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Sanae Kikuta and Yuki Kondo.

Pancrase announced the matchup of Yuki Kondo vs. Sanae Kikuta for their card on October 2nd.

The matchup will be a title defense for Kondo, and also the third time that Kondo and Kikuta will have faced each other.

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By Coffee Guy

Elvis Sinosic

Before reading any further, please read our disclaimer first.

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


"With Stephen Bonnar winning tonight on the 'Ultimate Fight Night' card, look for the matchup of Elvis Sinosic vs. Stephen Bonnar to most likely take place on the UFC 55 card in October.

Zuffa feels Elvis will be a good stepping stone for Bonnar. If Bonnar loses to Elvis, then they might bring Elvis back to face Forrest Griffin."

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UFC: 'Ultimate Fight Night'
August 6th, 2005
Las Vegas, NV


Nathan Marquardt defeats Ivan Salaverry by unanimous decision.
Chris Leben defeats Patrick Cote by split decision.
Stephan Bonnar defeats Sam Hoger by unanimous decision.
Nathan Quarry defeats Pete Sell by TKO at 0:14, RD 1.
Josh Koscheck defeats Pete Spratt by rear naked choke at 1:53, RD 1.
Mike Swick defeats Gideon Ray by TKO at 0:22, RD 1.
Kenny Florian defeats Alex Karalexis by TKO at 2:52, RD 2.
Drew Fickett defeats Josh Neer by rear naked choke at 1:35, RD 1.

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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 UFC announced the participants for the second season of 'The Ultimate Fighter' on Spike TV:


Heavyweights:
Kerry Schall
Seth Petruzelli
Keith Jardine
Brad Imes
Rashad Evans
Rob Macdonald
Mike
Tom
Eli

Welterweights:
Jorge Gurgel
Joe Stevenson
Josh Burkman
Melvin Guillard
Anthony
Marcus
Sammy
Kenny
Luke

Coaches:
Rich Franklin
Matt Hughes

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Evan Tanner

Evan Tanner spoke with an internet fan site and announced that while looking for a place to eat some lunch in Las Vegas, he accidentally went into a homosexual bar instead.

Even though he noticed a few men checking him out, Tanner supposedly did not realize he was in a gay bar until he sat down at his table and looked around for a menu.

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Anderson Silva (right) scores a TKO victory in his pro boxing debut.

Minotauro Fight 2
August 5th, 2005
Ginasio Antonio Balbino
Salvador, Brazil


MMA matchups:
Edson Drago defeats Cabo Jai by KO, RD 1.
Johnny Prachey defeats Genilton Vandame by TKO, RD 1.
Edilberto Crocota defeats Eder Jones by decision.
Danilo 'Indio' defeats Ricardo 'Dinamite' by TKO, RD 1.
'Vandinho' defeats Luis Buda by guillotine choke, RD 2.
Alexandre 'Baixinho' defeats Peterson Melo by decision.
Diego Braga defeats Carlos Eduardo by KO, RD 2.
Yure Fernandes defeats Oswaldo 'Hulk' by KO, RD 1.

Boxing matchups:
Anderson Silva defeats Julio Cesar by TKO, RD 2.
Edvaldo Gonzaga defeats Lazaro Silva by TKO, RD 2.
Alexandro Matos defeats Joilson Fiuza by KO, RD 1.
Lino Barros defeats Eduardo Franca by TKO, RD 3.
Kelson Pinto defeats Kleber Pinheiro by TKO, RD 3.

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KOTC: 'Prime Time'
August 5th, 2005
Soboba Casino
San Jacinto, CA


Robert Drimal defeats Anthony Montoya by KO at 1:10, RD 1.
Tyler Aimer defeats Ron Torres by armbar at 2:31, RD 1.
Jay Martinez defeats Andy MacCarone by unanimous decision.
James Lee defeats Chris Peak by heel hook at 1:33, RD 1.
Cub Swanson defeats Mondo Sanchez by TKO at 1:59, RD 1.
Joey Villasenor defeats Jorge Santiago by unanimous decision.
Charles Bennett drew with Joe Boxer.
Manny Tapia defeats Gregory Vivian by triangle choke at 4:25, RD 1.
Wes Combs defeats Brian Sesma by TKO at 2:40, RD 1.
Thomas Denny defeats Frank Kirmse by rear naked choke at 3:41, RD 1.
Hector Ramirez drew with Emanuel Newton.
Nam Pham defeats Joe Frainee by armbar at 3:28, RD 1.
Big Perm defeats Poki by guillotine choke at 1:29, RD 1.
Mike Guymon defeats Ray Perales by triangle choke at 4:02, RD 1.
John Alessio defeats Shannon Ritch by TKO at 0:41, RD 1.
Paulo Dantes defeats Jay Valencia by KO at 0:29, RD 1.
Buddy Clinton defeats John Caulson by triangle choke at 1:26, RD 1.
Sean Bias defeats John De La O by guillotine choke at 4:41, RD 1.
Rob McCollough defeats Jeremy Jones, RD 1.
Ernie Perea defeats George Atkins by triangle choke at 1:08, RD 1.
Fernando Gonzales defeats Aaron Torres by TKO at 1:33, RD 1.

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Pedro Rizzo (right)

Pedro Rizzo spoke with Brazilian magazine 'Tatame' about the two weeks he just spent training with the Chute Boxe team. Here's what Rizzo had to say (translation by Ricardo Alonso:)


"It was excellent. The exchange between teams was a way to train with different people. I was very well treated, and even though I was an outsider, they treated me like one of their own. I felt very welcomed.

The training was very intense and specific. I trained with everyone... with Vanderlei, Shogun, Cyborg. Everyone was very receptive. I didn't get to train much on the ground because of an injury, but I trained a lot of Muay Thai. I will now go to Holland to train with Peter Aerts for four weeks, and when I return I want to come back to train at Chute Boxe, and then go to the United States to stay with Marco Ruas." -Pedro Rizzo

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Joachim Hansen

SHOOTO announced the matchup of Joachim Hansen vs. Ken'ichiro Togashi for their card on August 20th.

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By Tape Lord

Robbie Lawler

Hello my friends, my postal connections in the DSE/PRIDE organization are telling me that DSE/PRIDE is close to signing Robbie Lawler.

If signed, Lawler will feature in an upcoming PRIDE Bushido card, and may be included in the upcoming PRIDE 185-pound GP.

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Beto "Leitao" with the Chute Boxe team.

Brazilian magazine 'Tatame' reports that the planned training sessions between Chute Boxe and Ruas Vale Tudo have already started.

RVT's Pedro Rizzo and trainer Beto 'Leitao' arrived at the Chute Boxe academy on July 22nd, and will stayed for around two weeks, sparring and helping them out with their wrestling and luta-livre while they learned some of the Chute Boxe method too.

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Anderson Silva (left) to make his pro boxing debut on the card.

Minotauro Fight 2
August 5th, 2005
Ginasio Antonio Balbino
Salvador, Brazil


MMA matchups:
Diego Braga vs. Carlos Eduardo
Yure Fernandes vs. Oswaldo 'Hulk'
Jose Aldo vs. Fernando Vieira
Peterson Melo vs. Alexandre 'Baixinho'
Luis Buda vs. Ricardo Meireles
Danilo 'Indio' vs. Ricardo 'Dinamite'
Eder Jones vs. Edilberto Crocota
Genilton Vandame vs. Joamy Srathey
Edson Drago vs. Cabo Jai

Boxing matchups:
Anderson Silva vs. Julio Cesar
Edvaldo Gonzaga vs. Joilson Fiuza
Alexandro de Matos vs. Anderson do Nascimento
Lino Barros vs. Roberto Coelho
Kelson Pinto vs. Kleber Pinheiro

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Zuluzinho (right)

The Brazilian media announced that up-and-coming Brazilian heavyweight 'Zuluzinho' will be fighting on the World Combat 4 card in Brazil.

The 26-year old Zuluzinho, who is 6'7 (2.00 m) and 341 pounds (155 kg), is the son of the Brazilian vale tudo legend 'Zulu'.

As most MMA fans will remember, Zulu is the fighter who lost to Rickson Gracie in the now famous 'Gracie in Action' video.

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Thales Leites

Brazilian magazine 'Tatame' recently interviewed Thales Leites. Here's what Leites had to say (interview by Andre Araujo):


Tatame: Tell me about your strategy to defeat Gustavo "Ximu"...

Leites: I did my best during the standup to close the distance between us. When we went to the ropes, I put him down. My idea was not exchanging punches with him, since it was probably his strategy. During the second round I applied a katagatame, but it wasn't good and he escaped. But in the third round I fell down on the bottom and reversed. Then I passed his guard and submitted him with another katagatame. Ximu was my toughest opponent and it was my hardest bout ever!

Tatame: You've had a hard time with then ankle-lock, didn't you?

Leites: When I was trying to pass his guard, he caught me with an ankle-lock. Despite the fact his corners complained a lot, I didn't run away from the position. Everybody knows the only way to defend this submission is spinning over the body. I did it and ended falling from the ring.

Tatame: What did you feel about fighting without Andre Pederneiras in your corner?

Leites: He was in London with Vitor Shaolin. It's always good when he is around. He has been always present at all of my bouts. To be honest he was with me all the time I have been training and this is important. Dede was even more nervous than me. He even called us from England several times to know the results. The guys that cornered were great. They supported me and gave important tips. Having Joao Roque, Rodrigo Riscado, and Danilo Sherman in my corner gave me confidence.

Tatame: After defeating Ximu, who is an experienced fighter, what do you expect to do in the future?

Leites: I hope this victory over Ximu helps me with my career. In spite of Storm being one of the main events in Brazil, I hope to fight at bigger events abroad. I will be heading to Hawaii in August, and I will be training with B.J. Penn.

Tatame: Talking about B.J., what do you think is going to happen in his battle with Renzo Gracie?

Leites: It's hard to say, but I think B.J. wins. B.J. is such a tough guy and it's very hard to put him down. I am going to help him with this bout.

Tatame: And about Gi competitions? Are you going to fight at BJJ World Cup, which takes place on July 24?

Leites: I want to dedicate myself to Vale-Tudo. I didn't fight any gi competitions, but I am excited to fight at the BJJ World Cup. I just need to evaluate and sharpen my 'pegada' (BJJ catching). Because it is very different from Vale-Tudo.

Tatame: And what about the BJJ Confederation Mundial?

Leites: I don't have plans to compete in it. I think that cash prizes are important to professional athletes. That's the reason I do not compete much in submission events. I might compete in a submission event in order to train my submissions when I have some Vale-Tudo event coming up.

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Takanori Gomi

DSE/PRIDE officially announced the list of fighters that they will select from for their upcoming 183-pound and 160-pound Grand Prix tournaments. According to DSE/PRIDE, the only fighter that has been officially selected thus far is Takanori Gomi, but more fighters will be selected and announced announced soon.

Each GP will feature eight participants, and the tournaments will span over two shows, with the finals in December.

DSE/PRIDE also announced plans to crown champions in both the 183-pound and 160-pound divisions, in addition to the GP champions. The move would give DSE/PRIDE a belt champion and GP champion in all four of their weight classes.


183-pound GP participants (only 8 fighters will be selected):
Murilo Bustamante
Phil Baroni
Paulo Filho
Daniel Acacio
Yuki Kondo
Ryo Chonan
Ikuhisa Minowa
Akira Shoji
Akihiro Gono
Denis Kang
Kazuo Misaki
Ryuta Sakurai
Yasuhito Namekawa


160-pound GP participants: (only 8 fighters will be selected):
Takanori Gomi
Ralph Gracie
Jens Pulver
Joachim Hansen
Tatsuya Kawajiri
Yves Edwards
Naoyuki Kotani
D. Mishima
Luiz Azeredo
Luiz 'Buscape' Firmino
Charles Bennett

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The California State Athletic Commission voted on Tuesday to include several options put forward by DSE/PRIDE into the proposed mixed martial arts regulations that were under review by the Office of Administrative Law in Sacramento.

This amended legislation allows for the use of a ring, the 10-5-5 round system, and special equipment such as the gi and wrestling shoes. However, kicking or kneeing an opponent to the head on the ground was not accepted.

The amendments will extend the regulation process by at least 45 days, and puts in jeopardy the entire legislation if it is not finalized by a drop-dead date of December 9th.

Should that happen, the regulatory process must start from the beginning again, and the earliest any regulated MMA could take place in the state of California would be mid-2006.

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Hidehiko Yoshida

Sankei Sports reports that Hidehiko Yoshida will hire a Brazilian coach to help prepare him for his next fight, and possibly future fights as well.

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Patrick Cote (right)

Patrick Cote was recently interviewed by Canadian journalist Arnold Lim. Here's what Cote had to say:


Interviewer: What does it mean to you to fight Chris Leben

Cote: It means a lot because it is like a second chance for me to go again in the big show, this is a very important fight for me and I train very hard for this fight I train full time with good people and now I train with BTT Canada, with Georges St. Pierre, Stephane Potvin, Fabio Holanda [Brazilian Top Team Black Belt]. I am going to Las Vegas to win this fight for sure.

Interviewer: You were rumored to fight Chris Leben, possibly in the TKO organization, now it is going to happen in the UFC. What does it mean to you to fight on Spike T.V, more people will be watching this then almost any PPV, or TKO or any other show.

Cote: It is good for me because it is more exposure, and it is good for my sponsors too. When the people knew that I was going to fight on Spike T.V a lot of sponsors said it would be better for us.

Interviewer: So far you fought in the UFC 2 times and you lost 2 times, do you think this fight is a must win situation for you?

Cote: Yeah, it is a very important fight for me, I need this win, I need to win this fight because I want to go back into the big show. Like I said I train with good people, I changed my team, and I want to win this fight so quick and I want to win this fight by knockout or submission. I want to prove to everybody that my two losses in the UFC are behind me.

Interviewer: What do you think about Chris Leben as a fighter.

Cote: He is a tough guy but he has a big mouth too. He is able to take a punch, and he is able to throw a punch but I think I have better skills then him. He talks a lot but this time I will keep my word. I will train very hard and when the bell rings I will show my skills.

Interviewer: What is your predication for this fight.

Cote: I am going to win for sure, I don't care if it is a knockout or submission because now I know I can finish him by submission. If he wants to stand up with me, he can try but I don't think he is able to do that. I trained a lot on my wrestling 3-4 times per week so if he wants to play his game, the wrestling game with me I am ok with that.

Interviewer: Did you have a chance to watch Chris Leben on the Ultimate Fighter T.V show?

Cote: Yeah..

Interviewer:: What did you think about what kind of person he was on the show and what kind of fighter he was on the show.

Cote: He is a tough guy and he talks a lot. He tries to but the show before the fight, I don't care, I am very prepared for this fight, he is a tough guy but I am very confident to win this fight.

Interviewer: On the TV show he pissed on someones bed...

Cote: Yeah on the Canadian guys bed.

Interviewer: How does that make you feel and what do you think about things like that?

Cote: It is not just because he peed on the Canadian guys bed, it is not just that but, lack of respect. I don't like that, he just tried to make a show because he doesn't have very good skills and he tried to make his career with that.

Interviewer: Tell me about your team, you moved to a new team now, you are not training with Team Union anymore. You train with Brazilian Top Team Canada, what is new training with guys like Holanda and all those guys?

Cote: I am training with better sparring partners right now. My Jiu-Jitsu level is up and my wrestling levels too. I am just more complete then my last fight.

Interviewer: You got some friends and teammates fighting on the upcoming shows. First of all you have Georges St. Pierre fighting Frank Trigg, what do you think about that?

Cote: I think Georges St. Pierre will destroy him, if it is not in the first round, probably in the second round. You know Georges is an unbelievable athlete, and he is going to be the world champion this year for sure.

Interviewer: What do you think about David "The Crow" Loiseau, he will be fighting Evan Tanner in the UFC.

Cote: I think it is the best fight for David Loiseau, it is the best fight for him. David is a huge 185-pound fighter and Tanner too but I think that David has more skill then him on the feet and probably knock him out.

Interviewer: You fought in TKO a lot of times with David Loiseau. Both of you guys are 185 pound fighters in the UFC, if the UFC asked you guys to fight each other would you fighter each other or no?

Cote: I don't think so, we are friends. In this division there are a lot of fighters, it is a very stacked division, we can fight other fighters before we would fight each others you know.

Interviewer: Talk about the middleweight division, like you said the MW division is very deep, a lot of tough fighters, what would you like to do after the fight with Chris Leben, is there anyone else you would like to fight?

Cote: Yeah, I want to fight Robbie Lawler. I was supposed to fight him on the last TKO but he said that he was injured and he went to fight Falaniko Vitale last weekend one month after the TKO. I don't know what happened but I want to fight him. I really want to fight him because I am sure it is going to be a good show.

Interviewer: If you fight Robbie Lawler, would you stand up and throw bombs with Robbie Lawler?

Cote: SURE! I am not the kind of fighter who saves himself to run around the fighter.

Interviewer: What would you like to say to Patrick Cote fans out there who are going to watch you on the upcoming UFC Spike TV show and the people who have never seen you fight before and are watching you for the first time.

Cote: To my fans I want to say thank you for supporting me, I lost 2 times in the UFC but the fans are still behind me. This is very good, very great from me and I appreciate that. To the other people who don’t know me, just watch the show and you will understand why all the people like me.

Interviewer: Thank you.

Cote: Thank you I appreciate it.

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Ivan Salaverry

UFC: 'Ultimate Fight Night'
August 6th, 2005
Las Vegas, NV


Ivan Salaverry vs. Nathan Marquardt
Stephan Bonnar vs. Sam Hoger
Pete Spratt vs. Josh Koscheck
Nate Quarry vs. Pete Sell
Patrick Cote vs. Chris Leben
Alex Karalexis vs. Kenny Florian
Mike Swick vs. Keith Rockel
Drew Fickett vs. Josh Neer

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"Mighty" Mo Siligia

K-1: 'Mayhem At The Mirage'
August 13th, 2005
The Mirage,
Las Vegas, NV


Single fights:
'Mighty' Mo Siligia vs. Francois Botha
Imani Lee vs. Mark Selbee

North American GP tournament:
Michael McDonald vs. Azem Maksutaj
Freddy Kemayo vs. Ruslan Karaev
Chalid Arrab vs. Hiraku Hori
Scott Lighty vs. Tatsufumi Tomihira

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Randy Couture

UFC 54: 'Boiling Point'
August 20th, 2005
MGM Grand Garden Arena
Las Vegas, NV


Chuck Liddell vs. Jeremy Horn
Randy Couture vs. Mike Van Arsdale
Tim Sylvia vs. Tra Telligman
Matt Lindland vs. Joe Riggs
Diego Sanchez vs. Brian Gassaway
Frank Trigg vs. Georges St-Pierre
Travis Lutter vs. Trevor Prangley
James Irvin vs. Terry Martin

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Kaoklai Kaennorsing (left)

'Titans'
August 22nd, 2005
Yoyogi National Stadium Gym II
Tokyo, Japan

Below is the developing line-up for the 'Titans' kickboxing card on August 22nd:


John Wayne Parr vs. Kozo Takeda
Kaoklai Kaennorsing vs. Tsuyoshi Nakasako
Noboru Uchida vs. Nathan Corbett

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Vanderlei Silva

Below are some officially announced and unoffically announced matchups that will most likely take place on PRIDE GP finals card on August 28th:


PRIDE middleweight GP semifinals (official):
Vanderlei Silva vs. Ricardo Arona
Mauricio 'Shogun' Rua vs. Alistair Overeem

Single matchups (official):
Fedor Emelianenko vs. Mirko 'Cro Cop' Filipovic
'Tank' Abbott vs. Hidehiko Yoshida
Igor Vovchanchyn vs. Kazuhiro Nakamura
Vitor Belfort vs. TBA (possibly Yuki Kondo)

Single matchups (unofficial):
Mark Hunt vs. Sergei Kharitonov or Fabricio Werdum

Possible fighters on the card:
Alexander Emelianenko
Gilbert Yvel

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Vitor 'Shaolin' Ribeiro (top)

Cage Rage 13
September 10th, 2005
Wembley Conference Centre
London, England


Vitor 'Shaolin' Ribeiro vs. Jean Silva
Evangelista 'Cyborg' Santos vs. Mike Bisping
James Thompson vs. Andy Costello
Melvin Manhoef vs. Fabio Piemonte
Jason Delucia vs. Anthony Rea
Jorge Rivera vs. Marcelo Uirapuru
Paul Jenkins vs. Abdul Mohamed
Tulio Palhares vs. Alex Evans
Paul Daley vs. Hassan Muridi
Jeremy Bailey vs. Dean Bray
Ross Mason vs. Dexter Casey
Brad Pickett vs. Ozzy Haluk
Mark Buchanan vs. Kuljic Degun

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By Coffee Guy

Karo Parisyan

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 Matt Hughes vs. Karo Parisyan is pretty much a done deal for the UFC 55 card in Ovtober.

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Royler Gracie

Royler Gracie was recently interviewed by Brazilian magazine 'Tatame'. Here's what Royler had to say (interview by Andre Araujo):


Tatame: Tell me about your fight at Hero's. It seems it was very balanced...

Royler: In fact it was really good, to be honest. But it wasn't like I planned. However it does not matter doing a beautiful fight if you lost in the end. The first round was very balanced, Koji Yoshida and I studied each other a lot. On the second round I was better. I clinched, put him down, fixed a triangle choke, swept him, reached the mount and almost submitted him with a katagatame. To be honest, I believe if the round had more 30 seconds we would tap out, once I applied a very tight rear naked choke. I am pleased with the result and next week I'll return to my train.

Tatame: So, what are you expecting to this new phase of HEROS Middleweight GP?

Royler: I often fight and it kills me. But I will fight this second phase on September 7, and I don't know who I'm going to fight with. I believe in the next 15 days they will release his name. But I am not sure how things will work out. Once there were only four fighters that won last July 6 and we would suppose to do the finals. But I've heard the HEROS might invite other four fighters to join us. It seems like they want Kid Yamamoto, Caol Uno and Genki Sudo to join us.

Tatame: What do you think about the other three semifinalists?

Royler: Well, I haven't seen all of the fights. I am sure the most technical one was Tokoro, who defeated Alexandre Pequeno. I can tell you that Miyata improved his game a lot. He did a great bout, put his opponent down and submitted with a rear naked choke. But I haven't see fighter from Lithuania's bout.

Tatame: When you fought Kazuyuki Miyata at Rumble on the Rock, you said he was a great fighter and if he had learn some Jiu-Jitsu, he would kick some asses...

Royler: If Miyata took some BJJ lessons I don't know, but I can tell you he did a great bout and has improved his game. If we meet again, it will be a different fight from our last time. I will do my best and I will train hard to defeat anyone.

Tatame: What did you think about Pequeno's loss?

Royler: I spoke with Alexandre Pequeno after the fight and he said he was a little tired after the fight. The spin punch applied by Tokoro might be a lucky move, but I think referee should not stop the fight. It was not a knock out. He suffered a knock down and when he touched the ground, he raised his guard to defend. In my opinion referee committed a mistake when interrupted the fight. It's normal he is upset with the result. But in other hands, he should be glad, because he traveled to Japan and gave his best on the ring.

Tatame: Now the expected fight between you and Pequeno will have to wait a little longer...

Royler: Yes. Lots of people asked me what I was thinking about facing Pequeno in HEROS. I told them I would have to win my fights and he had to win his. I've done my part, and unfortunately he did win his fight. It's a hard diagnosis to do before the first fight. But who knows someday somebody matches a super-fight between him and me? Who knows if Pride does not be interested...?

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Pictured: Fifou, Leo Vieira, Rico vieira.

2005 Mundial de Jiu-Jitsu
July 31st, 2005
Tijuca Tenis Clube
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil


Below are the results of the 2005 Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu world championships:

Men's division:

Absolute division final:
Ronaldo 'Jacare' defeats Roger Gracie by a score of 2-0.

Super super heavyweight division final:
Francisco Fernandes defeats Marcio Corleta by a 3-1 advantage.

Super heavyweight division final:
Roger Gracie defeats Xande Ribeiro by a score of 12-2.

Heavyweight division final:
Robert Drysdale defeats Fernando Boi by a 2-1 advantage.

Light heavyweight division final:
Ronaldo 'Jacare' defeats Braulio Estima by a score of 6-0.

Middleweight division final:
Andre Galvao defeats Felipe Cranivata by leglock at 6:18.

Lightweight division final:
Celso Vinicius defeats Tiago Alves by a score of 2-0.

Super featherweight division final:
Bibiano Fernandes defeats Carlos Vieira by a 1-0 advantage (6-6).

Featherweight division final:
Fredson 'Paixao' defeats Mario Reis by a score of 5-0.

Roosterweight division final:
Samuel Braga defeats Gabriel Moraes by referee decision.


Women's division:

Heavyweight division final:
Bianca Andrade defeats Letícia Ribeiro by a score of 6-0.

Lightweight division final:
Leka Vieira defeats Kyra Gracie by a 3-2 advantage (2-2).

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Phil Baroni

Phil Baroni released the following statement regarding his new allegiance to the PRIDE promotion:


I'm not part of any UFC-Pride exchange by Phil Baroni

Over the past few weeks, I've read several things in the media or on Internet forums that suggests that I somehow represent the UFC when I fight in Pride as part of some exchange program involving Chuck Liddell, Pedro Rizzo, Yves Edwards, Ninja Rua, and Kazushi Sakuraba or whoever.

That could not be farther from the truth. The fact remains that I'm fighting in Pride representing Phil Baroni. I am not under contract or obligation to the UFC in anyway and Zuffa did not have anything to do with me getting the opportunity to compete in Japan.

After the Pete Sell fight at UFC 51, Zuffa released me from their roster. It was a business decision, pure and simple. Dana, who is still a close personal friend of mine, actually told me as a friend that I should consider retirement, but I felt differently, so I decided to go out there and make new opportunities for myself.

What did I do? I flew out to Japan at my own expense for Mark Coleman's fight against Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic. I went there to market myself to Pride. I didn't even have a place to sleep, but I didn't care. I was going to sleep in the lobby of the hotel if I had to. Luckily, Wes Sims let me sleep on the floor of his hotel room, and I got to workout twice a day with Coleman and the guys before his fight.

That's when Coleman started talking with Pride for me to try and get me a fight. It wasn't Zuffa because I wasn't a UFC fighter any longer. It was Coleman, and they started talking about the idea of bringing me into Pride for a fight.

Then, when Kevin Randleman fought Kazuhiro Nakamura, Randleman flew me out to Japan as part of his corner. That's when I finalized the deal with Pride and agreed to fight at Bushido 7.

Let's be honest for a minute. Pride brought me in to lose. They labeled me a UFC guy to help get Ikuhisa Minowa over even bigger with the Japanese fans ahead of the 83-kg Grand Prix. Sakuraba is getting older and he's been beaten up pretty badly recently, so Pride needed to start grooming new Japanese stars, particularly in my weight class.

It's unlikely that DSE brought Baroni in to beat Minowa, but things don't always work out as planned

I was the perfect opponent to help make Minowa into an even bigger Japanese star – the muscular American who looks and talks the part and has good name recognition in from my UFC days.

But it didn't workout that way, did it? When I knocked him out, I resurrected my career rather than being a stepping stone for someone else. And I did that again when I knocked out Ryo Chonan.

Now we're approaching the Pride Welterweight Grand Prix, and I'm certainly going to be in the mix and plan on winning that tournament. When I do, it won't be "Phil Baroni, the UFC representative, just won the Pride Grand Prix." It will be "Phil Baroni, the New York Badass, just won the Pride Grand Prix."

Even though I'm not on the UFC's roster or under contract with them in anyway, I want to make something very clear because things tend to get taken out of context or blown out of proportion on the Internet: I might not have a business relationship with the UFC anymore, but Dana White is still a close personal friend of mine.

I continue to support Dana 100 percent in everything that he does, and I wish him nothing but success with the UFC and season two of The Ultimate Fighter. Similarly, he supports me 100 percent in my fighting career, and I know he's pulling for me each time I fight overseas. Friends can remain friends even when they no longer work together.

So the next time you read that I'm in Pride fighting as a UFC representative, just know that is not true in any way. I'm a Pride fighter now, and I represent myself, my family, friends, and fans each time I step into a Pride ring, nobody else.

-Your friendly neighborhood Badass


Phil B.

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Gracie vs. Penn

According to the Hawaiian media, the K-1 Hawaii show on July 29th drew approximately 12,000 fans to the Aloha Stadium.

The figure supposedly set an attendance record for an MMA event in Hawaii.

According to statements by K-1 officials, they had hoped to break the North American MMA attendance record of approximately 15,000 people, but were very happy with the final attendance figures and overall show.

They added that they plan to do another show in Hawaii next year.

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Pancrase 2005 Spiral Tour
July 31st, 2005
Korakuen Hall
Tokyo, Japan


Yoshiro Maeda defeats Colin Mannsur by TKO at 2:43, RD 1.
Ivan Menjivar defeats Miki Shida by unanimous decision.
Takumi Yano defeats Kuntap Weerasakreck by TKO at 4:38, RD 1.
Yuji Sakuragi defeats Aslan Dzeboev by KO at 1:31, RD 2.
Takumi Murata defeats DJ Taiki by unanimous decision.
J-Taro Takita defeats Nukinpo! by unanimous decision.

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IFC: 'Rock N’ Rumble'
July 30th, 2005
Reno Events Center
Reno, NV


Travis Wiuff defeats William Hill by TKO at 5:00, RD 1.
Roger Huerta defeats Brad Blackburn TKO at 2:19, RD 3.
Fabiano Scherner defeats Aaron Brink by guillotine choke at 0:50, RD 1.
Shonie Carter defeats Josh Haynes by unanimous decision.
Jay Hieron defeats Pat Healy by unanimous decision.
Jeremy Peterson defeats Rocky Batastini by TKO at 1:57, RD 1.
Richard Montoya defeats Chris Kiever by TKO at 4:49, RD 1.
Chris Botelho defeats Steven Rivenbark by TKO at 1:12, RD 1.

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