UFC 106 Makes a Switch

Just days removed from his thoroughly dominating performance over Yoshiyuki Yoshida at UFC 104, Anthony Johnson has agreed to fight another Yoshida victor in Josh Koscheck as a fill in for the Lesnar/Carwin main event at UFC 106.

The news comes according to Sherdog.com which has a source close to Koscheck's camp. Koscheck even twittered that he would be fighting in the 106 main event.

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UFC 104: Machida-Shogun Aftermath

In the wake of yet another solid, if not spectacular, night of fights provided by the UFC, every fan who watched the action is left talking about one thing -- the decision in the main event.

The decision that literally stole a win -- and thus the Light Heavyweight Championship -- from the challenger Mauricio "Shogun" Rua. There is no doubt that on a night when Rua returned to the form he showed on his way to winning the Pride Open Weight Grand Prix and being labeled as the best 205 lb fighter in the World, he should've walked away in glory rather than having to explain away a loss that he didn't rightfully deserve.

Make no mistake about it, this was highway robbery in a city that has seen more than its fair share. You can watch the fight yourself or just go to any MMA website like Sherdog, ESPN, Bloody Elbow, Yahoo, MMA Junkie, etc. that scores the fights and get the same opinion: Rua defeated Lyoto Machida by unanimous decision 49-46.

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UFC 104 Preview: Machida vs. Shogun

With its 104th pay-per-view event, the UFC returns to Los Angeles featuring a main event in the Light Heavyweight division as champion Lyoto Machida takes on fellow Brazilian and challenger Mauricio "Shogun" Rua.

Machida, 31, will be making his first title defense and first appearance since dethroning then champion and fellow undefeated star Rashad Evans back in May at UFC 98. Machida will be looking to further establish the discipline of Machida Karate not to mention the "Machida Era" in the UFC Light Heavyweight division.

But he's going to have to do it by beating a very capable challenger in Rua, 27, whom presents a very formidable fighting style with his duo black belts in Muay-Thai and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Rua is capable of dominating the stand-up portion of a fight ala Anderson Silva or take you down and submit you ala BJ Penn. Prior to arriving in the UFC, Rua was widely considered the top 205 lb prospect after his dominance in Pride.

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UFC Coming Down Under in 2010

In continuation with its plans for taking the sport of Mixed-Martial Arts (MMA) global according to UFC president Dana White, recent reports indicate that the Ultimate Fighting Championship will indeed be going to the land down under in early 2010.

According to The Sydney Herald, a future event will be held at the Acer Arena in Sydney, Australia as soon as perhaps February 2010.

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UFC 108 Card Taking Shape

As per usual, the UFC will be holding another year end card in Las Vegas featuring some of the promotion's most talented fighters.

Only this time there are a few differences. Most notably, the fact that the year end card -- UFC 108 -- will actually be held in the new year, January 2nd to be exact.

The usually star-studded event is trending that way again with three of its first four rumored bouts. The main attraction looks to be a middleweight title defense as Anderson Silva (25-4), the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world, defends his title against recent middleweight acquisition Vitor Belfort (18-8).

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Spike to Air UFC 104 Prelims

Following in the tradition -- albeit short -- of UFC 103, the UFC and Spike will once again join forces to air UFC 104: Machida vs. Shogun preliminary bouts.

The fights will air at 6 pm PST or one hour prior to the pay-per-view (PPV) broadcast featuring a main event with Lyoto Machida defending his Light Heavyweight belt for the first time against Mauricio "Shogun" Rua.

In similar fashion to its debut at UFC 103 last month, Spike will show two guaranteed fights while potentially showing a third depending on how the prelim fights go. The two guaranteed fights will feature a light heavyweight contest between Ryan Bader and Eric Schafer as well as a heavyweight matchup between Antoni Hardonk and Pat Barry.

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UFC 104: A Crucial Showdown

As the UFC has grown over the past few years, it has been widely recognized that their glamor division, strongest division was its 205 lb league of Light Heavyweight fighters. Over the years it's had some of the sports most widely recognized champions: Randy Couture, Tito Ortiz, Chuck Liddell, Quinton Jackson, Forrest Griffin and Rashad Evans.

Now not only does the division have the star power it has easily the most depth. Which can be a bane as much as it is a positive.

Current champion Lyoto Machida, 31, will face fellow Brazilian native Mauricio "Shogun" Rua, 27, at UFC 104 from Las Vegas on October 24th in his first title defense. Machida is the organization's first champion whose primary language is anything other than English since Vitor Belfort held the belt shortly more than a decade ago.

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UFC 103 Preview: Franklin vs. Belfort

This Saturday night won't be for the faint of heart but rather the enduring fight fans around the country as boxing and MMA go head-to-head with some of the very best their sport has to offer. Two big fights, one night, who will emerge victorious?

The UFC presents its 103rd PPV broadcast with "Franklin vs. Belfort", a catchweight bout at 195 lbs which is now being challenged by Floyd Mayweather who decided to take on the UFC and Juan Marquez on the same night. A dubious task that only the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in boxing would try to shoulder.

Regardless of what ensues, it will be an interesting night but I am here to break down the 103 card so let's get into it.

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The Dilemma That Is Roger Huerta

UFC lightweight fighter Roger Huerta makes his return to the Octagon on Wednesday night as he takes on Gray Maynard at UFC Fight Night 19.

Huerta, 26, was last seen dropping a decision to Kenny Florian at UFC 87: Seek and Destroy last August. Since then Huerta (22-2-1) has reportedly been working on an acting career while healing a beat-up, worn down body. He also recently turned down a five fight contract extension in January from the UFC.

On Wednesday, September 16th, Huerta makes his return to fulfill the last fight on his UFC contract but the question that man analysts and fans alike have on their minds is where is his head at entering a such a big fight?

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Rampage Jackson Scratched from UFC

It appears scheduling conflicts will postpone the heated grudge match between light heavyweights Quinton "Rampage" Jackson (30-7) and Rashad Evans (18-1-1) at UFC 107 on December 12th.

Jackson, 31, recently landed the role as B.A. Baracus in the upcoming "A-Team" remake and will soon begin shooting according to the Vancouver Sun. The six-week film shooting schedule will apparently hamper Jackson's ability to put in a solid camp in time for the December 12th, UFC 107 date with Evans which was set to take place in his hometown of Memphis, Tennessee.

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UFC Should Think Hard on This One

Every now and then in life things will break easy, making one's decision a whole lot simpler. Do I date the beautiful girl with no personality or the beautiful girl with the personality? Gee, let me think ... Or how about joining the gym that charges $30 a month with every amenity you need plus modern equipment or the gym that charges $40 a month that's really just a weight room with no pool, sauna, aerobics, etc. and run down? Another no brainer.

Every now and then.

But sadly, every now and then happens perhaps every 100 decisions you're faced with which is why you should never make decisions harder than they have to be.

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UFC Eyes Vancouver for Next Event

The big news coming out of the UFC camp in the build-up to UFC 102: Couture vs. Noguiera was that the UFC is eyeing a third trip to Canada in June of 2010 with the likely destination being Vancouver, B.C.

A trip to Vancouver, B.C. would be huge for both the city and the UFC. Being from there and having traveled to the city numerous times, I can personally attest to the passion for MMA that the people have up there. Plus, with the olympics set to hit the city in February of 2010, there probably is no city that is going to be more ready for a big time event, not to mention how much publicity it will give the UFC for doing a show just four months after the world's best winter sport athletes perform in the same building.

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Beyond Couture vs. Noguiera

At first glance the UFC 102: Couture vs. Noguiera card looks rather unspectacular, disappointing is a word I would use. In the main event, we have two fighters in the twilight of their careers looking to prove that they still have it against a similar past-his-prime fighter.

Randy Couture (16-9) will take on the legend Antonio Rodrigo Noguiera (31-5-1) in the consolation bracket of the heavyweight tournament that began almost a year ago at UFC 91 with Couture facing Brock Lesnar. As far as implications to the division, this fight is about as interesting as watching a tournament on the Nationwide Tour.

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Spike TV to Televise UFC Fight

*UPDATE* Spike TV confirmed Friday that it will indeed televise the undercard fights for UFC 103: Franklin vs. Belfort on September 19th. However, contrary to the report published by the OC Register, Spike will air just one hour of uninterrupted coverage of the undercard with two fights guaranteed.

Those fights are Efrain Escudero versus Cole Miller which will be a match-up of previous winners of 'The Ultimate Fighter' and a middleweight slugfest featuring Tomasz Drwal and Drew McFedries.

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