(Can’t the Germans find room in their hearts for something besides soccer, beer and buxom women? Not that we’re against those things…)

It just wouldn’t be a new frontier for the UFC without a little hyperbolic fear-mongering from opponents of MMA.  With UFC 99 scheduled for Cologne, Germany on June 13, City Councilor Manfred Wolf (known henceforth as the German Bob Reilly) is doing his part to disrupt the UFC’s German debut with this nonsensical and factually inaccurate criticism (translated by our friend Robert K at Big Odds Mike):

"MMA is not a sport because it legitimizes death and serious injury. The only aim is to destroy your opponent." Adding further: "I personally find disgusting … Here one finds the lowest human instincts."

(Sometimes Wanderlei uses Lil’ Wanderlei to say things he can’t, such as ‘I’m sorry,’ and ‘I love you,’ and ‘What’s this catchweight shit about?’)

UFC.com today officially announced Rich Franklin/Wanderlei Silva as the main event for UFC 99 in Cologne, Germany on UFC 99, which has been dubbed “The Comeback.”  Yes, they already used that one for a season of “The Ultimate Fighter,” but so what?  It’s Germany.  They’re too busy screwing around with soccer and modernist architecture to know what’s happening on American TV.

As previously rumored, the bout will take place at a catchweight of 195 pounds, which is kind of odd since both Franklin and Silva last fought at 205 pounds.  But it only seems to make no sense because you haven’t heard Dana White’s explanation yet:

“Everyone knows Rich moved up to light heavyweight a couple of fights ago while Wanderlei is planning on fighting at 185lbs from now on, but this fight is too exciting a match not to happen and both these guys deserve a ton of credit for taking this fight at 195lbs.”

(Here goes Wanderlei, telling another one of his obviously bullshit fishing stories.)

The UFC’s summer venture into Cologne, Germany on June 13 is beginning to take shape, and that shape is already pretty intriguing — much like a dodecahedron, only not as pretentious.

MMA Weekly reports that Rich Franklin and Wanderlei Silva are likely to meet at a catchweight of around 195 pounds or so.  While it’s not the kind of fight that would determine a title contender – and even if it did we wouldn’t know for sure which weight class that contender might be in – it is the kind of bout that is interesting just ’cause.  Franklin and Silva are both on a sort of downward slope in their careers, so why not fight each other and see how it turns out?

Also a possibility for UFC 99, at least in his own mind, is Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic.  Fresh out of surgery on an injured knee, Cro Cop told a Croatian website (which was then translated by our friend Robert at Betwwx.com) that he was “very confident” he’d be fighting for the UFC in Germany this June.  As for potential opponents, Cro Cop mentioned Randy Couture and sounded pretty pumped about the idea.  

Sounds good to us.  If the UFC can add Cro Cop-Couture and Franklin-Silva to a card that already has Caol Uno-Spencer Fisher and maybe, possibly even B.J. Penn-Kenny Florian, Germany’s world will officially get rocked, as The Scorpions might say, like a hurricane.

(Photo courtesy of MMA Weekly)

For the first time since February 2006, an Ultimate Fighting Championship event will be televised in Germany, as the UFC has struck a deal to have their June ’09 card broadcast on the TV network ProSieben. Tentatively numbered UFC 99, the event is slated to go down at the Lanxess Arena in Cologne, Germany. If you’ll recall, this was the card that was supposed to feature the hell-why-not fourth match between Chuck Liddell and Randy Couture. And although the TV deal is now in place for a visit to a new European country, the main event is less certain.

According to Franklin McNeil, bout agreements for Liddell/Couture IV have not been presented to either fighter yet, and neither of them is particularly interested in the match; it’s possible that Liddell and the German-speaking Couture will be featured on the Cologne card in separate bouts.

Of course, lack of a superfight is just one obstacle in the UFC’s quest to invade Deutschland. The reason that German PPV provider Premiere stopped carrying UFC broadcasts in 2006 is because the buy rates were so low; coincidentally, the last event they offered was UFC 57: Liddell vs. Couture 3. And unfortunately, the German media hasn’t quite warmed up to the sport of MMA, or its central figure, Dana White. Check out these excerpts from a recent Der Spiegel profile: