Unsubstantiated Rumor of the Day

From the Unsubstantiated Rumor of the Day Department: there may or may not be a WEC scheduled for this Sunday, with 135-pound champ Miguel Torres versus Brian Bowles headlining the card. Granted, this rumor has nothing to do with Fedor and Strikeforce and UFC 101 in Philly, so it might not be relevant (or even interesting) to MMA fans. But the rumor is floating around regardless. Stay tuned while MMA Journalist looks into the matter.

Strikeforce Pairs Up With DREAM; Defacing Of Scott Coker's Lawn Continues

Strikeforce has initiated a strategic alliance with the Japanese promotion DREAM, an alliance that increases the amount and level of talent available for the US-based organization's Showtime cards, as well as enabling the likes of popular overseas fighters Shinya Aoki, Joachim Hansen and Melvin Manhoef to compete live for American fans. Consequently, UFC Head Tantrum Thrower Dana White has ordered a step up in the attacks on Scott Coker's lawn, with a bulldozer reportedly crushing a section of picket fence, a kiddie pool and a swing set outside of the Strikeforce promoter's San Jose home. "When will this carnage end?" said the teenager down the block, who was once paid $25 to mow Coker's lawn but is now left unemployed.

UFC 101 in Philadelphia Still Woefully Short on Eddie Alvarez

Saturday's UFC 101, which is slated for the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, is still woefully short on Eddie Alvarez - a man considered by all to be the greatest MMA fighter to ever emerge from the "City of Brotherly Love". The card, the organization's first in Pennsylvania, will feature lightweight champ BJ Penn defending his belt against Kenny Florian, while in the co-main event 185-pound champ Anderson Silva moves up to light-heavyweight to take on Forrest Griffin. Unfortunately, Alvarez, who has established himself as a top ten 155-pound wrecking machine and has seen success in DREAM and Bellator FC (the latter of which paid him $175,000 for his recent tournament-winning efforts), will be nowhere near the Octagon on Saturday. Said a randomly called resident of Philadelphia, "Who is this? What do you want? Don't ever call here again."

Fedor Signs With Strikeforce; Dana White Has Scott Coker's Lawn Defaced

According to a press release issued by Strikeforce, the organization has now signed the elusive Fedor Emelianenko to a multi-fight contract, with the Russian's first fight to air on Showtime in the fall. No word yet on specifics, such as date, location or opponent, but upon hearing this news UFC Chief Grudge Bearer Dana White reportedly ordered minions to deface Scott Coker's lawn in a fit of rage. The Strikeforce promoter's San Jose home was then allegedly assaulted with bags of flaming manure while a Honda Civic spun donuts on Coker's well-maintained turf.

A Piece of MMA History: "Battle at the Boardwalk"

Once upon a time (actually, February 18th, 2006), an Ed Hsu-run multi-discipline martial arts event came to the Atlantic City Convention Center. The event had everything - point karate matches, choreographed demos, boardbreaking, guys with foam katanas and naginatas beating on each other - and for MMA aficionados, there was a pro fight show at night. But history was made during the day, when Battle at the Boardwalk hosted New Jersey's first sanctioned amateur MMA event. From his seat cageside, USKBA grand pooba Paul Rosner coordinated the inspectors and judges, while within the cage, fighters like Greg Soto, Andrew Montanez, Derek Hopkins, Tim O'Connor and John Salgado threw down using new rules designed to make MMA more palatable to those aspiring fighters willing to step up. The experiment worked. Fifty billion events later and it seems that the whole amateur MMA industry has surpassed the pro side in terms of sheer volume (Kipp Kollar's Reality Fighting held an amateur event in Wildwood, New Jersey this past weekend; New Breed is holding a "Wilkie's Warriors vs. the World" event in Atlantic City in less than two weeks). That's a good thing. MMA is MMA, whether the competitors get paid or not, and today's amateur stars could be the pro superstars of tomorrow. And it all began with Battle at the Boardwalk.

Worthwhile Links

Some worthwhile links for you:

• Places like Massachussets, Vermont and New Hampshire are too far to drive, so I like to check out www.northeastmma.net . It used to be MassMMA.net, but they changed a while back. Good site for getting a report on the shows up there.
• Peter Storm's official UCL website is www.SaveValeTudo.com . You won't find anything on when and where the next show is - that info goes out via text - but you will find info on past events.
• Anil Melwani is the official UCL photog and his site is here - www.MMA.us .
• I've noticed a new trend in fight shows advertising on Facebook. This includes some under-the-radar events. It may merit a look-see if that's your thing.

A Review of "Welcome to the Underground"

Director Nick Oddo has completed his documentary on Peter Storm and New York City's Underground Combat League, and MMA Journalist attended a private screening on Staten Island yesterday. The film, called "Welcome to the Underground", covers a wide swath of UCL history exploring the promotion's origins and growth, and it doesn't shy away from delving into Storm's perspective and personal life along the way. It's at its most compelling when it centers around the underground fighters and their fights, and the events' behind-the-scenes happenings. I've been to every UCL except for one (hey, I was in Thailand getting married - cut me some slack), but I had no idea Kirkland Campbell actually talked. Or that Sekou Mau-Mau (the man with tattoos all over his face and a chin made of glass) was so delusional about his own abilities. Or that draining a cauliflower ear could be so gnarly. The documentary covers it all. At this stage, it's unclear where it will end up (maybe HBO, maybe Sundance, maybe somewhere else). It is, however, worth checking out wherever it lands.

Observations From My Couch: Affliction "Trilogy"

(The following is a news report from Bizarro World.)

• Despite a gutsy performance by the heroic Josh Barnett, which saw the Baby-Faced Assassin attempt every submission in the book while weathering a storm of punches from above, the God-like Fedor Emelianenko proved yet again why he's the best in the world. He pounded on Barnett relentlessly, convincingly earning the unanimous decision and prompting Randy Couture - who was ringside - to weep and shower the Russian with rose petals.
• Renato "Babalu" Sobral not only put Gegard Mousasi to sleep with an Anaconda choke, but he held it on for at least ten minutes. It took five ring officials, eight corner men, an announcer, a crowbar and the Jaws of Life to pry him off.
• Vitor Belfort needed only .7 seconds to unleash a flurry and knock Jorge Santiago out. To the naked eye, it looked as if the referee said "Go!" and Santiago just fell over; only when the instant replay aired in slow-motion did viewers realize what had happened.
• Heavyweight knockout artist Paul Buentello was successful in stunning Dutch kickboxer Gilbert Yvel, and in his stunned state, Yvel went on to eye-gouge the referee and his trainer.
• Takanori Gomi lost. Because he sucks.
• Overall it was an amazing event, and afterwards Head Seamstress Tom Atencio thanked the fans and promised that the best is yet to come.

Gordon Defeating LaMotte: Not An Upset, But A Forgone Conclusion

New Jersey fight circuit alum Doug Gordon subitted the highly-touted Nate LaMotte at Friday's inaugural American Steel Cagefighting event in New Hampshire, and to hear the blogosphere tell it, it was an upset of epic proportions. Sorry folks, but the outcome wasn't so much an upset as a forgone conclusion. "Flash" is actually one of the better fighters coming out of the Garden State scene (Gordon hails from Delaware). In his first MMA bout, he defeated a tough B-level fighter, and whenever he's lost it's been to either the absolute best or to superior wrestlers who got him down and kept him there. Gordon's strengths are his experience against top guys and his ability to end a bout on the feet or on the ground from the first minute to the last. Don't believe me? Google his fight against Gregor Gracie in Ring of Combat, which saw Gordon dominated for the first two rounds before he ended it with a spectacular high-kick KO in the third. Flash is the real deal, and now LaMotte and New Hampshire know what the rest of us already did: he's a killer.

A Collection of News Haiku

• Dana says he wants/Fedor in the UFC./Also, the man's soul.
• Tito is back. Um,/does anyone really care?/I sure as hell don't.
• Belfort will return/to the Octagon. Now that/is worth applauding.
• This week the press got/played by Zuffa like a horn./So what else is new?
• Jay Hieron to Strikeforce/to face Nick Diaz for title./All hail Scott Coker!
• Vadim Finkelstein - /Isn't that a funny name?/Go on, just say it.
• Barnett's B sample/came back positive. Guess that means/he's a damn juicer.