While Gustafsson certainly respects Nogueira based on his past accomplishments, he also knows the Brazilian veteran has flaws he can exploit. In a recent conversation with TATAME “The Mauler” offered some slight elaboration on his mindset, making it clear his goal is to wow his fellow Swedes with a strike-based stoppage.

“I hope he goes for it otherwise I’ll knock him out,” Gustafsson laughed when asked about Nogueira’s statements regarding a knockout of his own. “I’m ready to box! I have a gameplan for him.”

“He is very tough guy. He’s a legend in the sport,” Gustafsson continued on the topic of “Minotoro”, though was not impressed by his outing against Tito Ortiz in December, saying, “It wasn’t a good fight, Tito gave him the fight.”

UFC on Fuel 2 takes place on April 21 in Stockholm. Other bouts include Diego Nunes vs. Dennis Siver and Brian Stann vs. Alessio Sakara.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Gracie stopped Sapp with strikes in their match-up at the event to pick up his third straight win since falling to Joey Beltran at UFC 109. The performance improved his record to 6-1 with the entire lot coming by way of submission. Comparably the loss was Sapp’s fourth in a row and seventh in his last eight outings.

Read below for a full list of ONE FC 2 results:

Zuli Silawanto def. Agus Nanang via TKO Round 1 (Strikes)
Pete Davis def. Ngabdi Mulyadi via Submission Round 3 (Triangle Choke)
Irshaad Sayed def. Jessie Rafols via Knockout Round 1 (Strikes)
Geje Eustaquio def. Alex Silva via Unanimous Decision
Victorio Senduk def. Raymond Tiew via TKO Round 1 (Injury)
Rolles Gracie def. Bob Sapp via Submission Round 1 (Strikes)
Gustavo Falciroli def. Soo Chul Kim via Submission Round 1 (Rear-Naked Choke)
Rustam Khabilov def. Rodrigo Ribeiro via Unanimous Decision
Bae Young Kwon def. Honorio Banario via Submission Round 1
Felipe Enomoto def. Ole Laursen via Submission Round 2 (Rear-Naked Choke)

The match-up has been confirmed by the UFC.

Thompson, who is 56-0 as a kickboxer and 6-0 in MMA, made his UFC debut last weekend at UFC 143 where he started the card off strong by flattening Dan Stittgen with a headkick in the opening round of their bout. Four of the long-time karate practitioner’s victories in the cage have involved some form of finish.

Meanwhile, Brown dropped Chris Cope in equally fine fashion, also at UFC 143, and likely would have won Knockout of the Night honors had he been on a different card. He holds an overall record of 13-11 with ten stoppages.

UFC 143 is headlined by Jon Jones putting his light heavyweight title on the line against Rashad Evans and will also feature fights like Miguel Torres vs. Michael McDonald, Mac Danzig vs. Efrain Escudero, and Brendan Schaub vs. Ben Rothwell.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

UFC

Now that St. Pierre has had some time to reflect on things he has re-evaluated how interested he actually is in fighting Diaz, at least when it comes to an expected defense of his title in November.

“I want to fight the best man, and the best man is Condit,” said the 22-2 champion in an interview on Bruce Buffer‘s Sherdog show , adding emotion had clouded his judgment beforehand. Still, that doesn’t mean he wouldn’t mind settling the score with Diaz at some point down the road.

“As far as Diaz, of course I would like to fight him because he thinks he’s better than me (and) I think I’m better than him,” explained St. Pierre before turning talk to the controversial Californian’s future. “But I think he should not retire. He did all of the sacrifice in his life to be where he’s at right now. He’s at the highest point of his career, and if he retires now, he’s left a lot of money on the table that could pay for all of the sacrifices he has made during all those years. I think the sport of mixed martial arts needs a guy like him.”

Diaz has not commented since saying he was retiring from MMA after his disgust with the judges’ decision in his fight with Condit. The 28-year old was the more aggressive, less technical of the two this past Saturday night and paid for it with the defeat.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

No specifics in terms of location/date for the bout were mentioned.

Mir has picked up three straight wins since losing to Shane Carwin a little less than two years ago with the trio all coming in convincing fashion. The 16-5 Las Vegas native was last seen snapping Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira’s arm in their co-headlining clash at UFC 140 in December.

While Velasquez does not have the momentum of Mir’s winning streak, having lost the UFC belt to champ Junior dos Santos in November, he emerged with his hand raised in nine straight prior to the stumble including victories over Nogueira, Cheick Kongo, and Brock Lesnar.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Jackson’s admission came in a recent interview with Fighters Only where he said, “If I had won that Jon Jones fight and if the Japan show wasn’t next, then there would have been a very good chance I would have retired already. It would have been a great time to bow out,” adding he would have ducked out after putting the gold up for grabs in Japan at UFC 144. Jackson has professed his love for the Land of the Rising Sun numerous times before, lobbying hard to fight on the show and entertain some of his most loyal fans at the historic show.

Without the title in tow, the former UFC/PRIDE champ will use the next eighteen months of his life to attempt to earn one final crack at the strap.

“I still want to retire as champion. I want to hold the belt once more,” Jackson revealed.

The next step in that process will come in two weeks when he rumbles with Ryan Bader at the very event that could have marked his last had things played out differently (UFC 144). Jackson had won back-to-back bouts entering the title-fight with Jones and holds an overall record of 32-9 including past victories over Lyoto Machida, Wanderlei Silva, Chuck Liddell, and Dan Henderson.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Fertitta confirmed the UFC’s plans via Twitter.

“The California Kid” will be looking to avoid a case of déjà vu when he clashes with Cruz after losing a hard-fought, five-round decision in July allowing rival Cruz to retain his title and even the score at 1-1 a piece. Faber beat Cruz as a featherweight in WEC. The 26-5 Faber submitted Brian Bowles in his only fight since the scrap, his third victory in four outings.

Meanwhile, Cruz will be looking to close the chapter of his life dedicated to Faber by edging him out in their trilogy. The 26-year old champ holds an overall record of 19-1 and hasn’t been beaten in five years.

TUF 15 is set to debut on FX come March 9 and will feature Faber/Cruz serving as the heads of two teams comprised of lightweights/welterweights.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Henderson, who solidified his standing as a top challenger with an exciting win over Mauricio Rua in November, recently opened up on his plan for 2012 in a conversation with ESPN where he explained it’s never been his intention to wait for Jones-Evans to settle their score.

“That was never what I said or anything,” said the former Strikeforce/DREAM champion. “I don’t know who said that, but it wasn’t me. My thoughts were I was waiting to see what happened with Rashad and Phil Davis. That was the only thing I was going to wait for.”

“Obviously you can’t guarantee that nobody gets hurt,” he added, alluding to the possibility of stepping in as a replacement for Jones or Evans, continuing, “I don’t know what the plan is, but I’d fight whoever it is they think would be a good match-up. The problem is there’s really nobody right now who fits the bill for a title contention fight; that would make sense to fight me. I don’t know. Maybe I’d fight at a different weight class. I don’t know if they see anybody at heavyweight that would make sense? But I would prefer to fight someone in April or May.”

The idea of a heavyweight tilt is certainly enticing given Henderson’s success against Fedor Emelianenko though, as he admitted, there aren’t a lot of names jumping out at him as being something fans might want to see. The 41-year old also mentioned a rematch with Quinton Jackson as a possibility pending the outcome of Jackson’s bout against Ryan Bader at UFC 144.

With Henderson on the record the ball now appears to be in the UFC’s court. What match-up they’ll throw back remains to be seen though, clearly, “Hendo” is ready for the challenge as long as it makes sense and fans are interested in seeing it go down.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC/STRIKEFORCE

News of the change was first reported by MMAJunkie though no specifics as to the cause were revealed. Bisping has also yet to make an official comment on the matter.

Bisping was last seen taking to the Octagon in late January where he was outpointed by top 185-pound contender Chael Sonnen in a fight many felt he should have won. The first hint of his pending separation from Wolfslair may have come while coaching the Ultimate Fighter 14 where his staff lacked some of the gym’s familiar faces in favor of Tiki Ghosn and others.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Anderson Silva is Tired of Talking about Chael Sonnen (5thRound.com)

Fedor Emelianenko Enjoying Some Quality Time at a Water Park (MiddleEasy.com)

Dana White Rants on the State of MMA Judging/Officiating (MMAMania.com)

How Did UFC 143 Do Buyrate Wise? (MMAPayout.com)

What Kind of Message is the UFC Sending with Their Treatment of Nick Diaz-Carlos Condit? (FightOpinion.com)

White Waxes Poetic on Former Rivalry with PRIDE (TheFightNerd.com)

Stephen Thompson Reflects on Memorable UFC Debut (Fightline.com)

Death of a Fight Club (MMAConvert.com)

Mauricio Rua Parts with Longtime Manager (CagePotato.com)

Georges St. Pierre Talks Training, Silva-Sonnen II (LowKick.com)

Ronda Rousey Says Miesha Tate Already Broken (MMAFighting.com)

Jorge Santiago Talks UFC Flop, Family, and Future (BleacherReport.com)

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC/STRIKEFORCE

The bout was confirmed through an official Bellator press release where it was also revealed the semifinal round of the company’s upcoming featherweight tournament will also take place on the card in addition to a fight featuring Chris Horodecki.

“I made no secret I wasn’t happy with my performance in that fight, and now having spent over six months training at Roufusport, I’m really confident in my striking,” said Askren while referring to his controversial Split Decision win over Jay Hieron in October. “Douglas is a great fighter, but I don’t think he’ll be able to handle what I bring to the table.”

In addition to Hieron, Askren’s 9-0 record also features wins over Dan Hornbuckle, Nick Thompson, and Lyman Good. The 27-year old has made a name for himself in part due to personality but also as a result of his Olympic-level wrestling prowess.

Comparably, Lima is three years younger than Askren but has nearly 3X as many fights with a 21-4 mark in MMA. “The Phenom” has finished eighteen of the opponents he’s beaten and earned his crack at Askren’s championship by stopping Ben Saunders with strikes at Bellator 57.

PHOTO CREDIT – BELLATOR

While nothing has surfaced where specifics are concerned, it has been rumored that Diaz may have been popped for THC, the active drug in marijuana, again as he did once before in Las Vegas five years ago after a bout with Takanori Gomi. However, his status is little more than speculation at this point.

What is certain is that details are set to emerge later today in a follow-up email from the NSAC while some remaining tests are done.

If Diaz is the fighter in question it might explain his manager/trainer Cesar Gracie’s recent statements saying a rematch with Condit is off despite UFC President Dana White announcing it had been agreed to verbally.

Edgar was recently an unknowing guest on Yahoo Sports’ Blindsided, a prank-based show focused on catching athletes off their guard. With the assistance of UFC featherweight Akira Corassani, one of Edgar’s training partners, the show’s camera crew set up a situation featuring the 155-pound champion’s prized BMW in the process of being towed.

Needless to say “The Answer” is less than pleased to see his car in such a state when he arrives on the scene after practice.

Watch below to see his priceless reaction including enough four-letter words to even make Dana White blush:

Straying from the attitude causing a rift between Jon Jones-Rashad Evans, as well as the one seeing Evans refuse to face Keith Jardine a few years back, Sanchez spoke to The MMA Hour earlier this week where he said he’s already discussed such a scenario with “The Natural Born Killer”.

“We’ve all talked about this, the coaches, me and Carlos, we are absolutely fine fighting each other,” said the original Ultimate Fighter. “We both want UFC gold, that’s what we want for our family and have always wanted even as little kids, we have always wanted this. We are willing to do that.”

He also made it clear he wouldn’t pull any punches against Condit and would expect the same treatment in return, stating, “Me and Carlos would be a war; we both know our strengths and weaknesses and it would be a great fight. If it happens, it happens.”

Up next for “The Dream” is a February 15 date with top contender Jake Ellenberger in headlining action at UFC on Fuel 1. Comparably, Condit has been embroiled in the fallout from his hard-fought, albeit awfully close decision win over Nick Diaz this past Saturday night.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

According to his team, decorated submission specialist Roger Gracie is contemplating a move down from light heavyweight now that he’s fully focused on a career in MMA rather than on the mat.

Word of Gracie’s pending decision came from a conversation between manager Jorge Guimaraes and TATAME where the representative said, “He’s considering dropping, but it’s not set in stone yet.”

“To me, he has all the tools to build up a great MMA career, he just needs some work, (and to be) focused,” Guimaraes continued.

Guimaraes also revealed Gracie could be joining Anderson Silva’s Team Blackhouse in the coming months as well.

Gracie is 4-1 in MMA including wins over veterans like Trevor Prangley and Kevin Randleman. His first loss came in September when he was stopped with strikes by former title-holder Muhammed Lawal. He is also one of the most accomplished BJJers in recent history, winning numerous titles including one in the coveted ADCC Absolute bracket.

PHOTO CREDIT – STRIKEFORCE

While UFC welterweight champ Georges St. Pierre has not come out to officially say he’d be willing to relinquish his rights to the title in order to fight polarizing rival Nick Diaz, it appears he has mentioned he’s open to doing so in private company.

The shocking revelation came Tuesday evening as part of UFC Tonight where host Kenny Florian, who is friends with GSP and trains with him at TriStar, said the currently injured St. Pierre brought it up over dinner after watching Carlos Condit outpoint Diaz last weekend at UFC 143.

Condit earned a shot at St. Pierre with the victory though it may be in vain if “Rush” follows through on his comments by giving up his belt to settle the score with Diaz. During the build up to the Diaz-Condit bout GSP expressed his desire to see Diaz win after the Stockton scrapper called him out after beating B.J. Penn in his previous Octagon appearance.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

News of the bout has been confirmed by the UFC.

Castillo is 13-4 overall and 3-1 in the UFC, coming off back-to-back victories over Anthony Njokuani and Shamar Bailey. He has been inside the cage with the likes of Anthony Pettis, Donald Cerrone, and Jacob Volkmann during his MMA career.

Comparably, Cholish (8-1) earned a second round TKO victory over Mitch Clarke in his UFC debut. He has won eight straight fights since losing his pro debut back in 2007.

UFC on FOX 3 takes place May 5 from the IZOD Center in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The main event pits Jim Miller against Nate Diaz with the Cholish-Castillo bout likely slated for the prelims.

PHOTO CREDIT – CFFC/UFC

While Barao is undoubtedly the top 135-pound contender on the UFC’s roster, an upcoming season of the Ultimate Fighter has tapped divisional champion Dominick Cruz and fan-favorite contender Urijah Faber as coaches with an eventual bout between the two scheduled for later this year. While some fighters in Barao’s situation might opt to twiddle their thumbs and wait, the Brazilian appears willing to fight again before Cruz-Faber face off.

Barao recently spoke to TATAME where he said the decision would be left up to his superiors, both in terms of Dana White and Joe Silva as well as teachers at Nova Uniao.

“I’m doing my job and I leave this decision of fighting or not for the belt to Andre Pederneiras and the UFC guys,” explained Barao. “Meanwhile, I keep doing my job and I’m prepared for my next fight, no matter against whoever it is.”

Barao’s coaches also confirmed the likelihood of a non-title fight with the plan involving his eventual shot at the belt occurring at some point in the final quarter of 2012. While no specific opponent was mentioned, logical possibilities might include the winner of Miguel Torres vs. Michael McDonald (set for 4/21) or Mike Easton if interested in targeting the June show in Sao Paolo, Brazil to capitalize on his drawing power at home.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

“I just want to frustrate her. I want to push her outside that minute and make her second-guess and wish she never wanted to take this fight,” said Tate while serving as a guest on Inside MMA. “I have yet to see Ronda actually fight. I’ve seen her go out there and do her judo or what not but she hasn’t ever brought a fight and that’s what I’m gonna do, I’m gonna make this a fight.”

Though Rousey is 4-0 no opponent has lasted more than 49 seconds with her, leaving her cardio as being somewhat of a mystery.

“Not to mention the weight cut,” Tate added. “This is his first drop to 135. Also, (there’s a) no-pound allowance. That’s going to change her body dynamics. The way she’s used to throwing people and having that weight behind her is gonna change.”

In terms of the trash-talk from Rousey, Tate explained it motivates her when she hears it but for the most part she has her upcoming adversary tuned out.

“I don’t really listen to much of anything Ronda says. I don’t watch her interviews,” stated Tate on the topic. “I get a little bit of that drift that comes through Twitter…half the time I really honestly think it makes her sound like an idiot. That’s just being brutally honest. I think she’s pretty delusional.”

Check out the complete interview below:

PHOTO CREDIT – STRIKEFORCE

Gracie, Diaz’s head trainer and manager, recently called Condit’s counter-pointing strategy into question after “The Natural Born Killer” avoiding engaging in the “dogfight” he’d implied he was up for during the weeks leading up to Saturday night’s scrap.

“Carlos was running at one point, and Nick slapped him in the face said, ‘Quit running.’ We were there for a dogfight. Carlos said he’d provide for the fans a dogfight, a great fight where they were going to go at it. That was not a dogfight. It takes two to make a dogfight. One guy running away is not a dogfight,” said Gracie on Monday in an interview with The MMA Show.

However, Gracie doesn’t fully fault Condit for taking the smarter, less aesthetically pleasing route instead of catering to the expectations of others, and actually blames the coaching staff at Greg Jackson’s gym for the gameplan.

“It’s one thing to avoid standing in the pocket, it’s one thing to know how to dodge punches and kicks, and be somewhat elusive and have great defense. It’s another thing to turn your back and run from a fighter. That’s completely different,” said Gracie of Jackson’s approach to fighting. “You shouldn’t be telling your fighter to fight like that. I think it’s a disgrace and a shame. I’ve said this before: I don’t like that camp. I’m not going to take that back.”

The future of both Diaz and Condit appear a bit hazy at the moment, as Diaz said he was retiring after the loss and Condit is likely waiting 9-10 months for Georges St. Pierre to heal up from a knee injury rather than take another fight as his management implied he would prior to his closely-contested win over Diaz.

PHOTO CREDIT – STRIKEFORCE/UFC