Wednesday, June 30, 2010

In a Different Time for MMA, Coleman Was Ready to Fight a Friend

In a Different Time for MMA, Coleman Was Ready to Fight a Friend
by Michael David SmithOne of the dilemmas that increasingly seems to frustrate both MMA promoters and fans is the refusal of friends and teammates to fight each other. The guys who train with Greg Jackson don't want to fight each other. The guys who train at American Kickboxing Academy don't want to fight each other. The guys who train at Black House don't want to fight each other. Babalu Sobral says he doesn't want the Strikeforce light heavyweight title fight he just earned because he's friends with the champion, Mo Lawal. And so on.

That's why it was nice to read, in Jake Rossen's expansive look at the 2000 Pride openweight tournament, the words of Mark Coleman on the subject.

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Amanda Bynes
Tricia Helfer
Cameron Richardson
Stacy Keibler

Overeem's next opponent? Not Fedor or Werdum

Overeem's next opponent? Not Fedor or Werdum

After Fedor Emelianenko's shocking loss to Fabricio Werdum, Strikeforce said that Werdum would fight Alistair Overeem, the Strikeforce heavyweight champ. That may be Werdum's next bout, but according to our friends at MMA Junkie, Overeem will face Ricco Rodriguez at Dream 15 on July 10 in Japan.

Ricco Rodriguez? Yes, the same Ricco Rodriguez who won the UFC heavyweight belt from Randy Couture at UFC 39 and then lost three times in a row in the UFC. The same Ricco Rodriguez with more than 55 bouts in his career, though he is just short of being 33 years old. The same Ricco Rodriguez who has faced drug and alcohol problems, but who is reportedly clean and sober these days. The same Ricco Rodriguez whose latest wins are over Ken Sparks and Travis Fulton.

If the bout doesn't make sense to you, you're not alone. Overeem was not pleased with the fact that Werdum took away Overeem's shot at being the Fedor-slayer. However, I doubt that taking this fight is an Overeem temper tantrum. My guess is that Dream wanted a marquee heavyweight on�its card, and it offered Overeem an enticing pay day.�




Gabrielle Union
Camilla Belle
Ashley Tisdale

MMA Top 10 Pound-for-Pound: Emperor's Reign Ends

MMA Top 10 Pound-for-Pound: Emperor's Reign Ends
by Michael David SmithFedor Emelianenko has been at the top of my list of the Top 10 pound-for-pound fighters in mixed martial arts for a year and a half, since he beat Andrei Arlovski in January 2009. He's obviously not at the top anymore, after Fabricio Werdum submitted him in just 69 seconds on Saturday night.

But is Fedor still in the Top 10? Not on my list.

Some people would say Fedor's body of work merits inclusion in the Top 10, but this isn't a list of the greatest fighters of all time, it's a list of the greatest fighters right now. And the soon-to-be 34-year-old Emelianenko, even though he is the greatest fighter of all time, isn't one of the 10 best right now. My list, the first one I've ever put together without Fedor on it, is below.

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Ashley Greene
Jennifer Morrison
Maria Menounos

New fitness rage: The Lesnar Diet

New fitness rage: The Lesnar Diet

Feeling grumpy? Don't like guys with tape recorders, notebooks, cameras and microphones? And you really dislike anyone who dares to fight you? Maybe your system is full of toxins and backed up with years of waste. Flush it out. Don't get a colonic, simply go on the new Brock Lesnar diet. The big guy was consuming sides of beef each day, along with buckets of sugary cereals, and washed it down with mass quantities of beer. That's all gone now and so is much of the grumpiness for Lesnar. He's a new man and that may mean physically he's better than ever.

Lesnar may also have a nice side business if he chooses. Bye-bye Tony Little, P90X and Richard Simmons. He may even be able to trump the freakish 70-year-old Dr. Jeffry Life (pictured on the left).

Lesnar's battle with diverticulitis forced him to overhaul his diet. He lost 42 pounds during the fight. He's put some of that weight back on but doesn't plan on going back to the days of walking around at close to 300 pounds between fights.

"I've gotten rid of a lot of bad things in my diet. I'm eating a lot cleaner," said Lesnar, during a UFC 116 teleconference. He�mentioned he was eating some chicken, broccoli and boiled potatoes. "The four food groups is kind of a hoax."

"I've had to change my diet, and you have to make food part of your life," said Lesnar. "I feel better. I recover faster. If I wasn't seeing the results I'm seeing, it would be very hard to do."

Lesnar said he was at 265 this week and won't need to cut weight next week. He's usually the much bigger man in his fights but not this time around. Shane Carwin is also naturally up around 300 and this week was 275. But Carwin said he won't be fooled into thinking Lesnar is an easier mark now.

"With cleaning up his diet, I'm sure he's just as strong and probably more explosive," Carwin also said on the conference call. "You know the extra weight we carry, I don't think it's that important."�

Lesnar said he's eating roughly 3200 calories per day and the only tough thing is getting all the protein he needs.carwin




Emma Stone
Emmy Rossum

Octavio Barrera

Octavio Barrera
Here is a new Octavio Barrera part. What's up with AlaiKids, I expect Octavio's part in that will be real good.



Ashley Greene
Jennifer Morrison
Maria Menounos

BZZZZZZZZZZZT! UFC bans vuvuzelas for 116

BZZZZZZZZZZZT! UFC bans vuvuzelas for 116

The UFC has decided that vuvuzelas, the awesome noisemakers that are ubiquitous at the World Cup, have no home in the Octagon. According to a press release from the UFC, vuvuzelas won't be allowed in MGM Grand Garden Arena.

“This decision was pretty simple for me,” UFC president Dana White said. “Vuvuzelas make the most horrific sound I’ve ever heard. I’d rather let Brock punch me in the face than hear 15,000 people blow on those things. This is the biggest heavyweight fight we’ve ever done. We’ll make enough noise this weekend when Brock and Shane finally step inside the Octagon.”

White says annoying; I say calm-inducing. Vuvuzela-lovers of the world, don't let this stop you. Download the vuvuzela app to your iPhone, and let the BZZZZZZZT buzz over Carwin vs. Lesnar. As the kids say, haters gonna hate.




Emma Stone
Emmy Rossum

Heavyweights keep coming, young Czech Vemola debuts at UFC 116

Heavyweights keep coming, young Czech Vemola debuts at UFC 116

It was once the weakest weight division in the UFC. But more big athletes are starting to gravitate to the promotion. Including the main event between Shane Carwin and Brock Lesnar, UFC 116 will feature three heavyweight bouts. Jon Madsen from Season 10 of "The Ultimate Fighter" is back and faces the unknown Karlos Vemola. Vemola, 24, looks a bit short for the weight class but he packs a lot of muscle on his 230-pound frame.�

Vemola (8-0) is a Czech living and fighting out of London Shootfighters. He's won all seven of his fights in the first round. That includes KO's over Bill Georgitsis in five seconds and Marcus Hipp in 15 seconds. Standing across the way in a cage is�dangerous and so is washing Vemola's window without asking. The big boy curses out some poor dope looking for a little spare change (above NSFW - 8:50 mark).

His journey to MMA is a familiar one. Vemola is just your typical bouncer turned pro fighter.�From Neil Davidson of The Canadian Press:

"I wasn't working in the best area in London,"�said Vemola. "I was working in north London, in Tottenham ... and I was getting in loads of fights.

"I was having a rough night quite often. That's when I decided, when I met some (pro) fighters, if I'm fighting on the door for free every other night, I might as well do it as a professional and get paid for it and train properly."

That's not to say Vemola is some brawler without a fighting pedigree. He was a highly decorated junior wrestler back in the Czech Republic. His knowledge of how to control his opponent on the ground is evident in this win over Stav Economou. Vemola swarms the chubby fighter and never lets him come up for air.

He's going against a tough cookie in Jon Madsen (5-0). The highly decorated college wrestler actually beat Brock Lesnar in a high-school wrestling match. He was working with Matt Hughes' HIT Squad but recently moved up to Minnesota to train with Lesnar. Vemola isn't impressed.

"Because he's going to try and fight in a similar style as me. I think I'll be able to beat him easily," said Vemola. "Because in the wrestling skills, I'm going to beat him. And hopefully keep him there."�

Vemola actually turned down a more lucrative deal with Bellator Fighting to sign a one-year contract with the UFC. He couldn't pass up the added exposure.�




Milla Jovovich
Diora Baird
Amanda Righetti

All 3 Women in the Cage Did Their Jobs Well in Cyborg-Finney Fight

All 3 Women in the Cage Did Their Jobs Well in Cyborg-Finney Fight
by Michael David Smith
Cris Cyborg's second-round TKO win over Jan Finney on Saturday night was terribly one-sided and a little sloppy, and not a great fight. But both fighters -- as well as the third woman in the ring, referee Kim Winslow -- did their jobs to the best of their abilities on Saturday night and deserve credit, not the scorn they've received in some quarters.

Cyborg, of course, showed once again why most MMA observers consider her the best female fighter in the world. Since bursting onto the American MMA scene with EliteXC two years ago, she's 6-0 and has dominated all six opponents.

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Dania Ramirez
Heidi Klum

www.rock-climbing-blog.com claimed on Technorati

www.rock-climbing-blog.com claimed on Technorati
I’m pleased to claim this blog officially on Technorati so that more people will read it This link to my Technorati Profile is all it takes.

I’m pleased to claim this blog officially on Technorati so that more people will read it :-)

This link to my Technorati Profile is all it takes.




Miranda Kerr
Ana Ivanovi?
Carrie Underwood

Hominick takes all-Canadian battle, Grispi subs Davis at WEC 49

Hominick takes all-Canadian battle, Grispi subs Davis at WEC 49

Canadian fighters Mark Hominick and Yves Jabouin have long been on a collision course as Canada's two best featherweights. They delivered an exciting bout in front of the hometown crowd in Edmonton with Hominick winning with a second round TKO.

They put on a display of flashy stand-up in the first round as neither fighter relented with kicks, punches, spinning kicks and backfists. There was rarely a second when one of the two weren't landing a punch. Jabouin got the slight edge in striking in the first round.

The second round started out with more flash, including a spinning elbow to the liver by Jabouin, but Hominick kept his wits and knocked Jabouin down with liver punch. Hominick followed up with a flurry of punches that should have stopped Jabouin, but he somehow survived to get out. Jabouin then found enough enery to knock Hominick down. He followed Hominick to the canvas, throwing punch after punch, trying to finish off Hominick.

Hominick reversed position and got full mount on Jabouin. When Jabouin tried to cover his face, Hominick threw body shots. The fight was� stopped at 3:21 in the second round.�

Grispi chokes Davis out cold

Josh Grispi hasn't fought since he beat Jens Pulver more than a year ago, but the result was no different. Just as he did with Pulver, Grispi submitted L.C. Davis with a guillotine choke at 2:33 of the first round.

Davis started out strong, landing punches and avoiding Grispi's kicks. Davis shot in for a takedown, slammed Grispi right to the ground but then was caught in a guillotine. Before he could tap, Davis was out cold, and the 21-year-old Grispi was the winner.�

With his fourth WEC win in a row, Grispi made a case for his shot at the WEC featherweight title and Jose Aldo.�




Rachel Bilson
Christina Milian
Amber Heard
Audrina Patridge

Bouldering Burbage photos

Bouldering Burbage photos
Finally a little sun! Yesterday I went climbing in Burbage (specifically Burbage south boulders) in the Peak District near Sheffield. I’m really glad I’ve got these boulders within 15 minutes of my home. Although in a climbing wall / gym I’m happy on 6a/6b the techniques on grit boulders are a different world: lots of smearing [...]

Bouldering, Burbage South - The beginning

Finally a little sun! Yesterday I went climbing in Burbage (specifically Burbage south boulders) in the Peak District near Sheffield. I’m really glad I’ve got these boulders within 15 minutes of my home.

Although in a climbing wall / gym I’m happy on 6a/6b the techniques on grit boulders are a different world: lots of smearing on slabs rather than big handholds. So - we worked our way through a few problems at 4 and 4+.

Bring on more sunshine! (more photos below)

Bouldering - Burbage South - Phil

Bouldering - Burbage South - Hero finish




Sienna Miller
Beyonc�
Kim Kardashian

2010 European Grand Prix, Saturday

2010 European Grand Prix, Saturday
FREE PRACTICE 3 Robert Kubica, R30-03, P2, 1:38.154, 17 laps Vitaly Petrov, R30-02, P14, 1:39.113, 16 laps QUALIFYING Robert Kubica, R30-03, P6, 1:38.137 Robert: It has been a pretty good qualifying and the car was especially strong on the prime tyre. On the options I had a lot more movement so the car felt quite different and we didn't really gain the lap time, but we made a decision that it would be better to start the race on the options. Although I finished higher in the first two (...) - Press Releases

FREE PRACTICE 3
Robert Kubica, R30-03, P2, 1:38.154, 17 laps
Vitaly Petrov, R30-02, P14, 1:39.113, 16 laps

QUALIFYING

Robert Kubica, R30-03, P6, 1:38.137

Robert: It has been a pretty good qualifying and the car was especially strong on the prime tyre. On the options I had a lot more movement so the car felt quite different and we didn't really gain the lap time, but we made a decision that it would be better to start the race on the options. Although I finished higher in the first two parts of qualifying, I think the end result reflects our true position. The new updates on the car this weekend are bringing us some gains, but we still need to work to get 100% from them, which I hope we can do in the coming races.

Vitaly Petrov, R30-02, P10, 1:38.523

Vitaly: It's fantastic to get into Q3 because the times were very close today. Unfortunately I made some mistakes on my fastest lap in Q3 so I could maybe have been even higher on the grid. In the race anything can happen so I will try and look after my tyres and make up some positions. There are a lot of new parts on the car this weekend and I have had to adapt my driving style, but I can feel a big improvement with the car.

Eric Boullier, Team Principal
It's always good to see both cars in Q3 because it's not something we have managed that often this season. After Q1 and Q2 we were expecting an even better result in Q3, but we didn't find the performance that we expected with the soft tyres. For the race tomorrow we have a good strategy and hopefully we can get both cars in the points and make up some ground on Mercedes.

Alan Permane, Chief Race Engineer
I'm pleased to see both cars in the top ten for the second time in three races and it's nice to be well ahead of both Mercedes, our closest competitors in the championship. We were actually hoping for a better position with Robert today, but we struggled more than we expected with the option tyre. Although it's the softer compound, the car was moving around more and felt less together on the option. You might expect a softer tyre to have more grip, but you can't use that extra grip if the car isn't easy to drive. However, we felt that we needed to start the race on the option, so that we don't have to do a long stint on it in the race.




Katie Cassidy
Arielle Kebbel
Freida Pinto
Taylor Swift

Thomson pulls off late sub to escape with a win

Thomson pulls off late sub to escape with a win

Coming off a close loss to Strikeforce lightweight champ Gilbert Melendez, a fight against Pat Healy seemed ridiculous on paper. But Josh "The Punk" Thomson got all he could handle from the former welterweight. Healy, fighting out of Team Quest, a camp known for its wrestling, brawling out of the clinch and pounding opponents on the ground, imposed his power and size on Thomson.

Thomson barely won the first round and was manhandled in the second round. The third round was up for grabs when Thomson scored a big reversal and eventually got Healy's back. Thomson worked for a rear-naked choke and slapped it on with 1:08 left in the fight. Healy held out for a while but had to tap with just 33 seconds left in the fight.

Thomson (17-3) has had a bit of a star-crossed career. He has a well-rounded game to be a top 10 lightweight, but he's struggled with injuries and also hasn't exactly pushed for promoters to book him against the best fighters.

Healy, 26, was only 23-15 coming in but he showed he could give people troubles down at 155. He used the cage nicely in the first two rounds and forced Thomson to try and be offensive from his back. "The Punk" was very sharp with several attempted submissions rotating between armbar and triangle choke attempts. Thomson has carved a recent niche as a dangerous guy standing, especially with his kicks. His kicking game was non-existent because he feared Healy landing single and double-leg takedowns.

Thomson showed how inventive he can be and now he should get an elite fighter to face at 155, either from the DREAM roster or maybe even K.J. Noons.�




Avril Lavigne
Fergie
Nicole Scherzinger

Varner under the gun at WEC 49

Varner under the gun at WEC 49

Jamie Varner has been backed into a corner. He lost his last fight against WEC lightweight champ Ben Henderson and now has to fight his way back into the promotion's triple-headed monster (along with Donald Cerrone) at the top of the class. He faces a relative unknown in Kamal Shalorus. That's bad news if the Iranian decides to grind the match to a halt. Shalorus (6-0) is a former Olympic wrestler who has blown through his first two opponents in the WEC. It wouldn't be shocking to see him control the pace and win the fight, but it would certainly be a blow to Varner's reputation. Varner and Shalorus headline WEC 49�Sunday night in Edmonton.�

Varner (16-3, 4-1 WEC, 1-1 UFC) compared the gap between college wrestler and an Olympian in an interview with ULTMMA.com.

"He's not just a strong wrestler, he's a world class wrestler," said Varner. "It's like saying a college wrestler is the JV team and a world-class wrestler is like the NBA all-star team."

Sounds like Varner is going to rely on his boxing. On the flip side, Shalorus told WEC PR person Dave Sholler that he has to stay under control on the feet. He called it his caveman style when he swings wildly with big overhand rights and lefts.

Shalorus is an interesting character. He's Iranian born but wrestled for Great Britian in 2004. How old is he? That's a point of contention. From�World Extreme Cagefighting:

"The Government of Iran says I’m 37, but I’m not," says the former Olympic wrestler, who estimates his actual age is closer to 29. "Maybe I was born in 1978, maybe 1979, maybe 1975. I don’t know. I said, ‘Mom, what happened?’ She said, ‘Oh yeah, we had another son before you and he passed away. We could not go to city (to the hospital) because we had no money and it was snowing, so we just gave his birth certificate to you' … It’s very common where I come from."

WEC 49 weigh-in (Courtesy MMA Junkie):

Televised card (Versus 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT)
Kamal Shalorus (155) vs. Jamie Varner (156)
Mark Hominick (144.5) vs. Yves Jabouin (145)
L.C. Davis (146) vs. Josh Grispi (145)
Danny Downes (156) vs. Chris Horodecki (154)
Will Campuzano (136) vs. Eddie Wineland (135.5)

Non-televised card
Karen Darabedyan (155.6) vs. Will Kerr (155)
Wagnney Fabiano (135.5) vs. Frank Gomez (135.5)
Bendy Casimir (145.5) vs. Erik Koch (145.5)
Rafael Assuncao (144.5) vs. Diego Nunes (144)
Chris Cariaso (135) vs. Rafael Rebello (135)
Renan Barao (141.5) vs. Anthony Leone (142)




Nikki Reed
Elisha Cuthbert

Film Me Trailer

Film Me Trailer
The Film Me trailer is heavy on the effects and light on tricks, but still kinda makes me want to see the video.



Charlize Theron
Anna Faris
Lily Allen
Nadine Velazquez

MV Agusta Cannonball Kit Adds 21hp to the Brutale

MV Agusta Cannonball Kit Adds 21hp to the Brutale
Have you ever wanted a 2010 MV Agusta 1099RR, but thought the bike’s 144hp just wasn’t enough umpf for you. Well MV Agusta has you in mind with this “track only” Cannonball Kit that adds 21hp (165hp in total) to the top of the 1099RR’s peak horsepower figure. Not an actual new bike from MV, the [...]

MV Agusta Cannonball Kit Adds 21hp to the Brutale MV Agusta Brutale 1090RR Cannonball Kit 560x370

Have you ever wanted a 2010 MV Agusta 1099RR, but thought the bike’s 144hp just wasn’t enough umpf for you. Well MV Agusta has you in mind with this “track only” Cannonball Kit that adds 21hp (165hp in total) to the top of the 1099RR’s peak horsepower figure.

Not an actual new bike from MV, the Cannonball Kit features a new ECU, cylinder head, camshafts, valves, and titanium exhaust system, which boosts horsepower on the Brutale 1090RR without sacrificing any of the bike’s down low torque, which remains at 84.81 lbs•ft.

The intention is to make the Brutale 1090RR a track day weapon, however we think most of the kits will find their way onto daily riders…but keep that on the down-low, it’s not exactly street legal.

For those hoping to complete the track bike effect, or who are looking for a more sporty look. MV Agusta also has aesthetic pieces like a solo tail-section and lower belly pan fairing, along with other carbon fiber and aluminum bits to help lighten and make the Brutale look the racer part.

MV Agusta says it will have an interactive 3D configuration proram on mvagusta.it that will allow customers to design their own “Brutale Cannonball”. Once configured, MV Agusta then let’s you check out with the necessary parts to kit out your Brutale. We assume they then arrive in the mail, allowing you to affix them to any track or road bike as you see fit.

2010 MV Agusta Brutale 1090RR Photos:

Source: MV Agusta




Hayden Panettiere
Cameron Diaz