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A jubilant Michael Bisping at UFC 105, Manchester.

UFC 105, another action packed DVD release from the Ultimate Fighting Championship and FightDVD.  This fight card was the most recent UFC event on British soil, held in Manchester.

Legendary hall of famer Randy ‘The Natural’ Couture fought in the top spot versus Brandon ‘The Truth’ Vera. Vera formerly a hotly tipped future champ who beat former heavyweight title-holder Frank Mir. At UFC 105 Vera aimed to return to that same form. For Couture this match-up was his first octagon outing following the recent decision to drop a weight bracket back down to light-heavyweight.

The main event billed contest, in all honesty wasn’t the most exciting bout. The Natural did enough to edge out a tick in the ‘W’ column, using his patented clinch game, trapping Vera against the fence coupled with dirty boxing.

Value for money is evident however from the British contingent representing their homeland.

Co-main event position on the fight card goes to English Dan ‘The Outlaw’ Hardy, taking on American Ultimate Fighter veteran Mike ‘Quick’ Swick. On the line for this one was a shot at Georges St Pierre’s coveted welterweight strap.  So stakes were high. Hardy the Mohicanned-Midlander, impressed earning his shot for GSP’s gold at UFC 111. A points win , getting the job done to earn a place in history, as the first ever mixed martial artist to challenge a UFC champion.

Next on the bill saw Michael ‘The Count’ Bisping return to winning ways, following the brutally devastating knock-out loss to Dan Henderson back at the monumental UFC 100 on July 11th 2009. The TUF 3 winner Bisping clashed with French born, former Pride FC competitor Denis Kang , giving the Brit MMA superstar the opportunity to shine.  Despite a rocky start getting floored by his opposition Kang, Bisping defied the odds.

The Count overwhelmed Kang, utilising a ground and pound attack, repeatedly taking his opponent to the canvas, until gaining the TKO win.

Elsewhere you’ll witness another British Ultimate Fighter put in a fantastic performance, as Ross Pearson brutalises American Aaron Riley.

Look out for Nick Osipaczak and Terry in their respective preliminary bouts, 2 Brit battlers who do not fail to entertain.

UFC 105 – a DVD you must have in your collection, as a supporter of home-grown world calibre MMA talent, however it’s a shame some cage entrance music is missing, including Blur’s song used by Bisping and post fight interviews plus The Count’s celebration exhibition match with his son. Notably Andre Winner vs Roli Delgado got the chop from the FightDVD release.

Despite taking a little away you do receive bonus material included in the 2 disc package.

UFC 105 – COUTURE vs. VERA is out now on DVD, available direct from www.fightdvd.co.uk, HMV and all good retailers.

Keep visiting BluRayMMA.com for more reviews of brand new UFC, related combat sports and martial arts DVD releases.

UFC DVD review by Duane Farr

duane@bluraymma.com

The Ultimate Fighter: Team Liddell vs. Team Ortiz.

Wait no longer, The Ultimate Fighter season 11 kicks off tonight, see it on FIVE USA, 11pm. The highly anticipated MMA reality TV series is back. Personally I can’t wait to see season 11 coaches Tito Ortiz and Chuck Liddell back on our screens, they are icons of the octagon.

Not only are the UFC giving us MMA fanatics TUF 11 on free-view but they are also chucking in a brand new programme full of classic moments from the 8-sided cage – UFC Wired, following straight after The Ultimate Fighter premier episode.

So you don’t have ESPN and missed UFC 111? Have no fear your favourite free-view channel FIVE is too the rescue! Catch Dan Hardy in action against Georges St Pierre on  Sunday, April 11th at 11.55pm. The Interim Heavyweight bout between Shane Carwin and Frank Mir gets another airing in the same slot.

More good news for UK UFC viewers, UFC 112 will air at the socialable time of 6pm. Even if you are a non ESPN subscriber you should be able watch the Abu Dabai event live at a bar.

UFC & MMA blog by Duane Farr

duane@bluraymma.com

Day 3 of Dana White’s UFC 111 video blog.

UFC & MMA blog by Duane Farr

duane@bluraymma.com

If you missed the Countdown, don’t worry here is part of the episode. A little Mir, Carwin, Fitch, and Alves all rolled into one.

UFC 100 - now available on DVD

Back on July 11th 2009 took place the Zuffa brand’s monumental hundredth numbered event. I remember the weekend well having timed my Sky + installation so I had no fear of missing this epic card. The biggest bonus of all the UFC treated those with Sky to the PPV card for free, on an obscure horse racing channel, despite all the Setanta debacle plus hours of extra UFC viewing thrown to boot.

UFC 100 was truly something special, drawing in the punters via a hat-trick of marquee match-ups. Making up that trifecta were all highly anticipated fights 2 of which were contesting over championship title ownership.

Team USA coach Dan ‘Hendo’ Henderson versus rival TUF 9 rival, our very own Mike ‘The Count’ Bisping was a fight the fans on both sides of the pond were eager to see, having followed the middleweight contenders coach their nation’s team each week on the MMA reality TV show – The Ultimate Fighter: US vs UK. The outcome of their middleweight showdown was not what I and most British fans hoped for, Bisping was not the best man on the night. Despite the loss for Bisping the bigger disappointment was the way Henderson dived in fist first when his opponent was clearly out of it. It was a brutal move, not good for the sport of MMA, neither was his reaction post fight. If Brit Bisping acted in the same manner smirking, acting all cocky the American crowd would have reacted in a far different way but hey, Mike is the British villain.

The second reason for buying this collectors DVD is Georges ‘Rush’ St Pierre successfully defending his welterweight crown versus Thiago Alves, in gruelling 5 round battle of wills.

The hugest history making moment, making up the third part of the triple main event at the top of the card was the most highly anticipated heavyweight title clash between former pro wrestler Brock Lesnar and Frank Mir. Lesnar solidified his thrown, sitting at the top of the UFC heavyweight division, dominating Mir in brutal style, thus avenging his only MMA loss. In the process he shut up Mir and all the doubters.

Disc 2 includes 6 preliminary fights, including UFC hall of famer Mark ‘The Hammer’ Coleman in action against The Ultimate Fighter 1 light-heavyweight finalist Stephan Bonnar. 44 year old Coleman proves he can still do it versus a man 12 years his junior in this bonus bout.  Further bonus material includes Countdown to UFC 100 plus UFC 100: Behind The Scenes.

UFC 100: Making History is a must have DVD, however it is just a shame they chose to edit some of the post fight interviews and octagon entrances from the live recording. Plus a hall of fame induction ceremony, announcing the new inductees would have completed the package. In the world of pro wrestling the WWE make a huge deal of their Hall of Fame inductions annually at the weekend of Wrestlemania, the UFC would do well to do similar, I’m sure the fight fans would love it.

And why not? The guy deserves a break. In the media the Ultimate Challenge UK1 kickboxing middleweight champion has been made to look a villain, as a member of Team Pricey. Granted he wasn’t known as a fan favourite before hooking up with glamour girl Katie Price but we all know that is all part of the show when it comes to getting heat and selling a fight. Look at the examples of UFC fighters Brock Lesnar, Frank Mir and Tito Ortiz.  A fighter who receives boos is great for the box office.

I have decided to back Aldershot lad Alex Reid, as a fan of MMA but fear the majority of the voting public will vote him out early, due to the nation’s backlash against Katie Price. On the other hand there is the possibility of the cage fighter receiving some level of sympathy following Jordan dumping him live on air, when she left ITV’s reality TV show I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here. Who knows, we shall have to wait and see.

According to many sources it appears Alex and Jordan are back on good terms, in fact Jordan has given her seal of approval to mixed martial artist Alex appearing the show. The press are saying she held a party before the contestants entered the CBB7 house, attended by both Alex Reid and her old flame Dane Bowers, formerly of pop R&B sensation. Oh and don’t believe the hype, that these 2 Big Bro contestants had a punch-up. From my understanding they are mutual friends of Katie Price, not 2 blokes fighting over the former page 3 model.

It’s early days, so far Alex has made  a good impression, interacting well with the rest of the Celebrity Big Brother 7 house mates. He doesn’t come across a villain he is often portrayed to be.

I feel Alex Reid despite his cross-dressing antics the tabloids have all leapt on, he is doing Brit MMA a lot of good, helping it go mainstream. Let’s face it any fighter be it in a mixed martial arts bout or stand-up K1 rules contest facing Alex Reid will be making a name for themselves off his name. It all equals more tickets sold which cannot be a bad thing for all involved in the British MMA business.

UFC & MMA blog by Duane Farr

duane@bluraymma.com

PHILADELPHIA — Top-rated heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko recently rejected the UFC in favor of Strikeforce, where he will begin fulfilling a three-fight deal later this year. Though Emelianenko took his skills elsewhere, the UFC remains open to having him come aboard.

UFC president Dana White told ESPN.com that the offer made to Emelianenko remains in effect. However, White added a wrinkle.

“The offer stands, but only if he remains undefeated,” White said Friday after the UFC 101 weigh-in. “If he loses a fight in Strikeforce, then the offer is gone.

“He is no good to us if he loses. Considering the names of opponents being tossed around, it is unlikely he will lose.”

With Emelianenko a UFC non-issue for at least a year, White has turned his attention back to determining UFC heavyweight titleholder Brock Lesnar’s next opponent. It is commonly held that Lesnar will defend against the Shane Carwin-Cain Velasquez winner — they are scheduled to meet in October at UFC 104.

White, however, put the brakes on that notion. He admits a strong case can be made for the Carwin-Velasquez winner, but White won’t rule out the Randy Couture-Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira winner getting the nod.

“A lot depends on how the Couture-Nogueira winner looks in that fight,” White said. “If the Couture-Nogueira winner is dominant, then it is very possible he will face Lesnar next.”

Couture and Nogueira meet Aug. 29 at UFC 102 in Portland, Ore. Each fighter is looking to get back in the win column.

In his most recent fight, Nov. 15, 2008, at UFC 91, Couture (16-9-0) was stopped in the second round by Lesnar. Couture lost his heavyweight belt in that fight.

Nogueira (31-5-1) was surprised by Frank Mir at UFC 92 in December 2008. Before the loss, in which he was thoroughly outboxed, Nogueira had won three in a row.

Franklin McNeil is an analyst on ESPN.com’s “MMA L

http://sports.espn.go.com/extra/mma/news/story?id=4386444

- So there you have it, after the Strike Force deal has expired and Fedor remains unbeaten he could still go to the UFC but don’t hold your breath.

UFC & MMA blog by Duane Farr

duane@bluraymma.com