May 9, 2008
ACROSS THE POND: BRITISH MMA NEWS

Cage Rage 26 – Extreme Preview
By David West

Tomorrow night the biggest name in British MMA will face the toughest test in a career that has hitherto gone from strength to strength. It’s not a fighter under pressure tomorrow, but Cage Rage itself. While the promotion has distinguished itself as Britain’s most successful domestic MMA brand, it has always been firmly rooted in London, but Cage Rage 26 will be the first Cage Rage show held in Birmingham, away from the familiar stomping grounds of Wembley. If that wasn’t enough, it will be the first event without Andy Geer, who has left the promotion in the hands of his co-founder Dave O’Donnell.

Freeman

The card is almost exclusively made up of British fighters – all three title fights on the bill are for British belts, headlined by the light-heavyweight title contest between Ian “The Machine” Freeman, coming out of another short-lived retirement, to face reigning champion Paul Cahoon. Both men hold decision wins over former champion Mark Epstein and both have fallen victim to the heavy hands of Melvin Manhoef. Freeman has the edge in experience and his ground and pound put Frank Mir to sleep back at UFC 38, so he’ll probably look for the takedown and try to finish Cahoon on the canvas. Cahoon’s lethal right hand was showcased when he dropped Elvis Sinosic with one Exocet missile of an overhand right at Cage Rage 24. Cahoon honed his Muay Thai skills training in Holland with Team Golden Glory so he’ll likely look to stay on his feet and make Freeman pay for every takedown attempt. Freeman looked in amazing shape when he was at the SENI Martial Arts Expo two weeks ago so this one should be explosive.

Fighting for the British welterweight title vacated by Paul Daley, Marius Zaromskis will look to avenge his defeat to Che Mills. A precise kickboxer who can throw brutal kicks with either leg, Zaromskis will have to find his way inside the taller Mills long reach. The cousin of Mark Weir, Mills has knockout power in his long arms and in their first encounter, at Contenders 2, he KO’d Zaromskis with a perfectly timed knee to the chin. While Zaromskis has improved considerably since, with highlight reel performances against Ross Mason and Damien Riccio, no one has been able to last a single round with Mills in his last five wins (discounting one no-contest). Mills has to be the favourite, leaving it up to Zaromskis to go for the upset win.

Holland’s Rodney Faverus has superb stand-up but like too many kickboxers, his ground game has never been the equal of his striking. His opponent tomorrow will be London’s James Zikic who is tough as old boots and has shown an inhuman ability to soak up abuse and come back slugging. Zikic has fought in MMA, boxing and K-1 so he’ll no doubt be only too happy to stand and trade with Faverus, but Zikic has never been big for the division and Faverus may be able to rough him up in the clinches. Coming off four losses Faverus needs the win, while a victory for Zikic could earn him a crack at the winner of Cahoon-Freeman for the British title.

Two popular welterweights clash when Ross Mason takes on Ross Pointon. Mason got back on track with a TKO of Henrique Santana after dropping three in a row, while Pointon was unlucky to get stopped on a nasty cut in his last fight against Marius Zaromskis. Pointon has showed a markedly improved skill set in all areas of his game in recent outings, but there must be a question mark hanging over him about whether he’ll get cut again. Mason has great Muay Thai and should be well matched with Pointon’s San Shou kickboxing background, but if Mason can re-open the scar tissue on Pointon’s forehead, Pointon may find his career facing another setback.

Pointon Will Face Mason at Cage Rage 26

Looking to claim his third Cage Rage title, Mark Epstein continues working his way down the weight divisions to challenge British middleweight champ Matt Ewin. Epstein throws big bombs and loves to let fly with his left hook, but stylistically he’ll have his hands full with Ewin, who will look for the takedown and work his ground and pound. Epstein will be fighting not just for the title, but for the pride of his team London Shootfighters. Ewin has made a habit of collecting the scalps of London Shootfighters’ members – he holds wins over Suley Mahmoud, Gaz Rorison, Sol Gilbert and Alex Reid. His style may not be spectacular, but he possesses great strength, prodigious cardio and will test Epstein’s resolve to the limit. Expect this one to become a test of wills that will go the distance with Ewin probably taking the nod.

After taking a break in 2006, Marc Goddard returned to action dropping down from heavyweight to light-heavyweight and disposed of his first two opponents in his comeback, Ivan Serati and Tony Bentley, by TKO. He’ll be out for revenge against the Wolfslair’s Henrique Nogueira who beat him by guillotine when they fought at Cage Warriors back in 2005. Goddard has looked revitalised since moving down to 205 but he’ll have to sprawl and brawl and stay wary of Nogueira’s submissions.

Popular featherweight Brad Pickett returns to Cage Rage to face Paul Reed, who is coming off his unsuccessful title bid against Emanuel Fernandez at FX3. Reed has tasty ground and pound, but Pickett is notoriously difficult to hold down. Reed’s biggest win to date was over BJJ black belt Alexandre Izidro, but Pickett’s much more well rounded than Izidro and he loves to throw punches in bunches. Pickett should be able to scramble out of danger on the floor and gradually wear down Reed with pressure on the feet.

Full Fight Card:

Ian Freeman vs. Paul Cahoon
Che Mills vs. Marius Zaromskis
Rodney Faverus vs. James Zikic
Ross Mason vs. Ross Pointon
Mark Epstein vs. Matt Ewin
Henrique Nogueira vs. Marc Goddard
Paul Reed vs. Brad Pickett
Kev Simms vs. Popek Rak
Roman Webber vs. Scott Fairclough
Chris Rice vs. Edgelson Lue
Harvey Harra vs. Gary Kelly

May 9, 2008
ADRENALINE UPDATE
Adrenaline Card Released
By Steven Marrocco

Adrenaline MMA, or the promotion formerly known as M-1 Global, released details on their inaugural card to be held June 14th at the Sears Centre in Chicago, Illinois. A Midwest-heavy line up leads the way for a main event showdown between Ultimate Fighting Championship veteran Jeff Monson and Pride vet Mike Russow. Fans outside of Chicago will have to make the drive to the Windy City if they want to see the show, as the event is live only.

"Monson is far more than just a veteran," said Adrenaline CEO Monte Cox. "He has fought in every major event in the world and competed for countless titles, including the UFC heavyweight title. He comes into the event having won 18 of his last 20 bouts and is looking to prove Russow is not yet ready for the big time.

Monson

"Russow, on the other hand, has been crushing opposition and has been tested twice in major events... losing to then No. 6 ranked Sergei Kharitonov in Pride, then crushing Roman Zentzov in Japan's Yarennoka event last New Years Eve. He's ready to show he should be considered among the world's best."

The announcement comes seven months after the promotion stutter stepped while trying to keep their crown jewel, Fedor Emelianenko, only to become mired in disagreement with the Russian wing of M-1 over the cost of the Russian star. In late March, the CEO Monte Cox and his partners in Sibling Sports finally severed ties with Emelianenko, and the promotion downscaled its original plans for free TV and pay per view.

Cox now appears to be spearheading operations of the company, with several fighters on his management roster appearing in the show, including Russow. His latest well-publicized signing, Tim Sylvia, will be appearing against none other than Emelianenko at new-kid-on-the block Affliction’s first show on July 19th in Anaheim, California.

In addition to Russow and Monson, UFC vet and Chicago native Terry Martin will take on PRIDE and fellow UFC vet Daiju Takase. Martin is coming off his first pro boxing victory over Ricardo Upchirch. Takase was last knocked out by Hector Lombard in an Australian event in early 2006. Other fighters of note scheduled to appear are King of the Cage Lightweight Champion Clay French, Jeff Cox, Kerry Schall, and IFL vets Bart Palaszewski, Rory Markham, and Mark Miller.

May 9, 2008
PALACE FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIP UPDATE
Several Titles Change Hands at PFC 8
By FCF Staff

Leemore, California, hosted Palace Fighting Championship 8 last night, the promotion’s second event in the last two weeks. The PFC 8 card featured 4 title fights in addition to 8 preliminary bouts.

In the main event, Diego Saraiva was unable to defend his PFC lightweight championship as the UFC veteran lost by Unanimous Decision to Brian Cobb. With the win, Cobb’s record improves to 12-4 while Saraiva’s drops to 11-7-1.

Nate Loughran submitted PFC middleweight champ Kenny Ento in the second round to lay claim to the promotion’s 185lb. belt. With the victory, Loughran extends his perfect record to 8-0 while Ento’s falls to 9-4.

And in another bout that saw a PFC belt change hands, Jorge Evangelista defeated Art Arciniega by Unanimous Decision to become the promotion’s featherweight champion. The loss, which is Arciniega’s first, drops the former champion’s record to 6-1 while Evangelista’s improves to 7-2-1.

In the last title fight of the evening, Shawn Klarcyk (8-2) became the PFC Interim Bantamweight Champion by submitting Jason Georgianna (7-3) in the second round. The interim title bout was set up after PFC Bantamweight champ Rolando Velasco was unable to defend his title against Klarcyk due to an injury.

Some of the results from the preliminary bouts included; IFL veteran Devin Cole stopped Vince Lucero in the first round for the TKO win, Pride vet Olaf Alfonso KO’ed Chris Solomon just 28 seconds into round one, and former “Ultimate Fighter” competitor Lodune Sincaid, earned his 13th career victory, by submitting Rafeal Del Real in the first round.

PFC 8 Results

PFC Featherweight Title Fight
Jorge Evangelista defeated Art Arciniega by Unanimous Decision.

PFC Middleweight Title Fight
Nate Loughran submitted Kenny Ento at 2:30 of Rd.2.

PFC Interim Bantamweight Title Fight
Shawn Klarcyk (8-2) submitted Jason Georgianna (7-3) at 57 seconds of Rd.2.

PFC Lightweight Title Fight
Brian Cobb (12-4) defeated Diego Saraiva (11-7-1) by Unanimous Decision.

Sergio Cortez defeated Poppies Martinez by stoppage due to an injury at 2:57 of Rd.1
Devin Cole defeated Vince Lucero by TKO at 1:17 of Rd.1.
Olaf Alfonso knocked out Chris Solomon at 28 seconds of Rd.1.
Casey Olson submitted Sergio Quinones at 46 seconds of Rd.1.
Dustin Akabari defeated Cody Canterbury by TKO at 1:37 of Rd.1.
Lodune Sincaid (13-6) submitted Rafael Del Real at 1:03 of Rd.1.
Joseph Benavidez submitted Maurice Eazel (3-7) at 1:02 of Rd.1.
Dan Russom (2-2) defeated Thonglor Armatsena by Majority Decision.

May 9, 2008
NEWS UPDATE

Hardcore Championship Fighting Ceases Operations
By Kelsey Mowatt

Hardcore Championship Fighting CEO, Keith Crawford, confirmed to FCF this afternoon that the Canadian company will no longer be promoting events. The news comes as somewhat of a surprise, due to the fact that according to several reports, which were confirmed by Crawford, the sale of the promotion had been imminent. Crawford informed FCF that the Canadian sports network, The Score, had been the potential buyer.

Although Crawford would not comment on details surrounding why the relatively new promotion has ceased operations, he did confirm that he will be moving forward with his own event. Former HCF partner, Dave Houshiar, is also going to apparently continue to promote, and will be starting up his own organization.

HCF made several headlines during its short tenure, having notable fighters like Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Gegard Mousasi and Aleksander Emelianenko compete on its cards. At HCF’s last event on March 29th, David Loiseau worked his way to a Unanimous Decision victory over Todd Gouwenberg in the card’s main event.

Loiseau (Top) During his Mar. 29th Bout with Gouwenberg

May 8, 2008
ADVERTISEMENT: RING OF COMBAT 19

May 8, 2008
WORLD EXTREME CAGEFIGHTING NEWS

Curran Looking Forward to June 1st Tilt with Brown
By Kelsey Mowatt

On June 1st, at the upcoming World Extreme Cagefighting event in Sacramento, California, two of the United States more accomplished and respected featherweights will face off. Of course, the card’s main event competitors in WEC 145lb. champion Urijah Faber and challenger Jens Pulver fit this description, but so do scheduled undercard rivals, Jeff Curran and Mike Brown.

“I thought it was a perfect opponent,” Curran told FCF when asked for his reaction when he found out he would fight Mike Brown next. “It’s the perfect opponent for what I’m trying to achieve out of the sport, staying, fighting high level guys from this point forward. I think it’s a great match-up, I don’t think one person has a huge advantage over anything, he might have a little bit of the advantage in wrestling, which I’m working on. I might have a little advantage over the jiu-jitsu which I’m sure he’s working on, so I don’t think there’s any huge advantages for either of us, it’s a great match-up in that sense.”

When one considers that several years ago featherweight fighters around North American were mostly relegated to smaller shows and received virtually no exposure, the WEC, in a relatively short period of time, has brought the 145lb. division into the spotlight. For fans of the featherweight division, a bout between two veteran fighters in Curran (30-9-1) and Brown (16-4) is an all-star match-up; unfortunately, it is a match-up that might not be broadcast come June 1st.

Curran

“It surprised me, because I was told it was,” said Curran commenting on the fact that the WEC site does not have his fight with Brown locked in for the Versus broadcast. “I was really pissed off, I mean for someone like me and Mike Brown to go fight each other and not let the world see it, pisses me off. I was told that it’s being filmed for a feature bout for the new WEC Wreckage show that’s coming out a few weeks later or something like that, so they wanted to save it, or if it’s a quick fight they might give me a double whammy and show it. So that would be good. They made it clear that the fight will be aired fairly shortly.”

Which is good news, despite his recent second round submission loss to the current champion Faber at WEC 31 last December, Curran remains one of the featherweight division’s most respected fighters. The Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt is 8-2 in his last ten fights, a stretch that includes wins over highly regarded fighters in Antonio Carvalho and Wagnney Fabiano.

Brown has also had a ton of success as of late, and has won 6 straight since being submitted by Masakazu Imanari at Deep 22 in December, 2005. The accomplished wrestler, whose winning streak also includes a win of Yves Edwards, continues to round out his game with the world famous American Top Team in Florida. On account of Brown’s wrestling pedigree, some have raised comparisons between Curran’s upcoming opponent in Brown, and his last one in Faber.

“I think there are a lot of differences,” says Curran in dismissing the notion that Brown and Faber might be similar types of fighters. “I think Mike’s a lot more composed; I don’t mean that in a bad way for either one of them, I just think that Urijah is more unpredictable of a fighter. I think Mike Brown is more by the book, I’m a little more by the book, I’ve been known to throw the odd crazy thing but it’s not typical for me, you know what I’m saying? Where Urijah is always trying to pull something off and is a little dangerous from every position. You can have him on his back and he’ll cut you with an elbow, or pull off something, I just think Mike Brown is more composed in that sense. More conventional, Urijah is more unorthodox.”

It’s been over 5 months now since Curran failed in his bid to unseat Faber as the WEC champion. After Curran appeared to have the rising star in some serious trouble during round one, Faber went on to submit the accomplished jiu-jitsu practitioner in round two with a guillotine choke. At the time, it was heralded by many as Faber’s greatest victory to date.

“That fight sent me into a depression,” Curran candidly told FCF when asked about the loss to Faber. “It was probably one of the hardest things I’ve dealt with in my life, apart from deaths in the family and major things like that. It was heartbreaking. Not only have I never been submitted in a fight in my life, I’ve never been caught in a choke in my jiu-jitsu career, in a match. The whole world just ended for me right there, looking into the first round I’m riding his back, thinking ‘this is too easy.’ Not over confident at all, but it was how I thought it was going to go, I could hear the crowd, I could see the belt around my waist, and my life changing, the next thing I know the round’s over. Never going to make that mistake again, I’m going to be really conscious about what I’m doing, I got a little bit away from myself, to push the pace, make sure I’m not laying back waiting until the round ends, it didn’t pay off.”

May 8, 2008
CHRIS LYTLE

Chris Lytle’s Number One Wish: No Lay and Pray
By Steven Marrocco

It’s got to be exciting to hear that your home city might be on the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s list of places to visit. That’s what Dave Meltzer of Yahoo Sports said of Indianapolis, Indiana, home to welterweight veteran Chris Lytle. Fighting at the Canseco Fieldhouse -- he once headlined a fight against current “The Ultimate Fighter” contestant Matt Brown only a year ago -- would be a dream come true for the Indianan.

“I think [the UFC has] learned that anything they do in the Midwest is pretty much going to sell out,” Lytle tells FCF.

Lytle

First, he has to get by Josh Koscheck, whom he’s scheduled to fight at UFC 86 on July 5th in Las Vegas. One of the American Kickboxing Academy’s strongest welterweights, Koscheck got back in the winner’s column with an impressive TKO victory over Dustin Hazelett at UFC 82. At first glance, the fight appears to be a nightmare for Lytle, whose hopes for a title shot were dashed under the smothering groundwork of Matt Hughes at UFC 68 last March.

As wrestlers go, Koscheck is prototype for the art, combining lighting-fast takedowns with ground-and-pound from the top. True, Koscheck has made a concerted effort to shrug off the label of wrestler, especially in his performance against Hazelett, but without question, fighters have strong tendencies to go back to their instincts when challenged. And with three years and a 13-1-1 record in boxing, Lytle will not be an easy task for Koscheck.

So was Lytle irritated when he got the call?

“I’m not mad about it at all,” Lytle counters. “They offer me fights and I always have the opportunity to say ‘no thank you.’ But to be honest with you, it seems to me when Koscheck lost his last fight to St. Pierre, he’s been changing it up a little bit, and that’s all I’m asking for. I don’t care if you try to take me down, that’s part of the sport, just don’t hold me and not do anything.”

You might say that Lytle is counting on Koscheck’s ego to play into his hand. Despite sustaining a fight-ending cut in his bout with Thiago Alves at UFC 78, Lytle got what he wanted, someone to stand toe to toe with him.

“I’d say just about all the fights I’ve lost have been where a guy’s trying to win a decision on me,” Lytle continues. “So I haven’t been in too many fights where the guy’s coming out and looking to end the fight, and it hasn’t been a fantastic fight or I’ve come out on top. I’ve figured out that I’m a fighter, but I’m also an entertainer, and I want every fight that I’m going to be in to be entertaining.”

Lytle acknowledges that such an approach may net the same result as the Alves fight. But like his day job as a firefighter, there’s an easy way of looking at the issue.

“I’m a firm believer in if you play with fire, you’re gonna get burned,” Lytle said. “If occasionally I’m going to be on the receiving end of that, so be it.”

Lytle’s camp, the Integrated Fighting Academy, has moved into an 8000 square foot camp closer to the city. It’s a far cry from the cramped quarters of their old home -- FCF can testify to that. Lytle has at least a month to go before he begins his two-a-day workouts.

And even though he respects Koscheck’s hands, his game plan is still rooted in avoiding a repeat of his tangle with Hughes.

“Avoid the takedown,” Lytle said first. “But really avoid the laying down and having him pull a Matt Hughes on me. My main goal is to create space. If I’m on bottom, I’ve got to create space to make it difficult for him to control me. I just can’t let him dictate what’s going to happen in the fight.”

May 6, 2008
RING OF COMBAT PREVIEW

HDNet Fights Presents: Ring of Combat 19 Preview
By Jim Genia

When: May 9th
Where: Tropicana Resort & Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey
What: HDNet Fights Presents: Ring of Combat 19

When we last saw Eddie Fyvie, he was knocking his opponent into next week. When we last saw “Crazy” Chris Schlesinger, he was waging a frenzied grappling war. When we last saw Tom Velasquez, he was pulling a rabbit out of his hat in the form of a lightning-quick heelhook victory. Promoter Lou Neglia’s Ring of Combat returns on May 9th, and it brings with it Fyvie, Schlesinger and Velasquez – three exciting fighters who, along with elite scrappers Alexis Aquino, Ricardo Romero, and Doug Gordon, are sure to provide action. Here’s a look at the full ROC 18 card:

Preliminary Bouts:
LW: Chris Steele vs. Eddie Fyvie (Spa City BJJ)
WW: Mike Medrano (Rhino Fight Team) vs. Anthony Budine (Serra/Longo)

Main Card:
LHW: Joe Diamond (AC MMA) vs. Bill Scott (BJJ Shore Academy/Ricardo Almeida)
WW: Robert Cunane (LA Boxing) vs. Tom Velasquez (Team Endgame)
LHW: Anthony Vetro (Inazuma Te Ryu) vs. “Crazy” Chris Schlesinger (Soca/Bellmore Kickboxing)
WW: Kevin Horowitz (Rhino Fight Team) vs. Anthony LaDonna (Serra/Longo)
MW: Alexis Aquino (Rhino Fight Team) vs. Dave Branch (Team Renzo/Insight)
MW: Dom Stanco (Bellmore Kickboxing) vs. Mark Berraciol (BJJ Shore Academy/Ricardo Almeida)
MW: Doug Gordon (Team Rush/Elite BJJ) vs. LeVon Maynard
LHW: Ricardo Romero (Advanced Martial Arts) vs. Constantinos Phillippou (Serra/Longo)

USKBA Middleweight Championship
Nick Catone (BJJ Shore Academy/Ricardo Almeida) vs. Mitch Whitesel (Wreck Room)

May 6, 2008
NEVADA STATE ATHLETIC COMMISSION UPDATE
Sherk Clears NSAC Drug Test
By FCF Staff

Sherk

The Nevada State Athletic Commission’s Executive Director, Keith Kizer, announced today that former UFC lightweight champ Sean Sherk, has tested negative for steroids and drugs heading into his May 24th title fight with current UFC 155lb. champion, BJ Penn.

“The NSAC received Mr. Sherk’s steroid and drug test results this morning and they were all negative,” Kizer’s email stated today.

Sherk will look to reclaim the UFC lightweight belt when he faces Penn at UFC 84. The fighter was stripped of his title last year, due to failing a Californian State Athletic Commission’s drug test, following Sherk’ successful title defense against Hermes Franca on June 7th at UFC 73.

The NSAC previously announced that Penn has already tested negative in out of competition testing heading into the May 24th tilt.

May 6, 2008
THE NORTHERN TOUCH: NEWS AND NOTES FROM CANADIAN MMA

Bosse Looking to Dismantle “The Project”
Heavyweight Prospect Will Fight Wes Sims at TKO 34
By Kelsey Mowatt

On June 7th, the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, will host the latest offering from TKO Championship Fighting, an event which will be headlined by a heavyweight tilt between Quebec’s own Steve "The Boss" Bosse, and heavyweight veteran, Wes "The Project" Sims. It is a crucial fight for Bosse, the former professional hockey player has gone 2-1 since he began fighting last June, and Sims will be without question, the biggest name he will have fought to date.

“Sims has good experience,” Bosse told FCF when we caught up with him today. “He has a lot of fights in MMA; it is a good opportunity for me to make my name in MMA.”

Both of Bosse’s wins thus far have come via strikes; at TK0 29 the former St. Jean Chiefs player stopped David Fraser in round one and at TKO 30 last September, Bosse also finished Jody Burke with strikes for the first round TKO victory. Due to the fact that the 6’10 tall Sims will tower over the 6’0 Bosse, it will be interesting to see what game plan the Canadian heavyweight employs against his American opponent.

“The plan is the standing game,” Bosse says. “I don’t want to go the jiu-jitsu game, or the wrestling game, I don’t want to go to the clinch game with this guy because he’s tall, it’s easy for him to hit me with his knee, I want to use my stand-up game.”

Bosse has been utilizing the plethora of MMA talent and gyms that are located in Quebec, in fact, the 26 year-old-fighter transitioned into the sport with the help of trainers like Fabio Holanda, who have helped train Canadian stars like Patrick Cote and Georges St. Pierre.

“Fabio Holanda at the Gamma gym in Montreal,” Bosse stated when asked about his training camp. “For my stand-up I train with Team Bergeron in Drummondville, when I went to Thailand I trained with a Muay Thai coach who is also now in Montreal and is coaching me.”

Not only is the upcoming fight with Sims crucial for Bosse because of Sim’s experience and name recognition factor, but also because Bosse is coming off his first career loss. At TKO 31 last December the former TKO heavyweight champion Icho Larenas stopped Bosse in the third round.

“It was a good fight for me,” Bosse said in recalling the bout. “The fight gave me good experience for the sport, I learned I can’t give all my shots, all my energy in the first round. I can’t always go for the kill every second.”

Bosse (L) Throwing a Right Hand at Larenas

It’s not often that fighters are promoted to main event status after having only one or two fights under their belts, but due to Bosse’s days as well known hockey pugilist in Quebec’s LNAH league, Bosse’s MMA career is already one that is being closely monitored. Bosse, who during the 2006-2007 LNAH season earned 254 penalty minutes in just 27 games, has retired from hockey so he can put all of his energy into his MMA career. Although Bosse’s days of “dropping the gloves” are behind him, the heavyweight prospect concedes that his experience in trading punches on a sheet of ice has been a huge asset to his MMA career.

“For sure it helped me,” Bosse said. “When I came to MMA I had a lot of fans, it’s good for me. It helped me because I’ve fought in front of crowds and it helped me just for fighting. Now it’s not the same kind of fight, it’s not just punches, now its elbows, knees and kicks, but I’ve worked very hard to become a good fighter.”

May 5, 2008
JAMES THOMPSON

A “Colossal” Task
By Steven Marrocco

James “The Colossus” Thompson doesn’t have the most sparkling record in MMA. At 14 wins and 8 losses, he’s disappointed more than he’s delivered. He’s dropped two consecutive appearances as of late, KO losses to Brett Rogers and Neil Grove. But he has two things that Elite XC needs desperately right now -- excitement and a questionable chin.

Thompson

His “gong and dash,” a headlong charge across the ring at his opponent, has captivated fans around the world. Whatever the outcome, they could be sure that Thompson would chase his foe until someone was knocked out. Frequently, it was him, but it displayed a characteristic that’s becoming rarer in the high-stakes world of MMA -- a fighter who fights like he doesn’t care whether he wins or loses.

Whether they take him seriously or not, fans will always watch him. He’s a wild card.

And just the ticket for a fighter like Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson. In the 62 seconds he’s spent in Elite XC’s cage, fans have salivated at the prospect of seeing one of his backyard bare-knuckle fights come to fruition. Ferguson holds the unique position of being one of the most popular fighters today -- despite one of the thinnest resumes in the business.

“He has impressive facial hair,” Thompson says of his charge.

Other than that, he views Ferguson with the same questions that most hardcore fans do. Like them, he wants to see whether Ferguson’s skills, honed at MMA gyms in lieu of the backyard, will translate into a fight that goes longer than a minute. Then again, all but four of Thompson’s 22 professional fights have not gone past the first round.

“Obviously, [Ferguson is] aggressive and a good stand-up fighter,” he says. “Anything else, no one really knows. I think it’s impossible for anyone to live up to the hype that’s been generated around him. But fair play to him or whoever else is behind him for marketing him so well.”

It’s also fair play for Thompson to admit why he was approached as an opponent for Ferguson. They need someone to lose to their poster boy. Thompson has some impressive wins in his five-year career, including a victory over one of his idols, Don Frye, but is maddeningly uneven to observers of the sport.

“That’s their plan, without a shadow of a doubt,” he said. “My last two performances have hardly been stellar, but that’s what’s given me this great opportunity.”

Thompson is in England right now, in a heavy training cycle. He recently moved on from an extended stay at Randy Couture’s Xtreme Couture gym in Las Vegas. The experience of living there opened his eyes to new ways of training -- probably new avenues of excess as well -- but it was easy to get lost in the shuffle.

“The people were great and the sparring was excellent,” he said. “However, with it being such a big gym, I felt I needed more attention to fill the holes in my game. My training here in the UK is specifically tailored to following a certain game plan. I’m drilling, sparring, and going over techniques constantly. Obviously, the weather is much better in England and I don’t have to worry about being cold in Las Vegas! Seriously though, nothing beats home.”

Despite so many setbacks, Thompson said the fight has re-invigorated him. He believes he has a more well-rounded game than Ferguson, and looks forward to proving that “Slice” is only hype.

“It’s hard to train as hard as I do and be on the end of such disappointing losses,” he said. “It affects confidence and you do start asking yourself questions. However, not only has this fight lifted my spirits, finding the right training team for me has worked wonders, and I feel ready to get back on track in the biggest and best possible way.”

And will the gong and dash stay alive?

“I never like to say whether I’m going to do it, as it’s not that planned out,” he said. “I’ll decide nearer to the time whether to use it or not. We’ll see how I feel.”

On May 31st, James Thompson faces Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson in the main event of Elite XC’s CBS-televised “Saturday Night Fights” at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.

May 3, 2008
TKO UPDATE
UFC VETERAN WES SIMS TO CLASH WITH STEVE BOSSE!
From the Event’s Promoter

MONTREAL, CANADA, – TKO Championship Fighting is excited to announce the line-up for TKO34: SIMS vs. BOSSE which is set for Saturday, June 7th, 2008 at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec. The main event features notorious, three-time UFC veteran, Wes Sims against perennial fan favorite, Steve Bosse. This is a colossal showdown in TKO’s heavyweight division which is guaranteed to be surrounded by lots of excitement, talk and drama. The co-main event is a terrific fight between undefeated, Adrian Wooley against the up and coming, Danny Martinez in a battle for the new Bantamweight Championship! Also on the card will be a fan friendly matchup between devastating strikers, Yannick Galipeau and Stephane Dube.

WES SIMS (19-11-1) has been surrounded by controversy since first entering the octagon against the UFC’s current number one contender, Frank Mir. Sims was disqualified in that fight by using illegal foot stomps to the head of Mir. The media frenzy which ensued from that fight has followed Sims into each one of his bouts ever since. He’s definitely not shy about being in the lime light and no stranger to playing the bad guy role. But, none of that will matter on June 7th as the thousands in attendance will undoubtedly receive him with a chorus of boos as he’s slated to face their most popular hockey enforcer turned MMA fighter, Steve Bosse!

STEVE BOSSE (2-1-0) is a phenomenal athlete with incredible power in his right hand as evidenced by his numerous one punch knockouts on the ice! He knocked down former TKO Champion, Icho Larenas, in his most recent bout and came within a hair of winning by TKO. Larenas was able to regroup in somewhat controversial fashion as he complained about an eye irritation and was granted a several minute rest period. Bosse and Larenas will likely meet against to settle the score sometime down the road, but Bosse must first focus on the task at hand. A win over a veteran with over 30 fights would undoubtedly propel Bosse’s career to new heights. The Bell Centre will be electric for this colossal clash of Heavyweights!

After a rough TKO debut, DANNY MARTINEZ (7-1-0) showed what he was made of in Aruba as he systematically destroyed a very tough, Johan Croes. Martinez is very happy to be dropping to his natural weight class of 135lbs and is extremely excited to have the opportunity to challenge for the new Bantamweight Championship. ADRIAN WOOLEY (4-0-0) has looked better each time he’s stepped inside the TKO cage as he’s knocked out his last three opponents in convincing fashion. Wooley is a physical specimen at 135lbs and his wrestling skills are renowned around the country. Martinez is an excellent wrestler himself and has also shown flashes of great stand-up skills. Regardless of who emerges as the victor, it is highly unlikely that either fighter will escape the cage not feeling as though they had been in a war for the ages!

YANNICK GALIPEAU (1-1-0) began his TKO career with a bang, knocking out Josh Bitner in a fight of the night candidate. He slipped in his return losing to highly touted fighter, Derek Gauthier. He plans to return with a vengeance when he faces fellow TKO superstar, STEPHANE DUBE (6-3-0). At the age of 43, Dube is the Randy Couture of Canada! He was the architect of two of the most vicious KO's ever witnessed in TKO. But, in recent fights he’s succumb to top level competition including former number one contender, TJ Grant and UFC veteran, Chad Reiner. Will Dube’s experience be too much for Galipeau to handle? Or, will Galipeau’s agility and power turn out the lights for Dube? This is a very exciting matchup for TKO fans in the very deep, welterweight division of TKO.

THIERRY QUENNEVILLE (11-7-0) and BEN GREER (11-3-0) each made impressive returns at TKO31. Quenneville defeated Greer’s teammate Yoon Heo and Greer defeated Quenneville’s friend, Stephane Vigneault. This fight has payback written all over it for both fighters as this is also a long awaited rematch between Quenneville and Greer! Both are very well rounded fighters who don’t mind standing or grappling. But, it will likely be Quenneville who tries to keep this fight standing and Greer who may try to make it a grappler’s duel. It’s a meaningful bout in TKO’s featherweight division which will put the winner one step closer to a possible title shot.

STEPHANE VIGNEAULT (10-5-0) returns to TKO after an impressive performance at TKO32 against Daniel Ferguson. He hardly ever looks to take an easy fight and this matchup is certainly no exception. YAOTZIN MESA (7-3-0) is riding a seven fight win streak and trains with an excellent team which includes UFC veteran, Drew Fickett, Seth Baczynski and Danny Martinez. This will be another big opportunity for Vigneault to elevate his career to the next level.

May 2, 2008
ELITE XC UPDATE
Fickett Injured, Fight With Shields Delayed Again
By FCF Staff

Fickett

ProElite has confirmed that Drew Fickett has injured his knee and will be unable to fight Elite XC Welterweight Champion Jake Shields as scheduled, at the promotion’s upcoming “Return of the King” card, June 14th in Hawaii. This is the second time now a bout between Shields and Fickett has been postponed. The two were originally supposed to fight on March 29th, at Elite XC and Strikeforce’s co-promoted “Shamrock vs. Le” event, but Shields had to pull out due to a back injury.

The report on the ProElite site furthered that it was unknown at this time whether or not Shields would still compete on the upcoming June 14th card.

Elite XC has confirmed several other bouts for the event; Pride veteran Murilo “Ninja” Rua will take on Tony Bonello, Dave Herman will fight Ron Waterman and Rafeal Feijao will meet Wayne Cole.

“Return of the King” will be headlined by an Elite XC lightweight title fight between champion KJ Noons and challenger, Yves Edwards. Also scheduled for the card, Nick Diaz will take on Mushin Corbbery.

May 2, 2008
MMA IN ARIZONA

Arizona Adopts Unified Rules for MMA
By Steven Marrocco

Mixed martial arts promoters and advocates spend years and thousands of dollars getting through to skeptical state athletic commissions. The wheels of legislature turn slowly. Preconceptions have to be changed. The cause needs a face, an advocate, someone to humanize the legalese that makes up new laws.

Or a fan in a suit.

It didn’t take Arizona State Representative Jonathan Paton too long to see the merits of the sport after he began training at Arizona Combat Sports. But when he spoke to the local fighters he trained with, it became clear that his state was behind the times in its regulation of the sport.

“They told me that they’re going to have to leave the state in order to compete because of our rules,” Paton told FCF. “Which is unfortunate because they’re hometown fighters and they’re never going to be able to fight in front of their families and friends. So I started thinking about what were the issues with the law.”

Up until that point, the rules for mixed martial arts in Arizona were aligned with pankration, which disallows closed-fist strikes. A few promotions had thrived, but Paton felt that the state was missing an opportunity -- there was tax revenue to be had. It also didn’t help that at one time, the sport’s most public detractor, presidential candidate and Arizona State Senator John McCain, had almost single-handedly brought MMA to the brink of extinction in the late 90’s.

McCain gradually changed his tune as tighter regulation was brought to the sport, but in many states, MMA remained a grey area for state athletic commissions. Arizona’s Boxing Commission still viewed the sport as a nuisance. After drafting a preliminary version of a bill incorporating the “unified rules” originally implemented in New Jersey, Paton and Senate Chief of Staff Victor Riches presented it to John Montano, the Associate Director of the Commission. The new rules for MMA incorporated strikes using the elbow and closed fists.

“He was not supportive of what we were doing, because he had safety concerns,” Paton said.

Arizona Combat Sports’ Todd Lally testified at legislative hearings for the bill, and confirmed the lukewarm reception.

“They were citing the harm that it could do, and they were trying to stress that it was more dangerous than boxing,” he said. “We countered it that there has only been one death in MMA and I think there have been 70 deaths in boxing in the past five years.”

World Extreme Cagefighting lightweight champion Jamie Varner also testified, bringing his belt onto the House of Representatives floor.

To appease the sanctioning body, Paton added three concessions. One, the new bill would give the Commission the power to put a stop to unsanctioned “smokers” that were taking place across the state; two, it would add a fee paid to the Commission for sanctioning an MMA fight; and three, it would allow promoters to restrict the unified rules as they saw fit, allowing promotions like Rage in the Cage -- which strictly adhered to the pankration rules -- to continue unabated.

After fighters Ken Shamrock and Edwin Dewees testified on the merits of the sport in front of the State Senate, the bill went to vote, where it passed by a large margin. Mary Rose Wilcox, the head of the Boxing Commission and a friend of Governor Janet Napolitano, began lobbying for the bill’s signing.

On the 28th of April, Governor Napolitano signed HB2834 into law, making Arizona the latest state to adopt the unified rules.

“We couldn’t have gotten this bill through without the support of the MMA community,” Paton said. “For most people it was this bloodsport and they really didn’t understand it. When you have actual people talking about it, asking why don’t you let me live my dream out in my own hometown, it puts a human face on it, and it makes a big difference.”

According to Paton, the Commission will now be responsible for the sport it once opposed. With the passage of the bill, the state has begun to aggressively court promotions like Zuffa. After all, there is tax revenue to be had.

Insiders like Lally are cautiously optimistic about the new law. After fighting for the unified rules for five years with no headway, he’s not sure the Commission will be the advocate he hopes for.

“Any time someone’s against it -- and it might be in their best interest to be against it -- yeah, of course,” he said. “They didn’t do us any justice in the original rules that they passed. It’s completely against what they do in boxing.”

For Paton, the bill is a tribute to the sport he has grown to love.
“I am extremely pleased that we were able to agree on a bill that will effectively promote commerce and bring a very popular sport to the state,” said Paton.

May 1, 2008
PALACE FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIP UPDATE
O’Brien to Make PFC Debut July 17th
Jara Inks Deal with Californian Promotion
By Kelsey Mowatt

O'Brien

Palace Fighting Championship has confirmed that recently signed heavyweight, Jake O’Brien (10-1), will make his debut for the promotion, July 17th. No opponent has yet been announced.

O’Brien is coming off a March 1st, TKO loss at the hands of former UFC heavyweight champ, Andrei Arlvoski. His subsequent release from the UFC caught some by surprise throughout the MMA community, due to the fact that the Indiana fighter had gone 3-1 while competing in the UFC heavyweight division. A tenure which included an impressive Unanimous Decision win over noted competitor, Heath Herring, as well as wins over Josh Shockman and Kristof Midoux. Heading into his bout with Arlovksi, O’Brien had not competed in over one year, due to “stingers”, a nerve injury originating from the spine.

“We are very excited to bring in one of the most promising young heavyweights in the country. He’s proven himself at the sports highest level. He beat Heath Herring,” Christian Printup, PFC President was quoted in the promotion’s release as saying. “Jake is a great wrestler with solid boxing skills. A lot of people haven’t seen that, but we want to put him in some fights where he can show it. We want to thank Ken Pavia for making the deal work.”

PFC has also confirmed that Elite XC veteran, Jaime Jara (17-5), has signed with the promotion and will also make his debut on July 17th. The Californian middleweight, who went undefeated from June, 2004, until July, 2007, is coming off a submission win over Ricky Shivers at a Rebel Fights card in March.

“Jara is definitely one of the most battle-tested middleweights out there. We are committed to bringing in the best fighters we can. We cultivate new talent and at same time continue help establish veterans,” Printup said. “We also want to find significant fights and meaningful fights the fans will enjoy. Jara comes out hard every night, brings excitement and likes to bang. At the same time, he is really skilled. Things in the middleweight division are getting more interesting as every day passes.”

The next PFC card will take place on May 8th in Lemoore, California, and will feature 4 title bouts. The promotion’s lightweight champion Diego Saraiva will take on Brian Cobb, middleweight champion Kenny Ento will look to defend his belt against Nate Loughran, featherweight champ, Art Arciniega will fight Jorge Evangelista and Shawn Klarcyk will meet Jason Georgianna for the interim PFC bantamweight belt.