Overeem: I will be fighting in December to get that belt sooner rather than later

Allistair Overeem claims he will be fighting in December. According to a post on his Twitter account:

I’ll be fighting again in December and mark my words, I’ll be back.. to get the belt, sooner rather later.
— Alistair Overeem (@Alistairovereem) June 18, 2012

Overeem is currently serving a 9-month suspension for testing positive for elevated levels of testosterone. the suspension was retroactive to March 27, the day of the test. That means Overeem’s suspension will expire in late December. If the

TUF Brazil veterans Viana vs. Teixeira, added to UFC 147 preliminary card

Featherweight Hugo “Wolverine” Viana (5-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC) will take on John “Macapa” Teixeira (13-0-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) on next week’s UFC 147 preliminary card on FX. This will be the first eliminated cast member fight between two fighters from “The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil”; reports MMAJunkie.com.UFC 147 is set for June 23 at Estadio Jornalista Felipe Drumond (also known as “Mineirinho”) in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. Former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin will fight a rematch against Wanderlei Silva in the

Undefeated Sambo Champ, Vitaly Minakov, signs with Bellator

Bellator Fighting Championships has just announced the addition of a new heavyweight fighter to their roster: Vitaly Minakov (8-0). Minakov is a four-time World Sambo Champion and comes into the promotion with an unblemished record and a recent knockout victory of Bellator veteran Eddie Sanchez; his third knockout win in his last four victories.
Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney said today via press release: “There has been tremendous buzz about Vitaly worldwide. He has an incredible Sambo background

Jose Aldo forced out of UFC 149 headliner with undisclosed injury

With injuries affecting UFC cards at an all-time high, huge news comes today as Featherweight champion Jose Aldo has been forced to withdraw from his UFC 149 headlining bout versus Erik Koch. The exact specifics of Aldo’s injury remain a mystery, but with the announcement, the Interim Bantamweight title bout of Urijah Faber versus Renan Barao has now been moved to UFC 149 as the main event.
Taking place in Cargary, Alberta, Canada, the Bantamweight Interim championship will now occur two weeks later. The

Jon Jones enters guilty plea on DWI charge (Update)

This morning, UFC Light Heavyweight champion Jon Jones appeared in a Binghamton, New York courtroom to enter a guilty plea for his recent driving while intoxicated arrest. The plea stems from an early morning of May 19th arrest in which Jones crashed his 2012 Bentley into a pole. City Court Judge Daniel Seiden handed down a punishment that included an alcohol dependency counseling program and of course a suspended driver’s license.
Jones’s guilty plea shows that the fighter wants to accept the

Frank Mir: My experience will give me an advantage against Junior dos Santos

Frank Mir is no stranger to high-profile UFC Heavyweight title bouts, with this Saturday’s UFC 146 marking Mir’s chance at a third title run. Throughout the buildup to his title fight with current champion Junior dos Santos, Mir has spoken about the vaunted standup of dos Santos as if it were not a problem in his eyes. Mir has even gone as far as to remark that he hits harder than his opponent. He obviously thinks that if the fight touches the ground, he will gain one of his patented submissions with

Chael Sonnen granted TRT use exemption by NSAC

Today Chael Sonnen appeared before the Nevada State Athletic  Commission in a bid to gain a Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE) for his well-documented use of TRT.  His request was indeed granted, and it appears that his UFC 148 Middleweight title bout with Anderson Silva will go down will much less controversy than their previous encounter. Of course Sonnen was suspended for six months following his UFC 117 loss after failing to inform the CSAC of his usage. This time, though, Sonnen is in the clear

TUF: LIVE; fighters discuss fighting each other, records, morale and mental toughness

The UFC and FX hosted a media conference call with four of this season’s The Ultimate Fighter® Live semifinalists on Wednesday, May 16, 2012: Vince Pichel (Team Cruz) vs. Chris Saunders (Team Faber) and Al Iaquinta (Team Faber) vs. Andy Ogle (Team Faber).Al Iaquinta and Andy Ogle were asked what it was like having to fight another team mate. Said Iaquinta: “He knows my style and I know his style, fighting a teammate isn’t too different. Ogle concurred: “I would never hold back in practice. The