By now I am sure you are all aware who came out the victor between BJ Penn and Georges St. Pierre in their Welterweight Title clash at UFC 94. Despite what appeared to be a clear-cut finish not all parties involved agree due to accusations from Penn’s team of Pierre’s camp bending the rules.

Below is the story so far:

UFC lightweight champion B.J. Penn, whose recent loss to Georges St. Pierre remains mired in controversy, recently released a video to document the allegations that his opponent “greased up” during the fight.

Last month, within minutes of St. Pierre’s fourth-round TKO victory at UFC 94, the allegations began.

However, what at first may have seemed like sour grapes from Penn gained instant credibility when Nevada State Athletic Commission executives admitted they had to warn and even wipe down St. Pierre between rounds because of his corner’s use of Vaseline.

While Vaseline is only permitted to be applied to a fighter’s face, corner men for St. Pierre appeared to apply small amounts of the petroleum jelly to the fighter’s shoulders, chest and back.

Penn’s video, promoted on his website BJPenn.com, shows clips of the Vaseline apparently being applied, and even the commission executives wiping St. Pierre down.

The nearly seven-minute video also includes interviews with St. Pierre’s former opponents, including Sean Sherk (who jokes that St. Pierre seemed oiled up), as well as other excerpts from recent coverage of the incident.

In a recent letter to the NSAC asking for an investigation, Penn claimed his primary weapon in the fight was his Jiu-Jitsu. He claimed his opponent’s slick body essentially took away that weapon, and he’s since campaigned for a third fight with St. Pierre, who also defeated Penn in 2006.

While obviously one-sided in nature, Penn’s video has been gaining some steam the past 24 hours and proven persuasive with many fans.

The video can viewed HERE.

So according to the video evidence there is good cause to say Pierre’s win was not a clean win giving good reason for a rematch. Have we seen the end of BJ Penn’s rivalry with George St. Pierre? No. While things are still hot from their last encounter a rematch for a few months time needs to fixed on the calendar now to cash in on what is sure to be another big money drawing match up continuing their feud.

GSP and Penn III BJ Penn wants it, the UFC want it and the fans want it!

Hey even if Penn’s chances are slim against Pierre he still deserves another chance to prove himself on an even playing field.

On Saturday 21st February the UFC makes a welcome return to British soil for UFC 95 when the hard-hitting action will take place in London underneath the giant tent formerly known as the Millennium Dome, more recently known as the 02 Arena. For those in the United States this fight show is available free on Spike TV or part of your subscription package to Setanta Sports here in the United Kingdom. Fortunately as it airs live from England there is no need to set your alarm clock for stupid o’clock or try staying awake despite a night on the booze as UFC 95 on Setanta Sports 1 starts at the godly hour of 8pm!

UFC 95 features two homegrown fight heroes for us Brits to cheer on, but no Michael Bisping this time but two up and coming English fighters signed to the UFC – Dan Hardy and Liverpudlian Terry Etim. Both English mixed martial artists are enjoying some attention on TV appearing on Setanta News’ Ultimate Talk as well as featuring in the Daily Star. The line-up is not quite as huge match-up wise compared to the recent offerings from Dana and co at the UFC, but we have been spoiled GSP versus Penn II and Couture versus Lesnar. With many Brits getting in the Octagon, this event is a good opportunity to see some of the fighters who may appear on the upcoming season of The Ultimate Fighter as members of Team Britain captained by Captain Britain himself Michael ‘The Count Bisping as the opposition to Team USA that will of course be led by Dan Henderson. It is worth noting that although Brit Dan Hardy is in the co main event on the London event the videos promoting UFC 95 are hyping up Nate Marquardt against Wilson Gouveia along with Sanchez versus Stevenson ignoring the Hardy and Markham bout which is listed as the co main event. Presumably this is due to Hardy being a little known name in the wider world of the UFC and North America. So this makes me wonder if Bisping against Henderson will take place in the UK or the USA? Bisping is a bigger name with the fans over on this side of the pond and the UFC has really taken off in Britain so it would be awesome if they booked a stadium size venue for that clash later in the year. Back to Saturday night’s big show. While Dan Hardy is second from top Liverpudlian Terry Etim a fighter who learnt his trade pre UFC for Cage Rage here in the UK has yet to prove himself in the eyes of the UFC so bolsters up the preliminary card.

Dan Hardy vs. Rory Markham

Dan Hardy makes up the second half of the co-main event slot as he does battle with American Rory Markham. For the punk-haired Hardy it be just his second time in the UFC Octagon despite the Nottingham based combatant having an MMA fight record of 20 – 6. Pre UFC Hardy cut his teeth in the Cage Warriors promotion where he previously held Light Heavyweight and Welter Weight belts. In his last UFC Octagon outing Hardy beat Gono and Dan aims to impress once again by beating Rory Markham in a stand up war, which is Hardy’s strong point. I am hoping for home ground hero Hardy to win this one by round two.

Diego Sanchez vs. Joe Stevenson

Just above Hardy versus Markham we will see Diego Sanchez pitted against Joe ‘Daddy’ Stevenson fighting in the lightweight division. Diego Sanchez down from 170 to 155, brings extra power as a

Lightweight fighter. 15lb drop is a big drop in weight so it will be interesting to see if he will be on top form or a disadvantage.

Nate Marquardt vs. Wilson Gouveia

Nate Marquardt is one of the top guys under Anderson Silva within the middleweight bracket.

Wilson Gouveia only lost one fight in past 2 years and is a submission specialist. So we have two tough guys looking to prove themselves here as they work their way up the Middleweight rankings of the UFC.

Here is the full card:

Main card

• Lightweight bout:  Diego Sanchez vs. Joe Stevenson
• Welterweight bout:  Dan Hardy vs. Rory Markham
• Middleweight bout:  Nate Marquardt vs. Wilson Gouveia
• Middleweight bout:  Demian Maia vs. Chael Sonnen
• Welterweight bout:  Josh Koscheck vs. Paulo Thiago

Preliminary card

• Lightweight bout:  Brian Cobb vs. Terry Etim
• Heavyweight bout:  Junior dos Santos vs. Stefan Struve
• Heavyweight bout:  Mike Ciesnolevicz vs. Neil Grove
• Lightweight bout:  Per Eklund vs. Evan Dunham
• Welterweight bout:  Troy Mandaloniz vs. Paul Kelly

 After reading this check out this link to view the UFC 95 video on the official UFC youtube.com channel.

Affliction: Day of Reckoning recently took place on Saturday 24th January. The good news for UK fight fans is Bravo broadcasted the follow up Affliction event just a day later at 9pm on Sunday 25th January. So many of us got to see the event without the need to attempt finding it on the net.

Here is the show reviewed as shown on Bravo.

The Affliction brand returns to pay per view and the MMA big-time. They are joined by Russia fight promotion M1 Global and multi millionaire Donald Trump. A new addition to the on air team is non other than former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Tito ‘The Huntington Beach Bad Boy’ Ortiz. Tito known as a talker coupled with being an MMA fighter seems a good choice for commentary on the sport. He joins the voices recognised to M1 Challenge (Bravo 2 week nights) viewers as their commentary duo. There is another recognised face from the world of the UFC working on this show none other than referee ‘Big’ John McCarthy, making a welcome return to MMA refereeing since no longer working for The Fight Network. As the show starts there is a big time international feel at the hotly anticipated second Affliction branded event. The card is perhaps more comparable to a Pride FC show or one hosted by K1 Dynamite despite no Japanese fighters taking part.

Fedor Emelianenko vs. Andrei Arlovski – WAMMA Heavyweight Title

What a huge match-up this is! In what can be seen as UFC vs. Pride as Andrei ‘The Pitbull’ Arlovski the former UFC World Heavyweight Champion invades Affliction against the supposed best heavyweight mixed martial artist in the world. Can Fedor ‘The Last Emperor’ Emelianenko be toppled off his thrown by the second monster of the octagon thrown at him? Fedor goes in once again as the smaller man versus the much taller Arlovski but the thing to remember about Fedor is he is one hell of canny veteran when it all kicks off. The last Pride Heavyweight Champion packs one hell of a knock down punch plus he’s great on the ground at making his opponents tap-out. Many have fallen by the wayside against Fedor including Noguira back in Pride, a former champion himself. The argument against Emelianenko currently is the lack of decent competition put his way. Another criticism aimed at ‘The Last Emperor’ is that by not signing up for a fight deal with the Zuffa brand it implies the Russian Sambo master is running scared of the best competition the UFC has to offer. So far he’s beaten Tim Sylvia a former UFC title holder at the last Affliction pay per view – Banned, he didn’t get the opportunity against Couture who almost signed with Affliction but was not able to due to legal reasons. That clash of two legends not happening was out of his control but has left MMA fans still eager to see it happen someday. He has all the fame and money he wants in the east having fought in Japan as well as his home country of Russian where he is a national hero. Oh yes even their President Vladimir Putin is a huge fan of Fedor! Hopefully this heavyweight clash will answer some of the questions and perhaps stop the doubting Thomases.

When the combatants entered the squared-circle you could tell something huge was about to happen. Arlovski made his way to the ring carrying a dual flag representing both his native Belarus and his adoptive home the USA. Stood in front of each other you could really see the height difference as Andrei towered over the thick set Fedor.

Round 1

The fight starts off appearing pretty even as each fighter sets their distance. Andrei defends Fedor’s takedown attempts with power holding him off in the clinch and cutting the ring off following strike exchanges. Cleary Arloski the bigger and stronger fighter takes the upper hand. Andrei seizes his opportunity as he flies in with a knee attempting a lethal attack on the Russian. Fedor whacks him hitting him right on the button! The combined power of Arlovski jumping towards Emelianenko and Fedor’s own punching power knocks the big Belarusian right out! Giving ‘The Last Emperor’ another huge win within the first round. Affliction, please stick around as I am coming back for more! Fedor is awesome there is no two ways about it.

Result: winner Fedor ‘The Last Emperor’ Emelianenko in 3:34 of Round 1.

Post fight analysis

Putting the Fedor vs Arlovski fight into a traditional martial arts context it’s all Yin Yang! You beat someone by making their strength their weakness; it’s the classic Crane vs. the Snake as was Brock Lesnar against Frank Mir where Mir was the Snake winning by submission on the ground. Going back to the pro wrestling comparisons Fedor vs Andrei was WWF vs. WCW with Arlovski representing the second half of the Outsiders following Tim Sylvia. So who will be the Hulk Hogan? Well that would be none other than Josh Barnett. After all he is already there and getting some boos to boot, it appears. Oh yeah he is big and blonde and American after all, so there is your Hulk Hogan.

Post fight Tito Ortiz congratulates Fedor on another successful fight for Affliction and questions him on the possibility of fighting Josh Barnett next. Fedor says he is his friend and fighting Barnett is not on his mind. The big question is though will M1 and Affliction pair them up for the next pay per view or would another ex UFC name sign on the dotted line challenging Emelianenko for his WAMMA strap? It could be argued Josh has not fought someone in the top end of the Affliction roster to deserve a title fight but it is early days for the MMA fight brand but he is of the right pedigree to challenge to the Last Emperor. Fedor versus a bigger recognised name would sell more tickets and PPV buys it could be argued also. Ultimately regardless of how the bouts are promoted and where the fighters loyalties lie if Affliction continue to put together more wicked fights like this on the top of the bill they will have a lot of success. Whether Fedor can keep his crown and remain at the top is a story the fans of MMA want to follow.

Paul Buentello vs. Kiril Sidelnikov

Further down the card we saw American brawler Paul Buentello in action against Kiril ‘Baby Fedor’ Sidelnikov, a member of the fight team – Team Red Devil captained by the event headliner Fedor Emelianenko. The Russian youngster trained by Fedor put up a tough fight but not enough to overcome the experience of veteran Buentello. Buentello racked up his second victory in Affliction in round 3 via TKO following the ringside doctor’s call because of the damage inflicted to Kiril’s eye.
Result: winner – Paul Buentello in Round 3, TKO

Renato ‘Babalu’ Sobral vs. Rameau Sokoudjou

What a great opportunity to see two former UFC fighters in action. For Sobral it was a return to form. Sokoudjou a world class Judoka, was great defending Sobral’s takedown attempts but he was outclassed versus the veteran Babalu. Sobral’s who has paid off eventually. Babalu snatched the win in round 2 using via Anaconda choke nearly putting Sokoudjou to sleep, who appeared very groggy afterwards.

Result: winner – Renato ‘Babalu’ Sobral Tap Out in round 2

Matt Lindland vs. Vitor Belfort

This one sided contest was short lived for Olympic Silver Medalist Matt Lindland who got knocked down and completely out by Vitor ‘The Phenom’ Belfort in 37 seconds! Vitor the former UFC Light Heavy Weight Champion dropping down to middleweight for the first time looked terrifyingly awesome in his destruction of the Lindland the Olympian. Post fight it took some time for Lindland to make it back to his feet. The medical team and teammate Dan Henderson aided Lindland. The crowd applauded when the fallen warrior Lindland made it to his feet showing their appeciation.

Josh ‘The Baby Faced Assassin’ Barnett vs. Gilbert Yvel

Before the heavyweight main event we saw two other world class heavyweights go head to head. The tough but technical Barnett representing Pro Wrestling knew before getting in there with Yvel Gilbert he knew he would have his hands full. Yvel has a history of fighting dirty and doing whatever it takes to win, which has caused his fights in the past to end in disqualification for the dirty fighting Dutch kick boxer.

The fight was a one hell of a battle of wills. Barnett dominated on the mat with utilising Catch Wrestling skills but in the process took some heavy hits from the dirty Dutch Yvel. Barnett maintained the advantage attempting many submissions and pounding punches from the top position nearly winning many times. Whenever Yvel did manage to break free of Barnett’s ground grappling Yvel was soon brought back down again. Eventually Yvel could take no more punishment and taps, wanting no more punishment.

I have got to say as a long time pro wrestling fanatic I loved it when Barnett followed Yvel’s tapping out by doing a ‘throat slit’ signifying the end! Paying homage to wrestling greats former Four Horseman Arn Anderson and Chris Benoit.

Post fight there are boos, but were they directed at Barnetts’s unspectacular win or towards Tito Ortiz as he quizzes Josh on being a possible challenger to Fedor’s throne? Josh shares with us that he wanted to give the fans a classic finish by knockout or submission victory but struggled with breathing problems due to a nosebleed and constant swallowing of blood.

Result: winner – Josh Barnett Tap Out due to strikes in round 3

This time from the Worked Shoot we catch up on all the recent news from around the ultimate fight world as I scurry around the net gathering all the titbits before going back into winter hibernation like my pet hamster! Boy it is cold out there!

UFC Fight Night 17 – Joe Lauzon vs Jeremy Stephens
Saturday Feb 7th from Tampa Florida.

Televised Bouts

• Joe Lauzon vs. Jeremy Stephens
• Mac Danzig vs. Josh Neer
• Cain Velasquez vs. Denis Stojnic
• Luigi Fioravanti  vs. Anthony Johnson

Following up two weeks after Fight Night the UFC return to pay per view back in Britain.

UFC 95 – Diego Sanchez vs. Joe Stevenson
Saturday, February 21, 2009
The O2 Arena in London, England

Come Spring time the UFC have two huge fights from the Light Heavyweights:

UFC 96 – Quinton “Rampage” Jackson vs. Keith Jardine
Saturday, March 7, 2009
Nationwide Arena in Columbus, OH

UFC 97 – Chuck Liddell vs. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Montreal, Quebec, Canada

UFC 98

UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar and interim champion Frank Mir will fight on May 23 at UFC 98 to determine the undisputed UFC heavyweight champion.

UFC president Dana White confirmed the fight will take place May in Las Vegas on an appearance Wednesday on the WAAF’s Hill Man Morning Show in Boston.

The co-headliner for UFC 98 will be the long-delayed welterweight bout between Matt Hughes and Matt Serra.

Making his UFC debut in only his second professional MMA fight, Lesnar lost to Mir at UFC 81 “Breaking Point” on Feb. 2, 2008. Lesnar was caught with a kneebar after dominating the entire fight with powerful ground and pound.

Source: MMAFighting.com

St-Pierre V BJ Penn

Georges St-Pierre and his team have released an official statement responding to accusations that St-Pierre purposely applied vaseline to create an unfair advantage over BJ Penn at UFC 94.

The full statement:

George St-Pierre’s successful welterweight title defense at UFC 94 was the direct result of his disciplined preparation and skillful execution of a masterful gameplan. Any implication to the contrary would diminish the significance of what was perhaps the biggest fight in MMA history.

St-Pierre states: “I have never cheated in my life, and as my fans know, I am deeply committed to upholding the integrity of the sport. My entire camp and I have been completely open about what happened during my fight at UFC 94 – we have nothing to hide. One of my cornermen did use an energy technique to help with my breathing that involves rubbing my back. He’s also done this in my previous fights. If there was any Vaseline left on his hand after he put it on my face, it was unintentional, and I do not believe it made the slightest difference in the outcome of the fight. Of course it’s up to the UFC, but I would be happy to offer BJ a second rematch. I am confident the outcome will be the same.”

Team GSP is currently enjoying our victory celebration and we will soon turn our attention and focus toward Georges’ next competitor – Thiago Alves.

Source: MMAFighting.com

For the past several days I have been reading statements made by St. Pierre and Greg Jackson about our fight on January 31.

St. Pierre claims that he is “not a cheater” and that he and Greg Jackson will have “no problem with a rematch in the summer of 2009.”

To the untrained eye the grease might not look like much, but every grappler knows the effect that it has.

Being able to apply your submissions and sweeps or just being able to hold on to your opponent to defend yourself from being hit is absolutely critical!

There is a reason why you are not allowed to put grease anywhere on your body except for the area around your eyes.

Because of the grease applied to St.Pierre’s Body the Nevada State Athletic Commission’s executive director, Keith Kizer has stated that the Penn-St. Pierre fight “definitely wasn’t fair”.

I hereby accept George St. Pierre and Greg Jackson’s challenge for a fight in the summer 2009.

Lets call Dana now and set it up.

- BJ Penn

Thank you all for the support

Mahalo and Aloha From Hawaii

Source: BJPenn.com

Martial arts master passes away - 29th Jan – Helio Gracie dies aged 95

Helio Gracie, Grandmaster of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and the head of the famous Gracie family, has passed away aged 95, it has been confirmed by Brazilian sources.

Fighters Only correspondent Edu Ramos, who is based in Brasilia and who presents Brasil Combate TV, contacted our office with the news on Thursday afternoon.

According to family members, Gracie had icked up an infection recently and in the last few days had grown steadily weaker. His age meant his immune system was unable to fight the infection off.

Gracie died in the early hours of this morning and was scheduled to be buried later this evening (Brazilian custom is to bury the dead within 24 hours).

However, his sons Rickson, Royler and Rorion are all apparently away from Brazil at present and the funeral may be postponed to allow them time to return.

Source: FightersOnlyMagazine.co.uk

Bobby Lashley latest

The Observer reports that Bobby Lashley suffered torn ankle ligaments in training and is now out of his 2nd MMA fight that was scheduled for February 2nd against Michael Hayes for the Palace Fighting Championships.

UFC 94: St. Pierre vs. Penn II – Preview

UFC Welterweight Title Challenge – Georges St.Pierre vs. UFC Lightweight Champion B.J. Penn

Who is the best pound for pound fighter in the world of MMA? The question has been asked regularly for some time. This weekend at UFC 94 the highly anticipated rematch between BJ Penn and GSP is going to help answer that question as BJ Penn attempts to win the Welterweight Championship belt from Georges St.Pierre and avenge his loss from UFC 58 in Las Vegas, March 2006. So a tale of revenge sets the scene for the drama about to unfold inside the UFC cage.

BJ ‘The Prodigy’ Penn is from the warm climate of Hawaii, Georges ‘Rush’ St Pierre hails from icey cold climes of Montreal, north of the American border in Canada. Not only are both mixed martial artists from contrasting parts of the world but we have two fighters from distinctly different backgrounds. GSP a hard working white-collar hero who has worked hard for what he has got, he even worked as a dustman, now you cannot get anymore working class than that! BJ from a wealthy family doesn’t even need the money, so being the best is clearly his motivation.

Throughout January this MMA super clash has been heavily promoted via  UFC Primetime show on Spike TV as well as on Ultimate Talk on Setanta Sports in the UK.  Penn has not been portrayed well, shown as being lazy taking a break on the Hawaiian beach, making him appear arrogant as if he doesn’t need to train as hard as GSP to win. Penn rightly so was not happy with his portrayal and wanted no more of being filmed for the promotional show. Stylistically St.Pierre is a master Kickboxer and wrestler, whereas the skills of Penn are with the arts of Jiu-Jitsu and boxing. Basically they are both two of the very best most well rounded fighters out there and both on top of their game.

Their last outing went to the scorecards with GSP wining the decision by dominating with his wrestling in two rounds. BJ the Light Weight Champ is going up a weight bracket to fight GSP the Welterweight Champ. Pierre is the bigger man with the size and reach advantage, having seen how devastatingly effective he has been it seems like it will goes his way. Penn claims he was not at his best before but now he is a changed man and an improved fighter.

I can’t decide whom to put my money on between BJ and GSP, but feel Penn is at a slight disadvantage in this fight. My heart says BJ as the underdog but my brain says GSP. Listen to me, don’t I sound like Simon Cowell when he decides to be all fair to the X-Factor contestants, showing us his true Libran traits.

Below are links to UFC on youtube.com to catch up on all the hype in living colour.

• BJ Penn talks fight strategy [YouTube Link]
• UFC Primetime 1/14/09 (1of2) [YouTube Link]
• Part 2 [YouTube Link]

Lyoto ‘The Dragon’ Machida vs. Thiago Silva

That is not all folks! Just below the main event super clash there is action from the light heavies as Lyoto ‘The Dragon’ Machida clashes with Thiago Silva. In this bout it is winning streak versus winning streak as the two Brazilian fighters collide in the octagon. Machida is a friend and training partner with the man often referred to as the pound for pound best fighter in the world along with being the current UFC Middle Weight title holder, he is none other than Anderson ‘The Spider’ Silva! Now for starters some of that magic has got to rub off onto Lyoto. Machida is known as an elusive fighter, landing quick punches. ‘The Dragon’ an expert in Shotokan Karate, a style most fighters are not used to. My prediction is a win for Machida continuing his winning streak sending up the lead towards a challenge for Rashad Evans light heavyweight crown.

Here’s the rest of the main card:

• Welterweight bout:  Karo Parisyan vs.Dong Hyun KimConsidered by many, Karo to be the first UFC fighter to have successfully adapted his Judo style for the UFC Octagon, he is the likely winner in this winner.
• Lightweight bout:  Nate Diaz vs. Clay GuidaI’m backing Diaz, he impresses me with his Jiu-Jitsu and the guy has a lot of heart to win.
• Light Heavyweight bout:  Stephan Bonnar vs. Jon Jones

Octagon Updates

In the stacked Light Heavyweight Division of the UFC two new fights have been booked by the matchmakers. Rampage vs. Jardine is scheduled for UFC 96, then at UFC 97 Liddell takes on Shogun. Don’t forget that landmark event UFC is getting closer. This mammoth show will take place July 11 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center, Las Vegas. Rumours are spreading over the web that all titles will be defended or is that just some fans dream pay per view? All titles being contested would make it fun but would it be a case of overkill? Where would they go next following a pay per view like that?

UFC 93 – Review

Last weekend the UFC debuted in the Republic of Ireland at the Dublin 02. Headlining the pay per view was two top match ups in the Light Heavyweight division put together by UFC management. Rich Franklin versus Dan ‘Hendo’ Henderson and ‘Shogun’ Rua pitted against Mark Coleman. Skipping to the top end of the event let’s see how the action went down round by round for Dublin’s first UFC PPV.

Mark ‘The Hammer’ Coleman vs. Shogun Rua

The background to this fight is the return to a hot rivalry in Pride FC, last time Coleman won by default since Rua was injured. To various UFC enthusiasts it was not a fair decisive win since the injury was an accident. Coleman viewed it differently, he was the clear victor breaking his opponent’s bone. Neither fighter had fought for some time, with Rua returning from injury since his last outing in the Octagon. Really it could be seen as a test to see if both men were back in fighting form and worthy of being at the top of a UFC card. Of course from a ticket and pay per view sales point of view they are great booked in the joint main event but were they both at the top of their game? Another point to note is both fighters are former Pride fighters and thus far not all the Pride fighters have proven their worth in the American big league. Also Coleman is an aging warrior dropping weight from heavyweight to light heavyweight for the first time. It is also worth noting Coleman has not fought in the UFC for a decade when he left for the big bucks (or should that be Yen?) of the Orient. Originally a year ago Coleman was scheduled to fight the now UFC Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar, which would have been his return to the UFC. So going into this the odds looked against UFC Hall of Famer Mark Coleman. The hotly tipped Rua still had to prove himself though having been talked of as the best light heavyweight in the world before joining the UFC.

Round 1

Shogun kicks Coleman but Coleman takes him down to the canvas of the cage to neutralise his attack using immense wrestling skills and sheer power. Shogun utilises his Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu once on his back where he wants to be. Throughout round one the majority of the action is contested on the ground, Rua looks good attempting many submissions. As the round draws to a close the older fighter Coleman appears out of gas showing the affects of cutting weight for his light heavyweight debut. Brazilian Rua goes on the attack with strikes finding an opening but gets taken down back the deck by Coleman, who does not want to stand up and exchange blows.

Round 2

Going into round two Rua comes out the aggressor taking charge of the fight once again using a barrage of strikes, but as before returning UFC veteran Coleman shoots in dragging the fight back to the deck. When the action does return to the upright position Coleman looks horrible, Rua just picks him off at his will. Coleman seems to be taking far too much punishment. As witnessed before, Coleman not having the stamina in the stand up does what he knows best by taking Shogun down but Coleman is not in control, as Rua neutralises Coleman’s Yang with his Yin defending from his back. Shogun cannily catches the wrestler in an Omo Palata attempting a tap-out win. So a gripping end to the second round but Rua didn’t quite have what was required to get the job done.

Round 3

Amazingly the fight has reached the third and final round, but both competitors look exhausted. Action continues in the same vein mostly on the canvas seeing Rua taking the advantage in the ground grappling stakes, but Coleman the amateur wrestling trained fighter switches it around taking Shogun’s back beating at him with his famed ground and pound onslaught. Rua skilfully postures up escaping Coleman’s clutches going straight in for a vicious knee. Coleman is a downed opponent so Rua is warned for this violation of the UFC rules, unlike back in the old Japanese Pride fighting league. Both mixed martial artists get a breather then the action is restarted standing up.

In truth taking into account all the opportunities Shogun has had throughout the fight he should have beaten veteran Coleman but Rua is exhausted as well. Then finally Rua achieves the TKO win knocking down Coleman and the referee calls a stop to the bout. At first Coleman protests angrily with the referee because of the stoppage afterwards but once the decision had been officially announced he showed respect to Shogun the better man on the night by embracing the victor and raising his hand. In the post fight interview Coleman declared he would relish a rematch continuing their rivalry. I would be interested to know if Mark Coleman will actually remain fighting in the Light Heavyweight Division of the UFC. Rua had a clear disadvantage over Coleman due to the fact Coleman had to drop weight before the contest. I believe previously when they fought in Pride FC it was all part of an open weight tournament not requiring either MMA fighter to make weight. Overall tonight’s bout didn’t see either fighter on top form but it was still a damn good brawl for the Irish fans in attendance.

Rich Franklin vs. Dan ‘Hendo’ Henderson

In the second half of the co main event we return to the Light Heavyweight Division of the Ultimate Fighting Championships. No title fights on the bill, but there is a storyline building up here for a major confrontation. You see the winner decides the opposing coach for British mixed martial artist Michael ‘The Count’ Bisping for the upcoming season of The Ultimate Fighter. Plus on top of that the two TUF team coaches will face each other later in the year once the ninth season of the reality TV series closes

Entering the octagon each fighter has film star looks in comparison to the fight battered face of MMA veteran Mark Coleman, with Hendo appearing like a perfect action hero where as baby faced Franklin closely resembles funny man Jim Carrey. This time the match up rather than being between two fighters from the now defunct Pride league we see Pride vs. UFC. Hendo the Olympic pedigree wrestler made his name as a mixed martial artist winning belts in Japan, most notably a dual title holder. Franklin on the other hand is viewed as a UFC creation. So for the pro wrestling fans out there it is comparable to AJ Styles wrestling Kurt Angle or Triple H against Sting (hmm… the latter will probably never happen).

Round 1

Not long into the round Henderson slips going in for the attack and gets taken down by Franklin. Hendo the superior wrestler not surprisingly manages to turn it around taking control on the canvas. As the round continues Rich breaks free of Hendo’s grasp bringing the action back upright turning the match into a boxing contest. Franklin has excellent movement on his feet looking very agile with his longer frame. Some exciting brawling takes place with Rich the taller fighter taking a slight edge over Henderson but right at the close of the round Jim Carrey look-alike Franklin sustains a nasty gash as Henderson accidentally head butts his opponent.

Round 2

The second round is soon underway as the fight continues with both men scrapping it out. Hendo sneaks the advantage utilising his wrestling skills crashing Franklin to the deck to unleash a ground and pound onslaught. Franklin defends himself the only way he can by squirming on his back in an attempt to avoid the blows. Franklin survives from beneath but can he overcome veteran Henderson to come out the winner for the opportunity to coach on the next season of The Ultimate Fighter?

Round 3

Into the third and final round, Hendo sticks to his game plan soon taking the top position on the ground game overpowering Franklin. Again Rich defends well using his

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu expertise, jostling for position beneath Hendo. It pays off for Franklin who valiantly wrestles back to his feet fighting back in the clinch. The fight soon returns to an exchange of kicks and punches with both men on their feet. Following Henderson using a lot of energy overpowering Franklin on the ground Rich actually looked dominant displaying more energy in his movement. During the exchanges Rich receives an accidental poke to the eye resulting in a two minute timeout.

With little time remaining, both fighters go full pelt at each other. At this point overall it is fair to say the fight appeared pretty even. So it goes to the judges as neither fighter could pull it out of the bag to end it with a knockout or tap-out.  The win goes to Henderson by a split decision.

So we now we know who Michael ‘The Count’ Bisping will have as his opposite coach on TUF 9 as it will be team USA to battle team UK.

Taking a look at the rest of the Dublin event from the start the Irish fans were treated to a crowd pleaser from adopted Brit Marcus Davis who made his entrance to the cage wearing a kilt to the sound of classic party anthem ‘Jump Around’ by American Irish Hip Hoppers the House of Pain’s. The ‘Irish Hand Grenade’ was clearly the fan favourite playing on his Gaelic heritage against his opponent Chris ‘Lights Out’ Lytle. Both combatants are former pro boxers who decided to keep the fighting to their styles rather than attempting to win via tap-out. This bout would be a huge contrast to what was at the top of the bill. We saw two guys compete putting on a damn good scrap but are they really fully rounded as MMA fighters? Not really from what we saw. If either fighter took it to the ground instead of sticking to strikes it may have given him the advantage by attempting to win that way. After all that is what makes the sport of MMA so uniquely different compared to Boxing. The split decision nod went to Marcus Davis, to the pleasure of the Dublin fans in attendance.

Next we saw Denis Kang a Pride FC veteran making his debut against Alan Belcher. Here was another opportunity to see a former Pride warrior battle within the confides of the UFC cage.  Both men are veterans of MMA with Kang being hugely over in Korea. Kang looked impressive initially, especially with his ground game, looking the stronger grappler. Clearly he is comfortable in the cage, so no problem adapting from the

squared-circle to the octagon. Despite looking dominate as a grappler giving a good first impression he loses by making a fatal mistake as he shoots in, Belcher neutralises his attack cinching in a tight guillotine hold snatching the tap-out win.

Other action from the Irish pay per view was between the highly experienced submission-specialist Jeremy Horn facing another tap-out master Rousimar Palhares. Horn has an extensive fight record including more than 50 wins by submission and a win over Forest Griffin the former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion plus the experience of fighting UFC legends Dan ‘The Beast’ Severn and Randy ‘The Natural’ Couture. Not surprisingly the vast majority of the action took place on the deck. Palhares throughout the fight dominated Horn. Palhares looked awesome with his submission attempts and pulled out a wicked suplex in round three! Horn clearly a very durable fighter showed us a lot of heart. Overall Palhares controlled the fight but never came that close to finishing seasoned MMA vet Horn. Palhares received a unanimous decision on the scorecards.

Lastly before the double main event bouts Irish lad Tom Egan debuted as hometown fan favourite versus London shoot fighter John Hathaway. Despite the home crowd advantage Egan could not overcome the superior wrestling of English fighter John ‘The Hitman’ Hathaway. The London Shoot Fighter beat the TKO win out Egan via some awesome ground and pound. Seeing as us Brits are not known for an amateur wrestling pedigree in recent years it was great see to such an impressive wrestler in action from the UK.

Here we are back after the festivities and fun of Christmas time and welcoming in the New Year. I hope you have not over spent or over indulged. I know my New Year’s resolutions include getting a six-pack instead of a potbelly and winning the Lotto. Probably neither will happen but hey you got to have a goal to aim for!

UFC 92 lived up to the hype, being a fantastic event to finish off the year for the Zuffa owned brand on pay per view.

UFC 92: The Ultimate – Review and Results

One baby-face lost and another won in style! Right at the top of the card the hottest UFC baby-face lost – Forrest Griffin but the other fan favourite won – Quinton Rampage Jackson. Originally I thought big Nog would weather the storm but it wasn’t to be, Mir was wicked in the stand up! It was all surprises overall with the 3 big fights in fact, although Rashad winning seemed pretty likely to me. It’s good to see Rampage the UFC’s other babyface back on top form.

So how good were my forecasts for UFC 92 I made in the last Worked Shoot? Not exactly spot on by the looks of it, just 1 out of 3 near enough right. It is a good job I didn’t place a bet on them all.

Here is more on each fight plus a look back at my predictions:

Wanderlei Silva vs. Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson – grudge match

My prediction: Wanderlei Silva – win by TKO in round 3.

Aired lower down on the card but it was in fact the number three reason to order this stacked PPV. Wow I didn’t seeing this one coming following Rampages loss to Griffin coupled with the incident that followed. Boy was Jackson back and on top form having left the US soil for England training at the Wolfs Lair, the home of Michael ‘The Count’ Bisping. Rampage was out for avenge continuing their rivalry from Japan. If you caught the build up at the weigh in you would have seen some heated exchange of words followed by some shoving, so no wonder neither opponent touched gloves at the opening of the bout. Rampage’s last Octagon outing went the distance but not this time swiping the win within the first round. Rampage won the bout by completely overwhelming his opponent Wanderlei Silva using his trademark ‘crazy monkey style’ to avenge his two previous losses to the Brazilian fighter in Pride FC. One of the ringside witnesses to this is slaughtering of Silva was none other than Chuck ‘The Iceman’ Liddell, the fighter Rampage took the Light heavyweight strap away from. It was a classic moment as Chuck looked towards the floor not wanting to see what had taken place. I get the feeling Liddell is staying in the light heavyweight bracket now but is none too keen. As Joe Rogan said both fighters have changed since Rampage’s two losses to Wanderlei. Rampage has improved with age where as Wanderlei is not as consistently dominant as he once was back in Pride Fight Championships.

In the post fight interview Rampage celebrates with a Sting style howl and hollers out thanks to the Lord above and the Wolfs Lair MMA gym in Britain. So in a way it was a win for British MMA as well as a huge comeback win Rampage himself.

Minotauro Nogueira vs. Frank Mir  – Interim Heavyweight title fight

My prediction: Nogueira to tap-out Mir in the 2nd or 3rd round to take it, thus becoming Brock Lesnar’s next opponent and challenger for the heavyweight crown.

I put my hands up to this one, as my prediction was totally wrong. Before the action kicked off Brock Lesnar is asked his thoughts on the fight. A humble sounding Brock proclaiming himself as not the real champ until after he has fought the winner of Mir and Nog’s Interim Heavyweight title decider. Preferably the UFC’s  ‘Next Big Thing’ Brock wants Mir to be the victor so to he can settle the score. Lesnar picked the right man.

Round one sets off seeing Mir dominating in stand up, displaying fantastic boxing technique. Mir was storming in his stand up attack on the veteran Nogueira. We never got to see any either fighters ground skill expertise, when it did go to the ground Mir brought the action straight back up to the feet.

Round two continuing the fight without grappling ground action, which was would have been expected from two masters of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Soon into the second round it did not take Mir long to take the win by TKO knocking veteran Nog to the canvas of the caged combat zone. Well I never knew if the Interim Title challenge was a set for three rounds or five but got to found out seeing the fight only reached as far as round two!

Post fight during Frank’s interview despite Brock Lesnar coming across very humble giving us the impression he had crossed over to being a fan favourite he gets booed by the UFC crowd proving in the fans eyes he is a hated heel. All the more reason for Dana White and Joe Silva to give Brock and Mir top of the show at a future pay per view event this year.

So there we have it another surprise as Nogueira rated as one of the very best heavyweight MMA fighters in the world takes a horrific loss to Frank Mir. Brock Lesnar now knows who he will be defending his belt against when the times come, with the added advantage he has fought him once before so knows what to avoid and train for. Then on the other hand the new Interim Champion Frank Mir is on a high having beat a man who he looked up and beat in impressive fashion will be facing the WWE guy he beat last time.
Forrest Griffin vs. Rashad Evans – Light Heavyweight Title Fight

My prediction: I see this going of two ways a decision win for Griffin after the full 5 rounds or Evans knocking out Griffin in an early round.

This is the one if I did not sit on fence I would have predicted correctly. The UFC poll indicated that the fans were backing their hero fan favourite Forrest Griffin. Rashad Evans going into the fight has a clean record of no losses intending to keep his winning streak intact. One of his victims includes the former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion ‘The Iceman’ Chuck Liddell another fan favourite and icon of the Octagon. In fact Rashad is the one punch powered fighter who put Liddell to sleep. As he Rashad enters the cage to the sound of rapper KRS One’s ‘Step into a World’ it is clear who the fans in attendance want to lose. Personally I loved seeing Rashad entering to a KRS One tune but hey I am an old school Hip Hop which affirmed it for me who I wanted to take the title home.

Griffin got a great reception from the crowd being the winner of the original Ultimate Fighter series, known for having a lot of heart. In fact it can be said Griffin played a major role getting the UFC and the sport of Mixed Martial Arts accepted in the main-stream. Rashad also a name recognised from the series made the bout a crowd grabbing match-up sure to pull in the punters. Both men stepping into this were there to prove themselves as worthy of the top spot on the pay per view event having come from the reality TV series. Griffin as champion also needed to prove he is worthiness as champion seeing as his was not 100% decisive a lot of people’s eyes. So it was winning streak versus title!

Round one kicked started off fairly even with both men on their feet keeping to a stand up game. The taller fan favourite fighter Forrest appeared to have the slight edge over his opponent.

Into the second round we saw more explosive boxing action, with again a slight edge to title holder Griffin.

As round three got under way into the thick of the action Evans shoots in taking down Griffin, following up by pounding him into the mat, with Griffin moving squirming to just about enough to defend the attack to avoid the ref calling for a stoppage. Rashad keeps Forrest on the floor until he gets what he is aiming for and blasts him chin for the win, giving Sugar Rashad a sweet TKO win, declaring Evans the new UFC Undisputed Light Heavyweight of the World.

Prepare for some black on black violence within the confides of the cage in 2009 when the new Light Heavyweight Champion will defend against undoubtedly the number contender in the division and a former champ Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson.

Al Turk vs. Cheick Congo

Other action on the night included the Lebanese British based hopeful Al Turk versus Cheick Congo of France.  In the clinch Al Turk kneed Congo below the belt causing a timeout. Not long after the action restarted Congo did the same back to Al Turk, giving the fighters another timeout. So it was evens on that count. Really this just dragged the bout out longer but the action itself did not last long. Congo outclassed his opponent winning by a swift ground and pound. In fact it appeared ground fighter Al Turk went to the ground on purpose with the aim of pulling guard. Congo looked awesome; in all fairness the ref could easily have stopped it sooner in my opinion.  Despite being known as the Cage Rage British Heavyweight Champion Al Turk was no match for the Wolfs Lair trained Congo.

Pat Berry vs. Dan ‘The Viking’ Evenson

Elsewhere on the fight card K1 striker Pat Berry made his Octagon debut taking on Dan ‘The Viking’ Evenson. Berry gave us an impressive tester of his K1 kicking credentials within the MMA cage. Taken down once but recovering his stance back to the up right position Berry is quick to bag his first UFC win with one fast powerful leg kick. Now it not often you see a fight ended that way in the UFC!

CB Dollaway vs. Mike Massenio

Following that display of amazing stand up skills we see an amateur wrestling rivalry revived as The Ultimate Fighter 7 runner up CB Dollaway fought wrestling rival Mike Massenzio. Unsurprisingly it was not long for the action to towards the deck. Things seemed to be going Massenzio’s way looking likely he would win by a tap-out but Dollaway got the upper hand taking Massenio’s back beating him with his face facing the canvass and no where to go. He just couldn’t seem to escape and lost to CB via ground and pound TKO.

Matt ‘The Hammer’ Hamill vs. Reese Andy

Acclaimed deaf fighter Matt Hamill took on Reese Andy for the next contest as it was wrestler versus wrestler. Neither decided to grapple in the opening round, keeping the action upright.

Come round two Andy seems all out of gas, Hamill senses this taking down his opponent with the win coming by way of TKO ground and pound finish.

K1 and DREAM – Fields Dynamite 

Wednesday 31st December 2008 – Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan

Results credit to – MMAFighting.com

Full results from the New Years Eve Japanese super show:

1. K-1 Koshien Reserve Bout

Taishi Hiratsuka def. Daizo Sasaki via KO – R2

2. DREAM Open-Weight Bout

Ikuhisa “Minowaman” Minowa def. Errol Zimmerman via submission (toehold) – R1

3. K-1 Koshien Semi-final Bout

Koya Urabe def. Tatsuya Kusakabe via TKO – R3

4. K-1 Koshien Semi-final Bout Hiroya def. Shota Shimada via unanimous decision

5. K-1

Artur Kyshenko def. Yoshihiro Sato via majority decision

6. DREAM

Daisuke Nakamura def. Hideo Tokoro via submission (arm bar) – R1

7. DREAM

Andy Ologun def. Yukio Sakaguchi via KO – R1

8. K-1 Koshien Final

Hiroya def. Koya Urabe via unanimous decision

9. DREAM Heavyweight Bout

Bob Sapp def. Kinniku Mantaro via TKO – R1

10. DREAM Heavyweight Bout

Semmy Schilt def. Mighty Mo via submission (triangle choke) – R1

11. DREAM

Hayato “Mach” Sakurai def. Katsuyori Shibata via TKO – R1

12. K-1

Tatsuya Kawajiri def. Kozo Takeda via TKO – R1

13. K-1 Heavyweight

Alistair Overeem def. Badr Hari via TKO – R1

14. DREAM Heavyweight

Mirko “Cro Cop” def. Hong Man Choi via TKO – R1

15. K-1

Gegard Mousasi def. Musashi via TKO – R1

16. DREAM Heavyweight

Melvin Manhoef def. Mark Hunt via KO – R1

17. DREAM Lightweight Bout/WAMMA Championship Bout

Shinya Aoki def. Eddie Alvarez via submission (heel hook) – R1

18. DREAM

Kiyoshi Tamura def. Kazushi Sakuraba via unanimous decision

Very little footage available to view up on good old youtube of the action in the orient but after trawling through I did find the full fight between Cro Cop and the giant known as Hong Man Choi

Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic vs Hong Man Choi [YouTube]

World Victory Road: Sengoku No Ran 2009

Sunday January 4th 2009 – Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan

Another big card took place recently in the Orient that being Sengoku No Ran.

Here are the results from the show:

Results credit to MMAFighting.com

Hidetaka Irie def. Minoru Kato via TKO (strikes) – R2 (4:21)

Maximo Blanco def. Seigo Inoue via KO – R1 (0:38)

Choi Mu Bae def. Dave “Pee Wee” Herman via TKO (strikes) – R2 (2:22)

Eiji Mitsuoka def. Sergey Golyaev via submission (arm bar) – R1 (4:22)

Antonio Silva def. Yoshihiro “KISS” Nakao via TKO (injury) – R1 (1:42)

Muhammed “King Mo” Lawel def. Yukiya Naito via TKO (strikes) – R1 (3:54)

Sanae Kikuta def. Hidehiko Yoshida via split decision

Jorge Santiago def. Kazuo Misaki via submission (RNC) – R5 (3:26)

Satoru Kitaoka def. Takanori Gomi via submission (Achilles lock) – R1 (1:41)

Here is some of the footage from the Sengoku show available on youtube

Sengoku 7: Kiss Nakao vs Antonio Silva [YouTube]
Choi Mu Bae vs. Dave “Pee Wee” Herman [YouTube] 

Jan. 17 UFC 93: Dublin (PPV) 

 The UFC start things off by debuting in Dublin for their first ever event held in the Emerald Isle. Topping the bill will be Rich Franklin against Dan Henderson clashing in Middleweight action. Both fighters are former champions, Franklin a former UFC Middleweight Champion, Henderson a former Pride middleweight and Welterweight Champion. It looks highly likely the winner of this contest will be the opposite coach to British fighter Michael ‘The Count’ Bisping on The Ultimate Fighter Season 9.

Billed as the co-main event is Mark Coleman taking on Maurico Rua in the Light Heavyweight Division. The two stars making their return to Octagon action are both also former champions. Rua is the Pride 2005 Middleweight Grand Prix winner and the Pride 2000 Open Weight Grand Prix winner; Coleman is a UFC Hall of Famer plus a former Heavyweight Champion.

Here is how the pay per view card currently looks.

Rich Franklin (24-3) vs. Dan Henderson (23-7)

Mauricio “Shogun” Rua (16-3) vs. Mark Coleman (15-8)

Denis Kang (31-10-1) vs. Alan Belcher (13-5)*

Marcus Davis (15–4) vs. Chris Lytle (26-16–5)*

Under card (May not be broadcast):

Ivan Serati (10-2) vs. Tomasz Drwal (14-2)*

Andre Gusmao (5-1) vs. Antonio Mendes (15–3)*

*Fight not yet officially confirmed by UFC.com

Check out this promotional trailer from UFCDirectVideos for the Dublin PPV covering the co-main event contests [YouTube].

Affliction: Day of Reckoning

A week later, following hot on the heels of the first Irish UFC pay per view, back in the US new kid on the MMA block make their anticipated return on Saturday 24th January.

Titled Affliction: Day of Reckoning will once again be hosted at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Reigning WAMMA Heavyweight Champion takes his place in the headlining bout; his challenger on the night is Andrei Arlovski.

Affliction 2 will be available in the US via Showtime PPV on January 24th. This mammoth show will also feature Antonio Rogerio Nogueira and Vladimir Matyushenko in action airing live on HDNet fights.

Here is the fully announced card so far for Affliction: Day of Reckoning

Main event:

Fedor Emelianenko vs. Andrei Arlovski

Under card:

Matt Lindland (21-5) vs. Renato “Babalu” Sobral 185 lbs

Chris Horodecki (12-1) vs. Dan Lauzon (10–2) 155 lbs

Josh Barnett vs. TBA 265 lbs

Vitor Belfort vs. TBA 185 lbs

Antonio Rogerio Nogueira vs. Vladimir Matyushenko 205 lbs

Paul Buentello vs. Kiril Sidelnikov (4-2) 265 lbs

Jay Hieron vs. Jason High 170 lbs

Mark Hominick vs. LC Davis 145 lbs

Albert Rios vs. Antonio Duarte 145 lbs

Brett Cooper vs. TBA 265 lbs

Other news

Confirmed for UFC 95 in London will be Demian Maia vs Chael Sonnen, the outcome will declare a challenger to take on Anderson Silva the current reigning Middleweight champion.

Coverage of the M1 Challenge started over on digital channel Bravo 2 this past Monday the 5th January. M1 Challenge is a league similar to the now defunct IFL in that the focus is on teams, the difference being the teams represent not only a gym but also their own country.

Well The Fight Network has now gone from our screens in the UK on Sky television and former UFC referee ‘Big’ John McCarthy has left what remains of the company in North America. Going by what Joe Rogan said on UFC 92 he wants to get in back his former role as a UFC referee.

See you back here in two weeks time on Sunday 24th January for more MMA results, reviews, news, views, previews and pundit predictions.

Well here it is the second edition of The Worked Shoot but not quite in time for Christmas as planned. It is no virgin birth but it is a miracle of sorts you are now reading this. My PC technically knocked out my near finished draft! So this all had to be rewritten, the plus side being new news and previews has now been added. That will teach me, in future I am backing up my files!

So put your feet up and pour yourself a glass of your favourite Christmas tipple as we take a peek at all the recent MMA action highlights then anticipate the big fights from the world of Mixed Martial Arts coming over Christmas and the New Year.

At last Bobby Lashley made his promised MMA debut on a show titled There Will Be Blood – and blood there was! The former WWE pro wrestling superstar did not hang about in his Mixed Martial Arts debut versus fellow rookie Joshua Franklin. Lashley grounded Franklin, pounding him, opening up the rookie opponent’s forehead, leaving him with a huge gash. The wound was too serious to continue the contest. Over in just 41 seconds Lashley earned his first MMA win in his first fight. This gives the UFC match makers something to consider if they want to book two former WWE wrestlers in a PPV, of course first of all the Zuffa backed brand need to sign him up.

Bobby Lashley’s debut was the co-main event of Saturday for the “Mixed Fight Alliance: There Will be Blood” show held in Miami, Florida. Lashley’s appearance was thanks to the American Fight League having loaned him out since their first event is being rescheduled. Originally signing with the American Fight League in May, the fight fans and wrestling fanatics would have had to wait since the promotion has been unable to provide a bout for the 32-year-old former collegiate wrestler, fortunately Lashley was allowed to fight outside of the American Fight League while the group’s operations are on hiatus.

Lashley is likely to next be in MMA action for California based Palace Fighting Championships scheduled for February. His opponent is yet to been announced. Lashley is aiming his sights high so let’s hope 2009 will see him make it as successful as the other successful former WWE star Brock Lesnar.

In action for the second part of the co main event saw Ricco Rodriguez take on Jeff Monson. This was a rematch from UFC 35 with Monson avenging his near-seven-year-old loss to Rodriguez. Three wins in a row for Monson winning with a unanimous decision from the judges, over the former UFC champ.

UFC Fight Night 16: Fight for the troops

Wednesday, December 10th

The event was held at the Crown Coliseum in Fayetteville, North Carolina. Airing live on Spike TV in the US and in aid of the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund. Boy what a patriotic event this was with the UFC bookers taking a leaf out of Vince McMahon’s book as Muslim named Razak Al-Hassan took on Steve Cantwell. Steve Cantwell def. Razak Al-Hassan via TKO (armbar) – R1 (4:04) On top of that it was the USA vs Japan for the main event, which saw Josh Koscheck take on Yoshiyuki Yoshida in the middleweight bracket. Koscheck knocked out Yoshida to be declared the winner in round two of the bout.

Here are the rest of the results from the card:

• Justin McCully def. Eddie Sanchez via unanimous decision
• Dale Hartt def. Corey Hill via TKO (injury) – R2 (0:20)
• Ben Saunders def. Brandon Wolff via TKO (strikes) – R1 (1:49)
• Steve Bruno def. Johnny Rees via submission (RNC) – R2 (3:44)
• Luigi Fioravanti def. Brodie Farber via unanimous decision
• Jim Miller def. Matt Wiman via unanimous decision
• Tim Credeur def. Nate Loughran via TKO (submission) – R2 (5:00)
• Mike Swick def. Jonathan Goulet via TKO (strikes) – R1 (0:33)

The UFC treated fight fans to a second free to air show on the same week with the season 8 finale of The Ultimate Fighter.

The Ultimate Fighter 8 Finale

 Saturday, December 13, 2008, Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, NV

Since Bravo no longer air The Ultimate Fighter the UFC reality show it has not been added to my Sky TV planner with a series link. So sadly I missed the action and antics of the Ultimate Fighter house. What I do hear is one name from the show who got himself noticed is Junie Browning. Thanks to a kind friend fortunately I did get see The Ultimate Fighter Finale. First up was the much talked about Junie Browning stepping into the Octagon taking on former team mate. This was a good little scrap with the bad boy of the Ultimate Fighter house taking the win over Diamond David Kaplan via armbar submission in one minute and thirty-two seconds of round two.

Other action on the card included Wilson Gouveia defeating Jason MacDonald via submission (strikes) in the first round of their contest.

Anthony Johnson and Kevin Burns battled it out with Johnson taking victory with a knockout kick to the head of Burns early on in the third round.

At the top of the card were the two finals from the series. The first being in the Light Heavyweight bracket, which was followed by the Lightweight finalists in action.

Ryan Bader took on Vinicius Magalhaes in Light Heavyweight final defeating him via TKO with strikes in round one.

Last but not least going to the distance saw the Lightweight final as  Efrain Escudero beat Phillipe Nover via unanimous decision.

UFC 92 – The Ultimate

By the time you read this UFC 92 would have just taken place and although I’m sure most of you would have seen it live there are no spoilers contained here for those of us who have yet to see the show, so please read on if are yet to see the show! So let’s take a look at the three big fights at the top of this huge end of year event.

Forrest Griffin vs. Rashad Evans

This is Forrest Griffin’s first defence of the Light Heavyweight title against Evans at the very top of this stacked pay per view event. If we are being honest Griffin’s titles win was not the very most decisive victory crowning a new champ but he went the distance and got the decision ultimately. This time he needs to prove himself a worthy champion against Evans the man who beat former champion and fan favourite Chuck Liddell. The interesting thing with this pairing being they are both former contestants of The Ultimate Fighter series. Are they worthy of being champions or are they just both very fortunate since being recognisable from their appearances on the popular MMA fighter reality TV series? Of course being standouts of The Ultimate Fighter series should secure box office and pay per view success but only time will tell if they are both truly destined for championship top of the card status.

Prediction: I see this going of two ways –  a decision win for Griffin after the full 5 rounds or Evans knocking out Griffin in an early round.

Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira vs. Frank Mir

Originally this match-up would have been for the heavyweight strap but since Randy ‘The Natural’ Couture returned as defending champion and lost to Brock Lesnar the contest determines who faces Lesnar to unify the title. Nogueira as the interim champion versus Mir either one winning sets up an interesting fight for reigning title holder Lesnar. If Mir is the winner it is a rematch for Mir against a now more experienced Lesnar, I say Brock destroys Mir if they fight again no making the same mistakes twice. The fight I want is Nogueira against Lesnar. Lesnar’s wrestling in that fight will put Nog into the position he wants to be, and he will punish Brock if he makes a mistake, it will be awesome. Don’t forget Nogueira has the weathered the storm against another monster back in the orient in the form of The Beast Bob Sapp.

Prediction: Nogueira to tap-out Mir in the 2nd or 3rd round to take it, thus becoming Brock Lesnar’s next opponent and challenger for the heavyweight crown.

Quinton Jackson vs. Wanderlei Silva

The huge question here is whether Rampage Jackson is on top of his game mentally following his breakdown coupled with his arrest that went with it all. Rampage needs to prove himself he has conquered his demons and back on top of things by putting in an impressive performance even if he does not win. We all want Quinton to be back in action and handle a loss well, unlike previously when he lost the belt to Forrest Griffin. Judging by their previous MMA battles for Pride FC Wanderlei had the edge so most likely the outcome is the same?

Prediction: Wanderlei Silva win by TKO in round 3.

Here is how the rest of the card stacks up:

CB Dollaway vs Jorge Rivera

Dean Lister vs Yushin Okami

Mustapha al Turk vs Cheick Kongo

Brad Blackburn vs Ryo Chonan

Fields Dynamite!

Probably the biggest news of the year in MMA well at least in Japan is the news announced by K1 that Bob Sapp is making his return to Japanese mixed martial arts action one year to the day of his last appearance. Already an event of mammoth proportions the K1 Heros event on New Year’s Eve Fields Dynamite at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, has added freak show appeal as Sapp will face the mysterious Kinniku Mantaro in a mixed martial arts bout.

Image from: DreamOfficial.com

“Kinniku Mantaro” vs. Bob Sapp

They have surprised us with this one, as Bob ‘The Beast’ Sapp will take on none other than a character from a Japanese anime show. Little is known about Mantaro and even the K-1 announcement contained no information about him. Here is what we do know (From MMAMania.com):

The character in question is ‘Kinniku Mantaro’ from the show ‘Ultimate Muscle’. Mantaro is known to start matches off slowly and act a bit of a coward in the TV show until his opponent acts dishonourably (as Sapp does from time to time). Then Mantaro gets his inner strength and hulks up or something along those lines.

Now obviously someone’s going to be behind the mask and costume. That person will be Japanese amateur wrestling prospect Akihito Tanaka, so perhaps some skill will be involved and it won’t be a total squash match.

Sapp relies on his size when fighting and not so much technical prowess but in Tanaka’s case how do you out wrestle someone who weighs 350lbs?

Sapp last fought in Japan – also for K-1 – on New Year’s Eve 2007. He was successful then, defeating Bobby Ologun by TKO in the opening round. He has fought in mixed martial arts only one other time since then, losing to fellow K-1 veteran Jan Nortje when Strikeforce took its show on the road to Tacoma, Wash.

The NFL player Sapp has had a huge career in Japan fighting for Pride – MMA and K-1 in kickboxing. He hasn’t had as much popularity in his recent career, but his return to K-1 in mid-2007 marked the end of a year-and-a-half period of inactivity for Sapp after he and the promotion had a falling out over contractual issues.

Image from: Sportal.Vercrnji.hr

Mirko ‘Cro Cop’ Filipovic vs. Hong Man-Choi

And if that announcement was not enough and you wanted more, then maybe Mirko ‘Cro Cop’ Filipovic vs. 7′ 2″ ‘Techno Goliath’ Hong Man-Choi will since it’s now officially confirmed by FEG.

Kazushi Sakuraba vs. Kiyoshi Tamura

Now who can forget the third big showdown between two Japanese legends – Kazushi Sakuraba and Kiyoshi Tamura. Hugely popular Sakuraba became a national hero and was considered the last pro wrestler that could fight worth a damn, the last remnant of a lineage going back to Frank Gotch, and trained in Catch Wrestling by Britain’s own Billy Robinson. Despite all of his accomplishments Tamura was considered nothing. Their rivalry goes back ten years to when they both competed as wrestlers. Sakuraba has been successful earning huge winnings in Pride taking on the best of Brazil namely the Gracie clan, garnering the moniker Gracie Hunter. So some say it is more about Tamura wanting to get paid a ton of money and being jealous of Sakuraba’s success in the combat sports world. Tamura has always been jealous of Sakuraba, since back in the UWF, he was the star and Saku was the young boy. There seems to be lots of bitter feelings surrounding this encounter.

Thanks to good old youtube you lucky people can witness them in action way back from 1996

Kazushi Sakuraba vs Kiyoshi Tamura I UWFi – 1996.03.01

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=H-dJngBfpEY

And you have got to take a look at Saku entering the ring for Pride FC donning a Legion of Doom outfit:

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=_yqtXNBE3LA

Fields Dynamite!! The New Year’s Eve super-show featuring a delightful buffet of fighters under the umbrella of FEG coming together on one night promising to entertain with some damn fine scraps. The show boasts a whole array of participants from DREAM, K-1, K-1 MAX and K-1 Koshien, Fields Dynamite!! So look forward to seeing these wide variety of fighting styles and compelling match-ups, and could feature as many as 20 fights. Only in Japan and on one night only!

The rest of the card for this explosive New Year’s Eve mega event:

Daisuke Nakamura vs. Hideo Tokoro

Artur Kyshenko vs. Yoshihiro Sato*

Semmy Schilt vs. Siala “Mighty Mo” Siliga

Eddie Alvarez vs. Shinya Aoki

Mark Hunt vs. Jerome Le Banner

Gesias “JZ” Calvancante vs. Joachim Hansen

Tatsuya Kawajiri vs. Kozo Takeda*

Gegard Mousasi vs. Musashi*

Hiroya vs. Shimada Shota*

Kusakabe Ryuya vs. Urabe Koya*

* = K1 Rules

Elsewhere in the world of mixed martial arts look out for Drake and Josh’s Xmas movie special on kids cable channel Nickelodeon for an acting appearance by tough guy street -fighter turned cage fighter Kimbo Slice dressed and good Saint Nick bashing through a wall!

Bravo2 have picked up the M1 Challenge, which was recently shown on ITV4. This features teams of MMA fighters from different countries competing around the globe. Look out for this in the New Year on Virgin Media and Sky.

That’s it for now, all be well and no IT mishaps The Worked Shoot returns in the New Year on Sunday 11th of January, until then enjoy the rest of the Christmas holidays and have a Happy New Year fight fans!

Woooo!!!! Brock Lesnar is the new UFC Heavyweight Champion!

Brock Lesnar has beaten returning champion Randy ‘The Natural’ Couture. Not only that he has made history by being the only person to win a WWE Heavyweight Championship title and the UFC Heavyweight Championship. This is huge news for the world of Pro Wrestling and Mixed Martial Arts.

The implications are huge for the WWE and the wrestling industry as a whole it is free publicity, take a look at the headlines:

“Former WWE Champ beats UFC Champ“.

Brock Lesnar is not the only winner in this and neither is the UFC. So who else is a winner? Well none other than Vince McMahon! The man who lost Brock when he left for the world of the NFL right when he was the hottest new heavyweight wrestler in the WWE complete with a legit amateur background. He got the biggest push ever and got over big time becoming the youngest Heavyweight Champion. It will be interesting if the WWE will capitalise on the success of Lesnar in the UFC. The WWE might look at expanding into the market of Mixed Martial Arts or just release a Brock DVD.

Here is how the action went down.

With the first round it seemed fairly even in the clinch with Couture doing well to try and neutralise the size and strength advantage of Lesnar. Out of the clinch there was some skirmishes. Come round 2 things hotted up with the combatants trading blows, Lesnar received a cut below the eye. Half way through the round Lesnar caught Couture with a right hand knocking down Randy, Brock followed up pummelling him on the ground unloading with is arsenal of hammer fists. The referee stopped the fight, as there was no response by Couture from this brutal attack, giving Lesnar the win via TKO (strikes) at 3:07 in Round 2 crowning him new UFC Heavyweight Champion.

Post fight Lesnar was very respectful to the legendary Couture, which was good to see especially when Brock was seen as the heel to most MMA purists, you should have heard the crowds disdain for the fighter! It made me laugh to see Couture smiling post fight telling Joe Rogan that he still feels like he is getting better, what after he just lost?! Surely he has got to his best with this being the time for the new blood to have their turn. In truth though his words are those of a winner, despite being bested by Brock. As has been said many times before about winning a fight “half the fight is in the mind”.

Here is a Dana White and Vince McMahon comparison for you, putting returning champ Couture in the title clash with Lesnar would be seen as a punishment if Vince had done this, but surely not UFC… it is a shoot after all eh? Looking back now it seems like Randy had no chance versus Brock it was almost a complete squash match or so it appeared. Well not entirely considering Lesnar was the one with the spilt blood. Honestly I do not see Dana and co having that same mindset to get one over their employee. Couture is too valuable a commodity to the UFC the word is the next move for the former Heavyweight Champion is to face Chuck Liddell with Liddell moving up a weight bracket to Heavyweight. This is another huge money match-up for the UFC. The proposed fight would take place on June 13th in Cologne, Germany. Apparently Randy Couture speaks German so would be ideal to promote the show. Randy sticking in the Heavyweight Division is a good move for him saving his body the toll of cutting weight, which is something he is better off avoiding at his age. Liddell will have a better opportunity at breaking through to the top as a Heavyweight where in recent times the competition has been thin. It sounds very positive for both parties. A match up possibility past Liddell versus Couture includes Liddell vs Lesnar which would be all kinds of awesome!