Monday, March 01, 2010

The UFC’s debut in Abu Dhabi is set to take place on April 10 when “UFC 112: Invincible” comes to the Ferrari World Concert Arena. While it has long been known that the card will feature title defenses from both Anderson Silva and BJ Penn, the rest of the event has begun to take shape with nine recently signed bouts. In the main event, Silva, originally slated to defend the UFC middleweight title against Vitor Belfort, will now take on Brazilian jiu-jitsu sensation Demian Maia.

The eleventh season of Spike TV’s most popular original series ever, “The Ultimate Fighter,” for the first time will feature 28 of the best up and coming mixed martial artists in the world competing for 14 spots in “The Ultimate Fighter” house.  The series boasts a new format, which will be introduced to viewers in the show’s premiere episode.  The smash hit will also feature two coaches who need no introduction to mixed martial arts fans, UFC legends Chuck “The Iceman” Liddell and Tito “The Huntington Beach Badboy.”  The new season premieres Wednesday, March 31, 2010 at 10:00 PM ET/PT.

Shooto’s Bantamweight Champion Shinichi “B.J.” Kojima has officially announced that he will be relinquishing the promotions 123 pound title. He has held the title since October 2006. Kojima was last seen in action in July at “Shooto - Revolutionary Exchanges 1: Undefeated,” losing a non-title decision to Nova Unaio prodigy Jussier “Formiga” Da Silva.

Sunday, February 28, 2010

Before a sold out crowd of 2,322, former ballet dancer turned undefeated professional mixed martial arts star undefeated Sarah Kaufman became the first Strikeforce women’s welterweight (135 pounds) champion in history by powering her way to a five-round unanimous decision over Japan’s Takayo Hashi in the "Strikeforce: Challengers" main event at San Jose’s Civic Auditorium on Friday, Feb. 26, broadcast on Showtime.

Saturday, February 27, 2010

Two-time NCAA heavyweight wrestling champ- ion Cole Konrad is the latest highly sought after MMA prospect to join Bellator's growing roster of top fighters.  Konrad made the revelation during a backstage interview earlier tonight following a first round TKO (doctor’s stoppage) of Joel Wyatt during a Matrix Fights event in Philadelphia. The win improved Konrad's professional record to 2-0.

The Strikeforce middleweight title bout between Jake Shields and Dan Henderson has been officially added to their April card.  The matchup is firmly set according to recent comments from Shields. “It’s a go now. We finally worked it out a few days ago,” said Shields. “It’s a done deal, it’s been agreed upon by both parties as far as I know, and I think it’s set to go.”

Friday, February 26, 2010

It is becoming hard to keep track of all the additions and removals to the myriad of fast approaching UFC events. Along with changes on other cards, it now appears that the injury bug has striken the “UFC Fight Night: Florian vs. Gomi” card. Cole Miller, who was set to take on Andre Winner, has backed out of his bout due to injury. Replacing Miller is Raffaello “Tractor” Oliveira, who enters the Octagon for a third time.

With its season two kickoff now less than six weeks away, Bellator today revealed the first round matchups for its much anticipated, nationally televised welter-weight tournament. The four first round fights will take place as part of Bellator XIV on April 15 and Bellator XV on April 22. Bellator XIV will be broadcast live from the historic Chicago Theatre. Matchups for the remaining two tournaments will be announced in March.

The 24 mixed martial arts fighters all made weight for the historic "Strikeforce: Challengers" fight card tomorrow/Friday, Feb. 26 on Showtime (11 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the West Coast) at the San Jose Civic Auditorium.  In the main event, unbeaten Sarah Kaufman of Victoria, British Columbia and Takayo Hashi of Tokyo, Japan, will collide in the first-ever Strikeforce women’s world 135-pound (welterweight) championship. The eagerly awaited matchup is scheduled for five, 5-minute rounds.

Thursday, February 25, 2010

The up-and-coming Shine Fight Promotions has officially announced their third event, “Worlds Collide: Mayorga vs. Thomas.” Headlining the card will be the professional MMA debut of boxing legend Ricardo Mayorga as he takes on seasoned veteran Din Thomas. The event will air live on pay-per-view from the Crown Coliseum in Fayetteville, N.C. on May 15.

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Bellator Fighting Championships put the final pieces in place for its much-anticipated season two welterweight tournament today with the signings of knockout artist Brett Cooper and UFC veteran Ryan Thomas.  Cooper and Thomas are the seventh and eighth confirmed participants in Bellator’s eight-man 170 pound tournament, joining Ben Askren, Dan Hornbuckle, “Judo” Jim Wallhead, Jacob McClintock, Steve Carl and Sean Pierson.  First-round matchups will be announced next week.

Heavyweight MMA fighter Josh Barnett's positive steroid test appeal has been postponed for a fourth time. The California State Athletic Commission postponed the appeal after they refused to enter the meeting without the presence of Mr. Barnett.  According to Barnett, he was unaware that the meeting required his attendance and he sent his lawyer to be his representative, while he flew to Tokyo, Japan, to compete in a pro-wrestling match with fellow MMA fighter, Bob Sapp.