BELLATOR SIGNS CHRIS “THE ASSASSIN” LOZANO
September 1, 2010 by Matt
Bellator Fighting Championships today announced the signing of undefeated MMA prospect Chris “The Assassin” Lozano to its already impressive roster.
Sporting an impressive undefeated record of 5-0, Lozano has dominated all of his fights to date, beating all five opponents he has faced by TKO or KO, with four of the five stoppages coming in the very first round. In his most recent outing, Lozano took out well rounded Pride/UFC veteran Jason Dent via fourth round TKO in an extremely impressive showing.
Growing up in Cleveland, Lozano struggled to find positive sports programs before eventually turning to MMA for his competitive release. Currently training out Strong Style Gym in Ohio, Lozano began boxing and Tae Kwon Do when he was a child. In middle school, Lozano turned to wrestling where he quickly made the Ohio National team for his age group and weight class before ultimately setting his sites on mixed martial arts.
“Chris Lozano brings proven knockout power to the welterweight division.” said Bellator Chairman and CEO Bjorn Rebney. “He is a big welterweight that has tremendous potential to accomplish great things in Bellator at 170 lbs.”
Lozano is admittedly anxious to show what he is capable of on the biggest platform of his fast-rising career.
“Fighting for an organization like Bellator Fighting Championship is a dream come true,” said Lozano. “To finally get a chance to compete amongst the best in the world is something I have spent my entire life focusing on and dreaming of.”
ROGER HUERTA VS. EDDIE ALVAREZ AT BELLATOR 33
August 30, 2010 by Matt
Bellator Fighting Championships officially announced today that the promotion will make its debut in Pennsylvania when Philadelphia native and Bellator Lightweight World Champion Eddie Alvarez (20-2) squares off against former UFC Star Roger “El Matador” Huerta (24-4-1) in one of the most highly anticipated fights of the year.
“Bellator 33: Alvarez vs. Huerta” is set to take place from the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on October 21st.
For explosive Bellator World Champion Eddie Alvarez, momentum is on his side, as he enters the Superfight with an impressive five-fight win streak on the line where the longtime knockout artist has finished all of his most recent victims by submission. In his most recent trip to the cage, Alvarez put rugged UFC veteran Josh “The Dentist” Neer to sleep with a nasty rear-naked choke during Bellator 17 in Boston on May 6th of this year.
Alvarez is admittedly excited about the opportunity to compete in front of his hometown fans in Philly for the first time in the top lightweight’s career that currently spans 22 professional fights, from Japan to Boston, against many of the toughest 155 lb fighters in the business.
“Roger Huerta, Philadelphia, October 21st… this is a dream fight for me,” said Alvarez. “I’ve never even lost a fight here in the United States, so I’m definitely not going to start in my hometown of Philadelphia with all of my people there. That’s not going to happen. Not a chance.
“I’m not going to be happy unless I completely control and dominate Roger in this fight. It’s important for me to go in there and dominate this fight and prove that I’m one of the best lightweights in the world.”
In the case of Roger Huerta, the electrifying 27 year old lightweight is eager to return to the cage after suffering a defeat in his previous outing when Pat Curran shocked the MMA world and defeated “El Matador” by unanimous decision in the semifinal lightweight tournament at Bellator 17. As the first MMA fighter ever to be featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated, Eddie Alvarez will be the toughest fights that Huerta has encountered is his MMA career.
Although fighting in Alvarez’ backyard of Philadelphia, Huerta expects for the advantage to ultimately lie in his favor, stating, “The cheers or jeers won’t affect me one way or the other. The pressure is on him fighting in his hometown. He’s going to bring the best out of me. The best. It’s going to be scary.
“This is a fight that I’ve always wanted. It’s a dream come true. It’s going to be a grueling fight for the both of us. It’s going to be a potential fight of the year. I’m going in there expecting a war, and I’m going in there trying to finish Eddie.”
Intending to send a direct message to his critics and fans alike in his upcoming performance against Huerta, Alvarez would be the first to admit that he’s had the former Sports Illustrated cover athlete in his sites since the moment Huerta signed his contract with Bellator.
“I don’t care where you fought in the past, but if you come to my promotion and you have a big name and you’re obviously marketable, and the promotion signs you, I’m going to have an issue with that,” said Alvarez. “If I don’t feel threatened by that, then I’m an idiot. I feel threatened by someone like Roger trying to move into my house and I’m going to do everything I can to protect what’s mine and get him out of there. I want to keep all eyes on me. I’m going to go out there and do my job and get him out of there.”
Bellator Chairman and CEO Bjorn Rebney was admittedly excited to bring this incredible Superfight to Philadelphia, stating, “The Alvarez-Huerta fight should be one of the most electrifying bouts in the history of Bellator Fighting Championships, and to be able to host it in one of the greatest fights towns on earth, Philadelphia is spectacular. . I’ve said it before, I believe Eddie Alvarez is the best Lightweight Mixed Martial Artist in the world today and for Roger to have the courage to face him speaks volumes about his confidence and character. The fans are really in for a treat with not only a great fight card, but also a fantastic host venue in The Liacouras Center.”
The Liacouras Center is located on the campus of Temple University, in the heart of Philadelphia, and is home to the Temple Owl’s Basketball and Volleyball, as well as Professional Indoor Soccer. The Liacouras Center was opened in 1997, and has a capacity of just over 10,000.
Tickets for “Bellator 33: Alvarez vs. Huerta” are priced at $150, $85, $65, $45, and $25, and go on sale Monday, August 30th at www.ComcastTix.com
For more information, visit Bellator.com, follow Bellator on Twitter @BellatorMMA or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Bellator.
RAY FLORES NAMED SHINE FIGHTS CAGE ANNOUNCER
August 24, 2010 by Matt
Local MMA personality Ray Flores has been named the cage announcer for the upcoming Shine Lightweight Grand Prix, which takes place at The Patriot Center in Fairfax, Virginia on September 10th.
Flores will be introducing some familiar names to MMA fans at the event. The combatants:
- Former WEC contender Rich Crunkilton
- Pride and UFC vet Marcus Aurelio
- Duneland Vale Tudo fighter Josh Shockley
- MFC and WEC vet Carlo Prater
- Art of War vet Hector Munoz
- UFC vet and submission specialist Drew Fickett
- KO artist and XFO vet James Warfield
- Pride and KOTC vet Charles “Krazy Horse” Bennett
The tournament format is having success in Bellator and now Strikeforce. Shine’s lightweight Grand Prix looks like it will continue that excitement.
“I think Shine bringing back the tournament format is exciting for a variety of reasons”, Flores told Chicago’s MMA. “There are so many things that can happen and so many scenarios which can play out. The fighters in this tourney are world class. You have guys that are looking to get back to the UFC and have experienced big fight situations.”
“Then you have guys who are up and coming, solid fighters looking to make a name for themselves. I also think Shine is very fortunate to have Chicago native Jason Chambers at the helm as the COO. Here’s a guy who has a vision, brings excitement and energy to this product. He knows what fans want and it’s great to be along for the ride with Shine.”
It’s an especially great opportunity for Duneland Vale Tudo’s Josh Shockley. He was supposed to fight Mark Miller at Bellator 25, but Miller had to withdraw due to an injury. A killer knockout or sub could make Shockley or any of the other combatants a “You Tube Hero” a la Toby Imada’s inverted triangle. It could be a great career boost.
You can watch the tourney on Friday, September 10th at 8pm Central on pay per view.
BELLATOR 25 RESULTS
August 20, 2010 by Matt
Damian Grabowski lands a left against Scott Barrett
Where were you, Chicago? Another disappointing turnout for a major MMA event in the Windy City. But the event was still entertaining. The local fights injected a ton of excitement into the card, as all 4 of the main card bouts went to decision. To the results:
LAMAS, PALASZEWSKI WIN AT WEC 50
They took different paths, but local fighters Ricardo “The Bully” Lamas and Bart Palaszewski both won at WEC 50.
Palaszewski was on the televised card and looked amazing in his battle with Zach Micklewright. Bartimus was trading with the taller, Miletich fighter, but started winning most of the exchanges toward the end of the 1st round. In the 2nd round, Bart rocked him with a flurry of punches up against the cage, landed a vicious body kick and then finished him with a right hook at :31. Bart is now 4-2 in the WEC with 4 straight wins.
Top Notch fighter Ricardo Lamas needed all 3 rounds, but won a unanimous decision over Dave Jansen. Lamas had several sub catches in the fight and won 29-28 on all the judges cards. The picture above tells how much of a war this was, as does this photo of Lamas’ shorts after the fight.
Lamas improved to 9-1 with the win, his 3rd straight. He is now 4-1 in the WEC, his only loss coming to Danny Castillo at WEC 42.
photos h/t: MMA Weekly and Bloody Elbow
BELLATOR ADDS ZACH MAKOVSKY TO TOURNEY
August 17, 2010 by Matt
Bellator Fighting Championships today announced the official addition of Zach Makovsky to the Season 3 Bantamweight World Championship Tournament. Makovsky enters the tournament with an impressive 9-2 record, while currently riding a three fight win-streak. The Philadelphia-based fighter last competed at Bellator 21 in June 2010 against Eric Luke where he secured a fight-ending Kimura with just 30 seconds left in the second round.
Makovsky is the seventh confirmed participant in the bantamweight tournament along with dynamic striker Bryan Goldsby, the explosive Jose Vega, up-and-coming Danny Tims, Las Vegas-based Cobra-Kai jiu-jitsu instructor Ulysses Gomez, fast-rising Wyoming native Nik Mamalis and Minnesota-based powerhouse Travis “The Hurricane” Reddinger.
“Zack Makovsky trains with our Lightweight Champion Eddie Alvarez and like Eddie has great power and dangerous submission skills. His ability to apply non-stop pressure and grind out his opponents makes him a very serious threat to anyone in this talent-stacked tournament,” said Bellator Chairman and CEO Bjorn Rebney.
Currently training out of Philadelphia, Makovsky began his career in the regional New Jersey MMA circuit after eventually joining the now defunct EliteXC. Of his nine career victories, Makovsky has stopped five of his opponents decisively by submission.
“I’m really excited to be fighting in this tournament, as a fighter you want to be facing top competition and taking the best fights you can,” said Makovsky. “I feel like Bellator is the place to do it and I’m really looking forward to getting back in there.”
JAM-PACKED WEEK OF MMA IN CHICAGO
August 16, 2010 by Matt
The Chicagoland area will get treated to plenty of MMA this week. Here’s a rundown of the events.
Bellator 25, Thursday, Chicago Theatre
Bellator returns to Chicago for Bellator 25. The exciting Zoila Frausto (7-1) will battle the undefeated, #6-ranked flyweight Jessica Pene (7-0). Damian “The Polish Pitbull” Grabowski (12-0) will take on Scott Barrett in a battle of heavyweights. Bellator Season 2 Welterweight Tournament runner-up and local favorite Dan Hornbuckle will face off against UFC veteran “Bad” Brad Blackburn. Undefeated Division I NCAA Wrestling Champion Cole Konrad takes on submission specialist Rogent Lloret in another heavyweight tourney showdown. “Mr. International” Shonie Carter will take on Torrance Taylor, a one time Strikeforce fighter. Brian Gassaway will battle Kevin Knabjian in a match of two local fighters. Mark Miller was supposed to fight on the card, but he has been forced to withdraw due to injury. Keoki Cypriano will face Eric Kriegermeier in the promotion’s third show in the Windy City. Visit Bellator.com for ticket info.
G2 Fight Night Live, Saturday, Tinley Park Convention Center
The Gilbert Grappling produced event is back with another card full of promising amateur fights. Here’s a great fight video from the last G2 featuring Jon Reed vs. Kenny Jordan.
For more information contact 630.479.6304 or send an e-mail to g2fightnight@live.com.
American Predator FC, Saturday, Lithuanian World Center
The second event produced by APFC will once again be held in Lemont. You can buy tickets and check out the full fight card at the American Predator FC website.
XFO 36: OUTDOOR WAR 6 RESULTS
by Tim Priester
Outdoor War 6 lived up to its billing and XFO started this great event by featuring some good amateur fighters displaying grit, talent and heart. Are these the next up and comers of MMA? The future of MMA? Whatever it will be, it will be pretty good if these fighters are any indication of the future of MMA. Some of the amateurs won with some impressive submissions. This was some great action that got the fans excited about what was to come from the pro card.
The fans didn’t just show up for the party-like atmosphere, cold beers, delicious food and some good amateur fighters. They were here screaming for the pros and you could tell the fans were hungry with anticipation. The hot sun finally set on the day’s action meaning the pros were treated to a cool night — but some hot action in the ring — and I’m not talking from those sexy little ring girls. The first pro fight was the Parker/Ambang fight. A good fight to open with and the quick decision didn’t even wet the whistles of the fans. Parker’s rear naked choke in the first after some nice strikes put a quick end to the fight.
The Winters/Santiago fight also finished with a submission but lasted until the 2nd round. The first round was filled with a series of jabs and strikes exchanged between fighters but a little after the start of the 2nd round winter’s managed to slip a guillotine in and it was over.
Working with, and being lead to the ring by Jeff Curran, Michelle Gutierrez displayed why she is one of the top female fighters in XFO, but what was surprising was how she won. Even though Gutierrez had been working with Curran on her ground game, this fight turned into a three round slug fest with Cassie Rodish and there was no action on the ground to speak of. Even so, Gutierrez had little problem convincing the judges and won by unanimous decision.
What turned out to be one of the best fights of the night was the 180 pound fight between Nowaczyk and Morrow. It was a rematch for these two fighters it was a technical brawl. Both fighters battled through a series of hard punches and knees and both tried multiple submission attempts. However, Nowaczyk did manage to put on a tough arm bar (his fifth attempt) in the second that Morrow was unable to get out of. This was a darn good fight!
After one of the better fights of the night, came one of the more questionable fights of the night. The Sturdy/Brooks fight featured a couple of 205-pounders that looked poised to knock each other out. And they didn’t disappoint as the punches came in bunches. But at about the 2 minute mark of the first round Brooks lost some balance (after some tough Sturdy strikes) and was against the cage getting punched and kneed from Sturdy when the ref stopped the fight to the confusion of the fighters and the fans. Some were thinking that Brooks was going to be given a minute for what seemed like a low blow while others where cheering the victor…Sturdy. This reporter had a good view and it did look like a low knee to the groin. This caused Brooks to look defenseless as he tried to gather himself as the punches from Sturdy continued to rain down and so the ref stopped the fight. Needless to say fans and Brooks were upset but in the end the ref had to make the call to protect what he thought was a fighter in trouble.
Part of the co-main event was the return to the ring of Matt “Sunshine” Fiordirosa, and telling by the reaction of the crowd that was why most of the fans were there. A three year layoff proved to be nothing for Sunshine as he started the match against Bobby Reardanz with a fury punches. Reardanz was able to match the intensity and powerful strikes were exchanged by both men for the entire first round, with the occasional takedown attempt sprinkled in. The second round started much the way the first ended and Sunshine utilized vicious punches that found their mark causing a ref stoppage early in the second much to the delight of many of the already cheering fans.
The last fight of the night was Joe Pearson vs Daniel Straus and was the other main event on the ticket. The first round had Straus taking Pearson down quickly and maintaining control; then, the ref had to stop the match so that Pearson could tape up his toe after it inadvertently got caught and cut on the cage. After the medical stoppage the action resumed with Straus continuously controlling the action and pace with ground and pound. The brutal ground and pound displayed at the end of the first was utilized all through out the second round and the ref was forced to stop the fight after a series of hammer-fists found their mark as Pearson was pinned against the cage.
Complete pro results from OUTDOOR WAR 6 presented by XFO:
145–Joe Pearson vs Daniel Straus: Daniel Straus won via TKO in the 2nd at 4:04 (ref stoppage)
145–Matt Fiordirosa vs Bobby Reardanz: Matt “Sunshine” Fiordirosa won via TKO in 2nd at :33 (ref stoppage)
205–Ryan Sturdy vs Rashad Brooks: Ryan Sturdy won via TKO in 1st at 2:10 (ref stoppage)
180–Kevin Nowaczyk vs Robert Morrow: Kevin Nowaczyk won via submission in 2nd at 4:13 (arm bar)
120–Michele Gutierrez vs Cassie Rodish: Michele Gutierrez won by unanimous decision
155–Mike Santiago vs Donavon Winters: Donavon Winters won via submission in the 2nd at 1:12 (guillotine)
170–Francios Ambang vs Tony Parker: Tony Parker won via submission in the 1st at 2:08 (rear naked choke)
Christopher Garcia vs Marcos Marquez: DNF
XFO: THE OUTDOOR WAR IS BACK
August 13, 2010 by Matt
XFO 36 is Saturday night, and it’s time for their sixth annual Outdoor War. It’s a fun, all day event with an amateur card during the day and then a pro event at night. And plenty of food and drink in between.
XFO 36: Outdoor War 6
Here is a snapshot of the pro card:
Joe Pearson vs Daniel Straus
Matt Fiordirosa vs Bobby Reardanz
Ryan Sturdy vs Rashad Brooks
Kevin Nowaczyk vs Robert Morrow
Michele Gutierrez vs Cassie Rodish
Mike Santiago vs Donavon Winters
Christopher Garcia vs Marcos Marquez
Francios Ambang vs Tony Parker
The event will be at Sideouts:
4018 Roberts Road
Island Lake, Illinois
Make sure you go check it out. Here is a recap from last year’s XFO Outdoor War.
UFC 117 POST-FIGHT PRESSER [VIDEO]
August 8, 2010 by searstapper
Chael Sonnen was making good on all the pre-fight trash talk against Anderson Silva till the champ pulled off one of the greatest comebacks of all-time in UFC history. Watch Chael and Anderson share their thoughts on the outcome of their title fight at UFC 117.
