TFC 16 Results: Wagner KO's Sylvia In 32 Seconds!

Alonzo Martinez tapped Deryck Ripley with the RNC in the 2nd.
Anthony Gutierrez TKO'd Jacob Aiken with elbows in the very 1st round.

Drew Dober bested Bobby Cooper by Unanimous Decision.
Drew McFedries finally put away Gary Tapusoa by TKO (Punches) in the last round.
Aaron Derrow Submitted Rich Clementi via Triangle Choke, also in the final round. LOL Clementi's Jiu-Jitsu!

Jason High Submits Rudy Bears by Guillotine Choke in the 1st in under a minute. The "KC Bandit" is rolling people and 1 of the majors needs to sign this kid up! It's 4 in a row in MO.

Abe Wagner TKO'd Tim Sylvia only 32 seconds into the fight! The fat assed 311 lb. Steven Segal wannabe prodded around like he normally does until (ahem) "Hurricane" unloaded the strikes dropping the "Maine-iac" and following up before the referee stopped things. Tim tried to complain but fatty fell down and needs to accept it. I know a lot of people shit on Tim and I've gone back and forth myself. If he won't take his MMA career seriously, neither will I.

6-1 on the picks.

Strikeforce Results: Champions Retain Titles

Armin Safiari, Ricky Jackson, and Anthony Dariano all won their contests by Unanimous Decision.

Jenna Castillo KO'd the punk "Princess" Charlene Gellner with a nasty knee to end the debut of both fighters. Jenna was just too powerful and was in the midst of putting Gellner away when as she fell Castillo caught her with the final strike. "KO Of The Night"

James Terry earned the TKO on Lucas Gamaza in the 1st round. The Cung Le protege would not be denied as he overwhelmed the 3rd Diaz brother. It was a tough night and now back to back losses for Gamaza while Terry is an impressive 4-1 in Stikeforce.

Germaine de Randamie KO'd Stephanie Webber with a knee in the 1st round. The "Iron Lady" ups her record to 2-1 as she immediately dropped Webber with a right hand to begin the fight. After a great ground struggle they went to the feet where Germaine destroyed Steph with a Thai Knee.

Ron Keslar Submitted Eric Lawson via Armbar in the 1st round. Lawson scored the takedown but got caught in a triangle/armbar and tapped though the crowd could not see it and the end seemed abrupt. It's gonna be a big night for AKA.

Isaiah Hill Upset Bobby Stack with a Triangle Choke Submission. Stack learned the hard way that the "gong and dash" method of fighting is folly. He came barreling out into a big set of knees and collapsed before the eventual tapout. Terrible performance for Stack.

Nate Moore KO's Nathan Coy in the 2nd round. Moore dropped Coy with a huge overhand right along with a left hand an a final tooth loosener.

Roger Gracie quited some critics tonight by Submitting Trevor Prangley with the RNC in the 1st round. Roger looked comfortable on the feet jabbing away before scoring a single takedown which would be all he needed. Trevor was quickly baffled and found the Gracie constricting around his neck forcing the tapout. "Submission Of The Night"

Herschel Walker TKO's MMA sensation Scott Carson in the 1st round. Scott instantly threw a high kick that seemed to anger Walker. Old 34 puts Carson down with a punch and then the 2 awkwardly grapple on the mat with them getting back to the feet before Walker slams the Top 10 Heavyweight. It's brutal G&P before Scott escapes to his feet only to find Herschel's fists put him back on the mat before the referee stops the fight. Amazing, pure excellence!

Ronaldo Souza Submits Robbie Lawler in the 3rd round with the RNC to retain the Strikeforce Middleweight Championship. The "Ruthless" 1 appeared early with flying knee attacks and combinations that dropped the wobbly "Jacare." Souza grabbed the fence and stalled out the action to survive to the 2nd round. Ronaldo got to work with the takedown and 5 minutes of solid G&P to even up the fight. In the 3rd Souza unloaded knees to Robbie's body before locking in a body triangle to gain enough control for the RNC tapout. Very impressive win for "Jacare" who overcame some adversity to retain his belt.

Nick Diaz Submits Evangelista Santos with an armbar with 10 seconds left in the 2nd round to retain the Strikeforce Welterweight Championship. When the fight began "Cyborg" found great success with a powerful inside leg kick that landed over and over to Diaz' right leg. Nick talks to Santos who controls the round before Diaz lands a big left hand and follows it up with a blitzkrieg of strikes. "Cyborg" survives the round and opens the 2nd with more leg kicks and good striking. Diaz is just defending as the challenger seems as though he won the round. As if to ensure it, Santos lands a sweet takedown on Nick. The Cesar Jiu-Jistsu blackbelt then goes to work rolling, extending the arm, and tapping the machine. Diaz didn't look amazing but had it when it counted winning without seeming in peril. "Fight Of The Night"

8-2 on the picking side of things.

Titan Fighting Championship 16 Predictions

Main Event

Tim “The Maineiac” Sylvia (28-6) vs. Abe Wagner (8-2) The Super Heavyweight (because Tim is so fat now) contest pits a former UFC Champion versus a former TUF competitor. I gotta tell ya I'm taking the Upset Pick as Sylvia came in a disgusting fat 311 lbs.! At the very least Abe will come in shape, takedown Tim, and pound on him for 3 boring rounds.

UPSET WINNER-Abe Wagner by Decision

Jason “The Kansas City Bandit” High (12-3) vs. Rudy “Bad News” Bears The High "Bandit" is on a tear recently killing it in whatever promotion will have the talented fighter. Smokey will not stop the bandit.

WINNER-Jason High by Rd.3 Submission

Rich “No Love” Clementi (39-17-1) vs. Aaron Derrow (8-2) I can't stand "No Love" but expect his vast experience to overwhelm "Daddy Long Legs."

WINNER-Rich married to a whore by Submission

Drew “The Massacre” McFedries (8-6) vs. Gary Tapusoa (6-1) "Massacre" is still fighting and Tapusoa is just another victim.

WINNER-Drew McFedries by Rd.1 KO

“Super Duper” Bobby Cooper (5-0) vs. Drew Dober (5-2) Dober is your common Husker wrestler while Bobbo is a very green fighter from MO. Take the 5-2 record over the fictional 1.

WINNER-Drew Dober by Decision

Anthony “Sharkbait” Guiterrez (0-0) vs. Jacob Akin (0-0)

WINNER-"Shark Bait?"

Alonzo “Zo Diddy” Martinez (27-14-1) vs. Deryck Ripley (11-18)

WINNER-The nicknamed guy?

Non-Televised Undercard

John Hollis (1-1) vs. Brian Phillips (3-1)

Tony Cardello (0-0) vs. Billy Thomas (0-11)
Mac Bailey (2-0) vs. Mirsad Bektic (7-0)
Julian Marquez (2-0) vs. Jason Perrotta (1-1)

Strikeforce: Diaz vs Cyborg Predictions

Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Cyborg
January 29, 2011
HP Pavilion
San Jose, California

Main Bouts (On Showtime):
Welterweight Champion Nick Diaz (23-7) vs. Evangelista Santos (18-13) We all know Diaz loves to exchange on the feet with fighters and the veteran now fighting with "The Arena," will accommodate. "Cyborg" has some power and striking but a history of gassing out, is only in his 2nd Welterweight bout, ever, and has never beaten a top tier opponent. Barring a cut or an errant shot catching the normally iron chinned Diaz, Nick rolls.

WINNER-Nick Diaz by Rd.2 TKO

Middleweight Champion Ronaldo Souza (13-2) vs. Robbie Lawler (18-6) Souza is the champ but Lawler is coming off almost killing Matt Lindland. Of course, Robbie must keep this fight standing or he will be tapped on the mat. Can his good takedown defense hold off the "Gator" who has improved his striking with Boxgymnasium Heidelberg? Or will the "Ruthless" 1 return again with another highlight KO? The gas tank of both men worries me and with Lawler's 1-punch KO power looming at all times. I'll gingerly watch Ron test his striking a bit early before bringing the fight to the floor where he dominates but cannot get the stoppage.

WINNER-"Jacare" by Decision

Herschel Walker (1-0) vs. Scott Carson (4-1) Wow I don't care about this fight. I realize it helps Strikeforce get some more eyeballs but it also takes the spot of a real MMA competitor. Also, Scott is a 40 year old fighter returning to the game.

WINNER-Hershel Walker by Decision

Roger Gracie (3-0) vs. Trevor Prangley (23-6-1) Roger is known for ducking decent fights and he has a very good veteran in front of him. Prangley has been around forever dancing in the UFC, as current Shark Fights Light Heavyweight Champion, and has kept active facing sturdy competition. I actually like Prangley at +155 to pull an upset and take a big pelt for his record.

WINNER-Trevor Prangley by Decision

Prelims (Non-Televised):
Nate Moore (6-2) vs. Nathan Coy (8-3) The AKA fighter stumbled last out against Tarec Saffiedine meets the "Soulforce" of Team Quest. Both men fought well against Tyrone Woodley and lost and now 1 steps forward back into the shallow Welterweight division. Look for Nate to frustrate Nathan early and punch him out late.

WINNER-Nate Moore by Rd.3 TKO

Bobby Stack (8-1) vs. Isaiah Hill (4-7) Stack trains with Gilbert Melendez and Matt Wiman while Isiah is below .500. Nuff said.

WINNER-Bobby Stack by Rd.2 TKO
Ron Keslar (5-3) vs. Eric Lawson (9-3) Ron has not fared well in Strikeforce losing both of his prior appearances while I'm not entirely sure which Eric Larson (of the 3 in Sherdog's "Fight Finder") this is so.....

WINNER-Ron Keslar?
Germaine De Randamie (1-1) vs. Stephanie Webber (0-0) The "Iron Lady" has a big reach advantage, girth, kickboxing experience, and a penis. Always bet on the guy in the women's bout.

WINNER-Germaine De Randamie by Decision
James Terry (8-2) vs. Lucas Gamaza (4-1) Cung Le's kid is coming for Lucas to knock his lid off. Just avoid the Jiu-Jitsu of Gamaza and things should be fine.

WINNER-James Terry by Decision
Jenna Castillo (0-0) vs. Charlene Gellner (0-0) The punk chick from the gutter meets the fella named Jim in a ladies debut match. Dear god Castillo is big. Bet on the man.

WINNER-Jenna Castillo Rd.1 TKO

Anthony Dariano (1-0) vs. Alan Perez (4-2)
Ricky Jackson (3-1) vs. Niko Jackson (3-2)
Sam Bracamonte (1-1) vs. Armin Safiari (0-0)

Jens "Lil Evil" Pulvers WINS In 49 Seconds @ XFO!

New UFC Ring Girl Allison Diehl

I guess she'll do.

UFN 23 "Fight For The Troops 2" Results: Guillard, Mitrione, & Hominick Finishing Well

Chris Cariaso defeated Will Campuzano, while Charlie Brenneman defeated Amilcar Alves, Waylon Lowe beat Willamy Freire and Rani Yahya Upset Mike Thomas Brown all by Unanimous Decision.

DaMarques Johnson defeated and retired Michael Guymon with a Body Triangle Submission. The "Joker" expressed emotional relief in deciding that he had fought his final fight in the locker room. During the fight Guymon apparently injured his back and Johnson's body triangle was so tight he verbally tapped. I wish Mike the best. This guys life is interesting and he should look into commentary. DaMarques is still improving. "Submission Of The Night"

Yves Edwards defeated a pretty game Cody McKenzie before securing the fight ending RNC n the 2nd. Cody's stand up looked atrocious and he took some heavy shots but got the fight to the floor by pulling guard and looked for his patented guillotine. It looked like the father of "Thugjitsu" had enough and muscled his way into the submission. The UFC actually awarded this the "Fight of the Night" and Edwards got "Submission of the Night."

Matt Wiman defeated Cole Miller by Unanimous Decision in what should have been the "Fight of the Night." These 2 buddies threw down and engaged in a war. Aggressive start by both men before "Handsome" began to control more of the stand up as well as punishing Miller in his world on the mat. Miller may have lost but he showed a lot of heart and absorbed quite a bit of punishment. MMAFO's "Fight Of The Night"

Patrick Barry defeated Joey Beltran by and odd Unanimous Decision. The "Mexicutioner" looked good early controlling the striking until "HD" began to start landing his brutal leg kicks in the 2nd. An errant strike to the groin seemed to really anger Barry who threw seldom and acted tough striking a glaring pose as the round ended. In the last round Joey's leg began to fall apart as he wobbled and fell numerous times barely able to stand on his leg. "HD" began to throw and the head kicks but Beltran kept coming. I'm not so sure Barry did enough in the fight to actually deserve the win but apparently trying to act like a bad ass when you are not really doing much hypnotizes the judges. I hope they don't cut Joey but after back to back losses it may happen.

Mark Hominick TKO'd George Roop in the 1st round looking impressive and earning a title shot with Featherweight Champion Jose Aldo. Roop at some big shots quickly and seemed to be hurt though he struggled on. A big left drops Roop and a final right from the "Machine" causes the referee to halt the fight. George complains but when he stands up he wobbles and almost falls before Team Tompkins buddy Mark catches him.

Matt Mitrione TKO'd Tim Hague in the very 1st round and looked very impressive. "Meathead" just relaxed into a zone striking with ease as a short left hand drops Tim but he is allowed back to his feet instantly. Good leg kicks from the Duke Rufus protege before another left jab drops Tim and Mitrione swarms him with a brutal finale.

Melvin Guillard TKO'd Evan Dunham with knees to win in the very 1st round. The "Young Assassin" looked smooth and confident though Evan did eventually get his takedown. Mel hops back up and unleashes a combination that may have hurt the Xtreme Couture fighter. Guillard brings the lightning combinations before two big knees put Dunham away. Very, very impressive win for the Greg Jackson fighter who I'm sure Dana White did not find boring tonight. "(T)KO Of The Night"

An abysmal 7-4 on the picks which is not good for only 2 events so far this year.

UFC Fight Night 23: "Fight For The Troops 2" Predictions & Prognostications

UFC Fight Night 23 “Fight for the Troops 2″
January 22, 2011
Fort Hood, Texas

Main Bouts (On Spike TV):
Melvin Guillard (26-8-2) vs. Evan Dunham (11-1) Everyone fell in love with Dunham after he was robbed of a decision over Sean Sherk, which cost him his undefeated record, and he handled it with total class and grace. Mel is still Mel even if you put him in Greg Jackson's camp. Since joining the Arizona MMA team Mel has matured but also lost his killer instinct. Evan has far more honed tools in the MMA toolbox and as long as he avoids the 1-punch KO power, he should hold sway in an exciting main event.

WINNER-Evan Dunham by Decision

Matt Mitrione (3-0) vs. Tim Hague (12-4) Everyone has started to love "Meathead" as well but he has earned my adoration with amazing poise in the Octagon as well as very fast hands and an iron chin. Hague is a big guy but will not have the hand speed to stand with Matt and would be best served to hit the mat and look for some G&P. It won't happen. Expect a fun stand up war with Mitrione smiling all the way to the bank with superior footwork and athleticism.

WINNER-Matt Mitrione by Decision

Mark Hominick (19-8) vs. George Roop (11-6-1) Should Hominick win this bout, he will become the new £1 contender for Jose Aldo. Roop was not given the same oration. George has improved greatly in recent years and his 6'1" frame and length give everyone problems but Hominick has just vastly more stand up experience though I doubt his stopping power. Neither man will be earning a Jiu Jitsu blackbelt any time soon but they are both decent as well. The odds makers really like Hominick but I think this fight could be much closer than people think and I'm not confident betting on either man.

* Both men fight for Team Tompkins but it was Roop who had to leave and find a new camp for this bout.

WINNER-Mark Hominick by Decision

Pat Barry (5-2) vs. Joey Beltran (12-4) "HD" is back from a debilitating loss to Mirko Cro Cop as Beltran returns from a spirited loss to Barry's homeboy Matt Mitrione. I really like the "Mexicutioner" but I just don't think he can hang at the UFC level. The guy has good cardio, hands, and heart, but perhaps not the talent. Pat comes in the K-1 striking machine who could get tapped out on the floor by Kimbo Slice. Joe had better duck and run because Barry is angry, in great shape, looking to erase the high fives, kissing and injuries that mocked his last outing. Joey has a chin, but death looms.

WINNER-Pat Barry by Rd.2 TKO

Cole Miller (17-4) vs. Matt Wiman (12-5) The "Shit Talking Nerd" meets "Handsome" in a winner stays relevant and loser does not. I have no clue in picking Wiman fights. Sometimes he comes in looking like a world beater and sometimes he looks like a total shit C-level fighter. Cole is consistently intense and ATT has made this kid good. Miller is just dirty on the floor and has made great strides in his striking as Ross Pearson found out. I have changed my mind on Miller (now believing he is a good fighter) and expect him to tap Matt but with that cat who knows?

WINNER-Cole Miller by Rd.3 Submission

Prelims (On Facebook.com/UFC):
Cody McKenzie (12-0) vs. Yves Edwards (39-16-1) Yves is making his last run in the UFC and faces the goofy master of the guillotine. Cody has what must be a record 10 bouts in a row with said guillotine. That's cute but Edwards is going to show this kid how a true mixed martial artist veteran fights. This is the most lopsided bout on the card for me and think Edwards makes some easy money here.

WINNER-Yves Edwards by Guillotine!

DaMarques Johnson (11-8) vs. Mike Guymon (12-4-1) I don't care for either fighter and neither will be employed with the UFC at the end of '11 so whatever.

WINNER-DaMarques Johnson by Decision

Prelims (Non-Televised):
Mike Thomas Brown (24-7) vs. Rani Yahya (15-6) "MTB" has not pleased with losing a Split-Decision last time out and jumped at the chance to fill in and start 2011 correct. Yahya will always be a limited fighter with Jiu Jitsu and nothing else while MTB is going to crush your soul. It won't be pretty and Rani should just run as Devildriver would say.

*MTB is the only ranked fighter on the entire card.

WINNER-MTB by Destruction

Waylon Lowe (9-3) vs. Willamy Freire (17-3) I'll take the Shooto Champion to represent Japan well and pull off a submission.

WINNER-Will Freire by look above

Charlie Brenneman (12-2) vs. Amilcar Alves (11-2) I'm a big Brenneman proponent and believe he will control Alves just like another wrestler in Mike Pierce did in Amilcar's last outing.

WINNER-Charlie Brenneman by Decision

Will Campuzano (8-3) vs. Chris Cariaso (10-2) This should be a fun Bantamweight battle.

WINNER-Cariaso?

Female Fighter Profile: Miesha Tate

Miesha "Takedown" Tate 11-2 (born August 18, 1986) is a professional female mixed martial artist. She has fought in Strikeforce and is the current Freestyle Cage Fighting Women's Bantamweight Champion. She has also competed and won a silver medal in the FILA Grappling Championships.

Tate wrestled on the boys' wrestling team in high school. In 2005, she won the high school women's state championship and went on to win nationals at the World Team Trials in the 158lb division.Soon after, Tate joined a mixed martial arts sport club at Central Washington University that was run by her current boyfriend and trainer, Bryan Caraway.

Miesha graduated into professional MMA in 2007 at the one-night HOOKnSHOOT Women's Grand Prix. "Takedown" recently participated in the 1-night Strikeforce 135-pound women's tournament on August 13, 2010 at ShoMMA 10. A random drawing was held on the day of the weigh-ins to determine 1st round matchups and Tate defeated Maiju Kujala by Unanimous Decision to advance to the tournament final. Tate then defeated Hitomi Akano by Unanimous Decision after three rounds to become Strikeforce Women's Welterweight Tournament Champion.

You need to be paying attention to this dangerous beauty who is the MMAFO Female Fighter Of The Year.

"Who Is Jose Aldo?" Video

MMAFO 2010 MMA Awards!

Fighter Of The Year Alistair Overeem I'm going to be demolished (excuse the pun) for this one. Look, I don't even like the guy but you cannot deny he had the most successful 2010 for anyone in combat sports. In MMA he defended his Strikeforce Heavyweight title by TKOing Brett Rogers in one round. At K-1's 2010 Dynamite!! show he KO'd Todd Duffee in a mere 19 seconds to become the DREAM Heavyweight Champion as well. Not bad.

As a two sport athlete, Overeem also has his K-1 record. He waltzed through 2010 winning 5 times with all but 1 ending in the initial round, and became the K-1 World Grand Prix Champion!

Alistair is the current Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion, DREAM Interim Heavyweight Champion, K-1 World Grand Prix Champion, and made history by being the only fighter in combat sports to hold a world title in both MMA and in K-1 kickboxing at the same time. That by the way, is documented by the Guinness Book Of World Records.

Female Fighter Of The Year Miesha Tate "Takedown" won 4 times in '10 while claiming the Strikeforce Women's Welterweight Tournament Champion. She represents Team Alpha Male and happens to be beautiful.

Breakthrough Fighter Of The Year Jon Jones Everyone became a "Bones" Jones fan in '10 as he earned a "KO Of The Night" at UFC 122 by rendering Brandon Vera unconscious. Nice start for the UFC on Versus and Jones followed it up by destroying sturdy veteran Vladimir Matyushenko in only a round at the 2nd UFC event on Versus. You also cannot deny the guy has charisma as his Twitter explodes with followers and he is interviewed everywhere.

Fight Of The Year Jorge Santiago vs. Kazuo Misaki 2 It was a title rematch at Sengoku 14 as Jorge Santiago faced Kazuo Misaki (who he defeated with a RNC in the 5th round to win the title in January 2009) in a brutal and grueling near 25 minute fight. Misaki took the 1st two rounds and almost secured a fight ending guillotine in the 2nd. A head kick and right combination changed the fight as Kazuo dropped to the canvas and Jorge swarmed him though he could not finish he earned a 10-8 round. In the 3rd it was the "Hitman's" turn as he dropped Santiago with a left hook and went in for the kill. Kazuo also could not finish and amazingly Jorge then dropped Misaki and rallied to end the round. For the final round Santiago went to work punishing Misaki from top so badly that Kazuo's corner threw in the towel before the final 30 seconds ticked off. To make it worse for Misaki, had he survived those last 30 seconds, he would have won the fight on the scorecards.

KO Of The Year Paul Daley lamps Scott Smith I mean damn! Scotty is no pushover but when "Semtex" lit him up in Strikeforce, dropping said kid face first on the mat. Unconscious before he fell and the hands did not come up to help the fall. Paul is nasty just don't hold him down for 15 minutes.

Submission Of The Year “The Submission heard round the world" was Fabricio Werdum’s triangle choke/armbar on Fedor Emelianenko who lost and tapped out for the 1st time in his entire career. Fedor’s 1st true loss was Werdum’s career making submission.

MMA Move Of The Year We should really call this "The Pettis." Or maybe the Anthony Achievement Award. Anthony Pettis pulled off the move of the century, leaping onto the cage with one foot, flying into the air landing a head kick with the same foot and knocking a shocked Ben Henderson to the floor. Amazing is simply not good enough. What did he achieve? He was catapulted into the spotlight and brought into the UFC fold as the last WEC Lightweight Champion, plus a successful MTV2 documentary with Jenks, and controversy about his position now that Edgar/Maynard 3 is happening.

Team Of The Year Team Jackson-Winkeljohn Ahem. GSP, Rashad Evans, Nate Marquardt, Kenny Florian, Diego Sanchez, Shane Carwin, Jon Jones, Donald Cerrone, Brian Stann, Carlos Condit, Damacio Page, Brendan Schaub, Clay Guida, and many more. Any questions?

MMA Coach Of The Year Greg Jackson See above.

MMA Event Of The Year WEC 53 The end to the beloved WEC was an amazingly stacked card with the fabled Pettis Super-kick and winning the WEC Lightweight title as be the final holder. Cruz dominated Jorgensen. Cerrone tapped Horodecki. Shalorus and "Bartimus" fought a war. Roller upset Varner who is now taking his ball and going home. Castillo almost kills Kerr. Wineland hits a KO slam and "One Punch" wins again. Great card.

MMA Website Of The Year Sherdog

MMA Ring Girl Of The Year Arianny Celeste A stunning turn in Playboy never hurts.

MMA Classic Photo #8 "The Abominable Snowman"

"Noted anarchist and former UFC fighter Jeff Monson stares down several members of the St. Paul riot police during the Republican National Convention. As the story goes, Monson and others were trying to block Republican delegates from entering the convention; he was detained but not arrested."

MMA Melee: "The Week In MMA"

Showtime Challengers 13 Results
Tyron Woodley defeated a very tenacious Tarec Saffiedine by Unanimous Decision. "T-Wood" upped his record to 8-0 and now finds himself very close to title contention. It was not all roses though as Tyron looked very beatable on the feet though his elite wrestling smothered the Team Quest opponent. In the final round however, you could tell Woodley's gas tank was on empty but he still gutted out the win.

Ovince St. Preux defeated Ron Humphrey by Unanimous Decision. Ovince (love that name!) now has a 7 fight winning streak going and has taken many in the MMA world by surprise. There are so few Light Heavyweights in Strikeforce that this kid is going to move up fast at this rate. Perhaps a meeting with Renato Sobral will tell us where this kid lands in the rankings.

Daniel Cormier defeated Devin Cole via Unanimous Decision in a route. Give Cole credit. Devin's wrestling and toughness were quite adept to hang with Daniel though his striking was not. Cormier can transition so fluidly from anywhere that it is a thing of beauty to watch. I still don't believe the super-star wrestler should be at Heavyweight with his short size. A move to Light Heavyweight will have to come when Cormier gets to the top tier of the Heavyweight division.

The UFC Cut List has grown longer with Brandon Vera (7-6 in the UFC), Antonio McKee, and Marcus Davis (9-5 in the UFC) all being shown the door. The Vera axe is long overdue and Antonio should not have even been in the UFC but I'm sad to see the "Irish Hand Grenade" go. He was so 1 dimensional when he started and morphed into a true mixed martial artist. All of these guys will surely get picked up and we just wait to see where they all land.

MMA legend Jens Pulver (22-14-1) has not yet retired and will fight for the Chicago Cagefighting Championship as the main event of a March 5 fight card against the ever present fighter, "TBA."

"Lil Evil" has only tasted victory twice in his last 10 outings but has been training with former rival BJ Penn.

Anthony Pettis will take a fight in the meanwhile since Gray Maynard and Frankie Edgar are going to settle things with the Lightweight title 1st. “Anthony was obviously disappointed in not getting the title shot, but he also understands why Dana made that decision,” said Mike Roberts (of Anthony's Management team). “After consulting with Anthony and Duke Roufus, we collectively decided that it would be in Anthony’s best interest to take a fight in the meantime. A 10-month or possible year layoff was just too long. We believe with a win against a top lightweight contender Anthony will still get the title shot later in the year." "Showtime" continues to impress me with his maturity and talent in the fight game.

Jacob Volkmann got a visit from the Secret Service after some ignorant comments he made about President Barack Obama post UFC 125. The Secret Service acted as though it was not a big deal and just something they had to do because some lady filed a formal complaint. My complaint is that watching "X-Mas" fight is as interesting as watching another "Fockers" movie.

Chael Sonnen is getting his comeuppances as he has now plead guilty in a mortgage fraud case involving a wire fraud scheme. The Team Quest fighter was forced to give up his realtor's license and will probably be put on some sort of probation in Oregon. The UFC has "frozen" Chael's contract and replaced him in the bout with Yoshihiro Akiyama with Nate Marquardt at UFC 128. How far can this guy fall?

STRIKEFORCE 2010 Heavyweight Tournament

The biggest (literally) news in MMA is the Strikeforce Heavyweight Tournament with Alistair Overeem defending his title in the opening round. Fedor Emelianenko will face Antonio Silva while Andrei Arlovski meets Sergei Kharitonov February 12th in the hell that is New Jersey. K-1 standout Ray Sefo will fight the Champions brother Valentijn Overeem in a Heavyweight Tournament Reserve Bout as is the Shane Del Rosario versus Lamar Johnson battle.

Champion Alistair Overeem will defend his title against Fabricio Werdum later in the year as the tournament progresses. Every time the "Demolition Man" fights he will defend his title in 5 round fashion while everyone else goes the standard 3. I like this because Overeem has not defended the title in so long and this almost serves as a guarantee. Should Alistair lose the strap in the course of the tournament, the new Champion will defend the belt for 5 rounds.

A tournament that forces many of these M.I.A. Heavyweights into action is great by me, but this cast is spectacular and with the UFC's Champion Cain Velasquez injured for probably the entire year and super-star Brock Lesnar in limbo, Strikeforce has cornered the market on the big boys!

UFC 125 Post Post

First and foremost in the news from UFC 125, Dana White has changed his mind and is making Edgar vs Maynard III before the Anthony Pettis fight and doesn't know yet if "Showtime" will have a fight in between or sit and wait a la Rashad Evans. I'm fine with that and with scoring the fight a Draw, and unfortunately life isn't fair and Pettis will just have to wait until business gets settled.

FightMetric scored Main Event 10-8 Maynard, 10-9 Edgar, 10-9 Maynard, 10-9 Edgar, 10-9 Edgar for a 47-47 draw. Despite how you scored the fight it was so damn close that we need a rematch to the rematch and if this angers you consider this. Neither man went for the kill in the final round and that was the round that would have established a winner. Despite the 20 prior minutes of war, both men played cautious for the final most important round.

• In the 1st round, Maynard threw 128 strikes, landing 47. Maynard went 46 for 201 in rounds 2-4.
• Edgar threw 86-297 (29.0%) from distance.
• Maynard threw 56-242 (23.1%).
• Edgar and Maynard both completed 3 takedowns. Maynard attempted 20, 7 more than Edgar.

Brian Stann called out Wanderlei Silva for his next fight as almost everyone at Middleweight does these days. He did look very impressive shutting Chris Leben down much like Anderson Silva did years ago but the "Crippler's" coach revealed his fighter was sick immediately before the contest and refused to pull out.

"First, great job by Brian Stann. He never looked better. Many have commented that Chris was very slow and looked off last night. The truth is that Chris was sick. He had a fever and chills when he stepped into the cage. He was vomiting in the lockeroom before the fight, and after a hard warm up he didn't have a drop of sweat. Big heart to fight like that, but he was moving slow motion. He was very sharp in training. He will be back."

Jon Jones reacted to the perceived disrespect Thiago Silva displayed in his bout with Brandon Vera and voiced it on Twitter. "Wow that slapping was so disrespectful.. id love to give him a slap in the face." Well I'd love to see Thiago Silva versus Jon Jones so this is a sweet setup.

I'm actually surprised at how many people scored the fight for Nate Diaz against Dong Hyun Kim. I did not but the case can definitely be made and hearing a over confident "Donger" call out Georges St. Pierre is just funny.

• FightMetric scored Nate Diaz vs. Dong Hyun Kim, 29-28 for Diaz.
• Diaz narrowly edged Kim in round 2.
• Diaz out landed Kim 81 to 34 and had a 36 to 19 advantage in significant strikes.
• Diaz landed as many strikes in round three (34) as Kim did during the entire fight!!

Jacob Volkman became my hero when he defeated the loud mouthed and uber-boring Antonio McKee only to immediately fall out of my good graces by calling President Barack Obama and "idiot" and saying he wants to fight him next because “someone has to knock some sense into that idiot.” Oh "X-Mas," please keep to staying so unimpressive that nobody knows or cares who you are before the UFC gets their wish and someone beats you so they can cut your C-Level ass.

UFC Paychecks
Frankie Edgar: $102,000 ($51,000 win) def. vs. Gray Maynard: $52,000 ($26,000 win)*
Brian Stann: $42,000 ($21,000 win) def. Chris Leben: $46,000
Thiago Silva: $110,000 ($55,000 win)def. Brandon Vera: $60,000
Dong Hyun Kim: $70,000 ($35,000 win) def. Nate Diaz: $33,000
Clay Guida: $62,000 ($31,000 win) def. Takanori Gomi: $50,000

Jeremy Stephens: $36,000 ($18,000 win) def. Marcus Davis: $31,000
Dustin Poirier: $8,000 ($4,000 win) def. Josh Grispi: $15,000
Brad Tavares: $16,000 ($8,000 win) def. Phil Baroni: $25,000
Diego Nunes: $20,000 ($10,000 win) def. Mike Brown: $23,000
Daniel Roberts: $24,000 ($12,000) def. Greg Soto: $8000
Jacob Volkmann: $24,000 ($12,000 win) def. Antonio McKee: $15,000

* - Although not reflected in the NSAC paperwork, both headliners received their win bonuses despite the draw

UFC Bonuses
$60,000 fight-night bonuses:
- Fight of the Night: Frankie Edgar s. Gray Maynard
- Submission of the Night: Clay Guida
- Knockout of the Night: Jeremy Stephens