This week’s media storyline: Randy Couture is really old and Nogueira looks old, too
By Zach Arnold | August 24, 2009
Age may only be a number, but I’m not sure if that’s the kind of storyline that will generate sympathy heat for either man, although I suspect that Couture will undoubtedly get the bigger reaction. A friend of mine did make an interesting observation, which is that Nogueira could have some fans going into this fight because he has more to lose/gain than Couture does. Randy has made his money and will continue to do so after retirement. Nogueira? Not so much.
Here’s a photo gallery of a recent Couture work-out. The Las Vegas Sun tries to tie in Couture’s roots in Oregon/Washington with the upcoming fight, although UFC has reportedly being giving away free tickets with paid ticket blocks for the Rose Garden event.
I will say this for Couture, though — this may be the first fight in forever that he’s been involved in where the questions of age and punishment are focused on his opponent.
Nogueira is the underdog going into the fight. At BetUS, Couture is a -180 favorite and Nogueira is a +150 underdog. If Couture loses to Nogueira, will this be the end?
Bonus question: Do you think the average, casual UFC fan cares at all about Nathan Marquardt vs. Demian Maia? (Odds for the fight at BetUs: Marquardt -160, Maia +130)
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 39 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Despite spam and trolls, we’re here with the latest headlines
By Zach Arnold | August 23, 2009
A combination of trolls and spammers who flooded our site over the weekend made our life a little annoying, but we’re back and ready to keep things going. If your comment gets caught in moderation, don’t worry about it — just get a hold of me through the contact form. Right now, our site is getting bombarded with a lot of spam from Russia (I have no clue why).
Ryo Chonan defeated Jutaro Nakao by unanimous decision at today’s DEEP event in Tokyo at Korakuen Hall. In the semi-main event, Takafumi Otsuka defeated Dokonjonosuke Mishima after 3R by a unanimous decision for the DEEP Featherweight title. Masakazu Imanari defeated Tomohiko Hori after 3R by a unanimous decision for the DEEP Bantamweight title. Bernard Ackah KO’d Ryushi Yanagisawa in R1.
Onto some other media headlines…
- The Las Vegas Sun: Randy Couture whips MMA writer Matthew Polly into shape and Polly wins
- KGMB 9 Honolulu: BJ Penn draws crowd at Best Buy to promote his new book
- KHON 2 Honolulu: Bryan Clay has something to say about BJ Penn’s pool jumping
- The Miami Herald: Cain Velasquez deserves a title shot in UFC (did the writer watch the fight with Cheick Kongo?)
- Sports Illustrated: Shane Carwin ready for Brock Lesnar challenge (but he won’t give up engineer job during training)
- The Chico Enterprise Record (CA): Wanderlei Silva arrives to give a seminar (go Chico! Wanderlei even got a new tattoo in the city and is bringing the Chico guys to Las Vegas to train with him…)
- The Fort Myers News-Press (Florida): Seth “Smoothie King” Petruzelli wins his first fight since beating Kimbo Slice
- USA Today: How Bad News Brown trained Krzysztof Soszynski in real fighting
- The Boston Herald: Kenny Florian stands by brother’s claims that BJ Penn gouged him in the eye multiple times in UFC 101 fight
- WMUR 9 New Hampshire: Combat Zone MMA event draws good crowd and Pat Miletich cornered a main event fighter at the show
- Doghouse Boxing: Floyd Mayweather says ‘white boys’ can’t box
Topics: Boxing, Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 27 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Independent World MMA Rankings – August 21, 2009
By Zach Arnold | August 20, 2009
From the office of the Independent World MMA Rankings
August 21, 2009: The August 2009 Independent World MMA Rankings have been released. These rankings are independent of any single MMA media outlet or sanctioning body, and are published on multiple web sites.
Some of the best and most knowledgeable MMA writers from across the MMA media landscape have come together to form one independent voting panel.
Continue reading this article here…
Topics: Media, MMA, Zach Arnold | 51 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
RSS feeds
By Zach Arnold | August 20, 2009
I tried adding feeds for Gracie Mag, Fight Hype, etc. However, either feeds: a) don’t exist, b) do exist but don’t function properly and can’t be processed, or c) are hidden behind firewalls. Why? I have no idea.
A tip to sites that have news content or radio shows and want to be listed on this site — make sure your feeds function properly. (Use an online RSS validator to check into this.) We need to add new feeds to the site, so…
One other bit of advice – if you use Google Analytics or other traffic-analyzing programs, it may effect the way your RSS feed outputs. Make sure to do proper maintenance.
Topics: Media, MMA, Zach Arnold | No Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Comments: Scott Coker talks about UFC and ‘the war’ with Strikeforce
By Zach Arnold | August 20, 2009
With Coker indicating that perhaps Fedor may not fight until 2010, we needed some heavyweight excitement… but it’s in UFC, with news of Brock Lesnar vs. Shane Carwin on 11/21 in Las Vegas. The semi-main event on that show could be Tito Ortiz vs. Mark Coleman.
Topics: Media, MMA, StrikeForce, UFC, Zach Arnold | 18 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Is it time for Keith Kizer to approve Big John McCarthy back into the fold?
By Zach Arnold | August 20, 2009
We know that UFC has been vocal about certain referees they like and don’t like (Steve Mazzagatti being one of them), so it’s obvious that when you’re the top promoter in your sport you have a lot of political power because of your financial clout.
We also know that Keith Kizer has not always had the most glowing opinion of Big John McCarthy, a reason perhaps as to why McCarthy isn’t officiating in Nevada. Given the shaky referee work that we’ve seen in 2009 in MMA, is it time for Keith Kizer to publicly endorse or embrace bringing back Big John McCarthy as a referee in Nevada for MMA events?
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 20 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
A note on comment policy
By Zach Arnold | August 19, 2009
- Use normal text, along with standard HTML (when needed). If you are responding to someone’s specific comment, use blockquote + italics. If you quote and use their name, bold the name. Follow the rules. Example of HTML coding here.
- I don’t need to have comments turned on for every post. Someone remarked that without the flaming, this place would be a ghost town. Doesn’t matter to me either way if there are comments or not.
- Treat each other as if the person you’re responding to is a guest in your house. I feel like a kindergarten teacher saying this.
- If someone trolls you and flames you, don’t respond. Just alert me and I’ll delete their comments. Otherwise, if you respond in kind to the troll, I’ll delete your comment along with theirs to try to clean things up.
- If you are going to post multiple comments to the same post at once, compile them into one comment. Do not post three comments in a row. It will result in your comments getting stuck in moderation (the posting system will think you are a spammer) and it will irritate me because I’ll have to manually combine your comments into one.
- Don’t misquote each other and don’t attribute quotes falsely to people who didn’t make them. This has happened to me a lot recently — including on my own site, of all places.
Topics: Media, Zach Arnold | No Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
The media’s verdict on Saturday night
By Zach Arnold | August 19, 2009
Comparing ratings figures for Showtime and Spike TV is apples and oranges, but that’s not the storyline that is being pushed in the media right now.
The Carano/Cyborg fight drew 576,000 viewers on Showtime while UFC 100 on Spike TV drew 2 million viewers. What’s amazing is that as solid as the cable rating was for UFC 100, the PPV buy rate nearly matched the amount of cable viewers.
USA Today says that both shows drawing high ratings spells trouble for other sports programming.
Topics: Media, MMA, StrikeForce, UFC, Zach Arnold | 40 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Nick Diaz gives the middle finger to American fight fans
By Zach Arnold | August 18, 2009
The man who proclaimed that he could beat any drug test and still smoke pot somehow couldn’t find any measure of respect for Scott Coker, Showtime, or Jay Hieron to take a test to get a license to fight in California for Strikeforce’s August 15th card. Diaz had a title shot in place and instead of showing up to take a drug test, he ended up hiding ‘in the mountains’ and away from the California State Athletic Commission.
The reaction to Diaz’s antics from Coker and company make Strikeforce and Showtime look like pushovers. Listen, it’s the fight business — if you can draw money, you get more leeway, and we know that Diaz is a cult-like superstar. However, we also have learned from Dana White and UFC that like professional wrestling, the one tactic that changes and influences behavior in MMA is fear. Nick Diaz doesn’t fear Scott Coker. He doesn’t fear Ken Hershman of Showtime. He doesn’t have to fear anyone because he knows there will always be another sugardaddy ready to give him a second or a third chance and tell him how great he is.
So, with all of this in mind, it should come as no surprise that Nick Diaz now wants to fight in Japan. Coker is playing the “I don’t mind that he fights in Japan, but he fights in December for me” line. Fine. We know that DREAM and Strikeforce will have a co-promotional relationship. However, Nick Diaz and his camp are the same group of people that bitched a while back about DREAM stiffing him on money. So all of a sudden Diaz and company are going to do a U-turn and fight for DREAM again, a company they accused of stiffing them on money in the first place? What a joke.
We all know there’s no drug testing in Japan, so it’s obvious why Diaz is fighting there. What is curious is why Strikeforce, Showtime, and the California State Athletic Commission are willing to sit around and go on Cesar Gracie’s timetable here. Diaz escaped immediate suspension from the CSAC because he failed taking a drug test while getting licensed. However, you would think that the athletic commission would not be so forgiving of a man who has often made a mockery out of drug tests in such a public fashion like he did in The Los Angeles Times.
So, we will likely see Diaz versus Hayato “Mach” Sakurai in a fight that Nick will likely win, which would theoretically set up the fight with Jay Hieron that should have happened last week. Diaz has publicly stated that he wanted to fight Sakurai over a year ago.
Meanwhile, Hieron has to stay on the sidelines for the next four months and somehow put his trust and faith in Nick Diaz a) not getting hurt in Japan and b) actually bothering to show up in November or December for a drug test in order to get licensed. Why should Hieron play this game and end up with no political leverage here? With the news of Diaz fighting in Japan, it’s time for Ken Pavia (Jay Hieron’s manager) to step up to the plate and force the hand of both Scott Coker and Cesar Gracie. Why should Jay Hieron have to wait around for four months and not earn a salary? This is a man who doesn’t have time to waste in his career and has lost out on a lot of money over the last two years.
If Nick Diaz wants to watch his MMA career go up in smoke, fine, let him do it. But why should Ken Pavia let his client, Jay Hieron, sit around and watch his fighter’s career go up in smoke, too, based on what Nick Diaz is up to?
Topics: Media, MMA, StrikeForce, Zach Arnold | 65 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
It’s come to this: Chuck Liddell will dance with Donny Osmond & Tom DeLay
By Zach Arnold | August 17, 2009
So, this is what retirement from MMA has brought The Iceman — Dancing With the Stars:
Contestants also include reality stars Mark Dacascos and Kelly Osbourne; entertainer Donny Osmond; mixed martial artist Chuck Liddell (lih-DEL’); professional snowboarder Louie Vito; Olympic swimmer Natalie Coughlin (KAWG’-lin); former Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Michael Irvin and former Republican Majority Leader Tom DeLay.
The ninth season of the hit ABC show premieres Sept. 21.
Dana White, please reinstate this man into UFC and let him fight Tito Ortiz if it means putting a stop to this.
Topics: Media, UFC, Zach Arnold | 22 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Sporting News writer: Gina Carano is the female Kimbo Slice
By Zach Arnold | August 17, 2009
MMA: Gina Carano has to be one of the biggest marketing let-downs in MMA history. She is like the female Kimbo Slice.
Other Carano-related articles
- Jake Rossen: Carano is pretty, and pretty people often land on their feet
- Jonathan Snowden: Gina Carano’s loss is a loss for women’s MMA
- Dann Stupp: Rich Franklin’s manager may have some competition for Gina soon
- The Tampa Examiner: The face of women’s MMA gets punished
- Michael Rome: The live-TV Strikeforce gap and the future of women in Strikeforce
- MMA Memories: Did Carano’s showing against Cyborg prove Kit Cope right on Xtreme Couture?
- Irvin Muchnick: Cyborg/Carano could transform Strikeforce into a legitimate rival to UFC
- Bloody Elbow (we know who this writer is): Four reasons why female MMA will never be popular
- Total MMA: Defeat is not the end for Gina Carano
Topics: Media, MMA, StrikeForce, Zach Arnold | 45 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Did Jay Hieron get screwed over again?
By Zach Arnold | August 16, 2009
In this post-fight interview, Jay Hieron addressed the situation as to why his fight with Jesse Taylor was demoted from the main card to a “no TV match.” While Hieron says that his agent (Ken Pavia) knows more than him as to the reason why it happened, Hieron said in the interview that Strikeforce hasn’t been 100% on the level with him so far business-wise. By removing Hieron’s match from the Showtime broadcast portion of the Strikeforce event, Hieron said that his sponsors took away money from him because his fight was demoted.
If what Hieron said is true, this is an absolute slap in the face. The fights on the Showtime broadcast went quickly and there was plenty of room for his fight to air on the channel. Forget the fact that his fight with Taylor was ‘terrible’ or ‘boring’ — the fact is that the fight was originally discussed as being on the main card and then it got moved, costing Hieron exposure and money. After everything that Hieron has been through (from Affliction being canceled to getting booked against Diaz only for that fight to be canceled to getting booked at the last-minute against Jesse Taylor), the least that the promotion could have done is kept his fight on the television broadcast.
Hieron has taken a beating financially and it’s hard to not feel sorry for the guy. There isn’t much charity in the fight business, but Hieron deserves some this time around.
Topics: Media, MMA, StrikeForce, Zach Arnold | 37 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
I can guarantee that no fighter would ever do this to Dana White
By Zach Arnold | August 16, 2009
It’s amusing, but cruel:
The Strikeforce promoter is usually calm and cool under the worst of circumstances, and the weeks leading up to the show featured plenty of them, as several matches had to be rearranged for various reasons. But he thought he had a nightmare scenario on his hands the night before the show.
At about 9:30 p.m. on Friday night, on a show where every major match but the main event fell apart, Coker got a phone call from the Santos camp. They were apologetic, saying that they had no idea beforehand, but that when the commission was testing Santos, they found out that she was pregnant and the fight was off.
Coker fell for it … though later he was told it was a prank. Good thing for Coker – and for Santos.
There’s talk that Marloes Coenen will get a title shot against Cyborg. That’s a good choice. Coenen’s a veteran and skill-wise will pose some problems.
Topics: Media, MMA, StrikeForce, Zach Arnold | 18 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |