(As if I needed an excuse to use this photo.)

For those of you who were too busy watching Jon Jones outgun Rampage Jackson to retain his light heavyweight title or Ben Rothwell fall to 0-1 at the hands of Mark Hunt this weekend, you may have overlooked the ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championships, which transpired in Nottingham, England of all places.

Andre Galvao easily had the best night of the bunch, taking gold in both the Under 88kg and Absolute tournaments, defeating Rousimar Palhares and Pablo Papovitch, respectively. Speaking of “Paul Harris”, he continued to prove that his mind is a fragile, ticking time bomb in his submission victory over David Avellan in their quarterfinal match. Things began to go off the rails when Palhares dove for his signature heel-hook-of-death on Avellan, and continued to crank it after the two rolled out of bounds and the referee yelled for a restart. I’ll let David’s brother Marcos, via his Facebook, explain the rest after the jump:

Chicks dig fighters — even the ones who talk funny. But even with the natural advantages that come with muscles, scars, and fame, we’re still occasionally surprised by the lady-killing ability of some mixed martial artists. Of all the MMA PUA‘s, these six are the most accomplished…

DEAN LISTER

  
Notable conquests: WWE star Milena Roucka (aka ‘Rosa Mendes’), model Flavia Mazoni
Notes: ‘The Boogeyman’ is semi-retired from the sport these days, choosing instead to spend his time training hopeless cases. But in his prime, Dean Lister was just as notable for his ability to attract exotic beauties as he was for his in-cage exploits. Grappling ability plus a cartoonishly strong-looking jawline is a combination that women can’t resist, apparently.

MATT HAMILL

  
Notable conquests: Bikini model Wendy Foster, a super-hot former fiance named Brittany, an old girlfriend that was apparently down for whatever.
Notes: Snagging a Hooters Girl of the Year would be an accomplishment for any man. But to do it without the use of one of your five senses? Bro, that’s legendary. (Then again, deafness is probably an asset when you’re pretending to be interested in your girlfriend’s stories.) Matt Hamill’s ex-fiance, a bartender from upstate New York, was just as hot, and of course there were those rumors of Hamill’s partner-swappin’ lifestyle with a freaky old flame. Respect the Hammer.

(Lister vs. Leites, 12/4/09. The video appears to have some problems midway through, but you aren’t missing much.)

Dean Lister got back in action this weekend for the first time since the dismal performance against Yushin Okami that prompted his dismissal from the UFC. As you may recall, after that painfully boring fight Lister took to the internet to offer a pseudo-apology (or, if you prefer, a fauxpology) to fans before then challenging those fans to come down to his gym and fight him if they’re so freaking tough. Oddly, this did not seem to win people over.

On Friday Lister squared off against fellow UFC castoff Thales Leites at MFC 23 and the result was sadly predictable. Leites did everything he could to press the action, but once again Lister reverted to pulling guard and settling for a stalemate once his ineffectual takedowns failed him. He lost the decision, further alienated whatever fans he may have had left, and, from the sound of it, even pissed off his cornermen:

I hope that not everyone is too abusive to me in this forum cause I would like to apoligize for my fight against Leites. Even my own corner let me know that this is an abomination of a fight and my worst performance ever, so what can I say??? the first kick landed by Leites set the tone of the fight. While he absolutely beat me fair and square and I have no excuses, this is the blow (kick) that set the pace. This is my bad leg, my knee that I have always had problems with. This I guess is similar to saying in another fight for instance "he broke my eye socket" and I lost, lol so yes my leg was damaged in the first damm round, like I said, not an excuse but the reason I was so immobile and not able to do anything… well from my point of view. I must give my opponent credit and he has improved his striking to an incredible extent.

We’re fully aware that it’s the game which should be hated, rather than the player, but this is getting ridiculous. So, Dean Lister used to be dating this girl. The general consensus was something along the lines of "maybe she’s too attractive to be with a goon-faced man who’s gone 5-5 in his last 10." Now we get news (and photo proof) from CagePotato reader Jerry V. that the Boogeyman’s latest conquest is not only hot, but kind of famous as well.

Closet WWE fans might know the above woman as Milena Roucka, who goes by the WWE Diva stage name Rosa Mendes. There really isn’t much more to say besides "how does this keep happening?" It’s Dean Lister, for crying out loud. Is his game really that tight? TEACH US, BOOGEYMAN.

("Just out of curiosity, what’s up now, bitch?" Mousasi surveys the wreckage of the similarly-named Musashi in their K-1 match at Dynamite!! 2008.)

— Though he may still be making his U.S. debut for Affliction, Gegard Mousasi‘s next fight will be in Japan. FiveOuncesofPain reports that DREAM’s 2008 middleweight grand prix winner could return at DREAM 9 (May 23rd) to take on Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou; it would be Mousasi’s debut as a light-heavyweight, and his first MMA fight since last September. Sokoudjou currently carries a 5-4 record, and has dropped his last two matches to Luis Cane (at UFC 89) and Renato Sobral (at Affliction: Day of Reckoning). The African Assassin needs a break, but he probably won’t catch one here.

— A battle between two middleweight grapplers who flamed out of the UFC despite loads of talent has been booked as the main event of MFC 21 (May 13th; Edmonton, Alberta, Canada). MFC prez Mark Pavelich announced yesterday that Travis Lutter vs. Dean Lister would headline the show, which will also feature Marcus Aurelio, David Heath, John Alessio, and Solomon Hutcherson. Lutter hasn’t competed since his loss to Rich Franklin at UFC 83 last April, while Lister made his most recent appearance at UFC 92 in December, where he dropped a unanimous decision to Yushin Okami.

(Worst Affliction t-shirt ever?  Or best Slash t-shirt ever?)

Following his dismal performance at UFC 92 and subsequent release from the UFC (at his request, which is like telling your boss you quit immediately after he’s discovered that you’ve been stealing), Dean Lister is headed back where he belongs: grappling tournaments.  Lister will be back at the Abu Dhabi’s and word has it that he’s angling for a move up in weight to take on Fedor Emelianenko, who’s expected to enter this year.

On one hand, it’s good to see Lister back in his element.  As great a submissions fighter as he is, he’s not much of an MMA fighter at this point.  He tried to pull guard on Yushin Okami for three rounds and got a chorus of boos for his trouble.  He then apologized to his fans while reminding us that he could kick all of our asses, just in case you were in any danger of feeling sympathy for him.

But Lister is a middleweight.  Fedor is a heavyweight.  Even if he weren’t also one of the best fighters on the planet, the weight difference is already a huge advantage.  But would it be pretty awesome to see Fedor in a pure grappling match against one of America’s best pure grapplers?  It would.  He tapped out his brother with no problem, but "The Boogeyman" has a significantly better grappling resume.  He is also free of blood-borne diseases (sorry, had to do it).

Regardless, a Fedor/Lister grappling match has the potential to get even the more casual MMA viewers slightly interested in the Abu Dhabi’s.  And that’s without the brutal violence of MMA, Bob Reilly.  What now?

(‘I’m so mad I could pull guard right now.’)

There’s no getting around it, Dean Lister had a bad, bad night against Yushin Okami at UFC 92.  His offense consisted of pulling guard, a few token efforts at striking, and takedown attempts that only became more half-hearted as the fight wore on.  Not surprisingly, he lost the decision, was showered with boos from the fans, and got his release from the UFC afterwards.  

Now Lister has posted a message to the UG apologizing to his fans and teammates:

Listen I had a very poor performance my last fight. Truth is that I let my team and my gym, my friends and definitely myself down for this fight. Its not only that I lost but I really showed a poor performance. I had a much better showing against Arona (even though that was only primarily a grappling fight that I lost) even in Pride who is a better fighter than Okami for sure. Things just didnt come together for me this fight. I trained so, so hard, I really trained hard but it didnt work out.

Nice, right?  He owns up to his poor performance, apologizes to the people he let down, but it doesn’t stop there:

(You know, Dean, if you keep making that face it’ll stay that way forever. Photo courtesy of UFC.com.)

— The fact that middleweight submission specialist Dean Lister is out of the UFC isn’t too surprising after his terrible performance last month against Yushin Okami, but Lister reportedly requested the contract release himself. He is already in talks with several rival promotions, including Affliction and DREAM, for a new deal. Lister compiled a record of 4-2 in the UFC, and is 11-6 overall.

— Anthony Johnson and Luigi Fioravanti have agreed to face each other at UFC Fight Night 17 (February 7th; Tampa, Florida). Both welterweights are coming off of victories last month; Johnson knocked out Kevin Burns at the TUF 8 finale, and Luigi Fioravanti notched a unanimous decision win over Brodie Farber at "Fight for the Troops."

— TUF 3 middleweight winner Kendall Grove has also been booked for his next scrap. "Da Spyder" is slated to face Jason Day at UFC 96 (March 7th; Columbus, Ohio). Grove last competed in June, when he broke a two-fight losing streak with a split-decision victory over Evan Tanner at the TUF 7 finale. Day has also been out of action since June, losing to Michael Bisping via first-round TKO at UFC 85.

— During an interview with the local NBC news affiliate in Des Moines, Josh Neer apologized to his friends and fans for his New Year’s Eve DUI arrest; he will find out this week if his upcoming fight with Mac Danzig will still take place, and if he still has a job with the UFC. According to reporter Elias Johnson, "once you’re done in the UFC, it’s over." 

— Nearly one-third of UFC 92′s 14,166 spectators didn’t pay for their seats.

(How ’bout a nice Hawaiian Punch? Image courtesy of ko.susumug.com.)

"After holding the welterweight title once, I was like, I need it again, I need that welterweight title one more time, and look, I get to beat one of the best fighters of all time to do it. The opportunity is just trememdous…I’m going to crush him, don’t worry guys." — The ever-confident BJ Penn predicts the outcome of his UFC 94 superfight against Georges St. Pierre during a couple of recent Hawaiian TV appearances.

"Sean Sherk, that’s a fight I would love to take. That fight is one of the ones I really want to show everyone how far I’ve come. My wrestling’s a lot better than that and I’m going to continue to get better at it…[A rematch] would be ten times better and I believe with a different result." — Kenny Florian gives MMA Weekly the old "I’m not the same fighter I was back then" line. Ken-Flo is content to wait for BJ Penn as he chases his welterweight championship dream, but if Penn’s hiatus goes on for too long, Florian would be open to avenging a past defeat.

"A [Rich] Franklin vs. [Michael] Bisping fight would be amazing. I’d love to fight him. But I’d love to fight Henderson too. They’re household names and legends of the sport and it would be an honour and a privilege to fight one of them. I think I stack up well against them…I think I can beat both of them. It wouldn’t be easy, but my confidence is growing with every fight." — Michael Bisping talks to The Sun about who he’s eyeing for his next match. For the record, Bisping thinks Franklin will have the edge on Henderson during their fight in January. 

After the jump: The gloves come off and the talk gets trashy.

(Photo courtesy of BoutReviewUSA.com.)

— Yahoo! EuroSport is reporting that the UFC is finalizing arrangements on its first-ever second-ever event in Ireland. As the story goes, UFC 93 would be held January 17th at Dublin’s O2 Arena, and rumored fights include Matt Hughes vs. Matt Serra, and Rich Franklin vs. Chuck Liddell or Mauricio Rua. The UFC already has an event planned for January 31st in Las Vegas, which will be headlined by the welterweight match between Georges St. Pierre and B.J. Penn.

— Yushin Okami’s next fight won’t be against Anderson Silva after all; he’ll be facing Dean Lister at UFC 92 (December 27th, Las Vegas). Okami and Lister have both won their last two matches, and have been healing up from injuries — Okami with a hand injury that forced him to pull out of his rematch against Silva, and Lister with a tweaked knee that kept him out of a UFC Fight Night 15 match against Thales Leites.

— Despite Karo Parisyan’s questionable pull-out from UFC 88, the UFC has just locked “The Heat” into an eight-fight contract extension. Wonder if that includes naming rights to his first-born son…

— Gilbert Melendez only has one fight left on his Strikeforce contract, and has his eye on a move to the UFC: “I really do like Strikeforce, I think they’re a great organization and they took care of me, but I have other goals too, other dreams…[the UFC is] an organization I’ve always liked to be a part of and a lot of the guys in there I would want to fight.”

— The UFC has picked up former WEC light-heavyweight champions Brian Stann and Steve Cantwell in the wake of the WEC’s abolishment of the 185- and 205-pound weight classes. Stann and Cantwell have fought twice before, with each fighter scoring a win, and will meet for the third time at the UFC’s “Fight for the Troops” card on December 10th. Stann, who became the WEC’s light-heavyweight champ with a first-round knockout of Doug Marshall at WEC 33 in March, is a former U.S. Marine.

(Why is only one person in this photo really selling it?)

- Talking wrasslin’ and Playboy Mansion parties with Daniel Puder. (MMA Rated)

- Marcus Davis wants to punch each other in the face like gentleman. (Sub Fighter)

- Roger Huerta says the UFC is twisting his words. (MMA Madness)

- UFC signs Mike Massenzio to fight at Ultimate Fight Night 15. (Five Ounces of Pain).

- Couture says Affliction has the right approach to taking on the UFC. (Steve Cofield)

- Knee injury derails Dean Lister-Thales Leites bout. (MMA Weekly)

- Cops found weed on Snoop Dogg’s tour bus? Are you sure? (Holy Taco)

- When to skimp and when to splurge: a guide for men. (Wall Street Fighter)

(“Conviction” returns in October.)

— Thales Leites and Dean Lister will reportedly meet in a middleweight bout at UFC Fight Night 15 (September 17th; Omaha, NE), while lightweights Thiago Tavares and Kurt Pellegrino are slated to fight at UFC 88 (September 6th, Atlanta); both Tavares and Pellegrino are coming off losses in their last fights, to Matt Wiman and Nate Diaz, respectively. The UFC has also confirmed widely rumored UFC 88 matches between Rich Franklin and Matt Hamill, Dan Henderson and Rousimar Palhares, and Karo Parisyan vs. Yoshiyuki Yoshida.

— Gina Carano will fight next at an EliteXC event on October 4th. According to Sherdog, the event is likely to be televised on CBS, and her opponent may be Kelly Kobald, a Minnesota Martial Arts Academy product who started her career on a 16-0-1 tear before dropping her last two fights to Tara LaRosa and Julie Kedzie.

— This may help explain why Affliction’s attendance was so good: All tickets in all sections were discounted to $39.95 on the day of the show.

— Sengoku’s lightweight grand prix — which will go down August 24th in Saitama, Japan — will include IFL lightweight champion Ryan Schultz, King of the Cage lightweight champion Clay French, Cage Force lightweight champion Mizuto Hirota, and former DEEP lightweight champion Kazunori Yokota. Takanori Gomi and Frank Trigg will also be fighting, in separate non-GP bouts.

From the TUF 7 finale preliminary card: “Gumby” eats his third-straight submission loss, while “The Boogeyman” puts himself back in the UFC’s middleweight picture.

Amir Sadollah kicks some ass at Combat Sports Challenge 20 (4/28/07) — rocking his trademark hipster haircut even then. Props to MMATKO.

The most breathtaking video you’ll see all day is after the jump.