Wednesday, June 10 5:53 pm PT: No tragic sauna accidents pending: Gina Carano and Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos have agreed to meet for a Strikeforce 145-pound women’s title on Aug. 15, per the promotion’s official press release.
The generous weight limit increases the odds of both ladies not having to forfeit a portion of their prize purse. Carano tipped the scales at 144.5 pounds and 141 pounds (on her third attempt) to make two recent 140-pound fights; Santos weighed in a full seven pounds over for an April 145-pound fight with Hitomi Akano.
Great fight, but because we like to complain: Why is this fight on Showtime and not CBS? And does anyone have clue one who the top contender would be for the winner?
Wednesday, June 10 4:16 pm PT: The threat of missing out on UFC 99 is looming for UK MMA fans with the troubles of Irish broadcaster and UFC partner Setanta. From what I can gather, the feeling inside Zuffa is that the show will be broadcast as scheduled, but with the highly volatile nature of the situation, things could change at any moment.
Setanta is wallowing in approximately $1 billion (USD) of debt. The possibility of the company not surviving this crisis is having a ripple effect on the sports, mostly soccer, that it covers. One or two Scottish Premier League teams may not survive the subscription broadcaster’s downfall, according to an ESPN report, and then there is the UFC.
With their big German debut in jeopardy of not being shown in the UK, the UFC runs the risk of losing out on viewers for a card that has gotten a serious push with the bad blood between Briton Dan Hardy and American Marcus Davis.
Their worries will not stop there either. Without a significant broadcast partner in the UK, the UFC will run the risk of losing new and casual fans there. They have spent a ton of money breaking into the UK and would surely not be pleased having to give back any of their converts.
If they are panicking in Las Vegas, or should I say Cologne, this week, it really isn’t showing. One person inside the company I talked to expressed complete confidence in Zuffa UK chief Marshall Zelaznik’s ability to handle and ultimately resolve the issue for the long term.
Either way, I am sure with all the other issues surrounding UFC 99 -- the ban of minors, the public scrutiny the show has received in Germany -- this was one more headache the powers that be at Zuffa would have rather not had to deal with the week of the show.
Wednesday, June 10 2:57 pm PT: Shane Carwin is just about ready to get back in the gym after recovering from major reconstructive surgery on his nose, according to his trainer, Trevor Whitman.
Carwin suffered a broken nose in his knockout victory over Gabriel Gonzaga in March and underwent surgery two weeks after the event.
The camp is not expecting him to return to action before September at the earliest. That seems about right considering all the shows through August are completely booked.
Carwin is probably looking at one more fight before he will be in consideration for a title shot, but at 11-0, another bout might not be necessary.
With Brock Lesnar and Frank Mir slated to unify the UFC heavyweight crown in July, the timing would be perfect for Carwin to take on the winner should UFC matchmaker Joe Silva give him the nod. The feeling among Carwin’s camp is that this is a real possibility.
Carwin, who has spent only 3:24 in the Octagon en route to three stoppage wins, has been impressive enough to warrant the title shot. However, he will probably have to wait on the outcome of UFC 99, where his highly touted fellow prospect Cain Velazquez is taking on Cheick Kongo. Should Kongo get past Velazquez, he would most assuredly remain ahead of Carwin in the heavyweight pecking order.
Participants who submit to the “Beatdown” -- allegedly bullies to victims too squirrely to actually fight back on their own -- climb into a cage with a $10,000 reserve: The money disappears the more they tap out or crumble.
I do not begrudge MTV drawing ratings -- or host Jason “Mayhem” Miller drawing a paycheck -- but the incredibly labored mugging of the “bullies” brings to mind the high-school-level hams of pro wrestling. And that’s hardly a compliment.
Wednesday, June 10 1:52 pm PT: Bulgarian sambo expert Blagoi Ivanov stunned observers last November when he defeated otherwise unpunctured Fedor Emelianenko in a Sambo rules bout in Russia. Sambo, for the uninitiated, is a little like MMA, but with headgear and a bunch of unpleasantness -- like chokes -- removed. Emelianenko’s software program may have gotten confused.
Riding high, Ivanov now appears set to make his MMA debut against iron-jawed Kazuyuki Fujita for Japanese promotion Sengoku on August 2.
It’s a tough fight for Ivanov -- Fujita hits hard, has solid wrestling and was once notoriously hard to damage -- but it’s not insurmountable. Fujita is pushing 40 and hasn’t competed in over a year. It appears academic that Sengoku will try to raise Ivanov’s profile for a rematch with Emelianenko.
“… We wanted Vitor to go up to a [catch weight] of 195 lbs,” Atencio said. “… I don’t understand why he didn’t take it. It was win-win for him.”
Was it really? Belfort’s fans have reasons for renewed optimism: His run at middleweight has gotten off to a great start with consecutive KO victories over a tough Terry Martin and a perpetually difficult Matt Lindland. Why stall out taking a fight in a weight class that doesn’t even exist?
I’m growing increasingly despondent over the rash of catch bouts that are popping up. It’s a sign that promotions outside of the UFC have such skeletal rosters that the only solution is to begin shuffling fighters around and creating compromising poundages out of thin air. Attribute it to my OCD or don’t, but completely random fights do nothing for the sport’s structure. (And I’ll happy point a finger at the pending Wanderlei Silva vs. Rich Franklin clash this weekend -- at a bizarro 195 pounds)
Wednesday, June 10 12:04 pm PT: Old news that bears repeating: Former IFL heavyweight champion Roy Nelson and MMA’s own Ric Flair, Wes Sims, have reportedly signed on for the tenth season of “The Ultimate Fighter,” now filming and premiering Sept. 16.
While Nelson is a solid contender -- despite an engorged midsection, he’s put up some admirable performances against good competition -- Sims is a little more curious of an entrant with an existing 0-3 mark in the Octagon. If the intention of the show is to present legitimate challengers, he’s a sore thumb. If the intention is to present great television, you couldn’t ask for a better fighter.
Prediction: Both Sims and fellow cast member Kimbo Slice will be bounced from the house in the first round, but will draw the highest quarter-hour rating of the night for their bout on the live season finale.
Wednesday, June 10 9:45 am PT: Who says boxing and MMA can’t co-exist? Electronic Arts has announced intentions to have their popular “Fight Night” stand-up game alternate years with “MMA,” their first step into the multi-art, multi-platform nosebleed genre due in 2010.
EA Sports chair Peter Moore told Kotaku.com that he’s undaunted by THQ’s acquisition of the UFC license and that he’ll get “who we need to get” in order to compete. (Early hint: Moore attended Strikeforce this past weekend.) Hopefully he’ll have better luck negotiating with Fedor Emelianenko’s reps than Dana White did.
Wednesday, June 10 9:37 am PT: High off a victory over Scott Smith on Saturday -- pun fully intended -- Team Nick Diaz is making some ambitious claims. Trainer Cesar Gracie told FightHype.com that they’d welcome fights at 205 lbs. if the right offer came along.
“We would bulk him up a bit and let him fight the really big guys,” Gracie said. “I bet people would enjoy that … . He’s like the Gracie jiu-jitsu guys from the old school. He will fight in any weight class.”
Gracie also discussed the likelihood of Diaz moving back down to welterweight. Not encouraging news: Diaz has struggled at lower weights. He’s got a long, lean swimmer’s physique, and there’s just not much extra to carve off the bone when he hits 170.
Gracie, incidentally, seems to have jurisdiction over Strikeforce with Diaz, Jake Shields and Gil Melendez. That’s a nice hand to play come contract time.
Wednesday, June 10 12:31 am PT: A 60-day medical suspension will prevent Andrei Arlovski from making his professional boxing debut for Golden Boy Promotions on June 27 in Los Angeles.
Arlovski was dispatched by heavyweight upstart Brett Rogers with a trio of punches in only 22 seconds at Strikeforce “Lawler vs. Shields” on June 6 at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis.
Arlovski’s camp confirmed the suspension, which was issued by the Missouri Office of Athletics as a standard precaution, with Sherdog.com Tuesday. Arlovski was not injured in the bout and was not sent to the hospital afterward, said his camp.
