Tag: UFC Gossip

Vinny Magalhaes’ Calls Out Phil Davis

The ADCC World Grappling champion has called out the Division 1 All American wrestler in Phil Davis. Vinny has stated that nobody wants to fight him, and the UFC told him to call out an.

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The ADCC World Grappling champion has called out the Division 1 All American wrestler in Phil Davis. Vinny has stated that nobody wants to fight him, and the UFC told him to call out an opponent if he wants it to happen. This sounds like the UFC is looking to do anything to help promote fights, but this is going a little too far in my opinion.

Getting back to the fight, I really like this match up. Usually when we see a grappler versus grappler fight it turns into a striking match; however both these men believe they are better on the ground so I see this hitting the mat. The real question is who really has the advantage on the ground? Many times we see good wrestlers have the ability to hold down a good BJJ practitioner. However, in my opinion I think Magalhaes has the advantage on the ground in this one.

Davis has a solid submission game, but his blue belt is nothing compared to the black belt that Vinny has. It will be really interesting to see what Davis’ submission defense is like, and believe me it will be tested. Even if Davis is able to strap on his famous Anaconda choke, I believe Malgalhaes will be able to get out of it and use it against him. Let me know how you see this fight going fight fans.

-Josh Leduc

Anyone Have a Number One Contender?

Who’s next in line for a shot at Benson Henderson? That’s the million dollar question. There were strong title implications when the match up between Donald Cerrone and Anthony Pettis was announced, but then news.

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Who’s next in line for a shot at Benson Henderson? That’s the million dollar question. There were strong title implications when the match up between Donald Cerrone and Anthony Pettis was announced, but then news about Gilbert Melendez receiving an immediate title shot in his UFC debut was a roar. As if the situation wasn’t confusing enough, yet again, more breaking news is unleashed upon the MMA world with the possible addition of Eddie Alvarez in the UFC, who is also a top choice for an immediate title shot. Every MMA fan knows how easily a booked fight can fall apart, so looks like the next title fight is still up for grabs.

As of this moment, it’s most likely that Alvarez will most likely get the first crack at the UFC champ in March. The former Bellator lightweight champion is coming off two first round knockouts over two elite fighters, Shinya Aoki and Patricky Freire. I’m sure Alvarez would like to rematch the man who took his title, Michael Chandler, but a UFC contract is enough to temp any fighter. Alvarez is looking at an immediate title shot and a giant pay day if he finalizes a deal with the UFC.

Donald Cerrone and Anthony Pettis will face each other on January 26th, which will line up perfect for the winner to receive a title shot in a timely fashion, assuming Benson Henderson defends his title against either Eddie Alvarez or Gilbert Melendez in early 2013. Thanks to the UFC 125 title fight between Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard ending in a draw, a rematch was in order and Pettis missed out on a title unification bout. Instead of waiting for the next shot at the title, Pettis faced Clay Guida and lost a unanimous decision. Since then, he has been eager to get back into title contention. Cerrone was knocking on the door for a title shot, but his title run was interrupted by Nate Diaz who ended up getting the title fight, but losing a decision. Both fighters are coming off of stellar knockouts, and whoever emerges victorious will absolutely deserve a title shot.

Before Alvarez came into the title picture, it was Gilbert Melendez who was apparently slated for an early 2013 title shot, but if Alvarez doesn’t come through, Melendez could easily step in as a replacement. Besides unifying the titles, Melendez has other reasons for wanting to fight Benson Henderson, specifically to avenge the loss of his training partner, Nate Diaz. Melendez has even stated that Benson Henderson can’t consider himself the number one lightweight until Henderson can defeat him. There could even be a chance that the UFC squares off Melendez and Alvarez to determine a number one contender. Both fighters have the credentials and accomplishments to deserve a title fight, but there shouldn’t be any complaints from the fans regardless of who is ultimately chosen.

 

– Ryan “Fight Freek” Poli

All TUF Boys to UFC Men?

Every avid mma or UFC fan looks forward to the decorated reality show we have all come to know and love. It is of course none other than The Ultimate Fighter. This combines the qualities.

Every avid mma or UFC fan looks forward to the decorated reality show we have all come to know and love. It is of course none other than The Ultimate Fighter. This combines the qualities of fighting and mma, with the reality style drama many Americans crave in media. The premise of the show is multiple fights between fighters in a tournament like style. The ultimate goal is to win the tournament, receive the honor of “The Ultimate Fighter”, and consequently receive a six figure sum contract from Dana White to fight in the top promotional company of mma. The goal is to have a single fighter come out of the tournament as the victor; a single ultimate winner.

However, I find it interesting that the longer the seasons progress, the more fighters from the show are given the opportunity to also fight in the UFC. Clearly every fighter that is in the UFC has not come from the reality show. The fighters in the UFC were up and coming mma fighters signed by Dana White and the presidents of the promotion. So technically any of the fighters from the show that didn’t win are simply just up and coming mma competitors that could potentially be signed by the UFC like any other fighter in the promotion. However, the premise of the reality show is for one man to stand out and to be the fighter signed by the UFC.

As I stated earlier, the more seasons that are being filmed of TUF, the majority of the fighters that just make it onto the show are being signed as well by the UFC. UFC 150, which will be airing August 12, 2012, features the very promising fighter Justin Lawrence as his debut in the Featherweight division. He was an excellent contender on TUF 15, and was the first overall pick. I, personally, was rooting for him to win. Unfortunately, not everyone can win a competition, and it wasn’t his moment to shine. Regardless of the fact, he was signed to the UFC. Cristiano Marcello will be appearing at UFC 153, as well as cast member Sam Sicilia. Andy Ogle is scheduled to fight at UFC on Fuel TV 5, and Daron Cruickshank is slated to fight at UFC 151, just to name a few fighters from the show.

The show has slowly been turning from the tournament style fighting we have all grown to love, into literally an almost everyone gets to win show. There is less zest from the show because more than likely you know as a viewer that half of the fighters are going to be signed with the UFC regardless of whether they are the victor or not. I feel like the show will eventually lose a majority of viewers, because it is not a competition anymore and more of a group of soon to be UFC fighters living in a house together, while America gets the privilege to watch their lives over the segmented time frame.

Written By: Elise Kapala

Stockton’s here to stay in the UFC

Even though Nick Diaz has seemingly decided to retire from the “UFC game”, his younger brother Nate Diaz has made quite a name for himself. He has always been a phenomenal fighter, even with his.

Even though Nick Diaz has seemingly decided to retire from the “UFC game”, his younger brother Nate Diaz has made quite a name for himself. He has always been a phenomenal fighter, even with his very deceiving record. When his name appears on a card, rest assured, it will be an all out brawl that will live up to its hype. Nate Diaz is currently the number one contender for the lightweight division, but has decided to take a title fight against the winner of Henderson vs. Edgar this Saturday, instead of putting his contendership on the line.

This leads to Diaz signing a new deal with the UFC soon, as well as his manager pushing for a title fight as early as December of this year. Diaz only has one fight left on his current contract, so a new deal has to be agrees upon. The remaining factor to be decided is how many fights the new deal will consist of. Normally, Dana white makes deals consisting of four fights, but Diaz’s manager, Cesar Gracie, hopes to have more fights guaranteed in the deal for his fighter.

Nate Diaz has been helping his training partner, Jake Shields, prepare for his upcoming fight which will also occur this Saturday at UFC 150. Nate Diaz won’t just be in the audience on Saturday to dissect the main event determining his future opponent in his own title fight, but he will be cornering Shields as well.

Gracie also discussed the future of Nick Diaz with White. While the outcome of it hasn’t been discussed with the public, Gracie said in the future, both Diaz brothers will be fighting in the UFC in the future. The roadblock of Nick Diaz’s suspension for a failed drug test still remains. While Nick’s first appeal did nothing for the fighter, his lawyer is currently appealing to a higher court.
With a prospect for a title fight right around the corner for Nate Diaz, we can only hope that his brother will be back into the octagon soon to support his brother and continue his own reign in the welterweight division of the UFC. Saturday will tell a lot for Nate Diaz as he works towards the opportunity to become a world champion.

Written By: Emily Kapala