MMA Combat - Fedor vs. Monson Agreed, Koscheck vs. Hughes Official

MMA Combat - Fedor vs. Monson Agreed, Koscheck vs. Hughes Official

Former UFC heavyweight title challenger Jeff Monson (42-12-0) announced late Tuesday night via his twitter account that his next challenge will come in the form of Fedor Emelianenko (31-4-0) at an M-1 Global event, November 12, in St. Petersburg, Russia.

"Nov 12th vs Fedor in Russia M-1 confirmed... press conference on 16th in Russia," wrote "The Snowman."

Monson last appeared June 18 at Strikeforce - Overeem vs. Werdum, where the 14-year veteran of the sport battled Daniel Cormier on short notice, losing a unanimous decision over three tough rounds. Prior to that, Monson had rattled off eight consecutive victories with five coming by way of submission.

Emelianenko's last bout was under the Strikeforce banner as well, although the contest would be his first and last inside a Zuffa owned promotion as "The Last Emperor" dropped his third straight when he was knocked out by light heavyweight champion Dan Henderson inside the first round. Fedor has been stopped in each of his last three outings, and with limited top heavyweight talent outside of Zuffa's grasp, options are limited for quality opponents.

Also in the news, Dana White confirmed that AKA standout Josh Koscheck (15-5-0) will indeed get his wish to step up and face Matt Hughes (45-8-0) on short notice with the late hand injury suffered by Diego Sanchez while training.

"Diego broke his hand, so Hughes will now fight Koscheck," tweeted White on Tuesday evening.

It took less than 24 hours for the promotion to confirm the replacement, as Koscheck answered the call immediately upon hearing the news. The powerful wrestler last appeared in December of 2010 when he challenged welterweight champion, Georges St. Pierre for his 170lbs title; the night did not go Koscheck's way as he suffered a broken orbital bone early in the fight that would keep him sidelined for much of 2011.

Hughes has not competed since 2010 either, when the Hillsboro, Illinois, native was knocked out by former rival B.J. Penn in 21 seconds at UFC 123 - Rampage vs. Machida. Prior to that outing, Hughes had compiled three straight wins topping New York based Jiu Jitsu practitioners, Matt Serra, Renzo Gracie, and Ricardo Almeida respectively. Hughes had no problems accepting Koscheck as a late replacement.


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MMA Combat - Yamamoto vs. Page, Rothwell vs. Hunt Added to UFC 135

MMA Combat - Yamamoto vs. Page, Rothwell vs. Hunt Added to UFC 135

"Kid" will look to regain his old form

The UFC announced on Monday the addition of two bouts to their UFC 135 fight card, which is scheduled to take place at the Pepsi Center, September 24, in Denver, Colorado.

"Kid" Norifumi Yamamoto (18-4-0) will make his return stateside after dropping a unanimous decision to Demetrious Johnson in his promotion debut this past February at UFC 126 - Silva vs. Belfort. Yamamoto will square off with Team Jackson representative Damacio Page (15-6-0) who is coming off consecutive losses to the aforementioned Johnson, and Brian Bowles in his most recent appearance at UFC Live 3 - Sanchez vs. Kampmann in March of this year. Yamamoto, who was once considered among the world's best pound-for-pound fighters has come out on the losing end in three of his last four outings, but he will look to turn the tide once more this fall when he collides with the aggressive style of Page.

Also added to the card, K-1 GP champion and PRIDE veteran Mark Hunt (6-7-0) will come out swinging once more when he battles grizzled IFL veteran Ben Rothwell (31-7-0) at the event in Denver. Hunt made his promotion debut in September of 2010 when he was submitted by Sean McCorkle at 1:03 of the first round; the loss was his sixth straight after starting his MMA career 5-1 with notable wins over Wanderlei Silva, Mirko Filipovic, and Tsuyoshi Kosaka. Hunt rebounded in February at UFC 127 - Penn vs. Fitch where he knocked out Team Deathclutch member Chris Tuchscherer in the second round.

Rothwell's start with the UFC has taken a similar path, albeit with a different level of competition before him. Rothwell was blitzed in his promotion debut by current champion Cain Velasquez in October of 2009, before getting back in the win column with a strong unanimous decision win over ruthless veteran Gilbert Yvel at UFC 115 - Liddell vs. Franklin in June of 2010. Injuries have kept the 29 year old Wisconsin native sidelined for the past year, but you can be sure he'll bring his pressing style with him to the cage come UFC 135 in September.

UFC 135 is expected to be headlined by light heavyweight champion Jon "Bones" Jones in his first title defense against former champion Quinton "Rampage" Jackson. Also tabbed for the card is a welterweight contest where former champion and UFC legend Matt Hughes will defend the 'old guard' against TUF Season 1 winner and one-time lightweight title challenger Diego Sanchez.

Stay tuned for more updates as this card continues to develop.

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MMA Combat - Diego Sanchez vs. Matt Hughes – An interesting decision

MMA Combat - Diego Sanchez vs. Matt Hughes – An interesting decision



UFC President Dana White announced Thursday, April 28, that Diego Sanchez (23-4-0) will square off against UFC legend Matt Hughes (45-8-0) in a welterweight match this fall, although no specific event or date has been determined.

Diego "The Dream" Sanchez

Matt Hughes last competed at UFC 123 – Rampage vs. Machida, where he was knocked out in 21 seconds by a free-swinging B.J. Penn; prior to that bout the Hillsboro, Il. native compiled three consecutive wins against the likes of Matt Serra, Renzo Gracie and Ricardo Almeida, and owns a record 18 career victories inside the octagon.

Sanchez, a Team Jackson representative out of Albuquerque, New Mexico has posted back-to-back wins, including a controversial unanimous decision over Martin Kampmann this past March, but a win nonetheless. “The Dream” is 2-1 since returning to welterweight ranks and has been stopped inside the distance only once in 27 professional appearances.

Why Matt Hughes though? This fight puzzles me for a couple reasons; Diego has been outspoken on his twitter account regarding his desire to face someone coming off a win or with considerable standing in the UFC’s welterweight division; fans have called for Thiago Silva, Carlos Condit, even a rematch with John Hathaway makes sense. At one time, Matt Hughes was as big as it got, but today the 37 year-old Midwest farmer is no longer in the prime of his career.

If styles make matches, this one has all the makings of a stalwart. Diego is more than adequate standing, but has never shown the kind of dynamism demonstrated by the sport’s top strikers. Although Hughes is more vulnerable to the knockout today than in years past, he still possess the kind of defense that should handle Diego’s onslaught. With his strength and wrestling pedigree, I expect Hughes to challenge Sanchez in the wrestling department as well, while holding his own in the submission exchanges.

This is the kind of fresh challenge that could bring out the best in Matt Hughes; should the 13-year veteran of the sport regain the conditioning that made him a terror early in his career, it’s quite possible he could stifle “The Dream’s” momentum at 170lbs.

For Sanchez, there is far more on the line here… A loss would drop his stock significantly at welterweight and he has already expressed the desire to avoid a cut back down to 155lbs. Sanchez like many before him, may find himself as one of those men simply not afforded the opportunity to fight at a weight best suited to his frame; but not to worry, his entertainment value has secured his job for some time to come.


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