Sanchez Moves Closer to UFC Welterweight Title Shot
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August 18, 2006
by Mike Fridley (Mike@sherdog.com)
Diego Sanchez cleared a major hurdle Thursday evening towards getting a UFC welterweight title shot, winning a unanimous decision over Karo Parisyan at the Red Rock Casino Resort Spa in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The hard earned victory wasn’t easy for the Albuquerque, New Mexico native, who sampled a taste of the canvas several times in the contest after being on the wrong side of Parisyan’s amazing judo throws.
It wasn’t the Ultimate Fighter’s widely respected wrestling game that propelled him to the win — it was his underrated stamina that laid the foundation for his hand being raised in the most important main event of the scrappy welterweight’s career.
Entering the third stanza (with Sherdog.com scoring the fight a round apiece) Sanchez simply out-hustled Parisyan, digging deep with a workmanlike effort to solidify his name in the UFC’s 170-pound title picture.
Starting the final period with more gas in his tank than the man across from him, the fresh Sanchez went right to work with a straight right to the chin that briefly buckled Parisyan’s legs.
Never a fighter to show any weakness, Parisyan plugged forward and scored a double-leg takedown against the cage. In the defining moment of the bout, Sanchez quickly rose to his feet and executed a brilliant trip that put him in position to hop on his opponent’s back.
After dishing out some punishment to the back of Parisyan’s head and nearly securing a rear-naked choke, the TUF veteran found himself back on his feet after a skilled reversal courtesy of “The Heat.�
Sensing his stamina advantage, Sanchez pressed forward with crisp punches and four consecutive shots to the midsection before a knee ejected a tooth from the California fighter’s mouth into the atmosphere.
After being thrown to the floor by a judo technique for the fourth time in the bout, Sanchez hustled to gain top position and pound out a decision on the judges’ scorecards.
Nelson Hamilton and Marcos Rosales called it 29-28 and the often mentioned Glenn Trowbridge absurdly scored it 30-26.
“I believe I’m the best in the world. I still haven’t got to go out there and perform at my best, but I do think when the time is right, that’s when it’s right for me,� said Sanchez when asked if he was ready for a shot at the title.
Chris Leben took to the cage for the first time since his brutal defeat at the hands of Anderson Silva less than two months ago, needing a win to reestablish his name in the stacked UFC middleweight division.
His opponent, American Top Team’s Jorge Santiago, had other plans for their meeting, taking it to the popular Oregonian in the first round by landing a stiff right cross to the chin that sent Leben a step backwards. Santiago followed with a takedown into side-control on his wild-swinging foe.
Seemingly in control to begin the second period, Santiago got reckless with his strikes and, with his eyes closed, ate a heavy counter left hook. Leben pounced on Santiago, now face down and unconscious, throwing in two lefts for good measure before referee Herb Dean showed mercy and halted the action at 0:35 of the second round.
“I couldn’t feel better,� said a jubilant Leben after the much-needed victory. “I hate hanging around on the losing side of things, if you know what I mean. I’m going into Starbucks and the guy giving me coffee is telling me how I should have fought. You know I hate that. I’m a fighter. I deserve to be in the Octagon.�
Dean Lister was impressive in the early stages of his bout with PRIDE veteran Yuki Sasaki, before coasting on an empty tank to gain a unanimous decision win.
It looked as though early in the contest Lister’s slick ground game would be too much for the Japanese journeyman, but the GRABAKA fighter patiently escaped the torrent of submissions thrown his way from the ADCC champion’s guard.
It was midway through the second phase that Lister started to shows signs of fatigue, with the San Diego native barely able to hold his hands up to defend incoming strikes.
Lister survived the next seven minutes and ultimately took home a unanimous decision nod from the judges.
Much like his TUF adversary Diego Sanchez, Josh Koscheck has become a force to be reckoned with in the welterweight division.
Showing a greatly improved stand-up game and revamped footwork, Koscheck was impressive in scoring a first round stoppage over Jonathan Goulet.
Landing a crushing right hand that was set up with a crisp jab, Koscheck worked to finish the fight with a guillotine choke from top ground position, but settled on half-guard after the Canadian escaped the hold.
Still in control, the four-time NCAA wrestling All-American blasted away with elbows, then later moved to mount, forcing his opponent to turn his back.
Koscheck wasted no time there, forcing a tap at 4:10 of the first stage after landing a barrage of unanswered punches to Goulet’s head.
Joe Riggs outclassed Jason Von Flue, securing a triangle choke at 2:01 of the first.
Taking a page out of Parisyan’s book, “Diesel� scored early with a beautiful judo throw that sent the TUF welterweight hard to the canvas. After briefly working in side-control, then countering a Von Flue Kimura attempt by taking the back with two hooks, Riggs lost the position and applied the finishing hold from the bottom.
Just before tapping out, the San Luis Obispo native took the opportunity to show some sportsmanship, giving Riggs the one-finger salute before crying uncle.
Dark Matches
Martin Kampmann dispatched Crafton Wallace in the opening round of their prelim bout, locking in a rear-naked choke at 2:59 of the first.
Jake O’Brien dominated Kristof Midoux throughout their un-televised contest, forcing “Big” John McCarthy to halt the action at 0:52 of the second round due to strikes.
Cleveland Ohio’s Forrest Petz made the most of his UFC debut, handedly defeating TUF season two veteran Sammy Morgan. In one of the most lopsided scores in recent memory, the judges scored the duel 30-26, 30-27 and a whopping 30-23.
Anthony Torres needed less than three minutes to defeat Pat Healy, ending the battle with a rear-naked choke 2:37 into the match.
Quick Shots
SpikeTV will air the UFC 62 weigh-in event live on a new program block titled Live and Inside, set to debut on August 25 at 10 p.m. EST … Also on Live and Inside, the UFC will announce the “Ultimate Grudge Match,� presumably making official Tito Ortiz-Ken Shamrock III, which Sherdog.com’s Greg Savage first reported on August 8.
Roger Gracie to fight MMA
Current World BJJ and ADCC Champion Roger Gracie is set to follow the family tradition and make the transition into Mixed Martial Arts competition.
The Brazilian makes his anticipated MMA debut against UFC and PRIDE veteran Don Frye in a superfight which headlines MFC’s Russia vs. USA PPV on November 4th.
Roger enthused over the prospect of facing the 41-year old K-1 HERO’s combatant, “I am very happy to be debuting in MMA, especially if the opponent is Don Frye. He was beating everyone in MMA when I was a Blue Belt�.
The 6 times World BJJ Champion arrives in England this week to coach at his BJJ Academy in London before joining up with Renzo Gracie in September to train at his New York Academy for two months preceding his November debut.
With three Gracie’s already suffering emphatic defeats this year, Royce to Matt Hughes, Crosley to Melvin Manhoef and Cesar to Frank Shamrock a great deal of expectancy lies on the shoulders of Roger, who is conceivably the most decorated Gracie to enter the MMA circuit.
Lesnar Official Press Conference K-1
LAS VEGAS – Former World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) World Champion Brock Lesnar announced his entrance into the MMA ring Saturday night at a press conference at Bellagio following the K-1 “Battle at Bellagio� event. Lesnar confirmed that he had signed a contract to fight for HERO’s, K-1’s new Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) series of events which includes headliners Genki Sudo, Bob Sapp, Kazushi Sakuraba and Don Frye. Lesnar also announced that Brazilian Jiu Jitsu innovator and the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s (UFC) first-ever champion, Royce Gracie, will be his trainer.
“You are a great champion wrestler and I am a great Jiu Jitsu fighter; we are going to be good together,� said Gracie as he eagerly shook Lensar’s hand in the K-1 ring at the sold out “Battle at Bellagio� event on Saturday.
Lesnar’s career includes a number of years with WWE, a player with the Minnesota Vikings in the NFL as well as Amateur Wrestling in high school and college. He won the 2000 NCAA Heavyweight Wrestling Championship and was a two-time All-American amateur wrestler. Lesnar’s professional titles include WWE Heavyweight Champion, WWE King of the Ring Champion, WWE Royal Rumble Champion and the IWGP World Heavy weight Champion.
HERO’s is the new and exciting MMA series brought to the United States by FEG, also the organizers of K-1. Established two years ago in Japan, HERO’S combines all forms of martial arts disciplines including Karate, Kickboxing and Kung Fu, as well as the grappling techniques of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Judo and Wrestling. This style of fighting has been developed with the hope of eliminating unnecessary techniques and creating more exciting fights that last longer. The fights take place in a boxing style ring making it easy for the viewers to follow the action.
Over the past decade, MMA events have increased significantly in popularity. Creating a true international flavor by inviting top participants from all over the world, the reputation of HERO’s shows has spanned far beyond Japan. With special lighting and pyrotechnic effects, the HERO’s events are packed with high-energy action and excitement. HERO’s events are currently broadcast in prime time on Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS).
HERO’S will be held four times each year and is scheduled to begin in February 2007. The location has yet to be determined but more than likely will occur at a major venue on the West Coast. HERO’S will televise their events in more than 110 countries worldwide.
K-1 is a martial arts fighting sport that derives its name from its inclusion of a wide array of combat disciplines including Karate, Kung-Fu and Kickboxing (“K�), with an intent to determine one champion in one ring (“1�). After being staged for the first time in Japan in 1993 under the direction of founder Master Kazuyoshi Ishii, K-1 has evolved into the country’s most popular sport and has achieved popular culture status as its athletes are larger-than-life celebrities.
Lesnar Set for October K-1 HERO’s Debut
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Former NCAA wrestling champion and WWE star Brock Lesnar made official his debut in K-1 HERO’s, reports Sherdog.com’s Mike Sloan from ringside at K-1 USA’s “Battle At Bellagio” tournament in Las Vegas.Invited to the ring Saturday evening by announcer Jimmy Lennon Jr., the 285-pound Lesnar announced his planned October debut against a yet-to-be-decided opponent.Joining the Webster, South Dakota native in his announcement, three-time UFC tournament champion Royce Gracie stated that he would help prepare the former WWE pro wrestler for his mixed martial arts debut.Lesnar has recently trained in Bettendorf, Iowa with Pat Miletich and his group of fighters.
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Cage Rage opens its online store
You can now buy premium tickets, tickets and merchandise through its online store at www.cagerage.tv/store/
UFC Ultimate Fight Night 6 Confirmed fights
The following is the final confirmed line-up for Thursday’s live UFC special “Ultimate Fight Night 6″ on Spike TV:
-Diego Sanchez vs. Karo Parisyan
-Dean Lister vs. Yuki Sasaki
-Josh Koscheck vs. Jonathan Goulet
-Chris Leben vs. Jorge Santiago
-Joe Riggs vs. Jason Von Flue
-Sam Morgan vs. Forrest Petz
-Anthony Torres vs. Pat Healy
-Jake O’Brien vs. Kristof Midoux
-Crafton Wallace vs. Martin Kampmann
FX3 next MMA event
The first in the new edition of FX3 E”X“treme Brawl events is set to take place on November 26th at Bracknell Leisure Complex. FX3 E”X“treme Brawl 4 is already shaping up to be a great event with Aaron Blackwell facing off against Alex Owen for the Vacant Feather Weight Title and Danny Rushton V’s Ross Mason for the Welter Weight No.1 Contenders Position.
Please visit www.freestylefightingfederation.com for tickets and more info.
UFC to come to the UK
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On Monday, the Ultimate Fighting Championship announced the hiring of Marshall Zelaznik, former Vice President of Programming for iN Demand Networks. Zelaznik joins Zuffa (the UFCs parent company) in the newly created position of President of their UK Division.With the announcement of Zelaznik, the UFC stated that the fundamentals of his job will be exporting and managing the UFC brand overseas to the United Kingdom and other parts of English and non-English speaking Europe.
It had been believed for quite some time that the UFC would be making a return to Japan in the near future. That isnt necessarily out of the question, but given the formidable presence of both Pride Fighting Championships and K-1 in Japan, it makes sense for the UFC to go after the United Kingdom and the rest of continental Europe first.
While mixed martial arts has seen tremendous growth in Europe, especially in the United Kingdom, neither Pride nor K-1 have taken any real steps to establish themselves there. With the UFC on an extremely successful run right now, they could take this opportunity to expand their operations to more of a world-wide presence without having to work in tandem with either Pride or K-1.
The UFC had announced a fight between their 205-pound champion, Chuck Liddell, and Prides champion, Wanderlei Silva, which promised to usher in a new era of cooperation between the organizations. But UFC President Dana Whites recent comments in a Canadian interview I dont even know if Silvas going to happen the Japanese are very hard to do business with and you never know what’s going to happen seems to put such a relationship in doubt.
Perhaps the UFCs move into the U.K. and Europe is a move by the company to position itself farther away from any need to rely upon the major Japanese promotions.
FX3 join with Extreme Brawl
FX3 have recently brought out the UK longest running MMA event, Extreme Brawl. This increasing the Portfolio of FX3 by bringing two of the UK’s biggest event together. FX3 will now hold its future events under the Banner of FX3 E”X“treme Brawl.
This looks like a good move for both partys with FX3 growing at a rapid rate and putting on top quality events, It defently is a case of the only way is up for FX3
Murilo “NINJA” Rua v Mark Weir Cage Rage 18
| Murilo “NINJA” Rua v Mark Weir Signed |  |
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| Monday, 07 August 2006 | |
| The world class fights just keep on coming at Cage Rage, Murilo Rua v Mark Weir is signed and sealed for Cage Rage 18 on September 30th at Wembley Arena. Murilo “Ninja” Rua has headlined and has had his last thirteen fights in As many of you know our two organisations started working together last year Mark Weir is also a Pride vet and has also fought on the UFC three times and
“This is one of the greatest match ups that my partner Dave O’Donnell has On July 1st The Cage Rage Championships made a landmark move to Wembley “The atmoshpere in  Wembley Arena is breathtaking, it makes the hairs on the Murilo “Ninja” Rua v Mark “The Wizard” Wier is a fight that no MMA fan will |
