I started this little blog a few months back as just a fun hobby. I love conducting interviews and figured ‘why not interview fighters and post them on a site.’

For whatever reason, it has quickly led to some pretty cool opportunities. Getting to work with the people at MMARated.com has been a great one while the newest is working with FOXSports.com.

Here’s the lowdown: Each week, one of my interviews will be appearing over at FoxSports.com. The first one is a little tete-a-tete with Tito Ortiz.

Also, I will be providing them with some video content so be on the look out for that.

In the meantime, check out the Ortiz interview and thanks for the continued love.

As I mentioned earlier, I had the distinct honor of being a guest on Fight Network Radio (aka Ranallo on the Radio) today.

We talked a whole bunch of WWE and primarily last night’s episode of RAW and the current direction of the product leading up to Judgment Day this Sunday.

More annoying than last night’s episode was the static that kept popping up every time I spoke. I really hate Vonage.

Anywho, still some good nuggets in there including a quasi-bet I made with Ranallo that if William Regal headlines Summerslam in a match against HHH, I would kiss his Canadian behind.

JarryPark on Fight Network Radio

You may not have heard of Matt Makowski (2-0) yet, but all that may change soon enough. The 21-year-old fighter will face Nike Serra on the undercard of the May 31st Elite XC on CBS card.

There’s always pressure going into any bout but you would have to think that all the guys fighting on the undercard of this particular show will be looking to make a splash to get their fight on the broadcast. With quick workers like Kimbo Slice, James Thompson, Robbie Lawler and Phil Baroni headlining, one has to think that there will be plenty of room for an extra bout or two…or three.

MMARated Radio caught up with Makowski just a couple of weeks before the biggest fight of his young career:

* His thoughts on potentially fighting on CBS

* How did he land on the card?

* Will he look to press the issue to land on the televised portion of the card?

* His thoughts on Nick Serra

* Would he prefer to fight a BJJ practitioner or a striker?

* His rise up the amateur fighting ranks

* Is he surprised at how quickly his career has progressed?

LISTEN TO THE MAKOWSKI INTERVIEW AT MMARATED.COM

* Yo, yo, yo…I’ll be a guest on Fight Network Radio today at 3 p.m. EST. Check ‘er out.

* RAW has definitely been must-miss-TV for me lately. I had a feeling this would happen once HHH became champion. Plus, the Regal power-hungry GM gimmick is so played out there is nothing new out there that has yet to be done.

* I took a trip to Stamford, CT, recently. Know of any good wrestling companies based out of there? One of these days, I will tell the tale of my journey to McMahon-land.

* I will be in Las Vegas for UFC 84 so expect some more videos in the very near future. And, yeah, I will try to squeeze in some time for this too.

* Oh, and have you heard of this site called MMARated.com?

Quite the weekend in the world of mixed martial arts. If you were sad and lonely at home but just so happened to have an interest in the sport then this was the perfect weekend for you.

But the (obvious) big question is: who scored the highest on our weekend report card. Let’s have a look-see…

D: Fighting and Entertainment Group:
I know I should be thankful that I am getting to see DREAM for free via HDNET, but, seriously now, those broadcasts are just way too long. I like my MMA telecasts just as much as the next guy but I am not down with spending five hours watching an event especially when a collective two hours are spent looking at a wide shot of the Saitama Super Arena while Bas Rutten and Kenny Rice talk about lord knows what. Let me be clear in stating that I know this isn’t HDNet’s fault but more so FEG’s since they are the ones booking all these ridiculously long shows. And, for the record, I was not left as enamored with the show as others were. Sure, there were some great fights but I think the fact that it dragged so much killed it for me.

Honorable mention: Ian Freeman’s new-found physique

C: Jason “Mayhem” Miller:
I have always enjoyed Mayhem’s antics in-and-out of the ring/cage. I love fighters who don’t take themselves too seriously and no one does it better than Mayhem. However, for some reason, his shtick got under my skin yesterday. Basically, he made Frank Shamrock look like the most sportsmanlike competitor around. His behavior probably had something to do with the fact that this was his first time fighting in Japan and, surely, he wanted to make a good first impression. The entrance was cute, the wink during the stare down was funny but all the other stuff was completely unnecessary and quite disrespectful to Shibata. Was that the warrior spirit he likes to talk about? I should probably give the man props for a dominating and convincing victory too.

Honorable Mention: Ross Pointon – Welcome back to the win column!

READ THE REST OF THE REPORT CARD HERE 

by John Pollock, JarryPark.com contributor

When you interview people on a daily basis such as we do on Fight Network Radio and Ariel Helwani does on Jarry Park and MMARated.com, you’re going to have some gems, you’re going to have some duds and you’re going to have ones that are just insane!

This week, I take a look at some of the stranger guests in Fight Network Radio’s one-year history!

And I’ll throw it out to the Jarry Park nation: What is the strangest combat sports-related interview you have ever heard?

Tyson?

Hogan?

Mayhem Miller?

Let us know!

Pollock’s POV: Who’s The Strangest Of ‘Em All?

You can hear much more from John Pollock weekdays at 3 p.m. ET on Fight Network Radio on Sirius channel 186 or via Hardcoresportsradio.com not to mention every Sunday evening at 11 p.m. ET on Live Audio Wrestling.

It wasn’t quite Gabe Ruedieger-esque but Jeremy May’s behavior on last week’s episode TUF 7 was quite the controversial one. Actually, maybe controversial isn’t the right word…annoying might be more accurate.

So, why did he pour lime juice in Matt Brown’s dip anyways? And why did the rest of the cast appear to be rooting against him?

We reached out to May to get some answers to these questions and the responses we got were pretty interesting.

For example, the guy we spoke to on the phone seemed completely different than the one portrayed on television. Now, that might have to do with the fact that he realized how poorly he came off on television and is now trying to change his persona but, regardless, it still seemed like a different guy.

Other topics we spoke to May about included:

- The mistakes he made against Matt Brown

- His lack of cardio in the fight

- The way he was portrayed on the show

- What prompted him to pour lime juice in Brown

- His thoughts on some of his cast members

- Did he enjoy the experience of being on a reality show?

- Was he happy with the coaching he received?

- How did he end up on the show in the first place?

LISTEN TO THE JEREMY MAY INTERVIEW HERE 

Here’s the latest and greatest from MMARated Radio: Each and every Friday we’ll be inviting another member of the MMA media to discuss the week that was and the weekend ahead in the sport we love so dearly.

Today, we kick things off with the uber-talented Ben Fowlkes of cagepotato.com and si.com to talk about a number of different topics:

* Changes in the IFL

* Is there any reason to watch Cage Rage 26?

* The legend that is Ross Pointon

* Will Nick Diaz actually fight for DREAM this weekend?

* Why would Elite XC even allow him to fight on their card in the first place?

* Can this be DREAM’s best offering yet?

* The case for Sean Sherk

* The Kimbo Slice article in ESPN The Magazine

* Bas Rutten’s reaction to the article

* Fowlkes’ take on Kimbo vs. Thompson

LISTEN TO THE WEEK’S END UPDATE

Last week, I was tipped off by a reliable source that Nate Quarry was being considered as a replacement for Chris Leben should his legal troubles get worse. Well, I think it’s officially safe to say that Leben’s problems have worsened.

MMAMania.com is reporting that Leben was sentenced today to 35 days in jail. Here are the details:

““The Crippler” turned himself in to the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office in Portland, Oregon, on April 30 because of an old Driving Under the Influence (DUI) probation violation.

MORE

Luke Zachrich is coming off a disappointing, yet spirited, loss to Dan Cramer on last night’s edition of “The Ultimate Fighter” and I can’t help but feel a little bad for him a day later.

You see, Zachrich’s fight was nudged right after the whole Matt Brown-Jeremy May battle with little fanfare, hype or buildup. Now we probably won’t hear much about him for the rest of the show (unless, of course, he returns as an injury replacement which is quite possible).

Regardless, he was kind enough to sit down with us today and was quite honest and sincere throughout the interview. Highlights include:

* His thoughts on the fight

* His lack of conditioning in the fight

* Would he have done anything differently

* The way he was portrayed on the show

* The fact that his fight came right after the Brown-May bout

* Does he regret doing the show in the first place?

* Will we see him in the UFC following the conclusion of the show?

Again, Zachrich had some very interesting things to say about the whole TUF experience. Definitely worth checking out.

LISTEN TO THE LUKE ZACHRICH INTERVIEW AT MMARATED.COM