(Photo courtesy of Combat Lifestyle.)

Quinton "Rampage" Jackson got himself a new tattoo to celebrate his win over Wanderlei Silva at UFC 92.  And look, it has a religious theme.  That’s…that’s good.  For those of you unfamiliar with Christianity, that’s Rampage’s The Lord’s Prayer inked on the old forearm there.  Just as long as he’s getting his eight hours of sleep a night and three squares a day, have at it, big guy.

Also, remember in the great article on Rampage in The Atlantic where David Samuels describes Jackson’s endearing habit of slapping people, just as a goof?  Seems like he’s still doing that.

(‘I’m so mad I could pull guard right now.’)

There’s no getting around it, Dean Lister had a bad, bad night against Yushin Okami at UFC 92.  His offense consisted of pulling guard, a few token efforts at striking, and takedown attempts that only became more half-hearted as the fight wore on.  Not surprisingly, he lost the decision, was showered with boos from the fans, and got his release from the UFC afterwards.  

Now Lister has posted a message to the UG apologizing to his fans and teammates:

Listen I had a very poor performance my last fight. Truth is that I let my team and my gym, my friends and definitely myself down for this fight. Its not only that I lost but I really showed a poor performance. I had a much better showing against Arona (even though that was only primarily a grappling fight that I lost) even in Pride who is a better fighter than Okami for sure. Things just didnt come together for me this fight. I trained so, so hard, I really trained hard but it didnt work out.

Nice, right?  He owns up to his poor performance, apologizes to the people he let down, but it doesn’t stop there:

 
Our highlight-video-making buddy Facey has launched a new site called FightFace, where he’ll be compiling the best MMA moments of every month into a single convenient clip. As far as source material is concerned, it doesn’t get much better than December 2008, which is the subject of Facey’s first installment. See above for the craziest stoppages from the TUF 8 finale, UFC’s "Fight for the Troops," WEC 37, UFC 92, and Fields Dynamite!! 2008. It’s an awesome project so keep your eye on it and show some support.

Also: If you don’t think it’s too early in the day to watch bikini-clad chicks gyrate at an MMA ring girl competition, you may want to watch the clip after the jump.

ESPN’s "MMA Live" crew talks with the winners from UFC 92, and Kenny Florian lends his voice to the growing criticism of referee Steve Mazzagatti, saying that he hopes Mazzagatti got some glasses for Christmas, since some of his calls have been dangerously late, calling it "a consistent thing" at around the 36:30 mark.  They also come to a consensus that C.B. Dollaway tapped against Mike Massenzio, though Florian calls it a good escape.

And in this Inside MMA preview, the gang recounts their favorite viewer emails, including one that leads Bas Rutten into a story about getting hit in the head with a spiked baseball bat.  Is it me, or does Rutten’s life pre-MMA stardom remind anyone else of a European version of "Road House?"

(Photo courtesy of MMA Weekly.)

Leading up to UFC 92, you may have heard some rumors that Frank Mir was battling injuries while preparing for his fight against Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. We didn’t put any effort into discussing it because hey, the dude was going to lose anyway, right? Turns out that’s exactly what Mir wanted you to think. As he explained on a recent installment of TAGG Radio, a little media misinformation goes a long way:

So apparently Mir was as healthy as he could have hoped to be, and certainly fought like he was in the best shape of his life. Big Nog, on the other hand, wasn’t as lucky. During an appearance on the Carmichael Dave show, Dana White let the cat out of the bag:

Sad but true. And Dana could be implying that Nog is suffering from other maladies that won’t clear up as easily as a staph infection. Unfortunately, there’s no cure for ten years of being punched in the head.

Semi-related: Following UFC 92 and Dynamite!! 2008, our heavyweight, lightweight, and pound-for-pound Power Rankings lists have been updated.

Fighter of the Year: Anderson Silva


Okay, so all the headlines weren’t positive for "The Spider" this year, but when the worst complaint you can lodge against a guy is that he acted like a jerk in toying with an outclassed challenger, you don’t have that much to complain about.  He’s still the most dominant force in the MMA universe, and that doesn’t seem like it’s going to change any time soon.

Beatdown of the Year: Fedor Emelianenko vs. Tim Sylvia

Fedor Emelianenko vs. Tim Sylvia – Watch more free videos

Thirty-six seconds.  That’s all it took for Fedor to dispatch a former UFC heavyweight champ and earn himself a ride on “the big rollercoasters” in southern California.  A more satisfying and complete destruction you shall rarely see.

Best Pre-Fight Ritual: The Jackson Camp Nipple-Tweak

Yeah, you’re going to look like a creep if you do it.  You’re also going to look like a creep who just spent six weeks in Greg Jackson’s gym and is now fixing to kick some ass.  Rashad Evans claimed UFC gold without it, but given its track record this little ritual probably isn’t going anywhere.

Worst Event: EliteXC Primetime

"That ear popped!"  When this is your main event, you already know you’re bullshit.  When it ends like this on live network TV, the rest of the world knows it too.

(Photo courtesy of UFC.com)

The UFC handed out $1,561,000 in disclosed salaries and bonuses for Saturday’s "Ultimate 2008" card, with the fighters in the three main events taking home the lion’s share. Quinton Jackson came out on top, adding a $100,000 win bonus and $60,000 Knockout of the Night bonus to his $225,000 base salary, while Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira came in second place simply on the basis of his meaty quarter-million-to-show payout. Complete figures are below: 

Quinton Jackson: $385,000 (includes $100,000 win bonus, $60,000 Knockout of the Night bonus)
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira: $250,000
Wanderlei Silva: $200,000
Rashad Evans: $190,000 (includes $65,000 win bonus, $60,000 Fight of the Night bonus)
Forrest Griffin: $160,000 (includes $60,000 Fight of the Night bonus)
Frank Mir: $90,000 (includes $45,000 win bonus)
Cheick Kongo: $90,000 (includes $45,000 win bonus)
Yushin Okami: $32,000 (includes $16,000 win bonus)
Antoni Hardonk: $28,000 (includes $14,000 win bonus)
CB Dollaway: $20,000 (includes $10,000 win bonus)

UFC 92 Video Blog – Watch more free videos

Even though Dana White is a millionaire with fancy cars and a private jet to fly around in, no material object seems to bring him as much pleasure as that shock pen.  He’s still pulling the prank at UFC 92, even on “Rampage” Jackson, who just wants to relax at Octagonside after knocking Wanderlei Silva senseless.  Come on, Dana.  Time and a place, man.

Skip to the 5:37 mark and you can actually see Dana White beginning to realize that Steve Mazzagatti is not a good ref.  He’s less adamant about it than those around him, but that is not the way a man who’s happy about what he’s seeing chews gum.

After the jump, episode two of "Arlovski 360," in which boxing trainer Freddie Roach lays out the game plan that  he thinks will beat Fedor Emelianenko.  It seems…optimistic.

("And when can I meet famous retard Kevin James?" Props to BloodyElbow.)

A few more stories coming out of the Octagon this weekend…

— The UFC has begun exclusive contract negotiations with Olympic gold-medalist judoka Satoshi Ishii, who attended Saturday’s event. Said Dana White: "Satoshi Ishii has the potential to be very successful in mixed martial arts…we look forward to helping him with his training, his career, and his eventual debut in a professional fight." Ishii reportedly planned on starting his MMA training with Fedor Emelianenko’s Red Devil team in St. Petersburg, Russia, but White talked him out of it, and encouraged him to train at Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas. White also suggested that the 238-pound Ishii drop down to light-heavyweight for his MMA debut.

— Following the kind-of-late stoppage of the Evans/Griffin fight, and the ludicrously late stoppage of the Kongo/Al-Turk fight, the UFC may no longer be requiring the services of referee Steve Mazzagatti.

— Though MMA fans are already clamoring for Evans vs. Jackson, Rampage would rather settle some business with Forrest Griffin first.

— At UFC 92′s post-event press conference, Dana White confirmed that Diego Sanchez vs. Joe Stevenson would indeed be the main event of UFC 95 (February 21st, London). Sorry, mates.

— Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira is open to a fight against Randy Couture. “It would be a nice match,” Nogueira said. "He lost his last fight, but he is still a legend." Likewise, buddy.

— The UFC is looking to return to Chicago in July.

— Of all the fighters who have left the UFC, the only one that Dana White regrets losing is Andrei Arlovski. Could he be welcomed back if this Affliction thing doesn’t pan out?

(Sonic Boooom!  Photo courtesy of NBC Sports.)

On my way through the MGM Grand to the arena on Saturday night I stopped near the food court to drink my coffee and affix my press credential.  A twenty-something guy saw the UFC logo around my neck and started talking to me about the fights, telling me what a huge Frank Mir fan he was and how he thought Mir was going to kill Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira.

“I don’t think so,” I said.  “I think Mir’s got the least chance to win of all the guys on the main card.”

“Really?” he said.

“Really,” I told him.  “But hey, if you think he’s going to win, put a bet down.  He’s going off at 3-1.  Although there’s a reason the odds are so high.”

“Yeah, no,” he said, making a face like I’d just told him Santa Claus wasn’t real.  “That’s okay.  Thanks.”

I don’t know who that guy was, or whether he reads Cage Potato (I assume he does, being both an English-speaker and an MMA fan), but I want to apologize to him.  My friend, I’m sorry.  Really, really, sorry.  I hope you, and to a lesser extent, Frank Mir, will forgive me.

Now that that’s out of the way, let’s see who’s up and who’s down after UFC 92 via the enjoyably arbitrary numerical ratings of the Potato Index.

(Rampage mean-mugs his way back to #2. Photo courtesy of the Las Vegas Sun.)

In the wake of UFC 92′s wild string of upsets, we’ve updated the light-heavyweight and heavyweight top ten lists in our Power Rankings section. Some notes:

— Rashad Evans takes the #1 spot at 205 pounds. The UFC’s light-heavyweight division is still a shark tank where almost any fighter could be the best on a given day, but I think Sugar has the skills to defend his belt at least once. Evans/Rampage could be epic; let’s hope it happens soon.

—Frank Mir jumps to #4 following back-to-back wins over the UFC’s two best heavyweights. That is just craaaaaazy. If Mir can beat Brock Lesnar a second time and unify the heavyweight title, it’ll be one of the most miraculous career comebacks in MMA history.

— I’d love to get some new blood into the bottom of the heavyweight list, but it’ll have to wait until Shane Carwin and Gabriel Gonzaga have their fight in March, or until Dave Herman, Antonio Silva, Alistair Overeem, or Sergei Kharitonov beat a highly-ranked opponent.

Head over to the rankings page to toss in your own opinions, and keep an eye on the lightweight list this week, as four of the top ten fighters will be competing in MMA matches at Fields Dynamite!! 2008 on New Year’s Eve.

(In some cultures, that’s considered a compliment. Props to IrishLew)

Following a shocking night of fights in which Quinton Jackson exacted revenge against his arch-nemesis, two new champions were crowned, and my sure-thing parlay bet was shit all over, the UFC handed out $60k bonuses to the following fighters…

Knockout of the Night: Quinton Jackson, obviously. Though eight of the Ultimate 2008′s ten fights ended in stoppages due to strikes (seven within the first two rounds), Rampage’s left-hook stiffening of Wanderlei Silva was a picture-perfect one-punch KO, and represented a dramatic return to form. Will Jackson/Griffin 2 be next?

Fight of the Night: Forrest Griffin and Rashad Evans for their light-heavyweight championship main event. After an even first round, Griffin found his groove, landing strikes with regularity and ending the second frame with an on-the-button superman punch. But Evans proved just how "athletic and explosive" he really is when he knocked Forrest to the ground in the third and finished him off with some devastating punches from the top — becoming the second consecutive TUF winner to hold the 205-pound strap.

Submission of the Night: Nobody, since no fight ended in a tapout. But hey, you don’t like that gay foreplay stuff anyway.

UFC 92 drew 14,103 spectators for an impressive (though not record-setting) live gate of $3.47 million.

(Photo courtesy of UFC.com)

The MGM Grand is abuzz as the start time for UFC 92 closes in.  Tapout t-shirts flood the casino floor and bored girlfriends in halter-tops linger near the slot machines, popping their gum and sipping Michelob Ultras as part of their continued vigilance against carbs.  Truly, it is a magnificent scene.  And though it may not be officially the main event, all over town you can hear people talking about Wanderlei Silva and “Rampage” Jackson.  The consensus seems to be that short of one man growing wings and flying out of the Octagon, nothing that happens in this fight will be too great a surprise.  That’s how volatile and unpredictable it is.

Your favorite liveblogger is live and on the scene at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, so stick with me all night for news, results, wisecracks and analysis.  Prelims are scheduled to get started at around 5:15 PST.  If you’re holding out hope of seeing Antoni Hardonk and Mike Wessel broadcasted tonight, you might want to skip over that so as not to have it spoiled for you.  Or not.  Your choice.

I would remind you to hit refresh often, but you already know to do that.  You sharp devil, you.

Spend some quality family time with Dana White over the holidays.  Long story short, Dana White loves a good prank.  Even the same prank.  Over and over again.  Also, Dana White is riiiiiiiich.  So who’s going to get pissed?  Not Rashad Evans, apparently.

Weigh-in video is after the jump.

Wanderlei Silva and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson couldn’t just get up on the scales and call it a night.  Nope, there had to be a little extra curricular activity, just to further steal the show with their third fight.

It was an intense staredown to begin with after each man made weight at the MGM Grand this afternoon.  The two were nose to nose when Jackson said something that the microphones didn’t pick up, but it must have been naughty because Silva shoved him immediately.  If you want my guess, Rampage was pulling out one of his old bad breath jokes.  Silva has struggled long and hard with gingivitis, and dental stuff in general is a sensitive topic for him.  

Dana White quickly got between them, followed by almost everyone else on the stage, just to play up the drama.  I tell you, it was enough to make you miss Pride.

The rest of the weigh-in went smoothly and predictably.  Frank Mir got booed.  Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Forrest Griffin both got very warm welcomes.  And all fighters made weight (though Dean Lister did have to strip down to hit 186).  The only other excitement was Cheick Kongo pulling the seventh-grade bully move of faking a lunge at Mostapha Al Turk during their staredown.  To his credit, Al Turk didn’t flinch.  Looks like Kongo won’t get those two free punches he was hoping for.

Full weigh-in results are after the jump.  Don’t forget that we’ll be liveblogging all the action Saturday night, so tune in early and often.

(Junior Dos Santos spars with Mauricio Rua at the Team Nogueira gym in Rio.)

Even though we’ve been pretty much off the clock since Tuesday, and didn’t post any actual news, you honestly didn’t miss much. But let’s get you up to speed…

– Junior dos Santos, the Team Nogueira heavyweight who scored a shocking upset knockout of Fabricio Werdum during his UFC debut in October, will meet new UFC signee Stefan Struve at UFC 95 (February 21st, London). Struve is a Dutch fighter whose 16-2 record includes 12 wins by submission.

– Cristiane "Cris Cyborg" Santos has signed a one-fight deal with Canadian MMA organization XMMA, and will fight at their February 27th event against an opponent to be named later. (Don’t get your hopes up, it won’t be Carano.)

– Though MMA competition is currently banned in Ontario, the UFC will be pushing hard to do a stadium event in Toronto in 2009.

– Frank Mir is openly bitching about how he has to go five rounds tomorrow night. Don’t worry, buddy, we’re sure Big Nog will be kind enough to sub you before the fourth.

– Satoshi Ishii is a total UFC mark.

– WEC bantamweight Will Ribeiro, who suffered a serious head injury during a motorcycle accident in Brazil, is starting to make some recovery. According to Ribeiro’s manager Ed Soares, "the doctor seems very hopeful." 

– Sherdog is infecting your computer with spyware and adware.

If big, beaming smiles were an indicator of mental health, then Dana White’s latest video blog stands as proof that Quinton Jackson is fully recovered and ready to rock. Unfortunately, that’s not always the case. In this clip, DW checks in with UFC 92′s marquee fighters before a press conference on Monday, including Rashad Evans, who is apparently dressing for the job he wants rather than the job he has. We also learn that Dana can never sleep in Japan ("oh, fuck no"), ‘Page and Wandy find endless amusement in bodybuilder underwear, and Brock Lesnar still can’t deal with modern technology. Later, Dana shows off some of his totally sweet Christmas gifts, introduces us to Arianny Celeste’s sister (!), and has his bald head markered up by a mischievous Lorenzo Fertitta. But don’t worry: He gets his revenge by electrocuting an underling. Merry Christmas!

After the jump: Highlights from the aforementioned press conference, courtesy of ESPN.

(‘You seem like a nice boy.  It’s a shame what Rashad is going to do to you.’)

Merry Christmas, Potato Nation.  In the spirit of giving, we present to you our customary pre-event face-off.  It was either this or a gift card to The Pottery Barn.  So, you know, you’re welcome.  Enjoy the holiday, and all the best to you and yours.  Don’t forget that we’re back on schedule tomorrow and liveblogging UFC 92 on Saturday.  Doin’ work, son.  

Exactly when and how will the three marquee fights end?

BG: Let’s start with the easy one. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira subs Frank Mir via armbar at 2:52 of round 3. And it’s not just because he has better jiu-jitsu and can absorb more damage. He will win because that’s how the TUF 8 story ends. It is written: Big Nog represents everything that is good and pure about this sport, while Mir is the cocky John Kreese–like asshole who didn’t care that the house pranks were interrupting Efrain Escudero’s sleep. (Monster!) Minotauro is going to beat Mir standing for the first two-and-a-half rounds, and then an ill-advised takedown attempt from Mir during the third will blow up in his face, leading to the submission win for Nogueira. We need this to happen, just like we need Lesnar vs. Nog for the real heavyweight title.

If Forrest Griffin can stick to the game plan he had against Rampage — playing it smart and safe, but pouncing when there are opportunities — he’ll beat Rashad Evans in a split decision. Here’s a fun stat: Evans has never won a unanimous decision in the UFC, even though five of his eight Octagon appearances have gone the distance. I’m not saying that judges don’t like him (although who knows, maybe they don’t), but it may suggest that if a fight goes to the scorecards, it’s because he wasn’t able to dominate his opponent. Also, Rashad’s never gone five rounds — Griffin has been there before.

Finally, Wanderlei Silva beats Quinton Jackson via unanimous decision in UFC 92’s Fight of the Night. It’s a difficult outcome to predict because of all the variables separating Silva/Jackson III from the previous two installments but Silva definitely has the advantage. I’m going to give Rampage the benefit of the doubt and say he’s eating normally this week, rather than following his occasional fasting/hallucinating routine. And while Wolfslair might not be the most acclaimed MMA camp in the world, the friendly and nurturing environment he’s found there will give him the confidence he needs to not perform like a shambling wreck. Jackson might get beaten to a pulp, but he won’t be knocked out.

BF: I’ve been racking my brain trying to think of some way Mir might win, just to be contrary, and I’ve got nothing.  He definitely won’t sub Big Nog.  He doesn’t have the cardio or the faith in himself to outpoint him over the course of five rounds.  And if Mir becomes the first person to knock Nogueira out there’s simply nothing left for me to believe in.  Nog submits Mir via rear naked choke at 3:55 of round two.  That’s that.

(Strictly business, baby. Photo courtesy of Combat Lifestyle’s UFC 92 press conference album.)

Important: With the holidays now upon us, our posting will be lighter than usual as we pause to get reacquainted with our estranged families.  But have no fear, Potato Nation, as we have some Christmas Eve and Christmas Day treats planned, then we’re back to semi-normal on Friday.  Naturally, we’ll also be liveblogging UFC 92 on Saturday night, so don’t wander off.

And now, some betting odds for your gambling pleasure, courtesy of the Venetian sportsbook (via Yahoo!).

Rashad Evans +110 v. Forrest Griffin -140
Frank Mir +300 v. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira -400
Quinton Jackson +110 v. Wanderlei Silva -140
Mike Massenzio +150 v. C.B. Dollaway -180
Mostapha Al Turk +250 v. Cheick Kongo -330
Dean Lister +220 v. Yushin Okami -300
Mike Wessel +300 v. Antoni Hardonk -400
Reese Andy +180 v. Matt Hamill -220
Brad Blackburn +130 v. Ryo Chonan -160
Dan Evensen +130 v. Pat Barry -160

Thoughts…

Dana White’s UFC 92 Video Blog, Ep. 1 – Watch more free videos

The Dana White pre-event video blog returns…kind of.  As White breathlessly explains at the onset, he’s been busy.  So instead of a real video blog covering his event week activities, he’s starting us off with some behind-the-scenes stuff from the Spike TV video game awards.

Highlights here include a meet and greet with Mike Tyson, who almost seems ready to say something to Nogueira about Frank Mir until he’s alerted that Mir is standing right behind him.  Then it’s on to that awkward portion of the evening when an LL Cool J performance turns into a UFC 92 promo.  In case you were wondering whether it was as weird and stilted live as it was on TV, this video clearly answers that question from one of the worst seats in the house — right behind the guy who really loves LL Cool J. 

It’s like it doesn’t matter where you go, whether it’s the movies or an awards show, that guy is always there, standing just in front of you and shouting "Mama said knock you out!"

(Yeah, that’s a dragon on his t-shirt. Go ahead and say something and get your ass whipped right here in baggage claim.)

Rashad Evans is a unique case among UFC fighters.  He’s undefeated, a former Ultimate Fighter winner, and now stands one victory away from claiming UFC gold.  And yet he’s still far from a fan favorite, despite his recent brutal knockout of Chuck Liddell and his rise through the light heavyweight ranks.

With his title shot just a few days away, Evans talks with us about dealing with the criticism, gameplanning for Forrest Griffin, and yes, even the Greg Jackson camp nipple tweak.

CagePotato.com: Thanks for talking with us, Rashad.  Now that fight night is closing in, how has your training camp been?

Training has been good.  I feel really strong and I’ve had a great camp.  I’ve had guys like James McSweeney, Georges St. Pierre, Nate Marquardt, Joey Villasenor and lots of others in here helping me.  With guys like that you can’t help but have a good training camp.

Your fight with Forrest is being billed as the explosive athlete (you), against the hard worker (Forrest).  What do you think of that characterization?

I can see how people would say that, yeah.  But I think there’s aspects of both those things in each of us.  I think I might be a little better natural athlete, but he can also be a real explosive fighter.  And it’s not like I don’t work hard, either.  I’m not going in there with any expectations of him in that regard.  He’s the champ right now, and you don’t get to be the champ if you’re not a good, explosive fighter.

In our recent talk with him, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson said it wasn’t his idea to take on Wanderlei Silva in his first fight back in the UFC since losing his title in July.  The fight he asked for?  A rematch with Forrest Griffin.  The UFC, apparently, had other plans for him.

“Fighting is my job.  That’s how I look at it. I didn’t ask for Wanderlei.  I wanted a rematch with Forrest.  But I don’t get to pick my fights.  I fight the ones they give me, and they’re giving me Wanderlei.”

After everything that’s happened, Rampage seems more convinced than ever that he deserved to win the fight against Griffin.

“I still think I won that fight.  I was the champ, and I think I did enough in that fight to stay the champ.  You’re supposed to have to take the title away from the champion, and he didn’t do that.  Even though it goes down on my record as a loss, I feel like I won that fight.

“I don’t see how anyone could give him that first round.  I don’t know how a guy can get dropped and win the round.  The judges must have been picking their noses or something, but I still feel like I won.”

(Pride Final Conflict, 11/9/03)

If you’re like us, then those ESPN hype videos for Rampage-Wandy III at UFC 92 only aroused your appetite for destruction.  Might as well go back in time and look at how it played out.  Above is their first meeting.  Fight number two (with some of those crafty Fox Sports Net edits) is after the jump.  But only a fool believes that the fighters we see in these videos are the same exact ones we’ll see next Saturday night, and you aren’t a fool, are you?

Here are five variables to take into account when trying to predict the outcome of the third meeting:

1. Change of Camps: While Silva came to America to train, Jackson left.  Now Wanderlei is running around a converted warehouse in Las Vegas with a snorkel in his mouth and "Rampage" is over in England grab-assing with the Wolfslair.  We’ve seen Silva in action since relocating, and he looked good against Keith Jardine, but the jury’s still out on Jackson’s new crew.

2. Mind Games: Let’s be honest, no one knows for sure what’s going on in ‘Page’s head these days.  He’s had a rough few months, and now he has to fight a guy who’s knocked him out twice.  Everyone wants to see if Jackson still has his wits about him.  Either the pressure will elevate his game, or crack him like an egg.

(Props: MMA Scraps)

Anybody else psyched that Jackson/Silva III is just eight days away? Sure, it could be a one-sided stomping like their first two matches, but their upcoming meeting at UFC 92 has serious heat behind it. It’s no made-up storyline — these guys genuinely dislike each other. In the ESPN clips above, Rampage says that Wanderlei was lucky in PRIDE, but he hasn’t looked lucky in a while. He wishes Silva a good Christmas, because he isn’t going to be too happy come New Year’s. Silva, for his part, is upset with all of Jackson’s Internet-hatin’, which he doesn’t consider "a man’s attitude."

After the jump, fellow UFC 92 competitor Frank Mir works on rubber-guard techniques with the very-excitable Eddie Bravo. If Mir manages to catch Big Nog with one of these subs next weekend, Joe Rogan will not be able to stop screaming.

(Mustapha Al-Turk vs. Mark Kerr, Cage Rage 20, 2/10/07)

There are so many marquee names on the UFC’s year-end card (December 27th, Las Vegas) that the three heavyweights who will be stepping into the Octagon for the first time could get lost in the shuffle. So let’s take a quick look at the dudes who will be fighting for a slice of recognition during their UFC debuts at #92…

MUSTAPHA AL-TURK (HW)
Experience: 6-3 record, with all wins by first-round stoppage due to strikes. Last seven fights were in the now-defunct Cage Rage, where he won their British heavyweight title. Most recently defeated James McSweeney via TKO at Cage Rage 27 in July.
Will be facing: Cheick Kongo (12-4-1, 5-2 UFC)
Lowdown: Al-Turk was originally supposed to be fed to Cain Velasquez, but a knee-injury forced Velasquez to pull out of the bout. A member of the London Shootfighters camp, Al-Turk won the ADCC European Trials in 2005, but lost his first-round match at the World Championships to Gabriel Gonzaga. His solid takedowns and ground-and-pound could create serious problems for Kongo, a standup fighter without a strong ground game.

MIKE WESSEL (HW)
Experience: 8-1 record in various midwestern/southern regional leagues (15-1 including amateur fights). Most recently submitted Aaron Winterlee at a Subzero Fighting event in August.
Will be facing: Antoni Hardonk (7-4, 3-2 UFC)
Lowdown: A late replacement for Mark Burch, who had to pull out of his fight against Hardonk due to undisclosed reasons, Wessel trains with TUF 8 footnote Roli Delgado at Westside Kickboxing and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in Little Rock, Arkansas. He’s a former strength and conditioning coach for the University of Arkansas; his website also says he’s a former pro football player. We’ll see if that’s enough to stand up to Hardonk’s notoriously brutal leg-kicks.

(Wandy stays ready, so he ain’t got to get ready.)

Now that we’re done with The Ultimate Fighter for a little while we can finally turn our attention to the stacked UFC 92 card at the end of the month.  With two titles (okay, one title and one “interim” thing) up for grabs, as well as the return of “Rampage” Jackson against arch-nemesis Wanderlei Silva, I’m looking forward to this event the way I used to look forward to Christmas until a couple years ago when I found out there was no Santa Claus.  It was my dad, all along.  You believe that shit?  No wonder my presents were always stained with bourbon and tears.    

UFC light heavyweight champ Forrest Griffin made a rare prediction for the event in an interview with MMA Fanhouse.  No, not a prediction for his own fight.  The way Griffin talks sometimes, he seems to think everyone’s a better fighter than he is (when asked if he thinks he deserves to mentioned along with guys like Anderson Silva and Fedor Emelianenko, he responded, “Fuck no,” which is accurate but still a little sad). But he did make a prediction for the Wanderlei-Rampage fight:

Oddsmakers would seem to kind of agree with Griffin, but with some picking Wanderlei as a slight favorite and some pegging it even, nobody seems entirely sure of anything in this fight.  Just to make things even more interesting, I suggest the UFC officially dub this a loser-goes-crazy bout.  Either that or a loser-grows-hair fight, and that just doesn’t offer the same immediate payoff.

Hey, welcome back! Did you have a nice holiday? Well, you didn’t come here to talk about your mom’s stuffing. Let’s start the work-week off right with some Rampage vs. Wandy video-hype. Above is an original HL by MMA Scraps, which shows how their first two meetings went down in PRIDE — including some great behind-the-scenes footage of ‘Page dropping multiple MF-bombs — and what the two fighters have been up to since then (i.e., destroying people). As you’ll see, Jackson blames his first loss against Silva on not being able to breathe because of a cold; similarly, he now blames his first PRIDE loss against Kazushi Sakuraba on being poisoned.

But in the Telegraph UK interview video below, Jackson acknowledges that his past defeats at the hands of the Axe-Murderer were only due to him being "a terrible fighter." Of course he believes that he’s improved a great deal since those two ugly losses — though we already know how Wandy thinks the third fight will end. Silva/Jackson III co-headlines UFC 92 (December 27th, Las Vegas).

CagePotato reader Facey sent us this rather sick-ass highlight video that he made, featuring some of the greatest MMA submissions ever, starring Shinya Aoki, Dustin Hazelett, "Jacare" Souza, Frank Mir, Rumina Sato, Anderson Silva (both giving and receiving), and both Diaz brothers. Easy-breezy soundtrack provided by Donavan. 

 
(Props: Bloody Elbow)

In this promo clip for UFC 92, light-heavyweight champ Forrest Griffin discusses his opponent Rashad Evans and what challenges he might present. It’s clear that Griff isn’t underestimating Sugar whatsoever. As he says, "He’s got more knockouts than I do. And his knockouts have been impressive. Like, people-don’t-get-up-right-away knockouts." Speaking of Forrest Griffin, his September 2003 IFC fight with Chael Sonnen is after the jump, courtesy of MMA Scraps.

(Wanderlei Silva makes the most of his recess time.  Check out the full gallery from "The Axe Murderer’s" training session at Combat Lifestyle.)

Ricky Hatton’s conditioning coach says "Rampage" Jackson will be in the best shape of his life for UFC 92, but get a look at Wanderlei Silva, who also seems to have upped his game since relocating to Las Vegas.  Could the third meeting between these two old foes be the best one yet?

Well, some of that will depend on whether Rampage decides to fast before the fight or not (personally, I recommend eating food), and whether Silva still has his number in the Thai clinch.  But seeing both these guys revolutionize their training and diet before their third fight just goes to show how far the sport has come in the last few years: from guys known only to hardcore fans, training at obscure gyms, to TMZ-caliber celebrities and world class athletes with the best coaches and playground equipment money can buy.

Rampage had better be training just as hard as Silva is.  Beyond just showing up in good shape, he’ll need some extra help to get over the psychological hurdles if he’s going to beat the man who put him face-first through the ropes four years ago.  Something tells me "The Secret" just ain’t gonna do it.

UFC welterweight Jon Fitch stopped by Mythbusters last week to help the gang test the idea that a person could realistically escape a live burial Kill Bill-style by punching their way out of the coffin then crawling upwards through six feet of dirt. You can check out the full episode here. Spoiler alert: This myth is quite busted.

And here’s 30 seconds of hype for “Ultimate 2008,” which goes down December 27th in Las Vegas — only on pay-per-vyoooooo.

After the jump: Video of Joe Calzaghe’s triumph over Roy Jones Jr. in their light-heavyweight championship boxing match on Saturday at Madison Square Garden.