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Ring Psychology: Bas Rutten on Don Frye, Billy Blanks, Street Fighting and His New Status as a Role Model
by JonathanSnowden on Sep 2, 2010 10:00 AM EDT
in MMA Interview
12 comments
In the fourth edition of Ring Psychology, Dave Walsh and Jonathan Snowden talk with MMA reporter Josh Nason who covered UFC 118 live in Boston. Nason talks about what it's like to cover the sport's biggest promotion and then breaks down the show. The guys also discuss how his second loss in a row changes BJ Penn's legacy.
Then, as it tends to do when he's around, things get interesting when the legendary Bas Rutten joins the show to talk about his amazing announce team with Don Frye at Shark Fights 13, Billy Blanks, street fighting, and his new status as a role model.
On who could possibly control a broadcast booth at Shark Fights 13 with both Bas and Don Frye:
I have no idea, but I think I am going to be the person who tries to contain the situation a little bit. Because this could go really bad. Like, really funny, but for some people my humor - my wife always says 'You're a psychopath. You know the only reason people laugh is because they are afraid of you.' And Don is a little bit crazy too.
On changing his image to work with the Cartoon Network:
Needless to say, they don't like me to be over the top violent anymore. No middle fingers and "f-bombs" and all that stuff now. Thank God I didn't do that as much anyway. Still, you don't want to have posters now where you say 'F Terrorists' like those ones I used to have. I simply can't do that anymore.
Rutten begins at approximately the 37 minute mark. You can also hear Dave's dog in the background and lots of other tomfoolery. I swear we are cleaning up our act for the next show. Download the show on I Tunes or listen to it streaming with our partners at AngryMarks. Next week I'll be back with improved audio and more exciting guests. Thanks for listening.
After the jump a selection from the legendary Bas Rutten's Lethal Street Fighting as discussed on the show, as well as a classic fight.
Brock Lesnar's Coach Talks Shane Carwin and Cain Velasquez
by Nick Thomas on Sep 2, 2010 9:39 AM EDT
in UFC Video
2 comments
Erik Paulson on:HT: fighthub.tv
0:41 Brock mainly training conditioning for Shane Carwin
1:30 Being nervous before the Carwin fight
2:24 When Brock got dropped by the uppercut from Carwin
3:18 What they told Brock in-between rounds
3:32 The shoulder triangle choke being the only submission Brock trained
4:47 Brock being humble after the fight
5:30 Needing sparring partners for Cain Velasquez
6:43 The size and power difference between Cain and Brock
Alan Belcher's eye is still not doing well
"We are home He is in a lot of pain though Next few weeks are really important He has to lay face down :( thanks for prayers."
James Toney Wants to Keep Fighting MMA, Kimbo Slice More Than Willing to Fight Him
by Kid Nate on Sep 2, 2010 12:04 AM EDT
in MMA News
59 comments
The UFC tried to put Kimbo Slice and James Toney together, but Toney turned it down. Now although the UFC is done with both fighters, it appears there is an opportunity to book that fight. For his part, Kimbo is open to facing Toney, via MMA Fighting:
"I never heard anything about me fighting James Toney, but you know, like I said, again, I'll fight anybody, man. C'mon, everybody knows that about me from my street-fighting days. Put anybody in front of me, train me to be the best, I'll fight the best. That's one thing about Kimbo Slice that everybody knows."
And Toney's trainer Trevor Sherman, says there is also interest from other promotions in Toney fighting more MMA, again via MMA Fighting:
"I still love James," Sherman said. "I hope he doesn't stop doing MMA, and if the UFC does release him ... trust me -- there's plenty of interest."
Sherman also says that he had wanted Kimbo for Toney:
"I wanted him to fight Kimbo -- I thought he should have done that as a tune-up, but James didn't want a tune-up," Sherman said. "It was his first fight, and it was against one of the best. Randy wouldn't allow any room for error. Randy is probably the best ever at game planning."
Even though the former EliteXC leadership -- ie Gary and Jared 'Skala' Shaw are currently embarking on a boxing career for Kimbo, one would think that there's enough interest in a Kimbo Slice vs James Toney mma fight to get that booked. It would add a lot of drawing power to say, a Strikeforce card on Showtime or even CBS.
The funny thing is, even though Toney vs Slice is still a viable fight economically, I think Dana White made the right call to dump both men from the UFC. He's already gotten a good squeeze out of each fighter and it would potentially erode the promotion's reputation for quality to go back for more.
Booking Kimbo Slice in a boxing bout against James Toney would make no sense. Toney would crush him in all likelihood and with it, any chance to milk Kimbo as a draw in the boxing ring, where Toney hasn't drawn in years.
KSW 14 Preview: Mariusz Pudzianowski Talks Eric "Butterbean" Esch
by Nick Thomas on Sep 1, 2010 11:22 PM EDT
in MMA News
34 comments
"You’ll see a much leaner and fifteen kilograms lighter Pudzian. I’m smaller, but much faster."-- Check out the full interview at konfrontacja.com. Pudzianowski vs. Butterbean on Sept. 18th in Poland.
"I have lifted weights for more than twenty years, it was impossible to built an MMA conditioning in a few months. I have concentrated on improving this aspect for the last three or four months."
"I need to keep my distance and be careful not to get to (Butterbeans) close range. I’m pretty sure you’ll be surprised at what you see from me. I have worked hard for four months and there is a progress."
"Even if Butterbean had lifted weights in preparations for this bout, he’ll never match my strength. Snatching and throwing him on the ground won’t be a problem."
"Butterbean you said that Pudzian hits like a girl. Come to Poland and I’ll show you how Polish girls hit."
KSW 14: Judgement Day coverage
Bellator 27 Weigh-in Results
by Chris Nelson on Sep 1, 2010 6:42 PM EDT
in Bellator News
50 comments
Watch today's official weigh-ins and pre-fight presser for Bellator Fighting Championships 27 right here at BloodyElbow.com, then join us back here on Thursday night at 8:00 PM ET for live results and discussion with the start of the Fox Sports Net broadcast.
In the main event, Season One featherweight tournament winner Joe Soto becomes the first Bellator champion to defend his title, putting his unbeaten record on the line against Season Two winner Joe Warren. The other televised bouts wrap up the opening round this season's bantamweight tourney, with three men advancing to join Jose Vega in the semifinals.
Official weigh-in results:
Bellator Featherweight Championship Bout
Joe Soto (144.8 lbs.) vs. Joe Warren (143.6 lbs.)Bellator Season 3 Bantamweight Tournament Quarterfinals
Travis Reddinger (135 lbs.) vs. Ulysses Gomez (135.2 lbs.)
Zach Makovsky (134.4 lbs.) vs. Nick Mamalis (135.8 lbs.)
Bryan Goldsby (135.8 lbs.) vs. Ed West (135 lbs.)Local Feature Fights
Andrew Craig (184 lbs.) vs. Rodrigo Pinheiro (185 lbs.)
Aaron Barringer (154.4 lbs.) vs. Gilbert Jimenez (154.2 lbs.)
Dale Mitchell (264.2 lbs.) vs. Richard Odoms (260.4 lbs.)
Joe Christopher (170.6 lbs.) vs. Andrew Chappelle (169.6 lbs.)
Jon Kirk (205 lbs.) vs. Shane Faulkner (204.6 lbs.)
Steven Peterson (145.5 lbs.) vs. Ernest de la Cruz (144.4 lbs.)
Zuffa and Media Manipulation at UFC 118
by Mike Fagan on Sep 1, 2010 5:50 PM EDT
in UFC Event
248 comments
The UFC doesn't limit its media manipulation to dedicated MMA websites and outlets. Snarky sports blog Deadspin sent out Luke O'Brien to cover UFC 118 in Boston. I don't think O'Brien would describe Zuffa's PR wing as laissez-faire:
As I settled into press row, I couldn't help but reflect upon my recent dealings with the UFC public relations machine, which seems to grow by the day, an indication both of the UFC's unruly expansion and — for a company trafficking in sanctioned brutality — its incredibly thin skin. Things had not gone well. The flacks disapproved of my scribbling and, at one point, suggested I focus more on the action in the cage and less on celebrities tugging pud at urinals. It was apparently deemed gratuitous. I was told I'd made rookie mistakes. I was told, in other words, to get in line. As a pre-condition for granting credentials, an infinitely more accommodating flack nevertheless asked what I "hope[d] to accomplish at UFC 118."
...
And we close with following observation. In the information packet given to each reporter before the fights, there was a glossy reproduction of a recent paean to White in the Boston Globe magazine. We've all read this same story so many times, and in every one White seems to grow exponentially richer. The UFC president now has two Ferraris gathering dust from disuse. He thinks nothing of losing $500,000 in an hour at a blackjack table. He pays $2,500 a month in nuisance fees to maintain a huge water slide in his backyard for his kids. On and on go the details of White's happy excess. I dunno. Seems gratuitous.
There's two things to touch on here.
1) Deadspin is a very large sports site. They know their audience. Readers aren't visiting Deadspin for vanilla event reports. They want humor. They want peripherals. They want to be entertained.
Sometimes the sporting event itself isn't the story. One of the most famous pieces about the Kentucky Derby has little to do with equine and equestrians. I'm not suggesting Zuffa allow drug-filled zanies to run around the arenas at the MGM Grand and Mandalay Bay, but the ideal media shouldn't operate as a willing mouthpiece for its subjects either. If Zuffa only wants a narrow brand of coverage, they might be better served banning all independent media and only providing official press releases to various outlets.
2) I'm cautious to touch on the Boston Globe puff piece being handed out at press row. It feels like a cartoonish exaggeration of Dana White's ever growing ego. Surely, it must be satire?
UFC Welterweight Mike Pierce Makes Convincing Case for Relevant Fights After Dominating Performance
by Leland Roling on Sep 1, 2010 3:30 PM EDT
in UFC Event
47 comments
Success in the UFC's welterweight division is hard to come by these days. The division is filled with nineteen of the top twenty-five welterweights in the world on our USAT/SBN rankings, and that makes it a true shark-infested ocean of talent. So, believe me when I say it's very tough for anyone to come in at the bottom of the depth chart and find the motivation to work their way up through the ranks.
Mike Pierce is one of the few who have found success in the bottom rungs of the division, and he continued his progression toward the top of the division Saturday night on UFC 118's preliminary card. In a very intriguing style match-up that pitted Pierce against Nova Uniao prospect Amilcar Alves, Pierce had the opportunity to derail a heavily-hyped talent while simultaneously earning his third win. On paper, Alves looked like he may be a future destroyer in a division filled with wrestling talent. Great Muay Thai, solid grappling skills, and the knockout power that nearly every Brazilian striker possesses. Unfortunately, Mike Pierce stood in his way.
Pierce dominated Amilcar Alves for three rounds. While it wasn't a complete drubbing in the sense that Pierce was making mincemeat of Alves' face, Alves had no answer for Pierce's outstanding wrestling, strength, and clinch game. Furthermore, Pierce wore out Alves against the fence, dumping him repeatedly until Alves succumbed to a straight armbar from half guard in the third round -- earning Pierce his first win via stoppage in the UFC.
Pierce isn't going to be a fan favorite, let's make that clear. He's a grinding wrestler who has the strength, conditioning, and underrated striking game to be a Jon Fitch prototype. He's intelligent when it comes to his strategy, only resorts to striking when he's confident he can win exchanges, and relies on takedowns and wrestling to eliminate threats to him on the feet. He's the perfect blue collar, grind 'em out athlete, and while some fans will absolutely hate to watch him fight -- I can't help but appreciate what he brings to the cage.
Bigger fights should be on the horizon, and Pierce has already suggested who Joe Silva should put in the Octagon with him. While he's perfectly content with battling whoever the UFC puts in front of him, Pierce called out Jon Fitch's last opponent, Thiago Alves, when asked by MMAJunkie.com Radio:
"[Fitch] was all over him, man" Pierce said. "I don't know if it was the weight cut or something mentally that got to [Alves] maybe. He just did not look like the same fighter as in their previous fight.
"I felt I did a lot better against Jon Fitch than Thiago did his last time around. I think it would be a pretty good fight, a lot of fireworks. There would be a lot of excitement."
Surprising to most fans, Pierce was a very game opponent for Jon Fitch. Coming in on short notice, Pierce was able to wrestle with him for most of the fight, and he even stunned Fitch late in the third round, buckling him and nearly ending his run at title contention. Pierce lost the decision, but he certainly gained the respect of many fans who felt the bout was an easy win for Fitch.
Other UFC welterweights should be on notice. Mike Pierce is not a name you want to see being spit out of a fax machine on a fight agreement. I'm fairly confident that Pierce can beat most of the welterweights outside of the top 10, and I wouldn't be surprised if he can keep Thiago Alves on his back for 15 minutes either. Pierce's time has come, and he'll be taking the steps forward to solidify himself as a top ten welterweight within the next year.
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