Roy "Big Country" Nelson

What’s Happening Around The “COUNTRY”: – Bellator Signs Four-Time All-American Larkin

NewsTeam — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 04:39:03 +0000

Bellator Fighting Championships on Monday announced the acquisition of four-time collegiate All-American wrestler Eric Larkin. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

What’s Happening Around The “COUNTRY”: – Marshall-Uscola Carries TPF 6 Banner

NewsTeam — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 01:12:12 +0000

Former World Extreme Cagefighting light heavyweight champion Doug Marshall will lock horns with Kyacey Uscola in the Tachi Palace Fights 6 High Stakes main event on Sept. 9 at the Tachi Palace Hotel and Casino in Lemoore, Calif.

What’s Happening Around The “COUNTRY”: – One-time contender Ben Saunders cut from UFC

NewsTeam — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 01:12:06 +0000

“The Ultimate Fighter 6″ quarterfinalist and one-time UFC welterweight contender Ben Saunders received his UFC walking papers. The 27-year-old fighter announced the news via Twitter. Although once of the UFC’s fastest-rising and most-exciting 170-pound prospects, Saunders recently suffered a unanimous-decision loss to Dennis Hallman for his third defeat in four fights.

What’s Happening Around The “COUNTRY”: – The Sunday Junkie: Aug. 15 edition

NewsTeam — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 01:11:33 +0000

More than a week after the event’s conclusion, UFC 117 – and specifically Anderson Silva’s submission win over Chael Sonnen – was still a hot topic in The Sunday Junkie. Other popular topics in this week’s reader-feedback feature are Friday’s Strikeforce Challengers 10 event and Miesha Tate’s tournament win, Bellator champ Hector Lombard and Fedor Emelianenko’s futures, and the recent dominance by wrestlers in MMA. But this week’s winning entry comes from Joe Lurito, who succinctly explains why he feels steroids are a form of cheating in MMA.

What’s Happening Around The “COUNTRY”: – Week-in-Review: List of UFC, WEC & Strikeforce Matchups Announced

NewsTeam — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 20:53:37 +0000

A complete list of significant new fights reported. Some may be repeated from previous sections:

What’s Happening Around The “COUNTRY”: – Hughes has no interest in being called ‘The Gracie Killer’

NewsTeam — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 20:53:29 +0000

Matt Hughes has mauled two of the Gracies, Renzo and Royce, plus he’s defeated one their best students, Matt Serra. He’s usually willing to call guys out, but that’s not the case with the Gracies and their latest protege to step up, Ricardo Almeida. When he was asked about facing Almeida, Hughes responded by requesting that the media cut out the silly nicknames. “It’s nothing personal for me. I don’t want to be called ‘The Gracie Killer,’” Hughes said during the UFC 117 prefight press conference. “I like Renzo and Royce. They were just the guys the UFC put in front of me.”Now that doesn’t mean there won’t be some passion on the side of Almeida. He was in Abu Dhabi at UFC 112 when Hughes beat down Renzo. “I was in the corner … and I asked for the fight then,” said Almeida. “I thought a big part of your team is having your training partner’s back. It was definitely an emotional night for me but nothing personal. [This is] just a chance to fight a UFC Hall of Famer and someone who has done a lot for the sport.” Hughes can also relate to Almeida’s desire to beat the guy who beat his coach. “I did the same thing after Pat Miletich lost a couple of times,” said Hughes. “I wanted to face those same guys. So I understand where Ricardo is at and what he’s doing.”Hughes (44-7, 17-5 UFC) fought Jose Landi-Jons, Carlos Newton and Renzo Gracie after Miletich had suffered losses to each member of the trio. He went 2-1, losing to Landi-Jons. Almeida (12-3, 5-3 UFC) is a recent addition to the UFC’s welterweight division. He won his debut at 170 pounds over Matt Brown via rear-naked choke.

What’s Happening Around The “COUNTRY”: – UFC 117 draws reported 12,971 attendees for $1.56 million live gate

NewsTeam — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 20:53:13 +0000

OAKLAND, Calif. – The UFC’s first-ever event in Oakland, Calif., “UFC 117: Silva vs. Sonnen,” drew a vocal crowd of 12,971 attendees for a live gate of $1.56 million according to UFC officials. UFC president Dana White issued the figures to MMAjunkie.com following the evening’s post-event press conference. The Aug. 7 event, which featured a long-awaited grudge match between middleweight champion Anderson Silva and challenger Chael Sonnen, took place at Oracle Arena.

What’s Happening Around The “COUNTRY”: – Bellator signs four-time All-American wrestler Eric Larkin to lightweight roster

NewsTeam — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 20:53:01 +0000

Undefeated MMA fighter Erik Larkin has signed a multi-fight deal with Bellator Fighting Championship, officials today announced. Larkin, of course, was a four-time All-American and 2003 NCAA Division I national wrestling champion at Arizona Sate University. He made his pro MMA debut earlier this year. He plans to debut for Bellator as a lightweight before joining one of the organization’s future featherweight tournaments.

What’s Happening Around The “COUNTRY”: – Where did Hughes find that headlock? Let’s ask Dave Schultz

NewsTeam — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 02:07:02 +0000

Matt Hughes choked Ricardo Almeida out cold at UFC 117 with a classic wrestling move, the front headlock. After the bout, Hughes said that it’s a move that Almeida probably hasn’t seen before. That is likely true, but wrestling fans everywhere recognized the move. The front headlock was perfected by Dave Schultz, one of wrestling’s most dominant athletes and an Olympic gold medalist in 1984. During the Los Angeles Games, Schultz’s headlock was so hazardous that referees were warning him as soon as he sunk his arms in on an opponent. Skip to the 2:45 mark here to see Schultz’s perfect headlock in the first period of the gold-medal match.Schultz couldn’t use his headlock to end a match like Hughes did, but he did use it to score points, fend off a takedown and control his opponent. Along with his brother Mark, Schultz was known as one of the more brutal wrestlers of his era. Though Mark defeated Gary Goodridge at UFC 9 in his one MMA bout, Dave never had the chance to transition to MMA. He was murdered in 1996. Hughes’ headlock win was a fitting tribute to a member of the wrestling family who was taken too soon.

What’s Happening Around The “COUNTRY”: – UFC 117 main-card recap: Miracle submission saves champ Anderson Silva

NewsTeam — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 02:06:50 +0000

OAKLAND, Calif. – Heading into Saturday’s long-awaited and heavily publicized UFC 117 headliner, the MMA world had but one question: Could Chael Sonnen back up his big talk and actually dethrone seemingly unbeatable middleweight champion Anderson Silva. The answer? No. But it took a miracle comeback from Silva, who was down four rounds to none before securing a shocking and lightning quick triangle choke in the final few minutes of the fight.