Cain Velasquez Explains How He First Entered The Ultimate Fighting Championships

UFC no. 1 heavyweight title contender Cain Velasquez reflects on his MMA success and how he first entered the UFC.  President Dana White seemed to be very impressed with the skills Velasquez possessed when he saw him training MMA with two sparring partners he brought in.

From Cain Velasquez:

“I had two fights on my CV and wanted to fight in other shows before going to the UFC, to get some experience. But It was really hard to get fights with other organizations, so my manager said: ‘We haven’t fought in a long time, we can’t wait any longer. It’s time to call up the UFC.’ He made the call, made Dana White an offer and we went to Vegas. We took two fighters with us and Dana watched me standing with those two fighters and doing Jiu-Jitsu with another two heavyweight athletes. He liked what he saw and told me I was in the UFC.”

Jon Jones Getting Closer To A Title Shot, Awaits Winner of Lil Nog vs Ryan Bader At UFC 119

UFC light heavyweight superstar Jon Jones continues his impressive octagon run, winning five of six bouts in the UFC.  His only loss was a disqualification due to elbow strikes on Matt Hamill back at the TUF 10 finale.  Since then, he has defeated top caliber guys including TKO victories over Brandon Vera and Vladimir Matyushenko.  Jones is slowly working his way toward the top of the 205-pound division, but this is when he’ll really have to begin testing himself.  It has been confirmed by UFC President Dana White that Jones will indeed be facing the winner of Ryan Bader vs Antonio Rogerio Nogueira who fight at the upcoming UFC 119 event.

Will he have the right skills to defeat top notch fighters like Bader or Lil Nog?  We’ll just have to wait and see..

From Jon Jones:

“Right now I’m waiting for Ryan Bader and Lil’ Nog to fight each other and I’ll fight the winner of that, and I’m predicting that I’m about two fights away from a title shot. I had a meeting with Dana and Lorenzo and that’s kind of where were going with it. They didn’t really say two fights. They said you know, you beat the winner of Bader/Lil’ Nog, we’ll give you one more fight. We’ll see you know how you win the fights, depending on the fashion of the finish, then you know, we’ll give you a title shot.”

Frankie Edgar Believes Confidence Was Key To Defending Lightweight Title Against BJ Penn At UFC 118

UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar shared his thoughts on his rematch bout against BJ Penn this past Saturday night at UFC 118.  He truly believes that it was his confidence that helped him retain the 155-pound belt.  Edgar will now have to use that “confidence” in his upcoming title defense bout against Gray ‘The Bully’ Maynard.

From Frankie Edgar:

“I built on my confidence. The first time I was in there, I had the confidence I could do what I needed to do, but I hadn’t done it before. After doing it and knowing I could do it going in a second time, that confidence added a lot to it.”

Marcus Davis Eye Swollen After Getting Beat Up By Nate Diaz At UFC 118 (Pic)

Gray Maynard Ready To Face Frankie Edgar For UFC Lightweight Title

UFC no. 1 lightweight title contender Gray ‘The Bully’ Maynard battled his way through an impressive victory over Kenny Florian at UFC 118.  UFC President Dana White announced that with this win, Maynard will officially face current lightweight champion Frankie Edgar for the belt. Edgar retained the 155-pound belt after defeating BJ Penn in a rematch bout as part of the UFC 118 main event.

‘The Bully’ feels he has beaten all of the top lightweight fighters and is ready for his shot at the title.  Maynard gave Edgar his first and only loss in his MMA career back at UFC Fight Night 13.  A must-see rematch bout for all MMA fans, we’ll keep you guys posted once there is an official date for this lightweight title match-up.

From Gray Maynard:

“You can’t let (the crowd) affect you. I’ve got bills. I’ve got all that stuff… All the odds were stacked against me. All the odds. That’s a blue-collar win for me, and I’m blue-collar…I’ve beaten all the top guys. I’m ready.”

UFC 118 Compustrike Stats For ‘Edgar vs Penn 2′ Main Event In Boston

UFC 118 Bonuses Awarded To Nate Diaz, Marcus Davis and Joe Lauzon ($60,000)

During the UFC 118 ‘Edgar vs Penn 2′ post-fight press conference, UFC President Dana White announced all of the bonus winners.  Each of the fighters that acquired the following bonuses, pocketed an extra $60,000 USD aside from their regular salary.

The complete payroll for each of the fighters that participated at the UFC 118 event will be posted once the Athletic Commission releases the fighter salaries to the public.  We should be having the list later this week, so make sure to come back for the latest updates.

Here are the special fight bonuses for the UFC 118 event:

• Fight of the Night : Nate Diaz vs Marcus Davis (both win bonus), Diaz defeated Davis via a guillotine choke submission – Round 3, 4:02
• Knockout of the Night : No Knockouts in the entire UFC 118 event
• Submission of the Night : Joe Lauzon, Lauzon submitted Gabe Ruediger via armbar – Round 1, 2:01

UFC 118 Results: Edgar Retains Lightweight Title Against Penn, Couture Submits Boxing Vet Toney

Main Fight Card Results:

• Frankie Edgar def. B.J. Penn via unanimous decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-45) to retain lightweight title
• Randy Couture def. James Toney via submission (arm-triangle choke) – Round 1, 3:19
• Demian Maia def. Mario Miranda via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Gray Maynard def. Kenny Florian via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
• Nate Diaz def. Marcus Davis via technical submission (guillotine) – Round 3, 4:02

Preliminary Fight Card Results:

• Joe Lauzon def. Gabe Ruediger via submission (armbar) – Round 1, 2:01
• Nik Lentz def. Andre Winner via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 30-27)
• Dan Miller def. John Salter via submission (anaconda choke) – Round 2, 1:53.
• Greg Soto def. Nick Osipczak via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Mike Pierce def. Amilcar Alves via submission (cross-body armbar) – Round 3, 3:11

14 Medical Suspensions and Injuries For UFC 117 ‘Silva vs Sonnen’ Event In Oakland California

List of UFC 117 fighters who received medical suspensions:

• Anderson Silva was suspended for 180 days unless he has a possible rib fracture x-rayed and cleared by a physician. He was also suspended for 45 days, with no contact for 30 days, and needs neurological clearance and a head CT.
• Chael Sonnen was suspended for 60 days, with no contact for 60 days, for a laceration.
• Rafael dos Anjos was suspended for 180 days unless he has a possible rib fracture x-rayed and cleared by a physician. He must also have a head/jaw CT cleared by a maxillofacial surgeon.
• Junior Dos Santos was suspended for 60 days unless he has a right cheek laceration cleared by a physician.
• Roy Nelson was suspended for 45 days, with no contact for 30 days, for a hard bout.
• Dustin Hazelett was suspended for 45 days, with no contact for 30 days, for a TKO, and needs a new physical.
• Phil Davis was suspended for 180 days unless he has a possible right fifth metacarpal fracture cleared by a physician.
• Charlie Brenneman was suspended for 45 days, with no contact for 30 days, and needs a new physical.
• Tim Boetsch was suspended for 60 days unless he has a left facial laceration cleared by a physician, and was suspended for 180 days unless he has a right thumb fracture cleared by a physician.
• Todd Brown was suspended for 60 days unless he has a laceration cleared by a physician.
• Stefan Struve was suspended 60 days unless he has a lower lip laceration cleared by a physician.
• Christian Morecraft was suspended for 180 days due to a hard bout and is required to get a head CT. He was also suspended 45 days, with no contact for 30 days, for a TKO, and was suspended 60 days unless he has a right eyebrow laceration cleared by a physician.
• Dennis Hallman was suspended for 60 days unless he has a left cheek laceration cleared by a physician.
• Ben Saunders was suspended for 45 days, with no contact for 30 days, due to a hard fight.

Fighter Payout and Salaries For UFC 117 ‘Silva vs Sonnen’ Event With Bonuses

Fighter Salaries for Main Fight Card:

• Anderson Silva: $200,000 (no win bonus) def. Chael Sonnen: $35,000
• Jon Fitch: $108,000 (includes $54,000 win bonus) def. Thiago Alves: $60,000
• Clay Guida: $56,000 (includes $28,000 win bonus) def. Rafael dos Anjos: $12,000
• Matt Hughes: $200,000 (includes $100,000 win bonus) def. Ricardo Almeida: $35,000
• Junior Dos Santos: $80,000 (includes $40,000 win bonus) def. Roy Nelson: $15,000

Fight Salaries for Preliminary Fight Card:

• Rick Story: $22,000 (includes $11,000 win bonus) def. Dustin Hazelett: $18,000
• Phil Davis: $18,000 (includes $9,000 win bonus) def. Rodney Wallace: $6,000
• Johny Hendricks: $40,000 (includes $20,000 win bonus) def. Charlie Brenneman: $8,000
• Tim Boetsch: $32,000 (includes $16,000 win bonus) def. Todd Brown: $6,000
• Stefan Struve: $30,000 (includes $15,000 win bonus) def. Christian Morecraft: $6,000
• Dennis Hallman: $30,000 (includes $15,000 win bonus) def. Ben Saunders: $12,000

UFC 117 Disclosed Fighter Payroll: $1,029,000

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