Props to TheGarv for digging up these ’70s/’80s-era photos of UFC president Dana White. Obviously the money shot is that pic in the top right, in which a young DW does his best to smile through the pain of a Prince Valiant haircut and some obvious facial trauma. “Damn you, hair,” we imagine Young Dana saying. “I wish you would disappear…forever!” And now you know the rest of the story.

Previously: Even as a Baby, Brock Lesnar Would Swallow You Without Chewing

(The “Ace”: Coming soon from Trash Talkin’ Kids.)

Thanks so much to everybody who sent in submissions for last week’s Trash Talkin’ Kids t-shirt design contest. We were overwhelmed by the number — and sheer stupidity! — of your designs, and we honestly had a blast going through them. With the help of our friends at Trash Talkin’ Kids, we picked out eight finalists based on humor, creativity, and effort. To see all of the submissions, head over to facebook.com/trashtalkinkids, where they’ve uploaded the finalists plus a bunch more entries that didn’t quite make the cut.

And now we need your votes to make this thing official. Please check out the Elite 8 after the jump, and vote for your favorite in the poll at the bottom of the page. The two highest-voted designs will both be receiving actual TTK shirts. Winners will be announced Thursday. Aaaaaand go!

(Chuck Liddell poses with ‘Taboo’, co-host of Our Time.)

We have no idea how most of these encounters came about — but we’re sure they were all fairly awkward. Here are 21 of our favorite photos of MMA fighters rubbing shoulders with reality show stars, B-list actors, and aging rock royalty. Ah, the perks of fame…

(Cain Velasquez: The meat in a douche sandwich.)

(“Wait, you’re giving this to me for *free*? My goodness, I’ve stumbled onto the perfect crime!”)

Much like myself, Dana White pretty much lives in t-shirts. It’s his trademark, like Don King’s hair, or Mark Pavelich’s eyebrows. The difference is, DW usually gets paid to wear his t-shirts. Like I said last week, Dana’s torso is the best viral advertising platform on basic cable. So, in honor of our unhealthy fascination with this man, here are 24 noteworthy Dana-in-a-t-shirt photos, along with some brief analysis.

(Wearing a t-shirt that references a local sports team is one of the easiest ways to be liked by strangers. In the pro-wrestling world, they refer to this sort of thing as a “cheap pop.”)

(Above: The Waldo. Below: The Navy SEAL Bin Laden shirt, and the “We Will Not Fail” shirt. Click the links to learn more and see rear-views.)

On May 1st, 2011, terrorist mastermind Osama Bin Laden was finally brought to justice — American-style, with a bullet to the head. Here in New York, it was like we had won the World Cup or something. Years from now, you’ll probably want to have something to remind you of this triumphant, bizarre, overwhelming moment in our country’s history. That’s where Ranger Up comes in. We’ve featured their patriotically ass-kicking shirts on this site before; now they’re releasing three brand-new designs, perfect for wearing while you’re pissing on the graves of murderers.

R.U. is giving us one shirt of each new style to pass along to you fine people. You know the deal: Check out the photo after the jump of Mike Goldberg and Matt Lindland chillin’ in New Jersey, and submit a humorous caption in the comments section by tomorrow at midnight ET. We’ll announce the winners on Thursday. Can you defeat your fellow Potato Nation members in a battle of wits? Well, let’s see what you got. For more manly apparel, check out RangerUp.com.

For a man who tries to promote such a chaste image, Matt Hughes sure does find himself at Hooters a hell of a lot. Maybe it’s the famous wings that bring him in night after night. Or maybe it’s all the young chicks with big titties. Hard to say for sure. For more photographic proof, start after the jump and follow the “next page” links.

Perhaps more than any other UFC contender, Clay Guida knows how to party. Earlier today, TMZ posted the above photo of the Carpenter funneling a beer during a Spring Break party-hosting gig in Lake Havasu. Look, not every cage-fighter has to abide by a squeaky clean lifestyle — even when they have a big match coming up. In fact, photos of Clay Guida with a drink in his hand are about as common as photos of Fabricio Werdum with a creepy expression on his face. In case you need proof, here are 11 more examples…

(Okay, we’re just assuming she’s Brazilian. We apologize for perpetuating such a vile stereotype. Props: Sherdog via Lowkick)

Sherdog.com released an exclusive gallery of photos from the TUF 13 training facility, and there was one picture in particular that stuck out, so to speak. In fact, the chick in the yellow dress was so eye-catching, that we almost didn’t notice that her male counterpart was wearing a ridiculous fake nose. (Not sure what’s up with that. Maybe he’s Brazil’s answer to The Garv.) You can check out the full gallery here, although we have to warn you: There’s only one more photo of Girl in the Yellow Dress, and it’s a lot less flattering. We’ve placed it after the jump, for your convenience.

Update: We’ve now learned that the girl in question is Juliana Salimeni, and her fans are pushing for her to be a ring girl at UFC Rio.

(Props: mmachiro)

So here’s how we’ll do this: Every week, we’ll announce a handful of our favorite #freecapotato Twitter messages and Facebook photos. As promised, those people will all get “Free CagePotato” t-shirts; if we run your photo or tweet, please e-mail your name, shirt-size, and address to contest@cagepotato.com, and we’ll hook you up. Lots more after the jump…

(Props: Miles B.)

(“Alright ladies, now smile as if you have any f*cking clue what’s going on right now.”)

Thanks to everybody who entered this week’s caption contest, which produced over 200 entries, most of them pretty damn funny. And yet, only three of you will be earning t-shirts from Alchemist Clothing. Doesn’t seem fair, does it? Anyway, let’s begin with some honorable mentions…

destinationblood: All they had left at the Halloween store was stewardess costumes, Rambo guns and a Fred Flintstone tie.

J. Spaceman: Hey Frye, this is how a real man pads his record!

missedcue: Even elite MMA fighters need Apple tech support.

missedcue, again: Dana: “Yeah I guess that’s cool but you still ain’t getting into the Smasher Group.”

intercept440: GAY TEST: If you notice the inconspicous black guy in the back ground…I have some bad news for you.
[Ed. note: Or, if you noticed Tim's pants before anything else...]

Ajax Says: After what happened in the fifth grade, Tim swore he would never have a bad yearbook picture ever again.

MaxS: No ladies that’s NOT a gun in my pocket…that’s just what “Ranger Up” means.

Morningwood: Now THIS is how you raise 120 bucks!

And now, the big winners:

(Props: twitter.com/HeidiNorthcott)

Looks like somebody‘s already celebrating. Got any wild St. Paddy’s Day plans, Potato Nation? Who’s drunk already?

(The sad part is, they both think they’re the cute one.)

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…

- UFC 129 Moved Up One Hour to 9 p.m. ET; Change to All PPV Start Times Being Considered (MMA Fighting)

- Exclusive Interview With UFC Fight Night 24′s Phil ‘Mr. Wonderful’ Davis (BleacherReport.com/MMA)

- Chad Ochocinco Continues to Call Out Anderson Silva (Versus MMA Beat)

- Strikeforce ‘Feijao vs. Henderson’ Ratings Down 44% From ‘Fedor vs. Silva’, Bellator Delivers Target Demos In MTV2 Debut (MMA Convert)

- A Memo to Strikeforce: Fighters Need To Fight (Five Ounces of Pain)

- UFC Inks Four-Year Broadcast Deal with Rogers Sportsnet in Canada (5thRound)

- Brendan Schaub: I’m Two Fights Away From a Title Shot (LowKick)

- Don Frye and Shark Fights Have Parted Ways (MiddleEasy)

- Watch the Wrestling Chops of this 8-Year-Old and Hope the Parents are Enrolling Him in MMA in the Near Future (MMA-Scraps)

- FIGHT! Ranking: Hendo Is #2, M-1 Global Champs Hold Ground, Bellator Welterweights Pick Each Other Off (FightMagazine)

("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.

You’ve seen him serve a monk, an old lady, and his boss. You’ve seen him wreck a punch-machine with high kicks. But son, you ain’t ready for a hulked-up Pat Barry with a full head of hair. The above photo was part of a blog post called "THUNDA CAT TRAINING!" that Pat recently put up on Alienwarearena.com. As the UFC heavyweight writes, "SuckerPunch has set me up at Complete Clinics where I have been doing sessions in the CVAC machine and my new Strength and conditioning coach, Eric Gramza, is turnin me into a GORILLA!"

Barry is set to scrap with Joey Beltran at UFC Fight for the Troops 2 on January 22nd. Unfortunately for the Mexecutioner, gorillas do not hug their enemies. Some more alarming pics of Pat Barry are after the jump…

(Shirt images courtesy of 62Gear.com)

After two days and 350+ submissions, we’re proud to announce the three winners of this week’s caption contest, who will be picking up some kickass new t-shirts from Six Deuce! Was your entry worthy of recognition? Find out after the jump. But first, some honorable mentions…

After frantically skimming through the 473 (!) entries that came in for this week’s caption contest, we’re happy to announce a winner. So who will pick up the duffel bag stuffed full of gear from Tokyo Five? We can’t tell you that just yet. First, the honorable mentions:

(Images courtesy of Esther Lin/Shark Fights, Victory Belt)

Thanks to everybody who entered this week’s caption contest — even those of you who referred to "General Custer" as "General Custard." After sifting through 280 of your entries, we’ve pulled out the two that we think are most worthy of winning a signed copy of Jackson’s Mixed Martial Arts: The Ground Game, in stores now. As usual, there are a bunch of captions that were almost good enough. Let’s take a look at those first…