(“By the way, my offer to piss in your mouth? I’m still down if you are.” Photo courtesy of JoshLBarnett.)

The UFC is holding its annual Fighter Summit this week in Las Vegas, bringing together the entire UFC and Strikeforce rosters for the purposes of education and camaraderie — pretty boring stuff, judging from Gegard Mousasi’s amazingly child-like doodles. But it did provide opportunities for old rivals to rub shoulders. Josh Barnett posted this photo yesterday evening with the note, “Pigs have now flown. Watch for Hell to freeze over next. Me and @danawhite together again.”

Barnett has publicly criticized the UFC and Dana White in the past, but when Zuffa bought Strikeforce in March, all of a sudden DW was a pretty fucking metal dude in Josh’s opinion. (That’s a compliment.) Barnett is scheduled to face Brett Rogers at Strikeforce’s “Overeem vs. Werdum” event on June 18th in Dallas. Whether he has a future in the company after that is still anybody’s guess, no matter how friendly he and Dana appear to be when somebody’s pointing a camera-phone at them.

(Props: Cagewriter)

Heart of a champion, head of Quasimodo. On the bright side, this is a star-making loss for Mark Hominick. He gave Jose Aldo everything he could handle (especially in the dominant finish to the fifth round), and picked up tons of new fans in the process. Now somebody get that kid an Aspirin…

(Admit it — you helped him make that sign. Props: Nathan F.)

Update to all the previous winners: The Free CagePotato t-shirts finally arrived on Friday. Yes, they actually exist, and no, we haven’t forgotten about you. We’ll start sending ‘em out this week, so be patient and you’ll get yours before long.

Anyway, with legitimate journalists now being blacklisted by Zuffa, it’s getting harder to imagine that our own dumbass website will actually be “freed” in any sort of practical sense. But if you get your hands on one of our shirts, we hope you’ll wear it in support of every MMA media outlet that has been struck down in the wake of the Strikeforce/UFC merger, every fighter that will be out of luck when his Strikeforce contract runs out, and every sponsor that has been barred from helping MMA fighters make a living. Because maybe, just maybe, CagePotato is…all of us?

We appreciate your continued support and we’d love to get some shirts out to a few more of you. If we ran your photo or tweet this week, please e-mail your name, shirt-size, and address to contest@cagepotato.com, and we’ll hook you up.

Winning — it feels good, man. Lots more fighters enjoying the moment, after the jump.

(Chris Tuchscherer)

From Fedor Emelianenko to Dwayne Lewis, gruesome eye injuries are so hot right now in MMA. So we thought we’d make them the subject of our latest photo tribute. Because it’s all fun and games until…you know. Lots more after the jump.

(Marcus Davis)

(Antonio Silva is fascinated by Fabricio Werdum’s freakishly normal-sized chin.)

Photos and text by Matthew Kaplowitz

Strikeforce has graced the East Coast with their presence throughout this week, as the hype machine for their massive heavyweight grand prix is in full flux. Starting on Tuesday with a meet-and-greet for fans at the Roseland Ballroom in Midtown Manhattan with all eight of the tournament fighters, and continuing on Wednesday downtown with their press conference, Strikeforce is leaving their imprint on the tri-state area, informing natives of New York and New Jersey that the business of MMA has more than three letters.

This journalist/nerd was in the house for their press conference, which saw not only all members of the tournament, but the reserve fighters as well, packed into the swank Lighthouse 61 at Chelsea Piers, the skyline of New York dramatically posed behind them. Personally, I was excited to see that Strikeforce was feeding the reporters, and quite well at that, but even more exciting was the realization that this epic tournament was happening in my area. With MMA still illegal in New York, and very few big shows coming to neighboring states, having Saturday’s event a thirty-minute drive from The Big Apple was bound to help shed some light on how much of an impact MMA can have on the NY economy.

(Photos courtesy of DayLife via worldfightfan)

No, that’s not just some drunken Cheesehead with a green mohawk — it’s none other than UFC Hall of Famer/VP of Business Development Chuck Liddell, who rushed the field following Super Bowl XLV last night in order to fist-pose with victorious Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers and whoop it up with a dumbfounded Clay Matthews. More pics of Chuck’s Super Bowl adventure can be found here. If you’re a fan of the Pack, feel free to gloat in the comments section.

With her long-awaited movie debut slated for an April release (pending re-shoots), could Gina Carano be preparing for a return to MMA competition? (Answer: Probably not.) Still, Xtreme Couture’s official blog posted these photos yesterday, with the following message: "Xtreme Couture would like to welcome back Gina Carano. Gina spent the morning training with Gil Martinez, here are a couple of shots from todays practice. We expect to see a lot more of Gina here training in 2011."

Read into that what you like. Scott Coker is surely psyched to see his old star back in the gym, but Gina could just be blowing off some steam between film gigs. Who knows? Considering that her last update on Facebook or Twitter was this one three months ago, it’s hard to get a sense of where her head’s at, other than the fact that she likes Kabuki makeup and is content to be a mysterious recluse for the time being.

Champion kickboxer turned MMA fighter Felice Herrig will be facing Barb Honchak in the co-main event of Hoosier Fight Night 6, tonight at the Porter County Expo Center in Valparaiso, Indiana; it will be the first women’s bout in HFN history. So we figured it was an ideal moment to post a bunch of hot photos of her. Follow Felice on Twitter, and join her Facebook fan group right here. Kick her ass, Lil’ Bulldog!

More photos 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.

(And the first nomination for 2011′s Corey Hill Award is… / Photo courtesy of the DREAM Dynamite!! Photo Gallery on FightMagazine.com)

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…

– Five Lessons: UFC 125 (Versus MMA Beat)

– Antonio McKee: Loss in UFC Debut Was a ‘Humbling Experience’ (MMA Fighting)

– UFC 125 Aftermath: Clay Guida’s Enthusiasm For Fighting Is A Draw For New MMA Fans (SBNation.com/MMA)

– 11 Fighters The UFC Should Sign In 2011 (Heavy.com/MMA)

– Video: Hatsu Hioki vs. Marlon Sandro Featherweight Title Fight From Sengoku ‘Soul of Fight’ (MMA Scraps)

– Watch Dana White Give Snoop Dogg $20,000 in Unmarked Bills (MiddleEasy)

– UFC 126: Silva vs Belfort Official Trailer (LowKick)

– Miesha Tate Targeting March 5 in Ohio for Welterweight Title-Shot (Five Ounces of Pain)

– Brock Lesnar Wants You to Read His New Book (MMA Convert)

(That shouldn’t be a problem, Todd. Photo courtesy of MMAFighting)

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…

- Helwani VS Dundas: UFC 125 Edition (Versus MMA Beat)

- Our Top UFC Photos of 2010 (MMA Fighting)

- Tim Sylvia replacing Todd Duffee at Titan Fighting Championships 16 (Five Ounces of Pain)

- The Best of Japanese MMA in 2010 (MMA Scraps)

- Brock Lesnar Looking For A Way Out Of MMA And Back To Pro-Wrestling? (SBNation.com/MMA)

- Sean McCorkle Returns Against Christian Morecraft at Fight Night 24 (Heavy.com/MMA)

- Pat Miletich Has Sold His Miletich Fighting Systems Gym (MiddleEasy)

- Exclusive Interview: Daniel Gracie talks Bellator, Georges St. Pierre and Frankie Edgar (LowKick)

- Dana White’s UFC 125 Video Blog, Part 1 (MMA Convert)

- Behind the Lens: Rich Franklin (FightMagazine)

Our photographer friend Jason Wright was in attendance at Friday’s LFC 43: Wild Thang show at the 8 Seconds Saloon in Indianapolis, and provided us with some exclusive shots from the main event — Eric "Butterbean" Esch vs. Deon West — as well as a rundown of the fight. More photos after the jump. Enjoy.

Deon West is introduced as an MMA fighter specializing in "Twinkie boxing" and "Little Debbie wrestling". No kidding. The announcer is barely able to keep a straight face. West has a pro record of 2-2.

These guys have a combined weight of just over 800 lbs. I’m standing on a little shooting perch attached to the side of the cage and all I can think about is how big of a jolt I’m going to get if these guys go hard into the fence. I really don’t want to fall off my little platform. Maybe Butterbean will land one of those big haymakers I watched him land so many times back in his boxing days so I can avoid the embarrassment of being launched from my platform.

The horn sounds and it takes less than 30 seconds for West to push Butterbean hard into the fence across the cage from me. I was right, the whole thing shook like an 8.3 earthquake just rocked the joint. It was a good thing I was anticipating it. West picks up the big ‘Bean and slams him hard. That was an impressive lift! Bean lands on his back in half guard and covers up. Bean spends the remainder of the round on his back getting pounded on by West, who gets side control and even takes the Bean’s back at one point. It looks like it might get stopped, but Bean does enough defending and throwing the occasional strike or knee to keep the ref at bay. That was a very one-sided beating. 10-9 or even 10-8 West.

Some highlights from Thursday’s Bellator season finale at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida, courtesy of John Sluder.

Part 1, below: Hector Lombard def. Alexander Shlemenko via unanimous decision.
Continue to Bellator 34 photo gallery pt. 2 (Frausto vs. Fujii)
Continue to Bellator 34 photo gallery pt. 3 (The best of the rest)

Frausto def. Fujii via split decision. Photos courtesy of John Sluder
Back to Bellator 34 photo gallery pt. 1 (Lombard vs. Shlemenko)
Continue to Bellator 34 photo gallery pt. 3 (The best of the rest)

Photos courtesy of John Sluder
Back to Bellator 34 photo gallery pt. 1 (Lombard vs. Shlemenko)
Back to Bellator 34 photo gallery pt. 2 (Frausto vs. Fujii)

(Props: Sherdog)

Inspiration to all women Kim Couture competed at Ring of Combat 32 in Atlantic City on Saturday, dropping a unanimous decision to Team Tiger Schulmann product Munah Holland, who was making her pro MMA debut. As captured in the photo above, the aftermath was eerily familiar. The loss dropped Couture’s record to 3-4, and comes just three weeks after her submission victory over Felicia Wells at an Absolute Action MMA event in Kentucky; Wells also had an 0-0 record going into the fight, just like Couture’s two previous opponents, Marianna Kheyfets (who Couture lost to by first-round submission) and Rosa Vizcarra. Couture’s spotty record against inexperienced fighters is very surprising, considering what a beast she is in training.

In other somewhat-depressing weekend MMA news…

When the UFC brought out Brittny Ward as a guest Octagon Girl at last weekend’s UFC 119 event in Indianapolis, the fan reception was uniformly positive. Most of you seem to feel that the leggy 20-year-old model should be hired as a permanent member of the UFC’s ring girl stable, even if one of the current OG’s has to be let go, particularly the one who isn’t Arianny Celeste. We have our fingers crossed that Dana White & Co. will do the right thing and hire Brittny. In the meantime, here’s all the best photos we found of her while scouring her Facebook and ModelMayhem pages, as well as our own exclusive shots from the event. You can follow Brittny at twitter.com/brittwardxoxo. The photo goodness continues after the jump…

(Sakuraba vs. Mayhem at DREAM.16: A fight so amazing, it can only be described as ‘Fantasista’. Props: YouTube.com/DREAM)

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…

– Todd Duffee Released By The UFC; Manager Calls Him an "Ass" (MMA Convert)

– Ariel Helwani goes backstage with MMA broadcast icon Mauro Ranallo. (MMA Fighting)

– Want a pair of tickets to UFC 119: Mir vs. Cro Cop? All you need is a name and an e-mail address… (Heavy.com/MMA)

– Kendall Grove confirms fight with Demian Maia at TUF 12 Finale in December (Five Ounces of Pain)

- Ring Girls Round-Up: Shark Fights Angels (LowKick)

– After Defeating James Toney, Does Randy Couture Have One Last Title Run Left? (Versus MMA Beat)

– Brock Lesnar’s Most Unintentionally Hilarious TV Spots (Watch Kalib Run)

– Exclusive Bellator 27 Photo Gallery (Fight! Magazine)

– After escaping from a mental institution last month, MMA cult hero Viacheslav Datsik is still at large, and preparing for his comeback. (MiddleEasy)

– 10 MMA Photos That Will Scare Your Children and Make You Cry Yourself to Sleep (MMA Scraps)

(Photoprops: CageWriter)

Thanks to everybody who submitted captions for yesterday’s Beatdown contest; the general consensus was that Marcus Davis looks like a cross between E.T., Rocky Dennis, Sloth from The Goonies, the Elephant Man, and one of several characters from Total Recall. So who will go home with a copy of Beatdown (out today on DVD and Blu-Ray)? First some honorable mentions…

LikeTheWhiskey: This is what happens when you say "I’m a Yankees fan" in Boston.

Sudos KFC: the only thing the townsfolk would later agree on was that Quasimodo was never seen in the 209 again.

Dirt: "The doc said I’d look 10 years younger"

MoTropolis: "I think I’m allergic to getting punched in the face repeatedly."

Contraband:
The Stockton Makeover!
Get yours today!
Just call 1-800-420-DIAZ

dxhernandez: Shortly before, the man to the left began to have an acid flashback from two hits of acid he had dropped at a 1985 KISS concert. As Marcus Davis approached he looked on with horror while trying to differentiate between reality and "fuuuuuuuu……"

ReX13: "Don’t be scarred, homey"
[Ed. note: As an increasingly visible contributor to CagePotato, we'll say that ReX is disqualified from winning contests for a while. But come on, how brilliant is that.] 

And now the winners…

(Photo courtesy of MMAMania)

Stefan Struve isn’t a stranger to getting his face bloodied. His preliminary card match against Christian Morecraft at UFC 117 was no different, as the UFC newbie turned Struve’s lip into a busted, swollen mess during the lopsided first round. Like a champion, Struve fought back in the second and scored a brutal KO stoppage. The performance earned Stefan a spot in the ultra-exclusive ranks of the MMA Split Lip Hall of Fame. More notable members are after the jump…

(Jan’s hair was done by her mortician. He figured, "hey, why not get a head-start." / Props: Esther Lin for Strikeforce)


Journeywoman Jan "Cuddles" Finney (8-7) throws the dice on a real long-shot this Saturday as she steps up to take on 145-pound queen Cristiane "Cris Cyborg" Santos (9-1) at Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Werdum. Finney describes MMA as a "hobby" that compliments her day-job as a personal trainer, but warns fans not to sleep on her: "I’m going to come right back at her. I’m not going to cower away. I’m probably going to be one of the strongest opponents she’s faced. I’m not saying I’m as strong as her, but you never know — I might be…I have a few tricks up my sleeve. I would also say I’ve got a pretty nice right hand."

After the jump: Fabricio Werdum shows off his size advantage against Fedor Emelianenko.

(Photos contributed by Serafin Santiago Jr.)

In honor of the UFC throwing a card in Newark this weekend, the UFC hype-train made a big stop in New York City yesterday to hold a public press conference at the legendary Radio City Music Hall. Though the four headlining fighters were supposed to be in attendance taking questions and posing for pictures with fans, Shane Carwin was stuck in Long Island finishing up his medical licensing paperwork. Oddly enough, welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre seemed to get the least love from the raucous mass of NY/NJ fans. They loved Dan Hardy for being an underdog who trains with Matt Serra. They loved Frank Mir for embodying the Jersey Shore juicehead ideal, even though he’s a lifelong Las Vegas resident.* They swung off of Dana White’s nuts, uncomfortably.** If you live in the New York area but can’t make it to UFC 111, Radio City will be hosting a viewing party on Saturday night, featuring appearances by Chuck Liddell, Matt Serra, Stephan Bonnar, and a freakin’ ginormous screen. Some important notes from yesterday’s presser are after the jump…

Thankfully, not all MMA event posters are lunkheaded eyesores. Here’s our tribute to some of the most creative and memorable ones we’ve ever come across…


(An appropriate image for an event that featured Mirko Cro Cop, Quinton Jackson, Mark Coleman, Alistair Overeem, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Igor Vovchanchyn, and both Rua brothers.)


(The UFC’s artistic high point.)

(Screw college basketball. This was the most thrilling Final Four of all time.)

(Chin up, Jens. At least you get to keep the awesome t-shirt.)

You know whose job I don’t envy? Well, pretty much anyone who has to actually do stuff for a living rather than just write about stuff. Honestly, I don’t know where you people find the energy. But more specifically, it occurs to me that the photographer who does these before and after shots of fighters that were posted to the UFC website has a deceptively tough gig.

Taking the actual picture seems easy enough, sure, but in order to get to that point he has to ask the fighter to take a second and pose for it. When he asks before the bout, the fighter is brimming with confidence fiery optimism. But afterwards? Particularly after he’s suffered what is most likely a career-ending defeat? That’s the last time I’d want to walk up to him with that camera in my hand and say, ‘Do you have a second, Jens?’

Once you’ve become numb to the desperation and vulnerability in Jens Pulver’s eyes and find yourself craving more of other people’s pain, continue on after the jump to see Miguel Torres trying to keep cool even as blood from an enormous gash trickles down his face.

(Looks like somebody took a wrong turn on the way to the Cirque du Soleil show. Photo courtesy of CombatLifestyle.)

Don’t ask us to explain it, but whenever fighters and fans get together for a group photo, at least one person has to raise their fist like a tough guy. But instead of dropping the ban-hammer on this bizarre phenomenon, we decided to compile the most ridiculous, hilarious, and straight-up awesome MMA fighter fist-pose photos that we could find. If we left out any of your favorites, please shoot us some links in the comments section…

("Hey, hey, one at a time, I’m not that kind of boy.")

(Seriously, Guy-on-the-Right. What the hell have you been eating?)

(Image courtesy of twitter.com/MiguelTorresMMA)

Yeah, that’s a bad one. In the co-main event of WEC 47 on Saturday, Joseph Benavidez struck a gusher on Miguel Torres‘s forehead before finishing him with a guillotine choke in the second round. Now, the former bantamweight champ will have a very prominent scar to remind him of the ugly loss. So what happened? Is Torres slipping, or was he undefeated for so long just because he never faced opponents as dangerous as Benavidez and Brian Bowles? Your thoughts, please.

A photo of the stitched up aftermath is after the jump…

Let’s just hope nothing amazing happens in the next two weeks. Major props to AllElbows, Sherdog, and The Las Vegas Sun.

#14. Frank Shamrock and Nick Diaz display their vastly different personal styles at a Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Diaz press conference.

#13: The final resting place of BJJ godfather Helio Gracie.

#12: "Stop trying to hit me and hit me!" Anderson Silva stays juuuuust out of reach against Forrest Griffin at UFC 101.

(You keep making that face, Dan, and it’s going to stick.  Still, at least it attracts attention away from your sideburns.)

It’s no secret that here at the Potato we’re big fans of the phenomenon known as Punch-Face.  Just as no one looks cool sneezing, neither does anyone look cool when being punched in the face.  Okay, maybe Paul Newman, but that’s the one exception.  Fortunately for us, the boys at Fight Magazine were in England for UFC 105 this weekend and they captured a whole slew of punch-faces for us to enjoy.  Will we ever get sick of this?  Maybe one day.  It doesn’t seem like it’s going to be today, though. 

Check out our favorites after the jump, and go here to see the awesome UFC 105 photo gallery from Fight Magazine.

(Diego Sanchez vs. Clay Guida)

The moment of impact is never flattering. Here are 21 examples of the special look a just-punched fighter gets that says "I may have suffered a minor stroke, please help." (Not to be confused with bitter beer face.) Lots more after the jump…

(Victor Valimaki vs. Alessio Sakara)

(Georges St. Pierre vs. Thaigo Alves)