(Photo via Zimbio. And yes, this is another rip-off of a much-better article. Deal with it.)

By Ben Goldstein

Tomorrow marks the long-delayed theatrical release of Haywire, a movie we’ve been huffing and puffing about since 2009. Obviously, the only reason we care about this film is because of its lead actress, Gina Carano. If you’re a regular reader of CagePotato.com — or any MMA site for that matter — you’re already fully aware of who Gina Carano is. But maybe you’re here by accident, or because you found one of our articles while looking for information on the movie. (And if that’s the case, we welcome you. Some of our most loyal readers came to us through random late-night searches for “How do I get traps like Tom Hardy in Warrior?“)

At any rate, you may be wondering, “Who is this mysterious brunette with the gravelly voice? And why haven’t I heard of her before?” Great questions, my new friend. Let’s run it down…

Who is Gina Carano?
Gina Carano is a Muay Thai kickboxer turned MMA fighter turned actress. She also did a stint as an American Gladiator in 2008, where she was feared for her brutality towards old people. And now she’s starring in an action flick called Haywire, in which she plays Mallory Kane, a super-spy betrayed by her own team. The movie hits theaters on Friday.

Has she been in other movies before this one?
Technically, yes. In 2009, she appeared in a low-budget street-fighting movie called Blood and Bone, along with Michael Jai White, Kimbo Slice, and Bob Sapp. Other than that, Gina’s entertainment resume is limited to video games and reality shows.

So how did an athlete with virtually zero movie experience get cast in the lead role of a prominent action movie?

(Video courtesy of YouTube/CagedInsider)

Most of us know that Jason Miller, who now calls Mark Munoz’s Reign Training Center home, was once a member of Team Quest, but some may be surprised to learn that from 1999 to around 2006, “Mayhem” spent most of his time in the gym training alongside the likes of Ricco Rodriguez, Tiki Ghosen, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and Tito Ortiz as part of Team Punishment.

(And then there was one…)

According to Ortiz, it was during those formative years in Miller’s early career that he gave him some advice that he took and ran with.

Frankie Edgar is one of the most easygoing, respectful and likeable fighters in the UFC, so it’s no wonder that he was able to laugh off a prank that was pulled on him by his teammates and a media outlet earlier this week.

According to “The Answer’s” Brazilian jiu-jitsu coach Ricardo Almeida, Yahoo! Sports orchestrated the stunt in which a phony repo man attempted to tow away the UFC lightweight champ’s BMW from the parking lot of Almeida’s school in South Jersey.

(I got blood on my hands and there’s no remorse, I got blood on my…well, you get the point.) 

We’ll be completely honest, folks, it has been awhile since the official CagePotato Parlay has shown us a return worth getting excited about, or any return for that matter. Bill collectors were ignored, drugs were peddled, and we even had to turn a trick or two to solve our gambling debts, but as they say, it is always darkest before the dawn. Last week, we actually managed to end up in the green, so what better opportunity to keep the ball rolling than the UFC’s debut on FX tomorrow? Check out the betting lines, courtesy of BestFightOdds, along with our advice below.

Main Card
Pat Barry (-165) vs. Christian Morecraft (+145)
Mike Easton (-340) vs. Jared Papazian (+280)
Duane Ludwig (-110) vs. Josh Neer (-110)
Jim Miller (-170) vs. Melvin Guillard (+150)

Undercard
Nick Denis (-240) vs. Joseph Sandoval (+200)
Daniel Pineda (-120) vs. Pat Schilling (EV)
Fabricio Camoes (-325) vs. Tom Hayden (+265)
Kamal Shalorus (-135) vs. Habib Nurmagomedov (+115)
Charlie Brenneman (-300) vs. Daniel Roberts (+250)
Eric Schafer (-155) vs. Jorge Rivera (+135)

Thoughts…

(Props: YouTube.com/UFC)

With two consecutive stoppage losses against Cheick Kongo and Stefan Struve, and a 3-4 record in the UFC overall, Pat Barry truly needs to get his shit together tomorrow night in Nashville. He and Christian Morecraft will be slugging it out in the opening bout of UFC on FX 1‘s main card, and a third loss could spell the end of Barry’s UFC contract.

Or maybe not. UFC president Dana White has long been a fan of Barry’s “Hype or Die” style, and records don’t matter to Barry anyway. As he told MMAJunkie:

(“NOW, MIKE! GO FOR THE HEEL-HOOK!”)

We’re just nine days away from the greatest inter-continental Villain vs. Villain match in UFC history, as Chael Sonnen and Michael Bisping square off for a shot at the middleweight title at UFC on FOX 2. The short-notice nature of the bout means that we won’t be getting as much memorable-trash talk as we could have. But Bisping is doing his best to build some heat, telling FightersOnly:

“Chael’s biggest weapon is his mouth – but this ain’t no kissing contest and he isn’t going to talk me to death. Unlucky for him he can’t hurt me with his mouth in the Octagon and I am going to crush him. I’m in my prime and this is my time…

[H]is wrestling skills will be on point, I’m going to get the best Chael Sonnen possible, I know that. But his jiu-jitsu wont be too slick. Chael Sonnen can take me down if he likes, because I know I can submit him off my back. I know I can. That’s his big weakness. I may not have a black belt, but I consider myself a black belt. I’ve been rolling with Jake Shields, Dean Lister and a wash of other world champions. Believe me, if Chael Sonnen takes me down he better be prepared to get submitted.

(Video courtesy of YouTube/DesireisDeath20XX)

This knockout from an unidentified and undated muay thai event video is as nasty as any we’ve seen.

(“No athlete under my watch has ever gotten away with using a rubber fake piss-filled wang. And that’s a fact.”)

When asked about the announcement yesterday that Zuffa is adopting a pre-contract drug screening policy and that the parent company of the UFC and Strikeforce would be stepping up its random drug testing strategy, the former head of the World Doping Agency and one-time vice president of the International Olympic Committee dismissed the news as simply being smoke and mirrors.

Montreal-based lawyer Dick Pound told the Canadian Press that by testing athletes in the month or so prior to and the day of a contracted bout, Zuffa is leaving a wide window of opportunity open for PED use the rest of the year by its athletes.

“It’s complete illusory and obviously intended to be that way.The minute you know when you’ll be tested, it’s very easy to make sure you don’t test positive.”

(This is when we’d normally tell you to keep your chin up, Keith, but that seems to be what got you here in the first place.) 

Perhaps this might not come as a shocking revelation to most of the Potato Nation, but Strikeforce is in some bad shape. Like, Bubba on the beaches of Vietnam kind of shape. Let’s put it this way, if we were gambling men, and someone were taking bets on its probable death, we’d bet everything we own on death.

What are we jawing on about? Well, the Nevada State Athletic Commission just released its figures for “Strikeforce: Rockhold vs. Jardine” today, which took place at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada on January 7th, and the live gate for the event totaled LESS THAN HALF OF WHAT ROBBIE LAWLER WAS PAID TO FIGHT. As ridiculous as it may seem, Lawler did manage to knock out Aldan Amagov with the power of his testicles alone, so the somewhat exuberant compensation he received seems fair in this case. But boy does it not look good for Strikeforce.

Hauling in an abysmal 68,805 dollars, “Rockhold vs. Jardine” achieved a final attendance of just under 2000 (1992) with only 927 tickets sold. The other 1,065 tickets were comped, and 727 tickets remained unsold. The total fighter purse for this event was an even $566,000.

(Hughes has been hunting since he was in camo diapers, but never has he seen anything with a rack that nice.)

By Jason Moles

Over the past few days, there’s been a lot of talk about what is fair and what is not. ESPN’s latest Outside the Lines episode, in which they attempted to sabotage the UFC  find out whether or not the UFC holds a monopoly in mixed martial arts, was mostly focused on how much money entry-level fighters are making compared to top fighters, and how unfair that is. Over and over again we were forced to hear terms like “revenue pie” and “fair share.” And just like that, the MMA fanosphere exploded as everyone with an Internet connection shared their inebriated take on fairness and injustice.

Let me stop you in your tracks right there. Who said life was fair, or even that it should be? Need I remind you just how unfair life is?

Why is it that Chael Sonnen gets busted with elevated testosterone and pleads guilty to money laundering and not only keeps his job, but is now in a number one contender bout at UFC on FOX while Nate Marquardt gets popped for the same thing and is excommunicated from Zuffa, relegated to the unemployment line? How in the world did Michael Vick spend more time behind bars for killing dogs than OJ Simpson and Casey Anthony did combined for killing people?! Does that seem fair to you? Don’t even get me started on the number of times Kenny Florian has fought for a title.

(“I’d like you to go in there and switch outfits with Ewan. And that’s not a suggestion if you ever want to work in Hollywood again.”)

We had some somewhat hilarious (and many, many more not so hilarious) entries in last week’s Haywire caption contest, but unfortunately for everyone else who wanted a shirt with a picture of Gina Carano choking out Michael Fassbender on it, there can only be one winner.

First, let’s take a look at our runners up, who win nothing but the satisfaction of knowing they made someone nearly laugh kinda smile with something they posted on the Internet.

Here are some of our *other* favorites in no particular order:

Kid Clam Curtains:
Steven: “…so you combine the two words and you get the term ‘gunt’.”
.
Gina: “Haha NOW it makes sense.”
.
Ewan: “Wait, I still don’t get it.”

Tyr:
Ewan McGregor: “Ooohhh you beat up people for a living, i thought you said beat off…. Well this is awkward.”

NomadRip:
Soderbergh: “Seriously. That guy that just left. Paxton or Pullman? I have no idea.”

scottdy:
“You realize I could kill you and the chick with the scarf in the blink of any eye?”

shatterproof:
Gina Carano and Ewan McGregor meet a young jewish boy riddled with cancer. Another wish fulfilled.

Check out the winner after the jump.

(Because when I dream, I dream of Motley Crue, Chuck Liddell and Kias)

Kia announced this week that it will be running a “man’s dream” commercial during the Superbowl featuring model Adriana Lima, Chuck Liddell and Mötley Crüe flanked by an Optima racing around a track.

What they should call the commercial is “stuff old dudes like” since most of us non-Viagra dependent men aren’t Crüe fans, will never drive a Kia and have seen enough of Chuck with his shirt off the past year to do us a lifetime.

Who is Milton Vieira, you ask? Well, other than a second degree black belt under Murilo Bustamante and a 13-7 veteran of such promotions as Deep, Strikeforce, and PRIDE, Vieira is also widely considered to be the inventor of the anaconda choke. A Brazilian Top Team standout who trains with the likes of Rousimar Palhares, “Miltinho” is credited as the creator of the submission popularized by Antonio Rodrigo Nogueria in his early PRIDE days, specifically in his back-to-back victories over Hirotaka Yokoi and Heath Herring. Big Nog claims that he was taught the maneuver by Vieira back when he used to train at BTT in the early 2000′s.

Coming off a successful first round Brabo choke victory over Sterling Ford at Strikeforce Challengers 18, Vieira will be making his featherweight debut for his first UFC contest, though a date and opponent has yet to be named.

(Igor Vovchanchyn vs. Francisco Bueno @ PRIDE 8, 11/21/99. Josh Barnett makes the tree-analogy at the 0:41 mark.)

Edson Barboza‘s spinning heel-kick knockout of Terry Etim at UFC 142 wasn’t just an instant-classic because of the technique itself — it was also unforgettable because of the devastating effect it had on Etim, who stiffened up and toppled straight to the mat in slow motion like a felled spruce. The “falling tree” knockout is a rare, brutal moment in combat sports that always gets a rise out of fans. Here are nine of our favorite examples from MMA fights, in no particular order.

(Edson Barboza vs. Terry Etim @ UFC 142, 1/14/12)

(You’ve given us a lot to think about, weird yoga girl. Props: EpicTunaMan via Fightlinker)

Some selected highlights from our friends around the MMA blogosphere…

- Chris Weidman to Face Demian Maia at UFC on FOX 2 (MMA Fighting)

- MiddleEasy.com Is Against SOPA/PIPA (MiddleEasy)

- Kenny Florian to Provide Color Commentary for UFC’s Second Team (5th Round)

- Big Bang: Duane Ludwig UFC on FX Interview Exclusive (MMA Mania)

- Prince of Persia: Kamal Shalorus talks UFC on FX 1 (Exclusive) (Lowkick.Blitzcorner.com)

- First Look at ‘UFC Undisputed 3′ Video Game — Videos & Photos Dump (The Fight Nerd)

- What Did the Fighters Do After UFC 1? (BleacherReport.com/MMA)

- Jim Miller on Melvin Guillard: ‘I’m a Fan of the Way He Fights’ (FightLine)

- DREAM and ProElite Announce New Partnership (Five Ounces of Pain)

- Georges St. Pierre Would Rather Fight Nick Diaz Than Carlos Condit (MMA Convert)

- WWE Head Nixes Punk-Sonnen Entrance (MMA Payout)

- Zuffa’s IQ Test (Fight Opinion)

(Video courtesy of YouTube/opieradio)

It’s funny, the Gina Carano real doll we bought Ben for Christmas says the same three phrases Gina said to morning radio crash test dummy Jim Norton before choking him out on today’s episode of The Opie and Anthony Show.

“I’m just gonna squeeze your throat real quick. I love that I have heels on. It makes it so much easier.”

The difference is, the doll doesn’t make you look like Marty Feldman… or maybe it does, in which case, forget we mentioned it.

(Pillow-fists > Toilet-brush-hair.) 

Here you have it, folks, incontrovertible proof that The Great UFC Title Curse of 2011 has satiated its thirst for champions and is now moving on to any viable contender within sight. Dana White (via his Twitter) broke the news just a few minutes ago that Mark Munoz has suffered an unknown injury which has forced him to withdraw from his number one contender bout with Chael Sonnen, which was set to go down at the second UFC on FOX event in just 11 days. Taking his place will be none other than TUF 14 coach Michael Bisping.

Bisping, who most recently dominated opposing TUF 14 coach Jason “Mayhem” Miller back at the TUF 14 Finale in December, was originally scheduled to face Demian Maia at the same event, but has now catapulted himself into a marquee match-up against Sonnen for a crack at middleweight champ Anderson Silva. Maia has been left without an opponent as a result. Since dropping a unanimous decision to Wanderlei Silva at UFC 110, Bisping has collected four straight victories, including the aforementioned win over Jason Miller, a second round TKO of Jorge Rivera, and a pair of unanimous decisions over Dan Miller and Yoshihiro Akiyama.

Who you guys got for this one? Hint: Sonnen.

-Danga 

(“Sorry, guys. We wanted to have Cyborg fight King Mo for the main event, but the fight fell through.”)

Bad news for Quebec MMA fans who were patiently waiting for the UFC to return in March.

According to a report by the Canadian Press, the UFC had decided to postpone the event in Montreal, presumably until welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre is ready to fight in November.

Most of the bouts slated for the event will be moved to the April 21 card which will take place in Atlanta at the Philips Arena.

(Photo courtesy of the outstanding “Happy Birthday, Muhammad Ali” gallery on Time.com. Seriously, go there right now.)

By Steve Silverman

Muhammad Ali was the most influential sports figure of the 20th century. Among athletes, Ali was without peer when it came to social influence, and had as much to do with the advancement of civil rights and the end of the Vietnam War as any other individual. As an iconic self-promoter, his golden tongue had no equals — and still doesn’t, no matter what Dana White says about Chael Sonnen.

However, as great a boxer as he was during his prime, he simply was not “The Greatest.” We can name one heavyweight and four other boxers who were better at their craft than Ali. On the occasion of his 70th birthday, we mean no disrespect. We just want to set the record straight.

Let’s start off by analyzing Ali’s fighting style. He was a heavyweight who moved like no one in his weight class before or since. His left jab was almost perfect because he kept opponents off-balance with it and he could also stun an opponent enough to deliver a power shot. He also had a strong right hand that he could use to knock out an opponent once he had hurt him with a flurry of punches.

During his prime, Ali was a very strong defensive fighter, using his speed to avoid getting hit and his long arms to parry hard punches. Obviously, he lost that ability in his later years as he was hit hard by Joe Frazier, Ken Norton, George Foreman and Larry Holmes. His ability to take hard punches and keep on fighting made him a great champion, but it cost him dearly outside the ring as he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease shortly after his career ended in 1981. Ali recorded a 56-5 record during his professional career.

Here are five boxers who rank higher than Ali…

(We’ll reserve judgment until we hear what Mo has to say about the allegations.)

According to a report by MMAMania, former Strikeforce light heavyweight champ Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal has tested positive for the anabolic steroid drostanalone, a popular weight-cutting aid used by bodybuilders that has also been proven to speed the healing of certain cartilage and soft tissue injuries. Other fighters who have tested positive for the drug in the past include Bill Mahood, Dennis Hallman and Hermes Franca — all of whom admitted to using it for its recovery properties after sustaining serious training injuries.

The Nevada State Athletic Commission allegedly found traces of the drug during his post-Strikeforce: Rockhold vs. Jardine fight drug screening after the results came back today.

(Guillard is relishing the opportunity to bounce back from his disappointing loss to Joe Lauzon by beating Jim Miller Saturday night.)

We caught up with Melvin Guillard last month in Toronto at the MMA Expo and we had the opportunity to speak with “The Young Assassin” about a variety of topics, including his insane amount of fights, his loss to Joe Lauzon and his upcoming fight this weekend against Jim Miller at UFC on FX 1.

As always, Melvin had a lot to say, but it’s obvious that he has become a much more mature and humble fighter the past few years thanks to the support of his former coaches and teammates at Jackson’s MMA. The newest member of Imperial Athletics’ “Blackzilian” team is confident that he’ll one day be the UFC lightweight champ and he foresees himself being a coach on one of the upcoming seasons of The Ultimate Fighter.

Check out the video interview after the jump.

(Oh, Ronda, you really might want to consider keeping that beautiful mouth shut for a while.) 

Ronda Rousey is a dead woman walking, ladies and gentlemen. In the midst of preparing for her title shot against newly crowned Strikeforce women’s bantamweight champion Meisha Tate, you’d think the Olympic Judoka’s focus would remain solely on the tassk at hand. But apparently Ms. Rousey is taking a book out of Chael Sonnen’s chapter, as she is stirring up some serious shit with former Strikeforce women’s featherweight champion Cristiane Santos.

It all began when “Cyborg” tested positive for steroids in the wake of her 16 second victory over Hiroko Yamanaka, which gave Ronda all the ammunition she needed to lob a hell storm of insults at the former champ. But Cyborg, who was somehow able to find a working computer WITH internet access in Brazil, recently tweeted the following photo as a warning to Rousey:

For those of you who don’t speak Goldbergian Japanese, Cyborg’s tweet reads: Next victim…Ronda!! No mercy!!

Now, where that tweet would have been enough to make most of us kiss our loved ones goodbye and flee the country in fear, it only fueled the fire for Rousey, who responded:

(Props: Olieng)

By Jack Slack

The upcoming welterweight tilt between Nick Diaz and Carlos Condit at UFC 143 (February 4th, Las Vegas) is an exciting prospect for casual viewers and passionate fans alike. The match-up will answer no questions about Diaz or Condit’s ability to deal with the great wrestlers of the division — Diaz in fact hasn’t fought a real takedown artist in half a decade — but it promises to be a damn good tear-up. With Georges St. Pierre out of the fight game for a while and an interim title on the line it also provides just what UFC brass has likely been seeking: We will finally see an exciting striker at the top of the welterweight division.

The match is expected to stay on the feet and it is hoped the two men will “bang it out” until one is left standing. Assuming that neither fighter will come out with the plan of exposing the other’s takedown defense, this article examines the assets and deficits in each man’s bag of tricks from the standing position.

Nick Diaz’s Boxing

Much has been made of Nick Diaz’s pugilistic talent, and rightly so. His excellence while boxing against pure strikers over recent years almost excuses the lack of skilled wrestlers on his record in that time. Nick has taken on the likes of Paul Daley, Evangelista ‘Cyborg’ Santos, KJ Noons, BJ Penn, and Marius Zaromskis in striking contests and got the better of all of them through his ferocity, grit and unique style.

Diaz is a prolific volume puncher, having been known to crash the Compustrike computer by throwing over a hundred punches a round. His form is not attractive in that it rarely provides one-punch knockouts, but his straights are uncompromisingly straight, his hooks loop in behind his opponents guard and when he sets his feet he rips terrific punches to his opponents’ torso; unquestionably he is the poster boy for body-punching in the sport.

Nick often attacks almost side-on in an old fashioned boxing stance with his lead foot turned in, allowing him to turn his lead shoulder further towards his opponent and gain a couple more inches on his already considerable reach (a stylistic feature he shares with his younger brother Nate). Often taking a few substantial punches in the opening exchanges, the Diaz brothers seem near impossible to knock unconscious, yet every opponent they face seems to labor under the illusion that they will be the first to do so.

(The staph infection threat-level has been raised to orange.)

Brazilian entertainment outlet EGO just published a massive shoot with UFC ring girls Arianny Celeste and Chandella Powell for their “Paparazzo” section — which is especially hot if you’re into hand-wraps and heavy bags. Check out some highlights in the gallery after the jump, and go here to see the rest.

(Props: AVieiraSilva via Nick Diaz Fan on the UG. Bones shows up again at the 8:45 mark.)

Alright, just your average fashion runway show in Brazil, nothing too crazy…hey, that one girl’s ass is kinda ni-OH MY GOD WHAT THE FUCK IS JON JONES DOING THERE, AND DOES RANDY COUTURE KNOW THAT HIS SCARF HIS MISSING? EXPLAIN YOURSELF, BONES.

As if the UFC light-heayweight champion needed another reason to be hated on by keyboard warriors, here he is taking a gig as a South American menswear model over the weekend. Strange? Sure. Could it be worse? Oh, definitely.

(An artist’s depiction of what was going through Joe Rogan’s mind the moment he found out Eric Silva had been DQ’ed. And yes, Joe Rogan appears in his own fantasies.) 

Much has been made of Joe Rogan‘s impromptu interview with referee Mario Yamasaki following his decision to disqualify Erick Silva at UFC 142 this past weekend. Some are saying it was a totally unprofessional move by Rogan, while others believe it would have been unprofessional of him not to question the seemingly botched ruling by the longtime UFC official. Whether or not you agree with Rogan’s decision (or Yamasaki’s, for that matter), we can all agree that the Silva/Prater fight proved the necessity for a stricter policy in regards to an instant replay in areas other than Nevada. Rogan, however, has already taken to the internet, specifically the UG, to explain why he chose to put Yamasaki on the spot:

He’s a great guy, and I’m always happy to see him. When I step into the octagon however, I represent the people watching at home that might have obvious questions, and when something is controversial I’m forced to confront it honestly because that’s what I would want to hear from a person in my position if I was a fan watching it at home.

I think Mario Yamasaki is one of the best in the world at refereeing MMA. No doubt about it. He’s got great insight to the sport, he’s a life long martial artist, and he’s a really smart guy. What I was acting from, is that I saw an incredible young talent get denied a KO victory for a questionable call. When I entered into the Octagon and was told of the official ruling that Silva was going to be disqualified for illegal blows to the back of the head everyone that I was around who heard the news opened their mouths in shock. Everyone said, “what?”

The people in the truck couldn’t believe it. I had to read it back to them because I thought it was a mistake, and when I leaned over to explain it to Goldie he couldn’t believe it either. I had to ask Mario about it. I didn’t know how he was going to respond, but I had to ask him.

Erick Silva is a very promising fighter and I felt like I had a responsibility to address the issue. No disrespect intended.

Join us after the jump for more interesting tidbits from around the MMA world, some of which may or may not be completely made up.

(Face, you are a scary. / Photo via FOX Sports)

By Mark Dorsey
One final recap of Saturday night’s UFC 142: Aldo vs. Mendes event, Clint Eastwood-style.

The Good
• Edson Barboza‘s astounding spinning heel kick knockout of Terry Etim. Mike Goldberg might have been exaggerating a bit when he called it “maybe the most spectacular knockout in UFC history,” but it’s certainly the early front-runner for Greatest Knockout of 2012. And props to Joe Rogan for immediately recalling Baraboza’s prior use of the kick against Anthony Njokuani. As Rogan mentioned, it’s an under-utilized technique that we may start to see come in-vogue in 2012, much like the crane kick in 2011.

• Gabriel Gonzaga needed a good performance to provoke any sort of excitement in his return to the UFC’s heavyweight division. Even sweeter than his early finish was his proclamation that we can expect to see him return to the submission base that generated so much interest in his first run at UFC contention.

• After two highly energetic Brazilian shows within a year, the UFC has found its most passionate and dedicated audience. The crowd at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro was loud, enthusiastic, and everything one would expect from a bunch of rowdy Brazilian fight fans. There was a good amount of variation in the chants throughout the night — from “U.S.A., to “Thiago,” to the famous soccer anthem “ole ole ole” — and a surreal crowd-surfing celebration from defending featherweight champion Jose Aldo capped off the incredible fan involvement.

So here’s that ESPN Outside the Lines piece that got Dana White so hot and bothered. Even before it aired yesterday morning, the segment — and accompanying feature article by Josh Gross — drew criticism for its reliance on anonymous sources (as well as Ken Shamrock, who’s not exactly unbiased), and for downplaying the reality of the UFC’s business model, in which fighters are paid handsomely for performing well and drawing a crowd. Should a new UFC prospect deserve to make as much as an NFL player simply because he’s signed to the UFC? Lorenzo Fertitta doesn’t think so: “[L]ike any other company in America…You have to perform, to be able to get compensated.” There is also some mis-representation in the UFC’s $6,000/$6,000 system of payment for prospects (skip to the 5:03 mark), which ESPN seems to believe applies to all fighters who enter the promotion.

The segment does make a couple of solid points, pointing to the lack of a Muhammad Ali Act in MMA, and explaining that athletes in other major sports leagues are so well paid because they get 50% of the leagues’ revenues — while the UFC, according to “multiple sources” (all anonymous, of course), pays closer to 10% of its revenue to the fighters. Lorenzo Fertitta disputes this, saying it’s “in the neighborhood” of 50%, but since the UFC won’t disclose exactly what they’re earning (or exactly what they’re paying out to fighters, for that matter), it’s impossible to come away with a clear answer to this question.

Check it out and let us know what you think. After the jump, some unaired footage from the interview released yesterday by the UFC, in which Fertitta explains that the lowest-paid UFC fighter earns about ten times more than the lowest-paid boxer who fights on ESPN, so suck it.

Behold: a shining example of “kick face“. (Photo: UFC.com)

Brazilian fans are credited with being the most raucous audience in the world, and last night’s fighters gave them plenty to cheer about. Six of the nine bouts ended via knock out or submission*, with five of those stoppages coming in the first round.

Chokes, knees, and even a spinning wheel kick punctuated last night’s fights (*as did a controversial referee stoppage). Pop on in for a motion picture tribute to UFC 142.

As always, praise be to Zombie Prophet.

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“And if you think *I’m* upset, young man, you just WAIT until your father gets home!” (Pic: MMAMania.com)

Sometimes a fighter gets cut under bizarre circumstances that no one saw coming, and sometimes the writing is on the wall.

There was very little Anthony Johnson could have done last night to preserve his job in the UFC, and “losing” wasn’t on the short list. Every facet of Johnson’s battle with gravity has been a spectacle. On Friday night, he missed weight for the third time in his UFC career—that’s a first for the promotion. And when he stepped on the scales, he didn’t miss by a slim margin, either. He was closer to the light heavyweight limit than he was the middleweight. The eleven extra pounds he was sporting? That sets a UFC record as well.

Now we’ve already belabored Johnson’s lack of professionalism over the last two days, and whether it’s through a dinner invitation or a dismissive laugh, “Rumble” has made it clear that he doesn’t care what we the fans think. One person that does matter, however, is his boss. Here’s what Dana White had to say on the issue.