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MMA Link Club: Dana White doesn’t mind TRT usage in MMA, Lorenzo Fertitta not so much

By Zach Arnold | July 22, 2011

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This week’s MMA Link Club featured stories

Five Ounces of Pain: Conference call highlights for Fedor, Dan Henderson, Marloes Coenen, Miesha Tate

(Tate) doesn’t feel Dana White is truly informed about Women’s MMA to make a judgment call on it and thinks he’ll pay more attention now that Strikeforce is a Zuffa property, says the opportunity to prove the sport’s worth has provided extra motivation

MMA Fighting: Alistair Overeem explains why he was removed from Strikeforce GP

Winning the tournament was my number one goal. I understand their position, but they have to understand mine, and I’m disappointed we couldn’t work it out.

NBC Sports: Rashad Evans says you should pick Jon Jones over Rampage Jackson (I guess that means he will soon join the Rampage “f-bomb Twitter list”)

Cage Potato: The fight you’ve always wanted to see – Satoshi Ishii vs. Paulo Filho

Yes, a ‘retired’ HW with a self-destructive, compulsive, erratic personality versus a troubled Middleweight. Ishii has reportedly been training at Kings MMA & Reign (Mark Munoz’s gym) in Los Angeles. Furthermore, he claims that the media reports of him retiring and going to Orlando to qualify for the Olympics in Judo while trying to obtain American citizenship were either overblown or false. Yes, just like his 9-month marriage ending in divorce was false and just like him claiming he would fight Tito Ortiz on NYE last year was false, too, right?

MMA Mania: Calgary athletic commission elects not to take disciplinary action against referee in Kim Couture fight

And after a full review, the verdict is “not guilty” … of anything … at all.

As unfortunate as that is, it’s equally as ridiculous when reading the statement released by the Calgary Commission in which they threw their full support behind Len Koivisto, the referee in question.

5th Round: Lorenzo Fertitta takes firm stance against Testosterone Replacement Therapy

“I think we came off with a pretty strong response to Nate Marquardt, and kind of how we feel about TRT,” UFC co-owner Lorenzo Fertitta told ESPNRadio in Las Vegas (transcribed by Yahoo). “Our stance is we’re working with commissions to say ‘Look, this whole thing has got to come to an end.’

“If you are going to have some kind of therapy, not only can you not be at the top end of the range, you can’t be anywhere near performance-enhancing.”

Consider this double talk, given what Dana White said to HDNet about TRT usage.

I think the testosterone therapy thing, it’s real, people do do it, what it is is after guys, when you get in your 40s and 50s, men’s testosterone starts to go down so they bump it back up to the levels that they used to be and there’s guy now that are younger doing it for whatever their reasons are and, you know, it gets to the point where… how much are you taking?

Bleacher Report: Jon Fitch says he’s ‘tired of being ignored’

Middle Easy: Aw crap, Ranger UP is ‘out’ as a Strikeforce/UFC sponsor

Lowkick: Photo Gallery – Team Quest and Dan Henderson prepare for war against Fedor

Our photographer Scott Hirano traveled to the sunny Temecula in Southern California to capture the bulked-up Dan Henderson in his final preparations for July 30th. Dan Henderson’s teammates Virgil Zwicker, Tarec Saffedine, Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou and Ricardo Feleciano helped “Hendo” to strike, wrestle, and as you can see – sweat, for what is without a doubt one of the most high-profile fights in MMA history.

Make sure you check out Scott Hirano’s website at ScottHirano.com, and “Like” his Facebook page.

The Fight Nerd: ‘Dana White, King of MMA’ — review of the tell-all biography by Dana White’s mom

June gives us a detailed account of Dana’s youth and important family members that helped to shape his life. There are many stories about Dana’s drunken and abusive father and the hard life they had as a family. Want some dirt on a young DFW? He memorized Dr. Seuss books at age three, was chased by an angry rooster as a teenager, and his grandfather thought he was gay.

I don’t think this book will be a best-seller, do you?

MMA Convert: Cub Swanson saved $50,000USD by switching to HCIC

He’s the very first fighter to use the insurance after a sparring partner nailed him full force with a knee to the face, breaking his orbital, nasal, cheek and jaw bones.

MMA Payout: Ranger Up ‘out’ as sponsors for Strikeforce/UFC fighters Tim Kennedy & Liz Carmouche

Ranger Up stressed that supporting the troops will always be the primary focus of Ranger Up, whether it’s through sponsorship in MMA or other events, such as the All-Army Combative Tournaments where Tim Kennedy has made a name for himself over the years. Ranger Up is currently sponsoring over 100 troop members pursuing MMA in smaller events.

Topics: Media, MMA, StrikeForce, UFC, Zach Arnold | 24 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |

24 Responses to “MMA Link Club: Dana White doesn’t mind TRT usage in MMA, Lorenzo Fertitta not so much”

  1. 45 Huddle says:

    1) Smart pick by Rashad Evans. I don’t see any way for Rampage to beat Jones. I’m still pumped to watch Rampage get a beatdown.

    2) Add Satoshi Ishii to the list of fighters who want to be MMA fighters without fighting the best guys to prove himself.

    3) I’m with Lorenzo Fertitta on the TRT issue.

    4) Cub Swanson saving so much money…. Why is this story getting out to the public? It’s not to bash the UFC. I don’t understand it!! End Sarcasm…

    5) Cruz/Johnson free Title fight on Versus probably means the UFC is either headed to Versus now…. Or at the very least, the UFC wants to see what the best possible ratings they can get with a solid main event at this point before they make their final decision.

    6) The Cruz/Johnson fight is yet ANOTHER strike against the Overeem camp who is saying Zuffa could have easily switched dates for the Strikeforce Grand Prix. Zuffa now has FOUR title fights already in the month of October. Placing the Grand Prix also in that same month would mean nobody would be talking about it….

    • The Gaijin says:

      “2) Add Satoshi Ishii to the list of fighters who want to be MMA fighters without fighting the best guys to prove himself.”

      I think that should read “Add Satoshi Ishii to the list of [Japanese] fighters who want to be mma fighters without going through any kind of grooming/experience building process.”

      Because your statement is completely ridiculous. Ishii is a total mma newb, why the fuck would you expect him to fight “the best guys” at heavyweight? He should be fighting Shooto, GCM, whatever Australian mma promoter is around cards against guys of similar experience rather than Jerome LeBanner, Yoshida, etc. to draw big gates and pay checks.

      • 45 Huddle says:

        He’s a Heavyweight who is making the cut the LHW…. Who is fighting a short Middleweight.

        There is no problem with gaining experience.

        Doing so by fighters guys who are much smaller then you does nothing.

        There are a LOT of LHW’s out there that he could tangle with who are bigger but still not a threat to heat him.

        • David M says:

          PUT ISHII AGAINST CAIN RIGHT NOW! 45, you are out to lunch.

        • Alan Conceicao says:

          Ishii’s making the drop to 205 for this fight? Jesus, he’s a 5’11” paunchy Japanese guy fighting a gassed up 5’9” Brazilian and you’re acting like its Wladimir Klitschko boxing a midget.

      • And if he is going to fight experienced guys, he should be fighting guys who are close to or are shot, or he should be fighting smaller men.

        The idea early in a fighter’s career is to not lose. Losing kills confidence. It is stunning to see how few people understand that.

      • The Gaijin says:

        “He’s a Heavyweight who is making the cut the LHW…. Who is fighting a short Middleweight.”

        Where have you been? Filho has fought at either LHW or HW in like 6 of his last 9 fights, so this isn’t some kind of special treatment/rules for Ishii. But that wouldn’t be helpful to your argument so you’ve just tried to ignore that fact am I right?

        • Zach Arnold says:

          The size difference between Ishii and Filho is huge. Filho should not be fighting a natural HW.

        • nottheface says:

          Filho also has 24 wins to Ishii’s 4. He also has (had) world class BJJ and gives Satoshi a chance to work on his grappling defenses and control without the risk of being outclassed in the standup department. This seems to be the perfect type of fight to be made for young prospect working on his game.

        • Alan Conceicao says:

          Its also a perfectly winnable fight given that Ishii has never shown to be much of a fighter in any way, shape, or form, and Filho happens to be a guy once thought to be the true middleweight champion of the world.

          nottheface is right on the money.

  2. PL Allie says:

    Moms are writing tell-all about their sons now?

  3. Zach Arnold says:

    http://t.co/NOUBbsc

    Appropriate that I have TRT in the post title because Josh Gross is reporting that Nate Marquardt has signed a contract to fight for BAMMA in the UK.

    Won’t have to worry too much about commission testing. Remember, it was UFC administering their own drug testing that caught Chris Leben.

    • 45 Huddle says:

      One small loophole in MMA right now is TRT use by athletes. I say it’s a small loophole because they still have to inform the commissions and be at normal levels by fight time.

      One major loophole is MMA right now is fighting overseas where they don’t test at all.

      For all of the people saying that TRT will hurt the sport…. Why aren’t those same fans and journalists shouting from the rooftops about this major issue?

      Just because it’s the way it’s always been done, doesn’t make it right.

      • The Gaijin says:

        Until there’s out of competition testing it is a MAJOR loophole and is absolutely no different than steroid cycling.

  4. Jonathan says:

    What is with all of the “#ufc” at the top of the headlines Zach?

  5. larrycraig says:

    One small loophole in MMA right now is TRT use by athletes. I say it’s a small loophole because they still have to inform the commissions and be at normal levels by fight time.

    What a shocker 45 sides with Dana White on the TRT issue. Actually if they are at normal levels by fight time then they can easily get away with not telling the commission. Acccepting this logic is the same as the logic that you can use steroids, as long as your levels are at normal levels by fight time. I’d call that a HUGE loophole.

  6. edub says:

    Man I would absolutely hate the Johnson-Cruz match if i wasn’t going to make money off of it. Johnson barely got by Torres (IMO he didn’t). His wrestling isn’t as good as Faber, Benavidez, or Bowles. His striking isn’t as good as any of those either. He’s a lower class fighter then the three mentioned, Brad Pickett, and probably a few more that didn’t get named. This fight irritates the hell out of me, and appears to be a “stay busy” defense for Cruz.

    I don’t understand why the UFC doesn’t groom Benavidez and Johnson with decent but beatable opponents for a year then set thim up with the first flyweight title fight. It makes so much sense to me.

  7. fd2 says:

    I don’t particularly like Ishii (he’s boring both in and out of the ring) and I don’t think he’s particularly good, either, but I’m honestly pretty surprised by the amount of venom Zach has for him.

    Like I’m not the kind of guy that claims every dude hates a fighter has some kind psychological issue, but damn, Zach. You act like Ishii personally disappointed you.

    • Zach Arnold says:

      I generally look at fighters from a professional standpoint rather than an emotional standpoint, given how many scandals and phony people there can be in this business.

      With that said, Ishii in many ways incorporates the worst of both worlds and I think my opinion is very reflective of how a lot of Japanese fight fans feel about him.

      I’m not here to be the moral police, but I do care about issues like drug usage because this is a ‘hurt’ business and having guys raging in a cage with out-of-control testosterone levels is not a good idea. Neither is having fighters in the cage who are erratic decision makers.

      In many ways, Ishii’s personal life effects his professional life. This is a man who has, IMO, demonstrated extremely impulsive, selfish, self-destructive, unbalanced judgment. He was literally given a golden ticket to make millions of dollars in Japan and help keep MMA relevant on a national scale in the country, all while taking baby steps to learn the game. Instead, he failed miserably at understanding or caring about what fans wanted to see or how he appeared to the masses & the press. He was backed by a powerful management team that had set the table for him and he basically thumbed his nose at it.

      Remember, he was a national hero in Japan. It’s really hard to screw that kind of good will up, but he did. I respect people who are independent and, as someone who often ends up taking the hard way in life instead of the easy way, I can value someone who doesn’t sing to the normal beat of the drum. With that stated, look at what happened. He doesn’t like taking a punch, which isn’t a great sign for a fighter but you can work around it. He fought such an ugly style that normally reserved fans were booing him, to the point that fans were cheering for Jerome Le Banner over him on a New Year’s Eve show. Ishii’s TV ratings were never explosively high because he didn’t want to do the things needed to be a star.

      And once the NYE debacle happened, things kind of fell apart. Before that NYE fight, he was claiming he was going to fight Tito Ortiz (and he didn’t). Then he ended up showing up in front of the press to admit that he didn’t fight in Strikeforce because he had to finish getting a divorce after 9 months of marriage to a college girl. He got married, all the while relocating to Los Angeles and left the woman in Japan. What was he thinking? Then, on top of that, came the stories that he was going to get his US Citizenship so that he could participate in Olympic trials in Orlando.

      Now, out of nowhere, we see he’s going to fight a Middleweight in Paulo Filho amidst reports that he’s been training at Kings MMA & Reign with Mark Munoz. Then he supposedly said that the reports of him going back to Judo and becoming a US citizen were blown out of proportion. What?

      At what point do I sit here and give this guy the benefit of the doubt? Do I think he could have a minimum amount of success as a fighter? Maybe so, but he hasn’t done much so far to illustrate that you should put your trust & faith into his career.

      • fd2 says:

        I agree with most of this, and thank you for making your position clear. One thing I should point out is that you always seem to put “reportedly” or “allegedly” whenever you refer to him training at Kings/Reign – almost every training video I’ve seen of Munoz, Jason Miller, or Werdum has had Ishii in the background somewhere. At this point I don’t think it’s worthwhile to doubt the fact that he’s training regularly at Reign.

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