Shine Fights Signs Giva Santana
(411mania.com)Submission specialist Giva "The Arm Collector" Santana was signed today by Shine Fights, the latest signing in their 2009 signing spree. Santana sports perhaps the most appropriate/relevant fighter nickname in MMA-of his 13 career wins, 11 are by a method fitting for "The Arm Collector"-armbar.
Bellator signs standout Dan Hornbuckle for season-two welterweight tourney
(mmajunkie.com)Bellator Fighting Championships added another star to its season-two welterweight tournament with the signing of top free agent Dan Hornbuckle.
Bellator officials today exclusively revealed the signing to MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com).
Hornbuckle (19-2), whose 2009 breakout year included knockouts of Akihiro Gono and Nick Thompson in the Japanese-based World Victory Road promotion, has posted stoppages in 18 of his 19 career wins.
Bellator's season-two tournaments, which commence on April 8 with a 12-week season, are held in four different weight classes and determine No. 1 contenders for the champions who were crowned in the organization's debut season. In addition to Hornbuckle, Bellator also recently signed former U.S. Olympic wrestler and two-time NCAA Division I national champion Ben Askren (3-0) and highly touted prospect Jacob "Tick Tock" McClintock (6-0) for the 170-pound tourney.
Bellator champ Hector Lombard: "I want Dan Henderson" in Strikeforce
(mmajunkie.com)With the recent revelation that UFC import Dan Henderson (25-7) will fight for Strikeforce at an as-yet-unannounced April event on CBS, speculation immediately turned to whom the dual-weight class star would be fighting.
While initial reports have suggested that Strikeforce middleweight champ Jake Shields is a likely first step, another MMA title-holder has volunteered for the contest, as well.
Bellator middleweight champion Hector Lombard (22-2-1) told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) he's itching for the chance to prove himself on the big stage.
Jean Silva retires: "I'm too tired"
(tatame.com)“Hey guys from TATAME, I announced to you in first hand my retirement. It’s 10 years of career and almost 40 fights. I’m too tired to train and administrate my new training center here in João Pessoa. Another reason is that my manager abandoned me. It’s complicated when you lose, because you don’t have any value anymore. I had other problems that made me think more on taking care of my family and my business around here. It’s sad to me, but sooner or later this day would come. I think I already gave my contribution to MMA, specially in England, where I fought most of my career".
*wow kinda shocked by this..as i have followed White Bear thru his career..but i guess it's smart to get out when you know you should..i do hope that he keeps training guys down in Brazil..
BCN 5 - Bitetti Combat 5 Results
(sherdog.com)
Carina Damm def Daiana Silva dos Santos via TKO (Punches) 3 3:27
Francimar Bodao def Alessandro Stefano via TKO (Punches) 1 1:50
Cassiano Tytschyo def Shane Williams via Sub (Guillotine Choke) 1 4:00
Gustavo Machado def Rico Washington Sr. via Decision (Unanimous) 3 5:00
Fabio Maldonado def Fernando Tressino via TKO (Retirement) 2 5:00
Murilo Rua def Jason Jones via TKO (Punches) 2 3:20
Paulo Filho def Tatsuhiko Nishizaka via Sub (Kimura) 1 3:00
Alabama Pride Event Cancelled
(bloodyelbow.com)According to Chad Bergmeier, Travis Fulton's manager on the UG:
We signed a contract for this fight 2 months ago ...I was told all the money to promote this event was gathered and ready to pay for the event (fighters included) before 1 ticket was sold ...Yesterday I find out otherwise...As soon as Fulton's plane lands we are told the show is now cancelled ...These guys could have fought on other shows this weekend ...They could have stayed home with their families. Anyways, today we get told that Rod will pay them next week ...Fulton gets a flight home in the morning to Iowa in hopes that this is made right next week ...Guys, pay these fighters what they were promised and do the right thing!
Mariusz Pudzianowski wins MMA debut at KSW 12
(mmamania.com)The five-time World’s Strongest Man champion, Mariusz Pudzianowski blitzed through his MMA debut on Friday, Dec. 11, at KSW 12 in Warsaw, Poland.
Facing a professional boxer and fellow MMA newcomer, Marcin "El Testosteron" Najman, "Pudzian," a fourth-kyu green belt in Kyokushin Karate and former amateur boxer, stalked his foe for the first fifteen seconds.
With the thunderous roar of the crowd chanting his name, Pudzian started battering Najman’s legs as if he were shooting a soccer ball from long range. The kicks quickly took a toll on "El Testosteron," who fell to the mat and succumbed to Pudzian’s ferocious ground-and-pound at 43 seconds of the first round.
Olympic Wrestler Ben Askren Signs With Bellator
(mma.fanhouse.com)Ben Askren, the aspiring MMA fighter and former NCAA champion and Olympic wrestler, has signed with the Bellator Fighting Championships.
Askren will fight in Bellator's welterweight tournament, which begins in the spring as part of Bellator's new deal with Fox Sports Net. In a statement, Askren said he's excited about the Fox Sports deal.
"I like that my fights are going to broadcast nationally, I like the tournament-style format and I love the opportunity to be a part of something exciting and new," Askren said. "I plan on winning Bellator. My goal, as it always has been, is to be the best in the world."
Bellator Matchmaker Resigns
(mmaweekly.com)Matt Stansell, matchmaker for tournament-based fight promotion Bellator Fighting Championships, resigned his post on Monday.
Stansell and Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney said the split was amicable, though Rebney said Tuesday that Stansell stopped working with the company two weeks ago.
“The simplest way to put it is, as companies evolve and grow, sometimes that growth is best for certain parties to stay together and sometimes that growth requires that certain parties split,” Rebney said. “At this point, it wasn’t the right fit as we continue to grow and expand.”
Leites Wins in MFC Debut
(tsn.ca)
ENOCH, Alta. -- Brazilian middleweight Thales Leites won a unanimous decision over Dean (The Boogeyman) Lister in a dreary main event at MFC 23 on Friday night.
Herschel Walker's MMA debut date set; no opponent yet
(sports.yahoo.com)Strikeforce announced today that Herschel Walker will make his debut on Jan. 30 in Sunrise, Fla. Walker, who will be 47 at the time of the bout, recently started training mixed martial arts after winning the Heisman trophy, a career as an NFL running back, a stint as an Olympic bobsledder, and a fifth-degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do.
Shine Fights Signs Todd Moore, Who Wants Mayorga
(mmajunkie.com)Shine Fights continues to spend like UFC might to sign fighters, their latest pickup is Todd Moore, who gets a 3-fight exclusive deal. The WEC & DREAM veteran even knows who he wants to fight first: Former boxing champion Ricardo Mayorga, who signed with the promotion in September.
Shine Fights Signs TUF Vet Jesse Forbes
(mmajunkie.com)Shine Fights continued it's pre-holiday signing spree today, inking Jesse Forbes to a 3-fight deal. Forbes appeared on season 3 of The Ultimate Fighter, losing early to Noah Inhofer but coming back when Inhofer famously left the show after getting a letter from home. He lost again but returned for the Finale, where he lost to Matt Hamill. But he's 7-1 in his last 8 fights with 4 wins in a row.
Shine Fights Signs Russian Alexander Shlemenko
(mmajunkie.com)No, it's not a typo. Shine Fights, just a day after adding Murilo Rua to it's roster, has signed Russian middleweight Alexander Shlemenko to a 3-fight exclusive deal. The native Russian is 24-4 career, with 15 wins by KO/TKO, and should debut in early '10.
Shine Fights Signs Murilo Rua
(mmajunkie.com)Sorry Rua fans, but Murilo won't be following brother Mauricio to UFC anytime soon, nor will he fight for Strikeforce. The older of the Ruas has signed an exclusive 3-fight deal with Shine Fights and should debut for them early next year, possibly against Falaniko Vitale.
Leites ready for anything against Dean Lister
(tatame.com)“The expectation will be always good, even more now that I’m coming from two defeats, it’s a new start to me, actually. New event, new house... I’m training as if it were the most important fight of my life”, guarantees, preparing his game for a complete opponent. “I think that he may want to exchange a little bit, to surprise me. But, actually, both essences are Jiu-Jitsu, I think that this fight might go to the ground anyway, which is good for both of us”.
Overeem, Rizzo, "Ninja," Monson and Speer part of Bitetti Combat 5
(mmajunkie.com)A handful of notables, including former UFC heavyweight title challenger Pedro Rizzo, one-time top UFC heavyweight contender Jeff Monson and PRIDE veteran Murilo "Ninja" Rua, have been announced for the next installment of Bitetti Combat.
Bitetti Combat 5 takes place Dec. 12 in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Rizzo (17-9), who defeated Monson via unanimous decision at Bitetti Combat 4 in September, meets Dutch PRIDE veteran Valentijn Overeem (26-24) in the night's headliner.
Overeem, who's defeated the likes of Renato "Babalu" Sobral (2000) and Randy Couture (2001) during his 14-year career, is the older brother of Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem.
Rua (17-10-1), who looks to build off a 39-second knockout of Alex Stiebling at the latest Bitetti Combat show, takes on M-1 Challenge vet Jason Jones (14-7).
In other bouts, Monson (31-9) meets WEC vet Glover Teixeira (7-2), veteran Travis Wiuff (57-13) looks for his fourth straight win when he meets Brazilian Fabio Maldonado (12-3), and "The Ultimate Fighter 6" runner-up Tommy Speer (13-4) meets Eduardo Pamplona (12-2), a winner of seven straight.
‘Ninja’ Rua back in December in Sao Paulo
(tatame.com)After the quick knockout victory at Bitetty Combat 4, needing less than 40 seconds to knock Alex Stiebling out, Murilo “Ninja” Rua spoke with TATAME.com and revealed he’ll be back to the rings at December 12, at Bitetti Combtat’s fifth edition.
MFC Strips & Releases Champion Trevor Prangley
(mmaweekly.com)A surprise move was made Sunday night by Canada's Maximum Fighting Championships (MFC) promotion-their Light Heavyweight Champion, Trevor Prangley, was stripped of the title and released. Sunday night’s press release explained, “The move was required when Prangley violated his contract by signing with two smaller organizations while under contract with the MFC. Prangley’s management was informed of the violation after the first offense, but Prangley agreed to fight again outside of the MFC in blatant disregard of his signed exclusive contact.” Prangley claims he got a bit of a run-around from MFC management/ownership.
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