This is the UFC on FX live blog for Duane Ludwig vs. Josh Neer, a welterweight bout on tonight’s main card from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn.
Ludwig (21-11) aims for his third straight UFC win after taking decisions over Amir Sadollah and Nick Osipczak. Neer (32-10-1) returned to the UFC last October and stopped Keith Wisniewski in a bloody brawl.
Round 1: No touch of gloves. Neer immediately gets in Ludwig’s face. Neer pays early for his willingness to stand in front of Ludwig, as he gets staggered by a Ludwig right hand. Neer recovers and presses Ludwig against the cage. Neer lands a jab. Ludwig stuns Neer with a knee to the stomach. Ludwig senses that Neer is hurt and he fires more knees. Neer blocks Ludwig’s onslaught to stay standing. A break in action and Neer points out to Rosenthal that he dropped his mouthpiece. Both men land on punches. Neer grabs Ludwig’s left leg and completes the takedown. Ludwig plays a loose butterfly guard before kick-pushing Neer off. Neer enters Ludwig’s guard to look for ground and pound. Ludwig once again nicely kicks off, but when he turns into Neer, Ludwig gets caught in a guillotine. Ludwig doesn’t tap and falls asleep.
Neer wins via technical submission – Round 1, 3:04
This is the UFC on FX live blog for Duane Ludwig vs. Josh Neer, a welterweight bout on tonight’s main card from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn.
Ludwig (21-11) aims for his third straight UFC win after taking decisions over Amir Sadollah and Nick Osipczak. Neer (32-10-1) returned to the UFC last October and stopped Keith Wisniewski in a bloody brawl.
Round 1: No touch of gloves. Neer immediately gets in Ludwig’s face. Neer pays early for his willingness to stand in front of Ludwig, as he gets staggered by a Ludwig right hand. Neer recovers and presses Ludwig against the cage. Neer lands a jab. Ludwig stuns Neer with a knee to the stomach. Ludwig senses that Neer is hurt and he fires more knees. Neer blocks Ludwig’s onslaught to stay standing. A break in action and Neer points out to Rosenthal that he dropped his mouthpiece. Both men land on punches. Neer grabs Ludwig’s left leg and completes the takedown. Ludwig plays a loose butterfly guard before kick-pushing Neer off. Neer enters Ludwig’s guard to look for ground and pound. Ludwig once again nicely kicks off, but when he turns into Neer, Ludwig gets caught in a guillotine. Ludwig doesn’t tap and falls asleep.
Neer wins via technical submission – Round 1, 3:04
Filed under: UFCIn a highly entertaining bantamweight bout, Mike Easton took a hard-fought majority decision over Jared Papazian at Friday night’s UFC on FX event.
“He’s a tough dude,” Easton said of Papazian after the fight. “I knew he was going to …
In a highly entertaining bantamweight bout, Mike Easton took a hard-fought majority decision over Jared Papazian at Friday night’s UFC on FX event.
“He’s a tough dude,” Easton said of Papazian after the fight. “I knew he was going to be tough. He was the champ back in the division he was at. I knew he was going to come and show up and all we wanted to do was give a show to the fans. And we wrecked. We fought tonight.”
The fight got off to a great start as both men clinched with one hand and punched with the other, a la Don Frye vs. Yoshihiro Takayama, in the first 30 seconds. The entire first round was fought standing up, with both men landing hard strikes and putting on a good show. I had Easton winning a close first round.
The second round was more of the same until the final minute, when Easton got the first takedown of the fight and did a little damage on the ground, and although Papazian got back to his feet for a moment, they went right back down and Easton finished the round on top. Easton was likely up two rounds to none at the end of the second.
In the third Easton and Papazian traded some of their hardest punches yet, and Papazian showed a lot of heart and continued throwing to the final bell, but Easton had won. The judges scored it 30-27, 29-28 and a bizarre score of 29-29, with Easton winning by majority decision.
The win improves Easton’s record to 12-1. Papazian falls to 14-7.
LAS VEGAS, NV–(Marketwire – Jan 20, 2012) – The Ultimate Fighting Championship®, in conjunction with Cinedigm Digital Cinema Corp. (NASDAQ: CIDM) and NCM Fathom, announced that tickets for the first-ever live, 3-D broadcast of a UFC® Pay-Per-View event on the Big Screen are on sale now. The championship fight card, UFC® 143: DIAZ vs. CONDIT, […]
LAS VEGAS, NV–(Marketwire – Jan 20, 2012) – The Ultimate Fighting Championship®, in conjunction with Cinedigm Digital Cinema Corp. (NASDAQ: CIDM) and NCM Fathom, announced that tickets for the first-ever live, 3-D broadcast of a UFC® Pay-Per-View event on the Big Screen are on sale now. The championship fight card, UFC® 143: DIAZ vs. CONDIT, airs live and in 3-D in more than 100 theatres nationwide on Saturday, Feb. 4 at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT from Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas.
The night’s main event pits the fiery and unpredictable Nick Diaz against hard-hitting knockout artist Carlos Condit for the interim UFC welterweight title. An exciting co-main event features heavyweight Roy “Big Country” Nelson battling submission ace Fabricio Werdum.
Tickets for UFC® 143: DIAZ vs. CONDIT are available for purchase now at www.ufc.com/3D, as well as at theatre box offices across the country. Fans can visit the website for information on which theatres will be carrying the event in their respective regions.
“I know the fans love 3-D, so I’m happy to give them this championship fight live and in 3-D in theatres across the country,” UFC President Dana White said. “I cannot wait for this fight between Diaz and Condit to determine the interim UFC welterweight champion!”
For more information or current fight news, visit www.ufc.com. All bouts live and subject to change.
About Ultimate Fighting Championship®
Owned and operated by Zuffa, LLC, and headquartered in Las Vegas, Nev., UFC® is the world’s premier MMA organization and produces over 12 UFC live Pay-Per-View events annually around the globe. This year, FOX will broadcast four fights annually. In spring 2012, The Ultimate Fighter®, UFC’s signature weekly reality TV show, debuts on FX. UFC content is also distributed commercially to bars and restaurants through Joe Hand Promotions in the U.S.
Globally, UFC programming is broadcast in 150 countries, territories and jurisdictions, reaching over one billion homes worldwide, in 21 different languages.
UFC® also boasts a powerful presence online, with UFC.com attracting over seven million unique visitors per month, while also possessing one of the most powerful social media followings in all of professional sports. To date, UFC has over six million fans on Facebook and over 475,000 followers on Twitter. In addition, UFC President Dana White is one of the most accessible and most followed executives in sports with more than 1.8 million followers on Twitter. On January 22, 2011, UFC continued to set trends in social media, becoming the first major sports league to stream live, broadcast quality action on Facebook.
Ancillary businesses include best-selling DVDs, a magazine, the best-selling UFC “Undisputed” videogame franchise distributed by THQ, UFC GYM®, UFC Fight Club affinity program, UFC Fan Expo® festivals, branded apparel, trading cards, and articulated action figures.
About Cinedigm
Cinedigm offers a new business model to exhibitors by enabling theatres to present engaging alternative programming including live 2-D and 3-D sporting events and concerts, shorts, cartoons, live Q&As, as well as branded entertainment. Recent releases by Cinedigm include the groundbreaking, LIVE 3-D broadcast of The Foo Fighters performance, the worldwide LIVE
3-D broadcast of the FIFA World Cup Championship, the BCS Championship in LIVE 3-D, the Dave Matthews Band 3-D concerts, and the sold out 3-D PHISH concerts. Cinedigm has also released the KIDTOONS series for the past six years, a weekly family friendly matinee series that runs in over 165 theatres across the country. Cinedigm also provides a number of powerful software applications that enable exhibitors to enhance and streamline their daily operations. Additionally, Cinedigm offers precision marketing tools to dramatically increase exhibitor marketing effectiveness, including social media initiatives, targeted advertising and strategic public relations. Cinedigm™ and Cinedigm Digital Cinema Corp™ are trademarks of Cinedigm Digital Cinema Corp. www.cinedigm.com [CIDM-G]
About National CineMedia (NCM)
NCM operates NCM Media Networks, a leading integrated media company reaching U.S. consumers in movie theaters, online and through mobile technology. The NCM Cinema Network and NCM Fathom present cinema advertising and events across the nation’s largest digital in-theater network, comprised of theaters owned by AMC Entertainment Inc., Cinemark Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CNK), Regal Entertainment Group (NYSE: RGC) and other leading regional theater circuits. NCM’s theater advertising network covers 176 Designated Market Areas® (49 of the top 50) and includes over 18,300 screens (17,300 digital). During 2010, approximately 700 million patrons attended movies shown in theaters in which NCM currently has exclusive, cinema advertising agreements in place. The NCM Fathom Events broadcast network is comprised of nearly 700 locations in 165 Designated Market Areas® (all of the top 50). The NCM Interactive Network offers 360-degree integrated marketing opportunities in combination with cinema, encompassing 42 entertainment-related websites, online widgets and mobile applications. National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ: NCMI) owns a 48.7% interest in and is the managing member of National CineMedia LLC. For more information, visit www.ncm.com.
This is the UFC on FX live blog for Mike Easton vs. Jared Papazian, a bantamweight bout on tonight’s main card from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn.
Easton (11-1) won his UFC debut last October with a second-round TKO over Byron Bloodworth. Papazian (14-6), coming off a stint as King of the Cage bantamweight champion, is making his UFC debut.
Round 1: Easton and Papazian collide into a half-Muay Thai clinch and they perform a bantamweight version of Frye vs. Takayama. Easton presses Papazian against the cage. Papazian connects on a short elbow and reverses Easton. Easton tries knees in clinch. The bantamweights are in a very active battle for position in clinch. But with neither fighter close to landing a big shot or takedown, Yamasaki separates them. They trade leg kicks. Papazian catches a leg kick but isn’t able to attempt the takedown. Papazian swings for the fences. Easton keeps a tight boxing defense with hands high and chin tucked. Easton misses on a spinning back kick to the delight of the crowd. Easton slams a kick into the left leg of Papazian. They exchange punches in clinch again to close an active first round. Very close round. Slight edge to Easton. MMA Fighting scores the first round 10-9 for Easton.
Round 2: Easton stalks and they’re both eyeing a knockout. Easton lands a leg kick and straight right. They clinch. Easton gains double underhooks but Papazian digs with his right arm and reverses Easton against the cage. Yamasaki separates them with around 2:20 to go. Papazian lands a right and then a nice back kick glances the body of Easton. They clinch again and this time Easton lands a trip takedown into Papazian’s halfguard. Easton soon after passes to side. Papazian escapes to halfguard and then to his feet as they return to clinch. Papazian pushes Easton’s head away to separate. Easton stalks. Papazian shoots but Easton finishes on top. It looks like Papazian might have pulled guard or Easton reversed. MMA Fighting scores the second 10-9 for Easton.
Round 3: Easton’s leg kick is almost caught. They exchange very fast punches. But there’s no way they can keep that pace without someone going down and they clinch. Yamasaki separates them. Papazian takes a short breather as his body language tells Yamasaki he was kneed low. After the brief timeout, they clinch and then separate. They box in the pocket. Both fighters are landing decent shots. Easton connects a nice right. Papazian battles back. Easton responds with a left hook. We’re probably going to need CompuStrike especially for this round. Somehow neither fighter has been stunned, though. Easton grabs the Muay Thai clinch with just over two minutes left. Papazian connects on a number of jabs. Easton trips Papazian, but Papazian quickly recovers. More closed-distance boxing to close the fight. Both fighters deserve a shot at Fight of the Night for this gutsy performance. MMA Fighting scores the third round 10-9 for Easton. Easton should win at least two of the rounds. The first was super close.
Mike Easton wins via majority decision (29-28, 30-27, 29-29)
This is the UFC on FX live blog for Mike Easton vs. Jared Papazian, a bantamweight bout on tonight’s main card from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn.
Easton (11-1) won his UFC debut last October with a second-round TKO over Byron Bloodworth. Papazian (14-6), coming off a stint as King of the Cage bantamweight champion, is making his UFC debut.
Round 1: Easton and Papazian collide into a half-Muay Thai clinch and they perform a bantamweight version of Frye vs. Takayama. Easton presses Papazian against the cage. Papazian connects on a short elbow and reverses Easton. Easton tries knees in clinch. The bantamweights are in a very active battle for position in clinch. But with neither fighter close to landing a big shot or takedown, Yamasaki separates them. They trade leg kicks. Papazian catches a leg kick but isn’t able to attempt the takedown. Papazian swings for the fences. Easton keeps a tight boxing defense with hands high and chin tucked. Easton misses on a spinning back kick to the delight of the crowd. Easton slams a kick into the left leg of Papazian. They exchange punches in clinch again to close an active first round. Very close round. Slight edge to Easton. MMA Fighting scores the first round 10-9 for Easton.
Round 2: Easton stalks and they’re both eyeing a knockout. Easton lands a leg kick and straight right. They clinch. Easton gains double underhooks but Papazian digs with his right arm and reverses Easton against the cage. Yamasaki separates them with around 2:20 to go. Papazian lands a right and then a nice back kick glances the body of Easton. They clinch again and this time Easton lands a trip takedown into Papazian’s halfguard. Easton soon after passes to side. Papazian escapes to halfguard and then to his feet as they return to clinch. Papazian pushes Easton’s head away to separate. Easton stalks. Papazian shoots but Easton finishes on top. It looks like Papazian might have pulled guard or Easton reversed. MMA Fighting scores the second 10-9 for Easton.
Round 3: Easton’s leg kick is almost caught. They exchange very fast punches. But there’s no way they can keep that pace without someone going down and they clinch. Yamasaki separates them. Papazian takes a short breather as his body language tells Yamasaki he was kneed low. After the brief timeout, they clinch and then separate. They box in the pocket. Both fighters are landing decent shots. Easton connects a nice right. Papazian battles back. Easton responds with a left hook. We’re probably going to need CompuStrike especially for this round. Somehow neither fighter has been stunned, though. Easton grabs the Muay Thai clinch with just over two minutes left. Papazian connects on a number of jabs. Easton trips Papazian, but Papazian quickly recovers. More closed-distance boxing to close the fight. Both fighters deserve a shot at Fight of the Night for this gutsy performance. MMA Fighting scores the third round 10-9 for Easton. Easton should win at least two of the rounds. The first was super close.
Mike Easton wins via majority decision (29-28, 30-27, 29-29)
In a tremendous come-from-behind victory, Pat Barry knocked out Christian Morecraft on Friday night’s UFC on FX card.
It was a left hook that knocked Morecraft down, and Barry quickly jumped on him and finished him off with a few more punches. Herb Dean was a little late stepping in to stop the fight; Morecraft was definitely out, just 3 minutes, 38 seconds into the first round.
The knockout punch was sudden and unexpected, as Morecraft had controlled most of the fight prior to that. But Barry has always been a lethal kickboxer, and it was no surprise that once he connected with a hard shot, there was nothing left for Morecraft to do.
Morecraft caught a Barry kick and took him down just 20 seconds into the first round, and he quickly moved into mount on the ground. But Barry showed off some tremendous leg strength in standing up with Morecraft still on top of him and then shrugging Morecraft off.
After a brief exchange on the feet Morecraft took Barry down again and appeared to have an arm bar sunk in, but Barry did an excellent job of pulling free and getting back to his feet, where he landed that fight-changing punch.
The win improves Barry’s career record to 7-4. Morecraft falls to 7-3.
On Friday night, the UFC will showcase its first main event on FX with a lightweight tussle between Melvin Guillard and Jim Miller. Though both fighters are coming off of losses, they remain very much in the hunt for a lightweight title shot. The event…
On Friday night, the UFC will showcase its first main event on FX with a lightweight tussle between Melvin Guillard and Jim Miller. Though both fighters are coming off of losses, they remain very much in the hunt for a lightweight title shot. The event will also feature many UFC newcomers. In all, six fighters […]
This is the UFC on FX live blog for Duane Ludwig vs. Josh Neer, a welterweight bout on tonight’s main card from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn. 