UFC 92 (12/27 Las Vegas) fight card line-up
By Zach Arnold | December 2, 2008
Undercard
- Heavyweights: Dan Evensen vs. Pat Barry
- Welterweights: Ryo Chonan vs. Brad Blackburn
- Light Heavyweights: Matt Hamill vs. Reese Andy
- Heavyweights: Antoni Hardonk vs. Mark Burch
- Middleweights: Yushin Okami vs. Dean Lister
Main card
- Heavyweight: Cheick Kongo vs. Mustapha Al-Turk
- Light Heavyweight: Wanderlei Silva vs. Quinton Jackson
- Middleweights: CB Dollaway vs. Mike Massenzio
- Heavyweights: Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira vs. Frank Mir
- Light Heavyweights (title match): Forrest Griffin vs. Rashad Evans
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 20 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Press Release: WEC announces first ever event in San Diego
By Zach Arnold | December 2, 2008
WORLD LIGHTWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP JAMIE VARNER vs. DONALD “COWBOY” CERRONE AND URIJAH FABER VS. JENS PULVER 2
Live From San Diego Sports Arena, Sunday, January 25
Tickets Start at $35 and Go on Sale Thursday, Dec. 4 at 10AM PT
Las Vegas, NV (USA) – World Extreme Cagefighting® today announced that for the first event of 2009, the cage will head west to the hotbed of mixed martial arts – California – to hold the first ever WEC® event in San Diego. Two blockbuster matchups will lead the main card, with the World Lightweight Championship fight between Jamie Varner and undefeated Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone as the main event, and the mega-rematch pitting Urijah Faber against Jens Pulver in the co-main event. World Extreme Cagefighting, featuring Varner vs. Cerrone and Faber vs. Pulver 2, takes place live from the San Diego Sports Arena on Sunday, January 25, 2009.
World Extreme Cagefighting will be televised live nationally on VERSUS beginning at 9:30 pm ET/6:30 pm PT. All live WEC events will be presented in Hi-Definition (HD) where available. For more information and how to find VERSUS in your local viewing area, visit http://www.versus.com/findversus.
Tickets for World Extreme Cagefighting go on sale at 10 a.m. PT Thursday, Dec. 4 and will be priced at $175, $125, $75 and $35 (not including applicable services or taxes). Tickets will be available for purchase through the San Diego Sports Arena Box Office, online at www.ticketmaster.com or by calling Ticketmaster at 619-220-8497.
Don’t blink when WEC lightweight champion Jamie Varner (15-2, 1 NC) meets up with No. 1 contender Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone (9-0, 1 NC). Varner has finished his last four opponents, and now the Tempe, Arizona fighter will face his greatest test in the red hot Cerrone.
“I have a lot of respect for Cerrone, but I consider him just one more undefeated fighter that I have to put in his place,” said Varner. “I think it’s awesome to have this fight in Southern California; there is a huge MMA following there, so I think this event will be huge, and a big step for the growth of WEC.”
Undefeated lightweight contender Cerrone ( 9-0,1 No Contest) is one fight away from securing his place as the new champion of the WEC, and he plans on doing everything in his power to get there. The Albuquerque, New Mexico trained mixed martial artist, who is known for his relentless stand-up attack and equally effective ground game, most recently scored a Fight of the Night win against world class striker and former champ “Razor” Rob McCullough.
“I’m excited for the opportunity to fight for the title, and to take on Jamie Varner,” said Cerrone. “He’s well rounded and very athletic, but I’m going to work hard in training camp and on my game plan to win the title. I’m looking forward to fighting in San Diego, and to headline the first WEC event there.”
Urijah “The California Kid” Faber (21-2) is the former WEC Featherweight Champion, a title he has owned since March of 2006. Faber was upset by Mike Brown in November, but he is on a mission to reclaim his status as best featherweight fighter in the world. But first, he has to fight his way through a rematch with Jens Pulver. The two first met in June 2008, fighting toe-to-toe in a five round battle that became one of the best WEC fights to date.
“I know this is going to be another classic for the fans,” said Faber. “Jens is always ready to fight, he’s a competitor, and I expect a tough battle, but I’m going to try to finish it this time – I don’t want it to go the distance.”
Former UFC® lightweight champion Jens Pulver (22-10-1) looks to rebound from two consecutive losses at the expense of Faber. And with a new team behind him, the 33-year-old with the legendary left hand is refocused and ready to continue on his road back to the top.
“Now that I train with Matt Hume, I’ll be doing things a lot differently,” Pulver said comparing his first fight with Faber. “Did I show it against Leonard Garcia? No, it takes time. But I know I’m still competitive…Great fights are still in me.”
All bouts subject to change. For more information about current WEC fight news, visit www.wec.tv.
Topics: Media, MMA, WEC, Zach Arnold | 5 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Bob Arum: Our next great hope… Dubai
By Zach Arnold | December 2, 2008
Bill Dwyre in the LA Times today has a fun column talking about the heat-up for Oscar De La Hoya vs. Manny Pacquiao and how Ricky Hatton stands to profit handsomely by facing the winner.
The most interesting part of the article involves quotes from Bob Arum, who claims that if Pacquiao beats De La Hoya that a mega-fight between Pacquiao and Hatton will take place… in Dubai.
“I just got back from Dubai. It’s like Fantasyland. Huge, new, spectacular buildings everywhere.
“Think of Pacquiao-Hatton. There is a large Filipino population in Dubai, and the biggest tourism comes from England. Because I’m Pacquiao’s promoter, I got recognized as much there as Michael Jordan would in the States.”
Given Arum’s recent statements over the past year about needing to run bigger boxing shows outside of Las Vegas, combined with the success of UFC 91 in the town, and it’s clearer than ever that Zuffa’s managed to make Las Vegas their town in a big way.
Maybe a trip to Ontario, Canada is necessary? I hear Anderson Silva & Royce Gracie will be in Hamilton this weekend.
Topics: Boxing, Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 4 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
UFC fighter Jason MacDonald talks about Jon Fitch/Dana White situation
By Zach Arnold | December 2, 2008
From his column today on Sportsnet (Canada):
As for Jon Fitch, I’m glad to see he finally did sign the exclusive video-game agreement, which could have cost him his spot in the UFC had he not. I didn’t have any problem with signing it, even if it was exclusive. From my standpoint, why wouldn’t I want the UFC to use my name and my likeness in a video game for my lifetime? It’s not like there are other opportunities like that out there. Is Affliction going to be putting out a video game down the road? I doubt it.
The counter-argument from Ivan Trembow:
It’s also interesting to note how the UFC is preying on fighters’ lack of knowledge about other potential video game deals. We’ve seen multiple fighters, including Fitch, say something to the effect of, “Come on, who else is going to be want to put ME in a video game?” This demonstrates that they are completely unaware of the fact that the biggest video game publisher in the world, Electronic Arts, also has a mixed martial arts game in the pipeline, and unlike Zuffa/THQ, they are willing to pay fighters to be a part of it. It’s not like it would be a huge amount of money, but it shows the fighters not being aware of what they’re signing away.
Meanwhile, Jonathan Snowden has an interview with Georges St. Pierre.
Update: Nicholas Bailey rips apart Dan Lambert of American Top Team for recent comments Mr. Lambert made about UFC contracts in relation to fighters signing away the rights to their image & likeness.
Topics: Canada, Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 56 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Missouri battles youngsters in cage fighting
By Zach Arnold | December 1, 2008
Video here. I would have embedded the video clip, but the news channel didn’t provide that option.
Topics: Media, MMA, Zach Arnold | No Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
The power of UFC’s brand online
By Zach Arnold | November 30, 2008
Did you know that Versus has their own YouTube channel for WEC videos? While some fans online know about it, many other fans do not know about it. A recent WEC ad for Miguel Torres vs. Manny Tapia drew 2,700 hits in a week.
What a lot of MMA fans do know about, however, is UFC’s YouTube channel. Look at the sheer amount of hits that videos such as Dana White’s vlogs are getting (well over 50,000 hits per video). That same Torres/Tapia ad on the Versus WEC YouTube channel that drew 2,700 hits… has drawn over 97,000 hits in the same time span on UFC’s YouTube channel.
Granted, UFC’s videos do not draw the same massive amounts of hits that videos from musicians like Katy Perry or Sara Bareilles draw, but the company is certainly seeing tangible results in terms of its viral reach online.
You can analyze this situation from a few different angles, but one thing is very clear — MMA fans are primarily UFC fans and they only care about the UFC brand, much in the same manner that American football fans only care about ‘The Shield’ first and foremost. The flipside to the argument, however, is that Zuffa LLC has done a lackluster job of consistently building the WEC brand. WEC hit its stride for the Urijah Faber/Jens Pulver match in Sacramento last Summer, but since that point the company has continued to draw ratings in the 0.4-0.6 range on Versus and WEC’s online presence is weak.
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, WEC, Zach Arnold | 10 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Report: K-1 interested in Kimbo/Petruzelli re-match on NYE
By Zach Arnold | November 30, 2008
Original posting date: October 29th
Sharon Robb in The South Florida Sun-Sentinel has a report featuring comments from Richie Guerriero of the American Top Team in regards to Elite XC closing up shop. However, the biggest note from Robb’s article is this:
Slice, who spent Thursday at one of his children’s school career day, is weighing his options with his agent Mike Imber. He may fight on the DREAM K-1 New Year’s Eve show in Japan, possibly a rematch with Petruzelli.
If you recall, Petruzelli was telling Orlando media after his fight with Kimbo Slice that he had received an offer to fight in Japan.
As far as Kimbo Slice vs. Seth Petruzelli having any drawing power in Japan… you could dip Seth Petruzelli in glue, drag him through Fort Knox, and he wouldn’t draw a single dollar. Kimbo, on the other hand, could draw very well in Japan. However, putting him in a re-match against Petruzelli is a stupid idea… unless, of course, K-1 paid off Petruzelli to take a dive in the fight. Why not.
Update: Omasuki Fight has a note from a Tokyo Sports mobile news update, which claims that Kimbo Slice could appear at K-1’s 12/6 Yokohama Arena event to announce his future participation for the organization (starting in March of 2009). The name of Slice’s first opponent being floated? Badr Hari.
Topics: DREAM, Japan, K-1, Media, MMA, Zach Arnold | 33 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Franklin McNeil: Hey, maybe MMA needs a cruiserweight division
By Zach Arnold | November 29, 2008
The Newark Star-Ledger writer has an ESPN article asking if MMA needs a cruiserweight division. He has quotes from Marc Ratner. This article indirectly builds upon some of the arguments laid out in this MMA Memories article.
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 18 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Report: UFC reaches agreement with ProSieben TV channel in Germany
By Zach Arnold | November 27, 2008
Basic details about the deal can be read here. Baz Online story here.
This is the TV channel in question. More details on the cable/satellite channel here. UFC is going to try to lay the ground work (reportedly) by airing episodes of The Ultimate Fighter before running an event in Germany.
How much will this increase the appeal of a Chuck Liddell vs. Randy Couture fight in the German marketplace?
Speaking of Europe, Anderson Silva reportedly is helping ticket sales greatly.
Update: Here’s a Der Spiegel article.
The UFC has spread across the United States like a flu virus. Condemned as “human cockfighting” by Senator John McCain 12 years ago and banned at the time throughout much of the country, the UFC is expected to bring in $250 million (€200 million) in revenues this year. Experts estimate the value of the operation at $1 billion (€800 million).
Now that Ultimate Fighting has become established in the American market, the rest of the world is next. The UFC has already held six evening fighting events in Great Britain, all of them sold out, and championship fights are scheduled for Dublin in January and the Philippines in April. UFC comes to Germany for the first time in mid-June with an event in Cologne, and fights are also planned for China, India and Dubai.
Well, the Ireland event with Rich Franklin and Yushin Okami was not exactly a rip-roaring sellout…
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 13 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
The issues surrounding Armando Garcia’s resignation from the CSAC
By Zach Arnold | November 26, 2008
There’s a lot of discussion as to why Armando Garcia tendered his resignation from the CSAC (start with Steve Barry’s article and go from there). If you believe these various media reports, there’s probably a lot of reasons as to why Mr. Garcia decided to leave the CSAC.
However, let me bring up one reason that I think a lot of people are overlooking: UFC.
UFC has ran a few shows in California, but have you noticed that the promotion has been staying away from the state? The easiest way to apply political pressure on a state is through financial means. Other than the occasional Sacramento or Anaheim spot show, UFC has not been very active with events in California. Why is this? California has the largest population of any state in America, UFC is the one promoter that could consistenly draw well with big events in the state, and yet the organization decided to run spot shows in areas like Omaha?
For as much hope as you can place on a state athletic commissioner to think ‘safety first’ in regards to regulating events, ultimately a major role of an athletic commissioner (especially one that oversees fighting events) is to attract as much cash as possible to a state. With MMA quickly turning into a UFC-only show, UFC’s leverage in terms of politics with various state athletic commissioners is growing. If UFC decides that they don’t want to do business with you and will do business elsewhere, then who takes the heat for not bringing revenue to the state? That’s right — the head honcho of the athletic commission.
One of the things Armando Garcia pointed out to media reporters was his ability to bring in a lot of revenue to the state of California. California, out of all the states in the US right now, is the most heavily in debt. The state’s finances are ready to implode at any second. Therefore, you would think that someone like Mr. Garcia would be ‘safe’ at his job considering that he used financial benchmarks as a way to judge his overall performance.
However, if UFC is coming to the state less often, that means less revenue. Less revenue means more political pressure. More political pressure means less margin for error for a politician on other issues he/she may be in trouble for. With Armando Garcia now out of the picture in regards to the CSAC, will UFC pick up their live events schedule in the state of California?
Addendum: Yes, WEC ran an event in Sacramento. However, the live event gates of WEC do not come close to the amount of money that UFC events make at the gate.
Update (11/26): No drug testing right now for California MMA events. Take note of this comment and relate it to this original posting here.
Original post date: November 11th.
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 14 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Video: Tim Credeur opens MMA school in Lafayette, Louisiana
By Zach Arnold | November 25, 2008
The Daily Advertiser in Lafayette, LA. has a profile story on Tim Credeur, as he has opened up a brand new MMA school. Credeur will fight on UFC’s December 10th card at the Crown Coliseum in Fayetteville, North Carolina.
Click on the post title to see the video.
Continue reading this article here…
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 5 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
KONISHIKI’s older brother dies
By Zach Arnold | November 25, 2008
Anoaro Atisano’e, the older brother of Sumo star KONISHIKI, reportedly died Sunday at 9 AM in a Hawaiian hospital due to a heart attack. He was 51 years old. (Report by Sports Nippon.) The report claims that Anoaro had been on kidney dialysis.
Anoaro wrestled for New Japan Pro-Wrestling during the ‘showa era’ of the company, with his most high-profile match happening against Antonio Inoki in September of 1984 in Osaka (a ‘kakutougi’ fight). The storyline going into the fight involved using boxing technique learned from Guts Ishimatsu, but Inoki was able to win by pinning the giant (183 cm, 150 kg) with a back-drop in the 5th round of their fight.
Topics: Japan, Media, MMA, Pro-Wrestling, Zach Arnold | 1 Comment » | Permalink | Trackback |
Round 5 MMA beats UFC to the punch on some action figures
By Zach Arnold | November 25, 2008
Denny Burkholder at CBS Sports has a very interesting story about a man named Damon Lau, who was a hardcore PRIDE fan and fan of Japanese MMA toy figures. Mr. Lau and his company, Round 5 MMA, was able to secure licensing rights with fighters like Anderson Silva, Wanderlei Silva, Rich Franklin, Randy Couture, and Sean Sherk for figures before UFC could acquire those licenses.
Which may not be pleasant news to Jakks Pacific, which signed a deal with UFC to produce figures of fighters:
While Round 5 MMA is fighter-friendly, Lau noted that “90 to 95 percent” of their lineup is under exclusive deals, which would legally prohibit most of the UFC fighters under contract to Round 5 MMA from also having a figure in the UFC line by Jakks Pacific. Jakks revealed a wide selection of prototype UFC figures at a recent toy fair, including figure and packaging prototypes for Couture, Jackson, Anderson Silva and Wanderlei Silva.
“All I can say is that there’s a likelihood — well not a likelihood, but there’s a fact — that some of those figurines can not actually go into production,” Lau said. “I’ve seen the prototypes as well, but the rights to those guys have been already signed over to our company.”
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 13 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |