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UFC on FX: Melvin Guillard Talks Move from Jackson’s MMA to the Blackzilians

In preparation of his headlining UFC on FX fight with Jim Miller, Melvin Guillard decided to part ways with Greg Jackson and his famed MMA team to join the south Florida-based Blackzilians team full time. “The Young Assassin” spent a few weeks wit…

“The Young Assassin” spent a few weeks with the Blackzilians prior to his UFC 136 submission loss to Joe Lauzon, and since then, Guillard decided that the Blackzilians were just a better fit for him at this point in his career.

“Both camps are great, both sets of coaches are awesome. It’s just a decision I had to make for myself professionally. Did I want to split the time? Yeah, I did, but it’s kind of like trying to work for Exxon and work for Shell,” Guillard told MMA Weekly Radio, noting a conflict of interest.

“You won’t be able to split your time between both. Cause both of those companies wouldn’t allow it,” Guillard said.

“So it came to one of those points in my life where I had to make a grown-up decision. Kind of an executive decision, and this is the decision I made,” the hard-hitting lightweight added.

Despite the team switch, Guillard wanted to make it clear that he had no ill will towards Greg Jackson.

“I didn’t leave Jackson’s in a bad way. I love those coaches to death, love that team, and if anything ever occurs and I have to go back to Jackson’s, I hope I’m still welcome, because I didn’t leave in the wrong way,” Guillard clarified.

Guillard, who says that he feels a fighter’s worth ethic is more important than which coaches are being utilized, called his permanent move to the Blackzilians “one of the best decisions I’ve made in a long time for myself.”

Interestingly, Rashad “Suga” Evans co-founded the Blackzilians team after leaving Jackson’s MMA shortly after Jon Jones won the light heavyweight title at UFC 128.

Evans co-founded the team with several Brazilian fighters who left American Top Team due to a managerial dispute.

A two-time UFC Knockout of the Night winner, Guillard looked like he was one win away from a title shot before getting upset by Lauzon in October, while Jim Miller was riding a rarely seen seven-fight win streak prior to getting decimated by Benson Henderson in August.

The winner of this fight could re-establish their reputation as a top five lightweight in the world, while the loser could fall outside of the division’s top 10 for the first time in years.

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UFC 143: Diaz vs. Condit Preview

Two bad boys of MMA wanted a shot at the welterweight division’s golden child – but instead they’ll fight each other tooth and nail for the UFC title.

UFC 143 is scheduled to take place on February 4, 2012 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The current card appears as follows and is subject to change at any time:

Main card (Pay-Per-View)

Interim Welterweight Championship bout: Nick Diaz vs. Carlos Condit
Heavyweight bout: Roy Nelson vs. Fabricio Werdum
Welterweight bout: Josh Koscheck vs. Mike Pierce
Bantamweight bout: Renan Barão vs. Scott Jorgensen
Middleweight bout: Ed Herman vs. Clifford Starks

Preliminary card (FX)

Featherweight bout: Dustin Poirier vs. Max Holloway
Welterweight bout: Matthew Riddle vs. Jorge Lopez
Bantamweight bout: Alex Caceres vs. Edwin Figueroa
Welterweight bout: Matt Brown vs. Chris Cope
Middleweight bout: Rafael Natal vs. Michael Kuiper
Welterweight bout: Justin Edwards vs. Stephen Thompson

Click here to view the embedded video.

Two bad boys of MMA wanted a shot at the welterweight division’s golden child – but instead they’ll fight each other tooth and nail for the UFC title.

UFC 143 is scheduled to take place on February 4, 2012 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The current card appears as follows and is subject to change at any time:

Main card (Pay-Per-View)

Preliminary card (FX)

UFC 143: Diaz vs. Condit Extended Promo

The interim UFC welterweight championship is on the line at UFC 143 in Las Vegas, as the pride of Stockton, California, Nick Diaz, brings an 11 fight undefeated streak, a win over BJ Penn, and an attitude and style like no other into the Octagon for a showdown with “The Natural Born Killer,” former WEC champion and exciting finisher Carlos Condit.

Click here to view the embedded video.

The interim UFC welterweight championship is on the line at UFC 143 in Las Vegas, as the pride of Stockton, California, Nick Diaz, brings an 11 fight undefeated streak, a win over BJ Penn, and an attitude and style like no other into the Octagon for a showdown with “The Natural Born Killer,” former WEC champion and exciting finisher Carlos Condit.

Dana White Is Right: ESPN Wrong About UFC Fighter Pay

UFC star Frank Mir is a family man. When I visited him at his gym in Las Vegas a couple of years ago, he was there working out with his dad, Frank, Sr. His wife was there too, with his young child in tow. If it seems an idyllic scene, that’s beca…

UFC: Dana White Responds to ESPN’s Outside the Lines

The bad blood between the UFC and ESPN continues to boil in the wake of the worldwide leader in sports’ recent televised piece on fighters’ pay.On a recent episode of ESPN’s Outside the Lines, the program details the disparity in pay between the upper …

The bad blood between the UFC and ESPN continues to boil in the wake of the worldwide leader in sports’ recent televised piece on fighters’ pay.

On a recent episode of ESPN’s Outside the Lines, the program details the disparity in pay between the upper echelon stars in the UFC and their lower tier fighters. The piece claims that the lesser known combatants are “basically fighting for crumbs” and that there is a culture of silence preventing fighters from speaking out for fear of losing their jobs.

UFC President Dana White has not hid his displeasure for the piece, tweeting, “Can’t stand the lying 2 faced media [expletive]!! So glad we did this one right cause ESPN can NOT be trusted.”

Not to let the issue rest, White released a video of his own today, disputing the points brought up by ESPN’s program.

In the video, posted above, White starts off by calling the piece “trash and one-sided,” saying that ESPN does not care about mixed martial arts. To combat some of the claims made by the piece, UFC legends Chuck Liddell, Forrest Griffin and Matt Serra talk at length in the video about all the opportunities the promotion has given them.

As a police officer, Griffin states that he was making a modest $30,000 a year, but after his stint on the Ultimate Fighter, Griffin says, “I made substantially more in one year with the UFC than I would have working 15 years in law enforcement.”

Griffin, as well as the other fighters interviewed, also talk about the multiple bonuses available that act as incentives to perform inside the Octagon.

Additionally, an extended look at Zuffa CEO Lorenzo Fertitta’s interview on Outside the Lines is shown where Fertitta points out that the issue is not taboo to talk about among fighters and that the UFC has made many fighters “millionaires.”

“These guys are making more money than they’ve ever made,” Fertitta says. “Some of these guys are set for life.”

With so much tension between these two sports juggernauts, repairing this relationship will be easier said than done.

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UFC 142 Results: Where Does Vitor Belfort Rank Among the All-Time Greats

At one point in time, Belfort was considered a fast rising star in MMA and the UFC. At only 19, Belfort had already won a fight in the UFC. He seemed like was on the fast track for a successful career.Even with two losses in his first few fights,…

Even with two losses in his first few fights, both in the UFC and PRIDE, he was doing well. The defeats came by the hands of Randy Couture and a prime Kazushi Sakuraba.

In between those losses, he had wins over Wanderlei Silva, Gilbert Yvel and Heath Herring.

The problem was that Belfort kept having that big win elude him. After stringing together a few good victories together, he lost to Chuck Liddell. Then, he finally beat Randy Couture in their second match because of a cut that Couture suffered during the fight.

It was a little over a month after his sister had been abducted and later killed.

The fact that he was able to continue training for the fight and then win shows what a professional Belfort is. That same professionalism is what helped him beat Anthony Johnson when Johnson came in overweight for their fight.

Still, it affected him in a way that losing a loved one always does. He lost a rematch with Couture and then lost his next two matches after that. It can’t be proven that the loss of his sibling affected him, but it would explain his failures in the cage.

In 2007, Belfort finally got his career back on track and was able to string a couple wins together again, though the competition was middle- and second-tier.

When rival MMA company Affliction was bought out, he got a second chance in the UFC.

Belfort took the chance to knock out former middleweight champion and Octagon veteran Rich Franklin in spectacular fashion. And then he proceeded to get knocked out in the same way against middleweight champion Anderson Silva.

Those two fights, along with the Johnson victory at UFC 142, sum up Belfort’s career in a nutshell. He is a professional who will overcome most odds and face down giants, but he lacks the power and ability to make it to the very top. He is someone who, while great, will never be the greatest no matter how fans try to view it.

It’s a shame that someone who is so talented and who started so young will always be a shade less then the best. But that is the very essence of combat and martial arts—someone will always be better and there always has to be a loser.

Belfort has always shown class inside and outside the cage, and in MMA, that is always something to be applauded. So, even though Vitor Belfort might not get a Hall of Fame career, Vitor will always be a Victor.

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