Cain Velasquez acerta Junior Cigano. Foto: UFC/Divulgação.

A MGM Arena em Las Vegas recebeu a edição 155 do UFC, nesse sábado. No octagon, Junior Cigano acabou superado por Cain Velasquez e perdeu o cinturão dos pesados. Na batalha mais sangrenta do evento Jim Miller venceu Joe Lauzon por decisão unânime dos jurados. O duelo recebeu o prêmio de melhor luta da noite, já o bônus pelo nocaute e pela finalização do evento  ficaram com Todd Duffee e John Moraga, respectivamente.

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UFC 155
MGM Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada
29 de dezembro de 2012

Cain Velasquez venceu Junior Cigano na decisão unânime dos jurados

Jim Miller venceu Joe Lauzon na decisão unânime dos jurados

Costa Philippou venceu Tim Boetsch por nocaute técnico aos 2min11s do R3

Yushin Okami venceu Alan Belcher na decisão unânime dos jurados

Derek Brunson venceu Chris Leben na decisão unânime dos jurados

Eddie Wineland venceu Brad Pickett na decisão dividida dos jurados

Erik Perez venceu Byron Bloodworth por nocaute técnico aos 3min50s do R1

Jamie Varner venceu Melvin Guillard na decisão dividida dos jurados

Myles Jury venceu Michael Johnson na decisão unânime dos jurados

Todd Duffee nocauteou Phil De Fries aos 2min4s do R1

Max Holloway venceu Leonard Garcia na decisão dividida dos jurados

John Moraga finalizou Chris Cariaso no triângulo de mão aos 11s do R3

Todd Duffee (right) punches Phil De Fries during their heavyweight fight at UFC 155 on December 29, 2012 at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

The UFC 155 prelims entertained the Las Vegas crowd and those watching at home on FX on Saturday night, but not without some questionable scores being tabulated by the judges.

Eddie Wineland, Erik Perez and Todd Duffee led the way for Saturday night’s preliminary fights at the MGM Grand, capping off an undercard full of back-and-forth action, as well as first-round finishes.

Brad Pickett vs. Eddie Wineland 

Eddie Wineland defeated Brad Pickett, shutting down his opponent with a split decision in the final UFC 155 prelim on FX.

Wineland landed several punches in the first round, wobbling Pickett on many occasions. Pickett did well to move forward, but never landed the “one punch” that gave him his nickname.

Wineland landed less significant strikes as the fight went to the final round, but he maintained enough to outscore his opponent on the feet in the judges’ eyes. The final scores read 30-27, 28-29 and 30-27.

“I hit him with everything I had,” Wineland said after the win. “He’s got a melon on him like a coconut.”

Erik Perez vs. Byron Bloodworth 

Erik Perez pounded out Byron Bloodworth in their UFC 155 prelim on FX, earning the TKO in the first round.

Perez brought the fight to the ground after landing a knee from the clinch in Bloodworth’s ribcage. Soon after, Perez worked from top position and landed consecutive elbows, cutting open Bloodworth’s forehead.

The Mexican fighter earned his third win in the UFC, with the finish coming at 3:50 of the opening frame.

Melvin Guillard vs. Jamie Varner 

Jamie Varner won a split decision over Melvin Guillard in their prelim fight.

Guillard landed several legkicks early on, but Varner stayed active and took his opponent down several times. A big slam near the end of the fight capped it off for Varner.

Notably, one judge scored the fight unanimously for Guillard, which brought on the split decision. Across the board, the scores were 30-27, 27-30, 30-27.

Michael Johnson vs. Myles Jury 

Myles Jury stayed undefeated, topping Michael Johnson by unanimous decision in their prelim fight.

Jury dominated Johnson on the ground, controlling him and peppering strikes from top position for a majority of the three-round contest. Judges scored it the same across the board, 30-27.

Phil DeFries vs. Todd Duffee 

Todd Duffee made a successful return to the UFC, knocking out Phil DeFries in the first round of the final Facebook undercard fight.

After getting taken down early in the fight, Duffee returned the fight to a standing contest and landed several right hands that put DeFries out for good at 2:04 of the first round.

Leonard Garcia vs. Max Holloway 

Max Holloway topped Leonard Garcia in the second fight of the night, nabbing the split decision. Garcia landed several strikes in the second and third rounds, but the judges have the decision to Holloway, which signaled the crowd to voice their displeasure with boos.

Chris Cariaso vs. John Moraga

John Moraga defeated Chris Cariaso in the evening’s opening bout. Two went back and forth for two rounds before Moraga sank the front choke at 1:11 of the third round.

For more UFC and MMA coverage,

visit GRACIEMAG.com’s Choke MMA section

Junior Cigano and his team at Salvador, Brazil airport (Photo posted on his Twitter account)

After toiling away to make it to his showdown with former heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez in 100 percent shape, Junior dos Santos never imagined he’d still have some more suffering to do before arriving at his Las Vegas destination.

The Brazilian missed his flight to the United States on Christmas Eve. “Because of the whim of the airline the week has started out awfully for me. It would be easy to shrug it off if I didn’t have an important fight coming up on Saturday. TAM lied and told its customers that the airport was closed, and for reasons unknown to me, they made life rough on me,” Cigano posted on Twitter.

“TAM ruined my trip. It took me six hours of flying to get from Salvador to São Paulo, and then I missed my flight to Vegas. Major lack of respect. This is an outrage,” added the fighter, who finally arrived in the United States today.

Check out the following video of Cigano going through his preparations for his December 29 showdown with Cain Velasquez:

UFC 155
MGM Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada
December 29, 2012

Junior Cigano vs. Cain Velasquez
Jim Miller vs. Joe Lauzon
Tim Boetsch vs. Costa Philippou
Yushin Okami vs. Alan Belcher
Chris Leben vs. Karlos Vemola
Brad Pickett vs. Eddie Wineland
Erik Perez vs. Byron Bloodworth
Michael Johnson vs. Myles Jury
Leonard Garcia vs. Cody Mckenzie
Phil de Fries vs. Todd Duffee

For more UFC and MMA coverage,

visit GRACIEMAG.com’s Choke MMA section

Junior Cigano e sua equipe no aeroporto de Salvador. Foto: Reprodução Twitter

Após ralar muito para chegar 100% para a luta contra o ex-campeão Cain Velasquez, Junior Cigano não sabia que teria de sofrer mais um pouco antes de chegar a Las Vegas.

O catarinense radicado na Bahia perdeu o voo para os Estados Unidos na noite de Natal. “Por um capricho da companhia aérea a semana começa pessimamente para mim. Seria simples deixar-pra-lá, se eu não tivesse uma luta tão importe sábado. A TAM mentiu que o aeroporto estava fechado para os clientes e, por uma razão que ainda desconheço, complicou a minha vida”, escreveu Cigano no Twitter.

“A TAM arruinou minha viagem. Levei seis horas de voo de Salvador para São Paulo e perdi meu voo para Vegas. Falta de respeito total. Estou revoltado, é um absurdo”, completou o lutador, que chega hoje aos Estados Unidos.

Relembre como foi a preparação de Cigano, no vídeo do UFC abaixo. O UFC 155 será transmitido ao vivo pelo canal Combate.

UFC 155
MGM Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada
29 de dezembro de 2012

Junior Cigano vs Cain Velasquez
Jim Miller vs Joe Lauzon
Tim Boetsch vs Costa Philippou
Yushin Okami vs Alan Belcher
Chris Leben vs Karlos Vemola
Brad Pickett vs Eddie Wineland
Erik Perez vs Byron Bloodworth
Michael Johnson vs Myles Jury
Leonard Garcia vs Cody Mckenzie
Phil de Fries vs Todd Duffee

Dennis Bermudez da um salto mortal após finalizar Tom Hayden no UFC 150. Foto: UFC/Divulgação.

O UFC 150 trouxe muita emoção para o Pepsi Center, em Denver, nos Estados Unidos. Da bela Brittney Palmer aos movimentos de Ben Henderson e Frankie Edgar, confira as principais imagens de mais uma edição do Ultimate.

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Ben Henderson e Frankie Edgar no cara a cara da pesagem do UFC 150. Foto: UFC/Divulgação.

O UFC 150 rola neste sábado, em Denver, no Colorado, Estados Unidos. Entre os combates mais aguardados, a luta principal, em que Ben Henderson encara Frankie Edgar, numa revanche pelo cinturão dos leves, já o comboy Donald Cerrone enfrentará Melvin Guillard, e Jake Shields terá Ed Herman, pela frente.

Na pesagem que rolou na noite de sexta-feira, apenas Melvin Guillard não alcançou o peso estipulado de sua categoria (70,8kg), ultrapassando 600 gramas. O excesso custou a perda de 20% do valor de sua bolsa para Donald Cerrone.

O evento terá transmissão ao vivo pelo canal por assinatura Combate, a partir das 20h (horário de Brasília).

Confira os melhores momentos da pesagem nas fotos abaixo:

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UFC 150
Denver, Colorado
11 de agosto de 2012

Ben Henderson vs Frankie Edgar
Donald Cerrone vs Melvin Guillard
Jake Shields vs Ed Herman
Yushin Okami vs Buddy Roberts
Justin Lawrence vs Max Holloway
Dennis Bermudez vs Tom Hayden
Jared Hamman vs. Michael Kuiper
Ken Stone vs Erik Perez
Dustin Pague vs Chico Camus
Nik Lentz vs Eiji Mitsuoka

Ben Henderson in staredown with Frankie Edgar at pre-UFC 150 press conference / UFC publicity photo

The Ultimate Fighting Championship is taking its brand of excitement to Denver, Colorado, this Saturday. The fight headlining the UFC 150 show is a lightweight-title rematch between Ben Henderson and Frankie Edgar that promises fireworks. Further major attractions on the card for Colorado are the Donald Cerrone–Melvin Guillard showdown and former Strikeforce middleweight champion Jake Shields’s encounter with Ed Herman.

But before the action can take place, the fighters have to take on the scale. And you can watch the official weigh-ins live here on GRACIEMAG.com starting at 7 pm Brazilian time (10 pm GMT). Don’t miss it.

UFC 150
Denver, Colorado
August 11, 2012

Ben Henderson vs Frankie Edgar
Donald Cerrone vs Melvin Guillard
Jake Shields vs Ed Herman
Yushin Okami vs Buddy Roberts
Justin Lawrence vs Max Holloway
Dennis Bermudez vs Tom Hayden
Jared Hamman vs. Michael Kuiper
Ken Stone vs Erik Perez
Dustin Pague vs Chico Camus

Ben Henderson encara Frankie Edgar na coletiva de imprensa do UFC 150. Foto: UFC/Divulgação.

O Ultimate Fighting Championship aporta em Denver, nos Estados Unidos, neste sábado. Na luta principal do UFC 150, a revanche entre Ben Henderson e Frankie Edgar, que vale o cinturão dos leves, promete grandes emoções. Outros atrativos no Colorado são o cowboy Donald Cerrone contra Melvin Guillard, e Jake Shields versus Ed Herman.

Mas antes dos conferes, os lutadores vão ter que encarar a balança. A pesagem oficial você assiste ao vivo, aqui no GRACIEMAG.com a partir das 19h, não perca.

UFC 150
Denver, Colorado
11 de agosto de 2012

Ben Henderson vs Frankie Edgar
Donald Cerrone vs Melvin Guillard
Jake Shields vs Ed Herman
Yushin Okami vs Buddy Roberts
Justin Lawrence vs Max Holloway
Dennis Bermudez vs Tom Hayden
Jared Hamman vs. Michael Kuiper
Ken Stone vs Erik Perez
Dustin Pague vs Chico Camus

Henderson celebrates victory over Edgar atUFC 144. UFC publicity photo.

The UFC lightweight champion, Ben Henderson, is all set for his rematch with Frank Edgar, the former king of the promotion’s deepest division. The showdown goes down this Saturday in Denver, Colorado, at UFC 150. The first time the two locked horns to determine the divisional number one ended somewhat contentiously for the evenness of the bout, prompting Dana White to set up a second encounter almost immediately.

Henderson showed little nerves when addressing the fight. “I don’t feel any pressure. The most pressure in a fight is the pressure I put on myself. I expect to put in a great performance every time I step in the octagon, whether I win, lose or draw,” he told the Sportv.com website.

This calmness of Henderson’s is a common characteristic among gentle-art practitioners, who learn to coolly assess whatever situation they are in. A Jiu-Jitsu brown belt, Henderson is a regular at Gi Jiu-Jitsu competitions and even took bronze at the 2011 World Championship.

What about you, gentle reader, will Ben Henderson hang on to his belt? Will he put his gentle-art skills to good use?

In the video from the 2011 Arizona State BJJ Championship below, you can get a sense of just how sharp the champion’s Jiu-Jitsu is.

Note how he defends against a Kimura by grabbing his opponent’s ankle.

UFC 150
Denver, Colorado
August 11, 2012

Ben Henderson vs Frankie Edgar
Donald Cerrone vs Melvin Guillard
Jake Shields vs Ed Herman
Yushin Okami vs Buddy Roberts
Justin Lawrence vs Max Holloway
Dennis Bermudez vs Tom Hayden
Jared Hamman vs. Michael Kuiper
Ken Stone vs Erik Perez
Dustin Pague vs Chico Camus

Henderson comemora a vitória contra Edgar no UFC 144. Foto: UFC/Divulgação

Campeão peso-leve do UFC, Ben Henderson está afiado para a revanche contra Frank Edgar, o ex- dono do cinturão da categoria mais acirrada do Ultimate. O embate rola neste sábado, pelo UFC 150, em Denver, nos Estados Unidos. No primeiro encontro em fevereiro, que definiu a mudança do número um da divisão, o resultado gerou polêmica por ter sido uma luta muito parelha, e por isso Dana White decidiu pela desforra imediata.

Henderson passou tranquilidade ao falar sobre o combate. “Eu não acho que há qualquer pressão. A maior pressão para uma luta é a que eu coloco em mim mesmo. Espero ter um grande desempenho cada vez que eu entrar no octógono, seja ganhando, perdendo ou empatando”, disse ao site Sportv.com.

Essa calma vem da arte suave, que nos ensina a buscar a frieza necessária para avaliarmos a situação. Faixa-marrom de Jiu-Jitsu, Henderson costuma competir de kimono e conquistou até a medalha de bronze no Mundial de 2011.

Para o leitor, Ben Henderson mantém o título? Ele vai colocar em prática suas habilidades na arte suave?

No vídeo abaixo, você percebe o Jiu-Jitsu afiado do campeão em uma de suas lutas no Arizona State BJJ Championship, em 2011.

Repare com ele defende um ataque de kimura segurando na canela do adversário.

UFC 150
Denver, Colorado
11 de agosto de 2012

Ben Henderson vs Frankie Edgar
Donald Cerrone vs Melvin Guillard
Jake Shields vs Ed Herman
Yushin Okami vs Buddy Roberts
Justin Lawrence vs Max Holloway
Dennis Bermudez vs Tom Hayden
Jared Hamman vs. Michael Kuiper
Ken Stone vs Erik Perez
Dustin Pague vs Chico Camus

Cristiano Marcello and Sam Sicila at TUF 15 Finale weigh-ins / UFC publicity photo

The Ultimate Fighter 15 reaches an end this Friday, June 1, and there’s promise of some first-rate Jiu-Jitsu to come.

In Las Vegas at the season finale for the reality show, lightweights Al Iaquinta and Mike Chiesa (both from Urijah Faber’s team), will do battle to determine who will make off with the title and UFC contract.

Besides the final, Jake Ellenberger and Martin Kampmann will go toe to toe in a welterweight matchup, while submission wizard Charles do Bronx takes on Jonathan Brookins.

Another bout drawing attention is Cristiano Marcello’s debut in the biggest MMA show on Earth. The former Jiu-Jitsu coach for Chute Boxe academy will be taking on Sam Sicilia.

Check out the Royler and Rickson Gracie student teaching one of his tricks in the video below. Cristiano demonstrates how to defend an omoplata and counter-attack with a footlock.

Check out the complete card and post below: who do you think takes it, gentle reader?

TUF 15 Finale
Las Vegas, USA
June 1, 2012

Cristiano Marcello e Sam Sicila na pesagem do "TUF 15 Finale". Foto: UFC/Divulgação

O “The Ultimate Fighter 15” chega ao fim nesta sexta-feira, dia 1º de junho, e com duelos que prometem no Jiu-Jitsu.

Em Las Vegas, os pesos leves Al Iaquinta e Mike Chiesa (companheiros de equipe no time de Urijah Faber), decidem quem fica com o título do programa e um contrato com o UFC.

Além dessa final, a luta principal será entre Jake Ellenberger e Martin Kampmann, que vão se digladiar no peso meio-médio, enquanto o mago das finalizações Charles do Bronx’s terá Jonathan Brookins pela frente.

Outro combate que chama a atenção é a estreia de Cristiano Marcello na gaiola mais famosa do MMA. O ex-treinador de Jiu-Jitsu da Chute Boxe encara Sam Sicilia.

Confira, abaixo, o ex-aluno de Royler e Rickson Gracie e ex-companheiro de Wanderlei Silva ensinando uma das suas. Cristiano mostra como defender a omoplata e contra-atacar com uma chave de pé.

O canal Combate transmite hoje o “TUF 15 Finale” ao vivo, a partir das 19h25. Quem vence, fiel leitor?

TUF 15 Finale

Las Vegas, Estados Unidos

1º de junho de 2012