The Official MMA Discussion

[EvilRaven1031]

well it seems that Fedor v Belfort is official.

http://thefightnetwork.com/news/mma/4020/exclusive__emelianenko_vs_belfort_official

It makes sense in the respect that Vitor has name recognition, but he has been planning for a fight at 185lbs. Now he has to fight a heavyweight. Doesnt sound like a good night for Vitor if you ask me.

Like i said before, i think this is going to send their PPV numbers down the shitter. Attencio is going to have more to deal with now than he ever had before. If you ask me hes going to have to deal with his investors more than his critics.

EDIT: just read this on cagepotato and laughed my balls off. I felt i should pass it on.

“You can take lemons and make lemonade, but unless you throw some vodka in that bitch it ain’t gonna be no party, dog.”

...thats how they summarize Vitor vs Fedor.

As far as Barnett goes, Attencio has released a statement in which he said that if the results of Barnett's test were accurate he would no longer be welcome to fight in Attencio's organization any more. ...Back to Japan with ya Josh.

 

[HookaHittaH]

That sucks about the whole Barnet situation. I was looking forward to that fight... I'm surprised Broc hasn't tested dirty yet. I dont know how you could get That Big naturally..

 

[Backwoods Bud]

I dont know how you could get That Big naturally..

Genetically gifted and he has worked his ass off throughout his life.

 

[robotwithdreams]

yeah i love that attitude. How can someone else be so great while i dwell in mediocrity. They MUST be cheating or are blessed by the good lord. In general, it seems more and more people choose to deemphasize hard, honest work as a major contributing factor to a particular persons success. A pattern through out history when looking at great scientists, artists, etc. People would rather believe in divine interferance rather than hard work.

 

[bens lab]

Fedor v Vitor, that's a strange one. Vitor has the ability to do well standing, but on the ground I think he'll get smoked.

Maybe it will be the second coming of 'old' Vitor.

 

[NateDizz]

There's been alot of talk about Fedor's opponent over the last few days and apparently as of Wednesday it was official that Vitor would be filling in for Barnett but as of today the bout is still not actually finalized. No bout agreements have been presented to anyone yet. There are so many sites out there with false information or trying to be the first to report so they speculate on something that seems solid and throw it out there before it's even finalized. There are very few that actually do a solid and accurate job.

Felipe Bruno (Vitor's publicist) has said that as of Thursday night a purse had been agreed upon but no contract had been produced to Fabiano Farah (Vitor's manager).

Also, Shawn Thompkins (Vitor's head trainer) said he was shocked that as of Thursday there was still no clear-cut agreement. “The latest word is that both camps agreed. Affliction wants the fight, but there’s somebody higher up, whether it be with the pay-per-view programming or what not, that’s saying that they’re holding on to see. I think it’s a weight discrepancy. I think they want to see a heavyweight rather than Vitor.”

Showtime, who will be airing the event, apparently really want a legit heavyweight to be fighting Fedor rather than Belfort. As of Thursday evening Vitor, Jeff Monson, Paul Buentello, Brett Rogers, Mo Lawal, and Lashley were still potential opponents.

Affliction Vice President Tom Atencio told Hardcore Sports Radio “Sports Rage” Thursday night that pushing the announcement beyond Friday night would be "ridiculous." “It’s just a matter of sitting down with everybody involved: Showtime, our partners M-1 Global, everybody, and just saying, ‘Look this is what we’re gonna do. How does everybody feel about it? Let’s take a vote and finalize it."

It's clear that Vitor is originally who Affliction and co. wanted to fight Fedor and I'm sure it would have been finalized already if not for Showtime, but as of yesterday with Showtime not liking the idea and only 25% of MMA fans considering Vitor a legitimate replacement, we may actually see otherwise. I'm praying for Brett Rogers but I'm pretty much expecting it to be Vitor at this point.


If MMA news doesn't come straight from the fighters, the promotions, the trainers, or the fighters' managers or publicists mouths - I will never trust it. Way too many rumours in the sport.

 

[NateDizz]

Half an hour later.....





Affliction - Trilogy has been cancelled.


Thanks alot Josh - you ruined an awesome looking card for alot of people and if the promotion was actually gonna live on through this event they probably won't now. This is gonna cost the company alot of dough.

I can't wait to see what Dana White has to say though. hahah.

 

[EvilRaven1031]

i have to admit i kinda saw this coming. That being said, its not good for the sport when fledgling promotions like Affliction have to cancel a show just because of a mishap in their main event.

All this brings up some interesting questions if you really think about it.

Brett Rogers was quoted as saying that he wanted 800k to fight Fedor. Tim Sylvia got that same amount of money. (and his entire bout fit into an Affliction TV ad) Does this mean that Barnett was on the hook for less than that? Fedor was praising the punching power and speed of Vitor....was he just slightly afraid of getting beat by the smaller man? I have a feeling that we arent getting the whole story here. I know Attencio said that it wasnt enough time to promote a change in fighters, its entirely possible that it could have worked. In fact, wasnt the point of some of their adverts "Fedor is coming..." and "Fedor will return..."?

So now Affliction is biting the bullet on all of their print ads (you know, the ones that were pictured plastered all over NYC and Chicago) and the TV ads. That would be OK if they were getting any sort of return on it. Im sure they paid for the venue already. Im probably forgetting quite a few checks that have been written already. If you ask me, the price of an Affliction t-shirt just went up about $25.

What does this mean with regards to fighter contracts? I mean, if i fighter wanted to make a move to another organization but was obligated to fight for Affliction, can they jump ship? Or are they stuck until the organization folds? (if in fact it does)

 

[EvilRaven1031]

and as fast as i can speculate....things change


THATS IT!!!! Affliction is done.

http://www.bloodyelbow.com/2009/7/24/961864/kevin-iole-reports-that-affliction

 

[humboldtlocal]

Wow. Maybe this means we will see Fedor fighting in the UFC after all. I would love to see a Brock vs Fedor fight.

 

[HookaHittaH]

I wonder what will happen to all the fighters they had... Sucks that one bad apple had to ruin the fight for all those other guys. They put in all that work for nothing. Do you think Barnet will get sued for the losses they suffered due to him?

 

[EvilRaven1031]

well from all that ive read, the UFC will hold a press conference on July 31, addressing what they call "a laundry list" of announcements. If you ask me, the UFC will gobble up quite a few of these fighter contracts. Fedor's contract didnt seem to be an exclusive one, so it might have to be re-negotiated. If thats the case we might not see him in the octagon, but you never know.

In unrelated news....anyone remember Dana White saying that if UFC 00 got 1.5 million PPV buys he would jump from the Mandalay Bay hotel? Turns out he is actually going to make good on it. He hasnt said when, but what better publicity stunt for their and of the year show.

 

[HookaHittaH]

I was reading about that press conference too. Maybe the UFC should sign Tom Attencio to fight haha...

 

[catmanrob]

Raven isnt it a coincidence how barnett got popped in a drug test right when we were talking about it? I think belforte would get his ass handed to him by brock, hes had an easy time against alot weaker of a heavyweight division, its a different animal this time, and hes got to be at least 40 years old, that hand speed has got to have slown down and his jiu jitzu wasnt that much better than your average run of the mill fighter when he was around.

 

[IGROWMYOWN]

Raven isnt it a coincidence how barnett got popped in a drug test right when we were talking about it? I think belforte would get his ass handed to him by brock, hes had an easy time against alot weaker of a heavyweight division, its a different animal this time, and hes got to be at least 40 years old, that hand speed has got to have slown down and his jiu jitzu wasnt that much better than your average run of the mill fighter when he was around.

Vitor is a middleweight (185 LBS) now the fight with talked about with fedor was a one time fill in so no chance of him fighting Brock. Vitor's BJJ never anything special but he is a solid wrestler and he still has fast hands did you see what he did his last fight to matt lindland. Also Vitor is only 32 years old. If Vitor is on hes a handfull for anybody.

 

[EvilRaven1031]

i just find it funny that Barnett is Affliction's Seth Petruzelli. As far as Vitor goes... his hands are still as fast as ever. (im sure he works on it constantly) Where i think Vitor gets beat would be in the clinch. No matter how quick your hands are, if you dont have the room to let them go...you're boned. Given that hes now on his way to the UFC (most likely was anyway after Trilogy) id like to see him take on Bisping first. In all actuality he will probably get as much of a tune-up fight as possible just to get fans familiar with him. Then he will get someone with a name. If he is successful in those two bouts, im sure we will see him square off against Anderson. Hell, thats why Dana was bringing him over in the first place.

Personally id like to see Brett Rogers come over and see what he could do against some real competition. Say what you will about AA being "real"....his chin was always a bit weak IMHO. Overeem is kinda on the fence if you ask me. Judging by the timeline i posted, he wants nothing to do with any of the state athletic commissions. ...Off to Japan with him. Theres a few other fighters that would be worth picking up, but who knows how it will all play out. My guess is that the UFC will take what it wants and Strikeforce and Dream will squabble over the scraps.

Then theres Pumpkinhead. (Tito) He and Dana are making nice again, so that means that the UFC brass is obviously angling for a rematch between Mega-Noggin and Machida. Mark my words...if Forrest cant get past Anderson, which is like an 80% possibility, i have a feeling that Tito is going to make his comeback vs Forrest. It would make more sense (monetarily) this time around. Im sure we all know why Tito is coming back....he has to pay not only for the kids that fell out of Jenna's 'giner, but also for reconstructive surgery on the 'giner itself. LMAO

Im sure there are more points i want to make, but that seems to be enough for now.

 

[catmanrob]

machida picked tito apart and hes only getting better, that would be that assest remach ever, lol....vitor fought tank abbott at heavys, and theres no chance at 185 or 205 for him, so whats the point?? IMHO Andersons going to kill forrest....has anyone seen joe stevenson latley, I used to grapple with him at W.C.G, good friend of mine but I havent heard much of him since b.j penn bloodied him up..

 

[EvilRaven1031]

the reason i say that they are trying to get that rematch is because Tito is a master of hype. Machida on his own cant sell PPV's. Tito can. The UFC wants people to see that Machida talks with his fists. Plus, who doesnt want to see Tito get muffed up again? Any time Tito gets smashed, i want to see it.

When you say Anderson is gonna kill Forrest, i believe you. Remember what we have seen in the past though...Forrest is notoriously tough to put away. Im not saying its beyond Anderson's ability to do so, but Forrest is the type of guy that just keeps coming at you. The more i think about that fact, the more i get excited for that fight. We know that Anderson loves guys that just come at him. It gives him every opportunity to counter. Remember why the Cote fight sucked so much? Both fighters were looking to counter.

You know what just hit me? With the UFC having the opportunity to acquire all these new fighter contracts....it means all the "superfights" that were being speculated have to be put on hold, at least for now. New blood in a division means more opponents to "clean out". Thank god for that. Now we wont have to worry about title fights being put on hold so the champ can "cement a legacy". I hate that almost as much as i hate when a division is put on hold for a season of TUF.

Now that you mention "Daddy", i havent heard anything from him in a while either. I had assumed that he was doing the family thing, but i could be wrong. You're right about the bloodied up thing too. He is quite the bleeder. I wonder what color the octagon would be after a Stevenson vs Edwin DeWees matchup. ...I still get a kick out of watching that DeWees vs Gideon Ray fight every once in a while.

 

[urbangorilla]

Im looking forward to the Carano vs Cyborg fight! Not sure why[I know why guys like it heheh] maybe cuz they dont fight very often but those girls can kick ass!! Gina is an awesome fighter, shes very entertaining to watch!
We are friends with Nick and Nates uncle [Nick is named after him] so its kinda cool to talk to him when we see him and ask about his nephews.
Get your fight on!!! hahaha
mrsb

that will be a great fight(wouldnt mind getting put in a triangle with gina,i would refuse to tap!). i hope gina wins but cyborg is 1 mean looking fucker!!
one of the best fights i have ever seen was her husband cyborg vs melvin manhoff at cage rage in london, it was an epic battle.

 

[catmanrob]

I saw the rich franklin/silva fight for the first time last night and it proved what I thought all along, once your in andersons muay thai clinch theres no escaping, that was brutal......Ill comment later on your post raven I really just wanted to mention that Vernon Forrest was killed in an attempted carjacking, being shot 8 times in the back.....geez, whens another fighter going to die? This is getting old now.