Grapplers Quest - Dec 12, 2009

Watch UFC 106: Marcus Davis vs Ben Saunders

Watch UFC 106: Kendall Grove vs Jake Rosholt

Watch UFC 106: Antonio Rogerio Nogueira vs Luis Cane

UFC 106: Paulo Thiago vs Jacob Volkmann

Watch UFC 106: Koscheck vs Johnson

Watch UFC 106: Ortiz vs Griffin 2

Erin wins bronze at the California Classic

Bruno Tostes gets his black belt from Renzo Gracie, right after Tim toasts him!

Workshop w/ Laercio Fernandez this weekend at Robot

This Sat, Nov 21st, at 1pm, Laercio Lima Fernandes will be visiting Robot to do his last workshop before returning to Sao Paulo.

This is an exceptional opportunity to train with one of the leading black belts from Lotus Club Sao Paulo. Among Laercio's myriad wins, he has the following recent black belt titles:



Black Belt Titles:
1st US Nationals Champion 2009 (IBJJF)
1st Place Brazilian Nationals 2008 (CBJJE)
3rd Place Brazilian Nationals 2007 (CBJJE)

The workshop is $20 if you preregister and $25 if you pay at the door.

To preregister, please send an email to david@robotbjj.com

Georges St. Pierre wants to wrestle in the Olympics? It's not that easy

Georges St. Pierre said he's going to try to wrestle for Canada in 2012. Competing for your country in the Olympics is an amazing feat, and a worthy goal for a competitor like St. Pierre. There is one problem, though. Canada is already pretty well stocked with wrestlers at 74 kg (163 lbs.), the weight GSP would likely compete at.

Matt Gentry, an NCAA champion for Stanford University, represented Canada at the 2008 Olympics at 74 kg. Now an assistant coach at Stanford, Gentry plans to try for the Olympics again in 2012. He points out that having GSP in the mix could strengthen Canada's delegation, but it isn't easy to get there.

"Evan McDonald is the number one guy in Canada at that weight. If St. Pierre comes in, there's going to be a lot of depth at that weight," Gentry told Cagewriter. "That kind of depth is only going to make our country better. It will make the representative who ends up competing more tested, and they'll have to work harder to earn that spot, which will pay off in the long run."

McDonald wrestled for Canada in the world championships this past September. If GSP were to try to wrestle in the Olympics, he would need to get through both Gentry and McDonald. With such little freestyle wrestling experience, it could be difficult.

"He does have good takedowns, he does have good blast doubles, but it's hard to make the comparison," Gentry said. "But [MMA fighters] stand upright. I've seen those blast doubles, and he's certainly a horse in terms of conditioning, but it is pretty different. It's such a technical sport."

Yes, St. Pierre is very adept at using wrestling during fights. However, there is a huge difference between taking down a striker like Thiago Alves at will and trying to do the same against Buvaisar Saitiev, the Russian gold medalist at GSP's weight class and one of the most dominant wrestlers of the past decade.

Just qualifying your country's weight class for the Olympics is a difficult feat. It requires the wrestler to take a top eight placing at the 2011 World Championships, win their continental championship -- for GSP, it would be the Pan-American Championships -- or win one of the two qualifying tournaments. How hard is that? Only one country, Russia, qualified wrestlers in every weight class for Beijing. Out of eighteen weight classes, Canada qualified ten of them in 2008.

Making Canada's team is also a time-intensive feat. GSP would need to start with the Canadian national championships in 2011 to become part of the ladder of competitors for the Olympic Trials. After that, GSP would need to win the Canadian Olympic Trials, usually held in December of the year before the Olympics. This would tie up GSP for more than a year.

Still, Gentry isn't going to look past St. Pierre if he does try for the Olympics.

"He's a competitor, I'm sure that he'll be tough to beat, no matter what he's competing in."

By Maggie Hendricks

Watch the Entire Strikeforce: Fedor vs Rogers

CBS.com makes the entire Fedor vs Rogers event available for viewing in high definition on their site. Relive the two hour event including Fedor Emelianenko's spectacular knock out victory over Brett Rogers!

"StrikeForce: Challengers" This Friday!!!!

Strikeforce Challengers - Live at Memorial Hall in Kansas City on Friday
night, November 20 - 8PM.

Don't miss Kansas City's Rudy Bears take on rising superstar Tyron Woodley
in the main event! Plus, local favorite Bobby Voelker takes on Erik Apple,
Kerry Vera battles Kim "Sugar Free" Couture, Aaron Rosa takes on Feijao and
it's the return to the cage of local favorites, Brian Davidson and Lee
Gibson.

COMPLETE FIGHT CARD
Televised Bouts:

Tyron "T-Wood" Woodley (4-0) vs. Rudy Bears (13-5)
Kerry Vera (1-0) vs. Kim "Sugar Free" Couture (1-1)
Erik Apple (10-1) vs. Bobby Voelker (20-7)
Aaron Rosa (12-2) vs. Rafael "Feijao" Cavalcante (7-2)
Kevin Casey (2-0) vs. Chade Vance (7-3)

Non-Televised Bouts:
Lee Gibson (10-4) vs. Joe Wilk (8-2)
Brian Davidson (5-1) vs. Russel Patrick (5-2)
Andrew Waters (1-1) vs. Nick Nolte (0-1)
Dominic Brown (15-13) vs. TBA
Darryl Cobb (1-0) vs. Gary Tapasua (debut)
Mike Chandler (1-0) vs. Rich Bouphanouvong (1-1)

TIME
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2009 - 10:00PM/CT (PRELIMS AT 8:00PM)

HOW TO WATCH
LIVE ON SHOWTIME

Five-Year Plan: One Gracie Garage in Every City

Five-Year Plan: One Gracie Garage in Every City

Since 1925, the goal of the Gracie Academy has been to empower everyone with
Gracie Jiu-Jitsu. For people who do not live near a Certified Gracie
Jiu-Jitsu Training Center, do not have internet access, or cannot find a
dedicated training partner, a Gracie Garage may be the only way to learn the
art. As a result, we are determined to establish at least one Gracie Garage
in every city by January 1, 2015, and for that, we need your help.

What is a Gracie Garage?
A Gracie Garage is any unofficial training center dedicated to the practice
of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu that is equipped with at least 100 square feet of mats
and is led by a devoted practitioner of the art. Gracie Garage members
access the Gracie Academy curriculum through Gracie University (or the
Gracie Combatives DVDs), and work together to perfect the techniques and
climb through the belt ranks. Although the original Gracie Garage was an
actual garage in which Rorion and Royce had their humble beginnings
(pictured below), a modern day Gracie Garage can be operated out of any
location, from a one bedroom apartment to an existing martial arts school.

New Benefits for Gracie Garage Leaders
Realizing the critical role that these unofficial training centers play in
spreading the art of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, not only have we decided to eliminate
all costs associated with becoming a Gracie Garage, but we will reward all
Gracie Garage leaders with the following benefits:

* The Family Hookup: Gracie Garage leaders are family, and family members do
not pay for classes at the Gracie Academy. Each year, you may train up to
ten days at the Gracie Academy Headquarters (Torrance, CA) at no charge. You
can redeem your training all in one trip or divide it among several shorter
trips. Just show up with your gi, and we'll take care of the rest.

* Early Master Cycle Access: Each time a Master Cycle course is produced for
Gracie University, we will first grant access to our Certified Instructors.
Then, we will make it available to Gracie Garage leaders. Only after we have
received feedback from certified instructors and garage leaders will we
release the Master Cycle lessons to the general public.

* 10% Discount on all Gracie Merchandise: Most people wear Gracie Gear to
look good; family members wear it to spread the word. As a result, we give
all Gracie Garage leaders a 10% discount on all Gracie merchandise - at all
times. This includes everything in the Gracie Store, from t-shirts and
training equipment to duffel bags and Champion Juicers.

* Surprise Visit by the Gracie Brothers: Every six months, we will randomly
select one Gracie Garage to receive a private seminar with one of the Gracie
Brothers at no charge. As an active Gracie Garage, we automatically enter
your facility in the drawing for this highly coveted training opportunity!
When Ryron, Rener, or Ralek knock on your door, please let them in.

Watch the Brotherly Breakdown
For a full breakdown of the Gracie Garage benefits, and to learn how you can
join the Gracie Brothers in spreading Gracie Jiu-Jitsu to every city in the
world, click on the link below.

New Video: Gracie Garage Brotherly Breakdown

DMX fight update

DMX fight update: Rapper is out because he wanted the fight fixed?
By Steve Cofield
Tue Nov 10, 2009 3:20 pm EST

Earl Simmons better known as "DMX" isn't such a tough guy afterall. The
rapper made headlines back in September when it leaked that he'd be making
his debut as an MMA fighter against someone named Eric Martinez on a Dec. 12
Alabama card.

DMX, 38, started trash talking from the get-go saying he wasn't even going
to train for the fight:

"We got a phone call, you know, asking if I wanted to participate in it.
Yeah, why not? I figured I could do it. I'm just going to walk in as it
is... It wouldn't be fair if I trained. I can fight for real though, so it
is what it is."

The fight is now off because of ridiculous language DMX and his manager
wanted in the fight contract. DMX needs to talk pro wrestling promoter Vince
McMahon. According to documents acquired by TMZ:

X's manager, Nakia Walker, submitted an addendum to the rapper's
original contract for the fight, stipulating: "Event Promoter and Management
agree that [DMX] is scheduled to win the Boxing Challenge."

Huh? That doesn't sound like a real fight.

Walker also added a line which read, "All parties agree this event has
been scheduled to occur only in fun and that the artist involved is not a
professional boxer."

Part of the agreement was also not to release any of the details of the
pre-determined results to the public. DMX now says he wants to fight
regardless but the promoters, with a sour taste in their mouths, said no
dice. Thunder Promotions has inserted Coolio to fight Martinez.

DMX is fresh out jail after serving a 90 day sentence in Arizona. He was
locked up on charges of animal cruelty, theft and drug possession.

StrikeForce: Challengers - November 20

"STRIKEFORCE CHALLENGERS" READY TO WAGE WAR IN KANSAS CITY, KS ON NOVEMBER 20!

RISING SUPERSTAR TYRON WOODLEY TO MAKE HIS MAIN EVENT DEBUT AGAINST LOCAL FAVORITE RUDY BEARS!

In mixed martial arts, champions are not born, they're made. And before they're champions, they're challengers, fighting their way to the top for one chance at greatness..........

Rockstar Energy Drink presents Strikeforce Challengers in association with Shamrock Promotions - Live at Memorial Hall in Kansas City on Friday night, November 20 - 8PM.

Don't miss Kansas City's Rudy Bears take on rising superstar Tyron Woodley in the main event! Plus, local favorite Bobby Voelker takes on Erik Apple, Kerry Vera battles Kim "Sugar Free" Couture, Aaron Rosa takes on Feijao and it's the return to the cage of local favorites, Brian Davidson and Lee Gibson.

StrikeForce: Evolution - December 19

StrikeForce: Evolution featuring Cung Le, Robbie Lawler, King Mo and Jacare is set for December 19 at HP Pavilion in San Jose

Pre-sale tickets for StrikForce Insiders on sale tomorrow at 10:00 am PST.

The stakes will be high when Strikeforce closes out a spectacular 2009 with the return of one of the most prolific and exciting fighters in Mixed Martial Arts - unbeaten former Strikeforce world middleweight champion Cung Le, who will face Scott "Hands of Steel" Smith in the main event of a star-studded lineup at HP Pavilion in San Jose, CA on Saturday, Dec. 19, on Showtime®.

Joining Le (6-0) and Smith (16-6) will be three other outstanding and widely recognized 185-pound stalwarts, "Ruthless" Robbie Lawler (16-5), Matt "The Law" Lindland (21-6) and Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza (10-2) as well as light heavyweight star (205 pounds) Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal (5-0). Lindland will face Souza in what represents both fighters' Strikeforce debuts. Opponents for Lawler and "King Mo,'' whose start will also be his first with STRIKEFORCE, will be announced soon.

Special presale tickets for "Strikeforce Insiders" go on sale tomorrow, November 10 at 10:00AM/PT online at Ticketmaster.com or by phone at (800) 745-3000 when using the following presale code: STKMMA

St. Pierre New Face of Under Armour, Aims for Feb. or March Return to the Octagon

UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre has signed a multi-year endorsement deal with performance apparel leader Under Armour, the company announced Thursday.

St. Pierre, 28, will become the face of Under Armour’s popular BoxerJock and BoxerBrief Underwear line this Spring, and will be featured in a multi-platform advertising campaign for its ColdGear apparel line this holiday season, as well its Recharge post-workout suit campaign.

“Not only is Georges one of the biggest stars in one of fastest growing sports in the world, but his strategic approach and the energy he brings to each competition make him a special kind of athlete,”

said Steve Battista, Under Armour Senior Vice President, Brand, in a prepared release.

“His dedication to training and making himself the best at what he does perfectly aligns with our Brand’s mission. When we found out that he was a fan of ours, we seized the opportunity to secure this partnership. He fits well into the Under Armour family.”

The deal marks the second time the affable mixed martial artist has courted a major advertiser outside of the sport’s usual fare. In March 2008, St. Pierre became the first fighter picked up by Gatorade for a North American campaign, appearing in its “G” campaign commercials and print ads in Rolling Stone and others.

St. Pierre joins Baltimore Ravens’ Ray Lewis, New York Giants’ Brandon Jacobs, Chicago Cubs’ Alfonso Soriano, lacrosse superstar Paul Rabil, and U.S. Olympian Lindsey Jacobellis among Under Armour’s current spokespersons.

Meanwhile, St. Pierre’s manager, Shari Spencer, said the fighter is still recovering from a groin injury sustained during his successful five-round title defense against Thiago Alves at UFC 100 last July in Las Vegas. Spencer said St. Pierre is aiming for a February or March return to the Octagon.

Down-and-Out Fighter's Big Payday

If anyone needed a huge post fight bonus at UFC 104, it was Pat Barry. The heavyweight out of New Orleans, scored Knockout of the Night and Fight of the Night for his victory over Antoni Hardonk. That was good enough for $120,000. Good thing, Barry needed the infusion of cash in the worst way. He confirmed to MMAScrapsRadio that he was completely down on his luck before the fight, agreeing that he had little to eat in Los Angeles the week of the fight.

"I still had my apartment but if something would've happened and the fight had been canceled, I would've been evicted six days later."

Barry, 30, said he didn't even tell his trainer Duke Roufus for fear that he would think the fighter had the wrong motivation going into the fight. Barry said he didn't ask anyone for money including his mother:

"I could ask someone but then at the same time, how hard are you going to work for something if everytime you get in trouble somebody catches you? I did something to put myself in this position I have to work my way out of it."

Barry got his $120,000 bonus check last Tuesday. He couldn't believe it. When he went to deposit the check, his truck wouldn't start. Barry got a jump and hit the bank sporting a black eye and pink striped shorts.

"I go to the bank, I'm sweaty, I've got the black eye, I haven't shaven in two days, I'm strung out because I haven't slept, I have green circles under my eyes so I'm like 'Can I have a deposit slip mam?'. She gives it to me, I fill it out hand it to her. She looks at the deposit slip, then the check, then looks at me and says 'Excuse me I'll be right back.' Then a manager comes out, a guy in a suit and says 'What seems to be the problem?' I was like 'Well I have a black eye, that's the only problem I know this looks really ridiculous.' So he asks me for my ID, I hand him my license an he's like 'Your license says Pat Barry, but this check was written to Patrick Barry.' So I decided to be funny and tell him Pat Barry is in my trunk right now. He didnt laugh. So I told him take your time man do whatever you need to do because I have no where to go and my truck probably wont start when I go outside so you can just do whatever you need to do. An hour later he came back and everything was fine, the check was in my bank account."

Source

Alves on GSP: Fighting GSP for Title Is a Different Game

Before his recent withdrawal from a rematch with Jon Fitch due to a small tear to the posterior cruciate ligament in his knee, Thiago Alves sat down with Sherdog.com and reflected on his title bout loss to Georges St. Pierre.

St. Pierre had trumpeted Alves as his most dangerous opponent to date. In the end GSP claimed a dominant unanimous decision, and Alves couldn’t help but feel he had given the champion too much respect.

“When you fight a guy like Georges St. Pierre, you have to think that he is good,” Alves said. “He’s the best fighter out there, in my opinion, but before the fight you have this respect because you don’t know what to expect until you are in there. Then, once he gets going, it is hard to catch up to him.”

St. Pierre ran out to a big lead against Alves and, despite suffering a groin injury late in the fight, he was able to shut down the explosive American Top Team product. Regardless of the outcome, though, Alves is confident the experience he gained in his 25 minutes with the champ will pay off should he get another crack at him.

“That’s why everyone who fights him says, ‘Now I know what it takes to beat him.’ I have seen what it takes,” Alves said. “I saw all the ghosts that appear when you fight for a title. People can say a lot of things to you like, ‘Don’t worry, you’re going to be fine,’ but when you step in there, you see it’s a whole different ballgame because you are fighting against the champion and you’re trying to take his belt away. You know he isn’t going to just give it to you. He’s the best fighter in the world and he has been there so many times.”

Although Alves feels he might have given St. Pierre too much credit before the bout, he left the cage respecting the UFC welterweight titleholder even more.

“It made me gain so much more respect for him. He’s such a great champion, he’s such a great fighter that I want to beat him. I want to be better than him,” Alves said. “That’s what I want, to be like Georges St. Pierre but better. You always have to look up to the best, and he is the best in my weight division, so I want to be like him but better.”

Asked if he wanted to rematch St. Pierre right away, Alves smiled and nodded: “I would fight him again yesterday.”

Source