MMA News 
T.J. Ball - MMA News
T.J. Ball - MMA News
T.J. Ball - MMA News
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Bellator: Zuffa lawsuit "a big pile of nothing," company moving forward undistracted
While Zuffa, LLC - the parent-company of the Ultimate Fighting
Championship and World Extreme Cagefighting - has traditionally been
voracious in terms of protecting its product, Thursday night's
revelation that the company was suing the Bellator Fighting
Championships, as well as influential agent Ken Pavia, came as quite a
surprise.
Bellator officials were just as taken aback, according to the company's newly hired attorney, Patrick English.
"I was asked to represent Bellator yesterday when they heard there had been a lawsuit filed," English told MMAjunkie.com. "Originally, they had no idea what it was about. It was actually Kevin Iole who was kind enough...
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MC Hammer gets into the MMA business
Here comes the Hammer.
Stanley Burrell, also known as MC Hammer, announced today that he's getting into the MMA business with Alchemist Management, a new management and "brand-building" firm based out of Los Angeles.
"I've been a fan of combat sports for years," MC Hammer stated today in a press release. "MMA is the fastest growing sport in the world and this is a great opportunity for us to launch a full-service management company."
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Tim Boetsch vs. Todd Brown official; UFC 117 again complete with 11 bouts
With Brazilian slugger Thiago Silva forced to bow out of UFC 117 due to
injury, the UFC turned to promotion newcomer Todd Brown to fill the gap.
Today, UFC officials made the switch official.
As MMAjunkie.com reported earlier this week, Brown now faces Tim Boetsch on the UFC 117 preliminary card.
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Driven by faith, Mark Munoz plans to out-grind Yushin Okami at UFC on Versus 2
It's only been four months since Mark Munoz's gym officially opened, but much like his life, everything has moved so fast.
The Lake Forest, Calif.-based Reign Training Center has gone from a room with a mat to a full-fledged hotbed of talent with Munoz (8-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC) as a beacon for fighters in need of good wrestling.
He's now a successful fighter in the UFC's middleweight division after uprooting his family to Southern California in September 2008 with no idea of where he'd end up.
- Fans invited to UFC 117 open workouts, autograph session (Updated)
The Ultimate Fighting Championship is primed to take over Northern California.
With the anticipation high for August's "UFC 117: Silva vs. Sonnen" event in Oakland, the UFC has scheduled several fan-friendly activties surrounding fight week.
As MMAjunkie.com previously reported, the open workout sessions on Wednesday, Aug. 4, are free to attend, and the UFC has announced an autograph session prior to Friday's weigh-ins, as well.
- Champ Joe Soto vs. Joe Warren official for Bellator 27 in San Antonio
Bellator Fighting Championships featherweight champion Joe Soto and season-two tournament winner Joe Warren will clash on Sept. 2.
As was first reported by MMAjunkie.com, Soto and Warren meet in the main event of Bellator 27.
Bellator officials today announced the matchup for the card, which takes place at the Majestic Theatre in San Antonio, Texas.
- Mike Guymon vs. Daniel Roberts targeted for UFC 121 prelims
A welterweight match-up between Mike "The Joker" Guymon and Daniel Roberts is targeted for UFC 121.
Sources close to the event today confirmed to MMAjunkie.com that verbal agreements are in place with bout agreements expected to be signed shortly.
UFC 121 takes place Oct. 23 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif., and features a heavyweight title match between current champion Brock Lesnar and challenger Cain Velasquez.
- UFC hosts first-ever international fan expo in London in October
The UFC will hold its first-ever European-based MMA exposition in
conjunction with October's UFC 120 event, the organization today
announced.
As MMAjunkie.com first reported UFC Fan Expo London 2010 will be held Friday and Saturday, October 15-16, at the Earls Court Exhibition Centre with meet-and-greet sessions with UFC fighters, MMA demonstrations, fan-inspired special events, training and development sessions, and other activities.
Featuring a middleweight contest between Michael Bisping and Yoshihiro Akiyama, UFC 120 takes place October 16 at the O2 Arena in London.
- MMAjunkie.com Radio: Marc Laimon, Joey Oddessa, Percy Crawford, Jorge Lopez
MMAjunkie.com Radio today welcomes a plethora of expert analysts to the
show to break down this weekend's combat sports action, as well as Wand
Fight Team prospect Jorge Lopez.
Top trainer Marc Laimon comes in-studio to breakdown UFC on Versus 2, while MMA oddsmaker Joey Oddessa calls in to offer his expert opinion as well. Percy Crawford of FightHype.com also joins us via phone to share his wisdom on the latest in boxing, while Lopez previews his fight at Saturday's MMA Xplosion show in Las Vegas.
MMAjunkie.com Radio airs from 12-2 p.m. ET (9-11 a.m. PT) live from the Mandalay Bay Resort...
- "The Sunday Junkie" deadline reminder, win a free Fighters Only subscription!
As a reminder, submissions for the upcoming edition of "The Sunday Junkie" are due Sunday at 10 a.m. ET.
All topics - including this weekend's UFC on Versus 2 event and the busy schedule coming in August - are open for discussion. The person who sends in the submission we deem the best - based on timeliness of subject, clarity and overall persuasiveness - will be invited onto MMAjunkie.com Radio to discuss the topic.
Each winner will also receive a free year's subscription to Fighters Only, the world's leading MMA and lifestyle magazine!
- Forrest Griffin hits the road in support of "Be Ready When the Sh*t Goes Down"
Former UFC light-heavyweight champion, "The Ultimate Fighter" winner and best-selling author Forrest Griffin is at it again.
Griffin and publisher William Morrow are set for an August release of "Be Ready When the Sh*t Goes Down: A Survival Guide to the Apocalypse," the follow-up to the fighter's best-selling debut, "Got Fight?"
In support of the release, Griffin will soon embark on a nine-day, nine-city book signing tour that includes visits to New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, California and Nevada.
- Ben Rothwell undergoes ACL surgery, estimates nine-month recovery
UFC heavyweight Ben Rothwell sat at UFC 115's post-fight podium and made no excuses.
He had won a unanimous decision over Gilbert Yvel on the June 12 event's pay-per-view card but said it was "not a victory" for the fight's lack of finish. He chose not to disclose that he had torn his ACL on the first takedown of the three-round contest.
Rothwell on Tuesday underwent surgery to repair both his ACL and a torn meniscus and hopes to be back in action by February or March of 2011.
- Report: Zuffa, LLC sues Bellator, Ken Pavia over alleged theft of trade secrets
While most MMA pundits wouldn't consider Bellator Fighting Championships
and the UFC direct rivals, they soon will be - in court.
According to a report by Yahoo! Sports' Kevin Iole, Zuffa, LLC, the parent company of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, has filed suit in a Nevada court against MMA Agents' head Ken Pavia and the Bellator organization.
At the center of the concern is alleged theft of "trade secrets and confidential Zuffa documents," which Zuffa contends Pavia passed along to Bellator officials.
- With new training camp, same attitude, Ellenberger ready to shine at UFC on Versus 2
With a career record of 22-5, UFC welterweight Jake Ellenberger was doing just fine the way things were.
But in the ultra-competitive world of professional mixed martial arts, if you're not moving forward, you're about to get passed up.
With that in mind, Ellenberger took his training camp from his native Nebraska to Orange County, California, and he's looking forward to displaying the results at this weekend's UFC on Versus 2 event.
- HDNet Fights Video Vault: Marianna Kheyfets vs. Kim Couture at XFC 11
In our latest installment of HDNet Fights Video Vault, we take a look at
a female contest from a recent Xtreme Fighting Championships event.
In our fight-of-the-week feature, Marianna "The Crushen Russian" Kheyfets made her professional debut against two-time Strikeforce veteran Kim "Sugar Free" Couture.
The fight served as the co-main event of HDNet's July 9 broadcast of "XFC 11: The Next Generation" at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa, Fla.
- Fans invited to UFC 117 open workouts, autograph session (Updated)
