Tuesday, November 30, 2010

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Get the latest in MMA news, UFC rumors, and other juicy information on www.mmanewsleak.com.

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MMA news, photos, videos, and more of your favorite fights, here first on www.mmanewsleak.com.

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UFC fights, rumors, news leak, and more, in articles, photos, and videos on www.mmanewsleak.com.

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Breaking news – your favorite MMA fighter just leaked a secret, and you can find out more on www.mmanewsleak.com – we have it first

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www.mmanewsleak.com- your single source for MMA news, MMA&UFCrumors and breaking Mixed MartialArts news.

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MMA fights, UFCrumors - only www.mmanewsleak.comwill deliver you the breaking news before anyone else hears about it.

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You’ve heard about ufcfightrumors, but how do U know if they're true? www.mmanewsleak.comwill fill U in on all the latest information.

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Get Pro InsiderTV news, the day before everyone else hears about it, on www.mmanewsleak.com. Be ahead of the fight!

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When U want 2 know what’s happening in the UFC world, don’t get just an article, get photos & video too. www.mmanewsleak.com.

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www.mmanewsleak.comgives you the latest on fights, rumors, events, and more, the day before everyone else hears it.

Anderson Silva | Matt Hughes | BJ PENN | UFC Fighters

You’ll hear every day little bits and pieces of MMA rumors and UFC Fighter rumors, but how do you know what to believe and what is true? With MMA News Leak, our ears are to the ground making sure that any rumor that is whispered from the source goes directly to you before anyone else hears about it.

MMA News Leak gives exclusive news that is read and distributed by some of the top MMA news people on the internet, and every time MMA News Leak will be the first to report with all of the other UFC fighter rumors and MMA rumors coming in only second to MMA News Leak’s sources. We make sure to provide you with the best in written rumors, exclusive photos, and never-before-seen videos proving to you that the Mixed Martial Arts rumors and UFC Fighter rumors you heard are really true.

No one can provide you with more in depth and detailed rumor information and MMA and UFC gossip like MMA News Leak. When you hear the rumor about a new fight or a special event, you can turn to MMA News Leak’s Rumors page and Pro Insider TV Page to learn about it before anyone else does with exclusive photos, video, and interviews that tell you the MMA rumors and UFC rumors that the other little birdies didn’t know.

http://www.mmanewsleak.com is your best source for the latest MMA news and inside information. Our sources have their ears to ground to be the first to report on the latest in MMA news.

UFC Fights | UFC News | UFC Fighters | MMA News

Looking for the latest in mixed martial arts news? Have you heard rumors that you want to confirm from only the bets sources in the industry? MMA News Leak is your source for the latest in MMA news and inside information.

When you are looking for the latest information on accusations and fight information not released in press conferences, turn to MMA News Leak for only the most important information on the greatest in the MMA news world. Our reporters track down only the closest sources to your favorite MMA fighters, and make sure that all the Mixed Martial Arts news they give to you at MMA News Leak is only the best that everyone else will get ahold of tomorrow.

Ultimate Fighting has a ton of juicy news to be spilled in the latest press conference, but when you are looking for the latest that you can’t find on TV or the internet, turn to MMA News Leak, where all of your favorite UFC fighter news is spilled in juicy detail to you before anyone else hears about them.

MMA News Leak fills you in with articles, photos, and videos of the latest in news information from your favorite fighters and events. Learn when changes are made before they even happen, and find out who is going to be the first to lose before they announce it to the public. All you could want to learn you can find a day ahead of the crowd with MMA News Leak.

http://www.mmanewsleak.com is your best source for the latest MMA news and inside information. Our sources have their ears to ground to be the first to report on the latest in MMA news.

Royce Gracie | Randy Couture | MMA Fighters | UFC Fighters

You’ll hear every day little bits and pieces of MMA rumors and UFC Fighter rumors, but how do you know what to believe and what is true? With MMA News Leak, our ears are to the ground making sure that any rumor that is whispered from the source goes directly to you before anyone else hears about it.

MMA News Leak gives exclusive news that is read and distributed by some of the top MMA news people on the internet, and every time MMA News Leak will be the first to report with all of the other UFC fighter rumors and MMA rumors coming in only second to MMA News Leak’s sources. We make sure to provide you with the best in written rumors, exclusive photos, and never-before-seen videos proving to you that the Mixed Martial Arts rumors and UFC Fighter rumors you heard are really true.

No one can provide you with more in depth and detailed rumor information and MMA and UFC gossip like MMA News Leak. When you hear the rumor about a new fight or a special event, you can turn to MMA News Leak’s Rumors page and Pro Insider TV Page to learn about it before anyone else does with exclusive photos, video, and interviews that tell you the MMA rumors and UFC rumors that the other little birdies didn’t know.

http://www.mmanewsleak.com is your best source for the latest MMA news and inside information. Our sources have their ears to ground to be the first to report on the latest in MMA news.



Keywords: Mixed Martial Arts Rumors, UFC fighter Rumors, MMA rumors, UFC rumors, exclusive news, MMA gossip, UFC gossip, MMA news, MMA News Leak, Rumors page, Pro Insider TV

MMA News | UFC News | Randy Couture | MMA Business

Mixed Martial Arts has always been a sport waiting to be invented but who could know that it would become what it is under the guidance of the UFC .

Over forty years ago the pioneering martial artist Bruce Lee spoke of the importance of combining the elements of many different martial art forms. Thought here was no organized competitive environment back then for this idea Lee was able to create his own system and philosophy called Jeet Kune Do. Lee said that "the best fighter is not a Boxer, Karate or Judo man. The best fighter is someone who can adapt to any style, to be formless, to adopt an individual's own style and not following the system of styles." In 2004 UFC President Dana White called Lee the "father of mixed martial arts." And to MMA fighters Bruce Lee is the "father of modern mixed martial arts." Though it was Bruce Lee who had the vision in America the name mixed martial arts was first coined by Rick Blume, president and CEO of Battlecade, in 1995.

Today Bruce Lee’s vision of mixed martial arts has come to fruition in this sport which has been experiencing explosive growth of the last few years. Of course in the early days of the sport, just a few decades ago, things were a bit chaotic. There were not many rules and regulations and the status quo was “anything goes.” The MMA Business has gone through many changes from its original form over the years and this has manifested as a sport that is increasingly safer and more secure as far as the players are concerned. In time as the popularity of the sport has grown professional organizations have formed, sanctioning bodies have been created (UFC), rules, regulations, safety equipment and accepted forms of behavior have been brought into the   MMA Business.

The origins of mixed martial arts  as presently practiced in the MMA Business has its genesis in the early 20th century when various mixed style competitions were held throughout  Europe, Japan and the Pacific Rim.  The expansion continued with the introduction into the United States of the Brazilian martial art of Vale Tudo. Developed in the 1920s it was brought to the U.S by the Gracie family in 1993 with the founding of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. The Vale Tudo style of fighting was more violent than other styles of MMA and thus there were more injuries among MMA fighters.

In time the UFC tempered the intensity and injuries associated with this technique by the implementation of additional rules.

As more rules and safety regulations were put in place by the UFC, and injuries to players were reduced, state laws have been passed throughout the US. Recognizing MMA as a sport and television contracts were signed allowing pay-per-view for the MMA Business.

What began as a combat event with minimal rules has evolved into a recognized and respected sport. What originally pitted competitors against each other, all to determine the most effective martial art for  unarmed combat situations has blossomed into a mainstream sport with mainstream acceptance.

Today the sport of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) as presented by UFC is so popular that pay-per-view events of the UFC, MMA events often draw a larger viewership than professional wrestling or boxing. Most of these events are sponsored through the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) organization which maintains and enforces the strict rules and regulations of the sport.

At the present time MMA consists is based on various fighting styles from the East, West and Latin America including incorporating western wrestling, western boxing, Shootfighting, Kickboxing, Karate, Savate, Sumo, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. These have been broken down into three basic styles of fighting. New techniques are classified as one of these three. The three are: striking, wrestling and submissions. Striking and wrestling are the basic foundation of most martial arts include a large amount of these techniques. These techniques are so popular because they give a combatant the basic ability to take the opponent player down to the mat which is an essential element for self defense.
MMA Fighters | UFC Fighters | Randy Couture | Matt Hughes

UFC News | UFC Fighters | MMA Business | MMA News

Mixed Martial Arts has always been a sport waiting to be invented but who could know that it would become what it is under the guidance of the UFC .

Over forty years ago the pioneering martial artist Bruce Lee spoke of the importance of combining the elements of many different martial art forms. Thought here was no organized competitive environment back then for this idea Lee was able to create his own system and philosophy called Jeet Kune Do. Lee said that "the best fighter is not a Boxer, Karate or Judo man. The best fighter is someone who can adapt to any style, to be formless, to adopt an individual's own style and not following the system of styles." In 2004 UFC President Dana White called Lee the "father of mixed martial arts." And to MMA fighters Bruce Lee is the "father of modern mixed martial arts." Though it was Bruce Lee who had the vision in America the name mixed martial arts was first coined by Rick Blume, president and CEO of Battlecade, in 1995.

Today Bruce Lee’s vision of mixed martial arts has come to fruition in this sport which has been experiencing explosive growth of the last few years. Of course in the early days of the sport, just a few decades ago, things were a bit chaotic. There were not many rules and regulations and the status quo was “anything goes.” The MMA Business has gone through many changes from its original form over the years and this has manifested as a sport that is increasingly safer and more secure as far as the players are concerned. In time as the popularity of the sport has grown professional organizations have formed, sanctioning bodies have been created (UFC), rules, regulations, safety equipment and accepted forms of behavior have been brought into the   MMA Business.

The origins of mixed martial arts  as presently practiced in the MMA Business has its genesis in the early 20th century when various mixed style competitions were held throughout  Europe, Japan and the Pacific Rim.  The expansion continued with the introduction into the United States of the Brazilian martial art of Vale Tudo. Developed in the 1920s it was brought to the U.S by the Gracie family in 1993 with the founding of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. The Vale Tudo style of fighting was more violent than other styles of MMA and thus there were more injuries among MMA fighters.

In time the UFC tempered the intensity and injuries associated with this technique by the implementation of additional rules.

As more rules and safety regulations were put in place by the UFC, and injuries to players were reduced, state laws have been passed throughout the US. Recognizing MMA as a sport and television contracts were signed allowing pay-per-view for the MMA Business.

What began as a combat event with minimal rules has evolved into a recognized and respected sport. What originally pitted competitors against each other, all to determine the most effective martial art for  unarmed combat situations has blossomed into a mainstream sport with mainstream acceptance.

Today the sport of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) as presented by UFC is so popular that pay-per-view events of the UFC, MMA events often draw a larger viewership than professional wrestling or boxing. Most of these events are sponsored through the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) organization which maintains and enforces the strict rules and regulations of the sport.

At the present time MMA consists is based on various fighting styles from the East, West and Latin America including incorporating western wrestling, western boxing, Shootfighting, Kickboxing, Karate, Savate, Sumo, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. These have been broken down into three basic styles of fighting. New techniques are classified as one of these three. The three are: striking, wrestling and submissions. Striking and wrestling are the basic foundation of most martial arts include a large amount of these techniques. These techniques are so popular because they give a combatant the basic ability to take the opponent player down to the mat which is an essential element for self defense.

MMA News | UFC News | MMA Business | MMA Fighters

You’ll hear every day little bits and pieces of MMA rumors and UFC Fighter rumors, but how do you know what to believe and what is true? With MMA News Leak, our ears are to the ground making sure that any rumor that is whispered from the source goes directly to you before anyone else hears about it.

MMA News Leak gives exclusive news that is read and distributed by some of the top MMA news people on the internet, and every time MMA News Leak will be the first to report with all of the other UFC fighter rumors and MMA rumors coming in only second to MMA News Leak’s sources. We make sure to provide you with the best in written rumors, exclusive photos, and never-before-seen videos proving to you that the Mixed Martial Arts rumors and UFC Fighter rumors you heard are really true.

No one can provide you with more in depth and detailed rumor information and MMA and UFC gossip like MMA News Leak. When you hear the rumor about a new fight or a special event, you can turn to MMA News Leak’s Rumors page and Pro Insider TV Page to learn about it before anyone else does with exclusive photos, video, and interviews that tell you the MMA rumors and UFC rumors that the other little birdies didn’t know.

http://www.mmanewsleak.com is your best source for the latest MMA news and inside information. Our sources have their ears to ground to be the first to report on the latest in MMA news.



Keywords: Mixed Martial Arts Rumors, UFC fighter Rumors, MMA rumors, UFC rumors, exclusive news, MMA gossip, UFC gossip, MMA news, MMA News Leak, Rumors page, Pro Insider TV

MMA Fighters | UFC Fighters | MMA News | Mixed Martial Arts

Looking for the latest in mixed martial arts news? Have you heard rumors that you want to confirm from only the bets sources in the industry? MMA News Leak is your source for the latest in MMA news and inside information.

When you are looking for the latest information on accusations and fight information not released in press conferences, turn to MMA News Leak for only the most important information on the greatest in the MMA news world. Our reporters track down only the closest sources to your favorite MMA fighters, and make sure that all the Mixed Martial Arts news they give to you at MMA News Leak is only the best that everyone else will get ahold of tomorrow.

Ultimate Fighting has a ton of juicy news to be spilled in the latest press conference, but when you are looking for the latest that you can’t find on TV or the internet, turn to MMA News Leak, where all of your favorite UFC fighter news is spilled in juicy detail to you before anyone else hears about them.

MMA News Leak fills you in with articles, photos, and videos of the latest in news information from your favorite fighters and events. Learn when changes are made before they even happen, and find out who is going to be the first to lose before they announce it to the public. All you could want to learn you can find a day ahead of the crowd with MMA News Leak.

http://www.mmanewsleak.com is your best source for the latest MMA news and inside information. Our sources have their ears to ground to be the first to report on the latest in MMA news.

Monday, November 29, 2010

Mixed Martial Arts Rumors | UFC Fighter Rumors

You’ll hear every day little bits and pieces of MMA rumors and UFC Fighter rumors, but how do you know what to believe and what is true? With MMA News Leak, our ears are to the ground making sure that any rumor that is whispered from the source goes directly to you before anyone else hears about it.

MMA News Leak gives exclusive news that is read and distributed by some of the top MMA news people on the internet, and every time MMA News Leak will be the first to report with all of the other UFC fighter rumors and MMA rumors coming in only second to MMA News Leak’s sources. We make sure to provide you with the best in written rumors, exclusive photos, and never-before-seen videos proving to you that the Mixed Martial Arts rumors and UFC Fighter rumors you heard are really true.

No one can provide you with more in depth and detailed rumor information and MMA and UFC gossip like MMA News Leak. When you hear the rumor about a new fight or a special event, you can turn to MMA News Leak’s Rumors page and Pro Insider TV Page to learn about it before anyone else does with exclusive photos, video, and interviews that tell you the MMA rumors and UFC rumors that the other little birdies didn’t know.

http://www.mmanewsleak.com is your best source for the latest MMA news and inside information. Our sources have their ears to ground to be the first to report on the latest in MMA news.

Mixed Martial Arts News | UFC Fighter News

Looking for the latest in mixed martial arts news? Have you heard rumors that you want to confirm from only the bets sources in the industry? MMA News Leak is your source for the latest in MMA news and inside information.

When you are looking for the latest information on accusations and fight information not released in press conferences, turn to MMA News Leak for only the most important information on the greatest in the MMA news world. Our reporters track down only the closest sources to your favorite MMA fighters, and make sure that all the Mixed Martial Arts news they give to you at MMA News Leak is only the best that everyone else will get ahold of tomorrow.

Ultimate Fighting has a ton of juicy news to be spilled in the latest press conference, but when you are looking for the latest that you can’t find on TV or the internet, turn to MMA News Leak, where all of your favorite UFC fighter news is spilled in juicy detail to you before anyone else hears about them.

MMA News Leak fills you in with articles, photos, and videos of the latest in news information from your favorite fighters and events. Learn when changes are made before they even happen, and find out who is going to be the first to lose before they announce it to the public. All you could want to learn you can find a day ahead of the crowd with MMA News Leak.

http://www.mmanewsleak.com is your best source for the latest MMA news and inside information. Our sources have their ears to ground to be the first to report on the latest in MMA news.

UFC Fights | UFC News | UFC Fighters | MMA News

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

Here at MMANewsLeak we are happy to celebrate the holidays by opening the doors for the minions and letting out of their cubicles to go visit their families.  Before everyone made a mad dash of the door to go to Coco Fuego’s house for turkey dinner, we polled everyone to find out what they are most thankful for (in the world of MMA).  We’ve compiled a list and in no particular order, we present to y0u, our valued and loyal readers, MMANewsLeak’s things that we are thankful for:

1.  Jose Aldo and his legs kicks:  For years the WEC was looked upon as the UFC’s minor league.  That was until a man by the name of Jose Aldo stepped up against the best the WEC had to offer in the way of Urjiah Faber.   Aldo kicked Faber’s leg until he turned Faber’s leg into a rasin.  The fight was the first (and only) Pay Per View event put on by the WEC and it opened up a conversation about a merger between the two Zuffa companies.

2. The UFC/WEC merger:  It’s about time that the boys over at Zuffa added the two smaller weight classes to the UFC.  It couldn’t have happened at a better time too.  The UFC need an influx of new blood that is hungry to prove themselves, as the old guard moves out and makes way for the new fighters.  Fighters like Jose Aldo, Manny Gamburyan, Urijah Faber,  Dominick Cruz and Chris Horodecki will help us forget about the older fighters like Hughes, Penn, Chuck Liddel, and Tito Ortiz.

3. Cain Velasquez: Velasquez single handedly destroyed the myth that was Brock Lesnar and claimed the UFC heavyweight championship. Lesnar was toppled end over end by a stiff shot from Velasquez and cut badly.  To steal a line from 300, “Even a god can bleed.”

4. Twitter: Twitter is the best and worst thing to ever happen to professional sports (in general).  This gives every athlete a direct voice for the public,  it also make journalists jobs much easier and lastly it makes it so people can over react wildly to anything and everything.  I would like to thank those who have said stupid stuff on Twitter.  (i.e Shane Carwin)

5.  The feud between Josh Koscheck and George St. Pierre:  The feud is fueling the flames of MMA fans while the UFC went through a small slump of bad fights and injures.  Koscheck and GSP have been getting everyone ready for the end of the year blowout and the beginning of the next fight season.  The feud is fueled by Koscheck’s eternal doucebaggery and GSP’s ability to smile through it like a man.  No one is more well liked than GSP in MMA and no one is more hated than Koscheck (everywhere).

6. Arianny Celeste: There is no way we could go a thanksgiving season without acknowleding Arianny Celeste and of course, the photo spread in the November 2010 issue of Playboy.  The beauty that Arianny brings to a sport of ugly men with nasty deformed ears, balances the world on it’s axis.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

MMA Fighters | UFC Fighters | Randy Couture | Matt Hughes

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

Alright boys and girls, it’s time once again for MMANewsleak’s World Rankings.  We’ve tallied up all of the votes from the staff and writers here at MNL, as well as from Coco Fuego, put those votes through our proprietary algorithmic software to come up with the most non-scientific and totally arbitrary list of top 10 fighters in each weight class.

UFC 122 only had one fight that had an impact on the world rankings and that was the Nate Marquardt vs. Yushin Okami fight.

UFC 123 only one fight that impacted the world rankings and that was the Lyoto Machicda vs. Rampage Jackson fight.  It seems that the judges are not looking for “movement” as much as they are looking for “aggression” and when a fighter is stalking another fighter, like Rampage was doing to Machida, Rampage gets credit for “aggression”.  With that in mind, it appears that Machida may need to change his style to engage a little more and to be a bit more physical.

Well, enough with the commentary, here are the results:

Heavyweight 206-265 lbs

1. Cain Velasquez
2. Fedor Emelianenko
3. Alistair Overeem
4. Brock Lesnar
5. Junior Dos Santos
6. Shane Carwin
7. Fabricio Werdum
8. Frank Mir
9. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
10. Antonio Silva

Light heavyweight 186-205 lbs

The stick and move/light on your feet strategy is not working for Lyoto Machida.  Seems Muhammed Ali’s phrase “float like a butterfly, sting like a bee” doesn’t sit too well with MMA judges.

1. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua
2. Rashad Evans
3. Quinton “Rampage” Jackson
4. Lyoto Machida
5. Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante
6. Jon “Bones” Jones
7. Muhammad “King Mo” Lawal
8. Ryan Bader
9. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
10. Gegard Mousasi

Middleweight 171-185

While the top of the weight class hasn’t changed, there is some shuffling of the cards below the guy named Anderson Silva.  With Yushin Okami’s win over Nate Marquardt, Okami has slowly and steadily moved up in the rankings, and all things being equal, maybe he has finally earned a shot at the title. After Silva and Belfort settle their score in February, Okami will be one of the top middleweights in the UFC….

1. Anderson Silva
2. Vitor Belfort
3. Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza
4. Yushin Okami
5. Hector “Shango” Lombard
6. Nate Marquardt
7. Chael Sonnen
8. Michael “The Count” Bisping
9. Demian Maia
10. Dan Henderson

Welterweight 156-170 lbs

Nothing changes here this week…. Yes, BJ, even a 29 second win over Matt Hughes does not get you into the top 10 in this division… We still think you’re a better lightweight than welterweight.

1. Georges St. Pierre
2. Jon Fitch
3. Josh Koscheck
4. Jake Shields
5. Nick Diaz
6. Ben “Funky”Askren
7. Carlos Condit
8. Tyron Woodley
9. Martin “Hitman” Kampmann
10. Chris “Lights Out” Lytle

Lightweight 146-155 lbs

And nothing changes here for a couple of weeks.  However, with the WEC/UFC merger, there will be some interesting fights to make.  It would be a shame to make Ben Henderson wait too long for a title shot.

1. Gilbert Melendez
2. Eddie Alvarez
3. Ben Henderson
4. Frankie “The Answer” Edgar
5. Gray “The Bully” Maynard
6. Evan Dunham
7. BJ Penn
8. George Sotiropoulos
9. Shinya Aoki
10. Kenny Florian

Featherweight 136-145 lbs

Nothing changes here either, and like the middleweight division, nothing on the horizon looks like it will change anytime soon… except if Jose Aldo decides to move up to 155… but then he’ll just be at the top in 2 divisions….

1. Jose Aldo
2. Joe Warren
3. Mark Hominick
4. Uriah Faber
5. Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto
6. Josh Grispi
7. Manny Gamburyan
8. Tatsuya Kawajiri
9. Michihiro Omigawa
10. Wilson Reis

Bantamweight 126-135 lbs

And nothing changes here….

1. Dominick Cruz
2. Brian Bowles
3. Miguel Torres
4. Scott Jorgensen
5. Joseph Benavides
6. Zack Makovsky
7. Antonio Banuelos
8. Takeya Mizugaki
9. Eddie Wineland
10. Damacio Page

MMA News | UFC News | Randy Couture | MMA Business

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

Strikeforce has reported that Valentijn Overeem has pulled out of his debut fight at Strikeforce: Henderson vs. Babalu event on December 4th.

Overeem was orginally scheduled to Hershel Walker until Walker pulled out because of injury. Strikeforce replaced Walker by signing Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva to face Overeem.  Now Overeem has been scratched from the card.

No replacement for Overeem has been announced.

Stay tuned to MMANewsLeak for developments on this story.

UFC News | UFC Fighters | MMA Business | MMA News

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

If there is ever a question about whether Strikeforce President Scott Coker is a gambling man, one need look no further than Strikeforce: Henderson vs. Babalu on December 4th.

Coker has routinely spent big money on questionable fighters and aligned Strikeforce with fighters of questionable character.  Sometimes those bets have paid off, and sometimes…, well he’s gone begging. Certainly Coker’s biggest gamble has been his association with Fedor Emelianenko and M-1 Global.  While the public has not always been privy to the “backroom” deals that have gone on between Strikeforce and M-1 Global, but certainly Coker has to question whether the gamble has worth the headache of dealing with the Russian and his entourage.

The latest gamble Coker has bet on has been Dan Henderson and Paul Daley.  Coker thought the Henderson would energize Strikeforces’ middleweight division and provide a challenge to champion Jake Shields.  Unfortunately, Henderson came into the fight with Shields and got his butt kicked.

Now Coker is trying to figure out what to do with 2 overpaid and aging fighters in Dan Henderson and Renato “Babalu” Sobral.  So Coker decided to have them fight each other at a catch weight.

The question that I have about this fight is, why? This fight doesn’t advance either figher’s position in any weight class, and what will it do to identify top contenders to fight for the vacant Strikeforce middleweight title.

The only reason I can come up with as to why the Henderson/Babalu fight makes sense is, return on investment.

The other gamble that Coker is putting at risk on the December 4th card is Paul Daley.  Daley, as you will remember, lost his head after his fight with Josh Koscheck at UFC ____ and after the bell ending the final round of the fight, Daley promptly got up, walked around the refereee and delivered the sucker punched Koscheck in the mouth, a punch that Daley waited 15 minutes to deliver.

While that act seems to be out of character for Daley, UFC President Dana White wasted no time in cutting Daley and stating that he didn’t care how good Daley became as an MMA fighter, he would never fight in the UFC again.

All Coker needs is for Daley to lose his cool and sucker punch an opponent after the bell – but then again, Coker seems to have plenty of experience is the post-fight brawl – remember Strikeforce Nashville where Jake Shields’ entourage got into it with Jason “Mayhem” Miller.

How many cards is Coker holding? When will his hand run out? No one knows for sure, but it’s likely we’ll tune in to find out.

MMA News | UFC News | MMA Business | MMA Fighters

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

If there is ever a question about whether Strikeforce President Scott Coker is a gambling man, one need look no further than Strikeforce: Henderson vs. Babalu on December 4th.

Coker has routinely spent big money on questionable fighters and aligned Strikeforce with fighters of questionable character.  Sometimes those bets have paid off, and sometimes…, well he’s gone begging. Certainly Coker’s biggest gamble has been his association with Fedor Emelianenko and M-1 Global.  While the public has not always been privy to the “backroom” deals that have gone on between Strikeforce and M-1 Global, but certainly Coker has to question whether the gamble has worth the headache of dealing with the Russian and his entourage.

The latest gamble Coker has bet on has been Dan Henderson and Paul Daley.  Coker thought the Henderson would energize Strikeforces’ middleweight division and provide a challenge to champion Jake Shields.  Unfortunately, Henderson came into the fight with Shields and got his butt kicked.

Now Coker is trying to figure out what to do with 2 overpaid and aging fighters in Dan Henderson and Renato “Babalu” Sobral.  So Coker decided to have them fight each other at a catch weight.

The question that I have about this fight is, why? This fight doesn’t advance either figher’s position in any weight class, and what will it do to identify top contenders to fight for the vacant Strikeforce middleweight title.

The only reason I can come up with as to why the Henderson/Babalu fight makes sense is, return on investment.

The other gamble that Coker is putting at risk on the December 4th card is Paul Daley.  Daley, as you will remember, lost his head after his fight with Josh Koscheck at UFC ____ and after the bell ending the final round of the fight, Daley promptly got up, walked around the refereee and delivered the sucker punched Koscheck in the mouth, a punch that Daley waited 15 minutes to deliver.

While that act seems to be out of character for Daley, UFC President Dana White wasted no time in cutting Daley and stating that he didn’t care how good Daley became as an MMA fighter, he would never fight in the UFC again.

All Coker needs is for Daley to lose his cool and sucker punch an opponent after the bell – but then again, Coker seems to have plenty of experience is the post-fight brawl – remember Strikeforce Nashville where Jake Shields’ entourage got into it with Jason “Mayhem” Miller.

How many cards is Coker holding? When will his hand run out? No one knows for sure, but it’s likely we’ll tune in to find out.

MMA Fighters | UFC Fighters | MMA News | Mixed Martial Arts

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:


(Updated): Yesterday we at MNL fell victim to some over zealous folks on Twitter and the Under Ground forums.   MNL has confirmed with with Matt Brown’s management team that he is still gainfully employed by the UFC.  We apologize to you (the fans) and Matt Brown for this oversite.

(Original story) The UFC has released Matt Brown from the organization.  Brown has had 8 fights in the UFC, the first being an impressive TKO win over Matt Arroyo at the Ultimate 7 Finale in 2008.  Brown then lost a close fight against Dong Hyung Kim at UFC 88.  Brown then went on a 3 fight win streak, beating Ryan Thomas, Pete Sell and James Wilks. Since then, the dreaded 3 fight losing streak has plaqued Brown, losing to Ricardo Almeida, Chris Lytle and Brian Foster.

MMANewsLeak wishes Brown good luck in his future endeavors and we anticipate that another organization will pick him up. Notching a few wins will likely put him back on the UFC radar and back in the Octagon.

Thursday, November 25, 2010

Anderson Silva | Matt Hughes | BJ PENN | UFC Fighters

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

Apparently, BJ Penn became relevant at UFC 123 by beating someone who wasn’t. By knocking out the now lightly regarded Matt Hughes, BJ Penn has apparently made himself a contender in the UFC’s Welterweight division.

Dana White announced that Penn will be fighting highly-regarded Jon Fitch, February 27, 2011 in Australia. Fitch is generally considered the second best welterweight in the world behind the world’s best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, UFC Welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre.

Presumably, the winner of the Fitch/Penn fight will be St-Pierre’s next opponent if St-Pierre handles Josh Koschcheck and probably Jake Shields. If Penn manages to beat Fitch, we can probably expect a rematch of the St-Pierre rematch of the Penn beatdown that became known as “greasegate”. The aptly-named “Baby” Jay Penn has been whining (imagine, BJ whining??!!) for a rematch against St-Pierre, since St-Pierre battered him into quitting on the stool after the 4th round at UFC 94, January 31, 2009. Penn created a s-storm of epic proportions after complaining that St-Pierre was overly greased. Penn’s unfounded and exaggerated rants alienated him from most of the mainstream MMA as well as the Nevada State Athletic Commission; particularly after Penn’s mommy testified on Penn’s behalf at the NSAC hearing.

It’s unlikely, but if Penn defeats Fitch, we can expect a Penn/St-Pierre trilogy (the UFC apparently loves a good trilogy), whether or not St-Pierre is then the Welterweight champion. St-Pierre, the winner of both contests with Penn, will have the odds of beating the same opponent three times against him, but with the additional motivation of the “greasegate” debacle and Penn having question St-Pierre’s integrity, St-Pierre’s motivation for a third Penn demolition will be very high.

UFC Fights | UFC News | UFC Fighters | MMA News

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

Here at MMANewsLeak we are happy to celebrate the holidays by opening the doors for the minions and letting out of their cubicles to go visit their families.  Before everyone made a mad dash of the door to go to Coco Fuego’s house for turkey dinner, we polled everyone to find out what they are most thankful for (in the world of MMA).  We’ve compiled a list and in no particular order, we present to y0u, our valued and loyal readers, MMANewsLeak’s things that we are thankful for:

1.  Jose Aldo and his legs kicks:  For years the WEC was looked upon as the UFC’s minor league.  That was until a man by the name of Jose Aldo stepped up against the best the WEC had to offer in the way of Urjiah Faber.   Aldo kicked Faber’s leg until he turned Faber’s leg into a rasin.  The fight was the first (and only) Pay Per View event put on by the WEC and it opened up a conversation about a merger between the two Zuffa companies.

2. The UFC/WEC merger:  It’s about time that the boys over at Zuffa added the two smaller weight classes to the UFC.  It couldn’t have happened at a better time too.  The UFC need an influx of new blood that is hungry to prove themselves, as the old guard moves out and makes way for the new fighters.  Fighters like Jose Aldo, Manny Gamburyan, Urijah Faber,  Dominick Cruz and Chris Horodecki will help us forget about the older fighters like Hughes, Penn, Chuck Liddel, and Tito Ortiz.

3. Cain Velasquez: Velasquez single handedly destroyed the myth that was Brock Lesnar and claimed the UFC heavyweight championship. Lesnar was toppled end over end by a stiff shot from Velasquez and cut badly.  To steal a line from 300, “Even a god can bleed.”

4. Twitter: Twitter is the best and worst thing to ever happen to professional sports (in general).  This gives every athlete a direct voice for the public,  it also make journalists jobs much easier and lastly it makes it so people can over react wildly to anything and everything.  I would like to thank those who have said stupid stuff on Twitter.  (i.e Shane Carwin)

5.  The feud between Josh Koscheck and George St. Pierre:  The feud is fueling the flames of MMA fans while the UFC went through a small slump of bad fights and injures.  Koscheck and GSP have been getting everyone ready for the end of the year blowout and the beginning of the next fight season.  The feud is fueled by Koscheck’s eternal doucebaggery and GSP’s ability to smile through it like a man.  No one is more well liked than GSP in MMA and no one is more hated than Koscheck (everywhere).

6. Arianny Celeste: There is no way we could go a thanksgiving season without acknowleding Arianny Celeste and of course, the photo spread in the November 2010 issue of Playboy.  The beauty that Arianny brings to a sport of ugly men with nasty deformed ears, balances the world on it’s axis.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Royce Gracie | Randy Couture | MMA Fighters | UFC Fighters

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

Here at MMANewsLeak we are happy to celebrate the holidays by opening the doors for the minions and letting out of their cubicles to go visit their families.  Before everyone made a mad dash of the door to go to Coco Fuego’s house for turkey dinner, we polled everyone to find out what they are most thankful for (in the world of MMA).  We’ve compiled a list and in no particular order, we present to y0u, our valued and loyal readers, MMANewsLeak’s things that we are thankful for:

1.  Jose Aldo and his legs kicks:  For years the WEC was looked upon as the UFC’s minor league.  That was until a man by the name of Jose Aldo stepped up against the best the WEC had to offer in the way of Urjiah Faber.   Aldo kicked Faber’s leg until he turned Faber’s leg into a rasin.  The fight was the first (and only) Pay Per View event put on by the WEC and it opened up a conversation about a merger between the two Zuffa companies.

2. The UFC/WEC merger:  It’s about time that the boys over at Zuffa added the two smaller weight classes to the UFC.  It couldn’t have happened at a better time too.  The UFC need an influx of new blood that is hungry to prove themselves, as the old guard moves out and makes way for the new fighters.  Fighters like Jose Aldo, Manny Gamburyan, Urijah Faber,  Dominick Cruz and Chris Horodecki will help us forget about the older fighters like Hughes, Penn, Chuck Liddel, and Tito Ortiz.

3. Cain Velasquez: Velasquez single handedly destroyed the myth that was Brock Lesnar and claimed the UFC heavyweight championship. Lesnar was toppled end over end by a stiff shot from Velasquez and cut badly.  To steal a line from 300, “Even a god can bleed.”

4. Twitter: Twitter is the best and worst thing to ever happen to professional sports (in general).  This gives every athlete a direct voice for the public,  it also make journalists jobs much easier and lastly it makes it so people can over react wildly to anything and everything.  I would like to thank those who have said stupid stuff on Twitter.  (i.e Shane Carwin)

5.  The feud between Josh Koscheck and George St. Pierre:  The feud is fueling the flames of MMA fans while the UFC went through a small slump of bad fights and injures.  Koscheck and GSP have been getting everyone ready for the end of the year blowout and the beginning of the next fight season.  The feud is fueled by Koscheck’s eternal doucebaggery and GSP’s ability to smile through it like a man.  No one is more well liked than GSP in MMA and no one is more hated than Koscheck (everywhere).

6. Arianny Celeste: There is no way we could go a thanksgiving season without acknowleding Arianny Celeste and of course, the photo spread in the November 2010 issue of Playboy.  The beauty that Arianny brings to a sport of ugly men with nasty deformed ears, balances the world on it’s axis.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

MMA Fighters | UFC Fighters | Randy Couture | Matt Hughes

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

Here at MMANewsLeak we are happy to celebrate the holidays by opening the doors for the minions and letting out of their cubicles to go visit their families.  Before everyone made a mad dash of the door to go to Coco Fuego’s house for turkey dinner, we polled everyone to find out what they are most thankful for (in the world of MMA).  We’ve compiled a list and in no particular order, we present to y0u, our valued and loyal readers, MMANewsLeak’s things that we are thankful for:

1.  Jose Aldo and his legs kicks:  For years the WEC was looked upon as the UFC’s minor league.  That was until a man by the name of Jose Aldo stepped up against the best the WEC had to offer in the way of Urjiah Faber.   Aldo kicked Faber’s leg until he turned Faber’s leg into a rasin.  The fight was the first (and only) Pay Per View event put on by the WEC and it opened up a conversation about a merger between the two Zuffa companies.

2. The UFC/WEC merger:  It’s about time that the boys over at Zuffa added the two smaller weight classes to the UFC.  It couldn’t have happened at a better time too.  The UFC need an influx of new blood that is hungry to prove themselves, as the old guard moves out and makes way for the new fighters.  Fighters like Jose Aldo, Manny Gamburyan, Urijah Faber,  Dominick Cruz and Chris Horodecki will help us forget about the older fighters like Hughes, Penn, Chuck Liddel, and Tito Ortiz.

3. Cain Velasquez: Velasquez single handedly destroyed the myth that was Brock Lesnar and claimed the UFC heavyweight championship. Lesnar was toppled end over end by a stiff shot from Velasquez and cut badly.  To steal a line from 300, “Even a god can bleed.”

4. Twitter: Twitter is the best and worst thing to ever happen to professional sports (in general).  This gives every athlete a direct voice for the public,  it also make journalists jobs much easier and lastly it makes it so people can over react wildly to anything and everything.  I would like to thank those who have said stupid stuff on Twitter.  (i.e Shane Carwin)

5.  The feud between Josh Koscheck and George St. Pierre:  The feud is fueling the flames of MMA fans while the UFC went through a small slump of bad fights and injures.  Koscheck and GSP have been getting everyone ready for the end of the year blowout and the beginning of the next fight season.  The feud is fueled by Koscheck’s eternal doucebaggery and GSP’s ability to smile through it like a man.  No one is more well liked than GSP in MMA and no one is more hated than Koscheck (everywhere).

6. Arianny Celeste: There is no way we could go a thanksgiving season without acknowleding Arianny Celeste and of course, the photo spread in the November 2010 issue of Playboy.  The beauty that Arianny brings to a sport of ugly men with nasty deformed ears, balances the world on it’s axis.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

UFC News | UFC Fighters | MMA Business | MMA News

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

Here at MMANewsLeak we are happy to celebrate the holidays by opening the doors for the minions and letting out of their cubicles to go visit their families.  Before everyone made a mad dash of the door to go to Coco Fuego’s house for turkey dinner, we polled everyone to find out what they are most thankful for (in the world of MMA).  We’ve compiled a list and in no particular order, we present to y0u, our valued and loyal readers, MMANewsLeak’s things that we are thankful for:

1.  Jose Aldo and his legs kicks:  For years the WEC was looked upon as the UFC’s minor league.  That was until a man by the name of Jose Aldo stepped up against the best the WEC had to offer in the way of Urjiah Faber.   Aldo kicked Faber’s leg until he turned Faber’s leg into a rasin.  The fight was the first (and only) Pay Per View event put on by the WEC and it opened up a conversation about a merger between the two Zuffa companies.

2. The UFC/WEC merger:  It’s about time that the boys over at Zuffa added the two smaller weight classes to the UFC.  It couldn’t have happened at a better time too.  The UFC need an influx of new blood that is hungry to prove themselves, as the old guard moves out and makes way for the new fighters.  Fighters like Jose Aldo, Manny Gamburyan, Urijah Faber,  Dominick Cruz and Chris Horodecki will help us forget about the older fighters like Hughes, Penn, Chuck Liddel, and Tito Ortiz.

3. Cain Velasquez: Velasquez single handedly destroyed the myth that was Brock Lesnar and claimed the UFC heavyweight championship. Lesnar was toppled end over end by a stiff shot from Velasquez and cut badly.  To steal a line from 300, “Even a god can bleed.”

4. Twitter: Twitter is the best and worst thing to ever happen to professional sports (in general).  This gives every athlete a direct voice for the public,  it also make journalists jobs much easier and lastly it makes it so people can over react wildly to anything and everything.  I would like to thank those who have said stupid stuff on Twitter.  (i.e Shane Carwin)

5.  The feud between Josh Koscheck and George St. Pierre:  The feud is fueling the flames of MMA fans while the UFC went through a small slump of bad fights and injures.  Koscheck and GSP have been getting everyone ready for the end of the year blowout and the beginning of the next fight season.  The feud is fueled by Koscheck’s eternal doucebaggery and GSP’s ability to smile through it like a man.  No one is more well liked than GSP in MMA and no one is more hated than Koscheck (everywhere).

6. Arianny Celeste: There is no way we could go a thanksgiving season without acknowleding Arianny Celeste and of course, the photo spread in the November 2010 issue of Playboy.  The beauty that Arianny brings to a sport of ugly men with nasty deformed ears, balances the world on it’s axis.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

MMA News | UFC News | MMA Business | MMA Fighters

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

Alright boys and girls, it’s time once again for MMANewsleak’s World Rankings.  We’ve tallied up all of the votes from the staff and writers here at MNL, as well as from Coco Fuego, put those votes through our proprietary algorithmic software to come up with the most non-scientific and totally arbitrary list of top 10 fighters in each weight class.

UFC 122 only had one fight that had an impact on the world rankings and that was the Nate Marquardt vs. Yushin Okami fight.

UFC 123 only one fight that impacted the world rankings and that was the Lyoto Machicda vs. Rampage Jackson fight.  It seems that the judges are not looking for “movement” as much as they are looking for “aggression” and when a fighter is stalking another fighter, like Rampage was doing to Machida, Rampage gets credit for “aggression”.  With that in mind, it appears that Machida may need to change his style to engage a little more and to be a bit more physical.

Well, enough with the commentary, here are the results:

Heavyweight 206-265 lbs

1. Cain Velasquez
2. Fedor Emelianenko
3. Alistair Overeem
4. Brock Lesnar
5. Junior Dos Santos
6. Shane Carwin
7. Fabricio Werdum
8. Frank Mir
9. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
10. Antonio Silva

Light heavyweight 186-205 lbs

The stick and move/light on your feet strategy is not working for Lyoto Machida.  Seems Muhammed Ali’s phrase “float like a butterfly, sting like a bee” doesn’t sit too well with MMA judges.

1. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua
2. Rashad Evans
3. Quinton “Rampage” Jackson
4. Lyoto Machida
5. Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante
6. Jon “Bones” Jones
7. Muhammad “King Mo” Lawal
8. Ryan Bader
9. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
10. Gegard Mousasi

Middleweight 171-185

While the top of the weight class hasn’t changed, there is some shuffling of the cards below the guy named Anderson Silva.  With Yushin Okami’s win over Nate Marquardt, Okami has slowly and steadily moved up in the rankings, and all things being equal, maybe he has finally earned a shot at the title. After Silva and Belfort settle their score in February, Okami will be one of the top middleweights in the UFC….

1. Anderson Silva
2. Vitor Belfort
3. Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza
4. Yushin Okami
5. Hector “Shango” Lombard
6. Nate Marquardt
7. Chael Sonnen
8. Michael “The Count” Bisping
9. Demian Maia
10. Dan Henderson

Welterweight 156-170 lbs

Nothing changes here this week…. Yes, BJ, even a 29 second win over Matt Hughes does not get you into the top 10 in this division… We still think you’re a better lightweight than welterweight.

1. Georges St. Pierre
2. Jon Fitch
3. Josh Koscheck
4. Jake Shields
5. Nick Diaz
6. Ben “Funky”Askren
7. Carlos Condit
8. Tyron Woodley
9. Martin “Hitman” Kampmann
10. Chris “Lights Out” Lytle

Lightweight 146-155 lbs

And nothing changes here for a couple of weeks.  However, with the WEC/UFC merger, there will be some interesting fights to make.  It would be a shame to make Ben Henderson wait too long for a title shot.

1. Gilbert Melendez
2. Eddie Alvarez
3. Ben Henderson
4. Frankie “The Answer” Edgar
5. Gray “The Bully” Maynard
6. Evan Dunham
7. BJ Penn
8. George Sotiropoulos
9. Shinya Aoki
10. Kenny Florian

Featherweight 136-145 lbs

Nothing changes here either, and like the middleweight division, nothing on the horizon looks like it will change anytime soon… except if Jose Aldo decides to move up to 155… but then he’ll just be at the top in 2 divisions….

1. Jose Aldo
2. Joe Warren
3. Mark Hominick
4. Uriah Faber
5. Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto
6. Josh Grispi
7. Manny Gamburyan
8. Tatsuya Kawajiri
9. Michihiro Omigawa
10. Wilson Reis

Bantamweight 126-135 lbs

And nothing changes here….

1. Dominick Cruz
2. Brian Bowles
3. Miguel Torres
4. Scott Jorgensen
5. Joseph Benavides
6. Zack Makovsky
7. Antonio Banuelos
8. Takeya Mizugaki
9. Eddie Wineland
10. Damacio Page

MMA Fighters | UFC Fighters | MMA News | Mixed Martial Arts

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

Alright boys and girls, it’s time once again for MMANewsleak’s World Rankings.  We’ve tallied up all of the votes from the staff and writers here at MNL, as well as from Coco Fuego, put those votes through our proprietary algorithmic software to come up with the most non-scientific and totally arbitrary list of top 10 fighters in each weight class.

UFC 122 only had one fight that had an impact on the world rankings and that was the Nate Marquardt vs. Yushin Okami fight.

UFC 123 only one fight that impacted the world rankings and that was the Lyoto Machicda vs. Rampage Jackson fight.  It seems that the judges are not looking for “movement” as much as they are looking for “aggression” and when a fighter is stalking another fighter, like Rampage was doing to Machida, Rampage gets credit for “aggression”.  With that in mind, it appears that Machida may need to change his style to engage a little more and to be a bit more physical.

Well, enough with the commentary, here are the results:

Heavyweight 206-265 lbs

1. Cain Velasquez
2. Fedor Emelianenko
3. Alistair Overeem
4. Brock Lesnar
5. Junior Dos Santos
6. Shane Carwin
7. Fabricio Werdum
8. Frank Mir
9. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
10. Antonio Silva

Light heavyweight 186-205 lbs

The stick and move/light on your feet strategy is not working for Lyoto Machida.  Seems Muhammed Ali’s phrase “float like a butterfly, sting like a bee” doesn’t sit too well with MMA judges.

1. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua
2. Rashad Evans
3. Quinton “Rampage” Jackson
4. Lyoto Machida
5. Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante
6. Jon “Bones” Jones
7. Muhammad “King Mo” Lawal
8. Ryan Bader
9. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
10. Gegard Mousasi

Middleweight 171-185

While the top of the weight class hasn’t changed, there is some shuffling of the cards below the guy named Anderson Silva.  With Yushin Okami’s win over Nate Marquardt, Okami has slowly and steadily moved up in the rankings, and all things being equal, maybe he has finally earned a shot at the title. After Silva and Belfort settle their score in February, Okami will be one of the top middleweights in the UFC….

1. Anderson Silva
2. Vitor Belfort
3. Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza
4. Yushin Okami
5. Hector “Shango” Lombard
6. Nate Marquardt
7. Chael Sonnen
8. Michael “The Count” Bisping
9. Demian Maia
10. Dan Henderson

Welterweight 156-170 lbs

Nothing changes here this week…. Yes, BJ, even a 29 second win over Matt Hughes does not get you into the top 10 in this division… We still think you’re a better lightweight than welterweight.

1. Georges St. Pierre
2. Jon Fitch
3. Josh Koscheck
4. Jake Shields
5. Nick Diaz
6. Ben “Funky”Askren
7. Carlos Condit
8. Tyron Woodley
9. Martin “Hitman” Kampmann
10. Chris “Lights Out” Lytle

Lightweight 146-155 lbs

And nothing changes here for a couple of weeks.  However, with the WEC/UFC merger, there will be some interesting fights to make.  It would be a shame to make Ben Henderson wait too long for a title shot.

1. Gilbert Melendez
2. Eddie Alvarez
3. Ben Henderson
4. Frankie “The Answer” Edgar
5. Gray “The Bully” Maynard
6. Evan Dunham
7. BJ Penn
8. George Sotiropoulos
9. Shinya Aoki
10. Kenny Florian

Featherweight 136-145 lbs

Nothing changes here either, and like the middleweight division, nothing on the horizon looks like it will change anytime soon… except if Jose Aldo decides to move up to 155… but then he’ll just be at the top in 2 divisions….

1. Jose Aldo
2. Joe Warren
3. Mark Hominick
4. Uriah Faber
5. Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto
6. Josh Grispi
7. Manny Gamburyan
8. Tatsuya Kawajiri
9. Michihiro Omigawa
10. Wilson Reis

Bantamweight 126-135 lbs

And nothing changes here….

1. Dominick Cruz
2. Brian Bowles
3. Miguel Torres
4. Scott Jorgensen
5. Joseph Benavides
6. Zack Makovsky
7. Antonio Banuelos
8. Takeya Mizugaki
9. Eddie Wineland
10. Damacio Page

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

UFC Fights | UFC News | UFC Fighters | MMA News

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

The UFC announced 10 fights for UFC 125, including the addition of a bout for the new UFC Featherweight Championship.

Current WEC Featherweight Champion Jose Aldo will face Josh Grispi for the newly created UFC Featherweight Championship title and will be the co-main event of the event which currently features Frankie Edgar defending his UFC Lightweight title against top contender Gray Maynard.

Other fights finalized on the card are:

Takanori Gomi vs. Clay Guida

Nate Diaz vs. Dong Hyun Kim

Chris Leban vs. Brian Stann

Brandon Vera vs. Thiago Silva

Marcus Davis vs. Jeremy Stephens

Mike Thomas Brown vs. Diego Nunes

Daniel Roberts vs. Greg Soto

Antonio McKee vs. Jacob Volkmann

rumored but not confirmed: Phil Barone vs. Brad Tavares

UFC 125 will be held on January 1, 2011 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Stay tuned to MMANewsLeak for the latest development on UFC 125 and other MMA news.

Royce Gracie | Randy Couture | MMA Fighters | UFC Fighters

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:


Does Authentic Brands Group think that they are playing Monopoly? The New York based company is picking up MMA T-shirt companies like it’s making their first turn around the board.  Authentic Brands Group picked up Sinister today and added them to their stable of brands that includes Tapout, Silver Star, Iron Star, and Hitman Fight Gear.

“This acquisition completes our mixed martial arts stable of brands that will now reach all tiers of distribution,” said Jamie Salter, chief executive of Authentic Brands Group. “Not only is Sinister’s distribution at Kmart and Sears highly appealing but they have a world-class partnership with Hybrid, one of the best-in-class apparel licensees in the business.”

The Sinister brand is known for it’s early relationship with UFC fighters Chuck Liddell and Rampage Jackson and has grown alongside the sport. Sinister has been working with the sport since 1998 and became an official partner in with the UFC in 2008.

Ed Soares, previous owner of Sinister, said “We’ve developed this brand with legendary MMA athletes over the last decade; We couldn’t be more pleased to put Sinister into the hands of Authentic Brands Group. We are confident they will grow Sinister while remaining loyal to the brand’s roots and consumers.”

Authentic Brands Group already helped expand Sinister’s global martketplace getting a major licensing deal in Canada with CMT Sourcing Group Limited and will introduce the brand to additional foreign market.

MMA Fighters | UFC Fighters | Randy Couture | Matt Hughes

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

Apparently, BJ Penn became relevant at UFC 123 by beating someone who wasn’t. By knocking out the now lightly regarded Matt Hughes, BJ Penn has apparently made himself a contender in the UFC’s Welterweight division.

Dana White announced that Penn will be fighting highly-regarded Jon Fitch, February 27, 2011 in Australia. Fitch is generally considered the second best welterweight in the world behind the world’s best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, UFC Welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre.

Presumably, the winner of the Fitch/Penn fight will be St-Pierre’s next opponent if St-Pierre handles Josh Koschcheck and probably Jake Shields. If Penn manages to beat Fitch, we can probably expect a rematch of the St-Pierre rematch of the Penn beatdown that became known as “greasegate”. The aptly-named “Baby” Jay Penn has been whining (imagine, BJ whining??!!) for a rematch against St-Pierre, since St-Pierre battered him into quitting on the stool after the 4th round at UFC 94, January 31, 2009. Penn created a s-storm of epic proportions after complaining that St-Pierre was overly greased. Penn’s unfounded and exaggerated rants alienated him from most of the mainstream MMA as well as the Nevada State Athletic Commission; particularly after Penn’s mommy testified on Penn’s behalf at the NSAC hearing.

It’s unlikely, but if Penn defeats Fitch, we can expect a Penn/St-Pierre trilogy (the UFC apparently loves a good trilogy), whether or not St-Pierre is then the Welterweight champion. St-Pierre, the winner of both contests with Penn, will have the odds of beating the same opponent three times against him, but with the additional motivation of the “greasegate” debacle and Penn having question St-Pierre’s integrity, St-Pierre’s motivation for a third Penn demolition will be very high.

UFC News | UFC Fighters | MMA Business | MMA News

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

In the day 3 of Dana White’s video blog Matt Hughes convinced White to up the bonus to $80, 000. Who knew that he would be on the receiving end of the knockout the won someone else the bonus.

B.J. Penn, Phil Davis, George Sotiropoulos and Joe Lauzon each benefited from Hughes talking White to $80,000.

Penn earned “Knockout of the Night” bonus when he stunned the crowd and his opponent with a rapid –fire 21-second finish. During an early flurry Penn dropped Hughes with a HUGE right hand and wasted very little time jumping on top of Hughes to finish him off.

Davis earned his “Submission of the Night” for executing a kimura variation that left Joe Rogan speechless. Davis dominated Tim Boetsch on the ground and trapped his opponent’s arm behind Boetsch and cranked the hold until Boetsch Tapout.

In the opening fight of the PPV card Sotiropoulos took the fight straight to Joe Lauzon to earn both fighters the “Fight of the Night” bonus. Lauzon kept pace with Sotiropoulos early on, but Lauzon gassed around the 3 minute of the first round. Lauzon lasted the to the end of the first round, but in the second Sotiropoulos won the ground war and finished Lauzon with a kimura.

MMA News | UFC News | MMA Business | MMA Fighters

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

BJ Penn’s Unexpected Knockout of Matt Hughes Raises Questions For Both

Saturday night, in one fell overhand swoop, the fortunes of two guys took drastically different turns.  Even though Las Vegas had BJ Penn as the favorite in his fight with Matt Hughes, wise guys and insiders were quietly licking their chops for this fight.  However, after Matt Hughes’ stunned everyone  by taking unscheduled nap just :21 into the first, a couple of things came into focus a little clearer.

First things first, Matt Hughes had a great run at welterweight but it’s over.  He’s never looked or sounded more demoralized than he did during the post-fight Roganview.  Hughes remains in good shape year round, and he hasn’t had many of those wars that shorten careers but at 37 his time has come.   Mr. Hughes let the car come to a complete stop and exit to the left.  The ride is over.

That being said, Matt Hughes has meant too much to the UFC to become an afterthought.  He’ll most likely get two more matches with one being his farewell fight, and Dana White will present him with a plaque and keys to a Scion as a thank you.

BJ, on the other hand looks like he’ll be Octagonning against the guy who is quite possibly the worst stylistic matchup he could possibly have at 170 lbs, the human C-Span channel, Jon Fitch.

(To stray off topic just briefly, does any guy get less respect than Jon Fitch?  I understand that his fighting style is excruciatingly boring, but winning is winning and Fitch does is consistently.  From GSP to Jake Ellenberger to BJ Penn?  Hell, at this rate he’ll be fighting on the UFC Youngstown card against Lenny “Hold My Beer” Kowalski. )

It’s a curious matchup for the UFC Brass and the Penn camp from my vantage point and one has to think there’s much more politics at play than simply welterweight matchmaking.  BJ Penn is always just a given up back and rear naked choke away from licking victory blood but this one flat out bizarre.

BJ will obviously always be a draw.  He’s polarizing, wildly popular with his fans, and talks a great game.  He’s also produced some great and historic UFC moments.  Love him or hate him, he’s him and that means big gate and PPV receipts for Zuffa.

MMA Fighters | UFC Fighters | MMA News | Mixed Martial Arts

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

Apparently, BJ Penn became relevant at UFC 123 by beating someone who wasn’t. By knocking out the now lightly regarded Matt Hughes, BJ Penn has apparently made himself a contender in the UFC’s Welterweight division.

Dana White announced that Penn will be fighting highly-regarded Jon Fitch, February 27, 2011 in Australia. Fitch is generally considered the second best welterweight in the world behind the world’s best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, UFC Welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre.

Presumably, the winner of the Fitch/Penn fight will be St-Pierre’s next opponent if St-Pierre handles Josh Koschcheck and probably Jake Shields. If Penn manages to beat Fitch, we can probably expect a rematch of the St-Pierre rematch of the Penn beatdown that became known as “greasegate”. The aptly-named “Baby” Jay Penn has been whining (imagine, BJ whining??!!) for a rematch against St-Pierre, since St-Pierre battered him into quitting on the stool after the 4th round at UFC 94, January 31, 2009. Penn created a s-storm of epic proportions after complaining that St-Pierre was overly greased. Penn’s unfounded and exaggerated rants alienated him from most of the mainstream MMA as well as the Nevada State Athletic Commission; particularly after Penn’s mommy testified on Penn’s behalf at the NSAC hearing.

It’s unlikely, but if Penn defeats Fitch, we can expect a Penn/St-Pierre trilogy (the UFC apparently loves a good trilogy), whether or not St-Pierre is then the Welterweight champion. St-Pierre, the winner of both contests with Penn, will have the odds of beating the same opponent three times against him, but with the additional motivation of the “greasegate” debacle and Penn having question St-Pierre’s integrity, St-Pierre’s motivation for a third Penn demolition will be very high.

Monday, November 22, 2010

UFC Fights | UFC News | UFC Fighters | MMA News

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

UFC announced that it will hold another Ultimate Fight Night – Fight for the Troops on January 22, 2011 at Fort Hood in Killeen, Texas.

Expected to headline the event is a match up between Kenny Florian and Evan Dunham.  Also fighting on the card is: Mike Swick vs. David Mitchell; Matt Mitrione vs. Tim Hague; and Melvin Guillard vs. Yves Edwards.

The UFC hosts the Fight for the Troops events to raise money to benefit men and women of the U.S. Armed Services with traumatic brain injuries.

The last Fight for the Troops was held near Fort Bragg (Fayetteville, North Carolina) and raised more than $4 million.

Royce Gracie | Randy Couture | MMA Fighters | UFC Fighters

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:


Does Authentic Brands Group think that they are playing Monopoly? The New York based company is picking up MMA T-shirt companies like it’s making their first turn around the board.  Authentic Brands Group picked up Sinister today and added them to their stable of brands that includes Tapout, Silver Star, Iron Star, and Hitman Fight Gear.

“This acquisition completes our mixed martial arts stable of brands that will now reach all tiers of distribution,” said Jamie Salter, chief executive of Authentic Brands Group. “Not only is Sinister’s distribution at Kmart and Sears highly appealing but they have a world-class partnership with Hybrid, one of the best-in-class apparel licensees in the business.”

The Sinister brand is known for it’s early relationship with UFC fighters Chuck Liddell and Rampage Jackson and has grown alongside the sport. Sinister has been working with the sport since 1998 and became an official partner in with the UFC in 2008.

Ed Soares, previous owner of Sinister, said “We’ve developed this brand with legendary MMA athletes over the last decade; We couldn’t be more pleased to put Sinister into the hands of Authentic Brands Group. We are confident they will grow Sinister while remaining loyal to the brand’s roots and consumers.”

Authentic Brands Group already helped expand Sinister’s global martketplace getting a major licensing deal in Canada with CMT Sourcing Group Limited and will introduce the brand to additional foreign market.

MMA News | UFC News | Randy Couture | MMA Business

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:


Does Authentic Brands Group think that they are playing Monopoly? The New York based company is picking up MMA T-shirt companies like it’s making their first turn around the board.  Authentic Brands Group picked up Sinister today and added them to their stable of brands that includes Tapout, Silver Star, Iron Star, and Hitman Fight Gear.

“This acquisition completes our mixed martial arts stable of brands that will now reach all tiers of distribution,” said Jamie Salter, chief executive of Authentic Brands Group. “Not only is Sinister’s distribution at Kmart and Sears highly appealing but they have a world-class partnership with Hybrid, one of the best-in-class apparel licensees in the business.”

The Sinister brand is known for it’s early relationship with UFC fighters Chuck Liddell and Rampage Jackson and has grown alongside the sport. Sinister has been working with the sport since 1998 and became an official partner in with the UFC in 2008.

Ed Soares, previous owner of Sinister, said “We’ve developed this brand with legendary MMA athletes over the last decade; We couldn’t be more pleased to put Sinister into the hands of Authentic Brands Group. We are confident they will grow Sinister while remaining loyal to the brand’s roots and consumers.”

Authentic Brands Group already helped expand Sinister’s global martketplace getting a major licensing deal in Canada with CMT Sourcing Group Limited and will introduce the brand to additional foreign market.

UFC News | UFC Fighters | MMA Business | MMA News

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

Apparently, BJ Penn became relevant at UFC 123 by beating someone who wasn’t. By knocking out the now lightly regarded Matt Hughes, BJ Penn has apparently made himself a contender in the UFC’s Welterweight division.

Dana White announced that Penn will be fighting highly-regarded Jon Fitch, February 27, 2011 in Australia. Fitch is generally considered the second best welterweight in the world behind the world’s best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, UFC Welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre.

Presumably, the winner of the Fitch/Penn fight will be St-Pierre’s next opponent if St-Pierre handles Josh Koschcheck and probably Jake Shields. If Penn manages to beat Fitch, we can probably expect a rematch of the St-Pierre rematch of the Penn beatdown that became known as “greasegate”. The aptly-named “Baby” Jay Penn has been whining (imagine, BJ whining??!!) for a rematch against St-Pierre, since St-Pierre battered him into quitting on the stool after the 4th round at UFC 94, January 31, 2009. Penn created a s-storm of epic proportions after complaining that St-Pierre was overly greased. Penn’s unfounded and exaggerated rants alienated him from most of the mainstream MMA as well as the Nevada State Athletic Commission; particularly after Penn’s mommy testified on Penn’s behalf at the NSAC hearing.

It’s unlikely, but if Penn defeats Fitch, we can expect a Penn/St-Pierre trilogy (the UFC apparently loves a good trilogy), whether or not St-Pierre is then the Welterweight champion. St-Pierre, the winner of both contests with Penn, will have the odds of beating the same opponent three times against him, but with the additional motivation of the “greasegate” debacle and Penn having question St-Pierre’s integrity, St-Pierre’s motivation for a third Penn demolition will be very high.

UFC News | UFC Fighters | MMA Business | MMA News

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

In the day 3 of Dana White’s video blog Matt Hughes convinced White to up the bonus to $80, 000. Who knew that he would be on the receiving end of the knockout the won someone else the bonus.

B.J. Penn, Phil Davis, George Sotiropoulos and Joe Lauzon each benefited from Hughes talking White to $80,000.

Penn earned “Knockout of the Night” bonus when he stunned the crowd and his opponent with a rapid –fire 21-second finish. During an early flurry Penn dropped Hughes with a HUGE right hand and wasted very little time jumping on top of Hughes to finish him off.

Davis earned his “Submission of the Night” for executing a kimura variation that left Joe Rogan speechless. Davis dominated Tim Boetsch on the ground and trapped his opponent’s arm behind Boetsch and cranked the hold until Boetsch Tapout.

In the opening fight of the PPV card Sotiropoulos took the fight straight to Joe Lauzon to earn both fighters the “Fight of the Night” bonus. Lauzon kept pace with Sotiropoulos early on, but Lauzon gassed around the 3 minute of the first round. Lauzon lasted the to the end of the first round, but in the second Sotiropoulos won the ground war and finished Lauzon with a kimura.

MMA News | UFC News | MMA Business | MMA Fighters

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

BJ Penn’s Unexpected Knockout of Matt Hughes Raises Questions For Both

Saturday night, in one fell overhand swoop, the fortunes of two guys took drastically different turns.  Even though Las Vegas had BJ Penn as the favorite in his fight with Matt Hughes, wise guys and insiders were quietly licking their chops for this fight.  However, after Matt Hughes’ stunned everyone  by taking unscheduled nap just :21 into the first, a couple of things came into focus a little clearer.

First things first, Matt Hughes had a great run at welterweight but it’s over.  He’s never looked or sounded more demoralized than he did during the post-fight Roganview.  Hughes remains in good shape year round, and he hasn’t had many of those wars that shorten careers but at 37 his time has come.   Mr. Hughes let the car come to a complete stop and exit to the left.  The ride is over.

That being said, Matt Hughes has meant too much to the UFC to become an afterthought.  He’ll most likely get two more matches with one being his farewell fight, and Dana White will present him with a plaque and keys to a Scion as a thank you.

BJ, on the other hand looks like he’ll be Octagonning against the guy who is quite possibly the worst stylistic matchup he could possibly have at 170 lbs, the human C-Span channel, Jon Fitch.

(To stray off topic just briefly, does any guy get less respect than Jon Fitch?  I understand that his fighting style is excruciatingly boring, but winning is winning and Fitch does is consistently.  From GSP to Jake Ellenberger to BJ Penn?  Hell, at this rate he’ll be fighting on the UFC Youngstown card against Lenny “Hold My Beer” Kowalski. )

It’s a curious matchup for the UFC Brass and the Penn camp from my vantage point and one has to think there’s much more politics at play than simply welterweight matchmaking.  BJ Penn is always just a given up back and rear naked choke away from licking victory blood but this one flat out bizarre.

BJ will obviously always be a draw.  He’s polarizing, wildly popular with his fans, and talks a great game.  He’s also produced some great and historic UFC moments.  Love him or hate him, he’s him and that means big gate and PPV receipts for Zuffa.

MMA Fighters | UFC Fighters | MMA News | Mixed Martial Arts

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

Apparently, BJ Penn became relevant at UFC 123 by beating someone who wasn’t. By knocking out the now lightly regarded Matt Hughes, BJ Penn has apparently made himself a contender in the UFC’s Welterweight division.

Dana White announced that Penn will be fighting highly-regarded Jon Fitch, February 27, 2011 in Australia. Fitch is generally considered the second best welterweight in the world behind the world’s best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, UFC Welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre.

Presumably, the winner of the Fitch/Penn fight will be St-Pierre’s next opponent if St-Pierre handles Josh Koschcheck and probably Jake Shields. If Penn manages to beat Fitch, we can probably expect a rematch of the St-Pierre rematch of the Penn beatdown that became known as “greasegate”. The aptly-named “Baby” Jay Penn has been whining (imagine, BJ whining??!!) for a rematch against St-Pierre, since St-Pierre battered him into quitting on the stool after the 4th round at UFC 94, January 31, 2009. Penn created a s-storm of epic proportions after complaining that St-Pierre was overly greased. Penn’s unfounded and exaggerated rants alienated him from most of the mainstream MMA as well as the Nevada State Athletic Commission; particularly after Penn’s mommy testified on Penn’s behalf at the NSAC hearing.

It’s unlikely, but if Penn defeats Fitch, we can expect a Penn/St-Pierre trilogy (the UFC apparently loves a good trilogy), whether or not St-Pierre is then the Welterweight champion. St-Pierre, the winner of both contests with Penn, will have the odds of beating the same opponent three times against him, but with the additional motivation of the “greasegate” debacle and Penn having question St-Pierre’s integrity, St-Pierre’s motivation for a third Penn demolition will be very high.

MMA News | UFC News | Randy Couture | MMA Business

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

The main event at UFC 123 has two of the all time great MMA superstars who are trying to get their careers back on track. Both Lyoto Machida and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson are coming off loses and need a win to jump them into title contention.

The co-main event offers a match up with similar implications, BJ Penn vs. Matt Hughes offers us the rubber match between the two Hall Of Famers. Penn is coming off back to back losses and like Rampage, Penn wants to get back on the winning track.

Penn and Rapage were on the conference call with UFC and media recently, here is a short video from Cage religion.com that highlights a few big questions.

For detail information visit: http://www.mmanewsleak.com/latest-news

Royce Gracie | Randy Couture | MMA Fighters | UFC Fighters

MNL Video Exclusive:

Shawn Tompkins is one of the premier striking coaches in the sport. Tompkins is the protégé of Bas Rutten and took over his L.A. Anacondas IFL team when Rutten Felt it was time to step into the booth. After the IFL Tompkins continued to work with fight via his Team Tompkins

Currently Tompkins trains such names as Sam Stout, Chris Horodecki, Mark Hominick, Brad Tavares and Vitor Belfort. MNL stopped by Tapout Training Center in Las Vegas to catch up with the coach and asking him what the WEC merging with the UFC means for him and his guys.

For detail information visit: http://www.mmanewsleak.com/latest-news

MMA News | UFC News | Randy Couture | MMA Business

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

UFC announced that it will hold another Ultimate Fight Night – Fight for the Troops on January 22, 2011 at Fort Hood in Killeen, Texas.

Expected to headline the event is a match up between Kenny Florian and Evan Dunham.  Also fighting on the card is: Mike Swick vs. David Mitchell; Matt Mitrione vs. Tim Hague; and Melvin Guillard vs. Yves Edwards.

The UFC hosts the Fight for the Troops events to raise money to benefit men and women of the U.S. Armed Services with traumatic brain injuries.

The last Fight for the Troops was held near Fort Bragg (Fayetteville, North Carolina) and raised more than $4 million.

MMA News | UFC News | Randy Couture | MMA Business

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

The UFC announced 10 fights for UFC 125, including the addition of a bout for the new UFC Featherweight Championship.

Current WEC Featherweight Champion Jose Aldo will face Josh Grispi for the newly created UFC Featherweight Championship title and will be the co-main event of the event which currently features Frankie Edgar defending his UFC Lightweight title against top contender Gray Maynard.

Other fights finalized on the card are:

Takanori Gomi vs. Clay Guida

Nate Diaz vs. Dong Hyun Kim

Chris Leban vs. Brian Stann

Brandon Vera vs. Thiago Silva

Marcus Davis vs. Jeremy Stephens

Mike Thomas Brown vs. Diego Nunes

Daniel Roberts vs. Greg Soto

Antonio McKee vs. Jacob Volkmann

rumored but not confirmed: Phil Barone vs. Brad Tavares

UFC 125 will be held on January 1, 2011 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Stay tuned to MMANewsLeak for the latest development on UFC 125 and other MMA news.

MMA News | UFC News | MMA Business | MMA Fighters

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:


Does Authentic Brands Group think that they are playing Monopoly? The New York based company is picking up MMA T-shirt companies like it’s making their first turn around the board.  Authentic Brands Group picked up Sinister today and added them to their stable of brands that includes Tapout, Silver Star, Iron Star, and Hitman Fight Gear.

“This acquisition completes our mixed martial arts stable of brands that will now reach all tiers of distribution,” said Jamie Salter, chief executive of Authentic Brands Group. “Not only is Sinister’s distribution at Kmart and Sears highly appealing but they have a world-class partnership with Hybrid, one of the best-in-class apparel licensees in the business.”

The Sinister brand is known for it’s early relationship with UFC fighters Chuck Liddell and Rampage Jackson and has grown alongside the sport. Sinister has been working with the sport since 1998 and became an official partner in with the UFC in 2008.

Ed Soares, previous owner of Sinister, said “We’ve developed this brand with legendary MMA athletes over the last decade; We couldn’t be more pleased to put Sinister into the hands of Authentic Brands Group. We are confident they will grow Sinister while remaining loyal to the brand’s roots and consumers.”

Authentic Brands Group already helped expand Sinister’s global martketplace getting a major licensing deal in Canada with CMT Sourcing Group Limited and will introduce the brand to additional foreign market.

Anderson Silva | Matt Hughes | BJ PENN | UFC Fighters

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

Apparently, BJ Penn became relevant at UFC 123 by beating someone who wasn’t. By knocking out the now lightly regarded Matt Hughes, BJ Penn has apparently made himself a contender in the UFC’s Welterweight division.

Dana White announced that Penn will be fighting highly-regarded Jon Fitch, February 27, 2011 in Australia. Fitch is generally considered the second best welterweight in the world behind the world’s best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, UFC Welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre.

Presumably, the winner of the Fitch/Penn fight will be St-Pierre’s next opponent if St-Pierre handles Josh Koschcheck and probably Jake Shields. If Penn manages to beat Fitch, we can probably expect a rematch of the St-Pierre rematch of the Penn beatdown that became known as “greasegate”. The aptly-named “Baby” Jay Penn has been whining (imagine, BJ whining??!!) for a rematch against St-Pierre, since St-Pierre battered him into quitting on the stool after the 4th round at UFC 94, January 31, 2009. Penn created a s-storm of epic proportions after complaining that St-Pierre was overly greased. Penn’s unfounded and exaggerated rants alienated him from most of the mainstream MMA as well as the Nevada State Athletic Commission; particularly after Penn’s mommy testified on Penn’s behalf at the NSAC hearing.

It’s unlikely, but if Penn defeats Fitch, we can expect a Penn/St-Pierre trilogy (the UFC apparently loves a good trilogy), whether or not St-Pierre is then the Welterweight champion. St-Pierre, the winner of both contests with Penn, will have the odds of beating the same opponent three times against him, but with the additional motivation of the “greasegate” debacle and Penn having question St-Pierre’s integrity, St-Pierre’s motivation for a third Penn demolition will be very high.

MMA Fighters | UFC Fighters | MMA News | Mixed Martial Arts

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

In the day 3 of Dana White’s video blog Matt Hughes convinced White to up the bonus to $80, 000. Who knew that he would be on the receiving end of the knockout the won someone else the bonus.

B.J. Penn, Phil Davis, George Sotiropoulos and Joe Lauzon each benefited from Hughes talking White to $80,000.

Penn earned “Knockout of the Night” bonus when he stunned the crowd and his opponent with a rapid –fire 21-second finish. During an early flurry Penn dropped Hughes with a HUGE right hand and wasted very little time jumping on top of Hughes to finish him off.

Davis earned his “Submission of the Night” for executing a kimura variation that left Joe Rogan speechless. Davis dominated Tim Boetsch on the ground and trapped his opponent’s arm behind Boetsch and cranked the hold until Boetsch Tapout.

In the opening fight of the PPV card Sotiropoulos took the fight straight to Joe Lauzon to earn both fighters the “Fight of the Night” bonus. Lauzon kept pace with Sotiropoulos early on, but Lauzon gassed around the 3 minute of the first round. Lauzon lasted the to the end of the first round, but in the second Sotiropoulos won the ground war and finished Lauzon with a kimura.

Friday, November 19, 2010

MMA Fighters | UFC Fighters | MMA News | Mixed Martial Arts

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

With a big win over Nate Marquardt, Yushin Okami will be rewarded with a title shot against the winner of Vitor Belfort and Anderson Silva. But is he really deserving of one or is the UFC just looking to “feed” Silva?

The dwindling talent in the middleweight division has been obivious for a while now. Silva sent more contenders back to the drawing board than you can shake a stick at. In fact, you can define the middleweight division by saying  ”Anderson Silva and a bunch of guys not named Anderson Silva”. I hear that the UFC was going to rename it, but that was too long to fit behind a fighter’s name.

After the Chael Sonnen vs Anderson Silva rematch got shelved, the expected match between Vitor Belfort and Okami got scratched and Belfort was given his shot at the title, but that left the question of who was next?

Enter Nate Marquardt. Marquardt stepped into the fight against Okami in Germany at UFC 122 (aka free fight equals bad card). The main event fighters were offered the same deal that was in place for Belfort/Okami; WIN and you  got next!

Marquardt and Okami fought to a three round decision in their typical fashion, BORING. The fights never picked up the pace and neither fighter truly over shadowed the other, but Okami won a close decision.

This has been Okami’s MO for most of his career, fight safe and go to the cards. Okami does enough to win over the judges and win the fight, but he is a little on the boring side. Only one of his last 5 fights has not gone to the score cards, Lucio Linhares at UFN: Florian vs Gomi; where many spectators praised his improved striking. Other than that fight, he has gone to the judges cards.

Does all of this put together mean that Okami is not a great opponent for Silva? Maybe. The problem is that any fight with Okami is almost guaranteed to be a boring fight. Okami has turned into a counter striker rather than an attacker. This will play right into the waiting hands of Silva or Belfort (fighting in February for the middleweight title).

Whomever wins Belfort or Silva will surely make quick work of Yushin Okami, and the UFC will keep feeding the beast they call the middle weightchampion.

For detail information visit: http://www.mmanewsleak.com/latest-news

UFC News | UFC Fighters | MMA Business | MMA News

MMANEWSLEAK Exclusive:

The fight game, perhaps like no other, is all about “what have you done for me lately”.  Quite frequently, when a fighter loses, the sky can literally be falling.  For Nate Marquardt, the questions are beginning to mount; and unfortunately, those questions are not really deserved.  Nate “The Great” has put together an impressive record (30-10-2) for more than 10 years of fighting.

But in every fighter’s career there are fights that can break a fighter, and for Marquardt that fight may have been the Chael Sonnen fight in February 2010 at UFC 109.

Sonnen dominated Marquardt and it looks like Sonnen may have walked away with more than a win in that fight; Sonnen may have taken Marquardt’s will to compete.

While Marquardt has not always been the most explosive and exciting fighter to step into the Octagon, he has been dominating in fights and knows what he needs to do to get to and win at the “elite” level in the sport.

The problem is that Marquardt has been questioning his desire/motivation to train.  That became evident during his fight with Sonnen (UFC 109) and again with Okami (UFC 122).  Speaking specifically about UFC 122, Marquardt never really pressed the action.  As Marquardt said in the post-fight press conference, he felt like he was landing the harder punches but that he wasn’t putting combinations together.

Watching Marquardt fight it seemed apparent that the fight was there for Marquardt to win, all he had to do was dictate the pace, throw combinations. And while Marquardt talked about the opportunity to redeem his loss to middleweight champion Anderson Silva, there is no doubt that the level of intensity Marquardt gave in the Okami fight, well, let’s just say that it wasn’t championship level.

Now the question is, who does Marquardt fight to get back in contention?  Many people say that he’s at least 3 fights away from another title shot – that means about 14 to 16 months away from a title shot.  The better question is, who does he fight to get back into the mix?

It’s not likely that there will be a rematch with Sonnen any time soon and another loss, no matter to whom, could be devastating to Marquardt’s chances for a title shot. What is more likely to occur is that the UFC will give Marquardt a “gift” for a fight in order to get Marquardt back onto the winning track. Marquardt is a great guy and a highly skilled fighter – but he needs to have the same epiphany that Kenny Florian had – he needs to come into fights with a fire, intensityand with bad intentions for his opponent. Marquardt has tried to be “business like” in his approach – some one needs to tell Marquardt that this is a fight not a negotiation.

For detail information visit: http://www.mmanewsleak.com/latest-news