MMA News and Fight Videos

With less than 10 weeks until fight night, UFC 95, which is scheduled to take place from the O2 Arena on February 21, still remains without a main event, according to WrestlingObserver.com.

Perhaps more alarming is that the early candidate to headline at least one half of the pay-per-view (PPV) show, UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva, has informed the promotion that he will not be ready to compete on that date.

Therefore, a possible match up between the “Spider” and Thales Leites has been scrapped.

UFC 95 — the fourth event of 2009 for the UFC and the second in as many months to be held in the United Kingom — will take place just two weeks after UFC Fight Night 17 (February 7), three after UFC 94: “St. Pierre vs. Penn 2” (January 31) and little more than two weeks before UFC 96 in Columbus, Ohio (March 7).

That’s a ton of programming in a short amount of time. And if the promotion can’t secure a solid draw atop the card it’s very likely that most fight fans might pass on the tape-delayed PPV purchase.

In addition, fans in the area who have already purchased tickets are more than likely expecting at least one marquee name to be added to the fight card sooner rather than later.

The good news is that if there’s anyone in the business who can pull it off it’s Dana White and the Ultimate fighting Championship.

For more on UFC 95 click here.

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Thanks in large part to a five fight win streak in the UFC, Brazilian middleweight Thales Leites could be on the verge of being named the next man to challenge Anderson Silva for the UFC middleweight title. UFC President Dana White revealed the news Tuesday afternoon during a public Q&A session at the Sports USA Bar [...]

Props: MMANews.com

Quoteworthy:

“I don’t think I won either of the first two rounds but going into the third we were where we wanted to be. Going into the third it was time to pick up the pace. We’ll never know what could have happened now. I was in very good condition and ready for five rounds…. He knew that I wasn’t scared of him. He landed big shots and I was there coming forward and smiling at him. I wasn’t in his head though so I don’t know what he was thinking … we’ll see what happens over the next six months. I know that if I get another shot at Anderson it will be more of the same only this time.”

Former number one middleweight contender Patrick Cote is confident that if he earns a rematch with 185-pound kingpin Anderson Silva that he will win. The pair fought for a bizarre 10 minutes at UFC 90: “Silva vs. Cote” in October, which saw “The Spider” possessed with happy feet for two rounds, engaging only in short bursts and timed intervals. Cote then came out for the third round and lasted just 39 seconds — he collapsed in a heap when the meniscus in his knee gave way. “The Predator” will have surgery to repair his injury this month and hopes to be back inside the Octagon by June 2009.

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Over the past couple of weeks several reports have circulated that involve a potential fourth encounter between Randy Couture and Chuck Liddell in Germany in the summer of 2009. Other reports surfaced shortly thereafter and claimed that neither Liddell or Couture were pleased with the prospect of fighting one another for a fourth time. There [...]

UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre is already scheduled to be involved in one superfight in 2009 when he faces B.J. Penn at UFC 94 in Las Vegas on Jan. 31. But might St. Pierre be involved with two superfights next year? According to UFC President Dana White, a superfight between St. Pierre and current UFC middleweight [...]

Can Anderson Silva’s striking get any better? We will find out soon enough — Freddie Roach is among the best in the business. He talks about working with the UFC Middleweight Champion around the four minute mark of the video above.

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A report in the UK-based tabloid newspaper The Sun confirms that UFC 95 is scheduled to take place on Saturday, February 21 in London, England at the 02 Arena. No matches have been made official, however, the paper reports that a superfight between former UFC light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell and current UFC middleweight champion Anderson [...]

UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva (23-4) could take another break from the 185-pound division and trade leather with former light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell (21-6) in a special 205-pound match up in the works for the UFC 95 main event, according to The Sun.

UFC 95 was actually just made official today for the O2 Arena in London, England, on February 21.

Liddell was supposed to collide with Mauricio “Shogun” Rua at UFC 85: “Bedlam” earlier this year at the venue but injuries to both fighters forced them off the card, leaving British fans feeling a bit empty after shelling out their hard-earned Euros to see the “Iceman” headline a show.

Perhaps this is the promotion’s way of making up for that unfortunate situation.

The match up, if it happens, will more than likely be a little bitter sweet, considering Liddell has lost three of his last four fights — he’s no longer the same fighter who dominated the division for two years up until 2007. Nonetheless, he is still a huge draw and a very popular fighter who is very capable of putting on a great show.

Liddell was most recently on the wrong end of a vicious knockout at UFC 88: “Breakthrough” courtesy of Rashad Evans. Before the loss, he had his sights on getting back in the title hunt after a thrilling unanimous decision win over Wanderlei Silva at UFC 79: “Nemesis” on December 27, 2007.

By the time he next steps inside the Octagon Liddell will be 40 years old.

Silva has been unstoppable ever since he made his UFC debut in 2006, rattling off a ridiculous eight-fight win streak. He has not gone the distance, or beyond the third round for that matter, in any of those fights. “The Spider” essentially cleaned out the division and has now begun considering and taking fights 20 pounds north of his middleweight division limit to keep himself challenged.

In fact, he thrashed James Irvin in his 205-pound debut via first round technical knockout at UFC Fight Night 14 this past July.

Silva most recently defended his 185 title against Patrick Cote in a bizarre bout at UFC 90 last month, which ended when “The Predator” went down with a freak knee injury and could not continue. Before the collapse of the Canadian, Silva was bouncing, dancing and perhaps showboating, resulting in a negative reaction from several fans and critics.

He’s eager to get back in the cage to remind everyone what he’s capable of … and Liddell could be the man that Silva takes out his frustration on if the bout comes together, which is not the most envious position to be in for Liddell.

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The first comment made by the fighter, Marcus Mera, is very strange. I don't think ANYONE is trying to say Anderson is washed up.