Global Gossip

The super big and hard Kai Greene has been training here at Golds Venice for the past month with Charles Glass.  First I was very impressed when I saw Kai just because of his extreme leg size and this is Golds Venice where most people are big.  Kai always stays covered up but when I spoke with his trainer Charles Glass he said Kai will be ready for the Arnold.  A rummor was going around the other day that Kai had passed out at Golds while training.  Let me clear that up for all of you.  Kai was back at Golds around 7 pm for his 3rd cardio session when after he finished being so tired he just layed down on the floor to rest.  Well some Golds workers saw that and started to text some top bodybuilders saying Kai had passed out.  Again Kai layed down on the ground to rest he never passed out after cardio.

Leonard Garcia on His WEC Title Fight And Attracting Hispanic Fans to MMA
by: Michael David Smith, mma.fanhouse.com

Leonard Garcia will fight for the World Extreme Cagefighting featherweight title on Sunday night, and in an interview on Monday night he said the opportunity to fight champion Mike Brown “excites the s**t out of me.”

The 29-year-old Garcia also talked about his desire to fight nothing but the best opponents — including former featherweight champ Urijah Faber and current bantamweight champ Miguel Torres — and explained why he thinks MMA is about to blow up among Mexican fans. The full interview is below.

Michael David Smith: You had three lightweight fights in the UFC in 2007 and then moved down to featherweight and had two WEC fights in 2008. Was it a tough decision to leave the UFC and lose 10 pounds to fight in the WEC?
Leonard Garcia: At the time it wasn’t because the way it was sold to me was by coach [Greg] Jackson. He was pretty upset that I was weighing in at 149 or 150 for my UFC fights, where the limit was 155, and he said fighting bigger guys was a problem. The way he sold it to me was, “It’s not a step down in competition. You’ve got Urijah Faber, you’ve got Hiroyuki Takaya, you’ve got Jens Pulver. There’s plenty of tough fights down there, and there’s going to be tougher guys coming in.”

That was the main thing for me. I wanted to fight tough fights, and I wanted to push myself. You need that as a fighter. You need somebody you’re kind of afraid of to make you get better. If you don’t have fear of anything you won’t get better. You won’t get better if you think you’re good enough. And that was one of the things I was afraid of, was that moving down in weight I wouldn’t have that punch, but it’s been proven now that I’ve had some great fights in that weight class.

I’ve talked to a lot of fighters who rave about Greg Jackson. What is it about Greg Jackson that makes him such a good trainer?
Greg’s the kind of guy who gets in there. He doesn’t sit on the outskirts, and he doesn’t act like he knows something when he doesn’t. If he doesn’t know the answer, he’ll ask, and if he’s got something to tell you he’ll tell you. He’s just a straightforward person. And here at Jackson’s, we’re more like a family. It’s a different feel at the gym, where we’re not competing against each other, we’re competing for each other. Everyone listens to Greg. There’s not one person who Greg tells to do something and they won’t do it.

Which fighters do you work with at Jackson’s gym?
Everybody. The whole team, we’re all here for each other. Georges St Pierre, Keith Jardine, Rashad Evans, Joey Villasenor, that’s our heavier guys. And then we have smaller guys like me and Cowboy (Donald Cerrone), Duane Ludwig, we’re the lighter team. We all train together, and then every now and then the big guys will come in and work with the little guys, just try to push us. We all work together as a team, and everybody works together. We’ve got guys who weigh 125 and roll with Rashad Evans, who’s the champion at 205.

[At this point, Garcia put down the phone and talked to someone for a moment.]

Who were you were talking to?
Cowboy. He always does that, he talks to me during every interview. Me and Cowboy, we’re like family. We’re like brothers for real. We do everything together. We chase girls together, anything there is to do, we’re like the dynamic duo, Batman and Robin. Of course, I’m Batman and he’s Robin.

Do you always call him “Cowboy”? You never call him “Donald”?
I never call him Donald. Cowboy’s his name, really. We’re trying to get him to put it on his credit cards, but I don’t know if that’ll fly.

Would you ever fight a good friend like Cowboy?
I wouldn’t fight Cowboy. We always said we wouldn’t. I wouldn’t fight one of my friends like that. Had we met because we were fighting each other, and then became good friends, like Roger Huerta, then I could fight them. Roger and I met each other because we fought at UFC 69. Now, we’re great friends. We’ve trained together, I’ve stayed at his house, he’s stayed at my house. I would still fight Roger today. I’d have no problem fighting him because I met him fighting. With Cowboy, we’ve been friends before, so it would be hard to fight him.

Speaking of Roger, is he going to fight again, or is he going into modeling and acting?
I don’t know. He’s got a modeling career and an acting career. I know he’s got one more fight on his contract, and I would love to fight him one more time. Just because it’s a fight that I think both of us would like to have back. He’d like to see what it’s like fighting me if I was in great shape [Garcia took the fight against Huerta, which Huerta won by unanimous decision, on short notice] and I would like to see what it’s like to fight him if I was in great shape. If he’s going to go into acting, why not let him go out on a good fight? But, of course, right now, the only thing I’m worrying about is fighting Mike Brown for the title. But that’s something I’d think about afterward.

Since moving down to featherweight you’re 2-0, and it took you less than three minutes, combined, to knock out your two opponents. Do you feel like you’re just bigger and stronger than the other guys at 145 pounds?
Yeah, definitely. I definitely feel bigger. I’ve got a good height and reach advantage. There’s a couple guys who might be stronger than I am, but as far as punching power and explosiveness I think I have an edge on them. This is my natural weight class and where my body reacts the best. I feel stronger at 145 than I did at 155. I don’t know how that works, but that’s the way it is.

Do you have any trouble making weight at 145?
No, not at all. I could have made 145 the whole time I was in the UFC. It’s just that 155, in the UFC, was where the tough fights were, so that’s where I wanted to be. But now the WEC is showcasing the lighter fighters, and every fight at 145 is a dangerous fight, so I’m happy and glad to be a part of it.

What kind of fight are you expecting from Mike Brown?
I think it’s no secret that Mike wants to try to take me down and control me on the ground. I know he comes from a very good camp where submissions are a real big deal. I think Mike will try to push me around, try to push me against the cage, take me down and hold me there. But I think I’m one of the bigger, stronger guys, so I don’t think he’s going to be able to move me around, so once he figures out that’s not the way it’s going to go, he’s going to have no choice but to stand up with me.

Have you watched much tape of Mike Brown to get ready?
Yeah, I’ve watched pretty much all his fights. He’s good enough in stand-up to stay on his feet with anybody. He’s a well rounded guy. But I think what it comes down to is I can push the pace, take it head on, and that’s the only way I know how to fight. I’m hoping his muscles start to deteriorate after a few rounds and his oxygen levels will be lower than mine. I think, for sure, my conditioning will be better.

That sounds to me a lot like what Georges St. Pierre said about fighting B.J. Penn: He wanted to tire Penn out, and force him to have a lactic acid buildup in his shoulders. Is wearing out your opponent something you guys work on with Greg Jackson?
Definitely. We get worn out every day, having these techniques used on us in the gym, and as Jackson fighters we invite that pain. We want that lactic acid build-up. Most camps and most other fighters are afraid of that feeling, when they’re feeling that worn-out feeling, that’s when they’re done. We get that feeling and that’s where we get going. Coach is a big believer in that. You don’t start the fight when you’re fresh, you start the fight when you’re getting tired.In our gym, that’s when we start looking for how we’re going to finish. I hope Mike got ready like that, because I did.

If you win would you expect your first title defense to come against Urijah Faber?
Yeah, definitely. There’s not another fight than I wanted more than Urijah, other than if someone beat him, which Mike Brown did. I definitely know Urijah would be next for me after this fight.

Are you expecting to have the home crowd on your side in Texas?
Yes. The pressure of fighting in your home state is that they’re expecting you to win. I have to win this fight. There’s no other option for me but to win. Regardless of how the fight goes, It has to end with me winning. I know Mike’s going to bring it. You asked me about watching his fights — there hasn’t been one fight that I’ve seen Mike not come after somebody. I know what I’m up against, and that pressure is what makes me fight.

I know the UFC and the WEC are trying to attract more Mexican and Mexican-American fans. How do you think they’re doing reaching that audience?
I think we’re doing great. I think I’ve done more Spanish interviews than English interviews. I’m supposed to be going to Mexico City after this fight and helping to promote the WEC down there. I think promoting us in Mexico is one of the best ideas the WEC and the UFC has ever had. If you watch boxing, many of the greatest fighters are Hispanic fighters, and they have Hispanic fans who follow them everywhere and buy every pay-per-view. I think we’re doing a great job of letting Hispanic people know about our sport, and I’m glad to be a part of it. I think within the next few years, the main attraction is going to be smaller weight class fighters with a Hispanic following, just like Oscar De La Hoya.

If you win the featherweight title, the two marquee champions in the WEC will be you and Miguel Torres, both Mexican-Americans. That seems perfect for reaching the Mexican-American audience.
Exactly. I think so, too. And you know what? Me and Miguel, we’re both Hispanic guys, and we’re pretty close in weight. We might have a mega-fight. It would be interesting. I’m always looking for a big fight. Those are the fights I want. Like this fight with Brown is going to be huge. I’m always wondering, “How would I do against this guy? How would I do against that guy?”

For Hispanic people, to watch two guys that they know are going to go out there and fight with all their hearts like me and Miguel would, that would be great.

What weight do you think you’d fight Miguel at?
I don’t know. It would probably have to be a catch weight. Maybe we’d meet at 140 or something. Me and Miguel are really good friends, I think he’s coming down for this fight just to see me fight for the title. He’s a furious fighter, and that’s part of his Mexican heritage, and that’s how I fight too. It would be crazy for us to mix it up.

He’s such a well-rounded fighter, he can do so many different things. I’m sure you and Greg would have an interesting time trying to come up with a game plan for him.
Yeah, he’s so well rounded, it would be tough. The way I see it, I just want the greatest fights out there. Pound-for-pound, he’s one of the greatest fighters out there, and that’s the kind of fights I like.

It sounds like what motivates you is the challenge of finding the toughest opponents.
For sure. I’m extremely competitive. Like I said, me and Cowboy, we’re at each other’s throats daily with competitions. Even things like, we bought a hunting bow the other day and we’re shooting apples, trying to talk people into putting the apples on their heads. Both of us are driven the same way. We want to be better than everybody at everything. I just love the thought of tough fights. I like that feeling. I hate going into easy fights. I fought Allen Berubie in the UFC and it was hard for me to get up and train for that fight because I knew I had better skills than him, and it didn’t excite me.

Mike Brown excites the s**t out of me. He’s such a tough fighter, he’s a great athlete, he comes after people. There’s nothing scarier than a guy who’s going to come after you. So to come in a gym, and prepare for a guy like that, is what does it for me every day.

What would it mean to you to have that belt around your waist on Sunday night?
For me, just to have the opportunity to fight for it is a dream come true. To actually have that belt would be something hard to put into words. I’ve always said I’m not going to be that guy who cries on TV, but even when I talk about it and think about it, I get choked up. This is something I’m looking forward to.

While Kai was doing his 3rd hour of cardio yesterday there were reports that Kai had collapsed while doing cardio and paramedics rushed him to hospital. I have had an updated report from our Bodybuilding.com correspondant Joe Tong (who was there) that this was not the case.
Apparently someone in Golds saw Kai lying down after he finished his cardio and assumed he was unconcoius. He called another IFBB Pro (a friend of Kai’s) who called the Paramedics. It appears that Kai was only sleeping.

Joe Tong will update you later on further news in relation to this.

Aldo: “I’m the number one pound-for-pound fighter”.
By Frank Curreri, UFC.com

No, you’re not imagining things. Jose “Junior” Aldo is back again. The 22-year-old phenom is Texas-bound for his fourth WEC fight in the past eight months. The Brazilian is set to lock horns with an extremely

powerful and aggressive Iraqi war veteran named Chris Mickle (31-11-2), who doesn’t seem to care that the 13-1 Aldo has been manhandling opponents and skyrocketing up the featherweight contender ladder in the process.

In this interview, Aldo discusses his upcoming test in the cage, why he might be toning down his victory dances and celebrations in the future, why he would consider dropping to 135 pounds to fight and whether he views himself as one of the 10 best pound-for-pound fighters on the planet. You do not want to miss this compelling conversation, which was translated from Portuguese to English by John Tabor.

WEC: First of all, Jose, congratulations on your most recent victory over Rolando Perez — very impressive. You ran out of the cage and into the stands immediately after winning. In the past you have backflipped off the cage after winning. Do you think soccer (futbol in Brazil) has influenced your celebrations? I say that because in futbol (just as in American football with a touchdown), whenever a goal is scored, players have all kinds of cool celebrations. Also, what kind of feedback/reaction did your friends (Thales Leites, Andre Pederneiras, etc.) and other fighters offer you about your most recent impromptu celebration, running into the stands after beating Perez?
Aldo: Thank you, Frank, I appreciate the congratulations. As for the celebrations, I do believe soccer influences the way I celebrate. Since my first dream was to be a soccer player, I guess that carries through to this day; maybe it’s a way for me to live out that first dream. Managing to knock someone out is the same feeling as scoring a goal. You see everyone excited, jumping and shouting and you pick up on the moment. The problem was that my cornermen didn’t get in the mood of the celebrations — they were furious. Whenever the subject comes up they curse me.

WEC: Tell me about the thrill of knocking out an opponent? Describe that feeling. What goes through your mind?
Aldo: The thrill of knocking out an opponent is one of the best things in the world, your work is done.

WEC: You’re fighting yet again on March 1. That will be four fights in 8 months, which is a very busy pace for a WEC fighter. Are there any drawbacks or negatives to fighting so frequently? Does it interfere with your ability to peak for fights? Ideally, how many times a year would you like to fight and why?
Aldo: Of course there could be a drawback to fighting so frequently, but in my case there has not been so far. As I left my last three fights without serious injury, there has been nothing to hinder me. It actually helps me peak, as I’m always at or near fighting shape. Of course I have to bring the pace up or down depending on how I feel and the proximity to the fight. I guess ideally I would fight four or five times a year, depending on my condition leaving my fights.

WEC: Rank the best fighters in the world at 145 pounds, including yourself.
Aldo: At this point I won’t put myself as number one because I have no title, and I haven’t fought any of the people I put at the top of my list, even though I believe I can beat all of them once I get that opportunity to fight the top guys and hold the title. As for my ranking, I’ll put Mike Thomas Brown at the top, Leonard Garcia at number two, Urijah Faber at three, Wagnney Fabiano at four, and my teammate, King of Pancrase Marlon Sandro, at five.

WEC: Now let’s alter the question just a little bit. Do you believe you’re one of the best fighters in the world pound-for-pound?
Aldo: I do believe I’m one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world. I’m the number one pound-for-pound fighter just above Georges St. Pierre. I consider myself so because the way I see it is that I have the three prerequisites: I’m great standing, with my takedowns, and on the ground, with Jiu-Jitsu.

WEC: You’ve been annihilating and destroying opponents in spectacular fashion. What is the secret to your success?
Aldo: My secret to my success so far is putting in hard work in training, believing and having the great team and great coach that I have.

WEC: What is the best advice that your coach, Andre Pederneiras, has ever given to you as a fighter? What is the best advice he has ever give you for life?
Aldo: I guess the best advice Dede (Andre Pederneiras) gave me was just telling me to train hard, put in the effort and the day will come when I’ll be the best in the world. I guess that goes for life advice too, since the effort you put in is fundamental in achieving your goals, hard work pays off. More than advice, though, Dede is an invaluable asset to me for the support he provides me in life every day, the confidence he gives me.

WEC: Have you signed a new deal/extension with the WEC? If so, how many more fights are you under contract for?
Aldo: My upcoming fight will be the first of five fights in my five-fight contract extension.

WEC: I heard a rumor that you are considering dropping to the 135-pound weight class? Is that true? Are you definitely going to drop to 135 pounds? If so, do you think this fight against Chris Mickle will be your last at 145 pounds?
Aldo: We did think of my dropping to 135 pounds, but I’d only do that were it to fight for the title. I’m definitively in the 145 weight class and my objective is to win the title.

WEC: If you are dropping to 135 pounds, then why? You have been so dominant at 145 pounds, after all, and it seems that you believe you could beat anyone at the weight class. Wagnney Fabiano, another elite fighter, is one of your training partners. Are you dropping because you guys are friends and do not want to fight each other, or are there other reasons?
Aldo: Wagnney is my buddy but avoiding facing him was not the reason we considered my dropping in weight. The reason for there being talk of my dropping categories is that Miguel Torres has been so dominant in the 135-pound weight class and we have a bit of a past. I think he’s a great fighter and would love to fight him. But there is also the story of how we were supposed to face each other years ago in Brazil, when his master, my master’s master, Carlson issued a challenge to any bantamweight fighter in Brazil, saying Miguel was the best. My master, Andre, accepted and offered me as an opponent, but it never ended up happening.

WEC: What weight do you normally walk around at when you’re in shape? Do you have to cut weight and starve yourself on fight days to make weight or is it an "easy cut"?
Aldo: When I don’t have a fight lined up and am just waiting I’ll get up to 162 pounds. When I’m active and know I’ll be fighting, I generally stay at around 158 pounds or so. Making weight is horrible.

I hate having to diet, limit what I eat. I like to eat well.

WEC: Have you ever fought at 135 pounds? Do you think it will be difficult for you to lose the weight and might it compromise your cardiovascular endurance, strength and performance?
Aldo: I used to only fight at 135 pounds. All the first Shootos I fought at were as a bantamweight.

WEC: Forgive my forwardness, but the scar on the left side of your face, how did you acquire it?
Aldo: I don’t mind explaining where I got the scar. I was just a baby and my mom wasn’t paying attention for a moment when my sisters rolled me onto the barbecue pit being used for a 1986 World Cup party.

WEC: Your opponent on March 1 is a guy named Chris Mickle. He’s an American who has over 40 fights on his record and a whole bunch of other unsanctioned fights under his belt. Have you been able to see any video on him? What do you know about Chris Mickle and his fighting style? Is it important to you to know as much as possible about him?
Aldo: I have seen a highlight video of him; he’s obviously a great fighter with a lot of experience. I haven’t managed to find much footage on him, but he seems to be really aggressive and is well-rounded, fighting both on the ground, with lots of submissions, and is good standing, with some knockouts. It is certainly important to know as much about my opponents as possible but that is best left to Dede to find out. Dede comes up with the strategies, I just execute them.

WEC: Even though you destroyed Rolando Perez last fight, did you uncover any flaws in your performance that you are trying to fix?
Aldo: I’m always looking to improve but, if I find a weakness in my performance, I’ll keep it a secret. I’m always trying to improve though.

Check out the new BodySpace Ad by our Creative Genius Jeran.

The Women’s ad is of Belinda Benn, a 44-years-young e-Business consultant who decided to take up surfing at the ripe young age of 38! What an inspiration she will be to young and old alike, showing that a fit lifestyle really can make a huge difference in aging. You’re only as old as you let yourself become, and Belinda is proof of that! Yowza!

Saturday Feb. 21
Emerald Queen Casino
Seattle, Washington

Results for M-1 Challenge Presented by Affliction

FINLAND vs. BENELUX

     Juha-Pekka Vainikainen (Finland) vs. Danny van Bergen (Benelux)
     Janne Tulrinta (Finland) vs. Tommy Depret (Benelux)
     Lucio Linhares (Finland) vs. Kamil Uygun (Benelux)
     Marcus Vanttinen (Finland) vs. Jason Jones (Benelux)
     Toni Valtonen (Finland) vs. Sander Duyvis (Benelux)

SOUTH KOREA vs. THE IMPERIAL TEAM

     Dohyung Kim (South Korea) vs. Mikhail Malyutin (Imperial)
     Myungho Bae (South Korea) vs. Erik Oganov (Imperial)
     Hyungyu Lim (South Korea) vs. Dmirty Somoylov (Imperial)
     Jae Young Kim (South Korea) vs. Mikhail Zayats (Imperial)
     Sang Soo Lee (South Korea) vs. Alexey Oleinik (Imperial)

TEAM USA WEST vs. TEAM BRAZIL NAJA

     Dave Jansen (USA West) vs. Flavio Roberto Alvaro (Brazil)
     Dylan Clay (USA West) vs. Eduaro Pamplona (Brazil)
     Reggie Orr (USA West) vs. Juliano Cioffi Belgine (Brazil)
     Raphael Davis (USA West) vs. Jair Goncalves Junior (Brazil)
     Carl Seumanutafa (USA West) vs. Jose Edson dos Santos Franca (Brazil)

It’s been a few years since we last heard from the 2004 USA Fitness Overall champ, Bethani Terrell. I caught up with her recently and she had some exciting news to share. Bethani is considering competing again but before that is expecting her first child.

When asked if she knows the gender of the little one she shared, “No, I don’t know yet. I don’t think I want to know. I kind of like the element of surprise. Although my gut feeling is that it will be a boy.” Bethani is expecting a delivery date sometime in July.
Congratulations Bethani!

HardBody.com

This will be the first ever WEC Event in Chicago.
Where: UIC Pavilion, Chicago, ILL
When:  Sunday, April 5

Here’s more information form WEC.tv

Las Vegas, NV (USA) – On Sunday, April 5, World Extreme Cagefighting® takes its maiden voyage to the Windy City of Chicago, and it’s bringing the best bantamweights in the world to the UIC Pavilion for WEC: Torres vs Bowles. In the main event, WEC bantamweight champion Miguel Angel Torres returns to fight in the Midwest for the first time in two years to face the biggest challenge to his crown yet in unbeaten Brian Bowles, and Island Lake, Illinois’ Jeff Curran looks to make his case for a shot at the belt when he battles undefeated phenom Joseph Benavidez.

Tickets for World Extreme Cagefighting go on sale at 10 a.m. CT Saturday, February 14 and will be priced at $45.00, $75.00, $125.00 and $175.00. A special Internet ticket pre-sale will be available to WEC newsletter subscribers Thursday, February 12 starting at noon CT. To access this presale, users must register for the WEC newsletter through wec.tv. Tickets will be available for purchase through the UIC Pavilion, online at www.ticketmaster.com or by calling Ticketmaster at 312-559-1212.

World Extreme Cagefighting will be televised live nationally on VERSUS beginning at 9:00pm ET/6:00pm PT. All live WEC events are presented in Hi-Definition (HD) where available. For more information and how to find VERSUS in your local viewing area, visit http://www.versus.com/findversus.

Universally regarded as one of mixed martial arts’ premier fighters, pound for pound, East Chicago, Indiana’s Miguel Angel Torres (35-1) is a dynamic performer who is deadly wherever the fight takes him. Owner of the WEC bantamweight championship since February of 2008, the 28-year old Torres has since defended his title with spectacular stoppages of Yoshiro Maeda and Manny Tapia, and with a third defense over Brian Bowles, he will continue to cement his position on top of the MMA world.

Athens, Georgia’s Brian Bowles (7-0) has taken an old school route to his bantamweight title shot, cleaning out all contenders in his path and leaving no questions about his status as the number one contender at 135 pounds. 4-0 in the WEC, the well-rounded 28-year old has finished Charlie Valencia, Marcos Galvao, Damacio Page, and Will Ribeiro to get his shot at the belt, and now he’s looking to finish off the king on April 5th.

A longtime favorite of the Midwest fight scene, former WEC featherweight contender and title challenger Jeff “Big Frog” Curran (31-10-1) has long had his sights set on Miguel Torres, and he has even dropped down to the bantamweight division to chase his local rival. There is business to take care of for both men first though, and for Curran, that means his clash with Joseph Benavidez on April 5th. So expect the 30-year old Curran to come out with guns blazing in order to move forward in the crowded bantamweight division.

The 24-year old Joseph Benavidez (9-0) came to the WEC last December with a lot of hype due to his raw talent and impressive previous performances, and he lived up to the expectations with a big win over Danny Martinez. Now the stablemate of former WEC featherweight champion Urijah Faber is ready for the next step in his career, and for him, there would be nothing better than to add the name Jeff Curran to his victims list.

All bouts subject to change. For more information about current WEC fight news, visit wec.tv.

Friday, February 20, 2009
by Tony Loiseleur (tloiseleur@sherdog.com)

Dream event producer Keiichi Sasahara announced on Friday the inclusion of two superfights for the Dream 7 featherweight grand prix card on March 8 at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan. In two lightweight clashes, Mitsuhiro Ishida will take on the stoic Daisuke Nakamura, while Shinya Aoki will face David Gardner.

Ishida (17-4-1), one of the names mentioned under consideration to face former lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez at Strikeforce “Shamrock vs. Diaz” on April 11 in San Jose, Calif., emerged as a hot prospect in Japan after eight straight wins buoyed him to the top of Pride Bushido’s ranks. Ishida sports key victories over Melendez and Marcus Aurelio, and annihilated wrestler Justin Wilcox at Strikeforce’s second Playboy Mansion event last September.

The weathered Nakamura (19-9) is on an eight-win streak after completing the first season of M-1 Challenge. He submitted crowd favorite Hideo Tokoro by armbar in 2:23 at K-1 New Year’s Eve event in Japan.

Considered one of the division’s wilier ground specialists, the 25-year-old Aoki had quite a run in the lightweight ranks in 2008 with victories over Gesias “JZ” Cavalcante, Caol Uno, and Eddie Alvarez.

Aoki (19-3), who still holds the Shooto world 168-pound title, is still expected to take his place in Dream’s welterweight (168 pound) tournament, which begins on April 5 at the NGK Insulators Hall in Nagoya, Japan.

A member of the U.S. squad for M-1 Challenge’s 2008 season, Gardner (19-10) earned a split decision against Kenneth Alexander in California’s Pure Combat promotion last November.

Getbig.com

It begins…. because of the peanut recall from PCA (Peanut Corp of America), companies like Forward Foods, which makes the Detour Bars, are suffering big time. On Tuesday, they filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy.  Recall insurance is expensive, and many of these companies just don’t carry it.  Here is the press release on it.

NEW YORK, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Forward Foods LLC, the maker of Detour energy bars, filed for bankruptcy protection on Tuesday after a tainted peanut recall by its supplier, Peanut Corp of America, forced the company to recall many of its own products on fears of possible salmonella poisoning.

Forward Foods, which makes high-protein, snack and meal replacement bars primarily under the Detour name, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Delaware, saying that a “significant” amount of its inventory must be condemned.

The company on Jan. 29 had voluntarily recalled all Detour bars that contained roasted peanuts from Peanut Corp.

A salmonella outbreak traced to one of Peanut Corp’s plants led to one of the biggest product recalls in U.S. history. The salmonella outbreak sickened 600 people, more than half of them children, and it may have killed nine people. The contamination has been traced to a Peanut Corp plant in Blakely, Georgia.

Sales of Detour products containing peanut product from Peanut Corp made up about 75 percent of Forward Foods’ protein bar sales, the company said in documents filed with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.

MMA Star (EliteXC Fighter) and American Gladiator Superstar Gina Carano aka "Crush" on the American Gladiators is now going to star as Natasha in the Command & Conquer Red alert 3. Natasha is a deadly Soviet Commando who will be ready to lay waste to all in the Battlefield.

Carano will appear as herself in HD in the mini movie clips during the game as well as being an animated character to use in game play.

Check the newest Bodybuilding.com Ad that is going to be in all NCAA Conference Championship Basketball Programs. Bodybuilding.com will also have an ad in the Final 4.

Trigg put on a good show in the first round utilizing his boxing skills. The next two rounds had little action and you could see Trigg was winded. But in the last seconds of the fight it became a slug fest for both fighters and Trigg came out the unanimous winner.

After the fight Trigg announced he would no longer be fighting at 185 lbs and would drop to 170 lbs!

XCF “Rumble in Racetown” Results

Frank Trigg defeats Danny Babcock via unanimous decision

Zak Cummings defeats Terry Martin via split decision

Jesse Taylor defeats Gert Kocani via submission (rear-naked choke) Round 2, 4:45

Marcus Jones defeats John Juarez via TKO (punches) Round 1, 1:39

T.J. Cook defeats Scott Harper via KO (punch) Round 1, 1:37

Todd Cutler defeats Jeremy May via TKO (punches) Round 1, 4:07

Gilbert Burgos defeats Chris Thorne via TKO (doctor’s stoppage) Round 1, 1:17

Ryan Keenan defeats Blake Bowman via TKO (strikes) Round 1, 4:29

FRANK TRIGG HEADLINING "RUMBLE" ON VALENTINES DAY
by CYNTHIA VESPIA
FEBRUARY 12, 2009

“Rumble In Race Town” is set to take place this Saturday, February 14th at the Daytona Beach Ocean Center. Not your traditional Valentine’s Day celebration but hearts will be pumping nonetheless as Top 10 World ranked MMA Fighter Frank Trigg is ready to make his 2009 debut with Xtreme Cagefighting Federation. The event is being held on the eve of the 51st running of the Daytona 500.

MMA fans and NASCAR fans will have a chance to mingle as these two sports intertwine for the very first time. Coming off three straight wins, Trigg is ready to keep his win streak alive by fighting in the main event.

Q: How did this fight come about?

TRIGG: We had several options this year for fights, but NASCAR racing and the Daytona 500 is the biggest of the big. So fighting the night before the 500 is something I could not turn down. I’m excited to be headlining.

Q: What kind of training have you done to prepare?

TRIGG: I train at Tim Soder’s (in Las Vegas) from 530 am until about 7am. I’ve also been spending a lot of time with Randy Couture. I’m over at Xtreme Couture MMA Training Facility daily for about two hours. And I’ve added in some sparring with Jay Hieron, Mike Pyle, Tyson Griffin…John Alessio comes in for a couple of rounds as well. There’s so many great sparring partners.

Q: What is your nutrition and supplementation plan like?

TRIGG: I use fish oil for soreness. White willow bark, milk thistle, vitamin c, and branch chain aminos are staples. I also supplement with a good quality protein two to three times a day.

Q: You’re a busy man these days. What prompted you to take on so many different entrepreneurial positions?

TRIGG: I don’t care how good you are, fighting only comes two or three times a year. I try not to take that much time off. I like to train all the time, but you can’t really do it so I gotta have stuff to do, I’m just too hyperactive. Everything was just a natural progression. For instance my clothing line took on a life of itself.

Q: Tell us about that, what is Triggonomics?

TRIGG: Triggonomics first started as an accessory line to Frank Trigg. When I won it would sell, when I lost it wouldn’t. Now it’s evolved into a full blown fashion line that can survive independent of me.The line is built for the guys already making a statement, not the ones trying to make one with a shirt. It’s not about being tough.

The toughest man to me is the guy that stays in the background and doesn’t say anything. Everyday he takes care of his family, goes to the daily grind, puts food on the table and never bitches and moans. He has to get up at four in the morning and work until four in the afternoon but never misses anything his kids are doing but he’s working twelve hour shifts everyday…and barely just getting by but the kids have no idea, they think the world is great.

That to me is the toughest guy in the world, the guy who puts the glimmer in his kids eyes and never once lets you know that shit is falling apart.

Q: Are you looking to make a particular statement either in the ring or outside?

TRIGG: Generally it would be what our impact is on this world. We are all role models to someone. There’s somebody looking up to you no matter who it is. Whether it’s one person who is going to read this article, or one child who watches what you do, or one guy that sees you out there working out and gets inspired to fight and wants to train.

So yeah, everybody can be something if they choose to be. There is nothing that can keep you down if you don’t choose to be kept down. If you want to strive to get better and be better then go ahead and do it. Anybody in this world can do it if they choose to. That’s kind of the statement I’m making with my clothing line. We have to be conscious of the impact we’re making.

We have to be conscious of what we do in the world; we have to be conscious of how we approach things because there is an impact in what we do. Accept the consequences of your actions because there is going to be an impact.

Q: What do you think is next for you?

TRIGG: I don’t know what’s next. Y’now the economy has hurt everybody. Everybody is feeling the pinch no matter how you look at it.

Q: Are you going to watch the races after your fight?

TRIGG: Oh yea, I’ll definitely be there.

NEW YORK (Feb. 11, 2009)-Three-time world champion and mixed martial arts legend, Frank Shamrock (24-9-1), will make his dramatic return to the cage when he squares off with fellow knockout artist Nick Diaz (18-7, 1 NC) in the main event of Strikeforce’s first MMA event of the year at San Jose, California’s HP Pavilion on Saturday, April 11.

The event represents the dawn of a new age for Strikeforce as it will be the first event under its new television agreement with premium television network SHOWTIME. The live telecast will feature up to five fights including the Shamrock-Diaz main event beginning live at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast).

The matchup, which will be contested at a catch weight of 179 lbs, is an opportunity for the hard-punching Diaz to avenge a devastating, 21-second knockout that his trainer, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu master Cesar Gracie, suffered at the hands of Shamrock in the main event of Strikeforce’s historic MMA debut event at HP Pavilion on March 10, 2006.

Also on the fight card, middleweight (185-pound limit) sluggers Scott “Hands of Steel” Smith (16-5, 1 NC) and Benji “Razor” Radach (19-4) will battle each other in a featured contest.

Tickets for “Shamrock vs. Diaz,” priced from $30, go on sale to the general public on Monday, February 23, at 10 a.m. PT at the HP Pavilion box office (408-287-7070) as well as at all Ticketmaster locations (408-998-TIXS), Ticketmaster online (www.ticketmaster.com), and Strikeforce’s official website (www.strikeforce.com).

“I’d be pretty pissed off if someone smashed my coach,” said the 36-year-old Shamrock, who is regarded by many as the father of modern day MMA. “Diaz is going to be carrying the pride of his school with him, but a fight’s a fight. Someone’s getting smashed and it’s just not going to be me.”

A San Jose, Calif. resident, Shamrock earned his lofty stature by bringing to the sport a polished, hybrid fighting style combining western boxing, kickboxing and submission wrestling in the mid-90’s when most MMA competitors’ skills were heavily concentrated in a single fight discipline. He was crowned the first UFC middleweight champion in history after stopping “The Huntington Beach Badboy” Tito Ortiz with an onslaught of strikes in what is regarded as one of the greatest MMA battles of all-time.

“I’m done breaking myself for entertainment,” Shamrock continued. “I’m just going to break everybody else and they’ll be entertained by that.”

Diaz, a stone-faced 25-year-old Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt from Stockton, Calif., responded, “Frank and I have always lived in a 100 mile radius of each other. When I got into this (sport), the people around here were all about Frank Shamrock, so I turned around and walked the other way.”

“I’ve crossed paths and trained with people who have also trained with Frank,” continued Diaz. “I know what they do, how they fight, and the way they act, so it’s great for me to get this fight while I’m still young. There’s a lot of things I can talk about, but I’m going to represent Gracie Jiu-Jitsu and I’m down for whatever’s going to happen in this fight.”

Diaz is long known as one of MMA’s most rebellious characters with a short fuse and crowd-pleasing style. He exploded onto the national MMA scene when he stunned fellow rising star “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler with a right hook to the jaw that put Lawler flat on the canvas at UFC 47 on April 2, 2004.

When he steps in the cage with Shamrock, Diaz will look to notch his fourth consecutive victory after turning in a flawless 2008 in which he stopped all three of his opponents, including his last adversary, Thomas “The Wildman” Denny.

”I just got a bigger picture of what’s going on in my life and in the world,” said Diaz of his recent success. “I think I just needed to grow up a bit. I did that and things are coming to me much easier now.”

Shamrock’s start will be his first since March 29, 2008, when he sustained a broken right arm while attempting to defend the Strikeforce world middleweight championship against longtime Bay Area rival and undefeated kickboxing champion Cung Le.

A Le round kick to the body caused the injury and prevented Shamrock from coming out to fight for the fourth round of a championship bout scheduled for five rounds.

“It healed up like it never happened,” said Shamrock of his arm that underwent surgery.

Prior to the title defense, Shamrock was crowned the first Strikeforce middleweight MMA champion in history after choking “The New York Badass” Phil Baroni unconscious in the second round of their live SHOWTIME PPV® battle at HP Pavilion on June 22, 2007.

Showtime Networks Inc. and Strikeforce jointly announced last week a multi-year agreement to create an all-new series of MMA events that will air live on SHOWTIME as part of the SHOWTIME Sports franchise. The two entities will produce and televise up to 16 live events per year, including world championship fight cards as well as a series dedicated to showcasing up-and-coming fighters in the sport.

The agreement reunites SHOWTIME and Strikeforce following their successful “Shamrock vs. Baroni” event, presented by SHOWTIME PPV in 2007 and the Shamrock vs. Cung Le telecast, which aired live on SHOWTIME.

About Strikeforce
Strikeforce is a world-class mixed martial arts cage fight promotion which, on Friday, March 10, 2006, made history with its “Shamrock vs. Gracie” event, the first sanctioned mixed martial arts fight card in California state history. The star-studded extravaganza, which pitted legendary champion Frank Shamrock against Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Cesar Gracie at San Jose’s HP Pavilion, played host to a sold-out, record crowd of 18,265. Since 1995, Strikeforce has been the exclusive provider of martial arts programming for ESPN and, after 12 years of success as a leading, world championship kickboxing promotion, the company unveiled its mixed martial arts series with “Shamrock vs. Gracie.” Since then, it has co-produced the first SHOWTIME PPV mixed martial arts event in history with its world championship “Shamrock vs. Baroni” card on June 22nd of this year followed by the first-ever mixed martial arts event at the world-famous Playboy Mansion on September 29th.

About Showtime Networks Inc.

Showtime Networks Inc. (SNI), a wholly-owned subsidiary of CBS Corporation, owns and operates the premium television networks SHOWTIME®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL® and FLIX®, as well as the multiplex channels SHOWTIME 2™, SHOWTIME® SHOWCASE, SHOWTIME EXTREME®, SHOWTIME BEYOND®, SHOWTIME NEXT®, SHOWTIME WOMEN®, SHOWTIME FAMILY ZONE® and THE MOVIE CHANNEL® XTRA. SNI also offers SHOWTIME HD®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL® HD, SHOWTIME ON DEMAND® and THE MOVIE CHANNEL® ON DEMAND. SNI also manages Smithsonian Networks, a joint venture between SNI and the Smithsonian Institution. All SNI feeds provide enhanced sound using Dolby Digital 5.1. SNI markets and distributes sports and entertainment events for exhibition to subscribers on a pay-per-view basis through SHOWTIME PPV®.