Dana White Ready to Make Fedor vs Lesnar A Reality

The UFC Prez mentioned at the UFC 100 post-fight presser that Fedor vs. Brock will eventually happen.

“This whole Fedor thing has been going on and on and on. I keep saying this and that about him and he keeps waiting. Eventually, Fedor’s going to be here. I want Fedor. I want him to come to the UFC and everything else. [Lesnar] just became the heavyweight champion. We’ll end up getting that deal done. And then we’ll do Brock vs. Fedor, and it’ll be a huge fight.”

I'll believe it when I see it, but any hope that his fight will ever happen is good. I still think Fedor would beat Brock at his point, Fedor wouldn't get stuck like Mir did, his hip movement is way too good for that to happen.

UFC 100 Predictions: Georges St. Pierre vs Thiago Alves

Thiago Alves- What We Know
Alves is an excellent muay thai striker with great defensive wrestling. Matt Hughes was able to get him down only once and he defended very well and Josh Koscheck wasn't able to get him down at all. He also possesses some brutal digging leg kicks that can suck the life out of a fighter. Has nice head movement and is very aggressive. Can take punishment, also has a nasty leg kick-straight punch combination. Can go a full hard 3 rounds(5 rounds we don't know) and totally dominated a high caliber fighter like Josh Koscheck in those three rounds. Is huge for welterweight and sometimes has trouble making weight. Has won 7 fights in a row.

Georges St. Pierre- What We Know
An absolute freak of nature, the consensus best wrestler in MMA even though he has no amateur wrestling background. Faster than most lightweights, the way he passes a fighter's guard is unbelievable. Using simple first-day techniques with such force and speed that even high-level jiu-jitsu players can't stop it. No one has been able to stop GSP from taking them down and its hard to imagine Thiago Alves will be the first. GSP uses tremendous footwork and angles in his striking along with that incredible quickness. He is way past any of the problems in his mental game from previous years. Can go a full hard 5 rounds. Is on the level of Fedor Emelianenko and Anderson Silva.

The Verdict
I like GSP to take Alves down and beat him up from there, eventually stopping him somewhere around the 3rd round. Yoda(Greg Jackson) will lay out a perfect game plan and GSP will not stray from it, I just don't think Thiago is on the level of a GSP yet.

List of Bars Showing UFC 100

List of Bars and Restaurants authorized to show UFC 100.

Faber's Contract Issues - The WEC Better Step Up

WEC is picking up steam and popularity - or maybe just the latter - in more than just hardcore MMA betting circles but as we all know, more money equals more problems.

WEC pulled in a whopping 13,000+ fans at the recent event in Sacramento, which is nothing to sneeze at. Gate revenues reeled in nearly a million dollars.

But an issue that is rearing its head is the battle that a lot of MMA fighters seem to be complaining about: money.

WEC superstar Urijah Faber has only one fight left on his contract and he's been grumbling about the dollars and sense. On one hand, he has lost two of his last three fights so it may not be the best time to renegotiate but at the same time, Faber is truly one of the faces of WEC and without him, the league would take a big blow.

Let's face it: the WEC is not what the UFC is, although they are supposedly the same company. WEC is lighter weight classes and not nearly as popular as its big brother right now. But for the WEC to continue to grow and eventually earn a bigger share of the spotlight, it will have to hop on the back of guys like Faber.

Faber isn't the only star complaining about the dollars and cents in the WEC. Bantamweight Miguel Torres has also made a point of it to dig into the feeble paydays he's been receiving from the WEC. Torres (-300) is the favorite in the MMA betting lines against Brian Bowles (+220) in the WEC 42 event Aug, 9th.

Pride and Elite XC may not be around, but there are still lots of options for a guy like Faber. He's still a top 15 pound-for-pound MMA fighter in the world, even if it is a lighter weight class that less people pay attention to, but he still has options in Japan, with Strikeforce or potentially Affliction.

Obviously, those would be the Plan B's in his books as a feasible superstar payday form the WEC would be Plan A.

With one fight left on his contract, let's hope that Faber can first and foremost get back on track with a win and then hopefully the two sides can settle their salary issues.

Wanderlei Silva Should Retire

Ontario, Canada still hasn't opened its doors to UFC, or any MMA fighting of the sort, so it was a nice treat that Wanderlei Silva came to visit Toronto to party on Friday and host a seminar (along with an autograph session) on Saturday.

One thing is for sure: you don't need to see the Axe Murderer up close and personal to know that he needs to retire.

For starters, Silva is a popular figure when sports gambling on MMA and you have to figure that of the many fighters out there who are scared or weary of retiring, he'll be one of the guys that has plenty of options. He can do publicity, he can do seminars and show up at random gyms and he can probably still be a face of UFC after he hangs it up.

But inside the ring, it's blatantly clear that he's in the "I just don't wanna quite yet" phase. Silva has been a great MMA fighter but he is clearly past his prime. He's like Brett Favre or Mark Coleman - he just needs to know where the end is.

Speaking of Coleman, here's a fact for you: Coleman fought in UFC 10 and will fight at UFC 100. And he's probably the only athlete in all of sports to be inducted in the Hall of Fame yet still in the sport. But I digress.

Silva just turned 33-years-old but let's face it, he's an old 33. Sometimes you look at his face and wonder if he is in fact older than Coleman. But if that's not a tell-tale sign enough, then how about his recent performances in the ring.

Sure, he lost a decision to Rich Franklin and looked like he had some dog in him, considering the catch weight and all, but overall that makes losses in five of his last six UFC betting events. And of those five losses, four were by knockout.

Clearly, there's no shame in losing to Dan Henderson, Chuck Liddell (back then anyways), Quinton Jackson and Rich Franklin, but any way you cut it, the losses are piling up.

I know he's still a draw, I know he' still capable of beating the Keith Jardine's of the world, but the axe has dulled for the Murderer. And in sports, too many athletes quite when it's one step too late and Silva is getting to that point. He should have one more fight, get one more win under his belt and then move on.

Something tells me that's not how this script will end.

UFC 100 Betting Odds

UFC 100 - Fight Odds

Below are the current fight odds (as of 11:10 AM PT) for Saturday's UFC 100 event in Mandalay Bay Events Center, Las Vegas, NV, courtesy of our partners at BETUS

Heavyweight Title Match

Brock Lesnar (-240) vs. Frank Mir (+190)

Welterweight Title Match

Georges St Pierre (-300) vs. Thiago Alves (+220)

Light Heavyweight Match

Dan Henderson (-225) vs. Michael Bisping (+175)


Other Matches on Fight Card

Jon Fitch (-450) vs. Paulo Thiago (+325)

Yoshihiro Akiyama (-300) vs. Alan Belcher (+220)

Mark Coleman (+250) vs. Stephan Bonnar (-350)

Mac Danzig (+160) vs. Jim Miller (-200)

Jon Jones (-450) vs. Jake O'Brien (+325)

My predictions and analysis later this week.

Fighters to Forever be Banned from the UFC if They Take Part in the EA MMA Video Game

This disheartening bit of news first came from Golden Boy at the UG

I hear that all mma managers were informed that if any of their clients not currently under contract with the UFC..... sign to be a part of the EA game.......the will forever be banned for fighting in the UFC.

Sounds like a simple rumor right? Albeit from a pretty reputable source, but then later in the forum post, MMA Uber agent Ken Pavia of MMAAgents.com says this.

It's true. And they told me want the word out.

In any case, if 100% true, this just plain blows. So let me get this straight, if I am an up and coming fighter fighting for an MMA organization not named UFC. I have to turn down money that I could feed my family with, just for the very slim chance that one day the UFC may sign me to a contract.

Listen this could all be smoke and mirrors or it could be misinterpreted, but we can still discuss. What happens to current UFC fighters that still own their image rights like Randy Couture and Lyoto Machida? This is just mind blowing to me if true.

UFC and Sony Partnering Up

From my inbox,

To give you a quick snippet of what I’m talking about, the UFC just became one of PlayStation’s newest content partners for PlayStation’s video delivery service. This means MMA aficionados can catch the latest fights right on their PS3 or PSP consoles.

I have emailed back and I am awaiting more details, stay tuned.

The Ultimate Fighter 9 Finale Weigh-Ins Video

Mirko Crocop Denies Signing with DREAM

From this Croatian news site, translated by someone on the Sherdog forums.

ZAGREB - The same Saturday night in which Mirko Filipović in only three minutes TKOed Britain Mostapha Al Turk, President of American Organization UFC Dana White without any argument accused the Croatian master of the ultimat fighting for the fraud and hypocrisy.

Ten days ago Dana White and Cro Cop have a phone made arrangements for the duel on the UFC 99 tournament in Cologne Lanxess Arena, leaving open the possibility that cooperation prolongs for the two further tournaments. However, the head of the UFC on Saturday felt fooled because he thought that the Croatian gladiator signed a new contract with the Japanese Dream.

Before we accuse Crocop for hypocrisy, let us see what lays below Dana White's empty phrase of honor. UFC leader is angry because Mirko, just as Fedor Emilianenko, the best MMA fighter in the world, did not agree to perform only twice in the next 12 months.

However, it is not true that Cro Cop signed with Dream. We have learned that Mirko Crocop still did not sign neither with Dream nor with UFC, and that he is ready to discuss any offer. Moreover, Mirko expected after the victory in Cologne immediate talks with Dana White about the new contract and is surprised by the accusations of UFC's president.

"I don’t know why White listened to the roumors instead of talking to me. I hoped that we will talk about a continuing of our collaboration, because the only obstacle was the long period between two fights that has been offered to me. I don’t want to sit at home so long and waiting that someone calls me for a figh. However, I am grateful to Dana White for an opportunity to fight in Cologne and despite his harsh words, I don’t see the reason that we don’t prolong the contract – explained Mirko after returning from Germany.

White gave Crocop the opportunity to fight in Cologne to use his charisma of the most popular European fighter and suggested two more bouts, under the condition that he doesn’t fight for other promotions. Because Dream offered him also three-fights contract, but in the next 6 months, why shouldn’t Mirko take some time to consider what is better to him?

Well who knows what is going on now. Here's hoping they can rectify the situation. I've been reading some of your comments and have some thoughts. To begin with I'm all for DREAM becoming the next Pride and signing big name fighters, but lets be honest, its not going to happen anytime soon. Fedor/Crocop 2 is something I would watch, but its not as intriguing as Mirko taking a run at the UFC title. Secondly, is there a side of me that is rolling and laughing all over the floor that Dana White(possibly) got completely punk'd? Yes, it is a little satisfying. The problem is it is not more satisfying than a career revival UFC heavyweight title run by Crocop.

Mirko Crocop Signs Three Fight Deal with DREAM, Dana White is Pissed

Yahoo Sports Breaks the News

Not long after stopping Mostapha Al-Turk in the first round of UFC 99 on Saturday at Lanxess Arena in his first fight in the UFC since back-to-back losses in 2007, Filipovic informed UFC president Dana White that he had signed a three-fight contract with the Japan-based DREAM.

Isn’t that a dirty [expletive] thing to do?” White asked rhetorically after being queried about Filipovic’s deal with DREAM. “He [expletived] me. The first time in the history of the company I do one over the phone. He promised me a three-fight deal and he [expletived] me.”

“He didn’t keep his word,” White said, who said he’d had a two-hour talk with Filipovic on the day Filipovic texted and asked to be able to return. “He talked about honor and all this other [expletive] and he [expletived] me.

He didn't just screw Dana White, he screwed his fans(me) who wanted to see him go after the UFC title one more time. This just sucks!

I'm sure that lots of wagers will get made at the leading online betting sites, but until he returns to form, I don't see lots of wagers going Crocop's way.

UFC 99 Weigh-Ins Video