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Anderson Silva “Not Anxious” About Chael Sonnen’s Pre-Fight Comments

With UFC 116 in the books many in the MMA world will turn much of their attention to the upcoming August 7th, UFC 117 tilt, between reigning middleweight king Anderson Silva and challenger Chael Sonnen. On paper, the fight already screams ‘can’t miss,’ as everyone will be looking to see if Sonnen’s wrestling will rule […]

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With UFC 116 in the books many in the MMA world will turn much of their attention to the upcoming August 7^th, UFC 117 tilt, between reigning middleweight king Anderson Silva and challenger Chael Sonnen. On paper, the fight already screams ‘can’t miss,’ as everyone will be looking to see if Sonnen’s wrestling will rule the day over Silva’s highlight reel striking and ground game. Of course if that wasn’t enough to hype the bout, throw in Silva’s recent ‘WTF is he doing?’ performance against Demian Maia and a steady flow of pre-fight trash talking from Sonnen, and you’ve got some real drama cooking.

Really, thanks to the onslaught of ‘Sonnens’ that Chael has directed at Anderson (in case you haven’t noticed the middleweight has a knack for saying things that either induce laughter or rage), Silva’s debacle at UFC 112 has kind of taken a back seat. From belittling Silva’s friends and jiu-jitsu instructors in the Nogueira twins, to outright saying the champ has been ducking him, Sonnen hasn’t been ‘reserved’ while offering his pre-fight analysis. As far as Silva’s take on Sonnen’s comments? He recently told Tatame this:

“I’m cool… I’m not anxious about his statements, I don’t worry about those things. He is promoting this fight the way he cans. He’s a great athlete, he’s having a chance to fight for the belt, so let’s go. When you get there, everything changes. Inside that cage the speech changes, everything change. The last one who spoke too much didn’t like the outcome, but it’s normal. People have their mouth and their right to say whatever they feel like.”

This is going to be good…real good. To bet on UFC 117 head here.

Trevor Wittman Calls Shane Carwin “Gift from God”

Anytime Brock Lesnar is set to fight it’s pretty normal for the imposing heavyweight to receive a ton of pre-fight attention, after all, nothing resonates more with the mainstream media than a previous stint as a professional wrestler…This time around the story line surrounding Lesnar is even more intriguing, as it wasn’t long ago that the champion’s career was in doubt due to a nasty case of diverticulitis (and let’s not forget Lesnar’s remarks regarding healthcare, which got that spotlight scalding bright).

In addition to Lesnar’s stardom and abilities (Dana White told Ariel Helwani he believes the Minnesota Monster is the UFC’s biggest commodity), what puts tomorrow night’s UFC 116 main event at the top of the ‘must see’ list, is opponent Shane Carwin. While he may not have the high profile of Lesnar yet, the massive heavyweight has also quickly become a UFC star, in part due to his 5-XL fists which have pounded out every Octagon opponent he’s faced thus far.

So, how special is Carwin? Well in a recent interview with MMA Fighting, renowned Grudge trainer Trevor Wittman said this, when asked to recall his initial assessment of the former collegiate football / wrestling star.

“I went home that night thinking, ‘Oh my gosh, with his size and ability, I finally got my gift from God, a heavyweight champion,’” Wittman told MMA Fighting.

Gift from God? Pretty hard to top that in the compliment category. Someone up there is blessing MMA fans with a pretty huge fight that’s for damn sure; to bet on it head here.

Dana White Insists Chuck Liddell Will Never Fight in the UFC Again

After Rich Franklin wrapped up Chuck Liddell’s night with a nicely timed right hand at UFC 115, handing “The Iceman” his third straight KO loss, Dana White was quick to announce that the legendary fighter would never fight in the Octagon again. Of course, since then, you’ve probably noticed a bazillion online articles pointing out the fact […]

After Rich Franklin wrapped up Chuck Liddell’s night with a nicely timed right hand at UFC 115, handing “The Iceman” his third straight KO loss, Dana White was quick to announce that the legendary fighter would never fight in the Octagon again. Of course, since then, you’ve probably noticed a bazillion online articles pointing out the fact that the UFC boss man said the same thing last year, after Chuck was bombed out by “Shogun” Rua.

What has also been rather deja-vu-ish is that, just like after Chuck’s loss last year, the former champ hasn’t actually, you know, agreed to retire. In fact, in some of his most recent interviews the 40 year-old Liddell has sounded much more like a guy that is hoping to fight again, rather than hang em-up. Well, after the UFC 116 presser today, White fielded several questions about Liddell and his future in the organization (thanks to MMA Weekly for the quote).

“Can Chuck Liddell still make money? Could I make money off Chuck Liddell? Yes,” White said, before declaring, “I don’t want that money. I don’t want to make that kind of money. I’m not interested in that”…“He’ll never fight in the UFC again.”

In addition, when asked if he would release Liddell provided ”The Iceman” insisted so that he could fight again elsewhere, White conceded he would. Now that’s some pretty definitive sounding stuff no?

Report: “Rampage” Jackson vs. Rogerio Nogueira Possible for UFC 119 / 120

After “Rampage” Jackson failed to beat Rashad Evan’s ass at UFC 114, as he had continually insisted he would do, speculation immediately kicked in as to who the former champ would face next. UFC President Dana White was quoted saying that Lyoto Machida was a possibility, while Jackson called for a rematch with Forrest Griffin, […]

After “Rampage” Jackson failed to beat Rashad Evan’s ass at UFC 114, as he had continually insisted he would do, speculation immediately kicked in as to who the former champ would face next. UFC President Dana White was quoted saying that Lyoto Machida was a possibility, while Jackson called for a rematch with Forrest Griffin, who, like Evans, has defeated the 21st Century version of B.A. Baracus by Unanimous Decision.

Well, according to a report this afternoon from MMA Junkie, Jackson’s next fight will likely be against Antonio Rogerio “Minotoro” Nogueira, and neither Griffin or Machida. The story cites “sources close to the competitors”, who have reportedly told the outlet that verbal agreements are in place for the fight, which could take place at UFC 119, 120 or even 121 (if you can even follow the numbering thing anymore). The report goes on to say that UFC 119 is scheduled for September 25^th in Indianapolis, 120 for October 16^th in London, while plans for UFC 121 are still in the works.

So, what’s our take on this (even if you didn’t ask)? Well, although a lot of folks thought “Lil Nog” should not have been awarded that Split Decision victory over Jason Brilz in May, just ask Luis Cane, Dan Henderson or Alistair Overeem, if Nogueira is a top light-heavyweight. In other words, like 90% of fights featuring a Nogueira twin, it should be damn good. There’s no doubt a fight between Rampage and either Machida or Griffin would likely be more of a “box office draw,” (as main stream fans haven’t seen a lot of Lil Nog yet) but hell, this will work no?

Dana White Admits James Toney vs. Randy Couture a “Freak Show”

When Dana White decided to sign James Toney to a UFC contract, there were a few MMA pundits of the ‘purist’ mentality that didn’t care for the deal. After all, White had always maintained that he would never get lulled into such a fight, one of the ‘freak show’ variety, where a dude with next […]

When Dana White decided to sign James Toney to a UFC contract, there were a few MMA pundits of the ‘purist’ mentality that didn’t care for the deal. After all, White had always maintained that he would never get lulled into such a fight, one of the ‘freak show’ variety, where a dude with next to no MMA training comes in only to get drubbed (see Don Caras Jr. vs. Mirko “Cro Cop”- yes “Junior’s” wearing a wrestler’s mask but the bout, particularly the finish, is very, very, real…)

While Toney has been talking a big game and fake dialling 911, it was interesting to see WBO Heavyweight Champion David Haye say this week that “the wrestling aspect (in MMA) ruins your punching power” and that Toney is “delusional” for thinking he’ll beat Randy Couture. When Dana White was asked to comment on Haye’s comments while conducting an interview on 106.7 The Fan, he stated (thanks to Bloody Elbow):

“He is very right. It’s a freak show. I said I’d never put on a freak show fight and I’m doing it. Listen, this guy [Toney] chased me around the country saying bad things about the sport. If he wants to get his ass whooped, I’m gonna let him.”… “Here’s what I expect; the bell rings, they come to the center of the Octagon, circle each other for a little bit, Randy double legs him, puts him against the fence, squashes his head and the fight is over.”

White went on to say that Toney has a puncher’s chance, and could catch Couture, “God forbid.” Yes. That wouldn’t be good. To read more of the interview head here.

UFC Won’t Allow Vuvuzelas

Thank God, really.
From the AP:
UFC president Dana White says Wednesday that vuvuzelas — the beehive-sounding noisemakers that have become famous during soccer’s biggest event — are being banned at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday.
That’s when heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar will fight interim belt holder Shane Carwin.
“This decision was pretty simple,” White […]

Thank God, really.

From the AP:

UFC president Dana White says Wednesday that vuvuzelas — the beehive-sounding noisemakers that have become famous during soccer’s biggest event — are being banned at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday.

That’s when heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar will fight interim belt holder Shane Carwin.

“This decision was pretty simple,” White said. “Vuvuzelas make the most horrific sound I’ve ever heard. I’d rather let Brock punch me in the face than hear 15,000 people blow on those things.

“This is the biggest heavyweight fight we’ve ever done. We’ll make enough noise this weekend when Brock and Shane finally step inside the Octagon.”