Watch This: The Emotional Aftermath of Rose Namajunas vs. Tecia Torres

(Props: Invicta Fighting Championships via @ekc)

It’s agitating, it gets under my skin. I know that there’s stuff that I could have done, but in the end I wouldn’t take it back for nothin’ because I felt like I was fighting for my life…but that’s the price that you pay if you don’t finish it, and I didn’t finish it. And after this fight I realized like, you only got you and that’s it, and…if you go to decision, it’s gonna be luck. You’re rolling the dice with the judges, and I’m not gonna let that happen again.”

So says a crestfallen Rose Namajunas, following her tough decision loss to Tecia Torres at Invicta FC 6. Though her stellar performance wasn’t enough to convince the judges to give her the win, Namajunas vs. Torres was easily one of the greatest WMMA fights of 2013. Hell, we were just proud to be part of her sports bra.

The latest “All Angles” video from Invicta manages to recap a night’s worth of emotional content into four minutes of behind-the-scenes gold, including the tense moments before the fight, highlights from the battle itself, Rose’s bummed-out post-fight monologue, and finally some incredible footage of Torres breaking down in tears while talking to her mom on the phone afterwards.

Watch it. Seriously.


(Props: Invicta Fighting Championships via @ekc)

It’s agitating, it gets under my skin. I know that there’s stuff that I could have done, but in the end I wouldn’t take it back for nothin’ because I felt like I was fighting for my life…but that’s the price that you pay if you don’t finish it, and I didn’t finish it. And after this fight I realized like, you only got you and that’s it, and…if you go to decision, it’s gonna be luck. You’re rolling the dice with the judges, and I’m not gonna let that happen again.”

So says a crestfallen Rose Namajunas, following her tough decision loss to Tecia Torres at Invicta FC 6. Though her stellar performance wasn’t enough to convince the judges to give her the win, Namajunas vs. Torres was easily one of the greatest WMMA fights of 2013. Hell, we were just proud to be part of her sports bra.

The latest “All Angles” video from Invicta manages to recap a night’s worth of emotional content into four minutes of behind-the-scenes gold, including the tense moments before the fight, highlights from the battle itself, Rose’s bummed-out post-fight monologue, and finally some incredible footage of Torres breaking down in tears while talking to her mom on the phone afterwards.

Watch it. Seriously.

Fight of the Day: Rose Namajunas (aka Pat Barry’s Girlfriend) TKO’s Opponent in 33 Seconds

(Props: YouTube.com/RoseNamajunas via MiddleEasy. Pat Barry appearance begins at 0:24, and the fight starts at 1:23.)

Yes, there is a woman in the world who could love this man. Her name is Rose Namajunas, and she’s a straw-weight MMA fighter who upped her record to 4-0 on June 30th with a 33-second domination of Jen Aniano Rose at a King of the Cage event in Wisconsin. Check out the beatdown above, and get to know Rose a little better in the videos after the jump…


(Props: YouTube.com/RoseNamajunas via MiddleEasy. Pat Barry appearance begins at 0:24, and the fight starts at 1:23.)

Yes, there is a woman in the world who could love this man. Her name is Rose Namajunas, and she’s a straw-weight MMA fighter who upped her record to 4-0 on June 30th with a 33-second domination of Jen Aniano Rose at a King of the Cage event in Wisconsin. Check out the beatdown above, and get to know Rose a little better in the videos after the jump…


(Rose and Felice Herrig get some kicks in with Pat Barry.)


(Rose does the wall flip.)


(Rose Namajunas highlight reel.)


(Singin’ some Kiss with Pat.)

Monday Morning Video Roundup: SFL 1 in its Entirety, An Adorable Eight Second KO, And More

Perhaps it is appropriate that we are kicking off the disappointment and pent up frustration of another work week with none other than Bob Sapp, the most disappointing and utterly frustrating figure in the history of MMA. After landing his most devastating punch in his last ten fights career against Bill Mahood at Saturday’s weigh ins, Sapp’s headlining bout against James Thompson at Super Fight League 1 would end, go figure, in the abrupt, anticlimactic fashion of Sapp’s signature move, the Sapp Tapp, the Sappmission, or whatever variation of the term you prefer to use. Sapp has become so famous for quitting when the going gets tough that it appears Tiger Woods has adopted a similar strategy.

But, believe it or not, some fighters actually came to fight yesterday, and thankfully, the gents over at SFL have been nice enough to grant us a full playback of the event on their Youtube page. Check out the video above, and honor “The Beast” in Sappian fashion, by prematurely stopping it when the main event comes around.

Join us after the jump for some more great videos from around the MMA blogosphere, including an eight second KO that can only be described as “adorable,” a trailer for an upcoming documentary on Charles “Mask” Lewis, and more.

Perhaps it is appropriate that we are kicking off the disappointment and pent up frustration of another work week with none other than Bob Sapp, the most disappointing and utterly frustrating figure in the history of MMA. After landing his most devastating punch in his last ten fights career against Bill Mahood at Saturday’s weigh ins, Sapp’s headlining bout against James Thompson at Super Fight League 1 would end, go figure, in the abrupt, anticlimactic fashion of Sapp’s signature move, the Sapp Tapp, the Sappmission, or whatever variation of the term you prefer to use. Sapp has become so famous for quitting when the going gets tough that it appears Tiger Woods has adopted a similar strategy.

But, believe it or not, some fighters actually came to fight yesterday, and thankfully, the gents over at SFL have been nice enough to grant us a full playback of the event on their Youtube page. Check out the video above, and honor “The Beast” in Sappian fashion, by prematurely stopping it when the main event comes around.

Speaking of pent up frustrations, jump to 2:20 of the above video to see an adorable MMA fighter named Amanda Cooper unleash her inner demons on Tori Music at WXC 35, which went down in Michigan last weekend. Maybe I am too quick to jump to conclusions, but when I looked at both participants involved in this fight, I did not predict the cute girl in the pink top and booty shorts to uncork an ass whooping on the tattooed, cornrowed female across the cage. What’s that, you say? Cooper is a two time Golden Gloves champion? Yep, I’m an asshole.

And now that were all inspired by Ms. Cooper’s triumphant, stereotype shattering performance, let’s keep the ball rolling with the trailer for an upcoming documentary based on beloved MMA icon and Tapout founder Charles “Mask” Lewis. Directed by Bobby Razak, whom you may remember from the similarly excellent History of MMA, Mask documents the momentous rise and untimely fall of Lewis, and looks to be another solid entrance in Razak’s growing MMA filmography. There is no release date yet set for Mask, but we will keep you informed as details arise.

And just so we don’t end your morning on a low note, here’s a quick video of UFC Lightweight champion Ben Henderson demonstrating some of his signature moves. Are you watching this, Frankie? Because knowing is half the battle. And the other half is being able to take one of those kicks without sharting yourself.

-J. Jones

Crazy Story of the Day: Marloes Coenen Cast in Dutch Version of ‘Survivor’


(Fact: Coenen has 150 kilowatts of sextricity surging within her at all times.)

We haven’t heard much from former Strikeforce women’s bantamweight champion Marloes Coenen since that whole Golden Glory debacle saw her get axed from the Zuffa banner along with John Olav Einemo and the Overeem brothers. And while Einemo and Alistair were quickly brought back to the promotion, Coenen opted to sign a three fight deal with North Carolina based BlackEye Promotions instead, a move that she might be kicking herself over in light of current circumstances.

In either case, it seems that the reason we have heard so little from Coenen since her fallout was not due to any legal issues or bitter resentment, but was rather more primitive in nature. (See what I did there? Triple entendre. Suck it.) Turns out, Marloes was cast alongside twelve of the Netherlands’ biggest celebrities, whoever the hell they are, as part of a Survivor type reality show called “De Schat van De Oranje” (The Treasure of Orange). According to some research that I most certainly did not do, the show dropped these hapless celebs out of a helicopter onto a remote island off the coast of Thailand, then pitted them against one another in a (death) race to find, you guessed it, hidden treasure. Being that it was shot in Thailand, the celebrities faced opposition in the form of crooked cops, gang fights, and transsexual prostitutes.

We’re not going to put our judgmental faces on, because honestly, on the scale of “Weird Things MMA Fighters Have Done For Money/Fame,” this is definitely closer to the Kimbo Slice: SpikeTV Host end of the spectrum than it is the Aaron Brink/Dick Delaware end, so we’re all for it. Get that bread, Marloes.

Join us after the jump for a sneak peak at the show, courtesy of IronForgesIron


(Fact: Coenen has 150 kilowatts of sextricity surging within her at all times.)

We haven’t heard much from former Strikeforce women’s bantamweight champion Marloes Coenen since that whole Golden Glory debacle saw her get axed from the Zuffa banner along with John Olav Einemo and the Overeem brothers. And while Einemo and Alistair were quickly brought back to the promotion, Coenen opted to sign a three fight deal with North Carolina based BlackEye Promotions instead, a move that she might be kicking herself over in light of current circumstances.

In either case, it seems that the reason we have heard so little from Coenen since her fallout was not due to any legal issues or bitter resentment, but was rather more primitive in nature. (See what I did there? Triple entendre. Suck it.) Turns out, Marloes was cast alongside twelve of the Netherlands’ biggest celebrities, whoever the hell they are, as part of a Survivor type reality show called “De Schat van De Oranje” (The Treasure of Orange). According to some research that I most certainly did not do, the show dropped these hapless celebs out of a helicopter onto a remote island off the coast of Thailand, then pitted them against one another in a (death) race to find, you guessed it, hidden treasure. Being that it was shot in Thailand, the celebrities faced opposition in the form of crooked cops, gang fights, and transsexual prostitutes.

We’re not going to put our judgmental faces on, because honestly, on the scale of “Weird Things MMA Fighters Have Done For Money/Fame,” this is definitely closer to the Kimbo Slice: SpikeTV Host end of the spectrum than it is the Aaron Brink/Dick Delaware end, so we’re all for it. Get that bread, Marloes.

Check out a video preview of the upcoming show below.

We don’t know if there are any Dutch speaking members of the Potato Nation, but if anyone can inform us as to what the hell anyone is actually talking about, we’d truly appreciate it. Because as of now, all we are aware of is that the Dutch apparently don’t have phrases to substitute for such English classics as “That bitch,” “Oh my God,” or “Fuck you up.” The more you know.

“The Treasure of Orange” is set to debut on March 30th from an unbeknownst Netherlands based channel that none of you get. We’ll try to hijack the episodes as they are broadcast for your viewing pleasure.

Coenen, on the other hand, will be looking to rebound from her title losing effort to Meisha Tate back in July of 2011 when she faces 5-1 Romy Ruyssen at the main event of Invicta FC 1, which goes down from the Memorial Hall in Kansas City, Kansas on April 28th.

-J. Jones

Video: Is Ronda Rousey the New ‘New Face of Women’s MMA’?

(Props: mmasavvy)

As a competitive judoka, Cali-bred Ronda Rousey earned a bronze medal at the 2008 Olympics and a gold medal at the 2007 Pan Am Games. As a budding MMA fighter, she has won all five of her fights (2 pro, 3 amateur) by submission, all in less than a minute. Now training with Team Hayastan in Santa Monica, Rousey makes her Strikeforce debut tomorrow night at Strikeforce Challengers: Gurgel vs. Duarte in Las Vegas, where she’ll face Sarah D’Alelio. So yeah, it’s time for you to start paying attention to this woman.

As she explains in the above video, women’s MMA needs another visible competitor to fill the vacuum left by Gina Carano. (Uh, hello?) Even though people haven’t seen her standup yet, she feels she’s better than D’Alelio on the feet, and if their fight lasts more than a minute, hey, that’s cool too. Is another women’s MMA star about to be born? After the jump, a glimpse of the kind of ferocious ground-work that Ronda could be showing off tomorrow…


(Props: mmasavvy)

As a competitive judoka, Cali-bred Ronda Rousey earned a bronze medal at the 2008 Olympics and a gold medal at the 2007 Pan Am Games. As a budding MMA fighter, she has won all five of her fights (2 pro, 3 amateur) by submission, all in less than a minute. Now training with Team Hayastan in Santa Monica, Rousey makes her Strikeforce debut tomorrow night at Strikeforce Challengers: Gurgel vs. Duarte in Las Vegas, where she’ll face Sarah D’Alelio. So yeah, it’s time for you to start paying attention to this woman.

As she explains in the above video, women’s MMA needs another visible competitor to fill the vacuum left by Gina Carano. (Uh, hello?) Even though people haven’t seen her standup yet, she feels she’s better than D’Alelio on the feet, and if their fight lasts more than a minute, hey, that’s cool too. Is another women’s MMA star about to be born? After the jump, a glimpse of the kind of ferocious ground-work that Ronda could be showing off tomorrow…


(Ronda Rousey vs. Taylor Stratford, 1/7/11)

‘Strikeforce Challengers: Fodor vs. Terry’ — Bout-By-Bout Preview

Strikeforce MMA photos Lorenz Larkin
(Barnett has his throat-slash. Roy Nelson has his belly-rub. Lorenz Larkin just stands there and poops in his diaper. Props: Strikeforce)

Tomorrow night, Strikeforce returns to the ShoWare Center in Kent, Washington for one of the most compelling ‘Challengers’ events in recent memory. “Fodor vs. Terry” kicks off on Showtime at 11 p.m. ET, and features a pack of exciting prospects. Here’s a quick rundown of the five-fight main card, plus videos of some of their recent performances…

Caros Fodor (10-3) vs. James Terry (10-2)
Fodor is a Washington native who trains under Matt Hume at AMC Pankration. Eight of his ten victories have come by way of submission, but he was able to score his first stoppage-via-strikes in his last fight, battering a worn-out David Douglas until he earned a standing TKO in the third frame. He’s a perfect 3-0 in the Strikeforce organization, and will be looking to move another rung up the lightweight ladder against Cung Le protege James Terry, who has won his last three fights, two by first-round knockout.

(Caros Fodor’s TKO of David Douglas, 4/1/11)

(James Terry’s KO of Josh Thornburg, 4/1/11)

Strikeforce MMA photos Lorenz Larkin
(Barnett has his throat-slash. Roy Nelson has his belly-rub. Lorenz Larkin just stands there and poops in his diaper. Props: Strikeforce)

Tomorrow night, Strikeforce returns to the ShoWare Center in Kent, Washington for one of the most compelling ‘Challengers’ events in recent memory. “Fodor vs. Terry” kicks off on Showtime at 11 p.m. ET, and features a pack of exciting prospects. Here’s a quick rundown of the five-fight main card, plus videos of some of their recent performances…

Caros Fodor (10-3) vs. James Terry (10-2)
Fodor is a Washington native who trains under Matt Hume at AMC Pankration. Eight of his ten victories have come by way of submission, but he was able to score his first stoppage-via-strikes in his last fight, battering a worn-out David Douglas until he earned a standing TKO in the third frame. He’s a perfect 3-0 in the Strikeforce organization, and will be looking to move another rung up the lightweight ladder against Cung Le protege James Terry, who has won his last three fights, two by first-round knockout.


(Caros Fodor’s TKO of David Douglas, 4/1/11)


(James Terry’s KO of Josh Thornburg, 4/1/11)

Ryan Couture (2-0) vs. Matt Ricehouse (4-0)
Usually, you have to be a former WWE star to have your first two MMA fights broadcast on national television. Ryan Couture has been granted that honor due to his lineage in the sport, but he’s taken the opportunity and ran with it. After a successful stint as an amateur, Randy’s son has shown off his formidable grappling skills in Strikeforce, ending his first two bouts by choke — then doing post-fight interviews in which everybody marvels at how much he sounds like his dad. His next opponent has more experience, but far less acclaim. Ricehouse is a Missouri-based lightweight prospect who’s already tasted victory on two Strikeforce undercards. He’s also tall for the lightweight class (just like Ryan), and a proficient grappler (again, just like Ryan). There can only be room for one of them.


(Ryan Couture’s rear-naked choke submission of Lee Higgins, 2/18/11)

Lorenz Larkin (10-0) vs. Gian Villante (7-2)
With a combat background that includes boxing, BJJ, and kung fu, Larkin is becoming known as a knockout machine, ending eight of his ten fights with his heavy hands and feet. His Strikeforce debut was a second-round demolition of Scott Lighty in April, in which he came in on a week’s notice to replace Satoshi Ishii. With momentum behind him, the California native is the favorite in his fight against Gian Villante, who returns to the cage after losing a wild slugfest to Chad Griggs in February. Villante, a former heavyweight champ of the New Jersey-based Ring of Combat promotion, drops back down to 205 for this one.


(Lorenz Larkin’s TKO of Scott Lighty, 4/1/11)


(Gian Villante’s TKO loss to Chad Griggs, 2/12/11)

Hit the “next page” link to learn about the Kansas City Bandit vs. Campamocha, and the first women’s match in Zuffa history…