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Vanderlei Silva

Brazilian website portaldovt.com.br spoke with Vanderlei Silva regarding some of the light heavyweights in the UFC. Here's what Silva had to say (translation by Ricardo Alonso):


Vanderlei on the Randy Couture vs. Chuck Liddell matchup, and if he has anyinterest on facing the winner of their fight: "I hope a future adversary comes out of that fight for me. I don't know what condition either fighter is in, but Couture won the first fight, and if he does that same kind of game, then he'll win again. I'm rooting for Couture because I want to face him. So I hope he comes out the winner. My bet is on him."

Vanderlei on facing Tito Ortiz again, if Ortiz signs with PRIDE: "I have a great desire to fight Ortiz again if he comes to PRIDE. The guy is very arrogant. Just like the rest of the world, I too want to beat him down. I would even accept a lower fight purse just to get a fight against him, no problem. I would beat him down with great pleasure. He talks smack that has nothing to do with anything. I talk some smack too, but all within the lines of the game, but I do not like the kind of smack he talks."

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The Nogueira brothers, Rodrigo "Minotauro" and Rogerio "Minotoro".

Brazilian magazine 'Tatame' reports that the Nogueira brothers, Rodrigo 'Minotauro' and Rogerio 'Minotoro', have been working on their wrestling with their former wrestling coach Darrell Gholar.

Rogerio Minotoro is scheduled to face Dan Henderson in the first round of the PRIDE middleweight GP on April 23rd, and the Nogueira brothers feel that Gholar's training will add the final touches to his training and prepare him well for the Henderson, whose strength is wrestling.

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DSE/PRIDE announced last week that their PRIDE 'Bushido' promotion will continue to take place.

The show will continue to foces more on the lighter weight fighters, with a 185-pound and 160-pound Grand PRix events scheduled to begin later in the year.

The upcoming PRIDE Bushido events, scheduled for May 22nd and July, will determine which fighters advance to the GP tournament.

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Ricco Rodriguez (left)

Ricco Rodriguez issued a statement on the UG forum as to why he turned down the proposed fight with Andrei Arlovsky, which would have taken place on the upcoming UFC 53 card. Here's what Ricco had to say:


"I appreciate the UFC offering me the opportunity to fight Andre, but because of the expense I would incur putting together a training camp, that would provide me the necessary tools to compete effectively, the compensation offered for the fight, win or lose would not be enough to make the effort financially viable. It would be an honor to fight Andre in the future and if the UFC can put it together again under circumstances that will provide me with fair compensation and adequate time to prepare I will gladly take the fight.

It takes a lot of people sacrificing, time, effort and money to help me train for my fights and regardless of what other fighters obligations are to their camps I try to compensate everyone associated with my training camps fairly, because without their help I could not have enjoyed the success I have now and will have in the future. Fighting is my lively hood.

Doing what's best for me and my family is always a priority when choosing fights and the direction of my career. I appreciate all the support of my friends and fans and I do hope to return to competion soon, but until then I will do what I feel is best for myself my family, and my career."

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Once a Boxercise instructor, Dana White is now UFC president.

Commentary by 'Hollywood Blonde'

I just read a topic on one of the main internet forums entitles "When will UFC allow knees on the ground", about the UFC blocking the liberalization of rules for the sanctioning of MMA in California.

This follows Dana White, 'Big' John McCarthy, and others claims that the UFC was slowly but surely trying to get knees and kicks to the heads of downed opponents reinstated. Riding the success of 'The Ultimate Fighter', with even Fox Sports now allowing fights with ground fighting to air on their network, and the next PPV expected to do between 150,000 to 200,000 buys, clearly the UFC has the momentum to get the rules changed if they wish.

At first glance, it would even appear to be of a major benefit to the UFC, since knees and kicks to the head on the ground guarantee more exciting fights for their new audience. But scared of the big, bad PRIDE monster expanding to the U.S., the UFC went to every length to block the reinstitution of such attacks, including citing statements from John McCain that claimed the techniques were "just unsportsman-like" and threatening to not run shows in California if the rules were passed. The UFC representative (including BJM, who at least has the excuse that he had to BS to keep his job) lied to the commission by claiming the attacks posed an inordinate health risk, just like they lied to the fans about their intentions of getting the attacks re-instated.

This follows the UFC lie by Dana White months ago when he announced on PPV that The Ultimate Fighter television show would be started and "an even bigger TV deal" was coming. Of course, this 'big TV deal' has been a common lie of Dana's for years. Also, it should not be forgotten that Dana White PROMISED internet readers that Vanderlei Silva would not appear on camera at the UFC 49 PPV, so they did not have to worry about ordering the UFC event first if they were afraid that the results of the pre-taped PRIDE PPV airing the next night would be spoiled. Of course, Silva appeared on camera.

Certainly, the latest lie by the UFC is their biggest yet, and unfortuanetly, the most damaging. By lying about getting knees and kicks reinstated, the UFC eroded any goodwill left with their fans. The lie also put the extra screw to fans by denying them more exciting UFC contests for years to come.

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Denis Kang

American journalist Keith Mills recently interviewed Denis Kang. Here's what Kang had to say:


KM: Congratulations on your victory in PRIDE.

Kang: It has been a long time coming.

KM: Can you describe the fight?

Kang: We started off I dropped him with a right hand. He dropped right at my feet and I tried to soccer kick him, I missed, and he tried to get up to work it into a shoot. I stopped his shot, we clinched briefly for like one or two seconds, I foot swept him judo style, and landed in his half guard. I worked from his half guard with light punches and elbows to his body. He was doing a good job covering up and then I passed to mount. When I was in mount I started punching him. I got a little overzealous with swinging and he raised up the same time I was punching and bridged me over and I ended up on my back. From there I tried a triangle, he stood up out of it, and he backed off like he was going to throw some kicks to my legs. I took that opportunity to get up. We were standing up again and he kept trying to rush me. He did that once or twice and I would just feed him some knees and right hands because he is a south-paw. We clinched one more time and I foot swept him again. He was coming forward so there was a lot more momentum so he went flying and I landed in side mount. From there I took the mount, started punching again, he reversed me one more time and this time when he stood up out of my guard I kicked him right in the face and got back up. Same thing, he clinched again. I had double underhooks, he tried basically a belly-to-belly supplex, I kept my balance and ended up right in mount. I punched him a few times and got the armbar. He wouldn't tap. I had it fully extended and I readjusted it. I really cracked it; his arm popped three or four times. That is when he tapped.

KM: It sounded like a tough fight.

Kang: This guy definitely came to fight. I was prepared for everything. Down at ATT we train for every position and everything that happened to me in the ring already happened to me in training.

KM: I'll get back to ATT in a moment but as far as this debut in PRIDE how does that make you feel?

Kang: It is all hitting me right now. A few weeks before this fight and even a few hours it just felt like any other fight. The week after and right now I realized "wow, I just won my first fight in PRIDE". Eight years and I've finally done it. It is a great feeling and I'm really ecstatic.

KM: Congratulations again. You have been with ATT how long, two or three months?

Kang: Two months.

KM: How far along toward the performance you gave were you before joining ATT? What did they change or add so far?

Kang: They really instilled a lot of confidence in me. I knew I was ready for any situation. They have great coaching of course but also just so many great fighters to train with that put me in all kinds of situations. I knew whatever happened I was there before. I felt ready for anything. My stamina was top notch as usual but it felt like anything that could happen I could deal with.

KM: On the same card Marcus Aurelio from ATT fought and then there are the connections between ATT and BTT giving you even more support. How much did that affect your mindset?

Kang: It was good. The BTT guys a lot of them I know as friends from having seen them in other shows. Having Aurelio there was really cool as well because we trained together for this, we both knew we were on the show for a while even though mine was a little more off-and-on. We both started training for the same time for this. Even though we didn't do that much training together because we are different weights we came along together and peaked together. It was great to both get the victory and celebrate together. The team spirit in ATT is very strong.

KM: Sometimes it is hard to get that across to some of the fighters or fans that haven't experienced it.

Kang: It is a really tight-knit group and we all bleed together and sweat together every day when we train. That really creates a bond. You've got to be able to trust the person you are mounting and punching in the face. It sounds kind of strange but that is the way it is.

KM: Wasn't that a bit of culture shock to go from being somewhat isolated in British Columbia and trying hard to find training partners to ATT where you can't turn around without stumbling over a black belt?

Kang: No, not really. I've been down there a few times before so I always knew what to expect. When I first came down last year it wasn't really culture shock so much as an eye opener of what things could be like, the kind of training they have access to down here.

KM: Here it is only a month or two down there and here you are in PRIDE.

Kang: All the timing seemed to be perfect.

KM: How did it feel going to Pride and seeing Dean Lister as the last to qualify for the Middleweight Grand Prix, that you were just a little too late to make a splash?

Kang: It is good you mention that because I don't think too many people know I'm moving down to the 83 kilo class in PRIDE. That is around 183 pounds. I believe they are going to have a Grand Prix for that starting later on this year. That is my goal, to win the Welterweight Grand Prix.

KM: Are we going to see you in Pride before that starts?

Kang: Yes. Maybe even two. I can say if all goes well I hope to be fighting in the next PRIDE Bushido show which is May 29th I believe.

KM: I heard you have an instructional video coming out.

Kang: You talked to Stephan Kesting. We filmed that right before I left Vancouver. I don't know when it will be coming out. Probably by the early summer or late summer.

KM: Is this going to be a single DVD or a series?

Kang: I believe it is going to be a single DVD. It is going to be called "My Vale Tudo". It's not going to be like a lot of them where they show you every armbar and from which position, this is a compilation of my favorite techniques. It is probably geared more toward the intermediate user or someone who wants to get into MMA. It is my fighting theory or the first part of it anyway. Everything I show is "battlefield tested" as I call it.

KM: I take it people will be able to hear more about it on deniskang.com?

Kang: Of course.

KM: Anything else you want to get out to the fans?

Kang: I want to thank people for sticking with me all these years until I finally made it to PRIDE. I want to say thank you to all the people from Canada. Even though I'm coming out under the Korean flag in PRIDE, I'm still very proud to be Canadian. I thank all the Canadian fans for their support. I probably wouldn't have made it to PRIDE without their support.

KM: Sponsors to thank.

Kang: I want to thank ATT.

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Dan Severn

The UFC will induct Dan Severn into its Hall of Fame this coming Saturday during the UFC 52 show.

Notable achievments in Severn's UFC career, and as one of the pioneers of MMA, include winning the UFC 5 and 'Ultimate Ultimate' tournaments.

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A fan's humorous parody of the UFC reality show and what appears to be its percieved strategy of appealing to the upper class homosexual demographic.

The following is a review of the first season of 'The Ultimate Fighter' reality show. The review is courtesy of the MMA insider known as 'Rainbowthief':


First of all, here's what I liked:

Footage of the fighters training and getting pointers from Chuck Liddell and Randy Couture.

The fights, even the bad ones. Free fights every week was something to look forward to on Mondays.

The live 2 1/2 hour finale. Great way to end the show. One great touch was the intros showing each fighter at home with family and friends and training. Easily my second favorite part of the finale after the Bonnar vs. Griffin fight.

What I didn't like:

All the Real World/Big Brother reality show bullshit like Chris Leben pissing on Jason Thacker's bed, the endless shots of fighters hanging out with their shirts off in the living room and the fighters whining about being bored.

Fighter selection, but more on that later.

The fighter elimination process, more on that later too.

Too much Dana White. Why was TUF edited into the Dana White show? Most hardcore fans couldn't care less about seeing him, so why would new fans?

Not enough Couture, Liddell or Willa Ford. They got their two best light heavyweights on the show and wasted them. I would've liked to have seen Liddell teaching striking techniques to the fighters and more of Couture instructing them also, especially since all the fighters seemed to revere him. A little more eye candy would've been nice too, especially with the gay antics sometimes reaching a suffocating level, but unfortunately there were too many episodes in which Ford was barely seen or not at all.

The team challenges. They were stupid, slowed the show down and had nothing to do with fighting skills.

What needs to be changed desperately for season two:

Get rid of most of the house antics and show more training or at least more talking about fighting and less of the "I don't like so-and-so" bullshit.

Get better fighters. It's been said that the mix of jobbers and legitimate prospects was done to make the better fighters look good, but if so, the idea backfired badly, resulting in absurd mismatches leading up to a very undeserving Kenny Florian suffering a horrible beating at the hands of Diego Sanchez in the final. While they're at it, make sure the fighters want to be there. For most of the first half of the season, I kept wondering where on earth Dana found "fighters" so unwilling to fight. With the exception of Chris Leben, who early in the season implored Josh Koscheck to pick him to fight, getting a volunteer from a team to fight was like pulling teeth.

Make everyone fight an equal number of times. Kenny Florian had one fight and was in the final, while Diego Sanchez had to win three times to get there. That's ridiculous. Don't let the fighters pick who will fight, do it for them by picking fighters randomly to create brackets and make sure everyone fights the same number of times. Better yet, get rid of the ridiculous team concept and place all the fighters from each weight class into one group and have both coaches work with them. They'll benefit more from having both coaches anyway. Seeing the fighters whine about losing teammates or having to fight them was laughable. When the hell did MMA become a team sport?

For the next finale, use the time more wisely. It looks like Zuffa planned on saving the undercard fights for the upcoming DVD, but some more fights on TV would've been nice. Three fights in 150 minutes is not enough.

Overall, the show got off to a terrible start, showed some unfulfilled promise in the middle, but ended with a bang, thanks to Stephan Bonnar and Forrest Griffin.

Final score: B (it would've been a C- if not for the excellent finale).

Now the fighters:

Nathan Quarry: Poor Nate. This guy had some of the strongest buzz going into the show and thanks to that dumb lug Alex Shoenauer, the audience never got to see him fight. Whether the UFC will give him a fight is anyone's guess, but he deserves something after the lousy luck he had on the show.

Alex Karalexis: What a pile of slop. He fought like someone who just stepped into the cage right after watching UFC 1 for the first time ever. We'll never see him again, thankfully.

Jason Thacker: Dana, what were you thinking? Thacker himself said he wasn't good enough to be there! If the lousy canuck hadn't been sent packing by Randy prior to the start of fighting, we might've seen someone who looked even more frightened in the ring than Lodune Sincaid.

Lodune Sincaid: Forget "The Vanilla Gorilla," this bum's nickname should be "The Reluctant Fighter." Could he have looked any more scared in his fight with Bobby Southworth? When he learned that Southworth had picked him to fight, Sincaid looked like a doctor had just given him five days to live. Aside from the obvious lack of skills, Sincaid needs to find a heart.

Chris Sanford: I'm sure there was a reason for Sanford to be there; unfortunately, I can't figure out what the hell it was.

Sam Hoger: So, Hoger alienated himself from his teammates and his coach, stole UFC merchandise and then acted like an ass after getting knocked out by Forrest Griffin on the show. After all of that, I doubt his unaired decision win over Bobby Southworth in the finale will do much for his fighting career.

Josh Rafferty: Another guy Dana probably found in a record store at the local shopping mall. Rafferty may be many things, but a fighter ain't one of them.

Alex Shoenauer: Oy, after everyone raved about how impressive he was in defeat against Forrest Griffin, he got knocked out by light fisted Mike Swick in 20 seconds in the finale! Do cry for him, Argentina, his career is over.

Mike Swick: I guess it would be fair to point out that, like Kenny Florian, Swick was fighting in a higher weight class than usual, but I have a feeling that half of the middleweights on the show would've trounced Swick as well.

Bobby Southworth: What a heartless jobber. Southworth couldn't make up his mind if he cared about winning the contract or not. On one episode, he said fighting didn't define him because he had other things in his life back home (a job dealing cards in a casino), then when he was waiting to see if he would take Forrest Griffin's place on the show, he referred to winning the contract as his dream. His public attacks against Dana White and Spike TV, along with his loss to Sam Hoger, ensured that his future is at the card tables, not in the Octagon.

Chris Leben: One of the most hyped up fighters going into the show, Leben talked a pretty big game, but showed nothing in the Octagon. Still, MMA fans love a bad boy and so does Zuffa, so look for Dana to bring this crying mess into the UFC, feed him a steady diet of bums and hope that he turns into a good fighter. Either way, look for mini-Tito to appear in future UFC events very soon.

Josh Koscheck: Not especially impressive on the show, but Koscheck has possibly the biggest upside of any fighter on the show because of his youth, conditioning and superior wrestling ability. Few wrestlers of his caliber have jumped to MMA and even fewer have committed to the sport as deeply as he has. With the right training, Koscheck could become a champion in the UFC, especially if he learns to use the fence to his advantage as Randy Couture does.

Diego Sanchez: It's hard to tell how good Sanchez is because even though he won four fights to win the UFC contract, he never beat anyone decent with the exception of newcomer Josh Koscheck. So far, his submission skills look very good, but until he's challenged by a solid striker, he'll remain a question mark to many. He's a strange eccentric who also enjoys the microphone a little too much. If Joe Rogan hadn't cut him off, Sanchez might still be thanking people after his victory over Kenny Florian.

Kenny Florian: Looks too soft to be a fighter and his sudden billing as a BJJ black belt didn't help him against Diego Sanchez. Though Florian belongs in the welterwight division instead of the middleweight, going down in weight class won't make up for his complete lack of toughness. Whether he gets any UFC fights depends entirely on how good Dana thinks he is, but I'd be surprised to see him again.

Forrest Griffin: The man picked by most fans to win the light heavyweight contract since before the show aired came though, but not without a torrent of controversy in the final. Still, Griffin is the real deal and will bring a very well rounded game to the Octagon, though where he figures in the UFC light heavyweight picture is unclear because I can't see him beating any of the big three (Couture, Liddell or Tito Ortiz)--yet. Still, his reckless style will be a welcome addition to the UFC and should provide plenty of exciting fights for fans starving for relief from Zuffa's stable of lay n' pray stallers.

Stephan Bonnar: The breakout star of the show. Bonnar looked as soft as Kenny Florian in interviews, but the newly anointed "American Psycho" proved to be one tough fucker on the Octagon, eliminating Bobby Southworth in a convincing decision, submitting Mike Swick and earning a moral--though not official--victory over Forrest Griffin in the light heavyweight final, for which Zuffa rightly rewarded Bonnar with a six figure contract of his own. This former Golden Gloves champion and Carlson Gracie student could have the brightest future of any of the fighters on the show.

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Jose "Pele" Landi-Jons

The Brazilian media reports that the matchup of Jose 'Pele' Landi-Jons vs. Yauhito Namekawa will be taking place on the Gladiators FC card, scheduled to take place on June 19th in Hokaido, Japan.

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By Coffee Guy

Andrei Arlovski (right)

Before reading any further, please read our disclaimer first.

The following exclusive report was sent to us by our Zuffa informant called 'Coffee Guy':


It looks now as if the matchup of Andrei Arlovski vs. Justin Eilers will be taking place on the UFC 53 card on June 4th.

The UFC originally wanted Arlovsky's opponent to be Ricco Rodriguez, but Rodriguez appears like he will not be able to take the fight at this time.

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By Coffee Guy

Travis Wiuff

Before reading any further, please read our disclaimer first.

The following exclusive report was sent to us by our Zuffa informant called 'Coffee Guy':


"Travis Wiuff passed his second medical, and has been cleared to fight on the UFC 52 card."

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Vanderlei Silva (top) knocking out Quinton Jackson in the final of the 2003 middleweight GP.

Chute Boxe head trainer and manager, Rudimar Fedrigo, spoke with Brazilian magazine 'Tatame', and discussed about his team and their first round matchups in the upcoming PRIDE middleweight GP. Here's what Rudimar had to say:


Rudimar on his team's chances for the PRIDE GP: "Victories like Acacio's and Azeredo's (in PRIDE Bushido) just get us even more excited to train harder and perform well in the first round of the PRIDE GP. Shogun and Vanderlei stayed in Curitiba training to be at their best on April 23rd, so they were not in Tokyo. I believe in an all Chute Boxe GP final."

Rudimar on Vanderlei Silva vs. Hidehiko Yoshida: "We are sharpening up Vanderlei's strikes to be more accurate and powerful. Vanderlei will not change his game. He's going to go towards Yoshida and knock him out."

Rudimar on Mauricio 'Shogun' Rua vs. Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson: "In the last few days, Mauricio Shogun stepped up his game and is training even harder, so that he can do what Vanderlei has already done twice to Rampage... He is going to knock him out! He's in a good frame of mind and is prepared to face Jackson, both on the feet and on the ground."

Rudimar on possible second round opponents: "We're not worried about that. We have two important fights against athletes we can not look past."
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Fedor Emelianenko

Below is an interview Fedor Emelianenko recently did that appeared on his website. Here's what Fedor had to say:


Interviewer: Fedor, before the fight with Kohsaka, and even now, we
have heard rumors that you were afraid to fight Kohsaka. Do you think that there is a chance to fight with him for the third time?

Fedor: As soon as PRIDE offered me to fight Tsuyoshi Kohsaka in Bushido 6, I agreed right away. However, I was not in a good shape. Therefore, it is stupid to say that I was afraid of him. Of course, because of the injury I could not show 100% of what I was trained for. But when I am eventually in good shape, I can give him another chance to beat me. I think the third fight between me and Kohsaka will take place somewhere in the future.

Interviewer: Please tell us more about the last fight.

Fedor: As I said before, I did not like my performance because of the injury of my finger. I could not train as hard as I usually do.

Interviewer: Is it truth that even after an X-ray examination, the injury of the finger was only detected on the day after the fight?

Fedor: Yes. I am not sure why, but this is how it happened. Right after the fight I felt some kind of discomfort in my finger, so we went to a clinic to do an X-ray. The results came right away. The doctor said that everything was fine, there is no injury but told me to put on a bandage. I did that but that same night I could not sleep because of strong pain in my finger. The following day we went to another hospital, and after this second X-ray we could clearly see the fracture on my finger.

Interviewer: I know that exactly the same thing happened with your brother Alexander. The fracture was found right after the return from Japan?

Fedor: Yes. Alexander did his X-ray in Russia and he has the fracture of the same finger as I do. However, his fracture is in a different place, closer to the hand.

Interviewer: Why do you think that the PRIDE doctors did not give the correct diagnosis? Are they hiding something?

Fedor: We did not go to PRIDE's doctors for the first examination. The doctor in the first hospital is not associated with PRIDE, and did the examination very superficially. The next day we went to a different hospital. PRIDE hires all the doctors from this clinic, for fighter's examinations and to do stitches for the injured fighters. When we did a second X-ray, the doctor saw the fracture in my finger right away.

Interviewer: What do you think about Alexander's last fight and his current position in PRIDE?

Fedor: I think he is one of the top 5 heavyweight fighters in the world. You all will see it soon. You can actually see how he has developed as a fighter. The last fight he did what he was trained for. Alexander's opponent could not do any damage to him. In fact, Morais did not land even one punch on Alexander.

Interviewer: Do you know who is going to be Alexander's next opponent?

Fedor: No, we do not know yet. Everything depends on his recovery. For now, we can not talk about any future fights. I think the next time he will be able to step into the ring will be in August.

Interviewer: How did the president of PRIDE, Sakakibara, speak of your fight and Alexander's fight?

Fedor: Sakakibara was very satisfied with Alexander's fight. My fight with Kohsaka he liked, but he was not pleased with my injury because now the fight with Cro Cop, which was originally set up for June, might be cancelled. But it will definitely take place in August at the latest.

Interviewer: Yes, your future fight with Mirko is a very popular subject on all the top MMA forums.

Fedor: The only thing I can say now is that I am fighting Mirko next for sure. However, I do not know when it will take place. My injury is not giving me a chance to train very efficiently. Everything depends on how fast my doctors will give me a green light to use my hand without fear that it will be damaged again.

Interviewer: Fedor, in one of the last interviews, Antonio Nogueira said that you are not as great a wrestler as you were before. And now after his hard training on the ground, Nogueira said he knows how to defeat you in the next fight against you. What do you think about that?

Fedor: I think that this interview is just an excuse. No one prevented him from training for the final fight against me. He could have been a titleholder of two belts... it was a good motivation I think. No one prevented Mirko from training harder for GP 2004 so he could meet me there. He lost to Randleman and lost his chance to fight against me in last year in Finals. He was too confident and didn't put much thought in his fight against Kevin and got caught. No one prevented them from training harder for these fights so they could meet me. It is laughable if they are saying they could beat me easily now.

Interviewer: And the last question. What are your plans for the future?

Fedor: I will be preparing for the title fight against Mirko, so I can be 100% ready for him. We are planning to visit Kislovodsk twice, and train there. Also, we will be guests in Holland to Iogan Bosa.

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By Coffee Guy

Andrei Arlovski (right)

Before reading any further, please read our disclaimer first.

The following exclusive report was sent to us by our Zuffa informant called 'Coffee Guy':


"The matchup of Andrei Arlovsky vs. Ricco Rodriguez has a strong possibility of taking place on the UFC 53 card on June 4th.

The fight would be Arlovsky's first defense of his interim title, and would also give him a chance to rematch on of the losses on his record."

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By Coffee Guy

Travis Wiuff

Before reading any further, please read our disclaimer first.

The following exclusive report was sent to us by our Zuffa informant called 'Coffee Guy':


"Travis Wiuff failed his eye exam for his pre-fight medicals. Zuffa flew him to a diffrent state to have his medicals done, with the hope he passes them. However, the NSAC really doesn't want Wiuff to fight.

Former UFC Fighter Phil Baroni, who is Vegas, is in fighting shape, and has medicals that are up to date, has been contacted as a likely replacment if Wiuff is not allowed to fight."

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Dave Terrell

Sources close to the camp of Dave Terrell announced that Terrell will be spending one month in Brazil training with the Brazilian Top Team.

Other sources are saying that Terrell may be officially joining the Brazilian Top Team, but these rumors have not been confirmed yet.

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Dean Lister

American journalist Keith Mills recently interviewed Dean Lister. Here's what Lister had to say:


KM: What can you say about your plans for the next two months? You have PRIDE and ADCC or how does this work?

Lister: Yeah, I have both. I'm focusing on PRIDE right now, and Arona. That is kind of a strange situation for me as I feel like someone else is trying to make this happen. Not really Pride necessarily, someone wants me to fight Arona, their best guy.

KM: If not Pride but a "higher power"... you mean like a spiritual angle?

Lister: No. I heard through the grapevine Mario Sperry has been really pushing for me to fight Arona for some reason. I’m not going to back down. I don't know what they are trying to do. It's going to be a tough fight but I definitely feel very confident.

KM: Let me break it down a little. How do you feel about qualifying for the PRIDE FC Grand Prix tournament?

Lister: That was cool. I wanted to fight twice in one night really badly, I wanted that experience. Also Paulo would have been a good opponent, it is just he got injured. I was disappointed at first but in hindsight actually I have a small injury but it is nothing that is going to keep me from PRIDE. I'm not injured bad to where I can't fight. When you go to a tournament like that you usually get injured, it is very likely. I'm not injured so I feel really good.

KM: I saw a post-fight video where it looked like your right knee was sore.

Lister: It was my lower shin/ankle area.

KM: This isn't *the* knee.

Lister: No. Knees are ok.

KM: You mentioned being disappointed you only fought one time that night. Your opponent for the second fight was injured. With your credentials as ADCC Champion and KOTC Champion don't you deserve to be in the tournament already?

Lister: I deserve to be in, I just wanted to show the Japanese fans I deserve to be there.

KM: On the other hand you are 1-1 in Pride.

Lister: If I wasn't stood up so fast in my first fight (Amar Suloev) I would have finished Suloev. I got stood up a lot where I wasn't able to use my personal way of fighting. It's my fault I didn't finish it faster but also not my fault just the way the fight was going. I'm 1-1 officially but if I don't get knocked out or submitted and don't submit or knock out my opponent I don't feel I win or lose, I just feel we don't know what would have happened. In my mind I have one submission victory in PRIDE and the other is yet to be determined.

KM: Can you clarify whether you beat Arona in the Pride tournament are you going to face him in ADCC?

Lister: Yes. Hopefully, because I don't know what is going to happen with him. I don't know what they told him, what is going on to be honest. It's really complicated for me right now.

KM: How do you feel about facing the same opponent in roughly a month?

Lister: I feel fine about it. It is unfortunate timing. I've looked at him as a grappling opponent, not a fighting opponent until right now.

KM: You have trained before with Brazilian Top Team.

Lister: Yeah, for one month only. I went down there in summer of 2000. I trained almost every day at their place. They were just about to split off form Carlson Gracie. I was about 180 so I was lighter also. I did pretty well and think I helped them. They definitely helped me. I was hanging out with all of them. Right now there is a lot of dislike toward me right now. One thing in Brazil from what I've seen is once you are looked upon as a possible opponent or adversary you are out of the circle of trust. It is different for Americans. I've known American guys that have actually fought and been cool with them, especially in grappling. It is getting very political now, it is strange for me.

KM: Many fighters talk about the week after a fight they will take off, try to peak two or three weeks before their next fight, and then take the last week before a fight for just cardio. With three or four weeks between fights you don't have time for a full cycle like that. I'm wondering how the short time between PRIDE and ADCC is going to affect your training?

Lister: I'm just going to keep training straight through. I'll take about two days off which I've done already and back to training. It has changed in the sense I can't peak at the right time because I don't know what is going to happen with any of my matches. Now with Abu Dhabi, we don't know what is up with that... I was confident I was going to win this mini-tournament, you can't say for sure 100% what is going to happen so you can't make instant plans. I'm actually in a very tough situation. To be honest I really get motivated when I'm in a tough situation like being an underdog or injury. It makes me mentally stronger because I have nothing to lose.

KM: How is your gym going?

Lister: It's going well, it's growing. I finally found a place where the owner sees growth potential and is going to treat me right. The reason I don't own my own building is right now I'm a fighter. I think I've found the right person, the right place, and the right program. Keep an eye out for details. Contact number if you want to train in San Diego is 619-920-6719.

KM: Sponsors to thank.

Lister: Bad Boy Japan, Osiris Shoes, Sycuan Casino, The Boxing Club, and my kickboxing instructor Melchor Menor.

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A fan's humorous parody of the UFC reality show and what appears to be its percieved strategy of appealing to the upper class homosexual demographic.

'The Ultimate Fighter' reality show is now accepting applications on its official website for its second season. The show is looking for heavyweights and welterweights.

If you are a prospective fighter looking to make a name for himself on the homoerotic Ultimate Fighter show, then click here

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B.J. Penn

B.J. Penn was recently on Ryan "The Weasel" Bennett's internet radio show (broadcast live from Bennett's basement), and had some interesting things to say regarding the UFC and the former boxercize aerobics instructor-turned-UFC-president, Dana White.

Here are the points Penn made:


No return to the UFC: The only thing basically holding him back from coming back to the UFC is that Dana White wants him to publically apologize for leaving. Penn stated he is not sorry, is unwilling to apologize, and that he isn't going to give away his integrity and apologize for something he isn't sorry for.

Penn even stated that he was all set to sign, and he was going to commentate the Trigg/Hughes fight this weekend, but now its not happening because of the apology that the petty Dana White requested.

The pettiness of Dana White: Penn said that Dana White is letting his ego get in the way of negotiations. He pointed out how Dana White talked to Southworth on TUF, with his "don't disrespect me" dramatics, and said that Dana was an emotional person who promotes himself at the expense of the UFC.

The superiority of PRIDE AND K-1: Penn said that the UFC can not say they are the Super Bowl of MMA, because they do not compare with PRIDE and K-1. Penn pointed to the upcoming PRIDE GP tournament as an example of the superiority of the top shows in Japan. Penn also said that the Super Bowl claims of the UFC can not be made if he himself is not fighting in the UFC, because he is the number one fighter in his division.

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Antonio 'Elvis' Schembri

DSE/PRIDE announced the following matchups for their PRIDE Bushido 7 card on May 22nd:

Antonio 'Elvis' Schembri vs. Ryo Chonan
Yoshiro Maeda vs. Charles 'Krazy Horse' Bennett

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Heat FC 3: 'Metamorphosis'
April 14th, 2005
Natal, Brazil


Marcelo Dourado vs. Jorge Rodrigues
Silmar Rodrigo vs. Daniel 'Animal'
Vasily Krylov vs. Savio Maia
Sergio Junior vs. Charles Andrade
Rivanio 'Aranha' vs. Adriano Nasal
Rondinelli de Souza vs. Erivaldo Caico
'Barao' vs. Joao Paulo

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Darrell Gholar

The Brazilian media reports that Darrell Gholar will be teaching at the Brazilian Top Team.

Gholar can also be found teaching classes at the 'Champions Factory Team' in Copacabana Beach, and at Royler Gracie's academy in in Tijuca.

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Ricardo Arona

Commentary by 'Hollywood Blonde'

I've noticed on several different internet forums very negative comments being directed at The Brazilian Tiger, Ricardo Arona. A number of MMA fans say that a fighter "like him" winning the Pride GP could "ruin the sport." These fans claim that there dislike of Arona is based on him "being boring."

When examined, however, this excuse doesn't seem to hold up. After all, this is MMA, not Toughman. Surely the members of the internet forums, purportedly the most knowledgable MMA fans in the world, can appreciate the technical excellence of The Brazilian Tiger, Ricardo Arona? This apparent contradiction in rationale dumbfounded me until I remembered the story of another Tiger....

For many years, some MMA fans would find any excuse they could to bash a certain professional fighter. For a long time, their reasons for doing so were unclear. Eventually, however, their motivations became apparent and a sad reality had to be faced.

So goes the tale of Vernon (Not)White.

The racially motivated insults were sucessful for far too long in holding "Tiger" back by his tail.

It is because I do not wish to see the same fate incurred on another "Tiger" that I pledge my support for The Most Technical and Efficient Fighter in the Sport, The Excellence of Execution, The Brazilian Tiger, Ricardo "Simply the Best" Arona, in the upcoming Pride GP tournament.

Posted below is a song written in The Great Man's honor:


"Try to be best cause you're only a man and a man's got learn to take it
Try to believe while the going gets rough that you gotta hang tough to make it history repeats itself, try and you'll succeed
Never doubt that you're the one And you can have your dreams

You're the best around nothing's gonna ever keep you down
You're the best around nothing's gonna ever keep you down
You're the best around nothing's gonna ever keep you down

Fight to the end cause your life will depend on the strength that you have inside you
Ahh, gotta be proud Standing out in the crowd when the odds and the game defy you
Try your best to win the moment
one date I will tell When you're the one that's standing there you reach the final bell

You're the best around nothing's gonna ever keep you down
You're the best around nothing's gonna ever keep you down
You're the best around nothing's gonna ever keep you down
You're the best around nothing's gonna ever keep you down
You're the best around nothing's gonna ever keep you down
You're the best around nothing's gonna ever keep you down
You're the best around nothing's gonna ever keep you down

Fight 'til you drop Never stop Can't give up Until you reach the title you're the best in town Listen to that sound..."

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Once a Boxercise instructor, Dana White is now UFC president.

The following is courtesy of Dave Meltzer and 'The Wrestling Observer:


"Today's USA Today has a major story on Dana White at www.usatoday.com/money/companies/management/2005-04-10-white-usat_x.htm

The story noted White is talking with Spike TV about a second (virtually a done deal) and third seasons of Ultimate Fighter. It's the same White claims of his changing the sport by having weight classes (instituted in 1997 by previous promoters), rounds (by previous promoters), time limits (by previous promoters in 1995), gloves & mouthpieces (by previous promoters) and new rules of no attacks to the groin, spine or throat (very early UFC changed this by 1995), no head-butting (1997), no biting (never was allowed), no eye-gouging (never was allowed), and no hair pulling (1995).

He did take his due credit for greatly increasing the popularity of what was a dying franchise in 2001. He claimed an expected $3 million live gate this coming Saturday (don't buy it). Well, at least he didn't claim that he created playing to the crowd, and market specific interviews or the idea of syndicating television shows in more than one market."



Editor's note: The article also made no mention of Dana White's past as a boxersize aerobics instructor, and of how White's lifelong relationship to Lorenzo Ferttita was the key factor in White becoming the UFC president. The article also did not focus on how the Fertitta's connections to the NSAC and the Las Vegas political scene might have played a determining factor in the UFC's sanctioning in Nevada and its return to PPV.

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By Tape Lord

Ken Shamrock (bottom) attempting a heel hook after his "phantom flop" against Rich "Ace" Franklin.

Hello my friends! Welcome to Tape Lord's 'Monday Morning Mailbag'. Below are some of the more interesting e-mails I recieved as one of the editors of this newspage. Enjoy...


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THE SHAMROCK VS. FRANKLIN FIGHT LOOKED FIXED
The Shamrock vs. Franklin fight looked like a pretty obvious work to me. Even worse than the Frye and Shamrock fight in PRIDE. I bet Zuffa made it worth Ken's trouble to throw that fight. What's your take on the fight?
- The Real Big Pun

Tape Lord's reply: Big Pun, we may never know the truth, but Shamrock's phantom flop looks very funny. Shamrock also let go of a heel hook that he appeared to have a good hold of. Shamrock didn't even try to defend himself when Franklin started throwing some strikes from inside Ken's guard.

Also, Franklin recieved an 8-fight deal BEFORE the fight with Shamrock, whereas Shamrock was on the last fight of his deal.

Finally, the fight was slated for three 5-minute rounds, plus the rest time between rounds, which comes out to about a 20-minute slot. Yet the fight was started with LESS then 15 minutes remaining in the broadcast??

Very funny fight in my humble opinion.


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WHY WAS FRANKLIN GIVEN AN 8-FIGHT DEAL BEFORE SHAMROCK FIGHT?
Why was Rich Franklin given an 8-fight deal before his fight with Ken Shamrock? What is he had lost the fight? This all seems very suspicious to me.
- Rick
Los Angeles, CA

Tape Lord's reply: Dana White seems to want to make Rich Franklin into his new poster boy. No offense to Rich Franklin, but why Dana White would want do this is beyond me.

And as we have seen from Dana White in the past, he usually signs guys to big deals, only to see them lose, while not re-signing guys who end up beating his chosen poster boys. This seems to be one instance where it finally did not blow up in his face, but I do agree that it looks suspicious on the casual observer.


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WHY WAS SHAMROCK VS. FRANKLIN FIGHT STARTED SO LATE?
The Shamrock vs. Franklin fight was started with less then 15 minutes left in the broadcast. What if the fight had went the distance? Would it have gotten cut off in mid-air like in UFC 33?
-Daren Summers
Las Vegas, NV

Tape Lord's reply: Daren, this is something that has yet to be explained. Like I said to another reader, the fight was slated for three 5-minute rounds, plus the rest time between rounds. This all comes out to about a 20-minute slot. Yet the fight was started with LESS then 15 minutes remaining in the broadcast!

The numbers obviously don't add up. It could be yet another classic example of Zuffa time mismanagement, which would have resulted in the main event getting cut off while live, or maybe it was something even worse. We will probably never know the complete truth.


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I FEEL TUF PROVED SUPERIORITY OF HOMOSEXUAL FIGHTERS
I feel that TUF and the TUF finale winners have given a huge boost to the omosexual community. The homosexuals of our society can now stand up and be counted for as legit tough guys who can kick serious ass in the streets.

All homosexuals are true warriors and with the help of UFC president Dana White, we have now made MMA our own.
-Andrew Bryant
Pheonix, Arizona

Tape Lord's reply: Andy, although you may be right about some cast members, I do not believe that any of the TUF finalists have admitted to being homosexuals. As for the rest of your post, you are entitled to your opinion but I believe you, as is the rest of the homosexual viewership of TUF, are jumping to conclusions about a lot of these fighters.


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WHY IS RICH FRANKLIN BEING MADE INTO A POSTER BOY?
This doesn't make sense to me. The UFC has handsome and well muscled black men such as Yves Edwards at their disposal, yet they choose to make some pasty white guy who looks like Jim Carrey into their poster boy??? WTF is up with that??!!
- Beau Taylor
Tulsa, OK

Tape Lord's reply: I don't think Yves Edwards would be a good poster boy either, but I do agree with you that choosing Rich Franklin as your new poster boy makes no sense either.

According to people who know Dana White on a more personal level, White seems obsessed with the whole concept of young men taking out older legends. He seems to think Rich Franklin is the young guy for him.


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Rich "Ace" Franklin

It is interesting to note that the UFC signed Rich Franklin to an 8-fight deal before his fight against Ken Shamrock.

In other related news, the UFC gave out multi-fight deals to Forrest Griffin, Stephan Bonnar, and Diego Sanchez, all of whom competed on 'The Ultimate Fighter' reality show.

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A video clip showing Ken Shamrock suspiciously flopping to the ground in his fight against Rich Franklin.

The following commentary was sent in by the MMA insider known as 'Whaledog':

Before reading any further, please read our disclaimer first.


"Here's something interesting . . . they started the Shamrock fight with less than 15 minutes left in the broadacst. If that fight went the distance, the T.V. would not have seen the end of the 3rd round or the decision."

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Pancrase: '2005 Spiral Tour'
April 10th, 2005
Umeda Stella Hall
Osaka, Japan

Yoshiro Maeda defeats Takumi Murata by armbar at 4:16, RD 1.
Koji Oishi defeats Daisuke Hanazawa13 by TKO at 0:31, RD 3.
Kenji Takeshige defeats Yuji Miyazaki by TKO at 1:53, RD 1.
Naoji Fujimoto defeats Kenji Shimada by unanimous decision.
Masato Nishiguchi defeats Moriyuki Yamada by rear naked choke at 1:38, RD 2.

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SuperBrawl 39: 'Destiny'
April 9th, 2005
Honolulu, Hawaii


Falaniko Vitale defeats Masanori Suda by KO at 4:07, RD 1.
Kultar Gill defeats Harris Sarmiento by rear naked choke at 2:15, RD 3.
Jim Kikuchi defeats Justin Mercado by majority decision.
Mark Moreno defeats Kevin Barber by KO.
Mark Oshiro defeats Harvey Nakamura by unanimous decision.
Karl James Noons defeats Malik Williams by TKO at 2:33, RD 1.
Albert Manners defeats Ryan Lee by unanimous decision.
Reese Andy defeats Kala Kolohe Hose by unanimous decision.

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Sam Morgan defeats Duane Ludwig by KO, RD 1.