WFC Championship Tournament Results

Congratulations to Griff Teague for winning the WFC Openweight Championship! The road to the championship proved to be a difficult one for Teague. Not only did he defeat the previous champ, Ryan "nightmare" McCarthy, he went the distance in three other matches. In the final, Teague was faced off against rapper turned MMA sensation, "50 cent" Curtis Jackson. "50" Submitted 1, KO'd 3, and decisioned Kenshiro, on his way to the championship match. Unfortunately he was stopped short when he was KTFO'd by Teague in 3:02 of round 2.

Congratulations again to Griff Teague!

The next tournament is scheduled for Saturday, January 31, 2009 so sign up ASAP!

Analysis: Tito Ortiz's Commentary on Affliction's "Day of Reckoning"

Tito Ortiz joined the broadcast team in Affliction's "Day of Reckoning" event. He provided color commentary, and conducted post-fight interviews with the winning fighters. So how did he do?

Well, let's start with what I've seen of Tito Ortiz in previous stints outside the ring. I've watched Tito on The Apprentice and have also seen him on Inside MMA. Clearly, Tito treats each of his stints as a business opportunity, dressing the part and doing his homework. However, if you've watched him on The Apprentice, and to a lesser extent, Inside MMA, you know his presentation/oral communication skills are lacking.

His performance as a broadcast team member in Affliction's "Day of Reckoning" was no different. Tito dressed the part, wearing a dark brown suit, came prepared with stats and background information on each fighter, and provided decent commentary. However, his presentation/oral communication skills were still lacking, especially in the post-fight interviews. There were many slips of the tongue, where Tito said things that just didn't make sense. Here are just a few examples:

"Here we go, we got Josh Barnett with a dominating fashion..." - Tito Ortiz, trying to indicate that Barnett won in dominating fashion, and not actually complementing him on his MMA tights.

"Let's give a hand to Renato Babalu, one of the greatest Lightweights of the night!" - Tito Ortiz, asking the crowd to give Babalu some props.

"Let me tell you how you're feeling right now." - Tito Ortiz, asking Fedor Emelianenko how he's feeling after defeating two former UFC Heavyweight Champions.

Nevertheless, I give Tito credit for stepping up and taking the big challenge. He is a fighter, not a communications expert, and I'm sure he will do much better the next time around. I remember seeing Jimmy Kimmel's first episode on Jimmy Kimmel Live! and it was pretty bad. But Kimmel kept working at it, and now he flows just as well as any late night talk show host. I think Tito will do the same, as he continues to gain experience, and prepares himself for life after fighting.

Go Tito!

WFC Championship Tournament Results

Congratulations to Ryan "nightmare" McCarthy for winning Saturday's WFC 128-Fighter Championship Tournament! "nightmare" worked his way through the tournament KO'ing 4, submitting 2, and decisioning 1. Previous champion, Antonio Minotauro Nogueria, worked his way to the final in similar fashion, and looked to be the first fighter to retain the title, but was met with a brutal Overhand Right, courtesy of Ryan "nightmare" McCarthy.

We will have two 64-Fighter tournaments this week - One on Wednesday, January 28, 2009, and another on Saturday, January 31, 2009.

Sign up now!

Resetting of Fighter Records

In a past poll, we surveyed WFC Owners to see if they would like to have fighter records erased when training is implemented. 60% indicated they would like to see fighter records erased so that we can start from scratch, while 40% did not want the records to be erased. Thus, we are still leaning towards erasing records when training is implemented.

UFC 96 - Jardine vs. Jackson

I must say that I've never been a Jardine fan, but I have to give the guy credit for stepping up and fighting the big-name fighters. Obviously, he's had mixed results, but considering that he's fought the likes of Stephan Bonnar, Wilson Gouveia, Forrest Griffin, Houston Alexander, Chuck Liddell, Wanderlei Silva, Brandon Vera, and now Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, you have to give the boy props.

That list consists of four former champions, and arguably four top contenders.

My gut tells me he'll take Rampage the distance and come away with a decision victory.

UFC 94 - St-Pierre vs. Penn II

I'm really looking forward to UFC 94. Aside from the main event, I'm looking forward to the Machida/Silva fight, mainly because I like Silva and dislike Machida's style. I see Machida trying to frustrate Silva with his typical "hit and run" strategy, but after the Machida/Ortiz fight, I think future Machida opponents, Silva included, will be prepared for it. Silva will work his way inside and have his way with Machida, pulling off a TKO via GNP in the second round.

As for the main event, it's a tough one to call. I think St-Pierre's strategy will be to take BJ to the canvas and beat the hell out of him. However, BJ will be prepared for this, and with an outstanding takedown defense, will be able to thwart most of St-Pierre's takedowns. After failed takedown attempts, St-Pierre will be forced to stand more than he'd like with Penn, taking some major damage. I see this going to the 4th round, where BJ will win via TKO by ref or doctor (cut) stoppage.