Carlos Condit pulls upset on Nick Diaz to take UFC interim welterweight title, loser says he’s done

Posted by jmusc on Feb 5, 2012 in Featured Articles, Fight News | 0 comments

By Steve Cofield

LAS VEGAS — Nick Diaz is brilliant at playing mind games with his opponents. Carlos Condit never took the bait before or during the fight, stuck to the gameplan and outsmarted Diaz to get himself a share of the UFC welterweight title.

Condit moved beautifully all night and landed 60-plus kicks. He never stood in front of Diaz for more than a few seconds. It all added to a unanimous decision victory, 48-47, 49-46 and 49-46, in the main event of UFC 143 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center.

Condit picks up the UFC’s interim welterweight belt. The champion Georges St-Pierre is sidelined until late 2012 after undergoing surgery for a torn ACL. UFC president Dana White couldn’t say for certain before the fight if the winner tonight would sit out 8-9 months until GSP is ready.

Condit was a pretty big underdog at plus-185. The Diaz-GSP fight was expected to be one of the fights of 2012. A St-Pierre-Condit fight won’t have the sizzle, but it should be a helluva fight based on what the new interim champ showed tonight.

Diaz’s behavior is nearly impossible to predict. He shocked few by complaining about the decision, but then threw everyone for a loop saying he’s had it with the sport.

“I’m not going to accept this as a loss. I pushed him back all fight. I’m happy for Carlos and his family, but I think I’m done with MMA,” said Diaz.

Diaz is just 29 years old and one of the rising stars of the sport. He’s got a bright future with massive earning potential.

“I don’t need this [expletive]. He ran from me this whole fight. I landed the harder shots.. He kicked me in the leg with little baby kicks. I don’t want to play this game no more. I’m out of this [expletive],” said Diaz.

The judges made the right call. The first round was tough to call with Condit starting out strong and Diaz closing well. Condit ran a little too much in the second and lost the round. He corrected his mistake from there and was simply brilliant in the final three rounds. Diaz stalked him for 15 more minutes ate kick after kick. By the time Diaz tried to settle and throw Condit was nowhere to be found. He scooted out of the way in most cases it looked like a classic Diaz 10-12 punch flurry was coming. The work to Diaz’s legs really sapped him late. He looked a step slow in the final round.

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Alistair Overeem vs. Brock Lesnar Full Fight Video HD

Posted by jmusc on Feb 3, 2012 in Featured Articles, Fights | 0 comments

Watch the full fight Overeem VS. Lesnar in full HD quality. 

Brock Lesnar took one last kick to his stomach and crumpled at the side of the cage, unable to fight back when Alistair Overeem pounced. Lesnar had been finished by a 6-foot-5 Dutch kick boxer in the first round at UFC 141. A few minutes later, the UFC’s former heavyweight champion finished his own meteoric mixed martial arts career.

Lesnar retired from the UFC after Overeem stopped him with one vicious kick to the body at 2:26 of the first round in their heavyweight bout Friday night, leaving the UFC heading into 2012 without its biggest pay-per-view star.

“This is the last time you’ll see me in the octagon,” Lesnar said.

Largely thanks to his fame from a career in pro wrestling, the hulking Lesnar (5-3) played a significant role in expanding the UFC’s profile and fan base over the past four years. He beat Randy Couture in 2008 to win the heavyweight title, defending it twice before losing the belt to Cain Velasquez last year.

But Lesnar has fought just three times in the past 2½ years while dealing with bouts of a lower-intestinal ailment that nearly killed him. The accumulation of pain and rehabilitation finally undid Lesnar, whose famed strength and stubbornness couldn’t overcome diverticulitis. “I’ve had a really difficult couple of years with my disease, and I’m going to officially say tonight is the last time,” Lesnar said.

Lesnar’s return from a 14-month injury absence was a short, one-sided beating. After taking damage from two knee blows early on, he couldn’t recover from a kick to the liver from Overeem (36-11), who made a stellar UFC debut despite getting cut near his right eye by a punch from Lesnar.

The 34-year-old Lesnar’s announcement stunned fans who already realized he faced a difficult matchup in the UFC’s traditional end-of-the-year event in its hometown. The matchup was a classic MMA clash of styles, with Lesnar’s brute wrestling contrasting sharply with Overeem’s vicious striking. “I had no idea he would do that, (but) am I surprised? No,” UFC President Dana White said. “Brock Lesnar has made a lot of money in his career and has achieved a lot of things. … He brought a lot of excitement to the heavyweight division. What he accomplished in a short amount of time is amazing, but I get it. It doesn’t shock me.”

Overeem is three years younger but much more experienced than Lesnar, hurting the former champion at least twice earlier in the round while Lesnar failed in his attempt at a one-legged takedown.

“I promised my wife and my kids if I won this fight, I would get a title shot, and that would be my last fight,” Lesnar said. “But if I lost tonight … you’ve been great.”

Overeem will get the next shot at UFC heavyweight champion Junior Dos Santos, who watched from a seat near the octagon.

Overeem is a champion kick boxer who has fought in multiple promotions over the past decade, winning titles in Dream and Strikeforce with nearly unbeatable striking and size. He joined the UFC in September, finally presenting his formidable skills and intimidating physique to the sport’s largest audience. “My experience in UFC was, it’s huge,” Overeem said. “I think it’s like 100 times bigger than Strikeforce. K-1 (kick boxing) is big, but this is a lot bigger. I was a little bit blown away, still am. I loved every second of it.”

White might have given an immediate title shot to Overeem if the timing had been better, but Dos Santos only claimed Velasquez’s belt in early November. Overeem welcomed a debut against Lesnar, even guaranteeing a knockout in the first two rounds. “First or second round, I promised,” Overeem said.

Lesnar hadn’t fought since losing his heavyweight belt to Velasquez in October 2010, cancelling a bout against Dos Santos last June in Vancouver after another flare-up of diverticulitis. The former NCAA wrestling champion and fake WWE wrestler kept his unparalleled popularity during his recovery, and Lesnar used the time off to modify both his diet and his standup game, attempting to improve his biggest weakness. As it turned out, Lesnar couldn’t improve enough to contend with the supremely skilled Overeem, who embraced Lesnar afterward.

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Dan Henderson vs. Mauricio Shogun Rua – UFC 139 Full Fight Video

Posted by jmusc on Jan 30, 2012 in Featured Articles, Fights | 0 comments

They are calling this one of best fights in UFC history. You have to see this fight. Watch It right here while you can!

Click for the Full Fight Video  NEW HD LINK

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Frank Mir Breaks Nogueira’s Arm In Gruesome Submission (Video)

Posted by jmusc on Dec 11, 2011 in Featured Articles, Fight News | 0 comments

Former heavyweight champion Frank Mir became the first man to submit Brazilian great Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira in mixed martial arts competition, finishing him with a horrific first-round kimura in the co-main event. The hold snapped Nogueira’s shoulder out of place in gruesome fashion, eliciting the tapout 3:38 into round one.

“Now I’m the first person to knock him out and the first person to submit him,” Mir said.

Nogueira (33-7-1, 1 NC, 4-3 UFC) had Mir badly hurt before the submission. He landed a right hook, backed it up with a left and put Mir on wobbly legs. It went to the ground, and Nogueira swarmed with punches, closing fast on the finish. Somehow, the Las Vegan survived.

“I was stunned. I was really trying to play out the first three or four minutes to see what he was doing differently,” Mir said. “He caught me. I didn’t come up to my knees, so he couldn’t drive into me. I kept flat, chest heavy and was able to break it. That’s what I trained for.”

During a subsequent scramble, Mir (16-5, 14-5 UFC) caught the arm, locked up the kimura and wrenched. Nogueira tried to roll free, but Mir only cinched it deeper. Ultimately, the arm snapped and Nogueira tapped in visible pain.

“I honestly hope that Nogueira ends up being OK,” Mir said. “I idolize him. When you’re our size and you’re as dangerous as we are, things happen. You can get caught. It takes nothing away from Nogueira.”

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Ladies and Gentlemen Your New Champion Junior Dos Santos

Posted by jmusc on Nov 12, 2011 in Featured Articles, Fight News, MMA EVENTS | 0 comments

1 Miniute and 04 seconds in the first round and it is all over. Dos Santos hammers the champ Cain Velasquez with a vicious right hand. Seemingly uneventful for such an enormous venue. Somewhat old school Mike Tyson PPV feeling. But you can’t take anything away from the Brazilian who has waited all his life for this moment.

“I have no words to say what I am feeling,” dos Santos said from the Octagon as tears began to well up in his eyes. “It’s amazing, my life. I want to say thank you to my family. I have a lot of good people around me.”

The fight marks UFC’s network debut as part of a seven-year deal with FOX. The main event was originally scheduled to headline next Saturday’s UFC 139 card, but was moved up to headline the initial FOX broadcast. Each fighter entered with an unblemished record in UFC competition.

Velasquez’s attempt to defend his title didn’t last long.

“He kind of messed up my equilibrium,” Vesasquez said of the hard right that hit him near the left ear. “It was a good shot. He has a lot of power. I waited too much for him and he did what he was supposed to do. Hats off to him tonight.”

Velasquez last fought October 2010 at UFC 121 at the same arena as Saturday’s contest. He won via a first-round TKO over Brock Lesnar, but Velasquez sustained a torn rotator cuff in his right shoulder that required surgery. Dos Santos has quickly risen through the heavyweight ranks since the Brazilian’s first fight stateside three years ago, including a victory by decision over Shane Carwin at UFC 131 in June.

“I want to say sorry to all my fans, my family and friends,” Velasquez said as his eyes scanned the partisan stands, where many wore the colors of Mexico to support him. “I disappointed you. I am much more than this. I will come back and I will get this belt back.”

The 6-foot-1 Velasquez weighed in at 249 pounds on Friday, while the 6-foot-4 dos Santos came in at 239.

There were eight fights on the undercard before the main event got underway. Benson Henderson defeated Clay Guida by unanimous decision in the undercard headliner, which is expected to lead to a shot at UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar when the UFC returns to Japan on Feb. 25.

Dustin Poirier moved toward featherweight contention with a submission win over Pablo Garza, while Ricardo Lamas came back after falling behind early to submit Cub Swanson in their featherweight encounter.

DeMarques Johnson scored a first-round TKO just 1:34 into the first round of his welterweight bout when he knocked his opponent Clay Harvison to the canvas and pounced on him, raining strikes down before the referee called the bout to a halt.

In his first UFC bout, Darren Uyenoyama beat MMA legend Kid Yamamoto by decision in a bantamweight bout. Robert Peralta scored a third-round TKO over Mackens Semerzier in a featherweight encounter, while Alex Caceres, Mike Pierce and Aaron Rosa all scored victories in their bouts.

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