Tag: UFC on FX 8

Key Statistics from the Month of May in the UFC

The month of May has come and gone and with it a pair of UFC events—UFC on FX 8 and UFC 160.The former took place on May 18 in Brazil. It featured a middleweight bout between Vitor Belfort and Strikeforce import, as well as former champion, Luke …

The month of May has come and gone and with it a pair of UFC events—UFC on FX 8 and UFC 160.

The former took place on May 18 in Brazil. It featured a middleweight bout between Vitor Belfort and Strikeforce import, as well as former champion, Luke Rockhold. The latter, a pay-per-view event, was headlined by a heavyweight rematch between champion Cain Velasquez and top contender Antonio Silva.

But May featured much more than a pair of main events, and we have the top statistics to prove it. 

Check out where the month of May stands in comparison to the first four months of 2013 in the UFC, what six-year-old record was broken at UFC 160 and other key stats from the past 30 days.  

Begin Slideshow

UFC on FX 8 Drug Test Results: All Fighters Tested Come Back Clean

The drug test results for UFC on FX 8, which was held in Jaragua do Sul, Santa Catarina, Brazil, have been returned by the commission and released by the promotion on Thursday. The Brazilian MMA Athletic Commission (CABMMA) released the results through…

The drug test results for UFC on FX 8, which was held in Jaragua do Sul, Santa Catarina, Brazil, have been returned by the commission and released by the promotion on Thursday.

The Brazilian MMA Athletic Commission (CABMMA) released the results through the UFC, with all of the fighters on the card passing the tests.

“The UFC has been informed by CABMMA that all fighters on the UFC on FX 8 card passed their pre and post-fight drug tests,” UFC officials said in a statement released.  “The UFC fully supports the drug testing efforts of all regulatory agencies. All fighters are drug tested at every event and the organization maintains a strict, consistent policy against the use of any illegal and/or performance-enhancing drugs, stimulants or masking agents.”

The testing results on this show were of particular interest due to the involvement of former UFC light heavyweight champion Vitor Belfort, who is currently prescribed to use testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) leading up to his fight camps.

Belfort has come under hard scrutiny for his use of the treatment because in 2006 he tested positive for steroids while fighting under the Pride Fighting Championships banner. 

Marcio Tannure, the medical director for the Brazilian MMA Athletic Commission, also confirmed when speaking to Fighter’s Only, that because of Belfort‘s use of TRT, the commission requires an additional blood test to verify his testosterone levels are in order.

“All fighters are tested before the fight, and six fighters are drawn to be tested again after the fight,” Tannure said in the interview.  “Since Vitor is in treatment, he was also required to perform a blood test to check if his testosterone levels are normal. We can’t tell the lab’s name because of medical confidentiality.”

The Brazilian commission had come under some fire for allowing Belfort to use TRT in the country despite the fact that he had a past steroid suspension on his record.  Steroid abuse can cause low testosterone in men, and while it’s unknown if that was the cause of Belfort‘s medical issues, it is still a factor that has to be considered.

Regardless, the testing results on all of the fighters on the UFC on FX 8 card came back negative, so it’s onto the next card.  The UFC 160 drug test results from the Nevada State Athletic Commission will be the next ones released in the coming days.

Damon Martin is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

MMA Stock Report for May: Who Rose, Who Fell, Who Stayed the Same

The UFC brought two events to your living room screen this May, and both delivered a lot of action.UFC on FX 8 was capped off by one of the best knockouts of 2013. Vitor Belfort dropped Luke Rockhold with a spinning heel kick and finished him off with …

The UFC brought two events to your living room screen this May, and both delivered a lot of action.

UFC on FX 8 was capped off by one of the best knockouts of 2013. Vitor Belfort dropped Luke Rockhold with a spinning heel kick and finished him off with brutal punches on the canvas to solidify his spot as the No. 2 ranked middleweight.

UFC 160 saw both its top heavyweights finish their fights in impressive fashion. Junior dos Santos landed a spinning back kick of his own that dropped Mark Hunt and nailed him with a punch on the ground to end the fight. UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez dominated Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva in just 81 seconds.

Other fighters impressed along the way, and some failed to meet expectations.

This is your MMA stock report for the month of May.

Begin Slideshow

Brian Stann Goes off on TRT in Wake of Vitor Belfort’s Win over Luke Rockhold

Count in UFC middleweight/US Marine Corp veteran Brian Stann as one of the fighters who wants to see testosterone replacement therapy banned in MMA. Shortly after middleweight contender Vitor Belfort easily disposed of former Strikeforce champ Luk…

Count in UFC middleweight/US Marine Corp veteran Brian Stann as one of the fighters who wants to see testosterone replacement therapy banned in MMA. 

Shortly after middleweight contender Vitor Belfort easily disposed of former Strikeforce champ Luke Rockhold with a picture perfect spinning heel kick at UFC on FX 8 Saturday, Stann, via Twitter, spoke at length on the subject of TRT. 

First, Stann responded to a tweet on the subject posted by MMA Junkie’s Ben Fowlkes:

Shortly afterwards, “The All-American” posted on TwitLonger, calling the whole concept of TRT “ridiculous:” 

“I am not trying to be a jerk & not jealous of other fighter success, I am secure in who I am. Allowing pro fighters to inject test (sic) is just plain ridiculous.” 

Before calling it a day, the Greg Jackson’s MMA fighter said that, in his opinion, TRT is a threat to fighter safety. 

Stann has currently been enjoying his desk job as an MMA analyst for FUEL TV ever since suffering a brutal knockout at the hands of PRIDE legend Wanderlei Silva at UFC on FUEL 8 in March. 

The bout marked Stann’s second consecutive loss, dropping a unanimous decision to Michael Bisping at UFC 152 in September. 

Coincidentally, Stann’s on-screen analytical partner Chael Sonnen, another open user of TRT, defeated him with an arm-triangle choke at UFC 136 in October 2011. 

Does Stann bring up valid points that have yet to be thoroughly evaluated when talking about TRT usage in the sport of mixed martial arts?

 

John Heinis is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also the MMA Editor for eDraft.com and contributes MMA videos to The Young Turks Sports Show.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Vitor Belfort Apologizes for ‘Immature Way’ He Handled Questions About TRT

UFC middleweight contender Vitor Belfort scored his second consecutive headkick knockout this weekend at UFC on FX 8, taking out former Strikeforce titleholder Luke Rockhold. Prior to that, “The Phenom” stopped perennial contender Michael Bisping …

UFC middleweight contender Vitor Belfort scored his second consecutive headkick knockout this weekend at UFC on FX 8, taking out former Strikeforce titleholder Luke Rockhold. 

Prior to that, “The Phenom” stopped perennial contender Michael Bisping at UFC on FX 7 in January.

So why is the Brazilian getting overwhelmingly bad press? 

During the UFC on FX 8 post-fight press conference, MMA Junkie’s John Morgan decided to make the first move about bringing up Belfort’s testosterone replacement therapy usage. 

Belfort was less than thrilled with the line of questioning, as Morgan explained to his followers on Twitter: 

As a matter of fact, the former UFC light heavyweight champ called for someone to beat up Morgan for his persistence: 

As controversy continues to swirl around this hot button issue, Belfort decided to apologize for the way he handled the situation via TwitLonger, a social media platform that allows Twitter users to write a message that goes beyond 140 characters:

To all my fans and to all the reporters that was there on the after press conference I would like to ask for forgiveness the way I answer about TRT I RECOGNIZE THAT I ANWSER IN A IMMATURE WAY BUT WAS THE 10 th time that that reporter ask the same question. No excuse!! I made a WORNG call and I am here to ask for forgiveness God bless all you guys love to do what I do and I am keeping moving UP SEEKING GROW AS A MEN OF GOD AND AS A FIGHTER ‘DONT DOUT ME I WILL PROUVE U WORNG’ PEACE

Morgan took the apology in stride, noting that he never had any intention of putting the 36-year-old on the hot seat. 

 

 

 

 

While many notable fighters including Chael Sonnen, Frank Mir, Dan Henderson and Nate Marquardt have all received TRT exemptions in the past, Belfort receives the majority of TRT-related criticism.  

Perhaps the reason being is that Belfort failed a post-fight drug test for steroids in 2006 and steroid abuse is a known reason why the body does not produce enough testosterone naturally later in life (via MMA Weekly). 

Additionally, Belfort has not competed on American soil since knocking out Yoshihiro Akiyama at UFC 133 in August 2011. 

Each of his four contests since then have taken place in either Brazil or Canada and Belfort has never confirmed when he began using TRT.

This is all relevant information since Nevada State Athletic Commission executive director Keith Kizer told Bleacher Report in March that he couldn’t see Belfort getting a TRT exemption in the United States. 

With all that information in mind, is it a legitimate possibility that Belfort competes for UFC gold one more time before he calls it a career?

 

John Heinis is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also the MMA Editor for eDraft.com and contributes MMA videos to The Young Turks Sports Show.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

MMA’s Great Debate Radio: T.J. Grant, Mike Pyle and John Cholish

MMA’s Great Debate Radio returns with a stacked show for Tuesday including UFC 160 fighters T.J. Grant and Mike Pyle as well as recently retired UFC lightweight John Cholish. With a title shot on the line in his fight at UFC 160, T.J. Grant stops by to…

MMA‘s Great Debate Radio returns with a stacked show for Tuesday including UFC 160 fighters T.J. Grant and Mike Pyle as well as recently retired UFC lightweight John Cholish.

With a title shot on the line in his fight at UFC 160, T.J. Grant stops by to talk about his rise to the top of the lightweight division since dropping down from 170 pounds.

Grant will discuss his upcoming fight against Gray Maynard, and the possibility of facing Benson Henderson next.

Also on today’s show, veteran fighter Mike Pyle will talk about his resurgence lately where he’s knocked out three opponents in a row.  Can he make Rick Story the fourth victim?  Pyle speaks about the fight and his place in the UFC’s welterweight division.

The final interview of today features former UFC lightweight John Cholish, who retired over the weekend following his fight against Gleison Tibau at UFC on FX 8.

Cholish has made a splash since his retirement announcement, speaking out about fighter pay issues. On today’s show, Cholish expands on that conversation by breaking down dollar by dollar what it costs to be a UFC fighter.

The debate on today’s show heats up as well with several hot button subjects being discussed, including Vitor Belfort‘s latest win, Nate Diaz‘s controversial tweet and much more.

Today’s debate topics include:

—Vitor Belfort wins again, but the questions about TRT continue to cloud his performances. Will those questions ever die down or will it continue to haunt him forever?

—Should Vitor Belfort get the next shot at the UFC middleweight title?

—Nate Diaz fined and suspended for tweeting homophobic slur but shows no remorse for action. Do you agree with Diaz‘s stance?

—John Cholish spoke out about fighter pay problems in the UFC.  Do you think this is a widespread issue fighters just aren’t talking about?

This is MMA’s Great Debate Radio for Tuesday, May 21, 2013

(If the embeddable player doesn’t work, please click HERE to listen.  Also, don’t forget to subscribe to the show via iTunes or listen via Stitcher Radio)

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com