MMA Junkie brings word of Rodriguez’s arrest.  According to their report, Rodriguez assaulted a taxi driver that was taking him to a bar. Rodriguez apparently threw the man to the ground and resisted arrest when the police arrived. Rodriguez would later be charged with both assault and resisting arrest.

You think that’s bad, fans and friends? It gets far worse in the case of Hermes Franca.

We head to the one and only Sherdog for an official report.  Apparently, Hermes Franca was recently arrested and charged with “seven counts of sexual abuse in the first degree and two counts of unlawful sexual penetration in the second degree.” The report also states that Franca’s bail has been set at a quarter of a million dollars.

The Examiner, the first outlet to break the story, shed some interesting light on what type of jail time Franca is looking at if he is convicted: “Both crimes fall under Oregon’s Measure 11 mandatory minimum sentencing for serious crimes, carrying a minimum term of 75 months each.”

Multiple sources have also been reporting that the Maximum Fighting Championship promotion, one of several promotions Franca fought in post-UFC and the promotion where he was in fact scheduled to fight for a championship in his next fight, has issued a press release stating that Franca has been fired and is no longer welcome at MFC.

There’s a single, simple word that perfectly summarizes my reaction to both these news stories.

“What?”

But it’s not as simple as that, not really. It’s more of a “Whhhhaaaaaaaaaaaat????!!!”

This is an incredibly bizarre pair of stories, and I really don’t know how to react to them. I was never a big fan of Ricco Rodriguez, but I never had any real problem with the man. He seemed to be winning a lot lately and he seemed to be lobbying pretty hard to get into the UFC again, but that’s definitely off the table now. Rodriguez is a massive Heavyweight, so I don’t doubt that it took several police officers to restrain him if he resisted arrest.

Letting your temper get the better of you is bad enough, especially for a professional athlete, but I’m utterly shocked at the charges against Hermes Franca. I think I’d even be outright sickened if Franca was convicted of them. Like Rodriguez, I was never a big fan but had no real problems with the man and was even entertained by him a time or two. But seven counts of sexual abuse? That’s “scum of the earth” material right there. You just don’t come back from that if you’re convicted, and in the court of public opinion, you’ll probably never come back from that period.

I’m not going to rush to any snap judgments. Call me a hopeless optimist or an idiot, but I believe in this country’s legal system and I think everyone will get their fair day in court. But if Ricco Rodriguez is found guilty, I think he needs to take a long, hard look at his life and hopefully learn to keep his anger inside the cage and not outside of it, hurting men that aren’t professional fighters and are well below his massive size. And if Hermes Franca is found guilty, I honestly hope he rots in jail.

And what about you, fans and friends? What’s your reaction to this pair of stories?

A touted wrestler with amazing athleticism, even at the ripe-old-age of 40, McKee was a well respected veteran that had started to turn the corner of a “boring”, “predictable”, lay-and-pray style of fighting, and rattled off back-to-back finishes before his inception into the worlds biggest mixed martial arts promotion.

So what did Antonio do in his organizational debut? Everything that the UFC was worried that he would do, stall the clock and try to squeeze out a decision based on indecisiveness and in-ring incompetence. For his efforts, after losing a split-decision to Jacob Volkmann at UFC 125, he was released by the organization following his one-fight stint, however has returned to his familiar stomping grounds of the Maximum Fighting Championships.

The MFC have recently announced that their champion, McKee who apparently didn’t vacate the title since signing with the Zuffa branded company earlier last year, will now defend his lightweight strap in his return fight with the organization when he takes on resurgent veteran Drew Fickett.

Fickett, a fellow UFC veteran who went 4-3 in the organization with a submission victory over Josh Koscheck during that stretch, has recently dropped down to the lightweight division after nearly his entire career has been spent in the 170-pound weight class. Since his drop, he has looked phenomenal in recent performances, specifically in his most recent participation in Shine Fights inaugural lightweight grand prix tournament where Fickett, who had previously lost 5 of his last 7 fights, came back strong submitting all three of his opponents in the tournament: PRIDE veteran Charles Bennett, Dennis Bermudez, and former WEC contender Carlo Prater.

A win for Drew would be especially detrimental in his continued career resurgence, where his life has taken a turn for the better after reportedly battling drug and alcohol problems for the past couple of years before sobering up and reinventing himself as a 155-pound fighter.

So, MMA peeps, what do you think of the new lightweight fight? Will McKee’s stifling wrestling style be too much for Drew to handle, or will the submission specialist be able to pull another rabbit out of his bag of tricks? Sound off in the comment section below.

It would seem that for a while he would be labeled as a “boring” fighter. Not a whole lot of promotions wanted to chance having McKee, a dominant wrestler among their ranks. Why? Because in one stretch, dating back to 2003, McKee went on a 12-fight win streak–all by way of decision.

What’s the sense of having a dominant fighter, if his “stellar” record couldn’t equate to “stellar” performances? While the 40-year-old has notable victories over Derrick Noble, Carlo Prater, Delson Heleno, and Mike Dolce, it wasn’t enough to garner him a ufc invite, until now.

Making a promise to himself heading into his bout on September 10th for the Maximum Fighting Championship promotion in Canada, to finish the fight or retire, it would look like his opponent Luciano Azevedo would be in a world of trouble.

In the early going, “Mandingo” looked like he was on his way to securing his 19th career victory by way of decision, however after a calculated ground and pound assault, he was able to open a nasty cut on the Brazilian, which later secured him the victory by doctor stoppage.

Now on the heels of two back-to-back finishes, the TKO victory of Luciano and submission victory (kimura) Rodrigo Ruiz last March, McKee and the UFC felt it was time to bring him in the fold.

Now that the powerhouse wrestler is among the worlds best in the ultra-competitive lightweight division in the UFC, he is a force to be reckoned with. Don’t let his age fool you. At 40-years-young, and a career dating back to as early as 1999, his age is his best quality.

Holding a 25-3-2 record heading into the octagon, he may be primed to make a run while he has the chance. But, will the glitz and glam of the UFC get to him, and make him revert to the style that has kept him away from the worlds organization for so long? Only time will tell.

MMAJunkie was able to confirm with sources close to the UFC that “Mandingo” has signed a four-fight deal with the promotion.

So, MMA peeps, those who are familiar with the current (or rather former) MFC lightweight champion, what do you think of his most recent success? Can he be a contender in the UFC? How do you think he will fare in one of the promotions most stacked divisions? Let your opinions be heard in the comments section below.

Wednesday, Gouveia told Fighters.com, “I’m excited!  I have friends that fight for MFC and they all tell me good things.”

The event will broadcast live on HDNet and feature a soon to be announced major title fight.

The matchup marks Gouveia’s return to 205 pounds after a disastrous stint fighting at middleweight.  The Brazilian lost consecutive stoppages to Fighters.com’s fourth-ranked middleweight “Great” Nate Marquardt (29-8-2) and “Talent” Alan Belcher (15-6) at 185 pounds, missed weight by three pounds before a victory over fellow MFC fighter “The Athlete” Jason MacDonald (20-13), and won his middleweight debut over Ryan Jensen (14-6).

Gouveia moved to middleweight because he thought he’d be one of the bigger guys in that division, but never wore 185 pounds confidently.  He looked gaunt at weigh-ins and fought with diminished ferociousness.

“It was too much sacrifice and too hard, man,” said Gouveia about his time at middleweight.  “I’m a professional.  I do this for a living and I love it, but I don’t like to miss weight, you know?  And, I would pass out in the sauna and guys would drag me out and say, ‘You have to stop this.’ It was just too much sacrifice and too hard on my body.”

At light heavyweight, however, Gouveia bulldozed through four consecutive stoppage victories over “Soldier” Wes Combs (14-4), Kimbo Slice-killer “Silverback” Seth Petruzelli (11-4), “Fury” Carmelo Marrero (10-3), and “Punisher” Jason Lambert (23-11).

“I hope the fans will see that I’m a better, more exciting fighter at 205 pounds,” said Gouveia.

But, Gouveia will have a big challenge in “Big Deal” Jimmo, who is on an eight-fight winning streak dating back to April 2007.  Jimmo returned to MFC in May 2009 and has racked up three decision victories over Mychal Clark (4-6) and veteran fighters “Beastman” Marvin Eastman (16-12-1) and “Hardcore Kid” Emmanuel Newton (11-6-1).

Jimmo is peaking!  Like the Fighters.com and UFC Light Heavyweight Champion “Dragon” Lyoto Machida (16-0), Jimmo has transitioned a traditional karate background into success in MMA:

“My karate training has taught me not so much the fighting techniques but great discipline, focus and work ethic,” Jimmo told Fighters.com during his stint on The Ultimate Fighter 8 in 2008.  “It’s taught me to understand a system of fighting and understand how to learn it in a more efficient manner. The athleticism and physicality are great attributes. I found my kicks are a step above most MMA practitioners as well as my footwork. There are two sides to most karate systems, traditional and sport and both have attributes that warrant praise. My time in karate has been invaluable in my life and I wouldn’t be the person I am today without it.”

Gouveia told Fighters.com about his opponent, “I don’t know much about him.  I know he’s a big, muscle guy and he’s a good guy.  His record shows that.  But, I train with some big guys: Luiz Cane, Thiago Silva, ‘Big Foot’ Antonio Silva.  These are strong guys.”  Gouveia added, “I haven’t fought a karate guy since Seth Petruzelli.  He liked to show a karate stance too.”

Of course, Gouveia submitted Petruzelli in a guillotine choke, but Jimmo has never been submitted.  There’ll be a lot on the line when these two fighters matchup at MFC 25: Vindication at the Winspear Centre/Enmax Hall in Edmonton April 9.

Edwards TKO’d Kyle Jensen (36-11-2) at Raging Wolf V October 10 and tapped James Warfield (1-1) in a triangle choke at Shine 2 September 4, both intense performances for the veteran who has recommitted himself at American Top Team to returning to the top of the lightweight division.

“You know, I think it’s all mental.  You hear coming up that so much of this sport is mental and you don’t really understand it until you’ve been around for awhile,” Edwards explained Friday.  “Now, I’ve been around for awhile and I’ve seen a lot of guys not perform the way they’re capable of.  But, I know where I need to be and I’m just ready to fight.”

But, MFC CEO Mark Pavlich said Friday, “It’s a one-off.”  He was referring to Edwards’s new one-fight contract with MFC.  “Let’s see where Yves is at.”

That’s a challenge to Edwards to show Canadian MMA fans and the world that he’s still one of the world’s most dynamic, intimidating fighters at 155-pounds.

“I’m down to be around [in the MFC],” Edwards said.  “Guys I’m friends with – Pete Spratt, Luigi Fioravanti – they’ve told me they’ve been treated real well by MFC.  I’ve seen the shows and it’s a great production.  This is a one-fight contract, but I want to show what I can do and sign a multi-fight deal.”

Before Edwards’s two wins over Jensen and Warfield, Edwards had dropped two to “Bang” Duane Ludwig (19-10) and former EliteXC 165-pound champ KJ Noons (7-2), and before that had won three consecutive.  Streaks of wins and losses have defined Edwards’s career since he went 7-0 from 2003 through 2005.

That streak included a highlight reel flying head kick knockout of former Strikeforce champ  “Punk” Josh Thomson (15-3-1) and two split decision victories over fellow MFC lightweight and former UFC title challenger Hermes Franca (19-8).

In Edmonton February 26, Edwards will fight Sweden’s Per Eklund (14-4-1), also debuting in MFC.

“He’s good off his back, he’s a good kickboxer,” Edwards said of his opponent.  “He’s not a jack-of-all-trades, master of none.  He’s good at everything.”  But, Edwards added, “My advantage is being able to make adjustments in fights to take advantage of weaknesses.”

Both lightweights have the full MMA skill set making for an unpredictable, exciting matchup.  They share just one common opponent.  Edwards lost a unanimous decision to “Crusher” Tatsuya Kawajiri (25-5-2) in 2003 while Eklund was TKO’d by Kawajiri in 2006.  Edwards will be the favorite going into the fight, but Eklund is eminently capable of an upset if Edwards takes him lightly.

While gunning to extend his winning streak to three with a win over Eklund, Edwards said he has no interest in making it three wins over Hermes Franca during his MFC career.

“Yeah, they were close fights, good fights, but I’ve beat [Franca] twice.  There’s really no reason for me to fight him again unless it’s for a title,” said Edwards.

And, Edwards expects to ride his current win streak right into an MFC lightweight title, through Eklund in February, Franca in the future if necessary, and any fighter MFC pits him against.

MMA Gospel Radio is rapidly emerging as the leader in MMA podcasts and the final word in all things MMA. From the UFC to shows near your hometown, MMA Gospel brings you up-to-the-minute news, rumors, live fighter interviews, fight results, and breakdowns of upcoming fights.

MMA Gospel Radio is hosted by Reverend Turk Vangel with co-hosts Drew Hall and Gary Friedman. Columnist Josh Turner also contributes editorials and opinions.

MMA Gospel Radio founder Reverend Turk Vangel started many years ago as a wrestler in junior high. This led him to the world of freestyle wrestling, which he loved due to the slams and the generally more aggressive style it presented.  He was lucky enough to compete in the AAU Junior Olympics, the Pan Am Games, and the freestyle nationals.  In 1993 he was introduced to the UFC with a video tape.  He watched everything he could get his hands on and became a fan of Royce Gracie (14-3-3) and “El Guapo” Bas Rutten (28-4-1) over the years.

Eventually, the Reverend began to train in mixed martial arts to get a better understanding of the sport. He began training at Beavercreek Martial Arts, a Jorge Gurgel (13-5) affiliate school under professional fighter Michael Patt (12-4). There Turk studied Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Muay Thai.  His love for the ground game grew from there.

Reverend Turk would scour the Internet looking for MMA news and listen to podcasts until he decided that he needed to bring a show to the fans, something that was pure MMA and not comedy with some MMA thrown in to the show.  He started by doing small segments on Bengalsworld News Radio. This led to the birth of MMA Gospel Radio and the MMA Gospel Blog.  MMA Gospel Radio is now the top ranked MMA podcast online as voted on by the fans and the Reverend is looking to keep moving forward and giving the fans what they want.

Reverend Turk is married to a gorgeous wife, Mackenzie, and has a beautiful daughter named Lotus. When not covering mixed martial arts and interviewing fighters, he is a machinist and a welder that has worked for custom motorcycle companies such as Led Sled Customs and 138 Cycle Fabrication.  Now he spends his time working for the Air Force building prototypes for the Air Force Institute of Technology.  His loves, other than MMA, are his family, custom built bikes, and rat rods.

Drew has been an MMA fan since 2001 and has been training for a year-and-a-half in the arts of Judo, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and Muay Thai underneath Nathan Fitch (1-1) at Son of Siam.  He is going back to school for his broadcasting degree and has written articles on popular MMA websites. His favorite MMA fighter is “Mayhem” Jason Miller (22-5).

Gary Friedman began his combat sports writing career in college at State University of New York at Fredonia where he wrote a boxing column called “In the Ring with Gary Friedman.”   Gary is a lifelong boxing fan who has become a huge MMA fan.

After attending UFC 1 in 1993, columnist Josh Turner knew he was hooked on the sport and began following MMA fighters and promotions.  Turner began training in Muay Thai in February 1997. In 2000, Turner began training in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Turner has trained at gyms including Hybrid Academy and Linxx Academy.

Although MMA is his great passion, Josh’s proudest accomplishment is his family.  As a proud father, Josh enjoys spending time with his daughter and attending her sporting events.  Josh is also a successful business owner and does consulting work as a business development coordinator.

Welcome Reverend Turk Vangel, Drew Hall, Gary Friedman, and Josh Turner to Fighters.com:

Reverend Turk: turk@fighters.com
Drew: drew@fighters.com
Gary: gary@fighters.com
Josh: josh@fighters.com

And tune-in here at Fighters.com on Saturday, October 31 at 5:00 PM ET/2:00 PM PT for MMA Gospel’s debut as the official voice of Fighters.com.  MMA Gospel encourages listeners to call in to the show or join us in the live chat room at www.blogtalkradio.com/mmagospel.

American Kickboxing Academy’s Prangley is a four-time UFC veteran, going a respectable 2-2 from 2004-2006, and went 2-1 in a ’07-’08 Strikeforce stint.  He won the MFC title with a five-round unanimous decision over “Hard-Core Kid” Emanuel Newton (11-5-1) at MFC 21 outside of Edmonton May 15.

Last month Prangley took a fight versus Dennis Reed (44-45-1) at Arena Rumble in Spokane and knocked Reed out in 20 seconds.  MFC claims that fight was a violation of their contract with Prangley and that Prangley has signed to fight outside of the MFC again, a second contract breach according to MFC.

“The MFC won’t sit on the sidelines while its fighters, especially our champions, violate our contracts and fight in smaller shows,” said MFC President Mark Pavelich.  “There is an exclusivity clause in the contracts for a reason.  It is unacceptable that Trevor Prangley and his management have gone about business in such an unscrupulous manner. I will not allow my organization and my title belts to be disrespected this way. Trevor was treated with the utmost respect when he came to fight in the MFC, and in turn for him and his management to treat the MFC this way simply will not be tolerated.”

Fighters.com has contacted Prangley’s management for their side, but have not yet received a response.

A fighter in Prangley’s position must fight to pay their trainers and bills.  So, if MFC hasn’t scheduled Prangley to fight since May, Prangley’s alleged breach of contract could be out of necessity rather “unscrupulous”.

For Prangley, perhaps the cut from MFC will result in a return to the UFC.  The UFC is planning a debut in Prangley’s native Australia at UFC 110 February 20, 2010.  The UFC has already signed a top Down Under prospect, light heavyweight Kiwi James Te Huna (11-4), and conventionally enters a new market by signing native fighters.  Prangley has only one loss since leaving the UFC, a KO to Sengoku middleweight champion Jorge Santiago (21-7) at Strikeforce in San Jose in 2007, and demonstrated in his four-fight UFC run that he can compete at that level.

Lister will debut versus former UFC title challenger Thales Leites (14-3) at MFC 23: Unstoppable on Friday at River Cree Resort and Casino outside of Edmonton December 4.

“This is an outstanding matchup and I am particularly pleased that both Dean and Thales agreed to fight each other so quickly – no discussion, no delays.  Just signed, sealed and delivered,” said MFC President Mark Pavelich.

Lister lost a unanimous decision to “Thunder” Yushin Okami (23-4) at UFC 92 in Las Vegas December 27, 2008.  He went 4-2 in the UFC from 2006-2008.

Leites lost a disappointing split decision to “Legionarius” Alessio Sakara (14 -7) at UFC 101 in Philadelphia August 8, just one fight removed from losing a unanimous decision to Fighters.com and UFC Middleweight Champion “Spider” Anderson Silva (25-4) at UFC 97 in Montreal April 18.

Lister’s record includes a first-round submission of Leites’s last opponent, Sakara, at UFC 60 in Los Angeles in May 2006.

Maximum Fighting Championship CEO Mark Pavelich, who wouldn’t confirm the Eastman v MacDonald fight Thursday, did confirm the Lutter v MacDonald fight Saturday.

Lutter hasn’t fought since getting TKO’d by “Ace” Rich Franklin (26-4) at UFC 83 in Montréal in April 2008 and subsequently getting axed by the UFC. He underwent knee surgery on his right knee in October 2008.

MacDonald was cut from the UFC last May after getting TKO’d in the first round by “Rock” Nathan Quarry (11-3) at UFC 97 in Montréal.

Eastman has not replied to Fighters.com’s request for information about his claim he was scheduled to fight MacDonald.

Maximum Fighting Championship CEO Mark Pavelich replied to Fighters.com’s request for confirmation, “This is not confirmed.” However, MacDonald mentioned in a 4 July blog post at Sportsnet Ontario that Pavelich had offered the fight to both fighters, but Eastman had declined to drop from 205 pounds to 185 pounds to fight MacDonald at middleweight.

“[Eastman] apparently said he can’t come down to that weight any more,” MacDonald wrote. “But he fought Denis Kang at 185 two fights ago, so I don’t know that I believe that.

“He wants to fight at a catchweight of 195. But I’d say that’s just to give him an advantage of not having to cut as much. I probably weigh more than him right now.”

Eastman didn’t indicate the weight at which he’ll figh MacDonald in October.

MacDonald was cut from the UFC last May after getting TKO’d in the first round by “Rock” Nathan Quarry (11-3) at UFC 97 in Montréal. He went 5-5 over two-and-a-half years with the UFC.

Eastman TKO’d Aron Lofton (6-2) in the second round at MFC 21 in Edmonton last May and is scheduled to welcome “Brazilian Tiger” Ricardo Arona (13-5) back to active competition at Bitetti Combat IV in Rio de Janeiro 12 September. Eastman has compiled a 1-4 record in sporadic Octagon action.

MacDonald lost a unanimous decision to Eastman at World Extreme Fighting 14 in Las Vegas in 2005.

The fight stayed standing in round one.  Newton came out throwing a hard left kick followed by a right knee, while Hollett waited patiently for a opening for a low left kick.  Newton stayed busy the entire round, attempting two takedowns and regularly tagging Hollett with jabs, low kicks and an overhand right, but Hollett landed the more powerful strikes.

“His punches are hard!” Newton said between rounds.

Hollett continued walking around in the second round, Newton continued to keep busy throwing various strikes and combinations.  They traded high right kicks.  Newton shot and got the takedown and spent the rest of the round on top of Hollett, who occasionally attempted an armbar.

Round three was all standup with nothing much happening, to the disgust of the booing fans.  But in round four Hollett slipped after a right kick, and Newton pounced.  Hollett kept Newton from doing any real damage by keeping his feet on Newton’s hips, until the referee stood them up.  Another takedown attempt by Newton was stuffed by Hollett’s sprawl, but Newton picked him up and slammed him hard to the mat.  Hollett attempted a quick armbar, but Newton slipped out easily.  The referee again stood them up.

Even after being chastised by his corner to knock Newton out, to do something, Hollett still felt no sense of urgency, and continued as before, waiting for opportunities.  Newton, between throwing combinations of his own, countered Hollett’s strikes and did not allow him to follow up with more.  The fight ended uneventfully.

The judges scored the bout 50-45, 50-45, 49-46, all in favour of Newton, the new MFC Light Heavyweight Champion.

The two welterweights began round one cautiously, Daley landing couple of low kicks before Alessio attempted a takedown, unsuccessfully.  Daley continued to land hard kicks to Alessio’s legs.  Alessio charged in with a quick straight right-left hook combination and shot for the double legs again.  Daley made Alessio work hard for the eventual takedown, and did not stay long on the mat.  Daley stood back up and caught Alessio with more kicks.  In the final seconds of the round Daley shot and slammed Alessio to the mat.

The second round started the same way, with Daley kicking Alessio’s legs.  Alessio went for the single leg but Daley stayed on his feet.  Daley resisted a slam and a throw, again making Alessio work hard, and took the fight back to standup.  Visibly fatigued, Alessio avoided a left uppercut but ate a couple of big left hooks before Daley caught him with a left kick that dropped him.  With Alessio covering his head, Daley threw three more hard left punches before the referee stopped the fight.

Kyle Sandford (6-1) won a split decision over Joey Gorczynski (12-4).

Ryan Machan (7-1) submitted Mike Sorenson (3-4) with a rear naked choke in round one.

Josh Russell (2-0) picked up a submission win over Colby Snyder (7-2) with a first-round rear naked choke.

Aron Lofton (4-1) submitted Jason Kuchera (3-3) via guillotine choke in the first round.

Derrick Noble submitted Ariel Sexton via guillotine choke in the second round of an exciting stand-up battle between the lightweights.

Noble opened the round kicking high, and Sexton answered with a solid right kick.  A hard kick issued from Noble, then a stiff jab, and another right kick to the leg.  Sexton tried for a takedown but Noble kept it standing.  Sexton knocked Noble down with a straight right, but Noble quickly regained his footing.  Noble landed a right hand, then a left hook.  Sexton went at Noble with a flying knee and ate a Noble punch.  Noble rocked Sexton with another big right, then sent a right knee into his face.

Sexton flew at Noble to start the second round, but Noble quickly backpedalled and did not allow the strikes to land.  The fighters traded punches, then Noble landed a hard knee, which Sexton followed with a solid right punch.  Hard strikes from both fighters echoed through the arena.  After an overhand right and a flying knee from Sexton, he shot for the takedown.  Noble immediately wrapped his legs around Sexton’s body and his arm around Sexton’s head in a tight guillotine, forcing Sexton to tap at 1:30 of round two.

Joey Gorczynski lost a surprising split decision to Kyle Sandford.

Although Gorczynski scored a takedown, it was Sandford who controlled the first round.  Sandford got Gorczynski’s back and attempted a rear naked choke but Gorczynski spun out of it.  The fight was moved to the centre of the ring when two punches landed on the back of Gorczynski’s head as he turtled.

In round two, Gorczynski again got the takedown, and appeared to be the aggressor, landing some elbows.  Sandford was able to keep the much shorter Gorczynski from landing many strikes from the top.  Gorczyski attempted his second flying superman punch before the end of the round.

Gorczynski seemed to control more as the fight progressed, landing two big right hands in Sandford’s face and getting four takedowns in the third round.  Gorczynski landed two more huge right overhands.  Neither fighter was able to finish the fight, but Sandford ended the round on top, dropping fists at Gorczynski’s head as he again turtled.

Halifax’s Sandford received scores of 29-28, 29-28, 28-29, to a chorus of boos from his fellow Canadians.

Ryan Machan submitted Mike Sorenson in the first round with a rear naked choke.

After a quick exchange in which Machan landed an uppercut, Machan got Sorenson’s back and climbed up into a choke.  Sorenson flipped onto his back on top of Machan.  Machan still had his back and an arm under his chin and worked the entire first round for the rear naked choke.  He finally got the tapout seconds after the clapper sounded, at 4:54.

Josh Russell, the trainer of “The Athlete” Jason MacDonald (19-10), submitted Colby Snyder with a rear naked choke in round one.

Russell shot soon after the bell rang and scored the single leg takedown.  In side control, Russell immediately took what was offered when Snyder turned his back.  Slowly tightening his body lock on Snyder and working in the choke, he forced Snyder to tap 1:44 into the fight.

Aron Lofton submitted Jason Kuchera with a guillotine choke in the first round to go 2-0 against the Canadian light heavyweight.

At the bell, they immediately clinched.  Lofton got the trip takedown and locked in a standing guillotine.  Lofton tapped out Kuchera at 0:44 of round one without breaking a sweat.

Daley will forfeit 25 percent of his purse.

All other fighters made weight.

A second-round armbar loss to EliteXC Champion Jake Shields (21-4-1) in October ended Daley’s six-fight win streak.

Xtreme Couture fighter Alessio TKO’d “Gladiator” Gideon Ray (15-11-1) at 0:45 of round one in October.

Ford said, “I have to stay off it for a bit so there was no way I could have a full training camp which means I couldn’t be fully prepared for the fight.”

The rematch is rescheduled for MFC 20: Destined for Greatness 20 February, in Edmonton.

Ford is coming off a unanimous decision victory over “Thrill” Nabil Khatib (9-4) at Raw Combat in October.

Ford was submitted via armbar in his fight with Healy for the vacant welterweight title in July.

Alessio’s participation was officially announced last week, and Daley confirmed the fight to Five Ounces of Pain.

Alessio TKO’d “Gladiator” Gideon Ray (15-11-1) at 0:45 of round one in October.

Daley most recently fought in October at EliteXC and was submitted by Jake Shields (21-4-1) in round two.

Heath never had a chance versus an aggressive Newton who held on to back control for most of the first round.

In the second, Newton shrugged off a Heath footlock, scrambled into side control, then took Heath’s back to secure the submission.

Fighters.com’s original Fighter of the Month “Real Deal” Ryan Ford (7-1) rebounded from his first professional loss to slap a guillotine choke on Miletich welterweight LaVerne Clark (25-17-1) at 2:30 of round two.

Both Newton and Ford inched closer to title shots in Maximum Fighting Championships, Newton earning the right to challenge 205 titlist “Hulk” Roger Hollett (8-1) in Calgary 5 December and Ford will rematch “Bam Bam” Pat Healy (19-13) on the same card for the welterweight belt and to avenge his only professional loss.

Light heavyweight Jay Whitford (3-0) tapped Aron lofton (3-1) in a side choke at 3:11 of round two.

Lightweight Simon Marini (6-1) won a UD over Gerald Lovato (6-5).

Welterweight Ryan Machan (6-2) tapped fellow Canadian Gavin Neil (4-1) in a rear naked choke at 2:47 of round one.

Middleweight Chis Camozzi (7-2) won a UD over Elliot Duff (2-1).

Lightweight Evan Sanguin (2-2) knocked out Troy Sorensen (3-1) at 2:04 of round three.

Welterweight Josh Russell (1-0) won a UD over Mike Gates (11-6-1).

Welterweight Jesse Clarke (1-1) TKO’d Jason Zorthian (3-3) at 2:44 of round one.

Sheldon Westcott (1-1) tapped Jeff Kilisolsky (0-1) at 3:33 of the first round.

MFC President Mark Pavelich said, “There is such an impressive field of 145ers out there that we felt it was very important to add this weight class and this group of exciting fighters.”

Pavelich added, “We’re going to… sign a stable of 16-20 fighters at 145 pounds and they will all be upper echelon guys. We will have the deepest roster of featherweights and make this a high-profile division. The top guys will fight each other which will create a proper champion and a great cast of contenders.”

The MFC’s first meaningful featherweight bout could happen at MFC 19 on 28 November.

The MFC also announced that its heavyweight championship will be retired, effective immediately.

The decision was prompted not only by the addition of the featherweights, but also because of the lack of depth in the heavyweight pool, and because the current champion, Scott Junk (6-2), has been unable to fight due to knee surgery.

Heavyweight bouts will still be scheduled periodically.

The MFC also announced that “The Real Deal” Ryan Ford (6-1) will face LaVerne Clark (25-16-1) in the featured welterweight bout.

Heath, who lost his last three UFC fights, TKO’d Shepard Owens (1-1) in 1:19 at the Freestyle Cage Fighting in June.

Newton won his seventh-straight fight this month when he submitted B.J. Lacy (10-9-1) by rear naked choke at Pure Combat.

Ford suffered his first career defeat in July when “Bam Bam” Pat Healy (19-13) submitted him with an armbar in round three for the vacant welterweight title.

Clark (25-16-1) TKO’d Matt Kelly (0-1) in round one at Courage Fighting Championships in June.

Ford looked dominant for most of the fight but Healy defended well; Healy attempted submissions, but Ford escaped using brute strength. In the end, Ford left himself vulnerable one too many times as Healy secured the armbar and forced Ford to tap at 3:02 of round three.

One punch was all it took for light heavyweight Aron Lofton (3-0) to defeat Dwayne Lewis (3-5). After faking a jab, Lofton threw an overhand right to knock out his opponent at 0:17 of round one.

Lightweight Benson Henderson (5-1) dominated the first round with strikes, Ricardo Tirloni (3-1) controlled the second, but it was Henderson who jumped on Tirloni, locked in a guillotine, and ended the fight at 3:49 of the second round.

Levi Avera (10-4), a welterweight who moved up for this fight with middleweight Ron Faircloth (31-17), started strong in both rounds. But Faircloth turned Avera’s takedowns to his own advantage and dominated from the top for almost the entire match. He finally sank a rear naked choke and after desperately fighting it, Avera tapped at 2:57 of round two.

Lightweight Jason Maxwell (15-9) controlled Donald Sanchez (13-8) from the beginning. By round two Maxwell had worn himself out and Sanchez, who managed to conserve his energy, locked in a triangle choke to tap out Maxwell at 2:03.

Preliminary fights:

Lightweight Ryan Machan (5-2) TKO’d Ryan Heck (5-2) at 4:19 of round one.

Light heavyweight Jay Whitford (2-0) submitted Jason Kuchera (3-2) via armbar at 4:31 of round two.

Lightweight Gavin Neil (4-0) TKO’d Evan Sanguin (1-2) at 4:11 of the first round.

Welterweight Mike Sorensen (4-1) TKO’d Lemont Davis (1-1) at 2:52 of round one.

Middleweight Elliot Duff (2-1) TKO’d “The Brick” Brandon Curts (3-2) at 4:30 of round one.

Welterweight Jason Zorthian (3-2) won a unanimous decision over Jesse Clarke (0-1).

Ford’s previously-scheduled opponent, Joe Jordan (44-14-2), was removed from the card due to a back injury.

Healy most recently fought in the IFL.  He lost his last fight to Jake Ellenberger (17-4) by unanimous decision in February.

Healy will be cornered by “Short Fuse” Ed Herman (17-7), and Ford will be cornered by “The Athlete” Jason MacDonald (20-9), who submitted Herman in his UFC debut.

Pavelich said, “This is going to be a phenomenal title fight.  It’s the combination of Ford’s athleticism and deep-seeded aggression against Jordan’s crafty skills and instincts.”

Ford, Fighters.com’s original Fighter of the Month, won six straight in just over a year, most recently submitting CJ Fernandes (14-7-3) with a first-round rear naked choke in May.

Jordan has won his last four fights, including a unanimous decision over Ryan Williams (5-3) at Adrenaline MMA’s debut event last month.

Jordan replaces Drew Fickett (34-5), who was pulled from the card for breaching his contract.

“Drew Fickettwill never fight in the MFC,” Pavelich said.

Fickett was contracted to fight Ford in Edmonton 25 July, but agreed on a day’s notice to fill-in for “Diesel” Joe Riggs (27-10) Friday in San Jose after Riggs was denied a license by the California State Athletic Commission.

Pavelich said, “We were shocked to learn Drew agreed on one day’s notice to fight as a middleweight in another organization’s event this past Friday.  When I contacted this other organization, its owner immediately cancelled Drew’s fight when informed that he was under contract to fight on the MFC show and as part of Mr. Fickett’s contract he was not allowed to take another fight up to five weeks before the MFC show.”

Fickett told MMA Rated that, “Some jerk-off wanna-be like promoter, some tough guy, like calls us and he’s like pullin’ the frickin’ contract card on me.  I’m like, ‘Dude, I don’t care.  I just want to fight.’  This guy’s like, ‘Oh, you M-F this, you M-F that, frickin’ son-of-a-bitch.  I’m going to fly down there and I’m going to kill you.’”

Fickett published online a profanity-laced voicemail that Pavelich – said jerk-off wanna-be like promoter – left for Fickett’s manager.

“I admit to being very upset, angry and frustrated not only by Drew’s action but also by not being able to reach his manager and the tone of that voicemail reflected my feelings,” Pavelich explained.  “For Drew to post the private voice mail – which was not left on his phone – was just ridiculous and petty.”

The soap opera mirrors an incident earlier this month when Fickett postponed an EliteXC title fight versus Fighters.com’s eighth-ranked welterweight Jake Shields(20-4-1) because of a knee injury, only to fight “Steuss Killer” Jeff Horlacher (5-12) in Arizona 7 June while on the DL.

Fickett accused Shields of further delaying the fight until August, forcing Fickett to take “a very low risk fight” for a $2,500 pay day.

“Before I fought, I even e-mailed [Shields] to let him know, ‘Hey, man, I’ve got to take this low risk fight to make some money,’” Fickett explained.  “So, now all the sudden [Shields is] better, and he’s not injured until August, and he’s fighting Nick Thompson for his little fake-ass little belt.”

Fickett was replaced by EliteXC with ninth-ranked “Goat” Nick Thompson (36-9-1).

“We now completely understand why that despite his excellent record so many organizations will not work with Drew and we have a pretty clear indication why he has been banned by the UFC,” Pavelich pointed out.

Fickett is a fighter, in personality and profession, but his personality has got in the way of his profession twice recently, amounting to a single $2,500 purse and a reputation that will turn promoters away.

For Ford, Fighters.com’s original Fighter of the Month, Pavelich said, “I will also move immediately into replacing Drew Fickett with a top-level fighter to contend for the MFC welterweight title.”

MFC 17 features a title fight between Fighters.com’s original Fighter of the Month “The Real Deal” Ryan Ford (6-0) and UFC veteran Drew Fickett (34-5). The welterweight title is currently vacant.

Edmonton-native Ford will look to extend his win streak. He submitted his last opponent CJ Fernandes (14-7-3) with a rear naked choke in 2:32 at MFC 16.

Fickett is also riding a win streak. He has five consecutive victories, four of them by submission.

Brad Zazulak (3-0) is also on the card, to fight Ron Faircloth (28-14). Zazulak in his last fight TKO’d veteran “Mr. International” Shonie Carter (41-17-7).

Ford must’ve had a hot date after the show because he shot right through UFC 27 fighter CJ Fernandes (14-7-3), sinking a rear naked choke submission after just 2:32 at Maximum Fighting Championships.

Ford has set his sights on the MFC welterweight title, which is currently vacant.