“If he’s so big and I can’t handle all this power, and all of these things, then why did the fight go for so long?” he asks. “Why wasn’t I taken out immediately if I didn’t belong in the ring with him?”
Not sure the logic there is very sound. St-Pierre is simply too big and too good for Penn, and a survival rate of three rounds is off from both Jon Fitch and Thiago Alves, who lasted five.
Stranger things and all that, but Penn is not the type of reckless fighter who lends himself to an expedient conquering. I anticipate a five-round fight, with IVs all around at the after-part.
Friday, July 24 8:03 pm PT: The days when it’s [i]not[/i] good to be Dana White keep getting fewer and farther between: Yahoo’s Kevin Iole has given word that 12-month-old upstart promotion Affliction has given scout’s honor that they’ll close up event operations. This followed Josh Barn -- well, for God’s sake, if you don’t know, go find out. I can’t type that sentence again.
In return, the UFC will welcome Affliction back into its good graces as an event and athlete sponsor. The two companies parted ways back in January 2008 after the UFC anticipated the label would be starting their own fight promotion.
While that’s good news for fighters who enjoyed the ancillary income, fans give not one CC of concern over that: they’re most interested in whether Affliction’s fighter contracts will be transferable to the UFC, and/or which athletes the promotion will show the appropriate interest in.
The legal jiu-jitsu is too seventh-degree for me to speculate on: while Fedor Emelianenko has one fight obligation to fill on his current contract, there’s no basis for him being “forced” to fight for anyone. And if Emelianenko’s camp remains adamant that the UFC’s negotiating skills need a lesson in etiquette, he might need to pull out a pillow and wait it out.
Friday, July 24 11:19 am PT: An e-mail dialogue Thursday morning reintroduced into my head a hot-button issue that made the media rounds a few years ago: the idea of tainted athletic supplementation.
The basic idea is that some dietary aid companies intentionally or unintentionally “spike” powders and pills with trace amounts of illegal compounds, either to A). Provide a brief marketing buzz about the great results users get, or B). Because factory lines that also manufacture controlled chemicals were cross-contaminated. An Olympic-accredited lab in Cologne tested 634 supplements in 2000 and 2001: nearly 15% contained an ingredient that would likely cause an alarming cup of urine.
Needless to say, this fact did not go unnoticed by athletes who came up positive for banned substances. It was the perfect face-saving rebuttal: “I don’t use drugs. My protein shake must have had horse steroids in it.”
Friday, July 24 10:15 am PT: The search to find a suitable opponent for the world’s number-one heavyweight on 10 days' notice moved into its third day Thursday night.
Vitor Belfort is ready and waiting. A purse has been agreed upon, but a contract has yet to be produced to the Brazilian’s manager, Fabiano Farah, said his publicist Felipe Bruno.
Belfort’s head trainer, Shawn Tompkins, said he was shocked to wake up Thursday morning without a clear-cut decision.
Friday, July 24 10:13 am PT: No, it’s not a fad diet.
If Vitor Belfort gets the blessing to face heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko, he’ll have 10 days (and counting) to tweak a camp that began eight weeks ago for middleweight Jorge Santiago.
“Ten days before any fight with Vitor is just keeping him relaxed and motivated,” said the Brazilian’s head trainer, Shawn Tompkins. “He’s in the greatest shape of his life. Mentally, he’s never been better, so it’s just strategy (now), preparing him to know right when he’s going to strike, mixing in his submissions –- both offense and defense -- and just keeping him relaxed.”
Friday, July 24 2:11 am PT: It was day two in limbo Thursday for Vitor Belfort and his trainers as they await word from Affliction Entertainment regarding the fighter’s Aug. 1 dance partner.
The mood at the Xtreme Couture facility had shifted significantly from Wednesday, as each minute that ticked away seemed to heighten speculation that Belfort’s proposed match with Fedor Emelianenko could slip out of their teammate’s grasp.
A very tangible concern for the camp is Belfort’s weight, and if he will need to stick to his diet and begin his last round of weight-cutting or head for the nearest barbeque joint post-haste.
Friday, July 24 12:00 am PT: The promise of taking a wild swing at barely disputed heavyweight champion Fedor Emelianenko for a six-figure payday has become something akin to the world’s most spectacular Toughman contest: land a crack at the champ, win a prize.
