With Matt Hughes employing an amateur wrestling headlock to choke his way to victory over Ricardo Almeida at UFC 117, I figured the time was right to feature some more nasty amateur action – in this case, some slams. Now some of these moves aren’t strictly legal in the legal sense of the word, but they’re all incredibly painful to watch. Let’s get to the action.
Wrestling Slam
You have to blame the recipient for this one – instead of pivoting to go down on his back, he tried to fight it and ended up going on his tender little head. Apparently he got back up and continued the match, which just proves that teenagers are indestructable.
Cary Kolat Backflip
This is just freaking sick – when his opponent went for a single-leg takedown, Pennsylvania high school student and future Olympian Cary Kolat whipped out a full backflip to escape it. Bravo.
Best Example of an Illegal Slam Ever
This is obviously a completely illegal slam – in amateur wrestling, for a slam to be legal, the person delivering it has to touch a knee to the ground before any part of the recipient’s body hits, preventing high-impact injury. This was a high-impact injury, and the dude laying it down is psyched. Read more...(469 words, estimated 1:53 mins reading time)
Phil Davis, 2008 NCAA Division I 184-pound champ for Penn State, will be competing at UFC 109: Relentless at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas on Saturday, February 6.
Davis, who signed with UFC just last month, will be facing former World Extreme Cagefighting champion Brian Stann, who played football at the US Naval Academy.
A four-time NCAA All-American wrestler, Davis built a 116-20 collegiate career with the Nittany Lions. The 25-year-old Harrisburg, Pennsylvania native owns a 4-0 professional MMA record, having competed inside the Palace Fighting Championship, Ultimate Warrior Challenge and Ultimate Cage Fighting Challenge promotions. In Davis’ most recent MMA event in June, he submitted David Baggett with a rear-naked choke in 3:37.
LAS VEGAS – So Brock Lesnar, in the parlance of pro wrestling, had gone straight heel.
After bludgeoning Frank Mir to retain the Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight championship at the hyped UFC 100, the former pro wrestling star decided to put on a real show.
Lesnar ran around the octagon flipping off the Mandalay Bay Events Center crowd with both middle fingers. He shouted at Mir as the challenger sat on a stool trying to regain his equilibrium. Mir stood up and they went sort of nose-to-broken nose before Lesnar cackled with laughter.
In the post-fight interview, Lesnar encouraged the booing fans to “keep going” before continuing to taunt Mir.
No one and nothing was spared. Lesnar even turned his attention to the UFC itself, which paid him an estimated $3 million for the fight, pointing at the giant Bud Light advertisement in the middle of the octagon.
“I’m drinking a cooler full of Coors Light, Coors Light because Bud Light won’t pay me anything.”
Anything for the children at home, big guy?
“Hell, I might even get on top of my wife tonight.” Read more...(1062 words, estimated 4:15 mins reading time)
The career: Punching guys in the face in the world of mixed martial arts.
The job candidates: Two wrestling state champions from St. Edward, two accomplished college wrestlers, two athletes looking for a way to turn their sport into a job.
The difference: Timing.
Six years ago, after he left Michigan State, Gray Maynard stumbled into his new life in a Las Vegas gym. For the latest generation of wrestlers such as Ohio State senior Lance Palmer, ultimate fighting is part of the plan.
Maynard and Palmer may wind up in the same place, but Palmer is starting his path much sooner
College basketball players have the NBA, college football players have the NFL, and now, college wrestlers have the adrenaline-stoked combat sport that combines the jabs and hooks of boxing, the takedowns and holds of wrestling and the kicks and attacks of judo and jujitsu.
For years, the booming world of mixed martial arts, led by its leading organization, the Ultimate Fighting Championship or UFC, has been populated by former college wrestlers, including big-name champions such as Randy Couture and Tito Ortiz. Former Ohio State national champion Mark Coleman helped introduce wrestling techniques to UFC as it entered the mainstream 13 years ago. Read more...(1590 words, 1 image, estimated 6:22 mins reading time)
The former University of Minnesota wrestling All-American and current Ultimate Fighting Champion heavyweight title holder in an interview credited God — and not steroids — for his physique.
By PAUL WALSH, Star Tribune
Former University of Minnesota wrestling All-American Brock Lesnar, the current Ultimate Fighting Champion heavyweight title holder, took a swipe at President Obama in an interview and bragged that he is “built like a black man” as he credited God — and not steroids — for his physique.
Lesnar’s smorgasbord of comments came in an interview with Maxim that was published in May and posted Friday on Fightline.com, a website that covers mixed-martial arts, ultimate fighting and other forms of professional wrestling.
Lesnar was a two-time All-American and 2000 NCAA heavyweight champion for the Gophers. His post-college career took off when he became a star with the WWE for two years, a part of his life that he recalled with some regret.
“You live a double life,” the 285-pound Lesnar said. “I was tired of trying to be who I was in the ring and then coming home for two days to be normal. They didn’t allow you to be. The guys who get out are the smart ones, really and truly.” Read more...(398 words, 1 image, estimated 1:36 mins reading time)
“I believe there are people out there that just have a warrior spirit, whether it’s fighting or something, they’ve got to do it. It’s hard to identify with me; it’s just something I do.”
—Evan Tanner, 2005
On what will unquestionably be remembered as one of mixed martial arts’ saddest days, former UFC middleweight champion Evan Tanner – beloved by fans for his fighting ability and by friends for his free spirit – has passed away at the age of 37.
Tanner, on a camping trip in the Palo Verde mountain area, was found by an Imperial County Sheriff’s Department Deputy on Monday. The cause of death is not known at this time. He had not answered friends’ text messages since last Wednesday, and was officially reported missing on Friday. Read more...(1170 words, estimated 4:41 mins reading time)
Marty Morgan was the top assistant under head coach J Robinson at Minnesota for 13 of his 16 seasons on staff. While at Minnesota, Morgan helped secure the program’s status as one of the most successful collegiate wrestling programs in the nation.
Head assistant wrestling coach Marty Morgan resigned from his position at the University of Minnesota on Tuesday afternoon after 16 years with the program. Morgan will go on to train former Gopher All-American wrestler Brock Lesnar, a popular Ultimate Fighting Championships (UFC) competitor, on a full-time basis.
“I’m going to step back for a year to help Brock [Lesnar] train and I’ll see where I’m at next summer. I’ve been working with Brock [Lesnar] the past few years on his training and now I’ve been offered a unique opportunity to work with him full time.” Morgan said. “This has definitely been a difficult decision, considering that I have been involved with the program for 20 years as an athlete and coach. I am happy to have a great relationship with the University of Minnesota administration, J Robinson, the wrestling staff, past and current team members, and numerous fans around this great wrestling state.” Read more...(540 words, 1 image, estimated 2:10 mins reading time)
Marty Morgan was the top assistant under head coach J Robinson at Minnesota for 13 of his 16 seasons on staff. While at Minnesota, Morgan helped secure the program’s status as one of the most successful collegiate wrestling programs in the nation.
