2008-10-21 KICK DOWN 56 "CHAMPIONS" KICK DOWN 56 "CHAMPIONS" Nick Honstein VS Brett Roller Bryant Craven VS Sebastian Puente On Saturday November 1, 2008 the Kick Down MMA promotion will present a stellar show which will feature the main event between current Feather Weight Professional champion Nick Honstein (5-0)who will make another title defense against veteran mixed martial arts fighter Brett Roller(12-3). Bryant Craven (12-5) the current Welterweight professional champion will face Sebastian Puente (1-0 and 7-0 combined) Every fighter that competes is considered to be a champion. On November 1st there will be several champions on the card at Kick Down 56. A fight card which will feature up to 13 bouts and 8 titles will be contested. Fighters from Colorado, Wyoming, Nebraska, and other parts of the region will participate in the 56th Kick Down event and close out it's 7th year in operation. Main Event Nick Honstein VS Brett Roller Kick Down Professional Featherweight Title 5-0 12-3 CO MAIN EVENT Bryant Craven VS Sebastian Puente Kick Down Professional Welterweight Title 12-5 1-0 (7-0 Combined amateur and professional record) Robert Martinez VS Chris Saucedo Kick Down am Welterweight Title 7-0 6-3 Cameron Thurgood VS Frank Morris Kick Down Bantomweight Title Brenton Swanson VS Alex Whipple Kick Down am Jr. Lightweight Title Nick Medina VS Nick Macias Art Brown VS Josh Cole Kick Down am Middleweight Title Ben Hicks VS Cody Combee Lannon Quintana VS Mitch Schoenwolf Kick Down am Lightweight Title Garth Heth VS Darrin Coe Matt Vigil VS Richard Large Kick Down am Featherweight Title TBD VS Pat Lyotte Anthony Werner VS Logan Petro 2008-10-21 Elite XC down for the count Elite XC down for the count By Dave Meltzer, Yahoo! Sports 14 hours, 14 minutes ago Buzz Up PrintRelated Video Catch UFC 90 on Y! Catch UFC 90 on Y! More MMA Videos More From Dave MeltzerKoscheck unafraid of uphill climb Oct 20, 2008 Vera set for crucial test against Jardine Oct 17, 2008 Elite XC, which produced seven of the 10 most-watched MMA matches in U.S. history on two CBS specials in recent months, will be closing its doors at the end of the week. This leaves a roster of fighters, including top draws Kimbo Slice and Gina Carano, looking for work in a constricted environment. Elite XC joins the International Fight League and Bodog Fight as high-profile competitors to the industry leader, the Ultimate Fighting Championship, to fold during the past year. With deals with CBS and Showtime, the latter a major shareholder, Elite XC had the exposure the other failed challengers lacked, but lost more than $55 million in its two years of operation. Its losses included having a bad television deal in the first year with Showtime, causing them to lose money on every show; losing millions on trying, and failing, to build a website that was designed to be a destination for the MMA community; and purchasing four promotions outright and putting money into a fifth. One of them, the U.K.-based Cage Rage promotion, set them back $18 million in losses. “I got a call earlier [Monday] telling me they were shutting down,” said Frank Shamrock, who was a television commentator, a main event fighter and a shareholder in the promotion. Elite XC’s two biggest attractions, Slice and Carano, are unlikely to be moving to the sport’s highest-profile group. UFC president Dana White has repeatedly said he won’t use Slice, who made his reputation as a backyard streetfighter on YouTube videos but is not the caliber of even a mid-level MMA pro. White also has said he’s not interested in promoting women’s fighting, although Carano’s success as a draw may cause him to reconsider. Her match with Kelly Kobold two weeks ago ended up adding more new viewers than any MMA match on television in the U.S. ADVERTISEMENT Several agents for fighters have been in contact all day with the UFC. Some, like welterweight champion Jake Shields, would be welcomed into the promotion. It had been widely known that due to the losses, and the inability to raise new capital, that the Elite XC would either be sold to Showtime or be forced to fold by the end of the year. Others within the company said bankruptcy papers would be filed. Kelly Kahl, the CBS senior executive vice president of programming operations who oversaw the three Elite XC events on the station, declined to comment on the situation. It is not known if CBS will start its own MMA company or strike a deal with one of the two companies left standing, the UFC or Affliction. Affliction was a sponsor and co-promoter of the Oct. 4 show, paying for the Andrei Arlovski-Roy Nelson match. The other active match promotion, Strikeforce, has a late night television deal with NBC, which has had preliminary talks with the company about doing live events. The Elite XC sale was believed to be close to completion heading into the Oct. 4 show on CBS. The show was a ratings success, beating both Major League Baseball playoff games and both major college football games in the target male 18-49 demographic, but left the brand tainted due to a controversy stemming from the main event. CBS funded the event because Elite XC didn’t have the money to continue while negotiations for the sale continued. Ken Shamrock, scheduled as the opponent of Slice, got into a money argument with Elite XC officials before the show, and then, to blow off steam, did a training session in which he suffered a cut above his eye that required stitches. When he returned from the hospital, the Florida State Boxing Commission wouldn’t allow him to fight. Seth Petruzelli, a journeyman fighter in a light heavyweight preliminary match, was chosen as the fill-in opponent for the 236-pound Slice, and the scenario couldn’t have gone worse, as Slice charged in, Petruzelli threw a jab on one leg and still knocked Slice down, and finished him with punches on the ground in 14 seconds. While CBS officials were thrilled with the ratings, a controversy over a radio interview done by Petruzelli looks to have foiled the purchase. “The promoters kind of hinted to me and they gave me the money to stand and trade with him,” Petruzelli said two days after the fight on “The Monsters in Orlando” radio show. “They didn’t want me to take him down. “Let’s just put it that way. It was worth my while to try and stand up and punch with him.” The next day Petruzelli said that what he meant was that he was offered a bonus for a knockout. Jeremy Lappen the head of operations for Elite XC confirmed Petruzelli got a knockout bonus, believed to be between $20,000 and $30,000 to go along with his $35,000 guarantee and $15,000 win bonus, but not a submission bonus. A media outcry followed, with accusations a company official tried to manipulate the fight in favor of Slice, even though it backfired, leading to an investigation by the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulations. The question was whether Petruzelli was offered a bonus to not take Slice down, which would be illegal, as opposed to a knockout bonus, which is legal and not uncommon. With the investigation started, Showtime pulled out of negotiations and people inside the company were being told all day that Elite XC was shutting down. Keith Kizer, executive director of the Nevada State Athletic Commission, said Monday that he had not received word that the next show, scheduled for Nov. 8, in Reno, Nev., had been canceled. But the website Graciefighter.com, which represents Cesar Gracie, the manager of Nick Diaz, who was scheduled to fight next month, wrote Monday night, “We are confirming that Elite XC has folded. What this means for our fans and supporters is that there will not be a Nick Diaz vs. Eddie Alvarez fight on Nov. 8.” 2008-10-07 Sadollah Returns at UFC 91 Sadollah Returns at UFC 91 in November Amir Sadollah’s emergence on the mixed martial arts scene earlier this year as the winner of The Ultimate Fighter’s seventh season was one of 2008’s great stories. On November 15th, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, his saga continues as he returns to the Octagon to take on unbeaten newcomer Nick Catone on the televised portion of UFC 91: Couture vs Lesnar. 2-0 in his pro career, the 28-year old Sadollah stunned fight fans earlier this year as he tore through the field on The Ultimate Fighter, defeating Steve Byrnes, Gerald Harris, Matt Brown, and CB Dollaway (twice), with all of his victories coming via submission or TKO. In Catone (6-0), Sadollah will be facing a former Division I wrestler from Rider University with a purple belt in jiu-jitsu who has finished his last four opponents in the first round. “From what I can tell, he is a tough guy, with a good wrestling and jiu-jitsu background,” said Sadollah of Catone. “I’m sure it’s going to be a very tough fight and I am approaching this seriously, as if I was fighting any other top contender.” Also added to the UFC 91 main card is a heavyweight matchup between highly-regarded contender Gabriel Gonzaga and UFC debutant Josh Hendricks. Gonzaga (9-3) broke a two-fight losing streak in impressive fashion at UFC 86 in July, submitting Justin McCully in the first round. Hendricks (14-4), a two-time All-American wrestler, comes to the UFC unbeaten in his last ten fights, with all but one of those wins coming in the first round. In preliminary action on November 15th, lightweight prospect Jeremy Stephens (15-3) looks to bounce back from a hard-fought decision loss to Spencer Fisher in June when he squares off against Pancrase and Shooto veteran Rafael dos Anjos (11-2), who will bring a nine fight winning streak into his Octagon debut. Tickets for UFC 91: Couture vs Lesnar are on sale now. 2008-10-07 K-1 GP 16 Results K-1 World Grand Prix In Seoul Final 16 Results 1. K-1 Rules Bout: Keijiro Maeda defeated Min-Ho Song by TKO at 1:43 of rd 3 2. K-1 Rules Bout: Zabit Samedov defeated Fabiano Da Silva by unanimous decision 3. K-1 Rules Bout: Randy Kim defeated Yong Soo Park by TKO from kicks at 1:11 of rd 2 4. K-1 Final 16 Bout: Ruslan Karaev defeated Chalid "Die Faust" Arrab by TKO from strikes at 2:30 of rd 2 5. K-1 Final 16 Bout: Jerome Le Banner defeated Junichi Sawayashiki by 6. K-1 Final 16 Bout: Gokhan Saki defeated Ray Sefo by unanimous decision after a tie-breaker additional rd 7. K-1 Final 16 Bout: Errol Zimmerman defeated Glaube Feitosa by unanimous decision 8. K-1 Final 16 Bout: Remy Bonjasky defeated Paul Slowinski by decision (30-29, 30-30, 30-29) 9. K-1 Final 16 Bout: Ewerton Teixeira defeated Musashi by unanimous decision 10. K-1 Final 16 Bout: Badr Hari defeated Hong-Man Choi by TKO (corner threw in towel) before the start of the first extended round 11. K-1 Final 16 Bout: Peter Aerts defeated Semmy Schilt by decision (30-29, 30-29, 30-30) Winners of the K-1 Final 16 bouts move on to the tournament finals on December 6th 2008-10-07 Pancrase News! PANCRASE 2008 Shining Tour Results From the Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan King of Pancrase Light Heavyweight Title Match: 1. Ryo Kawamura defeated Keiichiro Yamamiya by unanimous decision 2. Koji Oishi defeated Naoyuki Kotani by unanimous decision 3. Ichiro Kanai defeated Hiromitsu Kanehara by unanimous decision 4. Takenori Sato defeated Yuji Hisamatsu by unanimous decision 5. Yuichiro Shirai "Yukito" vs. Ranki Kawana was judged a draw 6. Maximo Blanco defeated Hiroki "AB" Aoki by TKO at 0:22 of rd 1 7. Yasutomo Tanaka vs. Hayato Shimizu was judged a draw 8. Kiyotaka Shimizu vs. Takuma Ishii was judged a draw 2008-10-07 UFC in Asia UFC move on to South-East Asia in 2009 The Ultimate Fighting Championship has not hidden its desire to expand its brand across the world. The UFC has yet to return to Japan and Brazil, countries that they haven’t been to in many years, but they have recently expanded into Canada, following a strong building process in Northern Ireland and England. “We're focused on Germany, the Philippines, and Australia next,” UFC president Dana White stated earlier this year. “Germany is what we’re looking at next.” Some of the speculation about Germany has quieted recently, but don’t be surprised if the promotion announces a date at the O2 World Arena in Berlin sometime soon. “The Philippines is definitely happening, we're working on that right now, Australia and Germany, those three are right now,” said White. After UFC owner Lorenzo Fertitta and Octagon star Chuck Liddell’s recent publicity junket to the Philippines drew more than 4,000 fans to a one-hour open work featuring Liddell, no one should be surprised that a more strict timeline has been factored into the UFC’s planned expansion for Southeast Asia. Company projections currently call for a UFC landing in the Philippines sometime in the summer of 2009, according to a report on UFC.com. “Chuck is a rock star over here,” Fertitta told UFC.com from his stop in the Philippines. “He walks in the hotel and there are people all over him, and then we ended up doing a public training session and over 4,000 people showed up at the Mall of Asia just to see him. It was very interesting, even at times a little bit scary because there were so many people there.” In some way, the UFC, which already has a broadcast television deal with the ABS-CBN network in the Philippines, has arguably gone more mainstream in Southeast Asia than it has in America. “When we came to the hotel, we checked in about 6:30 in the morning and there were about 20 photographers waiting for us. Then we held a press conference at nine and there were multiple TV stations and reporters. It’s beyond the imagination. They have a full day of press for us tomorrow, and I’ve got to be honest, I knew that we were growing internationally, but I don’t think I really had an appreciation for the amount of momentum we truly have until I came over here and saw it for myself.” With Summer 2009 now penciled in on the docket, Fertitta says the UFC is already planning for its first event in the Philippines. Not only will they bring stars like Liddell to Southeast Asia, but just as they did in Canada, England, and Northern Ireland, the UFC plans to use regional fighters in the Octagon. “It will be a combination of bringing over some of our stars and then hopefully having some local Filipino fighters, and maybe bringing in some of the guys from Japan and South Korea,” said Fertitta. As many other promotions have fallen to the wayside or are currently struggling financially, the UFC machine only seems into ever-higher gears as the days roll on. With Germany and the Philippines starting to take shape, maybe fans in Australia can start holding their breath. 2008-10-07 UFC Dublin UFC ANNOUNCES FIRST EVENT IN DUBLIN, IRELAND 2009 KICKS OFF WITH LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT SHOWDOWNS HENDERSON vs. FRANKLIN COLEMAN vs. SHOGUN II Live From the O2-Dublin – Saturday, January 17, 2009 Las Vegas, NV (USA) – The world’s most exciting sport returns to the Emerald Isle as the Ultimate Fighting Championship® (UFC®) organization opens up 2009 with the star-powered UFC 93 card at the O2-Dublin in Dublin, Ireland on January 17, 2009. In the light heavyweight main event, former two-division world champion Dan Henderson will collide with former UFC middleweight king Rich Franklin in three-round war which will set the tone for the 205lbs division in 2009. Then, 2005 PRIDE® Grand Prix Champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua returns to the Octagon™ to throw down with UFC Hall of Famer Mark Coleman in a rematch MMA fans thought they would never see. The pair last met in Japan in 2006, with the legendary Coleman pulling off a stunning upset by breaking Rua’s arm in the first round. “Rich Franklin vs. Dan Henderson is a battle between two great former champions who are both looking to get another chance to wear a world title around their waist,” said Dana White, UFC President. “Franklin is the former UFC Middleweight champion, and he’s a dangerous striker with solid submission skills – he also showed great takedown defense in his September destruction of powerful wrestler Matt Hamill. Dan Henderson is the former PRIDE Welterweight and Middleweight champion. He’s a world class wrestler, known for his great chin and his one punch knockout power. He defeated formidable Brazilian submission specialist Rousimar Palhares in September. These are two fan favorites with a lot of pride on the line as they want to show that they are still among the very best fighters in the world.” "We are delighted to be returning to the Emerald Isle again, especially with such blockbuster main and co-main events,” said Marshall Zelaznik, UFC UK Division President. “The O2-Dublin is a fantastic venue that will create a memorable UFC experience. After smashing box office records in Belfast in June 2007, we promised our Irish fans we would be coming to Dublin, and now on January 17 the world’s most exciting live sports experience travels across the Irish Sea - we know this will be a great night for our fans.” Ticket on-sale date and purchase information for UFC 93 will be announced shortly. UFC 93 will be available on pay-per-view at 10 p.m. EST/7 p.m. PST on iN DEMAND, DIRECTV, DISH Network, TVN, Bell ExpressVu, Shaw Communications and Viewer’s Choice Canada for a suggested retail price of $44.95 for standard definition or high-definition broadcasts (where available); UFC fans also have the option to watch the UFC 93 pay-per-view live from Dublin, Ireland at 3pm EST/12Noon PST. The only fighter to ever hold the PRIDE 205-pound and 183-pound titles simultaneously, Temecula, California’s Dan Henderson (23-7) has a body of work which stands favorably against any resume in the fighting world today, with his victories over the likes of Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Wanderlei Silva, Murilo Bustamante and Vitor Belfort just scratching the surface of what he’s accomplished in his 11 year career. A two-time United States Olympian in Greco-Roman wrestling who is fresh off a dominant win over Rousimar Palhares at UFC 88, the 38-year old Henderson’s grappling ability and concussive right hand power has set him in good stead as he looks to take out Rich Franklin on January 17th and continue on his march to his first UFC title. “This is the fight my fans have wanted for a long time now, and they want to see me fight Rich Franklin,” said Henderson. “I think this will be a great fight for Ireland, it definitely will be exciting because we both like to stand and bang, and we both have knockout power. I’m excited to go to Ireland and to take on Rich; I think he’s a tough opponent and a huge challenge, but I don’t see myself losing to him.” One of the UFC’s most popular fighters, 34-year old Rich “Ace” Franklin (26-3, 1 NC) began his MMA career as a light heavyweight, going 15-1 with 1 no contest in the process. It was a detour to the 185-pound division that made him a star though, as he won the UFC middleweight title in June of 2005 and successfully defended his crown twice with big wins over Nate Quarry and David Loiseau before losing to current champion Anderson Silva. In 2008, the well-rounded Cincinnati, Ohio native decided to challenge himself at light heavyweight once again, and his third round TKO of highly-regarded Matt Hamill in September sent a clear message out to his fellow 205 pounders that not only was he back, but that he is looking to take care of some unfinished business in his old weight class. “Dan Henderson has great credentials, and he is going to be one of the toughest fights of my career,” said Franklin. “That being said, I’m planning on winning the fight, and I’m looking forward to fighting in the main event and fighting in Ireland. I love the fans, and the way they react by singing and chanting makes it a unique experience for me.” A true pioneer of the game whose influence is felt to this day, Columbus, Ohio’s Mark “The Hammer” Coleman (15-8) proved that wrestlers not only could be successful in mixed martial arts, but that they could dominate. An NCAA Champion and member of the 1992 US Olympic team, Coleman first competed in MMA at UFC 10 in 1996, winning three fights in succession to win that night’s tournament and introduce a new phrase into the sport’s vernacular – Ground and Pound. Another tournament win followed just two months later, and at UFC 12 he defeated future Hall of Famer Dan Severn in less than three minutes to become the first UFC Heavyweight Champion. A stellar career in Japan’s PRIDE organization followed, and in 2006, he handed his UFC 93 opponent – Mauricio “Shogun” Rua – his first loss in three years. On January 17th, the 43-year old Coleman – who was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame earlier this year – returns to the Octagon for the first time since 1999, and he promises to be better than ever. Just 26 years old, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua (16-3) has done more in nearly six years than most do in an entire career. A fearsome striker whose aggression has made him one of the game’s most avoided figures, Rua had perhaps the greatest run any mixed martial artist has ever had in 2005, when he won the PRIDE Grand Prix tournament by knocking out current UFC star Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, decisioning Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, stopping Alistair Overeem, and knocking out Ricardo Arona. Four more PRIDE wins followed for the native of Curitiba, Brazil, with his only loss ever in the organization coming in 2006 via an injury-induced TKO to the man he will face this January, Mark Coleman. At UFC 93, Rua hopes to get a little revenge along with his first UFC win. Further fights for UFC 93 will be announced shortly. For more information on the UFC visit ufc.com or uk.ufc.com or ufcespanol.com.