(photo via UFC.com)

UFC president Dana White has confirmed the event for heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar’s (5-1) next title defense. Lesnar will face Cain Velasquez (8-0) at the yet-to-be officially announced UFC 121 on Oct. 23 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif.

MMAFighting.com was first to break the news Friday night after speaking with White.

Lesnar is coming off his second successful title defense after using a surprise submission to defeat knock-out artist Shane Carwin last weekend at UFC 116 in Las Vegas. That victory was the former professional wrestler’s fourth straight win, having defeated former champ Frank Mir last summer at UFC 100.

Velasquez is undefeated in eight bouts and has won all six of his UFC fights. He’s earned his title shot after defeating former PRIDE champion Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira last February at UFC 110. Velasquez KO’d Nogueira to win his second “Knockout of the Night” honor in that fight.

The winner is expected to face either Junior dos Santos or Roy “Big Country” Nelson who face off at UFC 117.

Other bouts rumored for UFC 121 are as follows:

- Brock Lesnar vs. Cain Velasquez
- Quinton “Rampage” Jackson vs. TBA
- Sam Stout vs. Paul Taylor

Damian Grabowski

CHICAGO (July 8, 2010) — Bellator Fighting Championships announced today that the nationally televised mixed martial arts promotion will return to the Windy City for a Season 3 event at the historic Chicago Theatre on Aug. 19th.

Bellator 25 will mark the Chicago landmark’s second-ever mixed martial arts event — the first being Bellator 14 which took place on April 15, 2010. The Bellator 25 card will feature two quarterfinal fights in both the Season 3 Heavyweight and Women’s World Championship tournaments.

Headlining the Fox Sports Net event will be undefeated heavyweight sensation Damian “The Polish Pitbull” Grabowski who will make his U.S. debut in a quarterfinal heavyweight world championship tournament fight against knock-out artist Scott Barrett.

Grabowski, who was considered one of the top heavyweight free agents in the world before signing with Bellator, boasts a perfect 13-0 pro record. The Polish Pitbull has not only finished each of his opponents by TKO or submission, but not one of his opponents has yet to see the third round of a fight. His spectacular tenacity was on full display in April 2009, when he competed in a one-night, 16-man heavyweight tournament in an Austrian promotion that featured no-time-limit bouts. Grabowski dismantled each of his four opponents, winning the tournament with his longest fight lasting only 3:48 into the second frame. In his most recent fight last month Grabowski TKO’d the highly regarded heavyweight Michal Kita in the first round.

Barrett, who owns a four-fight win streak coming into the tournament, fought earlier this year at Bellator 19 where he knocked out formerly undefeated Ty Lee just 2:25 into Round 1.

Bellator 25 will also include an opening-round fight in Bellator’s World Championship Women’s Tournament featuring Zoila “The Warrior Princess” Frausto and the world’s No. 6-ranked flyweight, undefeated Jessica Pene.

Frausto was added to the tournament after she shocked the MMA world recently at Bellator 23 with her stunning KO of the world’s top-ranked and heavily favored Rosi Sexton. Sexton was subsequently forced out of the tournament due to a 60-day medical suspension from the Kentucky Boxing and Wrestling Authority. Pene debuted for Bellator in May 2009 with a first round TKO against Tammie Schneider at Bellator 5. Her unblemished record also features a submission victory over fellow tournament participant and No. 8 world ranked 115 pounder, Angela Magana.

In other action, Aisling Daly, the best female mixed martial artist in Ireland and the world’s No. 3-ranked 125 lbs. woman, will drop down to 115 lbs. to face 13-5 submission ace and No. 3-ranked flyweight Lisa Ward in the opening round of the World Championship Women’s Tournament. The 22-year-old Daly will make her U.S. MMA debut backed by a pristine 9-0 record, while Ward enters the fight with one win already coming under the Bellator banner. Just two weeks ago at Bellator 22, she dismantled Stephanie Frausto with a slick rear naked choke 2:01 into the first round.

The Bellator Season 3 Heavyweight and Women’s World Championship Tournaments begin Aug. 12 and will once again be televised LIVE in primetime every Thursday night on FOX Sports Net and during special weekend highlight shows on NBC, Telemundo and the cable network mun2.

For more information, visit Bellator.com, follow Bellator on Twitter @BellatorMMA or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Bellator.

Tickets are priced at $100, $75, $50, and $35, and go on sale at Ticketmaster.com beginning this Saturday, July 10th, at 12 noon.

Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker stands in support of Fedor Emelianenko beyond the implications of the fighter's shocking 69-second submission loss to Fabricio Werdum at this past Saturday's "Strikeforce and M-1 Global: Fedor vs. Werdum" event.

"He's how you expect to see a mixed martial artist act and present himself," Coker said. "This is a spiritual journey for him. It's not just about a fight."

And while Emelianenko undoubtedly lost some of his luster with the loss, Coker said the fighter will rebound from the setback.

A long-rumored middleweight rematch between former Strikeforce
middleweight champion Cung Le and comeback artist
extraordinaire Scott Smith is finally official for
the June 26 co-promoted event, "Strikeforce and M-1 Global: Fedor vs.
Werdum."

Strikeforce officials today confirmed the addition with MMAjunkie.com, and an official announcement is expected shortly.

Additionally, former Strikeforce lightweight champion Josh Thomson will square off with Pat Healy.

Strikeforce must have breathed a collective sigh of relief when Alistair Overeem comfortably dispensed of the challenge of Brett Rogers in St Louis. Fedor Emelianenko is by far their most marketable asset but they are desperately short of decent opponents for the highly regarded Russian.

When you have been at the top for as long as Emelianenko has there is a very elite pool of fighters from whom you should be picking your opponents. Almost anyone with recent losses on their record is out. Fedor’s recent fight with Rogers was acceptable because Rogers was unbeaten but a rematch would not have been a palatable prospect.

Emelianenko’s next scheduled opponent, Fabricio Werdum, is not of a sufficient caliber to be facing arguably the number one pound for pound fighter on the planet. Werdum has three losses in his last eight fights, two of them against comparatively low quality fighters. He should be at least three wins away from being in contention to face Emelianenko but the lack of depth in Strikeforce’s existing heavyweight division means that they are forced to throw Emelianenko in with anyone and everyone.

Emelianenko himself is in no position to complain, if he genuinely wanted to face the best heavyweight fighters in the world he could have signed with the UFC. The reality is that both parties are trying to make the best of a bad situation and Overeem’s emphatic victory over Rogers will go a long way towards compensating for the disappointing recent defection of Jake Shields.

Strikeforce have invested time and money in a number of fighters who have recently fallen from grace. Dan Henderson’s loss to Shields made the latters departure even more difficult to take while Gegard Mousasi’s reputation as the best light heavyweight outside of the UFC suffered potentially permanent damage when he lost his Strikeforce title to Muhammed Lawal.

These disappointing results at Strikeforce’s penultimate event left the organization in disarray. When you have a limited number of fighters at your disposal you need your most exciting prospects to keep winning in order to set up genuinely marketable match ups.

Mousasi and Henderson might have let Strikeforce down in this respect but at least Alistair Overeem has not. One of very few K-1 level strikers to have made an impression in mixed martial arts Overeem did not enjoy the most impressive of starts to his MMA career. He lost three out of his first seven fights but then won the next 12, all via stoppage.

He came up against up and coming UFC fighter Chuck Liddell in the opening round of the Pride Middleweight Grand Prix and was handed his fourth MMA loss with a first round stoppage. After the defeat to Liddell Overeem’s MMA career lost a little bit of momentum. He won three fights against low level opposition before losing to Antonio Rogerio Nogueira. He then defeated two high profile opponents, Vitor Belfort and Igor Vochanchyn, employing a guillotine choke on both occasions. Overeem went on to win three out of his next four fights before being submitted by Fabricio Werdum.

Overeem bounced back defeating Vitor Belfort for the second time but then entered the most disappointing period of his MMA career. He lost three consecutive fights, to Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Ricardo Arona and Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua. He beat the unknown Michael Knapp but was then knocked out by Sergei Kharitonov meaning that, when he signed with Strikeforce he had lost five out of his last seven fights.

There was little in Overeem’s recent record to suggest he was an MMA champion in the making but he defeated Paul Buentello on his Strikeforce debut to win the Heavyweight Championship and he has remained unbeaten ever since.

He has won eight consecutive fights, most of them in Japan, with one no contest when he was disqualified for landing repeated groin strikes against Mirko Crocop. Like Overeem Crocop is a K-1 veteran but whereas Crocop retired from his K-1 career to concentrate entirely on MMA Overeem is still a highly respected K-1 fighter. He fought four times for K-1 in 2009, facing top quality opposition on every occasion.

Having a poor previous record should not detract from a fighter’s current standing. Manny Pacquiao is a prime example of a fighter who recovered from a few early losses to flourish late in his career and Overeem falls into a similar category.

Unlike Crocop who is still primarily a knock out artist, Overeem has, despite his excellent stand up pedigree, developed into something of a submission specialist. He has 18 submission wins, seven of them by way of a guillotine.

Eight consecutive wins make Overeem a worthy opponent for Emelianenko. Overeem is not a UFC discard unlike many of the men the Russian has recently faced such as Arlovski, Sylvia and Lindland as well as his upcoming opponent Werdum.

Fights of this magnitude may be far and few between for Emelianenko now that he has opted to continue his career away from the Octagon and as a highly ranked heavyweight fighter who is not contracted to the UFC Overeem is something of a rarity.

A title unification bout between Emelianenko and Overeem is a mouth watering proposition which could headline any MMA card in the world. It is probably not a point of view which Dana White would subscribe to but I think it can only benefit the burgeoning sport of MMA if there is more than one organization capable of putting on fights of this magnitude

In the wake of Mauricio “Shogun” Rua’s astonishing destruction of previously untouchable karateka Lyoto Machida during UFC 113, the big question on the lips of the entire MMA world now is; has the UFC finally found its true light heavyweight king?

Of course the UFC light heavyweight division has always been stacked with the most recognized and marketable fighters on the planet. The all-American poster boys that revolutionized the sport during the Zuffa inspired world-wide MMA renaissance were almost all 205-pounders. While boxing had the heavyweights, the UFC had the light heavies.

First it was Tito “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” Ortiz. He was the brash and cocky kid who brutalised an under skilled division with his god given strength and vicious elbows inside the guard. Then it was Randy “The Natural” Couture, or simply “Captain America.” He was the ageless and affable American hero who made a habit of shocking the world with his grit and world class wrestling ability. And finally it was Chuck “The Iceman” Liddell. He was the mohawked knock-out artist with impregnable takedown defense who beat down both Ortiz and Couture twice on his way to becoming MMA’s first true cross-over star. Yes, since its inception on May 4 2001, the UFC light heavyweight division had always boasted a true divisional king.

Then on May 26 2007 at UFC 71, barely three weeks after becoming the first MMA fighter to grace the cover of ESPN Magazine, Liddell’s impressive run come to a somewhat embarrassing halt courtesy of a Quinton “Rampage” Jackson blazing right hook. Not only did Liddell’s nemesis shake up the entire MMA world that night, he also threw the UFC into a divisional tailspin it’s yet to fully recover from.

Three years down the road and the coveted UFC light heavyweight belt has changed hands a record five times. While Jackson made a solitary title defence against Dan Henderson at UFC 75, he soon relinquished it to Forrest Griffin at UFC 86. Griffin promptly lost it to fellow TUF alumni Rashad Evans at UFC 92 who in turn lost it to Lyoto Machida at UFC 98. And the game of musical chairs continued as Machida, who despite controversially coming up trumps in their first bout, was belatedly sent packing by a surprisingly resurgent Shogun last weekend at UFC 113. While Jackson, Griffin, Evans and Machida were thoroughly deserved champions, kings they were not.

So does Mauricio “Shogun” Rua have the minerals to pick up where Liddell left off and lord over the UFC light heavyweight division?

To answer that question it might pay to take a look back over Shogun’s relatively short but storied career as even at a glance it soon becomes obvious the former Wanderlei Silva prodigy has the pedigree to do just that. Groomed at the world famous Chute Boxe Academy in Brazil, he started training Muay Thai and BJJ at an early age, earning his black-belt in just five years. Then in 2005, at only 23 years of age, he freight-trained his way through the Pride Light Heavyweight Grand Prix on his way to taking out arguably the world’s most prestigious 205-pound event at the time. And it was no easy run as stomp victims Quinton Jackson, Antonio Rogerio Nogueria, Alistair Overeem and Ricardo Arona will surely attest. Since leaving Japan, despite experiencing a horror run of injuries, he’s unquestionably evolved into one of the finest strikers in the UFC and sports an incredibly dangerous submission game to boot. His only apparent flaw, the suspect gas tank that let him down against Renato Sobral and Forrest Griffin, appears to be rectified.

Now, at just 28 years of age and sporting an impressive record of 19-4-0 with 17 finishes, Shogun looks for all money to possess the kind of raw physical and technical attributes that can certainly place him alongside the likes of Anderson Silva and Georges St. Pierre in the MMA world. And his conquest of Machida could possibly be the beginning of a lengthy win streak that sees him clean out the entire division.

So, has the UFC finally found its new light heavyweight king in Mauricio “Shogun” Rua? Absolutely… that is, until he’s dethroned by a kid nicknamed “Bones”.

To be continued…

Press Release

TORONTO (May 12, 2010) – On Saturday, May 22, 2010, the movement to bring Mixed Martial Arts to Ontario gathers for a high energy outdoor rally at Queen’s Park.

MMA Day
Queen’s Park, front lawn of the Legislature Building
University Avenue and College Street
Saturday May 22, 2010
1:00 PM to 4:00 PM
2:00 PM to 3:00 PM – Press Conference on site

The First Annual MMA Day, organized by Toronto-based Mixed Martial Arts Expo, will bring together the Ontario citizens, families and businesses that see great benefit in having Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) recognized as another combative sport in Ontario, as boxing has been for over eighty years. The growing list of Ontario supporters of MMA includes:

- Suppliers and retailers of martial arts gear and apparel
- Traditional martial art schools and MMA training facilities
- Distributors of supplements, nutrition products and energy drinks
- Fitness facilities and personal trainers
- Health, wellness and sports medicine companies
- Professional and amateur fighters and coaches
- Fight promoters, agents and managers
- Facility suppliers, designers and equipment manufacturers
- Tattoo shops and artists
- Photography and videography industry
- Radio and television broadcasting
- Publishers of MMA magazines and websites
- Authors and publishers of martial arts training materials
- Martial arts and MMA associations
- Website development companies
- Ticketing agencies
- Tour Bus Operators
- Hotels, convention centres and arenas
- A/V, Staging and Lighting Industry
- Restaurant Industry
- Tourism Industry

The event will be hosted by Ontario businessman, radio announcer and mixed martial artist instructor and competitor, Jeff Joslin. Also in attendance on the dais will be representatives from the tourism and hospitality industries, local and provincial politicians and many of the brightest stars in the Ontario MMA community including:

- “Showdown Joe” Ferraro – MMA Analyst; Host of MMA Connected on Rogers Sportsnet
- Loudon Owen – Chairman of the Fight Network
- Carlos Newton – Business Owner; First-ever Canadian UFC Champion
- Mark Hominick – Business Owner; professional MMA fighter
- Sam Stout – Business Owner; UFC Lightweight Contender
- Sean Pierson – Bellator Welterweight Pro Fighter
- Shah Franco – BJJ and MMA Instructor; Pro Fighter Coach

MMA Day organizer and president of Mixed Martial Arts Expo, Gerald Chopik, states that, “MMA Day on May 22 gives Ontario families, related industry workers and MMA athletes and fans and the opportunity to raise awareness about not only how they – but the province at large – will benefit from MMA being sanctioned in Ontario.”

To be kept apprised of the day’s activities MMA Day supporters are encouraged to join the Facebook event page at: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=114793371892846

Found this gem on the UG Forums, props to the artist whomever you are!

Should Anderson Silva take more risks to become a better champion? Does BJ Penn deserve an immediate rematch? Should Frank Edgar be ranked as the #1 lightweight? Which title fight at this weekend’s Strikeforce has you most excited? Does Jake Shields need to go to the UFC?

UFC 112 is over, Strikeforce: Nashville is this weekend, and we’ve got issues that need grappling with. As always, esteemed colleagues Adam Tool and Brendhan Conlan have plenty to say about the hot topics of the week. Each will have their say, and then it’s your turn to sound off in the comment box below.

Now, in the immortal words of Cecil Peoples…let’s dance!

Would Anderson Silva be a BETTER champion/fighter if he lost taking unnecessary risks to please fans/management rather than taking a more intelligent, less aesthetically pleasing approach to opponents?

Adam Tool: The only thing that makes Anderson Silva a better champion is defending his belt and winning fights. That’s his job. Yes the sport of MMA serves as entertainment for the millions of fans that watch it, but no mixed-martial artist is going to list “entertainer” on their resume (well, Jason “Mayhem” Miller and Akihiro Gono might). The excessive showboating in the first half of the Silva/Maia fight coupled with the complete lack of action in the second half left everyone with a bad taste in their mouth, but we can’t pretend to know what was going on in Silva’s head. The win may not have gotten him any new fans, but Silva did the job he was supposed to do: win the fight.

When there’s a fighter like Silva, who breathes such rarified air in the MMA world, people have a different set of expectations for how he should perform. He didn’t meet those expectations, and as a consumer you have the right to be dissatisfied with his performance. The fact remains though that this is a sport, and these athletes are going to do whatever they can (within the defined rules of engagement) to win.

Brendhan Conlan: I am surprised by Tool’s response but in a good way, because I completely agree with his viewpoint and felt I was probably one of the only folks in MMAville who hadn’t already sharpened his pitchfork in response to Silva’s antics against Demian Maia. As such, I’m prepared for the comment section to be riddled with posts from people with torch-in-hand, but it would be dishonest of me to wag my finger at “The Spider” for his behavior because I truly wasn’t upset by it. The overwhelming vibe I got in the aftermath of UFC 112 was people being okay with his showboating as long as it results in a finish (Forrest Griffin, Rich Franklin II) but feeling it is horribly disrespectful if not (Maia, Thales Leites, and to an extent Patrick Cote). It’s a hypocrisy I refuse to subscribe to, and furthermore I don’t think any Mixed Martial Artist needs to perform up to any standards beyond the ones he sets for himself.

I understand people feel like Silva owes them something. Yes, a small percentage of the money we fork out for events makes its way into his pockets. However, in reality the UFC benefits from the fans’ patronage to a far greater extent than any fighter, and while our business gives athletes a larger platform to perform on it is still the individual fighter at risk in the ring, i.e. our money being at stake pales in comparison to their actual health or even consciousness being on the line. Why should Silva press the issue of a finish if Maia, who realistically didn’t deserve the opportunity to begin with, refused to throw the same caution to the wind? The champion certainly has more to lose than the challenger, does he not? And would people have been heaping praise on him had he unnecessarily charged in, got caught in guard, and then ultimately submitted? He shouldn’t have, he does, and there would have been a huge uproar about Anderson’s susceptibility on the ground instead of supposed cockiness or lack of interest in fighting. I’d rather he just keeps being other-worldly in the Octagon, not change things up to satisfy others’ wishes.

Should BJ Penn get an immediate rematch with Frank Edgar after such a close fight and semi-questionable decision?

Tool: This past weekend there was a fight that was closely contested, and when the judges’ scores were read some people disagreed with the verdict. I know, this sort of crazy thing never happens in MMA, but I think we can all somehow move on past this.

Last week when everyone was still making predictions for how UFC 112 would go down, nobody was giving Edgar the slightest chance to pull off the upset. Okay there was one guy, but his opinions don’t really matter. Since Edgar wasn’t able to win in thoroughly convincing fashion, it seems that a lot of people want to see him do it again before they can get behind the idea of him as champion. For some reason Zuffa has this thing where if a fighter scores a major upset they have to do it again in order to prove that it wasn’t a fluke. They did it to Matt Serra, they did it to Mike Brown, and they could do it again to Frank Edgar.

You may disagree with the decision but even if you could make the most convincing argument for Penn getting an immediate rematch, I believe there’s a more convincing argument to be made for Gray Maynard getting the first shot at Edgar’s title. Maynard was already in consideration before Edgar got the nod, so it’s not as though he isn’t a legitimate contender. The storyline is already built in with Edgar’s lone career loss coming against Maynard, and both fighters have stated that it’s the match-up they want. Edgar vs. Maynard II may not be the most appealing fight to headline a PPV, but it’s the right fight to make. Have Penn take on another upper-level fighter and give him the next shot if he wins, but for now let’s enjoy the fact that a once-stagnant division has now been blown wide open.

Conlan: I didn’t think the decision was horrific (certain scoring aside) because Edgar buzzed around Penn like a gnat the entire time, scored a few takedowns, and dished out fairly similar damage to what he received. However, I would still like to see Penn get an immediate rematch, and I think it’s short-sighted to say the only reason the UFC would book it is simply because the result of their first pairing was considered an “upset”.

For starters, the fight makes sense for competitive reasons. The first bout was closely contested throughout all five rounds and it’s hard to say either man definitively won in the allotted time period. A lot of people would argue a champion needs to be beaten convincingly in order to lose and that simply didn’t happen. Even the actual per-round statistics back up the case for a questioning the judges’ decision to award Edgar the UFC Lightweight Championship. Also, though talk about humidity and illness feel a little like excuses from Penn’s camp after a loss, Hilo’s favorite son definitely didn’t appear to be the same Mixed Martial Artist who’d shown up so many times before at 155-pounds so I think there’s something to be said about what condition he showed up in regardless of reasoning.

Beyond the in-ring aspect detailed above, the rematch also makes sense for business reasons. Penn is one of the biggest draws in MMA and easily the UFC’s top name at lightweight. Essentially, Penn vs. Edgar II headlines a PPV while Maynard vs. Edgar II plays second-fiddle to a bigger match-up. Gray is an exceptional wrestler with solid boxing, but he hasn’t exactly set the world ablaze with his style by winning six in a row via decision. Penn, on the other hand, hadn’t seen scorecards in the four years prior to UFC 112. There’s nothing wrong with fighting smart, and “The Bully” has compiled a very nice record in the UFC, but in terms of marketability there will always be an emphasis on promoting guys with a propensity for finishing fights.

Which of the three Strikeforce title fights are you most looking forward to?

Tool: This one isn’t hard for me to answer. All three title fights have some level of intrigue to them, but the light heavyweight bout is the one I’ll be paying most attention to. Both Gegard Mousasi and “King Mo” Lawal have a large amount of hype behind them, but that’s pretty much where the similarities end. Mousasi is a lethal striker with a huge advantage in experience, while Lawal is a powerhouse wrestler facing the biggest test of his career. It’s easy to pick Mousasi to win because that’s the safe bet, but at the same time we still don’t really know exactly how good “King Mo” is. There are plenty of questions hanging over either man’s head and I’m very much looking forward to getting some answers on Saturday night.

Conlan: I think Mousasi vs. Lawal is the toughest bout to pick regardless of the vast difference in both their experience and overall technical ability, so I can see why Tool is excited about either seeing the current Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion continue his ascension to greatness or watching “King Mo” finally sit atop a promotional throne when they throw down tomorrow night. However, I’m more geeked about Gilbert Melendez locking horns with Shinya Aoki in hopes of shaking up the lightweight rankings yet again as they were last weekend at UFC 112. It’s nice to finally see Aoki in action before 4:00 AM Central Standard Time courtesy of his American debut at the show, and I’m optimistic it won’t be the last time his colorful personality and choice of attire are seen by a live audience outside of Japan. The clash between Melendez’s wrestling/striking style and Aoki’s wizardry on the ground should play out nicely, and though I personally think “El Nino” will use his power to either TKO or grind out a win, it won’t be surprising to see him tapped out for the first time in his career because Shinya is so supremely talented when things hit the mat. It’s that sort of parity, as well as the promotional flag attached to each in this DREAM vs. Strikeforce showdown, that has me anticipating this particular championship fight more so than either of its counterparts on the card.

Which option appeals most to you for Anderson Silva’s next fight: defending his title against Vitor Belfort or Chael Sonnen, taking a showcase fight at light heavyweight, or dropping down to 170 for a super-fight with Georges St. Pierre?

Conlan: Even though it has since been announced Silva is set to face Sonnen at an upcoming event, the question posed asks which of those scenarios I find to be the most appealing one, and as such I would have preferred to see “The Spider” take on a top level light heavyweight rather than defend his middleweight championship against another opponent with questionable contendership credentials. Sonnen’s trio of victories since losing to Demian Maia at UFC 95 featured impressive grappling and ground control on his part but nothing to merit any real confidence in his ability to compete against Silva. The UFC is risking another five-round, pick-and-pepper fest by throwing Anderson in the ring with yet one more adversary needing to get inside, and to the mat, to do any significant damage rather than someone who is both comfortable and a threat in the striking department. Then again, perhaps the UFC’s point in making the match is to do just that and see how Silva responds since he’s apparently at risk of release if he behaves similarly to how he has in the past when unimpressed by what an opponent brings to the cage.

Rather, I would have preferred to see the enigmatic Brazilian face a 205-pounder who can press for a finish while standing, is athletic enough to match Silva’s speed, and has enough of a grappling base to make things interesting on the ground if necessary. Two names fitting that bill are Jon Jones and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua (assuming Lyoto Machida retains his title at UFC 113). I also think Quinton Jackson’s concrete jaw, aggressive nature, and powerful striking would be an interesting test for the UFC Middleweight Champion, but ultimately I think “Rampage” might be a little too slow to avoid a forcible nap at the hands, feet, knees, and elbows of Silva.

Tool: There’s no shortage of interesting fights waiting for Silva at 205, and any one of the fights mentioned by Brendhan would be appealing. I also wouldn’t be opposed to the idea of Silva moving even further up, as he’s expressed an interest in doing exactly that. Frank Mir has already stated that he’s willing to fight “The Spider” at a catchweight of 235, and there’s little to no chance that the resulting fight would possibly be labeled “boring.” I also don’t want to see Dana White giving up on the idea of a Silva/GSP super-fight, as that bout needs to happen at some point sooner or later.

At the end of the day I’m pleased to see Silva stepping up to another title defense, although I’m not exactly pleased with the opponent. It is truly a sad day in mixed-martial arts when people are looking to Chael Sonnen to deliver an exciting fight. While Sonnen may have earned his spot in the contender’s list, the more appealing bout at this point has to be Silva vs. Belfort. Don’t bother filling the comment box with statements on how Belfort hasn’t earned his shot, as the fact of the matter is that he should have fought Silva this past Saturday. Had the fight gone down as originally intended the story of UFC 112 would have played out much differently. You want Anderson Silva to have an exciting fight? Put him in with an aggressive striker that won’t get scared when the cage door closes, then sit back and watch the fireworks.

Buy/Sell – Regardless of whether he wins or loses on Saturday, Jake Shields needs to leave Strikeforce for the UFC.

Conlan: Definitely a “buy”. And, as it turns out, Dan Henderson is actually the perfect opponent to help facilitate the transition between organizations. There’s no shame in losing to someone with Henderson’s credentials, and if such takes place it might remind Shields he seems to be best served by fighting at 170-pounds instead of against larger guys. The UFC’s roster of welterweights far eclipses that of Strikeforce so it’s naturally the place he should want to solidify his legacy in. On the other hand, if Shields beats “Hendo” he’ll have earned a win over a highly respected veteran with roots in the UFC and who recently had a less-than amicable falling out with the company. I’m confident a few Zuffa representatives with upstairs offices will be tuning in Saturday night, and if they like what they see they may try harder than ever to sign the Californian in hopes of finding a marketable threat to Georges St. Pierre’s welterweight championship. Shields is the only 170-pound gunslinger for hire who hasn’t tested his skills inside the Octagon with a list of past accomplishments impressive enough to make people believe he actually has a chance to dethrone GSP. I appreciate the credibility Shields has lent to Strikeforce with his name, as well as the publicity they’ve given him in the process, but as far as I’m concerned there’s no question it’s time for the vegetarian fighter to finally head towards greener pastures.

Tool: I can’t go with anything else but “buy” here as well. Let’s say Shields does manage to upset Henderson, then what? Does he continue defending a title outside of his natural weight class? Does anybody want to see Shields vs. Smith? He can’t go after the Strikeforce Welterweight Championship, as that currently resides around the waist of his good friend Nick Diaz.

It makes far too much sense for Shields to go to the UFC. For one, the UFC could always use more high-level welterweights that they can get who aren’t members of American Kickboxing Academy. I think he would match up well with a lot of the premier fighters in the division, as his mix of wrestling and jiu-jitsu could provide a stern challenge for just about anyone he faces. If Shields signed with Zuffa in the near future I’d love to see him matched up with the winner of Paulo Thiago vs. Martin Kampmann, or you could throw him right into the deep end and match him up with the winner of Jon Fitch vs. Thiago Alves. Let’s not forget his recent victory over surging UFC contender Paul Daley either.

The biggest factor though is the way that Shields has made it very clear that he wants a fight with St. Pierre. This always seemed like posturing before, but now things are actually in motion to make that happen. Should Shields join the UFC and get a top-level opponent right away, he could conceivably be fighting for the title after one or two wins. Obviously this benefits the UFC, as they’re desperate for any and all credible challengers to St. Pierre’s seemingly endless reign of dominance.

Do you believe that Frank Edgar deserves to be ranked as the #1 lightweight in the world, or should that honor go to the winner of this weekend’s Aoki/Melendez fight?

Conlan I think a case can be made for Shinya Aoki if he beats Melendez, as he hasn’t been defeated at lightweight since being knocked out by Joachim Hansen in July 2008 and even that loss came in Aoki’s second fight of the night (his first was a hard fought decision over Caol Uno). Melendez also hasn’t tasted defeat at 155-pounds since mid-2008 but has only racked up three wins since last losing in comparison to Aoki’s six over that same span of time.

As far as Edgar goes, he clearly deserves a place towards the top of the rankings after coming away with a win against BJ Penn, but it’s hard to put him on the peak of the 155-pound mountain when it could be argued Penn didn’t appear to be at his best in the bout and still should have arguably won the fight. Additionally, Edgar has shown an inability to finish his opposition and looked relatively poor in his loss to Gray Maynard (mid-2008 as chance would have it).

Aoki is consistently a threat to end in-ring action before letting the likes of Douglas Crosby or Cecil Peoples influence a bout’s outcome, and, if he adds Melendez to a group of fallen foes already including fighters like Uno, Hansen, JZ Calvancante, Eddie Alvarez, “Shaolin” Ribeiro, he deserves consideration as the top lightweight in Mixed Martial Arts.

Tool: Say what you will about Penn’s performance this past weekend and the scoring controversy that came about as a result, to me this question was answered by Edgar in his post-fight interview. “BJ Penn is the best lightweight in the world, and I just beat him.” On that basis (along with Edgar’s other notable wins) I see no reason why he doesn’t deserve the top spot in the lightweight rankings. His spot at #1 is much more tenuous than Penn’s, as Edgar has not achieved the same level of dominance in the division as the now former champ did. However until someone beats him I believe it is the right decision to place Edgar at the top.

As for Aoki, I’m already skeptical of him being the #2 guy in the division. He’s been impressive (for the most part) but he hasn’t faced the level of competition to merit such a high placement. Truth be told, there are at least five UFC lightweights that I would pick to win in a hypothetical bout with Aoki. I reserve the right to change my tune if Aoki can pull off an impressive win over a top 10 opponent (something he has the opportunity to do this weekend) but for now I can’t justify having him at the very top.

I’ve always had a bit of a soft spot for Melendez and will be firmly rooting for him to successfully defend his Strikeforce Lightweight Championship this weekend. However, much like Aoki, Melendez has not faced enough members of the lightweight elite to warrant a spot at #1. Give him time and he may find himself in the upper echelon, but for now he’ll have to be content with the (possible) title of the best lightweight outside of the UFC.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu artist Thales Leites (16-3) is working hard to prepare himself for his upcoming Maximum Fighting Championship title fight on May 7th. He’ll be stepping into the ring against veteran mixed martial artist and former “TUF” competitor Jesse Taylor.

The match is an important one for Leites as he is looking for the tough fights in his efforts to climb back up the middleweight ladder. He spoke recently to Tatame.com about his title fight and his opponent Taylor.

“I believe that our game matches, I’ve been watching his fights and I could tell he’s really explosive. He goes and takes the guy. Now it’s just wait and see, practice, study his game and adapt myself.


“It would be a fight for the belt and I don’t know why it changed all of a sudden. I want to fight independently if it’s for a belt or not, but of course that when you fight in a competition, you want to reach the top of it. I’m focusing on this particular fight. You will see an embattled guy, who’s always trying for a knockout or a submission. I’m going for a combat, always, and I believe he will do so. It’s has everything that takes for an excellent fight.”

HT: Tatame.com