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Mauro Ranallo was the former announcer for PRIDE FC and is the current announcer for Showtime.

Ranallo sat down with MMAFighting.com just before the Strikeforce: Houston event to talk about some of the high’s and lows of his career.

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The UFC's return to the Lone Star State required a bit of creativity from the company's matchmaking department, but all is now complete less than a week before the show.

A long-rumored matchup between Yves Edwards and John Gunderson is now official for the preliminary card of UFC Fight Night 22, and the event is now complete with 10 bouts.

Featuring a main event between middleweight contenders Nate Marquardt and Rousimar Palhares, UFC Fight Night 22 takes place Sept. 15 at the Frank Erwin Center in Austin, Texas.

Shine Fight Promotions has revealed the upcoming matchups for this Friday’s lightweight Grand Prix Tournament. The event will consist of an eight-man, one-night, tournament and will be featured on a pay-per-view (check your local service provider to see if they are carrying the event) live from the First Council Casino in Newkirk, OK.

Here are the matchups for the GP Tournament.

Drew “Knight Rider” Fickettvs. Charles “Krazy Horse” Bennett
Rich “Cleat” Crunkilton vs.Carlo Prater
James Warfield vs. “Alley Cat” KyleBaker
Shannon Gugerty vs. Dennis Bermudez

Here is the full Press Release
_______________________

NEWKIRK, OK (SEPTEMBER 8, 2010) – The first-round matchups for the Sept 10 Shine Fights Promotions Grand Prix Tournament from the First Council Casino in Newkirk, OK have been finalized, it was announced today by Shine Fights COO Jason Chambers.Chambers stated, “It is no secret that we have faced a barrage of challenges with this tournament; however the Shine team has persevered and done an amazing job of ensuring both the fighters and fans get to be part of an amazing show Sept 10th.” The tournament will follow the Nevada State Athletic Commission rules. Below is list of the tournament’s matchups, which will be broadcast on PPV:

Drew “Knight Rider” Fickettvs. Charles “Krazy Horse” Bennett

Drew Fickett: 37-13 with 3TKO/KOs, 26 submissions. This Tucson, Arizona native is only 30 years old but has competed in fifty professional fights. A submission specialist, he holds notable victories over UFC stalwarts Josh Koscheck, Kurt Pellegrino,Dennis Hallman, and Kenny Florian, as well as UFC veterans Josh Neer, Edwin DeWees,Keita Nakamura, Mark Weir, and Derrick Noble. In addition, he defeated fellow tourney entrant Carlo Prater via submission in their first bout back in 2004.

Charles Bennett: 23-17-2 with14 TKO/KOs, 6 submissions. One of the most controversial fighters in MMA history, the 30-year-old Ocala, Florida native is known for his antics in and out of the cage. He’s been known to insult opponents, disrespect referees, and has even brawled with other fighters backstage. Once quoted atsaying that ground fighting “is like making love…it’s not real fighting,”Krazy Horse has attempted to clean up his act in recent years. Regardless,fight fans know that they will be entertained when “Krazy Horse” is on thecard. Bennett holds notable wins over former EliteXC Lightweight Champion KJNoons, UFC veteran Gerald Strebendt, and WEC Bantamweight contender Yoshiro Maeda, and has faced some of the world’s best lightweights in Takanori Gomi,Tatsuya Kawajiri, Jeff Curran, and Urijah Faber.

Rich “Cleat” Crunkilton vs.Carlo Prater

Rich Crunkilton: 16-3 with7 TKO/KOs, 6 submissions. The 30-year-old Ft. Lauderdale, Florida native is known for his devastating throws and slams, high kicks, and wild punches. A product of the famed American Kickboxing Academy,“Cleat” has faced top 155ers during the course of his career, including BaoQuach, Hermes Franca, former WEC Lightweight Champion “Razor” Rob McCullough,and “The Fugitive” Dave Hansen.

Carlo Prater: 24-7-1 with 2TKO/KOs, 12 submissions. Hailing from Sao Paolo, Brazil,Prater began competing in professional mixed martial arts in 2002. The ground fighter challenged then-WEC Welterweight Champion Carlos Condit for the title at WEC 32 in 2008, putting up a valiant effort before succumbing to his bigger opponent. Now based in Texas,Prater has set his eyes on the Shine title. He possesses notable victories over UFC lightweight Spencer “The King” Fisher, Condit (in their first bout),Strikeforce fighter Pat Healy, and UFC veteran Keith Wisniewski

James Warfield vs. “Alley Cat” KyleBaker

James Warfield: 21-6 with 15TKO/Kos, 6 submissions. A veteran of many MMA organizations, Warfield is known for his reputation as a finisher, having never won by anything other than a stoppage. The Sun Prairie, Wisconsin native trained in Jeet Kune Do and karate as a child, but has blossomed into a full-fledgedmixed martial artist. He’s faced quality competition throughout his six-year fight career, including UFC veteran Rory Markham, former TUF contestant Seth Baczynski, and former top ten-ranked lightweight Yves Edwards.

Kyle Baker: 9-4 with 7 TKO/KOs, 1 submission. One of the most well-rounded fighters in Virginia, “Alley Cat” trains withthe famed MMA Institute in Harrisonburg.Dubbed “the hardest hitting man in Virginia,”Baker is the WKA Muay Thai Champion, as well as a former ISKA Kickboxing Champion. In addition, Baker was a high school state champion wrestler, and currently holds a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. The 29 year-old Baker stands 5’11”, and usually competes in the welterweight division. He holds a victory over two-time UFC veteran Chad Reiner, and has defeated fellow GrandPrix participant Drew Fickett.

Shannon Gugerty vs. Dennis Bermudez

Shannon Gugerty: 12-5 with 3 TKO/Kos, 9 submissions. Gugerty is a brown belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu under famed grappler Dean Lister.He began his professional MMA career successfully with a submission victory over current WEC mainstay Cub Swanson. After amassing a 10-2 record, he was invited to compete for the Ultimate Fighting Championships, where he has foughtfive times. During his time with the UFC, Gugerty was able to rack up wins over Dale Hartt and Matt Grice. The 28 year-old San Diego native trains at Victory MMA with fellow notables Jeremy Stephens, Court McGee, Toby Imada, Peter Sobotta, Joe Brammer, and Tomas Drwal.

Dennis Bermudez: 8-0 with 3TKO/KOs, 1 submission. This rising young lightweight has carved out an unblemished 8-0 record as a professional MMA fighter. A former Division 1 All American wrestler, Bermudez has the type of ground game that makes fight aficionados stand up and take notice. Included in that group is former longtime WEC Featherweight Champion Urijah Faber, who recently brought in the talented wrestler to his camp in order to help him prepare for future fights.

The GrandPrix Tournament will be beamed on PPV on cable and satellite in the United States and Canada. The event will be in High Definition and it will be available in both English and Spanish (where available).The Grand Prix Tournament will be distributed ive on Pay Per View beginning at 9 p.m. EST/6 p.m. PST by Multi Vision Media,Inc.The suggested retail prices $29.95.

Ticket Information: Tickets for the Mixed Martial Arts Tournament at the First Council Casino on Friday, September 10 at 8:00 p.m.Tickets which are on sale now are priced at$250, $175, $95, $65, and $35. Tickets will be available through Ticketstorm.com and the First Council Casino box office by calling 866-966-1777.

To learn more aboutShine Fight Promotions, visit www.shinefights.com or follow the organization on Twitter Twitter.com/ShineFightsMMA, Myspace(www.myspace.com/ShineFights), YouTube(www.youtube.com/ShineFights) or become a fan on Facebook.

MMAjunkie.com Radio today welcomes Shark Fights 13 competitors Houston Alexander, Paul Daley and Jorge Masvidal to the program.

All three fighters join the show to discuss their contests at Saturday's debut pay-per-view event for Shark Fights. Alexander calls in to preview his fight with Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou, while Daley and Masvidal join in to discuss their main-card meeting.

MMAjunkie.com Radio airs from 12-2 p.m. ET (9-11 a.m. PT) live from the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino's Race & Sports Book. Listen to and watch a video stream of the two-hour show at www.mmajunkie.com/radio.

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Five times World’s Strongest Man Mariusz Pudzianowski (2-1) shows off his latest mma skills at an open media workout for the KSW XIV event in Poland on Sept. 18. Pudzianowski is preparing to meet Eric “Butterbean” Esch (15-7-1) at the event.

A lightweight showdown between Tyson Griffin and Nik Lentz has been targeted for UFC 123.

MMAjunkie.com learned of the bout, which was first reported by MMAWeekly.com, on Wednesday evening from sources close to the event who said verbal agreements were in place with paperwork on the way.

UFC 123 is expected to take place Nov. 20 at The Palace of Auburn Hills in suburban Detroit, though the promotion has yet to officially announce the event.

While a MRSA staph infection in his right knee forced bantamweight Clint Godfrey out of September's WEC 51 event, he's not taking long to reschedule his return.

MMAjunkie.com has learned that Godfrey and WEC newcomer Michael McDonald have agreed to fight at WEC 52.

Bout agreements for the contest are expected to be finalized shortly.

UFC veteran Marcus Aurelio (20-8) has been replaced by another UFC vet, Shannon Gugerty (12-5), in this Friday’s Shine Fights’ lightweight Grand Prix tournament.

Aurelio had been hoping to fight through an elbow injury, even receiving a cortisone shot, but was still unable to train. There is also some controversy surrounding an upcoming lightweight fight against Shinya Aoki on the DREAM.16 card. With the injury, Aurelio may be unlikely for that event.

Aurelio spoke to MMAjunkie.com about the injury and the DREAM bout.

“I can’t do anything with my right arm,” Aurelio said. “I have no strength at all to push. I don’t like to go to fight like that….”

“I’m going to do my best to fight (in) DREAM,” Aurelio said. “Every day, my manager, he talks to them. I have two or three weeks for the (DREAM) fight. I think I’ll be OK. I’m going to have a chance to have another shot in my elbow, and I’m just keeping my conditioning now. There’s not much (else) I can do.”

Here is the full Shine Fights’ press release announcing Shannon Gugerty as Aurelio’s replacement.
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NEWKIRK, OK (September 8, 2010) – As anyone involved in the sport of mixed martial arts can tell you, injuries can happen at anytime. UFC/PRIDE veteran Marcus “Maximus” Aurelio is no exception to that concept. After sustaining an injury while training for this weekend’s Shine Fights Lightweight Grand Prix, the Brazilian Jiu Jitsu master has been forced to vacate his spot in the tourney. Taking his place will be fellow submission specialist Shannon Gugerty.

A UFC veteran in his own right, Gugerty is a brown belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu under famed grappler Dean Lister. He began his professional MMA career successfully with a submission victory over current WEC mainstay Cub Swanson. After amassing a 10-2 record, he was invited to compete for the Ultimate Fighting Championships, where he has fought five times. During his time with the UFC, Gugerty was able to rack up wins over Dale Hartt and Matt Grice. The 28 year-old San Diego native trains at Victory MMA with fellow notables Jeremy Stephens, Court McGee, Toby Imada, Peter Sobotta, Joe Brammer, and Tomas Drwal.

Jason Chamber, Shine Fight COO stated, “I am sad to see Marcus pull out of the tournament and wish him a fast recovery. Stepping up to a challenge of this magnitude on 3 days notice is a very daunting task- it is a testament to what a warrior Shannon Gugerty is. We are excited to see him compete!”

The Shine Fights Lightweight Grand Prix is a unique throwback to the original format of mixed martial arts. Fighters will need to be at their best in order to win the tourney and in the process gain the glory that comes along with victory. The Grand Prix will be contested under standard Nevada State Athletic Commission rules for MMA. Each of the eight 155 lb. fighters will be paired off in the tournament’s opening round, with the four winners moving on to round two.

The two winners of round two will move on to the tournament’s final round, and battle for the championship. The single-elimination format means that the tournament winner will need to win three bouts that evening. Rounds one and two of the tournament will be composed of two 5-minute rounds. They will also have a three-minute overtime if needed to decide a winner. Round three (the finals) will increase to three 5-minute rounds. There will be two alternate bouts held in case of an injury.

Some of the best 155 lb. fighters in the world will compete in the tournament, a colorful array of combatants that will lay it all on the line in order to capture the Shine Fights Lightweight Championship. This group of outstanding athletes includes Rich “Cleat” Crunkilton, “Alley Cat” Kyle Baker, James Warfield, Drew Fickett, Carlo Prater, and Charles “Krazy Horse” Bennett.

This Grand Prix Tournament will be beamed on PPV on cable and satellite in the United States and Canada. The event will be in High Definition and it will be available in both English and Spanish (where available). The Grand Prix Tournament will be distributed live on Pay Per View beginning at 9 p.m. EST/6 p.m. PST by Multi Vision Media, Inc. The suggested retail price is $29.95.

Shine Fights has finalized matchups for its lightweight grand prix set to take place Friday at the First Council Casino in Newkirk, Okla.

Eight competitors will do battle in the single-night tournament: Kyle Baker, Charles Bennett, Dennis Bermudez, Richard Crunkilton, Drew Fickett, Shannon Gugerty, Carlo Prater and James Warfield.

The pairings were revealed Wednesday evening by Shine Fights COO Jason Chambers.

Shine Fights has finalized matchups for its lightweight grand prix set to take place Friday at the First Council Casino in Newkirk, Okla.

Eight competitors will do battle in the single-night tournament: Kyle Baker, Charles Bennett, Dennis Bermudez, Richard Crunkilton, Drew Fickett, Shannon Gugerty, Carlo Prater and James Warfield.

The pairings were revealed Wednesday evening by Shine Fights COO Jason Chambers.