SB Nation User Blog: themachiavellian

"PESHAWAR, Pakistan—The Kabul Boxing Club. Boxing clubs have been banned in Afghanistan by the r...

themachiavellian — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 17:36:26 -0000

"PESHAWAR, Pakistan—The Kabul Boxing Club. Boxing clubs have been banned in Afghanistan by the ruling Taliban, August 2001."

Slate.com has a fascinating gallery of boxing photographs. Highly recommended.

Paparazzi recently photographed Tito Ortiz training hard for Fedor with the help of his girlfriend,...

themachiavellian — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 18:10:59 -0000

Paparazzi recently photographed Tito Ortiz training hard for Fedor with the help of his girlfriend, Jenna Jameson.

HT: WWTDD

Fighters in EA MMA Banned from UFC?

themachiavellian — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 02:15:05 -0000

From MMA Scraps:

This disheartening bit of news first came from Golden Boy at the UG

I hear that all mma managers were informed that if any of their clients not currently under contract with the UFC..... sign to be a part of the EA game.......the will forever be banned for fighting in the UFC.

Sounds like a simple rumor right? Albeit from a pretty reputable source, but then later in the forum post, MMA Uber agent Ken Pavia of MMAAgents.com says this.

It's true. And they told me want the word out.

Even if this is true (which it appears to be), no other credible info has surfaced. Who's behind it? Will it be enforced? What should up-and-comer fighters do - take money to be in EA MMA, or hold out for an invite from the UFC? If Fedor appears in it, would Dana & Co. still pursue him? This ukase could easily sink the rival game if too many people are scared away from agreeing to be in it.

"In the second round of a Pancrase Gate prelim between Kazuyoshi Kiyama and Kensaku Nakamura,...

themachiavellian — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:55:22 -0000

"In the second round of a Pancrase Gate prelim between Kazuyoshi Kiyama and Kensaku Nakamura, Kiyama landed a vicious kick to the body that made Nakamura double over and lose his lunch -- runny cream of chicken, by the look and consistency of it, with a primary splash radius of about 1 foot."

-Tony Loiseleur at Sherdog

Japanese Pro-Wrestler Dies During Match

themachiavellian — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 14:20:07 -0000

Mitsuharu Misawa was a popular Japanese wrestler and widely considered one of the best in the business, winning a five-time AJPW Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion, three-time GHC Heavyweight Champion and was named Wrestler of the Year by Wrestling Observer Newsletter on three occasions (thank you, Wikipedia). In a match on June 13, 2009, he received a belly-to-back suplex, landed directly on his head, was knocked unconscious, and died shortly after due to spinal cord injuries. Why bring this up here? Because this is the lethal technique:

While rarely seen, the suplex can be used in MMA (see also here, here, and here), much to the delight of the fans, who reward the fighter with cheers, and promoters, who reward the fighter with cash bonuses to keep doing it. Events like Misawa's death are reminders that there are very real dangers to the sport, and these athletes really do risk their lives with every fight. It's good to remember that.

Anyone else find this surreal?

themachiavellian — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 01:23:38 -0000

Anyone else find this surreal?

A little old, but I don't remember seeing it anywhere. Very good publicity. "Saturday May 2 2009....

themachiavellian — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 07:30:09 -0000

A little old, but I don't remember seeing it anywhere. Very good publicity.

"Saturday May 2 2009. Ultimate fighter Cheick Kongo joins Hollywood United FC as they play a charity match in Downtown [Los Angeles] to raise money for a new football pitch at a local high school. The crowds were extremely happy to watch this celebrity match and especially to see some familiar old faces pop up, like the Sex-Pistols bassist Steve Jones and Australian actor Anthony LaPaglia."

Pacific Coast News

Drew McFedries Ousted from Miletich Camp

themachiavellian — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 01:36:17 -0000

After his fight with Xavier Foupa-Pokam, McFedries lambasted his training camp, saying they weren't supportive enough. Apparently Pat Miletich decided if "The Massacre" wasn't happy, then he should train elsewhere. McFedries responded with:

“I think there are other guys in the gym that feel the same way, but they’re not going to speak up, because they’re afraid, they’re afraid of the same result happening to them, that happened to me.”

Is there really trouble at MFS? Many high-profile names have left the camp (e.g. Matt Hughes, Robbie Lawler) - is that due to internal conflicts or just established fighters wanting to branch out on their own?

Lyoto Machida's Champion's Welcome Via Sherdog.

themachiavellian — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 22:10:43 -0000

Lyoto Machida's Champion's Welcome

Via Sherdog.

Play Jose Canseco off, Keyboard Cat...

themachiavellian — Fri, 29 May 2009 23:14:57 -0000

Play Jose Canseco off, Keyboard Cat...