Ricardo Almeida Readies For Clash With Mike Pyle, A Run At The Welterweight Belt

By John Moody Ricardo Almeida has won four of last five fights in the UFC, recently winning a unanimous decision over TJ Grant, which eased the blow of a high profile loss to Matt Hughes at UFC 117.  At 34, ?The Big Dog? does not have any Randy Couture or Dan Henderson age-defying DNA to source [...]

Source: http://www.fighters.com/03/09/ricardo-almeida-at-34-readies-for-clash-with-mike-pyle-and-to-make-a-run-at-the-welterweight-belt

Marcio Pe de Pano Cruz Luke Cummo  Jeff Big Frog Curran Dai Shuanghai 

Three Stars from UFC on Versus 3 and Strikeforce: Columbus

In the space of just over 48 hours, the UFC and Strikeforce gave MMA fans 21 fights, with 12 making television. Who really stood out?

No. 1 star -- Dan Henderson: The old man showed that he still has it in a knockout of Rafael "Feijao" Cavalcante. At 40, Henderson won his third major MMA title, with his other two coming in Pride. His next goal: to become the first fighter to successfully defend the Strikeforce light heavyweight belt.

No. 2 star -- Brian Bowles: A year after losing his title to Dominick Cruz, Bowles choked out Damacio Page in the exact same time as their first bout. Ring rust and injuries did not seem to matter as his guillotine put Page to sleep. Now, he needs to stay healthy and be able to fight more than once in a year, something he hasn't done since 2008.

No 3 star -- Chris Weidman: Two weeks ago, he was an up-and-comer in New York City MMA, hoping for a shot at the big time. After stepping in at the last minute and a dominating win over Alessio Sakara, Weidman is now an up-and-comer in the UFC. What a difference two weeks makes!

Honorable mention, up-and-comer to watch -- Brian Rogers: Of the Strikeforce local, undercard fighters, Rogers was the one who impressed. He beat Ian Rammel up for most of the first round before notching a TKO at the end of the round. Strikeforce sometimes give contracts to fighters who look good on their undercard -- that's how they found Tyron Woodley. Rogers would be a worthy pick to add to their middleweight division.

Honorable mention, team -- Oklahoma State wrestling: Mark Munoz and Shane Roller, both graduates of the storied OSU wrestling program, notched knockouts on Thursday night. Then, the Cowboys won the Big 12 wrestling title on Saturday. Can they keep the streak going? Johny Hendricks is stepping in for an injured Dennis Hallman at Ultimate Fight Night 24 and the NCAA championships are next week in Philadelphia. Hendricks will face a tough test in T.J. Waldburger while his alma mater will have heavy competition from Cornell, Penn St. and Iowa. 

Honorable mention, lost but still won -- Liz Carmouche: Taking her championship fight on just two weeks notice, Carmouche controlled Marloes Coenen for three rounds before walking into a triangle choke. She needs to improve her striking, as she had full mount twice but couldn't finish Coenen. Still, Carmouche showed that she is one to watch in women's MMA.

Who were your Three Stars? Tell us in the comments, on Facebook or on Twitter

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Three-Stars-from-UFC-on-Versus-3-and-Strikeforce?urn=mma-330486

Fedor Emelianenko Yasubey Enomoto Mark Epstein Tom Big Cat Erickson

Shark Fights 14 frenzy a go as all competitors make weight

The lot of competitors facing off tonight at Shark Fights 14 stepped on the scale Thursday in Lubbock, Texas and hit their necessary marks meaning the event will go on as originally scheduled. That being said, the proceedings were not without a bit of last second drama as co-headliner Carina Damm barely made weight…literally. Damm [...]

Source: http://fiveouncesofpain.com/2011/03/11/shark-fights-frenzy-set-as-all-competitors-make-weight/

Mirko Cro Cop Filipović Luiz Buscapé Firmino Spencer Fisher Jon Fitch

UFC on Versus 3 Results: Mark Munoz Rocks CB Dollaway

by Michael David SmithIn a stunning display of powerful striking, Mark Munoz needed less than a minute to finish CB Dollaway in the first round of their UFC on Versus 3 fight on Thursday night.

Munoz rocked Dollaway with a huge right hand to the chin that had Dollaway dazed, followed it with an upper cut that knocked Dollaway to the ground, and pounced on him, landing a few more punches on the canvas before referee Mario Yamasaki stopped the fight, after just 54 seconds. Although Dollaway stood up immediately and seemed to be upset by the stoppage, it was the correct call: Dollaway wasn't intelligently defending himself.

 

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/03/03/ufc-on-versus-3-results-mark-munoz-rocks-c-b-dollaway/

Justin Eilers  Jon Olav Einemo Per Eklund Jason Ellis

Best Performance Of The Night: Dan Henderson At Strikeforce "Feijao vs. Henderson"

?Dan Henderson, you?re forty years old.? That?s what Mauro Ranallo said to ?Hendo? immediately after the PRIDE FC, UFC, and all-around MMA veteran knocked out Rafael Cavalcante and won the Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Championship. I usually disagree with Ranallo, I find that he tries way too hard and normally sounds ridiculously over-the-top. But I couldn?t [...]

Source: http://www.fighters.com/03/07/best-performance-of-the-night-dan-henderson-at-strikeforce-feijao-vs-henderson

Xavier Foupa Pokam Hermes Franca Rich Franklin Ian Freeman