Romulo Barral Crossing Over and Back to MMA

Filed under: FanHouse Exclusive

Romulo “Rominho” Barral, a five-time BJJ world champion and one of the most respected grapplers in the world, is looking to make a serious run at mixed martial arts.

But unlike other recent crossovers such as Robert Drysdale and Braulio Estima, jiu-jitsu wasn’t always Barral’s dream.

“I came from a small town in Brazil and my friend showed me this MMA fight on tape and then I said, ‘Man, this is nice. I want to do this,’” Barral recently told MMAFighting.com. “And he told me if you want to do this, you need to learn the ground game.’

“I was supposed to be a striker,” Barral continued, with a laugh. “And then I turned until a jiu-jitsu guy.”

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Romulo Barral Crossing Over and Back to MMA

UFC 121: Lesnar vs. Velasquez to Receive ‘Primetime’ Treatment

Filed under: UFC, News

The UFC 121 main event between Brock Lesnar and Cain Velasquez is expected to be one of the most anticipated UFC fights of the year, and the organization is ensuring it will receive the full promotional push.

UFC announced on it’s weekly Ultimate Insider show Thursday that a three-part Primetime series will air on Spike TV in the weeks leading up to the fight.

The series will debut on Wednesday, Oct. 6, at 11 pm ET/PT, and subsequent episodes will air on Oct. 13 and Oct. 20 on the cable network.

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UFC 121: Lesnar vs. Velasquez to Receive ‘Primetime’ Treatment

Matt Mitrione’s Voices in His Head Came From Boredom

Filed under: UFC

On The Ultimate Fighter 10, heavyweight Matt Mitrione tells the audience that the reason he fights MMA is to silence the voices in his head.

For his own well-being and others, it’s nice to know Mitrione wasn’t serious.

During an appearance on this past Monday’s The MMA Hour (full video below), host Ariel Helwani asked the former NFL player if his villainy was all an act.

“Yeah, brother,” Mitrione responded. “I don’t really hear voices, man.”

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Matt Mitrione’s Voices in His Head Came From Boredom

Matt Horwich to Make Bellator Return Against Eric Schambari

Filed under: Bellator, News

Coming off a win three weeks ago over former UFC title challenger Thales Leites on the War on the Mainland pay-per-view, Matt Horwich has been booked for a Bellator 28 fight against season two semifinalist Eric Schambari on Sept. 9 in New Orleans.

The Bellator 28 card will be headlined by UFC veteran Rich Clementi (37-16-1) facing off against season two semifinalist Carey Vanier (9-3) in a lightweight showdown.

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Matt Horwich to Make Bellator Return Against Eric Schambari

WEC Announces Signing of Chinese Lightweight Tiequan Zhang

Filed under: WEC, News

It didn’t take long for Zuffa to puts its official stamp on mixed martial arts in Asia.

Following UFC 118, UFC president Dana White announced the company had set up an office in Beijing, China, and hired Mark Fischer, formerly of the NBA’s China branch, to run its operations in Asia as executive vice president and managing director.

On Thursday, the WEC, the UFC’s sibling promotion, officially announced the signing of lightweight Tiequan Zhang, of Beijing. Zhang will be the first fighter from mainland China in the WEC’s history. His first task comes later this month against Alex Karalexis at WEC 51 in Broomfield, Colo.

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WEC Announces Signing of Chinese Lightweight Tiequan Zhang

Alex Karalexis vs. Tiequan Zhang official; WEC 51 card complete with 11 bouts

Tiequan Zhang will soon become World Extreme Cagefighting’s first-ever Chinese fighter.

As MMAjunkie.com first reported in August, China Top
Team fighter Tiequan Zhang has signed a multi-fight deal with the
organization and will debut at WEC 51.

The hard-hitting Alex Karalexis has been booked to welcome “The
Mongolian Wolf” to the cage at the Sept. 30 event, which takes place at
the 1STBANK Center in Broomfield, Colo.

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Alex Karalexis vs. Tiequan Zhang official; WEC 51 card complete with 11 bouts

Bellator 28 main card official, includes Horwich vs. Schambari, Andrusia vs. Larkin

One day after holding a thrilling featherweight title fight in San
Antonio, Texas, Bellator Fighting Championships officials are now
turning their attention to “The Big Easy.”

Bellator today announced the four main-card fights for next week’s
Bellator 28 event, which takes place Sept. 9 at the Mahalia Jackson
Theater for the Performing Arts in New Orleans.

The contests include Rich Clementi vs. Carey Vanier and Georgi
Karakhanyan vs. Anthony Leone, a pair of “tournament qualifier” which
were previously reported by MMAjunkie.com, as well
as two new bouts in Matt Horwich vs. Eric Schambari and Marcus Andrusia
vs. Eric Larkin.

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Bellator 28 main card official, includes Horwich vs. Schambari, Andrusia vs. Larkin

"Inside MMA" preview: New York’s Bob Reilly discusses his opposition to MMA

Hardly a day goes by that UFC president Dana White isn’t asked about his
promotion’s progress on helping the sport of mixed martial arts gain
regulation in the state of New York.

One of the few remaining North American outposts that doesn’t regulate
MMA, New York has appeared close on several occasions to reversing its
position on the sport, but ultimately, the legislature has yet to act.

Much of the opposition has been led by New York Assemblyman Bob Reilly, and he doesn’t appear to be softening his stance.

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"Inside MMA" preview: New York’s Bob Reilly discusses his opposition to MMA

No Olympics, no problem – UFC plans to create its own international tournament

For years, many mixed martial arts fans have wondered aloud why their favorite sport isn’t a part of the Olympic Games.

After all, with boxing, judo, wrestling and tae kwon do already slated
as modern Olympic events, what’s the problem with adding the arts together?

That’s an argument for another time and place. UFC president Dana White
has far more pressing concerns on his mind. And besides, he envisions an
international tournament staged far more frequently than every
Olympiad.

MMAjunkie.com Articles
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No Olympics, no problem – UFC plans to create its own international tournament

The Truth About Choosing Your Fights

Filed under: UFC, FanHouse Exclusive

Chances are you’ve witnessed this scene before. A victorious fighter, flush with adrenaline, steps up to the mic for a post-fight interview. His face is lit up like a full moon and, at least in that triumphant moment, anything seems possible. He’s just cold-clocked a qualified competitor on national TV. He feels like a giant among ants.

He’s Julius Caesar. He’s Alexander the Great. Conqueror of kingdoms and destroyer of worlds. So is it any surprise what he says when asked who he’d like to face next?

‘I’ll fight anybody they put in front of me.’

Really? Anybody? Because – and don’t take this the wrong way, guy with only two or three UFC fights under his belt – ‘anybody’ covers a lot of territory. A lot of very, very dangerous territory.

And yet, to hear the fighters tell it, they’ve never turned down a fight. Not ever. Merely suggesting otherwise is enough to make you their enemy for life. But the thinking fan has to wonder, aren’t there times when it’s smart to turn down a fight? Isn’t it sometimes better to know your own limitations, particularly early in your career?

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The Truth About Choosing Your Fights