Since Michael Chandler-Eddie Alvarez II ended up being a ridiculously entertaining fight, as well as a big ratings success, Bellator is understandably moving forward with a rubber match. While some critics are already questioning whether it should be moved to pay-per-view, as the promotion’s CEO Bjorn Rebney has said will be the case, there’s no […]
Source: http://mmafrenzy.com/95998/rebney-discusses-alvarezs-future-with-bellator/
Eddie Alvarez and Michael Chandler?s lightweight title rematch Saturday night at Bellator 106 thrilled fans and prompted one particular high profile one to let the world know that MMA is too rough for him. World and Olympic freestyle wrestling champion Jordan Burroughs had previously said that he?d get into MMA after the 2016 Olympic games but over the course of Alvarez vs. Chandler II and several tweets, the American wrestler appeared to think better of the idea.
Jordan Burroughs ?@alliseeisgold2 Nov
Watching Bellator. @MikeChandlerMMA is a stud. I wrestled him 2x in college. I would much rather wrestle him than fight him!
Jordan Burroughs ?@alliseeisgold2 Nov
That was a great fight. Congrats to both of those guys. Well done.
Jordan Burroughs ?@alliseeisgold2 Nov
MMA is brutal. Great sport, but not for me. I will never step foot in the Octagon.
Jordan Burroughs ?@alliseeisgold3 Nov
I'm a wrestler at heart. Always have been. Always will be.
MMA has always had champions with a strong amateur wrestling background. Mark Coleman, Randy Couture, Dan Henderson, Cain Velasquez, Daniel Cormier and Ben Askren to name just several. It appears as if Burroughs has no intention of trying to become the next.
Physical skills are only one part of fighting ? the will to fight and all the associated psychology are also requisite. Do you think Burroughs is making a mistake in ruling out MMA or do you think he?s better off sticking to wrestling?
Let us know in the comments section. But first, check out some wrestling highlights from Burroughs below.
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Episode 1 of the documentary serial, UFC Primetime: St-Pierre vs. Hendricks, premiered Wednesday night and took fans inside the lives and camps of both welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre and challenger Johny Hendricks as they head into their UFC 167 main event bout next month. Watch the full episode above to see what kinds of training St. Pierre is doing in Montreal and Hendricks has been doing in Dallas.
A couple things stood out to Cagewriter while watching UFC Primetime. First off, St. Pierre seems completely focused on motivated to fight Hendricks.
When you're champ as long as the Canadian has been, there's always the question of if you can stay motivated to keep doing what you've been doing. In St. Pierre's case, there's been indication that he's already thinking of retirement.
In episode 1 of Primetime, however, we see a St. Pierre who is either a really good actor or that he is truly obsessed with Hendricks. Unfortunately, we'd already seen enough commercials and "films" that he's appeared in to know the former isn't the case.
But take two examples from last night's UFC Primetime to let the point sink in. St. Pierre talks about learning recently during a media tour to promote the fight that Hendricks was planning to get to Las Vegas - the site of the bout - three weeks early in order to train in and acclimate himself to the regulation-sized Octagon.
St. Pierre lost his mind thinking that his opponent might have even the smallest advantage there and so says he purchased and and had constructed a full-sized UFC Octagon replica in the Tri-Star gym in Montreal where he trains.
Also, Primetime shows that St. Pierre and his coach Firas Zihabi have brought in Rick Story to train with the champ in preparation for Hendricks and UFC 167. Now, Rick Story is an excellent fighter but he's certainly not red-hot or appearing to be at his all-time sharpest of late.
Story has lost two out of his last three bouts and four out of his last six. However, Story is the only person to have ever beaten Hendricks in an MMA bout, back in 2010. Therein lies his true value to the Hendricks-obsessed St. Pierre.
There's lots of fun intimate, family time and training footage in episode 1 of Primetime, but the main other take away for us was simply this - Johny Hendricks may have been the most adorable little kid in America.
While learning about Hendricks' life growing up in a tough, wrestling family, we're treated to photo after photo of Hendricks being way too cute for anyone's good. As fearsome as he looks now as a grown man and knockout specialist, it is hilarious to see pictures of a chubby-cheeked and wide-smiling little Johny in Primetime.
(Lil' Johny Hendricks. Cutest. Baby. Ever.)
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Jorge Gurgel Andre Gusmao Alexander Gustafsson Jaime Gutierrez
After submitting Mike Pierce with an inverted heel hook just 31 seconds into their match Wednesday at UFC Fight Night 29 in Barueri, Brazil, Rousimar Palhares vowed he would donate the potential $50,000 Submission of the Night bonus he might receive to Doctors Without Borders.
On the surface, it seemed like a great gesture. What it was, though, was really a case of Palhares trying to cover his butt and save his job.
Doctors Without Borders is an incredibly worthy charity that won a Nobel Peace Prize in 1999. It aids persons in need in countries overrun by violence, medical epidemics, malnutrition and natural disasters, among other things.
Palhares' vow was hollow, though. As he has done frequently in the past, Palhares refused to let go of the submission when Pierce tapped, not only physically but verbally. Referee Keith Peterson physically intervened and desperately tried to pry Palhares' legs apart before Palhares released the hold.
[Related: Jake Shields edges Demian Maia in grappling battle at UFC Fight Night]
UFC president Dana White, watching on television in Las Vegas, was outraged, and ordered that Palhares not be given a Submission of the Night bonus because of unsportsmanlike conduct. Prompted via text message by Yahoo Sports for comment, White wrote, "He's in trouble," and "I'm disgusted by that [expletive]!"
Palhares took to Twitter after the outrage online and wrote, "I never meant to hurt anyone, as a jiu-jitsu fighter I always seek for the submission, but I would never be evil to any athlete."
His manager, Alex Davis, defended Palhares later. He told MMA Junkie on Thursday that Palhares did not maintain the hold in an attempt to intentionally hurt Pierce.
We have talked about it at length. The one thing I can certify is that Rousimar does not hold on to a sub out of malice. It's unconscious, a mix of adrenaline and years of being conditioned to not let go.
But Palhares was suspended for 90 days by New Jersey following UFC 111 in 2010 for not releasing a submission on Tomasz Drwal. He has also done similar in jiu-jitsu competitions.
Davis told MMA Junkie that Palhares has adjusted his submissions in training and could do so in fights, too, given time.
I can attest to the fact that Rousimar is a very simple, humble and well-meaning person. This is not malice but instinct, nature of the beast.
That said, we need to keep on working on it. Rousimar used to hurt people in training, but he has become very controlled now. Now we need to work on the fights, work on keeping him conscious rather than just automatic.
But Davis' words are essentially an admission of Palhares' guilt. Would it be acceptable if, out of instinct, a fighter continued to punch a knocked out opponent after the referee stopped the bout? Clearly not. It's the type of action that can't be tolerated, and with a repeat offender, the punishment must be much harsher than the withholding of a bonus check.
The UFC has no choice but to cut Palhares, despite the clear evidence that he could become a major player at 170 pounds. He has incredible submission skills and by dropping to welterweight from middleweight, would likely have a strength advantage over many of those he fights.
But the UFC can not tolerate such behavior. White cut Paul Daley on the spot for throwing a punch at Josh Koscheck after their bout at UFC 113 ended in 2010. He still has not allowed Daley back. Daley's act, while reprehensible, was clearly done out of frustration.
Alexander Gustafsson Jaime Gutierrez Dave Gomez Keith Hackney