Diego Sanchez may have finished 2011 with a controversial win over Martin Kampmann, but at UFC on Fuel 1, he gets a chance to silence the critics and prove he can win one on his own instead of just “gutting one out” inside the Octagon.In order to do it…
Diego Sanchez may have finished 2011 with a controversial win over Martin Kampmann, but at UFC on Fuel 1, he gets a chance to silence the critics and prove he can win one on his own instead of just “gutting one out” inside the Octagon.
In order to do it, however, he must step into enemy territory and not only defeat Omaha, Nebraska’s own Jake Ellenberger, but do so in such a way as to leave no doubt that he beat Ellenberger as badly as the judges claim that he beat Kampmann.
Underneath this headliner is a heavyweight clash of titans, as Stefan “Skyscraper” Struve faces off against multi-promotional veteran and consummate finisher Dave “Pee Wee” Herman.
Also, Ronny Markes drops down to middleweight to face Aaron “A-Train” Simpson, undefeated heavyweights do battle when Croatian-blooded Ohioan prospect Stipe Miocic faces British submission wizard Philip De Fries, and finally, TUF 14 bantamweight finalist T.J. “The Viper” Dillashaw looks to fully halt Walel “The Gazelle” Watson’s momentum.
So, you wanted it all right here at Bleacher Report MMA for this, the best UFC on Fuel: Sanchez vs. Ellenberger live (blog) coverage found anywhere in the world?
Diego Sanchez faces Jake Ellenberger at UFC on Fuel TV 1 this Wednesday in Omaha, NE.Sanchez has won six of his last eight fights, whereas Ellenberger is riding a five fight win streak.If either fighter is going to be in contention for the Welterweight…
Diego Sanchez faces Jake Ellenberger at UFC on Fuel TV 1 this Wednesday in Omaha, NE.
Sanchez has won six of his last eight fights, whereas Ellenberger is riding a five fight win streak.
If either fighter is going to be in contention for the Welterweight belt this year, a win here will put them within a fight of that opportunity.
Although Ellenberger is favored to win this bout, it will be “The Dream” who emerges victorious on Wednesday night.
UFC 143 falls on Super Bowl Saturday this year, and for 27-1-1 NC Andre Pederneiras pupil and Nova Uniao phenom Renan Barao, Saturday night means the biggest test of his already-impressive career against the always aggressive Scott “Young Guns” Jorgens…
UFC 143 falls on Super Bowl Saturday this year, and for 27-1-1 NC Andre Pederneiras pupil and Nova Uniao phenom Renan Barao, Saturday night means the biggest test of his already-impressive career against the always aggressive Scott “Young Guns” Jorgensen.
Jorgensen is a former WEC Bantamweight title contender who can fight to his game plan against anyone and still make it a fun fight, but just as Barao’s never faced a wrestler that could dominate fights the way Jorgensen dominates fights, Jorgensen has never encountered a phenomenal athlete with Barao’s potential for greatness and constant evolution.
How do the two stack up heading into UFC 143?
Let’s take a look at the advantages of the Nova Uniao supernova, followed by the advantages of the man they call “Young Guns,” in this breakdown of this potential candidate for “Fight of the Night.”
Where do we start when it comes to this light heavyweight drama with Strikeforce?Earlier this year, former 205-pound champion Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal tested positive for a banned substance after handing Lorenz “The Monsoon” Larkin what was temporarily…
Where do we start when it comes to this light heavyweight drama with Strikeforce?
Earlier this year, former 205-pound champion Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal tested positive for a banned substance after handing Lorenz “The Monsoon” Larkin what was temporarily the first pro loss of Larkin’s career.
As it stood at the time of Lawal’s initial win, Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante, to whom Lawal lost the light heavyweight title in Houston, had defeated prospect Yoel Romero.
On the same September night as Feijao’s win over Romero, Mike Kyle ended an HDNet-televised night of fights debuting Marcos Rogerio de Lima.
Meanwhile, Gegard Mousasi, against whom Lawal claimed the light heavyweight title, closed out his 2011 with a win over highly-touted light heavyweight prospect Ovince St-Preux.
So the light heavyweight scene seemed primed to see a new champion emerge in the form of either one of the three former champions, or in the form of the likely underdog Kyle.
Fast forward to right now, and Miesha Tate is scheduled to face Ronda Rousey for the Strikeforce women’s bantamweight title on an action-packed night of fights that’s expected to be co-headlined by Mousasi and Kyle; Feijao was supposed to face Lawal for the belt.
So, with all that being said, why not just have Mousasi and Kyle face off for the belt?
Mousasi might have an edge on striking, and Kyle may be the more likely to implement his wrestling, but Kyle’s a dangerous striker in his own right with a mean right cross, and Mousasi knows how to work a good submission on the ground once he gets it there.
Stylistically, it may not be the greatest fight possible in terms of excitement, especially if the bout turns technical, but unless the decision is made to let Feijao draw Larkin for the belt, or unless the decision is made to transplant some UFC light heavyweights into Strikerforce, Mousasi vs. Kyle seems like the best fight possible to make into a title fight on the basis of both of their respective styles, and what they can effectively do with their respective arsenals at this level of competition.
Now the ball is in Strikeforce’s court, and while the company has been historically infamous for justifying some questionable business moves, they’ve also been known for delivering on some great fights.
And while Mousasi vs. Kyle might not draw much attention away from the main event as far as excitement potential, even among the hardcore fans, letting the two take the reins—as far as deciding the new Strikeforce light heavyweight, sounds like the best possible move at this point in time.
The UFC is back to “business as usual” for another weekend of top-notch UFC action, only this time they’re bringing the MMA World an action-packed night of fights on free TV from the United Center in Chicago, Illinois in what is is the UFC’s real …
The UFC is back to “business as usual” for another weekend of top-notch UFC action, only this time they’re bringing the MMA World an action-packed night of fights on free TV from the United Center in Chicago, Illinois in what is is the UFC’s real debut on FOX.
The Chicago-based event, taking place this Saturday night, will feature a Facebook-only fight between Chris Camozzi and Dustin Jacoby, as well as a six-fight card for people with Fox Deportes or Fuel TV (or both) as part of their cable package, before the start of the three-fight main card on FOX.
The main card opens with Demian Maia’s attempt to derail the momentum train of fast-rising Chris Weidman, and closes out with two title eliminators.
First, Chael Sonnen defends what he claims is the true Middleweight title against a man who feels he’s finally ready to take the physical belt and pound-for-pound prestige from Anderson “The Spider” Silva in two-time TUF coach and TUF 3 Light Heavyweight winner Michael Bisping, with the winner getting a no-questions-asked shot at Anderson Silva‘s UFC Middleweight title.
Finally, the likely headliner of UFC 145 will be decided as former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion “Suga” Rashad Evans presents himself as the toughest challenge to date for undefeated 9-0 Phil “Mr. Wonderful” Davis, with Rashad getting UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones if he blemishes Davis’ perfect record, and MMA legend Dan Henderson getting Jones in Atlanta if Davis improves to 10-0 against Evans.
From the opening bell until the dying seconds of the action, we’ve got it all on lock for UFC on FOX 2 at Bleacher Report MMA, and Yours Truly has the honor of dishing out every detail of the action!
“There is, in this world, no force such as the force of a man determined to rise.” — W.E.B. Dubois Combat sports have been fighting a much more heated battle than their athletic competition counterparts for over 150 years. Boxing fought for accep…
“There is, in this world, no force such as the force of a man determined to rise.” — W.E.B. Dubois
Combat sports have been fighting a much more heated battle than their athletic competition counterparts for over 150 years. Boxing fought for acceptance throughout the late 19th and early 20th century. It is still attacked today from time to time when a finger needs to be pointed at someone, a common thread in American society.
The NFL seems to avoid such scrutiny, though its athletes still suffer concussions each time they take the field. It is a matter of when and not if. Still, even today it seems to be easiest to single out the combat sports. Maybe it is their visceral nature. Maybe it is the fact that they don’t command billion dollar payrolls yet. Whatever the reason, the UFC and the sport of mixed martial arts are now actively persuading the public day by day that they represent a top tier company and sport, respectively.
In the fall of 2011, the UFC announced a landmark deal in mixed martial arts history. They had signed a seven year deal with Fox to include programming on Fox, FX and Fuel TV. The deal was for hundreds of millions of dollars.
With the deal beginning on January 1, 2012 the UFC has announced an exhaustive schedule and an unprecedented amount of new programming. Bellator Fighting Championships, the recognized number two organization in the United States, announced a buyout by Viacom and a move to Spike TV in 2013. This also will only serve to further the furious rise of MMA.
So Far
The new year has already been huge for mixed martial arts with events popping up like weeds in a summer field and new ventures blossoming as they should. There are still many injuries in MMA, sure, but the talent pool is getting deeper and the holes in the boat are being patched with a calm assertiveness.
Already this year, Bellator has announced a spring schedule, HDNet has further committed to the sport of MMA while deciding to re-brand the network, the UFC had a huge event in Brazil that was watched by more than 20 million people in that country alone, and this Saturday marks the third UFC card of the year and fourth overall if you count Strikeforce. It is shaping up to be a big year.
Big Things to Come
2012 is the first year of the historic UFC deal with the Fox family of networks. It marks another year of UFC material on Spike TV and Bellator featured consistently on MTV2. HDNet will do their part to give exposure to many regional MMA organizations.
Counting UFC on Fox 2, which airs Saturday January 28, 2012 from the United Center in Chicago, the company will have 8 events in the next three months alone. UFC 145 will take place in Atlanta, Georgia and Jon Jones is rumored to be defending his light heavyweight title in the main event.
It seems that many past civilizations have predicted 2012 to be the end of days. But I say, no way! It ain’t the end of the world, not by a long shot. This is just the beginning. As for the UFC and the sport of MMA, the future looks pretty darn good.
Where do we start when it comes to this light heavyweight drama with Strikeforce?