Strikeforce, Diaz: What now?

Posted on | August 11, 2009 | No Comments

By Holli Yargo

“I can pass a drug test in eight days with herbal cleansers. I drink 10 pounds of water and sweat out 10 pounds of water every day. I’ll be fine.” –Nick Diaz, before his April 2009 fight against Frank Shamrock.

Arguably, one of Mixed Martial Arts’ most controversial players, Nick Diaz operates on a level that most other top athletes would find difficult, if not impossible, to match. The Gracie Jiu Jitsu black belt from Stockton, CA has known repeated success in MMA, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, boxing, and even triathlons. Nevertheless, it seems his greatest obstacle is usually himself with most of his losses following childish outbursts and threats to his opponents before the fight itself. He was even nearly arrested after assaulting Joe Riggs in the hospital where they were both being treated after Riggs took the unanimous decision win over Diaz at UFC 57.

Most recently in his history of self-inflicted drama, the southpaw was slated to meet Jay Hieron on August 15 at the HP Pavilion for Strikeforce: Carano vs. Cyborg. Instead, Hieron will be facing Jesse “JT Money” Taylor, as Diaz failed to show twice for the drug test that would license him for the bout. Having popped positive on previous tests, there is little room to wonder why the middleweight would have made such a choice.

“I’m more consistent about everything being a cannabis user,” Diaz said in an interview with the LA Times in April, “I’m happy to get loaded, hear some good music . . . I remain consistent. And I have an easy way to deal with [the drug tests].” He passed his drug test for his match up with Frank Shamrock, which took place shortly after that statement, ultimately winning by TKO.

It would appear, however, confidence in his “easy way” of dealing with drug tests was not as high as he was in his fateful bout against Takanori Gomi in 2007. At that time, the former WEC and IFC champion had his impressive victory by gogoplata overturned to No Contest after failing the pre-fight drug test with a staggering 175 for marijuana. To put that number in perspective, a positive is 25 and the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) actually allows up to 50 for athletes. The commission determined he was so high he was essentially anesthetized to any pain that may have been afflicted by Gomi. For those familiar with the affects of THC, it was more surprising that Gomi gassed first and Diaz wasn’t sitting on a sofa somewhere eating potato chips. He may be consistent, but at what?

With all that said, and with his legendary coach, Cesar Gracie, now embarrassed, where does that leave Diaz? If the Tokay High School drop-out can’t stay sober in the face of a big, fat paycheck, what promotion will be willing to take a chance on him in the future? Strikeforce has got to be upset. After all, their ticket-selling first ever middleweight title fight is now an uninteresting match up between the original challenger Hieron and Taylor, whose most significant TKO was against a limousine window following his stint on The Ultimate Fighter.

What will Strikeforce do with the unrepentant cannabis-user? Will Scott Coker and company be willing to risk promoting another card dependent on Diaz’s draw? It’s not surprising that they chose Gina Carano vs. Cyborg as their main event. It was just too dodgy a risk promoting a Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Hieron event when a drug-test disaster is always a looming possibility.

While avoiding an iffy drug test spared Diaz from being sidelined for a year, it still leaves him with the reputation for being unreliable. He’s built a name for himself with a dynamic fighting style that makes him a favorite to watch, even if he loses. But will his name and record be enough to keep him in the big shows? It will be interesting to see what happens next.

Barry Tompkins calling Jones-Lacy PPV show Saturday night

Posted on | August 10, 2009 | No Comments

“Hook City” in Biloxi

BILOXI, Miss. (August 10, 2009) – Award-winning boxing broadcaster Barry Tompkins will call all the action for this Saturday night’s “Hook City” pay-per-view card, headlined by 8-time world boxing champion Roy “Captain Hook” Jones, Jr. (53-5, 39 KOs) and 2-time super middleweight world title-holder Jeff “Left Hook” Lacy (25-2, 17 KOs), live from the Mississippi Coast Coliseum in Biloxi.

The “Hook City” pay-per-view show, presented by Square Ring Promotions in association with Left Hook Promotions and Beau Rivage Resort & Casino, is being distributed by Square Ring Promotions, Inc. at 9:00PM ET/6:00PM PT in the United States on cable and satellite via iNDemand, TVN, DirecTV and Dish Network for a suggested retail price of $34.95, as well as on Super Channel in Canada.

Tickets, priced at $150.00, $125.00, $100.00, $75.00, $50.00 & $25.00 are on sale and available at all Ticketmaster locations by calling 800.745.3000, on line at Ticketmaster.com and at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum box office.

Tompkins is one of boxing’s most recognizable and respected announcers in the United States, establishing himself most prominently on HBO Boxing, with memorable calls of match-ups like Aaron Pryor-Alexis Arguello, Mike Tyson-Trevor Berbick and Hector Camacho-Rosario. Barry, who played himself in Rocky IV, has also announced countless boxing matches for ESPN and Fox Sports Network. Tompkins was also the recipient of the prestigious Sam Taub Award, presented by the Boxing Writers Association of America for excellence in broadcast journalism.

Joining Tompkins at ringside as a special color commentator will be middleweight contender Daniel “The Haitian Sensation” Edouard (22-2-2, 13 KOs), reigning WBA Fedelatin Champion. The 28-year-old from Haiti now lives and trains in Florida. Completing the “Hook” City broadcast team is Rob Brown, who returns as ringside reporter. Mike Williams is the ring announcer.

Living legend Jones has been a world champion in four divisions – middleweight, super middleweight, light heavyweight and heavyweight – and currently ranks among the top seven light heavyweights in all four major boxing organizations (WBO #2) and The Ring magazine. RJJ defends his NABO light heavyweight championship against power-punching Lacy, rated No. 6 by the IBF and No. 9 by the WBO, who once held the IBF and IBO super middleweight world titles.

Two-time world champion Danny “Green Machine” Green (26-3, 23 KOs) brings thunder from Down Under as the Australian fights South American champion Julio Cesar “La Furia” Dominguez (20-4-1, 14 KOs) in the 12-round co-feature for the vacant IBO cruiserweight championship.

NABO junior heavyweight champion B.J. “El Peligroso” Flores (23-0-1, 14 KOs), rated No. 3 by the WBO and No. 6 by the WBA, defends his crown against former world title challenger Epifanio “Diamente” Mendoza (29-7-1, 25 KOs) in a 10-round match.

Also fighting on the PPV card are a pair of promising lightweight prospects, Verquan, “The Show” Kimbrough (21-1-2, 7 KOs) and Jason “American Boy” Litzau (24-2, 20 KOs), who battle for the vacant NABF title in a 10-round bout.

All bouts are subject to change.

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Saturday SummerFist 3 MMA Show Offers Tickets For Clunkers!

Posted on | August 10, 2009 | No Comments

Leave it to fight promoter Roy Englebrecht to take advantage of every possible way to sell tickets or get people to his shows, and the current Cash For Clunkers program is no exception.

Adding a new wrinkle to the present Government program, Englebrecht announced today that for this Saturday’s, August 15th SummerFist 3 Mixed Martial Arts show at the Irvine Marriott, he will have a TICKETS FOR CLUNKERS program, whereby anyone driving a Clunker to the show gets a Free $45 Ticket! Their will be a special Tickets For Clunker area at the Irvine Marriott main entrance where drivers of their Clunkers can check in for their free ticket, and no they don’t have to turn their car in, they can drive it home after the show!

An automobile qualifies for the Tickets For Clunkers offer if it get 18 MPG or less, and has to be no more than 25 years old.

The SummerFist 3 show features seven pro mma bouts, with doors opening at 6:30pm and first bout at 7:30pm. Tickets are priced at $40, $45, or $50 and are available online at www.battleintheballroom.com.

FLOYD MAYWEATHER SPEAKS IN NEW INTERVIEW

Posted on | August 10, 2009 | No Comments

On September 19, the six-time world champion in five weight divisions and the face of boxing, Floyd “Money” Mayweather, returns to the ring to face five-time world champion in three weight divisions and the top Mexican fighter in the world today, Juan Manuel Marquez.

Now you can hear from Floyd himself as the King of the Ring answers questions on a variety of subjects that your listeners want to hear. In these recordings, Mayweather touches on his return to boxing, President Obama, the Mayweather family, his thoughts on Michael Vick, and of course money. Mayweather answers it all. Known for his charisma and enthusiasm, there is rarely a dull moment when Mayweather speaks out, so below please find the link to a MP3 recording, the first audio recording in a two part series.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO FLOYD’S INTERVIEW (PART ONE)

Mayweather, whose two fights against Oscar de la Hoya and Ricky Hatton in 2007 set all time records and generated over $250 million in revenue (over three million homes tuned in to see his two fights), is set to carry the torch for the sport of boxing heading into his September 19 match-up. Thank you for your coverage of this mega-fight, and should you have any questions on the upcoming bout, or have any trouble downloading the MP3 audio recording, please contact us via phone at 202-783-5500 or by email at jsilkowitz@swansonpr.com.

Mayweather vs. Marquez: “Number One/Numero Uno,” is promoted by Mayweather Promotions and Golden Boy Promotions in association with Marquez Promotions and is sponsored by Cerveza Tecate, Quaker State, Dewalt Tools, Affliction Clothing and Southwest Airlines. The 12-round bout will take place Saturday, September 19 at MGM Grand in Las Vegas, NV.

The Mayweather vs. Marquez pay-per-view telecast, beginning at 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT, has a suggested retail price of $49.95, will be produced and distributed by HBO Pay-Per-View® and will be available to more than 71 million pay-per-view homes. The telecast will be available in HD-TV for those viewers who can receive HD. HBO Pay-Per-View®, a division of Home Box Office, Inc., is the leading supplier of event programming to the pay-per-view industry. For Mayweather vs. Marquez fight week updates, log on to www.hbo.com.

HBO’s Emmy®-Award-winning all-access reality series “24/7” returns to HBO® with an all new edition as “Mayweather/Marquez 24/7” premieres Saturday, August 29 at 10:15 pm ET/PT. The four-episode series will chronicle the preparations and back stories of both fighters as they train for their September 19 pay-per-view showdown.

WEC VIDEO: BRIAN BOWLES VS. MIGUEL TORRES

Posted on | August 10, 2009 | No Comments

ASSAULT IN THE RING: FULL DOCUMENTARY

Posted on | August 10, 2009 | No Comments

PART ONE:

PART TWO:

PART THREE:

PART FOUR:

PART FIVE:

The World’s Greatest Ever Middleweight Boxers

Posted on | August 10, 2009 | No Comments

“The World’s Greatest Ever Boxer” 3-day boxing spectacular Oct. 2-4 at the Paris Las Vegas

LAS VEGAS (August 10, 2009) – The Welterweight Division represents the most colorful, perhaps, best known fighters in the “The World’s Greatest Ever Boxer” promotion.

Nine of the 10 middleweight candidates are already in the International Boxing Hall of Fame and the last, Bernard Hopkins, is headed to Canastota five years after he retires when he becomes eligible. There are eight Americans, including two from Pittsburgh (Harry Greb and Charlie Burley), one Argentinean and a Frenchman born in Algiers.

On-line voting at www.GreatestEver.com allows boxing fans from around the world to select the greatest boxer in each of the original eight weight classes, highlighted by the all-time pound-for-pound “Greatest Ever.”

The eight categories represent the eight original weight-class divisions: Strawweights are included in the Flyweight category; Super Middleweight in the Light Heavyweight division. Many fighters fought and won titles at a number of different weights. As far as possible they have been nominated in the division that they made their biggest impact. Fighters have not been nominated on the basis of whether they would beat another fighter in that division, though this is, of course, a consideration. More importantly is their overall record, who they fought at the time, as well as the impact they made on the boxing world, and indeed the world around them. All nominees are listed in the voting section at www.GreatestEver.com.

The 10 Middleweight nominees, including the only two-divisional nominee in the promotion (Sugar Ray Robinson), listed in no particular order, follow with their brief profiles:

“Sugar” RAY ROBINSON – 175-19-6 2 NC (109 KOs)…IHOF…American…Pro Years: 1940-1965…85-0 (69 KOs) as an amateur…in the U.S. Army during WWII…world welterweight champion 1946-51, 128-1-2 (84 KOs) by 30 years old…5-time world middleweight champion…Notable Victories: Jake LaMotta (4), Carmen Casilio, Carl “Bobo” Olson, Henry Armstrong, Rocky Graziano, Kid Gavilan, Sammy Angott, Marty Servo, Fritzie Zivic, Izzy Jannazzo, Randy Turpin and Gene Fullmer.

CHARLEY BURLEY – 84-11-2 1 MC (50 KOs)…IHOF…American…Pro Years: 1937-1950…one of the best boxers who never got a world title shot…ducked by Sugar Ray Robinson, Billy Conn, Marcel Cerdan and Jake LaMotta, among the more notables…Notable Victories: Archie Moore, Fritzie Zivic (2) and Billy Soose.

CARMEN “The Onion Farmer” BASILIO – 56-16-7 (27 KOs)…IHOF…American…Pro Years: 1948-1961…U.S. Marine…lives in the same town as the International Hall of Fame in Canastota, NY…Member of Italo-American Sports Hall of Fame…Notable Victories: Lew Jenkins, Ike Williams, Tony DeMarco (2), Sugar Ray Robinson.

MARCEL “Casablanca Clouter” CERDAN – 106-4 (62 KOs)…IHOF…French…Pro Yeqars: 1934-1949…European champion…one of all-time best fighters who learned skills in Africa growing up in Algiers…won first 47 pro fights…died in plane crash prior to scheduled rematch with Jake LaMotta…Notable Victories: Tony Zale, Jean Walzack and George Abrams.

BERNARD “The Executioner” HOPKINS – 49-5-1 (32 KOs)…American…Pro Years: 1988-Present…defended middleweight title a record 20 times…first fighter to retain all four major titles in same fight…lost first pro fight…oldest to ever be world middleweight champ…John David Jackson, Glen Johnson, Felix Trinidad, Keith Holmes, Oscar de la Hoya, Howard Eastman, Antonio Tarver, Winky Wright and Kelly Pavlik.

“Marvelous” MARVIN HAGLER – 62-3-2 (52 KOs)…IHOF…American…Pro Years: 1973-1989…moved to home of Rocky Marciano in Brockton (MA) after the Newark Riots…trouble getting opponents for more than half his career…NAAU 165 pound champ as amateur…Notable Victories: Alan Minter, Roberto Duran, Thomas Hearns, John Mugabi and Vito Antuofermo.

CARLOS “Escopeta” MONZON – 87-3-9 1 NC (59 KOs)…IHOF…Argentinean…Pro Years: 1963-1977…held record of 14 middleweight defenses at time…playboy convicted of murder…killed in car crash on weekend furlough…Notable Victories: Nini Benvenuti (2), Benny Briscoe, Tom Bogs and Rodrigo Valdez.

STANLEY “The Michigan Assassin” KETCHEL – 52-4-4 4 ND (49 KOs)…IHOF…American…Pro Years: 1903-1910…shot to death…fought heavyweight Jack Johnson…Notable Victories: Joe Thomas (2), Mike “Twin” Sullivan and “Philadelphia” Jack O’Brien.

TONY “Man of Steel” ZALE – 67-18-2 (45 K0s)…IHOF…American…Pro Years: 1934-1948…served in World War II…got his name from being born and growing up in the steel town of Gary, Indiana…2-time world champion…famous for Trilogy vs. Rocky Graziano within 21 months…participated in 3 Ring Magazine Fights of the Year…Notable Victories: Rocky Graziano (2), Al Hostak (3), Fred Apostolo, George Abrams and Steve Mamakos (2).

HARRY “The Pittsburgh Windmill” GREB – 261-19-18 6 NC (48 KOs)…IHOF…American…Pro Years: 1913-1926…record 303 pro fights in 13 years…Notable Victories: Battling Levinsky (6), Jack Dillon, Mike McTigue, Gene Tunney, Tommy Loughran and Mickey Walker.

GREATEST EVER WEEKEND OF EVENTS

Boxing fans attending the festivities will be able to celebrate, up close and personal, the achievements of the World’s Greater Ever Boxers. A three-day boxing spectacular is planned October 2-4 at the Paris Las Vegas, commencing that Friday with an official welcome reception and official weigh in for the following evening’s professional boxing show, presented by Sterling Promotions, and featuring Team USA versus Team Europe, capped by an exclusive after party. The event culminates Sunday with The Greater Ever black-tie awards dinner, featuring some of the greatest boxers ever, as well as world-class entertainment, and then an exclusive after party.

The Retired Boxers Foundation (RBF) is the official charity for The World’s Greatest Ever Boxer. RBF assists retired professional boxers in the transition from their days in the ring to dignified retirement, helping those suffering from alcohol and substance abuse problems, homelessness and effects of pugilistic dementia.

Four ticket packages are on sale for the Oct. 2-4 weekend’s events through agents at the following numbers: North America – The Sports Alliance (914.941.3366) Smart Ticket Solutions (847.917.8497); United Kingdom and Europe – Rock Solid Events (UK: 0845 0945 606, Outside UK: +44 845 0945 606); Australasia – Events Worldwide Travel Group (Australia: 1300 788 666, Outside Australia: +61 3 5989 7666).

The event-only packages are as follows (all prices USD): Super VIP ($2,500), Platinum ($1,900), VIP ($1,400) and Gold ($1,115). The Super VIP, Platinum and VIP packages have a number or premiums in addition to those detailed in the Gold (welcome function, weigh-in, Greatest Ever poker tournament, exclusive Paris Las Vegas gaming area, exclusive memorabilia, movie screenings, access to Greatest Ever dedicated gaming areas and VIP bar, media and legends signings, general seating for the fights and at the awards dinner). Regional agents can provide additional premiums for individual packages.

-30-

COOL COMBAT SPORTS LINKS, Boxing, Wrestling, Mixed Martial Arts (8-10-09)

Posted on | August 10, 2009 | No Comments

ANDERSON SILVA COULD BE MOVING PERMANENTLY TO 205

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John Zandig and the sale of Combat Zone Wrestling

Mizzou Wrestler Wins Gold At Junior World Championships

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Boxing Training: Punches You Need To Know

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