MMA News and UFC Betting Odds

MMAmania.com has confirmed that a welterweight bout between Englishman Paul “Tellys” Kelly (7-1) and The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 6 alum Troy “Rude Boy” Mandaloniz (3-1) is in the works for UFC 95 at The O2 Arena in London, England, on February 21.

This will be Kelly’s third fight in the Octagon. He defeated fellow Brit Paul Taylor via unanimous decision in a great fight at UFC 80: “Rapid Fire.” He followed that up with a submission (guillotine) loss to Marcus “The Irish Hand Grenade” Davis nine months later at UFC 89: “Bisping vs. Leben,” marking the first blemish of his previously perfect mixed martial arts record.

Kelly has made a home fighting on the UFC cards in England — each of his other two fights for the promotion have also taken place across the pond.

“Rude Boy” will make his second start for the organization. After losing to Matt Arroyo in the quarter finals on the reality show, he went on to stop his former teammate Richie Hightower via first round technical knockout at the show’s finale in December 2007.

That fight was the last one to date for the Hilo, Hawaii, native. When he faces Kelly on February 21 it will have been more than months since his last professional fight.

Both of these guys like to bang it out with their opponents so we should be in for a classic slug fest in London.

UFC 95 is scheduled to be headlined by a lightweight bout between Diego “Nightmare” Sancez and Joe “Daddy” Stevenson. Demian Maia, Nate Marquardt, Josh Koscheck, Junior Dos Santos, Wilson Gouveia and Chael Sonnen are all expected to be in action as well.

For more on the UFC 95 fight card click here.

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MMA News, Paul Kelly, UFC UK, UFC Welterweight Division, UFC on SpikeTV, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)

Jonathan Goulet has been approached about competing against Tamdan McCrory in front of his hometown fans at UFC 97 on April 18 from The Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada according to Sherdog.com.

The “Road Warrior,” however, must first receive medical clearance before the welterweight tilt is finalized. He was suspended after getting knocked silly by Mike Swick at UFC Fight Night 16: “Fights for the Troops” in his most recent outing on December 10.

Prior to the loss, the Canadian was riding back-to-back wins, finishing Kuniyoshi Hironaka via technical knockout of at UFC 83: “Serra vs. St. Pierre,” which earned “Fight of the Night” honors.

Goulet was supposed to face the previously undefeated Paul Kelly at UFC 85 before pulling out because of undisclosed health concerns.

McCrory — a 20-something college student at The State University of New York at Cortland (SUNY Cortland) who also moonlights as a full-time fighter — was submitted by Brazilian jiu-jitsu specialist Dustin Hazelett at UFC 91: “Couture vs. Lesnar” on November 15.

He is already an Octagon veteran with four fights under his belt.

“The Barncat” defeated Luke Cummo via unanimous decision at UFC 87: “Seek and Destroy” and tapped Pete Spratt in his promotional debut at UFC Fight Night 10 in June 2007.

It’s safe to say that both fighters have a lot on the line and need to win to stay afloat in the crowded UFC 170-pound division.

UFC 97 will likely feature middleweight champion Anderson Silva, defending his 185-pound strap against Thales Leites. Hometown hero and welterweight golden boy, Georges St. Pierre, could also be booked for the card if he escapes his fight against BJ Penn later this month injury-free.

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Jonathan Goulet, MMA News, UFC Canada, UFC Welterweight Division, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)

Surging welterweights Dustin Hazelett (12-4) and Ben Saunders (7-0-2) will collide at UFC 96 at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio, on March 7, according to a recent Sherdog.com report.

As expected, “McLovin” — a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt phenom under Jorge Gurgel — will continue his rise to division contender status in front of his hometown fans. The 22-year-old submission specialist is on a two-fight win streak, tapping Tamdan McCrory and and Josh Burkman, respectively, in his last two appearances.

Hazelett has won five of seven fights inside the Octagon and appears to get better with each performance. He’ll be out to prove once again that he is a serious threat in the 170-pound division when he takes on “Killa B.”

Saunders is coming off a lopsided first round ass-kicking of Brandon Wolff at UFC Night 16: “Fight For the Troops” just last month. The former contestant on The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 6 channeled the Muay Thai skills of UFC Middleweight Champion to totally rout the Hawaiian in his Octagon debut.

It was impressive (and painful) to watch to say the least. Saunders has been perfect (3-0) since his stint on the mixed martial arts reality series, defeating Ryan Thomas at UFC 87: “Seek and Destroy” in August and Dan Barrera via unanimous decision at TUF 6 Finale.

He is a very big welterweight. It will be interesting to see how the lanky Hazelett handles his size and if he can use it to his advantage by using his long limbs to secure a fight-ending submission.

To check out the latest UFC 96 fight card, which currently is awaiting a main event, as well as rumors for the show click here.

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Dustin Hazelett, MMA News, UFC 96, UFC Welterweight Division, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)

As MMAmania.com first reported over the weekend, top welterweight contender Josh Koscheck is expected to return to action at UFC 95 card, which is slated for The O2 Arena in London, England, on February 21.

We can now confirm that he is expected to welcome undefeated Brazilian up-and-comer, Paulo Thiago (7-0), to the Octagon for the first time ever. It’s important to note that bout agreements have been distributed but are still unsigned.

Koscheck most recently annihilated the very dangerous Japanese fighter, Yoshiyuki Yoshida, at UFC Fight Night 16: “Fight for the Troops” with a scary-looking two-punch knockout on December 10. He defeated “Zenko” just six weeks after losing to number one division contender Thiago Alves at UFC 90 via unanimous decision back on October 25.

He took the fight against the bruising Brazilian on less than 14 days notice to replace an injured Diego Sanchez. It didn’t go his way, but it’s hard to hold it against him.

The former contestant on The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) has won three of his last four fights — he knocked off Dustin Hazelett and Chris Lytle before the Alves loss — and appears that he is willing to do whatever it takes — and fight as often as possible — to get back in the 170-pound title chase.

But he’ll have to do it against an opponent who is not well-known in the United States.

Thiago has competed primarily in his native Brazil, posting a four-fight win streak for the Jungle Fight promotion last year. He most recently stopped Luis Dutra Jr. via technical knockout (strikes) in round one of their bout in September 2008.

He’ll be thrown right into the deepend against Koscheck. It also appears to be a fight for Koscheck without much upside … unless of course he scores another sensational knockout on cable television in front of millions watching across the nation at home.

We shall see soon enough.

UFC 95 features the highly anticipated lightweight debut of Diego Sanchez against Joe Stevenson in the main event of the evening. Middleweights Nate Marquardt and Wilson Gouveia, as well as Demian Maia and Chael Sonnen, are also expected to mix it up in two very important division clashes.

To check out the latest UFC 95 fight card and rumors click here.

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Josh Koscheck, MMA News, UFC 95, UFC UK, UFC Welterweight Division, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)

Former top middleweight contender Martin Kampmann (13-2) could make his welterweight debut against Octagon newcomer Alexandre Barros (13-5) at UFC 93: “Franklin vs. Henderson” at The O2 in Dublin, Ireland, on January 17, acoording to MMA Insider Blog.

The “Hitman” recently had his nine-fight win streak snapped after getting wrecked by Nate Marquardt in short order via bruising first round technical knockout at UFC 88: “Breakthrough” back in September. It was apparently a wake up call for the Danish kickboxer that perhaps he is better suited to compete in a division 15 pounds lighter.

This will mark the first time ever that Kampmann will compete at 170 pounds. And if he is able to adjust and perform well he could facing some top competition in the category sooner rather than later.

His possible opponent, Barros, is currently enjoying a streak of nine consecutive victories. In fact, the Brazilian product has not dropped a bout since 2004. He is coming off a unanimous decision win over Udi Lima at Watch Out Combat Show 2 in September.

Barros — who has been competing in professional mixed martial arts since 1999 — has a notable loss (unanimous decision) to former UFC welterweight champion Matt Hughes back in 2000 at World Extreme Fighting show in Indiana.

UFC 93 features the highly anticipated light heavyweight clash between former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin and former Pride FC dual welterweight and middleweight champion Dan Henderson.

In the co main event of the pay-per-view (PPV) event, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua will rematch the most recent UFC Hall of Fame inductee, former UFC heavyweight champion and 2000 Pride FC Open Weight Champion, Mark Coleman.

To check out the latest UFC 93 fight card and rumors click here.

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MMA News, Martin Kampmann, UFC UK, UFC Welterweight Division, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)

An explosive match up between heavy-handed welterweights Dan Hardy (20–6) and Rory Markham (16-4) is in the works for UFC 95 from the O2 Arena in London, England, on February 21, according to MMAWeekly.com.

Hardy lived up to his billing as the top British 170-pound prospect in his Octagon debut with a hard-fought split decision win over the crafty Akihiro Gono at UFC 89: “Bisping vs. Leben” last month.

With the win, “The Outlaw” kept his red hot win streak intact, taking nine of his last 10 fights. And the lone loss during that span was because of a disqualification. It won’t get any easier for the former Cage Warriors welterweight champion … he has essentially been thrown into the deep end over a very deep division right off the bat.

Markham is a super tough competitor who has also been on a tear of his own of late. The former International Fight League (IFL) welterweight standout continued that success within the eight-sided cage, kicking off his UFC career with a bang … literally.

He nearly decapitated Brodie Farber at UFC Fight Night 14 back in July, earning “Knockout of the Night” honors for the scary finish. It has to rank among the best knockouts of the 2008 fight campaign.

But that’s Markham’s MO — the Miletich-trained fighter has never gone the distance in 20 professional fights — win or lose — since his pro debut back in 2003. He comes to scrap and leaves it all on the table … just ask notable opponents such as Mike Pyle, Brad Blackburn and, of course, Mr. Farber.

For more on UFC 95, which could feature middleweight champion Anderson Silva in a light heavyweight main event special attraction, click here.

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MMA News, Rory Singer, UFC 95, UFC UK, UFC Welterweight Division, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)

Props: UFC.com

What an awesome picture … t-minus 2.5 months.

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MMA News, UFC 94, UFC Videos, UFC Welterweight Division, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), georges st pierre

Note that Penn also adds that if St. Pierre beats him, “Rush” should be crowned the top pound-for-pound fighter in the world.

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MMA News, UFC 94, UFC Videos, UFC Welterweight Division, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), georges st pierre

Props: UFC.com

Quoteworthy:

“… Toronto and Honolulu get ready, UFC® President Dana White is coming to town along with UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St-Pierre and UFC Lightweight Champion BJ Penn to formally announce UFC 94: ST-PIERRE vs. PENN 2 – the incredible rematch that fans have been waiting for…. On Tuesday, November 18, St-Pierre, Penn and White will head to downtown Toronto for a public press conference and autograph signing at the Scotiabank Theatre Toronto (formerly Paramount Theatre)…. On Friday, November 21, the trio will land on the Big Island and hit Honolulu for a public press conference and free viewing party at the Waikiki Shell.”

The public relations media blitz for UFC 94: “St. Pierre vs. Penn 2,” which takes place at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, on January 31 will kickoff next week with a pair of public press conferences for the monster Super Bowl weekend show. In Toronto, doors at the Scotiabank Theatre Toronto will open at 9 a.m. ET and in Honolulu three days later doors will open at 4 p.m. local time. Fans are invited to attend at no cost and will receive free t-shirts while supplies last, as well as will be able to get some autographs. Sounds awesome.

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MMA News, UFC 94, UFC Welterweight Division, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), georges st pierre

Martin Kampmann recently inked a new four-fight contract extension with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), according to FiveOuncesOfPain.com, ensuring that the Danish striker continues to throw down inside the Octagon against top flight competition.

However, “The Hitman” will do it as a welterweight — the former top middleweight contender will follow in the footsteps of Mike Swick and try his luck in the 170-pound division.

Kampmann was always undersized at 185 pounds. It didn’t stop him, however, from stringing together four consecutive UFC wins, including a unanimous decision over current top 185 performer, Thales Leites, back in November 2006.

His lack of size and strength really came into focus in his most recent tilt against Nate Marquardt at UFC 88: “Breakthrough” two months ago. Marquardt overpowered and bullied Kampman en route to a crushing 82-second first round technical knockout.

It marked the first loss for the X-Treme Couture-trained fighter inside the Octagon and just the second of his career.

Kampmann will certainly add more depth to the talent-laden welterweight division. His road to an eventual title shot, unfortunately for him, is likely now much longer. But it’s not crazy to assume that he could be in the thick of things sooner rather than later with a few impressive wins.

There is no timetable for his welterweight debut at this time.

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MMA News, Martin Kampmann, UFC Welterweight Division, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)