There seems to be enough interest in MMA on here to keep a good thread going about possible matchups, fight gossip, etc, etc.

To start it off, I'll rant about the "comeback" of Randy Couture.

I think he'll be beaten mercilessly by the champ, then get a bout against Cro Cop, be beaten mercilessly again, and fade back in to his commentator jacket.

I don't really agree with you on this one. I think Cotoure has a good chance against Silvia, mainly because Silvia hasn't done anything in the past 2 fights to impress me at all. Maybe he's just holding out, who knows. But honestly, I want Silvia to win, in hopes of an eventual Silvia vs. Cro Cop card. Man, that would be frickin sweet.

Who's next for the following 3??

1) Chuck
2) Tito
3) Rampage

I haven't been impressed with his fights either, but you have to give him credit for neutralizing his opponents strengths. Monson and Arlovski, plus if you add Asseurio Silva too weren't able to do anything against him because of his size and takedown defense (holding onto the cage in the Silva fight).

Unfortunately, I think this is gonna be another snoozefest with Sylvia winning by unanimous decision.

Chuck vs. Jardine or Evans would be nice.
Tito is fighting Forrest Griffin again.
Rampage vs. Babalu would be awesome.

hey I've tried looking around (not really, I'm lazy), but is Randleman still fighting or is he retired?


I'd love to see him fight in the UFC.

You really think a win over Griffin earned Keith Jardine a title shot???

That was a great fight and he rocked him pretty hard, but I don't think he's at that level yet.

I don't know what he's doing, but whatever it is, he's probably doing it half assed. He was probably one of the most talented fighters but never really cared enough to be where he should've been

yeah from what I've seen of him, thats pretty much what I picked up. Looking at his past with wrestling, he looked like he could have ridiculous, but he's lost like his last, what, 5 fights? maybe one win in there? kind of a shame.

I still like the darkie though.

He got suspended for steroids after the Pride Las Vegas show. Then he was in the hospital recently because one of his organs shut down, probably steroid related.

He was fun to watch though. It was a kill or get killed type of fighting.

I'm excited to see Hughes and Franklin back in the ring. They seemed unstoppable for a while then just got suddenly beaten down. Overly cocky? Or just not good enough? We will find out on their 2nd attempts to rise to the top.

I can't stand Sylvia and hope Couture drops him. He may be big but it only takes one solid thump.

kevin randleman do steroids? thats unpossible.


well I guess if his organs are shutting down, there ain't much chance of him getting back into fighting. oh well.

I wouldn't say "excited" but I'm definitely curious to see what happens. Like you say, they were supposedly "THE" guys in the sport, then they coached the Ultimate Fighter show, then were both thumped, badly.

if couture loses to sylvia (sp?) i will be shocked and disappointed. I dont want to say he is the worst champ but he is definately the most unexciting, he hasnt done anything fun to watch in his last few fights starting with the Arlovski 3 match. I think couture has a shot but like with shamrock we see that age definately is a factor in todays MMA

can't wait for diego sanchez vs josh koscheck in april

I think it will be a great fight

I give diego a small edge

I agree. This one will definitely be a great fight. Diego by decision. Maybe they'll give this guy a title shot one year.

Any one know why Diego was booed a while back afte a fight?
Sorry, I foget the details; except Joe seemd confused by it and I never heard an explanation

*****************

When did grappling stop being the best main skill to have?
I think it's interesting to see the trends in the UFC.
Has submission defense gotten so good; that more focus is on winning the standup?

And, I still have this void from, perhaps, UFC 26-ish to 33-ish, durng the Tito reign..I think it was during the ownership changes. I'd like to read more about the early years - pre sanctioning.

I'd also like to read more about the porn industry.

**************8

Andre Silva looked very beatable to me. I've heard he can mail it in sometimes.

I'm loving U-tube (yeah, I usually catch on late, I'm old)

****************8

"Alyssa Lies"

listen and don't cry. I dare you.

Diego will have a hard time winning by decision against the dry humping goodness of Josh Koscheck. I think he'll win, but if it goes to decision it'll probably be because Koscheck smothered him for 15 minutes.

It'll be a close fight, but has the potential to be a disastrous fight.



A couple things have changed the game from grappling to more of a kickboxing game. One is Zuffa wanting to book more "exciting" fighters. Exciting means a standup war like Bonnar/Griffin. The other is that ground and pound died with the careers of Tito and Chuck. They were the two top level ground and pound guys, and once they left the spotlight the rest of the promotion seemed to prefer to stand.

What do you want to know about "the early days?"

Rorion Gracie wouldn't allow any amateur wrestlers with submission defense to enter the first 4 UFCs. That's a fun fact.

From the Jackson/Cro Cop thread:



The making of fights has been really strong in the UFC lately from a business standpoint. The last PPV accomplished two major things:

1) Introduced Cro Cop as the sick, twisted killer that he is. Plenty of people (I think they're estimating between 600,000 and 700,000) bought the show to see that.
2) Reminded people that Anderson Silva is a bad mother-******. They need to establish him as a top champion so his big defenses down the line draw a bigger audience.

The point is to not waste several huge drawing fights at the same time. They get diminishing marginal returns, and it costs them a fortune to book the top fighters in drawing positions.

OK, I'm going to keep replying to this thread because I like talking MMA.

Fabricio Werdum is fighting Andre Arlovsky at UFC 70. That's going to be a great match. Cro Cop vs. Gabriel Gonzaga in the main event.

ok folks there is a Pride event tomorrow in Vegas, here is a current betting line -- anyone see any bargains?

MMA Fighting - Pride 33 Matchups February 24, 2007
2/24/2007 7:00 PM Antonio Nogueira vs Rameau Sokoudjou Maximum wager $350.
501 Antonio Nogueira -2000
502 Rameau Sokoudjou +1200
2/24/2007 7:00 PM Takanori Gomi vs Nick Diaz Maximum wager $350.
503 Takanori Gomi -320
504 Nick Diaz +260
2/24/2007 7:00 PM Joachim Hansen vs Jason Ireland Maximum wager $350.
505 Joachim Hansen -900
506 Jason Ireland +650
2/24/2007 7:00 PM Hayato Sakurai vs Mac Danzig Maximum wager $350.
507 Hayato Sakurai -650
508 Mac Danzig +475
2/24/2007 7:00 PM Wanderlei Silva vs Dan Henderson Maximum wager $350.
509 Wanderlei Silva -280
510 Dan Henderson +230
2/24/2007 7:00 PM Mauricio Shogun vs Alistair Overeem Maximum wager $350.
511 Mauricio Shogun -440
512 Alistair Overeem +360
2/24/2007 7:00 PM Kazou Misaki vs Frank Trigg Maximum wager $350.
513 Kazou Misaki -320
514 Frank Trigg +260


I may take a shot with Dan Henderson vs Wanderlei at 2.3-1, they've fought 2 wars before I hope this one lives up to it. I'm contemplating underdogs Overeem 3.6-1, Trigg 2.6-1, and Nick Diaz 2.6-1 -- opinions anyone?

I actually think betting Wanderlei's +EV on this one...I think he wins that fight 4/5 times.

Go with Diaz if you want to bet an underdog, as he's dropping to lightweight and is probably tough at that weight.

Overeem feels like a bad bet. Shogun wins that fight more than 4/5 times.

I am officially sick...I picked Shogun and Diaz right, missed Wanderlei, and I SWEAR that I almost edited my post this afternoon saying that the odds on the Nogueira fight looked a little high and that I've never been THAT impressed by Little Nog...I threw up in my mouth a little bit when he lost.

Tell me about it -- I didn't get ANY bets in on time, I guess I didn't account for time zone. I skipped over the Nog fight, at first glance I thought it was Rodrigo, not Rogerio -- you're right, that would've been worth a small bet anyway. What a card though, lots of action and knockouts -- the Diaz vs Gomi fight was an absolute war. For those who didn't watch, Henderson, Diaz, Trigg all won -- Overeem lost -- and Noguiera got knocked out badly early in the first round. Well worth the $$ imho

This was a much better card than the last UFC card IMO. I wish I had spent the money to go to Vegas for this one instead. Well worth the PPV.

I can't stand Nick Diaz, but he'll be a terror at 155. He was good at 170, but in that lower weight class if he sticks with his BJJ and doesn't try to be a kickboxer he might be a top guy. There's no one who can pin him to the ground at that weight.

Are the odds up for the next UFC fights yet? I'll be in vegas this week, and want to have a few bets down. Do they take action on them??

I don't know about Vegas, but I found a website with UFC betting lines up. Here are the odds:

Rex Holman +220
Matt Hammill -280

Rich Franklin -500
Jason McDonald +400

Drew McFedries +220
Martin Kampman -280

Jason Lambert +275
Renato Sobral -350

Tim Sylvia -280
Randy Couture +220

Matt Hughes -500
Chris Lytle +400

http://www.betus.com/sports-betting/UFC_68...ising-4197.aspx

I don't see a lot of good underdog bets on this one. I think the best money is on Sylvia and Sobral, with Sylvia probably being a better bet. Some people I talk to on another board say McDonald has a chance, but I don't think the odds are long enough yet.

I'm anticipating that this fight will be decent.

Wow, I thought the couture/sylvia line would be much closer.

Even though I don't think Randy will win, I might have to bet him just due to the odds...
A lot of people on here think he can beat the champ.

It's closer than it should be. Couture's a huge underdog in that fight. He can't strike with the freakishly proportioned Tim Sylvia, and I don't know how well he can do to take him down and hold him down if he gets there. I'm a huge Randy Couture fan, but unfortunately, Sylvia seems like fairly easy money at this point.

Youtube link to Chuck Liddell making an *** of himself on a local morning show in Texas:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FrjCflihb40

Wow, how did they even let him on television.

He was supposed to be on a local radio show for an interview for 300 today, but apparently hes "really really sick".

Why they decided to put Chuck Liddell on for an interview is beyond me anyway. Isn't there anyone else in that movie that could go on the KCRAP morning show in Texas? Chuck's only interesting when he's beating the hell out of people in the Octagon. The rest of the time he's dull and kinda bland.

yeah I think McDonald may surprise some people here. I don't think he'll win, but I bet it will be one hell of a fight. The last couple fights he's been in he looked a lot better than anybody gave him credit for. I think that may be the best underdog bet actually. (yeah right, like Rich isn't going to rip his friggin head off)



and did this UFC sneak up on anybody else? I didn't even realize it was on tonight until my friend told me yesterday. We usually plan these out weeks in advance, but not this one. weird.

funny how it takes actually seeing them in the ring fighting (at least for me) to really know. Look at Travis Luter (sp?) vs Silva. Even in his distraught/weakened state, he exposed some weaknesses in Silva. And Silva killed Franklin. Just when someone seems invincible, it's shown to be untrue. I know others were aware Silva doesn't always come strong; but the contrast is interesting to casual fans.

I'm not a big Franklin fan at all, but they're not giving him a fight in his hometown that they expect him to lose. I think Serra's actually a better bet as an underdog. He'll have the chance to put Hughes in some whacky~! submission more easily than MacDonald has of KOing Franklin. I could be completely wrong though.

To your second question, yeah, I think because Spike didn't do nearly as much publicity for this one it isn't as memorable. It's not really that exciting of a card either...there really aren't any fights I'm looking forward to. Sylvia vs. Couture maybe...but if Couture loses badly that will be depressing.

Ok. I guess I will reply here because this is the new MMA thread.

UFC tonight! Woot!

I pick Hughes to win easily.

Couture vs. Sylvia is much closer than people think.

Franklin vs. McDonald is also a close fight.

I will watch this one as I do all the UFC's.

Man I can't get enough of these fights.

WOOO HOOO

wow, randy couture absolutely owned Slyvia. he seriously owned him, that wasn't even close. GG randy u kicked some serious ass.

loved every minute of it. Sylvia exposed for the bum he is, way to go Randy

i thought sylvia was taking too much of a boxing approach to mma by "outpointing" people and couture saw that and knew if he came in and was agressive he could win, gg Randy

you saw the potential more than most in this thread, as I recall.

Great card.

I think withiin 30 seconds, Silvia said "I have prepared/trained/strategized all wrong for this fight. I'm screwed"

yup, pretty much. I should've reposted my thoughts on this from the last UFC thread. The fact is, Slyvia had never been up against a guy that had Randy's level of grappling. Slyvia was able to deal with monson because monson is short. But Randy is 6'3" and was an olympian in Greco Roman wrestling, that is a massive difference in how good of a grappler one is. Also let us not forget that Frank Mir broke Slyvia's arm. Slyvia has had problems against guys that are over 6' that have great takedown and submission skills. The reason that Slyvia beat Ricco Rodriguez is that Rodriguez blew out his knee on his first shot and it was like shooting fish in a barrell for Slyvia due to that. If you look at all of the guys Slyvia has beaten, they are generally strikers. Slyvia is a very ordinary fighter who's greatest benefit is his height

huge news today from espn.com -- any thoughts?

Source: UFC buys Pride for less than $70MAssociated Press


NEW YORK -- The majority owners of Ultimate Fighting Championship have agreed to buy their biggest mixed martial arts rival, Pride Fighting Championships, in a deal that will establish megafights among the outfits' titleholders and possibly attract huge pay-per-view audiences.


"This is really going to change the face of MMA. Literally creating a sport that could be as big around the world as soccer. I liken it somewhat to when the NFC and AFC came together to create the NFL."
-- Lorenzo Fertitta, one of UFC's majority owners
Company executives declined to comment on the sales price, but a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press that brothers Lorenzo and Frank Fertitta will purchase the Japan-based Pride for less than $70 million. The person was not authorized to speak to reporters and spoke on condition of anonymity.

The deal was completed Tuesday and was announced during a news conference in Tokyo, where Lorenzo Fertitta has been negotiating with Nobuyuki Sakakibara, the majority owner and chief executive of Dream Stage Entertainment Inc., Pride's owner.

"We have been talking to Pride for probably about 11 months," Lorenzo Fertitta said. "It's been a long, drawn-out process but we finally were able to put the two brands together."

To buy the company, the brothers created a new entity called Pride FC Worldwide Holdings LLC. The newly formed company will take over Pride assets, including its trademarks, video library and valuable roster of fighters, from Dream Stage. The Fertitta brothers, who own Las Vegas-based Zuffa LLC, the parent company of UFC, intend to keep the well-known Pride name and promote fights under that brand.

The acquisition marks a new phase in the brothers' quest to dominate the burgeoning world of mixed martial arts since they bought the struggling UFC in 2001.

"This is really going to change the face of MMA," Lorenzo Fertitta said. "Literally creating a sport that could be as big around the world as soccer. I liken it somewhat to when the NFC and AFC came together to create the NFL."

The deal allows the Fertitta brothers to broker the biggest MMA fights possible in the near future, increasing their influence in this sports entertainment business.

"We will be able to literally put on the fights that everyone wants to see," Lorenzo Fertitta said. "It will allow us to put on some of the biggest fights ever."

In the past, there has been at least one case in which Pride and UFC couldn't hammer out a deal to put their top fighters in the ring together. With Pride in their pocket, the Fertitta brothers intend to ensure that never happens again.

The sale gives Pride more financial backing to expand the business internationally after suffering a recent financial blow.

Major sponsor Fuji Television Network Inc. dropped Pride in June after a tabloid linked Pride to the Japanese mob -- something Sakakibara has denied vigorously. To help bolster Pride, the company staged two PPV fights in Las Vegas. Neither was a financial success. The fights gained exposure for Pride but lost money, making the sale of Pride more likely.

"I think it certainly weakened their position," Lorenzo Fertitta said. "One of our goals is to get back on a major platform back here in Japan."

Lorenzo Fertitta said he'll be looking to expand Pride internationally.

Buying Pride is the latest in a series of acquisitions that the brothers have made in the last six months. Zuffa snapped up World Extreme Cagefighting and World Fighting Alliance last year.

Similar to Pride, buying WFA gave UFC the rights to a popular fighter named Quinton "Rampage" Jackson. Jackson will face UFC's most popular fighter, Chuck Liddell, the current light heavyweight champ in Las Vegas, on May 26 on PPV.

In the combat world, the Pride deal leaves a fragmented group of upstarts and K-1, another Japanese company that promotes fighters skilled in various forms of kick boxing.

Thanks to a surge in popularity, the brothers' investment in UFC and MMA in general has begun to pay off.

Last year, UFC cracked $200 million in PPV revenue, putting it on par with World Wrestling Entertainment Inc.

UFC stages fights in arenas across the country and airs a clutch of successful television shows on Spike TV. It has also opened an office in London, looking toward establishing itself internationally.

The brothers also run Station Casinos Inc. in Las Vegas. Lorenzo Fertitta is president and Frank Fertitta is chairman and chief executive of Station Casinos, a public company that was recently agreed to be purchased by a private equity investor group that includes key members of the Fertitta family.

Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press

absolutely incredible news, now wondering who the best is between pride and UFC will be a reality. im excited.

Awesome, over the next several months this will help determine who the top fighters truly are. Gonna be some amazing fight cards in our future.

This is great news. As far as being cheap Its prolly cause most of the big name fighters were already heading to ufc. I am really excited cause its not gonna be the same names everytime theres a fight. I hope this makes it bigger then it already is. I have a question did anyone read whats gonna happen with the contract with fox that pride had. Ufc has one with spike was wondering whats gonna happen with pride and fox.

while I certainly see some good from this, it's not all good.

Dana says...

Pride will adopt the same rules, so no kicking a man when he's on ground, and there are other limitations Pride does not have
For the most part, Pride will run separately, in a ring. And a "superowl" combining fighters will occur sometimes.

Oh, and quit splitting the fighters and standing them up!
It's like they want ji-jitsu and other grappling to go away.
I know it's a balance and many fans prefer the striking.. screw the casual fan.. I want best fighter.

And, man, I can't spend $900 a yr on this!.
Gotta buy the next one, several decent fights
Maybe I'll pass on the England card