("Here Brandon, I’ll play you out of the UFC with a drum solo.")

When Thiago Silva decided to showboat a little by playing the bongos on Brandon Vera’s back during their UFC 125 bout, UFC light heavyweight contender Jon Jones took to Twitter to voice his disapproval.

"Wow that slapping was so disrespectful.. id love to give him a slap in the face," Jones wrote.

During an interview with MMAFighting.com, "Bones" explained his reaction to Silva’s grandstanding.

"It kind of bugged me, only because we all fight, and just losing alone is humiliating enough. It’s embarrassing. … Think about all the people who watched those fights. All [the Brandon Vera] fans, all the members at his school, all the kids that look up to him. Man, it just kind of rubbed me the wrong way," he explained. "It’s not something I would ever want done to me and it’s not something I would ever do to someone else. … There’s ways of looking for an opening besides playing pattycake on a guy’s back."

In a recent Q&A with Tatame, Silva attempted to explain why he pulled the seemingly disrespectful stunt.

("I’ll take Gilbert Godfried for the win, Joe." PicProps: UFC.com)

Those of you who were paying attention to Phil Davis’ Twitter account this week (and really, why wouldn’t you be?) already knew that the light heavyweight up-and-comer recently inked a bout agreement he was just dying to tell us all about. Now, it seems he won’t have to. Those damned internet websites are at it again, citing “sources close to the event” saying that Davis will take on Matt Hamill at the already stacked UFC 129 in Toronto. And why not? Hamill’s the dude the UFC traditionally likes to run up against its 205-pound prospects (and sometimes, its 205-pound graybeards) to see what they’ve really got in the tank. Makes sense to us.

Also on the horizon, it’s reported that fresh off showing his lack of social skills against Brandon Vera at UFC 125, Thiago Silva will step in the cage against Quinton “Rampage” Jackson at UFC 130. Both guys are coming off wins and it’s conceivable that the winner of that bout could be added to an ever-growing list of title contenders at 205-pounds.  But wait, that’s not all. After the jump some other alleged upcoming dates in the Octagon.

(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

("Look, Brandon, I’m sorry. If you take your hand away, I promise I won’t slap you in the face again." / Photo courtesy of MMAFighting)

UPDATE: A clip of Silva playing Vera like a bongo has been added to the end of this post…check it out while it lasts.

The third round of Thiago Silva vs. Brandon Vera at UFC 125 represented one of the most humiliating beat-downs in recent MMA history, as Silva seemingly got tired of punching Vera about midway through the round and just started slapping him in the face until the fight was over. With Vera’s job likely on the line that night, it was the worst possible final impression to leave with his bosses — as if that mangled schnozz wasn’t enough.

After the fight, top light-heavyweight contender Jon Jones fired up Twitter and posted the following: "Wow that slapping was so disrespectful.. id love to give him a slap in the face…Dominating someone in a fight is 1 thing, looking to simply humiliate them is another..Traditional martial artist always seemed to show honor and respect.. Anyways what’s done is done, I’m headed to the gym to make sure nothing like that ever happens to me."

We say: Eff the haters, Thiago. You’ve just joined a very select group of MMA fighters who have demonstrated their dominance through slapping and spanking. The other members of the MMA Bitch-Slap Hall of Fame are after the jump…

(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?

(It took some time, but the Sao Paulo Big Brothers, Big Sisters program finally found Thiago a perfect match. PicProps: TattooBlues)

Much respect to Tatame.com, which is pretty much a constant torrent of breaking news regarding MMA’s Boys From Brazil and even publishes an English language version for those of us too boorish and unrefined to speak the country’s mother tongue. We can’t all be multilingual giants like Chael Sonnen, now can we? Is some of the website’s English prose more or less unintelligible? Sure, but God knows if American bloggers had to keep up Portuguese versions of their sites, most of the results wouldn’t be pretty, either. In fact, what Tatame lacks in clarity it often makes up for with a wonderful unexpectedness of language. Kind of like reading an Aleksandar Hemon short story, only better because it’s about fighting. 

Take for example the site’s latest report on oft injured light heavyweight Thaigo Silva, which begins with a title befitting a Top 40 Country & Western hit and ends with a final paragraph that reads like some kind of weird, impressionist poetry. The facts are this: Silva’s back has been in upheaval since late 2008 and the 28-year-old has had no choice but give it some R&R afer pulling out of a scheduled fight at UFC 117. Now, if things go according to plan, Silva hopes to return before the end of the year.

(Remember, bend at the *knees* when you’re beating the crap out of Keith Jardine.)

Bad news for Team Brazil at UFC 117: Due to a back injury suffered in training, Thiago Silva has been forced to withdraw from his preliminary card matchup with Tim Boetsch. Silva had previously injured his back while preparing for his UFC 108 main event against Rashad Evans. After losing that fight by decision, the American Top Team light-heavyweight began a physical therapy program, but apparently it wasn’t enough to protect him from re-injury; no word yet on how long he could be sidelined. Stepping in to face Boetsch on 11 days notice is UFC newcomer Todd "Bulldog" Brown, who has compiled an 11-1 record in midwestern promotions. Boetsch is returning to the UFC after being cut last March, then winning three consecutive fights in smaller promotions.

Speaking of luckless s.o.b.’s, Phil Baroni is out of his UFC 118 fight with John Salter due to a collarbone injury. The fight was to mark Baroni’s return to middleweight after dropping two straight at welterweight, including a decision against Amir Sadollah at UFC 106. Baroni, who tends to get emotional on his Twitter account even in the best of times, had this to say: "I cant take it anymore. Im freaking out. anxiety im shot. beaten." Stay strong, NYBA…

(Insisting that it lacked the subtle social commentary of the original series and citing only sporadic appearances by one character in particular, Silva could never reconcile himself with “Joanie Loves Chachi.”)

Given that the average Brazilian MMA fighter can hold a grudge long enough to make the Count of Monte Cristo look like a goddamned amateur, it should come as no surprise that Thiago Silva hasn’t exactly gotten over suffering his first career loss to Lyoto Machida at UFC 94 last year  … or that the fighter took such glee in seeing his rival get knocked out earlier this month by Mauricio “Shogun” Rua.

Silva told Tatame.com this week that he respects Shogun, so was pleased to see him finally emerge from UFC 113 with the 205-pound strap around his waist, but I don’t think we’re reading too much into it to say there are also some lingering bad feelings about Machida bubbling underneath the surface. Silva’s (fully sic’d) comments are after the jump …

(
(It’s likely a safe bet that this fight isn’t going to end in a submission.)

A light heavyweight tilt between Thiago Silva and Tim Boetsch has been greenlit for UFC 117 according to Sherdog.com. Although neither fighter has received bout agreements for the fight, both have verbally agreed to face one another at the August 7 show in Oakland, CA.

The owner of a 14-2 record, Silva’s only losses have come against current and former UFC champions. His first blemish came at UFC 94 in the form of a knockout at the heavy hands of Lyoto Machida, who repeated the feat to take the title from Rashad Evans four months later at UFC 98. After knocking out Evans’ Team Jackson teammate, Keith Jardine at UFC 102 Thiago dropped a unanimous decision to Evans at UFC 108.

Boetsch, who compiled a 2-2 record in the Octagon with wins over Michael Patt and David Heath before being dropped by the promotion in 2009, has kept busy since his departure, racking up three straight wins outside of the UFC. You might remember him as the fighter Matt Hammill decided to demonstrate his newly acquired boxing skills on.

(Photo courtesy of MMA Weekly.)

About two weeks before Thiago Silva‘s UFC 108 showdown with Rashad Evans, rumors began popping up that Silva had suffered an ankle injury in training, and the UFC was paying him extra money to stay on the cursed card and save the main event. Silva’s manager, Alex Davis, immediately set the story straight with MMA Junkie, saying "That report is completely false. Thiago is 100 percent and he’s busy preparing for this fight. Not only has the UFC not paid any extra money for Thiago to fight through an injury, but to the contrary, in my 10 years of dealing with the UFC, (matchmaker) Joe Silva and the staff have always said it’s better to pull out of a fight if you’re hurt rather than lose a fight because you’re injured."

But now that Silva lost his fight, Davis has come back to say that "100 percent" might have been overstating the case:

("’Ey check me out, guys, I’m Joe Hogan. ‘Duhhhh…I do drugs…duhhhh…crazy, high-level zhoo-zhitsu…duhhhh…eat this buffalo penis and I’ll give you money…duhhhh’." Photo courtesy of the UFC 108 Weigh In Pics set on CombatLifestyle.)

Strap yourselves in, fight fans — IT’S TIME FOR THE MOST HIGHLY ANTICIPATED GRUDGE MATCH OF 2010. (So like, since yesterday, basically.) After a powerful curse stole nine fighters from the lineup, the survivors are ready to show that their brothers didn’t blow out their knees and catch staph in vain. For those of you paying for this pay-per-view, console yourself with the fact that the shittiest cards can often be the most suprisingly awesome. They can also be just as shitty as advertised, but we’ll try to stay positive for now. Complete UFC 108 results — from the Spike TV prelim fights all the way through Rashad Evans vs. Thiago Silva — await you after the jump. Refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest…

(Look, Dana isn’t saying that you guys have to hate each other; he’s just saying that he could understand why Thiago might be upset about some of the things Rashad may or may not have written about him on the Zuffa office’s bathroom wall.)

It’s the first rule of fight promoting, and the UFC knows it better than anyone: when life gives you staph infections, make staph infectionade.  Only, you know, don’t call it that.  After losing Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira off the UFC 108 card, and with him their main event feature attraction, the UFC has responded by pushing the Rashad Evans-Thiago Silva bout to the top spot and rebranding it a "grudge match."  They don’t go into much detail to explain the grudge part of that phrase, but we can probably assume that they’re going to be using the old ‘you beat my teammate and now I must beat you’ angle. 

In reality, Evans and Silva have expressed nothing but gentlemanly respect for one another’s skills, with the only hint of a grudge coming from Evans’ remark that Silva gave him "a nasty look" after defeating Keith Jardine.  Ken Shamrock-Tito Ortiz it ain’t, but at this point the UFC is probably just grateful to have two warm, relatively healthy bodies to put in the cage on January 2nd. 

As for Big Nog, he apologized to his fans but wisely noted "I have learned from my mistakes, and I’m not going into a fight unless I can give 100% my best performance."  Nog is currently getting medical treatment in San Diego, according to the UFC, and we wish him a speedy recovery. 

(‘Tell your friend he’s next! Well, I guess he’s just right over there. You know what, don’t worry about it. I’ll tell him myself.’)

With “Rampage” Jackson running off to play a mohawk-less B.A. Baracus in the “A-Team” movie, the MMA world was left wondering whether Rashad Evans would get a replacement opponent, or if he would just have to go out there on his own and entertain the crowd with fifteen minutes of stand-up about how different the Catholic church would be if the pope was black.  Thankfully, that seems like it won’t be necessary, as both Evans and Thiago Silva have reportedly verbally agreed to meet at UFC 108 in January. 

Obviously this isn’t as satisfying as the fight between Evans and Jackson would have been after a long season of reality TV trash talk.  But at least there’s something resembling an interesting angle, what with Silva knocking out Evans’ teammate, Keith Jardine at UFC 102 and both Silva and Evans suffering knockout losses to Lyoto Machida.  Think of this as a fight to determine who still stands a chance at getting another turn on the Machida karate beatdown-go-round.

In other bookings news/rumors…

(And the circle of life continues…)

Following Quinton Jackson’s Baracus-related retirement, we began wondering what would be next for odd-man-out Rashad Evans. Well, he already has a fight in mind, and it sounds as good as any other. According to MMA Fanhouse, Evans could be fighting Thiago Silva sometime this winter. Said Sugar:

("So, I feel that I’ll be comfortable wherever the fight goes, and as long as I can stick to my gameplan and — Shawn, if you don’t get that Flip Cam out of my face, I’m going to stomp you a new asshole. Seriously. Last warning." Photo courtesy of this set on Combat Lifestyle.)

The word "legend" gets thrown around a lot in this sport, to the point where it loses much of its meaning. Well, we won’t bother with the cliches. Suffice it to say that two old dudes are going to fight in Portland tonight, and one of them is so old that it’s hard to believe he’s still fighting, and the other is actually more old-looking than old, and maybe it would have been better if they fought like five years ago, in a city where people could actually afford to go see it, but here we are, and what are you gonna do.

Elsewhere on the card, Keith Jardine and Thiago Silva clash in a high-profile light-heavyweight scrap, while Nate Marquardt and Demian Maia fight for what may or may not turn out to be a #1 middleweight contender spot. Live UFC 102 results await you after the jump; refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest. Let’s have a good, clean liveblog. Obey all my instructions, and protect yourself at all times. If you want to order pizza, do it now, and go back to your couches.

(Image courtesy of the UFC)

Earlier today, the UFC distributed its first poster image for UFC 102 (August 29th; Portland, Oregon), making the top two fights official — Randy Couture vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira in the main event, and Keith Jardine vs. Thiago Silva as a lead-in. Interesting…is this the first UFC event that’s being headlined by four guys who are coming off losses? Would it have been that hard to slot Demian Maia and Nate Marquardt (who are also on the card) in the co-main spot? After all, that fight will produce a legitimate middleweight title contender, even if Michael Bisping or Dan Henderson could sneak to the front of the line depending on their performance next month. Meanwhile, Jardine and Silva aren’t getting close to the 205-pound belt anytime soon.

Tickets to UFC 102 go on sale to Fight Club members on Thursday, newsletter members on Friday, and will probably be sold out by the time they’re released to the general public on Saturday. In addition to Couture/Nogueira, Jardine/Silva, and Maia/Marquardt, the following bouts have also been confirmed for UFC 102, according to UFC.com:

(What has two thumbs and hates to engage during title fights? Photo courtesy of CombatLifestyle.)

Judging from the comments in our last few posts, many of you already know this, but yes, the rumored light-heavyweight showdown between Anderson Silva and Forrest Griffin quickly became official last night; the fight will support the BJ Penn/Kenny Florian lightweight title fight at UFC 101, which will take place at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia on August 8th. And both fighters are pretty psyched about it. As Dana White told Yahoo!’s Kevin Iole, "Forrest loved the idea and said he’d do it right away, and Anderson told me he would fight anyone I wanted him to fight, no matter who it is." Silva’s manager Ed Soares added:

(Dana White does the hard sell on TUF 9.  Props: Cage Writer)

– Forrest Griffin and Thiago Silva are expected to get back in action against one another at the still officially unannounced UFC 101 event in August that will feature a Randy Couture/Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira main event.  With both Griffin and Silva coming off losses this is one of those wonderful situations where somebody has to turn things around while someone else has to drop two straight and then reevaluate his life and career.  All signs point to the event taking place in Portland, OR. – also known as the town with best strip clubs in America.  Count us in.

– Since he apparently thinks he’s a boxer now, I suppose it’s only fitting that Gray Maynard inked a sponsorship deal with Everlast MMA.  Maynard’s pounded-flat mug is even going to be the focal point for an ad campaign, so I guess it pays to abandon all your wrestling training and beat guys up on the feet.  Does it pay to make a decision-machine like Maynard your poster boy?  Everlast will find out, possibly the hard way.

– Sean Sherk thinks he’s in line for the next lightweight title shot if he beats Frankie Edgar at UFC 98, and he expects that the belt will still be around B.J. Penn’s waist after he faces Kenny Florian.  Drawing on his experience fighting both men, Sherk says Penn “has pretty much every advantage” in a bout with Florian.  That might be whitewashing Penn’s conditioning issues a little too much, but what do you expect from Sherk, who just assumes everybody is out there doing caveman training every day.

(With tailored suits like that he’s just as slick outside the Octagon.)

After an exhausting and entertaining UFC 94, we sat down with our Cage Potato Super Computer and churned out the arbitrary numerical data for the relevant parties.  It wasn’t easy, but dammit, it was necessary.

Georges St. Pierre +361

Whether you think he was greased up or not, he put a beating on B.J. Penn that can’t be explained away (Vaseline didn’t help him dodge jabs or score takedowns, after all).  He showed up in great shape, with a great game plan, and proceeded to do exactly what he said he would.  GSP is an absolute monster, and at just 27 years old he’ll dominate the division for the foreseeable future.  Good luck, Thiago Alves.  You’ll need it.

B.J. Penn -86

He’s still the best lightweight in the world.  Let’s hope this beating convinced him to stay in the division where he truly belongs.  If you’re going to be the smaller man in the fight, you’d better be more active and in better shape.  He was neither, and he paid the price.  Now give KenFlo his shot.

Vaseline + 590

To hear Penn’s trainers talk, you’d think it was a magical substance.  Just a dash and you become a guard-passing, ground-and-pounding machine.  We may find out how responsible it is for GSP’s success, because after this incident the athletic commissions will be watching closely, as will the UFC.

Props to the Las Vegas Sun, UFC.com, MMA Weekly, Combat Lifestyle, and MMA Fanhouse.

(Photo courtesy of MMA Weekly.)

The MGM Grand Garden Arena was a packed house for this afternoon’s UFC 94 weigh-ins.  Every fighter made weight, some after taking full advantage of the extra pound allowance for non-title bouts.  

Akihiro Gono got the crowd’s attention when he showed up in zebra shorts and an enormous Afro wig.  As a show of good sportsmanship before the staredown he offered the Afro wig to Jon Fitch, who accepted it and put it on his own head for the photo op.

B.J. Penn clocked in at a very svelte 168 pounds, just in case you forgot this wasn’t his natural weight class, while Georges St. Pierre was an even 170.

Said GSP after the weigh-in: “I’ve never been so excited for a fight.  I’ve never wanted to win so bad.  Tomorrow night, don’t blink.  It’s going to be a great fight.”

As for Penn, he said simply: "I’m ready.  I have nothing else to say.  Let’s fight."

The most intense moment of the weigh-in occurred when Clay Guida and Nate Diaz finally came face to face.  A fired up Guida worked the crowd into a frenzy first, while Diaz came out to a chorus of boos second.  After both men made weight, Guida got right in the taller man’s face.  Diaz, naturally, continued mean-mugging Guida all the way off the stage.  Because for the Diaz brothers, it’s always personal.

Full results from the UFC 94 weigh-ins are after the jump.

(‘Hope you got that camera turned on, ’cause I ain’t doing this shit again.’)

Looks like “running the rock” wasn’t enough to impress oddsmakers, as B.J. Penn is still the betting underdog just two days before UFC 94.  Maybe if we got the impression that the rock exercise was something he did every morning, rather than just once to show off for the cameras, things would be different.  

Today’s betting lines come from BestFightOdds.com, and they’re tighter than usual all across the board, with one exception.

Georges St. Pierre (-175) vs. BJ Penn (+166)
Lyoto Machida (-245) vs. Thiago Silva (+232)
Stephan Bonnar (-165) vs. Jon Jones (+156)
Karo Parisyan (-271) vs. Dong Hyun Kim (+260)
Nate Diaz (-117) vs. Clay Guida (+107)
Jon Fitch (-500) vs. Akihiro Gono (+450)
Chris Wilson (-295) vs. John Howard (+285)
Manvel Gamburyan (+116) vs. Thiago Tavares (-120)
Jake O’Brien (-240) vs. Christian Wellisch (+236)
Matt Arroyo (-170) vs. Dan Cramer (+161)

Thoughts…

(And his tailor’s better, too. Photo courtesy of GSPFightClub.com.)

Hello, and welcome to another installment of "Ben vs. Ben." With the OMFG GREATEST FIGHT IN HISTORY just two days away, we decided to sling some bullshit about the deciding factors in St. Pierre vs. Penn, the likely bonus-earners at UFC 94, and the legitimacy of Machida vs. Silva as a #1 contender match. And now we offer our humble thoughts…to you. Enjoy, and holla back in the comments section, ‘kay?

***

How and when will the B.J. Penn-Georges St. Pierre fight end?

BF: Whether you think Penn has been slacking during his training or not, the fact is that he doesn’t have the kind of talent around him that GSP does. Guys like Nate Marquardt, Donald Cerrone, Keith Jardine, etc. Name one training partner Penn has who is as good as any one of those guys. Like his brother said, Penn is the president of his own camp. That’s not a good place for a fighter in training, especially if the fighter in question has had some conditioning and motivation issues. He ought to be more like a Congressional aide, getting bossed around and possibly sexually harassed every single day.

This being a welterweight fight only hurts Penn more. Not because of the strength and size he’ll be giving up – he’s talented enough to compensate for that – but because it doesn’t absolutely force him to be in excellent shape like he was against Sean Sherk, and so he won’t be. He may be in very good shape, but that’s not enough to go five rounds with GSP.

Penn will start off winning this fight with his striking and takedown defense. But by the third round he’ll begin to slow down. St. Pierre will stay right on top of him, wearing him down mentally and physically, and by the fifth round he’ll be looking for a way out. GSP will grant it to him by holding him down and punching him in the face until the ref stops it at around the three-minute mark. Penn has never gone five rounds in a winning effort. He won’t start against St. Pierre.

BG: In a perfect world, BJ Penn would have a tune-up fight at welterweight before taking on Georges St. Pierre. After all, Penn hasn’t won a match as a 170-pounder since May 2004, and it would be helpful to test out the new weight at least once before putting his legacy on the line. I think your observation that the welterweight division doesn’t force BJ to show up in optimal shape is a good one. I also think GSP is two days away from the greatest performance of his life.

St. Pierre’s game-plan is a closely guarded secret, but you have to assume that he knows Penn is great with his hands, and he’ll be looking to avoid them early. I don’t think Penn wins the first round, or the next two. The fight will end late in the fourth — around the 4:24 mark, let’s say — with Penn fading and GSP turning on his reserve boosters. Yes, it’ll be a TKO due to strikes. St. Pierre has done the work in the gym and the hype hasn’t affected his emotions. There’s only one way this can end.

How worthy of a title shot is the winner of Machida/Silva?

(Courtesy of BadBoy.com)

Does anybody else feel sorry for Thiago Silva after watching this video of Lyoto Machida preparing for their fight at UFC 94? Machida really is one of the most focused, technically sound fighters in the world, and if he can score the mount on Silva as easily as he does with his training partner at the video’s 0:42 mark, forget about it. Plus, he has that "spirit" thing going for him, which is nice.

As Machida’s brother Chinzo points out, Lyoto "will only attack an opponent when he knows that the strike will hit its mark." And of course there’s the matter of his confounding defense. FightMetric put together this comparison of Lyoto Machida and some of MMA’s current champions, based on the number of strikes they absorb per minute of fighting ("SApM"):

It’s a very telling statistic, when you consider that many MMA fans would name Fedor/Anderson/Georges/BJ as the top four pound-for-pound fighters in the world, in that order. Does Machida deserve to be ranked among them? He certainly has the talent; maybe by the end of the year he’ll have the accomplishments as well.

(It was going fine until the 1:57 mark. Then things get really uncomfortable.)

- Affliction can’t stop talking about how awesome they are. (Yahoo!)

- Thiago Silva is expecting a track meet against Lyoto Machida. (Tatame)

- Is the UFC phoning it in for UFC 93? (Fightlinker)

- Neil Grove to make UFC debut against Justin McCully. (Fighters Only)

- Tim Kennedy talks war and MMA. (Five Ounces of Pain)

- HIT Squad Dodgeball.  (Matt-Hughes.com)

- Rich Franklin trains for Dan Henderson. (MMA Mania)

- Gina Carano says she doesn’t get paid what you think. (AskMen.com)

- This is why you don’t run from the cops. (Break.com)

- 7 TV shows that really need to exist. (Screen Junkies)

- 10 things Tim Tebow should have put on his eye black. (Holy Taco)

- Skater owns bully. (Nothing Toxic)

- This is too adorable to ignore. (Hip to Code)

The best reason to tune in to HDNet’s Inside MMA has always been to watch Bas Rutten act like a spastic, free-associative maniac. The above clip from the show’s "Best of 2008" episode collects Bas’s craziest moments, from his heroin-addict pantomimes to his beloved Tony Montana impression. If him and Robin Williams ever met, the world might explode. Check out the latest episode this Friday at 9 p.m., as Renato Sobral, Vitor Belfort and Carlos Condit join Bas and Kenny in the studio.

Here’s the extended trailer for UFC 94: St. Pierre vs. Penn 2 (January 31st, Las Vegas). BJ Penn delivers the money line in their segment: "If Jon Fitch reminds [St. Pierre] of the Terminator, he’s gonna think I’m God." Later, in the Lyoto vs. Thiago segment, Dana White cackles about how Tito Ortiz couldn’t land anything on Machida in his last fight, while Rogan gets enthusiastic about Machida’s karate skills. We also get to hear Machida pronounce "with Tito" as "wiffa Cheeto," which is always good for a laugh.

After the jump: Mark Coleman says he’ll have a strength advantage against Mauricio Rua at UFC 93, while Rua looks forward to showing the Hammer what a healthy Shogun is capable of.

(Thiago Silva, back when beating Houston Alexander meant something. Photo courtesy of UFC.com.)

Tatame.com is reporting that the planned fight between top UFC light-heavyweight contenders Lyoto Machida and Thiago Silva will go down at UFC 93 (January 31st, Las Vegas). The undefeated Brazilians were scheduled to meet at next month’s UFC 89, but Silva’s back injury nixed the match. Though Machida recently expressed interest in facing Rashad Evans in a #1 contender bout, the UFC already had other plans for Evans, and The Dragon will simply have to wait three months and fight his original opponent.

Related: We know the rumor changes every week, but Quinton “Rampage” Jackson is now saying he’ll return to the Octagon at UFC 92 (December 27th, Las Vegas), and will fight Wanderlei Silva as long as Silva agrees to the bout. Regarding his two previous losses to Silva in PRIDE, Jackson told The Sun:

On those two days he was the better man. Hopefully I can change things this time around and it can be my night — if he takes the fight…[T]he UFC have approached a few people to take the fight and a couple of them have turned it down

I think Jackson avenging those past losses would be the feel-good MMA story of the holiday season. So Wolfslair, it’s on you: Make sure the guy doesn’t fast before the fight, and please don’t steal his money. And if you do steal his money, could you at least hide the keys to his truck?

(Photo courtesy of CombatLifestyle.)

Well, this blows:

A last-minute back injury has forced welterweight contender Karo Parisyan to withdraw from his UFC 88 bout with Yoshiyuki Yoshida. Saturday’s UFC 88 card will continue with nine bouts.

Who knows what Karo was doing last night or this morning to screw up his back, but he showed no sign of injury at yesterday’s press conference. We certainly hope it wasn’t panic attack-related. More info as we get it…

And the hits keep coming: It seems the back injury fairy has also visited light-heavyweight contender Thiago Silva, who will no longer be facing fellow undefeated Brazilian Lyoto Machida at UFC 89 (October 18th; Birmingham, England). Silva is expected to be able to compete again in December. No replacement opponent for Machida has been announced at this time; hopefully the UFC will just postpone the match until Silva is fully recovered.

- Because he loves him some publicity, Dana White will appear on A&E’s “Mindfreak” with magician Criss Angel tonight. You say you’re not going to watch, but let’s not kid ourselves. You’re going to pretend to watch the Democratic National Convention, then get bored when there are no crazy MMA riots breaking out, and suddenly you’re thinking, ‘Man, my mind could really use a good freaking right about now.’ Boom! A&E’s got you covered. If you want a taste of Criss Angel’s particularly cloying brand of magic, I recommend this little gem.

- The ever-elusive Lyoto Machida says his fight against Thiago Silva at UFC 89 isn’t going to be another snoozefest. As he told Tatame: “I believe this fight won’t go to decision… Thiago likes to fight aggressively, me too, he has good MMA techniques, so I believe this fight might finish before the third round.” Seems like he stops just short of actually committing to finishing, or saying that he’ll be the one to finish it. Even this guy’s interviews are, um, tactical.

- Chuck Liddell’s nutritional supplement company, Iceman Rx, is anticipating a Liddell victory over Rashad Evans at UFC 88. They’re even running a sweepstakes to coincide with UFC 92, where Liddell might conceivably challenge Forrest Griffin for the UFC light heavyweight title if he is victorious next weekend. And what does the winner of that sweepstakes get? An Iceman Rx Hummer H2. Even has a picture of Liddell on the side. Rumor has it he only decided to give it away after seeing what happened to Rampage. I started that rumor.

- You thought our jokes about the Tito Ortiz/Jenna Jameson baby news were in poor taste? Just check out The Sun. They pull no punches over in the UK press, and their photoshops are meaner. Kudos to them for referring to Jenna’s porn flicks as “blue movies.” That mixture of cruelty and decorum is why I love the Brits.

From a new interview on Tatame.com.br, translated by CagePotato’s Luiz De Souza.

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How does it feel to go against another Brazilian fighter?
I wouldn’t want to go against another Brazilian, but we are all professionals and that’s how it goes. There are fights amongst people of the same nation; it’s inevitable. Only one will come out champion from this group of Brazilians, and it will become our job to go against friends. The most important thing is to deal with this as professionals. The Americans already have this in their culture, they understand it, they are friends, but when the fight comes…This happens a lot in K-1, they fight against each other and still have good relationships…I obviously would rather not go against another Brazilian, we are together representing the same country, but then again everyone is defending their own flags. I know [Silva] hasn’t had a loss yet either, he comes from great victories in the events, but I am doing my homework so that I can win this fight.

Have you started studying your opponent?
I’ve seen a couple of his fights, but it is still early to start training specifically for him. What I am doing now is my basic training, physical preparation, and in August I will train to go against him. He is tough, like all others, there has to be a built-up strategy and some good studying of his game for me to win.

Do you think that the next fighter to get a chance at the belt is the winner of your fight against Thiago, Chuck Liddell vs. Rashad Evans, or do you think Wanderlei can be the one too?
I think anything can happen, but I think that Liddell, since he is an ex-champion, has great chances of getting the shot at it if he wins. Wanderlei also has a chance, but he was a Pride champion instead, so his chances are maybe lower than Chuck’s. Wanderlei is good enough to fight for the belt, for everything he has already done and for everything he still does, but the UFC is the one who decides.

Are you going to train with Anderson Silva for this fight?
Yes I will. In August I should be going to Rio to train with Anderson.