Urijah Faber shaves his famous locks to support sister

One of Urijah Faber's trademarks, his golden brown hair, is now gone after he shaved his head to support his ailing sister.

The day after Thanksgiving, his 19-year-old sister was in a serious car accident. Michaela has been in the hospital since then, and had brain surgery requiring a shaved head. Faber, who will soon begin coaching on "The Ultimate Fighter" against bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz, has been by his sister's side through much of her trauma.

He tweeted before the haircut that it's been 12 years since he had it that short, but was happy because Michaella is coming home on Friday. Because of his new haircut, she won't be the only person at family holiday celebrations without any hair.

That's a Christmas story that will make you smile even if your heart is two sizes too small.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Urijah-Faber-shaves-his-famous-locks-to-support-?urn=mma-wp11074

Daniel Acacio Bernard Ackah  Terrance Aflague Yoshihiro Akiyama  Gilbert Aldana 

Gilbert Melendez holds onto Strikeforce belt with decision win

Gilbert Melendez holds onto Strikeforce belt with decision win

Gilbert Melendez defended the Strikeforce men's lightweight belt with a methodical decision over Jorge Masvidal in the main event for Strikeforce on Saturday night. On the judges' cards, the champ took it 50-45, 50-45, 49-46.

As the two were feeling each other out in the opening round, Masvidal opened his arms and invited Melendez to hit him, so Melendez obliged and stung Masvidal with straight punches. Masvidal stayed light on his feet, and kicked Melendez's leg out from underneath him. Melendez quickly returned to his feet. Near the end of the round, Melendez caught Masvidal in a front headlock and landed knees to finish the round well.

Masvidal continued to talk smack to Melendez in the second round, and Melendez continued to have an edge in striking. Melendez stayed light on his feet and shook Masvidal with several strikes. Masvidal was unable to find a rhythm or cause any damage.

The third round started with Masvidal thwarting a Melendez takedown attempt. Masvidal threw a knee and knocked out Melendez's mouthpiece and continued to talk smack. Every time Masvidal opened his mouth, Melendez landed a punch. Masvidal appeared to be more comfortable in the third round and was able to create more offense, but still not enough to disrupt Melendez.

Melendez moved forward and landed several unanswered punches in the fourth round. He continued to stay light on his feet and move in to land jabs. In the final minute, Melendez started using a one-two combination effectively.

Masvidal used a knee to try to get inside early in the fifth and final round, but again was unable to create any damage. Melendez stayed calm, kept moving, and used combinations to control the rhythm of the last round. Sensing urgency, Masvidal unloaded in the final minute. He tried for a takedown and to take Melendez's back, but it was too little to make a difference.

After the win, Melendez was asked about his future, and he said he wants a challenge from the UFC.

"I'm proud to be a part of Strikeforce, but they've got to bring over some guys to challenge me. I want to take the UFC champ, whoever it is. Come in my hexagon and let's fight," Melendez said.

He won his last six fights, earning a record of 20-2. Masvidal is now 22-7.

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Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Gilbert-Melendez-holds-onto-Strikeforce-belt-wit?urn=mma-wp10874

José Aldo  John Alessio  Houston Alexander Ricardo Almeida  Eddie Alvarez

A rock climbing training blog - why?

If you are hoping to improve your ability or learn more about training techniques and tools, then this blog will give you some of the answers - because that’s what I’m going to do too! I’ve been climbing for about three years and have developed enough basic ability to get me up 6a routes. I’ve set [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/rock-climbing-blog/~3/aFRHTPVmui0/philsheard

José Aldo  John Alessio  Houston Alexander Ricardo Almeida  Eddie Alvarez

UFC on Fuel TV 1 Adds Stipe Miocic vs. Philip De Fries

Undefeated heavyweight prospects Stipe Miocic and Philip De Fries will square off at UFC on Fuel TV 1 on February 15 in Omaha, Nebraska, the UFC announced today. UFC on Fuel TV 1 is headlined by welterweight contenders Jake Ellenberger and Diego Sanchez.

Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/26960/ufc-on-fuel-tv-1-adds-stipe-miocic-vs-philip-de-fries/

Andre Amade  Dean Amasinger  Jimmy Ambriz Matt Andersen  Alex Andrade 

K.J. Noons starts Strikeforce card with exciting decision

K.J. Noons starts Strikeforce card with exciting decision

Hometown boy K.J. Noons took an exciting decision over Billy Evangelista at the Strikeforce show in San Diego on Saturday night. The judges saw it 29-28 on all three cards for Noons.

Early in the first round, the pair traded takedowns, but Evangelista landed some short strikes that rocked Noons with around two minutes left. Noons answered with a jab that gave him room, and combinations that showed off his striking prowess. Evangelista finished the round strong with a headlock and a knee.

Noons started the action-packed second round with a spinning backfist and kick. The rest of the round featured Evangelista happily moving forward and surviving Noons strikes. He even asked for Noons to hit him, and Noons obliged. Evangelista tried for a takedown, but couldn't do much with it.

After beating up Evangelista for most of the rounds, Noons came close to losing the fight when Evangelista caught him in a D'Arce choke. Though it was tight, Noons maneuvered out. The two finished the round exchanging strikes, smiling and enjoying the end of their bout. Noons got the better of every exchange.

Both fighters were coming off losses to Jorge Masvidal, the headliner for Saturday's card. Noons is now 11-4, while Evangelista is 7-2.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/K-J-Noons-starts-Strikeforce-card-with-exciting?urn=mma-wp10852

Ricardo Almeida  Eddie Alvarez Thiago Alves  Andre Amade  Dean Amasinger 

Dana White gives female fighting another shot

Dana White gives female fighting another shotAs shocking as it was to hear a fired up Dana White talk about the long-range future of Strikeforce on Showtime, it was nothing compared to his attitude shift on women's MMA.

The women's divisions will remain in tact in the new Strikeforce/Showtime deal announced yesterday. In the middle of 2011, it appeared female fighting was going to take step back when Strikeforce was dissolved. By popular demand, women's fighting will still be showcased at close to the highest level of the sport. .

"Every weekend you guys are asking me about the women's division ... and women and women and women, and the fans are always terrorizing me on twitter about the women's division. The women's division is very popular. We're gonna keep it," White said during a teleconference (7:45 mark).

Stars like Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos, Miesha Tate, Sarah Kaufman and Ronda Rousey still have a home where they can get major exposure. White is sticking to guns about the issues he has with women's MMA. It needs work, but he's willing to give it a chance saying both the 135 and 145 pound divisions will stay.

"Again you guys hear me talk about this all the time. The depth in some of these divisions. 'Cyborg's' division has that problem. She's a huge star. She's a champion. We're gonna keep that division. People are excited to her fight. We're gonna keep it," said White (9:40 mark).

Zuffa management may lean toward some crossover fights between the divisions while the depth issues is being worked on.

"If you look at Cyborg's division, it's not a very deep division with a lot of talent. You can stack the other division deep with talent because that's what you have to do," said White comparing it to the early days of UFC when there were no lightweight, bantamweight and featherweight divisions in the promotion (20:15 mark). "In order to run a show and establish champions with great contenders you gotta go deep in every one of those weight divisions."

So as big as the news was for the elite male fighters at 205, 185, 170 and 155, yesterday's announcement benefited female fighting more than anything. With the might and money of Zuffa/UFC plus the ability to talent evaluate, the talent pool in female fighting at the highest levels should explode. Then the question is, will fans want to pay to see it and will it bring eyes to the TV sets? That's a debate for another day. At least right now, women get the opportunity.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Dana-White-gives-female-fighting-another-shot?urn=mma-wp10812

Dean Amasinger  Jimmy Ambriz Matt Andersen  Alex Andrade  Jermaine Andrè