2009 MMA FIGHTER OF THE YEAR
December 27, 2009 by Matt
There are a lot of big names being nominated for MMA Fighter of the Year, but in the end, I think it’s a fairly easy call. I made my decision based on a few factors: quantity of fights, quality of opponents, type of fights (title bouts weigh more) and overall dominance. First, the runners-up…
B.J. Penn
No fighter looked more dominant than “The Prodigy” did in his wins against Diego Sanchez and Kenny Florian. But Penn was throttled soundly by GSP back in January.
Fedor Emelianenko
Fedor fought only twice and won both times. He beat Arlovski and Rogers, but it’s not enough for FOY.
Gegard Mousasi
Mousasi will get a lot of mentions for FOY, but his 2008 was actually more impressive than his 2009. He beat Mark Hunt, who was on a 4-fight losing streak. He needed just one minute to KO Babalu. And he finished the year with a TKO win over Sokoudjou here in Chicago.
Anderson Silva
“The Spider” probably was the most bored fighter of the year. The Forrest Griffin fight was nonsense and Thales Leites is no longer in the UFC. The UFC needs to challenge him more in 2010.
Georges St. Pierre
GSP dominated B.J. Penn and Thiago Alves, but it’s not enough for the FOY.
Lyoto Machida
Machida beat Thiago Silva, then Rashad Evans for the LHW belt. But it is the opinion of many that Shogun Rua should be the champion after their UFC 104 fight. I agree. So I can’t give Machida FOY.
There’s just one man left that could be the “FOY”. Read more
HORNBUCKLE SIGNS WITH BELLATOR
December 18, 2009 by searstapper
Dan Hornbuckle has been on a tear and that success has landed him a spot in the upcoming welterweight tournament of Chicago/Los Angeles based MMA promotion Bellator Fighting Championships.
CHICAGO LOSES TOP MMA PROMOTION
December 16, 2009 by Matt
File this under sad but true. Mayhem Promotions is done promoting MMA events here in the Chicago area.
Chicago’s MMA confirmed this with Mayhem’s Jeff Albin. “It’s definitely not something we wanted, that’s for sure. We had some major issues with sponsors not paying and it snowballed from there. We really appreciated the fighters, their camps, Combat Consulting and all the other quality people that made our shows work.”
The “Disorderly Conduct” shows were a pleasure to watch and cover . The events were always of the highest quality, professional from top to bottom. This is a huge loss for the Chicago MMA community, and we’ll miss covering the events.
Watch some of the best fights from the “Disorderly Conduct” events:
Mike Welch vs. Donald Harper, Disorderly Conduct III
Ben Koff vs. Clark Adams, Disorderly Conduct II
Keith Colon vs. Matt Swanson, Disorderly Conduct II
Chris Lane vs. Mike Welch, Disorderly Conduct II
UFC 107 POST-FIGHT PRESSER: KENNY FLORIAN
December 13, 2009 by Matt
Kenny Florian answers questions after his decisive victory over Clay Guida at UFC 107 in Memphis.
UFC 107 POST-FIGHT PRESSER: B.J. PENN
B.J. Penn is still the man at 155 in the UFC after he battered Diego Sanchez at UFC 107. Here is his post-fight press conference.
UFC 107 POST-FIGHT PRESSER: FRANK MIR
December 13, 2009 by Matt
The newly bulked-up Frank Mir talks to the press after his impressive destruction of Cheick Kongo at UFC 107.
UFC 107 POST-FIGHT PRESSER: STRUVE AND FITCH
December 13, 2009 by Matt
UFC 107 winners Stefan “Skyscraper” Struve and Jon Fitch meet the media after the event in Memphis.
BOBBY LASHLEY SIGNS WITH STRIKEFORCE
December 11, 2009 by Matt
Strikeforce has their Brock Lesnar. Former WWE heavyweight champion and undefeated MMA fighter Bobby Lashley will make his Strikeforce debut at BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise, Fla., on Saturday, January 30 in the first-ever Strikeforce event in Florida.
In his last fight Lashley recorded a first round TKO over Bob Sapp in June. The win moved Lashley’s MMA record to 4-0. He also beat local fighter and trainer Jason Guida.
“I’m looking forward to fighting for STRIKEFORCE and challenging myself by taking on some of the top heavyweights in MMA,” said Lashley.
Lashley made his MMA debut on Dec. 13, 2008, earning a 41-second TKO over Joshua Franklin after Franklin sustained a cut and could not continue.
Herschel Walker? Antonio Silva? Brett Rogers? It will be interesting to see who Lashley gets in his first fight.
XFO 34 RESULTS
December 11, 2009 by Matt
Results from XFO-34 Lakemoor, IL December 5, 2009
AMATEUR
Brad Padgett defeated Josh Eckmann, Armbar, at 2:49 Round 1
Matt Tobie defeated Brandon Bolt, Bolt didn’t answer the bell for Round 2
TJ Cass defeated Calvin Arnold, TKO at 2:50 Round 1
Jason Marlowe defeated Mikey Phillips, TKO at 2:58 Round 1
Frank Rano defeated Johan Lerch, Split Decision
Jeff Lavalle defeated Taylor Eastman, Rear Naked Choke, :52 Round 1
Joey Diehl defeated Brett Hedrington, Tap Due 2 strikes, :21 Round 1
Scott Goldberg defeated Brandon Jackson, Armbar, :59 Round 1
Nick Scotti defeated Keith Colon, Rear Naked Choke 1:14 Round 3
Shawn West defeated Casey Dyer, Darce Choke, 1:48 Round 2
Tony Duncan defeated Chris Schiewe, Unanimous Decision
Chris Hartwig defeated Kent Rexford, Unanimous Decision
PRO
Travis Perzynski defeated Pat Curran, Rear Nake Choke, 4:38 Round 2
Jeff Curran defeated Tomohiko Hori, Unanimous Decision
VIDEO: L’IL BULLDOG BLOG “VICTORY IS SWEET”
December 8, 2009 by searstapper
Felice Herrig brings in the holiday season in merry fashion as she basks in the glory of her first career MMA victory. She defeated Michelle Gutierrez in Unconquered 1: November Reign by armbar. Felice talks about how she prepared for this fight, which entailed flying out to California and working with Kerry and Brandon Vera at The Alliance Training Center.
