Cage Gossip: MMA News & Rumors for the UFC, WEC, Strikeforce & DREAM
Your weekly source for MMA news & rumors about Lyoto Machida & Urijah Faber as well as UFC 119, UFC 120 & UFC 121 rumors & more!
1) Lyoto Machida retirement rumors?
They say blood is thicker than water, but it appears Lyoto Machida needs thick skin as well. Following his knockout loss to Shogun Rua, Machida’s father came forward in an interview and made the claim that he thinks it is time for his son to retire. It should be noted that this loss was the first of Machida’s career. He is now facing fighters at the top of the heap and knockouts happen to nearly everyone at this level. This is not necessarily a deterioration of skills, but possibly just a step-up in competition. Rua is one of the most effective strikers in MMA and Lyoto should not get down on himself for losing, especially in a title fight. The elder Machida alluded to his son’s training camp and said that he was well-prepared for the fight, but that the pressure got to Lyoto, leading to his defeat. Watch the interview here.
2) Mousasi, Aoki pick up bounce-back wins
Following unsuccessful showings in the United States, Gegard Mousasi and Shinya Aoki both reverted back to their winning ways at DREAM 15. Mousasi’s last bout was for Strikeforce, where he was defeated by Mo Lawal, and he made short work of Jake O’Brien this time out securing a guillotine choke following a poor attempt at a takedown by O’Brien. “The Fireball Kid” used an Achilles Lock to defeat Tatsuya Kawajiri in the very first round. Check out the video here, with frequesnt ProFighting-fans.com Guest Correspondent Michael “The Voice” Schiavello with the call.
3) Urijah Faber out 6 weeks with knee injury
Just over a month prior to making his bantamweight debut at WEC 50, Urijah Faber is pulling out of the fight with Takeya Mizugaki due to an undisclosed injury to his knee. Faber reported the injury on his Twitter page. Faber estimates he will be out of action for at least 6 weeks due to the injury, which was sustained in a practice session.
4) Bobby Lashley wants to fight Fedor
Bobby Lashley is still a relative newcomer to the world of MMA, but that won’t stop him from dreaming big dreams. Lashley has said in an interview with Inside MMA that he wants a crack at Fedor next. Really? Is this really going to happen again? Brock Lesnar was given a title shot after only a few professional bouts, so what makes this any different? Fedor is not the champion of any major organization at the moment, so it makes the match with Lashley conceivable, but it takes some pretty big stones for Lashley to want to tangle with Fedor. Though Lashley has some solid amateur (and professional) wrestling experience, he has fought virtually nobody on his rise through the ranks of MMA. Fedor has already fought some of the best wrestlers in the world, defeating Mark Coleman twice, Kevin Randleman (despite one of the most vicious slams the world has ever seen), and Matt Lindland. Lashley does not really exceed any of the previously mentioned fighters as far a skill goes, and I can only hope that Strikeforce is not seriously considering the matchup.
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5) UFC 119, UFC 120 and UFC 121 fight card rumors
Through a variety of media outlets, the following match-ups have been announced: Ryan Bader vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira and Frank Mir vs Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira on the UFC 119 fight card, Jacare Souza vs Tim Kennedy @ Strikeforce: Houston on August 21, Michael Bisping vs Yoshihiro Akiyama on the UFC 120 fight card, and of course Brock Lesnar vs Cain Velazquez atop the UFC 121 fight card.
It is good to see Ryan Bader finally getting a step up in opponents. The guy has been treading water for so long that it will be exciting to see him fight one of the elite fighters in the light heavyweight division.
That’s it for this week’s edition of Cage Gossip, be sure to check back next week for the latest MMA rumors universe!
By Curt Heinrichs
ProFighting-fans.com MMA Staff Writer