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Written by admin on September 6th, 2007 with comments disabled.
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EliteXC held a conference call on Sept. 6 to promote their next card on Sept. 15 in Hawaii that will be airing on Showtime at 10 p.m. ET.
There were a lot of people on the call at different times so I might be leaving someone out but EliteXC live events president Gary Shaw, Gina Carano, Robbie Lawler, and Jake Shields were all on the call. Nick Diaz apparently was supposed to be on but never called in. I was kind of bummed because I’m real interested in what he has to say at this point.
Here are the highlights:
- Gary Shaw kicked it off but couldn’t talk long because he’s in the UK so that he can help complete the Cage Rage deal that was announced today. Gary indicated that they also have an agreement with Spirit MC in South Korera (Denis Kang has fought for this promotion) as well as letters of intent with Icon Sport and King of the Cage. Rumble on the Rock wasn’t mentioned but I believe that deal is done.
- I asked Shaw about Krazy Horse’s performance on the 8/25 ShoXC. I thought he might duck the question, but he didn’t. Shaw said he was disappointed with The Horse’s performance and that he felt he could have trained harder. But he still supported Bennett and also indicated that he sustained an injury to his hand in the first round. It doesn’t sound like The Horse is going anywhere.
- I asked about if we might ever see Nick Diaz vs. Takanori Gomi II inside of an EliteXC cage. It doesn’t sound like something they are working on but Shaw didn’t rule it out. If Gomi isn’t signed to the UFC then there’s no reason why we shouldn’t see a rematch.
- Diaz vs. Mike Aina will be at 160 lbs. I asked if they plan to go with both a 155 lbs. and 160 lbs. division. Shaw said they are discussing the two weight classes and that 155 lbs. could be merged into 160 lbs.
- Shaw was asked about expansion plans for the women’s division. He said he has identified three new female fighters he’d like to sign and hopes to have announcements ready by 9/15.
- The next ShoXC will be on Oct. 26 with another one scheduled for Dec. 7.
- Jake Shields indicated that he’s looking forward to fighting Renato “Charuto” Verissimo and that the match had been scheduled two other times prior but that the fights fell through.
- I asked Shields if EliteXC has talked to him about instituting a welterweight title and he said they have. He said he hopes to fight for it in his next bout.
- I asked Shields about his feud with Frank Trigg. He said that the match had been set for October in San Francisco and that both verbally agreed. When it came time to return contracts, Trigg never signed his and then wouldn’t answer his phone. Shields said he’s still open to the match but isn’t sure it’s worth pursuing right now.
- Someone asked a followup about the difference in weight class between Shields and Trigg. Shields said he’d be willing to fight at 185 if the offer is right. I am pretty sure he said the offer he had this time around wasn’t enough for him to fight Trigg at middleweight.
- Shields has one more fight on his EliteXC contract after the Charuto fight. He said he likes EliteXC and hopes to stay.
- Someone asked about the WEC but Shields said he hasn’t given serious consideration to fighting for them (maybe I missed something, does anyone know if the WEC tried to sign him?). I think the question was brought up because he holds a win over Carlos Condit, the current WEC welterweight champ. I think Shields sounded like he was open to fighting Condit again.
Written by admin on September 6th, 2007 with comments disabled.
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I received a lot of good feedback on the interview I did with Dana White for CBSSports.com. It looks like a writer by the name of Mark Gilbert liked the interview so much he stole the quotes for his article on the online edition of The Sun newspaper without citing the proper source.
Actually, Gilbert doesn’t cite any source.
I know there are cultural differences between the U.S. and the UK but do you mean to tell me that plagiarism is acceptable over there?
Here, read for yourself:
- My interview with Dana
- Mark Gilbert’s “interview” with Dana
Written by admin on September 6th, 2007 with comments disabled.
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On EliteXC’s next card on Sept. 15 in Hawaii, Nick Diaz will be fighting for the first time since serving a six-month suspension handed down by NSAC for a positive marijuana test following his match vs. Takanori Gomi at PRIDE 33 in Vegas on Feb. 24.
Diaz won the match originally but NSAC overturned the win and ruled it a no contest. However, the image of Gomi tapping to Diaz’s gogoplata is not something that people will forget.
Here’s some video of Nick Diaz’s opponent on 9/15, “Iron” Mike Aina:
From the video, Aina appears to be a tough dude. He’s been training with B.J. Penn for the past four years. He’s also fought Roger Huerta and Ryan Schultz in the past. From the looks of the video, it wouldn’t surprise me if Aina and Diaz started throwing down in the center of the cage.
Aina grew up in Hilo and will be fighting in front of a lot of friends and family. He just got married last week.
Written by admin on September 6th, 2007 with comments disabled.
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I’ve got some MMA News & Notes for you on a Thursday afternoon. I was on the EliteXC conference call today and I hope to have some highlights for you a bit later.
On to the news…
- I was able to touch base with Guy Mezger today and ask him for some more detail behind Mark Cuban’s new MMA project. You can read the highlights of my conversation in an article I that I wrote for CBSSports.com by clicking here.
- There’s a new promotion in Canada called Hardcore Championship Fighting that’s planning a big show on Oct. 19 in Calgary. The main event that’s being floated around right now is Wesley “Cabbage” Correia vs. Aleksander Emelianenko. HCF apparently has big money behind it and I’m hearing they are talking to some very big names.
- Do you want to speak with the most underrated fighter in MMA? Luke Thomas’ Any Given Saturday will be on a special night tonight at 10 p.m. ET and the guest will be UFC welterweight Jon Fitch. You can access the show at BloodyElbow.com and call-in as well (646-478-5091).
- There’s a new Rampage interview available at Complex.com. You can check it out by clicking here.
Written by admin on September 6th, 2007 with comments disabled.
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According to the Chicago Sun-Times
UFC’s Martin claims he was falsely arrested
September 6, 2007
BY ROMAN MODROWSKI rmodrowski@suntimes.com
Ultimate Fighting Championship rising star Terry Martin was falsely arrested as he was on his way into a police station to report police harassment, according to a lawsuit filed Wednesday.
Martin, 26, is suing Mayor Daley and Chicago Police officials and officers for misconduct, alleging that corruption within the Chicago Police Department led to Martin being arrested and prosecuted.
Martin was stopped by police Oct. 22, 2005, for alleged minor traffic offenses while driving with his girlfriend, a 911 operator. He claims the officers used racial slurs during the encounter and other disrespectful comments. The next evening, according to the suit, Martin went to the police station to report the incident and was spotted by the same two officers.
”The police said Terry drove past the station, and when the officers turned on their sirens, he did a U-turn and fled,” Martin’s attorney, Blake Horowitz, said. ”They said he got up to a half-mile away before they brought him back and arrested him for fleeing and eluding.
”During the trial, another officer said he saw Terry pull up to the station calmly and they arrested him. He would have been able to see if there was a chase.”
Martin’s a Chicago native who worked his way up from gangbanger in the North Lawndale area to a college graduate with a master’s in psychology. He’s 2-2 in the UFC, having won his last two matches. Martin is scheduled to fight Chris Leben on Sept. 19 in Las Vegas.
Written by admin on September 6th, 2007 with comments disabled.
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“… it’s not a competition, it’s a fight. And I’m there to destroy my opponent, I’m not there to compete against my opponent, I’m there to annihilate my opponent. There’s no room or space for allowing him to get into the fight, I need to stop him from the moment I step into the Octagon. If not, it’s going to be my ass. (Laughs.) And that’s been my philosophy out there — I’m there to kill. That’s it.”
– UFC Lightweight contender Kenny Florian shares his new approach to fighting during an interview with CBSSports.com. The former The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) contestant is set to face crafty veteran Din Thomas in the main event at UFC Fight Night 11 on September 19. Note: This is not a new nickname. Even though it’s more intimidating than the current “Ken-Flo.”
Written by admin on September 6th, 2007 with comments disabled.
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Roman Modrowski of the Chicago Sun-Times is reporting that UFC middleweight Terry Martin is claiming he was falsely arrested in October of 2005. According to the report, Martin is suing Chicago’s mayor and area police officials and officers for misconduct, alleging that corruption within the Chicago Police Department led to Martin being arrested and prosecuted.
The lawsuit was filed Wednesday.
To read the entire report, just click here.
Thanks to 5 Oz. reader Chris Schultz for the head’s up.
Written by admin on September 6th, 2007 with comments disabled.
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Matt Cava of UFCTakedown.com and I will be joined on this week’s edition of Inside the Cage Radio by the best play-by-play man in MMA, Mauro Ranallo.
Mauro, who is both the voice of The Fight Network as well as the lead announcer for EliteXC, will be joining Matt and I to discuss last weekend’s Art of War III show (Mauro was the play-by-play voice for the show) that took place in Dallas and aired on PPV as well as EliteXC’s next show from Hawaii on Saturday, September 15.
You can listen to last week’s show by clicking the play button that appears on the live player below. Matt and I were joined by both Dann Stupp of MMAjunkie.com and the Dayton Daily News and also Luke Thomas of BloodyElbow.com. We not only reviewed UFC 74 but previewed this weekend’s UFC 75 show.
Written by admin on September 6th, 2007 with comments disabled.
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Reminder: Our “Any Given Saturday” online radio program returns TONIGHT at 10 p.m. ET with UFC welterweight contender, Jon Fitch.
To tune-in LIVE at 10 p.m. during the hour-long special CLICK HERE.
Fitch will discuss his upcoming bout with Diego “Nightmare” Sanchez at UFC 76: “Knockout” on September 22 — and more — with show host, Luke Thomas.
Here’s the number to call: (646) 478-5092.
Remember, this show is LIVE and takes your calls — feel free to check-in and ask Fitch or Thomas a question during the broadcast. “Any Given Saturday” is fan friendly — check it out HERE at 10 p.m. ET.
If you can’t make the LIVE show, but want to ask Fitch questions, leave them in the comments section below for consideration.
Written by admin on September 6th, 2007 with comments disabled.
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