Category: Mixed Martial Arts (Page 15 of 64)

Jon Jones becomes youngest UFC champ by destroying Shogun Rua

Jon Jones defeated Mauricio “Shogun” Ruo at UFC 128 to become the new UFC light heavyweight champion. HeavyMMA.com breaks down the fight.

In the main event match up of UFC 128, Jones completely dominated Mauricio “Shogun” Rua from start to finish.

The 23-year old was never in danger throughout the fight. He was able to dictate when it went to the ground and utilized his reach advantage to nullify any offense Rua could mount on the feet.

In the first round, Rua’s guard was active and Jones wasn’t able to do much damage until the former champion tried to get to his feet. As “Shogun” stood, Jones landed a knee that wobbled Rua, and followed it with a left hook.

It was all down hill for Rua after that. Jones secured a takedown in the second stanza and busted Rua up with elbows and punches.
Rua came out with a sense of urgency in the third round. He pressed forward and took Jones’ back briefly, but found himself on the bottom again taking shots.

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UFC 128 Picks and Predictions

UFC 128 takes place Saturday night from the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey and the main event is a battle for the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship with Mauricio “Shogun” Rua taking on Jon Jones. The card is filled with exciting fights and interesting storylines, so here is a look at who I like to prevail in the five main-card bouts.

UFC Light Heavyweight Championship: Mauricio “Shogun” Rua (19-4) vs. Jon Jones (12-1) – This fight is tough to call. Jones seems like he is an unstoppable force coming in, and is actually favored by oddsmakers. However, this is the biggest fight of his life on the biggest stage and that could affect him mentally. Shogun has looked good in his wins over Lyoto Machida, but he has been off for 10 months because of a knee injury and his last time fighting off an injury, he looked less than impressive. Shogun will show Jones something he hasn’t seen yet, but I think Jones will return the favor. I think the key to this bout is Jones’ wrestling and I see him controlling Shogun in the early rounds before finishing with ground and pound in the third round.

UFC Bantamweight Bout: Urijah Faber (24-4) vs. Eddie Wineland (18-6-1) – Both fighters were former WEC champions and are now making their UFC debuts. Faber likely earns a title fight with a win and coming in he is clearly the better fighter in terms of all-around skills. I see Faber using his quickness and hand speed to set the tone early and then moving to his grappling and submission fighting late in round two to seal the deal. I like Faber by choke in the second.

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Eliot Marshall to retire if UFC cuts him again

Eliot Marshall is glad to be making his UFC return, but the former TUF star tells Spencer Kyte of HeavyMMA.com that he’ll retire if the promotion cuts him again.

No matter what career path you walk, most people dream of pursuing their craft at the highest level, and Eliot Marshall is no different.

A cast member on Season 9 of The Ultimate Fighter, the 30-year-old Colorado native came out of the Las Vegas madhouse to post a win over Jules Bruchez at the show’s live finale, following it up with a victory over finalist Vinicius Magalhaes four months later in Montreal. His third trip into the Octagon yielded a third-straight win, with Marshall earning the nod in a split decision over Jason Brilz at UFC 103.

The trio of victories earned Marshall a step up in competition, setting up a date with Vladimir Matyushenko on the initial UFC on Versus event. The savvy veteran would go on to earn a narrow split decision victory, dropping Marshall’s record to a respectable 3-1 through his first four UFC fights.

While Matyushenko would go on to headline the very next Versus show opposite light heavyweight phenom Jon Jones, Marshall was released, his lack of aggression and three straight trips to the judges’ scorecards outweighing his win-loss record.

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Penn vs. Fitch 2 set for UFC 132

According to the guys at HeavyMMA.com, welterweights B.J. Penn and Jon Fitch will face off one more time at UFC 132 in July.

So much for B.J. Penn riding off into the sunset after his controversial draw with Jon Fitch last month.

The UFC announced tonight that Penn and Fitch have agreed to face off at UFC 132 on July 4th weekend in Las Vegas. Sources tell HeavyMMA.com that the bout is scheduled to be the co-main event.

Penn and Fitch fought to a draw in the main event of UFC 127 in Australia last month.

“Both fighters look to keep it out of the hands of the judges this time,” said UFC President Dana White.


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The purchase of Strikeforce a major landmark in MMA history

As HeavyMMA.com points out, Zuffa’s purchase of Strikeforce moves us one step closer to seeing the best fighters in the world competing against each other.

There are seminal moments is everyone’s life where they remember exactly where they were and what they were doing when something historic happened.

Saturday morning, I was sitting at the desk in my office, working on a piece for UFC 128 when the news broke that Zuffa, the parent company of the UFC, had purchased Strikeforce.

Think I’m over-extending by calling this move historic? Think again.

While UFC President Dana White repeatedly told MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani “it’s business as usual” in the video interview that broke the news to the masses, the truth is that this deal dramatically changes the landscape of mixed martial arts moving forward. The two premier organizations in MMA may continue to run as separate and distinct entities for now, but the business of mixed martial arts has forever been changed by this announcement.

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