November: A pivotal month in MMA history

The month of November marks the anniversary of the UFC’s Denver, CO debut back in 1993. On that fateful night, an event that was at the time regarded as a brutal spectacle more than a true sport launched something that would grow into much more. Royce Gracie dominated those early events (although ultimately not the first), but now fighters have evolved into something altogether well-rounded. MMA is a worldwide phenomenon, with UFC events popping up all over the world as they continue to expand in rapid

Nogueira and Werdum set to coach next season of The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil

News has broke today that the next season of The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil will feature two of the most decorated jiujitsu artists in the history of MMA. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Fabricio Werdum are set to face off as team leaders and will fight at the finale as per tradition. According to Brazilian site Globoesporte.com, the two have verbally agreed to the job and only small contractual details are left to be finished. The announcement is a small surprise, as many were hoping to see Shogun Rua and

Dana White gives it to Jones and Jackson with both barrels

In front of a group of reporters gathered at UFC headquarters in Las Vegas, UFC President Dana White unloaded on UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones and his coach, Greg Jackson. Dan Henderson was forced to pull out of UFC 151 because of a knee injury and Jones refused a bout against substitute opponent Chael Sonnen.White had no kind words for Jones: “The Jon Jones piece of meat f&#*ing thing. When I see him in f&#*ing  Toronto, that’s the first f&#*ing  thing we’re going to talk

Then and Now: What has changed in MMA since 2005?

A long term dynamic develops in every sport that sticks around for a while. A section of the fan base will inevitably compare the play of today to their heroes from yesteryear.  Whether it is the baseball fan that longs for the day where they didn’t have to worry about someone using performance enhancing drugs after every home run, or the football fan that yearns for the era of hard hitting and less complaining in the NFL. One thing is a common factor; this group wishes things would go back to

The five biggest UFC bouts that never happened in 2012

Obviously 2012 has been a year that held huge potential for MMA. While I wouldn’t say it was a horrible year for fighting, the insane amount of injuries and other controversy that wrecked cards is unprecedented. From main events all the way down to preliminary cards, we saw an unheard never of fights shifted, canceled, and just generally thrown into the muck. UFC 151’s cancellation was just the icing on the cake in what was the weirdest year MMA has ever seen.  And it’s not over yet. Let’s take a look