Sunday, May 08, 2011

European mixed martial arts promotion M-1 Global announced their return to the United States for M-1 Challenge XXVI, scheduled for July 8 and expected to air live on Showtime. At the top of the card, undefeated Georgian-Ukranian fighter Guram Gugenishvili defends his heavyweight title against Team BombSquad fighter, American wrestler Pat Bennet. Fresh off winning the lightweight belt, Jose “The People’s Champ” Figueroa faces German contender Daniel Weichel in a championship showdown.

Bellator’s season four welterweight tournament concluded last night from the First Council Casino in Newkirk, Okla. with Jay "The Thoroughbred" Hieron walking away with a razor-thin decision win over Olympian Rick Hawn—collecting the $100,000 check and earning the opportunity to battle current champ Ben "Funky" Askren for the welterweight championship belt.

Saturday, May 07, 2011

Continuing to build momentum off a breakthrough 2010, Europe’s leading mixed martial arts promotion, M-1 Global is scouring the continents for top talent. The 2011 Asian M-1 Selection tournament  kicked off Saturday April 30 with the region’s opening round taking place at Event Hall 135-713 in the Fashion Center Building in Seoul, South Korea. The opening round bouts featured aspiring Japanese and Korean fighters taking their first steps at the Asian tournament championships.

Friday, May 06, 2011

Bellator Fighting Championships makes its return to First Council Casino in Newkirk, Okla. on May 7 as the promotion’s welterweight tournament reaches its crescendo with a finals matchup pitting Olympic judoka Rick Hawn against UFC and Strikeforce veteran Jay “The Thoroughbred” Hieron. Both fighters contend for the $100,000 tournament winner’s check and the opportunity to challenge the champion, the undefeated Ben Askren, for welterweight gold. Bellator 43 broadcasts live at 9 p.m. ET on MTV2.

Being on “The Ultimate Fighter” usually marks a fighter for stardom. Cast members that do not make the full UFC roster typically return to the regional circuit, but are well sought after. Coaches go on to main event UFC pay-per-views. This season a new star has been born. He is not a head coach, and he is not a cast member, and he is not Dana White. He is Lew Polley, and he is also in demand, like it or not.

Thursday, May 05, 2011

Fresh off his successful Maximum Fighting Championship lightweight debut, Marcus "The Irish Hand Grenade" Davis makes his return to welterweight at “MFC 30: Up Close & Personal” to take on fellow UFC veteran Pete "The Secret Weapon" Spratt in a rematch of their UFC 69 contest. MFC 30 is scheduled for June 10 at the Mayfield Conference Centre in Edmonton, Alberta and airs live on HDNet at 10 p.m. ET.

Europe’s leading MMA promotion BAMMA are proud to announce the final line up for "BAMMA 6: Kong vs Ninja." In the co-main event of the evening, top middleweight title prospect, John Phillips will take on Pride and UFC veteran Frank Trigg. With BAMMA 6 marking his third appearance on a BAMMA card, Phillips is eager to impress and cement his position as a number one contender for Tom Watson’s middleweight title. Accepting the fight at short notice, due to an injury to Phil Baroni, will be long time UFC veteran Ivan Salaverry, making his return to MMA after a three year absence to face Matt Ewin.

Over four years removed from their first clash, UFC stars Dominick Cruz and Urijah Faber are set to meet again – this time for the UFC bantamweight championship. UFC officials announced today that on Saturday, July 2 live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Cruz will defend the UFC bantamweight title against his heated rival Faber in one of the most anticipated title bouts of the summer. The 26-year-old Cruz is out to avenge a 2007 featherweight title loss to “The California Kid” and now looks to settle the score in the highly-entertaining 135-pound division.

Edmonton’s Aggression MMA announced their next event, “AMMA 7: Confrontation,” set to take place June 10 from the Shaw Conference Center in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Headlining the fight card are two top Canadian welterweights as MFC and The Fight Club veteran Ryan “The Real Deal” Ford faces the rising Nick “Juggernaut” Hinchliffe. The full fight card will be announced shortly.

Evan Dunham has been forced to withdraw from his lightweight bout at UFC 132 against George Sotiropoulos due to injury. Rafael Dos Anjos has verbally agreed to step in and take his spot. UFC 132 will take place July 2, 2011 in Las Vegas. Prior to the injury, Dunham had lost his last two outings after going 11-0 in his career, four fights of which were in the UFC.

Wednesday, May 04, 2011

Bellator Fighting Championships recently announced two significant roster additions in preparation for their upcoming season five schedule. Brazilian jiu-jitsu champion and one-time Bellator veteran, Marcos “Loro” Galvao has signed a multi-fight agreement with the promotion and will compete in the bantamweight tournament. A second BJJ champion, Wanderlei Silve protégé Vitor Vianna joins the organization at middleweight and is set to debut this summer.

Monday, May 02, 2011

A record crowd of 55,000 witnessed UFC 129 at the Rogers Centre in Toronto last night, as two championship fights headlined the promotion’s latest offering. The judges played a pivotal role in the title tilts, as both bouts needed decisions to determine the winners. But before we delve into whether or not the decisions were just, we have to ask our typical post-event question: What did we learn?