Tag: UFC 166

UFC 166 Adds Jordan-Gonzaga and Sotiropoulos-Noons to Stacked Card

UFC 166 recently added a nice co-main event to go with a heavyweight title rubber match, and now the card will receive a few more bouts.
According to reports by Matt Ramsay of The Advocate Shawn Jordan will face Gabriel Gonzaga, and Daniel Sa…

UFC 166 recently added a nice co-main event to go with a heavyweight title rubber match, and now the card will receive a few more bouts.

According to reports by Matt Ramsay of The Advocate Shawn Jordan will face Gabriel Gonzaga, and Daniel Sankey of The Age reports that George Sotiropoulos will face former Strikeforce contender K.J. Noons.

Jordan, a former Louisiana State University fullback, is coming off of an impressive knockout victory against Pat Barry at UFC 161. On a card that was rather dull, Jordan’s knockout served as the evening’s main source of entertainment from the main card. It also earned him Knockout of the Night honors.

The win pushed his record to 3-1 inside the Octagon.

Standing opposite Jordan at UFC 166 will be MMA veteran and Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt “Napao” Gonzaga. The Brazilian is also coming off of a knockout victory after he dropped Dave Herman with a single punch at UFC 162. After initially retiring from MMA following two straight losses in 2010, Gonzaga returned to MMA in October 2011 and has rattled off four wins to just one defeat since then.

Sotiropoulos was at one time a dark horse title contender for many fans, but since his submission of Joe Lauzon in 2010, the Australian has completely fallen off the radar in the lightweight division. He’s suffered three straight losses and could find himself needing a new promotion to fight for if he loses at UFC 166.

The same could be said of his opponent. Noons is also on a three-fight losing streak and was blatantly outclassed by Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone in his UFC debut. Although Noons has only lost once in the Octagon, his poor showing combined with another loss at UFC 166 could end his tenure with the company.

UFC 166 is scheduled to take place on October 19 from the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas. It will be headlined by a rubber match between Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos for the UFC heavyweight title. The evening’s co-main event will feature top-ranked heavyweight Daniel Cormier facing Roy Nelson in what will likely turn into a heavyweight grudge match.

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Barnburner/Do-or-Die Double-Feature Alert: UFC 166 Adds Gonzaga vs. Jordan, Noons vs. Sotiropoulos


(Nope. Not fuckin’ with that guy.)

By Alex Giardini

A potential heavyweight slugfest and a duel between two lightweights who need to get back to their winning ways have both been reported for UFC 166, taking place October 19th at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.

Gabriel Gonzaga, fresh off of an obliteration of Dave Herman at UFC 162 earlier this month, meets “The Savage” Shawn Jordan in a fight sure to end with someone on the canvas before the end of the third round. Gonzaga, the man responsible for Mirko Cro Cop’s downfall — and we’ll never forgive him for it, that son-of-a-bitch — looks to keep climbing back into the title mix, six years after his unsuccessful challenge against Randy Couture back at UFC 74. This will be Gonzaga’s seventeenth appearance in the Octagon over the course of eight years.

Meanwhile, Jordan is riding a two-fight win streak with stoppages over Mike Russow and most recently fan-favorite Pat Barry at UFC 161 in Winnipeg (which took him one second short of a minute). Both men have a combined amount of 1:16 cage-time spent in their last Octagon outings. That’s just how heavyweights roll, my dudes.

Also on the card…


(Nope. Not fuckin’ with that guy.)

By Alex Giardini

A potential heavyweight slugfest and a duel between two lightweights who need to get back to their winning ways have both been reported for UFC 166, taking place October 19th at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.

Gabriel Gonzaga, fresh off of an obliteration of Dave Herman at UFC 162 earlier this month, meets “The Savage” Shawn Jordan in a fight sure to end with someone on the canvas before the end of the third round. Gonzaga, the man responsible for Mirko Cro Cop’s downfall — and we’ll never forgive him for it, that son-of-a-bitch — looks to keep climbing back into the title mix, six years after his unsuccessful challenge against Randy Couture back at UFC 74. This will be Gonzaga’s seventeenth appearance in the Octagon over the course of eight years.

Meanwhile, Jordan is riding a two-fight win streak with stoppages over Mike Russow and most recently fan-favorite Pat Barry at UFC 161 in Winnipeg (which took him one second short of a minute). Both men have a combined amount of 1:16 cage-time spent in their last Octagon outings. That’s just how heavyweights roll, my dudes.

Also on the card…

KJ Noons, who is in desperate need of a win after dropping his last three, faces Australia’s George Sotiropoulos, who’s also dropped his last three and needs a win just as bad. Sotiropoulos has not fought since his TKO loss to Ross Pearson last December after their coaching stint on TUF: The Smashes. Noons was on the losing end of a questionable decision against Ryan Couture at Strikeforce’s swan song earlier this year but was thoroughly outmatched by Donald Cerrone in his Octagon debut at UFC 160. Noons has earned only one win in his last six fights.

It hasn’t been confirmed if these bouts will take place on the main card or the televised preliminary portion of the event. Headlining UFC 166 is the much-anticipated rubber match for the UFC Heavyweight Championship, between champion Cain Velasquez and Junior Dos Santos. Also on the card is a grudge match between Roy Nelson and Daniel Cormier, alongside a scrap for the ages featuring Gilbert Melendez and Diego Sanchez, and the recently announced Tim Boetsch vs. Luke Rockhold.

Daniel Cormier Will Request Immediate Light Heavyweight Title Shot After UFC 166

Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix winner Daniel Cormier is still pushing for a light heavyweight title shot. While he called out UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones back at the final Strikeforce event back in January, the former USA Olympic Wrest…

Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix winner Daniel Cormier is still pushing for a light heavyweight title shot. While he called out UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones back at the final Strikeforce event back in January, the former USA Olympic Wrestling Team member has remained a force at heavyweight.

Speaking with UFC Tonight for their July 24 edition, he flatly stated that he was going to implore the UFC brass to let him jump the line for an immediate title shot at 205 lbs following his UFC 166 bout with Roy Nelson.

Though Cormier has been hinting that he wishes for shot at Jones’ belt, he has seemed relatively content working over top-10 heavyweights in the meantime. After beating Josh Barnett to cement himself as the top heavyweight in Strikeforce, he took on no-name light heavyweight Dion Staring in a heavyweight bout at Strikeforce: Marquardt vs. Saffiedine.

While he would rough up Staring and call out Jon Jones, he wound up facing long-time UFC heavyweight title contender Frank Mir in his first bout in the Octagon. He is now slated to face off with new rival Roy “Big Country” Nelson. Nelson and Cormier have been beefing mightily over the last month, with Cormier saying he wants to fight Nelson “for Dana White”, with Nelson labeling it “an Uncle Tom move.

Cormier is a relatively small heavyweight in terms of his height and frame, and questions about a potential drop to 205 lbs have always lingered. The move seemed unlikely for a long while due to a near-death experience stemming from his weight cut for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. However, with his friend and teammate, Cain Velasquez, reigning as heavyweight champion, he feels like the light heavyweight division is the best place to make a run for the belt, and is confident he can safely make weight

Jones is currently scheduled to face Alexander Gustafsson in September at UFC 165. Cormier, meanwhile, will face Nelson at UFC 166 on a to-be-determined date (which will likely be in October or November).

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Do-or-Die Alert: Tim Boetsch Draws Luke Rockhold for ‘UFC 166: Velasquez vs. Dos Santos III’


(Boetsch may have won the battle, but the piece of glass Okami left on the mat surely won the war. Photo via Tracy Lee/Yahoo) 

The UFC career of Tim Boetsch has seen some incredible highs and just-as-unforgettable lows to say the least. After kick-starting his tenure at light heavyweight with one of the most savage debuts of all time (and a personal favorite fight of mine) at UFC 81: Breaking Point, “The Barbarian” would drop two out of his next three to Matt Hamill and Jason Brilz before being ousted from the promotion. It was a decision that nearly bankrupted Capital One and resulted in the pillage-related deaths of no less than 400 people, but I digress.

Three straight stoppage wins on the local circuit would see Boetsch called back up to the big leagues to face Thiago Silva at UFC 117. Although an Inner Circle concert injury would see Silva ousted and Todd Brown brought in, the result would be a unanimous decision victory for Boetsch nonetheless. It was a redemptive feeling that wouldn’t last long, unfortunately, as Phil Davis and his freaky, deeky submission skills would force Boetsch to drop to middleweight in a last ditch effort to save his career. With the help of world-renowned trainer Matt Hume, Boetsch would go on an impressive 4-fight win streak at 185, including one of the greatest comeback victories in MMA history.

Back-to-back losses at the hands of Costa Philippou and Mark Munoz, however, have once again placed “The Barbarian” in hot water. In even worse news, the man Boetsch will have to defeat to likely stay employed will be former Strikeforce middleweight champion Luke Rockhold, as the two have just been booked for UFC 166 on October 19th.


(Boetsch may have won the battle, but the piece of glass Okami left on the mat surely won the war. Photo via Tracy Lee/Yahoo) 

The UFC career of Tim Boetsch has seen some incredible highs and just-as-unforgettable lows to say the least. After kick-starting his tenure at light heavyweight with one of the most savage debuts of all time (and a personal favorite fight of mine) at UFC 81: Breaking Point, “The Barbarian” would drop two out of his next three to Matt Hamill and Jason Brilz before being ousted from the promotion. It was a decision that nearly bankrupted Capital One and resulted in the pillage-related deaths of no less than 400 people, but I digress.

Three straight stoppage wins on the local circuit would see Boetsch called back up to the big leagues to face Thiago Silva at UFC 117. Although an Inner Circle concert injury would see Silva ousted and Todd Brown brought in, the result would be a unanimous decision victory for Boetsch nonetheless. It was a redemptive feeling that wouldn’t last long, unfortunately, as Phil Davis and his freaky, deeky submission skills would force Boetsch to drop to middleweight in a last ditch effort to save his career. With the help of world-renowned trainer Matt Hume, Boetsch would go on an impressive 4-fight win streak at 185, including one of the greatest comeback victories in MMA history.

Back-to-back losses at the hands of Costa Philippou and Mark Munoz, however, have once again placed “The Barbarian” in hot water. In even worse news, the man Boetsch will have to defeat to likely stay employed will be former Strikeforce middleweight champion Luke Rockhold, as the two have just been booked for UFC 166 on October 19th.

Although not necessarily a do-or-die fight for Rockhold, a loss to Boetsch would all but completely erase any future title hopes that the AKA standout may have. After ending his Strikeforce career with 9 straight victories, Rockhold was humbled via a Vitor Belfort sharknado kick in his UFC debut, which brings both fighters to their current crossroads. Will Boetsch have Rockhold doing the “No Bones” dance, or should he start preparing to call out Maiquel Falcao in the near future?

Featuring the trilogy-completing match between heavyweight champion Brown Pride and former champion Good Guy Dos Santos as well as a co-main event hot-dog eating contest between Roy Nelson and Daniel Cormier (yes, it’s official now), UFC 166 goes down on October 19th from the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.

–J. Jones

Luke Rockhold to Face Tim Boetsch at UFC 166

Another pair of heavy hitters will be joining the UFC 166 card as middleweights Luke Rockhold and Tim Boetsch are set to square off at the October event.
UFC officials confirmed the bout with ESPN.com’s Brett Okamoto early on Wednesday morning.
Rockhol…

Another pair of heavy hitters will be joining the UFC 166 card as middleweights Luke Rockhold and Tim Boetsch are set to square off at the October event.

UFC officials confirmed the bout with ESPN.com’s Brett Okamoto early on Wednesday morning.

Rockhold will look to get back into the win column with this fight, set for Oct. 19 in Houston, following an unsuccessful UFC debut at UFC on FX 8.

The American Kickboxing Academy product suffered a brutal first-round knockout loss to Vitor Belfort when they squared off in Brazil this past May, eating a huge spinning wheel kick that left the last Strikeforce middleweight champ out cold on the canvas.

Prior to the loss, only the second of his MMA career, Rockhold was riding an impressive nine-fight winning streak which included wins over Ronaldo Souza, Keith Jardine and Tim Kennedy.

Boetsch will also be looking to snap his own recent skid. He’s lost two in a row, most recently dropping a unanimous decision to Mark Muñoz at UFC 162 earlier this month. 

“The Barbarian” was on a roll before his current losing streak, rattling off four straight wins which included victories over Nick Ring, Yushin Okami and former Bellator middleweight champ Hector Lombard.

Considering that Rockhold and Boetsch have a combined 20 wins via finish, I fully expect this fight to be an action-packed bout on an already stacked fight card.

A few of Rockhold’s AKA teammates will be joining him in Houston, including UFC heavyweight champ Cain Velasquez. The 30-year-old will be headlining the event opposite Junior dos Santos. Meanwhile, Daniel Cormier will be taking on Roy Nelson in the night’s co-main event.

 

Be sure to like Matt on Facebook and follow @MattchidaMMA.

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Daniel Cormier vs. Roy Nelson Set as Co-Main Event of UFC 166

The war of words, at least over signing a fight agreement, has come to an end. However, don’t expect the fact that Daniel Cormier and Roy Nelson will be stepping into the Octagon at UFC 166 to end the verbal and Twitter exchanges between the two….

The war of words, at least over signing a fight agreement, has come to an end. However, don’t expect the fact that Daniel Cormier and Roy Nelson will be stepping into the Octagon at UFC 166 to end the verbal and Twitter exchanges between the two.

The Houston Chronicle broke the news of the signing on Monday night.

Things heated up between Nelson and Cormier, when Nelson (19-8), in an interview with Bleacher Report’s Damon Martin, said that Cormier (12-0) had turned down a fight with him on the UFC 161 card. Cormier answered that accusation by telling UFC Tonight (h/t Martin), “I want Roy Nelson. I want to kick his ass. I want to kick his ass for Dana White.”

Talk between the two died down a bit after Nelson dropped a unanimous decision to Stipe Miocic at UFC 161. Cormier and Nelson got back into it on Twitter last week, with the back and forth culminating in a handwritten fight agreement that both parties signed. Apparently that was enough for the UFC to extend a more official bout agreement:

One interesting fact about the signing is the lack of mention of a new UFC contract for Nelson. Nelson’s contract expired with his loss to Miocic. A request was made to the UFC looking for information regarding that contract.

UFC 166 will take place on October 19 from the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas. Headlining the event will be UFC heavyweight champion, and Cormier teammate, Cain Velasquez putting his title on the line against former champion Junior dos Santos.

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