MMA Friends Goes International!

Visitors from at least 22 countries have now visited MMA Friends. The top five countries, as you can see below, are the US, Canada, Brazil, the UK, and France. MMA is very popular in these countries, as well as Japan. We're not getting any Japanese traffic, but that's due to the fact that the site isn't in Japanese AND the Japanese mostly love Japanese MMA which I don't cover much (Dream, K1, Shooto, etc.).

Anyway, I just thought this might be of interest to you guys. Now if I could just get you to comment on a blog posting or two! (;

1. United States
2. Canada
3. Brazil
4. United Kingdom
5. France
6. Israel
7. Italy
8. Germany
9. Australia
10. Croatia
11. Finland
12. Peru
13. Unknown
14. Denmark
15. Philippines
16. Norway
17. Guatemala
18. Ireland
19. Romania
20. Mexico
21. Poland
22. Austria

Sean Sherk is going to make BJ Penn "Quit"

"Oh really!?" <--say in Ace Ventura voice

UFC's Fallen Champions and the New Kingpins

Check out an excellent article HERE about the "New" UFC

Penn and Sherk Heats Up

Quoteworthy:

“I think he needs to talk to a psychiatrist. That sounds pretty sick to me, but good luck. I’m sure there will be blood, both mine and his, so we’ll see what happens. I don’t know, that’s kind of a weird thing to say and I did hear that he said that. I was like, ‘What the hell is he talking about?’ What can you say. He’s got some issues, but I’m not going to let anything he says bother me.”
-Sean Sherk

Sherk is responding to comments that BJ Penn made about licking the blood off his gloves when he’s done pounding “The Muscle Shark’s” face in during their championship bout at UFC 84: “Ill Will” on May 24.

UFC 84, Fight rumors, Tito Ortiz being an idiot, and HDNet Fights Rankings

UFC 84 (May 24th) is going off! My friend Chris is throwing a party at his place for his graduation (congrats man!), as well as for the Penn v. Sherk match up. Unlike Wes and Ned who can't stand Penn, Chris is a big fan. I'm rooting for Penn in the fight too, by the way, for a number of reasons which I'll disclose later. For now suffice to say that Penn is just a joy to watch when he's at the top of his game and I hope he destroys Sherk in order to set up a more spectacular match up with a guy like Huerta, Florian, Maynard, the list goes on...just not a wrestler like Sherk! Eventually, if Penn can string together a few wins as the champ, I can see him avenging his losses at WW by fighting St. Pierre and Hughes (that would be drool worthy!).Anyway, looks like my dad wants to throw a little shin dig for the fight too at his house to break in his new TV which he plans on getting. From what Ned says, Rafael (in Ontario) is getting the fight too. So now the problem isn't who's getting the fight but deciding on where to watch it! Anyway, UFC 84 is going to be a big draw for a number of reasons and just know that if you want to see it, you can get a hold of me.

The rumor mill is always churning in the UFC and the possible bouts are very possibly on the horizon:

Roger Huerta vs. Kenny Florian: A highly intriguing contenders match that will likely determine who will face the winner of next months' Penn vs. Sherk title bout.



Huerta, the pretty boy who stands up for La Raza, has proven he's got a serious gas tank and plenty of striking power. His wrestling looks good but his BJJ looks just OK. He's on a meteoric rise and he's someone White would like to see do well since he wrangles in the ladies and Latino fans. Personally he annoys me and I'd like to see someone put some humility in his heart. If he beats Florian, however, I wouldn't mind see him take a crack at the champ (likely to be Penn at the time).



Florian putting a RNC on some little kid (OK Chris, I can actually hear your sarcastic comment, "Yeah, that's about the only person Florian can submit!"). I used to think Florian was a flash in the pan, but he's a tough dude who's been through some battles and shown he has what it takes to stand near, or even at the top of, the LW division. We'll see how he does against the crafty Roger Huerta.
-----------------

Rich Franklin vs. Dan Henderson: Both top contenders and both victims of the Spider. Very intriguing since these guys both like to stand and trade and use the clinch. This one likely goes the distance in my opinion but could end in (T)KO.


Franklin's a big middleweight and I think he's a great guy and a great fighter. He ruled the middleweight division in the UFC for some time after quitting his teaching job. I don't personally think he has what it takes to beat Henderson although it depends on who sets the pace of the fight and how long Franklin can keep the fight on the outside where he can use his striking most effectively. Rich, on a given night, could probably beat any MW in the world, but I'd have to give the edge to Dan in this one just because of his experience and wrestling background.


Don't let Henderson's recent loss to Anderson Silva deceive you: this dude is for real. He's the only guy to hold both the MW and LHW straps SIMULTANEOUSLY in PRIDE (no one has done that in the UFC). Just imagine if he had beaten Rampage (with whom he went the distance to lose a decision) and Silva? He would have held all FOUR belts! Woulda, coulda, shoulda...anyway, the next time he comes to fight don't worry, he'll be thinking about his legacy and in a way I feel sorry for Franklin.


Maybe he's not the most handsome guy, but Lyoto "The Dragon" Machida proves a handful for any fighter, indeed, he's unbeaten in all of his mixed martial art fights. He faces ex-UFC champ, the Huntington Beach Bad Boy, Tito Ortiz at UFC 85.

It's no secret that I'm not a fan of Tito Ortiz. He's an actor/playboy at this point in his career and while he's a decent fighter, I think his time is over. His fight at UFC 85 with Lyoto Machida is his last fight in the UFC and I think he's gonna get hammered. In my opinion, Machida is one of the best, if not the best, light heavy in the UFC after Jackson. He does need to be tested against a top three guy, but I think this high profile win (OK, I should give Ortiz a fighter's chance) over Ortiz will propel him into the limelight and, in my opinion, he should get a title shot and if not, at least a crack at a guy like Liddell or Jardine. In my opinion, a guy like Machida deserves a shot at Rampage WAY before Griffin does, BUT it's just as much about the $$$ as it is about the sense.

Check out Tito's shameless self-promotion. I mean, he can't even get over his lackluster draw let alone really prepare himself for Machida. He'll be fighting for Elite XC before the end of 2008 I bet (with an additional loss from The Dragon on his record). After watching this video, stick around for an interview with Penn about the title fight with Sherk at UFC 85.

Check out the backlog of HDNet's Inside MMA episodes here (tons of fight coverage and fighters and analysts as guests):
http://www.hdnetfights.com/insidemma.php

Inside MMA's fighter rankings:

Top 25 Heavyweights

Rank	Fighter's Name
1	Fedor Emelianenko
2	Randy Couture
3	Antonio Rodrigo Nogueria
4	Tim Sylvia
5	Fabricio Werdum
6	Josh Barnett
7	Andrei Arlovski
8	Gabriel Gonzaga
9	Ben Rothwell
10	Aleksander Emelianenko
11	Cheick Kongo
12	Mirko Filipovic
13	Brandon Vera
14	Frank Mir
15	Pedro Rizzo
16	Antonio Silva
17	Alistair Overeem
18	Roy Nelson
19	Heath Herring
20	Sergei Kharitonov
21	Jake O'Brien
22	Jeff Monson
23	Shane Carwin
24	Brock Lesnar
25	Kimbo Slice

Top 25 Light Heavyweights

Rank	Fighter's Name
1	Quinton Jackson
2	Chuck Liddell
3	Dan Henderson
4	Forrest Griffin
5	Keith Jardine
6	Lyoto Machida
7	Mauricio Rua
8	Wanderlei Silva
9	Rashad Evans
10	Thiago Silva
11	Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou
12	Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
13	Ricardo Arona
14	Tito Ortiz
15	Vladimir Matyushenko
16	Wilson Gouveia
17	Renato Sobral
18	Jason Lambert
19	Matt Hamill
20	Marvin Eastman
21	James Irvin
22	Brian Stann
23	Tim Boetsch
24	Kazuhiro Nakamura
25	Houston Alexander

Top 25 Middleweights

Rank	Fighter's Name
1	Anderson Silva
2	Paulo Filho
3	Dan Henderson
4	Rich Franklin
5	Matt Lindland
6	Robbie Lawler
7	Yushin Okami
8	Nathan Marquardt
9	Denis Kang
10	Frank Trigg
11	Jason Miller
12	Kazuo Misaki
13	Jorge Santiago
14	Cung Le
15	Yoshihiro Akiyama
16	Ryan McGivern
17	Frank Shamrock
18	Chael Sonnen
19	Michael Bisping
20	Thales Leites
21	Kala Kolohe Hose
22	Murilo Rua
23	Matt Horwich
24	Nate Quarry
25	Jason MacDonald

Top 25 Welterweights

Rank	Fighter's Name
1	Georges St. Pierre
2	Jon Fitch
3	Matt Hughes
4	Josh Koscheck
5	Jake Shields
6	Matt Serra
7	Diego Sanchez
8	Carlos Condit
9	Thiago Alves
10	Hayato Sakurai
11	Karo Parisyan
12	Marcus Davis
13	Jay Hieron
14	Nick Thompson
15	Drew Fickett
16	Akira Kikuchi
17	Akihiro Gono
18	Antonio McKee
19	Joey Villasenor
20	Eddie Alvarez
21	Chris Wilson
22	Chris Lytle
23	Delson Heleno
24	Brett Cooper
25	Rory Markham

Top 25 Lightweights

Rank	Fighter's Name
1	BJ Penn
2	Takanori Gomi
3	Gesias Calvancante
4	Gilbert Melendez
5	Mitsuhiro Ishida
6	Tatsuya Kawajiri
7	Sean Sherk
8	Shinya Aoki
9	Vitor Ribeiro
10	Joachim Hansen
11	Roger Huerta
12	Joe Stevenson
13	Kenny Florian
14	Clay Guida
15	Ryan Schultz
16	Nick Diaz
17	Tyson Griffin
18	Gray Maynard
19	Josh Thomson
20	Jamie Varner
21	Frank Edgar
22	Jorge Masvidal
23	Chris Horodecki
24	Jim Miller
25	Nate Diaz

Top 100 fighters: http://www.hdnetfights.com/insidemma.php

Liddell responds to Kimbo's response

Liddell actually comes off as level headed and as having a better argument than Kimbo here:

"All I said is fight to someone real," Liddell said. "The only guy he lost to in his street-fight things came into the UFC and lost. Fight a guy that is real and fight a guy... who has a few wins in MMA, and then talk about it."

Liddell was referencing Sean Gannon, a former Boston police officer who answered Ferguson's open call for opponents to fight in bare-knuckle bouts. The chaotic fight ended in victory for Gannon. The notoriety he earned from the widely distributed video earned Gannon an invitation to the UFC, where he suffered a bloody first-round TKO loss to Brandon Lee Hinkle. Gannon hasn't fought professionally since the defeat.

"Before he talks about fighting me, he might want to think about beating somebody that has a winning record," Liddell said. "He's an Internet sensation who beat up guys at Taco Bell. Come on. How hard is that to do?"

Liddell also criticized Bo Cantrell, who was Ferguson's opponent in his second professional fight.

"That first fight they had on HDNet, he fought a guy that had been knocked out two times before in less than 30 seconds, and he tapped on his way down in [that] one," Liddell said. "That was three fights that he lost in less than 30 seconds. How many guys do you know who's done that?

"Talk about a tomato can."
----------
Source:
From an interview with the Dallas-based "Rear Naked Radio" radio show and again questioned Ferguson's body of work.

UFC 85: Forget Chuck, check out these fights...

Matt Hughes vs. Thiago Alves (the guy who just KO'd Karo Parisyan)

AND

Chris Leben vs. Michael Bisping

Other fights on the card include:

Brandon "The Truth" Vera vs. Fabricio Werdum (who just beat Gabe Gonzaga)

Mike Swick v. Marcus Davis (great fight!!!)

other fighters on the card:

Thiago Tavares

Nate Marquardt vs. Thiago Alves

Roan Carneiro

Martin Kampmann

and more...

WOW.

Kimbo responds to Liddell

There aren't too many dream match ups that I can think of off the top of my head: Anderson Silva vs. GSP, Uriah Faber vs. BJ Penn, etc. but I have a new one: Chuck Liddell vs. Kimbo Slice. I am not huge fan of either guy, but I can tell you what: I'd be rooting for Liddell in this one. Liddell gets my respect for a number of reasons, the primary ones being that he's a good fighter who doesn't talk a lot of head AND he can KO people. He recently called out Kimbo who, and he's right in saying this, hasn't done anything really to prove himself a true MMArtist. Anyway, Kimbo responds here:

Chuck Liddell vs. Shogun Rua September UFC fight possible (Video)

By: MMAmania

Props: KSBY 6 Action News

Quoteworthy:

“I think this is a huge setback for this fight, and it’s a huge setback for the UFC and this England show. But in the grand scheme of things for Chuck Liddell’s future, I think it’s just a minor setback because I think his hammy is going to heal up 110 percent and he’s going to be back stronger than ever.”

Damian Maia vs. Ed Herman

Damian Maia vs. Ed Herman (click on it while it lasts!)

The best jiu-jitsu I've seen in the UFC ever? Maybe!

Damian Miaia "Jitsu" Highlight

Latest in the UFC

First off, Chuck Liddell is injured and won't be fighting Rashad Evans. How convenient! jk He really does appear to be hurt.

This picture is worth a thousands words for all the critics who incorrectly surmised that f
Word on the street is Bisping vs. Leben the same night to help make up for it, but that won't be a main event fight, they're looking into that still. Still, Leben, who always draws controversy and is usually on the winning or losing end of a KO, is a very exciting fighter and Bisping, who dishes it out on the feet, needs prove he's ready for a shot at Anderson Silva and this would be a good fight to showcase him and build up the cred required to take on the Spider.


Secondly, Din Thomas is dropping down to 145 to get out of the LW division which is so crowded with potential contenders that it just doesn't make sense to stick it out since a guy like him needs about four or five wins in a row just to climb back up (he's dropped two fights).

“The UFC’s lightweight division is the most complex division in the world. There’s like four different roads to a title shot going on right now and within any of the roads, no one can afford to lose. While I know I can win against any lightweight in the world on a given day, I fell twice in a row. Therefore, I’m going to bow out. Good luck to those guys. I’m going to drop down to 145 lbs and see if those guys down there will embrace me.”

Third, "big ups" to my bud Chris for letting me stop by to see the GSP fight and for going back and letting me watch the highlights of the card. UFC 83 was not the most spectacular card ever, but there was some very good fights and, most importantly, GSP is back on top and ready for Jon Fitch who is only the second fighter ever to go 8-0 in the UFC (he's won 15 in a row if you count his previous seven bouts before entering the UFC). Fitch poses a serious threat to GSP in all areas except striking which I think GSP has a clear advantage. Fitch has a strong wrestling background and has pulled off a few wins by submission in the UFC. He beat Diego Sanchez but not necessarily in a dominant fashion which leads me to believe GSP should be able to handle him. Fitch has been talking some $%&# lately about GSP because he wants to hype this up. His prediction about a fight with St. Pierre: "I'll take the strap [belt]."

The UFC 84 official website is up and Gmail - Compose Mail - djtodd@gmail.comrunning CHECK IT OUT HERE. This is a card I am not going to miss. I think it's solid, top to bottom. Check it out:

Main Card

• Lightweight Championship bout: B.J. Penn vs. Sean Sherk^[1]
• Light Heavyweight bout: Tito Ortiz vs. Lyoto Machida^[1]
• Light Heavyweight bout: Wanderlei Silva vs. Keith Jardine^[1]
• Light Heavyweight bout: Thiago Silva vs. Antonio Mendes^[1]
• Light Heavyweight bout: Wilson Gouveia vs. Goran Reljic^[1]

Preliminary Card

• Light Heavyweight bout: Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou vs. Kazuhiro Nakamura^[1]
• Welterweight bout: Jon Koppenhaver vs Yoshiyuki Yoshida^[1]
• Lightweight bout: Rich Clementi vs Terry Etim^[1]
• Middleweight bout: Rousimar Palhares vs Ivan Salaverry^[1]
• Welterweight bout: Jason Tan vs Dong Hyun Kim^[1]
• Heavyweight bout: Christian Wellisch vs Shane Carwin^[1]

Finally, Hughes still wants a piece of Serra which isn't suprising. I think it'd be a fairly easy fight for Hughes and come on! He hasn't forgotten all the crap Serra was spewing!

“GSP had a good game plan to take Matt Serra down and wear him out. I found myself rooting for Serra at the end of the second round, I wanted him to make it to the third round. I thought if it would get to the third round GSP would decide to stand up with him and possibly knock him out. I just wanted Matt to get beat on for five rounds, not just two; but I knew the ref was about ready to stop it. The UFC said that if Serra loses I get him, but I don’t know when that will be. I’m going to guess six to eight months, so I’ve found myself watching my diet and exercising more.” -Matt Hughes

--
A fool dreams of wealth; a wise man, of happiness.

Michael Bisping is Stirring Up the UFC's MW Division

UFC 83 Canadian MMAnia!

It's MMMeh! Check out the UFC 83 weigh-ins HERE.

A hostile crowd welcomed Matt Serra, the current WW champ, with a chorus of boos. Despite the fact that he TKO'd GSP in their last fight, he's definitely the underdog coming into this fight. I am planning on catching the tail end of the card tomorrow night at my buddy Chris' place in Redlands. When I first saw this card I wasn't overjoyed, but the more I look at it I think it's solid. GSP's my #1 favorite MMA fighter, I'm a big fan of Franklin and Lutter is definitely a threat to him, I'm anxious to see what Bisping's going to be able to do at MW and the whole drama between him and McCarthy is perplexing (instigated mostly by McCarthy), Mac Danzig is the winner of TUF5 and this is a tough fight for him (no pun intended), Starnes needs a win badly and Quarry's health issues are interesting, McDonald needs a win and so does Doerksen and, I might add, that's a rematch, Alan Belcher's a tough fighter, Sam Stout is a great striker and I hope he beats down Clementi, the better wrestler/grappler, and everyone's talking about this new HW named Cain Velasquez. All in all it looks to be pretty interesting. At the very least this card answers a lot of questions about middle weight and will finally put GSP back on top of what is arguably the deepest division in the UFC, the WW division (just ahead of LHW and LW both of which are now very deep as well).

170 lbs.: Matt Serra (169.5) vs. Georges St. Pierre (169.5)
185 lbs.: Rich Franklin (185.5) vs. Travis Lutter (185)
185 lbs.: Michael Bisping (185.5) vs. Charles McCarthy (186)
155 lbs.: Mac Danzig (154.5) vs. Mark Bocek (154.5)
185 lbs.: Kalib Starnes (186) vs. Nate Quarry (185.5) — swing bout
185 lbs.: Jason MacDonald (185) vs. Joe Doerksen (184.5)
185 lbs.: Alan Belcher (185) vs. Jason Day (183.5)
185 lbs.: Ed Herman (185.5) vs. Demian Maia (184.5)
155 lbs.: Sam Stout (155.5) vs. Rich Clementi (155)
265 lbs.: Cain Velasquez (235.5) vs. Brad Morris (225.5)
170 lbs.: Jonathan Goulet (169.5) vs. Kuniyoshi Hironaka (170)

Bisping on dropping to MW and the division as a whole