My MMA Resource

In traditional martial arts your dojo was considered sacred and was never challenged. Joining a dojo or discipline was like joining a family, the ideals of the system and your instructor became your own ideals.

Tides have changed over the past few years as MMA has become more mainstream. Athletes have had to evolve and rather than training in one discipline, they have to travel to receive more well-rounded training. 

However, when do old loyalties die? When is it acceptable to turn your back on training partners and give information that could possibly result in his defeat?

If you watched the first episode of “UFC Primetime,” you know the situation I’m speaking of.  Dan “The Outlaw” Hardy requested to train with Matt Serra to gain firsthand knowledge on how Serra managed to finish Georges St-Pierre at UFC 69.

Since Hardy feels his hands are his best weapon against GSP, his thought is that Serra’s guidance will be invaluable.

Here is where it gets complicated. In the same episode, St-Pierre was shown training with Renzo Gracie. He has actually been training with the Renzo Gracie academy for the past seven years and is very loyal to that camp. Renzo is also taking advantage of having GSP around due to the fact that he has fought his next opponent Matt Hughes.

The situation becomes complicated with the connection between St-Pierre and Serra because Serra is the first American student to receive a black belt under Renzo. Serra has cornered and helped Renzo train for several fights. Renzo has also trained and cornered Serra in several fights including his recent battle with Hughes.

So the question is, how can you train someone to defeat a student who trains under your original teacher?

There have been memorable times where the Gracie’s have voiced outrage for men who jump from camp to camp and Renzo is no exception. BJ Penn was called a traitor and a snake for leaving the Gracie camp only to challenge Renzo to a fight when he had moved on.

Why would Serra have such a grudge, when GSP had expressed excitement to train him during season four of “The Ultimate Fighter?”

Is it as simple as just saying that the old ways have died? Are camps simply a place you visit only to have to fight each other tomorrow?

We’ll get a glimpse at “UFC 111: St-Pierre vs. Hardy” on Saturday night.

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The official betting lines for “UFC 111: St-Pierre vs. Hardy” were posted earlier this week by our friends over at BetUS. As expected, Georges St-Pierre is a favorite heading into his defense against Dan Hardy, but -800???

That’s right, the welterweight champ is an early 8-to-1 favorite to retain his crown against Hardy, who checks in as a 5-to-1 ‘dog.

The last time GSP was such a heavy favorite was in his first title defense against Matt Serra at UFC 69 where he went as high as -1600, and we all know how that night turned out for the “Frenchie.”

Even in their mulligan at UFC 83 when most expected St-Pierre to violently avenge his humiliating loss, which he ultimately did, he was still only -450 at gametime. So, it’s a little surprising the gambling Gods have rated the champ at -800 when he meets Hardy.

There’s really only one way to beat MMA’s baddest 170-pounder (Please See: Puncher’s Chance), and Hardy would certainly prefer nothing more than an all-out shootout as it would greatly increase the likelihood of him landing that one fortuitous strike.

If GSP can wrestle his way to another win, like he has in his past six dominant contests, then it will be obvious why he’s such a big favorite because Hardy will never get a chance to tee off. However, Hardy will be afforded a few opportunities to land leather before the champ takes him to the mat.

On a side note, it’s interesting to see former heavyweight champ Frank Mir is only -155 against Shane Carwin, who is a slight underdog (+125) in his first UFC title fight.

Here are the current betting lines for the scraps going down inside the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey on March 27th:

Rousimar Palhares -240
Tomasz Drwal +190

Ricardo Almeida -155
Matt Brown +125

Jim Miller -400
Mark Bocek +300

Thiago Alves -140
John Fitch +110

Ben Saunders -150
Jake Ellenberger +120

Frank Mir -155
Shane Carwin +125

Georges St Pierre -800
Dan Hardy +500

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It may be hard to believe, but it’s been 21 years since Saved by the Bell first started influencing adolescent minds. Apparently, Dan Hardy’s favorite was A.C. Slater, as the character’s wrestling prowess continues to be Hardy’s motivational force as he preps for UFC welterweight champ Georges St-Pierre.

The brash Brit released this hilarious spoof, which was clearly inspired by the legendary Daniel LaRusso, that features an intense training session at Team Rough House:

The clip could be viewed as Hardy taking a dig at GSP by mocking the need to concentrate on his mat skills because the 170-pound king has wrestled his way through his last six contests, all of which (for the most part) have been lopsided victories.

If the guy sporting the mohawk can look anything like the dude with the mullet, then St-Pierre may be in for a world of hurt because Slater was able to quickly counter lightweight Zach Morris’ right by securing a body-lock takedown and unleashing a little G’nP in their highly anticipated showdown inside the Bayside High hallways.

When you face a fighter that’s been under that kind of tutelage, it’s hard to see how St-Pierre stands a chance. Just take a look at the highlight reel for yourself, and don’t forget to check out the last person Hardy gives props to when the credits start rolling.

Hardy challenges GSP for his strap at UFC 111 on March 27th in New Jersy. No word on whether Richard “Beldo” Belding has been assigned refereeing duties inside the Prudential Center.

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Pads are popping. The smell of sweat and adrenaline are in the air, when in walks a familiar face. The setting is the old Bomb Squad Gym in Hollywood, California. The familiar face is none other than Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. The animated fighter always enters the gym with two things, a signature style, along with a smile.

The warehouse like gym becomes as quiet as a church when the then-Pride star walks in to start his sparring session. “Rampage” tunes up all of his sparring partners with heavy hands and impressive Muay Thai skills that most MMA fans have not seen from him.

On his way out he was always personable, joking and laughing and wishing his best to everyone else in the gym. He was a rising star in the Pride organization at that time and fans loved his style. Hard wild punches, knees, and some of the most dynamic slams that have ever been displayed in MMA were Jackson’s bread and butter.

While in Pride, Jackson got W’s against the likes of Ikuhisa Minowa, Igor Vovchanchyn, Kevin Randleman, Murilo Bustamante, Chuck Liddell and Ricardo Arona. Jackson’s crowd pleasing style seemed to come out of a pro wrestling ring mixed with a Mike Tyson boxing match.

He seemed to be unbeatable until he crossed paths with Wanderlai Silva at the finals of the Middleweight Grand Prix in 2003 where he lost to Silva and his devastating knees. Jackson would lose to Silva again and followed that up with a loss to Silva’s Chute Boxe teammate Mauicio “Shogun” Rua.

When Jackson finally made it to the UFC, many fans wondered if “Rampage” could return to his earlier glory. A knockout win against a familiar foe in Marvin Eastman, followed by once again besting Chuck Liddell elevated Jackson to the top of the light heavyweight division as its champion.

Jackson then went on to coach on season 7 of “The Ultimate Fighter” opposite Forrest Griffin, who would challenge and end up defeating him at UFC 86. He bounced back by finally avenging his losses to Wanderlei Silva and then taking out Keith Jardine only three months later.

Since his last fight in the UFC, Jackson has since gone on to coach on another season of “The Ultimate Fighter” against rival, Rashad Evans.

After the season ended, fans were chomping at the bit to see the marquee fight between the two coaches but news quickly broke that Jackson chose to work on the A-Team rather than fight Evans at UFC 107. Dana White was heated after the UFC had promoted UFC 107 in Jackson’s hometown of Memphis, Tennessee, only to have Jackson “retire”.

The reoccurring question in Jackson’s career has always been focus. Many perils in Jackson’s career have come with regards to his training and overall planning and focus towards his fight career. Difficulties with his former trainer Juanito Ibarra, felony reckless driving charges, as well as leaving his fight with Evans have fans questioning his desire.

Jackson now trains at the Wolfslair Gym in the U.K. with friend, Michael Bisping. The decision to change training camps has had people wondering why he would go to a gym with limited competition to train for fights. Personally, I would like to see the former champ dedicate himself to training and fighting to return to the days of old when he fought in Pride.

His skill set has been limited since entering the UFC, mainly focusing on his boxing and leaving his other talents aside. Fans would love to see the “Rampage” who slammed, kneed, and punched his way into our hearts. If Jackson was truly dedicated and reclaimed his Muay Thai and wrestling skills and combined that with his increased punching power, he could find his way back to the title.

When Rampage returns to the Octagon at UFC 114 against Evans, we will see if his focus lies in the cage or elsewhere.

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Brock Lesnar is, as of right now, the most dominant heavyweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. The combination of size, speed and athleticism is a rarity the likes of which are not seen much at all in professional sports.

With the announcement of Lesnar’s return to the Octagon from a long battle with diverticulitis, the question is brought up about who the heavyweight champion will defend his title against come summer.

Four fighters currently sit atop the rankings and a legitimate argument can be made for each as to why they should be the next in line to take on the former WWE Superstar. Frank Mir, Shane Carwin, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Cain Velasquez all stand as candidates to run for heavyweight gold.

Fans have varying opinions when it comes to who they feel should have the number one contender spot for the title, but things will be hashed out within the organization in the coming months.

With Nogueira and Velasquez set to tangle at UFC 110 on February 20th and Mir and Carwin scheduled to fight on March 27th, the list will shrink to two and the contender will be decided by Dana White and company at that point.

Given the four potential matchups for Lesnar, there are a number of ways each fight can end. Each contender has his own special set of skills and they will need to utilize them if they are to have any shot of defeating Lesnar.

Lesnar vs. Carwin:

Leading up to their scheduled, then canceled, fight at UFC 106, Shane Carwin was being hailed as the fighter people had deemed the “Lesnar Killer.”

Many had hoped that Carwin would be the one to end what many thought as Lesnar’s tyrannous reign as champion. At 6-foot-3 and 265-pounds, Carwin has a similar stature to Lesnar which makes for an interesting matchup, dynamically.

Never having faced an opponent with the same frame as his, Lesnar would find trouble attempting to physically dominate Carwin as he has done with other opponents.

If Carwin is to beat Lesnar, it would not be through his background in wrestling as they would negate each other. The two heavyweights are so close in stature and technique that a victory for Carwin would have to come through the heavy right hand he introduced to Gabriel Gonzaga at UFC 96.

Let’s not take anything away from Lesnar’s power, though. The champion’s right hand is just as big and dangerous, so with the right timing and velocity, Lesnar could be the first to scratch in Carwin’s loss column.

So, with both hands being as strong as they are, who’s lands first? The answer could be debated to no end but in all honesty, it’s difficult to gauge which of the two would find their opponent’s chin quicker. Given Brock’s ungodly speed, it might be safe to say he would end up hitting first, however Lesnar’s chin is yet to be tested and if Carwin’s punch lands it could put the champion down in an unfamiliar position … sleeping in the Octagon.

Lesnar vs. Velasquez:

Probably the longest shot of the group, Cain Velasquez stands as the ugly duckling of contenders vying for the title.

Regardless of being a long shot, Velasquez is undefeated in the UFC (5-0), with all but one of his wins coming by some form of KO. He, like Carwin, has heavy hands that are capable of putting some of the biggest fighters down and out. The problem that the 245-pound Velasquez faces is being severely undersized compared to the champion.

Giving up 20 pounds of weight is never good going into a fight, especially if that fight is with a man whose physical specimen rivals that of a small rhinoceros. Just ask Randy Couture.

Of course, having a size disadvantage gives a fighter other attributes that could help him in the long run.

Being smaller than Lesnar opens up the opportunity for Velasquez to stick and move against his opponent. His boxing will have to be his most precious asset if Velasquez is to have any chance of winning the title.

More than just punching, the fluid motion of a boxer will prevent Lesnar from landing any haymakers. If Velasquez can keep the fight standing long enough, Lesnar may punch himself out, opening up a shot for Velasquez to KO the champ.

This is all assuming Lesnar is unable to take Velasquez to the mat.

If Velasquez is put on his back with the massive champion on top of him, the fight is likely to end quickly with Lesnar stifling Velasquez using a brutal ground and pound assault. If this happens, Velasquez’s face might look a lot like Frank Mir’s did after UFC 100.

Lesnar vs. Nogueira:

Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira is used to being the underdog.

Fighting Lesnar is, believe it or not, a favorable matchup for Nogueira.

The most useful part of Nogueira’s repertoire is his undeniable ability to catch fighters slipping and capitalizing on those mistakes. Lesnar’s relative inexperience would be his achilles heel in this potential bout and Nogueira would be looking for every opportunity to take advantage of it.

Take Tim Sylvia for example, once the top heavyweight in the organization. He out-pointed Nogueira for almost three rounds before being swept into guard, leaving his massive neck out to dry which led to the guillotine choke that ended the fight.

Much like Velasquez, Nogueira is undersized against the champion, but if put onto his back it will serve him much better because it is where he is more comfortable. As much as Lesnar would look to pound the Brazilian on the ground, any floating limb would be a feast for Nogueira to attack for the submission win.

Nogueira does not have to physically dominate a fight in order to win it. As a matter of fact, it’s his opponents that look to overwhelm, only to get caught in a compromising position.

If Nogueira is over his staph infection and his senses are up to par again, the Brazilian could keep his composure in a Lesnar ground and pound and pull off the submission upset. If he is unable to find a limb to grab for the submission, his gamble of fighting from his back would lead to him losing the fight by decision.

Lesnar vs. Mir:

Can we say rubber match?

A third fight with Mir is arguably the most popular of the potential title fights for Lesnar. The heated rivalry has brewed ever since the champion’s UFC debut back at UFC 81 and was renewed during a teleconference when Lesnar made it clear he would love another shot at “The Stalker.”

As much as Lesnar wants Mir, the feeling is likely the same on the other side of the spectrum.

In his last fight with Chieck Kongo at UFC 107, Mir made a giant statement when he threw an over-hand right that put Kongo on the canvas. The right hand came behind 10-15 pounds of added muscle, increasing Mir’s overall mass to 264 pounds.

The speculation is that Mir took on the extra weight to contend with his nemesis, Lesnar, and level the playing field.

Mir has a distinct advantage over all the contenders because his stand up is much better than the other three potential challengers. In his two previous fights with Lesnar, Mir was taken to the ground at will by the champion. The added size might prevent Lesnar from taking Mir down so easily and force the former WWE superstar to prove he can trade shots with his opponent.

A stand up feud is probably in Mir’s better interests since he lost decisively the last time the bout hit the mat at UFC 100.

Look  for Mir to attempt to find control on the feet and out-strike Lesnar. If the fight goes to the ground, Mir will look to put Lesnar on his back, where wrestlers are uncomfortable, and potentially pull off a submission.

With all the potential matchups for Lesnar, each of them have their own unique ways of ending. MMA fans are looking forward to knowing who the champion faces after UFC 110 and UFC 111 are in the books.

For now, the soap opera that is the UFC heavyweight division continues to become a more tangled web, while a polarizing figure sits atop leading the way to mainstream exposure for the sport.

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Many fans of the great sport of mixed martial arts are only aware of the fighters within the UFC. But MMA is a global sport that is big in Japan, Brazil, Russia and China and you should be aware of some of the elite talent competing there if you want to be a true MMA fan.

Here are five fighters that you may not have heard of, but deserve your attention because they’re good at what they do and who knows, they could be in the UFC one day.

Joe Warren (Dream) – A Greco-Roman wrestler who won the 2006 Pan American and World Championship, Warren began his transition into the world of MMA in 2008 training with fellow wrestler and MMA veteran Dan Henderson. Warren entered the Dream Featherweight Grand Prix tournament with no professional MMA fights. He defeated former WEC champion Chase Beebe in the first round of the tournament at Dream.7. The second round of the tournament matched Warren up with fan favorite Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto. Many felt that Warren was being fed to the wolves in his second MMA fight, but the talented wrestler showed his determination and strength and took a unanimous decision victory. In the finals he was matched up with Jiu-Jitsu expert Bibiano Fernandes who defeated Warren quickly by submission. With only three MMA fights and two wins over experienced opponents, Warren is a rising star to watch out for in 2010.

Masanori Kanehara (World Victory Road) – Kanehara is not the undefeated unstoppable fighter type. He is definitely a fighter who goes into a fight preparing for a war. Kanehara was not always a fan favorite but his never say die attitude and determination has made him more popular as of late. Kanehara is a veteran of DEEP, ZST, and the Pancrase organizations but now is competing in the featherweight division of World Vicory Road Sengoku. Kanehara was announced to be competing in the World Victory Road Featherweight Grand Prix. He advanced to the semi-final round of the Grand Prix after two close decision victories over Jong Man Kim and Chan Sung Jung. Kanehara lost his semi-final bout to Hatsu Hioki but ended up replacing Hioki after Hioki could not continue due to medical clearance. A 17-to-1 underdog, he faced off against Michihiro Omigawa in the finals of the Grand Prix. In true underdog fashion Kanehara won the tournament with a split decision and became the World Victory Road Featherweight Champion. Recently, Kanehara shocked fans again by defeating Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto.

Bibiano Fernandes (Dream) – Fernandes is a highly talented Ju-Jitsu stylist with multiple grappling trophies and championships to his credit. Fernandes has fought with K-1, King of the Cage, and now the Dream promotion. He has made improvements to his stand up game since switching over to MMA and shows increased hand speed and striking set ups for his takedowns. Fernandes entered the Dream Featherweight Grand Prix and defeated Takafumi Otsuka, Masaakazu Imanari, Joe Warren and Hiroyuki Takaya in the finals to win the Grand Prix belt as well as being crowned Dream’s first Featherweight Champion.

Eddie Alvarez (Dream) – A tough hard nosed fighter from the fighting streets of Philadelphia. A true Rocky story as Alvarez used fighting as an outlet to escape hard street life and used his fighting career as a means to elevate himself and his family out of a bad situation. Alvarez is known best for his skill in boxing as well as his willingness to trade with his opponents always fighting with a crowd pleasing style. Alvarez made it to the semi-finals of Dream’s Lightweight Grand Prix, but could not continue due to an eye injury. Alvarez has beaten fighters such as Tatsuya Kawajiri, Aaron Riley as well as a stunning war with Joachim Hansen. In his short career, Alvarez has captured the BodogFIGHT Welterweight Title as well as the Bellator Lightweight Title.

Shinya Aoki (Dream) – A grappling master with some of the most creative submission moves ever seen in MMA. Aoki is so phenomenal at grappling that his matches basically use little to no striking by Aoki which is that much more impressive that he has so many wins under his belt. Aoki has wins over fighters such as Joachim Hansen, Vitor Riberio, Eddie Alvarez, and Gesias Calvacante. Aoki is the current Dream Lightweight champion, the WAMMA Lightweight champion, as well as the Shooto Middleweight champion. Watching Aoki is your best bet to see something that you have never seen before.

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Mixed martial arts journeyman Murilo “Ninja” Rua’s career has been nothing short of eventful.

Based off a release sent to me by my colleague Phil Lanides, the former Pride standout, and elder sibling to Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, is set to return to action this Spring. Rua’s opponent will be Hawaiian native Falaniko Vitale and the bout will be under the banner of Shine Fights III.

No date for the bout has been set.

With eighteen wins to his credit and ten losses, the Brazilian has obviously been on the winning side of a majority of his bouts. However, after ten years of competing and with his recent inconsistencies, is Rua fighting for relevancy?

Up until this point, Rua’s career has included a handful of exciting fights that will go down as some of the best the sport has ever witnessed.

Win or lose, Ninja has personally made sure that no one in the vicinity of the cage or ring is left with a feeling of being unimpressed with poor performances.

Having fought some of the toughest and most well-rounded fighters in the world, Rua reeled off a seven-fight unbeaten streak before experiencing his first loss to Dan Henderson via split decision.

Instead of a bitter defeat, the Henderson fight could have been tallied as a great learning experience, since at the time Ninja was only 21 years old.

This, however, was not the case.

Over the next eleven fights, Rua went a dismal (5-6) and was on the losing end to some of the sport’s best ligh heavyweights at the time. Not all his fights were a testament of his record.

One fight that stands out during this slump is Ninja’s battle with former UFC light heavyweight champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson at “Pride 29: Fists of Fire.”

Though Rua lost the fight by split decision, the Chute Boxe trained fighter stood with Jackson and traded shots with the former UFC champ for three rounds, refusing to stand down at any point.

The judges in Japan forwarded their decisions to the announcer. To the surprise of nearly everyone in attendance, including play-by-play announcers Mauro Renallo and Bas Rutten, Jackson was considered the victor.

Judging by the amount of control and strikes Rua had over Jackson, the loss could have easily been considered a win for Rua.

Following that fight, Rua lost to Paulo Filho and Denis Kang and then left Pride for Cage Rage before settling in the now defunct EliteXC.

The move to EliteXC was during a camp transition where Rua left the famed Chute Boxe academy. With his brother, Shogun, and teammate Andre “Dida” Amade, the trio formed a new team called Universidade da Luta (Fight University).

With a new gym and renewed focus, a ray of hope shined on Rua as he was able to defeat Joey Villasenor for the EliteXC middleweight title. This would be the first and only championship held by Rua. His reign did not last long, as he was defeated in embarrassing fashion by Robbie Lawler in his next fight.

Since his “one and done” era as champion, Rua has gone (4-2) and even returned to fighting at 205 lbs.

The transition from Pride to EliteXC and now a show with Shine Fights speaks volumes about the level of competition Rua is able to compete with.

With recent losses to Benji Radach and Riki Fukuda, it is sad to see such a phenomenal talent go from top contender to mid level fighter. The hope is that Ninja will rediscover his stride at light heavyweight and one day be considered in the top ten of his weight class.

The bout with Vitale give Ninja a chance to continue his win streak and turn doubters into believers that look at him as a definitive threat in mixed martial arts.

It’s been a long decade for Rua, but the next one can start out on a high note if he can beat Vitale this spring.

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