Brazilian featherweight star Marlon Sandro has not endured an ideal end to his 2010 campaign.

On December 30, he was unable to defend his Sengoku featherweight title when he dropped a unanimous decision to challenger Hatsu Hioki.

The bout headlined the SRC: "Soul of Fight" event in Tokyo, Japan, last Thursday.

It was a disappointing finish in a year where he was 2-0 with two brutal knockouts in a combined 47 seconds leading up to the meeting with Hioki.

In an interview Friday morning with Sandro's coach and Nova Uniao head trainer Andre Pederneiras, he revealed there was plenty of reason to worry heading into the bout.

"Marlon had a big infection in his right hand," he said. "The doctors said to him not to fight. He couldn't punch or grapple with his right hand for 20 days, but he decided to fight because it was the main event. He knows Sengoku needed him to do a great show."

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via cdn2.sbnation.com

Underappreciated + Underexposed = Underrated.

It's a simple formula that describes a host of current MMA fighters who are simply not receiving the proper dap they deserve.

With so many organizations and fighters scattered throughout the globe it is understandable a few are not properly valued at an ideal level.  

These men may be familiar names to hardcore fans; however, they remain outside the purview of the mainstream to varying degrees.

Without further ado, here are five of the most underrated fighters in the sport:

5) Evan Dunham - UFC - (11 - 0)

Four up and four down for Dunham in his brief UFC tenure.

He is coming off his most impressive win to date, defeating Xtreme Couture teammate Tyson Griffin in June at UFC 115 via split decision. Had it not been for a rogue judge it would have been correctly scored as unanimous.

It was a thorough domination of the 10-fight UFC veteran Griffin by embracing his reach advantage, effective counter punching, and displaying superior grappling.

Since then, however, he has been lost in the shuffle a bit by fellow lightweights like Frankie Edgar, BJ Penn, Gray Maynard, Kenny Florian, and even Takanori Gomi and George Sotiropoulos to a certain degree.

Despite his growing resume he remains a blip on the radar screen.

A win over former UFC Lightweight Champion Sean Sherk on September 25 at UFC 119 would go a long way in cementing his status as a credible commodity and future title challenger.

4) Hector Lombard - Bellator - (27 - 2 - 1)

If your local Fox Sports Net affiliate has been kind to you over the past few months you've gotten a chance to see Lombard in peak form.

After capturing the Bellator middleweight title in season one he triumphantly returned for the second stanza with back-to-back knockouts of UFC veteran Jay Silva and Herbert Goodman in non-title bouts. He disposed of both men in a combined 44 seconds.

More impressive yet is his active win streak. Since November 2006 he is 19 - 0 - 1. That's not a typo.

Critics of his resume will quickly point out that he has not exactly faced a murderer's row time in and time out and they would be correct to a certain point.

If given the opportunity someday to fight in a top promotion such as Strikeforce or the UFC he has both the physical tools and the skills necessary to be a serious threat to their upper tier 185-pounders.

"Shango" is scheduled to defend his crown against Alexander Shlemenko on October 28 at Bellator 34. Don't plan on blinking.

3) Eddie Alvarez - Bellator - (20 - 2)

The fighting pride of Kensington, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Alvarez burst onto the scene in "The Land of the Rising Sun" during the 2008 DREAM Lightweight Grand Prix.

He won over Japanese fans with his aggressive boxing style and hard nosed demeanor.

Simply put - he's a finisher. That style is aesthetically pleasing to viewers. He has taken out his opponent in 18 of his 20 career victories (11 by knockout, 7 by submission).

His back and forth wars with Joachim Hansen and Tatsuya Kawajiri during the tournament were both legitimate candidates for "Fight of the Year" in all of MMA that year.

In 2009, he began to finally establish himself in the United States as he would go on to become Bellator's inaugural lightweight champion by winning their season one tournament.

A New Year's Eve 2008 loss to Shinya Aoki remains his only career blemish at 155-pounds.

His level of consistency has also allowed him to become a staple in the top five of the lightweight rankings over the course of the past two years.

That not withstanding, he remains a bit of an enigma to the general MMA populous hampered by the limited market share of Bellator.

He will take on a familiar face in former UFC fighter/Sports Illustrated cover boy Roger Huerta on October 21 at the Bellator 33 event in his hometown of Philadelphia.

The Liacouras Center is a mere three miles from his old neighborhood.

Click here for the final two. Both are Brazilians who have never fought in the US.

______________________

Derek Bolender is a freelance MMA writer who has contributed to outlets such as CBSSports.com, FIGHT! Magazine, MMAmania.com, and BleacherReport.com.

Follow him on Twitter (@DerekBolender).

Cristiane Santos has yet to be truly tested since she set foot in the United States in 2008.

It has been five up and five down for the Brazilian powerhouse including victories over Shayna Baszler, Gina Carano and Marloes Coenen. .

"Cyborg" will look to continue her dominance as she puts her title on the line against Jan Finney at the Strikeforce: "Fedor vs. Werdum" event on June 26 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, California.

Since my Portuguese Rosetta Stone was lost in the mail I enlisted the help of her manager, Flavio Scorsato, to help facilitate the interview.

We talked about her transition to living and training full-time in the United States, Strikeforce assigning opponents at the last minute and singing Black Eyed Peas at the top of her lungs.

Check it out:

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Paulo Thiago is a bigger badass than you are.

Aside from being a professional mixed martial artist he spends his days as a member of Batalhão de Operações Policiais Especiais in his native Brazil. BOPE, the commonly used acronym, is an elite special police force specializing in law enforcement, urban warfare and counter-terrorism.

In other words, when the police force needs help they call Thiago and his band of heavily armed brothers.

By comparison, it makes fighting in a cage against another world class athlete to be a bit of a stroll in the park. Thiago will look to continue his trek to a potential welterweight title shot as he takes on highly regarded contender Martin Kampmann on the main card of UFC 115 on June 12. In between training sessions he took some time out to discuss getting high on adrenaline, Josh Koscheck’s mouth, and trading gunfire with drug dealers.

Check it out:

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The younger half of the "Flying Nogueira" brothers is southpaw light heavyweight sensation Antonio Rogerio Nogueira.

Best known for his days in PRIDE, "Lil' Nog" was scooped up by Dana White and the UFC following the dissolution of Affliction. He impressed immediately.

UFC 106 in Las Vegas would mark his entry inside the Octagon, but his inaugural bout would certainly not last long as he knocked out Luiz Cane roughly two minutes into the first round.

His encore performance at UFC 109 was hampered by an ankle injury and his return was rescheduled for May 29 at the UFC 114 event against former UFC light heavyweight champion Forrest Griffin. It was not meant to be as Griffin pulled out due to an injury. Jason Brilz was tabbed as his replacement.

"Minotouro" took some time out of his busy fight week schedule to discuss his brother Rodrigo's recent struggles, the late opponent swap, his interest level in still fighting Griffin someday and a potential rematch with Mauricio "Shogun" Rua looming on the horizon.

Check it out:

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One of the best featherweights never to set foot in the United States is Marlon Sandro. You may have heard of his Nova Uniao teammate and WEC featherweight champion, Jose Aldo.

The 33-year-old Sandro, a world-beater in his own right, has accumulated a 16–1 career record to date. The one loss is certainly up for debate. It occurred in August 2009 against Michihiro Omigawa in the third round of the Sengoku Featherweight Grand Prix.

When the judge’s scores were rendered they read as follows: 30-30 draw, 30-30 draw, 30-29 Sandro. In other words, it was a majority draw. Per Sengoku rules, however, it had to go to a "must decision." The two judges who originally scored the fight a draw both gave the nod to Omigawa.

Sandro has since won two straight, both via first round knockout, and he is now scheduled to face Masanori Kanehara on June 20. First prize is Kanehara’s SRC featherweight title.

Between training sessions Sandro took some time out to discuss his controversial loss to Omigawa, his relationship with Jose Aldo, and his desire to take on America someday.

Check it out:

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UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre broke the news that he will be spending some quality time with world renowned boxing trainer Freddie Roach in the very near future.

"Rush" told Jim Rome on his nationally syndicated radio show that he will be flying to California today to begin training at Roach's Wildcard Gym in Hollywood.

Roach, best known for his training of seven-division world champion Manny Pacquiao, is coming off his supervision of yet another masterpiece less than a week ago on May 15. He was in the corner of trainee Amir Khan as he made his stateside debut at Madison Square Garden in New York. "King Khan" recorded an 11th round TKO victory to retain his WBA world light welterweight title after a dominant performance over challenger Paulie Malignaggi.

This will certainly not be the first time Roach has helped MMA fighters fine tune their "sweet science" repertoir. Anderson Silva, Andrei Arlovski, Gegard Mousasi, and Dan Hardy have all trained under his watchful eye in the past.

It will be interesting to see if the extra standup training pays tangible dividends for GSP in the future, who has been criticized recently by fans and pundits for not being able to finish fights. 

Click here to listen to a snippet of GSP's interview with Rome in which he addresses his "conservative" fighting style. (Props: Jim Rome's Twitter Page)

GSP is scheduled to defend his title in a rematch against Josh Koscheck at a date and time to be named later.

Stay tuned to MMAmania.com for further developments.  

"Fedor is a legend. If you want to become a legend you have to fight a legend and you have to beat a legend. I was hoping that he was asked to be a legend by his management and would want to fight the champion, because he's not the champion in Strikeforce. I was thinking and hoping he would like to have this fight. His management declined. Of course, it's sort of disappointment. Maybe for the better reason, I don't know. This gave me a good comeback with Brett Rogers and gave me some cage experience, which I didn't have for two and a half years. Maybe it's for the better. Maybe it's meant to be like this."

 - Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem reflects on facing Brett Rogers instead of his desired opponent Fedor Emelianenko, while remaining optimistic about what the future may bring. 

More pics after the jump. For Strikeforce: "Heavy Artillery" live results and post-fight recap click here and here.

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"To be very honest, the situation with Fedor (Emelianenko) is that he's fighting June 26. Of course, we'll have to wait and see what happens. Alistair (Overeem) has told me many times he would love to fight Fedor. He has called Fedor out in Japan when he fights in Japan all the time. He's looking forward to taking the fight. That's going to be something where we'll have to sit down with him after the June 26 fight. Like I said, you can't count Fabricio (Werdum) out."

 - Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker talks to the media during the "Heavy Artillery" post-fight press conference about a potential match-up between Heavyweight Champion Alistair Overeem and top-ranked opponent Fedor Emelianenko. "Demolition Man" disposed of former contender Brett Rogers in the first round of their championship tilt on May 15 and now wants a crack at the man who once ruled PRIDE FC when the Golden Glory pupil was still wet behind the ears. While it's a match that many fans are now calling for, expect Fabricio Werdum to try and throw a Brazilian monkey wrench into those plans on June 26 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose.

It was the heavyweights that took center stage in downtown St. Louis, Missouri at the Strikeforce: 'Heavy Artillery' event.

The not-so-gentle giants did not disappoint.

Alistair Overeem confirmed what many have believed for some time - this freak of nature is the real deal. A dominant first round knockout victory over a legitimate top ten heavyweight in the form of Brett Rogers should quiet a whole slew of critics who questioned how his skills would matchup against a legit opponent.

Frankly, the "Demolition Man" made it look easy. Midway through round one he essentially rag dolled the 265-pound Rogers to the ground from the clinch in an incredible display of brute strength. From there is was only a matter of time.

Rogers was never able to work his way back to his feet after being thrown on his back. Instead, he was on the receiving end of one powerful ground and pound strike after the next until Big John McCarthy was forced to intervene.

It was the first title defense for the champion Overeem. Predictably, he called out Fedor Emelianenko is his post fight interview, who has a fight of his own against Fabricio Werdum on June 26.

I would venture a guess that many are hoping and praying for Fedor to walk away victorious in order to set up the fight with Overeem.

Will this fight ever happen?

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More pics after the jump. Complete Strikeforce: 'Heavy Artillery' weigh in results here.

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Strikeforce: "Heavy Artillery" is locked and loaded for Saturday, May 15, 2010 from the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri, live on Showtime.

Remember: MMAmania.com will provide LIVE updates with blow-by-blow, round-by-round commentary of the main card action on fight night, which is slated to air on Showtime at 10 p.m. ET.

To get you primed for the impending violence I shall delve into each of the main card contests with some level of analysis, wit, and the usual charm.

The main attraction heading into this event is the return of Alistair Overeem to the United States to defend his Strikeforce heavyweight crown he captured in what seems like an eternity ago back in November 2007. He will square off with heavyweight contender Brett Rogers in the main event of the evening.

How will Overeem match up with a top flight heavyweight, arguably the toughest he's faced since moving to heavyweight full time in 2007?

More importantly, will Fedor Emelianenko take on the winner if he is able to get past Fabricio Werdum on June 26?

In another marquee heavyweight scrap former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski will take on former EliteXC heavyweight champion Antonio Silva, with both men coming off disappointing losses and looking to right the ship.

The rest of the main card includes what could potentially be a pair of #1 contender match ups in both the middleweight and light heavyweight divisions, along with the anticipated arrival of jiu-jitsu ace Roger Gracie. 

There will certainly be a lot of chatter on Sunday morning, likely dominated with a heavyweight-themed thread.

Alright, enough with the fluff lead in ... let's do this thing.

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Strikeforce: "Heavy Artillery" is set to go down TONIGHT (Sat., May 15, 2010) from the Scottstrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri.

MMAmania.com will provide LIVE blow-by-blow, round-by-round coverage of "Heavy Artillery" beginning with the Showtime telecast at 10 p.m. ET. Up-to-the-minute quick results of all the under card action will begin to flow earlier than that around 7:30 p.m. ET.

"Heavy Artillery" will feature a 265-pound grudge match between current Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion Alistair "Demolition Man" Overeem and rising star Brett "The Grim" Rogers.

Several of the promotion’s other top fighters will be in action on the card as well, including a heavyweight scrap between former UFC Heavyweight Champion Andrei "The Pitbull" Arlovski and hard-hitting Brazilian Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva.

Many of our readers check-in before, during and after the event to share their thoughts on the action. Therefore, feel free to leave a comment (or 10) before you leave and chat with all the other Maniacs during the show -- it always turns out to be a great discussion.

Keep in mind that we will also be the spot for the latest news, recaps and post-fight analysis after "Heavy Artillery."

Without further delay, see below for the latest Strikeforce results. (Note: This will go from the bottom up; therefore, scroll toward the bottom for the latest detailed round-by-round action!)

STRIKEFORCE QUICK RESULTS

265 lbs.: Alistair Overeem def. Brett Rogers via TKO, Round 1, 3:40
265 lbs.: Antonio Silva def. Andrei Arlovski via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
185 lbs.: Ronaldo Souza def. Joey Villasenor via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28) 
205 lbs.: Roger Gracie def. Kevin Randleman via submission (RNC), Round 2, 4:10
205 lbs.: Rafael Cavalcante def. Antwain Britt via TKO, Round 1, 3:45
170 lbs.: Jesse Finney def. Justin DeMoney via submission (guillotine choke), Round 1, 3:22
155 lbs.: Lyle Beerbohm def. Vitor Ribeiro via split decision (30-27, 28-29, 30-27)
205 lbs.: Darryl Cobb def. Booker DeRousse via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
155 lbs.: Mike Chandler def. Sal Woods via submission (RNC), Round 1, 0:59
205 lbs.: Fransisco France def. Lee Brousseau via submission (RNC), Round 1, 1:27
155 lbs.: Tom Aaron def. Erik Steenberg via submission (guillotine choke), Round 1, 0:56
155 lbs.: Matt Ricehouse def. Greg Wilson via submission (RNC), Round 3, 0:45 

STRIKEFORCE PLAY-BY-PLAY LIVE MAIN CARD COMMENTARY:
Derek Bolender here live in the gloomy, rainy "Gateway City."

Alistair "Demolition Man" Overeem vs. Brett "The Grim" Rogers (Strikeforce Heavyweight Championship)

Round one: Alistair is actually in a Strikeforce cage again. It's good to see. A bald Rogers meets the champ in the center. They clinch and Alistair registers a knee and they push off. Alistair lands a nice low leg kick, and another. Rogers comes forward but can't connect. Alistair rag dolls the 265 pound Rogers to the ground from the clinch and lands some huge ground and pound. That was crazy horse meat strength. Side control for "The Reem." A bit of a stalemate. Alistair postures and stands. More ground and pound from Alistair. He's landing some huge bombs, one after the other, and Big John waves it off. Rogers was taking some huge bombs. Impressive dominance from Ubereem. The dude is for real and would be a handful for any heavyweight in the world. Paging Fedor ...

Final result: Alistair Overeem def. Brett Rogers via TKO, Round 1, 3:40

-end-

Andrei "The Pitbull" Arlovski vs. Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva

Round one: These two giants trade kicks off the top. Nice right hand by Silva. Andrei has already lasted longer than his last trip to STL. The pair standing toe-to-toe. Silva trying to snipe with his left hook once Andrei throws his straight right. Inside leg kick and jab from Andrei followed by Silva leg kick. Huge right and left from Silva and Andrei seems to eat them nicely. Who knew? Silva pushes him against the fence. Right left from Silva as he pushes away and they clinch again against the cage. Silva grabs Andrei's right leg and Andrei trips and ends up on his back. Stalemate as Silva lays on Andrei. Andrei gets up and wings a right hand that doesn't come close. 10-9 Silva although

Round two: Double jab by Arlovski misses. He's looking for his range early. Big right by Silva just misses Andrei's head as he sidesteps left. Silva lands flush on Andrei's chin again and then presses him against the fence. Andrei is actually taking some on the chin in this fight and is barely flinching. The ref separates the two and they stand in the center. Andrei presses Silva against the cage. Big John centers separates and centers them. Silva switches to southpaw stance. Nice left body kick from Silva, Andrei does the same. Big right by Andrei misses and Silva clinches and pushes him against the fence. Both men look very tired. Andrei's mouth is wide open. They clinch again as the round ends. Close round. I'll score it 10-9 Silva.

Round three: Silva comes out southpaw, switches back. Silva throws insdie leg kick and follows with a right that misses. Silva has Andrei against the fence. Big John centers the pair. They trade right hands in close. Andrei pushes Silva against fence. Minor flurries with a lot of tired clinching is the name of the game throughout this fight. Big John separates them again. Right body kick by Silva. Left high kick and right cross combo both land for Andrei. They clinch against the fence. Silva gets a big takedown and ends up in full guard. This should be the icing on the cake for Silva. Silva now in half guard and landing some ground and pound as he postures up. Andrei uses the cage and stands up. Silva doing a bit of taunting at the end and throws his hands up. 10-9 Silva, 30-27 overall for Silva. He should get the nod.

Final result: Antonio Silva def. Andrei Arlovski via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

-end-

Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza vs. "Smokin'" Joe Villasenor

Round one: Souza shoots early but Villesenor sprawls and they're up against the cage. Huge right by Jacare misses. Jacare grabs a single and dumps Villasenor on his back. That was easy. Jacare in half guard landing some nice G n' P, Jacare moves to full mount and Joey is in BIG trouble. Villasenor survives in a scramble and gets back to his feet. Jacare seemed to be getting a little impatient even though he had a dominant position. Jacare pushes Joey against the fence and lands a nice knee to the body, and another. Jacare pulls Joey down again and lands more G n' P. Jacare is taking him down as he pleases. He lets Villasenor up and lands a nice kick to the body. Another powerful takedown from Jacare. Jacare trying to isolate an arm for a kimura but can't complete it. Jacare standing in Joey's guard and lets him up again. Jacare seems to be letting him up on purpose just to dump him again. He's toying with him. 10-9 Jacare

Round two: Villesenor comes out with a big uppercut that misses and he eats a right cross for his efforts. Jacare shoots and scores once again. Jacare in half guard. Villasenor gets back up and lands a decent uppercut as Jacare comes in. Jacare working for yet another takedown up against the fence and Joey finds himself on his back again. He's been on his back more than *insert floosy joke here.* Jacare in half guard and passes to side control and Joey gets back up. Jacare can't seem to control him on the ground. Jacare shoots and records another takedown. A couple big right hands from Jacare in Joey's guard. Joey up again. Nice left body kick by Joey. Jacare shoots again and bell sounds. This one is all "alligator." 10-9 Jacare

Round three: Villasenor wings a couple punches but they are blocked. Inside leg kick Joey. Jacare counters and just misses with a big right. Jacare shoots and Joey fends it off. Villasenor certainly more aggressive this round but is not connecting with any frequency. Jacare shoots but Villasenor shakes it off. Nice right by Joey. Jacare finally gets his takedown, improves into side control. Villasenor showing very good sub defense and scrambling in this fight. He's being worked over but he isn't giving in easy. Villasenor lands a nice right cross but gets taken down after he tries a flying knee. Rounds ends. 10-9 Jacare, 30-27 overall. All Jacare all day.

Final result: Ronaldo Souza def. Joey Villasenor via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)

-end-

Roger Gracie vs. Kevin "The Monster" Randleman

Round one: Both men circling early. Gracie trying to establish his jab. Randleman comes forward and misses with a one/two combo. Big knee by Gracie. Gracie doubles up the jab again. Pace is very slow. Inside leg kick by Kev. Crowd starts to boo. Straight right by Roger lands, they clinch & Randleman pushes Gracie up against the fence. Gracie looks like he wants to pull guard. Gracie gets Randleman down briefly but Kev is up in a scramble. Randleman comes forward and lands a nice combo. 10-10

Round two: Gracie coming forward and chasing. Randleman stunned briefly from a punch but regains his composure. Randleman pushes Gracie against the fence. Pace continues to stay slow. Huge knee by Gracie on chin drops Randleman! Hmmm ... now which sub will Gracie choose. This shouldn't take long. Gracie gets his back looking to choke him out. Full body triangle from Gracie. Wait for it ... wait for it. Randleman taps. Shocker. See you in two years Roger.

Final result: Roger Gracie def. Kevin Randleman via submission (RNC), Round 2, 4:10

-end-

Antwain "Juggernaut" Britt vs. Rafael "Feijao" Cavalcante

Round one: Fighters are circling and giving each other respect early. Nice jab by Britt followed by a brief left right combo. Clinch up against the fence, knee by Feijao and slips to the mat and right back up. Nice right left combo as Feijao lands low kick. Britt presses Feijao up against the fence and the action slows down. Big knee by Feijao in clinch and they tie up once again. Ref separates the two. Looping right clips Britt and he is stunned. Left hook collapses Britt! Feijao pounces on him and finishes with some ground and pound as the ref dives in. Nice victory for Feijao. 1st round TKO at 3:45 mark. King Mo could be next for the young Brazilian. :

Final result: Rafael Cavalcante def. Antwain Britt via TKO, Round 1, 3:45

-end-

Lyoto Machida is human after all.

Mauricio Rua proved it to the world with a phenomenal game plan against the undefeated light heavyweight champion at UFC 104 back in October 2009.

The judges did not feel it was good enough to earn the victory however, and scored it a controversial unanimous decision for the defending champion. Consequently, President Dana White immediately scheduled a rematch.

Rounds six through ten will play out at UFC 113 on May 8 from the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Will "Shogun" be able to employ and be successful with the same game plan he used previously? Will he be able to find another avenue to victory? Or will Machida see it all coming a mile away this time?

The answers will have to wait until the main event culminates late Saturday evening.

In the meantime, "The Dragon" took some time out to discuss teammate Anderson Silva's UFC 112 performance (and antics), whether he's changed his tune with regards to fighting him and what kind of game plan he expects the second time around from Rua.

Check it out:

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Top ranked middleweight contender Nate Marquardt (29-9-2) could be facing a very stiff test this summer as he is currently in talks to face muscular submission master Rousimar Palhares (11-2) at either UFC 117 on Aug. 7 in Oakland or UFC 118 on Aug. 28 in Boston.

A source close to one of the fight camps alerted MMAmania.com to the potential match-up earlier today.

Marquardt was recently booked to take on the surging Alessio Sakara at UFC 116 on July 3; however, "Legionarius" was forced to withdraw earlier this week because of the death of his father.

"The Great" is coming off a fairly one-sided beat down at the hands of now number one middleweight contender Chael Sonnen at UFC 109. Many people pegged the fight as an easy win for Marquardt, but Mr. Sonnen showed us all yet again what good 'ole American wrestling can do for you in this sport.

Prior to the Sonnen defeat, Nate had won three consecutive fights inside the Octagon, including a 21-second dismantling of Demian Maia at UFC 102. That win propelled Marquardt back to the top of the division, but another title shot was just not meant to be at the moment.

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At WEC 43 in October 2009, Ben Henderson and Donald Cerrone had a knock down, drag out five round war with the interim lightweight championship on the line.

When the dust settled many were calling in the best fight in all of MMA that year. Henderson walked away with the unanimous decision victory.

As the WEC shifts gears to its first pay-per-view card, it is only fitting to have the encore on center stage. This time, however, Henderson's lightweight belt he earned in a recent unification bout with Jamie Varner will be on the line.

It will all go down Saturday, April 24 at the WEC 48: "Aldo vs. Faber" event in Sacramento, California.

"Smooth" took some time out to discuss his thoughts on the recent Penn/Edgar title fight, possibly joining the UFC someday and how he would grade his ever improving stand-up game.

Check it out:

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After a disappointing loss in the semi-finals of the inaugural Bellator Featherweight Tournament, Wilson Reis gladly accepted an opportunity at redemption.

He was invited back to participate in the season two tournament that kicks off on April 15 at the Chicago Theatre in downtown Chicago. Shad Lierley will be his opponent on Thursday evening in the quarterfinal round.

The man left standing after the tournament's conclusion will face season one champion Joe Soto at a later time and place. Soto is also the same man who delivered the aforementioned loss to Reis last year.

In addition to Lierley, Reis took some time out of his training schedule to discuss coming off the loss, the best jiu-jitsu practitioners in MMA, and possibly fighting in Japan before year's end.

Check it out:

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Strikeforce will officially welcome back its heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem to the United States at "Heavy Artillery" on Saturday, May 15.

It has been a long time coming, to say the least. The last time we witnessed Overeem stateside was in November 2007 when he earned his Strikeforce title by defeating mixed martial arts veteran Paul Buentello.

In the roughly two and a half years since, he's stayed extremely active, fighting in seven MMA and six K-1 bouts.

The Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri will play host to Overeem's first title defense as he takes on contender Brett Rogers in the main event of the evening.

The "Demolition Man" took some time out of his training schedule to discuss why Fedor and M-1 are ducking him, Rogers' recent smack talk and crushing his knee on Brock Lesnar's head.

Check it out:

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Mark Munoz has officially found a home in the UFC middleweight division.

After suffering a devastating head kick knockout in his UFC debut courtesy of Matt Hamill, he decided to transition from light heavyweight to middleweight.

The 185-pound limit seems to be the ideal weight for him and it has paid dividends so far as he has since responded with two straight victories inside the Octagon.

Couple that with the fact that his overall skills as a young mixed martial artist have continued to develop and we have a quality contender in the making.

His next challenge will be Ultimate Fighter (TUF) Season 3 winner Kendall Grove at UFC 112 on Saturday, April 10.

The "Filipino Wrecking Machine" took some time out to discuss dealing with Grove's superior length, his ever-improving stand-up, his new gym, and why some decorated wrestlers succeed in MMA (and others fail).

Check it out:

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The UFC 111 post fight press conference once again instigated the oft-opined, polarizing topic of teammates fighting teammates with the verbal exchange between President Dana White and victorious welterweight contender Jon Fitch.

The cliffs notes version is this – Fitch doesn’t want to fight his American Kickboxing Academy teammate and fellow top flight welterweight contender Josh Koscheck, but the UFC management would prefer if it came to fruition.

In theory it seems like a practical verdict. Two fixtures in the upper echelon of the division would agree to waive their membership to determine the better fighter for the greater good of both the division and the organization.

After all, the very basis for the UFC since inception has been to pit one individual against another in the cage and see who walks away, without so much of a mention or consideration to his allegiance.

But this is 2010 and times have changed. Teams are now apart of the everyday fabric of the sport.

Why then, is MMA still widely considered an individual sport?

Is this not a tired, short-sighted viewpoint given the current configuration?

Click here to finish my article Maniacs!

I know, I'm such a tease.

Don't expect a little thing like brain surgery to keep Thiago Alves out of the Octagon.

The former welterweight number one contender underwent minor surgery back on March 31 to correct a brain "irregularity" that prompted his withdrawal from last month's UFC 111 fight card at the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ.

The Brazilian was pulled from his scheduled rematch against Jon Fitch after failing a pre-fight CAT Scan and immediately sought out additional tests from brain specialists to help determine what action needed to be taken -- if any.

In his absence, Ben Saunders stepped up on short notice to replace him but went home on the wrong end of a unanimous decision after Fitch overwhelmed him with a mixture of wrestling and ground and pound.

Follow up tests prompted Alves to have an angiogram at the Hyman Newman institute for Neurology and Neurosurgery located at Roosevelt Hospital in New York.

The outpatient procedure was successful in separating an artery from a vein in his brain and "The Pitbull" is expected to be cleared to resume training in as little as three weeks.

Not only that, but he's also hoping to return to action as quickly as UFC 114 on May 29, according to Malki Kawa, who represents the 170-pound smashing machine.

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Kenny Florian is on the march back to the top of the heap at 155 pounds.

After losing his title fight against current champion BJ Penn at UFC 101, he followed it up with arguably his most impressive performance to date with a complete and utter dominance of Clay Guida at UFC 107.

A shot at the former PRIDE FC lightweight champion Takanori Gomi now waits in the wings in what would be a huge resume builder for Florian as he tries to convince UFC management to one day grant him his third career title shot.

Ultimate Fight Night: ‘Florian vs. Gomi' is set to take place on Wednesday, March 31 from the Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte, North Carolina.

"Ken Flo" took some time out of his busy schedule to discuss why he lost to Penn, Gomi's struggles in recent years, and his quest to find a retail store that still sells quality turtlenecks.

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Miesha Tate is officially back in the fray in the Strikeforce 135-pound women's division.

Her last fight under the Strikeforce banner in May 2009 resulted in a disappointing unanimous decision loss to current champion Sarah Kaufman. Since then, however, she has rattled off impressive victories over Sarah Oriza and Valerie Coolbaugh.

She will once again return to the Strikeforce cage to face undefeated striker Zoila Frausto on the Strikeforce Challengers 7 card. The event is scheduled to take place in Fresno, California on Friday, March 26.

"Takedown" Tate took some time out of her busy schedule to discuss why she's a bad matchup for Frausto, the upcoming 135-pound tournament, managing fighters of her own someday, and how she spends her free time outside of MMA.

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Ben Saunders has been on quite a roller coaster of late.

After a heartbreaking loss to Mike Swick at UFC 99, he responded with the biggest win of his career to date. He knocked out Marcus Davis at UFC 106 courtesy of some of his patented clinch work.

Martin Kampmann, a consensus top-10 welterweight, was the reward for his dominating performance over "The Irish Hand Grenade." Unfortunately, due to a cut sustained in training, Jake Ellenberger was called to fill in as "The Hitman's" replacement.

The fight will remain on the main card at UFC 111 this Saturday (March 27).

"Killa B" took some time out of his busy schedule to discuss his multiple troubles leading up to the UFC 99 loss, his huge rebound win over Davis, what he expects from Ellenberger and the welterweight title picture.

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It has been over a year since Shane Carwin fought inside the Octagon.

Last time we saw him, he was being pulled off Gabriel Gonzaga by the referee after knocking him out roughly a minute into their fight at UFC 96.

Since then, it has been a series of trials and tribulations for the 35-year-old Colorado native. Ultimately, once the dust settled, only former UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir was left standing in front of his opportunity for a shot at a belt of his own.

The pair will now go head-to-head for the interim title on March 27 at UFC 111 in Newark, NJ, with the winner also earning the right to face current heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar later this year for proper unification.

"The Engineer" took some time out of his busy schedule to discuss a recent addition to his family, Mir's dangerous jiu-jitsu and similarities between James Toney and Kimbo Slice. He also wished to leave a brief message for Brock Lesnar.  

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Junior Dos Santos is a man on a mission.

Since joining the UFC roster in late 2008, he's ran roughshod on the heavyweight division. In succession, he has knocked out the following contenders: Fabricio Werdum, Stefan Struve, Mirko Cro Cop, and Gilbert Yvel.

The next man on the list is Gabriel Gonzaga, whom he will face on Sunday, March 21 in Broomfield, Colorado. A win would move him up another spot in the pecking order, and quite possibly, into a number one contender match-up against fellow up-and-comer Cain Velasquez.

"Cigano" took time out of his schedule to discuss his martial arts origins, Gonzaga, being nicknamed after a soap opera character and his thoughts on potentially facing current champion Brock Lesnar.

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KJ Noons is officially back on the radar screen.

The former EliteXC lightweight champion recently inked a contract with Strikeforce and will return to MMA after nearly a two year absence. He will do battle against Andre Amade on March 22 at the DREAM 13 event in Japan.

Noons is probably best known for his November 2007 championship winning performance over Nick Diaz. He defended his title once against Yves Edwards before his belt was stripped by EliteXC management following a very public feud over a laundry list of issues.

He chose to concentrate on his professional boxing career thereafter and accumulated a 4 - 1 record leading up to his recent signing. 

"King Karl" took some time out of his schedule to discuss his bitter fallout with EliteXC, a potential rematch with Nick Diaz, and recommitting to MMA.

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