The news was confirmed on the UFC’s official Twitter account. In addition to Belfort vs. Akiyama being the new co-main event, a fight between Brian Ebersole and Dennis Hallman has been promoted to the main card.

“Little Nog” was coming into his fight against Franklin on the heels of a tough two-fight losing-streak. It’s been almost two years since the smaller Nogueira brother entered the UFC and knocked out Luiz Cane, leading many to wonder if maybe “Little Nog” could be a championship contender. A close win over Jason Brilz and losses to both Ryan Bader and Phil Davis would follow.

Rich Franklin was also coming off some tough losses, having gone 1-2 in his three most-recent fights. A “Knockout of the Night” performance against an aging Chuck Liddell currently lies sandwiched between a 2009 TKO loss to Vitor Belfort and a recent Unanimous Decision loss to Forrest Griffin.

Vitor Belfort is returning to the UFC after losing to Anderson Silva in one of the most spectacular KO’s of the year. Silva would employ a front face kick he says was taught to him by Steven Seagal in order to give Belfort the first stone-cold KTFO loss of his career. Before the long-awaited and often-delayed encounter with Silva, Belfort was on a five-fight win-streak.

Yoshihiro Akiyama is currently 1-2 in the UFC with all three fights earning “Fight of the Night” accolades. Akiyama debuted at UFC 100 and won a very close decision against Alan Belcher, then sat on the sidelines for roughly a year in hopes of challenging Wanderlei Silva. Akiyama would eventually fight Chris Leben instead, and lose via a great third-round Triangle with only twenty seconds left in the fight. Akiyama most-recently lost a tough decision to Michael Bisping back in October of last year.

I really, really hate to see a main-attraction fight get pulled this close to UFC 133’s scheduled date. I think I would’ve liked Nogueira/Franklin a whole lot. I thought both men would’ve come out swinging, with neither backing down an inch until someone got knocked out. And you’ve just got to be a fan of fights like that.

Even though Belfort/Akiyama isn’t as big of a fight, I still think it’s o.k. as far as co-main events go. While they’re both coming off of losses, they’re also both entertaining performers and both are quite popular. I think that this is a good “clash of styles” fight, and with Akiyama wanting to avoid the dreaded three-fight losing-streak, we should see a super-competitive fight.

It’s always tough whenever a big fight gets pulled, and I hope this is the last we hear of major fights getting pulled for at least the next few months. As amazing as UFC 136 and UFC 137 are shaping up to be, I’d hate to see them suffer the same fate of UFC 133. I think UFC 133 will still be a good event, but in comparison to what it could have been… it’s just really unfortunate that things went down this way.

We head to MMA Weekly for the scoop. According to their sources, the UFC is pursuing a match-up that would pit former UFC Middleweight Champion Rich Franklin against PRIDE standout Antonio Rogerio Nogueira.

Since 2008, former champion Rich Franklin has embarked on an interesting but only moderately-fruitful run at Light Heavyweight. Franklin has won one and then lost one, in that pattern, for nearly three years. Currently, Franklin is 2-3 in his last five fights, with big wins over Chuck Liddell and Wanderlei Silva sandwiched between deflating losses to Dan Henderson by Split Decision, Vitor Belfort by TKO, and most recently a very disappointing loss to Forrest Griffin in a fight that failed to realize almost all of its potential for greatness.

The man known as “Little Nog” has found it equally as difficult to secure his footing in the UFC’s super-competitive Light Heavyweight division. His UFC debut, a fantastic KO win over Luiz Cane, was immediately followed by a controversial win over Jason Brilz. After that, Nogueira would embark on his current two-fight losing-streak, losing big in matches against dominant wrestlers Ryan Bader and Phil Davis, both of whom were able to take down Nogueira repeatedly in their bouts while avoiding any of Nogueira’s formidable submissions.

Currently, the following six fights have all been tied to the UFC 133 card: Rich Franklin vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Vitor Belfort vs. Yoshihiro Akiyama, Jorge Rivera vs. Alessio Sakara, Michael McDonald vs. Nick Pace, Rafael Natal vs. Riki Fukuda, and Dennis Hallman vs. Brian Ebersole.

I’m a fan of this card so far, and I definitely like the sound of “Little Nog” vs. Rich Franklin. I think both men have had some pretty grinding fights lately, and I think they’ve not performed at their best for several reasons. For Rich Franklin, I simply think he’s been facing a very, very high quality of opponent… former champions, knockout artists, etc. Let’s not forget that he also had a few fights at catchweight.

For Rogerio Nogueira, I think his main problem has been that he’s facing a lot of young guns, with many of them being dominant wrestlers. And while Nogueira does have the strength and speed to hang with these guys, he’s still human, and the Achilles Heel of any submission specialist, even someone as great as a Nogueira brother, will always be the dominant wrestler that can keep his opponent down while defending against submissions and/or sweeps.

So, in a way, I hope these two bring out the best in each other in the way the Rich Franklin vs. Forrest Griffin fight should have brought out the best in both those fighters. Looking forward, I also think that Akiyama vs. Belfort will be great, and I’m very interested to see what Brian Ebersole brings to the table coming off his huge win over Chris Lytle. And what about you, fans and friends? Any thoughts on this match-up or any of the other rumored match-ups for UFC 133?

Forrest Griffin deftly defeated former champ Rich Franklin in a pivotal light heavyweight match-up, moving him closer to the title, however Jon Jones beat him to it when he submitted then-undefeated prospect Ryan Bader with a second-round submission.

However nothing surprised me more then some of these fighter pay-outs with some seeming valid, while others have me scratching my head in humble confusion.

It looks like the fruit of Jones’ labor is finally paying off, as the 205-spitfire has since earned his first six-figure payday inside the worlds largest mixed martial arts promotion, which is justified by his exciting fight-finishing performances in the octagon.

On the same token, Anderson Silva, who is currently on a record breaking 13-fight win streak in the cage, as well as an equally impressive eighth-straight title defense, was a top earner on the pay-per-view card, however earned a reported $175k less than fellow countryman Vitor Belfort, whom Anderson knocked out inside of the first-round.

MMAJunkie also claims that should “The Phenom” had taken home the “W” last Saturday, he would have came home with an additional $100k for his efforts (win bonus). Most likely, Silva earned a large portion of his purse due to the PPV revenue that the super bowl card has picked up.

MMAJunkie.com has reported the following figures, which they had originally requested from the Nevada State Athletic Commission.

Champ Anderson Silva: $200,000 (includes no win bonus)
def. Vitor Belfort: $275,000

Forrest Griffin: $275,000 ($150,000 win bonus)
def. Rich Franklin: $75,000

Jon Jones: $140,000 ($70,000 win bonus)
def. Ryan Bader: $20,000

Jake Ellenberger: $32,000 ($16,000 win bonus)
def. Carlos Eduardo Rocha: $8,000

Miguel Torres: $56,000 ($28,000 win bonus)
def. Antonio Banuelos: $9,000

Donald Cerrone: $36,000 ($18,000 win bonus)
def. Paul Kelly: $19,000

Chad Mendes: $19,000 ($9,000 win bonus)
def. Michihiro Omigawa: $8,000

Demetrious Johnson: $10,000 ($5,000 win bonus)
def. Norifumi Yamamoto: $15,000

Paul Taylor: $36,000 ($18,000 win bonus)
def. Gabe Ruediger: $8,000

Kyle Kingsbury: $20,000 ($10,000 win bonus)
def. Ricardo Romero: $10,000

Mike Pierce: $28,000 ($14,000 win bonus)
def. Kenny Robertson: $6,000

So, MMA peeps, are you surprised by any of the payouts you see here? The figures above however do not include any “Fight Night” awards that several fighters earned over the course of the evening. Sound off in the comment section below.

Anderson Silva defeats Vitor Belfort by KO (Front Kick and Punches) at 3:29 of Round 1. Forrest Griffin defeats Rich Franklin by Unanimous Decision. Jon Jones defeats Ryan Bader by Submission (Guillotine Choke) at 4:20 of Round 2. Jake Ellenberger defeats Carlos Eduardo Rocha by Split Decision. Miguel Torres defeats Antonio Banuelos by Unanimous Decision. Donald Cerrone defeats Paul Kelly by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at 3:48 of Round 2. Chad Mendes defeats Michihiro Omigawa by Unanimous Decision. Demetrious Johnson defeats Norifumi Yamamoto by Unanimous Decision. Paul Taylor defeats Gabe Ruediger by KO (Kick) at 1:42 of Round 2. Kyle Kingsbury defeats Ricardo Romero by TKO (Strikes) at 0:21 of Round 1. Mike Pierce defeats Kenny Robertson by TKO (Strikes) at 0:29 of Round 2.

I’m incredibly happy for Anderson Silva right now, and to those thinking that “The Spider” is back, I honestly think that’s not true. He never left in the first place. Say what you will about his occasional antics inside the cage, but this fight with Belfort once again proved why Anderson Silva is one of the best of all time and will likely go down as the most dominant UFC champion of all time. I never doubted Silva, I never stopped being a fan of Silva, and I’ll always believe in Anderson Silva. Because if that crazy front kick of doom told us anything, it’s that Anderson Silva still has plenty of tricks left up his sleeve.

I was equally impressed with Jon Jones, who once again proved why I’ll never again bet against him. Jones beat Bader and made it look easy… he’s beaten everybody and made it look easy, even if he accidentally got himself disqualified one time. I’ll say this right now, loudly and proudly and for all to see: Jon Jones is the next UFC Light Heavyweight Champion. Jones will blitzkrieg Mauricio Rua and “Shogun” will have nothing for him. “Bones” will reduce Rua’s already-damaged knees to rubble with constant takedowns, and he’ll either choke him out or knock him out. Rua won’t be able to deal with Jones’ ground game, explosiveness,  or stand-up. “The Era of Bones” is only a few months away.

And that’s my early commentary, fans and friends. Overall, I enjoyed this event even though some of the bouts were a bit under-whelming. I still think that the UFC is off to an amazing start in 2011, and I can’t wait to see what the future holds.

Anderson Silva and Vitor Belfort will enter the cage looking to knock each other’s heads off.

If you haven’t seen the video of the UFC 126 weigh-ins, please, track it down right now. When Silva donned his white mask and got nose-to-nose with Vitor Belfort, it was as if the air was practically crackling with electricity. This is going to be an all-out war and it’s not going to end until someone is lying face-down on the mat. Now more than ever I fully believe that this is going to be a fight for the ages. I’m pulling for Silva, but Belfort showed absolutely no fear at the weigh-ins and has proven throughout his career that he doesn’t have an ounce of quit in him. This one is definitely going to give me goosebumps.

Rich Franklin vs. Forrest Griffin… I love to see them fight, I hate to see them lose.

I have the same feeling regarding the upcoming Randy Couture vs. Lyoto Machida match. I respect both Rich Franklin and Forrest Griffin, and I enjoy watching them fight far more often than not. I think these two match up very well with each other, so much so that we’re practically guaranteed a great war that’s going to keep us on the edge of our seats. It’ll be an awesome fight, but I wish someone didn’t have to lose. I don’t think either man can afford it right now.

KID Yamamoto is going to destroy Demetrious Johnson.

I honestly don’t have a single problem with Demetrious Johnson, but I do have complete faith in Norifumi Yamamoto. I think this drop down to Bantamweight has both awakened and rejuvenated “KID”, and I also think that we’ll see the best Yamamoto yet when his fight goes live on Facebook. Yamamoto seems intensely focused and surprisingly humble going into this bout, and I think he’s going to viciously KO Johnson. It should be a pretty fun fight no matter what happens.

Miguel Torres vs. Antonio Banuelos may be able to take “Fight of the Night”.

The more I think about this fight, the more appealing it gets. Miguel Torres seems to be on the verge of a great comeback, but Antonio Banuelos is a tough opponent for anyone. It’s true that Banuelos is definitely outmatched by the former WEC champion, but Banuelos always makes it a fight and doesn’t mind taking two to give one. It’s a fight that is definitely overshadowed by most of the UFC 126 main card, but this is still a very solid match-up that should turn into a very competitive, entertaining fight.

So that’s what I think, fans and friends. What about you? Any last thoughts on this event? And what do you think of this possible new series?

A middleweight title clash pitting the reigning and defending 185-pound kingpin Anderson Silva against former teammate Vitor Belfort has become official, as both fighters stepped on the scales at 185-pounds on the nose.

All fighters successfully made weight, all but one.

Mike Pierce, who meets UFC newcomer Kenny Robertson in a welterweight bout, came in a pound-over the 170-pound affair, coming in at 172 lbs., a full pound over the already generous one pound allowance allowed by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.

Pierce will have two hours to come back on the scales to lose the extra pound, or he will be forced to relinquish a percentage of his purse to Robertson.

Perhaps the most interesting happenings of the weigh-ins was the headliner, where Brazilians Anderson Silva and Vitor Belfort squared off in a heated stare down. “The Spider” made light of Vitor’s comments heading into the championship contest, wearing a white mask mocking Belfort’s comments of the previously figurative additive to which he attributes to the facade the Silva puts on pre-fight. The two went nose-to-nose and were held back by UFC execs before matters could escalate.

Here are the weigh-in results in their entirety, the format courtesy of MMAJunkie.com:

MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view)

* Champ Anderson Silva (185) vs. Vitor Belfort (185)
* Forrest Griffin (205) vs. Rich Franklin (203)
* Ryan Bader (205) vs. Jon Jones (206)
* Jake Ellenberger (171) vs. Carlos Eduardo Rocha (170)
* Antonio Banuelos (136) vs. Miguel Torres (136)

PRELIMINARY CARD (Spike TV)

* Paul Kelly (155) vs. Donald Cerrone (155)
* Chad Mendes (146) vs. Michihiro Omigawa (146)

PRELIMINARY CARD (Facebook)

* Demetrious Johnson (136) vs. Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto (135)

PRELIMINARY CARD (Untelevised)

* Gabe Ruediger (155) vs. Paul Taylor (156)
* Kyle Kingsbury (205) vs. Ricardo Romero (205)
* Mike Pierce (172)* vs. Kenny Robertson (170)

Needless to say, the two are fired up and ready to go.

So, MMA peeps, what do you think of the weigh-ins as is? More importantly, what do you think of the card as a whole? You have the UFC debut of Japanese legend “Kid” Yamamoto, two title-implicated light heavyweight fights, and of course the all Brazilian main-event. Sound off in the comment section below.

5. A Night Of Nostalgia For WEC Fans

If you were a huge WEC fan like me, you probably still feel a bit down in the dumps now that the WEC has officially been folded into the UFC and now solely exists in our memories. But “Silva vs. Belfort” should give us a good bit of nostalgia and also maybe some “I told you so” moments, as the card features both Miguel Torres and Donald Cerrone in what should be very exciting matches. Watching these two fighters go from the blue cage to the fabled Octagon in two high-profile encounters should make for some good, nostalgic entertainment.

4. Two Isn’t As Good As Four, But Free MMA Can’t Hurt

UFC 126 “Silva vs. Belfort” marks the return of the “UFC Prelims Live” specials to the place of their inception, Spike TV. Spike will give MMA fans a full free hour of MMA action, with both Donald Cerrone vs. Paul Kelly and Chad Medes vs. Michihiro Omigawa confirmed to air during the broadcast. It’s not as good as the four free fights the UFC recently gave us over Facebook, but free and legal MMA on TV is always a good thing, and with the increasing quality of the “Prelims Live” specials, it should be an hour well worth watching.

3. The Future In Action: Jon Jones vs. Ryan Bader

If you’ve ever seen either of these two fight, then you understand how I can say without hyperbole that these two fighters will one day be the future of the UFC Light Heavyweight division, one of the most stacked, most competitive divisions in the entire world. Both men seem to have it all and are able to do it all, they can seemingly do no wrong while winning dramatically and dominantly. This is going to be an awesome, awesome fight.

2. Putting The “War” Back Into “War Of Attrition”: Rich Franklin vs. Forrest Griffin

I honestly think this is the type of fight where neither man goes down unless he’s completely knocked senseless. This is the perfect match-up for both men, it should be a wild brawl between two men who shine in wild brawls. Neither will give an inch, and both won’t be afraid to take two to give one. This will be a down and dirty, bloody and brutal brawl… and it has all the makings of a Fight of the Year candidate.

1. Anderson Silva vs. Vitor Belfort, “The Fight of the Century”

Those are Belfort’s words and not mine, by the way. But they do certainly fit the bill, this does have all the makings of one of the best fights in UFC history. It just has to work out the way we all think it will, with Belfort aggressively moving forward and Silva staving him off with the best counter-strikes he’s ever thrown. I’ve said it more than once, but I’m so pumped for this fight that it absolutely bears repeating: so long as it lives up to its potential, this is going to be an amazing, astounding fight.

So there you have it, fans and friends: five great reasons to tune in and see UFC 126 “Silva vs. Belfort”. What about you? As the date draws ever-closer, what are you most looking forward to for this event?

Anderson Silva vs. Vitor Belfort: This sure is one hard fight to pick. I’m a gigantic Anderson Silva fan, but I have an immense amount of respect for Vitor Belfort. So long as this fight lives up to its potential, I honestly don’t care who wins. I just want these two to put on the fight I know they’re capable of putting on, because that fight could be one of the best of the last several years. Simply because I have to make a choice, I’m predicting that Silva will keep finding a home for his counters and eventually land a fight-ending barrage in Round 3, winning by TKO.

Forrest Griffin vs. Rich Franklin: Rich Franklin has had a decidedly up-and-down career ever since losing to Anderson Silva for the second time back in 2007. Then again, the same could be said of Forrest Griffin ever since he won the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship from Quinton Jackson. I think this will be a great fight that ultimately boils down to one simple fact: age. Franklin is five years older and has showed signs of slowing down in his recent bouts. Forrest Griffin will take a Unanimous Decision.

Ryan Bader vs. Jon Jones: Following his victory over Vladimir Matyushenko, a fight in which I vocally defended my stance that “The Janitor” would defeat “Bones” in the days/weeks leading up to the bout, I made one single, simple promise: never again will I bet against Jon Jones. That’s just not going to change. Ryan Bader is a good fighter and should ascend to top-division status one day, but in the here and now, I truly think this amazing rocket to the top for Jonny Bones won’t stop until he has some gold around his waist. Jon Jones takes the TKO in Round 1.

Jake Ellenberger vs. Carlos Eduardo Rocha: There’s a reason Ellenberger was originally expected to face Jon Fitch before Fitch was moved up to the upcoming UFC 127 main event: Ellenberger is a skilled 23-5 veteran with twenty of his wins by stoppage. Carlos Rocha, meanwhile, is a 9-0 submission specialist. It probably won’t be an easy victory for Ellenberger, but I think his toughness mixed in with his versatility and experience will result in him staving off several submission attempts and taking home a Unanimous Decision victory.

Miguel Torres vs. Antonio Banuelos: I like Antonio Banuelos, I really do. I just happen to like Miguel Torres more. I think Torres is primed for a major comeback, one that’s going to fully kick off with a big win over Banuelos. Banuelos has simply faltered against top-ranked competition too often, and Torres looked excellent in his recent winning performance against Charlie Valencia. It’ll be a highlight of the night, and I’m thinking that Miguel Torres takes a TKO in Round 2.

So there you have it, fans and friends: my UFC 126 predictions. What about you? When it comes to “Silva vs. Belfort”, who do you see winning, how, and why?

The Event: UFC 126 “Silva vs. Belfort, scheduled for February 5, 2011 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. Two free preliminary fights will be shown live on Spike TV starting at 9:00 PM ET. The five-fight main card will be broadcast live on Pay-Per-View starting at 10:00 PM ET.

Why You Should Care: All eyes are on the main event, and for good reason, even though “Silva vs. Belfort” boasts a solid undercard. Anderson Silva takes on one of his biggest challenges to date, former UFC champion Vitor Belfort. It’s a dream-match that’s taken a long time to finally happen, and to make things even better, you’ve got what should be a fantastic brawl between Forrest Griffin and Rich Franklin as the co-main event, with an epic showdown between fast-rising prospects Jon Jones and Ryan Bader rounding out the card.

What to Look Forward to in the Main Event: Non-stop action from two of the best strikers in Mixed Martial Arts, both in the here and now and of all time. Silva’s counter-striking is legendary, as is Belfort’s punching power. If this fight stays standing, it’s going to be like poetry in motion, and we can probably expect to see some things we’ve never seen in an Octagon before. This fight has been a long time coming, and on paper, it has all the makings of a Fight of the Year encounter.

What to Look Forward to in the Co-Main Event: I think Rich Franklin said it best when he described the type of fighter he was are and then made a point about Griffin being almost the exact same type of fighter. This is going to be a brawl between two tough men who don’t like to quit and fight at their best when they get a little beat up and bloody. It’ll be a war of attrition from the second the first bell rings, with both men giving and taking at will and scoring big blows throughout. I fully expect both men to put on a fantastic show.

Why You Should Watch This Card: The UFC is taking no prisoners early in 2011, which is when they generally hit a bit of a slump. There’s no winter slumber here, this is a massive show featuring some of the most well-known talent the UFC has to offer. The event features multiple weight classes, dominant champions, hot prospects, tough veterans, and more. It’s a stacked card in pretty much every sense of the term.

Why You Shouldn’t Watch This Card: To be honest, the only thing really negative about this card is the fact that it takes place over Super Bowl Weekend. Also, two of the five main card fights have potential to be good but aren’t as epic or as attention-getting as the other three. If you’ve got other plans that you absolutely cannot miss, you can always catch a replay. But if you’re a big MMA fan, you owe it to yourself to watch this one live.

Closing Thoughts: Putting it plainly and putting it simply: I can’t wait for this card. Anderson Silva vs. Vitor Belfort is a fight I’ve waited a long, long time to see, and I have a great feeling that it’s going to live up to every bit of its potential. Then you’ve got Franklin vs. Griffin, which is a fight between two of my favorite “dark horse” fighters. And to top it all off, Jon Jones vs. Ryan Bader should also be an insane fight and fully propel whoever wins into top-division status. The UFC is bringing out the big guns early in 2011, and I’m definitely not missing this one.

And what about you, fans and friends? What do you think of UFC 126 “Silva vs. Belfort”?

Forrest Griffin may soon face Jon Jones.

Griffin has joked about not wanting to face Jon Jones, but a big victory over “Ace” will likely put Griffin on the shortlist of potential upper-level challenges for “Bones” Jones, so long as Jon Jones wins his upcoming fight against Ryan Bader. If that were to happen, Jones will have officially emerged as a legitimate top-division athlete, instead of just the hot prospect that can seemingly do no wrong. You beat the best by beating the best, and Griffin would make an excellent first test of Jones’ newly-won top-division status.

Forrest Griffin may also soon face Quinton Jackson again.

Again, it all depends on whether or not Griffin’s would-be opponent wins his next fight. If both Griffin and “Rampage” put a mark down in the “W” column, I think a second encounter between the two becomes very possible. Despite the up-and-down path both fighter’s careers have taken since they first met, the controversial nature of their first encounter persists. Did Griffin really beat Rampage? Could the new and improved Rampage win the rematch? It’s a smart, easy fight to make, and I think it’ll probably happen sooner rather than later, so long as both competitors keep winning.

Forrest Griffin will emerge as an unlikely title challenger… which is how he won the championship in the first place.

If Forrest Griffin beats Rich Franklin, Griffin will have firmly made a case to still be considered a top-division athlete. Griffin may be an unlikely title challenger, considering how stacked the upper echelon of the UFC Light Heavyweight division is right now, but that’s the role he played the first time he challenged for the championship. The constant battle for control of the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship has led to a number of moments many fans thought we’d never see, and since Griffin has already done it once, becoming a championship contender again and even winning the belt again would only moderately surprise me.

And my final thought on what will happen if Forrest Griffin beats Rich Franklin is…

People will still hound Griffin over his performance against Anderson Silva.

I hate, absolutely hate, to admit this as a Forrest Griffin fan. But this victory, like the one he recently had over Tito Ortiz, just won’t be enough to silence every critic. Forrest Griffin will likely have to deal with questions over his performance against Anderson Silva for years to come, and it really shouldn’t be that way. With a big win over Franklin, Griffin will silence some, but not all, of the critics that still cling to this loss even though it happened over a year ago. I honestly think some cynics may never stop holding that loss against Griffin, even if he one day becomes UFC Light Heavyweight Champion again.

So there you have it, fans and friends: what I think will happen if Forrest Griffin beats Rich Franklin. What about you? What do you think the future holds for Forrest if he manages to get by “Ace”?

UFC officials released the information today, though it was only a matter of time.

The pay-per-view event features one of the best assembled cards of the new year, touting five former champions on the all-star card, as well as a much anticipated title defense pitting current champ Anderson Silva as he defends his middleweight title for a record-setting eighth time as he takes on former teammate Vitor Belfort in the evenings headlining bout.

The event takes place next Saturday on February 5 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, which holds approximately 12,000 in total attendance. UFC 126 makes the ninth consecutive event that has taken place on Super-bowl weekend, which has consistently been the organization’s fight card that has been riddled with talent.

And this card is no exception.

Aside from the middleweight title clash, former champions Forrest Griffin and Rich Franklin will also meet in a pivotal light heavyweight match-up. Griffin, the original winner of “The Ultimate Fighter” was last seen in the octagon in November of 2009 in an anticipated rematch against rival Tito Ortiz at UFC 106, exacting revenge and taking home a split-decision win from the former champion. The win snapped a two-fight skid that Griffin suffered when he faced Rashad Evans, relinquishing his title by way of third-round knockout in a fight he was largely dominating. Next, the fan-favorite dropped another knockout loss, this time to the aforementioned Silva inside of the first-round. Forrest has been sidelined due to a shoulder injury when he was training for an upcoming bout with Antonio Rogerio Nogueira at UFC 114 last May.

Franklin, like Griffin, is coming off of a win of his own, when he bested former title holder Chuck Liddell last June at UFC 115, knocking out the UFC Hall of Famer in the waning moment’s of their main-event fight. The loss helped “Ace” bounce back from a disappointing performance against the resurgent Vitor Belfort in a catch-weight bout of 195-pounds. Belfort connected on a left hook, followed up with a barrage of punches that eventually left Franklin out on the canvas. The fight was stopped just a little over three-minutes inside of the first-round in September of 2009.

With a win here, it’s conceivable that either Franklin or Griffin (who serve co-main event honors at UFC 126) could be next in line for a shot at the title.

Bouts with Ryan Bader, Jon Jones, Miguel Torres, and Antonio Banuelos will also grace the main-card, while in preliminary action featherweight standouts Michihiro Omigawa and Chad Mendes will be featured on the Spike telecast alongside a lightweight bout pitting three-time WEC title challenger Donald Cerrone as he takes on veteran Paul Kelly.

“Fans have been telling me how excited they are for this card ever since we announced the event,” said UFC President Dana White in the release.

“This is a stacked card from top to bottom, and fans responded by making UFC 126 a sellout.”

The entire event is as follows, courtesy of MMAJunkie.com:

MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view)

* Champ Anderson Silva vs. Vitor Belfort (for middleweight title)
* Forrest Griffin vs. Rich Franklin
* Jake Ellenberger vs. Carlos Eduardo Rocha
* Ryan Bader vs. Jon Jones
* Antonio Banuelos vs. Miguel Torres

PRELIMINARY CARD (Spike TV)

* Paul Kelly vs. Donald Cerrone
* Chad Mendes vs. Michihiro Omigawa

PRELIMINARY CARD (Untelevised)

* Gabe Ruediger vs. Paul Taylor
* Demetrious Johnson vs. Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto
* Kyle Kingsbury vs. Ricardo Romero
* Mike Pierce vs. Kenny Robertson

So, MMA peeps, what do you make of the card? Which bout sticks out the most for you? Personally speaking, I would take the “Kid” Yamamoto promotional debut bout against Demetrious Johnson over most fights to see on the PPV event, but that’s just my fanboy in me talking. Sound off in the comment section below.

5. The UFC 126 “Super Bowl Super-Show”.

It’s not enough that the UFC is giving us Anderson Silva vs. Vitor Belfort, oh no. In addition to the mega-fight that’s been several years in-the-making, we’ve got Rich Franklin vs. Forrest Griffin and Jon Jones vs. Ryan Bader. Basically, we’ve got three fights that could each easily, and I do mean easily, headline an event on their own. And it all goes down during Super Bowl Weekend, where everyone is hosting parties and having fun anyway. UFC fans are in for a real treat with this one.

4. UFC in Brazil for the first time in over ten years.

Georges St. Pierre in Canada. That’s the kind of reaction I think the Brazilian fans will give if they get someone like Wanderlei Silva or Anderson Silva or even Renzo Gracie or Royce Gracie to compete at the upcoming UFC event in Brazil. From the beginning, from the moment the idea for the first UFC tournament popped into the head of Rorion Gracie, Brazil has been tied to the UFC. While the UFC will most likely forever be headquartered in Las Vegas, heading back to Brazil is almost like coming home. It should be an amazing show featuring an unbelievable atmosphere.

3. UFC in Toronto in front of over 60,000 fans.

But even the tentatively-titled UFC: “Rio” virtually pales in comparison to the UFC’s upcoming debut in Toronto. The UFC owes almost as much to Canada as it does to Brazil, Canada was the first major step on the road to the UFC becoming a global brand and it remains a key player in the UFC’s international development. And UFC’s debut in Toronto will be in the Rogers Centre, better known as the Toronto SkyDome, which can seat anywhere from 50,000 to 70,000 people. I can hardly begin to imagine how epic the crowd alone will be, let alone the amazing card the UFC will likely put on in order to attract the most fans possible.

2. The thirteenth season of “The Ultimate Fighter”.

It’s been repeated so many times by so many fans and insiders that it’s practically a cliché, but it’ll always be true: “The Ultimate Fighter” broke the mainstream barrier and is perhaps the single most important thing to have ever happened to the UFC outside of its original founding. We’re heading into our thirteenth season of TUF, and things just keep getting better. No season is perfect, but the steady ratings and improved fight quality of Season 12 have left me incredibly pumped up for TUF Season 13. Even though I’m a bit sad that we won’t see Chael Sonnen and Wanderlei Silva coaching against each other, there’s really no reason to miss out on Season 13.

And #1 on the list goes to…

1. Better per-event fight quality thanks in no small part to the influx of WEC talent and the addition of the Bantamweight/Featherweight divisions in general.

As a WEC super-fan, could I have really picked anything else to top this list? With two new divisions and a host of world-caliber talent, the WEC/UFC merger should begin paying out enormous dividends almost immediately. I have a great feeling that this is going to be a “best of both worlds” scenario, where we get the same great WEC action except on a much larger scale. Both the merger and the new weight divisions should give a lot of otherwise-underwhelming UFC events a big shot in the arm, especially the international events. It should be an awesome, awesome year of fights.

And that’s the end, fans and friends! My four-part “All I Want for Christmas” mini-series is now officially over and done with. I’d like to thank all my readers for their continued support, and once again I’d like to wish you all a very happy and very merry Christmas, and happy holidays in general. So, what about you? What are you looking forward to for the UFC in 2011?

“Forrest and I are both very tenacious fighters and both of us are very known for our cardio and our willingness to not quit. So I think that is going to make for an exciting fight… Mentally, I’m in a good spot… I know I’m going to come on top of my game, but I know it’s not going to be an easy fight either… I don’t put the carriage before the horse because once you try to map out your road, you’re going to find out that road has speed bumps that you didn’t see coming… This is what it boils down to. Strip Forrest, strip his name out of the equation, I’m fighting a very tough opponent in February, somebody who is going to bring it. And I have to be ready.”

I like this fight for a number of reasons, chief of which is the one that “Ace” himself mentioned. Both men are known for their incredible toughness and impressive cardio. I know it’s hard to overlook the fact that both men have been humbled so thoroughly in the past by Anderson Silva, especially when it comes to Forrest Griffin, who was on the receiving end of what had to be one of the most one-sided beatdowns in UFC history. But far more often than not, these two have shown an incredible resilience as well as the kind of championship drive necessary to remain a consistent threat as the fight heads into the later rounds.

Everything about this fight tells me that it’s going to go all three rounds, and that each and every round will be one to remember. Throughout his tenure in the UFC, Forrest Griffin has shown more heart than virtually anyone, and it’s a sad fact that his few losses have come to overshadow his long streak of tough performances where he gutted out the win through nothing but sheer determination and a desire to never give up.

The same holds true for Rich Franklin. It’s a real shame that most people only remember him as the man that Anderson Silva built most of his reputation off of. Franklin is a great fighter and a true veteran of the sport, he’s a consistent threat no matter who he’s facing. He’s bounced back from some tough losses in some big ways, and you can never truly count Rich Franklin out of any fight.

This fight could easily steal the show if both men show up at the top of their game. On paper, it has all the makings of an absolutely incredible brawl. No matter what your opinion is of these two fighters, you at least have to admit that this is a great Light Heavyweight showdown between two former UFC champions. And I personally can’t wait to watch it happen.

But what about you, fans and friends? How excited are you for this match-up, and who do you think will end up the  victor?

“People are paying good money at home to watch this fight and people in the audience are paying better money to put on a good show.  I think it is your job, it is an obligation you have to give them what they are looking for.  I am not going to run from my opponent, I am not going to lay on top of him.  I am going to finish every fight I am in.”

Rivera has certainly backed up this point throughout his career.  He has gone 6-3 in his last nine UFC fights and all but two ended in KO or TKO.  Sakara will be a test, but Rivera will not be in awe.  For MMA newbies, Rivera has career wins over Travis Lutter and David Loiseau and losses to Anderson Silva and Rich Franklin.  At 38, Rivera shared with Fighters.com that he wants to win but he also wants to thrill.

“I want to be known as an exciting fighter. A guy who comes to lay it all on the line win or lose I am coming.  I train hard.  Doesn’t matter who I am fighting I have to train hare.  This is the top tier in MMA right here.  Every single person in this organization is good and they belong.  To take anybody lightly to train soft is going to cost you in the ring.”

El Conquistador certainly must fit in Dana Whites list of favorite fighters and has been rewarded by fighting for the UFC since 2003.  White needs guys who generate oohs and ahhs from the house and this is what Rivera does best.  Rivera loves to bang, but also knows that this is entertainment and wants to give the people what they want.

“The fans are the ones to do it all.  When my career is over. I want to be remembered. Some of these guys may have more wins than I do.  May have fought tougher guys. But if they are boring, nobody is going to remember them.  I want to be remembered.  When my name comes up, I want people to say – ‘I loved watching him fight.’

Such a quote must be music to Dana White’s ears.

–

Give it up folks.  Can Rivera KO Sakara?  How will this fight play out.  Chime in now.

While the event, which was to be a pay-per-view card, was under consideration by the promotion, has now been dubbed null altogether.

UFC 125, which is expected to be headlined by current lightweight champion Frankie Edgar defending his title in a rematch against fellow wrestler Gray Maynard, will be taking place on January 1 of the new year, and now what was originally considered to be UFC 127, will now become 126.

Somewhat confusing, I know.

But, UFC 126, which will be taking place on February 5. at the MGM Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nev., is expected to be a star studded affair, and one of the largest events coming up in the immediate future. A middleweight title fight, which has been anticipated for sometime, is expected to pit Brazillians and former teammates against one another, when current 185-pound kingpin Anderson Silva attempts to defend his title for a record 8th time opposite of former light heavyweight champion, Vitor Belfort.

The two talented strikers are expected to take headlining duties over the super bowl weekend card, according to MMAJunkie.com which first reported the news of the canceled Jan. 29 event.

Also on the card, former champions Forrest Griffin and Rich Franklin will meet in a light heavyweight match up, which will propel the winner closer to title contention. The bout is expected to be the co-headliner of the evening.

Talented wrestlers and budding contenders Ryan Bader and 205-spitfire Jon Jones will also grace the card alongside an explosive lightweight match up between Evan Dunham and former lightweight title challenger, Kenny Florian.

So, MMA peeps, what do you think of the mix up? For those having planned to attend the Jan. 29 event, you might want to recall your travel agent. Sound off in the comment section below.

The headliner, a rumored bout pitting UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva against former teammate Vitor Belfort is tentatively scheduled for the event, as well as light heavyweight bouts pitting former champions Forrest Griffin and Rich Franklin against one another, as well as Ryan Bader versus phenom, Jon “Bones” Jones.

Said lightweight match up, which will be Kenny Florian against Evan Dunham, is a fight that no true mixed martial arts fan would want to pass up.

Florian was last seen in action when he faced the talented and suffocating wrestler in Gray Maynard, in Kenny’s own backyard of Boston, Mass., for UFC 118. Against Maynard, “Ken-Flo” never pulled the trigger, and was taken down almost at will, over and over again. The uninspired loss snapped a two-fight win streak for Kenny, and also had him elude a third run at the lightweight title. He was unsuccessful in his initial attempt to capture the gold at UFC 63 against Sean Sherk, for the vacant title, then lost against former kingpin BJ Penn at UFC 101, by fourth-round rear-naked choke.

Dunham, meanwhile, is on the upswing of his career, despite coming on the heels of a loss in his last UFC outing–his first loss in his MMA career at that.

Undefeated as a professional heading into UFC 119, Dunham had impressed many, by seemingly coming out of nowhere with his rise above the heap in the lightweight division. Wins over season 8 winner of “The Ultimate Fighter”: Efrain Escudero, Marcus Aurelio, and perennial contender Tyson Griffin cemented his spot as the next big thing in the 155-pound ranks. With the very controversial loss to Sean Sherk, which saw the Xtreme Couture product dominate the former champion standing up with effective combination’s (kicks and knees galore) as well several submission attempts, his star has only grew brighter.

Florian, albeit “choking” in big fights (ala Dana White), is talented nonetheless. An adept Muay Thai striker with a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Kenny has been a thorn in the side of several up-and-coming fighters in the lightweight division, including notables Clay Guida, Joe Lauzon, and former PRIDE champion Takanori Gomi–all of whom, the Boston native has finished.

The part-time ESPN personality announced the news on “MMA Live” just yesterday, saying “We’ve verbally agreed to fight Evan Dunham, which is great news. Phenomenal opponent, which I’m very excited about, and it looks like it may happen on Super Bowl weekend”.

UFC 127 takes place on February 5th, at the MGM Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

So, MMA peeps, what do you make of the match up? Who do you think takes this fight, in what has the potential to be an early candidate for “Fight of the Night”. Sound off in the comment section below.

Previously mentioned, the main event of the evening is looking like it will be a battle between Brazilians when Vitor Belfort challenges former teammate Anderson Silva for the ufc middleweight title. Also on the card, a battle between light heavyweights Ryan Bader and Jon Jones will battle it out for top contenders status in a stacked 205-pound division.

Seemingly a shoe in for co-main event honors, the bout was trumped when a recent news breaker was published, which will garner a lot of attention come fight time.

MMAJunkie.com has recently reported that a battle between former champions is in place, when Forrest Griffin (a former light heavyweight champion) will do battle with Rich Franklin (former middleweight champion).

Franklin is coming off a devastating knockout over UFC Hall of Famer, Chuck Liddell, last June, at UFC 115. Then dramatic ending came when it appeared that Franklin was on the ropes in the waning moments of the fight, as he was reeling back against the cage, Franklin uncorked a right hand that put “The Iceman” down and out. The win helped Rich bounce back from a knockout loss to Vitor Belfort at UFC 103 in September of last year.

Forrest, meanwhile, was last seen in action at UFC 106, in November of last year. There, Griffin met with rival Tito Ortiz. The two had met a few years back, in April of 2006 at UFC 59, where Ortiz had won a very controversial split-decision victory. Forrest was then sent on the fast track towards the top of the weight class and eventually became the 205-pound champion. He proved to be victorious over Tito, gaining a bit of revenge over his rival, and evening the score. The win helped snap a two-fight losing streak that Griffin has sustained against Rashad Evans, in an unsuccessful attempt to defend his title, and than a knockout loss to current UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva, at UFC 101.

So, MMA peeps, what do you think of the match up? Sound off in the comments section below.

The 2009 event opened up to a large audience, and has become a propellant in the mixed martial arts world, opening up the eyes to a mainstream audience, by the community taking leaps and bounds in order to legitimize itself as not only a legitimate sport, but one that deserves that same sort of recognition that most others receive, here in these United States.

While some categories have changed, in order to be politically correct, must stay the same. Voting continues until November 26, where till then you can cast your votes online at All winners are determined by a fan vote, and ballots can be cast through Nov. 26 at www.worldmmaawards.com.

The full list, which was formatted by MMAJunkie.com, of finalists includes:

CHARLES “MASK” LEWIS FIGHTER OF THE YEAR

* Anderson Silva
* Brock Lesnar
* Frankie Edgar
* Jose Aldo
* Mauricio “Shogun” Rua

FIGHT OF THE YEAR

* Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen at UFC 117
* Brock Lesnar vs. Shane Carwin at UFC 116
* Leonard Garcia vs. Chan Sung Jung at WEC 48
* Chris Leben vs. Yoshihiro Akiyama at UFC 116
* Jorge Santiago vs. Kazuo Misaki at Sengoku 14

KO OF THE YEAR

* Anthony Njokuani vs. Chris Horodecki at WEC 45
* Cain Velasquez vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira at UFC 110
* Mauricio “Shogun” Rua vs. Lyoto Machida at UFC 113
* Mike Russow vs. Todd Duffee at UFC 114
* Rich Franklin vs. Chuck Liddell at UFC 115

SUBMISSION OF THE YEAR

* Matt Hughes vs. Ricardo Almeida at UFC 117
* Chris Leben vs. Yoshihiro Akiyama at UFC 116
* Cole Miller vs. Dan Lauzon at UFC 108
* Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen at UFC 118
* Fabricio Werdum vs. Fedor Emelianenko at “Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Werdum”

BEST PROMOTION

* Bellator
* DREAM
* Strikeforce
* UFC
* WEC

LEADING MAN OF THE YEAR

* Bjorn Rebney, Bellator founder and CEO
* Dana White, UFC president
* Joe Silva, UFC VP of talent relations
* Michael Schiavello, HDNet broadcaster
* Scott Coker, Strikeforce founder and CEO

INTERNATIONAL FIGHTER OF THE YEAR

* Alistair Overeem
* Dan Hardy
* George Sotiropoulos
* John Hathaway
* Shinya Aoki

BREAKTHROUGH FIGHTER OF THE YEAR

* Charles Oliveira
* Evan Dunham
* George Sotiropoulos
* John Hathaway
* Jon Jones

FEMALE FIGHTER OF THE YEAR

* Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos
* Megumi “Mega Megu” Fujii
* Miesha Tate
* Sarah Kaufman
* Zoila Frausto

COACH OF THE YEAR

* Cesar Gracie
* Firas Zahabi
* Greg Jackson
* Rafael Cordeiro
* Shawn Tompkins

GYM OF THE YEAR

* American Kickboxing Academy
* American Top Team
* Black House MMA
* Greg Jackson’s Submission Fighting
* Wand Fight Team

RING GIRL OF THE YEAR

* Arianny Celeste
* Brittney Palmer
* Chandella Powell
* Natalie Skyy
* Rachelle Leah

BEST LIFESTYLE CLOTHING BRAND

* Affliction
* Fight Chix
* RVCA
* Silverstar
* TapouT

REFEREE OF THE YEAR

* “Big” John McCarthy
* Dan Miragliotta
* Herb Dean
* Josh Rosenthal
* Mario Yamasaki

MOST MEMORABLE RING ENTRANCE

* Anderson Silva
* Clay Guida
* Jason “Mayhem” Miller
* Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal
* Tom Lawlor

BEST TECHNICAL EQUIPMENT BRAND

* Everlast MMA
* Fairtex
* Hayabusa
* TapouT
* Venum

BEST TECHNICAL CLOTHING BRAND

* Bad Boy
* Hayabusa
* Jaco
* TapouT
* Venum

MEDIA SOURCE OF THE YEAR

* “Inside MMA” on HDNet
* MMAjunkie.com
* MMAWeekly.com
* MMAFighting.com
* Sherdog.com

MMA JOURNALIST OF THE YEAR

* Aaron “Tru” Teweles, Freelance
* Ariel Helwani, MMAFighting.com/Versus.com
* Conner Cordova, MMAReligion.com
* Gareth A. Davies, Telegraph.com
* John Morgan, MMAjunkie.com

So, MMA peeps, any surprises here? Anyone you would have liked to seen in some of these categories? Who do you think will take home some of the honors of the night? Sound off in the comments section below.

While speculation ran rapid, including who, when, and where Belfort would fight next, wait no longer–because the Brazilian has ended all speculation via his Twitter.

“Now it’s game time we have a fight nov 13 against okami”, said Vitor on his official Twitter account.

“The Phenom” was originally supposed to face champion Anderson Silva for the middleweight title last April at UFC 112 in Abu Dhabi, however bowed out of the fight due to injury, and was replaced by Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu master Demian Maia, who lost his chance at claiming the title by unanimous decision.

Belfort long campaigned for the bout even after sustaining the reported shoulder injury, assuring fans that he wanted the match right away after healing from surgery.

Vitor recently relocated to the United States with his family, which includes a wife and two children, to Las Vegas, Nevada in order to be closer to his training quarters–where he splits his time with the famed Xtreme Couture gym and the Tapout training center, where he trains stand up with former Xtreme Couture trainer Shawn Tompkins–while not sacrificing any time away from his family during a training camp.

Okami, the now Las Vegas residents’ next opponent, has been on the rise as of late. After opening up his UFC career with a 4-fight win streak inside the octagon, Okami succumbed to defeat against former champion Rich Franklin.

Another win streak began after the Franklin fight, and Okami ran into another brick wall when the Japanese star met the sharp-tongued Chael Sonnen, who eventually went on to challenge Anderson Silva for the middleweight title some time later. Okami reassessed his training regiment, and actually spent some time with Sonnen in the U.S. and has since racked up two-impressive back-to-back victories over Lucio Linhares and Mark Munoz.

“I talked to Lorenzo (Fertitta) this week and will return in November,” Belfort had said while speaking with Sherdog.com. “I just asked him to not be (on the November card in Germany). I’m tired of traveling. I would like to return to fighting here in America.”

While against the idea of traveling again, after relocating his family from Brazil to the U.S., looks like Belfort ultimately warmed up to the idea.

The event is expected to take place Germany on November 13th, marking the UFC’s second trip to Germany, and first in 2010. This will be Vitor’s first time fighting at 185 pounds inside the UFC. His initial return back to the promotion was at a catch-weight of 195 pounds against the aforementioned Rich Franklin, back at UFC 103 in Texas, in October of last year.

So, now that the match up has been made official, should the winner of this bout earn number one contenders status? Okami has certainly paid his dues, after being donned the red headed step child of the UFC’s middleweight division for over 4 years, but what about Belfort? Does he need more time inside the cage, or will a potential win over Okami be good enough? Let your opinions known.

It was already known that Belfort had planned to return in November. The UFC’s November outing will be UFC 122, which is expected to take place in the Konig Pilsener Arena in Oberhausen, Germany. The tentative date is November 13. The event, like most overseas affairs for the UFC, is expected to air via tape-delay on Spike TV. This fight would headline a card with rumored fights that include Jason Brilz vs. Vladimir Matyushenko, Jorge Rivera vs. Alessio Sakara, and Amir Sadollah vs. Peter Sobotta.

While it may not be the most eagerly-anticipated main event, I think this is a good headline attraction for an overseas Pay-Per-View, since non-US and non-Canadian shows have developed a bit of a reputation for not having the same quality of fights that the US and Canada gets. I hope that doesn’t paint either man in a negative light, since I’m a big fan of both Vitor Belfort and Yushin Okami. I think this fight will accomplish a lot: it will give Belfort a win against an actual Middleweight, a point that many held against him when it was announced that he would be next in line to challenge Silva. If Okami wins, it will give him that one major victory over a big name that has constantly eluded him in his eleven-fight career in the UFC.

In regards to the fight itself, this seems to be a very interesting clash of styles. Belfort has always been known to bum-rush and brawl, it has lead to almost all of his famous victories. However, his move to Middleweight has resulted in a more refined Belfort, someone who has the same deadly strikes but is far more technical in their implementation. Okami is a gamer, and knows how to take a punch, having only been stopped once in his entire MMA career while having a majority of his wins via Unanimous Decision. Even though Belfort only has four (T)KO wins over Okami when you take the time to look at both men’s records, the striking advantage obviously goes to “The Phenom”. Down on the ground, though, it may just be Okami’s fight to win.

This fight will most likely determine the next man to face Anderson Silva for the UFC Middleweight Championship, and I’m strongly in favor of that. I think this latest career rebirth has resulted in the best Vitor Belfort that there’s ever been, and I think Silva/Belfort would be a real dream-match super-fight. Okami has always been a dark horse candidate for #1 contender, consistently beating opponents without ever really making any waves. He’s still the last man to ever beat Anderson Silva (even though it was because Silva got DQ’d when he threw an illegal kick), so there’s some good history between the two. I think Okami’s shot at the belt is long overdue, while Belfort’s utterly dominating wins at Middleweight would justify him receiving a title shot so soon. It’s an interesting fight between two great fighters, so I think the German fans have an awesome fight to look forward to.

But what about you, fans and friends? How excited are you about the prospect of Vitor Belfort fighting Yushin Okami? And who do you think wins this fight?

The event will take place in Germany for just the second time in the promotions history. The UFC’s original inception into Germany began last year, for UFC 99, which was headlined by former champions Wanderlei Silva and Rich Franklin who met at a catch weight of 195-pounds.

And while the event in of itself was an exciting night of fights, things behind the scenes did not fair so swimmingly. There’s was an almost immediate backlash the UFC took once the MMA Juggernaut was readying itself for it’s new venture. The German media didn’t take too kindly to the blood and violence that is rightfully and indirectly associated with the sport, and in doing so, had the Government and sanctioning bodies take notice. Their reaction–a ban on minors below the age of 17 were not allowed to attend said events.

Returning after a year-plus hiatus, the UFC will visit Oberhausen for UFC 122, no headline fight has been officially announced the preliminary reports indicate that Brilz and Matyushenko will be apart of the fight card. Jason may be remembered best for his highly controversial split-decision fight with Antonio Rogerio Nogueria, twin brother of former UFC and Pride champion Minotauro Nogueria. Brilz appeared to be ahead of the score cards, dominating the first two rounds with effective wrestling, scrambles, and strong hooks on the feet. Rogerio had his best moments of the fight in the third, but was still able to squeak out the narrow decision.

Matyushenko on the other hand, is not one who can be praised in defeat, well…not the defeat he suffered at the hands of the highly touted Jon Jones on August 1. The 39-year-old father was dominated from the get go, when Jones was able to take down the 10-plus year veteran, ended up in a mounted crucifix and landed repeated unanswered elbows to Vlad’s head before the bout was mercifully waived off.

It’s likely do or die for both competitors, as the sting of two defeats more often than not, doesn’t sit quite well with the UFC brass.

So, who do you have in this match up of competitive wrestlers? The old-dog Matyushenko–a perennial contender, or the spirited Jason Brilz?

Said bout, a middleweight affair against Jorge Rivera against fellow banger Alessio Sakara has stayed alive. The bout will mark a true push for each competitor, as one another will look for contenders’ status in a crowded 185-pound division, dominated by Anderson Silva–though Chael Sonnen might argue the point.

UFC 118 takes place in Boston, Mass., Rivera’s hometown. The 185-pound veteran is based out of Team Sityodtong, under the tutelage of Kru Mark Dellagrotte.

Rivera has seen a resurgence in his lengthy and storied career, and for the first time has been able to string together a 3-fight win streak inside the octagon. After a split-decision victory over Nissen Osterneck, “The Conquistador” was able to put together two back-to-back TKO victories over the likes of Rob Kimmons and fellow “The Ultimate Fighter” veteran Nate Quarry, respectively.

Sakara too, has had the benefit of posting three in a row as well, starting with a head kick, knockout victory over Joe Vedepo, Alessio put together quality wins beginning with a split decision win over former 185-pound title challenger Thales Leites, and then the grizzly, emaciated, veteran–James Irvin, by first round TKO.

Both Rivera and Alessio are on their best standings since their respective inceptions into the UFC, and will now vie for a spot towards contender status within the UFC, which is slowly thinning since Anderson Silva has run through most top-flight competition in the weight class.

With that said, who do you think holds the key to victory in this match up? Who would you like to see the winner challenge next? And who do you think holds the best shot at defeating the 185-pound kingpin that is “The Spider”?

The news, which was highlighted previously on Fighters.com , where according to Vitor himself on Twitter, “this year I am not going to fight for the title because the champion (UFC Middleweight kingpin Anderson Silva) is hurt but November we will be in action for sure that is what I can say.”

Silva, who was later reported injured prior to his bout with contender Chael Sonnen at UFC 117, is on an indefinite hiatus away from the cage. Anderson sustained fractured ribs before his last outing with Sonnen, while training with Judoka Satoshi Ishi and former UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida.

So, that definitely rules out Anderson for the rest of the year, and Vitor accordingly. But what about Sonnen? According to Belfort, in an interview with Sherdog.com, Chael is off the table as well for the surging middleweight, who began his career at 185 initially with a victory over Terry Martin under the Affliction banner in 2008, knocking out the UFC veteran on strikes in the second round.

The Brazilian followed up the performance with another commanding stoppage over the well traveled and well respected Matt Lindland, knocking out the former top middleweight in just 37 seconds, in January of 2009.

In his UFC return after the collapse of the aforementioned promotion Affliction, Belfort immediately put himself on the map when he needed just over three minutes to top former middleweight champion Rich Franklin at UFC 103 in Dallas, Tex., knocking out the former math teacher turned MMA fighter last September.

Since then, Belfort’s absence has gone noticed, and while many speculated that a match pitting both Sonnen and Vitor would be the next logical step, that doesn’t appear so likely now.

“I talked to Lorenzo (Fertitta) this week and will return in November,” Belfort said in his interview with Sherdog.com. “I just asked him to not be (on the November card in Germany). I’m tired of traveling. I would like to return to fighting here in America. According to my conversation with Lorenzo, my opponent will not be Sonnen, but another guy that will be decided soon.”

So, if not Sonnen, and not Anderson, than who? The only middleweight fighter that stands out to me, who isn’t already tied up in a fight, would have to be Chris Leben–or even Yushin Okami.

Nate Marquardt is tied up in his middleweight affair with Rousimar Palhares at UFC Fight Night 22 in September, Demian Maia is mixing it up against Mario Miranda at UFC 118, Alan Belcher is sidelined with a detached retina that may keep him away from fighting for good, and in my mind, there are no other viable contenders besides Okami and Leben.

Do you disagree? Anybody else in mind for Vitor?

Though MMA legends highlighted the card, such as Rich Franklin, Wanderlei Silva, and Mirko Cro Cop, it was Stefan Struve who received the most attention that night, when after suffering a laceration on his forehead, he began to bleed profusely on the mat.

That seems to be what all the German media remembered from what was supposed to be a ground breaking night for the UFC and fans alike.

“We have to ban this insanity,” said Werner Schneyder,” a well-known German boxing announcer. “We have to accept crippled fighters and deaths. They are trying to sell brutality as something impressive.”

To hear such opposition towards a sport as un-mundane and safe–yes, I said safe–as MMA, is hard to swallow for many who are accustomed to keeping things “simple” and “safe”.

You can argue that German’s are somewhat “sheltered”, especially when earlier reports arose stating that Government officials had prompted Germany’s Athletic commission, during UFC 99, to only allow those of the ages 17 and older to eligible to attend the event.

And while strong opposition was still relevant here in 2010, the UFC moved forward, not backing down, and will in fact, be holding an event in November, reportedly for UFC 122.

These men entered the Octagon with more questions than answers surrounding them and their fight careers. The fans and some of my media brethren were saying that Rich was on the downside of his career and that age had caught up to him. Franklin had lost two of his last three and needed a win last night to begin his run at the title in the light heavyweight division.

Chuck Liddell stepped into the Octagon a man on a mission as well. Chuck had found himself on a major slide losing four of his last five and three of those being via knock out. However this was a different Chuck Liddell according to all reports.

Chuck had not had a drink of alcohol in over nine months, had stopped being out until the early morning hours and even showed up to the weigh-ins looking ripped with six-pack abs. His trainer John Hackleman had stated that this was the best Chuck he had ever seen. He was faster, stronger and more focused than in any other training camp. All of that may be true as Chuck looked great right from the start but in the end it did nothing to stop him from getting his third straight knock out loss.

When the cage door closed and the bell ran Chuck became the hunter walking Franklin down and using early aggression that no one was used to seeing from the former champion. Typically Chuck likes to force his opponent to over commit to strikes, always looking for that counter punch that will send them to the mat. This fight was different as Chuck was wasting no time looking to hurt Rich earlier.

Both men were throwing kicks and the speed advantage that Rich had seemed to be nullified by the predator like stalking the Iceman was doing inside the Octagon. Rich didn’t have time to settle in and fight that cerebral fight I talked about here.

Franklin was being slightly overwhelmed and went in for the shot only to have it stuffed. He ate a shot to the head and body for his efforts while he came back with an inside leg kick to Chuck’s thigh.

The exchanges had the crowd buzzing as Rich threw solid leather in the form of a left hook which led to yet another fiery exchange and Liddell shooting in and taking Rich to the ground. Neither fighter is really known for their ground game and while I hate to use the following statement it does ring true here. Both Rich and Chuck have very underrated ground games. Yes, I said it!

Rich used the butterfly guard to keep Liddell off balance and unable to land heavy shots. Chuck went for a choke but Rich fought it off and got back to his feet.

Fireworks went off here as they took the center of the Octagon and Rich threw shots to the body and did some nice work with a solid combo on Chuck. Chuck is not one to back down though and he rocked Franklin with his trademark right hand only to be hurt himself when following up by a left hand from Ace.

Liddell rocked but sensing the kill was near pushed in and had Rich against the cage. He started throwing with reckless abandon and that was the first and last mistake he would make that night as Ace landed a solid shot straight to the jaw of Chuck that sent him to the canvas out cold.

The downfall of Chuck was his inability to remain calm and stay focused. Maybe it was the pressure to win, to knock someone out rather than to be knocked out but when he felt he had Rich hurt he pushed to much. He threw wild punches and as usual left himself wide open for a counter shot. Whatever the reason, Chuck was knocked out yet again which I can’t believe makes anyone happy.

Chuck has been one of the most predominant faces in the UFC for a long time and seeing him go out like that made many cringe. I come from Ohio and have had the chance to train with Rich Franklin and Team Jorge Gurgel and while I was excited to see Ace get a win, I was anything but excited to watch a legend like Chuck go out like that. One can say he went out on his sword though like a true warrior.

Of course this takes nothing away from Rich Franklin. As one man loses and hopefully, for his own safety, rides off into the sunset another man emerges in the light heavyweight division. This test did not tell us if Rich can actually make a title run but it did confirm just how tough this guy truly is when he is inside the Octagon.

Early in the round Chuck threw a body kick that Franklin blocked and for his efforts he received a broken left forearm. That did not deter him from continuing to fight and even throwing punches with that hand. Rich has shown before that no matter what happens to him in a fight he will not quit. When being interviewed by Joe Rogan after the fight he said he came there to fight and that even though he could feel the bone clicking in his arm he never thought about quitting, after all fighting is his job.

So no matter what happens with Rich from here on out I believe the man is a true warrior and solidified his place in UFC history with his knock out of the legendary Chuck Liddell.

So as the lights went up in the aftermath of UFC 115, we seemingly say goodbye to one of the sports best and at the same time we have to give respect to a man many believed was washed up and was expected to be a stepping stone on the road back for the legend. As they say, this is MMA and anything can happen.

Chuck comes into this fight coming off back-to-back losses yet is amongst other mixed martial arts (MMA) writers and fans he seems to be the very clear favorite in this fight.

Chuck came into the weigh-ins looking better than Fighters.com and MMA Gospel Radio has ever seen him. He had a visible six pack which many see as a sign that Chuck is in the best shape of his life. However there have been times when fighters come in looking tight and very lean which could be a sign of a tough weight cut.

Chuck has always been a very big light heavyweight and this fight is one that will test Rich’s ability to seriously make a run for the title in the division.

Can Rich deal with the size of Liddell and/or the power of such a big fighter? I fully believe he will tonight.

Rich has always been a very cerebral fighter and one with good technical striking. He comes into fights with a very specific game plan and sticks to it, even if it doesn’t seem to be working. This has been a positive and negative for Franklin.

Rich did not leave his hometown of Cincinnati, Ohio to train for this fight. The past few fights he has traveled out west to Seattle  to train with world renowned Matt Hume. Could staying home make the difference in this fight?

No, it won’t be the difference maker but will be is the stand-up game of both men.

Chuck brings amazing power into this fight which has been the Achilles heal of Franklin in his past fights. He tends to get lost when a fighter has more power and it has shown in his losses to UFC middleweight champion “The Spider” Anderson Silva (26-4) as well as “The Phenom” Vitor Belfort (18-8). This fight will come down to where Rich excels though and not what his weakness seems to be in fights.

Rich is a southpaw that has done very well working angles, moving away from big right hands and using kicks to the legs and body to wear opponents down. This strength is something Chuck has struggled with in the past, “The Dean of Mean” Keith Jardine (14-7-1) ring a bell to anyone?

I see Rich circling away from the big looping punches Chuck throws with reckless abandon and using his kicks to work the lower end of Liddell and to drain him of some of the power he needs to win this fight. Rich will use his range to stay just out of the reach of Chuck’s big shots, which come very slow. Chuck has taken advantage of fighters pushing forward as they get frustrated and then landing the big, slow and looping counter punch to end the fight. Rich will not be suckered into this and will be content to grind out a victory here.

Will this fight see the end of Chuck Liddell’s career inside the Octagon? Only Chuck and UFC president Dana White have the answer to that.

Fighters.com wants to know who are you picking in this fight and why?

Tito has been blasted for lying to fans and telling them the fight between him and Chuck was still on even though he knew he was off of the card. His response came via Twitter and is one all fans and media alike should understand.

“I haven’t lied to anyone. I was told not to say “Anything”! Having a chance to be sued for $5 million was not a chance I wanted to take. So watch TUF 11 and see what happens. I was just doing what I was told, for once. Sorry!”

Fans and media alike are well aware of the nondisclosure agreement coaches and fighters appearing on”The Ultimate Fighter” must sign. It comes as no shock to Fighters.com that he was unable to tell the truth. Regardless many fans felt he should have just stated they would have to wait and see what happens. Now using our brains here, had he come out and not responded to the questions regarding his health, him leaving the show and his fight with “Iceman” Chuck Liddell (21-7) the media would have gone crazy with it. The only way to ensure that the information stayed locked away until the UFC was ready to release it was to say that everything was still a go and leave it at that.

Regardless of what Tito said or did not say, the change of fighters in the main event seems to have made an impact on the sale of tickets for UFC 115.

UFC 115 takes place in Vancouver and on Tuesday pre-sale tickets were available. UFC fans were not messing around as the set a new record for the fastest sellout in UFC history, with the event selling out just 30 minutes after tickets went on sale at 10 AM PT. Dana White announced it via Twitter by saying “Vancouver sold out in 30 mins!!!! Thank you Vancouver we worked hard on getting it there. Thank you Mayor Robertson.”

There is no way to tell if the change from Tito to Rich had any effect on the speed of ticket sales but I would venture to say that it was a factor. Consider what the headline was and what it has now become.

Chuck versus Tito is a fight fans have twice before and neither fight was very competitive. Chuck did what he wanted in both fights and Tito never really seemed to have a shot during the fight. Other than the fact that so many enjoy watching Tito get beat, what other motivation would there be for fans to rush out and buy tickets to the event? Chuck is now fighting Rich Franklin and this fight is much more intriguing.

Chuck Liddell is on a slide in the UFC with four losses in his last five fights. Even though there have been talks of his retirement by UFC president Dana White, Chuck still has the drive to fight and carries the power to put people to sleep. Chuck has beaten the best during his reign as UFC light heavyweight champion. He has ten knockouts inside the Octagon and had seven consecutive at one time. A UFC Hall of Famer, Chuck is coming in prepared to get back on the winning track.

Chuck told MMA Weekly “I’m ready for this fight, I’m in the best shape of my life, and I can’t wait to get back in the Octagon.”  “I can’t tell the fans what happens in the Ultimate Fighter 11, you have to watch the show, but I’ll tell you how this is gonna end, I’m knocking Rich out.”

Rich on the other hand is a fighter that has been in limbo since his defeats to Fighters.com and UFC middleweight champion “The Spider” Anderson Silva (26-4). He has had a couple of fights at a catch-weight of 195 as well as fights at 205. Rich currently has twelve wins inside the Octagon and is now looking to make a run at the light heavyweight championship as he takes on the former champion.

“Chuck is a gamer,” Franklin said. “He is a professional – take Randy for example. He and Randy are friends, but he didn’t have a problem fighting Randy and punching him in the head, so he sure won’t have a problem punching me in the head. I’m excited about fighting Chuck, I’m going to give everything I have, and I look forward to giving fans a great fight in Vancouver.”

Rich is the epitome of a company man, always saying the right things and doing whatever is needed of him by the UFC. He did not want to coach again on TUF yet here he is stepping in to take over for Tito and face a man who regardless of public opinion, can take you out with one punch.

This is a fight fans love to see, two former champions trying to get back what they once had and coveted. Two true fan favorites who will give us what Anderson Silva did not, non-stop action. I have been asked by fans if I believe Rich has the chin to stand and trade with Liddell and honestly I don’t have an answer to that question. We all watched as Rich stood and traded with a man many thought was the scariest on the planet when he was in Pride, “The Axe Murderer” Wanderlei Silva (34-10-1). Rich went on to win by unanimous decision in that fight. So can he take a shot? I believe he can but I doubt Rich will attack like the fallen that have stood before Chuck in the past.

Liddell is known for his ability to suck fighters inside and is one of the best counter-punchers in the game. Rich is well aware of this and his trainer Matt Hume is sure to develop a game plan that will include getting inside, using the clinch and working some dirty boxing. I would not be shocked to see Rich try and take Chuck down either but getting Chuck down and keeping him there has never been an easy task.

The bottom line is that this fight is one I believe had much to do with the fastest sell-out in UFC history. Two legends known to bring the fight to their opponents and both looking to rise up out of the ashes.

Tito lied but really had no choice, just like the fans in Vancouver had no choice but to clammer for tickets to see what is sure to be a great main event.

Vancouver was never officially announced as the location for UFC 115, but UFC President Dana White has casually mentioned UFC 115 in Vancouver several times.  Cincinnati hosted UFC 77 featuring a main event UFC middleweight title fight between Fighters.com and UFC middleweight champion “The Spider” Anderson Silva (25-4) and “Ace” Rich Franklin (26-5).

Franklin is a Cincinnati native.  Two weeks ago UFC President Dana White announced via Twitter that he planned match Franklin versus UFC Hall of Famer “Natural” Randy Couture (18-10).

This matchup could be the reason Cincinnati is under consideration for UFC 115.  UFC 77 was a sell-out event.

Sports has always had booing for as long as it has been around. It seems to go hand in hand with the competition. Does this make it right or any less abrasive? No it does not but as you will see, it can be viewed as the right of the fan or just a means to vent frustration.

MMA is a young sport so we will look at another sport and use it as an example. The NFL has been around much longer and booing seems to be common place at games around the country. The same goes for college football and it’s fans. Can you imagine going to an Ohio State versus Michigan game and not hearing one side or the other boo for the opposing team? This is a way for fans to show dislike for the other team. Passion in college football runs deep amongst the fans and that is not limited to the passion for their favorite team. No, that passion also is seen in the hatred they have for their biggest rivals come game day. I have been to a few college games and never once heard another a player or coach from my favorite school tell the fans to not boo our rivals. The opposite seems to hold true in college football. The coaches and players want a raucous crowd to be loud, crazy and boo the team as they come out of the tunnel.

This can’t be said of MMA fighters, coaches and managers. While attending UFC 77 in Cincinnati, Ohio I saw former UFC champion “Ace” Rich Franklin (26-5) try and turn the boos around into applause as his opponent, UFC champion and Fighters.com top-ranked middleweight “The Spider” Anderson Silva (25-4) entered the cage. Remember that this is in Rich’s hometown and yet here he stands making sure the crowd cheers for Silva and not boo him. This is due to the mutual respect we see in combat sports. Sure, there is pre-fight trash talking and the occasional true bad blood but for the most part all fighters have respect for anyone that trains and is willing to put it all on the line by stepping inside the cage. They show this respect by touching gloves before the fight starts and by usually saying something good about their opponent in the post-fight interview. So as fans of a sport or a particular fighter, is it ok to boo their opponent?

Some say no, it is not ok and that we should respect all fighters. I am one of those people. I have never booed a fighter nor will I. I do understand how someone could do it and feel that is ok though. If you are a fan of fighter A and his biggest rival is fighter B, does it not seem right to boo fighter B anytime you get the chance? Sure it does but does it make it right?

As we have seen in football, it is not just fans booing for the opposing team. There are times when fans will boo their own team in order to show frustration for the play calling, for coaches decisions and for awful plays by players or the team in general. This is a way to vent these frustrations and make your voice heard in a sport that is generally not as interactive as MMA tends to be today. Very seldom due fans get easy access to players and coaches like we have come accustomed to getting with fighters, trainers and others involved in the sport of mixed martial arts.

There are many who believe that it is ok to boo a fight that for one reason or another they feel is boring. As I have said, I despise the booing of fights as I feel both men deserve respect just for stepping in there and willing to go to battle. I understand some fights can be boring at times. When you end up with a guy who does the lay and pray and the guy on the bottom can’t seem to get up, it is not exciting. However I have heard people boo as soon as the fight hits the mat and also when one guy is passing from half guard to side mount. This could be attributed to drunken fans or maybe just those that don’t understand the jiu jitsu side of the sport. Either way it is uncalled for in my opinion but I see their side of it as well.

They are paying to get into an event and many times they pay big money to be there. It can be said that they have the right to show their dissatisfaction when a fight becomes boring or when a guy refuses to engage and instead runs around the cage in what can only be described as a reaction to fear. This reaction to the fight by the fans lets the promoter and the match maker know that they are unhappy with what is taking place. It is a means to an end I suppose but I much prefer the Japanese fans. Never do you hear them boo. While they are quiet most of the time and I find that odd, they have a more focused knowledge of the sport and will cheer for something as simple as a pass from full guard to half guard.

As you can see, there is an argument to be made for both sides of this equation. So now I throw the question to you, the MMA fan. Do you think it is ok to boo fighters and/or a fight and why?

“Not true! We are doing couture vs franklin not chuck,” said White via Twitter.

“Natural” Randy Couture (18-10) tapped out “The Hammer” Mark Coleman (16-10) at UFC 109 in Las Vegas February 6.

Despite the denial, Sherdog reported it checked with it’s sources and “the Liddell-Franklin bout is still in play.”

Liddell was scheduled to fight “Huntington Beach Bad Boy” Tito Ortiz (15-7-1) after their stints as coaches on SpikeTV’s The Ultimate Fighter 11 reality television contest.

However, evidently Franklin had to take over as a coach from Ortiz due to unknown reasons.  MMA Junkie reports Franklin and Liddell have verbally agreed to fight at the conclusion of the program.

Thirty-nine year old Liddell has been laid out by third-ranked “Shogun” Mauricio Rua (18-4) and fourth-ranked “Sugar” Rashad Evans (14-1-1) on his last two missions in the Octagon, but comes off a long hiatus during which he was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame.

Franklin was TKO’d by eighth-ranked middleweight  “Phenom” Vitor Belfort (18-8) in a 195-pound catchweight fight at UFC 103 in Dallas last September.

Maybe the term hiding is a bit harsh and slightly inaccurate but we will get into that later.

Sonnen was last seen inside the Octagon at UFC 109 where he shocked many in the mixed martial arts (MMA) world by putting on a very dominate performance in route to a win over fourth-ranked “The Great” Nate Marquardt (29-9-2). Nate was in line to get a shot at current Fighters.com and UFC middleweight champion “Spider” Anderson Silva (25-4) if he were to defeat eighth-ranked “Phenom” Vitor Belfort (18-8). Although according to reports from Tatame today, Vitor has injured his shoulder and looks to be out of the fight with Silva at UFC 112. As I write this Dana has just confirmed this fact.

Chael Sonnen derailed Nate’s title run and has now positioned himself as the top contender for the title. He is also a contender for the State Representative in House District 37.

Today’s major media still looks at mixed martial artists as thugs and neanderthals, bar brawlers if you will. This is always fought with mentioning fighters such as “Ace” Rich Franklin (26-5) who at one time was the UFC middleweight champion and has a masters degree and was a high school math teacher before becoming a full time fighter. Imagine the 180 the press would have to do, and men like Bob Arum, if Chael does what his training partner and friend came up just short of doing.

“The Law” Matt Lindland (21-7)recently ran in the last cycle and finished in second. Now we see another Team Quest fighter making a stand for Oregon.My problem is his lack of information on his site about his real carreer.

Sonnen is not offering up the information on his website devoted to his political career. While searching through www.votesonnen.com I found no mention of him as a fighter until the recently added video from “Fox and Friends” and this concerns me. Chael needs to find a way to incorporate his career in the UFC into his political aspirations. I know some will say he needs to separate them a bit so that he does not turn away potential voters who may feel MMA is barbaric but I think this is a way to show them that he is not a Gladiator in the Coliseum but a professional athlete who trains hard and is on the same level as any NBA or NFL star.

Chael Sonnen gaining a shot at the title only helps his political aspirations in my opinion and he could go a long way in helping to legitimize our sport in the eyes of the uninitiated.

Shields reminded Fighters.com of Welterweight Champion “Rush” Georges St. Pierre (19-2) during his relentless press on the mat versus Miller.  Of course, Shields doesn’t have St. Pierre’s striking skills, and no one is in Silva’s striking league.  But, Shields shows no pretense of fancying himself a striker either.

At the opening bell Saturday night, Shields put Miller right on his back.  Both fighters were working their game plan.  Shields is going to put every opponent on their back.  Knowing that, Miller relented and hoped to wear Shields out by going rag-doll while defending Shields’s submission attempts.  But, Shields never wore down Saturday night and walked away with a UD and the Strikeforce title.

Now, if Silva has an exploitable weakness, it’s been on his back.  Versus “Serial Killer” Travis Lutter (10-5) at UFC 67 in Las Vegas in February 2007, Lutter briefly took control of the fight from top position before wearing down and succumbing to Silva’s barrage of elbows.  Third-ranked “Hollywood” Dan Henderson (24-7) was the first UFC fighter to win a round versus Silva and he did it from top position in the first round at UFC 82 in Columbus in March 2008, before fancying himself a striker and getting knocked silly and choked out in the second round.  That mistake still stings Henderson to no end.

But, Shields wouldn’t make the mistake Henderson made versus Silva.  Nor would he be so intimidated to shoot like former UFC title challenger Thales Leites (14-3) was at UFC 97 in Montreal April 18 that he’d just lay down and invite Silva into his guard.  Shields would take the fight to Silva and put him on his back.

Obviously, that guarantees nothing at all.  Despite looking beatable on his back at times, Silva has always regained his superiority and won in the UFC.  However, it’s interesting to note that two of Silva’s losses in the mysterious time before he emerged as the greatest middleweight in MMA history were by triangle choke to Daiju Takase (7-12-1) at PRIDE 26 in Yokohama in June 2003 and by flying scissor heel hook to “Piranha” Ryo Chonan (16-10) at PRIDE Shockwave 2004 in Tokyo on New Year’s Eve 2004.

I’m not ready to predict that Shields would beat Silva.  Only that Shields has the best shot at beating Silva among the current field of top ten middleweights.

And that field thinned in November as previously ninth-ranked “Ace” Rich Franklin (26-5) dropped out of the top ten for the first time since Fighters.com began ranking divisions. In his place, and the place of previous perenial top tenner “Sexyama” Yoshihiro Akiyama (14-2) who also fell out of the rankings this month, “Ely” Paulo Filho (15-1) skipped up to the eighth spot, “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (8-2) moved into number nine, and “Phenom” Vitor Belfort (18-8) claimed the final position.

Third-ranked “Hollywood” Dan Henderson (25-7), fourth-ranked “Great” Nate Marquardt (29-8-2), fifth-ranked “Dreamcatcher” Gegard Mousasi (23-2-1), sixth-ranked Demian Maia (10-1), and seventh-ranked Chael Sonnen (23-10-1) all held steady.

Fighters.com’s November Middleweight Rankings

1. “Spider” Anderson Silva (25-4)

2. Jake Shields (24-4-1)

3. “Hollywood” Dan Henderson (25-7)

4. “Great” Nate Marquardt (29-8-2)

5. “Dreamcatcher” Gegard Mousasi (23-2-1)

6. Demian Maia (10-1)

7. Chael Sonnen (23-10-1)

8. “Ely” Paulo Filho (15-1)

9. “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (8-2)

10. “Phenom” Vitor Belfort (18-8)

Belfort earned the title shot by upsetting ninth-ranked “Ace” Rich Franklin (26-5) in just over three minutes in a 195-pound catch weight bout at UFC 103 in Dallas September 19.  Due to the catch weight, the victory over Franklin doesn’t earn Belfort a ranking in Fighters.com’s middleweight top ten.

After former champ Cung Le (6-0) stepped aside to focus on another film role, second-ranked Jake Shields (23-4-1) will fight for the vacant Strikeforce 185-pound title versus “Mayhem” Jason Miller (22-5) in Chicago November 7.

Seventh-ranked Chael Sonnen (22-10-1) will fight “Thunder” Yushin Okami (23-4) on the untelevised undercard of UFC 104 in Los Angeles October 24.  Fighters.com thinks it’s outrageous to relegate this battle of contenders to the untelevised undercard.

Tenth-ranked “Sexyama” Yoshihiro Akiyama (14-2) is rumored to follow-up his victorious UFC debut versus “The Talent” Alan Belcher (14-6) at UFC 100 in Las Vegas July 11 versus tenth-ranked light heavyweight “Axe Murderer” Wanderlei Silva (33-10-1) at UFC 108.  Silva will be debuting at middleweight.

Third-ranked “Hollywood” Dan Henderson (24-7) is a free agent and in negotiations to return to the UFC, but Hendo’ told Sherdog negotiations aren’t going well.

Fourth-ranked “Great” Nate Marquardt (29-8-2) and Hendo’ will probably fight for the next UFC title shot if Henderson and the UFC can agree to a contract soon.

Fifth-ranked “Dreamcatcher” Gegard Mousasi (22-2-1) has stated he won’t return to the middleweight division and now holds the Strikeforce light heavyweight title; but, Fighters.com has met Mousasi and he’s a small 205er.  If Mousasi decides to compete at the top of the 205-pound division, he’ll be at a severe disadvantage.

Sixth-ranked Demian Maia (10-1) will look to rebound soon from his first-round KO loss to Marquardt at UFC 102 in Portland August 30.

Eighth-ranked Dan Miller (11-2) is recovering from an injury which kept him from fighting “Doberman” CB Dollaway (8-2) at UFC Fight Night 19 in Oklahoma City September 19.

Franklin is in limbo after losing to Belfort and continues to contemplate his future at 185- and 205-pounds.

Fighters.com October Middleweight Rankings

1. “Spider” Anderson Silva (25-4)

2. Jake Shields (23-4-1)

3. “Hollywood” Dan Henderson (24-7)

4. “Great” Nate Marquardt (29-8-2)

5. “Dreamcatcher” Gegard Mousasi (22-2-1)

6. Demian Maia (10-1)

7. Chael Sonnen (22-10-1)

8. Dan Miller (11-2)

9. “Ace” Rich Franklin (26-5)

10. “Sexyama” Yoshihiro Akiyama (14-2)

“Jesus, I love you,” shouted Belfort in the Octagon after the fight, and in his dressing room he added,  “God gave me a gift and I’m using it.  And, I’m ready.  A lot of people thought I was done, you know, and that’s what I’m bringing to this game – hope, faith, and hard work.

In Dallas, Franklin’s disastrous strategy most evidently handed Belfort his fifth straight victory since losing a UD to “Hollywood” Dan Henderson (25-7) at PRIDE 32 in Las Vegas in 2006.  The usually cool as a cucumber Franklin pawed impatiently at Belfort with his right jab, leaving himself exposed to Belfort’s quick hands.

“First round, you have to feel your opponent, see where he are,” explained Belfort post-fight.  “I saw he was kind of rushed trying to pace the fight.  And then, I was just taking my time.”

One lunging Franklin jab too many and the quick-handed former UFC champion dropped Franklin with a grazing counter left hook and pushing right hook.

“I just listen to all my coaches,” said Belfort.  “They were saying, ‘Find your distance and throw.’”

Franklin fell to his knees, face down; and, Belfort crammed another left hook into Franklin’s jaw.  Franklin’s body limped up; and, referee Yves Lavigne pushed Belfort off Franklin.

Though Belfort and Franklin fought at 195 pounds, Belfort’s last several wins were earned in the middleweight division.  He now finds himself contending with Henderson and “Great” Nate Marquardt (29-8-2) for a title shot against Fighters.com Middleweight Champion “Spider” Anderson Silva (25-4).

Franklin falls to 1-2 in his last three and remains without a clear future at either middleweight or light heavyweight.  “Losing wasn’t part of my plan,” Franklin admitted after the loss.  “So I’m just going to have to let the dust settle and figure out what’s going on.”

In the co-main event, heavyweight prospect “Cigano” Junior dos Santos (9-1) forced once-feared “Cro Cop” Mirko Filipovic (25-8-2) to quit at 2:00 of round three after a dos Santos straight right blinded Filipovic.

Though Filipovic overpowered the larger “Cigano” in the clinch in the first two rounds and connected a smattering of straights that left a healthy mouse beneath dos Santos’s left eye, “Cro Cop” phoned in another jittery performance in the Octagon. 

“My game is to move forward and be attacking at all times,” “Cigano” described after the fight.

When dos Santos advanced whipping combos at “Cro Cop”, “Cro Cop” backpedaled and threw his hands out to halt dos Santos’s advance.  Though Filipovic’s defensive strategy had the sophistication of a playground brawl, it actually kept the fight within reach for two rounds.

In round three though, dos Santos connected an uppercut beneath Filipovic’s defensive tactic and unloaded an assault of knee strikes to Filipovic’s body and head, until a knee to Filipovic’s body in the clinch against the fence opened “Cro Cop” up for the punch that left him blinded and waving off the fight.

“I’m here to finish fights,” proclaimed dos Santos after the third win during his 11-month UFC career.
 
Welterweight “Semtex” Paul Daley (19-9-2) TKO’d Xtreme Couture’s “Hitman” Martin Kampmann (15-3) at 2:31 of round one in Daley’s UFC debut.  Daley staggered Kampmann with a left hook, sending Kampmann reeling to the cage.  Another left hook clammed Kampmann up as Daley teed off in the barrage of punches that ended Kampmann’s night.  Referee Yves Lavigne stepped in to stop the fight while Kampmann was still on his feet.

“I was saying to myself at the beginning of the fight, standing across the cage from him, ‘I’m going to knock you out.  I’m going to knock you out,’” Daley said after the fight.  “I just kept repeating it in my head.  ‘I’m going to knock you out.  I’m going to knock you out.’  I stood there looking at him thinking, ‘I’m going to knock you out.’  And, there you go.”

American Kickboxing Academy welterweight Josh Koscheck (13-4) TKO’d “Twinkle Toes” Frank Trigg (19-7) with a straight right at 1:25 of round one as Trigg clutched the cage.  Trigg dropped to the mat and Koscheck followed-up with two right hands before the referee stepped in.

After the victory, Koscheck announced, “I know there’s a guy who just signed a new contract.  His name is Matt Hughes. I’ve been asking for that for a long time.”

Xtreme Couture lightweight Tyson Griffin (14-2) TKO’d Hermes Franca (19-8) at 3:26 of round two.  Griffin crumpled Franca with a straight right, then pounced in a flurry while dodging Franca’s submission attempts until Griffin landed flush to end the fight on the mat.

Lightweight Efrain Escudero (8-0) TKO’d American Top Team’s “Magrinho” Cole Miller (15-3) at 3:36 of round one.

Middleweight “Gorilla” Tomas Drwal (17-2) tapped out Miletich Fighting Systems’ “Massacre” Drew McFedries (8-6) in a guillotine choke at 1:03 of round two.

Lightweight “Mongoose” Jim Miller (15-2) won a TKO 45-seconds into round two when Steve Lopez (2-2) injured his shoulder in his Octagon debut.

Lightweight “Carny” Nik Lentz (14-3-1) won a three-round unanimous decision over “Tractor” Rafaello Oliveira (8-2).

Welterweight Rick Story (6-2) tapped out Brian Foster (12-4) in an arm triangle at 1:09 of the second round.

Light heavyweight Eliot Marshall (7-1) won a three-round split decision over “Hitman” Jason Brilz (17-2-1).

Light heavyweight “Janitor” Vladimir Matyushenko (23-4) won a three-round unanimous decision over Igor Pokrajac (14-6).

Lightweight Rafael Dos Anjos (13-3) won a three-round unanimous decision over “Saint” Rob Emerson (9-8).

Franklin will fight “Phenom” Vitor Belfort (17-8) in the main event at UFC 103 in Dallas Saturday, the third consecutive opponent whose name is as big as Franklin’s in MMA.

The story titled “Franklin prepares for UFC 103″ can be read at Cincinnati.com.

Edward’s interview with Franklin was video recorded and will be posted exclusively at Fighters.com Tuesday night.

Franklin will fight “Phenom” Vitor Belfort (17-8) in the main event at UFC 103 in Dallas Saturday.

UFC 103 will begin at 6:30 PM local time at the American Airlines Arena in Dallas 19 September and tickets starting at $50 are available at Ticketmaster. UFC 103 will be broadcast on pay-per-view beginning at 10:PM EST and Fighters.com post live results after each fight.

Belfort will replace “Hollywood” Dan Henderson (25-7) who defeated Franklin by split decision at UFC 93 in Dublin 17 January. White indicated fan disappointment with the Hendo’ v Franklin rematch as cause for the switch.

The fight will be contested at 205 pounds, neither Franklin nor Belfort’s best weight.

Belfort knocked out “The Law” Matt Lindland (21-6) in 37 seconds at Affliction in Anaheim 24 January and was scheduled to match-up versus Sengoku middleweight champion Jorge Santiago (21-7) in Anaheim Saturday before Affliction cancelled their third event and closed up shop on promoting.

Franklin took a UD over “Axe Murderer” Wanderlei Silva (33-10-1) in a 195-pound catchweight match-up at UFC 99 in Cologne 13 June.

FIghters.com: Jorge, your scheduled to fight at UFC 91.  This event is being hyped by the industry insiders as a UFC card with potential to set record pay-per-view sales.  What’s your thoughts on being part of this event?

Jorge Gurgel: To be honest.  It’s a huge honor to be part of the UFC.  Period.  My dream in life has always been to be part of the UFC and fight in the UFC.  As far as the event being the highest pay-per-view event ever, for me it’s just another fight.  You know, there’s so much on the line for fighters now days.  Every performance counts. The next fight is the most important fight every time.   My job is always on the line. I am very focused on my fight and my teammate’s fights: Dustin Hazelett and Kenny Florian.  I am worried about our performances and how the three of us are going to do and then everything else will take care of itself. 

FIghters.com: Your opponent, Aaron Riley, is coming off two straight wins; but, it’s his first fight in the UFC since 2006.  Do you think Riley’s time away from the Octagon plays to your advantage?

Jorge Gurgel: No, I do not.  I think Aaron Riley is a very, very tough opponent.  I think Aaron Riley is a very seasoned fighter.  He has fought Robbie Lawler at 170 pounds.  He has fought Spencer Fisher.  So, Aaron Riley returning to the UFC because he has so much experience makes absolutely no difference in the way he is going to perform.  You know, he’s got almost forty fights.  Wherever Aaron fights it really makes no difference.  It’s not like he is going to have first fight jitters returning to the UFC.  If anything it’s going to make him fight harder and better.

FIghters.com: Several months ago it was revealed within a UFC blog that you wanted to change training routines and start a new camp under Mark DellaGrotte.  Is Mark DellaGrotte part of your training for the upcoming fight at UFC 91?

Jorge Gurgel: Yes, I am here in Boston right now.  I’ve been training here in Boston for a while.  It’s been one of my goals to accomplish.  I have such a good strength and conditioning coach now too.  Kevin Kerns trains me and he also trains Nate Quarry, Kenny Florian, and Kurt Pellegrino.  I’m in good hands, man.

I live here in Boston in the gym right now.  I am living totally Rocky Balboa style. [laughing]  You know, with Mark Dellegrotte, I’ve got great training partners now.  I’ve got Kenny Florian here.  And Kevin goes out of his way to come get me because I don’t have a car here and he trains me three days per week at Studio Sityodtong.  And, I also work with Mark Dellegrotte and the entire Studio Sityodtong team at night.  So, I really feel this is the best camp I’ve ever had.  I am really happy to be here.

FIghters.com: You have been deemed a warrior following the epic fight at UFC 73 against Diego Saraiva (12-18-1) where you won following a broken jaw and, of course, you were later hospitalized due to injuries.  As a professional mixed martial artist, do you believe in the concept of heart carrying a wounded fighter through to victory?

Jorge Gurgel: You know what, I do believe in heart, but if I say it in front of my trainers they will yell at me. Marcus Davis is one of my best friends; and, he and Mark Dellegrotte have been trying to beat it into my head that everyone already knows I have heart.  And, Kenny Florian as well. 

You know, Kenny is in my weight class but he’s also a great friend.  And, he says, “Jorge, nobody questions whether you have heart.  Everybody knows you are one of the toughest guys out there.  You’re tough and you fight with a lot of heart.  Now it’s time for you to show them you can fight smart.” 

It’s my biggest challenge.  I understand my heart and my desire to win.  I understand my will to get out there and trade blow for blow to prove who’s got the biggest heart.  To win fights this way has earned me victories and fans, but it doesn’t carry me or give me longevity in the sport.  Let’s put it this way.  If I had to corner myself, I would have a heart attack. [laughing]  I corner a lot of people properly.  I corner eight or nine UFC fighters.  You’ll see me in people’s corners all the time.  But, if I had to corner Jorge Gurgel, I would probably walk out in the middle of the fight and say, “You, I am done with you.  I am not calling you any more because you are as dumb as it gets.”  [laughing] 

I am a very emotional fighter and I have too much fun and I tend to amend gameplans and then go to slug it out and fight with my heart only.  And, I am really trying to change this and learn from DelleGrotte and Kevin and the entire camp here.  You know, to fight smart and implement a gameplan so I can have longevity in my career.  Everybody knows I have heart and I fight hard; but, now I want to prove to them that I can follow a gameplan, be a coachable fighter and to fight smart. 

FIghters.com: Jorge, you were upset recently by Cole Miller (14-3) of American Top Team at UFC 86.  But you were highly favored going into that fight.  What did you learn from this loss?

Jorge Gurgel: Hey, I really won that fight.  But, I messed up.  I am not sure who it was or which philosopher said it originally, but you know the one who said, “Shit happens?”

The only thing that came out of that fight for me is that I believe shit does happen.  Because I was ahead on the scorecards.  But it took me one split second of losing focus to lose the fight.  I don’t know what happened to me.  I was dominating the fight.  I was 100% confident that I was the best mentally and physically that I’d ever been walking into a fight before.  Many say it was my best performance to date in the UFC. 

But, with fourteen seconds left in the fight, I got caught in a triangle and I never get caught in triangles.  Not even in practice do I get caught in triangles.  It’s just one of those things where people say, “tough break.”  It was all I heard all night from the UFC and the fans: “Tough break man, tough break.  Shit happens, shit happens.” 

I tried to get up and I slipped off of my right foot and made the triangle tighter and I remember thinking the whole time, ‘This is not happening, this is not happening.  I am going to get out of here.  This is not happening.’

But, then the triangle started getting tighter and tighter.  And, my family was there.  You know, it was the first time in my life I have ever become depressed.  I really felt depressed afterward.  It was really hard for me.  The best person to put things in perspective was my stepfather.  He’s a huge fan and it was the first time my parents had ever come to see me fight.  So this made the loss extra hard on me. 

My stepfather walked up to me after the fight, looked me in the eyes, and said, “Jorge, this is the first time in my life I have seen a fighter win and lose a fight in the same fight.”

I couldn’t say anything back for a minute.  I looked down at the ground and then I said, “You’re right Dad, you’re right.  I am sorry.  I don’t know what to say.  You know, I don’t know how that happened.” 

Rich Franklin came up to me and said, “Jorge the whole time until the last second I was saying you were going to get out.  Jorge never gets caught.” 

But, I did get caught.  I simply got caught.  I had one second of losing focus and I got caught in a triangle. More power to Cole Miller; but, up until that moment, I had control of the fight.  I think it doesn’t matter. Shit happens and I am over it now.  I am ready to move on to bigger and tougher challenges and to see how I do.  To see how much better and smarter I have gotten. 

FIghters.com: Speaking of Fighters.com’s second-ranked middleweight “Ace” Rich Franklin (25-3) and being an Ohio resident yourself and one of Rich’s training partners, what did you think of the fight between Franklin and “Hammer” Matt Hamill (4-2) at UFC 88?

Jorge Gurgel: That was great.  I like Matt.  You know, obviously Rich is my best friend.  I am always happy to see Rich perform and Rich win.  For some reason when I talked to Matt’s camp they were very upset that Matt Hamill didn’t perform.  They kept saying, ”Matt Hamill did not fight the Matt Hamill fight.”  But, what can we say?  Matt tried to do his thing; but, it’s very hard against Rich.

People underestimate Rich’s ground game tremendously.  It may be easy to take him down sometimes, but it is very hard to keep him there.  And, Rich keeps them going.  He’s a cardio machine.  He hit Matt Hamill with the right body shot.  Rich was like a robot.  I was very impressed how Matt Hume was calling the shots; and, Rich was very smart hearing everything Matt [Hume] was saying.  Rich implemented a gameplan perfectly, like Matt Hume said, and was able to put Matt Hamill away.  I was very happy.  There is nothing I’ll take away from that fight.  I think Rich fought a very, very good fight and came out with a good victory.

FIghters.com: What’s your assessment of Franklin’s upcoming fight against fifth-ranked “Hollywood” Dan Henderson (23-7) at UFC 93 in Dublin 17 January?

Jorge Gurgel: I have a lot of respect for Dan Henderson.  So does Rich.  I’m sure he will say the same.  Rich has a bit more size because the fight will be taking place at 205 pounds.  Dan Henderson is always extremely dangerous.  But, we know his weapons.  We know he’s a great wrestler and he has a great overhand right.  It’s no secret to anybody.  All I can say is that Rich is going to be ready.  We’ll all be together in Ireland hopefully witnessing another Rich Franklin victory.

FIghters.com: SInce 2005, we have seen the rise and stardom of numerous alumni from Spike TV’s The Ultimate Fighter reality show.  At UFC 92, two former winners of the show will fight for the UFC and Fighters.com light heavyweight championship.   What’s your personal take on the show where you also once starred yourself and it’s impact on the sport of mixed martial arts?

Jorge Gurgel: I will tell you the truth here and I might really shoot myself in the foot.  I thought the show was great up until maybe the third season or so.  But, now I don’t like to watch it at all.  I was always under the impression that being a professional martial artist is a full-time job.  And, every time some ignorant person comes in off the street and says, “Well, I got out of high school and I got a scholarship to wrestle in college; and, after that, it was either get a regular job or fight for the UFC.”  That makes me sick.  It’s ridiculous. 

I think fighting is a full-time job.  I think we should be seen as professionals too.  You know, people that give up a lot and sacrifice to make this a full-time job to be able to support their families.  But, lately I think the show has really watered down the values and everything that martial arts is all about.  We train hard.  But now on the show, there’s no Kenny Florian, no Forrest Griffin, and no me. 

You know, there was no breaking furniture and spray painting walls and throwing barbecue sets into the swimming pool when I was on the show.  Where I come from, that stuff costs money.  Where I come from, people have to work for food.  But, now I see a bunch of wannabes.  People that want to fight for the wrong reasons.  People that are on television to get a free Tapout shirt and some airtime.  They are not fighters. You know, people that really want to become fighters will collect the dividends of hard work in the long run. People that experience success too early will not. 

Many of the people on the show now don’t deserve to be there or don’t belong to be there and they are giving the UFC the very name that the UFC is trying to avoid.  You know, a bad reputation of punks, for lack of a better word, or uneducated people that don’t have the opportunity or the ability to get a good regular job and then decide to fight in the cage or Octagon instead.  The show does not portray a true and honest image of mixed martial artists.  The show does not do that at all. 

Now days there’s always an episode where somebody quits.  Then there’s the episode where the contestants talk badly to one another in the house.  There’s always episodes where they play pranks on each other too. There’s the episode where everyone gets in a fight in the backyard because they’re all drunk.  Then there was that episode once, of course, where the guy left the show because of his girlfriend.  [laughing]  There’s always the episode where the coaches argue with each other.  And, there is always an episode where a guy cannot make weight! 

So, everything is already pretty much staged. Every season there’s episodes where we already know what is going to happen.  It’s just a different set of people in the same episode happening over and over and over. 

Originally, I started martial arts in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu to do two things only: to test myself as a person in one-on-one combat against another person and to honor my school and my teacher.  To honor the school, where I came from, was important.  Now, the UFC has been going overboard in great, great lengths and in big places; but, the marketing that the reality show is putting out there and the way this show is being portrayed disgusts me.  It makes us professional fighters look like schmucks.  It makes the guys who really want to be “ultimate fighters” look stupid.  And, like I said, besides the first three seasons of the show, I think show has gone down tremendously and I do not care for it at all. 

FIghters.com: Some people say that there’s a bit of irony in the fact that UFC President Dana White predicts that by 2012 the sport of MMA will be a contemporary to organized sports such as football, baseball, and soccer.  While at the same time there are organizations such as EliteXC involved in questionable practices and equally questionable marketing campaigns.  Do you also find it ironic when Dana White criticizes EliteXC while similar controversies occur on The Ultimate Fighter television show?

Jorge Gurgel: Yeah, but there’s a big difference between the two.  And, I do not want to be misquoted here. EliteXC is literally doing wrong and shady things in the sport of mixed martial arts on live television.  But, the TUF show is just a TV show.  Just a reality television show.  They are two different things completely. 

On a reality show, regardless of whether it’s associated with mixed martial arts, it’s a situation where anything can happen and will probably happen.  Those TUF guys are going to do some crazy things eventually when put in front of a camera all day.  Those guys are going to fight at some point. 

You know, “Hey, let’s put itching powder in each other’s beds because we are thirty-years old and we have nothing better to do. Yay!”  [laughing]  “Let’s  go ahead and freeze each other’s underwear and open cans of sardines and put the juice on everyone’s beds.  Let’s throw somebody in the pool and fight and get drunk all night.  Yay!” 

Now, that’s reality television.  And, for the average American or whatever, that appeals to them, I guess.  But, at EliteXC there’s nothing worse than the joke of Kimbo Slice“.  A guy that got famous fighting in the streets of Miami for money, beating up people on the Internet, and he becomes huge, huge MMA figure.  A figure of mixed martial arts?  A representative of our sport?  Selling fights and making sponsorship money from Tapout and getting paid $500,000 to fight?  And, with no real training?  Come on, I have been fighting for fifteen years. 

FIghters.com: What about the rumors of EliteXC’s fight-rigging and those sort of controversies?

Jorge Gurgel: Yeah, well, if you knew me better you’d know that I am the least educated person when it comes to the Internet.  I don’t read the forums.  I do not read my interviews.  I mean, I give interviews, but I usually don’t read them afterward and often forget what I’ve said.  [laughing]

But, I do know that Seth Petruzelli opened his mouth and said EliteXC were offering him bonuses to keep the fight standing.  I do not doubt this for one second.  EliteXC was living off of the myth of Kimbo Slice.  Did you see the fight when Seth hit Kimbo close to the back of the head with one punch and that guy, whatever his name is, I think Shaw or whatever it is, the guy in charge of EliteXC, he was screaming, “In the back of the head ref, the back of the head!”

FIghters.com: Yes, it was Jared Shaw who is the son of Gary Shaw and a vice-president at EliteXC. 

Jorge Gurgel: Yeah, it became a joke.  Do you remember the next day?  On the front page of Yahoo it said something like: “Kimbo Slice has been exposed” or something like that. “The big lie has been exposed” or whatever it was. 

I think we both agree here.  I’m an advocate for martial arts.  I try to represent the sport as well as I can.  I have thirteen schools.  I have over 400 students.  I try to lead by example.  I hate with a passion anyone who takes mixed martial arts for granted or approaches this sport in a manner that’s not professional. 

So again, long story short, EliteXC and the TUF show, I do not care for whatsoever.  Of course, there are some exceptions.  There are some fighters there that absolutely want to be there and deserve to be there.  You can see the fighters that want to make it and want to do something for themselves.  And, then there’s the other majority of fighters that do not belong there.  They are only there to get a free t-shirt and some air time. 

The EliteXC situation and what’s coming out and what they are doing is totally unethical and unprofessional.  I disagree with it completely.  I just want the sport of mixed martial arts — which is the career that I chose for myself — to be a sincere and honest as I dreamt it was going to be when I was a kid.  So, a lot of this stuff frustrates me.  A lot of this hurts me tremendously.  But, I am just one person.  I can’t change everything.  And, I cannot make things change and make my opinions count.  I have to worry about my fights and my students and then carry on. 

FIghters.com: Earlier you mentioned the old honor of the martial arts school and martial arts teachers.  Do you think that old spirit or those sort of ethics will ever become status quo in modern mixed martial arts?

Jorge Gurgel: It will never come back.  I tell everybody that the next person I will actually spend my time teaching those values to will be my children when I have my own children.  I do have people like Dustin Hazelett, which is pretty much like my own son.  He’s my blackbelt and a UFC standout.  And, I have my other students that give it a try and train hard and that they believe in what I say.  When I speak they are there to listen to me.  And they are there to understand that I have been doing this for many years.  That I was born and raised in the art of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, honoring my school and my teacher.  And also being respectful and being loyal.  Loyalty is everything.  But, now many people just want to sign up one day the the very next day they want to fight. 

“When can I fight?  When can I fight?  Can I fight now, Jorge?” 

This is not how things are supposed to be.  Things have really changed.  The sport of mixed martial arts has given me the opportunity to live a very good lifestyle.  I own a school.  I have a great house, a good car, and food on my table.  It’s given me the opportunity to fight for a living and get paid accordingly for my hard work.  But at the same time, the values have been extremely watered down.  And that hurts my heart tremendously because I remember how things used to be.  But now they are far, far, far from what they once were and I don’t think it’ll ever be back like it used to be again.  Ever.

But, that’s not explicitly what UFC President Dana White told The Sun 17 Octoberin the report that first announced that Bisping and either Hendo’ or “Ace” would coach on the ninth season of The Ultimate Fighter.

In fact, White promised The Sunthat Bisping would coach TUF 9 “win, lose or draw” versus “Crippler” Chris Leben (18-5) at UFC 89 in Birmingham 18 October.

It doesn’t make sense that Bisping would earn a fight versus either currently ranked and historically relevant mixed martial artist, Henderson or Franklin, if he drew or lost versus popular, but unranked Leben.

Does it?

Franklin’s agent, J.T. Stewart, agreed with Fighters.com, saying, “Doesn’t make sense to me either.”

Why match two ranked fighters at a higher weight division than they’re currently fighting in, only to match the winner in a gatekeeper role in the division the UFC just moved them out of?

In fact, Franklin told Fighters.com before his “W” in the 205-pound division over “Hammer” Matt Hamill (4-2) at UFC 88 in Atlanta 6 September that the UFC asked him to move to light heavyweight specifically because he wasn’t going to get match-ups versus middleweight contenders because he was likely to spoil title fights for Middleweight Champion “Spider” Anderson Silva (23-4), who has already beat Franklin twice and Henderson once.

A loyal and model UFC soldier, Franklin has accepted his assignment and set out on a new training routine aimed at filling out his frame for the 205-pound division.

It’s plain unfair to ask Franklin or Henderson to reverse course and drop back to 185-pounds to vet Bisping for a title shot versus Silva.

That doesn’t mean it’s not going to happen, especially in light of the quick rise from TUF to top of Light Heavyweight Champion Forrest Griffin (16-4) and fourth-ranked “Sugar” Rashad Evans (12-0-1).

When asked specifically if Franklin was going to fight Bisping if he beats Hendo’, Stewart only responded, “Who knows…,” then added, “Rich will not answer any questions that have anything to do with a future fight other than the fight that is in front of him.”

No.  A better match-up for Bisping is “Athlete” Jason MacDonald(21-10).  Let’s brush the haze of over-hype from our eyes and realize that MacDonald is right where Bisping is at in the 185-pound division.

Bisping is a quickly developing prospect; but, Franklin or Henderson are both too much, too fast for the Brit.  Bisping would lose and set back a possible title shot 18 months to two years.  That would screech to a halt the best thing the UFC’s got going for it in the U.K.

Bisping has been near tappingto “King of Rock’n'Rumble” Elvis Sinosic (8-11-2) and “Chainsaw” Charles McCarthy(10-5).  Bisping beat both fighters handily – as he should’ve – but, that hole remains in Bisping’s game ready to be exploited.

Enter MacDonald, a helluva slick submission grappler who has only lost in the Octagon to the 185-pound division’s contenders: Franklin, sixth-ranked “Thunder” Yushin Okami (22-4), and Demian Maia(8-0).  Also worth mentioning, MacDonald was able to stop Leben in the second round at UFC 66 while Bisping could only manage a unanimous decision over Leben at UFC 89.

But, MacDonald has always had trouble with slick stand-up games like Bisping’s.

MacDonald is the best match-up for Bisping right now, not Franklin or Henderson; and, Bisping v MacDonald could be set-up in time for UFC 93.

Make this fight!

“Win, lose or draw [versus "Crippler" Chris Leben (18-4) at UFC 89 Saturday], Michael Bisping will coach the UK team on TUF 9,” White said, then added, “We’re looking at Henderson or Franklin to be the American coach on TUF 9.”

UFC 93 is scheduled for Dublin 17 January.

Franklin coached on TUF 2 in 2005.  His team included heavyweight winner and now fourth-ranked light heavyweight “Sugar” Rashad Evans (12-0-1), who will challenge Fighters.com’s Champion Forrest Griffin (16-4) for the title in Franklin’s new weight class in Las Vegas 27 December.

Franklin successfully returned to 205 pounds with a TKO over “Hammer” Matt Hamill (4-2) in Atlanta 6 September after falling twice to Middleweight Champion “Spider” Anderson Silva (22-4).

Henderson will return to 205 pounds after splitting two fights at middleweight, a submission loss to Silva and, most recently, a UD over “Toquinho” Rousimar Palhares (8-2) in Atlanta.

Henderson wore belts at light heavyweight and middleweight in PRIDE when the promotion was bought by Zuffa, LLC., parent company of the UFC, in March 2007.

Bisping, who now fights at middleweight, was the light heavyweight winner of TUF 3 in 2006.

Tryouts for TUF 9 will be held in London 20 October and Chicago 27 October.

Now, the fight to take place in Dublin 17 January, poses less noble questions about fighters at pivotal points in their careers.

“Rich Franklin v Dan Henderson is a battle between two great former champions who are both looking to get another chance to wear a world title around their waist,” said Dana White, UFC President.  “These are two fan favorites with a lot of pride on the line as they want to show that they are still among the very best fighters in the world.”

Hendo’ has repeatedly stated he prefers to fight at 205 pounds and had to be pushed back to 185 pounds to defend his PRIDE title versus Middleweight Champion “Spider” Anderson Silva (22-4).  Henderson lost by second-round rear naked choke submission.

Franklin, however, is a reluctant light heavyweight pushed into the division after losing twice to Silva at middleweight.

The fight was offered to both fighters at middleweight on short-notice to replace the main event at UFC 85 in June, but Franklin declined the fight, concerned he couldn’t peak in time.

Franklin returned to 205 with a TKO of “Hammer” Matt Hamill (4-2) in Atlanta 6 September.

On the same card, Hendo’ broke a two-fight losing streak with a tepid UD over “Toquinho” Rousimar Palhares (8-2), his first win in the Octagon in 10 years.

Trigg also welcomed a son, Stone, to his family in September.  Congratulations from Fighters.com.

The remainder of the Middleweight Top Ten was on holiday last month…well, at least at middleweight.

Top contender “Ace” Rich Franklin (23-3) made a successful return to light heavyweight in Atlanta 6 September.  He remains wishy-washy about his future in either division.

But, before Franklin could move-up to 205, Fighters.com’s Middleweight Champion “Spider” Anderson Silva (22-4) beat him there.  Franklin must wonder whether Silva is going to move to Cincinnati and start teaching high school math too.

Silva is preparing to defend his Fighters.com and UFC titles versus “Predator” Patrick Cote (13-4) in Chicago 25 October.

Third-ranked “Ely” Paulo Filho‘s (16-0) WEC title defense versus Chael Sonnen (20-9-1) was postponed from tonight to 5 November due to Hurrican Ike.

Fourth-ranked EliteXC champ “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (16-4) is rumored to be considering a rematch versus Joey Villasenor (26-6), whom Lawler KO’d in 22 seconds in 2006.

Seventh-ranked “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (9-1) will fight “Benkei” Zelg Galesic in DREAM’s Middleweight GP semi-final in Saitama 23 September, then, if Souza wins, the winner of Gegard Mousasi (22-2-1) versus “Marvelous” Melvin Manhoef (22-4-1) in the final the same night.

Ninth-ranked “Grabaka Hitman” Kazuo Misaki (20-8-2) will fight “Diesel” Joe Riggs (28-10) in Beverly Hills, north of Los Angeles, 20 September.

Fifth-ranked Yoshihiro Akiyama (11-1), sixth-ranked “Thunder” Yushin Okami (22-4), nor tenth-ranked “Mayhem” Jason Miller (20-5) have fights on their dockets.

September Middleweight Rankings

1. “Spider” Anderson Silva (22-4)

“Spider” fights like he’s hacked the matrix, making top-tier opponents look like they’re clumsily swatting at a web. In March he choked out former PRIDE champ Hendo’. His two-year record has both volume and quality with a “W” next to each challenger.

2. “Ace” Rich Franklin (23-3)

Despite two stoppages to Silva, Franklin is still the best of the rest, even according to Silva himself. “Ace” finessed from a Travis Lutter armbar to pick the TUF champ apart in April and outwrestled notoriously powerful Okami for a decision last year.

3. “Ely” Paulo Filho (16-0)

Filho’s perfect rap sheet lists solid foes, but only an ’06 KO of Misaki among top-tenners. Chael Sonnen gave him hell in a controversial stoppage, but Filho missed the March rematch. A strong comeback in the November rematch will solidify Filho’s ranking.

4. “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (16-4)

“Ruthless” rides a five-fight “W” streak since being choked out by Miller in ’06, including a KO of Trigg and stoppages of solid fighters Scott Smith, Murilo Rua, and Joey Villasenor.

5. Yoshihiro Akiyama (11-1)

The Zainichi judoka ran the gauntlet of weight-mismatched spectacles before bursting into 185-pound contention with a KO of Denis Kang. Akiyama drew Misaki on NYE, but the the result was a NC. He choked out Katsuyori Shibata in his July comeback.

6. “Thunder” Yushin Okami (22-4)

Okamihas been most active among the top ten in the last two years and comes off a knockout of former UFC champ, the late Evan Tanner.  His only UFC loss was to Franklin, but could’ve conceivably been a “W” had he went after “Ace” before the final two minutes.

7. “Twinkle Toes” Frank Trigg (17-6)

With all Trigg does, you may have missed his comeback at middleweight the last two years, starting with a TKO of Miller and a UD over Misaki. Lawler iced him at Icon, but he’s returned with a quick stoppage of Edwin Dewees and UD of Makoto Takimoto.

8. “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (9-1)

“Jacare” finally fulfilled the hype surrounding the BJJ world champion by overwhelming Miller on the way to a UD in June, but besides “Mayhem” his record needs bolstered with two big wins to take the DREAM GP.

9. “Grabaka Hitman” Kazuo Misaki (20-8-2)

Misaki has made successful hits on Denis Kang and Hendo’, but also dropped decisions to Trigg and Hendo’ and a stoppage to Filho. Regardless, he’s won and lost among the division’s best, and may have added a “W” versus Akiyama if PRIDE rules ruled K-1.

10. “Mayhem” Jason Miller (20-5)

Always entertaining “Mayhem” has thrown in a stoppage over Lawler, a stoppage by Trigg, and a lost decision to Souza into a mixed bag of competition the last two years.

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.

Franklin took a deep cut over his right eye from a Hamill uppercut in the first round.  In the second round, Yamasaki asked a referee to take a look at the cut.

“I’m walking around with a black eye already; so, it wasn’t too bad,” Franklin said of the cut after the fight.

The fight continued; and, Hamill chose to stand with “Ace” after several takedown attempts were resisted.

Of his new weight class, Franklin said, “Cutting weight this week was awesome; but, pushing around another 20 pounds wasn’t.”

Marquardt Kayos Kampmann

Middleweight Nathan Marquardt (27-8-2) quickly KO’d kickboxer “Hitman” Martin Kampmann (13-2) at 1:22 of round one Saturday night in Atlanta.

After the fight, Marquardt said, “I knew I was better and, though he was a kickboxer, I knew I could take him standing.”

Marquardt connected early with a right head kick that plopped Kampmann on his ass.  Kampmann bounced back up, but ate Marquardt’s straights while backpedaling to cage.  At the fence, Marquardt dug an uppercut into Kampmann’s chin.  Kampmann fell and the fight was stopped.

Pellegrino Brutalizes Tavares

Before Saturday night, only two fighters had ever defeated lightweight Brazilian Thiago Tavares (13-3).  “Batman” Kurt Pellegrino (12-4) beat him twice in Atlanta.

Officially, the judges scored the unanimous decision 29-27 twice and 29-8, all for Pellegrino.

Pellegrino won a 10-8 first round on two score cards, dropping Tavares with a flush right hook and crackling uppercut.  On the mat, Pellegrino’s elbows opened up cuts on each of Tavares’s temples and under his righ eyelid.

In the second round, the only round Tavares won (paritally due to an inadvertant eye poke by Tavares), Pellegrino squeezed an armbar from his back; and, Tavares appeared to tap; but, referee Yves Lavigne missed the call.

After the fight, Pellegrino said, “I know it was super duper tight.  Yeah, he tapped.  All I remember him saying was ‘you couldn’t get me.’”

Pellegrino eeked out a close third between two exhausted fighters to put away the unanimous decision.

Barbarian Chops Down Patt

After peppering Octagon rookie Michael Patt (12-3) with right hooks, “Barbarian” Tim Boetsch (8-2) crashed a straight right through Patt’s guard.

Patt took a seat on the mat with a split lip and a faint idea where he was.  Boetsch pounded the fight closed at 2:03.

Boetsch said after the fight, “I’m pumped.  I trained real hard to get an explosive finish like this.”

Kim Barely Beats Brown

“Stun Gun” Dong Hyun Kim (11-0-1) remained undefeated versus Matt Brown (7-7)…barely.

Kim won a split decision 29-28 twice and 28-29 for Brown.  Fighters.com scored it 29-28 for Kim; but, UFC commentator Joe Rogan told the disappointed crowd he thought Brown had won.

Kim rode Brown’s back most of round one, nearly finishing Brown in a rear naked choke while Brown stood.

Apparently, that was the controversial round as two judges and Fighters.com scored it 10-9 for Kim while Cecil Peoples scored round one 10-9 for Brown.

Kim was sluggish in round two.  Brown took advantage, capturing Kim in his Thai clinch and hammering knees to the Korean’s midsection.

In round three, Brown walked right through a square Kim left hook; but, Kim followed up with a toss into Brown’s full guard.  Kim opened up a deep cut under Brown’s left cheekbone with a slick elbow.

Kim lamented, “I hate to go to a decision.  Next time I’m going to be different.”

Brown made clear after the fight, “I don’t fight for the judges.  I fight for the fans and to finish.”

MacDonald Avenges Maia Loss

Middleweight “Athlete” Jason MacDonald (21-10) willed a second-round submission ”W” over “Punisher” Jason Lambert (23-9) after nearly being forced to tap in a guilltoine himself at the end of round one.

MacDonald said after the fight, “[The guillotine] was pretty tight; but, my head was toward the screen and I knew I could hold my breath for six seconds.”

MacDonald held on and dumped Lambert on his ass to open the second round, then passed to mount.  Lambert rolled right into J-Mac’s rear naked choke at 1:20.

“I knew he was getting tired from making the cut to 185 pounds,” MacDonald said, ”so I knew if I could take it into the later rounds I would get him.”

Chonan Earns Split Decision

Two of the three cageside judges prevented welterweight “Jucao” Roan Carneiro (12-8) from serving “Piranha” Ryo Chonan (15-8) a cold dish of revenge for 2005 TKO loss.

Chonan won a split decision by 29-28 twice and 28-29 once in favor of Carneiro.  Fighters.com scored the fight for Carneiro 29-28.

Carneiro dominated round one, flopping “Piranha” on his back and chiseling a cut over Chonan’s right eye with elbows.  Earlier in the round, Carneiro had nearly scored an omoplata transitioned from a triangle; but, Chonan rolled free.

Chonan won the second round by stuffing Carneiro’s shot and out wrestling him while landing infrequent punches.  The crowd pleaded with referee Herb Dean to stand the fighters; but, Dean let them tussle for position.

Chonan stuffed Carneiro’s shot again in the third, but rolled into Carneiro’s guard.  Carneiro landed a few shots before Chonan regained his feet.  Chonan gained top position before the round ended, but did little damage.

Hendo’ Earns First UFC “W” Since 1998

“It’s been awhile,” said “Hollywood” Dan Henderson (23-7) after squeaking a unanimous decision “W” over “Toquinho” Rousimar Palhares (8-2) passed the judges by scores of 30-27 twice and 29-28.

A timid Hendo’ wanted no part of Palhares’s Brazilian jiu-jiu, consistently waving off the ground game throughout the three rounds.

Instead, “Hollywood” stalked with his devastating right hand cocked.

“Normally I’m more aggressive,” he said, “so, I apologize about that.

Palhares shot often, almost all of them stuffed by Henderson.  Palhares also peppered Hendo’ with an impressive array of kicks and nearly locked in two knee bars.

Hendo’ only landed his overhand right cleanly with ten seconds left in the fight, dropping Palhares.  Hendo’s pounced with two more overhands to steal the round.

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.

Especially since Hamill, who was late for his session because he and his girlfriend were shopping (a better excuse), was like a kid with a new toy when talking about the biggest fight of his career versus his “hero”.

“Athlete” Jason MacDonald (20-10) and Kampmann both attended too, but neither actually worked out.

Japanese fighters “Piranha” Ryo Chonan (14-8) and ninth-ranked welterweight “Zenko” Yoshiyuki Yoshida (10-2) also attended, but only interviewed with the Japanese press.

Fighters.com’s second-ranked middleweight

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.

Fighters.com: You’re not real excited about the fight?

Rich Franklin: Uh…it’s…it’s not that.  No.  I mean, it’s not that I’m not real excited about the fight or anything, or…or whatever.  I mean, I’ve fought guys…the UFC is a small circuit of people, so you run into people constantly.  All the time.  You end up basically fighting guys that you know anyway.  Um…so, this isn’t completely uncharted territory.  It’s just, uh, you know, I mean.  If…when you talk about preferences or whatever, you obviously…it’d be easier to fight somebody you absolutely didn’t know.

Fighters.com: You had made clear months ago that you intended to stay at 185, but that you would take fights at 205 if they were interesting.  It seems like that’s changed.  You are now a 205 fighter?  Is that how you view yourself?

Rich Franklin: Uh…I think that’s how the UFC is viewing me for the time being.  Does it meant that I’ll never ever fight at ’85 again?  No.  Not necessarily.  I think at this point in my career…well, I’ll just say this: At least being at 205 it gives me the possibility of making a run for the title right now, with the UFC not being interested in me making a run for the ’85-pound title.  So, at least there’s something to shoot for;  but, it doesn’t mean that I wouldn’t be…that I couldn’t move back down to ’85 and fight there in the future or whatever.  It’s just…I don’t know.  At this point in my career, I’m just, um, just kind of taking things fight-for-fight and worried about putting on good fights for the fans and being exciting.

Fighters.com: Do you have any interest in avenging your loss at 205 to fifth-ranked light heavyweight ”Dragon” Lyoto Machida (13-0)?

Rich Franklin: Yeah, if the UFC wanted that and it’s good for tickets and business and all that kind of stuff, then I would definitely give that some thought.

Fighters.com: Hamill has five MMA fights.  You have 26 fights, including title challenges, title defenses, five-round fights, world-class opponents, etc.  Is this a fair match-up?

Rich Franklin: Uh, yeah, well, I think so.  I’m giving up some stuff too.  I’m moving up a weight class.  I’m going to be giving up some weight here.  And, Matt, although his record says that he has five fights, he has the whole stint on The Ultimate Fighter and he’s had a successful career in the UFC.  At this point, the only fight he’s lost is the Bisping fight and that was a controversial decision within itself.  A lot of people felt, including myself, felt that he earned a victory there.  So…  And, as far as I’m concerned, I’m fighting an undefeated fighter.

Fighters.com: Hamill trained in your circle in Cincinnati; but, did you ever actually train with him?  Roll or spar with him?

Rich Franklin: Uh, yeah.  Probably, uh…you know, half a dozen times or so, we trained together.  Um, actually, I met Matt through my boxing coach, Rob Radford down at Boxing and Fitness, and he introduced to Matt because I was in need of someone helping me with my wrestling.  And, so, um, I met Matt because he had come into the gym to actually help me with my wrestling a few times.

Fighters.com: You expect Matt to want to take you down and wrestle, ground’n'pound, right?

Rich Franklin: Yeah, that’s what I would assume.  I wouldn’t put it passed him to try to stand-up with me.  But, I would assume that ultimately he’s going to want to put me on my back.

Fighters.com: I expect he’ll try to stand-up with you, take you down if the takedown is there; but, his last two fights he’s deliberately tried to impose his stand-up.  If he’s happy to trade with you, will you knock him out?

Rich Franklin: Um…well, I would say that my stand-up is definitely…that’s my strength in this fight.  I’m not going to go out there and try to out-wrestle him.  So…um, you know, we’ll see.

Fighters.com: I guess at this point you’d normally be in the middle of a weight cut?

Rich Franklin: Yeah, I would be in the thick of it right now.  And, so, the approach to this fight mentally…I mean, it’s just a much different approach to this fight.  There’s a lot of things I don’t have to worry about here.  I’m worrying about keeping on rather than taking it off.

Fighters.com:  At this point you’re probably usually pretty grumpy.  Do you feel more comfortable now?

Rich Franklin: Um…I don’t really…I haven’t notice, but my wife says I’m easier to get along with now that I’m able to eat more food closer to the fight.  That might be a question…that’s a question more for the people that know me.

Fighters.com: Do you feel much stronger at 205?

Rich Franklin: Well, uh…you know what?  Really, I’m not sure.  That’d probably be a good follow-up question to ask me after the fight.  I think the biggest difference is, I mean, the guys that I’m facing are going to be heavier.  So, you know, now I have to, in my opponent, carry an extra 15 pounds for the whole fight.  And that’s a lot of grinding on you for 15 minutes. So, the question here is: Am I going to feel strong against my opponents at 205?  As strong as I did at, say, 185?  Or, you know, is this going to be an overwhelming experience for me, which I seriously doubt?  I’ve been at 205 before.  I train with 205ers.  So, we’ll see what happens, but…  I mean, quite honestly, I’m not really too overly concerned about the weight factor here in this fight or anything like that.

Fighters.com: I notice you’ve already got the black eye.  Will that be there for the fight?

Rich Franklin:  It’s there.  It’s there right now.  It’s starting to heal up; so, I don’t know.  It might be gone by fight time.  Who knows?

Fighters.com:  That’s becoming your trademark.  What is that?  Why do you always have that black eye before a fight?

Rich Franklin: I don’t know.  Carelessness.  Lack of skill.  My training partners.  There could be a plethora of reasons that I have that thing all the time.  But, it’s always there.  Put it this way: You know I’m preparing properly, I guess.