Andy Ogle vs Cole Miller Scheduled For Manchester

FIGHT NIGHT 30 SEE'S THE RETURN OF ANDY OGLE! 

By Tommy Strong @strong_tea

HELS BELS Photography

The UFC has announced a featherweight bout in Manchester England that will see Englishman Andy Ogle pick his wits against American Cole Miller at next months event, Fight Night 30 on Oct 26th.

Ogle (9-2) hasn't fought since February 16th, where he defeated John Grispi via unanimous decision in London, England. He was expected to fight Conor McGregor at UFC Fox Sports 1 in August, but was forced to pull out of the fight due to an injury and was replaced by Max Holloway.

Miller (19-8) a former 'TUF' 5 contestant has been around the UFC a lot longer, making his debut back in 2007 at the finals defeating Andy Wang inside the first round, since then Miller has gone on to have a further 13 fights inside the octagon.

Miller returned to featherweight last year and is now (1-3) , he will coming into the fight on the back of a close decision loss to Manny Gamburyan only last month and will be eager to keep his UFC career alive.

UFC Fight Night 30 in Manchester, will be headlined by middleweight title contenders Michael Bisping vs Mark Munoz, with the co-main event which will see a lightweight clash between Ross Pearson vs Melvin Guillard.

Rosi Sexton vs Jessica Andrade Scheduled For Manchester

Manchester Gets The UK's First Ever UFC Women's Bout

By Tommy Strong @strong_tea

UFC Fight Night 30 in Manchester will see England hold its first ever woman's UFC bantamweight bout when French born - Brit Rosi Sexton faces Jessica Andrade on the 26th October 2013.

Rosi made her UFC debut in June at UFC 161, when she faced Alexis Davis losing in a back and forth battle via unanimous decision. Rosi (13-3) isn't getting any younger and at the age of 36 will be eager to put one over her much younger opponent in Andrade. With the British crowd behind her she will have the home town advantage come October.

Brazilian Jessica Andrade (9-3) who is only 21, made her pro debut only 2 years ago but has been very active with 12 fights in just under 2 years. Andrade made her UFC debut in July when she fought Liz Camouche, losing in the 2nd round via TKO.

With both fighters looking to get back in the winning column the fans could be in for a real treat here.

UFC Manchester will see the much anticipated return of Michael "The Count" Bisping to the UK in a fight which could decide who will be the next number one contender when he takes on Mark Munoz in a middleweight battle.

UFC Manchester: Bisping v Munoz finalised

UFC Manchester 2013 is now official

by Jack Broadey @J3cK_b

The long rumoured second UK event of the year has now been officially announced. Michael Bisping vs Mark Munoz will headline the event at the newly renamed phones4u arena. Also it has been announced that Ross Pearson will fight Melvin Guillard in a lightweight showdown in the co main event.

No other bouts have been announced as of yet but they should steadily get released over the next week or so. Tickets will go on sale on August 19th from Ticketmaster and the phones4u arena website. Prices range from £75-£450.

There will be a host of UK talent hoping for the call up for this card on UK shores. Pretty much all the top UK stars would be available to fight on the card apart from Brad Pickett who fights next weekend. News on Dan Hardy has been quiet of late, after recent health problems so he may be considered for the card. John Hathaway has also had health problems which hopefully he is now over and he can get back in the Octagon after missing over 9 months of action now. Tom Watson has just suffered a tough loss to Thales Leites and this event may come to soon for him.

Phil Harris was supposed to fight at UFC 163 but a concussion forced him off the card. After an impressive win at Wembley early this year Harris will be hoping for a trip up North to Manchester. Vaughan Lee and Mike Wilkinson both suffered tough losses to top prospects in Brazil last time out but they deserve another shot here.

Rosi Sexton is the UK's first female fighter and could also be in the UK's first UFC women's fight. TUF Smashes winner Norman Parke toughed it out to win his second UFC bout against Tokudome and this will offer him a chance to fight in front of his UK fans. TUF Samshes runner up Brad Scott will be moving up to Middleweight and should get his first chance after taking winner Rob Whittaker all the way.

Chael Sonnen's number 1 pick Luke Barnatt was a popular member of the last TUF series and won his UFC debut against cast mate Colin Hart and he will be wanting to get on the card in Manchester. Andy Ogle was due to take on Conor McGregor but injury forced him out of that fight in Boston however he may be ready for this card instead.

We have a whole host of deserving fighters to make up the nucleus of an undercard here. Jimi Manuwa has been very quiet of late but he could face a step up in competition and take a main card slot.

Stay tuned as we expect matchups to be announced fairly quickly this week and as soon as they do we will bring them to you. Hit us up at @KingdomMMA to let us what you think of all things UFC Manchester. Potential match ups, what you'd like to see and who you think will win.

Bisping and Munoz verbally agree to fight in Manchester

Michael Bisping vs Mark Munoz expected to headline UFC return to the UK

by John Haigh @JohnBJayHaigh

The UFC is returning to Manchester for the first time in four years, and it is expected that the guy everybody loves to hate Michael Bisping will headline the fight card in a middleweight bout with Mark Munoz.

Bisping vs. Munoz is expected to headline the event rumoured to be a UFC on Fox Sports 1 event on 26th October in Manchester. The UFC was last in Manchester for UFC 105, which featured Randy Couture vs. Brandon Vera in the night’s main event.

This time around, Bisping takes center stage and is sure to draw a big crowd to Manchester Arena, when he and Munoz square off in a five-round, non-title main event. Bisping has been on the verge of getting a title shot for the past couple of years, but has twice been derailed; once in a decision loss to Chael Sonnen that many people feel he won the fight and then by a brutal KO at the hands of Vitor Belfort.

Bisping (24-5) most recently fought at UFC 159: Jones vs. Sonnen. He defeated Alan Belcher by a unanimous technical decision after the fight was stopped following an injury to Belcher’s eye. The injury happened as a result of an accidental poke to the eye by Bisping.

Munoz (13-3) is fresh off of a dominating performance over Tim Boetsch at UFC 162: Silva vs. Weidman on July 6 in Las Vegas. He had been sidelined for a year prior to the fight, battling injuries, depression, and extreme weight gain, but looked as good as ever in this fight.

Munoz had also been a step away from a shot at the UFC middleweight championship, but was stopped last summer by Chris Weidman, who recently upset Anderson Silva and shocked the mma world to win the stap and prove Silva is human.

UFC 162 Weigh in results

Weigh in Results for UFC 162

by Ben Heather @benheather

Tomorrow nights UFC live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas Nevada, is now set after the weigh ins have now made the fights official. The main event sees Anderson Silva attempt to defend his UFC Middleweight title for a record 11th time against Chris Weidman. Silva already holds the UFC record for most title defenses which currently stands at 10, however a lot of people have been saying that Weidman is different to all the other challengers and could me the man to beat the greatest MMA fighter of all time.  Both men weighed in within the 185lbs limit to make the fight official. Now its just a matter of time before we see if Anderson stays undefeated in the UFC or will Weidman shock the world and defeat the GOAT. All we know is somebody will be losing their undefeated record in the UFC tomorrow night.

In the co main event, we will see a featherweight fight as Frankie Edgar is set to battle Charles Oliveira in a bout which has could have title implications. Both men weighed in under the 146lbs limit at the weigh ins, and they both know that a big win will move them a step closer to a potential title shot. Frankie comes in to this fight needing to get a win, he has no worries for his job but having lost his last three fights (all of which were title fights in which many people thought he did enough to win each time but the judges gave it against him) he is desperate to get back to winning ways and work his way back in to contention.

That is not the only featherweight fight on the card as Cub Swanson will face Dennis Siver in a fight that was originally scheduled to be the co main event on the UFC on Fuel TV 7 event in London back in February. That time Siver had to pull out due to injury but now they will meet in the octagon. Again like the Edgar vs Oliviera fight a big win could put them at the front of the queue for a title shot. Cub certainly has done enough to get one in my opinion.

Also on the main card we have two middleweight contests in Roger Gracie vs Tim Kennedy we see two men making their debuts in the UFC and after Kennedy's comments before this fight he may need a good performance and more importantly a win if he intends on having more than just the one fight in the UFC. The other middleweight contest sees two former contenders try to get back to winning ways as Tim Boetsch and Mark Munoz meet in the octagon.

All of the fighters made weight when they stepped on to the scales making all of the fights official.

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

Main Card - Live on ESPN at 3am Sunday 7th July 2013

Anderson Silva (c) (184lbs) vs. Chris Weidman (185lbs)
Frankie Edgar (146lbs) vs. Charles Oliveira (144lbs)    
Tim Kennedy (186lbs) vs. Roger Gracie (186lbs)
Mark Munoz (185lbs) vs. Tim Boetsch (186lbs)
Cub Swanson (144lbs) vs. Dennis Siver (145lbs)   

Prelims - Live on ESPN at 1am Sunday 7th July 2013

Chris Leben (186lbs) vs. Andrew Craig (186lbs)    
Norman Parke (156lbs) vs. Kazuki Tokudome (155lbs)   
Gabriel Gonzaga (262lbs) vs. Dave Herman (242lbs)   
Edson Barboza (155lbs) vs. Rafaello Oliveira (155lbs)

Facebook Prelims - Live on facebook

Seth Baczynski (170lbs) vs. Brian Melancon (170lbs)   
Mike Pierce (171lbs) vs. David Mitchell (171lbs)   

Fighter vs Writer - UFC 162 Main Card Picks Challenge - Phil Harris vs Jack Broadey

UFC Fighter Phil Harris challenges Kingdom MMA in a picks challenge

by Jack Broadey @J3cK_b

Welcome to another Kingdom MMA fighter vs writer challenge.

For this challenge we challenge some of the big names from the world of MMA to give us their picks and fight outcomes for specific MMA events. Then they will be challenged by one of our writers, who will make their own predictions. Previously we have challenged Luke Barnatt twice and Jim Alers. Last time out at UFC 161 Jim Alers was the first fighter to beat one of our Kingdom MMA writers.

For this event I will be challenging Phil Harris, who is set to fight at UFC 163 will be predicting the fight outcomes from UFC 162 which is headlined by Chris Weidman challenging Anderson Silva for the UFC middleweight championship. 

Before we go in to the details of the competition we caught up with Phil Harris this week and spoke about his fight at UFC 163.

You are fighting at UFC 163 in Brazil and we all know the Brazilian crowd back their fighters more than any other fight fan in the world, how have you been preparing yourself mentally to enter the 'lions den'?
The Brazilian fans are well known for backing their fighters but once the cage door closes its me vs him so no matter who the crowd are cheering for this wont change my focus to win.

You are fighting John Lineker, who is considered a top 10 flyweight in the world. Do you think a win over Lineker cements your place in the top 10 rankings?
Beating John Lineker will definitely put me in the top 10, he's one of the best 125lb fighters in the world.

How has your training camp been for the fight, have you been working on improving any part of your game going into the bout?
Training has been great for this fight camp, just about all of my camp is done at gym01 in Portsmouth we have great coaches and a gym full of small guys so its ideal for me.

I believe you have also been out in Thailand training at Tiger Muay Thai ahead of this fight, is that something you do during most fight camps, or is your striking game something you have specifically worked on for this fight?
I went to Tiger Muay Thai before I knew about the fight, just to improve on my all round game but specifically my striking.

What areas do you feel you have an advantage over John Lineker?
John is obviously a good striker but I'm happy to trade with him but I think my advantage will be against the cage in the clinch and on the ground.

Are you hoping to fight again this year after UFC 163, would the Manchester event be a card you'd like to fight on?
I've not thought about fighting again this year, I want to get this fight done then make plans. It would be good to spend some time with the family after this fight.

Thank you for answering our questions Phil, now its time to start the competition.

The Scoring

If you predict the correct winner of the fight you will get one point and if you predict the correct method of victory you will get an extra point. However, if the fight ends in a stoppage and you predict the round as well the method you could earn a third bonus point. If the fight goes the distance you can only earn a maximum of two points.

The predictions:

Main Event: Anderson Silva vs Chris Weidman

Harris: Anyone who bets against Anderson is insane.

Prediction: Silva by TKO Round 2 

Jack: I'm torn on this one. Anderson can't go on forever and he will eventually lose to a top wrestler. I just don't know if that top wrestler will be Weidman. He certainly will take Silva down but can he rinse and repeat for 5 rounds? That's the big question for me. I'm just insane enough to believe he can do it.

Prediction: Weidman by Decision

Frankie Edgar vs Charles Oliveira

Harris: Frankie will comfortably win every round.

Prediction: Edgar by Decision

Jack: This is an awesome fight. Oliveira is no joke but he's no Frankie Edgar. I expect Edgar to stamp his authority on this one and get the finish.

Prediction: Edgar by TKO Round 3

Tim Kennedy vs Roger Gracie

Harris: I am not sure about this fight but I'm going for Gracie.

Prediction: Gracie by Submission Round 1

Jack: I like Gracie as well here. Could look very similar to Maia-Fitch but I also see Gracie eventually locking onto some sort of choke.

Prediction: Gracie by Submission Round 2

Mark Munoz vs Tim Boetsch

Harris: Tim Boetsch will take this fight. 

Prediction: Boetsch by Decision 

Jack: Difficult one to read. Munoz has been inactive for so long but Boetsch isn't all that great either. I think Munoz if he's anywhere near what he used to be should be able to take this down and use his G&P to win this.

Prediction: Munoz by TKO Round 2

Cub Swanson vs Dennis Siver

Harris: Cub will take this, he will out wrestle Siver.

Prediction: Swanson by Decision 

Jack: I Like Siver in the upset here. Siver has looked great since dropping down to Featherweight. I think he's the better technical striker and should be able to keep it up long enough to win a decision.

Prediction: Siver by Decision

So that's our predictions for the fights, we will be live tweeting on Saturday night as always and we will keep you all informed as to how the challenge is going with latest scores throughout the main card.

Thanks again to Phil for providing us with his picks for this weekends fights and it just leaves me to say.... May the best man win!!

UFC 162 Predictions

UFC 162 Predictions
by Tom Rooney - @oldmanrooney

The UFC is back in Las Vegas for what we are being told, not for the first time, is the toughest test of Anderson Silva’s career to date. Is the hype behind Chris Weidman genuinely justified or will he prove to be yet another unworthy pretender fed to the Spider, while the Dana and Co continue to dangle the super fight carrot without the slightest chance of follow through?

Elsewhere, the Featherweight rankings are set to oscillate once more with Frankie Edgar, in desperate need of a W, taking on Charles Oliveira and head hunters Cub Swanson and Denis Siver going toe-to-toe. The main card is completed by two Middleweight bouts between perennial contenders Mark Munoz and Tim Boetsch and octagon debutantes Roger Gracie and Tim Kennedy.


Anderson Silva v Chris Weidman
It’s probably a little redundant to highlight the plethora of ways the champion can win this fight; the man operates on a different plane to any other fighter on the planet and even the most casual of fight fans will have been witness to that. Weidman’s path to victory could not be more academic-get it to mat and be quick about it. At this stage Weidman’s credentials as both a wrestler and grappler have been extolled to the point of saturation and, to be fair, with good reason. He mixes his takedowns between Greco and Free-style intelligently and, when on top, he is equally brutal with ground and pound or submissions. But, herein lays the problem; while he has not put a foot wrong in his time in the UFC, on paper his highest ranked and toughest opponent thus far was a bloated, out of shape Mark Munoz. The jump in competition he will experience on Saturday night is so glaring that it’s near impossible to verbalise.

The variety and accuracy in Silva’s striking arsenal is breath-taking, he also possesses a stealth of movement and appreciation of space and angles that is truly unique. If Weidman can take Chael Sonnen’s game-plan from UFC 117 and appropriately modify it, at the very least, we’re in for an interesting night. In all honesty, since that night in August 2010, the champion has not been offered a challenge equating to more than a mid-tempo sparring session. If Weidman loses, but does so competitively, it will at the very least legitimise a division that no longer has anything to offer its champion, bar pay cheques.

My Prediction: Silva by TKO/KO in Round 3.

Frankie Edgar v Charles Oliveira
Frankie Edgar goes into his first non-title fight in over three years, knowing a loss against the dangerous Charles Oliveira could send him into MMA purgatory. His career since capturing the lightweight crown form BJ Penn, has been a litany of draws, re-matches and razor-thin decision losses. He debatably lost his last three fights because he was unable to assert himself in the opening two and-a-half rounds. A return to the three round time limit should compel him to make things happen from the off. He has better boxing and wrestling than Oliveira and has also fought a much higher calibre of opponent-the guy is also impossible to finish. Oliveira has a sound submission game and competent Maui Thai in which he utilises his long limbs to keep opponents at bay. But he has a questionable chin and heart as his fights with Cub Swanson and Jim Miller demonstrated respectively. In the end, Frankie needs it more.

My Prediction: Edgar by unanimous decision.

Roger Gracie v Tim Kennedy
There shouldn’t be too much pressure on Roger Gracie for his UFC debut; he’s only representing the name of a familial dynasty responsible for the entire sport’s existence! Beaten only once in his professional career, he and fellow Strikeforce ex-pat Tim Kennedy know a loss on Saturday means they could be on the chopping block with one more slip up. Kennedy is a powerful striker and decent wrestler, but Gracie’s BJJ is so refined that even the slightest error on Kennedy’s part could signal the end.

My Prediction:  Gracie by submission in Round 2.

Mark Munoz v Tim Boetsch
Mark Munoz looked to be on his way to a title shot until he was unceremoniously knocked out by Chris Weidman at UFC on Fuel TV in June of last year, since then he has overcome both mental and physical demons to make his UFC return against Tim Boetsch, also rendered unconscious in his last fight by Costa Philippou. Both guys are strong wrestlers, with seriously powerful, if uncouth striking. Munoz has the better wrestling pedigree and that should prove decisive.

My Prediction: Munoz by split decision.

Cub Swanson v Denis Siver
There is a credible argument to made, considering his last four fights that Cub Swanson should be facing Jose Aldo at UFC 163 and not the Korean Zombie, but the powers that be think otherwise and only time will tell. This one has fight of the night and/or knockout of night written all over it. Swanson is a pure beast and is one of the most destructive stand-up fighters in the division; he combines this ballast with a tapered technique. Siver is an outstanding kick-boxer and loves to brawl and his spinning back kick is always a sight to behold, yet Swanson is just a little better everywhere and will be out to prove a point after being overlooked for a title shot. Fireworks all round!

My Prediction: Swanson by KO/TKO in Round 2.

Stay tuned to Kingdom MMA for the latest on UFC 162

Video: Munoz "Lombard has been mediocre at best"

Mark Munoz talks Hector Lombard 

Following Lombard UFC on Fuel 8 loss to Yushin Okami, top 10 middleweight Mark Munoz (12-3, 7-3 UFC) went on record to give his opinion of Hector Lombards UFC performace:

“Since Hector Lombard has been in the UFC, he’s been mediocre at best," said Mark Munoz. "But at the same time, he’s been fighting high-caliber fighters. Yushin Okami has been in the top five for a long time, you know, so he’s no slouch. At the same time, he was asking for a title shot, I felt he needed to prove his own in the weight class. So he’s being introduced to the UFC."

"Down the road if it presents itself, yeah I’d fight Hector Lombard. I’m definitely a guy that accepts any fight that the UFC throws at me, you know? I’m that guy. But at the same time I wanna show the world that I can definitely compete at that weight class and I can fight high-caliber fighters.”