UFC welterweight Karo Parisyan was suspended today by the Nevada State Athletic Commission for a positive test arising from his fight with Dong Hyun Kim at UFC 94. Three Schedule II drugs, painkillers oxymorphone, hydromorphone, and hydrocodone, were found in his system following the fight.
The commission voted unanimously to suspend Parisyan, who slumped before the commission as the punishment was delivered.
As a result of the Commission's decision:
A)Parisyan is suspended from competition for 9 months
B)He is fined 40 percent of his $80,000 purse ($40,000 show/$40,000 win), totaling $32,000, which will go to the Athletic Commission
C)He must submit to random drug testing
D)The result of his UFC 94 bout with Dong Hyun Kim is changed to a "No Decision"
Neil Davidson of the Canadian Press recently spoke with Dana White, who pulled no punches about how he feels about Georges St. Pierre's cornerman, Phil Nurse, and his alleged illegal application of Vaseline in St. Pierre's fight against B.J. Penn at UFC 94.
This is a video that B.J. Penn's camp posted on BJPenn.com in regards to alleged misuse of Vaseline by Georges St. Pierre's camp at UFC 94. Judge for yourself.
At a Nevada State Athletic Commission public hearing on Tuesday in Las Vegas, Karo Parisyan's temporary suspension stemming from a positive post-fight drug test was upheld pending a review of his case.
Parisyan tested positive for painkillers Hydrocodone, Hydromorphoone, and Oxycodone following his bout with Dong Hyun Kim at UFC 94.
Parisyan has until March 6 to respond to an NSAC complaint recommending a formal suspension.
Check back with MMAWeekly.com for more details as they arise.
B.J. Penn spoke recently with Fox News Fight Game's Mike Straka both about Georges St. Pierre and the controversy around their fight. He also confirmed that he is in negotiations to fight Kenny Florian in defense of his UFC lightweight title in his next bout.
Although there has been a lot of speculation that B.J. Penn was considering retirement following his UFC 94 bout with Georges St. Pierre, fueled mostly by the fighter himself, it sounds more and more like he's planning to return.
His trainer, Rudy Valentino, told Sports Illustrated's Josh Gross that on their way to Vegas, Penn had indicated to him that a win probably would have meant his retirement.
In an interview with KHON-2 News in Honolulu, Penn himself sounded unclear on his future, saying, "I was going to make this my last fight and finish up fighting GSP. In my head, I was with (the UFC) for nine or ten years and I kind of just wanted to be finished with this whole thing after this. So I don’t know where my head is right now. I just want to thank all the fans that supported me all this time, over this last nine, ten years fighting."
But over the past few days, Penn has made statements to the contrary, initially posting on his Facebook page that he was now looking to a UFC lightweight title defense against Kenny Florian sometime between May and July.
With the whole uproar about inappropriate Vaseline usage by St. Pierre's cornermen during their fight, St. Pierre made a public statement saying that he welcomed a second rematch with Penn to prove that the controversy had nothing to do with his dominating performance in sending Penn packing after the fourth round.
Penn responded in kind on his website, BJPenn.com, accepting a third bout between the two iconic figures. "To the untrained eye the grease might not look like much, but every grappler knows the effect that it has. Being able to apply your submissions and sweeps or just being able to hold on to your opponent to defend yourself from being hit is absolutely critical! ... I hereby accept George St. Pierre and Greg Jackson’s challenge for a fight in the summer 2009. Lets call Dana now and set it up."
So, it doesn't look like Penn is planning on going away anytime soon. It is now more of a question of what is next for the UFC lightweight champion. St. Pierre is expected to defend the welterweight title against Thiago Alves in his next bout. Although a third bout between GSP and Penn could come to fruition, it is more likely that Penn will be required by the UFC to defend his belt against Kenny Florian before anymore rematches.
For better or worse, the hot topic of conversation following what was billed as the biggest fight in Ultimate Fighting Championship history -- the mega-fight between welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre and lightweight champion B.J. Penn -- has been the use of Vaseline by St. Pierre's cornermen.
Most of the parties involved have commented in one form or another, and the Penn camp is now determining their pursuit of the allegations against St. Pierre. On Tuesday, in his official blog, former UFC welterweight champion Matt Hughes, who has fought St. Pierre three times, weighed in on some of the UFC 94 bouts, but was most poignant in his comments about St. Pierre feeling greasy when they fought:
"I was also surprised by the final match, I thought B.J. would have put on a better performance. B.J. Penn is coming from a lighter weight class, but he took the fight at 170. That's the bottom line. I knew it was going to come down to who had the better cardio and even at the end of the first round B.J. looked tired.
Now, on to what everybody is talking about, the greasing. I'm not the only one who has said that GSP felt greasy during a fight. I know Matt Serra has mentioned it and, even in their first fight, I think B.J. said something. I'm not saying GSP did something wrong and I'm not saying that it would have changed any outcomes of any fights; but what I am saying is, for my last two fights against Georges, he felt greasy."
The numbers aren't official yet, but UFC president Dana White on Saturday night indicated that everything about Georges St. Pierre vs. B.J. Penn 2 affirms its mega-fight status.
"We did a gate of $4.3 million, 14,885 people," he said at the post-fight press conference. "This thing was more than a sellout. The casino was scrambling today to add more seats. Other casinos were looking for tickets. This was the craziest event we've ever done, by far."
If those numbers prove to accurate, it easily puts UFC 94 as one of the top grossing UFC gates of all time.
Fight night numbers were the latest in a tremendous week for the promotion. On Friday at the UFC 94 weigh-ins – an event in and of itself – security had to turn people away at the door. UFC officials said that the set-up for the weigh-ins accommodated somewhere in the neighborhood of 5,000 fans, yet they were still turning them away in droves... for the weigh-ins!
At least as a live draw, UFC 94 could only be regarded as the resounding success that the promotion had expected.
There are always a number of stars that come out for any UFC event, but tonight in Las Vegas the royalty of Japanese mixed martial arts has come out to see Georges St. Pierre battle B.J. Penn.
Former Pride lightweight champion Takanori Gomi, prized bantamweight and featherweight fighter, Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto, Olympic Gold medalist Satoshi Ishii, and Caol Uno are all in attendance at UFC 94 to see the action at tonight's show.
UFC President Dana White has made it no secret that he wouldn't mind landing any or all of the above competitors. White has also mentioned top rated middleweight competitor, Yoshohiro Akiyama, as a fighter the promotion would like to add as well.
"Kid" Yamamoto was seen several times this week in Dana's blog, and the top ranked Japanese fighter stopped for a photo opportunity in the Octagon with the president.
If you're a fan of betting, but not sure which fighters to pick, BetUs.com has a few special offers that might make fans have some more fun while wagering on UFC 94 and other events.
With UFC 94 on Saturday and the Super Bowl on Sunday, BetUs.com has you covered for all of your traditional wagering and some not so traditional ideas to take a chance on this weekend.
Take a look...
What happens 1st
First score in Super Bowl 1/2
BJ Penn/St Pierre fight finishes 3/2
Number of tapouts at UFC 94 5/6
Number of TDs at SB XLIII 5/6
Number of Fights that go the distance at UFC 94 5/6
Number of FGS at SB XLIII 5/6
Most Likely to happen
Willie Parker gets MVP of the SB XLIII 10/13
Nate Diaz gets "Submission of the Night" 10/11
Pop-Culture, Sports, and Newsworthy odds can be found at:
The MMA Insider spoke to several top MMA fighters and managers to get their picks on the upcoming UFC welterweight title fight pitting Georges St. Pierre against B.J. Penn.
Here are the picks:
Josh Thomson: "Penn, Penn, Penn, Penn, Penn, Penn, oh did I mention B.J. Penn to win?
Eliot Marshall: "GSP"
Dustin Hazelett: "I'm actually undecided. I believe the early rounds favor Penn, but the later rounds will favor GSP."
Marcus Davis: "B.J. Penn by the 3rd round. Not sure what, but some kind of stoppage"
Heath Herring: "Not gonna touch that one!"
Jason Genet (Magnetic Marketing Associates): "I think that GSP will be too big for Penn, who is easily one of the greatest MMA fighters of our time."
Jeff Curran: "I really don't know. Personally, I think you are better off rolling the dice!"
Ken Pavia (MMA Agents): "GSP late by conditioning."
Brian Stann: "GSP. My teammate, you don't need to ask!"
Back in 2005, Georges St. Pierre was only 4 fights into his legendary UFC career. Little did the Abu Dhabi Combat Club know what kind of future star they would feature when GSP entered the 2005 competition in the 66 to 76kg weight class on short notice when invited to the tournament.
In his first round match-up, St. Pierre out wrestled and used superior technique to defeat Otto Olson on points. His next bout against Leo Santos didn't go as well as the Canadian was forced to tap out after getting caught in an armbar.
Since that time, St. Pierre has gone on to become a 2x UFC welterweight champion while also gaining fame as possibly the top pound for pound fighter in the sport of mixed martial arts.
Regardless of titles or accomplishments, St. Pierre is a competitor and he said during a recent interview with MMAWeekly Radio that if the timing worked out, he'd love the chance to compete in the Abu Dhabi tournament again in the future.
"If I have time and the timing is good, I will do it, of course I will," St. Pierre said. "I love competition, I'm a true mixed martial arts man, and I don't only like MMA. I like grappling, I like wrestling, I like jiu-jitsu, I like Muay Thai, I like everything. But of course my main job is MMA."
Many other top MMA stars still compete regularly in grappling tournaments and a great many of them are expected at this year's Abu Dhabi championships. If timing worked out, St. Pierre would be a huge addition to the show.
And just like everything else GSP puts his mind to, he'd probably be a force in the tournament as well.
Always considered one of the top pound for pound fighters in the world, B.J. Penn will once again venture back up the welterweight division for his upcoming showdown against Georges St. Pierre at UFC 94.
The last time Penn fought at 170lbs was in September 2006 in a loss to former UFC welterweight champion, Matt Hughes.
Since then Penn rededicated himself to a rigorous training plan, while making the move back down to 155lbs where he's won 3 straight fights including a title win and title defense.
So now going back to 170lbs, what is Penn doing to ensure that he will be in the same physical condition that got him to the pinnacle of the lightweight division?
"I'm lifting weights, but nothing extraordinary. I'm training hard, a lot of real work in the ring or in the cage, a lot of real practical work and training hard, and just eating a lot of rice and a lot of fish and a lot of oatmeal," Penn told MMAWeekly Radio recently. "That's pretty much what I'm doing preparing, I'm not doing anything drastic. I'm just getting ready and whatever my weight falls on, that's where I'll be for the fight."
It looks like Penn is ready to back up his move to 170lbs with a tremendous amount of skill and no worries about moving up in weight to accommodate the division.
Mixed martial arts will always be the first love of UFC welterweight champion, Georges "Rush" St. Pierre, but when the Canadian champion isn't dominating in the Octagon, he's picking up a few new skills in front of the camera as an actor.
St. Pierre recently filmed scenes alongside other fighters such as Anderson Silva, Heath Herring and ironically enough, B.J. Penn, in a movie set for release in 2009 called "Never Surrender."
"It was great," St. Pierre told MMAWeekly Radio recently about the movie experience. "I liked it and I actually have another filming planned for February after my fight. I'm very excited about it."
According to online movie resource, IMDB.com, St. Pierre is set to star in two new movies, one called "Hell's Chain" and another titled, "Death Warrior."
The 2008 Canadian Athlete of the Year admits that acting can be fun, and it takes him back to his childhood, and he hopes one day he can be as iconic as the "Muscles from Brussels."
"It's pretty fun, I like it. It's like make me remember when I was a kid, playing games, it makes me remember those days," St. Pierre commented. "It's a little bit like come back as a kid and play games, and I when I do it sometimes I feel like the Canadian version of Jean-Claude Van Damme. It's pretty funny."
Unless Van Damme pulls out the Dim Mak from his movie "Bloodsport" he probably wouldn't stand much of a chance against St. Pierre in a real fight, but the 170lb king says he still has a lot to learn in the Belgian's medium as well.
"Maybe I'm better in the Octagon, but I still have a lot to learn on the camera."
Throughout his career, B.J. Penn has always been thought of as one of the most dangerous fighters to deal with in any facet of the game. With a phenomenal jiu-jitsu game at his disposal, Penn has perfected a deadly striking arsenal to use against his opponents as well.
Just recently, famed boxing trainer Freddie Roach had stated that he believed Penn had the best stand-up of any fighter in MMA and Penn takes that as a huge compliment.
"Knowing all of Freddie's accomplishments and the people he's been around. Freddie's held the mitts for me a few times, and worked a few things with me and wow that's an awesome thing that Freddie said that," Penn said recently.
In his fight with former UFC lightweight champion, Sean Sherk, it was the Hawaiian who controlled the biggest part of the bout with a devastating jab that pummeled his opponent all the way to the finish.
"I do work the jab a lot, but it's not like I work it more than any other punch. It's like when I get in a fight I end up jabbing more than anything," Penn said. "I don't know why, I don't know how it happens. Even with (Takanori) Gomi, I remember it was a battle of jabs. I always remember I had a pretty stiff left jab when I was a kid growing up."
The current UFC lightweight champion admits that his love of boxing goes back to his youth, even before he discovered Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
"I try to work on my striking, actually boxing was my first love before I even found jiu-jitsu," Penn stated. "I was always about the kind of guy you can hit me, I can take your best punches, hit you back and eventually you'll give up. I was one of those guys."
"Boxing has always had a special place in my heart."
UFC president Dana White presents the latest edition of his video blog. In this episode, Dana takes you to the UFC 94 press conference, and then heads back to the office to do a little personal "remodeling" of his very own.
"Yeah, I think if Quinton beats Jardine, he'll get the next shot at the title," said UFC president Dana White following Wednesday's UFC 94 pre-fight press conference in Las Vegas.
And that is regardless of the outcome of a key battle at UFC 94. Lyoto Machida, the No. 4 ranked light heavyweight fighter in the world, and No. 10 ranked Thiago Silva are slated for a showdown in the top undercard fight at UFC 94. Both have been on a tear through the 205-pound division and both are undefeated.
But while the winner of Machida vs. Silva is likely to narrow the field of contenders to the title currently held by "Sugar" Rashad Evans, it appears that Quinton "Rampage" Jackson -- with a win over Keith Jardine at UFC 96 on March 7 -- will jump to the head of the line.
White has stated in the past that Jackson vs. Evans might have already been on tap, but Evans was not fully recovered yet from his title victory over Forrest Griffin at UFC 92, so they put Jackson and Jardine together for the Columbus fight card.
UFC President Dana White presents the third episode of his UFC 94 blog. In this edition, Dana heads to CNBC to talk about the new UFC branded gyms and much, much more.
Always willing to go the extra mile to learn new techniques, UFC welterweight champion, Georges St. Pierre, is once again about to step up his training as the fighter is planning for a trip to Thailand after his title fight on Jan 31 to work with top Muay Thai fighters from the area.
St. Pierre has famously worked alongside many top trainers and training partners, and has previously traveled to Brazil to train with top jiu-jitsu coaches and athletes. The Canadian star will add to his resume and passport when he makes a trip to Thailand after his fight against B.J. Penn.
"I plan to go after my fight actually," St. Pierre said about a trip to Thailand. "That's another thing that I want to do is go to Thailand. After my fight I might also go to France, I have a lot of friends in France and a very good Muay Thai fighter who comes from France."
"Some of them have come to help me train for this camp, so I'm going to go see them after my fight. They have a lot of good fighters out there."
St. Pierre recieved his black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu a few months back and the top welterweight stand-out also holds black belts in several other martial arts disciplines as well.
Still willing to be the student, St. Pierre may just add another weapon to his arsenal when he travels to Thailand to work with some of the top strikers in the world.
The third and final installment of the new UFC Primetime -- Georges St. Pierre vs. B.J. Penn 2 -- episode airs tonight on Spike TV at 10 p.m. ET/PT. If you missed it so far, the series gives fans an inside look at the lives and training of St. Pierre and Penn as they ready themselves for their UFC 94 mega-fight Saturday night at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
The series launched two weeks ago to what Spike officials felt were very good ratings. Each episode airs twice on Spike back-to-back. The first episode debuted to an average of 880,000 viewers during its first airing, followed by a repeat performance that averaged 614,000 viewers, according to Spike TV.
Last weeks episode -- the second installment in the series -- stayed steady on its initial airing with an average viewership of 825,000, while the repeat immediately afterwards drew 435,000.
It will be interesting to see how many fans tune in tonight as excitement for the fight has started to build across the board.
With the UFC's key business and home base being in Las Vegas, it's a no brainer that fight fans love to bet on their faves. With all the talk back and forth about who will win at UFC 94, at this point, Georges St. Pierre is clearly the odds on favorite heading into his mega-fight with B.J. Penn.
A pivotal light heavyweight bout between Top 10 fighters Lyoto Machida and Thiago Silva is also featured at UFC 94. Thus far, Machida is running away with this one as far as betters are concerned.
We've obviously seen in the past that who is being bet on doesn't necessarily equate into a win, so it will be interesting to see if the betters are right come Saturday night.
UFC President Dana White presents the 2nd episode of his UFC 94 video blog. In this episode, Dana takes you behind the scenes for some early footage from the 9th season of the "Ultimate Fighter" and then takes you to New York, where another epic race breaks out.
Dana White kicks off his UFC 94 video blog on Monday with a special guest appearance by pro skateboarder Mike V. and then takes off to the WEC event in San Diego to get GSP vs. B.J. Penn picks from the likes of Duane "Bang" Ludwig, Jens Pulver, Matt Hume, WEC lightweight champ Jamie Varner, Urijah Faber, Robbie Lawler, Caol Uno, Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto, and WEC featherweight champ Mike Brown.
Of particular interest was the presence of Kid Yamamoto at the WEC. During his blog, White asked Yamamoto if he was ready to come fight (in the WEC) and Yamamoto replied, "Yeah." White immediately replied, "We want you here."
Of course, that is far and away from being a done deal by any means, but it's sure to stoke the rumors of Kid Yamamoto coming to the WEC, especially with the on and off reports of him fighting soon in Japan.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship announced Wednesday that UFC 94: ST-PIERRE vs. PENN 2 is officially sold out. The mega-fight pitting Champion against Champion that will take place Saturday, January 31, is one of the most anticipated UFC bouts in history and now can be seen only on pay-per-view. More than 14,000 fans are expected to attend the event live inside the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
In advance of this epic rematch, Spike TV will present UFC Primetime, a new, three-part series that delivers an unfiltered look at both champions as they prepare for the biggest fight of their careers. The first installment UFC Primetime, which tracks St-Pierre and Penn through their training camps in Montreal and Hawaii, premieres this Wednesday, January 14 at 10:00 p.m. ET.
The following week, part two of UFC Primetime airs Wednesday, January 21 at 10 p.m. ET, with part three airing at 10 p.m. ET on Wednesday, January 28, four days before St-Pierre and Penn enter the Octagon at UFC 94.
UFC 94: ST-PIERRE VS. PENN 2 will be available live on pay-per-view at 10 p.m. EST/7 p.m. PST on iN DEMAND, DIRECTV, DISH Network, TVN, Bell ExpressVu, Shaw Communications and Viewer's Choice Canada for a suggested retail price of $44.95 for standard definition or high-definition broadcasts (where available).
St-Pierre and Penn last met in March 2006 at UFC 58, when St-Pierre defeated BJ Penn via a narrow split decision. Ever since then, Penn has been on the comeback trail, cleaning out the lightweight division while St-Pierre was climbing his way to the top of the welterweight division. At UFC 94 Penn makes his move to recapture the welterweight title, which he last held in January 2004, while also becoming the first man in UFC history to hold two division titles simultaneously.
UFC Primetime premieres on Spike TV on Wednesday, January 14th at 10pm. More than just a countdown show, the series will air in three parts on the three Wednesdays leading up to the fight and take fight fans behind the scenes and into the lives of Georges St-Pierre and B.J. Penn like never before. For the UFC, there was no better time than now and no better fight than GSP-Penn to kick off the series. GSP vs. Penn takes place on Jan. 31 at UFC 94 in Las Vegas.
As always, the Xtreme Couture gym in Las Vegas is buzzing with activity. MMAInsider was on the scene last weekend while several well-known fighters prepared for upcoming bouts in a group sparring session.
Amidst the swarm of fists and kicks on the gym's main workout area, Gilbert Yvel was engaging Stephan Bonnar near the cage in the second of five five-minute rounds. From the looks of it, Yvel was taking it to the runner-up of the original "Ultimate Fighter."
Yvel's hands and feet were lightning fast; he never let anything get away. The second Bonnar threw a punch, another was on its way to meet him. He did his best to catch-up, but after eating several kicks to the midsection, he thought twice about being overly aggressive.
And apparently, Yvel was still being too nice. Between rounds, Yvel's trainer, John Lewis, told his fighter to turn it up a notch.
"You can hit harder," he encouraged.
When the two found each other in the fifth five-minute round, Yvel quit playing patty-cake.
One particular kick to Bonnar's midsection took the wind out of his sails.
"It kinda sucked," Bonnar later told MMAinsider. "Every time I hit him, he'd hit me back harder. So I took him down at the end of the (second) round, kinda got a good position on him. He didn't like that, so he found me again for the fifth round and hit me with a few."
Bonnar pointed to his left eye, which was marked red.
"It's good to take an ass whupping every now and then," he said with a smile.
Make sure to check out videos with Yvel and Bonnar as they discuss their upcoming fights at Affliction's "Day of Reckoning" and UFC 94, respectively.
As things start to heat up in anticipation of UFC lightweight champion B.J. Penn's mega-fight showdown at UFC 94 for Georges St. Pierre's welterweight strap, Penn has started up a video blog.
Check out the first episode - dated December 3rd...
In anticipation of one of the most prominent mixed martial events of all-time, "UFC 94" featuring welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre and lightweight champion BJ Penn, Spike TV presents "UFC Primetime," premiering Wednesday, January 14 10:30 - 11:00pm, ET/PT.
"UFC Primetime," produced by the UFC, delivers an unprecedented portrait of the lives of two of mixed martial arts' biggest stars, Georges St. Pierre and BJ Penn, as they prepare for their epic clash of titans in late January. Spike TV will present three special weekly installments that will take viewers from the cliffs of Kailua to the streets of Montreal in an unfiltered look at two great warriors heading into battle for what promises to be one of the greatest match ups of skill in UFC history.
Christopher Martello of Spike TV serves as executive in charge of production of "UFC Primetime."
"UFC 94" will air live on Pay-Per-View Saturday, January 31 from MGM Grand Garden Arena, in Las Vegas at 10pm ET/7pm PT.
Due to the threat of inclement weather, the venue has been changed indoors to the Blaisdell Concert Hall
On Friday, November 21, UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre, UFC lightweight champion BJ Penn, and UFC President Dana White will hit Honolulu for a public press conference and free viewing party at the Blaisdell Concert Hall. Doors will open at 4pm HT, with a live musical performance by J-Boog and Fiji talking place from 5 to 6pm HT. The press conference will begin at 6:15pm, followed by a free large-screen viewing from the Shell of classic St-Pierre and Penn fights. UFC T-shirts will be given free to the first 2,000 fans in attendance. There are no charges to attend this event.
UFC President Dana White presents the 7th edition of his video blog for UFC 91.
In this episode, B.J. Penn and Georges St. Pierre join Dana just moments before they officially announce their UFC 94 bout, we get a behind the scenes visit to the locker rooms of UFC 91, live at the event, and behind the scenes after the event including Dana's impromptu interview of Junie Browning... and the ESPN sports desk at UFC 91.
Tickets for the mega-fight rematch between UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre and UFC lightweight champion B.J. Penn go on sale to the general public beginning Sunday, Nov. 16 at 10 a.m. PT. There are presale options to purchase tickets to UFC 94 before they go on sale to the general public.
Starting Thursday, Nov. 13 at 10 a.m. PT, tickets for UFC 94 go on sale to UFC Fight Club members. And on Saturday, Nov. 15 at 10 a.m. PT, tickets go on sale to newsletter subscribers.
UFC 94 is scheduled to take place on Saturday, Jan. 31 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. It features the previously mentioned mega-fight between GSP and Penn, a rematch that has been two-and-a-half years in the making. The bout will take place in the 170-pound division for GSP's welterweight title.
If he were to win the belt, B.J. Penn would become the first UFC fighter to hold two UFC championship belts in two weight categories simultaneously.
Initially hoping to have a fight against Clay Guida in December, Gracie Fighter Nate Diaz looks to be sitting out the rest of this year.
According to GracieFighter.com, his manager's website, the planned showdown with Guida was never completed due to a foot injury that Guida sustained in his fight with Mac Danzing at UFC Fight Night 15 in Omaha, Neb.
With most of the other contending lightweights in the UFC already scheduled out for the remainder of the year, it's likely that Diaz won't have his next bout until Super Bowl weekend in Las Vegas, where Georges St. Pierre and B.J. Penn headline UFC 94.
Diaz most recently competed on the same card as Guida. He defeated Midwest fighter Josh Neer in the main event, scoring a tough split decision victory.
Georges St. Pierre was a guest recently Fox News Fight Game. The UFC welterweight champion discussed his thoughts on rematching B.J. Penn on Super Bowl weekend, the upcoming bout between UFC heavyweight champion Randy Couture and Brock Lesnar at UFC 91, Matt Hughes, gorwing up and his beginnings in mixed martial arts, and much, much more.
This is a really good interview with St. Pierre that especially goes in depth about his training and various aspects of martial arts and how things apply to MMA.
MMA Insider caught up with Karo "The Heat" Parisyan this weekend at the opening of Renato "Babalu" Sobral's new MMA gym in Cerritos, California.
The Armenian welterweight recently signed a new eight fight deal with the UFC and will return at UFC 94 on January 31 in Las Vegas against an unnamed opponent.
Parisyan says he's fully healed from a back injury that forced him from a fight with Yoshiyuki Yoshida at UFC 88. Like Ken Shamrock's "light sparring" debacle at EliteXC's "Heat," Parisyan claims he was rolling with a larger training partner the day before the weigh-ins and aggravated his sciatic nerve when attempting an overhead throw.
"I cried, bro," Parisyan said. "It's the only time I've cried because of an injury."
The UFC was reportedly very disappointed in the cancellation, mostly because 30 or so Japanese journalists had shown up to cover Yoshida's fight.
Since his loss to Thiago Alves at Ultimate Fight Night 13 and the subsequent injury, Parisyan has been less outspoken about getting a title shot. He's got to climb the welterweight ladder again, and mend a few fences. Hopefully, he's taken his Shamrock lesson to heart.
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