If you aren't a Mixed Martial Arts fan yet, do yourself a favor and watch tonight. You'll see two of the top 5 fighters in the world square off against one another tonight. Both fighters are in their prime and both are champions. B.J. Penn is attempting to become the first fighter in UFC history to hold two world titles at one time. He's already the lightweight champ (155 lbs.) and trying to become the welterweight champion (170 lbs.). This will be an epic fight and will most likely go down as one the best in the history of the UFC.

Welterweight champ Georges St. Pierre (17-2 MMA, 11-2 UFC) vs. Lightweight champ B.J. Penn (13-4-1 MMA, 9-3-1 UFC) - for Welterweight Championship

These two fought once before at UFC 58 with Georges pulling out the decision victory. It could have gone either way in the eyes of many, but St. Pierre proved to be in better shape than Penn, the one knock against him in his career. Penn decided to change his attitude toward fighting after his 28th birthday and rededicated himself to training and endurance. Since dropping down to lightweight, Penn has been unstoppable. He wants to avenge another loss on his record against St. Pierre, who himself is a much better fighter than the one at UFC 58.

(Prediction: B.J. Penn via submission, round 4)

Lyoto Machida (13-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC) vs. Thiago Silva (13-0 MMA, 4-0 UFC)

Two undefeated light heavyweights face off tonight before the main event. This matchup will likely set up one of these two fighters to be the next, next in line for the light heavyweight championship. Machida is a very talented, yet painstakingly boring fighter. That is the biggest con against him, but he is one hell of a fighter and deserves a chance at the title. Fans may not agree because he simply isn't flashy enough. He has victories over B.J. Penn and Rich Franklin. Silva on the other hand is very agressive, not wanting to let his opponents take the fight to a decision with 10 of his victories by knockout or TKO. Silva has victories over James Irvin and Houston Alexander.

(Prediction: Lyoto Machida via decision)

Karo Parisyan (18-5 MMA, 9-3 UFC) vs. Dong Hyun Kim (11-0-1 MMA, 2-0 UFC)

Parisyan is a judo black belt who has won eight of his past 10 fights, all but one going to the cards. Kim is also a judo black belt with a split-decision and TKO in his two UFC victories. Parisyan is likely the less talented of the two fighters, but his desire to re-establish himself in the top of his weight class could propel him to decision victory. But his inability to finish fights does leave the door open for Kim to take him out.

(Prediction: Kim via TKO, round 2)

Nate Diaz (10-2 MMA, 5-0 UFC) vs. Clay Guida (24-9 MMA, 5-3 UFC)

Diaz is the winner of the Ultimate Fighter 5 and is quickly becoming a force in the lightweight division. Guida is the gatekeeper to the division, putting on entertaining fights and likely launching the careers of those he faces to the next level. Diaz has great jiu jitsu skills and is improving as a striker. Guida will try to establish a hectic pace and get Diaz uncomfortable. Diaz will most likely get Guida down on the ground and submit him.

(Prediction: Diaz via submission, round 1)

Stephan Bonnar (11-4 MMA, 5-3 UFC) vs. Jon Jones (7-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC)

Bonnar is attempting to comeback after a serious knee injury that has kept him sidelined for 15 months. Bonnar is most famous for his Ultimate Fighter 1 finale with Forrest Griffin, but he's a serious fighter with serious skils when healthy. Great striker with solid muay thai and jiu jitsu, he should have the edge against Jones. Jones is a solid striker and wrestler, undefeated in MMA, but doesn't have the experience to match with Bonnar. If Bonnar is 100 percent, it's a victory for him.

(Prediction: Bonnar, 2nd round TKO)

UFC bj penn, georges st. pierre, ufc 94

from the South Bend Tribune:

A little less than four years ago, Charlie Weis arrived at Notre Dame waving Super Bowl rings and boasting about the "decided schematic advantage" he was going to hold over other college coaches.

It was easy to dislike that, easy to root against him. On the other hand, coming out of the emotionless Tyrone Willingham years, it also felt like something this program very much needed at the time. As long, of course, as he could deliver.

He can't. 

Unlike losses against Michigan State, North Carolina and Boston College, quality if not beatable opponents, this loss to Syracuse was not acceptable on any level. Notre Dame had everything going for it. For one thing, the Irish held an enormous talent advantage, the myth about Notre Dame being unable to recruit talent to snowy South Bend long since debunked.

The rankings of Notre Dame's last four recruiting classes, as judged by Rivals.com: 40th, 8th, 8th, 2nd. Syracuse's over the same time period: 56th, 51st, 48th, 48th.That notion may seem difficult to swallow, because there is also a strong case to be made that this is karma taking its natural course.

College Football notre dame, charlie weis

No sorry ... I'm not talking about the plan Mike Brown has been implementing since he took over in 1990. That's been well covered and well documented. No, I'm talking about the so-called MMA fighter Kimbo Slice.

While I was disappointed not to see an awful Ken Shamrock fight him and most likely destroy him, I was happy to see an very average at best journeyman fighter, Seth Petruzelli, only need less than a minute to dispose of the fraud that was Kimbo Slice.

Sorry I've been away from the boards for a while. I'll make some UFC and other MMA posts soon enough. And the Bengals still blow. But hey ... I'm going 3-0 this week in my Fantasy leagues.

...more from MMAJunkie.com

"Seth Petruzelli wasn't the only big winner on the third edition of CBS EliteXC "Saturday Night Fights." Affliction Entertainment scored in its first attempt at cross-promotion and emerged from one of the most fascinating nights in the history of MMA having raised the profile of its brand.

In the near term, Petruzelli's eleventh-hour decision to scrap his fight with Aaron Rosa and stomp Kevin "Kimbo Slice" Ferguson in less time than it takes to order a pint at the pub will be all the buzz. However, from a business perspective, Affliction was the clear winner Saturday night.

It took Andrei Arlovski a round to get his motor running, but the former UFC heavyweight champion clobbered Roy Nelson inside the distance. That solid KO performance, coupled with Slice's meltdown, meant Affliction ended the night with the best heavyweight on the card."

UFC kimbo slice, mma, ufc

UFC 86: Jackson vs. Griffin comes to you live this weekend, July 5, from Las Vegas, NV with one of the most anticipated fights of the year. While the UFC would have hoped for more “hatred” between Rampage and Forrest during The Ultimate Fighter, they will still get an incredible number of PPV buys and one hell of a fight. Season 7 of TUF had its finale about couple weeks back with Team Forrest fighter Amir Sadollah winning the lucrative contract. Will his coach win the Light Heavyweight Championship this weekend? You’ll have to tune in to find out.

This fight has two of the most popular fighters in the UFC, both considered to be class clowns. Rampage is widely considered to be the next star in the making (more face of the UFC, not that he isn’t already a star) and holds UFC’s most prized possession – the light heavyweight belt. He has defeated Dan Henderson and won the belt with a shocking first-round knock-out of Chuck Liddell. Griffin on the other hand, has slowly built his resume to this title fight by winning the first Ultimate Fighter contract and build his following after his bout with TUF runner-up Stephen Bonnar. (If you have a chance to watch that fight, try to. It is widely considered to be one of the best fights in UFC history because these two slugged it out for three solid rounds.) Griffin earned his shot by defeating Mauricio “Shogun” Rua by submission, who was considered the number one contender for Rampage at the time, and was the last person to defeat Jackson by a knockout.

Now on to some fight predictions …I expect to see something from Chris Murdico soon ... 

Quinton “Rampage” Jackson (28-6 MMA, 3-0 UFC) vs. Forrest Griffin (15-4 MMA, 6-2 UFC)
Griffin enters this fight as a heavy underdog, 13-to-5 odds were the last I saw, but I think he will shock the MMA world this weekend by upsetting Jackson. Griffin is known to have an excellent chin and incredible conditioning. That was one of the keys to his win against Rua, just being able to outlast him and finish him when he knew he could keep going.

Jackson is the better standup fighter and has excellent counter-punching ability, seen by his knockout of Chuck Liddell. But he isn’t considered a top-notch ground fighter, which is where I see Forrest taking this fight. I think Forrest’s conditioning will lead to Jackson gassing and not being able to sustain the level he will need for the full five rounds.
Prediction: Griffin via decision

Patrick Côté (12-4 MMA, 3-4 UFC) vs. Ricardo Almeida (9-2 MMA, 2-2 UFC)
This will be an interesting fight with a striker versus a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu artist. Apparently this fight will lead to a title fight in the middleweight division, which Anderson Silva completely owns. Depending on who gets the edge, to keep it standing or go to the ground will determine the winner. Almeida is on his second fight since returning from a four-year layoff and looked impressive in his re-debut, but his caliber of opponent was very suspect. I expect Almeida to get the fight to the ground and submit Cote with an armbar.
Prediction: Almeida via submission, 2^nd round

Joe Stevenson (28-8 MMA, 5-2 UFC) vs Gleison Tibau (15-5 MMA, 3-2 UFC)
Joe “Daddy” is coming off a loss to B.J. Penn and is now rebuilding his resume to challenge for the lightweight championship. Tibau lost to Tyson Griffin (also on the undercard) in his last bout, so neither fighter can afford to lose this fight. Tibau just isn’t in the same class as the elite lightweights and won’t present much of a challenge to Stevenson. “Daddy” has excellent jiu-jitsu and will prevail with his ground-and-pound.
Prediction: Stevenson via TKO, 2^nd round

Josh Koscheck (10-2 MMA, 8-2 UFC) vs. Chris Lytle (25-15-5 MMA, 4-7 UFC)
This is a fight I’m looking forward to watching. Koscheck is still considered to be one of the top contenders in welterweight, even after his loss to Georges St. Pierre. Really, there is no shame in losing to GSP. Koscheck has an incredible wrestling and ground game. Koscheck has improved his striking and will be too much for Lytle. Lytle has 17 submission wins, but Koscheck wouldn’t submit to Dustin Hazelett, a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu expert, in his last fight. Unfortunately for Lytle, this fight is just a bout to get Koscheck back in the picture for a title fight.
Prediction: Koscheck via TKO, 3^rd round

Tyson Griffin (11-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC) vs. Marcus Aurelio (16-5 MMA, 2-1 UFC)
Griffin is coming of a loss to Gleison Tibau in February and matches up against PRIDE veteran Marcus Aurelio. Aurelio’s only loss in the UFC was his debut fight again Clay Guida via split decision. Griffin will want to get this fight to the ground to use his advantage in the ground-and-pound, but he’ll need to be worried about Aurelio’s BJJ submissions.
Prediction: Griffin via decision

That’s it for the main card. The preliminary card has fights with several TUF veterans. If the fights end early, I hope to see two of the lightweight fights: Jorge Gurgel vs. Cole Miller and Corey Hill vs. Justin Buchholz.

Gurgel is a local fighter and one that I want to see do well. He tends to play to his competition in fights he should win, which I expect in this one. Cole Miller shouldn’t be underestimated, as he was a solid competitor on TUF season 5. Plus Miller has a significant size advantage to use against Gurgel.

Corey Hill is a dynamic fighter for the lightweight division, standing at 6’4” tall. It’s simply amazing to see him make weight with that frame. He’s still learning the ropes to MMA, but his athleticism is incredible. 

UFC 86: Jackson vs. Griffin
Main card
Light Heavyweight Championship bout: Quinton Jackson vs. Forrest Griffin
Middleweight bout: Patrick Côté vs. Ricardo Almeida
Lightweight bout: Joe Stevenson vs Gleison Tibau
Welterweight bout: Josh Koscheck vs. Chris Lytle
Lightweight bout: Tyson Griffin vs. Marcus Aurelio 

Preliminary card
Heavyweight Bout: Gabriel Gonzaga vs. Justin McCully
Lightweight Bout: Jorge Gurgel vs. Cole Miller
Lightweight Bout: Melvin Guillard vs. Dennis Siver
Lightweight Bout: Corey Hill vs. Justin Buchholz

UFC rampage jackson, forrest griffin, ufc 86

This weekend you could watch history be made for the first time in 30 years as Big Brown makes his quest to win the Triple Crown in horse racing. Just 11 horses have pulled off the feat in the past 140 years, the last being Affirmed in 1978.

In the days leading up to the race, we’ve been inundated with media reports about the injury to Big Brown and how he is ready to go. I don’t have the level of expertise of the trainers and doctors in this situation, but they say Big Brown is just fine and ready to race. I cannot argue with that.

But as a huge horse racing fan, I’m torn between the two scenarios running in my mind. The first is the best case scenario of Big Brown doing what Big Brown does and destroy his field of competitors on his way to becoming the 12^th Triple Crown winner. The second is a more disappointing, worst case scenario of Big Brown suffering a catastrophic injury during/after the race, similar to Barbaro and Eight Belles.

Should Big Brown race with a known injury? How bad is the injury? And, what happens to horse racing if something happens to Big Brown?

The tragedy of Eight Belles is still very fresh in the minds of many with investigations being asked of the Kentucky state government. Moments after the Kentucky Derby, the stories weren’t about a horse that won from the 20 post position, but about the horse that had to be euthanized on the track for breaking her two front legs. We know there was not a pre-existing condition to Eight Belles and the answer is that is simply a part of horse racing.

But what if something happens to Big Brown? With the known hoof injury he has, I believe horse racing would take its biggest blow ever to the sport … almost to the point of no return. Horse racing simply cannot withstand another powerful horse ending in such a tragic way.

I think it brings up an interesting debate. Can horse racing survive if Big Brown suffers an injury? I’m not sure it can.

I’m not arguing whether he should run or not in the Belmont. I think that is a no-brainer. If the trainers and doctors say he is OK, then he runs. But you have to be careful. You already have a $50 million stud deal in the bank. This is all about managing the risk vs. the reward.

Horse Racing big brown, eight belles, barbaro, triple crown, horse racing