UFC Flashback: Joe Lauzon Tops Jeremy Stephens In Ultimate Fight Night Main Event

By Ross Everett

Ever since he burst onto the MMA scene with a shocking first round KO upset of Jens Pulver at UFC 63, Joe Lauzon has been working to earn respect. For some reason hes had trouble being taken seriously as a top contender in the UFCs lightweight division. He may not fit the classical profile of a fighter, looking more like a fresh faced kid and is often referred to as a geek due to his educational background in computer science. In the main event at the UFC Ultimate Fight Night in Tampa, Lauzon withstood a game challenge from late replacement Jeremy Stephens to earn a 2nd round submission victory.

Lauzon was in control of the fight throughout, but Stephens gave a good account of himself despite his opponents obvious technical superiority on the ground. Stephens wasnt able to match up with Lauzons ever improving BJJ skills, but he used good old fashioned tenacity and some powerful punching to keep the fight competitive throughout. Lauzon appeared to be on the verge of ending the fight midway through the second with a ground and pound assault that he attempted to transition into a rear naked choke. Stephens fought back with a vengeance despite his disadvantageous position and opened a nasty cut on Lauzons forehead with an elbow strike.

Lauzon gained a new sense of urgency not wanting to lose on a stoppage due to the cut. He regained control on the ground and from full mount twisted into a nasty arm bar. Stephens tried to extricate himself, but was eventually forced to tap giving the bloody Lauzon a hard fought triumph.

The semifinal matchup featured another impressive effort from Cain Velesquez, who many have pegged as the heavyweight superstar of the future. He trains with the American Kickboxing Academy, and has a reputation as the hardest worker and most dominant sparring partner in a gym who includes among its membership superstars such as Bobby Southworth, Cung Le and Josh Thompson.

Velesquez was never really threatened in the fight, but he did have difficulty finishing off tough UFC newcomer Dennis Stojnic. Stojnic displayed impressive toughness and a chin of granite, which is less surprising given his training home at Amsterdams Golden Glory gym where he works alongside such fighters as K-1s Semmy Schilt and DREAMs Alistair Overeem. Stojnic did become the first of Velasquezs opponents to make it into the second round as he withstood a brutal beating near the end of the first to make it to the bell.

In the second round, Velesquez quickly caught his opponent and sent him to the canvas with a nice combination which he followed up with another ground and pound attack. Stojnic again kept trying to defend himself despite a hellacious beating, though the referee finally jumped in and stopped the contest awarding Velesquez the TKO verdict.

On the undercard, Josh The Dentist Neer earned a tapout victory over the sports best known (and perhaps only) vegan, Mac Danzig. Danzig looked decent in the first round as he counterpuched Neers wild looping punches to good advantage, but in the second he looked listless and quickly fell victim to a nasty triangle choke.

In the opening bout of the evening, up-and-coming welterweight Anthony Rumble Johnson used his significant height and reach advantage to dispatch tough Luigi Fioravanti. Though most observers were impressed with Johnsons wall to wall domination of the tough US Marine Corps veteran, he was very critical of himself in his postfight interview calling his performance sloppy.

The live crowd in Tampa gave a very poor account of themselves, at times booing fighters mercilessly for no apparent reason whatsoever. Their behavior reached a nadir in Cain Velasquezs post fight interview, where he was booed mercilessly despite an impressive victory and informing Joe Rogan that he was about to become a father for the first time. - 31497

About the Author:

Ross Everett is a widely published writer and a noted authority on sports betting and NFL point spreads. He is a frequent sports radio guest where he gives advice on how to successfully bet on NFL. He lives in Las Vegas with three dogs and a dingo.

MMA Flashback: Kimbo Slice Comes To Prime Time

By Ross Everett

It wasnt the decisive blowout that EliteXC was hoping far to send Kimbo Slices stardom into the stratosphere but with some seriously tense moments for the former street fighter against a game James Thompson everyone concerned is likely happy with a victory of any sort. Kimbo at times displayed some surprising skill on the ground, while at other times looked amateurish and lost. Slice clearly had the edge in the standup exchanges, and appeared to have Thompson on the verge of going down for the count several times in the fight.

Though "The Colossus" kept his feet through several punishing combinations, the beginning of the end came when a Slice punch nearly sheared his ear off. The bloody, grotesque ear was clearly at risk of being seriously damaged and Kimbo punctuated this with four or five uncontested power punches. Thompson by this point was out on his feet and the ref jumped in to bring the proceedings to a halt giving Kimbo a TKO victory. After the fight an exhausted and relieved Slice flopped onto the mat, clearly relieved to have survived the toughest test hes faced in his embryonic MMA career.

While Thompson and his corner complained of an early stoppage, given the severity of the ear injury and the four or five uncontested power shots by Kimbo its a tough case to make. Furthermore, it was consistent with the officiating all night which obviously was trying to err on the side of caution in the first MMA event on prime time major network television. The ref was quick to call several of the earlier bouts, and the ringside physician was involved. The fights on the card that ended by stoppage could have arguably been called a second or two early, but as the old saying goes better a second too early than a second too late.

EliteXC overall has to be very happy with how the event came off. The presentation was highly professional all night, and the announcing was superb. There was no question that Gus Johnson and Mauro Ranallo are solid pros, and Frank Shamrock is obviously a well spoken and experienced expert commentator but the three meshed together exceptionally well.

The emphasis from the start was on selling the sport of MMA. This was done via nicely produced and informative instructional videos, which would be helpful to a first time MMA viewer but didnt come off as sophomoric to the seasoned aficionado. Given the often unpredictable nature of the sport, EliteXC has to be pleased with how everything came off and the results of the fights on the card.

Overall, it was a professionally produced and entertaining night of action. With the exception of the less than decisive victory by Kimbo in the main event, it couldnt have gone better for EliteXC had it been scripted. - 31497

About the Author:

Ross Everett is a freelance sports writer and respected sports betting authority. He is also a consulting handicapper for Sports-1 Sportsbook and is in charge of setting NFL lines. He has written extensively on sports handicapping theory along with a wide range of other topics including fencing, boxing and dog training.

UFC 99 Flashback: Rich Franklin Beats Wanderlei Silva In Epic Main Event

By Ross Everett

From a business standpoint, the UFCs first trip to Germany will clearly fall short of their success in the UK. From poor ticket sales to a downright hostile German media, its been one headache after another for Dana White and company. The UFC 99 card itself turned out to be an entertaining affair highlighted by a spectacular main event between Rich Franklin and Wanderlei Silva. Franklin would ultimately win the unanimous decision victory, but the fight itself far exceeded the expectations of most fans.

For the most part, Franklin picked Silva apart throughout the course of the fight (to quote UFC color commentator Joe Rogan) and deserved the unanimous decision verdict. What made the fight exceptional were the occasional glimpses of the old Axe Murderer. Late in the second and third rounds, Silva tagged Franklin with hard punches that left him clearly stunned.

In the co-main event, heavyweight phenom Cain Velasquez survived a few nervous moments to put in a wall to wall domination of Cheick Kongo. Velasquez was rocked by Kongos punches early in rounds one and two, but quickly recovered to take the fight to the ground where he mauled the Frenchman. The result was an impressive victory for Velasquez over a top level opponent, but his struggles against Kongos standup game left several unanswered questions. The most compelling concern, of course, is that Velesquez might have a weak chin and simply not be able to take a punch particularly well. His problems could also be tactical or simply a case of not having enough patience"rushing his takedown attempts and eating punches rather than work for a less risky opportunity. In any case, his stand up defense needs to be upgraded significantly before he can think about competing against the likes of Brock Lesnar or Frank Mir.

The event also featured the UFC return of former PRIDE open weight GP champion Mirko Cro Cop. Cro Cop was making his return to action from knee surgery, and the Croatian striking machine got off to a slow start against overmatched Mostapha Al-Turk as he clearly sought to protect his rebuilt wheels. Of particular note was the fact that Cro Cop didnt throw a kick the entire fight"his bread and butter during his PRIDE dominance, which evoked the mantra right leg hospital, left leg cemetery. Once he let his hands go, however, he demonstrated emphatically that hes still got serious power. He ended the fight late in the first round by flooring Al-Turk with an overhand left followed up with some hammer fists on the ground. Al-Turk survived this onslaught, but when the referee returned the fight to standup he caught a poke in the eye (similar to the one suffered by Josh Barnett in his PRIDE OWGP Final matchup against Cro Cop). This caused him severe difficulty, but likely only hastened the inevitable Cro Cop TKO victory.

Perennial contender Mike Swick looked impressive as he defeated Ben Saunders via 2nd round TKO. After an uneventful first five minutes, Swick let his hands go and his impressive handspeed proved no match for his adversary. Veteran lightweight Caol Uno returned to the UFC after a five year absence, losing a decision to Spencer Fisher in a somewhat tedious tactical affair. In the opening match of the live PPV, Dan Hardy won a hard fought split decision over Marcus Davis. The two men had feuded back and forth in the UK media, and while the fight may not have settled their differences in a decisive manner it did provide a solid opener to the evenings fight card. - 31497

About the Author:

Ross Everett is a freelance sports writer and respected authority on sports betting odds comparison. He writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sportsbooks and betting odds portal sites. He lives in Northern Nevada with three Jack Russell Terriers and a kangaroo. He is currently working on an autobiography of former interior secretary James Watt.

UFC 102 Highlighted By Couture/Nogueira Bout

By Ross Everett

Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira left a lot of questions unanswered in the wake of his UFC 92 loss to Frank Mir. He had been dominated in his defeat to Mir and in the process suffered the first stoppage of his career. After the fight it was revealed that hed suffered from a staph infection during training, severe enough to land him in the hospital for five days. He insisted that the loss was entirely attributable to his illness. At UFC 102 from the Rose Garden in Portland, Oregon, Big Nog made a compelling case that his loss to Mir was a definite aberration. Nogueira dominated a determined Randy Couture over three rounds, en route to a unanimous decision victory over the UFC Hall of Famer. Nogueiras decisive victory culminated the UFCs first ever event in the Pacific Northwest and after a bit of hand wringing over slow ticket sales the show came off very well on PPV.

Nogueira entered the arena first to his usual entrance music of Gimme Shelter by The Rolling Stones. Couture lived in suburban Gresham, Oregon for a number of years and trained at Team Quest before leaving to start Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas. Hes still a beloved figure in the Portland area, and his wide grin during Bruce Buffers introductions give the impression that he still has a lot of affection for his former hometown.

Despite the lopsided outcome of the fight, The Natural gave his fans plenty to cheer about. Though hes no longer able to outwork opponents and earn victories, hes still an amazing physical specimen for a 46 year old man. Furthermore, he still has the amazing toughness and resilience that made him a legend. He was knocked down twice, and came close to being choked out in each of the three rounds. In the first, he fought off a DArce Choke before Nogueira relented to conserve his energy. In the second, he worked out of a dangerous arm triangle choke and in the final frame withstood a ground and pound beating and a rear naked choke attempt.

Couture in no way embarrassed himself, but he never really threatened Nogueira either. The former PRIDE heavyweight champion looked every bit his old self, displaying a formidable standup game to compliment his top of the food chain groundfighting and submission skills. After the fight Nogueira expressed his respect for Couture and appreciation for the Portland fans before politely calling out current heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar.

In the co-main event, Thiago Silva demonstrated why hes considered among the most underrated fighters in mixed martial arts as he dismantled Keith Jardine. After a feeling out process, Silva perfectly countered one of Jardines kicks with a nasty straight right hand. He followed up with a quick ground punching barrage before the referee called a halt to the fight early in the first round. - 31497

About the Author:

Ross Everett is a freelance writer and respected authority onsports betting. He is also a consulting handicapper for Sports-1 Sportsbook and is in charge of setting NFL lines. He has written extensively on sports betting theory along with a wide range of other topics including fencing, self defense and dog training.

How To Start Learning Karate

By Paul Campbell

Popularity of Karate is growing as a hobby and sport. Teenagers to adults have realized the tremendous potential that Karate carries to improve the physical and mental well being. If you are a resident of Briery Hill who either wants to join a Karate club or want to enroll your kid into a karate club then here are some tips that would help you to find the right Karate club at Briery Hill:

When looking for a Karate club in Briery hill, check out if the club is affiliated to any major organization such as JKA, KUGB, KARATE ENGLAND, ITKF or any other major group. This ensures the consistency in method of teaching and advancement to higher levels.

Check out the credentials of the instructors of the Karate club at Briery Hill that you plan to join. The Dan grade that the instructor holds is very important in determining the quality of training you would receive.

In case of accidents, to secure yourself from any liability make sure that the instructor has the Public liability Insurance/Indemnity insurance.

During karate practices students at times may get hurt The Karate club at Briery Hill that you choose must have a personnel present all the time during the classes who is trained in delivering First Aid or the instructor must hold a fist aid certificate.

All the personnel at the Karate club at Briery Hill should be CRB (Criminal record Bureau) cleared. This is especially important if you are sending your children to such clubs. The Karate club should have emergency procedures such as fire exist to combat any untoward accident.

Choosing a Karate club at Briery hill is not only about infrastructure but also whether the Karate Club at Briery hill is in line with your expectations. Here are some pointers that can help you in choosing the right Karate Club at Briery hill whose Karate style and emphasis matches your expectations and Karate goals.

Observe the training session at the Karate club at least once or twice to get a feel about the way classes are run, how instructors interact with the students? What is the overall ambience of the Karate club training session and whether you or your kid would be comfortable training there?

Introspect to know what is it that you want from karate? Do you want to pursue Karate as a hobby or as a serious sport? Whether your karate learning goal is to exercise or learning combat style karate? Answers to these questions will help you to choose the right Karate club which can serve your expectations the best.

Instructors play a very important role in determining your overall learning experience at the Karate club. Interact with your instructor, talk to him/her about your expectations and whether the instructors Karate style fits into it or not?

Last but not the least; do not pay the membership in the first instance. Take some time, avail some free lessons if the karate club at Briery hill offers one and then put any money on the table. At the same time do not compromise on quality for money. - 31497

About the Author:

If you are interested in starting karate in the midlands then visit dudley karate and karate dudley

Which Art is Better, Karate or Aikido?

By Al Case

I know, the question does have a slant to it, as one should be comparing arts such as Karate and Aikido more by complimenting them than opposing them. Still, having said that, let us discuss how the fist should fit into the glove. No guns or knives, just an honest viewpoint for your education and enlightenment.

Karate is supposed to be a linear martial arts, and Aikido is supposed to be designed for the purity of the circle. Yet, if one looks at Karate one will see that perfection of linearity is loose, at best. If Karate could actually adhere to the linear concept, considering how the bones, joints, muscles and so on fit together, the body would probably explode, or, at least fall apart from stress.

And, on the other hand, if Aikido tried to adhere to the perfect circle, except in the most theoretical of classes, the art would not work. And, to be honest, aikido is not your best art for down and dirty combat. While Aikido is pure and wonderful, and can evolve the practitioner to high levels, one should use a martial art like Karate to enter the fight, then apply aikido.

Think about it this way, a fight is the collapse of distance. The length of the arm, and the circle being made, the lever of the extend arm is too long. However, if you want magic, use karate to kick, punch, find yourself on the inside as the distance collapses, and then use a shorter lever.

Instead of stepping in and tying a three foot arm circle to a wrist twist, try a hard middle block, slide in and turn the waist. As you turn the waist, bring the arms up to a short position and catch the elbow, shove your shoulder in and go with the flow. Go ahead, try this technical adaptation with a friend, even gaze at a little youtube to get the idea of the arts involved, and you are going to find an instant blend of karate, even the hardest of karate, like Kyukoshinkai, with even the purest of Aikido, even the soft taught by Morihei Uyeshiba.

Now, the above technique being attempted, the big weakness of Karate is that it is limited, in most modern classes, to destruction. It has been altered to fit the tournament, gloves are used for more violence, and freestyle is given over to fighting for fighting sake. But, maybe you have heard me say it before, while there is an art to destruction, the true art is in control.

Thus, a study of Aikido, with the advices I give you here, will enable you to confront the fiercest violence, and transmogrify that violence into the most magical and wondrous of techniques. You kick, you punch, maybe soften the fellow up, then you simply embrace the arms and learn how to go with the flow.

A last word on this subject, don't mistake the throws of Aikido for those throws espoused by such arts as judo or jujitsu. While techniques of the jujitsu methods are quick and workable, we want to move from hard to soft in a conceptual sense, and a certain amount of hard is still needed to make most ju techniques work. That all said, I wish you the best with this new art you are creating, whether you call it...karido...aikate...your choice. - 31497

About the Author:

Al Case has analyzed Karate and Aikido, and other arts, for 4O+ years. A writer for the magazines, with his own column, since'81, Al is the originator of Matrixing. You can learn more about combining arts, and Matrixing, by getting his free ebook at Monster Martial Arts.

Who was better, Bruce or Mohammad Ali?

By Al Case

Man, there's gonna be a knock down! I can feel it in my bones! The question is, will Bruce knock down Mohammad, or will Mohammad knock down Bruce?

Okay, first factor to be considered, let's talk about the physical measurements of the combatants. Mohammad Ali was six foot three, and Bruce Lee was only five foot seven. The point goes to Mohammad on this one, though it is a weak point when one considers Bruces legs.

Now, weight is always a critical factor, so let us take a look. Bruce Lees weight went up and down, but at his ripping best he was probably about 160 pounds, Mohammad had his ups and downs in weight, also, but we can round it out to about 200 pounds. Mohammad gets the nod in this area, for 200 pounds of flesh is going to have a sizable boffaloonie behind it.

Speed is often decisive in a fight, and here the edge goes to Mr. Lee. Yes, Mohammad did deliver an invisible punch in one fight. Bruces speed, however, is always a constant blur.

All around martial ability considered, and Bruce gets the edge. Yes, Mohammad was fluid, powerful, and unique, but he was limited to arms. Honestly, though we can only award one point per category, I would like to give more to Bruce, for you would have to tie one of Bruces legs behind his back to get an even fight.

One should never under estimate the importance of the mouth in a fight. Simply, if you talk the talk with sufficient prowess, you might not have to walk the walk. That said, in spite of Bruce having access to script writers, no one in the world could compete with the Louiseville Lip, why, you would have to tie one of Mohammads lips behind his back to get an even contest!

Mohammad has the edge thus far, but the contest is about to even up, for we are going to consider the most important question in the martial arts, pure martial knowledge. Mohammad knew a lot, but his was a natural talent, and, as we have discussed, he was limited to fists. Bruce, on the other hand, not only knew an amazing amount of hits, kicks, trips, throws, and so on, he used to watch movies of Mohammad just to study his techniques!

In conclusion, I am not going to call a knock out, because these men were two fast to be knocked out. But I am going to give a decision to Bruce, this because he not only watched movies of Mohammad Ali, he used to watch them in a mirror so he could adapt Mohammads techniques to both sides! Now that is truly above and beyond, and it is for this reason I give the decision to Bruce Lee! - 31497

About the Author:

Al Case has studied martial arts 4O plus+ years. He began writing articles for the magazines in'81, and had his own column in Inside Karate. He has written dozens of books and, and he is the originator of Matrixing, which enables a person to analyze any fight or fighter accurately. You can get his free ebook on Matrixing at Monster Martial Arts.