NJSACB Refuses to Allow Sylvia/Mercer Match-Up; Bout Moved to "Thunderdome"

The proposed match-up between former UFC champ Tim Sylvia and former heavyweight boxing champ Ray Mercer, which was to headline the May 30th Adrenaline event at the Taj Mahal in Atlantic City, has been denied sanctioning by the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board. Originally intended to be an MMA bout "with no grappling" then repackaged as a straight boxing match, Sylvia/Mercer stirred up a decent amount of fan interest despite finding no traction with the commission. Consequently, promoter Monte Cox has moved the match-up to June 13th at the "Thunderdome" in the unsanctioned wilds of Bartertown. Said Cox, "Who rules Bartertown? Masterblaster rules Bartertown, so we really don't have to worry about athletic commission approval down there. Also, the rules of the Thunderdome are that 'two men enter, one man leave' - which is perfect for the kind of bout we're going for." Adrenaline is still set for the Taj Mahal at the end of May, with the new tentative headliner a match-up between Jeremy Horn and Dante Rivera.

Random News & Notes

• Tim Sylvia will be facing Ray Mercer in a boxing match at Adrenaline's May 30th Atlantic City show. Did you honestly think the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board would sanction the two for an MMA bout?
• Tara LaRosa announced today that she'll be fighting at Extreme Challenge's March 28th show at Trump Marina in Atlantic City. No opponent has been named, but it's assumed it will be a female.
• Check out http://www.mmamemories.com/history/flashback-to-ufc-38-the-promotions-first-uk-show/ . The author really sounds like he knows his stuff. Do you think he was actually there?

Observations from My Couch: Affliction "Banned"

- Matt Lindland edged out Brazilian newcomer Fabio "Negao" Nascimento for the unanimous decision win after a grueling three-round fight, which served to remind fans yet again that the "Law" is boring as hell. Boring. As. Hell. - Megadeth? Really? - Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Mike Pyle, Babalu, Mark Hominick and Vitor Belfort all scored victories by various means. According to the promoter, they will all fight champ Fedor Emelianenko simultaneously at the next event. Pyle and Hominick are even allowed to bring guns. - Megadeth? Seriously? - Josh Barnett's KO of Pedro Rizzo was a thing of beauty, and avenged Barnett's 2001 loss to the Brazilian slugger. Rizzo now must return Barnett's collection of Robotech: "The Macross Saga" DVDs and life-size Gundam replica. - Andre Arlovski crushed Ben Rothwell's soul. That's it. Nothing more needs to be said. - Megadeth? Really? This isn't some sort of joke? - Fedor's bout with Tim Sylvia lasted only 36 seconds. Why so quick? Fedor wanted to get back home so he could watch UFC Fight Night 14 on DVR.

Point/Counterpoint: Fedor is God/Fedor is not God

Point: Fedor is God - Holy moley! Can you believe how fast Fedor Emelianenko wrecked former UFC champ Tim Sylvia at Saturday night's Affliction: "Banned" event? Thirty-six seconds and the giant from Maine was bloody and tapping. The Russian sambo player and Pride champ was large and in charge from beginning to end. Wow! If they ever meet in the ring, I'm not sure Randy Couture could defeat him. Clearly, Fedor is God. Counterpoint: Fedor is not God - Whatevs, bro. Fedor ain't no God. At most he's a minor diety. Like Ares or Thor or something.

Predictions for Affliction, UFC Fight Night 14 and DREAM

An MMA "superweekend" is upon us, as Affliction: "Banned" debuts on pay-per-view on Saturday night, UFC Fight Night 14 airs concurrently on SpikeTV, and DREAM's lightweight grand prix in Japan will conclude early Monday (for those of us checking out the play-by-play on Sherdog.com). MMA Journalist is breaking out its crystal ball to forecast what will happen at this veritable buffet of combat. - At Affliction, headliners Fedor Emelianenko and Tim Sylvia will clash in epic fashion. No one outside of MMA's hardcore fanbase will know the results, nor will they care. - At UFC Fight Night 14, middleweight champ Anderson Silva will have his hands full with light-heavyweight opponent James Irvin. Specifically, his hands will be full of the back of Irvin's neck as the Brazilian delivers a storm of bout-ending knees to Irvin's grill. - At UFC Fight Night 14, Frankie Edgar will go for a takedown at some point. Also, he will get it. - At Affliction, Mike Pyle, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Mike Whitehead and Matt Lindland will be paid in T-shirts adorned with designs of skulls, flames and other masculine things. - At UFC Fight Night 14, IFL expats Reese Andy, Rory Markham and Brad Blackburn will receive their paychecks, deposit them into their bank accounts, and be pleasantly surprised the checks don't bounce. You know, because that's what they're used to. - At DREAM, Eddie Alvarez will defeat his first Japanese opponent, but before he can compete in the final bout the promoters will make him complete the nigh-impossible "Ninja Warrior" obstacle course. He will do it.

Affliction Show to Register 6.5 Bodogs on the Fail-O-Meter

Bust out the Fail-O-Meter. Affliction: "Banned" will air on pay-per-view this Saturday opposite SpikeTV's UFC Fight Night 14, which means that: a) fight fans will have a chance to pay to see Fedor Emelianenko fight Tim Sylvia; b) fight fans will have a chance to see Anderson Silva destroy James Irvin on free TV; and, c) Affliction will make enough money to cover the cost of maybe 90 seconds of the Fedor/Sylvia bout, but everything after those 90 seconds and everything on the rest of the card is going to have to be written off as a financial loss. Don't get me wrong. I have nothing against Affliction, I'm thrilled they've put together a card of top fighters, and I wish them success. But reality has a way of slapping wanna-be UFCs (with a little money to burn and no viable revenue stream) in the face, and Affliction is going to get slapped pretty damn hard. Prediction: in terms of projected losses, someone will take a big hit on Saturday - and it ain't the UFC.