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Karo Parisyan talks about his upcoming fight with Thiago Alves at UFC Fight Night 13 on April 2, as well as statements that he is ducking Jon Fitch. The latter point is what really draws his ire.
Written by admin on February 24th, 2008 with comments disabled.
Read more articles on Thiago Alves and UFC Fight Night 13 and Karo Parisyan and Jon Fitch and Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and MMA.
MMAmania is giving away more than $700 in prizes thanks in part to the good folks over at BetUS.com and MMAWarehouse.com.
The lone requirement to win some green: Creativity.
We did this a few months ago and you guys delivered. Now we’re bringing it back for the upcoming UFC 82: “Pride of a Champion” on Saturday March 1.
Here’s how it works:
Step 1: Go to BigHugeLabs.com to create your motivational poster.
Step 2: Upload your poster to Photobucket or another image hosting site of your choice and leave us a link in the comments section. Or, send the image to us at this email.
Step 3: Be sure that your creation is original and relates to UFC 82. Try to keep it PG-13 at the very least. For the complete UFC 82 fight card click here.
Want to know what you are playing for?
First place: $200 FREE play at BetUS.com, a sick poker chip set and $50 shopping spree at MMAWarehouse.com.
Second place: $150 FREE play at BetUS.com and a $100 shopping spree at MMAWarehouse.com.
Third place: $100 FREE play at BetUS.com and a UFC DVD.
Honorable mention: MMAmania.com t-shirts.
This contest will run until Friday to give you guys enough time to put something solid together, win some cash and bet on the fights next weekend with some FREE bread.
Let me know if you have any questions — I’ll provide a little more info personally when we receive the submissions. Look forward to seeing some hilarious/inspirational stuff.
Remember to also create an account at BetUS.com through this link as soon as possible. We’ll need your account number to deposit the winning amounts on Friday. It’s better to do it now rather than at the last moment.
For those who already have established accounts at BetUS.com just have the account information handy and ready to send us if applicable.
We can’t wait to see what ya’ got.
Written by admin on February 24th, 2008 with comments disabled.
Read more articles on UFC 82 and UFC Contests and Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and MMA.
Next Saturday night at UFC 82: “Pride of a Champion” Jon Fitch will continue his climb up the welterweight mountain when he takes on Chris Wilson, who will be making his debut inside the Octagon.
Fitch goes into this fight with 14 straight wins, seven of those in the UFC. And he acknowledges that going through Wilson — who is on a hot streak of his own — will be no easy task.
“He’s pretty lanky, long and has a pretty good one-two combination, good stand-up, he’s pretty dangerous in that regard,” Fitch told MMAmania.com. “His ground is okay, it’s not great, but he’s dangerous on the ground because he is long and a lot of times the long guys are pretty tricky with their positioning and can do things most guys can’t, so it’s important to keep your game tight with guys like that.”
Fitch is well-aware that Wilson is confident going into this fight and views this as a good thing.
“I only want to fight the toughest guys out there and if you’re afraid to fight somebody or are not really confident going into a fight, then I don’t want to fight you,” Fitch said.
Originally, Fitch was slated to take on former Pride FC fighter, Akihiro Gono. However, a Gono injury forced him out and brought in Wilson.
Both Gono and Wilson are two different fighting styles and Fitch has had to prepare differently for Wilson than he would have for Gono.
“Akihiro is kind of in-and-out, picks his spots to fight, while Chris tends to move a little bit more, also the size makes a difference, a shorter Gono compared to a longer Wilson makes it a big difference,” Fitch said. “I’ve been changing things up with different grappling partners and sparring partners, to match up size and striking ability.”
Fitch knows what he must do to walk out of UFC 82 in Columbus with his 15th straight victory.
“I need to keep my game really tight, don’t get loose, because that’s when he tends to catch people,” Fitch said. “I have to keep it tight and keep the pressure and try to break him with my pressure.”
With Fitch now being among the elite, it’s only a matter of time until he gets a shot at the welterweight title.
Fitch has UFC wins over Brock Larson, Josh Burkman, Thiago Alves and most recently, Diego Sanchez. Fitch believes that he has been in the UFC long enough and has won enough to earn a title shot.
“I think that I’ve put in the work to deserve a title shot. I’ve never heard of anybody with the record in the UFC that I have not getting some kind of title shot. I don’t understand why I wouldn’t or what the deal would be for me not to get it,” Fitch said.
“I don’t get a control say unfortunately. Otherwise, I would have had all marquee match-ups against named fighters instead of against guys who people haven’t heard about who are just as tough as those marquee guys.”
It’s going to be hard to deny Fitch a chance at the title if he wins at the Nationwide Arena this Saturday night. His long win streak is unheard of in this division and in the sport itself. He gives credit to hard work and having fun.
“It’s hard work, just keeping your eyes on the work in front of you and getting done and having fun along the way. I really enjoy the workouts,” Fitch said. “I enjoy learning new techniques and I don’t let any of that other stuff get to me. I’m not here to be famous. I’m not here to be a rock star.”
That might be inevitable, however, if everything goes according to plan for Fitch in 2008.
Written by admin on February 24th, 2008 with comments disabled.
Read more articles on UFC 82 and Chris Wilson and UFC Fighter Interviews and Jon Fitch and Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and MMA.
“… I’m fighting a wrestler, who in order for him to play into his strong suit, he has to also play into my strength. I’m real good about catching submissions on the way down from takedowns, so that’s something I always look to implement. Anytime anyone takes someone down, no matter how good of a wrestler that they are, there’s always a split second where they’re over-extended or posting on the mat, and that’s something that if you’re quick you can take advantage of.”
– Dustin Hazelett tells MMAWeekly.com that he is not scared of the wrestling ability of his opponent, Josh Koscheck, at UFC 82: “Pride of a Champion” at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio, on March 1. In fact, he hopes to use his strength against him to lock-in a fight-ending submission.
Written by admin on February 24th, 2008 with comments disabled.
Read more articles on Dustin Hazelett and UFC 82 and Josh Koscheck and UFC Quick Quotes and Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and MMA.
Click Here to check out the HUMMER for sale. He’s donating some money to the “Keep It In The Ring Foundation” (KIITRF) which “was created by American Fighter President Jeff Adler and Rich Franklin to advocate non-violence and build character in youth. This is done through after school sports, martial arts, and life skills programs. We help young people learn about life so they can respect it.”
Written by admin on February 24th, 2008 with comments disabled.
Read more articles on collectibles and h2 and hummer and Rich Franklin and merchandise and MMA and UFC and MMA Collectibles.
Wanderlei Silva (31-8-1) has expressed his intentions of signing the bout agreement to fight Keith Jardine (13-3-1) at UFC 84 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Saturday May 24.
The latest announcement comes via his personal blog, which has been translated in part thanks to MMAWeekly.com.
Here’s a snip:
“I’m leaving right now to sign the Jardine fight contract and you are the first ones to know officially. I am starting to train hard again to be able to get the victory.”
It’s a victory that the “Axe Murderer” perhaps needs more than any other in his career — he’s on a three-fight losing skid.
Granted there’s nothing wrong with losses to Mirko Cro, Dan Henderson and Chuck Liddell. But if he can’t beat Jardine it is going to derail any immediate aspirations he has to challenge the top contenders in the 205-pound division.
To help him prepare for the upcoming bout Silva will enlist the services of UFC Heavyweight Champion Randy Couture and his army of dynamic trainers at the XTreme Couture gym in Las Vegas.
For his part, Jardine will continue to train in New Mexico with mastermind Greg Jackson and camp partners Rashad Evans, Nate Marquardt, Georges St. Pierre and others.
He is competing for this first time since his split-decision win over Chuck Liddell at UFC 76: “Knockout” back in September 2007.
With wins over Forrest Griffin, Liddell and possibly Silva, it’d be insane to not see Jardine challenge for the title his next time out, or at the very least fight the winner of Liddell and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua in a number one contender eliminator match.
Let’s also remember two other important bouts within the division that are upcoming: Lyoto Machida vs. Tito Ortiz and Thiago Silva vs. Rashad Evans.
Things should be very interesting going forward in the light heavyweight category going forward. And the winner of this bout between Silva and Jardine will be in the thick of that mix.
It should be a good fight and interesting to see if Jardine can handle the pressure and aggressive style of Silva. He more than likely won’t have much room to unleash those punishing kicks, which are a big reason behind his success.
For the most recent rumored UFC 84 fight card click here.
Written by admin on February 24th, 2008 with comments disabled.
Read more articles on UFC Light Heavyweight Division and Wanderlei Silva and UFC Pay Per View (PPV) Events and Keith Jardine and Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and MMA.
After more than nine months of inactivity, Mike Swick returned to action last month to fight Josh Burkman during the main even at UFC Fight Night 12.
The bout marked the welterweight debut for the former contestant on season one of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) after winning six of seven bouts in the middleweight division.
It was an impressive run that put him in contention for the 185-pound title. In fact, if he defeated Yushin Okami in front of his hometown crowd at UFC 69: “Shootout” in April 2007 it would be hard to argue against giving him an opportunity to challenge for the belt.
He didn’t win, losing a unanimous decision to the Japanese fighter. And it was after that loss that Swick decided to move from one of the organization’s most talent shallow to one of its deepest, the 170-pound class.
Swick revealed that he was on the smaller end of the spectrum in the division and would prefer to go at it with guys more his size even though his training partners at American Kickboxing Academy, Jon Fitch and Josh Koscheck, are top welterweight competitors.
MMAmania.com recently exchanged emails with Swick while he was in Thailand. He talks about the lackluster win over Josh Burkman, addresses post-fight comments from “The People’s Warrior” that Swick was “scared,” sets the record straight for critics who feel he should have stayed at 185 pounds and more in this exclusive interview.
MMAmania.com: Mike we know you are busy traveling and will make this as quick as possible. We know you can appreciate that. So let’s get to it. What were your thoughts and feelings on the fight against Josh Burkman?
Mike Swick: I was not happy with my performance.
MMAmania.com: Why did you apologize for the fight?
Mike Swick: Because I felt it was boring to the fans.
MMAmania.com: What do you have to say about his post-fight comments that you were “scared”?
Mike Swick: He is delusional. I knew he would talk after the fight. Thats just his thing, he is not a top level fighter so he has to convince people of how good he thinks he is. He has to sell himself because he knows his performance isn’t selling anything. Bottom line, he is not as strong as the top welterweights, he does not have the best takedowns in the division, and he doesn’t have the elite standup that he thinks he has. He is a man who is realizing that he doesn’t have any qualities that will rise him to the top of this division.
MMAmania.com: How is your hand that needed to be x-rayed after the fight and will it keep you out for an extended period of time?
Mike Swick: It’s better. I am back to training with it.
MMAmania.com: How different was it fighting in the welterweight division, as opposed to the middleweight?
Mike Swick: It felt better for me. I felt strong and conditioned.
MMAmania.com: What do you have to say to the folks who feel you “chickened out” when you decided to leave the middleweight division?
Mike Swick: I don’t know anyone who said that. I don’t think anyone with logic would say something that inaccurate. I did quite well in the middleweight division only taking a decision loss to a current top contender. Who was I afraid of? I had already called out Silva and tried to get that fight.
MMAmania.com: That’s right. Before the fight with Okami you went on a PR campaign to fight Anderson. Is that a fight you still want and how would it unfold?
Mike Swick: Stylistically, I still love that fight. I would like to get a bit bigger but would still like it if I can.
MMAmania.com: The talent is by far deeper at 170 than 185. What was the thinking behind the decision process to drop down?
Mike Swick: Because that’s my natural division. I have been fighting out of my division my whole career. I train with Kos and Fitch, both of whom usually outweigh me.
MMAmania.com: Who would you like to fight next in the welterweight division? Name some names.Mike Swick: I want to fight them all!
MMAmania.com: Where would you rank yourself in the division right now — near the top, middle or bottom?
Mike Swick: I wouldn’t rank myself until after my next fight.
MMAmania.com: The last two fights you’ve appeared more cautious than the Swick who used to come out guns blazing. Can we expect to see the “old” Mike Swick return anytime soon?
Mike Swick: Yes.
MMAmania.com: I understand you are going to Thailand, is this for business or pleasure?
Mike Swick: Just got back. It was both. I did a seminar and then relaxed and backpacked through Cambodia and southern Thailand.
MMAmania.com: Thanks Mike. We know you don’t have much time. Anything you want to say to your fans, supporters and sponsors before we wrap this thing up?
Mike Swick: I want to thank all the fans for their support! For up to date news, please check out my official Web site at and my MySpace page. Thanks!
Written by admin on February 24th, 2008 with comments disabled.
Read more articles on Mike Swick and UFC Fighter Interviews and Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and MMA.
(Combined weight: 689 pounds. Combined talent: 25 milligrams. Photo courtesy of Sherdog.)
I’d like to congratulate everyone who put money on +450 underdog Jan Nortje in his Strikeforce headlining match against Bob Sapp last night — you are officially smarter than a 5th grader. Video of the fight will be posted early this week in case you missed it (and honestly, how many of you subscribe to HDNet?) but wow, what a performance. The Beast rushed out after the bell and immediately got caught with a punch, then clinched and pushed Nortje into the fence. After some fat-man hugging, the two super-heavyweights separated and Sapp stuck Nortje with some stiff jabs. But as soon as Notje got the chance to throw some leather, Bob winced, ran in the other direction, and fell to the mat, where Nortje pounded him until the ref stopped it at 55 seconds into the first. Classic Sapp. Now are you ready to retire, dickhead?
But it wasn’t all slapstick comedy at the Tacoma Dome. Joe Riggs had to be carried out on a stretcher after his submission-via-agony loss to Cory Devela. Riggs and Devela clinched early in round 1, and Devela broke the stalemate with a hip throw that slammed Riggs hard onto his back. Not only was the pain immediately apparent on Riggs’s face, but he barely had the strength to tap out; the ref called it at 1:22 of the first round. Unable to get to his feet, paramedics had to remove the former UFC fighter from the cage. Making the scene even more brutal, Riggs’s entire body seemed to spasm involuntarily while he was laid out. For a guy who was previously addicted to painkillers, Riggs will have a tough road ahead of him, even if the prognosis is just a few slipped discs. We’ll update you when you know more.
In the evening’s other notable match, 46-year-old former UFC heavyweight champ Maurice Smith spolied the MMA debut of 41-year-old kickboxer Rick “The Jet” Roufus. Roufus was totally lost once Smith shot in for a takedown, and Mo’ was able to get full mount and tap Roufus with an armlock at 1:53 of round one. It was the second fight in Smith’s current farewell-tour; he stepped away from the game in 2000, but returned to action with a TKO victory over Marco Ruas at an IFL event last May.
The night’s other matches weren’t nearly as exciting, unless you dig slow three-rounders fought by guys you’ve never heard of. But here’s how they turned out:
Eddy Ellis def. Steve Berger via unanimous decision
Jorge Masvidal def. Ryan Healy via unanimous decision
Mychal Clark def. Josh Bennett via TKO (doctor’s stoppage), end of round 2
Lyle Beerbohm def. Ray Perales via submission (guillotine choke), 1:19 into round 3
Mike Hayes def. Matt Kovacs via unanimous decision
Zach Skinner def. Scott Shaffer via unanimous decision
Nathan Coy def. Dave Courchaine via KO (punch), 1:46 into round 1
Written by admin on February 24th, 2008 with comments disabled.
Read more articles on Jan Nortje and Maurice Smith and Rick Roufus and Recap and Bob Sapp and Joe Riggs and Strikeforce and MMA.