UFC and Invicta FC Post Fight Press Conferences and Much More Including a Tito Ortiz Interview

Sunday Edition

Post Fight Press Conferences from UFC and Invicta 

and Much More

It's been a very busy weekend of MMA , starting with getting up super early to watch Bellator and ending by going to bed in the very early hours after UFC and in between there was Invicta Fc and ONE FC. These were the big shows plus of course many other smaller ones that I sadly missed.

My ratings for the big shows based purely upon the excitement of the fights.

1st - UFC 2nd - Invicta FC  3rd - Bellator and 4th - ONE FC.

It as nice to see what looked like a genuine sell out at ONE FC and the organisation is certainly growing with every event. The fights at the top end of the show are certainly getting to be a very good quality.

A Message for Gareth Davis - Sort your bloody hair out!

Evolution MMA India

Other MMA

TuneTalk to sponsor MMA in Malaysia?

TuneTalk to Sponsor Malaysian MMA?

The rumours have been going around for a while now and those rumours keep getting louder and TuneTalk is the name we keep hearing. So where are we with these rumours?

The thing we can be pretty sure of is the fact that TuneTalk representatives have been talking to MMA faces around Asia collecting advice and information on the state of MMA in the area and particularly in Malaysia.

It is pretty much confirmed that there is to be a Malaysian championship starting in 2013 and initially we heard it was to be for Malaysians and PR's only, which would have been interesting as it would give a chance for the Malaysians to shine, but rumours are going around that this may change. I guess some gyms want to protect their investments in foreign talent.

Of course this step between the smaller regional MMA organisations in Malaysia and the big step up that is the bigger Asian Organisations like Legend where all too often the Malaysians fail to impress.
Is that due to experience or nerves due to the bright lights of a bigger show or are they just not ready?

Either way this should provide a helpful step towards these fighters gaining useful experience. However, this totally depends on the match making because the quality of match making in Malaysia often leaves much to be desired.

Anyway, the rumours are TuneTalk are going to be providing sponsorship for these events. Fingers crossed for that.

Further to that we understand that representatives from other Asian MMA organisations may have been in touch with TuneTalk, nothing confirmed but rumours persist.

The important point about all of this if it should turn out to be true is that TuneTalk will provide the sport some legitimacy which may encourage other big brands to get involved and if that happens it could snowball.

Sadly, however the weakness in this whole plan is the Malaysian public who remain blissfully ignorant of the sport. The TV coverage in the country does not help as the sport is heavily censored, certain moves or too much blood and the fight moves mysteriously on a few seconds or gets blurred out. I actually saw one fight where the winning move was not shown, needless to say I no longer bother watching MMA on Malaysian TV.

The thing is, this will damage the sport before it takes off, with big brands like TuneTalk there is required a return, it might not be financial but it would be in recognition and I am sure the TV figures for MMA in Malaysia are pathetic at best.

Maybe TuneTalk can flex some muscle and get the censors to look at their actions, maybe they can manage to get more paying customers through the doors at events. Although some of the rumours I am hearing do not sound like that is an issue.

Of course certain MMA organisations have much bigger TV deals that take the audience far beyond the local fan base. Legend for example have signed an impressive international TV deal, PXC in the Philippines have just reported figures locally (Philippines) of 700,000 viewers for the last live event on AKTV plus of course they streamed the event outside of the Philippines via Sherdog to a passionate international audience.

Nothing in Malaysia of course is of that calibre at present, the three main events are F3 a hybrid show that plays to half empty sports halls. Malaysian Fighting Championship and Ultimate Beatdown that whilst popular amongst the gyms that support them don't exactly make a ripple on the street outside.
The newest show was Legionnaire and it remains to be seen how that progresses.
*80% of the crowd are the same people at all the shows.

The MMA fansites in the area may delude themselves that what they write is important and is read widely beyond fans of the sport but it isn't and they are not (and yes I include our site in that).

MMA is a tiny business in Malaysia with the gyms almost perpetually bitching at each other over members and trainers gained and lost. Until the whole Malaysian industry grows up it won't have any meaningful growth.

TuneTalk is the best hope of Malaysian MMA to break out of the swirl of mediocrity that it at present sits in. Don't believe the talk of sold out arenas, rabid fans at shopping malls or anything like that. It's all built on smoke and mirrors. Without business people giving big heaps of financial support Malaysian MMA would sink without trace.

We understand that tomorrow night there will be a chance to meet the CEO of TuneTalk Jason Lo at a bar in KL go along if you can.

There has been a long slow slog to get MMA in Malaysia to this position, lets hope that 2013 can truly be the year that Malaysian MMA breaks through into the mainstream.

The Malaysain Invasion 2013 is a good first step but people the only way to make it happen is to take along a non MMA fan friend to events to introduce them to the sport.

*obviously that figure is a guess!

Amazing News For Legend (Press Release)

AXN Takes On Legend Fighting Championship

22nd October 2012

For Immediate Release

AXN TAKES ON LEGEND FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIP

Singapore / Hong Kong, 22 October 2012 – Sony Pictures Television Networks, Asia and Hong Kong-based Legend have sealed an agreement to broadcast Legend Fighting Championship (LFC), the Asia-Pacific Championship of Mixed Martial Arts, on AXN in 21 territories across the region.

The deal grants AXN the first and exclusive rights to broadcast all Legend Fighting Championship events from October 2012 through August 2013. In addition, four of the most recently concluded Legend Fighting Championship tournaments will premiere first and exclusively on AXN in the coming months.

“We are very excited to be partnering with Legend to showcase some of the best and most established Asian MMA fighters. Many of these fighters are already household names in Japan, Korea and China, where LFC has a huge following. We have no doubt that our broadcast of these thrilling fights on AXN will further enhance the popularity of LFC, especially amongst our viewers across South East Asia,” said Ricky Ow, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Networks, Asia, Sony Pictures Television.

"This partnership with AXN begins an exciting new chapter in the Legend story. Since Legend was established, we have dedicated ourselves to growing the sport of MMA here in the Asia-Pacific and giving fighters from this region the opportunity to compete in a world-class organization. AXN is Asia's premiere platform for entertainment, and we are excited to bring the best in Asia-Pacific MMA to their audience, particularly since so many of Legend's elite fighters hail from AXN's key broadcast markets." said Chris Pollak, Managing Director, Legend.

Founded in Hong Kong, Legend Fighting Championship invites exclusively the highest-level professional martial artists throughout China and Asia-Pacific to compete in a freestyle tournament using interdisciplinary martial arts skills including boxing, Brazilian jiujitsu, judo, Muay Thai, Sambo, Sanda, Taekwondo and wrestling in supervised matches under a strict set of rules designed to promote athlete safety.

The series focuses on the multi-faceted, tactical nature of mixed martial arts where athletes are armed with a well-rounded skill-set in striking, grappling, and submissions to compete. Since January 2010, 10 Legend Fighting Championship events have been completed. The most recent event included 20 fighters from Australia, China, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mongolia, New Zealand, the Philippines, South Korea and Thailand, competing in six weight classes from Bantamweight through to Light Heavyweight.

About AXN Asia

AXN offers viewers a thrilling ride with an exciting slate of programs designed to exhilarate and help them escape the humdrum of daily routine. The leading English general entertainment destination among upscale, affluent adults aged 18-39, the channel delivers first run, exclusive top-rated drama series, blockbuster features, adventure and competitive reality programs from around the world, as well as made-in-Asia original productions.

Launched first in Asia in 1997, AXN has become an international channel brand that is now seen across 60 countries globally including Latin America and Europe.  In Asia, the channel is now watched by 154 million viewers in more than 104 million homes across 21 countries, including close to 50 million households on a time-block basis in China.

AXN has also been available in high-definition (HD) since March 2009.

AXN ASIA is wholly owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment and managed by Sony Pictures Television’s Networks, Asia, which also operates pay-TV channels beTV, Animax, Sony Entertainment Television and ONE. See www.axn-asia.comfor more.

About Sony Pictures Television Networks, Asia

Sony Pictures Television Networks, Asia, based in Singapore, was established in 1997 as the Asia headquarters for Sony Pictures Television Networks. It operates five ad-supported 24/7 channel brands in the region which are wholly-owned by Sony Pictures.

AXN is the home of thrilling entertainment; beTV is the place to be for the best of light, engaging and easy-viewing entertainment; Sony Entertainment Television is a female-skewing channel offering ‘wickedly juicy’ shows; Animax offers anime programming for all; and ONE, the gem of Asian general entertainment, is powered by prime and current Korean content.

About Legend Fighting Championship

Legend Fighting Championship (Legend) is the Asia-Pacific Championship of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA). Legend, based in Hong Kong, invites professional martial artists from throughout China and the Asia-Pacific region to compete in a freestyle tournament using interdisciplinary martial arts skills including sanda, wushu, jiujitsu, muay thai, boxing, and wrestling in supervised matches under a strict set of rules designed to promote athlete safety.  Legend produces these events for live international television, in both Mandarin Chinese and English, and each program incorporates and celebrates the region’s unique history, cultures, and thousands of years of martial arts traditions.  Legend is committed to promoting the sport of mixed martial arts in the Asia-Pacific, to supporting and cultivating its athletes, and to providing exceptional entertainment to a broad audience.  See www.legendfc.com for more.

Media Contacts

Sony Pictures Television Networks, Asia
Calvin Wong
+65 6622 4203
calvin_wong@spe.sony.com

Legend Fighting Championship
Elizabeth Wu
+852 3188 0110
ewu@legendfc.com

Island Fight Night – Phuket Gets Ready For Battle

Island Fight Night – Phuket Gets Ready For Battle

Published on July 4, 2012 by The Editor in NEWS

Island Fight Night ~ A Fun Night of Battle in Phuket

Phuket Top Team continue their rise to dominance in Asian MMA with the next stage in their story: Island Fight Night.

Because this is the first event and therefore things are liable to change-up until the last-minute there is no confirmed Fight Card yet, but once it is released we will publish it for your information.

Of course it stand’s to reason if you are in or around Phuket then you should go along for a fun night out, Eat, Drink and Watch Fighting on the beautiful Thai Island of Phuket, doesn’t get much better does it. If you have a few dollars burning a hole in your pocket and fancy a quick trip to Phuket, well this is the weekend to do it.

Now of course we can’t all make it, so you will be pleased to hear that the WHOLE event will be recorded live and then after the event once it has been tidied up posted on YouTube. Plans for future events are for them to be streamed live via Ustream.com so we can all be involved.

In an exclusive interview with MMANewsAsia Phuket Top Teams Boyd Clarke told us what it’s all about.

Now to be straight with you all this is not a Professional MMA event, those as we know from our friends at DARE are banned.

This is a place for mainly amateur fights of varying types to give people a solid foundation in a nice safe controlled environment before taking the small step up to events from the likes of MFC and UB and then having proved themselves stepping up a notch again to the likes of DARE, URCC, Legend FC, PRO etc all leading hopefully to a shot at ONE FC.  A very smart move as that has long been a gap in the market. A safe opportunity to get started.

This event will include Muay Thai, Boxing, Submission Grappling and a special pro fight called TK-1 (This is the only Pro fight).

They expect 6/7 fights on the night, but there could of course be late additions.

As it stands now expect: 2 amateur MMA bouts, 2 muay thai bouts, 1 ADCC rules grappling, 2 amateur boxing bouts and 1 TK1 Fight.

One very interesting fight will be a super fight: of submission grappling (ADCC rules)  between Andree Leone (One FC/ Road FC) and Anthony Leone (Bellator) – Yes, Leone vs Leone, it should be fun calling that fight.

To begin with it will be mostly fighters from Phuket, Bangkok, Chiang Mai and Issan based MMA gyms, In fact anywhere in Thailand that wants an amateur fight.

Boyd added this:

“we are actively seeking sponsorship – so if anyone wants to sponsor a night we will show the banner before each fight and on the youtube upload it will flash before and after fights. for the second event we stream live on Ustream across the globe and will then advertise the product world-wide”

Legend 9 City of Dreams Macau

Legend 9 City of Dreams Macau

Published on June 11, 2012 by The Editor in Legend

Legend presents a full-blooded show from the Grand Hyatt Macau, City of Dreams

It’s Legend 9

Legend is the closest thing we have in this area to being a championship for Asian Pacific born fighters. It’s not enough to move to the region to fight on the Legend card, You have to have been born here. To be Legend Champion is to be the best in the whole Asian Pacific region. This is not a home for fighters on their way down, this is a major proving ground for fighters on their way up.

Legend are proud to announce Legend 9 at the Grand Hyatt, City of Dreams, Macau.

Here are my personal thoughts on the bouts:

Bout 1: Muhammad Hanif Bin Zainal (2-0-1) (Malaysia) Vs Diego Cuenca (no record) (Philippines)

Hanif is taking a step up from the local Malaysian shows where he has made quite a splash since his first fight which was a majority draw with Keith Alden. I was present at the show and that was a superb fight. Since then Hanif has had two quick wins, this is a step into a much bigger spotlight. Cuenca is making his pro debut but has a 4-0 amateur record. He also is a product of the American schooling system so you can be sure that he has a solid wrestling base. These two will both be determined to make a name for themselves and return home with a W.

Bout 2:  Chengie Wu (2-3-0) (China)  Vs Daniel Hooker (6-4-0) (New Zealand)

All three of Wu’s Legend appearances have gone to a decision and with his last bout being a pronounced a Win, maybe at last he has learnt what it takes to make the judges side with him. However, Hooker is not going to be an easy task for him to tackle. His last appearance at Legend was a rear naked choke loss to Wu Haotian since then he has defeated Rsuty McBride at AFC 3, So his confidence level will be on the rise. This is looking like a tough fight to call.

Bout 3: Yeong Gwang Choi (5-5-0) (South Korea) Vs Rob Lisita (9-4-0) (Australia)

Choi has two decision victories in his two Legend appearances but he is going to have an uphill task if he thinks he can get three in a row – Legend debutant Lisita has to hope his recent form in Australia transfers to Macau as he looks to make a name for himself.

Bout 4: Xian Ji (5-1-0) (China) Vs Jack Gooderham (6-0-0) (Australia) (Sun City Cup Bout)

Ji was on a five fight winning streak until he met Yusuke Kawanago at Legend 8 losing at 4:18 of the second round due to a guillotine choke. He is going to be desperate to get back to winning ways. However, his opponent Gooderham is making his Legend Debut and is bringing a perfect 6-0 record with him. This should be a very exciting bout.

Bout 5: Taiyo Nakahara (12-7-0) (Japan) Vs Nam Jin Jo (6-4-0) (South Korea)

Nakahara is massively experienced, however prior to getting into the ring at Legend 7 (Feb 2012) he had not fought for 13 months even though he was on a four night winning streak and that fight ended with him being disqualified due to punches to the back of the head. So, I am sure he wants to get his career back onto a winning road.  Jin has had a mixed Legend history with two wins and two losses.

Bout 6: Hideto Tatsumi (3-2-0) (Japan) Vs Pat Crawley (9-2-0) (New Zealand) 

Tatsumi is a big guy standing at 6’1″ and has a good ground game and a lot of power, but Crawley is a monster on a four fight win streak and after  his last win where he rear naked choked Rob Powdrill at the recent K’Oz event he is back at Legend looking to win his third Legend appearance in a row. He’s a good three inches shorter than Tatsumi but I don’t know if that’s enough of an advantage to see Tatsumi win this.

Bout 7: Honggang Yao (6-3-0) (China) Vs Augustin Delarmino Jr (6-1-0) (Philippines)

In all three of his appearances in the Legend ring Yao has gone the distance with two of those being wins, Delarmino on the other hand has finished both his Legend appearances early. Delarmino’s only loss was via decision and I believe he is going to pose a real problem to the durable Yao. Can the much older Yao stand with him? I don’t know, but it should be a very exciting fight.

Bout 8: Haotian Wu (6-1-1) (China) Vs Damien Brown (6-3-0) (Australia)

Wu has proven to be a tough competitor and is a real submission expert something Brown would do well to be aware of especially as 50% of his losses have been via submission. I cannot she Brown being able to tackle Wu who is aiming for a Legend title shot.

Bout 9: Jingliang Li (6-2-0) (China) Vs Dan Pauling (8-1-0) (Australia)

Li is a submission specialist with just two losses on his record both via decision. His Legend record stands at 3-2 and he is about to take on first time Legend competitor Pauling. Pauling is 5 years Li junior and yet has more pro fights. He tore his way through eight straight wins at the Australia organisation Fightworld Cup before moving up to the Cage Fighting Championship where he came up against Corey Nelson who was on three losses in a row, that all changed as he knocked out Pauling in just 33 seconds. It remains to be seen if that was a lucky punch and Pauling will look to bounce back with a great display, or maybe that was a step up in class too far. Look out for an exciting bout.

Bout 10: Koji Ando (6-3-2) (Japan) Vs Rob Hill (11-5-1) (Australia)

Ando has a tough battle on his hands here, he is 1-1 at Legend, Hill is 2-2 at Legend but his last two fights were the Wins, so he is on a bit of a roll. Both of these fighters are looking for a Lightweight title shot and will both be going all out to earn that opportunity.

So that’s it an exiciting night of fighting to be sure.

Legend don’t care which gym you train at, they are only interested in you “bringing it” and they are not impressed with who you used to be, they want future stars, not past it ones! I like that.