MMA: UFC in Calgary
The UFC is going north of the border three times in 2012 with pay-per-view events in Calgary, Toronto and Montreal, the UFC announced at a news conference on Wednesday in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
UFC president Dana White said UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo will be the headliner at UFC 149 on July 21 in Calgary. Aldo’s opponent hasn’t been finalized.
“You know I want to bring a sick card here,” White said at the news conference. “We’re going to bring a good one here to Calgary, I promise.”
UFC 152 will be on Sept. 22 in Toronto and UFC 154 will be on Nov. 17 in Montreal.
White also announced that the rematch between UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva and Chael Sonnen will be held this summer at UFC 147 on June 16 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
“Think about this, the Chael Sonnen-Anderson Silva fight, I’m probably going to put my foot in my mouth again, and probably not supposed to be talking about this either, but I always do it so, this thing’s going to be in a soccer stadium in Rio,” White said. “This thing’s going to have over 80,000 people at this event down there.”
NOTES
Quinton “Rampage” Jackson of Irvine has talked a lot about his dissatisfaction with the UFC and his future with the organization in recent weeks. Jackson will undergo surgery on both of his knees in the next few weeks and then he’ll meet Mauricio “Shogun” Rua in a rematch in October in what could be his final fight in the UFC.
Jackson said his issues with the UFC started when he decided to delay his fight against Rashad Evans following their stint as opposing coaches on “The Ultimate Fighter 10,” so he could playthe role of B.A. Baracus in the 2010 film “The A-Team.”
“I know I messed up the relationship by doing the movie over fighting Rashad Evans,” Jackson told Sherdog radio Network’s “The Savage Dog Show.” “It was my fault. I’ve got to keep it real. I did that. I messed up. I should have honored my contract and fought Rashad after ‘The Ultimate Fighter.’ … Before that Dana and I was really cool. I was really cool with the UFC, Lorenzo (Fertitta) and everybody. We were all cool, but I messed up the relationship by doing the movie and I’m aware of that.”
Jackson said he has to think about his future and that’s why he is making music, movies, desiging video games and running his two gyms.
“You can’t fight forever,” Jackson said. “There’s no MMA pension. I’ve got a whole lot of other stuff going. I’ve got a lot of revenue coming in from other ways and I know that the UFC has opened up doors for that, but I was who I was before I even came to the UFC. But once the UFC got real popular and mainstream, it opened up a lot of doors for me and I’m thankful to the UFC for that. I’m just kind of (upset) about some other things.” …
Eric Prindle (7-1, 1 NC) and Thiago Santos (10-1, 1 NC) will finally meet in the Season 5 Heavyweight Tournament finals at Bellator 62 on Friday at 8 p.m. on MTV2 in Laredo, Tex. The rematch was scheduled for Bellator 61, but it was re-scheduled for Bellator 62 because Prindle was suffering from flu-like symptoms last week.
Bellator 62 also features the quarterfinals of the Season 6 Lightweight Tournament. Here are the matchups: Patricky Freire (10-2) vs. Lloyd Woodard (11-1); Lakewood’s J.J. Ambrose (17-3) vs. Brent Weedman (18-7-1); Rick Hawn (11-1) vs. Ricardo Tirloni (14-1); and Thiago Michel Pereira Silva (9-2) vs. Rene Nazare (10-1). …
Francisco Rivera (7-2) of Buena Park faces Casey Olson (14-3) of Fresno for the vacant Tachi Palace Fights bantamweight title at Tachi Palace Fights 13 on May 10 at Tachi Palace Hotel and Casino in Lemoore.
Following baack-to-back losses to Erik Koch at WEC 52 and Reuben Duran at “The Ultimate Fighter 13″ Finale, Rivera closed out 2011 with a 40-second knockout of Brad McDonald. …
Jake Ellenberger (27-5) will go toe-to-toe with Martin Kampmann (19-5) in the main event of “The Ultimate Fighter 15″ Finale on June 1 on FX in Las Vegas, the UFC announced on Wednesday.
Ellenberger has recorded six consecutive victories inside the octagon. Following razor-thin decision losses to Jake Shields and Diego Sanchez, Kampmann scored a unanimous decision over Rick Story and he recorded a come-from-behind submission over Thiago Alves in his past two fights. …
FIGHT OF THE WEEK
Eric Prindle vs. Thiago Santos
When: Friday, 8 p.m.
Where: Laredo Energy Center, Laredo, Tex.
TV: MTV2
Outlook: After a week delay because Prindle (7-1, 1 NC) was suffering from flu-like symptoms, Prindle, a 6-5, 265-pounder, and Santos (10-1, 1 NC), a 6-3, 265-pounder, will finally hook up to determine Bellator’s Season 5 Heavyweight Tournament champion.
Prediction: Prindle is a dangerous puncher with one-punch KO power, but Santos is more versatile. Santos can bang and he has a very good submission game. Santos will take the Heavyweight Tournament title.
Record in 2012 predictions: 4-4
mmabay news 