Werdum vs. Browne & Tate vs. Carmouche Set for UFC on Fox 11 in Florida

Werdum vs. Browne & Tate vs. Carmouche Set for UFC on Fox 11 in Florida
by Chris Houten - @mrhouts

A Heavyweight contenders match up between Fabricio Wedum and Travis Browne, as well has a battle between 2 former women's bantamweight title challenges in Meisha Tate and Liz Carmouche has been added to UFC on Fox 11. UFC officials confirmed the event on Monday evening.

UFC on Fox is slated for April 19th, and will take place at the Amway Center in Orlando Florida, home to the Orlando Magic, and the host of the 2012 NBA all-star game. The event’s main card airs on FOX in the US following prelims on FOX Sports 1 and UFC Fight Pass.  

Widely considered the no.1 contender in the UFC heavyweight division, BJJ world champion Fabricio Werdum (17-5-1, 5-2 UFC) enters the bout with Browne one a 3 fight win streak since returning to the UFC following the closer of Strikeforce. Wins over Roy Nelson, Mike Russow, and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, were believe to be enough to earn the 36-year old at shot at the UFC title, however with current champion Cain Velasquez out following shoulder surgery, Werdum has opted to fight Travis Browne for the no. 1 contender status.

6-foot-9 Hawaiian Travis Browne (15-1 MMA, 6-1-1 UFC) comes into the bout with Werdum on back-to-back-to-back Knockout of the Night performances. One of the breakout fighters of 2013, Browne came back from near defeat against Alistair Overeem to sandwiched a front kick KO victory in between viscous elbow knockouts of Gabriel Gonzaga and Josh Barnett. The only loss of Browne's career is to Antonio Silva in a bout in which Browne was winning before injuring his leg.

Having recently coached on The Ultimate Fighter and then lost a rematch with Ronda Rousey at UFC 168, Miesha Tate (13-5 MMA, 0-2 UFC) enters the bout with Carmouche looking for a much needed win. A stand out wrestler, Tate has dropped back to back fights to Cat Zingano who defeated Tate by TKO, and Rousey to who she lost to by submission. Although popular amongst fans, a loss against Carmouche could put Tate in danger out being cut.

Her opponent Liz Carmouche (9-4 MMA, 1-2 UFC) was the first women to fight and lose in the UFC octagon when she took on Ronda Rousey for the Bantamweight title. Carmouche bounced back with a victory over Jessica Andrade a few months later before losing her most recent bout against Alexis Davis in November. 

Neither Werdum vs Browne or Tate vs Carmouche is expected to be the main event of UFC on Fox 11.
 
   

A second TUF champion added to fight at UFC 171

Julianna Pena vs Jessica Andrade set to battle at UFC 171

by Ben Heather @benheather

After the recent announcement that the TUF 17 champ Kelvin Gastelum will face Rick Story at UFC 171 it has today been announced that he will be joined by the TUF 18 champ Julianna Pena will also fight on the card.

The first ever female TUF champion. Julianna Pena (5-2 MMA 1-0 UFC) is set to face Jessica Andrade (10-3 MMA 1-1 UFC) in her first UFC fight outside of the ultimate fighter tournament. Pena won the most recent series of The Ultimate by defeating Jessica Rakoczy by first round TKO after coming in to the tournament as team Tate's number 1 pick.

Her opponent at UFC 171 Jessica Andrade is very familiar to the UK fans after her one sided victory in her most recent fight against Rosi Sexton at UFC Fight Night Machida vs Munoz in Manchester this past October. In that fight she showcased her skills as a great martial artist, at just 22 and if it was not for the heart and determination of Rosi Sexton she would have won by TKO. I believe if she put the beating she did that night on anybody else, other than Rosi Sexton she would have been able to finish that fight but not that night in Rosi's hometown. Before that Andrade lost via TKO to Liz Carmouche in her UFC debut.

UFC 171 is headlined by the battle for the vacant UFC Welterweight Title between Johny Hendricks and Robbie Lawler.

Was 2013 The Greatest Year Ever for MMA?

Guest Blogger Emma McHale discusses if 2013 was the greatest year ever for MMA?
by Emma McHale of Sports Direct
Emma McHale trained as a web journalist at the University of Sheffield, has a passion for MMA and currently works at SportsDirect.com.  

MMA has started to become a mainstream sport recently and it is the worlds fastest growing sport. As 2013 comes to a close, we are going to look back at the top MMA moments of 2013 to see if 2013 really was the greatest year of MMA.
 
This has been one of the first years that young talented MMA fighters have completed dedicated training to become simply a MMA fighter. Previous MMA fighters started by learning a specific martial art such as Jiu Jitsu and then become a MMA fighter. This results in more interesting and tougher MMA fights. For example welterweight contender Rory MacDonald has only ever trained as a full mixed martial artist. 

This year celebrated the 20th anniversary of UFC with the UFC 167 event. This year also marked another key event with the introduction of the first women’s division and the first fight in the UFC between rivals Ronda Roussey and Liz Carmouche. 

There have been some of the best MMA fights this year ranging from Silva versus Weidman to Grice versus Bermudez. The year has been highlighted by top knockouts from Weidman, superb submissions from Pettis and controversial judging decisions after the St-Pierre versus Hendricks fight. 

Considered to be the greatest MMA fighter of all time, Anderson Silva lost his UFC Middleweight champion title to Chris Weidman with a knockout in the second round of the fight. The loss of the title was still a UFC record as it was the longest held title in UFC history after defending the title for seven years. “The Spider” and Weidman are due to have a rematch at UFC 168, but could this be the fall of a great MMA fighter? 

The UFC partnership with Fox has resulted in some of the highest viewer ratings since the partnership began in 2011. 

The BAMMA events get better and better every year. The recent partnership with Channel 5 has resulted in MMA becoming a mainstream sport. There are new fans anticipating the latest MMA fights and new participants looking to learn the combat sport. 

2013 may have been the best year of MMA. From the best fights of the year to the television highlights, MMA has come a long way since its humble beginnings of Brazilian jiu jitsu and shoot wrestling. 

Do you think 2013 was MMA’s greatest year? 

For the latest MMA and martial arts equipment ranging from MMA clothing to martial arts belts, check out the www.SportsDirect.com MMA collection. 

UFC Fight Night 31: Fight for the Troops 3 Main Card Predictions

UFC Fight Night 31: Fight for the Troops 3 Main Card Predictions
by Chris Houten - @mrhouts

The UFC is back on Wednesday showing some love to the US troops in Kentucky for UFC Fight Night 31: Fight for the Troops 3. There has been some grips about the quality of the card, but hey... its free, and what else are you doing on a Wednesday night (or Thursday for those with jobs like me).

Kingdom MMA writers Chris Houten and Ben Heather take a look at the main card for UFC Fight Night 31: Fight for the Troops 3 and give you their thoughts and predictions on the night affairs.

Michael Chiesa vs Colton Smith 

Houten: Its safe to say, year on year the winner of TUF get weaker and weaker. The fact that guys like Colton Smith and Michael Chiesa share the same honours as guys like Bisping, Evans, Griffin etc just isn't right.

I personally don't care about this fight, I would have rather had Camozzi vs Larkin, or Bermudez vs Siler on the main card because I don't expect this fight to be that good.

I do think Chiesa will take this one though by submission though much to the dismay of the troop... surely this is the more exciting prospect of a Smith cuddle hug victory.

Prediction: Michael Chiesa - Submission RD 2 

Heather: A battle of TUF winners here and also a potential showcase that the talent in the house recently has got very stretched. If either of these guys were in any of the earlier seasons they surely wouldn't have gone on to win.

I think Smith was exposed last time out and may be again, has any TUF champion gone 0-2 after the finale (yes I know he beat Ricci in the final) but i think Chiesa will have enough to take the win.

Prediction: Michael Chiesa - Unanimous Decision

Rustam Khabilov vs Jorge Masvidal

Houten: Fight of the night right her anyone? Who wins - the fans.....end of!

Prediction: The Fan

Heather: Khabilov has certainly excited the fans since arriving in the UFC and some great team mates to train with at Jacksons. I think he will carry on his path up the ladder of the lightweight division on Wednesday night.

Prediction: Rustam Khabilov - TKO RD 2


Ronny Markes vs Yoel Romero

Houten: Markes is likely to be better that Romero in most areas, but does that matter when you an Olympic wrestler? My answer is no! Romero could surprise us again with some 'flying shit' but its more likely he will take this fight to the ground as and when he wants. I expect him to grind out a unanimous 30 - 27 decision.... I cant guarantee excitement however.

Prediction: Yoel Romero - Unanimous Decision

Heather: This fight is one of the fights I am really excited to see on Wednesday night. Ronny Markes welcomes the heavy hitting Olympic wrestler Yoel Romero to the UFC and I think it is sure to bring the excitement.

I think Markes should be able to put his experience of fighting tougher opponents to use and I think after what should be a very exciting first round Markes will get the victory in the second if he doesn't get caught early on.

Prediction: Ronny Markes - Submission RD 2
 
Liz Carmouche vs Alexis Davis

Houten: Alexis Davis is currently considered the 3rd best 135 in the world at the moment, and with good reason too. Davis is on a good win streak, has descent boxing, and is one of the best submission artist in the female division.... She's also pretty big for the weight too.


Her opponent Carmouche is a great little wrestler, and her ground and pound is one of the best in the division.

With both fighters possessing unique skill sets, the stage is set for an intriguing fight which could go either way. I'm gonna go Davis in this one though by late submission victory. I do think Carmouche with drag this fight to the floor, however I can Davis catching Carmouche off her back to take the victory, setting up Davis as the no. 1 contender.

Prediction: Alexis Davis - Submission RD 2


Heather: after seeing what Andrade did to Rosi Sexton in Manchester by first thought was how good it made Liz Carmouche look in the way she beat Andrade last time out. Davis also beat Sexton in her UFC debut but I think Carmouche will have enough to get the win.

Prediction: Liz Carmouche - Unanimous Decision


Tim Kennedy vs Rafael Natal

Houten: A lot of people have complained about this fight.... "It's not main event worthy".... "worst main event in the history of The UFC" blah, blah, blah, personal fans need to look at the facts - it's on free television in the US, and all of the tickets have been given out for free to US soldiers, what's more a former Marine in Tim Kennedy tops the bill, in a fight he will win, again Natal who steps in as a late replacement for Lyoto Machida who was move to last weeks Fight Night 30 card where he replaced injured Michael Bisping.


One can't help but think the moving and shaking at the top of the 2 cards brought on a huge sigh of relief for Kennedy. Natal is a much easier fight for Kennedy that a Machida who just crippled a wrestler in Munoz far beyond Kennedy's skill set. I like Kennedy to stick in move in this one, keep Natal again the cage, and mix up takedown to take a convincing unanimous victory.

Prediction: Tim Kennedy - Unanimous Decision


Heather: Originally, when he was scheduled to fight Machida I had this as a fight to make Kennedy pay for speaking out against UFC pay and his lacklustre performance against Roger Gracie. Now after calling out the whole division he is set to fight Natal, this fight I now see as a give me fight to Kennedy and I think he will be too much of a step up in opposition for Natal.

Prediction: Tim Kennedy - Unanimous Decision

UFC on FOX 8 Weigh in results

Weigh in Results for UFC on Fox 8

by Ben Heather @benheather

Tomorrow nights UFC live from the Key Arena in Seattle Washington, is now set after the weigh ins have now made the fights official. The main event sees Demetrious Johnson attempt to defend his UFC Flyweight title for the 2nd time against John Moraga. This fight will be a step up for Moraga in terms of how many people get to see his fight as last time out he was fighting on the Facebook prelims of UFC 155 and now he is headlining a UFC on FOX event live on national TV in the USA. Johnson has looked impressive since it was first announced that the UFC would create a flyweight division and last time out put on a brilliant performance against John Dodson, who many people thought may have beaten him going into the fight. Both men weighed in within the 125lbs limit to make the fight official. Now its just a matter of time before we see if Johnson can remain undefeated at Flyweight in the UFC or will Moraga become the second Flyweight champion in UFC history.

In the co main event, we will see a welterweight fight which could have a massive impact on the welterweight division as Rory MacDonald is set to battle Jake Ellenberger. Both men weighed in under the 171lbs limit at the weigh ins, and they both know that a big win will move them a step closer to a potential title shot. If Rory wins and puts on a show tomorrow night that could leave him, GSP, the Tristar gym and the UFC with a massive dilemma to answer if GSP beats Johny Hendricks at UFC 167. Due to the timing of this fight and the title fight not due to take place until November I think the logical move would be to put the winner of this fight back in to action against the winner of the Condit vs Kampmann 2 which takes place at the end of August. That number 1 contender fight could take place in December leaving the winner to fight for the title early next year. However that being said, on a personal note I would love nothing better than to see GSP vs Rory.

Also on the main card we have a welterweight contest between Robbie Lawlor and Bobby Voelker in which we see two men having there second fight in the UFC since coming over from Strikeforce. Robbie Lawlor shocked a few people when he knocked out Josh Koscheck at UFC 157 and now looks to continue that good work against late replacement Voelker who stepped in on 16 days notice for this fight. Could that decision prove to be a good idea.... we will find out tomorrow night.

Finally we have Liz Carmouche vs Jessica Andrade. Carmouche will become the first women to fight twice in the octagon tomorrow night after being defeated by Ronda Rousey in the first ever women's fight in the UFC. Carmouche was originally slated to fight Miesha Tate before she got the opportunity to fight for the title and in the process coach on the next series of The Ultimate Fighter. This fight also marks the first women's MMA fight on network TV in the USA. Jessica Andrade will be making her UFC debut and has a 9-2 MMA record including fighting seven times last year. Andrade will be looking to make it three wins in a row tomorrow night but it will definitely be against her strongest opponent yet.

John Albert, Tim Means and Jorge Masvidal all missed weight, all of the other fighters made weight when they stepped on to the scales making all of the fights official. I expect John Albert and Jorge Masvidal to attempt to lose the last bit of weight but with Tim Means coming in 4 lbs over weight I expect him to lose a lot of money.

A full list of results from today's weigh in can be found below.

Main Card - Live on ESPN at 1am Sunday 28th July 2013

Demetrious Johnson (c) (124.5 lbs) vs. John Moraga (124.5 lbs)    
Rory MacDonald (170.5 lbs) vs. Jake Ellenberger (171 lbs)
Robbie Lawlor (170.5 lbs) vs. Bobby Voelker (170 lbs)
Liz Carmouche (136 lbs) vs. Jessica Andrade (134 lbs)   

Prelims - Live on UFC.tv

Michael Chiesa (155.5 lbs) vs. Jorge Masvidal (157.5 lbs)***
Danny Castillo (155 lbs) vs. Tim Means (160 lbs)** WTF
Mac Danzig (155 lbs) vs. Melvin Guillard (155 lbs)    
Yves Edwards (155 lbs) vs. Daron Cruickshank (156 lbs)   
Ed Herman (186 lbs) vs. Trevor Smith (185 lbs)   
Julie Kedzie (135.5 lbs) vs. Germaine de Randamie (135 lbs)

Facebook Prelims - Live on Facebook

Aaron Riley (156 lbs) vs. Justin Salas (155 lbs)   
John Albert (137 lbs)* vs. Yaotzin Meza (136 lbs)   

*John Albert has 2 hours to lose 1 lb
** Tim Means has 2 hours to lose 4 lbs
*** Jorge Masvidal 2 hours to lose 1.5lbs

Two more fights added to UFC on FOX 8

Flyweight Title fight to headline UFC on FOX 8

by Jack Broadey @J3cK_b

UFC on FOX 8 takes place July 27 in Seattle, Washington and it look like we have our complete card with the announcement of the headline fight.

Demetrious Johnson (17-2-1 MMA 5-1-1 UFC) and current UFC Flyweight Champion  is back from injury. He meets John Moraga (12-1 MMA 2-0 UFC) as his number 1 contender in a match that was briefly linked to the TUF17 Finale before injury scuppered that after surgery was needed to fix a torn labrum on Johnson's right shoulder.

This is a bit of a filler fight as the flyweight division searches for some order and gives a chance for new contenders to emerge. Johnson is the first and only UFC flyweight champion after coming through the tournament to kick the division off with a win over Ian McCall in the semis and defeating the highly rated Joseph Benavidez for the title. He defended his title for the 1st time at a previous FOX event UFC on Fox 6 where he beat John Dodson via decision.

 The card also got a boost with another intriguing fight added. Miesha Tate will try to get back on the title trail after her knockout loss to Cat Zingano with a fight against Liz Carmouche a former contender who was beaten by Ronda Rousey last time out. The division is very shallow at the moment so a win for either fighter puts them straight back into contention.