Page 2 - Top MMA News and Mixed Martial Arts Headlines

Following a 2-1 record in the world's premier MMA organization, middleweight Rob Kimmons has signed a new four-fight contract with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A source close to the fighter today told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) the 28-year-old fighter recently accepted the new deal. Kimmons (22-4 MMA, 2-1 UFC) most recently defeated Joe Vedepo via first-round submission at UFC Fight Night 18 in April. It was the sixth win in seven fights for Kimmons, a Midwesterner who's now 13-2 over the past three years.

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As with any dispute, there are always two sides to every story. And as "Ultimate Chaos" victor Javier Vazquez today told MMAjunkie.com Radio (www.mmajunkie.com/radio) such was the case with this past Friday's weigh-in fiasco in Biloxi, Miss., which ultimately cost Din Thomas a chance to fight – and took money from Vazquez's pocket. "I never went up to the commission," Vazquez said. "I never bitched and complained. I never said anything. It wasn't my job to do that. That's the commission's job to do that."

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It doesn't take more than simply glancing over UFC heavyweight Heath Herring's (28-14 MMA, 2-3 UFC) record to see what kind of fighter he is. While "The Texas Crazy Horse" hasn't won every fight he's ever entered, Herring has fought the world's toughest fighters throughout his 12-year career. But despite having fought 42 times in bouts all over the globe, his UFC 99 withdrawal provided Herring a new experience that has forced him to take a little time away from the sport.

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Donald Cerrone will meet Benson Henderson for the interim WEC lightweight championship at WEC 43, but current titleholder Jamie Varner says the gold they’re fighting for is “garbage.” “It’s funny; it’s like the interim belt is a glorified second place,” Varner told Sherdog.com. “To me, I think that’s bulls--t. The interim belt doesn’t mean anything. They have a belt, but they don't have the belt. It’s garbage.” The interim title fight between Cerrone and Henderson will take place Sept. 2 at the Covelli Centre in Youngstown, Ohio.

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We are currently three weeks deep into the taping of the upcoming tenth season of Spike TV’s The Ultimate Fighter. This season is set to feature nothing but the big boys as sixteen larger than life warriors will be duking it out to determine the king of the heavyweight Ultimate Fighter crop. The Ultimate Fighter: The Heavyweights could already be considered the most highly anticipated show of the series largely in part of the recent announcement that none other than Kevin Ferguson, aka Kimbo Slice was expected to enter the shark tank. The timing couldn’t be any better. I don’t think that I’m alone in saying that the most recent season of the show was the most lackluster of the series to date. Never have I been as unengaged with a season of TUF before season nine. The most successful television show in mixed martial arts needed a drastic change, or a makeover in a sense. It needed something, and it looks like it has found its answer in the form of sixteen mammoth sized brawlers willing to put their bodies on the line in the pursuit of their dream to become a UFC heavyweight. A full list of the men expected to appear on the tenth season of The Ultimate Fighter was recently released by the popular U.K. newspaper, The Sun. Among them are four former professional football players, a portly wrecking machine, a thugged out Internet sensation, UFC veterans and MMA rookies alike, The Ultimate Fighter: The Heavyweights is sure to have quite the variety of personalities and schools of thought

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Former EliteXC heavyweight champion Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva (12-1) will likely appear at the as-yet-unannounced World Victory Road's "Sengoku 10th Battle" event in September. Silva's manager, Alex Davis, today informed MMAjunkie.com Radio (www.mmajunkie.com/radio) of the potential bout, as well as his client's desire to return to action in the U.S. "I think that probably by next year you'll see him back in the U.S.," Davis said. "I'd like him back in the States; that's our goal. Right now we still have a contract with Sengoku. He's probably going to fight in September. If that goes well, possibly for a Sengoku title at the end of the year."

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As company executives hinted earlier this year, World Extreme Cagefighting will, in fact, make its Ohio debut in 2009. WEC General Manager Reed Harris today told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) that WEC 43 is set for Wednesday, Sept. 2, at the 6,000-seat Covelli Centre in Youngstown. However, despite recent reports, injured champion Jamie Varner will not be stripped of his WEC lightweight title, and WEC 43 headliners and top contenders Donald Cerrone (10-1) and Benson Henderson (9-1) will instead fight for an interim lightweight belt, Harris said. A number of reports, citing a Youngstown Vindicator story, stated Varner would be stripped of his belt and that it would then be contested by Cerrone and Henderson. However, Harris said that won't be the case.

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Pretty cool interview, touches on alot of things going around these days

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It appears as though current WEC lightweight champion Jamie Varner may be forced to the sidelines indefinitely. According to a recent report on Vindy.com, WEC founder and general manager Reed Harris said that Varner may never fight again due to the broken foot and hand sustained in his previous bout with Donald Cerrone. That match-up was cut short when Cerrone struck a downed Varner in the face with an illegal knee in the fifth round. When it was ruled that the defending champion was unable to continue, the fight went to the scorecards where Varner came away with the split decision victory. It has been reported that the WEC plans to strip Varner of his title shortly. A previously announced bout between Cerrone and has bee promoted to a title fight to determine the new WEC lightweight champion. The fight will be the main event at WEC 43 which is set for September 2 in Youngstown, Ohio.

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FANS of mixed martial arts in the UK have been boosted by the news UFC 100 will definitely air live on July 11. Speculation has mounted that the event would be screened on Bravo on tape delay following Setanta's collapse last week. But we can reveal the main card from the Mandalay Bay spectacular will be broadcast in its entirety as it happens. We understand Virgin 1 is favourite to screen the extravaganza — which looks set to be the biggest event in MMA history. A source told SunSport: "UFC 100 will definitely air live in the UK and we can guarantee fans it will not be on pay-per-view." The showpiece sees Brock Lesnar clash with Frank Mir in a heavyweight title unification bout in the main event. Welterweight star Georges St Pierre also puts his title on the line against rising Brazilian star Thiago Alves, while Britain's biggest MMA fighter Michael Bisping pits his wits against legendary American middleweight Dan Henderson. In a further boost, our insider claimed SIX TV channels are battling it out for the rights to screen fight cards following Setanta's demise. ESPN are said to have lodged a huge bid to become the new home of the UFC in the UK and are the frontrunners to seal a long-term contract with the promotion — probably starting with UFC 101 in August. But they face a challenge from Five, who are keen on bringing MMA to a mainstream audience.

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Jim Miller seemed to be on the fast track towards a title shot, since making his long anticipated debut in the big show at UFC 89, when he squared off against the highly touted David Baron. Baron just had come off the biggest win of his career, submitting prized Japanese fighter Hayato Sakurai in the first round. After handing Baron his first loss in five fights with an impressive third-round rear naked choke (garnering Submission of the Night), he followed up the victory with another exciting performance with a unanimous decision win over Ultimate Fighter veteran Matt Wiman, who was on a four-fight win streak inside the Octagon.

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Coming into season six of The Ultimate Fighter, Mac Danzig was believed to be one of the most well rounded and respected guys out of any season. An early favorite to win, he showed the versatility which would be essential for a fighter exiting TUF and transitioning into the big show that is the UFC. Submitting runner-up Tommy Speer en route to a six-figure contract with the 800-pound gorilla organization would mark his fourth submission victory in a row, including his three exhibition bouts during his time in the house. His exhibition wins included Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu ace Joe Scarolla via triangle choke and the always tough John Kolosci twice by rear naked choke, none making it out of the first round.

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In the weeks leading to up to his Saturday night bout with Randy Hedderick at "Ultimate Chaos" in Biloxi, Miss., Affliction vice president Tom Atencio had said his second professional MMA contest would also be his last. After being visibly rocked and dropped to the canvas early in the bout, Atencio probably wished he had stopped with just one. But after battling back to earn a TKO win at the close of the second round, Atencio told MMAjunkie.com Radio (www.mmajunkie.com/radio) that he hasn't ruled out another trip to the cage.

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Frank Mir - Accident, UFC, Lesnar & Liddell The Official Radio Partner of PunchDrunkGamer, TakeDown Wrestling Radio recently conducted an interview with interim UFC Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir. Mir talks with Scott Casber about his training, Brock Lesnar and a variety of issues in mixed martial arts today. AUDIO:

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Nick Diaz is expected to face off with an old rival in Joe Riggs on August 15 on the undercard of Strikeforce: Carano vs. Cyborg. Roger Gracie is also expected on the card.

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“I can’t retire him, but he gave me his word that he was going to retire so … To be honest with you, he and I have talked, and he has said, yes, he will retire … So we’ll see what happens. He and I are getting together next week … We’re going to get together and talk about a lot of things. He’s coming into town, and we’ve got a lot to talk about.”

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"In the grand tradition of the great British thugs -- media-proclaimed “hard men” like Lenny McLean, Charlie Bronson and Mark Brandon Read -- Lee Murray is moving through the ranks like Parliament was waiting at the end. I have never heard of a man so driven to occupy a jail cell or a morgue with such urgency. (The closest American equivalent: probably Steve-O.) If you’ve only come into mixed martial arts via the hyper and Xyience-plastered “Ultimate Fighter” era, you’ve likely never seen Murray fight. He had long, corded muscles, a severe expression and a militant attitude. He hit very, very hard and he shocked the hell out of virtually everyone when he went and submitted Jorge Rivera with a triangle choke in his first and only UFC appearance. All said, he fought about 10 times and won most of them. In what would become his career finale, he was smacked around by Anderson Silva. He took Silva the distance, though, and that didn’t happen again in 13 fights. Fighting was Murray’s day job: He moonlighted as a hoodlum. (Or perhaps it was the other way around.)" ... ...

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A welterweight contest between Mike Swick and Martin Kampmann is likely for UFC 103, MMAWeekly.com has learned from sources close to the fight. While bout agreements have not been signed, both parties have agreed to the match-up. UFC 103 is expected to take place on Sept. 19 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, the promotion’s second trip to the Lone Star State. The event has yet to be announced by the UFC.

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What a fight they set up for Affliction: Trilogy!!! Buentello vs. Yvel is going to be a WAR!!! Great matchup neither of these guys will be taking the fight to the ground!!!

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The Ultimate Fighting Championship's worldwide television audience could expand significantly following today's announcement that the UFC has struck a TV deal with Inner Mongolia Television. It's the UFC's first-ever TV deal in China. Inner Mongolia Television, known as NMTV, is available in 80 million households with the potential to reach 240 million viewers throughout all provinces of China, according to today's announcement.

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