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UFC 102 COUTURE vs NOGUEIRA - Aug-29-2009
LEBEN RETURNS VS. ROSHOLT AT UFC 102
Chris Leben will return to the Octagon in August to face former WEC fighter Jake Rosholt at UFC 102, as first reported by MMAWeekly.com,
Sources close to the fight confirmed the fighters had agreed to the match-up and were expected to sign bout agreements shortly.
The event has yet to be announced by the UFC, but is expected to take place Aug. 29 at the Rose Quarter in Portland, Ore.
The fight is Leben's first since being suspended by the UFC after his post-UFC 89 drug test revealed the presence of Stanozolol. Leben lost to Michael Bisping by decision in the main event of the Birmingham, England card.
During the layoff, Leben turned his attention to opening a training center, Ultimate Fight School, which opened recently in Honolulu.
In 12 UFC appearances, the Ultimate Fighter original has drawn an 8-4 record, with an overall professional record of 18-5.
Rosholt, a holdover from the now-defunct WEC middleweight division, is a two-time Division I wrestling champ for Oklahoma State University. A member of Team Takedown, he made the segue into MMA in July of 2007. His undefeated streak was recently broken by Dan Miller, who submitted him in the first round of their meeting at UFC Fight Night 17. Prior to that, he had finished all but one of his five opponents by TKO.
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JUNIOR DOS SANTOS VS. JUSTIN McCULLY AT UFC 102
A heavyweight match-up between fast-rising prospect Junior dos Santos and Team Punishment’s Justin McCully should be on its way to UFC 102 in August. Though Portland is widely expected to host the event on the 29th, the UFC has yet to confirm its date and location.
Sources close to the fight informed MMAWeekly.com that the fighters have agreed to the bout, and McCully is expected to sign his bout agreement shortly.
McCully, 33, was last seen at UFC’s “Fight for the Troops” this past December, where he outpointed Eddie Sanchez to earn a unanimous decision victory. The Huntington Beach resident was scheduled to take on Neil Grove at UFC 95, but was forced to withdraw due to injury. It was the second time he was scratched from a card due to injury, the first being a fight with Christian Wellisch at UFC 76 that was cancelled when he re-injured his elbow. A wrestling specialist, he is currently 2-1 in UFC competition with an overall record of 9-4 with 2 draws.
The 24-year-old dos Santos began his Octagon career at UFC 90, where he turned heads with a first-round knockout over the heavily favored Fabricio Werdum. The hard-striking Brazilian followed the upset with a quick TKO victory over Dutchman Stephan Struve at UFC 95. He trains with former UFC heavyweight champion Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, middleweight champion Anderson Silva, and former WEC middleweight champ Paulo Filho. Overall, he carries only one blemish in nine professional appearances.
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NICK CATONE VS MARK MUNOZ SET FOR UFC 102
As UFC 102 continues to fill up, a middleweight bout has been added as New Jersey fighter, Nick Catone, returns to action to face former NCAA champion wrestler, Mark Munoz, in an undercard match-up.
The bout was confirmed to MMAWeekly.com on Sunday by sources close to the fight.
Currently 1-1 in the UFC, Nick Catone returns in August after a disappointing loss in his last fight to former "Ultimate Fighter" contender, Tim Credeur.
Catone debuted for the promotion in February with a submission win over Derek Downey, after two canceled bouts scheduled against former "Ultimate Fighter" winner, Amir Sadollah.
Mark Munoz comes into UFC 102 following a devastating knockout loss to Matt Hamill at UFC 96 in Columbus, OH. The former NCAA wrestling champion and WEC light heavyweight will make his middleweight debut against Catone in August.
Numerous fights for UFC 102 have been confirmed by sources, but as of yet the promotion has not announced anything officially for the card. Current rumors have the show taking place on Aug 29 in Portland, Oregon, but as of now negotiations are still under way to solidify a location and venue.
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EVAN DUNHAM VS. MATT VEACH AT UFC 102
A lightweight match-up between prospects Evan Dunham and Matt Veach is signed, sealed, and delivered for UFC 102 in August. The fight was first reported by fiveouncesofpain.com and subsequently confirmed by MMAWeekly.com.
Though the card has not been officially announced, it is expected to take place at the Rose Quarter on Aug. 29, the first UFC card to hit the Northwest.
Dunham, 27, is a native of Eugene, Ore., and splits his time between the rainy state and Las Vegas, where he trains at Xtreme Couture. He made a splash in his UFC debut, replacing Frenchman David Baron at UFC 95 to knock out Per Eklund on the pay-per-view broadcast. He is currently undefeated in eight professional appearances.
“I think it will be a good fight,” Dunham told MMAWeekly.com. “I think my overall game is better than his, as far as my striking and my jiu-jitsu on the ground. I feel both those aspects of my game are better than his, and my wrestling’s not too shabby either, so I think it’s a great match-up for me.”
Veach, 27, is a member of Matt Hughes’ H.I.T. Squad in Granite City, Ill., and also made a big impression with a win over Matt Grice at UFC Fight Night 17 in February. He’s ended all but four of his 11 professional appearances by submission, and is currently undefeated.
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MARQUARDT VS. MAIA SET FOR UFC 102
A middleweight contender match has been readied for the UFC’s first trip to the Pacific Northwest in August.
Standouts Demian Maia and Nate Marquardt will face off at UFC 102 in Portland, Ore. on Aug. 29. MMAWeekly.com first learned of the bout's possibility on Tuesday afternoon and Maia has since confirmed the match-up on his official website, although Marquardt's camp has yet to confirm the bout.
Maia, 31, has taken the 185-pound division by storm since his debut at UFC 77 in October of 2007, finishing all of his opponents by submission. The Abu Dhabi champ is currently headed to Las Vegas to begin training at Wanderlei Silva’s new gym. He is undefeated in 10 professional appearances.
Marquardt, 30, devastated Wilson Gouveia in his last appearance at UFC 95, stopping the heavy-handed Brazilian by strikes. On a second road to title glory, the Greg Jackson-trained middleweight has won three of his last four fights since losing a first bid against champion Anderson Silva at UFC 73. A 10-year veteran of the sport, he carries a professional record of 28-8-2.
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JAMES IRVIN VS. WILSON GOUVEIA AT UFC 102
The revolving door of fighters over the last 24 hours continues to turn as now it appears James Irvin, who was just forced out of his UFC 98 fight due to a knee injury, will get the chance to fight on Aug 29 instead against American Top Team fighter, Wilson Gouveia, at UFC 102.
The news was confirmed to MMAWeekly.com on Friday by sources close to the negotiations.
Gouveia was already scheduled at UFC 102 against Team Quest fighter, Chael Sonnen, but he was pulled from that slot and placed into a fight at UFC 98 against Dan Miller, who lost his original opponent, Yushin Okami, to a knee injury on Thursday.
Irvin will return in August after a torn miniscus kept him out of his scheduled fight for UFC 98 against Drew McFedries. The California based fighter isn't expected to need surgery on the knee, but will have to rehab it for approximately 5 weeks according to his manager, Mike Roberts, who discussed the injury with MMAWeekly Radio on Wednesday.
As it stands now Sonnen vs. Miller is set for UFC 98, while Irvin vs. Gouveia is a go from UFC 102 in August.
When contacted on Thursday about some of the fight changes, Chael Sonnen expressed an interested to fight in both May and August, but the decision has been made to only keep him in the May fight, and place James Irvin in his slot for August.
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UFC 102 SET FOR PORTLAND ROSE GARDEN
The UFC’s first trip to the Pacific Northwest is officially set at last.
The promotion on Monday announced UFC 102, featuring Randy Couture vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, to be held Aug. 29 at the Rose Garden in Portland, Ore. The arena plays host to the NBA's Portland Trailblazers and a variety of concerts and events.
“We’re extremely excited to be heading to Portland,” said UFC president Dana White. “When you get two mixed martial arts legends that are all heart and have wanted to fight each other for years, plus the fact that Randy has roots in Oregon, that tells me that not only will the crowd be electric, but it’s also a night where the fighters will be looking to cement their legacies.”
MMAWeekly.com first reported the long anticipated main event in February as the headliner for UFC 101 on Aug. 8. The event was later rebooked as UFC 102 on Aug. 29 when recently passed MMA legislation green-lighted Philadelphia for UFC 101 "Declaration,” featuring Anderson Silva vs. Forrest Griffin.
Couture declined an offer to face Nogueira in December of 2007 subsequent to his resignation from the UFC in October. Upon returning in August of 2008, he faced wrestling import Brock Lesnar at UFC 91 and lost his heavyweight title via TKO. The UFC Hall of Famer was offered the fight again at UFC 96, but an elbow surgery ruled out the meeting.
During Couture’s absence, Nogueira won the interim heavyweight title by submitting former champion Tim Sylvia at UFC 81. He lost the interim title at UFC 92 when Frank Mir stopped him with strikes.
Couture, who turns 46 next week, will begin camp in late June after wrapping action movie “The Expendables” with action star Sylvester Stallone. Nogueira will make an appearance as a villain.
“Nogueira is the type of fighter that is dangerous everywhere,” said Couture. “He’s difficult to knock out and he’s a world class jiu-jitsu player. I will have to train very diligently and very specifically for him. Also, the fact that I’m fighting in Oregon makes me want to put on a great show and win for these fans.”
Nogueira recently told Fighters Only that his loss to Mir postponed retirement and motivated another run at the title.
“I’m honored to face such a great fighter as Randy Couture,” Nogueira said. “I wanted to fight him for some time now and I know to become a legend you have to beat a legend.”
Tickets for the event go on sale Saturday, June 20 and are priced between $50 and $600.
JARDINE CONFIDENT AS SILVA SHOWDOWN NEARS
It’s been more than four months since Keith Jardine hit a bump on the road in his journey to the UFC light heavyweight championship. That bump is named Quinton “Rampage” Jackson.
Jardine fought Jackson to the full term of their 15-minute bout at UFC 96, but it was Jackson that had just enough of a burst late in the third round to secure the unanimous decision victory.
With little more than a month to go, Jardine puts a lot of importance on his next bout. He faces fellow Top 10 ranked fighter Thiago Silva at UFC 102 when the promotion makes its Portland, Ore., debut.
“(This fight) means a lot for me. I'm on my way to the top right now and I'm only getting better. With this fight I want to go out and make a statement,” Jardine told MMAWeekly.com following UFC 100.
That’s not to say that he’s overlooking Silva; he realizes that his opponent poses challenges in every realm of the game.
“He's got really good jiu-jitsu, he's really good on the ground. He's got really good leg kicks and he's got good power. He's a good brawler. He's got good wind. He's everything man,” assessed the Greg Jackson trained fighter.
“I think me and him make a perfect fight because we both like to stand there and we both like to hit each other and get hit.”
Despite the loss to Jackson, the latest ebb in an alternating current of wins and losses over his past six bouts, Jardine believes that the level of competition he has faced still puts him within arms reach of being right back in the thick of the light heavyweight title picture.
“I've beat a lot of great guys; I've had a lot of great fights. I've got all the traction I need. Once I string some wins together, they can't deny me a title fight.”
HERMAN LIKELY TO STEP IN FOR IRVIN AT UFC 102
A knee injury has forced James Irvin to withdraw from a scheduled bout with Wilson Gouveia at UFC 102, radio host Carmichael Dave confirmed on Tuesday, making him the second combatant forced off the Aug. 29 card due to injury.
According to a report on Sherdog.com, Team Quest middleweight Ed Herman has agreed to step in for Irvin, although a source that spoke to MMAWeekly.com said Herman has not yet signed a bout agreement for the fight.
Herman (15-7) was scheduled to face Arizona Combat Sports standout Aaron Simpson at UFC Fight Night: Diaz vs. Guillard on Sept. 16, but he has been removed from the card, according to a separate source close to negotiations. He last appeared at UFC 97, defeating David Loiseau by unanimous decision. The win snapped a two-fight losing streak against Demian Maia and Alan Belcher, respectively.
MARCUS AURELIO IN FOR MATT VEACH AT UFC 102
Sources close to the bout have confirmed that Matt Veach has had to withdraw from his UFC 102 fight with Evan Dunham. The Aug. 29 event takes place at the Rose Garden Arena in Portland, Ore.
Stepping in to take Veach’s place is Marcus Aurelio (18-7).
Aurelio made his exit from the promotion back-to-back losses to Tyson Griffin and Hermes Franca in 2008. The American Top Team fighter has since won two fights in a row, defeating Chris Liguori and Joey Gorczynski earlier this year.
Looking to keep his record unblemished, Dunham will make the second start of his career in the Octagon at UFC 102. A native of Oregon, his record currently stands at 8-0.
AURELIO CALLED TO UFC; EDWARDS IN AT SHINE 2
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Shine Fight Promotions on Wednesday announced that UFC and Pride veteran Yves Edwards would step in to replace Marcus Aurelio at its “American Top Team vs. The World” event on Sept. 4 in Miami.
Aurelio withdrew from the event to return to the Ultimate Fighting Championship to face Evan Dunham on Aug. 29 at UFC 102.
A representative of American Top Team, Aurelio was slated to face Carlo Prater at on Sept. 4. While an initial press release announced that Edwards would be stepping in against Prater, a revised statement from Shine indicated that Edwards’ opponent would be named shortly.
Beginning his professional career in 1997, Edwards has faced some of the best fighters in MMA, including Nate Marquardt, Caol Uno, Josh Thompson, and Matt Serra. Currently on a two-fight losing streak, he has complied a record of 35-14-1.
