MMA News and Discussion Thread

[ZJ Penn]

This is the press release in full for those who can't be bothered to go looking.

M-1 Global and WAMMA Heavyweight Champion Fedor Emelianenko recently issued a statement that proposes a bout between Fedor and new UFC Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar:

M-1's Official Statement on Brock Lesnar's victory

M-1 would like to congratulate Brock Lesnar on his UFC heavyweight title victory as well as acknowledge Randy Couture's return to active competition after a layoff that lasted over a year.

Couture and WAMMA heavyweight champion Fedor Emelianenko had publicly acknowledged a desire to fight each other multiple times over the course of the past year. While M-1 and Fedor remain interested in a match against Couture, we would also like to publicly state for the record that we would welcome a superfight between Fedor and Lesnar that would be held as a co-promoted event between the UFC, M-1, and Affliction Entertainment.

We've invited the media to speak with us today to not only make it clear we would welcome a Fedor vs. Lesnar matchup but to act in a preemptive fashion to address the possibility that UFC officials will try and position Lesnar as the No. 1 heavyweight in the world, much like they have tried to use a marketing ploy to brand Anderson Silfva as the number one pound-for-pound fighter in the world.

In the past, UFC president Dana White and Zuffa, LLC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta have tried to claim that Fedor was "overrated" and that his "record was irrelevant." They make these claims in spite of the fact that Fedor holds career victories over UFC champions past and present. While we have tremendous respect for the contributions Mr. Fertitta and Dana have made to this sport, we do not believe they are sincere in their statements.

It is the position of M-1 that the UFC has adopted an anti-Fedor policy because multiple attempts to sign him have not been fruitful. For a company that has tried to market itself as the number one promotion in the world, they are unable to accept the fact that the number one fighter in the world does not reside on its roster of contracted fighters.

We believe that the UFC has determined that it's much more inexpensive for them to use their marketing resources to use smoke and mirrors to brand a fighter as the pound-for-pound best as opposed to actually paying the pound-for-pound best what he is truly worth on the open market.

While Brock Lesnar is an accomplished athlete and a talented fighter, we do not consider him to be the number one heavyweight in the world. Until someone beats him, we strongly believe that Fedor should continue to be recognized as the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world. In a match between Fedor and Lesnar, we do not feel that at this stage Lesnar would be able to make it out of the first round.

For those who feel our statements in regards to Fedor are self-serving, we'd like to refer you to a video interview on the website RawVegas.tv in which at his UFC 91 after-party Couture himself acknowledges that "Fedor would probably tear Brock up at this point."

Jerry Millen, M-1 Vice President

I like the way it starts off as a "congratulations" then gradually defends into "Fedor's the best, he'd beat Lesnar inside 5 minutes."

Edited November 19, 2008 by Zombie Lesnar

[Quom]

Any news of the PPV buyrate?

[Guest Mr. Potato Head]

It'll take probably another week until early estimates come out, maybe a month for the final number.

[Mancuerda]

It's the truth. Lesnar would be destroyed by Fedor. Some of you are probably thinking he wouldn't, but there's no way Lesnar will be able to defeat Fedor.

Keep in mind, I don't think Lesnar could be Nogueira, and Fedor has beaten Nogueira twice rather handily.

EDIT:

UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva, currently the most popular pick for the world's top pound-for-pound fighter, may not retire when he turns 35 after all.

Silva gave the MMA world a jolt when, during a September interview with a Brazilian cable channel, he said was planning to retire after he turns 35 and fulfills the terms of his current UFC contract.

Silva, who's expected to headline UFC 95 on Feb. 21, turns 35 on April 14, 2010. He has five fights remaining on his current UFC deal.

And while Silva would like to conclude his stellar career while on top of his game, his manager, Ed Soares, told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) the retirement at 35 is far from a guarantee.

"Here's the situation," Soares said. "His goal when we signed with the UFC was for him to retire at 35 years old. That was the goal, and I think we need to keep that goal in check. We work to follow through with that goal. Now, he's 35 in only 18 months, so ideally, my goal as his manager is to put him in a situational financially so that when he's 35, if he feels like retiring, he'll be able to retire.

"But that doesn't mean he will necessarily retire at 35. ... At the end of the day, man, when gets to 35, he could feel like he has a few more fights in him."

So the retirement talk is primarily a source of motivation not for Silva, but for Soares himself?

"Of course -- and for people to go buy those pay per views now," Soares joked.

Regardless of the end date, Silva has a minimum of five challenges ahead of him. He's recently begun training with famed boxing coach Freddie Roach and shows no signs of slowing down as his supposed retirement date beckons. Silva could could put those new striking skills to use for an overseas event.

Silva recently defended his title with a third-round TKO of Patrick Cote at UFC 90, and he's expected to return next at UFC 95 in London, England.

While there have been rumors of a fight with Chuck Liddell at the February event, Soares said nothing is definite and that they haven't even met with the UFC about the event.

"Next week I'm meeting with (UFC President) Dana (White), and hopefully we finalize who his opponent is and where it's going to be," Soares said.

But is Silva open to the Liddell fight?

"He wants to fight against the best," Soares said. "Whoever the best is, that's who we want to fight. If whoever the world, the fans, want to see, that's what we're here to do. Anderson never picks his opponents. He wants to fight against the best, and if it happens to be at 205 pounds, he'll fight at 205. If it happens to be at 185 pounds as a title defense, it'll be a 185-pound title defense. Anderson just wants to put on history-making fights."

Basically, UFC is an utter failure when it comes to challenging this guy. Yushin Okami, yes. Michael Bisping, yes. Demian Maia, yes. Dan Henderson or Rich Franklin at 205? Yes.

Chuck Liddell? The Ice Man? The guy who's lost 3 of his last 4 fights and hasn't held a title in a year and a half? The guy whose wide stance and low hands are perfect for a Muay Thai expert for Anderson Silva, who decimated Chris Leben, who uses a similar style?

Yeah right...

Former UFC Welterweight Contender Jon Fitch may be gone. And it's not even regarding his fighting ability.

According to reports, UFC asked Fitch to sign over likeness rights over to the UFC on a lifetime basis. Fitch refused to sign and Fitch was let go.

Fitch was approached about the issue when he agreed to fight Akihiro Gono at UFC 94. And when he/his representatives negotiated the video game deal they were not able to reach an agreement and Fitch was released. Fitch won a UFC record 8 fights in a row and his last fight was a loss to Gerorges St. Pierre in a title fight last August.

Heavyweight Christian Wellisch also refused to sign and reports say he was also let go.

(Sources: Mmamania.com & Fightopinion.com)

UFC lets the #2 Welterweight in the World go over some licensing rights? Sounds fishy to me...

Edited November 20, 2008 by Master Shakespeare

[Guest Mr. Potato Head]

I barely trust Gerweck to get wrestling stories right, certainly not MMA. Especially because today's Observer mentioned the potential for a Fitch fight in January.

[Mancuerda]

What about the sources they used, MMAMania and FightFinder? Are those credible?

I'm new to the "MMA News" scene, so I'd like to know which sites are more credible than others. I've been an MMA fan for several years, but didn't get into the politics of it until this year.

EDIT: Fightoption, rather. Not FightFinder.

Anyway, it seems fishy, so I just wonder what's up...

Edited November 20, 2008 by Master Shakespeare

[DeeJam]

I use MMANews for my...uh...MMA News.

They haven't steered me wrong so far.

[Mancuerda]

I've been using Sherdog and Gerweck for MMA and wrestling news, respectively, but if people feel Gerweck isn't reliable, I'd be willing to switch. I used to use 411, but I personally don't find their validity to be too comforting. I don't like WrestleZone (and it's not very reliable either). I guess I'll have to go with WrestleView or something...

Anyway, what does everybody think of Anderson Silva's future? He only wants financial security at 35 and doesn't necessarily want to retire, and he wants to fight the best the world has to offer... yet he's getting spoon fed Chuck Liddell, a guy he'll wipe the floor with.

[DeeJam]

Anderson Silva is the best fighter in the world. There are very few fighters in the 185 and 205 divisions that won't look like they're being spoon fed to him.

Silva seems like a guy who won't be fighting in his 40s. He'll finish out this contract, sign a huge contract to stay with UFC, finish it out, and retire.

[Mancuerda]

Anderson Silva is the best fighter in the world. There are very few fighters in the 185 and 205 divisions that won't look like they're being spoon fed to him.

Silva seems like a guy who won't be fighting in his 40s. He'll finish out this contract, sign a huge contract to stay with UFC, finish it out, and retire.

Eh, I really disagree. I don't think Anderson Silva has proven he's the best fighter in the world at all. He's definitely a top five in the world, but to say confidently that he is the best fighter in the world, how is he better than Fedor Emelianenko? How is he better than GSP or BJ Penn?

Fedor Emelianenko has convincingly beaten the #2 ranked Heavyweight in the World and current UFC Interim Heavyweight Champion, Antonio "Minotauro" Nogueira on two occasions, and defeated in his last fight a #5 ranked Heavyweight in 36 seconds. He's been undefeated for eight years (really, I consider him undefeated period, but he had to withdraw from a tournament due to a cut and the guy who illegally cut him advanced, and the screwed up officials counted it as a loss since somebody had to advance).

St. Pierre defeated Matt Hughes twice when Hughes was still in his prime. He rebounded from a fluke loss to Matt Serra and destroyed him. He defeated Jon Fitch when Fitch was ranked the #2 Heavyweight in the World, and defeated Josh Koscheck, another top 5 heavyweight. His only real challenge that lay ahead will be in either Thiago "Pitbull" Alves or BJ Penn, who isn't even in his weight class...

BJ Penn has held championships in both the Welterweight and Lightweight division, and has even fought in the 205 pound weight division before (albeit in a losing effort, but only at 190 pounds against STILL undefeated 205 pound Lyoto Machida. The mere fact the 155-pound Penn was able to fight Machida for three rounds without being knocked out or submitted proves SOMETHING). On top of that, he decimated Sean Sherk and has victories over Matt Hughes, Renzo Gracie and Jens Pulver.

Meanwhile, Silva hasn't fought Okami, Filho, or Lawler. He hasn't even fought Demian Maia or Michael Bisping yet, two top challengers in the Middleweight Division. He's proven he can beat some talented individuals, but hasn't had the challenges the caliber of GSP, Penn, or Fedor, and for that reason, he is NOT the best pound for pound fighter in the world. But that's not the only reason.

You can also use Silva's record. He's been defeated four times. However, you can argue that he's a "different fighter now", and I would agree.

Let's not forget that both Dan Henderson and Travis Lutter were able to control Anderson Silva for significant portions of his fight. He put himself in compromising positions and almost got defeated, but managed to catch them later for the win. GSP, Penn, and Fedor are known as being dominating fighters who rarely get in a position where they look weak or may lose the fight.

Anderson has a ways to go before he's the pound for pound best, no matter what moniker UFC undeservedly gives him.

[Quom]

I barely trust Gerweck to get wrestling stories right, certainly not MMA. Especially because today's Observer mentioned the potential for a Fitch fight in January.

I dunno it's being reported somewhat widely Supposedly upon arriving in Hawaii Dana basically said he wants nothing to do with AKA anymore and the whole lot are out including Koscheck after his next fight. Swick is meant to be the sole survivor.

[Fitzy]

Here's the story from MMAJunkie. Josh Koscheck and Cain Velasquez could be next to join Fitch and Christian Wellish. But for some reason Mike Swick is allowed to stay...unless he is leaving AKA in order to stay with UFC?

A bitterly angry Dana White said Wednesday the Ultimate Fighting Championship has cut highly regarded welterweight contender Jon Fitch and is not going to do business with any fighters who are part of the American Kickboxing Academy team in San Jose, Calif.

The outspoken UFC president said shortly after landing in Hawaii on Wednesday that he no longer wants to work with AKA fighters or those represented by DeWayne Zinkin and Bob Cook.

White said he excepted AKA welterweight Mike Swick from that group because he said Swick called him and told him he wants to fight for the UFC. But Fitch and heavyweight Christian Wellisch were cut on Wednesday, and heavyweight prospect Cain Velasquez and welterweight Josh Koscheck could be next.

"We're looking for guys who want to work with us and not against us, and frankly I'm just so [expletive] sick of this [expletive] it's not even funny," White said from Honolulu, where he flew Wednesday from Toronto to hold a news conference to announce the B.J. Penn-Georges St. Pierre fight for UFC 94 on Jan. 31 in Las Vegas.

"Affliction is still out there trying to build its company. Let [Fitch] go work with them. Let him see what he thinks of those [expletives]. [Expletive] him. These guys aren't partners with us. [Expletive] them. All of them, every last [expletive] one of them."

Fitch said Wednesday the dispute was over his reluctance to sign a lifetime contract to allow his name and likeness to be used in a video game the UFC is planning with THQ. He said the dispute has nothing to do with money and that he never caused a problem during his time in the UFC.

He said he simply didn't understand the need to sign a lifetime contract, particularly since it would not pay his family in the event of his death.

"Working for free and selling our rights away for lifetime, that's a little different," said Fitch, who said he hasn't spoken with White but plans to call him. "We tried to negotiate five- or 10-year deals with them, but it wasn't good enough. It was all or nothing. He wanted our lifetime. He wanted our souls forever."

White said the AKA fighters "aren't partners with us" and said they don't understand what the UFC is trying to do for the sport. White said the UFC's current success was because of long hours he and partner Lorenzo Fertitta have put in trying to build the company and the sport of mixed martial arts.

White complained that he has to make frequent sacrifices in his personal life and is away from his family for long stretches because of his commitment to growing the UFC. He said the AKA fighters don't understand the things UFC management is trying to do and said they'll learn how tough things are in the poor economy.

"There are a lot of guys who help us and work with us and are great partners with us, and they're the ones we're going to remember and take care of," White said. "Do these guys understand what is going on in this world? I'll tell you, this economy is [expletive] up. It's totally [expletive] up. It's bad, real, real bad. The [television] networks are in trouble and don't have money. The sponsors are in trouble, and they have no money. If they don't have money, they go out of business.

"It's a whole other world out there, believe me, and let these guys go out there and see what they find."

White said he took great care of Fitch and said with bonuses and purse, Fitch made $169,000 for his welterweight title fight loss to St. Pierre at UFC 87 in Minneapolis in August. Fitch (17-3 with 1 no-contest) did not dispute that salary figure. He said the UFC "has taken care of me and you've never heard me complain about money. This is a respect thing."

Fitch said he thought there should room to negotiate on these contracts but said the UFC would not budge.

He said he understood it was highly unlikely that another company would want to put him in a video game but said it was only reasonable that he not tie his rights up for life.

White said he flew to San Jose in the summer to talk with the AKA fighters, but Fitch said the discussion was about a merchandising agreement.

"He wanted us to sign that merchandising agreement, and it was not a very good agreement," Fitch said. "There was not really a reason for us to sign it. The first thing they brought to us was for us to sign all of our rights away for everything forever. It was for very small compensation, and there was no compensation for family members if we were to die.

"We could die and they could make memorial figurines and stuff and make thousands, millions of dollars, and our families wouldn't see a penny of it. The way they bring the contracts and stuff to us, I don't know, it's just not how business is done."

Zinkin also represents UFC light heavyweight Chuck Liddell, though Liddell does not fight for AKA. White said he has been "beefing with Zinkin for years" and said he had to call Liddell, one of his closest friends, and tell him to get Zinkin to back off.

According to White, Liddell said Zinkin represented him on sponsorships and he would negotiate his own deals with the UFC.

Fitch said he has been a loyal UFC employee and said, "I'd only like a little bit of respect for the blood I shed for this company."

White said he has sacrificed more than anyone to build the UFC into the powerhouse it has become and that he's tired of athletes who don't want to "get with the program."

Velasquez, one of the sport's rising stars, clearly is on the outs with White. White said Zinkin wanted standard language that is part of every UFC fighter's contract removed from Velasquez's deal.

"Can you believe that?" White said. "Chuck Liddell has that language in his contract. Randy Couture has it. Anderson Silva has it. And Cain [expletive] Velasquez, with two [expletive] fights, wants us to change it for him? That's [expletive] nuts. He can get the [expletive] out.

"I'm not a douche bag and I do a lot for these guys, a lot more than any of you will ever know. We're in a horrible time in the economy now, and every guy with two nickels to rub together is making a run at us. We've worked too hard, given too much, to let certain guys come in and [expletive] with that."

Fitch said he's not trying to mess with anything and that he simply wants to fight. He said he always has been respectful in all his dealings with the UFC and said he can't understand the position he finds himself in without ever having spoken to White.

He plans to call White to discuss the situation but wasn't sure what move to make.

"I'm more than willing to work with them, but I don't see why we have to give up our whole lives for this," Fitch said. "Why not a time limit? If we did a 10-year deal with them, is that that unreasonable? I don't understand how this happened, honestly. It's tough."

[ZJ Penn]

I've got no idea about the ins and outs of these sorts of deals, but will the offers that Velasquez and Fitch get be different to other guys? It just seems strange that guys like Couture, Liddell and Lesnar would be up for this and Jon Fitch isn't.

"We could die and they could make memorial figurines and stuff and make thousands, millions of dollars, and our families wouldn't see a penny of it."

That did make me laugh though. Somehow I don't see the UFC making millions of dollars out of Jon Fitch figurines.

[ZJ Penn]

Double post I know but it's a different topic completely.

How did everyone who signed up to the fantasy league do? I scored 85 points and came 145th out of 26,768 which I can't complain about to be honest. I'd have done better if I didn't let sentiment overrule logic. I went Couture with a late choke, rather than my original choice of Lesnar with an early TKO which would have put me in triple figures.

[Guest Mr. Potato Head]

Random question time. I've seen it mentioned in a few places this week that UFC's thinking of doing a show in Germany because "Couture speaks German".

There has to be more to it though, right? Otherwise wouldn't they be looking at shows in France (GSP/Cote), Spain and/or Portugal as well?

[DeeJam]

Anderson Silva is the best fighter in the world. There are very few fighters in the 185 and 205 divisions that won't look like they're being spoon fed to him.

Silva seems like a guy who won't be fighting in his 40s. He'll finish out this contract, sign a huge contract to stay with UFC, finish it out, and retire.

Eh, I really disagree. I don't think Anderson Silva has proven he's the best fighter in the world at all. He's definitely a top five in the world, but to say confidently that he is the best fighter in the world, how is he better than Fedor Emelianenko? How is he better than GSP or BJ Penn?

Fedor Emelianenko has convincingly beaten the #2 ranked Heavyweight in the World and current UFC Interim Heavyweight Champion, Antonio "Minotauro" Nogueira on two occasions, and defeated in his last fight a #5 ranked Heavyweight in 36 seconds. He's been undefeated for eight years (really, I consider him undefeated period, but he had to withdraw from a tournament due to a cut and the guy who illegally cut him advanced, and the screwed up officials counted it as a loss since somebody had to advance).

St. Pierre defeated Matt Hughes twice when Hughes was still in his prime. He rebounded from a fluke loss to Matt Serra and destroyed him. He defeated Jon Fitch when Fitch was ranked the #2 Heavyweight in the World, and defeated Josh Koscheck, another top 5 heavyweight. His only real challenge that lay ahead will be in either Thiago "Pitbull" Alves or BJ Penn, who isn't even in his weight class...

BJ Penn has held championships in both the Welterweight and Lightweight division, and has even fought in the 205 pound weight division before (albeit in a losing effort, but only at 190 pounds against STILL undefeated 205 pound Lyoto Machida. The mere fact the 155-pound Penn was able to fight Machida for three rounds without being knocked out or submitted proves SOMETHING). On top of that, he decimated Sean Sherk and has victories over Matt Hughes, Renzo Gracie and Jens Pulver.

Meanwhile, Silva hasn't fought Okami, Filho, or Lawler. He hasn't even fought Demian Maia or Michael Bisping yet, two top challengers in the Middleweight Division. He's proven he can beat some talented individuals, but hasn't had the challenges the caliber of GSP, Penn, or Fedor, and for that reason, he is NOT the best pound for pound fighter in the world. But that's not the only reason.

You can also use Silva's record. He's been defeated four times. However, you can argue that he's a "different fighter now", and I would agree.

Let's not forget that both Dan Henderson and Travis Lutter were able to control Anderson Silva for significant portions of his fight. He put himself in compromising positions and almost got defeated, but managed to catch them later for the win. GSP, Penn, and Fedor are known as being dominating fighters who rarely get in a position where they look weak or may lose the fight.

Anderson has a ways to go before he's the pound for pound best, no matter what moniker UFC undeservedly gives him.

I think Anderson Silva deserves the Pound for Pound moniker. You bring up great fighters like GSP, Penn and Emelieneko, but I have a problem with those guys being ranked ahead of Silva...

GSP has only two losses on his record, but he has only had one successful title defense. Let's not forget his lose to Matt Serra, which wasn't a fluke. There are no fluke victories in MMA. MMA is about seeing who's better, and that night, Serra was the better fighter. GSP has defeated great fighters like Hughes, Fitch, Kos, Penn & Serra, but he hasn't proven to be a consistant champion. Anderson Silva has destroyed every Middleweight and a Light Heavyweight he's fought for really the past 4 years. His only lose was to Yushin Okami after an illegal kick in a fight he was winning. And the fact that he's won 7 fights by KO or TKO since earning his black belt in jiu-jitsu says alot about the man's skills

Penn is a great fighter and one of my favorites. But he's gone 3-2 during his last five fights and hasn't really been challenged in those three wins. If he beats GSP, than he'll make a strong case for being the pound for pound best fighter in the world. But right now, a 3 fight winning streak doesn't really scream best fighter in the world.

Now my favorite debate topic, Fedor Emelieneko. Yes he's something like 21-1 with his only professional lose coming from a cut, but the guy hasn't fought an elite opponent since 05 when he beat Cro Cop. He did beat Mark Hunt, but Mark Hunt is not a top heavyweight. He beat Mark Coleman, but Coleman was around 40 years old and matches up very well in Fedor's favorite. He did beat Tim Sylvia, but Sylvia lost 2 of his previous 3 fights and is very overrated in my opinion. If Fedor can beat Arlovski, than he'll most likely change my opinion on him. But I'm not gonna call him the best fighter in the world from performances that were 3+ years ago.

Anderson Silva has defeated everyone put in front of him since coming to the UFC including Franklin (2x), Hendo, Marquardt and jumping up a weight class to KOed James Irvin. And the fact that he was being dominated by Hendo and was able to win that fight by a submission shows that he knows how to stay calm and adapt in a fight to get a win. It doesn't matter who's dominating a fight, it only matters who wins the fight.

And I agree with Fitch, he shouldn't have to sign a lifetime contract for anything. The UFC is asking for too much.

[Quom]

Anderson Silva has destroyed every Middleweight and a Light Heavyweight he's fought for really the past 4 years. His only lose was to Yushin Okami after an illegal kick in a fight he was winning. And the fact that he's won 7 fights by KO or TKO since earning his black belt in jiu-jitsu says alot about the man's skills

Or it makes him a talented version of Jorge Gurgel. I keed.

I don't really care for pound for pound bollocks, to me it makes no sense. I don't know if Penn could do some of the stuff he does or if he would still have such amazing flexibility if he was 6'2 and 235 pounds. Likewise would Fedor have the same strength if he was 5'7 and 155? The comparisons to me are just silly because potentially these fighters wouldn't be successful if they were born in larger or smaller bodies. Plus certain weights may attract a better class of athlete. For all we know comparatively it may be much harder to fight in the lightweight than heavyweight division or whatever due to comparative weight to strength.

I don't get why people don't just enjoy the fighters for being the best in their class.

[Mancuerda]

Anderson Silva has destroyed every Middleweight and a Light Heavyweight he's fought for really the past 4 years. His only lose was to Yushin Okami after an illegal kick in a fight he was winning. And the fact that he's won 7 fights by KO or TKO since earning his black belt in jiu-jitsu says alot about the man's skills

Fedor has been undefeated for eight years, and he's won fights by submission and TKO... He's destroyed every heavyweight he's fought for the last eight years, with the exception of Cro Cop, who he still defeated but had a harder time doing so. Plus Cro Cop was in his prime then, and Fedor STILL beat him by unanimous decision.

Penn is a great fighter and one of my favorites. But he's gone 3-2 during his last five fights and hasn't really been challenged in those three wins. If he beats GSP, than he'll make a strong case for being the pound for pound best fighter in the world. But right now, a 3 fight winning streak doesn't really scream best fighter in the world.

Sean Sherk "hasn't really challenged" him? Sherk has one of the best records ever in UFC. He's only lost to GSP, Matt Hughes, and BJ Penn, all of whom are elite fighters.

Now my favorite debate topic, Fedor Emelieneko. Yes he's something like 21-1 with his only professional lose coming from a cut

28-1, including wins over Mark Coleman (twice), Matt Lindland, Mark Hunt, Tim Sylvia, Mirko Cro Cop, Nogueira TWICE...

but the guy hasn't fought an elite opponent since 05 when he beat Cro Cop.

TIM SYLVIA... man. Tim Sylvia is the same guy Randy Couture defeated for his Heavyweight Title. Tim Sylvia is the same guy Antonio Rodrigo Noguiera defeated for his Heavyweight Title. And guess what? Randy could only beat him by decision. Antonio beat him in the third round. Fedor EMBARRASSED him and beat him in 36 seconds...

He did beat Mark Hunt, but Mark Hunt is not a top heavyweight. He beat Mark Coleman, but Coleman was around 40 years old and matches up very well in Fedor's favorite.

Fedor himself doesn't give a shit about "match up". He'll fight anyone. Who is left for him to fight? He beat the #2 Heavyweight in the World twice very convincingly. He's beaten everyone. Just because he hasn't beaten everybody in the last three years like Anderson Silva has, it just shows Fedor has more longevity. He still hasn't shown any real weakness. And he beat Mark Coleman twice, not once.

He did beat Tim Sylvia, but Sylvia lost 2 of his previous 3 fights and is very overrated in my opinion. If Fedor can beat Arlovski, than he'll most likely change my opinion on him. But I'm not gonna call him the best fighter in the world from performances that were 3+ years ago.

Why? Mark Coleman, Mark Hunt, Matt Lindland, Hong Man Choi, and Tim Sylvia were all within the last two years. And Sylvia may be an ape looking motherfucker, and I personally don't like the guy, but he defeated Andrei Arlovski twice. Sylvia's only losses have come to top level heavyweights. And Fedor beat him in fucking 36 seconds...

Anderson Silva has defeated everyone put in front of him since coming to the UFC including Franklin (2x), Hendo, Marquardt and jumping up a weight class to KOed James Irvin. And the fact that he was being dominated by Hendo and was able to win that fight by a submission shows that he knows how to stay calm and adapt in a fight to get a win. It doesn't matter who's dominating a fight, it only matters who wins the fight.

It does matter who's dominating a fight when you talk about pound for pound. I disagree on that. If somebody loses a round but manages to come back and get a win, it's an upset in my books. It's not a very great performance compared to just picking apart a guy and dominating them, but even that aside...

Silva has beaten Rich Franklin, but here's the thing. Franklin really doesn't like cutting weight to 185. I'm not going to make any excuses. He beat Franklin twice. Who else has Silva beaten? Travis Lutter was overweight and isn't a top ten Middleweight. James Irvin isn't a top ten light heavyweight, and that fight was completely pointless, and UFC just wanted to put Silva on free TV to take away buys from Affliction (but it didn't really work). Nate Marquardt, I personally feel, is overrated. He hasn't done shit. The guy is a very low top ten ranked middleweight at best...

So I again ask, why is Anderson Silva considered, WITHOUT QUESTION, the best in the world?

But I don't wanna clutter up this whole thread with Silva versus Fedor or whatever, so I'll also agree with Xandir... I mean, QuomQuat, and say that Silva is the best Middleweight. I'm not gonna even argue that. I just hate that UFC constantly calls him the best pound for pounder in the world when you've got GSP, BJ Penn, and Fedor, who are all on his level. And until his recent loss, I would've put Urijah Faber on Silva's level, but Mike Brown caught him with a lucky punch and stole his title...

And I agree with Fitch, he shouldn't have to sign a lifetime contract for anything. The UFC is asking for too much.

Well, I have no idea what the story is now. Maybe there's something more to it than just signing over rights and stuff.

[Fitzy]

Jon Fitch returns to UFC and agrees to the videogame deal after dealing directly with Lorenzo. I saw this on MMAJunkie who created MMARated

Just 24 hours after Jon Fitch was kicked out of the UFC and scratched from a scheduled UFC 94 bout with Akihiro Gono, the top welterweight contender is now back with the organization, according to MMARated.com.

Saying he no longer wanted to work with the American Kickboxing Academy or the fighter's management team at Zinkin Entertainment, UFC President Dana White said he dismissed Fitch, who initially refused to sign a deal that would give the UFC the exclusive right to use his likeness in an upcoming videogame.

Fitch today agreed to sign the deal after speaking with UFC Chief Executive Officer Lorenzo Fertitta, according to the report.

The fighter, who said he was disappointed by White's strong-arm tactics in trying to get him to sign the agreement, is now again scheduled to fight Gono at the Jan. 31 event in Las Vegas.

Fitch initially told Yahoo! Sports he simply didn't understand the need to sign over his rights with a lifetime contract, particularly since it would not pay his family in the event of his death, and that White balked at his management team's willingness to compromise with a five- or 10-year deal.

"It was all or nothing," Fitch said. "[White] wanted our lifetime. He wanted our souls forever."

In addition to Fitch, White on Wednesday also said he dropped Christian Wellisch from the organization and that fellow UFC fighters Josh Koscheck and Cain Velasquez were also in jeopardy of being cut from the UFC. There's no word if those fighters now plan to sign the agreement, as well.

The videogame in question, "UFC 2009 Undisputed," which is set for a mid-2009 release, is being produced by THQ.

Fitch (17-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC), who is currently ranked a world top-five welterweight, most recently fought in August and dropped a unanimous decision to UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre. It was his first loss in nearly six years and snapped his record eight-fight win streak in the UFC.

Meltzer says that Wellisch who was fired even though he signed the contract in the first place apparently, is also back.

Jon Fitch spoke with Lorenzo Fertitta today and agreed to sign the merchandising contract. He is back in UFC and will fight Jan. 31 against Akihiro Gono as scheduled.

Christian Wellisch has also been reinstated. He had agreed to sign the merchandising contract but was fired as part of the blow-up between Dana White and Zinkin Entertainment, his management company. Right now things are being negotiated regarding the other fighters affected but those aren't settled yet.

Edited November 21, 2008 by Fitzy

[Maxx]

God, that game better not suck.