Thiago Tavares – A Brazilian Phenom’s Return
(ufc.com)As we all know, mixed martial arts is a high impact sport, one in which fighters have to deal with the pain sustained in training and in fighting all the time . So when a fighter needs to push the pace in preparation for a match, he can sometimes pay with an injury that will sideline him from the bout or force him to step into the Octagon at less than 100 percent.
Thiago Tavares, the Brazilian fighter that will face Nik 'The Carny' Lentz on Monday’s UFC Fight Night card in Fairfax, Virginia, had more than his share of problems with injuries in the last year. After undergoing knee surgery a couple of years ago, he was sidelined from UFN 18 against Melvin Guillard due to a new injury to his elbow. He healed up and was then scheduled to face Jim Miller at UFC 103 before injuring his knee again.
Tired Thiago Silva didn't know what was going on at UFC 108
(mmamania.com)"I thought he would exchange a little bit more, but he escaped from the exchanging and he went on takedowns.... I knew I was losing. I wasn’t that good on the energy and I tried to provoke him to see if he comes over me, but he didn’t bought it. I knew I was losing, I lost the two rounds. To be tired make a difference, man ... I started to provoke him because he was with the low energy, getting tired.... Wanting or not, he has a heavy hand, there’s some time that we don’t know what’s going on anymore.... I think the energy made the difference, I was pretty tired."
Tatame: Anderson Silva vs. Vitor Belfort Will Take Place at UFC 112
(bloodyelbow.com)The fight between Anderson Silva and Vitor Belfort is in works to take place at UFC 112, on April 10, at Abu Dhabi. Carlos Santos, leader of Emirates Team, revealed to TATAME.com that both fighters called him to train at his training center in Abu Dhabi in the days before the fight. This will be the first UFC event in Abu Dhabi, and will also have the UFC debut of the legend Renzo Gracie, against the five times welterweight champion Matt Hughes.
NSAC exec says UFC light heavyweight Steve Cantwell's return still possible
(mmajunkie.com)When UFC light heavyweight Steve Cantwell was forced to withdraw from a UFC 108 bout in Las Vegas with Vladimir Matyushenko, most MMA observers simply chalked up the loss as another victim of the "curse" that plagued the card.But when UFC president Dana White said Cantwell was in danger of never fighting again, the concerns for "The Robot's" future quickly grew.
Rashad Evans had an 'Oh Sh*t' moment at UFC 108
(mmamania.com)Former UFC light heavyweight champion Rashad Evans talks about the close call he had in the third round against the dangerous Thiago Silva in the main event of UFC 108 back on Jan. 2. "Suga" almost dissolved in the third round after getting rocked by the Brazilian; however, Silva was either too gassed or too tentative to seal the deal, allowing the former TUF champion to recover and take home the unanimous decision win.Was the performance enough to convince you he'll be the better man in his eventual grudge match against "Rampage" Jackson? Or will the fighter currently known as BA Baracus send him back to the Spike TV fight nights?
UFC champ B.J. Penn expects next fight at UFC 112 in Abu Dhabi
(mmajunkie.com)
UFC lightweight champion B.J. Penn expects his next bout to take place in April at a currently unannounced (but close to finalized) UFC 112 event in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
However, in a short video bjpenn.com today released by the fighter, Penn said no opponent has been determined, and nothing has been signed.
Penn most recently headlined UFC 107 in December and dominated top 155-pound contender Diego Sanchez with a fifth-round TKO victory in the Tennessee event's headline fight.
Penn, arguably the world's top lightweight fighter and one of the sport's top pound-for-pound greats, will most likely fight either Frankie Edgar or fellow contender Gray Maynard (who headlines next week's UFC Fight Night 20 event againt Nate Diaz) in his next title defense. Although he's bounced between weight classes in recent years, his next fight should be at 155 pounds.
UFC officials choose June 12 for Vancouver event, UFC 115
(mmajunkie.com)Vancouver, B.C., get ready. The UFC is coming to town this summer.
A well-placed UFC source told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) that the promotion has penciled in June 12 as the date for an event at the 19,000-seat GM Place.
Back in December, the promotion cleared a legislative hurdle in holding an event within the city limits of the 2010 Winter Olympic host site; the Vancouver city council agreed to sanction events as part of a two-year pilot program.
'Shogun' Rua wants the belt -- not vengeance in rematch with Lyoto Machida
(mmamania.com)I'm happy to fight again with (Machida), not because I think I won the first match but to have a new opportunity to fight for the belt. My big dream is to win the belt, so I want that fight again because it is a fight for the belt ... I can’t change a lot of my game because I’ve fought this way for 10 years, so I cannot totally change my game just because of Machida. Thank God I could annul his game, but unfortunately I could not win the belt. Now I have a new battle ahead, and I will make a new strategy.
GSP "not impressed" with reporters
(fightersonlymagazine.co.uk)Georges St. Pierre is not impressed with the way the media has reported his comments on potentially representing Canada in wrestling at the 2012 Olympics. The French-Canadian feels he has been misinterpreted after talking about the kind of preparations he would have to make.
Randy Couture told the Las Vegas Sun that he “talked to him at length at an appearance this weekend and he's a little frustrated with the media, frankly, He said that they are blowing this whole thing out of proportion.
UFC President still not keen on Liddell fighting
(mmaweekly.com)UFC president Dana White’s stance on former UFC light heavyweight titleholder Chuck Liddell fighting again hasn’t changed. He still does not want to see his longtime friend competing in the Octagon again.
“The thing that everyone loves about Chuck Liddell was he’s a fighter. That guys loves to fight. And when you’re walking out in that arena and 16,000 people are going crazy and yelling your name and (expletive), it’s hard to walk away from. I get it, but you know, he doesn’t have to do it anymore. He doesn’t,” said White to the media following UFC 108 on Jan. 2.
Liddell will fight again despite White’s opposition, being named a coach on the eleventh season of “The Ultimate Fighter” pitted against his arch nemesis Tito Ortiz. But White would rather provide a position within the organization for Liddell that doesn’t entail fighting.
Skipped holidays are part of the fight game for Evan Dunham
(mmajunkie.com)Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's Day and two birthdays – UFC lightweight Evan Dunham trained through them all for his co-main-event fight against "The Ultimate Fighter" season-eight winner Efrain Escudero at Monday's UFC Fight Night 20 event in Fairfax, Va.
He's given up a lot but said it's a small price to pay for victory. Training and personal time are the same thing.
Zuffa Brings Legal Action Against Pub That Illegally Streamed UFC 104
(mmamania.com)Well that didn't take very long. After UFC President Dana White vowed to make life miserable for the chiselers who stream illegal feeds of live UFC programming, the Boston Herald reports that the Zuffa legal team may have bagged their first casualty in the war on pirates. Zuffa is suing "The Draft" and its owner, Derek Brady, for reportedly allowing a patron to connect a laptop illegally streaming UFC 104 to one of the establishment's television sets for all the customers to enjoy.
Bars and restaurants are typicaly required to purchase UFC events through an approved closed-circuit provider (for UFC events that's usually Joe Hand Promotions) and can pay anywhere from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars for an event, depending on the circumstances.
They didn't pay on Oct. 24, but they may pay in court -- to the tune of $640,000 plus legal fees if found guilty.
Gray Maynard Didn't Think B.J. Penn Was a Very Good Coach on TUF
(bloodyelbow.com)Should Maynard prove the experts correct and defeat Diaz, he would likely be the next contender for lightweight champion B.J. Penn. Coincidentally, Penn was Maynard's coach on TUF. However, Maynard was not altogether pleased with the instruction he received.
"As a coach, you have to help the guys keep their goals, and I think he was just 'there'," Maynard said. "He was like 'I just want to go home.' I don't really think we had the best training."
Swick vs. Thiago official for UFC 109: Marquardt vs. Sonnen promoted to co-feature slot
(mmajunkie.com)The UFC today officially announced a recently reported contest between welterweights Mike Swick (14-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) and Paulo Thiago (12-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC) for February's "UFC 109: Relentless" event.
Swick stepped in as a replacement for Josh Koscheck when his teammate was forced off the card with an injury.
While Koscheck and Thiago were originally scheduled in the evening's co-main event, the organization has promoted a middleweight fight between top contenders Nate Marquardt (29-8-2 MMA, 8-2 UFC) and Chael Sonnen (24-10-1 MMA, 3-3 UFC) to the co-feature slot.
Spencer Fisher burning to fight “Fireball Kid”, Takanori Gomi
(fiveouncesofpain.com)When it was announced last weekend that former Shooto and PRIDE Champion Takanori Gomi had signed with the UFC rumors began swirling in regards to who he might debut against in the organization. Though the first name to surface as an opponent was Ken Florian, it appears as though Gomi’s presence in the company has at least one other fighter jazzed at the idea of meeting the Japanese striker at the center of the Octagon.
Since I’ve started MMA Gomi is one of the guys I looked up to and copied some of my style from him…I’ve always talked about guys diving for my shoelaces and the script might be flipped this time! (laughs) But of all the fights in the world that one excites me the most. I would have to be in tip top shape to fight someone of his caliber.
As UFC Fight Night 20 approaches, Amir Sadollah making up for lost time
(mmajunkie.com)"The Ultimate Fighter 7" winner Amir Sadollah (2-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC) went nearly 14 months between his first and second appearance in the UFC, but now the welterweight is making up for lost time.
Sadollah meets Brad Blackburn (15-9-1 MMA, 3-0 UFC) on the broadcast-opening bout of "UFC Fight Night 20: Maynard vs. Diaz" on Jan. 11, and the contest will be the "TUF"-winner's third fight in just five months.
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