Is There Anything to Look Forward to in the UFC Heavyweight division?

Dana White says the UFC was fine when Randy Couture retired and will be fine with his decision to retire from the UFC again. That might be true but Randy Couture retired from a very stacked light heavyweight division and woke up an extremely weak heavyweight division.

Couture had lost to then light heavyweight champ Chuck Liddell for the second consecutive time when he announced that he won't be entering the cage ever again. Only a year later he was fighting Tim Sylvia for the UFC heavyweight championship. Couture dismantled Sylvia to regain the belt and add some much needed life to the heavyweight division. Just the story alone was a reason to watch.

The UFC landed former Pride standout Mirko Cro Cop and gave him a number one contender bout against fellow heavyweight Gabriel Gonazga. Cro Cop was expected to walk through Gonzaga setting up a showdown with Couture. Gonzaga was a big underdog. So big, in fact, that he was the only one who thought he would win. He and one other person. Randy Couture knew of Gonzaga's style and predicted that he would beat Cro Cop, and pointing out that Gonzaga would be a tougher opponent for him than Cro Cop. For those of you who haven't seen the highlight reel, Gonzaga decapitated Cro Cop with a high kick to the head (Cro Cop's signature move), knocking the big man out.

Couture then faced Gonzaga as a huge underdog considering what Gonzaga had just done to Cro Cop. Everyone, myself included, thought Couture was in way over his head this time. This is when Couture proved once again why he is such a legend in this sport. He neutralized Gonzaga with his wrestling, smothering him and eventually stopping the 28 year old in the 3rd round.

There were other opponents for Couture but he felt the only big fight left for him would be against the man who is ranked the #1 heavyweight in MMA, Fedor Emelianenko. When the UFC failed to land him, Couture walked away. Sighting that reason, as well as many others, for leaving the UFC. That move has now left the heavyweight division in shambles.

So now we're back to Tim Sylvia getting a shot to regain the heavyweight belt against Antonio Nogueira at UFC 81 on February 2. The fight will be for the belt that Couture refused to defend again.

Former champ Frank Mir, who broke Sylvia's arm a few years back, will face newcomer and former WWE champ Brock Lesnar in the other heavyweight bout of the night. A fight that doesn't make much sense given the lack of talent in the division. If Lesnar wins, Frank Mir is all but done in the UFC. In his last fight, Mir finally showed some signs of regaining the form he had before his motorcycle crash. If Mir beats Lesnar, it already tarnishes Lesnar's reputation of invincibility, making him less of a draw in the future. He's only had one MMA fight but the division lacks the big name, forcing Lesnar to jump right in the fire. A move that could bite Dana White in the ass.

Sylvia was already a less than popular champion, and Nogueira didn't look terribly impressive against Heath Herring in his last fight. There are no other heavyweight draws in the UFC.

Either Frank Mir gets back into the mix or Lesnar jumps into the mix, depending what happens in their fight.

Brandon Vera is out until at least May with a broken hand. He broke it fighting against Tim Sylvia, saying that it prevented him from fighting to his ability but not using it as an excuse.

Andrei Arlovski is all but forgotten after a couple boring fights, both wins. Only a few years ago, Arlovski was deemed untouchable and had a nice 6 fight win streak going when Tim Sylvia avenged a loss and knocked him out. Since then he hasn't been the same. He lost a terrible 5 round fight to Sylvia in the rematch, but rebounded with 2 wins. He hasn't fought in close to a year and doesn't seem to be in Dana White's plans. The UFC isn't in a position to be picky and Arlovski is only 28 years old. At least let the guy fight out his contract and see if he has anything left.

Mirko Cro Cop doesn't have his head on straight and appears to be a 'scared' fighter. Cro Cop was extremely feared and he dominated while in Pride FC. He stated that he had a tough time adapting to the cage, as opposed to fighting in the ring. Then Gonzaga kicked his head off and into Dana White's lap, sending White back to the drawing board. Since Cro Cop was a big signing, White had to keep him in his plans in hopes that he would return to his dominating form and be the big draw he had in mind. That ended the night lightly regarded Cheick Kongo easily won a unanimous decision over Cro Cop, making the once dominant heavyweight, look plain.

If Cheick Kongo is a serious threat in the UFC heavyweight division, Dana White should just abolish the division entirely. At this point, it looks very plain.

Not being able to sign Fedor was a much bigger blow to the division than anticipated. Given the terms Fedor wanted to be signed under, I'm surprised anyone was able to sign him. In the mean time, we UFC fans get to watch mediocre fights, involving mediocre fighters. Luckily the other divisions are more than picking up the slack.

Dana White says the division went on before Couture, it'll go on after Couture. That might be true but he should also point out that the division will undoubtedly suck.

WCO Event Cancelled

Score another win for Dana White and the UFC. The World Cagefighting Organization scheduled for tonight in San Diego has been cancelled by the California State Athletic Commission. The cancellation was due to insufficient funds for fighter purses and expenses for the event.

The event was dubbed 'The Return' with the card covered with UFC vets. Scheduled fighters were Renato 'Babalu' Sobral vs. Vernon 'Tiger' White in the main event, as well as other veterans such as Mark Kerr, David Loiseau, Joe Riggs, and Ricco Rodriguez.

Several fighters were approached earlier and asked to tear up their original contracts in order to comply with the budget. With time running out, WCO officials made a last ditch effort to attain a promotor's license to save the event but couldn't as the clock rang closer to the scheduled fight time.

Dana White must be smiling as he has welcomed other fighting organizations to compete with the UFC and display the best of MMA, which he believes he has. Is he becoming the Vince McMahon of MMA?

MMA Update

Frank Shamrock is set to face Cung Le in the main event at Strikeforce on March 29th. The event is scheduled to air live on Showtime as a prime time special.

Shamrock has been coaching in the IFL for the past couple years. A fight with his brother Ken, also an IFL coach, has been rumored but nothing has been finalized.

TUF 6 Competitor Dorian Price Released From UFC Contract

It's been confirmed that Dorian Price has been released from the remainder of his UFC contract. The Muay Tai specialist showed heart and a temper during his stint on TUF 6. The major holes in his game appeared to be on the ground as he was submitted by Matt Arroyo with a rear naked choke during the show, and again getting submitted by Roman Mitichyan at the Ultimate Fighter Finale.

Price might be best remembered for shouting at the camera crew, then approaching them with verbal threats. It marked the first time during any of 'The Ultimate Fighter' seasons that the camera crew became part of the show. No disciplinary action was taken against Price and no one is sure if that may have lead to his dismissal.

It's hypocritical of the UFC if it may have been a factor, considering his opponent at the Ultimate Fighter Finale, Roman Mitichyan, threatened a doctor who told him his arm was broken, then trashed his office. When Mitichyan returned with the news that he wouldn't be able to compete, everyone touted the Armenian with having a competitive spirit, and a ton of heart. Yeah, he sure proved to be a competitor by acting like a child because he got some news he didn't want to hear.

Dana White preaches that he doesn't want his fighters to have a thug reputation, and that they conduct themselves as professionals, yet Mitichyan displayed all the traits White despises and came off as a hero. Hell, I'm sure it was great for ratings but what happens the next time Mitichyan doesn't get his way? He might throw another tantrum and hopefully has to face some sort of disciplinary action. Not to mention, he's not that accomplished a fighter to be pulling b.s. like that.

Sylvia and Nogueria Slated for UFC 81's Main Event

While plastering his picture and using his celebrity status to sell tickets, Brock Lesnar has been bumped down a peg and will not headline the fight card against Frank Mir. The fight will take place that evening but the main event will be Tim Sylvia and Antonio Nogueria for the interim Heavyweight Championship.

UFC 81, which takes place the night before the super bowl, was the hopeful return of Randy Couture but he refuses to fight in the UFC. If he did, he would have faced Nogueria in a defense of his title. We all know the history of Couture and the UFC since they couldn't sign Fedor Emelianenko.

Tommy Speer back in action at UFC Fight Night 13

TUF 6 runner up Tommy Speer, who lost in the finals to Mac Danzig, is scheduled to make his next appearance against Anthony Johnson at UFC Fight Night 13 on April 2nd.

The live show on Spike TV will serve as a lead in to the next season of 'The Ultimate Fighter' and is looking to be a great free card. Also on the card is Kenny Florian vs. Joe Lauzon, Matt Hamill vs. Stephan Bonnar, and Spencer Fisher vs. Marcus Aurelio.

Johnson has a respectable 4-1 record, his lone loss was to UFC vet Rich Clementi in a fight in which he dropped Clemente two times before being submitted in the second round.

Sherk to Fight in May, not April

Sean 'The Muscle Shark' Sherk will attempt to reclaim his lightweight championship against either BJ Penn or Joe Stevenson in May and not April as was reported.

Rumors swirled yesterday that the UFC 84 fight card would have 2 title fights. Matt Serra vs. Georges St. Pierre has already been booked but the lightweight title fight will wait an extra month.

Either way, the Montreal fight card will be a fantastic debut for the UFC in Canada.

Kendall Grove Admits to Being Stoned During Fights

TUF 3 alum Kendall Grove recently admitted in an interview that he has faught stoned on several occasions. He openly talked about smoking weed consistently since he was in the 6th grade and being high for each of his first 6 mma fights.

Now that he's an up and comer in the UFC he takes his responsibility as a professional very serious. So serious that he actually stops smoking weed a full 3 months prior to a fight. Wow, what discipline. He states that to compete at this level, you can't be smoking weed while training for a UFC fight.

I read that same article in the December issue of 'No Shit' Magazine. The magazine stated little known facts like, fried foods are bad for you, being unemployed may lead to bankruptcy, and driving somewhere will get you there much faster than walking.

I'm certain that Dana White is extremely happy to have Grove as a poster child for his company.

UFC 83 in London

James Irvin and Houston Alexander will clash in the light heavyweight division at UFC 83. The heavy handed Alexander has had a rollercoaster 2007, bursting on the scene with a 48 second throttling of Keith 'The Dean of Mean' Jardine at UFC 71. He then gave an encore presentation by destroying Alessio Sakara in just 61 seconds at UFC 75.
He entered UFC 78 with just under 2 minutes of fight time and an undefeated Thiago Silva standing across the octagon. Silva got the fight to the ground where Alexander is at his weakest, mounted the former hip hop DJ, and poured on some serious ground and pound until Alexander was knocked out at the 3:25 mark of the very first round.

Irvin hasn't been very active with only 1 fight since tearing up his knee back at UFC 71. In his last fight at UFC 79, Irvin was blasted with an illegal knee by Luis Cane, was knocked out cold, and won the fight by disqualification.

UFC 84 Fight Card Taking Shape

Canada's first ever UFC already has the makings of a stellar night and the card is getting even better. Karo Parisyan and Thiago Alves are in the works to clash at UFC 84 in the welterweight division. The card already has the possibility of 2 title fights and now has a battle of contenders.

Parisyan is still awaiting title shot he was awarded 2 years ago after an injury forced him out of the fight against then champ, Matt Hughes. This will be his 6th fight since he was awarded the title shot that he has still never received.

It was discussed that he could face Jon Fitch but wanted a more 'guaranteed' victory. However, facing Alves is no easy task as he is riding a 4 fight winning streak, most recently defeating UFC vet Chris Lytle at UFC 78 in November. Lytle lost to current champ Matt Serra in the finals of TUF 4. Serra parlayed his win over Lytle into his upset knockout of Georges St. Pierre.

The waiting game might still continue for Parisyan even if he is victorious. If Serra happens to catch lightning in a bottle twice and stop St. Pierre, he will certainly face Matt Hughes in the battle of TUF 6 coaches. The two had a great rivalry during the season of the ultimate fighter and traded plenty of verbal jabs. Parisyan's odds of getting a shot are greater if St. Pierre regains the title from Serra. Hughes has already lost his last 2 fights to St. Pierre in lackluster fashion and has stated he only has a few fights left. Fighting St. Pierre for a 4th time would make very little sense, but a fight with Matt Serra will definitely take place before he retires.

Parisyan should not be scoreboard watching and take Alves lightly. It's no secret that the welterweight is by far the most stacked division and a loss to Alves will probably keep Parisyan from ever getting the title shot he earned 2 years ago.

Sean Sherk Hoping to Return in April

Former UFC lightweight champion Sean Sherk, who was stripped of his title after his failed drug test, is set to return to fight in April, hopefully at UFC 84 in Montreal.

Sherk's last fight before the positive test was in July when he posted a unanimous decision over Hermes Franca, who also tested positive for a banned substance.

Sherk maintains his innocence and stated that the UFC will give him an immediate title shot, meaning he could face the winner of Joe Stevenson and BJ Penn. If that takes place, the fight card at UFC 84 could have 2 title fights. Matt Serra is scheduled to defend his welterweight title against Georges St. Pierre that night as well.

Guillard Taking a 'Temporary' Leave from UFC

UFC lightweight Melvin Guillard has stated that he's taking a temporary leave from the UFC to take a few fights in smaller organizations. He made his statement in his usual brash style with foul language, death threats and a denial that he's ever been beaten. He also plans to fight up in weight and compete at 170 in these smaller venues.

While no one has ever denied the fact that Guillard is a great athlete, he's yet to demonstrate that he can win consistently in the UFC despite his claims that he's never been beaten. He was given the opportunity to contend in the lightweight division by headlining a UFC fight night against Joe Stevenson. Guillard was choked out with a guillotine in 27 seconds of the very first round. He continued his confident talk after and was certain that he would get back on the winning track at UFC 79 against Rich 'No Love' Clementi, a man he has no love for. After weeks of verbal jabs back and forth Clementi dominated the fight and choked out Guillard with 20 seconds left in the first round.

Guillard is still adamant that he'll fight Clementi again but doesn't plan to do it in the cage. He says Clementi has been ducking him in their native Louisiana, and every time he doesn't find Clementi it's a win for Guillard.

I'm not sure what exactly Melvin Guillard is smoking but I would love to have some. He has completely crossed the line of confidence and gone to delusional. Guillard has shown flashes of being a superstar but he will never be able to live up to his own billing. Sure, we may see Guillard in the UFC sometime in the future and he is still quite young but he needs to grow up before he can ever be a force in the lightweight division.

To read the entire interview with Guillard visit http://www.baltimoresun.com/

Shogun returns to UFC on April 19th

Mauricio 'Shogun' Rua is set to return from knee surgery in Canada on April 19th. No opponent has been named yet. Rua, who was dominant in Pride, suffered an upset loss to Forrest Griffin in his UFC debut at UFC 76.

He had injured his knee while training for Griffin but never disclosed the injury as he didn't want to use it as an excuse. Injury or not, he had a very lackluster performance against Griffin as he was dominated in the stand up game as well as on the ground. Rua gassed out in the 3rd round and was submitted by Griffin with a rear naked choke.

Griffin dominated the fight on all 3 scorecards prior to the submission.

Rua states that he's injury free and will most definitely be 100% come April.

Welterweight fight added to UFC 82

Jon Fitch has confirmed that he'll be facing Akihiro Gono in the stacked welterweight division at UFC 82. Fitch, who has only 2 professional losses and is undefeated in the UFC, most recently defeated Diego Sanchez in 2007.

Gono has been in various organizations before signing on with the UFC and earning his first victory in November.

Fitch has been flying under the radar for the past 2 years and with a victory over Gono, should be a serious contender for the welterweight title. Either way, he'll have to play the waiting game with Matt Serra on the mend and scheduled to defend his title against Georges St. Pierre in April.

Update

UFC middleweight anchor Rich 'Ace' Franklin's father has passed away on Tuesday of a heart attack. No other information is available at this time.

UPDATE: UFC 81

UFC vet Jeremy Horn has stepped in to replace injured Thales Leites and will face Nate Marquardt. Horn hasn't faught in the UFC since 2006 and it is unknown if he is just stepping in or will be trying to make a push in the middleweight division.

Horn is a veteran of over 100 mma fights and is most known for beating Chuck Liddell earlier in both their careers. Liddell has since avenged the loss to Horn.

UFC 80 Fight Card Complete

The UFC officially announced the remainder of the fight card which will take place January 19th in New Castle, England.

BJ Penn will fight Joe Stevenson for the interim lightweight title, which was stripped from Sean Sherk when he tested positive for a banned substance in his title fight against Hermes Franca. Penn has been very critical of Sherk since the positive test even though Sherk claims his innocence.

Former #1 Heavyweight contender Gabriel Gonzaga faces Fabricio Werdum. Gonzaga is best known for decapitating former Pride standout Mirko Cro Cop. His recent loss to Randy Couture has dropped him to the middle of the heavyweight division. He is looking to avenge a loss to Werdum which happened earlier in their careers.

British welterweight standout Jess Liaudin looks to add some creditibility to his record and faces Marcus 'The Irish Hand Grenade' Davis, who has reeled off 10 wins in a row and is easily the most improved of the former TUF 2 alums.

Rounding out the announcements is a middleweight bout between former TUF alums Kendall Grove and Jorge Rivera. Grove, the TUF 3 winner had a nice winning streak halted by TUF 4 member Patrick Cote. Rivera is also on a losing streak and has fought outside the organization since his appearance on TUF 4.

Prelim bouts include Alessio Sakara vs. James Lee, Sam Stout vs. Per Eklund, Paul Kelly vs. Paul Taylor, and Colin Robinson vs. Antoni Hardonk.

WEC to feature 3 title fights on Feb 13th

World Extreme Cagefighting, the sister company to the UFC, is putting 3 championships up for grabs in New Mexico on February 13th.

Headlining the card will be Alberquerque native and WEC welterweight champ, Carlos Condit (21-4), as he defends his title against Carlo Prater (21-5-1).

Condit is coming off a submission win over Brock Larson and is looking to avenge his first professional loss which came at the hands of Prater.

Former UFC lightweight Jamie 'The Worm' Varner (13-2) takes on WEC lightweight champ 'Razor' Rob McCullough (15-3) who is undefeated since 2004.

Bantamweights Chase Beebe (11-1) and Miguel Torres (19-1) round out the title fights for the evening. Beebe won the WEC championship in March by defeating Eddie Wineland at WEC 26.

The event will be televised live nationally on Versus beginning at 9pm.

Brad Imes a go for January 17th

TUF 2 runner up Brad Imes is scheduled to face Anthony Ruiz at the Palace Fighting Championship Event January 17th in Lemoore, California. Imes is working on a 5 fight win streak and is a perfect 10-0 outside the UFC.
Imes is best known for his appearance on TUF 2 which culminated in a decision loss to Rashad Evans at the Ultimate Fighter Finale.

Diego Saraiva (9-6-1), also on the fight card, has had minimal success in the UFC. His record is a very respectable 9-3-1. After three losses in a row inside the octagon, he left the UFC and was recently picked up by the PFC. He'll be facing Poppies Martinez for the PFC's world lightweight title in the night's main event.

Spencer Fisher and Marcus Aurelio set to Collide at UFC Fight Night 13

Spike TV's UFC Fight Night 13 is starting to take shape with the addition of Spencer 'The King' Fisher (20-4) vs. Marcus Aurelio (15-5). The broadcast is scheduled to be the lead in for the 7th season of 'The Ultimate Fighter'. The fighters both agreed to the fight but it won't be signed until a venue is definite for the event.

Fisher is coming off a disappointing loss to UFC lightweight phenom Frankie Edgar. The wrestling standout from Jersey easily dismantled 'The King' with his takedown ability. Five months prior though, Fisher won an unbelievably exciting grudge match against Sam Stout.

Aurelio most recently lost to cardio machine Clay Guida. It was Aurelio's UFC debut and Guida made him look lackluster by dominating all three rounds. It was controversial as the judges scored it a split decision in Guida's favor but that's been happening to Guida when it goes the distance.

Both fighters are looking to get back on the winning track in what should be a televised bout. Whatever the outcome, Fisher is never in a boring fight so buckle up for this one.

Ortiz hoping to return soon

Tito Ortiz is hoping to return to the octagon possibly in May.

"It's all in the UFC's hands," Ortiz told Raw Vegas. "I have one more fight with them, my contract lasts until, I believe June. In May is when my fight will be... I hope."

Ortiz has been taking a bit of time off to heal up and film 'Celebrity Apprentice'. He has been very public about his negotiation problems he's had with Dana White and will only speak with UFC co-owners Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta about a future contract.

Diego Sanchez stays at 170

Diego Sanchez has been flying under the radar since his back to back losses, his only 2 losses of his professional MMA career. Rumors had been circling that he would be jumping down to the 155 pound division. He is hoping to have his next opponent signed to fight by February and will stay in the welterweight division. Sanchez doesn't care who his next opponent is at this point.

While having 2 straight losses, they're not against taxi cab drivers. His first loss was to Josh Koshcheck in which the verbal jabs beforehand were more ferocious than the fight itself. His next loss was to probably the most unknown and underrated fighter in the UFC Jon Fitch, Koshcheck's training partner at the time.

'The Nightmare' has recently changed management teams and appears re-focused for another run in the welterweight division.

Update on UFC 81

Middleweight contender Thales Leites has withdrawn from UFC 81 with a broken hand he suffered in training Monday. Leites was scheduled to fight Nate Marquardt, former #1 contender in the middleweight division.

There are no details of the extent of the injury or how long he'll be on the shelf. Surgery on his hand is scheduled for later this week. There is also no word on a replacement to fight Marquardt.

New Book Chronicles Life of Chuck Liddell

Former UFC heavyweight champ Chuck Liddell has a book, "ICEMAN: My Fighting Life" is set to hit bookstores January 29th. Liddell says he's been working on the book since May and that it covers his entire life.

The book chronicles 'The Iceman's' life from childhood, to MMA stardom with never before seen photos.

Liddell's the 3rd UFC fighter with a book. Matt Hughes' book hit stores January 1st, and Tito Ortiz is expected to release a book in the next few months.

Key Middleweights added to UFC 81

The ever thinning middleweight should get a jumpstart with some middleweights looking to make some noise February 2nd. Ricardo 'Cachorrao' Almeida returns to the UFC for the first time since 2002 against Alan 'The Talent' Belcher who is coming off wins against Sean Salmon (Rashad Evans' highlight reel) and Kalib Starnes

Also on the card is Nate Marquardt who is in his first fight since a first round lose to Anderson Silva. He'll be fighting Thales Leites who has won 3 of his last 4 fights. Leites has been playing second and third tier in the division and knows a win over a guy like Marquardt will propell him into the top ranks and make him a serious contender.

In undercard action, Marvin Eastman drops down to 185 to take on hard hitting Terry Martin. Eastman fought in the UFC at 205 against 'Rampage' Jackson in Jackson's first UFC fight. It was a fight in which 'Rampage' was to tune up for Chuck Liddell and avenge a loss at the same time. He's fought outside the organization a couple times since and should be a very tough opponent at 185. Martin was winning the battle of sluggers against Chris Leben in his last fight when he got caught flush and was knocked out. The fight was going Martin's way and, at one point, he had 'The Crippler' hurt bad. He just took a few seconds too long in going for the kill, got hit flush with a brick from Leben and went to sleep.

This card is shaping up to be a good one. It seemed that the UFC was banking on the marketability of Brock Lesnar to sell tickets but the card is stacked with some great fights. Headlined by former UFC heavyweight champ Frank Mir fighting newcomer and former WWE champ Brock Lesnar.

Rumor Wire: Stephan Bonnar vs. Matt Hamill

Stephan Bonnar could face another TUF contestant Matt Hamill at Fight Night on Spike TV April 2nd. The main event of the card is red hot Kenny Florian vs. Joe Lauzon.

Stephan Bonnar is credited with putting the UFC back on the map with his epic battle with Forrest Griffin at the very first Ultimate Fighter Finale. Griffin won the slugfest and the contract but Dana White was so impressed with Bonnar that he offered a contract to him as well.

Tito Ortiz made Hamill his protege while coaching the 3rd season of TUF. He was on a colision course to fight Michael Bisbing during the show when a concussion forced him out of the competition. The fight eventually did take place overseas with Bisbing winning a very controversial decision. Many fans as well as Dana White felt that Hamill won the fight. The rematch never took place as Hamill had to have knee surgery and Bisbing took a fight with Rashad Evans. It appears the rematch will never happen now that Bisbing made the decision to drop to middleweight.

I can only hope this current fight rumor is true. Both have a huge fan base from being TUF alums.

Luke Cummo on the card at UFC 82

The 'Silent Assassin' Luke Cummo is set to fight Luigi Fioravanti as an undercard at UFC 82. Cummo is well known for his wholesome eating habits and quiet demeanor. The former TUF 2 runner up is also known for drinking his own urine.

Cummo got lost in the shuffle after losing to Joe 'Daddy' Stevenson at the TUF 2 Finale. It didn't help that he lost a unanimous decision to Jonathan Goulet. Cummo is definitely a fan favorite and is looking to continue his win streak which currently stands at 2. The quote from Cummo is, "I am taking this fight as serious as DEATH! Luigi is tough and I will prepare for my hardest fight. Prepare for the worst, hope for the best."

It's a make or break fight for Fioravanti who is on a two fight losing streak in the octagon, losing to Forrest Petz and Jon Fitch. He will certainly have his hands full with Cummo's ground game and cardio. Cummo eats in such a way that makes him mentally stronger than most fighters. He's currently training MMA agent Ken Pavia for a week of mma training and the LifeFood diet. Pavia is detailing the days of his diet and training in a superb column on http://mmajunkie.com.
While Cummo is known for his jiu jitsu, he's been concentrating on his much improved striking, which was on display in his dismantling of TUF 3 finalist Josh Haynes.

Dan Henderson fully confident going into UFC 82

Dan Henderson says he's ready to 'kick ass' against UFC middleweight champ Anderson Silva. Henderson will be by far Silva's toughest test yet and the challenger is more than confident to get in the clinching game with Silva. The champ, who is highly known as a muay tai specialist will certainly have his hands full with Henderson, who is coming off a loss to "Rampage" Jackson.
Silva burst on the scene by demolishing up and comer Chris Leben by knockout in the first round, then re-arranging Rich Franklin's nose in their first title fight. He's gone on to beat Travis Lutter and Nate Marquardt while Franklin's nose healed. Then defeated the ex champ once again with a second round TKO. He's riding a 5 fight win streak in the UFC and hes yet to be challenged in the thin middleweight division.
This should be a great fight given Silva's range and Henderson's superior wrestling ability. UFC 82 is looking to be a good one.

Kimbo Slice vs. Tank Abbott at EliteXC on Feb. 16

Kimbo Slice (1-0) will be fighting Tank Abbott (9-13) in the main event of the next EliteXC show. This fight was to have taken place in October when just nights before the fight the show was cancelled when one of the investors pulled out.
Slice, who is trying to shed the stigma of being only a street brawler, would like to show some well rounded skills against Abbott who openly admits he is only a street brawler and has trouble defending on the ground.
Abbott may not posess great ground skills but is always a knockout threat. Slice won his pro MMA debut over Bo Cantrell, in a controversial decision which had the veteran Cantrell tap out in 19 seconds due to strikes.
Former TUF 4 alum Scott Smith is also on the card fighting unknown Kyle Noke. Smith won a memorable fight against Pete 'Drago' Sell at the Ultimate Fighter 4 Finale but is currently on a two fight losing streak in the UFC since.

Tim Sylvia not a fan of Fedor Emelianenko

Former UFC heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia weighed his opinion on the current situation on Fedor Emelianenko. He believes that Fedor is not fighting the toughest opponents and has a good point given Fedor's recent history. It was against a 7'2 man with not many credentials in the MMA world. This fight had a special rule implemented which did not permit leg kicks so neither fighter had an unfair advantage. Needless to say Fedor won by submission. Sylvia went on to say Fedor is being a 'p***y'.
Fedor has stated that he plans to fight current UFC heavyweight champion and holdout Randy Couture. He's optimistic that the fight will take place at some point in 2008. I wouldn't hold my breath and neither is Tim Sylvia, who in the meantime, will be fighting Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira for the interim heavyweight title at UFC 81.

Matt Serra confirms fight with Georges St. Pierre

It has been confirmed that Matt Serra will defend his UFC welterweight title against Georges St. Pierre sometime in April in Montreal. Serra reported that his back is improving and expects to be completely ready for the fight. This will be one of the few times that Serra won't be the crowd favorite. The Montreal crowd will be rooting for the heavily favored and homegrown St. Pierre.
Other Canadians who are expected to be on the card are former TUF 4 alum Patrick Cote, TUF killer Jason Mcdonald, and UFC vet Jonathan Goulet.

Lyoto Machida offered to fight Tito Ortiz

Undefeated UFC lightheavyweight Lyoto Machida has been offered a fight with former champ and current celebrity apprentice Tito Ortiz. Machida has accepted the fight and is now waiting for Ortiz to accept. If you recall, Ortiz was scheduled to fight "Sugar" Rashad Evans in a rematch back in November. A fight that Michael Bisbing stepped in when Ortiz felt he needed time off the heal up. He stated he had been fighting injured for so long that it was time to stop making second tier fighters look great. He was referencing to Forrest Griffin who lost a split decision and Evans who fought Ortiz to a draw earlier in 2007.
Machida was brought in to possibly lose to UFC newcomer Rameay Sokoudjo. The talk was how Sokoudjo was beginning to come into his own by starring in Pride for the last couple years. That plan backfired as Machida dominated Sokoudjo from the start and submitted him in the second round. With the exception of Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, defeat has been the fate of all the Pride fighters who have experienced the octagon.