What If He Wins? Featuring Forrest Griffin

Hello again fans and friends and welcome to another entry into the ?What If He Wins?? series of articles, where I attempt to both ask and answer the following question: what does the future hold for a major MMA star if he wins his next big fight? Today?s entry focuses on former UFC Light Heavyweight [...]

Source: http://www.fighters.com/01/27/what-if-he-wins-featuring-forrest-griffin

Shad Lierley  Jushin Thunder Liger Zach Light Scott Lighty

Alistair Overeem Admits Cain Velasquez Deserves Number One Heavyweight Ranking ..... For Now

Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion Alistair Overeem had one heckuva 2010.  We’re talking about a fighter that picked up the 2010 K-1 World Grand Prix Championship and the DREAM Interim Heavyweight belt, on top of destroying Brett Rogers to keep his Strikeforce belt intact.  That said, according to an interview at BJPenn.com, Overeem is well aware that [...]

Source: http://www.fighters.com/01/29/alistair-overeem-admits-cain-velasquez-deserves-number-one-heavyweight-ranking-for-now

Jan Nortje Phillipe Noer Jake O Brien Naoya Ogawa

ASK THE TORCH: Amadi answers reader question on underutilized techniques against grounded fighters

By: Jason Amadi, MMATorch Columnist

Staff10Amadi_130_40.jpg

Jacob Ng writes in:

I've seen several MMA fights where a fighter is on the ground, face down and usually just turtling up (the most recent one that comes to mind for my question is Pettis vs. Henderson in the final WEC fight). Why is it the standing fighter, when going for strikes, only tries for the sides of the head of the downed opponent? I understand that you can't hit the back of the head or the spine, and that you cant stomp or kick, but why doesn't the fighter go for the ribs, shoulder area or any part of the back other than the spine? On another note, when a fighter has side control, why do they not go for knees to the side of the body? I have seen one or two fighters do that in the past. Is that illegal now?

Jacob, the problem isn't that these techniques are illegal; they're simply grossly underutilized. There are so many missed opportunities in fights for damage to be done by simply thinking outside of the box and going for unconventional, yet highly effective attacks.

For instance, a fighter who is face down and turtled up can absolutely be kicked, but just not to the head. If a fighter is standing over an opponent in this position, it's perfectly legal to soccer kick to the body. We saw James Irvin use this technique against Hector Ramirez to great effect at UFC 65, and Wanderlei Silva recently soccer kicked Michael Bisping to the body at UFC 111. It's rare that a fighter finds himself in a position to deliver a kick to the body, but when the situation arises the body is usually completely exposed for kicks and knees.

Also when an opponent is turtled, we've seen fighters like Jose Aldo and Cain Velasquez punch under the arm and upward towards the face to absolutely brutal effect. Jose Aldo put Manny Gamburyan out cold with this technique at WEC 51, and Cain Velasquez earned a 10-8 round against Ben Rothwell and then stopped him with the very same technique at UFC 104. I agree with you completely, and feel that we see far too many fighters punch haplessly to the side the head when they can do far more damage with more measured and precise attacks.

Back on the subject of body shots, we've seen crushing body attacks in MMA, but they just aren't done with the type of regularity to get other fighters to take notice. If you go back and watch the first encounter between Quinton Jackson and Chuck Liddell, Jackson put on an absolute ground and pound clinic by damaging Liddell with elbows to the body and then moving his offense back to the head. His attack wound up being so incredibly overwhelming that it lead to Liddell's corner having to stop the bout to save their fighter.

Knees to the body from side control are a bit trickier than attacks to a turtled fighter or inside the guard because side control requires that you place enough weight on your opponent to maintain position. Phil Davis executed some vicious knees from side control to Brian Stann at UFC 109, but this is in large part due to the amazing wingspan and dexterity which are unique to a fighter like Davis. Fortunately, we are seeing much more offense from side control than we have in the past, but not every fighter is daring enough to go for something out of the box in a dominant position.

Thoughts, suggestions, and idle threats can be sent to:
amadijason@gmail.com


If you have a question on MMA, send it to mmatorch@gmail.com. Jason will sort through questions we receive and answer them on a regular basis here at our website and on our apps.

You can ask the basic of questions about the sport or the rules. You can ask questions about its history or its future. You can ask for his opinion on a particular controversial topic. It's wide open.

Source: http://www.mmatorch.com/artman2/publish/Ask_the_Torch_41/article_8221.shtml

Nick Serra Adrian Serrano Dan The Beast Severn Frank Shamrock

?Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Cyborg? Results: Nick Diaz, Jacare Souza Defend Strikeforce Titles

Nick Diaz retained the Strikeforce welterweight title with a second-round submission of Evangelista "Cyborg" Santos in the main event Saturday's "Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Cyborg" event in San Jose, California. Middleweight champ Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza also defended his title over Robbie Lawler, while Herschel Walker and Roger Gracie earned wins.

Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/17418/strikeforce-diaz-vs-cyborg-results/

B J Penn Anthony Perosh Seth Petruzelli Anthony Pettis

Report: The Rock & Trish Stratus In 2012 WWE HOF?

– While numerous seats remain available for WrestleMania XXVII, WWE officials are reportedly pleased with ticket sales thus far. Tickets for the Hall of Fame ceremony have been selling especially well, with only balcony seats remaining as of early this week. – WWE officials are already contemplating candidates for induction into next year’s Hall of Fame class. The primary names being discussed are Trish Stratus, given that it will likely take place in her hometown of Toronto, and The Rock. The idea with Rock is it would be mark ten years after ...

Source: http://www.ifight365.com/2011/01/report-the-rock-trish-stratus-in-2012-wwe-hof/

Rickson Gracie Rodrigo Gracie Roger Gracie Rolles Gracie

On Eve of Second MMA Fight, Herschel Walker Still Making Outlandish Claims About Pretty Much Everything

(Apologies if the vid takes awhile to load. You try squeezing all of Walker’s BS in to a simple embed code. VidProps: Shoot Media)

We’ve been pretty studiously ignoring Herschel Walker since his bout with Scott Carson got postponed back in November. Somewhere along the way we just got tired of the guy’s running patter. Even last week when the mainstream media grabbed hold of his offhand comment about trying to make a comeback to the NFL when he turns 50 and trumpeted it from the rooftops like it was some kind of actual news, we turned a deaf ear. For our money, 48-year-old dude wants to fight? No big deal. He’s semi-famous, so we gotta put him on the main card? We get it. For real though, the fact that Strikeforce has to go out and sign no-name opponents for the express purpose of getting beat up by Herschel Walker in 220-pound catchweight fights pretty much says it all about the legitimacy of his MMA career.

However, this latest video from the good people at Shoot Media – who in all honesty do pretty great work – sparked our interest. Mostly because it successfully falls in line with the standard Rich-Athlete-Makes-Sacrifices-to-Pursue-his-True-Passion clichés while still giving us a nod and a wink about what an odd, odd man we’re dealing with here. Among other dubious claims made in this vid, Walker says he was just a fat kid with a speech impediment from small town Georgia that no one thought would amount to squat. You know, until it turned out he was one of the greatest natural athletes of all time, rushed for over 3,000 yards in high school, became a national prep scholar-athlete of the year and went on to become maybe the greatest college running back in history. Still, those early years were pretty touch-and-go.

read more

Source: http://www.cagepotato.com/herschel-walker-owns-about-63-cars-does-750-pushups-day-has-still-faced-zero-legitimate-mma-fighters

Denis Kang Georgi Karakhanyan Alex Karalexis Mark Kerr

UFC NEWS: Sean Sherk rehabbing injuries yet again, summer return possible

By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

LogoUFC_150_749.jpg

Former UFC Lightweight Champion Sean Sherk made a return to the UFC last September after a 16 month layoff caused by numerous injuries. Since the controversial split decision win over Evan Dunham at UFC 119, he's been largely off the radar, but there's a reason for that.

In an interview with MMAJunkie.com, Sherk revealed that the injuries he's been battling over the last couple of years have been re-aggravated, and he's currently rehabbing them yet again.

"All those injuries that I had to rehab, they came back," Sherk said. "So, now I need to get them dealt with again."

Sherk's doctors say he may be able to return by the summer, but the Minnesota-based wrestler says he won't come back until he's fully healed and prepared for a return.

"I made a decision a couple of years ago that I wasn't going to fight injured any more, so that's where the layoff has been," he said. "It's not worth training half-ass because I'm hurt and fighting half-ass, and giving opponents an opportunity to beat me because I wasn't able to prepare properly. That's just not a chance I'm going to take any more.

For Sherk, he knows his age is a factor working against him, but he remains cognizant of his own legacy and aims to go out on his terms. But before he does, he said he still has one more goal left in the sport.

"I'm not going to lie; I'm not getting any younger, unfortunately," he said. "So my injuries are just something that needs to be dealt with properly. I don't want to destroy my legacy. It's not worth it."

"I want to win that belt one more time. That's my ultimate goal: To be a two-time UFC lightweight champion. I think I would put myself in a very elite class of athletes if I was able to do that."

Link to Original Source Article

Penick's Analysis: Sherk had some very real cardio issues in the Dunham fight that allowed Dunham to completely turn the fight around in the eyes of those watching, and it can definitely be attributed to the injuries and the layoff. Hopefully he's able to rehab these injuries and return to action as soon as possible, as the layoff will remain a factor. Like he said, he's not getting any younger, and the age and inactivity can affect him with the injuries he's suffered. That said, he remains a dangerous challenge for any fighter the UFC would put him against, even in 2011. Whether or not he can make it back to a title fight is a different story, but he'll be competitive against anyone and will defeat most, so again, hopefully he's able to get himself back to fighting condition before the fall.

Source: http://www.mmatorch.com/artman2/publish/UFC_2/article_8205.shtml

Mario Neto Carlos Newton Mike Nickels Alexandre Franca Nogueira

Abe Wagner upsets former UFC champ Tim Sylvia via KO

Tim Sylvia was one his way back to the big show. Following a four-fight win streak with a notable win over former title challenger Paul Buentello during this stretch, “The Maine-iac” was poised to make a big return to the big show in the immediate future. I guess Abe Wagner didn’t get the memo, as [...]

Source: http://www.fighters.com/01/29/abe-wagner-upsets-former-ufc-champ-tim-sylvia-via-ko

Peter Graham Forrest Griffin Tyson Griffin Karn Grigorian

UFC NEWS: Paulo Thiago out of UFC on Versus 3 bout with Johny Hendricks

By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

UFC_on_Versus_3_poster_180_2.jpg

Welterweight Paulo Thiago has been forced out of a bout with Johny Hendricks at UFC on Versus 3 due to an undisclosed injury, according to a report from MMAJunkie.com.

But while Thiago is out of the March 3 event, Hendricks could still remain, as the report states that he may get another opponent for the card, though he could also be moved to a different event.

Hendricks is eager to get back into action after suffering his first career loss last December. After a 9-0 start to his career that included four fights in the UFC, Hendricks was defeated by Rick Story in a unanimous decision at The Ultimate Fighter 12 Finale.

Thiago would have been out to snap a two fight losing streak. After a 3-1 start to his UFC career, Thiago lost to Martin Kampmann at UFC 115 and by Ultimate Fighter winner Diego Sanchez at UFC 121 in October.

UFC on Versus 3 takes place from the KFC Yum! Center, headlined by a welterweight bout between Sanchez and Kampmann.

Link to Original Source Article

Penick's Analysis: I was really looking forward to this fight when it was reported last week, and it's unfortunate that this card has been hit by another injury. They've had some changes to the card already, and this would have been a really good fight for the event. Hopefully they can find a replacement for Hendricks, as he would be a good addition to this card.

Source: http://www.mmatorch.com/artman2/publish/UFC_2/article_8281.shtml

Bobby Ologun Andy Ologun Alan Omer Michihiro Omigawa