so i guess that rules him out as well. now i'm at a loss.
edit: unless someone gets moved. this wouldn't be a bad one to break up...ask wilson to wait for a month, he just had the ko win over jason lambert in the UK, and he does have the winning streak you mentioned, leafs. it's reljic's first fight in the ufc, so it's not a huge fight and one that could be taken by someone on short notice. just my wild speculation!
looks like rashad evans will be shogun's replacment. kind of a raw deal for thiago silva, as the fight against rashad would have been big for him.
EVANS STEPS IN TO FACE LIDDELL
Thursday, March 06, 2008
by Damon Martin - MMAWeekly.com
“The Ultimate Fighter” season two winner Rashad Evans has signed to face Chuck Liddell in the main event of the upcoming Ultimate Fighting Championship show on June 7 in London. MMAWeekly.com confirmed the bout late Wednesday.
Liddell was slated to face former Pride champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, but the Brazilian had to drop out do to a recurring knee injury that will require surgery.
Evans has long been rumored to face Brazilian light heavyweight Thiago Silva as a part of the May 24 card featuring B.J. Penn vs. Sean Sherk in the main event, but will instead step in to take Rua’s place.
Liddell is coming off of one of the biggest wins of his career, a unanimous decision over Wanderlei Silva at UFC 79.
After fighting to a draw with Tito Ortiz at UFC 73, Evans returned to headline UFC 78 in New Jersey edging out a split decision win over England’s Michael Bisping.
this is a bit of a surprise. we'll have to wait and see what happens, i guess.
COUTURE/EMELIANENKO FIGHT A POSSIBILITY?
by Ryan Hockensmith
Don't consider a UFC fight between Fedor Emelianenko and Randy Couture dead just yet.
With Couture embroiled in a nasty legal dispute with the UFC and Emelianenko tied to M-1 Global's MMA franchise, the heavyweight dream matchup has long seemed to be the world's best bout that would never happen.
Now it could. Apy Echteld, one of Emelianenko's agents, confirmed what a source close to the situation previously told The Magazine: M-1 Global and Emelianenko will part ways some time in the next week, making the Russian a free agent. Divorce negotiations are ongoing right now, with a formal announcement likely for in the next few days. "Officially, yes, Fedor will be a free agent," Echteld says.
Of course, the UFC would have to be willing to re-open negotiations with Emelianenko's management. Previous talks dragged on for almost a year before falling apart amid plenty of name-calling and finger-pointing from both sides. UFC president Dana White was vocal in pinning the blame on Emelianenko's team, saying he never once spoke or met with the fighter. Would the head of the UFC be willing to enter the Fedor fray again? "Absolutely, 100 percent, in a heartbeat," says White. "People think he's the best—I don't, not even close. But if it's somehow possible, I would make it happen."
Reached on Thursday, Echteld was caught off-guard when told that White would be willing to revisit last year's stalemate. But he echoed the UFC's willingness to talk and vowed to speak with White as soon as possible. "We're open to a discussion," says Echteld. "If everybody is willing to put a little wine in the water, then we have something to work with. There is space for this to happen."
A fight involving Emelianenko and Couture would also require considerable fence-mending between Couture and the UFC. Couture has cited the UFC's inability to sign Emelianenko as a key reason for his sudden retirement. And now the two sides are locked in a bitter, months-long battle about the duration and terms of Couture's UFC deal. Over the past month, the situation has seemed to only be deteriorating. That could change if Emelianenko becomes available.
"I like Randy, I genuinely like to think he's a good guy," White says. "As much as we've gone back and forth on this, I would sign Fedor and do everything possible to get Randy in the octagon with him. I'd do anything, because a., it's a great fight and b., I think Randy would smash Fedor."
Through his spokesman, Couture declined to comment.
looks like rashad evans will be shogun's replacment. kind of a raw deal for thiago silva, as the fight against rashad would have been big for him.
EVANS STEPS IN TO FACE LIDDELL
Thursday, March 06, 2008
by Damon Martin - MMAWeekly.com
“The Ultimate Fighter” season two winner Rashad Evans has signed to face Chuck Liddell in the main event of the upcoming Ultimate Fighting Championship show on June 7 in London. MMAWeekly.com confirmed the bout late Wednesday.
Liddell was slated to face former Pride champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, but the Brazilian had to drop out do to a recurring knee injury that will require surgery.
Evans has long been rumored to face Brazilian light heavyweight Thiago Silva as a part of the May 24 card featuring B.J. Penn vs. Sean Sherk in the main event, but will instead step in to take Rua’s place.
Liddell is coming off of one of the biggest wins of his career, a unanimous decision over Wanderlei Silva at UFC 79.
After fighting to a draw with Tito Ortiz at UFC 73, Evans returned to headline UFC 78 in New Jersey edging out a split decision win over England’s Michael Bisping.
I am not a Chuck or Rashad fan, but I think this will be a pretty good fight. Rashad has some slick moves and isn't that easy to hit. I'm not sure if Rashad will get Chuck down to the mat however, so it will be entertaining.
I'm not a rashad fan, so i'm pretty happy with another win for chuck and finally an official loss for evans.
Really i would have prefered either Wandy or Jardine if they were going to pull a fighter from another fight. Then have the other one of them go up against Evans and move Gouveia in to fight Thiago (which is what i hope they do now).
But i hope that this doesn't stay as the main event, i'd love to have the Randy/Fedor fight arranged in the next 3 weeks, which would leave them 2 months to train lol. I know i'm dreaming, but it'd be awsome.
"I'll ride the wave where it takes me"
09/19/05, 05/09/06, 05/10/06
I'm not a rashad fan, so i'm pretty happy with another win for chuck and finally an official loss for evans.
Really i would have prefered either Wandy or Jardine if they were going to pull a fighter from another fight. Then have the other one of them go up against Evans and move Gouveia in to fight Thiago (which is what i hope they do now).
But i hope that this doesn't stay as the main event, i'd love to have the Randy/Fedor fight arranged in the next 3 weeks, which would leave them 2 months to train lol. I know i'm dreaming, but it'd be awsome.
gouveia vs. silva! i was thinking the exact same thing. i was surprised they broke up a pretty big fight rather than going with gouveia simply because he was facing the newcomer. i think gouveia would have presented many of the problems to chuck that keith jardine did, however, and maybe that's why they asked evans instead.
we can dream on the randy and fedor fight. you never know...maybe all parties involved will get tired tired of all the lawsuits, petty words, and nonsense that has gone on and we'll get to see it.
I am not a Chuck or Rashad fan, but I think this will be a pretty good fight. Rashad has some slick moves and isn't that easy to hit. I'm not sure if Rashad will get Chuck down to the mat however, so it will be entertaining.
do you think it will be similar to the chuck and tito fights, lbc? not trying to take a dig at tito he fought well in the second fight and we all know about the eye poke in the first. there are some similarities between rashad and tito's styles, so if it turns out to be like tito's second showing against chuck it could end up being a good one.
UFC.com finally confirms herman vs. maia (maia!! ) to complete the montreal card with eleven matches.
03/10/2008
Herman vs Maia completes UFC 83 card
By Thomas Gerbasi
Middleweight up and comer Ed Herman will look to follow up on the biggest win of his career on April 19th when he takes on unbeaten grappling wizard Demian Maia in a bout that completes UFC 83’s 11 bout card.
A finalist from season three of The Ultimate Fighter, Ed “Short Fuse” Herman (16-4), was defeated by submission in his first post-TUF3 bout by Jason MacDonald in October of 2006, but since then the 27-year old Oregonian has been on an impressive tear, submitting Chris Price and Scott Smith in successive bouts before scoring the first knockout win of his career over Joe Doerksen at UFC 78 last November, a win that avenged an earlier loss to the Canadian.
Unbeaten in seven pro MMA bouts, Sao Paulo, Brazil’s Demian Maia is a decorated grappler with a Pan American, an Abu Dhabi, two world, and three world cup championships to his name. He has continued his success in the MMA world, and last October he made a successful UFC debut when he submitted Ryan Jensen in the first round.
Headlined by the highly-anticipated welterweight title rematch between Matt Serra and Georges St-Pierre, as well as middleweight bouts between Rich Franklin and Travis Lutter, and Michael Bisping and Charles McCarthy, UFC 83 is sold out. The only way to see the show will be on pay-per-view beginning at 10pm ET.
man this card looks great for montreal, herman/maia will be a war. I'm a fan of both these fights so it's great for me.
Also i just found out that we aren't getting what we wanted mookie...
Thiago Silva (Pictures) will look to continue his run towards the UFC light heavyweight title against Antonio Mendes, Sherdog.com learned Monday.
Silva (12-0-0) was originally slated to face Rashad Evans (Pictures) on the Memorial Day weekend card in Las Vegas. That fight was scrapped when Evans accepted a June 7 tilt against Chuck Liddell (Pictures) after Mauricio Rua (Pictures) withdrew because of a significant knee injury.
The highly regarded 25-year-old Brazilian will look to keep his flawless record intact against a lesser-known commodity in Mendes (14-2-0).
Fighting out of the Europe Top Team came, Mendes, a 26-year-old from Fortaleza, Brazil, ran off nine consecutive victories in 2007. This will be his UFC debut.
i did a bit of research on this guy and he looks pretty good. He hasn't lost since 2004 but in his last fight (in M1) he was apparently losing until the other fighter got a cut and the fight had to be stopped.
"I'll ride the wave where it takes me"
09/19/05, 05/09/06, 05/10/06
yeah, it would have been nice to see silva vs. gouveia, but it's always good to see some new faces too. mendes sounds like a good opponent, and two young brazilians with promise matching up could prove to be very entertaining. not to say that the same couldn't be said of silva and gouveia, but maybe we'll get to see that one down the road sometime.
do you think it will be similar to the chuck and tito fights, lbc? not trying to take a dig at tito he fought well in the second fight and we all know about the eye poke in the first. there are some similarities between rashad and tito's styles, so if it turns out to be like tito's second showing against chuck it could end up being a good one.
I hate to say it, but I think Chuck will win. Just like your saying Mook, Tito and Rashad are similar so it will be tough for Evans to pull it off.
March 12, 2008
by Josh Gross (<!-- e --><a href="mailto:joshg@sherdog.com">joshg@sherdog.com</a><!-- e -->)
Rising off the deck, Anderson Silva's invincibility felt imperiled.
With scorecards reflecting Silva's first dropped round since joining the UFC, the Brazilian stalker stood opposite Dan Henderson (Pictures), as real a test as there is at 185 pounds, taking the advice of trainers with the attitude of someone meandering his way through a stick of gum.
Perhaps it's simple to maintain poise when truth has revealed no one can mess with you. Not right now, at least.
Henderson, some said, was the fighter to derail Silva's impressive run. It didn't happen because, as the UFC champ sees it, he was just better.
"He really wasn't able to do anything once he took me down, and that's what everybody was saying," Silva told Sherdog.com days after his title defense in Columbus, Ohio. "Standing up I picked him apart. I feel every part of my game was effective in this fight."
Arguably the best striker in MMA, Silva's length makes fighting against him as fun as running wind sprints. With an affinity for walking through guys named Franklin and Henderson and everyone else, it's difficult to put into terms what more Silva could do at this point outside of remaining dominant against all comers.
"I don't think there's really anything else for him to prove," suggested Silva's manager, Ed Soares. "They say well, he's never fought a jiu-jitsu guy. He goes out and submits Travis Lutter (Pictures). They say that he's never fought a wrestler. Well Nate Marquardt was supposedly the superior wrestler. He out-wrestled Nate Marquardt. Now he wrestled a two-time Greco-Roman Olympic guy in Dan Henderson. I don't really think there's anything else out there for him to prove, man."
Soares' analysis supports what most believe: Silva belongs atop mixed martial arts' pound-for-pound lists. Accolades have filled media columns since his latest win, yet the 6-foot-2 Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt brushes them away like recent challengers.
Asked if the soft-spoken 32-year-old champion from Curitiba, Brazil, feels he is the best in the sport right now, Soares, who acts as Silva's full-time interpreter, interjected. The question had been asked enough and he didn't want to bother his fighter for an answer:
"He doesn't consider himself the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world and he feels that the only time he'll be able to consider himself the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world is after he's retired."
Against Henderson it was thought the strong but slender Silva could be bullied into the fence, where he'd grapple one of the grittiest fighters in MMA instead of creating room to employ what UFC color commentator Joe Rogan aptly dubbed a "ballet of violence."
The American's constant threat of takedowns never really materialized. And even when Silva, now 21-4, was tossed to the canvas, his extended frame made it difficult for Henderson to muster a meaningful offense. The round ended and so, it turned out, did Henderson's chances for victory.
Searching for answers as to why Silva has made great fighters look mediocre since joining the UFC middleweight ranks in 2006, some have looked to the Brazilian's ability to hit and hurt. Already one of the most accurate fighters in the business, Silva seems to have dialed in his power.
Chris Leben (Pictures)'s thrashing was instigated by a handful of punches. Right hands from the southpaw ruined Marquardt's shot. Franklin twice waded through strikes to get his face rearranged by knees in the Thai clinch. And though he didn't seem to possess much in the way of leverage, Silva's punches scrambled Henderson to the point that he was forced to submit for the first time in his career to a choke.
Silva doesn't see the favorable results as simply a matter of finding more pop. In reality, he said, there hasn't been a noticeable improvement in that area of his game; perhaps it's one of the things he still feels he needs to work on.
The reason for his devastating success?
"I just feel that I'm watching my opponents and taking advantage of the opportunity much better than I did before," Silva says.
Too bad for a thinning lot of UFC challengers. Silva has already cleaned out the division to the point that he has made headlines recently by calling out Roy Jones Jr.
"All these boxers out there talking s--- how MMA fighters aren't technical, well he's willing to step up and fight them in their own game," says Soares, who notes that the idea to challenge the aging Jones was the UFC champ's. "So, if anything, he's not trying to say there's nothing to prove in MMA; he's trying to plant a flag for every one of the fighters out there in the world that fight MMA."
Could Silva even get Jones? Locked in a UFC deal, Soares said that would be up to Dana White, but if they had their way the fight would get made.
"I think he's a great boxer, one of the greatest boxers to ever box," Silva says of Jones. "I would love the opportunity to test my skills against him."
Yet Yushin Okami (Pictures) is a much more realistic candidate to be Silva's next opposition. The Japanese middleweight is 6-1 in the UFC and scored a disqualification win over the UFC titleholder in January 2006.
Silva's tone regarding the DQ versus Okami in Rumble on the Rock's 175-pound tournament suggests he is, at the least, vexed.
In their short time together, Silva flowed in the cage, shifting angles and closing distance at will. Okami, showing no desire to stand and trade, made no real effort to bring the bout to the floor, though he finally put it there and sat high in Silva's closed guard.
Scoring his only effective strikes of the fight, Okami looked comfortable on top, though as he'd learn moments later, there aren't any resting positions against Silva.
Swinging one of his king crab legs pasts Okami's arms, Silva planted the bottom of his right foot on the Japanese fighter's face. Okami fell back, obviously hurt. He would have taken more punishment had referee Troy Mandaloniz (Pictures) not held Silva back.
Okami was given every chance to recover, though even if he'd been lucid the disqualification still could have been warranted.
"The Spider" doesn't see it that way.
"I feel it was a cheap, cowardly way of winning," a pointed Silva says more than two years after the scrap. "People that were there saw that he was in the condition to come back and keep fighting, and he didn't."
Silva says he doesn't "really think much of anything of Okami," but the Brazilian was more poised when stuck under Henderson than he is when discussing the Japanese fighter.
"It wasn't really a fight," Silva describes the disqualification loss before adding that he doesn't want to talk about it anymore.
Judging by how Silva treats opponents he likes, such as Rich Franklin (Pictures), Okami should be careful. He is a quality contender and could provide an intriguing matchup for the UFC middleweight champ, but he may also find out just what Silva fights like when he's angry.
I hate to say it, but I think Chuck will win. Just like your saying Mook, Tito and Rashad are similar so it will be tough for Evans to pull it off.
i think i'm picking chuck in this one as well. it just seems to me that it will look a bit like chuck's matches with tito. good fight, but ultimately too tough to bring chuck down and get him out of his gameplan.
...i am picking tito over machida, though!
edit: thanks for the silva article too. i would imagine he's anxious to beat okami. he went apeshit during the first fight, and it sounds like he is still none too happy. i don't like okami's chances in the rematch.
ya i have to agree with you mookie about okami/silva... i really don't see okami standing a chance against silva.
I disagree with the tito/machida fight though. I'm a pretty big tito fan and hope he wins, but there is just something about michida that makes me think he'll pull out this victory.
"I'll ride the wave where it takes me"
09/19/05, 05/09/06, 05/10/06
I'd pick Silva over Okami ... definitely. I think Tito vs. Machida would be harder to call, but I would go with Tito. I haven't been particularly impressed with Machida.
ps My passport came in the mail today!!!! I'm all set for Montreal!!
I'd pick Silva over Okami ... definitely. I think Tito vs. Machida would be harder to call, but I would go with Tito. I haven't been particularly impressed with Machida.
ps My passport came in the mail today!!!! I'm all set for Montreal!!
YAY!!!
hmmm.... i'd better go pick up the tickets one of these days, eh?
~~*~~ ...i surfaced and all of my being was enlightend... ~~*~~
I'd pick Silva over Okami ... definitely. I think Tito vs. Machida would be harder to call, but I would go with Tito. I haven't been particularly impressed with Machida.
ps My passport came in the mail today!!!! I'm all set for Montreal!!
rock on releash! getting close to the month countdown...:)
an awesome group of LW's have been assembled for the first DREAM show in Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan on saturday...unfortunately it's not being broadcast in north america, so i hope to catch it on a replay or torrent.
the UFC fight night coming up is almost as deep in talent at LW (maybe even just as deep), and the two put together in such a short period of time is good news for those of us who enjoy the LW's!
also, mirko cro cop makes his return to japan!
as is often the case in japan, some of the participants were only announced in the last couple of days and minowa still has no opponent. rumours are that nakao will not be cro cop's opponent too.
(edit: sure enough, cro cop's opponent is now Tatsuya Mizuno and minowa's opponent may be Lee Gwan)
DREAM 1: March 15, 2008 - Saitama Super Arena, Saitama, Japan
Non-Tournament bouts:
Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic Vs. Tatsuya Mizuno
Hidetaka Monma Vs. Hayato Sakurai
Ikuhisa Minowa Vs. Lee Gwan
LW Tournament, Round One:
Shinya Aoki Vs. Gesias "JZ" Calvancante
Kultar Gill Vs. Tatsuya Kawajiri
Andre Amade Vs. Eddie Alvarez
Mitsuhiro Ishida Vs. Jung Bu-Kyung
Koutetsu Boku Vs. Joachim Hansen
Katsuhiko Nagata Vs. Artur Oumakhanov
Luiz Firmino Vs. Kazuyuki Miyata
boo ya! i haven't seen the results yet, and just finished downloading the dream 1 show!
can't wait to watch it...took a quick peek and i see that genki sudo and tsuyoshi kohsaka are doing guest commentary. i just wish i knew what they were saying. maybe by the end of the show i will...
"...something in japanese, left high kick!, something in japanese..."
it looks a lot like the pride shows, well pretty much exactly like the pride shows.
can't wait to watch the LW tournament round one, and miiiirrrrrrakoooooooo carrrrrrroooooooooo cooooooppa!!!
I might be able to help you a little with the translation, although I don't remember a whole lot from my high school Japanese. We definitely didn't cover any mma terms!
Comments
Goran Reljic Vs. Wilson Gouveia at UFC 84
so i guess that rules him out as well. now i'm at a loss.
edit: unless someone gets moved. this wouldn't be a bad one to break up...ask wilson to wait for a month, he just had the ko win over jason lambert in the UK, and he does have the winning streak you mentioned, leafs. it's reljic's first fight in the ufc, so it's not a huge fight and one that could be taken by someone on short notice. just my wild speculation!
This was a great uplifting emotional story. Evan might have lost the fight, but he is winning the war. Bless him on getting his life back.
EVANS STEPS IN TO FACE LIDDELL
Thursday, March 06, 2008
by Damon Martin - MMAWeekly.com
“The Ultimate Fighter” season two winner Rashad Evans has signed to face Chuck Liddell in the main event of the upcoming Ultimate Fighting Championship show on June 7 in London. MMAWeekly.com confirmed the bout late Wednesday.
Liddell was slated to face former Pride champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, but the Brazilian had to drop out do to a recurring knee injury that will require surgery.
Evans has long been rumored to face Brazilian light heavyweight Thiago Silva as a part of the May 24 card featuring B.J. Penn vs. Sean Sherk in the main event, but will instead step in to take Rua’s place.
Liddell is coming off of one of the biggest wins of his career, a unanimous decision over Wanderlei Silva at UFC 79.
After fighting to a draw with Tito Ortiz at UFC 73, Evans returned to headline UFC 78 in New Jersey edging out a split decision win over England’s Michael Bisping.
http://www.mmaweekly.com/absolutenm/templates/dailynews.asp?articleid=5841&zoneid=2
right on. thanks for taking a look, lbc.
COUTURE/EMELIANENKO FIGHT A POSSIBILITY?
by Ryan Hockensmith
Don't consider a UFC fight between Fedor Emelianenko and Randy Couture dead just yet.
With Couture embroiled in a nasty legal dispute with the UFC and Emelianenko tied to M-1 Global's MMA franchise, the heavyweight dream matchup has long seemed to be the world's best bout that would never happen.
Now it could. Apy Echteld, one of Emelianenko's agents, confirmed what a source close to the situation previously told The Magazine: M-1 Global and Emelianenko will part ways some time in the next week, making the Russian a free agent. Divorce negotiations are ongoing right now, with a formal announcement likely for in the next few days. "Officially, yes, Fedor will be a free agent," Echteld says.
Of course, the UFC would have to be willing to re-open negotiations with Emelianenko's management. Previous talks dragged on for almost a year before falling apart amid plenty of name-calling and finger-pointing from both sides. UFC president Dana White was vocal in pinning the blame on Emelianenko's team, saying he never once spoke or met with the fighter. Would the head of the UFC be willing to enter the Fedor fray again? "Absolutely, 100 percent, in a heartbeat," says White. "People think he's the best—I don't, not even close. But if it's somehow possible, I would make it happen."
Reached on Thursday, Echteld was caught off-guard when told that White would be willing to revisit last year's stalemate. But he echoed the UFC's willingness to talk and vowed to speak with White as soon as possible. "We're open to a discussion," says Echteld. "If everybody is willing to put a little wine in the water, then we have something to work with. There is space for this to happen."
A fight involving Emelianenko and Couture would also require considerable fence-mending between Couture and the UFC. Couture has cited the UFC's inability to sign Emelianenko as a key reason for his sudden retirement. And now the two sides are locked in a bitter, months-long battle about the duration and terms of Couture's UFC deal. Over the past month, the situation has seemed to only be deteriorating. That could change if Emelianenko becomes available.
"I like Randy, I genuinely like to think he's a good guy," White says. "As much as we've gone back and forth on this, I would sign Fedor and do everything possible to get Randy in the octagon with him. I'd do anything, because a., it's a great fight and b., I think Randy would smash Fedor."
Through his spokesman, Couture declined to comment.
http://sports.espn.go.com/espnmag/story?id=3280383
I am not a Chuck or Rashad fan, but I think this will be a pretty good fight. Rashad has some slick moves and isn't that easy to hit. I'm not sure if Rashad will get Chuck down to the mat however, so it will be entertaining.
Really i would have prefered either Wandy or Jardine if they were going to pull a fighter from another fight. Then have the other one of them go up against Evans and move Gouveia in to fight Thiago (which is what i hope they do now).
But i hope that this doesn't stay as the main event, i'd love to have the Randy/Fedor fight arranged in the next 3 weeks, which would leave them 2 months to train lol. I know i'm dreaming, but it'd be awsome.
09/19/05, 05/09/06, 05/10/06
gouveia vs. silva!
we can dream on the randy and fedor fight.
do you think it will be similar to the chuck and tito fights, lbc? not trying to take a dig at tito
i know! craziness! it will be here before we know it.
03/10/2008
Herman vs Maia completes UFC 83 card
By Thomas Gerbasi
Middleweight up and comer Ed Herman will look to follow up on the biggest win of his career on April 19th when he takes on unbeaten grappling wizard Demian Maia in a bout that completes UFC 83’s 11 bout card.
A finalist from season three of The Ultimate Fighter, Ed “Short Fuse” Herman (16-4), was defeated by submission in his first post-TUF3 bout by Jason MacDonald in October of 2006, but since then the 27-year old Oregonian has been on an impressive tear, submitting Chris Price and Scott Smith in successive bouts before scoring the first knockout win of his career over Joe Doerksen at UFC 78 last November, a win that avenged an earlier loss to the Canadian.
Unbeaten in seven pro MMA bouts, Sao Paulo, Brazil’s Demian Maia is a decorated grappler with a Pan American, an Abu Dhabi, two world, and three world cup championships to his name. He has continued his success in the MMA world, and last October he made a successful UFC debut when he submitted Ryan Jensen in the first round.
Headlined by the highly-anticipated welterweight title rematch between Matt Serra and Georges St-Pierre, as well as middleweight bouts between Rich Franklin and Travis Lutter, and Michael Bisping and Charles McCarthy, UFC 83 is sold out. The only way to see the show will be on pay-per-view beginning at 10pm ET.
http://www.ufc.com/index.cfm?fa=news.detail&gid=10729
Also i just found out that we aren't getting what we wanted mookie...
Thiago Silva (Pictures) will look to continue his run towards the UFC light heavyweight title against Antonio Mendes, Sherdog.com learned Monday.
Silva (12-0-0) was originally slated to face Rashad Evans (Pictures) on the Memorial Day weekend card in Las Vegas. That fight was scrapped when Evans accepted a June 7 tilt against Chuck Liddell (Pictures) after Mauricio Rua (Pictures) withdrew because of a significant knee injury.
The highly regarded 25-year-old Brazilian will look to keep his flawless record intact against a lesser-known commodity in Mendes (14-2-0).
Fighting out of the Europe Top Team came, Mendes, a 26-year-old from Fortaleza, Brazil, ran off nine consecutive victories in 2007. This will be his UFC debut.
http://www.sherdog.com/news/news.asp?n_id=11742
i did a bit of research on this guy and he looks pretty good. He hasn't lost since 2004 but in his last fight (in M1) he was apparently losing until the other fighter got a cut and the fight had to be stopped.
09/19/05, 05/09/06, 05/10/06
yeah, it would have been nice to see silva vs. gouveia, but it's always good to see some new faces too. mendes sounds like a good opponent, and two young brazilians with promise matching up could prove to be very entertaining. not to say that the same couldn't be said of silva and gouveia, but maybe we'll get to see that one down the road sometime.
oh, p.s. easy win for maia!
I hate to say it, but I think Chuck will win. Just like your saying Mook, Tito and Rashad are similar so it will be tough for Evans to pull it off.
I did watch his last fight on the biggest tv ever... it was just insane..
Hope i'll get a free ticket from the job.
March 12, 2008
by Josh Gross (<!-- e --><a href="mailto:joshg@sherdog.com">joshg@sherdog.com</a><!-- e -->)
Rising off the deck, Anderson Silva's invincibility felt imperiled.
With scorecards reflecting Silva's first dropped round since joining the UFC, the Brazilian stalker stood opposite Dan Henderson (Pictures), as real a test as there is at 185 pounds, taking the advice of trainers with the attitude of someone meandering his way through a stick of gum.
Perhaps it's simple to maintain poise when truth has revealed no one can mess with you. Not right now, at least.
Henderson, some said, was the fighter to derail Silva's impressive run. It didn't happen because, as the UFC champ sees it, he was just better.
"He really wasn't able to do anything once he took me down, and that's what everybody was saying," Silva told Sherdog.com days after his title defense in Columbus, Ohio. "Standing up I picked him apart. I feel every part of my game was effective in this fight."
Arguably the best striker in MMA, Silva's length makes fighting against him as fun as running wind sprints. With an affinity for walking through guys named Franklin and Henderson and everyone else, it's difficult to put into terms what more Silva could do at this point outside of remaining dominant against all comers.
"I don't think there's really anything else for him to prove," suggested Silva's manager, Ed Soares. "They say well, he's never fought a jiu-jitsu guy. He goes out and submits Travis Lutter (Pictures). They say that he's never fought a wrestler. Well Nate Marquardt was supposedly the superior wrestler. He out-wrestled Nate Marquardt. Now he wrestled a two-time Greco-Roman Olympic guy in Dan Henderson. I don't really think there's anything else out there for him to prove, man."
Soares' analysis supports what most believe: Silva belongs atop mixed martial arts' pound-for-pound lists. Accolades have filled media columns since his latest win, yet the 6-foot-2 Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt brushes them away like recent challengers.
Asked if the soft-spoken 32-year-old champion from Curitiba, Brazil, feels he is the best in the sport right now, Soares, who acts as Silva's full-time interpreter, interjected. The question had been asked enough and he didn't want to bother his fighter for an answer:
"He doesn't consider himself the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world and he feels that the only time he'll be able to consider himself the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world is after he's retired."
Against Henderson it was thought the strong but slender Silva could be bullied into the fence, where he'd grapple one of the grittiest fighters in MMA instead of creating room to employ what UFC color commentator Joe Rogan aptly dubbed a "ballet of violence."
The American's constant threat of takedowns never really materialized. And even when Silva, now 21-4, was tossed to the canvas, his extended frame made it difficult for Henderson to muster a meaningful offense. The round ended and so, it turned out, did Henderson's chances for victory.
Searching for answers as to why Silva has made great fighters look mediocre since joining the UFC middleweight ranks in 2006, some have looked to the Brazilian's ability to hit and hurt. Already one of the most accurate fighters in the business, Silva seems to have dialed in his power.
Chris Leben (Pictures)'s thrashing was instigated by a handful of punches. Right hands from the southpaw ruined Marquardt's shot. Franklin twice waded through strikes to get his face rearranged by knees in the Thai clinch. And though he didn't seem to possess much in the way of leverage, Silva's punches scrambled Henderson to the point that he was forced to submit for the first time in his career to a choke.
Silva doesn't see the favorable results as simply a matter of finding more pop. In reality, he said, there hasn't been a noticeable improvement in that area of his game; perhaps it's one of the things he still feels he needs to work on.
The reason for his devastating success?
"I just feel that I'm watching my opponents and taking advantage of the opportunity much better than I did before," Silva says.
Too bad for a thinning lot of UFC challengers. Silva has already cleaned out the division to the point that he has made headlines recently by calling out Roy Jones Jr.
"All these boxers out there talking s--- how MMA fighters aren't technical, well he's willing to step up and fight them in their own game," says Soares, who notes that the idea to challenge the aging Jones was the UFC champ's. "So, if anything, he's not trying to say there's nothing to prove in MMA; he's trying to plant a flag for every one of the fighters out there in the world that fight MMA."
Could Silva even get Jones? Locked in a UFC deal, Soares said that would be up to Dana White, but if they had their way the fight would get made.
"I think he's a great boxer, one of the greatest boxers to ever box," Silva says of Jones. "I would love the opportunity to test my skills against him."
Yet Yushin Okami (Pictures) is a much more realistic candidate to be Silva's next opposition. The Japanese middleweight is 6-1 in the UFC and scored a disqualification win over the UFC titleholder in January 2006.
Silva's tone regarding the DQ versus Okami in Rumble on the Rock's 175-pound tournament suggests he is, at the least, vexed.
In their short time together, Silva flowed in the cage, shifting angles and closing distance at will. Okami, showing no desire to stand and trade, made no real effort to bring the bout to the floor, though he finally put it there and sat high in Silva's closed guard.
Scoring his only effective strikes of the fight, Okami looked comfortable on top, though as he'd learn moments later, there aren't any resting positions against Silva.
Swinging one of his king crab legs pasts Okami's arms, Silva planted the bottom of his right foot on the Japanese fighter's face. Okami fell back, obviously hurt. He would have taken more punishment had referee Troy Mandaloniz (Pictures) not held Silva back.
Okami was given every chance to recover, though even if he'd been lucid the disqualification still could have been warranted.
"The Spider" doesn't see it that way.
"I feel it was a cheap, cowardly way of winning," a pointed Silva says more than two years after the scrap. "People that were there saw that he was in the condition to come back and keep fighting, and he didn't."
Silva says he doesn't "really think much of anything of Okami," but the Brazilian was more poised when stuck under Henderson than he is when discussing the Japanese fighter.
"It wasn't really a fight," Silva describes the disqualification loss before adding that he doesn't want to talk about it anymore.
Judging by how Silva treats opponents he likes, such as Rich Franklin (Pictures), Okami should be careful. He is a quality contender and could provide an intriguing matchup for the UFC middleweight champ, but he may also find out just what Silva fights like when he's angry.
i think i'm picking chuck in this one as well. it just seems to me that it will look a bit like chuck's matches with tito. good fight, but ultimately too tough to bring chuck down and get him out of his gameplan.
...i am picking tito over machida, though!
edit: thanks for the silva article too. i would imagine he's anxious to beat okami. he went apeshit during the first fight, and it sounds like he is still none too happy. i don't like okami's chances in the rematch.
bon chance!
I disagree with the tito/machida fight though. I'm a pretty big tito fan and hope he wins, but there is just something about michida that makes me think he'll pull out this victory.
09/19/05, 05/09/06, 05/10/06
ps My passport came in the mail today!!!!
YAY!!!
hmmm.... i'd better go pick up the tickets one of these days, eh?
rock on releash! getting close to the month countdown...:)
the UFC fight night coming up is almost as deep in talent at LW (maybe even just as deep), and the two put together in such a short period of time is good news for those of us who enjoy the LW's!
also, mirko cro cop makes his return to japan!
as is often the case in japan, some of the participants were only announced in the last couple of days and minowa still has no opponent. rumours are that nakao will not be cro cop's opponent too.
(edit: sure enough, cro cop's opponent is now Tatsuya Mizuno and minowa's opponent may be Lee Gwan)
DREAM 1: March 15, 2008 - Saitama Super Arena, Saitama, Japan
Non-Tournament bouts:
Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic Vs. Tatsuya Mizuno
Hidetaka Monma Vs. Hayato Sakurai
Ikuhisa Minowa Vs. Lee Gwan
LW Tournament, Round One:
Shinya Aoki Vs. Gesias "JZ" Calvancante
Kultar Gill Vs. Tatsuya Kawajiri
Andre Amade Vs. Eddie Alvarez
Mitsuhiro Ishida Vs. Jung Bu-Kyung
Koutetsu Boku Vs. Joachim Hansen
Katsuhiko Nagata Vs. Artur Oumakhanov
Luiz Firmino Vs. Kazuyuki Miyata
carry on.
"Obama's main opponent in this election on November 4th (was) not John McCain, it (was) ignorance."~Michael Moore
"i'm feeling kinda righteous right now. with my badass motherfuckin' ukulele!"
~ed, 8/7
thanks for popping in to say hi, sweetpotato!
can't wait to watch it...took a quick peek and i see that genki sudo and tsuyoshi kohsaka are doing guest commentary. i just wish i knew what they were saying. maybe by the end of the show i will...
"...something in japanese, left high kick!, something in japanese..."
it looks a lot like the pride shows, well pretty much exactly like the pride shows.
can't wait to watch the LW tournament round one, and miiiirrrrrrakoooooooo carrrrrrroooooooooo cooooooppa!!!
Thanks mookie!
I might be able to help you a little with the translation, although I don't remember a whole lot from my high school Japanese. We definitely didn't cover any mma terms!
...and japanese in high school!? we didn't have that, although if we had i'd have probably taken it!