i'm still very happy uno won. i like ishida, even though most don't like his style, but he's got tenacity. a well deserved win. good way to put it.
i hope you didn't read anything before you watched, but thanks for the comments, leafs. it's good to get your perspective on this one. we are among the few, i think, when it comes to the ring vs. cage thing...haha...most people who like the japanese MMA only like the ring. i find it only creates more problems. again, a matter of preference i guess.
i'm really looking forward to the next shows! maybe we'll catch it at the same time next one, eh?
nah i didn't read anything before watching, i actually read along while watching the fights and you did very well.
It's not really that i'm big on the stomps and soccer kicks from pride because they were so dangerous it wasn't funny. They have just resulted in some of the best KO's i've ever seen lol. The elbows (as i see it) are a neccessary part of GnP. Without them i find the fighters (obviously) can't do as much and it seems to slow them down because you can't always get a good punch off. Sometimes short elbows are not only easy to throw, but also very effective.
I'd like to be around for Dream 4 but if it's on a weekday i work afternoons. If it's at 2 or 3am again i can do it cause that's when i get home lol.
"I'll ride the wave where it takes me"
09/19/05, 05/09/06, 05/10/06
just finished watching the uno / ishida match again!
hadn't noticed the first time what an arsehole kawajiri was being after the match. first, he stared uno down, then when uno went to shake hands with ishida and his corner, kawajiri grabbed him by the hand and pulled him in to say something in his ear, then pushed his hand away.
during the post fight show, when you're supposed to thank the fans, kawajiri turned his back to the other competitors and made some kind of speech about K-1 and Pride, then stared uno down again as he gave up the microphone to uno. uno seemed cool as always...:)
i know they had a controversial draw in shooto that most thought kawajiri won, but uno is a pretty well respected guy. i'm hoping kawajiri will "get his" from either alvarez, if that's his next opponent or better yet, from uno himself!
that's horrible. Unfortunatly i've deleted the show from my dvr so i can't watch it again, but if this is the case i just lost a lot of respect for him.
"I'll ride the wave where it takes me"
09/19/05, 05/09/06, 05/10/06
Spread over a full season, pressures associated with a contract year can be managed. But what about when everything an athlete has worked for boils down to one 15-minute stretch?
For Tito Ortiz, his strategy is to simply hope for the best.
Leading up to the former Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight titleholder's fight against Lyoto Machida on May 24 -- the final bout on his current UFC contract -- Ortiz repeated his intentions of finding a new home because of a strained relationship with the company's president, Dana White.
The important question as we near Memorial Day weekend is whether Ortiz can move into the open market as a viable Top 10 fighter (as proven by a win over the young Brazilian), or if he'll limp into the "MMA Wild West" as Machida's 13th straight victim.
Many seem to think Machida was handpicked to knock off Ortiz. A tricky southpaw made more dangerous by staunch defense and accurate counterpunching, Machida is expected to hold an edge over Ortiz while they stand and trade. So, not surprisingly, it's on the canvas where Ortiz and his supporters believe Machida could be vulnerable for a loss. Inexperienced against anyone possessing the wrestling chops of Ortiz, Machida is also in position to answer questions surrounding his strengths and weaknesses as a fighter.
Despite being listed as an underdog, Ortiz appears to hold some advantages in the fight. He's bigger and brings much more experience, just to name two. For Ortiz to do well, he'll have to set the tone early. Let's not forget, Forrest Griffin is a pretty tough guy, and Ortiz nearly stopped him in the opening round. Under that kind of onslaught, can Machida hold up? I'm not so sure.
While a loss at this point of Machida's career wouldn't be devastating, the same isn't necessarily true for Ortiz. If unscathed by the fight with Machida, Ortiz is immediately worth more to promoters who hope to cash in on his unique standing as a fighter. If beaten and dismissed, "The Huntington Beach Bad Boy" would remain marketable based more on the strength of his name than the strength of his game.
But let's not get ahead of ourselves. There's a real chance Ortiz (15-5-1) could remain with the UFC. Never mind all the bluster between him and White. We've heard it before and it's not like these two haven't put aside personal differences to make money together. (A couple years ago Ortiz was strongly rumored to be heading to the World Fighting Alliance, but at the last minute -- and for the right price -- he remained in the octagon.)
White begrudgingly brought Ortiz back when he appeared destined for the upstart promotion, billing itself as the UFC killer. Several promotions in that mold are lurking around these days, and an energized Ortiz could improve an organization's attempt to seize on the sport's momentum.
One thing remains certain when it comes to Ortiz: he knows how to sell a fight. Look at the promotion leading into his contest at UFC 84. With Machida's limited English making it tough to engage in any kind of pre-fight verbal warfare, the back-and-forth relationship with White, who has acted as Ortiz's foil for years anyhow, has helped drive discussion of the card and Ortiz across message boards and into columns.
It's safe to say Ortiz's career won't be defined based on the result of his performance on May 24. But a win against Machida, and the subsequent departure from UFC, could thrust Ortiz back into a spotlight that has dimmed in recent years.
sorry for the late reply to your post, AiCPearlJamWeen.
georges st-pierre won by tko in the second round due to knees to the body. (mostly a case of too many unanswered blows and matt not doing a whole lot to protect himself). gsp controlled the match from start to finish and matt only managed a head kick and few other punches in close range. it was a pretty one-sided affair and an impressive performance from georges.
montreal went crazy! the bell centre was nuts. great crowd, good times.
i hope that the work matt serra is doing now to try to get MMA sanctioned in new york will be successful and we will get to see him fight in fron of his home town crowd as well.
nah i didn't read anything before watching, i actually read along while watching the fights and you did very well.
It's not really that i'm big on the stomps and soccer kicks from pride because they were so dangerous it wasn't funny. They have just resulted in some of the best KO's i've ever seen lol. The elbows (as i see it) are a neccessary part of GnP. Without them i find the fighters (obviously) can't do as much and it seems to slow them down because you can't always get a good punch off. Sometimes short elbows are not only easy to throw, but also very effective.
I'd like to be around for Dream 4 but if it's on a weekday i work afternoons. If it's at 2 or 3am again i can do it cause that's when i get home lol.
i think we are of the same mind on the rules, leafs. the old UCC / TKO rules in quebec were my favourite set, as it was basically the unified rules with knees allowed on the ground...oh, and they used to use the ropes instead of the octagon...
one of these days one organization will get it right for us, eh?
i'm thinking the boradcast will probably be about the same time as the last one. i think i've watched three or four? live events from japan now and they start anywhere between 3 eastern to 5 eastern, usually. a.m., of course! i hope you're around so we can discuss the matches!
Spread over a full season, pressures associated with a contract year can be managed. But what about when everything an athlete has worked for boils down to one 15-minute stretch?
For Tito Ortiz, his strategy is to simply hope for the best.
Leading up to the former Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight titleholder's fight against Lyoto Machida on May 24 -- the final bout on his current UFC contract -- Ortiz repeated his intentions of finding a new home because of a strained relationship with the company's president, Dana White.
The important question as we near Memorial Day weekend is whether Ortiz can move into the open market as a viable Top 10 fighter (as proven by a win over the young Brazilian), or if he'll limp into the "MMA Wild West" as Machida's 13th straight victim.
Many seem to think Machida was handpicked to knock off Ortiz. A tricky southpaw made more dangerous by staunch defense and accurate counterpunching, Machida is expected to hold an edge over Ortiz while they stand and trade. So, not surprisingly, it's on the canvas where Ortiz and his supporters believe Machida could be vulnerable for a loss. Inexperienced against anyone possessing the wrestling chops of Ortiz, Machida is also in position to answer questions surrounding his strengths and weaknesses as a fighter.
Despite being listed as an underdog, Ortiz appears to hold some advantages in the fight. He's bigger and brings much more experience, just to name two. For Ortiz to do well, he'll have to set the tone early. Let's not forget, Forrest Griffin is a pretty tough guy, and Ortiz nearly stopped him in the opening round. Under that kind of onslaught, can Machida hold up? I'm not so sure.
While a loss at this point of Machida's career wouldn't be devastating, the same isn't necessarily true for Ortiz. If unscathed by the fight with Machida, Ortiz is immediately worth more to promoters who hope to cash in on his unique standing as a fighter. If beaten and dismissed, "The Huntington Beach Bad Boy" would remain marketable based more on the strength of his name than the strength of his game.
But let's not get ahead of ourselves. There's a real chance Ortiz (15-5-1) could remain with the UFC. Never mind all the bluster between him and White. We've heard it before and it's not like these two haven't put aside personal differences to make money together. (A couple years ago Ortiz was strongly rumored to be heading to the World Fighting Alliance, but at the last minute -- and for the right price -- he remained in the octagon.)
White begrudgingly brought Ortiz back when he appeared destined for the upstart promotion, billing itself as the UFC killer. Several promotions in that mold are lurking around these days, and an energized Ortiz could improve an organization's attempt to seize on the sport's momentum.
One thing remains certain when it comes to Ortiz: he knows how to sell a fight. Look at the promotion leading into his contest at UFC 84. With Machida's limited English making it tough to engage in any kind of pre-fight verbal warfare, the back-and-forth relationship with White, who has acted as Ortiz's foil for years anyhow, has helped drive discussion of the card and Ortiz across message boards and into columns.
It's safe to say Ortiz's career won't be defined based on the result of his performance on May 24. But a win against Machida, and the subsequent departure from UFC, could thrust Ortiz back into a spotlight that has dimmed in recent years.
thanks for this, lbc. i can't wait for this weekend!! i'll be cheering tito on for sure. i'm hoping he sticks around and they work things out as before, but we'll have to wait and see what happens, i guess. elitexc would be a potential suitor for him if they had any 205'ers for him to fight. as long as they allow elbows , tito will be fine wherever he decides to go or stay. he's still a huge draw and the ball's in his court if he wins this weekend....your name is tito ortiz, you just beat an undefeated machida....hmm...can you say "show me the money." ?
that's horrible. Unfortunatly i've deleted the show from my dvr so i can't watch it again, but if this is the case i just lost a lot of respect for him.
yeah, i've been trying to read around to find out what the bad blood is about, but all i can really figure out is that kawajiri is still raw about the controversial decision draw.
maybe i'm biased as an uno fan , but i just thought it was a bitter display from kawajiri. i know uno just beat his teammate, so he was probably upset in the heat of the moment...but uno didn't do anything i'm aware of to provoke him, so...who knows?
originally, i'd heard they were going to match alvarez and kawajiri, but i guess they are letting the fans decide the matches for the tournament semi's. it will be interesting to see if the fans match kawajiri and uno together, knowing their history. the first match was mostly uno not wanting much to do with the standup, and kawajiri not wanting much of the ground until the end when he did quite a bit of effective ground and pound. he probably thought that should have won him the fight, but it was a tough call.
in any case, i'll have extra incentive to cheer for uno if they match him up with kawajiri.
I hope this gives Tito even more inspiration to kick ass, as if he needs it.
5 Ounces of Pain Five Ounces of Pain | Your Destination for Insider MMA News and Opinion
As stated yesterday, Tito Ortiz made comments stating he would give the UFC another chance should Dana White apologize for the things he has done to him. Well, Dana responded at the conference call and shockingly he’s not playing into Tito’s hand:
“Tito is a f—ing idiot,” White said. “He’s one of the dumbest human beings I’ve ever met. Everything that comes out of his mouth makes no sense.”
White added that he doesn’t think UFC needs Ortiz because he doesn’t think Ortiz can beat any of UFC’s top fighters.
“I put up with his s— when he was a good fighter,” White said. “He’s not anymore.”
“He’s not in anybody’s Top 10,” White said. “I have no interest whatsoever in being in the Tito Ortiz business. … I’ve never wanted to see anyone get their ass kicked worse than I want to see Tito get his kicked next Saturday night.”
I don't think Dana will ever stop letting his emotions have the final say.
dana seems very impartial on this one. i'm thinking we will se a fired up tito this weekend. good luck, lbc!
thanks again for the tito articles and the interview. good stuff.
i hope this trend continues! another free three hour show on spike. boo ya!
The Ultimate Fighter 7 Finale in high-def, slotted for three hours
MMAjunkie.com
May 19, 2008
The finale of "The Ultimate Fighter: Team Rampage vs. Team Forrest," which features a main event of former UFC middleweight champ Evan Tanner vs. Kendall Grove, will run three hours, and for the first time, will be presented in high-definition.
Spike TV today confirmed details for the June 21 event, including fights for the night's undercard. The televised main card airs at 9 p.m. ET/PT.
The event takes place at The Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas.
Previously reported fights of Spencer Fisher vs. Jeremy Stephens, Jeremy Horn vs. Dean Lister, Josh Burkman vs. Dustin Hazelett, and Marvin Eastman vs. Drew McFedries were all confirmed today.
The Grove vs. Tanner fight, as well as a welterweight bout between Luigi Fioravanti and Diego Sanchez, were previously announced by the UFC.
The event will also feature the two finalists from the current season of "TUF." The final preliminary bout airs this coming Wednesday, and the cast will then be whittled down to eight remaining quarter-finalists. As with past seasons of the show, the winner earns a six-figure contract with the UFC and an assortment of prizes.
hey ceg, here is the genki sudo entrance that i was trying to describe to you. from his match with kid yamamoto at K-1 hero's in 2005...unfortunately for me and other sudo fans, the clip also shows the ending of the fight. :(
still, beautiful entrance. it's shortened here from the broadcast i saw on the fight network.
a couple more sudo entrances (the third one is a tribute video with fight footage highights and entrance clips. one of my faves is the one where he is dressed as a baseball player for team "peace" and his cheerleaders spell out the word "love" with pom pom's)...again, from the k-1 hero's shows...i'll let the other entrances speak for themselves. keep in mind that each time this guy is on his way to a fight.
i hope this trend continues! another free three hour show on spike. boo ya!
The Ultimate Fighter 7 Finale in high-def, slotted for three hours
MMAjunkie.com
May 19, 2008
The finale of "The Ultimate Fighter: Team Rampage vs. Team Forrest," which features a main event of former UFC middleweight champ Evan Tanner vs. Kendall Grove, will run three hours, and for the first time, will be presented in high-definition.
Spike TV today confirmed details for the June 21 event, including fights for the night's undercard. The televised main card airs at 9 p.m. ET/PT.
The event takes place at The Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas.
Previously reported fights of Spencer Fisher vs. Jeremy Stephens, Jeremy Horn vs. Dean Lister, Josh Burkman vs. Dustin Hazelett, and Marvin Eastman vs. Drew McFedries were all confirmed today.
The Grove vs. Tanner fight, as well as a welterweight bout between Luigi Fioravanti and Diego Sanchez, were previously announced by the UFC.
The event will also feature the two finalists from the current season of "TUF." The final preliminary bout airs this coming Wednesday, and the cast will then be whittled down to eight remaining quarter-finalists. As with past seasons of the show, the winner earns a six-figure contract with the UFC and an assortment of prizes.
This show is gonna be sick!! Grove,Diego, Lister, and free, you can't beat that.
no doubt! it's looking great so far my friend. i don't think they've made a definitive "swing bout" decision yet, but i wouldn't be surprised to see horn vs. lister changed to main card status and hazelett vs. burkman become the swing bout. (i'm guessing we'll get to see both...maybe i should say "hoping" ). horn vs. lister has the grappling fans drooling! haha still some work needed on the undercard, but the main card is solid.
The Ultimate Fighter 7: Team Rampage Vs. Team Forrest Finale, June 21, 2008 - The Palms, Las Vegas, Nevada - Spike TV
Main Card:
Evan Tanner Vs. Kendall Grove
Finalist #1 Vs. Finalist #2
Diego Sanchez Vs. Liugi Fioravanti
Spencer Fisher Vs. Jeremy Stephens
Dustin Hazelett Vs. Josh Burkman
Pre-lims:
Jeremy Horn Vs. Dean Lister (swing bout)
Marvin Eastman Vs. Drew McFedries
Matt Arroyo Vs. TBA
Rob Yundt Vs. TBA
Matt Riddle Vs. TBA
i guess bj's comments towards sean sherk this week are getting pretty heated, but for this i will say our former "muffin man" :D deserves some kudos. it's good to hear someone involved in the sport finally speaking out loudly and frankly...
UFC CHAMP BJ PENN TOUGH ON STEROIDS IN MMA
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
by Damon Martin - MMAWeekly.com
The problem with steroids in mixed martial arts has been well documented over the past few years. From champions to challengers all testing positive, no one can deny that an issue exists, and while many athletes shy away from the subject, Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight titleholder B.J. Penn is happy to give his thoughts on a growing trend that haunts the sport more and more each year.
Many fighters have been tested under numerous athletic commissions, and a staggering list of offenders grows to new heights each day. Recently, the Nevada State Athletic Commission instituted a new “off season” drug testing policy for combat sports and both Penn and former champion Sean Sherk were tested prior to their upcoming title bout on May 24.
While Penn feels the change is a step in the right direction, it is not the answer to the problem of steroids in MMA.
“It’s a positive idea, but it’s not like people can’t get around that stuff any time,” said Penn in an interview with MMAWeekly Radio. “The people taking steroids that they’re getting from their doctor, they know how to beat the test. They know what they’re doing. The athletic commission, it’s not their fault, they’re trying the best they can to see what’s going on, but steroids or blood doping, growth hormone or whatever, it’s a part of the sport. It’s a black eye on sports, but the athletic commission, that’s the best they can do and you can’t blame them for trying.”
The trend of fighters testing positive hasn’t gone away and the current lightweight champion doesn’t feel enough attention is being paid to the problem.
“The thing that’s so crazy is how it gets swept under the rug,” Penn stated. “It’s like, what would happen in the old days in the Wild West if somebody got caught with two aces up their sleeve? You shoot them right there, you know what I mean? That’s why I tell Sean Sherk he’s dead. It’s just ridiculous.”
The society of fighters using performance enhancing drugs also concerns Penn, who says the people involved are more likely to cover for each other and we may never know just how many athletes are involved in illegal activities.
“We all know. We all know when people fight. You can look at their nipples. You can just know when somebody’s blood doping. We all know,” Penn said adamantly.
“And fighters to fighters, I think so many fighters do it that they all back each other up and say, ‘No, I don’t think he was doing it.’ That’s because you were (expletive) doing it.”
With his upcoming bout with former champion Sean Sherk less than a week away, Penn isn’t afraid to call out anyone with a background that involves performance enhancing drugs.
“It’s a joke and they’re cowards and they’re not real fighters,” he commented. “That’s why I say there’s too many athletes, not enough fighters in this sport. To me fighting’s everything, and it’s such a pure thing, and this and that and they go and pervert it and go and do all this other stuff. And then they’ve got the guts to go out and say they’ve got heart or they train hard. I look at them and I just want to laugh.”
made my picks for the weekend. i'm coming after your title, leafs! actually, more like i'm wandering around in the dark looking for my staircase to the basement.
UFC 84, May 24, 2008 - MGM Grand Garden Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada - PPV
Main Card:
Sean Sherk Vs. BJ Penn - penn by tko
Wanderlei Silva Vs. Keith Jardine - jardine by decision
Goran Reljic Vs. Wilson Gouveia - gouviea by submission
Tito Ortiz Vs. Lyoto Machida - ortiz by decision
Antonio Mendes Vs. Thiago Silva - silva by ko
Pre-lims:
Ivan Salaverry Vs. Rousimar Palhares - salaverry by submission
Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou Vs. Kazuhiro Nakamura - sokoudjou by tko
Terry Etim Vs. Rich Clementi - clementi by decision
Jon Koppenhaver Vs. Yoshiyuki Yoshida - yoshida by tko
Dong-hyun Kim Vs. Jason Tan - KDH by ko
Shane Carwin Vs. Christian Wellisch - carwin by ko
hey ceg, here is the genki sudo entrance that i was trying to describe to you. from his match with kid yamamoto at K-1 hero's in 2005...unfortunately for me and other sudo fans, the clip also shows the ending of the fight. :(
still, beautiful entrance. it's shortened here from the broadcast i saw on the fight network.
a couple more sudo entrances (the third one is a tribute video with fight footage highights and entrance clips. one of my faves is the one where he is dressed as a baseball player for team "peace" and his cheerleaders spell out the word "love" with pom pom's)...again, from the k-1 hero's shows...i'll let the other entrances speak for themselves. keep in mind that each time this guy is on his way to a fight. : D
wow! those are some seriously elaborate productions!! very cool!
great highlight video.... did he seriously pick that dude up, swing him around by his feet, and set him down directly into a leg lock??? :eek: that's badass!! and did i see a gogoplata in there too?
the entrance with the native american influence was unexpected... i'm not really sure how to explan it. i guess we see american people using eastern culture to express themselves so often (e.g. that whole tattoo conversation we had...) that's it's strange to see it in reverse. (strange in a good way) i'm not sure if that makes sense.
anyways. thanks for posting those!
~~*~~ ...i surfaced and all of my being was enlightend... ~~*~~
ha! that's awesome! sure makes the UFC entrances look dull in comparison!
hehe... the bit where he's dancing down the aisle is somewhat reminiscent of Patrick Swayze at the end of Dirty Dancing...
and what's with the end of the fight?? that didn't look like it was ready to be stopped! he was still defending himself!
i actually remembered that i have that one on tape! i could have shown the whole thing to you...along with the rough episode i finally found! :mad:
yeah, it's quite a contrast to the north american entrances. a lot of fighters gain fans simply with their showmanship and entrances. the entrances he had for his three fights in the ufc were "toned down" simply because there wasn't much space (they used a ramp and a small stage in those days.)
...and it couldn't be funnier that you said that! it's been debated ever since the match happened. sudo fans say it was stopped early. kid fans say it was a good stoppage.
wow! those are some seriously elaborate productions!! very cool!
great highlight video.... did he seriously pick that dude up, swing him around by his feet, and set him down directly into a leg lock??? :eek: that's badass!! and did i see a gogoplata in there too?
the entrance with the native american influence was unexpected... i'm not really sure how to explan it. i guess we see american people using eastern culture to express themselves so often (e.g. that whole tattoo conversation we had...) that's it's strange to see it in reverse. (strange in a good way) i'm not sure if that makes sense.
anyways. thanks for posting those!
no worries, i wanted you to see them!
genki has since retired and moved on to movies and choreography, but i'm hoping he comes back to mma some day. he's still just in his early 30's. it's crazy that he put these entrances together along with getting ready for his matches.
that spin move was one i've seen him do in training sessions and he used it in one ufc match against daune ludwig (one of the worst decisions i've ever seen...just my opinion...they gave it to ludwig!) but only managed to get him about a 3/4 revolution around. the one in the highlight video looks like it might be from a pankration match? maybe. not sure about the gogplata...i'll have to look again...
i get what you're saying about the culture thing. makes sense to me.
cb had an impresive performance tonight. he looked good, or so "a voice" kept telling me as i was watching the episode. nick probably would have caught a lesser opponent with some of those submission attempts, but cb is slick and looks like he's going to be tough to beat, as long as he doesn't get overly confident.
Man, that sudo guy has some crazy entrances, it's really a show over there.
your pics for 84 look alot like mine, except for 1 fight still might make some changes before saturday, i don't know.
It says that The Ultimate Fighter Finale will be in HD... when did spike get an HD channel?
oh and also just read this on mmanews... Looks like Rashad has been pulled from ufc 85 completely now.
After countless opponent changes, Rashad Evans has been removed from UFC 85. The announcement was made earlier today by the UFC.
Evans was first scheduled to face Chuck Liddell but after a hamstring injury forced him out, James Irvin stepped up to face the undefeated light heavyweight. Irvin was injured earlier in the week and Luis Cane switched opponents to fight Evans.
With Evans being removed from the card, Cane now will fight Jason Lambert who he was first paired up with to fight on the prelims of the card.
Man, that sudo guy has some crazy entrances, it's really a show over there.
your pics for 84 look alot like mine, except for 1 fight still might make some changes before saturday, i don't know.
It says that The Ultimate Fighter Finale will be in HD... when did spike get an HD channel?
oh and also just read this on mmanews... Looks like Rashad has been pulled from ufc 85 completely now.
After countless opponent changes, Rashad Evans has been removed from UFC 85. The announcement was made earlier today by the UFC.
Evans was first scheduled to face Chuck Liddell but after a hamstring injury forced him out, James Irvin stepped up to face the undefeated light heavyweight. Irvin was injured earlier in the week and Luis Cane switched opponents to fight Evans.
With Evans being removed from the card, Cane now will fight Jason Lambert who he was first paired up with to fight on the prelims of the card.
hmmm...i wonder which match? good luck on the picks!
that UFC 85 : "Bedlam" card is looking more like UFC 85 : CURSED! man, there have been a lot of changes in opponents and matches. so i made the changes again in the rumours! thanks, leafs.
personally, i don't know about the HD thing. i just have a regular spike channel on an old tv.
looks like the EliteXC show for next weekend is complete...
EliteXC, May 31, 2008 - Prudential Center, Newark, New Jersey - CBS
Main Card:
Kevin "Kimbo Slice" Ferguson Vs. James Thompson
Robbie Lawler Vs. Scott Smith - EliteXC MW Championship
Gina Carano Vs. Kaitlin Young
Phil Baroni Vs. Joey Villasenor (Murilo Rua out due to injury)
Brett Rogers Vs. John Murphy
Pre-lims:
Nick Serra Vs. Matt Makowski
Wilson Reis Vs. Justin Robbins
Zach Makovsky Vs. Andre Soares
Mike Groves Vs. Joe Sampieri
Chris Liguori Vs. Jim Bova
James Jones Vs. Calvin Kattar
Carlton Haselrig Vs. Carlos Moreno
the undercard will stream live on proelite.com, and the main card will be the first installment of "saturday night fights" on CBS.
not that i ever share my thoughts on the matches or anything...:D...but...
i'm hoping people don't tune out after rogers vs. murphy. it should be the standard ugly HW slugfest. can't say i'm looking forward to it at all. at least there's a good chance it will end quickly (fingers crossed).
baroni vs. villasenor is an interesting match and quite possibly the one where we'll see the most action on the ground. i wish ninja was still fighting baroni, but villasenor is a game opponent with lots of experience and a great coach in greg jackson. i'd expect them to let baroni tire himself out in the first and then gradully wear him down in the second, possibly finishing him in the late second or third...or winning a decision. baroni's best chance is to overwhelm villasenor with strikes in the first, but i can't see villasenor playing into that game. baroni always tires in his fights, so villasenor should be able to take advantage if he plays it safe in the beginning.
carano vs. young will rival smith vs. lawler for fight of the night. two muay thai fighters, both with ground games that need some work. i'd say gina's takedown defense is good enough to keep kaitlin from taking her down if that's what kaitlin plans to do, and her muay thai is heads and shoulders above young, who has a more rigid style of muay thai and not the best defense. she's new to the sport and blew through her first four opponents, only to have her weakness on the ground exposed in her last fight where she dominated the stand up only to fall victim to an armbar in the second. it's also going to be a huge test of her nerves being so young, green, and being on national tv. gina's been there and done it. gina is fluid, and her hands, elbows and leg kicks are the best in women's mma, in my opinion. i can see gina winning this one in the second with a ko or tko. should be an outstanding match, as young is a promising newcomer. i just think see's going to get overwhelmed by the moment and by the better striker. gina's probabaly the most technically adept striker on the card.
smith vs. lawler has fireworks written all over it. both guys love to stand and trade punches. i think they'll do it until one of them goes down, and in my opinion it's lawler who falls first in this one. who needs a second round, eh?!
kimbo should have a relatively easy ko in his match against thompson. thompson has been ko'd many times now and by lesser strikers. maybe thompson will try to take the fight to the ground like he did in his last match, but even if he does, i'm not sure how much of an advantage he will have there. it's not exactly his strong suit, and kimbo is said to have a solid ground game. we just haven't seen it yet...and i don't expect to see it here. likely another slugfest , with kimbo getting the better of it with more accurate striking, power, and movement.
i'm expecting a lot of stand up in these matches and not a lot of grappling, which is really too bad, for a network tv debut, but it should still be an exciting show, in any case. it would just be nice if it turns out to be a better representation of overall MMA than it looks like on paper.
was that two or three cents? :D ...maybe a nickel...haha
with all the genki sudo love , i decided to look around for a documentary that i've been looking for about him. i'd only seen clips before and it was all in japanese, but i finally found the version with english subtitles. mookie happy.
i should get off this mma addiction someday and start downloading pj concerts i think!
Comments
nah i didn't read anything before watching, i actually read along while watching the fights and you did very well.
It's not really that i'm big on the stomps and soccer kicks from pride because they were so dangerous it wasn't funny. They have just resulted in some of the best KO's i've ever seen lol. The elbows (as i see it) are a neccessary part of GnP. Without them i find the fighters (obviously) can't do as much and it seems to slow them down because you can't always get a good punch off. Sometimes short elbows are not only easy to throw, but also very effective.
I'd like to be around for Dream 4 but if it's on a weekday i work afternoons. If it's at 2 or 3am again i can do it cause that's when i get home lol.
09/19/05, 05/09/06, 05/10/06
09/19/05, 05/09/06, 05/10/06
Spread over a full season, pressures associated with a contract year can be managed. But what about when everything an athlete has worked for boils down to one 15-minute stretch?
For Tito Ortiz, his strategy is to simply hope for the best.
Leading up to the former Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight titleholder's fight against Lyoto Machida on May 24 -- the final bout on his current UFC contract -- Ortiz repeated his intentions of finding a new home because of a strained relationship with the company's president, Dana White.
The important question as we near Memorial Day weekend is whether Ortiz can move into the open market as a viable Top 10 fighter (as proven by a win over the young Brazilian), or if he'll limp into the "MMA Wild West" as Machida's 13th straight victim.
Many seem to think Machida was handpicked to knock off Ortiz. A tricky southpaw made more dangerous by staunch defense and accurate counterpunching, Machida is expected to hold an edge over Ortiz while they stand and trade. So, not surprisingly, it's on the canvas where Ortiz and his supporters believe Machida could be vulnerable for a loss. Inexperienced against anyone possessing the wrestling chops of Ortiz, Machida is also in position to answer questions surrounding his strengths and weaknesses as a fighter.
Despite being listed as an underdog, Ortiz appears to hold some advantages in the fight. He's bigger and brings much more experience, just to name two. For Ortiz to do well, he'll have to set the tone early. Let's not forget, Forrest Griffin is a pretty tough guy, and Ortiz nearly stopped him in the opening round. Under that kind of onslaught, can Machida hold up? I'm not so sure.
While a loss at this point of Machida's career wouldn't be devastating, the same isn't necessarily true for Ortiz. If unscathed by the fight with Machida, Ortiz is immediately worth more to promoters who hope to cash in on his unique standing as a fighter. If beaten and dismissed, "The Huntington Beach Bad Boy" would remain marketable based more on the strength of his name than the strength of his game.
But let's not get ahead of ourselves. There's a real chance Ortiz (15-5-1) could remain with the UFC. Never mind all the bluster between him and White. We've heard it before and it's not like these two haven't put aside personal differences to make money together. (A couple years ago Ortiz was strongly rumored to be heading to the World Fighting Alliance, but at the last minute -- and for the right price -- he remained in the octagon.)
White begrudgingly brought Ortiz back when he appeared destined for the upstart promotion, billing itself as the UFC killer. Several promotions in that mold are lurking around these days, and an energized Ortiz could improve an organization's attempt to seize on the sport's momentum.
One thing remains certain when it comes to Ortiz: he knows how to sell a fight. Look at the promotion leading into his contest at UFC 84. With Machida's limited English making it tough to engage in any kind of pre-fight verbal warfare, the back-and-forth relationship with White, who has acted as Ortiz's foil for years anyhow, has helped drive discussion of the card and Ortiz across message boards and into columns.
It's safe to say Ortiz's career won't be defined based on the result of his performance on May 24. But a win against Machida, and the subsequent departure from UFC, could thrust Ortiz back into a spotlight that has dimmed in recent years.
sorry for the late reply to your post, AiCPearlJamWeen.
georges st-pierre won by tko in the second round due to knees to the body. (mostly a case of too many unanswered blows and matt not doing a whole lot to protect himself). gsp controlled the match from start to finish and matt only managed a head kick and few other punches in close range. it was a pretty one-sided affair and an impressive performance from georges.
montreal went crazy! the bell centre was nuts. great crowd, good times.
i hope that the work matt serra is doing now to try to get MMA sanctioned in new york will be successful and we will get to see him fight in fron of his home town crowd as well.
sorry again for the late answer to your question.
i think we are of the same mind on the rules, leafs.
one of these days one organization will get it right for us, eh?
i'm thinking the boradcast will probably be about the same time as the last one. i think i've watched three or four? live events from japan now and they start anywhere between 3 eastern to 5 eastern, usually. a.m., of course!
thanks for this, lbc.
yeah, i've been trying to read around to find out what the bad blood is about, but all i can really figure out is that kawajiri is still raw about the controversial decision draw.
maybe i'm biased as an uno fan
originally, i'd heard they were going to match alvarez and kawajiri, but i guess they are letting the fans decide the matches for the tournament semi's. it will be interesting to see if the fans match kawajiri and uno together, knowing their history. the first match was mostly uno not wanting much to do with the standup, and kawajiri not wanting much of the ground until the end when he did quite a bit of effective ground and pound. he probably thought that should have won him the fight, but it was a tough call.
in any case, i'll have extra incentive to cheer for uno if they match him up with kawajiri.
dana seems very impartial on this one.
thanks again for the tito articles and the interview. good stuff.
The Ultimate Fighter 7 Finale in high-def, slotted for three hours
MMAjunkie.com
May 19, 2008
The finale of "The Ultimate Fighter: Team Rampage vs. Team Forrest," which features a main event of former UFC middleweight champ Evan Tanner vs. Kendall Grove, will run three hours, and for the first time, will be presented in high-definition.
Spike TV today confirmed details for the June 21 event, including fights for the night's undercard. The televised main card airs at 9 p.m. ET/PT.
The event takes place at The Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas.
Previously reported fights of Spencer Fisher vs. Jeremy Stephens, Jeremy Horn vs. Dean Lister, Josh Burkman vs. Dustin Hazelett, and Marvin Eastman vs. Drew McFedries were all confirmed today.
The Grove vs. Tanner fight, as well as a welterweight bout between Luigi Fioravanti and Diego Sanchez, were previously announced by the UFC.
The event will also feature the two finalists from the current season of "TUF." The final preliminary bout airs this coming Wednesday, and the cast will then be whittled down to eight remaining quarter-finalists. As with past seasons of the show, the winner earns a six-figure contract with the UFC and an assortment of prizes.
http://mmajunkie.com/news/4374/the-ultimate-fighter-7-finale-in-high-def-slotted-for-three-hours.mma
still, beautiful entrance. it's shortened here from the broadcast i saw on the fight network.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Vlnm60WwLQ
we:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpY6cAdYRag
are:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nrGEgilIFW0
all:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eVw9d7W8xjg
one:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFGjL2I03MY
This show is gonna be sick!! Grove,Diego, Lister, and free, you can't beat that.
no doubt! it's looking great so far my friend.
The Ultimate Fighter 7: Team Rampage Vs. Team Forrest Finale, June 21, 2008 - The Palms, Las Vegas, Nevada - Spike TV
Main Card:
Evan Tanner Vs. Kendall Grove
Finalist #1 Vs. Finalist #2
Diego Sanchez Vs. Liugi Fioravanti
Spencer Fisher Vs. Jeremy Stephens
Dustin Hazelett Vs. Josh Burkman
Pre-lims:
Jeremy Horn Vs. Dean Lister (swing bout)
Marvin Eastman Vs. Drew McFedries
Matt Arroyo Vs. TBA
Rob Yundt Vs. TBA
Matt Riddle Vs. TBA
UFC CHAMP BJ PENN TOUGH ON STEROIDS IN MMA
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
by Damon Martin - MMAWeekly.com
The problem with steroids in mixed martial arts has been well documented over the past few years. From champions to challengers all testing positive, no one can deny that an issue exists, and while many athletes shy away from the subject, Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight titleholder B.J. Penn is happy to give his thoughts on a growing trend that haunts the sport more and more each year.
Many fighters have been tested under numerous athletic commissions, and a staggering list of offenders grows to new heights each day. Recently, the Nevada State Athletic Commission instituted a new “off season” drug testing policy for combat sports and both Penn and former champion Sean Sherk were tested prior to their upcoming title bout on May 24.
While Penn feels the change is a step in the right direction, it is not the answer to the problem of steroids in MMA.
“It’s a positive idea, but it’s not like people can’t get around that stuff any time,” said Penn in an interview with MMAWeekly Radio. “The people taking steroids that they’re getting from their doctor, they know how to beat the test. They know what they’re doing. The athletic commission, it’s not their fault, they’re trying the best they can to see what’s going on, but steroids or blood doping, growth hormone or whatever, it’s a part of the sport. It’s a black eye on sports, but the athletic commission, that’s the best they can do and you can’t blame them for trying.”
The trend of fighters testing positive hasn’t gone away and the current lightweight champion doesn’t feel enough attention is being paid to the problem.
“The thing that’s so crazy is how it gets swept under the rug,” Penn stated. “It’s like, what would happen in the old days in the Wild West if somebody got caught with two aces up their sleeve? You shoot them right there, you know what I mean? That’s why I tell Sean Sherk he’s dead. It’s just ridiculous.”
The society of fighters using performance enhancing drugs also concerns Penn, who says the people involved are more likely to cover for each other and we may never know just how many athletes are involved in illegal activities.
“We all know. We all know when people fight. You can look at their nipples. You can just know when somebody’s blood doping. We all know,” Penn said adamantly.
“And fighters to fighters, I think so many fighters do it that they all back each other up and say, ‘No, I don’t think he was doing it.’ That’s because you were (expletive) doing it.”
With his upcoming bout with former champion Sean Sherk less than a week away, Penn isn’t afraid to call out anyone with a background that involves performance enhancing drugs.
“It’s a joke and they’re cowards and they’re not real fighters,” he commented. “That’s why I say there’s too many athletes, not enough fighters in this sport. To me fighting’s everything, and it’s such a pure thing, and this and that and they go and pervert it and go and do all this other stuff. And then they’ve got the guts to go out and say they’ve got heart or they train hard. I look at them and I just want to laugh.”
http://www.mmaweekly.com/absolutenm/templates/dailynews.asp?articleid=6301&zoneid=2
UFC 84, May 24, 2008 - MGM Grand Garden Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada - PPV
Main Card:
Sean Sherk Vs. BJ Penn - penn by tko
Wanderlei Silva Vs. Keith Jardine - jardine by decision
Goran Reljic Vs. Wilson Gouveia - gouviea by submission
Tito Ortiz Vs. Lyoto Machida - ortiz by decision
Antonio Mendes Vs. Thiago Silva - silva by ko
Pre-lims:
Ivan Salaverry Vs. Rousimar Palhares - salaverry by submission
Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou Vs. Kazuhiro Nakamura - sokoudjou by tko
Terry Etim Vs. Rich Clementi - clementi by decision
Jon Koppenhaver Vs. Yoshiyuki Yoshida - yoshida by tko
Dong-hyun Kim Vs. Jason Tan - KDH by ko
Shane Carwin Vs. Christian Wellisch - carwin by ko
ha! that's awesome!
hehe... the bit where he's dancing down the aisle is somewhat reminiscent of Patrick Swayze at the end of Dirty Dancing...
and what's with the end of the fight?? that didn't look like it was ready to be stopped! he was still defending himself!
wow! those are some seriously elaborate productions!! very cool!
great highlight video.... did he seriously pick that dude up, swing him around by his feet, and set him down directly into a leg lock??? :eek: that's badass!! and did i see a gogoplata in there too?
the entrance with the native american influence was unexpected... i'm not really sure how to explan it. i guess we see american people using eastern culture to express themselves so often (e.g. that whole tattoo conversation we had...) that's it's strange to see it in reverse. (strange in a good way) i'm not sure if that makes sense.
anyways. thanks for posting those!
i actually remembered that i have that one on tape! i could have shown the whole thing to you...along with the rough episode i finally found! :mad:
yeah, it's quite a contrast to the north american entrances. a lot of fighters gain fans simply with their showmanship and entrances. the entrances he had for his three fights in the ufc were "toned down" simply because there wasn't much space (they used a ramp and a small stage in those days.)
...and it couldn't be funnier that you said that! it's been debated ever since the match happened. sudo fans say it was stopped early. kid fans say it was a good stoppage.
no worries, i wanted you to see them!
genki has since retired and moved on to movies and choreography, but i'm hoping he comes back to mma some day. he's still just in his early 30's. it's crazy that he put these entrances together along with getting ready for his matches.
that spin move was one i've seen him do in training sessions and he used it in one ufc match against daune ludwig (one of the worst decisions i've ever seen...just my opinion...they gave it to ludwig!) but only managed to get him about a 3/4 revolution around. the one in the highlight video looks like it might be from a pankration match? maybe. not sure about the gogplata...i'll have to look again...
i get what you're saying about the culture thing. makes sense to me.
i'm happy you enjoyed the clips, ceg!
funny episode tonight too!
your pics for 84 look alot like mine, except for 1 fight
It says that The Ultimate Fighter Finale will be in HD... when did spike get an HD channel?
oh and also just read this on mmanews... Looks like Rashad has been pulled from ufc 85 completely now.
After countless opponent changes, Rashad Evans has been removed from UFC 85. The announcement was made earlier today by the UFC.
Evans was first scheduled to face Chuck Liddell but after a hamstring injury forced him out, James Irvin stepped up to face the undefeated light heavyweight. Irvin was injured earlier in the week and Luis Cane switched opponents to fight Evans.
With Evans being removed from the card, Cane now will fight Jason Lambert who he was first paired up with to fight on the prelims of the card.
http://www.mmanews.com/ufc/Rashad-Evans-Removed-From-UFC-85:-Bedlam-In-London.html
09/19/05, 05/09/06, 05/10/06
hmmm...i wonder which match?
that UFC 85 : "Bedlam" card is looking more like UFC 85 : CURSED! man, there have been a lot of changes in opponents and matches. so i made the changes again in the rumours! thanks, leafs.
personally, i don't know about the HD thing. i just have a regular spike channel on an old tv.
p.s. sudo!
I had to post one more Tito piece from sherdog. enjoy!!
http://www.sherdogvideos.com/misc/ing_ortiz_ufc84.wmv
your tv's cool because everyone looks like they're on fire...
yeah, i could see how you could get pumped up watching that.
such a contrast in personalities and styles...we'll see who wins out on saturday! i can't wait!
...also interested to hear what tito has to say after the match now!
EliteXC, May 31, 2008 - Prudential Center, Newark, New Jersey - CBS
Main Card:
Kevin "Kimbo Slice" Ferguson Vs. James Thompson
Robbie Lawler Vs. Scott Smith - EliteXC MW Championship
Gina Carano Vs. Kaitlin Young
Phil Baroni Vs. Joey Villasenor (Murilo Rua out due to injury)
Brett Rogers Vs. John Murphy
Pre-lims:
Nick Serra Vs. Matt Makowski
Wilson Reis Vs. Justin Robbins
Zach Makovsky Vs. Andre Soares
Mike Groves Vs. Joe Sampieri
Chris Liguori Vs. Jim Bova
James Jones Vs. Calvin Kattar
Carlton Haselrig Vs. Carlos Moreno
the undercard will stream live on proelite.com, and the main card will be the first installment of "saturday night fights" on CBS.
not that i ever share my thoughts on the matches or anything...:D...but...
i'm hoping people don't tune out after rogers vs. murphy. it should be the standard ugly HW slugfest. can't say i'm looking forward to it at all. at least there's a good chance it will end quickly (fingers crossed).
baroni vs. villasenor is an interesting match and quite possibly the one where we'll see the most action on the ground. i wish ninja was still fighting baroni, but villasenor is a game opponent with lots of experience and a great coach in greg jackson. i'd expect them to let baroni tire himself out in the first and then gradully wear him down in the second, possibly finishing him in the late second or third...or winning a decision. baroni's best chance is to overwhelm villasenor with strikes in the first, but i can't see villasenor playing into that game. baroni always tires in his fights, so villasenor should be able to take advantage if he plays it safe in the beginning.
carano vs. young will rival smith vs. lawler for fight of the night. two muay thai fighters, both with ground games that need some work. i'd say gina's takedown defense is good enough to keep kaitlin from taking her down if that's what kaitlin plans to do, and her muay thai is heads and shoulders above young, who has a more rigid style of muay thai and not the best defense. she's new to the sport and blew through her first four opponents, only to have her weakness on the ground exposed in her last fight where she dominated the stand up only to fall victim to an armbar in the second. it's also going to be a huge test of her nerves being so young, green, and being on national tv. gina's been there and done it. gina is fluid, and her hands, elbows and leg kicks are the best in women's mma, in my opinion. i can see gina winning this one in the second with a ko or tko. should be an outstanding match, as young is a promising newcomer. i just think see's going to get overwhelmed by the moment and by the better striker. gina's probabaly the most technically adept striker on the card.
smith vs. lawler has fireworks written all over it. both guys love to stand and trade punches. i think they'll do it until one of them goes down, and in my opinion it's lawler who falls first in this one. who needs a second round, eh?!
kimbo should have a relatively easy ko in his match against thompson. thompson has been ko'd many times now and by lesser strikers. maybe thompson will try to take the fight to the ground like he did in his last match, but even if he does, i'm not sure how much of an advantage he will have there. it's not exactly his strong suit, and kimbo is said to have a solid ground game. we just haven't seen it yet...and i don't expect to see it here. likely another slugfest , with kimbo getting the better of it with more accurate striking, power, and movement.
i'm expecting a lot of stand up in these matches and not a lot of grappling, which is really too bad, for a network tv debut, but it should still be an exciting show, in any case. it would just be nice if it turns out to be a better representation of overall MMA than it looks like on paper.
was that two or three cents?
i should get off this mma addiction someday and start downloading pj concerts i think!
this is the match that had the highlight featured in the tribute video. it's the one where he
turns out it was from a match in pancrase, vs. craig oxley...only about 3 mins.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eoFe-ZORiTU