Archive for May, 2009

Styles make fights and the June 27th main event match-up between contrasting MMA fighters, kick-boxer Bob “The Beast” Sapp and wrestler Bobby Lashley, features a potential instant classic of pure entertainment on the “Ultimate Chaos” pay-per-view event live from the Mississippi Gulf Coast Coliseum in Biloxi, Mississippi.

The imposing 6-4, 350-pound Sapp (10-3-1), who played in the NFL for four years before becoming an iconic combat fighter in Japan, wants to brawl on his feet while the chiseled 6-3, 265-pound former WWE star Lashley (2-0), 3-time NCAA champion (1996-98) and 4-time All-America wrestler at Missouri Valley College, prefers to ground and pound. “Ultimate Chaos,” presented by Prize Fight Promotions and Fight Force International, in association with the Mississippi Gulf Coast Coliseum, Treasure Bay Casino and Budweiser, is being produced and distributed by Gotham MMA and Integrated Sports at 9:00PM ET/6:00PM PT in the United States on cable and satellite via iNDemand, TVN and DirecTV for a suggested retail price of only $29.95.

Sapp starred as an offensive lineman on the University of Washington’s football team, winning the prestigious Morris Award, and he was selected in the third round of the NFL draft in 1997 by the Chicago Bears. Bob turned to pro wrestling after football and was later recruited by PRIDE in Japan, where his incredible size, strength and bull-rush style made him an instant fan favorite. He went on to star in K-1 as well as become an actor, playing roles in movies like The Longest Yard and Elektra. Read the rest of this entry »

Undefeated lightweight (155-pound. limit) sensation Billy Evangelista (9-0) will fight hard-hitting brawler and BJ Penn protégé “Iron” Mike Aina (11-6-1) in the main event of the inaugural, newly titled Strikeforce Challengers series from leading MMA promoter Strikeforce and premium television network SHOWTIME, on Friday, May 15 at Save Mart Center in Fresno, Calif.

Strikeforce Challengers is a proving ground for up-and-coming MMA fighters. The series is designed to provide today’s top prospects with the opportunity to step-up their level of competition and demonstrate their ability in a nationally televised event. Friday’s SHOWTIME telecast will air live beginning at 11 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the west coast). Read the rest of this entry »

Perennial top ranked MMA superstar, Frank ‘Twinkle Toes’ Trigg, has
answered the boxing legends’ call for an MMA fight and is actively pursuing putting an MMA match up together. Trigg, a former collegiate wrestling star from the University of Oklahoma – turned MMA champion – has fought the very best in the game and been in contention for the mythic pound-for-pound best MMA fighter in the world no less than three times in his storied career. ‘Toes’ believes that if the former Undisputed World Boxing champion is serious about fighting MMA, then this fight has the possibility to shift the combat arts landscape. Read the rest of this entry »

By Dean Parr- In an inspired piece of matchmaking, Joe Silva has arranged for the undisputed middleweight champion of the world, Anderson ‘the Spider’ Silva to fight the always exciting Ultimate Fighter 1 winner, Forrest Griffin at UFC 101.

This is a very shrewd move by the UFC bigwigs. Silva, who has fought all comers at 185lbs seemingly has nowhere left to go in the division after his decision win over jujitsu specialist Thales Leites, and taking into consideration he cruised through his last two fights with considerable ease, a move up in weight is exactly what Anderson needs. Forrest Griffin is the perfect opponent for him as well, as he is known for his fantastic workrate and heart, and he won’t let Silva set a lackadaisical pace like he has done during his last two contests. Read the rest of this entry »

World Championship Fighting today announced four featured fights for their June 27th show at the Shriners Auditorium in Wilmington, Mass. In a fight that will no doubt have title implications, lightweight Calvin Kattar from Premier Fight Team in Derry, NH makes his return to the WCF stage to take on undefeated Rodrigo Almeida. Calvin has been on fire as of late, winning 3 fights in a row, all in less than a minute. One of those 3 wins took place at WCF5, and was a 49 second submission win over Bobby Dias. Almeida has managed to keep his record unblemished at 4-0 in his young career and was impressive in his WCF4 victory over Jose Lopez. The winner of this fight will take one step closer to the WCF 155 pound title. Read the rest of this entry »

FightZone TV, in their third year of nationally broadcasting the Best of Independent MMA Programming from around the country, will now have to change that to “Around the World” as Cage Wars Championship and FightZone TV have linked across the Atlantic to deliver premium European MMA to the US audience. Read the rest of this entry »

KEN HERSHMAN “We’ve had SHOWTIME boxing for more than 20 years and ShoBox, our young up-and-coming boxing series, began in 2001. It was designed to give fighters valuable experience and valuable television exposure both at the same time to accelerate the popularity of their careers. That franchise has launched the career of more than 30 world champions. We couldn’t be happier with that franchise. ShoBox has really become the Kleenex of boxing defining what a young fighter is. We expect the Challenger series to be just that in the world of mixed martial arts.”

“The look and the feel of the Challenger series will be distinct and unique to itself. There will be less of the bells and the whistles that we bring to the big shows that would be a bit overkill in some of the venues that we’re going to be in. But there will be the same high quality standard we bring to every show.” Read the rest of this entry »

Mixed martial arts (MMA) legend Pat Miletich will join veteran announcers Mauro Ranallo and Stephen Quadros cageside to call Strikeforce Challengers, a new SHOWTIME series that serves as a proving ground for up-and-coming MMA fighters.

Miletich, who made his debut on SHOWTIME when he called the April 11, Strikeforce event alongside Gus Johnson and Ranallo, will provide his expert analysis when the series debuts Friday, May 15, from Save Mart Center in Fresno, Calif., live on SHOWTIME at 11 p.m. ET/PT. Read the rest of this entry »

W1: UNPLUGGED is less than six weeks away and the card is taking shape to once again be one of the most exciting events ever in the area. The event is headlined by the first title fight in W1 history, as CRAIG ‘FARMER’ BROWN takes on UFC Veteran BILL ‘THE BUTCHER’ MAHOOD for the W1 Light Heavyweight Title. The co-main event features MARK ‘BOOTS’ HOLST against JASON ‘SUMO SAMURAI’ ST. LOUIS. Read the rest of this entry »

Round 5, the leader in collectible mixed martial arts figurines, today announced that Walmart Canada will carry the collectibles in its stores across the country beginning this month. Walmart Canada will stock the two current Series, which are comprised of eight popular MMA figures, as well as planned future Series. “Having our figurines available at Walmart locations will significantly boost our exposure throughout the country,” said Damon Lau, Round 5 President. “Walmart Canada serves more than one million customers each day, bringing great visibility to the Round 5 brand and products.” Read the rest of this entry »

The revolutionary www.fightengine.com state-of-the-art website is changing the way mixed-martial-arts fighters – professionals, amateurs and even neighborhood tough guys — market themselves and develop strong fan bases. Read the rest of this entry »

X1 World Events in their first ever event on the Big Island has an action packed card lined up featuring some of Big Island’s best talent. The live event takes place 7:00 PM Saturday May 9, 2009, at the Kekuaokalani Gym in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. Read the rest of this entry »

Undefeated power puncher Sarah Kaufman (8-0) will fill the void left by Kim “Sugar Free” Couture and throw down with fellow rising star Miesha Tate (6-1) in a 135-pound contest during the SHOWTIME® televised portion of the inaugural Strikeforce Challengers mixed martial arts (MMA) event at Save Mart Center in Fresno, Calif., on Friday, May 15.

Couture’s withdrawal last week created an ideal opportunity for the 23-year-old Kaufman, who is in fighting form after stopping Sara Schneider in the second round of their matchup on April 23. Kaufman has never been taken the distance in a professional fight. Read the rest of this entry »

The cage may have to be reinforced for the “Ultimate Chaos” headliner as former WWE star Bobby Lashley and mixed-martial-arts legend Bob “The Beast” Sapp battle June 27 on a special pay-per-view event live from the Mississippi Gulf Coast Coliseum in Biloxi, Mississippi.

The chiseled 6-3, 265-pound Lashley (2-0), 3-time NCAA champion (1996-98) and 4-time All-America wrestler at Missouri Valley College, takes on the 6-4, 350-pound Sapp (10-3-1), who played in the NFL for four years before becoming an iconic combat fighter in Japan. Read the rest of this entry »