» Fighter: Don Frye

UFC 109 takes place February 6 and the main event features Fighters.com tenth-ranked heavyweight “The Natural” Randy Couture (17-10) versus “The Hammer” Mark Coleman (16-9). This is being billed as “When Legends Collide” and many throughout the sport feel it is time for men of this age to step aside and let the young guns take over mixed martial arts (MMA). I am just the opposite and feel that not only should they stay keep fighting but I feel they still retain that elite status.

Read More About UFC Vets Randy Couture, Mark Coleman and Don Frye:Still Elite…

Shark Fights 6 featuring former UFC champ “Predator” Don Frye (20-7-1) versus “Pee Wee” Dave Herman (15-1) will stream live from Amarillo Saturday, 12 September beginning at 7:00 PM CST, Shark Fights announced Thursday.

The Internet broadcast will cost just $5.95 and can be purchased at Shark Fights’ website beginning at 6:30 PM CST Saturday. Tickets starting at $20 can be purchased at PandhandleTickets.com.

The full card includes:

Nissen Osterneck (5-2) v “Hurricane” Gerald Harris (13-2)
Phil Cardella (8-4) v Ran Weathers (12-5)
“Money” Marcus Sursa (5-4) v Isaac Villanueva (3-1)
“Bam Bam” Pat Healy (17-13) v “TJ” Anthony Waldburger (10-5)
Bryan Humes (5-0) v Lance Friedenstein (2-0)
Lorenzo Borgomeo (4-2) v Anselmo Martinez (5-0)
Karen Darabedyan (7-1) v Estevan Payan (6-2)
Robert Clayton Hantz (3-1) v Tony Castillo (1-0)

Light heavyweight über-prospect “King Mo” Muhammed Lawal (3-0) and middleweight Brazilian “Spartan” Lucio Linhares (11-3) highlight Friday’s M-1 Global Breakthrough in Kansas City that features an exhibition sparring match between Fighters.com’s Heavyweight Champion “Last Emperor” Fedor Emelianenko (29-1) and Strikeforce light heavyweight champ “Dreamcatcher” Gegard Mousasi (22-2-1).

Breakthrough gets started at 7:30 PM local time at Memorial Hall in KC and the meat of the of the card will be broadcast on HDNet at 10:00 PM EST. Outside of the United States, the entire card will be streamed via the Internet. Details are available at M-1 Global’s website. Tickets starting at $25 can be purchased at Ticketmaster and there’s a buy-one-get-one-free offer.

Fighters.com asked Mousasi to explain the exhibition sparring format last Thursday. “It’s just like a light sparring,” he said, and added that the exhibition won’t turn competitive in front of thousands in Kansas City. “We are not animals. We can control ourselves.”

Read More About Mo Lawal, Lucio Linhares Highlight KC M-1 Card Featuring Emelianenko/Mousasi Sparring Exhibition…

Fighters.com doesn’t blame über-prospect “King Mo” Muhammed Lawal (3-0), but the main event for M-1 Global Breakthrough just went from bad to worse. Forty-year old “Smashing Machine” Mark Kerr (14-10) will bring his four-fight losing streak into the ring in Kansas City 28 August to replace Lawal’s original opponent, forty-three year old former UFC champion “Predator” Don Frye (20-7-1).

Perhaps Frye is to blame? M-1 Global Chief Operating Officer Joost Raimond thinks so, saying Monday, “Don Frye had a signed contract with M-1 and part of that signed commitment allowed us to change the venue if needed. From our perspective, Don should still be in this fight. However, for reasons that we aren’t exactly sure of, he has backed out. Don still has not provided us with a clear reason as to why he is refusing to fight. It just doesn’t make sense because the old Don Frye was willing to fight anyone, anywhere, and at anytime. Perhaps the fire is gone and he underestimated the challenge that ‘King Mo’ presents?”

Ostentatious former NCAA wrestling champion “King Mo” won a unanimous decision over Pancrase veteran Ryo Kawamura (9-3-2) at Sengoku Seventh Battle in Tokyo last March. He’ll fight for the first time in his home nation at Breakthrough.

Read More About Mark Kerr Replaces Don Frye Versus Mo Lawal at M-1 Breakthrough…

M-1 Global’s 28 August show titled Breakthrough and headlined by “King” Muhammed Lawal (3-0) versus former UFC champion “Predator” Don Frye (20-7-1) is looking for a new venue, according to Fighters.com’s sources.

Originally scheduled to coincide with the International Mixed Martial Arts Expo in Los Angeles 27-29 August, Fighters.com’s sources have inidcated the IMMAE is considering rescheduling for the weekend of UFC 104 in Los Angeles 23-25 October.

“[Breakthrough] may move to northern California or Nevada [because of the IMMAE rescheduling],” said Fighters.com’s source.

Read More About M-1 Global Breakthrough Changing Locations…

M-1 Global officially announced Thursday an already rumored, but little anticipated matchup between “King Mo” Muhammed Lawal (3-0) and forty-three year old former UFC champion “Predator” Don Frye (20-7-1) at Breakthrough in Los Angeles 28 August.

Also announced was a middleweight matchup between “Goat” Nick Thompson (38-11-1) and Frenchman “Psycho” Karl Amoussou (11-1-1).

Ostentatious former NCAA wrestling champion “King Mo” won a unanimous decision over Pancrase veteran Ryo Kawamura (9-3-2) at Sengoku Seventh Battle in Tokyo last March. He’ll fight for the first time in his home nation at Breakthrough.

Read More About Mo Lawal v Don Frye Officially Announced For M-1…

Today YAMMA Pit Fighting (YPF), a new mixed martial arts (MMA) organization created by Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) founder Bob Meyrowitz, announced that their first matchup will pit Russia vs. U.S.A, as “The Russian Bear” Oleg Taktarov and “The Predator” Don Frye will go toe-to-toe in the organization’s first live pay-per-view event.

The event will air live from the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City on April 11, 2008.  Tickets for the event will go on sale March 8, and can be purchased through  Ticketmaster.

This first matchup will witness two MMA legends battle in a totally new and unique arena.  The veteran fighters will face off in one of the ‘Masters Superfights’, one-on-one matches that feature some of MMA’s most illustrious and legendary fighters. 

“Don Frye needs to do only two things: fly to Russia and stay there for ten years to study Sambo.  Then, maybe he’ll be ready,” said Oleg Taktarov about his upcoming face off with Frye.

In addition to the Superfights, the 11 April event will showcase the skill and endurance of eight fearsome competitors in a tournament match for the title of YAMMA Heavyweight Champion.  Tournament fighters include:

“Pato” Marcelo Pereira – a multiple world and Brazil BJJ champion known for his strong chin and very heavy hands with an MMA record of 5-0-0.

Sherman Pendergarst – a 6′1 230-pound former collegiate wrestler and state high school wrestling champion with a background in BJJ, boxing, and kickboxing with an MMA record of 10-8-0.

Rex Richards – a former lineman for the Indianapolis Colts and Machado BJJ brown belt.  Richards is a veteran of Strike Force and Art of War with a professional mixed martial arts record of 4-1-0.

Tony Sylvester – a boxing/wrestling expert who is considered to be one of the top up-and-coming heavyweights in the nation with a MMA record of 10-1-0.

“The Diesel” Travis Wiuff – a UFC, Pride and IFL veteran, and current IFO World Champion with an MMA record of 47-11-0.  He is known for his well-rounded fighting style with vicious elbows on the ground

The additional three tournament fighters will be announced in the coming weeks.

UFC co-founder Bob Meyrowitz and UFC 8 champion Don Frye will come together in Atlantic City April 11 to recapture past glory.

Meyrowitz has formed YAMMA Pit Fighting, an MMA promotion set to return to the tournament format of the original UFC events.

“It’s with great excitement that we launch YAMMA Pit Fighting,” says Bob Meyrowitz.  “Our deep and proven knowledge of the entertainment and MMA spheres put us in a great position to add a new dimension to the presentation of MMA as it moves into the future.”

YPF will debut at the Trump Taj Mahal with a main event featuring 44-year old Fry versus Russian UFC veteran Oleg Taktarov.

Since sitting out 2005, Frye, 18-6-1, has remained active since submitting Chad Rowan in K-1 Hero’s in May 2006.  He’s 4-1-1 since 2006.

Taktarov, 15-5-2, retired in 1998, but returned in 2007 with kneebar submission of John Marsh in BodogFIGHT.

Despite being apart of the same era of UFC competition, the two fighters have never faced each other.

 The YPF debut will be broadcast via PPV.