Arlovski: Dana White Lied to Me

Andrei Arlovski was a special guest of Inside MMA on HDNet and let some news out that we could have put together without being told.

He explained that he was told by Dana White that if he beat Fabricio Werdum he would be next in line for a chance to regain the title he lost to Tim Sylvia. Well he beat Werdum in a very dull fight, basically became a non issue and fell off the earth.

While we couldn't have come to the conclusion that Arlovski would get a title shot, we did know that the heavyweight division was weak, and with the departure of Randy Couture, had become much weaker. No one is surprised that Dana White lied to him as I completely believe what Arlovski is saying. Sure, the fight was boring as hell, but he was told to win so he fought cautiously. I also think that's a terrible way to fight (not to lose) and he certainly hasn't been the same fighter that he was since he lost to Sylvia the first time.

So now Arlovski faces Jake O'Brien, the guy who put a monkey wrench in Heath Herring's debut in the UFC by completely out wrestling the former Pride standout. Herring, instead of trying to defend the takedowns and preventing O'Brien from passing his guard, just whined after the fight about how he wasn't here for a wrestling match and wanted to fight. News flash Herring, IT'S MIXED MARTIAL ARTS. Anything goes dude. If you're that good of a fighter, stuff his takedowns and throttle him with elbows. Either way, Herring has shown nothing so far except that he is willing to step into the cage with anyone.

O'Brien is undefeated and hasn't fought since January 2007 against Herring and if he can get a bit more well rounded in skills other than wrestling, could be a force over the next couple years. Arlovski basically has to show some form of his old 'Pitbull' self or you can rest assured this will be his last fight in the UFC. Win or lose. If he wins a boring fight, he's gone. If he dominates, Dana White needs him. If he loses, well that's a no brainer, he'll have to change his moniker from 'The Pitbull' to the 'Terrier' or some other cute dog.

Nate Diaz Isn't a Fan of Tyson Griffin

I never knew that Nate Diaz and Tyson Griffin used to train together under Gracie jiu-jitsu but then left the team and is representing Team Couture. Guys leave teams all the time but Diaz has taken exception to Griffin leaving.

It started when Diaz was asked who he'd like to fight next and he was pretty adamant about fighting Griffin. He went on to say Griffin is a 'disloyal piece of shit' he doesn't give a 'rat's ass' that they used to train together, he wants to fight him. He states that Griffin was only an hour away from the team and Diaz was pretty offended when he moved to Vegas to train with Couture.

Diaz looked awesome against Alvin Robinson the other night submitting him in the first round. Tyson Griffin pushes the pace tremendously and doesn't seem to run out of steam. Of his 4 UFC fights 3 went the distance. He lost a close decision to Frankie Edgar in a fight which he had Edgar in a kneebar so tight he could hear Edgar's knee popping. Edgar wouldn't tap and won the decision in a great fight. He also won a controversial decision over another cardio machine in Clay Guida. Most people felt Guida won the fight but it was a real close decision and could have gone either way. He most recently unanimously decisioned Thiago Tavares in September.

No one has pushed Diaz with the kind of pace Griffin can push but that's because his jiu-jitsu is insane and he submits everyone the split second something opens up. This fight has to happen, and has the ability to be a co-main eventer.

Fertitta's Forward Emergency Loan to Xyience

Something don't sound right by this but here's the quote:

Fertitta's to the Rescue: Xyience Recieves Emergency Loan

The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported today that Zyen, a company controlled by the Fertitta family, has been granted permission by the judge handling Xyience's bankruptcy proceeding to issue an emergency $1 million loan to the embattled beverage maker. According to filings with the Nevada Secretary of State's office, Zyen was formed in September of last year. The company already holds $12.5 million in unsecured claims and $5.3 million in secured claims against Xyience.

MMAPayout.com is following this story closely, however, requests for comment from Xyience and the Nevada State Attorney General's Office have gone unanswered. Multiple sources within the industry have told MMAPayout.com that they believe a criminal investigation into the company may be forthcoming.


The story just doesn't add up though. All the UFC has to do is drop Xyience if they're not able to fund the sponsorship. Yet they're funding for sponsorship of their own company. Not only that, they're pushing their fighters towards sponsorships with Xyience, promoting the product by example, e.g. showing UFC All Access and each fighter wakes up and has a xyience protein shake in the morning. I did read somewhere that the head of Xyience was related to the Fertitta's.

I'm not sure of the legalities but I do know of two major rules of business.

1: Don't dip your pen in company ink.
2. Don't shit where you eat.

The Fertitta's might be guilty of breaking rule number 2. That's not a pun that I said number 2 either. I'm certain there will be some more information in the near future.

UFC 82: It's a Shame We Won't Get to See All the Fights

UFC 82 is shaping up to have the most fights with serious implications in recent years. It's been confirmed that former middleweight champ Evan Tanner will face Yushin Okami. It's Tanner's first fight in over a year, and it's not as if he was training the entire time. He was open about how he was on crazy beer drinking binges and lost his desire to fight. Tanner had his face re-arranged by Rich Franklin en route to a 4th round TKO back in 2005.

Okami, while boring, has beat some top caliber fighters (except for Franklin) over the last year. This fight could put Tanner back on the map or put Okami in line for Anderson Silva.

Here's a complete list of the rumored fight card:

UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva (20-4) vs. Dan Henderson (22-6)
170 lbs.: Diego Sanchez (17-2) vs. David Bielkheden (12-5)
170 lbs.: Jon Fitch (15-2) vs. Chris Wilson (13-3)
185 lbs.: Evan Tanner (32-6) vs. Yushin Okami (21-4)
170 lbs.: Josh Koscheck (9-2) vs. Dustin Hazelett (10-3)
Hvywt: Cheick Kongo (11-3-1) vs. Heath Herring (27-13)
Hvywt.: Andrei Arlovski (11-5) vs. Jake O’Brien (10-0)
155 lbs.: Jorge Gurgel (11-3) vs. John Halverson (16-5)
170 lbs.: Luke Cummo (6-4) vs. Luigi Fioravanti (11-3)

I want to see all these fights. Diego Sanchez is on a 2 fight losing streak after looking unbeatable. Jon Fitch should be next in line for a title shot. Okami could end Tanner's comeback before it starts. Koscheck lost to St. Pierre in his last fight and is now untelevised. Heath Herring is 1-2 since being signed by the UFC and has been pretty much a bust. Andrei Arlovski was invincible 2 years ago and is now probably fighting his last fight in the UFC. Actually no one gives a damn about Jorge Gurgel since he's a better coach than a fighter. And Luke Cummo is always on the undercard for some reason. He's finally moved up the ranks a bit and a win against Fioravanti could get him televised soon.

Note to Dana: It's a pay per view. You can decide how much time you get. Let's see all or most of the fights. Quit the stupid between fight pro wrestling promos.

Sherk Says to Penn; "Now It's Personal"

Former lightweight champion Sean Sherk discussed his upcoming bout with current champ BJ Penn. Sherk feels that he's still the champ, even though he was stripped of his title for testing positive for elevated levels of testosterone, and has maintained his innocence even passing a lie detector test.

Sherk was very irked by Penn's post fight comments during his interview with Joe Rogan. "Sean, you're dead!" was the quote that Sherk decided to take personally, even though that's normal pre fight hype.

Penn has been very critical of his failed drug test and hasn't been bashful of his feelings about it. Sherk says he's using that as motivation for his training of the upcoming fight in May. That's where Sherk says Penn has made it personal. He states that he's never had animosity towards a fighter but given Penn's remarks about him, this time it's different.

Sherk says that when Penn said 'you're dead' it was a classless thing to do. That sort of stuff goes on before every fight so Sherk is completely overreacting. Even after he entered the octagon Penn did shake his hand and say, "Let's have a good fight".

However, the talking of his failed drug test should provide him with plenty of motivation. Look what 'spygate' did for the New England Patriots.

Either way, this fight should be great given Sherk's work ethic and BJ Penn's natural talent. Penn certainly won't wear Sherk out but can Sherk do anything against Penn except smother him? This fight can't happen soon enough.

UFC Bans Affliction Wear

This is an article from www.mmanews.com

We are still gathering all of the details about this story, but we have been able to confirm it with a couple of people within the MMA community. From what we're being told, the UFC is no longer allowing the clothing line Affliction to sponsor its fighters. For the past year, Affliction has been a big part of the UFC as they have sponsored many of the fighters who have fought in the UFC including current interim UFC Welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre, Heavyweight Champion Randy Couture, Chuck Liddell and current Light Heavyweight Champion Quinton "Rampage" Jackson. It seems as though Affliction wore out its welcome with the UFC as soon as the UFC got wind that Affliction was planning to get into the MMA game themselves.

The word is that the UFC was not happy about Affliction starting their own fighting organization. We currently aren't sure if Affliction is partnering up with anybody or if they are going about it by themselves, but that was what we were able to confirm with our sources. Affliction has been one of the most notable names around the UFC, if you don't believe me go to a UFC event because you'll see every other person wearing an Affliction shirt.

The last fighter to actually wear Affliction during an event was Georges St. Pierre at UFC 79 where he sported Affliction on his tights and gui. If you review UFC 80 and Wednesday's Ultimate Fight Night: Swick vs. Burkman, you'll notice that Affliction was noticeably absent from any fighter's apparel. Typical UFC protectionist nonsense. Like anyone recognizes anything about Affliction other than their awful, overly produced Gothic shirts. Oh well, this is par for the course with them. You can wear Xyience gear until they file for bankruptcy, but don't be caught dead in anything that may or may not conflict with the UFC brand. God, I cannot wait until competition makes this sort of insider bullying a cause for fighter flight. Faster, please.

Joe 'Daddy' Taking Time Off to be a Daddy

Joe Stevenson has stated that he's going to take about a 5 month break before his next fight to be with his family and heal up. He recently opened up a school in his hometown and has another child on the way.

It's a well deserved break and he will probably come back a better fighter.

UFC Fight Night 13 Card is Great

We're going to be treated with some awesome matchups on April 2nd and it's all for FREE. Well it's on Spike TV which is basic cable which we still have to pay for so it's almost FREE. Well, that is if you're cable company rips you off just for basic cable then it's halfway FREE.

Ok enough about that. It's been confirmed that Din Thomas will be fighting Josh 'The Dentist' Neer on the undercard. Neer hasn't fought since 2006 but has some credible wins, most notably over Joe Stevenson. Thomas recently lost to Kenny Florian in which he stepped awkwardly and tweaked his knee, then was submitted by Florian.

This card already has Florian fighting Joe Lauzon in the main event. It's got Stephan Bonnar fighting Matt Hamill, Spencer Fisher is fighting Marcus Aurelio, Clay Guida is fighting, Frankie Edgar is on the card. That was a hell of a run on sentence but there are some big names going that night. Tommy Speer is also fighting on the card.

Unfortunately only a handful of these fights will be televised and we'll be left wondering how good the fights were because they won't be shown on UFC Unleashed any time soon.

Hughes will Face Serra is GSP Wins

Matt Hughes is fresh off a nationwide book tour and has stated that he won't be retiring just yet and would like to fight Matt Serra, if Serra loses the title to Georges St. Pierre.

It's a pretty safe bet that they'll fight regardless of who wins the Serra-GSP fight. However it does put the UFC in a bit of a pickle if Serra does win. That means that Serra will fight Hughes and if Hughes wins, he's the champ. Does GSP get a title shot at Hughes if that's the case? It makes no sense for GSP to fight Hughes for a fourth time but that could be the outcome.

But reality is, GSP is fighting Serra and Hughes is waiting in the wings. Hughes says he has a few fights left and it's a guarantee that fighting Serra will be one of those fights.

Ricco Rodriguez has lost his MIND

EliteXC heavyweight Ricco Rodriguez is preparing for his fight with future stud Antonio Silva. During his preparation he mentioned that his future will not include fighting Kimbo Slice.

“Kimbo Slice is a tomato can to me, and he’ll always be a tomato can to me,” Rodriguez said. “The reality is, what has he done to prove himself? He hasn’t fought anybody. So, to me, he’s nobody."

This is the part where I figured Rodriguez officially lost his mind. It's not enough that he was just on Celebrity Rehab, but apparently he didn't learn anything from the show.

The reality is, Rodriguez isn't completely wrong with his depiction of Kimbo Slice but would you really want to piss off a guy that looked like him?

Tank Abbott is set to find out if Kimbo Slice has defined his skills but Rodriguez feels 'Slice' is completely below his level.

“There’s so many other athletes out there that have better skill,” Rodriguez said. “There are other top contenders right now. Kimbo Slice to me is just a clown… He’s a dancing monkey."

Rodriguez felt that many other fighters would present 'Slice' with problems as well.

“You put him against a guy like Ken Shamrock, Ken’s going to run right through the guy,” Rodriguez said. “He beat up Ray Mercer. Ray Mercer never wrestled a day in his life."

Has Rodriguez completely lost his mind or is Kimbo Slice really on the chopping block as far as competition goes? The MMA world is looking for characters and maybe Rodriguez feels that Kimbo is more attention getting than skilled. Either way, he has no plans for Kimbo in his future. That could be a talent issue, or he's scared and is trying to convince himself that they don't belong in the ring together.

Chuck Liddell Will Fight Keith Jardine

Remember the last post about what happens if you're friends with Dana White? Well Chuck Liddell is friends with Dana White, and Chuck Liddell wants to avenge his loss to Keith Jardine. Therefore, Chuck Liddell will fight Keith Jardine sometime soon.

This fight is not going to do anything grand for the UFC at all. Yes, Liddell needs to avenge his loss but he just fought Wanderlei Silva to prove the winner of the two toughest guys in Pride FC and UFC in the last 5 years. The fight proved worth while but it seems like there were plans for the future before the fight even took place.

This is what happens when you're friends with Dana White. You get the fight you want and when you want. This is why it's not completley Joe Silva that determines the fights, but Dana White as well.

This fight should be a good fight, given the circumstances, but it's going to take a ton of pre fight hype to get this one to be a main event. Chuck Liddell doesn't fight in undercard fights so we'll have to see what Dana White has planned in order to keep this card on a ppv level.

Liddell and Jardine might take place this summer. The waiting game is going to have to be played by both fighters since 'Rampage' and Forrest Griffin are scheduled to fight after the taping of 'The Ultimate Fighter'.

I'm reminded of Mel Brooks in 'History of the World' when he keeps looking at the camera and says, "It's good to be the King!"

Big John McCarthy Takes Couture's Side

Long time UFC referree 'Big' John McCarthy who recently retired from referreeing has publicly stated that he agrees with Randy Couture and is unhappy with the way Dana White is running the UFC. He didn't go into specifics but said that UFC 80 shouldn't have been a pay per view.

I doubt that was the complete nature of his unhappiness but something must be going on behind the scenes that a bunch of UFC vets have expressed their displeasure of Dana White and the UFC as of late. Having Big John speak out against the UFC is just another link in the chain that maybe these fighters are right.

There's only a select few UFC vets who speak highly of Dana White and how he's running the UFC, and most of them are his friends from when he didn't own the company. The young guys are pretty much sucking up to White because he has the power to make or break them. He almost has them fighting scared.

Even though Joe Silva is the match maker, I'm certain that Dana White has his hand in the cookie jar. Look at Travis Lutter. The guy won the right to have a title shot, couldn't make weight, and hasn't fought since. That was way over a year ago. Granted, it did put a damper on a once promising night but should he be blackballed because of it?

Josh Barnett failed a drug test back at UFC 36 and has been at war with Dana White ever since. Given the nature of the heavyweight division, White shouldn't turn a cold shoulder to anyone. Of course, they're not friends and White has the power to keep him out of the UFC. Sean Sherk, and Tim Sylvia both tested positive for steroids at one time and both are still with the UFC, because they're friends of Dana White.

As I reported in an earlier post, it sounds like the UFC is starting to be run more and more like Vince MacMahon's WWE, a dictatorship. I doubt all these fighters who are expressing their displeasure of how the UFC is run have a vendetta against Dana White so there must be some truth to it.

It's no secret that the UFC is the biggest MMA organization and their pockets are very, very deep. But there is a chance they can lose some big names to smaller organizations. It's the fighters, not the company, that the product is all about.

Tito Ortiz has been very critical in saying that Dana White will never let a fighter get bigger than the UFC. Well if there are no fighters, there's no UFC.

It sounds to me that while MMA is on a huge incline, it might get a little worse before it gets better.

Aleksander Emelianenko to Face Josh Barnett

Aleksander Emelianenko (12-3), a highly ranked heavyweight (and the younger brother of famed fighter Fedor Emelianenko), will next fight April 11 for the upstart M-1 Global organization, and the Russian expects his opponent to be Josh Barnett (20-5).

The as-of-yet-unannounced M-1 Global event is expected to take place in Chicago.The Emelianko brothers’ manager, Vadim Finkelstein, recently sold the M-1 organization to a group of American investors who restructured the fight promotion.

As its first order of business, the organization signed Fedor to a long-term deal. The organization’s CEO, longtime MMA agent and promoter Monte Cox, recently stated that the organization had planned for a February debut date but instead pushed it back a few months to allow more time for signing talent.

If the organization does sign Barnett for the fight, it could signal another loss for the UFC.

UFC President Dana White has been continually asked about the possibilty of Barnett returning to the UFC. To say he isn’t overwhelmed by the idea would be understatement. Barnett and White have been on the outs since Barnett lost his heavyweight title after failing a UFC 36 drug test due to steroids.

Still, Barnett remains one of the heavyweight’s division’s top-ranked fighters, though he hasn’t fought since PRIDE Shockwave 2006 — more than a year ago. Barnett fought exclusively in the organization from October 2004 until its eventual demise last year when Zuffa LLC (the UFC’s parent company) purchased the organization.

In addition to the likely Emelianenko vs. Barnett bout, another major bout is in the works.

Fedor Emelianenko (27-1), who most recently defeated Hong Man Choi at a New Year’s Eve show in Japan, is expected to take on Semmy Schilt (25-14-1) on the same card. The fight would headline the event.

The M-1 Global show could take place at the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill., which is located just outside Chicago.

Non-televised Fights

Why aren't the undercard fights ever televised? Spike TV shows UFC unleashed every week and it's always the same 10 fights we've seen over and over again. There are tons of fights that aren't televised every UFC event and they're never shown on UFC unleashed.

Why is that? There are so many guys that we've still never heard of in the UFC and if they have a television contract, they should be televised a couple months later on Spike TV. I'm no marketing genius but I don't understand.

We've seen GSP beat Matt Hughes on UFC unleashed about 20 times in the last 2 months. We've seen Chuck Liddell beat Renato Sobral 20 times. We've seen Randy Couture beat Tim Sylvia about 20 times. It's not even exciting to turn on the program because everyone has them memorized already.

Show some of the undercard fights!!!!

Quick UFN Re-cap

Here's my quick take on the televised fights.

Nate Diaz has sick jiu-jitsu skills and will be a force in the lightweight division. He's not on the level of BJ Penn yet but he's so young and extremely talented that he will contend in the future.

Patrick Cote has some heavy hands and his career is completely turned around since his loss to Travis Lutter. The middleweight division has Anderson Silva, and then everyone else. Patrick Cote just rose to the top of the 'everyone else' rank and could be in contention for a shot within the next two years.

Kurt Pellegrino avenged his loss to Joe Stevenson with heavy hands as he knocked out Alberto Crane. Pellegrino got blasted with a head kick in the opening seconds but got his bearings back and began a great show of stand up and ground and pound. Crane is a submission specialist and didn't come close to catching 'Batman' at all. Even with the initial leg kick to the head, Pellegrino wasn't in any trouble during the fight. He's probably just a peg down from the elite level.

You couldn't learn anything from the Swick-Burkman fight. Neither fighter looked comfortable as the fight was lots of leaning against the cage. Both fighters were timid and fighting extremely cautious. It seemed as the fighters were feeling out each other the entire fight.
That being said, it looks like Burkman got hosed in this fight. He was the busier fighter and was pressing the action against the cage. Swick didn't look good at all in his first fight at 170. He never let his hands go and appeared weaker than Burkman.

This gives Burkman a two fight losing streak with his loss to Karo Parysian, and now Swick. It doesn't tarnish his credibility at all though, considering the level of fighters he lost to. Both fighters will be back and be better. Swick should come back and be stronger at 170 if he can figure out the proper weight cutting issues.

Overall a decent televised fight card but it would have been nice to see some of the TUF alums be televised.

Is MMA Like Pro Wrestling?

Of course I don't mean by the scheduled, continuous feuds, or the choreographed moves, or the travel. But think about Pro Wrestling in the 80's. There were different organizations, and different territories in which some guys never wrestled each other. In fact, is you didn't have cable (which I didn't), you could only get the brand which was offered in the northeast. At that time is was the WWE (WWF).

We would see the same bunch of guys win squash matches on Saturday's and then maybe once every 3 or 4 months we would see 2 major names go at each other. However, if we picked up a wrestling magazine, there were other guys wrestling. Lots of other guys, and I have never seen them on my television. I didn't understand it. Why couldn't this one wrestler who claimed to be the best ever (yeah, I know it was fake) face the other wrestler that I would see every Saturday?

This is exactly what's happening in MMA. There are so many different fight organizations, some with a ton of capital, some with none. This may go on for years before there's one organization that reigns supreme, or can whether the little onslaught from the ones who are struggling. So chances are if a fighter fights for one organization, he'll never fight a guy who's fighting for another organization. Eventually, there will be just one and it might be like the WWE. Where's there's no competetion, and no care for it's employees because the fighters will be indispensable, while the company stays.

Boxing had organizations but they were all part of boxing. They had 3 basic organizations back in the day. I'm not sure how many they have now but they're still just boxing. They had the WBC, WBA, and IBF. They had rankings for each division, and kept fighting until someone possibly held all three belts to become the undisputed champ.

I know boxing is struggling and there are a few more organizations now but they are still boxing. With the same rules, with the same ring, with the same officials.

The debate will continue until cross promotion does take place or they decide to call it MMA instead of UFC, M-1 Global, EliteXC.

The one good thing is with smaller organizations younger fighters can be groomed for stardom.

So while it's like pro wrestling of the 80's, the outlook doesn't look much better if it becomes like pro wrestling of today.

IFC - International Fighting Championship Launched

With the rapidly expanding popularity of mixed martial arts, a new organization is forming and looking to stake its claim to a piece of the MMA pie. The International Fighting Championship, LLC (IFC) today announced the creation and development of the promotion. Though specific names and major announcements are expected in the coming weeks, the organization says it is putting together great staff with some high profile fighters.

“IFC is looking to take MMA to a new level, not only by putting on the best fights, but by creating a brand that will allow both the fighters and IFC to prosper and give back to the community. This will truly be a team effort,” stated IFC President, Rico White. “Look for some major announcements in the next couple of weeks that will solidify our presence in the MMA market.”

The IFC plans to have ten shows in 2008 and twelve in 2009 and has tentatively scheduled events in Louisiana, Michigan, Utah, Las Vegas, and Columbus, Ohio. The next live event is scheduled for Las Vegas.

This new organization continues to debate the cross promotion of fighters. Here's hoping that this won't be another fright brand that refuses to put the best against the best.

Krazy Horse Arrested...Again

Controversial EliteXC fighter Charles “Krazy Horse” Bennett has run afoul of the law once again — he was arrested for a domestic dispute on Monday.

Bennett will be arraigned on Tuesday, January 22.

This is just the latest transgression for Krazy Horse — the same man who claims to have knocked out Wanderlei Silva backstage at a Pride FC New Year’s Eve show in 2005. He was convicted in Marion County, Fla., for possession and sale of cocaine on August 4, 2000, and he was arrested on charges of assault and false imprisonment in May 2007.

Krazy Horse’s latest run in with the law will cause him to miss his upcoming match against Victor Valenzuela at a King of the Cage show in Highland, Calif., on January 24.

Bennett had previously fought Valenzuela twice. He most recently lost in the first round from strikes at an EliteXC show in August 2007, and the pair fought to a draw at a King of the Cage show back in August 2005.

Matt “Warlock” Ver Halen will replace Bennett on the card.

Xyience Files For Bankruptcy

This is a direct quote from www.mmaweekly.com

Xyience Inc., recognized as one of the largest sponsors for the Ultimate Fighting Championship, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy according to reports from the Las Vegas Review Journal.

According to the report, the company reported $42.3 million in liabilities with only $5.3 million in assets, which along with claims of death threats and violence against leadership at Xyience caused the filing.

The bankruptcy petition filed was voluntary, which followed an involuntary claim made on Jan. 3 by founder and former CEO Russell Pike.

The filing under Chapter 11 provides Xyience Inc. with protection from creditors while the company reorganizes and while the situation would seem dire, current Xyience president Omer Sattar said he is optimistic about the company’s future.

"We're excited about the opportunity (to reorganize the company), " said Sattar in an interview with the Las Vegas Review Journal. "Xyience has a great brand name and has a strong affiliation with the UFC."

Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta, owners of the UFC along with president Dana White, are named in the claim as creditors in the bankruptcy filing, which states that they have $12.5 million in unsecured claims and another $5.3 million in secured claims with Xyience Inc.

In the statement, Sattar said that the company may have had to file for liquidation under Chapter 7 if not for the continued support of the Fertittas during this time, and while again the current Xyience president stays optimistic, he stated that the current filing became necessary when the company was unable to raise an additional $7.5 million from current shareholders.

The filing also makes claims that former leaders and founders of Xyience have made threats of violence against current leadership for the company, claiming lost funds and payment.

Attempts to reach both UFC president Dana White or the Ferttita brothers were unsuccessful according to the report.

Boetsch, Not Ruiz, to Face Heath at UFC 81

It was originally reported that Anthony Ruiz, who had just defeated former Ultimate Fighter season two finalist Brad Imes at the Palace Fighting Championship, was replacing Tomasz Drwal to face David Heath at UFC 81.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship on Tuesday morning did confirm that Heath is still on the fight card for UFC 81, however, his opponent is not Anthony Ruiz, but Pennsylvania light heavyweight prospect Tim Boetsch.

Boetsch is 6-1 in professional mixed martial arts. His only loss is a unanimous decision to current International Fight League light heavyweight champion Vladimir Matyushenko.

Heath and Boetsch will be on the undercard of UFC 81 with a featured co-main event of Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Tim Sylvia for the interim heavyweight title, as well as the debut of former WWE superstar Brock Lesnar taking on Frank Mir.

UFC Fight Night 12 this Wednesday

Here's the full fight card.

170 lbs: Mike Swick vs. Josh Burkman
185 lbs: Patrick Cote vs. Drew McFedries
155 lbs: Alvin Robinson vs. Nate Diaz
155 lbs: Michihiro Omigawa vs. Thiago Tavares
155 lbs: Alberto Crane vs. Kurt Pellegrino
155 lbs: Dennis Siver vs. Gray Maynard
155 lbs: Jeremy Stephens vs. Cole Miller
155 lbs: Joe Veres vs. Corey Hill
155 lbs: Justin Buchholz vs. Matt Wiman

Dustin Hazelett vs. Josh Koscheck Set For UFC 82

Bout agreements have been signed and the fight is now official: Cincinnati-area fighter Dustin Hazelett (10-3 MMA, 3-1 UFC) will face “The Ultimate Fighter 1” standout Josh Koscheck (9-2 MMA, 7-2 UFC) at UFC 82 — an event that takes place March 1 at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio.

The latest official addition to the UFC 82 fight card further bolsters an already-star-studded event. (In fact, the fight card is so full that at least one big name is likely to end up on the preliminary card).

Koscheck last competed in August against Georges St. Pierre; the winner of the fight was guaranteed a title shot. St. Pierre controlled the fight for a unanimous-decision victory, though Koscheck was far from dominated in the three-round bout. The loss snapped Koscheck’s five-fight win streak, which included a pivotal victory over “The Ultimate Fighter 1” winner Diego Sanchez at UFC 69.

Koscheck, though, now finds himself in a tough spot. A win over the little-publicized Hazelett won’t necessarily improve his stock, but a loss could make him tumble in the 170-pound rankings.

And Hazelett’s anything but a slouch, owning a three-fight win streak that includes a 74-second submission victory over MMA veteran Jonathan Goulet in September.

At just 21 years old, he’s one of the UFC’s most promising prospects. In fact, Hazelett has won seven of his past eight fights. The Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu brown belt is a training partner to the likes of Jorge Gurgel, Rich Franklin, Marcus Davis, Joe Riggs and other Team Gurgel fighters.

Ruiz Raplaces Drwal at UFC 81

With Tomasz Drwal being forced to withdraw from the match-up with David Heath at UFC 81 due to a knee injury, it was believed that the entire bout would be scrapped, but MMAWeekly.com has confirmed that Heath will now fight Anthony Ruiz, rounding out the card with a total of nine fights.

Heath, who has been working with fighters in both his native Oklahoma as well as camps in Wisconsin, was originally slated to face Drwal, but then with his injury it appeared the fight was going to be dropped all together due to the short frame of time to secure another opponent.

Now, the Ultimate Fighting Championship has placed Anthony Ruiz into Drwal’s place against Heath in a light heavyweight match-up. The bout will serve as Ruiz’s debut in the organization.

Recently defeating former Ultimate Fighter season two finalist Brad Imes at the Palace Fighting Championship show in California, Ruiz has won his last six fights in a row, including Imes and another UFC alum, Bobby Southworth.

He has recently been fighting at heavyweight, but now will drop down to his natural 205-pound weight class for the fight with Heath.

Heath and Ruiz will be on the undercard of UFC 81 with a featured co-main event of Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Tim Sylvia for the interim heavyweight title, as well as the debut of former WWE superstar Brock Lesnar taking on Frank Mir.

Fedor and Couture Meet

It was reported that Fedor Emelianenko and Randy Couture were scheduled to meet in LA last week. Well they did, and they took......pictures. THAT'S IT???? The two best heavyweights who are wanting to fight each other, as long as their respective fight organizations will sanction it.

It was a marketing meeting for Couture's Affliction clothing line. If these two are ever going to go at it, they better do it soon because MMA fans aren't going to wait around for. Not to mention that Randy Couture is 44 years old.

These guys need to realize that if they don't get it on soon, they're going to simply be forgotten. This isn't Tyson-Holyfield, or Hagler-Hearns.

Wake up guys. You will be long forgotten if you don't fight in the near future. This is the beginning of the MMA era which means the records don't have much history to them. Better fighters with newer training methods will be here before you know it and no one is going to remember either of you. Sure you have your gyms and clothing lines but is that the way to be remembered? I know, Randy Couture is the first fighter to hold a title in two different divisions. The first fighter in a sport that's been sanctioned for 15 years. Not much history has been written in 15 years.

Keep dragging this superbout on and it will not only lose it's marketability, it's going to be a battle of the best fighters wearing adult diapers.

They took pictures. I'm leaving it at that.

Ortiz Agrees to Fight Machida at UFC 85

Former UFC light heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz has finally signed on to fight undefeated Lyoto Machida on May 24th at UFC 85. Ortiz was offered the fight over a week ago and many were unsure if he was going to accept.

He confirmed today that he has indeed agreed to fight but feels it's a step down in competition for his accomplishments. Machida is 12-0 and won't be an easy task for the 'Huntington Beach Bad Boy'.

This is the last fight on Ortiz's contract and feels like Dana White is black balling him by putting him in the cage against a relatively unknown fighter. Again, Machida is a tremendous fighter but has only a few UFC fights and is not a top draw just yet. Ortiz has been very critical of the company along with a few other elite fighters as of late. Here's a quote from Ortiz:

“They don’t want the fighters to get as big as a 'Tyson' or a 'De La Hoya' or one of those types because all of a sudden, they’ll be expecting to see a lot more payment,” said Ortiz. “The UFC makes about 99 percent of the money, and the rest goes to the fighters. That one percent ain't nothing compared to what they make on merchandising, on pay-per-view, and everything else they make around the world.”

The feud between Ortiz and Dana White has been very public especially after White made a few derogatory comments about Ortiz and his girlfriend, former porn star Jenna Jameson. Ortiz won't negotiate with Dana White anymore and it's unknown if the former champ will even return to the UFC after his contract is up. He went so far as to say that Dana White has such bad blood for Ortiz that he's certain that no matter how good Ortiz performs, he'll never get another title shot if White is in charge.

Ortiz was originally slated to face Rashad Evans in a rematch of their controversial draw but he never signed for the fight. Michael Bisbing was offered the fight instead and went on to lose a split decision to Evans. Ortiz stated that he wanted some time to heal up a bit of wear and tear on his body, and that he had been fighting injured so often that he was making mid carders look like superstars. He was referring to his fights against Forrest Griffin and Evans, in which Ortiz looked very plain and fatigued. He went on to be a contestant on 'Celebrity Apprentice' to heal up.

It's a great excuse, however it could be that Ortiz is a bit past his prime and young guys like Evans and Griffin are in fact as good as Ortiz is right now. We'll certainly find out come May. If Ortiz can handle Machida and dominate like he once did, then we'll have to believe that he really was injured way too much. If Machida runs through Ortiz just like he did Rameau Sokoudjou (who was a nominee for fighter of the year of 2007), then we've probably seen Ortiz's last fight in the UFC.

Interim Heavyweight Champ Could be Ongoing

Dana White said in his UFC 80 post fight news conference that he still considers Randy Couture the heavyweight champ and that the fight between Tim Sylvia and Antonio Nogueira will most definitely be for the interim heavyweight title.

When asked about subsequent fights White stated that they all will in fact be 'interim' champs. He's still hell bent on Couture being the champ, and he's not injured so he should be defending the actual title.

The actual quote was, "It's out of my hands," White said. "He's got a half million of my money. He can fight. He can fight if he wants to. We'll keep it (an interim title) forever. Believe me, we'll hold on forever."

We know that Dana White will never let his fighters become bigger than him or the UFC but he's taking away the integrity of the heavyweight title. While the division is lackluster, there should be a certain amount of pride when a fighter can say, "I'm the heavyweight champion of the UFC."

Dana White has said he believes that MMA is such a big draw because the roots of the sport are still pure. But how pure can it be when he's already stating that the next heavyweight champion won't be the heavyweight champion?

White is a marketing genius who salvaged a bankrupt company and turned it into a huge product and he doesn't appear to be stopping or even slowing down anytime soon. However, there's going to be a point in time when the inmates just might start to run the asylum if the company continues to show signs of being run like a dictatorship.

Franklin Considering a Move to Light Heavyweight

Rich 'Ace' Franklin is set to fight Travis Lutter at UFC 84 but after that his future is in question. Both he and Lutter have lost to middleweight king Anderson Silva, Franklin losing twice. Fighting Silva a third time would be just plain stupid for Franklin and the UFC, and I don't even think he would agree to a third bout.

Franklin is in serious limbo in the middleweight division with his two losses to Silva. What else can he do? He's not a serious contender yet he's probably the 2nd best middleweight fighter at the moment. He looked great against Jason MacDonald, and was dominating Yushin Okami when he got caught in a knee bar and almost tapped. He still won that fight convincingly and looked ready to challenge Silva again. Needless to say, Silva has Franklin's number.

As long as Silva is in the middleweight division, Franklin's career is at a stalemate. A move up to light heavyweight gives Franklin a new lease on his career in the UFC. It would be an extremely smart move for both Franklin and the UFC.

The middleweight division needs a tremendous shake up and it's not going to be Franklin that does it. Who knows what's going to happen but the 205 pounders should look over their shoulders if 'Ace' moves up in weight. The middleweight and heavyweight divisions are terrible but the UFC's other divisions more than make up for it. Let's hope Franklin jumps up and makes a little noise amongst the big boys.

Sapp vs. Nortje Headlines Strikeforce Event: Sapp Wants Emelianenko Next

The following excerpt was posted at www.mmajunkie.com

Strikeforce has booked nearly 700 lbs. of main-event talent for its upcoming show as the organization today announced an opponent for headliner Bob Sapp (9-2-1): undefeated boxer Jan “The Giant” Nortje (1-5).

The super-heavyweight bout is the main event of “Strikeforce at the Dome,” which takes place Feb. 23 at the Tacoma Dome in Tacoma, Wash. It’ll be the first-ever show outside of California for the San Jose-based Strikeforce.Tickets for the event, which is presented by bodogFIGHT, are now on sale.

Sapp, a former standout offensive lineman at the University of Washington, was in the NFL for four years but appeared in just one regular-season game. He then transitioned into kickboxing and MMA five years ago and has competed for PRIDE Fighting Championships and K-1. He owns a 9-2-1 record in MMA and a 9-8 mark in kickboxing.

Sapp, a 6-foot-5 350-pounder, is a fan favorite in Japan. He most recently defeated Bobby Ologun at the K-1 Premium 2007 Dynamite!!, an event that took place in Osaka, Japan, on New Year’s Eve.

The 33-year-old will now take on Nortje, who is actually one of his former training partners.
The 6-foot-11, 330-lb. South African owns a 6-13 record fighting for the K-1 organization. Nortje also owns a perfect 10-0 mark as a professional boxer.

“I’m extremely excited,” Nortje stated in today’s press release. “I’ve always seen Bob get big opportunities, so I think it’s my turn to show what I can do against him."

Nortje, 32, has had limited success in MMA. He’s been submitted four times and knocked out once in six pro fights. In fact, he hasn’t won an MMA fight since December 2002.

“Strikeforce at the Dome” also features a heavyweight bout between former UFC heavyweight champion Maurice Smith (10-10) and six-time world kickboxing champion and former WBC boxing champion Rick Roufus (0-0).

The rest of the fight card will be announced over the next few weeks.

As far as Sapps plans go, he has his sights set on the invincible Fedor Emelianenko. In fact, Sapp is set to sign a new deal with K-1, and the organization plans to partner up with M-1 Global, which is Emelianenko’s new home.

“When I see what Emelianenko did against (Hong Man) Choi, it shows how good he is, but it also showed his weakness against larger opponents,” Sapp said. “I’d love to fight Fedor."

Emelianenko submitted Choi last month at a “Yarennoka!” event in Japan, but the Russian suffered a couple big blows from his 7-foot-2 opponent.

Pride Fighters Getting Owned in UFC

There was a very interesting post put on the website www.sherdog.com.
It started as not bashing former Pride fighters but the reality is, for the most part, the Pride fighters are having a hard time finding success in the UFC.

The discussion began as to what the problem was. People suggested that the transition to the cage was the difference. Others suggested that because elbow strikes were allowed in UFC and knees to a downed opponent are not allowed, they had to alter game plans.

There was talk that any mid-carder in the now defunct Pride FC would walk through anyone in the UFC and be a champion. Well, with the exception of Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson, Pride fighters are finding out that the UFC has some tough guys out there.

My take is there are a number of things going on. For one, Pride FC didn't have the strict drug testing policy that the UFC adheres to. Have you noticed that most of these former Pride fighters are having problems due to their cardio? They're all gassing out in the second round.

Cardio has nothing to do with the cage, elbow strikes, and knees to a downed opponent. It points to the fact the former Pride fighters maybe had a little help in the testosterone department in Japan where the drug testing was extremely lenient. It might not have been testosterone but that little 'something' that helped them heal better and get them over the hump.

Remember, most Pride fights had a 10 minute first round and then sometimes 2 subsequent 5 minute rounds. So why are they gassed out after the first 5 minute round of a UFC fight? The cage? Elbows? Absolutely not.

The current UFC fighters have been used to strict drug testing and have been training naturally for cardio so there's no change for them. I don't care how good of a fighter you are, if you're gassed out and the guy you're fighting still has a full tank, you're in trouble. That's what has been happening to these Pride FC fighters.

The UFC has most of the best fighters in the world so for people to still claim that the Pride fighters would walk through them is ludicrous. Once the Pride fighters get their conditioning back up to an elite level the proper way and not by a substance that can get them over the edge, they should start seeing more success. Stop blaming the cage, stop talking about banning elbows, and give the UFC fighters a little bit of props.

This won't change the debate much but until the former Pride fighters start seeing a little success and stop gassing out, the records pretty much speak for themselves.

Couture Set to Fight in February

Former UFC heavyweight champion Randy Couture's wife Kim is scheduled to make her MMA debut February 23rd. She is simply testing her abilities in the MMA world and doesn't intend to make a career out of it.

She's been training with other women and decided to take her game to the next level just to see how she would fare. She states that with all the stress she has from the business side of things that when she works all day it's a great release to just got out and punch something.

Sam Stout vs. Rich Clementi at UFC 84

Report: Sam Stout vs. Rich Clementi at UFC 84
Posted by MMA Junkie on January 20, 2008 at 12:35 pm ET

Fresh off last night’s unanimous-decision victory over Per Eklund, Canadian Sam Stout (13-3-1 MMA, 2-2 UFC) has been booked to face “The Ultimate Fighter 4” cast member Rich Clementi (30-12-1 MMA, 3-3 UFC) at Montreal’s UFC 84 event.

The Canadian-based site TKO Xtreme reported the news, learning of the fight from a source close to Stout.UFC 84, though officially unannounced, is expected to take place April 19 at Montreal’s Bell Centre. UFC welterweight champ Matt Serra meets interim champ Georges St. Pierre in a main event title-unification bout.

Last night in the opening bout of UFC 80, Stout cruised to a unanimous-decision victory over Swedish fighter Eklund. The 23-year-old has fought primarily for the Canadian TKO fight promotion will mixing in stints with the UFC.

Clementi, who promotes his own shows in Louisiana as part of his No Love Entertainment company, has been on a recent tear, winning his past four fights and five of his past six. He posted the biggest victory just last month at UFC 79, submitting bitter rival Melvin Guillard in the first round of a televised bout.

The 31-year-old found a second life in the UFC with his recent success.

News From UFC 80

Dana White stated that Tito Ortiz has yet to accept Lyoto Machita's offer but he is expected to fight in May.

Andrei Arlovski is expected to fight against undefeated Jake O'Brien at UFC 82 in March. This fight is probably Arlovski's last chance to get back in the good graces of Dana White. Even if he wins, if he doesn't return to his former 'Pitbull' status, we've probably seen the last of Arlovski in the UFC.

No one knows why Arlovski has fallen out of favor with Dana White but the heavyweight division needs anyone they can get. Arlovski dismantled Fabricio Werdum and Werdum's next in line for a title shot. Arlovski needs to have a good showing against O'Brien or it's probably a different organization for him after this fight.

Mirko Cro Cop is currently thinking about his future and is undecited about what his next move is. Hopefully he gets his head on straight and can ignite the heavyweight division. So far it's looking like one of the biggest busts of Dana White's free agents.

UFC 80

In quick briefing all you can say when you watch BJ Penn fight is 'WOW'. Joe Stevenson is a very tough, and very good fighter. He deserved to fight for the title based on his running through the lightweight division.

However, Penn just proved that he's on another planet right now. He was in great shape, and simply toyed with Stevenson before submitting him with a rear naked choke hold.

Dana White confirmed that Penn's next fight will be against Sean Sherk, who was stripped of his title last year, sometime in May. Sherk has tremendous wrestling and pushes every fight at a tremendous pace but isn't a finisher. He simply smothers his opponents with his wrestling.

BJ Penn has absolutely no weaknesses in his game. This fight should be a good one but it's no secret that Penn is possibly pound for pound the best fighter in the world. If he gets through Sherk he'll jump up in weight and try to avenge a loss to Georges St. Pierre if he's the welterweight champ.

Jorge Rivera looked to be completely healed from the broken jaw he suffered against Terry Martin, by dismantling Kendall Grove. He knocked the tall, pot smoking, Hawaiian out in the first round and looks to have rejuvinated his career with that knockout.

Marcus Davis also continued his winning streak to 11 fights and really needs to be a serious contender in the welterweight division. He hasn't been contested in many of his fights and it's time the UFC puts Davis up in contention and fight some credible opponents.

Gabriel Gonzaga looked terrible in a knockout loss to Fabricio Werdum. The win puts Werdum next in line to fight the winner of Tim Sylvia and Antonio Nogueira in the horribly uncompetitive heavyweight division.

UFC 80 Main Event Result

Thomas Gerbasi writes for www.ufc.com. Here is his take on the main event.

NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE, January 19 – It took BJ Penn more than 11 rounds – 59 minutes and two seconds to be exact. But finally, in his third try, BJ Penn made history, submitting Joe Stevenson in the second round tonight at the Metro Radio Arena to become the UFC Lightweight Champion and join Randy Couture as the only two men in UFC history to win titles in two different weight classes.

“Joe is a great guy,” said Penn, who fought Stevenson for the title vacated by the suspension of Sean Sherk. “I knew he was gonna be tough, but I put everything into this. I wanted to make sure it was three times the charm and not three strikes you're out."

Penn had fallen short in two previous 155-pound title tries, losing to Jens Pulver 2002 and drawing with Caol Uno in 2003. He held the UFC welterweight title briefly in 2004, submitting Matt Hughes to win the belt.

Not surprisingly, Penn’s next opponent, Sherk - who was stripped of his title after a positive test for nandrolone after a win over Hermes Franca last July – took issue with Penn’s claim to the belt.

“That belt belongs to me,” said Sherk. “(Addressing Penn) You’ve got one more fight before you can be called UFC lightweight champ.”

The packed house of 8,412, which set a box office record of $1.25 million, beating the previous record held by Luciano Pavarotti, roared.

And while that bout will obviously be one that will have its day in front of the world, tonight was all about the world-class effort by Penn and the grit and determination of the 25-year old Stevenson, who gamely battled through a nasty cut suffered in the first round to still give Penn a fight.

It was a fight that almost ended as soon as it began though, as Penn rocked and dropped Stevenson with a right hand that finished his opening barrage of the bout. He immediately looked for an opening on the mat to finish, but Stevenson’s 40 fights of experience kicked in and he got his way out of danger. Penn never stopped working though, and his subsequent ground and pound attack scored points and kept Stevenson from mounting an offensive, and with under two minutes left, it looked like Penn was starting to inch closer to victory. But just when the outlook seemed bleak, Stevenson fought back with strikes from the bottom, letting Penn know that he was still in the fight. This only seemed to wake up Penn, who opened up a nasty cut on his opponent’s forehead with a right elbow moments before the bell rang to end the round.

With blood streaming down his forehead, Stevenson came out with a sense of urgency to begin the second, closing the gap quickly and attempting to land with big shots when inside. The heavy-handed Penn kept his cool, countering Stevenson well and trying to keep him at the end of his punches. After a short break two minutes in for the Octagonside physician to check on Stevenson’s cut, the action resumed and Penn tried to make sure the outcome wouldn’t be decided by anyone but him, and after jarring Stevenson and following him to the mat, he got in the full mount position and began to rain blows on the Californian, who showed the heart of a lion in continuing to battle against the odds. The fight would end shortly thereafter though, as Stevenson gave up his back and Penn sunk in a rear naked choke, producing the tap out and the victory at 4:02 of the second round.With the win, Penn improves to 13-4-1. Stevenson falls to 33-8.

UFC Televised Undercard Results

Thomas Gerbasi of www.ufc.com gives his take on the televised fights.

NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE, January 19 – If the recent runs of the New England Patriots, Boston Red Sox, and Boston Celtics weren’t enough, Maine’s Marcus Davis and Massachusetts’ Jorge Rivera continued the run of New England sports excellence with big knockout wins on the UFC 80 undercard at the Metro Radio Arena.

In Davis’ case, he didn’t engage the Fight of The Night many expected, he did make a strong case for Knockout of The Night honors (an award that eventually went to Wilson Gouveia) as he blasted out Jess Liaudin in little over a minute to run his MMA winning streak to 11 fights (six in the UFC).

Liaudin (12-9) opened his attack with thudding leg kicks, with Davis responding with a heavy kick of his own to the midsection. That was just an appetizer for the finish though, as Davis shot a left hand over the top as both fighters engaged and Liaudin was out before he hit the mat. The official time of the stoppage by referee Mario Yamasaki was 1:04.

“I was never this nervous for a fight,” said Davis, who didn’t show it in improving to 19-4. “(Trainer) Mark DellaGrotte said ‘throw a kick, and it will set up your hands.’ So I did and it worked.”

Rivera, a middleweight veteran, revived his career at 35 years old, stunning and stopping ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ winner Kendall Grove in just 80 seconds.

After some brief standup from both men, the bout hit the mat early in the first round, with Rivera (15-6) immediately pouncing on his foe with both hands. Grove (10-5) gamely tried to rise, but ‘El Conquistador’ kept the pressure on, drilling ‘Da Spyder’ with a series of right hands before a left sent Grove down hard, prompting the stoppage by referee Dan Miragliotta at 1:20 of the first round.

“I felt the way to beat Kendall was to get in his face and keep the pressure on,” said Rivera. “I felt I hurt him with the very first punch.” The loss was Grove’s second in a row, following his TKO loss to Patrick Cote last August.

Wilson Gouveia rebounded from a rough first round against fellow light heavyweight contender Jason Lambert to score an emphatic knockout over ‘The Punisher’ in the second stanza that earned UFC 80 Knockout of The Night honors.

Lambert (23-7) aggressively took after Gouveia (10-4) at the opening bell, but the Brazilian showed great poise and footwork in keeping Lambert at bay until the bout hit the mat, Lambert’s favorite place to operate. Within a few moments, Lambert had powered Gouveia into the fence and worked his ground and pound, Gouveia found his way to his feet at the midway point of the round, but the respite was only brief as Lambert again put his foe on the mat. This time though, Gouveia ran through a couple of submission attempts that Lambert was forced to power his way out of, and by the end of the round, ‘The Punisher’ was back in control.

The strategy for round two remained the same for Lambert, but this time, as he pressured Gouveia against the fence, Gouveia responded by freeing himself and firing off a three punch combination. The first two punches missed, but the final left hook hit the mark, sending Lambert face first into the canvas and prompting a halt to the bout by referee Herb Dean at 37 seconds of the second.

UFC 80 Undercard Results

The following is Tomas Gerbasi's analysis of the undercard fights from www.ufc.com

NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE, January 19 - Liverpool’s Paul Kelly and Walsall’s Paul Taylor did the British Isles proud in their welterweight battle tonight, battling it out for three closely contested rounds, with Octagon debutant Kelly emerging victorious via a unanimous decision on the UFC 80 undercard at the Metro Radio Arena.

Scores were 30-27 for the unbeaten Kelly, 8-0, in a bout that was a lot closer than those scores would indicate, hence it's award for UFC 80 Fight of The Night.

Both fighters went toe-to-toe at the bell, immediately igniting the crowd. After a brief respite at the fence, where Taylor (8-3-1) fired away with close range strikes, there was another firefight before the bout hit the mat. On the ground, Kelly worked his ground and pound as Taylor – now bleeding from the nose - focused on improving his position and locking in a submission until the bell sounded.

20 seconds into the second, the two fighters resumed their ground fighting, with Kelly working his way back into the top position after a brief spell on the bottom. While on the bottom, Taylor drew a roar when he locked up his opponent’s arm, but Kelly battled his way free and resumed his striking from the top, opening up a huge cut on his opponent’s forehead.

The toe to toe slugging commenced once again at the start of the third, and Taylor was staggered briefly by a left before the two tumbled to the canvas. Kelly soon took side control, but again Taylor would find a way to get back into a better position. With under three minutes left, referee Herb Dean stood the fight up, and Taylor scored well with his strikes before Kelly took him back down. For the remainder of the bout, the two fatigued battlers fired away, Kelly from the top, Taylor from the bottom, a fitting end to the evenly fought contest.

Heavyweight prospect Antoni Hardonk made short work of Northern Ireland’s Colin Robinson, improving to 6-4 with a 17 second stoppage.

Robinson (9-4) closed the distance immediately, but Hardonk used his knees and leg kicks to gain some working room, and a stiff left to the chin sent Robinson stumbling to the canvas. Hardonk hesitated, and as referee Mario Yamasaki closed in, Robinson tried to stand but stumbled down again, prompting the stoppage.

“The leg kicks helped to get him out of his rhythm, but it was the left jab that hurt him,” said Hardonk. “I should have stepped in earlier, but I wasn’t sure, and the referee stopped the fight.”

Italy’s Alessio Sakara got back in the win column in his final bout at light heavyweight, scoring a first round TKO of Detroit’s James Lee.

“I worked so much with American Top Team and each fight I’m getting better,” said Sakara, who promises a drop to the middleweight division. “I want to cut to 185 and I promise my fans that I will be the best fighter at 185.”

Lee (25-3), a submission specialist, predictably shot in for the takedown against Sakara (16-5, 1 no contest), a former pro boxer who has had issues on the ground before. Sakara fought off the attempt, but Lee held on to the Italian’s leg.

Sakara responded with a series of blows to the head that hurt and finished Lee, bringing in referee Dan Miragliotta to halt the bout at the 1:30 mark.

In the opener, up and coming lightweight Sam Stout put together a disciplined gameplan and adhered to it for three rounds, winning a unanimous decision over Per Eklund.

Scores were 29-27, and 30-27 twice. “Every time you come up with the win, you’ve got to be happy,” said Stout, who broke a two fight UFC losing streak. The first round primarily consisting of Stout fighting off takedown attempts by Eklund, who ate more than his share of strikes while grabbing for the Canadian’s legs. There was more of the same in the second, and even when Eklund did get his foe to the mat, a submission attempt was easily tossed aside by Stout, and by the end of the round, the Swedish fighter was visibly fatigued and hearing it from the crowd. The third frame was no better in terms of action or strategy from Eklund, who had no Plan B against Stout, who wisely kept the bout standing to play to his strengths.

“My gameplan if it hit the ground was to get back to my feet, protect my arms and not get caught in anything stupid,” said Stout, who improves to 14-3-1. Eklund falls to 14-3-1.