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Floyd Sr: Lucas Matthysse is not an elite fighter
Badlefthook.com - Thu, 05/23/2013 - 17:16
While boxing fans around the world are willingly going ga-ga over Argentina's power-punching junior welterweight Lucas Matthysse, Floyd Mayweather Sr doesn't see what the big deal is, saying that Matthysse is just a banger, and doesn't have elite skills.
"He's a guy that just throws hard punches. He's not a skillful fighter. He's a banger and I didn't see nothing that impressed me about him but his power. He does have power. ... He's not an elite fighter. If you want to call him an elite fighter because of his power, you call him elite fighter then. As far as his skills? No."
Predictably, this also means that Floyd Sr believes his son would easily deal with Matthysse, which I don't mean as a shot when I say "predictably" -- I think only the most truly insane would really pick Lucas to beat Floyd, and I expect few would even see him being competitive.
Matthysse in four!
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Ken Shamrock: Brock Lesnar could have been the best P4P fighter ever
Bloody Elbow - Thu, 05/23/2013 - 17:00
In an interview with Joe Ferraro of Sportsnet, Ken Shamrock explains how Brock Lesnar could have been one of the best ever if he had been handled correctly by the UFC.
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Sean McCorkle Heads To Poland’s KSW
FightLine.com MMA News - Thu, 05/23/2013 - 16:56
Sean McCorkle Heads To Poland’s KSW
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Zane Simon's MMA Redux Series
Bloody Elbow - Thu, 05/23/2013 - 16:41
Zane Simon focuses on the lives and careers of MMA's first fighters, one event at a time.
Recently I've been doing some work on the SBNation MMA Database. It's a rather cumbersome task that suits itself to my desire for neatness and order, and has the potential to turn into a great resource long term. At the moment I'm working on building profiles of old UFC and Pride events and their fighters. This has lead to a great deal of rummaging around through story backlogs, and forums and personal websites for little tidbits of information.
Many of us who came to MMA late, remember those early days and early fights as matches between overwhelmed Karate instructors, suddenly out of their depth in a real fight. And while there is, occasionally, some truth to that notion, there's also a lot more there than meets the eye. That said, as I make my journey through MMA history, I will do these articles on the fighters that graced the first events of MMA. Who were they, what got them there, what's happened to them?
And now, the fighters of UFC 1:
Gerard Gordeau - One of the first fighters to appear in the UFC, Gordeau was a world champion Savateur and multi-time black belt and champion Karateka (under Harry Couzijn Shihan) as well as Jiu Jitsu black belt from the Netherlands. Among his many claimed accomplishments are 1979 karate victories over Andy Hug and Dolf Lundgren, as well as the 1988 Savate World Championship. Despite his short MMA career (although he did have a largely unrecorded career in Shooto and Rings in Japan in the late 80s/early 90s) he is known for one particular incident, in which he ended up blinding Yuki Nakai in one eye, from a gouge, at Vale Tudo Japan in 1995. Gordeau was known as a somewhat "dirty" fighter, and many feel the gouge was intentional. Nakai went on to fight two more times that night, but retired from MMA competition after the event.
After his MMA career Gordeau has pursued a pro-wrestling career in Japan appearing for New Japan Pro Wrestling, as well as many smaller promotions. He is also the founder and head instructor of Dojo Kamakura in The Hauge, The Netherlands.
Teila Tuli - Born Taylor Wiley, Teila Tuli was one of the first sumo wrestlers to find tournament success in Japan. He won a championship in the makushida division (sumo's third highest) before retiring from the sport. Tuli competed under the name Takamishu out of the Azumazeki stable and was a mentor to legendary sumo wrestler Akebono Taro, helping Akebono adjust to life in Japan as both were from Hawaii. His MMA career only lasted one fight, in which he lost several teeth and his senses while on the receiving end of a Gordeau head kick.
After his fighting career ended Tuli went on to find success as an actor and currently plays the recurring character Kamekona on the Hawaii Five-0 reboot. Tuli is one of only two professional Sumo wrestler to ever appear in the UFC.
Zane Frazier - A WKF kickboxing champion, and fourth degree Karate black belt, Frazier had a reasonably long (considering that many early fighters fought only a small handful of times in their careers) and notably unsuccessful career, amassing a record of 4-11.
Legend has it (and a 1993 issue of Karate International Magazine) that Frazier secured his entry to the UFC by beating up Frank Dux at the Draka Martial Arts Trade Show in at the Century City Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles, California. Art Davie was reportedly on hand to witness the scuffle and was so impressed that he asked Frazier to compete at UFC 1.
Kevin Rosier - A former ISKA, WKKC, and WKA kickboxing champion and professional boxer, Rosier is known more for his late career failures than it's early successes. Despite a 2-6 MMA record, and a 7-17 pro boxing record, he claims a 66-8 record as a professional kick boxer, much of which may be attributed to his point Karate fighting days.
Royce Gracie - This was, of course, the first appearance of Royce Gracie to American audiences. As a blue belt Royce moved to California at the age of 17 along with his brothers to help his older brother Rorion run his quickly growing Jiu Jitsu academy. By the age of 18 Royce had earned his black belt, and by the early 90's, Royce, his brothers, and the Gracie Challenge had a growing reputation in California. Despite being the smallest of the Gracie clan, Royce was picked to be the "enforcer" for the first UFC tournament. It was hoped that his diminutive frame would further the schools reputation when he won the event.
However that was only the beginning. Royce would go on to win multiple UFC tournaments and compete for Pride and K-1. He notably failed a post fight screening for steroids following his last fight, a win over Kazushi Sakuraba, and while he has often talked of returning to MMA since, he has remained out of competition.
Art Jimmerson - Somewhat affectionately (or tauntingly, depending on your view) known as "One Glove," Jimmerson was a promising professional boxer when he entered into MMA. As an Amateur he was the national Gold Gloves middleweight champion. The biggest moment of his professional boxing career came in an upset over hometown favorite Lenny Lapaglia. By the time he entered the octagon, Jimmerson was a respectable journeyman with a 29-5 record.
He was brought in by Rorion Gracie to represent boxing's place in martial arts, and to truly validate the skill of Jiu Jitsu fighters. After agreeing to the competition Jimmerson tried to back out of the deal, but when Davies threatened to sue him, he re-entered negotiations. Rumors have been floated that Jimmerson made as much as $20,000 for his single MMA fight.
Jimmerson explained the one glove idea, saying that he knew the dangers of bare knuckle fighting to a boxers hands and wanted to protect his jab hand during the fight. He lasted a full 2 minutes against Royce Gracie in his debut before tapping out. After his foray into mixed martial arts, his career took a turn south. Over the next 8 years he would go 4-13.
Ken Shamrock - When Ken Shamrock entered UFC 1 he already had a history in MMA. In fact he was the only fighter at the event to have recorded professional MMA bouts prior to UFC 1. He played football and wrestled in high school, and would go on to a decent junior college football career, after a wrestling neck injury kept him from offers from larger schools. He played semi-pro football for the Sacramento Bulldogs, but by the time the San Diego Chargers offered him a tryout he was looking to pursue a pro wrestling career. Pro wrestling took him to the tutelage of Buzz Sawyer, but the lure of Japanese mixed martial arts/pro wrestling cross-promotions saw him move to Japan to train with Masakatsu Funaki under Karl Gotch.
The call of pro wrestling and of Japanese promotions has complicated Shamrock's legacy with mixed martial arts and the UFC. As one of the sport's earliest stars he was a UFC Superfight champion, and King of Pancrase, but much of his early success occurred overseas. And his latter day MMA career has been marred by a string of poor performances and a failed drug test for steroids in 2009. After retiring in 2010, Shamrock has recently announced his return to MMA and will face Ian Freeman at UCFC: The Legends, in July.
Patrick Smith - Pat Smith was one of MMA's early striking stars. A Tae Kwon Do, Hapkido, Karate, and Tang Soo Do black belt with a kickboxing record of 66-8, he failed to find consistent success in his MMA career. But as time passed (and his level of competition decreased) he has managed to build a reasonable legacy as a journeyman fighter. After a quick exit at UFC 1 he made it to the finals of UFC 2 (a 16-man one night tournament) where he lost to Royce Gracie.
Smith was arrested in 2008, shortly before his Yamma fight, after leading police on a high speed chase. Despite the arrest he still fought for the promotion. His last fight was a decision loss to Kevin Jordan in 2009.
Jason DeLucia - Jason Delcuia was already familiar with the "Gracie Challenge" when he entered UFC 1 as an alternate. He had lost to Royce Gracie just one year prior to UFC 1 at the Gracie Academy in California. Following the loss he entered the tutelage of Ken Shamrock and the Lions Den to expand upon his 5-Animals Kung Fu background. He didn't make it into the UFC 1 tournament, but it was his first foray into professional mixed martial arts.
After competing for the UFC in it's first two events DeLucia would go on to a long and successful career in Pancrase in Japan. There he would gain victories over Matt Hume, Masakatsu Funaki, Ikuhisa Minowa, and Chris Lytle. He eventually retired from competition in 2006
Trent Jenkins - A Karateka, Jenkins competed sporadically in MMA between 1993 and 2000. Prior to his UFC debut he tried to keep his MMA plan a secret, telling his mother, who was planning to go to a family funeral, not to tell anyone. His mother ended up cancelling the trip out of fear that she would need to take him to the hospital after the event. He claims to have been one of the few fighters at the event who was unsurprised when informed that strikers would not be allowed hand wraps, which many felt unfairly swung the rules in Royce's favor.
Talking about his debut he gave the following quote on his expectations of fighting as an alternate, and the expectations the Gracies had for him and DeLucia:
They said, "You know what, you guys might not end up fighting. We might decrease your pay or whatever." The fights might go two hours, might go two minutes. If we went on, it was because someone got hurt or they needed to fill time. I thought we were going to go friendly because DeLucia said, "I’m not going to get my face messed up." I don’t know if it was a mind game on his part. (via Real Fighter Magazine)
Most recently he was reported to be working at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado.
That's all there is to tell for the fighters of UFC 1 (or at least it's all that will fit comfortably in one article). Be sure to look out for the next installment UFC 2: Who are all these one-off fighters and why should I care, coming soon.
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Travis Wiuff Content Competing On Smaller Shows
FightLine.com MMA News - Thu, 05/23/2013 - 16:01
Travis Wiuff Content Competing On Smaller Shows
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UFC 160: Donald Cerrone vs. K.J. Noons Preview and Prognostication
Bloody Elbow - Thu, 05/23/2013 - 16:00
UFC 160: Velasquez vs. Silva 2 opens up the PPV with a Lightweight scrap that used to be customary for big events: two exciting fighters who didn't earn their UFC stripes on the roster of a reality show. In other words, this one should deliver.
Donald Cerrone (20-5) vs. K.J. Noons (11-6) Lightweight
The man they call "cowboy" feels like he's led a less successful career than the one he's actually had. He's only lost twice in the UFC, yet he doesn't seem primed to break out like his WEC contemporaries, and has been thoroughly dominated in his two high profile fights to Anthony Pettis, and Nate Diaz.
It's possible Cerrone may be the kind of fighter who can lose the mental edge quickly, easily rattled in the face of adversity. Which would be a shame assuming it's true. Cerrone is one of the most exciting fighters in the division. He has a crowd pleasing style no matter where the fight goes. For all the acclaim directed at his striking, he seems to do best when his striking is compliment by his submission prowess. Many still believe he deserved the nod over Benson Henderson in their first WEC bout.
Noons is the anti-matter to Cerrone; a fighter whose career feels more successful than the one he's actually had. After beating Nick Diaz in EliteXC in 2007, he was an Eddie Alvarez type. A fighter who seemed like a potential star with an exciting style, but who needed a pond with a bigger audience, too distanced from the UFC for hardcore fans' taste.
Yet he's 1-4 in his last five. While his last bout against Ryan Couture was certainly questionable, the loss still puts him in an unenviable position.
What both men can do: Obviously, the hope of Joe Silva is that both men throw caution into the wind, and pretend to be sand-bottomed plastic cylinders who will come back for more after each violently landed punch. Joe Silva as Albert Bandura.
Both men are certainly capable. Cerrone's strength is his ability to establish distance with his jab, and his leg kicks when motivated. He's got a hard straight right, and brutal knees. In addition, his killer instinct shows up on the ground as well.
Noons is pretty similar except he's much more traditional. He limits his striking to his boxing ability, and his grappling is primarily used to keep the fight on the feet rather than threaten from (or reverse) guard. In recent years he's done a much better job of using leg kicks, and a snapping front kick to compliment his active jab, and ability to establish distance.
What both men can't do: Both guys are interesting cases of where technical craft meets mental inertia. Cerrone couldn't put together combinations when Nate starting swarming him, and just seemed intimidated by Pettis' patient, calculated style. If you do any one thing on the feet better than Donald, he seems to freeze up.
I don't think Noons meets that criteria. Noons does a lot of pawing, feinting, and generally throws a lot of strikes that are meant to keep distance rather than establish it with violent presence. For that reason, I think Cerrone wins this one. The catch scratching that is likely to go on in the first minute will make Donald feel empowered, and so once he feels like he's in the driver's seat, it should bring out the aggressive fighter we're used to seeing. Everyone Cerrone has lost to has either been a champion at some point, or has contended for one.
Right now, Noons feels like a shell of the contender he was once was. However, his power is still something that will remain a factor for as long as the fight stays on the feet. Though Noons has some fairly sturdy takedown defense, I like Cerrone to catch him at some point with a submission finish.
He won't feel too comfortable on the feet playing with KJ's right hand to the body, but comfortable enough to stagger Noons with some shots.
Prediction: Donald Cerrone by RNC, round 3.
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Video: ONE FC Rise To Power Preview
FightLine.com MMA News - Thu, 05/23/2013 - 15:58
Video: ONE FC Rise To Power Preview
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Waylon Lowe Suffers Permanent Damage To Genitalia Area From Unlikely Suspect
FightLine.com MMA News - Thu, 05/23/2013 - 15:54
Waylon Lowe Suffers Permanent Damage To Genitalia Area From Unlikely Suspect
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White: Jon Jones vs. Anderson Silva could happen in 2013
Bloody Elbow - Thu, 05/23/2013 - 15:00
Stop me if you've heard this one before - Dana White is handed a microphone, and he brings up a superfight. Anderson Silva vs. Georges St. Pierre was the superfight du jour for a while, but now it seems that Silva vs. Jon Jones is the one they're going after. According to White in an interview with Gametime/CBS Atlanta, he thinks it could even happen before the end of 2013. There's only one thing in the way - Chris Weidman. (transcribed by MMA Mania):
"Silva has a fight coming up on July 6, he's fighting Chris Weidman. Many people think this is a very serious threat to his record and his title and everything else. But if he gets past this test with Weidman, we could see this [Jones] super fight this year."
This does fly in the face of what Jones' agent Malki Kawa has said recently - he stated that Jones would be defending his UFC light heavyweight title next in order to break Tito Ortiz's record of consecutive defenses. Could Jones put the belt on the line against Silva? Sure, it's possible. I don't see how that situation works for anyone right now - my guess is they're do it at a catchweight with no belts on the line - but we'll have to wait and see. Until it's real, it's just more talk to fan the flames.
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Raphael Assuncao Talks About His Motivation To Fight At UFC on FUEL TV 10
411 Mania MMA Feed - Thu, 05/23/2013 - 15:00
What does Brian Stann have to do with it?
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FILA Steps Down As MMA Governing Body
411 Mania MMA Feed - Thu, 05/23/2013 - 15:00
The IMMAF is taking up the reigns...
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SB Nation Rankings: Middleweight
Bloody Elbow - Thu, 05/23/2013 - 14:00
The SB Nation rankings are back, and this week we're looking at the middleweight division once again. Our last MW rankings post was about 11 weeks ago and there has been a little bit of movement since then. Anderson Silva reigns supreme on top as usual, and will meet Chris Weidman at UFC 162 on July 6th. But Weidman isn't number two anymore on our charts - he has been passed by Vitor Belfort.
As usual, our panel consists of two members from each of the three SB Nation MMA sites - Ariel Helwani and Dave Doyle from MMA Fighting; Thomas Myers and Brian Hemminger from MMA Mania; and finally, Dallas Winston and yours truly from Bloody Elbow. Check out the fancy chart below to see where we had everyone at:
(Scoring: Fighters are given 10 points for a first-place vote, nine points for a second, etc., down to one point for 10th place. The results are then tallied up and presented here. Official SB Nation rankings policy: Fighters under commission suspension are ineligible to be ranked during the duration of their suspension or if they have licensing issues)
Silva's place at number one is obvious but as I mentioned above, it seems that the number one contender has been passed by a former title challenger. Belfort's huge KO win over Luke Rockhold earned him three of the six votes at number two, which was enough to claim the spot. Weidman received two second-place votes, three thirds, and one fifth. That leaves him at three, with Yushin Okami and Michael Bisping maintaining their sports at four and five respectively.
Constantinos Philippou was the one to benefit from Rockhold's loss, moving up one spot to number six while Rockhold dropped to seven. Things get a little wonky at eight with Ronaldo Souza getting votes for the four, six, seven, eight, nine, and ten spot (I believe it's the first time that all six of us had a fighter ranked differently). Mark Munoz and Tim Boetsch round out the top 10. Unlike last time when three other fighters received votes, only the ten listed got votes this time.
Upcoming matchups for ranked fighters
Anderson Silva (1) vs. Chris Weidman (3), UFC 162, July 6th
Mark Munoz (9) vs. Tim Boetsch (10), UFC 162, July 6th
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Top 10 British Super-Middleweights (Part 2)
Badlefthook.com - Thu, 05/23/2013 - 14:00
5. Richie Woodhall 26-3 (16)
Unofficially the nicest man in boxing, Woodhall was a stellar amateur who won an Olympic bronze in Seoul, losing to Roy Jones Jnr in the semis. He turned pro shortly after winning Commonwealth gold in 1990 and quickly won the Commonwealth title at middleweight. He added the European title before taking on Keith Holmes for the world crown.
Having fallen short against Holmes, being stopped in the twelfth round after a brave effort fighting with an elbow injury that almost ended his career, Woodhall moved up to the super-middleweight division.
In early 1998, Woodhall had home advantage against WBC champion and recent Robin Reid conqueror Thulani Malinga. With the Telford Ice Rink packed to capacity (plus a few hundred more who had sneaked into the venue via cash in hand, hiding behind a mate with a ticket or blatantly just walking in), Woodhall was roared onto victory by an incredibly loud crowd. He controlled the fight with his textbook jab and picked Malinga off with frequent straight-rights - the style he had as an amateur tweaked ever so slightly for the professional game.
He successfully defended the title twice, gaining a majority decision against Glenn Catley and getting off the canvas to drop and stop former champion Vincenzo Nardiello. He lost the title in unfortunate circumstances; he’d been out of the ring for eight months and had been in a long legal battle with his promoter, Frank warren, before he agreed to take on Markus Beyer in Germany.
It was surprising that the champion agreed to fight an undefeated, up-and-coming fighter away from home, but by that point one sensed Woodhall was desperate to get back into the ring. Woodhall made a slow start, getting dropped in the first and twice in the third. He eventually got himself back into the contest, outboxing Beyer from the fifth onwards and rocking him late on. In the end the judges could’ve gone either way, which is remarkable given the poor start Woodhall had.
Woodhall had a rematch with Beyer scuppered by Glen Catley, who stopped the German in the final round of their title bout. It wasn’t seen as too much of a problem as there was enough interest in a rematch with Catley for that to be made, unfortunately for Woodhall, Catley was beaten in his first defence by Dingaan Thobela.
With the chance of a fight for his old WBC belt looking unlikely, IBF champion Sven Ottke was targeted, although it soon became clear that wasn’t going to happen. In late 2000 Woodhall faced his friend and WBO champion Joe Calzaghe. Woodhall was competitive early but seemed to run out of steam as the fight wore on, the non-stop punching of Calzaghe wearing down Woodhall, who was dropped in the ninth before being stopped on his feet in the tenth.
He retired after the fight and has gone on to become a much respected commentator, analyst and trainer.
4. Chris Eubank 45-5-2 (KO 23)
A two weight world champion, the eccentric Eubank was looked upon as a pantomime-esque villain in the early part of his career, yet was much loved by the time his career came to an end.
Having won the WBO middleweight title against Nigel Benn, his arch rival, and defended it three times, Eubank moved up a division for a rematch with Michael Watson, who Eubank had beaten via a majority decision in his last bout at middleweight.
Eubank produced a remarkable comeback after being thoroughly outboxed by Watson early on. He was way behind on the cards when he unleashed a brutal right hand at the end of the eleventh round that sent Watson crashing to the canvas, Watson got to his feet but was quickly halted at the start of the twelfth and final round. Watson collapsed seconds after the fight was stopped and suffered serious injuries that took him many years to overcome. It’s safe to say that if Watson hadn’t suffered those injuries, he would’ve undoubtedly become a world champion and would be very high up on this list.
Eubank made fourteen successful defences of the WBO belt he won against Watson, most notably against Ray Close twice, Graciano Rocchigiani in Germany, Henry Wharton and a disputed draw against Benn. He lost his title against Steve Collins and then failed to regain it in the rematch before losing against Joe Calzaghe in his final fight at super-middleweight.
The losses to Collins and Calzaghe changed people’s perspective of Eubank; the once cocky showman demonstrated humility in defeat and won over many of the fans who had loved to hate him. He finished his career with two impressive attempts at Carl Thompson’s cruiserweight title, failing narrowly both times.
3. Nigel Benn 42-5-1 (KO 35)
One of the most vicious, brutal and entertaining boxers there’s ever been. With the moniker ‘The Dark Destroyer’, his wild eyed stare, snazzy dress wear and street thug image, Benn was a press man’s dream. For many, the Benn-Eubank rivalry of the 90’s is the golden era of British boxing, and you were one or the other, you couldn’t like both, it simply wasn’t allowed.
Having lost his WBO middleweight title to his arch rival, Benn moved up to 168lbs and claimed the WBC title in 1992 after cuts brought his fight with Mauro Galvano to a premature finish. He made nine successful defences over the next three years, starting with a hammering of Nicky Piper in his first defence, and including a controversial draw with Eubank - the majority of fans believing he’d done enough to win.
His most impressive performance was also the saddest night of his career. Gerald McClellan came to Britain with a reputation similar to Benn’s – a kid from the street, vicious, brutal and one of the most dangerous punchers in world boxing. The fight was shockingly violent. When Benn was sent sprawling through the ropes in the first round it looked like the fight was over, he somehow managed to get to his feet and back into the ring and began one of the most remarkable fight backs of all-time.
The action went back and forth, both fighters landing hard, hurtful shots. Benn was dropped again in the eighth yet came back to hurt McClellan in the following round. As the fight went into the ninth and tenth rounds Benn started to takeover the fight, with a visibly tiring McClellan beginning to wilt. When McClellan dropped to his knees for a second time in the 10th round, there was a feeling that Benn had broken his will, Jim Watt commentating said McClellan had quit, the truth was far worse, as one of the most disturbing events in boxing unfolded before everyone’s eyes.
McClellan suffered life threatening injuries. Battling back bravely from a blood clot on his brain, he has spent the rest of his blind, in a wheelchair and suffering from memory loss. A tragic reminder of how dangerous boxing is.
Benn was never the same fighter after that night, he clearly struggled to find peace with himself for what had happened. He struggled outside the ring as well as in it, losing the last three fights of his career, twice against Steve Collins. He turned to God after retiring and is now a minister and a devoted family man.
2. Carl Froch 30-2 (KO 22)
You can call his style crude, you can call him overly cocky, but one thing you can’t criticise is his ‘take on anyone’ attitude. His willingness to face the best opponents, whether it is at home or abroad, is what has made Froch great. Whilst he may not be as technically gifted as some of the other boxers in this list, he more than makes up for it with his heart, chin, punching power and come forward aggression.
He first won the WBC title in 2008, beating Jean Pascal on points in an exciting fight in Nottingham. He made his first defence on the road with a come from behind last round knockout of Jermain Taylor. He lost the title to Mikkel Kessler two fights later in a toe to toe war in Denmark; they meet again this Saturday’s in what is one of the most eagerly anticipated rematches of recent times.
If he was to conquer Kessler on Saturday, he will add the Dane’s WBA title to the IBF belt he won when clobbering Lucian Bute to submission last year. A victory would also put him line to rematch Andre Ward, the only other fighter to have defeated him.
1. Joe Calzaghe 46-0 (KO 32)
Arguably the best super-middleweight of all-time, the Welsh southpaw blasted his way through domestic opponents before taking on the far more experienced Chris Eubank for the vacant WBO belt in October 1997. After scoring a surprise knockdown in the first thirty seconds, Calzaghe subsequently outboxed Eubank for the majority of the rounds thereafter to record a comfortable points victory and claim his first world title.
Calzaghe went on to defend the WBO belt twenty-one times over a ten year period of divisional dominance before finishing his career off at light-heavyweight with wins over Bernard Hopkins and a faded Roy Jones.
He also won the IBF, WBA and WBC titles when defeating Jeff Lacy and Mikkel Kessler - two fights which were the standout performances of his career. The much hyped Lacy was the IBF champion and the betting favourite going into the bout but ended up on the receiving end of one of the most one-sided, unrelenting beatings a champion has ever suffered.
Calzaghe’s out-pointing of the then unbeaten Kessler was the fight which cemented his legacy. The younger, fresher, big-punching Dane was always competitive but never fully got to grips with Calzaghe’s quick rat-a-tat-tat flurries and fleet footwork. Kessler’s subsequent performances have made the victory look even better, with the Viking warrior only suffering one other defeat, against the phenomenally talented Andre Ward – a fighter with the ability to surmount Calzaghe to become the best 168lber of all-time.
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Froch vs Kessler II: Joe Calzaghe backing press rival Froch to get revenge
Badlefthook.com - Thu, 05/23/2013 - 13:55
Citing injuries, inactivity, motivation, and location, Joe Calzaghe says he's picking old press rival Carl Froch to beat Mikkel Kessler in their rematch this Saturday.
"Kessler's been very inactive, he's only had three fights in three years since their last fight which was a war. Kessler edged that fight but since then Mikkel has been very inactive, which is going to tell. He's got a lot of problems with injuries and Froch, although he's just the older guy, he's been on the up with some great wins against Bute and so on.
"He's confident and of course he wants revenge. The big thing is, when somebody is fighting the rematch, the guy who wants revenge has always got that little bit extra to try and prove themselves. And the biggest thing is he's boxing in London, so he's fighting at home with the crowd behind him."
Calzaghe, who retired after a career-ending trio of wins over Kessler, Bernard Hopkins, and Roy Jones Jr in 2007-08, has basically the same view as Hopkins, who is also picking Froch to win, as is Andre Ward. So Froch has Calzaghe, Hopkins, and Ward favoring him, while Kessler has Brian Magee. That's an unfair battle.
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UFC: Roy Nelson says he's the Barry Sanders of MMA
Bloody Elbow - Thu, 05/23/2013 - 13:00
Tuesday night, it was announced that Roy Nelson would be fighting Stipe Miocic on the UFC 161 card. Fans of Big Country were first treated to the news via Ariel Helwani's Twitter, which didn't mention an opponent. I had spoken to Roy about an hour earlier, and specifically asked if the organization was setting up a fight for him, but he wasn't aware of any match making plans at the time. He did, however, mention that his manager, Mike Kogan, might have something in the works. The news would come an hour later, that named Miocic as the opponent.
If any other heavyweight were on a 3 fight hot streak with all the wins coming by way of ferocious knockout, we'd probably be seeing their name thrown around with the words title, number 1 contender and championship belt attached to it, but not Roy Nelson. Instead, they offer up the tough, hard hitting Miocic, who unfortunately, isn't a step in the right direction for the title. As a matter of fact, according to the UFC's official rankings, he's not listed in the Top 10. That doesn't mean it won't be a fun fight, it just saddens the Big Country fan in me to not see him get closer to that number 1 spot.
As mentioned earlier, I did speak with Roy Tuesday night, and got his thoughts on the snail's pace with which the UFC is moving him along and how he would feel about a fight with Josh Barnett. He also gave his opinion on Vitor Belfort's odd situation with not being able to fight in Las Vegas. Here's what he had to say:
Anybody, Anytime
I'm always down to give the fans what they want. The thing is, you want to be 100%, but if you're down with the organization, then you're going to do what they want. If they say, 'Hey, you want to fight next week?' Then yeah, you do it. As far as the best performance fight that you can hype up, well, a lot of people want to see Nelson / dos Santos II, Nelson / Velasquez I - there's a lot of fights to make. We'll just have to see.
It all depends on how it's orchestrated. I'm sure you would fight Ronda Rousey tomorrow if they offered you 30 million dollars (for the record, I like my arms where they're at, so I'd have to decline that offer). It all comes down to money. If the money is right, I'll fight anybody. Any time. I'll hit my grandma in the face if the price is right [laughs].
The Politics of Title Shots
I think they're business people. That's why Chael fought last month. They don't want Mark Hunt to win. They want Junior dos Santos to fight Cain Velasquez again. It just makes sense on paper. That fight can make a lot of money. When Overeem got beat by Bigfoot, that kind of messed some things up.
I make money no matter who I fight. Do I want a shot at the belt? Yes, of course I do. Put it this way, I am Barry Sanders on the Detroit Lions. You love to watch me, but you'll never see me play in the Super Bowl. It's just one of those things. It's about politics. It's not about fighting.
I always wanted to fight him. He pulled out the first time, right after I had knee surgery. That probably would have been the best time for him to fight me. I thought maybe the third time would have been the charm. It's good that he's moved on. I think he did alright in the UFC. The last time I talked to him, he had full retirement, so he's doing okay. I'm happy that he's happy.
Josh Barnett *It should be noted the interview took place before Barnett's UFC signing*
Well, first thing, is we do VADA. I know he's been popped a couple times, so we definitely want to have an even playing field. It's one of those things where I think it would be a fun fight, though. Josh always brings it. He's an entertaining guy and a great fighter. When he goes out there, he leaves it all in the cage, which is what the fans want. That's why he's so loved in Japan and around the world. He was just hard for the UFC to deal with because he knows what he's worth. I think that's what the UFC didn't like.
Vitor Belfort
He should never get a license in Las Vegas. The only way he can is if there's somebody getting paid off, or whatever. The rules are the rules. If you kill somebody in Texas, you're probably going to get the death penalty. It's just the rules. He's got to live with that.
Appreciation for Short Notice Fights & Being on Standby
Me personally, I've never gotten a phone call saying, 'Hey, we appreciate you.' I stopped trying to think about how the UFC operates. It's like trying to understand a woman. I don't know if my management has gotten any phone calls, if they're working on a fight, or anything like that. I'm always down to fight, but I have management in place to handle those things. My manager makes those decisions so it can be the best for me from a business standpoint, too. If it were up to me, I'd be fighting everybody every week.
You can follow Roy Nelson via his Twitter account, @RoyNelsonMMA
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Carl Froch says he'll 'kill' Kessler if he has to, British Board upset about comments
Badlefthook.com - Thu, 05/23/2013 - 12:29
Carl Froch is in a bit of trouble with the British Boxing Board of Control after some rather objectionable comments ahead of Saturday's fight with Mikkel Kessler.
"I will kill this fucker if I have to. It sounds brutal, it sounds horrible, but that's what this fight means to me. When I am smashing his face in, I am going to go for the kill. I want to do him some damage. I want to put the record straight.
"I've never felt like this before. I've wanted to win before, but there is something about this guy that winds me up. It's anger and I've got to channel it. I'm in there not just to win this fight but to put him out of the game.
"I don't want to see him any more. I'm sick of him, I'm sick of the fact he has beaten me. I want to put the record straight. And if that means I have to do him some serious damage, then I will do. After all, I had to watch him strap my belt around his waist."
Obviously, it's a little distasteful and arguably goes too far, but I have my doubts that Kessler thought to himself, "Gee, this guy threatened to murder me!"
Froch has since apologized, but the British Boxing Board of Control aren't exactly happy with the comments:
"Carl's comments are inappropriate and we are disappointed in them," (Robert Smith) told Britain's Press Association. "They are very uncharacteristic from Carl, who is usually a very well-behaved and measured young man.
"We are surprised and disappointed in his comments. I have spoken to his management team of Rob McCracken and Eddie Hearn and we are looking into it and will deal with it accordingly."
Froch may wind up getting a slap on the wrist, which would be fair enough, in my estimation. I've personally never been a fan of taking the trash talk quite this far, or even when fighters blab about how they'll "die in the ring." I find no value in that; to me, it's just off-putting in every way. Brutal as it is, boxing is a sport, a profession. It's not actual, real war. But that's just me. If Froch gets off with a stern warning, that's fair enough, too. It's not that big a deal, really.
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Junior Dos Santos, Mark Hunt Is "Power Vs. Power," Video
FightLine.com MMA News - Thu, 05/23/2013 - 12:24
Junior Dos Santos, Mark Hunt Is "Power Vs. Power," Video
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Froch vs Kessler II: Match order and fight times for Saturday
Badlefthook.com - Thu, 05/23/2013 - 12:05
Those trying to make plans to see particular fights, or just the curious who want to know for sure what's on and when from London, here's the full lineup for the Froch-Kessler II show at the O2 in London on Saturday. Times are listed in EDT.
1:20 - Micki Nielsen v Paul Morris
Cruiserweight contest - 4 x 3 mins
1:45 - Anothony Yigit v Dee Mitchell
Welterweight contest - 4 x 3 mins
2:10 - Enrico Koelling v Vygaudas Laurinkus
Light-Heavyweight contest - 6 x 3 mins
3:15 - Tony Bellew v Isaac Chilemba
WBC Silver Light-Heavyweight Championship & World Final Eliminator
Followed by - George Groves v Noe Gonzalez
International Super-Middleweight contest - 12 x 3 mins
Followed by - Carl Froch v Mikkel Kessler - (6:15 ringwalks)
IBF & WBA World Super-Middleweight Championship
Live float 1 - Martin J Ward v Andy Harris - (Not before 3:30)
Lightweight contest - 6 x 3 mins
Live float 2 - Callum Smith v Ryan Moore
Super-Middleweight contest - 8 x 3
BLH will have full coverage of the entire Sky Box Office card, though we will switch to HBO for the main event, which is airing live in the States.
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UFC veterans John Cholish and Jacob Volkmann speak out against low fighter pay
Bloody Elbow - Thu, 05/23/2013 - 12:00
UFC Lightweight John Cholish, who announced his retirement before his UFC on FX 8 submission loss to Gleison Tibau has taken to Twitter to complain that he still hasn't been paid his fight purse by the promotion despite assurances the money would be wired on Monday.
From Cholish's Twitter feed:
Also all payments for #UFConFX8 were suppose to be made Monday via wire, so far I have received $0 from Zuffa for fighting @arielhelwani
— John Cholish (@JohnCholish) May 23, 2013E-Mail from Zuffa stating all purses from #UFConFX8 to be paid this past Monday. @arielhelwani twitter.com/JohnCholish/st…
— John Cholish (@JohnCholish) May 23, 2013
Cholish Tweeted as a follow up to his appearance on Monday's MMA Hour where he voiced some dissatisfaction with the UFC's pay scale. Here are some of his comments from the Show:
"You're allowed three corners for each fight, but you're only in your contract, and for me personally, I only get one coach's flight and one hotel room and cover one visa," Cholish said. "I know just from this last fight. I had to pay over $3,000 in flights. I had to pay for an additional hotel room. I had to pay for two additional visas which are $500 a piece. I have to pay for the licensing fees. I have to pay for the medicals.
Cholish says he made $8,000 for his Saturday bout. He estimates once you factor in costs required simply to travel to Brazil with his team, he's in the hole $5,000 to $10,000.
"Before you even step to the ring, your original purse is gone," Cholish claimed. "And that's before factoring in the gyms I go to train at, my coaches that take hours of time to sacrifice. I want to pay them and take care of them. It just seems like certain things could be handled better and the fighter could be treated better for an organization that claims to be the best in the world in mixed martial arts."
Cholish's complaints echo those made by UFC veteran Jacob Volkmann who's now fighting for the World Series of Fighting after being cut by the UFC where he went 6-2 as a Lightweight. Here's what a "bitter" Volkmann told Above and Beyond MMA:
Volkmann: They always claim that they treat the fighters so well. Yeah, they treat the top five per cent of the fighters well - the ones that are on the main card all the time. They don't treat the rest of them very well. The healthcare plan is horrible, with a $1,500 deductible per injury - the catastrophic-injury insurance is not even really good insurance. There's no retirement fund, there's no signing bonus. You start off at six-and-six, you're really not making too much money because you're self-employed, so you're paying the self-employment tax and you're paying the regular tax and income tax. So you're paying twice as much in tax. They claim they're treating the fighters well, but they're not, realistically.
Above and Beyond MMA: Do you feel that's a misconception among fans?
Volkmann: Of course ... People always tell me, "You're rich - you're on TV!" Are you kidding me? I made $54,000 two years ago, paid $9,000 in taxes, so that leaves me with $45,000. This last year, I made $50,000 and paid $8,000 in taxes. That leaves me with $42,000 - that's barely above poverty. I have three kids and a wife I'm supporting.
Cholish is fortunate enough to have a lucrative day job as an energy trader on Wall Street and is able to retire from MMA. Volkmann's day job as a chiropractor is apparently not as lucrative. He'll be fighting Strikeforce vet Lyle Beerbohm at the next World Series of Fighting event.
SBN coverage of UFC on FX 8: Belfort vs Rockhold
UFC president Dana White responded on Twitter:
@mmathefilter washouts are never happy
— Dana White (@danawhite) May 21, 2013
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Randy Couture's G.I. Foundation Hosting Charity Motorcycle Ride
411 Mania MMA Feed - Thu, 05/23/2013 - 12:00
Xtreme Couture going on the Poker Ride again...
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