Quick Hits: Overeem?s New Camp and Future, Kyle Injured, UFC on Fuel 1 Changes, and More

UFC heavyweight contender Alistair Overeem has found a new camp and appears to have the date of his fight with UFC heavyweight champion Junior Dos Santos.

Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/27594/quick-hits-overeems-new-camp-and-future-kyle-injured-ufc-on-fuel-1-changes-and-more/

Alex Andrade  Jermaine Andrè  Yoji Anjo  Tank Abbott Hiroyuki Abe

UFC 143 weigh-in: The new Nick Diaz avoids drama, main eventers hit the mark

LAS VEGAS -- UFC 143 has brought us a new Nick Diaz.

That's probably not the case, but the Stockton terror showed some self-control this week at the prefight press conference and again at Friday's weigh-in. No pushing, no shoving. The main event is a go. Both main event fighters checked in at 169 pounds.

Some in the media thought Condit looked a bit drawn and may have had a tough weight cut.

Over the years, Diaz has consistently gotten a little close to his opponent during photo opportunities at pressers and weigh-ins. Frank Shamrock got the finger. He got up close and personal with Evangelista Santos. He got even closer with B.J. Penn. He almost got into it with Paul Daley. Diaz has two postfight dust ups. Once following a KJ Noons victory and the other after his teammate Jake Shields won and was approached in the cage by Jason Miller.

There was a bit of shock in seeing a thinner Roy Nelson. The former 265-pounder, once labeled a bloated truck driver by the Las Vegas Review-Journal, slimmed down to 246.

UFC 143 weigh-in (courtesy MMAjunkie)

MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view)

  • Carlos Condit (169) vs. Nick Diaz (169)
  • Roy Nelson (246) vs. Fabricio Werdum (246)
  • Josh Koscheck (170) vs. Mike Pierce (170)
  • Renan Barao (136) vs. Scott Jorgensen (135)
  • Ed Herman (185) vs. Clifford Starks (185)

PRELIMINARY CARD (FX)

  • Max Holloway (144) vs. Dustin Poirier (146)
  • Alex Caceres (136) vs. Edwin Figueroa (135)
  • Matt Brown (171) vs. Chris Cope (171)
  • Jorge Lopez (169) vs. Matt Riddle (170)

PRELIMINARY CARD (Facebook)

  • Rafael Natal (186) vs. Michael Kuiper (183)
  • Dan Stittgen (170) vs. Stephen Thompson (171)

You can watch UFC 143 right here on Yahoo! Sports

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/ufc-143-weigh-nick-diaz-avoids-drama-main-013133057.html

Eddie Alvarez Thiago Alves  Andre Amade  Dean Amasinger  Jimmy Ambriz

Forrest Griffin vs. Tito Ortiz Rubber Match In The Works

A rubber match between Forrest Griffin and Tito Ortiz is in the works, but it is not yet clear which upcoming UFC event could host the matchup between the former UFC light heavyweight champions. UFC co-owner Lorenzo Fertitta confirmed the fight on Twitter overnight after a recent campaign by Ortiz to fight Griffin for the third time in what he says will be his final fight.

Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/27563/forrest-griffin-vs-tito-ortiz-rubber-match-in-the-works/

Alex Andrade  Jermaine Andrè  Yoji Anjo  Tank Abbott Hiroyuki Abe

Tabbed No. 1 welterweight prospect, Jake Ellenberger sounds pretty confident about upcoming fight

If Jake Ellenberger isn't fighting for some sort of UFC welterweight title by the end of 2012 he can only blame himself.

The 26-year-old has put himself in prime position and can lock up a title fight if he posts something impressive next week against Diego Sanchez at UFC on FUEL in Omaha, NE.

At minus-350, Ellenberger is a huge favorite against the veteran fighter. He thinks he'll win but Ellenberger respects what Sanchez has done.

"I'm going to expect the best Diego Sanchez. He's going to come after me. He's going to move froward like he always does," Ellenberger told "The MMA Insiders" on ESPN1100/98.9 FM. "He trains with a great camp, a great strategist. I'm preparing for the best Diego yet."

Sanchez is back working with Greg Jackson and Jackson's MMA. That's a good thing. But the recent wars and beatings Sanchez (23-4, 12.4 UFC) has put his body through probably isn't.

"He's somewhat predictable. He moves forward. I think I can definitely win the transitions and win in the striking area," said Ellenberger.

Ellenberger's game is perfectly suited to challenge the two UFC welterweight champions. That's ESPN's MMA expert Adam Hill named him the top prospect at 170 pounds (parameters include - Have not held a UFC belt in the weight class; have not previously fought for a title in the weight class).

Carlos Condit and Ellenberger met in Sept. of 2009. The current UFC interim welterweight champ took a narrow split decision from Ellenberger. At the time, some may have thought it was a fluke. Not the case since Ellenberger has reeled off five straight victories including four KO finishes. I'd put Rory MacDonald and Johny Hendricks ahead of Ellenberger on the 170 list, but it's obvious the ranks of challengers for both UFC titles is growing each month.

Adam Hill Top 10 welterweight prospects:

1. Jake Ellenberger
2. Rory MacDonald
3. Johny Hendricks
4. Erick Silva
5. Tyron Woodley
6. Ben Askren
7. Martin Kampmann
8. Douglas Lima
9. Jordan Mein
10. Siyar Bahadurzada

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/tabbed-no-1-welterweight-prospect-jake-ellenberger-sounds-162454867.html

Andre Amade  Dean Amasinger  Jimmy Ambriz Matt Andersen  Alex Andrade 

UFC fighters make their Super Bowl 46 picks

LAS VEGAS -- Athletes are athletes. Every sport has its stars, grunts and primadonnas.

Super Bowl 46 and the NFL have too many to count and so does the UFC.

Scott Bemis from the local CBS television affiliate in Las Vegas decided to mix the two worlds. Check out Roy Nelson and myself on KLAS trying to come up with our star QB, diva receiver, kicker, coach and the intimidating hitter from the UFC.

Everyone loves the NFL. The audience in the U.S. is expected to top 150 million. Plenty of fighters will be glued to a TV set or partying around Super Bowl 46. The promotion asked a bunch of the fighters at UFC 143 for their plays on the game.

Georges St-Pierre, UFC welterweight champion
"I've not a clue about the rules of football but I will be screaming for New York because it's the closest city to Montreal."

Carlos Condit, UFC interim welterweight title challenger
"I'm going to take the New York Giants. Sometimes being an underdog is the greatest motivation. I'm an underdog against Diaz this Saturday and it's going to be the weekend of the dog."

Roy Nelson, UFC heavyweight
"My picks for game day are Bud Light for the bud bowl. As for the other entertainment on that day, I have not picked my favorite commercial yet but it is usually the one with bigger budget, but the Cinderella story can always happen and that's why I love the tournament format. As for the filler, I don't have a pick but it definitely will be a showdownwith the New York Giants and New England, but my bet is on the one with "New" in their name."

Josh Koscheck, UFC welterweight
"I am mad because those are not my two favorite teams. That said, I think it should be a good, hard fought game. I'm not sure who will come out on top."

Brendan Schaub, UFC heavyweight
"My prediction for the game is it's going to be a good game--high scoring from both teams. In order for the Giants to win, they have to get pressure on Tom Brady from the D-line so he can't sit in the pocket and drop bombs to his monster tight ends Aaron Hernandez and Rob Gronkowski, however even with that being said I think New England will be just too much for the Giants and pull off a late 4th quarter game-winning drive adding to the Brady legacy."

Clifford Starks, UFC middleweight
"I have to go with the Patriots, I know that they remember the last time they lost to the Giants and they are looking to take that bitter taste out of their mouth."

Max Holloway, UFC featherweight
"I'm going to have to take the Giants. I think they've got the defense to hold Brady and his offense down. Also because Eli is one lucky dude I swear. I think he could close his eyes and throw the ball and it would land into one of his receivers' hands. The Giants are just something else when they play in the post-season. Their wide receivers have just been on these last couple of games."

Matt Brown, UFC welterweight
"I predict the Patriots will win simply because New England is title town. My fiancé is from Massachusetts, home of the Patriots, Celtics, Red Sox, and Bruins. All the winning teams are from MA so there is no way the Pats will walk away defeated. It also helps that Patriots QB Tom Brady has the best record of any NFL quarterback in the modern era with at least 100 starts."

Chris Cope, UFC welterweight
"I'm picking the Patriots because their offensive line is stacked and Brady is always clutch during the playoffs! Woooooooooooo!!!!!!!! Patriots!"

Stephen Thompson, UFC welterweight
"Eli Manning's offense is very strong which will allow him to move the ball well especially in the air. Their D line is strong which will allow their D-Backs to do their jobs."

Edwin Figueroa, UFC bantamweight
"Personally, I'm from Texas and when it comes to football I bleed silver and blue - Cowboys all the way win or lose! Onlytrue fans can say that! On that note though, I'm rooting for the Patriots to avenge their 2008 final loss to the Giants. Go Pats!"

Ed Herman, UFC middleweight
"I'm going to have to go with the underdog Giants. I enjoy rooting for the underdog plus their defense has been stellar. Go Giants!"

Scott Jorgensen, UFC bantamweight
"Patriots over the Giants! AFC east all the way! If it ain't the Bills in the bowl, I want to see the division do well to justify the Bills performance."

Super Bowl weekend is huge in Sin City. The UFC's decision to hold a Super Saturday card each year in Vegas is brilliant. The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority is estimating an additional 286,000 people will come to town. Hotels are at near 90-percent occupancy and the non-gaming revenue generated this weekend is $98 million.

You can watch UFC 143 right here on Yahoo! Sports

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/fighters-super-bowl-xli-picks-215808439.html

John Alessio  Houston Alexander Ricardo Almeida  Eddie Alvarez Thiago Alves 

Thailand sport climbing: can you help?

Since an old friend told me about his climbing trips to Thailand it’s been one of my boxes-to-tick. Climbing by the beach and then relaxing in the blue seas sounds too good to be true. I’m about to find out - I’ve decided to do it later this year… Photo kindly shared by HalonaCoast on Flickr I’m [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/rock-climbing-blog/~3/38U5UCpl448/philsheard

Bernard Ackah  Terrance Aflague Yoshihiro Akiyama  Gilbert Aldana  José Aldo 

Ask and you shall receive: Lorenzo Fertitta?s late night Twitter scrum

As far as breaking news from the press conference dais, Dana White plays it close to the vest. Immediately after the pressers, it's a different story. His boss Lorenzo Fertitta prefers Twitter. He was a news breaker last night in a late night chat with his followers.

According to Michael David Smith from MMAFighting, he revealed some important matchups on the horizon.

Alistair Overeem will challenge UFC heavyweight champ Junior dos Santoson May 26 in Las Vegas. The winner of that is likely to face the winner of a Frank Mir-Cain Velasquez bout confirmed Fertitta.

Fertitta also said Tito Ortiz's wish has been granted, he'll be getting Forrest Griffin for a third time. With Griffin's desire to always fight in Las Vegas and it being Ortiz's swan song, the fight is a lock for Sin City. Whether it's on May 26 or July 7 is unknown. Fertitta said the July 7 card will be headlined by Dominick Cruz-Urijah Faber III.

More sports news from the Yahoo! Sports Minute:

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/ask-receive-lorenzo-fertitta-night-twitter-scrum-174205598.html

Daniel Acacio Bernard Ackah  Terrance Aflague Yoshihiro Akiyama  Gilbert AldanaÂ