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FCF NEWS
June 1, 2007
NEW EPISODE OF FCF RADIO: JOE DOERKSEN AND WILSON GOUVEIA
June 2, 2007
WEC PREVIEW Faber Vs. Farrar Headlines this Weekend’s WEC By Kelsey Mowatt The Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, will once again host this Sunday’s, June 3rd, World Extreme Cagefighting event, and despite the loss of a stellar welterweight match-up between Brock Larson and Carlos Condit, the remaining card still promises several notable fights. The influence of Zuffa ownership on the WEC continues to be evident, as this weekend’s event will be broadcast live on the Versus Network, considerable exposure for the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s ever growing little brother.
Farrar is far less experienced than Faber in terms of MMA ring time, but the former NAIA National Wrestling champ should be prepared for Faber’s takedown game. Farrar has several wins stemming from striking and most recently he knocked out Shad Smith at Total Combat Entertainment 19 in March. A win for Farrar would be considered by most to be a monumental upset, as Farrar still has not made a firm impression on the MMA stage, while Faber is regarded by many to be one of the worlds best at 145 lbs. In another interesting featherweight match-up, Canadian Mark Hominick (13-6) has foregone the rest of his UFC contract at lightweight, to compete at his natural weight of 145 in the WEC. His opponent will be Rani Yahya (10-2), who is 4-1 in his last 5 fights, and should present Hominick a considerable challenge. Yahya has competed in K-1 Hero’s winning two fights, with his only loss competing in Japan coming against “JZ” Cavalcante. Most recently the accomplished Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu competitor submitted Lewis Moreno in the first round at the Palace Fighting Championship 2 in March. Hominick is of course, as far as North American audiences go, the more recognizable of the two and the WEC is likely hoping for a Hominick vs. Faber match-up down the road. Hominick is perhaps best known for his performances in the UFC, where the Team Tompkins fighter defeated Yves Edwards and Jorge Gurgel. The noted striker is coming off a tough decision loss to reigning TKO Featherweight Champion Hatsu Hioki, and will be looking to get back on track in his new WEC home. Another former UFC competitor Alex Karalexis (4-2) will take to the WEC cage Sunday against Josh Smith (5-2). Karalexis now competes at 155 lbs. and has been having some success since heading to the WEC. After losing two fights in a row against Kenny Florian and Jason Von Flue in the UFC, Karalexis has won his last two bouts in the WEC, defeating Thomas Denny and Olaf Alfonso.
Smith is coming off a TKO win over Tony Dalasta at Bath 2 last July, prior to that he was submitted by Harris Sarmiento with a toe-hold at Extreme War: X-1 in 2005. The Next Generation fighter went 4-1 to begin his pro MMA career, and according to an interview with Smith on the WEC website, had his first fight against Nam Phan with no official training. Clearly a win for Smith over a recognizable figure like Karalexis would do wonders for his career, while the former UFC competitor will look to make it 3 in a row to continue his ascension up the WEC lightweight ranks. Brock Larson (21-1) was preparing to face Carlos Condit, but due to a shoulder injury to the WEC welterweight champ, Larson will now set his sights on Kevin Knabijan (6-2-1). Larson may be one of the most underrated, under-hyped 170 pound fighters of the world, with his only loss coming to a fighter who some would say also suffers from the same lack of recognition, UFC contender, Jon Fitch. Larson has won 8 fights in a row since that loss, and most recently defeated Erik Apple by Kimura at WEC 26. Knabijan will have a big opportunity to turn some heads this weekend when he faces the UFC vet Larson. The Chicago fighter has been on a bit of a tear of his own of late, winning 5 fights in a row. Most recently Knabijan stopped Jedzrzej Kubski in the second round at the International Mixed Martial Arts Competition in April. What might turn out to be the fight night could be a rematch bout between Johnny Alessio (18-11) and Alex Serdyukov (5-2). The two welterweights squared off for the first time last August at WEC 23, in what some reports described as an extremely entertaining and competitive bout. Alessio managed to submit his Russian opponent in the third round with a rear-naked-choke, giving Serdyukov only his second career loss, his first came against Jon Fitch in 2004. Alessio has gone 1-2 since there first encounter, defeating Brian Gassaway while losing to Thiago Alves, and most recently, against Carlos Condit in March. Serdyukov submitted Scott Norton with a guillotine choke in his last bout at WEC 26. Rounding out this weekend’s WEC card; Cub Swanson(10-1) will take on Micah Miller (8-0), Craig Zellner (4-1) will fight Brian Stann (3-0), Brian Bowles (3-0) will meet Charlie Valencia (8-2), and Mike French (7-8) is scheduled to fight Jeff Bedard (9-0).
June 2, 2007
IFL: SABRES VS. WOLFPACK, ANACONDAS VS. TIGERSHARKS Sabres Break the Law Report by Kelly Crigger – Photos by Todd Emoto (June 1, Everett, WA) The Everett Events Center, just north of Seattle, doesn’t hold too many people, but when the International Fight League came to town, it was suddenly packed full with thousands of MMA fans. A crowd of almost seven-thousand set an attendance record for the largest combative sporting event in the history of Washington, and they were not disappointed. For the Portland Wolfpack and their coach Matt “The Law” Lindland to get into the playoffs, they needed to win big against the Tokyo Sabres, who just needed to rack up a win any way they could. The night started off with the Wolpack’s Devin Cole coming out strong. Lined up against the Sabres’ last-minute replacement, Orvil Palmer, Cole repeatedly went to his wrestling background and attempted single-leg and double-leg takedowns, finally resulting in a full mount. But Cole couldn’t finish Palmer and fighting mostly from his back, Palmer nearly sunk a guillotine choke at the end of the first round. Throughout the second round, Palmer showed uncharacteristic rookie poise and thwarted Cole’s attacks, despite being mounted for a second time. At the beginning of the third round, Cole ate a huge knee going for the same takedown, which may have ended the contest, but the fighters fell out of the ring and were restarted, giving Cole a chance to clear his head. After three full rounds that seemed to favor Cole, the judges scored a split decision for Orvil Palmer that the crowd clearly disagreed with. It’s rare for heavyweights to receive fight of the night honors, but Cole and Palmer made a case for it. Wolfpack middleweight Matt Horwich must have felt for Devin because he came out swinging and dominated Kazuhiro Hamanaka, who has yet to score a win in the IFL. At 2:07 in the first round Horwich landed a left kick to Hamanaka’s head that sent him home early yet again. With the score tied at 1-1, the light heavyweights took to the ring. For Aaron Stark it’s been a long road to recovery from injury. Facing Vladimir “The Janitor” Matyushenko at the end of that road is a daunting task. Not one to fight timidly, Stark came out shooting for Matyushenko’s legs, but ended up on bottom. The two grappled like wolverines with Stark taking several shots to the face in the process. Halfway through the round Matyushenko lined up Stark in an iron cross and landed a few shots when the referee stepped in early and stopped the match. Stark was clearly upset and with good reason. He was not only defending himself, but was positioning for a sweep when the ref stepped in. Matyushenko gets the win, but not without controversy.
Looking for a victory after a tough decision loss to Delson Heleno in April, Mike Dolce stepped in against fellow welterweight Antonio McKee. Unfortunately McKee didn’t give him the chance to fight since he only came to lay ‘n pray. Dolce constantly pressed the action but only found McKee going to ground and waiting for the clock to run out. Twelve minutes of fighting can be summarized in one sentence-McKee gets takedown, McKee does nothing, McKee wins from lack of interest. However, with the win the Sabres clinch the Victory over the Wolfpack and though they did it by stealing a couple of fights, no one was arrested for larceny. Billed as the fight of the night, lightweights Ryan Schultz and Savant Young entered the ring in a classic “striker versus wrestler” contest. Schultz came out with guns blazing, changing up his approach to keep Young guessing. The two stood and traded blows much longer than anyone expected them to. In the third round, Schultz finally got a takedown and decided to test the breaking point of an arm. Locking up a kimura twice on Young, Schultz bent it past the breaking point for almost thirty seconds as the crowd cringed watching it on the big screen. Young refused to tapout and survived the round. However, Schultz wins a unanimous decision in a very exciting fight. At the end of the team competition the score was Sabres 3, Wolfpack 2. It was a disappointing loss for Matt Lindland’s squad. “I thought we could have gone 4-1,” he said. “But that’s not the way it worked out, so we’ll work on it and get better for next season.”
Sporting a new haircut with one half of his head shaved and the other buzzed, Anacondas middleweight Benji Radach looked possessed. He came out firing at Tigershark Bristol Marunde and landed several shots. Just as his confidence got the best of him, Radach got caught with in inside right that buckled his knees. But Marunde wasn't able to capitalize and an instant later Radach connected, knocking Marunde down and stopping the fight. When two undefeated lightweights collide, something’s got to give, right? Maybe not. Lightweights Shad Lierly and Chris Horodecki put on a slugfest for the Washington crowd that should be a candidate for fight of the year. The two went toe-to-toe with each man landing bone-crunching shots that would have made weaker men curl up into the fetal position and suck their thumbs. The action was so fast and furious, Bas Rutten momentarily grew hair and then lost it again. The crowd went completely wild, filling the center with a deafening roar at the end of the second round. In the end Horodecki won a unanimous decision, much to the crowd’s dismay.
Jay Hieron has established himself as one of the top middleweights in the IFL. Brad Blackburn has not. Except for a decision win against Chris Wilson, Blackburn has not been a huge name in the league. So knocking out Jay Hieron early would be a massive boost to his career, which is exactly what he did. Just moments into the first round, Hieron shot in for a takedown and met Blackburn’s right hand with traumatic force. Dazed, Hieron crumpled and Blackburn finished him off, putting the Tigersharks on the board. Not to be outdone by a quick knockout, Alex Schoenauer came out swinging against Allan Goes, who strode slowly forward like a robot, only throwing an occasional low kick. The pace of the fight was odd since both men are ground specialists and it was expected they would get there quickly. Instead the two traded leather until Schoenauer caught Goes squarely on the button with an overhand right that sent the Brazilian to the mat. Not known for knockout power, Schoenauer added one to his record just three minutes into the fight, giving the Anacondas the win. There’s a stereotype in MMA that heavyweights are known for throwing big punches and gassing out early. Reese Andy and Krzysztof Soszynski proved that. After an exciting first round, the two got tired in the second and gassed out in the third. Though he constantly attempted submissions from his back, Soszynski lost a split decision, leaving the match a 3-2 win for the first place Anacondas. The IFL continues to grow in popularity and stage bigger and better shows. Tonight’s event showcased several exciting fights that the IFL’s founders Kurt Otto and Gareb Shamus can be proud of.
June 3, 2007
THE NORTHERN TOUCH  Cote and Goulet Wins Highlight TKO 29 Two of the TKO promotion’s higher profile fighters were victorious this weekend at TKO 29, which was held Friday night, June 1st, at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec. The main event of the evening pitted two of Canada’s better middleweight fighters against each other in Patrick Cote and Jason Day. Not only was the TKO Middleweight title on the line, but likely a UFC contract. Many Canadian MMA observers expected that either Cote would return to the Zuffa Octagon if he pulled off an impressive victory, or Day would be UFC bound for the first time if he pulled off the upset win. Day took the fight on roughly two weeks notice, when Cote’s scheduled opponent, Crafton Wallace was unable to compete. Day, who was 9-1 in his last 10 bouts, was also competing at 185 pounds for the fist time, making the move down from light-heavyweight. Cote was of course coming off a thorough, yet conservative win over Scott Smith at UFC 67 in March, a much needed win after losing to Travis Lutter in the finals of “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 4 finale last November. In the end it would be Cote earning his 10th career win, as the Quebec fighter stopped Day with approximately one minute remaining in round one. One would think that this was the kind of impressive victory the UFC brass were looking for, and will likely have the TUF finalist back in the Octagon soon. Cote’s record now stands at 10-4 while Day’s drops to 11-7. When one considers that Day has only lost to two UFC veterans in Victor Valimaki and Patrick Cote over the last 2 years, another winning streak could still send the Lethbridge fighter UFC bound. Another prominent TKO fighter, Jonathan Goulet, also reportedly electrified the Montreal crowd Friday night, knocking out Travis Axworthy in just 8 seconds. It will also be interesting to see what the UFC implications may be out of this fight. Goulet has now won 2 fights in a row since his last UFC appearance, a TKO loss to Josh Koscheck last August. Axworthy was undefeated in three fights before taking on Goulet, but certainly was less experienced than most of the fighters Goulet has faced over his 6 year career. Prior to that, Goulet defeated tough Canadian Martial Arts Centre veteran Jesse Bongfeldt at the TKO event in March. Certainly a win over Goulet’s original scheduled opponent Steve Vigneault probably would have gone a long way to sending Goulet back to the U.S., but the fight with the former TKO champion was delayed due to a Vigneault injury. Regardless, a win is a win, and Goulet (18-7) who went 2-2 competing in the UFC, will likely be back in the Octagon sooner or later. In other TKO 29 action, lightweight Martin Grandmont extended his record to 5-3 by earning a Unanimous Decision victory over Revolution fighter Tyler Jackson. The loss for the BC fighter drops his record to 7-4-1. TKO held it’s first ever women’s bout, seeing Sarah Kaufman stop Valerie Letourneau in the second round. In a fight that also captured much of the pre-TKO 29 hype, semi-professional hockey player, and notable “enforcer” Steve Bosse defeated David Fraser by TKO. Bosse has played in Quebec’s LNAH hockey league, one that openly promotes and encourages hockey fights and the role of enforcers on every team. Bosse’s foray into MMA will likely continue to capture Quebec’s sport media spotlight for sometime. Rounding out the night’s action; Stephan Dube stopped David Medd in the first round by TKO, Sebastian Gauthier also won by TKO over Jonathan Mirasty, Yves Lemelin worked his way to a Split Decision victory over Steve Pouliot, Marcus Celestin submitted Brett Pearson in the first round with a Kimura, and Adrian Wooley stopped Guillaume Lamarche in the third round for the TKO win. MFC Finalizes June 22nd Card Here is the line-up for the Maximum Fighting Championships June 22nd event, “High Stakes”, that will be held at the Shaw Conference Centre in Edmonton, Alberta. MFC Heavyweight Title Scott "Punk Haole" Junk vs. Wade "Nightmare" Shipp MFC Light Heavyweight No. 1 Contender's Match Roger "The Hulk" Hollett vs. Tommy Lawlor Victor "The Matrix" Valimaki vs. Marcus Hicks Fabio "The Mastermind" Holanda vs. Sean Krysa Ryan "The Kid" McGillivray vs. "Cowboy" Graydon Tannas Dustin Graber vs. Josh Gallant Ron McNulty vs. Jason Randle Josh Kyrejto vs. Dylan Walton Sean Wright vs. Andrew Buckland Kevin Dolan vs. Jason Zorthian Gerry Johnson vs. Jason Biggerman Upcoming Canadian Events: Rumble in the Cage- June 9th, Roadhouse, Lethbridge, Alberta Maximum Fighting Championship 12 “High Stakes”- June 22nd, Shaw Conference Centre, Edmonton, Alberta Ultimate Cage Wars 8- June 23rd, Winnipeg, Manitoba
June 3, 2007
ELITEXC RESULTS
The third round saw more ground action as Gracie attempted a Kimura and Sakuraba nearly took Gracie’s back. After a scramble on the ground, Sakuraba had his standing Kimura again, however, unlike in the past, he wasn’t able to produce any magic with it. After several minutes of inaction, which prompted numerous “boos” from the crowd, the ref pulled the fighters apart. As the forty seconds ticked away, Sakuraba, who was losing the third round, made a move on Gracie, taking him down going for an armbar. It was too little too late for Sakuraba. The bell rang, ending the fight and Gracie was awarded the unanimous decision 30-27, 29-28, 29-28. Brock Lesnar’s much anticipated MMA debut was short and sweet. Lesnar caught a lowkick from opponent Min Soo Kim and wasted no time taking his opponent down. From there, Lesnar quickly passed Kim’s guard to half mount and then to full mount, where repeated punches to Kim’s brow forced a tapout at just 1:09 of the first round. When asked if he was interested in fighting again, Lesnar responded, “Absolutely, I want to keep fighting.”
With such a quick victory, arguments over Lesnar’s potential against more qualified opponents will likely continue, however, he showed that he is serious about fighting and determined to make it in the world of MMA The heavyweight division appears to have a worthy addition to its ranks. Full Results: Katsuhiko Nagata def. Isaiah Hill - Split decision Gesias "J.Z." Cavalcante def. Nam Phan - TKO (strikes) 0:26 R1 Jonathan Wiezorek def. Tim Persey - TKO (strikes) 0:50 R2 Jake Shields def. Ido Pariente - Rear choke 2:06 R1 Bernard Ackah def. Johnnie Morton -KO 0:38 R1 Siala "Mighty Mo" Siliga def. Ruben Villareal - TKO (ref stoppage due to strikes) 1:33 R1 Dong-Sik Yoon def. Melvin Manhoef - Armbar 1:17 R2 Hideo Tokoro def. Brad Pickett - Armbar 2:41 R1 Royce Gracie def. Kazushi Sakuraba - Unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28) Brock Lesnar def. Min Soo Kim - Submission (strikes) 1:09 R1
June 4, 2007
BODOG FIGHT PREVIEW High Profile Welterweights Headline Week 8 of Bodog Fight Season 3 By FCF Staff Arguably two of Bodog Fights more notable fighters, Nick “The Goat” Thompson and Eddie Alvarez, will take to the ring in episode 8 of Bodog Fight’s Season 3 “Costa Rica.” Despite their documented abilities, both fighters will have to be on their toes, as the promotion has matched them up with some solid opposition. Thompson will face American Top Team fighter Dustin Denes (13-3-2), who previously submitted his upcoming opponent with a triangle choke at Absolute Fighting Championship 5 in 2003. Since that bout, Denes has gone 5-2-1, most recently losing to Brian Lee Foster at the International Fight League World Team Championship last September. The UFC veteran Thompson (31-9-1) is coming off one of the biggest wins in his career. In April he stopped Alvarez in the second round at Bodog Fight’s “Clash of Nations” event to lay claim to the Bodog Fight and Mixed Fighting Championship welterweight crown. Since losing to Karo Parisyan in his last UFC appearance in April of 2006, Thompson has won 7 fights in a row, including a submission victory via Kimura over Chris Wilson at AFC 17 last June. Despite the loss to Thompson, many regard Alvarez (9-1) as one of the welterweight’s division rising stars. The Fight Factory fighter reeled off 9 consecutive victories before tasting defeat, and carries notable victories over Derrick Noble and Aaron Riley on his record. Standing in his way in week 8 will be the experienced Scott Henze (18-6-2) who has gone 5-3-2 in his last 10 fights. Most recently the Indiana fighter defeated Joe Cooper by TKO at Hook N Shoot’s March 24th event. Episode 8 of Bodog Fight’s Season 3 “Costa Rica” will air Tuesday night, June 4th, on ION Television and the Fight Network. The show is also available for download from the official Bodog Fight website.
June 4, 2007
WEC RESULTS
June 5, 2007
NEW EPISODE OF FCF RADIO: TREVOR PRANGLEY AND JONATHAN GOULET
June 5, 2007
UFC 73 UPDATE UFC 73: Stacked Card Update By Kelsey Mowatt Several bouts have recently been confirmed by the UFC in regards to the promotion’s upcoming “UFC 73: Stacked” event, which will take place on July 7th at the ARCO Arena, in Sacramento, California. The recent additions to the card certainly do nothing to detract from the event’s “Stacked” billing, as several more notable fighters are now scheduled to appear. Former Pride heavyweight champ “Minotauro” Rodrigo Nogueira (29-4-1) will make his UFC debut against Heath Herring (27-12). Herrring will be looking to avenge two prior losses to Nogueira, as the highly regarded Brazilian Top Team fighter defeated Herring at both Pride 17 in 2001, and Pride Critical Countdown in 2004. Most recently, Nogueira defeated Josh Barnett by Unanimous Decision at Pride Shockwave on New Years Eve, while Herring is coming off his first UFC win, a Unanimous Decision victory over Brad Imes on April 7th. One of the States more highly touted lightweight prospects, Alvin Robinson (8-1), will finally make his UFC debut against Kenny Florian (5-3). Robinson’s only career loss is to Brazilian Top Team Canada’s head instructor Fabio Holanda last May, since then, the accomplished grappler has won 3 straight. Florian is coming off a submission victory via a rear-naked-choke over Dokonjonosuke Mishima at UFC Fight Night 10 in April, and has gone 4-1 in his last five fights. In what could be another great lightweight match-up, one of Canada’s more accomplished grapplers Mark Bocek (4-0) will make his UFC debut against Frank Edgar (6-0). Bocek is coming off a rear-naked-choke win over Garrett Davis at King of the Cage Canada’s “Capital Chaos” event in March, and has won all 4 of his professional fights in the first round. Edgar electrified MMA fans around the world in his last fight, earning a Unanimous Decision victory over Tyson Griffin in a thrilling bout at UFC 67 in February. Chris Lytle (22-14-5) will take to the Octagon once again to face another veteran welterweight fighter Drew Fickett (30-5). Lytle is coming off a Unanimous Decision loss to former champ Matt Hughes at UFC 68, while Fickett was victorious in his last bout, a Unanimous Decision win over Keita Nakamura at UFC Fight Night 10. Former “Ultimate Fighter” competitor Jorge Gurgel (10-3), who has not fought since his win over Danny Abbadi at UFC 63 last September, is set to meet Diego Saraiva (9-4-1). In his UFC debut in February, Saraiva dropped a Unanimous Decision victory to Dustin Hazelett, and has gone 3-2 in his last 5 bouts. In another match-up featuring former TUF participants, Mike Nickels (4-1) will return to the UFC after a nearly a one year absence from the promotion, to face Stephan Bonnar (9-4). Nickels is coming off an impressive 7 second knock-out of Carpaccio Owens at Ring of Fire 29 in April. Bonnar has dropped his last 2 fights, a Majority Decision loss to Rashad Evans at Fight Night 5 last June, and a Unanimous Decision loss to Forrest Griffin last August. Prior to that, the TUF finalist had won 3 fights in a row. UFC 73 will of course also feature a middleweight title fight between Anderson Silva and Nathan Marquardt, as well as a lightweight title bout between Sean Sherk and Hermes Franca. Former light-heavyweight champ, Tito Ortiz, will also take on the undefeated Rashad Evans, to round out what is likely, one of the deeper cards, talent-wise, in UFC history.
June 5, 2007
DYNAMITE NUMBERS A Tale of Two Numbers By Steven Marrocco According to a preliminary statement given by a California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) rep, the final attendance numbers for the June 2nd Dynamite!! USA event did not arrive this Monday as expected. While Fighting & Entertainment Group’s (FEG) post-fight press release claimed an attendance figure of 54,000, the CSAC received a different tally in the preliminary paperwork submitted to the agency. The CSAC rep told FCF that "from our experience, we thought the figure was really low, so we asked them to go back and get everything in order." According to the Commission, the figure was in the "low teens" of thousands, a marked difference from the press release number and media estimates of 25 to 30 thousand fans. It was yet another twist to the strange sequence of events that Dynamite!! USA has left in its wake. A recent rumor speculated that FEG had purchased huge blocks of tickets prior to the event, distributing free tickets to unknown parties. The discrepancy in attendance figures indicate that FEG may have provided the CSAC with the number of tickets purchased by parties other than FEG, not the total number of tickets purchased outright. However, the attendance figures collected by the CSAC only track the total number of tickets purchased, not who purchased them. The true story of the record breaking crowd will be told in the paid vs. comp’ed ticket sales, which won’t be released until later this week. The rep also clarified the issue of former football star Johnnie Morton's absent second drug test. According to CSAC bylaws, if the fighter declines to provide a post-fight test, they can use the pre-fight specimen to test for any drugs of abuse. Morton had already undergone a test for steroids before the fight. The second test was for drugs of abuse. Morton was most likely not able to provide the post fight test due to the brutal knockout he sustained. According to the CSAC, test results for drugs of abuse will also be available towards the end of the week.
June 5, 2007
EXTREME CHALLENGE 78 PREVIEW Extreme Challenge 78 Preview By Jim Genia When: June 9th. Where: Asbury Park Convention Hall, Asbury Park, New Jersey. What: Extreme Challenge 78 Nevermind that promoter Ed Hsu has hot up-and-comer Tim Boetsch taking on a Russian Sambo stud for the light-heavyweight title. Nevermind that Fight Factory speed demon Zach Makovsky will be fighting for a bantamweight belt. The real story behind Extreme Challenge 78 is the match-up between titans Jon Murphy and Carlos Moreno – two of the best heavyweights the Northeast has to offer. When these crowd-pleasing sluggers take to the cage on Saturday, you can bet someone is getting knocked out.
Here’s a look at the full card: Extreme Challenge Northeast Heavyweight Championship Jon Murphy (Anthracite Combat Club) vs. Carlos Moreno (Rhino Fight Team) Extreme Challenge Northeast Light-Heavyweight Championship Tim Boetsch (Ramsey BJJ) vs. Oleg Savitsky (Red Bear Sambo) Extreme Challenge Northeast Bantamweight Championship Zach Makovsky (Fight Factory) vs. Steve Vitti (Rhino Fight Team) Main Card Scott Argott (Thaishudo) vs. Tom Gallicchio (Rhino Fight Team) Blair Tugman (Andrew Calandrelli) vs. Glenn Ortiz (Wrestling Plus) Tinh Tupy (Jersey Shore BJJ) vs. Joe Bentz (Fight Factory) Steve McCabe (Fight Factory) vs. Mike Schenk (Team Quiet Storm) Bret Kohan (Rhino Fight Team) vs. Allen Royster (Pitts Penn) Rob Russo (Tong Dragon) vs. Rich Swawola (Real Combat Martial Arts) Aaron Meisner (Daddis/Cool Hearts) vs. Pat Russo (Alex Wilkie) Joe Camacho (NJ Pride) vs. Joe Andujar (Rhino Fight Team) Steve DeAngelis (Rhino Fight Team) vs. Jim Bova (Anthracite Combat Club) Lewis Pascavage (KOA/Miletich) vs. Carlos Eduardo (Team Olivera)
June 6, 2007
JEFF CURRAN INTERVIEW “Big Frog” Curran On Route to the WEC: “Faber is the Target” By Kelsey Mowatt
“I am signed with the WEC as a result of Zuffa transferring my existing agreement from Pride after the sale was complete,” Curran tells FCF. “I had 2 fights with Pride left, but now have a 4 fight exclusive deal with WEC.” The WEC seems to be where many of North America’s most prominent 145 pound fighters will look to compete, as notable fighters like Rani Yahya, Mark Hominick, Joe Pearson, Tommy Lee and now Curran, among others, now grace the WEC 145 lb. roster. Due to the fact the UFC does not currently promote a 145 pound division, outside of Japan, which has a long and storied history with lighter weight divisions, the WEC’s featherweight bracket is going to capture a significant amount of attention. “I love what the WEC is doing for the lighter weights and MMA overall,” says Curran. “Controlling another TV station like they did with Spike and the UFC is just great for the sport's exposure. I would say that Shooto has had the most success with building the lighter weights overall, but I am not worried about being famous in Japan. I want to show the US fans what I am all about. I think everyone here feels the same way. I have competed in Japan 3 times and it's nice and all, but it's not the same as fighting in USA or North America in general.” As of press time, Curran was unsure of who his first opponent might be, as it is possible the veteran fighter could compete with the WEC as early as August 5th, the promotion’s next event. “Not sure who my first opponent would be,” Curran admits. “Maybe Rani Yahya? Maybe not. I would love to fight him to see how my game works against another great BJJ guy, who is my size. But, who knows who they get me.” Of course the inevitable question comes up in regards to the WEC’s current reigning Featherweight Champion Urijah Faber (19-1), who, as recently as last Sunday night, defended his title once again by submitting Chance Farrar in the first round. Faber is one of the organizations fastest rising stars, and a fight with the highly regarded Curran, would without question, only brighten the spotlight on the WEC featherweight division. “Faber is the target,” Curran tells FCF. “Of course I want him and I would fight him in August if they asked me to. I am ready for him whenever. I think Faber is the man. He has awesome wrestling, he is willing to develop all his other areas full-time and he is in great shape. It's no fluke that he is 19-1, ya know. He possesses all the tools to be the champ and that is why he is just that. Can he be beat these days? Of course he can. He is human. I match great with him and so do a few other 145ers he hasn't faced yet so we will see. Hats off to him, but now he has to deal with me and I am not going anywhere.”
June 7, 2007
DYNAMITE BREAKS ATTENDANCE RECORD CSAC Releases FEG / Dynamite Ticket Figures By FCF Staff The California State Athletic Commission released the final ticket figures today for last weekend’s June 2nd, K-1 Hero’s Dynamite USA event. According to the release, FEG, the parent company of K-1, handled 39,083 tickets for the event, while the L.A. Memorial Coliseum and Ticketmaster sold 3,674. The total attendance for the night was 42,757. According to the CSAC report, of the 75,332 tickets printed, 13,600 were given away by the promotion as complimentary. The total gross gate receipt for the card was $2, 545, 590. With a final attendance figure of 42,757, Dynamite USA sets a new record for the largest crowd to attend an MMA event in North America.
June 7, 2007
MFC 12 UPDATE
June 7, 2007
ACROSS THE POND: BRITISH MMA NEWS
The other adjustment to the line-up for Cage Rage 22 is Edson Drago replacing Rob Broughton to face Gary “Smiler” Turner. At 9-2-0, Drago has seven stoppages by strikes in his nine wins and showed his powerful punching by blasting out Tengiz Tedoradze in just five seconds at Cage Rage 16. However, Turner’s wealth of experience in K-1 served him well against Tank Abbott, when he survived an early knockdown to ground and pound Tank for the win. Turner is unlikely to be intimidated by Drago’s fisticuffs and should give as good as he gets in any standing exchange. The fight may well be decided in the grappling, where Drago has looked vulnerable, having lost his last two fights by submission. Turner’s mat experience from sport jiu-jitsu competitions may give him the edge if the fight makes it to the floor, but expect both men to be happy to stand and slug it out. FX 3 Fight Night 5 Line-Up The fight card is starting to shape up for FX3’s next event, scheduled for July 7th at their regular home in the Rivermead Leisure Complex in Reading. Following his two unsuccessful appearances on the under card in the UFC, Dave Lee will look to get back on winning form against the unorthodox Sami Berik. At 5-3-0, Lee hasn’t fought as many times as the prolific Berik, who is currently 8-16-0. No doubt Berik, who is primarily a striker, will look to pressure Lee early with his wild punches, which he throws from every conceivable angle, but Lee has the sharper submission game and if the fight goes to the ground, Berik will be in trouble. He’s been training in BJJ with Eddie Kone in London, but Lee tapped out purple belt Dennis Kelly at Cage Rage Contenders 1 in under 90 seconds. In lightweight action, Ian Butlin, from Team Quannum, will face the tough Andre Winner, from the Rough House in Nottingham. Butlin comes from a successful amateur boxing career but his MMA progress has been plagued by injuries that kept him sidelined for all of 2005. When he returned to the cage last year he went 2-2-0 and was originally scheduled to meet Winner at Cage Warriors, before another injury led to the match being re-booked at FX3. Winner is a rising star in the weight class, with a well-rounded game, fast hands and a deep gas tank. At Cage Rage Contenders 3 he battered Sami Berik for three rounds until the referee stopped the contest, and edged out a Split Decision over Wesley Felix at the last FX3 in an excellent back-and-forth battle of wills. The aforementioned Wesley Felix, from Pancrase London, will return to FX3 against Paul Reed, from Leigh Remedios’ VT Jujitsu club. Reed had an easy night in his last contest, stopping Rob Neesham by TKO in under a minute, but he’s stepping up in opposition against Felix, who is more experienced and dangerous both standing and on the ground. Full Card Alex Owen vs. TBA Andre Winner vs. Ian Butlin Brian Adams vs. Rodney Moore Sami Berik vs. Dave Lee Wesley Felix vs. Paul Reed Dion Oakes vs. Brendan Flannigan Theo Theodouov vs. Kev Simms Ed Howard vs. Stuart Rickman Rocci Williams vs. Rafal Dziubaude Paul Clark vs. Tim Radcliffe Simon Gill vs. Matt Smith Greg Knapp vs. Rob Neesham
June 8, 2007
NEW EPISODE OF FCF RADIO: FRANKIE EDGAR, MARK BOCEK AND MARK PAVELICH
June 8, 2007
SHAMROCK & BARONI BATTLE BY PHONE Why Can’t We Be Friends? Frank Shamrock & Phil Baroni Tussle Over Phone By Steven Marrocco It began as an internet challenge and quickly got personal. The war of words leading up to the announcement of “Judgment Day: Shamrock vs. Baroni” came to a head yesterday as the two traded barbs over a media conference call.
Shamrock’s YouTube monologues, a series of insults that attacked Baroni’s private life, have all been a part of the plan. Shamrock was playing the Pied Piper all the way to the contract’s dotted line. “It was a huge tool for us,” Shamrock told reporters. “We were having trouble getting Baroni to sign and we used the internet as a huge marketing tool to push him into that position and get him to commit. This whole fight was born from Phil getting on the internet and being his vibrant self and creating some energy behind this fight which otherwise would have never happened.” Time and time again, Shamrock casually tossed a self-important remark Baroni’s way. Without fail, Baroni would take the bait. “I’m not in it for the titles,” Shamrock said. “I’ve won more titles than most people will ever win. I’m in it for the art. I’m here to show the world what a professional martial artist looks like.” Baroni shot back. “Listen dude, after I fucking knock you out, I’ll buy you a box of crayons and a coloring book and you can go be an artist. This ain’t going to be no martial arts exhibition, jackoff. You and me are going to fight. I don’t know what the fuck this dude’s talking about. I’m a fighter, not a martial artist.” There’s a lot at stake for both fighters. Shamrock spoke at length about his decision to let the booming sport pass him by, citing his lack of motivation to damage his body without proper financial compensation. In Baroni, Shamrock has the opportunity to put his name back amongst the sport’s elite middleweights. He doesn’t have much time to do it. Though he claims he has booked fights through 2009, his fight with Baroni will be the measuring stick for his future endeavors with a new generation of middleweights.
Not surprisingly, Baroni sees Shamrock the same way. With Pride in a state of limbo, a title with Elite XC might justify a return to the UFC for a title shot. “I can go to the UFC any time I want,” Baroni said. “I’ve got an open invitation back. Look at the guys that are fighting in the UFC. They’re a bunch of bums. A bunch of reality TV rejects. I left because I had to go fight in Pride. Fighting Frank Shamrock, I get to kill two birds with one stone. I get to knock out an asshole, and I get to be world champion, defend my title.” Baroni alluded to a bonus from UFC president Dana White should he knock Shamrock out. Even if he does that, the air won’t be completely clear for Baroni. A court case stemming from an incident at a Florida night club is still pending. Baroni was arrested in April after allegedly beating up two men who were aggressively flirting with his girlfriend. “It’s being taken care of and I can’t worry about it right now,” Baroni said. “I hope it doesn’t go to trial. But I’m innocent until proven guilty.” Taking a break from the call, Baroni ordered a fresh beer and ashtray from an unknown party. Therein lay the heart of the fight: the Artist vs. the Badass. On June 22nd in San Jose, we will see just who is the better man.
June 9, 2007
TC 21 RESULTS
Bodog vet Zach Light started strong against the experienced Toby Imada, but the lightweight found himself warding off submissions as Imada stayed busy from the bottom. After a textbook takedown off a body lock, Light left his arms exposed and Imada seized the opportunity, locking in an armbar that hyperextended Light’s right arm as he attempted to escape. Ringside doctors said the hyperextension was serious enough to warrant an x-ray, sending Light to the hospital as a precaution. On an unrelated note, Light’s manager, Ken Pavia, revealed that “Irish” Jake O’Brien had been taken off the UFC 72 roster in Belfast due to multiple compressed vertebrae in his neck. Pavia said the problem had been brewing since O’Brien’s college years, where he had suffered several instances of “stingers” as a result of the problem. A replacement for O’Brien has yet to be named. Full Results: Jesse Newell def. Matt Covan at 1:53 of R3 by TKO Chuck Graves def. Frank Lester by unanimous decision Joshua Williams def. Danny McWilliams at 1:31 of R1 by TKO Courtney Thomas def. Paul Almanza at 0:42 of R1 by TKO Shannon Gugerty def. Joe Nicolas at 1:35 of R2 by submission (triangle choke) Jesse Taylor def. Jorge Ortiz at 1:09 of R 1 by TKO Joey Beltran def. Tony Velarde at 2:35 of R 2 by submission (Kimura) Toby Imada def. Zach Light at 2:35 of R1 by submission (armbar)
June 10, 2007
EC 78 RESULTS
Rob Russo (Tong Dragon-171lbs) vs. Rich Swawola (Real Combat Martial Arts-167lbs) Russo via head/arm choke at 1:49 of Round Three. Steve McCabe (Fight Factory-154lbs) vs. Joe Camacho (NJ Pride-155lbs) Camacho via doctor stoppage due to cut at 1:36 of Round One. Aaron Meisner (Daddis/Cool Hearts-186lbs) vs. Pat Russo (Alex Wilkie-184lbs) Meisner via referee stoppage due to unanswered strikes at 1:20 of Round One. Steve DeAngelis (Rhino Fight Team-151lbs) vs. Jim Bova (Anthracite Combat Club-155lbs) Bova via triangle choke at :36 of Round Two. Tinh Tupy (Jersey Shore BJJ-135lbs) vs. Joe Bentz (Fight Factory-135lbs) Tupy via TKO – Bentz couldn’t answer the bell for the second round. Bret Kohan (Rhino Fight Team-225lbs) vs. Braden Bice (PA Posse-221lbs) Kohan via guillotine at 1:25 of Round One. Lewis Pascavage (KOA/Miletich-206lbs) vs. Carlos Eduardo (Team Olivera-205lbs) Pascavage via disqualification at :58 of Round One – illegal kick by Eduardo. Scott Argott (Thaishudo-175lbs) vs. Tom Gallicchio (Rhino Fight Team-175lbs) Gallicchio via rear naked choke at 1:19 of Round One. Blair Tugman (Andrew Calandrelli-144lbs) vs. Glenn Ortiz (Wrestling Plus-144lbs) Tugman via unanimous decision.
June 10, 2007
THE NORTHERN TOUCH Dragons Look For Playoff Birth June 16th The International Fight League’s Toronto Dragons will head to Las Vegas, Nevada, on June 16th to take on the New York Pitbulls. At stake will be a playoff spot for the Canadian team, as the Dragons have gone 1-1 thus far in 2007, and must defeat the Pitbulls to stay alive. A 3-2 win would put Toronto in a three way tie with the Silverbacks and Pitbulls, and possibly the Lions as well if they sweep the Scorpions. Clearly then, Carlos Newton and the rest of the Dragons will look for a dominant win over the Pitbulls, preferably a 4-1, or 5-0 result to ensure a playoff spot. Gideon Ray and Wagnney Fabiano, at welterweight and lightweight respectively, have been nice additions to the Dragon squad, filling open roster spots with two highly skilled fighters. Fabiano (6-1) will take on the Pitbulls tough Erik Owings (3-1), while Ray (14-5-1) will fight Delson Heleno (10-2).Brent Beauparlant (5-4), who competed at light-heavyweight last year for Toronto, will meet Pitbull middleweight Fabio Leopoldo (5-1) while Wojtek Kazowski (0-6) will look for his first career victory against Jamal Patterson (3-1) at 205 lbs. At heavyweight, Rafael Custodio (4-0) will take on UFC vet Marcio Cruz (2-2). A 3-2 Dragon win is certainly possible, as several of the match-ups appear to bode well for Toronto, if the Canadian team hopes to pull off a 4-1 or 5-0 victory, however, they will have to be at there very best come June 16th. Ambriz to Face Junk at MFC 12 Maximum Fighting Championship promoter Mark Pavelich discussed it this week on FCF Radio, the fact that Jimmy Ambriz has been signed to fight Scott Junk for the MFC heavyweight title at the promotions upcoming June 22nd card. “High Stakes” will take place at the Shaw Conference Center, in Edmonton, Alberta. Ambriz (10-5-1) replaces the injured Wade Shipp, and has won 2 fights in a row, including a 17 second KO of Brion Peoples at Dragonscage 3 in March. Ambriz will have a decided advantage over Junk in the experience department, as the K-1 Hero’s veteran has faced several notable fighters including Josh Barnett, Dan Christison, Justin Eilers, and Ron Waterman. Junk (5-1), who has won 5 straight fights, is coming off a win over Dominic Richard at MFC Unplugged 3 in April. Prior to that, the Hawaiian fighter knocked out Johnny George in 10 seconds at ICON Sport 49 in January. His only loss, his MMA debut, was to former UFC champion, Ricco Rodriguez. MFC Light-heavyweight Champion Victor Valimaki (9-4) will also see action on June 22nd, as he will face Marcus Hicks (4-6) in a non-title bout. “El Dirte” Continues to Wait Patiently for Call to Pride Ring One of Canada’s higher ranked middleweight fighters, Joe “El Dirte” Doerksen (39-9), continues to pile on the wins while he waits to make his Pride debut. The Winnipeg fighter signed with the Japanese promotion when it was still under Dream Stage Entertainment ownership, and now, like many other Pride fighters, Doerksen awaits to see what’s next for the organization now that it is owned by the Fertitta brothers. Most recently, Doerksen defeated BJ Lacy by TKO at Colisseum 5, which was held on May 5th in his hometown. “Fight went well,” Doerksen tells FCF. “I was healthy and in great shape. Felt very calm and relaxed going in. Took my time. He gave me an early opportunity for a take down in Round one. Maintained mount for most of the round and did some damage. Round two, he threw some shots, I stayed outside his range. He came too close, I landed a flurry of punches. He takes me down, I reverse and finish with punches from mount. At least, that's how I remember it.” And as far as that phone call from Pride? “Not sure what's next,” says Doerksen. “Gonna keep training and wait to hear something.” Hammoud Announces “All Martial Arts Championship” Mike Hammoud, a Vancouver promoter who has been involved in promoting dozens of events in the Province’s Lower Mainland, announced this week that he will be holding an event June 23rd, at the Mickey McDougall Gym in North Vancouver. “All Martial Arts Championship” will feature bouts in Muay Thai, Kick-boxing and MMA, and will be sanctioned by the ISCF. The card will be headlined by a Pacific Northwest heavyweight title fight between Dominic Richard and Wil Hammond. Other notable local fighters like Hardeep Singh and Cesar Narita are also slated to compete.
June 11, 2007
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June 11, 2007
HERO’S UPDATE K-1 Hero’s Announces Participants for July 16th Lightweight Tourney By FCF Staff The official K-1Hero’s website has announced several fighters that will participate in the opening round of the promotion’s upcoming lightweight tourney on July 16th. The event, which will take place at the Yokohama Arena in Yokohama, Japan, once again will feature several high profile 155 lb. fighters. Returning to compete in the tourney will be last year’s winner, Gesias “JZ” Calvacante, as well as Kultar “Black Mamba” Gill, Caol Uno, Hideo Tokoro, Alexandre Franca Nogueira, Katsuhiko Nagata, Kazuyuki Miyata and Vitor Ribeiro. No specific match-ups were listed on the site at this time, however, judging by the names of the participants listed, the opening round could provide several world class lightweight fights.
June 11, 2007
ULTIMATE FIGHT NIGHT PREVIEW Fisher, Stout Rematch Headlines Ultimate Fight Night By Kelsey Mowatt Florida’s Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino will host this Tuesday’s, June 12th, Ultimate Fight Night, with the Spike television broadcast to be headlined by Sam Stout (11-2-1) taking on Spencer Fisher (19-3) for a second time. Not only does the main event have the potential to be an entertaining stand-up war, but there are several notable match-ups on the event’s under-card as well. Fisher and Stout met for the first time at UFC 58 last March. Stout was making his UFC debut, and had been scheduled to take on Kenny Florian, until the Ultimate Fighter star was forced to withdraw due to an injury. The Team Tompkins lightweight arrived in the UFC due to the fact he was already considered to be one of Canada’s better fighters at 155, having won 8 fights in a row. Stout, or “Hands of Stone,” had earned that moniker on account of the fact that 6 of his 8 victories had come via strikes. Despite Stout’s credible record performing in Canada and the TKO promotion, the Ontario fighter was still relatively an unknown commodity South of the border. Fisher on the other hand was already well on route to establishing his name as one of the UFC’s better up and coming fighters. The Team Miletich stand-out had already gone 2-0 competing in the Zuffa Octagon, defeating Thiago Alves and Aaron Riley, and he had also won 8 straight fights. With only a few days notice, Fisher agreed to step in for the injured Florian, cutting down to 155 to face the younger Stout. Their UFC 58 bout did not disappoint, as both men lived up to their reputations as entertaining and aggressive fighters. In what turned out to be almost entirely a kick-boxing match, Stout earned a Split Decision victory over Fisher, in what was an extremely competitive affair. But questions remained, and some MMA observers, including Stout and Fisher themselves, began to air there own opinions as to the merits behind Stout’s win. Fisher took the fight on short notice; he had not been preparing for a fight and was forced to cut weight with only a few days prior. Stout, on the other hand, was originally scheduled to fight Florian; a fighter who most had expected would be unwilling to exchange with the former Kickboxing champ in Stout, a different game plan altogether. According to Stout and his camp, Fisher would not have taken the fight if he had not felt he could be ready to compete, he lost fair and square. Since their first encounter, both men have had some successes as well as some setbacks. Fisher went on to win two fights in a row over Matt Wiman and Dan Lauzon respectively in an awe inspiring manner, stopping both men with highlight reel strikes. At UFC Fight Night 9 in January, however, Hermes Franca stunned many, by not necessarily defeating Fisher, but by stopping the Miletich fighter with punches. Stout eventually would face Florian at the Ultimate Fighter Season 3 Finale last summer, and was overwhelmed by the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt. Florian submitted Stout in less than two minutes with a rear-naked-choke. Stout remained undaunted however, and in his return to Canada and TKO, the promotion’s lightweight champ went on to defend his title twice against opponents who were considered to be ground specialists. At TKO 27, Stout submitted Jay Estrada via an armbar, and then at TKO 28, the Team Tompkins fighter outlasted Brazilian Top Team Canada head instructor Fabio Holanda for the TKO win. So now, just over one year later, the two will do it again. Stout will have a chance to confirm the previous win was no fluke, while Fisher will look to demonstrate that with proper notice, he has the ability to defeat the Canadian striker. What remains to be seen is whether or not both men look to exchange standing, similar to their first encounter, or if one fighter will look for the takedown early to throw off the other’s game plan. A win for either man, will certainly go a long way to re-establishing their presence in the UFC lightweight division. In a bout that might be getting lost somewhat in June’s busy schedule, highly regarded welterweight Jon Fitch (14-2) will look for his sixth consecutive UFC win against Roan Carneiro (11-5). Most recently, Carneiro defeated Rich Clementi by Unanimous Decision in his UFC debut at Fight Night 10 in April, and the Brazilian Top Team fighter has gone 7-3 in his last 10 fights. There is no question that Fitch will have to be keenly aware of his upcoming opponents submission abilities , however, when one considers that Fitch has defeated the likes of Brock Larson, Thiago Alves, Josh Burkman and most recently, Luigi Fioravanti, the American Kickboxing Academy fighter will be a heavy favorite come Tuesday night.
Black’s opponent will be the undefeated Thiago Tavares (6-0), who earned a Unanimous Decision win over Naoyuki Kotani in his UFC debut in April. The American Top Team fighter no doubt possesses formidable striking and submission skills like many of his teammates, however, Black’s experience and wrestling capabilities could be too much for the 22 year old. Former Bulgarian Olympic team member, Jordan Radev (9-1) will take on middleweight fighter Drew McFedries (5-2), in what, if it’s anything like McFedries other 2 UFC bouts, could be a thrilling fight. The Miletich fighter has demonstrated a strong willingness to freely exchange with his opponents, a plan of attack that stopped Alessio Sakara at UFC 65, and was punishing Martin Kampmann at UFC 68, until the Danish fighter submitted him with a side-choke. Radev has wins over Jorge Santiago, Martin Malkhaysan and Anthony Rea, and could be a solid addition to the UFC middleweight division. Rounding out the rest of this Tuesday’s Ultimate Fight Night; Luigi Fioravanti (11-2) will take on Forrest Petz (10-4), Tamdan McCrory (7-0) meets Pete Spratt (16-8), Jeff Cox (8-3) will fight Gleison Tibau(9-4), Chad Reiner (13-2) is scheduled to face Anthony Johnson (3-0) and Luke Caudillo (15-7) will take on Nate Mohr (6-4).
June 12, 2007
ULTIMATE FIGHT NIGHT RECAP Fisher Earns Unanimous Decision Victory in Rematch with Stout By Kelsey Mowatt Ultimate Fight Night 10, June 12, 2007 The Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida, hosted the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s latest “Ultimate Fight Night” card, a series of events that sees a portion of the card broadcast live on Spike Television. Headlined by a rematch fight between two fighters in Sam Stout and Spencer Fisher, well known for their aggressive styles, fans watching around the globe were not only treated to a thrilling main event fight, but several highlight real knock-outs on the under card portion of the broadcast as well. Stout and Fisher met before at UFC 58 last March, and in an extremely entertaining and competitive affair, Stout worked his way to a Split Decision victory over Fisher. The back drop to their first encounter is what set the table for this rematch bout, as Fisher took the first fight with Stout on short notice, as a late replacement for an injured Kenny Florian. Fisher’s supporters have always put forth that a prepared Fisher, one not forced to cut a fair amount of weight within a couple of days, would offer Stout a more formidable foe. Both men had gone 2-1 since fighting last March, and winning their second fight would go a long ways to re-establishing their presence in the UFC lightweight division. If “Hands of Stone” is the moniker of Sam Stout, then based on his performance in the Fight Night 10 main event, the Canadian fighter might want to add “Jaw of Stone” to that list. From the onset of the bout, both men set to do what most expected they would, engaging in an all out stand up war just like they had in their first engagement. Fisher came out throwing multi-punch combinations, beating Stout to the mark often while the Canadian attempted to return fire. On several occasions it appeared that Fisher landed some telling blows to Stout, jerking the Canadian’s head back in dramatic fashion. But Stout never headed to the canvas, or really lost his footing for more than a split second, instead he continued to press towards Fisher, throwing in his own kicks to the legs and body of his opponent. Other than one takedown attempt from Fisher that Stout nicely defended, the two lightweights were more than willing to exchange standing in the center of the Octagon. Round’s two and three would see more of the same. Fisher continued to beat Stout to the punch, time and time again, demonstrating brilliant hand speed. But Stout, like in round one, remained undaunted, and began to land some of his own punishing blows that began to bruise and batter Fisher’s face. But where Fisher seemed to lose steam as the fight wore on in their first encounter, this time around, the Miletich fighter did not gas, countering Stout’s attacks with precision. By the mid point of round three it was clear that Stout would need a knock-out or stoppage to win the bout, something that would never materialize. Despite some spirited efforts by Stout as the fight neared its end, Fisher would once more rock the Team Tompkins fighter with several more damaging punches. For his performance, Fisher was awarded a Unanimous Decision victory, leaving his record at 20-3 while Stout’s falls to 11-3-1. One of the UFC’s most under-hyped fighters, Jon Fitch, was looking for his 6th UFC victory against Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu expert Roan Carneiro. The American Kickboxing Academy fighter defeated Brock Larson, Josh Burkman, Thiago Alves, Kuniyoshi Hironaka, and most recently, Luigi Fioravanti before this fight with Carneiro, putting himself within striking distance of a welterweight title shot. Despite Fitch’s impressive performances thus far in the UFC, Carneiro demonstrated early in the fight that he had his own ideas about possibly challenging for the title. Only a few seconds into the fight, it would be Carneiro who would put the former collegiate wrestler Fitch to the mat, and began looking for the fight ending submission. Finally securing the position for an Anaconda choke, Fitch demonstrated his own jiu-jitsu capabilities by working his way out of the hold. The fighters spent much of the remaining round working from within the clinch, until once more; Carneiro took Fitch down to the mat. As the final seconds of the round ticked off, Carneiro continued to work for a choke from the top position. Fitch, similarly too Round 1, came out for Round 2 with vengeance, and this time his aggression paid off. Throwing a couple of jabs at Carneiro the Brazilian began to retreat as Fitch landed a one-two combination that sent the fighter reeling, and the bout spilled to the canvas. From there Fitch peppered Carneiro with punches from above until his opponent, seemingly dazed, left his neck wide open for the fight ending rear-naked-choke at 1:07 of the second round. The impressive come from behind win for Fitch extends his record to 15-2 while Carneiro’s falls to 11-6. Opening up the Spike television broadcast, Miletich middleweight Drew McFedries took on Bulgarian Olympic wrestler, Jordan Radev. Unfortunately for Radev, who was making his UFC debut, his chance to impress the thousands watching around the world would end quickly and rather violently. After several seconds had passed with both fighters circling and feinting, McFedries landed a crushing right upper cut that sent Radev stumbling to the mat. From there, the South Paw fighter followed up his attack with two more thundering right hooks to a downed and helpless Radev, rendering the Bulgarian fighter unconscious. The KO victory for McFedries at 33 seconds of Round 1 only furthers the up and coming fighter’s growing reputation for being a devastating puncher, and extends his overall record to 6-2. The loss was Radev’s second, dropping his record to 9-2. In another abrupt and violent exchange, Anthony Johnson impressed in his UFC debut knocking out Chad Reiner in just 13 seconds. The win leaves Johnson’s record at 4-0, while Reiner’s falls to 13-3. Jason Black’s UFC debut, one anxiously awaited by many long time MMA fans for several years now, was a disappointing one, as Brazilian Thiago Tavares dominated the Miletich fighter for virtually the entire bout, submitting Black with a triangle choke at 2:49 of round two. UFC Fight Night 10: Spike TV Broadcast Results Spencer Fisher def. Sam Stout by unanimous decision Jon Fitch def. Roan Carneiro by submission, (rear choke) 1:07 R2 Drew McFedries def. Jordan Radev by KO 0:33 R1 Anthony Johnson def. Chad Reiner by KO 0:13 R1 Thiago Tavares def. Jason Black by submission (triangle choke) 2:49 R2
June 12, 2007
ART OF WAR UPDATE Art of War 3 Update: Severn Named Team USA Captain, Horn, Shields, Rodriguez, and Waterman Scheduled to Compete By FCF Staff Sun Sports and Entertainment announced today, via a press release, that MMA legend Dan Severn will captain Team USA at the organizations, September 1st, Art of War 3 card, “USA Vs. Brazil.” Severn, a former UFC champion, has continued to compete well into his forties, carrying a record of 81-15-7, he is regarded by many as one of the sports greatest ambassadors. The event, which falls under the umbrella of the Undisputed Arena Fighting Championship, will take place at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. The promotion previously announced that Jeff Monson would take on Pedro Rizzo in the main event for Rizzo’s IFA World heavyweight title, and now, has added several other prominent fighters to the card. According to the release, Jeremy Horn, Jake Shields, Ricco Rodriguez and Ron Waterman, will all compete for Team USA, however, no opponents for the Americans have yet been announced.
June 13, 2007
FCF SURVEY Give Us Your Thoughts... June is a busy month for MMA, lots of fights in the coming weeks. We'd like to hear your thoughts on some of the more talked about match-ups (Franklin/Okami, Shamrock/Baroni, Penn/Pulver, Mercer/Slice). We'd also like to hear your thoughts on anything in the world of MMA you'd like to talk about ... Jackson's win over Liddell, etc. The results of the survey and some of the commentary we receive may appear in the upcoming issue of FCF. Click here to take the survey
June 13, 2007
NEW EPISODE OF FCF RADIO: NATE MARQUARDT
June 13, 2007
ACROSS THE POND: BRITISH MMA NEWS Across the Pond: British MMA News By David West The first step to sanctioning in the UK? “Granite” Grant Waterman has been the most high profile referee on the British MMA scene since its inception. His personal background includes competing in amateur Boxing, Kickboxing, BJJ and Sambo on an international level. Waterman attended a Shootfighting event in 1997 where the referee failed to show up, so he stepped in and has been busy ever since. He now works at around thirty shows a year. He has been the third man in the cage for virtually all of the most memorable MMA events held on British soil and has been a promoter in his hometown of Portsmouth. Now Granite Grant is turning his attention to establishing a governing body for the sport in the UK. To this end he is trying to have Sport England, the national body responsible for promoting and sponsoring community sport in the country, recognise MMA. If he’s successful, then MMA athletes and clubs would be able to apply for financial support. Sport England is already involved with amateur boxing, kickboxing and traditional martial arts, and has even provided some funs to promote amateur wrestling in Britain, where it almost extinct, although the stigma attached cage fighting could prove an obstacle for MMA.
FCF: Why do you think the UK needs a governing body? Grant Waterman: MMA in the UK took off in a big way back in 2001 when the first octagon was used over here. Since then it seems like every man and his dog have started up a promotion. There are numerous events taking place on a weekly basis around the country and remember we live on a tiny little island so the concentration of MMA is probably more than anywhere else in the world. The scary thing is that not one of these events is overseen by an independent body to ensure that it is run in a proper manner. By that I mean, pre-fight medicals including blood tests, brain scans and eye examinations. Also there is no monitoring of the matchmaking and promoters can make the rules up as they go along if they so wish. It is essential that something is done about all this to protect the sport and to protect the fighters. FCF: How do you envision a governing body functioning in Britain? What powers of enforcement would it possess? GW: I would like to see the 'governing body' run in a way that is initially a source of advice. Imagine a group is formed that then goes round shutting events down left, right and centre and only allows those with the big bucks to keep operating. Safety has to be the primary concern and although people are moaning about the costs of the medical checks, there will be no exceptions. I think that the California State Athletic Commission talks a great deal of sense and Nevada seems to run things well too, so why not take a few leaves out of their books? FCF: How would it be funded? GW: It would be a non-profit making organisation that would be funded from the license fees from promoters, fighters, and other members. As soon as we obtain recognition from Sport England then there is no reason why we would not receive extra government funding and also lottery funding. FCF: How important is the establishment of a governing body in the UK to making MMA an accepted sport? GW: For the reasons I have stated about everyone doing their own thing. Once we have a recognised set of rules and top notch medical and safety checks in place, I can't see that we could be denied the title of Legitimate Sport. The governing body is obviously the key to all of this. FCF: Would fighters be required to have licenses, like those for professional boxers? GW: Yes. FCF: What has been the response from promoters and fighters to this idea? GW: The response has been very, very positive all round. Everyone wants this to happen. There are some who are suspicious about the costs and a few who are worried about the few quid they make out of their poorly run operations that may be shut down. FCF: What would your role be? GW: I love MMA and I've put so much time into pushing it forward over the years. I would be gutted to see anything happen to jeopardize its future now. I have a genuine concern for fighter safety and the longevity of the sport. My role would be something of a Chief Executive Advisor. I'd like promoters and fighters to welcome myself and the governing body, not resent us.
FCF: Cage Rage just announced that they are no longer going to use their Open Guard rule. How important is it for all the promotions to use the same rules? GW: Fighters need to be training for one set of rules. The fans need to learn that there is one set of rules so they can follow the sport and know what's going on in a fight. Officials would find life easier too. It's just a logical step in making MMA 'one sport'.
June 14, 2007
GRACIE SUSPENDED CSAC Suspends Royce Gracie By FCF Staff The California State Athletic Commission announced this afternoon via a press release, that Royce Gracie has tested positive for a banned substance and has subsequently been suspended. The Brazilian fighter will be barred from competing in the State of California until May 30th, 2008, and was fined $2,500 for testing positive for Nandrolone Metabolite, which when detected, has in some cases, been attributed to the use of anabolic steroids. Gracie will have 30 days to appeal his fine and suspension. The CSAC also announced this afternoon that Brock Lesnar, Min Soo Kim, and Gracie’s opponent at the June 2nd Dynamite card, Kazushi Sakuraba, all passed their subsequent drug tests.
June 14, 2007
NEW EPISODE OF FCF RADIO: PATRICK COTE AND TIM KENNEDY
June 14, 2007
UFC 72 PREVIEW
Many believe that Rich Franklin’s (22-2) next assignment got particularly more difficult when his original scheduled opponent, Martin Kampmann got injured, and the UFC brought in Yushin Okami (20-3) as his replacement. Taking nothing away from Kampmann, who certainly appears to have a bright future in front of him, the Dane fighter may have been overmatched at this point in his career with the much larger, south paw, Franklin. Okami has gone through everyone put in front of him in the UFC middleweight division, dispatching of some of the promotions more notable185 lb. fighters including Kalib Starnes, Rory Singer, Alan Belcher, and most recently Mike Swick. Okami, is a well accomplished grappler, and may be one of the better ground fighters Franklin will have faced to date. He has also quickly gained a reputation for possessing formidable strength, an area in which Franklin, who is an extremely big middleweight fighter, has traditionally held an edge over prior opponents. The Japanese fighter is also an experienced veteran in terms of competing against world class opposition, having faced the likes of Anderson Silva, Jake Shields, Nick Thompson, Falaniko Vitale and Amar Suloev prior to heading to the UFC. Franklin is coming off an impressive performance at UFC 68 in March, when he stopped the Canadian veteran Jason Macdonald. It was an important victory for Franklin, demonstrating that the former champ was mentally and physically recovered from his devastating TKO loss to Anderson Silva last October. There is no question that Franklin still remains a top the middleweight world rankings, going 21-1 before the loss to Silva, defeating the likes of Evan Tanner, David Loiseau, Jorge Rivera, and Ken Shamrock. One may be able to take away a lot from Franklin’s last bout against Macdonald, a fighter, who like Okami, has been praised for his conditioning and strength, and likes to dominate fighters on the ground. Clearly, Franklin was able to negate Macdonald’s game-plan for the most part; one that likely will be quite similar to Okami’s come Saturday. Franklin should also have an advantage striking, as in Okami’s bout against Swick; the only time he seemed in trouble was when the two exchanged on their feet. The deciding factor in this bout will likely come down to Franklin’s ability to negate Okami’s takedown attempts from the clinch, or if the former champ can work his way out from Okami’s vaunted ground and pound game, if the bout spills to the mat. The former “Ultimate Fighter” star, Griffin (13-4), is of course, also another one of the UFC’s more popular stars, building a massive fan base on account of his entertaining, give all, style and knack for cutting, witty, remarks. Griffin is coming off a devastating knock-out loss to Keith Jardine at UFC 66 on December 30th, and will be looking to re-establish himself as a contender in the 205 lb. division. His most impressive performance thus far in the UFC may arguably be one of his losses, a Split Decision loss to the former champ, Tito Ortiz last April. Ramirez (6-2-1) is fighter that seems to have a style that will match-up nicely with Griffins, as both men like to exchange and decided fights from their feet. In his UFC debut, Ramirez was putting together a fairly solid performance until James Irvin caught him with a crushing right cross in the second round. Ramirez also holds a 2005 victory over another TUF competitor, Kendall Grove. Griffin might be wise to watch the footage of the last man to beat him, Jardine, in his last bout against Houston Alexander. A cautious and efficient Griffin, who is also well known for being an extremely well conditioned and well rounded MMA fighter, should come away the victor Saturday. The last man to face Franklin, Jason Macdonald (19-8) will hope to return to his winning ways against the well rounded Rory Singer (12-7). Singer is coming off a win over Matt Masterson at Wild Bill’s Fight Night 8 in April, a nice rebound victory after his loss to Okami in December. Singer will likely look to keep the fight standing, against a fighter whose style as mentioned, is not too dissimilar from Okamis. Macdonald has also been working on his stand-up game a lot as of late, and believes his striking game has not received it’s full due considering his last two fights were against south paw strikers in Franklin and Chris Leben. That said; look for Macdonald to work from the clinch if he gets into trouble with Singer standing, the outcome of this fight may very well be determined by each other’s abilities along the cage fence. In another interesting middleweight bout, Scott Smith (12-3) will meet Ed Herman (11-4) in a fight between two other TUF alumni. After dropping a Unanimous Decision loss to Patrick Cote at UFC 67 in February, Smith ventured outside of the UFC and defeated Troy Miller by TKO at Palace Fighting Championship 2 in March. Herman was impressive in submitting Chris Price at UFC Fight Night 9 in January, returning to the winning bracket after dropping fights to Kendall Grove and Jason Macdonald. Smith is likely the better of the two fighters in the striking department, while Herman is probably the better ground fighter. The determining factor in this bout may be who has the better wrestling between the two, as both fighters stem from solid wrestling backgrounds. A lightweight battle between Clayton Guida (20-5) and Tyson Griffin (8-1) could steal the show Saturday, as both fighters are known for their aggressive style and solid wrestling abilities. Griffin’s last opponent, Frankie Edgar, also fits that bill, and there bout turned out to be one the more entertaining fights in recent memory. Guida is coming off a tough, competitive loss to the veteran Din Thomas, while Griffin, before his recent loss to Edgar, won 8 straight, including his big claim to fame, the only man to defeat Urijah Faber. Guida is clearly the more experienced of the two fighters in the MMA ring, and will have to outpace, and outwork Griffin throughout the fight to pull off the win. Rounding out the rest of the action for UFC 72; Jason Tan (5-1) will take on welterweight Marcus Davis (16-4), heavyweight Eddie Sanchez (8-1) is set to meet Colin Robertson (9-2), and Dustin Hazelett (10-3) is scheduled to meet Stevie Lynch (4-0).
June 14, 2007
KING OF THE CAGE PREVIEW Ireland and Lee to Compete at KOTC this Weekend, First Return to Action Since Pride Debut By Kelsey Mowatt It was a likely a dream come true for both men, on February 24th, veteran fighters James Lee and Jason Ireland made their debuts fighting on MMA’s center stage. Taking to the Pride ring at the MMA giant’s 33 event, “Second Coming”, in Las Vegas, Nevada, not only did both fighters get to fight in front of a large crowd in their home country, but thousands of fans as well, watching around the world on pay-per-view. Ireland (16-7-1) took on the highly regarded Joachim Hansen (15-4-1), the Norwegian lightweight well remembered for his victories over Yves Edwards, Takanori Gomi, Caol Uno, and Rumina Sato. Despite the fact Ireland was a heavy underdog; he pressed Hansen throughout much of the bout, giving his opponent a solid run for his money before finally succumbing to an armbar in the second round. Lee (9-2) faced UFC veteran Travis Wiuff (42-10), a fighter who holds victories over notable names like Matt Horwich and Roman Zentsov, and has competed against some of sports best fighters over his 6 year career. Lee, despite the fact he was on a 7 fight winning streak when he faced Wiuff that February 24th night, was also viewed, like Ireland, as a heavy underdog. One crushing hook later and a submission tap-out via a guillotine choke at just 39 seconds of the first round, Lee pulled off the upset, making his Pride debut a rather memorable affair. Now four months later, with Pride under new ownership, and the promotion’s upcoming schedule remaining somewhat tentative, Lee and Ireland will return to King of the Cage once again this weekend. A promotion that has seen some of each fighters best performances throughout their respective careers. Before heading to Pride, Ireland had won his last two fights with KOTC, defeating Jason St.Louis at the promotion’s “Insurrection” event last October, and Jimmy Boyd at “Mass Destruction” in January. Prior to that, Ireland took then KOTC lightweight champ, Matt Danzig, to the judges’ score cards, losing by Unanimous Decision. Danzig at the time had won 8 straight fights, defending his belt several times. He, like Lee and Ireland, also made his Pride debut at “Second Coming”, and like his fellow KOTC competitors, put on an admirable performance, before being stopped by the top ranked, Hayato Sakurai. Lee, after defeating Kengo Watanabe at Pancrase’s 2004 Brave Tour 12 event in December of that year, returned to the U.S. to go on a tear competing for KOTC. Throughout 2005 and 2006, Lee fought exclusively for the promotion, winning 6 of his 7 fights, 5 by submission. At KOTC “Unfinished Business” last April, Lee’s bout with Roy Pariente was declared a no-contest. Friday night, June 15th, at the Soaring Eagle Casino in Mt. Pleasant, MI, Lee will take on Aung La Nsang (3-2) while Ireland will face Mike O’Donell (2-1) at KOTC “Explosion.” It may not be the bright lights of Pride, and it may not be seen by thousands and thousands of fans, but it marks a return to the promotion that has helped pave their road to MMA success.
June 15, 2007
SHANE OTT Shane Ott Making His Mark By Jim Genia
What prompted the 35-year-old Reading, Pennsylvania resident to take the MMA plunge? “My instructor,” he says. “I started for the jiu-jitsu to get in shape. I promised my son that when I moved back home I’d do wrestling with him and go to tournaments. I used the jiu-jitsu to get in shape and I picked it up really fast, and [my instructor] suggested I try MMA.” Adds the tattoo artist and father of three: “I wanted to put myself to the test.” In three amateur bouts plus three pro, Ott has yet to lose – a remarkable feat considering his last two opponents were the previously undefeated Chad Griggs and the very experienced Kerry Schall. The heavy-handed Griggs was his aforementioned IFL debut. What was it like fighting for an organization of that caliber? “Wow, it’s hard to sum that up,” says Ott. “It was just an unbelievable experience. The whole organization was so professional. I was extremely nervous going into it. Carlos Newton talked to me, and calmed me down by talking to me. He set no expectations on me, he just told me to do my best. All the guys on the team were really nice. Nobody really shrugged me off – everybody treated me real good. It was just an unbelievable experience.” Was it difficult fighting in front of the thousands in the audience? “The few thousand people didn’t faze me at all,” says Ott. “The first person I thought of when [I won] was my son. He pretty much made it to all my fights and didn’t get to see that one because of how far away it was, so the first thing I did when I got back to the locker room was call him. I’m proud of what I do, I’m proud of myself, but the first thing I thought of was him. I want to be someone he looks up to.” This Saturday, his opponent will be Roy Nelson. It’s a tall order for the Jeff Walcott-trained monster. What does he expect from that fight? “Expectations… as far as that goes… really, I have none. I’m just going to go out there and do what I know how to do to the best of my abilities.” What has he done to prepare? “Train like crazy. The guy has seven fights and I believe four out of seven went the distance, so he does have the physical capability of going the distance. He took Ben Rothwell to a split decision after three rounds, so the guy knows what he’s doing. I’m going to try to keep it aggressive and set a good pace. I consider myself in pretty good shape for someone my size, and a lot of heavyweights have a problem keeping up with a high pace.” Adds Ott: “My game plan is this: don’t let the opponent do what he wants to do. If he tries to take me down, I’m going to stand up. If he’s slugging away or kicking me, I’m taking him down. That’s the way I go about it.” Having already accomplished much by simply making it onto an IFL roster, it may seem like there’s only a few things left for Ott to strive for, i.e., fighting in the Octagon, winning a belt. What are his goals in mixed martial arts? “Just to keep on going, whether it be the UFC or Pride or anything.” He adds: “But it’s not even for my own satisfaction. What makes me happy is my son being proud of me, saying, ‘Hey, that’s my dad.’” “I’m really excited about the opportunity I’ve been given,” says the man who’s making his mark on the heavyweight division. “Hopefully, I’ll put a show on once again.”
June 16, 2007
UFC 72 RESULTS
June 16, 2007
NINJA OFF STRIKEFORCE - ELITEXC CARD “Ninja” Rua Fails Medical, Off June 22nd Strikeforce- EliteXC Card By FCF Staff Elite XC announced today via a press-release that Murilo “Ninja” Rua has failed his pre-fight medical examination and as a result, will not be able to compete on the upcoming, Elite XC-Strikeforce, June 22nd card. Rua had been scheduled to fight Joey Villasenor at the event, which will take place at the HP Pavilion, in San Jose, California. The release also quoted EliteXC Live Events President Gary Shaw saying that, “This is a tough break for Ninja, Joey Villasenor and all MMA fight fans,” and that a replacement for Villasenor was being sought out. The June 22nd, Showtime, pay-per-view event will be headlined by Frank Shamrock taking on Phil Baroni. The under card also includes Cung Le vs. Tony Fryklund, Charles Bennett vs. Victor Valenzuela, and Carter Williams vs. Paul Buentello.
June 17, 2007
CAGE RAGE CONTENDERS RESULTS Across The Pond: British MMA News By David West Results from Cage Rage: Contenders 5 The Troxy, London, England – Saturday 16th June 2007 The prospect of staying in to watch the Ultimate Fighting Championship on TV was not enough to keep the London fight fans indoors tonight, as 1600 of them packed The Troxy in East London to watch the fifth Contenders show from Cage Rage. Headlining the card, the very explosive Che Mills was too strong and too fast for Afnan Saheed, knocking him down with his left, then blasting him with punches on the floor until the referee jumped in after 1:22 of the opening round. After the fight, Saheed announced he will move down to lightweight, which should be a good division for him, since he was bulking up to compete at welterweight. Mills looks lethal and if he carries on winning like this, he may find no one wants to fight him.
Returning from a lengthy lay-off, London Shootfighters’ Gaz Roriston totally dominated Darren Guisha on his way to the ground and pound stoppage. Roriston had not fought since May 2004 and returned to competition dropping from middleweight to welterweight, a move that evidently has served him well. He took Guisha down with a massive slam, mounted him and tenaciously held the position despite Guisha’s repeated attempts to dislodge him. Roriston kept his hands moving and a prolonged flurry from rear mount forced Guisha to tap out late in round one. Thai boxer Dorlan O’Mally showed that he has been studying submissions, tapping out Rob Powell with a guillotine in the second round of their match. Powell kept the action on the canvas throughout the fight, hoping to nullify O’Mally’s powerful strikes, but O’Mally was able to take mount before he surprised Powell with the submission. The fight of the night was the welterweight brawl between Tarcio Santana, from Fight First and Team Titan, and ZT Fight Skool’s John Hathaway. Santana choose to stand and trade with Hathaway in round one, where Hathaway’s crisp boxing allowed him to land sharp punches inside Santana’s wild haymakers. By the end of round two, Santana was a bloody mess but he still kept coming, mixing in some Capoeira kicks with his punches as he refused to concede despite Hathaway’s dominance in the striking exchanges. In the last round, Santana finally got the fight to the floor where he was able to take mount, but he couldn’t finish Hathaway, who took the unanimous decision in a thrilling contest.
The match between John Maguire and Jake Bostwick had a great start, with Bostwick trying to blast out Maguire before he was taken down. On the floor Maguire was the more polished technician and he trapped Bostwick in a cross-body pin and started cracking him with short shots to the face. As Bostwick struggled to free himself, the referee thought he was tapping out, so he stopped the fight with less than ten seconds left in the round, leading to a heated debate with both sets of cornermen, the referee and the promoters. In the end, Maguire was given the win but a rematch was announced for the next Contenders event to settle the matter.
Full Results Che Mills def. Afnan Saheed by TKO (Referee stoppage – strikes) 1:22 R1 Gaz Roriston def. Darren Guisha by Tap-out to strikes 4:41 R1 Dorlan O’Mally def. Rob Powell by Guillotine 3:04 R2 John Maguire def. Jake Bostwick by TKO (Referee stoppage) R1 Francis Heagney def. Wesley Murch by Guillotine 1:05 R2 Steven Dossett def. Dan Movahedi by Guillotine 0:53 R1 John Hathaway def. Tarcio Santana by Unanimous Decision John Haggerty def. Michael King by TKO (Referee stoppage – strikes) 4:30 R1 Kym Farid def. Soli Klichko by TKO (Referee stoppage – strikes) 3:05 R1 Luke Smith def. Jay Gilbey by Rear Naked Choke 1:52 R1 Brett Bassett def. Nick Porter by Tap-out to strikes 4:40 R2 Scott Jansen def. Deano Durant by TKO (Referee stoppage – strikes) 1:00 R1 Mark Smith def. Jody Cottham by Arm-Bar 0:53 R1 Giorgio Andrews def. Max Henchy by Rear Naked Choke 1:52 R1
June 17, 2007
EFI RESULTS
“A reporter asked me how I was going to win the match and I said, ‘Pretty much however I want,’ ” Spiegel said. “For a guy to step in the cage with someone whose got over 40 fights in his first fight, he’s either got guts or he’s stupid.” Spiegel made quick work of Goodwin in the main event, imposing his will from the opening seconds of the fight to closing a triangle submission he applied just inches from his favorite photographer. Spiegel not only pushed the pace of the fight, he decided what parts of the cage it would take place in. – Just four days after defeating Pete Spratt in his Ultimate Fighting Championship debut, Tamdan “The Barn Cat” McCrory was in attendance to help corner his CNY Bombsquad teammates Eric Henry, Cory Laplant, Randy Smith and their good friend Raymond Newkirk. Just like the Barn Cat before them, all four of these fighters landed on their feet without a loss amongst one of them. Henry said he’d never felt more comfortable striking, LaPlant won by rear-naked choke and challenged Frank Latina to a rematch for the 155-pound title and both heavyweights Smith and Newkirk made their presence felt in the cage. – Dorel Codreanu, a first-time fighter from Russia, fought extremely well in his match against Billy Walsh. After one full round it was hard to determine what was more impressive, the beating Codreanu was dishing out in the first round of his first fight or how well Walsh was able to weather the storm?
Dan Keefe def. Ryan Verrett by TKO R1. Eric Henry def. Billy Erol by TKO R1. Dorel Codreanu def. Billy Walsh by KO R2. *Mathew Vincelette def. Roberto Concepcion by TKO R3. Travis Lerchen def. Don Carlo-Clauss based on Disqualification after an illegal head butt in Round 2. Cory LapLant def. Corey Batchelder by Rear-naked-choke R1. Ethan Kean def. K.J. Banach by Triangle-choke R2. Raymond Newkirk def. Johann Van Woerden by TKO R1. Randy Smith def. Alonzo Hardnett by Unanimous decision after two rounds. Jerry Spiegel def. Tim Goodwin by Triangle-choke R1. No times were given either preceding or following the announcement of each match’s winner. *Vincelette and Concepcion’s match was officially called a draw when it was determined that Concepcion had apparently won Rounds 2 and 3 on the judges’ scorecards after the fighters had already begun fighting in Round 3 (EFI fighters only proceed to Round 3 if there is a tie after two rounds).
June 17, 2007
HAPPY FATHERS DAY
June 17, 2007
IFL RESULTS Pitbulls Advance to Playoffs, Lions Victorious over Scorpions By Steven Marrocco A sellout crowd of 3,200 fans took in the IFL’s final regular season offering. Renzo Gracie’s Pitbulls edged out the tough Toronto Dragons for a post-season berth. It was a hard fought night, but Pitbulls coach Gracie put it best: “The only thing that’s ever been easy for us is our mother’s breast,” he said with a smile. “Everything else has been a struggle.”
Ken Shamrock’s Lions rebounded from a poor showing in Moline, Illinois, virtually cleaning house against Don Frye’s Scorpions. The night ended in controversy when a bizarre stoppage tainted the main event between Light Heavyweights Mike Whitehead and Vernon White. After dominating from the bell and nearly ending the fight with a Kimura from half guard, Whitehead took White’s back and began raining down punches. What started as a cry for help was interpreted as a submission, as ref Steve Mazzagatti seemed to heed Whitehead’s cries for a stoppage. For his part, Whitehead claimed that White had not answered Mazzagatti’s question if White was okay; White told reporters that Whitehead had landed several illegal punches to the back of his head.
Rick Reeves def. Chris Kennedy by Unanimous Decision (29 28) Brent Beauparlant def. Fabio Leopoldo at 2:22 of Rd. 3 by TKO (Shoulder Injury) Andre Gusmao def. Wojtek Kaszowski at 3:53 of Rd. 1 by Submission (Modified Rear Naked Choke) Wagney Fabiano def. Erik Owings at :58 of Rd. 1 by Submission (Armbar) Delson Heleno def. Gideon Ray at 1:29 of Rd. 2 by Submission (Verbal) Marcio Cruz def. Rafael at 3:42 of Rd. 3 by Disqualification Dan Molina def. Seth Baczynski at 1:32 of Rd. 1 by Submission (Heel Hook) Pat Healy def. Mike Guymon at 4:00 of Rd. 3 by Split Decision (29 28 29 28 Healy, 29 28 Guymon) John Gunderson def. Gabe Casillas at 2:58 of Rd. 2 by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) Roy Nelson def. Shane Ott at 4:00 of Rd. 3 by Unanimous Decision (30-27) Mike Whitehead def. Vernon White at :54 of Rd. 2 by TKO (Referee Stoppage)
June 18, 2007
NEW EPISODE OF FCF RADIO: SPENCER FISHER AND TYSON GRIFFIN
June 18, 2007
KEVIN RODDY Roddy Neer-ly Misses Big Fight With Taurosevicius By Derek Constable With the upcoming June 23rd, Cage Fury Fighting Championships V right around the corner, everyone’s minds are on “Merciless” Ray Mercer and Kimbo Slice, but with just a few days until fight night, the CFFC card continues to grow. Kevin “K-Rod” Roddy (7-2) was just an alternate in CFFC’s lineup, until Josh “The Dentist” Neer got KO’d in his last International Fight League match against Mark Miller. The N.A.B.C Lightweight Champion Deividas Taurosevicius (6-2) was without an opponent for CFFC’s upcoming pay-per-view event. Roddy was more than happy to clear his schedule and accept the fight. “I’m pumped,” he said. “I jumped in no problem. That’s a good fight, a good pay day. I’m always the underdog, so why not? Deividas, he’s an animal. He’s going to come out banging. I know he’s got good ground-and-pound skills and solid stand-up, so we’ll see what he’s got to offer.” Taurosevicius is an excellent striker and a proven veteran. He has crazy speed and is coming off a solid win over Dan Lauzon at CFFC III. Roddy is known for his jiu-jitsu because six of his seven wins are by submission, but he and his striking coach Chris Ligouri, will tell you his hands are no joke either. “I’m normally a jiu-jitsu guy, but I’ve been wresting with Frankie Edgar every day for the past six months and doing stand-up with Ligouri. Everyone thinks I’m not going to strike with him, but I’ll bang with him all day.” Roddy is no stranger to the cage, a former Reality Fighting Champion, he has nine fights under his belt and one of his two losses is to the current CFFC Lightweight Champion Jim Miller.
“I just like fighting, I have all brothers and I grew up pretty much fighting all the time, so I figured why not make a living off of this,” Roddy said. “It’s going pretty good so far.” While he doesn’t have any big-name sponsors or grace any billboards, Roddy is living his dream as a full-time fighter. A man with a bachelor’s in criminal justice and a former job working in concrete, he now only trains and fights for a living. “It’s hard. I used to work full-time and then fight on the side and before my contract with CFFC, I really didn’t have any real money.” In case Neer did pull through his fight with Miller in the IFL and make it to CFFC V, Roddy took on another fight at 145 pounds which he consequently had to step out of. It was an easy decision, but now weighing in at 145, Roddy’s got weight to gain rather than lose. “I workout so much it is hard very hard to put on,” he said. “I’m drinking extra cups of water all the time.” Roddy is one of two fighters from Team Rhino competing at CFFC V and it’s rare to see a New Jersey fight card without at least a few members from Rhino. Roddy will hold things down in the lightweight division while the team’s newest member, the undefeated Alexis Aquino, takes on Dante Rivera (8-2) in the middleweight division. “To be in Rhino you got to be out of your mind, not really a normal person,” Roddy said. “Alexis fits in pretty good.”
June 18, 2007
THE NORTHERN TOUCH Day Vs. Goulet Headlines This Weekend’s UCW, “Natural Invasion” Coming off the heels of a recent TKO loss to Patrick Cote at TKO 29 on June 1st, Jason Day will look to return to the winning bracket this weekend against another UFC competitor, Jonathan Goulet. “The Road Warrior” also fought at TKO 29, competing at middleweight, Goulet knocked out Travis Axworthy in 8 seconds with a head kick. The two will fight in the main event of this weekend’s June 23rd, Ultimate Cage Wars, which will take place at Winnipeg Convention Centre, in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Goulet (18-7) has won two fights in a row now since his last defeat to Josh Koscheck at UFC Fight Night 6 in August. It will be interesting to see how he matches up to Day’s strength, as Goulet has recently moved up to 185 while Day dropped down to middleweight after competing at 205 lbs. for several years. The Canadian Martial Arts Center fighter Day, now carries a combined pro-am record of 14-7, and has only lost twice since 2005, to Victor Valimaki and Patrick Cote. Day had hoped for a win over Cote to help his cause in receiving a call from the UFC, which was rumored to be imminent before TKO 29. A win over a UFC veteran in Goulet, would likely further Day’s goal to compete in the Zuffa Octagon. Goulet is also hoping to return to the UFC, after going 2-2 competing for the promotion, he is likely on the verge of being called back to the MMA giant. A win over one of Canada’s better 185 lb. fighters might just lead to his UFC return. UFC Heavyweight Champion Randy Couture is also slated to appear at this weekend’s UCW, with an autograph session scheduled at 6:30. KOTC Announces Line-Up for July 14th, Halifax Event, Busy Summer for Goulet Continues King of the Cage Canada has announced the line-up for the promotion’s upcoming July 14th event which will take place at the Halifax Forum, in Halifax, Nova Scotia. KOTC will be hoping that Goulet survives this weekend’s fight with Day unscathed, so he can take on the Maritime’s Cory MacDonald (5-1). MacDonald is riding a 4 fight winning streak, including a recent TKO stoppage of Rowan Cunningham at Extreme Caged Combat 5 in March, likely the biggest win in his career to date. In another bout that will feature a local fighter, TJ Grant (6-1) will meet up with the tough veteran Kevin Manderson (14-8-1). Grant is coming off his first career loss, as at KOTC “Megiddo”; he failed to win the KOTC Canada Welterweight Championship against Gary Wright. Prior to that, he had won 5 straight, including submission victories over Elmer Waterhen, Eric Beaulieu and Daniel Grandmaison. Manderson is coming off a loss to Jason Tatlow at UCW 7 in April, and has gone 2-3 in his last 5 fights, albeit, against some notable opposition. Prior to his loss to Tatlow, Manderson defeated Jordan Mein and Sean Huffman, while losing to Mark Bocek and Jason St. Louis. Also slated for the event, Tim Thurston will fight Alex Sung, and John Cole will take on Peter Rogers, in an under-card that features 13 bouts. MFC “High Stakes” this Friday, June 22nd It’s a busy weekend up in Canada for MMA, as this Friday the Maximum Fighting Championships will hold “High Stakes” at the Shaw Conference Centre in Edmonton, Alberta. Headlining the card is a compelling MFC Heavyweight title bout between Scott Junk (5-1) and K-1 Hero’s vet, Jimmy Ambriz (10-5-1). Also slated for the event, one of Eastern Canada’s more heralded 205 lb. fighters, Roger Hollet (5-0), will take on American Top Team fighter Tommy Lawlor (3-0), and MFC Light-heavyweight champ, Victor Valimaki (9-4), will meet Marcus Hicks (4-6) in a non-title affair. Dragons Fall Just Short at IFL Despite a spirited effort, the Toronto Dragons were defeated by the New York Pitbulls this past weekend, June 16th, at the International Fight League’s latest event in Las Vegas, Nevada. In what reportedly was an extremely competitive fight, Brent Beauparlant defeated Fabio Leopoldo at middleweight, when the Pitbull injured his shoulder in the third round and was unable to continue. At lightweight, Wagnney Fabiano submitted Erik Owings in the first round, but that was the last win the Dragons were able to earn over the Renzo Gracie team. Andre Gusmao tapped out Wojtek Kazowski, Delson Heleno submitted Gideon Ray and Marcio Cruz won by disqualification versus Rafael Feijao, due to a second illegal head-kick. The Dragons had to win in order to qualify for the 2007, IFL playoffs. Kassimatis Defeats Jensen At Valley Fight 3 Posener Pankration fighter George Kassimatis, defeated Team Toshido’s Tim Jensen this past weekend, June 15th, in a notable lightweight fight at Valley Fight’s third event, held in Chilliwack, BC. The win for Kassimatis gives the Lower Mainland fighter the Valley Fight Championship Cup, and also gives Jensen his first career loss. With the win, Kassimatis’s combined pro-am record improves to 7-2 while Jensen’s slips to 5-1.
June 19, 2007
ROYCE'S TEST RESULTS CSAC Releases Gracie’s Diagnostic Results By FCF Staff The California State Athletic Commission released a statement yesterday, outlining the diagnostic results of Royce Gracie’s recent positive steroid test, which resulted in Gracie being fined $2500 and suspended for one year by the CSAC last week. According to the CSAC, two samples given by Gracie came back positive for Nandrolone, and “that a normal person could have a level of 2 ng/mL of Nandrolone that the human body could potentially produce and an athlete that has just completed rigorous physical exercise could have a level of 6 ng/mL.” In the case of Gracie’s positive test, however, the statement furthered that “Both samples provided by Mr. Gracie had a level of over 50 ng/mL and we were informed that the level itself was so elevated that it would not register on the laboratory's calibrator.”
June 19, 2007
TUF FINALE UPDATE UFC Confirms June 23rd, “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 5 Finale Card By FCF Staff In the wake of last week’s broadcast of the final taped episodes from “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 5, Spike TV and the UFC have confirmed the card for this Saturday’s Finale event which will take place at the Pearl in Las Vegas, Nevada. Last week’s shows from TUF 5 showcased both Nick Diaz (5-2) and Manny Gamburyan (5-2) winning their fights over Gray Maynard and Joe Lauzon respectively, propelling them into this weekend’s finals. A fight between Season 5 coaches, BJ Penn (10-3-1) and Jens Pulver (21-6-1) will headline the June 23rd card. The rest of the night’s under-card has also been confirmed, Doug Evans (6-0) will make his UFC debut against Roger Huerta (19-1-1), while another new comer to the Zuffa Octagon, Floyd Sword (9-2), will take on Thales Leites (10-1-1). In bouts that features participants from TUF Season 5, Gilbert Melendez (11-5) is set to fight Joe Lauzon (13-3), Andy Wang (8-6) will meet Cole Miller (11-2), Gray Maynard (3-0) will take on Rob Emerson (8-6), Matt Wiman (6-3) is scheduled to fight Brian Geraghty (24-9-2), and Leonard Garcia (13-2) has been brought in to replace the injured Corey Hill, to fight Allan Berube (2-1). The card will be broadcast on Spike Television beginning at 9PM EST.
June 20, 2007
NEW EPISODE OF FCF RADIO: RAMEAU THIERRY SOKOUDJOU AND MIKE WHITEHEAD
June 20, 2007
TAMDAN MCCRORY Revenge of the Nerd: Small-town Cat Wins Big in UFC Debut By Derek Constable
Thirty days ago, McCrory was just another familiar face around the Northeast mixed martial arts feeder shows, well not just any face … he was 8-0, undefeated and the N.A.B.C. Welterweight Champion. Perhaps that’s why McCrory went from an 8/1 underdog to a 1.5/1 favorite on the internet just hours before his UFC debut. McCrory has been training in MMA for just about two years now with Ryan Ciotoli, Erik “Chainsaw” Charles and the CNY Bombsquad. He came to the school with a Greco-Roman wrestling background but was definitely a little wet behind the ears, however after putting in the time with his new team, this lengthy-looking fighter can really pack a punch. Before his fight with Spratt, McCrory told a reporter “I’m doing it for all the nerds who ever had their glasses broken by a bully,” and in the second round he followed through on his promise. After sustaining plenty of punishment in the opening round, including a vicious slam by Spratt during an arm bar attempt, McCrory came out of his corner in Round Two, fighting on fumes and pure instinct. The two fighters began scrapping immediately, then Spratt took McCrory to the mat from the clinch. After working to pass his guard for a few moments, Spratt stood up, turned his back and began to walk away, McCrory leaped to his feet. The two men clinched again and fell to the floor in what looked to be a mutual takedown, Spratt landed on top and McCrory sunk in a triangle choke. McCrory won his debut at 2:04 of Round Two.
Despite the odds on the internet, McCrory is used to entering the cage an underdog. Almost no one thought he’d defeat Mike Littlefield for the N.A.B.C. Welterweight title, plenty thought Anthony D’Angelo would put a halt to his win streak and some internet fans said the skinny McCrory was no match for Nuri Shakir, but they were wrong. Now, with a solid win over Spratt and his UFC debut behind him, are McCrory’s days of being an underdog finally behind him? He doesn’t think so. “I’m always going to be the underdog until I take over the world,” he said. “I don’t fight decisions. My fights are exciting because they never make it past the first or second round and almost always end by TKO,” McCrory said. “I always expect the other guy to not be able to handle what I’m bringing.” But outside the cage McCrory is just a small-town cat like so many of his fans. He attends classes at SUNY Cortland, pays rent on a small place not far from his training facility and still gets I.D.’d at the front door on his nights out. At 20 years old, this Upstate New Yorker has accomplished more than many, but still keeps a cool head, taking each fight one at a time.
June 20, 2007
FRENCH / CLINTON REMATCH KOTC Lightweight Champ French Looking Forward to Rematch with Clinton By Kelsey Mowatt King of the Cage announced recently that the promotion’s upcoming, August 5th, “Collision Course” card, will feature a rematch title fight between KOTC lightweight champ Clayton French (11-2) and Buddy Clinton (9-4). The fight, which will take place at the Soboba Casino in San Jacinto, California, occurs less than 3 months after the two athletes met at KOTC “Damage Control” on May 26th. On that night, French defended his lightweight belt, earning a narrow, Split Decision victory over the challenger Clinton. As a result of the competitive bout, KOTC has set up another meeting between the two and French is looking forward to it. “I have no problems with the rematch,” French tells FCF. “Nothing happened to me in that last fight, no injuries, I was virtually unscathed. For some reason his camp thought he had won the fight, so I’ve been training hard, getting ready for this one.” Often when a fight is decided by a Split Decision, both fighters and their respective camps believe it is they who won the bout, and more often than not, a call for a rematch is made. “I thought like I had won,” says French in discussing what was going through his mind right before the judge’s decision was announced. “I didn’t do my best, there were some things I could have done better, but I felt like I did enough to win the fight.” As far as revealing particulars about what he believes he might have done differently, French remained tight lipped. “I’m not going to tell you technical things,” French tells FCF. “Obviously I want to keep that a surprise, but I can tell you I’m going to push the pace more, break him down physically and mentally. You’re going to see my A performance.” French has won three fights in a row, and hasn’t lost since he was submitted by the highly regarded Shinya Aoki at Pride Bushido 13 last November. French then went on to defeat the former reining KOTC lightweight champ, Mac Danzig, by Majority Decision at the promotion’s “Hard Knocks” event this past January. Danzig had been on an 11 fight winning streak, and had not lost a bout since 2004. In April, French stopped Dom Bjerke in the first round with strikes at Courage Fighting 8, before taking on Clinton in May. Clinton has been fighting professionally since 1999, and is 3-2 in his last five fights. The veteran fighter had challenged for the KOTC 155 lb. title before French was its holder, losing to the former champ Danzig by Unanimous Decision last August. Arguably, Clinton’s most notable victory is his submission win over Charles Bennett at KOTC “Drop Zone” in March of 2006. Before his most recent fight with French, Clinton submitted Corey Garner with a knee-bar at KOTC “Mass Destruction” in January. Other confirmed bouts for the August 5th, KOTC Collision Course event include, Shad Smith taking on Dave Rivas, and Sean Loeffler meeting Mike Guymon.
June 20, 2007
CSAC CLEARS RUA AND BARONI Rua and Baroni Cleared to Fight at this Weekend’s Strikeforce By FCF Staff The California State Athletic Commission announced this afternoon, via a press release, that both Murillo “Ninja” Rua and Phil Baroni have been cleared to compete at this weekend’s, June 22nd, Strikeforce card. In the case of Rua, Elite XC announced last week that the Brazilian fighter had failed his medical, and as a result, would not fight Joey Villasenor as scheduled. A re-assessment of Rua has led to the Pride veteran being re-instated for competition. The announcement also confirms that the Strikeforce main event between Baroni and Frank Shamrock will remain intact for this Friday’s card. The event, which will be held at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, California, will also feature bouts between Cung Le and Tony Fryklund, and Paul Buentello vs. Carter Williams.
June 21, 2007
CFFC PREVIEW
June 21, 2007
ACROSS THE POND: BRITISH MMA NEWS
Presiding over the event was the UFC’s UK Division President Marshall Zelaznik, who told FCF about the UFC’s plans to expand into Europe, “We are always looking for new territories. We’re trying to go to territories that have very healthy TV markets because we need to get exposure. We don’t currently have a deal in Holland, although we know it’s a real hotbed for Mixed Martial Arts. We’re confident we can go anywhere now and put on an event but we want to do them all the right way. I think Germany is probably one that will come up pretty quickly. We’re also looking at a venue for later this year in Europe which I think will blow peoples minds. I can’t talk more about it than that. I believe in the summer of 2008 we’ll have an event in Europe, whether it’s Holland or not I’m sure. I believe Italy or Germany are the most likely targets. We’re talking to a lot of the networks in Italy, we have a couple of strong Italian fighters. The country is beautiful, our ownership is Italian. We know we have fans there because we can see the traffic on our website so it makes sense. Wouldn’t it be good to do an event in the Coliseum?”
Jackson was his usual, “shy”, “retiring” self when he took the microphone. “I’m going to be the champion until I get my ass whupped. Anybody wants to take this belt, come on and whup my ass, because I’m a grown man, my momma don’t whup me no more. I’m going to come here and give y’all the best fight I can, hopefully I’ll be victorious so I can be in one of your pubs with a bottle of beer. I love to come here even when it rains. I live in Southern California, it don’t rain that much so it’s good to get the opposite. Y’all got some beautiful ladies here. People said the women over here weren’t good looking. I went out last night I saw a whole bunch of good looking women. You have some Asian women over here? I like Asian women. I used to fight in Japan, I was like a kid in a candy store. Y’all got Asian women over here, just bring them to the fight, let them see what’s going on. I’m going to bring my shiny belt, I’m going to whup some ass, somebody might get slammed and we’re going to have a good night.”
FCF managed to grab a moment with Cro Cop, who should have his picture next to the word taciturn in the dictionary.
FCF: As the UFC moves into Europe, would you like to fight in Croatia? Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic: I just mentioned this to my manager. We have a nice amphitheatre in Croatia, more than 2,000 years old, it would be nice. Actually it’s a place where boxing shows have been held, but for MMA it would be nice. FCF: As a member of parliament and a fighter, how important is it for you to represent Croatia when you compete? MF: It’s very important for me. I represent Croatia in this sport, I wear the flag on my fighting pants. I’m aware that Croatia is behind me. Unfortunately in my last performance I didn’t represent my country well and I’ve very embarrassed because of that. But that’s the name of the game and that’s why I’m waiting for my next fight. FCF: Is it true that when you started competing in K-1, you had no sparring partners, just a punch bag to work out with? MF: It’s true. It was for the K-1 final I just had a punching bag and my old coach with me and that’s it. FCF: You must have a very strong desire to fight to train without any support network? MF: I did. I was mad about fighting. FCF: Do you still feel the same passion now? MF: Of course. FCF: With Antonio Nogueira joining the UFC, are you looking for a rematch? MF: Of course. He’s very high on my wish list. FCF: Your fighting weight is usually around 225 pounds, have you thought about cutting to the 205 pound Light-Heavyweight division? MF: How? Cut off my arm or leg? There’s no place to lose weight. I’m skinny now. I’d have to cut ten kilos, it’s too much. FCF: Are you happy to see another of your countrymen, Zelg Galesic, doing well in MMA? MF: Yes. Zelg is a very nice guy. We used to train together, do some sparring. He used to help me train. FCF: How do you think your style matches with Randy Couture? MF: I don’t know. I hope there will be a chance for us to meet and then we’ll see.
June 22, 2007
ADVERTISEMENT: FCF DESTROYED SKULL T-SHIRT New!
June 22, 2007
DOERKSEN VS. FILHO Doerksen to Face Filho August 5th By FCF Staff Canadian middleweight Joe Doerksen (39-9) confirmed to FCF today that he is scheduled to fight Paulo Filho (13-0) at the upcoming August 5th, World Extreme Cagefighting card. The fight will mark Filho's fighting debut on American soil, as well as Doerksen's return to competition under the Zuffa umbrella. Since his last fight in the UFC last March where Doerksen was defeated by Nathan Marquardt at UFC 58, the veteran fighter has won 7 straight. Most recently Doerksen defeated BJ Lacy by TKO at Gladiator Fighting Series: Colosseum 5 on May 25th. Doerksen had signed a contract with Pride several months ago when the promotion remained under Dream Stage Entertainment ownership. Filho, the fifth ranked middleweight in the world according to the FCF rankings, has not competed since November of last year, where he submitted Kazuo Misaki by armbar at Pride Bushido 13.
June 22, 2007
ELITEXC STRIKEFORCE WEIGH-INS
The Grill at HP Pavilion - San Jose, CA Photos by Daisy Rosas Opening Bout Sean Bassett (154 lbs) vs. David Smith (154 lbs) Internet Card Sam Spengler (184 lbs) vs. Seth Kleinbeck (184.5 lbs) Chris Cariaso (134 lbs) vs. Anthony Figueroa (132.5 lbs) Rex Richards (305 lbs) vs. Ray Seraille (265.5 lbs) Jason "Live Wire" Von Flue (173 lbs) vs. Luke Stewart (173 lbs) Mike "Quicksand" Pyle (168.5 lbs) vs. Aaron Wetherspoon (168.5 lbs) Transition Bout Nick Theotikos (181 lbs) vs. Nick Covert (175 lbs) PPV Bouts Edson Berto (155 lbs) vs. Victor "Joe Boxer" Valenzuela (155 lbs)
Carter "The Beast" Williams (265.5 lbs) vs. Paul "The Headhunter" Buentello (250.5 lbs) EliteXC World Middleweight Championship Joey "Dream Smasher" Villasenor (184 lbs) vs. Murilo "Ninja" Rua (184 lbs) Swing Bout 1 Josh "The Punk" Thomson (154 lbs) vs. Nicholas "The Ghost" Gonzalez (155 lbs) Swing Bout 2 Duane "Bang" Ludwig (170 lbs) vs. Paul "Semtex" Daley (170 lbs) Cung Le (179 lbs) vs. Anthony "The Freak" Fryklund (177.5 lbs)
Strikeforce Middleweight World Championship Frank "The Legend" Shamrock (184 lbs) vs. Phil "New York BadAss" Baroni (183 lbs)
June 22, 2007
GREG JACKSON
June 23, 2007
MFC RESULTS Maximum Fighting Championship 12: High Stakes Report by FCF Radio Co-Host Brendan Leier
Unsatisfied by the course of events, Ambriz was outraged at the awarding of the belt by the MFC and to his credit, MFC promoter Mark Pavelich agreed to rematch the two fighters in August. I for one will be happy to see this rematch because not only does Ambriz bear a striking resemblance to Elvis (in a good way) he was clearly the victim of an unfortunate set of circumstances. Junk seem pleased with his victory, but is clearly not an Elvis fan, perhaps still unhappy with the abominable movies the King made in his native Hawaii. Look for fireworks from these two in August. In the penultimate main event, UFC veteran and MFC light-heavyweight champion Victor Valimaki was set to fight Calgary’s Marcus Hicks, that is, until Hicks broke his hand in the pre-fight warm-ups. Conspiracy theories abound surrounding the circumstances of the break, but in the end the fight was called off and Valimaki’s only real work of the night was to witness the destructive power of his next opponent Roger Hollett. It is obvious that no one has ever told Roger “The Hulk” Hollett that nicknames are not ostensive definitions as his ten second victory over Edmonton’s Shane Biever was truly Hulk-like in every sense of the word. The two punches thrown by Hollett were truly one too many as the first powerful hook dropped Biever to his knees, mouth gaping and eyes glassed over. The second hook helped Biever down to the canvas although gravity was really doing the job quite well on its own. Although he failed to actually turn green or thrown a tank into the crowd, the Hulk’s performance left one indelible message , that he wants Valimaki’s title and he is more than willing to smash him for it. The fabulous undercard was headlines by Brazilian Top Team’s transplant to Canada Fabio Holanda who showed a new side to his game in a round two TKO victory over Ontario fighter Shaun Krysa. My fight of the night honors go to the split-decision war between Calgary fighter “Cowboy”Graydon Tannas and Pro Camp’s Ryan “The Kid” McGillivary. This back and forth war went everywhere and back again with The Kid’s crisp standup and third round stamina ever so edging Tannas’s slick ground game and unbelievable tenacity. Both fighters deserve kudos in clearly demonstrating why local MMA shows are more than ever don’t-miss events. Results: Brad Zazuak def. Ron McNulty R2 submission (guillotine) Josh Gallant def. Dustin Graber R1 submission (rear choke) Josh Kyrejto def. Dylan Walton R2 TKO Jason Biggeman def. Gerry Johnson R1 submission (Kimura) Jason Zorthian def. Kevin Dolan R1 submission (straight armbar) Ryan Ford def. Aaron Gallant R2 TKO Andrew Buckland def. Sean Wright R2 submission (guillotine) Ryan McGillivray def. Graydon Tannas by split decision Fabio Holanda def. Shaun Krysa R2 TKO Roger Hollett def. Shane Biever R1 KO Scott Junk def. Jimmy Ambriz R2 TKO (corner stoppage)
June 23, 2007
CFFC WEIGH-INS Mercer-Kimbo is just the Tip of the Iceberg for CFFC V Report by Derek Constable - Photos by Zack Lynch The Cage Fury Fighting Championships makes its pay-per-view debut on Saturday night as two worlds collide in one cage. CFFC V will be the site of the much anticipated fight between former boxing great "Merciless" Ray Mercer and street fighter Kimbo Slice and with this epic battle only hours away, the weigh-in for fighters at Atlantic City’s 40/40 Club was a media frenzy. "All these guys on the undercard, they’re the real MMA guys," Mercer told reporters shortly after weighing in. The former world heavyweight champion weighed in at a 241.9 and showed absolutely no fear as Kimbo stepped off the scale at 249.4 and initiated a stare down. "He’s was trying to intimidate me but I’m not the guy," Mercer said. "I’m a former world champion and an Olympic gold medalist for that matter ... I’m the real tough guy."
Aquino has been training relentlessly for this fight. Undefeated at 4-0, he thinks about Rivera’s belt constantly and said while Rivera is lying around watching movies with his girlfriend, he’s awake at night literally obsessed with beating his face in. Aquino showed up a few minutes late to the 40/40 Club and weighed in at 186.4 for his middleweight championship fight with Rivera who weighed in at an even 186. But with the raise of a towel and a drop of shorts he too came in at an even 186 while the lovely CFFC Ring Girls kept a watchful eye. Brian DeMuro was awarded the Shelby "Girl" Walker: Heart of a Lion award at the conclusion of the weigh-ins. The award is given following each CFFC show to a single fighter who exemplifies a great deal of heart during their match. DeMuro has been on a tear since his loss at CFFC II to Doug "Flash" Gordon. "After my loss to Doug, I got a little pissed off and quit my job and now I’m training full-time," he said. "Now I train 10-to-12 hours a day, I’m in the jiu-jitsu school twice a day and everyday I’m training with a pro boxer." DeMuro is fighting former CFFC champion Al Buck on Saturday, Buck is also a former Heart-of-a-Lion award winner. "I’m going to go up against another former champ, last show I beat a former welterweight champ, now I’m going up against a former lightweight champ, I’m going to enjoy this," DeMuro said. "It’s going to be a real chance to showcase my skills for the world." Another fighter who almost missed a golden opportunity to fight infront of over 85 media reporters/photogrpahers is Kevin "K-Rod" Roddy, another member of Team Rhino. Roddy will be fighting Deividous Taurosevicius for the N.A.B.C. Lightweight title on the same card as his teammate Alexis Aquino. Roddy is stepping in for Josh Neer who got hurt in a prior fight to close to the CFFC V event. "Roddy is a real exciting fighter. He loves to kick, loves to strike, he just flat-out loves to fight," said Rob Guarino, a trainer for Team Rhino. While everyone is anxiously awaiting Mercer and Kimbo’s epic battle there are many more exciting fights to look out for. CFFC Lightweight Champion Jim Miller will defend his title against Anthony Morrisson, Josh Rhodes will defend his CFFC Light-Heavyweight belt for the first time since October 2006 and Nick "The Mad Monkey" Serra is looking to steal the gold from around "Boston Bad-boy" Mike Varner’s waist. Saturday night, Boardwalk Hall is the place to be. Undercard bouts • Welterweight – Al Buck (165.7) vs. Brian DeMuro (163.6) • Middleweight – Lyman Good (174.2) vs. Doug Gordon (173.3) • Middleweight – Nick Cottone (183.9) vs. John Howard (184.2) • Welterweight – Josh Lydell (169.8) vs. Gregor Gracie (170.1) Main card • CFFC Lightweight Championship – Jim Miller (155.4) vs. Anthony Morrison (154.9) • CFFC Welterweight Championship – Mike Varner (170.8) vs. Nick Serra (165.8) • N.A.B.C. Middleweight Championship – Dante Rivera (186) vs. Alexis Aquino (186) • N.A.B.C. Lightweight Championship – DeividasTaurosevicius (154.4) vs. Kevin Roddy (153.3) • CFFC Light-Heavyweight Championship – Josh Rhodes (205.9) vs. Noah Inhofer (204.5) Two worlds, One Cage: • Heavyweight – Ray Mercer (241.9) vs. Kimbo Slice (249.4)
June 23, 2007
ELITEXC STRIKEFORCE RESULTS All Part of the Plan: Shamrock Dominates Baroni To Take Elite XC Middleweight Title By Steven Marrocco As he hobbled to the press conference table, Frank Shamrock felt a mixture of pain and pride. Only moments before, he had dispatched resident bad boy Phil Baroni with poise and grace; his control of the fight embodied his new nickname, “Legend”. In a way, he’d already won in the first round. The old school vs. new school expectations of the fight fell quickly by the wayside, as the self-ascribed old man took Baroni apart from the opening bell. As they traded in the opening minute, Shamrock landed the first of many overhand rights to Baroni’s mug. Baroni smiled, something he would do throughout their scrap, but the next one set the stage for the end of the fight. That same overhand right soon dropped Baroni to the canvas. Shamrock nearly finished it there, but Baroni’s fought his way back up. He would prove his chin was second to none. “I’ve hit a lot of people in the chin, and Phil Baroni has an incredible chin,” Shamrock said. “I was feeling his hand on my knuckles, that’s how hard I was hitting him.” Still, it was Baroni who took the fight to the mat, attempting to regain his wits after the assault. Unfortunately, he couldn’t stay there, because Shamrock never let him settle into a rhythm of ground and pound. So the slugfest continued on the feet, where Shamrock’s pinpoint accuracy snapped Baroni’s head back on a regular schedule. The Shamrock who’d led Phil (and the rest of the MMA community) down the road with his proclamations of artistry had gotten the last word. “Pick a fight with me and I’m going to kick your ass,” Shamrock. “Phil’s a power puncher but he’s not a finesse puncher. So in the game of boxing he’s a slow, methodical banger. It was easy to see it. His jab is achingly slow. The goal was to first jab quick, extend him out, then come over the top.” Phil staged a slight comeback in the second, slipping left under Shamrock’s crosses in the opening seconds, firing back a combo of his own that connected. The two teed off on each other, going toe to toe, and both stood their ground. The 10,372 souls who packed the arena were on their feet. After a brief respite, Shamrock scored a 3-punch combo that forced Phil to sprawl forward in a desperate attempt to take the fight down. Shamrock sprawled forward, holding Baroni at bay, but it didn’t take long for him to wheel around to Baroni’s back. In the end, Baroni never tapped to the rear naked choke. He went to sleep at 4:00 of the 2nd, giving Shamrock the Elite XC title. The pain Shamrock felt in the press conference was due to the MCL and ACL he tore in the week leading up to the fight. The injury came courtesy of Team Quest’s Sokodjou, who had executed a judo sweep on Shamrock and obliterated the knee. It was a serious price to pay, but Shamrock refused to back out. “At the end of the first round my legs were shot, my lungs were burning and I was about done,” Shamrock said of the fight’s urgency. “I could barely do any vascular training because of my injury. I knew I had to put him away. But I wasn’t going to back out. They could have wheeled me out in a wheelchair and I would have fought him.” In undercard action, Tennesse native Mike Pyle squared off against the tough Aaron Wetherspoon. Pyle had expected a three round war, and minute-by-minute, he got what he wanted. Wetherspoon came at Pyle time and time again, swinging Rocky-esque hooks at his head and flanks, but the former Anaconda covered up and clinched early. Wetherspoon did his best to stave off the takedown from the clinch, but Pyle asserted himself easily, depositing Wetherspoon where the cage met the mat. Pyle hammered away from there while locking Wetherspoon’s right arm behind him. It was a position they would come to know well. After burning some adrenaline, the two became more tactical in their engagement. Wetherspoon continued to wail away with his hooks, but Pyle began to inch ahead in the scorecards, kicking Wetherspoon’s legs at will. By mid-round, the kicks had taken their toll as Wetherspoon hobbled forward. Wetherspoon’s moment in the sun came when he finally landed one of his big overhand rights. Pyle was wobbled, but managed to ride the round out. “I’ve watched him before and I knew he was a really strong kid,” Pyle said afterwards. “He shook me with [the] right hand.” His nose bleeding profusely, Wetherspoon kept coming in the third, but was continually frustrated by Mike’s defense and stealthy punching. After clinching against the cage, Pyle returned the fight to the mat. Again, he settled at Wetherspoon’s side, landing close quarters rights. His other arm trapped again, Wethersppon could only stop half of the elbows and punches that began to rain down on him as he lay on his side against the cage. Pyle’s control under fire gave him the go-ahead from the judges, winning a Unanimous Decision. Elite XC fighter Edson Berto stepped in to fight Victor “Joe Boxer” Valenzuela for Charles “Crazy Horse” Bennett, and opened many eyes in the audience. Berto only needed a couple of high-octane kicks before shooting in on Valenzuela, who was caught off guard. Berto faked a punch from the top, then affixed himself to Valenzuela’s legs for a slick inside heel hook finish at :47 of the first. AKA standout Paul Buentello got K-1 vet Carter Williams’ message loud and clear in the first round. Despite the hype promising a stand-up slugfest, Williams wasted no time in getting double underhooks and setting up a well executed outside trip. Buentello ate a couple of rights as he worked back to his feet, but it would be the last time he would be in trouble. The answer to Williams’ message came in the opening moments of the second round. Buentello teed off on Williams’ lowered head as he shot in with a vicious series of right uppercuts that stopped Carter in his tracks. Buentello jumped on the opportunity, but ref Mazzagatti saw that all was said and done at :10 of the 2nd. “Dream Smasher” Joey Villasenor seemed to fade early in his championship bout with import Murilo “Ninja” Rua. It was a complete reversal from the opening minutes, where Villasenor tagged the charging Rua with a hard left hook that dropped Rua. The Chute Boxe fighter recovered nicely and took the fight to the mat, but Villasenor reversed Rua and took top position. A couple of nicely placed rights put Villasenor ahead, but soon, Rua had re-asserted control on the ground, working from side mount as the cobwebs cleared from his head. After scrambling to his feet, it was Villasenor who looked weathered, as he caught a hook from Rua and was subsequently taken back down to half guard. Rua missed a kimura, but transitioned easily to mount, where Joey scrambled up again. “He got a little weaker as the fight went on, but I got rocked as well,” Rua said later. Rua opened the second with a flying knee, but ran headlong into Villasenor’s counter right hand. The two began trading wild punches. Somebody was going to sleep. It turned out to be Villasenor, who met Rua’s right hand as he threw his own. Rua’s simply had more gas on it. “Ninja” followed Villasenor to the canvas, but it was over already, bring a stop to the bout at 1:05 of the second. “I’m very happy, it’s my first fight in America, and I trained hard in Brazil,” Rua told FCF. “With everything that happened this week, that’s what defines a champion, is someone that can put themselves in a bad situation and come out and win.” AKA product Josh Thomson made quick work of Nicholas Gonzalez, who was overmatched on the ground from the beginning. Tomson opened with a left high kick, but quickly returned to his bread and butter, shooting for a double leg and quickly getting Gonzalez’s back. He nearly had it sunk two separate times, but Gonzalez’s lowered chin got in the way. After Thomson scrambled to keep the position, Gonzalez got caught as he attempted to turn away, succumbing to the rear naked choke at 1:42 of the first round. In the co-main event of the evening, Tony Fryklund played the part of a punching bag for Cung Le’s high flash version of MMA. Fryklund took and enormous amount of punishment, and showed he wasn’t afraid of Le, but his bravado eventually caught up to him. Reeling off spinning back kick after spinning back kick, Le wore Fryklund down in the second. By then, Fryklund’s mid-section had become a tenderized piece of meat from Le’s body kicks. A lone flurry from Frykland opened Le’s eyes, but didn’t deter him for long. It wasn’t competitive, but it sure was exciting. “The lord had a joystick and he was playing the game because everything I did was connecting…I was in the zone and having fun,” Le later told reporters. “Even when I got clipped…it didn’t hurt.” Finally, Le put Fryklund on a roller coaster to the mat as he scored a kick to the liver and right hook that brought an immediate halt to the fight at :25 of the third. Seth Kleinbeck def. Sam Spengler at 2:55 of Rd. 2 by TKO (Strikes) Chris Cariaso def. Anthony Figueroa at 5:00 of Rd. 2 by Unanimous Decision. Rex Richards def. Ray Seraille at :34 of Rd. 1 by TKO (Strikes) Luke Stewart def. Jason Von Flue at 2:17 of Rd. 3 by TKO (Strikes) Mike Pyle def. Aaron Wetherspoon at 5:00 of Rd. 3 by Unanimous Decision. Nik Theotikos def. Nikk Covert at 1:13 of Rd. 1 by KO. Edson Berto def. Victor Valenzuela at :47 of Rd. 1 by Submission (Inside Heel Hook) Paul Buentello def. Carter Williams at :10 of Rd. 2 by TKO (Strikes) Murilo Rua def. Joey Villasenor at 1:05 of Rd. 2 by TKO. Josh Thomson def. Nicholas Gonzalez at 1:42 of Rd. 1 by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) Cung Le def. Tony Frykland at :25 of Rd. 2 by TKO (Strikes) Frank Shamrock def. Phil Baroni at 4:00 of Rd. 2 by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) Paul Daley def. Duane Ludwig at :42 of Rd. 2 by TKO (Strikes)
June 24, 2007
CFFC RESULTS
June 24, 2007
TUF 5 FINALE RESULTS Penn Returns in Impressive Fashion, Diaz Lightweight Ultimate Fighter By Steven Marrocco Las Vegas- Saturday, June 23rd: The bad blood that simmered between BJ Penn and Jens Pulver came to an abrupt halt after their second meeting since 2002. A refreshed Pulver told cameras that this fight had lit the spark under him to return to old form, while Penn spoke of a need to end the career he gave Pulver. Pulver didn’t have much time to establish an offense, as BJ slammed him down early and controlled from the top. The Miletich product did well to create distance from Penn and his Gumby-like limbs, but it wasn’t long before Penn had mounted Pulver. Penn transitioned from Pulver’s back, nearly finishing an armbar, but his legs weren’t locked in well enough, so Pulver powered through. That wasn’t all for “The Prodigy” though. As Pulver rolled up to Penn’s guard, Penn slapped on a triangle and fired elbows from the bottom. It was more bad news for Pulver in the second. After an early inside trip, Penn slowly crawled up to mount again. This time, he waited for the choke, using his left leg to trap Jens’ arm as he adjusted his arms. “Little Evil” couldn’t defend with one arm, and quickly found himself beyond the point of no return, tapping at 3:12 of the 2nd round. Penn’s words were few afterwards. “If you want to know how I’m feeling, log on to bjpenn.com in 5 minutes,” the lightweight said as he tore out of the venue at the Palms. An unfortunate injury brought a halt to Manvel Gamburyan’s dominance of Nate Diaz, as a reoccurring shoulder problem reared its ugly head again. Gamburyan had dislocated his shoulder against Joe Lauzon during the Ultimate Fighter, the latest of many instances of the condition. Though he fared well in the first, controlling top position against TUF housemate Nate Diaz, an early shot in the second put him out. As Diaz sprawled back, the shoulder popped out as Gamburyan grabbed for Diaz’s legs. As expected, the 5” height and 6” reach difference didn’t matter much, as Gamburyan’s shots were lightning fast. Diaz stayed busy from the bottom, working for submissions, but Gamburyan powered through them all. It was an inconclusive ending to what surely could have been a great fight. “I feel like I should have got off to a better start and he did awesome,” Diaz said afterwards. “I’m glad this went down for me today.” Joe Lauzon’s wrestling and jiu-jitsu skills completely negated Brandon Melendez’s striking ability in their short fight. Lauzon’s control of the ground saw him transition from mount to Melendez’s back several times as Melendez tried to KO him on his feet. It wasn’t to be for Melendez, who overcommitted to a punch in the second and was soon fending off another rear naked choke attempt. As he twisted to guard, Lauzon cinched a triangle, getting the submission win at 2:09 of the second. In a bizarre turn of events, Randy Couture disciple Gray Maynard knocked himself out cold as he severely wounded opponent Robert Emerson with a double-leg slam. Gray’s fearsome ground-and-pound re-aggravated an injury to Emerson’s rib cartilage, causing him to wince in pain after a bomb slammed into the offended area at the first frame’s end. After executing once again on his plan to ground Emerson out, Emerson’s lock of Maynard’s head caused him to pitch forward a little too far. The angle put the top of Maynard’s head on a collision course with the mat. After Emerson tapped to the searing pain of the rib injury, Maynard rolled onto Emerson’s legs. A ringside medic flopped him backwards onto his back, as his eyes rolled around vacantly in his head. The no-contest call brought the first ever argument between ring announcer and fighter, as commentator Joe Rogan went back and forth with Maynard on the status of his consciousness post fight. “My arm was trapped under his back!” Maynard protested. “You were out cold!” Rogan shot back. “You were completely unconscious.” “I remember sitting in the corner, he tapped, I thought it was over, I rolled over, of course I’m a little tired,” Maynard stuttered. “You’re out,” Rogan said as they watched the monitor play it again and again. In other action, Roger Huerta survived a hairy first round to take vengeance on newcomer Doug Evans, pounding out a stoppage from Evans back in the second. Thales Leites continued on his winning ways as he submitted newcomer Floyd Sword with an impressive arm triangle choke in the first. Cole Miller flattened Andy Wang with a left high kick and followed it with punches to end the fight in the first. Leonard Garcia notched his first UFC win after his war with Roger Huerta, getting a rear naked choke in the first. Matt Wiman settled his issues with Brian Geraghty in the first round of their scrap, pounding out a TKO stoppage win in the first. Ultimate Fighter 5 Finale Full Results: • BJ Penn def. Jens Pulver at 3:12 of R2 by submission (rear naked choke) • Nathan Diaz def. Manvel Gamburyan at 0:20 of R2 by submission (shoulder injury) • Cole Miller def. Andy Wang at 1:10 of R1 by TKO (strikes) • Joe Lauzon def. Brandon Melendez at 2:09 of R2 by submission (triangle choke) • Gray Maynard vs. Robert Emerson ruled a no-contest. • Roger Huerta def. Douglas Evans at 3:30 of R2 by TKO (strikes) • Thales Lietes def. Floyd Sword at 3:50 of R1 by submission (arm triangle choke) • Leonard Garcia def. Alan Berubie at 4:22 of R1 by submission (rear naked choke) • Matt Wiman def. Brian Geraghty at 2:09 of R1 by TKO (strikes)
June 25, 2007
FROM THE EVENT'S PROMOTER: GLOBAL FC PRESS RELEASE
June 25, 2007
CHECK OUT WHAT'S IN THE CURRENT ISSUE OF FCF
June 26, 2007
UFC 74 UPDATE
Gonzaga earned his shot at the current champ on April 21st, when the Brazilian fighter, more known for his formidable ground skills, knocked out Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic with a devastating head kick late in the first round. The win extended Gonzaga’s record to 8-1, and was his fourth win in a row competing in the UFC Octagon. Couture only furthered his Hall of Fame status on March 3rd at UFC 68, when he dominated Tim Sylvia for five rounds on route to his historical third heavyweight championship victory. The UFC also officially confirmed a welterweight fight which will have enormous implications on the division’s future title shot contenders, as former champion Georges St-Pierre (12-2) will take on Josh Koscheck (9-1). Since losing to Drew Fickett at Ultimate Fight Night 2 in October of 2005, the former “Ultimate Fighter” competitor has won five straight. GSP will have to get past Koscheck if he hopes to reclaim the welterweight title anytime soon. Before losing the belt to Matt Serra at UFC 69 in April, St.Pierre had also won five fights in a row, including his championship victory over Matt Hughes last November.
June 26, 2007
THE NORTHERN TOUCH Macdonald Discusses Recent Win Over Singer Jason MacDonald’s recent TKO stoppage of Rory Singer at UFC 72 on June 16th, gave the Red Deer fighter his third UFC win, righting the fighter’s path to his goal of competing against the promotion’s best 185 lb. fighters. MacDonald told FCF Radio in his pre-fight interview on May 27th, that he hoped to stand and exchange with Singer, however come fight night, the bout was largely fought from the clinch or on the mat. “I had a bit of a slow start,” MacDonald tells FCF in discussing his latest win. “He said he was going to come out and beat me standing, so I was hoping for a bit of a stand up fight, but as the round started he was not engaging, so I took the fight to him and went into the clinch and took him down. I did not want to take any chances after a loss and I knew I was better than him on the ground and in the clinch.” Singer was working on a triangle-choke when the opening round ended, leading to post-fight speculation as to whether or not MacDonald was ready to tap-out to the submission. “The choke at the end of the round was not even close,” MacDonald says in respect to the triangle-choke attempt from Singer. “We were right in front of Josh (Russell), MacDonald’s Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu coach) and he told me there was only 15 seconds left, so I thought I would just rest for the rest of the round. I felt I had done enough to win the round and I felt pretty confident I could finish him in the second.” Despite the “slow-start”, MacDonald appeared to be re-invigorated as the second round started, stopping the former “Ultimate Fighter” competitor at 3:18. “Coming out for the second I felt like I had found my range and I could tell he was fading a little,” MacDonald tells FCF. “Once again I was able to take him down pretty easy. The whole first round Josh was telling me to pass his guard but he was tying me up pretty well. Once I got him down in the second I was able to pass right away and when I did I knew I was going to finish the fight. Mark (Pavelich), MacDonald’s manager) told me all training camp that once I got position to be ruthless and that was all I was thinking when I got mount. I had lots of time and I was going to punch and elbow until the ref stopped it. There was going to be no submission hold for Rory on that night.” MacDonald has been busy since his return from Northern Ireland, fielding numerous media inquiries, as well as attending the Maximum Fighting Championship 12 event this past weekend in Edmonton. MFC Announces Valimaki to Face Hollet at MFC 13 The MFC announced in the post-fight aftermath of its 12th event this past weekend that two of Canada’s more highly regarded light-heavyweight fighters, MFC 205 lb. champ Victor Valimaki and Roger Hollett, will fight on August 24th. Hollett knocked out Shane Biever this weekend in Edmonton to extend his unblemished record to 6-0, while Valimaki will be looking to rebound from his last fight, a TKO loss to Alessio Sakara at UFC 70 in April. For a full report on MFC 12, check out Brendan Leier’s summary below. Day Defeats Goulet at UCW “Natural Invasion” After losing to Ultimate Fighter finalist Patrick Cote just three weeks ago at TKO 29, Jason Day got right back on track this past weekend at Ultimate Cage Wars “Natural Invasion”, by defeating another UFC veteran, Jonathan Goulet. The fight, which took place in Winnipeg, Manitoba on June 23rd, was just Day’s second competing at 185 lbs., and ended in the second round when the Canadian Martial Arts Centre fighter submitted Goulet with an arm-bar. The win raises Day’s combined pro-am record to 15-7, while Goulet’s drops to 18-8. The Quebec fighter had won two fights in a row before taking on Day this weekend, and also competed at TKO 29, where he knocked out Travis Axworthy. Goulet is scheduled to fight again on July 14th against Cory MacDonald at King of the Cage Canada’s next event, which will take place in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Day’s CMAC teammates Dan Chambers and Neil Berry also were victorious at this weekend’s UCW, defeating Jacob MacDonald and Steve Taylor respectively. Jason Tatlow won his third fight in a row, submitting Rocky Johnson in the first round with a rear-naked-choke. TKO Announces Competitors for “Apocalypse” The TKO website has listed several competitors for the promotion’s upcoming 30th event. No other specifics in regards to the card have yet been listed, however, Stephan Dube, Steve Bosse, Sean Pierson, Martin Grandmont, and Stephane Vigneault, have all been posted as fighters on the card.
June 26, 2007
TUF 5 FINALE DRAWS STRONG RATINGS The Ultimate Fighter 5 Finale Ratings Overview By Kelsey Mowatt In a press release sent out today by Spike TV, the network announced that this past Saturday’s broadcast of the “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 5 Finale, outdrew any other program during the show’s timeslot in the 18-49 year-old male demographic. (9PM-12AM EST) The TUF 5 Finale drew an average of 2.6 million viewers according to the statement, peaking with 3.4 million viewers tuning in for the main event bout between Jens Pulver and BJ Penn. These numbers mean that the TUF 5 Finale outdrew in viewers the New York Yankees and San Francisco Giants game earlier that day, as well as HBO’s broadcast of Ricky Hatton vs. Jose Luis Castillo, which was shown head to head that evening. According to Spike’s release, the TUF Finale had a total of 800,000 more viewers, and had 153% more men aged 18-34 watching, than those who tuned in for the Hatton, Castillo fight. The Spike statement furthered that the June 23rd HBO broadcast was the most watched boxing match so far this year, in the 18-34 year old demographic on that network. These numbers seem to indicate that although “The Ultimate Fighter” has fluctuated ratings wise over the program’s last couple of seasons, it remains a strong draw in the 18-49 year-old male demographic, one that is highly sought out by advertising firms. More specifically, outside the regular season’s taped episodes, live UFC events on Spike TV continue to do very well.
June 27, 2007
STRIKEFORCE-ELITE XC NUMBERS CSAC Releases Strikeforce-Elite XC Attendance and Purse Numbers By FCF Staff The California State Athletic Commission released today the final attendance and fighters' purses for this past weekend’s, June 22nd, Strikeforce, Elite XC card, which took place at the HP Pavilion in San Jose. According to the CSAC release, Friday’s event, which was headlined by Frank Shamrock fighting Phil Baroni, drew a total official attendance of 9,672, with 8,584 of those tickets being sold and the remainder being complimentary. The capacity crowd that night was listed at 12,632 which means, that a total of 2,960 were neither sold nor given away. The total gross receipts for the event’s gate were $721,210. According to the CSAC statement, Frank Shamrock was paid $200,000 for his participation in the main event fight while Phil Baroni collected $100,000. For his efforts in securing the Elite XC Middleweight crown, Murilo “Nina” Rua collected $50,000, $25,00 of which was his winning bonus. His opponent, Joey Villasenor took home $25,000. Other notable pay-outs include; $50,000 to Paul Buentello, ($25,000 for fighting and another $25,000 for winning), his opponent Carter Williams earned $13,340, Mike Pyle made $20,000 ($10,000 for showing and an additional $10,000) for defeating Aaron Wetherspoon, who was paid $4,000, and rising Strikeforce star Cung Le made $45,000 for fighting Tony Fryklund, who took home $8,000. These numbers are solely the figures that were disclosed by the promoters to the CSAC, all official disclosed salaries are a matter of public record in the State of California.
June 27, 2007
NEW EPISODE OF FCF RADIO: MIKE NICKELS, MIKE PYLE AND FABIO HOLANDA
June 27, 2007
CRO COP VS KONGO CONFIRMED UFC 75: Crop Cop vs. Kongo Confirmed By FCF Staff Ultimate Fighting Championship President Dana White, announced yesterday in an appearance on ESPN’s “Hot List”, that Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic will take on Cheick Kongo at UFC 75. The card, which will take place on September 8th at the 02 Arena in London, England, will be headlined by the title unification bout between UFC Lightweight Champion Quinton Jackson and Pride Middleweight Champion (205 lbs.) Dan Henderson. Cro Cop (22-5) is coming off a stunning knock-out loss to Gabriel Gonzaga at UFC 70 in April, only his 4th loss in 3 years. Prior to UFC 70, the Croatian had won 5 straight, including victories over Josh Barnett, Wanderlei Silva, and Eddie Sanchez in his February, UFC debut. Kongo (9-3-1), who is also well known for his striking abilities, is coming off a Majority Decision victory over Assuerio Silva at UFC 70. Prior to that, he dropped a Split Decision loss to Carmelo Marrero at UFC 64 last October. The UFC has also confirmed that Season 3 “Ultimate Fighter” participants, Michael Bisping (13-0) and Matt Hamill (5-0, combined pro-am), will meet in the Octagon at UFC 75. The two fighters, who had a bit of a running feud on TUF 3, have continued there success in the UFC. Bisping has won all three of his fights in the Octagon, with wins over Josh Haynes, Eric Schafer and most recently, Elvis Sinosic by TKO at UFC 70. Hamill has also won all of his UFC fights to preserve his undefeated record, defeating Jesse Forbes, Seth Petruzelli, and Rex Holman by TKO, at UFC 68 in March.
June 28, 2007
CSAC SUSPENDS AND FINES CARTER WILLIAMS Carter Williams Fails CSAC Drug Test, Suspended and Fined By FCF Staff The California State Athletic Commission announced today that Carter Williams, who lost by knock-out to Paul Buentello at this past weekend’s Strikeforce, Elite XC event in San Jose, has tested positive for cocaine. As a result, the K-1 veteran has been suspended until December 19th, 2007, and fined $1000. The CSAC also announced that David Smith, Sean Bassett, Seth Kleinbeck, Sam Spengler, Anthony Figueroa, Chris Cariaso, Luke Stewart, Jason Von Flue, Aaron Wetherspoon, and Mike Pyle all tested negative for anabolic agents and drug use. Test results in respect to the competitors from the pay-per-view portion of the June 22nd card, including Frank Shamrock and Phil Baroni, are still pending.
June 29, 2007
ADVERTISEMENT: NEW EXTREME FIGHT SHORTS New Extreme Fight Shorts
June 29, 2007
LEVENS SIGNS WITH PFC Palace Fighting Championship signs Levens, Von Flue Off July 19th Card By FCF Staff The Palace Fighting Championship announced this week that UFC and International Fight League veteran Justin Levens, has singed with the Californian promotion. Levens will look to get back on the winning track with the PFC, as the fighter has lost three fights in a row competing in the IFL. The former World Extreme Cagefighting contender went 7-0 to begin his MMA career, but since his first career loss to Scott Smith in January of last year, he has gone 2-6. Levens will make his PFC debut in October. No opponent has yet been signed. Jason Von Flue will not be able to fight in the main event of the upcoming PFC 3 event, which will be held at the Tachi Palace, in Lemoore, California, on July 19th. According to the PFC press release, Von Flue has been medically suspended by the California State Athletic Commission following his TKO loss to Luke Stewart at the June 22nd, Strikeforce event. His scheduled opponent, Chris Botelho, will now face Josh McCartney. The two fought before at PFC 1 in January, but the bout was declared a No Contest due to an unintentional groin strike from McCartney. Also slated for the July 19th card, Dave Espinosa will fight Shawn Klarzcyk for the vacant PFC bantamweight belt ,while Shawn Bias will take on Aaron Maldonado, for the promotion’s vacant featherweight title.
June 29, 2007
PUDER'S BODOG FIGHT DEBUT AIRS NEXT TUESDAY Puder to Meet Alden in Week 2 of Bodog Fight’s “Paradise Lost” By FCF Staff Former World Wrestling Entertainment star, Daniel Puder, will take on Mike Alden in week 2 of Bodog Fight’s Season 4, “Paradise Lost” television series. After nearly a three year hiatus from MMA competition, Puder (4-0) returned to action last year and won 3 fights in a row fighting for the Strikeforce organization. Most recently, last December, Puder submitted Mike Cook with a rear-naked-choke for his 4th MMA win. Prior to that, at Strikeforce 2 last June, Puder submitted Tom Tuggle with an arm-bar in the first round. His opponent will be 6’0, 241 lb. Mike Alden, who is listed on the Bodog Fight site with a record of 6-0. The FCF database has Alden’s last fight occurring in October, 2006, when he defeated Jeremy Norton by Unanimous Decision. Next Tuesday’s episode will also feature a lightweight match-up between Team Revolution’s Tyler Jackson (7-4-1) and Illinois’s Mike Watson (9-5-1). Jackson is coming off a Unanimous Decision loss to Martin Grandmont at TKO 29, prior to that, he drew with Dmitry Samoilov at Bodog Fight’s Season 2, St.Petersburg event. Watson has won 2 fights in a row, defeating Chris Higi and Dan Spychalski, after losing to Sherron Leggett at Madtown Throwdown 8 last July. Bodog Fight’s Season 4 can be viewed on ION Television and the promotion’s official website.
June 29, 2007
NEW EPISODE OF FCF RADIO: RANDY COUTURE AND ALVIN ROBINSON
June 30, 2007
PULVER'S FUTURE? Pulver’s Next Fight Still Yet Undetermined By Kelsey Mowatt
Thus, Pulver’s statement lead many to assume that he would make his way to the World Extreme Cagefighting promotion, where the Zuffa organization promotes North America’s most notable 145 lb. division. With the likes of Chance Farrar, Jeff Curran, Mark Hominick, Rani Yahya, and rising star, WEC Featherweight Champion, Urijah Faber, Pulver would have plenty of top flight fighters to contend with, if indeed he headed to that promotion. Pulver’s recent fight with Penn was a huge ratings success on Spike TV, combine that with the fact that he just finished coaching TUF Season 5 and the former champ might just be one of the UFC’s more recognizable stars right now. It would seem that both the UFC and the WEC could benefit from Pulver’s presence. “We would really like him to fight at 145,” says Monte Cox, Pulver’s manager, in discussing the fighter’s future plans. “If it’s in the UFC or the WEC he doesn’t care, we’re just not exactly sure what his contract says so we’re taking a closer look at that right now.” It is unlikely that the UFC has any plans to begin promoting a 145 lb. division right now. Faber is a growing star in the WEC, and it appears that Zuffa is intent on building up that promotion’s featherweight division. Pulver’s immediate future may in fact come down to business rather than his preference in respect to his ideal fighting weight. On the heels of such massive exposure, it may be determined that both Pulver and the UFC have more to gain if he continues to compete in the lightweight division for the time being. On the other hand, Pulver’s notoriety, which would only benefit the WEC, coupled with his desire to compete at 145, may just lead him to that promotion by fall. Cox tells FCF that he believes a decision on Pulver’s future will be determined shortly. |
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(June 9th, Asbury Park Convention Hall, Asbury Park, New Jersey) Some things were not meant to be. Extreme Challenge 78 featured a thrilling light-heavyweight championship fisticuff, some blazing bantamweight combat, and even some controversy – but one thing it did not have was the match-up between heavyweight stars Jon Murphy and Carlos Moreno. No, thanks to Murphy injuring his hand in training and Moreno winding up in jail on the wrong end of an assault charge, the bout that was sure to be one for the ages just plain old wasn’t. Still, warriors like Tim Boetsch, Rob Russo, Tinh Tupy and Tom Gallicchio more than made up for it. Highlights of the event included: 
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