Top 5 "Extra"-Ordinary Moments in MMA

5. Don Frye Gets Into A Fight with Bodyguard Sonny Westbrook
For any fan of MMA that has been following the sport since the beginning, Don Frye is a legend. Perhaps the two words "tough guy" were invented for Don Frye. Here's a guy that will fight anybody, anytime, anywhere and he is notorious for telling crazy stories that happened to him outside the cage/ring. Below he got into a fight in a hotel lobby with bodyguard Sonny Westbrook, here's the back story courtesy of anabolicminds.com

First off Westbrook is a bodyguard employed by Dog the Bounty Hunter. He was with Leland Chapman (Dog's son) at an MMA event that Chapman was scheduled to compete in. The event ended up getting cancelled by the California State Athletic Commission after the cage they were going to use that night wasn't able to be assembled correctly.

Anyway the promoters promised the fighters 20% of their purses if the event was to be cancelled. Well during a meeting between the promoters and the fighters, the fighters found out that they wouldn't be receiving any money at all. An argument ensued and its unknown exactly how Frye and Westbrook started fighting but Frye obviously ended up losing. Reports of Frye being drunk also vary.

I've also heard that they ended up fighting again later that night and Frye was knocked out completely and taken to the hospital but others have claimed that it wasn't true since Frye was at the arena signing autographs at a wrestling convention later that night.

4.Mauricio Shogun Rua vs. Mark Coleman Aftermath
Shogun and Coleman squared off at Pride 31 what transpired was one of the craziest aftermaths to a fight ever. Shogun breaks his arm trying to defend a take down and after the ref stops it Coleman continues to punch him. The entire Chute Box and Hammer House gangs jump into the ring thats not to say they jumped into wedding rings or even tungsten wedding bands, it wasn't that crazy and it continued backstage after Mark Coleman tried to apologize and Wanderlei accuses him of stomping his face during the in-ring brawl.



3. Mark Coleman Goes a Little Crazy After Losing to Fedor Emelianenko
Coleman loses via arm bar the first time to Fedor Emelianenko at Pride: Total Elimination 2004 and afterwards cameras catch him losing it. Call it "Roid Rage" if you prefer or maybe it was just a passionate fighter really upset with the mistakes he made in the ring. Coleman calms down and hi and Fedor shake hands and probably had about 45 shots of vodka between them later that night.



2. Wanderlei Silva: "My Belt"
Wanderlei Silva vs. Quinton Jackson is the greatest rivalry we have ever had in our sport next to Sakuraba vs. The Gracies. Like Ali vs. Frazier these 2 bring out the absolute worst and the absolute best in one another. It all started at Pride 25 when Rampage called out Wanderlei after knocking out Kevin Randleman.



1. Charles "Krazy Horse" Bennett Goes to Sleep During Backstage Fight with Cristiano Marcello
Charles "Krazy Horse" Bennett had a little beef with the Chute Box camp and it culminated in this. Bennett would later claim that he knocked out Wanderlei Silva backstage, which Silva vehemently denies. It started when Bennett and the Chute Box camp were sharing a locker room at Pride Shockwave 2005 and Bennett started insulting everybody. Marcello was a corner man and had just finished with the fight. What ensued was a brawl that ended like an MMA fight and how sweet it was.


I am sure I missed many "extra" moments, if you have any, post links in the comments.

10 Things Learned From UFC 88

10. Kurt Pellegrino is never in a boring fight, you gotta love "Batman" he gives it his all every time out. Anytime he fights, no matter the opponent, its worth tuning in.

9. I thought the judges called the Dong Hyun Kim vs Matt Brown the right way. It was close, but I thought Kim won rounds 1 and 3.

8. Rousimar Palhares' jiu-jitsu is surely world class, you could sense the danger for Henderson every time it went to the ground, it reminded me of Nogueira's early Pride fights, except Nogueira always found a way to lock in the submission. Palhares still has to learn the "Mixed" in Mixed Martial Arts. Some are complaining that he actually won the fight, are you kidding me, how can you win a fight if all you're doing is going for takedown after takedown with most being stuffed by Hendo?

7. Dan Henderson had a game plan and stuck to it completely. A classic example of a great wrestler using his skills in reverse.

6. Nate Marquardt suprised me alot. I was really high on Kampmann winning this fight to the point that I put some money on him. I would love to see Marquardt get a rematch with Anderson Silva, but I would still pick against him.

5. Matt Hamill was disappointing. I really thought he would make this a great fight with Franklin, but he had a bad game plan and he gassed.

4. Rich Franklin looked as good as ever and he immediately becomes a top 5 light heavyweight in my opinion. If Anderson stays at Middleweight now, he has a real chance to make some noise in the division. Somewhere Bas Rutten was watching this fight and screaming at the television in joy after that brutal Liver kick by "Ace".

3. Rashad Evans will fight Forrest Griffin in December for the title, its been all but confirmed by Dana White and company and he will win the title against Forrest. Before this fight I re watched Evans' last 2 fights against Bisping and Ortiz and you could tell he had some heavy hands, but it was the speed that was too much for the Iceman.

2. Chuck Liddell needs a new approach to fighting. His hands low, chin too high approach is catching up to him. I just don't understand why he went into this fight thinking it was a boxing match or something. I mean the guy has lethal legs and he didn't even try any kind of kick. A new camp and a new mindset and Chuck will be just fine.

1. Lyoto Machida will be your light heavyweight champion in 2009. If he gets a shot at Rashad or Forrest he will win decisively.

UFC 88 Post Fight Video Interviews

Chuck Liddell and Rashad Evans


Rich Franklin and Matt Hamill


Dan Henderson and Nate Marquardt

UFC 88 Preview Video

MMA Quote of the Day- Chuck Liddell says He'd be Too Much for Anderson Silva

A new feature here at The MMA Post, "MMA Quote of the Day" is intended to spark discussion and debate.

In an interview with MMANews.com Chuck "The Iceman" Liddell weighs in on a possible bout with UFC middleweight king Anderson Silva, who recently moved up in weight to the 205lb light heavyweight division.

MMANEWS.COM: Would you ever welcome a fight between yourself and Silva?

Chuck Liddell: Sure, it could be a good fight but I think I’m too big for him. He’s a tough fighter and I have all the respect in the world for him but I think I’d be too much for him.

Click Here to Read the Entire Interview

Chuck Liddell Talks UFC 88 Rashad Evans Fight(Full Audio)

This is an interview conducted by "The Regular Guys" radio show.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD FULL AUDIO INTERVIEW

Rashad Evans to Face Chuck Liddell at UFC 85

Rashad Evans has reportedly(mmaweekly.com) stepped up to face Chuck Liddell at UFC 85in London on June 7th. Liddell was originally to face Mauricio Shogun Rua in sort of a revenge match after Liddell beat Shogun's longtime friend and training partner Wanderlei Silva.

Evans was originally rumored to face Thiago Silva at UFC 83 in Canada, but the "Ultimate Fighter" season 2 winner has instead stepped up to face the former light heavyweight champion in Liddell. Evans is coming off a split decision win over brit Michael Bisping at UFC 78.

No word yet on if Thiago Silva will still be fighting at UFC 83 with a replacement stepping in for Evans.

3 MMA Fights to Show Your Girlfriend So She'll Watch it Too or at Least Stop Bugging You About It!

Its been a long night on the town and you and your spouse/girlfriend just wanna relax, so you go home and she suggests that you watch a movie. Tell her that you have a better idea and that you want to share something with her that makes you happy. Now explain to her that its really important to you that she sit down, relax and watch what you put on the television. Proceed to show these fights in this order to your loved one, so she'll appreciate why we love this sport so much or least let you watch your MMA in peace. Remember this is only if your spouse/girlfriend has no knowledge of the sport, for those woman who do, God Bless You.


3. Chuck Liddell vs Wanderlei Silva at UFC 79- First things first be sure to explain the rules like no groin shots etc. Its very important that you show this fight first. One, because Chuck Liddell is probably the only fighter she has seen or knows anything about, and two, because there is virtually zero ground game in this fight and its way too early to show any ground work. Now explain to her the magnatude of this fight and that its been many years in the making. Give her some background on Wanderlei and maybe even pull out the old laptop and hit up some Silva highlights on youtube. Start the fight, of course the first thing she'll say is "Is that the guy from Fear Factor?" you say "Yes, honey". Now let her watch the fight, sit back and enjoy the ooh's and ahh's. After the fight tell her its only going to get better and no she can't marry Chuck Liddell.


2. Fedor Emelianenko vs Kazayuki Fujita at Pride 26- Before beginning the fight give her some history on Pride. Now explain to her who Fedor is and that he had just beat the best fighter in the world to win the belt. Again, youtube is your friend when explaining who fighters are, tell her how big of an underdog Fujita is although she'll probably figure that out by the announcers. Also, Rampage is a guest announcer in this fight so that will certainly get some laughs from her and explain who he is also. Tell her the things that make Fedor one of the best fighters ever, you know what I'm talking about. Start the fight, now this is the first time she will see a submission so let her know that these guys are professionals and that choking someone out is really not a big deal and they know what they're doing so the fighters know the difference between a choke that puts you to sleep and a choke that kills you. Hopefully she was rooting for the underdog and got excited when Fujita landed that punch, but then hopefully she appreciated the determination and recovery of Emelianenko to come back. Show her the fighters laughing and embracing afterwards.


1. Mirko Crocop vs Wanderlei Silva 2 at Pride Final Conflict Absolute- She will already be familiar with Wanderlei so she'll have someone to root for right off the bat. Again, explain some background on Crocop and youtube it for some highlights. Tell her about Crocop being in the Croatian army and that he's a very important person over there. Explain to her that many fighters have college degree's, and maybe even some accounting college, and their not just dumb jocks. Also explain the weight difference and the fact that this is an open weight grand prix and that this is their second fight against each other. Start the fight and enjoy the reactions. This will be her first Knockout, hopefully she'll enjoy it, but explain to her that there are doctors ringside and that the fighters are taken care of immediately. Make her watch Crocop's interview after this and the respect he shows Silva, I think this is important(As was the after fight embrace of Fedor/Fujita) to show her that the fighters don't hate each other(usually) and that its only a sport.

This is just for one night to get the ball rolling. Ease her into it and down the road she can start to appreciate all the things you love about mixed martial arts. Like, the gracefulness of Anderson Silva's strikes, the heart of Minotauro, an amazing ground battle, the dedication of the fighters, the athletiscism of GSP, the smaller organizations, the agelessness of Randy Couture, and thats just to name a few. If she still doesn't take to it, then maybe it was at least enough for her to respect MMA.

Chuck Liddell on Conan O'Brien Video

Chuck promoting the book on Conan.

Chuck Liddell's Book Signing Tour Dates and Cities

I thought this would be of interest to everybody, it sucks that he isn't coming anywhere near my state.

New York City area 1/29/08 1:00 PM


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1/29/08 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM EST


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Store: 201.445.0726




1/30/08 6:30 PM


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bet. 45th and 46th

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Las Vegas, NV

1/31/08 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM


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Phoenix, AZ 2/1/08 5:00 PM


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Albuquerque, NM 2/4/08 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM


HASTINGS BOOKS

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Texas 2/5/08 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM


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Ohio 2/7/08 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM


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California 2/9/08 1:00 PM


WALMART

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2/12/08 7:00 PM


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Shogun Confirms Fight with Chuck Liddell in June

****Update, This Rumor is absolutely true Click Here for the full story****

This is according to a brazilian website named TATAME, I was able to get a translation of what Shogun said. Keep in mind I don't know how reliable this is.
Here is what Shogun had to say to this website.

In the high-way to the Rosa Beach in Santa Catarina, where he will spend the holidays with his wife, Mauricio Shogun confirmed to TATAME his fight with Chuck Liddell in June. "I confirmed that fight yesterday, everything is set for June and I hope to fight well and represent my new team, the University of Fighting (UDL)" said Shogun, who hopes to avenge his friends loss.

"For sure I will avenge Wanderlei" assured the athlete who wants to do go to America and train there sometime with Wanderlei. "I called Wanderlei and we taled a lot, we will do the exchanging for sure, I don't know when, it all depends with my strategy of the fight"

"Liddell has good boxing and a very good Wrestling. His game is more stand-up, so it can be a mistake to try to take him down all the time, because it demands too much energy. I will still plan my best tactic with my coach Alejo Morales (note : against Forrest he had no game plan), with my brother and the rest of the team. But I can strike with Liddell and beat him there, no problem.

Original Brazilian Source Here

I'm not sure if this is anything but a rumor. Liddell has stated many times that he wants to fight Keith Jardine next. Maybe Chuck fights Jardine soon and then Shogun at the end of June, I dunno.

7 Things You Don't Want to See in MMA in 2008

I got this idea from a sherdog forum post. Of course there are many things we need to see, but there are many things that we don't need to have any part of.

7. Horrible Judges Decisions- Seriously do we need another Hamill/Bisping, judges need to be people who are obsessed with watching fights. They need to be fans of the sport and not just people who are doing a job.

6. More Fighters being Suspended for Steroids, HGH, etc.- I've said it before and I'll say it again steroids is the ultimate form of cheating in any physical sport. If you take PED(Performence Enhancing Drugs) your already doubting your ability to win a fight.

5. Smaller Organizations Go Under- I love the UFC, but I also love Cage Rage, M1 Global, WEC, Elite XC, HDNet Fights, K1 etc.. Some of the best MMA fights you will ever see will come out of the smaller orgs. Maybe the best fight I saw of 2007 was Marius Zaromskis vs Ross Mason at Cage Rage 22, track it down and watch it you will not be dissapointed.

4. Great Pride Fighters not Fighting- Where is Takanori Gomi? One of the best most exciting fighters in history isn't fighting anywhere. How about Mark Hunt, one of my personal favorite heavyweights, he should be fighting the best in the world. Get these guys in the ring, cage, my backyard or wherever and let them scrap.

3. Wanderlei Silva, Crocop and Mauricio Shogun Rua Losing- Three of the most exciting fighters in history, I hope they can turn it around for every MMA fans sake. Whether its the rule changes, the cage or whatever these extremely entertaining fighters need to figure it out because if they keep losing we might not see the dream matches we all hope for.

2. Chuck Liddell Fighting Rampage Again for the Title- I'm sorry but when you beat a guy so decisively 2 times in a row, that guy should'nt get a third crack at it. Same goes for Rich Franklin vs Anderson Silva, there's no point in it. So if Liddell and Franklin land a haymaker in the third fight, does that mean that they're better fighters? Don't think so, we already know who the better fighter is.

1. Fedor Fighting Cans- How in the world does Aleksander get to fight Josh Barnett before Fedor does? This is the best fighter I've ever seen, he should be fighting fighters who actually have a chance at beating him. We don't need to see him fight Semmy Schilt or Bob Sapp, which are some of the new rumors going around, because we all know what the outcome will be. Hopefully the Randy Couture fight will take place this year.

The Axe Murderer vs The Iceman, Who Wins?

With the recent announcement of Wanderlei Silva vs Chuck Liddell at UFC 79 a match that is long overdue, I want to give my prediction on who I think wins this superfight.

Both fighters are coming off two losses and both fighters lost their belts in the process. Silva was knocked out by heavyweight Mirko Crocop and then knocked out by Dan Henderson, while Liddell was knocked out by Quinton Jackson and then lost a split decision to Keith Jardine. Its fair to say both fighters are hungry to get back in the ring and prove themselves, but this is not just another fight, this is a fight that the MMA world has been eagerly anticipating for years. The stage was set at Pride Final Conflict 2003, but Rampage Jackson spoiled the party by forcing Liddell's corner to throw in the towel after Liddell was taking a viscious beating on the ground. Wanderlei ended up winning that tournament with a stoppage of Jackson later that night, thus cementing his place as the best 205 pounder in the world at the time. Oh how times have changed, Pride is defunct and Jackson is now on top of the rankings after beating Liddell and Henderson in the UFC. So who do I believe will win this match for the ages?

Striking- Both fighters are well known for knocking people out while standing. They both strike a little wider than the traditional method of punching. I would give the power advantage slightly to Chuck, while I would say Wandy is a little bit faster. Chuck doesn't really kick or knee anymore that much, while Silva is devasting with knees in the clinch, and to a lesser extent low kicks and kicks to the body. Both fighters can end the fight in the blink of an eye, Liddell more with one punch and Silva more with a flurry of punches, knees and kicks.

Ground Game- Wandy is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt, he knows his submissions, he just chooses not to end his fights that way. Liddell hasn't been submitted in almost 8 years and Silva hasn't submitted anyone in 7 years so its not gonna happen. Liddell has an uncanny ability to get back to his feet after being on his back. I would predict that we wouldn't see much ground action in this fight and having Wandy stand over top of you while your on your back is not nearly as dangerous as it used to be because of UFC rules.

Grappling- Both of these guys are well versed in the wrestling aspect of MMA, of course in this fight, which is likely to stay standing, we'll probably see alot more upper-body wrestling than anything else. Of course Silva will want to work the clinch and Liddell will certainly want to avoid that and try for overhooks and underhooks. These guys will want to slug it out with punches, but Silva will certainly try to get in close and use his famous Muay Thai knees.

As for who has a mental edge in this fight, since both guys are looking to prove themselves again, neither of them really have an edge. I'm picking Wanderlei to win the fight. I think Keith Jardine exposed somewhat of a weakness in Liddell's game, low kick defense. Wandy knows how to use low kicks and I think he will use them to his advantage. I think Liddell will have some problems with Silva's Muay Thai clinch, not to the extent of Franklin/Anderson, but I think it will pose a credible threat to Liddell's gameplan, which is probably counter-punching. I can't wait for this fight to happen!