Former UFC fighter "The Silverback" Seth Petruzelli (11-4) best known for his TKO win over Kimbo Slice (4-2) at an October 2008 EliteXC show is returning to the Octagon. His opponent will be light heavyweight Ricardo Romero (10-1) at UFC 116. ...

The UFC is working hard to put together the next UFC on Versus event and in doing so they have booked a fight between "The Janitor" Vladimir Matyushenko (24-4) and "Bones" Jon Jones (10-1). ...

The Ultimate Fighter 3’s “Hammer” Matt Hamill (8-2) was diagnosed with a dislocated shoulder at a Las Vegas-area hospital after winning a matchup versus “Bones” Jon Jones (9-1) when Jones was disqualified for an illegal elbow strike at SpikeTV’s The Ultimate Fighter 10 Finale in Las Vegas Saturday, according to an MMA Junkie report. ...

The Ultimate Fighter 3’s “Hammer” Matt Hamill (7-2) defeated  “Bones” Jon Jones (9-1) by disqualification in the first round in their face off for the co-main event at SpikeTV's  The Ultimate Fighter 10 Finale in Las Vegas Saturday. ...

After having to pull out of UFC 102 in Portland August 29 to have knee surgery to correct a nagging injury, The Ultimate Fighter 3's “Hammer” Matt Hamill (6-2) is set to face off against the young rising star "Bones" Jon Jones (9-0) at SpikeTV’s The Ultimate Fighter 10 Finale in Las Vegas December 5. ...

The Ultimate Fighter 8 contestant "Polish Experiment" Krzysztof Soszynski (19-8-1) will replace light heavyweight "Hammer" Matt Hamill (6-2) versus "The Truth" Brandon Vera (10-3) at UFC 102 in Portland 29 August. Hamill tore his meniscus training for the fight and will rehab for three to four weeks, according Hamill's trainer Duff Holmes at MMA Junkie. Soszynski knocked out Andre Gusmao (5-2) at UFC 98 in Las Vegas 23 May making him 3-0 in the Octagan since coming up short during his stint on TUF. Former heavyweight contender Vera is 2-1 since dropping to 205 pounds. He TKO'd Michael Patt (12-4) in the second round at UFC 96 in Columbus 7 March. ...

The UFC officially announced Thursday the rest of the line-up for UFC 92, which takes place 27 December in Las Vegas. French heavyweight Cheick Kongo (12-4-1) will meet UFC newcomer Mustapha al Turk (1-0), “The Hammer” Matt Hamill (4-2) will meet Reese Andy (7-2) in a light heavyweight bout. Other bouts announced were “Piranha” Ryo Chonan (15-8) versus “Bad” Brad Blackburn (12-9-1), Antoni Hardonk (7-4) versus Mark Burch (10-2), and Dan Evensen (10-5) versus Pat Barry (1-0). ...

"Sugar" Rashad Evans (12-0-1) knocked out Fighters.com's fourth-ranked light heavyweight "Iceman" Chuck Liddell (21-6) with a right hook in the second round Saturday night in Atlanta. Liddell lay unconcious on the canvas for several minutes after the punch. Evans jitter-bugged around a stalking Liddell the entire fight.  Liddell never really got a beat on him, but landed a straight right in the first round.  Evans back-pedalled and taunted Liddell with a dance. In the second round, Liddell lunged for an uppercut and took Evans's counter right hook square on the jaw to end the fight at 1:51. Franklin Finishes Friend "Ace" Rich Franklin (24-3) TKO'd his friend and former training partner "Hammer" Matt Hamill (4-2) at 39 seconds of round three with a left kick to Hamill's floating rib in Franklin's return to 205. Franklin had landed the same kick consistently through the first two rounds.  In the third, the kick dropped Hamill and Franklin landed two punches before referee Mario Yamasaki waved the fight off. ...

"Hammer" Matt Hamill (4-1) talked to Fighters.com before his fight with friend and former training partner Fighters.com's second-ranked middleweight "Ace" Rich Franklin (23-3), who is moving up to 205-pounds. ...

Fighters.com's second-ranked middleweight "Ace" Rich Franklin (23-3) spoke to Fighters.com Thursday in Atlanta at the UFC 88 press conference.  Franklin will fight "Hammer" Matt Hamill (4-1) in Franklin's return to 205 Saturday.  

Fighters.com attended the UFC 88 open workout in Atlanta Wednesday afternoon. Fighters.com's fourth-ranked light heavyweight “Iceman” Chuck Liddell (21-5) bounced in place as reporters lined-up to interview the former UFC champion before his fight versus "Sugar" Rashad Evans (11-0-1) Saturday night. Playful and boisterous, Liddell told Fighters.com he was ready to fight Evans today in a video interview that will be posted shortly. Evans was a bit more low-key, focusing on the biggest fight of his career and rolling with middleweight training partner Nathan Marquardt (26-8-2), who fights "Hitman" Martin Kampmann (13-1) Saturday night. Co-main event second-ranked middleweight "Ace" Rich Franklin (23-3), moving to 205 Saturday versus former training partner "Hammer" Matt Hamill (4-1), skipped his scheduled session. Sources in Franklin's camp alternately told Fighters.com that Franklin wasn't feeling well and that he was eating to maintain the weight of his new division. Neither excuse gives much solace to Fighters.com after Franklin's comments about his uncertainty about fighting his former training partner and moving to 205 pounds. ...

Fighters.com's second-ranked middleweight "Ace" Rich Franklin (23-3)  will launch into the 205-pound weight class next weekend in Atlanta.  Franklin answered questions and worked out for the media Wednesday morning at Jorge Gurgel's (12-4) Mixed Martial Arts Academy in West Chester, north of Franklin's native Cincinnati. Fighters.com: You had said you’d take fights at 205 if the UFC offered an interesting match-up.  Why is "Hammer" Matt Hamill (4-1) interesting to you? Rich Franklin: Well, uh, the UFC more or less encouraged me to move up to 205 because my standing in the 185-pound weight class kind of left me stagnant, in a position where I was going to end up fighting only the guys who lost to Anderson Silva.  They weren't...the UFC right now is not interested in seeing me fight Silva a third time and they really don't want me fighting any of the contenders coming up because that would eliminate possible title fights.  And, with that said, I really don't have anything much to shoot for at the 185-pound class.  So, they kept talking to me about moving up to 205; and, having agreed to move up to 205, they previously offered me one fight before they offered me the Hamill fight and I had turned that fight down; and then, uh, they came at...they came to me with the second fight, which was the Hamill fight.  And, I kind of put myself in a situation where I couldn't really turn the fight down even though Matt and I had known each other and had some history together.  Um, I basically said to the UFC, you know, I said, "Well, that's kind of a tough fight for me to take."  I said, "But, if you take it to his camp and they're interested in the fight, then I guess I'll sign."  And, that's basically how the ball got rollin' on that. ...

The UFC officially announced three fights Wednesday for its 6 September card in Atlanta: • a previously reported light heavyweight bout between Fighters.com’s second-ranked middleweight “Ace” Rich Franklin (23-3) and “Hammer” Matt Hamill (4-1); • a rumoured welterweight bout between tenth-ranked “Zenko” Yoshiyuki Yoshida (10-2) and “The Heat” Karo Parisyan (18-5); • a middleweight bout between “Hollywood” Dan Henderson (22-7) and “Toquinho” Rousimar Palhares (8-1). Yoshida, who won his last nine fights, made his UFC debut in May with a 56-second submission over “War Machine” Jon Koppenhaver (5-2). Parisyan will look to come back from a second-round TKO loss to third-ranked “Pitbull” Thiago Alves (15-3) at Fight Night 13 in April. Henderson, a former PRIDE Middleweight and Light Heavyweight Champion, was submitted via second-round rear naked choke by UFC and Fighters.com’s Middleweight Champion “Spider” Anderson Silva (22-4) in March. Palhares is looking for his seventh consecutive win. In May he submitted Ivan Salaverry (13-7) via armbar in round one. ...

A source close to Fighters.com's top middleweight contender "Ace" Rich Franklin's (23-3) camp confirmed Wednesday that Franklin is preparing to fight "Hammer"  Matt Hamill (4-1) at 205-pounds. J.T. Stewart, Franklin's agent, confirmed to the Cincinnati Enquirer that the contracts are signed. Fighters.com's source said that Franklin's trainers have been preparing for a Hamill-focused training camp and sharing notes from Hamill's time at Jorge Gurgel's Academy north of Cincinnati, where Franklin trains most of the year. Hamill is coming off a second-round TKOof "Barbarian" Tim Boetsch (7-2) in Denver 2 April. Franklin is coming off a second-round TKOof "Serial Killer" Travis Lutter (9-5) in Montréal 19 April. In May, Fighters.com suggested Franklin's temporary move back to 205-pounds should be to avenge his 2003 loss to top light heavyweight contender"Dragon" Lyoto Machida (13-0). However, a Franklin versus Hamill match-up will captivate the large Greater Cincinnati MMA community, both fighters being natives of The Queen City. Too bad it'll be fought in Atlanta. ...

Fighters.com's numero dos heavyweight "The Natural" Randy Couture (16-8) told CagePotato today, "The exclusivity has to go away or else we’re going to have the same problems with becoming a fractured sport the way boxing has." With respect to MMA's classiest act, I disagree. The UFC's stranglehold over the top of the sport has ensured the best fighters fight each other. The best match-up in boxing right now is WBC welterweight titlist Floyd Mayweather, Jr. versus WBA and IBF welterweight titlist Miguel Cotto. For those not in the boxing know, it ain't happenin'. Mayweather is ducking the young bull Cotto for more lucrative, less competitive rematches with Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton.  Those happen to be match-ups Mayweather is more likely to win.  Hell, he's already beat them both. It's the UFC's umbrella over the sport that has made sure champions fight contenders, not pretenders who allow champions to hold on to belts maximizing the marketability of their reign. You see, when free agent fighters and their management pick their opponents, whether in boxing or MMA, they tend towards safe fights. Exhibit A:  Everyone's favorite MMA ducker, sixth-ranked heavyweight "The Last Emperor" Fedor Emelianenko (27-1). While a showdown with third-ranked "Babyface Assassin" Josh Barnett (21-5) has been an option, Emelianenko has picked fights against middleweight "The Law" Matt Lindland (20-5) and kickboxer "Techno Goliath" Hong Man Choi (1-1). Such is matchmaking when managers and free agent fighters seek to prolong their marketability versus the safest reasonable opponents. I mean, Lindland and Choi are both world champions, right?  Nevermind that their championships were in a different weight class and sport respectively than Emelianenko. I'm not advocating for the UFC.  I could care less about which promoter logo is atop a fight card.  It's the card itself that interests me.  The fact is, the UFC's centralized organization of the sport has produced the best fights and, by definition, avoided "becoming a fractured sport the way boxing has." Notes From Around MMA * Top Strikeforce lightweight contender “The Punk” Josh Thomson (14-2) maintains “The Carpenter” Clay Guida (23-9) oiled up before their March 2006 title fight, won by Guida by UD.  Thomson claims, “I mentioned it to Clay's brother one time.  I said, ‘Clay was really slippery in that fight…’  He just looked at me, shrugged, and said, ‘You do what you have to do to win.’  I just thought, ‘Whatever, douche bag.’  But, Clay…I think his career has leveled off.  He got a few big wins, but he's taken some losses the last couple of years.” * Couture (16-8) told IGN he’s pursuing a video game deal with EA Sports.  He also claimed, “I don't care where the fight happens,” in response to a question about fighting sixth-ranked Emelinanenko in the UFC.  Couture had previously expressed his desire not to fight Emelianenko in the UFC. * UFC middleweight Rob Yundt (6-1), who lost his UFC debut in February to “Cachorrao” Ricardo Almeida (9-2), will return to the Octagon 21 June on the TUF 7 finale versus one of the TUF contestants.  The UFC won’t reveal Yundt’s opponent to him until that fighter is eliminated on the show. * The Tennessee House of Representatives passed a bill to legalize and sanction MMA in the state by a vote of 95-2.  The bill is held-up in the Senate by Senators Dewayne Bunch of Cleveland and Bo Watson of Hixson.  The two southeast Tennessee legislators have attached an amendment earmarking the profits from MMA events for the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Division I wrestling team.  According to the Nashville Post, the amendment may violate NCAA rules.  Tennesseans are urged to contact their state Senators and urge the passing of the bill next week without the earmarking amendment. * Fourth-ranked welterweight “The Terror” Matt Serra (9-5) and UFC light heavyweight "The Hammer" Matt Hamill (4-1), both New York state residents, and UFC executive Marc Ratner were lobbying New York state Senators Tuesday to legalize and regulate MMA in the state.  A bill legalizing and regulating the sport in New York has passed the state’s assembly, but is opposed in the senate. * Canadian kickboxer “Black Sniper” Michael McDonald (1-1), 2002 and 2004 K-1 North American Grand Prix Champion, won a decision over American kickboxer “The Jet” Rick Roufus (1-1) in an MMA bout fought under the radar in Romania last month. * “Iceman” Chuck Liddell (21-5) and “Kimbo Slice” Kevin Ferguson (1-1) will go head-to-head 31 May in a ratings battle.  SpikeTV will air Ultimate Iceman to compete directly with CBS EliteXC Saturday Night Fights at 9:00 PM EST.  SpikeTV will air an entire day of UFC programming on 31 May, beginning at 11:00 AM EST. * Star magazine reported that actress/singer Mandy Moore has a crush on top-ranked welterweight “Rush” Georges St. Pierre (16-2).  Moore was in the UFC 83 crowd last month when St. Pierre claimed the UFC welterweight title from Serra (9-5). * You know it’s a slow MMA news cycle when eighth-ranked lightweight “The Muscle Shark” Sean Sherk (32-2-1) testing negative for steroids in a Nevada State Athletic Commission test is a headline.  Of course he tested negative!  The headline is if he had tested positive…again. * As I concluded after the first episode of this season's The Ultimate Fighter, Jeremy May (5-5) is a douche bag and nothing could've made me happier than seeing him get smashed by fellow-Cincinnatian Matt Brown (9-6) last night. ...

"KenFlo" Kenny Florian (9-3) finished fellow Bostonian lightweight "J-Lau" Joe Lauzon (16-4) in a vicious pounding from the full mount at 3:28 of round two in the main event of Ultimate Fight Night Live in Denver tonight. The former title challenger from Sityodtong, Florian, dominated the quirky computer tech. "KenFlo" opened a gash on the back of Lauzon's head with elbows from his full guard in the first round, but was warned by referee Herb Dean for striking behind the head. It was a call Dean missed while refereeing a lightweight fight between "Cleat" Rich Crunkilton (16-2) and Sergio Gomez (7-2) at last week's Las Vegas WEC event. After the stand-up, Lauzon clinched for a takedown and stepped over Florians body in half-guard for a knee bar that turned into a Achilles lock that Florian yanked free from. Lauzon snatched an ankle again and reclined into a heel hook that Florian was again able to wriggle free from to end the round. The frantic mat work and elevation exhausted "J-Lau" for the second round and Florian was able to score a takedown into full mount that Lauzon never bucked free from. Florian poured on a cocktail of elbows, straights, and hammerfists from the mount, but Lauzon defended.  Dean called an end to the fight after it was clear Lauzon was to spent to transition out of the bad spot. In a grueling war game between undefeated wrestlers, "The Bully" Gray Maynard (5-0) won a decisive unanimous decision over "The Answer" Frank Edgar (8-1). Maynard set the pace in the first round by stuffing Edgar's takedown attempts and deciding when he'd take the inevitable wrestling match to the mat. Edgar made it a scrap in the second round with crisp 1-2 combos that scored, but Maynard continued to stuff "The Answer's" shot and score his own powerful takedowns, though neither fighter did much more than molest the other on the mat. Edgar was gassed by round three and the bigger "Bully" slammed Edgar three times to convince all three judges he was dominant. Earlier in the night, "Rumble" Anthony Johnson (5-1) pummeled TUF finalist Tom Speer (9-3) over 51 seconds, knocking home the stoppage "W" with a clean straight right that slumped Speer against the cage. "I'm crunk right now, I'm real crunk," said Johnson after the fight. Johnson began the end with a left kick to Speer's head as the wrestler attempted to shoot, followed by a knee that backed Speer to the cage.   Speer was out on his feet when he absorbed the death blow. In a welterweight clash, "The Pitbull" Thiago Alves (14-3) crumpled "The Heat" Karo Parisyan (18-5) with a left knee strike to Parisyan's head in the second round as Parisyan sought the clinch. At 34-seconds of the round, referee Steve Mazzagatti dove across the downed fighter as he defended Alves's follow-up pounding. "The referee did a good job," Alves claimed after Parisyan disputed the stoppage.  "He was out!" Parisyan had won round one with deft, one-off striking versus the American Top Team trained kickboxer, who appeared wary of Parisyan's takedowns.  In his UFC debut last February, "The Barbarian" Tim Boetsch (7-2) surprised David Heath (7-3) with an onslaught ending in a first-round Boetsch TKO. Tonight, "The Hammer" Matt Hamill (4-1) weathered Boetsch's first round avalanche of strikes to reveal "The Barbarian" couldn't continue his barrage passed the first five minutes. Hamill began the fight with a powerful double-leg takedown, but couldn't capitalize before the referee stood the fighters. Boetsch proved effective with a repeating knee strike that split Hamill's lip like a ripe peach, splashing blood across Hamill's chest. In round two, Boetsch heaved heavily from his corner.  He shot for a single-leg takedown and held Hamill's leg as the champion wrestler hovered over him hammering punches.  Boetsch rolled into guard, but had nothing left as "The Hammer" finished him at 1:25 with undefended plugs to Boetsch's face. Fast-rising Nathan Diaz (9-2) submitted Kurt Pellegrino (11-4) in an air-tight leg triangle choke in the second round of their undercard match, flashing double middle fingers in the air as Pellegrino tapped helplessly. Diaz was cut on his right eyelid by Pellegrino punches in a first round controlled on the mat by Pellegrino. Pellegrino dumped Diaz at will and hammered punches and elbows inside Diaz's full- and half-guard.  Pellegrino passed to side control and pinned Diaz's arms, hammering Diaz's unprotected face to open the cut. But, durable Diaz escaped a lost first round. The second round continued as the first, with Diaz getting dumped to the mat by Pellegrino.  This time, Diaz ran his guard up Pellegrino's back and submitted the lightweight in a leg triangle at 3:06 of the round. "He shouldn't have pinned me down like that," Diaz scolded Pellegrino after the hard-won "W".  In the televised card's first fight, "The Assassin" Houston Alexander (8-3) got touched by "The Sandman" James Irvin (14-4) in the first exchange of their light heavyweight match. Alexander was beaten to the punch by a right Superman punch from Irvin as Alexander launched his own right cross. Alexander fell to the mat and Irvin followed with a right exclamation point to Alexander's noggin as referee Steve Mazzagatti dove to Alexander's rescue at :08 of the fight, tying a UFC record for quickest KO. "I was still conscious," Alexander repeated after the stoppage. Amidst boos, Irvin challenged, "We can do it again right now.  If you want to go out into the parking lot, we can do it right now."  In untelevised fights, "The Dentist" Josh Neer (24-6-1) won a unanimous decision over "Dinyero" Din Thomas (20-8), who was returning from a knee injury in his last outing.  "Maximus" Marcus Aurelio (16-5) submitted lightweight Ryan Roberts (8-3) 16 seconds into the fight. "Pitbull" Manvel Gamburyan (8-2) submitted Jeffrey Cox (9-5) in guillotine choke at 1:41 of the first round. "The Carpenter" Clay Guida (23-9) TKO'd lightweight Samy Schiavo (10-5) at 4:15 of round one. Finally, welterweight George Sotiropoulos (9-2) TKO'd Roman Mitichyan (5-2) 2:24 into round two. ...