Wladimir Klitschko vs. Tony Thompson Press Conference
Posted on | May 1, 2008 | No Comments
PRO-ELITE SIGNS DVD DISTRIBUTION DEAL
Posted on | May 1, 2008 | No Comments
PFC announces additions to loaded roster
Posted on | May 1, 2008 | No Comments
LEMOORE, Ca. — The Palace Fighting Championship has recently added some significant fighters to its roster.
Four high-caliber fighters have signed contracts to compete in one of the top mixed martial arts promotions in the country.
Highlighting the group is Ultimate Fighting Championship veteran Jake O’Brien (10-1) of Indiana. O’Brien was recently released from his UFC contract and PFC President Christian Printup wasted little time signing the heavyweight prospect, whose only loss is to UFC star Andrei Arlovski (12-5) at UFC 82 in March.
“We are very excited to bring in one of the most promising young heavyweights in the country. He’s proven himself at the sports highest level. He beat Heath Herring,” Printup said. “Jake is a great wrestler with solid boxing skills. A lot of people haven’t seen that, but we want to put him in some fights where he can show it. We want to thank Ken Pavia for making the deal work.”
O’Brein beat Heath Herring (28-13) by decision in Jan of 2007 and also owns two other UFC wins over, defeating Josh Shockman (2-2) and Kristof Midoux (6-10). He will make his PFC debut at the Tachi Palace Hotel and Casino in Lemoore on July 17.
Also schedule to make their debut on at PFC 9 in July is veteran Jaime Jara (17-5) of North Highland.
Jara is expected to make an immediate impact on the middleweight division.
“Jara is definitely one of the most battle-tested middleweights out there. We are committed to bringing in the best fighters we can. We cultivate new talent and at same time continue help establish veterans,” Printup said. “We also want to find significant fights and meaningful fights the fans will enjoy. Jara comes out hard every night, brings excitement and likes to bang. At the same time, he is really skilled. Things in the middleweight division are getting more interesting as every day passes.”
Jara has won 11 of last 13 fights. He is a Gladiator Challenge, King of the Cage and EliteXC veteran and has fought all over California. He last beat Ricky Shivers (5-4) in March. Shivers owns a knockout victory over current PFC World Middleweight champion Visalia’s Kenny Ento (9-3).
The PFC also signed a pair of up-and-coming talents from Urijah Faber’s gym, Ultimate Fitness in Sacramento — lightweight Dustin Akabari (1-0) and featherweight Tito Jones (4-1).
Akabari will make his PFC debut on May 8 at the Palace in Lemoore at PFC 8 “A Night of Champions” and Jones made his debut at PFC 7.5 at Eagle Mountain Casino in Porterville with a knock out of veteran Fernando Arreola (3-5-1) of Bakersfield on April 26.
Akabari might be the least known of the signings, but Printup promises that will change very soon.
“Dustin Akabari is a killer. He looks unassuming, young and good-looking. He’s polished looking, but put him in a ring or on a mat and he’s a beast at 155 pounds. He’s essentially, at this young of an age, wrestling at a division one level. His jiu-jitsu is basically that of a black belt. He routinely wins big tournaments against the top guys. His Muay Thai is outstanding.”
Akabari won his MMA debut over Sean Bassett (0-4) by KO in just 56 seconds in April 1 in the IFC.
“B.J. Penn is called ‘Prodigy’ and for good reason, but I also think Dustin is some that epitomizes that term. He has been training since an early age, like 12-years-old. I think coming out the gate he might not be some one people are going to talk about. But in May, when he makes his PFC debut and makes this TV debut, the entire MMA community is going to take notice of ‘Prince’ Akabari,” Printup said.
Jones could be a dominant force at either featherweight or bantamweight. His performance on at PFC 7.5 was one of the best of the night.
“Tito is up there in Sacramento with Urijah and all those guys. He is some one I knew of and have been watching since he was in Arizona. I’ve really had my eye on him,” Printup said. “ He is a very dynamic fighter, electrifying. His hand speed is amazing and he has fantastic footwork. I think he is a tremendous addition to our featherweight or bantamweight division. I think there are some exciting, big fights for Tito Jones in the PFC.”
At PFC 8 on May 8, four PFC World titles will be up for grabs.
There are less than 300 tickets left and they can be purchased at tickets.com or charge by phone at 1-800-225-2277. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. and fights start at 6:30.
Atlanta’s Diego Saraiva (11-6-1) will defend his lightweight title for the first time against Bakersfield’s Brian Cobb (11-4).
Visalia’s Kenny Ento (9-3) defends his middleweight title against Santa Rosa’s Nate Loughran (7-0).
Oakdale’s Art Arciniega defends his featherweight belt against Fresno’s Jorge Evangelista.
Porterville’s Shawn Klarcyk (7-2) will fight Oregon’s Jason Georgianna (7-2) for the interim bantamweight championship.
In other bouts;
—Lemoore lightweight Poppies Martinez (15-4) vs. Huron’s Sergio Cortez (3-3)
—Oregon heavyweight Devin Cole (7-6) vs. Arizona’s Vince Lucero (18-13)
—Oxnard light heavyweight Lodune Sincaid (12-6) vs. Tulare’s Rafael Del Real (5-8)
—Sacramento lightweight Dustin Akabari (1-0) vs. Cody Canterbury (1-2)
—Sacramento bantamweight Joseph Benavidez (4-0) vs. Los Angeles’ Maurice Eazel (3-6)
—Sacramento lightweight Thonglor Armatsena (1-0) vs. Sacramento’s Noah Shinable (3-9-1)
—Lemoore featherweight Sergio Quinones (2-1) vs. Fresno’s Casey Olson (6-2)
—Mexico lightweight Olaf Alfonso (6-8) vs. Newport Beach’s Matt Doyle (1-2)
Weighins will be Wednesday, May 7 at 4 p.m. at the Den Sports Bar located on the third floor of the Palace in Lemoore and are open to the public.
For breaking PFC news go to www.palacefightingchampionship.com. You can also find other PFC and Palace information at http://www.tachipalace.com.
Tags: Andrei Arlovski > B.J. Penn > Bakersfield > black belt > Christian Printup > Dustin Akabari > EliteXC > Fernando Arreola > Gladiator Challenge > Heath Herring > Indiana > Jaime Jara > Jake O'Brien > jiu jitsu > Josh Shockman > Kenny Ento > King of the Cage > Kristof Midoux > Lemoore > Mixed Martial Arts > MMA > Palace Fighting Championship > PFC > PFC 7.5 > Porerville > Sacramento > Tito Jones > UFC > Ultimate Fitness > Urijah Faber
THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER – Episode 5 RECAP
Posted on | May 1, 2008 | 1 Comment
Dante Rivera Takes on Brandon Sene in 3-round Week 5 finale
By: Jack Bratcher
[mpinpage]
In pre-fight shenanigans there’s a fighter named Jeremy May who is on team Rampage who puts some lemon juice in Matt Brown’s dip. Brown finds out, gets pissed and promises him they will fight in the Octagon when the time comes. Brown is on team Forrest.
Brandon Sene vs. Dante Rivera
Fight is starting early tonight. Not even 9:30pm CST yet. Must be a long fight or something happens afterwards. Clinched against the cage, Dante gets the takedown. Side control for Dante. Back to their feet. Wild punch from Danted; clinched again. knees from Brandon. Clinched agianst the cage. Shots to the body from Brandon. Couple of knees from Dante is the only strikes he’s landed. Dante has body control trying for a takedown still has his arms around Brandon. Ref finally splits them up. Dante’s hands are down. Throws another wild punch then goes for the clinch looking for takedown….gets a big slam on Brandon. Punches and elbows from the bottom by Brandon. Dante is in Brandon’s gaurd but doing nothing. Dante looks for a leg lock, Brandon gets out. Dante has not thrown one punch while he had Brandon down. Not one punch. Forrest tells Dante he won the round. Maybe because of that big slam but that’s all he did. But he did have ring control so it was very close round with neither fighter landing anything of real significance.
Round 2 starts and the fighters immediately clinch. Up against the cage with Dante having double underhooks. Finally Dante gets a takedown just as the referee is about to split them up. The ref lets it go though cause he got the takedown. So Dante is on top again but he’s not doing anything. Brandon throws strikes from the bottom then makes it back to his feet. Dante is primarily a ju-jitsu fighter so as he gets another takedown now we see Brandon still throwing strikes from the bottom. Dante throws one or two punches which are the first I’ve seen him throw on the ground in the fight. I assume he’s looking for a submission but with no success because for one thing he never actively starts any submission technique. Brandon reverses and gets top position and starts landing some strikes.
The coaches and other fighters each tell their fighter that they won but it will probably go into overtime. Over time would make sense since the fight started early. Previews showed a decision in this fight that I believe Rampage is very unhappy with so they may just give this fight to Dante and if that is the deal I would be pissed too I guess cause the guy had a slam and some takedowns and he had Octagon control was all he had. But I guess Brandon through more strikes but all of them pretty much were while he was on the bottom with Dante on top of him. Either that or with Dante controlling him in the clinch.
Ok third round. So it’s a tie right now. Ref tells the fighter that the winner of this round wins the fight. Dante throws a couple of strikes and knees then clinches up. Ref splits them up. Brandon throws a big overhand right that hits it looks like Dante’s shoulder. They clinch and Dante takes him down. Dante is in his gaurd now. Brandon is very busy from the bottom. Dante is trying to pass and gets side control. Dante with knees to the body. I really don’t understand why Dante isn’t throwing more punches from the top except that Brandon is holding his hands part of the time. Dante does land a few more knees to the body. I can see the judges giving this to Dante because he maintained control and did land somd ground and pound. Not the most exciting fight but they can’t all be Griffin vs. Bonnar. They give the decision to Dante Rivera.
There’s a blurb of Dana saying, “Neither one of these guys have me saying, thank God we have these guys in the UFC.”
Rampage is pissed. He’s throwing stuff, then walks outside. He knocks over a sign outside. He says he used to go to anger management. Rampage, Brandon’s coaches, teammates, and even Dana White said Brandon won. But they aren’t the judges. It was not very controversial in my opinion. Not a big deal.
Next weeks fight is Matt Brown vs. Jeremy May. Forrest says, “one thing you do not do to a Southern Man is put lemon juice in his tobacco.” Which is exactly what May did to Brown. So Brown picked him. One of Brown’s teammates picked him to win the fight next week by….”murder.” Can’t wait for that one!
[/mpinpage]
Tags: body > Brandon Sene > bratcher > cage > cause > Control > CST > Dana White > dante > Dante Rivera > deal > elbows > fi > fight > finale > Forrest Griffin > Jeremy May > juice > knees > leg lock > lemon juice > Matt Brown > Mixed Martial Arts > MMA > nbsp > octagon > punch > punches > Quinton "Rampage" Jackson > Rampage > recap > referee > ring > round > sene > shenanigans > side > significance > SLAM > something > submission > Team Rampage > technique > The Ultimate Fighter > time > UFC > Ultimate Fighter > Ultimate Fighting Championship
STEVE “USS” CUNNINGHAM TRAINING WITH FORMER HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION CHRIS BYRD
Posted on | April 30, 2008 | No Comments
TWO WORLD CHAMPIONS HELPING EACH OTHER PREPARE FOR BIG FIGHTS
LAS VEGAS (April 30, 2008)—IBF Cruiserweight champion Steve “USS” Cunningham isn’t sitting around waiting for his next fight. The champ is currently in Las Vegas helping former IBF Heavyweight champion Chris Byrd prepare for his maiden voyage into the Light-Heavyweight ranks when Byrd takes on Shaun George May 16th in Las Vegas.
Cunningham, 21-1 with eleven knockouts is in camp with Byrd for the fourth time and familiarity seems to bring success for the two fighters.
“It’s a great situation for me to be able to come out here and work with one of the craftiest and best boxers of the past decade.” said the currant Cruiserweight champ, “I think because we have similar lifestyle for which we have a strong belief in Jesus and we are devoted family men helped build a great friendship. Because of the friendship, I think we bring the best out of each other and want to push each other to make ourselves the best we can be.“
When asked about working with Cunningham, Byrd, 40-4-1 with twenty-one knockouts, said “Every time we work together, even for me who has been around the block, it’s a learning experience. Even more so now that I am a light-Heavyweight because of his speed and power. I can’t get away with anything with him. It’s very equal competition. He is the best cruiserweight in the world Bar None.”
“Because of out similar mentalities we are on the same page.”
Byrd and George will fight at The Cox Pavilion and the fight will be televised on ESPN-2
Tags: Byrd > Chris Byrd > Cox Pavilion > cruiserweight > ESPN2 > IBF Cruiserweight champion Steve “USS” Cunningham > Jesus > Las Vegas > Light heavyweight > Shaun George > Steve Cunningham
KCCI TV 8/CBS Two Part Series on MMA
Posted on | April 30, 2008 | No Comments
Tags: CBS > KCCI TV 8 > Midwest Sports Entertainment Group > Mixed Martial Arts > MMA > MMA on TV > Title Fight Championship
Courage Fighting Championships 11 Preview
Posted on | April 30, 2008 | No Comments
CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT MORE ON CFC’S MYSPACE PAGE
On Friday, May 2, 2008 the Courage Fighting Championships, 11 will be presented by Andrae’s Harley-Davidson. The event will take place at the Holiday Inn in Urbana.
Fifteen fights are scheduled. The fight card features a 170-pound championship with undefeated Danville native Ryan Thomas (11-0) taking on Mike Prozilous of Bloomington. It also features 6-3, 320 pound super-heavyweight Dallas Blacker from St. Joseph as well as a 155-pound tournament for a Courage Fighting Championship belt. Various local fighters, including Kaleb Shields and J.R. Clifton of Urbana and Robert Vest and Marty Nunn of Mahomet, will also be competing that night. Nationally known UFC fighter, Spencer “The King” Fisher, will be officiating, and he will be available for autographs and pictures after the fights.
Doors will open on Friday, May 2, 2008 at 6:30pm. The fights will begin at 8:30pm. Ticket prices range from $30 to $75, and they are available at Andrae’s Harley-Davidson, Hooter’s, One World Pizza, Dragonz Lair, and Kickstart Tattoo & Piercing.
Courage Fighting Championships were started in 2003 by MMA and UFC fighter, Jason Reinhardt, from Decatur. Last year, the Courage Fighting Championships were chosen to be featured on TapouT’s reality MMA series, which continues to run on the Versus Channel today.
Past Courage Fighting Championship events have featured Spencer Fisher, King of the Cage World Champion, Clay French of Mattoon, former WEC Champion Chase Beebe, Pride veteran Joe Pearson, and Champaign’s own, Kyle Watson. Jason Reinhardt stated, “I believe this says a lot about the history of our organization. We have definitely proven ourselves as an MMA company over the years.”
Dave Reinhardt, Drew Miller, and Jason Reinhardt are all active in running the Courage Fighting Championships and promoting the May fight card. According to Jason Reinhardt, “This show has been created and produced by several people, not just one. We are pleased to finally bring the event to Champaign-Urbana. There are some great fighters and all around great martial artists from here. The fight card has shaped up very nicely, and the whole evening is going to be an exciting event.”
FIGHT POSTER (click on thumbnail to see full size):
Tags: Bloomington > CFC 11 > Chase Beebe > Clay French > Courage Fighting Championships > Dallas Blacker > Danville > Dave Reinhardt > Decatur > Drew Miller > Harley Davidson > Holiday Inn > hooters > J.R. Clifton > Jason Reinhardt > Joe Pearson > Kaleb Shields > King of the Cage > Kyle Watson > Mahomet > martial arts > Marty Nunn > Mattoon > Mike Prozilous > Mixed Martial Arts > MMA > PRIDE > Robert Vest > Ryan Thomas > Spencer Fisher > St. Joseph > super heavyweight > tapout > UFC > Urbana > Versus > WEC
IFL CEO JAY LARKIN POINTS TO TROUBLE FOR MMA INDUSTRY
Posted on | April 30, 2008 | No Comments
MMA411.COM’s Lotfi Sariahmed recently interviewed IFL CEO Jay Larkin and touched on multiple facets of the fight game in general, although much of the conversation naturally centered around mixed martial arts. Larkin, like Gary Shaw of EliteXC, has some boxing background and still moves in those circles in addition to his MMA responsibilities. For instance, Larkin actually had a hand in the deal making for the Calzaghe vs. Hopkins fight. Also like Shaw, Larkin has a great deal of experience with Showtime, more than 20 years working with celebrities and some of the best known boxers in the sport. He’s no stranger to making great fights happen, and yet the IFL’s recent SEC reports reveal the painful truth about the league’s struggles to find a niche in the marketplace. The company’s 10K report released earlier this month contained the following statement:
“As a result of our continued losses, our independent auditors have included an explanatory paragraph in our financial statements for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2007, expressing doubt as to our ability to continue as a going concern.”
The MMA 411 interview with Larkin goes into further detail, explaining the depth of the all out scramble for market share facing MMA organizations other than the UFC in what is now an over crowded marketplace. Larkin claims the antidote is more co-promotion efforts among the top competing leagues. Here’s an interesting snippet:
“Now as an executive in a public corporation that does this for a living you could argue that I should be a cheerleader. I should be saying it’s the greatest thing since cream cheese and it’s the new NBA and the fans are coming to us in droves. Well I’m also a very honest and pragmatic individual. I’ll never lie in an interview or certainly make a statement where I could be caught lying so easily. So it leaves me with the truth and the truth is this is a struggling industry. Much more so than a struggling business. There is another half a dozen companies that are struggling as well. I think that a lot of the action and proprietary nature of the UFC is hurting the industry. The unwillingness of MMA companies to work together and promote together is hurting MMA. There has to be pretty significant changes or pretty soon there will be one group left and they’ll be so inbred that their house of cards will cave in as well.”
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THE MMA 411 JAY LARKIN INTERVIEW
Tags: CBS > Dana White > EliteXC > Gary Shaw > IFL > interview > Jay Larkin > Lotfi Sariahmed > Mixed Martial Arts > MMA 411 > SHOWTIME > UFC
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