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Feb 7, 2006
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Houston Alexander signs five-fight UFC contract extension

The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) recently inked light heavyweight Houston Alexander to a new five-fight contract extension, locking-in the services of the hard-hitting Nebraskan slugger well into 2009 if the promotion decides to keep him on the roster, according to WrestlingObserver.com.

Alexander was relatively unknown to the masses until he burst onto the scene with two destructive performances inside the Octagon, taking out top contender Keith Jardine in his debut back at UFC 71: “Liddell vs. Jackson” in May 2007 and then crumbling Alessio Sakara at UFC 75: “Champion vs. Champion” less than four months later.

“The Nebraskan Assassin,” however, quickly returned to Earth with back-to-back losses to Thiago Silva and James Irvin. In fact, Alexander didn’t last more than four minutes combined in those two bouts.

Despite his recent struggles, Alexander remains a fan favorite and a crowd pleaser win or lose. That’s more than likely the reason the promotion made the decision to keep him around.

He will have his opportunity to get back on the winning track against Brazilian jiu-jitsu specialist Eric Schafer at UFC Fight Night 15 in front of a hometown crowd at the Omaha Civic Auditorium in Omaha. Neb., on September 17.
 
Feb 7, 2006
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Don Frye undeterred by loss, looking to continue fighting career

Although approaching 43 years old, UFC, PRIDE and K-1 veteran Don Frye (19-7-1) continues to ply his trade in the MMA business. However a recent submission loss to Ikuhisa Minowa (40-28-8) has caused many to question the aging veteran's fighting future.

Frye recently joined TAGG Radio (www.taggradio.com), the official radio partner of MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) to discuss his disappointing loss, and he spoke candidly about his desire to continue to fight despite approaching an age at which most choose to retire.

"I didn't show up to fight," Frye admitted. "I showed up to just drink beer and ended up looking at the lights at the top of the ceiling. He opened up a can of whoop-ass I couldn't close.

"Like a dumbass I thought I could go out and charm my way to a victory because I was Don Frye. Unfortunately he didn’t find me charming."

Any time a fighter of Frye's age experiences defeat, questions are immediately raised about his thirst for competition.

"It depends on the pay scale," Frye admitted. "As long as they keep paying me, I'll keep on fighting."

With athletic attributes diminishing as a fighter gets older, a fighter only continuing for a paycheck can create a dangerous situation. Frye spoke about falling into this potential trap.

"When I was growing up watching Muhammed Ali and Larry Holmes, I saw those guys take fights way past their prime," Frye said. "I swore to myself I wouldn't do that, but money talks."

A pioneer of MMA who debuted in 1996 at UFC 8, Frye said he wasn’t ready to ruin the legacy he has spent years developing. But that doesn't mean "The Predator" doesn't intend to return to action.

"But next time I decide to fight, I will train my ass off to uphold the name I have spent 13 years building," Frye said. "I am not going to screw it off like I did last time with Minowa."

Frye also answered listeners' advice questions in his always unique manner in his weekly segment "Don Frye-days." To hear the full segment, download Friday's edition of TAGG Radio, available for free in the TAGG Radio archives.
 
Feb 7, 2006
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5 Oz. Feature: EliteXC and CBS need to get their Oct. 4 party started now

This isn’t the first or last time you’ll read an opinion piece second guessing the lack of promotion for EliteXC’s next CBS broadcast on Oct. 4. So let me join the club and express my bewilderment over the lack of marketing for a show will no doubt be the most pivotal in ProElite’s brief history.

We all know by now the situation ProElite is in. A quick read of their recent SEC filing makes it clear that they currently do not have enough funding to make it into 2009. Maybe they’ll get it and maybe they won’t. But it’s going to be very hard to make the case that investors should take a chance on a promotional company in a space where competitors are fading into oblivion if they don’t draw a strong rating on Oct. 4.

We also know that EliteXC has had to make significant cutbacks, most notably their marketing budget. I don’t know if the Kimbo Slice billboard near the UFC offices in Las Vegas is still being displayed, but I think odds are that it’s come down. So if we question their lack of marketing push thus far for Oct. 4, we have to be realistic; we aren’t going to see billboards in Times Square or a major ad blitz on the Howard Stern show. The money for that kind of viral promotion simply isn’t there.

But there is such a thing as guerrilla marketing. It’s relatively inexpensive to work the press and do interviews on television, radio, and on the Internet. A few days after announcing that Randy Couture would fight Brock Lesnar at UFC 91 on Nov. 15 the two were shuttled off to Bristol, Conn. to do PR work with ESPN. After EliteXC made it official that Ken Shamrock would be Slice’s opponent, there was so little fanfare that the company didn’t even so much as host a conference call with the two.

Yes, we can all be rest assured there will be conference calls when we get even closer to the event. But it’s interesting to see how the UFC is trying to strike while the iron is hot and promote a main event between Couture and Lesnar less than three months before it’s set to take place during the week of its UFC 88 PPV this Saturday, while EliteXC lays in the weeds in anticipation of making a late push. Wouldn’t it have made a lot of sense the day after the press release was sent to give members of the media access to both Kimbo and Ken in order to fuel content in newspapers and on websites? FiveOuncesOfPain.com was one of several outlets to speak with Shamrock last week, but we booked the interview though Shamrock’s PR people, not ProElite.

The blame shouldn’t fall solely on the shoulders of EliteXC. I’m not a big CBS viewer, but I’ve yet to see any commercials for Oct. 4. I also listen to a lot of CBS-owned radio stations and have yet to hear a single promo. It behooves CBS to promote its own programming and they will have a golden opportunity this weekend when the NFL begins its 2008 regular season. It will be interesting to see whether the TV graphics with live reads during the games will be used to promote the return of Jennifer Love Hewitt in the “Ghost Whisperer” or the return of Kimbo Slice and Gina Carano during “Saturday Night Fights” on Oct. 4. How weird would it be to watch Gus Johnson call an entire game this weekend without one promo spot for SNF? If CBS isn’t willing to even commit in-house resources to promoting the event during its NFL telecasts, it will be time to sound the alarms.

Another question that has come to mind is where is Kimbo Slice? Leading up to the May 31 event, Kimbo did so much media that a case could be made that it might have had an adverse effect on his preparation for the James Thompson fight. It was obvious after the fight that he’d have to be handled differently in the future. However, it seems like there has been a polar shift in philosophy. Instead of too much media, he has done almost none to promote this fight. I’m sure Kimbo is going to get out there when his training starts to taper off, but there’s no better time than now.

Of course we’re going to hear more from EliteXC and CBS in the weeks to come. They haven’t even begun to scratch the surface with promotion. But today is Sept. 4 and we’re just 30 days out. What is everyone waiting for and where is the urgency? I’ve spoken to two sources in the industry that indicated the report that appeared in the New York Post last week is true; CBS has indeed had recent talks with the UFC. No one will admit it publicly (at this point) but CBS is looking at other options.

Perhaps CBS has realized that ownership doesn’t always have its privileges. If CBS wants MMA programming, ratings are going to have to be the number one priority as opposed to ownership because it doesn’t matter how inexpensively you can buy shares of your own programming if it isn’t able to outdraw re-runs of “The Unit.”

Talks between everyone take place all the time so whether EliteXC should be alarmed remains to be seen. But if the rating isn’t strong on Oct. 4, it could be the last we see of promotion on national television and the loss of CBS as a major media partner would most likely be the death knell for a company trying to recover from multiple shots to the liver. Based on everyone I’ve spoken to, Oct. 4 will be Custer’s last stand, but you wouldn’t know it by the lack of promotion for the card.

The lack of promotion could be attributed in large part to the fact that the main event for Oct. 4 wasn’t finalized until early last week. When you wait until six weeks before your show to announce the main event, it makes it very difficult to market it. Promotional materials such as television and radio commercials, billboards, magazine ads, and press tours take time to organize and produce. All those materials are items that can’t be produced overnight. However, being late to the party has been a repeated mistake that ProElite has yet to correct and to this day I’ve never understood why the UFC is usually able to finalize the vast majority of their cards 10-12 weeks before an event while it usually takes EliteXC 4-6 weeks.

To be honest, I was taken a back when Shamrock revealed to me in an interview last week that he had only found out about the fight a week before it was finalized. Maybe EliteXC had been talking to Ken Shamrock’s management weeks before and Shamrock’s management waited to tell him. Or maybe EliteXC actually did wait until seven weeks before the show to submit a formal proposal to Shamrock’s camp. And if that’s the case, again, I am confused. EliteXC announced on July 26 that Kimbo would be returning on Oct. 4, yet it took them until over a month later to secure an opponent?

We all know that on Oct. 4 that CBS and EliteXC will be throwing a party. The question is: how many people will show up?
 
Feb 7, 2006
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Aoki updated his column in Kamipro.com

This column was posted on Aug 27.

Mr. Hasegawa, who is a president of Kobudo, goes to watch the UFC. "Do you go to watch the UFC?" I asked. He said, "Do you want to come with me?" Absolutely no! Why? Because I'm definitely interested in fighting there when I watch the UFC live.

I still have many things I want to do in Japan, and also I promised to be a champion in Japan with my teammates and my fans. No matter how many people misunderstand that the US is the best, I think American way is not always the best. I'm sure Japanese MMA will be the best event again because we have Yarennnoka Staff.

Anyway, I went to Sengoku to support Kitaoka. I was impressed to see his strength. In the event, I saw a champion belt displayed. A security guard warned me not to touch when I came close and tried to take a close look.

I heard Jake Shields said I didn't want to fight him and was running away from him. Who do you think you are? Don't act like a fuedal lord. I didn't say anything if you are the best fighter, but you are not even on that level to even talk about other fighters. I have never ran away. I haven't even been offered a fight with you! I would be happy to fight anywhere when I'm offered. Honestly, I like him because he is good. I consider him higher than anyone else in Japan. I have a confidence to defeat him by my funky submission.

I answer questions from my fans.
- Jake Shields said you had no warrior spirit(Bushido spilit in Japanese). What do you think about what he said?
I absolutely have no Bushido spirit for sure, because I'm a child of today.
- You are skinny. How much is your body fat?
I don't know, but I'm definitely skinny but muscular. I heard a muscular guy tends to be nervous easily.
- Who is your type?
Saki Aibu for now.
 
Feb 7, 2006
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Filho: “I’m a new person now”

Just a few days before his second fight with Chael Sonnen at WEC, Paulo Filho spoke to TATAME about the thoughts of the fight, his problems with depression, his training with André Galvão, the possibility to face Anderson Silva, a friend and UFC champion, and analyzed Rousimar Palhares’ bout against the former pride champion, Dan Handerson. “The depression is over and now is just happiness, I’m ready for the war”, guarantees the champion, on the exclusive interview.

How was your preparation for this fight?

Thanks God everything was perfect... My preparation is really good, I’m focused and I went to Minas Gerais to have a good support with my friends and I’m a new person now. The depression is over and I’m ready for the war.

Chael Sonnen said that he didn’t believe in your recovery for this fight…

American people have big mouths… Sonnen should have said it to me, and not put this things in media, I think he doesn’t wanna fight me again, lose another arm…

What are your expectations for this fight? Do the ground game again?

Actually, there’s no strategy, is just fight and be ready to protect and attack…

How was your training with André Galvão for this fight?

He was an important person in my training, he helped me to remember some things, see how things works in Jiu-Jitsu now and we learned a lot together… He showed me things about the modern Jiu-Jitsu and I gave him some of my MMA experience. He submitted on his first fight and it’ll be hard to find somebody to beat him on the ground in MMA, maybe only another Brazilian fighter. We had a great time together and I’m very happy with his success. His success is my success, and my success is his too.

Will you go to USA now and just relax or continue training?

I have to train more, my real fight is with my weight, and I’ll have to train more until September 8th. I need to lose weight, I’m with 93kg and I still have a lot to lose, and I’ll do the same, and doesn’t repeat the same mistake from my last fight.

How many fights remain in your WEC contract? Do you think about going to UFC?

I have this and another one… I’m very thankful for WEC, I’m an employee and I’m really thankful with their help when I had my problem, and whatever they decide is good to me…

And if their decision is to merge you to UFC, will you face Anderson Silva?

Definitely no. We’re close friends and I believe there’s space for everybody there, it’s definitely out of my plans.

He’ll face Patrick Cote now… How do you think will be this fight?

Anderson will win, and I know it’ll be easy and fast. Cote isn’t fight for Anderson Silva, he’s a level above.

And Palhares, that will face Henderson now?

It won’t go through the first round. Do you wanna bet? I can bet my house that “Toquinho” will win on the first round, and will submit on Henderson’ foot. He’ll beat easily, he’s a thousand miles per hour and Henderson is falling down. I know Henderson is a great athlete, but “Toquinho” is excellent and came from nowhere, wants to help his family, he’s stronger, younger and more technical and I can’t see Henderson beating him. The only positive thing about Henderson is that he’s an expert fight, but it doesn’t work with a phenomenon.
 
Jul 24, 2005
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The UFC Heavyweight Picture— Suddenly Very Heavy

by Luke Thomas



Some might consider calling Dana White a magician above and beyond the realm of flattery. But consider this: two months ago, with Sylvia’s departure, Lesnar’s loss to Mir and Couture’s gnashing teeth, the UFC’s once mighty heavyweight division appeared to be headed towards a dark age. Who could know that in such a short frame of time Sylvia’s departure would be considered addition by subtraction, Lesnar would dominate Herring (propelling him into relevance) and Couture would be hugging Dana White on his YouTube blog in a purple Kangol hat (with suddenly gleaming teeth, no less)? And what dark wizardry could bring a Couture vs. Lesnar super fight to the forefront of the MMA universe? It just so happens it’s the same magic that has thrown the entire (and suddenly formidable) UFC heavyweight division into a vortex. I intend to do my best to sort it all out, or at least to consider some of the very real possibilities.



The major debris in the clockwork revolves primarily around two factors:



A) The Four Way Title Fight

And

B) Fabricio; Lost in Space



A) The question has arisen (and will continue to, with increasing frustration); who is the real champion? And who will be the real champion after UFC 91 and UFC 92? Will Brock Lesnar truly be considered the legit champ in beating Randy Couture before Mir and Big Nog even face one another? In either circumstance, should Brock emerge victorious, there exists a concern. Minotauro was the man Brock had clearly been working towards and Mir is the one man that has defeated Brock. Lesnar could not be considered the true titleholder without facing and defeating the victor of that match. Then could Couture be considered the true champ in the case that he emerges victorious? My solution to this particular problem is to simply call it a four-man title tournament to decide the real champion. This could suitably deny Brock the championship without defeating Minotauro (should he himself emerge victorious). I understand the issues involving Minotauro being the interim champ and Couture perhaps insisting that he be considered the champion upon his return. But all of these gentlemen are very clear in the eventual objective; ‘why all the confusion?’ I say.



B) Poor Fabricio Werdum is essentially left out in the cold. I know that not everyone believes he was a clear next-in-line based on his accomplishments in the octagon to date, but it has been implied. Unfortunately for Werdum, he is a victim of the market outgrowing him. He’ll have to survive at least two more contending fights (by my logic) to get another title shot and it is quite likely that in that space he’ll face the likes of Cain Velasquez, Shane Carwin and/or Cheick Kongo.



Beyond those questions, there are several other interesting match-ups to consider. Carwin and Gonzaga are being handed cans (Neil Wain at 89 and Josh Hendricks at 91, respectively) while Cheick was supposedly offered a fight with Lesnar and the aforementioned Werdum is in limbo. Velasquez, meanwhile, is reportedly unable to find an opponent— but in this new UFC Heavyweight landscape, should find someone anxious to prove they’re next (to next, to next) in line for a title shot. Could that suitor be Heath Herring, who may be fighting for his UFC life? And could a consequent possibility be Kongo vs. Werdum as a mathematic result? Lastly, what combination of losers in title fights A and B constitute a losers match-up? Brock vs. Mir, at least, would be sure fire.



And of course, no heavyweight conversation involving Couture would be complete without a nod to Fedor (who is reportedly also suddenly interested in facing Lesnar). Knowing full well that the UFC has made some loose vow to Randy that they would pursue a Fedor/Couture fight, the talk of Stary Oskol vs. America will not die down any day soon.



It’s an exciting and promising picture, to be sure. One could say Dana sold his soul, if it hadn’t been said so many times before.
 
Jul 24, 2005
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There Is No Marketing for Kimbo Slice vs. Ken Shamrock

by Luke Thomas on Sep 4, 2008 12:15 PM EDT in News


EliteXC’s debut show on CBS was much better off from the start. Why? Because they actually marketed the event. Advertisements for the show started during March Madness, more than two months before the event was even happening. Yet here we are one month away from Slice’s biggest test to date and the only spots promoting the event can be found online.

Even if CBS were to start airing commercials tomorrow, EliteXC still has obstacles to overcome. It’s 30 days before the event and the fight card isn’t even finalized. That’s expectant of smaller organizations with heavy turnover rates, not a major promotion that is about to put together a show for the entire world to see.

Bringing Kimbo Slice back to his home state of Florida was a good move. The arena should easily sell out then, right? I mean the crowd for Slice vs. Tank Abbott in February was up on their feet for just about the entire night.

Not necessarily. All signs currently indicate that a large number of tickets are still available for the event. Plus, EliteXC officials expecting a late push should also take note that the University of Miami plays Florida State at Dolphins Stadium that same night. (Thanks Zach)

According to EliteXC’s recent SEC filings, the organization only has enough funds to last until the end of the year without outside help. So why aren’t they going balls to the wall in trying to make this show their most successful to date? A lack of money? A lack of motivation? It’s hard to say.

Before I even started writing this, I asked myself, why it is that every time that write a piece on EliteXC, it turns out to be negative? I pinpointed it to failed potential.

With a network television contract, private funding, two cable television deals, and a slew of other resources, they had a legitimate chance to show the MMA world that the sport is bigger than the UFC. That the sport has the ability to become something other than just one organization ruling over everyone else. And so far, they’ve failed.

They still have one month to save themselves from their imminent demise. Can they do it? There’s potential…
 
Feb 7, 2006
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GORAN RELJIC: "WHATEVER WINS THE FIGHT"
link: http://www.fighthype.com/pages/content3355.html?PHPSESSID=e4b1373d3c03d7a51c87ee36494a91b1
"I think he is a good, well-rounded fighter with great Jiu Jitsu...Whatever wins the fight," stated UFC middleweight Goran Reljic as he talked about his upcoming clash with Thales Leites at UFC 90. Check out what he had to say about the fight, his thoughts on Anderson Silva's title defense against Patrick Cote and more.
 
Feb 7, 2006
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PAULO FILHO: "THIS FIGHT WILL END SOONER THAN THE 5TH"
link: http://www.fighthype.com/pages/content3361.html
"My depression had started before I came to fight in the US, but it was still undetected and it all added up. Now, I am 100% and I am going to show everyone why I am the champion," stated WEC middleweight champion Paulo Filho as he talked about his upcoming September 10th rematch with Chael Sonnen. Check out what he had to say about the fight, his thoughts on the WEC being absorbed into the UFC and much more.
 
Feb 7, 2006
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Franklin returns to 205 to swim with the sharks

Rich Franklin laughed almost as soon as the question was asked. And for the record, that question was, ‘Is it exciting moving back to a division where most of mixed martial arts’ superstars currently reside?’

“I basically just threw myself in a pool of sharks,” said the former UFC middleweight champion, who on Saturday night will return to the light heavyweight division for the first time in over three years to take on Matt Hamill at UFC 88 in Atlanta. “How exciting is that?”

Well, it’s exciting for us watching.

“There you go,” said Franklin. “I guess the answer to that question is ‘does Rich Franklin like swimming with the sharks?’”

That response will start to be generated this weekend, and if Franklin gets by the talented but still raw Hamill, the names that could find the Cincinnati’s native’s dance card read like a Who’s Who of the sport. But perhaps most importantly, one of those names isn’t the reigning 185-pound champion, Anderson Silva, who took Franklin’s title in 2006 and then defended it against him a year later. Staying at middleweight left Franklin with little to gain other than a regular paycheck. For a fierce competitor who wants to be the champion and the best in his weight class, there probably wasn’t going to be a third Silva fight anytime soon.

“(UFC matchmaker) Joe (Silva) had talked to me about moving to 205 right after my second (Anderson) Silva loss, and nobody forced me to make this decision, but they were very encouraging about me moving to 205, the reason being is that they’re not interested in doing Franklin-Silva III,” said Franklin. “They don’t think that it would really sell, and I would still have to put some wins together to get there anyway. In the meantime, they don’t want me fighting the top contenders because there’s the possibility of me eliminating title fights. So really, I’m stuck in a position of fighting guys who just lost their title shot to Anderson, and it leaves me in a position in the weight class where I don’t have a whole lot to look forward to other than my next fight. So at least the decision to move to 205 is more proactive. I have something to shoot for, I can make a possible title run if I can put a few wins together here, and I’m not just some gatekeeper.”

But when Franklin made his decision to jump back to 205 pounds, he was presented with an interesting dilemma in the form of Hamill, a buddy who he trained with briefly a few years ago and who he remained friends with.

“I actually met Matt through my boxing coach, Rob Radford,” recalled Franklin. “At the time, I was at the point in my career where I realized that I needed to start investing more time in my wrestling. Rob had invited several wrestlers into his gym to work with me, and after working with a couple of guys, nobody was really fitting real well. Then I worked with Matt, and he was clearly the best wrestler that I had ever worked with at the time. So I wanted to continue working with him, but he ended up relocating to New York for a little while, and he came back, but it was for a very short period of time, and then he had to leave for the show (The Ultimate Fighter 3). We only trained together maybe half a dozen times at the most, but we kept in contact and there was a friendship built there.”

So when he was offered Hamill as his first opponent in his return to light heavyweight, It came as a bit of a surprise to Franklin.

“When Joe (Silva) brought the fight to me, I said to him, ‘well, it’s kind of a difficult fight (personally), but if you present it to his camp and they accept it, then I guess it’s a go,’” he said. “So he took it to their camp, and I’m sure they had just as much trouble deliberating over this as I did, and then they accepted the fight and that’s how the ball got rolling.”

And while it’s an intriguing bout from a stylistic standpoint, in the great scheme of things, it’s a win-win for Hamill. If he beats Franklin, he skyrockets up the ranks in terms of respect and visibility, while if he loses competitively, he’s still young enough in the game where he can chalk it up to experience, learn from it, and not lose much stature. Franklin doesn’t necessarily see it that way; in fact, he believes that when it comes to Saturday night, there may be more questions about him than Hamill.

“I’m making a jump here to the 205 pound weight class, and for me, the way I’m viewing this fight, and I’m not sure if many other people do, but Matt has had an impressive track record in the UFC to this point,” said Franklin. “Aside from the Michael Bisping fight, which many people would contest, he basically has an undefeated record, he’s looked impressive in the 205-pound division, and for me moving up to 205 pounds from 185, this is a tough test as to whether I’ll be able to handle that weight division or not.”

He handled it pretty well the first go round, going 15-1 (1 NC), with his only loss coming to current UFC light heavyweight standout Lyoto Machida. But that was a long time ago, said Franklin, who jumped to middleweight for the first time against Jorge Rivera in October of 2004, and full-time after he stopped Ken Shamrock in a light heavy bout in April of 2005.

“When you spend as much time as I have at 185 pounds, I basically tore myself down to a 185 pound fighter,” he explains. “So now I’m going through the process of putting weight back on to make myself the 205 pound fighter that I once was. I always hit the weights hard, and a lot of people have seen my youtube videos with Mike (Ferguson) at the Powerstation, but basically, it really does boil down to nutrition, and I just have to make sure that I’m taking in more calories than I’m burning. And that’s a difficult thing to do. At first when I started training for this fight, I was putting on weight, and everything was fine. But when I started getting down to the nitty-gritty of the fight and hitting all my two-a-days and double sessions as many times a week as I do, it’s difficult to make sure that you’re eating more than you’re burning constantly.”

“My primary concern when I’m fighting at 185 is making weight,” Franklin continues. “I meticulously weigh my food out and now when I weigh my food out, I’m doing it to make sure I’m eating enough food. It’s a completely, completely different process now. I’ve
put a little more red meat in my nutrition program, and I’m not worrying about my weight. Come weigh-in day, I’ll have to cut four, maybe five pounds at the most. I’ll probably fight somewhere around 210 and I assume I’ll be giving up around half a dozen pounds to Matt. But that’s to be expected. Hopefully between each fight I can take some down time, not train as hard, focus on putting on some more muscle, and worry about drilling more rather than burning as many calories as I usually do, if I’m gonna make a home at 205.”

And if he does decide to stick around with the likes of Griffin, Liddell, Evans, Jackson, (Wanderlei) Silva, Machida, and Rua, the list of fan-friendly matchups are almost endless. It would mean a renaissance of sorts for the 33-year old Franklin, who by excelling at light heavyweight would show that he is far from finished at a top-flight fighter.

“People in this world assume that once you’ve earned the title, been the main event, and been in the limelight and then lost it that now you’re done,” he said. “I’m not done. I can still put on exciting fights, the fans love watching me fight, I love to compete still, and I can move to 205 and see what I can do there. I don’t mind not being the main event, I don’t mind not having to do 5,000 interviews – now I only have 4,999 because I’m not nearly important as I once was. (Laughs) To me, it’s all the same – I have fans who still love me and critics who hate me. It will be that way whether I’m a titleholder or not, so in between now and then, I’m just trying to put on good fights, entertain people, and enjoy doing what I do.”

Hate Rich Franklin? That could be deemed sacrilegious in some quarters. How could one of this era’s most popular fighters have critics who hate him?

“Everybody has haters,” he said. “I was watching (comedian) Katt Williams. He said Jesus only had 12 friends and he had a hater, and he (Jesus) was perfect. Judas threw him under the bus. So it doesn’t matter what you do in life, there are gonna be people who don’t like you.”

Maybe so, but generally, when it comes to fan favorites, Franklin’s probably going to be on most top ten lists, a phenomenon that still intrigues him, given his tendency to walk away from the spotlight while others run to it.

“I really just do not like being the center of attention,” he admits. “It’s easy for me to be the center of attention when I’m fighting because that’s what I’m there to do – I’m there to compete, I answer my questions after the fight, I go to the press conferences, and it’s all about the fighting. But if you stuck me in the middle of a party and said ‘Rich, entertain these people, sing some karaoke and be the life of the party,’ I’m not that guy, and I don’t like being that guy. I really feel that in my life, since I’m not attention hungry, I get enough attention as is, so when I’m not dealing with the fight game, I want other people to get a chance to get their attention; there’s already enough attention on me.”

More’s coming though. And even while Franklin claims that he “would have made a better stagehand than the lead actor in the play,” the next 12 months will likely see him play a starring role in some of the light heavyweight division’s most exciting bouts. And that’s the type of attention he would probably be able to deal with.
 
Feb 7, 2006
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Dan Henderson wants to get back on track at UFC 88

At a time when so many top fighters are very careful about selecting their next opponent, Dan Henderson agreed to face Rousimar Palhares even though he didn't have a clue who he was.

"I didn’t know him," said Henderson, who faces the Brazilian jiu-jitsu expert on Saturday night at the Ultimate Fighting Championship's first event at the Phillips Arena in Atlanta. "After I agreed to the match, I started watching tapes of him on the Internet. He's submitted some really good guys. He's strong, and he's not afraid to get hit."

Henderson (22-7 MMA, 2-2 UFC) hopes to take Palhares (8-1 MMA, 1-0 UFC) out of his submission game in step one toward earning a rematch with UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva. Silva choked Henderson out in the second round of their March 1 UFC vs. PRIDE middleweight champion showdown in Columbus, Ohio, which unified the belts.

"He's never faced anyone with good takedown defense and never faced someone who hits hard and I'm looking at doing both of those things," said the Murrieta, Calif.-based fighter.

Henderson's game plan is simple: the former U.S. Olympic wrestler will use his superior balance from a lifetime of wrestling to keep the fight standing, negating the smooth groundwork that was evident when Palhares made his UFC debut on May 24. In that fight, he caught veteran Ivan Salaverry with an armbar in just 2:36, his fifth straight first-round submission victory.

"I don’t plan on being able to submit him," said Henderson. "I’m not afraid at all to going to the ground, but that's his strength. I'll try to keep it standing, which is my strength."

It's going to be baptism-by-fire for Palhares, who is 10 years younger than the 38-year-old Henderson. Palhares kept switching from a left-handed choke to a right-handed one, and then to an armbar against Salaverry. He garnered a $75,000 best submission bonus check out of his debut fight and opened a lot of eyes in the process. A win would make him an instant championship contender.

Henderson has a plethora of national championships dating back to his age group titles in freestyle and Greco-Roman in 1988. Even though he didn't medal at the 1992 and 1996 Olympics, Henderson considers his experience at the games on a par with the night in Las Vegas he ended the five-and-a-half-year record-setting title run by PRIDE light heavyweight champion Wanderlei Silva.

The Olympics are a big deal to Henderson, who attended the 1984, 1988 and 2000 games as a spectator. He missed Athens in 2004 while training for a fight in Japan and then had to skip Beijing because of the timing of this fight. "I was hoping to fight in Minneapolis (on Aug. 9) and then be able to go to the Olympics," he said.

Henderson vividly remembers his first pro bout at a tournament in 1997 in Brazil when a near-riot broke out after his match with local fighter Crezio de Souza was stopped.

Henderson went to UFC in 1998 and won a tournament to earn a title shot at then under-200 pound champion Frank Shamrock. But he showed little interest in the title fight because MMA was just a way to help pay the bills for his Olympic dream.

While Greco-Roman wrestling was still his main sport, and weighing just 195 pounds, he entered a 32-man open weight class tournament in late 1999 and early 2000 in Japan for the RINGS promotion. On the final night, he won close and controversial decisions over then-heavyweight Renato "Babalu" Sobral and future heavyweight legend Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, in succession. He actually won three fights that night, solidly beating kickboxer Gilbert Yvel in the tournament finals by using his wrestling to negate the feared striker.

After losing in the 2000 Olympic trials at 181 pounds, Henderson signed with the PRIDE Fighting Championships, compiling a 13-5 record over a seven-year period as a full-time MMA fighter, against almost all name fighters.

Henderson came into the UFC last year after the purchase of the PRIDE promotion, where he held world titles at both 83 kilograms (182.6 pounds) and 93 kilograms (204.6 pounds), the metric equivalents of middleweight and light heavyweight. He was the only man in MMA history to hold major world titles in different weight classes at the same time.

He won a razor-thin decision over Murilo Bustamante on December 31, 2005, in Saitama, Japan to win the 83-kilogram title, and knocked out Wanderlei Silva on February 24, 2007, in a thrilling match in Las Vegas, to take the 93-kilogram crown.

Henderson is significantly smaller than all of UFC's light heavyweights, but UFC president Dana White wanted him to face Silva right away as a middleweight. Instead, Henderson came in as a light heavyweight, believing there was more money in being champion in that division. He faced UFC champ Quinton Jackson in a unification match on Sept. 8, in London, England.

Henderson lost a tough five-round decision to Jackson in, depending on how you want to split hairs, either the first- or second-most watched MMA match (along with the 2006 Tito Ortiz vs. Ken Shamrock match) in U.S. cable television history.

But it was the Silva loss in the middleweight unification match that left him frustrated. While some tout Silva, ranked No. 1 pound-for-pound in the world in the current Yahoo! Sports poll as being the closest thing to unbeatable in the sport, Henderson is staying at middleweight largely to prove that's not the case.

"He's got holes in his game," said Henderson, who won the first round of the fight, before getting tired and being submitted in the second round. "He's very athletic and can get away with it. I felt my conditioning was off. I got a little tired and didn't push the takedown in the second round. If I'd have gotten it, I'd have won the round. I should have been more aggressive when I had him down in the first round. I didn't expect to finish him so I didn't try. I was looking to win the round."

But he said he feels a lot better days ahead of this fight, even though, with two losses in a row, it's not a fight he can afford to lose.

"I feel more relaxed," he said. "My conditioning is good. As you get older, you learn to listen to your body. You know when it's time to take a day off. Rest is as important as your training."

A mistake he made in preparation for the Silva fight was to stay a little too heavy in training at the end, which he thinks is why he got tired in round two. He cut from 196 to 185 pounds the day before the fight.

"I'd like to cut five or six pounds the day of weigh-ins," he said.

"After my workout (Sunday) I was 195 pounds and I haven’t started dieting yet."
 
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Fedor's Manager Confirms That Fedor Is Contractually Free To Fight Couture Anywhere

M-1 Director Of Operations Joost Raimond recently sat down with USA Today to discuss a variety of issues mainly focused around the possibility of Fedor Emelianenko fighting Randy Couture in the UFC. He also expounded on the UFC's failed negotiations with Fedor last year. Below are some of the highlights of their conversation:
Raimond On The Possibility Of Fedor vs. Couture In The UFC:

"Who knows? What that will do for a possible bout between Fedor and Randy, that's very difficult to say at this point in time. The only thing I can say from our side is that we are open and willing to work with any organization to make that fight happen, and we've also expressed that to the UFC. Irrespective of who the organization is, we're willing to work with anybody to do that. The contracts that Fedor has at this point in time would allow for such a fight to take place, and specifically the Randy fight, so we're free to make that happen if the opportunity presents itself. We've made provisions in any and all contracts that refer to Fedor to allow that fight to take place, with any organization in conjunction or in coooperation with whoever. Contractually there's not an issue.

Raimond On White's Assertion That Fedor Will Eventually Have To Sign With The UFC:

I think other organizations, and specifically our organization, M-1, together with Affliction — I think we're doing pretty well. And if Dana wants to sit around and watch us go out of business, he might have to sit in his chair for awhile. That's fine. Let's say that at some point — and granted, this is another if — but let's say Dana White is right and the other organizations aren't able to survive. Does Fedor need to continue fighting? Would he say, "Well, UFC is my only option?" or would he move on and do other things? Both would be possible. There's nobody that would force him to fight, of course. That's his own decision. He can retire from the sport at any time he so pleases. He has a university degree in athletics and sports management, so he could pursue other job opportunities or other career opportunities in his life, most certainly. And again, like I said before, if the UFC is still out there once all these other organizations have disappeared as Dana might be projecting, that's certainly something that could be entertained. The thing I don't like is — why talk about sitting around, waiting for other organizations to fall over? In my eyes, if you look at how marketing principle in any other industry or any other business, is that healthy competition — and I seriously mean healthy competition — is good for any market and it's good for the sport. It's good for the sport if there's more than one organization out there which is seriously promoting the sport.

Raimond On Issues With The Last Negotiations Involving The UFC:

I was very much involved in the last time you're referring to, and at that point in time, there were aspects in the UFC contract which just did not coincide with the way we see things and how we wanted to proceed. If that exact same contract would come back on the table, I would still not see us get back together. If a possible contract would change on a number of very specific points, that could very much be entertained.
 
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Tito Ortiz ‘Wherever I May Roam....I Want The Title’

Former UFC Light-heavyweight Champion and free agent superstar Tito Ortiz took some time today to talk with PDG about being a free agent, UFC 88, Punishment Athletics, ‘Rampage’ vs. Ibarra, Shamrock vs. Slice and who are the best Pound for Pound fighters in mixed martial arts today.



PDG: Let's start with Saturday night's main event at UFC 88; since you fought both fighters, what are your thoughts on Chuck Liddell vs. Rashad Evans?
Ortiz: What? that fight is already this Saturday? I guess they haven't been promoting it very well because I haven't seen anything on it. I think it is an interesting fight for Chuck but I don't think he's going to have any problem with Rashad. All of the pressure is on Chuck to keep winning, since he is a company man.

PDG: So do you think the fight is going to go the distance like your fight with Evans?
Ortiz: I don't see this going the distance unless Rashad pulls some lucky stuff out of his butt. I guess we'll see what happens when they fight.

PDG: How about your impending career decisions; who are you talking to and how long until you expect to sign with an organization?
Ortiz: Hopefully I have a deal signed before the end of this month. I am still negotiating with the UFC, Affliction and EliteXC. I have had back problems for the last seven years and now that my body is fixed I am just looking for the best organization to continue my career with. I am really excited and whoever I sign with....hopefully it's the last deal I have to sign in my career. I just need to make the best business decision for myself and for the fans that want to watch me fight.

PDG: Regardless of who you sign with, are there a couple of fights that you would like to have before the end of your career?
Ortiz: Frank Shamrock, I would definitely like to take that loss back and I know he's been running his mouth about it. That is a rematch I would take in a heartbeat. ‘Babalu’ Sobral has been talking a lot of smack, so I like to get that fight done. A Chuck Liddell rematch would be awesome. There are a lot of fights out there that bring interest to me, so we will just see what the future holds. I have a good five or six years of good competition left in me and it is just going to depend on who I sign with.

PDG: ‘Babalu’ lives like a stone's throw from you; do you guys ever run into each other in Southern California?
Ortiz: No, never. If he hangs out in Orange County, I am usually traveling so much that unless he is in downtown Huntington Beach. I wouldn't see him; I work too hard to go out very much.

PDG: What is your current training schedule like?
Ortiz: Once a day, five times a week, working on jui-jitsu, stand-up, wrestling, cardio and lifting. Just making sure that I keep my body in fighting shape. I am actually on my way to the ASR (Action Sports Retailer) show to be a guest speaker and to promote Punishment Athletics but when I get back I will be in the gym full time.

PDG: Are you currently training any other fighters?
Ortiz: I am not specifically training anybody right now but I am working out with Michael Bisping, Rob McCullough and others in open training. Before Cheick Kongo’s last flight, I worked with him on ground training. Basically holding him down while he tried to escape and get back to a standing position. If the fighters are in the gym when I am there, then I'm usually working out with them.

PDG: You mentioned the clothing company; how is business?
Ortiz: Really good, we are expanding and I'm putting a lot of time and effort into it right now. Tapout has had a lot of success and I think in the coming year that Punishment should have the same. Right now it is all about broadening our horizons and trying to get into as many stores as possible. All of the big retail companies are going to be at the ASR show and hopefully they decide to pick up Punishment Athletics.

PDG: What are your thoughts on Forrest Griffin being the UFC Light-heavyweight Champion?
Ortiz: He has worked hard for himself; he has worked hard for the company. They gave them a title shot....which I have no idea where that came from. I thought that Keith Jardine should have been the next in line since he beat Liddell before his loss to Wanderlei Silva. Don't get me wrong, I am happy for him and he worked hard to get where he is today. I have nothing bad to say about Forrest. I would love to get a rematch with Forrest because I would crush him again. I beat him back in 2006 and I wasn't even at 100% but I have to give him respect because of the way that he got to where he is.

On another note, I'm very surprised that Quinton Jackson is not getting a rematch. It's funny how things are worked and I feel bad for ‘Rampage’ because of what he has gone through in life, his achievements in his career and now he is not even getting a chance to get his title back. He made a couple mistakes and hopefully God can forgive him, right?

PDG: Hopefully, what do you think of him changing trainers and camps from Juanito Ibarra to Team Wolfslair?
Ortiz: Let me explain this to you because it really pisses me off that Ibarra has done what he has done, he is a thief. I have been running training camps for seven years up in Big Bear California and the most that my camp has cost a fighter to attend is $35,000. Ibarra was charging Jackson $65,000 to go to Big Bear. I don't understand that!! He was being very disrespectful and taking advantage of ‘Rampage’. Including travel, training partners, food and lodging, the most ever was $35,000, maybe if you flew in more trainers...$40K. Where did that extra money go that Ibarra was charging? ‘Rampage’ is really pissed and he feels betrayed that he was taken advantage of and I couldn't agree more with him. I don't care if Juanito reads this or hears about it anywhere, he already knows that he is blackballed. I don't care who you are; fighters work very hard for the money they earn and I feel slighted for even knowing Juanito.

PDG: It is kind of like NFL football players; you only half a small window of time to make as much money as you can before your career is over.
Ortiz: Exactly and ‘Rampage’ put Juanito on mixed martial arts map. If it wasn't for him no one would even know what a Juanito is. ‘Rampage’ is a straight up contender and he has a lot of years left in his career. I wish him the best of luck and hopefully something like this doesn't happen again.

PDG: Cool, let's move on. You had a long history with Ken Shamrock; what do you think about him fighting Kimbo Slice?
Ortiz: I am very excited to watch the fight because I think he has a chance to beat Kimbo. If Kimbo ends up playing Ken Shamrock's game than there is definitely a chance that he could get caught and lose the fight. I don't think that Kimbo has the best groundwork in the business. I will be there in attendance and I think it will be an exciting fight, so we'll see what happens.

PDG: In your career, you always fought the top fighters in your division. Kind of like what the UFC is doing now with Brock Lesnar. He is definitely not taking the easy road to start his MMA career.
Ortiz: No not at all. Congratulations to Brock, the UFC is using him for everything that they can get out of him. He has a huge chance ahead of him to be a world champion but I don't think he is going to beat Randy Couture. He is a big guy that hits very hard but also makes a lot of mistakes in his stand-up and on the ground. You never know, Randy may get a chance to choke him out on the ground. At the age of 45, it is impossible to have nothing but the utmost respect for Randy Couture. I think it is going to be a great fight.

PDG: My follow-up question to that is EliteXC seems to be taking a different road with Kimbo's career. As his past and future opponent's seem to be stars from the 1990s.
Ortiz: Right, but what a lot of people don't understand is that EliteXC doesn't have the heavyweight talent that is in the UFC and other organizations. That is slowly changing as more organizations are coming up with the money to pay the top fighters in the game and so eventually Kimbo is going to have to fight top competition and then we will see how he does.

PDG: All right, you have been around the game for a long time. In your opinion who are the top five best Pound for Pound fighters in mixed martial arts right now?
Ortiz: Georges St. Pierre is number one for sure. Anderson Silva followed by BJ Penn and I would have to go with Chuck Liddell. He may have suffered a couple of losses but I think he was at a stalemate in his career and now he's back. Randy Couture would round out my top five. I also have to throw out a lot of credit and consideration to Fedor, he is right there with Randy.

PDG: Sounds good, it's such a hard thing to determine that it makes it hard to argue with someone that has been in the game for so long. I wanted to ask about activities outside MMA. A while back you made some appearances on TNA Wrestling; is that something in that you might do again?
Ortiz: It was fun but it was a one-time gig. Being a huge professional wrestling fan I really enjoyed it. You never know though maybe after my fight career is over, you just might see me on WWE [laughs]. Wrestling jobs and all the theatrical stuff is a good time. For me though right now it is all about fighting and I'm going to concentrate on that. Wherever I go, I am going to be the champion! I am very excited about being 100% again after the back surgery and to be able to train with no pain.

PDG: Thanks for your time, it's always a good. Is there anything else you want to add?
Ortiz: Just thanks to all the fans and everyone that watches MMA. I'll be back soon and I'm really looking forward to it.
 
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Report: Karo Parisyan injured, UFC 88 bout scrapped

Just hours before the official weigh-ins for tomorrow night's UFC 88 in Atlanta, a welterweight bout between Karo Parisyan (18-5 MMA, 8-3 UFC) and Yoshiyuki Yoshida (10-2 MMA, 1-0 UFC) has been scrapped.

The official announcement was made on the UFC's official website, citing a "last-minute back injury" that forced Parisyan to withdraw.

A source close to Parisyan told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) that the fighter "wasn't in the best of shape," but it wasn't clear whether Parisyan's conditioning was a factor in his withdrawal.

Parisyan has been candid with the media in recent weeks about his battle with panic attacks and the effect they have had in his training regimen.

Initial attempts to contact Parisyan by MMAjunkie.com were unsuccessful.

According to UFC.com no replacement will be sought for Parisyan at this time.
 
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Injured Silva Withdraws from UFC 89

Undefeated light heavyweight Thiago Silva (Pictures) has withdrawn from his Oct. 18 co-headlining bout against Lyoto Machida (Pictures) at UFC 89 “Bisping vs. Leben” in Birmingham, England.

An American Top Team representative confirmed a report from intheguard.tv, which said Silva sustained a back injury in training. The rep said the decision was made Thursday to pull the dynamic Brazilian striker from the card, and that Silva is expected to be back in play by December.

Silva, a native of Sao Paulo, Brazil, who burst onto the scene in the Fury FC promotion, has racked up four back-to-back victories in the Octagon against James Irvin (Pictures), Tomasz Drwal (Pictures), Houston Alexander (Pictures), and Antonio Mendes (Pictures). The lanky 25-year-old stopped three of those four opponents with TKOs in the first round, with Polish standout Drwal the only one to hang on into the second stanza.

In May, Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt Silva (13-0) submitted Mendes with punches at UFC 84 “Ill Will” in Las Vegas.

A replacement for the undefeated Machida (13-0), who shut out former UFC champion Tito Ortiz (Pictures) with a three-round unanimous decision at UFC 84, has not been named at this time.
 
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THE INSIDE SCOOP ON COUTURE'S UFC RETURN

12:57 p.m. – September 2nd, 2008: Randy Couture makes a new three-fight deal that will keep him in the UFC for three more fights, starting with Brock Lesnar on Nov. 15 at UFC 91. The legal battle between Couture and Zuffa, LLC is finished. The dark clouds hanging over his head have disappeared. Now, he can do what he loves best… fight.

Up until 12:56, however, there wasn't a final deal. Couture and his lawyers still had objections to the proposed UFC contract. A teleconference of hungry journalists was pushed back an hour. Within the last few minutes before the actual beginning of the press conference, Couture remained outside the UFC offices (he had gone out to take a walk and to talk more freely with his lawyers). A series of phone calls between Couture's and the UFC's lawyers played out. The UFC, eager to get their star back into the fold, and Couture, eager to get back into the Octagon, collectively resolved the remaining sticking points, and the deal was done.

As he later stated on the press call, "There were some compromises made on both sides."

MMAWeekly.com spoke to several sources that told portions of the story of how Couture's new UFC deal came to be and what those compromises may have been. The parties closest to the matter remain pretty tight-lipped. When contacted for comment, Couture's lawyers, Samuel Spira and Christopher Rudd at Venable LLP, merely confirmed the settlement and stated that they were confident that going forward the parties would have a much more productive relationship.

In one of the biggest turnaround stories in UFC history, "The Natural" went from pariah to champion in a little over three weeks.

A Texas court set the wheels of negotiation in motion. Lawyers for Mark Cuban's HDNet Fights filed suit against the UFC in February, asking for a declaratory ruling on Couture's UFC contract. After an initial ruling in May allowing a summary judgment hearing to be put on calendar, lawyers for Zuffa succeeded in obtaining a temporary stay on the ruling. Then, on Aug. 1, Zuffa was granted a permanent stay, which effectively shelved the Texas suit until arbitration proceedings in Nevada – a requirement of Couture's contract – were complete.

As weeks passed following the ruling, Couture realized that he had two options. He could continue to fight in court – his lawyers had already readied for a new offensive against Zuffa after the stay was granted – and hope to be free for an upcoming fight. Or, he could fight in the Octagon, resolve his misgivings about the UFC, and pursue a fight with Emelianenko from inside the organization.

But before he did all that, he needed to try to encourage the UFC to communicate with Emelianenko's representatives.

UFC president Dana White had negotiated with Emelianenko's management shortly after the UFC's purchase of the Pride Fighting Championships in March of 2007, and had quickly reached an impasse over concessions they wanted for signing the Russian to the UFC.

Instead of taking the front door approach, Couture's lawyers arranged a full day of meetings and photo shoots with Emelianenko and his management team on Aug. 11 in Los Angeles. The day ended with a large dinner for the group at the trendy STK Steakhouse in West Hollywood, hosted by Couture and his lawyers. The meetings were well documented by the media; in a press luncheon the next day, Emelianenko said the parties had met to discuss "mutual business interests."

By the end of that week, text messages were flying between Couture and Dana White and the UFC was communicating with Emelianenko's representatives, but this time, it was his American representatives at Blue Entertainment Sports Television, the firm tasked with branding Fedor in the U.S.

In the middle of all of this, an unlikely angel appeared to assist Couture. Despite seemingly working against his own interest, Mark Cuban provided advice and counsel to Couture in an attempt to bridge the gap between the parties. Affliction wanted to loan out Emelianenko for one fight, an idea that was not quite what the UFC had in mind.

Communications between Emelianenko's American representatives and the UFC are ongoing. White said he is unwilling to "co-promote" a fight with Emelianenko's managers – one of the concessions that halted the original negotiations – but still wanted to sign the Russian. "We're going to offer him a fair deal," he said. Now, White believes the obstacle is Emelianenko's contract, which binds him to Affliction for two more fights.

"Fedor's under contract with somebody else right now," he continued. "Everybody knows how hard we are (in) protecting our contracts, so that's another obstacle in this whole deal. We would never interfere with someone else's contract."

White's assertion is incorrect, though. Emelianenko's Affliction contract contains a clause that allows him to fight for another promotion during the term of his contract. In addition to that, his Affliction deal is exclusive only to the U.S. Even if the UFC decides not to provoke any more legal issues by attempting to utilize that clause, they could promote an Emelianenko/Couture fight in the U.K.

Speculation that Couture would get a fight with Emelianenko after the Lesnar fight, sometime in early 2009, continues to mount, although White has said that the winner of the Couture/Lesnar bout would face the winner of Nogueira/Mir.

After the final details was agreed to, at 1:05 p.m., White and Couture sat in the Zuffa offices, ready to tell their story to the World. There was a lot more to it than they revealed, but in the end, it was as much a win-win situation as possible. Couture could go back to shattering expectations of what's possible for athletes in their mid-forties, and White could promote what he expects to be the biggest pay-per-view in the company's 15-year history.

"I think we've cleared the air," Couture said. "We've addressed a lot of those issues, we're both in a different place and both the company and myself are trying to move forward."
 
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Martin Kampmann "at 100 percent" for UFC 88 bout with Nate Marquardt

UFC middleweight contender Martin Kampmann (13-1 MMA, 4-0 UFC) has been in this position before.

In June of 2007, Kampmann was slated to face former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin with a shot at current champion Anderson Silva on the line. A devastating knee injury suffered in training forced Kampmann out of the bout.

A little more than a year later Kampmann stands again on the verge of a title shot. And as "The Hitman" told TAGG Radio (www.taggradio.com), the official radio partner of MMAjunkie.com (www.mmmajunkie.com), this time he's ready.

"I feel good," Kampmann said. "It was a long way to get back in training because the knee injury was very complicated. It took a long time, but now I've been back training 100 percent. I'm ready to go 100 percent."

Kampmann actually suffered multiple traumas to his knee. The process required two surgeries and a tissue transplant.

"I tore my ACL, my MCL and my meniscus," Kampmann explained. "I had cadaver tissue put in. Scary stuff."

Now fully recovered, Kampmann is slated to take on top middleweight Nate Marquardt at tomorrow night's UFC 88 event in Atlanta. While many are calling the bout a No. 1 contender matchup, Kampmann refuses to speculate.

"[A win] should definitely put me closer to a title shot," Kampmann said. "I don't know how close. That's up to the UFC."

Kampmann has reeled-off four straight victories against stiff competition since his 2006 UFC debut. And though Kampmann is one of the smaller competitors in the UFC's middleweight division, the 26-year-old says he feels comfortable at 185 pounds.

"It's got its advantages and it's got its disadvantages," Kampmann said. "The cut is going to be no problem, so I don't have to worry about that. Bulking up is hard because once I start doing cardio, I drop the weight right back off.

"I feel good at [185 pounds]. I've won my fights in the UFC at 185 (pounds), and I think I've shown that I can compete in the 185 (pound) division. I'm not worried about my weight. I think I've been doing good so far."

While Kampmann won't speculate on where he stands in the UFC's middleweight rankings, he does admit he would enjoy an opportunity to face Silva.

"He's done really good," Kampmann said of Silva. "He's a bad-ass. He's won his fights very convincingly. He's a good fighter. It would be great fight to get the opportunity to fight him sometime."

Before that can happen, Kampmann will need to get by Marquardt. The Danish import's plan is simple.

"I'm just going to go in there and see what happens," Kampmann said. "Start punching, and I'm sure he's going to start against me. I prefer to keep the fight standing and beat on him while I'm on my feet."

Kampmann also discussed his sole career loss, as well his jiu-jitsu training background. To hear the full interview, download Thursday's edition of TAGG Radio, available for free in the TAGG Radio archives.
 
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PHIL BARONI HEADS PALACE FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIP

The Palace Fighting Championship on Thursday announced the full line-up for its Sept. 26 event at the Tachi Palace Hotel and Casino in Lemoore, Calif. The main event features Ultimate Fighting Championship and Pride veteran Phil Baroni squaring off with popular Mexican fighter Olaf Alfonso.

The fight will be Baroni’s third since making the move down to the 170-pound division following a three-fight skid in his last three middleweight bouts. He has defeated both of his opponents thus far at welterweight.

Alfonso is a popular fighter in Lemoore area, winning his two most recent bouts. He is trying to stay on track following a six-fight nosedive spanning most of 2005-2007.

PFC 10 also features three title bouts. Shawn Klarcyk defends his bantamweight bet from Brandon Miller. Brian Cobb makes the first defense of his belt against Lance Wipf in the lightweight division. In a battle for the vacant welterweight title, Bryan Travers faces Jeremiah Metcalf.

-Phil Baroni vs. Olaf Alfonso
-Shawn Klarcyk vs. Brandon Miller
-Brian Cobb vs. Lance Wipf
-Bryan Travers vs. Jeremiah Metcalf
-Antonio Banuelos vs. Bryan Goldsby
-David Mitchell vs. David Suarez
-Chris Botelho vs. Anthony Bivins
-Poppies Martinez vs. Sergio Cortez
-Dustin Akbari vs. Bill Theofanopoulos
-Joe Soto vs. Brandon Jinnies
-Lavar Johnson vs. Vince Lucero
-Elvis Franco vs. Mike Craddock
-Joey Cabezas vs. Billy Terry
-Xavier Foupa-Pokam vs. Derek Thornton
-Chad Mendes vs. Giovanni Encarncacion
-Luis Gonzales vs. Elbert Randle
 
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Palhares’ coaches betting on his victory

Tomorrow UFC will view the most important fight in Rousimar Palhares’ MMA career, and his coaches bet on his victory against Dan Henderson. One of the most Brazilian Boxing coaches, Cláudio Coelho trained some of the best fighters of the world, as Murilo Bustamante, Rodrigo Nogueira, Royce and Ryan Gracie, Marco Ruas and many others, and helped Rousimar on his stand up game. “He’s really aggressive on the ground, and Murilo (Bustamante) put him to do Boxing to catch some skills, and we’re doing a special job to prepare him for this fight”, said Cláudio, that guarantees Palhares’ has an underrated stand up game.



“He’s very explosive and has a great punch that can end with a fight”, said, betting his tips on a victory. “After knowing him like I know, I can say that I think he’ll win by submission”, said Coelho. After Paulo Filho, WEC middleweight champion, said TATAME that he could bet his own house on Palhares’ victory, Zé Mário Sperry, the man that took Palhares out of Rio de Janeiro streets and put him to train at BTT, actually bet on his victory at UFC 88.



“I’m not as Las Vegas, but I put some money on him, there are people there to bet for me”, said Sperry, that is waiting for the vitory. “MMA is an unpredictable sport, but I can say that Palhares’ game is perfect to fight Dan Henderson, and I believe Henderson’s only chance is to find a punch in the beginning”, said Sperry, that thinks this fight will be fast. “I truly believe this fight will be over with a heel hook first round submission”, finished Sperry.
 
Feb 7, 2006
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Soa Palalei Looks To Get Back On Track, Back To UFC

Pride and UFC Veteran Soa Palalei will look to get back on track after losing his debut in the UFC Octagon in December 2007 when he returns to action following an injured hand on November 29th in Perth Australia.

"I'll be fighting November 29th on a big show in Perth, Australia." stated the big man "We are just awaiting confirmation on that fight then I will fight again in December and with two wins I'll have the cob webs worked out and should then find myself back in the UFC."

The monster from Australia who holds a 9-2 record, lost to Eddie Sanchez in the third round of their December UFC 79 clash via TKO. Following that bout Palalei found himself on the shelf with a hand injury that would require surgery and take him out of action.

"I broke my hand sparring so I had to get surgery to repair it. It is coming along well and will be back to 100% very soon."

The 6'2, 265lbs fighter trains out of Australia but also comes over to the USA to train at the Team Quest gym in Temecula, CA that is home to other UFC fighters Dan Henderson and Sokoudjou as well as journeyman fighter Jason "Mayhem" Miller.

"I've been training in Australia for the last little while but I plan on heading to Temecula in two weeks to pick up my training there leading up to the November fight in Perth."

Palalei's goal is to find his way back to the confines of the UFC Octagon and is working everday to get back to center stage.

"I've been training my arse off mate" Palalei said "I am looking to get back in the UFC and hopefully you will see me back sooner rather than later."