Jorge Masvidal joins Strikeforce roster
25-year old Jorge Masvidal opened a lot of eyes in the MMA community after battling heavy-handed British striker Paul Daley to a controversial decision loss this past Saturday night at Shark Fights 13. It appears at least one set of them belonged to someone upstairs at Strikeforce. Five Ounces of Pain spoke to a Strikeforce official late Monday afternoon who confirmed the American Top Team product... [Read More...]
Undefeated heavyweights clash at Bellator 29 for spot in tournament final
PRESS RELEASE / CHICAGO, Ill. (September 11, 2010) — Bellator Fighting Championships officially confirmed today that undefeated polish sensation Damian “Polish Pitbull” Grabowski (13-0) will take on 2-time NCAA Division I Heavyweight Wrestling Champion Cole “The Polar Bear” Konrad (5-0) in a Season 3 Heavyweight Tournament fight taking place at Bellator 29 from the historic Rave/Eagles Club... [Read More...]
Josh Barnett signs multi-fight deal with Strikeforce
PRESS RELEASE / NEW YORK (Sept. 13, 2010) – Two-time champion and top world-ranked heavyweight superstar Josh “The Babyfaced Assassin” Barnett has signed a multi-fight agreement to compete for Strikeforce. “Strikeforce is the home of the best heavyweight division in the world and I’m proud to be able to call it my home now,” said the 32-year-old Barnett (29-5), an expert in catch wrestling... [Read More...]
Joe Warren withdraws name from DREAM 16 event
Bellator Fighting Championships’ featherweight champ Joe Warren, rumored to be fighting Michihiro Omigawa on September 25th at DREAM 16, will no longer be competing on the card but still hopes to see action again at least one time before year’s end. Had the bout taken place it would have been Warren’s second in September. The highly respected Greco-Roman wrestler’s exciting comeback win over... [Read More...]
Taking a bite out of Shark Fights 13
Read ahead as Five Ounces of Pain‘s Jeremy Lambert dissects the main card action from this past weekend’s Shark Fights 13 event, providing commentary on both the show’s in-ring offerings as well as the results’ effect on the evening’s participants… Shark Fights did a lot of things right for their first PPV attempt. They put together a decent card, hired all the right... [Read More...]
MMA on TV
Welcome to “MMA on TV”, Five Ounces of Pain’s weekly update on the upcoming MMA-broadcast schedule courtesy of our newest writer, Jeremy Lambert. Miss the latest episode of “MMA Live” or “UFC Unleashed”? Wondering when Strikeforce or HDNet are airing a replay of their latest offering or interested in finding out where to tune into live shows occurring over... [Read More...]
Prangley survives late surge at Shark Fights 13 to hand Jardine fifth-straight loss
Saturday night’s Shark Fights 13 card was viewed by many as being the first leg of Keith Jardine’s journey back to the UFC after receiving his release last June. However, by the end of the show “The Dean of Mean” had taken two steps back rather than one forward towards his goal of returning to the Octagon. Jardine found himself on the wrong side of a split-decision to opponent Trevor Prangley... [Read More...]
Thiago Silva confirms UFC 125 bout against Brandon Vera
American Top Team light heavyweight Thiago Silva put rumor to rest this week by stating he will make his official return to the Octagon at UFC 125 against Brandon Vera after a yearlong absence from the UFC’s famous eight-sided cage. Silva, who withdrew from a scheduled bout against Tim Boetsch last month for injury-related reasons, last competed at 2010’s New Year’s Eve Weekend event, UFC 108,... [Read More...]
Drew Fickett submits trio of opponents to win Shine Fights Grand Prix
Fans of MMA are likely familiar with Drew Fickett’s name for a plethora of reasons. The 30-year old has experienced a number of notable highs and lows in the sport, including wins over Josh Koscheck, Kurt Pellegrino, and Ken Florian earlier in his career to arrests, bizarre post-fight antics, and professional disputes with a variety of promotions. Friday night Fickett gave the public another reason... [Read More...]
Paul Daley forfeits percentage of salary after coming in heavy for Shark Fights 13
It wouldn’t be hard to imagine John Williams’ famous score from the movie “Jaws” echoing in Paul Daley’s mind as he stepped closer and closer to the Shark Fights 13 scale late Friday afternoon. The hard-hitting Brit measured in at three-quarters of a pound over the limit for his main card bout against Jorge Masvidal at the event and as a result will have a 10% bite taken out of the “to... [Read More...]
Ronaldo Souza: “I feel fine being the champion of Strikeforce, but I want more than that.”
Newly crowned Strikeforce Middleweight Champion Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza is as unique an individual as you’ll find in the division. Not only possessing enough Jiu-Jitsu artistry to turn any ring’s blank canvas into a masterpiece, the Brazilian is also extremely humble, full of positive energy, and became a father for the first time a day before his title-winning performance in August against... [Read More...]
Vanier uses Bellator 28 victory over Rich Clementi to keep title hopes alive
PRESS RELEASE / NEW ORLEANS, LA. (September 9, 2010) – Bellator Fighting Championships took its unique brand of world class mixed martial arts action to the “Big Easy” as Bellator 28 saw a trio of Season 2 Semifinalists notch impressive victories over highly regarded opponents while a budding star delivered the most spectacular moment of the evening from the Mahalia Jackson Theater in... [Read More...]
JZ Cavalcante making Strikeforce debut against Josh Thomson on October 9th
American Top Team’s Gesias “JZ” Cavalcante was long-considered one of the top lightweights in Mixed Martial Arts before enduring a slew of injuries and eventually dropping back-to-back decisions in DREAM against Shinya Aoki and Tatsuya Kawajiri. Prior to the losses, Cavalcante had gone 14-1-1 in the first sixteen bouts of his professional career and had gained a reputation for being both solid... [Read More...]
George Sotiropoulos vs. Joe Lauzon targeted for November event
It appears Australian lightweight Georges Sotiropoulos will look to extend his six-fight win streak in the UFC (seven overall) against 19-5 Joe Lauzon at UFC 123. The event, though not officially announced, is scheduled for November 20th at the Palace of Auburn Hills just outside of Detroit, Michigan. It was also revealed Sotiropoulos could receive an opportunity to fight for the lightweight championship... [Read More...]
Shark Fights 13 Preview and Predictions
Shark Fights makes their first foray into PPV this weekend with “Shark Fights 13: Jardine vs. Prangley”. Read ahead as Five Ounces of Pain’s newest writer, Jeremy Lambert, breaks down the main card… The event is filled with UFC and Strikeforce veterans who are at crossroads in their careers. Main-Eventer Keith Jardine, who has lost four straight fights, is trying to reclaim... [Read More...]
5 Oz. MMA Link Club
Welcome back to another edition of “MMA Link Club”, Five Ounces of Pain‘s weekly smorgasbord of work from our brothers and sisters in the MMA community. Enjoy… Does Randy Couture Have One Last Run at the Title in Him? (Versus.com) Dana White Backtracks on Jon Fitch’s Contendership (WatchKalibRun.com) Kamal Shalorus May Be Fighting Bart Palaszweski at WEC 52 (Heavy.com) Ken Florian and... [Read More...]
Forrest Griffin hoping to fight again before year’s end
An anniversary is rapidly approaching for Forrest Griffin other than that marking twelve months of marriage to his long-time girlfriend. With only a handful of events left in 2010, and his last appearance in the Octagon coming in late November 2009 against Tito Ortiz, the former UFC light heavyweight champ is at risk of sitting on the sidelines for more than a year after sustaining a shoulder injury... [Read More...]
Grappling with Issues – 9/9/10
Does Karo Parisyan deserve a return to the Octagon only a year removed from his banishment from the organization? How do you feel about the format of Shine Fights’ upcoming event? What is MMA’s “Comeback of the Year” now that we’re three-quarters of the way through 2010? Are you excited about the Ultimate Fighter Season 12? Keyboard warrrrriors….come out to plaaaay-yay! Welcome to “Grappling... [Read More...]
Former U.S Olympian Judoka Rick Hawn joins Bellator Fighting Championships
PRESS RELEASE / CHICAGO, Ill. (September 08, 2010) – Bellator Fighting Championships today announced the signing of former U.S. Olympian Judoka and fast-rising, undefeated Mixed Martial Artist Rick Hawn to its already stacked welterweight roster. Managed by his former Judo coach and American Judoka legend Jimmy Pedro, Hawn has amassed a collection of almost two dozen medals in major U.S. and... [Read More...]
Thiago Silva vs. Brandon Vera rumored for UFC 125
It looks like the UFC will start 2011 out with a bang, substituting the pyrotechnics from New Year’s Eve for fireworks of a more-physical kind the following evening at UFC 125 in Las Vegas. Already rumored to be headlined by the rematch between Chael Sonnen and 185-pound champ Anderson Silva, the event now looks to also be hosting a clash between respected light heavyweights Brandon Vera and Thiago... [Read More...]
