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In Case You Forgot: Kid Yamamoto Makes His UFC Debut This Saturday

(Yamamoto def. Federico ‘Kiko’ Lopez via KO, 1:41 of round 1, 5/29/10)
It’s a sad state of affairs when one of the greatest featherweight fighters of all time can arrive in the UFC with virtually zero fanfare, buried on a preliminary card dark-mat…

(Yamamoto def. Federico ‘Kiko’ Lopez via KO, 1:41 of round 1, 5/29/10)

It’s a sad state of affairs when one of the greatest featherweight fighters of all time can arrive in the UFC with virtually zero fanfare, buried on a preliminary card dark-match against a young contender. Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto enters the Octagon for the first time this Saturday at UFC 126, and while that would have been a major story three years ago, times have changed.

Yamamoto made his name in K-1’s MMA shows as a lightning-fast knockout artist, but his reputation took a major hit in 2008-2009, when he followed-up a long knee-injury layoff with two decision losses against Joe Warren and Masanori Kanehara. (He also divorced his hot wife in 2009. So, bad times all around.) Last year, Yamamoto dropped to bantamweight for the first time in his career to face journeyman Federico Lopez at Dream.14. Showing flashes of his old self, he finished the fight in less than two minutes, crumpling Lopez with a right hook and smashing him with shots on the ground until the ref intervened.

Of course, it’s too early to say that the Kid is "back" — his opponent, Demetrious Johnson, is a tough customer who’s looked impressive in his last two wins in the WEC, and having a successful Octagon debut is easier said than done. Can Yamamoto jump-start his career in the U.S., or is it too late for him to make an impact? Check out some of his greatest victories after the jump, and remember the good times…

Chad Mendes Shares Game Plan for UFC 126 Fight Against Omigawa

Filed under: UFCFeatherweight Chad Mendes was “stoked” when he was offered Japanese star Michihiro Omigawa for his UFC debut this Saturday at UFC 126 in Las Vegas.

“I think for me it’s a perfect matchup,” Mendes said Monday on The MMA Hour. “Omigawa i…

Filed under: UFC

Featherweight Chad Mendes was “stoked” when he was offered Japanese star Michihiro Omigawa for his UFC debut this Saturday at UFC 126 in Las Vegas.

“I think for me it’s a perfect matchup,” Mendes said Monday on The MMA Hour. “Omigawa is the type of guy that likes to get his hands on you, he needs to bear hug to take you down to the mat.”

Rachelle Leah and Arianny Celeste Handcuffed in the Back Seat Bring You the Fix Monday Blues Link Dump

Brock Lesnar clarifies he is not a “mindf**ker”, however he is an “a**kicker”: here.
If you’re in Las Vegas for UFC 126 this Saturday, a list of places to meet your favorite UFC fighters is provided: here.
Find out what Nick Diaz and Hershel Walker made off the Strikeforce $463,500 payroll: here.
Video Footage of Tim Sylvia’s […]

Brock Lesnar clarifies he is not a “mindf**ker”, however he is an “a**kicker”: here.

If you’re in Las Vegas for UFC 126 this Saturday, a list of places to meet your favorite UFC fighters is provided: here.

Find out what Nick Diaz and Hershel Walker made off the Strikeforce $463,500 payroll: here.

Video Footage of Tim Sylvia’s ~~surprising~~ TKO loss at Titan Fighting Championships 16: here.

Paul Daley already looking past his February 26th bout against Yuya Shirai and talks knocking out Nick Diaz next: here.

Pictures of Rachelle Leah and Arianny Celeste partying prior to their ~~arrest~~ fooling around in the back seat below:

Rich Franklin: The CagePotato Retrospective Interview

("When you put your focus on one thing, you tend not to focus on the journey. Once you get there, it’s not going to be as big of a deal as you thought it was going to be.")
This Saturday, Rich Franklin will step into the Octagon for the 18t…

("When you put your focus on one thing, you tend not to focus on the journey. Once you get there, it’s not going to be as big of a deal as you thought it was going to be.")

This Saturday, Rich Franklin will step into the Octagon for the 18th time to face Forrest Griffin in the co-headlining feature of UFC 126. During his 12-year career, Ace has experienced everything from championship glory to bitter defeat, and now stands as one of the sport’s most revered statesmen. “I think that what people will remember me for is that I’m a tough competitor who’s put on entertaining fights for the fans all these years," Franklin tells CagePotato. "And I’m happy with that kind of legacy.”

Rich was generous enough to give us some phone-time recently, and instead of asking him about his gameplan for Forrest, we discussed Franklin’s career as a whole, from the moment he decided to pursue MMA as a full-time job, to the fight that changed his life, to every other notable moment that helped forge the fighter he is today. Let’s begin…

The Early Days, 1993-1999
Rich Franklin: “I started training in traditional martial arts in 1993, then I saw the first couple UFCs and started doing some jiu-jitsu. I was training at a Royce Gracie chapter here in Cincinnati, and the guy who was leading my class was a blue belt. By today’s standards, if the best you had in your area was a blue belt, you’d be way behind the times, but in 1994 it was a big deal to have that kind of a resource. So I was doing jiu-jitsu, working with kickboxing coaches, and of course I’d been watching the UFC, learning off instructional tapes and all those kinds of things.

I started fighting at these little local amateur shows out in Richmond, Indiana, and clearly at that point in time, I was just light-years ahead of the competition that was showing up at the event. The promoter told me, ‘These are amateur events, I don’t really have anybody for you to fight.’ But there was a gentleman there who said, ‘You know what, I run a pro show, and I’ll pay you to fight." And he offered me 200 bucks. I was like, ‘Wow, I can make money fighting? This is great. I’m gonna make 200 bucks." I was bankin’.

RICH FRANKLIN (5-0) vs. AARON BRINK (7-4) — Franklin’s first regional title fight
IFC: Warriors Challenge 11, 1/13/01
Result: No contest due to accidental injury, after Brink’s leg slipped through the cage.

Vitor Belfort Says Despite Opinions to the Contrary, His Troubled Past Will Not Affect His Fighting Future

(Video courtesy YouTube/SNETCF)
The big question mark whenever Vitor Belfort’s doubters talk about how successful the Brazilian powerhouse will be in upcoming bouts like his middleweight championship tilt with Anderson Silva on Saturday night at UFC 12…

(Video courtesy YouTube/SNETCF)

The big question mark whenever Vitor Belfort’s doubters talk about how successful the Brazilian powerhouse will be in upcoming bouts like his middleweight championship tilt with Anderson Silva on Saturday night at UFC 126 is where his head’s at.

When his sister Priscilla was kidnapped in 2004 in the week prior to his UFC 46 championship bout with Randy Couture, "The Phenom" admitted that the situation was weighing heavily on his mind. Because he spoke openly about the emotional effect loing her had on him, many assume that he never really got over the ordeal even after her kidnappers substantiated fears that Priscilla was dead, confessing in 2007 to her killing.

Subsequently, most of Belfort’s detractors chalk his eight MMA losses up to him being mentally fragile, even though they all came against present and future champions and only two were via stoppage. If being beaten by Chuck Liddell, Alistair Overeem, Randy Couture and Dan Henderson in their prime makes you a mental midget then guys like Rich Franklin and Wanderlei Silva must be psychologically retarded as well.

Forrest Griffin ‘A Little More Nervous Than Usual’ for Rich Franklin Fight

Filed under: UFC, NewsForrest Griffin has had his fair share of the spotlight and big moments. He’s been UFC light heavyweight champion, and faced some of the heaviest hitters in MMA, including Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and Ander…

Filed under: UFC, News

Forrest Griffin has had his fair share of the spotlight and big moments. He’s been UFC light heavyweight champion, and faced some of the heaviest hitters in MMA, including Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and Anderson Silva. But for his upcoming UFC 126 fight with Rich Franklin, Griffin admits his nerves are likely to be a little bit more on edge than normal. That’s because Griffin will be putting his body to the test for the first time since Nov. 2009.

Returning from long-needed shoulder surgery, Griffin will come back against an opponent who is coming off an injury timeout of his own. Franklin will be making his first start back from a broken arm.

“For me, being off for a year, that’s huge,” Griffin said in a Thursday teleconference. “It’s a weird feeling, I’m a little more nervous than usual. During this year I’ve had spurts of really good training when I thought I was going to fight. The big thing is going to be that first minute, and making that adjustment, getting back in there. This is the longest break I’ve had in fighting since 2000, so it’s weird.”