Recently in UFC 101 Category

The fight-finishing jab.

Heels to the liver (it's on that side of the body, right?) leads to an RNC for Penn.

Hendricks unloads on Sadollah, but was it enough for Mirgliotta to step in? You decide.

By John Gonzalez, Philadelphia Inquirer
Philly used to be America's favorite fight town, and for good reason. But it's been a long time since a crowd drunk on bloodlust materialized out of the ether and followed Muhammad Ali through the streets after hearing a rumor that he was on his way to rumble with Joe Frazier in Fairmount Park. A city raised on brutal bouts at the Blue Horizon and fiercely proud of its history has been all but forgotten as a fight destination - replaced by Vegas and other points West.

No longer. Last night, the UFC put Philly back on the mega-fight map, holding its first-ever event here. Philly, in turn, did for the UFC and its athletes what it did for boxing for so many years - bestowed legitimacy and importance on the event. Because when you fight in this town, in front of these people, you become part of a long and noble tradition, and you're remembered well after the blood and sweat is scrubbed clean from the canvas.

from mmajunkie.com:
OFFICIAL RESULTS

B.J. Penn def. Kenny Florian via submission (rear-naked choke) - Round 4, 3:54 (to defend lightweight title)
Anderson Silva def. Forrest Griffin via knockout (punch) - Round 1, 3:23
Aaron Riley def. Shane Nelson via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Johnny Hendricks def. Amir Sadollah via TKO (strikes) - Round 1, 0:29
Ricardo Almeida def. Kendall Grove via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 20-27)
Kurt Pellegrino def. Josh Neer via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

PRELIMINARY CARD RESULTS
John Howard def. Tamdan McCrory via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Alessio Sakara def. Thales Leites via split decision (29-28, 27-30, 29-28)
Matthew Riddle def. Dan Cramer via unanimous decision (29-27, 30-26, 30-27)
George Sotiropoulos def. George Roop via submission (kimura) - Round 2, 1:59
Jesse Lennox def. Danillo Villefort via TKO (cut) - Round 3, 3:37

from sherdog.com:
Thales Leites vs. Alessio Sakara
Round 1
The entrance is messed up, and Leites comes out to Sakara's music and name. Sakara, in turn, enters to Leites' music, which Leites sings while Sakara makes his way to the Octagon. Leites slips throwing a haymaker but stands back up. He shoots from too far out for a takedown, and Sakara stuffs it. 1:30 in. Sakara is mostly waiting back. Leites gets a single leg, but as Leites is taking top control Sakara lands a short forearm that hurts him and keeps him off. Back on the feet, Sakara fires a one-two that's blocked. Leites misses another shot from afar. The audience boos. 10-9 Sakara. Sakara won by split decision.

With Roy Jones Jr., who reportedly was a guest of Anderson Silva. Silva has said he wants to box Jones after his UFC contract is done.

From Sherdog.com message board member Adouble27:
"the philly media is covering the s--- out of UFC 101..its everywhere down here. This is arguably the biggest boxing town in the world and finally bigtime fights are coming back. I heard this will be the most widely watched sports event in the history of PA. This is what MMA needs. East coast mainstream media exposure.....Wait till you hear the fans tonight. They will be CHEERING louder than anywhere you've ever heard......UFC in Phiily is HUGE for MMA. DOnt be scared..come to south Philly and you'll have a blast...just leave your cowboys jersey at home."

About a minute or so in, Greg Sirb, executive director for the Pa. Athletic Commission, tells Penn, Florian, Griffin and Silva that, "This is Philly," meaning that Philadelphia sports fans expect a lot - so they'd better bring their A game. Funny stuff, but true, Philly fans seem to have that reputation like no other. Thanks to mmahits.com for the video.

CPWC II Highlights:

from mmajunkie.com:
MAIN CARD

Champ B.J. Penn (155) vs. Kenny Florian (155)
Champ Anderson Silva (205) vs. Forrest Griffin (205)
Ricardo Almeida (185) vs. Kendall Grove (185.5)
Josh Neer (155.5) vs. Kurt Pellegrino (154.5)
Johny Hendricks (171) vs. Amir Sadollah (166.5)
PRELIMINARY CARD

Shane Nelson (156) vs. Aaron Riley (154)
John Howard (169.5) vs. Tamdan McCrory (170)
Thales Leites (185) vs. Alessio Sakara (185.5)
Dan Cramer (169.5) vs. Matthew Riddle (170)
George Roop (154) vs. George Sotiropoulos (155)
Jesse Lennox (171) vs. Danillo Villefort (170.25)

from Eric "Performify" Foster at mmajunkie.com:
If you're attending UFC 101, or if you live in the Philadelphia area, the Buckhead Saloon is the place to be when you're not at the arena. For those of you in the area but without tickets, venue officials are giving away a pair on Friday during happy hour, and they will be showing the PPV on Saturday if you're looking for a place to watch with your fellow junkies.

After the fight, the saloon is the home of the official B.J. Penn afterparty and features appearances by multiple fighters and UFC personalities, including the beautiful Arianny Celeste. Check out this thread on our forums for more details.

Ted: If you're in the York area, Hooters of York is the place. That's where I'll be, camera in hand.

MMA Videos | Countdown to UFC 101 Video

Originally posted on sherdog.com

The other day, I blogged about how Forrest Griffin might win against Anderson Silva at UFC 101. Then I found this recent quote from Silva on bloodyelbow.com:

"I try to win through the mistakes of my opponents. It's not interesting for me to expose myself and run unnecessary risks. I'm getting old and since I started fighting I never had a scratch or my face broken. Anyone who knows about fighting can see what I mean."

What a psychological advantage this would be to Griffin during the fight if Griffin were about to open up a cut or get Silva bleeding from the nose, or something like that.

Griffin is crazy from way back, even in high school.

Forrest Griffin's got a shot - a decent shot - at beating Anderson Silva at their fight at UFC 101 on Aug. 8 at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia. ... Aw heck, I'm gonna get crazy here - dammit, he's gonna do it! Who's with me? Here's why I think so:

- Forrest is used to fighting at 205; Silva is not. Yeah, Silva made the jump once before, but it appeared as though he put on mostly water weight or fat rather than muscle to get up to 205 from his usual 185. Of course, that didn't matter 'cause he knocked out James Irvin in a matter of seconds. We might see Silva's cardio start to fail from the extra weight if Forrest can take him into the third round.

- In connection with the first point, Forrest is bigger than Silva, although not by much. Forrest is listed at 6'3", whereas Anderson Silva is 6'2". That's only an inch, but it could be a big difference because Silva is used to looking down on opponents, not eye-to-eye or maybe up a little. Forrest reportedly walks into the cage around 220 or so, so he'll defnitely have a weight advantage over Silva, who is bulking up to 205, so I don't expect him to walk into the cage much heavier than that.

- The biggest factor in this fight is Forrest's heart. The guy's got tons of it. He's like the Chuck Wepner (the boxer on whom Stallone based Rocky) or even Chuck Cecil (NFL safety who used to smash his nose in nearly every game because of how hard he hit) of the UFC - a guy who doesn't care that he bleeds in every fight, who may not be technically the most proficient fighter out there, but more than makes up for it by giving it his all every damn time. Silva, on the other hand, was reportedly matched up with Forrest because of his last two fights, which were, putting it mildly, crappy. Dana White knew Forrest would push Silva, basically force him to fight. Fans have wondered if Silva's heart is still in the game, or if he's just coasting until the end of his UFC contract, so he can have a boxing match with his idol, Roy Jones Jr.

None of this is to take away from Silva. The factors I listed might not amount to anything in this fight. Silva's a great fighter and could end the fight with one punch, kick, elbow or knee. But you just can't count Forrest out. Most people said he wouldn't beat Shogun Rua, but he did, with an RNC. Most people didn't think he could take the title from Rampage, but he did, with devastating leg kicks and tight ground control.

Watch Forrest Griffin Talks Silva, Tito, and Wearing Condoms on RawVegas.tv

from mmajunkie.com:

Weigh-ins for "UFC 101: Declaration" take place Friday, Aug. 7 at Wachovia Center in Philadelphia.

The event, which takes place from 3-5 p.m. ET (with the first fighter hitting the scale at 4 p.m.), is free and open to the public.

Prior to the weigh-ins, UFC Fight Club members will have access to a special Q&A session hosted by UFC president Dana White and co-owner Lorenzo Fertitta.

Check-ins for Fight Club members begins at 1 p.m. ET, with the Q&A session beginning at 2 p.m. ET.

Sadollah, the winner of TUF 7, is fighting Johny Hendricks at UFC 101 at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia on Aug. 8.

from mmajunkie.com:
Any doubts about the ability to draw big crowds in the Northeast will be put to rest at UFC 101.

The Aug. 8 event, set for the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, has already resulted in nearly 14,000 tickets sold and more than $3 million in sales.

UFC Vice President of Regulatory Affairs Marc Ratner discussed the success of the show, headlined by UFC lightweight champion B.J. Penn vs. top contender Kenny Florian, with MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) on Wednesday.

The state of Pennsylvania only recently began regulating mixed martial arts, but Ratner said UFC 101 has already shattered long-standing boxing records in The Keystone State.

"We put tickets on sale, I believe sometime at the end of April or early May, and we've sold almost 14,000 tickets," Ratner said. "It's the biggest event in Pennsylvania history, as far as a live gate, already."

According to UFC.com, limited tickets are still available for UFC 101 on Aug. 8 at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia. Click here to get tickets.

Main card
Lightweight Championship bout: B.J. Penn vs. Kenny Florian
Light Heavyweight bout: Anderson Silva vs. Forrest Griffin
Welterweight bout: Amir Sadollah vs. Johny Hendricks
Middleweight bout: Kendall Grove vs. Ricardo Almeida
Lightweight bout: Josh Neer vs. Kurt Pellegrino

Preliminary card
Lightweight bout: Shane Nelson vs. Aaron Riley
Welterweight bout: Tamdan McCrory vs. John Howard
Middleweight bout: Thales Leites vs. Alessio Sakara
Welterweight bout: Matt Riddle vs. Dan Cramer
Lightweight bout: George Sotiropoulos vs. Rob Emerson
Welterweight bout: Jesse Lennox vs. Danillo Villefort

The line-up:
B.J. Penn vs. Kenny Florian
Anderson Silva vs. Forrest Griffin
Amir Sadollah vs. Johny Hendricks
Kendall Grove vs. Ricardo Almeida
Josh Neer vs. Kurt Pellgrino
Shane Nelson vs. Aaron Riley
Tmadan McCrory vs. John Howard
Thales leites vs. Alessio Sakara
Matt Riddle vs. Dan Cramer
George Sotiropolous vs. Rob Emerson
Jesse Lennox vs. Danillo Villefort

For tickets, click here.

Thanks to sherdog.com:
Thales Leites now understands how Jon Fitch felt.

One fight removed from a main event, Leites will creep onto the undercard at UFC 101 "Declaration" when he meets American Top Team's Alessio Sakara on Aug. 8 at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia. The UFC made the middleweight matchup official on Sunday.

Leites (14-2) last appeared at UFC 97 in April, when he dropped a unanimous decision in a lackluster bout with middleweight champion Anderson Silva. Though Silva bore the brunt of public criticism, Leites performance apparently did him no favors with UFC management.

I called up Greg Sirb, executive director of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Commission, this afternoon, with several questions on my mind:

- The UFC traditionally has weigh-ins the day before their events. A by-product of this is that fighters are able to "diet-down" i.e., come in as shredded as they can, hit the maximum weight allowed in their weight class on the mark, and then gain back 10-15 pounds of water weight before their respective fights.

As you probably know, the UFC has announced that UFC 101 will be held at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia on Aug. 8. I asked Sirb - because as I understand it, the state athlectic commission has same day weigh-ins - what would be done in the UFC's case.

"We're going to be discussing that over the next week or two," he said, referring to the himself and the state athletic commission.

On MMA in Pennsylvania in general, Sirb said things are ging great, with no major problems after several shows. Iron Will Fighting, an event that was held in Johnstown recently, drew 3,400 attendees. Respect is Earned's first event, held in Oaks (just outside Philly) had 1,200 spectators, Sirb said.

The next event, this weekend in Reading, Pain on Penn Street, is an MMA-boxing event. When Ia sked what he thought of hybrid events, Sirb said, "We'll see, it might work." I said asked him if he thought, as others have said, that boxing is trying to bring itself up by catching on to MMA's popularity, he said, "Not at all, I think they can both coexist."

Tom and I talk about all things MMA in Pennsylvania.

from mmajunkie.com:
Following Wednesday's official announcement of a main event between UFC lightweight champion B.J. Penn and top contender Kenny Florian, the UFC officially named its Aug. 8 pay-per-view event "UFC 101: Declaration."

The event takes place at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia.

The addition of a preliminary-card bout between Shane Nelson and Aaron Riley brings the fight card to a total of 10 bouts, which includes a five-fight main card.

from mmajunkie:
Tickets for UFC 101, the organization's star-studded debut event in Pennsylvania, go on sale next week.

UFC 101 takes place Aug. 8 at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia and features UFC lightweight champion B.J. Penn vs. top contender Kenny Florian and UFC middleweight champ Anderson Silva vs. Forrest Griffin (in a non-title fight).

Members of the UFC's fan club can purchase tickets May 21, and the general public can buy tickets May 23.

Members of the UFC Fight Club get first dibs on the tickets, priced from $50 to $600, at 10 a.m. ET (7 a.m. PT). (Annual UFC Fight Club memberships cost $74.99 and include a variety of perks.)

UFC.com newsletter subscribers (subscribe for free at UFC.com) can buy tickets starting May 22 at 10 a.m. ET.

Finally, the genera public can purchase tickets beginning May 23 at 10 a.m. ET.

Keep in mind, however, that the event is likely to be a quick sellout. The UFC has never ventured to Pennsylania, which only began regulating MMA events recently, and the UFC has never ventured to many nearby states. However, the region is a hotbed for MMA and has a strong fan following.

As a comparison, the highly anticipated UFC 100 event, was announced as an official sellout before tickets ever went on sale to the general public.

Tickets for UFC 101 are available online at www.ComcastTIX.com or UFC.com, by phone at 1-800-298-4200, or in person at the Wachovia Center Box Office or select ACME markets.

New Cumberland-based Tattoo Fightwear has a new sponsored fighter, Matt Bentley, who has a cool look - reminds me of an outlaw from the Wild West or something. Here's something he wrote:

My name is Matthew Bentley and I am an amateur Muay Thai and MMA fighter out of Omaha, NE. I am 24 years old and have been training in Muay Thai for 17 years. My
amateur Muay Thai record is 9-1-0. I am a two time national amateur Muay Thai Champion in the IKF.

My amateur boxing record is 6-1-0 having won the Nebraska State Championships
and my MMA record is now 3-2-0. I am an exciting striker with an evolving ground game. I do my best to try and set a very quick pace and always look to finish fights.

from mmajunkie.com:
While an anticipated main event between UFC lightweight champion B.J. Penn and challenger Kenny Florian has not yet been made official, seven other bouts were announced by the organization today.

In addition to several previously reported matchups, the UFC also announced a middleweight contest between Ricardo Almeida (10-3 MMA, 3-3 UFC) vs. Kendall Grove (10-5 MMA, 5-2 UFC), and a lightweight showdown between Rob Emerson (8-7 MMA, 2-1 UFC) and George Sotiropoulus (9-2 MMA, 2-0 UFC.

UFC 101 takes place Aug. 8 at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia.

Jon Anik & Co. talk about quadraplegic Kyle Maynard's MMA debut and the upcoming Anderson Silva vs. Forrest Griffin fight at UFC 101.

by Thomas Gerbasi, ufc.com:
UFC is coming to Philadelphia for the first time on Saturday, August 8th, and its bringing the big guns for UFC 101, as BJ Penn defends his UFC lightweight crown for the second time against number one contender Kenny Florian, and UFC middleweight boss Anderson Silva jumps back to the 205-pound weight class to take on former light heavyweight champion Forrest Griffin.

Tickets for UFC 101, which will take place at Philadelphia's Wachovia Center, will go on sale shortly. Stay tuned for further details.

Dana White talks with Steve Cofield about the debacle that was UFC 97's main event. Which leads to this gem from sherdog:

Anderson Silva will meet Forrest Griffin in a light heavyweight co-main event at UFC 101 on Aug. 8 at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia.

MMABay.com was the first Web site to report the matchup Tuesday. UFC President Dana White confirmed the bout with Yahoo Sports shortly after.

Two more fights have been added to UFC 101, which is all but confirmed for Philadelphia on August 8. They are:

Amir Sadollah vs. Johny Hendricks

John Howard vs. Tamdan McCrory

Here's what mmajunkie has so far for the card:

Location: Philadelphia
Venue: Wachovia Center
Broadcast: Pay per view

Champ B.J. Penn vs. Kenny Florian (for UFC lightweight title)*
Forrest Griffin vs. Thiago Silva
Josh Neer vs. Kurt Pellgrino*
Matt Hamill vs. Brandon Vera*
Rousimar Palhares vs. Alessio Sakara*
Johny Hendricks vs. Amir Sadollah*
John Howard vs. Tamdan McCrory*
Dan Cramer vs. Matthew Riddle*
Jesse Lennox vs. Danillo Villefort*
* - Not officially announced

I spoke with Greg Sirb, executive director of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Commission earlier today, starting off with the upcoming event - the state's first MMA event - happening in a little more than two weeks in York County.

Sirb said he is "Excited as hell," to attend the event. He added that Wisehaven's intimate setting - the venue only seats about 800 - will be "perfect." It's better to pack in a small house to start off, and then move to a bigger venue, he said.

Sirb said he'd definitely be at the April 19 event, or more specifically, "me and probably about four or five of my guys, inspectors. ... we approve all the matches. There's not a damn thing that goes down without us being involved."

As far as the buzz about the sport around the state, Sirb said it's "Even more crazy than it was before - everybody's calling."

He also announced two other events in the state state: April 30 at the Convention Center in Oaks, which is just outside Philadelphia, promoted by David Dussault, and May 16 at the Cambria County War Memorial Arena in Johnstown, promoted by T. Regala.

As for UFC 101, which UFC officials its president and fighters have said will happen on Aug. 8, Sirb said the event is still under discussion.

A light heavyweight bout between Forrest Griffin (16-5 MMA, 7-3 UFC) and Thiago Silva (13-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC), first reported by MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com), and the long-awaited return of Amir Sadollah (1-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) are both official for UFC 101.

Former "TUF" champions Griffin and Sadollah announced the bouts during the airing of the debut episode of "The Ultimate Fighter: U.S. vs. U.K."

The pair also confirmed UFC 101's Aug. 8 date in Philadelphia.

MMA Madness thinks so:

By: Hector Castro

Matt "The Hammer" Hamill (6-2) and Brandon "The Truth" Vera (10-3) are set for UFC 101 according to a source close to the event.

Vera bounced back on to the scene after he made quick work of Mike Patt in a TKO due to leg kicks in the 2nd round at UFC 96 in Columbus, Ohio.

Hamill also enjoyed victory at UFC 96, when he KO'd Mark Munoz in the 1st round for his second win in a row.

Contracts have been received and are expected to be signed in the very near future.

UFC Lightweight Champion BJ Penn is set to defend his lightweight title against number one contender Kenny Florian. The newly agreed upon match is set to Headline UFC 101 in Philadelphia, PA on August 8th 2009.

The Challenger, Kenny "Kenflo" Florian, is currently riding a six fight win streak inside the octagon. Most recently dispatching Joe Stevenson via RNC in round 1 at UFC 91. Florian has made it no secret that he desires his second shot at the lightweight title. Most recently stating on ESPNS MMA Live,

"At the end of the day, I just want this fight to be signed. Let's get an event, let's get a date, and let's make it happen."

The Champion, BJ "The Prodigy" Penn, has not been down to lightweight to defend his title since UFC 84, in May of 2008, when he beat Sean Sherk via TKO at the end of the third round. When I asked BJ about the upcoming bout he simply said,

"I look forward to the challenge."

According to our sources here within Team Penn, Florian has already signed the bout agreement for this fight. As for BJ, we received the bout agreement this afternoon and plan on making this fight happen.

from themmafiend.com:
Over on The Underground UFC co-owner Lorenzo Fertitta was answering some questions about the UFC's plans for later this year, and he gave us some interesting information.

1- UFC 101 will be in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on August 8th with BJ Penn vs Kenny Florian possible for the Main Event.
2- UFC 102 will be in Portland, Oregon on August 29th at the Rose Garden with Randy Couture vs Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira as the main event.

3- They are looking into holding an event on St. Paddy's next year possibly in Dublin, Ireland or Boston, Massachusetts.

4- Says France is a long term investment, but that they have already seen success with their first show on RTL9 (which broadcasts out of Belgium into 13M French homes) being the second highest rated show for the night in the country. Says they love Cheick Kongo over there.

5- Says the UFC is working on getting into Brazil, but it looks like they will make it into Australia first.

6- The ramp will not be making a comeback to the UFC.

7- Has never met Fedor, but he'd like to. Says Fedor is intriguing to say the least, but has been built up way too much, and that he needs to come to the UFC and fight Lesnar, Mir, Carwin etc for us to truly know the answer.

8- Says Detroit wants the UFC. They are trying to work out a date with Motor City/MGM.

9- Japan is impossible to deal with. UFC in Japan will probably never happen.

Couture Accepts UFC 101 Bout with Nogueira by Tom Hamlin of mmaweekly:

A long-rumored bout between former UFC heavyweight champion Randy Couture and former UFC interim heavyweight champion Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira appears set to take place.

According to multiple sources from Couture's camp, he has agreed to face Nogueira at the yet-unannounced UFC 101 sometime in August. The event may take place in Portland, Ore.

The UFC is now awaiting a response from Nogueira's camp.

Previously, Couture was offered a fight with Nogueira in the first half of 2009, but his role in Sylvester Stallone's "The Expendables," set to film in late March, got in the way.

Couture was also rumored to be under consideration for UFC 99 in Cologne, Germany on June 13, but a source indicated he would be unable to complete a proper 8-week training camp and would not take the fight.

Nogueira was last seen at UFC 92, where he lost his interim heavyweight title in a TKO loss to current interim champ Frank Mir.

Couture - who has fought for or defended a title in 15 of his 19 UFC fights - lost the undisputed heavyweight title when he succumbed to strikes against Brock Lesnar at UFC 91.

Stay tuned to MMAWeekly.com for more updates on this story as they become available.