Fresh Loaf

Brock Lesnar and Frank Mir at UFC 81.

The sport of Mixed Martial Arts reaches in a landmark  on a number of levels this Saturday in Las Vegas with the pay-per-view broadcast of UFC 100. In many ways the hoopla surrounding the UFC’s one hundredth televised event is one of both a birthday party celebration and in many ways even a vindication of sorts. Not only has the sport survived years of struggle but it has grown feverishly while securing respectable and lucrative sponsorships from corporations including Harley Davidson Motorcycles and Budweiser beer for starts.

UFC 100 finds the once struggling combat sport of MMA (previously categorized as “human cockfighting” by mainstream sports media and politicians alike) and its number one brand name in that of the UFC suddenly in a position of monumental hype. And the hype is working well. It’s growing increasingly difficult all these years later to find even non-fans who have not at least heard of some the heavily marketed names within the sport. (more…)

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CL was ring-side at UFC 88, check out photos and a recap of the main event.

Full Contact Talk has all the details.

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There’s criticism flying around in some circles that Atlanta’s first UFC event is a bit lackluster. I have witnessed some say that the card is merely a collection of former champions tossed out into the economy as nothing more than an event to keep fans occupied until the return of Randy Couture at UFC 91. Couture’s return to the cage may have threatened to steal the wind from the sails of UFC 88, but nothing could be further from the truth. Especially from a local perspective.

UFC 88 is a stacked card built of one of mixed-martial-arts most famous stars in that of Chuck Liddell.  Not to mention that massive popularity of fighters such as Dan Henderson and Rich Franklin. But in Atlanta, there’s the long history of civil rights movement and African-American fame. Especially in the sports arena. And it is this idea that paints in my mind a fact that not many seem to be acknowledging currently.

Continue reading at the Full Contact Talk site.

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Full Contact Talk MMA Discussion Segment One featuring Rory Singer, Brian Bowles, Douglas Lima, Chris Stolzman, David Oblas and Frank Bishop is now available for download. This is the first in four 30-minute segments featuring MMA discussion with Georgia-based MMA professionals that will be available over the next few days. In this segment the mixed-martial-arts panelists discuss the history of MMA as well as current fighters who may potentially make a run for contention in a special feature known as “The Darkhorse Special.” There is also local music included from The Carbonas and The El Caminos. Stay tuned for segments two through four.

Download at the new FCT podcast site.

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