Tag: Spencer Fisher

UFC on FX 4: Guida vs Maynard — Live Results and Commentary


(I don’t see any braids, homeboy.) 

Tonight, the UFC makes its ever glorious return to FX, and if the undercard is any indication, we are in for a night of action packed goodness, Potato Nation. Clay Guida and Gray Maynard will battle for a spot amongst the endless string of lightweight contenders, and Spencer Fisher will be battling for his dignity against Sam Stout. Our very own Jared Jones will be liveblogging everything as it goes down, so join him as he recaps all the action as it plays out, won’t you?


(I don’t see any braids, homeboy.) 

Tonight, the UFC makes its ever glorious return to FX, and if the undercard is any indication, we are in for a night of action packed goodness, Potato Nation. Clay Guida and Gray Maynard will battle for a spot amongst the endless string of lightweight contenders, and Spencer Fisher will be battling for his dignity against Sam Stout. Our very own Jared Jones will be liveblogging everything as it goes down, so join him as he recaps all the action as it plays out, won’t you?

Ross Pearson vs. Cub Swanson

Before we get started, I would just like to say that I told you so concerning Hatsu Hioki. Nah Nah Nah boo boo, stick your head in doo doo.

God Damn was Cub Swanson’s TKO of George Roop brutal. That said, I got Pearson all day on this one.

Round 1: And we are underway. Pearson with a left hook. Cub is trying to get in and out. Pearson throws a knee that’s off the mark. Leg kick misses for Swanson. Pearson with a nice takedown, but Swanson gets to his feet quickly. Very nice. Swanson lands a right that sends Pearson spinning, then throws a beautiful elbow. Don’t you fuck my Parlay already, you British bastard. Swanson with an uppercut that partially lands. Swanson nails Pearson with a capoeria style kick as he falls to the mat, then throws a couple upkicks. Pearson wades right through them and lands a couple punches of his own, and Swanson gets back to his feet. A couple nice combinations, but mostly feints from both men. Swanson lands a nice straight right and the round is over.

Round 2: They trade leg kicks to start the round. Pearson with a nice pair of jabs. Swanson lands a nice right, and then a spinning punch (?). Hell of an exchange; I’m having trouble keeping up. Anyway, Person lands a takedown, but Swanson gets up as Pearson goes for his back. Right hand Swanson. Pearson looks cut. Nice left by Pearson. Both these guys are displaying some great chins. Swanson throws a kick that Pearson catches and turns into a takedown. Swanson lands another nice upkick before Pearson moves into his guard, postures, and lands some nice GnP. Nice inside elbows from pearson, followed by a couple almost-as-nice body shots. Swanson to his feet, and Pearson lands a nice left…and SWANSON LANDS A LEFT HOOK THAT KNOCKS PEARSON DOWN!!! Motherfuckersonofabitch!!! Pearson was battered, and definitely seemed to be dazed, but was going for a takedown when Yves dove in. Either way, nice win for Swanson. Florian compares his athleticism to Jose Aldo. I’m laughing so hard that I nearly pee’d, yet somehow crying that my parlay is already fucked at the same time.

Cub Swanson def. Ross Pearson via TKO at 4:14 of round 2

Enough with the FOX football music. ENOUGH!!

Brian Ebersole vs. TJ Waldburger

The tale of the tape informs us that Waldburger has age on his side, but Ebersole has number of chest hair shaped arrows on his. You tell me which counts more.

Round 1: TJ lands a left hook, then a nice straight left that drops Ebersole! TJ in half guard, working for mount. He’s got it; not good for Ebersole. Ebersole is trying to push off, but Waldburger locks in a tight D’arce in the scramble! WOW. Ebersole is turning purple, but gets out and to his feet. Amazing escape. Nice body shot by Ebersole. Leg kick Waldburger, and they clinch. Nice elbow on the break by Ebersole. Body kick TJ. Both men land in an exchange, then a nice right by Waldurger. Ebersole answers with a left. Ebersole tries for a takedown but is firmly denied. Good round, but I’d give it to Waldburger easily.

Round 2: TJ starts with a left, then grabs a double and gets Ebersole down. TJ goes for the back but Ebersole spins him around and gets his own. Ebersole going for an omaplata, but Ebersole pulls out and lands a nice right, then a couple elbows. Now Waldburger goes for an armbar. Man, this kid is really something to behold off his back. Very similar to Tim Credeur in his constant attack/transitions. Ebersole escapes again and tries to land some punches, but TJ throws up a triangle now. Ebersole backs off and gets into full guard. Waldburger throws up another armbar attempt. Waldburger locks up a triangle after Ebersole lands a couple punches. Now Waldburger switches for a reverse triangle, but Ebersole breaks free and lands some nice strikes. Ebersole ends the round with some powerful punches from the top.

Round 3: Waldburger catches Ebersole coming in with a left hook, and Ebersole goes for the Muay Thai clinch and nails him with an elbow. Ebersole tries his patented cartwheel kick, but it is miles from the mark. TJ looks tired, and Ebersole goes in for a single. He gets it easy. Yep, Waldburger is definitely tired. TJ throws up another triangle, but it’s a little loose. He’s gotta shift position, but Ebersole breaks out and takes his back for a second. Back to full guard with a minute left. Walburger looking for a sweep, but Ebersole is looking real smooth on top. Ebersole lands a few hammerfists and a big left as the round ends. Ebersole really turned it around those last two rounds; I’d probably give it to him.

Brian Ebersole wins by UD (29-28×3) 

Spencer Fisher vs. Sam Stout

I have some high expectations for this one, Potato Nation, as I’m sure you do.

Round 1: Nice left by Fisher to start. Body shot Stout. The combinations are quick on both ends, go figure. Nice right by Stout, but Fisher smiles and hits him a little low. Leg kick checked by Fisher. Nice right by Fisher, but Stout lands a counter left. Another nice left by Fisher, who is looking real sharp right now. Left hand Stout, but Fisher lands a right hook. Leg kick Stout, who lands a takedown and moves into guard. Stout tries to land some elbows, but they are blocked by Fisher. They get to their feet, and Stout immediately grabs a takedown. Spencer gets to his feet quickly this time. Both men land inside leg kicks, and Fisher lands a spinning backfist to end the round.

Round 2: Stout starts with an inside leg kick. Nice combo by Stout, answered by Fisher. Stout goes for a double, but gets denied. A good straight left by Fisher. Fisher lands another left as Stout goes for a body kick. Hard right hook by Stout, then a body shot. Right hand Fisher. Nice left hook from Stout, who’s going for the same right hook to the body, left up high that he KO’d Yves Edwards with. Stout lands a low blow that halts the action temporarily. After the break, Stout lands a takedown, and finishes the round in Fisher’s guard, likely taking the round.

Round 9 (you know what I mean): Fisher’s corner is calling for the knockout, and he lands a spinning elbow and a left. Fisher presses Stout to the cage, and Stout misses an inside trip. Nice overhand right from Fisher that lands. Stout has a decent sized mouse under his right eye, and Fisher is landing on it over and over again. Nice right by Stout, who follows shortly thereafter with a body and leg kick back to back. Another body kick by Stout, but Fisher answers with a right. Straight left by Fisher. Stout rushes in on a double and gets it. Fisher trying to wall walk, and manages to get to his feet. Left hook Stout, who rushes in for another takedown,which he grabs after a little resistance. Stout into half guard. Wow, quick stand up by Kevin Mulhall. Fisher with a nice right, and both men are swinging for the fences. Fisher gets cut as the bell rings.
And takedowns win the day again.

 Sam Stout by Unanimous decision in a hell of a fight. 

As with Josh Thompson and Gilbert Melendez, I could watch these two fight at every UFC event until the end of time.

And it’s main event time…

Gray Maynard vs. Clay Guida

Guida comes out to “Walk” by Pantera. I now want Guida to win times a million bajillion. Maynard comes out to some autotuned Rap affair, which only confirms my decision. Dammit Buffer, please don’t remind us that we’re in New Jersey. Guida’s hair looks…odd. His staredown, on the other hand, is shit-your-pants intense. Interesting that KenFlo is commentating, being that he’s fought both men.

Round 1: Crowd chanting Guida immediately. Maynard lands a stiff left, then wings a right by Guida. Guida somehow has already cut Maynard on his nose. Lead left hand Maynard. Guida is moving like a coked up Cirque du Soleil performer, but isn’t throwing a lot. Maynard is just a bit short on most of his punches, and can’t seem to get Guida’s rhythm down, go figure. Guida lands a 1-2, but Maynard counters. Maynard goes low, and Guida follows with a body kick. The two juke it out to end the round.

Round 2: Guida pokes Maynard in the eyes at the start of the round, but action restarts quickly. Guida is all over the fucking place, and Maynard seems a bit puzzled. Nice right by Guida, then another looping overhand. Maynard needs to start pressing the action and throwing some multi-punch combos or go for a takedown. Mike Pyle agrees with this notion, and considering he just dicknailed Josh Neer, Maynard should follow his advice. Head kick from Guida that is partially blocked. Maynard whiffs a big right, and the crowd is sporadically booing. Head kick lands by Guida, but Maynard isn’t fazed. Maynard lands a couple nice punches to end the round but the crowd is really emphasizing their disappointment.

Round 3: Crowd is booing to start the round. Guida lands a knee, but Maynard with a crisp right. Guida needs to do less bouncing and more punch throwing. He obliges, and lands a couple nice jabs. Finally Gray shoots for a takedown, but is firmly denied by Guida. Guida shoots for a single but is also denied. Maynard is lifting his hands ala either Diaz in frustration. I feel you there, bro. Gray misses a huge right, and Guida lands a jab. Gray is just chasing Guida around instead of cutting off the cage. Nice right by Maynard, who is complaining about another eye poke, but gets no response from Miragliotta. Crowd is chanting Guida for some reason. Maynard lands a nice knee, but Guida backs out ala Carlos Condit as the round ends. Maynard is fucking pissed.

Round 4: Guida lands a short left, then a quick 1-2. Maynard tries to clinch and lands a knee after a failed takedown attempt. It’s two and a half minutes in and not much has landed from either fighter. Guida slips a left hook and the crowd is still on edge. Anytime Maynard even gets Guida in a corner he is literally sprinting out of it. Maynard with a short left and is now talking a little shit. Gray lands some knees in the clinch, and is now going full on Diaz on Guida, hands down and talking shit. Guida is suddenly caught off guard, as he just landed a flush right that Maynard walked right through. Maynard stuffs a takedown and goes for an arm in guillotine that looks deep, but Guida slams his way out of it and the round ends. Badass display by Maynard.

Round 5: Crowd now chanting Maynard, and for good reason. It’s like Rocky 4 up in this bitch. Maynard lands a right. Gray throws a right hook and a half ass flying knee. Maynard looks much fresher than he did against Edgar. Guida lands a good kick and combo, but Maynard answers with a hard right hand. Maynard misses a single leg attempt, and resorts back to chasing Guida like he’s his older brother on the playground. Guida with a left. Guida is running like a scared dog, and Miragliotta gives him a warning for doing so. Right hand by Maynard lands. I hate to come off as bias, but Guida is fighting not to lose, and Maynard is trying to finish this. Maynard goes for a single, and has Guida pressed up against the cage. Maynard throws a couple knees from the clinch and the two dance around and throw a couple punches that hit mostly air as the round ends.

If Guida wins this, I don’t even know…

Gray Maynard wins by Split Decision, proving that at least one MMA judge in every fight couldn’t see water if they fell out of a boat. 

Well, that’s it for me, Potato Nation. Thanks for joining me tonight, I truly appreciate it. KenFlo says Guida had a “smart gameplan.” If putting up as little of a fight as possible is a great gameplan nowadays, I guess I agree with him. I’m going to finish off this bottle and forget everything that just happened.

–J. Jones

Make Sure to Swing By for the UFC on FX 4: Maynard vs. Guida Weigh-Ins LIVE at 4 p.m. EST

Clay Guida eating wings UFC
(Ah, the Rumbleweight Diet, or as it’s known to the general public, the Fatkins diet. Well, played, Mr. Guida.) 

Just a reminder to make sure and swing by CagePotato at 4 p.m. ET/1 p.m. PT to catch the live weigh-ins and results for tomorrow night’s UFC on FX 4: Maynard vs. Guida event, which goes down from the Revel Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

Although the card may be somewhat lacking in terms of drawing power, it does feature some top to bottom great matchups that are sure to entertain. And let’s be honest, it’s more stacked than any pay-per-view event you’ll be purchasing stealing this weekend. Aside from the five round main event between perennial lightweight contenders Clay Guida and Gray Maynard, we will be treated to the anticipated trilogy bout between Spencer Fisher and Sam Stout, which may very well be Fisher’s last in the octagon, as well as a pair of great contests between Muay Thai “Bad Boy” Brian Ebersole and submission whiz T.J. Walburger and featherweight sluggers Ross Pearson and Cub Swanson. The undercard kicks off with the long-awaited return of our boy Dan Miller, who will be taking on Brazilian Ricardo Funch.

We will be liveblogging all of the action starting tomorrow at 9 p.m ET, so if your Friday is looking less than spectacular, why not spend an evening with your favorite drunken slobs?

Video and full results after the jump. 

Clay Guida eating wings UFC
(Ah, the Rumbleweight Diet, or as it’s known to the general public, the Fatkins diet. Well, played, Mr. Guida.) 

Just a reminder to make sure and swing by CagePotato at 4 p.m. ET/1 p.m. PT to catch the live weigh-ins and results for tomorrow night’s UFC on FX 4: Maynard vs. Guida event, which goes down from the Revel Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

Although the card may be somewhat lacking in terms of drawing power, it does feature some top to bottom great matchups that are sure to entertain. And let’s be honest, it’s more stacked than any pay-per-view event you’ll be purchasing stealing this weekend. Aside from the five round main event between perennial lightweight contenders Clay Guida and Gray Maynard, we will be treated to the anticipated trilogy bout between Spencer Fisher and Sam Stout, which may very well be Fisher’s last in the octagon, as well as a pair of great contests between Muay Thai “Bad Boy” Brian Ebersole and submission whiz T.J. Walburger and featherweight sluggers Ross Pearson and Cub Swanson. The undercard kicks off with the long-awaited return of our boy Dan Miller, who will be taking on Brazilian Ricardo Funch.

We will be liveblogging all of the action starting tomorrow at 9 p.m ET, so if your Friday is looking less than spectacular, why not spend an evening with your favorite drunken slobs?

-God Damn do I hate the music chosen for these events, or at least the undercards. I can deal with the chuga-chuga riffing present for the main card, but that hokey blues riff makes me want to cut off my fuggin’ ears with a spork. It’s even worse than the placement of the FOX football music on the actual broadcasts.

-Am I the only one who thinks Cub Swanson looks like the freakish offspring of Chris Bosh and Justin Timberlake?

-Either the scales are a little off, or Anthony Johnson really was handing out chicken wings backstage, because everyone seems to be on the heavier side of their allotted weight limit.

Main Card (FX Channel):
Gray Maynard (155) vs. Clay Guida (155)
Spencer Fisher (156) vs. Sam Stout (155.5)
Brian Ebersole (170) vs. T.J. Waldburger (170.5)
Ross Pearson (146) vs. Cub Swanson (145.5)

Preliminary Card (FUEL TV):
Hatsu Hioki (145.5) vs. Ricardo Lamas (145)
C.J. Keith (157*) vs. Ramsey Nijem (156)
Joey Gambino (145.5) vs. Steven Siler (145.5)
Rick Story (169.5) vs. Brock Jardine (170.5)
Luis Ramos (170) vs. Matt Brown (170.5)
Chris Camozzi (185.5) vs. Nick Catone (185.5)

Preliminary Card (Facebook):
Ricardo Funch (170.5) vs. Dan Miller (170.5)
Dustin Pague (135) vs. Ken Stone (135.5)

*Keith has an hour to drop one pound. Not great for a UFC debut. 

–J. Jones

UFC on FX 4: 10 Reasons You Can’t Miss This Event

The summer has officially started and the UFC’s summer of fights is about to begin. And there’s no better way to kick it off than a card on free TV. This Friday’s UFC on FX: Maynard vs. Guida is live from Atlantic City, New Jersey, and will featur…

The summer has officially started and the UFC’s summer of fights is about to begin. And there’s no better way to kick it off than a card on free TV. 

This Friday’s UFC on FX: Maynard vs. Guida is live from Atlantic City, New Jersey, and will feature a four-fight main card on FX, six fights on Fuel TV, and the remaining two bouts live on Facebook.

Besides the fact that the card is free, which is reason enough for many to watch, here are 10 more reasons you can’t miss UFC on FX: Maynard vs. Guida.

Begin Slideshow

Heads Up: This Friday Could Be Spencer Fisher’s Swan Song

Spencer Fisher
(And here we thought Canadians were afraid of a good old fashioned war.)  

It seems that lately it has become harder and harder to gauge what an MMA fighter means exactly by the word “retirement.” UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture has finally come to terms with his, whereas Jamie Varner apparently retired as part of an elaborate heist that involved almost immediately coming out of said retirement, picking up a couple quick wins in a small promotion, filling in as a late injury replacement against a huge favorite, and promptly screwing millions of people out of their hard earned money. And to think, George Clooney need the help of more than a dozen people to rob some measly casino. Chump.

According to the man himself, we might just see long time UFC lightweight Spencer Fisher add his name to the list of recently retired MMA fighters come Friday night, as he told Ariel Helwani that he’s “pretty sure” it will be his last fight as a professional. His reasoning was similar to that of Chris Lytle’s — desire to spend more time with his family:

I’ve been missing a lot of stuff with my family. It gets tougher and tougher as they get older.

Although “The King” has flown under the radar for the past few years, dropping four of his past five contests, he is without a doubt one of the more exciting guys that helped the UFC’s lightweight division rise to popularity following its reinstatement in the promotion at UFC 58, which coincidentally was where Fisher made his lightweight debut against none other than his opponent on Friday, Sam Stout.

It is perhaps the most fitting end to a career that one could ask for.

Spencer Fisher
(And here we thought Canadians were afraid of a good old fashioned war.)  

It seems that lately it has become harder and harder to gauge what an MMA fighter means exactly by the word “retirement.” UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture has finally come to terms with his, whereas Jamie Varner apparently retired as part of an elaborate heist that involved almost immediately coming out of said retirement, picking up a couple quick wins in a small promotion, filling in as a late injury replacement against a huge favorite, and promptly screwing millions of people out of their hard earned money. And to think, George Clooney need the help of more than a dozen people to rob some measly casino. Chump.

According to the man himself, we might just see long time UFC lightweight Spencer Fisher add his name to the list of recently retired MMA fighters come Friday night, as he told Ariel Helwani that he’s “pretty sure” it will be his last fight as a professional. His reasoning was similar to that of Chris Lytle’s — desire to spend more time with his family:

I’ve been missing a lot of stuff with my family. It gets tougher and tougher as they get older.

Although “The King” has flown under the radar for the past few years, dropping four of his past five contests, he is without a doubt one of the more exciting guys that helped the UFC’s lightweight division rise to popularity following its reinstatement in the promotion at UFC 58, which coincidentally was where Fisher made his lightweight debut against none other than his opponent on Friday, Sam Stout.

It is perhaps the most fitting end to a career that one could ask for.

Few can forget the pair’s first two meetings, which took place at UFC 58 and Ultimate Fight Night 10, respectively. The bouts were not only split between the two foes, but were in damn near every fan’s top ten fights of the year on both occasions. The third meeting promises to deliver the same back-and-forth action that we are used to, which is something that Fisher admits he is looking forward to:

No pressure. I want to go out there and fight. Swing for the fences. I don’t have to find him. He’ll be right there in the middle.

Aside from his pair of fights with Stout, the seven year UFC veteran is perhaps best known for his brilliant walk-off knockout of Matt Wiman at UFC 60. Even more beautiful than the knockout itself was what came just seconds before: As was the case when Rashad Evans decided to start shit talking to Lyoto Machida mid-flurry, Wiman decided that it would be best to let the crowd know he was fine following a right hand that Fisher clipped him with, and was immediately taught a lesson in octagon humility compliments of a flying knee that looked more like, as Couture described it, “a fullback running for the goal line from a yard away.”

Fisher also holds notable wins over Thiago Alves, Josh Neer, Aaron Riley, Dan Lauzon, Caol Uno, and Jeremy Stephens. If Friday truly does mark his final fight in the UFC, we here at CagePotato would like to thank Spencer for the years of great fights and wish him all the best in the future. We will leave you with another highlight of Fisher’s, one that came just a few months before his UFC debut, in which he sends TUF 12 veteran Kyle Watson crashing to the canvas with a brutal 1-2 combo and proceeds to perform the best impression of Chris Farley’s Chippendale dancer routine that we’ve ever seen:


(Fight starts at the 1:30 mark.) 

Leave Spencer your best regards in the comments section, and make sure to swing by on Friday night, where some asshat you refer to as Danga will be liveblogging the UFC on FX: Maynard vs. Guida main card starting at 9 p.m. EST.

–J. Jones

Barnburner Alert: Sam Stout vs. Spencer Fisher III Booked for UFC on FX 4


(Wait…it’s already been FIVE YEARS since these two last fought?!!) 

Trilogy fever has officially struck Zuffa.

Word has it that lightweight scrappers Sam Stout and Spencer Fisher will meet for a third time at UFC on FX 4 this June, in a fight that will be an early front runner for “Fight of the Night” to say the least. Both Fisher and Stout are coming off losses to Thiago Tavares, so it seems a good a time as any to have these two square off once again, because MMA fans eat up rematches like fried Kool-aid nowadays.

Fisher and Stout last met way back at UFN 10 in June of 2007, where Fisher was able to erase the memory of his split decision, “Fight of the Year” earning loss to Stout at UFC 58 by walking away with a close but unanimous decision victory. As of late, however, Fisher has descended further down the lightweight ladder with each performance, to the point that he could be fighting for his job come June 22nd. He has dropped 4 of his last 5, with the lone win coming by way of UD over UFC washout Curt “The War” Warburton at UFC 120. Yes, you read that correctly; Curt Warburton’s nickname is “The War.” What a crafty SOB.

Stout has seen quite a bit more success recently, scoring wins in 4 of his last 6, including a first round starching of Yves Edwards at UFC 131 last year. After his long time trainer and close friend Shawn Tompkins suddenly passed away, however, Stout pulled out of his bout with Dennis Siver to do some “soul searching” along with fellow Team Tompkins members Chris Horodecki and Mark Hominick. Upon returning to the octagon, the aftereffects of such a tragic loss were still noticeable, as both Stout and Hominick suffered defeats to Tavares and Chan Sung Jung, respectively.

In other fight booking news…


(Wait…it’s already been FIVE YEARS since these two last fought?!!) 

Trilogy fever has officially struck Zuffa.

Word has it that lightweight scrappers Sam Stout and Spencer Fisher will meet for a third time at UFC on FX 4 this June, in a fight that will be an early front runner for “Fight of the Night” to say the least. Both Fisher and Stout are coming off losses to Thiago Tavares, so it seems a good a time as any to have these two square off once again, because MMA fans eat up rematches like fried Kool-aid nowadays.

Fisher and Stout last met way back at UFN 10 in June of 2007, where Fisher was able to erase the memory of his split decision, “Fight of the Year” earning loss to Stout at UFC 58 by walking away with a close but unanimous decision victory. As of late, however, Fisher has descended further down the lightweight ladder with each performance, to the point that he could be fighting for his job come June 22nd. He has dropped 4 of his last 5, with the lone win coming by way of UD over UFC washout Curt “The War” Warburton at UFC 120. Yes, you read that correctly; Curt Warburton’s nickname is “The War.” What a crafty SOB.

Stout has seen quite a bit more success recently, scoring wins in 4 of his last 6, including a first round starching of Yves Edwards at UFC 131 last year. After his long time trainer and close friend Shawn Tompkins suddenly passed away, however, Stout pulled out of his bout with Dennis Siver to do some “soul searching” along with fellow Team Tompkins members Chris Horodecki and Mark Hominick. Upon returning to the octagon, the aftereffects of such a tragic loss were still noticeable, as both Stout and Hominick suffered defeats to Tavares and Chan Sung Jung, respectively.

In other fight booking news, it has been reported by Marc Bocek himself that his original UFC 145 opponent, TUF 5 alum Matt Wiman, has blown out his knee in training and has been forced to withdraw from their match. Replacing him will be none other than UFC, WEC, KOTC, and damn near every other promotion veteran John Alessio, who will be making his return to the UFC following a six year absence. In the past three years, the 35 year old journeyman has put together a hell of a run, notching eleven victories, including wins over UFC veterans Luigi Fioravanti (via KO) and War Machine (via submission), alongside just two defeats.

Canadian grappling savant Marc Bocek has gone win-loss in his last five UFC bouts, with one of those losses coming to current lightweight champ Ben Henderson and the other to top contender Jim Miller. We last saw Bocek score a unanimous decision victory over Nik Lentz at UFC 140 in which Lentz tried to submit Bocek with a guillotine no less than 375 times.

UFC 145 is set to transpire on April 21st from the Phillips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia.

While we’re on the subject of last minute injuries, it appears that Jorgen Kruth, who was expected to make his UFC debut against Cyrille Diabate at UFC on FUEL 2, has been forced to pull out of the contest and has been replaced by fellow newcomer Tom DeBlass. A student of Ricardo Almeida and currently undefeated as a professional, DeBlass is accepting the fight on just over a week’s notice against a dangerous, albeit struggling, striker in Diabate. “Snake” has not competed since getting strangled by Anthony Perosh at UFC 138, and currently sits at 2-2 in the UFC. Being that submissions have always been Diabate’s Achilles heel, he might want to utilize the huge reach advantage he will have against a much shorter BJJ blackbelt in DeBlass.

UFC on FUEL 2 goes down from the Ericsson Globe Arena in Stockholm, Sweden on April 14th.

Who you got for these, Potato Nation?

-J. Jones

What’s It Like to Be a Foreigner Fighting in Brazil? Ask the Guys Who’ve Done It

Filed under: UFCUFC welterweight David Mitchell got his first hint that fighting in Brazil would be a little different than your average Las Vegas fight night when he was in the airport on his way down to Rio de Janeiro. While waiting for his flight, h…

Filed under:

UFC welterweight David Mitchell got his first hint that fighting in Brazil would be a little different than your average Las Vegas fight night when he was in the airport on his way down to Rio de Janeiro. While waiting for his flight, he got to talking to a Brazilian traveler about his role in the UFC’s first event in Brazil in over a decade, and he casually mentioned that he was slated to fight Paulo Thiago — an accomplished, but far from famous welterweight, by North American standards.

“He told me that Paulo had just done a big movie or something,” Mitchell recalled. “I thought, okay, whatever.”

The movie, Tropa de Elite, was actually a wildly popular Brazilian film about the BOPE — an elite police unit that Thiago serves in. It was also the source of Thiago’s entrance music when he and Mitchell squared off at the HSBC Arena in Rio that Saturday night, and the response from the crowd was enough to jar Mitchell out of his pre-fight game face, if only for a moment.

“I think he got the biggest response from the crowd of anybody,” Mitchell said of Thiago. “I didn’t expect him to be so popular. It was just an electric environment. When I walked out to go fight, it was just 15,000 Brazilians spitting snake venom at me.”


For foreign fighters — but especially Americans going up against Brazilians — it’s a unique fight night environment, and one that not all fighters are fully prepared for when they arrive.

“Some guy just told me I was going to die,” Forrest Griffin said moments after arriving at the open workouts on Rio’s famed Cobacabana Beach. “But he said it in very poor English, so I was able to ignore him.”

‘Hostile’ is one word to describe the environment for visiting fighters. All week long, at press events and weigh-ins, they were greeted by gleeful chants of ‘Vai morrer!’ You’re going to die. Granted, it seemed good-natured and not at all intended literally by most fans, but as some fighters admitted later, it was a little unsettling the first time they heard the translation.

Unlike in the U.S., where fans might start up the occasional ‘USA’ chant but generally spread their loyalties out according to their own individual whims, the Brazilian fans tend to be both exuberant and unanimous in support of their countrymen.

“They’re so passionate,” said UFC lightweight Spencer Fisher, who faced Brazilian Thiago Tavares at UFC 134. “The Americans, it seems like they’re always for whoever wins. If a guy’s losing they don’t like him, but if he comes back they’ll switch sides. But in Brazil, they’re country strong and they’re loyal.”

Fisher, too, was met with a partisan crowd when he walked to the cage — and like Mitchell, he also ended up on the losing end that night. But also like Mitchell, Fisher insisted that the hostile environment didn’t affect his performance in the cage.

“I remember Jose Aldo saying once about the Americans, ‘They can scream all they want to, because I don’t understand what they’re saying.’ I kind of felt the same way.”

If anything, the enthusiastic reception — whether negative or positive — actually helped fighters like Mitchell, who came into the bout struggling with a neck injury that required a cortisone shot just to get him into the cage, he said.

“Honestly, after everything I’d been through, dealing with injuries and a real difficult training camp, it was like I had to go fight this guy in his hometown or I was going to get cut. After all that, the crowd, if anything, was a positive,” said Mitchell. “It was a charged atmosphere, like a World Cup game or something.”

That’s something that Anthony Johnson‘s coach, Mike Van Arsdale, is planning on when it’s his fighter’s turn to take on Vitor Belfort at UFC 142.

“Anything like that, whether they want him to win or don’t want him to win, he feeds off that. It’s like Rashad Evans, everywhere he goes they boo him. It makes him fight better. I hope they don’t cheer for Rashad ever. I really do.”

For American heavyweight Brendan Schaub, who took on Brazilian MMA legend Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira on the card, it helped that he’d had a chance to come down a couple months before the bout for an early press conference. He even paid for an extended stay out of his own pocket to do some training and visit the favelas as part of a community outreach program, which made him a little more comfortable when he returned for the fight, he said.

“It was definitely hostile once the fight got going, but one thing I did right was getting down there and embracing the culture and giving back to the community. I think that went a long ways.”

Of course, Schaub, Fisher, and Mitchell all lost that night, as did most foreigners on the card. Of the eight fights that pitted a Brazilian against an outsider, only one — Stanislav Nedkov’s TKO of Luiz Cane — didn’t go the way the crowd wanted it to. It’s one thing for fighters to say the environment didn’t play a factor, but it clearly didn’t help much either.

And yet, the fighters said, once their bouts were over it was as if all the vitriol vanished immediately. They were no longer the enemy. Suddenly they were beloved former foes, and were embraced with the same energy that had gone into despising them moments before.

“When I came out they were booing me, hating me, but I think I earned their respect,” said Mitchell. “When I walked back people were cheering for me and hugging me. This little kid wanted my hat, so I gave it to him. I ended up just kind of cruising around and meeting people. I met the mayor of Rio. It was really cool.”

Even Schaub, who suffered a heartbreaking knockout loss, managed to make the most of the sun, sand, and surf once the fight was over.

“Obviously, I planned on it going a different way, so it wasn’t the best time,” he said. “Still, it’s never a bad time when you’re on the beach in Brazil.”

For Fisher, the post-fight experience ended up being even worse than fight itself. While playing pool volleyball with “Shogun” Rua the next day, he said, he felt as if he’d gotten water in his eye. The sensation didn’t go away all day, and continued even when he returned to the U.S.

“It just kept getting worse and worse,” he said. “I was like, man, how can I still have water in my eye? Then we started boxing and right away I could tell it was something else. That’s when I realized my retina was detached.”

Five months later, Fisher still doesn’t have full vision back in his eye. His doctors tell him it was likely a mix of accumulated damage and blows he took in the fight that night in Rio, and his peripheral vision still hasn’t returned.

“They said I’ll never have the 20/20 vision I had before. Now I’m near-sighted,” Fisher said. “So it was good trip, but a bad one at the same time.”

 

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