Earnhardt offspring set to make MMA debut

Jeffrey Earnhardt descended from NASCAR royalty. As the grandson of legend Dale Earnhardt and the nephew of Dale Earnhardt, Jr., racing is literally in Jeffrey's bloodline. The he has raced and plans to race again, Earnhardt is debuting in a new sport: MMA.

Earnhardt will fight at Fight Lab 25 in Charlotte, N.C. as an amateur on Tuesday night. He will fight Chris Faison at bantamweight. Earnhardt trains at Renegade Fighting Systems in Charlotte.

Though he races on the Rolex Sports Car Series and the NASCAR Nationwide Series, he was attracted to the challenge and physical conditioning of MMA. On Tuesday night, he wants to use his fight to show that race car drivers are great athletes, too.

"A lot of people don't see race car athletes as true athletes," he said to MMA Fighting. "They don't think we're capable of doing anything other than sitting in a car and driving in a circle. A lot of people don't understand the reality of it. This is an opportunity to prove to people that race car drivers are athletes. It's a lot harder than people realize. Hopefully this MMA fight will help people realize that, and that we can hold our own as athletes."

But he's still an Earnhardt, and the 22-year-old said racing will always be number one for him. Fighting is fun, but racing cars is the family business.

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Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/earnhardt-offspring-set-mma-debut-135416629.html

Alex Andrade  Jermaine Andrè  Yoji Anjo  Tank Abbott Hiroyuki Abe

Roy Nelson?s Beard has plenty to say

Roy Nelson got a chance to speak at Thursday's UFC 146 press conference, but his beard remained silent. That is, until now. In a Cagewriter exclusive, Roy Nelson's Beard (RNB) spoke about its past, future, and what it brings to Nelson's game.

Cagewriter: How are you feeling today?

RNB: Good. Full. Ready to take on Dave Herman.

CW: How long have you been with Roy?

RNB: Well, I've been a part of his life for some time, but it was just in the past year or so that Roy really let me shine. He and I push each other to make each other great. It's truly a symbiotic relationship.

CW: What do you bring to his MMA game?

RNB: What DON'T I bring to his game? Striking, wrestling, jiu-jitsu, I taught him all of that. When he and his coaches come up with his game plan, they turn to me for advice. TKOing "Cro Cop"? That was all me.

CW: So then do you also take the blame for the fact he's lost three of his last four bouts?

RNB: Well, we're a team. We lose together, y'know? It's not just Roy out there. It's me, the belly, the mullet.

CW: Is there ever a rivalry between you?

RNB: Well, I'll let you in on a secret. The belly is TOTALLY jealous of me. He always used to get all the attention, but since Roy has been getting in better shape, he's lost prominence. Now it's all eyes on me.

CW: Has Roy talked to you about the future? Will he definitely keep you around or is there discussion of ... a razor?

RNB? Why would you ask such a thing? That's sick. Seriously. A razor? To what? Shave me off? You don't shave me off. You don't get rid of a glorious beard like this one. Are you crazy. I'm done. Interview's over.

CW: Well, thanks for your time.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/roy-nelson-beard-plenty-120306694.html

Yoshihiro Akiyama  Gilbert Aldana  José Aldo  John Alessio  Houston Alexander

MMA Marketplace: Strikeforce heavyweight grand prix match-up of the walkout shirts

At Saturday's Strikeforce heavyweight grand prix final, Josh Barnett and Daniel Cormier will face off in the finals of a tournament that neither was expected to win. It's time to break down the most important aspect of their bout: their shirts.

On the left, you have Cormier's shirt from TrauMMA which is designed as a nod to his Louisiana roots with the fleur-de-lis and hometown flag on his shoulder. On the right is Barnett's latest shirt. It's not designated as a walkout shirt, but it's his latest available.

Though Barnett's shirt would make a cool design on a black light painting circa 1996, it's falling flat as a t-shirt. For going with an unconventional color and meaningful imagery, Cormier is the winner. Buy his shirt for $29.98, and Barnett's for $19.98.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/mma-marketplace-strikeforce-heavyweight-grand-prix-match-walkout-192510460.html

Yoji Anjo  Tank Abbott Hiroyuki Abe Cyril Abidi  Daniel Acacio

Wanderlei Silva calls Vitor Belfort disrespectful for breaking hand, pulling out of UFC 147 bout

If you have a fight scheduled with Wanderlei Silva, you need to give your bones very stern instructions not to break. If they do go against your wishes and snap in two, that's disrespect.

Vitor Belfort is currently coaching against Silva on the Brazilian version of "The Ultimate Fighter" and was slated to fight him at UFC 147. A broken hand forced Belfort out of their bout. UFC president Dana White said Belfort needs surgery. Though training injuries are part of the game in MMA, Silva called it "amateurism" via his Twitter account.

"(Fighting me) with one hand (laughs)? We are professionals. It's a great irresponsibility not to be careful on training, a great disrespect towards the fans. I'm really sad. I'm ready to knock you out, you have nowhere to run. This fight is happening. I guess you got scared of me. Nobody trains so hard that breaks his hand. We use the best equipments, gloves, bandages.

"If you were scared, you shouldn't have accepted it. If you really got it broken, it's amateurism and if you didn't, you're scared. In both scenarios, it was irresponsible of you towards the fans. Pardon the word, but I'm pissed with your amateurism. A main event on the biggest event of the world and the guy shows up like that".

Strong words from Silva, especially considering that he has pulled out of fights with injuries. In 2010, cracked ribs kept him from the co-main event of UFC 116 against Yoshihiro Akiyama.

Ease up, Wand. As you well know, injuries are part of a sport that asks its competitors to hit each other as hard as possible. Hands and ribs break. Ligaments tear. Life goes on. Belfort has been in 30 professional MMA bouts, so it's hard to believe he's scared, or that he broke his hand on purpose to get out of this fight. And if he could have, wouldn't he have done that to get out of getting kicked in the face by Anderson Silva?

Thanks to Tatame for translation help.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/wanderlei-silva-calls-vitor-belfort-disrespectful-breaking-hand-131022594.html

Tank Abbott Hiroyuki Abe Cyril Abidi  Daniel Acacio Bernard Ackah 

We want your predictions for UFC 146

We know you have thoughts on UFC 146's all-heavyweight main card. You know why Junior dos Santos will win or Cain Velasquez will make a statement or Lavar Johnson will get his second knockout in a month. We want to hear your thoughts, and share them right here on Cagewriter.

Here's the deal. Go to Cagewriter's Facebook page, like it, pick a fight, and tell us who will win and why. Don't just drill through the fights and tell us your picks; give us your reasoning, too. The best ones will appear on Cagewriter next week with picks from Kevin Iole and me. Here's the main card:

Junior Dos Santos vs. Frank Mir
Antonio Silva vs. Cain Velasquez
Dave Herman vs. Roy Nelson
Shane Del Rosario vs. Stipe Miocic
Lavar Johnson vs. Stefan Struve

So check out Cagewriter's Facebook page and start picking. We look forward to hearing from you.

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Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/want-predictions-ufc-146-204656950.html

Yoji Anjo  Tank Abbott Hiroyuki Abe Cyril Abidi  Daniel Acacio

Earnhardt offspring set to make MMA debut

Jeffrey Earnhardt descended from NASCAR royalty. As the grandson of legend Dale Earnhardt and the nephew of Dale Earnhardt, Jr., racing is literally in Jeffrey's bloodline. The he has raced and plans to race again, Earnhardt is debuting in a new sport: MMA.

Earnhardt will fight at Fight Lab 25 in Charlotte, N.C. as an amateur on Tuesday night. He will fight Chris Faison at bantamweight. Earnhardt trains at Renegade Fighting Systems in Charlotte.

Though he races on the Rolex Sports Car Series and the NASCAR Nationwide Series, he was attracted to the challenge and physical conditioning of MMA. On Tuesday night, he wants to use his fight to show that race car drivers are great athletes, too.

"A lot of people don't see race car athletes as true athletes," he said to MMA Fighting. "They don't think we're capable of doing anything other than sitting in a car and driving in a circle. A lot of people don't understand the reality of it. This is an opportunity to prove to people that race car drivers are athletes. It's a lot harder than people realize. Hopefully this MMA fight will help people realize that, and that we can hold our own as athletes."

But he's still an Earnhardt, and the 22-year-old said racing will always be number one for him. Fighting is fun, but racing cars is the family business.

Other popular content on Yahoo! Sports:
? Track officials' counting error costs British hurdler a personal-best time
? 'Tebowing' to be included in Madden NFL 13 video game
? Company gets death threats over Oklahoma City Thunder T-shirts

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/earnhardt-offspring-set-mma-debut-135416629.html

Matt Andersen  Alex Andrade  Jermaine Andrè  Yoji Anjo  Tank Abbott

Cain Velasquez TKOs Antonio Silva in a bloody UFC 146 battle (PHOTO)

Cain Velasquez wanted to make a statement in his first fight back after losing the UFC heavyweight belt to Junior dos Santos. He did that with a bloody, first-round TKO of Antonio "Big Foot" Silva.

Velasquez caught a Silva kick and took him down right off the bell. From there, Velasquez pounded away at Silva's face, opening a massive cut on Silva's nose. The cut gushed a ton of blood, more than is usually seen during a fight. It covered Silva's face and body, coated Velasquez's arms, and gathered in a pool next to them.The bout was stopped for a doctor to check the cut.

[Kevin Iole: Junior dos Santos rocks Frank Mir at UFC 146]

Silva tried to shake the blood off as the doctor looked at the cut. After the fight was allowed to continue, Velasquez kept throwing bombs at Silva's head until the bout was stopped at 3:36 in the first round.

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Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/cain-velasquez-tkos-antonio-silva-bloody-ufc-146-034956588.html

Andre Amade  Dean Amasinger  Jimmy Ambriz Matt Andersen  Alex Andrade 

Cain Velasquez TKOs Antonio Silva in a bloody UFC 146 battle (PHOTO)

Cain Velasquez wanted to make a statement in his first fight back after losing the UFC heavyweight belt to Junior dos Santos. He did that with a bloody, first-round TKO of Antonio "Big Foot" Silva.

Velasquez caught a Silva kick and took him down right off the bell. From there, Velasquez pounded away at Silva's face, opening a massive cut on Silva's nose. The cut gushed a ton of blood, more than is usually seen during a fight. It covered Silva's face and body, coated Velasquez's arms, and gathered in a pool next to them.The bout was stopped for a doctor to check the cut.

[Kevin Iole: Junior dos Santos rocks Frank Mir at UFC 146]

Silva tried to shake the blood off as the doctor looked at the cut. After the fight was allowed to continue, Velasquez kept throwing bombs at Silva's head until the bout was stopped at 3:36 in the first round.

Other popular content on the Yahoo! network:
? Dan Wetzel: Legalizing sports gambling is smartest bet yet
? Former prep football star exonerated after five years in prison
? Kyle Reifers hits monster golf shot with club that broke
? Y! Autos: Living the Indy 500 from the driver's seat

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/cain-velasquez-tkos-antonio-silva-bloody-ufc-146-034956588.html

Andre Amade  Dean Amasinger  Jimmy Ambriz Matt Andersen  Alex Andrade