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USA TODAY: UFC champ Renan Barao not focused on gaudy winning streak

BAD MMA News — Fri, 20 Sep 2013 17:15:00 +0000

UFC interim bantamweight champion Renan Barao hasn’t lost an MMA fight in eight years. You’d think it would be hard for the 26-year-old Brazilian to remember what defeat feels like. But the memory is never far away.

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USA TODAY: UFC champ Renan Barao not focused on gaudy winning streak – MMA Junkie

UFC boss: Uriah Hall ‘not a fighter,’ ‘TUF 17′ finalist’s next move uncertain

BAD MMA News — Sun, 18 Aug 2013 10:55:00 +0000

BOSTON – Saturday night’s UFC Fight Night 26 event turned out to be one of the most entertaining fight cards in recent memory, save for one flop of a fight: John Howard vs. Uriah Hall.

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UFC boss: Uriah Hall ‘not a fighter,’ ‘TUF 17′ finalist’s next move uncertain – MMA Junkie

For King Mo Lawal, Heading into Wednesday’s Bellator 97, “It’s About the Belt”

BAD MMA News — Mon, 29 Jul 2013 18:05:19 +0000

When former Strikeforce light heavyweight champion Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal met career journeyman Emmanuel Newton in the semifinals of the 2013 Bellator light heavyweight tournament back in February, he did so as an astonishing -1200 favorite. On that night, however, Newton shocked the MMA universe by dispatching the former Strikeforce champion with a stunning spinning backfist knockout early in the first round. Not only was it one of the bigger upsets in recent memory, it also marked the first promotional defeat for Bellator’s biggest free agent signing to that date. Surprisingly, for Lawal, a former Oklahoma State All-American, the upset was much easier to deal with than one might think. “With my amateur wrestling background, a loss is a loss,” Lawal told MMAWeekly.com. “It’s not like MMA is a greater sport than wrestling

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For King Mo Lawal, Heading into Wednesday’s Bellator 97, “It’s About the Belt” – MMA Weekly

Fifty-pound cut underway, Bellator’s David Rickels on slimming down, growing up

BAD MMA News — Sat, 20 Jul 2013 04:00:00 +0000

David Rickels thinks he probably was at a buffet eating lo mein and crab rangoon when he got the call to fight lightweight champ Michael Chandler at Bellator 97. He knows he was 205 pounds. Rickels isn’t big on living in the past or the future, but the present of that moment sticks in his memory. “Initial shock factor was about a nine,” he told MMAjunkie.com Radio (www.mmajunkie.com/radio). A winner in Bellator’s Season 8 lightweight tournament, Rickels (14-1 MMA, 8-1 BFC) stepped in for an injured Dave Jansen to meet Chandler (11-0 MMA, 8-0 BFC) on July 31 at Santa Ana Star Center in New Mexico. The title fight headlines the event’s main card on Spike following prelims on Spike.com

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Fifty-pound cut underway, Bellator’s David Rickels on slimming down, growing up – MMA Junkie

Joseph Benavidez Happy Biding His Time Before UFC Title Shot Number Two

BAD MMA News — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 16:00:29 +0000

When the UFC announced it was expanding to open up a 125-pound division, Joseph Benavidez believed that, campaigning at his natural weight for the first time, nothing could stop him from becoming a champion. His only two career losses at that stage were to Dominick Cruz , but moving down a division meant that the 28-year-old would never again have to deal with opponents possessing the same sort of height and reach as the undisputed 135-pound king. Benavidez dispensed with Yasuhiro Urushitani in the opening round of the four-man UFC flyweight tournament only to be outpointed by Demetrious Johnson in the final. The fight was sufficiently close to have ended in a split decision, but it is a setback that is still fresh in his memory. “I think about it a lot (because) that was something I counted on for a long time, that once they start the flyweight division I was going to be the champion automatically,” he said.

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Joseph Benavidez Happy Biding His Time Before UFC Title Shot Number Two – MMA Weekly

Daniel Cormier Wants to Make 205 by Year’s End, But Plans to Fight His Way Out at Heavyweight

BAD MMA News — Mon, 03 Jun 2013 16:00:00 +0000

Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix champion Daniel Cormier was one of the most anticipated UFC arrivals in recent memory. He’s been extremely successful at heavyweight, amassing a spotless 12-0 professional record in mixed martial arts, but now has aspirations of fighting his way down to light heavyweight. Cormier’s Octagon debut was a grinding victory over Frank Mir at UFC on Fox 7, which only reinforced the idea that a drop to 205 pounds might be the best move for his future, especially considering his friend and teammate Cain Velasquez is the current UFC heavyweight champion. Cormier and Velasquez had danced around the idea of having to one day fight each other until recently when Cormier committed to the idea of fighting in the light heavyweight division instead of just toying with the idea. “The truth of the matter is when I am (moving to 205 pounds) now,” Cormier said in a recent group media interview. “It’s not when I do, if I am

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Daniel Cormier Wants to Make 205 by Year’s End, But Plans to Fight His Way Out at Heavyweight – MMA Weekly

Fabrico Werdum looks to prove he’s as good as best nights, not as bad as worst

BAD MMA News — Mon, 03 Jun 2013 01:15:00 +0000

It’s been almost seven years since Fabricio Werdum lost a decision to Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira in the 2006 PRIDE open weight grand prix, and a lot has changed. For one thing, PRIDE is but a memory. So are the days when Nogueira was the unfinishable, unsubmittable zombie warrior of MMA’s heavyweight division. But a lot has changed for Werdum as well, and that loss is one of the big reasons why. “The first time I fought [Nogueira] I was mostly just a jiu-jitsu fighter,” Werdum told MMAjunkie.com (mmajunkie.com) through an interpreter. “Ever since that fight I felt like I had to evolve.” The fruits of that labor were on display just last year when Werdum made his return to the UFC with a dominant decision victory over heavyweight contender Roy Nelson at UFC 143. For three rounds, Werdum battered Nelson on the feet, showing off a striking game that he’d only hinted at in previous fights

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Fabrico Werdum looks to prove he’s as good as best nights, not as bad as worst – MMA Junkie