“The Ultimate Fighter” Season 16 Cast Revealed

 Posted by at 5:14 PM  UFC  1 Response »
Aug 302012
 

Today the UFC announced the 32-man roster comprising the “TUF 16″ cast airing on FX beginning September 14. (Photo courtesy of Zuffa, LLC.)

Thirty-two of the world’s most talented unsigned mixed martial artists are primed and ready to compete on The Ultimate Fighter 16. Today officials announced the names of those comprising the 32-man welterweight roster, which includes 29 Americans, two Canadians, and one Brazilian as well as several major promotion veterans, all to be under the tutelage of either former UFC Interim Heavyweight Champion Shane Carwin (12-2) or TUF Season 10 winner and former IFL champ “Big Country” Roy Nelson (17-7). Continue reading »

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MMA Gospel Exclusive: Round Two With Bellator Tourney Champ “Psycho” Karl Amoussou

 Posted by at 2:31 PM  Bellator, MMA Gospel Exclusives, MMA News  1 Response »
Aug 162012
 

Bellator Season 6 Welterweight Tournament Champion Karl Amoussou’s (red trunks) striking skill set has played a large role in his success as a top competitor. (Photo courtesy of Bellator)

M-1 Global, DREAM, and Strikeforce veteran “Psycho” Karl Amoussou (16-4-2) started off his tenure in Bellator Fighting Championships at 0-1 after a controversial Split Decision loss to “Smiling” Sam Alvey (19-4) at Bellator 45 in May 2011. Many might have been deterred by such a disappointing start in one of the world’s most prominent mixed martial arts promotions, but that wasn’t the case for the Frenchman. A fire was lit under Amoussou, who then went on to amass four consecutive victories over the course of nine months, along the way dropping from middleweight to the 170lbs. division. Amoussou’s long-awaited move to welterweight began with a catchweight bout at 175 against “Chavo” Jesus Martinez (6-3). It took Amoussou only 2:20 to destroy Martinez with lighting quick strikes and the victory earned him a spot in the Bellator Season 6 Welterweight Tournament. From there the “Psycho” would tear through the opponents within the tourney ranks and earn the title of Season 6 Welterweight Tournament Champion, with the trail of devastation left in his wake catching the MMA world’s attention. Between his rigorous training to dethrone Bellator Welterweight Champion “Funky” Ben Askren (10-0) in a title fight this fall, Amoussou chats with MMA Gospel Staff Writer Cole Moorman about his journey through the promotion’s ranks. Continue reading »

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Bellator Welterweights Return to Action for Season 6

 Posted by at 7:15 AM  Bellator, MMA News  No Responses »
Jan 082012
 
Jeet Kune Do practitioner and UFC veteran Ben Saunders (left) is one of eight welterweights competing in Bellator’s Season 6 tournament for a shot at current champ Ben Askren’s belt. (Photo courtesy of Sherdog)

The 170lbs. division is gearing up for another season-long Bellator tournament set to kick off in March. With a wealth of returning talent, two towering giants, a UFC veteran, and a wrecking machine all set to meet inside the Bellator cage, the fireworks are sure to fly. Eight hungry contenders will enter but only one will earn a title shot.

Returning to the cage after his tournament finale loss to eventual champion “The Phenom” Douglas Lima (19-4) is “Killa B” Ben Saunders (12-3). A Bruce Lee-inspired approach to fighting has lead the man who owns some of the deadliest knees and elbows in MMA to the finals before, and this time Saunders will make the needed adjustments to rectify the mistake. Saunders has the talent, the range, and the aggression to beat anyone at any time but in Season 6 he will have even more motivation to prove it. Continue reading »

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Bellator 50: The Aftermath

 Posted by at 5:03 PM  Bellator, MMA News  No Responses »
Sep 182011
 

Russian kickboxer Alexander Shlemenko (top) advances to the Bellator Season 5 Middleweight Tournament semi-finals after submitting Zelg Galesic less than two minutes into the opening round. (Photo courtesy of Keith Mills and Sherdog)

Last night the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida saw the return of the middleweights as the Bellator Season 5 185lbs. tournament went underway. The reemergence of previous contenders and several newcomers went to battle for the right to stamp their place in the Final Four. “Smiling” Sam Alvey (14-3) and Wand Fight Team’s Vitor Vianna (11-1) started off the tournament bracket. “The Storm” Alexander Shlemenko (31-4) took on fellow striker Zelg Galesic (9-6) in a bout that was sure not to make it out of the first round. Bellator newcomers “The Predator” Brian Rogers (8-2) of Team Strong Style and fellow Ohioan Victor O’Donnell (12-2) looked to impress in their debuts and raise their stock as high profile middleweights. The main event saw “The Beast” Bryan Baker (13-2) take on Jared Hess (12-3) in a lock out battle to determine who would move on. Here is a quick look at how the night went down. Continue reading »

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Bellator 50, Season 5 Middleweight Tournament Quarter-Finals Live Results

 Posted by at 4:16 PM  Bellator, MMA News  No Responses »
Sep 172011
 

(Photo courtesy of Bellator)

—MAIN CARD (on MTV2)—

Season 5 Middleweight Tournament Quarter-Final Fight
Jared Hess vs. Bryan Baker: Baker via TKO (Strikes), Round 3, 2:52

Season 5 Middleweight Tournament Quarter-Final Fight
Victor O’Donnell vs. Brian Rogers: Rogers via TKO (Kick and Punches), Round 1, 1:56

Season 5 Middleweight Tournament Quarter-Final Fight
Zelg Galesic vs. Alexander Shlemenko: Shlemenko via Submission (Standing Guillotine Choke), Round 1, 1:55

Season 5 Middleweight Tournament Quarter-Final Fight
Sam Alvey vs. Vitor Vianna: Vianna via Split Decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28), Round 3, 5:00 Continue reading »

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Bellator 50, Season 5 Middleweight Tournament Pre-Fight Breakdown

 Posted by at 7:56 PM  Bellator, MMA News  No Responses »
Sep 162011
 

Long reigning Bellator Middleweight Champion Hector Lombard will watch closely as eight top level fighters enter the Season 5 tournament for a crack at his gold. (Photo courtesy of Bellator)

Tomorrow night the famed Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino hosts yet another Bellator event: the Bellator 50 and the Season 5 Middleweight Tournament quarter-finals. ”Shango” Hector Lombard (28-2), with the championship belt hoisted across his shoulder, reigns at 185lbs. and only one man will earn the chance to challenge for his gold strap. Stacked with Bellator veterans, a former title challenger, and new faces from around the globe, the tournament seems geared to ensure that man is the toughest test yet of Hector’s reign. “The Beast” Bryan Baker (12-2), a giant and powerful middleweight, has overcome many hardships to unleash “The Beast” inside the cage. Standing across from him is the hard nosed and gritty Jared Hess (12-2), the man who was the runner-up in the first season but was cut down short in the second season due to a freak knee injury. Russian striker “The Storm” Alexander Shlemenko (30-4) will bring his flashy spinning back fists and kicks into the cage to welcome Croatian kickboxer and DREAM and Cage Rage veteran Zelg Galesic (9-5), a man who has never been out of the first round in his entire career. Perhaps one of the most decorated Jiu-Jitsu champions in the world, Vitor Vianna (10-1), will bring his high level grappling with him as he makes his Bellator debut against “Smiling” Sam Alvey (14-2). Starting off the tournament are two newcomers in Strikeforce veteran Brian Rogers (7-2) and Victor O’Donnell (12-1). Both men love to strike and have secured most of their pro wins by TKO. Only four men can move on to the semi-finals but with such talent that is involved in this tournament, anything goes.

Continue reading »

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Bellator Middleweights Set for War at September Bellator 50 Event

 Posted by at 5:56 PM  Bellator, MMA News  No Responses »
Jul 302011
 

Bellator Middleweight Champion Hector Lombard (black shorts) has dominated the Bellator middleweight division with both of his iron fists; now he will watch again as eight men battle for a chance at his belt. (Photo courtesy of Bellator)

Bellator’s most popular host, The Seminole Hard Rock Casino in Hollywood, Florida, will welcome perhaps the most talented division of all the Bellator ranks. The middleweight tournament is set and eight men will enter the cage to fight their way to the top. Ruled by the aggressive and powerful champion “Shango” Hector Lombard (27-2), the middleweight division has to produce a truly gifted challenger to make it worth his while and Bellator has done just that with eight of the best the world has to offer. With several returning fighters and plenty of new faces looking to take Bellator by storm, Season 5 is perhaps the deepest tournament pool to date. Continue reading »

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MMA Gospel Talks Nate Marquardt, Bellator, and More with Bellator Middleweight Champion Hector Lombard

 Posted by at 11:19 AM  Bellator, MMA Gospel Exclusives, MMA News  No Responses »
Jul 142011
 

MMA Gospel’s Matt Homeyer chatted with Bellator Middleweight Champion Hector Lombard about where he stands amongst the top 185ers in the world. (Photo courtesy of Bellator)

“Shango” Hector Lombard (27-2) is a name that has been on the lips of MMA fans more and more recently and oddly enough it hasn’t been to talk about another one of “Shango’s” highlight reel knockouts, but rather the fact that the Bellator Middleweight Champion called out “The Great” Nate Marquardt (31-10) shortly after Nate’s release from the UFC. Lombard, who is considered by many fans to be one of the most dangerous strikers in the sport, seemed to jump at the fact that Marquardt had been released by the world’s premier mixed martial arts promotion and was almost instantly looking to fight against the former UFC middleweight contender. Just days after Lombard called out the former top contender, Matt Homeyer of MMA Gospel talked to the current Bellator champ about what drew him into MMA, the upcoming Bellator Season 5 tournament, and, of course, Nate Marquardt. Continue reading »

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One on One with M-1 Veteran “Psycho” Karl Amoussou

 Posted by at 3:27 PM  Bellator, Features, MMA Gospel Exclusives, MMA News  1 Response »
May 302011
 

North American MMA fans got their second glimpse of the power behind M-1 veteran “Psycho” Karl Amoussou’s (right) striking when he took on “Smilng” Sam Alvey (left) at Bellator 45 last weekend for a spot in the Season 5 Middleweight Tournament. (Photo courtesy Keith Mills and Sherdog)

“Psycho” Karl Amoussou (12-3-2) entered the lion’s den of European MMA with three first-round submission wins that earned him the honor of cutting his teeth in the ranks of the world famous M-1 Global promotion. Toting an 8-2 record within the organization, of which only two bouts saw the judges, Amoussou’s explosive style and finishing power established him as a fan favorite and a powerhouse amongst European fighters. In August 2009 the Frenchman made his US debut also under the M-1 banner in the promotion’s first ever live televised event in the United States, M-1 Global: Breakthrough. Despite disposing of his opponent John Doyle (9-16) in impressive fashion via first-round Rear Naked Choke, the Judo black belt Amoussou still went relatively unnoticed in the landscape of US MMA.

Six months later in February 2010, Amoussou entered the Strikeforce cage against South African fighter Trevor Prangley (23-7) in a bout that many believed the more experienced Prangley would dominate. Against Prangley, Amoussou showed that he’s no pushover. He got the better exchanges and was picking Prangley apart until he received an accidental eye poke and consequently was unable to see or continue the fight. The match was ruled a Draw and despite his commanding performance, the memory of all but the outcome faded in many fans’ minds.

Amoussou would not compete again on American soil until May 21 at Bellator 45. The main card feature fight pitted the 25-year-old M-1 veteran and undercover police officer against King of the Cage veteran “Smiling” Sam Alvey (13-2) for a spot in the Bellator Season 5 Middleweight Tournament. After a three-round battle in which “Psycho” arguably dominated at least 10 of the 15 minutes, two out of the bout’s three judges gave the nod to Alvey and sent Amoussou back to France without a spot in Bellator’s upcoming 185lbs. tournament.

MMA Gospel staff writer Cole Moorman recently interviewed the “Psycho” in hopes of turning the American eye to the bright future of Karl Amoussou. Continue reading »

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Spilled Bag of Fights: Free Chael!

 Posted by at 5:56 PM  Spilled Bag of Fights  4 Responses »
May 232011
 

First off I want to congratulate Sergio aka @iTzPrimo on Twitter who won the #1 Icemigo award. What’s the #1 Icemigo award? It’s some shit I invented just for Primo because that mofo RTs all my shit and comments on this column all the time. What did Primo win? Well, I don’t want to spoil the surprise for him but it’s either totally awesome or he’s totally getting KOS’d!! Or Maybe a little of both. Ha ha! See, I reward my loyal Icemigos. I’ve spent *$40,000 out of my own pocket giving away shit to people since I started the Spilled Bag of Ice Twitter account way back in February of 2010.  As for my enemies, *I’ve smashed their faces and crushed their souls. I’ve kidnapped their pets, made them love me and trained them to attack their former owners on sight…their children, too.

(*claims may be somewhat exaggerated for dramatic effect) Continue reading »

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Bellator 45: The Aftermath

 Posted by at 1:41 PM  Bellator, MMA News  No Responses »
May 222011
 

M-1 veteran "Psycho" Karl Amoussou (red trunks) took on King of the Cage veteran "Smiling" Sam Alvey in a Bellator Season 5 Middleweight Tournament qualifying match. After three hard fought rounds, Alvey took a razor thin Split Decision. (Photo courtesy of Taro Irei)

The inaugural Bellator light heavyweight king was crowned last night in front of fans at the L’Auberge Du Lac in Lake Charles, Louisiana at the promotion’s season-ending show, Bellator 45, as Christian M’Pumbu (5-1) and Richard Hale (12-4) went to war for the titles of Bellator 205lbs. champ and Bellator Season 4 Light Heavyweight Tournament Champion. The main event was preceded by another Season 4 finals bout, with 145lb-ers Daniel Straus (16-3) and “Pitbull” Patricio Freire (9-1) locking horns to determine the next man to take on reigning champ Joe Warren (7-1). Before the pair of tournament bouts fans were treated to a competitive match-up in the middleweight division between former college wrestler and King of the Cage veteran “Smiling” Sam Alvey (14-2) and the well-rounded former M-1 fighter “Psycho” Karl Amoussou (12-3) with the winner gaining a spot in the Bellator Season 5 Middleweight Tournament. The evening wrapped up a season filled with solid fights, surprising upsets, and emerging contenders.

Continue reading »

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Bellator 45: Pre-Fight Breakdown

 Posted by at 11:04 AM  Bellator, MMA News  No Responses »
May 212011
 

Richard Hale (blue trunks) will face a much smaller man in Christian M'Pumbu for the vacant Bellator light heavyweight belt. (Photo courtesy of Keith Mills and Sherdog)

Tomorrow night Lake Charles, Louisiana will have the honor of hosting the final event of the Bellator Fighting Championships Season 4 tournaments. Not only will there be tournament finals taking place in two weight classes, but one of those finals will crown a new champion in the light heavyweight division. Opening up the main card, middleweight Sam Alvey (13-2) meets M-1 veteran “Psycho” Karl Amoussou (12-2). Gritty featherweight Daniel Straus (16-2) will meet the young Brazilian phenom “Pitbull” Patricio Freire (8-1) in a scheduled three-round war to determine the Bellator Season 4 Featherweight Tournament winner as well as who will face the vocal champion Joe Warren (7-1) for his title. Finally, the lightning fast and iron forged giant Richard Hale (12-3) will take on lean and mean French knockout artist Christian M’Pumbu (3-1) with the winner being minted as Bellator’s inaugural 205lbs. champion. Derek Lewis (4-1) was slated to meet Brazilian giant “Big Monster” Thiago Santos (4-1) but an injury has caused Santos to pull out of the fight, thus cancelling the heavyweight tilt. Bellator’s final effort of its fourth season promises fireworks; here, MMA Gospel takes a look at how the evening may play out. Continue reading »

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