Tag: UFC

UFC 141: Nate Diaz Is Nothing but a Stepping Stone for Donald Cerrone

UFC 141 features one of the biggest matchups in UFC history, as former heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar makes his long awaited return to the Octagon against the former Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem, in a No. 1 contender matchup for…

UFC 141 features one of the biggest matchups in UFC history, as former heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar makes his long awaited return to the Octagon against the former Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem, in a No. 1 contender matchup for the UFC heavyweight title.

However, the co-main event could steal the show, as it will feature a lightweight matchup between The Ultimate Fighter Season 5 winner, Nate Diaz, and a two-time challenger to the WEC lightweight belt, Donald Cerrone.

Diaz recently made his return to the lightweight division at UFC 135, where he submitted former Pride lightweight champion Takanori Gomi in the first round, and earned submission of the night.

Many who saw the fight said it was the best Diaz had ever looked and that he could now be a force to be reckoned with at lightweight.

However, he’s nothing but a stepping stone to Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone.

Cerrone (17-3 [1 NC]) has been on a tear since entering the UFC, having racked up four straight wins inside the Octagon (six in a row total going back to his last WEC fights), and in his time in the Octagon, he has picked up a submission, knockout and fight of the night award.

In his last fight, Cowboy faced off against the dangerous German striker, Dennis Siver.

Many expected Siver to have the edge in the stand up department, but Cerrone was able to rock him—more than once—in the first round.

Then, when he rocked him the last time, Cerrone was able to get his back and sink in the rear-naked choke at 2:22 of the first round.

Cerrone is without a doubt one of the most dangerous fighters in the lightweight division. His combination of Muay Thai kickboxing and top-notch jiu-jitsu makes him a handful for any fighter to deal with.

In fact, two of his three losses have come at the hands of the current No. 1 lightweight contender, Benson Henderson.

Not only does he have enough tools at his disposal to be a threat to anyone, but Diaz’s last foray into the lightweight division didn’t pan out all that well, as he went 1-3 in his last four fights in the division, dropping decisions to Gray Maynard, Joe Stevenson and Clay Guida, with the lone win being over Melvin Guillard—pre Jackson.

Cowboy will walk right through Diaz as he works his way closer to a shot at the UFC lightweight title, and potentially a third fight with Benson Henderson, which you can be sure he’s looking for.

 

Tim McTiernan is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. For the latest news on everything MMA, follow him on twitter @tmt2393.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Wanderlei Silva: The Resurrection of the Axe Murderer?

Wanderlei Silva’s showing at UFC 139 is akin to a resurrection if only for one night. “The Axe Murderer” wielded his axe in decisive manner for the first time since he demolished Keith Jardine back at UFC 84. At UFC 139 Silva survived…

Wanderlei Silva’s showing at UFC 139 is akin to a resurrection if only for one night. “The Axe Murderer” wielded his axe in decisive manner for the first time since he demolished Keith Jardine back at UFC 84.

At UFC 139 Silva survived an early onslaught from Cung “The Human Highlight Reel” Le to register his own brand of vicious punishment courtesy of ground and pound assault, add in a rearranged nose for good measure, and it was safe to say that The Axe Murderer was back.

Silva, whose record in the UFC reeked of embarrassing losses (two via devastating KO) in comparison to wins, was as I thought, one fight away from retirement or dismissal.

I honestly believed that Le would be the one to draw the final curtain on the storied and once inhumanely violent career of one Wanderlei César da Silva.

Needless to say, fate stepped in and dealt Silva a lucky hand, a hand which he gladly took, and with the other in unison, welcomed Le back into the MMA fold.

And with that second round TKO, he also took the honours for “Fight of the Night.”

Also, with that win, his record moves from 2-4 to 3-4 in the UFC.

One more victory and Silva will be evens in the company.

Though, the next time he steps into the Octagon, we’ll have a better idea of whether Silva is standing on the periphery of retirement or on the cusp of one last great run to crown off his illustrious career.

If it’s the latter, then he’ll more or less be firmly placed somewhere amongst the UFC’s top 10 middleweight assemblage.

Whether this is the re-birth of Silva or the resurrection of The Axe Murderer we’ll just have to wait and see.

I hope it’s his moniker.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Ratings For Bellator 58 Improve, While Strikeforce Challengers 20 Viewer Numbers Dip

Tweet The television audience numbers are in for this past weekends Bellator 58 and Strikeforce Challengers 20 events. Bellator came out the winner, statistically by more than doubling the number of viewers from their previous event for this past Saturday’s (Nov. 19) Bellator 58 event bringing in an audience of 269,000 viewers on MTV2. The […]

The television audience numbers are in for this past weekends Bellator 58 and Strikeforce Challengers 20 events.

Bellator came out the winner, statistically by more than doubling the number of viewers from their previous event for this past Saturday’s (Nov. 19) Bellator 58 event bringing in an audience of 269,000 viewers on MTV2. The previous event, Bellator 57, took place on Nov 12 and only pulled in an audience of 129,000.

Strikeforce saw it’s audience dip, averaging an audience of 143,000 viewers for Strikeforce Challengers 20, which took place on Friday, Nov. 18 at The Pearl at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada. The previous Challengers event, SF 19 on Sept. 23, pulled in an audience of 203,000 viewers, showing a significant decline in viewer numbers for this event.

Bellator 58 featured a lightweight title fight between Eddie Alvarez and season four tournament winner Michael Chandler, as well as a non-title match featuring middleweight champ Hector Lombard vs. Shark Fights Trevor Prangley. Chandler and Alvarez would have a very exciting four round bout with Chandler defeating the champ in the fourth round. While Lombard would increase his undefeated streak to 25 matches by earning a second round TKO over Prangley.

SF Challengers 20 was headlined by a bout between Antwain Britt, who was making his debut at 185 lbs, and Lumumba Sayers. Sayers would spoil the former light heavyweights divisional debut by scoring a 28-second KO. The co-main event saw female fighter Ronda Rousey finish her fourth opponent in under a minute with an armbar, by submitting Canadian fighter Julia Budd in their match.

Props to Sherdog.com for the viewer audience numbers.

Machida Adding Mass for Fight with Jones, Also Brings in Lawal for Training Camp

We are just a few weeks away from UFC 140, where Jon Jones will take on Lyoto Machida to defend his UFC light heavyweight championship for a second time.  This match up is a very interesting one. While Jones is explosive and flashy, Machida is res…

We are just a few weeks away from UFC 140, where Jon Jones will take on Lyoto Machida to defend his UFC light heavyweight championship for a second time.  This match up is a very interesting one. While Jones is explosive and flashy, Machida is reserved and elusive. Machida’s style is a difficult style to […]

UFC Betting

Machida Adding Mass for Fight with Jones, Also Brings in Lawal for Training Camp

An Emotional Wanderlei Silva Offers Fans His Thanks After UFC 139 Victory

UFC middleweight Wanderlei Silva offers an emotional reaction after defeating Cung Le in the co-main event of UFC 139 last weekend in San Jose, California.

This is a wonderful feeling. I have been waiting for this victory for one and a half, almost 2 years. I haven’t won since then. I was defeated in my last fight, and that put the pressure on. I trained really hard for this fight, I hadn’t much time notice before the fight. But I succeeded with the help of God, to make a good performance. I want to thank the support that all you guys gave me. I have no words to thank you. All you guys who stood by me in my defeat, and now stand by me in my victory. I have only to thank you all. I’m very happy to be able to bring happiness to my fans. And the message is no matter how much people say you can’t do it, and that you are old, and done you have to… keep believing. God is great. I had a lot of strong experiences in this last period of my life. It was a huge internal battle. But God honored me. The message is believe in your dreams, work hard, pray. And the result will come. From deep inside my heart, thank you. This is a happy cry. God bless you all. Thank you so much.

Click here to view the embedded video.

UFC middleweight Wanderlei Silva offers an emotional reaction after defeating Cung Le in the co-main event of UFC 139 last weekend in San Jose, California.

This is a wonderful feeling. I have been waiting for this victory for one and a half, almost 2 years. I haven’t won since then. I was defeated in my last fight, and that put the pressure on. I trained really hard for this fight, I hadn’t much time notice before the fight. But I succeeded with the help of God, to make a good performance. I want to thank the support that all you guys gave me. I have no words to thank you. All you guys who stood by me in my defeat, and now stand by me in my victory. I have only to thank you all. I’m very happy to be able to bring happiness to my fans. And the message is no matter how much people say you can’t do it, and that you are old, and done you have to… keep believing. God is great. I had a lot of strong experiences in this last period of my life. It was a huge internal battle. But God honored me. The message is believe in your dreams, work hard, pray. And the result will come. From deep inside my heart, thank you. This is a happy cry. God bless you all. Thank you so much.

UFC on FOX: Brock Lesnar Could Draw in 10 Million or More Viewers

UFC 141 will mark the return of the biggest star in MMA when former UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar steps back into the cage after a 14-month layoff due to complications with the intestinal disease diverticulitis. The heavyweight juggernaut will …

UFC 141 will mark the return of the biggest star in MMA when former UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar steps back into the cage after a 14-month layoff due to complications with the intestinal disease diverticulitis. The heavyweight juggernaut will go head-to-head with former Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem in the main event on Dec. […]

UFC Betting

UFC on FOX: Brock Lesnar Could Draw in 10 Million or More Viewers