Rich Franklin

Video Preview of UFC 88: Breakthrough

In the above video courtesy of ESPN, UFC President Dana White and color commentator Joe Rogan break down two of the fights taking place at UFC 88: Breakthrough on September 6th - Chuck Liddell vs. Rashad Evans and Rich Franklin vs. Matt Hamill.

Hamill Awaiting Tough Test Against Franklin

In the above video courtesy of ESPN, one-time “Ultimate Fighter” contestant Matt Hamill discusses his role as an underdog against former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin at UFC 88: Breakthrough on September 6th in Atlanta, Georgia.

Franklin Preparing for Hamill’s Wrestling

In the above video courtesy of ESPN, former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin discusses his return to the light heavyweight division to face standout wrestler Matt Hamill at UFC 88: Breakthrough on September 6th in Atlanta.

UFC Confirms Three Bouts for “Breakthrough”

The Ultimate Fighting Championship today confirmed three previously rumored bouts for their upcoming “Breakthrough” event on September 6th, when the organization will venture into Atlanta, Georgia for the first time in history.

Former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin will return to the light heavyweight division for the first time since April 2005 to take on former “Ultimate Fighter” contestant and standout wrestler Matt Hamill. Franklin most recently defeated Travis Lutter in April while Hamill is coming off of a stoppage of newcomer Tim Boetsch at UFC Fight Night 13.

Former two-division PRIDE title holder Dan Henderson will try to snap a current two-fight losing streak when he goes up against rising middleweight prospect Rousimar Palhares, who made a successful and impressive UFC debut against veteran Ivan Salaverry at UFC 84.

Karo Parisyan will attempt to put himself back in contention in the welterweight division as he faces Japanese standout Yoshiyuki Yoshida. Yoshida like Parisyan, is also a black belt in judo. He was victorious in his UFC debut a couple months ago, submitting fan-favorite Jon “War Machine” Koppenhaver. Parisyan suffered his first loss in almost two years when he was knocked out by upstart contender Thiago Alves in April.

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CKA: July 2, 2008

With the upcoming UFC Light Heavyweight Championship match between Rampage Jackson and Forrest Griffin on tap for this weekend, some interesting tidbits from the UFC have started to surface.  Let’s get to them.

Franklin to 205?

Ever since being handled easily for a second time by middleweight champion, Anderson Silva, there has been speculation on what would be next for former champion Rich Franklin.  Many figured Rich would move to light heavyweight, a weight class he had competed in before, including in the UFC.  Our great friend Ariel Helwani at MMARated have disclosed that Rich will indeed be moving up.  But even more interesting is the bout set for him, that being Matt Hamill of TUF 3 fame. 

The bout is set for UFC 88 at the Phillips Arena in Atlanta, GA on September 6, 2008.  It will likely be the co-main event just under the headline bout between Chuck Liddell and Rashad Evans. 

Jesse Taylor is back

Continuing on the rumored matchups, it appears that Jesse Taylor’s firing from the Ultimate Fighter will not be for long.  MMAJunkie has confirmed with both fight camps that Taylor will face the man who replaced him in the TUF 7 Finale fight, CB Dollaway, The fight will take place at this months UFN 14 card, set to broadcast live on SpikeTV on July 19, 2008. 

Taylor gained a good deal of press for all the wrong reasons when he became the first TUF finalist to be thrown off the show after he qualified for the Finale.  Taylor, in a drunken stupor, was seen via video tape kicking the window out of a limo and being verbally combative in various Las Vegas casinos via security video.  UFC President Dana White threw Taylor off the show after the completion of tapings.  Semi final losers CB Dollaway and Tim Credeur then fought with Dollaway advancing to the finals where he lost to Amir Sadollah for a second time. 

This card is significant in that it is being televised in direct competition to the Affliction PPV card featuring Fedor Emelianenko vs Tim Sylvia.  At this point the UFN 14 card look like this:

Main Card
Anderson Silva vs. James Irvin
Frankie Edgar vs. Hermes Franca
Brandon Vera vs. Reese Andy
Anthony Johnson vs. Kevin Burns

Preliminary Bouts:
Jake O’Brien vs. Cain Velasquez
Brad Blackburn vs. James Giboo
Rory Markham vs. Brodie Farber
Dale Hartt vs. Shannon Gugerty
Nate Loughran vs. Johnny Rees
Jesse Taylor vs. C.B. Dollaway

Catching Up With Dan Henderson

Former PRIDE middleweight and welterweight champion Dan Henderson talks to MMARated.com hosts Ariel Helwani and UFC ring girl Arianny Celeste in terms of what his future career holds. Interesting tidbits that Henderson discusses includes a planned bout against Rich Franklin that would have headlined the UFC’s upcoming event in England that didn’t happen, the amount of fights left on his current deal with the UFC, why he intends to stay at middleweight, and who he would like to fight next in order to propel himself back into title contention.

Hometown Hero: St. Pierre Stops Serra in Montreal

One year removed from his original upset loss to Matt Serra, Georges St. Pierre was finally able to avenge the defeat, dominating Serra on the mat over two rounds en route to regaining his UFC welterweight title in UFC 83’s historic main event.

The raucous crowd packed inside Montreal, Quebec’s Bell Centre saw St. Pierre surprise many in the opening seconds of the fight as he opted to take Serra down. After being on the receiving end of an array of strikes, Serra eventually worked his way back to his feet before finding himself on his back once again.

Any chances for another first-round Serra knockout were spoiled in a big way. With a mouse forming under Serra’s right eye, the Long Island native came out from his corner looking to throw down at the start of the second round. St. Pierre unfortunately had a different idea.

St. Pierre scored yet another early takedown. Serra mounted a bit of offense once the fight hit the feet, connecting with a head kick. However with fatigue setting in, Serra was unable to capitalize, allowing St. Pierre to land a handful of stiff jabs before shooting in for a takedown.

Once on the mat, St. Pierre unleashed a barrage of unanswered punches and knees to the body that forced Serra to cover up and referee Yves Lavigne to ultimately stop the fight, handing St. Pierre the title that he likely should have never lost in the first place.

“My strategy going in was to make it a physical fight,” St. Pierre said in his post-fight interview with Kenny Florian, who filled in for usual color commentator Joe Rogan. “I wanted to make him tired as much as I could because I know have the conditioning. I was trying to mix it up as much as I could.”

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UFC 83: Serra vs. St. Pierre II Weigh-In Results

The official weigh-in results for tomorrow night’s UFC 83: Serra vs. St. Pierre II show are below. All fighters successfully made weight.

The event will be headlined by current welterweight champions Georges St. Pierre and Matt Serra unifying their belts in a main event rematch of their fight at UFC 69: Shootout last year, where Serra stopped St. Pierre with strikes to win the UFC welterweight title.

Former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin will also be in action, taking on the middleweight winner of the fourth season of “The Ultimate Fighter, Travis Lutter. Additional main card bouts include Nate Quarry vs. Kalib Starnes, Michael Bisping vs. Charles McCarthy, and Mac Danzig vs. Mark Bocek.

Main Card:

Matt Serra (169.5 lbs) vs. Georges St. Pierre (169.5 lbs)
Rich Franklin (185.5 lbs) vs. Travis Lutter (185 lbs)
Nate Quarry (185.5 lbs) vs. Kalib Starnes (186 lbs)
Michael Bisping (185.5 lbs) vs. Charles McCarthy (186 lbs)
Mac Danzig (154.5 lbs) vs. Mark Bocek (154.5 lbs)

Preliminary Bouts:

Jason MacDonald (185 lbs) vs. Joe Doerksen (184.5 lbs)
Sam Stout (155.5 lbs) vs. Rich Clementi (155 lbs)
Ed Herman (185.5 lbs) vs. Demian Maia (184.5 lbs)
Jonathan Goulet (169.5 lbs) vs. Kuniyoshi Hironaka (170 lbs)
Alan Belcher (185 lbs) vs. Jason Day (183.5 lbs)
Cain Velasquez (235.5 lbs) vs. Brad Morris (225.5 lbs)

Screenshots from this afternoon’s weigh-ins featuring St. Pierre and Serra are after the jump, courtesy of Yahoo! Sports.

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Franklin Set for Second New Beginning

With yet another devastating loss to Anderson Silva now behind him once again, former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin is ready to start over for the second year in a row.

Despite his heart pleading with him for a third chance at Silva, Franklin must now use his mind and focus on a new opponent that brings very little familiarity with him in the form of Travis Lutter. With trainer Matt Hume now working with Franklin full time, one of the Cincinnati sports scene’s biggest supporters has a so-called master strategist at his side.

“I don’t feel that I had enough time to work with Matt Hume going into the Silva fight,” Franklin said during a recent media conference call. “If I had more time with him things could have been different but I can’t worry about that now. Going into this fight against Travis, who obviously is a great fighter and presents a solid challenge, we’ve developed a good gameplan and I’m excited to be able to execute it.”

Franklin and Lutter are in similar situations. Both are coming off of losses to Silva. However where Franklin has been physically handled in both of his fights against the Brazilian, Lutter actually thrived and impressed many in a fight that cost him a shot at Silva’s belt due to weight cutting issues.

“I’m training for a fighter that is a completely different fighter than I’ve seen in a while,” Franklin said. “As much as I’d like to improve the mistakes I made against Silva, I can’t think about that right now. Travis gave Silva hell in their fight so I have to be prepared for what he brings to the table. It’ll be an interesting clash of styles and I’m excited to get back in there.”

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St. Pierre, UFC Set to Invade Canada

After years of waiting, the Ultimate Fighting Championship finally made their first trek up to Canada official when they announced UFC 83: St. Pierre vs Serra II during a press conference earlier today at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada earlier this morning.

In attendance at the press conference were UFC President Dana White and current welterweight champions Georges St. Pierre and Matt Serra who will unify their belts in a main event rematch of their fight at UFC 69: Shootout last year, where Serra stopped St. Pierre with strikes to win the UFC welterweight title.

“I’m actually excited to go to Canada and fight St-Pierre in his hometown,” Serra said at the press conference earlier today. “I think this puts more pressure on him than it does me. I know he’s going to come at me hard, but I’m ready for that and I’m preparing for a great fight. I know that’s what I would do if a guy knocked me out like that. But I plan on staying the champ and taking my belt back home to Long Island.”

St. Pierre, a native of Montreal, will be fighting in front of his hometown under the UFC banner for the first time in his career. After originally speculating that St. Pierre would not be ready in time for the event due to his bout against Matt Hughes in December, St. Pierre came away with the interim welterweight belt relatively unscathed, allowing him to partake in the historic event.

“I am at the same point as I was last year when I fought Matt Serra, except this time I am fighting as the contender not the champion,” said St-Pierre. “It’s a dream come true to have this historic UFC event in Canada, I’ve waited my whole life for this opportunity, and especially fighting for – and winning – the world title in front of my people.”

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