Kakutogi-Gumi

WAMMA Lama Ding Dong

2007-11-20T16:22:00.000-08:00

For information about WAMMA. Check out the MMA Analyst article.

For those who need a summery: A bunch of people who have no understanding ranging from a former pro Football coach to a bumbling FBI agent to Roy Jones Jr. former management has formed the first MMA "sanctioning body". What will this sanction body do for the sport of MMA? Nothing that isn't done before by the commissions. Other then selling ad space on the weight belts they will be carrying, they're are basically another money mark organization trying to hide itself under the words "sanctioning body"

Matter of fact, I have more respect for the JMM in Japan then I have for WAMMA here. The reasons why are obvious to the naked eye. First of all, Japan need some sort of structure for MMA, ok. A sanctioning body like the JMM can bring that structure and possibly get Japanese MMA out of the funk it's in now. Second of all, if you look at who will be running WAMMA and who's running the JMM, the JMM has WAMMA beaten in the legitimacy area ten fold. JMM has more people who've actually have experience in combat sports then JAMMA has. Shoot, the JMM has a better disgraced public official in a ranking spot then WAMMA does.

I think the biggest joke in this comedy of errors is the ad belts. I'm pretty much willing to bet that was last minute and half assed by them. To show how foolish this concept is, I'll present two scenarios.

1. Coca-Cola finally chips in and funds the WAMMA Heavyweight Championship. To celebrate this, WAMMA has one of it's affiliated leagues throw a huge bash a day before UFC's Arnold card with the headline fight being (off the top of my head) Brad Imes vs. Jeff Monson for the title. Jeff wins. Before the weekend's out, Jeff throws the title in the trash and joins M-1. The reason the Heavyweight title's in the trash? It's owned by Coca-Cola.

2.Let's use the same scenario but replace Coca-Cola with, say Domino's Pizza and make the title the welterweight title. Let's say that...Diego Sanchez and JZ Cavalcanti fight for the title. Diego wins the title. Say a week later, Domino's pulls sponsorship because Diego does yoga which is against the religious convictions of their CEO. What does WAMMA do now? Not only do they lose a big sponsor, their welterweight belt have no purpose.

In the end, I think MMA is doing great with what we got going so far working with state athletic commissions. There is no need to pay extra money to a non existent organizations just to work in states and organizations that are already assessable and to waste the same amount of money to get proper sponsors when all it takes is a little explanation and a bit more elbow grease.

The New Pro-Wrestling

2007-10-26T11:57:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Randy Couture and Dana White had dueling pressers. Randy had his press conference covered by HDNet and ProElite.com while Dana had his phone conference held on Yahoo. While I heard about how it wasn't about the money for Randy, it was about respect and then spout off figures or read about how Dana was drooling over Brock Lesnar's "tremendous wrestling ability" from second hand sources, I had this question wiggling around the back of my head.

Where's the coverage from ESPN? ESPN 2? The Ocho?

Was there any coverage from anywhere but niche media on these two events?

There's nothing. Not even anything on ESPN's MMA section. Then again, it's run by Sherdog and we all know how Dana like to play Jerry Millen with that connection.

The only big source that did actual coverage was Yahoo and right now they're not looking too good. If you take Dave Meltzer out of the section, it pretty much resembles an Apter Mag circa 1993. Kevin Iole is UFC's own Vince Russo...or Mean Gene Okerland. Depending on how you take your "insider information". Wait...I take that back. yeah, Kevin Iole is Bill Apter. No way is he on the UFC payroll....yet.

So what does this mean?

Welcome to the new pro-wrestling.

Now before anyone jumps on me, I'm not saying that MMA is fake and/or predetermined. What I am saying is that the Sports jurnos are giving MMA the same "Who gives a fuck" attitude that they give pro wrestlers.

"But we got coverage on ESPN"

News. ESPN News. And on the day before a fight. And then maybe fifteen seconds on the Sporstcenter loop at night.

You can state till your face turns blue that MMA has coverage on TV, it's still being held back by the Kornhiesers and Mariatis of the network. Why? Because to them, stick and ball sports have more integrity. To them, Randy Couture vs. Dana White is just another Vince vs. Steve Austin.

So they laugh that horrid laugh and act like they're cool, but the end of the day they rather smoke crack then watch MMA. "Who wants to watch a bunch of lunkheads in a cage" they think.

You want it changed, send letters and more letters. Get major coverage and demand it from real jurnos and not office temps they send when they don't want to do it.

Stick and ball media are spoiled brats. Order them to do better.

Dana's a shameless loser.

2007-10-12T09:05:00.000-07:00

Soooo let me get this straight. Dana White closed down PRIDE because "the Japanese won't work with them" even though the only work we've seen Dana do was fly one of his lawyer friends to and from Japan. It's DSE's fault that the lease was a mess. You couldn't get Fedor so it's the fault of the "nutty Russians" and now when Randy quits because the funding you're giving him isn't proper, he's a "bitch in a beauty salon" who has a "scumbag" Hollywood agent who he seemed to "bitch slap" last month.

Hey. Dana. I know you don't take to advise nicely, so just to piss you off I'm going to give you some anyway. Calm the fuck down and take some of the blame.

Yes, the Japanese are hard to work with, but you didn't try. Now you've got a big ass hole in Japan that you made in the scene over there. You've forgotten a huge amount of talent which you probably don't care for anyways and you've pretty much shown Japan how immature and gaijin you are. Now, with this rambling fanboy rant your on, not only are you in danger of losing the intrest of a high quality fighter, you're also tiptoeing on the edge of losing your head referee and ring announcer since that said "scumbag" agent also own both their hides as well.

Have you at least for once, think about saying "well, could it be me making shit decisions." Have you looked back once and possibly...y'know try to change up your negotiation skills some? Maybe even thing about what you did wrong and try to improve upon it? You'd think that would make for better relations and possibly, better brand security. But Nah. You're Dana White! Mr. UFC. Mr. Do You Want To Be A Fucking Fighter. Everyone should be kissing your fucking ring. You're the big man right!?

You know how people make the analogy that you're the new Vince MacMahon and like a fucking dick, you take it as a compliment. It's not a compliment. Keep in mind, it was pro wrestling fans who were disillusioned by that prick that made The Ultimate Fighter big in the first place. And it's the pro wrestling community that is making the slow exodus into MMA. With these dick moves you're making right now, they can have reason to destroy you just by turning you off. Now you can say that you don't act like pro-wrestling and you might also bring out that tired excuse that "you're like NASCAR.". NASCAR is just a better sponsored pro-wrestling with vehicles. Keep going the route your going. Slamming fighters and other people will not only keep quality fighters away, it'll chase the fanbase away as well.

And tell Kevin Iole he needs to do a better job covering up the spin lines you gave him. I saw that shit a mile away. Tell him he needs a napkin while you're at it.

Steppin' Razor

2007-09-24T22:38:00.000-07:00

Hey guys. Sorry for the long lull in action. It's been mostly a busy month for me and couldn't get to post as much as I wanted. So now that I have some time now, I finally am going to unload a huge load of MMA and Pro Wrestling angst right NOW!

- The big thing going around the water cooler right now is the Bisping/Hamill match and how we need to fix the ten point must system. I say thee Nay! Nay I say! It is the incompetence of judges that needs to be addressed in that fight. As well in other fights. Don't get me wrong, I too wish to see the ten point must system retooled to be more concise, but even if we let quantum physicists fix the system, Cecil Peoples and The Three Stooges will still find a way to muck it all up. We're supposed to have clean, clear cut judging in MMA. How is it that these yahoos still judging events when they have showed total signs of incompetence? Hold judges accountable somehow or risk a major title fight being held in total scrutiny from the main stream media when these knuckleheads automatically score the other way the second round in a close fight just because they didn't want to think about it.

- Speaking of Yahoos, Fightlinker was always on the bandwagon and "The Jedi" Luke Thomas is starting to show his true colors as well. Kevin Iole...you fucking suck. You don't know moves and technique. You know fuck all about strategy. You make shit up and then when there is polite debate and decent, you go and call those who wasted time and effort "keyboard warriors" and then just after you that you turn into a keyboard warrior and called a fighter nothing short of a criminal even though the one you should be blaming is the ref who let the fight go too long in the first place.

And then...this is good...and then you have the audacity to call yourself a "MMA expert". That's like calling an asshat traveling tourist a "train conductor" because he rode a lot of trains and likes to piss on the baggage men. What makes you qualified Kevin? What? You're in good with Dana. What's that make you? Good? You're not good. You just know how to hide. How to lie. Me? I always give facts. Even if I don't know the answer.

In the end Kevin, you might be on your fourth volume of your autobio in your nice mansion as you get lauded over by the sports media as one of the biggest named reporters in combat sports and I'll still be here, working my 9 to 5 still praying to the gods Art Dore doesn't kill anyone still over a cold plate of Italian poutine. But I will have something that you will never have or understand. I will be able to look people in the eye and tell them with a straight face that I have educated and gotten more people in to the sport with a better understanding then you even will.

So say goodnight to the Bad Guy.

- Gary Shaw is the worst thing to happen to MMA. Hey Gary. Yes, Mr. Shaw. Over here! Yes thank you. You say you want more weight classes. Yeah, um.....not going to happen. Well how many does Boxing have? 17? 17 weight classes? Wow. You know what 17 weight classes tell me? That it's easy not to make a commitment to Boxing. That dedication has no place. Sure, I know they're great fighters. What's gonna stop them from gaining a couple pounds just to duck fighters though? I can be the greatest fighter in my weight class, but I wouldn't have the gold to prove it because the ding dong who really has the belt is too busy trying to conquer the weight classes around the one he actually won gold in the first place. That's why MMA doesn't have 17 weight classes.

- Pavlik will not save boxing.

- Bob Arum is delusional.

- So Mark Cuban wants to work with Vince MacMahon. Yeah umm.....are you that eager to flush your reputation down the drain Cuban? They just did a global steroid bust, do you want the consequences filtering into you business? If so, you're a bigger fool then you look dude

- Free Vancouver! Support CMMAA!

The Incredibly Stupid Wrestler Who Opened His Piehole And Turned Into A Muscle Headed Penile Tatooed No Nothing Twit

2007-08-23T15:20:00.000-07:00

So Brock is talking to MMA Weekly. He's demanding a contract with UFC. There is so much crap he spews it's unbleivable. I just want to break this stuff down just to show how god damn stupid he is.

"We're playing the games, but I'm tired of playing games,” stated Lesnar. “It's time for somebody to make a move. I'm going to go down to the UFC and see what the hell is going on down there."

Hhhhmmmm. What's going down here? Well, after your fight, the UFC signed one of the top three heavyweights in the world. Another of the top three Heavyweights in the world got taken out by somebody the MMA community thought was a complete nobody and now we're going to see his fight with the current heavyweight champ.

That's the games their playing chulo. Where do you fit in this?

Asked if he has talked to UFC President Dana White about his interest in competing in the Octagon, Lesnar answered, "We've spoken. I cannot deny or confirm anything. I'm just telling you this, I'm going to be there Saturday night and I'm looking for a win. I don't care who it is. If I had to fight somebody, I'd like to fight Randy [Couture]. I'll fight [Gabriel] Gonzaga. We'll see what happens."

He added, "I hope Randy wins that fight. I hope Randy wins that fight and then I can fight him in December."

I hope you hope for Randy too. I hope you been preping for him, saying your prayers for him, eatting wheaties for him, dreaming about him in your sleep.

Because when Gonzaga gets his arm raised and that belt goes around his waist, I want you to have a heart attack while it happens.

He's trying to pad his plate folks. He knows he ain't got nothing so he's aimming for Randy because he's popular. Even if he losses, he knows he's getting a payoff. If Gonzaga wins, he's got to work for that money

"I'm going to be attending the UFC this weekend, and I'm going to go down and watch and see in person, because I've watched these guys fight on TV. I'm going to go down there and see for myself and watch these heavyweights that I know I can beat," Lesnar told MMAWeekly.

Excuse me while I laugh my head off at your blind confidence.

"I'm looking to fight somebody with credentials. I'm not just talking Silver Medals in Judo. I want a belt. I've fought a lot of tomato cans. I've already had it. You know? I want a fillet Mignon. Let's do it, and do it right. I want to fight somebody, somebody that's got credentials because I've got them too. There isn't a wrestler, there isn't a heavyweight out there my size that has done the things I've done."

I find it funny that he looks over Olympic champs for a belt. I got a couple in my closet Brock. Just ask.

As to fighting a lot of tomato cans....when did this happen? In some alternate universe? All you fought was a Olympic judoka who hasn't taken well to MMA at all and was flown in last minute cause your original opponent, who would have killed you might I add, was barred because of a petuitary problem. Who else you fight? Bring up some documentation.

As to doing things you haven't done, let's see here....

Wrestling

Randy Couture
Matt Lindland
Dan Henderson
Josh Koschek
Mark Coleman
Rashad Evans
Kevin Randelman
Uriah Faber
Gilbert Melendez
Kaz Nagata

Pro Wrestling

Josh Barnett
Eric Paulson
Matt Hume
Kazuyuki Fujita
Kazushi Sakuraba
Shinzuke Nakamura
The Shamrocks

The only thing they didn't do was make themselves look like the Michelen Man and work for a Roid factory.

Fucked yourself there, didn't you?

Questioned if the UFC is where he'd like to eventually compete, Lesnar responded, "The UFC, they're the big dogs on the street, obviously. You've got Randy Couture, who he's definitely going to be past his prime here. You've got Fedor [Emelianenko]. There's nobody out there that is unbeatable. Okay? All the media builds Fedor into this great monster. Well, every monster has his day.

Because we all know the only way to get a contract is to be a rude fucking prick.

And last I checked Fedor still lost one match due to a cut. Something everyone can't control.

There isn't a guy like me walking around that can do the things that I do.

Yes there is.

These guys, they don't know.

Yes they do.

Let's put it this way, in college, or everywhere that I've gone, everybody has said that I'm one strong son-of-a-bitch, and that's what I am, and I'm able to back it up."

If you're going to rely on your strength, your fucked. I will laugh gleefully when you lose.

"Absolutely, no doubt in my mine. I mean, you take Randy Couture for example, I mean he's the heavyweight champion of the UFC, but he's a small heavyweight.

Ah yes. Randy is a small heavyweight therefore he can get stomped anytime. Way to bring that MacMahonism in there Brock.

I enjoyed watching Randy beat the sh*t out of Tim Sylvia. I enjoyed that. I mean take a look at this guy, Tim Sylvia, the guy’s feet; they're damn near webbed. He looks like the Swamp Thing. The guy is a vulture. He can't wrestle worth a crap. He's got a jab and a little right hand. There's no way. I'd double-leg his a** right through that cage so fast, and that would be the end of the fight. I'm tired. I'm tired of this. Brock Lesnar wants to fight somebody, somebody with credentials, and Tim Sylvia ain't the guy."

And again with being a rude fucking prick.

Brock Lesnar is nobody. He's trying to squeeze Dana for a contract and is using TNA, a second rate that prides itself on hiring wastes of time, occupational hazards and criminals rather then recognizing all the talent they could be promoting to actually advance the business.

Either way, I hope something bad happens to Brock. He's a blowhard musclehead who thinks he's important.

He isn't.

Dear Pro Wrestling,

2007-08-08T23:17:00.000-07:00

Please Take Notes.

K-1 WGP in HongKong Musashi vs Yong Soo Park
Uploaded by michael181818

It's official...The CSAC Is Run By Bizarro.

2007-08-08T04:50:00.000-07:00

I mean it.

Don't believe me?

You can be kind and gentle with words, give your side and reasons about why you took said steroids and pretty much prostrate yourself in front of the commission to be lenient and reduce your suspension. Your suspension will still be upheld.

Or...you can verbally bully the commission, swear like a fucking sailor and pretty much deny the fact that a steroid most built for horses was in your system...and get six months off.

What's really funny is that the best way to get your suspension reduced is having a 78 fight record. That's it! Ain't that so cool!! If you have 78 fights under your record, you can get away with fuckin murder!

Hermes has 24 fights. Sorry Dude! Gotta to uphold the law. You can do whatever the fuck you want when you have 54 more fights under your belt. It'll also help if your a repeat offender and verbally abusive as well.

I mean really. Telling and excepting the truth is only for Thug and Cowards. It's best to be a denying insightful son of a bitch with no honor with fanboy nuthuggers sucking at your sac at a moments notice. You can get away with everything then.

Kamikazee's MMA SMackdown #33

2007-07-26T23:42:00.000-07:00

My second show as Producer

It also features my highlight, Transmission Zero One. This week is my screed on the use of steroids.

Just to clear up on things. unlike many who turned into Baseball fans when news broke out that that 22 out of 30 failed drug tests were from MMA, my screed was more for the health of the fighters. I've seen too many fall to the needle and the pill, I don't need to see anymore in a legit sport.

Spinning the WWE way.

2007-07-05T08:11:00.000-07:00

I believe there are many of you out there in other fields of combat sports who maybe intrigued by the Benoit situation. A lot of you might not be, but those who are please read further.

Right now, in terms of this case, besides the arrest of Benoit's personal doctor, this has been a very slow news week. While prominent wrestlers have come out and spoken up about the pro wrestling industry, the media is dead set in framing the way they http://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifwant this case to go.

Right now, we're going to put that aside and look at how the WWE is controlling things with the media.

Last week, we had WWE put out an "anti-steroid" press release to the media. While it's normal for WWE to send press releases saying that they were anti-steroid and that their "wellness policy" is working, this was totally the wrong time to do it. Especially when the tox report hadn't come out yet. So now they have Jerry McDevitt, their lawyer, doing damage control

Speaking of damage control, The WWE gave warning that they'll be testing soon. So the next couple weeks, everyone is going to try to clean everything up for the "surprise Wellness test". Keep in mind, this will be a fixed test. They are going to try the best they can to make it look like they're making effort instead of making one in the first place.

So after the next couple weeks, they will have a list of those who didn't "pass". There will be three types of people.

1.) People that pretty much floating around. These are people who are on the roster that are more or less there. No one has any "story" for them, they mostly put on great matches on the "D" shows and some who have been put back in the farm for seasoning. They'll release them under the guise of "Wellness". and then when everything theoretically "cools down", they get brought back in.

2.) People that management or Front of House doesn't like. This is a perfect way to get rid of people that pretty much go against the grain on how you're supposed to act within the business. This can go anywhere from logically asking questions so one can better carry angles to something extreme as say.....just the look of your face or what school you came from. Or the very extreme of getting Pop more then an established figure made by the company.

3.) People they can't cover anymore. These are the guys that constantly fail and because the situation they're in, just cut all ties if not to show they're "doing their job", then to make sure he's as far away as possible in case the wrestler expires.

Now is everyone under the 'scope. No. I do believe that out of the whole roster.....seven guys will just go through the motions, maybe take a small pay cut. I take that back, six guys. One guy's made no matter what.

But the rest of the roster is under the knife. Clean or gassed. And then they'll say "See! We're doing something about it! We're drug free!"

Wash, rinse and repeat for a couple months and the WWE will be nusense free. It'll be logic free. But it won't be steroid free. Especially if the the test they're taking has a 10:1 testosterone/epitestosterone count to aim for. How is this so bad you say?

Athletic commission levels are 4:1

WADA (World Anti-Doping Alliance) levels are 6:1

And if they get caught, they can whip out a doctor's note stating "testosterone replacement therapy"

10:1 is replacement therapy?

Anyways, they'll keep doing this until either the heat on them dies down or....I don't know....they run out of people.

And then it'll be business as usual.

Like nothing had happened.

For those of you reading this, I don't want that to happen. The days of "but they're just pro-wrestlers" are over. The days of ignorance is over. There needs to be heavy reform called from both inside and outside of the industry. Either call your athletic commissions and tell them to search for ways to regulate or bar and ban the WWE for good from the state. Send them a message that human lives are not cogs to the great MacMahon machine and unless they change or reform, they are no longer welcome.

This constant spin must stop and it must stop now.

My Turf.

2007-06-29T19:05:00.000-07:00

Midland St. It's the place I work and major hangout place I frequent. I love this place. It's quaint and quiet in the day. But once the night fell, the place could party like nobody's business. This is basically my turf. My "6 inches of ground". My home.

So imagine my surprise when I found out Art Dore decided not only hold another Extreme Cage Combat on my turf, but also decided to hold a Toughm...I mean Tough Gloves contest a day before the XCC event. If you're reading this, that Piece of Shit boxing contest is still going on or has already happened. What's really funny is that both events will be held in the Hooter's Parking lot. I mean...just look at this.

Now first of all, I had asked some friends of mine how the seating setup was going down. They didn't know. They had heard that the parking lot might be split half in half. But with the seating setup going down like it was, that couldn't be right. There was a lot more chairs to be set up and if all of them were set up, the fight area would take up most of the parking lot. No way were you getting parking close to the area. The parking situation is rediculous. While parking is open at Dore's brew pub, The Lumber Barons, there is not enough space. Independence Park, which was downriver, is out of the question as well. The parking lot is filled with Carnival rides and such. This was leftover from the River Roar, the annual speedboat race we hold. The rides were left there as a carry over for the 4th of July festival later on. So parking is a major problem.

My next question was where they were going to put all the fighters. Where they were going to get ready and tape up. The answer? Dumpster area.

They're housing the fighters....in the dumpster area. The dirty, grimy dumpster area. What the hell!? Are they not concerned with clean areas? What if someone catches infection before or after the fight? What if someone gets cut? This is rediculous.

Finally, I asked my major question. Will there be medical attention at the events. My friends expressed a reluctant "no". They also believe if there was, they have a hell of a time getting in. What my pictures don't show, and I can't believe I didn't get a shot of it. The entrance to the parking lot is like a bottle neck. Sure it looks wide. That's because part of the entrance is a parking area. If the parking situation is like it is, a lot of cars will be parked in the neck, making other vehicles slow up when coming in. This is going to make it difficult for ambulances to get through. One friend of mine suggested that they might be keeping the dock besides the Hooters will be kept clear so Coast Gurard boat could bring medical attention. So instead of getting your ass to the hospital in ten minutes or less, you got to wait double that time because you're crossing the river, on a boat...to get to the hospital.

This is just sad.

And happening on my turf!!

A message for Mr. Benoit...where ever you are.

2007-06-28T15:45:00.000-07:00

I Quit.

2007-06-25T22:59:00.000-07:00

Pastamania.

That's the first thing that comes to my head when I think about my first experiance with Chris Benoit.

Hulk Hogan was doing a sell for his new food court prospect in the Mall of America and then after that there was this match between two guys. One was Dean Melenko and the other was Chris Benoit. My first thoughts into this match was that "they let rookies have matches on TV now?" They then proceed to blow the doors of the mother. Stuff I recognized from Judo and wrestling was in that match. I got into that match so much, I keep the channel on TNT so as I could see what else WCW was willing to bring us. I followed it from the next Monday and the next and the next.

That was when I became a Benoit fan.

And now that he's gone....I don't know.....I don't know if I can possibly help pro-wrestling by doing it justice any more.

He was one of the only positives the had in drawing the real pro wrestling fans. Without him, now what.

More green, roided up monsters and storylines that really go nowhere.

To me, Benoit is just another victim of a vicious system known as N. American Pro Wrestling. A system that is about cosmetic features rather then athletic ability. A system that rewards who you know and when you know him rather then how hard you bust your ass and how many times you come to work on your own.

A system that hates pro wrestlers.

Instead of somehow putting their feet down, the wrestlers go with the punches. Some become roid freaks. Others become junkies. Some become both. Most don't see their 50th birthday.

And the general populace don't care. I mean, it is "fake" isn't it? That's how well this system operates. The more the cloud of ignorance, the better the system works.

Admit it. If this was a major industrial job or even a movie production house and they start touting the numbers of deaths pro-wrestling had, you'd be all over it like stink to shit. But because pro-wrestling is pro-wrestling. Who cares, right?

I quit.

I quit because I can do all the himming and haw all I want. Still not going to change things.

I can write how rotten it is all I want. Still not going to stop the marks from watching.

I can report every piece of every moment. Still not going to get the press to take notice or stop them to act snobbish about the sport.

What this thing needs is a massive exodus and show the worth of it's product to the people who run it.

Not going to happen though.

I quit pro-wrestling.

Until things get changed, I'm done with it.

End of Story.

Rest In Peace Nancy.

Scatterbrains AKA This Is A Shoot!!

2007-06-13T19:21:00.000-07:00

Once Upon A Time In Michigan AKA The Jihad Needs To Mobilize.

Zach Arnold of Fight Opinion fame has put out an interesting article about the bill being formed to legitimize MMA in the state of Michigan.

From the Grand Rapids Press...

The most troubling aspect of the bill: Promoters of mixed martial arts would be required to provide each contestant with minimum insurance coverages of $5,000 for medical and hospitalization, and $10,000 for accidental death, just three years after the legislature approved new minimums of $50,000 each for boxing.

Until boxing was overhauled in 2004, its insurance minimums, set in 1952, were $5,000.

Given that backdrop, why pass a law providing mixed martial artists with one-tenth the medical coverage, and one-fifth the loss-of-life coverage, of pro boxers?

For those who don't don't have the time to read both articles, here's the summery....

The MMA Bill that being mulled around at the moment has an outrageously high license fee and outrageously low insurance premiums.

This will tremendously hurt the MMA community economically, physically and technically.

Everybody and their mom knows that an average sized dojo or MMA school isn't going to have that much bread on them to get a licence and if they put out a loan, they're going to have to pray to their gods that they get a miraculous sellout crowd just to pay it back. Even if there was booster clubs formed, there's no way grassroots promotions is going to get the cash for just a license.

So who's going to be benefiting from this bill?

Why pro organizations and money marks. That's who.

This same bill that's trying to stifle illegal activity is a wide open door with keys for the likes of "The King of Bay City" Art Dore, Neil "The Knife" Helmkay and all of their associates. The economic opportunities I talked about happening once we regulated the sport....not happening. Events sponsored by local businesses will not happen. None will be created. The only things you'll see behind these events is the business ventures of both men which are doing pretty well as it is. All that possible revenue will be pocketed by the people who need it less and the "Know Nothing" Gangs reign triumphant.

If that isn't a piss in the pants, think of the fighters. Without the grassroot support of the schools, they're all under the shadow of the marks. It would totally be worthless to fight in Michigan if this bill passes because you'll never be able to build a quality record here. Quality fighters would be at the mercy of the mark's matchmaker AKA the marks themselves. Forget that your opponent is 15 to 50 pounds heavier then you or that his skill and technique is on the level of a JV high school wrestler or that his cardio will fall out a minute into the match. never mind if the dude a) is big b) can make the bag bend when he hits it and c) his head is far up the mark's ass, you're fighting him or you won't get paid your $200 dollars. You could be a super quality fighter, but the semi-pros will never know it because of all the cans the mark throws at you. Without quality opponents, no one will know the whole picture of the fighter and therefore the fighter will have to retire or move to greener pastures in Ohio or Illinois. This will in turn, create a desolate community without a fanbase and another lost cause in economic growth and communal pride. Sure, some of our fighters will go on to make it big, but who will really know about them.

It's a very frustrating time for the Michigan MMA community.

The Grunts Are Dying While The Generals Have Their Breakfast.

While we're on the subject of fighting money marks, where in the hell is our major media sources on the subject? Yes I'm looking at you Sherdog and MMA Weekly. You went to cover the Tommy Morrison debacle, yet done nothing to expose the promoter as the failed money mark he is. Sure you can crow about "this wasn't regulated" and "It was on an Indian reservation so it wasn't regulated", but anyway you angle it, you dropped the ball. It is your job, nay, your duty to stop marks from being the scum they are and help real MMA promoters grow. You did none of this.

And you expect everyone to take this sport seriously?

How can it do this when the sport's own media hasn't dropped it balls yet and gone for the jugular on these creeps?

Why is it me and others busting our asses to try to make this sport, our sport, safe as possible and to make sure none of this falls to the wayside and become another pro-wrestling while you guys can't even report on allegations of yakuza activity within the halls of DSE and PRIDE, leading to it's inevitable demise?

You guys are supposed to be the masthead of MMA Journalism. You're the be all end all of MMA information. You're supposed to be exposing money marks and teaching a thing or two to the Stick And Ball media about the sport. In the words of George Clooney in From Dusk Till Dawn, you're supposed to be "A motherfucking servant of God".

But you decide to rest on your laurels.

Congratulations. You won. We made it.

Now pretty please, with sugar on top, do your fucking job.

If you don't want to, that's fine. We'll be grateful to pick up the slack and actually try to make something of this sport.

A Worked Fight In PRIDE!? Unpossible!!

I got to laugh at people who got shocked when Rampage to the media that his fight with Sakuraba was supposed to be worked. That has got to be the funniest thing I head the whole day. We're talking about a time frame where the organization was still under the shadow of Antonio Inoki and Nobuhiko Takada was trying to still pas himself of as a "credible" Mixed Martial Artist. if anything, it just makes that whole period of PRIDE a bit more ridiculous.

Now if PRIDE told CroCop to dive for Dos Caras. Then...I'll be shocked.

Just A Thought

2007-05-31T08:20:00.000-07:00

So let's count how many fighters we're probably going to be missing on the DYNAMITE card.

Gina Corano is out due to stomach bug.
Antonio Silva is out due to undisclosed reasons
Gabe Ruediger is out due to being "not mentally fit"
Ray Sefo is out due to undisclosed reasons
Marvin Eastman is out due to undisclosed reasons
Choi Mu Bae is out due to undisclosed reasons
Choi Hung Man is out due to undisclosed reasons. The excuse is possibly because he's got Hatton's.

And now Bernard Ackah might be the next to be a victim of "undisclosed"

So out of this whole card, three fights have been pulled with possible fourth happening and two interesting fights have be made trite and unwatchable.

Y'know, I was prepared to be all up in FEG's face for not turning in crucial paperwork at the right time to get properly licenced. But with this many people being pulled of the card....I'm starting to think that FEG got set up all along by CSAC and they're the one pulling this crap.

My Dog Knows Judo

2007-05-29T22:28:00.000-07:00

I've got a great mutt at home. He's a Lab. Sometimes, when the day is nice and the day is boring, I take my dog outside for a long run. I also wrestle with my dog sometimes. He's great with his skills on the bottom. He knows how to defend from the choke, he's got a mean spider guard and an equally mean upkick. He does need to work on his top position though. I can easily tie up his head and arms with one arm. He also tends to want to go for the groin shots now and again. That's a big no-no Fido.

So you're wondering why am I talking about my dog's ground skills. Well, I'm thinking of signing him up to do amateur MMA. I'll train him to do a couple leg locks, maybe the anaconda choke, have him run a few ground and pound drills and then set him off. Watch out Rampage! Here comes Poochie!!

You realize how ridiculous that statement was?

Here's another one.

Dogfighting is just like the UFC because both are brutal sports.

Ok. Ok. So if Dogfighting is just like the UFC...where's the athletic commission in this?

What are the rules?

Do dogs get one minute breaks between rounds?

Are there any rounds?

Is there any weight divisions?

Say that we should support both sports because one wants to perceive itself as on the level of the other is really retarded. It's so retarded that even the retards say it's retarded.

I mean, do you see fighters getting shot in the back for having a broken limb and then buried in the back yard? I don't think so.

Saying that dog fighting is on the same level as the UFC is saying that high school wrestling is promoting unmitigated violence.

Yes, you little Jimmy will grow up a killer because he's a state wrestling champ.

I think what it all melts down to is that, when it comes to competitive violence, the US hasn't a clue what that is. We've conditioned ourselves into excepting the hocus pocus of violence and not come to real grasp with the fact that no matter how much you dress it up, competitive violence is just that. Violence.

The UFC brings in that harsh realization and people don't know how to take it. A lot go with the flow. A whole bunch of others slam the hell out of it.

It's this confusion that allows the pro-dog fight lobby to hook on with this petty and silly notion and has the media giving them that leeway and not calling them on their bullshit.

This needs to stop and needs to stop now.

New Dawn Fades

2007-05-24T20:29:00.000-07:00

A chance to watch, admire the distance,
Still occupied, though you forget.

-Ian Curtis, New Dawn Fades

The buzz around the MMA community is the new Sports Illustrated cover for this week. Of course I've posted said cover above. The article is also real nice. Go check it out.

Of course this getting everybody hyped now. Everyone dancing, Singing "calu calai" Making love to their people and throwing big bashes.

The general consensus believes that we've finally won. Victory is ours.

Yet all I see are bodies of the fallen.

Yes, this is a great victory...but not MMA. UFC maybe, but not MMA. If this was a big victory for MMA, we would be hearing about more companies beside the UFC.

At first, I thought this was deja vu. Back in 1987, Vince MacMahon had a total strangle hold on the pro-wrestling industry. He was taking the best pro-wrestlers out of the territories and put them in his league, all the while giving syndicated tapes to local channels to compete with the local promotions in their areas. This two headed beast help popularize...you thought I was going to say pro-wrestling didn't you? No, pro-wrestling was stagnate by the end of '87. WWF is what the people wanted. If you weren't WWF quality back in that time, to hell with ya.

Now we're in 2007.

The same thing is starting to happen now. Don't believe me? Quick, tell me the last local event you were at. Be honest.

None right?

Exactly.

And why not?

It's not UFC quality. Correct. You don't know the fighters. Correct. The promoter doesn't sound like a bald headed fifteen year old. Correct.

Don't feel too bad. I haven't gone to any local events either. Of course, unlike you, I have good reason not to.

If this were about MMA, you'd hear more about the IFL, Pro Elite, BoDog, anybody outside of UFC being promoted. Nah. UFC is the big name.

The UFC can have the worst roster in the history of MMA and people will eat it up because they're too lazy to look around and they'll just lash on the loudest and bright. Just like an angler fish.

And this isn't just MMA. I've seen it happen to a lot of different subjects. Even today.

So when do we start to celebrate?

We celebrate when the sport is fully sanctioned in the US and the world.

We celebrate when jerkwater promoters who don't know the difference between a gogplata to a Go Go Gadget Copter are stopped by the full extent of the law for abusing a clause that affords martial arts full autonomy.

We celebrate when fighters get better pay.

We celebrate when Japan cleans it's act up.

We celebrate when there is stable avenues in the sport for a high volume of fighters.

UFC got on Sports Illustrated. Good for them.

It's just a magazine cover.

PS: NASCAR is Pro-wrestling....but with cars.

Jihad on Art Dore!!

2007-05-09T14:35:00.000-07:00

Art Dore. The self proclaimed King of Bay City.

I'm going to make this short and sweet because I feel that if I talk about these guys, I will be giving these assholes free advertisement and I'm much higher then them.

Greg Ahrens did an interview for the Detroit Times talking about how he will ignore the Dept. Labor and Economic Growth (DLEG) prohibiting running the Cobo Arena. Here are the highlights.

These are so slanted it's just....here I'll show you.

State officials said they are considering going to Wayne Circuit Court to request an injunction against the program.

"Mr. Ahrens' events are in violation of the Michigan professional boxing statute," said the state's chief investigator, Barrington Carr, "and are probably a nuisance."

Amateur martial arts events are not covered under the act Carr cited, but the state believes it has jurisdiction over Ahrens' shows anyway because he sometimes pays fighters, and there is "a boxing component" to the bouts.

Ahrens said the purpose is to force state officials to rewrite the boxing regulations to include oversight of mixed martial arts, which are growing in popularity nationwide thanks to a proliferation of pay-per-view events. Then fighters could be paid legally, he said.

That has got to be the stupidest excuse ever on how to get MMA regulated in Michigan. That's like saying I'm going to stab anyone and everyone because there are not specific rules and regulation for blade murder. How about talking to Brett Ratner, Greg? How about sitting down and writing a rough guide on a piece of paper, Greg? How about lobbying Greg?

It goes on.

MMA events "are everywhere now," said Art Dore of Bay City, promoter of Toughman, which has proven a far more dangerous style of ring combat. "In Ohio, I think there are 40 or 41 MMA events this month alone."

Yes, Art. Ohio runs 41 events because they're licenced and regulated. That means they talk and work with athletic commissions. Unlike other people.

If you don't believe me I can get the OSAC Director's email for you. I dare you to talk to him. I triple dog dare you to talk to him. I doubt you have the balls.

No deaths have been reported in MMA events. Fighters, who wear 6-ounce, fingerless, palm-less gloves, are allowed to use any martial art form of striking, grappling, kicking or submission holds.

Dore, however, said at the last MMA event he attended, a down, clearly unconscious opponent was struck three or four times before the referee intervened. "It was pretty brutal," Dore said.

I love this thing that always comes up. You know the thing where the uneducated casual fan yells and screams about how a fight should have ended sooner because the first strike knocked out a fighter and the following strikes that follow seconds after were excessive. And then they go blame the ref for being "too slow" It's like their sense of time is warped and the refs are supposed to have super sharp eyes and super speed to qualify to officiate.

For Art to say something like this either was to show off his ignorance of the sport or a low handed way of bringing MMA down to his level. Either way, it's pretty stupid.

Saturday's MMA event has nothing to do with Toughman, Ahrens said, but "the state is painting me with an Art Dore paint brush." Dore has no part of Saturday night's promotion, Ahrens said, but has been hired as ring announcer "because people love him."

So people love him. If I come and bring the families of the fourteen people who died in his ring, you think they will love him too? How about those five vegetables? You think I can be a buddy of Dore? You think he'll let me frequent his steakhouse/martini and cigar bar if I call him a scoundrel, a liar and a sad waste of water and carbon wasting my planet's resources?

The state also complains that Ahrens does not insure his fighters up to $50,000 for injury, twice that for death, the coverage for boxers. Ahrens said the 50 fighters expected Saturday night will be insured "$5,000 per occurrence."

That's cool. What insurance company you using?

He could not remember which insurance company issued the policies, he said, but both he and Dore said Ahrens frequently purchases such coverage from an insurance company registered in the Cayman Islands owned by Dore.

So the fighters aren't getting insured and they're not getting paid. In fact, you have fighters pay to fight.

Why are they fighting for you again?

Ahrens said Detroit emergency officials would be informed the bouts will be taking place, but will not be present. "Our doctor says those people just get in the way," he said.

You need to fire your doctor then and fast. Show me one instance where emergency officials are "in the way" of an event? Calvin Ayre had emergency officials on call every time he throws a Bodog card. Hell, high school football has an ambulance sitting just outside the field. Why are you denying emergency assistance?

Or are you lying again?

Ladies and gentleman of the MMA community, I urge you, nay, plead with you to call Jihad on Art Dore and Greg Ahrens. They are hurting the sport in the state of Michigan and are trying to make themselves look like martyrs while doing so. Please send kind, helpful mail to Barrington Carr, head of the Enforcement Dept. Here is the address.

Enforcement Division
P.O. Box 30018
Lansing, MI 48909

email: bcsinfo@michigan.gov

Please send kind and helpful mail that not only shows support to Carr, but also helps him at least understand a bit about MMA and how it needs to be protected from the Dore regime. I urge everyone to get everyone and their grandmothers involved. Please! For the sake of the sport!!

We need to stop The advances of Art Dore. If we don't, I'm afraid that we'll have our first fatality pretty soon.

Sports Media! Stop Putting Your Mouth On The Water Fountain Of Boxing!

2007-05-02T14:04:00.000-07:00

Boxing.

The Sweet Science.

It's been all over the media all week. Mainly because of the De La Hoya/Mayweather fight. While this has been important news, the Sports media has been taking this story in a whole different and wrong direction. So, instead of wasting paragraphs of flowery language and colorful metaphors upon a sports media that chooses to be willful ignorant unless the almighty dollar is involved, I will do the rest of this post as a question and answer post. Because I'm a gentleman of restraint and I'm doing it for you, my lovely fans. You don't deserve my hate. You just deserve the facts.

Here we go.

What is the Sports media doing?

They are pretty much taking this great match and creating this glorious myth of being "The Match That Saves Boxing" and then are using this as some sort of metaphysical "Dutch Courage" to strike back on MMA with what ever they got.

Really? I haven't seen much of that. Is there anyone specific?

So far from what I've seen, most of the ESPN "lunch crew" (Jim Rome Is Burning, PTI), Wally Matthews from the Vs. Network (which is home to the WEC) and some actor posing as a journalist on CBS Sportsline (you're going to have to google that one.). Expect a steady flow happening today and tomorrow and depending on the fight, a large blow up next week of orgasmic magnitude. Wear a raincoat and bring an umbrella.

Does Boxing need to be saved?

Not really. It's doing fine and well around the world. Anyone who think it needs to be saved is either weird or on drugs. I think it could be a possible end of the way...boxing is marketed. Also it could be the possible end of the current format that boxing uses at the moment. But, the end of Boxing as a whole? I doubt it.

Ok. But let's say for kids and giggles that the sport of Boxing does need to be saved. Will this fight save it?

Not really. How is one boxing match going to erase the mistakes of the past? It's like your brother constantly being the ass of the family for years and then he joins a church custodial staff just to make you forget that he's the ass of the family. If anything, this is a steadily hyped boxing match. And it will breed interest in more steadily hyped boxing matches involving Mayweather and De La Hoya. You can't actually believe that one match will make anything better. It has to start to be and remain consistent to be taken seriously again. It has to be cleaned up, start following a beneficial agenda and have an actual format to rely on.

If Boxing is relying on this match on saving them, it really shows how much brains makes up the higher ups in this particular promotion.

What does MMA have to do with any of this?

Absolutely nothing.

Then why is the Sports media so adamant about attacking it?

I don't know. Other then Caligarian mesmerism, the only explanation I can give is that they can't come to terms with the problems in Boxing and instead of doing their jobs and talk about these problems, they pretty much lash out at the newest popular thing in denial. MMA was just passing through the neighborhood at the time.

Is MMA killing Boxing?

Hell no. And if it is, it's not intentional. Sure you have Dana White saying that the UFC is killing boxing, after De La Hoya retires boxing is over, blah blah blah. This is the same guy who got in an F-bomb war with Pride's two bit guppy on satellite radio. His words don't mean crap.

What I find interesting is that those who are still hanging off Boxing's sac are saying that it's mostly the young (21-35) that is watching MMA. Am I disputing that? Absolutely not. There have been facts and figures who state this is a fact. What's really silly is that the Sports media thinks that it's ONLY the young that is growing the sport of MMA. They're totally wrong on this. It's not only the young growing this sport, it's Boxing's future neighbors, the Traditional Martial Arts community that has put some effort in growing this sport as well. To totally ignore this fact is what shows the true base of Boxing's arrogance. A sport whose basis is a mix of other highly technical combat sports that get little to no coverage or props from the mainstream save clips for the Olympics is being bashed by the so called Sports media as a "bar room brawl" over the fact that a less technical combat sport that has many variations of one focal point of attack is losing fans because they're turned off by the constant scandal that combat sport is plagued with and are starting to enjoy advanced styles of striking and new ideas of ground technique.

In short?

Because Sports media doesn't understand the gogoplata, they're gonna hate on the gogoplata.

De La Hoya or Mayweather?

De La Hoya. He's more into the fight then Mayweather is.

PS: If your Sports media is spending more time covering the length of Jarrod Saltalamacchia's name more then a UFC card, you know you're in trouble.

K-1 World GP in Hawaii!!

2007-04-25T08:55:00.001-07:00

Aloha Fight Fans!

K-1 will be at the Blaisdell Arena in Hawaii April 28th. While it does look like it will be the first and last US Grand Prix they will be running this year (there is a possibility for a second one), They totally make up for it by debuting the new K-1 Heavyweight belt. This will be at least at taste of what FEG will bring to the table June 2nd with it's DYNAMITE show in LA. Also expect some annoucments about that in this event.

And now the card.

Honor the Oyabun. Subscribe to MMA Madness.

PRIDE is to MC5 as UFC is to Rage.

2007-04-11T22:18:00.000-07:00

So I'm going through all my LPs, and I pulled out Kick Out The Jams by MC5. Amid the scratches and pops of the record, my thoughts turn on a couple things. The thing that really comes up is how both original and cover versions of the song really reflect what is radiated from both Pride and UFC. The image and dramatic force radiated by both are on totally different levels.

For those not familiar with the song I'll try to be brief. KOTJ was the second song on the same titled album put out by the politically conscious group MC5 (Motor City 5) who will be later label the founders of Punk Rock. One of the big reasons the song was popular was that it started out with the line "And Now It's Time To.....KICK OUT THE JAMS MOTHERFUCKERS!!" The blatant use of "Motherfuckers" and playing a concert for anti-war protesters was very controversial at the time and it lead to the record company, Elektra, dropping the band. The album was and still is considered one of the best live albums so far.

Another reason KOTJ is so popular is that people seem to think there is a political message behind the song. They're pretty much wrong. This is a bullshit song. There is no political context whatsoever. "Kick Out The Jams" was just a musical rant about how bands waste peoples time by just jamming and not playing music and they should just "kick out the jams." On the the other hand, there is the underlying subtext of "being yourself and giving it your all". To give everything you got till you can't give no more.

PRIDE is (or was) the embodiment of that subtext. If you were going out into that ring, you pretty damn well need to be willing to leave it all in the ring because the other guy probably is. Being able to try almost everything possible to either get the win or try your damn hardest to keep the win from your opponent. In the end, whether you win, lose or draw, if you put it all out on the line and put on an enjoyable fight, you both are winners. You'll both will be coming back. You'd get deals and such galore, just because you left it all in the ring.

And that's how it should be. You're not only entertaining and impressing the fans at the event, you're showing to the judges in your match what you are capable of doing, how far you're willing to go in terms of risks taken and what your own willpower can provide in this situation. You just might also impress yourself in the match by see how quick of wits you have and what you can come up with in times of extreme stress. In the end, no matter if your arm is raised or you're on the mat, a bloody mass and out like a light, if you tried your hardest and gave it truly your all, you come out the winner just the same.

Now like all good songs, you're going to have your share of homages, covers and ripoffs. KOTJ is no different. In my listening to the various recordings of KOTJ covers, I've come to the conclusion that no one can do a standout performance of the song. Now before everyone gets their panties in the bunch, I urge you to hear me out as I explain myself.

It is a very simple and logical understanding that someone doing a cover will not be %100 percent as great as the original song. All that's asked of the person doing the cover is that they put a real great effort in either playing the song or totally putting your own spin on the material. Out of all the people who did covers for KOTJ (Rage Against The Machine, Hellacopters, Jeff Buckley, Silverchair, etc.), they do an awesome job playing the song. Awesome job. But everyone totally blows the subtext. In all of the covers, everyone plays the song like it's just another song. There is somehow this...underlining restraint that they have to play the song right. That's total nonsense. If you play the song full hilt, totally get into it, just show your balls and leaving every last bit of energy on the stage, if you fuck up a couple cords or screw up a couple lyrics, it won't matter to anyone because they see that you're totally into the whole song and are pretty much doing the same thing you're doing. Putting energy into the music. All these covers out today are the total blatant use of "motherfucker" line to an invisible band that's "just jamming" and then they totally contradict themselves by just jamming.

Such is the plight of the UFC. Sure, they have great fighters and they do put out wonderful fights. They just don't encourage something of an effort to leave everything in the ring. You have people relying too much on "getting points" on judges scorecards to win. You have people relying on one style to stop and finish opponents instead of challenging themselves and try other avenues. And the overall product turns boring, mediocre or just nothing to write about fully. Sure, you're going to get a couple of great fight out of a UFC card, but when has anyone almost literally gush over a whole UFC card? When have you heard people talk about THE UFC card?

While I do credit Dana White for working with the NJSAC about getting knees on a downed opponent, it will still be up to time and effort before we see any result of this. It should also be noted that even if certain moves are legalized or banned, it's still up to the fighter to bring his S game or not. It is becoming harder and harder to validate theses guys who fight in the UFC as legit fighters if they're not willing to leave everything and more out on that ring. The McCulley/Hardonk fight is a great example of guys going out to fight but aren't willing to go balls out. Hardonk had this match, but didn't put an effort to try to win the match.While the only thing McCulley did was push weight. As the great Ric Flair would say, there are a lot of guys busting their ass to get the opportunity McCulley was given. To let it just waste away with that performance is a slap in the face to them all.

Next month, Zuffa will have full control over Pride. The indications on how it will be run is not good, but then again, weirder things have happened. The future is uncertain.

Will they actually play music or will they just be kicking out jams.

Radio Time!

2007-04-11T10:45:00.000-07:00

If you want my thoughts on last weekends UFC and Pride cards last weekend, Come listen to Komikazee #18

A look at Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira in UFC

2007-04-10T16:26:00.000-07:00

As many UFC fans now know, former PRIDE heavyweight Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira was introduced as UFC's latest acquisition at UFC 69. Many MMA fans -- both hardcore and casual – have asked me about Nogueira and his potential impact on UFC. Here are some of my thoughts on the fighter known as “Minotauro”.

Most MMA fans know that Big Nog -- as Nogueira is also known -- is a world-class grappler but they tend to forget that he also has Olympic-grade hands. In fact, he had the Brazilian and Cuban Olympic boxing teams begging for him to be on their teams. In the UFC, Nogueira could end up being the catalyst forcing fighters to get serious about their boxing because once he is in that cage and the bell rings, his fists could render a number of opponents unconscious. Nogueira’s punches are crisp, his jab is strong, and anyone who tries to bang it out with him will have a difficult time winning.

Hey! Honor the oyabun. Check out MMA Madness!

So UFC is on Sportscenter. So what?

2007-04-08T09:08:00.000-07:00

First of all, I'd like to say great job to Zuffa for getting some semblance of MMA on ESPN. It must have been hard for them to get this far. They totally deserved props.

With that said, I think ESPN and Zuffa could have gone a lot farther with coverage, but with the Powers That Be at ESPN like they are, it's going to be a long time before we see a bit more content to future reports.

I know. I know. "Stop being a pessimist!" "You'll jinx us!" "Don't you want MMA to succeed?" The answer is Yes, I would love to see MMA succeed. But hear me out.

To me...that Sportscenter piece...was really lackluster. It did nothing to promote, it did nothing to inform and it did nothing to validate. It was nothing. In fact, I can do the whole segment in a couple sentences. Here we go:

Ultimate Fighting is the combination of all aspect of martial arts combat put together in a display of unarmed combat.

A reality star who won a chance at a title fight with the UFC Welterweight Champion surprised everyone by winning said championship.

That was the whole gist of the segment. Pitiful ain't it?

First off, they didn't promote Matt Serra as a "veteran fighter". They promoted him as a "reality star". While he did win his chance at the title on The Ultimate Fighter reality show, they made it sound like he was this chump off the street. Like anyone can get a title shot. I hope they do a little more research next time.

Another thing that irked me was that they only shown the title fight, like it was the only fight that mattered. That was very "Boxing" of them to do so. This was an awesome card that did needed some highlighting. If I was given say, thirty secs. to a minute for a package, I would not only put in the title fight, but some highlights of the Cummo/Haynes KO, Garcia/Huerta and also Swick/Okami. They I'd follow it up with some post fight quips. Not only am I showing every aspect of MMA, I'm also getting people to know the fighters as well. One of Boxing's hurting points is that you don't know much about the fighters. This is due to, yes, media outlets just showing title fights. More coverage means more knowledgeable people and also means more profit for everyone. It also dispels the "unpopular" myth. You give it time and effort, sports won't be "not popular enough". They'll be just "sports".

While it was a valiant first effort, I won't be convinced that ESPN is committed to "ultimate fighting" until we see it covered consistently. UFC 70 will be the tipping point as to whether or not ESPN will cover it as "sport" or cover it as "Boxing". If it is covered as "Sport" then all as well. If it's covered as "Boxing", then Zuffa really needs to sit them down and talk to them about the sport. And I mean heart to heart.

But for now, The segment was hype. No substance.

K-1 HEROS at Nagoya Analysis!

2007-04-05T16:55:00.000-07:00

A spin-off promotion of K-1, the HEROS promotion started off the New Year with some controversy. The league temporarily lost one of its great fighters to Olympic dreams while another fighter retired. What made matters worse was that one of their new middleweights was caught cheating. At K-1 Dynamite, Yoshihiro Akiyama was caught using Oil of Olay to grease his legs, making him slippery to the advances of Kazushi Sakuraba. Though Akiyama initially won the contest, the result was changed to a "No Contest" and Akiyama was suspended for six months.

Despite all these early issues, the promotion hoped that HEROS 8 would put it back on the right track.

Like what the oyabun is writing? Check out the rest of the article at MMA Insight.

Goodbye Yellow Brick Road

2007-03-29T00:53:00.000-07:00

1998-2007

As many of you may know by now, the Fertittas have bought PRIDE from DSE and is now running it as a seperate company. They now own the name, the library and the fighter contracts. In a way, they have finally won.

When I had heard the news, to be honest, I didn't want to happen. As a pro-wrestling fan, I and others have been bitter and cynical with these two in one deals and the results there in. As I was reading report after report, I kept hearing RD Reynolds in the back of my head.

Pride was not suppose to die.

I almost was going to call this article "Oct '95 part deux" in honor of the date Nobuhiko Takada's pro wrestling organization, UWFi, merged with New Japan Pro Wrestling. Fast forward twelve years later, and now you have, let's face it, Takada's PRIDE merging with UFC.

But I'm not. PRIDE, in a technical sense, is dead. It wasn't killed by egotistical fighters, bookers who had no clue how to make a fight or managers who throw money at problems rather then give up and coming fighters a chance at the big boys. What killed it was the very old Japanese belief that everybody knows everybody does wrong but it's turns evil if you get caught. Everybody knew the fight scene was in part, run by the Yakuza. Pride got punished when it was proven to be true.

So I should be happy, right? PRIDE is under new management and now everything will be hunky dory and we will finally see who's better who's best.

Not neccisarily.

From the Review Journal...

"This is a sport and we're going to follow the unified rules that were established in New Jersey and then in Nevada," White said. "It's a sport -- mixed martial arts -- and the sport should have the same rules everywhere. As far as I'm concerned, if an organization doesn't follow these rules, it's not MMA. It's something else, but that's not MMA."

Ok, just to make things clear. I'm am not for either rule set. There are many negatives for both. While Pride rules wouldn't be accepted on a social level, Unified rules will not be accepted on a technical level. With that being said, I think it was a really bad descion to totally eradicate the Pride ruleset. I can undrstand getting rid of stomps and soccer kicks. While Japan can accept that part of strategy, Americans aren't wired that way yet. We still have this thing where we have to reject our violent nature for some reason. Knees to a downed opponent is certainly debatable and does deserve debate. I think...when they abolished Pride rules, they got rid of the most important thing of any worth. The Yellow Card System.

For those who dion't follow PRIDE. The yellow card system is a penalty system that was used to stop intentional stalling. If you don't finish the fight or at least try to finish the fight, you were given a yellow card and you lose 10% of your purse. You're allowed two yellow cards and if you continue to stall or get worse by messing to the ref, you got a red card which took away 20-25% of the purse away. This was the whole meat of the whole ruleset. The Fertittas has something good in their hands that they could at least test out in Japan with the Unified rules and they blew it away. It's gone. Kaput! Fin! They wasted a great opportunity.

Also, the "Unified rules = MMA" comment Dana made really made him look like a fool. The Japanesse people are more knowledgeable about the fight game then people in the US. The statement Dana made is pretty much a dare to the japanesse people to leave. As soon as you get the first wrestler that lays and prays in PRIDE, I will garentee a huge chunk of the fanbase will leave. They know fighters when they see them and if you're going to feed them someone very boring be it striking and/or ground and they lay and pray the win, they will be off like a russian bra.

I'm sorry Mr. White, I can not and will not accept that unified rules are a way to go. It has a bias that benifits more simplistic styles and somewhat shun the advanced styles. It favors people who do not put much effort in their training over those who do. Thanks to the Unified rules, you have now made the ground poison.

I will be still watching, but the same intrest I had with PRIDE will not be the same when the Fertittas take control. I and other fans will look for greener pastures and follw new products that try to defy your rule.

And as the line goes from the song I reference in the title.

"I've finally decided my future lies beyond the yellow brick road."

Open Thread

2007-03-27T07:50:00.000-07:00

The Westown. One of Bay City's more illustrious bars.

Just when you got the sucker beat, Art Dore raises his ugly head again.

Anyways, I'm trying to see who's out there reading me. Give a shout out! Say "hi" or mention something you want to talk about. I'm all ears!

US Sports Media: MacMahon's Best Friend.

2007-03-20T15:38:00.000-07:00

*WARNING! Harsh Language! Viewer discretion is advised!*

Zach Arnold of Fight Opinion has been covering the media barrage over the SI.com article. Most of has been your run of the mill negative connotations about pro wrestling.

"They're not athletes."
"They're all on the sauce."

"Pro-wrestling isn't a sport"

"Thug this. Brain dead moron that."

"This is for yokels and mild retards."

"Should we care that pro wrestlers are on steroids?"

I think I can answer that question perfectly.

Yes, you fucking assholes. You really should.

If this was the Big three sports you cover constantly to the fucking hilt (and speaking of mild retards...), you be all over this like stink to shit. Yet if who wins and loses is faked or predetermined, who gives a shit, right.

It is because of the US Sports Media that there is an air of indifference about pro-wrestling that allows the worse elements of pro-wrestling to permeate.

It is because of the US Sports Media that the industry of pro-wrestling in N. America has become an unwieldy and unchecked monopoly as of late.

It is because of the US Sports Media that allows Vince MacMahon to pull any shit he wants to.

I think it was Bob Costas who called him on his bullshit. Only Bob Costas. Where are the rest of you? I know! You're making cheap fucking jokes about how pro-wrestlers are idiots.

Lyle Alzado dies, you honor him.

Eddie Guerrero dies, you make him a fucking joke.

How many more human lives are going to be lost until it's no longer a laughing matter?

What really worries me is that this so called "sports media" has the same reservations on MMA as well. Do we need the same shit being said about a Randy Couture or a Fedor?

If you're serious about defeating steroid abuse, start taking the matter seriously and start attacking Vince MacMahon with the truth. If you don't, you're nothing more then the chief enabler of a paranoid sycophant throwback and deserve to be discredited at every turn.

The choice is yours.

Guys With Roids.

2007-03-19T23:28:00.000-07:00

Sports Illustrated recently put out an article about several big name WWE wrestlers found on the ledger of an illegal steroid distribution system that has been investigated since late February. Eddie Guerrero, Edge, Rey Mysterio, Randy Orton and Shane Helms have been prescribed everything from HGH to Testosterone from this company. Check out the article. it's a good read.

Now, a few moments ago, WWE put out a statement regarding the article:

All of the allegations set forth in a recent SI.com article mentioning WWE predate the initiation of WWE’s current Talent Wellness Program. This WWE program prohibits the use of performance enhancing drugs, as well as other prescription drugs which can be abused, if taken for other than a legitimate medical purpose pursuant to a valid prescription from a licensed and treating physician. For purposes of WWE's policy, prescriptions obtained over the Internet and/or from suppliers of prescription drugs from the Internet are not considered to have been given for a legitimate medical purpose.

So what they're saying is "That happened before the Wellness Plan. We're not liable for anyone juicing." And, in a way, I agree with them.

But they're liable for the environment that makes one juice.

Sure, these guys can leave whenever they want. If they do though, they'll not be paid the kind of money the WWE puts out. And sure, they can stay within the company, but they won't be making money that the headliners are making. They won't get a cut in merchandising, if they get merchandising that is. The reason for it is that in this business nowadays, wrestlers are conditioned to believe that you won't get everything and the girl if you're not built like Fort Knox and have the sex drive of a passive aggressive rapist. The person who perpetuated this nonsense was Vincent K. MacMahon, owner of the WWE. In fact, it's how he became number one. It's why he's still number one.

If you want further proof, look at Chris Masters. Dude was pushed like a chiseled god. That's the reason he was on TV. That was it. Other then looking ripped, the guy wrestled like a bag of hammers. Then Eddie dies. The WWE institutes the "wellness policy" to y'know...kill the media heat. One of the first victims of the "wellness policy" is Masters. Even though he cycles out badly, he gets back to his normal shape and size and is starting to do well in the farm leagues. They want to bring him back, but guess what? Vince wonders why he got so small and doesn't put him back in his main event position. Guess what's next?

Matter of fact, why did they even mention the "wellness policy". We all know it doesn't exist. And when it does, it's mostly to punish or suspend people who are mid to lower card or those who are heading to be headlining material, but aren't there yet. I wouldn't be surprised if they used the "wellness plan" to punish people they hate. If the "wellness plan" did exist, we wouldn't be seeing guys the size of Masters, Bautista or even Triple H in the main event position. I there was any kind of "plan" involved, we'd see more going into wrestling then promoting bodybuilding. And if there was a "plan", a lot of people wouldn't be laid up with muscle tears.

Then again, I'm using common sense on an industry that's ruled by a despot in lala land who can't even surround himself with competent help.

The Oyabun Is Recruiting Pro Wrestling Fans.

2007-03-19T11:27:00.000-07:00

Hey all. While I like and write about MMA, I've always been open to other combat sports as well. With time and content restrictions, I just can't get to cover everything on this site. This really bums me out. So, I'm opening the doors to recruit at least one or two people who want to write about pro wrestling. Now, I'm not looking for match results and cut and paste news pieces. I'm looking for what you, the fan have to say about the matches and the news. What's your take on it.

If you are interested, please feel free to contact me at royal.blake@gmail.com If you have any work of your own, go ahead and show a few pieces. We'll get talking.

Thanks for reading.

Akira Maeda vs. Minoru Suzuki

2007-03-11T22:32:00.000-07:00

Because Zach Arnold already took Maeda vs. Haystacks.

3! 2! 1! FUJIWARA-GUMI!!

2007-03-11T21:59:00.000-07:00

Scientificwrestling.com is putting out the first edition of Pro-Wrestling Fujiwara-Gumi out on DVD. Fujiwara-Gumi was the precursor to the PANCRASE MMA promotion and is highly regarded as most true to oldschool pro wrestling.

Groundwork and Submission Holds with Yoshiaki Fujiwara
Takedowns and Submissions Starting from Standing with Minoru Suzuki
Pankration, Takedowns, and Submissions from Kicking Defense with Masakatsu Funaki

It's all here.

Is It Enough?

2007-03-11T20:43:00.000-07:00

WaPo did an article on MMA and the UFC a couple days back. A bit of it really caught my eye.

Mixed martial arts still faces the stigma of being lumped with the old toughman contests and the old UFC events, which were less structured and regulated than they are today. And there is a fear that, as mixed martial arts spreads via hundreds of local shows around the country, an accident during a fight could have a devastating effect on the industry.
Ratner has been going around the country, meeting with state officials in various jurisdictions to get mixed martial arts licensed and regulated.
"Pennsylvania just came on board," Ratner said. "They still have to adopt regulations, but they have approved the sport to regulate. We are having bills introduced in Michigan and Illinois in the next week to 10 days...."

He's going to introduce a bill into the legislature in the next two weeks. While this is a step in the right direction and I thank Ratner for stepping in, I really have to ask...is that enough? Just introducing a bill and see if it sticks? And once it does pass, what are we going to do between the time of legalizing and regulation? I know there are real itchy fingers who will look for any and all loopholes to make a profit off it when ever possible. Yes Mr. Dore. I am looking in your direction.

Another thing that worries me is if we do get this regulated, how smart would the MSAC be in handling such events. As I have shown, the same people who have shut down Dore's illegal activity and have started proceedings to stop MMA in Michigan had a picture of Tito Ortiz on their homepage. That either tells me that MSAC fully welcomes MMA or that someone really doesn't know how to build a page for athletic commissions. How are we supposed to trust these guys to be sure they won't pull an Ebersol situation? I really don't like going up north to have to talk down to a lot of boxing officials just because they suspended a fighter indefinitely based on the evidence that the Anaconda choke looks "hokey".

Here's what I like to see. Ratner sends the bill. If it doesn't pass, fine. If it does, I want to see a moratorium on all Amateur MMA events until a regulating party can be formed and educated on the basics of running and licensing MMA events. Anyone who tries to run a show will loose licence privileges and will have to pay a thousand dollar fine. This will make sure nothing happens until such a time the commission is ready.

That's just me though.

UFC 68 Results

2007-03-07T21:43:00.000-08:00

Jamie Varner d Jason Gilliam Sub R1
Gleison Tibau d Jason Dent UJD
Jon Fitch d Luigi Fiorevanti Sub R2
Matt Hamill d Rex Holman TKO (Strikes) R1
Jason Lambert d Renato Sobral KO R2
Matt Hughes d Chris Lytle UJD
Rich Franklin d Jason MacDonald TKO (Towel) R2
Martin Kampman d Drew MacFredries Sub R1
Heavyweight Championship: Randy Couture d Tim Sylvia UJD

Notes

Holman was just a can for Hamill, but it doesn't do anything for Hamill. Laying and hitting can get old quick.

Renato is just having a bad day. No one saw that punch coming in. This should be at least a bit disappointing, but it shouldn't hold Babalu back that much.

I'm sorry folks. Lytle/Hughes is godawful boring. Lytle's never been an exciting fighter. Pairing him with Hughes didn't do Hughes any favors other then show him he's got to brush up on stuff.

Franklin/MacDonald was expected. The outcome probably wasn't, but how it turned out was. Not going to hurt either man though.

How to describe Couture/Sylvia? What's a good analogy? It was like...It was like watching Randy beat on a big fish hanging on a hook and when the fish fell down, Randy would wrestle it. Where the hell was Tim's ground defense? Don't they teach ground defense at MFS?

(sorry this took long. I'm feeling under the weather.)

March Calender

2007-02-28T17:17:00.000-08:00

MMA

Mar. 3rd

UFC 68: Heavyweight Title: Tim Sylvia vs. Randy Couture

Mar. 17

IFL: Sabres/Condors, Razorclaws/Andacondas

Mar. 24

WEC 2: Bantamweight Title: Eddie Wineland vs. Chase Beebe, Featherweight Title: Uriah Faber vs. Dominick Cruz, Welterweight Title: Carlos Condit vs. John Alessio

Boxing

Mar. 3

WBC: Jr. Featherweight Title: Israel Vasquez vs. Raphael Marquez

IBF: Flyweight Title: Vic Darchinyan vs. Victor Burgos, Super Middleweight Title: Robert Stiegliz vs. Alejandro Berrio

WBA: Welterweight Title: Miguel Cotto vs. Oktay Urkal

Mar. 7

WBA: Super Middleweight Title: Anthony Mudine vs. Sam Soliman

Mar. 10

IBF: Heavyweight Title: Wladimir Klitschko vs. Ray Austin

WBO: Flyweight Title: Omar Narvaez vs. Brahim Asloum

Mar 16

WBA: Jr. Featherweight Title: Celestino Caballero vs. Ricardo Castillo

Mar 17

WBC: Jr Lightweight Title: Marco Antonio Barrera vs. Juan Manuel Marquez

WBO: Jr. Featherweight Title: Daniel Ponce De Leon vs. Gerry Penalosa

Mar 24

WBA/WBC: Super Middleweight Title: Mikkel Kessler vs. Librado Andrade

Mar 30

WBO: Bantamweight Title: Jhonny Gonzales vs. Irene Pacheco

Pro Wrestling

Mar 3

ROH: FIP Title: TBA vs. Pac

Mar. 4

ROH: Tag Titles: The Briscoes vs. TBA

Mar 11

TNA: Heavyweight Title: Samoa Joe vs. Christian Cage, X Div. Title: Chris Sabin vs. Jerry Lynn.

Mar 30

ROH: TBA

Mar 31

ROH: TBA

PRIDE 33 Results and Notes

2007-02-27T07:20:00.000-08:00

Joachim Hansen d Jason Ireland Sub R3.
Frank Trigg d Kazuo Misaki UD
James Lee d Travis Wiuff Sub R1.
Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou d Antonio Rogerio Nogueira KO R1.
Hayato Sakurai d Mac Danzig KO R2.
Sergey Kharitonov d Mike Russow Sub R1.
Mauricio Shogun d Alistair Overeem KO R1.
Nick Diaz d Takanori Gomi Sub R2
Middleweight Title Match: Dan Henderson d Vanderlei Silva KO R3.

Notes:

Wow. I don't know what to say.

- Misaki got his ass kicked by, for lack of any better terms, The head of Pride's version of the Spanish announcer's table. He totally got stuffed at the takedown and was just held down. I don't think Misaki's going to show his face in the ring for a while or at least till May. Very embarrassing defeat.

- Poor Rogerio. This was supposed to be an easy fight for him and he ends up getting floored by "Judo Terry". No one, I mean No one saw that knife fist coming. Rogerio has still got to be stinging over the lost. Look on the bright side, some clueless casuals made a total ass load of money.

- Gomi looked gassed after his first round with Diaz. Diaz totally out strike Gomi. it was like once Gomi got hit in the face a couple times, that was it. I think Gomi was to busy aiming for a KO that he put too much of himself in his punches. That really threw him off . Diaz....he fought to survive. His intent was to break something win, lose or draw. The gogo was a nice cherry on the whole situation. Gomi is going to have a hell of a time marketing himself now.

- Really bad night for Silva. Not only does he lose his belt, he loses it to a blown up middleweight. Henderson now is the first to hold two titles in two weight classes. What's up with Silva now is any one's guess. We might see Shogun going after the title next. Who knows.

PRIDE 33 coverage.

2007-02-23T19:05:00.000-08:00

Fox Sports

MMA HQ

Gambling 911

Stephen Quadros

Zach Arnold: The Last Coming?

The Five Points of 2007.

2007-02-22T07:32:00.000-08:00

I wanted to do this at the beginning of the year, but I didn't get to due to circumstances. So here it is. The five points I think MMA should focus on in 2007.

A Penalty System: If a penalty system is in place, not only will we have great fights ahead in the future, we'll also have fighters who start to appear to be world caliber and possibly have a chance against world caliber opponents. It also can stymie out the "filling out the cards" mentality which is starting to become prevalent within the UFC as well as other groups. Fighting "not to lose" should not be an option. in fact, it should be looked down upon from the fighters all the way to the athletic commission. In fact, being able to hold someone down and baby bopping until the round ends should be an instant sign of stalling.

The Penalty System can also be a great selling point for promotions that really want to make it big. Think of it, instead of having a silly fifteen second "ground clock", why not punish lay and prayers with a multicolored card penalty. Guy on the bottom holding the top guy's arms down? BAM!! Yellow card! Knees to the back of the head? BOOM!! Red Card and loss of 25% of the purse. As long as the system is used with a strict yet even hand, we can get a lot of exciting fights out of it.

An Extensive Mainstream View of MMA: I really think this is my "I can dream, can't I?" topic. There have been talks about ESPN looking into MMA coverage. Let's not kid ourselves people. All their really going to do is give a sideways glance at UFC. I doubt they'll even look at full cards. Maybe a quick thirty secs on the main event. They would probably make NBC (a company at one time, hellbent on shutting down MMA) look like the new Sherdog. If anything worse, ESPN could end up turning into Art Neil, an infamous news personality known around the pro-wrestling community in my area for spoiling the main events of both WWE and WCW shows during the height of the Monday Night Wars.

With maybe a small extensive coverage, the mainstream sports outlets can help the casuals better know the sport as well as the fighters within. Also, promoting other promotions can help develop a healthy competition between them. But until then, we're just the red headed, left handed, freckled step child locked up in the back bedroom.

Community Sponsored Fighters: To be honest, this isn't originally my idea. This was first thought up by Nate Quarry. I'm just running the ball with it. If you really want to get technical, the idea can stretch as far as feudal Japan. At one time, every village had they're own sumo stable. It gave the village something to be proud of. A jewel in their crown if you weel. These days, with the need of some forms of positive morale, a small community interested in the well being and the training of a fighter could be just what the doctor ordered.

Now I'm not saying that we should tax a city for support a fighter and/or stable. I do think the idea of a "booster club" could be beneficial. Small things like gym time, equipment upkeep, maybe going as far as travel expenses can go really far for a fighter and really help bring more focus to his or her game. It also can free up a lot of money in the fighters pocket for bills and necessities. If it works for UFCJunkie, it can definitely be good for Yourtown USA.

Proper Martial Arts Judges: Let's be honest, last year was definitely not the year of the judge. Looking at the numbers, either some judges were looking at something totally different or they really don't want to be there. I don't blame them. They're boxing judges. What the hell do they know about the ground game? They only specialize in judging whether punch #345 was damaging enough or not. This is where the athletic commissions really need to think about investing in judges with actual and credible martial arts backgrounds.

By having martial arts judges, you can make sure that the learning experience is much better at the seminars and that judges desicions will look and feel more clear cut. People who have a game plan on the bottom will be recognized as actually having a plan. what they do in defence and offence will be much better graded. Ground fighting would have an actual worth again.

Shut Down Lofty Goals and Expectations: Two years...doesn't make a sport a success. It doesn't really make anything a success. UFC running on SPIKE for two years just means they've made it longer then Rollerjam. Real success is somewhere between five and ten years. So if your singing the praises of UFC and how it's "blown up", I'd suggest you shut up and look around you.
If we took the energy that we put in to cheerleading, bandwagon jumping, nuthugging and nut dropping and then put it into something creative and beneficial to the sport, legislation that is being built to ban MMA in Louisiana, Utah, Michigan, Kentucky, Hawaii, etc. would be shut down easier and without so much as a whimper. Yes, I'm talking about you, the so-called "MMA community". If this was truly a sport you loved, you would actually stop bitching about how wrong an article is and do something about it to change the opinion. If this was really a sport you loved, instead of slamming every noob who comes in and tries to become part of it, you actually take time to help them out. If none of your actions are of a positive nature for the sport and you're trying to turn it into something of an elitist nature....turn your fan card in and go watch another sport. The sport doesn't need you. There needs to be positive cohesion among people other then the hardkore. You don't like it? Go home. I rather see a helpful open community rather then an elitist murder of pricks trying to keep their precious little clique "pure".

Thank You Fight Opinion.

2007-02-18T21:30:00.000-08:00

Fight Opinion just did a segment about Michigan's MMA problem on their recent podcast. They talked to Arron Crossen who writes for Saginaw Valley State Uni.'s student newspaper, The Valley Vanguard. Here is the editorial he did on the subject. Thanks to Fight Opinion for taking our cause to the public.

Also on the Fight Opinion link is a couple of important email addresses. I'll post them here in case the link doesn't work

Robert Swanson

Keith Cooley

These guys are the former and current directors of DLEG in Michigan. Please write nice and articulate letter to them, telling them that you support their decsion in stopping Art Dore from profiting off of MMA fighters and that you want them to regulate the sport in order to protect said fighters. Also add that, if they do not wish to legalize and regulate MMA, they need to look into making sure that traditional martial arts tournaments are protected and that slimeball promoters do not exploit this loop hole to their own advantage. There isn't nothing more despicable then Art Dore trying to stand shoulder to shoulder with Dr. Ibrahim Ahmed and The Konan Judo Association.

I Expect Behavior Like This From My Little Brother.

2007-02-18T01:15:00.000-08:00

Taken from the Machine Shop's myspace site. They held an "amateur MMA" card last Friday. The event was run by ADorable Prods. Can you guess who got paid in that picture? (Hint: She's not wearing panties.)

This is kinda old news. I'm sorry I didn't post it sooner, I was hella busy.

If you don't know by now, Art Dore is acting like a child and is ignoring the C&D order to throw his silly ass "Amateur MMA" card at the Dow Event Center next week. Last Friday, he had culled pay at his Flint event and is basically making fighters pay money out of their pocket to fight for free. Just so he can comply with MSAC .

Where is the money going. It can't be going to the venue they fought in. It's easy for Art to pay for. Can be the concessions. The Machine Shop pretty much gets their piece of the action from concessions. I'm pretty sure Dore can get ambulances at the scene too. He owns the Dow and has OHL hockey playing there all the time. So, it's not like a really big problem to get medics over there stat.

Where does the $25 dollars go to, Mr. Dore? I'm having a slight problem understanding this. How is it that the USJF has to charge judokas to pay just so they can afford venue, labor and acceptable medical service, yet you , an ultra rich entrepreneur, instead of doing the right thing and probably ponying up a sizable amount and let these guy fight for free since you don't feel the need to pay them anyway, decide that notion is just crazy-talk and make them pay possibly a part of their money to pay bills just to fight and rank? It's confusing.

As for him ignoring the C&D, this really shows how, excuse my language, fucking childish he is. Honestly, this reminds me of the time me and my brother were taking lessons in sculling. The instructor we studied under had a dog that loved to fetch for things in the water. We were learning to put boats in the water and how to put the oars in the coxing. My brother, totally not interested in learning anything, somehow got his hands on the dog's floating chew toy and was pretty much play fetch. The instructor caught him, told him not to do that and to listen up. My brother stopped and waited for him to be preoccupied, then he started playing with the dog again. Two more times the instructor told him to stop, the last time he shouted at him to knock it off. My brother wouldn't listen. Because I wanted to actually learn how to row as well as make sure I didn't have to listen to shouting all day from my parents, I took the toy away from my brother just before he threw it and gave it back to the instructor.

Now, what am I getting at here. Art Dore is my little brother. He's totally disinterested in learning to do things properly and instead, goes off to the side and does his own thing. The instructor is DLEG. Never mind that what they're trying to do is overlook the safety of fighters, my little brother wants to make money DAMMIT!! Even if it is off the backs of the battered and bruised. The MMA community is me and the chew toy is MMA. We need to take away MMA from Dore and give it to DLEG so that it can be properly shown to the public (the dog) for many years to come.

Kurt Angle: Built To Spill

2007-02-14T18:32:00.000-08:00

Kurt Angle A MMA Debut Again.

So the big fight over one of the most notable names in pro-wrestling has now begun. I thought it would have started sooner. Let's face it. Angle's probably going to go fight with Elite XC. They can deliver a nice check as well as the head of his most hated person, Daniel Puder, thanks to being in partnership with STRIKEFORCE. What's UFC gonna offer him? A fight with a C level fighter and a three year deal to sit on his ass at UFC events? No thank you sir! Better luck next time. Thanks for stopping by.

Do we really need Angle in MMA though?

Check this out. Two (technically three) MMA organizations are throwing large amounts of money at a guy whose physically broke down, mentally inflated and possibly stylistically obsolete. Whatever fight is matched up with Angle, it's pretty much going to look like a freak match where nobody wins. Angle is that big bulk can of tomato juice you can get at a good price at a bulk storehouse.

Now, don't get me wrong. I don't doubt Angle's wrestling ability. I think he's a great wrestler. I think it takes balls to everybody say it with me, "wrestle with a freaking broken neck." Good Good. I also think it takes balls to take on the degenerative sport of pro-wrestling, especially with the combat game like it was back in the day. What had happened though, was he got "spot fever" and instead of getting his neck fixed properly, he opted for a lesser option and to this day, still nag him. While some may argue that Vince had some part in it by overworking him, Angle still could have said no and at least try to recoup. Besides the neck, I seemed to have read reports (I be glad if anyone can confirm this.) that Angle can't lift his arms up fully as well as having multiple concussions. Even if he is on a limited schedule for MMA and even if he did train hard for six to eight months, he still will not be physically ready. His arms and neck will be targets for chokes or submissions.

Mental focus is another aspect of MMA that I don't think Angle has. You need focus to see and understand what your opponent is going to do and how to proper defend against it. You need focus to control yourself as well. Focus helps control cardio and the power of your punches and kicks. My evidence for this is his interviews he did with Bubba the Love Sponge. Angle went on and on during his whole segment degrading Daniel Puder. Calling him "A piece of shit", 'moron", "limited", and pretty much saying he's a wannabe shootfighter*. Now, in my opinion, if I wanted to beat someone, I'd get under my opponent's skin. By getting under his skin, he begins to lose focus and by losing focus, he'll make mistakes. Clearly, Puder has gotten under Angle's skin and if the fight does get made between the two, training or no training, Angle will definitely lose focus and in turn, lose the fight.

While I did worry about his fight technique and wrestling ability being applied to an actual fight, it's good to hear that Angle is looking to go to a good school to build and augment his game. He's also interested in studying under Couture, which is also a big plus. Even though he is an Olympic wrestler, that was a long time ago. The fight game has evolved and mutated to the point that being "pure" is almost a detriment. I wouldn't mind seeing him train at Legends. Now all we need to know now is how much will he retain from working out and learning and how much of that retention will he actually apply to a fight? Will he be like a Matt Lindland, and almost complete fighter who can control the ground effectively or will he be like Rulon Gardner, a wrestler who just wants to dabble into MMA and never get really far as "filling out the requirements" like he always has. This, will be all up to Angle.

* PW Torch around November of last year.

A Matter of Time.

2007-02-12T05:23:00.000-08:00

Nate Carey vs. Chris Hickok. Thanks and love to Pro Karate Weekly.com

First of all, congratulations to Nate Carey. He'll be off to Cleveland next month to challenge Josh "Heavy" Hendricks for his NAAFS Heavyweight Championship. Good luck Nate. You'll need it.

After reading the Muskegon article about the Caged Combat event that happened this weekend, I would like to applaud the DLEG officials for their restraint and for giving the opportunity for this event to happen. Now they have a big choice ahead of them. Do they or do they not allow the sport of MMA in the state of Michigan. Whichever decision they choose, both will yield benefits and consequences.

On one hand, they can still ban the sport from the state. While DLEG is using the very flimsiest of evidence, the true reason behind it's threats is Art Dore and ADorable Prod. To make a sweeping generalization and ban a sport because you believe that all promoters are like Art Dore is silly and preposterous. It also shows the lack of foresight and reasoning behind any logic about the subject. While I do understand that by banning MMA, they are deterring Dore and his ilk from exploiting a loophole in the MSAC rulebook that states that they don't preside over martial arts events, I can't help it but state that by doing so, they will turn into hypocrites and stifle actual economic growth. A whole wealth of fighters that we have in this state will up and leave to train and compete elsewhere and this will further depress the state economy. Millions upon millions in taxable revenue will be gone and the promise of international business will disappear with it as well.

On the other hand, they can legalize the sport, but they need more then legalization to get it's full potential. They need to regulate it as well. By regulating, they can stop Art Dore from profiting off of the sport as well as letting people who actually know how to run an amateur, semi pro, or pro event know that they are securely backed by the state's athletic commission. NAAFS, King of The Cage, TKO, IFL, UFC as well as many other organizations will knock on our door. All willing to give money to display cards. Money that can replenish our economy even just for a little while. I also can guarantee that schools would love to establish themselves up here based on the potential we have in the martial arts. Following them will be stores and shops that specialize in Fight Culture. Not only will these schools and shops add to the ever increasing revenue that will balloon thanks to regulation, but these school will also instill a sense of "community pride" within communities that truly need it. In a couple years, we could see fighters sponsored by the city of Flint, Buena Vista township or even the village of Kalkaska. Moral boosters to areas who feel that they're on their last dime and are forgotten by the state. Remember! Happy people are productive people.

I truly hope the DLEG is thinking long and hard about this. I do hope they take as much time as possible to think this through and ask the necessary questions needed.

Now it's just a matter of time.

Elite XC: Destiny results and notes.

2007-02-10T18:38:00.000-08:00

Tim Persey d Bo Cantrell by KO R1
Mike Pyle d Ross Ebanez by RNC R1
Javier Vazquez d Adriano Pereira JD
James Edson Berto d John Shackelford TKO (Punches) R2
Riki Fukuda d Chris Gates TKO (Strikes) R1

Main Card
Charles Bennett d KJ Noons KO R1
Gina Carano d Julie Kedzie UJD
Joey Villasenor d David Loiseau UJD
Antonio Silva d Wesley "Cabbage" Correira TKO (Strikes) R1
Renzo Gracie d Frank Shamrock DQ R2

Notes

- I would like to talk about the undercard matches, but the internet feeds weren't exactly Mac friendly. By the time I got a feed from someone, I got to see Fukuda pummel the crap out of Chris Gates and Gary Shaw's dumbass son bouncing all over the place. Very poor so far Pro Elite. Definitely need to rethink that strategy before trying it again.

-Beautiful counter shot KO from Bennett. Sure "Krazy Horse" is a weird dude who likes to showboat a lot, but when he brings it, he brings it out full force.

- The Girl's match was definitely fight of the night. Even though it was a glorified squash, Gina really showed her great striking skills. Kedzie , even though she lost, really showed everyone what a strong competitor she is. I hope to see more of them pretty soon.

-Loiseau! What happened!? Why did you just stall out with Villasenor!? Honestly, if Loiseau really wants to fight again, he needs to think really hard about his priorities. You want to stick around in MMA, give us a reason why you need to be around...besides being a can.

- What can I say about Jr Silva. Wow! He is here. His might is here. But soon, you will not be here!! You can run, you can hide, but sooner or later, he will have your soooouuuullllll.

- I don't know what to really say about the Shammy/Renzo fight. Besides the DQ, this fight just didn't feel good. You could see Renzo working at something, but the countdown clock ruined a lot of it. Shammy was definitely panicking and hit those knees. Shamrock got exposed. No excuse. He panicked and got the DQ.

MMA At The Balance of A Very Lousy Set of Scales.

2007-02-09T18:48:00.000-08:00

picture taken from the MSAC section of the DLEG site. Why they have a screen capture of Tito Ortiz getting hit is anyone's guess. So is actually getting a pdf of the MSAC rulebook it would seem.

Fight Opinion has recently reported that the state of Michigan is thinking about banning all of MMA thanks to the action of Bay City's most beloved citizen, Art Dore.

Here is the AP article

Simply put, because Art Dore runs a show, MMA is evil.

When I heard about this, I had a sinking feeling this would happen. In late January, there were posters for Xtreme Cage Combat here in Bay City. They were stuck up from Marquette to the ol' Midland St. area. All advertising "No Holds Barred Jiu-Jitsu Fighting". Things didn't get better When Muskegon raised a big stink and now...here we are. Under scrutinization from a negligent government department because a has been scumbag promoter was running...let's be honest...a Toughman version of an amateur MMA event.

As you can tell, I'm not on either side of this farce. And I have good reasons why.

From Mr. Millben of the BCS:

"Our position has been that ultimate fighting is illegal in Michigan. In some of the bouts, people just box each other. What they're putting on constitutes an unlicensed professional boxing show."

Mr. Millben is going to be awfully busy next month. There's an illegal boxing show happening in Dearborn disguised as a martial arts tournament. We don't want any boxing unregulated in Michigan, now do we? The point I'm trying to make is that it's Mixed Martial Arts, Mr. Millben. There are other forms of striking. Not everything is boxing. What's even more interesting is that the MSAC doesn't regulate martial arts events. Millben is trying to ban a sport based on the pretense that people use hands to strike each other for a minute to a round, therefore it must be a boxing match.

Mr. Robert Swanson, director of the Department of Labor and Economic Growth.:

"The potential injuries to participants in these types of contests or exhibitions are often costly and potentially life-threatening."

I'm...I'm sorry. Are we talking about the same sport? I could have swore he was reading the wrong notes. Seeing as MMA hasn't had a death yet and boxing has had 1,344+ deaths so far in this decade. But then again, We're talking about a sport that frowns on verbal or physical tapout. How dare we provide alternative entertainment other then a guy out of his wits trying to out box the guy who knocked him stupid. THAT'S UNAMERICAN!!!

Honestly, do these guys do any research before opening their mouths? You would think that by doing so, they would at least try to creatively beat around the bush. What is it about boxing where even if a whole murder of doctors can bring mountains of evidence that boxing is dangerous, the commissions would deny it as "opinion"? I guess we'll never know.

Don't think I'm done yet. I still have ABhorable...I mean ADoreable Productions to work on.

To start things off, Art Dore is a hypocrite. During the "dark days" of MMA, Art Dore was the front runner of the anti-MMA colition. All to make sure the government got off the back of his miserable Toughman operations. So while MMA was the "bad boy" of the 90's, his cock fights still went puttering along till 2003. After 14 people dead and 5 people turned into vegetables, Dore decides to stop Toughman...to promote MMA. Think about it. This man operated illegal boxing matches in America, left fourteen corpses and five vegetables...and he's still operating. Now he's trying to promote MMA.

from head henchman Gregory Ahrens:

"Amateur martial arts are exempt from regulation of the state. We intend to comply with the law."

Yes, but there's a difference with you Mr. Ahrens. To me, amateur MMA has amateur fighters who are trained in MMA school. So, if this was a true amateur event, you'd have guys from schools like Eastland Combat Club, Dan Severn gym, Griffin-Rawls, Jorge Gurgel BJJ, Strong Style, Playland, etc. etc. Right? Wrong. You put out an ad for fighters on your posters, asking them if "they got the guts" and give them contact information. What's the matter. Afraid to pay REAL fighters with REAL money? How much were you going to give these guys anyway? $50? You probably were going to give the whole "waiver to medical service" bit on the contract too, weren't you?

Let me put it in focus for you if it hasn't bit you yet Mr. Aherns. Amateur martial artists are TRAINED to fight. Guys on the street with beer muscles aren't.

Mr. Aherns:

"Anytime you get into a fight is life-threatening."

Wait a second. Don't you really mean....

"Anytime you get into an Art Dore fight, it's really life-threatening."

Honestly folks. I can write a book on how an Art Dore MMA will go down. You get your blood pressure and alcohol level checked by a doctor that was recommended to Art by a wino from John's Bar who will do something that has nothing to do with medical assistance during your fight. You'll step into a rickety ass cage with someone 50 pounds overweight and hasn't had a lick of fight experience since 6th grade. The ref hasn't had a lick of experience in MMA fights and will have moments of spacing out. Remember that when your eye gets gouged out with a pointed elbow and your face turns to oatmeal after a minute of ground and pound. "But what if I survive?" you say. Forget it. The judges are two guys who know nothing about MMA and Art Dore. Make that three guys who know nothing about MMA. Forget it kid. It's a lose/lose situation. All you get out of it is $50 anyways.

So...how's the future look for MMA. Right now, pretty bleak. The name "Art Dore" is an instant shut off for any government official. Even if Mr. Aherns was true to his word and even cleans the mats when he's done, it still won't do any good. I don't even think Ratner will be able to crack this state government. It might even get criminal if Ratner does try to clear things up. Dore's been known for giving state reps "a piece of the action".

There needs to be some kind of guarantee that scumbag money marks like Dore are stopped. Something to make sure that amateur events are REAL amateur events. Do I see that happening with our current state government? Not bloody likely.

UFC Card Complete and Notes

2007-02-09T17:25:00.000-08:00

UFC: Uprising card.

PPV
Tim Sylvia Vs. Randy Couture
Chris Lytle Vs. Matt Hughes
Drew McFedries Vs. Martin Kampmann
Rich Franklin Vs. Jason MacDonald
Jason Lambert Vs. Renato Sobral

Dark Matches
Rex Holman Vs. Matt Hamill
Jon Fitch Vs. Luigi Fioravanti
Gleison Tibau Vs. Jason Dent
Jason Gilliam Vs. Jamie Varner

Notes:

This feels like another "Superstars" card. For those of the non pro-wrestling variety, Superstars was a show that was syndicated by the WWE. It really just consisted of matches made to make talent look good followed by a small mini-feud match to, y'know, keep you watching the show.

Interesting that Hamill is in the dark. I would have put him on PPV. I mean, yeah, his last match was a bit boring, but it was his second match. It would be understandable if it was his third or fourth match. This might possibly be the swing.

If I were to predict the fight of the night by looking at this card, I'd say it would be a tie between McFedries/Kampmann and Lambert/Babalu. Both look like pretty good match ups and they compliment each other in style.

Old Friends Return

2007-02-08T21:55:00.000-08:00

Fight Opinion revealed that Akira Maeda will try to resurect the RINGS promotion later this year. Maeda has hinted that if possible, the headline fight would be Maeda taking on Tsuyoshi Kosaka.

Also reported, Elite XC has signed Jay Glazer and Mauro Ranallo have been added to commentary. Bill Goldberg will color and Mario Lopez will conduct interviews.

I'm Not Sold On Elite XC.

2007-02-08T07:46:00.000-08:00

MMA Insider had recently done an article on how Elite XC has a fair shot in becoming an upcoming league the UFC needs to look out for. While the optimism is nice, I just don't buy it as an upcoming league. There are many flaws in it's game plan right now and needs to be addressed. I will do so using Mr. Mohapatra's questions he had asked in his article and maybe add one or two of my own. Now, just to let you all know, I'm not anyway negative with MMA Insider. I'm an avid reader of the site and I hope many good things come it's way. What I am doing is offering the other side of the coin and hopefully spark up an honest debate.

1) Can The League Attract Top-Flight Fighters?

That's a bit of a trick question. Of course any league with deep enough pockets is going to attract top-flight fighters. It's inevitable. If none of you know by now, TATAME reports Murilo "Ninja" Rua has signed a three fight deal with EXC.

The question above shouldn't be "Can they attract top fighters?" The question should be "Can they maintain top fighters?" While it's awesome getting top fighters to fight in your league, you got to keep them in your league to have something to draw with as well as give your up and coming talent something to shoot for. Promotions need to be built on established names and established upstarts who haven't been tested on a professional stage yet. Out of EXC's main event card, I see at least....one to four people being on the next card if there ever is one and depending on who calls the shots. If we're talking about the whole event card, maybe one to six. I don't see Renzo sticking around due to being an IFL coach and I definitely do not see Shamrock sticking around due to STRIKEFORCE. Having four to six people carrying your league just doesn't look right. If there is ten people carrying over to the next two events, then I think it could call itself a league. It's all up in the air right now.

2) Can The League Attract Fans?

First of all, I got to ask. Mr. Mohapatra has said in his post...

"The other part of their approach is to hold the first event in the South. UFC hasn't ventured much to the East Coast or to the South in recent years and there are a lot of fans near the Atlantic Ocean eager to join in on the top-level fun that fans in Nevada and California have been enjoying for the last 18 months or so."

Didn't UFC have a couple events held in Florida? And isn't Florida in the east and the south?

Anyways, the question we're really supposed to be discussing is if EXC is doing anything to promote the league to fans. My answer to that is yes and no. Yes, it is promoting itself to fans. No, it's not promoting itself to all the fans. As up to this writing, I have not seen one ad about the event on at least basic cable. Not even Viacom owned stations which I think is a mistake. If you wanted as many eyeballs as possible, wouldn't you at least try to get one commercial on MTV, BET or even CBS? It seems that all it's promotions are either on Showtime and the internet. Now, don't get me wrong. I think the internet is a wonderful tool in promotion and advertising...just as long as you realize not everyone has the internet. And if they did, the preferable mode would still be dial up. Which brings me to the next point.

While promoting the fact that undercard matchups will be shown on the internet is an interesting idea that deserves to be explored, don't be expecting a tsunami of hits to be flying in. The medium is still to young to catch on to the public and to be honest, it would seem a bit silly to use two mediums to watch one event. Either simulcast next time or choose a medium and stick to it.

3) Does It Have Proper TV Coverage?

No. In fact, it has rather limited TV coverage. While being on Showtime is a rather big deal in the cable world, this means nothing to the common public. When the average person gets satellite/cable, they're going to aim for the cheapest premium package possible. That package almost always has HBO as it's main premium channel(s) (I say almost because I remember a time I had to pay for USA and TNT like they were "premium channels"). Anyone who has Showtime either has money to spend or knows someone in the cable/satellite biz. To expect large numbers to see this event is a bit silly.

4) Will Special Rules Attract Fans?

What attracted me to PRIDE and made me a fan wasn't the round limits, the penalty system or that you could stomp or kick a downed opponent. It was that these three things kept the fight smooth and naturally fluid. The EXC will be instituting a fifteen second "ground clock". If nothing of relevance is happening on the ground, the fight is stood back up. Can this rule work?

If it was in Japan, maybe. I don't see it working in America. With athletic commissions putting boxing judges in the judging and ref positions, this rule is going to hurt instead of help. Unless the ref knows what he's looking for in terms of grappling, I see a lot of stand ups happening. This is going to lose a good chunk of the hardcore base that your after. It doesn't help the rule either when it's given weight by a boxing promoter either.

As of right now, Elite XC looks like a one (possibly two) and done promotion in my eyes. There is very little mainstream promotion and the leagues foundations are shaky at best. While I understand Gary Shaw is trying new things, his reputation scares many a hardcore fan. This card needs and further actions from Shaw need to show that it is all about the sport and not all business. Until that time, we watch and wait for this Saturday.

Word On The Street: Pro-Wrestling

2007-02-07T22:52:00.000-08:00

I heard that WWE is trying real hard to get Mistico and Shocker to a couple dates in March. Now, I know these guys are talented and god bless them for coming over. They'll definatly get a lot of eyeballs on to them. C'mon though. You guys know what's really going to happen. And you're gonna start hating Vince and The WWE all over again. Thus, starts the vicious cycle all over again.

Over in Japan, Hiroshi Tanahashi resigned with New Japan. One of the conditions in his contract is that he wrestle more dates with TNA. I don't think Tanahashi knows what he's getting into by doing that. As a friend points out, He best not get thirsty over there.

Fight Radio

2007-02-07T09:30:00.000-08:00

Beatdown: Trainer and Manager Juanito Ibarra and Joey Villasenor

Savage Dog: Javier Vazquez and Elite XC's Mario Lopez

MMA News: Georges St. Pierre

Eddie Goldman: Shane Mosley, Luis Collazo and wrestler Mo Lawal

Fight Opinion: Mac Danzig, Sean Salmon, Blogger UFC Junkie, Sherdog journalist Jordan Breen and a look at comments made about MMA/pro-wrestling by Mr. Eddie Goldman.

Fight Calender: Feburary

2007-02-07T01:01:00.000-08:00

Boxing:

Feb. 10

WBC WW Title: "Sugar" Shane Mosley vs. Luis Collazo

MMA:

Feb. 10

Elite XC: Shamrock vs. Gracie

Feb. 23

IFL: Toronto Dragons/Portland Wolfpack, Chicago Red Bears/NY Pitbulls, Robbie Lawler vs. Eduardo Pamplona

Feb. 24

PRIDE 33: PRIDE MW Championship: Wanderlei Silva vs. Dan Henderson

Pro-Wrestling:

Feb. 11

TNA: TNA Title: Christian Cage vs. Kurt Angle

Feb. 16

ROH: ROH Title: Homicide vs. Jimmy Rave

Feb. 17

ROH: ROH Title: TBA vs. Takeshi Morishima, ROH Tag Titles: Christopher Daniels/Matt Sydal vs. Jack Evans/Shingo

Feb. 18

WWE*: John Cena/Shawn Michaels vs. Undertaker/David Batista

NJPW: IWGP Heavyweight Title: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Koji Kanemoto, IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Title: Minoru vs. Wataru Inoue, Kurt Angle/Yuji Nagata vs. Travis (Tyson) Tomko/Giant Bernard

Feb. 23

ROH: ROH Title: TBA vs. BJ Whitmer

Feb. 24

ROH: ROH Tag Titles: TBA vs. Jay & Mark Briscoe, Samoa Joe/Homicide vs. Takeshi Morishima/Nigel McGuinness

Feb. 25

NWA: Super Porky vs. Colt Cobana

*While The Smackdown Tag Titles are defended, it will be in a gimmick match and has not been added.

Hi All

2007-02-07T00:11:00.000-08:00

Hello. My name is Royal Burnell. I am the owner of Kakutogi-Gumi. Everyone is asking, what is Kakutogi-Gumi. Well, in Japanese, Kakutogi means “Fighting” and Gumi sorta slang for “gang or group”.

What is going to be covered in this blog is the worlds of combat fighting and pro wrestling. The in and outs of both the biz and how they are connected. MMA, Boxing, Sports Entertainment and Pro-Wrestling. What sparked my interest in making this blog is the disdain I see from MMA fans for Pro-wrestling fans regardless of the reasons why pro-wrestling fans are tuning into MMA in the first place. Likewise, I’ve seen several pro-wrestling fans throw up there arms in disgust every time they try to explain why they enjoy pro-wrestling to MMA fans. Through news posts video and commentary here in this blog, I hope to strike up and somewhat germinate honest discussion between the two groups as well as others in the Kakutogi community.

This blog isn’t all about MMA and Pro-Wrestling. I’ll also talk about boxing, wrestling and even the impact kakutogi has on society.

So grab yourself a drink, sit back, relax and enjoy!!