MMA-URLS

Nate Marquardt returns to Zuffa and will face Tyron Woodley for the vacant Strikeforce welterweight title on July 14 in Portland.

Posted in: title, welterweight, tyron woodley, woodley, tyron

Read the full article at Heavy MMA

Former UFC Lightweight and Welterweight champion B.J. Penn is apparently not interested in facing long-time Welterweight contender Josh Koscheck in the Octagon anytime soon. Bloody Elbow reported earlier today that Koscheck tweeted he had accepted an offer from the UFC to face Penn and was awaiting the mercurial Hawaiian's answer. Well he won't have to wait anymore. Penn took to Twitter himself: @joshkoscheck I know it costs a lot of money to live that lavish lifestyle, big house, fast cars & you need big fights but sorry I'm not coming back anytime soon! Penn last fought at UFC 137 in October 2011 against Nick Diaz, dropping a unanimous decision. Previously he fought Jon Fitch to a majority draw at UFC 127 in February of last year. Penn held the Lightweight title until losing it to Frankie Edgar at UFC 112. He rematched Edgar at UFC 118 and lost another decision before moving up to Welterweight for his last 3 fights.

Posted in: ufc, koscheck, welterweight, penn, face penn

Read the full article at Bloody Elbow

In the latest edition of The Fighting Life, HeavyMMA's Duane Finley talks to UFC welterweight Jon Fitch about the hard work that has been a staple of his career.

Posted in: ufc, jon, welterweight, life, fitch

Read the full article at Heavy MMA

Aaron Simpson’s rumored drop to welterweight has become reality.

Posted in: welterweight, aaron, aaron simpson, jon fitch, welterweight debut

Read the full article at Sherdog

Siyar (The Great) Bahadurzada is stepping in for the injured Yoshiro Akiyama against welterweight Thiago Alves at UFC 149 in Calgary.

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, bahadurzada, akiyama, yoshiro akiyama

Read the full article at sportsnet.ca

UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre isn't afraid of much, but training partner Kenny Florian fills us in on one thing the champ is scared of - aliens. Seriously.

Posted in: ufc, pierre, welterweight, champion, kenny

Read the full article at Bloody Elbow

Former top UFC fighter Nate Marquardt will finally make his Strikeforce and welterweight debut in July, and it will be in a title matchup. He will compete for Nick Diaz's old Strikeforce welterweight championship against a SF veteran, Tyron Woodley. MMA Weekly has it: The main event for the upcoming Strikeforce event in July is almost set as Nate Marquardt will make his promotional debut against Tyron Woodley with the vacant welterweight title on the line. Sources close to the match-up confirmed the fight to MMA Weekly on Monday with verbal agreements in place for the July showdown. Marquardt (31-10-2) was released from the UFC last June after a TRT issue prevented him from fighting Rick Story. He then signed with BAMMA, but never competed under their banner and was let out of his contract a few months later. Strikeforce signed him a couple of months ago, and this bout had been rumored ever since. Woodley is undefeated at 10-0 in his career, eight of those wins coming in Strikeforce. His last bout was a split decision win over Jordan Mein in January. The card will apparently either take place in Portland, Oregon or Indianapolis, Indiana. It was thought that a Luke Rockhold vs. Tim Kennedy middleweight title bout would headline the card, but we'll have to wait and see.

Posted in: title, strikeforce, welterweight, marquardt, woodley

Read the full article at Bloody Elbow

Ever since Nick Diaz bolted for greener pastures under the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) banner, Strikeforce has been operating its welterweight division without a 170-pound champion. Until now. A report from MMA Weekly has former UFC Middleweight Nate Marquardt, who was bounced from the promotion in mid-2011 prior to making his welterweight debut, taking on undefeated division standout Tyron Woodley this July at a location to be named. It will be the first "Great" fight in over a year. That's because Marquardt was riding the pine while flirting with the UK's BAMMA organization following his fiasco at UFC on Versus 4, a transgression severe enough to earn him his walking papers, albeit temporarily. Now he's back under the ZUFFA umbrella and we'll finally get to see what he can do at 170-pounds. But it won't be easy. Woodley has stifled the opposition since his mixed martial arts (MMA) debut in early 2009. The two-time NCAA Division I All-American has been successful in getting his opponents to the mat and keeping them there, which could present problems for Marquardt who is undoubtedly giving up some degree of size and strength to make the welterweight limit. Time will tell. With the exception of a middleweight mash-up that pits Keith Jardine vs. Roger Gracie, no other bouts have been announced for the upcoming fight card in July, which will air on Showtime (main card) and Showtime Extreme (prelims). As always, stay tuned to MMAmania.com for future updates to this event as they become available.

Posted in: welterweight, welterweight debut, marquardt, zuffa umbrella, future updates

Read the full article at MMA Mania

MMA Fighting has live round-by-round results for the junior middleweight, super welterweight bout between Floyd Mayweather, Jr. and Miguel Cotto. The bout takes place at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on May 5, 2012. Also on this card is Mexican superstar Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez and 'Sugar' Shane Mosley. UFC on Fox 3 isn't the only Saturday night fight of note. MMA's combat sports relative in boxing will stage a super welterweight bout with boxing's king of pay-per-view in Floyd Mayweather, Jr. and WBA super welterweight (154lbs) champion Miguel Cotto. Ahead of his rematch with Amir Khan in Las Vegas, Nevada on May 19th, MMA Fighting (via SB Nation) visited Lamont Peterson's Head Bangers Gym in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday. We asked the WBA and IBF light welterweight champion who he believes would prevail in boxing's huge bout this weekend. We also asked Peterson's mentor and head trainer Barry Hunter for his prediction as well. Editor's note: MMA Fighting will live blog the Mayweather vs. Cotto fight card on Saturday evening beginning with the featured bout (Jesse Vargas vs. Steve Forbes) all the way through the co-main (Saul Alvarez vs. Shane Mosley) and main event.

Posted in: mayweather, bout, vs, boxing, welterweight

Read the full article at AOL Fanhouse

Good evening Maniacs! MMAMania is your home for complete coverage of the Floyd Mayweather vs. Miguel Cotto WBA super welterweight championship bout TONIGHT (Saturday, May 5, 2012) at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. We'll provide live play-by-play of the pay-per-view (PPV), which gets underway on HBO at 9 ET with a super welterweight scrap between Deandre Latimore and Carlos Quintana. That will be followed by a welterweight bout that sees Jesse Vargas taking on Steve Forbes, and then we have two super welterweight championships on the line. First up is the WBC belt, held by undefeated phenom Saul "Canello" Alvarez. He'll be defending his crown against "Sugar" Shane Mosley. And then it's Miguel Cotto's WBA strap on the line, even though we all know that the real prize for the proud Puerto Rican fighter is taking the zero found after the 42 on Mayweather's record and turning it into a "1." Mayweather and Cotto will get after it around midnight ET. Join us for live round by round updates of the televised card as soon as the action gets underway after the jump: 'MAYWEATHER VS. COTTO' QUICK RESULTS Super Welterweight Championship bout: Floyd Mayweather vs. Miguel CottoSuper Welterweight Championship bout: Saul Alvarez vs. Shane MosleyLight Welterweight bout: Jessie Vargas vs. Steve ForbesSuper Welterweight bout: Deandre Latimore vs. Carlos Quintana 'MAYWEATHER VS. COTTO' PLAY-BY-PLAY RESULTS Floyd Mayweather vs Miguel Cotto -- WBA Super Welterweight Championship Round 1 -Round 2 -Round 3 -Round 4 -Round 5 -Round 6 -Round 7 -Round 8 -Round 9 -Round 10 -Round 11 -Round 12 - Final result: -end- Saul Alvarez vs Shane Mosley -- WBC Super Welterweight Championship Round 1 -Round 2 -Round 3 -Round 4 -Round 5 -Round 6 -Round 7 -Round 8 -Round 9 -Round 10 -Round 11 -Round 12 - Final result: -end- Jesse Vargas vs Steve Forbes -- Welterweight Bout Round 1 -Round 2 -Round 3 -Round 4 -Round 5 -Round 6 -Round 7 -Round 8 -Round 9 -Round 10 - Final result: -end- Deandre Latimore vs Carlos Quintana -- Super Welterweight Round 1 -Round 2 -Round 3 -Round 4 -Round 5 -Round 6 -Round 7 -Round 8 -Round 9 -Round 10 - Final result: -end- More Mayweather-Cotto Coverage From SBNBad Left Hook | SB Nation | MMA Mania | Bloody Elbow

Posted in: mayweather, round, vs, welterweight, cotto

Read the full article at MMA Mania

SBNation's Amy Nelson speaks to UFC welterweight champ Georges St. Pierre about his anti-bullying campaign and his recovery.

Posted in: ufc, pierre, welterweight, antibullying, antibullying campaign

Read the full article at Bloody Elbow

The official weigh in event for the WBA super welterweight championship bout between Floyd Mayweather vs. Miguel Cotto is set to go down today (May 4, 2012) at 6 p.m. ET LIVE from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. MMAmania.com, which will be your combat sports home for the blockbuster showdown that takes place tomorrow night (Sat., May 5, 2012) in "Sin City" will deliver live Mayweather vs. Cotto weigh in results, as well as those for the rest of the HBO pay-per-view (PPV) boxing under card below. In addition, we have the Mayweather vs. Cotto weigh in streaming video below, which means that you can watch all the scale-tipping festivities at MMAmania.com in the extended entry. Please join us here for a live video stream of the official weigh-ins, which go down at. Similar to the UFC on FOX main card, there will be four fights shown on the HBO broadcast, making this a pretty tidy affair. The weigh-ins will go in reverse bout order, so we'll see the two headliners stepping on the scale first, followed by the rest of the fighters on the card. Check out complete "Mayweather vs. Cotto" weigh in results (and live video stream) after the jump: Super Welterweight Championship bout (154 pound limit) : Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs Miguel Cotto Super Welterweight Championship bout (154 pound limit): Saul Alvarez vs Shane Mosley Light Welterweight bout (140 pound limit): Jessie Vargas vs Steve Forbes Super Welterweight bout (154 pound limit): Deandre Latimore vs Carlos Quintana The televised portion of the card features a pretty interesting bout between up and coming Saul Alvarez and grizzled veteran Shane Mosley. At 21 years of age, undefeated and already having fought 40 professional fights, Alvarez is quickly turning himself into a potential challenger for Mayweather down the line and some in boxing circles believe that this bout with Mosley is intended to showcase him for this exact reason. That doesn't mean that you should write off Mosley though. He is a wise and crafty veteran, and he's fought a ton of big fights. He could be a little long in the tooth to take Alvarez out, but he certainly has the ability to win this fight. The other two fights on the TV card feature Jessie Vargas vs Steve Forbes in a match at the light welterweight limit of 140 pounds and Deandre Latimore facing off against Carlos Quintana. These fights bare some similarities to the Alvarez/Mosley battle:Vargas (22) is a young and rising undefeated fighter, while Forbes is a former champion whose best days are far behind him. Alvarez is signed to Mayweather promotions so this fight is clearly set to show off the young fighter. Meanwhile, Latimore is also signed up with Mayweather promotions and he is trained by Jeff Mayweather, brother to Floyd Sr. and Roger. At 26, Latimore is not exactly a young prospect anymore, but he still has 9 years on Quintana, whose claim to fame is his brief title reign at welterweight in 2008 after defeating Paul Williams. I'll be checking back in around 5:30 ET and will update the post with the results of the weigh-ins as they happen. While you are waiting for the stream to go live, check out this quick recap video that HBO released yesterday of the final pre-fight press conference: Last, but certainly not least, a few hours after the weigh-ins, we will get the fourth and final episode of HBO's "24/7" Mayweather vs Cotto hype machine. And, of course, we'll have a video of that up as soon as it hits the web. If you haven't seen the first three episodes, check them out: Episode oneEpisode twoEpisode three More Mayweather-Cotto Coverage From SBNBad Left Hook | SB Nation | MMA Mania | Bloody Elbow

Posted in: mayweather, bout, vs, welterweight, cotto

Read the full article at MMA Mania

UFC on Fox 3 isn't the only Saturday night fight of note. MMA's combat sports relative in boxing will stage a super welterweight bout with boxing's king of pay-per-view in Floyd Mayweather, Jr. and WBA super welterweight (154lbs) champion Miguel Cotto. Ahead of his rematch with Amir Khan in Las Vegas, Nevada on May 19th, MMA Fighting (via SB Nation) was at Lamont Peterson's Head Bangers Gym in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday. We asked the WBA and IBF light welterweight champion who he believed would prevail in boxing's huge bout this weekend. We also asked Peterson's mentor and head trainer Barry Hunter for his prediction as well. Editor's note: MMA Fighting will live blog the Mayweather vs. Cotto fight card on Saturday evening beginning with the featured bout (Jesse Vargas vs. Steve Forbes) all the way through the co-main (Saul Alvarez vs. Shane Mosley) and main event.

Posted in: vs, welterweight, welterweight bout, sb nation, washington dc

Read the full article at AOL Fanhouse

Once mulling a move to middleweight, Josh Koscheck now has his sights set on a welterweight title shot as he prepares to face Johny Hendricks Saturday.

Posted in: title, koscheck, welterweight, shot, koschecks focus

Read the full article at sportsnet.ca

What do you do when you're one of the top fighters at your weight class, but you've already dropped two bouts to the champion, each more decisive than the last? It's an uncomfortable limbo that Josh Koscheck found himself in after breaking his orbital bone in a losing effort against Georges St. Pierre at UFC 124. For Koscheck, the knowledge of knowing he probably wouldn't be getting a third shot as long as St. Pierre held the belt was enough to spur on some major changes. "I figured what the hell, why not take some challenges and step up to middleweight," Koscheck reflectively admitted on Thursday afternoon's UFC on FOX 3 conference call. Yet despite public declarations of a move up in weight, nothing came to fruition, leading a frustrated Koscheck to accept two short notice fights against Matt Hughes and Mike Pierce at welterweight. "There was just nobody out there for me to fight at the time," Koscheck explained. "And nobody in the (middleweight) division was stepping up to fight me, saying ‘oh I want to fight Kos.'" But much has changed since that time, and St. Pierre's debilitating knee injury coincided with an influx of new talent storming up the welterweight ranks. Almost overnight, Koscheck has become an elder statesmen, and the usual suspects have begun falling off one by one, replaced by a new guard of athletic young guns who grew up watching the antics of the brash, blonde wrestler on the first season of The Ultimate Fighter. The dramatic role reversal, along with a bittersweet move from AKA to his own gym, Dethrone, has reinvigorated Koscheck's desire to climb back up the 170-pound standings. "Right now, there's a lot of good young fighters in the welterweight division that definitely intrigue me to get fights with," the 34-year-old Koscheck said. "Obviously there's two champions in this division, so hopefully that pans out and gets the division back into the right direction." If Koscheck's role is now to help suppress this new generation, it all starts with Johny Hendricks, a two-time NCAA champion who recently stunned the MMA world by flooring Jon Fitch in twelve seconds at UFC 141. As Fitch is one of Koscheck's closest friends, a simmering revenge factor will inevitably play into their UFC on FOX 3 scrap. However, with the outside possibility of a champion not named Georges St. Pierre soon ruling the division, right now there are more important things on Koscheck's mind. "There's a lot riding on this fight," he concluded. "I think for both of us it's, the winner goes on to a nice path towards the title shot and the loser goes, who knows. So there's a lot at stake for this fight and I feel like I'm ready to roll."

Posted in: fight, koscheck, pierre, welterweight, division

Read the full article at AOL Fanhouse

After dominating Che Mills this past weekend (April 21, 2012) at UFC 145 in Atlanta, Ga., Rory MacDonald upped his win streak inside the Octagon to three, continuing his ascension to the top of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Welterweight division. From the opening bell, MacDonald dominated the overmatched Mills, leaving him bloodied and battered after the first five minutes of action. Ultimately, "Ares" proved to be too much for the Brit, as the referee was forced to step in and save "Beautiful" from further punishment at the hands of the young Canadian in the second round. With his lone loss coming at the hands of the mixed martial art (MMA) promotion's current interim welterweight champion Carlos Condit at UFC 115 two years ago, MacDonald is one step closer to possibly getting his rematch with the "Natural Born Killer" should he get past MacDonald's training partner, reigning 170-pound champion, Georges St. Pierre, later this year. Describing his style as a "technically aggressive," MacDonald has proven that despite his young age (22), he has what it takes to compete with the best 170-pound fighters in the world not named St. Pierre. Not because he thinks he can't beat "Rush," but because he believes in his principles -- no amount of money would ever make his step into the Octagon against a man he considers his friend. He said as much in a recent interview with Sportsnet : "I think I could beat anybody in the division right now. I know my skill level. I've evolved so much, added so many tools to my game. I feel like I've put so many things in my game that I can be aggressive but technical at the same time. It takes experience (to learn how to stay calm). I've lost control in one of my fights before (but) basically (I) try to keep composed and try not to make mistakes and keep my technique. A lot of people think it's better to go into berserker mode, but it's not actually. I'm a pretty exciting fighter without going into berserker mode." After seeing the fallout between former friends and training partners Jon Jones and Rashad Evans, Rory is going to make sure that doesn't happened between he and "Rush:" "It's about principle. You can't dance with the devil. I didn't get into (mixed martial arts) for money ... I'm not taking a fight against Georges. We're training partners and help each other get better ... I stick to my principles. I believe in friendship. I have to think more tomorrow and 10 years from now." With the UFC set to head to Canada at least three times this year -- UFC 149 in Calgary on July 21, UFC 152 in Toronto on Sept. 22 and UFC 154 in Montreal on Nov. 17 -- the young Canadian would like nothing more to compete on his home turf next time out: "I've got to heal my elbow up and see how I feel in two weeks. I don't want to fight too soon so I'll be injured when I fight ... I definitely want to make an appearance on Canadian soil." With one or two more impressive victories, MacDonald could be well on his way to his own title shot. But, who should he face in his next outing? The winner of Josh Koscheck and Johny Hendricks, who are set to tangle at UFC on Fox 3 on May 5, 2012, could be a good option and could prove to a be an intriguing test for the young welterweight. Unless, of course, you have a better opponent in mind?

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, year, macdonald, berserker mode

Read the full article at MMA Mania

Go inside the rehab of UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre as he battles back from surgery for a torn ACL in his hope to return to the Octagon this year.

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, champion, octagon, stpierre

Read the full article at Heavy MMA

It looks like "The Thoroughbred" is ready to get back in the race. Former IFL standout and season four Bellator welterweight tournament winner Jay Hieron was not happy with the Chicago-based promotion. After earning his title shot against Ben Askren and coming up just short in a hard-fought split decision at Bellator 56 this past fall, the Xtreme Couture fighter wanted an immediate rematch as he believed he'd won the fight. When the rematch wasn't granted, Hieron obviously wasn't pleased. That would explain why he wasn't a participant in this season's current welterweight tournament. After some speculation that he was going to be fighting elsewhere, Hieron took to Twitter yesterday to announce he had finally been released from his Bellator contract. Early reports suggest that the former junior college national champion wrestler has already verbally agreed to fight for Texas-based promotion Legacy Fighting Championship. Hieron is expected to make his debut at Legacy FC 12 on July 13 against an opponent that is yet to be determined. The 35 year old had a controversial run in Bellator, earning a technical submission over Anthony Lapsley when the referee mistakenly thought the former King of the Cage champion was choked unconscious and Hieron then followed it up with back-to-back hotly disputed decision victories over the likes of Brent Weedman and Rick Hawn to win the season four tournament. He actually forced Bellator welterweight champion and former Olympic wrestler Ben Askren to stand with him for a significant portion of their fight, but was unable to capitalize. Hieron is hoping a fresh start with a new promotion (his fifth promotion in the past four years) will be just what the doctor ordered. Do you feel "The Thoroughbred" can still make a run?

Posted in: bellator, promotion, welterweight, hieron, legacy

Read the full article at MMA Mania

Rising UFC Welterweight contender Rory MacDonald recently destroyed a very game opponent in Che Mills at UFC 145, and now it appears that the sky is the limit for the 22-year-old prospect. Training out of the TriStar Gym in Montreal under the tutelage of Georges St. Pierre, MacDonald has quickly shunned all talk of fighting GSP. However, it may be soon that MacDonald will find himself in the contradictory position of fighting for the Welterweight title, albeit against his mentor should the situation arise.

Posted in: welterweight, rory macdonald, macdonald, tristar gym, che mills

Read the full article at Low Kick

Many people believe that B.C.'s Rory MacDonald is among the UFC welterweight division's best fighters, and MacDonald agrees with them.

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, macdonald, ufc welterweight, macdonald i

Read the full article at sportsnet.ca

ATLANTA - Let's make this clear: It might be a while before Rory MacDonald is knocking at champ George St-Pierre's door, and interim titleholder Carlos Condit isn't necessarily around the corner. Still, seemingly everyone feels something big is on the horizon for the 22-year old welterweight. And if MacDonald beats Che Mills, there are aren't many top welterweights who seem out of immediate reach, including the interim champion.

Posted in: welterweight, rory macdonald, macdonald, che mills, gsp atlanta

Read the full article at MMA Junkie

Aaron Simpson decided that he wanted to be a big welterweight instead of a smaller middleweight, and will make the drop to 170 pounds. He'll be in tough in his debut fight though, drawing one of the top welterweights in the world. MMA Weekly has the news: Aaron Simpson’s first trip to welterweight will be a tough test for the former NCAA All-American, as he faces former title contender Jon Fitch. Sources close to the fight confirmed the bout to MMA Weekly on Wednesday with bout agreements issued for the contest, but no date has been named yet for the event the welterweight showdown will take place at. Rumors have placed the Fitch vs. Simpson bout’s likely landing pad at UFC 149 in Calgary, but again nothing is set in stone at this time. Simpson had won three in a row and had a 6-2 overall record in the UFC when he met Ronny Markes, a gigantic middleweight, at UFC on Fuel 1 in February. Despite hurting Markes early, the 37-year-old wrestler was controlled by the bigger man and ended up losing a split decision. He'll now drop down to face off with Fitch, who will try to erase the nightmare of his last outing, a 12-second knockout loss to Johny Hendricks. While most people will scoff at this and make jokes about how boring it's going to be, I'm actually looking forward to it. SBN coverage of UFC 149

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, fitch, simpson, johny hendricks

Read the full article at Bloody Elbow

Two talented grapplers appear destined to meet inside the Octagon this summer in the form of a bout between former title-contender Jon Fitch and freshly-minted welterweight Aaron Simpson. Both men are coming off losses with Fitch’s marking the first time he’d been finished in nearly a decade of competition. Though not confirmed, the clash is likely to take place on July 21 in Calgary at UFC 149. MMAWeekly was first to report the match-up. Fitch has long been considered one of the top 170-pounders in MMA after starting his UFC career out with eight straight wins only to lose by decision to divisional champion Georges St. Pierre. The 23-4 grappler quickly rebounded, stringing together five consecutive victories and a Draw against BJ Penn. However, Fitch feel to Johny Hendricks in his last outing, suffering a twelve-second knockout in December, and hasn’t fought since. Though Simpson lacks Fitch’s overall success inside the Octagon, the equally-talented wrestler is 3-1 in his last four fights with the entire lot taking place at 185 pounds. The bout against Fitch will mark the welterweight debut of the 11-3 “A-Train”. Simpson Explains Move Down to Welterweight UFC 149 is expected to be headlined by Jose Aldo defending his featherweight title. The only officially announced bout is a welterweight war between Thiago Alves-Yoshihiro Akiyama. PHOTO CREDIT – UFC Tweet

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, fitch, simpson, fitch ’s

Read the full article at Fighters.com

Aaron Simpson announced earlier this year that he will be dropping down to the welterweight division. He now has an opponent scheduled for that debut, longtime title contender Jon Fitch. That matchup is likely to take place at UFC 149 on July 21st, which goes down from the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary. MMAWeekly.com first reported the matchup. Fitch (23-4-1D-1NC) returns to the Octagon for the first time since suffereing his first loss in over three years last December. Fitch faced fellow wrestler Johny Hendricks at UFC 141, and was knocked out in just 12 seconds. Fitch had a six fight unbeaten streak going into the matchup, which included a draw to former champion B.J. Penn. Now, after the loss, just the second of his UFC career, Fitch will seek revenge against another wrestler in Simpson. Simpson (11-3) drops to welterweight after a twelve year career at middleweight, including the last three years in the UFC. The former All-American wrestler at Arizona State enjoyed success at middleweight, with a 6-3 record inside the organization. However, after a split decision loss to Ronny Markes at UFC on Fuel TV 1 in February, Simpson declared his future lied in a different weight class. UFC 149 will be headlined by Jose Also, who will defend his featherweight championship against a yet-to-be named opponent. Another exciting welterweight matchup was recently added to the card, as Thiago Alves will take on Yoshiro Akiyama at the event. Pictured: Jon Fitch For complete coverage of UFC 149, stay tuned to MMAFrenzy.com

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, fitch, simpson, jon fitch

Read the full article at MMA Frenzy

WrestleMania! After getting pushed around by Ronny Markes at UFC on FUEL TV earlier this year, middleweight elder statesman Aaron Simpson (11-3) is finally taking the "A-Train" down the 170-pound tracks, with his first scheduled stop planned for Fitchville, USA. That's according to the gang at MMA Weekly, who also indicate the pending match-up could be slotted for the UFC 149 fight card at the ScotiaBank Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, on July 21, 2012. Simpson has spent his entire career as a 185-pounder, rattling off eight straight wins before consecutive losses to Chris Leben and Mark Munoz in 2010 sent him tumbling down the divisional ladder. A fresh start at a lighter weight could prove to be the turning point in his mixed martial arts (MMA) career -- for better or for worse. Former welterweight number one contender, Jon Fitch (23-4), is coming off a crushing knockout loss to Johny Hendricks at UFC 141 last December. It was the second straight performance that failed to net him a win, as the former Purdue University wrestler went to a draw opposite B.J. Penn at UFC 127 last year in Australia. It was, however, just his second loss inside the Octagon, the first coming at the hands of reigning welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre way back in August of 2008. Would a win over Simpson put him back "in the mix?" Stay tuned for more details on this upcoming match-up as they become available.

Posted in: ufc, loss, welterweight, knockout loss, simpson

Read the full article at MMA Mania

Aaron Simpson's first trip to welterweight will be a tough test for the former NCAA All-American as he faces former title contender Jon Fitch.

Posted in: welterweight, fitch, aaron simpson, jon fitch, ncaa allamerican

Read the full article at MMA Weekly

STOCKHOLM - Jake Shields feels like he's stuck in the middle. A little too small for middleweight, and a little too big for welterweight, he's one of those fighters who wishes there were more divisions. It's been reported Shields is opting to go big for his next fight. But the onetime UFC welterweight challenger and former Strikeforce champ hasn't committed to one division or another.

Posted in: ufc, shield, welterweight, division, welterweight hes

Read the full article at MMA Junkie

In HeavyMMA's latest 10 Questions feature, Megan Olivi goes toe-to-toe with UFC welterweight Martin "The Hitman" Kampmann, who is preparing to headline the TUF Live Finale on June 1 in Las Vegas...

Posted in: ufc, question, welterweight, kampmann, hitman kampmann

Read the full article at Heavy MMA

Not only is Yoshihiro Akiyama remaining in the UFC, for now, he will also remain at welterweight, for now, as he is set to take on Thiago Alves at UFC 149 in July. The pay-per-view event will take place at the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary on July 21st, the first of three Canadian UFC events in 2012. Akiyama, who refers to be known only as “Sexyama”, lost his fourth consecutive fight in the UFC, losing to Jake Shields at UFC 144 in his home country of Japan. Making his welterweight debut, Akiyama lost a closely contested decision to the former welterweight title contender. Since winning his UFC debut at UFC 100 in July 2010 over Alan Belcher, Akiyama has lost four straight, which includes losses to Shields, Michael Bisping and Vitor Belfort. The fan favorite has survived four straight losses, but a fifth will almost certainly end his tenure in the UFC. Alves will also be looking to rebound from a loss, as he lost to Martin Kampmann at UFC on FX 2 in March. After winning the first two rounds, along with the first four minutes of the third, Alves seemed on his way to a unanimous decision win. That is, until he went for a takedown of Kampmann. While the takedown was successful, its effectiveness was not, as “The Hitman” sunk in a guillotine, which caused “The Pitbull” to tap. Prior to that, Alves was 2-1 in his last three fights, which included wins over Papy Abedi and John Howard. The former welterweight title contender earned a title shot against champion Georges St. Pierre at UFC 100 after seven consecutive wins, but he has yet to put together consecutive wins since that defeat. UFC 149 will be headlined by Jose Also, who will defend his featherweight championship against a yet-to-be named opponent. For complete coverage of UFC 149, stay tuned to MMAFrenzy.com

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, alve, akiyama, scotiabank saddledome

Read the full article at MMA Frenzy

Welterweight rankings inbound! Let us know how we did in the comments. As always, our rankings can easily be referenced on our dedicated rankings page. Welterweight Georges St-Pierre Carlos Condit Nick Diaz Johny Hendricks Jake Ellenberger Josh Koscheck Martin Kampmann Jake Shields Jon Fitch Ben Askren Photo credit: Dave Mandel/Sherdog

Posted in: jake, welterweight, ranking, johny, referenced

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"I haven't seen myself on anyone's Top 10 rankings, but I'm not really worried about it, either. In my mind, rankings don't really matter because your place in the division is performance-based. If you perform well, the UFC is happy and I think I'm doing a good job at that so far. Sometime over the next few years, I'm going to be moving up into the next weight class. After I win the welterweight title and feel comfortable with my technique to the point where I feel I can compete with bigger guys, I'll make the move. I want to prove that even though I'm the smaller fighter, I can find success because my technique is at a high level." -- Talk about ambitious. Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) welterweight contender Rory MacDonald has some big plans for his future, as told to Heavy MMA. According to the Canadian wunderkind, he wants to win the welterweight title before packing on 15 pounds and moving up to the middleweight division. The key is his technique, something he feels is coming along at a rate faster than anyone could have anticipated. It's hard to disagree considering his stunning success rate this soon in his development. He's 22-years-old, 12-1 and gone the distance against some of the best the world has to offer. In fact, had he survived seven more seconds in his bout against Carlos Condit, the current Interim welterweight champion, he would have earned a decision win. And that was almost two years and two fights ago. The sky truly is the limit for "Ares" and assuming he defeats Che Mills at UFC 145 on April 21, 2012, in Atlanta, Georgia, the powers that be will be hard pressed to keep him out of the title picture for much longer. To take it one step further, could MacDonald be the first fighter in UFC history to hold two titles in two separate divisions at the same time? Let's hear your thoughts, Maniacs.

Posted in: ufc, title, welterweight, im, welterweight title

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UFC young gun Rory MacDonald is already one of the welterweight division's best fighters – at 21. And according to MacDonald and coach Firas Zahabi, when he hits his stride ... look out. HeavyMMA's...

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, macdonald, welterweight divisions, fighters –

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Ben Askren’s sophomore welterweight title defense will move forward as planned at Bellator 64, as both “Funky” and opponent Douglas Lima were cleared to compete at Thursday’s weigh-ins.

Posted in: title, ben, welterweight, lima, askren

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Bellator 67 has added two welterweight bouts to its main card with the addition of the welterweight semifinals. After earning hard fought victories Friday night welterweights Ben Saunders and Bryan Baker will face off in the first semifinal with Karl Amoussou facing David Rickels in the second semi. Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney announced the pairings in the Bellator 63 post-fight conference. Belltor 67 will be headlined by a non-title bout between Bellator lightweight champion Michael Chandler and UFC-vet Akihiro Gono. The card will take place May 4 at the Casino Rama in Rama, Ontario. As always, the event will air on MTV2 with the preliminary bouts being aired on Spike.com. Pictured: Ben Saunders

Posted in: bellator, bout, welterweight, karl amoussou, saunder

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Bellator welterweight Ben Saunders did a fine job washing the taste of defeat out of his mouth last night at Bellator 63 after having previously fallen in the Season 5 Welterweight Tournament final. “Killa B” implemented his unique combination of Muay Thai striking and aggressive BJJ in fine fashion, taking out tougher-than-expected Raul Amaya by way of a clear-cut decision. Three other welterweights joined Saunders in advancing to the semifinal round of the Season 6 tourney including Frenchman Karl Amoussou who turned in an excellent 170-pound debut, sweeping opponent Chris Lozano from the bottom to end up in mount and eventually take his back for the first frame submission finish. David Rickels and Bryan Baker also moved on to round out the final four. Here is a complete list of Bellator 63 results: Ryan Quinn def. Marc Stevens via Unanimous Decision Matt Bessette def. Saul Almeida via Unanimous Decision Brandon Flemming def. Pete Rogers via Submission Round 1 (Peruvian Necktie) Munah Hollanddef. Marianna Kheyfets via TKO Round 2 (Strikes) Andrey Koreshkov def. Tiawan Howard via TKO Round 1 (Strikes) Dan Cramer def. Jeff Nader via Split Decision Ben Saunders def. Raul Amaya via Unanimous Decision David Rickels def. Jordan Smith via TKO Round 1 (Strikes) Bryan Baker def. Carlos Alexandre Pereira via Split Decision Karl Amoussou def. Chris Lozano via Submission Round 1 (Rear-Naked Choke) PHOTO CREDIT – BELLATOR Tweet

Posted in: bellator, round, decision, welterweight, saunder

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Highlights from last night’s Bellator season 6 welterweight tournament opening round, featuring highlights from Ben “Killa B” Saunders, Karl Amoussou, Bryan Baker, and David Rickels.

Posted in: bellator, welterweight, tournament, saunder, karl

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On March 30, Bellator Fighting Championships presented Bellator 63 from the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. The event saw the quarterfinals of the season six welterweight tournament. Raul Amaya vs. Ben Saunders The opening fight on the MTV2 telecast saw the undefeated Amaya...

Posted in: bellator, welterweight, uncasville conn, opening fight, amaya

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Bellator 63 took place Friday night at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, CT. The  featured the opening round of the welterweight tournament and aired live on MTV2 and EPIX2 HD, with the prelims airing live on Spike.com. Welterweights Karl Amoussou, Ben Saunders, David Rickels, and Bryan Baker all advanced with wins tonight. Main Card (MTV2 and EPIX2 HD) Welterweight Quarterfinal - Karl Amoussou defeats Chris Lozano by submission (rear naked choke) at 2:05 of round 1 Welterweight Quarterfinal - Ben Saunders defeats Raul Amaya via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27, 30-27 Welterweight Quarterfinal - David Rickels defeats Jordan Smith via TKO (strikes – referee stoppage) at :22 of round 1 Welterweight Quarterfinal - Bryan Baker defeats Carlos Alexandre Pereira (29-28 Baker, 29-28 Pereira, 29-28 Baker) Preliminary card (Spike.com) Munah Holland defeats Marianna Kheyfets via TKO (strikes – referee stoppage) at 4:45 of round 2 Dan Cramer defeats Jeff Nader via split decision (30-27 Nader, 29-28 Cramer, 29-28 Cramer) Andrey Koreshkov defeats Tiawan Howard via KO at 1:26 of round 1 Saul Almeida vs. Matt Bessette* Parker Porter vs. Randy Smith* Ryan Quinn vs. Marc Stevens* Pete Rogers vs. Brandon Fleming* *Took place after televised event

Posted in: round, vs, welterweight, defeat, baker

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The Bellator welterweight tournament kicked off on Friday with four participants moving onto the next round including a blistering performance from main event fighter Karl Amoussou.

Posted in: bellator, event, welterweight, semifinals, participant

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As with every major show, Bloody Elbow will be here to bring you live results, play by play and commentary for Bellator 63. Our live coverage will start with MTV 2 broadcast (8 p.m. ET) so make sure to make Bloody Elbow your home for this event. We will not be doing play-by-play of the undercard, but you can discuss those fights in the comments as well. The Welterweights get into action tonight with the opening of the Bellator 170 lb tournament. The card is headlined by the quarterfinal match featuring Chris Lozano (9-2), an Ohio based fighter who lost to last year's winner of the Welterweight tourney. In his way is the French Judoka "Psycho" Karl Amoussou (13-4-2). Just before the main event Bloody Elbow community member and UFC veteran Ben Saunders (12-4) will faced off against the undefeated Raul Amaya (9-0). Another undefeated prospect David Rickels (9-0) will take on short notice replacement Jordan Smith (17-2), who got the call when UFC veteran Brian Foster failed him medical exam. The first match of the night will be between Brazilian Carlos Alexandre Pereira (33-9) and Bellator veteran Bryan Baker (16-3), who is dropping down from Middleweight to take part in the welterweight tournament. Join me here in the comments and let's have a rollicking good time tonight. Carlos Alexandre Pereira vs Bryan Baker Season 6 Welterweight Quarterfinal Round 1: Round 2: Round 3: David Rickels vs Jordan Smith Season 6 Welterweight Quarterfinal Round 1: Round 2: Round 3: Ben Saunders vs Raul Amaya Season 6 Welterweight Quarterfinal Round 1: Round 2: Round 3: Chris Lozano vs "Psycho" Karl Amoussou Season 6 Welterweight Quarterfinal Round 1: Round 2: Round 3:

Posted in: bellator, round, vs, welterweight, quarterfinal

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You may not know this but the whole fantasy genre owes its existence to Norse mythology. To people following Germanic or Norse Paganism, the gods may have super powers but they are also predestined to die and the stories of how they meet their end have influenced A Song of Ice and Fire, The Lord of The Rings, Warhammer, Magic: The Gathering and almost every other fantasy series not set in the future. With each Bellator tournament we may not have the final battle of the gods on live television but nonetheless, the shadow of Ragnarok is upon us. In the cage, the fighters represent characters in a fantasy epic, each carving their own mythology as they strive for symbolic immortality. As you read this primer on the Bellator season six welterweight quarterfinals, remember that Tyr shines down upon your battle hungry souls with his blessings. Karl Amoussou - Bragi  Bragi, the god of poetry, eloquence and song actually gave birth to the term ‘bragging’. Men would drink to Bragi on special occasions and toast to the acts they wished to complete within a year but after a few toasts, men started to talk as if they could teach themselves to fly and thus ‘brag’. A fighter can really only brag with his past accomplishments however, not those they expect to accomplish. Apparently, Karl Amoussou's 'bragging' on twitter has gotten under the skin of his opponent Chris Lozano in ways that would make Bragi proud. Amoussou has stated he plans to knock Chris Lozano out tonight.   Chris Lozano- Sutr  Have you seen Troll Hunter? If so, then imagine the final troll, but wielding a giant flaming sword. If you haven’t seen Troll Hunter then you probably should, just so you get that reference and can picture Surtr, the jötunn who is destined to beat Freyr on the battlefield of Ragnarok and set the world of men aflame. Now, I’m not saying that Chris Lozano is a bad guy by any stretch of the imagination but he is a monsterous welterweight. Ok, so he doesn’t have a giant flaming sword but he does have an 9-2 record and a red belt in Tae Kwon Do and NCAA division level wrestling experience. This probably isn’t enough to topple the gods but will it be enough for the welterweight tournament? He will have to destroy the beast Karl Amoussou first.  Carlos Periera- Hermod Of his 33 fights, 22 have come by way of KO or TKO.  If you were going to pick any of the welterweights in this tournament to take a trip to the underworld and rescue a kidnapped god then you’d send down Periera due to his speed, methodical strategy and already having fought in a place refered to as 'FATALITY ARENA'. This is why he is most like Hermod, the messenger god bestowed with the gift of speep who also happens to revel in batle. In fact, he loved battle so much that he sometimes escorted the Valkyrie on their ride to earth and the fallen warriors to Valhalla. Talking about Valhalla, thats no doubt where the fists of Periera will be aiming to guide Bryan Baker when the two face off tonight. David Rickels- Njord Njord, the god of the sea only really came into his own when he moved from the Vanir (the old, wise gods) to the Aesir (the dominating gods) as part of a peace treaty. Yep, the Norse gods actually had to arrange a peace treaty because they were at war with each other. This is really where the stories about Njord start. Similarly, David Rickels has already been a legitimate ass-kicker in Kansas but it his signing with Bellator that will be the start of his career. He has a 9-0 record and will look to drag Jordan Smith into deep waters and drown him. Raul Amaya- Fenris Is there really any other character from Norse mythology that Raul Amaya could be compared to? Fenris, the heel to end all heels has no motive in his story. He’s just a giant wolf who wants to tear the gods apart. He was so badass that when the gods learned of the trouble he was prophesied to cause they tried to bind him and he took Tyr’s hand clean off. Fenris is destined to kill the Allfather, Odin at the final battle, Ragnarok. Now, Raul Amaya may not be destined to kill Odin but he no doubt he believes that he is destined to pick up a Bellator belt. His nickanmae is smashmode and just like Fenris, Amaya is looking to ravage the world of men, or at least those men who face him in a cage, starting with Ben Saunders. Jordan Smith- Víðarr Víðarr was so upset at the death of Odin that he ran into the mouth of Fenrir the giant wolf and stabbed him in the heart. Yes, he stabbed him directly in the heart through his mouth. This is the kind of ridiculous courage you can only get from mythological stories yet mere mortals attempt to emulate the spirit of the gods here on Earth and in this season’s welterweight tournament, Jordan Smith is that man. Here is a fighter who most fans will have never heard of despite his stint on TUF and 20 total MMA fights against familiar names such as Karo Parisyan and Josh Burkman. He has only gone to decision three times and will face David Rickels tonight, personifying the courage of Víðarr. Hopefully he doesn't win via heart-stab though, that would just be messy. Brian Baker - Freyr In the world we live in, you can kill thousands of people with the touch of a button. For example, I took out a ridiculous amount of NOD troops in Command & Conquer the other day. In such a world, it takes a real man to enter a battle with nothing but your sword. It takes a god to give away his sword in the name of true love and then enter a battle armed with nothing but an antler. The ability to keep fighting, no matter the odds stacked against you is a necessary requisite for a Norse god but also for a fighter. No fighter in this tournament personifies this perseverance more than Brian Baker, a man who now enters this Bellator tournament aftwer fighting a battle with Leukemia that many mortals could not withstand. Ben Saunders- Loki Everyone sees Loki as a kind-of trickster, a bit of a prank puller and in Norse mythology Loki is the Josh Koscheck of gods, instigating others into attacking the gods. Don’t get my wrong, I’m not saying Josh is evil personified, but he is a prank puller who goes too far sometimes, exactly like Loki. What does this have to do with Ben Saunders? Well, Ben Saunders has tricky legs. He can kick you from another dimension if he wants to and will wear a jokeresque grin as he KOs his opponent into obilivion. Bellator 63 goes down tonight featuring the welterweight quarterfinals. Fights start live on SpikeTV at 8pm EST /7PM CT.

Posted in: bellator, welterweight, battle, god, norse

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Bellator 63 takes place later tonight at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. The event airs live on MTV2 at 8pm ET/7pm CT. The prelims will precede the MTV2 broadcast at 7pm ET and 10pm ET on Spike.com. In the main event, Frenchman Karl Amoussou takes on Chris Lozano in the fourth quarterfinal bout of the season six welterweight tournament. Ben “Killa B” Saunders takes on Raul Amaya in the opening round of the welterweight tournament. Jordan Smith and David Rickels look to put on the ‘fight of the night’ in a welterweight tournament quarterfinal bout. Bryan Baker drops to welterweight to face off against Carlos Alexandre Pereira in another tournament opening round bout. Results and recap after the jump. Results Karl Amoussou vs. Chris Lozano Ben Saunders vs. Raul Amaya Jordan Smith vs. David Rickels Bryan Baker vs. Carlos Alexandre Pereira Marianna Kheyfets vs. Munah Holland Dan Cramer vs. Jeff Nader Andrey Koreshkov vs. Tiawan Howard Saul Almeida vs. Matt Bessette Parker Porter vs. Randy Smith Ryan Quinn vs. Marc Stevens Pete Rogers vs. Brandon Fleming Recap Karl Amoussou vs. Chris Lozano: Ben “Killa B” Saunders vs. Raul Amaya: Jordan Smith vs. David Rickels: Bryan Baker vs. Carlos Alexandre Pereira: Marianna Kheyfets vs. Munah Holland: Dan Cramer vs. Jeff Nader: Andrey Koreshkov vs. Tiawan Howard: Saul Almeida vs. Matt Bessette: Parker Porter vs. Randy Smith: Ryan Quinn vs. Marc Stevens: Pete Rogers vs. Brandon Fleming:

Posted in: vs, welterweight, tournament, smith, raul

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Bellator kicks off its Season 6 welterweight tournament on Friday night with four quarterfinal fights that feature a mix of established fighters who have been in the Bellator cage before and some newcomers to the promotion. The Bellator welterweight title will be contested in a week when Ben Askren takes on Douglas Lima, and the welterweight tournament will determinewho gets the next crack at the Askren-Lima winner. What: Bellator 63 When: Friday, the MTV2-televised card begins at 8 p.m. Eastern on Friday. Where: Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, Connecticut Predictions on the four welterweight tournament fights below. Karl Amoussou vs. Chris Lozano Amoussou is capable of exciting finishes, but he's also capable of disappointing losses, and I think that's what he's going to suffer against Lozano, who has power in his hands and can knock Amoussou out. Pick: Lozano Raul Amaya vs. Ben Saunders Saunders, the UFC veteran who advanced to last season's Bellator welterweight tournament final, shouldn't have any trouble dispatching Amaya, who's 9-0 but has never fought anyone on anywhere near the same level as Saunders. Pick: Saunders Jordan Smith vs. David Rickels Rickels has a 9-0 record that includes three wins in Bellator, all by submission. He's dangerous on the ground, but Smith is a well-rounded fighter who should be able to out-strike Rickels on the way to a victory. Pick: Smith Bryan Baker vs. Carlos Alexandre Pereira Baker has been with Bellator since its first season, but this is his first fight at welterweight after previously fighting exclusively at middleweight. Pereira has a wealth of experience fighting in Brazil, building up a 33-9-1 record, and he's a good enough striker that he'll be a threat to Baker standing. But I see Baker staying out of trouble and taking a decision. Pick: Baker

Posted in: bellator, welterweight, saunder, baker, he

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After a rough couple of weeks, Bellator 63′s weigh-ins occurred without incident Thursday at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, CT. The event will feature the opening round of the welterweight tournament and will air live on MTV2 and EPIX2 HD, with the prelims airing live on Spike.com. MAIN CARD (MTV2 and EPIX2 HD) Welterweight Quarterfinal - Karl Amoussou (170) vs. Chris Lozano (171) Welterweight Quarterfinal - Bryan Baker (169.25) vs. Carlos Pereira (171) Welterweight Quarterfinal - David Rickels (168.25) vs. Jordan Smith (169) Welterweight Quarterfinal - Raul Amaya (170) vs. Ben Saunders (170) PRELIMINARY CARD (Spike.com) Parker Porter (257) vs. Randy Smith (254.25) Ryan Quinn (165) vs. Marc Stevens (164) Saul Almeida (155.75) vs. Matt Bessette (154.5) Andrey Koreshkov (170.5) vs. Taiwan Howard (171) Dan Cramer (185.5) vs. Jeff Nader (184.75) Marianna Kheyfets (126) vs. Munah Holland (126) Pete Rogers (145.25) vs. Brandon Fleming (145.75)

Posted in: vs, welterweight, opening round, quarterfinal, uncasville ct

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All eight welterweight quarterfinalists hit their contracted marks at the Bellator 63 weigh-ins on Thursday, including UFC veteran Ben Saunders

Posted in: bellator, mark, welterweight, welterweight quarterfinalists, quarterfinalist

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22-year old welterweight Rory MacDonald has never come off as a boisterous individual, preferring to let his skills do the talking for him as evident in wins over respected veterans such as Nate Diaz and most recently Mike Pyle. However, the one blemish on his 12-1 record appears to still eat at MacDonald to the point the young Canadian has decided to let the world know he wants revenge as soon as possible. “I know exactly how dangerous my next opponent Che Mills may prove to be on April 21, but, at the same time, I’m also planning on beating him within the scheduled distance and then beating Carlos Condit before the end of the year. I’m not looking past Che — I’m just confident, that’s all,” said the typically reserved MacDonald in his blog for SportsNet.CA. MacDonald and Condit met June 2010 where “Ares” nearly outpointed his adversary to pull off a major upset before making a mistake leading to a TKO loss in the last ten seconds of the final frame. Now, with a little more experience under his belt and supreme self-assurance, MacDonald is certain he can wipe the mat with Mills and deliver a much different outcome against Condit than in their first affair. “I’m not bragging, but I would take that same confidence into fights against pretty much all of the welterweight division right now. That is how much faith I have in my ability as a fighter,” explained MacDonald. “Pyle is a seasoned veteran, and a dangerous guy in his own right, but I knew he wasn’t in my league. So long as I show up and perform to the very best of my ability, these guys won’t be able to match me.” In addition to having grown as a Mixed Martial Artist, the 12-1 teammate of welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre, who acknowledged GSP would likely get first crack at Condit and beat him if close to 100% health-wise, is basing some of his self-belief on the interim title-holder’s performance against Nick Diaz in February. “If they fought me the way they fought each other, it would not be a good night for either of them, I’m certain of that,” criticized MacDonald. “Yes, I know they can improve and I know they have both fought much better in the past, but, as far as I’m concerned, you’ve got to try and show your best each and every time you step into that Octagon. I rate Nick and Carlos highly, but I don’t think they really brought it that night.” “Given our history, I can’t see anything beyond a Condit rematch at this point in time,” he continued on “The Natural Born Killer. “I want that fight more than a title fight right now. Maybe one day it could even be for the full welterweight title, but, as of today, I’m just focusing on beating Mills on April 21 and then getting to Condit as soon as possible. I need that rematch to prove to myself and everybody else that what happened the first time around was a mistake and that I am the better fighter. It has to happen.” The Mills-MacDonald match-up is set for UFC 145. The event is headlined by Jon Jones defending his light heavyweight belt against rival Rashad Evans. PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Posted in: time, welterweight, macdonald, condit, tko loss

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After a successful but challenging welterweight campaign, Jake Shields is returning to the middleweight division. Shields, who challenged for the UFC welterweight belt against Georges St. Pierre at UFC 129, will return to the division for the first time since defending the Strikeforce middleweight belt against Dan Henderson in 2010. Shields (27-6-1), who last fought and won at UFC 144 in February, actually debated returning to middleweight following his loss to Jake Ellenberger last September. After his first TKO loss in over ten years, Shields debated returning to the division that gave him his most recent success, along with allowing him to not have to cut so much weight prior to the fight. However, Shields remained at 170 pounds, and defeated Yoshihiro Akiyama, who was making his welterweight debut. Now, even after that win, Shields is still returning to the more desirable division. Fuel TV’s “UFC Tonight” first reported the move, specifically referencing Shields’ desire to have the pre-fight weight cut take less of a toll on his body. The former Strikeforce middleweight champion and EliteXC welterweight champion enjoyed a 14-fight win streak from 2005 to 2010 in both organizations, including a 2-0 record at middleweight. Shields won the Strikeforce middleweight title after defeating Jason “Mayhem” Miller via unanimous decision in November 2009. He then defended his crown against Dan Henderson in April 2010, upsetting the MMA legend by decision. After being knocked down in the first round, Shields recovered and went on to dominate the former Pride champion the remaining four rounds. While an opponent was not announced, Shields is expected to return to action in August. As of now, just one event has been announced for August, UFC on Fox 4 on August 4th at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California.

Posted in: ufc, shield, welterweight, dan henderson, middleweight

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Bellator officials broke the news today that planned welterweight tournament participant Brian Foster (18-5) did not receive medical clearance for his scheduled bout against David Rickels (8-0). Foster will be replaced by another promotional newcomer in Jordan Smith (17-2-1), who’s on a two fight winning streak that includes a split decision over Karo Parisyan. Foster was due to meet Rickels at Bellator 63 in the opening round of the promotion’s sixth season welterweight tourney,  which kicks off at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. The event is being overseen by the Mohegan Sun Commission, who want to see Foster undergo additional testing before he can be cleared to fight. The exact cause for Foster being denied clearance has not been revealed by the commission or by Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney. “Brian’s a hugely talented fighter who we were hoping to see next Friday, but his Bellator premiere will need to be delayed just a bit,” Rebney said in a release. “But to pick up a rising star in Jordan Smith and place him into the fire of our $100,000 welterweight tournament is what makes great moments. The Mohegan Sun Commission is one of the best in the world and we support their decision.” Foster was denied medical clearance before what would have been his sixth UFC fight at UFC 129 last April when he showed a brain hemorrhage during pre-fight screening. Foster was not picked back up by the promotion, despite holding a UFC record of 3-2 and riding a two-fight streak at the time of his dismissal. The 27-year-old indicated on Twitter that similar reasons were to blame for this most recent fight cancellation. “I’m fine it’s just the same ole sh** from last time.. They just didn’t get my release stuff in time or somthing..,” he wrote. Bellator was forced to replace another planned tournament participant earlier this year in War Machine (Jon Koppenhaver), when the returning welterweight was sentenced to a year in jail. The opening round of the tournament is now stacked thusly: Karl Amoussou vs. Chris Lozano Raul Amaya vs. Ben Saunders David Rickels vs. Jordan Smith Bryan Baker vs. Carlos Pereira

Posted in: fight, bellator, welterweight, tournament, opening round

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Brian Foster will not compete in the Bellator Season 6 welterweight tournament as originally expected.

Posted in: bellator, season, welterweight, tournament, brian

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CHICAGO, Ill. (March 22, 2012) - Bellator newcomer Jordan Smith will now get a chance to make a run in the stacked Bellator Season 6 Welterweight Tournament as talented 170-pounder Brian Foster is officially ineligible for action in the quarterfinals, which begin at Bellator 63 next Friday, March 30 at the Mohegan Sun Arena. According to the Mohegan Sun Commission, Foster will need to be screened for additional testing before he is medically cleared to fight. The 18-5 welterweight was originally scheduled to face David Rickels in the opening round, but now the 27-year-old Smith gets his shot in the $100,000 tournament. "Brian's a hugely talented fighter who we were hoping to see next Friday, but his Bellator premiere will need to be delayed just a bit" Bellator Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney said. "But to pick up a rising star in Jordan Smith and place him into the fire of our $100,000 Welterweight Tournament is what makes great moments. The Mohegan Sun Commission is one of the best in the world and we support their decision. The 16-2-1 Smith has recent victories over one-time UFC contender Karo Parisyan and a win in November against Josh McDonald. But now the One Hit and Black House MMA trained fighter is staring his dream right in the face. "This is the best opportunity I've ever had in my career," Smith said. "This is the break I've been waiting for. What I like about Bellator is there's a clear line of sight to the title." Known for his striking prowess, the Layton, Utah fighter remains well-rounded - earning seven of his wins by KO/TKO and seven of his wins by submission. With the short time Smith has had to prepare, the fight-finishing mixed martial artist has quickly brushed up on his opponent. "It's such short notice that I haven't had a chance to do much research on Dave," Smith added. "I see that he's undefeated and most of his wins have come by submission. From the clips I've seen it looks like he finds a way to win." More on Bellator 63: Bellator Fighting Championships returns to Mohegan Sun Arena on March 30 for Bellator 63: The Assassin vs. Psycho. The Friday night affair will feature the quarterfinals of the Bellator Season 6 Welterweight Tournament, along with a host of preliminary fights featuring some of the best East Coast talent the sport has to offer. Tickets for the event are on sale and are available through Ticketmaster.com or at the Mohegan Sun Box Office. Tickets are priced from $30-$70. The event will broadcast LIVE starting at 8 p.m. EST on MTV2 and in commercial-free HD on EPIX. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. EST, with the first fight scheduled for 7 p.m. EST. The preliminary card, featuring the area's top local talent will be streamed LIVE and FREE around the world on Spike.com starting at 7 p.m. EST. The night will be highlighted by Karl "Psycho" Amoussou (@KarlAmoussou) and Chris "The Cleveland Assassin" Lozano as the two vie for a spot in the welterweight semifinals. The Frenchman, Amoussou is known for his tenacious style and desire to finish every fight, leading to 11 finishes in his 13 career wins. For Lozano, the Cleveland Assassin looks for another shot at the Bellator title after coming up short last year against eventual tournament winner Douglas Lima. While Lozano should be a familiar name to Bellator fans after competing in the previous two welterweight tournaments, the evolution Lozano has made over the last half year should make "The Cleveland Assassin" one of the most dangerous fighters inside the Bellator cage. Former Bellator Welterweight finalist Ben Saunders (@BenSaundersMMA) returns and will take on Bellator newcomer Raul Amaya in quarterfinal action. Saunders tore through the Bellator Season 5 Welterweight tournament with a TKO victory over Chris Cisneros and a submission victory of Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt Luis "Sapo" Santos, but fell short against tournament winner Douglas Lima in the finals and now Saunders is poised to make another run at the title. Amaya enters the tournament with a spotless 9-0 record and will be looking to stay perfect on his way to the finals. Long time Bellator veteran Bryan "The Beast" Baker (@bryanbeastbaker) is making the drop to welterweight and will try his hand at 170 lbs. when he battles Carlos "Indio" Pereira. Fighting almost exclusively out of Brazil, Pereira brings a wealth of experience to the Bellator cage, and should be a force within a loaded welterweight tournament. For more information, visit Bellator.com, follow Bellator on Twitter @BellatorMMA, follow Bellator Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney @BjornRebney and check out Bellator on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Bellator.

Posted in: bellator, welterweight, tournament, smith, mohegan

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Grappling wizard Demian Maia is set to make his welterweight debut at UFC 148. Maia’s opponent will be Korean judoka Dong Hyun Kim. The UFC announced the fight earlier today. A former number one contender at middleweight, Maia is dropping to welterweight after going 1-2 in his last three fights. Maia is hoping to finally enjoy a weight advantage at welterweight after enjoying a disadvantage for most of his career at middleweight. Kim picked up a win against Sean Pierson after a devastating KO at the hands of UFC interim welterweight champion Carlos Condit. The loss (officially) was the first of his career. UFC 148 takes place July 7 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, maia, kim, middleweight maia

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Two more fights have been added to the upcoming UFC 148 card on July 7, which now includes Demian Maia's welterweight debut.

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, debut, maia, demian

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When it comes to the discussion for the greatest UFC welterweight of all time, Matt Hughes cast a large shadow over all others. Hughes, who has already been inducted into the UFC’s Hall of Fame, discussed the current welterweight division while a guest on UFC Tonight. For Hughes, his career remains at a stand-still. The former champion has been called out by Dan Hardy, but he has yet to decide if there will be another match in his future. The last time Hughes stepped foot inside the Octagon, Josh Koscheck defeated him via knockout. As for what is going on right now at welterweight, Georges St-Pierre remains on the sidelines due to knee surgery. GSP still holds the title, but Carlos Condit claimed a share of it on an interim basis in his absence with a win over Nick Diaz earlier this year. Those two are set to meet, but the date of St-Pierre’s return is unknown. As far as Hughes is concerned, Condit should be allowed to decide if he wants to wait for GSP – or take another fight in the meantime. If he needs the paycheck, he should do it. If he wants to wait for the title shot, he’s earned it. Let him wait. GSP is tough. I don’t think anyone could (beat him). Hughes also has a request for the next fighter to join him in the hall of fame: Don Frye. I believe people should be retired before they go in. So I’m going old school and going to say Don Frye. The 38-year-old Hughes will make a decision soon on if he will return to action. However, there is no taking away from what he has contributed to the sport of MMA during his long career.

Posted in: ufc, title shot, hughe, gsp, welterweight

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submitted by qawmiyah [link] [2 comments]

Posted in: welterweight, maia, demian maia, demian, qawmiyah

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Following a January loss to top middleweight prospect Chris Weidman, Demian Maia is making a move to the UFC's welterweight division. The Brazilian jiu-jitsu ace today announced his intentions via Twitter. "Guys, now I'll be moving down to 170 pounds," Maia stated. "Next fight, I'll be a welterweight."

Posted in: welterweight, maia, demian maia, january loss, twitter guys

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A top ten level middleweight will be dropping down to 170lbs to try and wreak havoc on the best of the best at welterweight.

Posted in: welterweight, lb, level, demian maia, level middleweight

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UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre recently caught up with cameras to give an update on his recovery as he works his way back from knee surgery. The welterweight champion is expected to face UFC interim welterweight champion Carlos Condit in a unification bout later this year.  

Posted in: welterweight, champion, knee surgery, face ufc, unification bout

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There was a time not too long when UFC welterweight Dan Hardy knew inside his heart that he should take a break from fighting to refocus on his training and career to get things back on track. Now what you might be thinking is the time off that Hardy has taken over the last several months following his fourth loss in a row in the UFC is what he was talking about, but you’d be wrong. Looking back, Hardy points at his 2010 loss to welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre as the first major bump in the road that should have caused him to step away from...

Posted in: ufc, time, loss, welterweight, dan

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There was a time not too long when UFC welterweight Dan Hardy knew inside his heart that he should take a break from fighting to refocus on his training and career to get things back on track. Now what you might be thinking is the time off that Hardy has taken over the last several months following his fourth loss in a row in the UFC is what he was talking about, but you’d be wrong. Looking back, Hardy points at his 2010 loss to welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre as the first major bump in the road that should have caused him to step away from...

Posted in: ufc, time, loss, welterweight, dan

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UFC fighter Aaron Simpson is headed in for surgery, and then to a drop down to welterweight.

Posted in: welterweight, aaron, surgery, aaron simpson, drop

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In the third fight of the Strikeforce: Tate vs Rousey Showtime broadcast, Paul Daley (29-11-2, 2-2 SF) takes on former Pride welterweight (183 lb) grand prix winner Kazuo Misaki (24-11-2, 1 NC, 1-0 SF) in a welterweight bout. This is Misaki's debut at 170, and seemingly Daley's as well considering how many times he's missed weight in the past. He made it this time though, and the knockout artist is ready to work his way back to a possible welterweight title shot with a win in Columbus. Daley has been an enigma for many years now. After taking a few scalps on the British MMA scene, Daley made his Strikeforce debut in 2007, knocking out current UFC fighter Duane Ludwig in the second round. Three more wins in England and America earned him a shot at EliteXC welterweight champion Jake Shields, but he lost by submission. A brutal MFC run where he missed weight twice had people wondering where one of the hardest hitters at 170 would go next. Surprisingly (after two minor league wins), it was the UFC. Semtex earned his keep in his first UFC fight, stopping UFC on FX 2 winner Martin Kampmann via TKO in one of the only fights I can remember where a dude got stopped without actually falling down. He followed that up with a highlight-reel knockout of Dustin Hazelett, which earned him a big-time fight against Josh Koscheck. Unfortunately for Daley, "The Fraggle" outwrestled him and talked some smack, which led to Daley throwing a punch after the bell and earned him a lifetime ban from the UFC. After two regional wins (one over SF lightweight Jorge Masvidal in a surprisingly close fight), Semtex was brought back into Strikeforce. An awesome KO of fellow Tate Vs. Rousey fighter Scott Smith earned Daley a title shot against Nick Diaz, and what a fight it was. Daley floored Diaz in the first but couldn't finish, and Diaz came back to stop Semtex late in one of the best rounds of 2011. An uninspired loss to Tyron Woodley afterwards didn't help, but two straight wins have put him back in the title picture. Kazuo Misaki is one of the best fighters you've never heard of if you're a newer fan. The longtime Pancrase fighter forged a successful career in Pride by winning the 2006 welterweight tourney (albeit as a late replacement - he lost in the semis to pre-crazy Paulo Filho, but came back to beat Denis Kang in the finals). More recently, he participated in two insane battles with Jorge Santiago in the Sengoku organization, both of which were finished in the 5th round. Yeah, he lost both, but you need to watch these fights either way. They're both awesome. Daley is a big favorite going in due to all the questions about Misaki at the moment. How will he handle the weight cut? Will 10 months off hurt him at all? Is his chin finally cracking after all the wars he fought in Japan? The former judoka doesn't mind striking, but will likely be looking to take the fight to the floor where he can exploit Daley's shaky submission defense. Daley's takedown defense has greatly improved over the years though, so it's going to be very tough for Misaki. Can Daley pick up the 21st knockout of his career? Or will Misaki derail Daley's title aspirations once again? We'll find out tonight. SBN coverage of Strikeforce: Tate vs. Rousey

Posted in: ufc, fight, welterweight, daley, misaki

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It's a pretty cool thing to be the UFC welterweight champ, but it's also nice to be recognized in your hometown for your accomplishments.

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, accomplishment, hometown, albuquerque

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If weight cutting is gaming the system, than Roger Bowling is a big gamer - and he'd like to game even more. The Strikeforce welterweight harbors a goal of fighting at lightweight despite clocking in at 195 pounds with nine percent body fat in the offseason. Yet he admits the only size that's a problem is the final 10 pounds he cuts to get to welterweight.

Posted in: pound, welterweight, roger bowling, percent body, size thats

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Strikeforce welterweight contender Paul Daley occupies a peculiar spot in the 170-pound MMA world. The fans want to see him fight, likely to see him live up to his nickname “Semtex” and detonate one of his fists on someone’s chin. At the same time, practically none of his opponents want to see him fight his fight, leaving many bouts to turn into lessons into frustration for the Nottingham product.Yet Daley, 29, takes a mature approach to this dilemma, and when asked if his power will lead everyone from this day forward to be shooting for takedowns from start to finish, he replies, “No, not the real fighters. Real fighters let the fight evolve in whichever way it should go, and they fight to finish, not stall.....real lions go for the kill.”One of those “real lions” was current UFC contender Nick Diaz, and though Daley lost their Strikeforce welterweight title bout via first round TKO in April of last year, the four minutes and 57 seconds of fury that preceded the final verdict was some of the best action seen in the sport in 2011. It was a fight in which there were no losers in the eyes of the fans, and when Diaz vacated the belt to chase after UFC gold, Daley was expected to be the next to ascend to the throne. Unbeaten Tyron Woodley had something to say about that though, and in Daley’s most recent Strikeforce bout last July, he lost a three round decision to “T-Wood”, who wisely used his wrestling game to nullify the Brit’s striking for 15 minutes.“I beat Woodley in my opinion, so it wasn’t that frustrating,” said Daley. “He fought a scared fight and was tired by the second round. I feel bad that the referee’s decisions gave him the win in the judges’ eyes. Three minutes s of inactivity on the floor...that’s not scoring points, and it certainly ain’t entertaining for the fans, who all cheered when it was stood back up.”Undeterred, Daley remained active for the rest of the year, decisioning UFC vets Jordan Radev and Luigi Fioravanti in back-to-back fights, with his only serious challenge being the scale, as he came in overweight for the Radev bout, the fourth time he’s done so in his last 10 bouts. Against Fioravanti, he got his weight in check and closed out the year with his third win in five 2011 fights. It was a hectic schedule to say the least, but one he wouldn’t mind keeping in 2012 and beyond.“I want to stay very busy, and keep fighting and keep winning,” said Daley, who will return to Strikeforce this Saturday night against Japanese veteran Kazuo Misaki, the 2006 PRIDE welterweight Grand Prix champion and someone who owns wins over the likes of Dan Henderson, Denis Kang, Siyar Bahadurzada, Phil Baroni, and Ed Herman. It’s an impressive resume, and though Misaki has finished 15 of his 24 wins, fighters like Woodley and Josh Koscheck (who decisioned Daley in a 2010 UFC bout) may have provided the blueprint to beating Daley. So how big of a part does wrestling play in the Brit’s training camps these days?“I wrestle a lot, but mostly, I work on takedown defense, which is coming along nicely,” said Daley, who knows that Misaki has the style to give him trouble not just on the mat, but standing as well.“He (Misaki) is so well rounded, I can’t rest anywhere,” he admits.On paper, it’s one of the most intriguing bouts on an intriguing card at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio, and with Woodley coming off a January win over Jordan Mein, and Daley now facing the highly-regarded Misaki, does “Semtex” see this week’s matchup as an unofficial title eliminator?“Yeah, most definitely. After this fight, the only fight I should be offered is a rematch with Tyrone Woodley for the welterweight belt.”In the meantime, enjoy Paul Daley, as he is certainly a jolt of energy for the Strikeforce welterweight division. He agrees.“It (the division) is interesting, but I think I am the only real character left, now that Nick Diaz has gone.”

Posted in: fight, bout, welterweight, daley, woodley

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Go along with UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre as he gets taken to martial arts school in Japan ahead of UFC 144.

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, school, stpierre, arts school

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#BREAKING: @arielhelwani announced on #UFCTONIGHT - former #UFC Middleweight @NathanMarquardt has signed to @Strikeforce.about 4 hours ago via webReplyRetweetFavorite@FUELTVFUEL TV Dana White has had a change of heart about Nate Marquardt. Well, sorta. Marquardt is officially back in the Zuffa fold, just not in the UFC. Ariel Helwani reported earlier this evening on FUEL TV’s UFC Tonight that Marquardt has signed with Strikeforce to compete in their welterweight division. The news was confirmed by Dana White. Shortly after the announcement, Marquardt thanked Dana and Lorenzo Fertitta for giving him another chance. @danawhite @lorenzofertitta thanks so much for the opportunity to prove myself!! I can’t wait!!! Marquardt signed with the UK BAMMA organization shortly after his controversial UFC firing, but eventually got his release after his first two fights were delayed. Marquardt hasn’t fought since he defeated Dan Miller at UFC 128 nearly a year ago. Marquardt’s signing will undoubtedly beef up Strikeforce’s welterweight roster that includes the likes of Paul Daley, Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos, Tyron Woodley, Tarec Saffiedine, Kazou Misaki and Roger Bowling. Interestingly, Daley just recently proclaimed that he would have the vacant Strikeforce welterweight title belt over his shoulder in six months time. Unfortunately for him, his competition for that title just got much stiffer.

Posted in: ufc, strikeforce, welterweight, marquardt, lorenzo fertitta

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Two down on their luck fighters will try to right their ships this Saturday night (Feb. 25, 2012) as former title challenger Jake Shields takes on Yoshihiro Akiyama on the UFC 144 main card at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan. Shields is just two fights removed from taking Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Welterweight Champion Georges St. Pierre the distance while vying for the title, but the saying "you're only as good as your last fight" couldn't hurt more for the Cesar Gracie-trained fighter. He's trying to forget a first round knockout at the hands and knees) of Jake Ellenberger in his most recent performance. Shields hopes he can take advantage of someone who's fallen on equally hard times in "Sexyama." It took four fights and three straight losses, but Akiyama finally deferred to reason and cut down to his more natural 170-pound weight class. The former Japanese-Korean judo superstar and model still has a following in "The Land of the Rising Sun" and he's hoping some home cooking will do him good against Shields. Will Shields be able to overcome the jet lag and even out his UFC record? Is the cut to welterweight too little, too late for Akiyama? What's the key to success for both men come Saturday night? Let's find out: Jake Shields Record: 26-6-1 overall, 1-2 in the UFC Key Wins: Dan Henderson (Strikeforce: Nashville), Carlos Condit (Rumble on the Rock 9), Yushin Okami (Rumble on the Rock 9) Key Losses: Georges St. Pierre (UFC 129), Jake Ellenberger (UFC Fight Night 25) How he got here: Up until his recent defeat while challenging for the UFC welterweight title, Jake Shields hadn't lost since 2004. The Cesar Gracie product had gone on an unprecedented 15 fight win streak against some of the best welterweights (and middleweights) in the world. His most impressive feat was when he defeated current UFC interim welterweight champion Carlos Condit and recent UFC middleweight title challenger Yushin Okami on the same night at the Rumble on the Rock 9 in Hawaii. The gritty Californian blitzed through EliteXC, taking out future UFC fighters Paul Daley and Mike Pyle en route to winning the promotion's title. If that wasn't enough of a challenge, he proceeded to move up in weight, thoroughly drubbing Robbie Lawler, Jason "Mayhem" Miller and Dan Henderson to win and retain the Strikeforce middleweight belt. Shields eventually signed with the UFC, but things haven't gone as smoothly as expected. He didn't look great in defeating Martin Kampmann to earn a title shot and his fight against George St. Pierre last year, while he was able to end GSP's consecutive rounds won streak, it was a snoozer. To make matters worse, he was knocked silly by Jake Ellenberger at UFC Fight Night 25 in his comeback fight inside the first minute. Shields needs a victory desperately against Akiyama if he wants to turn things around and potentially keep his job. How he gets it done: While Shields was comfortable standing in front of St. Pierre for five rounds, he proved against Ellenberger that he's got a long way to go still before he can trade leather with the most powerful strikers out there. Shields is one of those wrestlers that has absolutely embraced Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Instead of simply dominating his opponent on the ground positionally, Shields will be looking to end the fight with a submission from start to finish. First of course, he'll need to get the fight to the ground. The Cesar Gracie-trained fighter does not have the fastest shot so he'll need to do something special like catch a kick or time an Akiyama power punch perfectly to shoot in and take him down. The clinch is not Shields' friend in this fight as Akiyama is capable of winning there, even potentially tossing him on his head if he gives the judoka an opening. . If Shields stands with Akiyama, he'd better not do it for too long and he should be constantly poised to try and secure a takedown. While Akiyama has some good ground skills, Shields is better and he can at least control if not wear the judoka down. Yoshihiro Akiyama Record: 13-4 (2 No Contests) overall, 1-3 in the UFC Key Wins: Alan Belcher (UFC 100), Denis Kang (Heroes 2007), Melvin Manhoef (Heroes 7) Key Losses: Vitor Belfort (UFC 133), Michael Bisping (UFC 120), Chris Leben (UFC 116) How he got here: Before Yoshihiro Akiyama was ever a fighter, he was one of Asia's top judo players. He won the gold medal in the 2001 Asian Championships as well as taking gold in the 2002 Asian Games. After some controversy about a slippery judogi, he transitioned to mixed martial arts. "Sexyama" would lose his first fight in the Heroes promotion but would follow it up by going on a four year winning streak which included stoppage victories over Melvin Manhoef and Denis Kang. He made his Octagon debut against Alan Belcher on the main card of UFC 100, winning "Fight of the Night" in a tremendously entertaining performance. After nearly a year away from the sport waiting on the sidelines, Akiyama fought Chris Leben in a thrilling affair that saw "The Crippler" pull off a miracle comeback triangle choke victory with 20 seconds left, which also won "Fight of the Night." Lastly, Akiyama took on Michael Bisping and, despite rocking the UK superstar, he simply could not deal with the Brit's speed and footwork over the course of three rounds.The UFC didn't do him any favors by throwing him to Vitor Belfort next and the result wasn't pretty as Akiyama was knocked out brutally by "The Phenom" in the first round. If anything good came out of it, Akiyama finally admitted he's undersized and cut down to welterweight. He's again getting a tough bout in Jakes Shields for his 170 pound debut. How he gets it done: While Akiyama has tremendous grappling credentials, it should be his striking and power that put him over the edge for this fight. He should channel his middleweight self in the UFC and try to get into a slugfest with Shields. Being such a strong judo player means Akiyama has a tremendous sense of balance and if he wants to keep this fight standing, he's got a very good shot at doing it. If Shields shoots or attempts a takedown, expect to see Akiyama fight to remain upright and then throw some big strikes. Akiyama has some good ground skills, but he should try to avoid getting put on his back against Shields at all costs. Fight X-Factor: There are so many factors for this fight. The first, obviously, is both men are coming off of stoppage losses and are on multiple fight losing streaks, having lost a combined five straight heading into this fight. Neither man is likely confident and this could very well be a "loser leaves town" match. Whoever is the most confident fighter with the most trust in their skills should have a pretty strong advantage. Also, there's the question of Akiyama dropping down to welterweight for the first time. Did he do it the right way? How's his body going to react? Could he gas if he fights for 15 minutes a new weight for the first time, actually similar to Shields' return to 170? How Akiyama performs at welterweight is a huge question mark. Bottom Line: While not all of Jake Shields' fights are going to be barnburners, this one actually has some potential for some serious entertainment value. If Akiyama forces this fight to be a stand-up fight, there could be some interesting exchanges taking place. It will also be interesting to see the battle between Shields' wrestling and Akiyama's judo especially if both men want different things. The struggle could be captivating, although it could also be a giant stalemate. While I'm not 100 percent sold that this fight is going to be great, I've actually got some respectably high expectations heading in. Who will come out on top at UFC 144? Tell us your predictions in the comments below! Poll Which reeling welterweight will get back on track with a much-needed victory on Saturday night at UFC 144? Jake Shields Yoshihiro Akiyama   0 votes | Results

Posted in: ufc, fight, shield, welterweight, akiyama

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HeavyMMA's Duane Finley takes a look inside the UFC's ever-changing welterweight division – where Georges St-Pierre was once as close to a lock as anyone in MMA.

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, division, georges stpierre, everchanging

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After losing a split decision to a much bigger Ronny Markes at UFC on Fuel TV 1, Aaron Simpson is considering moving to the welterweight division.

Posted in: welterweight, aaron, split decision, aaron simpson, ronny markes

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The UFC's 170-pound picture has changed dramatically of late, with Carlos Condit playing quite the role.

Posted in: ufc, pound, welterweight, picture, carlos condit

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In cased you missed Legend FC 7 this past weekend, the videos of all the fights from the entire event are after the jump, and here's a quick recap: Legend FC's seventh show happened in the City of Dreams, in Macau, and it had two title fights headlining the stacked card. Sanda fighter, Jumabieke Tuerxun or 'Bieke' made the jump from top prospect to champion as he defeated decorated Chinese Wrestling champ, Yao Honggang to take his bantamweight title. Bieke, who is a standout of Xian Physical Education University, looked to have benefited greatly from Team Quest's visit on their camp as he looked sharp on the ground, scoring multiple takedowns and beating the decorated Chinese Wrestling champion at his own game. Yao's striking looked to have improved, and is probably a results of spending several weeks training in the top MMA gyms in Vegas, but it wasn't enough to derail Bieke rise to the top. Tuerxun improved his record to 11-0, and cemented himself as one of the top fighters in the region. On the main event, the 'Wolverine' Bae Myung Ho (13-5), bucked what appeared to be a prior knee injury and still successfully defended his welterweight title against China's top welterweight, Li Jingliang. The Korean, who is known for talking a lot of smack, backed up all his words as he constantly out-struck and out-worked the Chinese fighter en route to a decision. This was Bae's 5th straight win, and he remained undefeated since joining Legend FC. Also on the main card, Yang Hae Jun (7-2) displayed much improved boxing skills as he constantly peppered Hideto Tatsumi, until he scored an impressive finish that won him the Knockout of the Night honors. Two Filipinos shined on the prelims as rising star, Mark Striegl (7-0) avenged his teammate's loss by choking out Ev Ting unconscious, and Agustin Delarmino (5-1) quickly dispatched of Sung Min Yen. Check out all the fight videos from the event after the jump. Bae Myung Ho vs. Li Jingliang [Legend FC Welterweight Championship] Yao Honggang vs. Jumabieke Tuerxun [Legend FC Bantamweight Championship] Liu Wenbo Vs. Matt Cain Hideto Tatsumi vs. Yang Hae Jun Wang Sai vs. Gareth Ealey Entire Preliminary Card (video starts at 5:40): Complete Legend FC 7 results: Main Card:- Bae Myung Ho (Korea) def. Li Jingliang (China) by decision (unanimous) [Welterweight Championship]- Jumabieke Tuerxun (China) def. Yao Honggang (China) by decision (split) [Bantamweight Championship]- Liu Wenbo (China) def. Matt Cain (Australia) by submission at 4:37 in round 1- Yang Hae Jun (Korea)] def. Hideto Tatsumi (Japan) by KO at 3:35 in round 1- Wang Sai (China) def. Gareth Ealey (Australia) by doctor stoppage at 5:00 in round 2 Preliminary Card:- Ji Xian (China) def. Leonard Delarmino (Philippines) by submission at 4:42 in round 1- Michael Mortimer (Australia) def. Taiyo Nakahara (Japan) by disqualification (illegal strikes) at 4:24 in round 1- Koji Ando (Japan) def. Damien Brown (Australia) by submission 2:27 in round 1- Mark Striegl (Philippines) def. Ev Ting (New Zealand) by submission at 3:51 in round 1- Agustin Delarmino, Jr. (Philippines) def. Sung Ming-Yen (Chinese Taipei) by TKO 0:44 in round 1 Video Source: Legend FC, JMMANow

Posted in: round, legend, welterweight, fc, china

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A welterweight title clash between Nathan Coy and Ryan McGillivray will highlight the May 4 Maximum Fighting Championships card, the promotion announced Sunday.

Posted in: title, welterweight, ryan mcgillivray, ryan mcgillivraynathan, championships card

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Welterweight wrestlers Josh Koscheck and Johny Hendricks will look to boost their statuses in the UFC’s turbulent 170-pound division come May when they square off on Fox.

Posted in: ufc, fox, welterweight, ufc ’s, johny hendricks

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Since we flipped the calender to 2012, the UFC has dominated North American MMA headlines, already having put on two numbered PPV events plus two more on free television. The Strikeforce show in early January came and went with little fanfare, aside from a positive steroid test by "King" Mo Lawal. The other major North American promotion, Bellator Fighting Championships, has been fairly quiet, with their first show of the year still a month away. Some big news came down the line yesterday though, as the organizations biggest star, welterweight champion Ben Askren, has a time and place for his next championship defense: Bellator 64 will be held on April 6th, in Windsor, Ontario. Askren will be defending the belt against season five tournament winner Douglas Lima. One of the reasons that I do fight announcements in this format, (XX Days Out) is to bring attention to the length of time the fighters will have to prepare for each other. It seems that the average training camp for a mixed martial arts fight is between 8-12 weeks, or 60-90 days. The UFC books their shows well in advance, so they almost always give fighters a maximum amount of time to prepare, with short notice fights occuring only when an injury takes place. Strikeforce and Bellator have not been nearly as accomodating to fighters in this respect and this is my first chance to document it. (With this particular fight, it's not really relevant, since Askren knew he would be fighting Lima since November, when Lima won the tournament. But that is not always the case with Bellator fights.) Ben Askren is 6-0 in Bellator competition, winning the second season welterweight tournament. In his last fight, against UFC veteran Jay Hieron, he won a very close decision. Lima is 3-0 in Bellator, with all his fights coming in the season five tournament. His last victory was also over a UFC veteran in Ben Saunders. Askren is the 15th ranked welterweight in the world. He fights out of Roufusport.Lima is the 24th ranked welterweight in the world. He fights out of American Top Team Atlanta. Bellator 64: Ben Askren vs Douglas Lima. Welterweight Title Fight

Posted in: fight, bellator, welterweight, lima, askren

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When Georges St. Pierre last fought, at UFC 129 in April, he defeated Jake Shields in a performance that had people saying he had cleaned out the UFC's welterweight division. But St. Pierre's long layoff with a knee injury has done something that none of his opponents in the last four years could do: It has made the welterweight division look like it has some real obstacles for the best welterweight on the planet. When I ranked the Top 10 welterweights a year ago, I noted that GSP was just a victory over Shields away from having beaten all five of the guys immediately below him: Jon Fitch, Shields, Thiago Alves, B.J. Penn and Josh Koscheck. But when I ranked the Top 10 welterweights this week, the three guys immediately below GSP -- Carlos Condit, Nick Diaz and Johny Hendricks -- were three guys who have never faced him. St. Pierre says he'll be ready to return to the Octagon in November, and it's still unclear whether Condit will wait for him, or if Condit will take another fight before then. But what is absolutely clear is that when GSP returns, the welterweight division will have fresh challenges that he's never faced before. Condit is first in line for now, Diaz may get back into contention, and I would absolutely not count out Hendricks, who has an outstanding wrestling background and a powerful punch, as a future threat to St. Pierre. Hendricks has only been fighting in the big leagues for three years and has room to improve as an all-around fighter, and he's already plenty good. And it goes deeper than that: Next week's UFC on Fuel main event features a couple of welterweights in the main event -- Diego Sanchez vs. Jake Ellenberger -- who have never had a shot at St. Pierre. The winner of that one will be closing in on title contention. Next month we have another welterweight main event, with Thiago Alves taking on Martin Kampmann at UFC on FX 2. Alves has already been dominated by GSP and probably wouldn't get another shot any time soon, but Kampmann could absolutely make a case for himself as a title contender with an impressive win. The future is also very bright for less experienced welterweights like Rory MacDonald and Mike Pierce, and it's important to note how many of these new challengers are younger than St. Pierre. Condit, Diaz, Hendricks, Sanchez, Ellenberger, Kampmann, MacDonald are all younger than the champion, who turns 31 in May. It's been well established in many sports that athletes on the wrong side of 30 often struggle to get back to form after serious knee injuries. It's going to be a new challenge for GSP to keep up with the new crop of welterweights. Whether he's up to that challenge remains to be seen, but there's no doubt that the welterweight division got a lot more interesting while GSP was away. The last time GSP fought, the rest of the UFC welterweight division looked like a bunch of also-rans, Diaz was still in Strikeforce and no one had Condit in the Top 5. Now there are new, credible challengers to the champion. By the time GSP returns, he'll be returning to a very different welterweight division than the one he left.

Posted in: gsp, pierre, welterweight, division, welterweight division

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CHICAGO, Ill. (February 8, 2012) - After a dominating run through the Season 5 Welterweight Tournament, Douglas "The Phenom" Lima (@PhenomLima) is ready for the greatest test of his career when he battles reigning, undefeated Bellator Welterweight Champion Ben Askren (@BenAskren) for a shot at the world title. The two will clash LIVE at Caesars Windsor in Windsor, Ontario, Canada on Friday, April 6. Tickets for this event go on sale at Noon ET on Saturday, February 18 and are available via CaesarsWindsor.com or by visiting Ticketmaster.ca. Tickets are priced from $30-$125 Canadian. The event will broadcast starting at 8 p.m. ET on MTV2 and in commercial-free HD on EPIX. Doors open to The Colosseum at 6 p.m. ET, with the first fight entering the cage at 7 p.m. ET. The preliminary card will be streamed LIVE and FREE around the world on Spike.com starting at 7 p.m. CT. After a split-decision victory over former UFC veteran and Season 4 Welterweight Tournament winner Jay Hieron, the undefeated Askren is well aware of what it takes to hold onto the welterweight strap. Already known as the best wrestler in Mixed Martial Arts, Askren, a former U.S. Olympian, has continued his stand up training with the legendary Duke Roufus and is well on his way to becoming one of the best welterweights in the sport. "After my fight with Jay, I went back to work the following Monday to continue my training," Askren said. "I made no secret I wasn't happy with my performance in that fight, and now having spent over six months training at Roufusport, I'm really confident in my striking. Douglas is a great fighter, but I don't think he'll be able to handle what I bring to the table." Lima enters the fight looking to push his win streak into double digits as the Brazilian-born knockout artist is seeking to dethrone Askren as Bellator Welterweight Champion. The thought of becoming Champion has been the driving force for Lima since he signed with Bellator, and with the title just one win away, Lima has taken his focus and determination to the next level. "There is no question Ben is a great fighter, and I've been focusing a lot of time on my wrestling," Lima said. "This is the biggest fight of my career, and I'm preparing for it. It's all I think about. Every day from the time I wake up, until the time my head hits the pillow, I'm thinking about April 6th and winning the title." Bellator 64 will also host the semifinals of the promotions Season 6 Featherweight Tournament. Marlon Sandro (@351marlon), Ronnie Mann (@RonnieMannMMA), Alexandre "Popo" Bezerra (@alexandre_popo) and Daniel Straus (@DanielStraus) headline one of the deepest tournaments in Bellator history and only add to a stacked night of fights. In addition, the night will feature Ontario native and knockout artist Chris "The Polish Hammer" Horodecki (@chrishorodecki) taking on a soon to be named opponent. Still just 24, Horodecki (18-3-1) has the resume of a veteran mixed martial artist, including an impressive 12-fight win streak to begin his professional career. "The support we have received in Canada has been nothing short of spectacular, so when we had the chance to bring Bellator to Windsor, it was an easy decision, "said Bellator Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney. "Ben Askren vs. Douglas Lima will showcase two of the best and brightest starts in the world at 170 lbs. The fans watching inside Caesars and the viewers catching the fights on MTV 2 and theScore are in for a great night." "In the tradition of Caesars entertainment, we are thrilled to bring another exciting fighting championship event to the Colosseum with Bellator 64," Kevin Laforet, President and CEO of Caesars Windsor said. "We are proud to partner with Bellator Fighting Championships whose great reputation brings fans the best MMA fighters to the cage." Ticket purchases can be made through caesarswindsor.com or at the Box Office located in the main casino building on the second floor, open Wednesday to Sunday from noon to 8 pm. On concert days, the Box Office is open noon until midnight. Guests must be 19 years of age or older to attend concerts and to enter the casino and all other outlets. Prices listed do not include applicable taxes and fees. For more information, visit Bellator.com, follow Bellator on Twitter @BellatorMMA, follow Bellator Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney @BjornRebney and check out Bellator on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Bellator.

Posted in: fight, bellator, welterweight, lima, askren

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Carlos Condit has won the UFC interim welterweight title, and he's moved up to No. 2 on my list of the Top 10 welterweights in MMA. Champion Georges St. Pierre remains No. 1, but Condit is as close to GSP as anyone has been in the last four years. Condit has now won 13 of his last 14 fights, and I think he'll be the best opponent GSP has ever fought when the UFC welterweight belts are unified late this year. See how I have the rest of the welterweight Top 10 ranked below. Top 10 welterweights in MMA (Editor's note: The individual fighter's ranking the last time we did welterweights is in parentheses.) 1. Georges St. Pierre (1): GSP remains on top, but no athlete stays on top forever, and GSP's reign may be coming to an end soon. He's on the wrong side of 30 and coming off a serious knee injury, and Condit is going to pose a big challenge to him. 2. Carlos Condit (5): Many fans disliked Condit's elusive style against Nick Diaz, but most of the time Condit is one of the best finishers in the welterweight division. He has 28 wins in his career, and only two of those wins (over Diaz and Jake Ellenberger) have gone to a decision. 3. Nick Diaz (2): I don't think there's any chance that Diaz will really retire, as he suggested he would after losing to Condit. I think we'll see Diaz in a lot of big fights in the future, and I wouldn't be surprised if another one of them is a welterweight title fight. 4. Johny Hendricks (NR): At UFC 141 Hendricks became the first man to finish Jon Fitch. I think a fight with Josh Koscheck next would make a lot of sense. 5. Josh Koscheck (4): Koscheck's win over Mike Pierce was tougher than most people expected it to be, and leaving his longtime training camp of AKA may make for a difficult time in his career. We may be witnessing the beginning of the decline for the 34-year-old Koscheck. 6. Jake Ellenberger (6): Ellenberger's main event fight with Diego Sanchez at the upcoming UFC on Fuel event is a great opportunity for him to show that his win over Jake Shields was no fluke, and that he deserves to be considered one of the real elites in the welterweight division. 7. Jon Fitch (3): His loss to Hendricks pretty much guaranteed that Fitch will never fight for the welterweight title again, but he's still a dangerous opponent to anyone at 170 pounds. The UFC will have a tough time picking the right fights for Fitch at this point because he still has the wrestling ability to make a good young prospect look really, really bad. A fight that would make a lot of sense for Fitch is Koscheck, but the two longtime friends and training partners have said that won't happen, even after Koscheck left AKA. 8. Mike Pierce (NR): Pierce is 5-3 in the UFC, with the three losses coming to Fitch, Hendricks and Koscheck -- and all three losses were close decisions. He hasn't yet earned the kind of signature win that would put him in the Top 5, but he has earned his place in the Top 10. 9. Rory MacDonald (NR): MacDonald shouldn't have much trouble getting by Che Mills at UFC 145. MacDonald is a great fighter worthy of taking on Top 10 opponents, but he's only 22 and the UFC isn't rushing to give him top-notch opposition. 10. Jake Shields (9): After back-to-back losses to GSP and Ellenberger, Shields will head to Japan to take on Yoshihiro Akiyama in a fight that could be just the thing to get his career back on track.

Posted in: ufc, fight, koscheck, welterweight, condit

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Hey, you guys remember LBO. He's the same guy that had an affair with the right side of his brain and gave birth to MMA novelties like 'Prodigimon - Which BJ Penn will you get on fight night?' and 'The Anderson Silva flowchart everyone should print and hang on their wall.' Now he's abandoned his buddies at MiddleEasy and created an entirely new vehicle to display his creations. It's called 'FightGeist,' and it's not nearly as cool as MiddleEasy -- but it will have to do for now. His new manifestation entitled 'The Welterweight Takeover' depicts the current welterweight situation with mob-like undertones that can only be appreciated by the geekiest MMA fans -- and that's exactly why you'll read it. Enjoy.

Posted in: bj penn, welterweight, welterweight situation, right side, moblike undertones

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submitted by CerBB [link] [13 comments]

Posted in: welterweight, champion, cerbb, welterweight champion

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Carlos Condit used a solid, measured gameplan to capture the UFC interim welterweight title by winning a unanimous decision over Nick Diaz in the main event of UFC 143. Condit ignored all of the mind games Diaz tried to employ in the fight, and landed a ton of damaging kicks while staying away from situations where Diaz could truly open up on him. The scores were 49-46, 49-46 and 48-47 for Condit. He now has a date with UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre when he recovers from his injury. Diaz claimed he was going to retire in his post-fight interview. Diaz took the center of the cage immediately, but it was Condit firing first with kicks. Diaz continued to walk down Condit and landed a couple of nice shots, while Condit responded with leg kicks. Diaz threw some kicks of his own, and started to drop his hands and talk to Condit. Diaz dug to the body with a big shot, but Condit again responded with a leg kick. Condit tried a couple of spinning elbows without success. Diaz closed out the first round by clowning a bit, but not landing anything. Condit opened the second with a variety of flashy strikes, but nothing landed. Condit continued to work the legs, and he actually landed a spinning backfist. Diaz actually dropped his hands and begged Condit to him him, then open-hand slapped him when he didn't. Diaz talked some trash, but didn't land much until a good right connected halfway through the round. Condit landed a body shot, and Diaz clowned some more. Finally Diaz landed a solid combination, but Condit stayed calm and landed more kicks. Diaz stared Condit down to close out another close round. The third saw more of the same as the first two rounds. Solid kicking game from Condit, and Diaz continually coming forward with solid combinations. Condit did a good job of circling away so he wouldn't get cornered and be prone to a Diaz flurry. Diaz landed a very big left hand with a minute to go, but it had no effect on Condit. Diaz upped the pace late, but ate a lot of leg kicks over the course of five minutes. Diaz looked visibly frusrated at Condit's gameplan early in the fourth, but couldn't do much to keep Condit in front of him. Diaz dropped down for a single two minutes in, but Condit shrugged it off and landed a strike as he escaped. Condit started to land a lot more in he latter half of the round with nice combinations. Condit bloodied up Nick's eye with a jab late in the round. Diaz continued to chase Condit around the cage in the fifth and opened up his own kicking game a bit more. The pace slowed ever so slightly, and less strikes were being landed by both for the first half. Condit landed a big head kick that didn't face Nick at all. Finally Nick clinched up with Carlos, but Condit escaped again and went back to attacking the legs. Diaz managed to land a nice right, but Condit responded with a good knee. Diaz managed to get Condit's back with 75 seconds to go and secured back mount. After locking up a body triangle, he tried valiantly to sink in a choke but Condit fought him off. The round and the fight ended in a big scramble, but the fighters hugged after the final horn.Diaz is a former Strikeforce welterweight champion that expected to take on Georges St. Pierre for the UFC welterweight title here, but an injury to GSP gave Condit the spot and the bout was for an interim title. Condit, a former WEC welterweight champion, was on a four-fight winning streak entering the bout, with the last two wins coming by brutal knockout. SBN coverage of UFC 143: Diaz vs. Condit

Posted in: ufc, diaz, round, welterweight, condit

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The main event of the UFC 143: "Diaz vs. Condit" pay-per-view, which took place last night (Sat., Feb. 4, 2012) at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, featured a former Strikeforce welterweight champion taking on a former WEC welterweight champion for the interim UFC welterweight championship. Nick Diaz came in with all the hype in the world, the favorite to move right along to a fight against Georges St. Pierre (the actual 170-pound king) later this year. But Carlos Condit has been pushing himself as the man to spoil the party. So did he? Indeed he did, as he worked one of the smartest game plans of his career en route to a five-round, 25-minute unanimous decision win to earn the title and a promise to meet St. Pierre later this year to unify the belts. When asked afterwards, Condit thanked his camp for preparing him to win this fight. He also tipped his hat to his opponent, Diaz, who worked his ass off and was shocked when the decision was announced. I'm sure many fans are feeling the same. This one is going to be debated for a long time. Condit opened with a leg kick and a circle to the outside while Diaz pushed ahead like he usually does. It was clear from the outset that Carlos was averse to ever letting Nick get him up against the cage in an exchange, though Diaz was able to walk him down plenty. Considering the cardiovascular conditioning of both fighters, hopping on the bicycle early wouldn't be detrimental in a five-round fight. It wasn't long, however, until Diaz started putting his hands down and talking trash in an attempt to lure Condit into the war he came in hoping for. It didn't work, though, and Condit stayed true to his game plan. Boy, what a close opening round. The second round saw more of the same. Diaz pushing forward, Condit firing off kicks. In fact, "The Natural Born Killer" was circling out and looking to land spinning back fists. His varying offense wasn't having the intended effect, however, and Diaz just kept coming. Like he always does. Condit's game plan for the purpose of his opponent and how he operates was solid in the early going. He was sticking and moving, never staying in one place for longer than a second or two. While it was effective in keeping Diaz at bay, it's not something the judges look favorably on. Through two, it was still extremely close. There wasn't much change in the third round, other than the fact that Condit was opening up more on his strikes and getting far more comfortable. In short spurts it looked as though he would take the heavy edge but Diaz would always answer back with a well timed and even better placed punch that made the Greg Jackson trained fighter back up again. After three rounds, the judges were going to have to earn their paycheck in a big way. Again in the fourth, Diaz started talking, hoping his words could force a sustained exchange where Diaz is best. Condit, of course, was hearing none of it and was content to pick his spots with solid shots from the outside. And it was working, too, as he was landing cleaner and more often. Four rounds and who the hell knows, Cecil Peoples was cageside probably just as confused as the rest of us. As the two got going deep into the final frame, it was no more obvious who the victor would be. Diaz attempted more and more to drag Condit to the ground or work from the clinch but Carlos was too slippery from sweat and too smart to get caught. Diaz finally got Condit down and took his back while working a rear-naked choke as time ran down in the fight. He couldn't quite make the submission happen but it was a thrilling end to a close fight that seemingly could have gone either way. In the end, it went Condit's way and he'll fight St. Pierre later this year. Thoughts? Don't forget to check out our complete results and blow-by-blow coverage of all the main card action.

Posted in: fight, diaz, round, welterweight, condit

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The main event of UFC 143 is Nick Diaz vs. Carlos Condit. This is a welterweight bout, meaning 170 pounds. This bout is airing on pay-per-view. Diaz is the former Strikeforce welterweight champion, while Condit is the former WEC welterweight champion. This is for the UFC interim welterweight championship. The referee in charge of the action is Steve Mazzagatti. Follow Luke Thomas @SBNLukeThomas on Twitter for more updates. ROUND 1 - Diaz opens southpaw while Condit is orthodox. Diaz starts out doing the stalking while Condit doing a lot of moving. Two outside leg kicks from Condit land. Diaz backing Condit into the fence, but he manages to circle out. Left straight from Diaz finds the mark. Brazilian kick from Condit whiffs over the head of Diaz. Condit with two more outside leg kicks to Diaz's lead leg. Diaz begins talking to Condit now. Spinning back fist from Condit misses and Diaz lands a right against the fence and a hard body shot. Left straight now from Diaz. Right hook to the body from Diaz and Condit misses on another spinning back elbow. MMA Fighting scores this round 10-9 Diaz.

Posted in: diaz, round, welterweight, condit, welterweight championship

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Join us here at Bloody Elbow.com at approximately 1 a.m. ET/10 p.m. PT for live video coverage of tonight's UFC 143 post-fight press conference. You can catch the live video over at MMA Fighting. The winners of the UFC 143 fights will sit down to talk about their performances and Dana White will announce the Fight of the Night bonuses. All the fallout from the card will be discussed, along with a variety of other stuff. The main event of tonight's card is a stellar battle for the UFC interim welterweight title with former Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz taking on former WEC welterweight champion Carlos Condit. The winner will likely face UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre later in the year. The co-main event is a heavyweight bout between Fabricio Werdum and Roy Nelson. $xx,xxx Bonuses: Fight of the Night: Submission of the Night: Knockout of the Night: SBN coverage of UFC 143: Diaz vs. Condit

Posted in: ufc, night, welterweight, coverage, tonights card

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Growing up, I was a huge fan of Guns N' Roses, and, in particular, its frontman Axl Rose. He was a rock star in every sense of the word. Sure, the label was easy to slap on since he was in one of the biggest bands on the planet, but he also had beautiful models on one arm, a bottle of whiskey in the other hand and he always did and said whatever he wanted whenever he wanted. I mean, the guy's actions -- or inaction in the case of Montreal -- started two city-wide riots during GNR's heyday. There's something so appealing about someone who simply doesn't care what others think of them. Someone who is not preoccupied with how what they're doing will make them look to others, but are just more concerned with actually doing it. It's the same reason Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) welterweight contender Nick Diaz has become such a polarizing figure. Those who cheer on the Stockton, Calif., native really cheer him on, while those who hate him won't mince words about how they truly feel about UFC 143's main eventer. Tonight (Feb. 4, 2012) at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, he steps inside the Octagon against Carlos Condit to decide an interim welterweight champion. It promises to be a war, the kind of fight where Diaz excels. But, he's not just a whirlwind of aggression inside the cage -- he's one outside of it, too. A quick rundown of Diaz's craziest extracurricular activities follows after the jump. 5. "Please excuse Nick Diaz from fighting as he has been very high." In August 2009, Diaz was set to take on Joe Riggs in a rematch of their controversial (more on that later) UFC 57 bout. Riggs pulled out and Jay Hieron stepped in to challenge Diaz for the vacant welterweight title. The fight never happened because Diaz skipped a pre-fight drug test. Reason being, Diaz is a card-carrying medicinal marijuana user in California and a handshake agreement with the former head of the California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) kept the Stockton fighter from having to take random piss tests. When new management at the CSAC took over, it attempted to get Diaz in before his fight with Hieron. Since Diaz wasn't expecting the test, it can be assumed his urine would have been more smoke than liquid at that point. His manager and trainer Cesar Gracie explained it pretty well, saying they'd rather skip the test and pull out of the fight than assuredly getting popped for THC and being handed a possible one-year suspension. What's craziest is this isn't even the first time pot has played a significant role in Diaz's career. But let's not get ahead of ourselves. 4. Screw fighting during the time limits! Axl Rose helped start two riots; Nick Diaz helped start two post-fight brawls. The most famous of which was of course the infamous "Nashville Brawl" involving Jason Miller and Cesar Gracie teammate Jake Shields. The "Bully Beatdown" host crashed the post-fight proceedings and asked Shields for a rematch, an action which Diaz, younger brother Nate and Gilbert Melendez didn't take too kindly to. The ensuing scuffle put a black eye on the sport or whatever, I'm told. But even before that, an incident at Elite XC's "Return of the King" event took place hundreds of miles away in Hawaii. K.J. Noons had just defended his lightweight title -- which he had won by beating Diaz via doctor stoppage months prior -- and EliteXC officials wanted the Stockton bad boy to step inside the cage for a faceoff to promote a rematch. The two did their thing and all was going to plan until Noons' proud papa -- drunk according to Diaz -- decide to 'bow up to Dem Diaz Boys. Nate tossed a water bottle at the elder Noons and a fracas broke out. Is there anywhere Nick Diaz wouldn't fight? 3. Heck, screw fighting inside a cage! The answer is no. Following the aforementioned fight with Riggs -- a losing effort for Diaz -- the two were taken to a local hospital to tend to their respective wounds. It seemed Diaz wasn't content with three rounds worth of action and was itching for a little bit more. He continued to trash talk his opponent until eventually hitting Riggs with what "Diesel" referred to as a "sucker punch." The two immediately began to brawl -- with Riggs even ... ahem, soiling himself -- before the fight was broken up. Fighting in a hospital? That's pretty thug, I have to admit. 2. UFC title shot? Only if you show up for a "beauty pageant" When it was announced Diaz would challenge Georges St. Pierre at UFC 137, it was due in part to the fact Diaz had only lost one fight in the previous five years and was the reigning Strikeforce welterweight champ. Add in St. Pierre's sometimes robotic and milquetoast fight promotion -- "Dis is my toughest challenge, I respect 'im very much" -- and a powder keg like Diaz was exactly what the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) needed in a weight class that was rapidly becoming stagnant. The thing about gunpowder -- or someone like Diaz -- is it's sometime too volatile to handle. And when the challenger skipped out on a handful of flights and missed two press conferences, Dana White learned that lesson the hard way. Diaz wasn't seen as a worthy challenger for the welterweight strap by some and they felt it was his outlandish behavior that earned him the title shot. If that's true, the same behavior cost him the bout as well. He was pulled from the main event and replaced with Carlos Condit and in typical 209 fashion, posted a YouTube video -- shot from his car as he battled northern California traffic -- decrying the decision and sarcastically apologizing for "being a fighter" and not showing up for the "beauty pageant." He was immediately booked against Condit's old opponent, B.J. Penn, and fate intervened when "Rush" bowed out, making Diaz's new fight the main event for UFC 137. 1. The biggest win of his career ... up in smoke Pardon the silly pun but it very well could be the most accurate way to describe the situation. After Diaz willingly walked away from the UFC in late 2006, he was hired on by Pride Fighting Championships (Pride) to take on their lightweight champion Takanori Gomi in a non-title bout during their first venture in the United States. Diaz had never fought at 161-pounds before but the match-ups in Pride were sometimes less about sport and more about spectacle. The fight itself was remarkable. The Stockton native weathered Gomi's storm -- suffering a broken orbital bone in the process -- and won the fight in the second round via the statistically improbable gogoplata submission. Six weeks later, the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) announced Diaz had tested positive for an obscene level of THC and the result of the bout would have to be changed. Their rationale was wonky at best: Diaz was so high he was numb to the pain inflicted on him by his Japanese opponent. The NSAC overturned the win and it now sits on his official record as a "No Contest." But we all know better. Will Diaz provide a moment on Saturday we can add to this list? His detractors certainly hope not. His proponents on the other hand would love nothing more.

Posted in: ufc, fight, diaz, nick, welterweight

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UFC welterweight Nick Diaz is facing the opportunity of a lifetime yet you still get the sense he wants to find another place to escape to.

Posted in: ufc, diaz, welterweight, sense, lefko

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Bellator’s sixth season continues to develop, as the Chicago-based promotion Friday announced that the welterweight tournament quarterfinals will take place on March 30 at Bellator 63.

Posted in: bellator, welterweight, tournament, quarterfinal, welterweight quarterfinals

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Legal troubles have again cost War Machine (otherwise known as Jon Koppenhaver) a year of his freedom after recently being sentenced to jail-time stemming from an old case. Machine had been scheduled to face Karl Amoussou in the opening round of Bellator’s Season 6 welterweight tournament, a series of bouts slated to start on March 30 with the winner receiving both a $100,000 payday and title-shot. While specifics weren’t offered, Machine announced his status on Twitter, expressing frustration after getting his life on track again six months ago when he was released from prison for a separate yearlong sentence. War Machine Gets Second Chance from Bellator Bellator hasn’t wasted any time finding a replacement for Machine, filling his vacancy with the hard-hitting Chris Lozano. “The Cleveland Assassin” holds an overall record of 9-2 with seven TKOs. “After the last tournament, I knew I needed to grow, so I decided to make the move to Greg Jackson’s,” said Lozano in an official press release from Bellator. “Over the last months, I have just elevated my game by leaps and bounds. Every day I’m surrounded by some of the best fighters in the world, and it has made me a better fighter. It’s controlled chaos. I’ve really gotten back to some of the things that made me so dangerous, and I can’t wait to show off all the training and hard work this March.” Amoussou seemed unfazed by the change in opponent, saying, “I don’t care who I fight in the upcoming Bellator Welterweight Tournament. I’m going to rock the Bellator welterweight division and destroy every fighter that stands in front of me. I don’t care where you train or who you are, if you are in my way to the belt, I feel sorry for you.” The two will face off on March 30 at Bellator 63. The other three bouts scheduled for the tourney’s quarterfinal round include Ben Saunders vs. Raul Amaya, and Bryan Baker vs. Carlos Pereira, and Brian Foster vs. David Rickels. Tweet

Posted in: bellator, ’t, welterweight, tournament, machine

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Bloody Elbow will be providing live video and updates when all 22 fighters on the card step on the scale at today's UFC 143 weigh-ins from the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, NV. You can catch a live Youtube stream of the weigh-ins below the jump, or if that doesn't work for some reason, you can view it over at MMA Fighting. The weigh-ins begin at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT. The main event will decide the new UFC interim welterweight champion. Former Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz will face off with former WEC welterweight champion Carlos Condit. Both fighters will have to make the welterweight title bout limit of 170 pounds. Join us and share your thoughts as the weigh-ins unfold. Main Card: Carlos Condit ( ) vs. Nick Diaz ( )Roy Nelson ( ) vs. Fabricio Werdum ( )Josh Koscheck ( ) vs. Mike Pierce ( )Renan Barao ( ) vs. Scott Jorgensen ( )Ed Herman ( ) vs. Clifford Starks ( ) FX card: Max Holloway ( ) vs. Dustin Poirier ( )Jorge Lopez ( ) vs. Matt Riddle ( )Alex Caceres ( ) vs. Edwin Figueroa ( )Matt Brown ( ) vs. Chris Cope ( ) Facebook Card: Dan Stittgen ( ) vs. Stephen Thompson ( )Rafael Natal ( ) vs. Michael Kuiper ( ) SBN coverage of UFC 143: Diaz vs. Condit

Posted in: ufc, vs, welterweight, card, weighin

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Saturday night can’t get here soon enough for Carlos Condit.After spending the final four months of 2011 in what felt like a constant state of limbo, the 27-year-old will finally get to switch from hitting mitts with coach Mike Winkeljohn to putting his considerable talents to work in the cage. In a fitting twist of fate, Condit will get to take out the frustrations he’s endured against the man who has been at the root of many of them.Rewind to September: Condit was slated to face UFC legend BJ. Penn in the co-main event of UFC 137, a bout that would be followed by Diaz challenging Georges St-Pierre for the welterweight title.But when Diaz missed a string of media obligations, UFC President Dana White made a change, demoting Diaz from the main event, and elevating Condit. The man known as “The Natural Born Killer” broke down in tears on the phone when White told him the news.Just 11 days before he was set to fight for the UFC welterweight title, Condit’s dream was put on hold. St-Pierre tweaked his knee in training; their bout was rescheduled for UFC 143, the annual Super Bowl weekend show. Diaz and Penn headlined UFC 137 instead, with Condit assured the outcome of the main event would not have an impact on his upcoming title fight.On October 29, Diaz battered Penn before throwing down the gauntlet for GSP, questioning the legitimacy of his injury, trying to talk his way back into the fight he lost a month early. By the time White took the podium for the post-fight press conference, Condit’s fight calendar needed adjusting once again.“There’s been a lot of ups and downs; a lot of excitement and disappointment,” admitted the former WEC welterweight champion. “It’s been crazy, as anybody looking from the outside can imagine. I think I’ve done a pretty good job of focusing on what I need to do — which is train and be prepared for whoever I end up fighting — and this time it ended up being Diaz.”After shuffling places twice in the last six months, Condit and Diaz will now pair off, a torn ACL sending St-Pierre to the sidelines and the surgical table. With the date of his return to the cage uncertain, the top two welterweight contenders will battle for an interim version of the 170-pound championship on Saturday night.It’s a fight that has been a long time coming for the 27-5 native of Albuquerque, New Mexico.“I’m stoked to be done with camp. I’m stoked to be finally stepping out there to do what I’ve been training to do for the last six months: to go out there and fight, compete to the best of my abilities.”While Diaz began his second stint in the UFC with much fanfare and an immediate shot at the welterweight title, Condit has quietly been working his way up the 170-pound ranks.The last welterweight champion in WEC history, he lost a razor-thin decision to Martin Kampmann in his debut, coming out on the right side of the verdict against Jake Ellenberger in his second Octagon appearance. A come-from-behind victory over Rory MacDonald at UFC 115 caused people to start taking notice, and a first-round knockout of Dan Hardy in his own backyard announced Condit as a potential contender, though he remained behind some of the more established names in the company.“It’s hard to get out from under the shadow of these guys like (Jon) Fitch, and (Josh) Koscheck, and maybe even Thiago Alves — guys that have been in the division for years and years and years, and all had great wins.”But now is Condit’s turn in the spotlight.His savage first round destruction of Dong Hyun Kim was his fourth consecutive victory, the second straight bout that he’s earned Knockout of the Night honors, and the third consecutive contest to produce a post-fight bonus. Though it looked like the gods were against him, Condit’s patience and perseverance has been rewarded, and he’s ready to make the most of it.“This is a fight I’ve wanted for a really long time, and the fact that it’s happening now, after all this turmoil and craziness with the change of opponents and everything, it really couldn’t have worked out better.“I think that styles make fights, and I think that this style match-up is going to be extremely exciting. It’s a very tough fight; Nick’s one of the best in the welterweight division. I think there are some guys stylistically that could probably beat him, but I think the matchup between us — we’re very evenly matched. We have similar skill sets, maybe a little bit different approach — different style — but it’s exciting.”The 28-year-old Diaz is on an 11-fight winning streak that includes nine stoppages, with victories over the likes of Frank Shamrock, KJ Noons, Paul Daley, and Penn. An enigma outside of the cage, Diaz is all business when the lights go up and the fight begins, blending tremendous boxing with a slick submission game.He’s also adept at shaking his opponents with a barrage of pre-fight banter, an ability and instinctual talent he’s passed on to his younger brother Nathan as well. Condit is prepared for it all — the boxing, the jiu-jitsu, and the verbal jabs.“Nick likes to get in your head, talk a lot of trash, so I need to stay composed, and step in with the attitude that I always do; just be about my business, and not get sucked into all that other stuff. I just have to fight my fight. No matter what an opponent says or how much trash they talk, I get the opportunity to go in there and beat him down. I can just hold my tongue and let it build, and as soon as the cage door closes, it’s game time.”Condit knows he’s in for a battle, but he’s ready, and confident that if he sticks to the game plan, he’ll emerge from Saturday’s headliner as the interim UFC welterweight champion.“Nick is probably the toughest guy I’ve ever fought. He’s an endurance athlete — he puts tons and tons of pressure on guys — and he’s got some really good skills with his hands; his jiu-jitsu’s great.“But I just really need to fight my fight. If I do that, I feel like I’m going to walk away with the belt.”

Posted in: ufc, fight, diaz, welterweight, condit

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He went there. UFC welterweight grinder Mike Pierce will square off against former 170-pound number one contender Josh Koscheck on the main card of the UFC 143: "Diaz vs. Condit" pay-per-view (PPV) event this Saturday night (Feb. 4, 2012) at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. So, what's the scouting report on "Kos?" "He's the guy that everyone loves to hate in the welterweight division. He's like the Michael Bisping of the welterweights. Nobody likes that guy! Ya know, everybody has their thing. I'm not quite like that, I'm not gonna promote myself that way, everyone has their own style and for him that works, it's great, it's done well for him, but that's just not me. I'm gonna speak more inside the cage than out." Hear more from Pierce on Koscheck and a whole lot more, courtesy of Fight Hub TV, after the jump. For more on Saturday night's welterweight match-up click here.

Posted in: josh koscheck, welterweight, michael bisping, welterweight division, thing im

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submitted by MattyBlayze [link] [3 comments]

Posted in: welterweight, bisping, welterweight division, mike, mattyblayze

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We recently paid a visit to UFC welterweight Mike Pierce at the Affliction Gym, in Seal Beach to talk about his upcoming UFC 143 match up this weekend against welterweight veteran Josh Koscheck. Pierce who had Chael Sonnen and Yushin Okami as training partners feels he had more than enough preparation in the wrestling department [...]

Posted in: ufc, yushin okami, welterweight, training partners, seal beach

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We recently paid a visit to UFC welterweight Mike Pierce at the Affliction Gym, in Seal Beach to talk about his upcoming UFC 143 match up this weekend against welterweight veteran Josh Koscheck. Pierce who had Chael Sonnen and Yushin Okami as training partners feels he had more than enough preparation in the wrestling department [...]

Posted in: ufc, yushin okami, welterweight, training partners, seal beach

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Josh Koscheck was a wrestler to root for when Mike Pierce started watching the first season of "The Ultimate Fighter." But Pierce also couldn't ignore the fact that Koscheck acted like a jerk and a bully on the show. Now, Pierce is the latest welterweight to take it upon himself to teach the bully a lesson when he fights the onetime welterweight challenger on Saturday at UFC 143.

Posted in: ufc, koscheck, welterweight, welterweight challenger, bully

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This weekend, welterweight champ Georges St. Pierre gets to pop Vicodin while hobbling to his kitchen to fetch another tub of poutine-flavored ice cream, all for the sake of his torn anterior cruciate ligament that is allegedly on the mend.  Meanwhile, at UFC 143, Nick Diaz and Carlos Condit will be stepping into the Octagon to duke it out for an interim welterweight belt.  Now, no one dares suggest that Diaz isn’t a viable contender for the 170-pound title – the dude was a dominant champ in Strikeforce, and his return to the UFC had him reshaping BJ Penn’s mug like it was made of Play-Doh.  But Condit… what has he done for us lately?  What makes him worthy?  Heh.  Please allow me to drop some knowledge on you, “Natural Born Killer” style. -Condit has only lost once in the UFC, and that was via a razor-thin split decision to Martin Kampmann at a UFC Fight Night back in 2009 – which was Condit’s UFC debut.  Since then, he’s decisioned Jake Ellenberger, and put away the likes of Rory MacDonald, Dan Hardy and Dong Hyun Kim.  All of those finishes were explosive, with two resulting in “Knockout of the Night” bonuses and one a “Fight of the Night” bonus.  If the bosses throw you extra cheddar, you must be doing your job very right. -Prior to his current run in the UFC, Condit was the lord and master of the WEC’s welterweight division.  And his championship defenses weren’t really close.  It took him four rounds to put away Hiromitsu Miura, but Carlo Prater and Brock Larson fell within the first round, while John Alessio tapped out in the second.  That’s some dominance right there. -Condit has been at the game since 2002, clocking in thirty-two bouts, with twenty-seven of them resulting in wins for him.  He’s certainly got experience. -Despite all sorts of King of the Cage and Pancrase experience, the first time Condit really made himself known as a high-level badass was when he competed in the Rumble on the Rock welterweight tournament, circa 2006.  His quarterfinal opponent was Renato Verissimo, who was a UFC vet and the jiu-jitsu instructor of BJ Penn; Condit wrecked him in seventeen seconds, which was a huge shock.  Then came his semifinal matchup against Frank Trigg, which, again, everyone expected Condit to lose.  But after Condit subbed him in about a minute and a half, suddenly the lanky kid from Albuquerque was a force to be reckoned with.  Condit went on to lose the decision to Jake Shields in the ROTR tournament finals, but he was for sure the man after that. -What does Condit bring to the table in his bout against Diaz?  Well, in my humble opinion, the odds favor the jiu-jitsu black belt with insane boxing skills who cleaned out Strikeforce.  But Condit has the tools to beat him, he’s got the explosiveness, and he’s definitely got the mettle to eat plenty of Diaz jabs and keep coming.  Most of all, though, is Condit can keep it exciting without getting killed.  Yeah, he’s definitely worthy of a shot at the interim belt.

Posted in: ufc, diaz, welterweight, condit, carlos condit

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 ULTMMA.com has released and updated its 2012 set of Mixed Martial Arts prospect rankings. The rankings cover a top 20 for each of the eight major MMA weight classes heavyweight through flyweight with a total of 160 unsigned prospects rated. 120 prospects from 125-185 pounds have been added with the remaining two weight classes updated by February 1.---- A sign of how the UFC, Bellator and Strikeforce are handling their rosters the welterweight and middleweight divisions have gone through a massive change over in the past 12 months. 170 pounds remains talent rich in prospects despite seeing many of its best prospects get scooped up in 2011. At 185 pounds prospects from Europe and Brazil dominant the rankings in a weight class normally seen as shallow in the US. In the highly competitive Brazilian MMA circuit, Team Nogueira welterweight Andre Santo (28-6) surged to the head of the pack in 2011 with a 6-2 record. After a two fight losing streak in the span of 16 days in May 2011, Santos finished the year with four straight wins. In October Santos may have secured his call up to a major US promotion with an impressive one night tournament victory at Bitetti Combat 10.Stateside Colorado welterweight Brandon Thatch (6-1) had his best year of his career in 2011. A hyped but relatively inactive prospect, Thatch stifled his regional competition with three straight first round finishes. At 26 years of age Thatch is a skilled striker who has rounded out his game at the famed Grudge Training Center.A former soccer player, Germany's Benjamin Brinsa (11-0) has quietly built a killer reputation under home country the Free Fight Championship. At 185 pounds Brinsa is aggressive striker with ten career stops in 11 pro fights. Only 22 years of age Brinsa's ground game and defense can improve but his hype as a five star prospect will likely lead him into international waters in the near future. The journey of British middleweight Tom Watson (16-4) has taken twists and turns across the UK MMA scene since 2006. A winner of 10 of his last 11 bouts Watson has carried England's torch into bouts with UFC, Pride and IFL veterans. The 27 year old Watson is a prospect already capable of headlining events but the allure of fighting on the UFC's next stop in the UK could draw the striker up to the major leagues of MMA. Lightweight and featherweight breakdown Bantamweight and flyweight breakdownMiddleweight and welterweight updated top 20 prospects

Posted in: mma, welterweight, prospect, year, brinsa

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Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returns with its "Primetime" preview for UFC 143: "Diaz vs. Condit," a three-part series featuring a behind-the-scenes look as former Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz prepares to fight fellow division number one contender Carlos Condit for the Interim title on Feb. 4, 2012, at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. Episode one premieres TONIGHT (Fri., Jan. 20) at 11 p.m. ET on the FX Channel. Episodes two and three of "UFC Primetime" air Jan. 27 and Feb. 3, respectively. "Diaz vs. Condit" was booked after UFC welterweight champion George St. Pierre suffered a devastating knee injury, one that was severe enough to require surgery and several months of rehab. His ACL tear marked the second time St. Pierre has been forced to withdraw from a headlining title defense against Diaz, which will no doubt do little to convince the fiery Stockton slugger that he ain't "scared." "Rush" pulled out of their UFC 137 main event back in October after spraining his medial collateral ligament (MCL). It was not torn and St. Pierre was quickly re-booked to face Diaz, who bumped Carlos Condit from the number one contender spot after retiring B.J. Penn back on Oct. 29. Now both Condit and Diaz get the opportunity they've wanted since day one: To fight for the UFC welterweight title. In fact, PPV buys notwithstanding, this 170-pound war could meet and perhaps even exceed the fireworks expected in the original billing. Time will tell. For more on UFC 143: "Diaz vs. Condit" be sure to hit up our event archive right here. See the current fight card and rumors here.

Posted in: ufc, diaz, welterweight, condit, primetime preview

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Canadian welterweight Nordine Taleb signed with Bellator Fighting Championship on Thursday.

Posted in: bellator, welterweight, canadian, cdn, taleb

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UFC 143: Super Bowl Weekend - Diaz vs. Condit Date: February 4, 2012 Venue: Mandalay Bay Events Center Location: Las Vegas, Nevada   Articles Video     Main Card (on Pay-Per-View): -Nick Diaz (26-7; #3 Welterweight) vs. Carlos Condit (27-5; #4 Welterweight) -Roy Nelson (16-6) vs. Fabricio Werdum (14-5-1; #7 Heavyweight) -Josh Koscheck (16-5; #6 Welterweight) vs. Mike Pierce (13-4) -Renan Barao (17-1) vs. Scott Jorgensen (13-4) -Ed Herman [...]

Posted in: ufc, diaz, vs, welterweight, condit

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It’s been a short, but extremely difficult ride to the top for Charlie Brenneman. After putting together a successful amateur wrestling career in high school and winning the first season of Pros vs. Joes in 2006, Brenneman entered MMA in 2007. He won eleven of his first twelve bouts before getting the call from the UFC. On June 26, 2011, “The Spaniard” went from relatively unknown welterweight to a star overnight thanks to a hard-working performance in victory against a very tough Rick Story in his hometown of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In an interview with FiveOuncesOfPain.com, Brenneman said, “(The win over Story) was the epitome of all the hard work that I put into the sport and life in general.” Things didn’t go so well for Brenneman in his next bout in October though, as he was defeated in just two minutes and 49 seconds at the hands and feet of Anthony Johnson. “I was disappointed with the fight,” said Brenneman. “I was disappointed that I wasn’t really able to showcase anything. The way the fight developed, I had nothing to show. I didn’t really do anything. I didn’t do anything good and it was frustrating after all the work I put into it.” Charlie will get a chance at redemption on January 20, when he meets Daniel Roberts in Nashville. Despite the fact that Roberts is coming off two straight losses and Brenneman has fought two highly-ranked welterweights, defeating one of them, he’s not upset with the match up. “I just take it one fight at the time,” said Charlie. “I look more at the individual match up than the name recognition. I’m really excited for it because this match up is really good. I’ve been evolving as a fighter and I really like this fight because I think it’ll make us reach in our back pocket and see what we’ve developed.” Along with working on his technical skills, Charlie has been reading “The Power of Now” by Eckhart Tolle in order to sharpen his mental game and connect his body to his mind. “If you’re ready psychically but if you’re out of it mentally, it doesn’t matter one bit.” One thing that does matter to the Pennsylvania native is his friends and family. No matter where he fights, you can bet that he’ll have a pocket of supporters cheering him on in the crowd, usually making more noise than the rest of the crowd. “I am very fortunate,” said Brenneman. “I have a lot of friends and family who make the trip. This fight in Tennessee will actually be my smallest crowd. I think we only have about 25 or 30 people. I’ve had a lot of people come to a lot of my fights.” At UFC 141, Johny Hendricks KO’d long-time top welterweight Jon Fitch. That win, along with a victory by Jake Ellenberger over Jake Shields earlier in the year, showed the evolution of a new crop of talented welterweights. Charlie weighed in with his thoughts on the state of the 170 pounders saying, “There’s definitely a changing of the guard. I think Ellenberger is right at the top of the heap, even beyond Nick Diaz and Carlos Condit, even though he lost to Condit. I think he’s a front-runner. We just had the Hendricks knockout as well. I wouldn’t doubt that if Ellenberger wins his next fight we could see him vs. Hendricks in a #1 contender fight.” Brenneman holds an overall record of 14-3 with five TKOs and past wins inside the Octagon against Amilcar Alves and Jason High. PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Posted in: fight, ’t, welterweight, brenneman, charlie

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The Canadian flavor continues to pour the UFC 145 card, as a welterweight bout between debuting Canadian Chris Clements and veteran Keith Wisniewski.

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, welterweight bout, canadian, canadian flavor

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This is a guest post by Rory MacLeod (smoogy) A year ago, we selected the inaugural class of fighters that would make up the first edition of the World MMA Scouting Report. It's been a gratifying experience to see some of the athletes we selected go on to succeed in major fight opportunities, and a heartbreaking one to see others come up just short. For each pick that claimed a significant title in 2011, there were at least two that didn't make their breakthrough, or fell off the rails entirely. Here's a recap to give you a sampling of the highlights (and lowlights) from a tumultuous time in the careers of these MMA prospects. 1. Yuri Villefort (6-0) Yuri Villefort was signed to a Strikeforce contract in 2011 along with his brother Danillo, and they were supposed to debut on the same Strikeforce Challengers card. But training injuries forced Yuri to withdraw from his scheduled debut against Travis Bush (5-2-1). No subsequent make-up date was set for the fight. Factoring in Danillo's defeat at the hands of Nate James in his Strikeforce debut, 2011 was a lost year for the Villeforts. At just 20 years of age, Yuri can afford the delay, but he needs to get back in the cage soon. 2. Alex Garcia (7-1) As a member of the famed Tristar gym in Montreal, Alex Garcia was on the fast track to the world stage. That is, until his momentum was halted at the hands of jumbo-sized UFC welterweight Seth Baczynski in April. "The Dominican Nightmare" scored a big slam on Baczynski early, but appeared to tire quickly in the grappling exchanges, losing dominant position about midway through the first round. Garcia succumbed to ground and pound in the second round for his first career loss. He came back in October to take on Canadian circuit regular Matt McGrath (10-7) at Ringside MMA 12: Daley vs. Fioravanti. It was a return to form for Alex, winning by knockout early for his sixth career first round stoppage victory, lifting his Ringside MMA record to 5-1. 3. Erick Silva (13-1) As expected, Erick Silva was able to parlay his 2010 Jungle Fight welterweight tournament championship run into a contract with the UFC. His debut came against then-Shooto Brazil welterweight champion Luis Ramos (19-7) at UFC 134 in Rio. Erick made it look easy, dropping Ramos with an overhand bomb early in the first. The flashy knockout finish in his debut has garnered Silva a lot of buzz among UFC fans. Next up for Erick is a UFC 142 clash with journeyman debutant Carlo Prater (29-10-1). 4. Douglas Lima (21-4) If you want an example of a fighter who jumped from prospect to champion, look no further than Douglas Lima. He already held the Maximum Fighting Championship title when he chose to trade up for a spot in the season five Bellator welterweight tournament. Douglas got off to a rocky start, but recovered from a first round knockdown to take a decision from tournament veteran Steve Carl (15-3) in the quarterfinal. The semifinal and final rounds were a different matter, however; Lima found range with his counter boxing attack, scoring one punch knockouts over Chris Lozano (9-2) and Ben Saunders (12-4-2) to take the tournament. Next up is a shot at the Bellator world 170lb. title against immovable Champion Ben Askren (9-0). 5. Luis Santos (50-7-1) The Scouting Report committee of two were anxiously hoping for an all-report Bellator welterweight tournament final between Luis Santos and Douglas Lima, and it seemed like it might actually happen. Santos outgunned Bellator mainstay Dan Hornbuckle (22-5) in the quarterfinal round with a superior mix of speed, footwork and power roundhouse kicks. In the semfinals, Luis got off to a good start early against UFC veteran Ben Saunders with punches and a takedown, but found himself stuck for much of the fight in an unusual high guard attack from "Killah B" that prevented Santos from mounting any offense. The recurring position eventually led to a keylock submission win for Saunders in the third round. Sadly, "Sapo" has not been invited back for the upcoming Season 6 welterweight tournament. 6. Jesse Juarez (17-7) Jesse Juarez suffered a broken arm and and broken leg in his third round submission loss to Douglas Lima for the Maximum Fighting Championship welterweight championship last December. To add insult to injury, there was a dispute with MFC promoter Mark Pavelich over reimbursement for medical bills accrued as a result of the bout. Jesse parted ways with MFC in favor of a June main event against UFC regular Josh Neer (32-10-1) at Shark Fights 16 in Texas. It was another setback, as Juarez's corner stopped the fight after the first round due to an injury. Jesse finished the year in style though, successfully defending his Cage Fighting Championship strap against Manuel Rodriguez (8-2) in August, then making his Russian MMA debut in a winning effort over Gadji Zaipulaev (16-6) in December. 7. Gunnar Nelson (8-0-1) With a nine fight unbeaten streak to kick off his career, grappling sensation Gunnar Nelson was tabbed for a quick transition to the upper echelon of MMA. But Gunnar defied expectations by opting to take a sabbatical from pro competition in order to give himself time to perfect all aspects of his fighting style. He stuck to the plan, staying off the radar for the entirety of 2011. Nelson has declared his intention to return in 2012, however, and the first match in his return is scheduled for February 25 as the main event of Cage Contenders 12 in Ireland. 8. Quinn Mulhern (17-2) After multiple defenses of the King of the Cage welterweight championship, Quinn Mulhern was picked up by Strikeforce and placed in their Challengers Series, debuting at the 16th edition of the program in June. It was an inauspicious debut for Mulhern, dropping a unanimous decision to UFC veteran Jason High (15-3). But since then Mulhern has been solid, notching Challengers victories over Danny Davis Jr. (6-5-1) and David Hulett (18-10) to close out 2011. As the Challengers Series comes to a close, Mulhern is expected to join the main Strikeforce welterweight division. 9. Alberto Mina (8-0) Though Alberto Mina won the Ultimate Challenge UK (now Cage Rage UK) welterweight championship and defended it in 2010 against The Ultimate Fighter 9 veteran Dean Amasinger, he languished on the shelf for 16 months without a fight due to shoddy representation by his management and the shambolic state of the UCUK promotion. A fed-up Mina abandoned the title and moved to join Gracie Barra's Greece affiliate academy in 2011. The Brazilian-born grappler returned to the cage in Greece against Dutchman Boy Eggels (3-1) in August, snatching a first round submission win via armbar. Alberto is currently in negotiations that could see him make his major organization debut early in 2012. 10. Joe Ray (6-3) One step forward and two steps back seems to be the prevailing pattern in Joe Ray's campaign to get his breakthrough opportunity. He came up on the short end of a dubious decision to South Africa's Jeremy Smith (6-0) in last December. He rebounded with a submission over fellow Floridian John Kelly (5-4) in June. He was called up for a slot on the prelims of July's Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum card, but was stifled by fellow newcomer Nah-Shon Burrell (8-1). Another defeat followed at the hands of Chris Spang (4-1) in September at Strikeforce Challengers 19. He returned to Florida in December, easily winning a tuneup over local Levi LaLonde (2-5). With his Strikeforce stint apparently over, Ray needs to continue to improve his grappling if he intends to consistently win fights.

Posted in: fight, strikeforce, round, welterweight, debut

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The lightweight and welterweight tournament lineups for Bellator's sixth season are nearly complete. Take a look at who will be competing starting this March.

Posted in: bellator, season, welterweight, lineup, bellator season

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CHICAGO, Ill. (1/9/12) - As Bellator Fighting Championships prepares for its highly anticipated sixth season, the promotion has once again added a premier talent from across the globe, this time signing undefeated Russian welterweight phenom Andrey "Spartan" Koreshkov. Last year, Bellator signed highly-touted Douglas Lima, who went on to win the Season 5 Welterweight Tournament and will face Ben Askren for the title. Widely regarded as the top welterweight prospect in the world, Koreshkov joins Bellator under the tutelage of two-time Bellator Middleweight Tournament Champion Alexander "Storm" Shlemenko as the two dynamic strikers represent RusFighters in St. Petersburg, Russia. Undefeated in nine professional fights, "Spartan" is a true finisher in every sense of the word. The 21-year-old prodigy has never had a fight move into the third round and is the owner of five knockout victories. While the competition will surely increase with Bellator, Koreshkov adds to an already dangerous welterweight field. "The international market has produced some incredible talent for us, and Andrey is near the very top of that list," said Bellator Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney. "Our Talent Development team, lead by Sam Caplan continues to be at the forefront of international scouting, and we'll continue bringing the best talent from across the world to Bellator." For more information, visit Bellator.com, follow Bellator on Twitter @BellatorMMA, follow Bellator Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney @BjornRebney and check out Bellator on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Bellator.

Posted in: bellator, welterweight, talent, koreshkov, andrey

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Bellator Fighting Championships has signed Andrey Koreshkov. The Russian welterweight standout joins the organization with a perfect 8-0 record and eight stoppage victories. Sources close to the fighter today told MMAjunkie.com that Koreshkov will make a promotional debut in season six, but he won't be part of the season's welterweight tournament.

Posted in: welterweight, fighter today, koreshkov, andrey, andrey koreshkov

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submitted by EpicThomTime [link] [13 comments]

Posted in: welterweight, champion, future, opinion, epicthomtime

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Three more welterweights have been added to Bellator's season-six welterweight tournament, which rounds out the competition's eight-man field. The promotion announced the inclusion of tourney vet Ben Saunders and undefeated fighters David Rickels and Raul Amaya. The sixth season kicks off in March and airs on MTV2.

Posted in: welterweight, saunder, field, raul amaya, saunders rickels

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Photo by MMA Authority Magazine Name: Nordine Taleb Nickname: -- Age: 30 Height: 6'3" Location: Montreal, Quebec, Canada Breaking into our top five on the 2012 World MMA Welterweight Scouting Report, Quebec's Nordine Taleb (6-1) is the first to grace the upper-tier of our countdown. The 30-year-old Tristar fight team member is riding an impressive five-fight winning streak, capping off his 2011 in stunning fashion by zapping UFC veteran Pete Sell with a beautiful right cross counter to win the Ring of Combat welterweight crown in November. The 6'3" fighter is a monstrosity at welterweight, possessing a physically superior frame that dwarfs most of his opposition. He uses those gifts to manhandle opponents, driving them into the fence to bombard their midsections with a steady diet of knees. If his opponents don't falter from his Muay Thai assault, Taleb isn't without other means to winning a fight. From range, Taleb possesses a skillful striking attack. Combined with intelligent footwork, he's elusive and tough to nail down as evidenced by his evasion of Pete Sell's punches at Ring of Combat 38. Conversely, the same quickness allows him to counter with speed and ferocity. If his opponents happen to get sloppy in their pursuit, Taleb is great at changing levels, burying his adversary into the canvas, and finishing with a devastating ground and pound attack. Similarly to Jouban, Taleb is no spring chicken. He's 30 years old and coming into his own as a top prospect at a late stage in his athletic career. That isn't to say he can't succeed well into his late 30's, but it's uncommon in most sports. The prime physical shape he's in combined with the training he's receiving at Tristar gym in Montreal make one believe he'll continue to progress however. With a well-balanced attack and overwhelming power, there isn't a promotion that wouldn't love to have Nordine Taleb fighting for them in 2012. Check out video footage of Nordine Taleb after the jump... FlyweightBantamweightFeatherweightLightweight #1 - #2 - #3 -#4 -#5 - #6 - #7 - #8 - #9 - #10 - #1 - Rony Mariano#2 - Aljamain Sterling#3 - Chris Holdsworth#4 - Josh Hill#5 - Fabiano Fernandes#6 - Claudio Ledesma#7 - Sirwan Kakai#8 - Kyoji Horiguchi#9 - Leandro Hygo#10 - Pedro Munhoz #1 - Hacran Dias#2 - Joey Gambino#3 - Brandon Bender#4 - Lance Palmer #5 - Jim Alers#6 - Anthony Gutierrez#7 - Max Holloway#8 - John Teixeira#9 - Cody Bollinger#10 - Bubba Jenkins #1 - Fabricio Guerreiro#2 - Alessandro Ferreira#3 - Adriano Martins#4 - Justin Salas#5 - Neilson Gomes#6 - Eduard Folayang#7 - Zorobabel Moreira#8 - Anton Kuivanen#9 - Jordan Rinaldi#10 - J.P. Vainikainen WelterweightMiddleweightLight HeavyweightHeavyweight #1 - #2 - #3 -#4 - Nordine Taleb#5 - Hernani Perpetuo#6 - Brock Jardine#7 - Alan Jouban#8 - Mohsen Bahari#9 - Andre Santos#10 - Stephen Thompson #1 - #2 - #3 - #4 - #5 - #6 - #7 - #8 - #9 - #10 - #1 - #2 - #3 - #4 - #5 - #6 - #7 - #8 - #9 - #10 - #1 - #2 - #3 - #4 - #5 - #6 - #7 - #8 - #9 - #10 - Nordine Taleb vs. Pete SellRing of Combat 38 - November 18, 2011

Posted in: welterweight, he, taleb, nordine, nordine taleb

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Filed under: UFCJohny Hendricks did at UFC 141 what was once viewed as nearly impossible: He finished Jon Fitch. And Hendricks didn't just finish Fitch, he obliterated Fitch with a knockout punch that completely shakes up the welterweight division in mixed martial arts. Fitch no longer even has a claim for the No. 2 spot in the Top 10, where he has resided for years on many lists (though not on mine), and Hendricks has a strong claim not just to be in the Top 10, but to be towards the top. So how high does Hendricks go? And how far does Fitch drop? And how does the rest of the welterweight division look at a time when Georges St. Pierre is in the midst of an extended layoff? We rank the Top 10 below. Top 10 welterweights in MMA (Editor's note: The individual fighter's ranking the last time we did welterweights is in parentheses.) 1. Georges St. Pierre (1): GSP had demonstrated his dominance over the division so completely that even with a long layoff, he deserves to stay on the top. Unless he has a setback in his recovery from ACL surgery he's expected to face the winner of the upcoming Nick Diaz-Carlos Condit fight in the summer or fall of 2012. 2. Nick Diaz (2): Condit will be the best opponent Diaz has ever faced, but I like Diaz to win the interim welterweight title fight in February. The big question after that will be how long Diaz has to wait for his shot at GSP. 3. Josh Koscheck (4): With two losses to St. Pierre, Koscheck won't get another title shot any time soon, so he's in more of a gatekeeper role in the UFC right now. Koscheck draws Mike Pierce at UFC 143. 4. Johny Hendricks (NR): The quick knockout of Fitch moves Hendricks all the way up to No. 4 in the welterweight Top 10. As an NCAA champion wrestler who hits hard, Hendricks has the right skill set to beat St. Pierre, although he probably won't get the chance to do that any time soon. The UFC should keep Hendricks active against good competition, and if he keeps winning he'll be ready for a title shot once the Diaz-Condit winner has faced GSP. 5. Carlos Condit (5): Condit likes to stay active, so it's disappointing for him that circumstances outside his control led to him fighting just once (and for only half of one round) in 2011. He'll be chomping at the bit for Diaz. 6. Jake Ellenberger (6): The silver lining of the St. Pierre injury is that it has given new contenders in the welterweight division time to establish themselves. It used to be the case that St. Pierre was No. 1 and he had beaten all of the other elite 170-pounders. But now the division has sorted itself out to the point that Koscheck is the only one of the five best welterweights after St. Pierre has previously faced him. Diaz, Hendricks, Condit and Ellenberger would all be new opponents for St. Pierre. 7. Jon Fitch (3): Fitch fought twice in 2011, his draw with B.J. Penn and his loss to Hendricks. Once viewed as a guy who just wins and wins consistently, Fitch hasn't won since he beat Thiago Alves in August of 2010. 8. Rory MacDonald (7): MacDonald should dispatch Che Mills in March, and after that he'd make a lot of sense as a future opponent for Hendricks or Ellenberger. Someone from that group will emerge as a welterweight title contender in late 2012 or early 2013. 9. B.J. Penn (8): Penn is taking some time off following his loss to Diaz, and there's been talk that he just doesn't have the desire to fight anymore. But when he's on his game he's still one of the elite mixed martial artists at either 155 or 170 pounds. 10. Jake Shields (9): With losses to St. Pierre and Ellenberger, Shields went 0-2 in 2011. He should get started with a much better 2012 by beating Yoshihiro Akiyama at UFC 144. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Posted in: pierre, st, welterweight, fitch, hendrick

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CHICAGO, Ill. (January 6, 2011) - As Bellator Fighting Championships prepares to make the jump to Friday nights, the tournament fields are beginning to take shape as the lightweight and welterweight tournament participants have been revealed. Bellator's sixth season begins Friday, March 2nd LIVE on MTV2 and in commercial-free HD on EPIX, with the preliminary fights being streamed LIVE and FREE around the world on Spike.com. Season 6 will feature tournaments in the bantamweight, featherweight, lightweight, welterweight and middleweight divisions. Coming off a 50-second knockout victory over UFC veteran Kurt Pellegrino, Patricky Pitbull (@PatrickyPitbull) headlines an impressive group of 155 pounders looking to dethrone the newly crowned Bellator Lightweight Champion Michael Chandler. After a successful run at welterweight, former 2004 US Olympic judo team member Rick Hawn (@RickHawnMMA) has made the drop to lightweight and has his sights set on capturing a guaranteed title shot and $100,000 payday. The tournament will also be full of newcomers as Ricardo Tirloni (@TirloniMMA), Thiago Michael and J.J. Ambrose (@Superjjambrose) all make their Bellator tournament debuts and all come with high expectations. Joining Hawn in the weight drop is Brent Weedman (@Brent_Weedman), who will try his hand at lightweight after competing in the last two welterweight tournaments. Fan favorite Lloyd "Cupcake" Woodard (@MMAcupcake) is back with Bellator and looking to get back to his winning ways after suffering a unanimous decision loss at the hands of the current Bellator lightweight champion. In a field that holds a combined 122-29-5 record, Bellator's Season 6 Welterweight Tournament is loaded with talent hungry for a title shot against undefeated Bellator Welterweight Champion Ben Askren. Bellator newcomers and UFC veterans Brian Foster (@BrianFoster170) and War Machine (@WarMachine170) will be looking to make strong first impressions, while Season 5 Welterweight Tournament Finalist Ben "Killa B" Saunders (@BenSaundersMMA) will be looking to finally secure his title shot. Bellator Season 2 Middleweight finalist and Season 5 semifinalist Bryan Baker (@BryanBeastBaker) has dropped down to welterweight and plans to stir up 170-pound class. David Rickels (@TheCaveman316) and Raul Amaya both bring identical 9-0 records into the tournament, while veterans Carlos Pereira and Karl Amoussou round out one of the deepest tournaments in Bellator history. A full list of tournament participants is listed below: Bellator Season Six Lightweight Tournament: Patricky PitbullThiago MichaelRicardo TirloniBrent WeedmanRick HawnJ.J. AmbroseLloyd WoodardTBA Bellator Season Six Welterweight Tournament: Ben SaundersBrian FosterBryan BakerKarl AmoussouDavid RickelsRaul AmayaCarlos PereiraWar Machine

Posted in: title shot, bellator, season, welterweight, tournament

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Another matchup has joined the rapidly expanding fight card for UFC on Fuel TV 2, as welterweights Paulo Thiago and Siyar Bahadurzada have reportedly agreed to meet at the event.

Posted in: ufc, fight card, welterweight, siyar bahadurzada, fuel

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UFC veteran Brian Foster brings a four-fight winning streak into Bellator Fighting Championships, as he joins the season six welterweight tournament.

Posted in: bellator, season, welterweight, brian, streak

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Before medical troubles cut short his Octagon run, Brian Foster was pegged by some pundits as a future UFC welterweight contender. Now, he’ll have the chance to go for gold in another organization.

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, contender, vet, ufc vet

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Filed under: UFC, NewsAnthony Johnson is considered to be one of the top welterweights in the UFC, but his days of fighting at 170 pounds may be over. "Rumble," who will make his middleweight debut against Vitor Belfort at UFC 142 next week, said on a Wednesday conference call that he isn't thinking about fighting at welterweight anymore. "Right now, middleweight is where I am," Johnson said. "That's all I'm thinking about, and I really don't mind fighting middleweight because I get to eat more now. So like I said, I feel 1000 times better than I did when I fought [at] 170, so that's why I'm so happy and want to fight really bad." Johnson, who said he currently weighed 215 pounds, would sometimes cut as much as sixty pounds to make the 171-pound welterweight limit. He even missed weight twice (UFC 76 and UFC 104), but despite the struggle to make weight, he never seriously flirted with the idea of moving up to 185 pounds. That is until the UFC offered him a shot against Vitor Belfort in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. "This is going to be a lot of fun for me," Johnson said. "So that's why I feel so good because I don't have to cut the weight that I used to cut and I'm more explosive; I'm more athletic. Everything has just come to where it needs to be right now. I'm peaking at the right time." Asked whether he was officially done as a welterweight, Johnson simply said, "so far." UFC 142, headlined by Jose Aldo vs. Chad Mendes for the UFC featherweight title, airs live on pay-per-view from the HSBC Arena in Rio on Jan. 14. The prelims will air on FX. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Posted in: ufc, pound, welterweight, johnson, im

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Unbeaten welterweight Tyron Woodley has been patient. But now he's got a plan: Beat Jordan Mein on Saturday, then get some Strikeforce gold in the spring.

Posted in: strikeforce, welterweight, strikeforce gold, jordan mein, woodley

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The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 7 winner, Amir Sadollah, has been injured in training and will be unable to take on Jorge Lopez in a welterweight fight that was planned for UFC 143 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Feb. 4, 2012. Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) today made the announcement, as well as named his replacement, Matt Riddle: TUF 7 winner Amir Sadollah has been injured. Stepping in to face Wanderlei-Silva trained striker Jorge Lopez will be welterweight Matthew Riddle. Verbal agreements are in for this matchup. Riddle was slated to scrap at this past weekend's UFC 141, but forced to withdraw at the zero hour due to illness. Riddle was an eleventh-hour scratch from the UFC 141 fight card on Dec. 30, 2011, because of an undisclosed illness that had him "too sick to fight" Luis Ramos at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. As a result, the fight was scrapped altogether just before showtime and neither man competed that night inside the Octagon. Riddle, also a TUF 7 alum, is still out to snap a two-fight losing skid, dropping unanimous decisions to Sean Pierson and Lance Benoist, respectively, in his most recent performances. He kicked-off his professional mixed martial arts (MMA) career with an impressive record (5-1) with the promotion. However, "Monster Mash" -- who has been a mainstay in the 170-pound division since 2009 -- needs to turn in a solid, perhaps evening winning, performance against Wanderlei Silva's 23-year-old protege if he intends to stick around in 2012 and beyond. Lopez, a Wand Fight Team member, struggled in his promotional debut, losing a unanimous decision to Justin Edwards at UFC Fight Night 15 back in Sept. 2011. "Lil Monster" has finished nearly half the opponents (five) who he has faced thus far in his young professional career via (technical) knockout and has never been stopped early. With welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre injured, UFC 143 will feature an interim title fight between Stockton bad boy and former Strikeforce king, Nick Diaz, taking on Carlos Condit for 170-pound supremacy while "Rush" rehabs from knee surgery. In addition, former welterweight number one contender Josh Koscheck will try to keep his spot among the division's elite by taking on the venerable Mike Pierce. To check out the latest UFC 143 fight card and rumors click here. To sift through the most comprehensive collection of UFC 143 news and notes be sure to hit up our complete event archive right here.

Posted in: ufc, fight, riddle, welterweight, lopez

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Two of the most talented welterweight fighters in Strikeforce will meet this Saturday night (January 7, 2012) as undefeated Missouri wrestling standout Tyron Woodley takes on rising Canadian prospect Jordan Mein on the main card of Strikeforce: "Rockhold vs. Jardine" in Las Vegas. Woodley has risen from Strikeforce Challenger to can't miss prospect over the past year and it all culminated with his victory against former title challenger and UFC standout Paul Daley earlier in the summer. "T-Wood" is hoping to finally earn a crack at Nick Diaz's vacated welterweight title with a victory over a fellow top prospect. Jordan Mein is on an absolute roll. He stepped up his competition level in 2011 and steamrolled everyone in his path with victories over Joe Riggs and Marius Zaromskis on the Canadian circuit before blasting Evangelista Santos in his Strikeforce debut to instantly leap into the mix of contenders. Mein is primed and ready for a major upset on Saturday night. Will Woodley be able to outgrapple the scrappy Canadian? Can Mein set a pace that his opponent won't be able to keep up with? How does each man secure a victory on Saturday night? Let's find out: Tyron Woodley Record: 9-0 overall, 7-0 in Strikeforce Key Wins: Paul Daley (Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Henderson), Tarec Saffiedine (Strikeforce Challengers 13), Andre Galvao (Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Noons II) Key Losses: none How he got here: Tyron Woodley was a standout wrestler at Missouri, earning All-American honors twice while competing and training alongside fellow superstar wrestler and eventual Bellator welterweight champion Ben Askren. Woodley took it slow with his MMA career, fighting seven times as an amateur and winning all seven easily due to his excellent wrestling base. After a quick 2-0 start as a professional on the local circuit in fights that lasted less than two minutes combined, Woodley was invited to participate in his first Strikeforce Challengers event. Woodley steamrolled through his first three Challengers opponents, submitting each one in less than two rounds. After a tough scrap against Oregon wrestler Nathan Coy that Woodley barely squeaked by with a split decision, he would crush top Brazilian jiu-jitsu specialist Andre Galvao in his first appearance on a non-Challengers Strikeforce show. Woodley would fight one last time on the Challengers series against fellow top prospect Tarac Saffiedine out of Team Quest and he would pass this test with flying colors, utilizing his dominant top control wrestling to keep "Sponge" on his back for three straight rounds while avoiding any flashy submissions and sweep attempts. He drew former top UFC and Strikeforce contender Paul Daley this past summer and was able to eventually put "Semtex" on his back over the course of three rounds, although it was not nearly as easy as some had anticipated. He's hoping to get a shot at the vacant welterweight title with a victory on Saturday night. How he gets it done: Woodley has done some very smart things in preparation for this fight. He brought in Thiago Alves to help him prepare for Mein's stand-up attack and he brought in Jason High, the last man to defeat Mein. Alves is one of the best strikers in the welterweight division and should do wonders for helping Woodley hang in the stand-up department while High should be able to provide pointers and weaknesses in Mein's game that he can take advantage of. Standing is a bad idea against Mein, as it's his strongest attacking option. If Woodley wants to put a stamp on this fight, he needs to come out and put the Canadian on his back with authority. He can't be content with takedowns, though, as if he sits in Mein's full guard, he's going to be eating a large quantity of elbow attacks. Expect to see Woodley be a little more aggressive on the canvas, looking to pass guard or drop some nice ground and pound. Most important for Woodley is to not explode out of the gate and blow all his energy early. He gets off to great starts, but then he hits an adrenaline dump and has trouble recovering in the later rounds. He can't afford to get tired against Mein so hopefully, he paces himself at the beginning of the bout. Jordan Mein Record: 23-7 overall, 1-0 in Strikeforce Key Wins: Evangelista Santos (Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov), Marius Zaromskis (Score Fighting Series), Joe Riggs (Wreck MMA) Key Losses: Jason High (Rumble in the Cage 40), Mike Ricci (Ringside MMA: Rivalry) How he got here: Jordan Mein has been a very busy young man. At just 21 years old, he's already been competing in MMA for over five years. He stumbled out of the gate with his first ever opponent being current top UFC prospect Rory MacDonald and after a 3-4 start to his career, he found his groove. Mein competed entirely in Canada for the next four years, slowly progressing up the ladder facing stiffer and stiffer competition. After dropping a decision to Jason High at his father's Rumble in the Cage promotion in 2010, he hasn't looked back since, going on a tear that included the likes of UFC veterans Joe Riggs, Josh Burkman and former Dream champion Marius Zaromskis. He caught the attention of Zuffa after the Zaromskis victory and was given a tremendous opportunity against former Strikeforce title challenger and overall ferocious Brazilian Evangelista Santos this past September. He hung with the veteran for two rounds and then pulverized him in the third with a brutal onslaught of elbows to score the biggest victory of his career. Now he'll get a chance to become an instant contender if he can knock off Woodley, who's currently sitting atop the welterweight mountain in Strikeforce. How he gets it done: Mein has to find a way to do his damage in the striking department without exposing himself to easy takedowns. Mein has a decent submission game, but it's highly unlikely that he could pull anything off against a wrestler of Woodley's caliber unless "T-Wood" is completely exhausted. Speaking of that, perhaps Mein's biggest advantage is his gas tank. If he can make Woodley work extra hard for every takedown and push a very high pace, he could force the Missouri alum to sap his energy in the process. Woodley has dealt with conditioning issues late in fights before and Mein is precisely the type of fighter that can take advantage of a situation like that. Hell, he did it in his last fight when "Cyborg" slowed down drastically. In the stand-up, Mein needs to keep his distance and keep Woodley moving. Standing still is a no-no as that won't do anything to tire Woodley out. If he can press the American Top Team product into the fence, he can do some damage with his strong Muay Thai game and he can also wear Woodley down as battling in the clinch is something that consumed a significant amount of energy. Mein needs to draw this fight into the third round and then explode. Fight X-Factor: The X-Factor for this fight has to be conditioning. Jordan Mein should not have an issue in that department, even if he's fighting from his back for much of the first two rounds. The big question mark will be if Tyron Woodley can last all three rounds and remain dominant. Conditioning issues plagued him against Nathan Coy, a fight he barely squeaked by with split decision and it almost cost him in the final two minutes against Paul Daley, a fight he'd been controlling with ease before being too tired to score the takedowns. Mein can smell blood if his opponent begins to falter, so Woodley hopefully has been putting in the extra work to make sure he doesn't gas out in the later stages. Bottom Line: This is a very interesting match-up between, in my eyes, the two best current welterweights on the Strikeforce roster. Why it isn't for the title is beyond me, but viewers should treat it as such. These are two extremely talented prospects currently sitting atop the division. This bout has potential for terrific swings of momentum, back and forth striking exchanges and lots of ground work. There's a possibility it slows down if Woodley isn't aggressive after takedowns, but that's a risk you're going to have to take. On paper, this should be a very good one. Who will come out on top at Strikeforce: Rockhold vs. Jardine? Tell us your predictions in the comments below! Poll Who do you see potentially earning a welterweight title shot with a victory on the Strikeforce: Rockhold vs. Jardine main card? Tyron Woodley Jordan Mein   0 votes | Results

Posted in: fight, strikeforce, welterweight, woodley, mein

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The first "UFC Primetime" special on the FX network will debut on Friday, January 20, 2012 at 11 p.m. ET. The following episdoes will air on January 27 and February 3. The special promotes the upcoming UFC 143 welterweight interim title bout between Nick Diaz and Carlos Condit at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. The two are fighting for the right to hold champion Georges St. Pierre's belt until he returns from surgery to repair a torn ACL. GSP had to pull out of his scheduled UFC 137 title bout with Condit due to an injury on his other knee then tore his right knee while training for a UFC 143 title bout with Nick Diaz. Condit got the call up to take GSP's place and it was decided to make it an interim title bout. St. Pierre has held the UFC welterweight title since beating Matt Serra at UFC 83 in 2008. He's made six successful title defenses in that time. Dias is the former Strikeforce welterweight champion and came to the UFC to fight GSP. He was originally signed to fight for the title at UFC 137 but blew off two press conferences and was pulled from the title fight. Diaz ultimately ended up facing B.J. Penn and taking a three round decision in the Fight of the Night. Condit has won four straight bouts in the UFC, with three straight by KO or TKO over Dong Hyun Kim, Dan Hardy and Rory MacDonald. He is the former WEC welterweight champion.

Posted in: ufc, title, bout, welterweight, condit

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2011 was a year of massive change for the UFC. They bolstered their ranks substantially, first by offering two new weight classes and then by acquiring their closest competitor in Strikeforce. The company experienced some of their most successful events ever with a record-shattering debut in Toronto, as well as their massively successful return to Brazil this past summer. This all led up to the announcement of a blockbuster deal with the FOX network and the premiere of the UFC on broadcast television. With all this major news there have been plenty of stories that have seemingly fallen through the cracks. One story that has played out over the course of 2011 has been the changing of the guard in the UFC’s welterweight division, as former contenders have continued to fall to up-and-coming fighters throughout the year. Georges St. Pierre continues to hold the championship, but this year has seen him unable to answer the challenge of two new contenders. GSP had another successful title defense at UFC 129 in April, but it was yet another lackluster decision win in a string of five-round affairs from the champ. Sure he’s still the best fighter in the division, but “Captain Canada” has failed to provide much in the way of sizzle for the UFC’s fickle fans. The problem may be one of motivation. In the lead-up to his UFC 129 bout with Jake Shields it seemed as though St. Pierre was going through the motions. GSP constantly made reference to Shields being “the most dangerous opponent he’s ever faced,” which might have more weight if he hadn’t already applied the same label to Dan Hardy not that long ago. As with his previous title defense against Josh Koscheck, St. Pierre kept his opponent at bay with a solid jab and constant footwork. There was little challenge to be had, just as there has been little-to-no challenge in so many of his previous title defenses. It looked like Nick Diaz might be able to provide a tougher test for GSP, but a lack of proper behavior from Diaz left these questions unanswered. There was also the sudden insertion of Carlos Condit into the contender position, but an injury in training took St. Pierre out of the fight. After a vicious beat down on B.J. Penn, some trash-talking from Diaz, and another injury to St. Pierre, we’re now left with an interim UFC Welterweight Championship fight between the last Strikeforce Welterweight Champion and the last WEC Welterweight Champion. St. Pierre isn’t the only fighter at 170 pounds that’s had trouble in 2011, as several of the men who have faced him saw their careers spiral downwards in the last twelve months. Hardy went 0-2 in 2011 to extend his losing streak to four. Thiago Alves was battered for three rounds by Rick Story, and Shields got flattened in under a minute by Jake Ellenberger. Of course this string of top 10 fighters losing to newer competitors was capped off on Friday with Jon Fitch, the consensus #2 welterweight fighter in the world, losing in twelve seconds to Johny Hendricks. On top of that we have former arch-rivals to St. Pierre (and one another) Matt Serra and Matt Hughes seemingly coming to the end of their careers. Serra sat out this last year while Hughes came up short against Koscheck before asking the UFC to “put him on the shelf.” Let’s not forget another former rival of GSP, the two-time two-division UFC champ Penn, who also announced an indefinite vacation from the sport following his loss to Diaz. The times, they are a-changin’ in the UFC’s welterweight division. Diaz and Condit are scheduled for what should be a spectacular fight to crown an interim champ while St. Pierre rests and recuperates. Hendricks has made a pretty good case for himself as the next challenger for the belt, whether it be against the Diaz/Condit winner or the eventual undisputed champion once St. Pierre returns. Ellenberger also has a pretty legitimate claim for a title shot if he can get past Diego Sanchez in February. St. Pierre will have a new challenger to face whenever he returns, but if this past year is any indication it looks like the new blood is taking over. Can GSP retain his dominance against newer and younger fighters? Stay tuned to find out. PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Posted in: ufc, pierre, st, welterweight, st pierre

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You could call John Cusack's 2012 a lot of things. Exciting. Tightly-scripted. Superbly Performed. An edge-of-your-seat thrill-ride...with heart. But prophetic? Only those eggheads over at NASA know for sure. Until such time as we all sink into the ocean, then, here are a few things to look forward to this year... A Revived UFC Welterweight Division The title reign of Georges St. Pierre has been alternately fabulous and maddening. Consisting of victories over nearly every top-ten welterweight, certainly it's been absolute. This year, however, St. Pierre is tasked with nursing his knee injury and will be, for better or worse, removed from the 170-pound equation. His stifling rule has given way to a more open field of contention, an effect compounded by the recent knockout of perennial number-two man Jon Fitch. It seems that the division, once ruled by a caste of elites, is in the hands of a new crop of welterweight roughnecks, headed by interim title contenders Nick Diaz and Carlos Condit. A Smaller, Stronger Strikeforce With the dissolution of Strikeforce's heavyweight division, the organization has more capital and card space to devote to its other weight classes. Dana White's emerging involvement with the promotion further suggests that we'll see a more focused, relevant Strikeforce this year. A Bigger, Stronger UFC Heavyweight Division The UFC heavyweight division will enjoy an appreciable influx of talent in 2012, courtesy of Zuffa's purchase of Strikeforce. It's hard to tell for sure how much of a lasting impact these new fighters will have (remember that neither Heath Herring, Antonio Nogueira, nor Mirko Cro Cop quite fulfilled their promise after making the jump from PRIDE), but at least one of them has already made a big splash. Flyweights in the UFC Consider the upcoming tournament between Ian McCall, Demetrious Johnson, Yasuhiro Urushitani, and Joseph Benavidez. With an astounding cumulative record of 59-10-6, and an impressive thirty-two of those victories coming by way of (T)KO or submission, the tournament promises balls-to-the-wall action, and the winner will certainly have the claim to number one flyweight in the world. Not a bad way to kick off the 125-pound proceedings. New Blood Climbing the Top 10 With his knockout of Vladimir Matyushenko, Alexander Gustaffson made it clear that he's ready for a shot at the upper echelon. Phil Davis will get one himself in his upcoming fight against Rashad Evans. Meanwhile, both Nate Diaz and featherweight Jimy Hettes saw a jump in rankings and visibility, respectively, with their recent victories at UFC 141. And there are, of course, the burgeoning new class of welterweights, including Rory Macdonald and Jake Ellenberger. Outside the UFC, Michael Chandler heads into this new year with quite a bit of buzz following his recent submission of Eddie Alvarez, and his fellow Bellator fighters Eduardo Dantas and Pat Curran are likewise poised for a break-out year, with Dantas slated to fight Bellator bantamweight champion Zach Makovsky and Curran riding high off a knockout of Marlon Sandro this past August. I'll be looking forward to these five things the most this year. What'd I miss?

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, division, year, thing

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Former two-time NCAA Division 1 wrestling champion Johny Hendricks proved yet again that despite his impressive wrestling credentials, he is not a one-trick pony at UFC 141: Lesnar vs. Overeem with his 12-second knockout victory of the number two-ranked welterweight in the world, Jon Fitch. Fitch, who hasn't been finished in a fight in more than nine years, suffered only the second loss during his stint with Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Along with the ending his five-fight win streak, Fitch also said goodbye to his long desired title shot aspirations. Hendricks, on the other hand, has now won three straight in the UFC welterweight division since suffering his first ever loss to Rick Story back in 2010 at The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 12 Finale. With an impressive record (7-1) in the UFC along with taking out one of the top welterweights in the world, "Big Rig" sky-rocketed up the ranks of the 170-pound division. He may even be knocking at the door of a title shot. Speaking at the UFC 141 post-fight press conference, the former Oklahoma State University wrestling standout says that by doing what Georges St. Pierre and B.J. Penn couldn't do to Jon Fitch, he hopefully did enough to vie for the welterweight strap someday very soon. Check it out: "I think I belong where I'm at now, you know what I mean? I just beat the number two ranked guy. GSP couldn't do it in five rounds. B.J. Penn couldn't do it, love the guy to death, he couldn't do it. I just knocked the number two guy out in 12 seconds; you know what I'm saying? Where does that put me? Hopefully for a title, but if it doesn't, I'm going to have to go out there and prove it again." In his lone title shot in the UFC, Fitch proved to be a game opponent when he lost to welterweight champion St. Pierre via unanimous decision at UFC 87 in 2008, while Penn fought to a draw with the American Kickboxing Academy (AKA) product at UFC 127. Meanwhile, it only took Hendricks 12 seconds to get past Fitch. With his "Knockout of the Night" bonus check in his back pocket thanks to his one hitter-quitter, Hendricks can ring in the New Year in style, while Fitch will have to go back to the drawing board and hope to climb back to the top of welterweight division in 2012. Is Hendricks ready to compete for the 170-pound strap so soon? Or does he need to win another fight or two before challenging the champion? For more on the fight between Jon Fitch vs. Johny Hendricks at UFC 141 click here.

Posted in: ufc, title shot, welterweight, fitch, hendrick

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An exciting welterweight war featuring Matt Riddle vs. Luis Ramos hits the undercard of the UFC 141: "Lesnar vs. Overeem" mega-event tonight (Dec. 30, 2011) at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Both coming off losses, Riddle and Ramos are looking to prolong their stay with Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) with a big win in "Sin City." Making his debut at UFC 134: "Silva vs. Okami," Ramos was knocked out just 40 seconds into the opening round by Erick Silva, which is not a great way to begin your UFC career. Riddle on the other hand, isn't exactly making waves in the promotion's 170-pound division either, losing his last two outings via unanimous decision. Now, both welterweights hope to keep their place on the ZUFFA roster and a win tonight would certainly go a long way in accomplishing that while a loss could spell disaster for either combatant. But who will prevail? With all of his eight mixed martial arts (MMA) bouts under the UFC banner, Riddle has been a mainstay in the welterweight division, though another defeat could mark the end of his UFC career with two consecutive losses already preceding him. The former Ultimate Fighter (TUF) participant kick-started his MMA career with an impressive 5-1 record before running into Sean Pierson and Lance Benoist, who both earned unanimous decisions over "Monster Mash." Ramos hopes to put on a better showing than he did in his UFC debut when Silva knocked him out in under a minute. Though both welterweights aren't knocking on the door of a title shot, they are fighting for something of importance: relevance in the UFC's 170-pound division. Can Ramos prove to the MMA community that his debut was not enough to judge his full capabilities by handing Riddle his third consecutive loss, or will Matt keep his place in the only fight organization he has ever known? Be sure to join MMAmania.com this evening for LIVE, detailed UFC 141 results of all the "Lesnar vs. Overeem" PPV action. It will include blow-by-blow coverage of the Facebook video stream, Spike TV "Prelims" bouts, and of course, the PPV broadcast. We'll start RIGHT HERE at around 7 p.m. ET and carry straight on through early Saturday morning. See you then!

Posted in: ufc, vs, riddle, welterweight, ramo

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Posted in: ufc, welterweight, potifar, grin thoresen, simeon

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With an interim UFC welterweight championship match as the headliner, UFC 143 is quickly turning into a feature presentation for the 170-pound division, as two more welterweight fights have been set. According to a recent release by the UFC, Matt Brown faces Chris Cope, and Justin Edwards takes on Mike Stumpf. Both fights could be slated for the preliminary card of the night. UFC 143’s main event is scheduled to be Nick Diaz vs. Carlos Condit for the interim UFC title. Current champ Georges St. Pierre suffered a torn ACL and will be sidelined for several months, so Diaz and Condit will hold the title until he is healthy and ready to return. Brown sports just a 1-4 record in his last five fights but has kept his job thanks to his willingness to trade punches inside the Octagon. The former Ultimate Fighter 13 competitor is 12-11 overall. Brown’s opponent, Cope (5-2), is also an ex-TUF competitor. Cope is coming off a loss to Che Mills. Edwards carries a 7-2 mark into his bout with Stumpf (11-3). Edwards is 1-2 in UFC fights this year, defeating Jorge Lopez last September. Stumpf, meanwhile, dropped his debut UFC bout to T.J. Waldburger. UFC 143 takes place February 4 from Las Vegas, Nevada. Adding to the three above-mentioned welterweight wars, Josh Koscheck and Mike Pierce have signed up to compete on the card. PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

Posted in: ufc, fight, welterweight, stumpf, condit

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Two more welterweight bouts have been added to UFC 143 taking place Super Bowl weekend in Las Vegas.

Posted in: ufc, bout, welterweight, bowl weekend, welterweight bouts

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A welterweight showdown between rejuvenated Brit Che Mills and Canadian up-and-comer Rory MacDonald will take place at UFC 145, promotion officials announced Wednesday.

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, showdown, welterweight showdown, greenlit

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Strikeforce's welterweight division is a bit of a puzzle these days. With divisional champion Nick Diaz now in the UFC, the weight class lacks any definitive gold standard. That the UFC continues to house the top thirteen welterweights in the world further complicates things. How can Strikeforce firmly establish, let alone expand, the 170 pound weight class with so little big-name talent available? Rather than hang their hat on one star attraction--ala Diaz--development of new talent and dedication to current, underexposed fighters will be key. So, let's look at the welterweights... Top Five Tyron Woodley, undefeated in his career and in the midst of a lengthy campaign through Strikeforce, is the organization's clear welterweight front runner. Following wins over Andre Galvao, Tarec Saffiedine, and Paul Daley, Woodley was considered next in line for a title shot. With Diaz gone, Woodley should figure all the more heavily in the division. Turning his fight with Jordan Mein into a championship affair would make a lot of sense. Jordan Mein finds himself in a fight with Woodley after his sensational Strikeforce debut, which saw him use a barrage of standing elbow strikes to snuff out Evangelista Santos. At 23-7-0, with twenty of his victories coming by TKO or submission, Mein is just the kind of new blood the welterweight division needs. With heavy hands and a knack for brawling, Bobby Voelker has climbed to 4-1-0 in Strikeforce. His lone defeat came by way of a contentious technical decision against Roger Bowling, a loss that he avenged twice over. It's hard to say how far his riotous style will take him, but given his strong record and fan-friendly style, Voelker's probably due for a step up in competition and exposure. Along with Jordan Mein, Jason High is one of the best addition's to Strikeforce's welterweight roster. With a strong team behind him and a record of 15-3-0, the American Top Team representative ought to be a big factor among Strikeforce welterweights. That he owns a win over Mein doesn't hurt. For a while, Tarec Saffiedine was running neck-and-neck with Tyron Woodley en route to contender-ship. And though a tepid decision loss to Woodley put a halt to such hopes, Saffiedine made it look easy against Scott Smith in his follow-up fight, and a rumored bout with KO-artist Tyler Stinson this January could once again set him apart from the pack. After the jump, the best of the rest, plus the ever-insightful conclusion... The Best of the Rest Roger Bowling has demonstrated a flair for the knuckle sandwich, though he hasn't made it work for him quite as well as welterweight nemesis Bobby Voelker. In typically concussive fashion, Bowling improved his Strikeforce record to 3-2-0 last weekend, and his style should continue to make him an asset to the division. Come this January, Tyler Stinson will have the chance to prove that his upset win over the surging Eduardo Pamplona was no fluke. There's much to gain in his upcoming fight with Saffiedine. Strikeforce mainstay Luke Stewart has been MIA since a poorly rendered split-decision loss to Andre Galvao in March of 2010, and Galvao himself has been absent from the ring since a KO loss to Tyron Woodley last October. To paraphrase a great man, they have some ‘splaining to do. And so... A glance at Strikeforce's welterweight division reveals a lot of exciting fighters who for the most part have yet to display any consistency beyond undercard-level fights. Aside from crowning a champion, there's a lot of sorting that needs done. With this in mind, fighters like James Terry, who's seen action at both 155 and 170, and Nate Moore (2-1-0 in Strikeforce) will be invaluable, but it may help to introduce some more established talent into the division, as well. For this purpose, I think Delson Heleno (23-6-0) and Chris Wilson (17-8-0) would make excellent additions to the organization. A high-level grappler like Heleno, who has submitted both Jake Ellenberger and the aforementioned Stinson, would bring some welcome variety to the 170-pound proceedings, which at this point skews heavily toward straight fisticuffs. With wins over Jay Hieron and Rory Markham (the latter by TKO), Wilson would likewise add some much needed depth to the welterweight division.

Posted in: strikeforce, welterweight, division, tyron woodley, woodley

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Filed under: UFC, News UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre will undergo surgery Tuesday to fix the damage to his injured right knee. The procedure will be done at the Kerlan-Jobe Orthopaedic Clinic in Los Angeles, a renowned facility for sports medicine among professional athletes. It will be performed by Dr. Neal ElAttrache, the team physician of Major League Baseball's Los Angeles Dodgers, who is considered one of the most accomplished orthopedists in sports medicine. Dr. ElAttrache has performed knee surgeries on top athletes including NBA star Blake Griffin, Major League all-star outfielder Andre Ethier and NFL Pro Bowl quarterback Tom Brady. In a recent teleconference, St-Pierre's personal orthopedist Dr. Sebastien Simard said that the surgery would require a total reconstruction of St-Pierre's anterior cruciate ligament along with repairing damage in his meniscus. Estimates for his return have ranged from between 6-10 months, depending on how he responds to physical rehabilitation. St-Pierre (22-2) attributed the knee injury to overcompensation issues. Just prior to it, he had hurt his left knee, and believes the extra stress on his healthy knee led to the ACL tear. The major injury happened during a wrestling training session. At the time, St-Pierre heard a crack and felt pain but attempted to continue. In the days afterward, St-Pierre suffered no swelling, so he was convinced it was only a minor setback, but the stability never improved, eventually leading him to a pair of MRIs that both confirmed extensive damage. The injury of course, forced St-Pierre out of a planned February bout with Nick Diaz, and his spot was taken by Carlos Condit. The Diaz-Condit bout has now been designated as an interim welterweight title fight. St-Pierre has reigned over the welterweight class for over 1,300 days since defeating Matt Serra at UFC 83 in April 2008. Upon his return, St-Pierre will fight the interim champion in hopes of re-staking his claim to No. 1. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Posted in: welterweight, knee, surgery, dr, stpierre

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The Ultimate Fighting Championship will return to Montreal in early 2012 with a showdown between welterweight up-and-comers on tap.

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, championship, montreal, welterweight upandcomers

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Dana White announced today via twitter today that UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St. Pierre had torn his ACL, required surgery on his knee and would be out of action for at least ten months. In that same tweet, White announced that the February 4th match up of Nick Diaz and Carlos Condit would be for the UFC Interim Welterweight Championship. It is said then when a door shuts a window opens, but in this case for UFC welterweights the window has flown open. The shadow St. Pierre casts over the division is long. When he first became champion, there was no shortage of challengers but as his dominance grew challengers where picked because they represented a new style that could possible give the Canadian troubles. Elite Welterweights who had their chance at St. Pierre and faltered have been relegated to gatekeeper status, but keep scrupulously away from the most promising prospects so not to derail new possible challengers to the Champion. But now those concerns are a thing of the past, at least for a year. Welterweights under UFC contract had extra energy in their training today because they have a chance for UFC gold if they can put a few wins together. On February 5th either Nick Diaz or Carlos Condit will be the defending champion of the division, and then the question of who is next can be addressed. The welterweight schedule is wide open as the majority of high level welterweights are currently still waiting for their next fight. Names like Jake Ellenberger, Diego Sanchez, and Martin Kampmann were already in title talks before this news and now they are almost certainly one big win away from a title shot. I fully expect Jake Ellenberger vs Diego Sanchez fight winner to be matched with the winner of Diaz/Condit. And even after that there is still a long line of possible challengers; Jon Hathaway, Mike Pierce, Johny Hendricks, Mike Pierce and even Rick Story are still present in the title picture. And then there is the laundry list of elite fighters that have already had title shots against GSP. Jon Fitch, Thiago Alves, Josh Koscheck, Jake Shields, and BJ Penn are still top level welterweights who were left searching for their place in a division where a title shot was no longer an option. While they likely will not be the first in line for this interim title because Zuffa brass may fear the image of a man GSP has already beat being hailed as champion, but it is highly likely that the UFC will be less nervous about throwing these elite fighters in against each other and against prospects. This is not meant to celebrate the injury of a great champion and fighter, I wish Georges St. Pierre a swift and complete recovery. One thing is certain, when St. Pierre returns from injury there will be a new cream of the welterweight division chopping at the bit for a chance to face him.

Posted in: ufc, pierre, st, welterweight, champion

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&& As welterweight champion, Georges St. Pierre made obsolete even the most hard-nosed and stalwart of contenders. In light of their disastrous title bids, fighters like Jon Fitch, Josh Koscheck, and Thiago Alves were, in the minds of many, left scrambling for a distant second place. His gentlemanly bearing and congenial nature belied the fact that, upon the UFC welterweight division, the champion imposed a brutal and perfect order: Before all else, Georges St. Pierre. For the foreseeable future, that order has been suspended. In light of St. Pierre's horrendous injury, someone like Jon Fitch appears different, newly relevant. As Chad Raynard wrote of the wrestling juggernaut: He has one of the best records in UFC history, yet a second crack at the belt has eluded him for quite some time. It was unlikely Fitch was going to get a shot at GSP without at least another two or three wins, but now he's found a short cut. Indeed he has. And while the unlikelihood of that second title shot might have had somewhat to do with Fitch's plodding, grinding style, I would suggest that the unprecedented thrashing he received from St. Pierre likewise sticks in everyone's mind. Yet, in the context of the current welterweight title picture, the fact of that beating takes a back seat to Fitch's sterling record and elite rank. Much the same could be said of the aforementioned Koscheck and Alves who, despite the night-terrors they might inflict on the rest of the UFC welterweights, walked away from their title fights much the richer in hematoma and fractures. When it comes to these perennial contenders, what was old is new again. The heightened relevance also extends to newly surging welterweights like Rory Macdonald, Anthony Johnson, and, perhaps most significantly, Jake Ellenberger. Ellenberger might have been a hard sell next to Georges St. Pierre, but now--given his crowd-pleasing style, his highly competitive fight against title contender Carlos Condit, and his KO of Jake Shields, teammate of UFC 143's other title contender, Nick Diaz--Ellenberger is an infinitely more viable challenger for the belt. And without having to worry too much now about the chance of a third match between St. Pierre and Koscheck, any of this new class can be freely matched up against past contenders en route to a championship fight. Georges St. Pierre's hiatus from the Octagon is a huge loss for the UFC, fans, and the man himself. However, for the shark tank that is the UFC's welterweight division, there's blood in the water.

Posted in: ufc, title, pierre, st, welterweight

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Dear. F'n Crimminy. This has been about the most bizarre couple of months inside and outside of the ring for the welterweight division I can remember in years. Not since Matt Serra bingo'd GSP has such bizarreness happened at 170 pounds. From Dana White's Twitter: @danawhiteDana White GSP blown acl will be out for 10 mos. Now Condit vs Diaz for the interim welterweight title on Feb 4th in Las Vegas!! Carlos Condit, who has been bounced around like a pinball, and Nick Diaz, for all his craziness and foibles, have found themselves poised to ascend - at least temporarily - to the throne as the best welterweight in the world without having to dethrone one of the best pound-for-pound champions in the short history of this sport. This is a huge opportunity for these men as well as a huge blow to the pockets of the UFC. St. Pierre was one of the few athletes on the roster capable of generating hundreds of thousands of PPV buys all on his lonesome. This comes on the heels of a terrible 2011 as far as buyrates go, and a still stagnant economy, so excluding 141 a few weeks from now with Brock Lesnar vs. Alistair Overeem, there's no big-name PPV to help the UFC's profit margins.

Posted in: ufc, diaz, vs, welterweight, condit

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Strikeforce welterweight Bobby Voelker has signed a five-fight extension with the Zuffa-owned promotion, according to a statement released Wednesday by Voelker’s management.

Posted in: welterweight, voelker, extension, zuffaowned promotion, fivefight extension

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UFC welterweight champion, Georges St. Pierre, recently trained with middleweight contender, Vitor Belfort in Las Vegas: Alvaro Romano introduced his unique training to GSP and his champion crew. It was a day of full throttle intense training. The introduction was his core principles then followed by BJJ three world time champion Gilbert Durinho showing some inside information. Aside from those mentioned above, the training session also included guys like Nate Marquardt, Brendan Schaub, and Francis Carmont, among others. More photos after the jump. HT: MMA Mania (via VitorBelfort.com) The dominant UFC welterweight champion, is currently preparing for a future showdown against Nick Diaz, who recently impressed everyone by completely dominating a future UFC Hall of Famer, in B.J. Penn. Vitor Belfort on the other hand, is scheduled fight at UFC 142, in his home town of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. His opponent will be the top 10 welterweight, Anthony Johnson, who will be moving up to middleweight. Photos via rayalamo.com

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, champion, belfort, training

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Diego Sanchez will attempt to continue his ascent back up the welterweight ladder when he takes on red-hot contender Jake Ellenberger at UFC on Fuel TV 1, which is scheduled to take place at the CenturyLink Center in Omaha, Neb., on Feb. 15, 2012. Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) just officially announced the volatile 170-pound match up between the "Dream" and the "Juggernaut," confirming that it will serve as the main event of the evening. Sanchez is currently riding a two-fight win streak since returning to the division after a failed bid to wrest the 155-pound title from the clutches of then UFC Lightweight Champion B.J. Penn at UFC 107 back in Dec. 2009. He stumbled in his first fight back at welterweight, dropping a unanimous decision to John Hathaway, but managed to later go on to outpoint Paulo Thiago and Martin Kampmann in back-to-back performances. It certainly won't get any easier for Sanchez -- who is returning from a long layoff because of a broken hand -- against Ellenberger, who is on an absolute tear, even piquing the interest of UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St. Pierre. Ellenberger, who claims he's got the style to finally dethrone the king of the 170-pound mountain, is fresh off a crushing knockout over top-ranked welterweight and former number one division contender, Jake Shields, at UFC Fight Night 25. It marked the fourth time in his five most recent appearances inside the Octagon that Ellenberger has finished an opponent, taking out Mike Pyle, John Howard and Sean Pearson in impressive fashion. And if he makes it five out of six against Sanchez, he'll do it in front of a hometown crowd. Ellenberger hails from Omaha and even serves as an assistant wrestling coach at the University of Nebraska-Omaha. No pressure. Stay tuned to MMAmania.com for additional UFC on Fuel TV 1: "Ellenberger vs. Sanchez" fight card updates, news and notes.

Posted in: ufc, fight, ellenberger, welterweight, sanchez

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Showdown Joe caught up with welterweight champ Georges St-Pierre, who is primed for a big 2012.

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, showdown, champ, stpierre

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Showdown Joe caught up with welterweight champ Georges St-Pierre, who is primed for a big 2012.

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, showdown, edition, stpierre

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UFC welterweight contender Josh Koscheck will be cheering for bad boy Nick Diaz when the Stockton native fights Georges St. Pierre for the championship. Here is what Koscheck recently had to say about Diaz and his chances against GSP: “I like the Diaz kid. He brings something similar to what I bring to the table. He’s not afraid to say what’s on his mind,” Koscheck said at a recent question and answer session with fans. Realistically, I think GSP is a strategist and GSP is probably gonna come out with a great game plan. That’s where he can play it safe and get the victory,” Koscheck told fans, being realistic about Diaz’s chances against the No. 1 ranked welterweight fighter on the planet.” Koscheck meets Carlos Condit in a welterweight showdown on Feb. 4, with the winner possibly meeting the welterweight champion.

Posted in: diaz, gsp, koscheck, welterweight, answer session

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submitted by MattyBlayze [link] [2 comments]

Posted in: ben, welterweight, move, mattyblayze, plan

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It's been a whirlwind past two months for welterweight star-in-the-making Douglas Lima. The 23-year-old American Top Team Atlanta product marched his way through Bellator's season-five welterweight tournament in impressive fashion with three wins in a span of two months. Now he has only two things on his mind and two things only: rest and relaxation, and welterweight champion Ben Askren.

Posted in: welterweight, askren, tourney plans, champ askren, bellators lima

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Ben Henderson will challenge Frankie Edgar for his lightweight championship in the main event of UFC 144 on Feb. 26, 2012, at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan. If he wins, the plan is to defend the belt for as long as possible, of course. But either way, "Bendo" has bigger plans for his future. The "Smooth" one wants to fight at welterweight ... eventually. You knew it would happen sooner or later. After all, Henderson usually disrobes before he even tries to weigh in for the first time. That's how difficult it is for him to hit the 155-pound weight limit and as he gets older, it's only going to get harder. Which is why he hopes his speed and technique can give him an edge in a division he doesn't have to cut weight for (via MMA Weekly): "It is hard on the body. People don't realize how much of a factor it is. Thankfully, I hired a nutritionist, Travis Jeffries, full time and been a little bit smarter about it. As I get older, I eat healthier, try to eat the right things, make all these little sacrifices that it takes to be a champion. Hopefully, eventually my technique catches up where I can hang with guys that are freaking 20 pounds heavier than me, and use more of my speed when they're bigger and slower, and my technique makes up for them being stronger than me." When discussing a move up to welterweight, Henderson references another UFC fighter with his namesake, Dan Henderson, who has made it clear he can fight at both middleweight and light heavyweight but prefers the 205-pound division. Because, again, cutting weight sucks. "Hendo" is a veritable title challenger in both divisions, though, as opposed to "Bendo," who has never actually competed at 170-pounds. And first-timers like him will quickly learn, the pool is deep and filled with sharks. Anyone think Henderson could make a run at welterweight?

Posted in: pound, technique, welterweight, henderson, way bendo

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In less than three months we will all be soccer kicking each other in Saitama Super Arena and it will be glorious. Knowing that scenario is in our collective future is enough to be thankful for on this fine Thanksgiving. As you can see we aren't taking something like a national holiday as a reason to have a day off, we want to give thanks to each and every one of you who clicks that little red monster and reads our silly words. For that, MiddleEasy presents to you an exclusive interview with two of the main guys behind UFC Undisputed 3-Nevin Dravinski and Nick Robertson. Go ahead, make a plate, grab some family and crowd around the warm glow of your monitor/tablet and enjoy the interview together. Happy Thanksgiving! You've taken almost an extra year on the development of UFC 3...Can you tell us what birthed the idea to take the extra time and ultimately in what areas did the game benefit most from the extra time....IE is the game taking that extra time to be more playtested and polished or was it used on the front end to brainstorm a user experience unlike one seen in MMA games before? Neven Dravinski—There were many things that prompted a longer development schedule for UFC Undisputed 3. I think first and foremost you touched on it; we wanted to make UFC Undisputed 3 the best possible Undisputed game to date in the franchise, the best possible MMA game as a whole and be among the leading games in the marketplace today. We did our development differently this year. We started focus testing from the beginning of development with hardcore Undisputed community players at the top of our leaderboards. In addition, we brought in leading professional fighting gamers and avid sports gamers. This process was really invaluable for us to not only polish our systems but help design new offerings, such as the Amateur Controls and new submission system. In addition, working with our community really helped us proactively find exploits and balance the game. In addition, more practical matters extended the schedule as well. There is a significant amount of new content in UFC Undisputed 3, including but not limited to the addition of PRIDE Mode, which alone is akin to building a game within a game. Beyond this, creating and implementing more than 150 fighters, including newly added bantamweight and featherweight divisions, is a lengthy process. Overall, it became absolutely necessary to have extra time to make sure features like these were implemented properly, and ultimately, I think the game is better for it.   What's the framerate goal? Neven Dravinski — A hallmark of the UFC Undisputed series, we have always maintained a frame rate of 60 FPS on both the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. We did a lot of tuning this year to make sure the animations flow more smoothly and quickly into one another, which ultimately improves the overall gameplay experience. Even minor tweaks like the tuning the jab, a strike used extensively, improves the overall flow and smoothness of UFC Undisputed 3. Just seeing the differences in the game from last year to now is pretty amazing.   Tell us how THQ and or Zuffa came to the realization that PRIDE had to be in this game? Neven Dravinski — PRIDE is something our team has wanted to include in the franchise since its debut. However, our initial focus was really to make sure our core systems were ready before tackling something like this year’s PRIDE Mode. The things I’m most excited about in PRIDE Mode are the expanded rule set and the ability to bring UFC fighters into PRIDE rules and PRIDE fighters into UFC rules. It’s awesome, and it really speaks to our close relationship with Zuffa. I’m happy the team received the green light to include PRIDE this year.   How did you guys capture Saitama super arena so well? Did the dev team just sit around together and watch hours of Pride? (Sounds like the best job ever?) Neven Dravinski — Our team definitely enjoyed watching a lot of PRIDE videos! There’s so much to take into account: the hot white lighting, the crowds, the entrances, etc. I think it helped that our developer Yuke’s Osaka has a long history with PRIDE and the team is comprised of huge fans, but I also think it’s just par for the course with our team as a whole. We have people who have been MMA fans for a long time, and they are certain to make sure the little details will always stand out. The Saitama Super Arena is a great example of this effort.   What is the casual user going to notice and like about UFC 3 the most? What is the hardcore user going to appreciate? Neven Dravinski — One of our internal challenges was to get more people into the franchise. We know we have a deep technical fighting game that’s fun to play, but unfortunately, we can’t sit on everyone’s couches to explain the finer details of the systems. To that end, we implemented several educational systems that teach people how to play the game without forcing them to sit through an exhaustive tutorial. We have a tutorial hint system that pops up in-game, teaching casual users what to do (controller inputs) if they find themselves in a new situation. Between rounds, we have an interval advice system that shows players positive and negative feedback based on what they are doing in their current fight, complete with controller hints for improving play. Finally, the biggest thing for casual users is our new Amateur Control scheme. This control layout replaces the quarter-circle and greater-than-quarter-circle inputs on the right stick with a simple up and down flick on the right stick. Casual users can now get in the game and be competitive with more ease, as the barrier for entry on the ground and in clinch transitions is reduced with the Amateur Controls. However, many players will graduate to the Pro Controls, leaving them much more open to being reversed and offering less control of their transitions. Finally, our new submission system has a graphic display on screen to indicate how close players are to winning or losing a submission. This new system will significantly help in online play or against difficult opponent AI. Speaking of advanced users, we’ve added a lot to the depth to the game: We are introducing a quick-strike interrupt system, where you can use quick strikes (attack button) to interrupt the trajectory of strong strikes (holding toward the opponent + attack). Thus, a jab can now be used to interrupt an opponent’s attacks and then set up your own attacks. In addition this year, players cannot counter grapple quick strikes. We had the ability to sway on the feet last year, and we’ve now extended this capability to the ground. Swaying on the ground is a great way to avoid additional strikes, and it also increases your transition window, thus extending your chances for survival. This year we’ve also removed the passive transition defense that was introduced last year, where the computer would automatically block transitions for you in certain situations. Players now have to be much more active in defending against an opponent. We have leg kick TKOs this year, as well as the ability to check leg kicks. One of the cooler things I like that we’ve been able to put in is the concept of feints in the game. Holding block high + low at the same time as an attack will throw a feint attack, meaning there will be an initiation but a cancelled attack. This becomes especially effective when going for that leg kick TKO: you can fake the low attack, get your opponent to pull his hands down to check and then go up high for the KO. As a result, you can get a pretty good idea that even though we’ve made the game easier to get into, there’s still a lot of depth for the hardest of the hardcore users.   Leg kicks: please elaborate....how often will these leg kick KO's be a factor? Is there a chance for a 'flash' leg kick KO? That would be awesome if there was. Neven Dravinski —Leg kick TKOs will be a factor, but we were very careful to not make this an exploit that took fun out of the game. Leg kicks are a real strategy to employ now; the player can hack his opponent’s leg, hampering his movement and eventually getting the TKO. On top of that, the opponent has the ability to check your leg kicks as well. Much like the fight where Ultimate Fighter Corey Hill hurt his leg when throwing a low kick, you can get TKO’d yourself if your opponent is skillful enough at checking. There will not be any flash leg kick TKOs, but you don’t have to get your opponent’s leg to 100% damage to get a TKO.   When I played UFC 3 in Vegas I marveled at how incredible the head stomps and kicks were...super intuitive. Technically how difficult was Pride rules to achieve? Neven Dravinski — The moves in PRIDE Mode were certainly challenging, as we needed to make sure they felt natural and maintained the same flow as our previously established UFC dynamics. For example, a head stomp when an opponent is on the ground brings up questions not dealt with in previous games, such as what does the attacker do after the stomp or what positions does he have at his disposal. I think we did a good job of utilizing our previous dynamics for areas such as sub-positions; these really allow PRIDE gameplay to come across naturally. Want to kick a guy in the face when he’s down? Remember to aim high (LB + Kick). Overall though, I couldn’t be happier with how the mode turned out, and I’m eager to see the great YouTube videos that will be coming out after launch!   What are the odds of Gary LaPlante being a downloadable character in UFC 3 or the next game? Nick Robertson - Gary’s odds of making it into UFC Undisputed 3 are slim to none. However, after seeing his Shogun vs. Henderson reaction video, we might need to think about getting him into a future iteration.   It's one year after launch date...it's 2013....the Mayans were wrong-we are alive. How many total playable characters are in UFC 3? Nick Robertson - UFC Undisputed 3 will have more than 150 fighters. We can’t comment yet on DLC specifics, but we can say our plan this year is far more robust and includes some great fighters we were unable to include in the initial roster.   Will all of the preorder DLC be purchasable? I bought 1 copy of PS3 undisputed and 1 Xbox last time but I can't buy 4. Nick Robertson - All pre-order DLC items for UFC Undisputed 3 will be available for purchase at a later date.   What weight class do you think people are going to gravitate to the most? Nick Robertson - I think the lightweight division in PRIDE mode will be very popular. Based on how PRIDE weight classes are structured and our desire to let players compete with UFC fighters in PRIDE, the division will consist of the PRIDE lightweights and all of UFC’s lightweight, bantamweight and featherweight fighters. This makes for some very interesting matchups that one wouldn’t normally see in the UFC. For example, I personally like seeing how many UFC lightweights I can leg kick TKO with a guy like Jose Aldo.   Tell us more about this 'stat equalization'? Nick Robertson - Stat equalization in UFC Undisputed 3 enables players to stage a bout where both fighters have an 85 rating for ever statistic. For example, if your favorite fighter is Bob Sapp, you won’t have to worry about fighting someone like Junior dos Santos, who has a higher rating. The only difference between fighters at that point is move set. This makes the fight all about player skill.   Can you tell us specifically who can move up and down in weight classes? Fighters in multiple UFC weight classes Anderson Silva – Middleweight and Light Heavyweight BJ Penn – Lightweight and Welterweight Dan Henderson – Light Heavyweight and Middleweight Diego Sanchez – Welterweight and Lightweight GSP – Welterweight and Middleweight Jake Shields – Welterweight and Middleweight Joe Stevenson – Lightweight and Featherweight Kenny Florian – Featherweight and Lightweight Martin Kampmann – Welterweight and Middleweight Mike Swick – Welterweight and Middleweight Rich Franklin – Light Heavyweight and Middleweight Vitor Belfort – Light Heavyweight and Middleweight Wanderlei Silva – Middleweight and Light Heavyweight Urijah Faber – Bantamweight and Featherweight Akihiro Gono – Welterweight and Middleweight Pride Anderson Silva – Middleweight and Light Heavyweight Pride Dan Henderson – Middleweight and Light Heavyweight Jens Pulver – Lightweight and Featherweight Kevin Randleman – Heavyweight and Light Heavyweight Murilo Bustamante – Middleweight and Welterweight Paulo Filho –Welterweight and Middleweight Pride Vitor Belfort – Light Heavyweight and Middleweight Pride Wanderlei Silva – Light Heavyweight and Middleweight Fighters that can fight in multiple Pride weight classes Georges St-Pierre – Welterweight and Middleweight Wanderlei Silva – Middleweight and Welterweight Anderson Silva – Middleweight and Welterweight BJ Penn – Lightweight and Welterweight Jake Shields – Welterweight and Middleweight Pride Anderson Silva – Middleweight and Welterweight Murilo Bustamante – Middleweight and Welterweight Paulo Filho – Welterweight and Middleweight Akihiro Gono – Welterweight and Middleweight Kevin Randleman – Heavyweight and Middleweight Pride Wanderlei Silva – Middleweight and Welterweight Pride Dan Henderson – Middleweight and Welterweight Nick Diaz – Lightweight and Welterweight

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, pride, middleweight, game

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UFC welterweights Martin Kampmann and Thiago Alves will look to get back into title contention when they face off March 3.

Posted in: welterweight, title contention, thiago alves, march, kampmann

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New Bellator welterweight Brian Foster details his medical release from the UFC and the damage he plans on doing in the Bellator welterweight tournament.

Posted in: bellator, welterweight, division, impact, brian

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The Ultimate Fighting Championship is seeking Brazilian welterweights and middleweights to compete on the first international season of “The Ultimate Fighter.”

Posted in: welterweight, middleweight, brazil, welterweights middleweights, brazilian welterweights

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Former number one middleweight contender Demian Maia has revealed that he is considering a drop to welterweight in the near future.The drop would apparently...

Posted in: welterweight, move, maia, drop, futurethe drop

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"The Hitman" meets "The Horror" in a key welterweight battle this Saturday night (November 19, 2011) as tough contenders Martin Kampmann and Rick Story expect to clash on the UFC 139 main card. Kampmann has been a staple at the top of the division ever since dropping down to welterweight nearly three years ago but has recently hit a rough patch, losing two controversial decisions in his last two bouts. After recovering from a knee injury, he's hoping the third time is the charm against another scrappy wrestler. Rick Story was on a roll at 170 pounds, launching his name into title contention with a surprising showing against Thiago Alves earlier this summer. After the Nate Marquardt situation, the Brave Legion fighter ended up on the receiving end of a wrestling clinic from Charlie Brenneman. He's hoping to start some new momentum against one of the division's most recognizable names. Will Kampmann be able to execute the perfect gameplan against Story? Or will he find himself terrified by "The Horror's" wrestling? How does each talented welterweight secure a victory on Saturday night? Let's find out: Martin Kampmann Record: 17-5 overall, 8-4 in the UFC Key Wins: Carlos Condit (UFC Fight Night 18), Paulo Thiago (UFC 115), Jacob Volkmann (UFC 108) Key Losses: Jake Shields (UFC 121), Paul Daley (UFC 103), Nate Marquardt (UFC 88) How he got here: Martin Kampmann was very successful on the European circuit and he made his UFC debut as a middleweight in 2006. He won his first four UFC fights before getting overpowered by the bigger, stronger Nate Marquardt. This motivated his decision to drop to welterweight where he won his first two fights including a thrilling decision over debuting WEC welterweight champion Carlos Condit to instantly become one of the top contenders in the division. He was slated for a number one contenders match against Mike Swick but unfortunately had that bout derailed with an injury to the AKA fighter. Instead, he found himself facing UFC newcomer Paul Daley, who overwhelmed Kampmann on the feet, repeatedly landing heavy shots to force a standing TKO. Kampmann got back on track with impressive consecutive wins but then was on the receiving end of two extremely close decisions against Jake Shields and then Diego Sanchez earlier this year. His return to the Octagon was delayed this summer after a knee injury but he's healthy again and ready to right some wrongs against Story. How he gets it done: Kampmann needs to utilize his superior striking technique when the bout is in the stand-up realm. He's not the most powerful puncher, but he's been able to outbox all but one person in the welterweight division. He'll need to utilize proper footwork to keep Story from swarming him like he did to Alves as he's likely going to be at a strength disadvantage against the Oregon native. Kampmann has a jiu-jitsu advantage as well, but his go-to move is his guillotine choke and that usually requires surrendering position to lock in. That's a risk that "The Hitman" can't afford to take because if Story can slip out of the choke, he'll be able to ride out much of the remainder of the round in top position. They key for Kampmann is to avoid getting pressed against the fence, get his jab going and if he has to use his submissions, use them as sweeps or attempt subs that won't surrender position. If he can keep from being put on his back or pressured, he should at least be able to win a decision. Rick Story Record: 13-4 overall, 6-2 in the UFC Key Wins: Thiago Alves (UFC 130), Johny Hendricks (Ultimate Fighter 12 Finale), Brian Foster (UFC 103) Key Losses: Charlie Brenneman (UFC on Versus 4), John Hathaway (UFC 99) How he got here:Story trained out of Team Quest rival, Brave Legion in his home state of Washington. He began his career fighting some of the toughest welterweights around like Nathan Coy and Jake Ellenberger. "The Horror" would lose his UFC debut to tough UK fighter John Hathaway, but then proceeded to reel off six straight fights in the shark tank that is the UFC 170-pound division. Story's first UFC victory was a "Fight of the Year" candidate against Brian Foster at UFC 103, a fight in which he pulled off an incredibly unique arm triangle submission from within his opponent's guard. He impressively scored two consecutive wins over notable fighters Dustin Hazelett and Johny Hendricks to earn his opportunity to score a career-defining victory over Thiago Alves. He immediately launched himself into title contention after pressuring "Pitbull" and forcing him to play defensive for two rounds to win a decision but dropped back down to Earth after a last minute opponent change at UFC on Versus 4 earlier this summer. Unprepared for Charlie Brenneman's wrestling, Story found himself put on his back early and often and he had no answer for "The Spaniard's" takedowns. He's hoping a victory over a top tier guy like Martin Kampmann will get him right back where he was. How he gets it done: Story prides himself on being one of the best welterweights in the UFC at pressuring his opponents. He doesn't have the technical striking skill to match Kampmann, but he can overcome that with his tenacity and the amount of pressure he can exert. It's pretty hard to be technically sound when you're backed up against the fence and either fending off a takedown or defending a wild flurry of punches. Story needs to cut off Kampmann along the fence early and then get right in his face. Kampmann has had some rough patches in recent fights where he outstruck his opponents but surrendered takedowns or succumbed to the pace of two wrestlers in Sanchez and Shields.  If Kampmann had trouble with those two working for takedowns, he could find himself incredibly frustrated early and often against "The Horror" Story. The key for Story is to never allow Kampmann to get comfortable. That's what happened in his last big victory against Paulo Thiago. He can't let "The Hitman" solidify his jab. Instead, he needs to get inside on the Dane and try to go to work with inside flurries, clinch attacks and takedown attempts. Fight "X-Factor:" By far, the biggest X-Factor to this fight is footwork and spacing. Thiago Alves got himself in trouble against Rick Story because he routinely allowed himself to get cut off and pushed into the fence for the first two rounds. Martin Kampmann absolutely cannot let that happen. If he gets pushed into the fence, he's going to be in big trouble. He needs to utilize terrific footwork against Story to keep his back off the cage and keep himself in the pocket or further. If he lets Story get inside, it's going to cause problems. Gauging distance will be key for Kampmann and he needs to avoid the bullrush and keep "The Horror" at the end of his jab. This fight will likely hinge on who can keep the fight at the proper spacing they desire. Bottom Line: This is an important showdown between two fringe top 10 welterweights. Both Kampmann and Story are coming off tough losses but the winner of this fight will leap right back into the elite tier of the division. There is definitely potential for some excitement as both Kampmann and Story are capable of putting on a show in the striking department, although Story will need some encouragement first by getting inside. The bout will be perfect if neither man earns a major advantage. If they do, though, it could be very one sided as Story could get picked apart on the feet and have his takedowns stuffed or Kampmann could find himself pinned against the fence and put on his back for three rounds. It honestly could go either way. Who do you have coming out with a win at UFC 139? Tell us your predictions in the comments below! Poll Who will burst back into contention with a big victory come Saturday night? Rick Story Martin Kampmann   0 votes | Results

Posted in: ufc, fight, welterweight, story, kampmann

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Yoshihiro Akiyama will make his welterweight debut against Jake Shields.The match has been confirmed by the UFC and will take place on the upcoming February...

Posted in: welterweight, debut, welterweight debut, akiyama, jake shieldsthe

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Japanese superstar Yoshihiro Akiyama will have plenty of support from his home country fans on February 26th, when he makes his welterweight debut in UFC 144 action against 170-pound contender Jake Shields at Saitama Super Arena in Japan.“Verbal agreements are in for a welterweight matchup in Tokyo, Japan between former Strikeforce champion Jake Shields and Asian superstar ‘Sexyama’ Yoshihiro Akiyama February 26th,” said UFC President Dana White.

Posted in: shield, welterweight, welterweight debut, welterweight matchup, tokyo japan

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Long-time rivals and Ring magazine top-5 pound-for-pound sluggers, Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Márquez, will look to settle their score TONIGHT (Nov. 12, 2011) at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, with the WBO welterweight belt on the line. MMAmania.com will deliver complete LIVE "Pacquiao vs. Marquez 3" results right below, as well as all the action from the undercard from the HBO pay-per-view (PPV), which begins at 9 P.M. ET. In addition to "Pacquiao vs. Marquez 3," the under card will feature WBO Junior Welterweight Champion Timothy Bradley as he steps into the ring for the first time in 10 months to face Cuban "Brush" Joel Casamayor. Breidis Prescott, the only man to ever defeat Amir Khan, will also be in action, looking to bounce back from a tough decision loss to Paul McCloskey against undefeated IBF Latino Light Welterweight Champion Mike Alvarado in a bout that's sure to produce fireworks. Finally, a classic Puerto Rico vs. Mexico match up will kick off the show, as Luis Cruz and Juan Carlos Burgos, with forty-four knockouts and only one loss between them, will battle it out at 130 lbs. Check out the latest results and live play-by-play from the "Pacquiao vs. Marquez 3" event after the jump. Main Event: 144 lbs.: WBO Welterweight Champion Manny Pacquiao vs. Juan Manuel Marquez Undercard: 140 lbs.: WBO Light Welterweight Champion Timothy Bradley vs. Joel Casamayor 140 lbs.: Mike Alvarado vs. Breidis Prescott 130 lbs.: Luis Cruz vs. Juan Carlos Burgos Welterweight Championship: Manny Pacquiao (c) vs. Juan Manuel Marquez Round one: Round two: Round three: Round four: Round five: Round six: Round seven: Round eight: Round nine: Round ten: Round eleven: Round twelve: Final result: -end- Light Welterweight Championship: Timothy Bradley (c) vs. Joel Casamayor   Round one: Round two: Round three: Round four: Round five: Round six: Round seven: Round eight: Round nine: Round ten: Round eleven: Round twelve: Final result: -end- Junior Welterweight Bout: Mike Alvarado vs. Breidis Prescott   Round one: Round two: Round three: Round four: Round five: Round six: Round seven: Round eight: Round nine: Round ten: Final result: -end- Super Featherweight Bout: Luis Cruz vs. Juan Carlos Burgos   Round one: Round two: Round three: Round four: Round five: Round six: Round seven: Round eight: Round nine: Round ten: Final result: -end-

Posted in: result, round, vs, welterweight, marquez

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submitted by Like_Wild_Potato [link] [comment]

Posted in: welterweight, johnson, anthony, likewildpotato, likewildpotato link

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Several new matches were reported this week for upcoming UFC events.Canadian welterweight Rory MacDonald has pulled out of UFC 140 with an undisclosed...

Posted in: ufc, week, welterweight, macdonald, eventscanadian

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UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St. Pierre is perhaps the best mixed martial artists in the world today. "Rush" is currently riding a nine-fight win streak with six title defenses and is arguably one of the top two pound-for-pound fighters in the sport alongside his middleweight counterpart, Anderson Silva. With a record of 22 wins with 2 losses -- both of which he later avenged -- St. Pierre has dominated the UFC's 170-pound division for the last six years and is considered by many to be the wholesome face of the promotion. However, if you ask the man himself, he feels that he is not yet the best. But, when the day comes that he realizes that he is the best in the sport of mixed martial arts (MMA), it will be time to walk away. Speaking to TheGlobeAndMail.com, the Canadian sensation talked about his future goals, finishing fights and having a violent side. Check it out: "I want to retire being the best pound-for-pound fighter that ever lived. It's very hard to say how to judge it, but when I think myself that I'm the best it will be the time to do something else in my life." "Rush" also went on to say, like many athletes, media and public relation duties is his least favorite part of his job. "I'm not going to lie, it's probably the part of my job I dislike the most, but I know it's important. Hopefully the (Fox) deal will take the sport to a new level, it will also bring a bigger range of audience, more sponsors, more visibility, more money -- increase the caliber of the sport." The often soft-spoken champ also touched on the necessity of having a violent side and his criticism for not finishing fights. "Everyone has a violent side; my job is to win, and in order to win most of the time I need to injure my opponent. It's a violent sport but in real life I'm not a violent guy. I'm an athlete in a full contact sport so it requires violence to win. I've had a lot of criticism about not finishing fights, but if there's anyone who wants to finish fights it's me. It's hard to stay champion and in the welterweight division today's number one can so easily become tomorrow's number two. The UFC welterweight champion has often been on the receiving end of harsh criticism and accused of coasting through fights and playing it safe. His last four title defenses have gone the distance, with his last stoppage win coming at UFC 94 against "The Prodigy" B.J. Penn after the Hawaiian's corner threw in the towel. "Rush" will try to add to his legacy by defeating former Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz at UFC 143 on Feb. 4, 2012 in Las Vegas; a fight many consider to be one of the most anticipated of all time. A win over the Stockton slugger will definitely be a step in the right direction in St. Pierre's quest to be known as the best of all time. What, or who, else is left?

Posted in: ufc, fight, time, sport, welterweight

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Nate Marquardt will finally make his return to the sport in February when he faces Yoshiyuki Yoshida for the vacant BAMMA welterweight title, according to a press release from the promotion. He had been expected to fight at BAMMA 8, which takes place on December 10th, but his debut was pushed back for reasons unknown. A rumored bout with Paul Daley apparently couldn't come together. Marquardt was famously released from the UFC the day before his scheduled welterweight debut in a bout with Rick Story at UFC on Versus 4 due to elevated testosterone levels. He had been on testosterone replacement therapy at the time, but something went wrong and he couldn't get his levels down to an allowable level by the time the weigh-ins rolled around. Charlie Brenneman stepped in on very shot notice and ended up defeating Story. Instead, he'll make his welterweight debut against Yoshida on February 11th in Birmingham, England.  Yoshida is coming off a decision win over Phil Baroni and the first One FC event in September.

Posted in: welterweight, bamma, welterweight debut, marquardt, yoshida

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A Congolese newcomer training out of Sweden, Papy Abedi makes his UFC and welterweight debut against American Top Team's Muay Thai murderer Thiago Alves at UFC 138: Leben vs. Munoz. First, some background information on Abedi from his fight team's bio section: the nickname "Makambo" translates to "just trouble" in his native tongue, he started training in Judo at age seven (now a black belt) and later worked at Stockholm Muay Thai under the tutelage of Swedish Thai boxer Ricardo Gonzalez, his Wiki page lists him as a purple in BJJ and he's undefeated after eight fights, all of which were contested at 185-pounds. As with any UFC first-timer, his ability to translate his prior success in smaller shows to the pinnacle of global combat will be the mountainous task in front of him. Of course, Abedi isn't just facing the pressure of any ol' UFC caliber fighter, he's colliding with a human wrecking machine. Thiago Alves' had a mediocre two-and-two beginning to his UFC career, clobbering Jeff Cox and Ansar Changalov with first round TKOs but catching an up-kick from Jon Fitch and being triangled by Spencer Fisher. However, the seven-fight swathe he slashed through the welterweight division isolated Alves as a premiere contender and fan-friendly killer. Veteran welterweight contenders like Matt Hughes, Karo Parisyan and Josh Koscheck were all left in his wake. Alves scored violent stoppages in five of those seven victories, four by way of his crushing knees, and being one of two fighters to finish the stalwart Chris Lytle (out of Lytle's staggering fifty-four career opponents) is a small miracle in itself. What impressed me the most with Alves at that time was the way he confronted the domineering takedown artists head on and dismantled them with crippling Thai strikes rather than evade their clutches with elusive footwork. His last four outings would lead in a different direction: winning just one (a decision over John Howard), Alves fell to the undisputed number and one two welterweights in Georges St. Pierre and Jon Fitch, then was stalked, cornered and contained by Rick Story at UFC 130. Story executed a brilliant strategy consisting of calculating footwork, cutting off angles and switching back and forth from tight boxing combinations and smothering control in the clinch. Gifs and analysis in the full entry. From what little footage was available, I've taken the liberty of capturing some clips from Abedi's past performances for your viewing pleasure. He's a southpaw standing 5'11" tall who's finished all but one adversary with five TKOs and two subs. Since Alves is a massive and broad-shouldered welterweight, I don't think Abedi cutting to 170 will lend any more advantages than risks. He will still be a strong welterweight and his extensive Judo background could cause some trouble in the clinch, where Alves is known to tangle. Abedi has also been a viable threat standing and is proclaiming a knockout if Alves trades with him. From these animations you can tell that Abedi has a decent grasp of footwork, use of angles and basic striking fundamentals. The first things that jumps out to me is the way his distinctly closed stance leaves his right leg protruding pretty far forward, which I see as a glowing bullseye for Alves' murderous low kicks. Having a wide and squatty stature, the leg kick is Alves' best (only?) distance weapon but, then again, that would also set up the ideal southpaw vs. traditional stance counter of Abedi's straight left. Abedi's left plunges hard, fast and deep and he also likes to go downstairs with it. One of his common tactics appears to be luring his foes into heated striking exchanges and then dropping levels to get a deep grip in the clinch, where he has a pile of ne-waza options to choose from. That is the case to the right, where Abedi kept the pressure on with strikes before welcoming his opponent's aggressive charge with a quick level drop and excellent control of the hips for a massive slam. He is also unafraid to stay in the pocket when his adversary returns fire, relying on evasive head movement, counter punching and the threat of clinch tie-ups to repel the attack. Alves is far from easy to take down or weak on the mat, boasting a brown belt in BJJ and a lot of experience against elite level grapplers. Though I wasn't able to nail down his rank, Abedi has displayed a firm grasp of position, passing, scrambling, striking and submission savvy on the floor. After the monster takedown above, he deftly slipped into the full mount and showered down some serious ground and pound. This caused his opponent to concentrate on defending the strikes and cover up, and Abedi was quick to capitalize on the scenario by trapping his extending arm, posturing down to lock up the arm-triangle position, and immediately transitioning to side control to turn the corner and elicit the tapout. This makes him a triple threat with striking, Judo and subs. Alves has proven that he can end the fight at any time with a wide range of weapons. His low kicks are bone-breaking, his knees account for almost half of his career TKOs, and both hands have massive power. To the right, Alves clips Tony DeSouza; another southpaw who opened with a lead right hook like Abedi often does. Still, this sequence shows a habit that's brought trouble for Alves recently, which is allowing himself to get backed up against the cage before letting his hands go. Abedi could possibly use that to his advantage by forcing a clinch fight, which is exactly how Story was able to defeat Alves. To the left we see the epitome of Thiago Alves' Muay Thai swagger. He has an excellent stance and defense, his punches are tight, his chin is tucked, his in-and-out movement is uncanny and he's at his best when he's leading the attack like this. He's adept at overwhelming with strikes and flowing with a broad blend of techniques, all loosened with great quickness, accuracy and power. His admirable style of matching -- and usually exceeding -- the aggressive onslaught of his opponents is evident here. In Muay Thai, a common philosophy is that "if you're moving backwards, you're losing the fight". Alves embodies that outlook perfectly, perhaps taking cues from Wanderlei Silva, the fighter he lists as a personal hero who became a legend for always trudging forward and slinging stiff leather.  While courageous, the habit is not devoid of risk. Again, in analyzing the Story loss, the wrestler was able to put Alves on the defensive and keep him on his heels with the looming threat of takedowns. Instead of assuming a decisive range of either "in" or "outside" of the pocket, Story methodically crept forward, shrunk the gap and steered Alves into corners, playing a little chess game of feinting takedowns to set up strikes and vice-versa. It seems like Abedi's proficiency with striking and clinch work could open up a similar strategy. Even so, and while you can never count anyone out, it's hard to drum up a viable case for Abedi winning. Other than the faint correlation I just made, Alves being drained from the cut, totally overlooking him or Abedi being a future superstar, all signs point to Alves being on another level until Abedi demonstrates otherwise. My Prediction: Thiago Alves by TKO   Abedi gifs via Caposa Alves x DeSouza gif via MMA-Core.com All others via Zombie Prophet of IronForgesIron.com

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, thai, abedi, alve

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Stop me if you've heard this one before. Former UFC welterweight number one contender Thiago Alves had trouble making weight today (Nov. 4, 2011) for his UFC 138 fight against Swedish newcomer Papy Abedi. "The Pitbull" weighed in at 172-pounds, one pound over the limit of 171 for their main card welterweight scrap set for the Spike TV airwaves from the LG Arena in Birmingham, England. Alves has two hours to make weight. It will be interesting to see what repercussions await the Brazilian in the wake of his latest scale snafu. When he failed to make weight at UFC 117 against Jon Fitch, promotion president Dana White insisted that would be his last fight at welterweight. Alves eventually convinced White to give him one more try, which delayed a trip north of his division, but after today it could be 185 or bust. And with a loss to Abedi, it could even spell the end of his UFC career. Stay tuned.

Posted in: ufc, ufc career, welterweight, thiago alves, alve

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Yoshihiro Akiyama's UFC career has certainly been exciting, but it hasn't been successful. He made his UFC debut with a somewhat controversial split decision win over Alan Belcher at UFC 100 only to lose his next three bouts becoming the first man submitted by Chris Leben in almost five years, getting outstruck by Michael Bisping for three rounds and finished in the first round by the power striking of Vitor Belfort. It has seemed clear for quite some time that one thing Akiyama needed to do was cut from middleweight to welterweight. Being that he was given the rare opportunity to stay in the UFC after three straight losses it appears that Yoshihiro decided the time is right to make the change. Here is the result of his first test drop to 170 pounds: (photo via stat.ameba.jp) Akiyama dropped just over thirty pounds in a month and looks very powerful at the weight. This could be the start of a second life for his career, we will see what the UFC has in mind for him at welterweight.

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, vitor belfort, yoshihiro, akiyama

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Yoshihiro Akiyama’s move to welterweight appears to be running smoothly.After an unsuccessful middleweight run he was persuaded to make the drop...

Posted in: welterweight, picture, move, drop, akiyama drop

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Brian Foster (18-5 MMA, 0-0 BFC) is headed to Bellator Fighting Championships' competitive welterweight...

Posted in: bellator, bfc, welterweight, division, brian

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"The Ultimate Fighter 15" - the first season of the UFC's long-running reality series to air on FX - will feature lightweight and welterweight fighters, officials today announced. Hopefuls can apply online or attend an open tryout on Dec. 5 in Las Vegas. "TUF 15" is the first season of the show to include live fights.

Posted in: show, fighter, season, welterweight, dec

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Nick Diaz's post-fight antics at UFC 137 have angered welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre.

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, champion, showdown, stpierre

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Bellator has signed former UFC welterweight Brian Foster, who won his final two fights in the Octagon to improve to 3-2 in the UFC, but was cut after suffering a brain hemorrhage before a scheduled fight with Sean Pierson in April. “I’ve been seen by two of the best doctors in the state, they’ve medically cleared me and I feel great,” Foster said in a statement. “I’m looking forward to facing Bellator’s best and becoming the next welterweight champion.” For the latest Bellator news stay tuned to MMAFrenzy.com.

Posted in: ufc, bellator, welterweight, brain hemorrhage, bellator news

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Filed under: UFC, Rankings, WelterweightsNick Diaz is the top contender for Georges St. Pierre's UFC welterweight title, and he deserves to be. The reason the UFC decided to reverse course and book Diaz vs. GSP is that it has all the makings of a pay-per-view blockbuster. But it was also the right decision from a competitive standpoint: After Diaz's UFC 137 victory over B.J. Penn, he's demonstrated that he deserves to be considered the No. 2 fighter in mixed martial arts at 170 pounds. So as we rank the Top 10 welterweights in MMA, GSP stays on top with Diaz on his heels. Find out how we rate the rest of the division below. Top 10 welterweights in MMA (Editor's note: The individual fighter's ranking the last time we did welterweights is in parentheses.) 1. Georges St. Pierre (1): St. Pierre has really never been threatened since losing to Matt Serra in April of 2007; his current nine-fight winning streak consists of six unanimous decisions, two TKOs and one submission win without ever being in any trouble. I don't think St. Pierre is going to lose to Diaz, but I do think Diaz has the right style, both with his high-volume punching and his ability to submit people off his back, to challenge St. Pierre in a way he hasn't been challenged before. 2. Nick Diaz (4): As Diaz won 10 fights in a row over the last three years, a lot of skeptics raised questions about whether the guys he was beating were really all that good. No one can ask that about his 11th straight win: Penn is universally regarded as a Top 10 welterweight, and Diaz gave him a thorough pounding. Jon Fitch, who's No. 2 in most welterweight rankings, wasn't as successful against Penn as Diaz was. Diaz can compete with the elite, and he's earned his opportunity to fight the best of the best in St. Pierre. 3. Jon Fitch (2): After 11 months off following his draw with Penn, Fitch is slated to return against Johny Hendricks at UFC 141 on December 30. That's a fight that won't do much for Fitch in the welterweight division, but it should be a good opportunity for him to grab another unanimous decision victory. 4. Josh Koscheck (5): Koscheck looked great in his first-round knockout of Matt Hughes in September. Koscheck isn't ever going to beat St. Pierre, but it was good to see that Koscheck has recovered and is ready to resume his role as one of the welterweight division's elite fighters. 5. Carlos Condit (7): Condit has looked great on his current four-fight winning streak, but I see no reason he's more deserving of a title shot than Diaz. I'd like to see Condit win another fight against another Top 10 opponent before he becomes the top welterweight contender. 6. Jake Ellenberger (NR): Ellenberger enters the Top 10 on the strength of his 53-second knockout of Jake Shields. I'd love to see him rematch Condit, whom he lost to by split decision in 2009. 7. Rory MacDonald (9): The 22-year-old MacDonald is 12-1, with the only loss coming to Condit. There's little doubt that he'll be fighting for the UFC welterweight title some day, although he's in no rush to do that. He gets Brian Ebersole next at UFC 140. 8. B.J. Penn (6): Penn is 1-3-1 in his last five fights, but there's no shame in losing to Frankie Edgar and Nick Diaz, or drawing with Jon Fitch. No matter how discouraged he was after losing to Diaz, Penn shouldn't retire. He has a lot of big fights ahead of him. 9. Jake Shields (3): Shields is now on a two-fight losing streak after being decisioned by GSP and knocked out by Ellenberger. But look for him to bounce back in 2012. He has too much talent not to. 10. John Hathaway (10): A tough decision at No. 10, but I'll stick with Hathaway for now. An injury forced Hathaway to drop out of UFC 138, but he's a very promising 24-year-old with a 15-1 record. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Posted in: ufc, diaz, st, welterweight, penn

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The Top 10 MMA fighters from around the world in the welterweight division.

Posted in: pound, mma, fighter, welterweight, welterweight mma

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CHICAGO, Ill. (November 1, 2011) — Brian Foster has a message for the Bellator welterweight division and its champion Ben Askren: "I’m coming." The former UFC fighter who won his last two fights in the UFC and who sports a 18-5 record as a welterweight has recently signed with Bellator Fighting Championships in a deal that adds another legitimate contender to Bellator’s already stacked welterweight division. Currently riding a four-fight win streak, including a TKO win over Forrest Petz and a submission victory against Matt Brown during his UFC run, Foster, who has finished all 18 of his career wins, is hitting his stride and has one thing on his mind. "I’m getting that belt," Foster said. "I want to fight the best. I want to fight Ben Askren and take home that belt. I ran through my last two opponents and I’m better than I’ve ever been. I’m very happy to be a part of Bellator and I’m coming for the top spot." The Granite City, Illinois fighter has never gone to a decision in his career. With 10 wins by submission and eight by TKO/KO, the exciting Foster should add another threat to an already stacked welterweight division. Despite a medical setback in his career, Foster says he’s now 100 percent healthy and ready to start on his road to the championship. "I’ve been seen by two of the best doctors in the state, they’ve medically cleared me and I feel great," Foster added. "I’m looking forward to facing Bellator’s best and becoming the next welterweight champion."

Posted in: ufc, bellator, welterweight, welterweight division, irsquom

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Bellator Fighting Championships on Tuesday announced the signing of former UFC welterweight Brian Foster.

Posted in: ufc, bellator, welterweight, vet, ufc vet

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Former UFC welterweight Brian Foster has inked a new deal to compete in Bellator Fighting Championships and he's gunning for Ben Askren.

Posted in: ufc, bellator, welterweight, championship, brian

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Another turn of events in the UFC welterweight division drama has given us the GSP-Diaz matchup we wanted.

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, division, brydon, gspdiaz matchup

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Bloody Elbow will be providing live video and updates when all 22 fighters on the card step on the scale at today's UFC 137 weigh-ins from the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, NV. You can catch a live Youtube stream of the weigh-ins below the jump, or if that doesn't work for some reason, you can view it over at MMA Nation. The weigh-ins begin at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT. The main event is a welterweight matchup between former UFC lightweight and welterweight champion B.J. Penn and former Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz , who will both have to make the welterweight non-title bout limit of 171 pounds. Join us and share your thoughts as the weigh-ins unfold. Main CardNick Diaz vs. B.J. PennCheick Kongo vs. Matt MitrioneMirko Filipovic vs. Roy NelsonHatsu Hioki vs. George RoopJeff Curran vs. Scott JorgensenSpike TV CardDonald Cerrone vs. Dennis SiverTyson Griffin vs. Bart PalaszewskiPreliminary CardEliot Marshall vs. Brandon VeraDanny Downes vs. Ramsey NijemChris Camozzi vs. Francis CarmontDustin Jacoby vs. Clifford Starks More SBN coverage of UFC 137

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Filed under: UFCLAS VEGAS -- What was once Nick Diaz's can be his again. The chance to fight for the UFC welterweight championship is likely just one win away, and standing between him and that goal is BJ Penn. Oh, it's only a legend and Diaz's first MMA hero. Even if you're not a fan of subtext, the significance of that one final obstacle hard to miss. At 32 years old and over a decade into the game, Penn is still no easy out. Earlier this year, he faced Jon Fitch, who is considered by many to be the No. 2 welterweight in the world, and fought him to a draw. So a win by Diaz over Penn may serve to increase his name value among those who didn't follow him in his Elite XC and Strikeforce days. It would nearly certainly increase interest in a potential Diaz vs. Georges St-Pierre welterweight title fight. When you look at Penn and Diaz, the first thing you notice is the size differential. This isn't unusual for Penn when he competes as a welterweight, but it's nonetheless important. Diaz is naturally heavier, taller and has greater reach. That's a lot to overcome in a fight that is likely to be heavy on standup. Historically, Penn (16-7-2) makes it up with his fearlessness and accuracy. Penn has been lauded as possibly the best boxer in MMA, and his history of success is strong evidence that statement has some substance behind it. According to FightMetric.com, Penn's landed 52 percent of his thrown strikes, while being hit by just 40 percent of his opponents'. Diaz, though, poses some unique problems that none of Penn's recent opponents have. He's a southpaw. He has a four-inch reach advantage. He is one of the highest-volume punchers in MMA history. He has unending stamina. And he's not scared, homie. Add that all together and you have one unique set of skills and confidence. Diaz (25-7, 1 no contest) works his entire offense off his jab. It is usually a pawing punch that he flicks out repeatedly, and often with no sting behind it. Because of that, Diaz is often mischaracterized as having a "pitter-patter" style. But the jab is actually multi-functional in its use. First, it allows Diaz to control the range. That tends to make him the aggressor and makes him offensive and his opponent reactionary. Second, it forces his opponent off his game. When you're constantly reacting instead of acting, you're not the one creating angles, and success is harder to come by. Third, it sets up what is to come. Diaz doesn't get credit for his power, but he's consistently hurt bigtime strikers who finally tire of working over his jab and wade in too close, too quickly. What has made Diaz murderous for most of the rest of the world's welterweights is that although he's quite skilled on his feet, the alternative is hardly a better option. If you decide to put Diaz on his back, it's quite possible you'll end up tied in a knot, forced to tap out to the Gracie jiu-jitsu black belt. Given Penn's background and pedigree, that would be an unlikely and even shocking finish. Penn has never been forced to tap in his lengthy MMA career, and given his proficiency in jiu-jitsu, he probably never will. There is only one area of this fight where one man has a sizable edge on the other, and that's wrestling. Penn has historically done well in the department, successfully landing 59 percent of his takedown tries while defending on 77 percent of tries against him. Meanwhile, Diaz is successful on only 33 percent of takedown tries, and defends 63 percent of tries against him. Given that disparity, it will be interesting to see if Penn decides to employ wrestling in his game plan. In the past, it's been a bit hit-or-miss for him in that part of the game. Against Fitch, for example, he hit on two of three takedowns. But go back just a few fights into his recent history, for example his first fight with Frankie Edgar, and he didn't try a single takedown in a 25-minute fight. It's an edge worth exploiting, but Penn wouldn't tip his hand on whether it's one he planned to use. If Penn decides to mix it up with his wrestling, it could even benefit him in the standup department, because it will give Diaz something else to look for. But if he decides to stand in the cage and strike with Diaz, it allows Diaz the chance to set the pace that favors him. Especially in a fight where a finish seems unlikely, you have to think about who's more likely to win rounds. Penn might have superior hand speed, but Diaz's volume scores consistent points. I think Penn might sprinkle in a takedown or two, but he's not likely to do it enough to disrupt Diaz's offensive volume. The other thing is Penn will have to keep with Diaz for 15 minutes. Penn might very well win the first round, but Diaz pushes fighters like no one else. He stays fresher longer than anyone else. So for Penn, it will be harder to win the second, and even harder to win the third. I think Penn takes round one but Diaz rallies back and takes the final two on points. Nick Diaz wants his shot at the belt. A win over Penn will set him up for a big money match against the champ. Diaz by decision. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Posted in: fight, diaz, welterweight, penn, percent

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Bellator Fighting Championships announced today that its former welterweight champion Lyman “Cyborg” Good will make his return against Michael...

Posted in: bellator, welterweight, champion, championship, bellator champ

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It’s been over six months since we’ve seen former Bellator welterweight champion Lyman Good compete, but that will change on November 26 when “Cyborg” returns to action against Michael Costa at Bellator 59. The bout will be a welterweight tournament qualifier for season six. Bellator officials confirmed the bout earlier today. Good was originally scheduled to fight Dan Hornbuckle earlier this year but had to pull out of the fight due to a hamstring injury. He last competed at Bellator 39, losing a close split decision to Rick Hawn in the semifinals of the season 4 welterweight tournament. After going undefeated in his first 10 professional fights and winning the Bellator welterweight title, Good has lost two of his last three bouts. Along with the loss to Hawn, he dropped a decision and the title to current champion Ben Askren before rebounding with a win over Chris Lozano. Costa will be making his Bellator debut when he steps into the cage to face Good in late November. A black belt under Royler Gracie, Costa has won 10 professional fights, finishing nine of his opponents. He currently trains at Wand Fight Team in Las Vegas with MMA legend Wanderlei Silva. Bellator 59 is scheduled for November 26 at Caesars Atlantic City in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The event will be headlined by the season five bantamweight tournament final between Alexis Vila and Eduardo Dantas. *PHOTO CREDIT – BELLATOR*

Posted in: fight, bellator, welterweight, alexis vila, costa

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Last but not least in the UFC Undisputed 3 roster reveal is the welterweight division. A PRIDE roster is also rumored, but for the seven UFC weight classes, the welterweight division is the last on the list. Check out who made the cut below. Welterweight Thiago Alves Carlos Condit Nate Diaz Nick Diaz (pre-order only) Jon Fitch Dan Hardy Matt Hughes Martin Kampmann Josh Koscheck Dong Hyun Kim Chris Lytle Georges St. Pierre Diego Sanchez Matt Serra Jake Shields Mike Swick Paulo Thiago Noticeably absent: BJ Penn (LW), Anthony Johnson, Brian Ebersole, Charlie Brenneman, Rick Story, Dennis Hallman, Duane “Bang” Ludwig, Jacob Volkmann, Jake Ellenberger, John Hathaway, Matt Brown, Mike Pyle Image via THQ & ESPN

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, matt, welterweight division, roster

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Back up the ladder. Former welterweight champion Lyman Good hopes to secure a spot in his second Bellator tournament when he meets Michael Costa at Bellator 59, the promotion today announced. The bout serves as a qualifier for the promotion's season-six eight-man welterweight tournament. Bellator 59 takes place Nov. 26 at Caesars Atlantic City in Atlantic City, New Jersey. As usual, MTV 2 airs main card action while preliminary bouts stream live on Spike.com.

Posted in: bellator, welterweight, atlantic city, michael costa, bellator tournament

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Bellator Fighting Championships officials Thursday announced that former welterweight champion Lyman Good will return to the cage Nov. 26 to take on Sengoku veteran Michael Costa in a welterweight tournament qualifier.

Posted in: bellator, welterweight, tournament, costa, qualifier

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CHICAGO, Ill. (October 25, 2011) - Bellator Fighting Championships announced today that former Bellator Welterweight Champion Lyman "Cyborg" Good will make his long-awaited return to the Bellator cage as the New York native squares off against promising Brazilian Michael Costa in a Bellator Season 6 Welterweight Tournament Qualifier fight on Saturday, November 26 from Caesars Atlantic City in New Jersey and LIVE on MTV2 and in commercial-free HD on EPIX2 beginning at 9 p.m. ET/ 8 p.m. CT. First fight will take place at 7 p.m. ET and will be streamed LIVE and FREE around the world on Spike.com. The night will also feature the Bellator Season 5 Bantamweight final between Alexis Vila and Eduardo Dantas as well as two other spectacular fights that include Point Pleasant, New Jersey's Kurt "Batman" Pellegrino taking on Patricky Pitbull and Brooklyn's Phillipe Nover against Marcin Held. Born in Harlem and currently fighting out of Manhattan, the explosive Good brings an impressive 11-2 professional record to the cage, including five knockout victories. The Tiger Schulmann product marched through the Season 1 Welterweight Tournament and captured the title to become the first ever Bellator Welterweight Champion. Good was originally supposed to get back into the cage earlier this year against fellow welterweight Dan "The Handler" Hornbuckle, but a nagging hamstring injury forced "Cyborg" out of the fight. The New Yorker has been on a long layoff since coming off a tough split-decision loss at the hands of undefeated Judo Olympian Rick Hawn in the Bellator Season 4 Welterweight Tournament Semifinals and is eager to get back to work. "Coming off of that last fight, it really made me go back to the drawing board and start fresh," said Good. "You're going to see a new Lyman Good, but at the same time it's going to be the old Lyman Good. I felt like I got away from some things that made me who I was as a fighter, and I needed to get back to my roots. I can't wait to get into that cage, trade some leather and get back to my winning ways." For Costa, the Royler Gracie trained black belt has been waiting to make his Bellator debut, and will have his hands full with the veteran Good. Costa currently trains and teaches alongside current Bellator Middleweight Tournament Finalist Vitor Vianna at Wand Fight Team in Las Vegas, and a meeting with Good should produce fireworks. "Lyman was our first ever Welterweight Champion and it's going to be good to see him back in the cage and fighting for a shot in our next tournament," said Bellator Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney. "Lyman always brings it, and Michael is the real deal with great skills, so this should be a very explosive fight"" For more information, visit Bellator.com, follow Bellator on Twitter @BellatorMMA or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Bellator

Posted in: fight, bellator, welterweight, cage, lyman

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Filed under: UFC, NewsFor young fighters trying to make their names through the UFC's "Ultimate Fighter" series, it doesn't get more pressure-filled than the TUF finals. Ramsey Nijem experienced the pressure first-hand in June at the TUF 13 Finale against Tony Ferguson. But it wasn't the pressure that led to his loss. Nijem told host Ariel Helwani on Monday's edition of "The MMA Hour" that it was his pride that got in the way, and that, along with a Ferguson left, saw his dream of being a TUF champion go out the window. "It wasn't nerves as much as my pride got to me a little bit," Nijem said of his knockout loss to Ferguson. "Tony's a really good striker, hits hard and has good head movement. People said, 'You'll get knocked out if you stand with him,' and the critics were right on that. I just learned from that to play to my strengths and not play to their strengths." Nijem (4-2, 0-1 UFC), who trains at The Pit Elevated camp in Utah along with TUF 11 champ Court McGee, made his reputation in the TUF house as a fun-loving competitor who would go to just about any length for a laugh - including disrobing, leading to his "Stripper Ramsey" nickname catching on. He said bringing a relaxed attitude to his fight game should help him get back in the win column - but if it doesn't, he can live with it. "I'm a much better fighter when I'm just out there having fun," Nijem said. "As long as I'm just out there for the right reasons, I'll be successful and won't have any regrets after the fight. If I execute my game plan and still lose and have fun, that's all I can expect out of myself." Nijem fought at welterweight on Season 13 of TUF, but for his UFC 137 fight Saturday against Danny Downes (8-2, 0-1 UFC), he drops back to lightweight. It's a weight he believes will be beneficial to him because of his size. The Palestinian-American fighter, who wrestled collegiately at Utah Valley University, said 155 will be a tough cut for him, but one he thinks will pay off. He fought at lightweight once before moving to welterweight for a shot at the UFC in the spring during his TUF season. "I was fighting at '55 before I went on the show, kind of bouncing around between (lightweight and welterweight)," Nijem said. "I just feel my size can make up for my lack of experience in the ring. '55's a pretty big cut for me. If I was on the show at '55 the season before, I don't think I would've performed as well. '70 was a good opportunity for the show, and be able to drop back down to '55 after." Against Downes, Nijem faces an opponent also in search of his first UFC win. The Duke Roufus-trained fighter lost a unanimous decision to Jeremy Stephens at the TUF 13 Finale in June after going 1-1 in the WEC before the merger. Nijem said he knew from seeing Downes' fight against Stephens that he might be hard to finish, but believes his skill set can top Downes'. "Danny is a tough opponent - he's the kind of person you can never count out," Nijem said "He's in shape, he hits hard and he's there to fight. He's not easy to finish. But I feel I'm a better fighter, more explosive, more athletic and I'll be bigger the day of the fight. I'm obviously the better wrestler and grappler. This is a winnable fight for me, but Danny's tough and I'm ... getting ready for a three-round grind." Nijem and Downes fight on the preliminary card of UFC 137 on Saturday at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas. Their lightweight fight will be one of four prelims that will stream live on the UFC's Facebook fan page. UFC 137 is headlined by a welterweight contenders bout between former lightweight and welterweight champion BJ Penn and former Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz. That fight became the main event when welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre had to pull out of his title fight against Carlos Condit with an injury last week. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Posted in: ufc, fight, welterweight, tuf, nijem

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In this week's edition of UFC Central, welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre talks about withdrawing from UFC 137.

Posted in: ufc, week, welterweight, champion, weeks edition

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Jamie Yager is preparing to headline a show on Oct. 21. The main event stands as part of the former TUF competitor's journey down to welterweight from middleweight.

Posted in: event, welterweight, tuf, jamie, yager

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Posted in: ufc, decision, welterweight, matchup, split

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Just 10 days out from a pay-per-view event, The Ultimate Fighting Championship will be holding a media conference call to build up next Saturday's (October 29, 2011) UFC 137: "Penn vs. Diaz" event today, (October 19, 2011). Scheduled to attend will be the headlining fighters of the evening: B.J. Penn and Nick Diaz. B.J. Penn is the former UFC lightweight and welterweight champion. Since dropping his lightweight title in back-to-back bouts to current champ Frankie Edgar, he's gone 1-0-1 in a return to the welterweight division, destroying former champion Matt Hughes and drawing with conventional number two welterweight Jon Fitch earlier this year. His opponent will be none other than Nick Diaz, who left Strikeforce as the promotion's welterweight champion and is currently riding a 10 fight winning streak. Diaz was originally offered a title shot but had it taken away after failure to show up at back to back press conferences. That original disappointment turned out to be a benefit when champion Georges St. Pierre suffered a training injury yesterday and pulled out of the UFC 137 main event. Diaz is now back into the spotlight. We'll see how he handles the pressure. We'll have complete updates of the UFC 137 media conference call after the jump. Brian Hemminger here. The conference call is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. ET.

Posted in: ufc, diaz, conference, welterweight, champion

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The knee injury that forced UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre to withdraw from next Saturday’s UFC 137 main event is only a sprain that should allow him to return to face Carlos Condit in early 2012 after four-to-six weeks off, UFC Chairman Lorenzo Fertitta told the LA Times. I am greatly disappointed, for both myself and UFC fans, that I will no longer be fighting for the Welterweight title at UFC 137, but I also understand that injuries are a part of this business,” Condit said in a statement. “This is the best training camp I have ever had, and I look forward to carrying over the growth that I’ve experienced in this camp to my next one. “I have trained for over a decade in mixed martial arts with the clear goal of becoming the best fighter in the world at my weight class. I have worked this long to become the UFC Welterweight Champion.  I will work a little longer.” While Dana White announced the new UFC 137 main event between BJ Penn and Nick Diaz would remain a three-round fight, Diaz’s camp wants Penn to agree to make it the first five-round non-title fight. Finally, a middleweight bout between Brad Tavares and UFC newcomer Dustin Jacoby has been promoted from the Facebook prelims to fill the UFC 137 main card, leaving Donald Cerrone vs. Dennis Siver and Tyson Griffin vs. Bart Palaszewski on the Spike prelims. For UFC 137 results and complete UFC 137 coverage stay tuned to MMAFrenzy.com.

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, facebook prelims, condit, camp

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The UFC 137 fight card just took a major hit as UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre has been forced off...

Posted in: ufc, gsp, sport, welterweight, champion

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English heavyweight Oli Thompson and welterweight John Hathaway have been forced to drop out of UFC 138 due to injury.

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, injury, force, oli

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Some MMA observers think strength and athleticism are changing the grappling part of MMA. Bellator welterweight Ben Saunders isn't about that. His philosophy is Gracie jiu-jitsu through and through: technique and leverage over brawn. Saunders showed that in his most recent appearance, a third-round submission victory over Luis Santos in the semifinals of the promotion's season-five welterweight tournament, and he plans to take whatever is given to him to finish fellow finalist Douglas Lima in the welterweight finals.

Posted in: welterweight, submission victory, ben saunders, saunder, welterweight finals

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Former UFC fighter Ben Saunders earned a submission win via keylock against Luis Ramos during Bellator 53 on Saturday night. Saunders’ victory helped him earn a spot in the Bellator welterweight finals against Douglas Lima, a fighter with a strong ability to submit or KO/TKO opponents. Here is what Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney said following the Bellator event: “Our Welterweights were simply electric tonight,” he said via press release. “Lima looked spectacular on his feet against a top, top tier striker in Chris Lozano and Ben Saunders on the ground was spectacular. Top to bottom this was an incredible show, and our Welterweight Finals should be something very special.” Saunders vs. Lima is expected for a Bellator event on Nov. 12 currently scheduled for Ontario, Canada. It’s a shame that Bellator seems to continually fly under the radar, as the MMA promotion continues to host fun MMA events. In addition to a decent amount of televised fights on MTV2, the fights are often entertaining to watch, and feature skilled fighters able to compete.

Posted in: bellator, welterweight, bellator event, lima, saunder

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UFC 137: St-Pierre vs. Condit Date: October 29, 2011 Venue: Mandalay Bay Events Center Location: Las Vegas, Nevada     Articles   Videos     Main Bouts (on Pay-Per-View): -Georges St-Pierre (22-2; #1 Welterweight)* vs. Carlos Condit (27-5; #5 Welterweight)* -B.J. Penn (16-7-2; #8 Welterweight) vs. Nick Diaz (25-7; #4 Welterweight) -Cheick Kongo (16-6-2) vs. Matt Mitrione (5-0) -Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic (27-9-2) vs. Roy Nelson (15-6) -Hatsu Hioki (24-4-2; #3 [...]

Posted in: vs, welterweight, las vegas, condit date, st-pierre

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Bellator 53 took place on Saturday night in Miami, Oklahoma in the shadow of UFC 136 and saw Ben Saunders and Douglas Lima advance to the finals of the season five welterweight tournament, while Ronnie Mann, Thiago Santos, and Giva Santana all picked up first-round submissions. The official Bellator 53 results were: MAIN CARD Ben Saunders def. Luis Santos via submission (keylock) – Round 3, 1:35 (welterweight tourney semifinal) Douglas Lima def. Chris Lozano via KO (punch) – Round 2, 3:14 (welterweight tourney semifinal) Ronnie Mann def. Kenny Foster via submission (triangle choke) – Round 1, 3:52 Thiago Santos def. Josh Burns via submission (rear naked choke) – Round 1, 2:23 PRELIMINARY CARD Giva Santana def. Darryl Cobb via submission (armbar) – Round 1, 2:00 A.J. Matthews def. Rudy Bears via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) Raphael Davis def. Myron Dennis via KO (punch) – Round 2, 0:29 David Rickels def. Levi Avera via submission (triangle choke) – Round 2, 1:06 Luis Nogueira def. Zak Laird via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 1, 0:51 And finally here’s video of Lima’s knockout of Chris Lozano:

Posted in: round, submission, welterweight, ronnie mann, chris lozano

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There were eight at the start but after Bellator 53 in Miami, Okla., just two men remain in the Bellator Season 5 Welterweight Tournament.

Posted in: bellator, welterweight, miami, okla .,, welterweight finals

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  As with every major MMA show, Bloody Elbow will be here to bring you live results and commentary for Bellator 53. Our live blog will start with the beginning of the MTV2 broadcast (9 p.m. ET), so be sure to make Bloody Elbow your home for this event.   The second round of the Season 5 welterweight tournament is the focal point of this event, with Chris Lozano fighting Douglas Lima and Ben Saunders clashing with Luis Santos. All four welterweights fought at Bellator 49, which may have been one of the strongest cards Bellator ever put on. Lonzano had a fantastic fight with Brent Weedman and came away with the unanimous decision victory. Lima was sternly tested by Steve Carl, but also pulled the unanimous decision his way. Saunders knocked out Chris Cisneros in the third round to move on and Luis Santos stymied Dan Hornbuckle en route to a unanimous decision win. The eventual winner of this welterweight tournament will win $100,000 and challenge Ben Askren, Bellator’s welterweight champion, for the title.   Also on the card, Ronnie Mann will go up against Kenny Foster in a featherweight bout. Mann is looking to bounce back from his decision loss to Pat Curran at Bellator 47, while Foster seeks redemption after being submitted by Daniel Straus at Bellator 41. To round out the main card, Thiago Santos will fight Josh Burns in a heavyweight battle to determine who will be the alternate for Bellator’s heavyweight tournament.   Now that the stage has been set and all main card fighters have made weight, grab your drinks and snacks and settle down to watch a great night of fights. Remember to fire your comments at us here at BloodyElbow.   SBN coverage of Bellator 53   Josh Burns vs. Thiago Santos Round 1: Round 2: Round 3: Final Result:   Kenny Foster vs. Ronnie Mann Round 1: Round 2: Round 3: Final Result: Douglas Lima vs. Chris Lozano Round 1: Round 2: Round 3: Final Result: Luis Santos vs. Ben Saunders Round 1: Round 2: Round 3: Final Result:

Posted in: bellator, result, round, welterweight, nbsp

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All four welterweight tournament semifinalists hit their marks at Friday's Bellator 53 weigh-ins, taking them one step closer to challenging for the promotion's 170-pound title.

Posted in: bellator, welterweight, weigh-in, welterweight semifinalists, semifinalists

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Welterweights Dong Hyun Kim and Sean Pierson will each be looking to start new winning streaks when they meet at the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s year-end event.

Posted in: welterweight, streak, sean pierson, hyun, year-end

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Looks like a thinning UFC welterweight division is putting on a few pounds. 170 to be exact, as Golden Glory welterweight Siyar Bahadurzada today (Sept. 30, 2011) announced his addition to the world's largest fight promotion via his official Twitter account: I wanna thank the @UFC and @danawhite for this opportunity. I will shake up the ww division!!! Also special thanks to my team Golden Glory! The signing was worth it just to hear Bruce Buffer try to nail this in one take. Bahadurzada (20-4) recently ran roughshod over the competition in the Ultimate Glory Welterweight Tournament, capturing the crown and knocking out all three of his opponents in the process. Aside from terrorizing the ranks on the International scene, the Afghan native is the current Shooto 183-pound champion and hasn't lost since Jorge Santiago heel-hooked him back in 2008. An exciting addition to the UFC roster ... but who do you, as a fan, want to see him fight first? Fantasy matchmakers, let's hear what you've got.

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, division, glory, bahadurzada

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Golden Glory welterweight Siyar Bahadurzada announced Friday that he has inked a contract to compete in the Ultimate Fighting Championship

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, glory, bahadurzada, friday

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Bellator fans have been waiting for this fight for a long time, and one of the biggest fights in the promotion's short history is finally on the calendar. Bellator welterweight champion Ben Askren will defend his title against season four welterweight tournament winner Jay Hieron on at Bellator 56 on October 29th in Kansas City. This will be Askren's first title defense. Askren won the season two welterweight tournament and dominated Lyman Good to take a unanimous decision and the welterweight title back at Bellator 33 last October. He defeated Nick Thompson in a non-title match at Bellator 40 in April. Hieron, as mentioned above, won the season four welterweight tournament by winning close decisions over Brent Weedman in the semi-finals and Rick Hawn in the finals. He is currently on an eight-fight winning streak. It is well known that these two men do not like each other, and have traded jabs on twitter for months now. It is a bit curious that Bellator would book this fight for the same night as UFC 137 though. With two of the most anticipated welterweight fights of the year on that UFC card, which directly compete with it with their welterweight title fight? Either way, October 29th will be a great night for 170 pound MMA action.

Posted in: fight, bellator, title, welterweight, askren

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The recently retired former UFC welterweight will now step into the political arena.

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, senate, chris lytle, ufc welterweight

Read the full article at Heavy MMA

Josh Koscheck is in a very peculiar place within the welterweight division. He is a top 5 welterweight, this past Saturday he demolished a legend in the first round, and yet he won’t be anywhere near the title again for quite some time while GSP is champion. It’s possible that at 33 years of age, he may never challenge for the title again. It’s certainly not for a lack of talent, as Koscheck has amassed a very impressive record of 14-5 in the UFC but, unfortunately two of those losses have been delivered by welterweight king pin Georges St. Pierre. This is where his problem lies, considering both losses to GSP have been one sided, it would take a hefty win streak to get another shot, and even then it would be a very tough sell to the general public. So what is left for Josh at welterweight? Personally, I’d say nothing. He’s battled a lot of the top contenders in the division already, and the number two spot is reserved for his teammate Jon Fitch. Although he’s claimed in the past that a move to lightweight wasn’t impossible, this would seem an impractical move and possibly dangerous. What’s left is the path taken by Rich Franklin when he was in a similar position, move up. The middleweight division isn’t nearly as stacked as welterweight, nor is it heavy in wrestlers. When you consider how far Sonnen has gotten in the division relying almost entirely on his wrestling prowess, it’s not unreasonable to assume Koscheck might see some success of his own, even with a slight size disadvantage. I don’t think that Koscheck could challenge for the belt at middleweight either, but there are at least some interesting (and lucrative) challenges for him. Of course, this is all based on the assumption that GSP will not be losing anytime in the near future. If that were to happen, Koscheck would never be far from a shot at the belt and so welterweight is obviously the safe bet but, as a fan I’d hate to see him become an irrelevant gate keeper. What do you think?

Posted in: josh koscheck, koscheck, welterweight, division, &rsquo

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We see it in every venue of entertainment; from movies and television to music to combat sports. Someone is all the rage one moment and then -- poof -- it's all gone. But while a once-hot actor or actress might be forced to star in direct to DVD movies or a former chart-topping artist is reduced to "Where Are They Now?" status, their falls from grace -- although apparent -- are played on such a public stage as those of fighters. Passing the Torch is a special about those fighters who were once on top of the world but suffered at least two losses that forever altered their career -- either leaving them shells of what they once were or forcing them to retire outright. When the topic of dominant champions in mixed martial arts (MMA) is broached, it would be a crime not to bring up Matt Hughes. The Illinois wrestler dominated the welterweight division in a way not seen before. Five years and seven successful title defenses sit atop his resume with his only blemish during that time coming at the hands of a lightweight who would end up becoming his greatest rival. He would eventually get his revenge on the Hawaiian but his reign at the top of the 170-pound division came crashing to a halt immediately afterwards at the hands of the new welterweight kingpin. Here we go!:  Hughes' title reign almost didn't happen. His trainer at the time, Pat Miletich, was slated to get a rematch against Carlos Newton -- the man who beat him for the title -- but the UFC felt a fresh challenger was needed and Hughes was booked instead. It was a spirited bout that saw "The Ronin" get a triangle choke locked on Hughes in the second round. The wrestler did what wrestlers do best and lifted the champion up, pressing him against the cage. As the flow of oxygen begin to taper off, the American dropped Newton onto the mat, knocking him out cold. Slightly groggy, it took Hughes a few seconds to realize what he had accomplished. After that, there was no looking back. Five straight defenses including a more definitive victory over "The Ronin" separated the welterweight division into two columns: Hughes and everyone else. A shocking upset loss to B.J. Penn was the first crack in the champ's armor but he recovered admirably by rattling off five straight wins including finishes over Georges St. Pierre, Frank Trigg, and Royce Gracie. When Penn came back to the Octagon after a sabbatical, Hughes got his win back and added the Hawaiian's name to his list of victims. He's rocked!:  While Hughes continued his streak of dominance, another fighter was beginning one of his own. After suffering a submission loss to the champ at UFC 50, Georges St. Pierre became a man on a mission. He felt the welterweight title was his destiny and hero or not, Hughes was standing in his way. When they met inside the Octagon the second time, it was as if the champion was fighting an entirely different man. Standing in place of the hesitant fighter who couldn't even look the champ in the eye was a confident, skilled beast that didn't concede a single second of the fight. A near finish at the end of the first round served as the appetizer to the second round technical knockout (TKO) main course. A year later, the two met a third and final time. If their prior bout left any doubt as to who was the better fighter, "GSP" thoroughly erased it with another second round stoppage. It's all over!:  After his second loss to "Rush," Hughes was on the business end of a Thiago Alves flying knee that knocked him senseless. A devastating loss to be sure but not too bad considering the former champion took the fight on short notice and his opponent came in overweight.  The former champ would go on to win three straight following his bout with "The Pitbull" but none were against top caliber welterweights. Matt Serra's time in the spotlight had come and gone and a bout with Renzo Gracie was more spectacle than sport. His most impressive of the three wins was a submission victory over Ricardo Almeida at UFC 117. But while "Big Dog" is as solid a fighter as there can be, no one would ever confuse him with a world beater. When Hughes finally stepped inside the cage with a top-level 170-pounder, he looked across the cage and saw his old rival, B.J. Penn. Their first fight ended in a shocking submission. The second saw Hughes weather an early storm from the former lightweight champ to come back and earn a TKO victory. The rubber match could have gone either way. via mmagif.blogspot.com It didn't. That night, Penn joined Dennis Hallman in a very exclusive club of fighters who have finished Hughes off in less than 30 seconds. The aftermatch: After the brutal knockout to the Hawaiian, it was obvious that Hughes could still scrap but would come up short against the upper echelon of welterweights. His status became even more obvious at UFC 135 when it only took Josh Koscheck one round to knock out the former champion. Talks of retirement peppered the build up to the fight as it was the last of Hughes' contract. When pressed about hanging up the gloves by Joe Rogan, Hughes refused to commit either way. The sport -- one where he was once recognized as the best -- had passed him by. Nothing will ever erase his accomplishments inside the Octagon but a new breed of fighter has cropped up and left him on the outside looking in. If you're the drinking type, toast to Matt Hughes tonight, one of the greatest fighters of all time. Cheers.

Posted in: time, fighter, hughe, loss, welterweight

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As we head into one of the most loaded weekends of mixed martial arts in quite some time all eyes will be on the light-heavyweight title bout between Jon Jones and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson.However the story being told heading out of the event may be that we are saying goodbye to two huge names in the sport.First up is the former ruler of the lightweight division and arguably one of the best 155-pounders of all time Takanori Gomi.“The Fireball Kid” made a name for himself in the land of the rising sun in the glory days of PRIDE Fighting Championships with a hit list that includes Hayato Sakurai, Jens Pulver, Tatsuya Kawajiri and Mitsuhiro Ishida just to name a few.Unfortunately, most fight fans that came late to the party won’t have the opportunity to appreciate the 32-year-old.Gomi made the move to the UFC in 2010 with high hopes from the PRIDE die hards but was unable to compete with the top of the division while in the twilight of his career.Now training part-time with American Kickboxing Academy he has shown that he still brings power to the table with his knockout victory over Tyson Griffin but has limitations with his wrestling, cardio and submission defense that won’t allow him to beat most 155-ers. With a defeat to Nate Diaz that would push Gomi’s octagon record to 1-3 and could be the last time we see him in the octagon or at all.Next up is the former UFC welterweight champion and first ballot hall of famer, Matt Hughes. It’s impossible to look past Matt Hughes as one of the best welterweights we have seen thus far, anyone who was in the UFC at 170-pounds fell to the NCAA Division I wrestler during his heyday. Hughes held the welterweight strap on two separate occasions and defended it a grand total of seven times in his career.His overwhelming amount of strength, speed and wrestling ability made him arguably the pound-for-pound king of the sport in the early parts of this century.But as with every elite level athlete your time in the sun doesn't last forever. Last time we saw Hughes compete he was looking to put his stamp on the trilogy with two-division champion BJ Penn.However, it took a mere twenty-one seconds for Penn to put him to sleep.This Saturday he is set to face former welterweight title challenger Josh Koscheck in the last fight on his contract with the organization.The thirty-seven year old pioneer will be having his fifty-fourth professional bout and has seen and done it all in the sport so it would be the perfect time to step away win, lose or draw.The issue with both combatants is they can beat-up most at their division but not the upper-tier which is where they will be paired up because of their name value.UFC 135 will look to deliver with a roller coaster ride of emotions, in those could be a few tears with the swan songs of two legendary figures in mixed martial arts.

Posted in: time, matt hughes, welterweight, division, name

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Although easing off the gas on his training, Jake Ellenberger will soon be back in the gym to help training partners prepare for fights. In the meantime, he'll be watching several key fights in the welterweight division that are set to play out in the next two months. With a key win this past Saturday over onetime welterweight title-challenger Jake Shields, Ellenberger has, in theory, shoved his way into the division's upper ranks. But as he today told MMAjunkie.com Radio, he's in no hurry to ask for fights.

Posted in: fight, jake ellenberger, ellenberger, welterweight, training partners

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By Darnell Myrick Today at the special press conference in Las Vegas, Dana White announced that will not be headlining the card next month against Georges St. Pierre for the UFC Welterweight Championship. Georges St. Pierre will now defend his Welterweight Championship against former WEC Welterweight Champion, Carlos Condit. The news broke after Nick Diaz failed to appear at two press conferences to promote . The press conferences were held in Toronto and the host city for UFC 137, Las Vegas. Diaz reportedly missed a flight to Toronto and asked to be booked on another flight. Diaz missed the second flight and asked for a third flight and missed that one, which cost him his shot at the UFC Welterweight Championship. Diaz has not returned any of Dana White’s calls. Dana has also called Nick’s friends and his brother, Nate, and they do not what Nick is doing. Cesar Gracie, Diaz’s manager, called Dana White at the press conference and apologized on Nick’s behalf and he agreed with the decision that Dana made to replace Nick. was already training for a fight at UFC 137. He was supposed to face BJ Penn on the same card in the co-main event, in a fight that would have made him the number one contender for the Welterweight Championship if he would have beaten BJ Penn. Condit currently is riding a four fight winning streak against Jake Ellenberger, Rory MacDonald, Dan Hardy, and Dong Hyun Kim, three of the wins have come by KO/TKO (MacDonald, Hardy, Kim). Dana White believes that Condit deserves a crack at the UFC Welterweight Championship and he was the only person that the UFC considered for replacing Nick Diaz. Dana White said that when Condit was offered the fight, he started crying as he was excited about the chance to face GSP for the title. It is unknown what they will do now with Nick Diaz and BJ Penn. watch?v=dTtfhYvQBUI&feature=channel_video_title

Posted in: ufc, diaz, nick, dana, welterweight

Read the full article at Octagon Mania