Strikeforce Signs BJJ Specialist \’Jacare\’
The San Jose, CA based Strikeforce MMA promotion recently announced that they have signed Brazilian middleweight Ronaldo Jacare Souza to a multifight contract. He is expected to make his Strikeforce debut on the same October event as recently signed Fedor Emelianenko, which will be broadcast on the Showtime premium cable network. Though it didnt receive anywhere near the media attention of Emelianenkos rejection of the UFC for Strikeforce, MMA experts know full well that \’Jacare\’ is a top notch acquisition.
In a statement released by the promotion, Souza expressed his pleasure at the signing:
I am very excited that I will have the opportunity to fight in STRIKEFORCE amongst many of the worlds best middleweight fighters. STRIKEFORCE has an extremely deep roster of top middleweight fighters. I am looking forward to the challenge and to taking my career to the next level.
Souza is better known in Japan simply as Ronaldo Jacare. He got the nickname in his hometown of Manaus, Brazil\”its Portuguese for a species of alligator that is common to the area.
He was a runner up in the 2008 DREAM Middleweight Grand Prix Tournament, losing in the finals to Gegard Mousasi. Jacare was in control of the fight until he got caught by a Mousasi upkick that knocked him unconscious. In his last fight, he faced American Jason Mayhem Miller in a rematch of their DREAM tournament bout. This fight ended in a no contest after Mayhem was cut by an inadvertent illegal blow.
Souza began training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu at the age of 17 and fought MMA legend Randy The Natural Couture to a draw in a grappling contest in 2006. Shortly thereafter he began training at Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas. He has since returned to training in his homeland but will reportedly train in the United States at least part time going forward.
MMA fans are already anticipating several excellent potential matchups for Jacare in Strikeforce, including a catchweight matchup between Souza and Nick Diaz.
Ross Everett is a widely published freelance writer and noted authority on sports betting odds comparison. He writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sportsbooks and sportsbook directory sites. He lives in Las Vegas with three Jack Russell Terriers and a kangaroo. He is currently working on an autobiography of former interior secretary James Watt.
Anderson Silva Dominant In UFC 101 Victory
UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva had lost a lot of his luster coming into Saturday nights UFC 101 matchup with former light heavyweight champ Forrest Griffin. He was undefeated in his previous nine UFC contests, but his last three victories had been far from impressive. In his most recent bout, hed pouted and showboated his way to a unanimous decision victory by default against a thoroughly overwhelmed Thales Leites. On that night in Montreal hed heard an abundance of boos from the fans who at one point started a GSP chant in reference to his most frequent challenger for pound for pound MMA supremacy. Even Dana White criticized his effort and finally conceded that St. Pierre might, indeed, be the best all around fighter in the game.
There was none of the bad Silva on display at UFC 101. Silva was simply dominant as he overwhelmed the naturally larger Griffin, knocking his opponent down three times before finishing the fight with a spectacular\”yet almost effortless\”straight right hand. The TKO victory was The Spiders most impressive showing since his submission triumph over Dan Henderson at UFC 82. Ironically, Hendo\”off his own devastating KO victory over Michael Bisping at UFC 100\”will likely be Silvas next challenger for his middleweight title.
The live crowd in Philadelphia clearly backed the likable Griffin and gave him a huge ovation as he entered the cage to Shipping Up To Boston by the Dropkick Murphys. Silva, meanwhile, received a smattering of boos as he confidently strode to the ring to the sound of Aint No Sunshine by rapper DMX.
Once the fight began Silva transformed into the wrecking machine that UFC fans had grown accustomed before his recent run of lackluster performances. Forrest came right at Silva, assuming that his natural size advantage would equate to a strength advantage as well. After an early feeling out process, Griffin flashed a body kick which was caught by Silva and countered with a short punch that sent him to the canvas for a flash knockdown.
The resolute Griffin quickly bounced to his feet, this time flashing a high kick which Silva easily countered for another knockdown. This one clearly hurt Griffin, though he once again made it back to his feet quickly and landed a combination of his own. This was his best\”and last\”offense of the fight. Silva quickly floored Griffin with a left hand that left little doubt to the eventual outcome of the contest.
Silva, backing up, landed a perfect and almost effortless straight right that sent Griffin down for good. The referee didnt even bother to count as he waved his arms over the prone fighter as Silva celebrated his win. Griffin quickly exited the cage and, reportedly, the arena. Postfight reports suggested that he wanted to get immediate medical attention for a dislocated jaw suffered on the penultimate knockdown.
Silva, apparently making an effort to be more fan friendly, did his postfight interview in English with a Portuguese interpreter standing at the ready. Hed been criticized in the past (somewhat unfairly) for not making more of an effort to engage the fans, and conducting his interview in English was likely intended to help change that image. His message was simple: I want to fight against the best. Whoever the best is at the time, I want to fight them. Though Silva didnt really affirm that hed be campaigning more at the heavier weight, that was the implicit message of his comment.
Ross Everett is a freelance writer specializing in casino gambling, entertainment and sports betting. He has appeared on a number of TV and radio programs offering strategies for successful NFL football betting. He lives in Southern Nevada with three Jack Russell Terriers and a pet llama. He is currently writing a biography of former NFL quarterback Ryan Leaf.
Packers Blank Woeful Lions
The Green Bay Packers didn\’t do a good job protecting their quarterback last Sunday, but against the lowly Detroit Lions it didn\’t really matter. Packers\’ QB Aaron Rodgers was sacked five times, but Green Bay used a big first half offensive outburst to coast to a 26-0 NFL victory over the Detroit Lions. Rodgers threw two first half touchdown passes which was complimented by four Mason Crosby field goals as Green Bay improved to 3-2 on the season. The Lions slumped to 1-5 with the loss.
NFL football betting enthusiasts who backed the Packers as -14 home dogs easily cashed their tickets with Green Bay\’s third pointspread cover in five games. Detroit slipped to 2-4 against the spread.
In the victory, Packers\’ receiver Donald Driver passed Sterling Sharpe for first place on the franchise reception list. Sharpe finished his career with 596 receptions, Driver now has 602. After the game, he talked about the accomplishment:
\”It couldn\’t it come in a better place — at home in front of the fans I\’ve played in front of for so many years. It feels good. Now I just have to wait on Sterling to call me and congratulate me.\”
Despite the convincing victory, cornerback Tramon Williams wasn\’t happy with the relatively narrow margin:
\”It feels like a 50 to zero game, but we didn\’t quite get there. I felt we should\’ve put more points on the board.\”
For the Lions, their quarterback woes continued. Matthew Stafford is already out indefinitely with an injured knee, and against Green Bay backup Daunte Cullpepper injured his hamstring in the third quarter and was replaced by the Lions\’ third string quarterback Drew Stanton. Cullpepper is now listed as \’questionable\’ on the official NFL injury report. After the game, he talked about Detroit\’s lack of offense:
\”It\’s very disappointing, very frustrating. It\’s embarrassing to me not to be able to move it on the field and get points on the board. We\’ve got to figure out a way to do that, simple as that.\”
The Packers will play on the road this Sunday, heading to Cleveland to face the Browns. Green Bay will host the Minnesota Vikings the following Sunday followed by a trip to Tampa Bay on November 8. Detroit has a bye this weekend and will return to action as they host the St. Louis Rams on November 1. They\’ll play their next two on the road, with games in Seattle and Minnesota.
Ross Everett is a staff oddsmaker for Sports-1 Sportsbook as well as a widely published freelance writer specializing in MMA, boxing and how to bet on NFL football. He is a well known authority on Internet sports betting, fine dining and fencing. He lives in Las Vegas with three Jack Russell Terriers and a pet wallaby.
Brock Lesnar\’s 5 Toughest Challengers
In the aftermath of Brock Lesnars 2nd round TKO victory over Frank Mir the prevailing attitude toward him from mainstream fans has experienced a sudden and seismic shift. Before his past two fights many were questioning whether his credentials justified giving him a shot at the title, with some even unfairly comparing him to EliteXC YouTube sideshow attraction Kimbo Slice. In the aftermath of Lesnars UFC 100 victory the new question surrounding the former WWE champion has become who can beat this guy? Lesnar definitely is a freaky physical specimen combining size and strength with speed and agility. Hes also progressing by leaps and bounds as a fighter with every bout. Still, hes got a big deficit in experience to make up on the job as UFC heavyweight champion.
Lesnar is no doubt a handful for any opponent, but in many ways has been the beneficiary of favorable matchups throughout his MMA career. More recently, Frank Mir made a serious tactical error, thinking that he could absorb a beating on the ground and wait for a submission opportunity. Lesnar had gameplanned Mir perfectly, and implemented a fight plan that allowed him to pound his opponent mercilessly while avoiding the risk of submission. Neither observation is meant to diminish the significance of Lesnars victories, but to underscore the fact that hes not unbeatable. Heres five fighters who could do it:
1) FEDOR EMELIANENKO: \’The Last Emperor\’ is until proven otherwise the best heavyweight in the sport. The former PRIDE champion has striking power, submission mastery, and may be the toughest fighter mentally in the sport. Fedor might get taken down by the new UFC heavyweight champ, but hed reverse it from the bottom and win via armbar.
2) ANTONIO RODRIGO NOGUEIRA: Nogueira would present Lesnar with another formidable challenge. His five career losses are all via decision and came to the absolute highest level of competition (Fedor Emelianenko twice, Frank Mir, Josh Barnett and Dan Henderson). The Mir fight was a lopsided loss, but it was later revealed that he had been recovering from a staph infection that limited his training and clearly impacting his conditioning. His ability to withstand punishment and take a punch allows him to be patient against powerful opponents and wait for an opening for a submission, as evidenced in his fight against Tim Sylvia. A healthy \’Nog\’ would be able to test Lesnar\’s ability to \’finish\’ matches and would be an even more dangerous submission threat than Mir.
3) JOSH BARNETT: Barnett is another unlikely opponent for Lesnar, due as much to his recent positive drug test in California than anything else. Still, Barnett could be the worst matchup in the sport for the new UFC champ. Lesnar is likely the more powerful of the two, but Barnett is an imposing physical presence himself at 63 250 lbs. Barnett also has a solid wrestling background, with the added dimension of his sizable submission repertoire. As his career has progressed, Barnett has become a more patient and tactically sound fighter and his standup game has improved significantly. Perhaps Barnett\’s greatest weapon against Lesnar is his wide knowledge of \’shoot wrestling\’ submissions that are very effective and tough to learn how to defend.
4) ALISTAIR OVEREEM: Overeem is bigger than Lesnar\”260 pounds and 65 tall. He went through a rough patch in his career during his tenure in PRIDE, but has compiled a 5-1-1 record in his last seven fights. Mirko Cro Cop suggests that hes the *only* fighter in the world who could beat Fedor Emelianenko at this point. Hes got great standup including a kickboxing background that could cause Lesnar problems, as well as solid ground fighting ability. Hes yet another heavyweight that is unlikely to bend to Dana Whites contractual demands, and currently has a relationship with DREAM in Japan and Strikeforce in the US. Still, hes a dangerous matchup for any fighter on the planet.
5) RANDY COUTURE: Lesnars win over Couture was far from decisive, and it didnt have anything to do with the age disparity. Couture got caught with a big shot and it cost him the fight. Until that point, he was more than holding his own. He was making his opponent work hard, had the edge in the striking exchanges and had opened up a cut over Lesnars right eye. The most likely route for Couture at this stage of his career is to drop back down to light heavyweight but should he desire a rematch his experience and toughness give him a chance to prevail. Granted, itll never be a favorable matchup on paper for Couture but at the same time Lesnar in no way proved his categorical superiority over The Natural. New gameplan, new tactics and Lesnar could end up being a victim.
Lesnars next challenge is likely to be the winner of the Cain Velesquez/Shane Carwin match. Both are big, rugged competitors but are also beatable opponents for Lesnar. An intriguing matchup down the road could be against Croatian striking machine Mirko Cro Cop. Cro Cop has battled injuries over the past year or so but if he could come close to the form he demonstrated in winning the PRIDE Open Weight GP he could be another formidable challenge. At his best, Cro Cop is simply the most devastating striker in the sport.
Ross Everett is a widely published freelance writer and noted authority on sports betting odds comparison. He writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sports news and betting odds portal sites. He lives in Southern Nevada with three Jack Russell Terriers and an emu. He is currently working on an autobiography of former energy secretary Donald Hodell.