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Countdown to TUF Brazil

This Sunday, here in America, The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil will be debuting on Fuel TV; just two weeks shy of when coaches Wanderlei Silva and Vitor Belfort were scheduled to face off. But instead, for yet the fourth time out of the past six seasons, that fight’s not going to happen (but that’s another article for another day). Now the UFC 147 main event will be Wanderlei Silva versus Rich Franklin. Two future Hall of Famers going to war in a five round Fight of the Night rematch from three years past, sounds pretty great doesn’t it? Until you look at the facts and how this is just the latest in a long line of disappointments and changes made to the upcoming UFC: Brazil show.

In one corner we have TUF: Brazil coach ‘the Axe Murderer’ Wanderlei Silva. Who following his UFC 99 loss to Rich Franklin, announced he would be out of action for a while to undergo facial surgery. A scar tissue removal surgery which he desperately needed to repair an oft-broken nose and avoid being easily cut open for future fights, which in the end resulted in a 30% increase in his oxygen intake for his February 2010 middleweight debut against Michael Bisping. A matchup Silva was the Vegas favorite in, (despite only winning one of his last six fights). And after three well contested rounds, Silva wound up getting the win by unanimous decision (his first victory in nearly two years). Yet soon after he would be break three ribs training for a fight against Yoshiro Akiyama, follow that with knee surgery, and in the end wouldn’t be seen in the octagon again until UFC 132 against Chris Leben. An embarrassing 27 second TKO loss that would leave Dana White stating in his opinion, Wanderlei should hang it up. Yet just four months later Silva was given another chance to prove himself, with a thrilling second round TKO victory over Cung Le earning him his third Fight of the Night honor.

And in the blue corner, ever the company man, Rich ‘Ace’ Franklin has again answered the call and will be returning earlier than expected from shoulder surgery to fill in for yet another injured TUF coach. Ironically Franklin followed his UFC 99 victory with a loss to Vitor Belfort. Before stepping in to coach the last two weeks of The Ultimate Fighter for a released Tito Ortiz and knocking out Chuck Liddell with a broken arm. Before going on to lose by unanimous decision to Forrest Griffin, and being out of action ever since.

All leading Sportsbook to open the odds at
Wanderlei Silva -145
And Rich Franklin + 115

While it is always fun to see two legends slug it out in the octagon, with both fighters past their prime and out of title contention, in the end this bout is pointless.

Which is probably the reason the coaches’ battle was originally scheduled to be the co-main event, underneath the Anderson Silva Middleweight title defense. Call it simple fight hype, or Chael Sonnen’s brilliant marketing, either way his death threats were able to get their fight relocated to Las Vegas at UFC 148. So how do the more than 12 million weekly Brazilians who tuned in to The Ultimate Fighter get rewarded? After that, and moving the show to Belo Horizonte, the UFC further dissed the Brazilian faithful by refusing to bump up Jose Aldo’s title defense two shows, leaving them with only one other top-name fighter Fabricio Werdum to cheer for. Bottom line: no Jose Aldo, no Anderson Silva, no Junior Dos Santos, and neither Nogueira, Brazil deserves better.

By: J A Keenan

“War of the Welterweights” (Martin Kampmann and Rory MacDonald)

Ok, so last year when my brother texted me the catastrophic news that George St. Pierre had sustained a knee injury and would no longer be fighting to defend his title, I may have taken.

Ok, so last year when my brother texted me the catastrophic news that George St. Pierre had sustained a knee injury and would no longer be fighting to defend his title, I may have taken it a little too hard, but after speaking with the crisis hotline, I put down the can of gasoline and decided that not burning the whole world down would probably work out better for me in the long run.

More than six months later, and the guy is still in rehab with no set date for his return. For MMA fans, this sucks, but luckily for us, there are plenty of other badasses ready to beat the living hell out of each other for our viewing pleasure.

That said, the crazy ass Diaz-Condit affair—for those of you who don’t know what I’m referring to, please see the internet—offered a temporary distraction from our suddenly GSP-less world. Well, that sh*t is old now and I want to see more epic violence!!!

My solution to the problem is simple.

Martin Kampmann and Rory Macdonald should fight for a shot at Condit’s belt:

Here are my top 10 reasons why:

1. Welterweight god, George St. Pierre, straight up told UFC Central in an interview that he does not realistically expect to be in the cage before November, which is pretty much another six months. He won’t even be training full out until July. Weak…

2. If the “Natural Born Killer” waits until GSP’s return, he will have held the interim title for 10 months without a single defense…that is a long time to not defend a belt plenty of people (all Nick Diaz fans) think he shouldn’t have in the first place. Hey I’m a huge Condit fan but let’s be honest, the fight with Diaz could have been scored either way. If NBK wants to be widely recognized as a legitimate UFC champion—I say this knowing full well that Condit viciously defended his WEC title several times, and is in fact totally legit—he needs to fight a motherf@!*er or two.

3. GANJA! Nick “F*ck You” Diaz’ unbridled love of the marijuana combined with an unforgiving NSAC hearing completely screwed up the rematch that was supposed to go down with Condit, robbing fans of what would have surely been a very entertaining spectacle of brutality.

4. Martin “The Hitman” Kampmann has been on an insane tear lately, choking out Thiago Alves (dude was coming off his own submission victory) and KO’ing Jake “The Juggernaut” Ellenburger, who, by the way, has 17 tko/ko victories of his own in 27 professional victories. What is really impressive is when you consider that, besides Kampmann, NO ONE ELSE HAS DONE THIS TO HIM in over 30 pro fights.

5. The Hitman has already beaten Carlos Condit once before, which definitely supports his case for at the very least a shot at the number one contender spot.

6. Rory “Ares” MacDonald is also on a crazy winning streak, absolutely dominating guys like Nate Diaz and Che Mills. These are some very scary men and yet MacDonald freaking molested them on national television almost effortlessly. For God’s sake man, he suplexed Nate “I ain’t no b*tch” Diaz three times in like .04 seconds.

7. MacDonald lost by tko to Condit already. But, hey what?!?! Wait a minute, how does that help your argument, John? Well if you were paying attention to that fight, the first two rounds clearly belong to Rory. Referee Kevin Dornan’s controversial stoppage with only seven seconds left in the final round gave Condit the win, but the scorecards show that had he not stopped it when he did, MacDonald would have picked up the split decision from the judges. So while not quite as good as Kampmann’s decision win over Condit, at the very least it raises the question, “How much better is Rory now and could he take the rematch?”

8. I know this probably would never happen because Rory and GSP are BBL’s (Best Bros for Life) but how crazy would it be if MacDonald took the title and then GSP came back and there was all this Jon Jones/Rashad Evans style drama about how they don’t want to fight each other but then maybe they develop bad blood or something…I don’t know. They could sell it…I leave the marketing to the UFC. At the very least it would open the door for some very interesting matches down the road i.e Koscheck/MacDonald, Hendricks/Condit etc. In the end whoever has the interim title is really only keeping it warm until GSP has healed up.

9. It would probably win the “Fight of the Night” award.

10. I really just want to see this fight happen…

I can’t be the only one, right?

Cheers people!

By John Rivera

Never mess with a girl; especially not Ronda Rousey, as it will get “rowdy”

The sport of mma has become exceptionally amplified in the past few years in regards to women in the sport. Not only does this appeal to the male audience as a new image and ideal.

The sport of mma has become exceptionally amplified in the past few years in regards to women in the sport. Not only does this appeal to the male audience as a new image and ideal of what women should look like and strive for, but also appeals to a broader range of the female audience as a new sense of “girl power”. As a female fan of mma, one may feel the sport is sexist, as it shows men fighting and girls in scantily clothed ring girl costumes parading around the octagon. However, with the rising publicity of women fighting in mma, in contrast to women walking around with booty shorts showing off their assets, it appeals to a wider range of fans. As an avid mma fan, I have never had a problem with watching men fight, and the women viewed as sex symbols as the octagon girls. But with new women fighters gaining momentum in mma, it does give you a sense of “girl power”, and a greater sense of pride of being a female.

Ronda Rousey is the epitome of every girl’s fantasy of what they would be like as an mma fighter. She is the current bantamweight champion of Strikeforce, has a killer six-pack and biceps, and could scrap with any man, any day of the week. She gives a sense of urgency to the octagon, and empowers women to stand up for themselves. I would never underestimate her ability to stand up against a man or any woman for that matter. In this sense, if I was a guy I would never double cross her in any way. One man discovered the outcome of this scenario the hard way. As a former fling, the anonymous man behind this exchange made a big mistake in contacting Rousey only after she became famous.

Once again, I believe this only strengthens her reputation. Some may say she has become hardened the more famous she has become, but honestly, this is once again every woman’s fantasy. Who wouldn’t want to have the guts to say this to a man who has treated you like trash? I believe women athletes like Rousey are continually strengthening the sport of mma. She gives a new idealistic image for women everywhere. This only broadens the sport, and gives empowerment to female mma fans and women alike.

By Elise Kapala

TUF 15 Finale – Post Fight Analysis

The main event at the Ultimate Fighter 15 finale resulted in an upset as Martin Kampann finished Jake Ellenberger with a second round TKO after landing a short counter right hand and following up with knee strikes. In typical Kampmann style, he was knocked down by a huge Ellenberger right hand in the first round but managed to survive a difficult spot to come back and earn the victory. Most of Kampmann’s fights end with both competitors wearing the evidence of a back and forth striking battle and last night’s installment was no different. The opening round of the fight started with both fighters wary of the other’s dangerous striking. Ellenberger landed the right hand half way through the round and pounced on Kapmann in an attempt to end the fight. Kampmann was aware enough to defend against the ground and pound barrage that ensued forcing Ellenberger to slow down to avoid burning himself out. Kampmann was more aggressive to begin the second round and started to hurt Ellenberger with counter punches. A quick counter right hand that was almost imperceptible sent Ellenberger stumbling toward the cage and Kampmann moved forward patiently to finish the fight. He landed two big knees that dropped his opponent and would have continued his attack on the ground had the fight not been stopped. Initially, the stoppage seemed quick but Ellenberger wasn’t upset with it and the replay showed that he was not in a defensive position. For Ellenberger, this is a step back after years of climbing the welterweight ladder. With losses to current interim 170 pound champion Carlos Condit and Kampmann, he will have to put together a few victories in a row to get back into the title picture. For Kampmann, he has taken one step closer to a title fight. The most likely fight after last night’s results seems to be a contender fight with Johnny Hendricks who recently defeated Josh Koscheck.

Charles Oliveira earned his second consecutive victory at 145 pounds when Jonathan Brookins tapped to a second round guillotine choke. Oliveira was clearly the better fighter throughout the fight with Brookins only gaining an advantage when he was briefly able to draw Oliveira into wild brawling exchanges. For most of the fight, Oliveira stayed on the outside landing punches and leg kicks while occasionally closing the distance with combinations. Oliviera put Brookins on his back in the second round and took advantage of his opponent’s attempt to stand up by latching on to a guillotine choke and submitting Brookins. We may have seen Brookins’ ceiling in the fight and while he can provide interesting fights going forward, he will probably never be a title contender. Expect to see him get a more winnable fight in his next cage appearance as the UFC looks to protect its former Ultimate Fighter winner. For Oliviera, this was one more step toward what looks to be an inevitable rise to the upper echelon of the featherweight division. The question for the UFC is how fast to move him along because if they put him in with a top competitor too quickly, his relative inexperience at age twenty two could lead to a loss. However, he has established that mid tier fighters will not provide any competition so feeding him two or three more easy fights may not be the best decision either.

In the other non TUF related fight on the card, Max Holloway dominated Pat Schilling. At just twenty years old, Holloway was impressive and his development over the next few years will be interesting to watch. After being outclassed by Dustin Poirier in his first UFC fight, Holloway was able to display his full arsenal against Schilling. He brutalized Shilling’s body with punches that left his opponnent barely able to get back to a standing position by the end of the fight. Holloway showed excellent poise in following his gameplan, which was clearly not to engage with Schilling on the ground and keep the fight on the feet. The only time he was in any danger was when Schilling latched on to a kneebar at the end of the first round. From that point, Holloway refused to go to the ground even after dropping Schilling with punches. He made his opponent stand up and continued his assault on the feet. The only way he could have been more impressive was to finish the fight but considering his age and striking acumen, Holloway is on the right track toward becoming a factor in the 145 pound division.

And Arianny Celeste finishes with a leg kick

The media has largely covered the subsequent arrest of miss Arianny Celeste (legally named Arianny Lopez) following a domestic violence report. I would bet money that every MMA viewer has already been exposed to this.

On May 26, 2012, UFC octagon girl Arianny Celeste was arrested early in the morning in Las Vegas, after hotel managers called the police following a fight between Celeste and her boyfriend, Praveen Chandra. While Celeste claims that Chandra was trying to choke her, Chandra claims that the alleged fight occurred vice versa, as common with most domestic violence cases, stating that Celeste kicked him and was throwing objects at him. Celeste made her $3,000 bail the same day, just in time to catch the tail end of UFC 146. Following the news, Dana White stated, “Arianny is our baby. She has been with us for over five years. She is a good girl and an amazing ambassador for UFC. I don’t know all the details of what happened but we have her back and support her 100 percent.” Celeste and Chandra were both due for court yesterday, June 1, 2012.

However, the court date has been pushed back.

Celeste pleaded her case to the justice of the peace, stating that the attack was completely self defense. Prosecutors are looking into her accusations, and she will be expected in court on July 2nd (don’t worry, there are no UFC events scheduled for that day, so fans won’t have to miss their favorite octagon girl in action).

The expected verdict: with most ‘he said-she said’ cases involving domestic violence, without incriminating evidence on either party, juries tend to side with the female. What it boils down to is that they both blame the other, and have subsequent stories and scratch marks to match. So who do you choose to believe? Arianny Celeste, of course. Not only is she gorgeous and famous, but fans absolutely adore her, as well as executives in the UFC. If she cries assault, most people will believe her over her previously unknown boyfriend. Even though she is an avid pursuer of mixed martial arts herself, she is just a tiny girl, who is portrayed as not having a chance against a male attacker. Whether or not this is the case, it doesn’t really matter. No one wants to see Celeste with a guilty verdict. And honestly, no one will care if another domestic violence case gives the male victim another guilty verdict.

The other matter on the minds of fans is whether or not she will see repercussions from the UFC. While White stated that the UFC will fully support her, we will see if this holds true. The way I see it, she simply avoided two submissions and finished with a leg kick to her opponent’s face. Moral of the story: Don’t get into physical altercations with girls. Especially not gorgeous, famous supermodels with extensive fan bases and support systems who also happen to pursue mixed martial arts. Just a tip. Nevertheless, we’ll be hearing a decision from the judges’ scorecards sooner than later. We can only hope that the biased mentality towards women will hold true once again.

By Emily Kapala

TUF 15 Finale Pre-Fight Analysis: Part I

Jake Ellenberger vs. Martin Kampann Both fighters in the Ultimate Fighter 15 finale’s main event are coming off of wins in their most recent bouts with Martin Kampmann currently on a two fight win streak.

Jake Ellenberger vs. Martin Kampann

Both fighters in the Ultimate Fighter 15 finale’s main event are coming off of wins in their most recent bouts with Martin Kampmann currently on a two fight win streak while while Jake Ellenberger is riding a six fight win streak after losing his opening appearance in the the UFC. The winner of this fight will establish himself as a title contender in the 170 lb division where Georges St. Pierre awaits interim champion Carlos Condit. Whoever earns the victory on Friday night should be no more than one fight away from a shot at the belt.

Kampmann pulled out a last minute submission via guillotine choke over Thiago Alves in his last appearance in the cage. The fight had been extremely competitive up to that point with Alves having a slight advantage on my scorecard in each of the first two rounds. The third round would have been close as well if not for Kampmann’s timely submission. In his recent fights, the “Hitman” has shown improved wrestling. He was able to avoid Rick Story’s takedowns for the most part at UFC 139 and when he did end up on the ground, he was able to get back to his feet quickly. He even managed to take Story down in that fight. Kampmann will once again be facing an opponent with a strong wrestling background in Ellenberger. I expect Kampann to use his newly improved wrestling to keep the fight standing and use his best weapon, which is his pinpoint Muay Thai striking, to outpoint Ellenberger on the feet. In order to accomplish that goal, Kampmann will need to utilize quick movement to stay away from Ellenberger’s power and land quick combinations. If he can time Ellenberger’s powerful right hand, he might be able to find the range for counter striking. But all of that will be difficult to accomplish against one of the toughest tests he has faced in his career thus far.

Jake Ellenberger is a world class athlete just now coming into the prime of his career at age twenty seven. He has everything a fighter needs to be title contender in the UFC. He has one punch KO power in both hands. He has a collegiate wrestling background. He trains with a great team. He has plenty of experience. Simply put, this is his moment. A win, especially an impressive one, would give put him right in the middle of the title picture that currently features St. Pierre and Condit as well as Johnny Hendricks after his recent defeat of Josh Koscheck. Ellenberger’s last loss came against Condit in 2009 via split decision and since then, he has reeled off six consecutive wins with his most recent coming against Diego Sanchez in February. Four of those wins came via (T)KO. He has scary power in his hands and over the past year or so, he has evolved from a wrestler with power into an impressively well-rounded mixed martial artist. A lot of fighters have power but Ellenberger has honed his stand-up to a degree where he now has the technical skill to consistently land his power shots. On Saturday, he will face one of the best strikers in the welterweight division. I expect him to stand with Kampmann initially and hope to land a power shot while avoiding his opponent’s combinations. If he begins to consistently lose the exchanges on the feet, look for him to go back to his wrestling and try to put Kampmann on his back. But that won’t be easy as Kampmann is difficult to take down and has an excellent submission game once the fight hits the mat.

Ellenberger is the clear favorite in this fight at -225 with Kampann coming in at +185. I expect this fight to take place mostly on the feet and in theory, that would favor Kampmann who is the more technical striker. The problem with that is that Ellenberger is also a good striker with the power to end the fight instantaneously. Clearly, the oddsmakers give the combination of Ellenberger’s power and his potential to take the fight to the ground and control from top position the advantage in this fight and a (T)KO finish for Ellenberger seems to be the most logical outcome for this fight. But if he can’t find Kampmann’s chin, the “Hitman” could pull off the upset by using his technical Muay Thai game to earn a decision.

By Alan Wells