March 1st, 2008
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Mark Coleman was tonight inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame as expected at UFC 82: “Pride of a Champion” at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio.
Unexpectedly, he announced that he will not retire and he will fight Brock Lesnar in August in Minnesota.
That’s not a typo.
Coleman—the first - ever UFC heavyweight champion — will return to the Octagon for the first time since 1999. He had a semi-successful run in the Pride FC organization, with the highlight of his work overseas being the champion of the first-ever open weight grand prix in 2000.
Since that time, however, the 43-year-old has compiled an average record (4-4), taking on some of the best competitors in the division such as Fedor Emelianenko (two losses), Mirko Cro Cop (loss) and Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira (loss).
Coleman — the “Godfather” of the ground and pound — is a collegiate national wrestling champion for THE Ohio State University and competed in the Olympics in 1992. He’ll put his ground skills to the test against another collegiate wrestling champion in Lesnar.
Lesnar dropped his highly anticipated Octagon debut at UFC 81: “Breaking Point,” losing to former heavyweight champion Frank Mir via submission (kneebar) in round one. He’s also a former WWE wrestling superstar who is extremely marketable, especially in front of his hometown crowd in Minnesota.
This is definitely a big test for each fighter — both want to prove that they belong in the UFC. And the two will have five months to prepare for the showdown.
When the bout takes place it will mark the first time ever the UFC has staged an event in the “North Star State.”
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Mark “The Hammer” Coleman was inducted into the UFC Hall Of Fame tonight, and as a reward they are going to let him fight Brock Lesnar. Come on now, how old is Mark Coleman? The UFC has spent some money of Brock Lesnar, and they really want him to get a win over a big named opponent, albeit a 40+ year old opponent. So, let’s make him a Hall-of-Famer and then Brock will have a win over a UFC legend on his resume. I don’t like this fight, but I hope The Hammer wins.
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Guest Liveblogger Ben Fowlkes of The Fighting Life here, all set and ready to go for UFC 82. I’m looking forward to a good night of fights, which I’m warming up for by watching Dana White swear through the countdown show. I wouldn’t want it any other way.
Click the “MORE” link and refresh the page every few minutes for round-by-round updates.
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(Easy come, easy go: Horwich and McGivern)
You’ve already read our blow-by-blow results of IFL’s rock ‘em sock ‘em season opener. Now, Ben Fowlkes gives his insider’s perspective on last night’s action. Read it and learn something.
I already knew Matt Horwich could take a punch, but I didn’t know until last night that he could take so many and remain so unfazed. Ryan McGivern hit Horwich with everything but a Zuffa lawsuit in their five-round fight. It made for a sharp contrast from the wrestling match that erupted the last time these two fought, and it proved that while both have come a long way, McGivern is improving at an almost frightening rate.
That’s not to say it was an easy night for McGivern, even if he did walk away with the title. I saw him backstage and his face had already turned several different colors, though he was so happy I don’t think he noticed. For those who were surprised to see McGivern win with his striking, perhaps this anecdote from Pat Miletich will clear it up.
Miletich said that during the training for this fight, they brought in a pro boxer to go a few rounds sparring with McGivern. After three rounds, the guy was done. McGivern had destroyed his ribs. So then a Muay Thai fighter got in there to help him finish up, but after a couple of rounds he was finished as well. Then, Miletich said, one of his guys “who holds a belt in another organization” got in against McGivern, and he also took a beating. No wonder McGivern is the new champ.
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Click the banner above or right here for up-to-the-minute results and blow-by-blow coverage of UFC 81: “Breaking Point.”
Quick results of the prelim action are NOW FLOWING and LIVE blow-by-blow, round-by-round coverage of the main card action will begin promptly at 10 p.m. ET with the pay-per-view (PPV) telecast.
If you’re going to leave comments and discuss the fights with all the other MMAmania.com readers be sure to do it on the main UFC 82 results post and not this one.
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Former UFC heavyweight champion, Andrei Arlovski, finds himself in a peculiar situation tonight when he locks horns with the undefeated Jake O’Brien at UFC 82: “Pride of a Champion.”
“The Pitbull” — one of the organization’s biggest stars — is competing on the untelevised preliminary card. It’s a big step down for a man who has seemingly done nothing wrong inside the Octagon sans a few “dull” performances.
That’s perhaps more than likely not the primary reason, however, Arlovski will not be featured on the pay-per-view (PPV) live this evening. It’s what’s going on outside the Octagon that has everyone abuzz.
He’s got one fight remaining on his current UFC deal and there’s talk that he was forced to “sit on the bench” until an extension was struck. In fact, Arlovksi has not fought in almost one year … and he’s been perfectly healthy.
We caught up with Andrei and discussed his fight later on tonight, the contract situation and his plans going forward. He was tight-lipped for much of the interview, but that can be attributed in part to the sensitivity of his future talks with the Zuffa brass about a new deal after the O’Brien fight.
Here it is:
MMAmania.com: Andrei, thanks for taking the time out of your busy schedule. We know that you’ve got a lot going on this weekend with your return to the Octagon against Jake O’Brien. So let’s start with that. What do you think of O’Brien?
Andrei Arlovski: Jake O’Brien is a very good, well-rounded fighter. I look forward to test my skills against him.
MMAmania.com: What have you done to prepare for him? Please explain a little bit about your training and training camp.
Andrei Arlovski: My training and my training camp was the same as always.
MMAmania.com: Because you are such a fan favorite and have been with the organization for so long, what were your thoughts and feelings when you found out that you would be fighting on the undercard? It seems like a lack of respect for one of the organization’s top consistent draws for the past few years.
Andrei Arlovski: My job is to fight. It is UFC’s job to promote and it’s up to them where they put my fight. I am a fighter, not a promoter.
MMAmania.com: Is there any added pressure to finish this fight fight convincingly to prove that you are worth your asking price in future negotiantions?
Andrei Arlovski: What asking price? As far as I know, I haven’t asked for any money.
MMAmania.com: Okay … so then what is the gameplan, especially if he intends to grind out a boring decision. Is this a fight in which we will see the Pitbull throw caution to the wind?
Andrei Arlovski: As always, I have a gameplan. I will try and execute and do everything I can to win the fight.
MMAmania.com: You haven’t fought since the Fabricio Werdum bout back in April 2007. Ring rust — will it play a factor?
Andrei Arlovski: I was not just sitting around for the last 10 months.
MMAmania.com: What is your current contract status with the UFC? Has anything changed since we previously spoke?
Andrei Arlovski: The contract situation is between myself and the UFC. It would be unprofessional and unethical to discuss it at this time.
MMAmania.com: It’s safe to say that several of the top heavyweights are now competing outside the Octagon. Do you want to be back in the UFC, why or why not?
Andrei Arlovski: I have been a UFC fighter for over seven years and I do not have any other plans at this point in time. I am concentrating on my fight for Saturday.
MMAmania.com: If you do re-sign, and you defeat O’Brien, do you feel you deserve the title shot that was promised to you in 2007 but never honored?
Andrei Arlovski: At the end of the day it is not my decision who gets the title fight. I am a contender and will wait in line like everyone else.
MMAmania.com: Who do you see winning the heavyweight bout between Cheick Kongo and Heath Herring Herring at UFC 82?
Andrei Arlovski: I wish them both the best of luck but I do not like to make predictions.
MMAmania.com: Who are some of the fighters who allegedly refused to take a fight with you before O’Brien, can you name names?
Andrei Arlovski: I am not in a position to discuss privileged information. This question should be directed to Dana White.
MMAmania.com: Who are some of the fighters (besides Sylvia) who you want to challenge in your next few fights?
Andrei Arlovski: Never in the past have I picked my opponents. The promoter has always picked them. I just want to be able to fight the best guys out there and test my skills against the best competition.
MMAmania.com: Thanks, Andrei. We know you’re pressed for time. Good luck against O’Brien and with everything else going forward. Are there any sponsors you like to plug before we wrap this up?
Andrei Arlovski: Yes, thank you. I have two new sponsors, Trendkilla.com and cafepress.com/arlovski. I would like to thank the rest of my sponsors, Dreamsoft, Prestige Auto Gallery and Geneva Seal for their continued support.
MMAmania.com: Sounds great. And how about a final message for your fans before the fight?
Andrei Arlovski: Thank you for your continued support during my time away for the Octagon. I appreciate and read the emails you send to me on arlovski.tv and myspace.com/arlovski.
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(Ryan “The Lion” Schultz G-n-P’s John Gunderson.)
Last night at the Orleans Arena in Vegas, 3,931 fans watched the IFL kick off its 2008 season with three title matches - lightweight, middleweight, and heavyweight - in addition to their camp-on-camp battles. Ryan “The Lion” Schultz, who won the lightweight title back in December when he beat the shit out of previously undefeated Chris Horodecki, retained his title by earning a unanimous decision over John Gunderson. “The Lion” claimed recently that Gunderson had been offered this fight many times, but had neglected to take it until now. The champ held a strong position through much of the fight - which was fought on the ground for the most part. Both Schultz and Gunderson had chances to end the fight with a choke early on, but neither could execute it.
Heavyweight Roy “Big Country” Nelson also successfully defended his belt by getting a TKO over Fabiano Scherner at 3:20 in the first round. “Big Country” has been improving his striking and this fight showed that as he unleashed a barrage of rights to get a stoppage.
(”Big Country” has a celebratory seizure.)
One title did switch hands and it happened the night before the ex-champ’s wedding, too. Matt Horwich put his middleweight title on the line against Ryan McGivern, which made for the best fight of the night. Horwich almost ended it via armbar in the second round, but the bell saved McGivern’s ass. Horwich almost went down himself in the fourth when McGivern drilled him with a flurry of strikes, but “The Fighting Hippy” held on. In the end, a unanimous decision gave the middleweight crown over to McGivern, ending a two month run as champ for Horwich. Hope he ices his face for the sake of the wedding pictures - he didn’t grow the mohawk out for nothing.
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Adam Wagner — one of the talented new writers who we have featured on the site recently — bumped into Josh Koscheck last night after the UFC 82: “Pride of a Champion” weigh-in.
Ever the opportunist, Adam requested an interview and “Kos” was cool enough to oblige.
Here it is:
Koscheck will fight Dustin Hazelett tonight in a welterweight bout that is slated for the undercard.
Predictions anyone?
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“Push the fight as much as you can, I tell him [Anderson Silva]. Dan Henderson is good in the first round or two. If the fight keeps going, he starts going downhill. I think [Silva] wins by KO no later than the third.”
– UFC Heavyweight Champion, Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira , tells the Los Angeles Times that he predicts friend and training partner, Anderson Silva, will defeat Dan Henderson during the UFC 82: “Pride of a Champion” main event tonight via third round knockout. Nogueira has fought Henderson twice in his career overseas, losing one contest and winning the other.
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