Ferguson, who beat Ramsey Nijem at the TUF 13 Finale in Las Vegas on June 4 with a first-round knockout, will face Aaron Riley in a lightweight bout at UFC 135 on Sept. 24 in Denver. The UFC announced the fight booking on Twitter on Monday night.
Ferguson (11-2, 1-0 UFC) has won four straight fights, including his UFC debut victory over Nijem, which also netted him a $40,000 Knockout of the Night bonus to go along with his guaranteed UFC contract. That fight was at welterweight. Against Riley (30-12-1, 3-4 UFC), Ferguson will return to the lightweight division.
On Season 13 of TUF, Ferguson fought for coach Brock Lesnar’s team. The three wins Ferguson had in the TUF house to reach the live finale were all knockouts or TKOs. Those those three fights are not official, if counted he has seven straight TKO or KO victories. After taping for the season finished, Ferguson trained at Lesnar’s Death Clutch camp in Minnesota to prepare for his fight with Nijem.
Riley has been out of action for more than a year, since a unanimous decision win over Joe Brammer at UFC 114 in May 2010. Riley, an Indiana native, was expected to return at UFC 119 in Indianapolis last September, but pulled out of his fight with Pat Audinwood with an injury. When he returns in September, it will be after a 16-month layoff.
Riley, whose primary training home is with Greg Jackson’s camp in Albuquerque, N.M., is in his third stint with the UFC. He was one-and-done with losses to Robbie Lawler at UFC 37 and Spencer Fisher at Fight Night 3. Since returning at UFC 91, Riley has gone 3-2, but hasn’t put together consecutive wins. His three wins have all been by unanimous decision.
UFC 135 will take place at the Pepsi Center in Denver. It will be the promotion’s first trip to Colorado since the first UFC on Versus event in March 2010, which took place in the north Denver suburb of Broomfield. The UFC hasn’t been to Denver proper since UFC: The Ultimate Ultimate in December 1995. UFC 1 and UFC 2 also took place in Denver.
UFC 135 is expected to be headlined by a light heavyweight title fight between champion Jon Jones, making his first defense, and former champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. Also on the card, Hall of Famer and former welterweight champion Matt Hughes will face former lightweight title challenger Diego Sanchez.
Filed under: NewsTen fighters from Saturday’s UFC Season 13 Finale of “The Ultimate Fighter” handed down medical suspensions following their fights by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
The most serious potential layoffs are for main card winners K…
Ten fighters from Saturday’s UFC Season 13 Finale of “The Ultimate Fighter” handed down medical suspensions following their fights by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
The most serious potential layoffs are for main card winners Kyle Kingsbury (pictured) and Chris Cope, and preliminary card loser Danny Downes, all of whom could be out until early December.
The TUF 13 Finale took place at The Pearl at The Palms in Las Vegas and featured a main event win by Tony Ferguson, who became the latest “Ultimate Fighter” winner with a knockout of Ramsey Nijem; and a co-main upset win by Clay Guida over Anthony Pettis. None of those three were given medical suspensions.
Kingsbury must have a fractured left orbital bone cleared by doctors, or he will be unable to fight until Dec. 2. His unanimous decision win over Fabio Maldonado was given the Fight of the Night bonus by UFC president Dana White.
Cope, a TUF 13 semifinalist, dominated housemate Chuck O’Neil for a unanimous decision. But he will need both his thumbs x-rayed and given clearance before coming back or he, too, will be out until Dec. 2.
And Downes, who lost to Jeremy Stephens on the prelims, will need a right hand x-ray, plus that hand and his left shoulder cleared before returning. Otherwise, he’ll be on the shelf until Dec. 2. In the fight, Stephens bent Downes’ left arm behind his back in a kimura, but Downes was able to withstand tapping.
The full list of medical suspensions is below.
Ramsey Nijem: Suspended until July 5 with no contact until June 26.
Tim Credeur: Suspended until July 20 with no contact until July 5.
Kyle Kingsbury: Suspended until July 20 with no contact until July 5. Must have left orbital fracture cleared by an ENT or ophthalmologist, or no contest until Dec. 2.
Fabio Maldonado: Suspended until July 20 with no contact until July 5.
Chris Cope: Must have both thumbs x-rayed; if positive, must be cleared by an orthopedic doctor, or no contest until Dec. 2.
Danny Downes: Suspended until July 20 with no contact until July 5. Must have right hand x-rayed, and right hand and left shoulder must be cleared by an orthopedic doctor, or no contest until Dec. 2.
Josh Grispi: Suspended until June 26 with no contact until June 19.
Shamar Bailey: Suspended until July 5 with no contact until June 26.
Justin Edwards: Suspended until July 5 with no contact until June 26.
Ken Stone: Suspended until Aug. 4 with no contact until July 20.
Filed under: UFC, NewsThe live finale for The Ultimate Fighter 13 finished slightly below last season’s Spike TV broadcast, registering a 1.32 household rating and an average audience of 1.8 million viewers.
The live finale for The Ultimate Fighter 13 finished slightly below last season’s Spike TV broadcast, registering a 1.32 household rating and an average audience of 1.8 million viewers.
In its most valued demographics, the finale drew a 1.74 rating among men 18-49 and 1.95 in men 18-34.
For comparison purposes, The Ultimate Fighter 12 Finale last December drew a household rating of 1.4 and an average audience of two million viewers. The TUF 11 Finale drew 2.4 million viewers and TUF 10 Finale (the Kimbo Slice year) had 3.7 million viewers.
The three-hour TUF 13 Finale broadcast featured a total of five fights: Chris Cope over Chuck O’Neil, Kyle Kingsbury over Fabio Maldonado, Ed Herman over Tim Credeur, co-headliner Clay Guida over Anthony Pettis and main event Tony Ferguson over Ramsey Nijem.
The Ultimate Fighter 13:
Ep. 1: 1.5 million viewers
Ep. 2: 1.2 million viewers
Ep. 3: 1.3 million viewers
Ep. 4: 1.3 million viewers
Ep. 5: 1.5 million viewers
Ep. 6: 1.2 million viewers
Ep. 7: 1.0 million viewers
Ep. 8: 1.2 million viewers
Ep. 9: 1.0 million viewers
Ep. 10: 1.2 million viewers
Live Finale: 1.8 million viewers
Filed under: UFCDuke Roufus has had better days. The coach and head of Roufusport in Milwaukee is feeling the effects of watching his students Anthony Pettis and Danny Downes fall short this past Saturday at The Ultimate Fighter 13 Finale.
Duke Roufus has had better days. The coach and head of Roufusport in Milwaukee is feeling the effects of watching his students Anthony Pettis and Danny Downes fall short this past Saturday at The Ultimate Fighter 13 Finale.
“I’m still emotionally drained about it,” Roufus said Monday on The MMA Hour. “They’re great guys, great people. The emotional roller coaster in this sport is so tough sometimes.”
Just last December, Roufus was enjoying the highs of the sport. At WEC 53, Roufus oversaw Downes earning his first WEC win over Zuffa prospect Zhang Tie Quan and Pettis pulling off an amazing “Showtime” kick en route to capturing the WEC lightweight belt.
Roufus said Pettis wasn’t himself that night even while warming up and one of the things they will work on is for Pettis to perform effectively regardless of whether or not he’s on an “on” or “off” day.
“We have not see the last of Anthony Pettis,” Roufus said. “There’s so much unlimited potential with Anthony. We just gotta get it together. Now he’s human again and sometimes that’s better. The spotlight is constantly on. It’s almost too hard. Too much, too fast sometimes.”
Although his takedown defense was his downfall, Pettis fought an exciting fight against Clay Guida and even debuted the “Showtime Two,” a spinning back kick off the cage.
“That’s the one you can say with Anthony Pettis,” Roufus said. “He’ll never be guilty of being boring in the UFC Octagon. He was throwing up submission after submission. I’m not upset at him. I’m only upset for him.”
Pettis was promised a UFC title shot after winning the WEC title, but chose to stay active rather than possibly sitting out a year waiting to see how the Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard rivalry unfolds. Still, even in loss, Roufus believes it was the right decision to accept the fight against Guida.
“Who knows when the title shot is going to happen?” Roufus said. “It’s one of those things … And as well, obviously consistency, there’s some things we’re going to work on with Anthony. I rather know now than later.”
Filed under: UFC, NewsLightweight contender Clay Guida was the highest earner with a $74,000 purse at Saturday’s The Ultimate Fighter 13 Finale in Las Vegas, according to the salaries reported by the UFC to the Nevada state athletic commission.
Lightweight contender Clay Guida was the highest earner with a $74,000 purse at Saturday’s The Ultimate Fighter 13 Finale in Las Vegas, according to the salaries reported by the UFC to the Nevada state athletic commission.
Guida made $37,000 to show and another $37,000 as a win bonus for his decision over Anthony Pettis. Former WEC champion Pettis took home $10,000 in the loss.
Filed under: UFCI’ve always wondered what Ultimate Fighter winners do with their cut-glass trophies. It looks like something you might get for being the most improved player on a high school water polo team, so I’d be surprised if too many recipients h…
I’ve always wondered what Ultimate Fighter winners do with their cut-glass trophies. It looks like something you might get for being the most improved player on a high school water polo team, so I’d be surprised if too many recipients have it displayed prominently in their homes.
I keep expecting to see one show up on Ebay, but then who would buy it? I have no idea, but maybe Tony Ferguson will get a chance to find out. He’s our latest reality show winner, joining a diverse group that has had wildly varied post-grad results.
So what does Ferguson’s win mean, and how far has Anthony Pettis fallen after putting his title shot on the line against Clay Guida? The answers to those questions and more await you, as we sort through the biggest winners, losers, and everything in between after the TUF 13 Finale.
Biggest Winner: Clay Guida
Any lightweight who has ever considered a strategy that involves tiring Guida out only needs to look at him bouncing around in the post-fight interview after three hard rounds to know what a bad idea that is. Against Pettis, Guida showed that a non-stop motor and a wealth of quality experience to draw upon is sometimes all you need to get your hand raised. The decision victory was Guida’s 29th win and his 40th pro fight overall. Even Guida would probably agree that Jim Miller deserves to be ahead of him in line for a crack at the belt, but “The Carpenter” is definitely in the conversation now. What he lacks in sheer talent, he makes up for with work ethic and a willingness to get right in your face and stay there all night. How can you not root for a guy like that?
Biggest Loser: Anthony Pettis
Pettis gets this distinction less for his performance than for what it cost him. He didn’t fight poorly, but all it took was fifteen minutes on a Saturday night for him to go from number one contender to the middle of a crowded pack. Not that it needs to be anything more than a minor setback in the long run. He’s young and has a lot of potential, but Guida showed us all that there are some holes in his game. Some of that is just inexperience. He caught a big break in the third round, yet couldn’t capitalize on it. It’s also possible that he’s trying to force those crowd-pleasing kicks a little too much, which resulted in more interesting misses than useful hits against Guida. He lost his title shot with the defeat, but it’s not the end of the world. If he uses it as a learning experience, this will be nothing more than a speed bump in a promising career.
Best Prospect: Tony Ferguson
He can wrestle and he can swat – a combination that makes him a man to be taken seriously. If we’ve learned anything from 13 seasons of TUF, however, it’s that winning the show is not quite the career-crowning achievement it’s made out to be. What it is, is a nice start for Ferguson and a chance to develop in the UFC with a little more slack than most new hires get. That’s why I wouldn’t recommend calling out guys like Amir Sadollah. While there are benefits to being proactive about matchmaking, the TUF winner usually gets to ease into the big time a little more gently. I don’t want to say he should expect an easy fight in his first post-TUF appearance. There aren’t many of those to be found in the UFC. But there are easier fights out there, and with them, a chance to get comfortable in the Octagon. Just because you’re a reality TV hero, it doesn’t mean the roads are all paved with gold now. Just ask Efrain Escudero.
Least Certain Future: Ramsey Nijem
He looked great on TUF, but all it took was one lunging left hook from Ferguson to stiffen him up like stale toast. He’s obviously got talent, but he also seems like he might not be quite ready for the UFC just yet. He’s now 4-2 in his career, and his most high profile wins were reality show exhibition bouts. He might still turn into a legitimate UFC fighter, but he’d better do it soon. It doesn’t take much to go from TUF finalist to TUF footnote. Just ask Kris McCray. And Vinny Magalhaes. And Luke Cummo. And…you know what? I think you get it.
Biggest Win Under Dire Circumstances: Ed Herman
After losing three of his last four and sitting out with a recurring knee injury for nearly two years, Herman was desperate for a big victory. Knocking out a tough opponent like Tim Credeur in less than a minute is a good way to get back on the map. Herman should consider it a temporary stay, and one possibly aided by the fact that Credeur had been out of action nearly as long as he had. Now Herman has to hope that he’s more successful in his comeback than he was before his initial injury.
Most Disturbing Trend: Ken Stone‘s recent KO’s
He was on the business end of a brutal slam knockout back in December, then got pounded out by Scott Jorgensen in the first round on Saturday night. Two scary knockouts in a row – all in a six-month span – is never good for your career prospects, but it’s even worse for your brain. While we still don’t know a ton about knockouts and long-term brain health, we do know that it’s a bad sign when a fighter keeps ending bouts asleep on the mat, especially when the knockouts start to come easier and easier. Maybe Stone could take some time off and reevaluate. Even if he doesn’t want to, it’s quite possible that the Zuffa contract axe will do it for him.
Most in Need of a Step Up in Competition: Kyle Kingsbury
The decision over Maldonado was his fourth straight victory in the UFC. Now that his skills have caught up to his size and natural athleticism, he seems like a guy who might actually go places in the light heavyweight division. It’s hard to know for sure though, since the UFC keeps giving him opponents who are all at roughly the same level. Jared Hamman, Ricardo Romero, Fabio Maldonado – all are tough guys, but it’s not exactly a steady climb in quality of competition. Now’s the time to throw Kingsbury into the deep water and find out if he can swim.
Least Convincing Effort: Josh Grispi
It’s strange to think that not so long ago, this guy was considered a credible challenger for Jose Aldo’s title. The fighter who showed up to face George Roop on Saturday looked like a man who would have preferred to be almost anywhere else. It’s never a good sign when your cornermen are all but begging you not to quit between rounds. He made it into the third, but just barely, and he didn’t need much encouragement to crumble up and collapse after Roop hammered him with a body shot. Any fighter is going to have his good nights and bad nights, but Grispi has fallen off hard lately. Might be time to sit down with his coaches and talk about what he’s really trying to accomplish here.
Tony Ferguson, who won Season 13 of “The Ultimate Fighter” earlier this month, already has his next fight. 
Ten fighters from Saturday’s UFC Season 13 Finale of “The Ultimate Fighter” handed down medical suspensions following their fights by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
The live finale for 
Lightweight contender 
I’ve always wondered what Ultimate Fighter winners do with their cut-glass trophies. It looks like something you might get for being the most improved player on a high school water polo team, so I’d be surprised if too many recipients have it displayed prominently in their homes.