’ve been more than impressed with the quality of the fights themselves. Four great fights with four decisive (not to mention brutal) finishes have easily outshined most if not all of the petty drama that oft permeates the TUF house, a trend that has only increased since the program’s move to the FX and FOX Sports 1 networks.

Unfortunately, great fights have not necessarily equaled great ratings this season. Blame it on the new network, blame it on the time slot, but TUF 18‘s ratings have been just barely swimming above the “lowest live-viewership” record since the premiere episode. Yes, despite seeing a temporary boost with the second episode, MMAFighting’s Dave Meltzer is reporting that last week’s fight between Davey Grant and LivesWithParents pulled in just 640,000 viewers.

In fact, episode 3, featuring the fight between Chris Holdsworth and Chris Beal, similarly drew in just 639,000 viewers. Here’s the thing, episodes 2 and 4 — which featured the female fights of Baszler/Pena and Rakoczy/Modafferi — performed significantly better than those featuring their male counterparts. As Meltzer writes:

For the Ultimate Fighter, there has been an up-and-down pattern in the ratings. As in, the week of a women’s fight, the audience is up. The two women’s fights, airing on Sept. 12 and Sept. 26, did 870,000 and 778,000 viewers live. The men’s fights on Sept. 19 and Oct. 3 did 639,000 and 640,000. 


(“I’m so sorry…I’m sorry…I’m…*looks down*…hey, those really are nice shoes.” Photo via Getty.) 

If you’ve been following The Ultimate Fighter this season, chances are that, like us, you’ve been more than impressed with the quality of the fights themselves. Four great fights with four decisive (not to mention brutal) finishes have easily outshined most if not all of the petty drama that oft permeates the TUF house, a trend that has only increased since the program’s move to the FX and FOX Sports 1 networks.

Unfortunately, great fights have not necessarily equaled great ratings this season. Blame it on the new network, blame it on the time slot, but TUF 18‘s ratings have been just barely swimming above the “lowest live-viewership” record since the premiere episode. Yes, despite seeing a temporary boost with the second episode, MMAFighting’s Dave Meltzer is reporting that last week’s fight between Davey Grant and LivesWithParents pulled in just 640,000 viewers.

In fact, episode 3, featuring the fight between Chris Holdsworth and Chris Beal, similarly drew in just 639,000 viewers. Here’s the thing, episodes 2 and 4 – which featured the female fights of Baszler/Pena and Rakoczy/Modafferi — performed significantly better than those featuring their male counterparts. As Meltzer writes:

For the Ultimate Fighter, there has been an up-and-down pattern in the ratings. As in, the week of a women’s fight, the audience is up. The two women’s fights, airing on Sept. 12 and Sept. 26, did 870,000 and 778,000 viewers live. The men’s fights on Sept. 19 and Oct. 3 did 639,000 and 640,000. 

Additionally, the DVR numbers for TUF 18 have been incredibly strong:

Viewership has increased anywhere from 32 percent to 37 percent from the initial reports when you factor in people who watched the show via DVR between Thursday and Saturday. For example, the Sept. 26 show, the most recent to have DVR numbers for, did an additional 272,000 viewers of the initial airing, pushing total viewership to 1.05 million.

The Ultimate Fighter has always been a strong DVR property as compared to most sports programming, but the increases have historically only been in the 15 percent range. 

So it’s not exactly great news, but it does offer a sliver of hope for TUF‘s chances on FS1.

Personally, I’d love to help the show out by tuning in Wednesday nights. I really would. But if the UFC expects me to miss out on Always Sunny so I can listen to Momma Rousey hand down life lessons, they are sorely mistaken. Because I need characters whose problems I can identify with, and seeing an illiterate janitor, a sociopath, a tranny-lover with delusions of grandeur and a bird woman drunkenly argue about things they have no understanding of is like going to a family reunion every week for me.

–J. Jones

Shit Just Got Real: Cody McKenzie Returns to Lightweight, Meets Sam Stout at ‘UFC on FOX 9?


(“Don’t…take…the blue pill…” Photo via Getty.) 

After likely saving his own UFC career by ending Leonard Garcia’s at UFC 159, it is being reported that TUF 12 alum Cody McKenzie will return to the lightweight division at UFC on FOX 9: Pettis vs. Thomson to take on veteran slugger Sam Stout.

Both fighters are arguably in a must-win situation, as both have dropped 3 of their past 5 contests. The cards are clearly more stacked against McKenzie, however, as his three octagon wins have all come over fighters who have since been released by the UFC — Aaron Wilkinson, Marcus Levesseur, and Garcia. “The AK Kid” was also recently dubbed “the worst fighter in the UFC” by Chael P. Sonnen, but he did provide the single greatest moment in The Ultimate Fighter history, so who the hell really knows what the future holds for this goofy, affable sonofabitch.

Stout, on the other hand, was most recently choked out by James Krause at UFC 161 in a Fight of the Night-earning affair. Prior to that, he notched a decision victory over Carlos Fodor at UFC 157. Prior to that, Stout was routed by John Makdessi at UFC 154 in a fight that highlighted his somewhat skewed interpretation of MMA scoring.

Official CP Prediction: Stout lights up McKenzie for a solid two rounds before running directly into the Alaskan’s signature McKenzietine. Upon waking up, Stout will retire from the sport in his post-fight interview, claiming that “He’s getting too old for this shit” and just wants a desk job. But in a shocking turn of events, Stout will immediately change his mind, snatch the mic from Joe Rogan’s hand, and inform the attending audience that he will be challenging the Michael Chandler/Eddie Alvarez winner for the Bellator lightweight title at an event TBD.

AHHHHHHHHHHHHH ZEBENYAAAAAAA!!!!

–J. Jones


(“Don’t…take…the blue pill…” Photo via Getty.) 

After likely saving his own UFC career by ending Leonard Garcia’s at UFC 159, it is being reported that TUF 12 alum Cody McKenzie will return to the lightweight division at UFC on FOX 9: Pettis vs. Thomson to take on veteran slugger Sam Stout.

Both fighters are arguably in a must-win situation, as both have dropped 3 of their past 5 contests. The cards are clearly more stacked against McKenzie, however, as his three octagon wins have all come over fighters who have since been released by the UFC — Aaron Wilkinson, Marcus Levesseur, and Garcia. “The AK Kid” was also recently dubbed “the worst fighter in the UFC” by Chael P. Sonnen, but he did provide the single greatest moment in The Ultimate Fighter history, so who the hell really knows what the future holds for this goofy, affable sonofabitch.

Stout, on the other hand, was most recently choked out by James Krause at UFC 161 in a Fight of the Night-earning affair. Prior to that, he notched a decision victory over Carlos Fodor at UFC 157. Prior to that, Stout was routed by John Makdessi at UFC 154 in a fight that highlighted his somewhat skewed interpretation of MMA scoring.

Official CP Prediction: Stout lights up McKenzie for a solid two rounds before running directly into the Alaskan’s signature McKenzietine. Upon waking up, Stout will retire from the sport in his post-fight interview, claiming that “He’s getting too old for this shit” and just wants a desk job. But in a shocking turn of events, Stout will immediately change his mind, snatch the mic from Joe Rogan’s hand, and inform the attending audience that he will be challenging the Michael Chandler/Eddie Alvarez winner for the Bellator lightweight title at an event TBD.

AHHHHHHHHHHHHH ZEBENYAAAAAAA!!!!

–J. Jones

Michael Bisping Reportedly ‘Rushed to Hospital’ For Another Eye Surgery [UPDATED]


(Isn’t this how most super-villains get their start? / Photo via @bisping)

Michael Bisping‘s eye-problems may have taken a turn from “very annoying” to “career threatening.” Just a week after undergoing a corrective eye-surgery to fix the detached retina that had been plaguing him since April, the UFC middleweight contender reportedly had to undergo another surgery to alleviate severe pain in the same eye. John Joe O’Regan from Fighters Only magazine alerted us to the situation this morning in a post on the UG:

“Bisping rushed to hospital for eye surgery
im staying at mike’s for a few days here in LA; i just got in from visiting Alliance in San Diego and saw his girlfriend, she had just got back from taking him to Pasedena hospital. He’s undergoing surgery, his eye was causing him agony apparently.”

We have no other details at this time, but we’ll alert you if Bisping or the UFC releases a statement. Get well soon, good sir.

Update, from @johnjoeoregan: “Mike Bisping went to the hospital in pain but didn’t require surgery, contrary to previous report. Just got checked out”


(Isn’t this how most super-villains get their start? / Photo via @bisping)

Michael Bisping‘s eye-problems may have taken a turn from “very annoying” to “career threatening.” Just a week after undergoing a corrective eye-surgery to fix the detached retina that had been plaguing him since April, the UFC middleweight contender reportedly had to undergo another surgery to alleviate severe pain in the same eye. John Joe O’Regan from Fighters Only magazine alerted us to the situation this morning in a post on the UG:

“Bisping rushed to hospital for eye surgery
im staying at mike’s for a few days here in LA; i just got in from visiting Alliance in San Diego and saw his girlfriend, she had just got back from taking him to Pasedena hospital. He’s undergoing surgery, his eye was causing him agony apparently.”

We have no other details at this time, but we’ll alert you if Bisping or the UFC releases a statement. Get well soon, good sir.

Update, from @johnjoeoregan: “Mike Bisping went to the hospital in pain but didn’t require surgery, contrary to previous report. Just got checked out”

Jones vs. Teixeira Confirmed, Mir vs. Overeem Rescheduled for UFC 169, Feb. 1 in Newark


(All physiques subject to change. / Photo via Esther Lin, MMAFighting)

As suspected, UFC light-heavyweight champion Jon Jones will attempt to make his seventh title defense against Glover Teixeira on February 1st at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, as the main event of UFC 169. Newsday confirmed the story, adding the following details:

The UFC typically holds its Super Bowl weekend show in Las Vegas, but since broadcast partner Fox will air the NFL’s premier showcase event, executives wanted both events in the same area. MetLife Stadium hosts Super Bowl XLVIII on Feb. 2, the first time the NFL has held the game outdoors in a cold-weather city. Tickets for UFC 169 will go on sale to the public on Oct. 25.

The UFC’s 2014 Super Bowl weekend event will also feature the heavyweight do-or-die fight between Frank Mir and Alistair Overeem. That matchup was originally slated for next month’s UFC 167: St. Pierre vs. Hendricks event, but the Nevada State Athletic Commission took pity on Mir and recommended that it be pushed back. From UFC.com:


(All physiques subject to change. / Photo via Esther Lin, MMAFighting)

As suspected, UFC light-heavyweight champion Jon Jones will attempt to make his seventh title defense against Glover Teixeira on February 1st at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, as the main event of UFC 169. Newsday confirmed the story, adding the following details:

The UFC typically holds its Super Bowl weekend show in Las Vegas, but since broadcast partner Fox will air the NFL’s premier showcase event, executives wanted both events in the same area. MetLife Stadium hosts Super Bowl XLVIII on Feb. 2, the first time the NFL has held the game outdoors in a cold-weather city. Tickets for UFC 169 will go on sale to the public on Oct. 25.

The UFC’s 2014 Super Bowl weekend event will also feature the heavyweight do-or-die fight between Frank Mir and Alistair Overeem. That matchup was originally slated for next month’s UFC 167: St. Pierre vs. Hendricks event, but the Nevada State Athletic Commission took pity on Mir and recommended that it be pushed back. From UFC.com:

UFC officials announced today that the heavyweight showdown between Frank Mir and Alistair Overeem has been rescheduled to UFC 169 on February 1, 2014.

The move was determined in conjunction with the Nevada State Athletic Commission representatives to provide more time following Frank Mir’s recent August 31st competition.

While there was no indication whatsoever that Mir wouldn’t be fully, medically cleared in time to compete on November 16th, UFC officials and Nevada Commission representatives believed that a short postponement would allow both athletes more time to train for the bout.

Now, if I was a cynic, I’d say something about Mir and/or Reem needing more time to get his/their testosterone levels back into the normal range, but no, I’m not even going to bring that up.

With UFC 167 losing a big main card fight, Ariel Helwani has confirmed that the welterweight bout between Josh Koscheck and Tyron Woodley has been bumped up from the prelims.

Correction: Ian McCall Only Hates Homeless Junkies, Not Homeless People in General


(You call that a paint job? Give me my five bucks back, Ken. / Photo via Getty)

Shocking as this may be, UFC flyweight Ian McCall – a man who calls himself “Uncle Creepy” and models his image after that of a man who keeps a copy of The Catcher in the Rye in his back pocket at all times – isn’t always careful about what he tweets. In the past, he used Twitter to share the story about that time his wife cheated on him with Rob Emerson, which had to make things all sorts of awkward for his followers to see on their timelines. And yesterday, McCall accidentally offended many of his followers by sharing what appeared to be his views on homelessness. Spoiler alert: His tweet didn’t exactly portray the homeless in a favorable light.


(I hate the homeless … I don’t feel sorry for you. If you want change then let me throw it as hard as I can at your dirty face)

Well, that was unnecessarily harsh. Naturally, his followers began to call him out for the tweet, so McCall went on to clarify that he doesn’t hate most of the homeless – he only hates the homeless drug addicts, mostly because he used to be one himself.


(Hate me all you want Ive been homeless n [strung] out. I changed that part of my life No sympathy for junkies who talk shit to me for no reason)


(You call that a paint job? Give me my five bucks back, Ken. / Photo via Getty)

Shocking as this may be, UFC flyweight Ian McCall – a man who calls himself “Uncle Creepy” and models his image after that of a man who keeps a copy of The Catcher in the Rye in his back pocket at all times – isn’t always careful about what he tweets. In the past, he used Twitter to share the story about that time his wife cheated on him with Rob Emerson, which had to make things all sorts of awkward for his followers to see on their timelines. And yesterday, McCall accidentally offended many of his followers by sharing what appeared to be his views on homelessness. Spoiler alert: His tweet didn’t exactly portray the homeless in a favorable light.


(I hate the homeless … I don’t feel sorry for you. If you want change then let me throw it as hard as I can at your dirty face)

Well, that was unnecessarily harsh. Naturally, his followers began to call him out for the tweet, so McCall went on to clarify that he doesn’t hate most of the homeless – he only hates the homeless drug addicts, mostly because he used to be one himself.


(Hate me all you want Ive been homeless n [strung] out. I changed that part of my life No sympathy for junkies who talk shit to me for no reason)

While his clarification is far less judgmental – well, at least towards the general homelessness issue – it is sort-of confusing. The homeless junkies talking shit to him for no reason? That’s odd. Fortunately, Ian McCall took to The Underground to discuss the incident that triggered his Twitter rant.

I was having a shitty day and some junkie was talking shit to me and i took it to twitter. I have nothing against the homeless I dont even know why i used that word, it has nothing to do with psychiatric people or PTSD people. Anyone that knows me knows how much charity work i do. I just had a problem with this junkie talking shit to me and i apologize to everyone that i said that. I used to have a drug problem now i despise junkies. I’m sorry for offending anyone it came off as a total asshole thing to say and for that i am sorry.

No offense intended, but a homeless drug addict said some unsavory things about him, and he was actually offended? Either that homeless junkie talks shit at a world class level, or McCall cares waaaayyyyy too much about what other people think; especially for a guy who uses “@Unclecreepymma” as his Twitter handle. I hope he has never looked at this website before; we can kinda be assholes every now and then.

So there you have it. McCall made the mistake of sharing a little too much on Twitter, apologized for it, and went back to preparing for his upcoming bout against Scott Jorgensen. Move along, everyone.

@SethFalvo