Once viewed as one of the most lethal rising talents in all of mixed martial arts, laying waste to fighters like Assuerio Silva and former UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir in spectacular fashion, Brandon Vera seemed to lose something vital right around October of 2007. Whether it was the dedication, motivation, or just the spark that had been necessary for Vera to reach the plateau he had in the fighting world up until that point; whatever it was, it was obviously gone as “The Truth” went on to lose three of his next four bouts in the UFC.

Currently riding a two-fight win streak in the Octagon, Vera is on the heels of the most pivotal bout in his professional fighting carer as the 32 year old Muay Thai specialist will face off with “The Natural” Randy Couture in the main event of this evening’s UFC 105 card, taking place in Manchester, England.

In a recent conversation with the guys over at Fight! Magazine, Vera was forthcoming in explaining exactly why the cheese appeared to slide off the cracker when it appeared he had the world at his feet, explaining, “What happened to me is I made too much money and I started listening to the hype and started fucking around man. It was all a part of growing. I was talking to [Antonio Rodrigo] Noguiera and he was like, Brandon, I went through that shit twice—in Pride, and just last year in the UFC. I wasn’t training for shit. He told me, ‘if you hit the top then one day, one way or another, you’re going to hit rock bottom before you head north again.’ It’s crazy when you see that check, and you start counting . . . one, two, three, four, five, six . . . ”

As far as Vera’s now infamous claims of becoming both the UFC’s light heavyweight and heavyweight champion goes, don’t expect for him too shy away from those aspirations just yet. As a matter of fact, according to Vera, he’d face off with the current UFC heavyweight champion right now…..at about 210 pounds. For those of you that are keeping track, that’s a natural weight disadvantage of about 90 pounds.

“I’d fight Brock Lesnar at my weight right now,” claimed Vera. “Brock’s a beast, he’s a fucking manbeast, but he told on himself that last fight against Mir. He whupped Mir’s ass, but when he got hit his arms went straight out, he closed his eyes and put his face towards the mat.” He demonstrates this, like a child pretending to be an airplane. “He likes to be the hammer, he doesn’t like to be the nail. If you can touch Brock in the face, it’s all wrapped son. He’ll pick you up and throw you through the cage, cheese-grate you, pull you back through by your brain and punch you in the eye, but if you can touch him, it’s over. He told on himself, man, he showed his true colors that night.”

A heavyweight battle between Stefan Struve and returning UFC veteran Paul Buentello has been made official for UFC 107.

The event will take place on December 12 from Memphis, Tennessee, featuring a headlining lightweight championship bout between B.J. Penn and Diego Sanchez.

Buentelllo was previously expected to face off with heavyweight wrecking machine Todd Duffee at the event before an injury forced the fast rising prospect from the card.

Appropriately coined “The Skyscraper. the 6′10″, 240 pound Struve sports a professional record of 18-3 with 14 submissions to his credit. The towering Dutch submission specialist is currently riding a two-fight win streak with the UFC with both wins coming by submission, after having dropped his Octagon debut via TKO at the hands of Junior dos Santos in February of this year.

Making his first return to the UFC in close to four years, Buentello is known as a power puncher with a penchant for knocking his opponents senseless. He currently holds an impressive UFC record of 3-1, with his last bout coming in January of this year, stopping “Baby Fedor” Kirill Sidelnikov during “Affliction: Day of Reckoning” via TKO.

This one is a clear cut case of the old school “classic striker vs. grappler match-up” at it’s finest.

A full list of the bouts expected for UFC 107 are listed below:

• BJ Penn vs. Diego Sanchez

• Frank Mir vs. Cheick Kongo

• Kenny Florian vs. Clay Guida

• Jon Fitch vs. Mike Pierce

• Stefan Struve vs. Paul Buentello

• Alan Belcher vs. Wilson Gouveia

• Matt Wiman vs. Shane Nelson

• Johny Hendricks vs. Ricardo Funch

• Rousimar Palhares vs. Lucio Linhares

• DaMarques Johnson vs. Edgar Garcia

• Kevin Burns vs. TJ Grant

The latest edition of mixed martial collectibles from Round 5 is just about set for release, and just in time for the holidays.

The most recent series of figurines is an exclusive UFC set, including Chuck Liddell, Georges St. Pierre, Rashad Evans, Kenny Florian, Clay Guida and Lyoto Machida.

A limited number of each will be available at Toys R Us prior to Christmas, with other retailers across North America will stocking the series beginning in January.

Below is a selection of photos from Round 5 UFC Series 1:

With Dan Henderson not currently under contract with the UFC, and current middleweight title-holder Anderson Silva nursing an injury, Nate Maquardt has been patiently sitting on the sidelines waiting for an opponent.

It now appears the wait is finally over for Marquardt, who is rumored to face Chael Sonnen at UFC 110. According to Sportsnet.ca, the two are awaiting bout agreements and will be added to the UFC’s debut in Sydney, Australia.

Marquardt is coming off a 21-second KO victory over highly regarded submission specialist, Demian Maia. The former Pancrase champion has gone 8-2 since joining the UFC, with his only losses coming from champion Anderson Silva and Thales Leites. Marquardt and Henderson were both top contenders for next in line at a rematch with Silva, but with those match-ups in limbo, Marquardt appears to sit on the sidelines no longer.

Sonnen is coming off a unanimous decision win over Yushin Okami at UFC 104. Sonnen is looking to build off of a two fight win streak and improve on his 2-1 record since entering the octagon. The Team Quest member was vocal about facing Marquardt following his win over Okami, quoted as saying, “…my team member Dan Henderson has a date with Nate Marquardt. I keep hearing rumblings that he wont be able to keep that appointment. If he doesn’t, I will.”

UFC 110 is rumored to be held on February 21st, 2010, with a main event bout between Wanderlei Silva vs. Yoshihiro Akiyama. It will mark the first time the organization will venture into the “land down under”.

The inaugural Strikeforce event on CBS is in the books, and millions of Americans have gotten their first taste of the living legend known as Fedor. Jake Shields took home some gold, Gegard Mousasi gave another display of his unbeatable striking, and Fabricio Werdum showed why belongs amongst the elite at heavyweight. Strikeforce and CBS did some things right, and they certainly did some things wrong. Here’s how I see it breaking down:

THUMBS UP to Fedor being as good as advertised for his primetime debut. The pre-show hype was built around Fedor’s status as the best in the world, and he delivered upon that promise in a fantastic main event. Give some credit to Rogers (if you like) but the night obviously belonged to “The Last Emperor.” He got busted up, but a broken nose is practically a paper cut compared to some of the damage he’s taken in the past. He also hurt his hand so it may be a little while longer before he returns to the cage, and as of now it’s pretty unclear who his next opponent might be. Speaking of which…

THUMBS DOWN to the championship confusion. So if you were just hearing about Strikeforce for the first time on Saturday, how would you possibly know what is going on in the promotion? Jake Shields and Jason “Mayhem” Miller fight for the vacant middleweight belt, and that’s all well and good. Then Fedor and Rogers come out and there’s the WAMMA belt. Wouldn’t you wonder who the hell WAMMA is? Wouldn’t you also wonder why the “best fighter in the world” wasn’t fighting for the Strikeforce Heavyweight Championship? The casual viewer has no idea that the company’s title is currently collecting dust in a closet somewhere in Holland. The belts are only valuable if people care about them, and right now the Strikeforce heavyweight belt is worth about $5.

THUMBS UP to Jake Shields and his unstoppable grappling skills. It wasn’t always entertaining, but it’s the strategy we knew Shields would employ. He’s not a striker so there wasn’t much reason for him to try and stand with Miller. Instead he took “Mayhem” down at will and was able to control him almost the entire time, easily passing the guard and taking full mount several times. Shields may not have gotten the submissions he was going for but he did win in pretty dominant fashion. Some people want to call Shields boring because of the way this fight went down, but those same people need to be reminded that this is a guy that has finished his last eight opponents. Saturday night he was in against a guy that’s all but impossible to finish, and you saw the results.

THUMBS UP to “Mayhem“ Miller and his entrance. It had flash, which was sorely needed on this card. It’s too bad for him that the third round wasn’t 10 seconds longer (for some reason or another) but otherwise what could he do?

THUMBS DOWN to Gegard Mousasi‘s future in Strikeforce. I’m really happy that Strikeforce brought Mousasi to America, as he’s the kind of exciting young fighter they need. I’m also really unhappy that Strikeforce brought Mousasi to America, because I’d rather see him in the UFC.

Let’s face the facts, there is literally nothing for Mousasi to do in the Strikeforce light heavyweight division. Who’s the company’s top contender right now? Mike Whitehead? Former champ Bobby Southworth? Oh wait, he’s trying to get on the next season of “The Ultimate Fighter.” There’s Muhammed “King Mo” Luwal (who will debut in December), but he’s still relatively green as an MMA fighter and will need some building up first. I’m not sure if Strikeforce can come up with the necessary scratch to sign Dan Henderson, but if they do I’d give “Hendo” good odds to end Mousasi’s double-digit win streak. That’s just speculation though.

If Mousasi were in the UFC there would be a veritable buffet of intriguing match-ups. Machida, Rua, Silva (pick one), Cane, etc. The company is undergoing some heavy changes in their light heavyweight division, and they need all the young fighters they can get if they want the weight class to remain competitive. If I were a voice in Dana White’s head I’d be telling him to sign Mousasi at any cost.

THUMBS DOWN to not seeing the ladies. The bout between Marloes Coenen and Roxanne Modaferri was slated to be featured on the main broadcast with time permitting. The fight took 65 seconds for Coenen to get the submission win, yet they couldn’t find time to show it? Obviously the title fight ate up a lot of time, but it seems to me that they could’ve squeezed the ladies in after Mousasi finished Sokoudjou. Coenen is now slated to be next in line for a shot at Cris Cyborg’s championship, but they lost a key opportunity to create any sort of build for her on Saturday.

THUMBS UP to Antonio Silva and Fabricio Werdum opening the show. The night started and ended with heavyweights, and both fights were the best of the evening. Silva nearly finished this one in a hurry, but Werdum was able to survive and force this one to a second round. From there on he got to display his superior grappling, taking the second and third rounds pretty decisively. He called out Fedor at the post-fight press conference but with Fedor’s immediate future uncertain at the moment, Werdum may have to try and get his second win over Alistair Overeem instead.

Also, I say let’s see Silva vs. Rogers.

THUMBS DOWN to Strikeforce screwing two of their fighters. Mark Miller and Deray Davis were slated for a welterweight bout on the evening’s preliminary card. During the pre-lim fights, members of the media were informed that Miller and Davis would be fighting at the end of the night. Apparently Strikeforce wanted to make sure that the women’s bout was completed before the live broadcast started. According to reports, when the Coenen/Modaferri fight ended there were thirty minutes left before the live show. Once the main event ended, the media was asked to move upstairs for the post-fight press conference. Nobody was informed as to why the Miller/Davis fight had been scrapped. Apparently the fighters were getting ready to walk out to the cage when they were informed that their fight was off.

It gets worse. Reports are surfacing that Miller and Davis were paid their money to show, but neither man got a win bonus. According to a post on the Underground forums one of the fighters lost all his sponsorship money because the fight didn’t happen. These were two hometown fighters, each had gone through training camp and prepared for this night. There’s no logical reason as to why they didn’t get to fight. There was time during the preliminary portion of the card, since two of the pre-lim fights ended in under 2 minutes. There was also, obviously, plenty of time after the main event. Who cares if they would have been fighting in an empty arena?

Strikeforce had a contract with those two men and they failed to honor it. It’s a sour note to what was otherwise a successful evening, but let’s hope it’s a mistake they don’t make again.

While crossing paths with a Mixed Martial Artist in Las Vegas may not be an overly infrequent occurrence, the odds are certainly up for any fans visiting Sin City this week thanks to a Zuffa summit involving numerous fighters from both the UFC and WEC.

Representatives from the dual promotions included, but were not limited to, notable names such as Mauricio Rua, Yoshihiro Akiyama, “Minotauro” Nogueira, Rogerio Nogueira, Frank Edgar, Miguel Torres, Nate Diaz, Urijah Faber, Demian Maia, Tom Lawlor, Joe Lauzon, Mark Coleman, Mike Swick, Danny Castillo, Matt Serra, Muhsin Corbbrey, Frank Trigg, Junior dos Santos, Ben Henderson, and head-honchos Dana White and Lorenzo Fertitta.

Those in attendance were treated to a group dinner on Monday night in order to set the tone of professional unity, with the meal also providing an increased camaraderie amongst the fighters through personal interaction and the opportunity to professionally network as well. The UFC President took to his Twitter account to show example of both these, as he posted pictures of Bantamweight ace Torres seated alongside fellow jiujitsu practitioner Maia, as well as “Shogun” Rua engaged in a playful headlock with one-time rival Coleman.

Topics at the actual summit ranged in degrees of seriousness, focusing on subjects like fighter-safety (weight-cutting, steroids, recreational drugs), professionalism (thanking sponsors, gambling, individual branding), and show production (swing bouts, etc.). There is no word whether or not the summit will become an annual occurrence for the UFC/WEC but it seems likely given the continued growth in popularity of Mixed Martial Arts and overall expansion of the UFC.

A welterweight battle between Jon Fitch and Mike Pierce is all set to take place at UFC 107.

According to a recent report on MMAMania.com, Pierce has recently agreed to the proposed match-up which will take place on December 12 from Memphis, Tennessee.

The unlikely showdown was booked after Josh Koscheck was yanked from his UFC Fight Night 20 bout with Pierce to face off with Anthony Johnson at UFC 106, and Fitch has seen two prior opponents, Ricardo Almeida and Thiago Alves, bow out due to knee injuries.

Fitch is currently riding a two fight win streak in the Octagon, with wins over Akihiro Gono and Paulo Thiago following his decision loss at the hands of welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre back at UFC 87. Fitch is currently ranked at #2 behind St-Pierre on the official 5 Oz. rankings, and sports an astonishing UFC record of 10-1.

Pierce is fresh off the heels of the biggest win of his career over Brock Larson at UFC Fight Night 19. He sports a career record of 10-1, and is currently riding a six fight win streak.

A rematch between highly-ranked UFC welterweights Jon Fitch and Thiago Alves planned for UFC 107 on Dec. 12 in Memphis, Tenn. will not take place as scheduled, FiveOuncesOfPain.com has learned.

Five Ounces of Pain was informed early Friday morning that Alves was forced to withdraw from the fight due to an unspecified injury and that discussions to secure a replacement have already begun.

The news of Alves falling off the card comes as yet another blow to the UFC’s plans for UFC 107, as season 10 coaches of The Ultimate Fighter Rashad Evans and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson had originally been rumored to headline the event.

However, plans for Evans vs. Jackson were scuttled after Jackson accepted a role in the upcoming A-Team film adaptation. UFC officials quickly moved to transfer a planned lightweight title fight between B.J. Penn and Diego Sanchez to headline its Dec. 12 pay-per-view event and the rematch between Fitch and Alves was added soon after to augment the card’s depth.

Alves, 16-6, has not fought since losing a unanimous decision to current UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre this past June at UFC 100. Prior to the title fight, Alves had won seven consecutive bouts in the UFC.

Meanwhile, Fitch, also a former UFC welterweight title challenger, is 19-3 overall and has won two consecutive bouts following his title loss to St. Pierre at UFC 87 in August of 2008.

A welterweight rematch between Jon Fitch and Thiago Alves has been booked for UFC 107.

The news of the match-up was first revealed in a report on MMAJunkie.com before being confirmed by UFC President Dana White.

UFC 107 is set to take place from the FedExForum in Memphis, Tennessee on December 12, airing live on pay-per-view.

Both men will be looking to place themselves back into title contention following mutual defeats to current 170 pound king, Georges St-Pierre.

Fitch has notched back to back wins over the likes of Akihiro Gono and Paulo Thiago following his failed bid at championship glory during UFC 87, while Alves will be returning to the Octagon for the first time since his loss at the hands of St-Pierre following a seven fight win streak in the UFC.

The Strikeforce lightweight division just got that much deeper, for that much longer, as undefeated lightweight smashing machine Lyle “Fancy Pants” Beerbohm has recently re-inked an extensive contract with the increasingly talent stacked promotion. .

FiveOuncesofPain.com was able to learn of the signing through sources close to the situation.

Stretching two years in length, the contract guarantees Beerbohm a minimum of six fights, capping off at a maximum of twelve scraps running through 2011.

Rocking an unblemished 13-0 record with 12 finishes to his credit, Lyle holds impressive first round stoppages over UFC veterans Gerald Strebendt, Rafaello Oliveira and Duane Ludwig.

Beerbohm made his Strikeforce debut on June 19 of this year when he caught Duane Ludwig in a “Beer Naked Choke” in the opening round.

In his last appearance in the cage, Lyle stopped Josh Martin via frankensteiner elbows during “Arena Rumble” on September 12, opening multiple lacerations on his battered opponent that required an array of staples and stitches to patch up.

Beerbohm is currently set to make his next appearance at “Arena Rumble II” on November 28 from the Yakima Sun Dome in Yakima, Washington against Alonzo Martinez.

While no date or opponent has been set for Beerbohm’s return to Strikeforce, sources place the potential bout in early 2010.

In the ever growing landscape of Mixed Martial Arts, fans are being treated to more shows, more fights, and few promotions put out a higher quality product than the “Ultimate Warrior Challenge.”

The UWC – Ultimate Warrior Challenge is the East Coasts leader in providing fans with the best, most competitive and highest quality professional mixed martial arts (MMA) events. The UWC returns to the GMU Patriot Center on Saturday, October 3, 2009 with UWC REDEMPTION featuring two of the greatest MMA World title fights in our Nation’s Capital History. UWC Bantamweight Champion Mike “The Hulk” Easton (8-1) of Washington, D.C. defends his title against his toughest opponent yet in former WEC World Champ Chase “The Rage” Beebe (12-4) of Chicago, IL in the main event. In the co-main event John “The Magician” Dodson takes on Pat Runez for the UWC’s vacant Flyweight Championship belt.

With all four of the combatants being ranked among the top 25 in the world in their respective weight classes, it’s easy to see why tickets are selling fast for this event. If you are in the greater Washington D.C. area, this is a card you will not want to miss. There are still tickets available HERE. For fans outside of the greater Washington D.C. area the UWC will be making UWC REDEMPTION available via Internet PPV.

In addition to the nights two star studded championship fights, Redemption features some of the Washington, D.C. areas best up-and-coming prospects taking on a top-tier competitors fighting out of a prominent national gyms.

After fighting in the evening’s first bout and earning first-round stoppages at the last three UWC shows, undefeated middleweight fan favorite Kris “Savage” McCray (3-0) of Woodbridge, VA will fight fourth on the show and step up in competition to face Igor “The Legend” Almeida (5-0-1) of Palm Beach, FL who has not lost as a professional as well.

To prepare for his battle, McCray, a former wrestling standout at Woodbridge Senior HS and member of Gold Medal Grappling, has been training in Greg Jackson’s camp with UFC lightweight Joe “Daddy” Stevenson and Tom “Kong” Watson while living at Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone’s house. The Army reservist has never tasted defeat — he was 9-0 as an amateur –and will need his all-around skills more than ever when facing his Brazilian-schooled opponent.

Born in Boston, MA and raised in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, Almeida is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt under Eduardo Brigadeiro. He trained in Rio for four years under Sergio Souza and Murillo Bustamante and spent another seven years training in Florida. Almeida has been practicing MMA and Muay Thai since 2003; two of those years were at the Xtreme Couture facility in Florida.

Looking to rebound from a hard-fought loss to War Machine at last April’s UWC Man “O” War, popular, two-time UWC veteran Timothy (formerly “Reshad”) Woods (4-2) returns to face Ryan “The Rhino” Sturdy (11-3-1) of Chicago in a 185-pound contest. Woods is probably best known to UWC fans for his devastating, knock-out power-bomb delivered to Ron Stallings (now a teammate of his at Team Lloyd Irvin) at UWC Invasion in 2008. The imposing 6’4”Woods has impressive clinching skills, lighting fast strikes, and devastating elbows. All four of his wins have come by knockout.

Sturdy, who fights for World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) star Jeff Curran’s Team Curran, has won five consecutive, and 11 of last 12 fights. He holds the Extreme Challenge middleweight belt, the same organization that spawned such noted fighters as Matt Hughes, Jens Pulver, Tim Silvia, Pat Miletich and Rich Franklin, and should pose a worthy opponent.

Harrisonburg, VA’s hard-striking lightweight Kyle “The Alley Cat” Baker (7-4) has established himself as a rising force in the Mid-Atlantic region for impressive knockout wins over of former UFC fighters Drew Fickett and Chad Reimer and a bruising defeat of former Elite XC fighter, James “Binky” Jones, in arguably the fight of the night at UWC Confrontation last year. The MMA Institute fighter will collide with Tommy “Gun” Truex (6-2), a member of Greg Jackson’s New Mexico-based camp, who boasts a four-fight win streak. Truex serves as an officer in the National Guard and is a University of Mexico business school graduate.

One year older than his brother and more of a submission specialist, Beau “Blackjack” Baker (7-2), will also have his hands full with an outstanding opponent when he challenges undefeated Jacob “Tick-Tock” McClintock (5-0) of Arizona Combat Sports in a middleweight match. Notable opponents for Baker are Tommy Speer, Jorge Patino and TJ Grant.

No opponent has lasted past the first round against McClintock including heavy favorite Sultan Tikhayev whom the Phoenix, AZ-native submitted in his last fight held in St. Petersburg, Russia.

A teammate of the Baker brothers also fighting out of MMA Institute, Jesse “Mountain Man” Riggleman (6-0) puts his undefeated streak on the line against Josh “Taz” Ferguson (7-2), in a flyweight contest. A former two-time Virginia state wrestling champion, Riggleman is a relative newcomer to the sport who only started MMA training in February 2008. A grappling and ground-and-pound specialist, he turned pro after going undefeated in five amateur fights over an eight-month period.

Ferguson, a skilled submission specialist fighting for Team Cruz in Louisville, KY, lost in a title fight to current UWC champion Mike Easton at UWC Capital Punishment. All seven of his professional victories have ended with his opponent locked in either an armbar or a rear naked choke submission.

Rounding out the action-packed card as the first fight of the show will be Freddy Assuncao from Atlanta, GA and Newark, NJ’s Felipe “Sertanejo”Arantes (0-1), a pair of Brazilian featherweights now living stateside. Assuncao enters the cage with a strong pedigree as the brother of UFC veteran Junior Assuncao and twin brother of current WEC bantamweight contender Raphael Assuncao.

Many promotions promise “stacked” cards from top to bottom UWC  REDEMPTION is set to deliver,General admission tickets are available and can be purchased through Ticketmaster by going to www.ticketmaster.com, calling 703-573-SEAT, 202-397-SEAT or 410-547-SEAT or by visiting any Ticketmaster outlet, including the Patriot Center box office. If you live outside of the D.C. area  fans from around the world can enjoy a night of top level fighting that is not to be missed by ordering via online PPV. PPV pricing is 14.95 for pre-orders and 19.95 on the day of event.

During a recent interview with Greg Savage of Sherdog.com, UFC President Dana White responded to a question about the promotion’s growing number of shows and whether they have enough marquee talent to headline the shows by saying he has plenty of headliners.

While the UFC has its fair share of stars that can carry a pay-per-view such as B.J. Penn, Georges St. Pierre, Anderson Silva, Lyoto Machida, Brock Lesnar, Tito Ortiz and Randy Couture, you can never have too many drawing cards in your deck.

One of the UFC’s biggest drawing cards over the years has been Chuck Liddell. However, with four losses in his last five fights, it is believed his ability to draw buyers to pay-per-view has diminished. However, that’s a perception that has yet to be verified, as we do not know the official amount of buys Liddell’s recent fights have drawn.

But let’s just say the “Iceman” isn’t the star he once was, the reality is that he still remains one of the most recognizable fighters in all of MMA. And now, thanks to his current stint on ABC’s Dancing with the Stars, Liddell’s stardom continues to grow while he skills diminish.

While White has made it clear he would prefer that Liddell retire, the UFC Hall of Famer has one more fight left on his current UFC deal. Liddell has confirmed his hiatus from MMA, but has yet to officially announce his retirement from the sport.

Will Liddell ever challenge for the UFC light heavyweight title? Unlikely. But does he still have a few strong PPV buys left in him? If the matchup is right, absolutely.

And what’s the right matchup?

None other than Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson.

During the taping of the eleventh season of The Ultimate Fighter, rumors swirled that Slice had lost early on in the show to former IFL heavyweight champion Roy Nelson. Initially, the rumors didn’t appear logical because many — myself included — speculated that the UFC and Spike TV would manipulate the show so that Kimbo didn’t fight until the seventh or eighth episode.

The reality is that TUF is really reality — there was no TV magic of any kind performed. Kimbo not only fought early in the season, he fought the tournament’s unofficial number one seed.

Well, maybe I spoke too soon, as there was some magic performed during last night’s show. The magic I am speaking of is none other than Dana White’s marvelous spin job regarding the ending of last night’s fight and his closing comments on Kimbo.

Sorry to use a professional wrestling reference, but White’s 180 degree full fledged flip would have been like Bobby “The Brain” Heenan turning from heel to face and siding with Hulk Hogan — a scenario that never actually transpired.

If I didn’t know any better, it would seem that White has joined Team Kimbo. And why shouldn’t he? Dana is a businessman and Kimbo is a stone cold star. I had the opportunity to work with Kimbo while involved with several CBS and Showtime productions. Kimbo probably wouldn’t recognize me if he saw me, but he left a tremendous impression on me. Despite the playing the role of the thug to perfection in the public eye, the Kimbo I was exposed to behind the scenes was a nice, kind, and gentle soul. The producers of TUF did a marvelous job of showing that side of Kimbo last night.

Kimbo might have lost but the masterful marketing job performed by the UFC and Spike TV last night ensures that he has at least one big UFC fight in him. If Roy Nelson goes on to the finals and ends up winning, there might not be much shame in Kimbo having lost to the winner of TUF’s eleventh season.

Kimbo and Chuck still have some drawing power left in them but their respective shelf-lives could be close to expiration. Both fighters may only have one marketable performance left in them. Timing is everything in life and business and opportunity is knocking on the UFC’s door.

While rumors persist that Kimbo will get at least one official fight under the UFC banner (remember, Dana says a fighter is not a UFC fighter until they make it past TUF), possibly at the TUF finale or at UFC 107, I think the smartest move out there is to automatically pass go and go straight to a PPV headlined by Liddell vs. Kimbo.

That’s right, I want to see Liddell vs. Kimbo and I want to see it in the first quarter of 2010 (Super Bowl weekend anyone?) after Liddell has completed his stint on Dancing with the Stars and after we will know for sure whether Kimbo lost to the eventual winner of TUF 11.

I am sure the MMA purists and hardcores are going to react in unison to my cry for Liddell vs. Kimbo with a collective “Thanks, but no thanks” but Liddell and Kimbo as individual both possess undeniable charisma. Project them on a collision course towards each other and the potential and kinetic energy would provide off the charts measurements.

Remember, Chuck has a loyal fanbase that will continue to follow him despite the fact he’s lost four out of his last five fights. And Kimbo has a fanbase of his own that many MMA hardcores often forget transcends the typical MMA viewer.

MMA is a sport but like any other sport, it is a business. The UFC will be able to put on a lot of great fights in the next 12-14 months, but how many blockbusters do they currently have in the pipeline? Chuck vs. Kimbo is a blockbuster, whether you want to acknowledge that fact or not. Put the two together in the Octagon and people will pay in droves to see the spectacle. It would be the type of spectacle that even the bout’s harshest critics would likely still pay to see.

In the past, the UFC mocked EliteXC for what it considered freak show fight cards built around Kimbo. But the seal has been broken and for better or for worse, the UFC is officially in the Kimbo business. And now that the seal has been broken, you might as well make as much money with him while you can.

While I wouldn’t call Chuck vs. Kimbo a freak show fight, I would call is a sideshow special attraction. But does every fight have to have top ten implications? What’s wrong with out-of-the-box promoting every now and then and having a little fun? When Matt Hughes fought Royce Gracie, was that a bout with title implications? Was it a fight in which the top ten welterweight rankings were going to be impacted, since it was at a catchweight?

The answer to both questions are an obvious no but many of you reading this column bought that PPV. I know I did. And the crazy thing was that there wasn’t a shred of doubt in my mind about who was going to win that fight. Yet I can’t remember a time in which I’ve ever been so excited to see a fight in which I was already certain of the outcome.

I see Liddell vs. Kimbo possessing many of the same attributes that Hughes vs. Gracie fight brought: a fight that was pure fun and entertainment.

A year ago, Chuck vs. Kimbo would have been a tough sell — er, wait, no, it would have been an easy sell. But now, it becomes an even easier sell. Kimbo lost last night but he didn’t completely embarass himself and on some levels, is “UFC certified.” And having lost four out of his last five, Liddell is no longer viewed as the unbeatable force he once was. Believe it or not, because Kimbo has been built up as a big hitter and because many of Chuck’s recent losses have ended via brutal KO, there is going to be a segment of the population that believes Kimbo has a puncher’s chance to beat Chuck.

And if the bout was held at a catchweight of 220 lbs., that makes selling the drama that much easier as Chuck will have to come up in weight and give up a marginal size advantage against Kimbo.

Putting Kimbo on the TUF Finale would be a good move because if you picked the right opponent, you could draw ratings that could rival Tito vs. Ken III. Put him as an undercard attraction on a December PPV, and he will definitely enhance the buys. But the best business move for the UFC is to put Liddell and Kimbo in a headlining bout on PPV and give it the full UFC promotional push complete with commercials, a press tour, countdown shows, and maybe even another run of UFC Primetime.

I’m sure this column is going to generate a lot of response — both positive and negative — but the one question I want you to ask yourself is: would you pay to see Kimbo Slice vs. Chuck Liddell?

It appears Roger Huerta will not be quitting MMA after what was said to be his last fight in the UFC.

He recently discussed his future with Sherdog.com, saying, “I can’t go out with two losses in a row. I don’t think I’m going to call it quits anytime soon.”

He lost last Wednesday in a tough fought three round decision against Gray Maynard at UFC Fight Night 19. The bout against Maynard was Huerta’s first since losing to Kenny Florian back at UFC 87 in August of 2008.

Reports were “El Matador” was hanging up his gloves for an acting career, which he signed a three-picture development deal with Lion’s Gate Films. Although not a successful as some of his MMA brethren, he did manage to secure a role in motion picture Tekken, which also features Cung Le, due out later this year.

Speaking of acting, Huerta said, “I’m still open to acting. Hopefully we get something going with that, but I’m not going to prioritize now. I’ll still prioritize fighting. If the UFC wants me back, I’d be willing to go back.”

The question that remains now is will the UFC want him back. He undoubtedly possesses star potential, but the premier MMA organization was turned down by Huerta when they offered a new contract to him back in January.

However, it seems the lightweight contender wants to call the UFC home, “I’ve been with the UFC since 2006. They’re all that I know, but it’s up to my manager Jeff Clark to decide that for me.”

For now, the Sports Illustrated cover boy wants to focus his attention on what gave him his star status in the first place, “I think this last fight was probably the best fight I’ve ever had, the most focused I’ve ever been.I fought a very dangerous opponent, who is probably going to be the next number-one contender. I lost to the number-one contender before that as well. I’m right in that mix, where a little tweak here and there and I’m right in there.”

Welcome back, Mr. Huerta

Vitor Belfort has returned to the Octagon with a bang, knocking former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin senseless with a barrage of punches in the first round in the main event of UFC 103.

After an extended feeling out process with both fighters doing their best to pick their shots, Belfort countered a combination of Franklin punches perfectly, landing a glancing left and crushing right hand that sent Rich reeling to the Octagon canvas. A few more hard punches from Belfort on the collapsed Franklin brought a halt to the contest at 3:02 of the opening round.

While both Junior dos Santos and Mirko”Cro Cop” Filipovic shared moments in the first two rounds of their heavyweight match-up in Dallas,  it was the Brazilian striker that seemed to be carrying an edge going into final round. After a punishing series of knees in the clinch from dos Santos, the Black House trained fighter backed away as Cro Cop held his face in pain. After a brief moment of confusion it became clear that Mirko didn not want to continue in the bout.

It is possible that Filipovic may have had a bone in his face broken, but no news is available as of this time to the extent of the Croatian striker’s possible injuries suffered during the bout.

UFC veterans Tim Sylvia and Houston Alexander have placed themselves back in the winners circle by each notching first round TKO victories over their respected opponents at Adrenaline MMA IV.

Former UFC heavyweight champion bounced back from three consecutive losses as he battered Jason Riley early in the first round for the convincing stoppage victory.

It became obvious that Sylvia was getting the better of the exchanges early on before dropping Riley with a big right hand and following him to the floor with punches, prompting the referee to wave the bout off at the 2:32 mark.

Alexander, who was on loan from his current contract with the UFC, also put himself back on track following three straight losses, battering Sherman Pendergast early for the much needed win.

A series of punishing leg kicks had Pendergarst in serious trouble just over a minute into the bout before Houston got absolutely midevil on the MMA veteran, swarming him with a brutal volley of strikes and forcing the stoppage just shy of the two minute mark.

This evening Adrenaline IV will be taking place from the Mid-America Center in Council Bluffs, Iowa, airing live on HDNet.

The main event promises to be a slugfest between former UFC heavyweight champion Tim “The Maine-iac” Sylvia and Jason “The Juggernaut” Riley. Also on the card is a light-heavyweight showdown between UFC knockout artist Houston Alexander and veteran of the cage Sherman Pendergarst.

A full list of the live event results are listed below. Be sure to hit refresh often as the fights will be updated as they take place. The main card is scheduled to kick off at 10 pm ET (7 pm PT).

And we are underway! Fights start from the bottom up folks.

Tim Sylvia vs. Jason Riley - Winner: Tim Sylvia via TKO – Round 1

Houston Alexander vs. Sherman Pendergarst - Winner: Houston Alexander via TKO – Round 1

Jeremy Lang vs. Matt Delanoit - Winner: Jeremy Lang via split decision

Alonzo Martinez vs. Ryan Williams – Winner: Alonzo Martinez via unanimous decision

Joe Vedepo vs. Webster Farris - Winner: Joe Vedepo via knockout (punch) – Round 1 (Brutal KO just seconds into the bout. Farris went down like a sack of bricks from a huge right hand and stayed there for a few tense moments before finally regaining consciousness)

Chad Reiner vs. Forrest Petz - Winner: Forrest Petz via TKO (punches) – Round 1

Jimmy Seipel vs. Bob Tuttle - Winner: Jimmy Seipel via submission (rear-naked choke)- Round 1

Just over one year ago a young fighter with enormous potential was arrested and put his professional career in jeopardy. He had a substance abuse problem which led to previous time in jail, a suspension from fighting, and a lot of people talking about what could have been. This was the ongoing, troubled life of Melvin Guillard.

His latest arrest, back in August of 2008, ultimately would alter his outlook on life. He was sentenced to a five month rehabilitation program and for the moment, seems to have his life back on track.

On Monday, Melvin Guillard opened up on his changed lifestyle during a conference call promoting UFC Fight Night 19, explaining, “The turning point for me was when I had to sit in a rehab – which to me which was jail – I had to sit there for six months. Those six months gave me time to miss my family. I missed my wife. I missed the sport. I’d just sit there all the time night and day just thinking about, ‘Man, I hope and pray Dana and them understand what’s going on and I still have a job when I get out.”

His apologies were answered when he was granted a fight against Gleison Tibau for the The Ultimate Fighter 9 finale, which he won by split decision. This extended a win streak for Guillard to three fights dating back to March of 2008.

He credits his new found sobriety as the turning point in his life and sees himself as a new, more mature Melvin Guillard.

“I feel reborn again,” said Melvin. “Me and my wife will be married for a year Oct. 27. I’ve always learned growing up that you don’t how the good times are unless you endured the bad…I just don’t look at any of the bad things anymore. I just want to keep moving forward, keep progressing in the sport, and hopefully someday be a world champion. It’s pretty much the new, mature Melvin. I have no bad blood with any fighter other than Rich Clementi. I’m already to the age now where I’m 26, I’ve aged overnight. I had to grow up overnight if I wanted to continue to be successful in this sport. I have no problems with Nate.”

It remains to be seen if Guillard can continue on his straight path and make an impact in the UFC lightweight division, but it’s worth noting a determined and focused Guillard is a step in the right direction.

In the past I’ve started out my fights kind of slow, kind of feeling my opponents out and going with the flow, but the fight I had with Oliveira taught me a good lesson: You better not ever start out slow again.

I do everything fast now. Everything I do in the cage, it’s going to be explosive. I’m going to go in there and try to kill you, right from the get go. If I start feeling a little bit tired, in the back of my mind I know you’re starting to get tired. So the more tired I get, the better off I know I am. As crazy as that may sound to some people.

I used to pace myself when I felt like I was starting to get a little bit tired, but now if I get tired, I find a certain level of peace in being able to push through that burn. That temporarily feeling of pain or doubt. I tell it to shut up. I won’t listen. When it comes down to it, being tired is all mental. If you really dig down, you can keep going. So that’s what I’ve been working on in practice. I feel like I can break anyone in a few minutes if I just go as hard as I can. Even if they take me down I just go,go,go. With this new mindset I’ve developed, I just knew going into this fight that I was going to break Josh Martin. I knew he was a really tough guy, but I knew it wasn’t going to matter.

The weigh-ins were pretty crazy. I got in his face and got really close to him during the staredown. I think maybe my forehead touched hi a little bit and he didn’t like that, so he shoved me. I saw red for just a moment (it’s in my blood), and I came at him but they ended up ripping us apart. It was pretty intense. I used to be really polite and respectful to my opponents before my fights, but if I’m going to fight you, I don’t want to be nice to you. I want to hurt you. Afterwords it’s a different story.

I was more excited for this fight than usual because of the opportunity to fight in my hometown of Spokane, Washington. I sold a countless number of tickets around the area through word of mouth. There was a huge turn-out, and the place was just crazy. There were people in the crowd that I hadn’t seen in forever, and I mean forever. It was mind blowing. I didn’t want to let anyone down, most importantly, I didn’t want to let myself down. I had worked far too hard up until this point in my career to let someone embarrass my in front of my friends and family.

I came out and I tried to take him down right from the get go. I shot a single-leg on him, and he was stronger than I ever expected, so I ended up not getting it. I do this weird thing where it looks like I pull guard, but I’m not really pulling guard. I can go to a single, and then pull someone on top of me, so it looks like I get taken down but I’m just waiting for them to make a mistake. Just like everyone usually does in that position, he tried to pass, and when he tried to pass I ended up reversing him and taking him down.

I had him pinned against the cage really good at that point, and I was just focused on getting my hands loose as soon as I could. I just wanted to start dishing out punishment and end the fight as soon as possible like I always try to. You’re not getting paid by the hour in the cage. I wanted to get in there, do my job, and get out of there as soon as I could. I just started throwing some massive elbows. I ended up giving him three enormous gashes. I mean these were some of the worst cuts I’ve ever seen. I stopped Rafaello Oliveira during EliteXC due to a nasty cut from an elbow, and the smallest one on Josh was that size or larger.

I hit him with the first elbow and I thought to myself, ‘Oh, game over, you just lost’. Blood was everywhere almost immediately, and I was a little surprised because the ref wasn’t stopping it. I kind of laughed to myself and thought, ‘Okay…’, and I started hitting him with some more really hard elbows. I postured up to get more leverage on my strikes and after landing another elbow or two I saw that he was in really bad shape so I just punched him a couple of times hoping the referee would show the guy some mercy. Thankfully, he finally did.

I found out later that he ended up needing 22 staples and 18 stitches. He’s a really tough guy though. It was just my night. You can be sure that he will be back and better than ever. There was no quit in him. Look at what has happened to Rafaello since we fought; he’s gone on to win three straight and recently signed with the UFC.

I was feeling really good afterwords, but my boy Mike Hanks, he was 4-0, he fought Sidnei Silva and lost in a really close decision. That was a pretty big bummer. He’s an extremely talented guy and if anything, this loss will just serve to make him better than ever in the future. Overall it was a good night of fights. There were five fighters from my team on the card, and we ended up going 4 for 5, so I was happy.

There was one man in the crowd specifically that I’ve had my eye on since signing with Strikeforce, and that man is Josh Thomson. I took the microphone afterwords and called him out. I just let it be known that I loved fighting in my hometown, but my ultimate goal is to fight either Josh Thomson or Gilbert Melendez. Whoever is holding that belt, that’s who I want to fight. The way I look at it is this: If I don’t want to fight the best in my division, then I’m in the wrong sport.

I just want to fight the top guys. That’s all I’ve ever wanted. I have a constant hunger to push, and test myself. I want the belt. It almost consumes me. I think about it constantly. It’s like I traded one addiction for another. I want to be the Strikeforce Champion. You can call it an obsession if you’d like. The term fits to be quite honest. I don’t duck anybody, and whoever Strikeforce wants to put me against, that’s who I’m fighting. I just want the best guys available to me. I have full confidence that I’ll beat anyone they put in front of me. I want to headline cards in the future, and I don’t care who I have to go through to do it.

Undefeated featherweight sensation Eric Marriott is set to face off with Ryan “Are You Ready?” Roberts as a co-headlining attraction for the recently announced inaugural Titan Entertainment’s Combat Sports Championships.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com was recently able to confirm the booking of the bout through sources close to the promotion.

Combat Sports Championships is set for Friday, October 2 at 7:00 p.m. CT at the Memorial Hall in Kansas City, Kansas.

Marriott is widely seen as one of the hottest prospects currently competing at 145 pounds. Marriot has taken the world of MMA by storm since making his jump into the sport just a year and a half ago, putting together an unblemished record of 14-0. Amazingly, somehow Eric has managed to rack up all fourteen of his professional victories in just sixteen months time.

Roberts has the same amount of fights as Marriott, but has been competing in the sport for twice as long. A vetreran of the Octagon, Roberts came up short in his UFC debut, submitting to an armbar at the hands of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Marcus Aurelio.

A headlining bout is currently being worked out for the card and will be announced shortly.

A full list of the bouts expected for Titan Entertainment’s Combat Sports Championships are listed below:

Eric Marriott vs. Ryan Roberts
Rudy Bears vs. Matt Delanoit
Joe Wilk vs. [TBA] (A recent injury has forced Sean “P-Town” Wilson from the card. A replacement for Wilks will be announced shortly)
Brian Davidson vs. Tim Bazer
Tyler Stinson vs. Brandon Newsome
Drew Dober vs. Aaron Derrow
Chad Vandenberg vs. Shad Lankford
John Ott vs. Ryan Braun
Justin Seffron vs. Todd Bell
Anthony Guiterrez vs. Tyler Spencer
Dustin Sullivan vs. Greg Waag
Jake Lindsey vs. Donald Bradshaw

The coming weekend showcases a wealth of intriguing match-ups between some of the more talented and marketable names in the business.

Come along as I dive headfirst into the coming weekend of fights that include names like Dave “Pee Wee” Herman, Lyle Beerbohm, Ricardo Arona, Jeff Monson, Don Frye, Murilo “Ninja” Rua and many more.

American Steel Cagefighting II – Friday, September 11 – Salem, New Hampshire

Calvin Kattar vs. Andrew Montanez: At just twenty-one years of age Calvin Kattar is definitely a lightweight prospect to keep an eye on in the future. Having been referenced in the past as MMA’s answer to boxing’s Mickey Ward in the past, the 6-1 up and comer took the Chris Horodecki approach to MMA, getting his professional start in the business well before his twenties.

Montanez is a tough dude, but he should be easy pickings for Kattar. Expect an early submission or TKO for Kattar in this bout, but more importantly, remember the name and don’t forget that I told you so when he makes the move to the big leagues within the next year.

Arena Rumble – Saturday, September 12 – Spokane, Washington

Jason Guida vs. Jeremy Horn: Gumby is one of the toughest guys walking the face of the earth at the moment. The guy has 105 recorded fights….. that’s fights on record. I’d imagine his true record rests near the 150 mark. Three consecutive losses in his last stint with the UFC make a return to the promotion anytime really soon improbable, but with a recent first round submission victory at Adrenaline III it seems like Horn would be just a win or two away from linking up with an organization such as Strikeforce, Dream or Sengoku.

Jason Guida would be a lot more effective if he made the appropriate cut down to the 185 pound division but his disastrous appearance as a light-heavyweight on The Ultimate Fighter lets you know that will never be a realistic possibility.

I’d be really surprised if this one gets out of the first due to the enormous differential in skill level, but barring injury there’s no way Horn doesn’t leave with the victory. Make it five losses in a row for Guida following Saturday evening.

Lyle Beerbohm vs. Josh Martin: Don’t get me wrong, Horn is a legend, but for me the real story of this card is without a doubt lightweight prospect Lyle Beerbohm. At 12-0 Beerbohm is the brightest prospect in the business at 155 pounds in my opinion. He currently holds stoppage victories over UFC veteran Gerald Strebendt, newly signed UFC lightweight Rafaello Oliveira , and most recently, the extremely dangerous Duane “Bang” Ludwig.

The scariest thing about Lyle is the fact that he’s only been out of prison and training in the sport for just over two years. To have that kind of success in that short amount of time is remarkable. It’s the exact type of thing that anyone experienced in scouting talent in mixed martial arts gives a tremendous amount of weight. Out of twelve victims, only one has managed to make it to the final bell with Beerbohm. Lyle finished every single one of his amateur bouts. How this guy continues to fly under the radar with a lot of fans is beyond me.

His opponent, Josh Martin, is a strong wrestler and a very tough opponent. Should be a fun fight to watch but there’s not a doubt in my mind that Beerbohm improves upon his undefeated record when this one is all said and done.

Bitetti Combat Nordeste – Saturday, September 12 – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Ricardo Arona vs. Marvin Eastman: Now this is a fantastic card. If Bitetti Combat can continue to put together match-ups like these they will quickly become a major force in the international MMA scene.

It’s gong to be really interesting to finally see Arona return to action. His smothering style has long made him one of my least favorite fighters to watch, but there’s no question that in proper form Arona should be considered among the top competitors in the light-heavyweight division. If Arona looks good in victory over a guy like Marvin Eastman I’d be shocked if he wasn’t immediately signed to a multi-fight contract with either the UFC, Strikeforce, DREAM or Sengoku.

While I’m sure that there are quite a few fans that would love to see Arona fight on American soil in the near future, I personally find that possibility far more unlikely as opposed to him fighting in Japan. Arona has spent his entire career fighting in Japan up until this point, and I have to believe there must be a good reason for that.

Eastman’s always fun to watch, but theoretically he should be out-matched in this one. Guess we’ll just have to wait and see which Arona shows up.

Paulo Filho vs. Alex Schoenauer: A close friend to Arona, and another guy I find it very unlikely to be returning to America anytime soon for all of the same reasons that may prevent Ricardo.

Although he was being battered in the early moments of his recent submission victory over Melvin Manhoef, Filho did appear to have returned to his old dominant form to some degree in that bout in contrast to his previous bouts against Chael Sonnen that were held stateside. I fully expect a revitalized and powerful Filho to show up in this fight.

Schoenauer is a much better fighter than his 13-9 record would indicate. He’s made a career in the business competing against some of the toughest fighters he could compete against.

When Filho is on he’s a hard guy to beat. I expect his wrestling and submission arsenal to make the ultimate difference in this one.

Pedro Rizzo vs. Jeff Monson: Another great match-up. At first glance my gut tells me Monson wins this fight, and wins it easy. I’m fully aware that they faced off before and it ended with Monson being TKO’d in brutal fashion, but in my opinion “The Snowman” is the far more improved fighter since the two last met. However, styles make fights.

The main thing that jumps out at me in this one is this: Sure, Rizzo’s lost eight of his last thirteen while Monson has won his last seven, but Jeff has been submitting guys and Rizzo doesn’t submit. It just doesn’t happen. If you’re going to beat Rizzo, the formula is there, you just have to have the striking skills necessary to get it done. I don’t think Monson does. While a decision victory for the decorated grappler isn’t out of the question, I feel like it will be his best chance to obtain victory.

Murilo Rua vs. Alex Stiebling: Coming off of back to back wars against Benji Radach and Riki Fukuda, Ninja is going to have another battle on his hands with Steibling. Despite suffering losses in his previous two outings, I feel like we have seen the sharpest Ninja ever in his last two performances despite up on the short end of the stick in both bouts. It happens.

With that being said, anyone familiar with Steibling will tell you that the guys an absolute animal. Extremely slick ground game and punishing stand-up arsenal, Alex has been in there with the best of them during his nearly ten years spent in the sport. This fight just screams “Fight of the Night” to me.

Shark Fights – Saturday, September 12 – Amarillo, Texas

Dave Herman vs. Don Frye: I love Don to death, but I don’t know who convinced him to take this fight. They say the last thing to go with a fighter is their punch, and I firmly believe this to be true. In that respect Frye has a legitimate chance in this one. A very, very slim legitimate chance. A punchers chance to be specific. That’s not a good place to be in the cage. Anytime someone say that the a fighter has a “punchers chance”, bet money on the other guy. Trust me.

Herman is just too young, athletic and powerful for Don. It’s not going to be pretty, but it should be fun to watch.

(Pictured: Lyle Beerbohm)