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XFO 39 Results: Curran and Varner Victorious, Diego Sanchez Finds Soulmate

(Like we needed a reason to run this photo again. Props: MMARecap via MiddleEasy)

There were a lot of questions coming into last night’s XFO 39. Would this mark the last appearance of Jeff “Big Frog” Curran? How would Jamie Varner fair in what is not only his first fight since being released by the UFC, but a welterweight bout nonetheless? Can Felice Herrig vs. Nicdali Rivera-Calanoc possibly live up to the pre-fight staredown? The short answers are maybe, pretty well and of course not. Tune in after the jump for more details.

(Like we needed a reason to run this photo again. Props: MMARecap via MiddleEasy)

Jeff Curran easily handled the .500 Strikeforce veteran Billy Vaughan. When he wasn’t busy countering every strike Vaughan threw, Curran was attempting submissions from his guard. However, Curran was unable to finish Vaughan, and instead ended up with a unanimous decision victory.

After the fight, Big Frog let it be known that he was just a little disappointed with his current situation. “This is the last damn time I’m fighting in the XFO,” he said before announcing that unless the UFC offers him a contract, he plans on retiring. Will a unanimous decision over Billy Vaughan be enough to get Jeff Curran a UFC contract? If not, then is Jeff Curran serious about retirement? Only time will tell. For what it’s worth, Jeff Curran told Sherdog.com after the fight that he was unable to finish off Billy Vaughan due to a foot injury he suffered during the fight.

In welterweight action, former WEC lightweight champion Jamie Varner handled journeyman Tyler Combs with ease. Jamie Varner abused Combs on the feet before nailing a double-leg. After working the ground and pound, Varner transitioned to north-south and locked in a deep choke that made Combs go out. Total time? 90 seconds.

As for Felice Herrig vs. Nicdali Rivera-Calanoc, all you need to see is Nicdali Rivera-Calanoc’s entrance. Rivera-Calanoc walked out to the cage shouting “YES!”, Diego Sanchez style. As for the actual fight, Nicdali Rivera-Calanoc spent most of the fight clinching with Felice Herrig, despite Herrig consistently getting the better of the clinch exchanges. Herrig spent the rest of the fight controlling Rivera-Calanoc’s back on her way to a unanimous decision victory.

Main card results, courtesy of MMAmania.com:

Jeff Curran def. Billy Vaughan via unanimous decision
Jamie Varner def. Tyler Combs via technical submission (north-south choke) in round 1
Felice Herrig def. Nicdali Rivera-Calanoc via unanimous decision
Mike Stumpf def. Dan Bolden via unanimous decision in round 3
Dan Aguirre def. Terrance Kinney via submission (triangle armbar) in round 1

Face-Off of the Year Candidate: Felice Herrig vs. Nicdali Rivera-Calanoc

(Props: MMARecap via MiddleEasy)

XFO 39 goes down tonight at the Sears Centre Arena in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, featuring Jeff Curran’s “win or retire” match against Billy Vaughn, Jamie Varner‘s first post-WEC match against Tyler Combs, and a women’s bout between the lovely Felice Herrig and 7-4 Tulsa-based scrapper Nicdali Rivera-Calanoc. At yesterday’s weigh-ins, Felice and Nicdali produced one of the greatest staredown photos in recent memory. (Whether you prefer this one or Anderson Silva vs. Vitor Belfort pretty much depends on if you prefer chicks or dudes. Sorry. That’s the deal.) XFO 39 will be streamed live on alienwarearena.com/mma; the card kicks off at 7 p.m.

(Props: MMARecap via MiddleEasy)

Jens Pulver Won This Weekend, You Guys

Despite all the talk of Jens Pulver hanging up his four ounce gloves for good after failing to put up a win in his past six fights, it looks like Lil’ Evil ain’t goin’ out like that.
The former UFC lightweight champ was back in action this weekend, pi…

Despite all the talk of Jens Pulver hanging up his four ounce gloves for good after failing to put up a win in his past six fights, it looks like Lil’ Evil ain’t goin’ out like that.

The former UFC lightweight champ was back in action this weekend, picking up his first win in over three years and improving his record to 23-14-1. Although his opponent, Mike "The Assassin" Lindquist at 6-19 was a far cry from the killers he used to face in the UFC and WEC, it’s good to see Jens get a win under his belt to boost his confidence. In Pulver’s defense, he was originally slated to take on 12-10 fighter Tom Ahrens, but his opponent bowed out of the bout in the weeks leading up to the event. For his part, Lindquist didn’t look too bad in the video above. Let’s just hope that training with Jeff Curran in Chicago has helped Pulver get his groove back and he doesn’t just become a regional can crusher.

Depressing News Alert: Jens Pulver to Keep Giving It ‘One More Shot’

(PicProps: MMAConvert)
On a personal note, we’d like nothing more than to see Jens Pulver at the top of the heap when it’s all said and done. Though we admit we’ve never met him, Pulver has always seemed like one of MMA’s truly stand-…

(PicProps: MMAConvert)

On a personal note, we’d like nothing more than to see Jens Pulver at the top of the heap when it’s all said and done. Though we admit we’ve never met him, Pulver has always seemed like one of MMA’s truly stand-up guys. Exciting in the cage, straightforward and honest (maybe to a fault) outside of it, it’s hard not to root for him. It’s also been difficult to watch him slump through the last few years of his rapidly fading MMA career, including establishing his current six-fight losing streak and dropping eight of his last nine bouts overall. It’s that innate likability that additionally makes it downright heartbreaking to read Pulver’s latest interview with MMA Fighting.com on Saturday, where the aging former UFC champion indicates he’s just going to press on with his career until he “gets it right.”

"I’m trying to put ‘Lil’ Evil’ to bed, if that makes sense, so I can retire the right way, and so I can be done the right way,” Pulver says. “I can’t go out the way I’ve gone. Not from being a world champion to losing six fights in a row. I want to give it one more shot."