Brock Lesnar vs. Shane Carwin
(UFC Heavyweight Championship)
PREDICTION: LESNAR via TKO, R2

Yoshihiro Akiyama vs. Chris Leben
(Middleweight Bout)
PREDICTION: LEBEN via UNANIMOUS DECISION
Leben stepped in on just twelve days notice – and two days after a surprising victory over Aaron Simpson on The Ultimate Fighter Finale – to replace the injured Wanderlei de Silva. Akiyama expressed hesitation towards taking the fight, and for good reason: he’s exactly the sort of unpredictable, swing-for-the-fences fighter that gives him trouble. I’m not sold on Akiyama as a contender stateside, so I’m picking an upset, with the caveat that it’s probably really not all that much of an upset.

Chris Lytle vs. Matt Brown
(Welterweight Bout)
PREDICTION: MATT BROWN via TKO, R1
These two met previously under the UFL banner in 2007. Lytle won that fight with a choke, but three years can be an eternity in MMA. The irony, though, is that Brown is once again coming off a submission loss due to a choke. Thing is, that was against Ricardo Almeida, who is one of the best practitioners of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in MMA. I don’t think he’s going to get caught again here.

Krzysztof Soszynski vs. Stephan Bonnar
(Light Heavyweight Bout)
PREDICTION: SOSZYNSKI via SUBMISSION, R1
These two fought back in February, with K-Sos taking the controversial TKO win after a doctor’s stoppage in the third round resulting from an illegal strike. As wrong as that decision was, Bonnar was en route to a decision loss before it occurred. I don’t see anything changing this time around, which is unfortunate, because another loss will probably spell the end of Bonnar’s fight career. That career has taken some rather unfortunate turns in the last couple years, but he’ll always have his place in history as a participant in the most important fight in MMA history (the first ever final of The Ultimate Fighter against Forrest Griffin).

George Sotiropoulos vs. Kurt Pellegrino
(Lightweight Bout)
PREDICTION: SOTIROPOULOS via UNANIMOUS DECISION
Sotiropoulos has been impressive in his last few fights, and looked like a world beater against former Lightweight contender Joe “Daddy” Stevenson. A win over Pellegrino – the most underrated fighter in the UFC at 155 – will definitely put him on the fast track for title contention. I fully expect this to win Fight of the Night honors.

PRELIMINARY BOUTS
Brendan Schaub vs. Chris Tuchscherer* (Heavyweight Bout) PREDICTION: Schaub via TKO R1
Seth Petruzelli vs. Ricardo Romero* (Heavyweight Bout) PREDICTION: Petruzelli via TKO R1
Kendall Grove vs. Goran Reljic (Middleweight Bout) PREDICTION: Reljic via Submission R2
Gerald Harris vs. Dave Branch (Middleweight Bout) PREDICTION: Harris via TKO R1
Daniel Roberts vs. Forrest Petz (Welterweight Bout) PREDICTION: Petz via Unanimous Decision
Jon Madsen vs. Karlos Vemola (Heavyweight Bout) PREDICTION: Madsen via Unanimous Decision
*will be broadcast live on Spike TV at 9:00pm

Kirkham (left) was nicknamed "Tree" due to his unusually tall and gaunt frame. (Picture: MySpace.com)

Michael Kirkman, a 6’9″ native of Gaston, S.C. who fought at lightweight, has passed away following injuries sustained from a mixed Professional and Amateur fight card in Aiken, South Carolina at the age of 30.

The event was overseen and sanctioned by the South Carolina State Athletic Commission.

Kirkham is believed to have died as a result of a brain hemorrhage he received during his fight on Saturday night, which he lost due to referee stoppage after he was mounted and hit with strikes.

After not regaining consciousness in the cage, Kirkham was taken to a local hospital where he was put on life support. He succumbed to his injuries on Monday morning, with doctors at the hospital confirming that he had not regained consciousness while under their care.

Kirkham entered the fight with an amateur record of 3 wins and 3 losses. He had recently posted on his MySpace page that he had sufficient medical clearance and was willing to take a fight anywhere. According to that same profile, good friend and training partner Brett Lee had recently passed away on March 10th. Lee’s cause of death was undisclosed.

Kirkham’s death is only the second to occur as the result of a sanctioned MMA bout. In 2007, Sammy Vasquez passed away after being on life support for 42 days after a professional MMA bout.

An autopsy will be performed on Tuesday.

Kirkham ran his own training academy and did not appear to have, or disclose, any formal training in combat sports.

Kirkham leaves behind a wife and children. My deepest condolences to them and all Kirkham’s loved ones during what must be an unspeakably tragic time for them.

Ray Hui of MMAFighting.com has more information, including a video of one of Kirkham’s amateur bouts.

YouTube – Fedor vs Fabricio (complete fight)

The biggest upset of the year. Scratch that, the decade.

Some time ago, I controversially stated that I considered Fedor Emelianenko no better than the #5 Heavyweight in the World. I maintain that rankings are an arbitrary practice that should only be treated as a discussion-starter rather than an argument-ender. To that end, part of my motivation was to see what kind of reaction I would get to putting Fedor in the middle of the pack. My reasoning, though, was sincere: he hadn’t looked good against a low-ranked Heavyweight and, in recent years, had only managed to beat wash-outs.

That said, Fabricio Werdum submitting Fedor with a triangle choke is one of the biggest upsets this sport will ever see, even to someone who didn’t buy that “The Last Emperor” was the same fighter he was five years ago.

If you’ll pardon the cliche, it marks the definitive end of an era for the Heavyweight Division.

Now we find ourselves in a new age, where more and more men throughout the world are finding out about the sport of Mixed Martial Arts and plying their trade. Athletes from all walks of life are seeing the financial opportunities, bringing with them varying styles and a level of depth never before seen in this weight class.

Until tonight, most heavyweight fighters were either terrorized by the Russian bulldozer or haunted by him. Those who could not fight him for contractual reasons – such as UFC Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar – could only be considered at best the #1 Heavyweight not named Fedor. Tonight, that wraith was exorcised by Werdum’s triangle choke.

What the future holds for Fedor and Strikeforce is anyone’s guess. It was more than just a legitimate loss on his record. Strikeforce lost its superfight between Fedor and Overeem. M-1 has lost its meal ticket and sole bargaining tool. Brett Rogers has lost the claim to fame to be the only man in recent years to put Fedor on the proverbial ropes. The only real winner seems to be Dana White and the UFC, who can now smugly display their “I told you so” smiles while MMA pundits and Fedor enthusiasts implode.

More results and thoughts after the jump.

Josh Thomson def. Pat Healy via Submission in R3 (Rear Naked Choke)
It was actually a great showing by Healy, who displayed prowess in both offense and defense on the ground. He even won the second round (handily in my opinion) and showed that he deserved to be in the conversation when it came to future Lightweight contenders. Unfortunately, Thomson was a perpetual submission machine tonight and it was inevitable that Healy was going to get caught.

Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos def. Jan Finney via TKO in R2 (Stoppage Due to Strikes)
Finney took one of the worst beatings I’ve ever seen in any combat sport. This was akin to watching a fight in Japan where the crowd favorite started losing handily, while the referee allowed the beating to continue. The problem is, this isn’t Japan, and we treat this as a sport where the safety of fighters needs to be our primary concern, not as entertainment based on a vague notion of what the Japanese call”fighter’s spirit.” Referee Kim Winslow has shown competence in all other fights I’ve seen her officiate, but letting brutal beatings like this go on for as long as it did puts fighters at risk and sets a very dangerous precedent.

Frank Shamrock Retires
An entire segment was devoted to Frank Shamrock’s major announcement, which was his permanent retirement from the sport.  What should have been a classy and touching moment for the devoted crowd in San Jose quickly devolved into a farce. The package highlighting Shamrock’s career and hailing him as a pioneer for the sport that helped mold it and bring it to the mainstream was narrated by Frank himself. Then, he walked all the way to the entrance from his position at cageside, then walked back to the cage as the biggest pyrotechnics display of the evening went off behind him. It was an epic display of Frank’s eccentricity and hubris. In short, it was perfect. Thanks for the memories, Frank.

Cung Le def. Scott Smith via TKO in R2 (Stoppage due to strikes)
Nobody was as disappointed as I was when I saw a spin kick from Le hit Smith flush in the side. Smith immediately lost his air and fell on his knees to the canvas. Although I saw a great amount of pain on his face, I also saw a man who was searching deep within himself to find something to bring him back from the precipice of defeat, just as he’d done so many times before. Sadly, it was not to be tonight.

PRELIM RESULTS
Courtesy MMAFighting.com:
Bobby Stack def. Derrick Burnsed via split decision (29-28, 29-28, 27-30)
Yancy Medeiros def. Gareth Joseph via KO (punch) at 1:19 of round 2.
Bret Bergmark def. Vagner Rocha via unanimous decision.
Chris Cope def. Ron Keslar via TKO (punches) at 4:32 of round two.

Fedor: for serious.

This Saturday is the Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Werdum event from the HP Pavilion Arena in San Jose headlined – of course – by consensus greatest heavyweight of all time Fedor Emelianenko taking on former UFC heavyweight contender Fabricio Werdum.

It’s an odd match and an obvious placeholder until they can put the fight together between Fedor and the promotion’s Heavyweight champion (the belt Fedor carries is the WAMMA Heavyweight Title – don’t ask), Alistair Overeem.

The card also features a rematch between Cung Le and Scott Smith, and Women’s 145 pound Champion Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos being fed a fighter with a record of 8-7 that usually fights at 135.

Needless to say, it’s a strange card. Event info, courtesy Strikeforce.

Predictions after the jump.

JOSH THOMSON vs. PAT HEALY (Lightweight Bout)
WINNER: JOSH THOMSON. Coming off a unanimous decision loss to Gilbert Melendez in December, Thomson shouldn’t run into problems with Pat Healy, a scrapper who is a few rungs below Thomson in the Lightweight food chain.

CRIS “CYBORG” SANTOS vs. JAN FINNEY (Womens 145 Pound Title)
WINNER: CYBORG. The common phrase being tossed about is that Jan has a “puncher’s chance,” which is a nice way of saying she has about as good a chance as anybody else who goes in against the seemingly unstoppable Cyborg. Why Strikeforce would book such a ridiculously lopsided fight on the heels of Cyborg beating two legitimate challengers and potential stars is anyone’s guess.

CUNG LE vs. SCOTT SMITH (Middleweight Bout)
WINNER: SMITH. This is a rematch of their fight last December, in which Smith came from behind in the third after losing handily to Le and delivered a devastating knockout. If you’ve read this blog or listened to the latest MANville podcast, you know my feelings on Le. The long and the short of it is that Le lost that fight not just on a lucky punch, but also because he’s a one-dimensional fighter who doesn’t have the ability to put away someone like Smith, who himself is simply a knockout artist with no ground game to speak of. There was no controversy, and I think it’s an irresponsible precedent to start granting Cung Le immediately rematches simply because he lost.

FEDOR EMELIANENKO vs. FABRICIO WERDUM (Heavyweight Bout)
WINNER: FEDOR. Realistically, Fabricio doesn’t have anything in his game that Fedor hasn’t already proven he can handle. Fedor’s only trouble comes against bigger, stronger, more unpredictable fighters like Brett Rogers, Kevin Randleman, and Kazuyuki Fujita. Werdum doesn’t even come close to fitting that bill. He’s skilled on the ground, but that’s not where Fedor runs into problems.

Official: James Toney makes his UFC debut against Randy "The Natural" Couture on August 28th.

The UFC has released the official lineup (thus far) for UFC 118 on August 28th, and it includes the controversial bout between Heavyweight Boxing champion James Toney and former UFC Heavyweight and Light Heavyweight champion Randy Couture.

The fight will appear on the undercard of the event, which is still scheduled to to be headlined by the rematch between BJ Penn and UFC Lightweight Champion Frankie Edgar after Edgar’s close decision win that won him the title back in April.

On paper, this is arguably the strongest card the UFC has put on in all of 2010.

The full card, thus far:

Main Televised Bouts
FRANKIE EDGAR (c) vs. B.J. PENN for the UFC Lightweight Title
RANDY COUTURE vs. JAMES TONEY
NATE MARQUARDT vs. ROUSIMAR PALHARES
KENNY FLORIAN vs. GRAY MAYNARD

Preliminary Fights
JORGE RIVERA vs. ALESSIO SAKARA
TERRY ETIM vs. JOE LAUZON
NIK LENTZ vs. ANDRE WINNER
NICK OSIPCZAK vs. GREG SOTO
AMILCAR ALVES vs. MIKE PIERCE

Rumored but not yet official – PHIL BARONI vs. JOHN SALTER (would be a prelim);  MARCUS DAVIS vs. NATE DIAZ

The Davis/Diaz fight is held up pending the Tennessee Athletic Commission’s decision regarding Nate Diaz’s involvement in the post-fight brawl at the last CBS Strikeforce card. He could be suspended for upwards of nine months, which would make him ineligible to fight.

The winner of Florian/Maynard will face the winner of Penn/Edgar at the end of the year for the title.

It’s thought that Vitor Belfort will be healed in time to get a Middleweight Title Shot after Sonnen/Anderson. But in case he isn’t (a strong possibility with a fighter like Belfort that has a lot of mileage on him), a win by Nate Marquardt would put him in line for a title shot.

The big news and draw going into the card, of course, will be Toney/Couture. It will almost assuredly be portrayed and marketed as a boxing vs. MMA bout, even though it’s a sticky situation for a sport that wants to be taken seriously to be doing a gimmick match. Especially tricky will be the delicate balancing act between Dana White’s frequent accusations of StrikeForce doing freakshow fights when he has a boxer north of 40 whose place in boxing history is questionable competing against one of the most heralded and experienced MMA fighters in history. It has the potential to make a lot of money for the UFC, but it also has the potential to backfire and, depending on how the fight goes, be portrayed in the mainstream media as a cartoonish spectacle that has no place on a legitimate fight card.

UFC 118 will emanate from the TD Garden in Boston, MA and will include another two-day UFC Fan Expo.

Here’s a cracking example… just can’t help thinking it’d be better with SRAM Red or Di2 though…!

Strikeforce officials are refusing to comment, although they have said definitively that it is not due to injury. We can most likely also scratch off any  legal reasons or pending Commission inquiries, as either would have leaked by now.

Bennett is known to have tried out for Season 12 of “The Ultimate Fighter,” which is set to begin production within the next week.

Coincidence?

Although it may be irresponsible to speculate, there are a lot of coincidences and circumstances that point to this being a possibility.

The Betting Line for June 26th (odds courtesy Bloody Elbow):

• Fedor Emelianenko -1000 vs. Fabricio Werdum +500
• Cristiane Santos -2500 vs. Jan Finney +1000
• Cung Le -400 vs. Scott Smith +275
• Kj Noons -500 vs. Charles Bennett +360

Boy, where do I start?

Everyone knows my doubts concerning Fedor Emelianenko. While I doubt Febricio Werdum has the tools to overcome a much more dangerous and smarter fighter in Fedor, those are hard odds to pass up.

Cristiane Santos at -2,500 is insane. The Jan Finney match is perplexing considering her less than stellar fight record, but with Women’s MMA being in its infancy, there’s no such thing as a surefire favorite, not even Cyborg.

I’m not even sure why Cung Le is the favorite in his rematch with Scott Smith. Did Scott Smith seemingly come out of nowhere with his knockout of Le a few months back? Absolutely. However, it was no fluke. Smith has made a career out of being able to take a beating and patiently waiting for his spot to open up. Meanwhile, Le has made a career of looking great against scrubs but not even being able to put away (or even willing to face) middle of the road talent. Of all the underdogs listed here, I’d recommend Smith strongest. Previously: “Strikefarce: Cung Le & the Issue of Legitimacy“

KJ Noons and Charles Bennett is a toss-up. Noons is yet another golden boy who’s never delivered on the hype surrounding him, and Bennett is right out of his mind. However, he also has the tools to put Noons away and potentially embarrass him. Again.

One has to wonder what odds-makers were thinking, if anything, when they put together these odds. Are they victims of the undeserved hype behind these fighters – as so many MMA fans seem to be – or are they just ignorant of the sport?

———-

UPDATE: My buddy Sean F., who is educated on such things, informs me that this is basically the Oddsmakers’ attempt to bring in even money on the two participants of Fedor/Werdum and Santos/Finney, in that the ridiculous starting line is the only way to bring money into the underdogs. Theoretically, it’ll even out. If it doesn’t, then ka-CHING! (Thanks for the education, Sean, you sinner.)

Mike Russow shocks Todd Duffee and rest of the world.

• RESULTS:
• (Prelim) Ryan Jensen def. Jesse Forbes via R1 Submission (guillotine)
• (Prelim) Aaron Riley def. Joe Brammer via Unanimous Decision
• (Prelim) Cyrille Diabate def. Luiz Cane via Unanimous Decision
• (SpikeTV lead-in) Efrain Escadero def. Dan Lauzon via Unanimous Decision
• (SpikeTV lead-in) Dong Hyun Kim def. Amir Sadollah via Unanimous Decision
• John Hathaway def. Diego Sanchez via Unanimous Decision
• Antonio Rogerio Nogueira def. Jason Brilz via Unanimous Decision
• Mike Russow def. Todd Duffee via R3 TKO
• Michael Bisping def. Dan Miller via Unanimous Decision
• Rashad Evans def. Quinton “Rampage” Jackson via Unanimous Decision

UFC OFFICIAL BONUSES ($65,000 to each fighter)
Submission of the night: Ryan Jenssen
Knockout of the Night: Mike Russo
Fight of the Night: Brilz vs. Nogueira

Analysis after the jump.

ANALYSIS:

Michael Bisping vs. Dan Miller
MY PICK: Bisping. As much as I don’t want that to be the case. I do think though that Dan Miller has a better chance than people think. Bisping has a wide variety of tools, but he often (and inexplicably) fails to utilize them in fights. Not a smart fighter.

Todd Duffee vs. Mike Russow
MY PICK: Duffee. Everyone needs to calm the Hell down about Todd, since they’re going on a grand total of seven seconds in judging him. But, so long as he can stifle a takedown or two, he should have this.

Antonio Rogerio “Little Nog” Nogueira  vs. Jason Brilz.
MY PICK: Little Nog.  Not enough credit’s given to Nog for taking this fight. He gains nothing from it, and just as easily could have said “no thanks” when Griffin got injured so late. Someone can always get caught, and Nog is no exception (see: Sokoudjou). But Brilz, game as he is, is way out of his league here.

Quinton “Rampage” Jackson vs. Rashad Evans.
MY PICK: Evans.  The current trend after weeks of saying Evans was going to run away with this is to go with Jackson and say that people forget his wrestling and how powerful he is. They also forget that he was walking around four months ago looking like a dead ringer for Brett Rogers, and that’s not a compliment. He’s been off 14 months. To say his head isn’t in the game is an understatement; nobody knows where his head’s at. Meanwhile, Evans has stayed in the game and been improving despite his setback against Machida. I’d have tentatively picked Evans to win this fight a year ago. I still think he’s the hands-down pick now.

From Left to Right - Junior Dos Santos, Lyoto Machida, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Jose Aldo, "King" Mo Lawal, and Anderson Silva.

What’s scarier is that this assortment of individuals are all in the same camp. Well, except for Lawal, who just happened to pop into the shot because he could. I guess that sort of makes him the Batman of the team, in that he’s too cool to be in their camp but shows up when s*** needs to get done.

You can see more great photos from Esther Lin on her official website.

MMA Rankings are a fun speculation. And that’s about all that can be said for them, despite what amount of work and thought one can say they put into them. Even the rankings released by Sherdog and the “consensus” (of whom?) rankings from SB Nation & USA Today have some placements that could be considered ill-advised.

As such, I don’t take any of them seriously. I think they’re a fun conversation starter, but beyond that, don’t think they should be taken seriously. The very nature of MMA is that it’s a multi-dimensional combat sport with so many variables that it’s hard, if not impossible, to measure how certain fighters would fair against others near or at the same level of the pecking order for their division.

For instance, everyone says Nick Diaz is an amazing Welterweight, but against wrestlers in the UFC he fell apart and he hasn’t faced anybody with a comparable ground game since. And yes, Shinya Aoki has some amazing submissions, but can you really rank him above guys who would fight him with a significant size, reach, and grappling advantage?

I tried to keep all of this in mind when doing my rankings. Other disclaimers after the jump…

RANKINGS MEAN AS OF WRITING, NOT ALL TIME. This is why I have Fedor ranked as a #5 Heavyweight. Realistically, the last guy he beat of any merit was Tim Sylvia, and Tim is…well, Tim. God knows where his head was at when they fought. Also,I honestly don’t think that Tim Sylvia would be able to put away the current incarnations of Lesnar, Carwin, or Velasquez. He beat the best of the best of the early ’00s, but that does not speak anything to what he might be able to do to the Top 10 now. Fedor could prove me wrong in his next couple performances, but I’m skeptical.

IT’S JUST FOR FUN. This is not me saying it’s definitive, or that you should take it seriously. I think it’d be fun to discuss it in the comments, but you really shouldn’t take it personally, unless maybe if you’re a fighter. In which case, awesome, you read my blog!

NO BANTAMWEIGHT OR FEATHERWEIGHT RANKINGS, LET ALONE FLYWEIGHT. I love watching these weight classes and am a big proponent of them getting more play on television. That being said, I don’t have nearly the familiarity I would like to have with these fighters, and as such don’t even want to attempt a ranking. I have enough trouble coming up with five contenders at Bantamweight and Featherweight, let alone knowing where to place them.

NO POUND FOR POUND LIST. Hey, who’s a better pound for pound fighter, BJ Penn or Fedor Emelianenko? I don’t know. Who smells prettier, a unicorn or a fairy? How the Hell can you ever know that? It’s ridiculous. Even basing it on what one perceives to be superior technique is misleading, since smaller guys are always going toappear to have better technique because their bodies allow them to move quicker and with more fluidity. I’ll be the first to admit I could be way off the mark with some of my rankings, but I can at least justify them reasonably.

MOST JAPANESE FIGHTERS ARE HIDEOUSLY OVERRATED. That goes for all fighters in Japan and all weight classes. The reason they don’t fare well here? Simple: no wrestling, the training hasn’t evolved with the sport in the last decade, and they don’t cut weight. That last one is the biggie, and why I won’t put Marius Zaromskis anywhere near the Welterweight Top Ten. That guy should be cutting to fight at 155 instead of 170, and the fight with Nick Diaz showed why: he’s not going to reach anyone on his feet and anyone with a ground game is going to overpower him.

1. Although I’d turn the corner on my stance due to his last two performances, my suspicions have been confirmed that BJ Penn isn’t the same unstoppable force of nature that guys like Georges St. Pierre, Anderson Silva, and perhaps Brock Lesnar are in their respective weight classes.
2. What a great moment – the scrappy, hard-working underdog went in against insurmountable odds and proved that he not only belonged in there, but he was perhaps the better fighter after all.
3. Oh boy. Here come the Math pundits.

Penn vs. Edgar at UFC 112. Photo from The LA Times.

Some took a hard stance against one score for the fight of 50-45, which I entirely understand since the first two rounds were most likely Penn’s with the second clearly going in his favor. Of course Dana White, the promoter with no filter, took to Twitter himself to complain of the score. But in the same Tweet, he also hit upon why BJ Penn lost: he fought Frankie Edgar’s fight, and not BJ Penn’s.

Much is being said about the statistics coming from the fight. Mike Fagan over at Bloody Elbow posted the Fight Metric data that, according to their assessment, gave BJ Penn the fight by a score of 49-47. Compustrike also released its assessment, which showed Edgar winning the exchanges standing and therefore the fight.

People have put forth that Fight Metrics have a much more diligent staff that provides a more accurate assessment of fights. That’s nice, but in the fight game, it doesn’t matter. I don’t mean just because judges don’t have access to that information or as clear a viewpoint as folks like us do during or after the fact through a clear High Def camera view. It doesn’t matter because these criteria are not how a fight is, or should be, judged.

As controversial as his views can be, we should go back to what Dana White tweeted about the fight because it’s telling of how that fight was scored and why. At the beginning of every UFC telecast, they give a brief summary of the rules and the judging criteria. Judging for Mixed Martial Arts as established by the Unified Rules established by the New Jersey State Athletic Commission are primarily based around four areas: clean strikes, effective grappling, octagon control, and effective aggressiveness. Organizations like Fight Metrics and Compustrike are nice for hard numbers, but those only account for clean strikes, and although they do count takedowns, one can’t make a decision on effective grappling based on pure numbers alone no matter how many variables you include in the formula.

As for octagon control and effective aggressiveness, forget about it. That’s not to say that these are abstract constructs. Far from it, since they can be measured through observation. It also needs to be noted that striking can’t really be measured solely on contact. If we allow that to happen, we’ll see an influx of fighters who throw nothing but jabs and get decision wins through boring, technical standup that wouldn’t even bruise the cheek of your great-grandmother.

Mathematics may be the universal language, but it can’t be used to solve all the world’s problems and definitively answer all queries. There are problems with judging in MMA to be certain, but in the conversation on how to rectify them we have to be conscious of the fact that Mixed Martial Arts is an objective sport can’t – and shouldn’t ever – become a numbers game.

I haven’t had a chance to rewatch the fight, but while watching the live feed I had it scored 48-47 in favor of Frankie Edgar. Penn may have landed more clean shots in a few rounds, but those were counter-punches that barely grazed Edgar and didn’t do nearly as much damage. Counter-punching isn’t aggression. Additionally, Edgar not only showed greater movement but also dictated the pace and direction of the fight both figuratively and literally. There wasn’t a moment where BJ Penn seemed like he was in complete control of the situation for any significant amount of time. And that, my friends, is what makes a fight.

Debate is a healthy part of MMA fandom. But let’s keep it that way and not rely on data that, while perhaps accurate, doesn’t provide the scope and range necessary to properly educate ourselves and others on the finer nuances of the sport.

Note – for those viewing through RSS readers, these are the rankings from March that I’ve retroactively archived. Click the following link to view Current Rankings as of June 29th, 2010.

LIGHTWEIGHT (146  lbs. – 155 lbs.)

1. Frankie Edgar (12-1 / UFC Lightweight Champion)
   

   On the rise: WEC Lightweight Champion Benson Henderson

2. B.J. Penn (15-6-1 / UFC)
3. Gilbert Melendez (18-2 / Strikeforce Lightweight Champion)
4. Gray Maynard (9-0, 1 NC / UFC)
5. Kenny Florian (13-4 / UFC)
6. Benson Henderson (12-1 / Lightweight Champion)
7. Eddie Alvarez (20-2 / Bellator Lightweight Champion)
8. Tyson Griffin (14-2 / UFC)
9. Sean Sherk (33-4-1 / UFC)
10. George Sotiropolous (14-2 / UFC)

I always find it odd when I see people rank a guy as number one in the world when he just lost a championship. Rankings are always presented by websites, journalists, and pundits as an “at the moment” concept, and yet there’s still this idea that you need to take an entire career into context. The simple fact of the matter is that BJ PENN lost that fight to FRANKIE EDGAR. You can say that it wasn’t the same Penn that fought that night, but that comes with the concession (spoken or unspoken) that he just might not be the same Penn anymore. Bodies get tired, games get exhausted. It happens. They’ll have their rematch, and after that we’ll know who’s number one at that time. Until then, it’s Edgar. BENSON HENDERSON gets a higher ranking on my list than I think a lot of other people would expect, but in my mind he’s ready. He’s one of those rare fighters that seems to adapt to whomever he’s fighting. Meaning he can beat anyone on a given night, and he doesn’t have any glaring weaknesses eg. against a wrestler, striker, etcetera. Keep an eye on him when he gets called up to the UFC.

========================

WELTERWEIGHT (156 lbs. – 170 lbs.)

1. 

   Josh Koscheck is the best Welterweight in the UFC not named GSP. But can he provide a challenge, or will we see a repeat of their initial meeting?

   Georges St. Pierre (20-2 / UFC Welterweight Champion)

2. Jake Shields (25-4-1 / Strikeforce Middleweight Champion)
3. Josh Koscheck (19-4 / UFC)
4. Jon Fitch (22-3, 1NC / UFC)
5. Nick Diaz (21-7, 1 ND / Strikeforce Welterweight Champion)
6. Thiago Alves (16-6 / UFC)
7. Paulo Thiago (13-1 / UFC)
8. Paul Daley (23-9-2 / UFC)
9. Martin Kampmann (16-3 / UFC)
10. Dan Hardy (14-4 / UFC)

That’s no typo at #2 – Strikeforce Middleweight Champion JAKE SHIELDS is indeed the only guy that could give GEORGES ST. PIERRE a real challenge. Shields is, really, fighting up in weight at 185, which makes what he did to Dan Henderson all the more impressive. That being said, if he were to give GSP any trouble on the ground, it’d go back to the feet and Shields would lose. JOSH KOSCHECK is the best Welterweight in the UFC not named St. Pierre. And what’s the difference between NICK DIAZ and the #1 spot? The answer: wrestling, wrestling, wrestling. Though he’s been heralded as the second coming, he still hasn’t addressed what ultimately was his undoing in the UFC…no, not the bad behavior (despite what Dana White says) but his glaring weakness against superior wrestlers. Don’t think for a second he’s gone untested in that department because of a lack of wrestlers willing to fight him. Not that he’s ducking them, it’s just that any wrestler worth his weight at 170 is already under contract with the UFC.

========================

MIDDLEWEIGHT (171 lbs. – 185 lbs.)

1. 

   Chael Sonnen talks a good game, but thus far has backed it up. Might we finally see a challenge for Anderson Silva?

   Anderson Silva (26-4 / UFC Middleweight Champion)

2. Chael Sonnen (24-10-1 / UFC)
3. Vitor Belfort (19-8 / UFC)
4. Nate Marquardt (29-9-2 / UFC)
5. Jake Shields (25-4-1 / Strikeforce Middleweight Champion)
6. Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza (12-2-0 / Strikeforce)
7. Demian Maia (12-2 / UFC)
8. Yushin Okami (24-5 / UFC)
9. Yoshihiro Akiyama (13-1, 2 NC / UFC)
10. Alan Belcher (16-6 / UFC)

CHAEL SONNEN gets ranked #2 by pure will alone, as his confidence is at a scary level. The mental game is an oft unspoken aspect of MMA, and Sonnen isn’t just all talk: he truly believes he can beat ANDERSON SILVA. And he’s probably one of the more underrated fighters in the game. Perhaps surprising I’d say that seeing as how he’s getting a title shot against Silva, but that’s the Middleweight division for you. JAKE SHIELDS would hold his own at Middleweight in the UFC…to a point. As much trouble as he’d give most guys at 185, I don’t think he’d be able to overcome the size disadvantage he’d encounter against guys like NATE MARQUARDT and especially VITOR BELFORT (the “next-next” in line for a title shot after Chael). Keep an eye on YUSHIN OKAMI now that he’s finally training Stateside (meaning with fighters who actually know how to fight). It wasn’t just a freak occurrence, he really did improve that drastically just by taking a plane to train in stand-up. ALAN BELCHER belongs in the Top 10…that’s about it. His inference that he’s being kept out of the top of the order by UFC matchmaker Joe Silva is ridiculous. Top fighters need to be able to string together three consecutive wins in the UFC, which thus far he has been unable to do against middling (and worse) competition.

========================

LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT (186 lbs. – 205 lbs.)

1. 

   From the brink of retirement to #1 in the world: UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Mauricio "Shogun" Rua

   Mauricio “Shogun” Rua (19-4 / UFC Light Heavyweight Champion)

2. Lyoto Machida (16-1 / UFC)
3. Rashad Evans (14-1-1 / UFC)
4. Quinton “Rampage” Jackson (30-7 / UFC)
5. Jon Jones (10-1-0 / UFC)
6. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (18-3 / UFC)
7. “King” Mo Lawal (7-0 / Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion)
8. Thiago Silva (14-2 / UFC)
9. Randy Couture (18-10 / UFC)
10. Forrest Griffin (17-6 / UFC)

Tons of activity in this weight class in the last two months. MAURICIO RUA put any and all doubts to rest. I went into that fight saying I was rooting for him but expectingLYOTO MACHIDA to win, and even I was shocked at how easily he put away The Dragon. The winner of RASHAD EVANS and QUINTON JACKSON is next in line for a title shot, and I fully expect Evans to win and would be surprised to see Jackson fight again. His heart’s clearly not into the game, which is a damn shame. JON JONES is a dangerous man at 205 pounds and is just waiting for the right test to put him in line for a title shot (Jones/Machida in September – you read it here first). MO LAWAL proved he was for real, and also proved a nagging suspicion held by many that Mousasi (like most international fighters) was an overrated can-eater. Hey, even I bought the hype. It wasn’t a perfect performance from Lawal, but he’s smart as all get out (seriously) improving at breakneck speed. Expect him to be ranked #1 in the world in the next two to three years. FORREST GRIFFIN needs a big win in the next six months to stay in the conversation, and honestly, I have my doubts that’s going to happen. I’d love for him to prove me wrong, but there’s a fine line between self-deprecation and low self-esteem, and Griffin has smashed past it and his body’s not doing him any favors.

========================

HEAVYWEIGHT (206 lbs. – 265 lbs.)

1. 

   Shane Carwin provides a big test later this Summer for UFC Heavyweight champ Lesnar.

   Brock Lesnar (4-1 / UFC Heavyweight Champion)

2. Shane Carwin (12-0 / UFC Interim Heavyweight Champion)
3. Cain Velasquez (8-0 / UFC)
4. Alistair Overeem (33-11, 1 NC / Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion)
5. Fedor Emelianenko (31-1, 1 NC / WAMMA Heavyweight Champion)
6. Frank Mir (13-5/ UFC)
7. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (32-6-1 / UFC)
8. Junior Dos Santos (11-1 / UFC)
9. Roy Nelson (15-4 / UFC)
10. Antonio Silva (14-2 / Strikeforce)

Here’s where I’m going to catch Hell. If BROCK LESNAR had any doubts he was or would be back at one hundred percent, he wouldn’t fight. He’s that kind of guy, and he’s not hurting for money. Him and SHANE CARWIN will be an interesting fight, though I still think Brock comes out of it still the champion. ALISTAIR OVEREEM looked goddamn scary against Brett Rogers, but I can’t make heads or tails of Rogers, other than my suspicion he’s the Keith Jardine of the Heavyweight Division: a scary swinger on some nights and then looking on other nights that he doesn’t belong anywhere near his opponent. Other than that, impressive as he looked, Overeem hasn’t faced anyone of real consequence in the last few years. And now the elephant in the room. As much as I hate being the guy that has to agree with Dana White (which I do more often than you’d think), what have you done for us lately, FEDOR EMELIANENKO? We can talk about who he beat and it’s a who’s who of contenders who aren’t what they once were, and the vast majority of whom aren’t even in the sport anymore. He’ll go down as the greatest heavyweight of all time. There’s more evidence in his most recent performance against Rogers that he’s not the world-beater he once was. If you can look me in the eye and tell me you think he could get in there with Lesnar and win, then you’re a more faithful Fedor fanatic (you like that?) than I’ll ever be. I also think you’re deluded, but everyone’s got an opinion.

Hello as well to those of you that are finding me for the first time. This is a truly exciting venture for me, and I’m glad that you’ve decided to check in, even if just to take a brief glance.

So why does this blog exist?

Well, it’s certainly not for lack of MMA websites. There are a lot of fantastic sites for news and coverage online; some of them are linked under “MMA Resources” to your right. So it’s not as if I launched this thinking that I would fill any void in coverage or attention. Because, let’s face it, the sport has become a lot bigger than all of us whiners and complainers on the internet.

I created this blog for two reasons:

1. To spare my friends all the MMA talk on my blog and Twitter page. I honestly don’t believe Mixed Martial Arts to be anything resembling a niche interest. However, for whatever reason – whether that be the company I keep or the interests I pursue – the vast majority of my friends couldn’t care less that WEC Bantamweight title-holder Dominic Cruz’s footwork infuses both respect and frustration in me. So I figured, why not provide people who might be interested in that sort of thing an outlet that isn’t drowned out by my other interests and vice-versa?

2. I love MMA. Really, it’s that simple. I love this sport more than I’ve ever loved any other sport, including football, baseball, basketball, etcetera.

This blog is going to be purely for editorial purposes. I will not deign to feign any inside knowledge or the ability to provide in-depth coverage. I’ll leave that to Cage Potato, Cage Writer, MMA Fanhouse, Bloody Elbow, and all the other great sites out there. While I may mention on this blog when big news items break, I will simply link to and cede to their superior coverage. All I can do is give you my take on things.

Again, thanks for joining me on what I’m sure will be an exciting venture into the world of MMA.

- Kevin Marshall

GS: Yes, it does get better than that, we’ll just see what the future holds! It was a great experience against a very experienced opponent, who’s well respected in the division and i’m just glad I got to showcase what caliber i’m aat. It also moves me on further up the Lightweight Division and on to greater prospects.

English: Joe Stevenson, an American mixed martial artist. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

DA: Here in the UK we’ve seen MMA really take off, and with record breaking sales in Australia for this event what do you think this will do for MMA in Australia?

GS: It’ll definitely follow the same course. Australia and the U.K are very similar, also in the patterns and styles of the fighters. The Ultimate Fighter Tv shows, the massive media campaigns – it’s all just gonna contribute to the growth of the sport.

DA: So Michael Bisping was fighting on the card and he’s kind of our flagship fighter at the moment and it seems like for Australis that mantle is yours?

GS: Look, it was one fight and I don;t want to speak too soon but I would have to say I was definiately a fan favourite because the crowd was very vocal when I fought and I don’t think anybody received the reception I did. It came as a bit of a surprise that they were applauding as much as they were – I loved every minute of it and I appreciated it. I think more fighters will come out of Australia so anything’s possible; who knows what the future holds?

DA: As you said earlier Joe Silva matched you up with a pretty big name in Joe Stevenson so they obviously thought very highly of you before the fight; have they given you any indication now as to where you stand or what’s next for you?

GS: No, the only thing that I know is what Dana White said at the Press Conference after the fight; he was pleased with the performance, he thought it was a great fight – he gave it Fight Of The Night,so that’s the only indicator i’ve got as to where I am in the division. Obviously on beating Joe Stevenson there are plenty of names out there you can take your pick from, but I really don;t know what’s next. I’m hoping to fight as soon as possible, anywhere in June or July, that’s what’ll be next for me. No opponents have been named yet though.

DA: So as I said, this has led to you being positioned near the top of the division, with both Nate Diaz and Diego Sanchez moving up I guess that gives you a clearer run to the top?

GS: That’s possible. As long as I remain consistent, continue to win and do well, I don’t see why that wouldn’t happen.

DA: There were a lot of people who had you picked as a dark horse for this fight, were you surprised at how much you dominated the fight?

GS: Yes and no. Look, I know what my capabilities are and I kew I could beat him. I don’t want to sound conceited but I was confident in what I was capable of and like you said I was seen as a dark horse. I think I was overlooked and underestimated by a lot of people and that gave me a lot of motivation to train hard and fight to my ability. But at the same time, I was surprised in the first round at how much I dominated him as well so I guess it’s a yes and no kind of answer.

DA: In Stevenson’s last night he was up against Spencer Fisher, I’m sure you watched that fight, the plan was to cause Fisher problems with his standup which he didn’t. With yourself, and your amateur boxing backround I assume that’s an area you targeted?

GS: My gameplan was to fight wherever the fight went or wherever I wanted to take it. I didn’t have a strategy to keep it standing, fight on the ground, the way I train is I prepare for everything.

DA: With the time difference between the U.S and Australia did it take you a while to get up to speed?

GS: Well when I turned up for the press conference it burnt me out; I flew in, doing meetings and so on – it was ridiculous. So yeah that went on over the course of the next day so I didn’t really have time to recover so after a few days of that I felt really burnt out. So that was a good gauge and helped me prepare for when I returned for the fight. I prepared well, I rested the day that I travelled and when I got to the Hotel I just rested the whole day and the next day I felt great. I didn’t have any problems in terms of recovering, I just got up and trained and didn’t feel any of the effects of jet lag – I did everything right.

DA: So I guess you have some sympathy with Ben Rothwell then I guess, who had to pull out with travel sickness?

GS: Yeah, I don’t know what happened with Ben Rothwell I only heard about it. I heard he was sick but I didn’t know what exactly it was.

DA: Were you able to catch any of the other fights that night? Or were you caught up the elation of your own moment?

GS: A bit of both. I caught all the fights before my fight back in the training room and I wasn;t paying too much attention to those as I was warming up and getting ready. Then after my fight I was trying to watch them but there was a lot of media back there so I couldn’t give it a hundred percent of my focus. I was pretty much in and out of paying attention to the screens. Since then i’ve caught up and seen all the fights so…

DA: Many saw that event as a kind of changing of the guard, with Velasquez beating Nogueira, yourself winning, Bader beating Jardine; i’m sure you see those fighters as still relevant but do you see a new breed of fighter coming through now with the increased popularity of the sport?

GS: I don’t think it’s a new breed of fighter, I just think that there is a lot of talent around and it just proves that you don;t need to have a big name to be successful in this sport or in any sport. I just think hard work pays off and anyone can get in there and give anyone a run for their money. Just because, like myself, I was the underdog in this fight I was a dark horse; I think people gave Stevenson too much credit, he had a bit too much confidence. If people favoured Stevenson a lot it was because of a popularity contest. They based their decision on his popularity because he had more UFC fights than me and basically more UFC fights mean more press as it’s a marketing machine. Just because they’re a marketing machine doesn’t mean that fighters outside the UFC aren’t dangerous. I know a lot of fighters ouside the UFC that are dangerous, i’ve come across them in the gym in training and so on, and that’s basically how people make their decisions – based on what they see on TV.

DA: So what have you been doing since the Australia event? Has it been lots of PR? I assume you’re back training?

GS: Yeah it has been a lot of PR, and i’ve had a bit of a break, spend some time with my family, I’m back in the States now and I’m back in training.

DA: BJ Penn has Frankie Edgar up next in a title fight, how do you see that fight going, any chance of an upset?

GS: Y’now I think an upset is very possible. Frankie Edgar has the speed, he has the agility, the athleticism to give BJ Penn a lot of problems. BJ Penn is fundamentally strong both on the ground, using his wrestling and his boxing, and he has the experience to handle Frankie Edgar.

DA: James Toney has just signed up for a fight in the UFC, how do you think he will fare in the sport?

GS: It really depends on his ground game and his wrestling. Y’now without those aspects and elements I really can’t tell you. If we’re basing it just on his boxing, he won’t do well at all. It’s Mixed Martial Arts, you need to handle yourself on the ground with your wrestling, and I don’t know if he’s prepared for those areas; but if he has he could be very dangerous y’now – boxing is very important. But then every aspect of martial arts is important.

DA: We’ve also got a new series of the Ultimate Fighter on it’s way, will you be watching as a former cast member? Apparenlty you’ve fough one of the fighters on this series?

GS: I try and watch it when I can, I’m usually training – I train a lot every day – so sometimes I don’t get home in time. If I haven;t got any work to take care of i’ll definitely watch it.

DA: Should we expect big things from Kyle Noke?

GS: I think Noke will to well, he’s got a big heart and I don’t see why he wouldn’t do well.

DA: Well thanks for the interview, anyone you’d like to thank.

GS: Sure i’d like to thank Fisticuffs Boxing Gym in Washington Vancouver, Eddie Bravo at Tenth Planet Jiu Jitsu, also Team Quest for the sparring,

Getting amped for the new season of The Ultimate Fighter, hopefully its ALOT better than the previous lackluster season.

Shoutout to Scotty.

“We had a good rest, we went home…Read more…

Seems like that the odds are against Antonio DeMarco.  Let’s see what happens when these two warriors collide.

A source tipped off the Fistic Mystic last night, and two more sources with ties to McLaurin confirmed the signing today.

McLaurin wasn’t immediately available to comment.

Seconds Out founder Tony Grygelko had this to say: “We wish him nothing but the best with his future and would love to be able to have him on our next event January 23rd at the Armory against Ismail Muwendo or Willshaun Boxley.”

McLaurin, 5-0 with 4 kayos, is expected to face 3-0 Darryl Hayes of Houston at Grand Casino Hinckley on December 18th.

UPDATE:  McLaurin released his announcement only moments ago.  See it published in full at mnboxingleague.com.

At Rochester, N.Y.: Edwin Rodriguez vs. Brian Norman, 8 rounds, super middleweights; Willie Monroe Jr. vs. Troy Artis, 6 rounds, middleweights; Nick Brinson vs. Richmond Dalphone, 4 rounds, super middleweights; Aleem Whitfield vs. TBA, 4 rounds, super middleweights; Tony Brinson vs. Rondu Campbell, 4 rounds, super middleweights; Jaime Resnick vs.TBA, 4 rounds, lightweights

At Panama City: Luis Concepcion vs. Roberto Leyva, 12 rounds, for Concepcion’s WBA interim flyweight title

November 20

At Kissimmee, Fla. (Telemundo): Wilfredo Vazquez Jr. vs. Genaro Garcia, 12 rounds, junior featherweights

At Philadelphia: Teon Kennedy vs. Francisco Rodriguez, 12 rounds, junior featherweights; John Poore vs. Jason Barnett, 8 rounds, heavyweights; Dennis Hasson vs. Corey Budd, 6 rounds, super middleweights; Marcus Smith vs. Angel Ocasio, 4 rounds, lightweights; Ardrick Butler vs. TBA, 4 rounds, welterweights; Ryan Carson vs. Jason Sosa, 4 rounds, lightweights; Miguel Corsino vs. Keenan Davis, 4 rounds, welterweights; Jamaal Davis vs. Josh Onyango, 6 rounds, junior middleweights

At St. Paul, Minn.: Caleb Truax vs. Carl Daniels, 10 rounds, super middleweights; Muhammad Kayongo vs. James Todd, 10 rounds, welterweights; Michael Faulk vs. Ryan Soft, 4 rounds, junior middleweights; Charles Meier vs. Josh Rodriguez, 4 rounds, middleweights; Marvin Rodriguez vs. Silas Ortey, 4 rounds, middleweights; Felix Martinez vs. Phillip Adyaka, 4 rounds, junior featherweights

At Atlantic City, N.J.: Badi Ajamu vs. Daniel Judah, 12 rounds, light heavyweights; Chuck Mussachio vs. Bobby Rooney, 8 rounds, light heavyweights

At Lincoln, R.I.: Joey McCreedy vs. Otis Griffin, 8 rounds, super middleweights; Danny O’Connor vs. TBA, 6 rounds, junior welterweights; Jaime Clampitt vs. TBA, 6 rounds, lightweights; Joe Smith Jr. vs. TBA, 4 rounds, light heavyweights; Vladine Biosse vs. TBA, 4 rounds, super middleweights; Rashad Minor vs. TBA, 4 rounds, heavyweights; Maceo Crowder vs. TBA, 4 rounds, light heavyweights

At Nottingham, England: Rendall Munroe vs. Simone Maludrottu, 12 rounds, for Munroe’s European junior featherweight title

At Mendoza, Argentina: Juan Carlos Reveco vs. Juan Landaeta, 12 rounds, for Reveco’s WBA interim junior flyweight title

November 21

At Oakland, Calif. (Showtime): Mikkel Kessler vs. Andre Ward, 12 rounds, for Kessler’s WBA super middleweight title; Karim Mayfield vs. Francisco Santana, 8 rounds, junior middleweights; Tony Hirsch vs. Jose Celaya, 6 rounds, junior middleweights; Stan Martyniouk vs. Theron DeLorme, 4 rounds, lightweights; DeMarcus Stephens vs. Paul Mendez, 4 rounds, middleweights; Mel Crossty vs. Carlos Herrera, 4 rounds, junior lightweights

At Chiapas, Mexico: Edgar Sosa vs. Rodel Mayol, 12 rounds, for Sosa’s WBC junior flyweight title

At Merida, Mexico: Giovani Segura vs. Sonny Boy Jaro, 12 rounds, for Segura’s WBA junior flyweight title; Ulises Solis vs. Gilberto Keb Baas, 10 rounds, flyweights

At Kiel, Germany: Giacobbe Fragomeni vs. Zsolt Erdei, 12 rounds, for Fragomeni’s WBC cruiserweight title; Humberto Mauro Gutierrez vs. Vitali Tajbert, 12 rounds, for Gutierrez’s WBC interim junior lightweight title; Dimitri Sartison vs. Stjepan Bozic, 12 rounds, for vacant WBA “regular” super middleweight title; Gennady Golovkin vs. Ishe Smith, 12 rounds, middleweights

At Buenos Aires: Jorge Barrios vs. Michael Lozada, 12 rounds, lightweights; Lucas Matthysse vs. TBA, 12 rounds, junior welterweights; Marco Antonio Periban vs. TBA, 6 rounds, super middleweights; Claudio Olmedo vs. Juan Abrego, 6 or 8 rounds, junior welterweights; Marcelino Lopez vs. Javier Alvarez, 6 or 8 rounds, lightweights; Pablo Barboza vs. Adrian Flamenco, 4 or 6 rounds, lightweights; Pablo Zarate vs. Lucas Obregon, 4 or 6 rounds, welterweights; Daniel Zanabria vs. Emilio Zarate, 4 or 6 rounds, cruiserweights; Guillermo Soloppi vs. TBA, 4 or 6 rounds, bantamweights

At Rama, Ontario: Marvin Sonsona vs. Alejandro Hernandez, 12 rounds, for Sonsona’s WBO junior bantamweight title; Steve Molitor vs. Jose Saez, 8 rounds, junior featherweights; Ciso Morales vs. TBA, 10 rounds, junior featherweights; Greg Kielsa vs. TBA, 8 rounds, heavyweights

At Sunchales, Argentina: Marcos Maidana vs. William Gonzalez, 12 rounds, for Maidana’s WBA interim junior welterweight title

At Tunica, Miss.: Shawn Porter vs. Jerome Ellis, 8 rounds, junior middleweights; Farah Ennis vs. Anthony Doughty, 6 rounds, super middleweights; Tyrone Hendrix vs. Marteze Logan, 8 rounds, junior lightweights; Dominic Wade vs. Bradley Thompson, 4 rounds, middleweights; Mike Wilson vs. John Battle, 4 rounds, heavyweights; Raymond Serrano vs. Anthony Bowman, 6 rounds, welterweights

November 26

At Pennes-Mirabeau, France: Malik Bouziane vs. Emiliano Salvini, 12 rounds, for Bouziane’s European bantamweight title

November 27

At Wigan, England: Anthony Small vs. Thomas McDonagh, 12 rounds, for Small’s British/Commonwealth junior middleweight title; Michael Brodie vs. Anthony Crolla, 8 rounds, lightweights; Craig Watson vs. Riad Menasria, 8 rounds, welterweights

November 28

At Quebec City, Canada (HBO): Lucian Bute vs. Librado Andrade, rematch, 12 rounds, for Bute’s IBF super middleweight title; Ali Funeka vs. Joan Guzman, 12 rounds, for vacant IBF lightweight title; Pier Olivier Cote vs. Jason Hayward, 10 rounds, lightweights; Craig McEwan vs. TBA, 8 rounds, middleweights; Kevin Bizier vs. James Wayka, 6 rounds, welterweights; Hector Sanchez vs. TBA, 8 rounds, junior welterweights

At Temecula, Calif. (Showtime): John Molina vs. Martin Honorio, 10 rounds, lightweights; Rico Ramos vs. Alejandro Perez, 8 rounds, junior featherweights; Charles Whitaker vs. Frankie Santos, 8 rounds, junior middleweights; Shawn Estrada vs. Cesar Ibarra, 4 rounds, super middleweights; Javier Molina vs. Brent Rodriguez, 4 rounds, welterweights

At Elk, Poland: Delvin Rodriguez vs. Rafal Jackiewicz, 12 rounds, IBF welterweight eliminator

At Essex, England: Darren Barker vs. Wayne Elcock, 12 rounds, for vacant British middleweight title

November 29

At Tokyo: Daisuke Naito vs. Koki Kameda, 12 rounds, for Naito’s WBC flyweight title

December 2

At Philadelphia (Versus): Bernard Hopkins vs. Enrique Ornelas, 12 rounds, light heavyweights; Danny Garcia vs. Enrique Colin, 10 rounds, junior welterweights; Karl Dargan vs. Samuel Santana, 6 rounds, lightweights; Mike Perez vs. Ron Boyd, 6 rounds, lightweights; Derrick Wilson vs. TBA, 6 rounds, featherweights; Jessie Vargas vs. Hector Ramos, 6 rounds, junior welterweights; Teneal Goyco vs. Lamont Barnes, 4 rounds, cruiserweights; Julian Williams vs. Ivan Ziglar, 4 rounds, junior middleweights

At Sydney, Australia (Versus, same-day tape): Danny Green vs. Roy Jones Jr., 12 rounds, cruiserweights

December 3

At Rochester, N.Y.: Hasim Rahman vs. TBA, 10 rounds, heavyweights; Michael Grant vs. TBA, 8 or 10 rounds, heavyweights

At New York: Mike Arnaoutis vs. Tim Coleman, 12 rounds, junior welterweights; Peter Quillen vs. TBA, 10 rounds, super middleweights; Ray Robinson vs. TBA, 6 rounds, junior welterweights

December 4

At Miami (Telemundo): Cosme Rivera vs. Euri Gonzalez, 12 rounds, welterweights

At London: “Prizefighter: The Junior Welterweights” (draw for three-round quarterfinals to be announced): Gavin Rees, Ted Bami, Jason Cook, Colin Lynes, David Barnes, Barry Morrison, Young Mutley, Lee Purdy

At Albuquerque, N.M.: Holly Holm vs. Melissa Hernandez, 10 rounds, female welterweights

At Sölden, Austria: Karoly Balzsay vs. Eduard Gutknecht, 12 rounds, super middleweights

At Philadelphia: Steve Upsher Chambers vs. Richard Hall, 8 rounds, junior welterweights; Gee Cullmer vs. Loren Myers, 8 rounds, middleweights; Jeremiah Graziano vs. TBA, 6 rounds, cruiserweights; Nathan Perrott vs. John Bolton, 4 rounds, heavyweights; Stefan Schallengruber vs. Zeferino Albino, 4 rounds, light heavyweights; Badou Jack vs. TBA, 4 rounds, super middleweights; Daniel Hartvig vs. TBA, 4 rounds, welterweights; Jackie Davis vs. TBA, 4 rounds, female welterweights; Darrell Jones vs. TBA, 4 rounds, junior middleweights; Joe Alonso vs. TBA, 4 rounds, junior middleweights

At Agde, France: Anselmo Moreno vs. Frederic Patrac, 12 rounds, for Moreno’s WBA bantamweight title

At Reading, Pa.: Travis Kauffman vs. TBA, 8 rounds, heavyweights; Julio Cesar Matthews vs. Harvey Jolly, 6 rounds, cruiserweights; Craig Tomlinson vs. Willie Palms, 6 rounds, heavyweights; Van Oscar Penovaroff vs. Fernando Basora, 6 rounds, junior welterweights; Keenan Collins vs. Clarence Taylor, 6 rounds, junior middleweights; Jason Cintron vs. Norman Allen, 6 rounds, junior welerweights

At Santa Ynez, Calif. (Showtime): Tyrone Brunson vs. TBA, 10 rounds, junior middleweights; Chris Avalos vs. TBA, 8 rounds, bantamweights

At Miami: Ed Paredes vs. Oscar Leon, 10 rounds, welterweights; Felix Diaz vs. TBA, 4 rounds, junior welterweights; Yunier Dorticos vs. TBA, 4 rounds, cruiserweights; Yordanis Despaigne vs. TBA, 4 rounds, light heavyweights

December 5

At Atlantic City, N.J. (HBO): Paul Williams vs. Sergio Martinez, 12 rounds, middleweights; Cristobal Arreola vs. Brian Minto, 10 rounds, heavyweights; Chazz Witherspoon vs. Tony Thompson, 10 rounds, heavyweights; Carlos Quintana vs. TBA, 10 rounds, welterweights; Jorge Diaz vs. TBA, 6 or 8 rounds, junior featherweights; Jeremiah Wiggins vs. Manuel Gizman, 6 rounds, junior middleweights

At Newcastle, England: Amir Khan vs. Dmitiry Salita, 12 rounds, for Khan’s WBA junior welterweight title; Kevin Mitchell vs. Breidis Prescott, 12 rounds, WBO lightweight eliminator; James DeGale vs. TBA, 6 rounds, middleweights; Frankie Gavin vs. TBA, 6 rounds, welterweights; Billy Joe Saunders vs. TBA, 4 rounds, super middleweights; Ronnie Heffron vs. TBA, 4 rounds, welterweights

At Ludwigsburg, Germany: Marco Huck vs. Ola Afolabi, for Huck’s WBO cruiserweight title

At Montreal: Joachim Alcine vs. Christophe Canclaux, 12 rounds, junior middleweights

December 11

At Montreal (gofightlive.tv): Jean Pascal vs. Adrian Diaconu, rematch, 12 rounds, for Pascal’s WBC light heavyweight title

At San Juan, Puerto Rico (PPV): Winky Wright vs. Grady Brewer, 10 rounds, middleweights

At Sacramento: Oleg Maskaev vs. Nagy Aguilera, 10 rounds, heavyweights

At Philadelphia: Chazz Witherspoon vs. TBA, 8 rounds, heavyweights; Victor Vasquez vs. TBA, 6 rounds, lightweights; Tony Ferrante vs. TBA, 6 rounds, light heavyweights; Tommie Speller vs. Jameel Wilson, 6 rounds, light heavyweights; John Mecurio vs. TBA, 4 rounds, heavyweight; Coy Evans vs. TBA, 4 rounds, junior lightweights; Lou Rodriguez vs. TBA, 4 rounds, welterweights; Derrick Webster vs. TBA, 4 rounds, middleweights; Wahid Raheem vs. TBA, 4 rounds, junior lightweights

At Newport, England: Lee Haskins vs. Don Broadhurst, 12 round, flyweights; David Price vs. TBA, 4 rounds, heavyweights

December 12

At Bern, Switzerland (HBO, same-day tape): Vitali Klitschko vs. Kevin Johnson, 12 rounds, for Klitschko’s WBC heavyweight title

At Chicago (HBO): Juan Diaz vs. Paulie Malignaggi, rematch, 12 rounds, junior welterweights; Victor Ortiz vs. Antonio Diaz, 10 rounds, welterweights

At Rancho Mirage, Calif. (Showtime): Timothy Bradley Jr. vs. Lamont Peterson, 12 rounds, for Bradley’s WBO junior welterweight title; Vic Darchinyan vs. Tomas Rojas, 12 rounds, for Darchinyan’s WBC/WBA junior bantamweight title

At Las Vegas: Sechew Powell vs. Antonio Mesquita, 10 rounds, junior middleweights; Ronald Hearns vs. Victor Hugo Correa, 8 rounds, junior middleweights; Aaron Pryor Jr. vs. Jason Douglas, 8 rounds, super middleweights; Sharif Bogere vs. Adam Hernandez, 8 rounds, lightweights; Elijah McCall vs. Ruben Rivera, 6 rounds, heavyweights; Luis Franco vs. Efrain Esquivivias, 6 rounds, featherweights; John Jackson vs. Jesus Vallejo, 6 rounds, junior lightweights; Mike Hunter Jr. vs. Alvaro Morales, 4 rounds, heavyweights

December 17

At Paris: Jean-Marc Mormeck vs. Vinny Maddalone, 10 rounds, heavyweights

December 18

At Hinkley, Minn. (Showtime): Carlos Abregu vs. Richard Gutierrez, 10 rounds, welterweights; Lanard Lane vs. Said El Harrack, 8 rounds, welterweights

At Kobe, Japan: Hozumi Hasegawa vs. Alvaro Perez, 12 rounds, for Hasegawa’s WBC bantamweight title; Takahiro Aoh vs. TBA, 10 or 12 rounds, featherweights

At London: Paolo Vidoz vs. Albert Sosnowski, 12 rounds, for vacant European heavyweight title

December 19

At Youngstown, Ohio (Top Rank PPV): Kelly Pavlik vs. Miguel Espino, 12 rounds, for Pavlik’s Ring/WBC/WBO middleweight title; Vanes Martirosyan vs. TBA, 10 rounds, junior middleweights

At Cancun, Mexico (Top Rank PPV): Humberto Soto vs. Jesus Chavez, 10 rounds, lightweights

At Schwerin, Germany: Jürgen Brähmer vs. Dmitry Sukhotsky, 12 rounds, for Brähmer’s WBO interim light heavyweight title; Sebastian Zbik vs. Emanuele Della Rosa, 12 rounds, for Zbik’s WBC interim middleweight title

At Managua: Cesar Canchila vs. Johnreil Casimero, 12 rounds, for vacant WBO interim junior flyweight title; Carlos Buitrago vs. TBA, 10 rounds, junior flyweights; Juan Mercedes vs. Evert Briceno, 12 rounds, junior bantamweights; William Gonzalez vs. TBA, 12 rounds, bantamweights; Petr Pretov vs. TBA, 12 rounds, lightweights; Carlos Ruedas vs. Noel Arambulet, flyweights; Bryan Vazquez vs. TBA, 12 rounds, featherweights; Erik Leander vs. TBA, 6 rounds, heavyweights; Orlando Rizo vs. Antonio Fernandez, 6 rounds, junior featherweights; Henry Maldonado vs. Humberto Pena, 6 rounds, flyweights; Eduardo Mendoza vs. Erick Castro, 6 rounds, lightweights

At Tuxtla Gutierrez, Mexico: Cristobal Cruz vs. Ricardo Castillo, 12 rounds, for Cruz’s IBF featherweight title

December 31

At Tokyo: Denkaosen Kaowichit vs. Takefumi Sakata, rematch, 12 round, for Kaowichit’s WBA flyweight title

January 23

At New York (HBO): Steven Luevano vs. Juan Manuel Lopez, 12 rounds, for Luevano’s WBO featherweight title; Yuriorkis Gamboa vs. Rogers Mtagwa, 12 rounds, for Gamboa’s WBA “regular” featherweight title

At Manila: Brian Viloria vs. Carlos Tamara, 12 rounds, for Viloria’s IBF junior flyweight title; Donnie Nietes vs. Ivan Meneses, 12 rounds, for Nietes’ WBO strawweight title

January 30

At Las Vegas (HBO): Sugar Shane Mosley vs. Andre Berto, 12 rounds, WBA/WBC welterweight unification

February 6

At Newark,N.J.: Tomasz Adamek vs. TBA, 12 rounds, heavyweights

If  there  was  any  doubt that  George  St Pierre  has finally  proved  himself   the  better  of   B J Penn. We  now  know  that   Penn  has  been  more  talk  than  anything  else.    So  much   trash  talking   and  at   the  end  of  the  day   he  just   didn’t  have  what  it   takes   to  defeat    his   Canadian  nemesis.  

George St Pierre seated at the press conference publicizing his bout with BJ Penn picture appears courtesy of ap/Brian Boscoe ................

George St  Pierre  seated  at the press conference publicizing his  bout with  BJ Penn .  picture appears  courtesy  of   ap/Brian  Boscoe ……………

If there  was  disappointment  then  it   had  to  be  amongst   Penn’s   fans. If  nothing  else this  trilogy  of   fights  within   the  UFC  genre  has  made  the  fans  all  the  more  affixed  as  to  the  rivalry  between  the  two.  It’s  these   sort  of  rivalries  that  make   the  sport  the   thriving  and  driving   force  it  is.     

Penn takes a right hand from St Pierre . picture appears courtesy of mma.com/ Paul Whitfield ..................

Penn takes  a  right hand  from  St Pierre .  picture appears  courtesy of  mma.com/ Paul  Whitfield ………………….

No  longer  viewed  as  the  back  street  bullies  of  brawling   as   the  sport  has  been  portrayed  by  certain  legislators and   law   enforcement   officials.  The  genre  that  is  known  as mixed  martial  arts   has  now  become  a  multi million   dollar  business.   And  the  king  of  the  hill  is the  entity  UFC  which  is  a  wholly  owned  entity  of  Zuffa LLC.  

That  being  said   the   fight  card   put  together   UFC  94  by  UFC  had  St  Pierre  and  Penn  as  the   headliners.  The   undercard  itself  wasn’t   too  shabby   either.

The  fighters   were  very  much a  who’s  who  of  the  MMA  world  in  other weight categories.  Lyoto  Machida   versus Thiago  Silva,   Stephan Bonnar  versus Jon Jones  , Karo Parisyan  versus  Dong Hyun Kim and  Nate  Diaz  versus  Clay  Guida. The  gate  itself  was  one  of  the   highest   gated  revenues   for  an  MMA  event.  The  box  office   revenues  were   in  excess   of  $4.35m   and   had  over   13,000  people   in  attendance.

St Pierre the victor after his bout against BJ Penn . picture appears courtesy of ap/Brian Boscoe .................

St Pierre the  victor  after  his  bout  against  B J Penn .  picture appears  courtesy  of   ap/ Brian Boscoe ………….

If  Penn  had  anything  to  prove   to  his  fans  and  to   St  Pierre  in  particular .  It   was  he  was  the  better    of   the   two   practitioners  in  the  genre.  It has  been   greatly   debated  by    many   as  to   who  really   is   better  of   the  two   fighters.  And   if  nothing  else  all  the  sniping   between  the   two  has  added   nothing   but  disdain  for  each  other  between  the  two.    And   this  is   the  thing  if  any   that  UFC  CEO  loves  to  see   amongst  his  stable  of   fighters.   Create  the   atmosphere  of  animosity  that  the   fans  will  love.  And  then   you’ve   got  them  hook  line  and   sinker   in   terms  of   fans  for  the  bouts  or   attendees  for  an  event.  Be  it  there   live   or   via   PPV.     And   PPV  is   the   cash   cow  for   UFC.  In  2007   the  revenues   for    all   UFC   events   combined    were   in   excess  of  $275m .  And  when  you  consider   that   boxing   was  only  marginally   lower   than  that   in  terms  of  its  overall   revenues   via  pay  for  view. 

Penn and St Pierre in the octagon. picture apears courtesy of ap/Brian Boscoe ...............

Penn and  St Pierre  in the octagon .   picture appears  courtesy of  ap/Brian  Boscoe ……………………….

But  now   the  new  kid  on  the  block   is   MMA  with   UFC  as  its  proprietor.  Never  let  it  be  said  that   Dana   White   doesn’t  know   how  sell   his   product.  He’s   the   Don  King    for  the  new  millennia.  Such  has  been  his   acumen   in  making   MMA  what  it  is .  That  he   now  rules  the   roost   like a megalomaniacal   despotic  ruler.  He’s   the  final   arbiter  of  everything  to  do  with   the  sport.  Though   he  states   that  it’s  a  collective   that   actually   is  a  part of  the  decision  making.  But   his  intent   is  now  on  world  domination  when  it  comes  to  the  sport  and   nothing  , absolutely  nothing  will  stand  in  his  way.

St Pierr and BJ Penn side by side to publicize their upcoming bout at UFC 94 ...............

 St Pierre and  Penn  side  by  side   publicizing  their   bout  at  the UFC 94 press conference. picture appears  courtesy  of  ap/Phil Wainwright ………….  

The  bout   between   Penn and  St  Pierre  would  last   for   five  grueling   rounds.  But  it  was  St  Pierre  who  got  the  better   of   Penn  of  for  much  of  this   bout.  Penn  was  the  offensive  for  much  of the  fight  but   it  was  St  Pierre  who   was   the  better   practitioner.  He   punished   Penn    with   severe  brutality  and   it  was  clear  that  the   referee   had   no  choice   but   to  stop  the  bout  when  he  did.

So  now  we   must   ask   what’s  next    for   St  Pierre  in  the  welterweight  division  ?  For  Penn  he’ll  have   to   rethink   his   future   quite  possibly as  to  whether  it’s  better  for  him  to   fight  as  a  welterweight  or  lightweight.  It  has  to  be  said   that  at  this   juncture   it’ll  be  interesting  to  see  what’ll  materialize   down  the  road  for   both   fighters.

A toe injury forced lightweight champion Josh Thomson to withdraw from his first title defense against Yves Edwards at Strikeforce “Destruction” on Nov. 21 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif.

Strikeforce officials announced the change to their main event on Wednesday. UFC veteran Duane Ludwig will meet Edwards in Thomson’s stead.

Thomson, who tore ligaments in his toe while training, has not competed since he stopped Ashe Bowman on strikes in 74 seconds at the Playboy Mansion two months ago. The 30-year-old American Kickboxing Academy product has rattled off eight consecutive victories since his decision loss to Clay Guida in 2006, re-establishing himself as one of the world’s premier 155-pound fighters. Thomson (16-2) captured the Strikeforce lightweight crown from Gilbert Melendez in a career-defining performance in June.

The bout against Edwards (34-14-1) represented a chance for Thomson to avenge one of his two career losses. Edwards knocked out the Californian with a highlight-reel head kick at UFC 49 four years ago.