Thursday, March 31, 2011
Broken hand takes Kyle out of fight with Mousasi at "Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Daley"
A very recent broken hand has forced light-heavyweight Mike Kyle to withdraw from a fight next Saturday with former champ Gegard Mousasi at "Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Daley."Strikeforce official Mike Afromowitz today confirmed the news to MMAjunkie.com after an initial report from MMAFighting.
Afromowitz said the search for a replacement opponent is underway.
Houston Texans Atlanta Falcons Carolina Panthers Indianapolis Colts Jacksonville Jaguars New Orleans Saints
Washington's Thomas to enter draft, not hire agent
Oakland Raiders Kansas City ChiefsBen Graham Patrick Edwards Eugene Sims Aldrick Robinson Tory Collins
Episode No. 1 recap: "The Ultimate Fighter 13: Team Lesnar vs. Team Dos Santos"
Welcome to MMAjunkie.com's recap for episode No. 1 of "The Ultimate Fighter 13."The welterweights-only season of the reality show, which features Brock Lesnar and Junior Dos Santos as coaches, airs each Wednesday (9 p.m. ET/PT) on Spike TV and features 14 UFC hopefuls.
For a full rundown of the latest episode, which marked the season debut, check out this week's show summary. (Warning: Episode spoilers are included.)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers Tennessee Titans Buffalo Bills Dallas Cowboys Miami Dolphins New York Giants
Barnett needs to take care of business before Ratner and UFC let him fight in June
One of the major unresolved issues from the UFC purchase of Strikeforce is the status of Josh Barnett in the heavyweight Grand Prix. The rumor flying around UFC 128 was that Shane Carwin would be inserted into the tourney and Barnett would be removed.
Barnett presents a headache to both Strikeforce and its new parent company Zuffa because he's still not officially licensed to fight in the U.S. Barnett refuses to cooperate with California, the state that originally handed down the suspension because of a positive test back in July of 2009. He served a year penalty, but still hasn't shown his face before the California commission. The hearing has been delayed four times and Barnett no-showed a hearing on Feb. 22.
Yahoo!'s lead MMA writer Kevin Iole joined ESPN1100 in Las Vegas to tell us how the UFC is likely to handle Barnett's licensing situation. Iole suggested that Barnett is going to run into trouble with Marc Ratner and UFC brass if he doesn't go through the proper to steps to get re-licensed.
Texas Longhorns Baltimore Ravens Cincinnati Bengals Cleveland Browns Pittsburgh Steelers Chicago Bears
Gas tanks on E: Lashley and Baroni win, but look exhausted
Bobby Lashley and Phil Baroni picked up wins last night at Titan Fighting Championship 17 in Kansas City, but neither did much to ease questions about their stamina issues.
Lashley pummeled 215-pound John Ott on the ground, but looked tired in the opening minutes of the second round. The former WWE star tried to put a positive spin on the lackluster decision win, 29-27, 30-27 and 29-27.
"No, no no ... I didn't punch myself out [in the first round]. I was looking for something that wasn't there. I felt good. I needed to spend some time out there," said Lashley.
The 6-foot-2, 252-pounder did get in his 15 minutes, but it was rough sledding at times. In the second and third, when it was standing, Lashley could barely hold his arms up and when he did throw punches, they lacked sting.
On the ground, Lashley (6-1) landed some good shots, but Ott wouldn't give in.
"Not as good as I wanted to, but it's a victory. We have stuff to work on, but I felt good out there. I felt like I was in control the whole time. That's what important," said Lashley.
HDNet MMA analyst Frank Trigg refused to put a positive spin on Lashley's effort.
"He showed he can't finish a fight unless it's a guy like Wes Sims, who stands there and let's himself get beat up," Trigg said. "Basically what he is, is a high caliber college wrestler, who spent some time in the WWE, that's crossed over into fighting without learning anything else."
Lashley, just six fights into his MMA career, was trying to get things back on track after a bad loss against Chad Griggs at a Strikeforce card last August.
Lashley, 34, was manhandling Griggs in the first round, but couldn't finish him. He tired badly and was blasted out in the second round. Following the fight, Lashley hit a Houston-area hospital complaining of abnormal fatigue during the match. He was eventually diagnosed with mononucleosis. He went four months with zero training, Five weeks ago when he signed with TFC, Lashley said he felt great.
Clearly, the bout with mono wasn't the only issue. The thickly-muscled Lashley appears to have only four or five good minutes in his gas tank.
Baroni is 27 fights into his career and is still battling a similar issue. "The New York Badass" beat a kid with five pro fights, but it wasn't easy. Baroni, who used to consider MMA wrestling kind of wimpy, was forced to scrap a striking gameplan. He scored takedowns against Nick Nolte (3-3) in each round and looked to grind down the clock. Baroni (14-13) limped across the finish line with a unanimous decision victory, 29-28, 30-27 and 29-28.
"I was really tired there. I was really tired in the second," Baroni said. "He got me with some good knees to the body. Give him credit, more than saying I was out of shape. I was in shape. I had to take the fight to the ground because [of the knees]."
The 30-27 score was baffling considering Baroni, leaning against the cage for much of the final round, basically allowed Nolte to beat the snot out of him with knees, kicks and punches.� Booing and screaming loudly, the Kansas City crowd didn't appreciate Baroni's efforts.
"I needed a win. I could've stood there and made it a shootout, but I needed the win. I'll give Nick Nolte another fight. Thank you very much. I appreciate all the applause. I'll do a little better next time," Baroni said sarcastically.
Abe Wagner, a former "Ultimate Fighter 10" alum, failed to build on the momentum from his upset win over Tim Sylvia in January. He lost via submission (rear-naked choke) against Aaron Rosa.
frank mir georges st. pierre gracie inside mma joe riggs jon fitch
Thursday's "Strikeforce Challengers 15: Wilcox vs. Damm" weigh-ins open to the public
Fans are invited to Thursday's free Strikeforce Challengers 15 fighter weigh-ins.Doors open to the public at 7:30 p.m. ET (4:30 p.m. PT local time) at the Lexington Plaza Waterfront Hotel in Stockton, Calif.
Thursday's weigh-ins precede Friday's nine-fight event at Stockton Arena. The main cards airs on Showtime and marks the promotion's first event since being purchased by the UFC's parent company.
Houston Texans Atlanta Falcons Carolina Panthers Indianapolis Colts Jacksonville Jaguars New Orleans Saints
Phil Davis Beats Antonio Rogerio Nogueira at UFC Fight Night 24
In a battle of youth and athleticism against experience and technique, the youngster Phil Davis defeated the legendary Antonio Rogerio Nogueira Saturday night at UFC Fight Night 24.But it wasn't easy.
Although Davis came into the fight as a heavy favorite and had been proclaimed by some as the man who would some day beat UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones, Nogueira made life difficult for Davis in the early going, and the fight turned into a 15-minute, back-and-forth battle that was closer than the judges' scorecards -- all of which gave Davis the fight 30-27 -- would suggest.
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
Florida Gators Northwestern Wildcats Wichita State University Nebraska Cornhuskers North Carolina Tar Heels Louisiana Tech Bulldogs
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Velarde says Barry Bonds' trainer gave him injections
Source: http://www.chicagobreakingsports.com/sports/sns-ap-bbo-bonds-trial,0,7473729.story?track=rss
Philadelphia Eagles Washington Redskins New York Jets New England Patriots Denver Broncos Arizona Cardinals
Herm Edwards preaches about Cam Newton
Hannah Storm merely had to ask the question and then sit back and listen. ESPN analyst Herm Edwards got on a roll when discussing how much teams should weigh Auburn quarterback Cam Newton's so-called character issues.
"There's concerns as far as off-the-field [issues]. As far what he does on the field? Oh, he plays football -- at a high level," Edwards said Wednesday, a day after Newton visited the Buffalo Bills. "You think about his mental toughness. What he put himself through this year with some decisions he's made off the field that we haven’t come to the conclusion of what they are right now ... But he mentally stayed focused on the job at hand: playing quarterback for the University of Auburn, winning a national championship, oh, by the way, won a Heisman Trophy.
"So, through all that, he found a way to play football. Remember: You're drafting the guy to be a football player, not be a counselor for your children, not to be a role model for your children. You need to do that at home as a parent."
Edwards, the former New York Jets and Kansas City Chiefs head coach, clearly wouldn't be concerned with adding Newton to a roster.
"He has talent," Edwards said. "He has tremendous amount of talent. .... He has a presence about himself. That team followed him."
Source: http://espn.go.com/blog/afceast/post/_/id/27523/herm-edwards-preaches-about-cam-newton
California Golden Bears Texas Longhorns Baltimore Ravens Cincinnati Bengals Cleveland Browns Pittsburgh Steelers
Cincinnati hopes spring brings rebirth
CINCINNATI -- Hours after the Dec. 4 season finale against Pittsburgh ended in yet another loss, Cincinnati coach Butch Jones had every sign, picture and mention of the 2010 season removed from the Bearcats football facilities. On New Year's Eve, a restless Jones texted all of his players that he hoped they were enjoying their holiday break, but that they shouldn't expect one in 2011. A program that ascended to the top of the Big East in 2008 and 2009 saw the bottom fall out in Jones' first season as head coach. This spring, the Bearcats are trying to climb their way back up.
"We don't want to hang onto anything from 2010," linebacker JK Schaffer said. "All we were used to was winning, so last year was eye-opening for a lot of us. A shock to the system."
Cincinnati went to the Orange Bowl in 2008 and repeated as Big East champions in 2009, finishing 12-0 in the regular season and No. 3 in the final BCS standings. Jones hoped it would be a smooth transition when he took over for Brian Kelly, just as he had done at Central Michigan when Kelly left the Chippewas for the Bearcats. Instead, he inherited a team lacking depth and experience on defense that couldn't stay out of its own way en route to a 4-8 disappointment.
While there were many issues on the field, players admit there was some resistance to the new coaching staff as well.
"I feel like a lot of people weren't 100 percent bought in, even myself," defensive tackle Derek Wolfe said. "Sometimes you question things, when you win 12 games one way and then you're asked to do things a completely different way."
Wolfe said the team is now unified behind Jones because he has kept his word on every promise. Cincinnati now has a long-awaited practice field and indoor bubble, and Jones led the way to add a players' lounge and other amenities in the locker room. Now it's a matter of solving the on-the-field problems.
That starts with defense. The Bearcats led the Big East in scoring and total offense in Jones' first year but couldn't stop anybody. The good news is all 11 starters are back from 2010. Or that's the bad news, depending on how you want to look at it. Cincinnati made strides in the weight room this winter but is still undersized in its defensive front seven compared to many BCS teams. Depth is a major issue at linebacker, and the secondary has to improve on the nation's No. 88 pass defense.
On the flip side, everyone is a year older and more experienced. And the defensive system and coordinator are the same after the team went through three different schemes and coaches in three years.
"We're not installing all spring," Schaffer said. "We're not spending all our time learning. We're just sharpening our tools."
Jones hopes the defensive line can get more pressure on the quarterback. With linebacker Walter Stewart moving to defensive end and newcomers like Camaron Beard and Brad Harrah adding depth, Wolfe won't be asked to play 80 snaps a game like he was a year ago.
"It's a lot nicer knowing I won't have to play with my helmet halfway broken or my chinstrap broken," Wolfe said. "I'll have somebody come in for me now."
On offense, the Bearcats should remain explosive with the return of first team All-Big East quarterback Zach Collaros and the league's leading returning rusher, Isaiah Pead. The offensive line needs to be rebuilt, and new receivers need to step forward. Junior college transfer Kenbrell Thompkins could succeed Armon Binns as the No. 1 target.
That offense produced a lot of yards last year but also gave the ball away 29 times. Coupled with a defense that failed to make many big plays, the Bearcats ranked second to last nationally in turnover margin at minus-15. Jones said that stat kept him awake at nights this winter.
"I've never been a part of anything like that," he said. "It was just bizarre. We emphasize ball security all the time, and we researched it a lot this offseason."
One technique was on display in Tuesday's first spring practice. Even on incomplete passes, the coaching staff demanded the players treat the ball as if it were live and fight for its possession.
"It's a mindset that you're trying to create turnovers on defense," Jones said. "There's an art to scooping and scoring, and it gets everyone running to the football with a purpose."
In another new wrinkle this spring, every drill is scored. After each play, an assistant coach using a bullhorn yells out how many points the offense and defense have earned for that drill. Those points are tallied up at the end to determine a winner. The goal is to create more competitive juice.
"It really helps push people," Schaffer said. "You can tell guys to go out and do the work and they'll do it. But if you tell them they're competing, a different switch flips on in their brain and they're like, 'C'mon, let's go!'"
Cincinnati is trying to get back to competing for Big East titles. And to push 2010 far out of the memory bank.
Source: http://espn.go.com/blog/ncfnation/post/_/id/40291/cincinnati-hopes-spring-brings-rebirth
Tampa Bay Buccaneers Tennessee Titans Buffalo Bills Dallas Cowboys Miami Dolphins New York Giants
Tressel: 'I never looked at myself as perfect'
mma fight mma fight videos mma fighter mma fighters mma fighting mma fights
UFC's Alexander Gustafsson training in U.S., hoping for fight in Las Vegas
Losing is not something UFC light heavyweight Alexander Gustafsson is familiar with. In fact, his record has one lone defeat on it, and that was courtesy of current teammate and recent UFC Fight Night 24 main-event winner Phil Davis.
Following the loss, the fast-rising light-heavyweight contender opted to join Davis in the U.S. for training. Now, the 24-year-old Swedish fighter - who's fought exclusively in Europe and Asia - hopes his next UFC bout comes in the U.S.
Atlanta Falcons Carolina Panthers Indianapolis Colts Jacksonville Jaguars New Orleans Saints Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Brett Albee vs. Virgil Zwicker set for "Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Daley"
A heavyweight bout between Brett Albee and Virgil Zwicker has been added to the "Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Daley" preliminary card. MMAjunkie.com confirmed the booking with sources close to the event.
"Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Daley" takes place April 9 at Valley View Casino Center in San Diego, and the main card airs live on Showtime.
ea mma fighter mma frank mir georges st. pierre gracie inside mma
UFC's Brock Lesnar returning to the WWE? "Folks, it ain't happening very soon"
Despite persistent rumors that Brock Lesnar and the UFC may be organizing his return to the WWE, the former UFC champ said it's unlikely to happen anytime soon, if at all. Lesnar, who's on a media tour ahead of Wednesday's debut of "The Ultimate Fighter 13," today appeared on ESPN's "SportsCenter" and shot down the possibility.
Lesnar said he's perfectly content with his current situation.
Tennessee Titans Buffalo Bills Dallas Cowboys Miami Dolphins New York Giants Philadelphia Eagles
Bas says Jones will takedown ‘Shogun’ easily
Bas Rutten's reaction to Jon Jones' title shot was similar to many around the sport, "is it too soon?" The former UFC heavyweight champ and analyst for HDNet came around quickly on the style of the fight favoring Jones.
Rutten has already seen Jones toss around solid wrestlers with ease, so how is Mauricio "Shogun" Rua, going to stay off the deck?
Jones challenges Rua for his 205-pound title on Saturday in Newark, N.J. The UFC champ has devastating kicks, but Rutten doesn't think it'll be enough to slow down the 23-year-old freight train.
Rua turned pro in 2003 and has 23 fights under his belt. Jones has only been a pro since 2008, yet he opened as a minus-170 favorite over the champ. The public is firing on Jones, he's up to minus-200 off shore.
You can watch UFC 128 right here on Yahoo! Sports.
Nate Burleson Otto Graham Paul Brown Marion Motley anderson silva best mma
UFC Fight Night 24: Anthony Johnson Beats Dan Hardy
Johnson, who had been sidelined since 2009 with a knee injury, stepped up and destroyed former No. 1 welterweight contender Dan Hardy Saturday at UFC Fight Night 24.
For Johnson, it was a big win that shows that when he's healthy and in shape, he's a force to be reckoned with at 170 pounds. For Hardy, the showed, a year after he lost his welterweight title fight to Georges St. Pierre, that he still doesn't have much in the way of takedown defense or ability to fight off his back. Any good wrestler is going to give Hardy problems until he shores up those weaknesses.
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/03/26/ufc-fight-night-24-anthony-johnson-beats-dan-hardy/
Tennessee Titans Buffalo Bills Dallas Cowboys Miami Dolphins New York Giants Philadelphia Eagles
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Three Reasons to Watch Nik Lentz vs. Waylon Lowe
The UFC made nine fights available to fans live on Saturday night, with five streaming on Facebook and four on Spike TV. And if nine UFC fights wasn't enough for you (and really, is any amount of MMA ever enough?) now there's a 10th fight available live and free at UFC.tv.The preliminary bout between Nik Lentz and Waylon Lowe, which wasn't part of either the Facebook or Spike broadcast, is available in full online, and it's worth watching for a number of reasons: Lentz won again and won the way he wanted to win, Lowe got a stern talking-to afterward from one of the UFC's major decision-makers, and a mistake at the end of the first round showed once again that too many state athletic commissions lack competent employees.
Allow me to go into a little more detail.
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/03/29/three-reasons-to-watch-nik-lentz-vs-waylon-lowe/
New York Jets New England Patriots Denver Broncos Arizona Cardinals Kansas City Chiefs San Francisco 49ers
Garza bombs in Cactus League finale
dana white blog diego sanchez ea mma fighter mma frank mir georges st. pierre
Johnson flips the script on Hardy, taking him down at will for UFN 24 win
Anthony Johnson and Dan Hardy have excellent knockout power, so the fans were expecting an all-out firefight. In fact during the prefight teleconference, Johnson promised there wouldn't be any takedowns. He lied, and for good reason.
Instead, Johnson decided to prey on Hardy's biggest weakness. Johnson scored takedowns and maintained top control in every round to cruise to a unanimous decision victory, 30-27 on all three cards, in the co-main event at Ultimate Fight Night 24 in Seattle.
All five of Johnson's previous UFC wins had come via KO or TKO. Hardy's takedown defense was shown to be very weak against Georges St. Pierre at UFC 111, so Johnson turned to his JUCO wrestling pedigree. The crowd at Key Arena booed loudly at different times, but there was no reason to risk anything on the feet. Johnson outlanded Hardy 72-5 over the course of the 15 minutes.
Johnson's best moments came in the first, when he floored Hardy with a head kick, and the third when he took Hardy's back. He went from attempting choke to locking an arm-triangle choke and even worked a neck crank in the final seconds. When he rose to his feet, as the crowd howled, Johnson blew some kisses.
Hardy's lost three straight fights. This was a big one for Johnson, who'd missed the last 16 months battling injuries and recovering from knee surgery. While sidelined Johnson (9-3, 6-3 UFC) blew up to 220-plus pounds. He normally cuts a lot of weight and has suffered stamina issues in some past fights. Tonight, he looked fresh for all 15 minutes. He said during the postfight press conference that walked into the cage in this 170 pound fight somewhere between 190-195 pounds.
mma boxing mma clothing mma fight mma fight videos mma fighter mma fighters
UFC 132: Dominick Cruz vs. Urijah Faber 2
A bantamweight title fight between champion Dominick Cruz and top contender Urijah Faber will take place at UFC 132, July 2 in Las Vegas.The UFC announced Saturday that Cruz vs. Faber is set for the fight card, which as the traditional Fourth of July weekend event is usually one of the biggest of the year for the UFC. The fight will likely be the main event, with a Jon Fitch-B.J. Penn rematch serving as the co-main event.
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/03/26/ufc-132-dominick-cruz-vs-urijah-faber-2/
Houston Cougars California Golden Bears Texas Longhorns Baltimore Ravens Cincinnati Bengals Cleveland Browns