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      Mike Thomas Brown interview and WEC 41 preview

      June 7, 2009 /

      Mike Brown’s rematch with Urijah Faber is tonight at 9 PM ET on VERSUS. In preparation, be sure to check out Drew Ellis’s in-depth interview with Brown, as well as Drew’s preview of WEC 41. (Scroll down, you’ll see it.)

      Mixed Martial Arts

      Summer Bird, Kent Desormeaux win 2009 Belmont Stakes

      June 6, 2009 /

      In an impressive upset, 11/1 long shot Summer Bird seemingly came out of nowhere to win the 2009 Belmont Stakes today at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York.

      Favorite Mine That Bird started off in the back of the pack and even was in last for a short portion of the race. But he made a steady push to the front by finding an opening along the rail and then down the stretch it looked like he was going to win.

      But jockey Calvin Borel, who was going for his own version of the Triple Crown after winning the Kentucky Derby and Preakness, “opened up” Mine That Bird too soon. Mine That Bird couldn’t finish the final push and wound up in third behind Dunkirk.

      Had Borel waited a touch longer to turn Mine That Bird loose, maybe he would have been victorious. But obviously it’s a judgment call for the jockey and it’s hard to criticize Borel after all the success he’s had this season, although some of the commentators were opening questioning his tactics after the race.

      For much of the race, Summer Bird wasn’t in the top four as he waded in the middle of the pack. But down the final stretch, he found some open ground and blazed past Mine That Bird, Dunkirk and Charitable Man to claim victory.

      It was a sweet win for jockey Kent Desormeaux, who rode Real Quiet to victory in both the 1998 Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes. But he lost his bid to win horse racing’s Triple Crown when Victory Gallop beat Real Quiet by a nose in the final stride of the Belmont. Desormeaux also rode Big Brown to victory at the Kentucky Derby and Preakness last year, but once again lost at the Belmont.

      After being criticized for “opening up” Real Quiet too soon at the Belmont in 1998, the win today was sweet justice for Desormeaux. Now Borel will be the one questioned for being too anxious with Mine That Bird.

      Congrats to Summer Bird; I’m sure he screwed over bettors over everywhere.

      General Sports

      MMA Preview: Strikeforce & WEC

      June 6, 2009 /

      This weekend Mixed Martial Arts has two solid shows taking place outside of the UFC label. It begins Saturday on Showtime at 10 p.m. with Strikeforce presenting a strong card of recognizable fighters, a few of which are still considered among the best in the world. On Sunday, the WEC (World Extreme Cagefighting) takes center state with WEC 41: Brown vs. Faber 2, which is highlighted by the Featherweight championship (145 lbs) rematch of champion Mike Thomas Brown against former champion Urijah Faber. That show will air on Versus at 9 p.m.

      Here is a quick breakdown of the feature fights and my predictions for both shows:

      Strikeforce at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Mo.

      – Kevin Randleman (17-12) vs. Mike Whitehead (23-6) Light-Heavyweight (205lbs): Kevin Randleman was a giant in the MMA world in the late 90’s and in the beginning of the 2000’s, but now Randleman is finding himself in the same position as many of the giants in those days like Ken Shamrock and Royce Gracie, where the sport has passed him bye. Loser of five of his last seven fights, Randleman needs a win over UFC veteran Mike Whitehead, who has won 13 of his last 14 and has looked good since his move down to light-heavyweight (205 lbs). I like Whitehead by decision or TKO from ground-and-pound on a tired Randleman.

      – Joe Riggs (29-10) vs. Phil Baroni (13-10) Middleweight (185lbs): Phil Baroni and Joe Riggs are classic examples of two fighters that had worlds of potential and never tapped into it. Both men have tremendous power, but both are notorious for their lack of endurance as fights move on. Baroni tries to throw all his power in each punch which limits him later on and Riggs has a suspect chin that has caused quick knockout losses. If Baroni has truly improved his training, I see him winning this one as Riggs is the mentally weaker fighter. I take Baroni by TKO late in round one.

      Continue reading »

      Mixed Martial Arts

      French Open: Men’s Finals Preview

      June 6, 2009 /

      fed

      Tomorrow morning, Roger Federer will attempt to not only win his first French Open title, but also tie Pete Sampras’ record of 14 career Grand Slams. Federer will face No. 23-seeded Robin Soderling of Sweden. Soderling, who has never before made it to even a Grand Slam semifinal, has had a fantastic run this year at Roland Garros, defeating both No. 1-seeded Rafael Nadal and No. 12-seeded Fernando Gonzalez. This will also be Soderling’s first clay-court final. Unfortunately, he’ll be facing crowd favorite Roger Federer who is playing in the fourth French Open final of his career.

      Federer has handled Soderling easily in the past. Not only that, but Federer has the Grand Slam experience and knows the courts at Roland Garros better than any player not named Nadal. Though it’s safe to say Federer will win tomorrow, props are in order for Robin Soderling who has handled some of tennis’ best stars with skill and poise.

      Nevertheless, I did want to point out that I’m not surprised with Federer’s success at this year’s French Open. In March, I wrote an article questioning whether Roger Federer would ever win another Grand Slam. My conclusion was that, yes, Federer, would win but given a completely healthy Nadal, Federer’s best chance is at the U.S. Open where he has been dominant for years. I took a lot of unreasonable heat for that piece, but the fact is that we all should have expected Federer to win upon learning of Nadal’s weakening condition. With news that Nadal is pulling out of next week’s grass-court tournament at Queen’s Club it’s obvious that his knees are catching up with him. He’s played in nearly every tournament on the ATP Tour (and winning most of them) leading up to the French Open while Federer has taken loads of time off to save his strength. If Nadal competed at 100% I think this tournament would have gone a different way. Still, it’s his own fault for pushing himself too far. Federer has played exceptionally well and I hope he’s caught up to Pete when the clay settles.

      You can watch the men’s final tomorrow at 9 AM ET on NBC.

      Tennis

      Carlos Zambrano: ‘I’m done in five years.’

      June 6, 2009 /

      After earning his 100th career victory on Friday in a win over the Reds, Cubs starter Carlos Zambrano was asked by reporters if he has visions of winning 300 games a la Randy Johnson. Instead of giving a clichéd response of, “We’ll see” or “I don’t think about that stuff,” Big Z dropped a bombshell that he’s walking away from baseball once his contract expires in five years.

      “For 300, me? No, I’ll be out of here in five years,” said Zambrano, who is three years younger than Johnson was when the Big Unit won his 100th.

      After his response drew laughter, Zambrano added, ”No, believe me. After this contract I’m done. … I’m serious. Because I don’t want to play anymore.”

      Zambrano will be 32 when his five-year, $91.5 million contract expires after the 2012 season — 33, assuming a sixth-year, vesting option is reached.

      After accepting a $100 bet from a beat writer that he was serious, Zambrano elaborated:

      ”I want to help this team and do everything possible to win with this team. After five years, or four years, or whatever it is, that’s it. I just don’t want to play. I want to stay at home and see my daughter grow up and be with my family more.

      ”You know how many Mother’s Days I haven’t spent with my mother? Twelve. You know how many things I lose in my life [because of the baseball schedule]?

      ”It’s good to be here, also it’s good to be in baseball. But in five years I will retire, and I won’t have to see you again.”

      While his comments might come off as a little shocking to some, what Zambrano said shouldn’t be taken out of context. Sure the, “I don’t want to play anymore” might be a little unnerving for Cubs fans, you take everything he said into account and look at the big picture.

      Zambrano is essentially saying that there is more to life than just baseball and once he fulfills his comment to the Cubs, then he’s walking away. He wants to enjoy other aspects of his life that he’s had to push to the side in the past because of the demands of baseball. There’s certainly nothing wrong with that and I think his comments are kind of endearing in a way.

      Zambrano is a competitor – he’s not going to just take a paycheck over the next five years until his contract expires and then walk away. He wants to win and while he’s still playing, he’s going to do everything possible to help the Cubs succeed. But like he said, once his contract is up, it’s up and he’s done. And while he comments were a little out of the norm, I don’t find anything controversial with what Big Z said.

      MLB

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