A planned catchweight bout between Strikeforce light heavyweight champion Renato “Babalu” Sobral and former Olympic Greco-Roman silver medalist Matt Lindland has been scrapped from Affliction Entertainment’s next pay-per-view event scheduled for Jan. 24.
FiveOuncesOfPain.com was alerted about the change by a source speaking on the condition of anonymity. We then contacted Richard Wilner, Sobral’s agent and […]
MMA Rated recently conducted an interview with Scott Coker, the CEO of Strikeforce, regarding what’s ahead for the promotion. Coker had some very interesting things to say in the interview. Here are some highlights:
* There have been preliminary talks between Strikeforce and NBC to air a live event sometime in the future
* The next Strikeforce […]
What: Affliction: BANNED
When: July 19, 2008
Where: Honda Center in Anaheim, CA
Watch: Pay Per View
Here’s the latest on Affliction: BANNED:
Main Card
Fedor Emelianenko vs. Tim Sylvia @ HW
Josh Barnett vs. Pedro Rizzo @ HW
Matt Lindland vs. Fabio Negao @ MW
Ben Rothwell vs. ??? @ HW
Renato “Babalu” Sobral vs. Mike Whitehead @ LHW
Rodrigo Rogerio Nogueira vs. Vernon White [...]
Mark Kerr and Babalu interviewed in the video below.
The interviewer asks Babalu why he isn’t fighting in an up-and-coming organization instead of a larger organization. I was waiting for Babalu to say “because the UFC fired me.”
Since having his UFC contracted terminated after failing to release an anaconda choke on an unconscious David Heath back at UFC 74, Renato “Babalu” Sobral has been the hardest working man in MMA. In late September, Babalu signed with MMA agent Ken Pavia and with the Strikeforce promotion. A week and a half later, the veteran Brazilian signed a multi-fight deal with Hardcore Fighting Championship, and MMAJunkie is reporting that Babalu has recently signed a non-exclusive deal with the Xcess Fighting promotion.
“I am undeniably the biggest ‘Babalu’ fan that lives. Xcess Fighting believes he has tremendous talent, and (we) are extremely proud to be able to get him back into he cage and in front of his fans so quickly,” Xcess Fighting spokesperson Bruce Bellocchi said.
According to Xcess Fighting, Babalu will reportedly make his debut for the promotion as part of a December 12 event. Neither an opponent for Babalu nor a location for the event has been specified, and the details surrounding his contract have not been disclosed at the time of this writing.
In a recent interview, Pavia said that a deal has been signed for Babalu to make his Strikeforce debut in San Jose in late January. “The deal is inked, but we still don’t know about the opponent, “Pavia said. “We were hoping to walk into a title shot, but looks like we’re going to have to get one fight in before we fight for the title.”
But before Babalu is poised to fight for the Strikeforce belt, he certainly needs to emerge victorious (and healthy) from his December Xcess fight. Strikeforce management might find themselves in a tough position to promote Babalu as a legitimate championship contender if he were to lose in a much smaller, lesser-known promotion only weeks before debuting for Strikeforce in the promotion’s hometown of San Jose.
Xcess Fighting will be holding its next event - “Havoc in Hollywood” - on November 7th in Hollywood, CA, at which Babalu is scheduled to make an appearance. Butterbean Esch and Jimmy Ambriz will fight for the WCO superheavyweight title in the evening’s main event, and former UFC champion Mark Kerr is scheduled to fight in the co-main event; Kerr’s opponent has not been specified on the Xcess Fighting site.
You know what I love so much about covering MMA? There’s never a shortage of news to cover. Here are some stories that are being reported around the ‘Net:
- Loretta Hunt from The Fight Network spoke with John Hackleman, the trainer for Chuck Liddell, who says he’s unaware of any retirement talk. In fact, he not only claims Liddell told him he’ll be back in the gym next Monday, but didn’t rule out a December fight for Liddell:
- It was revealed during the UFC 76 post-fight press conference that Quinton “Rampage” Jackson’s hand injury worsened during his UFC 75 title defense against Dan Henderson and that he’s unlikely to fight again in 2007. It doesn’t look like the UFC can fall back on a Forrest Griffin vs. Rampage UFC light heavyweight title match for UFC 79 on Dec. 29.
- According to this week’s print edition of The Wrestling Observer, BodogFIGHT welterweight champion Nick Thompson is having contract issues with the company. He’s one of the most underrated fighters in the world right now (right up there with Jon Fitch) and would be a tremendous addition to any fight promotion’s talent roster.
- In case you missed it, Ricco Rodriguez confirmed on Inside the Cage Radio with Matt Cava and I this past weekend that he’s still under contract to EliteXC (although a debut match has not been scheduled) and that he plans to continue to fight at heavyweight for the time being. His ultimate goal in the next year is to fight at light heavyweight and he also challenged former friend Tito Ortiz to a catch weight fight at 225 lbs.
- In a previous interview with me for CBSSports.com earlier in the year, Joe “Diesel” Riggs claimed he was transferred from the WEC to the UFC per his request. During Inside the Cage, he indicated that was not actually the case and that the idea was actually pushed on him by Zuffa. Riggs has signed what he believes is a five fight contract with Strikeforce and he’ll make his debut for the promotion this Saturday at the Playboy Mansion against 41-year old Eugene Jackson. It’s a non-exclusive deal but he needs to get permission from Strikeforce to fight outside of it (hey, how about Riggs vs. Nick Diaz II?). Riggs also confirmed there’s a chance he could fight Cung Le if he beats Jackson but said that while he wouldn’t mind fighting Le, he’d love to fight Frank Shamrock.
- I came across this interview via a story on MMANews.com, but in an interview with IronLife.com, Pride lightweight Joachim Hansen indicated he is still technically under contract to Zuffa through the Pride acquisition but there are no immediate plans to fight for the company. It appears they don’t want to use him under his existing deal, and wanted to re-negotiate his contract for less money:
They offered me a fight some months ago – I wasn’t sure if they had bought Pride for what the hell was going on. They offered me a fight against Marcus Aurelio, they offered me half the salary of what I got in Pride. Obviously at the time they had already bought Pride, in my opinion they also bought my contract, so how can they offer me half the salary?
- According to The Fight Network, NSAC officially decided not too suspend Renato “Babalu” Sobral following his extended choke on David Heath following their match at UFC 74 on Aug. 25. However, he will not receive the $25,000 win bonus that the commission decided to withhold, which means he’s been fined $25,000 in essence. All because a guy called him a mother fucker?
- According to MMAjunkie.com, Jake O’Brien, who underwent what what considered at the time to be possible career-ending back surgery, will resume training next year.
FiveOuncesOfPain.com has learned through EliteXC Live Events President Gary Shaw that the fight promotion has no immediate interest in former UFC fighter Renato “Babalu” Sobral. Shaw said in no way does he condone what Sobral did at UFC 74 and labeled the act as “egregious.” However, he would not rule out the possibility of having interest in Sobral’s services in the future.
I’ve also had several people ask me in recent weeks about the status of David Loiseau. Loiseau, if you recall, fought on EliteXC’s debut card in February and has not been used by the promotion since. There was some speculation that he had been released but Shaw confirmed to FiveOuncesOfPain.com that the promotion does in fact have plans for Loiseau and there’s a chance he could be appearing in December in England on a Cage Rage card.
For those who may have missed it, Renato “Babalu” Sobral has issued a statement regarding his hearing before the Nevada State Athletic Commission along with an apology for his action at UFC 74 last Saturday…
To My Family, Friends, Fans and Sponsors:
Since UFC 74, I have wanted to speak publicly about my fight with David Heath. I waited to do so, however, out of respect for the Nevada State Athletic Commission, Zuffa, Inc. and Dana White. After all, it is their efforts that have legitimized Mixed Martial Arts in the sports world and I realize that my conduct has unintentionally hindered those efforts. For that, among other things, I am deeply sorry.
I have been fighting professionally since 1998. Prior to my fight with David Heath, my professional record was twenty-seven wins with seven losses. Fourteen of my victories came by way of submission. Not once was I ever accused of holding a choke or submission too long. If anything, there has always been and continues to be a great camaraderie between my opponents and I after the fight.
Being a professional mixed martial artist is more than a career to me. It is my livelihood and my way of life. Consequently, I am deeply sorry for any embarrassment that has been brought upon the sport, other mixed martial artists (especially David Heath), my Academy and most importantly, my family.
As if the embarrassment were not enough, my actions during the fight with David and my comments afterwards, have already resulted in severe financial loss to my family because as you know, in addition to my win bonus still being withheld, yesterday I was released from my contract with the UFC.
There has been much talk about things that may have been said to me by David Heath at the weigh-in. What David said to me at the weigh-in didn’t matter then and doesn’t matter now. What matters are my comments after the fight. And, regardless of what you may read by so called MMA experts on the internet, I never said that I purposefully choked-out David Heath. In short, my post-fight comments, while inappropriate, were not intended to be comments about the choke. Rather, they were intended to be comments about the aggressive performance that I put in.
I did not intentionally choke out David Heath. The first that I realized that David had tapped was when people told me that he did after the fight. When I finally had the chance to view the tape, I see that he did. When David tapped, I did not feel it. I wish I did for I would have let it go. Instead, I continued to hold it. Not because I was upset or wanted him to lose consciousness. I held it because I didn’t know he tapped and I was intent on winning the fight. Holding on to a choke a little long is not an uncommon mistake made in training, and never in my career have I witnessed or heard of an injury resulting from it.
When I had the choke, I was not looking the referee in the eyes as one commentator erroneously observed. Nor did I hear the referee issue any verbal command to release the hold. Instead, my head was down to strengthen the move and my eyes closed with focus. As a result, I did not feel the referee tap me the first time either. It was not until he put his hands on my right shoulder that I felt him trying to separate us. When I felt this, I immediately released the choke.
After [Friday’s] hearing [with the Nevada State Athletic Commission] I traveled to the UFC’s office to meet with Dana White. Contrary to recent reports in the media, this meeting was not to discuss my being released from the UFC. In fact, this meeting was arranged prior to my even being released from the contract. The purpose of the meeting was for me to personally apologize to Dana while at the same time thank him for all the opportunities that the UFC has given to my family and I. Unfortunately, I was unable to meet with Dana due to a calendaring error Nevertheless, thanks Dana and my apologies.
I am a professional fighter. This is what I do for a living. I do not hold a day job and then train at night to fight. I know nothing else but how to fight. This is how I support my family.
On behalf of my family and friends, I appreciate the support that you have given me over the years, not to mention in the recent week, and I am hopeful that I will have the opportunity to fight again in the State of Nevada.
A day after it was announced that Renato “Babalu” Sobral would no longer be fighting for the UFC, the beleaguered Brazilian appeared in front of the Nevada State Athletic Commission on Friday morning.
According to MMAWeekly.com, the commission elected not to suspend Sobral but did not rule out a fine and will continue to withhold his $25,000 win bonus that he was due to receive following his win over David Heath at UFC 74 this past Saturday.
Richard Wilner, Sobral’s manager addressed the commission at length but Sobral also attended and spoke to the commission as well:
“When he tapped, I didn’t feel it. I then looked to the referee, and he shook my shoulder, and then I let him go. I didn’t understand why this whole thing happened. I’m kind of surprised that it happened, the crowd booing me and stuff like that. I don’t know, maybe it was from the blood. I don’t know. I would like to say sorry to David Heath and the UFC for bringing trouble to my sport that I love a lot. There’s one thing that I know how to do in my life is be a professional fighter. I don’t have like a regular job.”
You can get the full scoop at MMAWeekly.com by clicking here.
The UFC held a media conference call today to promote UFC 75 on September 8 in London. The event will be televised on a tape delay basis on Spike TV in the United States.
On the call was UFC president Dana White, Pride middleweight and welterweight champion Dan Henderson, UFC light heavyweight champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, Michael Bisping, and Matt Hamill.
Here are what I consider to be the biggest stories coming out of the press conference:
1. Dana announced that Renato “Babalu” Sobral has been released from his contract. My editor at CBSSports.com, Denny Burkholder, asked Dana if he felt the media was making too much out of the Sobral vs. Heath situation. White said that the fans expressed how they felt after the match and that up until that point Sobral had been a fan favorite. He said if it had been an arm, leg, or an ankle he would have been fired on the spot. He then added that Sobral has been cut from his contract. It was confusing because he made mention that Sobral would have been cut if had done something other than a choke, only to reveal seconds later that it had been cut. Some people are reading it as that Sobral was going to be cut regardless of what he did to David Heath but I did not hear it that way at all. He did term Babalu’s departure several different ways though such as “not renewed” and “cut.” It was a little opened ended.
A reporter later asked if Babalu was finished with the UFC forever and Dana said he doesn’t like to say never.
I asked a followup in regard to Dana’s comments in the Las Vegas Sun where he said he would talk to Babalu and that he was considering disciplinary action. I said it didn’t sound like Dana was going to dismiss him at the time and I asked what changed his mind? Dana didn’t agree with my assessment and said the writer from the Sun asked right after the incident happened. He said he wasn’t going to talk about disciplinary steps before speaking to Sobral and that he never changed his mind.
2. Dana White said “Nobody gives a shit about Josh Barnett.” Dana was asked to respond to Barnett’s questions about Randy Couture being a “paper champion,” to which Dana replied, “Nobody gives a shit about Josh Barnett, especially not me.” Mauro Ranallo contacted Barnett to get his reaction. Those comments from Barnett will be played on Fight Network Radio. I also spoke with Barnett and will be posting his reaction online after I finish my guest spot with Mauro.
3. Dana said that they “aren’t even close” to finalizing a new contract with Spike TV.
4. There were a TON of questions about Pride and a ton of comments from Dana about them. The most notable in my mind being that soon after they signed a deal with Pride, the UFC lost its TV contract in Japan. It sounded as though Dana insinuated it had to do with Pride having a bad name in Japan right now and that they suffered repercussions because of it.
5. I never followed up on reports yesterday about Ryo Chonnan signing with the UFC because they sounded like bunk. A reporter asked Dana if Chonnan had signed. Dana paused after the question (it sounded like he was conferring with someone in the room with him) and then responded “No.”
Other highlights:
- Dana was asked about Fedor and he confirmed he’d be meeting with him on Thursday (today). He was pressed if he thought there might be a press release announcing a signing today and Dana responded, “We’ve been talking with these guys for months. Who knows what will happen.” A followup was asked about a pending announcement and Dana said something to the effect, “Sure, put in a good word for us with them?”
- After the fight on Sept. 8 the Pride middleweight title will be retired. The UFC light heavyweight title will serve as the unified title.
- Rampage said he’s preparing for Dan Henderson the same way he prepared for Matt Lindland when he fought him last year in the WFA.
- Dana congratulated Dan Henderson on the birth of his baby daughter. Henderson’s wife had a planned delivery last night.
- Dana once again said Pride went out of business for a reason. He indicated that fighters can’t sit around and wait until Pride gets back on its feet and that is why guys like Henderson are making their way into the UFC. Dana added that Japan is a tough place to navigate through business-wise and that it was much tougher than they thought.
- Dana said Pride lost its TV deal due to “rumors” and that the Pride name is not good in Japan right now. He said they’re lucky just to be able to rent office space because of the company’s reputation. He would not offer a timetable for a final decision on Pride’s fate (so there is still some small hope) and that it was their every intention to keep it running when they bought it. He cited their activity with the WEC as an example of them keeping a company alive after acquiring it. He said he wouldn’t rule out doing UFC shows in Japan but that the UFC no longer has a TV contract after they announced the acquisition of Pride.
- There were a lot of questions about Dan Henderson and what weight class he’ll be fighting in long-term. He said he’s not thinking past this fight at all. At another point he asked why should he cut to 185 lbs. when he can beat anyone at 205 lbs.? Henderson didn’t sound cocky when he said it. He said it in a matter of fact tone and it sounds as though he’s very confident coming into this bout.
- Dana did not rule out the possibility of Randy Couture’s next fight being on Super Bowl weekend (damn, that’s an entire football season away!). They aren’t sure about an opponent. Dana said if Fedor signed he might get an immediate title shot. He also said that Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira will likely fight before the end of the year and if he wins, he could be next in line for a title shot.
- White said it will be awhile before they can gauge their success overseas.
- A question about Shogun came up and Dana said Shogun is a contender right now.
- Rampage was asked about Henderson having not fought in the cage for about 10 years. Jackson didn’t think it was an issue and said fighting in the Octagon is “like riding a bike.”
- Dana was asked about bringing in all the Pride stars and basically said that outside of Fedor that they have all of them under contract. Denis Kang’s name was brought up and Dana said Kang is talented, that they are interested, and that they’ve talked but that he doesn’t consider Kang one of the bigger names from Pride. Can I just say that I’d like to beg to differ?