Bellator Signs ?Babalu? Sobral

After nearly a year of talks falling by the wayside, it would seem Bellator has finally acquired former Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion Renato Sobral. While the original intent was to match “Babalu” with former Bellator Middleweight Champion Hector Lombard, who is now UFC property, a potential tournament run culminating in a finals match-up with fellow [...]

MMAFrenzy.com

Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/29846/bellator-signs-babalu-sobral/

Ricardo Almeida  Eddie Alvarez Thiago Alves  Andre Amade  Dean Amasinger 

Dana White reverses course, gives title shot to fighter with best performance Saturday

UFC president Dana White made a shockingly bad decision during a conference call Monday with mixed martial arts reporters when he said that the winner of Saturday's UFC on Fox 4 main event between Mauricio "Shogun" Rua and Brandon Vera would get the next title shot.

Light heavyweight champion Jon Jones, who defends his belt on Sept. 1 against former Strikeforce champion Dan Henderson, has already crushed all four fighters who are competing on Saturday's card at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. Ryan Bader meets ex-champion Lyoto Machida in the co-main event.

But it was Vera's so-so record that prompted outrage among media and fans. Vera enters Saturday's bout at the Staples Center 1-2 with a no contest in his last four fights. His best win at light heavyweight was over Krzysztof Soszynski.

When Jones was told on Twitter the Rua-Vera winner would get a title shot, he wrote, "Scratching my head." He wasn't alone in being perplexed by White's call.

So, late Monday, White changed his mind and opened the picture up. He said the fighter who looks the best on Saturday will get the title shot against the Jones-Henderson winner, giving Bader and Machida a chance, as well.

"When the fans speak, we listen," White said in a news release. "So whoever scores the best win, whoever gets the fans excited by going out there on Saturday and looking the most impressive, he will get the winner of Jones vs. Henderson. It is down to what these four guys do Saturday night in the Octagon. Winning isn't enough, they've got to win impressively. Any one of these four fighters can take things into their own hands and make a title shot happen."

Rua lost his title to Jones at UFC 128. Before the fight that day, Jones broke up a mugging, then went out and stopped Rua at 2:37 of the third in a stunningly one-sided performance.

Rua has gone 1-1 since, beating Forrest Griffin and losing to Henderson in what has been called the best fight in UFC history.

"I want the winner of Jones vs. Henderson," Rua said. "The fight I had with Henderson was a great fight, the fight of the year, and it was a very close fight. I am OK with that. It was a great fight. But the loss to Jones, I can't live with. I could have done so much better and I want to fight him again. First, though, I have to beat Brandon Vera and winning isn't good enough. I have to be very impressive, but that it what I have trained to do."

Vera took the change in stride. He has been upbeat and confident despite the naysayers who roared when he was put into a main event. White's announcement doesn't change much for him, because Vera has been saying all along he plans to win impressively.

If he does that, he'll make a very strong case for himself.

"Beating Shogun, and beating him the way I want, corrects all the mistakes I've made and wipes away all the bad performances," Vera said. "Beating Frank Mir is probably my best performance, but people don't realize that was nothing compared to what I do all the time in the gym. I'm going to show off what 'The Truth' really is on Fox."

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/dana-white-reverses-course-gives-title-shot-fighter-141434320--mma.html

Alex Andrade  Jermaine Andrè  Yoji Anjo  Tank Abbott Hiroyuki Abe

?Strikeforce: Rockhold vs. Kennedy? Payouts: Rockhold and Lawler Top $645,923 Payroll

The Oregon State Athletic Commission has finally released the total disclosed payroll for "Strikeforce: Rockhold vs. Kennedy." Topping the payroll is middleweight champion Luke Rockhold, with former champ Robbie Lawler earning the second highest amount. Newly crowned welterweight champion Nate Marquardt earned the third highest on the payroll that totalled $645,923 on the night.

MMAFrenzy.com

Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/29825/strikeforce-rockhold-vs-kennedy-payouts-rockhold-and-lawler-top-645923-payroll/

Bernard Ackah  Terrance Aflague Yoshihiro Akiyama  Gilbert Aldana  José Aldo 

UFC on Fox 5 Update: MacDonald vs. Penn Expected to Co-Headline December Card

After Rory MacDonald suffered a massive cut and had to back out of his scheduled bout with BJ Penn, both fighters had requested specific cards for the bout to be moved. Neither fighter will apparently get their wish however as the bout will apparently co-headline this year's final Fox event. The bout was first reported by Nate Quarry on last night's episode of "MMA Uncensored."

MMAFrenzy.com

Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/29838/ufc-on-fox-5-update-macdonald-vs-penn-expected-to-co-headline-december-card/

Andre Amade  Dean Amasinger  Jimmy Ambriz Matt Andersen  Alex Andrade 

UFC on FOX 4 Preview: The Main Card Breakdown

Gather around, friends, because it's time for another detailed look at the UFC on FOX 4 card.  In this post, the microscope is used on the main card, which features four light-heavyweights hoping for another chance to get smashed by UFC champ Jon Jones, a pair of often-scrappy lightweights, and the return of a welterweight veteran of "The Ultimate Fighter" whose digestive issues are so restrictive, he can pretty much eat only air or else his esophagus explodes.  Are you excited for Saturday night's absolutely free UFC event?  I know I am!  I can afford free!

  • Mauricio "Shogun" Rua vs. Brandon Vera ? The facts of this main event bout are thus: Shogun is an elite Muay Thai specialist, was a PRIDE FC champion before transitioning to the UFC, was the UFC champ before meeting Jones in combat, and in his last bout nearly nine months ago, he had an epic battle with Dan Henderson.  The Brazilian is a legend in the sport.  Vera, on the other hand, has had mixed success in the Octagon, and though a capable striker and grappler himself, he's only won once in about three years, and that was against a TUF castoff.  On paper, one of these guys doesn't stand a chance once that cage door shuts and the referee says "go".  But bouts aren't fought on paper, they're fought in real life, and the "X" factor in this whole pairing is the mileage Shogun's got on his body.  A lifetime of wars takes a toll, and because of injuries, he's been disassembled and put back together many, many times.  It's possible that Vera could land that one kick or punch that causes Shogun to collapse in a disjointed heap of limbs and torso.  Do the odds favor the 30-year-old Brazilian?  Of course they do, but mileage is mileage, and Vera could shock us all.  I'm predicting Shogun to win via TKO, but you never know.

 

  • Lyoto Machida vs. Ryan Bader ? Despite earning three losses in his last four fights, Brazilian karate man-turned-killer mixed martial artist Machida is still one of the best in the 205-pound weight class.  His striking is dangerous and precise, his timing is uncanny, and his footwork usually makes him way too elusive for opponents to grab and hold.  He was even the champ for a brief spell, the result of forcing Rashad Evans to do the stanky leg back at UFC 98.  Bader ? who won the eighth season of TUF and is good at winging big, stunning punches ? beat an ill-prepared Quinton Jackson in his last time at bat, but also got out-struck and submitted by an aged Tito Ortiz.  Machida is a huge step up in competition, and I don't see the former Arizona State University wrestler as being ready.  Watch for the Brazilian to point-karate Bader to death, and eventually find an opening for a knockout.

 

  • Joe Lauzon vs. Jamie Varner ? Sometimes New Englander Lauzon shines and sometimes he doesn't.  But what you can't deny is that he brings it, 'cause he most certainly does.  In six of his last seven bouts, he's either won Submission of the Night honors, or been a part of the Fight of the Night ? a fact that you can attribute to his explosive grappling and his willingness to bang.  Varner was, at one time, the WEC's lightweight champ, and though a string of losses had him banished to the minor leagues, the upset he staged at UFC 146, against the heavily-favored striking demigod Edson Barboza, has got people wondering if the old Varner is back.  I say it's too soon to tell, but Lauzon will be a good litmus test.  If it goes to decision, it should favor Varner; if it ends sometime before the judges are called into play, it's because Lauzon rocked the former champ with a punch and pounced on him with a sub.

 

  • Mick Swick vs. DaMarques Johnson ? Esophageal spasms with acid reflux.  That's what Swick has, and it impacted the TUF 1 veteran in such a way that he went from a promising middleweight to a solid welterweight to a dude who looked like a shadow of his former self.  Now, after a two-and-a-half year hiatus, Swick is back.  Is he better?  Is he still capable of knocking opponents out?  Man, I have no clue.  What is clear is that his opponent ? Johnson, who was the runner-up for TUF 9 and who's won half the UFC bouts he's been in ? is susceptible to what the Swick of yore was good at (i.e., punching and submissions).  In terms of a prediction, if a completely healthy Swick shows up, he's going to murder Johnson.  Otherwise, Johnson will take the decision.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/ufc-fox-4-preview-main-card-breakdown-010152043--mma.html

Eddie Alvarez Thiago Alves  Andre Amade  Dean Amasinger  Jimmy Ambriz

Joe Lauzon: A Few Words Before Battle

UFC on FOX 4 may have "big picture" relevance because of the light-heavyweight four-way scrum that will determine UFC champ Jon Jones' next opponent, but one shouldn't overlook some of the event's other gems ? not the least of which is the match-up between Joe Lauzon and Jamie Varner.  Originally slated to face Terry Etim until Etim bowed out with an injury, Lauzon is primed and ready to explode all over Varner, showering the former WEC champ with submission attempt-shrapnel and fistic debris.  Cagewriter caught up with Lauzon on Thursday, a day that saw the Massachusetts native venturing away from the fighters' hotel and exploring other parts of Los Angeles.

 

First of all, how are you?  Are you healthy?

"I'm good.  There are always little injuries that add up a little bit, but I'm doing good."

You're an old timer now in terms of the fight week experience.  How is it out there?

"It's not too bad.  I have a bunch of guys that are here with me usually, and this week as always.  We like to get out of the hotel room - I used to just sit in the hotel room a lot and that would get a little stale.  So we try to keep busy.  Today we went down to Venice Beach and just kind of moved around a little bit.  I did some training today, nice and light, just to kind of break a sweat and keep things as normal as possible."

Did you prepare any differently knowing your opponent was going to be Jamie Varner?

"Not really.  It was kind of short notice, it was only a couple of weeks.  We switched from getting ready to fight Etim, who is really long and has kind of herky-jerky footwork and keeps you real far away with kicks, to Varner, who is a smoother boxer.  Not so much a kickboxer, but a straight-up boxer with good wrestling.  So we didn't have a ton of time to get super-detailed about stuff.  I was in good shape so we just reorganized our drills, and switched it up a little bit."

Is there any pressure to perform?

"Not more than usual.  I always put a lot of pressure on myself to try to have a spectacular fight and put people away.  It's big show, it's on FOX, but it's really not any different than other shows besides having a little bit of extra media.  It's still a fight.  If it was on the undercard of a Fight Night, it'd be the exact same thing."

Any thoughts on who you'd want to fight next?

"Nope.  I'm one-hundred percent Jamie Varner now, and I'm not even thinking about what's going on after."

Hypothetical: what if it was the PRIDE FC days and the Japanese offer you a wheelbarrow full of money to fight Jon Jones.  Do you take the fight?

"Absolutely.  If they're going to pay me to try to fight Jon Jones, I'm going to shoot a little single[-leg takedown], and if it doesn't go my way, I'm getting the hell out of there.  And then I'll take that wheelbarrow full of money.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/joe-lauzon-few-words-battle-142906171--mma.html

Gilbert Aldana  José Aldo  John Alessio  Houston Alexander Ricardo AlmeidaÂ