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'Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Rogers' Intro Video — No Empire Lasts Forever

ben — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 17:22:41 +0000

(Props: shosports via Bloody Elbow)

Behold, the opening video for tonight's broadcast of Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Rogers (CBS, 9 p.m. ET/PT). As Strikeforce doesn't have the rights to show clips from Emelianenko's last two Affliction fights, we have to settle for a montage of Sherdog photos soundtracked by Mauro Ranallo's high-pitched re-enactments. But we do dig the Citizen Kane-esque shots of Fedor perched in this throne in the middle of a broken-down warehouse. Is Rogers ready to take the crown. Or will his coup attempt end in a humiliating public execution?

Not that it matters much, but Emelianenko/Rogers will in fact be contested for Emelianenko's WAMMA heavyweight title. Said Vadim Finkelchtein: “Recognizing Fedor as the undisputed WAMMA heavyweight champion means that Fedor is the world champion wherever and whenever he fights.” Suck it, Overeem.

After the jump: Footage from yesterday's Fedor vs. Rogers weigh-ins, courtesy of MMA Fanhouse.

Videos: Tito Ortiz Is Ready to Bring the Poundage, GSP Awaits His Next Challenge

ben — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:15:14 +0000

(Props: valetudows via MMA Mania)

He's back, and he wants his belt back. In this UFC 106 promo clip, Tito Ortiz says he plans on rebuilding himself towards the light-heavyweight title one fight at time, starting with his upcoming rematch against Forrest Griffin. "Can he withstand the pound...and pound...and poundage that I'm gonna do on him?" Ortiz asks in his usual eloquent style. "I ain't lookin' for submissions, I'm gonna look for hurtin' him." Probably the most interesting part of this clip is the footage at 1:36-1:46 of Griffin storming out of the Octagon following his loss to Anderson Silva, which wasn't shown in the original UFC 101 broadcast; Ortiz didn't think that was too cool, by the way. At the end, Tito stares into the camera, breaking the fourth-wall: "I'm willing to die for my cause. Are yuh?"

Brett Rogers Does "First Take," ESPN Reporter Butchers Fedor's Name

bfowlkes — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 18:38:56 +0000

Okay, Dana Jacobson of ESPN. We know you're not an MMA reporter, so the sight of Fedor Emelianenko's name on the teleprompter was probably pretty jarring. But seriously? Umalenenko? How do you look at a name that starts with an E, contains no U's, and come up with that? You didn't want to maybe ask someone beforehand how it was pronounced? Brett Rogers was sitting right there, and chances are he's heard the name enough by now to help you out, even though "The Grimm" is too much of a goddamned gentleman to make you feel bad about it.

If you saw the "Fight Camp 360" episode, there's really no new information on Rogers here, but it is interesting to listen to him talk about fighting Fedor as if he is not an extreme underdog. I can't decide if he just needs to tell himself that it's going to be as simple as going in there and banging, or if he truly believes it. He says he has no other option but to win, and yet almost no one expects him to. If he does pull it off, could this be the greatest upset in MMA history?

Semi-related: Yeah, Strikeforce and CBS are putting a lot into promoting the Fedor/Rogers bout, and this ESPN appearance is proof of that, but what about the other fights on the card? That's exactly what Ariel Helwani and I discussed, among other topics, on this week's roundtable discussion over at MMA Fanhouse. Be a doll and check it out, won't you?

In Case You Missed It — "Fight Camp 360: Fedor vs. Rogers"

ben — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 14:12:02 +0000

(Props: sports.sho.com)

For Brett Rogers, the challenge on Saturday will be to strip away the myth from Fedor Emelianenko and approach him like he's any other man. Which he is, of course. Fedor, as we saw last night on Fight Camp 360, is just a guy who loves his family and God, who works out in a community gym alongside schoolchildren, who still lives in the small mining town he grew up in, who enjoys a good oak-twig whipping in a Russian sauna. It's unnerving how normal Fedor is. His priest/BFF, Father Andrey, says: "You can feel the kindness come out of him, and when you communicate with him, you are being charged by his kindness." Really? Are we talking about the same guy who did this to Gary Goodridge?

Strikeforce Video Hype: Fedor's Sweater Relaxes in Russia, Mayhem Prepares for His Masterpiece + More

ben — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 21:43:13 +0000

(Props: M1mixfight)

Letting Jerry Millen and his D-bag friend Ron introduce this footage of Fedor Emelianenko kickin' it in Stary Oskol may be an immediate buzzkill, but stick with it and you'll catch the Glorious Sweater of Absolute Victory paying its respects at church and settling down for a nice cup of tea. Hopefully tonight's episode of Fight Camp 360 will shed a little more insight on where the sweater came from and what it might want from us.

Must-See: Marius Zaromskis Gets the Genghis Con Treatment

bfowlkes — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 18:43:12 +0000

You know you're somebody in the world of mixed martial arts when A/V genius Genghis Con makes you the subject of one of his mesmerizing videos. That's why we're still waiting for that highlight reel featuring clips of us sitting at our computers to the tune of obscure Japanese pop bands (and we won't wait forever, Genghis), but in the meantime we can entertain ourselves with some of the Con's most recent work on new Strikeforce signee Marius "The Raging Demon" Zaromskis. It's everything we've come to expect from our favorite video editing machine. The video game-esque music is the perfect compliment to Zaromskis' ridiculous string of head kick KO's, and nothing tells you that the guy has a Street Fighter II-like overconfidence in himself quite like the attempted backflip attack at the 2:37 mark.

Not that we can't understand the reasoning behind it, but we're still a little disappointed in the change of nickname for Zaromskis. Sure, "The Whitemare" is the kind of thing that might not play in the U.S., but at least it's unique. "Raging Demon" sounds like a skateboard company started by a group of guys who dropped out of community college. The very least Strikeforce could do is to give him a nickname that is as quirky and uncommon as his last one, even if he ends up hating it as much as Gegard Mousasi despises his.

Videos: Gomi, Sato from Vale Tudo Japan 2009

bfowlkes — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 17:15:08 +0000

(Rumina Sato vs. Cory Grant, 10/30/09)

You may have been too busy putting the finishing touches on your half-assed pop culture-referencing costume to notice, but Takanori Gomi was one of several Japanese MMA fighters to get back into action at Vale Tudo Japan 2009 in Tokyo this past weekend. The event also included Rumina Sato, who you see in the above video effectively using those pesky leg kicks to soften up Cory Grant before putting him away, and Takeshi Inoue, who dispatched former Shooto champ Alexandre Franca Nogueira with strikes in the fourth round.

Video of Gomi's five-round battle with American Tony Hervey is after the jump. It's a pretty fun little scrap, and definitely worth watching.

Rising Welterweight Star Marius Zaromskis Signs With Strikeforce

ben — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 13:42:35 +0000

(All hail the new Cro Cop. Props: lqdocelot19)

Dream Welterweight Grand Prix champion Marius Zaromskis — who recently scored his third-straight first-round head-kick knockout at Dream.12 — has signed a multi-fight contract with Strikeforce, according to Sherdog. The 29-year-old Lithuanian will still be able to compete in Dream, but could make his U.S. debut at Strikeforce's December 19th event in San Jose. As you can see on Strikeforce.com's fighters section, Zaromskis's awesome but slightly-racially-tinged nickname "The Whitemare" has been changed to the more generic (but still appropriate) "Raging Demon."

It's a fantastic pickup for Strikeforce, which has been basically waiting for Nick Diaz to get his shit together before they can crown somebody their welterweight champ, to the great disgust of Jay Hieron. Now, Zaromskis can take on Hieron for the vacant belt if Diaz continues to act squirrelly, or kick the crap out of someone like Joe Riggs to establish himself in America first. More to come...

KO of the Day: Russian Sambo Fighters Play For Keeps

bfowlkes — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 22:37:15 +0000

Fighter Knocked Out by Brutal High Kick - Watch more Funny Videos

It takes about fifty seconds for this Sambo match to get started, but once it gets underway it isn’t long before someone catches the old head kick express bound straight for Concussionville. Once there he’ll be greeted by Mayor Memory Loss and the fine gentleman from the Chamber of Commerce, Mr. Brainbleeding. Come, let them take you on a tour of the town, from the Vertigo River to the Migraine district. Okay, this flight of fancy has officially gone too far, but I could only stare at the computer screen trying to come up with a Yakov Smirnoff Soviet Russia joke for so long before something in me just snapped.

The point is, they don’t play around in Sambo. Not only do you get dropped on a hard surface after your brutal head kick KO, you wake up to the sound of polite applause while some guy holds your feet in the air. I think I’ll stick with grappling tournaments, thanks.

Videos: Tito Ortiz and Forrest Griffin Discuss Their UFC 106 Rematch

ben — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 20:31:14 +0000

(Props: SNETCF)

With UFC 106 poppin' off in three weeks, it's time for the replacement headliners to start selling their match. In the above video, Tito Ortiz talks about going from a wrestling-based training camp for Mark Coleman to switching things up for Forrest Griffin. He says that main event status is comfortable for him, and that the pressure is on Forrest. And of course, he takes time to dump some hate onto his old nemesis Lyoto Machida for running his way to a "robbery" decision against Shogun Rua last Saturday: "Step up and be a man and fight, man. This is MMA, this is not boxing where you win by points...I'm going to look for a knockout, or I'm just gonna look to hurt [Griffin]. My job is to prevail and to make sure I entertain the fans who watch."

After the jump: A somewhat less focused interview with Forrest Griffin, in which he and Ron Frazier touch on Griffin's refusal to wear condoms, to the great disgust of Todd Duffee.