Welcome to week four of MMARated.com’s Cultural & Media Rankings. Each week we’ll weigh in on who’s hot and who’s not in the world of mixed martial arts. Take a look…
MOMENTUM
THOUGHTS
1. Kimbo Slice
UP
He’s calling out Chuck Liddell, gracing the cover of ESPN The Magazine and headlining the first Elite XC on CBS card. Itís good to be the Kimbo.
2. UFC cuts
DOWN
Certainly these cuts are good news for the Elite XC’s of the world but you canít help but feel for a fighter who has to deal with the burden of if he just would have applied that armbar a little tighter he would still be employed by the UFC.
3. DREAM
DOWN
A semi-exciting second offering but their tournament appears to have gone to hell due to injuries. Another reason why MMA tournaments will always be flawed.
4. UFC 85
UP
One can make a strong case that the additions of Hughes vs. Alves and Bisping vs. Leben make this show a hell of a lot more interesting than the original lineup featuring Liddell.
5. Roger Huerta
UP
Who knew so many people cared about his love life? More importantly, “El Matador” returns in August against Kenny Florian in a match we canít wait for.
6. IFL
STATUS QUO
Some weird statements being made by IFL president Jay Larkin lately… is the end near?
7. Anderson Silva
DOWN
Yo yo, Spider, chill on the Roy Jones Jr. talk for a minute. It’s really way too premature.
8. Hong Man Choi
DOWN
Free at last! Free at last! Thank God almighty, Hong Man is free at last (from his mandatory Korean army service, of course).
When I first saw Matthew “Chipper” Riddle crush Dan Simmler’s jaw on in the second episode of TUF 7, I quickly thought to myself: “That kid’s going far in this tournament.” I think it was a mix between the smug smile on his face and the excessive TV time he received in the following episode that truly made me feel like he would be a force to be reckoned with.
Shows how much I know as Riddle suffered a second round loss via armbar submission to Tim Credeur on last week’s episode of the show. I certainly didn’t see that one coming.
Is this the last time we’ll be seeing that kid who still lives at home with his mom and doesn’t have a driver’s license fight in the Octagon again? Something tells me no. In fact, Riddle even told us that he was one of the few cast members that will be fighting on the Finale in June. A win against his yet to be announced opponent will probably ensure a several fight stay in the UFC.
MMARated Radio caught up with the 21-year-old Riddle to talk about a whole host of subjects:
* His experience on the show * Having to fight his way into the house * Breaking Simmler’s jaw * Has he seen him since? * What went wrong against Credeur * Rampage’s reaction after the fight * Should he have done things a little differently? * Where he is moving to improve his game * Will he ever got a shot at Dante Rivera?
All that and more from the not-so-surprisingly chipper Matthew “Chipper” Riddle.
Travis Lutter. Say that name on any MMA forum and you’re bound to strike a multitude of emotions from fans. Some hate him while others remain supportive. Some root for him to fail while others continue to pull for him. Some we’re disappointed in his performance at UFC 83 while others are just ecstatic that the UFC has since released him…wait, what? The UFC released a former TUF winner after two losses in a row? Didn’t Kendall Grove lose two in a row and is now headlining the TUF Finale in June? Yes and yes.
Now, granted, Lutter did fail to make weight in his title shot against Anderson Silva last June but I can’t help but feel like the punishment didn’t fit the crime. Maybe I’m wrong though…
Anyhow, MMARated Radio caught up with the much-maligned Lutter to get his side on how and why he was suddenly released:
* When did he find out?
* How did he find out?
* Has he talked to anyone in the UFC?
* Was he surprised he got released?
* What went wrong in the Franklin fight?
* Has he spoke to any other promotions (hint: they rhyme with DIEFL and Appliction)
* When he expects to fight next
* Which fighter would he like to fight next?
We also gave Lutter the forum to address anything else that was on his mind.
The last time we caught up with Phil Baroni he only had Murilo “Ninja” Rua on his mind. Since we spoke, Rua was replaced by Joey Villasenor as Baroni’s opponent for the May 31st Elite XC on CBS telecast. No official reason has yet to be given for the switch.
Naturally, the moment we found out about the change in opponents we contacted “The New York Bad Ass” to get his thoughts on it all…
Ariel Helwani: When did you hear that Ninja Rua was pulling out of your fight?
Phil Baroni: I don’t know. Same time everyone else did.
Ariel Helwani: What was the reason you heard?
Phil Baroni: He was injured or something. Really what difference does it make? Whatever the reason is he should consider himself lucky. I’ll be coming in top shape for this one guns blazing.
Ariel Helwani: Do you believe he was really injured?
Phil Baroni: Yeah, the guy has fought the best. Lawler, Rampage, Henderson…I have no reason to believe he wouldn’t fight me. The guy is no bitch; he comes to fight.
Ariel Helwani: Is it possible he read our interview on MMARated.com and got scared?
Phil Baroni: I doubt he can even read.
Ariel Helwani: What are your thoughts on your new opponent on May 31st, Joey Villasenor?
Phil Baroni: Instead of Ninja Sushi I’ll be having a Smoking Joe Burrito.
Ariel Helwani: In your opinion, is Villasenor a step up or a step down in competition for you?
The topic of racism reared its ugly head this past week with the suspension of Michael Hayes for racial comments directed at Mark Henry over WrestleMania weekend.
Whether we agree or not, racism is a big part of the combat sports industry where the line between acceptable and unacceptable forms of promotion for a fight are often blurred.
This week, I take a look at the racial fingerprints on the combat sports world.
Pollock’s POV: A Black & White Look At Combat Sports
This clip, courtesy of the great Awful Announcing, is from a TNT broadcast of the Lakers-Nuggets playoff game where sideline reporter, Craig Sager, tells the story of Nugs’ coach, George Karl, showing his squad a video of Kimbo Slice to hype them up before the game. Only problem is he refers to Slice as “Kimbo Coles.” Naturally, he confused the EXC star with former NBA journeyman, Bimbo Coles.
By the way, anyone else find it a little weird that Karl was showing his team footage of Slice in the first place? Clearly, they are the underdog in this series which would not be the best way to describe Slice’s role in MMA right now. I can understand showing a Randy Couture or even Rampage Jackson video but Kimbo?
It’s tough keeping up with Monte Cox these days. He’s with M-1 Global. He’s without M-1 Global. He’s starting Adrenaline MMA. He’s hooking up Affliction with Tim Sylvia to fight Fedor. He’s friends with everyone. He’s calling Ken Pavia, for all intents and purposes, a midget (more on that in our interview). It’s safe to say Cox is the busiest man in MMA.
Thankfully, he granted MMARated Radio an interview (free of charge to boot!) to talk about all the action in his professional career:
* Is Fedor-Sylvia official?
* What’s the deal with this Affliction show?
* Does it have anything to do with Adrenaline MMA?
* Is it weird working on a match involving Fedor?
* More details on Adrenaline MMA
* How many shows will they hold per year
* Fights signed for the inaugural show
* Any beef between him and Pavia
* What went wrong between Tim Sylvia and the UFC?
Oh, and Cox also teases us with the knowledge that one of his fighters has been contacted to fight in the main event of UFC 85. As you will hear, I tried my hardest to find out more but Cox put the kabosh on all my efforts.
Welcome to week four of MMARated.com’s Cultural & Media Rankings. Each week we’ll weigh in on who’s hot and who’s not in the world of mixed martial arts. Take a look…
Travis Lutter. Say that name on any MMA forum and you’re bound to strike a multitude of emotions from fans. Some hate him while others remain supportive. Some root for him to fail while others continue to pull for him. Some we’re disappointed in his performance at UFC 83 while others are just ecstatic that the UFC has since released him…wait, what? The UFC released a former TUF winner after two losses in a row? Didn’t Kendall Grove lose two in a row and is now headlining the TUF Finale in June? Yes and yes.
The last time we caught up with Phil Baroni he only had Murilo “Ninja” Rua on his mind. Since we spoke, Rua was replaced by Joey Villasenor as Baroni’s opponent for the May 31st Elite XC on CBS telecast. No official reason has yet to be given for the switch.
by John Pollock, JarryPark.com Contributor
It’s tough keeping up with Monte Cox these days. He’s with M-1 Global. He’s without M-1 Global. He’s starting Adrenaline MMA. He’s hooking up Affliction with Tim Sylvia to fight Fedor. He’s friends with everyone. He’s calling Ken Pavia, for all intents and purposes, a midget (more on that in our interview). It’s safe to say Cox is the busiest man in MMA.
