UFC 98

Warrior 4 Life – “Professor X” moves forward after UFC release – PRO MMA exclusive interview

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Cage Rage veteran Xavier Foupa-Pokam, a.k.a. “Professor X,” made his UFC debut against Denis Kang at UFC 97. Unfortunately for Xavier, the first-time UFC jitters got the better of him and he lost the decision.

Not one to rest on his laurels, and ready to jump right back in there a month later to fill in for the injured James Irvin, Professor X was asked by the company to face Drew McFedries at UFC 98. It was his second chance to show UFC fans what he was made of.

This time the fight did not go to decision. McFedries caught the Professor with a punch early on, he was able to capitalize on it with a flurry, which in turn caused the ref to stop the fight at the 0:37 mark of the opening round. Subsequently, after two fights and one month, “Professor X” was released from the UFC.

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UFC releases “Professor X”

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After two disappointing losses in only two fights inside the Octagon, Xavier Foupa-Pokam has officially been released by the UFC.

PRO MMA (promma.info) has confirmed with Foupa-Pokam’s agent, Ken Pavia, that his client has indeed been cut from the UFC roster. “That is confirmed and accurate. We can rebuild him,” Pavia stated after being asked for confirmation of the release.

Foupa-Pokam, better known as “Professor X”, earned his spot in the UFC after amassing a 20-9 professional MMA record, with a seven fight win streak. The UFC had big expectations for the devastating middleweight striker from France, but those expectations were short lived.

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INSIDE MMA (5-29-09)

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On the May 29, 2009 edition of INSIDE MMA, Kenny and Bas look back at DREAM.9 and UFC 98 and take a look forward at STRIKEFORCE: LAWLER vs. SHIELDS coming up next weekend. Panel guest Andrei Arlovski talks about his upcoming fight with Brett Rogers. Rafael Feijao and Antonio McKee are also guests on the … Read more

Sherk explains UFC 98 post-fight incident

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On May 23rd Sean Sherk lost a unanimous decision to Frankie Edgar at UFC 98 in what was definitely the upset of the night. The BetUS.com odds going into the fight had Sherk at -300 and Edgar at +200. Even a perplexed UFC President Dana White said after the bout he had not foreseen any way Edgar could win.

Maybe surprised most of all was the former UFC Lightweight Champion himself, who following the judges’ ruling, ran out of the Octagon and the MGM Grand Garden Arena shirtless and still donning his fight shorts and gloves. Reports stated Sherk was running down the street into the Vegas night and at one point was seen approximately a half mile from the arena where the fights were being held.

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THE INFO episode 21: featuring “The Hardcore Poker Show” co-host Chris Tessaro

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"Fast" Eddie's Brock Lesnar chest hair tattoo

THE INFO returned to the air waves this week with guest Chris Tessaro. The co-host of “The Hardcore Poker Show” enlightened Matt De La Rosa and “Fast” Eddie Constantine on the infamous Ultimate Bet cheating scandal, Full Tilt poker and the two companies’ relationships with the UFC. Tessaro and the guys also discussed THE INFO’s UFC 98 prop bet outcome, UFC 100, the WSOP main event, Ricco Rodriguez and gambling’s impact on professional sports.

THE INFO episode 21
[podcast]http://promma.info/audio/info21.mp3[/podcast]

‘THE INFO’ is the official podcast of PRO MMA (promma.info). To download the latest episodes on iTunes, click here or on THE INFO logo on the PRO MMA home page.

Be sure to check out the official Myspace pages of 7 Days Away and A Current Affair to listen to all of the music featured on this week’s edition of ‘THE INFO.’

Catch the rest of “Fast” Eddie’s chest hair tattoo after the jump….

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Dana White UFC 98 video blog (5-23-09)

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Dana made up for not releasing a blog on the 22nd by releasing a whopping four-part video blog for May 23rd. In Part 1 Dana gives away four cage side seats via Twitter. We get a “Cribs” tour of his suite at the MGM Grand that you won’t believe and he wraps it up by meeting one of the “Girl’s Next Door.”

PART 1

Parts 2-4 after the jump…

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Why Lyoto Machida is so special

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Yoshizo Machida laid the foundation

Following UFC 98 this past Saturday night, UFC President Dana White said, “This could be the Lyoto Machida era;” meaning the newly-crowned light heavyweight champion may hold the title for a considerable amount of time.

We here at PRO MMA (promma.info) were touting the praises of Machida’s style a year ago. This was after he dominated Tito Ortiz and so-called “experts” had the nerve to compare Machida’s style of fighting to Kalib Starnes running from Nate Quarry.

For the most part it seems as though his way of fighting has been misunderstood by a large portion of MMA fans because he does not simply stand in front of opponents like a “Bonnar vs. Griffin 1” and slug it out to see who is left on on their feet. Machida’s fighting strategy is practically the diametrical opposite of someone like Wanderlei Silva.

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UFC 98 post-fight interviews with Greg Jackson, Serra, Hughes, and Machida

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Rashad Evans’ trainer Greg Jackson gives his thoughts on what happened at UFC 98 when Lyoto Machida turned off his fighter’s lights. Jackson’s answer is a pretty good indicator as good as he is as a coach and trainer, he was not prepared for someone like Machida who has lived and breathed martial arts his entire life.

Matt Serra, Matt Hughes, Lyoto Machida UFC 98 post-fight interviews after the jump…

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