Tag: Preview/Prediction

UFC 130 Fight Card: Rampage Jackson Only Looking to Fight for Two More Years

Rampage Jackson may only be fighting for a couple more years. In an interview with ESPN he said: “I’ve always said I’ll retire when I’m 35. I don’t want to fight past 35. There are young guys coming in and doing good. I’ve been fighting for a long time…

Rampage Jackson may only be fighting for a couple more years. In an interview with ESPN he said:

“I’ve always said I’ll retire when I’m 35. I don’t want to fight past 35. There are young guys coming in and doing good. I’ve been fighting for a long time and it’s no secret that I don’t fight the same way I used to,” Rampage told ESPN. “I’ve got a lot of injuries, one or two things that bother me. But when I’m fighting, the injuries don’t bother me, it’s the training that gets old. Going through each camp I go through all these pains and think, ‘Man I don’t want to do this anymore’. But after the fight I say, ‘OK, I’ll give it one more’. So who knows? But at 35 I’m done.”

Rampage has given a lot so far in his MMA career and has seemingly veered off from his old ways in recent years. Rampage seems to have lost his knockout power and will to fight.

The man who is considered a possible contender for the light heavyweight title, is now the main event at UFC 130 after injuries forced Maynard/Edgar III off of the card.

If Rampage does retire in a couple of years, maybe that does leave open the door for the young guys. But MMA will lose one of it’s most vocal and great personalities

UFC 131 Fight Card: Cain Velasquez on Shane Carwin: "I Think It Was a Good Call"

Bleacher Report’s Mike Hodges:After learning of Brock Lesnar’s illness, UFC heavyweight champion, Cain Velasquez has decided to switch strategies, in case he is to meet the former heavyweight champion’s replacement, Shane Carwin. Shane Carwin w…

Bleacher Report’s Mike Hodges:

After learning of Brock Lesnar‘s illness, UFC heavyweight champion, Cain Velasquez has decided to switch strategies, in case he is to meet the former heavyweight champion’s replacement, Shane Carwin. 

Shane Carwin will be featured in the main event against Junior Dos Santos at UFC 131, after being notified from UFC president Dana White earlier this week via text message.

It is also confirmed that the winner between Carwin and Dos Santos will meet Velasquez later this year for the UFC heavyweight title. 

Velasquez, who has been out of action since his title bout with Lesnar at UFC 122, acknowledged Lesnar’s absence but he said Carwin was a suitable replacement. 

“I think (they made the right call), yeah,” Velasquez told MMAFighting.com.

“He was next in line, for sure. He’s a tough guy. I think it was a good call.”

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UFC 131: Fight Card, News and Predictions on the Night’s Results

UFC 131 is set to take place on June 11 at the Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia.The main event on the card will see two highly-ranked heavyweight fighters face each other in the Octagon as Junior dos Santos meets Shane Carwin.The card was or…

UFC 131 is set to take place on June 11 at the Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia.

The main event on the card will see two highly-ranked heavyweight fighters face each other in the Octagon as Junior dos Santos meets Shane Carwin.

The card was originally scheduled to feature a heavyweight title elimination bout between Dos Santos and his fellow coach on Season 13 of The Ultimate Fighter, Brock Lesnar.

Lesnar recently announced that he is suffering from diverticulitis and would be unable to remain on the card.

Carwin, who was scheduled to meet Jon Olav Einemo at UFC 131 was moved into Lesnar’s spot. 

It is believed that the winner of the Dos Santos versus Carwin fight will be next in line to face UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez, who is currently rehabbing from shoulder surgery.

Currently, three other bouts will round out the fight card:

Kenny Florian vs. Diego Nunes

Demian Maia vs. Mark Muñoz

Mac Danzig vs. Donald Cerrone

 

Bleacher Report will be your source for news, analysis and opinions on the upcoming fight card.

Check back often as the fight card nears for all the UFC 131 information you need.

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UFC 130 Fight Card: Muhammed Lawal Calls out Quinton "Rampage" Jackson

Bleacher Report’s Mike Hodges:After an appearance on HDNet’s Inside MMA, former Strikeforce light heavyweight champion, Muhammed Lawal has called out Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. Lawal, along with fellow Strikeforce fighter Antonio Silva and kickbo…

Bleacher Report’s Mike Hodges:

After an appearance on HDNet’s Inside MMA, former Strikeforce light heavyweight champion, Muhammed Lawal has called out Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. 

Lawal, along with fellow Strikeforce fighter Antonio Silva and kickboxer Mark Miller, shared their thoughts on the purchase of Strikeforce, as well as potential superfights between the UFC and Strikeforce competitors. 

When asked on his ideal matchup, Lawal said he would prefer a bout with the former UFC light heavyweight champion. 

“I’d like to see me versus Rampage (Jackson),” he said. 

“If he can handle Matt Hamill, and then I win my fight, then we can try and make that happen and I’ll shut his mouth up, for real.”

Lawal is coming off a recent loss to Rafael Cavalcante, which saw him relinquish his light heavyweight title at Strikeforce: Houston last year.

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Brock Lesnar, Jon Jones, Edgar & Maynard: How Losing Them Impacts UFC PPV Buys

The UFC has recently run into a string of bad luck, losing their next two pay-per-view card’s main events due to injury and illness.First, Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard were both injured while training for their UFC 130 main event. Neither fighter …

The UFC has recently run into a string of bad luck, losing their next two pay-per-view card’s main events due to injury and illness.

First, Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard were both injured while training for their UFC 130 main event. Neither fighter will be able to compete on the May 28 card, as Edgar has back issues while Maynard has sustained a knee injury.

Due to the short notice, the new main event of UFC 130 will be Quinton “Rampage” Jackson vs. Matt Hamill.

On Thursday, the promotion revealed that Brock Lesnar would be forced out of his UFC 131 main event battle with Junior dos Santos due to a recurrence of the diverticulitis that forced him out of action for a year, earlier in his career.

The UFC moved fast, replacing Lesnar with Shane Carwin, who was already scheduled to fight on the June 11 card with his original opponent being Jon Olav Einemo.

Jon Jones is another fighter whose loss will be felt by the UFC in 2011. Jones was set to face his former friend and training partner Rashad Evans when a hand injury forced him out of that fight.

At the time Jones withdrew from the fight, there was no official date or location for the Jones versus Evans match up, but they hype for that fight had been building even before Jones defeated “Shogun” Rua for the UFC light heavyweight championship in March.

Phil Davis has been booked in Jones’ place and he will face Evans at UFC 133, which will take place on Aug. 6.

Bleacher Report takes a look at how the injuries and illness could impact the pay-per-view buys for these upcoming events.

All UFC PPV numbers provided by MMAPayout.com Blue Book.

Click here to read the entire article.

UFC 131 Fight Card: Cain Velasquez on Shane Carwin: "I Think It Was a Good Call"

After learning of Brock Lesnar’s illness, UFC heavyweight champion, Cain Velasquez has decided to switch strategies, in case he is to meet the former heavyweight champion’s replacement, Shane Carwin. Shane Carwin will be featured in the main event…

After learning of Brock Lesnar‘s illness, UFC heavyweight champion, Cain Velasquez has decided to switch strategies, in case he is to meet the former heavyweight champion’s replacement, Shane Carwin. 

Shane Carwin will be featured in the main event against Junior Dos Santos at UFC 131, after being notified from UFC president Dana White earlier this week via text message.

It is also confirmed that the winner between Carwin and Dos Santos will meet Velasquez later this year for the UFC heavyweight title. 

Velasquez, who has been out of action since his title bout with Lesnar at UFC 122, acknowledged Lesnar’s absence but he said Carwin was a suitable replacement. 

“I think (they made the right call), yeah,” Velasquez told MMAFighting.com.

“He was next in line, for sure. He’s a tough guy. I think it was a good call.”

Velasquez, who is 9-0-0, will be paying close attention to this bout, as both Dos Santos and Carwin are two of the best strikers in the heavyweight division.

Carwin accepted the fight on a thirty-day notice, as he has been out of action since last year after undergoing neck surgery.

Meanwhile, Dos Santos has been nothing short of dominant, remaining undefeated during his tenure in the UFC. His most recent win was over Roy Nelson at UFC 117. 

Both Carwin and Dos Santos share a total of seven knockout wins combined, which gives reason to believe why Velasquez sees the bout being contested on the feet.

“Before (with Lesnar-dos Santos), it was wrestler vs. striker,” he said. “Now it’s striker vs. striker—but they’re different. I think dos Santos is more technical and hits hard, but Carwin is a really hard puncher. You can’t pound him out. So it’s two hard hitters.” 

And although he won’t have the opportunity to compete against Lesnar in a rematch anytime soon, Velasquez is optimistic of the former champion’s future in the UFC and expects him to return a better fighter.

“People get hurt all the time and pull out of fights. But he’ll come back, and he’ll come back stronger,” he said.

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