world series of fighting 1 | UFC Betting Sites

World Series of Fighting 1 Salaries: Arlovski Nets Enough Money to Buy an Entrance Song that Isn’t Terrible

“My management paid HOW MANY Pitbull bucks for this song?! Paulo Filho won’t be impressed.”

The Nevada State Athletic Commission has released fighter salaries for the inaugural World Series of Fighting event, held last Saturday night in Las Vegas. Former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski made the most money that evening, bringing home $60,000 for crushing Devin Cole in the main event. While we’re all glad to see Arlovski get paid, hopefully he spends some money on better entrance music; having some rapper bark your name is something that an amateur on the undercard of a local show would do to get people to notice him (assuming none of his friends knew how to shave stars into his hair, of course), not something a former UFC champion should do to keep people interested in his career. Just saying, it was pretty cheesy.

Taking home the second-largest purse of the evening was Anthony “Rumble” Johnson, who earned $55,000 for his highlight reel knockout against D.J. Linderman. Since moving up to a weight class that he should reasonably be fighting at, Anthony Johnson has looked pretty impressive. It’s a shame that he sacrificed so much of his career – not to even mention his health – cutting to welterweight, but at twenty-eight years old it’s by no means over for the UFC veteran.

Keep in mind that none of these salaries include any undisclosed bonuses or end of the night bonuses that World Series of Fighting may have given out. Also, even though this promotion is riding a lot of hype and had recognizable talent throughout the card, keep in mind that WSoF is a brand new promotion that just put on its first event. Basically, no one made Anderson Silva money, is what I’m trying to say:

“My management paid HOW MANY Pitbull bucks for this song?! Paulo Filho won’t be impressed.”

World Series of Fighting 1
Nov 3, 2012
Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada.

Andrei Arlovski: $60,000 (includes $30,000 win bonus)
def. Devin Cole: $10,000

Anthony Johnson: $55,000 (includes $25,000 win bonus)
def. D.J. Linderman: $10,000

Marlon Moraes: $12,000 (includes $6,000 win bonus)
def. Miguel Torres: $18,000

Tyrone Spong: $27,000 (includes $7,000 win bonus)
def. Travis Bartlett: $4,000

Tyson Steele: $10,000 (includes $5,000 win bonus)
def. Gregor Gracie: $25,000

Brian Cobb: $12,000 (includes $6,000 win bonus)
def. Ronys Torres: $12,000

Steve Carl: $16,000 (includes $8,000 win bonus)
def. Ramico Blackmon: $10,000

Josh Burkman: $16,000 (includes $8,000 win bonus)
def. Gerald Harris: $15,000

JZ Cavalcante: $14,000 (includes $7,000 win bonus)
def. T.J. O’Brien: $5,000

David Branch: $16,000 (includes $8,000 win bonus)
def. Dustin Jacoby: $5,000

Total Payroll: $352,000

Overpaid: In the spirit of the upcoming US presidential election, we’ll start off with the safest answer possible: It’s hard to call anyone anyone on this card overpaid. Now, in the spirit of CagePotato: Twenty-five grand (more than Miguel Torres made, mind you) for a 7-2 fighter who holds no notable victories, has never fought in a major North American promotion and, by the way, fought on the undercard? Damn it must feel good to be a Gracie.

Underpaid: If you ever wondered why guys like Ed Soares get paid as much as they do, it’s because good management is at a premium in this sport. Case in point, Devin Cole fought a former UFC champion in the main event of a nationally televised show on a weekend when there was absolutely no competition. I’m no agent, but if I could only negotiate a fighter in Cole’s position the same amount of show money that Ramico Blackmon’s management earned for him, let’s just say I wouldn’t be drinking coffee for a while.

Likewise, I already had respect for Travis Bartlett for stepping up to fight Tyrone Spong when no one else – including Houston Alexander – was willing to. Then again, perhaps the measly four grand Bartlett made for that beating he took explains why no one wanted the fight. Major props to Travis for being tough enough to fight such a dangerous kickboxer for such a small paycheck, but buddy, your brain damage is worth more than that.

@SethFalvo

World Series of Fighting 1: Impressions from the First Event

By CagePotato contributer Andreas Hale

The World Series of Fighting held their first event at the Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas, NV. Although the main card appeared to be stuffed with squash matches, it was a pretty good night of fights and I was there to get a good gauge on the atmosphere and if WSoF could become a player in the MMA world that Dana White rules with an iron fist.

First things first, it wasn’t the sellout they promised as word is that they only sold 1500 tickets and comped double that to ensure a nice fight atmosphere. Nevertheless, it was a good evening of fights that the crowd was receptive to. Oh yeah, ring girls. Lots of ring girls. They were like a platoon that switched in and out. I didn’t know ring girls needed breaks but whatever. It’s enough variety to keep fans engaged between rounds. I mean, Brittany Palmer and Arianny Celeste are great but six beats two every single gotdamn time. Right? But I digress…

Media sat on a stage that put us eye level with the cage and we could damn near touch it (or slap a cameraman) if we tried hard enough. We could actually feel some of the punches landed. Pretty good stuff. Oh yeah, and there were fights.

By CagePotato contributer Andreas Hale

Andrei Arlovski def. Devin Cole via 1st round TKO (2:37)

In the main event, Arlovski walked out to some rap song where the chorus barked “Andrei Arlovski.” Cool or corny, I’m not sure. I’ll probably roll with corny. At any rate, all I was thinking about was “if he gets knocked out this great rap song will all be a waste.” Devin Cole’s biggest victory was against Mike Kyle back in 2006 so the chances he would beat Arlovski were slim to none.

Trying to rival Bruce Buffer, the announcer’s catch phrase heading into the main event was “Can you feel it!?!?” Nope, sure can’t. Not with that.

Anyways, Arlovski did exactly what was expected as he smashed an overhand right into Cole’s temple and sent him to the canvas. Arlovski followed him there and hammerfists met Cole’s face.

The end.

Anthony Johnson def. DJ Linderman via 1st round KO (3:58)

Yeah, we all knew that Anthony Johnson could separate your body from your spirit in one punch, but this was ri-goddamn-diculous. Johnson continued his crusade to destroy foes in the 205 division as he wrecked DJ Linderman with a right hook that sent him face first into the canvas. Here’s how it went…

Johnson and Linderman danced around a bit. Johnson kicked Linderman in the nuts real, real hard. Linderman got himself together and Johnson went after him. A poke in the eye had Johnson in trouble. Herb Dean didn’t see the eye poke and urged the blinking Johnsno to continue. Instead of Linderman being cordial, he decided to rush him. Hey, all is fair in war, right? Unfortunately, that just pissed Johnson off and he uncorked a right hook that landed with the impact of Thor’s Hammer and sent Linderman face planting to the canvas. Even referee Herb Dean looked down like “Damn!” before checking to see if Linderman was dead. Fortunately, he wasn’t.

Marlon Moraes def. Miguel Torres via split decision (30-27 & 29-28 for Moraes, 29-28 Torres)

Once upon a time, Miguel Torres was considered to be unbeatable. A punch by Brian Bowles in 2009 shattered his unbreakable image and it hasn’t been the same for him ever since (3-5 in his last 8 fights after going 37-1). A stint in the UFC was chopped down by Michael McDonald and a rape van tweet that he couldn’t shake. His debut in WSoF was thought to be a rebirth but it was a rather rude awakening that perhaps the game has passed him by. Torres looked out of sync and lost against Brazilian Marlon Moraes as his stalking style was disintegrated in the first minute of the fight when Moraes clocked him with a combination and blood trickled from his scalp. From there — with a bizarre mixture of boos and Ric Flair “woos” echoing through the crowd — Torres was out struck by Moraes as he proved to be the faster and stronger fighter. It wasn’t the most exciting fight but Moraes was so comfortable that he attempted a jumping roundhouse in the third round. You wouldn’t have done that to Torres five years ago. But today, it’s a different story. A late takedown during a relatively competitive third sealed his fate. Well, almost. Somehow, one judge inexplicably scored the fight 29-28 for Torres but the other two judges managed to get it right with scores of 30-27 and 29-28 for Moraes.

Tyrone Spong def. Travis Bartlett via 1st round TKO (3:15)

101-5-1 is Tyrone Spong’s kickboxing record before deciding to head to the world of MMA. Obviously, his debut was hyped. Poor Travis Bartlett stood in the way of Spong becoming 1-0. That didn’t last long. The kickboxing beast handed out a savage beating to Bartlett that will likely have light heavyweights crapping their pants. After nearly kicking Bartlett’s head into the audience on several occasions, Spong settled for a straight right hand that dropped his foe to the canvas in a “no mas” manner eerily reminiscent of how Forrest Griffin collapsed to the canvas against Anderson Silva. It was ugly, it was brutal, it was beautiful.

—

Elsewhere on the card…

Tyson “The Man Of” Steele stopped Gregor Gracie in the first round with a hulk smash TKO. Time of stoppage was 2:11

Brian Cobb ended Rony Torres two-year, 11-fight win streak with a split decision victory.

Steve Carl pulled a nifty transition from crucifix to rear naked choke to elicit the tapout at the 2:11 mark.

Josh Burkman was impressive as he earned a unanimous decision victory over Gerald Harris.

JZ Cavalcante bent TJ O Brien’s leg like a pretzel as he scored a first round submission in 63 seconds.

David Branch’s workman like performance earned him a unanimous decision victory over Dustin Jacoby.

Spotted In The Crowd: Jake Shields, Urijah Faber, Rashad Evans, Travis Browne, Pat Militich, Vitor Belfort, Martin Kampmann, Ian McCall, Jay Heiron, TJ Lavin, Josh Barnett, Rampage Jackson, Chael Sonnen, Joseph Benevidez & Frank Trigg

Exclusive: ‘World Series of Fighting’ President Ray Sefo Prepares for His New Battle Outside of the Ring

(Photo via Sherdog.)

By Andreas Hale

It only made sense for Ray Sefo to start his own MMA promotion. Well, it only made sense once the stars aligned in a unique way that told him he’d better start an MMA promotion or else. You see, back when K-1 was falling apart, Sefo happened to do an interview where he discussed how much money the promotion owed him and the possibility of starting his own company. The thought ran through his mind heavy after the call. After all, he has put on a successful K-1 event in New Zealand, and he had a pretty good idea how to handle the business. So he decided to sleep on it.

The next morning, a wealthy friend of his named Sig Rogich gave him a call out of the blue and invited Sefo to breakfast so they could discuss something. Mind you, Rogich had never heard the interview from the night before.

“(Sig) said ‘What do you think about starting an MMA fighting league?'” Sefo says when reflecting on the origins of World Series of Fighting. “I looked at him and said ‘Are you kidding me? That’s exactly what I was going to talk to you about on Monday!’ It was just meant to be. The stars aligned for us and this was meant to happen.”

Plans were laid out, business was taken care of, and fighters were signed. November 3rd marks the inaugural fight night, which will emanate from the Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas, and air on NBC Sports (formally Versus). It’s not your average rinky-dink startup operation, as WSoF 1 features a loaded card that includes the likes of Andrei Arlovski, Anthony Johnson, and Miguel Torres on the main card. While newer promotions may struggle to land talent, WSoF has had many of its fighters fall right into their lap. In particular, guys like Johnson and Torres had been cut by the UFC this year for weight issues but are still marquee names in the sport. Inking with WSoF made perfect sense for them, partly because of Sefo’s own background

“Many of them were up for it right away because of my involvement and with the understanding that I am a fighter becoming a promoter,” Sefo explains. “I understand what a fighter goes through to prepare for a fight. That appealed to a lot of the guys.”

(Photo via Sherdog.)

By Andreas Hale

“(Sig) said ‘What do you think about starting an MMA fighting league?’” Sefo says when reflecting on the origins of World Series of Fighting. “I looked at him and said ‘Are you kidding me? That’s exactly what I was going to talk to you about on Monday!’ It was just meant to be. The stars aligned for us and this was meant to happen.”

Sefo also admits that he’s not done bringing in more high caliber fighters to the promotion. Once the debut is in the bag, he’s already plotting for another card in Las Vegas at the end of January.

“We’ve been very fortunate that a lot of guys came to us. After this first event, even more will come to us. I don’t think we have to look far,” Sefo says while noting that the abundance of talent in the UFC has left some great fighters out in the cold — talent that Sefo will gladly scoop up. “Everyone doesn’t have a home and if you’re a fighter that’s to be reckoned with, you will have a home with us.”

While most promotions come in with the goal to eventually topple the UFC, Sefo believes that idea is one that ends up with many of these promotions not living up to their own expectations. For the New Zealander, adding another promotion isn’t competition at all.

“It is good and healthy to have more than one promotion, especially with so much talent out there,” he says. “For those that don’t believe either of those statements, we wouldn’t have the card that we currently have if these fighters weren’t available. That’s the reason we can put on such a great card for our first show.”

It will certainly be an exciting and stressful week for Sefo and the WSoF as they inch towards their first event, though Sefo is quite confident that the 7,000 seat venue will be full on Saturday night. And with all the excitement in the building thanks to the compelling matchups — featuring Andrei Arlovski vs. Devin Cole in the main event, and Anthony “Rumble” Johnson and D.J. Linderman trying to knock each other’s heads off in the co-main — not to mention the lovably spastic commentary duo of Bas Rutten and Michael Schiavello in the broadcast booth, you’ve got to wonder if Sefo will get the itch to return to fighting.

The short answer is “Yes.”

“Seven more fights,” the 2000 K-1 Grand Prix runner-up says when asked if he’ll continue fighting. “I’ve done 93 professional fights. I want to reach 100 before I retire.”

He admits that it will be quite a challenge to focus on training when he’s the President of the company but he’s certainly up to the challenge. After all, fighting is his first love. Sitting around in a suit making business decisions comes secondary.

“I was looking to fight again soon but I haven’t been able to focus on training like I want to with the company taking up a lot of my time,” Sefo says as he ponders when his next fight will be. Regardless of who or when he fights, Sefo has established that he’s not fighting arbitrarily to reach 100. “I want to go out on top. I’m not there just for a number, I’m there to win.”

Andrei Arlovski, Miguel Torres, Anthony Johnson, And More UFC Vets Booked for ‘World Series of Fighting 1? on November 3rd

(Now that Anthony Johnson competes at light-heavyweight, we can all stop freaking out about this photo.)

You don’t call yourself the “World Series of Fighting” without lofty aspirations. The upstart MMA promotion launched by former K-1 star Ray Sefo (!) will be hosting its first event on November 3rd at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, and has already inked a deal to air its first card live on the NBC Sports Network (?!?).

And to give viewers a reason to tune in, the WSOF has been hard at work snatching up as many big name ex-UFC fighters as possible, and putting them in surprisingly competitive fights. Here’s a little taste of what the matchmakers have planned for World Series of Fighting 1…

– In the night’s main event, Andrei Arlovski will be returning from his no-contest/moral victory against Tim Sylvia to face Strikeforce vet Devin Cole, who won unanimous decisions over Shawn Jordan and Gabriel Salinas-Jones in his last two appearances.

– Anthony Johnson, now 2-0 as a light-heavyweight, will look to make it three in a row against 14-3 moneyweight DJ Linderman, who holds the Cage Warriors heavyweight title and was a semi-finalist in Bellator’s season 4 light-heavyweight tournament last year.

(Now that Anthony Johnson competes at light-heavyweight, we can all stop freaking out about this photo.)

– Miguel Torres will make his first appearance since his recent UFC firing, facing two-time Brazilian national Muay Thai champion and BJJ brown belt Marlon Moraes (8-4-1), a training partner of Edson Barboza.

– Fresh off a successful welterweight debut in May, former middleweight/TUF vet/funnyman Gerald Harris will be facing fellow 170-pounder Josh Burkman, who’s gone 5-1 since being released by the UFC in 2008.

– Riding an 11-fight win streak — including an armbar victory over a dude named, no shit, Wanderson Silva — Ronys Torres will face UFC one-and-doner Brian Cobb, who most recently dropped a decision to Antonio McKee in a classic “you’re both getting fired” match under the MFC banner.

The current lineup is below. Additional undercard bouts will be confirmed shortly.

Main Card
Andrei Arlovski vs. Devin Cole (HW)
Anthony Johnson vs. D.J. Linderman (LHW)
Miguel Torres vs. Marlon Moraes (BW)
Gregor Gracie vs. Tyson Steele (WW)

Preliminary Card
Josh Burkman vs. Gerald Harris (WW)
Ronys Torres vs. Brian Cobb (LW)
Gesias “JZ” Cavalcante vs. TJ O’Brien (LW)
Tyrone Spong vs. Travis Bartlett (LHW)
David Branch vs. Dustin Jacoby (MW)
Steve Carl vs. Ramico Blackmon (WW)
Waylon Lowe vs. Fabio Mello (FW)