Ring wins inexplicable UFC 127 decision over Fukuda

In an incredibly questionable -- to put it nicely -- judges decision, "The Ultimate Fighter" alumnus Nick Ring continued his unbeaten streak, winning a decision over Japanese fighter Riki Fukuda. All three judges saw it 29-28 for Ring. 

Fukuda started the first round with a takedown. Ring tried to work an armbar from the bottom, but he couldn't finish it and kicked out from the bottom. When the two returned to their feet, Fukuda used kicks to batter Ring's legs and move inside to land strikes. Fukuda finished the round with a takedown.

In the second, Fukuda beat up Ring's face and managed another smooth takedown. He clinched with Ring, using knees and short punches to inflict damage. He wasn't overwhelming, but Fukuda definitely controlled the action.

Fukuda picked it up in the third round, coming out with quick strikes and then taking Ring down. They returned to their feet, and Fukuda landed undercuts and then got another takedown. Though he was clearly behind, Ring never went for broke in the final round. He looked beyond rusty in his first fight since appearing on the 11th season of TUF.

Ring looked slightly surprised as his name was read as the winner, and UFC commentator Je Rogan expressed shot by the judges call. Fight Metric had the fight 30-27 for Fukuda, as did Cagewriter. Even UFC president Dana White tweeted his displeasure, "Judges [expletive] suck again!! Fukuda got robbed!!!"

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Ring-wins-inexplicable-UFC-127-decision-over-Fuk?urn=mma-326830

Cyril Abidi  Daniel Acacio Bernard Ackah  Terrance Aflague Yoshihiro Akiyama 

UFC 127 Results: Brian Ebersole Upsets Chris Lytle

by Michael David SmithBrian Ebersole upsets Chris Lytle at UFC 127.In a big surprise at UFC 127, UFC newcomer Brian Ebersole upset Octagon veteran Chris Lytle, winning a unanimous decision after an action-packed 15 minutes.

"I'm overwhelmed with emotion," Ebersole said afterward, having just won his first chance to fight in the UFC after years of fighting on the small-time MMA circuit.

 

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/02/26/ufc-127-results-brian-ebersole-upsets-chris-lytle/

Dos Caras Jr   Phil Cardella Roan Jucao Carneiro Shane The Engineer Carwin  Jason Hollywood Chambers

CW interview: Manhoef relishing the pressure for Strikeforce

In fighting Tim Kennedy at Strikeforce next weekend, Melvin Manhoef knows that in coming off of two losses, he has to win. At the same time, he sees value in having lost to Tatsuya Mizuno and Robbie Lawler in his last two bouts.

"I have a few losses. I have to win this fight. I'm going to do everything in my power to do that. It's sometimes good to have losses. You learn something from the losses," Manhoef told Cagewriter. 

"I learned a lot about who my fans are. If you're at a point when you're winning, everyone tells you to keep going.  But when you lose, you have to keep going, too. If you don't have losses, you'll never have wins, either."

With just four weeks notice on the bout, Manhoef has spent time working on conditioning and hasn't had time to read what his opponent is saying about their fight.

"Honestly? I don't read anything. I don't see anything. I don't read the internet or anything. I'm not busy with that. I'm busy with training. But what did he say? You can tell me."

I responded that Kennedy said he will knock you out in the first round, and asked if he would like to respond to that. 

"My response? What? (laughs.) Yeah, yeah, yeah. Everybody has fantastic dreams and everything. He can dream what he wants."

Though Manhoef has just fought once in the United States -- the loss to Lawler -- he can't wait to get back to America for this bout.

America: where dreams come true

"It's different than fighting in Japan or Holland. In America, I like it. The interviews and all the things around it. They put attention on the fighters and they really appreciate the fighters in America. They say in America that all dreams come true, so I hope my dreams will come true there. "

He's still somewhat of an unknown entity to American MMA fans, so they may not know of his K-1 kickboxing background, or how he is talented at bringing violence to the cage. They may even be surprised when they see him walk out to the cage wearing a dog collar. He says it's all part of the ritual to get him in fight mode.

"It's like a thing that's inside me. In my mind, when I see my opponent and we are in the Octagon, it's like the old days. Like the gladiators. I want to win. It takes over everything and I really want to hurt people at that moment. That is how the dog collar comes in," Manhoef said.

"When the dog collar goes off, I feel unleashed. I feel like I have to go. I have to do what I want to do, and I want to fight. It's like I'm a wild beast. I'm like an animal." 

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/CW-interview-Manhoef-relishing-the-pressure-for?urn=mma-325869

Ao Hailin  Shinya Aoki  Andrei Arlovski  Ricardo Arona  Noboru Asahi

5 Oz. MMA Link Club

Welcome back to another ediition of ?MMA Link Club?, Five Ounces of Pain?s weekly smorgasbord of offerings from our brothers and sisters in the MMA community. Enjoy? Mark Munoz Targeting C.B. Dollaway’s Chin UFC Live 3 (Versus.com) “Mayhem” Miller Still Waiting on a Call from Strikeforce (HeavyMMA.com) A Closer Look at Last Weekend’s BAMMA 5 [...]

Source: http://fiveouncesofpain.com/2011/03/03/5-oz-mma-link-club-32/

Leonard Garcia Andrew Gardner Tiki Ghosn Dennis George Kultar Gill

UFC on Versus 3 Predictions

by Michael David SmithMartin Kampmann celebrates his win at UFC 115.Five days after the UFC left off in Sydney, Australia, it will pick up in Louisville, Ky., for its third night of fights on Versus, with a main event featuring welterweights Diego Sanchez and Martin Kampmann squaring off. We've got the full preview and predictions right here.

What: UFC Live: Sanchez vs. Kampmann

When: Thursday, the non-televised undercard begins at 6 PM ET and the live Versus card starts at 9.

Where: KFC Yum Center, Louisville

Predictions on the four televised fights below.

 

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/03/02/ufc-on-versus-3-predictions/

Keith Hackney Matt Hamill Volk Han Joachim Hansen Antoni Hardonk

Valley View Casino Center in San Diego Will Host ?Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Daley?

It didn?t take long for ?Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Daley? to find a home. Less than 12 hours after swapping out the second leg of their Heavyweight Grand Prix for a pair of championship scraps, company CEO Scott Coker announced their April 9th event will be jumping off inside the Valley View Casino Center in San [...]

Source: http://www.5thRound.com/69479/valley-view-casino-center-in-san-diego-will-host-strikeforce-diaz-vs-daley/

Kyle Bradley  Jai Bradney  Ebenezer Fontes Braga Chris Brennan Marcelo Brito