More on 5/5 Osaka Dome show
By Zach Arnold | April 5, 2006
DSE’s US web site has a posting claiming that Ikuhisa Minowa vs. Mirko Cro Cop and Josh Barnett vs. Emelianenko Alexander have been signed as fights for the 5/5 Osaka Dome show.
What’s odd about his announcement is that PRIDE’s US web site has this listed, but their Japanese web site (which always makes announcements first) has nothing on it (as of 4 PM Japan time).
Update: The Japanese site is finally updated. Very, very strange.
Continue reading this article here…
Topics: All Topics, Japan, Media, MMA, PRIDE, Zach Arnold | 2 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Kawamata interviewed in Shukan Gendai
By Zach Arnold | April 5, 2006
By Zach Arnold
Since the release of three Yamaguchi-gumi yakuza members last month, many insiders in the Japanese fight industry have been wanting to hear the reaction from Inoki Bom-Ba-Ye 2003 promoter, Seiya Kawamata. This week’s edition of Shukan Gendai is the first part of a long series in which the magazine talks to Mr. Kawamata about the role of the yakuza in the fight industry.
Continue reading this article here…
Topics: All Topics, Japan, Media, MMA, PRIDE, Zach Arnold | 1 Comment » | Permalink | Trackback |
Masato, Kohiruimaki win fights at World MAX show
By Zach Arnold | April 5, 2006
K-1 ran their World MAX show in Tokyo at Yoyogi National Stadium Gym I, with Masato getting a big win over the tough Lithuanian, Remigijus Morkevicius. Results from today’s show.
Update: The show drew a 15.1% rating on TBS (Tokyo Broadcasting System), with Masato’s TKO win over Morkevicius reaching a high mark of 20.6%.
Topics: All Topics, Japan, K-1, Zach Arnold | No Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Mainstream media round-up
By Zach Arnold | April 4, 2006
By Zach Arnold
Marilla Stephenson in The Chronicle Herald, the Halifax (Nova Scotia) newspaper which has been mostly negative towards the upcoming 4/29 MMA event in the area, wrote an incredulous column about why cage-fighting should be banned in the region. We’re working on trying to invite her for an interview on our radio show.
Mark Perigard in The Boston Herald gives The Ultimate Fighter: Season 3 a big thumbs up, but gives Dana White a big thumbs down. In addition, there are many Canadian newspapers doing articles pushing the upcoming debut show on Thursday.
In an update to the fake e-mail scandal, politician Hisayasu Nagata decided to resign his job. Therefore, this saved tabloid writer Takashi Nishizawa from having to testify in front of the Diet, which would have included some questions about his background in the fight industry. Nishizawa’s lawyer is Osamu Wakuda, the same lawyer representing Inoki Bom-Ba-Ye 2003 promoter Seiya Kawamata.
Topics: All Topics, Canada, Japan, Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | No Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Fight Opinion Radio: Episode 13 (Tuesday Night Takedowns)
By Zach Arnold | April 4, 2006
This week’s edition of Fight Opinion Radio is the first of two UFC-themed shows, as we preview the upcoming Ultimate Fight Night show on Thursday (4/6) with our special guest, Brad “Hillbilly Heartthrob” Imes. He will talk about his upcoming fight and how life has changed since being on The Ultimate Fighter: Season 2.
In addition, Rob Sayers & Erin Bucknell talk about the IFC cage show that took place at Arco Arena in Sacramento, California last weekend. Nick Diaz and Joe Riggs were 20 feet apart, and apparently no one in IFC management noticed. However, Erin did, and she gives her thoughts on the event.
The 13th edition of Fight Opinion Radio is now online and available to download. Here are your options for listening to the show:
Broadband (MP3) | Dial-up/Streaming
Continue reading this article here…
Topics: All Topics, Erin Bucknell, Fight Opinion Radio, podcasts, Rob Sayers, UFC, Zach Arnold | 1 Comment » | Permalink | Trackback |
PRIDE’s 5/5 Osaka Dome plans
By Zach Arnold | April 4, 2006
By Zach Arnold
PRIDE announced Hidehiko Yoshida vs. Yosuke Nishijima as the top match for their 5/5 Osaka Dome show. The announcement garnered some media attention, but ran against the weigh-ins of fighters for the K-1 4/5 World MAX show. Masato’s weigh-in was the dominant story in the Japanese press on Wednesday. The 5/5 Osaka Dome show runs the same day as the Koki Kameda boxing show in Tokyo at Ariake Colosseum, which will be carried live by Tokyo Broadcasting System.
DSE boss Nobuyuki Sakakibara also stated his intentions of getting Emelianenko Fedor somehow involved in the tournament. Fedor’s participation on the 5/5 show is unlikely, but Sakakibara would like to seed Fedor somehow into the tournament so that he could possibly participate in July.
Topics: All Topics, Japan, MMA, PRIDE, Zach Arnold | No Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Jason Tan Interview
By Mark Pickering | April 3, 2006
Jason Tan is a promising welterweight prospect from Liverpool, England who is set to pursue the sport on a full-time basis. Tan has a perfect record of 4-0 with his most recent victory coming against Cage Rage’s top ranked middleweight Alex Reid at WCFC No Guts No Glory on March 18th.
Continue reading this article here…
Topics: All Topics, Mark Pickering, Media, MMA, UK | No Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Victor Quinones dead at age 46
By Zach Arnold | April 3, 2006
By Zach Arnold
Long-time pro-wrestling businessman Victor Quinones died at the age of 46 in Puerto Rico over the weekend. Quinones was a mainstay in the Japanese independent scene in the early 90s (first with Atsushi Onita in the reincarnation of the Bruiser Brody murder angle in Puerto Rico, second as a booker with Kiyoshi “Mickey” Ibaragi in W*ING, third as a booker for IWA-Japan including booking talent such as Yoshihiro Tajiri & Terry Funk, fourth as a booker with Go Ito for FMW).
PRWrestling.com reports that the suspected cause of death for Victor Quinones was a mixture of somas with alcohol or combined with a cardiac arrest. The burial site is expected to be in Buxeda (near San Juan).
Continue reading this article here…
Topics: All Topics, Japan, Pro-Wrestling, Zach Arnold | 6 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
IFC: Caged Combat 4/1
By Erin | April 2, 2006
I was in attendance for the IFC Caged Combat show at Arco Arena in Sacramento on 4/1. I went into the this not expecting a whole lot in terms of a great show as several matches had already been cancelled/rearranged. The fact that the show started an hour late did not help matters (a delay with the ticket printers in the box office was announced as the reason).
Nick Diaz and Joe Riggs were both in attendance and apparently someone wasn’t paying attention when giving out comped tickets as they ended up seated about 30 feet from each other. However, both guys were completely professional and as far as I know didn’t even exchange eye contact. So good for both of them in what I’m sure was a pretty uncomfortable situation.
Continue reading this article here…
Topics: All Topics, Erin Bucknell, MMA | No Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Mainstream media malfeasance – again
By Zach Arnold | April 2, 2006
By Zach Arnold
Last week, we linked to an article in USA Today that lumped Toughman boxing with MMA. It hit a real nerve with readers, and I was afraid that the USA Today would snowball into more stupidity. And it has.
Today’s USA Today editorial/opinion feedback section has a letter from “Bud Stuart” of Santa Barbara, California that refers to boxing & MMA as human cockfighting and calls for a ban of all combat sports. Click on the link up above to read the letter in full.
Topics: All Topics, Media, MMA, Zach Arnold | 4 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Bushido 10 Results
By Zach Arnold | April 1, 2006
Click on the post link to read them.
Continue reading this article here…
Topics: All Topics, Japan, MMA, PRIDE, Zach Arnold | 13 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Tuffman, toughman, all the same?
By Zach Arnold | April 1, 2006
By Zach Arnold
Earlier in the week, we linked to a USA Today article lumping Toughman boxing with MMA. Today, we have a Grand Forks Herald (North Dakota) article from a writer named Tu-Uyen Tran talking about a 48-year drywall contractor participating in the First Annual Tuffman Competition. I tried to find out information about this event (if it’s a Toughman-style event or an MMA event with a horrible name), but have not found out any details.
Update: The newspaper clears up the mystery in a Sunday article. It was a mixed show with boxing & MMA fights, unfortunately labeled the First Annual Tuffman Competition.
Topics: All Topics, Media, Zach Arnold | 1 Comment » | Permalink | Trackback |
UFC expands office
By Zach Arnold | March 30, 2006
By Zach Arnold
The promotion has named John Mulkey (from Wall Street) as the company’s CFO. This Review Journal article from May of 2004 points to Mulkey working as a high-yield gaming/casino financial analyst at Bear Stearns. Mulkey is referenced in many media articles in relations to casinos, gambling, Macau, etc.
It’s interesting to watch UFC continue to expand their front office and spend money on that avenue as opposed to spending more money on fighters. It’s similar to the system WWE is using.
Meanwhile, here is a passionate article about Marc Ratner leaving the Nevada State Athletic Commission to work for UFC. It’s a very good column.
Topics: All Topics, Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 1 Comment » | Permalink | Trackback |