Source: http://ninjashoes.net/forum/showthread.php?74378-Nice-TUF-episode&goto=newpost
Friday, April 29, 2011
Hominick will pimp CFL team at UFC 129
Canada sounds like it's stoked for UFC 129 and all its countrymen on the card next week in Toronto. Mark Hominick, a Thamesford-native is representing all of Ontario, he'll also be pushing the CFL's Hamilton Tiger-Cats. From Yahoo!'s CFL blog:
Hominick will wear a Tiger-Cats' hat as he enters the octagon; his shorts will also feature a Tiger-Cats' logo and an ad for Ticats.ca. The team's also running a contest which includes tickets to UFC 129 as a prize (along with plenty of other impressive stuff), and Hominick will also be featured at "MMA Night" at Ivor Wynne Stadium, which will take place July 16 when the Tiger-Cats host the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
Andrew Bucholtz from 55-yard line says the CFL is capitalizing on something other major leagues are whiffing on:
MMA fans are also an excellent demographic for the Tiger-Cats to reach out to. The MMA fan base includes a lot of people in their 20s and 30s (partly because the sport's rise to prominence is still relatively recent), and that's a group the CFL would do well to try and draw. The CFL audience used to skew a lot older; I think that's starting to change, but there's still a need to bring in new, young fans, and a partnership with a prominent Canadian MMA fighter's an excellent way to at least increase the visibility of the Tiger-Cats' brand. From an image perspective, it's also a good thing for a CFL team to position itself as on the side of MMA; many established sports leagues and brands have somewhat turned up their noses at the UFC, and that's probably not a smart long-term strategy given the sport's rapidly growing popularity.
We're glad to see Ontario is welcoming MMA with open arms. Now it's time to work on its acceptance of the Lingerie Football League.
Ryushi Yanagisawa Yoshiaki Yatsu Hirotaka Yokoi Hidehiko Yoshida
UFC News: Dana White Supports Strikeforce Fighter Gilbert Melendez in the UFC
It's safe to say we won't be seeing any Strikeforce fighters in the UFC for the time being.
UFC President Dana White has made it clear that Strikeforce fighters must fulfill their contract obligations prior to joining the UFC. However that has not stopped the UFC boss from voicing his opinion on certain people, including Strikeforce lightweight champion, Gilbert Melendez.
Melendez, who has been preparing training partner Jake Shields for his upcoming title bout against Georges St-Pierre at UFC 129, is one of those fighters who White has admired for quite some time.
"Gilbert's one of the top guys in the world, no doubt about it," White said during the UFC 129 press conference.
Melendez, who is currently listed as the No. 2 lightweight by both Sherdog and MMAWeekly, recently successfully defended his title against Tatsuya Kawajiri at Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Daley. Melendez has been supporting the idea of cross-promotional bouts between the UFC and Strikeforce, but according to Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker, Melendez will have to settle for another challenger within Strikeforce's lightweight division.
And while Melendez might be treading along UFC waters, White sees the determination in him in order to achieve success.
"It's always (that) when we get these kids that come out of some other organization, they're just so fired up and ready," White said. "They see this stuff and what's going on here, and obviously (he's a) longtime Jake Shields friend and training partner and sees what Jake's going through right now."
If the UFC intends to break all barriers and fully enter themselves into the topic as a legitimate sport among mainstream media, then cross-promotion should be on their radar within the near future. And with the addition of stars like Gilbert Melendez, it would make the UFC a more valuable product and a credible organization.
Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com
UFC 129 has 55,000 seats sold and fans are still clamoring to get in
Tom Wright, the UFC Director of Canadian Operations, revealed Wednesday that a few hundred more seats may be made available for UFC 129 later this week. How many tickets does Canada need? Wow! The crazy Canadian fans blew out 42,000 seats at the Rogers Centre in record time and then quickly scooped up an additional allotment of 13,000. That means the only way to get into the giant baseball/football stadium now is the secondary market.
Seat Geek gave Yahoo! Sports these notes on the current ticket situation:
- Tickets are averaging $336 for the sold out event.
- This is a 25% increase over 128 in Newark which averaged $270.
- The "get in" price for UFC 129 is $111 for tickets in the mezzanine.
- Seats by the cage are going for up to $5,000
The Toronto Globe and Mail says the overall economic impact of UFC 129 in town could be huge. The Toronto Star's Cathal Kelly is on the other side telling fans don't bother. He can't fathom paying $800 to see a fight.
You can watch UFC 129 on PPV (9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT) right here on Yahoo! Sports.
UFC 133: Rashad Evans Is at Risk of Losing Title Shot to Phil Davis
Following the recent news of Jon Jones being sidelined due to an injury, it is now learned that the UFC light heavyweight champion will be out of action for six months. As a result, rising prospect Phil Davis has stepped in to replace Jones, but it wont necessarily guarantee him a title shot just yet.
"It's a huge upside for Phil," UFC president Dana White told MMAjunkie.com. "This guy is an up-and-coming guy anyway. We'll see what happens."
While there is a reward for Davis filling in for the 23-year old Jones, there is more risk for Davis' opponent, Rashad Evans.
"You get in these positions," White said. "Look at Dos Santos. Dos Santos was next in line for the title. There's an injury, and he jumps out and fights Brock Lesnar. He could lose and lose that spot. And if he lost, yeah, Rashad could lose that spot, (too)."
Evans was originally scheduled to fight Mauricio "Shogun" Rua for the light heavyweight title at UFC 128, but when Rua injured his knee, Evans decided to wait for the Brazilian to heal up. Unfortunately, it was Evans who then injured himself just six weeks prior to his title bout with Rua. It is a decision that had cost Evans his title shot.
White said he believes that Evans has run into some bad luck as of late.
"Rashad is a good guy. I just think he's made some bad decisions in the last year and a half," White said.
However Evans can rub off the bad luck with a win over Davis and reposition himself into the title picture at UFC 133. But more importantly, White said this situation should give aspiring fighters a new outlook on fighting.
"This is one of those businesses," White said.
"When you get an opportunity in this business, you jump on it. You take it—especially for a guy like Davis. 'I automatically catapult to get the chance to fight Rashad Evans? I'm in.'"
UFC 133 is scheduled for Aug 6 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com
ESPN MMA Live: UFC 129 Preview
On this week?s edition of ESPN MMA Live, Jon Anik and crew are joined by Dana White to preview UFC 129.
If you have trouble playing the video, you can also watch it on ESPN.com.
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mmaconvert/~3/grc3Rz4elt4/
The Ultimate Fighter 13: 5 Things We Learned Last Night
Last week on the Ultimate Fighter, we learned Brock Lesnar wasn't quite finished using his favorite catch phrase: Chicken Sh*t.
Earlier in the season Brock gave some lame explanation that he doesn't mean the fighters are Chicken Sh*t, but they used to be.
Well last week's episode ended with each team in their respective locker rooms; Team Dos Santos celebrating Ramsey's victory over Charlie, and Team Lesnar getting chewed out by Brock. Chicken Sh*t, Chicken Sh*t, Chicken Sh*t... then we see Len leave.
This week's show picked up from there, and here's what we learned.
Source: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/680311-the-ultimate-fighter-13-five-things-we-learned-last-night
Jon Olav Einemo Per Eklund Jason Ellis Aleksander Emelianenko
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