In all our excitement for Rampage vs. Machida, we haven’t really put much effort into covering the *other* event this weekend — Strikeforce Challengers: Wilcox vs. Ribeiro, which goes down tomorrow night at the Jackson Convention Complex in Jackson, Mississippi. The main card will be broadcast live on Showtime beginning at 11 p.m. ET. But should you actually take the time to watch it? Consult the flowchart below and find out. For the vision-impaired, there’s a larger version right here.

("Want a Baby Ruth?")

MMAJunkie is reporting that a heavyweight tilt between K-1 star Jerome LeBanner and DREAM light heavyweight champion Gegard Mousasi could be added to the K-1 Dynamite New Year’s Eve show December 31 at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan.

Mousasi says he has verbally agreed to the bout and is awaiting a contract to make the fight official.

"I don’t know if I’m fighting him yet," Mousasi said of Le Banner. "They haven’t confirmed. They asked me, and I said yes, so now if he said yes, the fight is on."

Although some question whether or not at 3-1 (1 NC) in MMA if LeBanner is experienced enough to pose a challenge for Mousasi, "The Dream Catcher" says he feels he will, especially standing.

"If I fight Jerome LeBanner in the U.S., [he] wouldn’t be considered a good MMA fighter," Mousasi said. "But in Europe because he’s a popular K-1 fighter, it’s fighting a big fight. It doesn’t matter if it’s MMA or K-1, so it’s good for me (and) my name in Europe if I could beat him. And he’s big and strong, so it’s a challenge for me to get him down. I know that once I can get him down, I can win. But that’s the challenge."

The fight will be only Mousasi’s second as a heavyweight. He defeated aging MMA veteran Gary Goodridge at last year’s year-end Dynamite! show.

He is currently walking around at 223 pounds and says he likely won’t go into the fight with his 260-pound opponent much bigger than he is now.

"It’s too short a time to put a lot of weight on, so maybe two or three kilos more, but that’s it," said Mousasi, who heard Satoshi Ishii also could be a potential opponent for the year-end DREAM event. "But I don’t consider weight to be that big of a deal. As long as my technique is better, it will make up for his strength."

As far as his next Strikeforce opponent, Mousasi revealed that Mike Kyle may be on tap for him in the New Year.

Check out some Lebanner and Mousasi highlights after the jump.

("Based on what we saw here today we think you’d be a great fit for the Strikeforce organization." PicProps: FightMagazine.com)

You’ll have to excuse even the most rabid “Ultimate Fighter” viewers if they don’t remember Wes Shivers. Shivers – one of the hulking NFL washouts not named Matt Mitrione on season 10 of the reality show– lost his first and only “TUF” fight to James McSweeney early on and quickly disappeared from our collective consciousness. In the wake of Shivers not getting invited back for the live finale we thought we’d seen the last of the guy until late last week, when Strikeforce sent out a press release (in triplicate, no less) trumpeting the fact that it’d dug him up to appear on the undercard of tomorrow night’s Challengers called.

Yeah, that’s right, Strikeforce sent out a press release to announce the return of Wes Shivers to MMA. Frankly, we wouldn’t be inclined to say much more (or anything at all) on the subject if not for Shivers’ interview this week with MMA Junkie which – through no fault of his own – effectively points out why/how Strikeforce continues to waste everybody’s time with these Challengers shows.

(Dana wasn’t kidding when he said he was going to shut down the Internet.)

As part of  its ongoing effort to snuff out the unauthorized and illegal use of its intellectual property, the UFC’s parent company, Zuffa LLC. has issued a cease and desist letter to popular web search portal Google.com, ordering that it stop linking to websites that offer illegal UFC pay-per-view streams and archived fight footage.

The move however could backfire on the UFC for at least the time being while Google’s legal team decides what to do, as the letter lists all of the sites that host the streams and videos, providing potential pirates with the means to steal from the company. 

The question is, what steps will Zuffa’s legal department take next?

According to sources I’ve spoken to, the company has recently begun issuing similar letters to websites that use unlicensed copies of Getty Image photos from the UFC website, regardless of whether or not attribution is given. A likely next step could be to order Google to stop linking to sites guilty of the infraction.

I’m not a proponent of piracy in any way shape or form, but if Zuffa takes legal action against Google and the search engine counters by removing all search terms relating to the UFC and it’s fighters, it wouldn’t be great for the company.

The letter, courtesy of chillingeffects.com, is after the jump:

(Props: jgreff2)

As you may recall, UFC Hall of Famer Ken Shamrock scored a rare victory over Jonathan Ivey last month at a USA MMA event in Lousiana. If you’d like to see the full 15-minute battle, the video is currently in our "Fight of the Week" section over on the right. (Scroll down a bit. Yeah, there it is.) The above highlights package from Inside MMA saves you a lot of time by rounding up the important moments, like when Ivey knocks Shammy down, and later when he slaps his own titties and shouts at Ken to bring it on, like an enraged, diabetic Nick Diaz.

But the best moment comes right before the end of the fight when Ivey does a pair of somersaults for no apparent reason; we’ll give him the benefit of the doubt and say he was rolling for a kneebar, then dodged out of the way when he couldn’t catch it. Kenny Rice describes it both as a "Rerun impression" and "the dreidel defense." Oy vey, Ivey!

Bonus, after the jump: Jonathan Ivey gets beat up by "very internet savvy" UFC heavyweight Sean McCorkle, at an LFC event in May.

(Kyle Watson, Michael Johnson, and John Danaher join host Stephan Bonnar to run down last night’s fights on the latest episode of "The Aftermath." Warning: Danaher drops a "retard" joke within the first 30 seconds of the interview. Anybody else getting a Lanny Poffo vibe from this guy?)

Michael Johnson is one of those dudes who can’t appreciate the sheer hilarity of being sprayed with water. When Sako (or was it Sevak? one of those guys) rigs the sink to blast the next person who uses it, MJ is on the losing end and freaks out. So immature, you guys! Michael is convinced that Alex Caceres is to blame, I guess because he saw Alex pull the same prank the day before. Their quarterfinal fight can’t come soon enough.

But first, Kyle Watson and Aaron Wilkinson will have to face off. GSP says Aaron is a better striker than Kyle, so Kyle needs to get the fight to the ground. Kyle’s plan is to take Aaron down from the clinch, rather than shooting in. Logically, Coach Koscheck advises "English" to keep the fight standing. After three fights in the house, Aaron’s right eye is looking rough. And it’s go-time already…

(Creepy pale guy is thinking how great he would look in a jumpsuit made from Chael’s skin.)

CagesideSeats.com has an interesting story they scooped from Yahoo! Sports MMA reporter Dave Meltzer’s paid subscription f4wonline message board that sheds some light on the Chael Sonnen PED case.

According to the story, Sonnen has been undergoing hormone replacement therapy since before his fight with Yushin Okami, which he reported to and was given clearance to fight by the California State Athletic Commission prior to the the bout. Because it is a permanent treatment  Sonnen allegedly assumed his doctor prescribed required testosterone treatment would be on file, and thus never re-reported it to the commission.

Testosterone levels can drop off for various reasons, including age, hereditary reasons or because of stress the endocrine system is due to a number of variables,  not limited to repeated weight fluctuation and dehydration caused by weight cutting.

Here’s what Meltzer had to say about the case in the latest edition of  his Wrestling Observer newsletter:

"Chael Sonnen’s hearing before the California State Athletic Commission regarding testing positive for testosterone is scheduled for 12/2 in Sacramento. Josh Barnett will also be applying to get licensed on that date. The talk was Sonnen would argue based on being medically prescribed testosterone due to a low level in his system. The issue would be whether or not he informed the commission ahead of time, because in cases like that, at least in Nevada, you have to ask for an exemption well in advance, have the commission doctors and your doctors talk and get it approved, and you still can’t have a higher than normal level in your system when being tested which requires additional lab work. Those type of exemptions being approved are rare."

CS dug a little further and came up with a conversation between Meltzer and UFC.com writer/German UFC commentator Oliver Copp on the F4WOnline messageboard

(Video courtesy AOL)

MMAFighting’s Ariel Helwani caught up with Dana White following today’s UFC 123 pre-fight press conference in Auburn Hills, Michigan and the UFC president shared his thoughts on a number of topics, including whether or not he thinks Quinton Jackson is motivated for his fight with Lyoto Machida, why he had a change of heart about letting Karo Parisyan fight for his organization again, what will happen to BJ Penn if he loses his third straight fight and Roy Nelson’s contract status.

(Props: GollyIE)

UFC 123 may not feature any title fights, but it does feature four hungry ex-champions. Headliner Rampage Jackson says he’s seen it all in his long career, and he’s not expecting any surprises from Lyoto Machida. Tiki Ghosn chimes in, predictably: "It’s Karate. Karate we found out sucked years ago. I think everybody got mesmerized with [Machida's] movement. Nobody cuts him off, nobody tries to cut him off." We hear more about Rampage’s decision to move his camp closer to home in Orange County, but no real explanation for the specific presence of Lance Gibson. Coincidentally, Machida has been preparing not too far away in San Diego, at Team Nogueria Gym. He says this fight is all about who imposes their gameplan. As opposed to other fights, where gameplans don’t really matter.

After the jump: ’Countdown’ continues, with a nice history of the rivalry between Matt Hughes and BJ Penn — from Matt’s "big man on campus" prime, to the loss that threw him into a Sin City tailspin, to his rematch redemption. Hughes has now eaten up three-consecutive Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belts, and is looking to make Penn #4. Meanwhile, Penn is in Honolulu, with a head full of smoking needles, trying to clear his head after two upset losses to Frankie Edgar. To see the segment on Sotiropoulos vs. Lauzon, head to UFC.com.

(You’re gonna want to put some ice on that, Phil. Props: UFC.com)

We can forgive Phil Davis a moment of hubris. At 7-0, dude hasn’t encountered a ton of adversity so far in his fighting career, so when somebody asks him what surprised him the most about transitioning from amateur wrestling to MMA it’s actually sort of cute that his response is essentially: “Man, beating people up? That shit hurts.”

Davis breaks it down for our man Ben Fowlkes over at MMA Fighting thusly:

"When you’re at home watching the UFC and you see a guy get elbowed in the face, you think, Oooh, that poor guy, he just got elbowed in the face," Davis says. "But I’m here to tell you, that hurts your elbow. You don’t think it would, but it hurts your elbow. When you calm down, stop sweating, get your shower and change, you will think, Man, my elbow really hurts. I’m telling you. It’s surprising."

Will "Rampage" finally pull out the "stank piss breff" joke he’s been dying to use on Machida?

Will Lyoto praise Steven Seagal for bringing back the old "Dragon?"

Has BJ Penn given up conventional training and gone back to carrying rocks under water and diving off of cliffs?

Will Matt Hughes ever be humble?

These questions and more will be answered within the hour as the UFC 123 pre-fight presser from Auburn Hills, Michigan hits the web via the UFC streaming web player after the jump.

Strikeforce held a conference call on Tuesday ahead of its next major event December 4 in St. Louis. Besides CEO Scott Coker, also on the call were the card’s two main event fighters, former Pride welterweight and middleweight champion Dan Henderson and former Strikeforce light heavyweight title holder Renato "Babalu" Sobral.

Coker has intimated that the winner of the bout will likely be next in line for a shot at current Strikeforce 205-pound champ Rafael "Feijao" Cavalcante, so the implications are much bigger than just a rematch that fans want to see.

The pair first squared off in 1999 under the Rings banner where Henderson took the split decision. Although Sobral says he isn’t approaching the fight as being his shot at avenging the debatable decision, but it’s clear that he still has a bitter taste in his mouth from the loss.

The highlights of the call are after the jump.

This Saturday in Detroit, two former light-heavyweight champions — both coming off of losses — will battle to retain their top-contender status. To better predict the outcome of Rampage vs. Machida, we look to the stats, which never, ever fail us. Check ‘em out below, and don’t forget to make your picks in this week’s MMA Fightpicker pools!

# OF SUCCESSFUL TITLE DEFENSES AS CHAMPION
Jackson: 1
Machida: 1  
Advantage: even

FINISHING RATIO
Jackson: 55% (21 stoppage wins in 38 career fights)
Machida: 41% (7 stoppage wins in 17 career fights)
Advantage: Jackson

CURRENT CAMP AFFILIATION
Jackson: It’s kind of a secret.
Machida: Black House
Advantage: Machida

UNFORTUNATE BEVERAGE CHOICE
Jackson: Energy drinks
Machida: Pee-pee
Advantage: Jackson

(The Rampage Jackson Diaries, vol. 1: A quick look at Rampage’s secret training camp for UFC 123.)

Some selected highlights from our friends around the MMA blogosphere. E-mail feedback@cagepotato.com for details on how your site can join the MMA Link Club…

– A Lean BJ Penn Already on Weight For UFC 123 (MMA Convert)

– Tim Boetsch Talks Davis Fight, Learning From Past Losses (Heavy.com/MMA)

– Five Lessons: UFC 122 & WEC 52 (Versus MMA Beat)

– My First Fight: Dennis Hallman (MMA Fighting)

– Aleksander Emelianenko Is Singing in Front of a Live Audience and No One Knows Why (MiddleEasy)

– Strikeforce Cuts Ties With Roxanne Modafferi (Five Ounces of Pain)

– Why Brock Lesnar Should Fight Nogueira Next (LowKick)

– FIGHT! Rankings: Okami is the #2 middleweight in the world, Marquardt drops to #12 (FIGHT! Magazine)

– Jean-Claude Van Damme Gets Emotional While Discussing his Upcoming Fight (MMA Scraps)

– Fabricio Werdum’s Tune-Up Fight Plan Causes Needless Worry By Fans (SBNation.com/MMA)

("Just relax and don’t think about where my other hand is.")

Unless you’re doing an interview with a small regional Canadian television station, if your teammate is fighting you’re pretty much obligated to say he or she is going to win or you may find yourself being greenlit the next time you show up for practice.

It’s no surprise then that Strikeforce light heavyweight champion Rafael "Feijao" Cavalcante is picking his Team Nogueira training partner, UFC middleweight kingpin Anderson Silva to beat former UFC light heavyweight champ Vitor Belfort when the pair meet February 5 at UFC 126 in Las Vegas.

According to Feijao, who is ignoring the principle rule of training: what happens in the gym stays in the gym, says that he has never seen Belfort get an upper hand over Silva in rolling or sparring while the two trained together briefly at Black House.

“I’ve had the opportunity of training with both [Anderson and Vitor] and to see them training with each other," he told Tatame. I’ve never seen Vitor beating Anderson."

("CBS? They suck. I’m not sure I want to work with them anymore.")

During today’s Strikeforce: Henderson vs. Babalu conference call, the promotion’s CEO Scott Coker touched on some pressing questions, but was noticeably mum on others.

"You’re going to see big things," Coker teased when speaking of the California-based promotion’s plans for next year, but he didn’t say whether or not a return to CBS is in Strikeforce’s stacked deck of cards. In an interview he did earlier this month with Sherdog, Coker said that a reputable TV deal would have to be in place for him to entertain a co-promotion deal with the promotions, which could be a telling sign that CBS has taken his number off of speed dial.

He did mentione Showtime when discussing the ongoing, yet unfruitful negotiations with Fedor Emelianenko’s M-1 Global management team, but didn’t give a clue about the status of Strikeforce’s relationship with CBS, which many assume is dead in the water thanks to the Team Cesar Gracie-Jason Miller brawl that took place during their last telecast in April.

"It’s been quite a long road here with the M-1 camp trying to get this done. I agree with [M-1 director of operations] Evgeni [Kogan] that there’s some light at the end of the tunnel," Coker explained. "We would welcome Fedor to have a long term deal with Strikeforce fighting on Showtime and we’re trying to get this done. It’s not done yet, there’s nothing signed. So really there’s nothing to announce."

Oh man, you thought last week’s Rumor Funhouse was grossly irresponsible? You guys have no idea what’s in store for you. Today’s installment features five warm ‘n fuzzy tales, all about the romantic bond. Four of them have been completely made up, either by us or by other people. One of them is actually legit. Can you separate the bullshit from the chicken salad? (That’s what they say down South, right?) Read on if you dare. Actually, don’t. Just move along. You’ll be a lot better off for it…

("I’mma poke you in yo stupid face if you axe me another stupid question.")

You would think that if you were awaiting trial for assaulting your ex-wife you might try your best to…I don’t know…NOT GET ARRESTED FOR ASSAULT?!

It seems that Floyd Mayweather Jr. thinks that money and fame excuses him from playing by society’s rules.

The Associated Press is reporting that the WBA welterweight boxing champ was allegedly involved in another incident this morning in Las Vegas in which he laid his hands, more specifically his fingers on a security guard in his gated community after the official began writing him parking tickets for a number of vehicles that were unlawfully parked on the street outside "Pretty Boy Floyd’s" home.

Police say that Mayweather became enraged when the the security officer refused to tear up the tickets and began repeatedly and aggressively poking the guard in his face.

(Vidprops: YouTube/BullshidoVideos)

The Japanese MMA scene might be slumping into the second decade of the 21st Century, but the Land of the Rising Sun is still the industry leader in unrestrained mayhem and total batshit craziness. Props to MMA Fighting.com’s resident gaijin Daniel Herbertson for passing along the above video of a lightweight fight last week in the Grachan organization … and the unexpected rampage that occurs immediately following it. If we only knew word one of Japanese – instead of spending all four years in high school and two years in college studying German, which turned out to be a waste of everyone’s time – we could give you a bit more context here. Just being big, dumb white guys, we’re going to have to take Herbertson’s word for a lot of it.

Here’s the Reader’s Digest condensed version: According to DH, Grachan is a Japanese promotion that (as you can see) uses a cage and prides itself on its "hardcore" image. In the vid, the dude in tights (Takeo Shiina) gets clowned by the dude in board shorts (Jung Hyun Lee) during their prefight stare down at Grachan 5. Lee does some head-waggling and kiss-blowing and then comes out of his corner at the opening bell with a Mitrione-esque grin on his face. Shiina doesn’t take too kindly to it. At all. Just a minute or so into the fight he KOs Lee with a left and then goes absolutely ape shit. When veteran referee Samio Kimura dives into the line of fire to call for the stoppage he gets a hammerfist to the back of the head and a knee to the ribs for his trouble. Shiina is eventually restrained and in the aftermath we can’t help but notice some important cultural differences …

 
("Maybe if I give myself a black eye nobody will notice.")

I gotta be honest, War Machine’s blogs are starting to seem a bit halfhearted these days.

Maybe we need to get someone on the inside a la Michael Scofield to shake things up a bit. Do we have any unemployed  members of the Potato Nation in San Diego with eight months to spare who are looking to make a few bucks?

I don’t know if I can stand to read about War’s herpes outbreaks and the number of continuous push-ups he can do for the next eight months, so we would make it worth your while.

Here’s the latest, and arguably the most disinterested prison journal entry to date by the fighter once known as "little Jonny Koppenhaver" after the jump.

How have we gone this long without knowing about Stephanie Ann Cook? The 21-year-old brunette beauty has been living and modeling in Las Vegas since 2007, where she works as a Tuff-N-Uff ring girl between her various other gigs. You can see more of Stephanie on StephAnnCook.com and her Model Mayhem page, and you can follow her every move on Facebook and Twitter.

Lots more amazing photos await you after the jump…

("I have no idea how I’m going to explain this to my wife. And you know what? I don’t care." Photo courtesy of ESPN.)

Jay Hieron‘s stint with Strikeforce has been one kick in the nuts after another. Since debuting last August at Carano vs. Cyborg, the former IFL champ has only competed once more for the promotion, and both of his appearances have been buried on untelevised preliminary cards. He signed with Strikeforce under the impression that he’d be getting a title shot against Nick Diaz — then saw himself get line-jumped by Marius Zaromskis. After he and Strikeforce couldn’t see eye-to-eye this year on contract re-negotiations, Hieron became one of MMA’s most valuable (and frustrated) free-agents.

According to a press release distributed last night, Hieron has decided to take his talents to Bellator for their season 4 welterweight tournament, which is slated to kick off in December and already features such 170-pound standouts as Dan Hornbuckle, Jim Wallhead, and Rick Hawn; the winner of the eight-man bracket will receive a big-ass check (yay!) and a shot at current champ Ben Askren (NOOOO!). Hieron explained his decision like so:

("By my calculation this guy is number 12 right behind Chris Tuchscherer, Anthony Perosh and Mike Russow.")

Does anyone else get the feeling that whenever Dana White loses out on getting a fighter he has been coveting, he badmouths said fighter to help soften the blow to his ego?

Remember when he thought he was close to signing Fedor Emelianenko and he came around, admitting that "The Last Emperor" was a pretty good fighter, only to turn around and call the Russian "a mythological creature made up by the MMA media?"

Well, according to The Baldfather, apparently Alistair Overeem is now a piece of shit fighter who doesn’t deserve to be in the top ten of any media outlets’ heavyweight rankings, despite the fact that White has been courting the K-1 star for some time to sign with the UFC.

Here’s what Dana had to say to MMAJunkie about Overeem’s universally accepted top-ten ranking:

"Listen, I like Alistair Overeem. I see him all the time. Cool guy. But there’s no urgency on my part to get him into the UFC. I actually find it hilarious that he’s ranked in the top 10 by some of the websites. I find it hilarious. What has he done in MMA to be ranked in the top 10? I’d like somebody here to answer that question. We’ve got a lot of media guys here; what has Alistair Overeem done to be ranked in the top 10 of mixed martial arts’ heavyweight division? How do you figure? Because he’s such a good K-1 fighter (that) he can parlay that into being a mixed-martial-arts fighter? That’s what makes the mixed-martial-arts media fucking stupid – that they would even rank this guy in the top 10 because he’s fighting in K-1," White said. "That makes absolutely no fucking sense sense, and I would love to hear somebody make sense of this guy being ranked in the top 10. Has he fought anybody worth mentioning? Uh, yeah that would help. Guys that fight the top guys in the top 10, three times a year in mixed martial arts – those are the guys that are ranked in the top 10. How bout the fact that he’s fighting in K-1, where you just kick and punch? There’s no wrestling, there’s no this, and there’s no that. How does any credible fucking MMA guy put him in the top 10 in the heavyweight division? It’s hilarious."

(Smile, and the whole world smiles with you. Except for Scott Coker, who might be throwing himself off a bridge at this point. / Photo courtesy of sports.sho.com)

With his left elbow healthy again following surgery, you’d figure that Fabricio Werdum would be itching to get back in action and challenge Alistair Overeem for Strikeforce’s heavyweight title, or take that rematch with Fedor Emelianenko that he wanted for some reason. Well, yes and no. Yes, he wants to fight. But no, he’s not going to fight any of those dudes in Strikeforce — mainly because he doesn’t have to. Werdum laid out the situation to Sherdog in an article about his recent BJJ seminar world tour:

“I used this trip to make a couple of good contacts in Abu Dhabi and Japan. Strikeforce want me to return in March against Fedor [Emelianenko] or [Alistair] Overeem, but I’m looking forward to having a fight before that one. I don’t have an exclusive contract with Strikeforce, only for the U.S., and I got a nice proposal in Abu Dhabi and another one in Japan…My arm is 100 percent now and I feel that by February, I’ll be ready to fight in Abu Dhabi or Japan."

(Images courtesy of AllElbows/Versus, Lionsgate.)

After wading through 178 entries for Friday’s caption contest, one thing is certain: You guys really love The Human Centipede. Not sure what’s up with that. Anyway, we’re psyched to give away some DVD/Blu-Ray combo packs for the new beat-’em-up flick Locked Down — a film that thankfully does not feature three people who have their gastrointestinal tracts sewn together by an insane German doctor. But first, we feel obligated to print a few captions that just fell short of the glory. Y’know, just to ratchet up the suspense…

(Video courtesy YouTube/ClashofMyAssinYaMind/MTV)

I admit that I haven’t  watched many episodes of Bully Beatdown, mostly because the first episode I caught during the first season that saw the bully beat the regional fighter he squared off against. It ruined it for me. It was a misnomer consdidering the bully didn’t get beat down, kind of like Dancing with the Stars which doesn’t feature anyone most peope would consider a star and what they’re doing on the show doesn’t really resemble dancing. False advertising, in my opinion.

Well, I happened to be flipping through the channels on my satellite receiver on Thursday when I stumbled across the episode above featuring Jeremy Horn, so I left it on MTV and watched the show all the way through.

I wasn’t disappointed.

("Read it? No, I *signed* it. We’re dealing with fight promoters here, I assumed they were on the level." Props: MMAConvert.com)

Well, this is embarrassing: As it turns out, UFC heavyweight contender Roy Nelson is allegedly still under contract to another fighting organization and has been during his entire UFC career, including three previous fights in the Octagon as well as his run to the championship of “The Ultimate Fighter” season 10. According to multiple internet reports, Nelson perhaps didn’t read all the fine print in the deal he signed with Roy Jones Jr.’s Square Ring, Inc., prior to his questionble decision loss to Jeff Monson in March, 2009. Now UFC President Dana White says “Big Country” will be on the shelf until the matter is resolved.     

See, this is what happens when fighters don’t have lawyers. Obviously, Nelson should’ve known his own contractual status but instead of just blaming the big guy, let’s be honest: This can only be considered a fuck-up of colossal proportions on the part UFC’s massive and notoriously aggressive legal team. It’s hard to fathom how they missed this, especially since legal documents obtained by The Fight Lawyer allege that UFC Vice President Marc Ratner knew about Nelson’s contract with Square Ring. Fortunately for Zuffa, The Fight Lawyer also assumes the company will just end up billing Nelson for any losses it incurs while sorting this mess out. Man, must be nice.

(Sotiropoulos using his knee and ankle supports to allow Joe Stevenson to get a better grip on his leg.)

A popular topic of debate surrounding next weekend’s UFC 123 event in Auburn Hills, Michigan has focused on the legality of the in-Octagon apparel worn by one of the card’s participants.

Fans and pundits alike seem split about whether or not the compression short-ankle and knee support combination worn by lightweight George Sotiropoulos are legal under the Unified Rules of mixed martial arts.

Even G-Sot’s opponent, Joe Lauzon has labeled the Australian fighter a cheater because of his in-Octagon apparel.

"I don’t see how you can wear your regular fight shorts, compression shorts under that that go to your knee, then wear knee pads on both sides that go halfway down your leg, then ankle supports that go halfway up your leg and down to your toes," Lauzon explained to Ariel Helwani during a recent episode of MMAFighting’s The MMA Hour. "I don’t know what the deal is with the commission, if he’ll be allowed to wear those or not, but we’re prepared for him either way. I don’t really understand how he gets away with them. We’re definitely going to look into it a little bit."

(G-Sot chose to forgo wearing his knee braces at UFC 116 in July after opponent Kurt Pellegrino called him a cheater for wearing them.)

Lauzon may be wasting his time.

According to reputable officials we conferred with from the Nevada State Athletic Commission and New Jersey State Athletic Control Board – two of the main regulatory bodies responsible for helping develop the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts as we know them today – Sotiropoulos’s choice of legwear is perfectly legal under their jurisdictions, but ultimately, the final call goes to the commission overseeing each event.

(Props: MarcosAlvaredo)

On last week’s Bum Rush epsiode, we ragged on Quinton Jackson for training with actor/stuntman/fighter Lance Gibson, whose 4-5 MMA career includes appearances in the UFC, SuperBrawl, and Shooto, and whose theatrical credits include "Bouncer," "Security Guard," and "Doorman." Of course, Jackson’s upcoming UFC 123 opponent is Lyoto Machida, a serious martial artist. That’s why, like Anderson Silva before him, Machida is taking aikido lessons from Steven Seagal. Nope, we see nothing worth mocking here whatsoever.

(Props: youtube.com/kimurase)

Following UFC 122, our Euro buddies at Kimura.se caught up with scheduled co-headliner Jorge Rivera to discuss his reaction to Alessio Sakara‘s surprise illness-withdrawal. Rivera’s hands were already wrapped by the time he got the news, and he was "in shock" to learn he wouldn’t be fighting. On the bright side, he already has bigger things lined up. Said Jorge: 

"I’ve got a good fight coming up in Australia, and I’m gonna take a couple weeks off to go home and just relax, because I’ve training hard since about June. My last fight, I had to pull out about July, because I had broken my arm, but I was still training with a broken arm, I wanted to fight. I’ve been training hard now for about five, six months, so I need some time just to relax, man…And then I’m gonna train real, real, real hard. I really want this next fight, man. I not only want the fight, I wanna fuck him up. [Interviewer: Who are you fighting in Australia?] Michael Bisping…that is a scoop I’m giving you right now."