UFC 98 Flashback: Machida Blasts Evans
When golf legend Jack Nicklaus was still a young upstart in the sport and only starting to tear up PGA courses, legend Bobby Jones commented following ‘The Golden Bear’s’ 65 Masters win that “he plays a game with which I am not familiar”. Following his absolute destruction of Rashad Evans in the main event of UFC 98, there’s likely a few MMA fighters saying the same thing about the new light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida. Machida completely befuddled Evans en route to a 2nd round TKO victory after which ‘The Dragon’ looked as if he’d barely worked up a sweat.
UFC 94 Flashback: GSP Defends Welterweight Title
BJ Penn entered his main event battle against welterweight kingpin Georges St. Pierre looking to become the first man in UFC history to simultaneously hold titles in two weight classes. GSP never gave him the chance to make history, as he stopped Penn after four increasingly dominant rounds to retain his belt with a TKO victory and make a compelling case for being the pound for pound best fighter in mixed martial arts.
UFC 88 Flashback: Evans Dominates 'The Iceman'
Rashad Evans didn’t scream about demanding respect in his prefight interviews because hes smart enough to know that respect must be earned. He earned it and then some with a devastating 2nd round TKO of Chuck Liddell in the main event of UFC 88.
Bobby Lashley Seeks To Combine Pro Wrestling And MMA
On July 15th, former WWE superstar turned MMA fighter Bobby Lashley announced that he had signed a deal to return to full time professional wrestling competition with the US #2 promotion TNA. Lashley’s last in-ring pro wrestling appearance came in Mexico on a show for Lucha Libre promotion AAA.
Nick Diaz: MMA's Most Frustrating Fighter
Nick Diaz should forever be part of MMA history. Regardless of how his career transpired after February, 2007 he should have been remembered as part of one of the greatest fights ever. His battle against Takanori Gomi should have created a legacy like the first Forrest Griffin/Stephan Bonnar bout, only it was better. It should have been the biggest victory of Diaz’s career and the centerpiece of his highlight reel.
UFC 99: Rich Franklin Tops Wanderlei Silva In Thrilling Main Event
From a business standpoint, the UFCs first trip to Germany will clearly fall short of their success in the UK. From poor ticket sales to a downright hostile German media, its been one headache after another for Dana White and company. The UFC 99 card itself turned out to be an entertaining affair highlighted by a spectacular main event between Rich Franklin and Wanderlei Silva. Franklin would ultimately win the unanimous decision victory, but the fight itself far exceeded the expectations of most fans.
UFC 85 Flashback: Alves, Bisping Win
Thiago Alves dominated the former UFC welterweight champion en route to a 2nd round TKO victory at UFC 83. The main event at UFC 85 in London was somewhat anticlimactic to the fans at the O2 Arena who considered the semifinal matchup between Manchester’s Michael Bisping and Jason Day the biggest fight on the card. Bisping actually improved upon his excellent showing against Charles McCarthy at UFC 83 and pummeled Day mercilessly from the top mount position until the fight was stopped.
The Early Years Of MMA: Ali Vs. Inoki
The UFC has only recently brought mixed martial arts to the mainstream in the US, but in Japan there’s a long tradition of fights pitting contestants from different disciplines against each other. While they’ve only been called MMA or ‘mixed martial arts’ in recent years, the sport clearly has its roots in these early contests between wrestlers, judo fighters and boxers. In Japan, Antonio Inoki’s fights against world famous martial artists brought great notoriety to the still evolving sport.
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