Dana White is already on the road to recovery a day after undergoing extensive ear surgery.
The UFC president told MMAFighting-com Wednesday that his ear surgery went "great" and he was already flying home to Las Vegas. White went under the knife at the House Ear Institute in Los Angeles on Tuesday.
White has been battling Ménière's disease for over a year. According to MayoClinic-com, Ménière's disease "is a disorder of the inner ear that causes spontaneous episodes of vertigo — a sensation of a spinning motion — along with fluctuating hearing loss, ringing in the ear, and sometimes a feeling of fullness or pressure in your ear."
White wrote via text message that he was "sore but that will go away in a few days" following the surgery. He added that he will not be flying to Brazil for UFC on FX 7 this weekend. He hopes the surgery will cure the excruciating pain he has felt as of late.
The 43-year-old White started to feel the effects of the disease at the end of 2011, and it later forced him to miss his first UFC event in 11 years when the disease prevented him from flying to Fairfax, Va., for UFC on FUEL TV 3 in May.
"This is a different procedure," he said in October of the surgery. "They're going to try where they go in and cut the back of my ear open and they go in through there. They insert a tube, and it's supposed to give me a 70 percent chance of not having an attack."
Dana White calls recent ear surgery a success - MMA Fighting
If you weren’t at The Joint at the Hard Rock last Friday night for the Fighter Only World Mixed Martial Awards, you missed one hilarious red carpet and taping. Fortunately, MMA fans can catch the condensed version of the awards on the telecast Sunday, January 20 on Fox Sports.
Hosting again were the beautiful Molly Qerim of the CBS Sports Network and the bombastic Chael Sonnen. Here are just some of the reasons not to miss this year’s show.
1. If you haven’t shelled out yet to see Absinthe (and you really should), catch the show’s roller skating duo, Sven Rauhe and Roma Hervida, in their dizzying act. Sonnen mentioned on the red carpet that “Absinthe is the best show I have ever seen and that includes film, Broadway, even films I’ve been in.” Also, Vegas-based rock band Otherwise opens the show with a powerful rendition of their hit song “Soldiers.”
2. Coco Austin, star of Peepshow, walked the red carpet and reveled her enthusiasm and charming ignorance for the sport. “I’m presenting Promotion of the Year but I don’t really know what that means. I’m just going to go with the flow and hope I can read the teleprompter!” She said when she watches fights at home with husband Ice-T, he’s her “little educator,” trying to teach her more about MMA. She also referred to Las Vegas fighter Roy Nelson as “the truck driver dude,” which is reason enough to love her and her take on fighters.
3. Armbar enthusiast Ronda Rousey needs to take a cue from Coco and go with the flow. When she took to the podium to present an award, she announced she wasn’t going to read the joke on the teleprompter because her name had been spelled with an “h” and she was pissed. Somebody should have caught the typo, but I happen to have it on good authority from the show’s head writer that the joke she chose not to do was going to kill.
4. Fifty Shades of Gracie. The skit’s name pretty much says it all. The MMA Awards are known for their hilarious skits involving some of the sport’s top personalities and this year’s are the cream of the crop. Get ready for some deep belly laughs.
5. Sonnen may be the butt of many jokes but he sure can deliver them. On the red carpet, he proclaimed, “I don’t talk smack. I talk FACTS.” Love him or hate him, he is definitely entertaining and an excellent host.
6. Jerry Springer keeps finding ways to stay relevant. On the carpet, he said, “I’m presenting Fight of the Year, which really was our show last Thursday.”
7. Springer seemed a bit of a stretch for a presenter despite his fight-fueled show, but Sisqo seemed even more out of place, until he explained himself on the red carpet. When the “Thong Song” singer was asked how he felt about the skimpy outfits some fighters opt to wear, he said, “Sometimes it’s a little much on the eyes. On a related note, I’m presenting Ring Girl of the Year, so it kind of works with the whole ‘thong tha thong thong thong’ thing.” And yes, he broke into song at that point.
8. As per usual, Frank Mir is a class act. The local fighter has seen his share of ups and downs in the past few years, but said, “I’m back into taking care of myself. I was reminded of my fitness level this year. My wife is on board with helping me with my diet and I’m feeling healthy.” He went on to say that he hopes in the coming year the UFC will work on its scoring system because, “As a fan, I see a need for a different scoring system. Sometimes when I’m watching with my wife we’ll watch a fight and score it one way and then be really surprised when the judges’ numbers are different. Maybe it could be something more like wrestling where people know the definite points.”
9. Tito Ortiz and Jenna Jameson got naked on the 215. No really, the fighter and his former porn star girlfriend changed for the awards show in their car on the way over. Ortiz said, “I pulled over on the 215 near McCarran Airport and took off all my clothes and put my tux on. She got dressed in the car first and then I did.” Jameson chimed in, “It was a [Rolls Royce] Phantom, so it was big. Thank God there were no paparazzi around.”
A new bill has been proposed to legalize mixed martial arts in the state of Connecticut.
Introduced by Sen. Andres Ayala and Rep. Charles D. Clemons, House Bill No. 5277 aims to “legalize and regulate professional mixed martial arts matches” and has been referred to the Joint Committee on Public Safety and Security.
A similar bill was introduced in the state Senate last year (Bill 326), passing through several committees before Senate President Donald Williams and Majority Leader Martin Looney declined to move the bill forward for a Senate vote.
In order for H.B. No. 5277 to become law this year, it must first pass through its own set of committees, at which point it must be brought before the House of Representatives for a vote. If the House passes the bill, the Senate must follow suit in order to send the bill to the governor, would either veto the bill or sign it into law.
Connecticut, which has proposed bills to legalize MMA over the past several years, remains one of the few states in which the sport is still illegal. Vermont recently became the 46th state with an athletic commission to give MMA the green light, leaving Connecticut, Montana and New York as the only states yet to pass such legislation. Though MMA is legal in Alaska, the states lack a regulatory body to oversee and regulate the sport.
Despite MMA’s unregulated status in Connecticut, matches have long been held within the state’s borders at Native American-owned casinos, such as Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun. The Ultimate Fighting Championship last visited the state in 2005, while Bellator Fighting Championships made its last appearance this past March.
The 2012 World Mixed Martial Arts Awards were handed out last weekend at the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas.
The fifth-annual event, sponsored by Fighters Only Magazine and co-hosted by Chael Sonnen and Molly Qerim, was filmed for broadcast today on Fox Sports.
The highlights:
Fighter of the Year: Jon Jones (for second straight year)
Fight of the Year: Jamie Varner vs. Joe Lauzon, UFC on Fox 4
Knockout of the Year: Edson Barboza KO Terry Etim, UFC 142
Submission of the Year: Frank Mir over Antonio Nogueira, UFC 140
Breakthrough Fighter of the Year: Chris Weidman
Comeback of the Year: Mir over Nogueira
International Fighter of the Year: Michael Bisping
Female Fighter of the Year: Ronda Rousey
S.A. boxer runner-up: San Antonio heavyweight Matthew Hernandez finished second at the first Junior World Team Open amateur tournament for 15- to 16-year-old boxers Jan. 8-12 at the Grand Sierra Resort in Reno, Nev.
Hernandez, who trains at San Fernando Gym, lost to Suray Mahmutovic of Daly City, Calif., 23-9 in the championship match. He reached the finals with a 24-8 victory over Alejandro Larrondo of Prescott, Ariz.
Trio of champions: Three boxers from S.A. won titles at the Region 6 Silver Gloves Championships Jan. 10-12 in North Little Rock, Ark.
Christopher Martinez won at 100 pounds for 14- to 15-year-olds; Jesse Rodriguez won at 75 pounds for 12- to 13-year-olds; and Richard Medina claimed the title at 80 pounds in the 12-13 age group. All three are members of the Ramos Boxing Team.
Robert Garcia of the Fight Factory in San Marcos won at 80 pounds for 10- to 11-year-olds.
MMA tickets: Tickets are on sale at cagetix-com and legacyfights-net. for the Feb. 1 MMA card at Cowboys Dancehall. They are $35 for general admission and $75 for reserved.
The 11-bout card, promoted by Houston-based Legacy Fighting Championship, features S.A. fighters Pete Spratt in the main event and Richard Odoms in the co-feature.
Martinez eyes return: S.A. bantamweight Raul Martinez says he's been cleared by doctors to resume training.
Martinez (29-2, 17 KOs) underwent surgery Sept. 11 to repair a torn biceps tendon suffered in a TKO of Juan Jimenez on Aug. 25 in Tulum, Mexico.
Read more: View from the corner: MMA hands out 2012 awards - San Antonio Express-News
Matt MacGrath called it the biggest win of his career.
Headlining Saturday’s Elite 1 MMA Unstoppable card at Casino New Brunswick, MacGrath was in tough against Mark Holst (11-5), an MMA veteran from Ontario who has fought in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
But past accolades were thrown to the side as Charlottetown native MacGrath (12-8) dominated Holst, repeatedly taking him down and using smothering top control to win a 29-28 unanimous decision on all three scorecards in the welterweight bout at Casino New Brunswick.
"I just turned 33 a couple weeks ago and I just think everything is really finally coming together and we’re going to make a run here," MacGrath said.
"I knew Mark Holst’s striking was really good, his ground I really had to watch his hips on the ground. I was confident coming into the fight I could win. I thought before the fight I might have finished it. I felt I dominated it, I think he only had control for about 30 seconds the whole fight."
Round 1 saw MacGrath shoot and quickly take Holst to the ground. He wasn’t able to deliver a lot of damage from his opponent’s guard but he stayed busy enough to keep the fight on the mat for most of the frame and peppered his opponent with shots to control the round.
Holst turned it on in the second round, as after another MacGrath takedown, Holst was able to scramble and end up in half guard and then into mount, where he was able to do some damage.
MacGrath continued to show wrestling dominance in the third round, securing more takedowns and top control. An interesting exchange saw both fighters going for heel hooks during a scramble and while Holst briefly got on top, MacGrath used a kimura attempt to regain top position and end up in Holst’s guard.
"He’s very good, he’s got some really good wrestling and judo. I knew about that but there’s nothing I could do about it," Holst said in his locker room following the loss.
"That’s what got me hesitating in throwing. Every time I got close I got taken down. I was just trying to be cautious with my punches and my striking and I still got tied up and taken down."
The main event was originally supposed to have seen MacGrath challenge for the welterweight title against Richard Arsenault (8-1), but the champion had to pull out of the bout due to injury. MacGrath is looking forward to his eventual title shot.
"I had a lot of confidence against Richard before this but this obviously helps," he said. "No disrespect to Richard but I think this was a really tough fight for me. It’s a little different strategy but I think I’ll definitely come out on top against Richard."
■ In the semi-main event, Dan (The Hitman) Fowler (6-5) of Moncton easily beat Todd Westcott (1-4) of Moncton in a 185-pound bout.
Shortly after the opening bell Fowler threw a strong right leg kick, then followed it up with a double leg takedown that landed him in Westcott’s half-guard. Fowler quickly moved into side control where he latched on a head-and-arm triangle that put Westcott unconscious for the submission win at 1:20 of the first round.
"I’ve been training with (Gracie black belt) Shane Rice at Victory Jiu Jitsu and he’s brought me a long way, I can’t thank him enough. It feels like I’m a complete fighter now instead of a one dimensional standup fighter," Fowler said.
"I knew (Westcott) was a brawler. I knew he could take a punch. He swings hard, all it takes is one punch and it’s putting me in a world of hurt. I just made sure it didn’t go there. I wanted to control the fight, take it where I’m most comfortable which now is on the ground. I knew once it got to the ground the fight was over."
In other professional fights:
■ Mike Thorne (1-0) of Fredericton defeated Brandon Chaisson (0-1) of Charlottetown via submission at 3:10 of the third round in a 145-pound bout.
Thorne was able to mount his opponent in all three rounds, but wasn’t able to put away the game Chaisson from the position. Interestingly, it was in the third round after Thorne’s mount got reversed that he ended the bout, locking on a triangle choke as the fighters rolled that caused Chaisson to tap out.
"In the second round I had so much control on the top I lost respect for his ground game. I knew he was tired and I knew he didn’t want to be there because his coaches kept telling him to get up. In that third round when I had full mount he was bucking on the cage real hard and I kept adjusting so he didn’t have the cage for leverage," Thorne said.
"I anticipated the triangle when he rolled me, I was setting up for it and I’m lucky it worked out because if he had popped his arm over it would have been a different story."
■ Maverick Cowx (1-0) of Cole Harbour, N.S. defeated Joshua Allen (3-1) of Charlottetown at 2:31 of round 1 via TKO in a 170-pound bout.
Cowx appeared to be in trouble after Allen scored a takedown and hopped immediately into mount. However, a beautifully-timed switch saw Maverick end up in his opponent’s guard, avoiding any major damage. Cowx finished the fight after landing a huge knee to the body, taking his turtled opponent’s back and raining down left hands until the referee was forced to jump in and end the fight.
"It went pretty good. I wanted to stand up a little bit more. He came at me pretty quick so I ended up wrapping him up, taking him down. I knew he was a strong wrestler so I kind of wanted to avoid it," Cowx said.
"Once I got a hold of him I felt I was a little more physically powerful than him and we just stayed (on the ground) and got it done."
■ Matthew Desroches (3-0) of Charlottetown defeated Brian Mazerolle (1-5) of Hampton at 0:01 of the second round via TKO in a 185-pound bout.
A high-paced first round saw both fighters swinging for the fences, but Desroches taking controlling with more shots landed and better cardio. Desroches staggered Mazerolle near the end of the first round and the fight seemed to be in
With the recent confession of cycling legend Lance Armstrong, the sports world is going nuts while debating the topic of performance enhancing drugs. On Monday, UFC fighter Dan Hardy turned to Twitter and calmly acknowledged the rampant use of cheating in mixed martial arts. The popular Brit doesn't seem terribly concerned by the epidemic as he continually fielded questions on the subject. "The Outlaw" even stated that he knows several of his previous opponents have been on the juice.
While some fighters like Roy Nelson and B.J. Penn believe that voluntary anti-doping testing could potentially save the sport, Hardy doesn't seem to be convinced that it does any good. Hardy did take time to acknowledge that some fighters who utilize controversial TRT allowances truly need it. However, he mixes no words when pointing out that others use it without any necessity.
Currently, Hardy is scheduled to meet Matt Brown at the upcoming UFC on Fox 7 in April. He hopes to improve upon a two-fight winning streak that saw his arm raised against Amir Sadollah and Duane Ludwig in 2012.
COMMENTARY | It takes a lot of hard work and dedication to excel in MMA, yet a large number of mixed martial artists barely make more than the U.S. minimum wage when you factor in all the hours of training necessary to be successful.
Of course, the big-names make a pretty good living, but even folks like current UFC middleweight champion, Anderson Silva, and welterweight champion, Georges St. Pierre, are still greatly underpaid compared to athletes of similar stature in other sports.
MMA is obviously still in its infancy, so it's a little unfair to compare it to the major sports. Fighter pay has gotten better with the growth of mixed martial arts, just not as much as it should have.
No one has it worse in MMA than the newly turned professional fighter.
Harsh life of the rookie MMA fighter
For the person who decides to give MMA a try, getting paid $1000 for their first handful of professional fights isn't out of the norm, and some even have to settle for lesser purses. To make things worse, sponsors aren't exactly lining up to paste their logos on unknown fighters performing in front of a few hundred folks, so most newbie pros don't have that extra income coming in.
At that pay scale, even if a fighter fights 6 times a year and wins all his/her fights (assuming pay is doubled if they win), that's only $12,000 a year. And that's before training dues/manager fees, healthcare costs, and Uncle Sam getting his cut of the action.
A person who works 40 hours a week flipping burgers at a fast food joint, getting paid the U.S. minimum wage of $7.25 an hour, makes about $14,500 a year (assuming they take a two-week vacation) without having to worry about broken bones and serious head trauma.
For that very reason, most low-level MMA fighters have regular jobs, since it's virtually impossible to get by with their earnings from fighting. The fortunate ones are able to make money with the knowledge they've acquired as martial artists by teaching classes or such, while others are forced to get regular jobs like everyone else.
Things get a bit better as MMA fighters move up the rankings. Mid-tier fighters make about $10,000-$30,000 a fight, and getting sponsors at that stage becomes a lot easier. As long as they win a majority of their fights, they can expect to make the same amount as college-educated professionals. However, given the amount of effort MMA fighters put into training, and the life-lasting injuries they pick up over the years, it still seems like a crappy deal.
Without sponsors or other side income, a decent amount of mid-tier fighters wouldn't be able to make ends meet.
How much should MMA fighters be paid?
The UFC is clearly the premier MMA organization in the world, and their fighters are also the highest paid. On one hand, the UFC seems to take better care of their athletes than any other mixed martial arts promotion. But on the other hand, their fighters only get a small fraction of the profits generated.
For example, the UFC 155 fight card generated a live gate of about $3.2 million, while the total disclosed fighter payout was about 1.3 million. Even if the promotion paid out an extra $1 million in undisclosed earnings, that still leaves them with $900,000. The pay-per-view numbers for UFC 155 haven't been released, but even with a conservative 500,000 buys estimate at $44.99 a buy, that's another 22.5 million dollars. Then there's advertising income, and sponsor taxes.
Of course, the UFC also has a lot of expenses, but when you look at the numbers, it's obvious the company is raking in some serious profits.
Given how well the UFC has positioned itself, it doesn't look like they'll have serious competition anytime soon. That means it's up to the fighters to figure out how much their services are worth, and demand appropriate compensation.
It's hard to see that happening without most of the top fighters in the UFC teaming up to form a union. Athletes in major organizations like the NBA, MLB, and NFL have established unions and the results are clear. Until the 2011 lockout, NBA players received 57 percent of basketball-generated income (they now get 51 percent if you're wondering).
It's impossible to put a number on exactly how much of the revenue generated by UFC goes to the fighters since the promotion doesn't disclose its earnings, but it's certainly nowhere close to 51 percent. That means the most promising young athletes in the world will continue to pursue sports where they'll have more control of their careers, get paid a lot more money, and perhaps a pension when their careers are over.
The heavyweight champion was considered the unofficial "baddest man on the planet," and the public rarely paid attention to the other weight classes. It took great fighters such as Michael Carbajal, Chiquita Gonzalez, Marco Antonio Barrera, Erik Morales and Ricardo "Finito" Lopez to elevate the popularity of the lighter-weight classes. These fighters competed from 106-126 pounds in their primes and they won over boxing fans with their speed, skill and punching power.
Now, it's MMA's turn.
The UFC started off with only a heavyweight division, but eventually added 155-, 170-, 185- and 205-pounders. Because of the growth of MMA in the United States and internationally, the UFC added 135- and 145-pounders in 2011. Demetrious Johnson became the first UFC 125-pound champion when he decisioned Joseph Benavidez at UFC 152 last Sept. 22.
The UFC is showing its belief in the flyweight division and the rest of the lighter-weight classes by putting Johnson's first title defense against John Dodson in the main event of UFC on Fox 6 on Saturday at 5 p.m. at United Center in Chicago, Ill.
"There's no pressure at all for us little guys to try to get in the spotlight or steal the spotlight," Johnson said. "I'm just focused on going out there and fighting and competing. If me and John go out there and fight like we know we can, then the spotlight will get on us and then it will leave and go on to the next fighter and then it will go to the next flyweight and so forth. When the UFC gives us the opportunity to fight on a main card, they are giving us the spotlight to do that."
Dodson competed 30 pounds over his natural weight because he never believed the UFC would have a 125-pound division. Dodson said he believes the little guys can win over MMA fans because people like to see "punches in bunches."
"That's why we are the main event for a free fight on Fox where millions of fans are going to be watching," Dodson said. "They are going to be putting all that pressure on us and, yet, I don't feel it. You know why? I know that Demetrious and I will put on the most excellent show. It's going to be huge. It's going to cross generations and cross the world.
"People are going to be looking back at this fight and saying, 'Those two midgets were excellent. They were fast, they were loose and it was non-stop action. They kept on throwing so many bombs that they were whizzing by their heads and they kept firing them. No matter how many times they missed they kept throwing one more punch. When somebody did get hit, they kept throwing them and then two more punches right afterward.'"
NOTES
Whether former UFC light-heavyweight champion Quinton "Rampage" Jackson of Irvine continues to compete in MMA or gives it a go in pro boxing, his future will no longer be in the UFC after his final bout against Glover Teixeira on the main card at UFC on Fox 6. Jackson has burned all bridges with the UFC in recent interviews.
"I want to get away from all the negative energy," Jackson told MMA Fighting. "It's nothing but negativity over here from me. I'm not happy with the way they treated me and stuff like that, so I gotta go. I did the same thing when Pride started treating me bad, I left. I do that. I gotta stand up for myself.
"I think I bring a lot to the sport. I try to entertain the fans. I think my type of fighter is a dying breed. You don't have a lot of fighters like me who go out there and put entertainment first. You got a lot of fighters out there that all they care about is the W. They want to game-plan it up and make for boring fights. I go out there and try to put excitement first. I put it all on the line. I just feel like I should be compensated for that and treated well. I just don't feel it." ...
The UFC gives out bonuses for fight of the night, knockout of the night and submission of the night for all its events. Donald Cerrone has pocketed 11 bonuses in 17 fights under the Zuffa banner with the UFC and WEC. Former WEC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis has four bonuses in nine fights. The two exciting lightweights collide on the main card at UFC on Fox 6 in a fight that has major title implications. ...
With a new night and timeslot, a pair of controversial coaches and new production values, the 17th season of "The Ultimate Fighter" premiered to its highest ratings since moving to FX. TUF 17's two-hour premiere Tuesday night, which served as the lead in for "Justified," drew 1.5 million viewers, according to FX officials.
The reality series' ratings had been in decline since moving to FX in January 2012. FX aired TUF 15 and 16 on Friday nights, a night when much of the male 18-49 demographic is not at home in front of a TV. TUF 17, which features UFC light-heavyweight champion Jon Jones and Chael Sonnen as rival coaches, airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ...
The UFC got more good ratings news from UFC on FX 7, which featured Vitor Belfort's spectacular second-round KO over Michael Bisping this past weekend. UFC on FX 7 drew 1,857,000 viewers, the highest ratings for the UFC on FX. The UFC on FX 7 prelims on Fuel TV drew 255,000 viewers, the most watched show in the history of the network. ...
Former Strikeforce light-heavyweight champion Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal makes his Bellator debut against Przemylaw Mysiala in the Season 8 light-heavyweight tournament at Bellator 86 on Thursday at 10 p.m. on Spike TV from Thackerville, Okla. Lawal would have to fight every four weeks if he continues to advance in the eight-man tournament and he will also be competing as a pro wrestler on Spike TV's hit show, "TNA Wrestling."
"Pro wrestling was more nerve-wracking for me, because you don't know what to expect," Lawal told The MMA Hour. "MMA, I train hard and I know what to expect, because I can go out there and do what I do. In pro wrestling, you kind of know what to expect, but you don't, because the reactions from the crowd, if they buy
Middleweight contender Vitor Belfort has indicated his desire to fight a champion. Luke Rockhold finished his time in Strikeforce as middleweight champion. Sounds like a match to make.
Pressed on future opponents for the former UFC light heavyweight champion on the heels of his spectacular finish of Michael Bisping, UFC president Dana White told reporters on Thursday that he's looking to put together a bout between Belfort and Rockhold.
"Rockhold," White said. "That's what we're talking about."
In the case of Rockhold (10-1), a bout with the former champion could be exactly what the fighter needs to raise his profile with the masses. The American Kickboxing Academy fighter rolled over the competition in Strikeforce and defeated Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza to win that title on Sept. 10, 2011. But Rockhold's rise came during Strikeforce's slow, painful downfall, so he's not yet as big a name as his skills would seem to suggest.
For Belfort, meanwhile, the future path isn't quite so clear-cut. He's lost to both middleweight champion Anderson Silva and light heavyweight champion Jon Jones, neither of whom are inclined to give him a title shot any time soon.
White conceded, however, that if the veteran Belfort can continue winning, he could force his way back into the title picture.
"If Vitor beats Bisping and he knocks off a couple contenders at 185, it's hard not to give him a title shot again."
White didn't give a timetable as to when Belfort might meet Rockhold. One thing White did, do, is shoot down the prospects of a Jones-Belfort rematch, which Belfort asked for in the cage following his win over Bisping.
"[It was] weird he called out Jones," White said.
Dana White hints at Vitor Belfort-Luke Rockhold fight - MMA Fighting
A push to make mixed martial arts fully legal in New York has intensified, as the Association of Boxing Commissions has sent a letter to New York's top politicians, including Gov. Andrew Cuomo, seeking to regulate non-professional MMA events.
The letter calls for the state to direct the New York State Athletic Commission to regulate such events that currently are allowed in New York. This letter dovetails with the effort by Las Vegas-based MMA operation Ultimate Fighting Championship to lobby the state legislature to pass a bill to make pro MMA legal in the state. The push would ultimately overturn the 1997 bill that bans pro MMA in New York.
"New York State's choice to allow wholly unregulated MMA amateur bouts has created a grave safety risk to both athletes and spectators not only within this State, but indeed throughout North America," the ABC wrote in its letter, which was sent to Cuomo, attorney general Eric Schneiderman, assembly speaker Sheldon Silver, secretary of state Cesar Perales and majority leader Dean Skelos.
Unregulated MMA cards are featured throughout the state regularly, and the current regulations permit them as long as the athletes taking part are not compensated. The United States Muay Thai Association is overseeing one such amateur MMA show Saturday night at St. Raymond High School in the Bronx.
The ABC, comprised of athletic commissions and regulatory bodies from 83 states and jurisdictions in North America, wants laws tweaked so the NYSAC regulates MMA cards.
"Virtually every other jurisdiction requires that promoters of amateur, as well as professional, MMA bouts participate in and utilize national databases designed to ensure and promote safety in the sport," the letter says.
A stated goal of the ABC is to promote safety in not only boxing, but other professional and amateur combative sports. Their letter points out that fighters on unregulated cards aren't drug tested, there is no requirement for an ambulance or a physician to be on site, and athletes who are knocked out or suffer concussions are not protected by a system of mandatory disclosure and subsequent medical review.
"It's a very good letter," Marc Ratner, vice president of regulatory affairs for UFC, said. "I think it could help. The letter shows how nonsensical it is to have unregulated amateur fights and not approve pro fights."
UFC president Dana White is so confident that the New York MMA ban won't last that he has put a hold on Madison Square Garden for one night in November to hold the first UFC event in New York.
"I've been saying it for so long, that I'm optimistic this is going to happen," White told NYFightblog this week. "I'm just very optimistic. It's ridiculous it hasn't been done yet. I'm so confident I'm picking a date. We've been working for years with Madison Square Garden, they're a huge supporter and want us to do the first ever MMA event there."
UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones, who lives in Ithaca, N.Y., is a fan of that idea.
"Do I think UFC will run a show at Madison Square Garden in November? Yes. Do I think it's a good idea for me to headline the show? Yes," he said.
In possibly Rampage Jackson's last UFC fight, the former champion was visibly exhausted.
It also was easy to see that Glover Teixeira was well on his way to a unanimous decision Saturday night in front of a capacity crowd at the United Center.
Jackson, the 34-year-old former light heavyweight champion was taken down in all three rounds, but Teixeira (20-2) couldn't finish him. Jackson (32-11) got back to his feet every time. Late in the second round, Jackson tried to shrug off Teixeira's punches, but fatigue appeared to be setting in.
"I really wanted to win that fight," Jackson said. "I kind of wish I fought smart and didn't get hit so much, but I always said I would rather lose a good fight than win a boring one and the fans are telling me that was an exciting fight. So I guess I'm sad but not so sad. I fought like Rampage tonight."
The fight was scored 30-27, 30-27, 29-28.
Jackson, who fought his last fight under his current UFC contract, has been critical of the UFC and how he perceives the organization treats its fighters. He insists the fight was his last in the UFC, but plans on continuing his MMA career.
"He just walked out right now and screamed, 'You are going to miss me,'" White said. "I said, 'I miss you already buddy.' ... Rampage's biggest problem is that he doesn't always train. He doesn't always stay in shape. If he took this sport 100 percent, hardcore, serious, God knows what that guy would be able to accomplish, but he doesn't."
Demetrious Johnson successfully defended his flyweight title in the main event, unanimously outpointing John Dodson.
Dodson, fighting at 125 pounds, landed left hands twice in the second round, sending Johnson to the ground. In the third round, Johnson had a takedown and landed a knee to get back in the fight. Johnson was warned after two illegal knees, a low blow in the first round and an illegal knee in the fourth round.
Johnson (17-2-1) started taking control late in fourth land, landing a series of knees to Dodson's head and a series of punches as Dodson (15-6) tired. It continued in the fifth and final round, as Dodson couldn't defend repeated knees to his head.
Johnson struggled in the first two rounds.
"I got dazed a little bit, but I am in good shape," Johnson said. "It is going to happen. You are going to get hit."
In a lightweight bout, Anthony Pettis (14-2) landed a left kick to Donald Cerrone's body and followed with a left jab in the second round, knocking Cerrone (19-5) to the ground and winning his third straight fight.
"Shutting that guy up was the biggest thing for me," Pettis said. "Now I never need to hear about that guy again. He's done. He got beat in one round. Goodbye."
Pettis put himself in a position for the lightweight UFC title and asked the question to UFC President Dana White.
"I am not scared to fight anybody. I want the champ ASAP," Pettis said. "Dana White what do I have to do for this title fight?"
Pettis came off an 11-month layoff after shoulder surgery.
In another main card fight, 30-year-old Chicago native Ricardo Lamas (13-2) dropped a series of elbows and punches on 24-year-old Erik Koch (13-2) before the featherweight bout was stopped by referee John McCarthy. Lamas had Koch pinned to the ground and went to work on Koch's bloodied face.
Read More: Rampage loses in UFC finale; Johnson keeps title - MMA - SI-com
If the message sent from mixed martial arts referees to fighters wasn't already loud and clear, it should be etched in stone after UFC on FOX 6: There are few, if any, consequences for fouls committed during their fights.
Flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson's unanimous decision victory over John Dodson in Chicago on Saturday night was a solid, back-and-forth fight which earned the Fight of the Night award it was given. The bout should put to rest the silly notion flyweights are too small to headline a major event, especially in light of Sunday's news of the event's strong television ratings.
But Johnson-Dodson was also a match which turned on two fouls by Johnson, neither of which resulted in a point deduction by referee John McCarthy.
The first was a third-round strike to the groin, after which Dodson, who was coming off his strongest round of the fight in round two, slowed considerably. The more egregious foul occurred in the fourth round, when Johnson delivered a knee to the head of a downed Dodson.
Dodson had his hand on the mat when Johnson wound up and drilled him in the head with a knee. Without a point deduction, Johnson won a unanimous decision, with scores of 48-47, 48-47, and 49-46. Had a point been taken away, the score would have reverted to 47-47, 47-47, and 48-46, a majority draw.
Whether you think the "hand on the mat" rule, which enables a fighter to technically stay "downed" and avoid a knee to the head, is a good one -- plenty of people don't -- isn't the point. That's a valid debate for another time. But the referee is supposed to call the rules as they're written, not how we might want them to be.
On the Fuel TV postfight show, UFC president Dana White told MMAFighting's Ariel Helwani he felt the point should have been taken away.
"I do think that the point should have been taken away," said White. "Here's the thing about that. It was absolutely an illegal knee, but it was an illegal knee that caused damage too. After that, he had a mouse on his eye, he definitely had damage from it. There should have been a point taken away from that."
Eye pokes, fence grabs, low blows, and strikes to downed opponents have been a part of the average fight card as long as we've been watching the sport. I admittedly haven't crunched numbers on this, but it seems like with each passing show, we're seeing more timeouts due to fouls and fewer point deductions for them.
I'm not accusing fighters of deliberate cheating. Johnson comes across like the last fighter who would do so. But if the refs send the signal that when push comes to shove, they won't exercise their authority to dock a point, the fighters are given a subtle green light to go for that inside leg kick that's a little close to the groin, that borderline strike on a downed opponent, or to be a little less careful with their fingers around an opponent's face.
Last night, Johnson's knee was a turning point in a well-contested fight. McCarthy's non-call made a material difference in the fight's outcome. If a referee won't use his discretion to dock a point in such an obvious situation, then why even bother having the rules on the book?
"It was a great fight. I'm happy the fans liked it." -- Johnson, whose efforts weren't booed by an unappreciative crowd this time around.
"There's a fight happening next weekend, I'm going to be there watching and I'd love to have the winner of that fight," -- Ricardo Lamas, who wants the winner of Jose Aldo Jr. vs. Frankie Edgar
"Rampage's biggest problem is that he doesn't always train. He doesn't always stay in shape. If he took this sport 100 percent serious, God knows what this guy might be able to accomplish. But he doesn't." -- White on Quinton Jackson.
Good call
Nothing worth praising in either the judging or officiating end this time around.
Bad call
This one goes to the judging in Clay Guida's split-decision victory over Hatsu Hioki. Judge Richard Winter gets a pass, since he got it right in giving Hioki the first two rounds and Guida the third. Sal D'Amato gave Guida rounds two and three. Hioki controlled round two from the bottom, but we're well past the point of surprise over the fact a professional MMA judge can't discern the fact that the fighter on top isn't always winning the round.
But then there was the card turned in by Gabriel Sabaitis. Sabaitis, a Chicago native whose few major-league MMA judging assignments have been on Illinois cards, was about the only person watching the fight aside from perhaps Guida's friends and family who saw round one for Guida. Sabaitis delivered a 30-27 card in favor of the Chicago fighter. I don't want to say "hometown decision," but ...
Stock up: Anthony Pettis
All Anthony Pettis has been able to do over the past two years, as the lightweight title shot he was once promised eluded him, was take care of the things he was able to control. And boy, did he do so on Saturday night. Pettis made short work of Donald Cerrone, adding a "Showtime knee" to his repertoire and delivering a brutal kick to Cerrone's liver, which lead to a quick finish. Presumably, Pettis also shut up a fighter who had taunted him often over the past year and questioned his guts. With the victory, Pettis seems to finally have that elusive title shot in his sights, as White has said he'll fight the winner of the April 20 Benson Henderson-Gilbert Melendez bout. Sure, we've heard that one before. But there's no denying the former WEC champ did his job, and a network television audience of millions can attest to his worthiness.
Stock down: Quinton "Rampage" Jackson
Yeah, I'm starting the obvious. But "Rampage" didn't do himself any favors with his performance against Glover Teixeira on Saturday night. Jackson showed some flashes of his old power early in the fight and showed decent resolve in weathering an early storm and escaping a submission attempt. But by the third round, Jackson looked like a fighter who didn'
Saturday night's sixth rendition of UFC on FOX, minus the technical issues that took the analysts out of play for much of the show, looks to have answered major questions about the series long-term.
It now appears it's the season, as much as the product, that determines the ratings. Of the four shows promoted off FOX's football coverage, all four were ratings successes, by a wide margin over the other two. Saturday's show came in with questions about its marquee value based on headlining with Demetrious Johnson vs. John Dodson for the flyweight title.
Neither fighter was a big name. Johnson just became the first flyweight champion in September. Yet, based on the overnight ratings, the show finished ahead of the Dec. 8 show that had Benson Henderson vs. Nate Diaz, who are far bigger names, for the more established lightweight title. Both shows also had a former major pay-per-view draw coming off a series of losses with B.J. Penn in December and Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson on Saturday. Those are the type of fighters who have only fought on free TV once or twice in their entire careers, and even if their careers are past their peak, they are two of the sport's best-known names.
There are a lot of goals a UFC on FOX show should have. One, perhaps the biggest, is creating new stars in front of the most eyeballs possible so they can draw later on pay-per-view. The first two matches, a featherweight bout with Ricardo Lamas beating Erik Koch and the lightweight bout with Anthony Pettis beating Donald Cerrone, both accomplished those goals. It really didn't matter who won as long as the winner looked impressive. Pettis, in particular, couldn't have possibly looked more impressive, nor sold himself as a title contender any better. Lamas, largely unknown to the casual audience, also dominated his match. Glover Teixeira, another fighter that it was important to expose to the masses, beat an in-condition Jackson, but didn't finish him.
The title match was more about establishing a new division, and having the winner whoever it would be, coming off to the public like a special fighter. There are questions about the size of the flyweights. In MMA, only B.J. Penn and Urijah Faber have shown substantial drawing power at less than 170 pounds.
Johnson and Dodson are both listed at 5-foot-3, and that's being generous. When the bout started and they were standing next to 6-foot-4 inch referee John McCarthy, it almost looked comical. But by the end of the fight, nobody should have been laughing.
There was no denying their athletic ability or skill set. It was a given going in that the match would be fast, since the two were probably the two fastest fighters in the organization. When it was over, Johnson came across as a deserving champion, dominating the final two rounds.
DEMETRIOUS JOHNSON - The UFC's first-ever flyweight champion (17-3) used an innovative and diversified offensive attack to take the later rounds in retaining the title. He survived a series of second-round knockdowns. While he's probably not going to pull big numbers defending the title on pay-per-view yet, perhaps ever, he established his name with a larger fan base.
The problem with flyweights, more than any UFC division except perhaps the newly-created women's division, is a lack of obvious contenders. The best fighters aside from Johnson and Dodson appear to be Joseph Benavidez and Ian McCall, who meet this coming Saturday at UFC 156 in Las Vegas.
The problem is Johnson just beat Benavidez. And if McCall wins, Johnson faced him twice last year in the quest to win the title. There is a story in that the first fight was a draw, but ended up McCall pounding on Johnson and having him close to being finished. You could strongly argue McCall should have won the first, Johnson clearly took the rematch, so a third match is warranted should McCall win on Saturday.
There are a few others, John Moraga, Darren Uyenoyama and John Lineker, who need a standout performance in their next outing to open eyes since the field is wide open for a contender.
Dana White, after the show, was even discussing a possible Johnson vs. Dodson rematch off the controversy of whether McCarthy should have deducted a point for an illegal knee Johnson threw. The knee was clearly accidental, but did do enough damage that the doctor was called. If the point was deducted, the unanimous decision would have been a majority draw, that would have set up a rematch.
QUINTON JACKSON - The biggest established star of the show, Jackson (32-11), is at a major career crossroads. His contract with UFC expired with the fight, and he was stating adamantly, that he feels disrespected by UFC and it was his last fight with the company. But at 34, he has no intentions of retiring. He talked about trying boxing, or fighting MMA with another organization.
As far as his loss to Teixeira, his third in a row, he offered no excuses and admitted that he is no longer a top-tier fighter. He excused his loss to Jon Jones, noting Jones is the champion. He excused his loss to Ryan Bader, because he came in with a knee injury that required surgery.
After the show, he comparing himself to Gary Goodridge, an MMA pioneer who he spoke with many times. Goodridge told him at the end of the day, it's all about being entertaining. Goodridge was never really a top-tier fighter, but had a long career in Japan as a name fighter because he took the mentality he's there to put on a show.
The lay of the land is very different from in 2007, when Jackson started with the UFC. Japan is dried up, and there is nowhere to go where Jackson is likely to be able to make anywhere near the kind of money he's made the last six years. Even if he couldn't make that kind of money in UFC going forward, he still would likely be able to earn more there than anywhere else.
Perhaps he could go to Bellator. He's actually the type of fighter that would be good for Bellator to have if it could
SI-com has confirmed through multiple sources that UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture has signed into a multi-year deal with Spike TV, a property of Viacom, to appear in multiple projects for the cable channel, as well as other possible ventures within the media conglomerate's family of networks.
As a part of the multi-faceted agreement, Couture's first role will be as a coach in the forthcoming Bellator MMA reality Series, which begins shooting in February and airs later this year.
Spike TV will unveil this industry-shifting announcement on Feb. 5 during a press conference in Los Angeles, where Couture and Spike TV president Kevin Kay will discuss details of the agreement and what the 49-year-old retired fighter's role will be on the Bellator series and possibly other Spike-broadcasted projects. The series is expected to feature a number of current and up-and-coming Bellator fighters.
Sources told SI-com that the deal with Spike and Viacom was executed in late December, much to the disapproval of Couture's former employer, UFC president Dana White. Since his retirement in April 2011 at age 47, Couture has turned his attention to Hollywood with supporting roles in The Expendables and its summer 2012 sequel, and had most recently served as an on-camera analyst for the UFC's live events on Fox. However, Couture was absent from the UFC on Fox 6 broadcast on Jan. 26, replaced by one-time teammate Chael Sonnen.
Bellator MMA (formerly Fighting Championships), a tournament-format live event series that airs Thursdays (10 p.m. ET) on Spike, debuted on the men's specialty channel on Jan. 17, garnering 938,000 average viewership during its two-hour-plus broadcast. Viacom purchased a majority share of Bellator in October 2011 to replace the programming void left after UFC owners Zuffa LLC moved its sports property to the Fox Sports Media Group in a seven-year deal reportedly worth around $630 million.
Couture (19-11) is no stranger to Spike's loyal male-driven audience. In January 2005, he and Chuck Liddell starred as coaches on the first season of The Ultimate Fighter, the reality series largely credited with launching the UFC and MMA's explosive rise in popularity over the last seven years. Couture also appeared on subsequent seasons of the series, which now airs on FX. In 2007, Spike also dedicated a night of primetime viewing to Couture's storied UFC career, which saw him become the first athlete to hold titles in multiple UFC divisions.
The as-yet unnamed Bellator series is being helmed by seven-time Emmy Award-winning producer Bertram Van Munster (The Amazing Race, Cops).
Representatives for Couture and Spike TV declined to make comment until the Feb. 5 announcement.
Read More: Randy Couture signs Spike TV deal, joins Bellator reality series - MMA - Loretta Hunt - SI-com
Tuesday night's second episode of The Ultimate Fighter reality show on FX did a 0.9 rating and 1.27 million viewers, an audience drop of 16 percent from week one.
The drop is similar to most seasons after the first week. It's both well ahead of the Friday night numbers and also below what the show was doing on Wednesday nights on Spike. The lowest-rated season on Spike, season 13 with Brock Lesnar and Junior Dos Santos as coaches, averaged 1.38 million viewers.
Thursday's show built to a fight with England's Luke Barnatt, representing Team Sonnen, finishing wrestler Gilbert Smith with a flying knee in the second round.
It placed fifth in its time slot on cable in the 18-49 demographic, doing a 0.7. Its main sports competition was college basketball on ESPN, which did 1.71 million viewers head-to-head, but was slightly behind at an 0.6 in the most sought after demographic.
Week three pits Uriah Hall (7-2) of Team Sonnen, one of the season's favorites, against Adam Cella (4-0). Hall is a kickboxer whose two career losses are to current UFC middleweight stars, Chris Weidman and Costa Philippou. Cella is undefeated with all four wins coming by first-round finish, the longest lasting 3:17.
Second episode of The Ultimate Fighter does 1.27 million viewers - MMA Fighting
A local push is on to legalize mixed martial arts in New York state.
New York state Assemblyman John Ceretto, R-Lewiston, on Thursday introduced legislation to make the professional fighting sport legal and regulated in the Empire State.
In a release from his office, Ceretto said the sport is expected to generate more than $5.2 million in economic activity a year in Western New York, plus additional revenue for the rest of the state. Currently, Mixed Martial Arts is regulated and recognized by 36 out of 44 states that have athletic commissions including California, New Jersey, Ohio and Pennsylvania.
“Once again, New York state is missing out on an opportunity to generate revenue, create jobs and strengthen our tourism industry,” Ceretto said. “Mixed martial arts is not the ‘no-holds barred’ debacle it was 20 years ago. Today, MMA is highly regulated and is one of the safest contact sports, with far fewer injuries than boxing, football or even gymnastics. MMA is a proven draw and I look forward to the day when venues in Niagara Falls and throughout the region have the ability to host these exciting and profitable events.”
“MMA will be another event to help bring tourist and their dollars to Niagara Falls and would be a boost for local hotels, food-service and other tourist-related industries,” Ceretto added. “The sport is very popular and has a loyal fan base, which is rapidly growing worldwide. These fans want to enjoy the sport live and I believe Niagara Falls would be an ideal venues for these events.”
Ceretto believes that opponents of the sport are misinformed and noted that the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) made rule changes several years ago to enhance the sport’s safety and make it more palatable to both the mainstream public and top-notch athletes and competitors.
“I understand that some people may not like the sport. However, there is no reason to stand in the way of allowing thousands of New York mixed martial arts fans to enjoy the sport locally,” said Ceretto. “The sport is all over television and can even be seen regularly on broadcast television. By failing to legalizing MMA in New York, the Legislature is just ensuring that this money is spent elsewhere and depriving our economy of a proven commodity that will have a positive effect on a wide range of businesses. As the Ranking Member of the Assembly Tourism Committee, I find that unacceptable. MMA should be a part of our local tourism industry and I am confident that common sense will finally trump misguided perceptions of the sport this year.”
Caged Power 4 was held at the Morgantown Event Center Friday night.
The event has different boxing and mixed martial arts (MMA) fights.
Fighters from out of state, and even a few locals, showed their skills. Competing in bouts like this takes a lot of preparation.
"[It takes] a lot of running and a lot of sparring. I get hit by my best friends on a daily basis," said Tray Taylor, a mixed martial arts fighter from Ohio. "Besides that, weight lifting and cardio is very important. You got to make sure you don't get tired."
Eric Watkins was born and raised in Morgantown, he's a student at West Virginia University and was excited to be able to box in front of his hometown.
"This is a homecoming. I haven't gotten to fight here I fought in Vegas, Madison Square, Turnstone," said Watkins. "I'm glad to be back in front of the home crowd where all my friends and family can come out and support."
Both Watkins and Taylor were listed as the main events of the night in each of their areas of boxing and MMA fighting.
LAS VEGAS -- No camp had more to gain at UFC 156 than the Blackzilians. And as it turned out, none had more to lose. Alistair Overeem lost out on a UFC heavyweight championship fight when he was knocked out by Antonio Silva, and in the very next fight, the potential of Rashad Evans moving to middleweight to fight kingpin Anderson Silva went up in flames after he was upset by Antonio Rogerio Nogueira.
All three judges scored the bout 29-28 for Nogueira. The Brazilian came into the night as the biggest underdog on the card, as Evans was nearly a 6-to-1 favorite in the closing line of the sportsbook at the host Mandalay Bay.
But it was Nogueira's superior hands that got the job done, along with a vastly improved wrestling game. Evans was only able to complete one of five takedowns, but only held down Nogueira for a few seconds before he popped back up and made the fight a striking contest again.
In that world, Nogueira used a crisp jab and an accurate, straight left to score points, while Evans struggled to find his target.
Evans fell to 17-3-1 with the first two-fight losing streak of his career. Nogueira is now 21-5.
It's never a fighter’s intent to give his opponent extra motivation, unless of course you’re heavyweight contender Alistair Overeem and you just don’t respect the other guy.
Lack of respect is almost certain to serve as extra motivation for any fighter, and Overeem’s opponent Saturday at UFC 156 -- Antonio Silva -- was no exception. But Silva and fellow Brazilian Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, who faced former light heavyweight champion Rashad Evans, didn’t need antagonism from their foes to give them an extra adrenaline pump. The promotion had done that for them.
Before their main-card bouts at Mandalay Bay Events Center, Overeem and Evans were being offered UFC title shots if they managed to win their respective fights. No such promises were made to Silva and Nogueira.
Whether intended or not, they were on the show as fodder for Overeem and Evans. According to the UFC’s master plan, the Brazilians were on hand to take their beatings like men, get paid, go home and wait by the phone to learn of their next fight -- and who knows when that would have been? Silva and Nogueira weren’t the stars at UFC 156; that distinction was reserved for the guys standing across the cage from them.
The nerve of UFC: making title-shot plans without first consulting with "Bigfoot" and Lil Nog.
But Silva and Nogueira are proud men. They are also company guys, so neither made any verbal stink before fight night. Each would have his say inside the Octagon, however, and UFC officials weren’t going to like the messages being delivered.
It took Silva some time to express himself against Overeem. He was behind after two rounds, in a bout that lacked much excitement up until that point. But in the third, Silva made his feelings known. He delivered a vicious overhand right to Overeem’s head, followed by several more hard punches.
The trash-talking, overconfident Overeem slumped to the canvas, virtually unconscious. And while in that feeble position, Silva stood over him, screaming at him to get up.
“Many people did not believe in [me],” Silva said after tossing a monkey wrench into the UFC’s heavyweight title plans. “But I believed in me. “Alistair did not respect me. But I worked hard on my striking for this fight. I showed the world a lot about me. And I specifically showed Overeem how to respect another fighter.”
He also showed -- better yet taught -- UFC officials a thing or two about going public with potential title-fight plans before all the ducks are in a row.
In fairness, Silva’s knockout of Overeem was highly unforeseeable. But a Plan B should have been in place and made known to the public, at least to save face.
Now UFC decision-makers find themselves in the awkward position of scrambling to find a suitable opponent for Cain Velasquez.
Silva’s upset win exposes a topic that has been swept under the rug in recent months -- UFC’s heavyweight division still has a dearth of title-worthy contenders, despite the addition of Strikeforce fighters. That shallow well has UFC scrambling to find a suitable replacement for Overeem.
White hinted at Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix winner Daniel Cormier as the most deserving opponent for current champion Velasquez, but he’ll have a difficult time making that fight a reality. Cormier has stated repeatedly that he will not fight his American Kickboxing Academy teammate and close friend.
So determined is Cormier never to step in the cage opposite Velasquez -- and vice versa -- that he’s already begun the process of cutting weight for an eventual showdown with light heavyweight titleholder Jon Jones. In other words, good luck UFC getting Velasquez and Cormier on a billboard facing one another. The news wasn’t all bad Saturday night for UFC. While Evans was looking at a possible middleweight showdown with that division’s titleholder, Anderson Silva, top contender Chris Weidman is a solid option.
No timetable can be set for that fight until more is known on the progress of Weidman’s recovery from shoulder surgery. Silva-Evans, however, was gaining traction and would have generated a lot of fan interest.
Giving Evans hope of a 185-pound title shot seemed like a nice gesture initially. But no one took time to consider Nogueira’s feelings. He was the forgotten man at UFC 156. There were no high-profile stories written about him, nor was anyone suggesting that he receive title-shot consideration with an upset of Evans.
Nogueira is a quiet, sensitive man, who used the prefight slight as motivation. And it worked to his benefit as he utilized a stiff right jab, a hard straight left and picture-perfect takedown defense to register a unanimous-decision win.
“[Offering Evans a title shot] motivated me a lot because before he could fight Anderson Silva, he had a big fight against me,” Nogueira said. “I worked a lot on my wrestling skills and my boxing. I know I was very ready for this.”
Silva and Nogueira might have felt a bit slighted by UFC, but each used it to their advantage Saturday night.
Intended or not, making prefight title-shot plans public can work against UFC’s interest. But on second thought, it can also work in the promotion’s favor -- an entertaining heavyweight fight developed due to Silva’s added desire to silence Overeem.
And Nogueira used his extra incentive to become relevant again. He certainly won’t be the forgotten man the next time he’s slated to appear on a UFC card.
UFC 156 proves nothing is a given in MMA - Mixed Martial Arts Blog - ESPN
Superstars like Jon Jones, Georges St-Pierre and Anderson Silva don't come around every day.
These are MMA's biggest stars, and they were formed by career-defining moments. Moments such as these can be anything between a flash knockout or an improbable submission win.
For these stars, most of those moments revolve around infrequent situations. Sure, these fighters have their fair share of flashy knockouts and thrilling, dominant victories.
But these UFC stars helped elevate their status by enduring rivalries, which have resulted in grudge matches.
But that isn't their only claim to fame. Here are today's biggest MMA stars' top three career-defining moments.
Read More: Top 3 Career Moments from Today's Biggest MMA Stars | Bleacher Report
The UFC president told MMAFighting-com Wednesday that his ear surgery went "great" and he was already flying home to Las Vegas. White went under the knife at the House Ear Institute in Los Angeles on Tuesday.
White has been battling Ménière's disease for over a year. According to MayoClinic-com, Ménière's disease "is a disorder of the inner ear that causes spontaneous episodes of vertigo — a sensation of a spinning motion — along with fluctuating hearing loss, ringing in the ear, and sometimes a feeling of fullness or pressure in your ear."
White wrote via text message that he was "sore but that will go away in a few days" following the surgery. He added that he will not be flying to Brazil for UFC on FX 7 this weekend. He hopes the surgery will cure the excruciating pain he has felt as of late.
The 43-year-old White started to feel the effects of the disease at the end of 2011, and it later forced him to miss his first UFC event in 11 years when the disease prevented him from flying to Fairfax, Va., for UFC on FUEL TV 3 in May.
"This is a different procedure," he said in October of the surgery. "They're going to try where they go in and cut the back of my ear open and they go in through there. They insert a tube, and it's supposed to give me a 70 percent chance of not having an attack."
Dana White calls recent ear surgery a success - MMA Fighting