Archive for October, 2009

ICF 17 – Davis vs. The Sand Man

Saturday, October 31st, 2009

Live ICF 17 Results from Florence, Kentucky:

Flyweight Drew Weaver vs. Russel Coonley: Drew Weaver threw and onslaught on Russel Coonley forcing the referee to stop the fight.  Official Decision: Drew Weaver via TKO due to strikes 1:48 into the 1st round.

179 lbs Zach Boehm vs. Jerry Dempsey: Zach Boehm dominated the action landing several strikes then applying a guilliotine choke which finished the fight 1:12 into the 1st round.

Lightweight Tournament (Semi-finals)

Brandon Suber vs. Brett Ewing: Great 1st round with plenty of actions.  Suber landed a big knee to start the fight but Ewing kept his composure and won a very close round.  A very technical fight thus far.  Another very good round, very technical.  Both Ewing and Suber are very talented.  Ewing wins the round and is up 2-0.  The winner of this fight will compete later tonight.  A very good 3rd round with Suber controlling the action.  Ewing survived a late guillotine choke as the clock wound down.  Ewing should get the decision.  Ewing wins via UD.

Thomas Elliott vs. Steve Singleton (winner to face Ewing later tonight): Singleton dominated the fight and quickly got the victory.  Singleton wins 2:10 into the 1st round via tap out due to strikes.

Intermission:

Welterweight Robbie Walker vs. Mike Abrams: Abrams got Walker eary in the round and quickly grabbed a guillotine choke which ended the fight.  Mike Abrams wins via tap out due to a guillotine choke :37 into the 1st round.

Bantamweights Scott Roberts vs. Luke Kitchen: Not sure what truly happened on that one as Luke Kitchen got the win.  Luke Kitchen wins 2:11 into the 1st round due to a tap out due to what is described as exhaustion.

Breaking News: Brett Ewing is not cleared medically to resume the tournament.  The fight will be scheduled at another time.

Light Heavyweight Keith Gogans vs. Ryan Hughes: Gogans dominated from start to finish forcing Hughes to tap out.  Keith Gogans via tap out due to strikes :58 into 1st round.

Intermission:

Heavyweight Jack Martin vs. Brad Hutchinson: A good first round between two fighters who both weighed in at 215lbs.  Hutchinson dominated most of the round with Martin taking control near the end of the round.  Hutchinson wins the 1st round.  A very good 2nd round felled with action.  Martin bounced back nicely landing several big strikes.  One around a piece going into the 3rd.  A tough 3rd round to score as Hutchinson had take downs but did nothing with it.  Martin landed several strikes.  I give the fight to Martin.  Hutchinson wins via Unanimous Decision, each judge scored it 30-27.

Pro Fights:

Welterweight Michael Wright vs. Mick Berwanger: Mick dominated from start to finish landing several body blows taking the wind out of Wright.  The referee stopped in as Mick landed several shots.  Berwanger via TKO due to strikes 3:19 into the 1st round.

Main Event: Dan Christison vs. Jim Davis: The fighters went back and forth with the major difference being the leg kicks of  Christison.  The Sandman grabbed a single leg and took Davis to the ground.  From there, Dan released and onslaught of punches forcing Davis to tap out.  Christison via tap out due to strikes 2:21 into the 1st round.

So long from Florence Kentucky, until next time, this is Scott Dryden- stay out of lifes Triangle Chokes…

Pro Fighting Fans’ Dryden talks MMA apparel, merchandise

Wednesday, October 28th, 2009

Our own Scott Dryden was quoted in a story about MMA clothing & merchandise on the DFN Sports MMA blog. Here is the complete post:

Whether it is due to continued growth of Mixed Martial Arts or the creative designs of the clothing, MMA-inspired apparel continues to grow in popularity and sales across the globe. Featuring one-of-a-kind designs from some of the top graphic artists and designers in the world and a plethora of dark themes, MMA merchandise including MMA theme t-shirts, hoodies, sweatshirts, shorts, hats and other MMA apparel is hot at specialty store as well as mainstream retail locations and online. With top brands like TapouT, Xtreme Couture, Affliction and others available, fans have their choice of the hottest designs made from some of the finest materials available. Similarly, MMA style apparel & clothing continues to grow with the addition of new brands including Intimidation Clothing. Luke Jernigan, President and CEO of Intimidation Clothing, told DFN Sports that “the market for MMA-themed apparel is ripe. Yes, there are many great companies on the market currently, but demand is at an all-time high. We have a well-rounded marketing plan with a variety of targeted channels which will ultimately lead to the success of our company.”

Pro Fighting Fans, a leading MMA news site, is well aware of the market. “Because  TapouT clothing and Affliction shirts & apparel is so popular, it made it easy to align with these top brands,” said Scott Dryden, Editor-in-Chief of ProFighting-fans.com. “Now that we have a partnership with Intimidation Clothing as well, I feel we are in a great position to continue to provide fans with what they want – great MMA apparel at affordable prices.”

However you look at it, MMA merchandise is continuing to grow just as Mixed Martial Arts is the fastest growing sport in the world. How far the sales will go is anyone’s guess, but it’s clear that many companies are poised to profit off that growth and popularity, even in times of a global economic recession.

UFC Update: Lesnar out of 106, Machida Verdict and More

Monday, October 26th, 2009

UFC Update

10-26-09

Machida vs. Shogun Fallout:

Message boards and outlets are full of disgust regarding the outcome of Shogun vs. Machida at UFC 104 for the Light Heavyweight Title.  Many believe the judges unanimous 48-47 decision in favor of Machida was just another ridiculous decision in a long line of debatable outcomes.

Do judges truly operate under the premise that to beat a champion the challenger must clearly outpoint him?  Their answer would be no but that is difficult to believe.  Shogun clearly won 3 out of the 5 rounds in a fight that consisted of little action.  Hopefully a rematch will happen and consist of more fireworks.

Following Boxing’s Path

In the past, MMA apologists often point to “boring” boxers such as Floyd Mayweather Jr in an effort to prove their sports superiority.   They  argue that the bouts are methodical with the only goal to outpoint their opponent.  Now what do they say?  Today’s MMA is full of the same type of fights only most happen on the ground.  At UFC 104 it happened on the feet with Shogun and Machida and on the ground with Gleison Tibau and Josh Neer.  Enough has been said about the title bout but the Tibau/Neer fight was incredibly dull with Tibau’s takedowns being the only “aggressive” action taken.  Tibau then laid on Neer for the majority of the time without improving his position.  The goal to outpoint your opponent now closely resembles the boxing matches MMA loyalists despise.

“Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it”- Sir Winston Churchill .  There are plenty of items to learn from boxing’s decrease in popularity.  In my opinion the most critical lesson is title fights which include undeserving opponents for rating purposes only.  With the likes of Don King, Bob Arum and various other unsavory characters boxing lived off exaggerated- over hyped fights.  With that being said, how does Vitor Belfort deserve a title shot against Anderson Silva?  Belfort has only fought one fight in his return to the UFC and it was held at a catch weight of 195.  Belfort defeated Rich Franklin who is no longer a contender in the Middleweight Division.  The division’s top contenders Nate Marquardt and Dan Henderson are probably asking the same question.  Factor in the astonishing press coverage of Kimbo Slice on The Ultimate Fighter and the sport’s biggest promotion reeks of boxing’s past.

Missing Pride

Seldom did Pride Fighting Championship fans witness bouts that were not entertaining.  The famed yellow card would be thrown anytime the action was brought to a halt whether in the stand up or on the ground.  In addition, Pride officials were much quicker to bring the fight to the center in the ring when a fighter was not trying to improve his position.

I for one am in favor of the yellow card and would like to see it employed on US soil.

UFC 106

According to the official UFC website, www.ufc.com, Brock Lesnar is out of UFC 106 due to an undisclosed illness.  His departure creates a major void for the event now dubbed Ortiz vs. Griffin 2.  UFC 106 will follow a UFC 105 event which also lacks a title bout featuring Randy Couture vs. Brandon Vera.  Stay tuned to www.profighting-fans for future updates.

Scott Dryden, Editor-in-Chief

UFC 104 Machida vs. Shogun

Saturday, October 24th, 2009

Pro Fighting Fans breaks down all of the televised UFC 104 fights below including the Spike TV televised preliminary fights. For all of the official UFC 104 results, be sure to look to ProFighting-fans.com, the leading UFC news site online.

Spike TV Preliminary Fights (Live)

Antoni Hardonk vs. Pat “HD” Barry – Heavyweight

1st round – Barry lands a overhand right.  Hardonk utilizes his kicking, but is quickly answered by Barry, who is using low kicks.  Hardonk misses on a knee.  Hardonk is catching Barry with inside leg kicks.  Barry is caught in the eye by a Hardonk finger.  Barry absorbs a knee to the stomach.  The eye seems to be bothering Barry, who is caught twice more with a leg kick.  Hardonk is scoring with several leg kicks.  Hardonk goes to the ground, where Barry takes top position.  Barry moves into side control but cant get to mount.  Hardonk impressively gets back up.  Hardonk is still throwing leg kicks, catching the former K-1 fighter.  Barry lands a solid right to the stomach of Hardonk.  Jabs are traded with 10 seconds left in the round.  PFF scores the round 10-9 for Hardonk

2nd round – As Barry comes out for the 2nd round, his eye looks shut.  Hardonk catches Barry first, however Barry lands a wild right putting Hardonk on his butt.  Barry hits again with a hard right hand.  Hardonk clinches with the powerful Barry.  Barry is teeing off on Hardonk, who has his hands down.  A right jab catches Hardonk and dazes him.  An overhand right catches Hardonk off guard.  Hardonk is dropped with a hard right jab and follows up with a hard right from standing position.  Hardonk is on his stomach when referee Josh Rosenthal calls the fight.

OFFICIAL DECISION – Barry over Hardonk via 2nd round TKO (2:30)

Chase Gormley vs. Stephan “Skyscraper” Struve – Heavyweight

1st round – A prior bout is being showed in between the two scheduled bouts.  Gormley gets Struve to the ground and begins his assault by ground and pound.  Struve is utilizing a high full guard.  As Gromley goes for the submission, Struve grabs Gormley’s leg.  Gormley is now on his back with Struve moving to side control.  They both get back to a standing position, only momentarily, as they both hit the ground.  Struve starts to hammer Gormley with hammerfists.  Gormley grabs a another leg lock submission attempt.  Gormley gets to his feet but gets careless and gets caught with a triangle choke.

Struve over Gormley via 1st round submission (triangle choke @ 4:04)

Eric “Red” Schaffer (13-3-2) vs. Ryan “Darth” Bader (10-0)

1st round – Schaffer takes a leg kick about 50 seconds in.  They both continue to stand and trade punches.  Red catches Bader with a left hook.  Schaffer is blocking most of Bader’s strikes.  Bader tries to slip a right hook in but it is blocked again.  Bader throws two left jabs that cant faze Red.  He does drop Schafffer with a hard right and follows it up with some hard rights from top position.  Schaffer makes it to his feet but is slammed back to the mat.  Somehow Schaffer is still surviving.  Schaffer is taken to the ground again.  As Bader slows his pace down a bit, Schaffer tries for a kimura.  Bader is on top position and now defending an omoplata.  Schaffer takes a hard right hand for his troubles.  A tired Bader gives Schaffer time to recover as the bell sounds.  Bader easily wins this round and quite possibly with a 10-8

2nd round – Schaffer looks ok for as much of a beating as he took in the 1st round.  As Bader hits with a right, Schaffer responds with a right left combo.  The action is stopped as Bader gets poked in the eye.  As action resumes, Bader is definetly slowing down.  Schaffer is coming forward with jabs, but Bader is throwing power.  Bader takes a right hook to the face but answers with one of his own.  Bader missed with a homerun punch.  Schaffer is definetly the fresher of the two fighters.  A right hook to the body of Schaffer doesnt do much damage.  Schaffer tries to look busy with quick right jabs to a lumbering Bader.  Bader is trying for a clinch but is caught with three straight right hands.  With a minute left, both fighters are still maintaining their position in the center of the octagon.  Schaffer catches Bader with a right left combo followed by a leg kick.  Bader gets caught with a right hand as he attempts a takedown.  With only five seconds remaining, neither fighter can get much else going.  This round goes to Schaffer 10-9 in a surprising comeback

3rd round – Schaffer is relaxed where Bader looks flat out tired.  Schaffer makes Bader eat a left hook.  A little leg kick from Bader is shook off by Schaffer.  Schaffer is dropped with a hard right hand.  As he hits the ground, Schaffer quickly recovers and regains his composure.  Schaffer in ful guard has control of his right arm.  Bader leaves go and stands back up.  Referee Josh Rosenthal call timeout from an apparent headbutt.  The break only lasts moments and the action is back on.  Schaffer goes for power punches, as does Bader.  Schaffer gets caught with a right hand.  Bader has a little more action but is getting clipped with punches.  Bader takes a right hand to the face but answers with a takedown.  As Bader finishes the takedown, Schaffer goes for the submission.  Bader transitions into side control but doesnt stay busy with his punches.  Schaffer, knowing that he is down on the scorecards, goes for an omoplata, but it proves too little too late.  PFF gives it a 10-9 for Bader, making the official score 29-27

OFFICIAL DECISION – Bader over Schaffer via unanimous decision

PAY-PER-VIEW FIGHT CARD

Anthony “Rumble” Johnson (7-2) vs. Yoshiyuki Yoshida (11-3) - Welterweight

1st round – Yoshi gets caught with a hard right uppercut followed by a right hook.  After Yoshida stumbles around for a couple seconds, referee Steve Mazagatti steps in before he takes anymore damage.

Johnson over Yoshida via 1st round TKO (0:41)

Joe “Daddy” Stevenson (35-10) vs. Spencer “King” Fisher (24-4)

1st round – Fisher doesnt want to tap gloves and just wants to get it on.  Nothing from either fighter for about 50 seconds when Stevenson catches a right hand.  A right hook by Joe Daddy is answered with a right hand by Fisher.  A low leg kick by Fisher is followed by a takedown attempt by Stevenson.  Stevenson works the takedown for roughly a minute but Fisher hangs tough with a strong sprawl.  Fisher lands a knee up the middle.  Fisher is in the clinch when Herb Dean seperates the two.  Fisher is bleeding into his right eye.  Stevenson lands an elbow to the eye of Fisher.  A left hook connects by Fisher.  Stevenson drags Fisher to the ground and takes his back with 20 seconds left.  Fisher defends by blocking punches from top position.  With the final push by Stevenson, the round is a 10-9 Joe Daddy

2nd round – A touch of gloves starts round 2.  A right hand by Joe Daddy is answered with a right by Fisher.  A head kick partially lands by Fisher.  Joe Daddy cashes in on a knee by Fisher by taking him down and gaining top position.  Stevenson is at his best in this position.  From full guard, Stevenson goes for a leg lock.  He quickly returns to top position, where he is smothering Fisher. Very close to full mount, Stevenson drops elbow after elbow.  Now raining elbows to Fisher’s head, it is opened up with a cut.  Stevenson is now in side control and dropping elbows on Fisher.  After about 20 unanswered, Fisher is saved by ref Herb Dean.

OFFICIAL DECISION – Stevenson over Fisher via 2nd round submission (strikes @ 4:03)

Chael Sonnen vs. Yushin Okami – Middleweight

1st round – A clinch is followed by a takedown by Sonnen.  As they get back to their feet, Sonnen slams Okami back to the ground.  Okami uses his strength and gets back to his feet with Sonnen on his back.  Okami is using foot stomps to try and break free from Sonnen’s grasp.  Okami gets out and sqaures back up with Sonnen.  Okami trades with Sonnen but gets the best of him with a tight jab.  Sonnen lands some nice leg kicks.  Sonnen is more active with his striking.  Okami is taken to the ground after faking a punch.  They get back to their feet, where Okami catches Sonnen twice.  Sonnen pushes forward and throws some front kicks for the last 10 seconds.  PFF gives the 1st round to Sonnen 10-9 due to his dominant striking and takedowns

2nd round – Sonnen continues to throw a front leg kick.  Okami catches Sonnen with a hard right.  Sonnen gets on Okami’s back and forces him to the fence.  After on the ground for seconds, they get back to a standing positon, where Sonnen hits on a double jab.  A turning side kick is followed by a high and low leg kick.  Sonnen continues to pick up the pace and catches with a right jab but is struck with a jab by Okami.  Okami hits with a left hook but doesnt stop the forward movement of Sonnen.  Sonnen is throwing wild strikes that are catching Okami.  Sonnen is picking apart Okami.  Okami is taking damage to his body.  Sonnen is setting his powerful punches up with some light jabs and straight punches.  Okami is moving backwards where Sonnen is moving towards his opponent.  Sonnen hits with a leg kick as the 2nd round buzzer sounds.  Sonnen is leading 2 rounds after a 10-9; at least in my opinion

3rd round – They begin by trading jabs.  Sonnen defends a combination from Okami.  Okami is trying to utilize his left hand but cant get on track as Sonnen connects on several strikes.  A right hand finds a home in Okami’s face.  A combo pushes Sonnen back slightly but Sonnen pushes back forward.  Sonnen using a leg kick to set up a jab.  Sonnen finsihes a takedown and takes his back.  Okami defends by rolling over, but continues to take punches to the head.  Okami gets back to his feet, however Sonnen still has control of his waist.  Okami gets Sonnen’s arm with about 40 seconds left.  Sonnen finishes the round on top of Okami’s back.  PFF gives it to Sonnen 10-9 ; making it a 30-27 for Sonnen

OFFICIAL DECISION – Sonnen over Okami via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Josh “The Dentist” Neer (25-8-1) vs. Gleison Tibau (29-6) - Catchweight

1st round – Tibau slams Neer to the ground but Neer gets back to the feet.  Again, Neer is thrown to the ground.  Tibau is standing and jumps into guard.  They return to their feet, where Neer loses his mouthpiece.  Tibau runs right through Neer and lands another takedown but he cant hold him there.  Neer lands a front kick.  Tibau gets another successful takedown.  Neer is in perfect position for defense and gets back to his feet.  Neer hits with a hard right hand, trying to knock him out. The round ends with both fighters on their feet.  Tibau has to get that round 10-9

2nd round – Tibau easily converts on another takedown.  Neer gets back up and presses forward until clinching.  As they seperate, Tibau slowly moves in and gets Neer to the ground.  Neer is back up again and lands a right hook.  A leg kick is landed by Neer but is put back to the ground on his back.  Tibau stands back up and drops into mount position.  Neer stands up with Tibau on his back.  Neer is defending very nicely but Tibau gets the arm.  He cant finsih with a submission, instead gets back up and tries to strike.  Neer pops Tibau with a right hand, as he slows down .  Tibau gets another takedown before Neer gets back up.  Neer clinches for a second and pushes Tibau back.  Tibau lands a quick jab as he steps backwards.  Tibau gets that round with the easy takedowns 10-9 in a very close round

3rd round – The last round is started with a Tibau takedown, where he easily passes to side control.  Neer gets out of danger and hits with upkicks.  Neer throws tight uppercuts and right hooks, which land.  Neer sets up a straight right with a leg kick.  Referee Josh Rosenthal stops the fight and gives both fighters time to recover.  The last minute is highlighted by Neer hitting with low leg kicks.  Tibau gets another takedown with about 45 seconds remianing.  Ner pushes forward but gets taken to the ground again.  Tibau has to take that round as well.  PFF gives the final score 30-27 Tibau

OFFICIAL DECISION – Tibau over Neer via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

Ben Rothwell (30-6) vs. Cain Velasquez (6-0) - Heavyweight

1st round – In the co-main event, Rothwell is a huge underdog.  Rothwell catches with a right hand.  Velasquez goes for a single leg and converts.  Rothwell attempts to get back up, goes for the fence to try and assist with getting up.  Rothwell gets back up but gets dropped.  He gets back up and hits Velasquez with some combo.  Velasquez goes down again, this time on his back.  Velasquez hits with several elbows to Rothwell’s face.  Rothwell gets back up and hits with an uppercut.  Velasquez gets anoerh takedown.  Now in side control, Velasquez hits with a left hand.  Rothwell works to get back up but gets tagged with some right hands.  Velasquez hammers with some ground and pound.  Rothwell is getting hit but hagning in.  Rothwell gets up but gets dropped again.  Velasquez starts to hit the side of his head.  Rothwell hangs in there for round 2.  Velasquez manhandles that round 10-9.

2nd round – Velasquez takes Rothwell down again.  Velasquez has contol of his waist and starts to hammer on his face, although Rothwell continues to stand up.  Mazagatti makes another horrible decision and stops the fight.

Velasquez over Rothwell via 2nd round TKO (0:58)

Lyoto “The Dragon” Machida (15-0) vs. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua (18-3) - LHW Title

1st round – Machida looks cool, calm, and collective.  Shogun, basically the same.  Machida takes his karate stance.  Machida grabs a clinch and lands some knees.  Rua hits with a leg kick.  They clinch with Rua having underhooks.  Machida, with his back against the fence, forces free of the clinch.  They trade with leg kicks.  Rua almost gets the takedown, instead puts Machida against the fence.  Machida breaks free and makes Rua miss.  Machida lands come strikes to the body of Rua.  Rua steps into a low leg kick.  Machida makes Rua miss once again.  Rua connects with a hard leg kick, follwed with a punch.  A leg kick to the body of Machida gives Rua the edge for this first round.  PFF gives it to Rua 10-9

2nd round – Rua misses on a low leg kick.  Machida tagged Rua with a hard right hand followed by a leg kick.  Machida is still making Rua miss, for the most part.  Rua shoots, but gets hit with a knee.  Machida defends against the takedown by breaking free.  A leg kick by Machida almost knocks Rua to the ground.  Rua grazes Machida with a leg kick.  Machida lands a solid left leg kick.  Rua returns the favor and lands with a kick on Machida.  Rua hits with a knee to the body of Machida.  Machida hits with a knee to the body.  Rua clinches and hits with a knee while against the fence.  Rua hitting with knees.  Machida free as the 2nd round ends.  PFF gives this close round to Machida due to his striking 10-9

3rd round – As the 3rd round begins, Rua hits with a leg kick to the body.  Machida hits with two right hands, countered by a leg kick by Rua.  Rua missed with a lunging right hand and then with a leg kick.  Both fighters are being very patient.  Machida lands another body kick.  Rua races in but doesnt land anything.  Machida steps forward with high kicks.  Rua attempting a takedown, lands an elbow on the break.  A solid leg kick lands on the shin of Machida.  Rua hits with yet another leg kick.  Machida makes Rua miss until he hits with a leg kick.  A Machida leg kick forces Rua to backpedal.  A hard right hand stuns Rua. Rua on the defense lands a right hook.  Machida dances around for the last 10 seconds.  PFF scores it 10-9 Machida; mostly due to the last flurry of punches

4th round – Both fighters look fresh during the first of the championship rounds.  Rua missed on a low leg kick.  Machida makes Rua miss once again.  The Dragon hits with a body kick.  Shogun continues to pace forward with leg kicks.  He takes a hard right hand but answers with a high kick.  A slip by Machida makes Rua race in to grab his waist.  Machida defends and breaks free with 2:30 remaining.  A knee lands to the body of Machida.  A leg kick is landed by Rua.  Machida breaks free with an elbow to the face of Rua.  A knee is taken by Machida.  A leg kick is connected by Rua.  Machida looks to be laboring.  Rua backpedals with 10 seconds left.  The fourth round has to go to Rua 10-9, he simply landed more strikes

5th round – The final round is underway and Rua hits with another leg kick.  Machida clinches but quickly breaks free.  A hard right hand by Machida is answered with a leg kick by Rua.  Machida is taking his time and getting picked apart with the leg kicks.  Rua pushes forward as Machida lunges at him.  They clinch, where Rua works knees and foot stomps.  Herb Dean breaks free and resets.  Rua lands a solid body kick to the side of Machida.  Machida hits with a hard right.  A right hand connects by Rua.  Rua is the aggressor.  Machida has his left hand cocked.  Machida desperatly throws a leg kick.  Rua hits with a hard right hand.  Machida missed on an uppercut.  Rua is pacing forward  and gets caught with a knee.  PFF gives this round to Rua 10-9; making the final score 48-47 in favor of Rua

OFFICIAL DECISION – Machida over Rua via unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47, 48-47)

UFC 104 Weigh-in Results

Friday, October 23rd, 2009

UFC 104 is set to take place in approximately 24 hours and ProFighting-fans.com is set with our UFC 104 live coverage. Below are the weigh-in results from earlier this evening as fans can check back tomorrow night for the UFC 104 fight results here from Pro Fighting Fans.

  • Lyoto Machida 202.5 lbs vs Mauricio “Shogun” Rua 204.5 lbs
  • Cain Velasquez 238 lbs vs Ben Rothwell 265 lbs
  • Joe Stevenson (155.5) vs. Spencer Fisher (155)
  • Anthony Johnson 176 lbs vs Yoshiyuki Yoshida 170 lbs
  • Josh Neer (156.5) vs Gleison Tibau (157)
  • Ryan Bader (205) vs Eric Schafer (205.5)
  • Antoni Hardonk (249.5) vs Pat Barry (237)
  • Yushin Okami (185) vs Chael Sonnen (185)
  • Jorge Rivera (185) vs Rob Kimmons (185)
  • Kyle Kingsbury (205.5) vs Razak Al-Hassan (204.5)
  • Stefan Struve (243.5) vs Chase Gormley (262)

Pro Fighting Fans continues MMA updates

Thursday, October 22nd, 2009

While the month of October has been a slow one in terms of bigtime MMA events, ProFighting-fans.com has not slowed down a bit. The same site that has become one of the Top 10 MMA news & fan sites on the web continues to grow and add great content.

Recent additions include:
- Fighter profiles for newly-signed Strikeforce fighters Roger Bowling and Antwain Britt
- Fighter profiles for UFC fighters Anthony Johnson, Yushin Okami & Yoshiyuki Yoshida
- UFC 104 predictions as well as the UFC 104 fight card and tonight’s UFC 104 picks
- Interview with HDNet MMA announcer Michael “The Voice” Schiavello
- Dream 12 predictions

- Strikeforce Challengers 4 predictions
- The Ultimate Fighter 10 updates including our weekly recaps and weekly interviews with Roy “Big Country” Nelson

- Tha launch of a new MMA apparel company, Intimidation Clothing

Keep checking back with Pro Fighting Fans for more great MMA updates posted each day as well as complete UFC 104 results & coverage on Saturday night!

A Fan’s View from his Couch: UFC 104 Picks & Preview

Thursday, October 22nd, 2009

UFC 104 – Machida vs. Shogun

Battle of Brazil – This fight card is the mirror image of the 2009 New York Mets, a great Ace at the frond of the staff but not a whole lot of depth or bullpen help to be successful!  The LHW title tilt is huge, and can for all intents and purposes carry the card, as Karate expert Lyoto vs. BJJ king pin Shogun, but after that the main card drops like Obama’s street cred with the Olympic debacle…

Lyoto “the Dragon” Machida v. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua

First, these two men are a combined 33-3 including Machida’s perfect 15-0, that right there is enough to get me to tune into this battle of the worlds best 205’s.  Second, read the names these men have respectively beat: Rashad Evans, Tito Ortiz, Thiago Silva, Chuck Liddell, Rampage Jackson, Ricardo Arona and surprisingly B.J. Penn.  Third, of there 33 wins between them with 20 that have come via TKO & KO. That includes the notion that Machida fights slow and tries to win an easy decision; to put it mildly this fight is going to be great! BUT, not the chess match a lot of the pundents are predicting.  This one ends in the second with Shogun getting frustrated with the laissez faire style of the Dragon and makes a disastrous mistake and Lyoto capitalizes with a swarm of pepping jabs and finally a right hook with intentions that would have Ivan Drago wetting his underoos!

Like I said before this is where the card gets a little light for:

Cain Velasquez v. Ben Rothwell

Lets all hope that Cain comes out on top as he could be next in line for Brock or Shane with a nice win over Rothwell.  If Big Ben wins, the HW division starts to look a little bleak again, and please, please, please don’t tell me about this season of TUF; those guys are terrible.  I was recently joking with my cousin about how a D-3 athlete in myself could just run around the octagon until some of those guys with ‘titties’ got tired enough to let me sink in a weak rear naked choke or arm bar! Please Cain, win this fight!

The rest of the main card is kind of like last year’s Tampa Bay “Devil” Rays.  Not quite sure what you have with them, could surprise us all and make a nice bout or two; or, they could be this years Rays who never really lived up to all the billing.  Here are some names to watch out for:
1.) Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson – dude has heavy hands, he hits as hard as Koscheck and we saw what he did to Yoshida.
2.) Spencer ‘The King’ Fisher – he lives on a yo-yo, roller coaster, but is always entertaining and could upset Stevenson.
3.) Ryan Bader – he the real deal, he is 10-0 but has fought nothing but cans, and gets another one in the prelims, he can’t slip up!

Tune in here at ProFighting-fans.com for more UFC 104 predictions as well as the entire UFC 104 fight results as each fight is complete Saturday night.

By Greg Vorse
MMA Staff Writer

TUF 10 Episode 5 features Wes Sims vs Justin Wren

Wednesday, October 14th, 2009

As Matt Mitrione ponders if he would rather be a Balltlecat or He-Man figure, another fight has been announced on The Ultimate Fighter 10 Heavyweights. With Wren hoping to use his youth to help him against the experienced Sims, it’s up to Wes Sims to pickup the first win for Team Rampage. In reference to Wren, “all he got is Greco” said Rampage, that same Greco Roman Wrestling that Kimbo Slice apparently knows nothing about. Wren weighed in at 247.5 while Wes weighed in at 251 after promising to be “bigger” than Wren, although none of us are sure what he was referring to as being bigger.

In what Wren proclaimed was the biggest fight of his life the 8-1 Wren faced off with the 22-12-1 Sims. With the fight starting at 10:52 pm ET, it was sure to be a fairly quick fight, something I will let you read about tomorrow in our TUF 10: Episode 5 recap here at ProFighting-fans.com.

TUF 10: Brendan Schaub vs Demico Rogers highlights Episode 4

Wednesday, October 7th, 2009

Episode 4 of The Ultimate Fighter 10 aired on Wednesday night and it took half of the show just to announce that  Brendan Schaub vs Demico Rogers would be the fight of the night. Brendan Schaub is a teammate of Rashad Evans on Team Jackson while Demico Rogers is referred to as Rashad’s Mini-Me by his coach Rampage Jackson. As with past episodes, Team Rashad’s fighter seemed much more prepared before the fight while Rampage seems to go through the motions, but when the fight finally took place, all of that no longer matters. With the fight not starting until 10:53 pm ET on Spike TV, it was obvious that it was not going to go the distance, and indeed it did not. We’re not going to spoil the results of the Brendan Schaub vs Demico Rogers fight on TUF 10 here, but for complete coverage of The Ultimate Fighter 10 including the recap of the TUF 10 Episode 4 Brendan Schaub vs Demico Rogers fight as well as Roy Nelson’s take on TUF 10 Episode 4 look to the MMA experts here at ProFighting-fans.com.

Two stars head home from DWTS, Chuck Liddell keeps on fighting

Tuesday, October 6th, 2009

While two stars head home after the Week #3 results show for Dancing With The Stars 9, former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Chuck Liddell is not one of them. Liddell survived yet another cut watching another of the sports stars sweat it out in the bottom two, but Liddell learned early in the results show that he was safe again this week. It appears that despite the fact that Liddell’s scores have been in the bottom third of the overall scores throughout the three weeks of competition, his fan base is indeed helping keep him alive.

For weekly Chuck Liddell Dancing With The Stars news & updates, keep checking back here at ProFighting-fans.com.