Post-PRIDE 34 media coverage
By Zach Arnold | April 9, 2007
Sankei Sports quoted Nobuyuki Sakakibara stating his desire to see a worldwide MMA commission created, with unified rules and talent exchanges from all promoters. The article claims that Sakakibara is coming to America at the end of the week to meet with Zuffa (Lorenzo Fertitta) to propose the commission idea.
Sports Nippon has an article talking about Kazushi Sakuraba’s appearance with Yoshihiro Takayama for a Samurai TV taping. The theme of the conversation was about PRIDE & K-1 cooperating together.
Nikkan Sports has an article talking about PRIDE vs. UFC being the theme of the first Zuffa-ran shinsei PRIDE event on 5/20 at Saitama Super Arena. The names of Sean Sherk and Georges St. Pierre were mentioned (pushing Gomi vs. Sherk and Aoki vs. GSP). The article claims that Sakakibara will spend a week in America (starting this weekend).
Topics: Japan, Media, MMA, PRIDE, UFC, Zach Arnold | 22 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
IFL stock goes south fast
By Zach Arnold | April 9, 2007
We remarked on Friday about the recent 5-day IFL stock plunge. This morning, the stock has dropped $1.20 (down 20%) to $4.80/share. It is bouncing back and forth between $4.80 and $5.00/share.
Also, the SSPE (Sun Sports & Entertainment Inc.) stock is heading downwards to $0.13/share. They are the backers of the Texas Art of War MMA show series.
Topics: IFL, Media, MMA, Zach Arnold | 5 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
The PRIDE quote machine
By Zach Arnold | April 9, 2007
Bryan Alvarez & Vincent Verhei on the PRIDE 34 show.
Continue reading this article here…
Topics: Japan, Media, MMA, PRIDE, Zach Arnold | 14 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Monday madness: Ayre says Fedor is Bodog 4 Life
By Zach Arnold | April 8, 2007
By Zach Arnold
Explanation of title post here.
Kakutolog notes a Tokyo Sports report claiming that there is consideration of booking Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Kazushi Sakuraba for the Tokyo Dome on 10/11, which would be the exact date of the 10th anniversary of PRIDE.
Continue reading this article here…
Topics: All Topics, BoDog, Japan, Media, MMA, PRIDE, UFC, Zach Arnold | 15 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
PRIDE 34 media coverage
By Zach Arnold | April 8, 2007
Sankei Sports claims the attendance for the PRIDE 34 show was 23,336. The newspaper claims that K-1 gave Sakuraba permission to have one fight with Kiyoshi Tamura in the PRIDE ring under UFC control. Sports Nippon echoed the same sentiments. The same from Nikkan Sports. And more of the same in Daily Sports. Sakakibara discussed the potential of Sakuraba vs. Tamura getting PRIDE aired on TV.
Outside of the Sakuraba/Tamura storyline, no real heavy coverage of anything else on the PRIDE show.
Continue reading this article here…
Topics: All Topics, Japan, Media, MMA, PRIDE, Zach Arnold | 6 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Sunday media sandwich: Matt Serra shakes up gamblers
By Zach Arnold | April 8, 2007
This has been quite the red-meat weekend. So here’s some more red meat.
A Japanese blogger looked at a pamphlet at the PRIDE 34 show that was promoting the upcoming 5/20 Saitama Super Arena Lightweight GP tournament. The photographs of 12 fighters were apparently on the pamphlet. The fighters supposedly listed were…
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Topics: All Topics, BoDog, IFL, Japan, Media, MMA, PRIDE, UFC, Zach Arnold | 18 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
PRIDE 34
By Zach Arnold | April 7, 2007
Event review: Observer | Sherdog | MMA On Tap
Post any thoughts you have on the show here.
By far (to me), the most interesting theme of this show is how DSE is trying to put this show over as a tribute to Nobuyuki Sakakibara. Yesterday at the Japanese press conference, Akira Shoji said he was fighting for “bara-chan” (Sakakibara). Frank Trigg (on the US broadcast) mentioned that Don Frye came to fight at PRIDE 34 in honor of DSE and Mr. Sakakibara.
The lead announcer kept lumping Frank Trigg in with Mark Coleman and Kevin Randleman as three legends of MMA and three legends of PRIDE.
Continue reading this article here…
Topics: All Topics, Japan, Media, MMA, PRIDE, Zach Arnold | 37 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
UFC 69 – Shootout event review
By Zach Arnold | April 7, 2007
Man the UFC is really making the rounds. Ohio, Houston, and Manchester next time, sheesh.
Damn, they didn’t show the angle where Diego lands right on his ass after shoving Koscheck. That footage is simply too good for words.
Continue reading this article here…
Topics: All Topics, Erin Bucknell, Media, MMA, UFC | 14 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
UFC 69 review post
By Zach Arnold | April 7, 2007
Event reports: Sherdog | Observer | The Houston Chronicle | F4W Online | UFC Junkie | MMA On Tap
ESPN did the hard sell for UFC 69 event coverage on their 1 AM EST Sportscenter show. Linda Cohn and Steve Levy pushed the fact that they would have highlights of the Welterweight title match (GSP vs. Matt Serra), calling it the first time ESPN would cover ‘ultimate fighting.’
Continue reading this article here…
Topics: All Topics, Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 47 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Last minute notes
By Zach Arnold | April 7, 2007
Sherdog reports that the attendance for the IFL show tonight at Mark of the Quad Cities in Moline, Illinois is a little under a 50% house.
The IFL on FSN show last night showed fights between the San Jose Razorclaws (Frank Shamrock) and the LA Anacondas (taped 3/17 from the LA Forum). The opening fight was Brian Ebersole vs. Alex Schoenauer. I was absolutely floored at just how many empty seats there were on all four sides of the ring. It made the Schoenauer fight look like a pre-show warm-up encounter. I do have to say, however, that the IFL shows on FSN are far superior than their MyNetworkTV shows.
Continue reading this article here…
Topics: All Topics, IFL, Media, MMA, PRIDE, Zach Arnold | 6 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
IFL 5-day stock plunge
By Zach Arnold | April 6, 2007
The picture from Yahoo Finance says it all. Let’s hope they have better karma for their event tomorrow in Moline, Illinois at Mark of the Quad Cities.
For those of you curious, my article on what the IFL needs to do to change their business strategy around to start building momentum is available at MMA Madness. The core of writers being built up at MMA Madness is pretty good in my estimation.
Continue reading this article here…
Topics: All Topics, IFL, Media, MMA, Zach Arnold | 14 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
UFC 69 weigh-ins
By Zach Arnold | April 6, 2007
I didn’t get everyone’s weight that was listed (video stalled part of the time), but here’s what I took down for notes:
Tickets still available for UFC 69. Rogan did the hard-sell both before and after the weigh-ins.
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Topics: All Topics, Media, MMA, Zach Arnold | 13 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Dana White: UFC can replace boxing in the Olympics
By Zach Arnold | April 6, 2007
NBC Sports has a pretty remarkable interview with UFC President Dana White. He sounds an awful like Vince McMahon here. You must read the interview in full to get a flavor of what other MMA organizations are dealing with in UFC.
Continue reading this article here…
Topics: All Topics, Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 33 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |