Sep

26

As the editor of MMA Bulletin I’m very pleased to announce the addition of Steven Cha to our ever-growing team of writers and MMA addicts. Steven has trained at Renzo Gracie’s academy in NYC along with Fight House. He currently trains at Daddis MMA and also wrestled at Rutgers University where Frankie Edgar is currently assistant coach.

You can look forward to interviews by Steven with top fighters from the UFC, Dream and EliteXC soon.

As always if you would like to apply to write for MMA Bulletin or feel you have something to contribute then send email to the editor@mmabulletin.com

MMA Bulletin Welcomes Steven Cha

Sep

25

By: James Denly

We are now a little over a week away from Elite XC’s next live event on CBS airing October 4th.  The main event will feature a heavyweight bout between Elite XC’s poster child Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson and “The World’s Most Dangerous Man” Ken Shamrock.  Kimbo is coming off of a controversial TKO win over James Thompson in May.  While the 44 year old Shamrock has lost his last 5 fights by KO.  His last win was a TKO victory over Kimo Leopoldo at UFC 48 in June of 2004.  Although this looks like Elite XC is just spoon feeding another opponent for Kimbo to destroy, Shamrock will be the most credible fighter that Kimbo has faced yet, even though he hasn’t won a fight in over 4 years.  Although way past his prime at the ripe age of 44, Shamrock still poses some big challenges and can truly give Kimbo a run for his money.  Let’s break down each of these fighters’ strengths and weaknesses.

Let’s start off with Kimbo Slice.  Kimbo is well known for his street fights that have been posted up on youtube.com.  Although he is still very new to the sport of MMA, Kimbo still brings a few tools to the table that can make him a threat in this fight.  First off, he will definitely have advantage of strength in this fight.  Kimbo is an incredibly powerful man and has awesome vicious knockout power in both hands.   If he can connect with one of his punches it could be a short night for Shamrock.  Another big factor is that Kimbo is a lot younger than Shamrock.  Shamrock can’t move like he used to and Kimbo is still relatively young and agile.  Kimbo needs to put a lot of pressure on Ken and make him wilt.  The other big strength for Kimbo is his corner.  Training under a legend like Bas Rutten increases anyone’s chances of winning.  Now let’s look at Kimbo’s weaknesses.  The first big disadvantage is Kimbo’s lack of technique.  Kimbo is primarily a brawler and if Ken makes this a technical bout, it could be a rough night for Kimbo.  Another problem with Kimbo is his ground game.  Shamrock is a ground specialist and Kimbo didn’t look to impressive on the ground in his last fight.  Lastly, Kimbo’s stamina could be a big factor.  In his 3 fights Kimbo has only gone past the first round once.  In his fight with James Thompson, the fight went into the third round and Kimbo was drained.  If this fight goes into the later rounds, Kimbo could be in some trouble.

Now, let’s take a look at Ken Shamrock.  Shamrock is a UFC Hall of Famer and MMA legend.  He has also defeated some of the greats such as Dan Severn, Bas Rutten, and Maurice Smith.  Even though he hasn’t won a fight in over 4 years, Shamrock can still be a danger to Kimbo in this fight.  For starters, Ken will definitely have the experience factor.  He has been through some tough battles in the past and knows what it takes to win.  Kimbo is still a new comer and if he makes a mistake, Shamrock can easily make him pay.  The other big strength for Shamrock is his technique.  He needs to make this a technical bout where he can pick Kimbo apart.  Finally, Shamrock’s ground game is far superior to Kimbo’s.  Shamrock has won most of his fights by submission and should look to do the same here.  However, he does have some weaknesses as well.  First off is his age.  Shamrock is way out of his prime and has taken a lot of damage over the years.  Who knows how physically well prepared he will be for this fight.  Another weakness is his chin.  Kimbo packs a lot of power in those hands and Shamrock’s last 5 fights ended with him being knocked out.  Finally, his biggest disadvantage in my opinion is his ego.  Ken tends to go out and try to prove something in his fights and he tends to not fight the smart fight.  Ken needs to be smart about this fight and make it a technical bout.  If he goes out there and tries to prove something by slugging it out with Kimbo, it could end very quickly and very bad for Shamrock.

This fight has a lot riding on the line for both fighters.  For Kimbo, this fight proves that he can actually be a fighter with some credibility and that he’s not some side show attraction.  For Shamrock, this truly is a make or break fight.  Not many people can come back from losing 6 fights in a row.  Plus what will this fight do for his legacy?  This fight may not have as much star appeal as true MMA fans would like to see, but it will still be interesting.  I’m leaning slightly towards Kimbo in this one, but don’t count out Shamrock.  Either way, by the end of the night we’ll know one thing.  Either Kimbo is the real deal (sort of), or Shamrock still has what it takes.  It should be fun to watch.

Breakdown of Shamrock vs Slice

Sep

24

By Steve Cha

Unfortunately for mma fans, it seems that the Wanderlei “Axe Murderer” Silva and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson fight has been scrapped from the UFC 91 card. Kevin Iole, sportswriter for Yahoo sports, has reported that it is a “very fluid situation” but that a reliable source has confirmed that the most likely date for the fight is now Jan. 31 on the UFC 93 SuperBowl weekend card.

UFC 93 is currently headlined by a super fight between UFC light heavyweight champion BJ Penn and UFC welterweight champion George St Pierre. Wanderlei Silva, who currently trains at Extreme Couture, picked up his first UFC victory against journeyman Keith Jardine via vicious knockout 0:36 seconds in the first round. Quinton “Rampage” Jackson recently signed with London base gym Wolfslair. Jackson had put together a training camp to prepare for the Nov. 15th, UFC 91 fight. Jackson’s legal troubles and current situation with long time trainer/mentor Juanito Ibarra could explain the later date.

Please send hate mail and fan mail to stevecha@gmail.com

Quinton Rampage Jackson vs Wanderlei Silva Bout Tentatively Set For Jan. 31st at UFC 93

Sep

24

By Steve Cha

Gegard Mousasi (24-2-1) has made his statement to the MMA world. Mousasi made short work of striking phenom Melvin Manhoef (22-5), submitting him via armbar at the 1:28 mark of the first round. Manhoef commented, “I was surprised I thought he was going to stand and trade with me. It was my own fault for not being prepared and not taking him seriously.”

Brazilian submission specialist, Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza (10-2) had an impressive semifinal showing, submitting Zelg Galesic (9-4) via armbar at 1:27 mark of the first round.

In the finals, Ronaldo Souza started the round with an explosive takedown. Mousasi seemed very calm off his back and Souza stands up in Mousasi’s guard. Souza attempts a superman punch and is caught with an up kick from Mousasi. Souza is knocked out and the 2008 Dream Middleweight Champion is crowned.

In the past two weeks, many words have been exchanged between these two fighters. The normally stoic Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovicc (23-6-2) replied to Alistair Overeem (28-11)  “I don’t like commenting other fighters; it’s not my thing. But Alistair, you should save your strength for a real fight, because it’s coming. When I see you in the opposite corner, then I’ll talk.”

This highly anticipated heavyweight bout ended in a controversial No Contest decision. Alistair Overeem seemed to be dominating the smaller Filipovicc. Overeem clearly had the advantage in the clinch, throwing Crocrop down and raining down hammer fists in the Croatians guard. Overeem continued to dominate the fight on the ground and in the clinch, however two illegal low blows too Crocrop, forced the referee to rule the fight a No Contest.

Fedor Emelianenko made an appearance at the event and rumors were circulating he would fight the winner of the Crocrop/Overeem fight on the Dream’s New Years Eve card. Without a winner, Fedor’s future opponent on the Dream NYE card is uncertain.

WEC veteran Todd Moore (9-2) had the unenviable task of facing submission specialist Shinya Aoki (17-3). Aoki took Moore’s back immediately and sat down Moore in the corner and sunk in an unorthodox neck crank for the tap at 1:10 mark of round one.

In the reserve bout, Andrews Nakahara (1-1) defeated Dong Sik Yoon (4-6) with a TKO finish 30 seconds in the second frame after surviving a first round mount and several choke attempts by the Korean judo fighter.

Sergei Kharitonov (16-3), former teammate of Fedor Emelianenko, forced American fighter Jimmy Ambriz (13-10-1) to tap due to strikes at the 2:15 mark of the first round.

Hayato Sakurai (33-8-2) picked apart Kuniyoshi Hironaka (12-6) with vicious leg kicks on route to a unanimous decision victory.

Pancrase veteran Masakatsu Funaki (39-13-1) made short work of Pride veteran Ikuhisa Minowa (40-29-8) submitting Minowa at just the :52 seconds of the first round.

Please send hate mail and fan mail to Stevecha@gmail.com

Gegard Mousasi Crowned as 2008 Dream Middleweight Champion, Crocrop/Overeem Fight Ends in Controversy, Fedor rumored to be fighting on Dream’s NYE card.

Sep

24

Here is the second of two parts of comrad101’s Championship Chaos: Top 10 MMA Title Fights. Enjoy!

Championship Chaos Top 10 MMA Title Fights Part 2 (video)

Sep

20

Josh Neer v Nate Diaz
Diaz looked tough in both the 1st and 3rdrounds. Two things really stood out to me during the fight. The first was Josh Neer’s Submissions. Neer Through up a lot of submissions. The Second was Diaz’s ability to get of the submissions. Diaz’s transitions on the ground were quite impressive which often after submission escapes. Neer seemed to control the stand up however Diaz did have points where he seemed to have found his distance and looked to have Neer in trouble. In all truth the fight came down to who had won the first round. Round 2 seemed to be in Neer’s favor while round 3 was in Diaz’s favor. In the end Diaz would earn the decision. In my mind I had thought Diaz had done just enough to win the first round however had Neer won, I would not have been totally surprised.

Mac Danzig v Clay Guida
This decision was quite obvious. Guida used his strong point, wrestling, to pound out Mac Danzig while keeping his technique at bay. Danzig never really had much time to capitalize on the feet as Guida would get the takedown before any huge damage could be done. Guida did a good job using knees to wear his opponent’s legs. The knees also made Guida look good on the cards showing him striking while his opponent was not in a good position to attack. Overall the fight was a good plan and execution by Guida.

Ed Herman v Alan Belcher
Ed Herman showed very good strikes from the feet and looked quite improved. Belcher managed to get his kicks off having flashes of greatness. The ground was controlled by Herman to say the least. Overall I was surprised to Belcher take the decision but like they say never let it go to the judges.

Houston Alexander v Eric Schafer
Another classic Houston match. Houston knees were very borderline. His striking resembled to a point his two wins in the UFC. Alexander kept Schafer’s takedown attempts at bay for a while looking improved at keeping to a plan and not just getting caught up in the moment. Once Schafer got the takedown however it was all over. Schafer took his time and once he secured mount he did not let it go. Schafer dropped some good strikes striking fear into the eyes of Omaha fans. The arm triangle was quite visible in its set up but was applied very well. Schafer did cut it a little close however with the fight coming to an end with the submission in the final moments of the round.

Joe Lauzon v Kyle Bradley
Joe Lauzon looked good at the beginning with a very talented and high risk takedown almost securing a submission. His hands did not look as good as they have. Bradley looked to be improved both on his feet and on the ground. In the end Lauzon got the win.

Alessio Sakara v Joe Vedepo
Easily Sakara’s best showing his standup looked at his best and won with a devastating kick that rivaled many highlight film knockouts.

Ryan Jensen v Wilson Gouveia
Jensen looked really good striking from the top once he secured the takedown. Gouveia seemed to come real close in the first round to securing submissions however Jensen would continue his onslaught. During the second round while continuing the assault from top Jensen succumbed to an arm bar. A good showing to a point for Jensen however it was Gouveia who would get the win in not his best showing ever.

Jason Brilz v Brad Morris
Brilz showed his wrestling taking Morris down at will. The only chink in Brilz’s arm seemed to come from his standup. While it would not cost him the match it is a point he will need to work on in the future. Brilz controlled Morris moving from one position to a better one. Brilz’s back control was very good you would expect. Look for Brilz to possible pose some problems to other light- heavyweights.

Drew McFedries v Mike Massenzio
Massenzio looked a lot better then previously getting the takedown early getting McFedries out of his best position, standup. Massenzio showed good grappling getting the submission.

Dan Miller v Rob Kimmons
Dan Miller showed his skills taking Kimmons back quick and early. Kimmons defended the choke well but did eventually succumb to it. Overall a great showing for Dan Miller.

Other Notes
Almost no one sat down during the Houston fight. However during the main event many stayed in their seats. The sound level was unbelievable rivaling many Nebraska football games.

Jens Pulver was in attendance. I got to meet him; he was very nice and even took photographs with fans.

Diaz actually seemed to receive a louder cheer from the fans in comparison to the Iowa fighter Neer.

The event was packed, with many fans wearing husker red.

Overall was a great debut in Nebraska. Hopefully it will help further the sport in the State of Nebraska.

UFC Fight Night 15 Review by a Fan in Attendance - Henry

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