Fighters Magazine - April 2012

EUROPE’S BIGGE S T M M A FAN EXPO HAS A R R I V E D

THEMMASHOW MAY 12TH & 13TH - NEC BIRMINGHAM

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H E N D O , B I S P I N G , RASHAD, S H I E L D S , & M ANY MORE

APRIL 2012 £3.95

RASHAD EVANS CAN HE BEAT J O N J O N E S ?

PLUS

BAMMA 9 - UFC 145 - TO M WATSON - BRITTNEY PALMER

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CONTENTS Editorial We kick things off this month by mentioning The MMA Show Live which will take place at the NEC In Birmingham over the weekend of May the 12th and 13th.

Now I know that there have been lots of rumours and gossip about this HUGE event so I thought that it would be a good idea to detail some of what’s taking place: Seminars; Buy a Platinum Ticket (and you better be quick as there are ONLY 500) and you will be able to train (on two seminars) with any of the Phenomenal names that are included in this event (see list below).

Entry Costs: For £15 Under 16’s and £20 Adult, you can a have a phenomenal time and spend the whole day (or two, £35 weekend pass) mixing with the MMA World’s finest from 10 am to 5pm!!!

Main Stage: The main stage will play host to literally hundreds of (made for broadcast) interviews, hosted Q&A sessions, Open forum debates and interactive sessions with the likes of Mike Bisping, Rashad Evans, Brittany Palmer, Kenny Florian, Jake Shields, Dan Henderson, Paul Daley, Frank Trigg, Mark Coleman, Dan Severn etc...

Meet & Greet: Get your photograph taken with and autograph from ALL of the big names that will be there – FREE!!! Yes you heard read it right, FREE!!!

In Action: Even if you don’t wish to train, you can watch the seminars and take home some top tips!

And with some of the MMA Worlds biggest names in: equipment, clothing and training aid suppliers exhibiting, you can be sure to grab yourself a bargain and buy with confidence from top quality suppliers. You could even make your purchases a little more special and get them autographed for FREE!!

Amongst others at the show will be the lovely Brittney Palmer (right). You will probably recognise Brittney as one of the UFC’s top ring girls (and Play Boy cover star). We recently caught up with Brittney prior to her appearance at the show to find out a little bit about one of the most beautiful women in MMA. Make sure you get your tickets for the show to see Brittney up close and in person.

Another attendee will be BAMMA Middleweight champion Tom ‘Kong’ Watson.

Tom took some time out from his busy schedule to kindly give us an interview before his appearance at the show and before his big title fight against Jack Marshman at BAMMA 9.

At the Martial Arts Show Live (being staged next door over the same weekend) will be Alex Reid and your MMA Show Live ticket will get you into this show too for FREE!!!

We have included a few articles of a couple of the already released names that are attending to whet your appetite, but be sure to visit the website to get all the latest updates (sign up to the newsletter and stay ahead of the game) but there are a lot more big names still to be released!! For a full list of who is confirmed so far, see the news section on page 6.

We’ll see you there along with any one that is a genuine fan/follower of MMA! May the 12th and 13th at the NEC in Birmingham – For tickets call 0844 338 0338 or visit www.theticketfactory.com Back to this month’s mag and on page 80 we have our usual round up of all the action on from the UFC along with a full report of UFC 144: Japan on page 64, a special mention goes out to Vaughan Lee who pulled off a huge win in this event over Japanese legend ‘Kid’ Yamamoto to keep the British flag flying. See you at The UTC Gym soon Vaughan, CONGRATULATIONS!!!

We review UFC 145: Jon Jones vs. Rashad Evans. This one promises to be an exciting affair with the war of words between the two former training partners going on prior to the event, something that Rashad may speak about on the Main stage at The MMA Show Live?

Finally we review the up & coming Heavyweight title fight between holder Junior Dos Santos and challenger Alastair Overeem at UFC 146. With two big hitters who like to stand and bang there should be plenty of fireworks when these two meet.

6

Newsline

10 Psychologically Speaking With Doctor John O’Connor 14 Wrestling News

By Teddy G. 16 Book Review Advanced Boxing Training Skills & Techniques 19 COMPETITION House of The Rising Sun 20 UFC 145 JONES VS EVANS 22 BRITTNEY PALMER @ THE MMA SHOW LIVE 26 UCMMA 27 ‘KING KONG’ VS ‘BIG BEN’ 28 TVP FOR THAI BOXING DEVELOPING TECHNIQUE 34 ANDY THRASHER

BY DAN GREEN 40 THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER LIVE TEAM CRUZ VS TEAM FABER 42 BAMMA 9 WATSON VS MARSHMAN 44 TOM WATSON THE PEOPLE’S CHAMPION 48 DIAZ VS CONDIT II

BY BRYAN LEVICK 52 VELVET SKY LET THE PIGEONS LOOSE 62 UFC 146 DOS SANTOS VS OVEREEM 64 UFC 144 EDGAR VS HENDERSON 68 THE MAIN EVENT A MUAY THAI SHOW OF EPIC PROPORTIONS

Until next month, enjoy and don’t forget to book your tickets and join us at The MMA Show Live at The NEC, See Ya there!

74 RASHAD EVANS THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER?

Paul. cliftoncombat@aol.co.uk

80 UFC ROUND-UP

FIGHTERS MAGAZINE APRIL 2012 Page

fightersmag.co.uk PUBLISHER/EDITOR IN CHIEF Paul S. Clifton paul@martialartsinprint.com SENIOR DESIGNER Kevin Thompson GRAPHIC DESIGNER Hadley Austin WEBMASTER Nick Harley ADVERTISING/SALES EXECUTIVE Jan Harley 0121-351-6930 fighters@btconnect.com PHOTOGRAPHY Carrie Austin 07716266854 IRISH MMA SUB EDITOR Thomas McCullough UK THAI SUB EDITOR Dan Green UK MMA SUB EDITOR Rob Nutley UK BJJ SUB EDITOR Carl Fisher UK KICKBOXING SUB EDITOR Cris Janson-Piers UK BOXING SUB EDITORS Luke Calvert, Mark Wilson Smith THAI / KICKBOXING Tony Myers, Shaun Boland, Paul Hennessy, Bob Spour, Neil Holden, Dean Sugden, Carl Emery CONTRIBUTORS Steve Dileo, Bryan Levick, Fergus Dullaghan, Ben Cartlidge, Liam Fisher, Teddy Galbally, Craig Bush, Rocki Sondhi, Tommy Thompson HOW TO GET WORK PUBLISHED Drop us an email at fighters@martialartsinprint.com or give the editorial team a call on 0121 351 6930 NEWS ITEMS For all news related items, simply mark your envelope “FIGHTERS NEWSLINE” and together with a photograph (if required) and a covering letter, send it to: FIGHTERS, Head Office or E-Mail: fighters.news@btconnect.com HEAD OFFICE: Unit 20, Maybrook Business Park, Maybrook Road, Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands, B76 1BE. Tel: 0121 351 6930 E-Mail: fighters.magazine@btconnect.com ADVERTISING DETAILS If you would like to advertise in FIGHTERS email us at fighters@martialartsinprint.com to obtain details, deadline dates and costs.

Page 22 SEE BRITTNEY PALMER @ THE MMA SHOW LIVE

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NEWS ROUND-UP

Have you got news for us? You have? Then e-mail us at fighters.news@btconnect.com

NEWS ROUND-UP APRIL 2012

Feb. 29, 2012 Declared Carlos Condit Day in Albuquerque, N.M. Albuquerque, N.M. - February 29, 2012 has officially been declared as Carlos Condit Day in Albuquerque, N.M., the hometown and residence of UFC Interim Welterweight Champion Carlos Condit.

The day was celebrated in front of local media at the new Jackson’s Martial Arts and Fitness with a proclamation from Albuquerque Mayor Richard Berry. Condit was also honored in front of thousands of fans at halftime of the Univ. of New Mexico men’s basketball game at The Pit, one of the nation’s legendary college athletics facilities.

“It was so humbling to see so many local residents, including many friends and family, attend the various festivities today,” Condit said. “It is an honor to receive so much recognition in my hometown, the city that I love and where I am building my family.”

Condit, who trains at Jackson’s Submission Fighting in Albuquerque, holds a 28-5 professional record (5-1 UFC), has won his last five fights and 13 of his last 14 bouts overall, which includes his run in the WEC. Three of his last four wins have ended via KO/TKO. In his last fight, Condit won a unanimous decision over Nick Diaz to earn the UFC’s Interim Welterweight title.

C-Remedy, designed originally for C Sections but can be used on all scars, is a skin like layer of silicone measuring 5cms x 22cms and has an adhesive free lining allowing it to gently adhere to the skin without the use of irritating adhesives or additional taping. C-Remedy comes with LilyWash™ designed to gently cleanse C-Remedy and renew the tacky lining allowing it to be used over and over again.

Proper use of the C-Remedy will soften, flatten and dramatically improve the appearance of your scar.

ALI ADAMS - “HYPNOTIST WILL HELP ME KNOCK AUDLEY HARRISON OUT”

AUDLEY HARRISON TO GO IN ROUND 4 London Heavyweight Ali Adams has enlisted the permanent help of a hypnotist in his build up to the most important fight of his career in his Heavyweight Championship contest against former Olympic Champion Audley Harrison on 14th April 2012.

“My promoter Steve Goodwin recommended this guru who has helped many jockeys and other sportsmen that Steve has dealt with in the past. After a 15 minute session I can spar in a trance and feel no pain, it is amazing. I am hitting harder than ever before and knocking people clean out in sparring after this hypnosis. It is amazing and we know that Audley will be knocked out in round 4”.

C-Remedy Silicone Scar Therapy

Specifically designed to reduce wound and operation scars.

Ali continued “My hypnotist will be in my dressing room before the fight and will accompany me to the ring. Audley cannot win this fight and he has always gone on about his destiny. I can tell him his destiny is to be on his back on the canvas in round 4 in Brentwood on April 14th.”

C-Remedy Silicone Scar Therapy is a wrap that moulds to the natural curves of the body helping to reduce redness and relieve itching and discomfort associated with wounds, whether they are post operative, accidental or a sports injury.

Promoter Steve Goodwin has reported that tickets are selling well for this show and the undercard featuring Prizefighter Champion Yassine El Maachi in a title fight has begun to fill up with many 50/50 fights already announced.

Silicone scar therapy is clinically proven in the prevention, improvement and reduction of scarring. The silicone provides a protective barrier which occludes and hydrates skin helping to encourage its natural healing properties.

For further ticket details and information on the fantastic undercard please visit www. goodwinpromotions.co.uk For further details or for interviews please email Olivia@goodwinpromotions.co.uk

For Ali’s latest interview see this link http:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBxssfpk6wM

THE ULTIMATE MMA FAN EXPO IS COMING TO BIRMINGHAM

Worlds collide as the first ever MMA Show Live joins The Martial Arts Show Live at The NEC in Birmingham on May 12th and 13th CONFIRMED GUESTS SO FAR Dan Henderson (UFC), Thiago Silva (UFC), Chandella Powell (UFC), Michael Bisping (UFC), Sean Sherk (UFC), Rashad Evans (UFC), Brittney Palmer (UFC), Kenny Florian (UFC), Jake Shields (UFC), Paul Daley (Strkeforce), Brendan Schaub (UFC), Dan Severn (UFC, PRIDE, Cage Rage, WEC), Rory MacDonald (UFC), Stefan Struve (UFC), Mark Coleman (UFC, PRIDE), Jimmy Wallhead (Bellator), Jimi Manuwa (BAMMA), Jack Marshman (BAMMA), Andre Winner (BAMMA), Tim Radcliffe (UCMMA), Vladimir Matyushenko (UFC), Brad Pickett (UFC), Jason Young (UFC), Ross Pearson (UFC), Dean Amasinger (KSW), Che Mills (UFC), Simeon Thoresen (UFC), Tom ‘Kong’ Watson (BAMMA), Ian ‘The Machine’ Freeman (UFC, Cage Rage), Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou (UFC, PRIDE and DREAM), Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson (UFC), Jorge Rivera (UFC), Frank Trigg (UFC, PRIDE), Keith Jardine (Strikeforce) More to be announced soon. Follow The MMA Show Live on Twitter @ themmashowlive for all the up to date announcements The MMA Show Live will be an interactive fan experience dedicated to mixed martial arts from around the World. Populating a second hall at the NEC in Birmingham alongside The Martial Arts Show Live, The MMA Show Live will consist of five training areas where some of the biggest names in the business will host special group training sessions, a huge stage & screen for Q&A sessions, an autograph zone where fans can meet their favourite fighters and exhibition stands where some of the biggest brands in MMA will be selling merchandise and much, much more.

Training sessions with fighters are available for Platinum ticket holders only and are limited to 500 people across the whole weekend. For a limited period only the Platinum tickets are priced at £90 instead of £100

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NEWS ROUND-UP

Have you got news for us? You have? Then e-mail us at fighters.news@btconnect.com

NEWS ROUND-UP APRIL 2012 PLATINUM TICKETS • Fast Track queue at The Autograph Zone • Premium VIP seating at The Main Stage • One Training Session with an MMA superstar per day • Exclusive access to The Platinum Room to meet fighters and celebrities • Entrance to the VIP party held at a secret location in Birmingham on May 12 • A souvenir event programme • Access to both The MMA Show Live and The Martial Arts Show Live all weekend

Every Platinum ticket holder is guaranteed a place at 1 training session per day and there will be 20 different training sessions hosted by 20 different fighters each day.

Platinum ticket holders can book their preferred session on a first come first serve basis by registering each day at the registration desk open from 8am each morning although by buying your Platinum ticket now, you will secure your place as one of the limited 500 places available.

Brad Pickett

VIP TICKETS • Fast Track queue at The Autograph Zone • Premium VIP seating at The Main Stage • Access to both The MMA Show Live and The Martial Arts Show Live All standard tickets will give you standard access to both The MMA Show Live and The Martial Arts Show. More fighters & personalities confirmed to attend will be released in coming weeks.

Strictly limited reduced price “Early Bird Tickets” are available now and are priced as follows...

Standard Day Ticket £15 Standard Weekend Ticket £25 Vip Day Ticket £40 Vip Weekend Ticket £60 Platinum Weekend Ticket £90

Follow The MMA Show Live on Twitter at www.twitter.com/themmashowlive and Facebook atwww.facebook.com/ themmashowlive

For more information go to www.themmashowlive.com Facebook http://www.facebook.com/ liamfisheruk Twitter http://www.twitter.com/liamfisheruk LinkedIn http://uk.linkedin.com/in/ liamfisheruk

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Hopefully, we all have someone that will stand by us no matter what, and is appropriately supportive and constructive, sort of like having someone in your corner, except in your personal life. Families and relationships can offer sources of learning, comfort, and support at their best. However, we don’t all have that luxury. Not all families are perfectly functioning units where the people in it know how to support each other emotionally during their trials and tribulations. This is where a fighter can run into trouble during training and competition. A wrong word from the wrong person right before an important, life changing match could sabotage months and even years of painstaking training and competition all within a few short seconds.

Sure, you love your family, and you love your girlfriend or boyfriend or fiancé or husband or wife, and you even love your cranky grandpa.

This article will help you determine the best way to manage even the crankiest of your loved ones so they do not interfere with what you have to do to succeed.

How is it we can talk to some people and be left feeling great, and others make us feel down, depressed, angry, or even horrible?

In order to understand how relationships affect our mental game, we have to first examine trigger points.

Trigger Points Like it or not, we all have trigger points, and everyone’s trigger points are unique and individual.

Negative trigger points are a phrase, a word, anything that can set you off and send you down a road of anger or despair. People who do not want or know how to help you realize your goals and dreams will often hit the negative trigger points, saying something to you that will sabotage everything you had been trying to accomplish up until that moment. Perhaps they are jealous, or maybe they just don’t know how to be constructive,

or are even controlling. Regardless of the reason, they are bringing up issues in you they most likely know on some level that will ruin all of your efforts.

Trigger points and bad memories can be tricky business, so I wouldn’t recommend exploring these issues without someone who has a lot of experience and the appropriate qualifications to help you discover your own trigger points. My information is at the bottom of this article in case you would like to contact me with any questions.

In the meantime, how can you tell the types of statements to watch out for? How do you know when someone intends to bring up one of these triggers and send you emotionally backwards right before your important match?

The most important thing is to notice how you feel after speaking with your relative, friend, lover, etc.

Are you feeling happy and positive, or do you feel angry and upset?

If it is the latter, chances are your loved one is saying a statement to you reminding you of an incident that upsets you or reminds you of something negative in your past, or knows exactly what to say to you to evoke anger, depression, anxiety, or any other negative feelings that person wants you to feel.

PSYCHOLOGICALLY SPEAKING - WITH DR. JOHN O’CONNOR Ph.D. Page

If you are still not sure, or perhaps the person is well versed in manipulation, take a look at the ten most common types of statements below and see if you know someone who uses these phrases a lot.

not productive. Even if you had won ten championships, this can insidiously put more pressure on you to succeed again than you already have, or zaps your motivation to rise to the occasion this time.

The Top Ten Trigger Point Statements

3. “If I were you/If it were me…”

Well, that person is not you, and that person is not in your situation, so it is better to cut this one off as soon as possible when you hear it, because the ending is usually just as bad as the beginning.

1. “Make sure you don’t…”

This person is having you focus upon the negative, such as, “Make sure you don’t lose.” It is a surefire way to get your subconscious to focus on losing instead of focusing on the positive.

It plays upon a person’s doubts and fears and wreaks havoc with the mental game.

2. “Remember when…”

Even if this is followed by a good memory, having you relive the past, unless it is an example of where you had a shining moment in your history of being, is usually

4. “Negative, negative, negative, but I’m telling you this because I love you/because I care.”

No one needs this head game.

The person bombards you with something that is negative and is certain to upset you, but then adds because I love you at the end so you will feel guilty about telling the person how you really feel about decimating your emotional status and your self-esteem. This is not truly love. Love is a wonderful emotion felt towards another person,

object, animal, even the earth.

This person is using the word love to manipulate you and bring you down.

5. “In my opinion…”

In my practice, I emphasize the importance of every one of my clients being the authority in their own lives. In this statement, the speaker is trying to assert himself or herself as the authority in your life, especially if you have not sought out this person’s advice.

6. “You can’t…”

Let’s try something different, and put “lose” at the end of this statement. Your subconscious is a tricky thing. The fact a negative word is brought up in this statement is enough for the word “lose” to seep into your subconscious...

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Greetings grapple fans, it appears 2012 is shaping up to be a year of surprises in the wrestling world, but some better than others…

I’ll begin with a good surprise. That was TNA’s change of heart about leaving their top British talent off the UK tour. The storm that kicked off with the UK fans when word got out, along with the cancellation of some German dates on the tour made them realize the error of their ways (I even had an interesting chat with Dixie Carter via Twitter myself).

The tour itself was a massive success. With good ticket sales, rabid crowds, and great press (thanks in no small part to Si Rothstein), they have already announced the same three venues for 2013. I attended the Nottingham show and watched Hulk Hogan roll back the years and team with Sting in the main event of an excellent show. Special mention for Samoa Joe too and Bully Ray. Joe was super over with the crowd and his lap of honour and football slide outside the ring went over especially well. Also be sure to check out my interview with Joe elsewhere in this issue. Bully Ray was a real show stealer all night both on the mic and in the ring. The guy is super over at the mo and I

hope he continues to get the push he has worked so hard to earn.

I’ll let you decide if this is a good or bad surprise… Vince Russo has left TNA! After being replaced as head writer by Dave Lagana, Russo decided it was time to jump before he was pushed.

The only real surprise here was how long its taken TNA to part company with him. Don’t get me wrong, Russo is behind some of the best storylines the business has ever seen, but he is also behind some of the worst. His scattergun approach to booking has won him more haters than fans over the years, mainly thanks to his reputation for abandoning storylines mid stream without explanation.

I’m sure we will see him resurface somewhere but I can’t see him landing in WWE anytime soon, unless he is happy to be a small fish in a big pond… Knowing his ego, I doubt it!

Strangest surprise of the year so far was seeing Hulk Hogan on Loose Women to promote the tour. The other guest and audience were virtually in oestrogen meltdown

Bully Ray v James Storm at TNA Impact London, 2012

bless them! (Not sure what you were thinking there Si but great mainstream publicity all the same).

Slightly disappointing surprise is Undertakers opponent for Wrestlemania this year is…. Triple H again. Okay, to be fair last years match was totally awesome and this year, the added factor of it being a Hell in a Cell match should easily be match of the night stuff. But I still can’t help but feel slightly gutted WWE could strike a deal to bring in Brock Lesnar to face him now he’s a free agent again. Still, I guess it gives them more time to build it for next year as I do still expect Lesnar to return at some point in 2012 and I also expect Undertaker to ‘retire’ at some point in 2012, BUT, picture both those things happening and then at the end of the year Lesnar (having destroyed everyone in his path) calling out Undertaker for Wrestlemania… They could sell the event out with just that one match.

Bad Surprise time. The winner of the 2012 Royal Rumble is… Sheamus.

Yup, WWE have repackaged Sheamus as a babyface and tagged him with the moniker of The Great White (in reference to the colour of his very pale skin and also his aggressive streak akin to a great white shark). But he has done hardly anything throughout 2011 and has had one boring match after another.

Suddenly he has an unexplained turn and within a month is winning the Rumble? What about Dolph Ziggler or Kofi Kingston if you want to elevate someone deserving.

No surprise was the huge success Preston City Wrestling’s Blood Sweat and Beers card was. Approximately 400 people packed out the venue, which for a UK indie show is pretty

WRESTLING NEWS - WITH TEDDY G. Page

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damned good. Keep it up guys; we need promotions like you breathing fresh life into the UK scene.

Finally, I want to take the opportunity to shamelessly plug The Martial Arts Show Live and MMA Show Live super expo at Birmingham’s NEC on May 12th & 13th. I do this as any serious wrestling fan or long-time fan of MMA with be excited to hear both ‘The Beast’ Dan Severn will be there along with Mark Coleman! Anyone who knows anything about wrestling or MMA will want to meet them as they are the founding fathers of what has become known as MMA. I expect to see you there (come visit me on the Central Stand again this year if only to see what a guy with 6 hours sleep out of 48 looks like!).

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145

The long anticipated match up between Jon ‘Bones’ Jones and ‘SugA’ Rashad Evans will finally take place on saturday april 21st at the phillips arena, atlanta for the light-heavyweight ufc championship.

Well, that is as long as nobody get’s injured before the fight this time.

The two former team mates will finally be able to put an end to the simmering feud that began around a year ago when Jones took the title from then champ Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua. Since then Evans has left the Jackson camp and defeated Tito Ortiz and most recently Phil Davis taking his unbeaten run to 4 and earning himself this title shot.

Jones meanwhile has defended his title twice, against Rampage Jackson and Lyoto Machida.

So will this be another successful defence for the young prodigy or will Evans be the one to put an end to Jones’ reign?

The one big advantage Evans bring’s to this fight is that it is personal and we haven’t seen Jones in a grudge match yet so we don’t know how he will react. Will it make him more focused than normal or will it have a negative affect? We saw his disheartened reaction at the end of the first round of his fight against Lyoto Machida, the first time we have seen any negativity from Jones but he did regain his composure to go on and win in devastating fashion.

We know Evan’s won’t be too affected as he has been here

before, most recently against Rampage Jackson in a fight filled with bad blood.

Technically, both men are great fighters. Jones is excellent in all areas, he is as good on his feet as he is on the floor and his submission skills are extraordinary..

The one thing we haven’t seen from Jones is how he fares on his back as he has not been taken down in his entire UFC career.

This is an area Evans will be looking to exploit, as we know he is one of the best wrestler’s in the division at the moment.

Jones’ advantages are pretty obvious, he will as usual have a much greater advantage with height and reach over his opponent and his striking and submission skills are pretty much second to none. He will enter this fight as the clear favourite and a win will probably see him match up against Dan Henderson before some serious head scratching starts as to who would pose a serious threat to him. Jones’ recent request to fight at heavyweight if he remained unbeaten was quickly quashed by Dana White recently...

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UFC 145 - JONES VS EVANS Page 11

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brittney pal makes her uk debut at the mma show live at

the nec in birmingham – may 12th & 13th.

Octagon girl, aspiring artist and now Playboy Model, is there anything Brittney Palmer isn’t capable of? She’s as talented as she is beautiful and has been entertaining MMA fans since her days as a WEC ring girl. She began her career in entertainment as a Magician’s Assistant and Dance Captain for the Ultimate Variety Show in 2006. From 2007-2010 she was an Ensemble Dancer for X Burlesque in Las Vegas at the Flamingo Hotel.

Her big break came when she was hired in 2007 to work for the WEC and was moved over to the UFC when the two organizations merged. It wasn’t long afterwards that she discovered she had a serious talent for painting and one of her best portraits to date is that of UFC President Dana White.

Following in the footsteps of fellow Octagon girls Rachelle Leah and Arianny Celeste, Palmer will appear in the March issue of Playboy magazine.

Life has been good thus far for the 24-year old beauty, but it hasn’t come without a ton of hard work.

To keep up a schedule like the one Palmer has an individual needs to remain focused, dedicated and committed. There’s not much time for a social life especially now that her issue of Playboy is coming out.

The demands on her time have become even greater, but Palmer

is enjoying every minute of it. From traveling all over the world meeting new and interesting people, Palmer is living the dream and she couldn’t be happier.

“Everything has been amazing and the best thing is I truly am an MMA fan,” said Palmer “Being part of an organization as big as the UFC and part of the #1 growing sport in the world is something I am so thankful for. I am so grateful to be one of only three girls alongside Arianny and Chandella. It’s been a great journey and I’m just enjoying the ride. Working for the WEC was great and I am still working with the same people just on a larger scale. There are a lot more events, but being such a big fan that only adds to the experience.”

Getting to sit cage side and witness some of the most historic moments in the sports history is something

that Palmer can share with her grandchildren when the time comes. She also gets to know and develop relationships with many of the world’s best athletes while watching them make history. She entered the sport at the right time and it’s only going to get bigger and better over the next few years.

“Getting to watch fighters like Jon Jones who is an amazing athlete, Anthony “Showtime” Pettis, Donald Cerrone, Urijah Faber, Dominck Cruz and Clay Guida makes this job that much more enjoyable,” explained Palmer. “There are so many great fighters, there are too many to name, but they all have their own styles and that’s what makes it interesting to watch.”

Palmer is not the typical art prodigy whose talent was recognized when she very young. In fact it wasn’t all that long that she discovered

mer

BRITTNEY PALMER - MAKES HER DEBUT @ THE MMA SHOW LIVE Page 13

see BRITTNEY at...

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Ultimate challenge returns to the troxy on april the 7th for yet another night of unmissable action with a fight card boasting some of the uk’s top fighters.

Headlining the event will be will be a light heavyweight fight between Ben Smith and Neil Bittong.

Bittong is coming off 3 straight losses in 2011, the last coming against Iain Martell at UCCMA D.R. Bittong will be looking to change his fortunes in 2012 and a win over a top light heavyweight such as Smith would certainly do that.

Smith on the other hand is coming off a good win over Ricky Campbell in his first fight at light heavy after moving down from heavyweight on the back of a mixed run of form at that level. Smith looked much more at home at this weight and looks like he will be a real force in this division. We see Smith winning this one to stamp his position as one of the top UCMMA light heavyweight’s.

In the other headline fight of the night Louis King faces A.J. Woodall for the UK-1 light heavyweight title.

Louis King impressed in his last performance at UCMMA 25 with a huge knockout win over Cage Rage and UCMMA veteran Mark Weir.

That win has really propelled King to one of the top light heavyweight

Page vs Dishman @ UCMMA 26

contenders. In his first title shot he will be facing a tough competitor in A.J. Woodall. Not much is known about Woodall so this fight will be a bit of an unknown quantity but with the knockout power posessed by King it will certainly be one to watch.

the latest light heavyweight champion with a win over Aurelijus Kerpe.

UCMMA 27 FIGHT Card:

There were also good wins for Stav Economou, Ashleigh Grimshaw and Iain Martell but in possibly the performance of the night a very confident Michael Page gave an Anderson Silva like performance beating Ben Dishman in a little over 1 minute.

From this performance there is plenty more to come from Page and he will definitely be one to watch for 2012.

Ben Smith (pictured) vs. Neil Bittong Louis King vs. A.J. Woodall Warren Kee vs. Bola Omoyele Miguel Bernad vs. Michael Page Luke Newman vs. Lee Caers Nathan Greyson vs Arnold Allen Peter Nemeth vs Tony Giles Amil Smith vs. Andy Cona Max Nunes vs Shane Fourie Paul Taylor vs Marian Rusu Tolly Plested vs. Dan Movahedi Matthew Manners vs Scott Saward Jimmy Millar vs. Tom King Kes Kpokpogri vs Esi Moradi Dom Clark vs. Peter Waterhouse Mark Armstrong vs Daniel Konecke A quick mention to some of the winners at UCMMA 26 now.

Peter Irving scored a big win with an impressive victory to take the UK-1 Welterweight belt from Luke Sines whilst Linton Vassell became

There was a shock for many as Spencer Hewitt disposed of the excellent Cory Tait, and in just 10 seconds of the opening bell.

UCMMA 26 Full Results: Main Card Peter Irving defeats Luke Sines via split-decision Linton Vassell defeats Aurelijus Kerpe via Arm bar – Round 1 (3:16) Spencer Hewitt defeats Cory Tait via KO – Round 1 – (0:10) Stav Economou dfts Tomasz Czerwinski via Key lock submission – Rnd 1 (1:41) Ashleigh Grimshaw defeats Rae Edgar via verbal submission – Rnd 1 (3:45) Iain Martell defeats Mohamad Ali via Rear-naked choke – Rnd 1 (4:25) Preliminary Card Luke Barnett defeats Ben Callum via Unanimous Decision Chi Lewis Parry def. Ollie Bear via TKO – Round 2 (1.00) Walter Gahadza def. Andy Cona via Armbar – Round 1 (3.27) Jason Radcliffe def. Miguel Bernard via tap out due to strikes – Rnd 1 (0:45) Dean Bray def. Sam Gilbert via Unanimous Decision Michael Page def. Ben Dishman via TKO – Round 1 (1:05) Sean Carter def. Dan Welsh via Rear Naked Choke – Rnd 3 (2.42) Florian Calin def. Stephen Stanley via Split Decision

27

UCMMA - ULTIMATE CHALLENGE 27 Page 15

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Part 2 by Rakesh Sondhi and Owen Comrie This second article in applying tvp principles to Thai boxing is going to look at how the application of these princples can enhance the various techniques in Thai Boxing.

TVP FOR THAI BOXING PART TWO - DEVELOPING TECHNIQUE Page 17

A reminder- The tvp™ Framework The tvp™ framework is based on the development of three core elements for the all round fighter. These core elements are Technique, Variety of tools and Predictability. The ultimate aim of training in Thai boxing is to be able to conduct a confrontation with a confidence that you can win, irrespective of the opponent – he may be experienced or a total novice.

The tvp™ framework is designed for fighters, irrespective of experience and standard, as it is designed to develop the complete potential of the fighter. As the fighter becomes more experienced in using the tvp™ framework he will see a noticeable difference in his movement and quality of his technique. Ultimately, the aim is to get the fighter into The Zone – the area of training where he is exhibiting a broad range of excellently executed techniques in a creative way, unconsciously.

The beauty of this framework is that there is no end point for the fighter.

Improvement is possible irrespective of your standard.

In applying the tvp™ framework the fighter is also developing his strategic skills in being able to see specific weaknesses in opponents, as well as developing his own coaching abilities, as he becomes aware of key characteristics in fighters.

Side view of front kick technique every time. You may perform a technique “imperfectly” but if it scores and is effective then it works. However, if you practise imperfect technique, then the chances that you will be able to adapt the technique for a specific situation becomes more difficult.

Practise should focus on correct technique so that it gives you best chance to make it work in an uncertain environment, where the need for adaptation will be at its greatest.

Technique What defines a good technique – a punch, a kick, a knee, an elbow or a head strike A good technique hits the selected target quickly from any position, with maximum force and is

The key elements of technique that we will build on are: a. Position of non attacking limbs, such as arms, hands and legs b. Body weight transfer when attacking and defending c. Break off from the inside position d. Quality of delivering techniques e. Relax and acceleration in the delivery of the technique One thing to remember is that during a competition you may well not perform the “perfect”

side view of roundhouse to body

ready for the delivery of the next technique more or less immediately from any position. How good the movement of a fighter is of no use unless the technique being delivered has a certain quality about it. The technical standard can be assessed by a number of elements. These are: a. Position of non attacking limbs, such as arms, hands and legs This ensures that the fighter is ready for the next technique and ready to defend whenever necessary...

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Andy Thra Andy Thrasher is a fine example of what you can do when you put your mind to it and that starting age should never be a barrier - you could almost call him the Ian Wright of muaythai (the former Arsenal/England player only turned pro at nearly 22) . Having started late by world class standards, Thrasher started training when he was 21 years old and had his first fight when he was 24. A collar bone injury from playing football had him join a muaythai class for conditioning, Thrasher had boxed a little as a kid and fell in love with the full contact style of muaythai training and was soon hooked.

“My first fight was then in 2003, in Oldham, my original opponant pulled out on the day, and was offered a fight against a lad 4kg heavier, after a little think I accepted but was shaking about it.

I think this helped as I stopped him in the first round with knees - I’ve been hooked with competing ever since.” Since then until end 2009, Thrasher’s career saw mixed results against top level UK and European opposition. Losing to the likes of Tim Thomas and Michael Dicks “Make no mistake if I fought Dicks again now the result would be very different, I think I’d stop him” - but then beating the UK number one at the weight class above - David Pacquette by spectacular KO. In 2010 Thrasher made the decision to invest more time (and money) in his fight career. This wasn’t an easy decision because he had

an eight year (now ten) year old daughter and fighting when you have children is always a tough.

“As my career progressed I just kind of fitted everything where I could but I think spending some time in Thailand is part of any top muaythai fighter’s natural progression. I was always happy with the training Darren Phillips provided, and I travelled all over to train with other gyms and fighters, In particular Bad company and Master Sken. It was when I went to train with Rajasak Sor vorapin, Chanoy and Duwao up in leeds that I finally got myself organised to go over there in 2010 as they influenced my thinking and style so much “.

So following the great experience he had with the Thais in Leeds, Thrasher naturally found himself at Jitti Gym in Bangkok. “I knew Liam and a few other lads were there at the same time - it was one of the best moves I’ve made, as I’ve learned so much. Loyalty is a big thing for me, and Jitti’s made me feel at home straight away - Jitti has always looked after me, and the gym has everything I need - the trainers there are exceptional- with different styles and attitudes to fighting which all compliment each other - there really is something for everyone there, which is probably why it is so popular with many fighters from all over the world. There is also a great family atmosphere there, so much that I actually consider most of them to be family now, which is why I haven’t trained anywhere else in Thailand.”

Training in Bangkok led to Jitti arranging several great opportunities for Andy out in Thailand and nearby countries such as Bali and Iran. Some of the many highlights include fighting on the Queens Birthday in 2010, fighting in the Bangkok stadiums.

Thrasher also had a great 2010 in Europe, fighting and winning in Italy by KO, knocking out a Dutch opponent at one of the biggest shows ever in the UK in his hometown of Manchester and also beating the infamous Frankie Hudders on an event promoted by Daz Morris.

The realy highlight though from Thrasher’s time in Thailand though came in 2011 where he pulled off a phenomenal achievement in winning the Toyota Tournament, one of Thailand’s major tournaments. “It’s undoubtedly the highlight of my career and felt well earned. By the time the Toyota came around I had been training very hard with Tam, berm, Watcharachai and Kaolon at Jittis, but it picked up for that - i was running between 7 and 10 miles along with my conditioning in the mornings - then in the afternoons I was doing between 7 and 10 rounds on the pads - Tam Berm and in Particular Watcharachai were beasting me to breaking point- as it turned out the tournament was a walk in the park compared to training!” = Thrasher laughs and you can see the easy going good natured humour in him.

ANDY THRASHER - BY DAN GREEN Page 19

sher

By Dan Green

To read the rest of this article why not order a back issue, visit www.fightersmag. co.uk/backissue To win the tournament of course Thrasher had to win 3 fights in one night, the first he beat a top African figher, followed by a Mexican. But what also made the victory so special was that in the final he knocked out current Lumpinee ranked number one Prakaisaeng.

The standard in these tournaments is the highest and to come out the winner out of the 8 fighters and knocking out a Lumpinee number one puts Thrasher up there with the achievements of any other English fighter in the last decade. “The final was a bit of a blur - all I remember is back stage and me and Prakaisaeng caught each others eye, and I just knew I was going to win. I had a great self belief, and also in my trainers and corner team, after a slowish start to the fight it picked up a little, I can remember getting frustrated as I didn’t feel like O was scoring against him, and after he caught me with a peach stepping knee to my sternum, I just told myself to smack him as hard and as often as i could till he went down - and the rest is history it was such a great feeling for all of us at Jitti’s...

Page 20 WWW.FIGHTERSMAG.CO.UK

The programme that helped raise the profile of the ufc is back for another season, but this time Around it’s a bit different.

The Ultimate fighter live premiered on our screens on the 9th March with a new format where every week the show will be broadcast live from the UFC training center where two fighters will fight infront of a live tv audience.

The show will still comprise all the usual stuff, all the shenanigans from the house and training with the coaches, all filmed during the week and all culminating in the live friday night event.

The change is the first in 14 previous seasons of the show and will look to bring the UFC further into the mainstream as it moves to the FOX network.

This season is the turn of the Lightweights and coaching them will be Bantamweight Champ Dominic Cruz and number 1 Bantamweight contender Urijah Faber.

Apart from the fights being live and the season lasting 13 weeks the rest of the format is pretty much the same with the 2 coaches meeting for a title match at the end of the season.

Cruz and Faber have met twice before with each fighter winning 1 fight, Cruz being the most recent winner. There is some animosity between the two which should add to the drama that will undoubtedly arrise from the fights and the UFC house.

One fighter we would like to give a quick mention to is Newcastle’s Andy Ogle. Andy came through his elimination fight to get into the TUF house with a solid performance securing a nice early takedown and remaining on top and in control showing that us Brit’s arn’t just stand up fighters.

Ogle (pictured right) progresses to the TUF house with 15 other fighters who won their elimination fights also. All 16 fighters are as follows...

Joe Proctor Cristiano Marcello Sam Sicilia Chris Tickle Andy Ogle Vinc Pichel John Cofer Chris Saunders James Vick Michael Chiesa Mike Rio Justin Lawrence Daron Cruickshank Jeremy Larsen Al Iaquinta Myles Jury Good luck Andy.

THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER LIVE - CRUZ VS FABER Page 21

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Presented by GoDaddy.com

BAMMA, Europe’s leading Mixed Martial Arts promotion, is excited to announce that BAMMA-Lonsdale’s British Middleweight Champion, Jack Marshman, is set to challenge Tom ‘Kong’ Watson for the BAMMA World Middleweight belt at BAMMA 9. BAMMA 9 takes place on Saturday 24th March at Birmingham’s National Indoor Arena.

BAMMA’s Middleweight champs have made waves as two of the promotion’s most iconic faces.

Etched into UK mainstream memory as the man who beat Alex Reid at BAMMA 4, World Middleweight Champ Tom Watson is known by fight fans for his catalogue of tough victories over fighters that include the UFC’s John Maguire at BAMMA 1 and Maurilo Rua whom he famously blasted into retirement at BAMMA 6. BAMMA-Lonsdale’s British Middleweight Champion and serving British Armed Forces Afghan vet, Jack Marshman comes into the fight undefeated with a record of 10-0-0. Marshman wowed audiences at BAMMA 7 with his tremendous heart, after

he came back from a sustained Ground ‘n’ Pound battering at the hands of Carl Noon, turning fortune around at the final hour to secure an unforgettable victory. Marshman went on to a three round war at BAMMA 8 in which he defeated title challenger Leeroy Barnes, who will be also fighting at BAMMA 9 against Nick Nembhard. The clash between BAMMA’s World Middleweight and British Middleweight champions is bound to have fight fans on the edge of their seats.

BAMMA Matchmaker, Jude Samuel, says: “It’s great to see Tom Watson back in action at BAMMA to defend his title after time out due to injury. It’s a true testament

Jack Marshman

to his gritty and hardworking character that he has stood up to the challenge of Jack Marshman. Jack will be looking to take advantage of Tom’s inactivity, but ring rust is something that Watson has never suffered from; while Jack, on the other hand, has been extremely busy over the past 7 months, honing his skills for such a test. This makes for a very interesting and explosive fight as both men are putting so much on the line.”

Fight Card (with more fights to be announced) Middleweight Title Bout Jack Marshman Vs Tom Watson Middleweight Bout Andrew Punshon Vs Matt Howard Light Heavyweight Bout Fraser Opie Vs Anthony Taylor Lightweight Bout Jason Ball Vs Colin Fletcher Middleweight Bout Nick Nembhard Vs Leeroy Barnes Undercard Welterweight Bout Rus Smith Vs Tom Breese Lightweight Bout Chris Fishgold Vs Dale Hardiman Heavyweight Bout Marc Godbeer Vs C. Zmarandescu Middleweight Bout Lee Johnson Vs Sam Hooker Light Heavyweight Bout Robert Truesdale Vs Sam Mensah Lightweight Bout Jake Murphy Vs David Round

BAMMA 9 - WATSON VS MARSHMAN Page 23

Tom Watson

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tom wat The Peoples Champion

British MMA phenomenon and (BAMMA) middleweight champion Tom Watson was on quite the tear from March of 2008 until May of last year. During that time Watson went 10-1 including wins over Matt Horwich and Murilo “Ninja” Rua. The latter is the older brother of former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion and 2005 Pride Middleweight Grand Prix Winner Mauricio “Shogun” Rua. Watson defeated Rua via 3rd round TKO and sent the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt into retirement.

After the bout with Rua, Watson was scheduled to face former two time UFC welterweight championship contender Frank Trigg and defend his BAMMA middleweight title for the third time.

Unfortunately for “Kong” he was beset by a back injury that has kept him out of action for nearly a year, but that is in the past and Watson is looking forward to facing BAMMA British Middleweight Champion Jack Marshman in his return at BAMMA 9 March 24 at the National Indoor Arena.

Watson vs Rua

Marshman may not have a big name, but the 23-year-old native of Wales is undefeated in ten career fights and will give Watson all he can handle. Fighters Magazine recently caught up with Watson as he prepared for this bout at Greg Jackson’s gym in New Mexico. Watson discussed his injury, his time with Maximum Fighting Championships and if he sees himself fighting in the states anytime soon.

how are you feeling both mentally and physically as you prepare for your title defense against jack marshman?

TOM WATSON: I’m feeling really good; I’ve been training in the states for over 4 weeks, working on my wrestling at Greg Jackson’s gym. I’ve been training with him for about 5 years now. Before I head back to the U.K. I’ll shoot over to Texas and spar with a couple of ex-world champion boxer because that is Marshman’s strength.

Can you tell me about the back injury you suffered?

TOM WATSON: I had back surgery about 3 1/2 months ago and I started training about 6 weeks after the operation. I’ve had no real problems, I still have some nerve pain, but that’s to be expected and will last another 8-9 months.

Other than that I haven’t had any significant pain. If my back is bothering me I just try and work around it. If I wasn’t 100% I wouldn’t have taken the fight. When I was scheduled to fight Trigg I couldn’t even get off the floor, now I’m able to train and do all the things I couldn’t do before the surgery...

son To read the rest of this article why not TAKE OUT A SUBSCRIPTION, visit www.fightersmag.co.uk/ SUBSCRIBE

TOM WATSON - THE PEOPLES CHAMPION Page 25

see tom at...

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Nick Diaz bitches & Dana White hands him the keys to the castle. For the second time since UFC 137, Diaz has thrown a fit & White has given him his way. After blowing his initial shot at the UFC Welterweight Championship because he decided that the pre-fight press conferences were unnecessary, White still granted Diaz main event status against BJ Penn. Of course the UFC was in a bind because of an injury sustained by champion Georges St. Pierre caused him to bow out of his title defense against Carlos Condit.

Diaz would go on to defeat Penn via unanimous decision and called out St. Pierre in a profanity laced attack claiming that GSP wasn’t really injured and instead was ducking a potential fight with him.

At the UFC 137 post fight press conference White claimed that GSP was as angry as he had ever seen him and demanded his next fight be against the Stockton, CA resident as opposed to Condit. White also stated that Condit was ok with the situation and instead would face a yet to be named opponent at UFC 143 in the co-main event. As we would learn later on, Condit was not happy at the situation.

Of course as luck would have it, GSP’s knee injury would turn out to be much more severe than anyone first thought and he would require surgery keeping him out until the fall of 2012. The natural thing to do for the UFC was to match-up Diaz and Condit which was scheduled

for the main event of UFC 143 and would be for the UFC Interim Welterweight title. The winner would face “Rush” once he was healthy for the right to become the undisputed 170lb champion.

The anticipation for Diaz-Condit was incredible as the UFC marketing machine was in full effect. White was telling anyone who would listen that this bout could be one of the best the UFC has ever seen.

Based upon both fighters’ histories he wasn’t off as both men liked to stand and bang. They both brought a lot of intensity, toughness and heart into every one of their fights.

GSP felt uncomfortable rooting against the fellow Greg Jackson trained Condit, but still harbored a lot of ill will towards Diaz and made no secret of who he was pulling for.

The fight took place on the 4th February and did not go anywhere near as planned. Condit fought a pictures copyright

methodical, well planned fight. He avoided Diaz’s pressure by keeping his feet moving at all times and landed a great deal of leg kicks and seemed to be ahead on the judges scorecards. When Bruce Buffer announced “The Natural Born Killer” as the winner it did not sit well with Diaz or his legion of fans who felt that Condit was awarded for avoiding Diaz at all costs and doing the bare minimum to take home the victory. As Joe Rogan interviewed Diaz after the fight he went into full tantrum mode and claimed he was done with MMA and no longer needed to be part of the sport.

It seems as though his threats and promises have worked to his advantage once again as word leaked out yesterday that Condit had not only agreed to, but asked for a rematch with Diaz before his scheduled bout with St. Pierre.

Apparently Diaz was able to get under the skin of Condit in much the same way he did with GSP. Just goes to show you that self promotion is just as important as the fight you put on inside of the cage.

The real story here is whether or not the UFC is hoping for a Diaz win so they can finally get the money bout everyone wanted in the first place, but has been canceled on two separate occasions, GSP vs. Diaz.

Diaz lost the bout on all three judges’ scorecards. He won just one round on two of the judges’ cards and was awarded two rounds by the third judge. No one is arguing the fact that Condit fought a safe fight, but is there really a need for an immediate rematch based upon the outcome of the first fight? To be honest, this is the best call the UFC could make...

DIAZ VS CONDIT II - BY BRYAN LEVICK Page 27

By Bryan Levick

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Page 28 WWW.FIGHTERSMAG.CO.UK

VELVET S Let The Pigeons Loose

With the looks of a model, and the hottest body in the sport, at first glance you may not realise just how dangerous TNA Knockout Velvet Sky can be in that ring. Big mistake! She doesn’t just put the ‘T&A’ into TNA, she is a multi time TNA Knockouts Tag Team champion as well as being the Knockouts World Title in her own right. Teddy G was recently in the enviable position of chatting with her prior to the UK tour… Let the pigeons loose!

Hi Velvet, how are you?

VELVET SKY: Good, how are you doing?

Great thanks. It’s great to speak to you, I’m a big fan.

VELVET SKY: Thank you, I appreciate that.

It’s kind of funny, because not knowing this interview was coming up; we included a ‘cheeky’ picture of you in the Wrestling News column of the mag, and let’s just say it’s been a BIG hit with all the male staff!

VELVET SKY: Awesome! Cheeky is good.

Getting back on track, how are things with you and what have you been up to recently?

VELVET SKY: I’m good. I’ve been busy with TV and house shows and anything that TNA are having me do. After this week I’m off for a while, so I’ll be at home having lots of rest with the family and everything, so yeah, I’m doing pretty good actually.

Glad to hear it. Actually, having spoken to numerous TNA stars, I have to say that TNA seem pretty good with the amount of down time they give you compared to the likes of WWE. Is that a fair impression?

VELVET SKY: Yeah, we’ll take whatever downtime we can get!

I guess the first serious question I should ask you is how did you get into this business in the first place?

VELVET SKY: Well, you know, I’ve just always had that athletic ‘thing’. I have a very athletic background.

I started playing sports at the age of seven and would always watch wrestling with my dad but it wasn’t really until I got to High School that I really started to get ‘into’ it. Watching Lita do her thing, she was my inspiration for getting into wrestling. I watched her, and she’s like so cool and sexy and the girls like her and the guys like her, and she has all these cool moves and her whole style… I just liked watching her. I just saw myself in her and thought “I wanna try what she does”. So at High School I started going to wrestling school and the rest is history.

Were there any other influences that made you decide to take up wrestling or just Lita?

VELVET SKY: Sure there were other guys and girls that were cool at the time, but Lita was the main influence as I could relate to her. So yeah, Lita, just Lita.

VELVET SKY - LET THE PIGEONS LOOSE Page 29

KY

By Teddy G.

Where did you learn the ropes, if you pardon the pun?

VELVET SKY: I trained with a former ECW guy called Jason Knight. I trained at his Dojo in my home state of Connecticut and he’s who I got my start with.

I know that before you got your break in TNA you did several years on the Indie circuit, and even had a tryout for WWE. With seeing how fickle they can be towards female talent, Gail Kim being a good example, would you ever be tempted to go over to WWE? VELVET SKY: Hmmm… well, I’m one of those people who never says never, but right now I don’t have any plans to. I would never rule anything out, but right now I’m completely happy with my spot in TNA and I don’t see myself jumping ship anytime soon, but as I said, never say never...

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picture’s copyright

146

UFC 146 - DOS SANTOS VS OVEREEM Page 31

The heavyweight championship will be back on the line this may as current holder junior dos santos defends his title for the first time against alastair overeem at the mgm grand on the 26th.

It seems like quite a long time since we saw Dos Santos take the belt from Cain Velasquez and a while since we saw Overeem retire Brock Lesnar from the UFC. So it is with great anticipation that we now have a date for the return of the best of the UFC heavies to the octagon.

Not only will we see the the top two Heavyweights going at it but also the number 3 and 4 contenders fighting it out for a shot at the winner of the headline fight as Cain Velasquez meets Frank Mir. The main fight will be an exciting match up as both fighters favour standing and both posess knockout power. Dos Santos will be looking to utilise his boxing prowess to soften up and keep the K-1 fighter at distance while Overeem will be looking to make the most of his kick’s, knees and elbows just as much as his height and size advantage.

Overeem’s experience will surely play a part in the fight as well but will the former Strikeforce and Pride champion be able to hang with the big hitting Brazillian champion?

With both fighters being very capable on the ground we can only see one area where there is a question mark and that is Overeems chin. Whilst Dos Santos has never been KO’d and has proven he has a solid chin on a number of occassions

inside the octagon, Overeem has been knocked out a few times in his career and if anyone posesses the power to do it again, it is Junior.

As always these are questions we won’t find an answer to until the fight is over and it is a hard one to call. Dos Santos has looked every inch the champion in his UFC career so far and probably has the edge on technical abilty so we favour the Brazillian, but only just. One thing is for sure, this should be a great fight. Either way, one of these two fighters will be experiencing there first loss since 2007.

As for who will fight the winner in the next Heavyweight Title fight, Velasquez looks a firm favourite to get a shot at reclaiming the belt he lost to Dos Santos last year. Mir has improved alot

in the last two years putting in some impressive performances but up until losing the belt, Velasquez looked in a league of his own and his superior striking and wrestling skills should see him through this fight comfortably.

That would leave us with a mouth watering fight with Velasquez facing a re match with Dos Santos or a fight against Overeem, either fight will be another Heavyweight gem with the division going from strength to strength at the moment...

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pictures copyright

UFC 144 REPORT - EDGAR VS HENDERSON Page 33

Report And the new lightweight ufc champion of the world, benson ‘smooth’ henderson.the ufc made it’s long awaited return to japan with one of the best nights of mixed martial arts fighting for some time culminating in the crowning of a new champion.

Former WEC champion Ben Henderson outpointed Frankie Edgar in the headline fight of the night. This was a fight that on size alone looked a mere formality for the much bigger challenger, but that wasn’t taking into account the size of heart shown by Edgar and the technical ability of the much smaller man.

Quite a few people would have given this one to the reigning champ as he landed more shots during the 5 rounds but simply failed to make even the slightest of marks on his opponent with any of them. In contrast Henderson did some serious damage to the face and body of Edgar with his efforts that hurt but simply could not stop the champion.

Henderson did come very close in the second round though as off his back he landed a perfect upkick to the bridge of Edgar’s nose downing the champ, but as the clock came to Edgar’s help Frankie was able to defend himself just long enough to weather the storm.

This visibly turned the fight to Henderson’s advantage as up to then he had been dominated in the early exchanges by the technically brilliant Edgar.

The champ did as all great champions do though and never gave up the fight and continued to put pressure on the challenger pressing forward all the time.

In the judges eyes though it was simply not enough as the damage done by Henderson’s shots proved the more telling giving him a unanimous decision win and the Light Heavyweight belt around his waist.

A great win for ‘Smooth’ ushering in maybe a new era of the Light Heavyweight Division as the bigger 155 pounders take control?

There was a great card of fights on the night to backup the main event.

Ryan Bader put on an impressive performance against former Light Heavyweight champ ‘Rampage’ Jackson. After an unimpressive first round Bader showcased his superior wrestling skills taking Rampage to the floor with ease and dominating from the top. A win which sees Bader back on the right track and an improving force in this division.

Vaughan Lee vs ‘Kid’ Yamamoto

A special mention goes to a fighter we featured in last month’s mag, Vaughan Lee. The young Brit had his second fight inside the Octagon at 135 and pulled off a huge win against Japanese MMA legend ‘Kid’ Yamamoto. Lee started off pushing the pace and after weathering an early onslaught by ‘Kid’ Lee caught Yamamoto with a knee before rocking ‘Kid’ with an overhand right. The fight then went to the floor as Lee attempted an unsuccessful triangle before submitting Yamamoto with an arm bar...

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rashad evans The Ultimate Fighter?

Find out for yourself and meet him at The MMA Show live AT the NEC in Birmingham this May! Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Rashad Evans has come a long way since winning season two of The Ultimate Fighter back in 2005. He has become one of the more recognizable athletes in the UFC today and has elevated his game from that of just a wrestler to a well rounded mixed martial artist who can beat anyone put before him in the cage. He has proven time and time again that no matter how tough the opponent Evans is always game for a big fight and will never let anyone tell him he can’t win.

He wasn’t supposed to win The Ultimate Fighter as he was a small light heavyweight competing for the heavyweight title. In the finale he defeated 6’7”, 265lbs Brad Imes a fight he wasn’t supposed to win considering the size difference. After

defeating a few fighters who were thought to be on par with his talent, Evans finally got his big chance against Tito Ortiz and gave the former champ all he could handle in what would go down as a draw.

Soon after Michael Bisping, Chuck Liddell and Forrest Griffin, who he defeated for the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship, would find out just how far Evans had come. He had dynamite striking and was adept at using his wrestling to get the fight to the floor when necessary. In his nearly 7 years with the UFC, Evans has lost only once and that was in his first title defense to Lyoto Machida at UFC 98. That was nearly three years ago and due to injuries and inactivity Evans has fought only four times since, winning against Thiago Silva, Quinton Jackson, Tito Ortiz and Phil Davis.

The Davis victory set him up for a much anticipated shot at current division champion and former training partner/friend Jon Jones next month at UFC 145 in Atlanta...

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RASHAD EVANS - THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER? Page 35

see RASHAD at...

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It has been another busy period in the ufc with 2 new champions being decided. carlos condit took the interim welterweight belt at ufc 143 while ben henderson was crowned the new lightweight champion at ufc 144. here is a round up of all the results...

UFC 143: Stephen Thompson defeats Dan Stittgen via KO (Headkick) Rnd 1 Rafael Natal defeats Michael Kuiper via Unanimous Decision Matthew Riddle defeats Henry Martinez via Split Decision Matt Brown defeats Chris Cope via KO (Strikes) Rnd 2 Edwin Figueroa defeats Alex Caceres via Split Decision Dustin Poirier defeats Max Holloway via Submission (Mounted Triangle/ Armbar) Rnd 1 Ed Herman defeats Clifford Stars via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) Rnd 2 Renan Barao defeats Scott Jorgensen via Unanimous Decision Josh Koscheck defeats Mike Pierce via Split Decision Fabricio Werdum defeats Roy Nelson via Unanimous Decision Carlos Condit defeats Nick Diaz via Unanimous Decision

Edgar vs Henderson @ UFC 144

UFC ON FUEL 1: Jake Ellenberger def. Diego Sanchez via unanimous decision Stefan Struve def. Dave Herman via TKO - Round 2, 3:52 Ronny Markes def. Aaron Simpson via split decision Stipe Miocic def. Philip De Fries via KO (punches) - Rnd 1, 0:43 T.J. Dillashaw def. Walel Watson via unanimous decision Ivan Menjivar def. John Albert via submission (rear-naked choke) - Round 1, 3:45 Jonathan Brookins def. Vagner Rocha via KO (punches) - Rnd 1, 1:32 Justin Salas def. Anton Kuivanen via unanimous decision Tim Means def. Bernado Magalhaes via unanimous decision

Mark Hunt def. Cheick Kongo via TKO (punches) - Round 1, 2:11 Jake Shields def. Yoshihiro Akiyama via unanimous decision Tim Boetsch def. Yushin Okami via (TKO) punches - Round 3, 0:54 Hatsu Hioki def. Bart Palaszewski via unanimous decision Anthony Pettis def. Joe Lauzon via knockout - Round 1, 1:21 Takanori Gomi def. Eiji Mitsuoka via TKO (punches) - Round 2, 2:21 Vaughan Lee def. Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto via submission - Rd 1, 4:29 Riki Fukuda def. Steve Cantwell via unanimous decision Chris Cariaso def. Takeya Mizugaki via unanimous decision Issei Tamura def. Tiequan Zhang via knockout - Round 2, 0:32

UFC 144 Benson Henderson def. Frankie Edgar via unanimous decision Ryan Bader def. Quinton “Rampage” Jackson via unanimous decision

UFC on FX 2 Martin Kampmann def. Thiago Alves via submission (guillotine choke) - Round 3, 4:12 Joseph Benavidez def. Yasuhiro Urushitani via TKO (punches) - Rnd 2, 0:11 Demetrious Johnson vs. Ian McCall declared majority draw Constantinos Philippou def. Court McGee via unanimous decision James Te Huna def. Aaron Rosa via TKO (punches) - Round 1, 2:08 Anthony Perosh def. Nick Penner via TKO (punches) - Round 1, 4:59 Steven Siler def. Cole Miller via unanimous decision Andrew Craig def. Kyle Noke via unanimous decision T.J. Waldburger def. Jake Hecht via submission (armbar) - Round 1, 0:55 Daniel Pineda def. Mackens Semerzier via submission (triangle-armbar) - Round 1, 2:05 Shawn Jordan def. Oli Thompson via TKO (strikes) - Round 2, 3:53

UFC RESULTS ROUND UP - MAY 2012 Page 37

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