THE WEEK THAT WAS

Fighters of the Week:

1. Bryan Baker (Bellator) - I feel justified in talking up THE BEAST after his demolition of Sean Loeffler. He's still my favorite to win it, Shlemenko or not.
2. Alexander Shlemenko (Bellator) - And speak of the devil! On only a few days notice and coming from Russia, he scored a dominating win over Matt Major.
3. Eric Schambari (Bellator) - In the main event of Bellator 16, Schambari made quick work of Luke Zachrich with an arm triangle to earn himself a dance with Bryan Baker.
4. Jared Hess (Bellator) - A quality win by guillotine over Ryan McGivern moves him on against Alexander Shlemenko.
5. Keola Silva (Galaxy MMA) - Big upset with a unanimous decision win over the highly-acclaimed Tyson Nam.
6. Yuki Kondo (Pancrase) - The crafty veteran took down Ichiro Kanai in the main event of Pancrase Passion Tour 4
7. Ricco Rodriguez (Cage Thug) - Knocked out MMA's Iron Man, Travis Fulton, in the main event of Cage Thug in Iowa.
8. Reza Madadi (Superior Challenge) - In the main event of Superior Challenge 5, Madadi does the world-at-large a favor and chokes out Junie Allen Browning in the second round.
9. Jameel Massouh (Superior Challenge) - In a battle of Top-75 flyweights, Massouh decisions his way to victory over Sami Aziz.
10. Brent Weedman (Bellator) - Weedman grabs the bull by the horns and puts himself on the map with a first-round TKO over Rudy Bears, who recently headlined a Strikeforce Challengers card.


Quote of the Week:

"Knock me out? Too funny. People with glass chins shouldn't throw stones." - Paul Daley on Josh Koscheck

Upset of the Week:

Keola Silva def. Tyson Nam

Event of the Week:

Bellator 16
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May 4-May 11

THE WEEK THAT WILL BE



[:: Tachi Palace Fights 4: Cinco de Mayhem ::]
May 5
Tachi Palance Hotel & Casino
Lemoore, California

Notable Fights:
TPF Flyweight Championship: Luis Gonzalez (c) vs. Ulysses Gomez (Flyweight #21)
TPF Welterweight Championship: Tim McKenzie (c) (MW #200) vs. David Mitchell (WW #87)
Casey Olson (FW #128) vs. Shawn Klarcyk
Phil Collins (MW #185) vs. Morris Aldaco



[:: Bellator 17 ::]
May 6
Citi Performing Arts Center: Wang Theatre
Boston, MA
TV: FSN

Notable Fights:
Eddie Alvarez (LW #6) vs. Josh Neer (WW #64)
Pat Curran (LW #88) vs. Roger Huerta (LW #33)
Carey Vanier (LW #188) vs. Toby Imada (LW #36)




[:: MFC 25: Vindication ::]
May 7
Edmonton Expo Centre
Edmonton, Alberta
TV: HDNet

Notable Fights:
Jesse Taylor (MW #40) vs. Thales Leites (MW #10)
Ryan Jimmo (LHW #30) vs. Wilson Gouveia (MW #27)
Luigi Fioravanti (WW #80) vs. Pete Spratt (WW #185)
Dwayne Lewis (LHW #32) vs. Emanuel Newton (LHW #70)

[:: KSW 14: Kumite ::]
May 7
Spodek
Katowice, Silesian Viovodeship, Poland

Notable Fights:
Mariusz Pudzianowski vs. Yusuke Kawaguchi (HW #93)
Mamed Khalidov (MW #11) vs. Ryuta Sakurai (MW #94)
Krzysztof Kulak (LHW #130) vs. Vitor Nobrega
David Olivia (HW #183) vs. Konstantin Gluhov (HW #130)



[:: UFC 113: Machida vs. Shogun 2 ::]
May 8
Bell Centre
Montreal, Quebec
10:00
PPV

Notable Fights:
UFC Light Heavyweight Championship: Lyoto Machida (c) (LHW #1) vs. Mauricio Rua (LHW #6)
Josh Koscheck (WW #3) vs. Paul Daley (WW #9)
Alan Belcher (MW #14) vs. Patrick Cote
Kimbo Slice (HW #77) vs. Matt Mitrione



[:: Ultimate Challenge: Never Back Down ::]
May 8
The Troxy
London, England

Notable Fights:
Ultimate Challenge Heavyweight Championship Neil Grove (c) (HW #52) vs. Stav Economou (HW #163)
Ultimate Challenge Light Heavyweight Championship: Jimi Manuwa (c) (LHW #122) vs. Reza Meldavian
Earl Brown vs. Paul Cahoon (MW #177)
-----------------------------------------------

Fighters I'm Rooting For This Week:

1. Shogun Rua (You took the belt the first time, Mauricio, now make it official.)
2. Kimbo Slice (Not that I'm a huge Kevin Ferguson fan, but I hate Meathead so much, I want him to avenge Marcus Jones and do it in style. WAR KIMBOPLEX!)
3. Toby Imada (I really want to see Toby in the finals again, if it's against Huerta, all the better.)
4. Mamed Khalidov (Dude is a beast. His wars with Jorge Santiago were fantastic, and he's my favorite Eurasian middleweight. He'd be a great pickup for Strikeforce.)
5. Tom Lawlor (Who doesn't want this guy to succeed? He's one of the funniest dudes out there. The Hulk Hogan entrance, the "Just Bleed" tribute, his Twitter, everything.)

Best Cards:

1. UFC 113
2. Bellator 17
3. KSW 14
4. MFC 25
5. Ultimate Challenge: Never Back Down


Fights I'm Looking Forward To:

1. Lyoto Machida vs. Mauricio Rua (Will they employ the same strategy as last time? They both say no, but is it a smoke screen? Machida, he of the Floyd Mayweather stick-and-move evasive strategy, and Rua of the aggressive, counter-punch world. If I'm Lyoto, I need to finish this fight, because if it goes to the judges, I'm thinking they give Shogun a "makeup call" with this one.)
2. Josh Koscheck vs. Paul Daley (Hate both combatants, but like that it's basically a #1 contender for the WW title. There seems to be a fair amount of hate on both ends, which is good, and as a hater of both, will be glad to see them beaten into a pulp. If Kos sticks to his wrestling, he can win easily, but as he is wont to do, if he thinks he's American Kickboxer, Daley will tee off.)
3. Eddie Alvarez vs. Josh Neer (I am huge fans of both of these guys. I think Neer got the raw end of the stick when he got released from the UFC. Since then, he's been fantastic, and a win over Alvarez not only gets him back in the UFC, but opens all kinds of doors. That being said, I think Eddie takes this, but it's gonna be a fun as hell fight to watch. My darkhorse for Fight of the Week.)
4. Alan Belcher vs. Patrick Cote (I think Alan Belcher is the most underrated middleweight in the world. Hands down. I thought he beat Akiyama at UFC 100, he beat Gouveia by TKO at 195 lbs., he has wins over Jorge Santiago, Kalib Starnes, Denis Kang, and Ed Herman. I'm happy to see Cote back fighting again, and it's cool that it's in his home country, but I'm hoping Belcher finally gets the recognition he deserves. Oh, and it's gonna be Fight of the Night. Bank on it.)
5. Ryan Jimmo vs. Wilson Gouveia (I believe this fight is at 205, where Wilson should be. Great test for him, as Jimmo is probably the best Canadian LHW there is. If Wilson can beat him and maybe one more, he needs another look in the UFC. But Jimmo is a tough dude looking to make a name for himself, as well. Should be an awesome fight.)



In Closing:

Whew, well we made it, fellas. We marched through the desolate MMA week and now are being rewarded for our resolve. We get to see Shogun get his revenge, MFC and KSW both have quality cards, and Alvarez vs. Neer and the LW tourney leads the best Bellator card this season. We made it men, let's enjoy the spoils!

Sweet, some awesome fights coming up in all kinds of promotions!

Awesome, thx for update as always

And as always buddy, thanks for reading