brashleyholland Posted April 13, 2012 Author Share Posted April 13, 2012 Puts JDS at a bit of a disadvantage, dont ya think? Let's just say for arguments sake ;-) that it's Mir. Mir now has had two extra weeks of prepping for JDS when JDS can only really prep for Reem. In these situations the fighters/managers will have been informed and told what possibilities to prep for. They wont change anything in their camps until Reem in 100% confirmed as out though - no point wasting time, disrupting the flow of camp and potentially bringing in/sending away sparring partners until its a lock. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brashleyholland Posted April 13, 2012 Author Share Posted April 13, 2012 Kind of like how he insisted that Ortiz/Liddell III was still on, even after news broke that Ortiz had pulled out, because the last episodes of that season of TUF had yet to air. Yep! And then lo and behold, the same hour that tickets go on sale and he can't legally sell tix to a fight he knows isn't happening, he changes his tune! :-p I believe The Juicer's going with some variant of the testosterone replacement therapy defence when he has his hearing at the NSAC. It's a pretty bold defence considering the problems surrounding the test he took for the Brock fight. Supposedly, UFC have already got their Plan B lined up, but if JDS has been told, he isn't saying, and is claiming that he hasn't been told who his new opponent might be. I'm hearing that its a combination of that and some kind of legal loophole re him not actually having a licence and being out of competition - as in, they could legally challenge any decision not to give him a licence as 'technically' he hasn't done anything wrong. I'm told that it's something that could even force a change in legislation for the future...nobody knows/or is saying anything for sure though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fantabulous Posted April 13, 2012 Share Posted April 13, 2012 Let's throw some questions and scenarios out there and see what we come up with: Overeem fails in his appeal and is given a one-year suspension. This probably means a big deal is made about his past testing issues with the Lesnar fight. In this scenario, what do you do with Overeem if you're the UFC? What would you like the UFC to do? How would you distance yourselves from any stench the whole Overeem situation might bring, especially so soon into your deal with FOX? Would you call for more rigorous drug testing from outside bodies? Or would you bring in even more stringent testing yourselves? If Overeem manages to convince the NSAC to license him for the fight with JDS, what do you think this says about the NSAC and commission drug testing in general? Regardless of whether NSAC license him for this fight or even license him down the road after any suspension they might impose, Overeem still failed the test by a wide margin and he was already someone that most people suspected of drug use to begin with. What does it say about the UFC if they still use him after all that? Even if the NSAC license him for the JDS fight, and UFC would be legally entitled to use him then, do you still put such a neon sign for drug use in a high profile spot? And is it disappointing, but not surprising at all, that however this turns out, UFC will certainly use Overeem again and thus give tacit approval to his methods of enhancement? Do you think they'll even warn him about this or do any in-house punishment? Do you think UFC should fire him, and not a Miguel Torres-type firing but a firing where they seriously never use him again, to at least appear to be coming down on drug use? A lot of questions, I know, but this Overeem situation could have fallout far beyond the JDS fight, and I think this is worth some serious discussion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest codey Posted April 14, 2012 Share Posted April 14, 2012 Overeem can't actually be suspended, though, right? I thought since he wasn't liscenced he was just not going to be given his licence. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brashleyholland Posted April 14, 2012 Author Share Posted April 14, 2012 Overeem can't actually be suspended, though, right? I thought since he wasn't liscenced he was just not going to be given his licence. That's correct, but they can say "We won't consider a licence application for 12 months", which is essentially the same thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Shape Posted April 14, 2012 Share Posted April 14, 2012 Didn't realise this event was airing right now, haven't watched UFC in so long I think I'm just gonna sit back and watch this whole thing. Siver is the underdog against Nunes, what the hell... Good day for the english =D Omg Thiago just got merked Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
damonster Posted April 15, 2012 Share Posted April 15, 2012 pretty good main card, with a sick KO by stann and siyar. If you missed it you should check it out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Target Practice Posted April 15, 2012 Share Posted April 15, 2012 Man, screw ESPN UK. Not only did I have to wait an hour and a half for them to actually show the event because they were showing French football, they then proceeded to cut the Brad Pickett fight (you know, the one that got FOTN) out of the broadcast, and then they ended the damn broadcast early. Fingers crossed, Sky will do what I'm expecting them to do and pick the UFC deal up when their deal with ESPN UK expires in August, because I'm getting fed up with ESPN screwing it up - I missed the ending of the Iaquinta fight on TUF because they screwed up the timings and the recording cut off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjdgoldeneye Posted April 15, 2012 Share Posted April 15, 2012 Brian Stann: Hometown Hero I don't care where you live, Scranton has the densest awesomeness-per-capita rate in the U.S... Maybe not... It's got to be up there. Home of NFL Hall of Famer/Tennessee Titans head coach, once MMA champ and all around nice guy, Vice President of the U.S, starting QB for Penn State (though probably not anymore), and The Office. We've only got 76,089 people here! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Shape Posted April 15, 2012 Share Posted April 15, 2012 Man, screw ESPN UK. Not only did I have to wait an hour and a half for them to actually show the event because they were showing French football, they then proceeded to cut the Brad Pickett fight (you know, the one that got FOTN) out of the broadcast, and then they ended the damn broadcast early. Fingers crossed, Sky will do what I'm expecting them to do and pick the UFC deal up when their deal with ESPN UK expires in August, because I'm getting fed up with ESPN screwing it up - I missed the ending of the Iaquinta fight on TUF because they screwed up the timings and the recording cut off. I heard about this, but if that was an issue couldn't people just watch it on UFC.tv? That's what I did, without even realising ESPN were showing this one. Agree that they need to get off the channel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Target Practice Posted April 16, 2012 Share Posted April 16, 2012 It was on UFC.tv? Damn. Wish I'd known that earlier. The only downside I can see is that if/when Sky snap up the UFC rights, they'll likely move it to a PPV model. Whilst that's not a huge problem (I already pay a tenner a month for ESPN, which I only get for the UFC anyway), I know what Sky are like - they'll try and make every damn card a PPV for £15. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brashleyholland Posted April 16, 2012 Author Share Posted April 16, 2012 Shameless plug time again folks... This is the cover of YourMMA Magazine, a brand new mag about to hit the newstands in the UK covering - you guessed it - MMA. The mag is a little different than most as it is focused on UK MMA - domestic show, domestic stories and domestic talent. With that said, there are features on the likes of Pearson, Bisping and Pickett to entice international readers and for true hardcores, it'll offer an interesting insight into the UK scene. It's going to be in shops in the UK on the 19th, and is available to order per issue or on a subscription basis world wide here. If you needed another excuse to get a copy, there are two articles by yours truly in there; a profile on Bret Freeman, my partner in crime on The Cage and one of the UK/EU's top ring announcers and a walk down memory lane piece on the Freeman vs Mir fight at UFC 38. BUY BUY BUY!!!! :-D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brashleyholland Posted April 17, 2012 Author Share Posted April 17, 2012 If you thought that the UFC weren't a petty little bunch who hold ridiculous grudges, check out what went down with them and Cage Potato today. In short - - Cage Potato (a comedy/satire MMA offshoot of Break.com) had a piece up on the UFC sponsoring Jon Jones situation. - A photo caption contained a satirical 'quote' from Dana stating that as well as sponsoring Jones, he'd be betting half a million dollars on him. - CP put the quote in quotation marks like "this". Normally you can get away with that when using satire, but the article also contained actual quotes from Dana. - Zuffa sent out a press release demanding a retraction from CP for them alleging that Dana bets on UFC fights. - CP capitulated. Oh, bit of backstory - CP were the naughty, naughty site that published a certain UFC ring girls Playboy pics a couple of days before their official release. Same ring girl that was allegedly 'tennis partners' with one of the Zuffa brass at the time. Allegedly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fantabulous Posted April 17, 2012 Share Posted April 17, 2012 Same ring girl that was allegedly 'tennis partners' with one of the Zuffa brass at the time. Allegedly. Is that the current euphemism for **** buddy these days? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
damonster Posted April 17, 2012 Share Posted April 17, 2012 Is that the current euphemism for **** buddy these days? no the current whatever word u used is friends with benifits, don't you know your justin timberlake movies? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoutureLegend Posted April 17, 2012 Share Posted April 17, 2012 Man, screw ESPN UK. Not only did I have to wait an hour and a half for them to actually show the event because they were showing French football, they then proceeded to cut the Brad Pickett fight (you know, the one that got FOTN) out of the broadcast, and then they ended the damn broadcast early. Fingers crossed, Sky will do what I'm expecting them to do and pick the UFC deal up when their deal with ESPN UK expires in August, because I'm getting fed up with ESPN screwing it up - I missed the ending of the Iaquinta fight on TUF because they screwed up the timings and the recording cut off. As much as it sucked having to wait longer than expected for the event to start, you can't expect ESPN to stop showing the French Cup Final, which went into extra time, so they can put on a UFC event which had already happened & they were airing via tape-delay. Also TUF is a live show, & the Iaquinta fight went into a sudden death round, causing the show to run over it's normal timeslot.. again thats hardly ESPN's fault. Always a good idea to record the program afterwards to make sure this doesn't happen. Having said that, i agree that ESPN hasn't been great (failing to show several events including Velasquez/Dos Santos) & i'm looking forward to seeing what happens with the new deal over here & hopefully whoever they sign with commits to showing all the UFC programming. Although i'm not sure what Dana White's obsession is with getting on SKY, sure they have great coverage of sporting events, but it's not exactly a widely available channel.. The most watched show on Sky Sports last year was football with 2.5 million viewers.. The most popular sport in the UK & in a primetime slot. I don't expect UFC events to attract that much more viewers on Sky Sports than they do on ESPN to be honest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brashleyholland Posted April 17, 2012 Author Share Posted April 17, 2012 Having said that, i agree that ESPN hasn't been great (failing to show several events including Velasquez/Dos Santos) & i'm looking forward to seeing what happens with the new deal over here & hopefully whoever they sign with commits to showing all the UFC programming. Although i'm not sure what Dana White's obsession is with getting on SKY, sure they have great coverage of sporting events, but it's not exactly a widely available channel.. The most watched show on Sky Sports last year was football with 2.5 million viewers.. The most popular sport in the UK & in a primetime slot. I don't expect UFC events to attract that much more viewers on Sky Sports than they do on ESPN to be honest. They want Sky because Sky Sports = legitimacy = bigger, better, household name-brand sponsorships. Also if a UFC did a tenth of that 2.5mil number for a live or tape delayed show in the UK, they'd be over the moon. There are no official numbers but the belief is around 30-50,000 for a live UFC on ESPN/Setanta Ireland combined. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brashleyholland Posted April 17, 2012 Author Share Posted April 17, 2012 Is that the current euphemism for **** buddy these days? Allegedly ...not that a morally incorruptible young gent such as myself would know about such things. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brashleyholland Posted April 17, 2012 Author Share Posted April 17, 2012 Another one for UK peeps... ...anyone going to the MMA Show Live/Martial Arts Show Live in Birmingham on the 12-13 of May? Can't do any freebies for this one I'm afraid, but if anyone is gonna head over it'd be cool to say hello. We're supposed to be doing a live episode of The Cage, and I'll be running around with a camera crew for Whoa TV all weekend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Target Practice Posted April 18, 2012 Share Posted April 18, 2012 <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Couture=Legend" data-cite="Couture=Legend" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="26660" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>As much as it sucked having to wait longer than expected for the event to start, you can't expect ESPN to stop showing the French Cup Final, which went into extra time, so they can put on a UFC event which had already happened & they were airing via tape-delay. Also TUF is a live show, & the Iaquinta fight went into a sudden death round, causing the show to run over it's normal timeslot.. again thats hardly ESPN's fault. Always a good idea to record the program afterwards to make sure this doesn't happen.<p> </p><p> Having said that, i agree that ESPN hasn't been great (failing to show several events including Velasquez/Dos Santos) & i'm looking forward to seeing what happens with the new deal over here & hopefully whoever they sign with commits to showing all the UFC programming. Although i'm not sure what Dana White's obsession is with getting on SKY, sure they have great coverage of sporting events, but it's not exactly a widely available channel.. The most watched show on Sky Sports last year was football with 2.5 million viewers.. The most popular sport in the UK & in a primetime slot. I don't expect UFC events to attract that much more viewers on Sky Sports than they do on ESPN to be honest.</p></div></blockquote><p> </p><p> In all honesty, I (personally) would have expected ESPN to show the UFC event live. Maybe I'm wrong, but even despite our nation's obsession with football, I can't see the French League Cup final attracting considerably more viewers than a live UFC event would - especially one that would be showing at a sensible time of night that would allow casual/non-fans a rare chance to catch the event as well. I'm a big fan of both Football and MMA, but I know far more people who only get ESPN for the UFC than I do people who only get ESPN for the European domestic football. The delay due to extra time I understand, because once you've put your eggs in one basket, they're in there - no point changing your mind before it's done, then you've pissed off both demographics.</p><p> </p><p> What <em>really</em> annoyed me was the cutting of the Brad Pickett fight AND ending the scheduled broadcast almost half an hour <em>earlier</em> than listed to show some pre-packaged highlights/filler. That was just a huge middle finger as far as I was concerned.</p><p> </p><p> As for the Iaquinta fight, I noticed that when the French Cup Final overran its schedule, they seemed to have no problem extending the program. <img alt=";)" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/wink.png.686f06e511ee1fbf6bdc7d82f6831e53.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /> I do know that the Sky+ thing is partially beyond their control, but it's not like there's much in the way of live sport on at 4am on a Saturday morning - maybe they could ditch one of those awful motorsport magazine shows they show whenever they think no-one's awake.</p> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fantabulous Posted April 18, 2012 Share Posted April 18, 2012 Add to that we didn't even get the Prime Time shows for this weekend's PPV. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
damonster Posted April 19, 2012 Share Posted April 19, 2012 I have so much respect now for bellator because of the Lombard contract issues and how they are dealing with it. On a related note bellator got part of the ufc contract to Lombard, only 60 pages of it. Must be very detailed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brashleyholland Posted April 19, 2012 Author Share Posted April 19, 2012 I have so much respect now for bellator because of the Lombard contract issues and how they are dealing with it. On a related note bellator got part of the ufc contract to Lombard, only 60 pages of it. Must be very detailed. UFC contracts are MASSIVE. Event the press contracts they make you sign for media credentials are four pages of A4 in a *tiny* font! Think you own any of the pictures/video you take or words you write while at a UFC event? Think again! :-p Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoutureLegend Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 In all honesty, I (personally) would have expected ESPN to show the UFC event live. Maybe I'm wrong, but even despite our nation's obsession with football, I can't see the French League Cup final attracting considerably more viewers than a live UFC event would - especially one that would be showing at a sensible time of night that would allow casual/non-fans a rare chance to catch the event as well. I'm a big fan of both Football and MMA, but I know far more people who only get ESPN for the UFC than I do people who only get ESPN for the European domestic football. The delay due to extra time I understand, because once you've put your eggs in one basket, they're in there - no point changing your mind before it's done, then you've pissed off both demographics. What really annoyed me was the cutting of the Brad Pickett fight AND ending the scheduled broadcast almost half an hour earlier than listed to show some pre-packaged highlights/filler. That was just a huge middle finger as far as I was concerned. As much as i would definitely prefer to watch a UFC event over any football match, that doesn't include my own team, i would put money on the French cup final doing more viewers than the UFC event would've done had it been live, although i obviously have no proof of that. The Pickett/Page fight getting cut was a joke! Not only was it the best fight on the card but they even showed Pickett warming up then cut straight to Johnson/Maguire. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoutureLegend Posted April 20, 2012 Share Posted April 20, 2012 UFC contracts are MASSIVE. Event the press contracts they make you sign for media credentials are four pages of A4 in a *tiny* font! Think you own any of the pictures/video you take or words you write while at a UFC event? Think again! :-p John Morgan of MMAJunkie mentioned on twitter that the Lombard contract is considerably longer than a regular UFC contract. He even put it out there that it may have deliberately been made that long by the UFC due to the fact that they knew Bellator officials were going to get there hands on it, as we all know about the previous (or perhaps still ongoing?) lawsuit Zuffa filed against Bellator. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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