Tag: Recap

‘TUF 18? Semifinal Fight Video: Sarah Moras vs. Julianna Pena

(Props: TheUltimateFighterFX)

Last night’s TUF 18 semifinal fight between Team Tate members Julianna Pena and Sarah Moras was actually a rematch. In April 2012, the two fighters met at a Conquest of the Cage event in Washington, and Moras won by doctor’s stoppage TKO at the end of two rounds, after popping Julianna’s elbow with an armbar. (As Moras explained during last night’s episode, Pena refused to tap.)

The majority of the TUF 18 cast was rooting for Moras to repeat history, as Pena had become the most despised female fighter in the house. The Venezuelan Vixen had other plans, however. Check out the video above to watch the complete two-round scrap, which Pena dominated in the standup and on the mat. Though Sarah searched for another armbar in round 2, she found herself bloodied by Pena’s elbows, and tapped to a guillotine choke when she turtled to escape the abuse.

Pena’s victory earned what might have been the saddest, least enthusiastic round of applause in TUF history. But screw the haters — she’s punched a ticket to the Finals against the winner of Raquel Pennington vs. Jessica Rakoczy.

Sarah Moras actually lost twice in this episode, if you count her living-room wrestling match fiasco against Anthony Gutierrez. You can watch that clip after the jump.


(Props: TheUltimateFighterFX)

Last night’s TUF 18 semifinal fight between Team Tate members Julianna Pena and Sarah Moras was actually a rematch. In April 2012, the two fighters met at a Conquest of the Cage event in Washington, and Moras won by doctor’s stoppage TKO at the end of two rounds, after popping Julianna’s elbow with an armbar. (As Moras explained during last night’s episode, Pena refused to tap.)

The majority of the TUF 18 cast was rooting for Moras to repeat history, as Pena had become the most despised female fighter in the house. The Venezuelan Vixen had other plans, however. Check out the video above to watch the complete two-round scrap, which Pena dominated in the standup and on the mat. Though Sarah searched for another armbar in round 2, she found herself bloodied by Pena’s elbows, and tapped to a guillotine choke when she turtled to escape the abuse.

Pena’s victory earned what might have been the saddest, least enthusiastic round of applause in TUF history. But screw the haters — she’s punched a ticket to the Finals against the winner of Raquel Pennington vs. Jessica Rakoczy.

Sarah Moras actually lost twice in this episode, if you count her living-room wrestling match fiasco against Anthony Gutierrez. You can watch that clip after the jump.

Legend 2 Mini-Recap: A Neck Crank? A F*CKING NECK CRANK?!!

(“He got Mark Coleman’d,” indeed. Video via whatever Youtube channel this is.) 

Remember how we said the guy who replaced Aleks Emelianenko against Mirko Crop Cop at Legends 2 probably stood a better chance of defeating the Croatian than Emelianenko did? Well consider this the saddest “we told you so” in CagePotato history. And quite possibly the first.

It’s been a strange journey for Mirko Cro Cop ever since he “retired” from the sport at UFC 137: he’s broken a CP ban, armbarred a sumo wrestler in his MMA return, and somewhat surprisingly won a K1 Grand Prix. Why a legend like Cro Cop — who has admitted to being “worn out” for years now — feels the need to continue competing is beyond us, and honestly, we’re past the point of arguing about it. It’s not like he’s been getting brutally, repeatedly KO’d or anything, and besides, we were still peeing our pants with excitement when his rematch with Emelianenko was announced.

But after watching his fight with Alexey Oleinik at Legend 2 last Friday, we think it’s safe to assume that Mirko has officially entered the “Money Up Front” phase of his MMA career.


(“He got Mark Coleman’d,” indeed. Video via whatever Youtube channel this is.) 

Remember how we said the guy who replaced Aleks Emelianenko against Mirko Crop Cop at Legends 2 probably stood a better chance of defeating the Croatian than Emelianenko did? Well consider this the saddest “we told you so” in CagePotato history. And quite possibly the first.

It’s been a strange journey for Mirko Cro Cop ever since he “retired” from the sport at UFC 137: he’s broken a CP ban, armbarred a sumo wrestler in his MMA return, and somewhat surprisingly won a K1 Grand Prix. Why a legend like Cro Cop — who has admitted to being “worn out” for years now — feels the need to continue competing is beyond us, and honestly, we’re past the point of arguing about it. It’s not like he’s been getting brutally, repeatedly KO’d or anything, and besides, we were still peeing our pants with excitement when his rematch with Emelianenko was announced.

But after watching his fight with Alexey Oleinik at Legend 2 last Friday, we think it’s safe to assume that Mirko has officially entered the “Money Up Front” phase of his MMA career.

Sure, it’s not like Mirko showed up at 300+ pounds or anything, and it’s not like he was fighting a scrub. But a neck crank? A F*CKING NECK CRANK?!

I say this as one of the biggest Cro Cop fans out there: Retire, Mirko. Retire for good and stop breaking my heart.

Elsewhere on the Legend card, UFC castaway Paul Daley saw a four fight win streak snapped via unanimous decision at the hands of Alexander “Bad Boy” Yakovlev, a 20-4 Russian who is now 21-4 (I dunno, that’s all I got). While Daley dominated many of the standup exchanges in typical fashion, his achilles heel of wrestling was once again exposed by Yakovlev, who mixed up some takedowns and decent ground-n-pound attacks to neutralize Daley for the majority of the fight.

In the kickboxing realm, Badr Hari picked up a unanimous decision victory over Alexey Ignashov in a K-1 Superfight that was as sloppy at times as it was enjoyable. Here’s a gif of Ignashov just missing a head kick in what looks like a poorly choreographed, B-movie fight scene (via Zombie Prophet).

And finally in people you’ve heard of who fought at this event, Melvin Manhoef was routed by Zabit Samedov en route to a unanimous decision loss in a 205 lb. K-1 sem-final tournament bout. Unfortunately, Samedov was not able to continue in the tournament due to a cut suffered during the fight and was replaced by Agron Preteni. It just goes to show that Melvin Manhoef’s legs are a threat to every living creature on this earth.

We’ve thrown a full video of the fight below. Enjoy.

–J. Jones

Vitor Belfort vs. Dan Henderson: Winner, Recap and Analysis

Vitor Belfort (24-10) seems to be getting better with time. On Saturday night, the 36-year-old made history, becoming the first man to stop Dan Henderson (29-11) in the cage. “The Phenom” accomplished the feat with a well-placed head kick as Henderson was trying to recover from a short left uppercut.  Referee Dan Miragliotta stepped in […]

Vitor Belfort (24-10) seems to be getting better with time. On Saturday night, the 36-year-old made history, becoming the first man to stop Dan Henderson (29-11) in the cage. “The Phenom” accomplished the feat with a well-placed head kick as Henderson was trying to recover from a short left uppercut.  Referee Dan Miragliotta stepped in […]

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Bellator 107 Recap: Cheick Kongo Wins in Typical Cheick Kongo Fashion, Joe Warren Scores TKO Over Travis Marx


(Photo via Bellator MMA)

Bellator 107 was a crucial show for Bellator. Over one million people were exposed to their product last week. Did they wow anyone who decided to tune in for a second week in a row?

Yes and no.

They made a poor decision in starting the card with a fight between virtually unknown fighter Derek Campos and disappointing British prospect Martin Stapleton. Any converts from the previous event likely switched channels after this fight started; it was that bad. The only notable part of this contest was when Stapleton’s knee almost went out (or at least that’s what it looked like) during a spinning backfist attempt, resulting in a crazy jig. Campos won via unanimous decision.

Fortunately, the second fight of the night picked up the pace a little bit. After a lackluster first round, the middleweight tournament final between Mikkel Parlo and Brennan Ward ended in fireworks. In what can only be described as “beast mode,” Ward battered Parlo’s body with sledgehammer-like punches (GIF via @ZProphet_MMA), and then started teeing off on Parlo’s head. Ward battered Parlo so badly that the fight was stopped while Parlo was still standing. It was one of the best displays of the pure violence inherent in MMA in recent memory.

Get the run down of the co-main and main event after the jump.


(Photo via Bellator MMA)

Bellator 107 was a crucial show for Bellator. Over one million people were exposed to their product last week. Did they wow anyone who decided to tune in for a second week in a row?

Yes and no.

They made a poor decision in starting the card with a fight between virtually unknown fighter Derek Campos and disappointing British prospect Martin Stapleton. Any converts from the previous event likely switched channels after this fight started; it was that bad. The only notable part of this contest was when Stapleton’s knee almost went out (or at least that’s what it looked like) during a spinning backfist attempt, resulting in a crazy jig. Campos won via unanimous decision.

Fortunately, the second fight of the night picked up the pace a little bit. After a lackluster first round, the middleweight tournament final between Mikkel Parlo and Brennan Ward ended in fireworks. In what can only be described as “beast mode,” Ward battered Parlo’s body with sledgehammer-like punches (GIF via @ZProphet_MMA), and then started teeing off on Parlo’s head. Ward battered Parlo so badly that the fight was stopped while Parlo was still standing. It was one of the best displays of the pure violence inherent in MMA in recent memory.

The bantamweight tournament final was the night’s co-main event. Joe Warren faced off against Travis Marx. After a first round that saw more grinding than a senior prom, Warren dropped Marx with a perfectly-timed knee and finished him off with punches.

Bellator 107′s main event and heavyweight tournament final pitted Cheick Kongo against Vinicius “Spartan” Queiroz’s replacement, Peter Graham. Kongo added a smattering of aggression into his usual “clinch against the cage indefinitely” strategy, but the fight still left a lot to be desired. Kongo won a unanimous decision victory.

Overall, the event was barely okay. The two poor fights bookended the two good fights. This meant viewers started off with a bad taste in their figurative mouths, and then left the card with the same taste. A card that left viewers feeling unsatisfied was the last thing Bellator needed the week after the biggest event in their history, and the week before their biggest star—Rampage Jackson—is fighting.

Here are the complete results for Bellator 107:

Main Card

Cheick Kongo def. Peter Graham via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Joe Warren def. Travis Marx via TKO (knee and punches), 1:54 of Round 2
Brennan Ward def. Mikkel Parlo via TKO (punches), 1:39 of Round 2
Derek Campos def. Martin Stapleton via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Preliminary Card

Patricky Freire def. Edson Berto via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 30-27)
Jonas Billstein def. Cortez Coleman via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Mike Mucitelli def. Ryan McCurdy via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Raphael Butler def. Josh Burns via verbal submission (punches), 2:14 of Round 1
Linton Vassell def. Matt Jones via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-26, 30-26)

 

If Anybody Cares, Here’s the Semifinal Fight From Last Night’s Episode of TUF 18 [VIDEO]

(Props: YouTube.com/TheUltimateFighterFX)

After an action-packed Fight for the Troops broadcast, we had no intention of sticking around for an extra hour just to watch the silly-string pranks and Harley Davidson advertorials that made up last night’s episode of The Ultimate Fighter 18. Recapping this thing is probably a waste of our time, but we can’t let Episode 10 slip by completely without mention, so here’s the semi-final match between Team Rousey’s Michael Wooten and Team Tate’s Chris Holdsworth, which ended in a first-round rear-naked choke victory for Holdsworth.

The only other notable moment from the episode was the guest-appearance from Nate Diaz, who dropped in to lead a Team Rousey grappling session. If you’re interested in that sort of thing, you can watch it here.


(Props: YouTube.com/TheUltimateFighterFX)

After an action-packed Fight for the Troops broadcast, we had no intention of sticking around for an extra hour just to watch the silly-string pranks and Harley Davidson advertorials that made up last night’s episode of The Ultimate Fighter 18. Recapping this thing is probably a waste of our time, but we can’t let Episode 10 slip by completely without mention, so here’s the semi-final match between Team Rousey’s Michael Wooten and Team Tate’s Chris Holdsworth, which ended in a first-round rear-naked choke victory for Holdsworth.

The only other notable moment from the episode was the guest-appearance from Nate Diaz, who dropped in to lead a Team Rousey grappling session. If you’re interested in that sort of thing, you can watch it here.

‘UFC Fight for the Troops 3? Video Highlights: Tim Kennedy Scores a Knockout for America, Rustam Khabilov Tries Some Spinnin’ Sh*t + More

(Kennedy vs. Natal finish, via YouTube.com/FoxSports)

Despite the enthusiastic and supportive Fort Campbell crowd, last night’s Fight for the Troops 3 event began with some bitter defeats for the handful of UFC fighters with military backgrounds. Army Staff Sgt./TUF 16 winner Colton Smith kicked off the main card by tapping to a rear-naked choke from TUF 15 winner Michael Chiesa — which earned Chiesa a $50,000 Submission of the Night bonus — while former Marine Liz Carmouche ate her second UFC defeat in a decision loss to Alexis Davis.

Luckily, Tim Kennedy saved the operation. The Special Forces vet fed off the energy in the room and tagged Rafael Natal with a long left hook that put the Brazilian’s lights out near the end of round 1, and won Kennedy a $50,000 Knockout of the Night bump. As he explained after the fight:

“I had to wait for the crowd to stop cheering because I was afraid to emotionally commit to something and not do it for the right reasons,” he said. “They’re screaming, ‘Ranger up! Ranger up!’ And I want to start throwing overhands and blitz the guy. I was waiting for them to stop, and they didn’t stop. Then they started cheering ‘U-S-A!,’ and ‘Kennedy!,’ and I was like, ‘For the love of God.’

“It had a negative effect on me because I was waiting and apprehensive. If there was any amount of pressure that could be put on a single fighter for a fight, I can’t think of a situation that would be more stressful than this.”

By the way, Kennedy tore his quad in the last week of training camp, but as he told Ariel Helwani later, “There’s no way you’re getting me off this card. They would have had to shoot me. If they had to roll me up with a wheelchair, I would have got in that cage, I didn’t care.”

Check out video of Kennedy’s knockout above, check out full results from the fight card right here, and follow us after the jump for lots more UFC Fight for the Troops 3 video highlights…


(Kennedy vs. Natal finish, via YouTube.com/FoxSports)

Despite the enthusiastic and supportive Fort Campbell crowd, last night’s Fight for the Troops 3 event began with some bitter defeats for the handful of UFC fighters with military backgrounds. Army Staff Sgt./TUF 16 winner Colton Smith kicked off the main card by tapping to a rear-naked choke from TUF 15 winner Michael Chiesa — which earned Chiesa a $50,000 Submission of the Night bonus — while former Marine Liz Carmouche ate her second UFC defeat in a decision loss to Alexis Davis.

Luckily, Tim Kennedy saved the operation. The Special Forces vet fed off the energy in the room and tagged Rafael Natal with a long left hook that put the Brazilian’s lights out near the end of round 1, and won Kennedy a $50,000 Knockout of the Night bump. As he explained after the fight:

“I had to wait for the crowd to stop cheering because I was afraid to emotionally commit to something and not do it for the right reasons,” he said. “They’re screaming, ‘Ranger up! Ranger up!’ And I want to start throwing overhands and blitz the guy. I was waiting for them to stop, and they didn’t stop. Then they started cheering ‘U-S-A!,’ and ‘Kennedy!,’ and I was like, ‘For the love of God.’

“It had a negative effect on me because I was waiting and apprehensive. If there was any amount of pressure that could be put on a single fighter for a fight, I can’t think of a situation that would be more stressful than this.”

By the way, Kennedy tore his quad in the last week of training camp, but as he told Ariel Helwani later, “There’s no way you’re getting me off this card. They would have had to shoot me. If they had to roll me up with a wheelchair, I would have got in that cage, I didn’t care.”

Check out video of Kennedy’s knockout above, check out full results from the fight card right here, and follow us after the jump for lots more UFC Fight for the Troops 3 video highlights…


(Tim Kennedy bum-rushes Rogan and Goldie’s event recap in hilarious fashion. And please, Mike, stop trying to make “The Sniper” happen. It’s not happening.)


(Cuban middleweight Yoel Romero’s just-as-nasty KO of Ronny Markes, also from the main card.)


(Rustam Khabilov shows he’s more than just “that suplex guy,” landing a sweet spinning heel kick to Jorge Masvidal’s neck. Somehow Masvidal recovered and fought on, but Khabilov still won the fight by unanimous decision, pushing his UFC record to 3-0. Both men earned $50,000 Fight of the Night bonuses for their efforts.)



(Bobby Green’s controversial TKO win over James Krause, and his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan.)


(Francisco Rivera’s second-round smash-up of George Roop.)

The UFC hasn’t posted video of Michael Chiesa’s rear-naked choke of Colton Smith, but you can see Zombie Prophet‘s GIF of the finish right here.