Hump Day in MMA

Columns, News

Welcome to the second edition of MMA Humpday. We’ve got a lot of information to cover, so let’s get to it.

The Biggest Loser

I can’t say that I’m shocked to see Fabricio Werdum out of the UFC.

Werdum was disgruntled by the decision to put Brock Lesnar into the heavyweight mini-tournament. He believed Lesnar was undeserving of a title shot, and was rather vocal about it. He then decided to show up for his fight at UFC 90, at least twenty pounds overweight, and gets knocked out by newcomer Junior dos Santos.

A future matchup with the winner of Fedor Emelianenko vs. Andrei Arlovski, who fight at Affliction’s “Day of Reckoning,” may be on the horizon. Or, perhaps he may be better received in DREAM. One thing is for sure: Werdum wasn’t let go for lack of skill or talent. Hopefully he will find his place in the MMA world. Thanks to Jeremy Botter for reporting this breaking news first.

Koscheck is a trooper

The fight card for “Fight for the Troops” on December 13th on Spike TV is official and it looks like Josh is the man. Koscheck was soundly beaten by Thiago Alves, but was stepping in on two weeks notice for an injured Diego Sanchez. I never thought he would be ready to go after the vicious leg kicks he absorbed but he appears ready and eager. Koscheck has shown heart and I hope MMA fans take notice. To get the rest of the fight card click here.

Kang wastes no time

The UFC’s newest middleweight Denis Kang will make his Octagon debut at UFC 93 in Dublin against Alan Belcher. This looks to be a good test for Korean-French MMA veteran. If Kang does well, look for the UFC to use him to expand their market into Korea, like they plan to do with Brandon Vera in the Philippines.

About the fight Kang said, ““I think I match up well with anybody, but with him because he has a nice, aggressive Muay Thai style it would make for a good back and forth battle.”

Amir Sadollah loses his “leg up”

The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 7 middleweight winner, Amir Sadollah, has been forced to withdraw from his upcoming bout against Nick Catone at UFC 91 because of a leg infection. As a result, the welterweight match up between Dustin Hazelett and Tamdan McCrory has been promoted to the televised portion of the pay-per-view telecast.

While this is bad news for the UFC, from their marketing perspective, many fans may actually be happy to hear the latter news. Both these fighters are known for their scrappy ways and this fight could easily garner “fight of the night.”

Rumor has it

Depending on which rumor you believe UFC 95 will be located in either London, England or in Columbus, Ohio at Nationwide arena. That date seems to be February 21st.

Although the rumors have quelled as of late, the fight everyone is talking about is Anderson Silva vs. Chuck Liddell. Insidefight’s Jeremy Botter recently discussed this fight in his article “The Five Biggest Potential UFC Fights.” It seems everyone has their opinion on this fight and only time will tell if it materializes.

Thank God It’s Official

The fight between Georges St. Pierre and BJ Penn will be for the welterweight title. Apparently they were finally able to negotiate the terms. I was beginning to be concerned that the fight might be a non-title fight which would make it only a three rounds. Instead, we will get a five round war, and if BJ Penn is able to pull of the upset he will be the first UFC fighter to hold two belts at one time.

How could I forget…

In case you have developed a case of amnesia then you are well aware that UFC 91 is happening this Saturday at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. Unless the lines move in the next week, Brock Lesnar looks to be the official favorite, making Randy Couture the underdog for the umpteenth time. Check back to insidefights before fight time to get our official picks. To see Dana White discussing the fight with ESPN click here

Until next time

That’s it for MMA Humpday. I hope you survive the rest of your work week and get to enjoy UFC 91. While the results will be old news by next hump day I am sure I will weigh in anyways. Enjoy the show!

Brian Oswald is a a new staff writer for Inside Fights. He was been watching the UFC since high dchool, when he saw Randy Couture defeated Vitor Belfort. He has been a passionate observer ever since.

Brian has been an avid fan of MMA ever since he saw Randy Couture beat Vitor Belfort back at UFC 15. In 2008, he decided to embark on a new career by combining his love of MMA and writing. Brian received his M.B.A. from Texas Tech University and currently resides in New York City.