MMA News and Fight Videos

Eddie Alvarez vs Shinya Aoki - Fields Dynamite 2008
[See post to watch Flash video]

Related posts:

1. Eddie Alvarez vs Tatsuya Kawajiri - Dream 5 Eddie Alvarez vs Tatsuya Kawajiri - Dream 5 [flv:http://www.2hotdirectory.com/vid/alvarezvskawajiri.flv 480...
2. Caol Uno vs Shinya Aoki - Dream 5 Caol Uno vs Shinya Aoki - Dream 5 [flv:http://www.2hotdirectory.com/vid/unovsaoki.flv 480...
3. Shinya Aoki vs Todd Moore - DREAM 6 Video Shinya Aoki vs Todd Moore - DREAM 6 Video [flv:http://www.2hotdirectory.com/vid/aokivsmoore.flv...

The previously rumored bout between lightweight sensation Eddie Alvarez (15-1) and Japanese grappling phenom Shinya Aoki has been made official by DREAM for the Fields Dynamite!! supershow at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, on December 31.

Alvarez was originally scheduled to face Aoki in the finals of the 2008 DREAM lightweight grand prix last July, but Alvarez was unable to continue after his match with Tatsuya Kawajiri and finals alternate Joachim Hansen stepped in to take his place.

Hansen would go on to upset the heavily-favored Aoki and bring home the belt.

Aoki would rebound from that loss — just the third of his career — and submit Todd Moore via neck crank at DREAM 6 in September. The “Tobikan Judan” is a dangerous submission fighter, winning 10 of his 18 fights by tap out.

He’ll have his hands full however against the surging Alvarez. In addition to winning five straight, the former Bodog Fight welterweight champion is a perfect 3-0 in DREAM, with a decision win over current grand prix champ “Hellboy” Hansen.

Talented striker versus talented grappler — don’t expect any long-range jabs or boring lay ‘n pray in this one.

Fields Dynamite!! is the New Year’s Eve supershow featuring a smorgasbord of fighters under the umbrella of Fighting & Entertainment Group (FEG) coming together on one night to try and kick the crap out of each other.

Featuring participants from DREAM, K-1, K-1 MAX and K-1 Koshien, Fields Dynamite!! is going to have a wide variety of fighting styles and compelling match-ups, and could feature as many as 20 fights.
Thus far it appears as though FEG is holding up end of the bargain.

Here is the scheduled card to date:

MMA RULES :

Middleweight: Kazushi Sakuraba (24-11-1) vs. Kiyoshi Tamura (32-13-2)
Lightweight: Joachim Hansen (19-7-1) vs. Gesias Cavalcante (14-2-1)
Lightweight: Eddie Alvarez (15-1) vs. Shinya Aoki (18-3)

K-1 RULES :

Heavyweight: Jerome Le Banner vs. Mark Hunt
Middleweight: Gegard Mousasi (24-2-1) vs. Musashi (49-28-5-1)
Lightweight: Tatsuya Kawajiri (22-5-2) vs. Kozo Takeda (43-18-7)

K-1 KOSHIEN RULES:

U-18 Tournament Semifinals: HIROYA (9-1) vs. Shota Shimada (3-0)
U-18 Tournament Semifinals: Ryuya Kusakabe (2-0) vs. Koya Urabe (2-0)
U-18 Tournament Finals: Winner of HIROYA/Shimada vs. Winner of Kusakabe/Urabe
Stay tuned as this massive card continues to come together.

addthis_url = 'http%3A%2F%2Fmmamania.com%2F2008%2F12%2F11%2Feddie-alvarez-vs-shinya-aoki-confirmed-for-fields-dynamite-on-new-years-eve%2F'; addthis_title = 'Eddie+Alvarez+vs+Shinya+Aoki+confirmed+for+Fields+Dynamite%21%21+on+New+Years+Eve'; addthis_pub = 'brok3llc';

Throughout December we are going to highlight the year of mixed martial arts with a selection of “Best Of” articles. These will include subjects such as Most Improved MMA Fighter of the Year, Biggest Disappointment in MMA, etc. For now MMA Punch contributor Jon Terrazas will revel his selection for Fighter of the Year.

This may come as a surprise to some, especially those who limit their MMA consumption to the UFC. However for those those more in touch with the larger mixed martial arts community won’t find Eddie Alvarez too surprising of a pick.

The facts: After losing his Welterweight Bodog title to Josh “The Goat” Thompson in ‘07, he dropped down to Lightweight and has won four straight victories in ‘08. The W’s are good, but in the process, he’s KO’d Ross Ebanez (2nd Rd - Bodog), Andre Amade (1st Rd - Dream 1), and Tatsuya Kawajiri (1st Rd - Dream 5) and then won a decision in an all out war and Fight of the Year Runner-Up with Joachim Hansen (Dream 3) to eventually become the Dream Lightweight Tournament Champion. He was scheduled to fight Nick Diaz with EliteXC’s Novemeber show before going bankrupt demonstrating that Eddie will fight anybody, any place, at any time. It’s unfortunate that the Dream organization receives very little coverage in the states and little is really known of this guy and his opponents. Eddie has earned MMA Punch’s 2008 Fighter of the Year.

A demo of his brutal KO abilities

Disagree with the selection? Leave a comment and make sure to back up your selection!

Top two lightweights Eddie Alvarez (15-1) and Shinya Aoki (18-3) will finally face each other at K-1 NYE Dynamite 2008 show on December 31 from the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan. The fight is not yet official, but Alvarez’s manager Monte Cox has confirmed the news of fight.

The two fighters competed in DREAM’s welterweight grand prix. Before the two could meet, Alvarez was forced to withdraw from the tournament due to cut following his win over Tatsuya Kawajiri in the semi-finals.

Aoki went on to the semi-finals but was defeated by alternate Joachim Hansen who loss to Alvarez in the quarterfinals of the tournament.

The K-1 show features a mix of MMA and Kickboxing bouts, here are the fights to take place under MMA rules:

Kazushi Sakuraba (24-11-1) vs. Kiyoshi Tamura (32-13-2)
Joachim Hansen (19-7-1) vs. Gesias Cavalcante (14-2-1)
Eddie Alvarez (15-1) vs. Shinya Aoki (18-3)

addthis_url = 'http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cagetoday.com%2Fk-1-dynamite-2008-eddie-alvarez-vs-shinya-aoki%2F'; addthis_title = 'K-1+Dynamite+2008%3A+Eddie+Alvarez+vs+Shinya+Aoki'; addthis_pub = 'modobemedia';

A lightweight bout featuring top five lightweights Eddie Alvarez and Shinya Aoki is now set to take place on New Year’s Eve in Japan at FEG’s “Dynamaite!!” event, according to a new report by Sherdog. Sherdog, citing Alvarez’s manager, Monte Cox, as the primary source for the report, stated that verbal agreements from both Aoki and [...]

Philadelphia native Eddie Alvarez (15-1) has signed on to compete in the Bellator Fighting Championships eight-man lightweight tournament, which is set to begin airing every Saturday night on ESPN Deportes for 12 straight weeks in April 2009.

The former BoDog welterweight champion confirmed earlier this week with iGuillotine.com that the signing with Bellator was indeed official.

Here’s the snip:

“The contract is signed and I got my advance.”

Alvarez is still under contract with Pro Elite, Adrenaline MMA, Extreme Challenge and DREAM. His unique contract, which rotates between organizations, states that if any of those promoters cannot provide a fight for him that they lose their turn. The Philadelphia native is then free to fight for one of the other promotions.

For that reason, he’s not in the same boat as some of the other ex-Pro Elite fighters who are still trying to free themselves from their contracts with the now defunct company.

Alvarez is no stranger to the tournament format. He stole the show three different times during the 2008 DREAM Lightweight Grand Prix tournament in Japan with sensational wins over Andre “Dida” Amade, Joachim Hansen and Tatsuya Kawajiri on his way to a spot in the final against Shinya Aoki.

However, he was forced out of that championship match because of “some swelling” around his eyes he suffered during his semi-final war with Kawajiri. Aoki went on to lose to Hansen — who was filling in as a replacement — making Alvarez the only one out of the 16-man field to go through the tournament without a loss.

Before competing for Bellator, he’ll first face an unnamed opponent at the Extreme Challenge event at the Tropicana in Atlantic City, N.J., on January 23.

The Bellator Fighting Championships will be the first promotion to bring live MMA events to an ESPN broadcast. During the three month series of events that will be aired on the cable sports network there will also be tournaments in three other weight classes, including middleweight, welterweight and featherweight.

Former Elite XC Featherweight Champion Wilson Reis, welterweight Hector “Shango” Lombard and former WEC middleweight title holder Paulo Filho have all been rumored to be a part of their respective weight classes’ tournaments as well for the Bellator Fighting Championships.

Talk about hitting the ground running.

addthis_url = 'http%3A%2F%2Fmmamania.com%2F2008%2F11%2F28%2Feddie-alvarez-signs-on-with-bellator-fighting-championships-for-espn%2F'; addthis_title = 'Eddie+Alvarez+signs+on+with+Bellator+Fighting+Championships+for+ESPN'; addthis_pub = 'brok3llc';

According to iguillotine.com, top lightweight Eddie Alvarez has signed with Bellator Fighting Championships as a cornerstone lightweight in their 8 man tournament style show to be aired on the Spanish language channel ESPN Deportes.

“The contract is signed and I got my advance”

Eddie Alvarez is 15-1 and is currently on a five fight winning streak after competing in the DREAM tournament in Japan.

Here’s what we know about Bellator and its relationship with ESPN:

1. ESPN Deportes will broadcast the events
2. Tournament series is expected to air in April of 2009.
3. 4 shows expected in the 12-week fight series
4. 8 man tournaments, featuring fighters from featherweights to middleweights.
5. Camera crews will follow the fighters as they prepare for the shows
6. Shows will be held at different venues around the country.

addthis_url = 'http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cagetoday.com%2Feddie-alverez-signs-with-bellator-fighting-championships%2F'; addthis_title = 'Eddie+Alverez+Signs+With+Bellator+Fighting+Championships'; addthis_pub = 'modobemedia';

Top lightweight competitor Eddie Alvarez will be one of the cornerstones of the Bellator Fighting Championship’s lightweight division. Alvarez informed the website iGuillotine.com on Tuesday that he has signed a deal with Bellator. “The contract is signed and I got my advance,” he is quoted as telling the site. Bellator will be conducting a 12-week fight series [...]

Eddie Alvarez, one of the top ranked lightweight in the world, is set to make his return to action on Jan. 23 in Atlantic City, N.J. at the Tropicana Hotel and Casino as a headliner for Monte Cox’s Extreme Challenge. Alvarez revealed the news recently with the website iGuillotine.com and FiveOuncesOfPain.com confirmed the news on Tuesday [...]