by Robert Joyner | Feb 8, 2011 | BLOGS
Two-time STRIKEFORCE World Lightweight Champion (155 pounds), Gilbert “El Nino” Melendez (18-2), has signed a new, multi-year agreement with the San Jose, Calif. based world championship Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) promotion. “STRIKEFORCE is my home, they’ve always been like family to me and I’m looking forward to continuing my career with them,” said the talented, exciting, 5-foot-9, 28-year-old protégé of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu master Cesar Gracie and Muay Thai legend Jongsanan Fairtex. “There are a lot of great fights out there for me – lots of challenges. I can’t wait to get back into the cage, do my thing and show the world that I’m still at the top of my game.’’ Melendez is seen in most MMA circles as a Top 5 Lightweight, with most placing the Cesar Gracie product only behind the UFC tandem of Frank Edgar and Gray Maynard. Melendez debuted in Oct. 18, 2002, and roared out to a 13-0 record while competing in the WEC, Shooto and Pride Fighting Championhips Organizations. Notable victories for Melendez include Shinya Aoki, Josh Thomson, Clay Guida and Tatsuya Kawajiri. Melendez captured the STRIKEFORCE interim lightweight belt with a second-round knockout (punches) over Rodrigo Damm on April 11, 2009, in San Jose. “I’m healthy again and excited about fighting again real soon,’’ Melendez said. “It doesn’t matter who I fight. I just want to get back in there and...
by Robert Joyner | Feb 7, 2011 | BLOGS
As he enters the twilight of his tenure in the mixed martial arts game, Sean Sherk has ascertained what the goal is before hanging up the little four ounce baby gloves and calling it a career. The goal: a second bite of the championship apple, another reign with the UFC lightweight title. Sherk recently spoke about the intoxicating nature of holding the belt and the legacy that a double reign as champ leaves: “For me to fulfill my career, to really, really be happy with it, I’d like to win the belt one more time,” Sherk said, speaking to the Timmins Daily Press. “The feeling when I had when I won that belt was great. I loved being a UFC champion. It’s a whole different class of athlete when you look at who has won the belt twice. There are only five or six guys in history.” The road back to the lightweight title will be a perilous one. While his one time conqueror BJ Penn has seemingly taken permanent leave of the lightweight ranks, there are still a slew of elite fighters that will greatly complicate Sherk’s plans at lightweight domination. The twin capos of the current lightweight scene – Champion Frank Edgar and the undefeated Gray Maynard – both possess a better stand up game as well superior wrestling to Sherk. A second battalion of hungry young challengers – from Dunham, Sotiropoulous, Pettis, among a host of others- will be a particularly hard-to-navigate minefield to be negotiated if Sherk is attain championship redemption. Sherk will look to start his last round up sometime over the summer, as that is the target for his return to the Octagon. As of now...
by Robert Joyner | Feb 7, 2011 | BLOGS
Aussie brawler James Te Huna comes into UFC 127 looking to shake off ring rust and re-establish himself in the UFC 205 division. A broken arm incurred in his UFC debut against Igor Pokrajac has proven to be a vexing problem for the Aussie 205’er. The severity of the break and resulting complications during his convalescence have sidelined Te Huna since the UFC last appeared in Australia in February of 2010. “I had snapped the ulna, it was a bad break. The ends were badly splintered so when they brought it back together and ran the plate alongside of it, there was a bit of a gap in there and it took a while for it to fuse together,” Te Huna said in speaking to the Penrith Press. “When it did fuse together it took about four or five months to heal. I started training again but I got an infection and it went inside the bone and it caused big dramas. I went back in hospital for a week, came back out, started training again, and then went back in hospital for another week. After the second operation I had time off, tried to get it fixed and now I’ve been training the last couple of months.” The lingering effects of the injury caused Te Huna to turn down a bout at UFC 120 in London. With his body now fully healed, Te Huna will look to get back on track and move up the light heavyweight ranks. His opponent at UFC 127 will be bruising Swede Alexander Gustafsson. With wins over Jared Hamman and Cyrille Diabate as well...
by Robert Joyner | Jan 31, 2011 | BLOGS
With the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix (SFHWGP) just around the corner, there as been a drumbeat of questions from the British contingent of mixed martial arts fans. With a field that includes nearly half of the Top 15 heavyweights in the world, British MMA fans have been anxious to find out what viewing options may be available for them to view the SFHWGP. MMAFA.tv was able to get in contact with Strikeforce Director of Communications Mike Afromowitz, who confirmed that the San Jose based promotion would be going the Pay Per View route for broadcasts of Strikeforce content in the UK. The move to PPV was somewhat necessitated by the recent shuttering of the Bravo UK television channel. Bravo had played host to stateside MMA broadcasts such as the UFC as well as domestic shows like Cage Rage. Additionally, it served as the most recent home for Strikeforce broadcasts in Great Britain. The Bravo channels closed on January 1, 2011, and many of the programs offered by Bravo were transferred over to Sky/BSKYB, which had previously bought and subsequently shuttered Bravo. Sky Sports has been home to the UFC’s The Ultimate Fighter reality show the past few seasons, which would preclude Strikeforce from airing there. The only other Sky channels that have shown MMA are “The Active Channel” free to air on Sky and Extreme TV on Channel 419, but both channels are considered of low quality and not really viable options by most UK MMA observers. Other networks that have been friendly to MMA in the past have bitten the dust recently, with NUTS-TV (formerly the...
by Robert Joyner | Dec 7, 2010 | BLOGS
We all know that there’s a big problem with judging in MMA, and we all know that Kizer is pretending that there’s nothing wrong with having a bunch of people with no martial arts training and no understanding of the sport judging it on a professional level. There’s only one way for me to bring the maximum attention to this issue; and that’s to voice my opinion on air during a live Television show where I know that millions of people are going to listen to it. I understand that this upset him, but he’s had plenty of time to correct all of these judging issues, and yet he denies there’s a real problem and continues to employ people to judge important fights that are ignorant of many of the details of Mixed Martial Arts. I also found it quite hilarious that he denies that the NSAC is 100% to blame for this judging situation and even brought up that we’re taking NSAC appointed judges to Canada. The NSAC for all it’s flaws is the most important ruling body in combat sports. To bring judges that aren’t appointed and approved by the NSAC would open up a whole new can of worms. The question would also come up as to who appoints those other judges?What is the UFC’s relationship with them? Kizer is a politician, and one of the biggest issues with him is that he’s not willing to admit that he’s not done the best job possible with the best intentions of the sport and it’s participants in mind. This calculated denial of a problem is the reason why these...
