Chael Sonnen joined Michael Bisping in criticizing Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza for turning down the opportunity given to him by the UFC to take the title fight against Luke Rockhold at UFC 199 on short-notice when Chris Weidman pulled out of the fight due to injury.
Sonnen spoke about the situation during his appearance on Monday’s edition of “The MMA Hour” at MMAFighting.com.
“[Souza] is great. I would never make believe that he’s not,” said Sonnen. “But the bottom line is, the word is ‘yes.’ If you want an opportunity in America, when one comes, you need to know one word and that is ‘yes.’ The difference between Michael Bisping and everybody else is one word: ‘yes.’ When the opportunity came, that’s what he said. ‘Jacare’ is hurt? Look, fine, I’m sure he is hurt after that long, drawn-out war he just had with Vitor. You think Michael Bisping isn’t hurt? Of course he’s hurt. Whether he advertising it or not, he goes in and fights men everyday. There’s no way to not be hurt. Who gives a damn if you’re hurt, man? You’re either a tough guy or you aren’t.”
Sonnen continued, “We’re not worried about who the best fighter is,” added Sonnen. “There’s no way to know. It’s too speculative. All we’re trying to find out is who is the toughest guy in the world, at this weight class, in this set of rules, on this specific day. If you come forward and you go, ‘I can’t even make the walk, I’m not even tough enough to make the walk,’ fair enough, but you’re now out of the conversation. They should take you out of the rankings.”
“You can’t hold the No. 3 spot in the world when you’re openly telling everybody, ‘man, I’m not even tough enough to walk out there and try,'” said Sonnen. “Fair enough. People get hurt, I get it. But you’re now not that guy. If you were a true tough guy, you shut your mouth and you make the freaking walk, and it’s as simple as that. The chips fall where the chips fall. But Michael Bisping, for nothing else, is a tough guy and he said yes.”
UFC 199: Rockhold vs. Bisping II is scheduled for Saturday, June 4, 2016 at The Forum in Inglewood, California. Make sure to join us here at MMANews.com on 6/4 for the best UFC 199 live results coverage on the web!
Chael Sonnen joined Michael Bisping in criticizing Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza for turning down the opportunity given to him by the UFC to take the title fight against Luke Rockhold at UFC 199 on short-notice when Chris Weidman pulled out of the fight due to injury.
Sonnen spoke about the situation during his appearance on Monday’s edition of “The MMA Hour” at MMAFighting.com.
“[Souza] is great. I would never make believe that he’s not,” said Sonnen. “But the bottom line is, the word is ‘yes.’ If you want an opportunity in America, when one comes, you need to know one word and that is ‘yes.’ The difference between Michael Bisping and everybody else is one word: ‘yes.’ When the opportunity came, that’s what he said. ‘Jacare’ is hurt? Look, fine, I’m sure he is hurt after that long, drawn-out war he just had with Vitor. You think Michael Bisping isn’t hurt? Of course he’s hurt. Whether he advertising it or not, he goes in and fights men everyday. There’s no way to not be hurt. Who gives a damn if you’re hurt, man? You’re either a tough guy or you aren’t.”
Sonnen continued, “We’re not worried about who the best fighter is,” added Sonnen. “There’s no way to know. It’s too speculative. All we’re trying to find out is who is the toughest guy in the world, at this weight class, in this set of rules, on this specific day. If you come forward and you go, ‘I can’t even make the walk, I’m not even tough enough to make the walk,’ fair enough, but you’re now out of the conversation. They should take you out of the rankings.”
“You can’t hold the No. 3 spot in the world when you’re openly telling everybody, ‘man, I’m not even tough enough to walk out there and try,'” said Sonnen. “Fair enough. People get hurt, I get it. But you’re now not that guy. If you were a true tough guy, you shut your mouth and you make the freaking walk, and it’s as simple as that. The chips fall where the chips fall. But Michael Bisping, for nothing else, is a tough guy and he said yes.”
UFC 199: Rockhold vs. Bisping II is scheduled for Saturday, June 4, 2016 at The Forum in Inglewood, California. Make sure to join us here at MMANews.com on 6/4 for the best UFC 199 live results coverage on the web!
When Michael Bisping received the call from UFC management offering him the title fight against Luke Rockhold in the UFC 199 main event on short-notice, “The Count” was the guy to count-on for the company, however he wasn’t their first choice.
As noted, UFC initially contacted Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza, who was coming off a dominant performance in stopping MMA legend Vitor Belfort at UFC 198 in Curitiba, Brazil earlier this month. Jacare, however, turned down the bout.
When Bisping found out about the fact that Souza had declined the title fight with Rockhold, which would have also been a rematch for the UFC 185-pound champion, he took the Brazilian contender to task, openly criticizing him for turning down such a big opportunity.
Upon hearing about Bisping’s comments, Souza spoke with MMAFighting.com, where he offered his retort.
“Honestly, I didn’t know I’d get hurt so bad,” Souza told MMA Fighting about the reason why he had to turn down the short-notice offer to fight Rockhold in the UFC 199 main event on June 4. “I felt the pain before UFC 198, but was well trained and strong, so I didn’t train for a week. I felt the knee again during the fight. I was devastated because I did the MRI on May 16 and on May 17 I got the news that Weidman was injured. If I knew about it, I wouldn’t even do the MRI [laughs]. I had to open the black box to see what was going on with my knee.”
Souza continued, “It was a clean surgery, and I’m walking normally now. I had to do this surgery. I had a meniscus injury, and it would definitely get worse if I didn’t do this now. I was physically well in the fight, could move normally. Everybody has injuries going into a fight, it’s impossible to be 100 percent, but thank God I had the best strategy and won.”
As he would go on to explain, Jacare is scheduled to start rehab with his doctor and physical therapist and is expected to be cleared to train in approximately 20 days.
“I was going to say yes (and fight at UFC 199), but the MRI was done. I couldn’t just ignore the results,” he said. “Healthy first. I’m a Christian man, so I prayed. Whatever was in the MRI results would determine my future, if I would take the fight or not. The doctor told me ‘you fought Belfort for five minutes and can’t walk now. Imagine yourself fighting Rockhold for 25 minutes. You’ll lose your leg’. I decided not to fight because of my health.”
Jacare was scheduled to be ringside for the originally scheduled Rockhold vs. Chris Weidman title fight at UFC 199, however he still plans to be in attendance when Bisping challenges Rockhold for the title in Inglewood, California.
“I am the next challenger,” said the Brazilian. “Weidman won’t be back in a while, (Yoel) Romero was caught in a doping test, and I’ve earned a shot. I already asked the UFC for my flight ticket.”
In the end, Jacare made it clear that he’s next in line for a shot at the 185-pound title, and despite Bisping’s harsh criticism of his decision to turn down the short-notice opportunity at UFC 199, he wished the Englishman good luck in his upcoming title fight.
“(Bisping) is in the UFC for a long time, but that means nothing,” Souza responded. “I fought the guy that knocked him out, so no way he’s in front of me. The guys I beat are tougher than the ones he defeated. Time means nothing, what really means is what you’ve done to earn it. I earned it. They called me on short notice and I couldn’t take it, but I’m next. No need to say anything else. My loss to Romero was a robbery and then he got caught. Weidman won’t return until November. And I beat Vitor up, so I’m next.”
“But I wish him good luck, a good fight,” he continued. “He can say whatever he wants, and I’ll say what I want. I hope he does a good fight. He’s in the UFC for 10 years and does a good job, so I hope he fights well.”
UFC 199: Rockhold vs. Bisping II is scheduled to take place on Saturday, June 4, 2016 from The Forum in Inglewood, California.
Make sure to visit MMANews.com on 6/4 for the best UFC 199 live results coverage on the web!
When Michael Bisping received the call from UFC management offering him the title fight against Luke Rockhold in the UFC 199 main event on short-notice, “The Count” was the guy to count-on for the company, however he wasn’t their first choice.
As noted, UFC initially contacted Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza, who was coming off a dominant performance in stopping MMA legend Vitor Belfort at UFC 198 in Curitiba, Brazil earlier this month. Jacare, however, turned down the bout.
When Bisping found out about the fact that Souza had declined the title fight with Rockhold, which would have also been a rematch for the UFC 185-pound champion, he took the Brazilian contender to task, openly criticizing him for turning down such a big opportunity.
Upon hearing about Bisping’s comments, Souza spoke with MMAFighting.com, where he offered his retort.
“Honestly, I didn’t know I’d get hurt so bad,” Souza told MMA Fighting about the reason why he had to turn down the short-notice offer to fight Rockhold in the UFC 199 main event on June 4. “I felt the pain before UFC 198, but was well trained and strong, so I didn’t train for a week. I felt the knee again during the fight. I was devastated because I did the MRI on May 16 and on May 17 I got the news that Weidman was injured. If I knew about it, I wouldn’t even do the MRI [laughs]. I had to open the black box to see what was going on with my knee.”
Souza continued, “It was a clean surgery, and I’m walking normally now. I had to do this surgery. I had a meniscus injury, and it would definitely get worse if I didn’t do this now. I was physically well in the fight, could move normally. Everybody has injuries going into a fight, it’s impossible to be 100 percent, but thank God I had the best strategy and won.”
As he would go on to explain, Jacare is scheduled to start rehab with his doctor and physical therapist and is expected to be cleared to train in approximately 20 days.
“I was going to say yes (and fight at UFC 199), but the MRI was done. I couldn’t just ignore the results,” he said. “Healthy first. I’m a Christian man, so I prayed. Whatever was in the MRI results would determine my future, if I would take the fight or not. The doctor told me ‘you fought Belfort for five minutes and can’t walk now. Imagine yourself fighting Rockhold for 25 minutes. You’ll lose your leg’. I decided not to fight because of my health.”
Jacare was scheduled to be ringside for the originally scheduled Rockhold vs. Chris Weidman title fight at UFC 199, however he still plans to be in attendance when Bisping challenges Rockhold for the title in Inglewood, California.
“I am the next challenger,” said the Brazilian. “Weidman won’t be back in a while, (Yoel) Romero was caught in a doping test, and I’ve earned a shot. I already asked the UFC for my flight ticket.”
In the end, Jacare made it clear that he’s next in line for a shot at the 185-pound title, and despite Bisping’s harsh criticism of his decision to turn down the short-notice opportunity at UFC 199, he wished the Englishman good luck in his upcoming title fight.
“(Bisping) is in the UFC for a long time, but that means nothing,” Souza responded. “I fought the guy that knocked him out, so no way he’s in front of me. The guys I beat are tougher than the ones he defeated. Time means nothing, what really means is what you’ve done to earn it. I earned it. They called me on short notice and I couldn’t take it, but I’m next. No need to say anything else. My loss to Romero was a robbery and then he got caught. Weidman won’t return until November. And I beat Vitor up, so I’m next.”
“But I wish him good luck, a good fight,” he continued. “He can say whatever he wants, and I’ll say what I want. I hope he does a good fight. He’s in the UFC for 10 years and does a good job, so I hope he fights well.”
UFC 199: Rockhold vs. Bisping II is scheduled to take place on Saturday, June 4, 2016 from The Forum in Inglewood, California.
Make sure to visit MMANews.com on 6/4 for the best UFC 199 live results coverage on the web!
(“Hey Fabricio, it’s me Dan. I know this probably isn’t the time to tell you this, but you really dun f*cked up, kid.”via Getty)
Fabricio Werdum may have only been a -185 favorite heading into his UFC 198 title tilt with Stipe Miocic on Saturday, but the consensus across the board seemed to be that he would either utilize his vastly-improved striking skills to put away his Cleveland-born opponent on the feet or take him to the mat and submit him using his world-renowned Jiu Jitsu. This was the man who defeated Cain Velasquez, after all, and was hoping to kickstart his legacy as “the greatest heavyweight of all time” with a big win in front of 45,000 Brazilian fans.
The Fabricio Werdum that actually showed up at UFC 198, however, could not have looked further from the greatness he so desired. Chalk it up to blind confidence or whatever you will, but “Vai Cavalo” — a man who has not only submitted 3 of the greatest heavyweights of all time, but dominated the likes of Mark Hunt and Travis Browne in recent appearances — appeared to temporarily lose complete control of both his body and mind on Saturday night. It was quite possibly the most mind-blowingly stupid performance since Koji Oishi tried to block Nick Diaz’s punches with punches, and the result was a new champion who was all but handed the belt on a silver platter.
(“Hey Fabricio, it’s me Dan. I know this probably isn’t the time to tell you this, but you really dun f*cked up, kid.”via Getty)
Fabricio Werdum may have only been a -185 favorite heading into his UFC 198 title tilt with Stipe Miocic on Saturday, but the consensus across the board seemed to be that he would either utilize his vastly-improved striking skills to put away his Cleveland-born opponent on the feet or take him to the mat and submit him using his world-renowned Jiu Jitsu. This was the man who defeated Cain Velasquez, after all, and was hoping to kickstart his legacy as “the greatest heavyweight of all time” with a big win in front of 45,000 Brazilian fans.
The Fabricio Werdum that actually showed up at UFC 198, however, could not have looked further from the greatness he so desired. Chalk it up to blind confidence or whatever you will, but “Vai Cavalo” — a man who has not only submitted 3 of the greatest heavyweights of all time, but dominated the likes of Mark Hunt and Travis Browne in recent appearances — appeared to temporarily lose complete control of both his body and mind on Saturday night. It was quite possibly the most mind-blowingly stupid performance since Koji Oishi tried to block Nick Diaz’s punches with punches, and the result was a new champion who was all but handed the belt on a silver platter.
It cannot be understated how surreal it was to see a fighter with Werdum’s technical prowess literally charge face first into the fists of his opponent while throwing the kind of telegraphed 1-2 punches usually found on an episode of Cops. He didn’t even cut off the cage, for Christ’s sake! THIS IS DAY ONE STUFF, FABRICIO.
In the end, it’s hard not to see Werdum’s performance at UFC 198 as anything but reckless. He’s asking for a quick rematch at UFC 200, because of course he is, and given the way in which the UFC operates these days, it’s very likely that he’ll receive it. Until that day comes, however, there won’t be enough “happy face” masks in the world to suppress his sadness.
Rather than focus on Vitor Belfort‘s nearly-as-stupid decision to pull guard against Ronaldo Souza and get immediately TKO’d in last weekend’s co-main event, we figured it would be nice to highlight some of the positive takeaways from UFC 198. First up on that list, obviously, would have to be Cris Cyborg‘s long-awaited UFC debut. Paired up against self-admitted journeyman Leslie Smith, the current Invicta featherweight champion looked faster, more dynamic, and more technical with her strikes than ever before… a scary notion if you’re, say, the one woman who has been needling her for what feels like a decade now. The end result of Cyborg’s time away from the octagon, in any case, was an absolutely savage ass-kicking.
Smith may be protesting the stoppage to anyone who will listen, but really, referee Eduardo Herdy was only putting a stop to the inevitable before it got out of hand. The fact is that Smith landed maybe 2 punches in 80 seconds and was caught between a rock and a hard place (which, conveniently, are the names Cyborg has bestowed upon her fists) before the fight was stopped, so let’s just credit her for having the guts to take the fight in the first place and move on to figuring out how Cyborg can make the cut to 135, because that shit needs to happen.
Can we talk about Matt Brown for a second? What a week it has been for this poor guy. Paired up against Demian Maia in the featured prelim of the evening, “The Immortal” knew he would be entering hostile territory, but decided that the best course of action to combat this would be to flip off the Curitiba crowd during Friday’s weigh-ins. This…..did not seem like a strong move, in retrospect.
You can check out the highlights from Brown’s third round submission loss to Maia here, but basically, it looked like every performance that we’ve come to expect from Maia 2.0. More interesting, however, were the assaults Brown was forced to deal with both before and after the fight. The first you can check out above, wherein Brown is hit no less than three times on the way to the ring before giving the final assailant a once-in-a-lifetime souvenir.
Crazy, right? Well that doesn’t hold a candle to what happened in the hotel lobby after the fight. According to MiddleEasy, Brown was then sucker-punched by his former coach, Rodrigo Botti, in the hotel that he was staying in. The video above captures Brown’s friend, Vinicius “Pequeno” Lemos, laying some good old fashioned street justice on Botti while waiting for the police to arrive. Brazilians, man, they’re f*cking crazy.
The full results for UFC 198 are below.
Main card
Stipe Miocic def. Fabricio Werdum via first-round KO (2:47)
Jacare Souza def. Vitor Belfort via first-round TKO (4:38)
Cris Cyborg def. Leslie Smith via first-round TKO (1:21)
Mauricio Rua def. Corey Anderson via split decision
Bryan Barberena def. Warlley Alves via unanimous decision
Undercard
Demian Maia def. Matt Brown via submission (rear-naked choke) (R3, 4:31)
Thiago Santos def. Nate Marquardt via first-round KO (3:39)
Francisco Trinaldo def. Yancy Medeiros via unanimous decision
John Lineker def. Rob Font via unanimous decision
Antonio Rogerio Nogueira def. Patrick Cummins via first-round TKO (4:52)
Sergio Moraes vs. Luan Chagas ruled a draw
Renato Moicano def. Zubaira Tukhugov via split decision
The UFC’s electric stadium show of UFC 198 live from the Arena de Baixada last night (May 14, 2016) in Curitiba, Brazil was a huge success, as Brazilian stars took the Octagon to embark on some of the biggest fights of their lives. The Brazilian crowd was great, cheering on their native heroes, who, for
The UFC’s electric stadium show of UFC 198 live from the Arena de Baixada last night (May 14, 2016) in Curitiba, Brazil was a huge success, as Brazilian stars took the Octagon to embark on some of the biggest fights of their lives.
The Brazilian crowd was great, cheering on their native heroes, who, for the most part, emerged victorious. Not all Brazilian natives took home a win, however, as our ‘Brazil vs Brazil’ co-main event saw one man exiting the contest in a bloody mess in the first round.
The main event featured a heavyweight title bout between Brazilian Fabricio Werdum and surging Croatian contender Stipe Miocic, that ended with a bang and someone taking a short nap on the canvas.
With that said, lets take a look at our five biggest takeaways from UFC 198.
In the battle of Brazil vs. Brazil on Saturday night at UFC 198 in Curitiba, Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza got his hand raised.
Jacare defeated MMA legend and former UFC Champion Vitor Belfort in the UFC 198 pay-per-view co-…
https://youtu.be/YI0MjIcCy00
In the battle of Brazil vs. Brazil on Saturday night at UFC 198 in Curitiba, Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza got his hand raised.
Jacare defeated MMA legend and former UFC Champion Vitor Belfort in the UFC 198 pay-per-view co-main event via TKO due to strikes at the 4:38 mark of the very first round.
After the fight, Jacare said he feels he is deserving of a UFC Middleweight Title shot after beating Belfort tonight. He spoke about his first fight with the reigning UFC Middleweight Champion Luke Rockhold, claiming the judges for their first fight, which Rockhold won back in Strikeforce, got the decision wrong.
What started out as a mere Fight Night card is now a massive PPV event that has the potential to be one of the biggest of the year. UFC 198 takes place live from Curitiba, Brazil, tonight (Sat., May 14, 2016) at the Arena de Baixada in the first soccer stadium event in UFC history.
What started out as a mere Fight Night card is now a massive PPV event that has the potential to be one of the biggest of the year. UFC 198 takes place live from Curitiba, Brazil, tonight (Sat., May 14, 2016) at the Arena de Baixada in the first soccer stadium event in UFC history.
The card features huge Brazilian names and legends such as Vitor Belfort, Shogun Rua, Demian Maia, and the UFC debut of Cristiane ‘Cyborg’ Justino. The colossal Brazil event is headlined by a championship bout between current heavyweight king Fabricio Werdum, and top contender Stipe Miocic.
With all that being said, let’s take a look at the five crucial reasons you should watch UFC 198…
