(Photo courtesy of Zuffa, LLC.)
—UN-TELEVISED PRELIMINARIES—
Todd Brown vs. Igor Pokrajac: Pokrajac via TKO (Knees and Punches), Round 1, 5:00
Rousimar Palhares vs. David Branch: Palhares via Submission (Heel Hook), Round 2, 1:44
Dongi Yang vs. Rob Kimmons: Yang via TKO (Punches), Round 2, 4:47
Takeya Mizugaki vs. Reuben Duran: Mizugaki via Split Decision, Round 3, 5:00
Thiago Tavares vs. Shane Roller: Roller via KO (Punches), Round 2, 1:28 Continue reading »
On Saturday night, "The Assassin" Chris Lozano (red shorts) challenges former Bellator Welterweight Champion Lyman Good in the Bellator Season 4 Welterweight Tournament quarter-finals. (Photo courtesy of Bellator)
For the mixed martial arts fans that don’t already know of “The Assassin” Chris Lozano (6-0), they will soon enough. MMA Gospel’s very first Young Gun has set the welterweight division ablaze in his only year-and-a-half long professional MMA career, racking up six consecutive wins – all via KO or TKO – and having yet to feel the sting of defeat. The 28-year-old Cleveland, Ohio native began his foray in the world of martial arts when he took up wrestling at age five; after many dedicated years in the sport, Lozano parlayed his natural athleticism and new-found combat prowess into successful studies in Tae Kwon Do and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, for which he is a red belt and blue belt, respectively. Then, MMA called his name.
The Cleveland “Assassin” made his professional MMA debut with the North American Allied Fight Series (NAAFS) in June 2009, knocking out fellow newcomer Marcus Kruck (0-1) in just 37 seconds. His sophomore effort two months later resulted in a 47 second knockout with Lozano again on the winning side, prompting the organization to offer Lozano, now only two fights into his pro career, a shot at their middleweight title then held by WEC veteran Allan Weickert (6-8). Just six months after his debut, Chris fought for the NAAFS Middleweight Championship and won, dethroning the champ via first round knockout. He followed up his victory over Weickert with another knockout, this time in the Freestyle Cagefighting Fighting (FCF) promotion, then returned to NAAFS to successfully defend his title by TKO’ing UFC veteran “Dynamite” Jason Dent (21-11). “The Assassin” clearly was making his name in the local circuits and quickly rising to superstar status. Continue reading »
A focused Diego Sanchez is a very dangerous opponent and is likely more than Martin Kampmann can handle. (Photo courtesy of Dave Mandel and Sherdog)
Tonight the UFC comes to the hometown of boxing legend “The Greatest” Muhammad Ali to host its third installment of UFC on Versus at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Kentucky, bringing with it a main card full of heavy hitters and wrestling stand-outs. Former WEC Bantamweight Champion Brian Bowles (8-1) makes his long awaited return as he takes on WEC veteran “The Angel of Death” Damacio Page (10-6), Italian striker “Legionarius” Alessio Sakara (15-7) squares off with UFC newcomer Chris Weidman (4-0), The Ultimate Fighter 7 finalist “The Doberman” CB Dollaway (11-2) looks to gain revenge for teammate “A-Train” Aaron Simpson (6-2) as he takes on “The Filipino Wrecking Machine” Mark Munoz (7-2) in a bout that will most likely be a wrestling barn burner, and the main event pits “The Hitman” Martin Kampmann (17-4) against “The Dream” Diego Sanchez (22-4) in search for redemption in the welterweight division. The two marquis fighters, Diego and Martin, have a need to reassert their position in the division and a return to form at UFC on Versus 3 is the perfect stage to do so. Continue reading »
"Legionarius" Alessio Sakara (red trunks) is a skilled striker with knockout power, but he lacks both takedown defense and a ground game, which may leave him vulnerable in tonight's main card match-up against Chris Weidman. (Photo courtesy of Dave Mandel and Sherdog)
The Ultimate Fighting Championship returns to the Versus network tonight for another compilation of free fights, this time rocking out the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Kentucky. The main event features “The Hitman” Martin Kampmann (17-4) butting heads with the fighter previously known as “The Nightmare” and now known as “The Dream” Diego Sanchez (22-4) for one of the welterweights to take a big step closer to putting his name in the hat for a top contender spot. Wrestling fans are in for a treat with the co-main event, a match-up between “The Doberman” CB Dollaway (11-2) and “The Filipino Wrecking Machine” Mark Munoz (7-2) that is likely to turn into a clinic on MMA wrestling between the two Div. I NCAA competitors. Kicking off the main card is the return of former WEC Bantamweight Champion Brain Bowles (8-1) looking to climb back to the top ranks following his March 2010 loss to Dominick Cruz (16-1) by taking on Jackson’s Submission Fighting graduate “The Angel of Death” Damacio Page (10-6), preceded by former UFC top lightweight contender “Daddy” Joe Stevenson (31-11) taking on WEC transplant “Last Call” Danny Castillo (9-3). A bout that is sure to be a contender for “Fight of the Night” honors pits heavy-hitting Italian striker “Legionarius” Alessio Sakara (15-7) against UFC newcomer “The All-American” Chris Weidman (4-0) in a brawl that undoubtedly will end in spectacular fashion. Let’s have a closer look at this highly-anticipated bout. Continue reading »