thanks for the reminder about unleahed, "releashed"
if i had the cash i would be going to ohio for sure...but montreal is way more do-able for me. that would be awesome if we could all hook up for the show there. georges was right when he said "my people will go crazy". the bell centre will go nuts!!!
i fear for hughes' safety, however, if he beats matt serra and has to go to montreal. he is...how you say...not well liked in quebec. the fight with georges could be the least of his worries!
the speech was awesome. you could tell there was a large contingent of canadian fans there. UFC à Montréal?...mais oui, bien sur!
i think Dana is doing a good job of maintaining the integrity and sportsmanship of the UFC... it's along the same lines as when he kicked Noah and Marlon out of TUF5... saying that the sport has more to do than just drunken brawling... good on him... :cool:
speaking of GSP, i caught a bit of Unleashed last night and saw his fight with BJ Penn... (ok - i only saw the last round, becuase i 'closed my eyes', just for a sec ) i was pleased to find out that he actually won that fight! just the other day i watched his post-fight interview from his hospital bed (:eek: ) on youtube, and he said he 'wasn't 'appy with the way the fight went, and that there were a lot of lessons learned'... it sounded as though he lost!
GSP en Montréal! je suis tellment excitée!
~~*~~ ...i surfaced and all of my being was enlightend... ~~*~~
i think Dana is doing a good job of maintaining the integrity and sportsmanship of the UFC... it's along the same lines as when he kicked Noah and Marlon out of TUF5... saying that the sport has more to do than just drunken brawling... good on him...
speaking of GSP, i caught a bit of Unleashed last night and saw his fight with BJ Penn... (ok - i only saw the last round, becuase i 'closed my eyes', just for a sec ) i was pleased to find out that he actually won that fight! just the other day i watched his post-fight interview from his hospital bed (:eek: ) on youtube, and he said he 'wasn't 'appy with the way the fight went, and that there were a lot of lessons learned'... it sounded as though he lost!
GSP en Montréal! je suis tellment excitée!
thanks to releash's reminder, i caught that fight last night. hadn't seen it in a while. i know what you're saying about the way georges looked after that fight. that was the complaint from some of BJ's cornermen...that georges looked the way he did, yet won the split decision.
it was a tough break for georges because he caught a thumb in the eye, followed by an uppercut that just clipped his nose causing it to bleed and as a result georges had breathing problems and was seeing bj in double vision for the remainder of the fight. so bj definitely won the first round, which was mostly striking, but it wasn't as one-sided as some made it out to be in terms of effective strikes landed. georges was forced to turn it into a clinch and control game then and was able to put bj on his back (which is quite a feat in and of itself) twice? in each of the final rounds as well as landing some half decent elbows. they both got very tired and bj tried for a gogoplata submission with a few seconds left, but never really got his position right to lock it in.
anyway, georges won the final two rounds on two judges' scorecards. one of the judges scored the fight for penn a lot of bj penn fans were angry after that one because of the way georges looked...they thought bj should have won the fight. it was pretty clear who won each round, though.
it wasn't a bad fight, but it would have been much more exciting if bj had been in shape and georges hadn't taken the thumb in the eye in the first.
some news on babalu...sounds like a suspension isn't on their minds, but a fine will be. babalu apologizes now, but the statements made by those speaking on his behalf contradict what babalu said after the fight. i can see not feeling heath's tap, but i'm sure he had to have felt mazaggatti trying to break the hold. i will agree with them that the fight should have been stopped long before that point to check heath's cut. i couldn't believe mazaggatti was letting that fight go on with all that blood and not stopping for a doctor to check the cut (s).
BABALU FACES DISCIPLINARY HEARING
Friday, August 31, 2007
by Jeff Cain - MMAWeekly.com
Renato “Babalu” Sobral appeared before the Nevada State Athletic Commission this morning seeking the release of his $25,000 win bonus withheld following his UFC 74 submission victory over David Heath where he continued to apply an Anaconda Choke after Heath tapped out and referee Steve Mazzagatti attempted to stop the fight.
NSAC executive director Keith Kizer did not recommend a suspension, but a future disciplinary hearing was set and his win bonus still withheld.
Richard Wilner, Sobral’s manager, spoke on “Babalu’s” behalf. “I’m here to talk briefly about Mr. Sobral and issue my opinion, and as I believe it’s in the commission’s opinion of whether or not Mr. Sobral intentionally held that choke on his opponent, David Heath. The answer, absolutely not,” said Wilner.
“If you study the tape, which I’m sure you have, you may have noticed with approximately 2:32 left in the second round Mr. Sobral looked up at the referee essentially asking him if he was going to stop the fight. Why? Because Mr. Heath was losing a tremendous amount of blood from a cut opened on his head from an elbow strike. Again with 2:18 left, approximately, in the second round Sobral looked up again at the referee essentially asking him to stop the fight. Mr. Heath being a tough and respected opponent was able to get to his feet. That’s when the Anaconda Choke was set in.”
“I saw Mr. Heath tap on the TV screen. I looked back and forth between the cage and the TV screen. When watching the tape, I definitely saw him tap. Speaking with my client, he didn’t feel it which is understandable because Mr. Heath was in a weakened state. The referee tapped Mr. Sobral as well. He didn’t feel that either. When the referee, a split second later, put both hands on Mr. Sobral’s shoulder and shook his shoulder to release the choke, he did immediately.”
Wilner added, “As you know, yesterday it was publically announced that Mr. Sobral was released from his contract with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He’s a father, loving husband, and he’s a professional fighter. He doesn’t have a day job and trains at night. This is the way he makes his living. This is the only way he makes his living. He has been punished enough for this unfortunate event.”
Sobral, who attended the proceedings, addressed the commission. “When he tapped, I didn’t feel it. I then looked to the referee, and he shook my shoulder, and then I let him go. I didn’t understand why this whole thing happened. I’m kind of surprised that it happened, the crowd booing me and stuff like that. I don’t know, maybe it was from the blood. I don’t know. I would like to say sorry to David Heath and the UFC for bringing trouble to my sport that I love a lot. There’s one thing that I know how to do in my life is be a professional fighter. I don’t have like a regular job.”
Wilner then explained, “Prior to this fight, Mr. Sobral had twenty-seven victories. Fourteen of those twenty-seven victories came by way of submission. Never, I repeat, never has he ever been accused of doing what he’s been accused of doing here today.”
Executive director Keith Kizer commented, “I think there was perhaps some intent here despite Mr. Sobral’s denial today, however I don’t think this rises to the level of some of the other things we’ve seen, Mike Tyson biting an ear, of some other attacks...I will not ask and have not asked this commission for any type of suspension. I don’t believe that’s in line, but it may be in line to do some sort of fine.”
The commission moved to hold a formal disciplinary hearing to further review the fight footage and evaluate Sobral’s post-fight comments. His win bonus is still being held until the future hearing where the commission will decided what action to take.
so I know you guys will appreciate this . . . direct quote from my friend while we were playing wii . . . "if you're gonna do that jiu-jitsu cheerleader chop shit, you can't play anymore!"
so I know you guys will appreciate this . . . direct quote from my friend while we were playing wii . . . "if you're gonna do that jiu-jitsu cheerleader chop shit, you can't play anymore!"
LMAO! i love the wii!
and i can't even imagine what you had to do to that controller to acheive a jiu-jitsu-cheerleader-chop-thingy... :eek: whatever it was, i'm sure it was hilarious...
~~*~~ ...i surfaced and all of my being was enlightend... ~~*~~
BABALU ISSUES STATEMENT FOLLOWING NSAC HEARING
Saturday, September 01, 2007
MMAWeekly.com
Renato "Babalu" Sobral issued the following statement after his initial hearing before the Nevada State Athletic Commission on Friday regarding his actions in a bout with David Heath at UFC 74. In the days after the fight, Sobral was released from his UFC contract.
To My Family, Friends, Fans and Sponsors:
Since UFC 74, I have wanted to speak publicly about my fight with David Heath. I waited to do so, however, out of respect for the Nevada State Athletic Commission, Zuffa, Inc. and Dana White. After all, it is their efforts that have legitimized Mixed Martial Arts in the sports world and I realize that my conduct has unintentionally hindered those efforts. For that, among other things, I am deeply sorry.
I have been fighting professionally since 1998. Prior to my fight with David Heath, my professional record was twenty-seven wins with seven losses. Fourteen of my victories came by way of submission. Not once was I ever accused of holding a choke or submission too long. If anything, there has always been and continues to be a great camaraderie between my opponents and I after the fight.
Being a professional mixed martial artist is more than a career to me. It is my livelihood and my way of life. Consequently, I am deeply sorry for any embarrassment that has been brought upon the sport, other mixed martial artists (especially David Heath), my Academy and most importantly, my family.
As if the embarrassment were not enough, my actions during the fight with David and my comments afterwards, have already resulted in severe financial loss to my family because as you know, in addition to my win bonus still being withheld, yesterday I was released from my contract with the UFC.
There has been much talk about things that may have been said to me by David Heath at the weigh-in. What David said to me at the weigh-in didn’t matter then and doesn’t matter now. What matters are my comments after the fight. And, regardless of what you may read by so called MMA experts on the internet, I never said that I purposefully choked-out David Heath. In short, my post-fight comments, while inappropriate, were not intended to be comments about the choke. Rather, they were intended to be comments about the aggressive performance that I put in.
I did not intentionally choke out David Heath. The first that I realized that David had tapped was when people told me that he did after the fight. When I finally had the chance to view the tape, I see that he did. When David tapped, I did not feel it. I wish I did for I would have let it go. Instead, I continued to hold it. Not because I was upset or wanted him to lose consciousness. I held it because I didn’t know he tapped and I was intent on winning the fight. Holding on to a choke a little long is not an uncommon mistake made in training, and never in my career have I witnessed or heard of an injury resulting from it.
When I had the choke, I was not looking the referee in the eyes as one commentator erroneously observed. Nor did I hear the referee issue any verbal command to release the hold. Instead, my head was down to strengthen the move and my eyes closed with focus. As a result, I did not feel the referee tap me the first time either. It was not until he put his hands on my right shoulder that I felt him trying to separate us. When I felt this, I immediately released the choke.
After [Friday's] hearing [with the Nevada State Athletic Commission] I traveled to the UFC’s office to meet with Dana White. Contrary to recent reports in the media, this meeting was not to discuss my being released from the UFC. In fact, this meeting was arranged prior to my even being released from the contract. The purpose of the meeting was for me to personally apologize to Dana while at the same time thank him for all the opportunities that the UFC has given to my family and I. Unfortunately, I was unable to meet with Dana due to a calendaring error Nevertheless, thanks Dana and my apologies.
I am a professional fighter. This is what I do for a living. I do not hold a day job and then train at night to fight. I know nothing else but how to fight. This is how I support my family.
On behalf of my family and friends, I appreciate the support that you have given me over the years, not to mention in the recent week, and I am hopeful that I will have the opportunity to fight again in the State of Nevada.
so I know you guys will appreciate this . . . direct quote from my friend while we were playing wii . . . "if you're gonna do that jiu-jitsu cheerleader chop shit, you can't play anymore!"
it sounds like a line from a movie. the most deadly of all moves...;)
and i can't even imagine what you had to do to that controller to acheive a jiu-jitsu-cheerleader-chop-thingy... :eek: whatever it was, i'm sure it was hilarious...
LOVE the wii!! it is a fantastic waste of time but so much fun. they should have wii ufc!!!
my friend was mad cause I beat him at wii boxing . . . and he gives me a hard time because I used to be a cheerleader.
BABALU ISSUES STATEMENT FOLLOWING NSAC HEARING
Saturday, September 01, 2007
MMAWeekly.com
crap... now i feel bad for the guy...
maybe releas(h)ing the guy from his contract was a little harsh... however, the UFC wouldn't have done so without being really sure, right? or am i overestimating them? hmmm....
~~*~~ ...i surfaced and all of my being was enlightend... ~~*~~
Quinton Jackson Vs. Dan Henderson - tough one, Rampage has been in their with the best and dominated, but he has a lot of holes defensively, though he can also take a lot of punishment, but Dan Henderson is the man, have to go with Dan.
Mirko Cro Cop Vs. Cheick Kongo - I love Kongo's potential, he's physically a beast, but got to go with Mirko, especially after being devastated his last fight. Would love to see Kongo become a dominant fighter, but he's pretty raw now, though hopefully we'll see some new skills and techniques from him here while he try's to survive.
Michael Bisping Vs. Matt Hamill - Bisping has to be a huge favorite, but Hamill is a sponge, and has really shown improvement, but I'm sticking with Bisping in the UK. Actually wouldn't mind seeing Matt win here though.
Alessio Sakara Vs. Houston Alexander - Houston by some type of stoppage
Marcus Davis Vs. Paul Taylor - I'm expecting a great fight here, hmm Davis' experience or the home country kid...sticking with Davis in this fight.
Pre-lims:
Thiago Silva Vs. Tomasz Drwal - Silva
Gleison Tibau Vs. Terry Etim - Etim
Jess Liaudin Vs. Anthony Torres - Torres
Dennis Siver Vs. Naoyuki Kotani - Kotani
All in all, hope the UFC/Pride Champion vs Champion fights continue with several a year. I think Pride has 3 or 4 of the best fighters in the world, but the UFC has greater depth, and soem of the top fighters in the world also.
"Music, for me, was fucking heroin." eV (nothing Ed has said is more true for me personally than this quote)
thought i would share this little video piece from sportsnet. it's about canada's new LWH #1 mixed martial artist, roger hollett. his uncle is an acquaintance of mine and his father used to be a canadian boxing champion, and it looks like if he wins his next bout here in halifax he could be getting a call from the UFC. it will be a rematch with victor valimaki, and is mainly being held due to a thumb that valimaki took during the first round of the first fight.
anyway, "The Life of a Pro Fighter" - Roger Hollett, Victor Valimaki
edit: there are also plenty of good interviews, previews and fight highlights if you scroll through the videos. pretty decent UFC and CDN MMA coverage from sportsnet. good to see.
thought i would share this little video piece from sportsnet. it's about canada's new LWH #1 mixed martial artist, roger hollett. his uncle is an acquaintance of mine and his father used to be a canadian boxing champion, and it looks like if he wins his next bout here in halifax he could be getting a call from the UFC. it will be a rematch with victor valimaki, and is mainly being held due to a thumb that valimaki took during the first round of the first fight.
anyway, "The Life of a Pro Fighter" - Roger Hollett, Victor Valimaki
edit: there are also plenty of good interviews, previews and fight highlights if you scroll through the videos. pretty decent UFC and CDN MMA coverage from sportsnet. good to see.
cool video, as always, mook!
but of course i had to watch the video of georges, too!
here's a new GSP-ism for us! "I want to tank all the fan that stick to me..."
~~*~~ ...i surfaced and all of my being was enlightend... ~~*~~
but of course i had to watch the video of georges, too!
here's a new GSP-ism for us! "I want to tank all the fan that stick to me..."
...but, of course! i was surprised at how many interviews they had on their site. i knew they were covering quite a bit more on sportsnet connected, but there is the MMA section of videos on the site i was not expecting to see.
i didn't catch that GSP-ism, so "tanks" for pointing 'dis ting out.
just a thought ot two heading into the weekend...does anyone feel like there has not been a lot of talk about the match up between rampage and handerson? it seems like a fight of this magnitude would be receiving more press coverage or talk amongst MMA fans, but i'm not feeling the usual excitement in the lead up to the fight from most fans. anyone getting the same impression? do you feel like if chuck liddell had won the fight against rampage and was fighting dan henderson in a unification match that it would be a much bigger story? maybe the UFC fans have not had a chance to get to know rampage quite well enough yet, and dan henderson hasn't fought in the UFC since forever so there could be an unfamiliarity there as well.
i wonder if UFC 74 and 75 being so close together has anything to do with it? could it be that after all the years of the complaining from fans about not having a true undisputed champion is being laid to rest in one weight division, and that since sometimes people like the focus on the negative more than the positive, they're just not talking about it as much?
anyone have any thoughts? it could turn out to be a quick fight, a boring fight, but they match up so well that it should have all the makings of a very good fight and one that will show who is the LHW champion of the world. it's hard to see how it won't be a memorable match.
did i ask enough questions in this post? i could be just talking out me arse here, of course...;):D anyway, just wondering if anyone was getting the same impression, or had a totally different perpective...
just a thought ot two heading into the weekend...does anyone feel like there has not been a lot of talk about the match up between rampage and handerson? it seems like a fight of this magnitude would be receiving more press coverage or talk amongst MMA fans, but i'm not feeling the usual excitement in the lead up to the fight from most fans. anyone getting the same impression? do you feel like if chuck liddell had won the fight against rampage and was fighting dan henderson in a unification match that it would be a much bigger story? maybe the UFC fans have not had a chance to get to know rampage quite well enough yet, and dan henderson hasn't fought in the UFC since forever so there could be an unfamiliarity there as well.
i wonder if UFC 74 and 75 being so close together has anything to do with it? could it be that after all the years of the complaining from fans about not having a true undisputed champion is being laid to rest in one weight division, and that since sometimes people like the focus on the negative more than the positive, they're just not talking about it as much?
anyone have any thoughts? it could turn out to be a quick fight, a boring fight, but they match up so well that it should have all the makings of a very good fight and one that will show who is the LHW champion of the world. it's hard to see how it won't be a memorable match.
did i ask enough questions in this post? i could be just talking out me arse here, of course...;):D anyway, just wondering if anyone was getting the same impression, or had a totally different perpective...
I agree with you that there has not been much hype to Rampage v. Henderson. At least nothing like there was for Liddell v. Rampage or Couture v. Gonzaga. Obviously to the devoted mma fan, Rampage and Henderson is a pretty big fight ... great match up, unification, etc. But to the casual Spike TV/UFC fan, neither fighter is particularly well known. Also I find it interesting that Rampage's fight title defense is a unification fight against a very good fighter. I do think it'll be great fight and will probably end suddenly with a TKO.
I don't think it's an issue that UFC 75 is so close to UFC 74. Back in June there were several events right in a row that generated a lot of interest/hype. You would think that a free event on Spike would have a big following, especially with Hamill v. Bisping who are well known from TUF.
I agree with you that there has not been much hype to Rampage v. Henderson. At least nothing like there was for Liddell v. Rampage or Couture v. Gonzaga. Obviously to the devoted mma fan, Rampage and Henderson is a pretty big fight ... great match up, unification, etc. But to the casual Spike TV/UFC fan, neither fighter is particularly well known. Also I find it interesting that Rampage's fight title defense is a unification fight against a very good fighter. I do think it'll be great fight and will probably end suddenly with a TKO.
I don't think it's an issue that UFC 75 is so close to UFC 74. Back in June there were several events right in a row that generated a lot of interest/hype. You would think that a free event on Spike would have a big following, especially with Hamill v. Bisping who are well known from TUF.
as always, i appreciate your input, releash. i was wondering if y'all were getting the same impression.
i guess maybe we may have to wait and see when the ratings come back how much of that following tunes in on saturday. i'm guessing it will be a fair amount.
as always, i appreciate your input, releash. i was wondering if y'all were getting the same impression.
i guess maybe we may have to wait and see when the ratings come back how much of that following tunes in on saturday. i'm guessing it will be a fair amount.
countdown show on tonight too.
THANKS for the reminder mookie!! I had completely forgotten about the countdown show.
good countdown show. it was worth it just to hear mirko say "shit happens" when talking about his last fight. i might be leaning back to cro cop in the fight on saturday...don't know what's going to happen, but i'm getting excited thinking about it!
good countdown show. it was worth it just to hear mirko say "shit happens" when talking about his last fight. i might be leaning back to cro cop in the fight on saturday...don't know what's going to happen, but i'm getting excited thinking about it!
dobro! dobro! i knew you'd come back to your senses, mookie!
I don't think it's an issue that UFC 75 is so close to UFC 74. Back in June there were several events right in a row that generated a lot of interest/hype. You would think that a free event on Spike would have a big following, especially with Hamill v. Bisping who are well known from TUF.
i'm not so sure about that.... i was out to dinner with a friend the other night, and i mentioned that UFC 75 was on this saturday, and he said "Really? wasn't one of those things just on?", kinda with a screwy look on his face... i don't think people are expecting there to be two event so close together... and also there hasn't been a lot of advertising... i remember for the Ortiz/Liddel fight a while back, there were posters up everywhere and everything... hmmm.... strange.
~~*~~ ...i surfaced and all of my being was enlightend... ~~*~~
good countdown show. it was worth it just to hear mirko say "shit happens" when talking about his last fight. i might be leaning back to cro cop in the fight on saturday...don't know what's going to happen, but i'm getting excited thinking about it!
I actually didn't think it was that great of a countdown show. I expected more analysis of rampage and henderson. did you see how small Henderson's striking trainer was? I hope he sparring with some guys closer to rampage's size too.
and they kept going over and over mirko's loss to gonzaga. I think it is impt to emphasize how that fight will affect mirko's mental game, but I would have liked to have seen more about his training for this fight. he started training in a cage and working elbows but they didn't cover much else.
how was the coverage of hamill v. bisping? I fell asleep before it came on, although I did see that bisping was training at big bear with rampage.
i'm not so sure about that.... i was out to dinner with a friend the other night, and i mentioned that UFC 75 was on this saturday, and he said "Really? wasn't one of those things just on?", kinda with a screwy look on his face... i don't think people are expecting there to be two event so close together... and also there hasn't been a lot of advertising... i remember for the Ortiz/Liddel fight a while back, there were posters up everywhere and everything... hmmm.... strange.
I guess I could understand confusion if there were two PPV events on so close to each other, but since UFC 75 is free, i'm not complaining. I do agree with you about the advertising though.
I actually didn't think it was that great of a countdown show. I expected more analysis of rampage and henderson. did you see how small Henderson's striking trainer was? I hope he sparring with some guys closer to rampage's size too.
and they kept going over and over mirko's loss to gonzaga. I think it is impt to emphasize how that fight will affect mirko's mental game, but I would have liked to have seen more about his training for this fight. he started training in a cage and working elbows but they didn't cover much else.
how was the coverage of hamill v. bisping? I fell asleep before it came on, although I did see that bisping was training at big bear with rampage.
it was a good countdown show dammit! haha
yeah, dan has the small trainer and quinton has the, shall we say, slighty more rotund trainer in juanito. as far as the bisping and hammill coverage goes, it was mostly about their rivalry on the show and settling who may have come out on top of tuf 3 if matt had been healthy. juanito says they have a surprise for matt, and matt says he plans to take bisping down and ground and pound him. he also opened his own facility.
sokoudjou was one of the guys i saw dan sparring with so he would be a good guy for dan to train with in terms of size, strength, ko power, and he could probabaly mimic quinton's style somewhat.
looks like kongo has gone to train his wrestling, which is a good thing, but i don't think he'll need it too much in this fight. with mirko now training in the cage i'm sure he's developed some circling techniques to escape the larger fighter against the cage. i would have liked to have seen some more of that too. i was happy to hear mirko say that he was done talking about the last fight, but you're right...they harped on it, of course.
looking forward to seeing the reactions for the fighters later on when the weigh-ins are posted.
edit: oops, getting ahead of myself thinking it was friday, and not thursday...
Comments
if i had the cash i would be going to ohio for sure...but montreal is way more do-able for me. that would be awesome if we could all hook up for the show there. georges was right when he said "my people will go crazy". the bell centre will go nuts!!!
i fear for hughes' safety, however, if he beats matt serra and has to go to montreal. he is...how you say...not well liked in quebec.
the speech was awesome. you could tell there was a large contingent of canadian fans there. UFC à Montréal?...mais oui, bien sur!
speaking of GSP, i caught a bit of Unleashed last night and saw his fight with BJ Penn... (ok - i only saw the last round, becuase i 'closed my eyes', just for a sec
GSP en Montréal! je suis tellment excitée!
thanks to releash's reminder, i caught that fight last night. hadn't seen it in a while. i know what you're saying about the way georges looked after that fight. that was the complaint from some of BJ's cornermen...that georges looked the way he did, yet won the split decision.
it was a tough break for georges because he caught a thumb in the eye, followed by an uppercut that just clipped his nose causing it to bleed and as a result georges had breathing problems and was seeing bj in double vision for the remainder of the fight. so bj definitely won the first round, which was mostly striking, but it wasn't as one-sided as some made it out to be in terms of effective strikes landed. georges was forced to turn it into a clinch and control game then and was able to put bj on his back (which is quite a feat in and of itself) twice? in each of the final rounds as well as landing some half decent elbows. they both got very tired and bj tried for a gogoplata submission with a few seconds left, but never really got his position right to lock it in.
anyway, georges won the final two rounds on two judges' scorecards. one of the judges scored the fight for penn
it wasn't a bad fight, but it would have been much more exciting if bj had been in shape and georges hadn't taken the thumb in the eye in the first.
long winded explanation...sorry, ceg.
best. name. ever.
and a pretty cool move too!
BJ is very bendy....
that's ok... i'm used to it... :rolleyes:
you funny.
also, i make you watch match ended with gogplata. now you have to watch two matches! so there!
BABALU FACES DISCIPLINARY HEARING
Friday, August 31, 2007
by Jeff Cain - MMAWeekly.com
Renato “Babalu” Sobral appeared before the Nevada State Athletic Commission this morning seeking the release of his $25,000 win bonus withheld following his UFC 74 submission victory over David Heath where he continued to apply an Anaconda Choke after Heath tapped out and referee Steve Mazzagatti attempted to stop the fight.
NSAC executive director Keith Kizer did not recommend a suspension, but a future disciplinary hearing was set and his win bonus still withheld.
Richard Wilner, Sobral’s manager, spoke on “Babalu’s” behalf. “I’m here to talk briefly about Mr. Sobral and issue my opinion, and as I believe it’s in the commission’s opinion of whether or not Mr. Sobral intentionally held that choke on his opponent, David Heath. The answer, absolutely not,” said Wilner.
“If you study the tape, which I’m sure you have, you may have noticed with approximately 2:32 left in the second round Mr. Sobral looked up at the referee essentially asking him if he was going to stop the fight. Why? Because Mr. Heath was losing a tremendous amount of blood from a cut opened on his head from an elbow strike. Again with 2:18 left, approximately, in the second round Sobral looked up again at the referee essentially asking him to stop the fight. Mr. Heath being a tough and respected opponent was able to get to his feet. That’s when the Anaconda Choke was set in.”
“I saw Mr. Heath tap on the TV screen. I looked back and forth between the cage and the TV screen. When watching the tape, I definitely saw him tap. Speaking with my client, he didn’t feel it which is understandable because Mr. Heath was in a weakened state. The referee tapped Mr. Sobral as well. He didn’t feel that either. When the referee, a split second later, put both hands on Mr. Sobral’s shoulder and shook his shoulder to release the choke, he did immediately.”
Wilner added, “As you know, yesterday it was publically announced that Mr. Sobral was released from his contract with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He’s a father, loving husband, and he’s a professional fighter. He doesn’t have a day job and trains at night. This is the way he makes his living. This is the only way he makes his living. He has been punished enough for this unfortunate event.”
Sobral, who attended the proceedings, addressed the commission. “When he tapped, I didn’t feel it. I then looked to the referee, and he shook my shoulder, and then I let him go. I didn’t understand why this whole thing happened. I’m kind of surprised that it happened, the crowd booing me and stuff like that. I don’t know, maybe it was from the blood. I don’t know. I would like to say sorry to David Heath and the UFC for bringing trouble to my sport that I love a lot. There’s one thing that I know how to do in my life is be a professional fighter. I don’t have like a regular job.”
Wilner then explained, “Prior to this fight, Mr. Sobral had twenty-seven victories. Fourteen of those twenty-seven victories came by way of submission. Never, I repeat, never has he ever been accused of doing what he’s been accused of doing here today.”
Executive director Keith Kizer commented, “I think there was perhaps some intent here despite Mr. Sobral’s denial today, however I don’t think this rises to the level of some of the other things we’ve seen, Mike Tyson biting an ear, of some other attacks...I will not ask and have not asked this commission for any type of suspension. I don’t believe that’s in line, but it may be in line to do some sort of fine.”
The commission moved to hold a formal disciplinary hearing to further review the fight footage and evaluate Sobral’s post-fight comments. His win bonus is still being held until the future hearing where the commission will decided what action to take.
http://www.mmaweekly.com/absolutenm/templates/dailynews.asp?articleid=4611&zoneid=2
It's official ... you do lose your mind after 30.
just kidding mookie!
hahahaha
thanks releash, i needed a laugh just now.
Happy to oblige mookie!!!
lol! don't forget which one of us is doing the driving! i might just kidnap you instead!
gogoplata sounds like something you would order in a (muay) thai restaurant...
:rolleyes: sorry - bad joke.
LMAO! i love the wii!
and i can't even imagine what you had to do to that controller to acheive a jiu-jitsu-cheerleader-chop-thingy... :eek: whatever it was, i'm sure it was hilarious...
BABALU ISSUES STATEMENT FOLLOWING NSAC HEARING
Saturday, September 01, 2007
MMAWeekly.com
Renato "Babalu" Sobral issued the following statement after his initial hearing before the Nevada State Athletic Commission on Friday regarding his actions in a bout with David Heath at UFC 74. In the days after the fight, Sobral was released from his UFC contract.
To My Family, Friends, Fans and Sponsors:
Since UFC 74, I have wanted to speak publicly about my fight with David Heath. I waited to do so, however, out of respect for the Nevada State Athletic Commission, Zuffa, Inc. and Dana White. After all, it is their efforts that have legitimized Mixed Martial Arts in the sports world and I realize that my conduct has unintentionally hindered those efforts. For that, among other things, I am deeply sorry.
I have been fighting professionally since 1998. Prior to my fight with David Heath, my professional record was twenty-seven wins with seven losses. Fourteen of my victories came by way of submission. Not once was I ever accused of holding a choke or submission too long. If anything, there has always been and continues to be a great camaraderie between my opponents and I after the fight.
Being a professional mixed martial artist is more than a career to me. It is my livelihood and my way of life. Consequently, I am deeply sorry for any embarrassment that has been brought upon the sport, other mixed martial artists (especially David Heath), my Academy and most importantly, my family.
As if the embarrassment were not enough, my actions during the fight with David and my comments afterwards, have already resulted in severe financial loss to my family because as you know, in addition to my win bonus still being withheld, yesterday I was released from my contract with the UFC.
There has been much talk about things that may have been said to me by David Heath at the weigh-in. What David said to me at the weigh-in didn’t matter then and doesn’t matter now. What matters are my comments after the fight. And, regardless of what you may read by so called MMA experts on the internet, I never said that I purposefully choked-out David Heath. In short, my post-fight comments, while inappropriate, were not intended to be comments about the choke. Rather, they were intended to be comments about the aggressive performance that I put in.
I did not intentionally choke out David Heath. The first that I realized that David had tapped was when people told me that he did after the fight. When I finally had the chance to view the tape, I see that he did. When David tapped, I did not feel it. I wish I did for I would have let it go. Instead, I continued to hold it. Not because I was upset or wanted him to lose consciousness. I held it because I didn’t know he tapped and I was intent on winning the fight. Holding on to a choke a little long is not an uncommon mistake made in training, and never in my career have I witnessed or heard of an injury resulting from it.
When I had the choke, I was not looking the referee in the eyes as one commentator erroneously observed. Nor did I hear the referee issue any verbal command to release the hold. Instead, my head was down to strengthen the move and my eyes closed with focus. As a result, I did not feel the referee tap me the first time either. It was not until he put his hands on my right shoulder that I felt him trying to separate us. When I felt this, I immediately released the choke.
After [Friday's] hearing [with the Nevada State Athletic Commission] I traveled to the UFC’s office to meet with Dana White. Contrary to recent reports in the media, this meeting was not to discuss my being released from the UFC. In fact, this meeting was arranged prior to my even being released from the contract. The purpose of the meeting was for me to personally apologize to Dana while at the same time thank him for all the opportunities that the UFC has given to my family and I. Unfortunately, I was unable to meet with Dana due to a calendaring error Nevertheless, thanks Dana and my apologies.
I am a professional fighter. This is what I do for a living. I do not hold a day job and then train at night to fight. I know nothing else but how to fight. This is how I support my family.
On behalf of my family and friends, I appreciate the support that you have given me over the years, not to mention in the recent week, and I am hopeful that I will have the opportunity to fight again in the State of Nevada.
Thank you.
RENATO 'BABALU' SOBRAL
http://www.mmaweekly.com/absolutenm/templates/dailynews.asp?articleid=4617&zoneid=13
it sounds like a line from a movie.
LOVE the wii!! it is a fantastic waste of time but so much fun. they should have wii ufc!!!
my friend was mad cause I beat him at wii boxing . . . and he gives me a hard time because I used to be a cheerleader.
crap... now i feel bad for the guy...
maybe releas(h)ing
Quinton Jackson Vs. Dan Henderson - tough one, Rampage has been in their with the best and dominated, but he has a lot of holes defensively, though he can also take a lot of punishment, but Dan Henderson is the man, have to go with Dan.
Mirko Cro Cop Vs. Cheick Kongo - I love Kongo's potential, he's physically a beast, but got to go with Mirko, especially after being devastated his last fight. Would love to see Kongo become a dominant fighter, but he's pretty raw now, though hopefully we'll see some new skills and techniques from him here while he try's to survive.
Michael Bisping Vs. Matt Hamill - Bisping has to be a huge favorite, but Hamill is a sponge, and has really shown improvement, but I'm sticking with Bisping in the UK. Actually wouldn't mind seeing Matt win here though.
Alessio Sakara Vs. Houston Alexander - Houston by some type of stoppage
Marcus Davis Vs. Paul Taylor - I'm expecting a great fight here, hmm Davis' experience or the home country kid...sticking with Davis in this fight.
Pre-lims:
Thiago Silva Vs. Tomasz Drwal - Silva
Gleison Tibau Vs. Terry Etim - Etim
Jess Liaudin Vs. Anthony Torres - Torres
Dennis Siver Vs. Naoyuki Kotani - Kotani
All in all, hope the UFC/Pride Champion vs Champion fights continue with several a year. I think Pride has 3 or 4 of the best fighters in the world, but the UFC has greater depth, and soem of the top fighters in the world also.
Stop by:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=14678777351&ref=mf
so much good MMA this month!
anyway, "The Life of a Pro Fighter" - Roger Hollett, Victor Valimaki
http://www2.sportsnet.ca/video/mma/20070829_The_life_of_a_pro_fighter
edit: there are also plenty of good interviews, previews and fight highlights if you scroll through the videos. pretty decent UFC and CDN MMA coverage from sportsnet. good to see.
cool video, as always, mook!
but of course i had to watch the video of georges, too!
here's a new GSP-ism for us!
"I want to tank all the fan that stick to me..."
...but, of course! i was surprised at how many interviews they had on their site. i knew they were covering quite a bit more on sportsnet connected, but there is the MMA section of videos on the site i was not expecting to see.
i didn't catch that GSP-ism, so "tanks" for pointing 'dis ting out.
i wonder if UFC 74 and 75 being so close together has anything to do with it? could it be that after all the years of the complaining from fans about not having a true undisputed champion is being laid to rest in one weight division, and that since sometimes people like the focus on the negative more than the positive, they're just not talking about it as much?
anyone have any thoughts? it could turn out to be a quick fight, a boring fight, but they match up so well that it should have all the makings of a very good fight and one that will show who is the LHW champion of the world. it's hard to see how it won't be a memorable match.
did i ask enough questions in this post?
I agree with you that there has not been much hype to Rampage v. Henderson. At least nothing like there was for Liddell v. Rampage or Couture v. Gonzaga. Obviously to the devoted mma fan, Rampage and Henderson is a pretty big fight ... great match up, unification, etc. But to the casual Spike TV/UFC fan, neither fighter is particularly well known. Also I find it interesting that Rampage's fight title defense is a unification fight against a very good fighter. I do think it'll be great fight and will probably end suddenly with a TKO.
I don't think it's an issue that UFC 75 is so close to UFC 74. Back in June there were several events right in a row that generated a lot of interest/hype. You would think that a free event on Spike would have a big following, especially with Hamill v. Bisping who are well known from TUF.
as always, i appreciate your input, releash.
i guess maybe we may have to wait and see when the ratings come back how much of that following tunes in on saturday. i'm guessing it will be a fair amount.
countdown show on tonight too.
THANKS for the reminder mookie!! I had completely forgotten about the countdown show.
dobro! dobro! i knew you'd come back to your senses, mookie!
i'm not so sure about that.... i was out to dinner with a friend the other night, and i mentioned that UFC 75 was on this saturday, and he said "Really? wasn't one of those things just on?", kinda with a screwy look on his face...
I actually didn't think it was that great of a countdown show. I expected more analysis of rampage and henderson. did you see how small Henderson's striking trainer was? I hope he sparring with some guys closer to rampage's size too.
and they kept going over and over mirko's loss to gonzaga. I think it is impt to emphasize how that fight will affect mirko's mental game, but I would have liked to have seen more about his training for this fight. he started training in a cage and working elbows but they didn't cover much else.
how was the coverage of hamill v. bisping? I fell asleep before it came on, although I did see that bisping was training at big bear with rampage.
it was a good countdown show dammit!
yeah, dan has the small trainer and quinton has the, shall we say, slighty more rotund trainer in juanito.
sokoudjou was one of the guys i saw dan sparring with so he would be a good guy for dan to train with in terms of size, strength, ko power, and he could probabaly mimic quinton's style somewhat.
looks like kongo has gone to train his wrestling, which is a good thing, but i don't think he'll need it too much in this fight. with mirko now training in the cage i'm sure he's developed some circling techniques to escape the larger fighter against the cage. i would have liked to have seen some more of that too. i was happy to hear mirko say that he was done talking about the last fight, but you're right...they harped on it, of course.
looking forward to seeing the reactions for the fighters later on when the weigh-ins are posted.
edit: oops, getting ahead of myself thinking it was friday, and not thursday...