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In a couple weeks Light Heavy Weight champion and super athletic MMA prodigy Jon "Bones" Jones will put his title on the line against former friend and teammate "Suga" Rashad Evans. While their current rivalry makes for an interesting story line, taking a further look into these fighters yields slightly more interesting results. The truth is, Rashad doesnt have many options in this fight. His path to victory is rather narrow. Jon Jones is younger, more athletic and better in almost every area. The only place Evans has an advantage is in boxing and luckily for him, this is also Jon Jones biggest liability. Lyoto Machida had some success using movement and aggression to confuse Jones during the first round of their fight, it was the only time I can remember Jon Jones looking vulnerable. Lyotos mistake was getting confortable and believing he could play the counter striking game against the lankier and at the time better conditioned Jon Jones. I believe Lyoto could have had much more success with more movement and more aggressive striking.

That’s Rashads only path to victory.

I know this is easier said than done. Bones is so unpredictable that it forces you into waiting to see what hes going to do instead of trying to beat him . He’s amazing at forcing you to play his game. Most fighters don’t posses the wrestling needed to stay off their backs against Jones AND the striking needed to exploit his weaknesses. I truly believe Rashad Evans is the only Light Heavy Weight in the UFC that comes close to possessing these skills. For this fight Rashad will need to be on his A game, both mentally and physically. He’s a notoriously slow starter, he cant afford that this time though. He’ll need to utilize constant unrelenting pressure from the opening bell. He cant afford to give Jones an inch of air. He’ll also need to have to do something he’s never done in his career; Take a chance. He’ll have to stay in Jones face and believe in his power. Can he do this? I guess we’ll have to wait and see, but I haven’t I haven’t been this excited about a main event in months. Jon Jones isn’t omnipotent, he can be beat and Rashad Evans has the best chance to make that happen.

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This weekend MMA fans across the world were treated to one of the most magical nights in MMA history. The UFC made their long awaited return to Japan where Lightweight champion and comeback king Frankie Edgar was to defend his title against the unsubmitable Benson Henderson. The fight was spectacular, it was filled with back and forth action, shifts in momentum, slick striking, technical grappling and brute force. It was one of the most remarkable displays of martial arts I have ever seen, which makes what I want to discuss even more disappointing. During the fight, Twitter was erupting with adoration for Frankie Edgars toughness and grit, tweet after tweet (from respected MMA writers) read, “what a manly performance”, “what a man!”. Not only do statements like this reduce martial arts to faux masculinity and frat boy-ism, it brings light to a bigger problem: Equating toughness, grit, heart, persistance, and skill to manliness. If his performance was “manly”, is a fighter who doesn’t fight with the same tenacity “womanly”? Was Meisha Tates title winning performance against Marloes Coenen also “manly”?

MMA isn’t just for boys anymore, when we start to call certain skill sets or traits “manly” we leave out the talented and successful women in the sport we love. During a time in this sports short history in which we’re trying to convince the general public that there’s more to MMA than blood and broken limbs, I think we can do ourselves a great service by dismissing these terms and referring to amazing fighters as exactly what they are: Amazing athletes. What Frankie Edgar (or Tim Boestch for that matter) accomplished is nothing short of amazing. The heart he has shown over and over throughout his career has little to do with his “masculinity” and everything to do with an iron will and determination. Reducing something so awe inspiring to a term thats rather exclusive is not only lazy, but its disrespectful. I may sound like a broken record, but its time that we give MMA the respect it deserves. Gender specific terms have absolutely no place in a sport for everyone.

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Saturday night at UFC 142 in Rio, Featherweight champion Jose Aldo successfully defended his title against Team Alpha Male wrestler Chad Mendes in what many (including myself) consider the finest performance of his very young career. It was clear from the opening bell that Mendes had no answer for Aldo. Once we realized that the challenger was unable to take the champ down into his world, you got the feeling you were watching a vicious predator stalk its prey. Mendes biggest strength and only means of escape from certain death, was his speed and athleticism but that was completely nullified by Aldos brilliant onslaught of technical violence. Every takedown was denied and every leg kick was returned with much more ferocity. Mendes was doomed, and late in the first round he finally met his fate. After commiting himself to taking Aldo down against the cage the champ unleashed a devastating knee. Mendes was left unconscious.

What took place next is one of the most electrifying moments in MMA history...

Flying high on the adrenaline of the moment Aldo ran out of the cage and into the crowd to be embraced. As the crowd went into a frenzy Aldo was hoisted onto the shoulders of his fellow Brazillians. We weren't just watching a fighter celebrate a win, we were watching a star being born. We witnessed a country put a man who is from the worst parts of that nation be embraced like a national hero. The moment that crowd erupted they poured their hopes and dreams into him. Most of us will never achieve that level of success, when you're from where Aldo is your chances of succeeding are even more slim and when you consider that, what this young man achieved is even more impressive. He represents thousands of urban youth that will probably never make it out of ghettos all over the world. Nothing was ever given to him, he worked his way up using his athletic gifts and work ethic.

What the UFC (and sports in general) needs is more Jose Aldos and fewer athletes attempting to be the "heel" to market themselves. Aldo has become one of the biggest stars in Brazil by being genuine, humble and winning convincingly. Jose Aldo is the true peoples champ.

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One of the debates the black community has always had (and probably will continue to have for years to come) is the debate over how much of your blackness you have to give up to be accepted by mainstream America. Jon “Bones” Jones and Quentin “Rampage” Jackson represent both sides of that argument. To a lot of MMA fans, “Rampage” and Rashad Evans claims of Jones being a “fake”, “snobby”,  or a phony just seem like ordinary trash talk. But amongst brothers, those insults cut  much deeper.  They arent just ordinary insults on your character or fighting ability, they’re insulting to your blackness. Calling Jones a “snob” suggests that he thinks he’s too good for the “rest of us”. It suggests that he wants to forget everything about his roots. Its basically calling him an Uncle Tom, and judging from an interview Jones did for Black Voices, the most defining and important examples of racism in his life came from other black people.

 ”Considering that wrestling and MMA are not considered sports that African Americans dominate, did you have to deal with racism while coming up?”

“Absolutely. The first issues of racism came from my own people. In high school, when I came to the lunch table all the black kids would say things like “Why are you wearing all that spandex? You go to wrestling practice grabbing another dude and sweating. You’re gay.” All I could do is swallow my pride and know that regardless of what they said, that was my niche. I had to be comfortable in my own skin to realize that it was okay to dare to be different.”

(African Americans have a long and storied history in wrestling, this question is, in my opinion irresponsible and shows the person doing the interview didnt do his/her research, but I’ll leave that for another blog entry)

The first part of Jones response wasnt about being the only black person in entire towns during wrestling tournaments or that feeling you get when you know people are staring at you judgmentally, it was about the black kids in his class that called him “gay” for wearing spandex and participating in a white mans sport. When you’re part of a community that only makes up about 12% of the population, feeling ostracized hurts, a lot. I cant be 100% sure, but I’d be willing to bet that the people calling Jones “gay” acted a lot more like Rampage than Jones. I think thats why Jones seems so flustered and annoyed in interviews lately. Rampage is a bully and those of you who have been bullied in school know, that feeling of helplessness never really goes away. 15 years later and I still get nervous when I come across someone that bullied me in middle school.

In most interviews before this fight Jones has been very clear and articulate, but lately he’s been stumbling over his words and sounding unsure of himself. He’s sounded more like a 10th grader defending himself against the cooler kids than a confident champion.

I dont think Jones personality is the only thing behind peoples sudden hatred of him, some of it is jealousy.  Jones is a phenom, he makes even the most experienced veterans look like rookies, he appears to run through his opponents without effort. People hate that. Especially people like Rampage who’ve had to claw their way up to the top of their professions.

Rampage on the other hand is the cool kid in class that everyone loved and feared. Sometimes we laugh at his jokes because we’re scared he may kill us if we dont. He’s funny, talented and dangerous. Never passes up an opportunity to make people laugh. But he’s out of his fucking mind. He’s also paranoid, goofy and because of where he came from and how he grew up he’s had to work harder than most to achieve everything he has he probably feels like Jones is taking all the fame and credit he’s worked so hard for.

Having 2 black people fight for a major belt in MMA is a big deal. I know Jones and Rampage claim they arent thinking about it, but how can they not? Race matters, its always there. Ignoring it doesnt make it go away. Im not a huge fan of Jones, but I am happy that for the first time in MMA we arent  shown in such a singular way. Im glad they’re different.

Hurricane Irene is hours from my apartment. My girlfriend is sleep in bed next to me and her family is laid out in various places across every room. We’ve stocked up on water, toiletries, batteries and anything else we could think of. To be honest, I’m kind of nervous…but Im not thinking about the hurricane coming towards me. Im thinking about what Anderson Silva just did to Yushin Okami. What makes Silva so amazing is that by fighting him you play into his strength, which is fighting. It must feel awful to not be able to punch a man whos standing in front of you with his hands down, and your only job in life at that moment is to punch him. What Anderson did tonight cements his place at the top of the all time greats discussion. No one in the history of this young sport has dominated as many top fighters as he has. The only man in the UFC to even come close to beating Silva fought “The Spider” when he had a bruised rib, AND he was was juiced up. You know what happened? He still found himself bloody, unconscious and on the losing end of a battle.

Sometimes I think this fight is too young for statements like “we’ll never see another fighter like Silva”, but the longer he dominates, the truer that statement becomes.  Anderson isnt just a fantastic fighter, what separates him from other great fighers is the air of mystery that surrounds him. When he does media he seems kind of fun and goofy, never shows his cards. But inside the cage that all changes. Deadly accuracy, sneaky submissions and brutal power. He’s as hard to figure out outside of the cage as he is inside. The only thing we really know about him is that he’s good at fighting. Sometimes I think that when we’re all old and thinking about our glory days, 2 things will still be the same; Jay-Z will still be good at rapping and Anderson Silva will still be good at beating people up.

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When the news of the UFC leaving Spike for the FOX family broke earlier this week, one thing people kept asking themselves was “what did the UFC give up to get this deal?”. After the official announcement was made, FOX told us that there would be a press conference soon, where they would make a “major” announcement.   We wondered if people would be fired, if rules would be changed, and most importantly, would Gladiator Man finally meet his maker? Only time would tell.  To tell the truth, Im over Danas “big announcements”. When I heard the words “big”, “announcement”, “ufc” and “major” in a sentence I checked out. We’ve been conned to the point of memehood by Danas major announcements. No one really takes them seriously anymore. I even took time out of my day to tweet Tomas Rios that this “major” announcement didnt mean shit. After all, the best predictor of future behavior is past behavior. Fast forward to the big announcement and aside from TUF getting a much needed revamp and the UFC having the support of 3 different networks, there wasnt really much major to the announcement in my eyes. At least until I really sat down and thought about it.

Gone was Joe Rogan yelling “ITS FIGHT TIME BITCHES” at the top of his lungs, no more showing up to press conferences in a t-shirt and jeans (apparently, Dana didnt get that memo), no more “f bombs”. For one of the first times since I’ve been a fan, MMA felt like a real mainstream sport. I didnt feel like I had to defend the sport I love to my anti-violence peace loving friends. So to me, the big, major announcement is actually what they didn’t announce. This deal is important, not only because of the major network shelling out a huge amount of money to support MMA, but because of the suits and professionalism they can put behind the sport. I’ve always maintained (here, on Twitter or on various other message boards and MMA communities) that in order to take MMA into the mainstream, it needed to shed the frat boy image. The fewer Affliction shirts and the less nu-metal the better. MMA is a sport full of intricacies, drama, intelligence and some of the best athletes on the planet, its time the people with the money and the people calling the shots act like it its more than 2 people beating each other up.

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I know we can get demanding, rude and over zealous sometimes but, thanks for putting up with our shit. The best thing about Bloody Elbow is how interactive the staff is with the fans, I cant really think of another site where writers take the time to debate with and teach the people who read their articles. The downside of that is sometimes we all start to think we're part of the staff, we forget that we're just fans and some of us just dont really know how much work you guys put into the upkeep of this site. We forget that for every 300 comment-worthy article, someone not only took time to research and write it, but took more time to moderate each and every comment that we put up. Honestly, Im just some dude with a blog that like 15 people read. There are days when I have no clue what to write, Im kind of amazed that the staff here has managed to keep things this interesting for so long. 

I spent a year just reading this site everyday, too scared to comment on any articles or put up any fanposts. I let the Sherdog forum and the UG jade my view of MMA experts, I started to think they where all pompous and arrogant jerk offs. But the staff here at BE has been unbelievably inviting and informative. Some of the staff here even encourages me to write on my blog, if I dont put anything up in more than a few days I have Kid Nate telling me to "get back on the horse". As a fan of MMA and Bloody Elbow I cannot describe to you how awesome it is for someone you look up to to encourage you to do something you love.  So again, thanks BE staff for putting up with our shit and thanks for doing what you guys do. Keep up the good work!

-Brian Hullaby

This weekend at UFC 133 former light heavyweight champion “Suga” Rashad Evans will make his long anticipated return to the cage against another former champion in the recently resergant Tito Ortiz. This will be Evans first fight in the UFC without long time coach/friend/mentor/personal Jesus Greg Jackson. During the Jackson era, Evans found a lot of success adding some knockout power to his wrestling base, but after being KO’d by a better and more technical striker in Lyoto Machida, Evans decided to go back to his roots and focus on his wrestling. He was successful, albeit much less entertaining. It also brought up some interesting questions on his ability to keep his opponents on their backs. Both Rampage and Thiago Silva where able to get up almost instantly after being put on their backs by Evans. Rather than employ some ground and pound or work for submissions Evans was forced to take them down repeatedly. Which was confusing considering Evans is a better wrestler than both Thiago Silva and Rampage Jackson. Adding fuel to that fire, there where reports that Evans was just awarded his black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu prior to his fight with Silva. When asked about his change in style, Evans would just say he was returning to his wrestling roots because he’s a wrestler and thats what wrestlers do. Wrestle.

The truth is that Evans style of wrestling has never quite matched up with the kind of wrestling you  need to enforce a steady dose of ground and pound. He’s always relied more on his athleticism and speed rather than technique and top control (he’s more Kevin Randalman than Jon Fitch).  Evans needs to figure out if he’s going to use his wrestling offensively or defensively. Does he want to be Jon Fitch or Chuck Liddell? Even though Im not an expert (and would never claim to be one) I think his style of wrestling is better suited for defensive wrestling. His speed and the power in his hands gives him a huge advantage, especially when he cant be taken down. This makes the fact that he’s training with world class kickboxers and Muay Thai practitioners all the more intriguing. Especially since his footwork has always been the bane of his stand up. A Rashad Evans with solid striking technique is a scary thing. He’s one of the most physically gifted light heavyweights in MMA. Im hoping the change in training camps and the time off has given Evans time to find himself as an MMA fighter.

Fedor Emelianenko vs Dan Henderson

Despite winning his last 2 fights in convincing fashion, Dan Henderson still has a lot of convincing to do. Unfortunately, thats not going to be possible against Fedor. Henderson doesnt posses any of the skills needed to put Fedor in trouble. No world class BJJ or gorilla strength. There isnt a single place where Henderson is better than Fedor. I know some of you may be thinking about Hendo’s wrestling, but he hasnt relied on that skill in years. He’s turned into a brawler lately, which plays right into Fedors strenghths IMO. Once Hendo starts to lose the striking game he’ll try to take Hendo down, and much like a lot of the MMA community he’ll get reminded that Fedors real strength is in the grappling department. Henderson will get submitted here.

Marloes Coenen vs Miesha Tate

I was going back and forth with this fight, but then I decided to re-watch Coenen vs Carmouche, eventhough Coenen was able to come back and win that fight, her weakness was exposed. Coenen will have a nice advantage in the stand up department but Tates superior wrestling is the key to this fight. Tate is also savvy enough on the ground to avoid Conens slick guard game. This fight is going to go five rounds, which is probably best for Coenen since she’s been the more active fighter as Tate had to sit out with an injury. Tate will spend the first 2 or 3 rounds of this fight dominating Coenen with her wrestling, but after she gasses she’ll get caught in a submission.

Robbie Lawler vs Tim Kennedy

Robbie Lawler is known for ignoring the grappling side of MMA, but I dont think that will matter much in this fight. If Kennedy had a bit of trouble taking Melvin Manhoef down, he may have trouble dragging Robbie to the mat. Kennedys stand up relies on technique and solid combinations, Lawlers relies solely on brutal, vicious and disgusting KO power. Kennedy may find early success here by staying on the outside with solid footwork and technique, but its hard to avoid Robbies power for 3 rounds. All he needs is one punch. I know Im in the minority here, but Im going with Robbie Lawler by TKO.

Paul Daley vs Tyron Woodley

Tyron Woodley will be great one day, but not today. He’s a big, strong and talented wrestler with some decent punching power. The problem for Woodley is that Paul Daley has stuffed takedowns from wrestlers who are much better than he is. Daley is one of the few strikers in MMA whos punching power is matched with fantastic technique and precision, not to mention the fact that he’s just fought better people in bigger fights. Woodley is being thrown to the sharks here, he’s not ready. Daley by TKO

Scott Smith vs  Tarec Saffiedine

I like Scott Smith, but his heart has always been bigger than his actual skill set. After you take so many beatings, heart isnt enough to beat people with actual skills. He might put up a good fight here early, but wont be able to resist his urge to get into a brawl. The minute he gets careless (and he will) Tarec will take him down and submit him.

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After former WEC Lightweight champ Ben “Smooth” Henderson dominated Mark Bocek he enthusiastically asked the crowd if he could “get an Amen”, it must have been awkward for Henderson to have so many people quizzically staring at him in silence. Immediately the conversation on MMA message boards and twitter turned to whether or not God has a place in MMA. To some it seems odd that people thank God for helping them turn another mans face into chopped meat, but MMA is a dangerous sport and fighters are putting their health on the line everytime they step into a ring or cage to fight someone.  Im not a religious man but Im ok with hem thanking a “higher power” after they come out of a fight as the winner.  We all like to talk about the physical toll of fighting full time, but we rarely talk about the toll it must take on someones psyche to beat someone up for a living. To be honest, Im just a fan. I’ll never truly understand what a fighter goes through to stay motivated.

Like I said, Im just some dude. Sometimes its even hard for me stay motivated enough to write on this blog. If I have to call on God, Vishnu, Buddha, Anderson Silva or Homer Simpson, what business is it of yours? As much as we all like to bother Ben Henderson and Jon Jones about their faith, its REALLY easy to ignore it. Faith plays an important role in peoples lives, asking them to leave it outside of the cage is a bit ridiculous to me. Isnt the fact that they entertain us with great fights enough? This isnt politics, their beliefs have no effect on our day to day lives. I think rather than asking them to leave their faith outside of the cage FOR US we should all try to leave our contempt for religion out of our appreciation for their fighting abilities. I know I talk about this in almost every blog I publish, but I’ve reached a point in my MMA fandom that has me seeing these fighters as human beings, not super human robots. They are susceptible to the same shortcomings that we all fall victim to everyday. Its what makes MMA such an amazing sport, we get to cheer on actual people.

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A few days ago I wrote something that a few people took offense to. In a piece about a fighters strength becoming his weakness I wrote about Randy Coutures weaknesses in the striking department and questioned his reputation as a world class wrestler. My goal wasnt to trash Randy, just point out his flaws and what he did to overcome them. Thats the brilliance of Randy, an uncanny ability to overcome his flaws. I still dont think his striking ever evolved much, but that doesnt matter because he had other ways of beating his opponents. Like I said previously, he used his mind. Every great fighter in the history of MMA has flaws, whether its Anderson Silvas inability to stay on his feet against decent wrestlers or BJs unwillingness to train like his peers at the highest levels of MMA. What makes these fighters the best is their ability to win DESPITE these flaws. The ability to overcome the adversity caused by their flaws. Sure Anderson will get taken down, but thats ok because he developed a deadly guard game capable of negating even a world class wrestlers top control. I love MMA and certain fighters enough to be honest with myself (and the 3 people who read my blog regularly). Even my favorites arent great at everything. They’re just people, even the great ones lose.

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Recently Tito Ortiz came back from the dead to dominate Ryan Bader, a fighter who a lot of people called the future of the sport. Bader is sort of a modern version of Tito Ortiz. He's a big wrestler who liked to utilize his strength to dominate fighters. Tightening up the technical aspects of the game arent that important when you're that strong. Fighters like Ortiz and Bader dont need to bother learning the intricacies of the striking game, they can simply put you on your back and beat your face into pulp. The problem with this style of fighting is that as you age you lose strength and other fighters get better. MMA isnt kind to old men. The only way to beat this is to treat it like a game of chess. Long term success takes some brains. When you cant out muscle your opponent, you have to out maneuver them. For the first time ever Tito showed signs of maturing, rather than constantly attempting to put Bader on his back he mixed it up a bit and stood with him, eventually catching him with a right hand. And instead of pouncing on him for some vintage ground and pound he utilized his underrated BJJ game and put Bader in a pretty crushing Guillotine choke where Bader eventually tapped. What he lacks in strength and athleticism he can make up in experience and game planning.

The best example of this type of fighter is Randy Couture. Lets be honest, his wrestling was never that good, his striking never advanced and his grappling game was average at best. What he did have was a brain. Randy studied his opponents, if you had a flaw in your game he'd find it. He realized long ago that his best weapon was his experience and willingness to use that against his opponents. There's no shame in knowing what your weaknesses are and realizing that your most athletic days are behind you. Randy entered the game as an old man, he was already more mature and more willing to learn other aspects of the game than his younger and more physically gifted counterparts. Tito is notoriously hard headed, he's spent the last few years injured and trying to stay relevant by attempting to outmuscle his way back to the top. I know its to early to tell if Titos last win was a fluke, but as a fight fan Im hoping to see a more composed, patient and smart Tito Ortiz in the future.

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Wanderlei Silvas days competing at the highest level are probably over, but our love for him isnt. He was always the type of fighter that would probably fight people in alleys if he had never found his way into MMA. He's a natural born fighter, he posses the best killer instinct in the game, bar none. If Wandy rocks you, start to pray because you wont be given a chance to regain your senses. The look in his eyes while he rolled his fists before a fight is really one of the most horrifying and awesome things you will ever see. His presence is probably one of the most intimidating in the game. There was no flashiness in his style of fighting, he was all brutality. Devastating Muay Thai, to take out Wandy you had to practically kill him. "Quit" isnt in his vocabulary.  But what seperates Wandy from others like him is that he's genuinely a nice person. His dedication to his fans is a reasons he's one of my favorites, he somehow manages to make a personal connection with everyone he comes across. Whether it be on social media or just on the streets. Wandy claims to not have fans, only friends. Somehow he could make you believe he was your friend. He made his fans feel like we where part of his team. One night while I was unable to sleep and browsing twitter Wandy tweeted "how is everyone?" I replied, "To stressed, cant sleep", I didnt think he'd reply but he did. Almost immediately he responded with "relax friend, everything ok". Anyone whos ever been through a rough patch in their lives can relate to how this could turn someones mood around. Having someone I respect and look up to even bother to respond to me meant a lot. Gave me something to smile about just long enough to relax and catch some zzz's.

Should he retire? This might be the selfish fan in me talking but, I hope not. At this point I honestly cant imagine MMA without him. But just in case he does, thanks for all the bloodshed, pain and entertainment Wandy.

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Over the weekend we where given the amazing gift of watching one of the greatest comebacks im MMA history.  Cheick Kongo was practically unconscious, his eyes rolled back, his legs wobbly and Pat Barry still throwing bombs at his head. But Kongo reached into a place only few people know of, he dug deep into himself and pulled out a vicious uppercut that caught Barry while his hands where down. Barry’s lights went out immediately and he hit the canvas to suffer his first KO loss. This highlights something thats special to very few sports: one on one competition. When Kongo was in trouble there was no runningback to hand the ball off to, no star teammate to pass the ball to in hopes they can make the winning shot. All the responsibility lied in Kongos hands. Had he lost, he’d have no one but himself to blame. The solitary aspect of MMA is one I find to be the most interesting about the sport. Sure fighters depend on a team of people to train for a fight, but once the door to the cage closes…You’re on your own.

Like I’ve said before, there was a time I looked at fighters as superhuman people capable of just about anything. To me, my favorite fighters where unbeatable. But as I learn more and talk to more fighters, I realize that they’re just people. People who work hard and people who are capable of losing. But what makes me truly love MMA is how inspirational it can be. I cant help but personalize every fight, right now my legs are wobbly and my back is against the cage. Life is throwing serious bombs in my direction, but I have to go where Kongo went, Ive gotta dig deep into myself and find a way out of this situation. Im in pain, but atleast Pat Barry isnt throwing bombs at my head. Im gonna be ok.

Thanks MMA.

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Yesterday we were all informed that former UFC Middleweight contender Nate Marquardt waas no longer fighting today…and that he’d no longer compete for the UFC.  Almost immediately  after that the internet erupted with conspiracy theories. Everything from diuretics to hidden blood borne diseases has been tossed out as possible answers to the mystery. But what strikes me the most about this story is the lack of leaks. Numerous bloggers, reporters and fighters reportedly know what happened, and so far they’re all keeping their mouths shut.  How is that possible? Well, because Dana White is an evil genius. He’s a master at controlling media and publicity. People in the industry know that crossing Dana could mean the end of your career. Its a widely known fact that even disagreeing with Dana can lead to your media credentials being taken away. Since the majority of top fighters fight under the Zuffa banner a lot of people in the industry must realize that leaking this information will most likely lead to the unemployment line. How can any blogger, journalist or website continue to function without access to the most popular fighters? Even pictures of Anthony Weiners dick were leaked by republican journalists.

The problem here is that there arent any competing organizations. Since Zuffa bought Strikeforce they not only have control of the most popular fighters, but control of the media and PR surrounding all of MMA. Whether this is good or not for the sport remains to be seen. But I understand the predicament journalists are in. Actually, I sympathize with them. There must be a blogger out there salivating at the idea of breaking the story but crying at the thought of losing access. I honestly dont know what I’d do in that situation.

I have a theory myself on the situation:  Marquardt has failed a blood test and rather than admit wrongdoing he will try to Chael his way out of this by claiming he medically needs said illegal substance. One of the most popular theories is that he’s tried to cover up some illness. But not even Dana is shrewd enough to cut someone for trying to fight through an illness. To be honest, Im as confused as everyone else. I love MMA so much the suspense is killing me. In the end all I can hope for is that Nate is healthy and wasnt trying to put other fighters at risk.

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The explosive black fighter meme doesnt exist for no reason. In every major sport black people excel in they do so in a flamboyant way. Whether its Jordan gliding to the rim with his tongue hanging out or the great Muhammed Ali shuffling around the ring and trash talking while he jabs your face into hamburger meat. For young black youth in urban areas, flamboyant athletes and flashy rappers are heroes. Trash talk and bragging is almost just as important as the game itself. The flashiest guy on the block had the most friends and got all the women. The flip side of this is how little mastery of the technical aspect of sports matters. Historically, black athletes who chose to perfect their jumpshots and utilize solid defense have never achieved the same amount of fame or respect as their equally as talented but more flashy counterparts. Really, no one on the block was spending hours emulating Tim Duncans post game and footwork.

But where does this train of thought leave the Tim Duncans of MMA? Fighters like Jason “The KC Bandit”  High and Phil “Mr Wonderful” Davis have both found tremendous amounts of success honing their ground skills, but have found very little fan fare outside of MMA hardcores. In the case of Phil Davis, the fact that he recently dominated a Noguiera brother was completed negated by a lot of fans complaining that his performance was boring. Even after Jason High implemented a solid game plan by neutralizing Sakurai’s game with his wrestling base and beat striker Rudy Bears by submission in less than a minute, his Strikeforce debut will be on the untelevised portion of the Strikeforce: Challengers card (due to injury his fight has since been moved to the maincard). While collegiate and high level wrestling is filled with talented black wrestlers, wrestling remains thought of as a mainly white sport.  I’ll admit that before my venture into MMA I didnt know about any black wrestlers. The first thing I thought of when wrestling was brought up was a giant white man in tights. We didnt even have a wrestling team when I was in high school.

What happens as these athletes make more money is that not only do young black athletes start to believe its part of the game but fans start expecting the black athletes to be flashy and flamboyant. The post touchdown celebration becomes just as important as the touchdown itself. Personally, I believe both sides of this are integral to the growth (and entertainment value) of sports. I just wish players like Tim Duncan where as respected as his more flashy (but equally as talented) brothers.

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Today the NYC MMA bill officially died. Eventhough every expert predicted it, I still held out hope. I wished Sheldon Silver and his gang would suddenly have an epiphany and realize how amazing MMA is and that all the young fighters here deserve to fight in front of their hometown fans. It was disappointing to say the least, but after reading what some of representatives said about the sport I love so much that disappointment soon gave way to a healthy dose of rage.  What pissed me off  so much is that the people voting on this bill flat out refuse to educate themselves on what MMA is. How can you even bring yourself to vote on something you know nothing about?! Its infuriating. The voters of this state deserve representatives who at least know what the hell they’re talking about. Policy cannot be a guessing game. The things these people vote on have a direct effect on peoples lives.

Like I’ve said before, the only way we will ever have the pleasure of MMA in New York is to put pressure on our elected officials to get rid of Sheldon Silver. The problem with that is the MMA community is still a fairly small one. Its easy to get caught up in a vacuum of MMA fandom, most of the people who read this blog are people who spend their days refreshing bloodyelbow.  Eventually you start to believe everyone loves MMA, because you spend your entire day with like-minded people. But a few minutes of conversation outside of our world will quickly reveal how little most people know about the sport we all love so much. We have to drum up support amongst people who dont care about this sport. That wont be easy. Technically, no one gets hurt by MMA NOT being legal. No one is being told they cant get married. All we can do is try to make this a debate about the economy and jobs. We have to stop asking these people why they dont love MMA and start asking them why they wont support something that could bring JOBS into this state.

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Allistair Overeem vs Fabricio Werdum

One of the biggest questions in MMA will be answered in this fight. How good is Overeem? In my opinion, very. I think he atleast has the skills to compete with any top 10 HW’s. The Overeem that lost to Werdum isnt the same Overeem we’ve been seeing. This guy is much bigger, has increased the power in his striking and worked tremendously on his take down defense. Werdum is good, although he’s mainly known for his submission skills he doesnt get enough credit for his toughness.  The only problem here for him is that Overeem is a better striker than Bigfoot and Fedor. Werdum wont be able to get this fight to the ground, which will leave him open and vulnerable to Overeems fists. Overeem by TKO.

Josh Barnett vs Brett Rogers

Brett Rogers has one of the best rags to riches stories in sports. He went from putting on tires for a living to fighting the best heavyweights in the world. His only physical gifts are brute strength and work ethic. Watching his career and skills develop has been a pleasure, he’s gone from a brawler who relied solely on his size and strength to a somewhat respectable boxer. After Rogers last fight against the unheralded Ruben Villareal people dismissed him as overrated, forgetting that he fought a respectable and competitive first round against FEDOR. In this fight Rogers wont enjoy much of a size advantage, he will however have his power to fall back on. Can he avoid being taken down into Barnetts world where he will almost certainly be submitted? We’ll have to wait and see, but  to me, the biggest question in this fight isnt about Rogers skills, its about where Barnetts head is at. Have all the steroid talk and licensing problems distracted Barnett enough to benefit Rogers? Time will tell. I think Rogers is the better striker here, he’s added some technical ability to his power over the years. If he’s shored up his take down defense I think this fight is his to lose. Im gonna go out on a limb here and pick Rogers by TKO early.

Daniel Cormier vs Jeff Monson

This fight is interesting to me. It’ll not only tell us how good Cormier is but whether or not Monson has anything left in his tank. Ive always had a soft spot for Monson, I like his look and I enjoy his fights. The way he used brutal and grinding strength in his submission game was always intriguing to me. Not to mention he was giving up absurd amounts of reach in some of those fights. Cormier has world class wrestling and a budding kickboxing game to go along with it. He’ll be able to dictate where this fight takes place. Monson doesnt have the wrestling to take Cormier down or the striking skills to threaten him. I think Monsons submission skills are still good enough to catch almost anyone but the key to this fight will be whether or not Cormier is confident enough in his striking to keep this fight standing. I think Cormier wins this fight by decision, Monson is still tough enough to gut out a fight he’s losing.

Chad Griggs vs Valentjin Overeem

Overeems biggest strength is his submission game, Griggs strength is his nonstop pace. Unfortunately for Overeem, his biggest flaw is that he just isnt very good. He wont be able to match Griggs grit, toughness or skills. Griggs takes this fight in a one sided beating. Chad Griggs by TKO.

Jorge Masvidal vs K.J. Noons

Masvidal is overrated. His awkward and unique striking cant compete with Noons technical and powerful boxing and muay thai base. I think Noons batters Masvidal here, especially since theres little to no possibility he gets taken down and he can really let his hands go. Noons via KO.

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While sitting around and thinking about my 2 loves. Metal and MMA. I started trying to think of any similarities they share. I was only able to think of one; Minutiae. These hobbies fit me because I can get obsessed and tangled in the smallest details of things I love. Just listening to metal wasnt enough for me, once I realized how amazing it was I wanted to hear…all of it. I used to scour the depths of the internet for rare mp3s for what felt like days at a time, foregoing the possibility that I could download a computer destroying virus. All that mattered to me was being able to immerse myself in the music. While the other kids in my class where taking tests I was drawing band logos on my test paper. The fact that I was failing the class never crossed my mind, I just had to make sure that godamn “S” in “Sepultura” had the correct number of thorns on it. Other kids book bags had books in it, mine had my discman and about 40 CDs. I carried them EVERYWHERE. I studied the cd booklets, learning who produced each album and which bands thanked other bands. It was an obsession. But where I differed from other metal heads was that I lacked pretentiousness, I constantly walked around trying to get my friends to love what I loved so much. It was always my dream to become an A&R rep at a record label and scout the world for talent to share with everyone. In my mind metal was for everyone, I thought it was great when one of my favorite bands sold more than 2 albums. If I burned someone a CD and they didnt like it I always wanted to know why so I could take what they told me and find them some they WOULD like. I was convinced that if they gave it a chance they’d love it as much as I did.

A few years ago I asked my girlfriend why she didnt like metal, she said “its too much, it just sounds like static’. I told myself that she just wasnt paying close enough attention, I tried to get her to close her eyes and REALLY listen, but it didnt work. I came to realize that to love metal as much as I do you need patience. I just wasnt going to be able to convince the kids that listen to The Used that they need to drop what they’re doing and listen to the latest Enslaved album. Metal isnt for everyone, and no matter how hard I sell it, everyone isnt going to buy.

When I got into MMA, I approached it with the same obsession, but with a different mindset. While I do believe that every sports fan can learn to love something about MMA I also realize they all wont take the time to do so. While theres beauty in every detail of BJJ I opt to focus on the beauty of 1 on 1 competition and how much athleticism and intelligence it takes to compete at the highest level when explaining why I love MMA to my friends.  As much as I respect and love Mike Wilbon, no one is going to convince him to take MMA seriously. What we may be able to convince doubters to do is appreciate and respect the competitors. Maybe Im naive, but I truly believe that once someone understands what these fighters go through for their craft, they’ll eventually take the time to find the beauty and art in the minutiae of Mixed Martial Arts.

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Sadly, that day is one of the only positive memories I have of my relationship with my father. We’ve both tried to get to know eachother, but failed miserably. I dont think either of us have the energy to try again, we’ve relegated ourselves to the occasional text and speaking only on birthdays and fathers day. Not only did I give up on my father after that day, but I gave up on MMA for a long time too. I got tired of begging my father to buy more “ultimate fighting” tapes for us to watch together and I moved on. Every once in awhile my brother and I would talk about Royce and try to figure out how he was choking all those people out, but eventually I forgot about MMA. For years my obsession with metal carried me. I spent all my time on internet message boards discussing the merits of black metal and debating whether or not one could look past Varg Vikernes views on race and just enjoy the music he made (the answer is no, in case you where wondering).

That obsession carried me through life until about 3 years ago when I came across the all Anderson Silva episode of UFC Unleashed while bored and flipping through the channels at 1 o’clock in the morning. I thought to myself “They’re still doing this?! How can it even be on TV?”. To my surprise the sport was almost completely different than I remembered. I started to think of my father and thought about changing the channel, but the more knees Anderson Silva threw into Rich Franklins body the more into it I got. After that fight, I was hooked. I stayed up all night reading about all the fights and fighters I missed throughout the years. I spent hours reading about Frank Shamrock, Rich Franklin, BJ Penn, Jens Pulver and Matt Hughes. I couldnt believe I missed so much. I hated that I gave up something I loved for what felt like nothing.  Because I was older I was able to look at these fighters with more respect. It was no longer about the blood thirst or seeing someone get KO’d. I got into the technical aspect of grappling. I learned to appreciate a good submission or takedown as much as a well placed punch that leads to a brutal KO. These fighters are no longer super heroes to me, they are hardworking and talented human beings who often come out on the losing side of things despite working hard and “leaving it all in the cage”.

I dont just get entertainment from these fights, I find MMA to be extremely inspiring and beautiful. Its one on one. In a fight you’ve got no one to depend on but yourself, no team to fall back on during a fight. To me, MMA mimics life. You train, work hard and prepare to risk everything for a win. Whether you win or lose, sometimes you leave bloody and hurt. But you leave knowing you tried. You walk out with your head held high. And although the relationship between my father and I feels like its ended in a draw, I tried.  If these fighters have taught me anything its how to lose gracefully. I’ve  learned not to let the loss of my relationship with my father define me. Through my fathers mistakes I’ve learned how to be a better father to my future children. I’ve learned to make sure they’re better prepared for their fight in the cage of life than I ever was.

Again, thanks for taking time to read all the stuff I put it. I cant describe to you how awesome it is. 

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Guess I never really told anyone when my obsession and love for MMA started.

My obsession starts at about 12 years old. It was nearing my fathers birthday, I didnt know him much (still dont, but thats a different story). I only knew that he liked kung fu movies, boxing, seeing people get knocked out and collecting what seemed like every VHS tape there ever was. While my siblings and I searched the movie store in a local mall for something he didnt already own we came across a tape of  UFC 1. Not knowing exactly what it was, we picked it up and turned it around to read what it was about. My brothers jaw dropped, we both knew he had to have it. It had everything we thought he’d love. Which at that time was blood and watching people get knocked out.  Smiling,  we snatched it up and ran up to the counter with the money our mother had given us for his gift. When we got home we both fought the desire to open it up and watch it ourselves, we stared at it and speculated about what was on it all night. We even tried to figure out how we could open it up, watch it and remelt the plastic shrink wrap around it so no one would know we watched. Eventually we gave up and went to sleep. The next day was Saturday, and it was our fathers weekend to pick us up. When he pulled up to our driveway we darted out to his car yelling “dad look what we got you!”, he opened it up, looked at us, smiled and said “cool”. When we got in the car he asked us if we had ever seen it, we both said “no, do you know what ultimate fighting is?”, he looked at us in the rear view mirror and said “never heard of it, but we’ll get some food and watch it together”. When we got to his house, he told us we had to wait until the food was done to put the movie in. Never had ground beef taken so long to brown. After about an hour the food was finally done and the pop had been adequately chilled, it was time to put the movie in. Our father turned to us and said “put the movie in”, we laughed and informed him that we already put it in and paused it the minute we walked in the house.

Halfway through the video all the women had cleared the room, opting to watch music videos in the back. What was left was something I had always wanted; My father and I. We sat and watched the whole thing in one sitting, even rewinding parts and laughing together (One glove, Art? Really?!).  After it was over, my father went to go do something else, but my brother and I decided to watch it again. This time I got to pay more attention to the actual fights instead of the coolness of the moment. I was amazed that a shrimpy brazilian could overtake these behemoths using something called “Brazilian Jiu Jitsu”.  The camera work wasnt as good as it is today, I couldnt even tell what Royce was doing to them. In my eyes, it was magic. I must have watched that VHS tape 5 times that weekend. It was one of the best times of my life, I spent YEARS trying to recapture how happy I was that day. Though my father and I have failed and I’ve since given up on our relationship, I can look back on that weekend and imagine what things could be like if we kept trying.

On Tuesday we’ll pick up about 12 years later

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Hello everyone, here are my predictions for UFC 131. I realize Im still a noob, but I enjoy this. I recently started an MMA blog (like everyone else), would be awesome if you guys could stop by and say hi. 

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The rest of the card is on my blog, if you care you can go there and read them. Thanks for taking time out your day for me lol

Junior Dos Santos vs Shane Carwin

First of all, lets be honest. Brock didnt really have a chance against Cigano. His wrestling, while good, hasnt really translated into MMA very well.  He’s  relied more on his speed and athleticism than his wrestling. And has struggled against smaller, more athletic fighters like Randy and Cain. I dont think he would have been able to get this fight to the ground as Cigano has shown some fantastic take down defense. Which would leave this fight in Juniors world, a world where Brock is far behind where he should be. A world where I believe he would end up unconscious, quickly.

However, we dont have to worry about any of that because another bout of Diverticulitis has forced the former Heavyweight champ to pull out of the fight. Stepping in to replace him is power slugger Shane Carwin. Also a giant heavyweight with a decent wrestling base, the difference is that Carwin has chose to use his wrestling to stay on his feet and eventually knock his opponents heads into the cheap seats.  Recent interviews have Carwin claiming that he’s going to stand and bang with Cigano, warning him to “get ready for a war”. This is all poorly coded MMA talk for “Im going to take you down”. But the question is; Can he take down Cigao? I dont think so. Ring rust, a sudden change in opponent and a bad habit of slugging instead of actual boxing all work against Carwin in this fight. Not to mention the much smaller Cigano’s  much underrated footwork and movement. Carwin wont be able to keep up. Cigano busts him up in the first round and eventually gets the TKO here.

Kenny Florian vs Diego Nunes

Former Lightweight title contender Kenny “KenFlo” Florian will be making his featherweight debut this weekend against Diego Nunes, whos fresh off a 3 fight win streak and a win over former WEC title holder Mike Thomas Brown. Kenny is going to win. Easily. And here’s why; Nunes doesnt posses any of the traits needed to stop KenFlo. Gorilla strength? Nope. Vicious wrestling? Nope. Supernantural BJ Penn-ness? Nope. Nunes is  a decent kickboxer with barely above average submission skills, in other words, he’s taylor made for Kenny. I say KenFlo uses his length to keep Nunes on the outside and picks him apart until he gets ready to take him down and submit him.

Jon Olav Einemo vs Dave Herman

Einemo hasnt fought since 2006, and even when he was active in MMA, his only fight against a worthy opponent was a loss to current Strikeforce Heavyweight champ Fabricio Werdum. To be honest, Im not sure what he’s doing in the UFC and lets not pretend like his submission win over Roger Gracie in 2003 means anything, because it doesnt. I like Einemo, but he doesnt have a chance here. Herman will win this easily, he’s to big and to strong. Pee Wee by TKO

Demian Maia vs Mark Munoz

This is your classic BJJ practitioner versus wrestler. We already know what these guys are going to try to do to eachother. Maia wants to submit Munoz, and Munoz wants to take Maia down and pound his face through the canvass. Unfortunately for Munoz, his wrestling is a bit overrated and although his striking has improved a bit recently, Maia’s Muay Thai has progressed much faster. IF (and its a big if) Munoz manages to get Maia down, Maia has an active enough guard and is dangerous enough on the ground to completely stifle Munoz blitzing ground and pound. I think this fight will end up looking a lot like Munoz fight against Yushin Okami. Once Munoz realizes he cant take Demian down, he’ll check out of the fight mentally and get picked apart on the feet. Maia by decision.

Donald Cerrone vs Vagner Rocha

I’ve never been a huge fan of Cerrone or his cowboy style of fighting. It bothers me when fighters ignore their gifts and go for broke in stupid slugfests. Cerrone’s biggest strength is his BJJ,  he has excellent back control and weaves various submissions together with ease.Vagner, whos known for his BJJ poses a fairly significant threat on the ground. This may be the only time Cerrone would be smart to keep this fight standing and duke it out. Cerrone by TKO.

Recently comedian/announcer for the UFC Joe Rogan put his foot in his mouth. Again. This time for referring to a female journalist as “cunty.” This  highlights a big problem the MMA community has. How can we ask mainstream America to take us seriously when we cant seem to shake the frat boy image? At face value the sport I love seems to be more focused on blood lust and proclaiming how masculine you are than learning the nuances of Jiu Jitsu. The bloodier the better, the louder, the more beefed up you are and the more crass you are, the better. Honestly, the casual MMA fan is barely a step up from a casual viewer of Jersey Shore.

The only way to shake this image is to start at the top. Unfortunately, Dana White and Joe Rogan are there. And convincing the notoriously hard headed Dana White that the very thing he’s been doing for the last decade (while the sports popularity has grown exponentially) is wrong won’t be an easy task. It’s time for the people at the top to start taking their sport as seriously as the bloggers they hate. They need to hire PR firms, put on suits, and shut up. The way the rest of the world sees us might be unfair, but its the way it is. Our athletes dont make millions of dollars, their careers are fairly short and the season is seemingly never ending. But we have to take ourselves more seriously, we have to hold people accountable for keeping these amazing athletes stuck in the positions they’re in. Joe Rogan, Rampage Jackson and Dana Whites antics dont just hurt the image of this sport, it keeps it from growing and keeps smaller athletes from making more money and taking care of their families.

Free speech isnt a get out jail free card. You cant say whatever comes to your mind and not suffer the consequences. You cant expect the people who disagree with you to not also exercise their right to free speech and call you out on your sexism, homophobia and knuckle headedness. We are all responsible for eachother. Fans, fighters, bloggers, managers. We are all the sport and if we don’t start taking care of each other and making sure the worst among is held responsible we have no one to blame for the lack of respect but each other.