Issue 024
April 2007
Ultimate Fighting UK – Cro Cop to headline!
Ultimate Fighting Championship president Dana White has confirmed the UFC will return to the United Kingdom on April 21st, 2007.
The first UFC show in Great Britain in four years is set to take place in Manchester, at the Manchester Evening News Arena. Tickets go on sale on Monday February 19th.
“We are very excited to be back in the UK,” said UFC President Dana White. “We had a lot of obstacles over the last six years, but I never gave up on bringing the UFC back to the UK. Now we have our UK office up and running, we’re going to have fights in the UK and throughout Europe, so the UFC is here to stay.”
Announced as the main attraction for the show is Croatian kickboxer and MMA star Mirko Cro Cop Filipovic. As yet no opponent has been officially announced, but sources from within Gabriel Gonzaga’s camp have pointed to the heavyweight slugger being offered a shot at the former PRIDE and K-1 fighter. Gonzaga is 7-1-0 and fights out of Rio De Janeiro. The 242lb jiu-jitsu stylist will be in for a tough test against Cro Cop, who has a career record of 22-4-2.
Also slated to appear on the show is former light heavyweight champion, Tito Ortiz. It is thought Ortiz will face Forrest Griffin in a rematch of their April 2006 fight, which Ortiz won by split decision. Andrei Arlovski is also rumoured to show, possibly to fight against Assuerio Silva of Brazil.
The UFC last went to England in 2002, holding an event in the Royal Albert Hall. Entitled Brawl in the Hall, it saw a welterweight title fight between Matt Hughes and Carlos Newton and Ian Freeman’s famous destruction of Frank Mir.
The Manchester Evening News Arena is a popular boxing venue and has been the site for many of local light welterweight star Ricky Hatton. In 2006 it held Manchester’s first ever cage fighting event when the one-off promotion World Cage Fighting Championships came to town. Infamous for it’s recruiting of Mike Tyson as a referee and crowd trouble, the WCFC was a solid MMA show that did not enjoy much success due to a distorted public perception of what was being sold, with the event being targeted mostly at boxing fans and billed as a ‘no holds barred’ event. Since then MMA has grown to be extremely popular in England with mainstream media outlets offering a more realistic portrayal of MMA.
Fedor vs. Lindland official!
It has been rumoured for some time but former middleweight MMA fighter and Olympic silver medallist Matt Lindland will face the world’s greatest heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko in Russia.
BodogFight announced that Emelianenko and the top ranked middleweight Lindland is set to take place on Saturday, April 14 in St. Petersburg, Russia. Though the bout was previously announced, the date had still been unspecified prior to today.
Lindland has been quoted as saying “Yes, I am crazy. That’s why I got into this sport, but I don't make a habit of taking fights I don't feel I can win,” as to why he would face a person not only two weight divisions above him, but the top fighter of that weight class. In answer: “I want to fight the best guys out there. I always have. I appreciate Bodog for giving me the opportunity to fight the best. Some promoters just want to promote their guys and are afraid to sign the best because they may beat their guys, so I found a promotion that believes in me and my abilities.”
Fedor is said to have signed a three-fight deal with Bodog, but will still be available to fight in PRIDE to defend his title. In the past the Russian has expressed interest in fighting for whoever offers the best deal and has made clear his deal with PRIDE is non-exclusive.
The undercard of the event will see Fedor’s younger brother Aleksander Emelianenko face off against super heavyweight Eric Pele. Winners of the “BodogFight: St. Petersburg” reality series, currently being aired now, will be invited back to fight on the event.
GSP signs 6-fight deal with UFC
The UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre has signed up for a further six fights with the UFC, said his manager Stephane Patry.
St-Pierre had two fights left on his contract when negotiations with the UFC began, but with this latest signing he will exclusively remain with the UFC for another six fights.
Patry stated the deal would make St. Pierre “one of the highest paid fighters in the UFC, probably top three."
Jungle Fight joins forces with boxing promoter
Wallid Ismail, the promoter of Jungle Fight, has announced that the organisation has sealed a deal with New York based boxing promoter Cedric Kushner.
The deal is said to allow Ismail to produce MMA events in the United States with Kushner’s support.
Ismail is currently locked in a legal battle with boxing promoter Gary Shaw, who he was previously aligned with. Ismail has four Jungle Fight-branded events lined up for North America in 2007.
UFC 72: Silva vs. Marquardt?
It looks like Anderson Silva’s next title defence could be against the seven-time King of Pancrase Nathan Marquardt.
Marquardt, 25-6-2, will fight for the UFC 185lb title on June 30th according to various news websites.
Silva, who submitted Travis Lutter in UFC 67 (full report on page 38), was supposed to defend his title against the jiu-jitsu black belt, but Lutter failed to make weight and therefore it was a non-title match.
Marquardt recently defeated Dean Lister on January 25. He is 4-0 in the Octagon but only one of those fights, his defeat against Ivan Salaverry, has been televised. The New Mexico-based fighter is a team mate of Diego Sanchez.
Silva, who has destroyed everyone offered to him, will have a tough test on his hands with the young American, who has spent most of his career fighting in Japan.
Thiago Alves suspended for eight months
Brazilian fighter Thiago Alves has been fined and suspended by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
The NSAC disciplined Alves, a UFC welterweight contender for testing positive for a banned diuretic.
He has been suspended for eight months and fined US$5,500 for testing positive for banned diurectic Spironolactone.
Victorious over Peruvian-American fighter Tony DeSouza on December 30, the Brazilian has been tipped as a strong future challenger in the welterweight division. Training with the American Top Team camp in Florida, Alves was scheduled to fight Josh Burkman at UFC Fight Night 8 before the positive results came back.
Salmon indefinitely suspended
Sean Salmon has been “indefinitely” suspended by the Florida State Boxing Commission after he being knocked out by Rashad Evans at UFC Fight Night 8 on January 25th.
Light heavyweight hopeful Rashad sent Salmon to the nearby Memorial Regional Hospital when he KO’d the portly fighter with a brutal head kick. Salmon remained unconscious for around seven minutes, and was removed from the Octagon on a stretcher.
At this point he will need medical clearance before he can return to the Octagon and resume his career.
Alex Owen vs. Brad Pickett
A featherweight fight has been added to Cage Rage 21 in the form of London-favourite Brad Pickett versus undefeated submission fighter Alex Owen.
Owen, a serving policeman, is 14-0-0 in professional competition, and one of the top featherweights in the country. This will be his first fight on the London promotion Cage Rage.
Pickett, who is 9-2-0 in MMA, has only been active since 2004 but has gained a massive following of fans in the UK and abroad. Regularly going to train with the American Top Team in Florida, Londoner Pickett will return to the cage after fighting in Costa Rica in February for the Bodog fight promotion.
Seni hotting up!
The 2007 Seni looks to be the biggest and best ever, with a brand new Olympic Zone lined up along side many star attractions.
Newham Borough Council, the 2012 Olympic Games host borough, has thrown its support behind Seni 07 show. With aims to discover future Olympians, Seni will host workshops for children who would like to find out more about the Olympic disciplines and martial arts in general. They will coached by current and former Olympians whilst being able to discover where their nearest club is located through our network of club and academy exhibitors.
Flavio Canto, and Olympic judo medallist in 2004, will compete at Seni07 in a super bout against a UK opponent over 3 rounds in the 3,000 seat Seni arena in a Masters of the Mat grappling bout. He is also set to conduct a Judo seminar session at the show.
From the world of kickboxing, the most famous K-1 fighter of all time will be at the Seni show. K-1 star Ernesto Hoost will be there making personal appearances, conduct a seminar and appear as a guest of honour at the groundbreaking 'Pain and Glory' K-1 Max event on the Sunday night.
Ernesto Hoost is possibly the greatest K-1 fighter ever, and the only man to win the Grand Prix title four times. Hoost's career, which really kicked off in 1993, when he was runner-up in the K-1 World Grand Prix that year, has seen him consistently compete at the highest level and fight and beat some of the biggest names in the game on his way to making history. With a career record of 97 wins from 116 fights, Hoost has scored victories over virtually all of the top kickboxers in the world. This is your opportunity to meet a living legend of the sport, so don't miss it!
FX3 Fight Night 4
Saturday 10th March will see the return of Paul Daley to the cage as he takes on Daniel Weichel of Germany in a defence of his FX3 welterweight title. Daley, ranked as the UK’s top welterweight, will take on the winner of the European Vale Tudo middleweight tournament Weichal in a highly anticipated showdown.
The co main event sees the FX3 featherweight title in dispute as undefeated Alex Owen takes on Frederic Fernandez in a rematch of their 2004 encounter.
A supporting card of MMA and kickboxing will round off the evening, which will take place in Reading, Berkshire.
Enter the Rough House, again
An evening of MMA action featuring three Cage Warriors title fights are due to arrive in Nottingham in April. Saturday 28th April will see Cage Warriors return to the Harvey Hadden Sports Centre for the second edition of their “Enter The Rough House” series.
The first "Enter The Rough House" show in December 2006 was a sell out and received rave reviews from fans.
The second show will see the Cage Warriors team once again showcase fighters from Nottingham's own Team Rough House and the Tap or Snap / Derby Shoot gym.
Local favourites Dan Hardy, Wayne Buck and Christian Smith are confirmed to fight and will do battle alongside other Cage Warriors veterans such as Ian "M16" Butlin and the CWFC featherweight champ Danny Batten.
The CWFC bantamweight champion Paul McVeigh will defend his title against the unbeaten Steve "Taz" McCombe. McVeigh is known for his aggressive high-tempo displays and is unbeaten at this weight. McCombe faces his toughest test to date against the Scottish-based Irishman.
Ian 'The Machine' Freeman to MC ‘Fight First’
Which nation has the toughest MMA fighters, UK or France? Its an old question and one that hopes to be answered on Friday 23rd March in London.
Fight First MMA presents a UK vs. France event with ten professional MMA fights in a boxing ring. This pulsating fightcard will showcase France and the UK's finest right in the centre of London!
With world and national champion fighters lined up for the fightcard, UK MMA fans are in for treat with fighters from the UK's top MMA clubs; London Shootfighters, Storm, Royler Gracie, London Thai, Pancrase London, and many more…
The show will be held in the Porchester Hall, Bayswater, (London travel zone one).
Strike & Submit
The first Strike & Submit, which was held on The 28th January, was a huge success. The Fighters Only sponsored event had 12 bouts, with fighters traveling from Sweden and Ireland to take part.
With a sell out crowd, everybody was entertained with some great displays from Jack Sexton, Dale Dargon for the Semi Pros while Diego Gonzalez and Per Eklund more than performed for the Pros.
The next event will be held on April 17th.
Cage Rage 21 card
Though it is not yet confirmed, rumours are that the card for April 21st’s Cage Rage will see Britain’s Buzz Berry fight the giant American Bob ‘The Beast’ Sapp!
In supporting action will be Mark Weir (making his return from injury), French kickboxer Cyrille Diabete vs. BJJ fighter Ryan Robinson, Xavier Foupa Pokam rematch Alex Reid, Matt Ewin vs James E Nichol.
Also making his return to the cage will be Evangelista ‘Cyborg’ Santos, facing veteran Londoner James Zikic.
Toughill
Female boxer and mixed martial artist Toughill is under review by athletics commissions for is under review for violating a suspension issued by the Nevada State Athletic Cimission in August. TKO’d in a boxing match against Laura Ramsey, Toughill was given a 30-day suspension.
She then competed in a non-regulated MMA bout against Jen Case on September 15th in California.
“She needs to appear before the Commission and explain why she fought knowingly on suspension,” said a spokesperson for the NSAC. “I think a lot might have to do with it being different sports, but that doesn’t mean anything. You get knocked out by a head blow like she did, you need a little time off.”
Toughill is filing jointly for a license to compete in boxing and MMA. She is currently 7-2-1 in MMA and 7-3-1 in boxing.
Cole Escovedo Left Paralysed After Staph Infection
World Extreme Cagefighting veteran Cole Escovedo has been paralysed from the waist down.
His condition has been caused by an untreated Staph infection, that went unchecked for around a month.
It has been reported that Escovedo, known as the ‘Apache Kid’, has undergone an operation to remove build up of fluid on the spine due to the infection.
Escovedo has been released from hospital and is at home. He is set to begin therapy. It is unknown if the paralysis is a permanent condition, or a temporary symptom of the infection.
Fighters Only wishes Escovedo a speedy recovery.
Marcus "Conan" Silveira to Make MMA Return March 31st
Veteran UFC and Extreme Fighting veteran heavyweight Marcus Silveira is set to make a return to MMA on March 31st.
The Florida resident, who has recently been released from prison for his role in a drug dealing ring, will appear on the Panther Fight League’s debut event.
The 42-year-old Silveira (5-4-0) will compete for the first time since 2002. The American Top Team fighter Has fought in the US and Japan against opponents such as Kazushi Sakuraba and Maurice Smith.
NSAC: “No thanks, Yvel”
Dutch heavyweight Gilbert Yvel has been denied a license to fight in Nevada for "inexcusable behaviour".
The NSAC has decided against allowing the kickboxer a license due to an incident in 2004 in which Yvel struck a referee in the ring when fighting in Finland.
Yvel KO’d the referee, who was the coach of his opponent, midway through a fight for feeling his was being unacceptably penalised and that the referee was trying to give his opponent an unfair advantage.
The Dutch fighter has a history of bad behaviour, with three disqualifications on his record.
Cage Rage Contenders Ireland
Cage Rage Contenders hits Ireland for the first time with ‘The Real Deal’. MMA fighter turned promoter John Kavanagh will host Dublin’s first Cage Rage show on 26th May.
Headlining the show is a tantalising lightweight match up between no-gi grappling star and PRIDE veteran Chris Brennan and flamboyant French fighter Samy Schiavo. Also featured is a welterweight fight between Liverpudlian fighter Jason Tan and Welsh warrior Paul Jenkins.
Englishman and Cage Rage veteran Sol Gilbert will face Polish boxer Adrian Degorski, while Scots fighter James Doolan will meet Dutchman Aaron Karels.
Per Eklund will defend his title in Strike & Submit
Swedish fighter Per Eklund will be back in the UK to defend his recently gained lightweight title on Strike & Submit, Sunday 15th April.
Defeating Aaron Barrow in just over one minute via strikes, Eklund will go on to face the undefeated David Metcalf, a submission fighter from the North East of England.
9-2-1, Eklund has fought in Russia, Finland and Japan.
Hansen signs in Pride
Joachim Hansen and PRIDE have come to a deal, with the Norwegian lightweight signing a contract that will see him remain in the Japan-based promotion for another five fights.
Hansen is one of Europe’s most successful fighters. A former Shooto champion and five-time PRIDE veteran, the ferocious submission fighter has fought in the USA once, but will add to that by appearing on the scheduled 24th February PRIDE show.
Manhoef relinquishes Cage Rage title
Melvin Manhoef has given up his Cage Rage light heavyweight world title due to contractual obligations with other organisations.
Dutchman Manhoef, a ferocious striker and K-1 middleweight Grand Prix finalist in 2006, has given his belt back to Cage Rage after signing a further two-year contract with K-1 HERO’s.
Manhoef has a career record of 15-3-1, with wins over fighters such as Crosley Gracie, Cyborg Santos and Shungo Oyama. He fought four times in Cage Rage, defeating Mathias Riccio, Fabio Piamonte, Evangelista Santos and Ian Freeman.
MMA in Milan
Milan, Italy may be the fashion capital of the world but it sees an attraction of a different kind when it hosts Italy’s leading MMA event, New Generation Tournament, on March 25th.
The second edition of the emerging event, which features many of Italy’s best up and coming fighters, will see some seasoned veterans from abroad. Representatives from Enson Inoue of Japan and Remco Pardoel’s team are scheduled to appear.
Experienced fighters will compete under PRIDE rules, whereas novices counterparts will fight for two five-minute rounds with no kicks or knees to the head permitted while their opponent is grounded.
Babalú and Tibau return to UFC
Two Brazilian fighters will appear on the undercard of Randy Couture’s return on UFC 68. The return of Randy Couture to the octagon will headline the event, however Renato Babalu Sobral and Gleidson Tibau will feature in supporting bouts.
Babalu will face Jason Lambert while Gleidson Tibau (who lost to Nick Diaz in UFC 65) will face American Jason Dent. Couture will challenge the current heavyweight champion, Tim Sylvia as both Brazilians look to get their UFC record back on a winning track.
Black House hit the UK
Jorge Guimaraes, manager of the new MMA team Black House, has been quoted as saying that ‘Lyoto’ Machida and Assuerio Silva will appear on UFC 70, the first UFC to be held in the UK in four years. No opponents have yet eben named, but a number of heavyweights and light heavyweights have been mentioned as possible candidates. While it is thought that Tito Ortiz is fighting Forrest Griffin, Machida could be a potential opponent, while Andrei Arlovski, scheduled to appear on the UFC card, could face heavyweight Silva.
Belfort booked for Cage Rage 21
Vitor Belfort will be back in the UK later this year as he returns to the Cage Rage octagon.
Despite being banned by the Nevada State Athletic Commission for a positive drugs test, Vitor Belfort will appear on the Cage Rage event on April 21st, which coincides with the UFC’s UK return.
Testing positive for 4-Hydroxytestosterone, Belfort was disciplined by the Nevada State Athletic Commission following his decision loss to Dan Henderson. Belfort was lined up to Marvin Eastman, but Eastman has resigned with the UFC according to sources within Cage Rage.
As yet an opponent has not been revealed for Belfort, who now fights for the Brazilian team Black House.
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