Tag: Reed Harris

Al Iaquinta Demands UFC To Release Him

After hearing little to nothing for two years from surging lightweight Al Iaquinta, the brash East Coast-bred slugger has exploded back onto the MMA scene with one the most controversial crusades against the UFC we’ve ever seen. After he went off on Dana White, Sage Northcutt, and others in a brutal Twitter rant last week, “Raging”

The post Al Iaquinta Demands UFC To Release Him appeared first on LowKickMMA.com.

After hearing little to nothing for two years from surging lightweight Al Iaquinta, the brash East Coast-bred slugger has exploded back onto the MMA scene with one the most controversial crusades against the UFC we’ve ever seen.

After he went off on Dana White, Sage Northcutt, and others in a brutal Twitter rant last week, “Raging” Al hopped back on social media to demand his employers at the UFC to release him after their well-documented squabble over his pay:

Iaquinta also took aim at UFC executive Reed Harris, saying he couldn’t “imagine” being him:

It would appear “Raging” Al isn’t going anywhere, and at this point, it’s also hard to deny that he’s one of the most outspoken and entertaining personalities during a bland start to the year, whether you love him or hate him.

And with five straight wins including four knockouts, the promotion could certainly use more stars who can back up their over-the-top trash talk with powerful statement wins in the octagon. The UFC’s new ownership may want to swallow their pride and pay Iaquinta a few more dollars to keep his mouth shut, but as we’ve seen recently, they’re not too keen on spending cash on any employee of the company.

If they want to keep that up, then we’ll probably see Iaquinta’s online outrages continue.

The post Al Iaquinta Demands UFC To Release Him appeared first on LowKickMMA.com.

Business as Usual Update: Former Strikeforce President and CEO Scott Coker Quietly Demoted to Executive VP and General Manager


(Chael Sonnen will be skipping the 9:25 lecture to play blackjack)

An interesting tidbit to come out of this week’s UFC Fighter Summit is that former Strikeforce president and CEO Scott Coker has been quietly demoted to the role of executive vice president and general manager of the recently Zuffa-purchased promotion.


(Chael Sonnen will be skipping the 9:25 lecture to play blackjack)

An interesting tidbit to come out of this week’s UFC Fighter Summit is that former Strikeforce president and CEO Scott Coker has been quietly demoted to the role of executive vice president and general manager of the recently Zuffa-purchased promotion.

No official announcement was made about the title change and its unclear if Coker’s role with the promotion will change as a result, however the agenda for the week-long event revealed the news that managed slipped under the media radar.

The question is, will someone like former WEC GM and current UFC VP of community relations, Reed Harris be named as Coker’s successor or will UFC president Dana White’s title become “UFC and Strikeforce president?” I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.

End of an Era: WEC’s Final Event Provides Rare Moment for Reflection

Filed under: WECGLENDALE, Ariz. – As of today, the WEC is still their home. By Friday morning, it will just be a memory.

The WEC fighters and staff, they know this. At least, they know it in a hypothetical sense, the way you know that nothing lasts fo…

Filed under:

GLENDALE, Ariz. – As of today, the WEC is still their home. By Friday morning, it will just be a memory.

The WEC fighters and staff, they know this. At least, they know it in a hypothetical sense, the way you know that nothing lasts forever. But when the final fight is over at WEC 53 and the little blue cage is taken apart and packed away for the last time, that’s when it’s going to get real.

Even with as much as they’ve thought about this day over the past couple months, nobody can be sure exactly how that moment will feel when it arrives.

“I think it’s going to be kind of bittersweet,” said WEC lightweight champion Ben Henderson. “It’s already bittersweet to me now. I try not to think about it too much, but it’s already pretty bittersweet to me. It’s been great. It’s been a great ride.”

The MMA Hour With Mike Brown, Anthony Pettis, Nate Quarry, Reed Harris

Filed under: MMA Videos, UFC, WEC, FanHouse Exclusive, VideosThe MMA Hour returns on Monday with another live two-hour episode. We’ll be joined once again by a great lineup of guests from around the MMA world.

* Former WEC featherweight champion Mike …

Filed under: , , , ,

The MMA Hour returns on Monday with another live two-hour episode. We’ll be joined once again by a great lineup of guests from around the MMA world.

* Former WEC featherweight champion Mike Brown will share his thoughts on the WEC-UFC merger and when he expects to fight again.

* Anthony Pettis will weigh-in on the fact that his WEC lightweight title fight is now also a No. 1 contender fight for the UFC 155-pound belt.

* WEC GM and original co-owner Reed Harris will discuss what this move means for him.

* UFC middleweight Nate Quarry will also stop by to discuss his fighting future and some of his projects outside of the cage.

* And Mike Ben-Avi, director of marketing for the Israel Fighting Championship, will preview the organization’s first event on Nov. 9.

And of course, we’ll be taking your calls. Give us a shout at: 212-254-0193 or 212-254-0237.

Download this show and previous episodes of The MMA Hour on iTunes here.

Watch the show below at 1PM ET.

The History of the WEC: A Timeline

Filed under: UFC, WEC, FanHouse ExclusiveWorld Extreme Cagefighting, an event with humble beginnings as an entertainment program for an Indian reservation casino in California, will join the MMA’s World Series when it merges with the UFC in 2011.

Ove…

Filed under: , ,

World Extreme Cagefighting, an event with humble beginnings as an entertainment program for an Indian reservation casino in California, will join the MMA’s World Series when it merges with the UFC in 2011.

Over the past decade, the WEC has succeeded in spotlighting lighter weight fighters as well as the creating of stars such as Urijah Faber, Jose Aldo and Miguel Torres, whom otherwise might not have received the same amount of recognition.

Let’s take a look back at the history of the WEC after the jump.

WEC Beware: A Phenom on One Good Leg, Now Josh Grispi’s Healthy

Filed under: UFC, FanHouse Exclusive, NewsAt 21 years old, Josh Grispi is a grizzled veteran with big wins on his record, a horrific injury in his past and now, he hopes, a stirring comeback story.

The kid they call “The Fluke” actually began his care…

Filed under: , ,

At 21 years old, Josh Grispi is a grizzled veteran with big wins on his record, a horrific injury in his past and now, he hopes, a stirring comeback story.

The kid they call “The Fluke” actually began his career as a kid. As in, he was underage. He was 17 and determined, so he fudged the truth a little bit about the nature of the competition, got a parent’s signature and went off to chase a dream.

It was during his 18th birthday when everything started going wrong and right. He was legal now, so nothing could stop him from fighting (and that’s exactly what he was doing on his 18th birthday), but it was also the day that his right ankle suffered an injury from a misdirected kick. Over the next three years, it would get progressively worse, to the point that when he finally had a thorough exam, his doctors recoiled in horror.

“How are you even walking right now?” one doctor asked.