(Bruce Buffer and Wanderlei Silva)

One of our favorite online obsessions over the last month has been awesome people hanging out together, a tumblr photo blog devoted to celebrities mingling in unexpected combinations. (I mean, seriously: Dylan and Ali? Alice Cooper and Colonel Sanders? Epic.) Since there are aren’t any MMA fighters represented on the site, we decided to do some online crate-digging of our own and put together a CagePotato version of the “awesome people” photo-phenomenon. Enjoy these rare and classic MMA photos, which continue after the jump, and shoot us some links in the comments section if we’ve left out any of your favorites.

(Royce Gracie and Mirko Cro Cop)

(Matt Serra, Frankie Edgar, Jerry Springer, and Kimbo Slice. See also: Fighters and Random-Ass Celebrities)

(Video courtesy of YouTube/BJPenn.com)

BJ Penn has a simple answer to boring fights and skewed judges’ decisions: Get rid of the belts and get rid of the judges.

“I definitely think the way to make it exciting is get rid of the belts and get rid of the judges first thing, right off the bat. If anything goes to a decision, it should be an automatic draw. The only way you can win a fight is by finishing your guy and the only way you can lose is by getting finished.”

Sure, Beej may be tooting a different horn if he hadn’t lost the majority of his career pinnacle fights against guys like GSP and Frankie Edgar by decision, but he didn’t.

(Video courtesy of YouTube/TapouTNews)

TapouT’s Mike Straka recently caught up with Frankie Edgar to see how the UFC lightweight champ’s back rehab is coming along and an interesting nugget came out of the conversation. Apparently Edgar’s New Jersey-based boxing trainer Mark Henry was calling for the towel to be thrown in during the trouncing Edgar took in his January 1 UFC  125 bout with Gray Maynard.

Edgar said that Henry’s emotions got the best of him, and he mistakenly says it wouldn’t have mattered had he thrown in the towel as it isn’t a recognized gesture in the UFC. I guess “The Answer” never saw Royce Gracie’s corner throw in the towel prior to the start of his bout with Harold Howard at UFC 3.

Technically, the towel throw is a foul that is usually punishable by the opposing fighter being awarded the win due to disqualification.

Here’s the list of fouls under UFC rules:

1. Butting with the head.
2. Eye gouging of any kind.
3. Biting.
4. Hair pulling.
5. Fish hooking.
6. Groin attacks of any kind.
7. Putting a finger into any orifice or into any cut or laceration on an opponent.
8. Small joint manipulation.
9. Striking to the spine or the back of the head.
10. Striking downward using the point of the elbow.
11. Throat strikes of any kind, including, without limitation, grabbing the trachea.
12. Clawing, pinching or twisting the flesh.
13. Grabbing the clavicle.
14. Kicking the head of a grounded opponent.
15. Kneeing the head of a grounded opponent.
16. Stomping a grounded opponent.
17. Kicking to the kidney with the heel.
18. Spiking an opponent to the canvas on his head or neck.
19. Throwing an opponent out of the ring or fenced area.
20. Holding the shorts or gloves of an opponent.
21. Spitting at an opponent.
22. Engaging in an unsportsmanlike conduct that causes an injury to an opponent.
23. Holding the ropes or the fence.
24. Using abusive language in the ring or fenced area.
25. Attacking an opponent on or during the break.
26. Attacking an opponent who is under the care of the referee.
27. Attacking an opponent after the bell has sounded the end of the period of unarmed combat.
28. Flagrantly disregarding the instructions of the referee.
29. Timidity, including, without limitation, avoiding contact with an opponent, intentionally or consistently dropping the mouthpiece or faking an injury.
30. Interference by the corner.
31. Throwing in the towel during competition.

In other words, Edgar lucked out that Henry didn’t have a towel, or he may have lost his belt. Instead, he roared back to eke out a draw against Maynard and ensured a rematch.

The transcript of the interview is after the jump for those who can’t watch the video.

Don’t drink and:  drive, dial, text, facebook, or photoshop. -Anonymous

Let’s face it, Nation.  The lightweight field in the UFC  is a hopeless clusterfoxtrot.  Half of the names in the top ten last summer are either not at 155 anymore, or suddenly non-factors.  Six months ago, the WEC-UFC roster merger was supposed to clear up, once and for all, who the best fighters were.

Well….

The UFC title fight between Gray Maynard and champ Frankie Edgar was supposed to coincide nicely with the WEC’s own lightweight title fight at the December 16th event, the last by the promotion.  Anthony “Showtime Kick” Pettis defeated champion Ben Henderson by a close (but stupifyingly impressive) decision, something you would assume gives Henderson some legitimate claim to a title shot, or at least a number to get in line.

Two weeks later, Gray Maynard and Frankie Edgar go have themselves a fun little match in which they both manage to kick the other’s ass, but nobody wins.  Seriously, it’s a draw.

UFC lightweight champ Frankie Edgar spoke with Mike Straka from UFC.com today and expounded on the injury that forced him to pull out of his upcoming UFC 130 rubber match with Gray Maynard. According to the Toms River, New Jersey native, reports that he suffered a rib injury in training were erroneous.

“All of the reports are talking about my ribs, it’s actually my back. My back’s been bothering me for quite some time. A few weeks ago I had to take a week off so that my back could calm down and I was trying to fight through it,” Edgar explains. “I got through it and it kept blowing out on me here and there but then I ended up blowing out a rib last week. My rib kept popping in and out and then last week my back went out on me really bad, so I went to see a doctor and he said I’ve got bulging discs and now I’m going to go see a specialist to see what he can do about it.”

UFC.com has confirmed that UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar and #1 contender Gray Maynard have both suffered injuries in their training camps, and will not be able to face each other in their scheduled main event trilogy fight at UFC 130 (May 28th, Las Vegas). According to MMAFighting’s sources, Edgar picked up two broken ribs, while Maynard suffered a knee injury — especially unfortunate, considering that the UFC is planning to cover these sorts of injuries starting next month.

Quinton Jackson vs. Matt Hamill is now officially the main event of UFC 130. (Yeah, we know.) UPDATE: Edgar and Maynard will likely be out for 6-8 weeks, and could be re-booked for August or September. But check this out: According to Heavy.com, Edgar pulled out first, and Maynard was going to remain on the card against another top lightweight who he doesn’t seem to have a very high opinion of…

(Video courtesy of SPIKETV)

Here’s an interesting preview for UFC 130 where Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard give two decidedly different perspectives of how their UFC 125 split draw went down.

The rubber match is set for May 28 and it’s going to be a doozy.

(Props: UFC)

The UFC’s next big event goes down May 28th at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, featuring the third meeting between champion Frankie Edgar and arch-rival Gray Maynard, as well as Quinton “Rampage” Jackson vs. Matt Hamill and Frank Mir vs. Roy Nelson. The UFC 130 lineup also includes Miguel Torres, Thiago Alves, Stefan Struve, and the return of Jorge Santiago. Start getting psyched now, because there ain’t a hell of a lot going on until then…

(209 bros before French-Canadian foes.)

Jake Shields’ coach Cesar Gracie was on Sherdog’s The Savage Dog Show today and one of the topics he touched on was his disagreement with his cousin Renzo Gracie over his decision to help Georges St-Pierre prepare for his upcoming UFC 129 bout with longtime Gracie jiu-jitsu student and black belt Jake Shields this weekend.

According to Cesar, it was wrong for Renzo to help St-Pierre train as he is a relatively new student of the New York-based instructor and he feels that he should be looking out for his committed Gracie family members first and foremost.

“Renzo’s like a brother to me. You gotta understand, we grew up together. We really did. So nothing’s gonna change [between us]. People try to make a big thing about it. I did have a talk with Renzo and I said, “Renzo, you’re training a guy that doesn’t represent your academy, he represents another academy, to fight against a Gracie Academy. It doesn’t make sense to me. It just doesn’t Georges is a great guy.From al accounts, he’s respectful and a decent human being from what I’m understanding. And I said to Renzo, ‘If you had a talk with Georges St-Pierre and said, you’re one of our black belts, you’re going to have to represent us,’” Gracie said. “I think he would do it in a heartbeat.I did have that discussion with him, but I really don’t know what came about with it. People try to make a big thing about it, but I’m an old school guy. I really am. When Georges St-Pierre was training at Renzo’s to fight Matt Serra, who I think was the first black belt Renzo gave out in the U.S… I couldn’t imagine a guy coming in and training with me to beat one of my black belts. I just couldn’t do it. I don’t know exactly what they’re doing over there with that, but it’s just not my way. I’m old school and I’m gonna die old school. That’s just how I am. So I made my feelings known to Renzo about it and I don’t think my guys appreciate it. Frankie Edgar’s there too and he’s a really great kid. He came out to my place and he’s a really hard worker. He came out to train for the BJ Penn fight. I refused to have my guys train with BJ for that fight and they had trained with him for the Florian fight and maybe one fight before that fight when BJ needed help and was trying to get his career back on track. Nick Diaz was training with BJ Penn and there was good sparring. They called us up to train with him for the last Edgar fight and we said no, because he was fighting a kid who represented the Gracie Academy in New York. I’m old school, but now with this fight…It’s not about teaching a guy, because they’re professional athletes and they’re gonna have to fight. They didn’t grow up together or nothing like that. But me being an old school guy, I just look at it like you gotta carry our flag to battle and if you can’t carry our flag to battle, you aren’t training with us. It’s just how I look at it.”

(A few more fights and Melendez will finally realize his dream of owning matching gloves. Pic: ESPN)

In the weeks since the UFC seized control of Strikeforce, there has understandably been a ton of talk about the potential for cross-promotional superfights. Even as honchos from both companies hold firm that it these dream fights won’t happen right away, the fanboy in all of us can’t help but titter a bit over the thought of Overeem vs. Velasquez, Diaz vs. St. Pierre or Fedor vs. Couture. Fine, maybe that last one would’ve been better had it gone down back in the ’70s, but you see our point. With apologies to the abovementioned dudes however, in the wake of last weekend’s “Diaz vs. Daley” show we can’t help but feel the most valuable commodity the UFC acquired with Strikeforce may well be Gilbert Melendez.

And we mean, like, right now. Immediately. As long as we can all agree that Strikeforce is just beginning its trudge toward the slow, painful death of the dinosaur, dodo and WEC (which we do, right?) there is simply no reason to confine Melendez to a terminally ill roster where he is essentially the only legitimate lightweight. Especially when the UFC lightweight division – arguably the best, most competitive weight class on the planet – has so many current problems. Problems that the abrupt addition of Melendez might solve right away. We explain, after the jump …

(Video Courtesy of YouTube/TheGarv)

Kevin Garvey from TheGarv.com caught up with Frankie Edgar over the weekend at Lou Neglia’s Ring of Combat and he touched on a number of topics with the UFC lightweight champ.

One of the most interesting tidbits came when “The Garv” asked the New Jersey native if he has ever thought of dropping down to featherweight considering he’s a relatively small 155-pounder. Edgar replied that he would probably have no problem making the 145-pound weight limit as he typically walks around at 160, but his focus is on clearing out the lightweight division right now.

(Almeida retires with a record of 13-5)

In 2008, after a near four-year absence away from fighting, Ricardo Almeida’s desire to return to compete in MMA coaxed him out of an unannounced retirement to sign with the UFC. Since then he has fought eight times, losing three and winning five.

At 34 years of age, Almeida has decided to walk away from the sport despite having a few good fights left in him to spend more time with his family and to focus on running his Brazilian jiu-jitsu academy.

It’s been a pleasure watching you fight, Big Dog. Props for realizing when it was time to call it quits.

Read Ricardo’s statement after the jump.

(Damn you, Tom Petty. The waiting *is* the hardest part. Pic: Rotoexperts.com)

Crazy times at lightweight right now, no? With Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard drawing even at UFC 125, top contenders Evan Dunham and George Sotiropoulos soiling their drawers in recent intended tune-up fights and the UFC playing a carnival shell game with Anthony Pettis’ future, the whole division looks like the end of a bad episode of Monday Night Raw – 20 guys brawling senselessly in the ring while the announcers yell unintelligible shit into their microphones and the screen fades to black. Not to mention, as soon as Zuffa, LLC realizes that Strikeforce has become nothing more than a vestigial organ and folds it into the UFC, Gilbert Melendez will likely show up claiming instant No. 1 contender status. Probably just a day or two after Dana White promises a title shot to somebody else.

God willing and the creek don’t rise, we’ll get some answers over the next couple of months. Edgar and Maynard will (fingers crossed) settle their differences for good at UFC 130, the Pettis Hypothesis will be proved or disproved against Clay Guida in June and either Dunham or Sotiropoulos will get back on track after their newly-announced bout at UFC 132. Until then though, it’s just a goddamn schmazz. When you read our latest rankings after the jump, you’ll see that the top three spots in the lightweight division are pretty self-explanatory. After that, we’re really just picking names out of a hat.

Aside from being the decisionest decisioner who ever decisioned, UFC welterweight contender Jon Fitch also holds the record for the most total strikes landed in the Octagon — a staggering 1973, according to the new UFC Official Records page on FightMetric.com. Georges St. Pierre is a close second to Fitch with 1924 total strikes, but comes in first on the “Significant Strikes Landed” leaderboard with 892; Jon Fitch isn’t even in the top ten on that one.

Also surprising: Because of their multiple title fights and frequent decisions, Frank Edgar and Sean Sherk have average fight times of over 15 minutes. Plus, Anderson Silva is just one knockdown away from catching Chuck Liddell’s record of 14 KDs, Cheick Kongo has the fifth-best takedown accuracy in the UFC, and the hardest-to-hit fighter in UFC history isn’t Lyoto Machida or Georges St. Pierre — it’s TUF 4 vet Pete Spratt, who only ate 0.89 shots per minute during his 3-4 stint in the Octagon. (Yes, GSP is currently in second place on that list too.) Check out a few more notable FightMetric charts after the jump, and see the rest right here.

Sometimes an MMA fight is so close — or controversial — that matching the fighters up again a few months later is the only logical option. In honor of the upcoming immediate rematches between Leonard Garcia and Nam Phan (at UFC Fight Night 24 on March 26th), and Edgar vs. Maynard 3 at UFC 130, we decided to round up our favorite “do-over” fights of all time…

6. STEPHAN BONNAR vs. KRZYSZTOF SOSZYNSKI
UFC 116, 7/3/10

Why it was necessary: A clash of heads during their first fight at UFC 110 opened up a nasty gash on Bonnar’s forehead; the referee didn’t see the illegal impact, and awarded a TKO victory to Soszynski due to cuts. Furious at taking his third-straight loss in such an unjust manner, Bonnar filed a formal appeal with the Combat Sports Authority of New South Wales. Unfortunately, it fell on deaf ears, but the UFC hooked Bonnar up (as they often do) by giving him an immediate rematch with K-Sos on the blockbuster “Lesnar vs. Carwin” card.
What happened: Bonnar/Soszynski 2 turned out to be a meat-and-potatoes brawl reminiscent of Bonnar’s first war with Forrest Griffin. The American Psycho and the Polish Experiment both appeared to gas out by the middle of the second round, but Bonnar was able to keep throwing and landing until he overwhelmed K-Sos with strikes at the 3:08 mark. The fight netted both men $75,000 Fight of the Night bonuses, and produced one of the greatest victory poses in UFC history.

5. FRANKIE EDGAR vs. BJ PENN
UFC 118, 8/28/10

(Finally, some competition. PicProps: MMA Core)

From yesterday’s conference call where Nick Diaz accused Josh Koscheck and Georges St. Pierre of fighting lesser competition as Diaz himself prepares to defend his Strikeforce title against, uh, Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos to Cesar Gracie telling Ariel Helwani that he doesn’t think Greg Jackson is actually that good of a coach, things are just getting bizarre with the Scrap Pack these days. Whatever planet these dudes are living on, it’s clear that they own the place, while the rest of us are just visiting.

Enter Gilbert Melendez, who tells RingsideReport.com this week that he’s the man to beat at 155-pounds right now. All this noise about Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard? Melendez ain’t trying to hear that, see. But just in case you’re wondering if Melendez might be interested in proving his point, of signing with the UFC so he can actually fight the other top contenders in his weight class: Forget it. It’s those guys who should be coming to him.

By Cage Potato correspondent Brian Dermody

The look on Frankie Edgar’s face said it all the second Bruce Buffer broke the news that his UFC 125 bout with Gray Maynard had ended in a stalemate.

Having just endured the worst beating of his life in a single round of MMA before roaring back to win more rounds, but earn the same amount of points than Maynard in the eyes of *some* of the judges (and most pundits and fans), he knew he was going to have to go to war again with "The Bully."

Edgar walked away from the bout with a nasal fracture, a few bruises and a bad taste in his mouth, considering Maynard, who took a unanimous decision the first time the pair met in 2008, was still up one fight to none.

On the mend and with a May 28 UFC 130 date in Las Vegas penciled in for the do-over, Edgar sat down with New York-based Cage Potato correspondent Brian Dermody to chat about a variety of topics including his last fight, immediate rematches, the contenders to his belt and oblivious reporters.

Check out what "The Answer" had to say after the jump.

(If you don’t know the backstory on this one, Krazy Horse claims to have knocked Wand out back stage at a PRIDE Bushido event, which led to him later being choked out by Cris Marcello -VidProps MegaSlim7)

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…

- Ring Girls Round-Up: Nikki Chang (LowKick)

– FEG President Foresees Death of K-1 and DREAM (MMA Fighting)

– DaMarques Johnson Interview (MiddleEasy)

– Big Nog’ Says JDS Will KO Brock (MMAConvert)

– Teammates Look to Point Featherweights in Right Direction (Versus MMA Beat)

– Cain Velasquez Back Training After Successful Shoulder Surgery (FiveOuncesofPain)

– 5 of the Scariest Knockouts Ever (MMAScraps)

– UFC Champ Frankie Edgar FINALLY Favored to Win a Fight (5thRound)

– The 8 Heavyweights Bellator Needs To Sign (FightMagazine)

– Roop Talks Fighting Teammate Hominick at UFC Fight For the Troops II  (SBNation.com/MMA)

("Well…I’m not much of a foot guy, but I guess they’re alright, Mrs. Ryan." / Photo via MMAWeekly)

At 2 p.m. ET today, the UFC will hold a press conference at New York’s Madison Square Garden to formally announce their intent to bring MMA to the Big Apple as soon as possible. In attendance will be UFC president Dana White, Zuffa co-owner Lorenzo Fertitta, lightweight champion Frankie Edgar, light-heavyweight contender Rashad Evans, and Madison Square Garden Sports president Scott O’Neill.

A new economic impact study is scheduled to be released in the hopes that New York will join the 44 other U.S. states that currently regulate the sport — even though cash doesn’t seem to be a big motivator among MMA’s stubborn critics.

Despite our long history of promoting the "MMA in NY" cause, CagePotato has unfortunately been barred from attending the event due to the whole Arianny Celeste Playboy leak fiasco. Their loss. When the first media question is from some spaz asking if he can sit in Dana’s lap, they’re gonna wish they had some real freakin’ journalists in the building…

The video player is after the jump.

("What has two thumbs and is creeped-out by Pat Barry’s shorts?" Photo courtesy of Tracy Lee/Cagewriter)

With Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard III tentatively scheduled for UFC 130 (May 28th, Las Vegas), Anthony Pettis has decided to fight again rather than wait all year for the title shot he’d been promised — a risky proposition considering how stacked the lightweight division is at the top. According to Heavy.com, Pettis will likely take on Clay Guida at either UFC 130 or UFC 131, which goes down two weeks later in Vancouver. It’s a kick in the nuts for perennial contender Kenny Florian, who was angling for the Pettis fight himself.

You’d sort of hope that Pettis/Guida happens at #130, so that if Pettis wins, he can enter the cage following the main event and face off with the lightweight champion in a "you have my belt, homey" moment. Of course if Edgar vs. Maynard results in another tie, we’re all screwed. Not out of the realm of possibility, considering how evenly matched those guys are.

Pettis is on a four-fight win streak, and is coming off his WEC lightweight title-winning performance against Ben Henderson, aided by The Greatest Kick the World Has Ever Seen. (By the way, Pettis’s trainer Duke Roufus told Sherdog that Pettis has "10 other [highlight-reel] kicks and moves for the UFC and he’s going to prove it." Be very afraid.) Guida has won his last three fights by submission, most recently choking out Takanori Gomi at UFC 125. After the jump: An incredible photo of Clay Guida doing a Richard Nixon impression at some kind of topless pool party.

(The losers get a bonus check from the judges’ bookie.)

The UFC will attempt to get some resolution between some of its disgruntled employees in the coming months by setting up two rematches between a quartet of fighters involved in controversial decisions in their last bouts.

According to MMAWeekly, Nam Phan will look to avenge his BS loss to Leonard Garcia at the TUF 12 finale when he locks horns with the Team Jackson fighter at UFC Fight Night 24 in Seattle on March 26 and lightweight kingpin Frankie Edgar will attempt to successfully defend his title against Gray Maynard for the first time after their New Year’s Day UFC 125 title fight ended in a somewhat controversial majority draw when the pair get a do-over  at UFC 130 in Las Vegas.

(Sit back there and say Clay Guida’s hair ain’t luxurious, when you know it is, bitch. / Photo courtesy of MMAFighting)

The Nevada State Athletic Commission has released the payout list for UFC 125, with the total fighter payroll topping out at $1,112,000 in disclosed salaries and bonuses. MMA Junkie reports that despite the main event ending in a draw, both Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard were given their win bonus money — which insured that they were two of the night’s top earners, since they also picked up the event’s Fight of the Night bonuses.

Other six-figure earners included Clay Guida ($122,000) and Thiago Silva ($110,000). The complete UFC 125 salary list is below, and continues after the jump. Keep in mind that the figures do not include additional income from sponsorships or undisclosed "locker room bonuses," or deductions for taxes, insurance, and licensing fees.

Frankie Edgar: $162,000 (includes $51,000 win bonus, $60,000 Fight of the Night bonus)
vs. Gray Maynard: $112,000 (includes $26,000 win bonus, $60,000 Fight of the Night bonus)

Brian Stann: $42,000 (includes $21,000 win bonus)
def. Chris Leben: $46,000

Thiago Silva: $110,000 (includes $55,000 win bonus)
def. Brandon Vera: $60,000

("Whaddya mean we got four more rounds? I thought this fight was supposed to be a boring wrestlefest.")

Well, UFC 125 is in the books and to say fans got a few surprises from the card that many had written off as being an inevitable snoozefest would be an understatement.

The main event lightweight championship bout between champ Frankie Edgar and apt challenger Gray Maynard, which ended in a hotly debated split draw, delivered the goods earning well-deserved Fight of the Night honors.

According to UFC president Dana White, because the fight, which he admitted could have been stopped in the opening frame, was so close and because so many fans want to see the rubber match, he reversed the announcement made by UFC vice president Craig Borsari at the post-fight press conference that Anthony Pettis is next in line for a shot at Edgar’s crown and says he will instead be slotting in Edgar-Maynard III for some time in early 2011.

(Video courtesy YouTube/MMAFighting)

(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?

(Props: YouTube.com/UFC)

UFC 125 goes down tonight at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, and CagePotato will be posting live results beginning with the ION prelims at 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT. I’m sure most of you are still nursing crippling hangovers, so let’s ease into the New Year gently: Above, some of tonight’s fighters share their resolutions for 2011, and Dong Hyun Kim re-invents himself as a trash-talker. (Ed. note: KEEP THE 209 OUT OF YOUR MOUTH, SON.) After the jump, the very same dudes warm up and discuss their matchups at Thursday’s open workout.

Just a friendly reminder that you can blow off a couple hours of work or time with your family on this New Year’s Eve day by watching the UFC 125 fan Q&A with UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez at 3:00 pm ET followed by the weigh-ins at 5:00.

Cross your fingers that someone asks Cain what he thinks about Junior Dos Santos questioning the legitimacy of his torn rotator cuff injury. We might actually get to see "Sugar" Cain (as he’s known by at AKA) show some emotion for once if they do.

Hopefully you all have more planned for tonight than sitting in your underwear and CP shirt watching K-1 Dynamite!! videos from last night, eating cold pizza and drinking beer. *Apparently* that’s not a cool way to ring in New Year’s. Women…

Anyway, as always, the UFC media player is after the jump.

Happy New Year’s, Potato Nation.

("Sorry about the fit, Frankie. We had it ready to go for BJ to wear home.")

You would think that at the very least, besides winning the UFC 155-pound strap, beating continual top five lightweight BJ Penn twice would raise Frankie Edgar’s stock in the eyes of oddsmakers.

Apparently they just can’t seem to get past the UFN 13 loss the UFC lightweight champ suffered against Gray Maynard and it seems that the only thing that will erase the blemish from his record would be for the Toms River, New Jersey native to beat the only man to ever beat him.

He’ll get his chance Saturday night at UFC 125 in Las Vegas as he attempts to retain his belt in his second title defense, but the 5’6" perennial underdog says he isn’t put off by the fact that he’s rarely the favorite and that Maynard is the odds-on fighter to walk away with the belt this weekend.

“[Being the underdog has] been working good for me, so why change it?" Edgar recently asked the hosts of MMAWeekly Radio. "I’m assuming sooner or later I’ll not be the underdog, but I’ll take it. It makes sense [that Gray is the favorite]. Heads-up he beat me, so he should be the favorite.”

("What’s so hard to remember about ‘Hold the anchovies?’" PicProps: Connect.in)

Man, why are we totally not surprised that Frankie Edgar’s boxing coach owns a pizzeria? When you’re talking about a bunch of guys from New Jersey it might sound culturally insensitive to make that assumption but at least according to MMA Weekly, it’s also true. The man responsible for Edgar reaching zenith of his stand-up game in recent fights is one Mark Henry – no, not that Mark Henry – a former member of the US Boxing team who has also owned and operated a place called Pino’s Pizza in the Jerz for nearly two decades. Frankly, it sounds like a bad place to try to rob unless you’re bringing a gang of homies and a whole lot of firepower.

Henry has been working with Edgar for some time, but says they only really got serious about pugilism after he watched Edgar suffer his lone career loss to Gray Maynard in April, 2008. Coincidentally, this interview comes to us just as Edgar is preparing to defend his 155-pound title in a rematch against Maynard at UFC 125 on Jan. 1. See, that’s just good storytelling from the Gray Lady of MMA Journalism. But we digress …

The first UFC title fight of 2011 is just eleven days away, which means it’s time to drag out some stats and see who holds the advantages in the Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard rematch — on paper, at least. As we all know, anything can happen in the cage. Seriously. This one could end in a unanimous decision, it could end in a split decision, a majority decision…you just never know.

BIGGEST CAREER WIN
Edgar: Defended his lightweight title in a 50-45 x 3 shutout against BJ Penn at UFC 118.
Maynard: Routed Kenny Florian the same night to win the #1 lightweight contender spot.
Advantage: Edgar

MOST PAINFUL LOSS
Edgar: His UFC Fight Night 13 decision loss against, you guessed it, Gray Maynard. It’s still the only loss on Edgar’s record.
Maynard: He’s never lost in professional competition, though he was submitted by Nate Diaz on TUF 5 (a loss he avenged later at UFC Fight Night 20) and accidentally knocked himself out in a no-contest against Rob Emerson.
Advantage: Maynard

UFC FINISHING RATIO
Edgar: 22% (2 stoppage wins in 9 fights)
Maynard: 11% (1 stoppage win in 9 fights)
Advantage: Edgar

("I’ve been doing this too long to take things for granted. I’ve seen it happen too often where a guy loses and then comes back and wins." Photo courtesy of UFC.com)

By CagePotato.com contributor Elias Cepeda

There’s a fun game you can play with undefeated UFC lightweight Gray Maynard: Ask him to name, let alone talk about, someone he’s beaten. He can’t do it.

It should be easy for the #1 title contender — he’s had just eleven fights in his four-and-a-half year MMA career, and hasn’t lost a single one. He has many more wins to choose from if you include his entire amateur wrestling career that dates back to his childhood.

Still, as he sits during some downtime between training on the Saturday exactly two weeks before he will face UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar at UFC 125 in Las Vegas, Maynard’s brain freezes when asked about his wins. Gray isn’t difficult to speak with, and his mind is sound. It just works a bit differently than most of ours.

Ask Maynard who he’s lost to and he can rattle ten names off in a row. “People say, ‘oh, you’ve never lost.’ Sure I have. I’ve been in combat sports since I was a kid and have lost lots of times from when I was three all the way through college.”

Gray seems to remember every time he’s come up short on the mats — recalling even grade-school losses with gritted teeth. “They still irk me today,” he says.