Tag: UFC bookings

UFC 149 Shakeup: Thiago Alves Injured, Chris Clements to Replace, Bibiano Fernandes Debuts Against Delorme


(Well if you’re trying to give yourself a hernia and a dislocated jaw, then by all means, keep doing what you’re doing.)

As if the loss of one high-profile Thiago wasn’t bad enough, UFC 149 (July 21st; Calgary, Alberta, Canada) is now short two Thiagos, with welterweight Thiago Alves having to withdraw due to an undisclosed injury.

Replacing him in his scheduled match against Afghan knockout-machine Siyar Bahadurzada will be Canadian striker Chris Clements, the MMA record-holder who out-pointed Keith Wisniewski in his Octagon debut at UFC 145. (Fun fact: Bahadurzada was himself a replacement for Yoshihiro Akiyama against Alves. And round and round it goes.)

Based on the way that Bahadurzada smoked Paulo Thiago in his own UFC debut back in April, we have a feeling that Clements could be in deep do-doo here. And speaking of potential mismatches…


(Well if you’re trying to give yourself a hernia and a dislocated jaw, then by all means, keep doing what you’re doing.)

As if the loss of one high-profile Thiago wasn’t bad enough, UFC 149 (July 21st; Calgary, Alberta, Canada) is now short two Thiagos, with welterweight Thiago Alves having to withdraw due to an undisclosed injury.

Replacing him in his scheduled match against Afghan knockout-machine Siyar Bahadurzada will be Canadian striker Chris Clements, the MMA record-holder who out-pointed Keith Wisniewski in his Octagon debut at UFC 145. (Fun fact: Bahadurzada was himself a replacement for Yoshihiro Akiyama against Alves. And round and round it goes.)

Based on the way that Bahadurzada smoked Paulo Thiago in his own UFC debut back in April, we have a feeling that Clements could be in deep do-doo here. And speaking of potential mismatches…

MMA Fighting reports that reigning DREAM bantamweight champion (for whatever that’s worth) Bibiano Fernandes has been signed by the UFC and will debut at UFC 149 against TUF 14 castmember Roland Delorme.

Fernandes first gained a reputation as the featherweight champion of DREAM — where he scored victories over Masakazu Imanari, Joe Warren, Hiroyuki Takaya, and Joachim Hansen — but dropped to bantamweight after losing his belt in a rematch with Takaya. Since then, the BJJ black belt has gone 3-0 at the lighter weight, most recently defeating Rodolfo Marques and Antonio Banuelos in the same night to win DREAM’s bantamweight strap.

On paper, Delorme’s 8-1 record and failed TUF stint look far less impressive than Fernandes’s credentials, but he’s already notched two official wins in the UFC — a pair of rear-naked choke victories over Josh Ferguson and Nick Denis — which gives him an experience advantage where it counts. Anybody picking the Canadian for the upset?


(Fernandes’s TKO finish of Banuelos, 12/31/11)

Chad Griggs, God Help Him, Will Drop Down to Light-Heavyweight to Meet Phil Davis in August


(Chad’s the dead guy in the background.)

After getting utterly demolished by the much-larger Travis Browne during his Octagon debut at UFC 145, heavyweight prospect Chad Griggs has decided to drop to 205 pounds for his follow-up UFC appearance. Griggs was only 228 pounds when he hit the scales before his UFC debut — about as heavy as Jon Jones’s walking weight — making this a wise career choice on paper. The question is: Will Chad’s decision turn out to be good, bad, or ugly?

The Grave Digger certainly won’t be getting an easy welcome in his new division. According to MMA Weekly, Griggs will be returning at UFC on FOX 4 (August 4th, Los Angeles) against light-heavyweight contender Phil Davis, who suffered the first loss of his career in a decision against Rashad Evans in January. Before that, Davis had used his wrestling and grappling skills to dominate such tough competition as Brian Stann, Alexander Gustafsson, Tim Boetsch, and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira. In other words, Griggs’s takedown defense had better be airtight if he wants his puncher’s chance to be worth the fist it’s printed on.

UFC on FOX 4 is shaping up to be a real crowd-pleaser; the current lineup is after the jump…


(Chad’s the dead guy in the background.)

After getting utterly demolished by the much-larger Travis Browne during his Octagon debut at UFC 145, heavyweight prospect Chad Griggs has decided to drop to 205 pounds for his follow-up UFC appearance. Griggs was only 228 pounds when he hit the scales before his UFC debut — about as heavy as Jon Jones’s walking weight — making this a wise career choice on paper. The question is: Will Chad’s decision turn out to be good, bad, or ugly?

The Grave Digger certainly won’t be getting an easy welcome in his new division. According to MMA Weekly, Griggs will be returning at UFC on FOX 4 (August 4th, Los Angeles) against light-heavyweight contender Phil Davis, who suffered the first loss of his career in a decision against Rashad Evans in January. Before that, Davis had used his wrestling and grappling skills to dominate such tough competition as Brian Stann, Alexander Gustafsson, Tim Boetsch, and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira. In other words, Griggs’s takedown defense had better be airtight if he wants his puncher’s chance to be worth the fist it’s printed on.

UFC on FOX 4 is shaping up to be a real crowd-pleaser; the current lineup is after the jump…

Brian Stann vs. Hector Lombard (MW)
Lyoto Machida vs. Ryan Bader (LHW)
Ben Rothwell vs. Travis Browne (HW)
Phil De Fries vs. Oli Thompson (HW)
Matt Mitrione vs. Rob Broughton (HW)
Joe Lauzon vs. Terry Etim (LW)
Phil Davis vs. Chad Griggs (LHW)

UFC 146 Injury Switcheroo: Roy Nelson Now Facing Dave Herman, Jamie Varner Returns Against Edson Barboza


(Just don’t come between Dave and his cubs.)

A pair of injuries have led to even more changes to the already chaotic UFC 146 lineup. As confirmed last night, heavyweight Gabriel Gonzaga has been forced to withdraw from his scheduled fight against Roy Nelson, and will be replaced by Dave Herman, who suffered a TKO loss to Stefan Struve in his last Octagon appearance. This is the second opponent switch for Nelson, who was originally supposed to face Antonio Silva on the “Dos Santos vs. Mir” card.

Meanwhile in the prelims, lightweight contender Evan Dunham is out of his fight against undefeated rising star Edson Barboza, and will be replaced by former WEC champ Jamie Varner. Since exiting the WEC after going 0-3-1 in 2010, Varner has won three of four fights outside the Zuffa fold, most recently stopping Drew Fickett in 40 seconds at XFC 16. However, all of Varner’s recent fights have come at 160-170 pounds, and one of those matches resulted in a loss to Dakota Cochrane, of all people. Will Varner be at a disadvantage trying to make 155 again on short notice? Will it even matter, considering that Barboza vs. Varner is the biggest UFC squash match of the year?

UFC 146 goes down May 26th at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The current (but probably not final) lineup is after the jump…


(Just don’t come between Dave and his cubs.)

A pair of injuries have led to even more changes to the already chaotic UFC 146 lineup. As confirmed last night, heavyweight Gabriel Gonzaga has been forced to withdraw from his scheduled fight against Roy Nelson, and will be replaced by Dave Herman, who suffered a TKO loss to Stefan Struve in his last Octagon appearance. This is the second opponent switch for Nelson, who was originally supposed to face Antonio Silva on the “Dos Santos vs. Mir” card.

Meanwhile in the prelims, lightweight contender Evan Dunham is out of his fight against undefeated rising star Edson Barboza, and will be replaced by former WEC champ Jamie Varner. Since exiting the WEC after going 0-3-1 in 2010, Varner has won three of four fights outside the Zuffa fold, most recently stopping Drew Fickett in 40 seconds at XFC 16. However, all of Varner’s recent fights have come at 160-170 pounds, and one of those matches resulted in a loss to Dakota Cochrane, of all people. Will Varner be at a disadvantage trying to make 155 again on short notice? Will it even matter, considering that Barboza vs. Varner is the biggest UFC squash match of the year?

UFC 146 goes down May 26th at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The current (but probably not final) lineup is after the jump…

Main Card (PPV)
Junior dos Santos vs. Frank Mir
Cain Velasquez vs. Antonio Silva
Shane del Rosario vs. Stipe Miocic
Roy Nelson vs. Dave Herman
Mark Hunt vs. Stefan Struve

Preliminary Card (FX)
Diego Brandao vs. Darren Elkins
Edson Barboza vs. Jamie Varner
Jason Miller vs. C.B. Dollaway
Jacob Volkmann vs Paul Sass

Preliminary Card (Facebook)
Dan Hardy vs. Duane Ludwig
Kyle Kingsbury vs. Glover Teixeira
Mike Brown vs. Daniel Pineda


(Varner does his happy-dance after scoring the only UFC win of his career, against Jason Gilliam back at UFC 68 in March 2007.)

‘UFC on FOX 4? Picks Up Lyoto Machida vs. Ryan Bader, Travis Browne vs. Ben Rothwell


(Don’t roll your eyes, Bader is a fine opponent.)

Fresh off his decision win over Quinton Jackson, light-heavyweight contender Ryan Bader will be returning to action at UFC on FOX 4 (August 4th, Los Angeles) against another former champion, Lyoto Machida. UFC.com confirmed the news yesterday evening. Machida most recently got choked to sleep by Jon Jones in December, which was his third loss in his last four appearances. With Bader riding another hot streak, could the Dragon be in trouble here?

Also on the card, heavyweights Travis Browne and Ben Rothwell — who won UFC 145’s Submission of the Night and Knockout of the Night bonuses, respectively — will be facing off in a guaranteed slugfest. (You’re welcome, Joe Silva.) Browne is still undefeated in his MMA career, with his last three victories coming against Chad Griggs, Rob Broughton, and Stefan Struve. Meanwhile, Rothwell’s first-round knockout of Brendan Schaub finally established him as a legitimate threat in the UFC.

UFC on FOX 4 will also feature Hector Lombard’s Octagon debut against Brian Stann, and Joe Lauzon vs. Terry Etim.


(Don’t roll your eyes, Bader is a fine opponent.)

Fresh off his decision win over Quinton Jackson, light-heavyweight contender Ryan Bader will be returning to action at UFC on FOX 4 (August 4th, Los Angeles) against another former champion, Lyoto Machida. UFC.com confirmed the news yesterday evening. Machida most recently got choked to sleep by Jon Jones in December, which was his third loss in his last four appearances. With Bader riding another hot streak, could the Dragon be in trouble here?

Also on the card, heavyweights Travis Browne and Ben Rothwell — who won UFC 145′s Submission of the Night and Knockout of the Night bonuses, respectively — will be facing off in a guaranteed slugfest. (You’re welcome, Joe Silva.) Browne is still undefeated in his MMA career, with his last three victories coming against Chad Griggs, Rob Broughton, and Stefan Struve. Meanwhile, Rothwell’s first-round knockout of Brendan Schaub finally established him as a legitimate threat in the UFC.

UFC on FOX 4 will also feature Hector Lombard’s Octagon debut against Brian Stann, and Joe Lauzon vs. Terry Etim.

Mauricio “Shogun” Rua vs. Thiago Silva Likely for UFC 149; Aldo vs. Koch Slated for Main Event


(Rua slugs Dan Henderson during their epic bout in November. / Photo courtesy of Heavy)

A matchup between Mauricio “Shogun” Rua and Thiago Silva is likely for July 21st’s UFC 149 event in Calgary, according to a new report on MMA Junkie. UFC president Dana White tweeted yesterday that the two light-heavyweight strikers would face one another, but didn’t confirm the date or venue.

Silva is coming off of a one-year suspension and a decision loss to Alexander Gustafsson. Winless since his 2009 knockout of Keith Jardine, Silva’s contract may very well be on the line here. Shogun’s last bout, a five-round war/decision loss to Dan Henderson, was widely considered to be the greatest fight in MMA history until this past weekend.


(Rua slugs Dan Henderson during their epic bout in November. / Photo courtesy of Heavy)

A matchup between Mauricio “Shogun” Rua and Thiago Silva is likely for July 21st’s UFC 149 event in Calgary, according to a new report on MMA Junkie. UFC president Dana White tweeted yesterday that the two light-heavyweight strikers would face one another, but didn’t confirm the date or venue.

Silva is coming off of a one-year suspension and a decision loss to Alexander Gustafsson. Winless since his 2009 knockout of Keith Jardine, Silva’s contract may very well be on the line here. Shogun’s last bout, a five-round war/decision loss to Dan Henderson, was widely considered to be the greatest fight in MMA history until this past weekend.

According to multiple sources including MMAFighting and O Globo, the 7/21 event will be headlined by the featherweight title fight between Jose Aldo and Eric Koch. That matchup was previously tied to UFC 147 in Brazil, which will now reportedly take place in an 18,000-seat venue in Belo Horizonte.

So, Shogun vs. Silva and Aldo vs. Koch in the Great White North. Who takes ‘em and how, nation?

– Elias Cepeda

Hector Lombard Draws Brian Stann for UFC Debut, Requests a Random Drug Test for Some Reason


(“Oh no, I wasn’t laughing at you. I was just remembering this funny joke I heard about a guy who got punched in the head really hard.”)

The UFC has confirmed that their new middleweight signee Hector Lombard — best known as Bellator’s Angel of Death — will be making his first Octagon appearance against Brian Stann. UFC.com reports that the matchup will take place this August in Los Angeles, suggesting that it will go down at UFC on FOX 4.

Known for his inhuman power and massive physique, Lombard took to twitter last night to make a rather unique request: “Can we make a random drug test before my fight???” Lombard clearly wants to prove that his muscles are all natural — though once you request a random test, it’s not exactly random anymore. Ah well, he’ll get the hang of it.


(“Oh no, I wasn’t laughing at you. I was just remembering this funny joke I heard about a guy who got punched in the head really hard.”)

The UFC has confirmed that their new middleweight signee Hector Lombard — best known as Bellator’s Angel of Death — will be making his first Octagon appearance against Brian Stann. UFC.com reports that the matchup will take place this August in Los Angeles, suggesting that it will go down at UFC on FOX 4.

Known for his inhuman power and massive physique, Lombard took to twitter last night to make a rather unique request: “Can we make a random drug test before my fight???” Lombard clearly wants to prove that his muscles are all natural — though once you request a random test, it’s not exactly random anymore. Ah well, he’ll get the hang of it.

Lombard (31-2-1, w/ 1 no-contest) is currently riding a 20-fight win streak, and hasn’t lost a bout since his PRIDE stint in 2006. He’ll be matching those impressive stats against Brian Stann (12-4), who is coming off his first-round knockout of Alessio Sakara at UFC on FUEL 2. Lombard was previously signed by the UFC in 2007, but visa issues prevented the Cuban-born Olympic judoka from making his debut at UFC 78.

So will Lombard keep rolling this summer, or will he crumble on the big stage against an All-American veteran? Your thoughts, please.