MMA Hot Stuff

UFC 94 Prefight Special with ESPN MMALive

Another friendly reminder. We're just three hours away from our friends at ESPN MMALive broadcasting the UFC 94 Prefight Special. Watch it here LIVE (streaming)

Also, don't forget to check out the the Postfight Extra immediately following the PayPerView fights!

Kenny Florian: Interview with MMAHotStuff.com

As I posted last week, I had the pleasure of visiting the Florian Martial Arts Center in Boston. This week I was able to do a quick phone interview with Kenny before he left for Vegas where he’s covering UFC 94 on ESPN MMALive .

 

Here’s the interview:

Rachel: Kenny, Diego Sanchez is moving down to lightweight to fight Joe Stevenson. If he were to lose to Stevenson, would you still be interested in avenging your loss to Diego?

Kenny: If Diego gets on a winning streak I’m definitely interested in fighting him again, but if he loses, then I really don’t have any interest.

Rachel: We often hear fighters talk about “being a full-time fighter”, and not having any distractions outside of fighting. You’ve recently opened your own gym and we see you weekly on ESPN’s MMALive, and you continue to be dominant in the lightweight class. Do you find it hard to manage your new responsibilities along with a demanding training schedule?

Kenny: It is tough but I also know when it’s time to focus if I’m getting ready for a fight. Really it just comes down to being very organized.

Rachel: Your brother Keith is one of your coaches and partners at Florian Martial Arts. Have you two always had a very close relationship? Has working together in this journey strengthened your bond as brothers?

Kenny: Keith and I have always been close whether it was sleeping in the same room while growing up or playing the same sports.

 

Rachel: What’s your prediction for the fight between Nate Diaz vs Clay Guida?

Kenny: If it goes to the judges then I think Clay will win by judges’ decision. If not then I do see Nate winning by submission.

 

Rachel: I don’t think you’re on Twitter, but I recently saw a Tweet that someone made about seeing you in your car eating a power bar. How does It feel being a quasi celebrity?

Kenny (laughing): I didn't get into the sport to be famous. It's still funny to me when someone comes up to me and recognizes me and wants an autograph or pic. I am still a regular guy. I just fight on tv once in a while.

 

Rachel:  What ‘words of wisdom’ would you pass on to the guys that are about to start taping the new season of The Ultimate Fighter season 9?

Kenny:  Focus on the prize. You’re there to win a contract, not to become famous or go on another reality show in the future. Just remember why you’re there and get the job done.

 

Rachel:  Every season we see someone in the TUF house talk about how mentally challenging it is being locked up with all those guys and nothing to do but train. Which was harder, the mental aspect of physical aspect?

Kenny: Neither was really difficult for me. Yeah people get on your nerves but for the most part it was just fun and new. But remember we were in there for 2 months! Yeah there was a lot of pressure at the end when my friends and family were watching. It was definitely a stepping stone and great opportunity. Not having that much experience while I was in the house forced me to learn quicker and get more knowledgeable in a short amount of time.

 

Rachel: I know you get asked the same questions over and over. But what’s something that not many people know about you that you’d share?

Kenny: I was into acting and singing when I was younger. Did musicals, plays and sang. Pretty tough eh?

 

Rachel: Is that something you’d like to pursue?

Kenny: Maybe someday. Right now my focus is fighting.

 

Rachel: As you know my site targets women and educates them on the sport. Is there anything you’d like to share with them?

Kenny: I’d just like to thank all the female fans. Their interest is actually huge for the sport and having them see the sport as the real challenge it is, is great. Seeing all walks of life and demographics interested in the sport will continue to help it become more main stream.

 

The ESPN MMA Live team will be in Vegas this weekend covering UFC 94. Friday is a weigh-in special at 3:30pm PT/6:30pm ET. They will be doing a preview special Saturday at 6:00pm PT/9:00pm ET and a post fight extra right after the PPV event. I encourage you to show your support by watching. Let’s do our part to get MMA viewed as a main stream sport and besides, who doesn’t want to see Kenny in a suit?

UFC 94: BJ Penn and GSP Press Conference

Here is a video from the UFC 94 press conference. BJ and GSP discuss their showdown this Saturday! Can't wait for this fight!!!

ESPN MMALive covering UFC 94

Friendly reminder:
Our friends at ESPN MMALive will be in Vegas covering UFC 94.

Show your support and tune in. Information below.

UFC 94 Coverage

Weigh-In Special Friday, January 30   6:30pm ET / 3:30pm PT

Preview Special Saturday January 31 9pm ET / 6pm PT

Post Fight Extra Saturday January 31 Right After the PPV

UFC Fantasy

I've made my picks for UFC 94 on UFC Fantasy, have you?

Ultimate Fight Night: Hermes Franca out, Jeremy Stephens to face Lauzon

UFC.com is reporting that Jeremy Stephens has stepped in to replace the injured Hermes Franca at Ultimate Fight Night, on February 7th.

'Lil' Heathen' is back in action after an impressive KO victory at UFC 91. He KO'd Rafael dos Anjos with a brutal uppercut in the 3rd round. He brings a 16-3 record into theOctogon to face Lauzon who is fresh off an impressive victory of his own over Kyle Bradley this past September.

This should make for a great lightweight battle.

UFC 94 Pay Per View Locations

UFC 94 is sold out!

In March 2006, top welterweights Georges St-Pierre and BJ Penn fought for the division’s No. 1 contender’s spot. St-Pierre earned a razor-thin split decision and went on to win the Ultimate Fighting Championship® welterweight title. Penn dropped to the lightweight division and won the organization’s 155-pound title.

Now they’re about to do it again. But this time, there’s much more at stake. UFC® lightweight champion BJ Penn looks to be the first fighter in history to hold two UFC® championships at the same time when he faces Georges St-Pierre for the UFC® welterweight championship at UFC® 94: ST-PIERRE VS. PENN 2, live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday, January 31, 2009.

Here's a list of bars by state showing the pay per view event.

If you want to list your bar/restaurant, feel free to email me directly mmahotstuff@gmail.com

Florian Martial Arts Center

I had the pleasure of checking out the Florian Martial Arts Center in Boston (actually in Brookline) this last week.

Both Kenny and Keith are great instructors. They take the time to understand where you are from a skill set perspective and what you want to accomplish. They have a Fundamentals Program that teaches the “Florian Way” of finding the simplest and most efficient way to execute techniques.

The Center is extremely clean, well organized and everyone there was very respectful. The students (men/women, older and younger) as well as the staff. It's also close to major transportation so it's easy to get to!

Information such as location, instructor bios and class schedules are available on line: Florian Martial Arts Center

I can't say enough great things about their facility. If you're looking for a top notch Martial Arts Center with premium instructors, Florian Marital Arts is a must. Tell them I sent you!

eww this is NOT my best side!  

Bars Showing PayPerView Affliction Day of Reckoning Fight

Here's a list of bars showing the Affliction 'Day of Reckoning' fight this weekend!

UFC 93 Recap: Hendo & Franklin Battle... Rua & Coleman Struggle

UFC 93 has come and gone, and although the card wasn't what one would consider "stellar", it certainly didn't disappoint (well, almost). So for the first time, I've decided to start handing out MMAHotStuff awards for each UFC event. Here we go!

MMAHotStuff "MVP" Award- The Irish fans. European fans never disappoint. There's really nothing cooler than hearing the entire crowd break into song while the fight is going on. If I were a fighter I wouldn't be able to contain a smile. I'm just amazed that they break into song all at once and with the same song. How do they know what song to sing? How do they all jump into it at exactly the same time? It's not like when one poor section of the stands at a baseball game tries to start a "wave" and it takes a good 5 minutes of pathetic attempt before they get it going. It's like all the entire crowd at UFC 93 was a big group of drinking buddies that knew each other. Amazing... MMAHotStuff loves the Irish fans!

MMAHotStuff "Corner Man of the Night" Award- Without a doubt, this goes to Phil Baroni for his work in Mark Coleman's corner. Coleman was on the verge of collapse at the end of the first round, and Baroni probably knew it. Telling Coleman to "slip the jab and counter" or "set up your shots with some punches" probably wasn't going to get him anywhere, so Baroni stuck with the inspiring "great fucking fight... this is a great fucking fight!", which actually seemed to work. He would sprinkle in a few comments like "I know you're tired, he's tired too", but mostly he just kept saying "this is a great fucking fight". At first I was perplexed with this approach, but then I began to find it actually somewhat endearing. Great fucking job Baroni!

MMAHotStuff "This is painful to watch" Award- Hands down, Shogun VS Coleman. They easily snatched this award away from Horn VS Palhares who were the early front-runners. I'll give Coleman some leeway here as it was his first time down in the 205 lb class, and it couldn't have been an easy cut for that monster of a man, but Rua has no excuse. I know he states that he was sidelined for many months due to knee injury, and that fighting is different than training, but could he really not come in shape? And how many chances did he need to put Coleman away before he finally did? Rua's inability to put Coleman away when Coleman looked as gassed as an obese 3rd grader after running his first mile in PE class was pathetic, and only prolonged the agony of the fight. This was about as tough to watch as Dick Clark on his annual NYE Celebration show. Perhaps Shogun could take a lesson from Ryan Seacrest on how to jump in and put an end to the agony.

MMAHotStuff "Did he see the same fight I saw?" Award - This award goes to judge Chris Watts, who scored the fight 30-27 Franklin, giving all three rounds to Franklin. Now I wouldn't necessarily disagree if Franklin had been given the victory because it was a close fight, but to give all three rounds to Franklin??? What fight was he watching? By the way, judges, you know you did a bad job scoring the fight if the fighter you just gave three rounds to rolls his eyes in confusion when your scoring is announced.

So there you have it... the first ever "MMAHotStuff Award" presentation. What do you think? Any awards I missed?