(I smelled bullshit as soon as he said “I wrote this myself.” Everybody knows that Jeff Ross ghost-writes all of Chael’s material. / Props: fueltv)

Some selected highlights from our friends around the MMA blogosphere…

- Junior Dos Santos vs. Alistair Overeem Official For UFC 146 (FightLine)

- Exclusive: Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney Talks Counterprogramming, Eddie Alvarez and Hector Lombard Negotiations (MMA Mania)

- Brittney Palmer: “I Plan on Being in the UFC for Many Years to Come and Riding This Wave.” (Five Ounces of Pain)

- MiddleEasy’s Guide to the Top Ten Memes in MMA (MiddleEasy)

- Strikeforce: Why American Society NEEDS Ronda Rousey (BleacherReport.com/MMA)

- Gilbert Melendez Says He’s Fighting May 19, But Doesn’t Know Who His Opponent Is (MMA Convert)

- Junior Dos Santos Signs With Sports Marketing Agency; Reveals He Spent $100K to Train for Cain (MMA Payout)

- Al Iaquinta Not “Feeling Too Much Pressure” Heading to TUF on FX (The Fight Nerd)

- Georges St. Pierre: Marijuana Is Not a Performance-Enhancing Drug (Lowkick.Blitzcorner.com)

- Dana White: Ronda Rousey Is a Star, But She’s Going to Need Help (5th Round)

- Would Testosterone Exemptions for Zuffa Fighters Be Approved Using USADA standards? (Fight Opinion)

We’re not going to waste time with meaningless words. Happy Friday, Potato Nation.

(Chandella as her alter ego Mariah Ashton.) 

Well ho-lee shit. It seems that if you do enough digging on any given ring girl, you will find out that she has done porn at one point in her life. According to a few unconfirmed sources from around the MMA blogosphere, it appears that Chandella Powell will be joining the ranks of Logan Stanton, Natasha Wicks, and Edith Labelle as a former UFC ring girl due to…get this…failing to disclose that she once appeared in a couple softcore porn photo shoots and videos under the name “Mariah Ashton.” What was originally passed off as a common bestiality flick was recently discovered to contain none other than the first ever African American UFC ring girl going “toe-to-toe” with another young starlet. How could you keep this from us, Carmen?

As we all know, Chandella was absent from the UFC’s FUEL TV debut last night, and hasn’t said a word on her Twitter account since Saturday. And since we also know that it is physically impossible for any woman, let alone a public figure, to ignore their Twitter for more than an hour or so, this can only mean that these rumors are unquestionably true. We are not going to provide links to any of the evidence against Ms. Powell, because if you haven’t searched the internet and found them yourself by this point I would be sorely disappointed, Potato Nation.

To give you some perspective on how to deal with this, join us after the jump to see how a few members of the CP staff coped with the heartbreaking news, via a string of emails.

Some selected highlights from our friends around the MMA blogosphere…

-  Marijuana is Not a Performance-Enhancing Drug, It’s Simply Illegal (5th Round)

- UFC on FUEL TV Weigh-In Photos Gallery for ‘Ellenberger vs Sanchez’ on Feb. 14 in Omaha (MMA Mania)

- My First Fight: Diego Sanchez (MMA Fighting)

- Bader Not Intimidated to Face Rampage in Japan (FightLine)

- Image Matters: UFC Business & Media Politics  (MMA Payout)

- Mac Danzig Just Received His ‘Mix Marshal Arts’ license from the DC Athletic Commission (MiddleEasy)

- Britney Palmer Interview (BleacherReport.com/MMA)

- Tim Sylvia: I Can Beat 80 Percent of the Heavyweights in the UFC (Lowkick.Blitzcorner.com)

- Johny Hendricks: The Bigger the Fight, the Bigger I Come Out (Five Ounces of Pain)

-  Joe Rogan Thinks Weed is a Performance Enhancing Drug (MMA Convert)

-  A Fight Nerd’s Betting Guide: UFC on FUEL Edition (The Fight Nerd)

-  Is There a need for MMA Managers? (Fight Opinion)

(Click all images for larger versions.)

In honor of the Super Bowl this Sunday, TheChive just published a photo-shoot featuring UFC ring girls Arianny Celeste, Brittney Palmer, and Chandella Powell putting their own sexy spin on football penalties. Five more photos (and one awesome gif) are below. Enjoy, and check out the complete gallery here.

(Full gallery is after the jump)

You’re like family to us, Potato Nation, and after looking over your wishlist we knew just what to get you this year. True, we’ve given you a holiday-themed Hot Potato gallery before, but whether you’re a Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, or Festivus kind of guy we doubt you’ll complain.

(Video courtesy of YouTube/FightHubTV)

When we asked UFC Octagon Girl Brittney Palmer at the MMA Expo what the creepiest request she’s ever gotten from a fan was, she told us she really didn’t get any strange ones.

Apparently Arianny Celeste isn’t so lucky.

(If you never saw the thread on Sherdog, do yourself a favor…)

It’s been an eventful week to say the least. Strikeforce Heavyweights are all but done, Overeem went before the NSAC, and Jon Jones choked Machida out cold. Too bad you didn’t ask us any questions about those things. That would have been cool. You did manage to pull some decent questions out of your asses, however, and we’ll take a few moments to address them now.

EnemyofReality asks: Dear, dear, Dear, DEAR Cage Potato. How I look forward to your wise words. Do tell me, what would your top 3 list of MMA refs look like?

It would like a lot like any other list, EnemyofReality, only it would have referee names instead of groceries, chores, and people to kill.

We actually covered this subject a couple of years ago, but times change and you’re asking now, so here we go. There are a lot of refs to choose from, but not necessarily a lot of great refs to choose from. If we were climbing into the cage—and we’re starting to warm up to the idea–we’d like to have Herb Dean, Big John McCarthy, or Josh Rosenthal in there to save our ass.

(I said god *damn*. God damn.)

In news that will probably make you clench your fists in triumph, Playboy has confirmed that beloved UFC ring girl Brittney Palmer will appear in their March issue. A photo of Palmer was included on the “Next Month” page of the nudie mag’s current January/February issue, with the following teaser copy:

“The Canvas suits her. The UFC Octagon has always attracted delicate beauties, but no ring girl paints a prettier picture than pop artist Brittney Palmer. It’s a pictorial worth fighting for.”

Palmer will be the third UFC Octagon Girl to grace the pages of Playboy, following Rachelle Leah in 2008 and Arianny Celeste in 2010. And as long as they don’t airbrush her to death like Lindsay Lohan, this will definitely be one of the highlights of our year.

After the jump, Brittney takes a sultry spin around the Octagon at UFC 140, in a series of candid photos from her Facebook page.

(Full gallery is after the jump.)

A couple important things to know about UFC ring girl Brittney Palmer: Her glorious return to the Octagon could happen as early as UFC 140 on December 10th, according to a new report. Also, her red-hot 2012 calendar is available now, and Brittney is selling autographed copies for $26 on her website. Browse through a few of the calendar highlights in the gallery below, and let The Hottest Woman in MMA know how you feel @BrittneyPalmer.

(Oh Brittney, how we’ve missed you.)

In what is easily the greatest decision the UFC has ever made, our 2011 Hottest Woman in MMA winner, Brittney Palmer, has been brought back to the UFC. How you ask? Well, as we all know, Ms. Palmer stepped out of the limelight last year to pursue an art career, and had already completed a summer semester at an anonymous California based art school. And though her work was pretty damn impressive, Brittney clearly came to revelation that you don’t need to produce art, when you are art. And I would like to take this moment to speak on behalf of the general population and thank her for said revalation.

All kidding aside, it turns out the reason for her return began when just a few hours ago, Dana White sent out the following tweet:

(“Brock Hunt,” the latest piece of brilliance by notlookoutawhale. I don’t like muskmelon; put that in your little notebook.)

This week’s featured stories…

- Divine Inspiration: Interview Exclusive With UFC Middleweight Contender Chael Sonnen (MMA Mania)
“Let me ask you something: when you have a big project or plans for a big goal, do you let yourself get derailed by a whiny coworker that always finds an excuse to shovel work on someone else? NO! You do your work, you beat your obligations senseless, you shine like a pagan sun god, you make that whiny prat look foolish, you take their job, you laugh as they leave with a box of their effects, and you comfort their obviously unsatisfied wife by taking her out to dinner. I’m not cooling my heels just because Anderson’s are kicked up on the sofa.”

- Despite Large Audience Expectations, UFC on FOX Debut Will Be Money Loser for UFC (MMAFighting)
“It’s an investment in the company,” Dana White recently said. “In no way, shape or form do we come anywhere close to making our money back. You don’t go on free television and make your money. That’s just not how it works. We’re going to get smashed on this fight, but it’s an investment in the future of the business.”

- 15 Worst One-Sided Beatdowns Ever Witnessed in MMA (BleacherReport.com/MMA)
“Kazushi Sakuraba and Wanderlei Silva fought against one another on three separate occasions in fights that should have never happened. The Japanese great never made it to the final bell against the heavy-handed striker in Silva. In the end, Silva was always the victor at the expense of Sakuraba, who always left their outings a bludgeoned mess, resulting in some of the worst performances of his career.”

- Brock Lesnar: Alistair Overeem Is Unfortunate to Fight Me in His UFC Debut (Lowkick.Blitzcorner.com)
“For two years I had to lie to myself and all of my fans. I had to get up every morning and say, ‘you feel good today,’ and I didn’t. I had the surgery, it’s out of my life and I’m back and that’s a damn good feeling for me and it’s bad for everybody else.”

It’s good to be back.

After days of anticipation, Ask the Potato is finally back and as credible as ever. The deepest thinkers among us have emerged with a series of questions- some of which even came in the form of complete sentences, with question marks and everything. The rest of you? Well, you at least tried to have a coherent thought, right? And even though the thought doesn’t count, you’re still special to us. So, without further delay, the triumphant return of Ask the Potato awaits after the jump.

(Six more photos are in the gallery after the jump.)

We haven’t seen much from 2011 Hottest Women in MMA Grand Prix winner Brittney Palmer since she mysteriously disappeared from the UFC Octagon Girl rotation earlier this year. But according to a new feature in Fitness Gurls magazine — no, we’ve never heard of it either — Brittney is happily living and surfing in California, and recently finished a summer semester at art school. She tells FG about her art aspirations and new clothing line, and then there’s this little bit:

Q: I hear you’re coming back to the UFC one day, is that true?
A: I never left the UFC. Haha. UFC and I…I’ve been with the company for a really long time and we have a great relationship. I moved here and wanted to focus on art and they wanted to go in another direction for ring girls so it kinda happened at a good time. But it was never a situation of letting me go or me quitting. So the rumormill flies, but I’m still with the company…just taking a little time off to focus on art.

More photos from Brittney’s Fitness Gurls cover shoot are below; visit fitnessgurls.com for more, and show Ms. Palmer some love @brittneypalmer.

(Former UFC Octagon Girl Brittney Palmer shows off her work, shares her plans for an “art empire.” Props: MMA30tv)

Some selected highlights from our friends around the MMA blogosphere…

- Dana White: If Victorious Over BJ Penn, Nick Diaz Will Get a Title Shot (LowKick)
“I expect nothing from him (at the press conferences). I expect him to be sitting right here in this chair. He doesn’t have to answer one question if he doesn’t want to. I just want him to sit there and then get up and do the (staredown). Just show up man. He’s probably going to flip everybody off and do all this other stuff – its Nick Diaz. I don’t want him to not be Nick Diaz, I just need him to show up.”

- 10 MMA Rematches That Should Have Never Happened (BleacherReport/MMA)
“Chael Sonnen vs. Anderson Silva and the recently concluded Gray Maynard vs. Frankie Edgar trilogy are both examples of what a warranted do-over should look like…Then, there are other bouts where a decisive ending merits no speedy return for the two fighters to be joined together again inside the cage.”

- ‘King’ Mo Lawal Talks ‘Rampage’ Jackson: We’re Going to Fight Eventually (MMA Fighting)
“This fool Rampage calls me out, and then people get mad when I respond? He’s a b—h in my eyes, because he didn’t respond. Maybe he’ll respond later, but the word is he wants to fight [Mauricio] ‘Shogun’ [Rua]. That’s whatever.”

(“Okay, bring in the giant banana-dong.” Photo courtesy of Brittney Palmer’s Facebook page.)

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…

- The Ten Most Interesting Octagon Offerings in the Next 100 Days (Five Ounces of Pain)

- Scott Jorgensen Welcomes Jeff Curran Back to Big Leagues at UFC 137 (5thRound)

- Former UFC Fighter Justin Wren Puts Career on Hold to Answer Divine Call (MMA Fighting)

- Cung Le Discusses His Fighting Future, Says if It’s Not With the UFC He’s Done (LowKick)

- The Top Ten Exhibitions of Denny’s Street MMA (MiddleEasy)

- Dan Henderson’s Greatest Hits (MMA Convert)

- All Balls Brawl: An MMAmania Interview Exclusive With Gesias Cavalcante (MMA Mania)

- Nate Marquardt and the Issue of Accepting Responsibility (FightOpinion)

- Fight Nerd Cinema: “Ip Man” Movie Review (TheFightNerd)

- The 20 Goofiest MMA Fighters Ever (BleacherReport.com/MMA)

- UFC to Air Cruz vs. Johnson on Versus (MMAPayout)

- ‘TUF 12′ Finalist Michael Johnson Faces the ‘Sassangle’ at UFC on Versus 6 (NBC Sports MMA)

(Another nomination in the “worst MMA referee of all time” awards. Props: caposa)

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…

- Brittney Palmer’s Ring Girl Profile Back on UFC.com [Before and After Pics] (5thRound)

- Dana White Doesn’t Rule Out Tito Ortiz as No.1 Contender With a UFC 133 Win (MMA Fighting)

- Rampage Jackson: I Guarantee Jon Jones Won’t Fight Me Like a Man (LowKick)

- Phil Baroni Faces Yoshiyuki Yoshida at September Event Featuring PRIDE Rules (Five Ounces of Pain)

- UFC 2011 Mid-Year Awards: Top 5 Disgraces of the Year (BleacherReport.com/MMA)

- Demian Maia Recorded a Message for Chael Sonnen on Behalf of Brazil (MiddleEasy)

- Ranger Up “Out” As Sponsors for Strikeforce/UFC Fighters: Kennedy, Carmouche (MMAPayout)

- The Not-So-Secret World of the Underground Combat League (MMA Convert)

- Chris Lytle Eyes Second Career in Politics (NBC Sports MMA)

- Boom to Bust: Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix Is Not Greater Than the Sum of Its Parts (MMA Mania)

- UFC Reshifts Focus on Blaming Culinary Unions for Lack of New York MMA Regulation (FightOpinion)

- New MMA Comic “Heart” Coming Out Soon by Image Comics (TheFightNerd)

Brittney: if you’re thinking of hurting yourself, call us. We insist.

We didn’t really think much of it when a rumor started going around that Brittney Palmer was on her way out of the UFC.  There were some vague Twitter messages of bad luck, and Dana gave her some flack over screwing up which network was broadcasting UFC Live, but surely he wouldn’t just toss her, right?

Well, kids, no official announcement has been made, but we don’t really expect one either.  Brittney Palmer is no longer listed as an Octagon Girl.  If it turns out that Anonymous did this, we’ll never forgive them.  Until then, we’ll mourn for our favorite Octagon Girl (except Ben;  he’ll never get over Arianny).

We wish Ms Palmer well in her future, which is suddenly more open for her to concentrate more on her art interests. Come on inside for one more collection of Brittney’s greatest hits, and leave your tearful comments.

Thanks to Tracy Lee/Combat Lifestyle, Omar Gomez Photography, Fighters Only magazine, and any other photographers who we will identify later when they send us a salty email.

** UPDATE ** Brittney’s portrait has mysteriously reappeared on the UFC site, so take from that what you will. No official word about her employment status has been had, but if we see her at the next show, we’ll call it a win. (They still haven’t fixed Chandella’s age, though.)

[RX]

(“No matter what happens, I hope we can still pretend to be friends.”)

Let’s not drag this thing out any longer than we already have. After four rounds of voting, over 50,000 votes cast, and one fairly-awkward video featuring the two finalists, you’ve made it very clear who your hearts belong to.

And so, the winner of 2011′s Hottest Women in MMA Grand Prix, taking a full 77.4% of the popular vote in the finals, is…

(Wow! They just seem so thrilled by the honor!)

This is it, folks — the final round in the greatest MMA tournament since PRIDE’s 2000 Open-Weight Grand Prix. After nearly a month of voting, you’ve whittled our 16-woman field down to two finalists. UFC Octagon Girls Arianny Celeste and Brittney Palmer are the lone survivors, and will be competing for your votes starting right now.

Check out more photos of the two ferocious competitors after the jump, and cast your final vote in the poll at the end of this post. (As usual, if you don’t see it, refresh the page or try a different browser.) We’ll announce the results on Friday. Man, this is really happening. Finish strong, people…

(Hint: As many as two and as few as none of these women have made it into the finals.)

After five days of voting, the Final Four in our “2011 Hottest Women in MMA Grand Prix” have been reduced to the Terrific Two. Since I’ll be in Toronto tomorrow and Friday, let’s plan on kicking off the finals voting on Monday. Just one more week, and this whole dirty business will be put to bed. But first, see who you’ll be voting for after the jump…

For round-of-16 results, click here.

For quarterfinal results, click here.

(To see the original round-of-16 bracket, click here.)

After your 40,000+ votes eliminated all the blondes, foreigners, and blonde foreigners, we’re left with four semi-finalists in our quest to crown this year’s Hottest Woman in MMA — all of them belonging to that sub-species of hot chick known as the American Brunette. But which two will advance to the finals? Starting today, it is your obligation to determine just that.

Once again, the instructions are as follows: Cast a vote for your favorite MMA hottie in each of the two polls, with the help of the photographic evidence we’ve provided. (Hit the “next page” link when you’re done with Arianny vs. Mercedes.) If you don’t see the poll widget under each pairing of girls, please refresh your browser or try a different one. Any questions, let us know in the comments section. We’ll collect the results and announce the winners next week.

Okay? So let’s do the damn thing…

(This bracket ain’t big enough for the both of ‘em. Photo courtesy of CombatLifestyle.com)

Ladies and gentlemen — but mostly gentlemen, we’re assuming — your votes have been tabulated, and we’re proud to announce the winners of our “2011 Hottest Women in MMA Grand Prix” quarterfinals. Read on to see who has advanced to the Final Four, and come back tomorrow afternoon to start voting on the semi-finals.

For round-of-16 results, click here.

(Vid: Playboy.com)

Just a couple of days before the semifinalists in our ’2011 Hottest Women in MMA Grand Prix’ are revealed and we thought you could use a little scouting video. What you’ll find above is a subtle little film from the artistes over at Playboy where Octagon girl (and tournament two-seed) Brittney Palmer dresses up like a slutty Power Ranger and plays video games in the most sexually-charged way possible against some lady named Jo Garcia. We’re led to believe Ms Garcia is some variety of Playmate, but whatevs. When we saw it, we thought of you, Nation. Need convincing that this is something you should invest just under two and a half minutes in? “I’m so on top of you right now,” Garcia says to B-Palm at one point. Watch the vid, then come back on Thursday to find out who stays in the running for the big gold belt, the medal, the trophies, the oversized check and the wreathy crown.

(To see the original round-of-16 bracket, click here.)

It’s true — we lost a lot of good women on Tuesday. But thanks to your votes, eight lovely ladies remain, and they need your help to advance to the semi-finals.

In case you’re new here, the instructions are simple: Cast a vote for your favorite MMA hottie in each of the four polls, with the help of the photographic evidence we’ve provided. Hit the “next page” link when you’re done with each poll. If you don’t see the poll widget under each pairing of girls, please refresh your browser or try a different one. Any questions, let us know in the comments section. We’ll collect the results and announce the winners next Thursday.

You ready? Then let’s get it on…

(ReX13 would like to sincerely apologize for any awkwardness our thoughtless Pool B seeding may have caused.)

After collecting nearly 25,000 (!) votes over the last week, we’re ready to reveal the winners of our “Hottest Women in MMA Grand Prix” round-of-16. Read on to see the results for the four Pool A matchups, then hit the “next page” link to see which four ladies survived Pool B. And please come back on Thursday for the start of the quarterfinal round!

Get your voting fingers ready, Potato Nation — the right side of the “2011 Hottest Women in MMA Grand Prix” bracket is live and ready for action. But first, a very important announcement about the wild-card spot: After picking up 61.5% of the popular vote against Chandella Powell and Joanne Spracklen, Juliana Salimeni has advanced to the round-of-16, where she will be taking on #1-seeded Gina Carano. Congrats, Juju, and may your Cinderella story have a happy ending.

Now, the usual instructions. With the help of the photographic aids we’ve provided below, cast your vote for your favorite lady in each of the four polls; hit the “next page” link when you’re done with each one. Any questions, let us know in the comments section. If you don’t see the poll widget under each pairing of girls, please refresh your browser, or try a different one.

We plan to announce the complete list of winners from the Grand Prix’s opening round on Tuesday, so if you haven’t yet cast a vote for Pool A, there’s still time to make a difference. Without further ado, let’s get started…

(Click for larger versions. Trust me.)

From CombatLifestyle‘s wonderful new UFC 127: The UFC hits the Beach set. Good lord, I wish I was there today instead of dreary-ass Brooklyn. Lots more highlights after the jump…

(Above: "You’re lucky our dads are here, dweeb. I’ll just take that fancy little belt of yours next time." Below: Something old, something new… / Photos courtesy of the UFC 125 Weigh In Pics gallery on CombatLifestyle.com)

Good lord, is it really 2011 already? I’m still writing "PRIDE NEVA DIE" on all my checks! Another unpredictable year of MMA begins tonight in Las Vegas, as lightweight underdog-champion Frankie Edgar attempts to make title defense #2 against old rival Gray Maynard. Plus: Chris Leben and Nate Diaz try to keep their streaks going, Brandon Vera fights for his job, and a lightweight smash-up between Clay Guida and Takanori Gomi. Click through for round-by-round UFC 125 updates — beginning at 9 p.m. ET with the live prelims broadcast on ION — and remember to refresh the page every few minutes for the latest results. Let’s all try to be the best keyboard warriors we can be this year, okay guys?

  
(Photos courtesy of UFC Magazine via MMA Fix. Click all for larger versions.)

The latest issue of UFC Magazine is on newsstands now, featuring a cover story on Georges St. Pierre, a list of the 25 greatest submissions in UFC history, and most importantly, some jaw-dropping photos of new Octagon Girl Brittney Palmer, who will be making her debut at UFC 125 on New Year’s Day. Of course, Brittney is already a familiar sight to anybody who’s followed her work in the WEC. And because CagePotato is your #1 resource for crudely-scanned magazine photos of hot MMA ring girls, shots from her new pictorial are above. What else can you say, except perhaps "My God dat ass"?