Not only is the empty Titan FC lightweight title no longer up for grabs on Friday night, but now certainly one of its participants is no longer using the promotion.
As was reported by Front Row Brian via his Twitter web feed, longtime expert Yoshiyuki Yoshida pulled away from his primary event title fight with Mike Ricci after some conditions.
Read more from original source
UFC color commentator Brian Stann duplicated a phrase repeatedly during Darren Elkins’ triumph over Lucas Martins which pretty much summed up their UFC featherweight fight: “It Is not the prettiest game plan, but it is powerful.”
That pretty much summed matters up. Elkins, in need of a win after losing two of his previous three fights, commanded Martins for the majority of the fight and earned a split decision victory at UFC 179. Elkins got two 30-27 scores in the judges, while the third was a weird 30-27 in Martins’ favor.
Read more from original source
Watch Bellator 129 live stream online on MMA Fighting for the preliminary card at 7 p.m. ET. The fight card for this particular part of the occasion is as follows:Chris Lane (14-11) vs. John DeVall (8-5)Eric Howser (4-2) vs. Tim Bazer (14-16)Michael McBride (6-1) vs. Kevin Morris (4-3)Martin Trey Brown (7-2) vs. Bryan Corley (2-1)Holly Lawson (introduction) vs. Jozette Cotton (4-0)Brian Green (30-19) vs. Anthony Smith (18-11)Marcos Marquez (5-3) vs. Victor Moreno (32-20)Bellator 129 takes place at the Mid-American Center in council Bluffs, Iowa. Paul Bradley confronts Josh Neer in the main event.
Read more from original source
Chan Sung Jung, the UFC featherweight fan-favorite affectionately nicknamed “The Korean Zombie,” is expected to be sidelined from mixed martial arts for the next two years to fulfill his mandatory military service required of South Korean male citizens, Jung’s manager Brian Rhee revealed to MMAFighting.com’s Ariel Helwani.
“He feels bad for his fans and thankful to the UFC, Dana and the Ferttitas for letting him be a professional fighter,” Rhee said. “He’s going to rehab, train and comeback stronger than ever after the end of the 2 years!”
Read more from original source
Hindsight is 20/20 but it looks like Brian Stann was ahead of the game back in August.
Stann tweeted a not-so-blind item following the main event between Michael Bisping and Cung Le at UFC Fight Night: Macau, referencing his belief that all was not Kosher with the former Strikeforce middleweight champion. Bisping stopped Le in the fourth round of a one-sided affair, apparently to the delight of Stann.
Read more from original source
If there is a lesson of the week, it’s that quick main events are usually great for the fans, even better for the guy on the winning side of the fight, but for television broadcasters, they are far from the best thing.
This past weekend saw Bellator’s Friday night main event, where Brandon Halsey won the middleweight title from Alexander Shlemenko, only last 35 seconds. The next night on FS 1, for the prelims of UFC 178, what many considered the strongest TV main event on a prelim show to date, Dominick Cruz returning after a three-year absence against No. 5 bantamweight contender Takeya Mizugaki, saw Cruz finish the fight in 61 seconds.
The result is that both shows, due to no time to build up numbers for the main event, is they did below average numbers.
Bellator’s Friday night average was 656,000 viewers, very slightly below the 670,000 range the Friday night shows have averaged since the move, but down 12 percent from the prior week’s show that didn’t have a championship match, nor have as strong of an undercard. The first minute of Halsey vs. Shlemenko did 942,000 viewers, a number that would have likely started the growth of the show, peaking when the fight was over. If the fight had gone three rounds, while it may not have brought the average up to the previous weeks number of the Melvin Manhoef vs. Doug “The Rhino” Marshall fight, it would have pushed the show average past the 700,000 mark.
For the UFC 178 prelims, the story was even more pronounced. The show averaged 698,000 viewers, down 12 percent from the 2014 average, even with the Cruz fight that should have been a difference maker. Minute by minute ratings are not available for the show, but the highest quarter hour was for the Brian Ebersole vs. John Howard fight, at 774,000 viewers. Cruz’s fight didn’t have the time to draw the highest quarter, and the average was below usual partially because the last 20 minutes of the broadcast had no fighting.
Still, that figure was the highest for any event that day on the station, which included Major League Baseball, college football and NASCAR truck racing.
The number was up from the 436,000 for the prelims from UFC 177, but that was the lowest prelim audience before a pay-per-view ever on FS 1.
The issues at UFC 178, whether it was the wins by Cruz, Demetrious Johnson, Donald Cerrone, Conor McGregor and Cat Zingano, or the controversy stemming from the Yoel Romero vs. Tim Kennedy stool-gate finish, saw the post-fight show do 206,000 viewers on FS 1, which was 13 percent above the average.
The Ultimate Fighter rating for Wednesday was not good live, doing only 433,000 viewers, by far the lowest of the three episodes this season. The show featured a first-round match in the women’s strawweight title tournament where Jessica Penne beat Lisa Ellis. However, the first airing of the episode was also viewed by 358,000 people via DVR between Thursday and Saturday. The DVR viewership was the second largest for any episode of the show on FS 1. The 83 percent increase from DVR viewership to first night viewership was a record for the series and likely the largest for any UFC show in history.
For gross numbers, the prior week’s show did 574,000 viewers the night it aired and the record-setting total DVR viewership of 372,000.
The mentality for this season, and really the last three seasons of Ultimate Fighter, is that unlike the live events, where most viewers watch them as they take place, an increasing percentage of the Ultimate Fighter viewers are watching at their convenience.
Read more from original source
LAS VEGAS — Brian Ebersole talks about what he might have done better at UFC 178, being happy complete with his performance against John Howard, socializing with upset supporters following the fight, the state of MMA sponsorship, Conor McGregor’s antics, and much more.
Read more from original source
Here Is the UFC 178 undercard live blog for the UFC 178 occasion in the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.There is going to be six fights in the UFC 178 undercard. Dominick Cruz vs. Takeya Mizugaki, Jorge Masvidal vs. James Krause, Patrick Cote vs. Stephen Thompson, John Howard vs. Brian Ebersole, Jon Tuck vs. Kevin Lee, and Manvel Gamburyan vs. Cody Gibson will be featured on the prelims. Check out the UFC 178 undercard live blog below.
More Coverage: UFC 178 Results | UFC newsDownload MMA Fighting iPhone App
Read more from original source
MMA Fighting has UFC 178 results for the Johnson vs. Cariaso fight card Sept. 27, plus live coverage from Las Vegas, live blogs of all the fights, and live UFC 178 twitter updates. In the main event, UFC flyweight champ Demetrious Johnson squares off against Chris Cariaso. Eddie Alvarez will make his UFC debut in a lightweight confrontation against Donald Cerrone in the co-main event. Check out the UFC 178 results below. Chief card (PPV at 10 p.m. ET)Demetrious Johnson vs. Chris Cariaso Donald Cerrone vs. Eddie AlvarezDustin Poirier vs. Conor McGregorTim Kennedy vs. Yoel RomeroCat Zingano vs. Amanda NunesUndercard (FOX Sports 1 at 8 p.m. ET)Dominick Cruz vs. Takeya MizugakiJorge Masvidal vs. James KrausePatrick Cote vs. Stephen ThompsonJohn Howard vs. Brian EbersoleUndercard (UFC Fight Pass at 7 p.m. ET)Jon Tuck vs. Kevin LeeManvel Gamburyan vs. Cody Gibson
Read more from original source
In the UFC 178 weigh-ins, all 22 fighters taking part in Saturday night’s UFC 178 fights will step in the scale Friday evening, and we’ll possess the live video here at MMAFighting.com. In the main event, UFC flyweight champ Demetrious Johnson and Chris Cariaso must create the flyweight limit of 125 pounds. The UFC 178 weigh-in takes place at 7 p.m. ET at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nev., and the video is preceding. Check out the UFC 178 weigh in results below. Chief card (PPV at 10 p.m. ET)Demetrious Johnson vs. Chris Cariaso Donald Cerrone vs. Eddie AlvarezDustin Poirier vs. Conor McGregorTim Kennedy vs. Yoel RomeroCat Zingano vs. Amanda NunesUndercard (FOX Sports 1 at 8 p.m. ET)Dominick Cruz vs. Takeya MizugakiJorge Masvidal vs. James KrausePatrick Cote vs. Stephen ThompsonJohn Howard vs. Brian EbersoleUndercard (UFC Fight Pass at 7 p.m. ET)Jon Tuck vs. Kevin LeeManvel Gamburyan vs. Cody Gibson
Read more from original source
MMA Fighting gets the UFC 178 fight card for the Johnson vs. Cariaso occasion Sept. 27 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nev.In the primary event, UFC flyweight champ Demetrious Johnson will defend his title against Chris Cariaso. Donald Cerrone confronts Eddie Alvarez in a lightweight competition in the co-main event. Check out the UFC 178 fight card below. Chief card (PPV at 10 p.m. ET)Demetrious Johnson vs. Chris CariasoDonald Cerrone vs. Eddie AlvarezDustin Poirier vs. Conor McGregorTim Kennedy vs. Yoel RomeroCat Zingano vs. Amanda NunesUndercard (FOX Sports 1 at 8 p.m. ET)Dominick Cruz vs. Takeya MizugakiJorge Masvidal vs. James KrausePatrick Cote vs. Stephen ThompsonJohn Howard vs. Brian EbersoleUndercard (UFC Fight Pass at 7 p.m. ET)Jon Tuck vs. Kevin LeeManvel Gamburyan vs. Cody Gibson
Read more from original source
MMA Fighting has Bellator 125 results for the Marshall vs. Manhoef fight card Friday night from the Save Mart Center in Fresno, Calif.In the primary event, Melvin Manhoef will make his Bellator introduction against Doug Marshall in a middleweight competition. Check out the Bellator 125 results under. Primary Card (Spike TV at 9 p.m. ET)Doug Marshall vs. Melvin ManhoefRafael Carvalho vs. Brian RogersMartin Stapleton vs. Goiti YamauchiJavy Ayala vs. Raphael ButlerUndercard (View Live on MMA Fighting at 7 p.m. ET)Ron Keslar vs. Jesse JuarezAaron Wilkinson vs. Chris HoneycuttJulio Cesar Neves vs. Poppies MartinezGranson Clark vs. George ZunigaJonny Bonilla-Bowman vs. Art BecerraOscar Ramirez vs. Matt RamirezJoe Neal vs. Paul Ruiz Nate James vs. Anthony Ruiz
Read more from original source
