Ringside Report

UFC 115 audio preview show now online

June 12, 2010 By Dave Leave a Comment

Listen here to the June 11, 2010 episode of Ringside Report Radio hosted by Dave Simon and Kevin “Big Tuna” McKough and featuring weekly contributor, Julie V.

Strength-and-conditioning coach to some of the best in MMA, Jonathan Chaimberg, appeared on this program and talked about Rashad Evans’ win over Rampage, GSP starting the filming of TUF 12 and more.

Dave, Kevin and Julie gave a full preview and their predictions for UFC 115 including David Loiseau’s return to the octagon and the main event bout between Chuck Liddell and Rich Franklin.

All this and much more MMA on this episode of Ringside Report Radio.

Ringside Report Radio June 9 now online

June 10, 2010 By Dave Leave a Comment

Listen here to the June 9, 2010 episode of Ringside Report Radio hosted by Dave Simon and Kevin “Big Tuna” McKough.

On this one-hour episode, Dave and Kevin talked about Brock Lesnar and Fedor Emelianenko’s next bouts and who is the best heavyweight in the world. They also discussed Urijah Faber’s decision to drop down to the bantamweight division in the WEC, the upcoming bout between Chuck Liddell and Rich Franklin and reviewed Rampage Jackson’s appearance on WWE Raw. All this and much more MMA and Pro Wrestling on this episode of Ringside Report Radio.

Jon Fitch versus Thiago Alves at UFC 115 in Vancouver

April 5, 2010 By Dave Leave a Comment

Top UFC welterweight contenders Thiago Alves(16-6) and Jon Fitch (22-3) are expected to fight following an early morning tweet by UFC president Dana White. “ALVES vs FITCH in vancouver!!!!!,” White tweeted. Alves and Fitch were supposed to battle as part of a triple main-event for UFC 111 but Alves was forced to withdraw from the fight due to an irregular CT scan. After minor brain surgery, Alves told his fans that he was ready to return to action as soon as UFC 114 on May 29. Fitch defeated Ben Saunders via decision after three rounds at UFC 11.

Fitch and Alves are now expected to meet on June 12 at the UFC’s first event in Vancouver, British Columbia. The bout between Fitch and Alves could serve to determine a number one contender for UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre who has defeated both men via unanimous decision. Fitch’s teammate at the American Kickboxing Academy, Josh Koscheck (14-4), will be fighting Paul Daley (23-8) at UFC 113 in Montreal on May 8. The Koscheck-Daley bout that also been talked about to determine a new challenger for the champion. Koscheck has been defeated by St-Pierre, making Daley the only man of the four possible contenders to have never faced GSP. Daley’s Team Rough House training partner Dan Hardy lost to St-Pierre on March 27, 2010.

UFC 115 has no official fights announced by the UFC but White’s tweet is as close to official as it gets without a full press release. The main event is still under question as Chuck Liddell (21-7) is slated to appear with an undetermined opponent. Liddell was supposed to fight Tito Ortiz (15-7-1) for the third time at the conclusion of their coaching stints on this season of The Ultimate Fighter. However, there have been many rumours speculating Tito Ortiz being replaced by Rich Franklin (25-5) at some point during the season. Dana White, Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz are all denying any change in the plans and claim Liddell and Ortiz will fight as planned on June 12 in Vancouver. Rich Franklin and Randy Couture (18-10) have been rumoured as replacements for Ortiz against “The Ice Man” at UFC 115.

Hardy won't tap, GSP still wins. Carwin KO's Mir at UFC 111

March 28, 2010 By Dave Leave a Comment

Georges “Rush” St-Pierre scored his 20^th professional victory by defeating Dan Hardy in the main event of UFC 111 tonight in Newark, New Jersey. St-Pierre defeated Dan Hardy via unanimous decision in another dominant performance for the Québecois mixed-martial-artist. GSP almost finished the fight in the first and fourth rounds with arm-bars but the valiant Hardy refused to tap out. St-Pierre used his superior wrestling ability to overpower Hardy and make his fourth consecutive successful defence of the UFC welterweight title. GSP told Joe Rogan that he was “very sorry,” for not finishing the fight and congratulated Dan Hardy for a courageous performance. Hardy told Rogan “I don’t know the meaning of tap,” when asked about the near-fight finish arm-bars.

Shane Carwin delivered the knockout of the night with huge uppercuts that dropped Frank Mir. Carwin continued the assault with huge right hands on the ground that knocked Mir unconscious long before referee Dan Miragliotta intervened to stop the bout. UFC Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar entered the ocatagon after the fight and called Carwin’s interim title a “make believe belt,” they are expected to collide on July 3.

Kurt Pellegrino and Fabricio Camoes had an exciting fight that displayed both competitors tremendous grappling abilities. Pellegrino did not disappoint his home-state New Jersey crowd and finished Camoes in the second round with a rear-naked choke.

Jim Miller won a unanimous decision over Mark Bocek (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) in a very close fight that could have easily gone the other way. Jon Fitch beat Ben Saunders, using his wrestling to control the action and cruise to a unanimous decision victory. Saunders had stepped in on Thursday after Thiago Alves was unable to pass pre-fight medical exams.

Nate Diaz took care of Rory Markham in a bout that was officially in the middleweight division after Markham failed to cut to 170lbs. Diaz was able to land more strikes on Markham and finished him with some ground and pound. Ricardo Almeida and Matt Brown battled through the first round but Almeida was able to expertly apply a rear-naked choke to force the second round submission.

Main Card Results

Georges St-Pierre def. Dan Hardy via unanimous decision (50-43, 50-44, 50-45) to retain his UFC welterweight championship

Shane Carwin def. Frank Mir via TKO (strikes) after 3:48 in Round 1 to win the UFC interim heavyweight championship

Kurt Pellegrino def. Fabricio Camoes via submission (rear-naked choke) after 4:20 in Round 2

Jon Fitch def. Ben Saunders via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Jim Miller def. Mark Bocek via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Televised Preliminary Results

Ricardo Almeida def. Matt Brown via submission (rear-naked choke) after 3:30 in Round 2

Nate Diaz def. Rory Markham via TKO (strikes) after 2:47 in Round 1

Preliminary Results

Matthew Riddle def. Greg Soto via disqualification (illegal upkick) at 1:30 in Round 1

Jared Hamman def. Rodney Wallace via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Rousimar Palhares def. Tomasz Drwal via submission (heel hook) after 0:45 in round 1

Radio show with Jonathan Chaimberg and Maurice "Mad Dog" Vachon now available

March 6, 2010 By Dave Leave a Comment

Listen now to the March 5, 2010 episode of Ringside Report Radio hosted by Dave Simon and Kevin “Big Tuna” McKough.

In this episode, Dave and Kevin discussed the ongoing story of Strikeforce, Fedor Emelinaneko, Alistair Overeem and the Strikeforce heavyweight title. Your hosts also talked about Randy Couture wanting to fight James Toney and the signing of the heavyweight boxing champion to the UFC.

Strength and coniditoning coach to many of MMA’s top stars, Jonathan Chaimberg, made an appearance on the show to talk about Montreal-based Mixed-Fight League’s second show which took place this past Saturday (Febraury 27).

Legendary pro wrestler Maurice “Mad Dog” Vachon was interviewed on this program. Mad Dog talked about his upcoming induction into the WWE Hall of Fame, stories about Andre The Giant, his career in pro wrestling and much more in the 25-plus minute interview.

Dave and Kevin discussed TNA going head-to-head with the WWE on Monday March 8 and Rob Van Dam’s return to pro wrestling. All that, plus a preview of WEC 47 and lots more MMA and Pro Wrestling in this episode of Ringside Report Radio.

"Randy Couture: Becoming the Natural" Book Review

December 31, 2009 By Johnny North Leave a Comment

Randy Couture is a Greco-Roman wrestler and professional mixed martial arts fighter. A member of the UFC Hall of Fame, he is the only athlete to have held championship titles in both the heavyweight and light heavyweight divisions of the UFC. He lives in Las Vegas with his wife and stepson

Battling as the underdog in an Ultimate Fighting Championship match or in amateur wrestling has always put a smile on Randy “The Natural” Couture’s face—he thrived even in grueling military training.
At 45 years old the man, also known as “Captain America,” was UFC Heavyweight champion. He has been defying the odds by beating 20-something-year-old fighters and long-time favourites ever since he broke into UFC at age 33. Couture is one of the fighters responsible for bringing mixed martial arts out of the taboo sport category and into the pop culture level—his natural charisma and ability to beat the odds over and over has made him the poster boy for MMA.
In his latest memoirs, Becoming The Natural: My Life In and Out of the Cage, Couture brings you into his world of MMA and how he was first introduced to the sport. Couture goes into great detail on how he had a tough time growing up with his mom switching husbands every so often. The lack of a father figure weighed on Couture a lot in his youthful rebellious years, which led him to be a college dropout at 19 with a wife and a kid.
Couture went to the army to support his family and kept up with the amateur wrestling training that he got while in school. Couture trained constantly in order to become a multi-time wrestling world champion. Three years in a row he came up just a little short in his bid to become an Olympian.
Entering the cage, or octagon, was a big step for Couture. “What the hell am I doing?” was one his first thoughts going out to compete against someone who could punch him in the face. Couture, never one to shy away from a fight, excelled and racked up impressive victories, using his Greco-Roman wrestling skills to defeat kickboxer Mo Smith for his first UFC title win.
Couture soon found out that the business side of UFC could be difficult to handle. Current UFC boss Dana White, during contract negotiations with Couture, was “so irrational and emotional, screaming and yelling and cussing.” White ended up going behind Couture’s managers’ backs, telling Couture that they were nothing but “hair fags.” Couture did find some common ground with White during the taping of The Ultimate Fighter’s first season.
“He invited me and [Chuck] Liddell to his house to watch a boxing match, and his office was plastered with UFC posters and memorabilia. It was obvious that this was more than just a job for him. I think that was something that we both saw in each other that changed our relationship. We had been adversaries throughout the years of contract negotiations, but this was the first time we were ever on the same side.”
The book wraps up as of July 2008, with his last contract dispute undecided. Since then, Couture has signed back with UFC for UFC 91, where he lost his UFC title to the 265-pound Brock Lesnar, Couture has never received a rematch.
Couture’s passion to push new limits makes this book difficult to put down. Couture’s life is filled with drama, either on the mat, with his friends, or in his home. Couture’s open honesty when it comes to cheating on his two ex-wives is disheartening, but as with the other brutally honest statements made throughout the book, they show that he has come to terms with his mistakes. MMA journalist and ghostwriter Loretta Hunt does an excellent job bringing out Couture’s personal side.
MMA fans will love how much detail goes into some of Couture’s biggest fights. From his three bouts with Liddell, his upset win of the UFC lightheavyweight championship against Tito Ortiz and his battles with “The Phenom” Viktor Belfort, are all must-reads for fans wanting to know what goes through the mind of one of the greatest clinch and ground-and-pound fighters.