(“Phew…They didn’t catch me.”)

When word got out yesterday that Thiago Silva gave the Nevada State Athletic Commission a non-human urine sample following his UFC 125 win over Brandon Vera in January, everyone expected the American Top Team fighter to follow in the footsteps of predecessors like Josh Barnett, Royce Gracie and Sean Sherk and deny any wrongdoing.

Well, in spite of his attempt at skirting NSAC rules, Silva has proven himself to be a bigger man than they are (and no, we’re not talking about the commission’s recent claim that it will be hiring a professional hogwatcher) by admitting he screwed up.

In a statement he sent MMAJunkie today, Silva admits that he tampered with the test by using a “urine adulterant,” meaning a chemical compound that cases dirty urine to register a false negative reading when tested. There are several products on the marked that claim to beat drug tests and even “clean” synthetic urine that can be purchased online for such purposes.

Before we get into a pissing contest about who knows more about the science of beating urine tests, check out Silva’s explanation after the jump.

("So if you lose two in a row, you’re still OK, right?")

Despite logging a tough split decision loss to Dan Miller at UFC 124, Joe Doerksen yesterday had insult added to the injury of losing in front of his fellow Canadians in Montreal Saturday night when he was informed by the UFC that he was being let go by the promotion.

Fiveouncesofpain was first to report the New Bothwell, Manitoba native’s firing.

The loss was Doerksen’s second in a row since handing Tom Lawlor his second loss in a row in his Octagon return at UFC 113. He was submitted in his last bout at UFC 119 by C.B. Dollaway.

(Uncoachable? Who wouldda thunk it? PicProps: SBNation)

If we had to take a wild guess, we’d bet that the dudes from the American Kickboxing Academy have no problem being brutally honest with each other. Something about that particular facility’s blend of top-level MMA training and high concentration of amateur wrestlers leads us to believe this team as a whole will probably let you know when you need to clip your toenails, if the girl you’re dating ain’t all that or if you come to the gym wearing a faggy T-shirt. For that reason, we were not at all surprised that when MMA Junkie asked Javier Mendez this week about Josh Koscheck’s UFC 124 loss to Georges St. Pierre, the AKA trainer didn’t mince words.

"Josh fought crappy," Mendez told the Junkie. "He knows it. If we told him he fought great, we’d be lying. He didn’t do anything what he was supposed to do.”

(Video courtesy YouTube/GracieBreakdown)

If you were blitzed out of your mind on Zima Saturday night at Dave and Buster’s and you couldn’t wrap your head around how two solid black belts like Dustin Hazelett and Charles Oliveira were seemingly effortlessly submitted within the first three minutes of their respective UFC 124 lightweight bouts, the video above should shed some light on the subject for you.

As part of their ongoing "Gracie Breakdown" series, Rener and Ryron Gracie sat down and dissected how Mark Bocek set up the triangle-armlock he tapped Hazelett out with and the ankle lock-to-kneebar transition Jim Miller used to submit Oliveira with to hand the up-and-coming Brazilian his first MMA loss.

They also outline how both losers could have potentially defended and escaped the submissions.

Check out more Gracie Breakdowns after the jump.

(Lentil mash and tofu-rhubarb scramble for everybody! PicProps: UFC.com)

Mac Danzig came to the cage at UFC 124 bumping the Misfits – Ironic? Or just apropos? Hard to say – and looking like his face had aged a decade since the last time we saw him. Maybe it was just the new haircut or maybe the stresses of losing four of his last five while maintaining a sustainable and socially conscious lifestyle were finally getting to him. In any case, the most disappointing “TUF” champion this side of Kendall Grove bought his UFC career some bonus time on Saturday night, stupefying Joe Stevenson with a backpedalling left hook straight to the off switch just under two minutes into the first round. In the immediate aftermath, nobody looked more shocked that Danzig, who ran around the cage showing off the kind of genuine outpouring of emotion we’re not used to seeing from progressive yet earnestly straight-laced vegans.  

He’d pulled himself together by the time Joe Rogan tracked him down, claiming the knockout came via good old-fashioned videotape analysis of Stevenson’s striking attack. Danzig also credited the win to the fact that he’d “finally learned” how to throw his left hook with power. It’s always a little weird when a guy who’s been a pro-fighter for, oh, nine years says something like that. Anyway, we’re happy for the kid and, suffice it to say, there were some legitimate surprises on last night’s supporting card.

(Rub some dirt on it. PicProps: UFC.com)

Georges St. Pierre so totally outclassed Josh Koscheck at UFC 124 on Saturday night that it’s tempting to call his performance one of scariest five-round beatdowns of all time. Unfortunately, St. Pierre is too damn nice to ever be described as scary. In fact, one of the things that’s so great about GSP is that his very being invalidates all of the run-of-the-mill MMA clichés that so often lead us to refer to fighters as “savages” or “warriors” or some other such made-up bullshit. St. Pierre is a sportsman; a dude who has absolutely no qualms about beating your ass for as long as his job description requires, then sharing an awkwardly lengthy embrace with you inside the cage before getting on the mic and apologizing to the fans for not beating your ass even worse. Frankly, it’s impossible not to like the guy for it.

Just a reminder that we will have the stream of the UFC 124 post-fight presser here after tonight’s event. It should be live around 1:00 am ET, but check in after the broadcast ends as it may start a few minutes early.

Will Koscheck get Tito next?

Will GSP fight Jake Shields in Toronto in March?

Will the UFC finally match up Thiago Alves with Dan Hardy?

Did Dana try poutine?

All of these questions and more will be answered after the jump.

(Koscheck showing the Canadian customs agent his passport.)

Well, tonight’s the night we get to see if Josh Koscheck is full of shit or if he really has improved exponentially more than UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre has since the last time they met three years ago.

I find it interesting that in the UFC 124 previews the UFC is touting Kos as some kind of pugilistic wrecking machine when he has only won one fight by KO and two by TKO since 2006 and the guys he beat (Yoshiyuki Yoshida, Frank Trigg and Dustin Hazelett) aren’t exactly known for their durable chins.

If I had to make a surefire prediction for the main event bout, I’d say that Koscheck’s ego has not gotten over the fact that GSP, who didn’t even wrestle in high school, outwrestled a division one champion like him, and he will likely try to prove himself on the mat and not on the feet. 

It may have been a coincidence, but Kos’ American Kickboxing Academy teammate, Phil Baroni backed my inclination when he told us this week that the peroxided prick is a way better wrestler and that he will control the fight with his wrestling. I’m guessing that Baroni was around when the AKA coaches worked on implementing Kocheck’s game plan for the fight during training and may have included portions of it in his own prediction, kind of like his plethora of "borrowed" daily Twitter quotes he intertwines with his own personal NYBA witticisms.

Whatever the case may be, it should be interesting to see if GSP lets him execute anything before he puts his own strategy into motion.

Let’s get this thing going.

**SPOILERS AFTER THE JUMP**

(Good ol’ Sean McCorkle. Trolling to the bitter end. / Photo courtesy of the UFC 124: Weigh In pics gallery on CombatLifestyle.com)

UFC 124: St. Pierre vs. Koscheck II goes down tonight at the Bell Centre in Montreal, and CagePotato will be liveblogging the pay-per-view broadcast beginning at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT.  To help get you in the proper spirit, Ben Goldstein and Doug "ReX13" Richardson have returned to squabble over all the important storylines. Does Josh Koscheck have any chance at an upset? Are UFC fighters becoming boring overall? Which of UFC 124′s lightweights are dead weight? Who gives worse gambling advice, Ben or Doug? Do us a favor and slog through this painfully long column, then let us know your own thoughts in the comments section.

Assuming we both think GSP is going to rout Josh Koscheck on Saturday, what does Koscheck need to do to earn your respect in this fight?

BG: Well, he’ll have to avoid getting finished, first of all–

RX: Word.

BG: –and he’ll have to win at least one of the five rounds. That doesn’t seem like a lot to ask–

RX: HA!

BG: –but nobody’s been able to take a round from GSP since — wait for it — Josh Koscheck kind-of won the opening frame of their first meeting at UFC 74, over three years ago. Seriously. If Kos can avoid a 50-45 shutout on all three judges’ cards or an ugly TKO loss, he will have done better than Matt Hughes, Matt Serra (in their rematch), Jon Fitch, BJ Penn, Thiago Alves, and Dan Hardy. That would be a hell of an accomplishment.

So how can he pull it off? Koscheck only holds one real advantage over the champ: Punching power, which he’s used to flatten guys like Yoshiyuki Yoshida and Frank Trigg. Kos just needs to stuff St. Pierre’s takedown once in a while, and then put his fist on Georges’s chin, as he so confidently promised on TUF. A hard shot, well-placed, will wobble GSP — maybe enough to allow Josh to score a takedown of his own. Obviously, I don’t see that happening consistently in the fight, but if it even happens once, I will lose my shit.

THE REEM EPISODE 11: READY FOR THE K-1 FINAL from THE REEM on Vimeo.

- Bas Rutten meets with Munchie the agent (atom)

- Hannah Montana takes a bong hit and gets even more annoying (tmz)

- UFC suing Ubisoft for trademark infringement (middleeasy)

- Tito and Koscheck twitter war (ug)

- McCorkle uses interview to try to find his next wife (heavy)

- The video that prompted the Tito-Kos Twitter War (mmamania)

- 12 reasons why Dabney Coleman is the greatest actor of any generation (screenjunkies)

- Koscheck vs. Askmen V2.0 (askmen)

- Duffee’s MMA return set (fiveouncesofpain)

- Howard Stern signs 5-year contract extension with Sirius (mademan)

- Helwani vs. Dundas: UFC 124 edition (versus)

- UFC 124by the odds (mmafighting)

- Irina Shayk gallery (tuvez)

- Rashad-Shogun on track for March (mmajunkie)

- 25 Christmas-themed horror movies (holytaco)

Just a reminder that we will have the live stream of the weigh-ins for tomorrow night’s UFC 124 event in Montreal today at 4:00 pm ET.

Tune in and see if Josh Koscheck tries to goad GSP into slapping him in the face with a glove or, if Stefan Shruve presents Sean McCorkle with a copy of the winning Photoshop contest entry or if Edith Labelle is being brought in from the stable for one last trot around the Octagon..

Whatever happens, the Canadian fans should make it very hard to hear what the hell Joe Rogan is screaming.

As always, the UFC media player is after the jump.

(Be sure to pick up Georges St. Pierre’s new training video: "How to Use Your Unbelievable Explosiveness and Superior Genetics to Win Any Fight." PicProps: MMA Mania)

File this under: Must be nice. You know that dude Georges St. Pierre? Yeah, the guy so naturally athletically gifted that he’s managed to teach himself to be one of the best wrestlers in MMA, despite having no formal background in it whatsoever? The most dominant welterweight fighter on the planet today? Turns out that guy doesn’t really think that lifting weights and/or doing cardio will help you in a fight. 

"I don’t believe in strength and conditioning,” St. Pierre tells stand-up comedian/color commentator/MMA political action director Joe Rogan this week on the UFC’s “Ultimate Insider” show. “I never do strength and conditioning. I do not believe that running on a treadmill or doing I don’t know what … I don’t believe that’s going to help you have better cardio for a fight.”

Huh. We’re going to assume that what St. Pierre means to say is that he prefers sport-specific training like sparring and grappling drills in order to build his MMA skills and endurance. Still, not to over-simplify the message here, but this sounds suspiciously like Georges St. Pierre is saying the way to succeed in MMA is just to be Georges St. Pierre. Also, let us say for the record that lifting weights and doing conventional cardio probably will help you if you are, you know, a normal person. If you’re a mild-mannered French Canadian cyborg whose three great joys in life are kicking ass, finely tailored suits and pool parties, well, maybe the laws of science and nature just don’t apply to you.

Realizing that we forgot to touch on UFC 124 on last week’s episode of The Bum Rush, we put together a pretty decent little show for this week, which although it clocks in at just over 30 minutes, is packed from top to bottom with goodness.

In this episode, which could be argued is our pound-for-pound best, perennial Potato Nation favorite, Phil Baroni stops by to talk about a number of topics, including his upcoming UFC 125 bout with Brad Tavares, the fact that he’s one of the last old school brawlers and his thoughts on his American Kickboxing Academy teammate Josh Koscheck’s championship bout with Georges St-Pierre Saturday night.

Stefan Struve also checks in with the guys to discuss his online rivalry and UFC 124 heavyweight scrap with Sean McCorkle, how he got his start as a fighter, which fighter he looked up to growing up and much, much more.

If you don’t have iTunes you can download the show HERE.

If you haven’t done so already, please subscribe to the show on iTunes and spread the word about our marginally entertaining and somewhat informative Friday time wasting show.

As always, we appreciate any input — good or bad — about the show. Let us know if there are any segments or MMA personalities you want to see on future episodes.

(We were going to make a joke about how we were not impressed by your pool party performance, but we can’t lie. Totally impressed. PicProps: The Dragon Zone)

As of this writing, Josh Koscheck is set to go off as a 3-1 underdog in the UFC 124 main event, according to most odds makers. Suffice it to say, the guy is not the popular pick among fans or media types to defeat Georges St. Pierre when they climb into the cage this Saturday. With good reason: We’ve already seen this fight once before at UFC 79. St. Pierre won in fairly dominant fashion and went on to amass a seven-fight win streak, erasing any doubt as to who is King Shit of Fuck Mountain at 170-pounds. We have no real reason to believe this bout will be any different. So why am I not 100 percent confident? Because I’m the kind of pessimistic son of a bitch who always fears worst, that’s why.

Also, there legitimately are some things that I find troubling just days before this fight. Here are five of them  …

(Video courtesy YouTube/Bosh4ffl)

Just a friendly reminder that we will have the feed of today’s UFC 124: St-Pierre vs. Koscheck press conference from Montreal which will go live starting at 1:00 pm ET.

Will Josh Koscheck stop being a dick long enough to show an ounce of due respect to his opponent prior to their fight?

Will GSP let his guard down and tell Josh to go f*ck himself with a bottle of maple syrup?

Will Sean McCorkle attain Chael Sonnen’s title of best smack talker in the UFC?

All of these question and more will be answered this afternoon.

As always, the UFC media player is after the jump.

This Saturday, after a season of TUF that saw Georges St. Pierre and Josh Koscheck grow to like each other even less than they already did, the two welterweight stars will square off in the main event of UFC 124. St. Pierre will be attempting to make his fifth-consecutive title defense; GSP has been involved in 10 title fights in his UFC career, but this is just the first for Koscheck.

As you’re probably aware, St. Pierre and Koscheck squared off once before, in the co-headlining match of UFC 74 back in August 2007. St. Pierre had just lost his belt to Matt Serra in a monumental upset. Koscheck was riding a five-fight win streak, and had out-pointed Diego Sanchez four months prior.

Since that night, George St. Pierre has been undefeated and untouchable in six contests, flawlessly sweeping out the 170-pound division. Koscheck has gone 6-2, taking out some tough opponents in impressive fashion, but getting smacked down by a couple of Brazilians. And now, St. Pierre and Koscheck are going at it again. Which means it’s time to re-watch their first fight and see if we can get any perspective on this thing. Let’s begin…

("This thing used to be alive! LMFAO!" More Brock Lesnar hunting photos at Sherdog.)

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: Strikeforce vs. UFC (Versus MMA Beat)

- Georges St. Pierre: Emphasis in Camp Was on Finishing Josh Koscheck (MMA Fighting)

– "When the Pitbull Bites" – Thiago Alves Documentary/Highlight Video From KahL-One (MMA Scraps)

- Jim Miller Is Patiently Waiting For His Shot (Heavy.com/MMA)

– Maia, Bonnar Lead TUF 12 Finale Salary List (MMA Convert)

– James Toney Calls Out Rampage Jackson by Claiming He’s a ‘Black Redneck’ (MiddleEasy)

– Exclusive Interview: George Sotiropoulos ‘Moving in the Right Direction’ Heading Into Fight With Dennis Siver (LowKick)

– Season-Winner Jonathan Brookins Tops List of TUF 12 Finale Suspensions (Five Ounces of Pain)

– Behind the Lens: Vitor Belfort (FightMagazine)

– SB Nation Exclusive: Stefan Struve Talks Path To UFC, Sean McCorkle And St. Pierre vs. Koscheck (SBNation.com/MMA)

When Georges St-Pierre enlisted the help of revered boxing coach Freddie Roach, it demonstrated that the UFC welterweight champ is still continuing to work towards shoring up all of the weaknesses in his overall game. Having worked with Canadian Olympic boxers Otis and Howard Grant for most of his MMA career, most would assume that GSP had his boxing covered, but that’s why he’s a UFC champ any we’re all armchair fighters.

Roach, who revealed in the interview above with FightHubTV.com that St-Pierre asked him to be in his corner for his upcoming UFC 124 rematch with Josh Koscheck in Montreal but he had to decline due to commitments with other fighters, says that the French Canadian has all the tools to become a great pugilist.

"He told me that he thought he knew boxing until he met me. He’s improving all the time…His boxing ability is getting a lot better. He’s getting a lot looser. We tried to loosen him up. He’s not so tight like normal and he’s a great student. I show him something and next day, he’s got it pretty much down. I’d say, ‘Georges, how long did you practice that move in the mirror?’ and he’d look at me and say, ‘How did you know?’ ‘Come on,’ I said, ‘Nobody can improve that quickly.’ He’s a great student and a great guy; I wish him the best."

(Props: GollyIE)

…and just to get the taste of vomit out of your mouths, here’s the extended trailer for UFC 124: St. Pierre vs. Koscheck II (December 11th, Montreal). The supporting card looks very promising, but it’s sort of unfortunate that the other two fights being featured here are Thiago Alves vs. John Howard and Mac Danzig vs. Joe Stevenson — considering all four fighters are coming off losses. Meanwhile, UFC 124 will also host two fights featuring guys on the upswing: Jim Miller (five-fight win streak) vs. Charles Oliveira (undefeated wunderkind) and Sean McCorkle (mouthy Internet celebrity) vs. young veteran Stefan Struve, who he’s been beefing with for months.

Still, Thiago Alves gets the best line of the video: "When you’re fighting the Pitbull, it’s over. No afterparty for you." And GSP guarantees a stoppage victory. "Get in, get out, and leave," he says. "That’s what the crowd wanna see, and that’s what I wanna do."

("…and your breath smells like poutine and maple syrup.")

Sometimes it just seems like Josh Koscheck throws insults like darts at a dartboard hoping that one will hit its mark. 

In a recent interview with Fighters Only, the brash American Kickboxing Academy product lobbed another salvo at upcoming UFC 124 opponent, UFC welterweight champ Georges St-Pierre.

When asked by FightersOnly.com editor John Joe O’Regan about whether or not GSP is guilty of playing it safe like his much-maligned AKA teammate Jon Fitch has been criticized of doing for the majority of his fights, Koscheck said that he is and that the reason why is the same as what people have been pointing as being Brock Lesnar most glaring weakness: he doesn’t like getting hit.

"If you look at when little Matt Serra was on top of him pounding him, he tapped out. So I believe that Georges has quit in him and you just have to take him to that point," Koscheck explained. "Nobody has been able to do it since those two but I plan on doing it on December 11th.I believe he hasn’t been hit since Matt Serra. That was a good crack. His chin hasn’t been tested and I think Georges has quit in him. If you look at the first Matt Hughes fight where he arm barred him, he was tapping before it was even tight."

("Thank you for your opening statement, Mr. Miller. Mr. Diaz and Mr. Shields now have 30 seconds to present their rebuttal." PicProps: BuzzHollywood.com)

Even after a panel of world renowned experts weighed in last week to unanimously declare that Jake Shields still needs to prove himself worthy in the UFC’s 170-pound division, the company is not wavering in its plans to shoehorn him into a title shot against the winner of next month’s Georges St. Pierre vs. Josh Koscheck scrap. Shields now even says he’ll be cageside at UFC 124 in Montreal, pretty much ensuring that the UFC will tempt fate by having the Cesar Gracie jiu jitsu fighter enter the Octagon to confront the victor.

We all know what happened the last time the former Strikeforce middleweight champ was involved in a postfight altercation inside a cage. Bad things, man. Fortunately, if Shields decides to engage in a company-sponsored mean-mug competition after UFC 124 it will at least be at an event run by professionals, so the possibility of an encore performance of “Strikeforce: Nashville” is pretty slim. Especially since all parties involved will no doubt get a stern “Be cool, motherfuckers,” speech from Dana White prior to the show. Still, Shields was already teasing a heel turn during his recent interview with MMA Weekly …

(Forget it Dana. He’s coming with me to Hollywood.)

Jason MacDonald’s loss will be fellow Canadian Jesse Bongfeldt’s gain as the Kenora, Ontario native will now step in for "The Athlete" who was forced to pull out of his UFC 124 bout with Rafael Natal due to a re-injury to the leg he broke at UFC 113 in May.

The opponent change was revealed by Natal’s management group Dominance MMA who announced the news via Twitter and Facebook today.

12-1 in his last 13 outings, Bongfeldt (21-6), who is the former Rumble in the Cage and TKO champion has not lost since getting TKO’d by Jonathan Goulet in 2007. His biggest win saw him defend his TKO welterweight strap by tapping out submission specialist TJ Grant with an armbar in 2008 at TKO 32.

Bongfeldt took time off from fighting following the Grant bout in 2008 after the birth of his son and relocated back to Ontario from Calgary where he spent several years training alongside UFC veteran Jason Day at Canadian Martial Arts Centre under trainer Lee Mein.

(This is allegedly a picture of a pre-MMA Mac Danzig. Shame on Roy Nelson for biting his style.)

As first reported by MMA Mania, a lightweight meeting between Ultimate Fighter winners Mac Danzig and Joe Stevenson is likely for UFC 124: St. Pierre vs. Koscheck II (December 11; Montreal, Quebec, Canada).

After cruising through the sixth season of TUF as a welterweight, Danzig immediately dropped to lightweight and took out Mark Bocek at UFC 83. Since then, he’s gone 1-4 in the Octagon, most recently losing to Matt Wiman by a controversial technical decision. Danzig was scheduled to have a rematch with Wiman at UFC Fight Night 22, but had to withdraw due to injury. 

As for Joe Daddy, the TUF 2 welterweight winner could also use a ‘W’, as he’s coming off his unanimous decision loss to George Sotiropoulos at UFC 110. Stevenson was slated to take on Takanori Gomi at Jones vs. Matyushenko, but dropped out due to an injury of his own and was replaced by Tyson Griffin. Time for one TUF winner to get his shit together, and another to board the slow boat to palookaville…

(Where’s a loaded musket when you need one? Props: Fighters Only)

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…

– Josh Koscheck, Georges St-Pierre Get UFC 124 Hype Officially Underway at Press Conference in Montreal (MMA Fighting)

– Diaz, Thomson Top 211K Fighter Payroll For Diaz vs. Noons II (Heavy.com/MMA)

– SB Nation Exclusive: UFC 120′s Mike Pyle Reflects on His Career in MMA (Watch Kalib Run)

– Why Dan Hardy vs Carlos Condit Should Be the Headline Fight at UFC 120 (Five Ounces of Pain)

– Joseph Benavidez vs. Wagnney Fabiano Booked for WEC 52 (Versus MMA Beat)

- Nick Diaz: How Do These Guys Expect to Beat Me? [VIDEO](FightMagazine)

– Comeback "Gracie Style": Exclusive interview with Daniel Gracie (LowKick)

– Antonio Silva vs. Valentijn Overeem Official For Strikeforce ‘Henderson vs. Babalu’ (MMA Convert)

– Classic Fight: Royler Gracie vs. Genki Sudo @ K-1 MMA Romanex 2004 (MMA Scraps)

– Marloes Coenen Gets a Hero’s Welcome in Amsterdam (MiddleEasy)

Don’t forget to check out the feed for today’s UFC 124 press conference live from Montreal here at 1:00 pm ET.

Scheduled to be in attendance are UFC welterweight champ, Georges St-Pierre, number one welterweight contender, Josh Koscheck, UFC Director of Canadian Operations, Tom Wright,  and UFC president, Dana White.

They will likely be announcing the remainder of the card that is rumored for the December 11 show.

UFC 124
December 11, 2010 7:00 pm ET
Bell Centre – Montreal, Quebec

Welterweight Championship Bout
Georges St-Pierre vs. Josh Koscheck

Thiago Alves vs. John Howard
Jim Miller vs. Charles Oliveira
Dan Miller vs. Joe Doerksen
Ricardo Almeida vs. TJ Grant
Mark Bocek vs. Dustin Hazelett
Jason MacDonald vs. Rafael Natal
Stefan Struve vs. Sean McCorkle
Matt Riddle vs. Anthony Waldburger

UFC media player is after the jump.

(Hazelett could easily drop five pounds by shaving off his Unabomber beard.)

CagePotato.com has learned that Dustin Hazelett will return to lightweight for the first time since facing Diego Saraiva at that weight in 2007 to challenge another submission specialist at UFC 124.

According to sources close to the fight, "McLovin" will take on Canadian grappling standout Mark Bocek on the Montreal, Quebec card, which, although the event details have yet to be officially announced, will likely take place on December 11 at the Bell Centre.

(Rogan was right. That DOES look like a goat’s vagina.)

It looks like Mike Pierce won’t be getting the bone he wanted the UFC to throw him for earning his third Octagon appearance last weekend at UFC 118 against Amilcar Alves.

Yesterday Pierce called out Thiago Alves via Twitter and "The Pitbull" accepted the Washington native’s challenge, however the UFC had other plans for the American Top Team fighter who will now face John Howard at UFC 124 in Montreal on December 11.

The news was first reported by MMAJunkie this afternoon and we were able to confirm with a source close to Alves.

The fight may well be Alves’ last stab at remaining at welterweight after he failed to make weight for the second time in his UFC career, this time for an important number two contendership match-up with Jon Fitch at UFC 117 last month that would determine who was next in line for a shot at the winner of the Georges St-Pierre vs. Josh Koscheck bout, which is also slated for the December 11 card.

(I’m not impressed by your eyes-closed technique.)

Josh Koscheck will definitely not have the advantage of a bipartisan crowd on his side when he squares off against Georges St-Pierre two weeks before Christmas in the UFC welterweight champion’s hometown of Montreal, Quebec at UFC 124 on December 11. 

The news was first reported today by MMAFighting.com’s Ariel Helwani, who confirmed the venue and the match-up (which will be the culmination of the pair’s season as opposite coaches on The Ultimate Fighter 12) with UFC president Dana White.

(Pittsburgh?!? Those country rubes wouldn’t even know what to *do* with big-city action like this. PicProps: The new UFC.com)

It appears that neither Josh Koscheck nor Georges St. Pierre will get his wish regarding the locale for the pair’s Dec. 11 welterweight title fight. Both guys had previously expressed desires to hold the bout – which we assume will become a “heated grudge match” just as soon as Koscheck gets down to business being really annoying on “TUF 12” – close to home. GSP wanted Montreal. Koscheck wanted Pittsburgh. After the UFC recently opened an office in Toronto, it seemed the company might try to use this fight as its entre into the Forbidden City.

But with MMA still locked out of Ontario (tolerant, forward-thinking Ontario) UFC President  Dana White told the Sun newspaper this week that Pittsburgh just didn’t feel quite big-time enough for a championship fight of this magnitude. Next stop, everyone’s favorite home-away-from-home: Las Vegas.