Ringside Report

WEC 48: Aldo VS. Faber DVD review–Korean Zombie’s WEC debut

September 4, 2010 By Johnny North 1 Comment

If you haven’t watched World Extreme Cagefighting’s debut pay-per-view Aldo VS. Faber, you owe it to yourself to spend your money right now on one of the best MMA DVDs this year.

It’s worth every penny.

WEC has presented some of the most competitive lightweight, featherweight and bantamweight fights in all of MMA. This PPV not only showed how tight the competition is in WEC, but also that you should always expect the unexpected to happen in the cage. WEC 48 included not only sudden knockouts, it also included long competitive three round fights, sneaky submission victories early in the first round and a fight people to this day are still talking about.

WEC 48 was cleverly disguised as a Ultimate Fighting Championship PPV to help boost the buy rates and allow for footage of the event to be shown on Spike TV. The DVD cover only has the WEC logo in the background while UFC is listed as presenting the event. The event really gives you that UFC feel thanks to having Joe Rogan and Mike Goldberg doing the commentary for the event and Dana White giving his two cents on the main events.

By far the fight of the PPV was Leonard Garcia VS. Chan Sung Jung, who is also known as The Korean Zombie. The bout was far from a technical masterpiece, as it was mainly two guys swinging wildly and beating each other for three straight rounds. It was unreal to see Jung take the abuse he was taking and fight on even though he got rocked. Garcia was the same as well, one time smiling when Jung clocked him to the ground. The end is highly controversial, but either way these guys gave everything they had and easily rose both their stocks in WEC for future fights and a future rematch.

In their 2009 Fight of the Year rematch, lightweight champion Ben Henderson shocked Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone with a quick guillotine in the first title defence on the card. Although not as exciting as their first fight, Henderson answered a lot of questions by clearly showing that he was the better man that night.

The main event featured the shocking demise of the hometown hero “The California Kid” Urijah Faber as defending featherweight champion Jose Aldo destroyed Faber’s vertical base for five straight rounds. Faber never gave up during the entire fight and showed that he has a lot of heart. Aldo proved that he is the better fighter and looks unstoppable in his weight class.

For fans that have already seen the Aldo VS. Faber PPV the only new footage you’ll get is a behind the scenes featurette and the featurettes that aired on Spike TV. The behind the scenes footage is pretty much focused on Aldo and Faber leading up to the fight and how they were preparing right before they stepped through the curtain.

WEC 48 will not leave you disappointed. The DVD is filled with dramatic battles and finishes that you’ll want to watch over and over again. While there are standouts like the Korean Zombie fight, the entire card is solid from start to finish.

UFC Presents: WEC (World Extreme Cagefighting): Aldo VS. Faber

Image Entertainment

Released on July 20, 2010

$14.98

Click here to order the DVD

WEC 48 Bouts

Jose Aldo VS. Urijah Faber

Ben Henderson VS. Donald Cerrone

Mike Brown VS. Manny Gamburyan

Anthony Njokuani VS. Shane Roller

Leonard Garcia VS. Chan Sung Jung

Alex Karalexis VS. Anthony Pettis

Brad Pickett VS. Demetrious Johnson

Chad Mendes VS. Anthony Morrison

Takeya Mizugaki VS. Rani Yahya

Brandon Visher VS. Tyler Toner

Lesnar still champ, Leben scores again at UFC 116

July 4, 2010 By Webmaster 1 Comment

Brock Lesnar defeated Shane Carwin to retain his UFC heavyweight championship in the main event of UFC 116 tonight in Las Vegas, Nevada. Carwin dropped the champion with a right hand in the first round and pummelled him with some vicious punches and elbows but Lesnar defended himself through the onslaught and made it past the first round. Carwin appeared tired in the second round allowing Lesnar to score a takedown and secure an arm-triangle choke for the submission victory.

Chris Leben and Yoshihiro Akiyama fought a classic with both men landing and taking several punishing shots. Leben was able to weather the storm and slap on a triangle choke in the third round to get his second win in just three weeks.

Chris Lytle defeated Matt Brown in similar fashion to their 2007 bout, picking up a second round submission, this time with an arm-bar. Stephan Bonnar evened the series with Kryzysztof Soszynski following his controversial February loss, Bonnar bounced back with a second round TKO victory. Kurt Pellegrino and George Sotiropoulos were the only fighters to go to a decision on the main card. Sotiropoulos picked up a unanimous decision with questionable scoring as two judges scored it in his favour 30-27, when Pellegrino appeared to have won the third round.

It was a highly entertaining night of fights and no doubt a great financial success for the UFC. Cain Velasquez has been named the number one contender for UFC Heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar but no date has been established for their bout.

Full UFC 116 results

Brock Lesnar def. Shane Carwin via submission (arm-triangle choke) after 2:19 in Round 2

Chris Leben defeated Yoshihiro Akiyama via submission (triangle choke) after 4:40 in Round 3

Chris Lytle def. Matt Brown via submission (arm-bar) after2:02 in Round 2

Stephan Bonnar def. Krzysztof Soszynski via TKO (strikes) after 3:08 in Round 2

George Sotiropoulos def. Kurt Pellegrino via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

Brendan Schaub def. Chris Tuchscherer via TKO (strikes) after 1:07 in Round 1

Ricardo Romero def. Seth Petruzelli via submission (arm-bar) after 3:05 in Round 2

Kendall Grove def. Goran Reljic via split-decision (29-28 Reljic, 30-27 Grove, 29-28 Grove)

Gerald Harris def. David Branch via KO (slam) after 2:35 in Round 3

Daniel Roberts def. Forrest Petz via split-decision (29-28 Petz, 29-28 Roberts, 29-28 Roberts)

Jon Madsen def. Karlos Vemola via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Ringside Report Radio June 23 episode now online

June 24, 2010 By Webmaster Leave a Comment

Listen here to the June 23, 2010 episode of Ringside Report Radio hosted by Dave Simon and Kevin “Big Tuna” McKough.

In this episode, Dave and Kevin re-capped the weekend’s MMA shows from Warrior-1: Judgement Day in Laval, Quebec to The Ultimate Fighter finale in Las Vegas and the WEC 49 show in Edmonton, Alberta.

They also discussed Fedor’s upcoming bout against Fabricio Werdum and the Brock Lesnar v. Shane Carwin UFC title fight. Your hosts talked about former WWE wrestler Dave Batista claiming he has signed with Strikeforce and whether or not “The Animal” has a future in mixed-martial arts.

Pro Wrestling was also on the agenda for this 2-hour program. Dave and Kevin reviewed WWE’s Fatal-4 Way pay-per-view and the fallout on Monday night Raw. They talked about Daniel Bryan’s “firing”, The NXT “Nexus” group and lots more MMA and Pro Wrestling.

Lyoto Machida Karate-Do book review

June 14, 2010 By Johnny North Leave a Comment

Live alone, die alone, fight alone—words Lyoto Machida received from his father to help toughen him and mold him into the evasive fighter he is today.

Machida’s fighting style is considered unorthodox, cowardly, explosive and downright bizarre. Regardless of what is said about him, he is a feared fighter—he won 18 straight mixed martial arts fights, the Ultimate Fighting Championship Light Heavyweight Title and up until UFC 113 in Montreal he was undefeated in MMA.

In his MMA techniques guide, Machida Karate-Do, Machida relives his origin into MMA with the aid of bestselling author Erich Krauss writing the introduction. Machida explains that at the age of 11, he knew that he wanted to be a fighter and wanted the type of karate training his father could give him. Machida’s desire to better himself saw him try his hand at sumo, Brazilian jiu-jitsu and training with New Japan Pro Wrestling.

The techniques guide is broken down to seven different sections; striking attacks, intercepting attacks, the clinch, attacking the guard, attacks from dominant control, guard and escape. All sections contain fabulous photography that shows each technique step-by-step all with Lyoto explaining his technique in each frame. The techniques are performed by Lyoto to his brother Chinzo. Showing the positioning of the fighters from in front of them and behind them helps give the reader an easier comprehension of executing the techniques properly.

The short introduction and the lack of a conclusion are the only disappointments to a massive in-depth dream book for fans of Machida. His technical notes on certain attacks and defenses are unique and informative insight on Machida’s techniques. With more than a thousand step-by-step photos, one could spend hours just focusing on one section alone.

Mastering the skills in the book might not make you the next Machida, but it will definitely give you a better self-defense and counter attack. For those that prefer watching MMA techniques, the four disc DVD set Machida-Do Karate for Mixed Martial Arts has also been released by Victory Belt Publishing.

Machida Karate-Do Mixed Martial Arts Techniques

Lyoto Machida, Glen Cordoza, Erich Krauss

Victory Belt Publishing

Distributed by Tuttle Publishing

$34.95

276 pp.

Click here to order the book

Top 10 pound-for-pound MMA ranking

June 5, 2010 By Webmaster 3 Comments

Ringside Report Radio hosts Dave Simon, Kevin “Big Tuna” McKough and Ringside Report. NET writer Julie V, came together on Friday June 4, 2010 to determine Ringside Report’s first ever Top 10 pound-for-pound MMA ranking system and list. The three hosts/judges each came to the show with their own top 10 lists and after a debate reached the following consensus.

Top 10 P4P MMA. June 2010

1. Anderson Silva

2. Georges St-Pierre

3. Fedor Emelianenko

4. Brock Lesnar

5. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua

6. Jose Aldo

7. B.J. Penn

8. Benson Henderson

9. Lyoto Machida

10. Rashad Evans

Honourable mentions to: Frankie Edgar, Jon Fitch, Jon Jones, Shane Carwin, Jake Shields and Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal.

Click Here to listen to the Ringside Report Radio Top 10 P4P episode

Dave, Kevin and Julie also agreed on the following criteria to determine who is worthy of pound-for-pound status:

Win/Loss Record

Quality of opponents and quality wins

Fight Finishing

Win Streak

To let you debate among your friends we will also include Dave, Kevin and Julie’s individual lists.

Dave Simon’s Top 10 P4P

1. Anderson Silva. 2. GSP. 3. Brock Lesnar 4. Fedor Emelianenko 5. Shogun 6. Jose Aldo 7. B.J. Penn 8. Benson Henderson 9. Lyoto Machida 10. Rashad Evans

Kevin “Big Tuna” McKough’s Top 10 P4P

1. GSP 2. Brock Lesnar 3. Fedor 4. Anderson Silva 5. Benson Henderson 6. Shogun 7. Jose Aldo 8. Lyoto Machida 9. B.J. Penn 10. Rashad Evans

Julie V’s Top 10 P4P

1. Anderson Silva 2. Fedor 3. GSP 4. Jose Aldo 5. Shogun 6. B.J. Penn 7. Lyoto Machida 8. Rashad Evans 9. Jake Shields 10. Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos

E-mail your comments, suggestions, hate and love to Dave Simon at dave@ringsidereport.net or Kevin “Big Tuna” McKough at kevin@ringsidereport.net or Julie V at info@metricjulie.com . We will provide an updated and unbiased list with listener and e-mail feedback in the next 6-12 weeks.

-Ringside Report Staff-

Ringside Report Radio April 23 with Jake Shields now online

April 24, 2010 By Dave 1 Comment

Listen here to the April 23, 2010 episode of Ringside Report Radio hosted by Dave Simon and Kevin “Big Tuna” McKough.

Jake Shields was interviewed and discussed his win over Dan Henderson for Strikeforce, the brawl after the fight, going to the UFC and more.

Dave and Kevin talked about David Loiseau returning to the UFC and were joined by weekly contributor Julie V for a preview of WEC 48: Aldo v. Faber. All this and much more MMA on this episode of Ringside Report Radio.

MMA Unscripted: Behind the Scenes of America’s Hottest Sport review

April 9, 2010 By Johnny North Leave a Comment

Watching Wanderlei Silva in “KILL mode”, beating Forrest Griffin in the UFC: Undisputed video game, are two of many adventures documented by mixed martial arts magazine MMA Worldwide in MMA: Unscripted: Behind the Scenes of America’s Hottest Sport

MMA Worldwide is much more than just a magazine spawned from the creative minds of the Pittman family, the concept has become a way of life—the family went all over the U.S. West Coast gyms profiling MMA fighters for a television show that eventually was picked up by HDNet. Rob McCullough, Ricco Rodriguez, the Gracie family and many more were given exposure when MMA was not even considered a sport by the mainstream population.

Unfortunately, tragedy struck the MMA Worldwide crew when the host of the show, Bobby Pittman Jr., suddenly fell ill during one of the filming sessions. Doctors diagnosed the illness as transverse myelitis, a disease very much like multiple sclerosis. The season was put on hold as Bobby was only given three months to live. While he still battles with the illness today, after five days of rehab Bobby courageously went back to work and the show kept on going.

MMA: Unscripted: Behind the Scenes of America’s Hottest Sport is a very short read; this magazine mainly consists of pages that are mainly pictures and all the text is done in one big indent kind of like a kid’s book. The pictures are high quality, although some of the action shots look a little blurry. This best of MMA Worldwide magazine is pretty much a mere taste of what MMA Worldwide has accomplished and has to offer. Numerous times throughout they mention how there is so much more to be seen at www.mmaworldwide.com.

Cross-training with Peter Graham, goofing around with Frank Trigg and showing different fighting techniques with Erik Paulson are exciting, funny and at times gruesome photos. The lack of quotes from the fighters in the magazine is disappointing. The mentioning of Strikeforce and Bellator is a nice break from the almost constant Ultimate Fighting Championship coverage by MMA Worldwide. Besides the excellent photography, the best part of this magazine is there is no limit to the amount of coverage on well-known and unknown foreign fighters MMA Worldwide will cover.

MMA: Unscripted: Behind the Scenes of America’s Hottest Sport.

Concept by Robert Pittman

112 pp.

Triumph Books

Feb, 2010

http://www.triumphbooks.com/products/mma_unscripted/1572436129.php

Jones and Dos Santos continue ascent at UFC on Versus

March 21, 2010 By Dave Leave a Comment

Jon Jones defeated Brandon Vera in the main event of tonight’s UFC on Versus 1 from Broomfield, Colorado. Jones took Vera down early in the fight and smashed him with a vicious elbow that caused him to turtle over in pain. Referee Herb Dean stopped the fight right on time as Vera was badly hurt. The 22 year-old Jon Jones improves to 10-1 in his pro MMA career.

Junior Dos Santos earned another TKO victory in the UFC and cemented his position as one of the top heavyweights in the world. Dos Santos dropped Gabriel Gonzaga with a big left hook and pounced on him with some nasty left and right hands to finish the fight after just 3:53 in round one. Dos Santos told Joe Rogan he was “ready to fight the best,” in his post-fight interview.

Cheick Kongo used takedowns and a great ground and pound game to decimate Paul Buentello in their bout. Buentello did have some unfortunate set-backs in the fight, as he appeared to break his pinkie finger then pop it back into place in the first round and took an illegal knee to the head that resulted in a point deduction for Kongo in round two. Cheick Kongo did landed several hard knees to the body but it was his elbows to the body that made Buentello tap at 1:16 in the final round.

Alessio Sakara landed a heavy punch to the eye of James Irvin which caused the fight to be stopped when Irvin was unable to see. The punch was clean to the eye, not a poke, which won the fight via TKO for Sakara after just 3:01 in the first round.

UFC on Versus 1 quick results

Main Card Televised Bouts

Alessio Sakara def. James Irvin via TKO (eye-punch) at 3:01 in Round 1

Cheick Kongo def. Paul Buentello via submission (strikes) at 1:16 in Round 3

Junior Dos Santos def. Gabriel Gonzaga via TKO (punches) at 3:53 in Round 1

Jon Jones def. Brandon Vera via TKO (elbow) at 3:19 in Round 1

Preliminary Bouts

Jason Brilz def. Eric Schaefer via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Mike Pierce def. Julio Paulino via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Brendan Schaub def. Chase Gormley via TKO (punches) at 0:47 in Round 1

John Howard def. Daniel Roberts via KO (punch) at 2:01 in Round 1

Darren Elkins def. Duane Ludwig via TKO (injury) at 0:44 in Round 1

Vladimir Matyushenko def. Eliot Marshall via split decision (30-27, 29-28, 30-27)

Clay Guida def. Shannon Gugerty via submission (arm-triangle choke) at 3:40 in Round 2

Nate Marquardt was offered fight with Bisping,talks training with GSP

March 17, 2010 By Dave 1 Comment

Nate Marquardt may not have a fight currently scheduled for the UFC but he remains in the gym, helping train Georges St-Pierre for his title defence on March 27. Marquardt (29-9-2) is coming off a decision loss to Chael Sonnen on February 6 in a bout that earned the winner a future shot at the UFC middleweight title. Marquardt spoke to Ringside Report Radio about who his next opponent could be, “I actually got offered a fight with Michael Bisping but it would have been two days after my baby’s due. So, I can’t do that. I can’t miss the birth of my child.” With the birth of his baby expected in May, Marquardt did give a time-frame for his return, “Initially they (UFC) had told me it would be June or July and hopefully that’s still how it is. I want to get back in there as soon as possible and I think that’d be a good time,” he said.

After Vitor Belfort dropped out of his scheduled April 12 title bout against Anderson Silva, many wondered who would get the next middleweight title shot. Demian Maia was granted the opportunity which did not bother Marquardt who knocked out Maia in twenty-one seconds. “Even though I beat him, he has two recent wins under his belt against tough guys so I think he’s as deserving as anyone,” Marquardt said of Maia. Although deserving, Marquardt did not give Maia much of a chance against the champion, Anderson Silva. “I think Demian’s one of those fighters who will really go for the submission. It seems like in the past that’s been one of Anderson’s weaknesses but I saw him fight Thales Leites and he pretty much nullified him,” said Marquardt. “It wasn’t a very exciting fight but he followed his game-plan and Thales wasn’t able to do anything. If he’s (Silva) able to do the same with Demian (Maia) where Demian’s not able to take him down, then he’s definitely going to win that fight. “

Nate “The Great” has recently been spending time in Montreal, training with UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre for his upcoming title defence against Dan Hardy. Marquardt weighed in on Hardy’s chances against GSP, “He’s a tough up-and-comer. I think he’s got a puncher’s chance, at best. I think Georges is a way better fighter. Georges is the best of the best, the best of the A level fighters. I think Dan is probably a decent B level fighter,” Marquardt said of Hardy. Georges St-Pierre may be one of the best mixed-martial artists in the world but his training partner continues to see improvement. “He’s always been a very well-rounded fighter, but it seems to me like his finishes are getting a lot better, his striking finishes or his submissions,” Marquardt said. “He’s always had very good control with his wrestling, just a dominant position. He’s quick on his feet, he’s got a good jab, so he can control the fight a lot and I think he’s made a big improvement on being able to finish the fight.“ Though St-Pierre may be the heavy favourite, Marquardt knows that heavy favourites sometimes lose and warns GSP to stay focused, “I think Georges has to take this fight seriously. You have to take any fight seriously especially when you’re dealing with a guy that’s got knock out power. “

To Listen to the entire interview with Nate Marquardt featuring his thoughts on recent UFC-signee James Toney, Shane Carwin versus Frank Mir and more check out the March 12, 2010 episode of Ringside Report Radio.

by Dave Simon

(quotes courtesy of Ringside Report Radio)

Ringside Report Radio off due to olympics. New online show available now!

February 19, 2010 By Dave Leave a Comment

Due to the Olympics on The Team 990 AM, Ringside Report Radio will not be heard live this week or next. In the meantime, Ringside Report delivers exclusive online programs. The best of the online shows will air on The Team 990 AM on Saturday night at 12 am on February 20 and on February 27 at 2am. The show will resume our regular Wednesday and Friday night schedule (1opm-12am) on March 3.

In this podcast, Dave Simon and Kevin “Big Tuna” McKough discuss the UFC’s selection of Demian Maia as Anderson Silva’s next opponent and whether or not he is the right man to face the UFC Middleweight champion. Dave and Kevin also talk about the last episode of WWE’s ECW, WWE’s new NXT program and give a review of this past Monday’s edition of Raw.

Indiana-based MMA promotion, MMA Big Show is holding their next event this Saturday night and Ringside Report spoke to the main event of UFC veteran Jake O’Brien and Dave Hess. Undefeated welterweight Roger Bowles will also be fighting for MMA Big Show before making his Strikeforce debut. All three fighters are interviewed at the end of this podcast.

Don Frye announces retirement

February 3, 2010 By Dave Leave a Comment

MMA legend Don Frye has decided to retire from active competition at the age of 44 to pursue a career in acting and broadcasting. Frye spoke exclusively to Ringside Report to announce his plans for retirement. “I’m walking away, I just got to the point in my life where. In order to be a professional athlete, it’s a really selfish lifestyle. You’ve got to be one hundred percent dedicated, twenty-four hours a day,” Frye said.

Frye also stated that his family was a primary reason for leaving the fight game, “I looked around, my daughters were nine and ten years old and I figured putting in some time with them before they grow up and move away.” With Randy Couture and Mark Coleman headlining UFC 109 at 46 and 45 years old respectively, there had been rumours of a UFC comeback for Don Frye. Frye put those to rest and stated that no negotiations had even taken place, “Not a one partner, not a one,” he said.

Don Frye will now turn his attention to colour commentary for the Texas-based Shark Fights promotion for ESPN AM 1440. He will begin his duties this Friday night in Lubbock for Shark Fights 8 with a main event of UFC veteran Josh Neer versus Anselmo Martinez. Frye has a 10 show deal to do radio commentary for the Texas-based Shark Fights promotion. “Hell, they’re pretty good ole’ Texas boys, I like em’,” he said of the Shark Fights promotion.

Frye has had several pro wrestling matches in Japan and will soon be returning to Japan for some media appearances and a pro wrestling match as part of Antonio Inoki’s birthday celebrations. Frye noted that he was open to the idea of doing more pro wrestling in Japan but felt there was a lack of interest from the WWE and TNA for him to wrestle in North America. “I don’t think WWE’s interested in me. I made an ass out of myself too many times, badmouthed them too many times. TNA was interested, we had talks and then I made an ass of myself a couple of times and then they weren’t interested in me. So, until I learn how to behave in public I think I’m gonna be doing all my work in Japan.”

Frye competed in his final fight for the Shark Fights promotion in a one-minute TKO loss to Dave “Pee Wee” Herman on September 12, 2009. He began his career by winning the UFC 8 tournament in San Juan, Puerto Rico on February 16, 1996 by defeating Sam Adkins, Thomas Ramirez and Gary Goodridge. After winning his first two fights at the UFC 10 tournament on July 12, 1996 Frye suffered his first career loss in the final to Mark Coleman. Frye continued to compete in the UFC and Pride with victories over Gilbert Yvel, Tank Abbott and Ken Shamrock.

Listen to the entire interview on the February 3, 2010 episode of Ringside Report Radio HERE

by David Simon (quotes courtesy of Ringside Report Radio)

UFC inks new deal to broadcast in China

January 27, 2010 By Webmaster Leave a Comment

Las Vegas, NV (USA) – Hundreds of millions of sports fans in China will now have the opportunity to see UFC superstars like Randy Couture, Georges St-Pierre and “Minotauro” Nogueira fight in the UFC^® Octagon^™. The Ultimate Fighting Championship organization today announced it has inked a deal with one of the country’s largest web portals, Sohu.com to present UFC pay per view events online. Named the official web partner of the UFC in China, Sohu.com will live broadcast UFC events starting with UFC 109: RELENTLESS in February.

“China is one of the gateways to building UFC into the biggest sport in the world,” said Dana White, UFC President. “China is the cradle of martial arts, many of the styles that you see in the UFC were born in this country. With Sohu.com as our web partner, we look forward to presenting world class fights and to bringing the great tradition of martial arts back to its homeland in China.”

Larry Jin, Director of Sports, Sohu.com said, “SOHU Kungfu channel is made to comprehensively report and follow-up the many Kungfu fighting related events both in China and overseas. We are looking forward to working with the UFC to create a stronger relationship and to seeing Chinese warriors in the Octagon.”

Sohu.com, Inc., (SOHU), is a leading online brand in China. Services provided by the company include news, search, e-mail, games and wireless messaging. Sohu.com was the official web partner for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, and is also the official partner of the NBA, ESPN, Adidas and Sports Illustrated in China.

UFC programming debuted in China last summer on Inner Mongolia Television (NMTV), a network broadcast station available in 60 million households, with the potential to reach 240 million viewers throughout all the provinces.

—UFC press release—

Rashad Evans: Ready for Rampage

January 18, 2010 By Julie 1 Comment

Fresh off his victory over Thiago Silva at UFC 108, Rashad Evans is currently training in Montreal and ready for his next challenge. Evans lost his first professional fight against Lyoto Machida at UFC 98 but bounced back against Silva, “I really wanted to push the pace and that was the game plan”, he said.

Against Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Thiago Silva, Evans felt he should go back to basics and wrestle his way to a victory. “With Thiago, it was a no brainer with the takedowns because he really doesn’t have good takedown defence so I really worked that a lot, making it a point to try and finish every combination with a takedown.”

He succeeded in executing his game plan, despite all the distractions outside the octagon, notably with TUF Season 10 rival coach Quinton Rampage Jackson. “It was difficult to focus on the fight, but at the same time Thiago for me was definitely a worthy challenge because of the simple fact that the guy is a great competitor and he beat a really good friend of mine.”

The rematch between Rashad Evans and Quinton Jackson is slated to happen sometime in the first half of 2010. Just exactly how badly does he want to beat Jackson? “To be honest, I want to fight Rampage, but he’s not the champion. He doesn’t hold a victory over me.” Evans feels he is at the point where he was before even winning the belt for first time, and claims that what counts now is just enjoying the ride until he gets another shot at the championship title. “There are some things I want to work on my game that I want to get better at, and I’m in no hurry.”

However, following all the animosity between the two Season 10 coaches, Evans is eager to come out fighting. “I’m just ready to fight and look forward to getting in the cage with him. I just want to get into a scrap because I know he’s been talking trash, so let’s do it. There’s no better venue than in the octagon.”

(quotes from interview on Ringside Report Radio)

Listen to the Rashad Evans interview on Ringside Report Radio here

UFC: Ultimate Fight Night 20 round-by-round results

January 11, 2010 By Webmaster Leave a Comment

Gray Maynard will face Nate Diaz in the main event of tonight’s UFC Ultimate Fight Night 20. Brad Blackburn will fight Amir Sadollah, Tom Lawlor fights Aaron Simpson and Evan Dunham versus Efrain Escudero will round of the televised card at 9pm ET on Spike TV (U.S.) and Sportsnet (Canada).

In the preliminary fights:

Nick Catone defeated Jesse Forbes via split decision

Gerald Harris defeated John Salter via TKO in Round 3

Rafael Dos Anjos defeated Kyle Bradley via unanimous decision

Rory MacDonald defeated Mike Guymon via submission in Round 1

Nik Lentz v. Thiago Tavares was declared a majority draw

Rick Story defeated Jesse Lennox via majority decision

Chris Leben defeated Jay Silva via unanimous decision

Main Card

Amir Sadollah v. Brad Blackburn (170 lbs.)

Round 1

Blackburn and Sadollah exchange punches and Sadollah lands a jab. Sadollah lands some leg kicks and push kicks as Blackburn throws punches. Sadollah is blocking Blackburn and countering with leg kicks. Sadollah clinched and landed some knees to the body but Blackburn pushed him off. Blackburn landed some solid body punches and the fighters clinched up against the cage. The fighters separate and continue to exchange, Sadollah lands a straight right hand that wobbles Blackburn. Sadollah tries to swarm in and finish him and scores a takedown. Blackburn recovers and pushes Sadollah off and back to his feet. Blackburn stands up and they clinch against the cage as the round comes to an end. Ringside Report scores Round 1 for Amir Sadollah: 10-9

Round 2

Blackburn lands a body kick and throws some punches but Sadollah lands a body kick of his own. Blackburn pushed Sadollah against the cage and they exchanged knees to the body. Blackburn moved back and Sadollah hit a leg kick. Blackburn pushed him up against the cage and they grappled for position. The referee separated the fighters and Sadollah landed more leg kicks. Blackburn caught a kick and tripped Sadollah to the mat but Sadollah quickly rose to his feet. Blackburn pushed his opponent against the cage but Sadollah was able to push away. Both fighters landed some punches, Blackburn lands some body punches and Sadollah lands leg kicks. Blackburn landed a right hook on Sadollah but Amir came back with an uppercut that rocked his opponent as the round came to an end. Ringside Report scores Round 2 for Amir Sadollah: 10-9

Round 3

Sadollah landed a leg kick and a body kick followed by a high knee that rocked Blackburn. Sadollah took him down to the mat and landed two stiff elbows but Blackburn was able to get him into his guard. Sadollah postured up and landed a punch and improved his position into side-control. Blackburn blocked Sadollah’s mount attempt and Sadollah wound up back in guard. Sadollah landed an elbow but Blackburn was able to keep him tied up. Sadollah stood up and came down with several punches before getting down to the mat and attempting a choke but Blackburn blocked the hold. Blackburn held Sadollah’s leg in half-guard while Amir worked at slamming down with elbow shots. Sadollah stood up and threw several punches as the final seconds wound down. Ringside Report scores Round 3 for Amir Sadollah: 10-9

Amir Sadollah def. Brad Blackburn via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Tom Lawlor v. Aaron Simpson (185 lbs.)

Round 1

Tom Lawlor rushes in and lands a big uppercut to finish a punching combination that wobbles his opponent. Aaron Simpson recovered but took more punches from Lawlor and was dropped with a big punch. Simpson got back up and circled away after taking several hits and they continued to box. Lawlor landed a big counter-right hand that rocked Simpson and he backed up against the cage. Lawlor swarmed in and landed several more punches. Simpson appeared to recover but took another huge punch that rocked him again. Simpson survived and ate some knees and punches as Lawlor dominated. Simpson was able to circle away and regain some composure and he landed a body kick. Simpson tried to land an uppercut but Lawlor hit a counter- right hand. Ringside Report scores Round 1 for Tom Lawlor: 10-8

Round 2

Aaron Simpson and Tom Lawlor continued to box through the first minute of the round. Simpson struggled to land clean punches and Lawlor was able to score on some counter- right hands. Simpson pushed Lawlor against the cage and scored a single-leg takedown. Simpson worked from side-control and Lawlor gave up his back and stood up. Simpson tried to hold his opponent but Lawlor escaped and they squared off. Lawlor landed a right hook that rocked his opponent and allowed a brief takedown for Lawlor but Simpson was quick back to his feet. Lawlor pushed Simpson against the cage and they exchanged punches. Simpson pushed away and Lawlor landed a left uppercut but Simpson pushed Lawlor into the cage. Tom Lawlor attempted a standing guillotine but Simpson slipped out after eating a knee to the face. Simpson fought back, landing a left and right and pushing Lawlor into the cage. Lawlor attempted another guillotine and pulled guard as the round came to an end. Ringside Report scores Round 2 for Tom Lawlor: 10-9

Round 3

Tom Lawlor and Aaron Simpson exchange, each landing some punches. Lawlor landed a good right hand and blocked a takedown attempt. Simpson landed a knee to the face in a Muay-Thai clinch but Lawlor escaped and pushed him against the cage. Simpson reversed the position and landed a big takedown but Lawlor quickly got to his feet. Lawlor scored a big double-leg takedown of his own and Simpson popped back to his feet. Simpson went to a takedown but Simpson dropped to the mat in a kimura attempt that was quickly escaped. Simpson was able to mount his opponent and land some punches, Lawlor turned to his back and Simpson tried to get the back mount but failed. Lawlor rolled out and went for a single-leg but Simpson stepped away and took Lawlor’s back. Simpson landed some punches and tried for a rear-naked choke but was unable to secure the hold. Lawlor pushed from his knees to his feet and back to his knees, pulling on Simpson’s leg. Simpson was able to spin around and take Lawlor’s back again but Lawlore escape and got to his feet. Lawlor and Simpson grappled against the cage and swung at each other with punches as the fight came to an end. Ringside Report scores Round 3 for Aaron Simpson: 10-9

Aaron Simpson def. Tom Lawlor via split decision (29-28 Lawlor, 29-28 Simpson , 29-28 Simpson)

Efrain Escudero v. Evan Dunham (155 lbs.)

Round 1

Dunham scored with a jab early on and Escudero landed a hard leg kick. Escudero led with a punch and followed up with a nice body kick before pushing Dunham into the fence. Dunham pushed off and they circled each other. Dunham landed a straight right hand and Escudero hits a jab and grappled Dunham against the cage. Dunham pushed away but Escudero landed a good uppercut and a jumping knee. Escudero rushed in with several left and right hands and eventually dropped his opponent. Dunham wrapped Escudero in his guard but Efrain stood up and dropped down with a punch. Escudero quickly attempted a guillotine choke on the mat but Dunham fought off the hold and they got to their feet with 30 seconds remaining in the round. Escudero and Dunham collided in the air as they both appeared to throw knees and Escudero fell to the mat. Dunham got on top of Escudero but was unable to do any damage as time wound down. Ringside Report scores Round 1 for Efrain Escudero: 10-9

Round 2

Dunham rushed in with a punching combination but Efrain circled away. Dunham stayed aggressive and landed a good body kick followed by a punching combo. Dunham and Escudero both landed punches with Dunham getting the better of the exchange. Escudero landed an uppercut but Dunham landed a takedown and found himself in half-guard. Dunham was able to land several punches from the top position. Escudero pushed Dunham back into his guard and back to his feet. Dunham tried to drop down with some punches and locked Escudero in a body triangle. Dunham landed several punches to the body and head and continued to assault Escudero on the back-mount as the round came to an end. Ringside Report scores Round 2 for Evan Dunham: 10-9

Round 3

Evan Dunham attempted a takedown early in the round, Escudero attempted a guillotine choke but Dunham escaped. Dunham and Escudero stood up and grappled with Dunham scoring a takedown and landing in side-control. Dunham transitioned into mount, Escudero turned over and gave up his back for Dunham to attempt a rear-naked choke. Escudero got out and Dunham transitioned into a triangle attempt into an armbar. Escudero tried to hold on but was unable to do so and forced to tap.

Evan Dunham def. Efrain Escudero via submission (arm-bar) at 1:59 in Round 3

Nate Diaz v. Gray Maynard (155 lbs.)

Round 1

Gray Maynard throws a looping combo that Diaz evades. Diaz urges Maynard to “come on,” as both men appear to be taunting each other in the cage. Diaz lands a nice right hook and a leg kick but Maynard fires back with a right hand. Maynard has a cut that was opened early just under his right eye. Maynard lands a nice uppercut and a knee to the body. Diaz lands some leg kicks and a punch but Maynard counters with a punch and a leg kick of his own. Diaz and Maynard continue to connect with punches and taunt each other with hand gestures and trash talk. Diaz lands a leg kick and they exchange punches as the round comes to an end. Ringside Report scores Round 1 a draw: 10-10

Round 2

Maynard lands a right hand and Diaz lands a leg kick in the first 30 seconds of the round. Diaz landed a left hook when Maynard rushed in and hit some body punches. Maynard landed a big right hook but Diaz scored with his own right hand. Maynard and Diaz exchanged punches and Maynard dropped Diaz with a knee to the face. Maynard let Diaz back up and staggered him with another punch. Maynard lands another right hand but Diaz maintains his composure and lands some punches and leg kicks. Diaz and Maynard continued to taunt each other and talk trash with one minute remaining in the round. Diaz tries to clinch Maynard but is pushed off. Maynard lands a body punch and the fighters stare each other down as they walk to their corners at the end of the round. Ringside Report scores Round 2 for Gray Maynard: 10-9

Round 3

Diaz and Maynard collided with some punches and knees. Diaz landed a head kick but Maynard was unfazed and backed away. Diaz landed a right hand and tried to clinch Maynard who slipped away and avoided Diaz. Nate Diaz landed a big left hand that dropped Gray Maynard who quickly popped back to his feet. Diaz landed an inside leg kick and a straight right hand. Diaz lands a right hook, both fighters clinch and exchange punches but push off and continue to box. Maynard landed a right hook but Diaz landed a left-right combo that he initiated with an inside leg kick. Diaz landed some jabs but Maynard smacked his opponent with a right hand. Diaz went for a takedown that was stuffed and Maynard landed a left hook when they got back to their feet. Ringside Report scores Round 3 for Nick Diaz 10-9

Gray Maynard def. Nate Diaz via split decision (29-28, Diaz, 30-27 Maynard, 29-28 Maynard)

"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.

Becoming the Natural
Randy Couture and Loretta Hunt
Simon Spotlight

Ringside Report Radio December 11, 2009

December 12, 2009 By Dave Leave a Comment

This is the December 11, 2009 episode of Ringside Report Radio hosted by Dave Simon and Kevin “Big Tuna” McKough

In this episode Dave and Kevin spoke to Ringside Report’s Ultimate Fighter Insider, Team Rashad strength and conditioning coach, Jonathan Chaimberg. Jonathan talked about Roy Nelson’s victory, Brendan Schaub’s future and Jon Jones’ impressive performance against Matt Hamill.

Damarques Johnson also appeared on the show to talk about his fight against Edgar Garcia at UFC 107. T.J. Grant was interviewed about his fight at UFC 107 against Kevin Burns. Dave and Kevin also gave a full preview and predictions for UFC 107: Penn v. Sanchez.

Fabio Holanda and Sean Pierson were also guests on this program to talk about their fight in the main event of Wreck MMA in Gatineau, Quebec.

Quebec wrestler Jeremy Prophet appeared on the show to talk about his recent tryout for WWE’s developmental territory, Florida Championship Wrestling.

All that and a lot more MMA and Pro Wrestling talk is available in this Ringside Report Podcast.

UFC 2010 world premiere at Spike TV's Video Game Awards

December 12, 2009 By Dave Leave a Comment

UFC Undisputed 2010, the second UFC title by THQ will make its worldwide debut at Spike TV’s Video Game Awards. Set to air live from Los Angeles California this Saturday December 12 at 8pm EST. The awards show will feature the first-ever gameplay footage from UFC Undisputed 2010, interspersed with commentary from top UFC fighters. In addition, the footage will be introduced through a special UFC guest appearance. Dana White is scheduled to be in Memphis, Tennessee that night for UFC 107 as will many top UFC fighters. Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz were just announced as the coaches for the next season of TUF on Spike so it would make sense to see them appear at the Video Game Awards to represent the UFC.

UFC Undisputed 2009 is nominated in the “Best Individual Sports Game” category which fans can vote on by visiting http://vga.spike.com.

The first ever viewing of UFC Undisputed 2010 at Spike’s Video Game Awards will no doubt give MMA and gamers an idea of what to expect in the new game and maybe even a glimpse of the fighter roster.

Strikeforce signs Dan Henderson

December 7, 2009 By Dave Leave a Comment

After being unable to come to terms with the UFC, former Pride and UFC champion Dan Henderson has signed with Strikeforce. Henderson is coming off three straight UFC victories and scored a KO victory over Michael Bisping in his last fight at UFC 100.

“I’m very happy to be a part of STRIKEFORCE and their partnership with CBS and SHOWTIME®,” said the 39-year-old Henderson, who represented The United States in Greco-Roman wrestling in both the 1992 and 1996 Summer Olympics.

“We are excited to welcome Dan Henderson to STRIKEFORCE,” said Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker. “Dan is one of the world’s premiere fighters who has lived out an extraordinary career. We are looking forward to having him compete for us.”

UFC President Dana White had predicted Henderson would sign with Strikeforce after talks with the UFC had broken off in late October. Henderson was expecting a rematch with UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva which was not granted, a factor that may have played a part in negotiations. Dana White made allegations that Henderson wanted too much money and wanted to be “the highest paid fighter in the UFC.”

Dana White recently said the following to Mike Chiappetta of AOL Fanhouse,”Let me ask you a question,” he continued. “Do you think that there’s any guy we can’t get that I want? Other than Fedor Emelianenko? So far, he’s been the one guy we can’t get. But everyone else that we’ve wanted, we got. If I wanted Dan Henderson, I could’ve signed him.”

Dan Henderson kept his comments positive, “I’d also like to thank Dana (White) and the UFC for the opportunities they provided me and I wish them ongoing success,” Henderson said. “I’ll continue to watch their events and I hope they’ll tune in to my fights in STRIKEFORCE. After all, I’m a true fan of our fantastic sport and would love only to see MMA continue to grow.”

Related Reading:

Related Reading:

Related Reading:

Related Reading:

Related Reading:

Related Reading:

Related Reading:

Related Reading:

Related Reading:

Related Reading:

Related Reading:

Related Reading:

Related Reading:

Related Reading:

Related Reading:

Related Reading:

Related Reading:

Related Reading:

Login to Share Your Thoughts

Listen Here to our Latest Podcast

Ringside Report Official Facebook Group

Dave’s Tweets

Kevin’s Tweets

Recent Comments

Shinya Aoki v. Tatsuya Kawajiri from DREAM 15

Recycled from the Octogon

Donate if You Like What We’re Writing

Become a Sponsor of Ringside Report

For More Information on Rates and Opportunities contact Dave Simon or Kevin McKough.

Categories

Meta

Creative Commons License