(Props: Bloody Elbow)

As the story goes, Thomas Edison was once asked about his thousands of failed experiments in developing the storage battery, to which he replied: "I have not failed, I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work." That quote has always reminded me of the cinematic output of action-movie auteur Hector Echavarria, who has directed, written, and/or starred in such movies as Confessions of a Pit Fighter, Never Surrender, and Death Warrior, all of which are about retired martial artists forced to compete in underground fighting leagues.

Hector’s latest effort is Unrivaled, which goes directly to DVD later this year. As you can see from the trailer above, there’s the requisite mob-shakedown angle, the cameos by UFC stars, and the Superman punches — my God, so many Superman punches — but Unrivaled breaks with tradition by being about an above-ground fighting league that the main character enters by choice. Has Echavarria finally created an MMA movie that’s actually worth renting? Much like the desperate fighters he plays in his movies, the odds are stacked against him…

UFC 110 (February 20th, Sydney) will be headlined by a heavyweight clash between MMA legend Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and undefeated contender Cain Velasquez. While Big Nog respects Cain’s wrestling ability and relentless pace, he’s confident in his vast experience advantage and says he’s still improving all parts of his game. As we saw in his last fight against Randy Couture, a healthy Nogueira is still a dangerous adversary. How do you guys see this one playing out?