Dana White Denies Chuck Liddell Vs. Rich Franklin Rumours

Earlier today, several generally-reliable MMA news sources announced that Chuck Liddell (21-7) was no longer booked to fight his longtime-nemesis Tito Ortiz (15-7), and that he would instead face Rich Franklin (25-5) at UFC 115 in Vancouver, B.C. on June 12th. Having apparently placed too much trust in these sources, this site ran with the story as well.

It didn't take long for UFC President to catch wind of this "news" and vehemently deny it via his extremely popular twitter account. He did, however, re-confirm that Franklin vs. Randy Couture (18-10) remains in the works for a future date. Rankings-wise, that fight makes a good deal more sense for Franklin who is intent on fast-tracking himself into contendership at 205lbs.



See Dana's posts on the issue below:

Nothing happened to tito. Tito and I are cool. about 3 hours ago via web

danawhite

Dana White

Not true! We are doing couture vs franklin not chuck. about 3 hours ago via web

danawhite

Dana White

Dana White Video Round-Up

If you want to know about the UFC there are few better place to get new information than straight from the horse's mouth. Dana White has come to embody the organization to the point that is has become difficult to think of one apart from the other. To some, that's a problem given Dana's history of brash comments and behavior, but a great number UFC fans wouldn't take him any other way.

With that said, let the video round-up begin.

Dana White and Dan Henderson share a laugh at MMA Awards from Ariel Helwani on Vimeo.

Here Dana was caught chumming around with former employee Dan Henderson who will now ply his trade as a member of the Strikeforce roster.




Here he explains his respect and admiration for outspoken WWE front man and CEO Vince McMahon. Dana also reaffirms that, while he respects all that McMahon has achieved, he doesn't view him as direct competition, nor does he expect to win a head-to-head ratings match up against Raw this Monday night when UFN 20 airs on Spike TV.



In this video we see Dana embrace his multicultural side as he discusses Japanese fighting sensations Shiya Aoki and Takanori Gomi, the latter of whom recently signed a UFC contract and will soon begin competing at lightweight.



Finally, we find Mr. White in "closed door" negotiations with champion heavyweight boxer James Toney about the possibility of his fighting in the UFC. Toney has had some success in his career, but fizzled in recent fights. It was Toney who approached Dana about the possibility of making his MMA debut in the big show, but it's something the UFC must approach carefully. After all, Dana White has been a leading critic of freak-show fights in the past.

Dana White and Paul "Semtex" Daley at UFC 108 Post-Fight Press Conference

UFC President Dana White addresses Brock Lesnar's condition, GSP's 2012 Olympic wrestling aspirations, and Paul Daley's place in the 170lb. division. Daley discusses his post-fight antics and who he would like ro fight next.

Dana White's V-log For UFC 108 (Episodes 3 and 4)

In Episode three, Dana White makes his grand entrance at the MGM Grand Hotel ahead of this weekend's UFC 108: Evans vs. Silva. Lookout for the fan with a sign that references Dana's tirade against Sherdog.com's Jake Rossen from Episode 2. Funny stuff. Also watch out for Dana trying to sell a crowd on little-known main-card fighter Gilbert Yvel who receives some half-hearted applause:



In episode four, we see Dana cavorting with the main event fighters, and making more "I'm fat" jokes, which have been pretty popular with him lately:

Dana Is Pissed Off In His Latest V-log

Dana White is back with another video blog, this time in support of UFC 108: Evans vs. Silva. Along with the usual dose of Dana's shenanigans, he absolutely goes off while on the phone and takes multiple shots at Sherdog.com staff writer and ESPN.com blogger Jake Rossen for having the temerity to question whether MMA will be as big in the next ten years as Dana says it will. Here is the article that had Dana so upset.

The video also features UFC 108 co-main event fighter Paul Daley:

Dana White Pens Op-Ed: Seeks Global Domination By 2020

UFC President Dana White has written an opinion-editorial for the Las Vegas Sun that reasserts his desire to make MMA the world's preeminent sport within the next ten years. That may sound like crazy-talk and it's true that cage-fighting probably can't overtake basketball, much less soccer, in that time span, but if the sport of MMA keeps growing at anywhere near its current trajectory there really is no telling where it will top out.

From Dana's article (click for more):

The UFC will be on network television in the coming years, but we’re not going to go out and do a stupid deal because we don’t need them. We built this thing without help from anybody, and that’s why the UFC has been able to flourish even in these hard times.

The sport was just sanctioned in Massachusetts and Vancouver. We’re going to get it done in Ontario and New York in 2010. And we’re already working on taking the UFC global. We’ve already done Germany, England and Ireland, and we just sold 22,000 seats for an event in Australia in 15 minutes.

One thing Dana neglects to mention is the UFC's plan to finance seasons of The Ultimate Fighter all over the world, with the winners from every country earning a shot in the real octagon. Personally, I think that plan is pure genius both from the "Trojan horse" perspective that made the reality show a success in North America and from a nationalistic marketing angle. I mean, what red-blooded Indian, Pakistani, Korean, or Thai wouldn't want to see their best upcoming fighter take on the world's elite.

Dana White: More Antics Than You Can Shake A Schtick At

This is pretty much self-explanatory, but, for those who aren't familiar with his m.o., this is another of Dana White's video blogs. He often puts these out during fight weeks and I usually want that ten minutes of my life back after I watch them. Still, I generally do sit through the whole thing, so what does that say about me?

I already posted the first episode for UFC 104 right here.

Dana White on "Rome Is Burning"

Here's another new interview with Dana White touching on current issues like the Rampage situation, Kimbo's legitimacy, the UFC getting a network deal, and Strikeforce's recent signing of, NFL Hall of Fame'er, Herschel Walker. I also like this interview because I'm a big Jim Rome fan. I don't get to listen to him much, but I think he's one of the best sports commentators out there. Plus, he's hilarious-- though you don't really get that from this interview

Roy Nelson by TKO (Smothering), Rd. 2

In a match-up that was hyped, discussed, and, very likely, watched by more people than any previous fight in T.U.F. history, Roy "Big Country" Nelson (13-4) introduced himself to mainstream MMA fans yesterday evening by soundly defeating Kevin "Kimbo Slice" Ferguson (3-1).

Roy Nelson prevailed primarily by taking "Kimbo" down and proceeding to use his gargantuan belly to smother the beloved BBQ brawler. Then, after achieving the crucifix position, both at the end of the first round and the beginning of the second, Roy proceeded to arm-punch Ferguson repeatedly in the forehead with shots that, UFC president, Dana White compared to "strikes" thrown by a schoolgirl.

Not exactly a glowing performance review from your new boss.

What made it worse was the way Roy postured and gloated after he'd won. To see him beam and hear him go on about being "the King," you'd think he'd just unleashed a fearsome, Lesnar-esque, flurry ground-and-pound. Don't get me wrong, I don't fault Roy Nelson for having a lackluster performance. Certainly, there's nothing wrong with doing only enough to win. After all, The Ultimate Fighter is structured as a six-week tournament. As such, Nelson could argue that he simply wanted to get past "Slice" unscathed in order to stay healthy for the next round. That's fine, just don't act like you've somehow earned millions of fans for successfully taking down a mediocre grappler and (gasp!) holding him there.

For a guy with just four professional fights, "Kimbo Slice" had a decent performance against "Big Country." It was particularly impressive given that Roy is favored to win the show and is also the 21st best heavyweight in all of MMA, according to the USA Today aggregate poll. "Kimbo" demonstrated considerable grappling improvement by successfully defending Roy's first take down attempt and nearly sweeping "Big Country" near the end of the first round. Though it came as no real surprise, "Slice" also impressed by outclassing Nelson in the striking department.

Word is that "Kimbo" is currently training with American Top Team (ATT) in Coconut Creek, Florida. That's one of the world's premier MMA camps and home to numerous top-tier fighters, such as Thiago Alves, Thiago Silva and Todd Duffee. ATT is also renowned for the intensity of its daily workouts and the quality of its grapplers. So, if any assemblage of fighters and trainers can whip "Kimbo" into shape, it's probably the group at ATT. We won't have to wait long to see the results, either. It has already been announced that Kimbo will be fighting at the T.U.F. 10 Finale on December 7th, so we'll see then if his time in Coconut Creek has helped him round out his game. "Kimbo" will likely be matched up with one of this season's other thirteen cast-offs, probably a fellow striker.

However, at the end of last night's episode, the UFC also teased that an injury to, former Tampa Bay Buccaneers first-round pick, Marcus Jones may result in "Slice" re-entering the tournament. We're meant, I suppose, to believe there's still a chance that "Kimbo" might win it all. I wouldn't hold my breath for that, though. More likely, the UFC is merely attempting to convince "Kimbo's" massive fan base to tune in to T.U.F. 10 for just one more week.

More Links:


"Kimbo": Wants A Rematch

Nelson: Is Pretty Pleased With Himself &
Compares Himself To Babe Ruth (Extensive Interview)

The State of MMA in British Columbia: Welcome To The Wild, Wild West

As 2009 winds to a close, mixed martial arts remains outlawed throughout much of British Columbia. This is because many B.C. municipalities continue to delay the approval of sanctioning. For the most part, the hesitation stems from the negative reputation that MMA earned in its comparatively rule-free, early years. The legislative reluctance is also due to the fact that the average city councilor falls well outside MMA's primary demographic of 18-to-35-year-old sports fans.

Unfortunately for MMA fans, B.C.'s prohibiting municipalities include both Victoria, the province's capital city, and the entire Lower Mainland, its most populous region. This means that, while sanctioned fights are consistently being held in B.C.'s smaller centres, such as Nanaimo, the Southern Interior and Prince George, the majority of fans live hours away from the sites of these events.

The result, as so often occurs in cases of prohibition, has been the rise of an underground MMA scene in B.C. This wave of unsanctioned cage-fighting, which has been particularly prevalent in the Lower Mainland, often results in conditions that are much more dangerous for the fighters involved. It also makes it difficult for the average B.C. MMA fan to even locate a live event.

For example, Valleyfight holds monthly MMA shows at Corky's Liquor Bin on a Native Reserve in Chilliwack, B.C., but that undoubtedly-fine establishment simply isn't frequented by the average Vancouverite. As a result, most fans don't even realize that these fights are occurring in their region.

On Vancouver Island, successful MMA events, like the Armageddon Fighting Championship card that was held recently at Colwood's Bear Mountain Arena, are being held just outside the City of Victoria's jurisdiction. While these fights are well-attended, they must overcome the damaging stigma of being officially unwelcome within the capital's city limits.

But don't despair, change may be just over the legislative horizon.

Last April, Vancouver's city council came close to regulating MMA before shelving the motion at the last minute. Shortly thereafter, representatives from the UFC held closed-door meetings with Vancouver's Mayor, Gregor Robertson, which left them feeling encouraged that MMA would be sanctioned in the city in the very near future.

In fact, the UFC has tentatively scheduled an event for Vancouver in June of 2010. Word is, such an event would be held at GM Place-- the region's largest and most modern arena. Clearly, the UFC brass know something we don't. That fact leaves us with no choice but to desperately hope that their president, Dana White, isn't bluffing when he makes statements like this: "We're heading to Vancouver. We'll be there soon."

Is Rampage Really Done?

It's somewhat old news at this point, but I thought I'd weigh in on the retirement of Quinton "Rampage" Jackson (30-7).

What Went Down:

Jackson was scheduled to fight Rashad Evans (13-1-1) this December at UFC 107. It was to be the culmination of their time spent as opposing coaches on The Ultimate Fighter 10: Heavyweights.

Just prior to last week's UFC 103, Rampage announced that he would be unable to fight in December because he'd accepted the role of B.A. Baracus in the new, big-budget A-Team movie.

The sudden loss of a drawing fight for UFC 107 left the UFC scrambling. As a result, B.J. Penn (14-5-1) vs. Diego Sanchez (21-2) was pushed back from UFC 105 to fill the spot at UFC 107. A new fight, Randy Couture (16-10) vs. Brandon Vera (11-3), had to be signed to fill the main event slot at UFC 105.

Anyone familiar with Dana White's modus operandi should know that the UFC president had plenty to say about Jackson's decision. Including, but not limited to:

Rampage is a guy that we’ve obviously taken under our wing over the last few years, we really like him and we’ve really done a lot of good things for him. And for him to do this to me and to pull out and do this goofy A-Team movie man, I’m not happy about it all…They’re not paying him jack. He’s giving up literally millions of dollars to play Mr. T. …Rampage is somebody I consider a friend, he put me in a bad position and I’m not happy about it. He hurt himself, he hurt us. Sometimes, seriously, you have to save these guys from themselves. What he’s doing makes no sense whatsoever.

A few days after Dana made those comments, Jackson dropped the bombshell heard 'round the MMA world:

I'm not like Randy Couture. My body has been getting so many different injuries that I wont be able to fight until my forties & neither do I want to fight that long. So I feel like my second career could be in jeopardy.. so I'm done fighting... I'm gonna miss all my loyal fans but hopefully they'll follow me to my new career & I will gain more loyal fans along the way. & all you hater fans out there can kiss my big black hairy ass! & anybody that don't like what I just said can come try to kick my ass!

That all sounds pretty final, but mere days later Jackson posted this on his official site:

I feel like this whole situation could have been avoided if UFC would have respected me more & rescheduled the fight about a month or more in my hometown, which I know fights can be rescheduled because of the Matt Hughes & Matt Serra was postponed due to injuries. Instead, Dana went on the internet & started talking bad about my decision... I feel like I'm being disrespected. Everything is not about how much money you make. You could be the richest man in the world but if nobody respects you then it don't mean shit.

Bottom Line:

In the end, the two sides don't seem very far apart. Personally, I think a deal can be reached that will result in "Rampage" returning to the octagon in early 2010.

For one thing, Jackson stands to rake in a huge payday from a fight with Rashad. He can say what he wants about money not buying respect, but, at the same time, almost everyone's got a price. Besides that, I believe Quinton genuinely dislikes Rashad, which means he'll be reluctant to forgo the opportunity to, legally and repeatedly, punch Evans in the head.

More on this story as it develops.