Strikeforce: Henderson Vs Babalu Preview

 MMA  3 Responses »
Nov 302010
 

Talk about a cursed card, several fighter have pulled out of their scheduled fights due to injuries. Even with all the bad luck Strike Force it’s going to move ahead with its schedule card this coming Saturday. The main card will go live on Showtime at 10:00 PM ET/PT(delayed on the West Coast), from Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri.

The televised portion of the card starts off with Ovince St. Preux taking on Benji Radach. A late addition to the card, this bout was just confirmed today by Strikeforce officials. The fight will replace Herschel Walker vs. Scott Carson bout.
(Walker, suffered a facial cut in one of his final training sessions) St. Preux fresh off a Strikeforce Challengers 12 victory earlier this month, where he defeated Antwain Britt. Radach its making his comeback after being on the side line over a year, following his loss to Scott Smith.

The second fight of the night is a middleweight bout between  Robbie Lawler and Matt Lindland. Lawler is looking to bounce back after a decision loss to Renato “Babalu” Sobral at this past June Strikeforce: Los Angeles. Lindland in the other hand its coming off a win over Kevin Casey via TKO(punches). Even though both fighters have not really performed on their recent fights; this fight has “serious title implications” said Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker.

Next up is a “head on collision”, between Scott Smith and Paul Daley. Both fighters are making their Strikeforce welterweight debut. Smith who had been competing on the middleweight division, decided that welterweight its a better fit. “I feel just as strong, if not stronger, walking around at 185 than I do walking around at 200″ said Smith. Meanwhile, Daley comes to the promotion after a high-profile UFC release and a few wins in regional promotions. Acoording to Scott Coker “I think that this fight is going to have title contention as far as who is going to fight for the title; depending on the belt and where he’s(Nick Diaz) at and who he is fighting. But we have some plans for Scott or Paul.”

The night co-main event features current King of the Cages LHW Champion Mike Kyle and Antonio ‘Big Foot’ Silva. Kyle will be replacing Valentijn Overeem, who pulled out of the fight due to an elbow injury. Kyle who has been competing in the light weight division, not only makes his comeback to the heavy weight division but also to Strikeforce. Both fighters have one thing in common a recent loss to Fabricio Werdum. ‘Big foot’ since has bounced back with a win over Andrei Arlovski via decision. Meanwhile Kyle it’s riding a 5-fight winning streak, including a TKO win over Stephen Oliver at “Xtreme MMA 3″. With Kyle competing at LHW this past year the question is how long can he keep up with ‘Big Foot’?

The feature main event its a bout between former Strikeforce LHW champion Renato ‘Babalu’ Sobral and Dan Henderson in the Light Heavyweight division. Henderson its coming of a loss to Jake Shields, the fight was for the middleweight title(shields vacated the title to join the UFC). “I have always felt comfortable at 205,” said Henderson “It’s one less thing I need to worry about before the fight. I am hanging out at 203, 204 (pounds)”. ‘Babalu’ its looking to avenge a loss to Henderson back in 2000, under the King of Kings organization. “I won many fights, but I learned from my losses. What does not kill, strengthens.” said ‘Babalu’ about his loss to Henderson “What I know is still the same desire for victory in my heart, and I know he has it too. I hope we can give our best and show it to the public.. Let’s bring a lot of violence.”

Even though this fight card have seen its shared of bad luck, it should be a very entertaining card. Three out of the five main-card have title implications. Usually after a Strikeforce event we are left wondering what’s next, but from what it seems this event wont be one them. So get your pop corn ready and enjoy what should be a great night of fights.

Next Up for 124

 MMA  No Responses »
Nov 302010
 

Next up for UFC 124 on December 11th is Middleweight fighters Joe Doerkson facing off against Dan Miller. Doerkson ( 46-13) is a savy veteran who has a black belt in brazilian jiu jitsu. Doerkson is only 1-6 in the UFC but has faced some stellar competition. With 33 of his 46 wins coming by submission when the fight goes to the ground opponents better be wary. Miller (12-4-1) also has a black belt in brazilian jiu jitsu. Miller is 1-3 in his last four fights but his losses came to top 10 opponents. This fight has the chance to be a ground war. With both fighters having such good skills on the ground we may get to see the fists fly. So this fight may turn into Doerkson’s striking skills against Miller’s muay thai skills.

The next fight is Matthew Riddle against Sean Pierson in a welterweight bout. Riddle (5-1) is a young fighter who started learning bjj by reading B.J. Penn’s book, Mixed Martial Arts: The Book of Knowledge and is now a purple belt under Cameron Diffley. Riddle trains out of the Throwdown Training Center in Las Vegas. Riddle got his start on the Ultimate Fighter season seven show having his first pro fight after. He is getting better and better everytime out and is a challenge for anyone. Pierson (10-4) is a first timer in the UFC. He is getting his shot after an injury forced T.J. Waldburger out of the fight. Pierson is a greco roman wrestler who fights out of Grant Brothers MMA and Tapstar in Toronto. Pierson has some good power and has only gone past the second round once in his 14 fights. With 8 of his fights ending in the first round Pierson is a go for it all fighter.

Pocket Rocket doing good outside of the Ring

 MMA  5 Responses »
Nov 292010
 

Wayne McCullough a former WBC Bantamweight champion is trying to venture into another fight. McCullough is trying to start a charity to help assist underprivileged kids, veterans and people in rehabilitation, by getting them involved in boxing, Mixed Marital Arts and with the assistance of choreographer Brooklyn Jai dance is also offered, with focus on training, nutrition and a healthy lifestyle. Wayne sees this as a chance to give back from his career to those less fortunate than most and also give them an opportunity to get to peak fitness,and given advice on how to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Wayne is hoping that given the chance these kids can make something of themselves. Wayne is still very much grounded, and has an excellent sense of humour, and always takes time to talk to his fans whether it be via twitter of Facebook, or even at one of the numerous expos that he attends.

Also we’ve managed to get Wayne to do a promo for his charity, please check it out, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-YFv-eYfCNo
 
And further details can be found on Waynes #IHOW Charity Page on Facebook http://on.fb.me/abEIRB
They are hoping for autographs or Fight Memorabilia from fighters to be auctioned off to help get this started. So if you or someone you know has something to give please send any information to hughesihow@aol.co.uk  and he will instruct you on what to do.
     Thanks ever so much and remember you can follow Wayne on twitter @waynemccullough

Just the beginning for 124

 MMA  No Responses »
Nov 292010
 

In just 12 days from now the Reigning UFC Welterweight Champion will be putting his belt on the line for the fifth time, but thats for another day. With a card full of good fights I’m going to start from the beginning. With the UFC now on notice that you must perform or find another job this card could very well be quite entertaining. So let the breakdown begin.

First up we have Pat “Awesomely Awesome”  Audinwood taking on John “The Bull”  Makdessi in a lightweight bout.  Audinwood (9-1-1) lost his only UFC bout by submission to Thiago Tavares. Audinwood has a wrestling background with decent submission skills. He fights out of Cortland, New York with Team Bombsquad. Team Bombsquad is the same team that Jon Jones use to fight for. Makdessi (7-0) has started his career with 6 TKO’s and one unanimous decision.  This will be the first fight in the UFC for Makdessi. Makdessi has a kickboxing background who fights out of Montreal with Team Zahabi MMA. Makdessi has a undefeated record as a kickboxer and won numerous gold medals. This fight should be a real test for both fighters.

Next up we have a welterweight bout with T.J. Grant facing Ricardo Almeida. Grant (16-4) is 3-2 in the UFC trading wins for losses. His last fight was a win by unanimous decision over Julio Pailino. Grant is an aggressive fighter with good submissions, having a brazilian jiu jitsu and muay thai background. He trains under Jorge Gurgel in Ohio. Almeida (12-4) is 1-1 since dropping to welterweight, his last loss was to Matt Hughes. Almeida has a 3rd degree black belt in brazilian jiu jitsu with good boxing and wrestling skills. Almeida trains under Renzo Gracie Combat Team in New Jersey.

Training Focus

 MMA, Training  No Responses »
Nov 292010
 

Staying focused in the gym can sometimes be a daunting task even for fighters who usually have pretty good focus. There are so many distractions in the gym. Hey look at that cute girl over there! Gotcha ya! There are three secrets on how you as a fighter/athlete can stay focused in the gym. So here we go…

The first secret to maintaining your focus in the gym is this. If you are going to have a training partner, make sure that he or she is going to the gym to train not hang out with you. You can hang out with this person later.

Real Training Partners!

Many times I see friends training together and they sit around and bullshit during training time. If you are serious about training and getting stronger drop the friend and get with a training partner. Someone that has equal intensity as you do is very important. I am not saying that you can’t train with someone, what you need to do is find someone that has similar goals and focus as you and will push you when you need to be pushed. Sometimes we need that person next to us pushing us along to get us through the tough parts of a training session. But what you don’t need is a training partner that wants to talk about life’s problem, or what club you are going to later that night. So do yourself a favor if you do indeed enjoy training with someone make sure they are on the same page as you this way you can keep your training sessions at a maximum level.

On to secret number two. If you are training alone which most of do, unless you need your partner like stated above, do not use an I Pod or any other mp3 device. Yes that means take the headphones out of your ears. Now you are saying, “ Rob, I focus a lot better when I use my headphones, I get a better training session in.” My answer to that is… Do you? Let me ask you a question now. When you compete in MMA, Jiu-Jitsu or whatever the case may be, are you listening to music? Hmm the answer is no. So why listen in the gym.

If you are focused on your music then you are not focused!

Everyone puts their favorite songs on their mp3 players so you end up singing along if not out loud, which would piss me off, then in their head. Focusing on the music takes away from the focus on the training session. When training in the weight room you need to be focused on your technique of every lift. If your technique sucks just like in the combat sports, you will not improve or in this case get stronger. Some say it gets me through my workout quicker, last time I checked an hour is and hour with or without headphones. The music is just a distraction. Where is your distraction during a fight?

Secret number three to staying focused during a training session.  Ok maybe two secrets, because all of you should know this.  If you are heading to train what is the most important thing you need to bring with you?  No not your water.  It’s your plan.  Or like we like to call it in the strength and conditioning world, your program.  If you are a fighter and you are training there should be no question that you should have a program.  There are a slew of benefits of having a program and those are for another day.  The one I want to talk about is your plan and your focus.  You walk into a training session without a program you are doomed.  You do not have a focus for the training session.  Without a focus for that particular session you will not achieve the goals you are looking for.  Being ale to focus on your program will take you to new heights. So get a program and follow it if you have not done so already.  Focus on the specific exercises and protocols of the program.  A strength coach I used to work with once said to me, “Proper Preparation Prevents Piss Poor Performance.”  So if you want to keep your focus during your training session then come prepared with a plan. Remember Train Hard! Train Smart!

Gerald Harris cut

 MMA  3 Responses »
Nov 262010
 

Gerald Harris was cut from the UFC after a lackluster performance at UFC 123. Coming into the fight Harris was on a 10 fight win streak 3 of those wins in the UFC. He also had 2 KOTN’s under his belt, his devastating slam of David Branch even made Sportscenter’s top ten. Many fight fans are not happy about this release. So unhappy in fact that Harris made a statement to his twitter fans to not say bad things about the UFC and Dana White. I agree that the release was a surprise but if you look at it from a business aspect it makes more sense. The performance was lackluster for Harris and in the third round when he had to know he was losing he didn’t push the action to try for the KO or submission. I am sure he will be back but I also believe this was a statement by the UFC saying that it doesn’t matter who you are if you do not perform to your full potential you can and will be cut. So head this warning UFC fighters : Go big or Go home.

So I got to thinking who could be next with 124 and 125 right around th corner.The UFC 124 fighters that could be gone. Thiago Alves is the first name that came to mind. Alves has lost two straight and missed weight on two separate occasions as well as testing positive for a banned substance so he is on a fine line. Mac Danzig is probably on the cutting block, with a record of 1-4 in his last 5 fights. The UFC 125 fighters that could be gone. Brandon Vera is on a two fight skid and another loss could give him his walking papers. His opponent may very well be on a short leash as well. If Thiago Silva losses he would be 1-3 in his last four fights. Finally not that I think it will happen but if Chris Leben losses in big fashion or doesn’t look like he is ready for this fight he could possibly be cut as well. I know he has had a great resurrection in his last few fights but with his trouble withthe DUI as well as past discretions maybe the UFC doesn’t want to deal with it anymore.

UFC 123 Rocks Detroit

 MMA  1 Response »
Nov 212010
 

Sotiropoulus pulled off a kimura in the second round to start off the night. After and exciting first round the fighters came out and secured a takedown and worked the the submission on the tired Lauzon. Next up was Phil Davis won a one sided affair against Tim Boetsch. After winning by an inverted one handed kimura Joe Rogan dubbed it the Mr. Wonderful. Newcomer Maiquel Falcao dominated Gerald Harris for two rounds and then took the third off to secure the win. The co-main event was quick with B.J. Penn ko’ing Hughes in 21 seconds of the first round. Our main event was a three round on and off war. Rampage pushed the pace and was very aggressive throughout the fight. Machida put in a fairly dominant third round. He got some good shots in on Rampage, so much in fact that Rampage thought it was enough to get the victory. Overall a good event in Detroit that made 2.1 million at the gate.

Two big fights were announced at the presser following the fights. One is that George Sotiropoulus will face Dennis Siver at the 127 Sydney Australia show. Sydney is Sots home town and he is the one that told the UFC that he will be fighting on the card. So Dana obliged him and said he would be facing Dennis Siver. The other fight I want to touch on a little bit. B.J. Penn will face Jon Fitch on the 127 card as well. Penn is an aggressive fighter with a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu but loves to stand and bang, which he showed last night. Fitch is on a five fight win streak. He is also the king of the decision win. Can he pull off the lay and pray with Penn? I don’t think so, not with how good Penn is on his back. My early prediction is B.J. Penn.

UFC 123 Main Card

 MMA  No Responses »
Nov 192010
 

Tomorrow night UFC 123 hits Detroit and it should be a good show. Here is the main card fights :

George Sotiropoulas v Joe Lauzon

Sotiropoulas (13-2) is undefeated in the UFC and has 7 wins in a row. He very nearly beat Kurt Pellegrino even when Kurt had a bum leg. Kurt caught George with a huge shot that sent him to the ground. With only ten seconds to work Kurt jumped but ran out of time. Most watchers say that given another 30 seconds Kurt would have had the win. Lauson is 6-2 in the UFC and is coming off of a complete destruction of Gabe Ruediger. Sotiropoulas has a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and has been working on improving his stand up. Lauzon (19-5) is a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu but has a great ground game. Lauzon only has one fight that has gone the distance. He is aggressive and wants to finish. Potential fight of the night.

Phil Davis v Tim Boetsch

Most are wondering why this fight was even put together and feel that Davis will end it quickly. Davis (7-0) is a wrestling phenom with a blue belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. This will be a big step up in competition for Davis. Boetch (12-3) is a very good wrestler as well with a hard chin and good stand up. I think those that are counting out Boetch better read up on him first. He isn’t the caliber of Davis but has the better overall game. Underdog pick of the night.

Gerald Harris v Maiquel Falcao

Harris (16-2) has won all three of his UFC fights and has not lost in three years,10 straight. Harris has a good wrestling background and is very strong. Falcao (25-3-0-1) is a striker/Chute Box fighter with 21 T(KO)s. Can he stuff the wrestling of Harris? If so he is the better of the two in the stand up game.

Co-Main Event : Matt Hughes v BJ Penn

Hughes (45-7) is a very dominant wrestler who has a phenomenal submission game. Hughes likes to put pressure on his opponent and make them fight his game. Penn (15-7-1) is going back to 170 for the first time since losing to Georges St. Pierre in January of 2009. Both of these fighters are seasoned vets who are known to dominate their opponents. This will be the third time these to have fought. Penn took the first and Hughes took the second. Look for one of the OTN bonuses going to this fight.

Main Event : Lyoto Machida v Quinton Jackson

Machida is coming off of a loss to Mauricio Rua which was his first loss as a pro fighter. He is a 3rd dan black belt in Shotokan Karate and is a counter striker. Jackson (15-7-1) loves to stand and bang with anyone. Jackson recently lost a unanimous decision to Rashad Evans. Over his last few fights Jackson hasn’t looked himself so we will have to see if he is still in it to win or just for a paycheck. The winner could be next in line for a title shot after Rashad Evans gets his chance that is.

Here is my official Iceman picks for the Main card. Lauson, Boetsch, Falcão, Hughes, and Machida.

UFC 123 Undercard

 MMA  No Responses »
Nov 172010
 

Tyson Griffin v Nik Lentz

Griffin (14-4) is coming off of a tough loss to Takanori Gami and is 2-3 over his last 5 fights. With the big influx of fighters to the 155lbs division Griffin may need a big win to stay relevant as well as stay employed by the UFC. Lentz (19-3-2) hasn’t lost since 2007 and is 10-0-2 in that time frame. Both of these fighters are very good wrestlers and both guys have great camps around them to help get ready. With these fighters wrestling fairly even it will come down to who has the better stand up game.

Paul Kelly v T.J O’Brien

Kelly (10-3) is 2-2 in his last four fights. Kelly is a wrestler with a Vale Tudo background . Kelly is an exciting and tough fighter who is very tough to finish. O’Brien (16-3) is a wrestler with good brazilian jiu jitsu. O’Brien is a tall fighter with very good reach that tends to make things hard for opponents.

Edson Barboza v Mike Lullo

Barboza (6-0) is an explosive and aggressive fighter that is fighting in his first UFC fight. In his six fights he has not gone out of the second round. Lullo (8-1) is a well rounded fighter with six straight submission wins in a row and he is also on a 8 fight win streak. Someones streak is going to end but who? 

Karo Parisyan v Dennis Hallman

Parisyan (19-5-1) is making his second run in the UFC. His last was ended after being popped for a banned substance at UFC 94. He has a black belt in Judo and is a good submission fighter. Hallman (42-13-2-1) is a grappling veteran who is 1-1 in his return to the UFC. In Hallman’s 42 wins 33 of them have come by way of submission.

Aaron Simpson v Mark Munoz

Simpson (7-1) is coming off of a huge loss to Chris Leben. Simpson is a great wrestler and very good in his stand up with KO power. Munoz (8-2) is coming off of a split decision loss to number one contender Yushin Okami. Munoz is a very good wrestler with a purple belt in brazilian jiu jitsu. Munoz has very good ground and pound as well.

Matt Brown v Brain Foster

Brown (13-9) is coming off of 2 straight losses and is in need of a big win to keep his career going in the UFC. Brown has a brown belt in judo and a blue belt in brazilian jiu jitsu. Foster (14-5) has not gone to decision in his 19 fights. Foster is an athletic wrestler with very good striking.

Stay tuned to tomorrow when I breakdown the main card.

 Older Entries