Yesterday was an exciting day for MMA fans everywhere. Tim Sylvia had reportedly signed on to fight PRIDE Heavyweight Champion Fedor Emelianenko on July 19 at the American Airlines Arena in Dallas, Texas, but reports are now coming out of Russia that contradict the previous report from Sherdog’s Greg Savage… big surprise. Fedor’s manager, Vadim Finkelstein, states on the M-1 Mixfight website:

“At the moment we can’t certainly say the bout will take place come July because the contract is not signed,” Finkelstein is quoted as saying on the website M1Mixfight.com. “However, the both parties are involved in the negotiation process and we are about to break the finishing tape although we haven’t come to an agreement concerning every detail as of yet”

Great, some more obstacles to bull through in order to make this fight happen is exactly what made other fights disintegrate. The quote makes it sound as if they are close to a deal which begs the question as to how much money was thrown Fedor’s way. I highly doubt they gave him the $2 million dollar contract, but it could have been close. Hopefully we will see this deal come through.

Kimbo vs. Thompson to be announced this week

Moving to the other end of the spectrum of quality matchups, Kimbo Slice will officially be announced to take on James Thompson later this week according to NBCSports.com. Sam Caplan reported recently that Thompson was the frontrunner to take on the street brawling Kimbo, and it’s definitely a smart move for EliteXC to feature this fight on CBS.

It may not be a quality matchup, but it will give the viewership tuning in a sense of what Kimbo does… knock people out! Thompson possesses one of the weakest chins in the MMA game today, and the light switch flips off once he gets tagged by a couple blows from most of his opponents. His matchup with Kimbo should be no different, but you never know what to expect from Thompson.

Kendall Grove vs. Evan Tanner

Evan confirmed on his website that he will in fact be taking on TUF winner Kendall Grove over the summer. On paper, the matchup is intriguing because Tanner’s history and quality of opponents far outweighs Grove’s record. Grove has been weak chinned in his recent fights, but he still possesses some range, a large reach, and a formidable height for him to use in all facets of the fight. 

I think this fight comes down to Evan Tanner’s abilities to pound out Grove. Can he get through the length of Grove? If so, he could easily expose Grove’s chin to a crushing blow to end it. Regardless of my assessment, it should still be a tough fight to call at this point. We’ll see how Evan does with the training.

Burkman vs. Hazelett confirmed for June 21

Josh Burkman will reportedly take on Dustin Hazelett in June according to MMAWeekly.com. I’m not high on Josh Burkman’s style of fighting, but he could spell trouble for Hazelett if he can maintain top control on the ground without getting submitted. Hazelett is a very slick grappler, one of the better grapplers in the UFC, and he has smooth transitions from guard to a submission position. I’ve been impressed by his jiu-jitsu skills, and I don’t see a reason why he can’t win this one. The only real threat is Burkman’s strikes, which are looping, slow, and very easy to spot.

Ben Saunders vs. Jared Rollins at UFC 86

Looks like the UFC is rewarding Rollins for a great fight against Koppenhaver with matchup in the Octagon. Saunders has some abilities to avoid the ground and pound, and his length will definitely cause some problems for Rollins. Also, Saunders is training out of American Top Team, which will likely increase his skills substantially by the time we see him at UFC 86.

As with all sports, fans tend to be critical of athletes when it comes to making bad decisions in their personal lives. Most people feel that they are smart in their everyday decisions and for the most part, common sense is the prevailing factor in that thought process. Unfortunately, there are people out there that have made mistakes or bad decisions that led to a snowball effect of unfortunate circumstances. This week proved that mixed martial arts is a sport that will see an increasing number of these personal issues that aren't a part of their fighting career, but their own personal lives outside the sport.

Evan Tanner and Karo Parisyan have both been in the spotlight recently due to their personal problems outside of the sport that have affected them either inside the cage or in some way related to the sport. Evan had problems with bouts of alcoholism that led to some odd stints in his life that were all chronicled on his MySpace blog. His most recent situation involved his strange decision to put all of his fight purse on the line in order to win enough money at the gambling tables to pay debtors off. Not only did this strike fans as another addiction in Evan's life, but it also angered some fans who donated to the Team Tanner fund that he had set up to help sponsor him for UFC events. Jake over at Fightlinker summed up the entire situation and many fans' feelings toward the gambling with this to say:

Evan, all you’ve done is trade one monkey on your back for another. You don’t seriously think your fans are going to be impressed with this, do you? Did they borrow money from their grandmothers so you could go the the MGM Grand and spend it all on energy drinks and blackjack? And to have the balls to fucking say that this was the right thing to do, that you wouldn’t take it back if you had the chance! Evan, I love you buddy, but you can’t keep floating through life in a daze, thinking that you can use the same mentality you have in the Octagon and apply to the complexity of every day life.

Karo also had some problems this week. He tried to explain to fans his personal situation that has directly contributed to his poor performances in the cage. In his most recent performance against Ryo Chonan, he explained in the post-fight interview that personal problems contributed to his lackluster effort. He talked about those problems this week with MMAMania:

Adam Wagner (MMAmania.com): Well, all professional fighters battle a lot of injuries, making it near impossible to come into a fight at 100 percent.

Karo Parisyan: Exactly. Also, I don’t live by myself. I don’t have an apartment. It’s not like I only worry about Karo Parisyan, you know, I don’t train in the morning and that’s all I do. Bro, Armenians are different people, culturally. I take care of my whole family, bro. I have five, six people in my family, I have a big house. Everything that I do, I work for my family.

I have more pressure than anything, most of the time. So it’s not as easy as people think it is, you know. When I said that I had a personal issue in the last fight, I was meaning that I was buying a house, I couldn’t get my training in, I would run 20 minutes a day and call it a workout, because I could not get my training going to another level.

People have to understand, going into a fight, you should never make excuses — if you choose to go into the cage and fight, whatever happens, it happens, you chose it and that’s the result. But when you look behind that, there is always all kinds of stuff going on in a fighter’s life.

Fighting is your reward. The hard part is training and cutting weight. With all the bull crap before the fight, by the time you step in that cage, you’re drained.

It's obvious that Karo has a huge family to support here in the States, and it definitely could be the reason that he hasn't been much of a finisher in his career. He needs the win to live, and if he has to cruise out a guaranteed decision by simply using his judo to put opponents to the floor and work some ground and pound, he'll obviously go with that over risking a loss and a payday.

Personal problems affect athletes everywhere

UFC 82 will be an event to remember, or a borefest of decisions, it’s hard to say what’s going to happen in many of the bouts on the card. Many fans are claiming some huge lopsided victories while many others are seeing decisions galore litter the event’s results as we head into Saturday night. Hopefully, we won’t see another Strikeforce at the Dome card. Here’s our picks for UFC 82.

Main Event: Anderson Silva vs. Dan Henderson
At Stake: UFC Middleweight Title

People are starting to call this a pick’em fight, and I’d have to agree. This is one of the toughest fights to mull over due to the stylistic matchup between the two, but also due to the historical dominance of both fighters.

Silva has simply crushed everything in his path. He made Rich Franklin into a rag doll, and simply used his Muay Thai skillset to strike with him, close the distance, clinch, and then set up massive head shots with his knees. That gameplan will have to change if he wants to defeat Dan Henderson.

Henderson’s strength in this fight will be his wrestling. Greco-Roman control will be the key to getting Silva to the floor where Henderson should be able to crush him, but there are problems. First and foremost, Henderson doesn’t exactly wrestle when he needs to. He likes to brawl and showed it at times against “Rampage” Jackson. Secondly, his wrestling isn’t as good as many make it out to be. Sure, he’s an Olympian, but he was sloppy in many of his PRIDE bouts when it came to controlling his opponent. He can’t let that happen against a surgeon like Silva. Nonetheless, he has two big powerful hands to fall back on if he’s in trouble. The potential for a knockout win from either fighter is very high.

I’ve battled with who to pick in this fight for days, and honestly, it doesn’t matter. They are very even in regards to how their skills compete with one another. A BJJ Black Belt with surgical Muay Thai striking against an Olympic Greco-Roman wrestler with heavy hands is a classic matchup that should provide a spectacular main event. Who will win?

I’m going to have to go with Anderson Silva. I was a supporter of the whole idea behind Henderson winning this fight. He has better wrestling; therefore he can get the takedown and pound on Silva. I understand that point. My only problem is that I can only see Henderson ending this fight in the standup, and Silva has reach, awesome power for having such big reach, and he is a surgeon on his feet with his strikes. He can wear down Henderson with punches, and then move in for the kill. People know Henderson can ward off the clinch, but can he do it while he’s wobbly… most fighters can’t. To sum it up, I’m taking Silva because I think he has more tools to end this fight.

Leland’s Prediction: Anderson Silva via TKO/KO, Round 2

The person who wins this fight is the person who can impose their will on their opponent. This is as close to a pick ‘em fight as there has been in recent events, but I like Henderson’s chances against Silva. Henderson has the advantage because of this reason: he can keep Silva guessing. Silva knows that Henderson can take him down, and I assure you, Dan will be using his feints a lot. Imagine dropping his head down and faking a takedown, but instead, he throws that huge overhand right. The thing that scares me about Henderson is that he tends to get into brawls. He abandons his wrestling and will choose to stand and trade instead. I don’t think he’ll make that mistake against Silva. I think Henderson will be able to impose his will and dominate Silva inside the clinch with his Greco-roman ability, and he’ll earn a stoppage via strikes late in the fight.

Joe's Prediction: Dan Henderson via TKO/KO, Round 3

Cheick Kongo vs. Heath Herring

This is another tough fight on the event’s card to predict. Herring has a career that spans a decade, and in that time, he’s managed to win 16 of his bouts by submission. Many fans don’t associate Herring with a submission game, but I think that’s exactly what he’ll be looking to do in this matchup.

Kongo will likely try to use his bread and butter, Muay Thai, to defeat Herring along the cage. It’s been working for him in his two most recent wins, but it hasn’t led him to a finishing win that we would come to expect from such a large and powerful fighter.

Both fighters have weaknesses and strengths, but I think Herring has the distinct advantage in this matchup. His ground skills will undoubtedly come into play, and even though he isn’t the best grappler on the planet, Kongo’s ground game looked non-existent even in the short stint that he was on the ground against Mirko “CroCop” Filipovic. It won’t be an easy task, and Kongo may very well prove that he’s trained hard for this fight, but I’ll go with Heath.

Leland’s Prediction: Heath Herring via submission, Round 2

In my eyes, this is Herring’s fight to lose. Herring doesn’t have great wrestling, but Kongo has a very weak takedown defense. It shouldn’t be a problem for Herring to get Kongo to the mat. From there, I think you’ll see a scramble where Herring catches Kongo in a choke, most likely the anaconda choke.

Joe's Prediction: Heath Herring via submission, Round 2   

In the past, I have been very critical that the UFC's middleweight division needs a kick in the ass. It seems that this statement hasn't been taken seriously by the UFC. The division is currently in a standstill due to the fact that Anderson Silva remains the undisputed middleweight champion and has no possible opponents that can challenge him for the title. Let's take a new look into the Middleweight possibilities or actually, the short list of possibilities.

UFC fails to convince Henderson

According to the UFC 78 Press Conference, it was said that Henderson is still not wanting to drop down to 185 lbs. to fight Anderson Silva. Is this a money issue? Is the UFC lowballing Henderson with a new deal? Fact of the matter is, the Middleweight division is by far one of the worst divisions in the UFC. It, in fact, is the least deep division in the promotion. What reason is there that Henderson wouldn't drop down to become the UFC champion at Middleweight?

The most obvious answer is that he would have to take on an ultra-dangerous Anderson Silva. Although Dan Henderson's Greco-Roman wrestling is a great counter for what Silva has to offer, Silva still possesses a black belt ju-jitsu ground game, a long reach and hard striking standup game, and has multiple tools to end fights. Henderson is a granite chin though. I imagine the fight has the potential to be a huge draw for many UFC fans. Does Henderson see that fight as a possible matchup that could hurt him? It's a possibility, but I think there are other motives.

I mentioned in my previous article that I felt Henderson was sticking to the Light Heavyweight Division because it garners bigger PPV draws, more money, and more prestige. Historically, the heavier weight classes bring bigger fights and draws. Could he simply want to fight through one of the best divisions in the world? I believe so. Henderson wants to fight the absolute best in the world, and the LHW division contains some of the greatest in the world. If he suffers another loss, he may take the money and drop to 185 to fight Silva in a card that I believe would definitely draw some huge numbers.

Unsigned talent goes elsewhere

Jason "Mayhem" Miller was one of the better prospects out there that could have at least made the division a bit more lively. He has some quality wins over Robbie Lawler and Denis Kang and sports an impressive 19-5 record. He has a fantastic submission game and decent standup, but more importantly to the UFC, he is a self-promoting machine. He has a large fanbase of MMA fans behind him who love his antics as seen during a few of the latest UFC events, a few great skit videos featuring Miller that include a spoof of the TapouT! reality show, and he loves to make grand entrances. I have no doubt that he would have gained more fans in the UFC and the extra exposure could have brought more fans into the sport or at least excitement in seeing him fight in the poor Middleweight division. Miller will fight Sean Salmon on the December 15th HDNet card.

Frank Trigg is another decent Middleweight at the end of his career, but nonetheless presents a fairly significant challenge to Anderson Silva because he has some very good wrestling skills. Barring a rear naked choke, Trigg could actually present a big problem for Silva. He has some decent power, but he doesn't have the range to stand with Silva. If Trigg went into the fight with a solid gameplan of putting Silva to the floor and was able to do that, it'd be a very interesting fight. He also presents problems to other fighters in the UFC, but his age is always a factor. This seems to be a case where White is still bitter over comments Trigg made during a few PRIDE broadcasts about the UFC. Trigg claims that he made them in regards to what PRIDE wanted him to say. Nonetheless, I'm still a fan of Frank Trigg for the mere fact that he will tell you exactly what he thinks. As Trigg mentioned in one of his most recent shows, "The UFC made me usable, Fox Sports made me famous, and my mouth made me infamous." Very true, Trigg's battle with Matt Hughes was a great battle, his gig on the PRIDE series put his face in front of millions, and his rants and pre-fight hype he generated made him infamous. For those reasons, Trigg should have been given a chance in the UFC. Trigg is now fighting Edwin Dewees on the December 15th HDNet card.

According to GracieMag.com, Ronaldo Jacare (7-1) didn't sign with the UFC, but has now decided to fight again in Jungle Fight a.k.a. MMA World League now. Why? This baffles me and I'm not sure if the UFC just lowballed him or what, but he will get absolutely no exposure in Jungle Fight and he will fight tomato cans until his name pops up later down the line again after he is sporting a ridiculous record. Kind of like Jason Reinhardt. Jacare is a Brazilian ju-jitsu black belt who placed second in the world at the ADCC championships in his weight class, only losing to Roger Gracie. He's ended every fight inside the first round. It's beyond me as to why he didn't sign with the UFC.

Well, then who the hell did they add?

Evan Tanner will make a new run back into the UFC... heh. One of the big points that people make about Evan Tanner is the fact that he self taught himself many of the techniques he used in the Octagon in his early days. Tanner sports a legendary 32-6 record and has fought nearly everyone. Baroni, Lawler, Terrell, Franklin, Sinosic, Ortiz, Minowa, Herring, Buentello, the list goes on. He hasn't fought since April of last year though. Why you might ask? Apparently Tanner had an excessive drinking problem that caused him to basically turn into a full blown alcoholic who roamed the country, randomly posting on his MySpace about his problems. Hit up Fightlinker for details.

This isn't an overwhelming good signing. Tanner is fairly old and may have a lot of ring rust due to such a long layoff. He also will have to battle through now coming off the alcohol and possibly have a very hard time doing so. Will we see a clean and sober Tanner who could begin another dominance run in the MW division? I doubt it, but people said the same thing about Randy Couture being too old to do much in the heavyweight division.

Existing talent

David Terrell (6-2) was the prospect that many were looking toward to bring some excitement to the division. Terrell never fights. He's basically permanently on the injured reserve list in the UFC because he seems to be the most injury prone athlete that I can remember besides Kerry Wood and Mark Prior of the Chicago Cubs. Terrell is a product of Cesar Gracie Ju-Jitsu Academy. It has produced fighters such as Nick and Nate Diaz and Jake Shields. Terrell is much of the same type of fighter with a great submission game on the ground. He would have presented some significant problems to the top tier of the Middleweight division. I wonder if we will actually ever see him fight in the UFC again.

Nate Marquardt was a fighter that was supposed to give Silva a challenge. He didn't, and I don't see him ever giving him a tough challenge. Okami is gone apparently because the UFC felt he was a boring fighter. Bad move by the UFC. Jason MacDonald can't even get through Franklin. Franklin has been destroyed twice by Silva in devastating fashion.

The Zuffa-owned WEC has Paulo Filho, who is a friend of Silva. Filho did state that he would fight Silva if he had to. I think the time is now that "you have to" pit these two great fighters against each other to help the UFC's MW division. Zuffa seems to want to pit both the organizations against each other. In the latest oddity, the WEC will go up against a UFC special on SpikeTV. WEC 31 has some unbelievable fights, but can it compete on Versus with the UFC on basic cable. The UFC will air a "Best of 2007" show at the same time. Very strange indeed.

Bisping, Evans, Henderson, and even Machida could drop down to Middleweight and make the division worth a damn, but it seems that they are content at sitting at Light Heavyweight for now. Machida has the best chance of making a splash in the LHW division so far since his style is unbelievably elusive, but I feel like he may get the White pinch for being boring. It is rumored that Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou could fight Machida on December 12th. Bisping and Evans winner may fight Tito Ortiz, so both could be locked into the division, or the loser may drop down. Henderson obviously is sticking to his guns and staying at Light Heavyweight. Will the UFC keep him out of fighting until he gets pissed enough to drop? I wouldn't put it past Dana White.

Final Thoughts

So, what can the UFC do since they've already allowed many of the natural middleweights to head to other organizations? Matt Lindland is available. Get over the little argument you have with him and just sign him. He is an opponent with a Greco-Roman background that could potentially counter Silva's strengths well. Matt Hughes has also talked about moving up to middleweight to take on Silva after he wins the Welterweight title. If Hughes can win his title back, look for that fight to happen as well. The most believable development in the division would be the fighters dropping down to the division. The loser of the Bisping vs. Evans fight could definitely make the cut to 185. Henderson is still on the line, but we could eventually see that happen. Machida is now fighting Soukodjou at UFC 79, and he still stands a very good chance at making waves at light heavyweight.

In the end, the UFC doesn't have a plethora of options at all. They will be banking on Hughes to win to increase his standing again. Lindland is still a non-option for Dana White. Henderson won't drop down and many of the other options have signed with other organizations or are existing fighters who are either injured or too far down the line to make an impact within the next year. Hopefully we will see some activity from the UFC into grabbing some talent out there. The upcoming TUF season will also feature Middleweights, so we could see a huge influx of talent.