(No, Frankie, I will not judge your next title fight, so quit asking.)
After retiring, former UFC fighter Ricardo Almeida announced that he would begin judging MMA events. He’s been doing that for awhile now in his home state of New Jersey, and this Saturday’s UFC on Fox 3 will be the Renzo Gracie black belt’s first time judging fights on the big stage.
Almeida will not be judging fights where he has a conflict of interest (see fighters he coaches or that are affiliated to him or his Renzo Gracie lineage like Jim Miller, for example) but we do already know that he will be one of the judges scoring Josh Koscheck vs. Johny Hendricks and several more from the card. Almeida tells ESPN’s Franklin McNeil that he is both nervous and prepared to judge UFC fights.
“Yeah, I’m going to be nervous. It’ll be like I’m walking into a fight myself. But the spotlight only makes me want to be sharper and do a better job,” Almeida tells McNeil.
(No, Frankie, I will not judge your next title fight, so quit asking.)
After retiring, former UFC fighter Ricardo Almeida announced that he would begin judging MMA events. He’s been doing that for awhile now in his home state of New Jersey, and this Saturday’s UFC on Fox 3 will be the Renzo Gracie black belt’s first time judging fights on the big stage.
Almeida will not be judging fights where he has a conflict of interest (see fighters he coaches or that are affiliated to him or his Renzo Gracie lineage like Jim Miller, for example) but we do already know that he will be one of the judges scoring Josh Koscheck vs. Johny Hendricks and several more from the card. Almeida tells ESPN’s Franklin McNeil that he is both nervous and prepared to judge UFC fights.
“Yeah, I’m going to be nervous. It’ll be like I’m walking into a fight myself. But the spotlight only makes me want to be sharper and do a better job,” Almeida tells McNeil.
“It will be pretty intense, but I will be on my toes with this UFC event, because I know all eyes are going to be on me.”
There are possible pitfalls to fighters judging fights (what happens if Almeida announces his come-back by awarding himself a decision win in the Koscheck vs. Hendricks bout, for example? We jus’ kidding! Please don’t tweet Almeida about that or sue us.), but the positives of having an informed person who knows the sport first-hand seems like a step in the right direction. Props to New Jersey’s commission head Nick Lembo for asking Almeida to become a judge.
Both Koscheck and Hendricks have expressed their approval of Almeida judging their and other fights. I’m sure that goodwill will last exactly until the point Almeida scores a big fight differently than a fighter says he should.
In a move that is sure to upset hundreds of thousands of dozens of people, the Oklahoma State Athletic Commission, and specifically its Executive Director Joe Miller, recently issued the following statement to promoters statewide that has more or less banned MMA from the land of fried okra:
The purpose of this letter is to inform you the Oklahoma State Athletic Commission will not be accepting applications for event permits for events scheduled after March 31, 2012. The Commission is faced with an out-of-state threat that, if successful, could greatly affect the Commission’s ability to provide for the public safety and for the health and safety of the athletes for future events throughout the state of Oklahoma. The Commission is currently trying to address legal and legislative efforts which have given us serious concerns about how we move forward with adequate oversight of Oklahoma’s boxing, mixed martial arts, and professional wrestling events. As you know, the primary focus of this agency is to make sure the athlete’s health, and safety is not compromised. We take this charge very seriously. The Commission and I will be working diligently to address these issues and develop a plan of action to return to a normal course of business.
Now why, pray tell, do you think Oklahoma would do this to us? Here’s a hint: Dana M.F. White.
Join us after the jump for more on this story as well as a great piece of Pro-NY MMA propaganda.
(We hear you there, bro.)
In a move that is sure to upset hundreds of thousands of dozens of people, the Oklahoma State Athletic Commission, and specifically its Executive Director Joe Miller, recently issued the following statement to promoters statewide that has more or less banned MMA from the land of fried okra:
The purpose of this letter is to inform you the Oklahoma State Athletic Commission will not be accepting applications for event permits for events scheduled after March 31, 2012. The Commission is faced with an out-of-state threat that, if successful, could greatly affect the Commission’s ability to provide for the public safety and for the health and safety of the athletes for future events throughout the state of Oklahoma. The Commission is currently trying to address legal and legislative efforts which have given us serious concerns about how we move forward with adequate oversight of Oklahoma’s boxing, mixed martial arts, and professional wrestling events. As you know, the primary focus of this agency is to make sure the athlete’s health, and safety is not compromised. We take this charge very seriously. The Commission and I will be working diligently to address these issues and develop a plan of action to return to a normal course of business.
Now why, pray tell, do you think Oklahoma would do this to us? Here’s a hint: Dana M.F. White.
Turns out, Oklahoma was imposing a four percent tax on all UFC pay-per-views purchased within the state. Whether or not the events themselves were actually held in Oklahoma did not change this fact. Though you would expect Dana White to be pissed upon hearing of this, the money itself was used to help fund the Oklahoma State Athletic Commission, similar to how Wyoming is planning to fund the first ever MMA-only commission. As Miller explained:
It takes approximately $360K for the Commission to provide regulation for the approximately 275 events per year we regulate. The Oklahoma State Athletic Commission does not receive any state funding. We are funded solely from license fees, assessment on live events, and an assessment on pay-per-view events. We receive approximately $137K per year through license fees and assessments on live events. Receipts from Pay-per-view are approximately $240K per year. About $80K per year comes from UFC PPV. The UFC has threatened a law suit against our PPV law unless our legislature repeals our PPV law during this legislative session. The Commission loses either way. OK has been collecting on PPV since 2004 and this is the first time the issue has been brought to light. For the Oklahoma Commission to survive and for Combat Sports to continue in Oklahoma it will be up to the Oklahoma legislature to come up with a solution to the funding shortfall. You can do the math.
Seems understandable in the broader spectrum of things, right? Sure, it’s money out of the UFC’s pocket, and sure, they really don’t visit Oklahoma enough to need a lot of pull there (they’ve visited just twice in their existence, UFC 4 in Dedember of ’94 and UFN 16 in Sept. of 2009), but its money that allows the sport to legally exist in the state.
Well, apparently that sentiment wasn’t enough to make DW’s cold, dead heart grow three sizes that day, as it seems the Zuffa brass has decided to sue the Commission in order to get what they want, ie. that bread. You know, similar to what they’re doing with New York.
I may be in the minority here, but the UFC’s long running policy of “We’ll fuck you harder than you’ve ever been fucked before” (just quoting here) could really bite them in the ass in the near future. Let’s face it, a LOT of state governments are strapped for cash right now. The high school I attended, for instance, is eliminating all sports from its program next year due to a lack of state funding. Insane right? And if a state requires a multi-billion dollar company like Zuffa to fork over a minuscule percentage of their PPV earnings to help fund the committee that helps oversee the sport’s safety, it’s truly in the better interest of the sport, is it not? It’s not like the government is taking this money to buy another G5 for their fleet or anything. Until we find out that they are, of course, because we all know politicians are nothing more than swindlers in fancy suits.
It’s a give and take world is all we’re saying. The UFC provides millions of dollars in revenues to the states it chooses to hold its events in, and in turn the states provide a broader audience for the sport’s (not to mention the UFC’s) continued growth. And if a state decides to ban the sport, it all but kills the hopes of local fighters with upper-tier potential to compete in the sport they love, because not everyone can afford to travel out of state for each given fight.
In either case, the push for nationwide legalization of MMA just took a small, but noticeable step back.
Speaking of MMA legalization, check out this great bit of pro New York MMA propoganda created by FoxNews contributor (take it easy) Steven Crowder. The video, which features interviews with Pat Militech, Chael Sonnen and Renzo Gracie among others, lays out the history, safety, and the potential economic impact of MMA in a state like NY, as well as debunks the myths laid about by long time NY Assemblyman, Bob Reilly.
It’s times like these that we really, truly appreciate Chael Sonnen. Sure, the Brazil jokes and general xenophobia are funny in their own right, but when Chael actually removes the pro wrestling facade for a little and speaks his heart on an issue, it’s hard to disagree with the guy. Especially considering the fact that he knows first hand the pitfalls of greed politics.
Like Crowder said, if you’re a fan of freedom, forward this video along and contact your local representative. And if that doesn’t work, we take Tulsa. And after that, we’re taking Topeka. Why? FUCK IT, THAT’S WHY.
When discussing his fourth round tapout loss to UFC Light Heavyweight Champ Jon Jones, Rampage Jackson explained that he lets no man put him to sleep because he doesn’t trust people. I’m not exactly certain what Jackson fears might unfold once he goes out, but vile atrocities such as antiquing and billboarding have been perpetrated on unconscious fighters before. But there’s a certain amount of trust that goes into tapping out as well. The tapout is nothing more than a gentlemen’s agreement, really, in which one fighter admits that he’s taken enough punishment for one day. But not everyone in the face-punching business is a gentleman, and sometimes your opponent may not agree that you’ve taken all of the damage you deserve.
When you hold a submission too long there’s a chance of causing damage to a limb or unconsciousness, but it always leads to hurt feelings.
(A little club soda will get that right out.)
When discussing his fourth round tapout loss to UFC Light Heavyweight Champ Jon Jones, Rampage Jackson explained that he lets no man put him to sleep because he doesn’t trust people. I’m not exactly certain what Jackson fears might unfold once he goes out, but vile atrocities such as antiquing and billboarding have been perpetrated on unconscious fighters before. But there’s a certain amount of trust that goes into tapping out as well. The tapout is nothing more than a gentlemen’s agreement, really, in which one fighter admits that he’s taken enough punishment for one day. But not everyone in the face-punching business is a gentleman, and sometimes your opponent may not agree that you’ve taken all of the damage you deserve.
When you hold a submission too long there’s a chance of causing damage to a limb or unconsciousness, but it always leads to hurt feelings.
Renato Sobral vs. David Heath
(Click the photo for the video, and if you can translate the embed code get at me in the comments section)
Bad blood: This is probably the best known example of a fighter refusing to let go of a submission, yet most of the facts surrounding the incident are nonsense. You know how the story goes, right? Heath capped off a bevy of pre-fight trash talk by walking out to the weigh-ins in a shirt featuring Babalu’s recent mug shot. Or did he? This fight took place at UFC 74, ironically titled “Respect”. The event featured Couture-Gonzaga and GSP-Koscheck I, which means there were probably a few cameras in the stands, yet there are more photos of Dana wearing a “Free Cage Potato” shirt than of Heath in his mocking garb. According to Heath, a fan gave him such a shirt but “it never saw the light of day”. Several websites ran stories regarding Heath wearing the shirt, but later printed retractions as it simply was not true. I was there in the stands when they hit the scales, and I certainly don’t remember it.
As for pre-fight interviews where Heath talked trash, I couldn’t find anything other than this second-hand quote credited to an interview from UFC.com: “I think he’s a helluva fighter and I like his style tremendously. The guy’s as accomplished as they get, and he’s the type of guy up and coming fighters like me look at and hope that they have a career similar to his. I’ve got all the respect in the world for the guy and I can’t wait to fight him.” Pretty harsh stuff. The weigh-ins did get heated, but it was hardly a one-way street and nothing we haven’t seen before.
The fight: It didn’t take Babalu long to get this fight to the ground, and once there he went to work with punches, hammer fists and elbows from the guard. Once reversed, the Brazilian continued to rattle off strikes and submission attempts from his back, though Heath landed a shot or two of his own. Sobral secured a takedown early in round two and quickly opened up a horrific cut on Heath’s forehead. The mat soon resembled the floor of a slaughterhouse in one of the bloodiest fights to date. Heath worked his way up only to get caught in an anaconda choke and rolled back to the floor. With nowhere to go he tapped out, but Sobral ignored Mazaggatti’s attempts to end the fight and held the choke until his opponent was out cold.
In his own words: If Babalu was feeling guilty about what he’d done, he did a good job of hiding it in his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan. “I did what I did, because this guys a pretty young fighter; I’ve been in this game for ten years and he had no respect for me. He called me a “motherfucker.” When asked by Joe Rogan if he put him to sleep on purpose even though Heath tapped, Sobral responded: “Yes. He has to learn respect.” Still not thinking through the consequences of his words, Babalu inspected his work on the jumbotron and added: “Yes. That’s what I did. He deserved that shit.”
Payback’s a bitch: Sobral’s denial of intentional wrongdoing at his Nevada State Athletic Commission hearing–despite his own taped admission of the crime–set the bar high for Chael Sonnen’s future pleas of innocence. Despite his claims that he didn’t feel the tap and that he released the hold as soon as he noticed the ref’s involvement, he didn’t get off so easily. The NSAC fined him $25k (half of his purse for the fight) and his contract with the UFC was terminated. As if that wasn’t enough, he was later made the victim of a horrible post-fight atrocity himself.
“This Sunday marks the ten-year anniversary of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. The way America looked at itself was altered immensely on that date, and a decade later the world is a very different place. Memories of panic and uncertainty are still present, but the urge to keep moving forward is even stronger. In remembrance of this anniversary, TheFightNerd.com, has released an exclusive short-film that commemorates this event alongside the New York MMA community. ‘A Fighting Spirit’ is a video memoir that interviews members of the NY martial arts community and discusses where they were when the Towers collapsed, how they have coped, and how New York and America have grown stronger.
Directed by Kahleem Poole-Tejada (director of the full-length documentary ‘New York MMA’) and produced by Matthew Kaplowitz (Editor-in-Chief of TheFightNerd.com) in association with Ranger Up, the film takes viewers around a tour of downtown Manhattan and provides a glimpse inside several of New York City’s top MMA gyms. It features many NY-based fighters, such as Renzo Gracie, Chris Weidman, Pete ‘Drago’ Sell, and Vitor ‘Shaolin’ Ribeiro, as well as Stephen Koepfer of NY Combat Sambo, Mark Yehia of ‘Elite Plus MMA,’ Rob Constance of ‘The Renzo Gracie Academy’ and President of the ‘Ultimate Absolute’ grappling tournament, and Emilio Novoa, President of ADCC North America. Also appearing is UFC middleweight fighter Jorge Rivera, as well as Strikeforce middleweight Tim Kennedy, who adds the voices of members of the U.S. Armed Forces to this emotional piece.”
As a New York resident since August 2002, the ten-year anniversary of 9/11 has put me in a reflective mood all week. Maybe you feel the same. If you have any recollections or tributes to share from that day, please leave them in the comments section. Here, I’ll start…
“This Sunday marks the ten-year anniversary of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. The way America looked at itself was altered immensely on that date, and a decade later the world is a very different place. Memories of panic and uncertainty are still present, but the urge to keep moving forward is even stronger. In remembrance of this anniversary, TheFightNerd.com, has released an exclusive short-film that commemorates this event alongside the New York MMA community. ‘A Fighting Spirit’ is a video memoir that interviews members of the NY martial arts community and discusses where they were when the Towers collapsed, how they have coped, and how New York and America have grown stronger.
Directed by Kahleem Poole-Tejada (director of the full-length documentary ‘New York MMA’) and produced by Matthew Kaplowitz (Editor-in-Chief of TheFightNerd.com) in association with Ranger Up, the film takes viewers around a tour of downtown Manhattan and provides a glimpse inside several of New York City’s top MMA gyms. It features many NY-based fighters, such as Renzo Gracie, Chris Weidman, Pete ‘Drago’ Sell, and Vitor ‘Shaolin’ Ribeiro, as well as Stephen Koepfer of NY Combat Sambo, Mark Yehia of ‘Elite Plus MMA,’ Rob Constance of ‘The Renzo Gracie Academy’ and President of the ‘Ultimate Absolute’ grappling tournament, and Emilio Novoa, President of ADCC North America. Also appearing is UFC middleweight fighter Jorge Rivera, as well as Strikeforce middleweight Tim Kennedy, who adds the voices of members of the U.S. Armed Forces to this emotional piece.”
As a New York resident since August 2002, the ten-year anniversary of 9/11 has put me in a reflective mood all week. Maybe you feel the same. If you have any recollections or tributes to share from that day, please leave them in the comments section. Here, I’ll start…
The summer of 2001 is when I first fell in love with New York City. I came here for a two-month internship doing grunt-work for a dearly departed men’s magazine called Stuff. At the time, some of the editors on the payroll included Seth Kelly (who’s now the editor-in-chief of UFC Magazine), Laura Gilbert (who now runs UFC.com), Jon Small (who later moved to Break Media and hired me to launch CagePotato.com in 2007), and Greg Gutfeld (then the magazine’s editor-in-chief, now the wacky host of Red Eye). I’d never been around such a talented collection of smart, funny motherfuckers in my life. I think the majority of my days were spent transcribing interviews, but still, it was a dream job.
The experience helped me decide two things that had already been in my mind: 1) I wanted to write for a living. And 2) I wanted to live in New York while I did it. It’s hard to match the exhilaration of being 20 years old and spending two months in a crazy-ass city with nobody watching you. On one of my first nights there, I walked 25 blocks to CBGB, just to see the place and pay my respects. Napalm Death and Isis were headlining a death-metal showcase. At one point, I got slammed so hard by a mosh-pitter that I fell onto the stage. It was awesome. Now CBGB is gone, and I feel like an old man.
After my crash course in the lad-mag biz, I went back to Ann Arbor to finish my last year at the University of Michigan. Just a week into classes, my roommate woke me up and told me that something really bad had happened, and I should come look at the TV. Like most people, it took me a long time to process what I was seeing. “Holy shit,” I said. “I was just there.” Over the next few days, I contacted everybody I’d met at Stuff, checking to see if they were all okay. They were, but they knew people, and they knew people who knew people, and it was all very fucked up.
Obviously, nothing like this had ever happened in my lifetime. My heart broke for the victims, and for the multitudes who had lost children, parents, spouses, and friends, and for those who kept searching for their missing loved ones, past the point of hope.
But it was inspiring watching some of the news coverage that followed in the subsequent weeks. The tragedy united New Yorkers in an unprecedented way, and it was clear that the city would heal and become “stronger at the broken places,” so to speak. It seemed to me that New Yorkers were keeping their heads while the rest of the country was freaking out, and that made an impression.
So I finished school, kicked around Ann Arbor for a couple months, then rented a U-Haul with my girlfriend at the time and rolled the dice. I had friends and family members advise against the move because they didn’t think New York was safe. And maybe they were right, but I was young and adventurous, and I had faith that this big, ferocious city would protect me.
In November, my wife and I will be leaving New York to move back to the Midwest and raise our first child. I’m already bracing for the homesickness. In nine years, this place has never let me down.
Filed under: UFCThe UFC’s August fight card in Rio de Janeiro is just about set, but one question remains: Will anyone from the first family of Brazilian jiu jitsu be a part of it?
One member of that family, Renzo Gracie, says he feels strongly that a…
The UFC’s August fight card in Rio de Janeiro is just about set, but one question remains: Will anyone from the first family of Brazilian jiu jitsu be a part of it?
One member of that family, Renzo Gracie, says he feels strongly that a Gracie should be a part of the event. But Renzo says it won’t be him, because he simply hasn’t had time to prepare for an MMA fight with all the work it takes to run his own jiu jitsu school.
“In reality, I can’t,” Gracie said on The MMA Hour. “I have no time now. I was planning to, I began the training, but my life is so crazy I couldn’t dedicate 100 percent to that.”
Gracie said he would love to see his cousin Royce Gracie, the first UFC champion, fight on the UFC 134 card. And if not Royce, Renzo thinks someone named Gracie should be in the Octagon representing the family.
“I hope Royce fights,” Renzo said. “To have a Gracie fight there would be great — great for the fans, to have someone from my family fighting. I hoped to do it but I don’t have the time to concentrate to it.”
Renzo said his next competition will be an Abu Dhabi Combat Club grappling match with Mario Sperry, and then he’ll begin preparing for another UFC fight.
“For sure, I’ll be fighting,” Renzo said. “I would fight for free anywhere. That’s how much I like this. The UFC is paying me, so how could I say no, but that’s the reality. … I love the sport so much.”
Renzo, who last fought against former welterweight champion Matt Hughes in April of 2010, said that when he does fight again he’ll move down to lightweight. He also said that he’s sure he’ll continue to fight in the UFC and not move to another promotion, because of his respect for UFC President Dana White.
“It’s great,” Renzo said of the UFC. “I love Dana. I’ve known Dana since before he was the UFC president and I’ve always had a great relationship with him.”
According to Renzo, the fighting future of the Gracie family is bright and includes his own 16-year-old son, whom Renzo expects to see fighting in the UFC some day. Renzo said his son is a passionate student of jiu jitsu, and Renzo would love to see his son turn his attention full-time to jiu jitsu and MMA right now, but his wife insists that their son finish school first.
So we can rule out Renzo and his son UFC 134. But Renzo is still holding out hope that the UFC Rio card will include a Gracie.
Filed under: UFC, FanHouse Exclusive, VideosThe MMA Hour returns on Monday, and five personalities from around the mixed martial arts world will be stopping by.
* MMA legend Renzo Gracie will visit our studio for the very first time.
The MMA Hour returns on Monday, and five personalities from around the mixed martial arts world will be stopping by.
* MMA legend Renzo Gracie will visit our studio for the very first time.
* Kurt Pellegrino will discuss why he is temporarily walking away from the sport.
* Female MMA fighter Felice Herrig will discuss her recent win and what’s next for her.
* UFC newcomer Jason Young will discuss his UFC 131 bout against Dustin Poirier.
* MMA trainer Duke Roufus will talk about Anthony Pettis and Danny Downes’ losses at the TUF 13 Finale.
* And Aaron Rosa, another UFC rookie, will discuss his UFC 131 bout against Joey Beltran.
Of course, we’ll be taking your calls. Give us a shout at: 212-254-0193 or 212-254-0237.
*** You can now stream the show live on your iPhone or iPad by clicking here.
Watch the show live below beginning at 1 p.m. ET / 10 a.m. PT. Subscribe to The MMA Hour on iTunes: audio feed here; video feed here. Download previous episodes here. Listen to the show via Stitcher here.
(Editor’s note: The show is now over, but the video should be back Tuesday.)
The UFC’s August fight card in Rio de Janeiro is just about set, but one question remains: Will anyone from the first family of Brazilian jiu jitsu be a part of it?
