Former UFC Heavyweight Shane Carwin to Fight with 1 Hand Tied Behind Back

Former UFC interim heavyweight champion Shane Carwin is making his long-speculated return to combat sports on Saturday.
However, he’s not taking a traditional route.
He will compete in a one-armed boxing match against retired professional skateboarder …

Former UFC interim heavyweight champion Shane Carwin is making his long-speculated return to combat sports on Saturday.

However, he’s not taking a traditional route.

He will compete in a one-armed boxing match against retired professional skateboarder Jason Ellis, who made the announcement in a video on his website (warning: NSFW language and content).

“I’m not really excited about doing it,” said Ellis (h/t BJPenn.com). “A lot of people have told me he’s the heaviest puncher. Brendan Schaub, who was a heavyweight in the UFC himself, who sparred with Shane Carwin, said that he is the heaviest puncher ever in the UFC out of anybody. [Out of] anybody in the UFC, he’s the hardest puncher, and he’s going to punch me.”

Carwin is best known for his three-year run in the UFC from 2008 to 2011. He cemented himself as the single hardest puncher in the sport by scoring first-round finishes in his first 12 fights, including his initial four in the UFC. He faced former UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir for the interim heavyweight title at UFC 111, knocking him out in the first round. He also lost to Brock Lesnar at UFC 116.

After coming up short against Junior Dos Santos at UFC 131 in June 2011, Carwin coached a team of young fighters opposite fellow heavyweight slugger Roy Nelson on the UFC’s reality show, The Ultimate Fighter. Unfortunately, he withdrew from the bout with Nelson due to injury and later retired in 2013

In May 2016, shortly after news broke that Lesnar would return at UFC 200, Carwin teased a comeback before officially coming out of retirement in September. 

For his part, Carwin has been talking pointed smack with Ellis:

The fight will take place at EllisMania 13 on Saturday in Las Vegas, which promises to feature a bunch of other oddities. MMA fans, however, will have to wait and see whether it leads to bigger things for Carwin.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

10 UFC Stars Who Had A Day Job

In most high-profile professional sports it’s unheard of to hold down a day job while competing at the highest level, but it’s more common than you might think in mixed martial arts. That’s not to suggest that MMA fighters don’t require as much time to prepare as other athletes though. Far from it in fact,

The post 10 UFC Stars Who Had A Day Job appeared first on LowKick MMA.

In most high-profile professional sports it’s unheard of to hold down a day job while competing at the highest level, but it’s more common than you might think in mixed martial arts.

That’s not to suggest that MMA fighters don’t require as much time to prepare as other athletes though.

Far from it in fact, with mixed martial arts multi-faceted disciplines presenting a never-ending array of techniques to be learned, practiced and honed, while countless hours are invested in grueling conditioning workouts and sparring sessions to prepare fighters minds and bodies for one of the most demanding physical pursuits in all of sports.

However, compared to other leading sports, MMA is still the new kid on the block, and when many of today’s fighters took their first martial arts classes in their teens there was no guarantee that there would be able to make a career out of it.

Even today, with the sport having a stronger footing than at any time in it’s brief history, many of the UFC’s fighters still face challenges making ends meet and beyond a handful of major stars there’s not many who will be financially secure when they decide to hang up their gloves.

With that in mind, it’s no surprise that some UFC fighters over the years have opted to retain a day job alongside their fighting careers, and in this article we’ll look at 10 who have done so successfully on the sports biggest stage.

The post 10 UFC Stars Who Had A Day Job appeared first on LowKick MMA.

Shane Carwin Announces Comeback, But Not For The UFC

Former interim UFC heavyweight champion Shane Carwin called it quits on his career back in 2011. Following straight losses to Junior dos Santos and Brock Lesnar, ‘The Engineer’ cited ongoing injury troubles as the main reason for retiring. Carwins career record was immaculate up until 2010. Undefeated at 12-0, the heavy-handed striker had finished all his

The post Shane Carwin Announces Comeback, But Not For The UFC appeared first on LowKick MMA.

Former interim UFC heavyweight champion Shane Carwin called it quits on his career back in 2011. Following straight losses to Junior dos Santos and Brock Lesnar, ‘The Engineer’ cited ongoing injury troubles as the main reason for retiring. Carwins career record was immaculate up until 2010. Undefeated at 12-0, the heavy-handed striker had finished all his opponents in the first round. That devastating streak included former poster boy Frank Mir.

Now aged 41, Carwin has been teasing a comeback for some time now. The UFC heavyweight division has changed vastly since his time in the limelight, but Carwin’s return to fighting was still highly anticipated. After a few months of further speculation about a potential rematch with Brock Lesnar, Shane Carwin has finally confirmed his return to MMA. However, and perhaps unexpectedly, he will no longer fight for the UFC.

Shane-Carwin-vs-Brock-Lesnar-1019b-UFC-116-750x370-747x370[1]

Free Agency

Shane Carwin is now officially a free agent. He took to the UG Forum to make the announcement this week, claiming he had mutually parted ways with the UFC. Carwin was still under contract with the UFC, but it looks like negotiations hadn’t quite worked out for a return to the octagon.

As many of you know I recently decided to come out of retirement. I asked my management team at Ingrained Media to help chart a course. This lead to reviews of my contract and conversations with Joe Silva and UFC’s legal team. We decided mutually that my value and what I bring to the Heavyweight Division will be better utilized elsewhere. I am now a free agent. I look forward to freely speaking with the other MMA promotions. The Heavyweight division has a lot of great fights and not all of them are in the UFC.

I am excited about what the future holds. I want to prove to myself and my fans that I belong at the top of the division. Today that journey begins.

Bellator?

Obvious options for Shane Carwin include Bellator, World Series of Fighting or perhaps even Rizin FF. it certainly will be fun to watch ‘The Engineer’ get back in to the swing of fighting, but how will he fare against the current crop of non-UFC heavyweights?

The post Shane Carwin Announces Comeback, But Not For The UFC appeared first on LowKick MMA.

Shane Carwin Says He’s ‘Ready’ To Make UFC Return

Former interim UFC heavyweight champion Shane Carwin had a successful run in the UFC between 2008 and 2012, compiling a 4-2 record including four T/KO victories. Carwin was one of the heaviest hitters in the division with his most notable victory coming via stoppage over former champion Frank Mir. It’s safe to say that Carwin’s

The post Shane Carwin Says He’s ‘Ready’ To Make UFC Return appeared first on LowKick MMA.

Former interim UFC heavyweight champion Shane Carwin had a successful run in the UFC between 2008 and 2012, compiling a 4-2 record including four T/KO victories. Carwin was one of the heaviest hitters in the division with his most notable victory coming via stoppage over former champion Frank Mir. It’s safe to say that Carwin’s presence was undoubtedly felt during his tenure with the world’s largest MMA promotion, and at age 41, he may be bringing that power back to the division.

Taking to his official Twitter account recently, the former titleholder said plain and simple that he was ‘ready’ to fight again:


Details regarding when this return could happen or who Carwin could be matched up against are currently unclear, but it will be a spectacle nonetheless. Carwin, however, may have missed a huge opportunity given the fact that fellow former champion Brock Lesnar recently returned at July 9’s UFC 200. Lesnar and Carwin met back at UFC 116 in a bout where Carwin nearly finished Lesnar in the opening frame before getting submitted in the second round. A rematch would have been epic to say the least, but “The Beast” is now dealing with a potential anti-doping violation, likely taking him out of the equation regarding a possible opponent for Carwin.

Who would you like to see Carwin meet upon his return to the suddenly booming UFC heavyweight division?

The post Shane Carwin Says He’s ‘Ready’ To Make UFC Return appeared first on LowKick MMA.

Shane Carwin Announces His Intentions To Return To The UFC

This week, former UFC heavyweight contender Shane Carwin announced his intentions to return to the UFC.

“I had management let the UFC know I am considering a return and looking into what goes into that,” wrote Carwin on the popular Underground Forum…

shane-carwin-1

This week, former UFC heavyweight contender Shane Carwin announced his intentions to return to the UFC.

“I had management let the UFC know I am considering a return and looking into what goes into that,” wrote Carwin on the popular Underground Forum. “Who would you like to see me face?”

Carwin (12-2), a former interim UFC Heavyweight Champion, last competed inside the Octagon at UFC 131 back in June of 2011. He lost that night to Junior dos Santos, marking his second loss in a row and the only two losses of his professional MMA career. His other defeat famously came at the hands of Brock Lesnar.

Speaking of hands, another thing Carwin is known for is having the distinction of being the guy to wear the biggest gloves in UFC history, as the company had to make special 4x gloves for him, one full size bigger than the special 3x sized gloves that the UFC had to make for Lesnar.

Poll: Who Should Brock Lesnar Fight In His UFC Return?

Last night (June 4, 2016) huge news dropped during that former heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar was supposedly close to a UFC return, and that rumor was indeed confirmed during UFC 199 from California when a scintillating UFC 200 promo video played with Lesnar surprisingly showing up at the very end. Speculation understandably began ramping up

The post Poll: Who Should Brock Lesnar Fight In His UFC Return? appeared first on LowKick MMA.

Last night (June 4, 2016) huge news dropped during that former heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar was supposedly close to a UFC return, and that rumor was indeed confirmed during UFC 199 from California when a scintillating UFC 200 promo video played with Lesnar surprisingly showing up at the very end.

Speculation understandably began ramping up as to just whom Lesnar would meet in the co-main event of July 9’s blockbuster UFC 200 spectacular from Las Vegas’ all-new T-Mobile Arena, and indeed a host of interesting names await the polarizing behemoth who was last seen in the UFC way back in late 2011.

There’s of course his long-rumored bout with all-time legend Fedor Emelianenko, a feud that fell apart after UFC President Dana White couldn’t agree to terms with “The Last Emperor’s” former management M-1 Global.

But Emelianenko recently returned to the cage in Japan’s Rizin FC, and he’s also slated to face UFC veteran Fabio Maldonado at a Fight Nights event from St. Petersburg, Russia on June 17. Although he’s repeatedly teased making his way to the UFC lately, a deal with Emelianenko to face Lesnar seems highly unlikely at this point. Nevertheless, it would be beyond huge.

Other opponents include Mark Hunt, who was reportedly told to “be ready” for UFC 200 by White, and Shane Carwin, the former contender who famously took Lesnar to the limit at July 2010’s UFC 117 before ultimately succumbing to a second-round submission. Carwin also recently teased a potential return and said he would take the fight on social media last night.

Rounding out the top candidates, longtime heavyweight mainstay Josh Barnett also called out for the bout in a pairing that seems much more unlikely.

Who do you think Lesnar should face in his return? Cast your vote in our poll below!

The post Poll: Who Should Brock Lesnar Fight In His UFC Return? appeared first on LowKick MMA.