Full Contact Talk: MMA discussion

Kudos to the UFC: Ultimate Fight Night 15 will be dedicated to Evan Tanner

UFC President Dana White will be dedicating Wednesday night’s UFN 15 on SpikeTV to recently deceased veteran, Evan Tanner. The event will air live from Omaha, Nebraska and feature a main event from hometown hero Houston Alexander as he faces Eric Schafer. An Evan Tanner tribute show will also air on SpikeTV.  White told the press that the UFC  has also put together 30 second tribute spots dedicated Tanner that will begin airing soon.

Cheick Kongo and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson to join Michael Bisping at Wolf’s Lair in England

It’s official. Kongo and Rampage will travel to England for training. Rampage recently fired his former longtime trainer Juanito Ibarra just after his troubles with the police in California. Be sure to listen to Full Contact Talk Episode 6 as we had Wolf’s Lair founder Kazeka Muniz in the studio discussing his future training of both Rampage and Kongo.

MMA Bad Boy in the Pokey

UFC lightweight Melvin Guillard had pulled out of his UFC 90 bout with Spencer Fisher because he is currently in custody for cocaine possession in the Harris County jail in Houston, Texas. The arrest (not Guillard’s first) was a violation of his probation for a drug charge in 2007. Rumor is that Guillard will be released to a strict drug treatment program once a vacancy is available.

Rashad Evans will face Forrest Griffin But Not At UFC 92

Evans and Griffin are set to fight for the light heavyweight title and its official. Only problem is that the fight will not occur at UFC 92 on December 27, 2008. Word is that the title fight will occur on one of the first fight cards in 2009. Rumors are leaning towards a February date for the match.

The War Machine Currently Disassembled 

Well, this is old news. A couple of days old anyway. But hey, we have been busy recording new episodes of the podcast and interviewing fighters. T.U.F. alumnus Jon “War Machine”Koppenhaver has been dropped by the UFC. Apparently The Machine was finally bitten by its own teeth when Koppenhaver made critical comments about the UFC’s pay to fighters in an unfavorable public statement about the death of Evan Tanner. War Machine also was rumored to have turned down a fight offer from UFC matchmaker Joe Silva. Koppenhaver, just barely out of recent legal problems, legally changed his name to War Machine in court following a battle for the right of the title with a professional wrestler. War Machine has published several irrate and immature diatribes on his official website that probably contributed to the UFC’s decision and certainly places the young fighter alongside recently ejected Jesse Taylor and potentially Melvin Guillard in light of his current arrest. I am almost willing to bet that all of these recent UFC rejects go knocking on the door of EliteXC. After all, EliteXC does love controversy within its brand. Heck, controversy is its brand.

Stay tuned …

Beginning this morning at 9:00 a.m. eastern time, SPIKE TV will dedicate a full day of broadcasting to the first season of “The Ulitmate Fighter” reality show leading up the the famous finale that not only launched current light heavyweight champion Forrest Griffin into the spotlight but propelled the UFC into the successful empire it is today. Most insiders cite “The Ulitmate Fighter” as the core reason the UFC blasted into forefront of mixed-martial-arts. Not to mention putting SPIKE TV on the map as well.

The finale fight between Forrest Griffin and Stephan Bonnar is noted as one of the best televised fights in history. SPIKE TV revealed a few years ago that by the end of the first round of the fight, its television audience numbers jumped into uncharted regions scoring a 1.9 rating. According to UFC president Dana White, viewers began calling friends around the country and urging them to tune in to the show. And the statistics seem to back up this claim. The Ultimate Fighter Season One Finale still ranks as the most watched show in the history of the SPIKE TV network.

The Ultimate Fighter One was the first time in television history that a UFC event was available to a national television audience free of its near $50 pay-per-view pricetag. And the pioneering television series opened the door for now seven seasons to follow from the debut in 2005 to the present day. Not to mention building the foundation for occasional free UFC events known as “Ulitmate Fight Nights” which now number to 15 total with the latest installment airing Wednesday, September 17 along with the premiere episode of the eight season of T.U.F.

UFC legends Chuck Liddell and Randy Couture serve as the first team coaches on the debut season and clearly reaped the benefits of such massive television exposure themselves transforming from underground martial arts champions to celebrities within the extreme sports world. Since 2005 when Liddell and Couture participated in the T.U.F. series, both have transitioned into film and television acting roles and launched successful careers becoming much more than just MMA fighters.

The Ulitmate Fighter Season One Marathon starts at 9:00 a.m. EST, September 13 on SPIKE TV.

A complete episode guide of the show can be found here at TV.com

Segment Two:

The Full Contact Talk panel continue discussion on a number of subjects ranging from Forrest Griffin’s recent success in the UFC as well as the positives and negatives of Brock Lesnar’s entrance into professional mixed-martial-arts. Another special feature known as “MMA Hollywood Minute” is included and briefly discusses Randy Couture’s latest movie. There’s more local music from Tenth to the Moon.

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