MMA Nation - UFC On Fox Fight Card: Alex 'Bruce Leroy' Caceres Drops To Bantamweight, Duels Cole Escovedo

UFC On Fox: Winner Of Henderson Vs. Guida Earns Title Shot In Japan

2011-11-11T15:50:29Z

Who says fighting on Facebook is a bad thing?

The disappointment felt by Ben Henderson (14-2) and Clay Guida (29-11) upon learning their key lightweight tilt at Saturday's UFC on Fox debut would be unaired, regardless of the result, has been thoroughly lifted the day before the event. According to reports by MMA Junkie, sources confirmed a coveted prize lies in wait for the night's winner -- an immediate title shot against UFC lightweight king Frankie Edgar (14-1-1).

According to the report, no date has been finalized for the championship contest, however UFC officials are targeting a headlining spot on their return to Japan's Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan on February 26, 2012.

The announcement springs off a string of impressive performances and impeccable fortune for the two contenders. Guida has compiled a four-fight win streak since the beginning of last year, including dominating victories over former Pride champion Takanori Gomi and former number one contender Anthony Pettis, to force his way into the title picture. Likewise, Henderson has quickly adapted to the Octagon, blitzing through Mark Bocek and former number one contender Jim Miller in his introductory bouts.

With two contenders out of the picture, Melvin Guillard became the final man to stumble after unceremoniously losing in just 47 seconds to Joe Lauzon at UFC 136, leaving Henderson and Guida perched alone atop the landmine field that is the 155-pound division.

UFC on Fox: Velasquez vs. Dos Santos takes place on November 12th at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos headline the historic event, live on Fox for the UFC heavyweight championship.

VIDEO UFC Fighters Predict Winner Of Velasquez Vs. Dos Santos

2011-11-08T15:29:45Z

The UFC asked a bunch of its fighters to make predictions for this Saturday's heavyweight championship bout between Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos on UFC on Fox 1. Matt Mitrione, Roy Nelson, Cheick Kongo, Joe Lauzon and Donald Cerrone pipe up with their opinions on the fight.

Lauzon brings up the point that Cain has had an almost year long layoff due to shoulder surgery. Nelson thinks that the winner will be the man who wins the first 2.5 minutes of the fight. Mitrione can't decide between the two fighters but effuses about the skill levels of both men at some length. I'm not quite sure what Kongo was trying to say. Cerrone seems to favor dos Santos after seeing the beating Junior put on his teammate Shane Carwin at UFC 131.

Personally I think it could be quite the fight, both fighters have the skills to pay the bills as it were and anything can happen in the Octagon.

UFC On Fox 1: What Is The Best Case Scenario For Cain Velasquez Vs. Junior Dos Santos?

2011-11-08T13:02:18Z

There's a lot riding on UFC on Fox 1, the UFC's broadcast television debut this Saturday. Since the broadcast will feature only one live fight, a heavyweight championship bout between Cain Velasquez and challenger Junior dos Santos, everything is riding on the quality of the bout.

As anyone who's watched more than one or two UFC's knows, Mixed Martial Arts bouts vary widely in character and quality. Since I'm an optimist I want to think about some of the types of fights that would make for really awesome television. Here are five classic MMA bout archetypes with a featured example:

The One Round Thrill Ride
Matt Hughes vs. Frank Trigg 2
UFC 52, April 2005

It's fights like this that give MMA its reputation as the crack cocaine of combat sports. There's nothing really comparable in boxing because MMA's five minute rounds mean a great deal more can happen in one round and the variety of possible action means you can pack a standing brawl, a few complicated grappling exchanges and some dramatic throws and slams into a single back-and-forth explosion of action.

This legendary welterweight championship bout packed a roller coaster ride's worth of thrills into 4 minutes and 5 seconds. Trigg was more than happy to play the cocky villain to Hughes' Captain Heartland and when he caught Hughes with a groin strike the referee missed, Trigg poured it on, trying to finish the stunned champion. Hughes fended off a rear naked choke and got the reversal, sending the crowd into paroxysms of joy when he picked up Trigg, carried him across the cage and slammed him down hard. Hughes went on to to get the tap with a rear naked choke of his own.

Cain and dos Santos don't have the kind of red hot rivalry that Hughes and Trigg had, but there's no reason they couldn't put on a one-round barn burner with a big shift in momentum. Either fighter is capable of landing a stunning blow, escaping a submission, getting a big slam and locking in a choke.
The Wild Brawl
Stephan Bonnar vs. Forrest Griffin
The Ultimate Fighter 1 Finale, April 2005

It's no coincidence that two of these fights occurred in April 2005, the very same month the UFC exploded into the popular consciousness. These two great fights capitalized on the interest built up by the smash success of the first season of The Ultimate Fighter on Spike TV. Griffin vs. Bonnar was incredibly thrilling if not quite as high-octane as Hughes-Trigg 2.

Griffin and Bonnar went out and laid it all on the line for three glorious rounds. They busted each other up with punches, kicks, knees and elbows and had a great time doing it. Both men were absolutely hell-bent on winning the "six figure contract" promised to the winner of the reality show tournament. They threw technical polish out the window and just threw down. Fans loved it and word of mouth made the fight card a sudden smash.

If Cain and JDS chose to throw down at a similar pace and with a similar lack of concern for technique, Fox and the UFC will be as thrilled as the fans. It seems unlikely that the two heavyweights could collide with such abandon without someone getting KO'd, but anything is possible.
The Surprise Come Back
Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen
UFC 117, August 2010

Because of the ever-present possibility of knock out or submission, no MMA bout is ever out of reach of a surprise come back. It's possible for a fighter to catch an utterly one-sided, even embarrassing beat down for 24 and 1/2 minutes and still come back to get the win.

The definitive example of the amazing come back came in last year's UFC 117 middleweight championship bout between Anderson Silva and outspoken challenger Chael Sonnen. For 4.5 rounds, Sonnen backed up his pre-fight torrent of trash talk by beating Silva to the punch standing up and then taking him down and beating him up. Unfortunately for Sonnen it was a five round fight and his career-long vulnerability to submissions reared its head when Silva locked on an arm bar from the triangle choke position and forced Sonnen to tap out.

Everyone would be thrilled if Velasquez or dos Santos were to come back from an utter drubbing -- much as lightweight champ Frankie Edgar did in back-to-back battles with Gray Maynard at UFC 125 and UFC 136 -- and win the fight with some last-second heroics. Nothing shows the heart of a champion like catching a sustained and brutal beating, surviving undaunted and coming back for the win.
The Beat Down
Fedor Emelianenko vs Tim Sylvia
Affliction: Banned, July 2008

Not every great bout has to showcase both fighters. Sometimes fight fans enjoy seeing a complete and utter ass-whipping handed out. Nothing builds a fighter's reputation like winning a viciously one-sided championship bout against a previously feared and highly touted opponent. Think Mike Tyson.

Fedor Emelianenko already had a huge reputation after five years atop the heavyweight rankings when he met former UFC champ Tim Sylvia at Affliction's first pay-per-view event. Sylvia had a reputation as a hard man to beat, someone who was likely to make every bout an ugly war of attrition. Not that day. Fedor blitzed him with a swarm of punches and finished Sylvia with a choke. Fight fans who'd never seen Fedor before immediately realized what the hype was all about.

The beauty of being a fight promoter is you don't care who crushes whom as long as someone comes out of the fight looking like an utter badass. If either Cain or JDS demolishes the other, you'll need a spatula to pick the collective jaws of MMA fandom off the floor.
The War Of Attrition
Frank Shamrock vs. Tito Ortiz
UFC 22, September 1999

This last type of classic MMA bout is the most subtle but possibly the most gripping. It's a variation of the last-minute come back but features a more gradual and more definitive come back. Unlike the miracle come back, the war of attrition leaves little doubt as to who the better man really is. Generally a big physical disadvantage of some kind is overcome by brains, will and strategy.

The classic bout of this style is Frank Shamrock's final defense of his UFC belt against the much much bigger Tito Ortiz. Ortiz brought weight cutting to MMA and walked into the bout with an estimated 25lb advantage over Shamrock despite both weighing in at 200lbs the day before. Shamrock used skillful defense to ride out Ortiz' early blitz. By the third round Ortiz was tiring and Shamrock began to pour it on. After spending most of the fight on his back, holding on for dear life, Shamrock sprung to his feet several times in the late rounds and attacked Ortiz like a pit bull tearing into a beagle. He finally finished Tito late in the fourth round.

Cain and JDS are very well matched physically, unlike Ortiz and Shamrock, but Velasquez' big wrestling advantage creates the possibility of a bout like this occurring. If Cain puts JDS down over and over in the early rounds but doesn't do enough damage to really hurt dos Santos, it's quite possible that Junior could come back to his feet and beat Velasquez down. It's also possible that JDS' boxing advantage could force the champ to play rope-a-dope, cover up and ride out the onslaught before turning the tables. A long, drawn out, but fast paced bout coming to a definitive conclusion would be a nearly ideal scenario for Fox and the UFC.

UFC On Fox Fight Card: Alex 'Bruce Leroy' Caceres Drops To Bantamweight, Set To Duel Cole Escovedo

2011-10-06T16:03:00Z

Channeling the old phrase, the third time is bound to be the charm for either Alex Caceres (5-4) or Cole Escovedo (17-8). Both winless in two Octagon appearances, the pair have now been scheduled for a bantamweight bout on the undercard of UFC on Fox in November. UFC officials confirmed the announcement on Wednesday night.

Known by many as "Bruce Leroy," Caceres first entered the UFC after his run to the quarterfinals of "The Ultimate Fighter 12," where he competed as a lightweight. Following the conclusion of the show, the 23-year-old made his promotional debut at 145 pounds in March, submitting to Mackens Semerzier via rear-naked choke midway through the first round. He then fell in similar fashion to UFC newcomer Jimy Hettes at UFC on Versus 5, for the fourth loss of his last five appearances.

Across the cage, Escovedo faces similar circumstances after dropping four of his last five bouts, including his first two inside the Octagon against Renan Barao and Takeya Mizugaki. Nicknamed "The Apache Kid," the 30-year-old submission specialist trains at Pacific Martial Arts and has garnered a reputation for finishing fights, having harvested just one of his 17 wins via decision.

UFC on Fox: Velasquez vs. Dos Santos is headlined by a colossal heavyweight contest between UFC champion Cain Velasquez and number-one contender Junior dos Santos, slated for November 12th at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California.

UFC On Fox Fight Card: DaMarques Johnson Vs. Clay Harvison On Tap For Anaheim

2011-10-04T21:08:46Z

Yet another bout has been added to the undercard of UFC on Fox. According to reports from MMA Junkie's John Morgan, a welterweight contest between DaMarques Johnson (12-9) and Clay Harvison (7-2) has been targeted for the UFC's primetime network debut. The match-up has yet to be confirmed by promotion officials, however verbal agreements are said to be in place.

The pair were previously scheduled to meet at UFC Fight Night 25, before Johnson was forced out of the bout with an injury. His replacement, Seth Baczynski, went on to defeat Harvison via second round rear-naked choke.

Johnson first rose to public prominence with his run to the finals of "The Ultimate Fighter Season 9," where he was eventually bested by a rear-naked choke from Team Bisping's James Wilks in the closing moments of the first round. Since then the 29-year-old Utah native has collected a 3-2 record inside the UFC, while earning both "Knockout of the Night" and "Submission of the Night" bonuses for his performances. He last competed at UFC Fight Night 24, dropping via strikes midway through the second round against Amir Sadollah.

Meanwhile, Harvison looks to rebound from his own setback after suffering his first defeat inside the Octagon to Baczynski. The loss snapped a three-fight win streak for the 31-year-old that stretched back to 2009 and included a narrow split decision victory over Justin Edwards at The Ultimate Fighter 13 Finale.

UFC on Fox: Velasquez vs. Dos Santos is scheduled for November 12th at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. The event is headlined by a primetime heavyweight duel between UFC champion Cain Velasquez and number-one contender Junior dos Santos.

UFC On Fox Fight Card: Semerzier Vs. Peralta, Bradley Vs. Pierce, Lucas Vs. Rosa Confirmed

2011-10-04T18:07:43Z

Three bouts have officially been added to the undercard of UFC on Fox: Velasquez vs. Dos Santos, bringing the total number of verified fights to eight. UFC officials confirmed the announcements mid-Tuesday afternoon.

Explosive 30-year-old featherweight Mackens Semerzier (8-3) has signed on to battle Robert Peralta (15-3-0), the man who replaced him after an injury forced an abrupt withdrawal from a September bout against Mike Lullo. Both men are Zuffa veterans, but fresh off their first UFC win -- a first round submission over Alex Caceres for Semerzier, and a unanimous decision over Lullo for Peralta.

Additionally, Paul "The Gentleman" Bradley (18-3) has agreed to fight Mike Pierce (12-4) in a duel of standout middleweight wrestlers. Bradley looks to rebound from a loss against Rafael Natal at UFC 133, while Pierce aims for his own rebound after dropping a narrow split decision to Johny Hendricks on the same night.

Lastly, Rage in the Cage knockout artist Matt Lucas (14-2) makes his Octagon debut against 28-year-old Texas native Aaron Rosa (16-4) in a potential light heavyweight slugfest. Lucas enters the cage riding high on a five-fight win streak that includes four under-two-minute knockout victories. Rosa, on the other hand, hopes to bounce back after crumbling to strikes in the third round of his UFC debut against Joey Beltran in June.

UFC on Fox: Velasquez vs. Dos Santos is slated for November 12th at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Headlining is a massive heavyweight clash between UFC champion Cain Velasquez and number-one contender Junior dos Santos.

UFC on Fox fight card:

Main Event
Heavyweight Championship: Cain Velasquez vs. Junior Dos Santos

Preliminary Card
Lightweight: Clay Guida vs. Ben Henderson
Bantamweight: Norifumi Yamamoto vs. Darren Uyenoyama
Featherweight: Dustin Poirier vs. Pablo Garza
Featherweight: Cub Swanson vs. Ricardo Lamas
Featherweight: Mackens Semerzier vs. Robert Peralta
Middleweight: Paul Bradley vs. Mike Pierce
Light Heavyweight: Aaron Rosa vs. Matt Lucas

UFC On Fox Fight Card: Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto Returns Against Darren Uyenoyama

2011-09-06T21:51:58Z

Just five days after being removed from a scheduled appearance at UFC 135, Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto has a new date to train for. Announced Tuesday, the former Japanese superstar will meet Darren Uyenoyama on November 12th at UFC on Fox. According to reports from Sherdog.com, UFC officials have confirmed the bantamweight bout.

Once considered one of the world's premier featherweights, "Kid" has fallen on hard times over the past two years. The 34-year-old last fought at his Octagon debut in February, dropping a unanimous decision to Demetrious Johnson that marked the third loss of his last four contests. Since then he has withdrawn from two scheduled fights after sustaining injuries in training.

Across the cage, Uyenoyama enters the bout on the heels of a surprise knockout victory over Shooto 132-pound world champion Shuichiro Katsumura last September. Known as "BC," the 31-year-old American has fought all over the world throughout his eight-year career, including stops in Strikeforce, DREAM, and Deep. He was briefly rumored to be a part of UFC 134's undercard, but a matchup never emerged.

UFC on Fox: Velasquez vs. Dos Santos will be held at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California on November 12th. Headlining is a heavyweight championship bout between Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos live on Fox.

UFC On Fox Fight Card: Ben Henderson Vs. Clay Guida Confirmed For November 12th

2011-09-06T20:22:44Z

A lightweight bout between Ben Henderson (14-2) and Clay Guida (29-11) has been officially confirmed by UFC officials, according to reports from Yahoo! Sports' Kevin Iole. The fight has been slotted onto the card of UFC on Fox, and will likely serve as a number-one contender match to determine the next challenger to the lightweight belt.

In late August both men voiced their willingness to compete against each other on the UFC's historic Fox debut.

A former WEC champion, Henderson has quickly made his mark during his short time within the UFC, blitzing through Mark Bocek and former number one contender Jim Miller in his introductory bouts. Overall the 27-year-old has won thirteen of his last fourteen fights, including victories over Anthony Njokuani, Jamie Varner, and Donald Cerrone.

Meanwhile, Guida has compiled a four-fight win streak since the beginning of last year, including dominating victories over Takanori Gomi and Anthony Pettis to force his way into the title picture. The 29-year-old is a longtime Octagon favorite, having collected six post-fight bonuses, including four 'Fight of the Night' honors.

UFC on Fox: Velasquez vs. Dos Santos is scheduled for November 12th at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Headlining the landmark event is a mammoth tilt between Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos live on Fox for the UFC heavyweight championship.