Friday, March 19, 2010
Liveblog: UCC Part 3
It's time for Claudio Ledesma vs. Jimmie Rivera. The first round can be described with one word: "control". As in, Rivera has it completely. From his insurmountable sprawl to his throws to his positional dominance on the ground, Rivera totally dictates where this one is fought. Round 2 is again all Rivera, as is Round 3, and though Ledesma hangs tough and defends Rivera's sub attempts well, there's no question the TSMMA rep has earned the unanimous decision when time runs out. Ultra-old schooler Glen Sandull enters to take on FFA's Robert Rodriguez in a light-heavyweight contest. How old school is Sandull? He was Reality Fighting's heavyweight champ back in 1953. That's old school. Rodriguez, however, directed such fine films as "From Dusk Till Dawn" and "Desperado", so this one should be a barn-burner. The opening has Sandull doing what he does best, which is takedowns and ground and pound. Rodriguez is on to him though, and in Round 2 he manages to land some kicks and punches before Sandull inevitably puts him on his back. But all it takes is one mistake, which Sandull makes when he shoots and leaves his neck exposed. Rodriguez taps him with a guillotine at 1:11 of Round 3.
Liveblog: UCC Part 2
First into the cage is Team TKO 126 pounder Timm Kitts and AMA FC 136 pounder Doug Miller. Miller's got UFC fighter Charlie Brenneman and ace coach Mike Constantino in his corner, so even though this is his pro debut, he's at least got that going for him. What else does he have going for him? A right hand and the confidence to throw it, and after landing a few of them a bout-ending cut opens over Kitts' eye. The official time of the TKO stoppage is 1:06 of the first round. As an aside, the lights keep getting lowered and even go off at one point, so props to these two guys for fighting ninja-style in the darkness. ATT's Sean Soriano (145 pounds) and Freestyle Fighting Academy's Denis Hernandez (144 pounds) are up next. Anyone curious as to why two Florida schools are clashing here in New Jersey? I know I am. But in lieu of asking, I'm just going to make something up, like: they're both wanted by the authorities in Florida for alligator rustling. Round 1 sees Soriano get the takedown and spend the duration trying fruitlessly to pass the guard. Hernandez, meanwhile, comes close with two armbar attempts but almost gets slammed on his head for it. Round 2 is more of the same until Soriano opens up a bad cut over Hernandez's eye just before the bell. The doctors wave this one off in between rounds, giving Soriano the win.
Liveblog: UCC Part 1
MMA Journalist is here at the Armory in Jersey City for the inaugural Urban Conflict Championship, the newest addition to the Garden State's pro MMA scene. In case you're wondering, the event gets its name from the amount of "urban conflict" one witnesses traveling from the PATH station to the venue. But hey, what's Jersey City without a knifing every other block, right? Anyway, there are nine bouts scheduled, with Philly fighter Lamont Lister set to scrap against Ironhorse MMA rep Ryan Contaldi for the coveted UCC "Sceptre of Fabulosity", while TSMMA's Jimmie Rivera and NJ MMA's Claudio Ledesma are doing battle for the "Pimp Hat of Respek" (sic). So yeah, it should be a good night.
Inaugural Women's Independent World MMA Rankings: March 2010
March 19, 2010: We are proud to announce the launch of the Women's Independent World MMA Rankings. These rankings are independent of any single MMA media outlet or sanctioning body, and are published on multiple web sites, as well as www.IndependentWorldMMARankings.com.
Much like the Men's Independent World MMA Rankings, which were launched last June, the Women's Independent World MMA Rankings are based purely on the votes of the members of the voting panel, with nobody's vote counting more than anybody else's vote, and no computerized voting.
The rankings will be tabulated and published on a monthly basis, with fighters receiving ten points for a first-place vote, nine points for a second-place vote, and so on.
According to the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts, the official names of the weight classes in women's MMA are Middleweight for the 145-pound division, Welterweight for the 135-pound division, Lightweight for the 125-pound division, and Featherweight for the 115-pound division.
The members of our voting panel are instructed to vote primarily based on fighters' actual accomplishments in the cage/ring (the quality of opposition that they've actually beaten), not based on a broad, subjective perception of which fighters would theoretically win hypothetical match-ups.
Inactivity: Fighters who have not fought in the past 12 months are not eligible to be ranked, and will regain their eligibility the next time they fight.
Disciplinary Suspensions: Fighters who are currently serving disciplinary suspensions, or who have been denied a license for drug test or disciplinary reasons, are not eligible to be ranked.
Changing Weight Classes: When a fighter announces that she is leaving one weight class in order to fight in another weight class, the fighter is not eligible to be ranked in the new weight class until she has her first fight in the new weight class.
Catch Weight Fights: When fights are contested at weights that are in between the limits of the various weight classes, they are considered to be in the higher weight class. The weight limits for each weight class are listed at the top of the rankings for each weight class.
The members of the voting panel for the Women's Independent World MMA Rankings are, in alphabetical order: Nicholas Bailey (MMA Ratings); Jim Genia (Full Contact Fighter, MMA Memories, and MMA Journalist Blog); Yael Grauer (MMA HQ); Jesse Holland (MMA Mania); Robert Joyner (Freelance); Zac Robinson (Sports by the Numbers MMA); Leland Roling (Bloody Elbow); Michael David Smith (AOL Fanhouse); Joshua Stein (MMA Opinion); and Ivan Trembow (Freelance).
Special thanks to Eric Kamander, Joshua Stein and Yael Grauer for their invaluable help with this project, and special thanks to Garrett Bailey for designing our logo.
March 2010 Women's Independent World MMA Rankings
Ballots collected on March 16, 2010
Middleweight Rankings (136 to 145 lbs.)
1. Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos (9-1)
2. Erin Toughill (10-2-1)
3. Marloes Coenen (17-4)
4. Gina Carano (7-1)
5. Yuko "Hiroko" Yamanaka (7-1-1)
6. Shana Olsen (3-0)
7. Cindy Dandois (2-0)
8. Malissa Sherwood (3-1)
9. Amanda Nunes (5-1)
10. Jamie Seaton (2-1)
Welterweight Rankings (126 to 135 lbs.)
1. Sarah Kaufman (11-0)
2. Tara LaRosa (18-1)
3. Roxanne Modafferi (14-5)
4. Takayo Hashi (12-2)
5. Hitomi Akano (15-6)
6. Shayna Baszler (10-6)
7. Miesha Tate (8-2)
8. Adrienna "AJ" Jenkins (17-2)
9. Vanessa Porto (10-4)
10. Jennifer Tate (6-1)
Lightweight Rankings (116 to 125 lbs.)
1. Rosi Sexton (10-1)
2. Aisling Daly (9-0)
3. Tara LaRosa (18-1)
4. Emi Fujino (8-3)
5. Sally Krumdiack (7-3)
6. Lynn Alvarez (5-1)
7. Rin Nakai (6-0)
8. Lena Ovchynnikova (6-0)
9. Monica Lovato (4-1)
10. Matsumi Kasai (4-0)
Featherweight Rankings (106 to 115 lbs.)
1. Megumi Fujii (19-0)
2. Yuka Tsuji (22-2)
3. Lisa Ward (12-5)
4. Mei "V Hajime" Yamaguchi (6-2)
5. Jessica Pene (7-0)
6. Jessica Aguilar (7-3)
7. Kyoko Takabayashi (10-4)
8. Angela Magana (8-4)
9. Elena Reid (4-0)
10. Saori Ishioka (8-4)
Much like the Men's Independent World MMA Rankings, which were launched last June, the Women's Independent World MMA Rankings are based purely on the votes of the members of the voting panel, with nobody's vote counting more than anybody else's vote, and no computerized voting.
The rankings will be tabulated and published on a monthly basis, with fighters receiving ten points for a first-place vote, nine points for a second-place vote, and so on.
According to the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts, the official names of the weight classes in women's MMA are Middleweight for the 145-pound division, Welterweight for the 135-pound division, Lightweight for the 125-pound division, and Featherweight for the 115-pound division.
The members of our voting panel are instructed to vote primarily based on fighters' actual accomplishments in the cage/ring (the quality of opposition that they've actually beaten), not based on a broad, subjective perception of which fighters would theoretically win hypothetical match-ups.
Inactivity: Fighters who have not fought in the past 12 months are not eligible to be ranked, and will regain their eligibility the next time they fight.
Disciplinary Suspensions: Fighters who are currently serving disciplinary suspensions, or who have been denied a license for drug test or disciplinary reasons, are not eligible to be ranked.
Changing Weight Classes: When a fighter announces that she is leaving one weight class in order to fight in another weight class, the fighter is not eligible to be ranked in the new weight class until she has her first fight in the new weight class.
Catch Weight Fights: When fights are contested at weights that are in between the limits of the various weight classes, they are considered to be in the higher weight class. The weight limits for each weight class are listed at the top of the rankings for each weight class.
The members of the voting panel for the Women's Independent World MMA Rankings are, in alphabetical order: Nicholas Bailey (MMA Ratings); Jim Genia (Full Contact Fighter, MMA Memories, and MMA Journalist Blog); Yael Grauer (MMA HQ); Jesse Holland (MMA Mania); Robert Joyner (Freelance); Zac Robinson (Sports by the Numbers MMA); Leland Roling (Bloody Elbow); Michael David Smith (AOL Fanhouse); Joshua Stein (MMA Opinion); and Ivan Trembow (Freelance).
Special thanks to Eric Kamander, Joshua Stein and Yael Grauer for their invaluable help with this project, and special thanks to Garrett Bailey for designing our logo.
March 2010 Women's Independent World MMA Rankings
Ballots collected on March 16, 2010
Middleweight Rankings (136 to 145 lbs.)
1. Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos (9-1)
2. Erin Toughill (10-2-1)
3. Marloes Coenen (17-4)
4. Gina Carano (7-1)
5. Yuko "Hiroko" Yamanaka (7-1-1)
6. Shana Olsen (3-0)
7. Cindy Dandois (2-0)
8. Malissa Sherwood (3-1)
9. Amanda Nunes (5-1)
10. Jamie Seaton (2-1)
Welterweight Rankings (126 to 135 lbs.)
1. Sarah Kaufman (11-0)
2. Tara LaRosa (18-1)
3. Roxanne Modafferi (14-5)
4. Takayo Hashi (12-2)
5. Hitomi Akano (15-6)
6. Shayna Baszler (10-6)
7. Miesha Tate (8-2)
8. Adrienna "AJ" Jenkins (17-2)
9. Vanessa Porto (10-4)
10. Jennifer Tate (6-1)
Lightweight Rankings (116 to 125 lbs.)
1. Rosi Sexton (10-1)
2. Aisling Daly (9-0)
3. Tara LaRosa (18-1)
4. Emi Fujino (8-3)
5. Sally Krumdiack (7-3)
6. Lynn Alvarez (5-1)
7. Rin Nakai (6-0)
8. Lena Ovchynnikova (6-0)
9. Monica Lovato (4-1)
10. Matsumi Kasai (4-0)
Featherweight Rankings (106 to 115 lbs.)
1. Megumi Fujii (19-0)
2. Yuka Tsuji (22-2)
3. Lisa Ward (12-5)
4. Mei "V Hajime" Yamaguchi (6-2)
5. Jessica Pene (7-0)
6. Jessica Aguilar (7-3)
7. Kyoko Takabayashi (10-4)
8. Angela Magana (8-4)
9. Elena Reid (4-0)
10. Saori Ishioka (8-4)
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Predictions for UFC on Versus 1: "And You Thought The Market Was Saturated Already!"
The good news is that the UFC is on the Versus channel this Sunday night, bringing to you a dose of even more MMA. The bad news is that the UFC is on the Versus channel this Sunday night, bringing to you a dose of even more MMA. At what point does the market get so saturated that fight fans lay siege to Castle Zuffa, burning torches and pitchforks in hand? I don’t know, but here’s some predictions.
- Jon Jones is the current “super-hot rising star bad mamma-jamma”. Brandon Vera was the “super-hot rising star bad mamma-jamma” about four years ago. I guess someone had to headline this first UFC on Versus show though, right?
- Right?
- Junior dos Santos is the current “extra-awesome deluxe killer assassin”. Gabriel Gonzaga was the “extra-awesome deluxe killer assassin” about three years ago. I guess someone had to be the co-main event though, right?
- Right?
- Win or lose against Paul Buentello, Cheick Kongo will always have his acting career to fall back on. Wasn’t he awesome in “Gladiator” and “Never Back Down”?
- James Irvin and Alessio Sakara are two guys who are really good at striking and really good at getting messed up. Expect a lot of torn ligaments, broken bones, KOs and blood. And that’ll just be from their walk from the locker room to the cage!
Urban Conflict Championship to Feature Conflict in an Urban Setting
The Urban Conflict Championship, the newest addition to New Jersey's pro MMA scene, debuts on Friday at the Armory in Jersey City, and the card promises close to a dozen bouts - some of them pretty compelling. Team Tiger Schulmann 145-pound stud Jimmie Rivera is taking on North Jersey MMA's Claudio Ledesma, a fighter with a jiu-jitsu background, knockout hands and enough of an amateur record to be considered "seasoned". Meanwhile, big-punching veteran Josh Key is getting a crack at American Top Team rep at Hitalo Machado, Gold Team Fighters foot soldier Marcos Rodrigues will face up-and-coming Bombsquad powder keg Kenny Foster, and old schooler Glen Sandull and a very badass Dave Branch are returning to the cage. According to the UCC's promoter, Dan Hardy should be in attendance with a "UFC Primetime" camera in tow, but who cares about that? The fights alone should be worth the trip.
Tune into MMA Journalist for some liveblogging if you can't make it.
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