(Photo courtesy of MMAjunkie.com, if you couldn’t tell.)
According to multiplesources, UFC veteran and recent Bellator signee Maiquel “Big Rig” Falcao suffered a heart attack in training this past weekend, the cause of which has yet to be determined. His manager has stated the following:
Maiquel is still on the Intensive Care Unit and might stay there for few more days, when he’ll go through a catheterization. He’s lucid and improving fast.
Falcao’s lone octagon appearance, a decision victory over TUF 7 alum Gerald Harris, was memorable for a multitude of reasons. Not only did a timing error deny Falcao nearly 7 seconds to finish a rear naked choke on Harris in the first round (one which even Dana White though Harris would have tapped to), but the third round would become an exercise in tedium as neither fighter would engage. Bizarre to say the least, made all the more disappointing by the fact that Falcao had been so dominant up to that point over a tough guy in Harris.
(Photo courtesy of MMAjunkie.com, if you couldn’t tell.)
According to multiplesources, UFC veteran and recent Bellator signee Maiquel “Big Rig” Falcao suffered a heart attack in training this past weekend, the cause of which has yet to be determined. His manager has stated the following:
Maiquel is still on the Intensive Care Unit and might stay there for few more days, when he’ll go through a catheterization. He’s lucid and improving fast.
Falcao’s lone octagon appearance, a decision victory over TUF 7 alum Gerald Harris, was memorable for a multitude of reasons. Not only did a timing error deny Falcao nearly 7 seconds to finish a rear naked choke on Harris in the first round (one which even Dana White though Harris would have tapped to), but the third round would become an exercise in tedium as neither fighter would engage. Bizarre to say the least, made all the more disappointing by the fact that Falcao had been so dominant up to that point over a tough guy in Harris.
Round 1: Referee Josh Rosenthal gives the signal and we’re underway. Pace looks to land a looping hook when Torres comes in, and he finally sticks it after several attempts. “You got his attention, Nick,” says his corner. Torres jabs him back and lands a nice straight right. Leg kick by Torres buckles Pace. Torres lands the straight right again, and Pace comes in swinging before looking for the takedown. Torres defends well with his back on the fence, working short elbows and punches. Pace seems to be holding and hoping here. Torres uses a kimura to flip Pace onto his back, then they scramble up. Pace is bleeding out of his mouth. They trade right hands in the final seconds of the round. MMA Fighting scores it 10-9 for Torres.
Seth Baczynski vs. Matt Brown
Round 1: Brown paws his way forward behind a jab and Baczynski comes over the top with a right. That gave him something to think about. Baczynski looks for a takedown, but settles for a clinch against the fence. Nice elbow by Baczynski in close. Baczynski steps back and launches a punch combo, but Brown does a pretty decent job of bobbing and weaving. Baczynski closes the distance again and scoops Brown up for a takedown. Baczynski looks to strike from the top, but Brown pulls off a nifty little sweep and gets to his feet. He lets Baczynski up shortly thereafter, and they exchange blows on the feet with Baczynski landing a pretty left hook counter before looking for the clinch again. Knee to the body by Baczynski, and Brown makes the ‘that was my testicles’ face. The ref encourages Baczynski to not do that anymore. They end the round with Baczynski tentatively looking for a standing guillotine. MMA Fighting scores it 10-9 for Baczynski.
Round 2: Brown looks to start faster in the second frame. He gets busy with strikes right off the bat, then shoots and secures a takedown of his own. Baczynski grabs for a guillotine on the way down, and Brown seems perhaps not as concerned with defending against it as he should be. Baczynski adjusts and squeezes with everything he’s got, and Brown is forced to tap.
Seth Baczynski def. Matt Brown via submission (guillotine choke) at 0:42 of round two
Shamar Bailey vs. Danny Castillo
Round 1: Castillo goes to work with kicks to the legs and body early, but promptly slips and ends up on his butt. Bailey rushes in and gets himself taken down, though he’s back up quickly. Castillo lifts him up and slams him back down, then does it again when Bailey rises again a few seconds later. Castillo working from half-guard, but he’s hesitant to give Bailey the space to escape and so his striking from the top is limited. Castillo sits back and gets a few consecutive blows in. The crowd digs it, sparse though it is this early on. He pounds away at Bailey with hammer fists, and Bailey seems to be losing steam. Castill takes mount briefly, but can’t stay there. Castillo goes back to the hammer fists from half-guard and Bailey seems to be folding up. Less than ten seconds left in the round, but Bailey is just covering up and hoping to be saved by the bell. The ref isn’t going to let him do that for long, and this one is over.
Danny Castillo def. Shamar Bailey via TKO (punches) at 4:52 of round one
In his post-fight interview, Castillo tells Joe Rogan he felt “disrespected” by Bailey showing up at 138 for Friday’s weigh-ins. Bailey paid for that oversight with 20 percent of his purse, and now he has a loss on top of it.
Round 1: Referee Josh Rosenthal gives the signal and we’re underway. Pace looks to land a looping hook when Torres comes in, and he finally sticks it after several attempts. “You got his attention, Nick,” says his corner. Torres jabs him back and lands a nice straight right. Leg kick by Torres buckles Pace. Torres lands the straight right again, and Pace comes in swinging before looking for the takedown. Torres defends well with his back on the fence, working short elbows and punches. Pace seems to be holding and hoping here. Torres uses a kimura to flip Pace onto his back, then they scramble up. Pace is bleeding out of his mouth. They trade right hands in the final seconds of the round. MMA Fighting scores it 10-9 for Torres.
Seth Baczynski vs. Matt Brown
Round 1: Brown paws his way forward behind a jab and Baczynski comes over the top with a right. That gave him something to think about. Baczynski looks for a takedown, but settles for a clinch against the fence. Nice elbow by Baczynski in close. Baczynski steps back and launches a punch combo, but Brown does a pretty decent job of bobbing and weaving. Baczynski closes the distance again and scoops Brown up for a takedown. Baczynski looks to strike from the top, but Brown pulls off a nifty little sweep and gets to his feet. He lets Baczynski up shortly thereafter, and they exchange blows on the feet with Baczynski landing a pretty left hook counter before looking for the clinch again. Knee to the body by Baczynski, and Brown makes the ‘that was my testicles’ face. The ref encourages Baczynski to not do that anymore. They end the round with Baczynski tentatively looking for a standing guillotine. MMA Fighting scores it 10-9 for Baczynski.
Round 2: Brown looks to start faster in the second frame. He gets busy with strikes right off the bat, then shoots and secures a takedown of his own. Baczynski grabs for a guillotine on the way down, and Brown seems perhaps not as concerned with defending against it as he should be. Baczynski adjusts and squeezes with everything he’s got, and Brown is forced to tap.
Seth Baczynski def. Matt Brown via submission (guillotine choke) at 0:42 of round two
Shamar Bailey vs. Danny Castillo
Round 1: Castillo goes to work with kicks to the legs and body early, but promptly slips and ends up on his butt. Bailey rushes in and gets himself taken down, though he’s back up quickly. Castillo lifts him up and slams him back down, then does it again when Bailey rises again a few seconds later. Castillo working from half-guard, but he’s hesitant to give Bailey the space to escape and so his striking from the top is limited. Castillo sits back and gets a few consecutive blows in. The crowd digs it, sparse though it is this early on. He pounds away at Bailey with hammer fists, and Bailey seems to be losing steam. Castill takes mount briefly, but can’t stay there. Castillo goes back to the hammer fists from half-guard and Bailey seems to be folding up. Less than ten seconds left in the round, but Bailey is just covering up and hoping to be saved by the bell. The ref isn’t going to let him do that for long, and this one is over.
Danny Castillo def. Shamar Bailey via TKO (punches) at 4:52 of round one
In his post-fight interview, Castillo tells Joe Rogan he felt “disrespected” by Bailey showing up at 138 for Friday’s weigh-ins. Bailey paid for that oversight with 20 percent of his purse, and now he has a loss on top of it.
Though both events took place under the purview of the California State Athletic Commission, the no-nonsense, military precision of last week’s UFC on FOX weigh-ins was nowhere to be seen last night’s event. That’s not necessarily a good thing for the fighters , but it’s certainly more entertaining for the rest of us.
Things kicked off with a healthy dose of confusion. Several prelim fighters tipped the scales well over the allotted limit, which Joe Rogan attributed to a discrepancy between the scales backstage and the official one upfront. While there may be some truth to that, other fighters managed to hit the target on the dot. It was painfully clear that the chick running the show for the CSAC had no clue what she was doing. You know you’re in for a wild ride when someone seeks mathematical and scientific guidance from this guy.
Though both events took place under the purview of the California State Athletic Commission, the no-nonsense, military precision of last week’s UFC on FOX weigh-ins was nowhere to be seen at last night’s event. That’s not necessarily a good thing for the fighters , but it’s certainly more entertaining for the rest of us.
Things kicked off with a healthy dose of confusion. Several prelim fighters tipped the scales well over the allotted limit, which Joe Rogan attributed to a discrepancy between the scales backstage and the official one upfront. While there may be some truth to that, most fighters managed to hit their targets on the dot. It was painfully clear that the chick running the show for the CSAC had no clue what she was doing. You know you’re in for a wild ride when someone seeks mathematical and scientific guidance from this guy.
Miguel Torres initially weighed-in at 137 lbs, but was able to drop the extra pound later in the evening. Two other fighters were not so fortunate. Almost-lightweight fighter Shamar Bailey tipped the scales at 158 lbs, but was unsuccessful in his attempts to drop the additional weight in the afforded time. Nick Pace, on the other hand, had conceded defeat and notified the commission of his weight before even making his way to the stage. He weighed-in at 141 lbs, an incredible six pounds over the limit. Both Bailey and Pace will be fined 20% of their purse, and look for Pace to join the ranks of ignoble weigh-in failures.
Though Danny Castillo is likely pleased to be receiving a few more dollars courtesy of Shamar Bailey’s extra mass, he certainly wasn’t dressed like a man hurting for cash. Castillo added a touch of class to the affair with a break-away tuxedo. La-de-da.
Never one to be upstaged in the wardrobe department, Tom Lawlor continued his impressive series of weigh-in homages to MMA figures past and present with a tip of the hat to your favorite trainer/coach/spiritual advisor Steven Seagal, complete with a crane kick to his training partner.
After failing to connect with fans on four consecutive shirt-tosses, Rick Story made a little too much contact with Martin Kampmann. “The Hitman” let him know as much with a quick shove-off before the pair was separated by Dana White.
“The Stoic Russian” is a hurtful stereotype, so we didn’t include it. The more you know…..
People complain about “pro-wrestling bullshit” invading MMA, but it’s been demonstrated over and over again: personality will get you places in the fight game. We’ve pointed this out before, like when we advised Jon Fitch on how to ensure a title shot. Some fighters are talked about incessantly on forums, at lunch tables, and in interviews because they’ve managed to capture the interest of fans, and many times it is because of things that they have done or said while not in the cage.
Come on in and let’s talk about archetypes, drama, and personality. Because there’s only so many technique videos out there.
“The Stoic Russian” is a hurtful stereotype, so we didn’t include it. The more you know…..
People complain about “pro-wrestling bullshit” invading MMA, but it’s been demonstrated over and over again: personality will get you places in the fight game. We’ve pointed this out before, like when we advised Jon Fitch on how to ensure a title shot. Some fighters are talked about incessantly on forums, at lunch tables, and in interviews because they’ve managed to capture the interest of fans, and many times it is because of things that they have done or said while not in the cage.
Come on in and let’s talk about archetypes, drama, and personality. Because there’s only so many technique videos out there.
Tank Abbott, Tito Ortiz, So Very Many Others: “The Bad Boy”
When Ortiz began calling himself “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy”, Tank was all like, “I ain’t dead yet.”
Tito Ortiz pioneered the role of the heel in the UFC, and helped carry the company through lean times with outstanding promotional work, including a long-standing feud with Ken Shamrock‘s Lion’s Den that was better than anything being scripted in the WWE. Then Tito went about as full-on “bad boy” as it gets, by wifing a porn star. Sure, it takes a tough guy to be a champ in the UFC, but sticking your tongue in that particular holiest of holies? That’s some next-level bad boy shit, right there.
Note: It’s popular for fighters to project the bad boy image, but it’s a tough road to walk. James Irvin got himself a bad boy tattoo, and things really haven’t gone well for him. Something to keep in mind.
Note here the difference between “Asshole” and “Heel”. A heel is a dastardly, evil person who hates fans, and basks in the uneven glow of insults and epithets he encounters whenever he performs. An asshole brings Bud Light to a party, snags a Heineken from the fridge, and asks if your sister is DTF … but then he acts offended if anyone acts offended.
Kos and Bisping genuinely believe that they are good guys, and neither of them understand why everyone has such a goddamn problem with them. (See: any episode of TUF in which they appear.) A true asshole is mystified when faced with others’ distate of his assholishness.
I’ll just leave this right here…
“Don’t look at the camera, ‘Page, it makes you look like an asshole.”
Miguel Torres, Tom Lawlor, Jason Miller, et al: The Jester
You’re just jealous because you can’t play dress-up at your job.
Generally active via social media, these jokers engage in various styles of goofiness. Jesters tend to be fond of elaborate fight entrances entrances, featuring choreography, extras, props, and/or elaborate costumes. (Forrest Griffin should get a mention here too, since he was a pretty funny guy until he was perpetually crabby.)
For maximum hilarity, combine “The Jester” with “The Asshole” and agitate.
Filed under: UFC, MMA Fighting ExclusiveGrowing up in Baldwin, N.Y., Chris Weidman dreamed of being a professional athlete, but what he had in mind was far from his current job as a UFC middleweight. Weidman hoped to lace up skates and glide around the…
Growing up in Baldwin, N.Y., Chris Weidman dreamed of being a professional athlete, but what he had in mind was far from his current job as a UFC middleweight. Weidman hoped to lace up skates and glide around the rinks of the NHL, and not as an enforcer, but as a goal-scorer. Even after a series of issues and injuries led to a move to wrestling and football, and he had been off the ice for over a decade, he still had the itch.
After Weidman had graduated from college at Hofstra, where he was a two-time Division I wrestling All-American, and before he considered mixed martial arts as a real future, he still couldn’t shake that dream. Convinced it was still a possibility, he went out and bought hundreds of dollars worth of equipment, believing that with his athleticism he could wrangle a tryout from his hometown team, the New York Islanders.
“My wife thought I was nuts,” said Weidman, who says he held the goal-scoring record in his PAL youth league. “Well, I pretty much was. I played for like a week-and-a-half and never used the equipment again.”
It’s hard to believe that hockey dreams could spawn an MMA champion, but if Weidman has his way, that’s just the storyline that will eventually play out. Because even though he wasn’t a hockey natural, he has certainly taken to MMA in a hurry.
Turning pro in 2009, Weidman (6-0) would be signed by the UFC within two years of his debut. To date, he’s won both of his starts in MMA‘s top circuit, defeating Alessio Sakara on short notice his first time in the octagon before earning a guillotine submission win over Jesse Bongfeldt in his follow-up. At UFC 139, he faces Tom Lawlor.
Among the UFC weight divisions, the middleweight class might feature the most upward mobility. Current champion Anderson Silva has held the belt so long (61 months and counting) that several of the division’s best (Demian Maia, Chael Sonnen, Vitor Belfort, Yushin Okami and Chris Leben) have already tasted defeat at his hands. There are also hardly any young fighters breaking through. New contender candidate Mark Munoz, while fairly new to the MMA game, is 33 years old. Michael Bisping is 32. Brian Stann is 31.
That makes Weidman and Alan Belcher (both 27) the only UFC middleweights under the age of 30 that are ranked among the division’s top 20. And Weidman says he’s about ready to join the conversation among its very best.
“I definitely think I’m ready to break through,” he said. “I’m ready to do it. There are definitely a lot of tough guys in our division. If you look at 205, there are a lot of big names. We have a lot of underrated talent that people don’t know about because they don’t have the exposure. But I’m ready to be that face that comes up and gets that belt.
“I just have to keep winning,” he continued. “I only have two fights in the UFC, and even though I won them both, I have to keep winning. I can’t be happy where I’m at. My goal has to be to get to the top. If I settle for anything less, I won’t ever break through. To get to that elite level, I have to believe myself and set my goals that high.”
Weidman has every reason to believe in himself. His record speaks itself, but that number is just the sum of his considerable skills, which begin with his deep wrestling background, but are nicely complemented by a rapidly improving ground game. Though Weidman is a purple belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, that’s only because he hasn’t trained in a gi in two years. He regularly trains with black belts and has the reputation as a natural in the art form.
His striking is the last piece to the puzzle, and while Weidman feels he hasn’t flashed it in his UFC fights, he showed it in the past, notably knocking out two of his last three opponents before signing with the UFC.
He’s looked to add to his arsenal with coach Ray Longo, who helped guide Matt Serra to his memorable UFC welterweight championship win over Georges St-Pierre, and he’s spent extensive time training with professional kickboxers. Recently, he flew out to San Diego and spent a week training with rising UFC light-heavyweight star Alexander Gustafsson as well.
It’s a formula which he feels may pay dividends on Saturday.
“My standup has come along big time,” he said. “I don’t know if he’ll underestimate my striking but if he does, I’ll be there to make him pay for that.”
Weidman is generally complimentary of Lawlor’s all-around skills, mentioning that he is well-rounded with power, aggression and the fearlessness to go for the finish. He expects it to be an exciting matchup. And Lawlor is generally complimentary of Lawlor as well. But on a Monday edition of The MMA Hour, Lawlor said he hoped to exploit his perceived advantage in experience level. That is a characterization that Weidman disagreed with, citing his collegiate and international experience in wrestling.
“Every fight I’ve had so far, the person who I’m fighting said that,” he said. “It’s nothing new to me. That’s fine, he can think that. I know for a fact that won’t be problem. I think Alessio Sakara was more experienced than Tom Lawlor and I didn’t let that get to me, so it’s nothing that’s going to bother me.”
Weidman’s confidence is boosted by his lengthy camp. After being notified of the fight back in July, he had plenty of time to prepare and improve. Now the hard work is done, and he hopes to impress and make a statement on Saturday. Unlike his past hockey dreams, this goal seems a lot more realistic.
“I’m winning but I’m far from satisfied,” he said. “I just want to keep going. A lot of people think I made it. I’m not even close to where I want to be. I’m not anywhere near where I want to be yet. I’ve just got to keep on winning, and I’m very, very self-motivated to do that.”
SAN JOSE, Calif. — This is the 
Growing up in Baldwin, N.Y., 