Rankings actualizados de la UFC

MMA en Directo-Dos cambios de campeonatos el saldo de UFC 185

MMA en Directo-UFC 185

Por Daniel “Mr. Clutch” Mercado Castro

Dos nuevos campeones fue el resultado del UFC 185 desde el American Airlines Center en Dallas, Texas. Sobre 17 mil personas fueron testigos de una “clínica” ejecutada a la perfección por el retador Rafael dos Anjos (24-7) sobre el ahora ex monarca ligero de UFC, Anthony Pettis (18-3). Rafael dos Anjos llevó a la escuelita al BoricuAzteca desde el primer round hasta el ultimo con su agresividad, excelente striking y dominante ground and pound. Fueron 10 takedowns los propinados por dos Anjos a un Pettis que no sabía ni como detener el ataca, sobre todo esa izquierda devastadora que le cortó su ojo derecho. Pettis trató de establecer algún plan de ataque en los últimos rounds, pero dos Anjos no le permitió robarle ni un round. La decisión fue unánime 50-45 a favor del nuevo campeón UFC Lightweight, Rafael dos Anjos. Esperemos que “Showtime” Pettis se levanté rápido de esta derrota y busque una revancha. Para dos Anjos lo próximo podría ser un interesante combate con Khabib Nurmagomedov o con el vaquero Donald Cerrone, de no concretarse una revancha ante Anthony Pettis. Esto se puso bueno en la división ligera de UFC luego de que dos Anjos logrará el Performance of the Night.

Otra que también se llevó un bonito de $50 mil dólares por el Performance of the Night y a su vez, la faja Strawweight, fue Joanna Jedrzejczyk (9-0). La invicta Jedrzejczyk destrozó a fuerza de puños a la ahora ex campeona Carla Esparza (10-3) en menos de dos round. El arbitró tuvo que parar la pelea a los 4:17 del segundo asalto luego de Esparza ser la recipiente de varias fuertes derechas al rostro. La pegada de Joanna se dejó sentir como también su buena defensa ante lo intentos fallidos de Esparza de llevarse la pelea al suelo. Sin duda una impresionante demostración de Joanna Jedrzejczyk en UFC 185. Esperamos ver a la polaca en una revancha próximamente con Esparza o con Claudia Gadelha, a quién le ganó por decisión dividida. Jessica Penne sería otra buena candidata para defender la faja.

El Welterweight Johny Hendricks (17-3) regresó mejor que nunca y lo demostró dominando al peligroso Matt Brown (21-13) por decisión unánime (30-27, 30-27 y 30-27). Hendricks tomó el control de la pelea con un buen dominio del suelo luego de sus takedowns y un efectivo striking. Hendricks dominó 7-0 en takedowns a Brown. Fue impresionante ver a Hendricks alzar en peso a Brown y lanzarlo al suelo como si nada en el segundo asalto. Hendricks solo tiene una cosa en mente desde que ganó, enfrentarse a Robbie Lawler por la faja Welterweight. En una batalla de pesos pesados, Alistair Overeem (39-14) se vaciló sin problemas a Roy “Big Country” Nelson (21-11) por tres asaltos a fuerza de patadas, rodillazos y golpes por todos el cuerpo. Tanto así que hasta un rodillazo le dio en las partes nobles a Nelson que tuvo que haberle dolido bastante. Overeem ganó por decisión unánime (30-27, 30-27 y 30-27). El medallista olímpico de oro en Beijing 2008 (Freestyle Wrestling), Henry Cejudo (8-0) comenzó hacer ruido en la división Flyweight al vencer por decisión unánime (30-27, 30-27 y 30-27) a Chris Caraiso (17-7). El medallista de oro más joven (21 años) en la historia de la lucha en Estados Unidos, se valió de un buen striking y un dominio total en el suelo con su lucha para vencer a Caraiso.

En la luchas preliminares de la cartelera, Ross Pearson venció a Sam Stout vía KO a los 1:33 del segundo asalto con un devastador gancho de izquierda. Elias Theodorou derrotó a Roger Narvaez vía TKO a los 4:07 del segundo round. Beneil Dariush le aplicó un Rear Naked Choke a Daron Cruickshank para vencerlo por Sumisión/Tap Out a los 2:48 del segundo asalto. Jared Rosholt dominó vía TKO a Josh Copeland a los 3:12 del tercer asalto. Ryan Benoit le propinó un TKO a Sergio Pettis a los 1:34 del segundo round. Joseph Duffy dominó vía TKO a los 1:47 del primer round a Jake Lindsey, y Germaine de Randamie derrotó vía TKO a los 2:02 del segundo asalto a Larissa Pacheco en una batalla de mujeres.

Todo listo para UFC 185

UFC en Directo-Fotos de Ronda Rousey para Sports Illustrated y notas recientes de la UFC

UFC^® RETURNS TO FAIRFAX

SATURDAY, APRIL 4

AT THE PATRIOT CENTER

EXPLOSIVE FEATHERWEIGHTS CHAD MENDES AND RICARDO LAMAS HEADLINE IN FIVE-ROUND MAIN EVENT

PLUS:

JORGE MASVIDAL vs. AL IAQUINTA

MICHAEL CHIESA vs. MITCH CLARKE

DUSTIN POIRIER vs. DIEGO FERREIRA

LIZ CARMOUCHE vs. LAUREN MURPHY

TICKETS FOR UFC FIGHT NIGHT^®: MENDES vs. LAMAS

AT PATRIOT CENTER

ON SALE FRIDAY, FEB. 13

Las Vegas – The UFC^® returns to Fairfax, Va. on Saturday, April 4, as the featherweight division’s No. 1 contender Chad Mendes goes to head-to-head with fourth-ranked Ricardo Lamas in the five-round main event at the Patriot Center. Having both gone the distance in title bouts against champion Jose Aldo, these battle-tested 145ers will light up the Octagon^® when UFC FIGHT NIGHT^® takes center stage in the Greater Washington area.

Mendes (16-2, fighting out of Sacramento, Calif.), one of the heaviest hitters in the featherweight division,  has been taking out top contenders in dominant fashion with wins over Darren Elkins, Clay Guida, Nik Lentz and Cub Swanson. His back-and-forth battle with Aldo at UFC 179 went down as one of the greatest fights in 2014. Lamas (15-3, fighting out of Chicago, Ill.) boasts an equally impressive resume that includes wins over Dennis Bermudez, Erik Koch and Swanson. With combined wins over the Who’s Who in the 145-pound weight class, Mendes and Lamas eye each other as their ticket to earning another shot at the title.

 

The co-main event will feature a staple in the lightweight division as (No. 13) Jorge Masvidal (28-6, fighting out of Miami) takes on rising contender (No. 15) Al Iaquinta (11-3-1, fighting out of Wantagh, N.Y.), a winner of three straight. Plus, The Ultimate Fighter^® season 15 winner Michael Chiesa (11-2, fighting out of Spokane Valley, Wash.) takes on Canadian-born Mitch Clarke (11-2, fighting out of Glendale, Ariz.).

In addition, former top featherweight contender Dustin Poirier (16-4, fighting out of Coconut Creek, Fla.) will test the 155-pound waters when he makes his UFC lightweight debut against Diego Ferreira (10-1, fighting out of Pharr, Texas). Also, in a crucial women’s bantamweight bout, former title contender and women’s MMA pioneer (No. 8) Liz Carmouche (8-5, fighting out of San Diego, Calif.) makes her fifth UFC appearance against rising star Lauren Murphy (8-1, fighting out of Glendale, Ariz.).

Additional bouts include:

·         (No. 11) Julianna Pena (6-2, fighting out of Spokane, Wash.), the first female season winner to emerge from The Ultimate Fighter, returns after a 17-month layoff to take on rising women’s bantamweight Milana Dudieva (11-3, fighting out of Alagir, Russia).  

·         Former STRIKEFORCE lightweight champion and fan-favorite (No. 11) Clay Guida (31-12, fighting out of Albuquerque, N.M.) takes on Robbie Peralta (18-5, 1NC, fighting out of Escondido, Calif.) in a featherweight bout.  

·         Former lightweight title contender Gray Maynard (12-5-1, 1NC, fighting out of Las Vegas, Nev.) meets MMA veteran Alexander Yakovlev (21-6-1, fighting out of Fairfield, N.J.).

·         Ron Stallings (12-7, 1NC, fighting out of Camp Spring, Md.) will make his second Octagon appearance when he meets middleweight Justin Jones (3-1, fighting out of San Diego, Calif.).

·         The Ultimate Fighter season 17 alumnus Clint Hester (11-4, fighting out of Atlanta, Ga.) squares off against fellow season cast mate Luke Barnatt (8-2, fighting out of Cambridge, England).

·         Plus, heavyweights Shamil Abdurahimov (15-2, fighting out of Makhachkala, Russia) and Timothy Johnson (8-1, fighting out of Fargo, N.D.) meet in their UFC debuts.

Tickets for UFC FIGHT NIGHT^®: MENDES vs. LAMAS go on sale Friday, Feb. 13 at 10 a.m. ET and are priced at $179, $129, $94, $74 and $54 (plus applicable service charges). Tickets are available for purchase at all Ticketmaster outlets including the Patriot Center box office, online at www.ticketmaster.com or via Phonecharge at (800) 745-3000. Ticket sales are limited to eight (8) per person.

           

UFC Fight Club^® members will have the opportunity to purchase tickets to this event Wednesday, Feb. 11 at 10 a.m. ET via the website www.ufcfightclub.com. A special internet ticket pre-sale will be available to UFC newsletter subscribers Thursday, Feb. 12 starting at 10 a.m. ET. To access this presale, users must register for the UFC newsletter through UFC.com.

UFC FIGHT NIGHT^®: MENDES vs. LAMAS will air live on FOX Sports 1 at 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT on Saturday, April 4, with the prelims kicking off the morning on FOX Sports 1 at 11 a.m. ET/8 a.m. PT and on UFC FIGHT PASS™ at 10 a.m. ET and 7 a.m. PT.

RODRIGO “BIG NOG” NOGUEIRA NAMED NEW COACH OF

THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER^® BRAZIL 4

Nevada State Athletic Commission requests Anderson Silva step down as coach of the series

Las Vegas – The UFC^® announced today that Brazilian legend Rodrigo "Big Nog" Nogueira will join the cast of The Ultimate Fighter^® Brazil 4, the organization’s signature television reality series, as coach following the departure of UFC middleweight Anderson Silva. 

The Nevada State Athletic Commission, which regulates The Ultimate Fighter series’ exhibition fights filmed in Las Vegas, requested that Silva cease participation in the series as a result of his temporary suspension following the recently announced preliminary results of his January 9 pre-fight drug test for UFC^® 183.

The UFC and Globo, the show’s Brazilian broadcaster, respect the Commission’s decision, which will allow Silva to focus his attention on the matter before the Commission. Anderson Silva has been an amazing champion and a true ambassador of the sport of mixed martial arts and the UFC will continue to support him as this process unfolds. 

The series, which began filming in Las Vegas on Monday, Feb. 2, originally featured Silva and former UFC light heavyweight champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua as head coaches. Rua will continue on as coach of Team Shogun versus the newly formed Team Nogueira, which will also include Big Nog’s twin brother Rogerio "Lil Nog" Nogueira as an assistant coach.