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Blaise Pascal

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While it’s difficult for most competitors to accept defeat, it’s nearly impossible for them to blame themselves for such an atrocity. In steps former UFC interim heavyweight champ Shane Carwin, who took a hard look in the mirror after his loss to Brock Lesnar and instantly realized he was staring directly at the man to blame.

“I’m not making any excuses for that fight. Brock won that fight. He came out of a 1stRound that I don’t think many people could, and if I want to blame anybody on that fight it’s me,” Carwin told MMAWeekly.com.

Although Carwin was handed his first professional blemish at UFC 116, he nearly ended the scrap in the opening stanza with a vicious barrage of bombs that had some inside the MGM Grand Garden Arena screaming for a stoppage.

“Josh is a great ref. I don’t have any ill will towards any ref. They have the hardest job in there when you sit back and you try to think about putting yourself in their shoes and try to determine if a fighter can’t carry on, or is intelligently defending himself,” said Carwin. “Everyone is different in how they defend in those positions. It’s a very tough job, and I have a lot of respect for all the refs that are out there.”

Some MMA purists questioned Rosenthal’s credentials when he was awarded the blockbuster match-up, especially with Herb Dean – who has been dubbed by UFC president Dana White as “The best referee in the business” – sitting inches away. Carwin, on the other hand, has taken the high road by professing the third person inside the Octagon shouldn’t have even mattered.

“One sure fire way to finish a fight is to knock him out and Rosenthal wouldn’t have to make a decision,” Carwin matter-of-factly stated.

Carwin owns the biggest mitts in the UFC and every finger attached to them are pointing directly at his own massive 265-pound frame. Did we really expect anything less from the classy Carwin?

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UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre is ready to retire when he's considered the sport's pound-for-pound best.

 

Don't worry, though. On a special "Primetime" edition of MMAjunkie Radio (http://www.mmajunkie.com/radio) this past Friday, St-Pierre said he's not quite there yet.

 

But the traditional reason for sticking around – fame and money – isn't his primary concern. Doing it his way is.

 

"People are going to be shocked," St-Pierre said of his tentative retirement plan.

 

St-Pierre (20-2 MMA, 15-2 UFC) currently is in Las Vegas wrapping up a coaching stint on "The Ultimate Fighter 12" opposite top contender Josh Koscheck (15-4 MMA, 13-4 UFC). The two are expected to meet sometime at the end of the year in a traditional season-ending fight between "TUF" coaches.

 

Beyond that, he's done some additional planning. In fact, St-Pierre said his potential retirement plan recently came about while he was setting goals for his remaining career.

 

"Growing up in my career, I always fix my goals very high," he said. "And every time I achieve one of my [goals], I fix another goal to reach. It's important as a martial artist [never to be] satisfied because otherwise there is no point to keep doing what you're doing."

 

As to what goals remain, there are a few. St-Pierre has achieved what he initially set out to do: become a professional fighter, become a UFC fighter, and finally, become a UFC champion.

 

Being considered the best overall fighter in the world? That's the one goal he thinks currently is unmet.

 

That doesn't mean he's complacent, of course. In his second run as welterweight champion, St-Pierre has taken on four consecutive contenders and soundly beaten them all. At the end of the year, he will attempt to tie former champion Matt Hughes' record of five consecutive title defenses when he meets Koscheck.

 

Still, some fans believe St-Pierre already has cleaned out his division. He's already beaten all the division's top contenders – Koscheck, Jon Fitch, Thiago Alves and Dan Hardy – and some point to a middleweight showdown against current champion Anderson Silva as a final hurdle to the pound-for-pound crown. Silva is still widely considered to be the holder of that unofficial title. St-Pierre knows he could snatch it away by beating him.

 

But St-Pierre said a move up in weight would likely come near the end of his career, and it won't come anytime soon.

 

"If I go up in weight, it's going to be hard to go down," he said. "If I put on lean muscle like I already did recently ... it's going to be hard to come back down. So it's not like I go up and I go down. I have to be very careful with what I do."

 

Still, if St-Pierre takes "a couple" of welterweight fights in the next year or two, and if Silva is still the pound-for-pound king at that point, the French-Canadian then would consider moving up to fight him. And if he defeats Silva, that's a win worthy of retirement, he said.

 

"If one day I fight at 185 pounds for a superfight to know who is the best pound-for-pound in the world, (and) if I reach my goal, then my goal will be reached," St-Pierre said. "There will be no point for me to still compete because I'm not going to have a goal left."

 

St-Pierre also said he wants to secure his and his family's future before he takes the risk of moving up, though money and fame aren't the driving forces in his career.

 

"Of course, the money's there," he said. "The difference between me and a lot of fighters ... (is that) a lot of fighters fight for the fame. They fight for the money.

 

"Yeah, the money is there. It's pleasant. The money is there. It's good that I have this security. I have a lot of money now. It's good. But there is a lot of things I can do outside of mixed martial arts ... because of the name that I reached with MMA, that the UFC helped me to have.

 

"The fame is the same thing. I didn't have it in the beginning, and now I have it. But if one day I reach my goal of becoming the best pound-for-pound (fighter) of all-time, it will be time for me to retire. But I don't know right now, at 29 years old, if I want to retire. So it's better I have to stick around."

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UFC middleweight up-and-comer Gerald Harris (17-2 MMA, 3-0 UFC) recently found himself featured on ESPN following a spectacular slam finish of promotional newcomer Dave Branch at UFC 116.

 

While "The Hurricane" was blown away by the exposure, he's currently focused on seeing himself on TV in a different way.

 

Speaking to MMAjunkie.com (http://www.mmajunkie.com) on Wednesday night, Harris said he was launching a mass campaign to get himself into THQ's "UFC Undisputed 2010" video game.

 

"I don't care if I have to beg," Harris admitted. "I want to get on that game."

 

While the UFC's most recent video game offering features more than 100 fighters, Harris isn't among them. A former cast member of "The Ultimate Fighter 7" who has earned three-straight finishes in the octagon and two "Knockout of the Night" bonuses, Harris is hoping programmers can whip up a digital version of him that could be offered as downloadable content.

 

"It's another dream and a goal of mine," Harris said. "I don't care if my character sucks. Seriously.

 

"To me, right now, it's like a dream, but I'm really working hard at it. It would be unreal to be on that game. Some people may not care. To me, it's just a huge goal for me."

 

As a relative newcomer to the UFC, albeit an increasingly popular one, Harris knows his character wouldn't be a powerhouse. Nevertheless, he just hopes THQ can help him out with a virtual "Hurricane."

 

"He's going to be the worst guy on the game," Harris said. "I don't care though. I looked at some of the good fighters' stats, and I was like, 'Oh, man. Mine are going to be way down there.' I just want to be on there.

 

"I don't care if the guy loses all the time. It's fun. My children, they play the game like crazy. It would just be amazing."

 

Whether or not THQ programmers will be sympathetic to Harris' pleas remains to be seen, but Harris has another concern as well: the real cage.

 

With three-straight UFC wins and 10-straight victories overall, Harris is likely due for a guaranteed televised appearance in his next outing.

 

While Harris' fans certainly feel he's deserving, the 30-year-old middleweight doesn't have any expectations.

 

"I'm not expecting anything," Harris said. "I'm proud to be on a 'Fight Night' or an undercard. The whole goal is just to fight. All that other stuff is just a bonus. It doesn't affect me."

 

While nothing has yet been offered to Harris, he's currently targeting the recently announced UFC 121 card in Anaheim, Calif., as a desired return date.

 

"I'm praying for October," Harris said. "Brock (Lesnar) fights in October, so I'm trying to piggyback off his fight. It's a good rest and a good time to get better. I'd love to fight on October."

 

But with no real injuries, Harris said he'll be sitting by the phone, ready and willing to answer any call from the UFC.

 

"My head was a little sore," Harris said. "I probably blocked a kick with my temple. It's pretty sore. Other than that, this is the first fight I had where I didn't hurt my hands. I was blessed. I came out, and I was right back in the gym a week later. My trainer made me take a week off, and I'm ready to go.

 

"Whatever happens, happens. If they call me, I'll be ready."

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We’re just six months into 2010, and the MMA landscape looks like someone blasted it with nukes and ran a terraformer over the scorched earth.

 

The stories have been coming in at an astounding pace, as the global nature of the sport makes it almost impossible to stay abreast of everything that goes down on a daily basis. However, there are a few of stories that not only stand out but whose impact is such that it affects the game in ways no one can predict.

 

Here are the ones you won’t be escaping anytime soon.

 

The Fall of Fedor

 

The routine nature of Fedor Emelianenko’s dominance was well past the point of even being worthy of discussion. Odd as it may sound, Emelianenko plowing over the division was starting to get passé after seven years as the world’s No. 1 heavyweight.

 

And then Fabricio Werdum trapped him in a triangle and made the supposed cyborg tap out. The moment was a historic one and the fallout continues to reverberate throughout the sport. However, nothing has approached the hysteria and hate produced by fandom’s reaction to a world where Emelianenko is no longer the world’s top-ranked heavyweight. The very idea of Brock Lesnar, a former pro wrestler and all-around uber-jock, usurping Emelianenko’s spot is anathema to many and simple logic to others.

 

Regardless of how anyone feels about it, the fact is that Emelianenko’s loss means the UFC has the world’s best heavyweight, and they won’t be giving up that claim anytime soon. Perhaps the most intriguing question for the second half of 2010 is whether we’ll enter 2011 with Brock Lesnar or Cain Velasquez leading the division.

 

The WEC Is the Greatest Thing Ever

 

Not too long ago the WEC was Urijah Faber, some unknown prospects and a random collection of scrubs feeding on his scraps.

 

Post-Zuffa acquisition, however, the organization has morphed into the premier locale for all talent at featherweight and below. Just barely six months into 2010 and the WEC’s metamorphosis is nearing light speed, as their recent shows have produced some of the very best and most intriguing fights of the year.

 

Perhaps even more importantly, these fights have captured the imagination of fans used to wondering if anyone would bother watching a “bunch of midgets fight.” That notion was soundly repudiated by WEC 48, the organization’s pay-per-view debut. Not only was it one of the best nights of fights in the sport’s history, but it also far exceeded expectations by notching a reported buyrate of nearly 200,000.

 

It’s likely a matter of time before the brand is absorbed by the UFC, and that is something everyone should be excited for. Just look at boxing, a sport that has repeatedly failed the brilliant fighters who compete at lighter weights -- a fact that makes Zuffa’s dedication to the WEC brand all the more heartening.

 

Sonnen & His Big Mouth

 

20100206094712_sonnen.JPG

Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com

Can Sonnen (top) back up his talk?

 

Let’s get this out of the way early in the game: Chael Sonnen’s attempts to build the hype for his UFC 117 middleweight title bout against Anderson Silva have run the gamut from standard-issue idiotic to appallingly racist.

 

With that said, Sonnen and his 1950s insults have generated far more interest than the overplayed wrestler vs. striker narrative imposed on this fight. With every tweet, interview and media appearance, Sonnen has dominated the headlines and managed to build a considerable following of fans who find amusement in his vitriol.

 

Constructing controversy has long been the golden ticket in fight sport, and Sonnen relying on racial and cultural divides to up the ante is hardly new. However, between this and the unfortunate race-baiting that marred the Quinton Jackson vs. Rashad Evans match, we could be witnessing the birth of a trend that will only worsen the image of a sport dealing with ignorant, politically charged pontificating both at home and abroad.

 

Weighing the short-term financial payoff of these cheap ploys against the potential long-term collateral damage is a dicey game and one the UFC has almost no choice but to engage in. At a time when the sport can’t even get sanctioned in New York or a fair shake in Germany, the last thing anyone wants to deal with is a Sonnen quote hitting the mainstream media and going viral.

 

Judges & Referees: Is There No Cure?

 

As more and more MMA goes down worldwide, the unacceptable standards for judges and referees is becoming less of an occasional headache and more like an ongoing migraine.

 

It seems as if every event has at least one judge handing in a foolish scorecard and a referee making calls that fly in the face of reason and sanity all at once. In 2010 alone we’ve seen Yves Lavigne cost Mac Danzig his fight with Matt Wiman because he couldn’t distinguish between consciousness and unconsciousness.

 

Judges haven’t done any better this year as evidenced by the inexcusable scorecards handed in for high-profile bouts like Varner vs. Shalorus, Penn vs. Edgar I and Maynard vs. Diaz. The scoring in these bouts resulted in either the wrong man winning or simply exposing the sheer incompetence of some judges.

 

There are certainly great judges and referees out there, but they’re severely outnumbered and their work is almost always overshadowed by their less capable peers. All the potential solutions out there involve trying to change static bureaucratic systems uniformly unwilling to admit a problem even exists. In other words, things are only going to get worse and they may not get any better.

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yeah, i mean yellow cards deducting 10% from the fighters purse? that says a lot right there....aside from all the production, pride is just such an awesome experience, i literally have thoroughly enjoyed every pride dvd ive ever purchased...

 

i also love pride, the greatest fights happend there, it's really sad that dana got alot of thoes guys in the ufc when pride folded. he's water'd alot of the pride guys down. pride really was the shit, yellow cards, i loved that idea, they'll take your money for being boreing.

 

If gsp ever fought in pride that bitch woulda had all his money taken, homie don't try to fight, all that bitch does is lay on fools for 5 rounds. if you ask me thats not a P4P fighter, thats just a bitch. :lol:

 

fuck the ufc rules, its a fight let foools stomp on a nigguz head, soccer kick a hoes face like your names pele' or shogun for that matter.

 

anyone wanna buy any pride dvd's i've got them all but the very last 2. i refuse to watch hendblow knock out wanderlei.

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We’re just six months into 2010, and the MMA landscape looks like someone blasted it with nukes and ran a terraformer over the scorched earth.

 

The stories have been coming in at an astounding pace, as the global nature of the sport makes it almost impossible to stay abreast of everything that goes down on a daily basis. However, there are a few of stories that not only stand out but whose impact is such that it affects the game in ways no one can predict.

 

Here are the ones you won’t be escaping anytime soon.

 

The Fall of Fedor

 

The routine nature of Fedor Emelianenko’s dominance was well past the point of even being worthy of discussion. Odd as it may sound, Emelianenko plowing over the division was starting to get passé after seven years as the world’s No. 1 heavyweight.

 

And then Fabricio Werdum trapped him in a triangle and made the supposed cyborg tap out. The moment was a historic one and the fallout continues to reverberate throughout the sport. However, nothing has approached the hysteria and hate produced by fandom’s reaction to a world where Emelianenko is no longer the world’s top-ranked heavyweight. The very idea of Brock Lesnar, a former pro wrestler and all-around uber-jock, usurping Emelianenko’s spot is anathema to many and simple logic to others.

 

Regardless of how anyone feels about it, the fact is that Emelianenko’s loss means the UFC has the world’s best heavyweight, and they won’t be giving up that claim anytime soon. Perhaps the most intriguing question for the second half of 2010 is whether we’ll enter 2011 with Brock Lesnar or Cain Velasquez leading the division.

 

The WEC Is the Greatest Thing Ever

 

Not too long ago the WEC was Urijah Faber, some unknown prospects and a random collection of scrubs feeding on his scraps.

 

Post-Zuffa acquisition, however, the organization has morphed into the premier locale for all talent at featherweight and below. Just barely six months into 2010 and the WEC’s metamorphosis is nearing light speed, as their recent shows have produced some of the very best and most intriguing fights of the year.

 

Perhaps even more importantly, these fights have captured the imagination of fans used to wondering if anyone would bother watching a “bunch of midgets fight.” That notion was soundly repudiated by WEC 48, the organization’s pay-per-view debut. Not only was it one of the best nights of fights in the sport’s history, but it also far exceeded expectations by notching a reported buyrate of nearly 200,000.

 

It’s likely a matter of time before the brand is absorbed by the UFC, and that is something everyone should be excited for. Just look at boxing, a sport that has repeatedly failed the brilliant fighters who compete at lighter weights -- a fact that makes Zuffa’s dedication to the WEC brand all the more heartening.

 

Sonnen & His Big Mouth

 

20100206094712_sonnen.JPG

Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com

Can Sonnen (top) back up his talk?

 

Let’s get this out of the way early in the game: Chael Sonnen’s attempts to build the hype for his UFC 117 middleweight title bout against Anderson Silva have run the gamut from standard-issue idiotic to appallingly racist.

 

With that said, Sonnen and his 1950s insults have generated far more interest than the overplayed wrestler vs. striker narrative imposed on this fight. With every tweet, interview and media appearance, Sonnen has dominated the headlines and managed to build a considerable following of fans who find amusement in his vitriol.

 

Constructing controversy has long been the golden ticket in fight sport, and Sonnen relying on racial and cultural divides to up the ante is hardly new. However, between this and the unfortunate race-baiting that marred the Quinton Jackson vs. Rashad Evans match, we could be witnessing the birth of a trend that will only worsen the image of a sport dealing with ignorant, politically charged pontificating both at home and abroad.

 

Weighing the short-term financial payoff of these cheap ploys against the potential long-term collateral damage is a dicey game and one the UFC has almost no choice but to engage in. At a time when the sport can’t even get sanctioned in New York or a fair shake in Germany, the last thing anyone wants to deal with is a Sonnen quote hitting the mainstream media and going viral.

 

Judges & Referees: Is There No Cure?

 

As more and more MMA goes down worldwide, the unacceptable standards for judges and referees is becoming less of an occasional headache and more like an ongoing migraine.

 

It seems as if every event has at least one judge handing in a foolish scorecard and a referee making calls that fly in the face of reason and sanity all at once. In 2010 alone we’ve seen Yves Lavigne cost Mac Danzig his fight with Matt Wiman because he couldn’t distinguish between consciousness and unconsciousness.

 

Judges haven’t done any better this year as evidenced by the inexcusable scorecards handed in for high-profile bouts like Varner vs. Shalorus, Penn vs. Edgar I and Maynard vs. Diaz. The scoring in these bouts resulted in either the wrong man winning or simply exposing the sheer incompetence of some judges.

 

There are certainly great judges and referees out there, but they’re severely outnumbered and their work is almost always overshadowed by their less capable peers. All the potential solutions out there involve trying to change static bureaucratic systems uniformly unwilling to admit a problem even exists. In other words, things are only going to get worse and they may not get any better.

 

 

 

I'm sorry bro, but just because fedor lost one fight in a decade don't mean shit. fedor is still the greatest heavyweight of all fucking time. Brock is just a big ass nigga that can't strike, hes like a big GSP, imma just lay on a nigga for 5 rounds. yeah fedor got tri choked by fab, so that makes brock #1??!??? ok dana, yeah right that fake ass hulk hogan wanna be brock lesnar got heel hooked by frank queer..i mean mir. i hope cain beats brock so dana can put that in his fucking corncobb pipe and smoke it.

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Americans are pansies when it comes to the rules.

 

Japanese didnt give a fuck even if a dude jumps up the air and stomps a fool out on the ground, and they treat their fighters like fucking royalty (not just money-wise), which makes it better. I wish Pride would come back, but that's just me.

 

pride was too strict with stoppages from guys bleeding, but the yellow card system was useful. I liked the 10 minute 1st round as well.

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I'm sorry bro, but just because fedor lost one fight in a decade don't mean shit. fedor is still the greatest heavyweight of all fucking time. Brock is just a big ass nigga that can't strike, hes like a big GSP, imma just lay on a nigga for 5 rounds. yeah fedor got tri choked by fab, so that makes brock #1??!??? ok dana, yeah right that fake ass hulk hogan wanna be brock lesnar got heel hooked by frank queer..i mean mir. i hope cain beats brock so dana can put that in his fucking corncobb pipe and smoke it.

dont tell me tell the dude who wrote the article

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As an announcement regarding Jake Shields' expected signing with the UFC looms, the former Strikeforce middleweight champion’s trainer shed some light as to where the 31-year-old acquisition will fit into the promotion.

 

“Jake Shields will be debuting at the 170lbs weight division in the UFC,” read a post on GracieFighter.com, the site owned by Shields’ trainer Cesar Gracie, on Thursday.

 

The fighter's manager and father, Jack Shields, told Sherdog.com on Friday that the signing should be complete in the next few days. The elder Shields had said on June 30 that his son hoped to debut as a UFC middleweight, possibly against champion Anderson Silva, as welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre would be tied up with “The Ultimate Fighter” reality TV series and a pending bout with rival coach Josh Koscheck later this year.

 

However, it appears talks between the fighter’s camp and the promotion led to an alternate plan.

 

“After careful consideration and consulting with UFC representatives it was determined Jake would be finally going back to his original fighting weight,” read the post.

 

Shields, who successfully defended his title against former Pride Fighting Championships champion and UFC middleweight Henderson on April 17 in Nashville, Tenn., opted to not negotiate a renewal contract with Strikeforce prior to that bout. Meanwhile, the fighter’s existing contract didn’t contain a standard “champion’s clause,” which could have placed stipulations on Shields’ renegotiations while he remained a titleholder.

 

When the two parties couldn’t come to an agreement on a new contract, Strikeforce opted to release Shields of his remaining contractual obligations during the contract’s “matching period.”

 

Shields will carry an impressive 15-fight win streak into his Octagon debut, which is yet to be announced. The Gracie jiu-jitsu black belt holds key victories over Robbie Lawler, Paul Daley, and Carlos Condit. Shields hasn’t lost a bout since 2004.

 

“Jake's opponent is one of the UFC's top contenders and will be announced shortly,” said the GracieFighter.com post.

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GET THE FUCK OUTTA HERE, Why exactly do motherfuckas like brock lesnar?!? homies got a tramp stamp, that skull tat on his back fucking looks like a bigfoot skull with semen driping out of it's eyeballs...not to mention the front of that fool....dudes got a sword between his titties, lookin like he's getting tittie fucked. such a tool. he's gotta do work for atleast 6years without a loss before fools can even say he's #1.

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gsp has never been and will never be the best p4p fighter in the world.

that shit is ridiculous.

 

shitty tattoos = not a real fighter?

 

youre just mad.

when youre that xtuffx you can have the gayest tattoos ever, cause nobody is gonna say shit.

 

 

117 should be exciting. why they let nelson fight dos santos idk.

fitch is gonna get worked.

guida is always exciting, he gets the shit kicked out of him and keeps coming.

hughes should lose and quit.

the main event is a no brainer.

sonnen duh.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

jk.

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gsp has never been and will never be the best p4p fighter in the world.

that shit is ridiculous.

 

shitty tattoos = not a real fighter?

 

youre just mad.

when youre that xtuffx you can have the gayest tattoos ever, cause nobody is gonna say shit.

 

 

117 should be exciting. why they let nelson fight dos santos idk.

fitch is gonna get worked.

guida is always exciting, he gets the shit kicked out of him and keeps coming.

hughes should lose and quit.

the main event is a no brainer.

sonnen duh.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

jk.

put some cash down then

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