Smith vs. Lawler II to Headline July 26th 'Saturday Night Fights' on CBS

EliteXC middleweight champion Robbie Lawler (15-4) and Scott Smith (13-4) will meet in a rematch -- less than two months after their initial meeting -- and they'll do it again on network television.

Their first bout at "EliteXC: PRIMETIME," which served as a co-main event to Kevin "Kimbo Slice" Ferguson's third-round TKO of James Thompson, ended in anticlimactic no-contest after Lawler caught Smith with an inadvertent eye poke in the third round. Smith maintained he was OK to continue, but officials refused to let the bout go on.

Championship bouts that are stopped early due to injury require the completion of at least three rounds. Because the stoppage came halfway through the second, no victor was declared, and Lawler got to keep his belt.

"Neither one of us wanted the fight to end that way, so we definitely have some unfinished business we need to take care of," Smith said during Saturday's broadcast.

Smith said his eye is fine, and though he initially thought he had broken his foot in the fight, he said it, too, is completely healthy.

Frank Trigg and Takanori Gomi scheduled for 'Senguko 4'

Middleweight fighter Frank Trigg (16-6) has agreed to fight in August for World Victory Road.

The upcoming bout means the former UFC fighter and ex-ICON Sport middleweight title-holder will return to action for the first time since a December 2007 first-round submission victory over Edwin Dewees. He has accepted the bout but an opponent has yet to be named.

Trigg, 36, has won three of his past four fights. His only loss was a fourth-round knockout defeat to Robbie Lawler for the ICON title in March 2007. In addition to Dewees, Trigg also defeated Jason "Mayhem" Miller and Kazuo Misaki during the recent span.

In addition to Trigg, WVR recently announced that highly ranked lightweight Takanori Gomi (28-3) has been booked for the Sengoku 4 card, which takes place at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan. Gomi is expected to headline the event, though his opponent has not been determined.

IFL in Deep Trouble

I don't want to sound like someone who can foresee the future but I've been predicting the IFL's demise for about 6 months now. However it didn't take much skill in predicting it's demise considering the product absolutely sucked. In fact, anyone with 1/8 of a brain who has watched the IFL on tv could have predicted it's demise.

The International Fight League on Tuesday announced that it has canceled its planned August 15 event at the Izod Center in East Rutherford, N.J., signaling what seems to be the inevitable conclusion to the imploding fight promotion.

In a prepared statement, the IFL said that it continues to explore options for maximizing shareholder value in the publicly traded company, but if the IFL is unable to leverage any of those options, the company may seek protection from its creditors through a court proceeding, otherwise known as bankruptcy.

The prepared statement also indicated that the IFL will “continue to downsize its staff to reduce costs,” which is the corporately correct way of saying they will be laying off more of their employees.

The downsizing, according to Larkin, does not include any fighters on their roster, but he did mention contractual obligations with the coaches in the league, and other employees that could be casualties of the changes.

“We are exploring our contractual relationships with our coaches. We’re looking at that, but we certainly are not cutting coaches,” said Larkin. “We’re trying to minimize with the heads that have to roll because everybody’s been in this together for a while and everybody has a great deal of respect and affection for each other, but if we don’t take some radical steps there won’t be a company.”

The promotion has gone through several changes and facelifts over the past year to try and rescue it from its turbulent beginnings, but such attempts have not gained traction and everyone is left to wonder if an upturn will ever come.

The IFL was doomed when they had 2 hours of prime time broadcasting that they did absolutely nothing with. They had a golden opportunity on the MY Network and destroyed it by continually showing the same 10 fights over and over again. Not to mention, they were all replays and no one ever even knew when the fights took place. They tried to show standings of the IFL teams but they were inconsistent every telecast. One week the Condors record would be 3-2 and the next week they would be 1-1. There was absolutely no way to follow the season because no one knew when the so called season's took place.

The last thing they did, which was the kiss of death, was to promote the violence and savagery of the sport. They also portrayed the fighters as heartless guys who liked to give beatings and not the fact that the fighters were extremely technical and well rounded individuals. They didn't lose ratings because of the fighters, in fact they had some pretty good talent. But they promoted nothing but violence, the very thing that got the UFC kicked off of pay per view in the late 90's. That's just plain stupid and some very rich people are losing a few bucks because of it.

But again, it's not like you couldn't see that one coming.

What Did We Learn from UFC 85?

First and foremost, referree Dan Miragliotta sucks ass at reffing. He's the same guy who stopped the fight giving Kimbo Slice an unwarranted win. Brandon Vera was definitely not hurt when the fight was stopped but could have been hurt soon. I know it's about protecting the fighters but let them fight.

We also learned that Michael Bisping fighting at 185 is a smart choice for him. He's looked completely invincible over his last 2 fights at his current weight. It's a bit premature but he looks like he should be in contention for a shot at Anderson Silva, provided Dana White doesn't make him fight Silva's bouncer, Rich Franklin. At this point, there is nobody in the division who can hang with Silva so they don't have much of a choice but to thrust Bisping up there. I'm certain a rematch with Yushin Okami is in the cards for Silva but the division is in shambles.

Matt Hughes is owed a great deal of thanks due to his ass whooping he took for the UFC in the nights main event. Thiago Alves didn't even come close to making weight citing an ankle injury that prevented him from training properly the last few days. Hughes took the fight at a catch weight of 174 and was clearly outmuscled. It's no secret that the fighters put on as much as 15-20 pounds after weigh ins by rehydrating but there was a clear size advantage for Alves. He wasn't nearly that big when he knocked out Karo Parisyan a few months ago.

How in the hell don't you make weight for a main event? Did this guy take the Travis Lutter method of training? It's an insult to the organization and for some reason it got downplayed. He begged in the middle of the cage for a title shot saying he's been good but you never know how the fight would have played out if he had sucked down those last 4 pounds.

That being said, it also looks like Matt Hughes' best days are clearly behind him. He was a dominant champion in a time when there were no fighters in the division. The guys he beat a few years ago wouldn't even be mid carders in today's division.

Look at the guys he faced to inflate his record. Carlos Newton twice, Frank Trigg twice, Marcello Aguiar and Gil Castillo (who the hell are they?), Sean Sherk, Joe Riggs (who also didn't make weight). He beat Royce Gracie because there just weren't any opponents in his division. His only notable wins were GSP in a fight he was losing and BJ Penn in a fight he was getting dominated in until Penn suffered a rib unjury and gassed.

However, he is definitely fighting Matt Serra next which should make a great fight. Serra should be fighting at 155 and Hughes is past his prime. Thoughts anyone?

UFC 85 Recap

After failing to make weight for his first-ever UFC main event, Thiago Alves (15-3 MMA, 8-2 UFC) redeemed himself by defeating one of the most dominant welterweight fighters in MMA history -- while launching himself into the thick of the division's title picture.

After a close first round, Alves dominated the second, tagging former longtime champ Matt Hughes (42-7 MMA, 15-4 UFC) with a flying knee to the body and a clean punch to the head to force the stoppage 62 seconds into the second round.

The fight capped off Saturday's "UFC 85: Bedlam" event, which took place at the 02 Arena in London, England. The main card aired live on pay per view.

After the stoppage, Alves apologized to the organization for failing to make weight a day earlier. The American Top Team fighter weighed 174 pounds, forcing Hughes to accept the bout at the catchweight.

"I had sprained an ankle before the fight, so I couldn't run or train or do much," Alves said.

With the victory -- the biggest of the 24-year-old's career -- Alves has now won six straight fights. With Hughes, Karo Parisyan, Chris Lytle and other notables left in his wake, he now has one thing on his mind.

"Mr. Dana White, I've been a good boy," Alves said. "I never choose my opponents. ... Please give me a title shot."

White, sitting ringside, simply smiled.

As for Hughes, he had no excuses for the loss.

"Man, he's a good fighter," Hughes said. "He got me. No doubt about it."

In the night's unofficial co-main event, Michael Bisping (16-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) dominated Jason Day (17-6 MMA, 1-1 UFC) from the opening bell until the referee's stoppage three minutes and 42 seconds later.

Perhaps in the best shape of his four-year career, Bisping posted his second straight victory since dropping from light heavyweight to middleweight.

After an early trip-takedown, Bisping battered his Canadian opponent with power shots from above. Day had no answer as the British fighter continually rained down blows from the standing position and then in full mount. Bisping even ignored a few obvious submission openings to continue the heavy-handed assault.

With Day offering no defense as the frequency of shots intensified, the referee came to his rescue soon after.

Bisping earned his second-straight first-round TKO -- and his fifth knockout victory in his past six wins.

In an intriguing welterweight bout, Mike Swick (12-2 MMA, 7-1 UFC) got his first definitive victory in nearly two years -- and he snapped Marcus Davis's (14-4 MMA, 6-2 UFC) 12-fight, three-year winning streak in the process.

Swick used the clinch to set up takedowns and phenomenal ground control. And although he never had Davis in serious trouble, the formula won Swick all three rounds. A third-round point deduction for grabbing the fence resulted in winning scores of 29-27 for Swick on all three judges' scorecards.

Davis, a former standout boxer in New England, did damage with dirty boxing from the clinch. However, Swick continually forced the fight to the ground, where Davis was smothered and couldn't escape. A few cuts, likely the result of his substantial scar tissue, provided a further obstacle that Davis was forced to combat during the fight.

Swick, a former middleweight contender, made his welterweight debut in January and earned a lackluster majority-decision victory over Josh Burkman. However, he said his victory over Davis solidified his decision to remain in the 170-pound division.

Christened "Quick" after two lightning-quick knockouts to begin his UFC career, Swick now hasn't posted a knockout victory in nearly three years. However, he's complemented his solid striking skills with a proficient ground game -- one that set up his victory over Davis.

In a hugely entertaining middleweight bout that had everything from illegal blows to point deductions to a fight-ending power-driver, Thales Leites (13-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC) out-pointed Nate Marquardt (26-8-2 MMA, 5-2 UFC) to pick up a split-decision victory.

Two costly point deductions -- one in the second round for an illegal knee to the face and a questionable one in the third round for an alleged blow to the back of his opponent's head -- cost Marquardt the fight. Two judges gave Leites the fight by scores of 28-27, and the third had it 28-27 for Marquardt.

Seeing how the final two rounds resulted in tying scores (Marquardt won both rounds but had to settle for 9-9 scores because of the point deductions), the fight was ultimately decided in the first round. The winner was Leites, who floored Marquardt midway through the round with a stiff right. However, despite being mounted, Marquardt avoided further damage and even staggered Leites later in the round with a clean uppercut.

Ultimately, though, two judges gave the round to Leites, which set up the victory.

The night's televised main card kicked off in controversial fashion as Fabricio Werdum (11-3-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC) earned a late-first-round TKO stoppage over Brandon Vera (8-2 MMA, 4-2 UFC).

Vera staggered his opponent with crisp striking midway through the first round, but Werdum weathered the storm, scored a trip-takedown, and then secured the mount position to rain down a barrage of punches. Despite just 20 seconds remaining in the round, referee Dan Miragliotta -- the same official responsible for last week's controversial third-round stoppage in EliteXC's "Kimbo Slice" vs. James Thompson main event -- halted the bout.

Vera immediately sprung to his feet and protested the decision.

In a confusing post-fight exchange with UFC broadcaster Joe Rogan, Werdum and Werdum's translator, Werdum claimed that he thought Vera was asking for the fight to be stopped.

"Are you kidding me?" Vera said. "I'm not going to [expletive] quit. ... There was 15 seconds left in the round. Let me take my ass kicking and get to the next round."

Vera, once one of the heavyweight division's most promising prospects, has now lost his past two fights. Werdum, meanwhile, moves ever so close to the top of a short list of heavyweight contenders.

PRELIMINARY CARD


Martin Kampmann def. Jorge Rivera via submission (guillotine choke) -- Round 1, 2:44
Matt Wiman def. Thiago Tavares via KO (punch) -- Round 2, 1:57
Kevin Burns def. Roan Carneiro via submission (triangle choke) -- Round 2, 2:53
Luiz Cane def. Jason Lambert via TKO (strikes) -- Round 1, 2:07
Paul Taylor def. Jess Liaudin via split decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29)
Antoni Hardonk def. Eddie Sanchez via TKO (strikes) -- Round 2, 4:15

Tito Ortiz Issued Cease And Desist Order From The UFC

Tito Ortiz was recently served a cease and desist request from the UFC. The subject of the complaint was the cover of Ortiz’s recently released autobiography, entitled 'This is Going to Hurt'.

The book’s cover features Ortiz wearing the UFC Light Heavyweight Title is intellectual property of the UFC. As such, its use in promotional materials requires the company’s approval per the terms of its standard contract.

Dana White says he's completely done dealing with Ortiz but this is a bit of proof that he has such a personal vendetta against Ortiz. While Dana White has openly stated that he can't wait to never have to deal with Ortiz, it looks to be far from over. Randy Couture was friends with Dana White and you see the actions they took against him. It appears Ortiz is in for a battle.

UFC 85 is Cursed

Something strange is probably gonna happen at UFC 85. It just seems as if the entire event is cursed.

It all started when the UFC had intended to hold an event at the O2 Arena in London about 5 months ago when the venue had to cancel out on the UFC. That was the beginning of bad things to come.

Even though the UFC was able to reschedule another event for the O2 Arena (UFC 85), strange things began to happen.

Because it was the 2nd event in London, the UFC wanted to outdo it's previous draw which was a sellout.

It began with a huge fight between Chuck Liddell and Mauricio 'Shogun' Rua. Besides Rua's loss to Forrest Griffin, he's a bad dude with a superb pedigree from Pride FC. Rua had to pull out of the fight due to a knee injury.

In stepped in 'Sugar' Rashad Evans for the fight of his life against Chuck Liddell. A win against Liddell and he's surely a top contender in the lightheavyweight division. It's also a must win for Liddell who's looking for his 3rd fight against Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson.

Then comes a first. Chuck Liddell has to pull out of the fight due to tearing his hamstring which puts him on the shelf for about 2-3 months. James Irvin steps in to take on Evans but now the fight card is lacking a bonafide main event.

Chris Leben was scheduled to fight Michael Bisping in what could be an 'almost' main event so the card was ok but it would be tough to justify a ppv.

In order to warrant $45, Dana White scheduled Matt Hughes vs. Thiago Alves as the main event with the 2 other fights as the 'almost' main events.

That was until Chris Leben turned himself in for violating his parole which landed him in jail for 35 days. He had to be scrapped from the fight and in stepped Jason Day to square off against Bisping. Jason Day is a really good fighter and isn't gonna get walked over, but he's just not the name that Chris Leben is.

Well at least he still had Rashad Evans on the undercard and Matt Hughes headlining. Also on the undercard is Marcus Davis vs. Mick Swick so there are a couple names. Not worth a ppv in my opinion but my opinion doesn't count according to Dana White.

Then the news comes about that James Irvin is injured and has to pull out of the fight with Rashad Evans. At this point, it's too late to find a replacement and Evans is pulled off the fight card. It's better off and this way they can set up something that's not just desparation.

But hey, Thiago Alves just dominated Karo Parysian and the market for him vs. Hughes might be enough to carry the ppv. That is until, Alves failed to make weight and now the fight is scheduled to take place at 174 instead of 170. It's not too big of a deal considering it's not for any title but it does change the complexity of the fight. Who knows how those couple pounds will affect either fighter.

All I'm saying is I won't be watching this ppv simply because the fight card doesn't warrant $45. This event should be free on SpikeTV. My curiosity will be getting the better of me because the event seems cursed so something strange just might happen. I guess I'll have to rely on websites for updates and hope I made the right decision.

Faber Hands Pulver First Ever Loss at 145

Despite the shutout decision victory, a WEC 34 title fight between WEC featherweight champion Urijah Faber (21-1) and Jens Pulver (22-9-1) was much more entertaining than the judges' scores of 50-44 would indicate.

The title fight, billed as the biggest featherweight fight in MMA history, capped off Sunday's "WEC: Faber vs. Pulver" event at ARCO Arena in Sacramento, Calif.

Faber showed a polished stand-up game and an iron jaw as he delivered former UFC champion Pulver his first-ever career loss at 145 pounds."It's something I've always had," Faber said of his striking skills. "Jens has power, guys, but I haven't had a chance to really show mine."

Faber had punched his way to near-victory on numerous occasions, and though Pulver was staggered and dazed through the 25-minute battle, he always found a way to survive.

Despite the loss, Pulver did manage to accomplish something that no other opponent has done in nearly four years and 17 fights: he took Faber to a decision.

In the night's co-main event, WEC bantamweight champion Miguel Torres (34-1) posted his first successful title defense since defeating former champ Chase Beebe in February.

However, unlike much of the opposition in the champ's previous 14 consecutive victories, Yoshiro Maeda (23-5-2) proved a game opponent who, at least initially, could handle a frantic and relentless pace from Torres.

Torres used dangerous counter-striking, precise body kicks and an array of other blows to batter his opponent throughout three rounds of a scheduled five. A quick left hand repeatedly found its mark, and though some crowd-pleasing ground battles were had, it was the constant stream of strikes that had Maeda's face a mess.

By the end of the third round, he could barely see out of either eye. The swelling was substantial -- and enough to force a stoppage before a fourth round would get underway.

The result was a third-round TKO stoppage and a signature victory for the 27-year-old Torres.

EliteXC Musings

Some thoughts from last Saturday's EliteXC. Kimbo Slice probably won't do anything in the world of MMA and Gary Shaw is gonna have to look for a new poster child of his upstart organization.

Scott Smith was an average fighter at best from the UFC and was fighting for the Welterweight title which shows how little talent they have in the organization. It was a great fight but it was just like having 2 mediocre football teams play each other. It'll be a great game but if they played a top team, they would get stomped.

Having their top female fighter come in 3.5 pounds overweight didn't help the credibility of the organization. If their poster girl for their promotion didn't care enough to make weight, why should anyone else care?

Overall, they had the opportunity to steal an audience and probably didn't do it. The production was very amateurish and the commentary was average at best. The ratings were great but just like the XFL, I don't see this lasting too long on CBS.

EliteXC is No Threat to UFC (Yet)

Sorry about the long layoff folks. But we're back with updates from the world of MMA.

EliteXC made it's network television debut Saturday night with a terrible production of fights. It appears they have the talent in the organization but it's no threat to the UFC at the moment and Saturday's display was evident.

It was marred by controversial stoppages, poor commentating, and horrible reffing. On top of everything, Gary Shaw, the EliteXC president, couldn't keep his mug off the cameras for more than a minute. He's taking a huge page out of Dana White's book.

On to the fights:

For the first time in his professional MMA career, Kevin "Kimbo Slice" Ferguson was tested. The centerpiece of EliteXC's network debut was in a battle with British veteran James Thompson.

The event was the first live MMA event ever to air on major U.S. network television.

Despite an 11-fight undercard that resulted in a few controversial outcomes, the 8,033 spectators at Newark, N.J.'s Prudential Center were there largely for Ferguson, who moved his professional career record to 3-0 with the victory.

However, unlike his previous two fights, which lasted a combined 62 seconds, Ferguson's clash with Thompson was far from an organized street fight. Thompson repeatedly put the 34-year-old on his back, stung him with punches and elbows, and in the waning moments of the second round, tested his resolve with an extended ground-and-pound assault.

After the event, Ferguson admitted he that he's far from a polished and complete MMA fighter, but he's also not about to overlook the progress he displayed during his fight with Thompson (16-9), a former PRIDE fighter who's now lost seven of his past nine fights.

I got his big ass off of me, didn't I?" Ferguson asked.

The fight, of course, wasn't without controversy. Many watching the event, including media members in a post-event press conference, questioned the referee's decision to stop the bout while Thompson was still standing. Ferguson blasted Thompson with an early-third-round punch that popped open and bloodied the Brit's ear. However, Thompson was already wobbly before the blow and showed no signs of recovering anytime soon.

Also causing a few raised eyebrows were referee Dan Miragliotta's sometimes-hasty decisions to stand the fighters soon after the action hit the mat. Those stands-up, some of which came when Thompson was in clearly favorable positions, almost always benefited Ferguson. However, few referees are immune to the crowd's desires, and what seemed to be a largely casual fan base repeatedly called for the fighters to be restarted on their feet. Additionally, despite the stellar position, Thompson wasn't always able to do much with it.

A humbled Kimbo Slice admitted he's got a lot more work to do but was in good spirits afterwards.

In the night's co-main event, EliteXC middleweight champ Robbie Lawler and Scott Smith provided a mixed bag for viewers. At times, the bout was electric as both fighters threw punches and kicks with abandon. However, a slow start to a fight largely considered the night's unofficial main event had many fans growing impatient.

Lawler took the first round on aggressive striking and sent Smith staggering back to his corner. However, round two was an incredibly close contest that bloodied both fighters and had each within grasp of victory. The final blow, though, wasn't one of Lawler's vicious uppercuts or Smith's big rights. Instead, it was an inadvertent poke to Smith's eye at the 3:26 mark of the third round. Lawler immediately apologized for the accidental poke, and officials rushed into the cage to check the damage. Despite his claims that he was OK to keep fighting, Smith was told he'd be unable to continue.

The crowd was irate with the decision, and the anger only intensified when New Jersey State Athletic Control Board representative Nick Lembo announced that the fight would be declared a no-contest. As he explained, championship fights require the completion of at least three rounds before the result can be determined by the scorecards.

Both Lawler (15-4) and Smith (13-4) were disappointed with the result.

"I wanted to go back out," Smith said. "I probably would have been knocked out, but at least I would have been knocked out in the fight."

In other action, despite a sad new level of criticism that was further fueled when Gina Carano failed to make weight for Saturday's event, the Prudential Center crowd was firmly in her corner come fight time.

In the night's lone female bout, opponent Kaitlin Young was booed lustily upon her entrance to the cage. Carano, meanwhile, was cheered mightily with chants of "Gina!" drowning out the pre-fight promos.

After a fairly even round, Carano controlled the second with a Muay-Thai-inspired assault of punches and knees from the clinch. A kick ultimately sent Young to the mat, and only the bell could save her from Carano's subsequent rear-naked-choke attempt. However, so battered was Young's face after the round that she was declared unfit to continue.

Carano (5-0), who was lambasted by her critics after she weighed in three-and-a-half pounds over the 141-pound limit for her fight, admitted that a hectic schedule had a major impact on her preparations for Young (4-2).

"I just came back from filming 'American Gladiators,' and I didn't really put my heart into the training the way I usually like," she said. "That kind of sucks, but [Young] is cool. She took the fight, and we moved on."

In the typical war of words that precede most Phil Baroni fights, Joey Villasenor proved to be a surprisingly worthy adversary. However, once the verbal jousting was replaced with the real stuff, it was Baroni who was no longer the game competitor.

After a head kick missed its mark, Villasenor opted to stand and trade with the notoriously hard-hitting Baroni. Villasenor, though, struck first, using a left-right-left combination to force Baroni to his knees. His prayers went unanswered, and the referee was forced to halt the bout seconds later to award Villasenor (26-6) a surprisingly quick victory over Baroni (10-10).