BENSON HENDERSON CROWNED LIGHTWEIGHT CHAMP AMIDST (UNFAIR?) CONTROVERSY

Dana White is known for telling his athletes not to let a fight go to decision; usually, because most of us think [a few] judges in the business are morons not impeccably qualified to judge Mixed Martial Arts fighting. And in some cases, when both opponents are performing spectacularly, it seems a judge may have terrible difficulty making a decision, which results in what looks like it took a flip of a quarter to decide. Apparently, many fans believe last night’s UFC 144 Lightweight Championship fight between Frankie Edgar and Benson Henderson would fall into this latter category.

Usually when a Champion loses his title, it is based on a very clear loss of the fight, like a KO or a submission. When a title-fight goes all 5 rounds, you expect the contender is required to dominate the champ through every round to earn the victory. Last night, Bendo looked good and I would say he definitely had rounds 2 and 3 but I wasn’t too sure about the 1st, 4th, and 5th. I thought those rounds could have gone either way. White himself, scored both fighters even until the final round, which he gave to Edgar. Edgar never  looked as though he clearly won a round, but he didn’t  seem to clearly lose 3 rounds either. Just upon watching the fights though, I scored it 3 rounds for Henderson.

Fightmetric released its official statistics showing Bendo took all five rounds. Frankie Edgar is still asking for an immediate rematch, which sounds appealing to many fans right now, but rumors of a rematch with Anthony Pettis may be much more enticing to Henderson, if he ever wants to live down the famous “Showtime Kick”.

RAMPAGE DOESN’T LOSE WEIGHT, LOSES HIS FIGHT:

UFC 144 brought Quinton “Rampage” Jackson back to Saitama, Japan, the city that launched his stardom as a great MMA fighter in those wonderful days of PRIDE, but so much publicity surrounded Rampage returning to a city of his adoring fans that a usually routine question like: “Hey, how’s the weight cut going?” may have been lost in translation. Rampage tipped the scales at 211 pounds during weigh-ins for his co-main event bout against Ryan Bader, making him 5 pounds over the assigned Light-Heavyweight weight requirement. Jackson admitted he had an injury that made weight cutting difficult. Regardless, Jackson was required to give up 20 percent of his fight purse to Bader, (estimated at $50,000 ) which meant coming into the fight, Bader had already made more than what he earned winning his last fight ($48,000). Maybe it was the added confidence of  making some of Rampage’s money, but Bader was able to take Rampage down with some ease and dominate him through 3 rounds, earning himself a Unanimous Decision victory. Jackson would later reveal he suffered a knee injury in training, which confused some fans as to why he walked the streets with Ariel Helwani for an in-depth interview lasting 45 minutes, the night before weigh-ins.

Despite the disappointing loss, it’s a relief to know Quinton “Rampage” Jackson has not joined the recent trend of fighters who retire via post-fight interview with Joe Rogan. In the post-fight press conference, Jackson said:

“See, I know I’m getting to the end of my career, because I say I don’t want to fight past thirty-five, but, honestly, before I hurt my knee you guys should have seen how I was training. I’ve got really good sparring partners. I’ve got this really good wrestler named Tyson Jeffries that kicks my butt in wrestling and at the beginning of this camp, I was kicking his butt, I was taking him down and the wrestling got real competitive and that’s how I hurt my knee. He’s one of the best wrestlers I know and I was dealing with him, I was handling him. I was sparring really good and I was looking like a superstar and then I hurt my knee. That made me think, ‘Oh man, I’ve got a long more time to fight.’

When I got hurt, it was unfortunate, but now, I know what I can do if I come in a hundred percent. I think I’ve got a lot of years [left]. I’m ready to put on more shows. I heal up fast, I’m like a werewolf. I wasn’t even supposed to fight here, so I’ll be back really soon”

Looks like Jackson will at least still stick to his plans to retire at the age of 35, which gives us a couple more fun years with the fighter who may not always win, but he always entertains.

AZUSA  HAS  NICE BIG…EYES:

Azusa Nishigaki was our UFC 144 Guest Octagon Girl and upon first glance you could have pegged her to be Arianny Celeste‘s sister (at second glance, her first cousin). Azusa (the former Sengoku Ring Girl and “Miss Japan” Beauty Pageant Finalist) was a perfect addition, pacifying fans who were missing Brittney and Chandella. Got to hand it to the UFC, they sure know how to ease any sense of loss.  Dear Azusa, we would just like to say thank you for your big eyes, ample cheeks, and luscious smile. Did I forget anything?

FIGHT NEWS, RUMORS AND FEUDS:

Ronda Rousey and Meisha Tate continue with heated verbal and written exchanges before they get in the cage next Saturday at Strikefore: Tate vs. Rousey. Tate called Rousey “pampered and protected”. Rousey responded with a lengthy blog that in essence questions if Tate knows the meaning of those words and suggests she invest in a dictionary. If this were a schoolyard fight, I’m pretty sure one of these ladies would be hiding a razor in her cheek.

Rich Franklin wasn’t shy to speak out during the FUEL TV live weigh-ins about Quinton “Rampage” Jackson missing weight and blaming an injury. Franklin felt if Jackson was able to get so close to the limit, he should have been able to make weight. Jackson was none-too-pleased by Franklin’s opinion and offered this warning: “Rich Franklin needs to watch his mouth before I smack him the next time I see him.”

Anthony Pettis is the unofficial next Lightweight contender for Benson Henderson. Pettis beat Joe Lauzon at UFC 144 with a first round knockout. Melvin Guillard was seeking a rematch with Lauzon, prior to the fight.

Brian Stann will face Alessio Sakara at UFC ON FUEL TV 2 but has already called out Michael Bisping as his next opponent. Stann spoke to EsNewsReporting.com and was fired up after hearing some of Bisping’s remarks on him. Stann explained:

“I wouldn’t try to do anything but walk straight through him [Bisping] with a right hand. He called me a ‘white belt’ and said that I was ‘exposed’ so I’d love to see him put his money where his mouth is.”

Both Stann and Bisping’s last fights resulted in losses to the best smack-talker in the biz, Chael Sonnen.

Here is the extended preview of UFC 144. The event takes place this saturday in Japan.

*Photography by Joe Pic.

Nick Diaz brought in renowned WBC Muay Thai Light Heavyweight Champion, Joe Schilling for his training camp leading up to his main event UFC 143 fight against Carlos Condit. Schilling was featured in two episodes of UFC Primetime: here and here. Currently, Schilling is in Las Vegas for his own main event fight at Battle in the Desert 5 against Simon Marcus. Open workouts were held yesterday at Red Rock Harley Davidson and featured Schilling, along with WBC International Middleweight Champion, Chaz Mulkey, as well as rising stars: Anthony Castrejon, Vivian Leung, and Scott Leffler.

Nick Diaz brought up the need to support Muay Thai fighting in his rare in-depth interview with “Showdown” Joe Ferraro: here. Check out our exclusive photo gallery of the Muay Thai fighters as they prepare for Lion Fight Promotions: Battle in the Desert 5 this Saturday, February 25th at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.

By: Joyce Lynda Valdes

BRITTNEY PALMER’S PLAYBOY ISSUE, GIVES UFC  A WEEKEND OF SILENCE?:

The UFC organization must have purposefully not scheduled a fight this weekend so you could enjoy a private intimate weekend with your Brittney Palmer March issue of Playboy, which was released this past Friday. No wonder, UFC on Fuel TV 1 was on a Wednesday… There are practically zero pictures we can show you here on our respectable site, but we will support the guys at MMA Spartan and tell you to take a peak over there if you need any incentive to buy the issue.

UFC ON FUEL TV 1: SANCHEZ VS. ELLENBERGER, WOULD 5 ROUNDS HAVE MADE A DIFFERNCE?:

UFC on Fuel TV 1: Sanchez vs. Ellenberger gave us an outstanding night of performances, most notably by the headliners themselves, Diego Sanchez and Jake Ellenberger. Ellenberger clearly dominated the first 2 rounds, but by the 3rd round, Diego finally woke up from his beating and was able to give Ellenberger clear trouble, as he struggled on the ground in the last minutes. Jake was able to break free with seconds to spare, but Diego was still showing a strong exchange. The problem was, after that 3rd bell, the fight ended, leaving many viewers confused. We became conditioned that all main events were now 5 rounds and had not realized that the fights on Fuel TV and FX were still under the 3 round rule unless it is a Championship fight. It was a definite disappointment as it looked rather obvious, that there was still more to give from both opponents and perhaps, had the rounds continued, Sanchez may have been victorious. Regardless, it was an excellent fight and strong showing from Ellenberger who deserved the Unanimous (29-28) Decision. *In the post fight press conference, it was announced all main event fights on FX and Fuel TV will now go 5 rounds.

GEORGES ST. PIERRE ASKS NICK DIAZ “PERSONALLY” NOT TO RETIRE:

Jon Anik sat down with Georges St. Pierre on the Ultimate Insider to ask about the recovery process of his knee and his upcoming fight with Carlos Condit, but of course, you really can’t start talking about all that until you first ask GSP about his thoughts on not being able to fight Nick Diaz. GSP seems to express more respect for Diaz these days than pure disdain for him. St. Pierre thinks for sure they will get a chance to fight and says:

“fighting is what he [Diaz] do best. He shouldn’t have to retire. He is in his prime. I’m asking him personally not to retire, for the fans, for me, also for himself. Let’s do it. It has to be done”

Of course, not to overlook Carlos Condit, (his actual next opponent) GSP says that Condit is without a doubt the best fighter that he will meet in his entire career [up to now].

THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER PREMIERES MARCH 9TH ON FX:

The new season of The Ultimate Fighter will makes its long awaited debut on FX this March 9th, bringing a new live fight format to viewers. The 2 hour season premiere will kick off with live fights featuring the 32 potential castmates in 16 bouts to determine which mix of Lightweights and Welterweights will get to stay inside the fighter house to be coached by either Dominick Cruz or Urijah Faber. Cruz vs. Faber 3 is set for UFC 148 on July 7th. The Ultimate Fighter 15 will air its 2 hour first episode on FX at 9pm ET/PT. Each weekly 1 hour episode will air Fridays at 10pm ET/PT, concluding with a live fight.

RUMOR MILL AND FIGHT GOSSIP:

It is unclear whether or not UFC Ring Girl, Chandella Powell will continue her employment with Zuffa as it was discovered this week that Powell had a brief softcore past, 10 years ago under an assumed name. Chandella took to Twitter to address the matter:

When you are young, you often don’t realize that your actions have consequences. I made a bad decision about ten years ago, but you learn from these moments. There is nothing I can do to change the past, and believe me, if I could, I would. That decision doesn’t represent who I am today. All I can do now is put the past behind me and move forward. I am sorry to disappoint any of my fans and my family at Zuffa. I love you guys

* Editorial Note: Powell is no different than the rest of us who make poor decisions in our youth (or even just yesterday) and do our best to learn and not repeat them. And we have all at least once, wiped our forehead thinking, “Phew, I hope there are no repercussions for what I just did and I hope no one finds out about that. ” Don’t Judge.

Rashad Evans maintains that having trained with Jon Jones,  he’s pretty much got his number. Evans said in a UFC 145 press conference: “I’ve got a big advantage, just knowing what he’s going to do. Just knowing the range where I need to fight him at. Just training with him and knowing what he’s good at.” But Evans should keep in mind that he hasn’t trained with Jones in over a year and Jones is one of the most diverse fighters to step into the cage. The guy keeps getting better, continually fighting the most elite in the division and successfully defending his Light-Heavyweight title, since his days training with Rashad. Greg Jackson has also decided to train Jones for the fight, so he may be giving up every secret he knows of his former protege to benefit Jones.

Dana White said Dan Henderson turned down an offer to fight Lyoto Machida, but Hendo tweeted out this denial: “Was never offered machida. And even though he has lost 3 out of his last 4, I’m sure it would be entertaining.”

Dan Henderson is likely to be the next title-shot contender in either the Middleweight or Light-Heavyweight divisions, but with Jon Jones facing Rashad Evans on April 21st and Anderson Silva set to fight Chael Sonnen in June, it may be several more months before we see him back in the cage, unless he actually does take on Machida. Whether he turned it down before or not, maybe Dana should ask him now.

Want some more insight into the elusive Nick Diaz? Check out his in-depth pre-UFC 143 fight interview with Joe Ferraro: here.

Photography By: Silton Buendia

Superior Cage Combat 4 went down last night at The Orleans Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas and just looking around the arena, you may have thought it was a UFC event with the array of UFC stars in the crowd, which included: Dana White, Anderson Silva, Randy Couture, Frank Mir, Urijah Faber, Joseph Benavidez, Martin Kampmann, Mike Pyle, and Dan Hardy to name a few.

Unfortunately, UFC veteran and The Ultimate Fighter 3 winner, Kendall Grove lost his headlining bout via an Arm-Triangle Choke, which left him unconscious for quite a few seconds at the hands of Jay Silva, another former UFC fighter.

The Co-Main event featured John Gunderson, who earned himself the SCC Lightweight title with a Kimura submission on Justin Buchholz in the 3rd round.

Full SCC 4 results:

Jay Silva defeated Kendall Grove via submission (Arm-Triangle Choke) at 1:52 in 2nd round.

John Gunderson defeated Justin Buchholz via submission (Kimura)at 2:34 in 3rd round.

Jamie Yager defeated Danny Davis Jr. via Unanimous Decision.

Paulo Goncalves Silva defeated Dominique Robinson via Unanimous Decision.

Brandon Bender defeated Marlin Weikel via submission (Triangle Choke) at 2:30 in 3rd round.

Walter Harris defeated Anthony Hamilton via KO at 1:15 in 1st round.

Jimmy Jones defeated. Joao Victor via submission (Rear-Naked Choke) at 3:49 in 3rd round.

We know you can hardly stand to finish your work day so you can rush over to your nearest convenience store and take home your very own Playboy graced by Brittney Palmer. But just to get you through your 9 to 5 hours, the considerate folks over at Inside MMA released this preview video from Brittney’s pictorial shoot and it’s just safe enough for work, that you shouldn’t get in too much trouble. Besides, we’re sure your boss is watching it right now, too.

If you were watching Diego Sanchez make a huge comeback in the 3rd round of an exciting UFC on Fuel TV main event fight with Jake Ellenberger last night, chances are you were just like me, pumped and waiting for the 4th round when suddenly all these people were stepping inside the Octagon. What the hell? It was over?

Many were confused last night when the main event bout went only 3 rounds and a flood of tweets went out to Dana White asking what happened to 5 round main events. Even Diego Sanchez asked Joe Rogan about the 5 round rule, saying: “I was ready for more!” It was later explained that UFC on FX and UFC on Fuel main event fights were to only go 3 rounds. Some media figures called for consistency and a post-fight press conference was immediately scheduled. Dana White announced from here on all main events would go 5 rounds. It’s a good rule; too bad they couldn’t send Sanchez and Ellenberger back in the cage to dog it out some more.

Sanchez said in the post-fight presser he gave it all he had and left everything in the cage. But clearly, he had more to give, had it gone another round.

Hopefully all main event fights will continue the thrilling momentum Sanchez vs. Ellenberger kept up, which lead to establishing the 5 round rule for FX and Fuel.

*Photo from MMA Mania.

Thank you to Playboy for teasing us with a sample from the 8-page pictorial of the gorgeous Brittney Palmer: here. We expect the bubbly UFC ring girl has finally earned herself the coveted Ring Girl of the Year Award.

Come out and celebrate with Brittney who will celebrate the release of her Playboy cover issue this March 3rd inside Gallery Nightclub in Las Vegas.

Palmer’s Playboy issue officially hits stands February 17th.

*Source: Vegas News